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Black Mountain. \ .t\ 28711 wj
Thursday, November 3, 1977, Vol. 34, jy0 3
Serving —
★ Black Mountain
★ Swannanoa
★ Montreat
★ Ridgecrest
15 cents per copy
Hospital packed for hearing
by Dan Ward
re than 500 persons
ned into the 280-seat
orium at Western North
lina Hospital October 27
public hearing on ser
iprovided by the state's
(m spicialty hospital.
Ireds more left when they
they could not get within
ing distance in the
ay-others left because
> was no parking space
lurty-two persons, from
itors to former patients,
strong and often
lional testimony-all in
r of retaining and
rating the hospital,
ps Claude DeBruhl a and
I Nesbitt, and Sen. I.C.
rford vowed to fight any
osal to close the hospital,
rford capsulized the
ment of the legislators in
g, The only thing cut
dried is the fight there is
I to be in the General
mbly if anybody un
ites to close Western
h Carolina Hospital.’
6. Congressman Lamar
;er of Black Mountain
in aide, Sue Peek, with a
ten statement from him
ng that the hospital
lin open. He also
amended utilizing empty
for non-violent mental
wts or as a half-way house
alcoholics and addicts. *
hUe most testimony was
ratients and employees on
effectiveness of the
ital and the need for
staining care where
ents could be visited easily
family and friends, a
iber of persons from other
ncies told how their
grams were dependent on
hospital.
Iversog Riddle, director
the Western Carolina
ter, pointed out that the
||tal cares for 44 residents
lected with the Morgan ton
ter He also noted that
'e are 50 more han
ipped and retarded per
sons on a waiting list to get
into the facitility. Riddle also
noted that although it costs
$600,000 each year to care for
those persons, $500,000 of that
amount is federal money that
would be lostwith the hospit -
al's closing.
Dr. John Ralston, medical
director of the Alcoholic
Rehabilitation Unit, noted that
the ARC and Detox units use
the hospitals labs, X-ray
facilities, services and
cooking facilities. He also
noted that many alcoholics
are heavy smokers and show
acute respiratory problems
that are treated at the
hospital.
Irene Stephenson, co
ordinator of the XYZ Club and
other activities for the elderly,
noted that many of the
hospital’s patients are elderly
and unable to drive to the
hospital for treatment. “How
are we going to transport
these people to another
location?’she asked.
Ed Weber, representing the
Swannanoa Valley Chamber
of Commerce, noted that over
half the hospital’s costs are
returned to the state.
Others testified that the
hospital provides on-the-)>b
training for area students in
the health care fields,
provides consulting to clinics
in this part of the state, and is
-{MkHeliv jp flje
treafanent of cancer patier.is.
Buncombe County
Sheriff Tom Morrissey, who
has a retarded da tighter .said
that the hospital is needed to
provide proper care for the
retarded children in the
Satellite Unit and that the
Detox unit, dependent on the
hospital, has kept 2000 drunks
out of Buncombe County jails
each year. “It’s been shown
over and over again that
centralization of services is
devastating,’ Morrissey said.
Joe Gray, of the American
Veterans, noted that 67 per
cent of the cost of patient care
at the hospital is paid for by
private insurance campanies.
“If you are looking to save
state funds, look elsewhere.
This center is not funded
primarily by state funds,’Cray
said.
Other speakers included
Black Mountain Aid. Tom
Sobol, who said, “Whatever
the town government of Black
Mountain can do, we will do, to
keep this hospital open.’
Black Mountain Aid. A.F.
Tyson said, “We are disturbed
at attempts to close this
hospital.
Black Mountain Aid. A.F.
Tyson said, “We are
disturbed at attempts to close
this hospital.. In fact, we are
disturbed every two years,’
referring to repeated
proposals to close it. Tyson
also echoed a popular
statement that “one of the
brightest days in the history of
Western North Carolina was
when they appropriated
money to build this hospital.’
The task force was at the
hospital to examine the
facitilities and hear citizen
input into the effectiveness of
its treatment. The task force
will also examine facilities at
the state’s other two specialty
hospitals in McCaine and
Wilson. The task force will
provide Secretary of Human
Resources Sarah Morrow with
their findings.
A slogan used by a number
of speakers, “It’s along way
from Murphy to McCaine,’
referred to a proposal in the
last session of the General
Assembly to close the WNC
Hospital and the one in Wilson
to save the state an estimated
$2.8 million. Specialized
health care, according to the
Base Budget Committee
subcommittee proposal,
would be consolidated at the
McCaine facility.
Although the task force will
not be responsible for making
recommendations to the
legislature, Davie Black
received an ovation for
suggesting they recommend
raising the cigarette tax from
two cents to finance treatment
of respiratory diseases.
The hearing was not without
its humor. One Swannanoa
man, a hospital employee,
compared the western part of
the state to cn udder with a
nipple ending in Raleigh,
where “we are being sucked
dry!
Board, issues on ballot
by Dan Ward
The Buncombe County
Board of Elections has an
nounced that the polling (dace
for Black Mountain Precinct 3
has again been changed.
Because legal notices of the
polling places have already
been published listing the
Ne-'t as the Srd
) recinct polling place, Lane
Tomahawk the Clubhouse will
not be used.
Polling places for the
November 8 elections will be:
Black Mountain, 2nd prednct
- Black Mountain Primary
School, Black Mountain 3rd
Precinct-Eagles Nest, and
Montreat-Assembly Inn for
Town Board elections.
Also to be voted on are two
referendums-the issuance of
Clean Water Bonds and the
issuance of highway bonds,
whether or not to make county
school board elections non
partisan, and five con
stitutional amendments-the
right of a husband to the
Homestead exemption, the
right of the husband to equal
insurance rights to his wife,
gubernatorial succession, the
right of municipalities to own
public utilities and main
taining a mandatory balanced
state budget
On those issues, voters in
Swannanoa 1st Precinct will
vote at the Fire Department,
Swannanoa 2nd at Swannanoa
&$ool and Riceville at the
icevlile Fire Deparftnent.
Black Mountain 1st Precinct
will vote at Owen High School
and Black Mountain Precinct
4 and Ridgecrest at the
Montreat Assembly Inn.
Polls will be open from 6:30
a.m. to 7:30 pjn.
Candidates for mayor in
Black Mountain are Margaret
Slagle and Tom Sobol. Can
didates for alderman in Black
Mountain are Ross Taylor,
Michael Begley, Mark
Hooper, John Klutz, Jean
Standley, Charles Wise,
Bentley Leonard, Don
Hoefling, Jim Norton, Naomi
Brigman, Ruth Brandon and
Alfred Tyson.
Candidates for councilman
lay Ritchie DesChamps
I Doll art “a past time ”
by Dan Ward
toes were, according to
1 Ritchie DesChamps of
nnanoa, that all a little
had to play with were
ten dishes, acorns and
1 that Ma made from
gs she had around the
dolls Mrs. DesChamps
« from comhusks now
•t likely to be playthings
children. In fact, two of
n are in the Smithsonian
Hute in Washington.
rs DesChamps, a
member of the Southern
Highlands Craftsman Guild
for the past 50 years, makes
about 100 dolls each year now
for Guild shops in the
mountains. At one time, she
was making 900 each year for
less than a dollar each.
“Now, I dont even do
enough for all the Guild shops,’
she said. She doesnt sell any
herself, and shuns publicity
because, as she says, “I dont
like it when people come in to
see the dolls-it disturbs my
day.’
Mrs. DesChamps made her
first comhusk doll 31 years
ago for her cruioren. Recently,
she finished another doll for a
grandchild. This one was
especially personalized-on its
head was a lock of Grandma*
hair.
“When I was a child, M-s.
DesChamps, said, “my
mother used to make us rag
dolls. We would make paper
dolls out of the pages of the
Sears and Roebuck catalogue.’
Although making the dolls
may have been something of a
living once, now it is mainly a
pastime and occasional
alternative to house chores.
“I don’t know-it’s list a
hobby. I do a little bit at a
time,’she said. She prefers to
work on only one part of the
doll’s anatomy at a time,
sitting down and doing a few
heads, or a few arms at a
time.
“Now I take extra special
time on them-' cause they sell
so high,'she said. Accessories
include colored edgings on the
dresses, crocheted baskets
and umbrellas and scarves,
and even tiny ladderback
chairs with caned seats.
Mrs. DesChamps shares her
hobby with six sisters-all who
learned it from her. One of
them was featured in a
magazine in Vermont for her
doll-making.
Mrs. DesChamps herself
has been the subject of a
number of magazine and book
articles. She has been in
National Geographic and
the Avondale Mills trade
magazine.
She and her dolls have also
been the subjects of articles in
three books-The Craftsman in
America, Artisans of the
Appalachians by Black
Mountain photographer Ed
Dupuy, and Time-Life’s The
Border States.
Although she has thousands
of dolls behind her ranging
from two-inch babies to a 26
inch Southern Belle, Mrs.
DesChamps' work hasn’ t
become old hat.
“I leam something new all
the time,’she said.
See “How to make a cor
nhuak doll’ elswhere In this
issue.
in Montreat are Steve Aceto,
Frances Foreman, Andy
Andrews, John Abernethy,
and Ivan Stafford.
“mmm mm
RAGGEDY ANN AND ANDY made a once-ayear
appearance at a kindergarten party in Black
Mountain on Halloween. (Dan Ward)
Volunteers make FoodStampProgram work
by Mary Durant
Volunteer helpers with the
Black Mountain Food Stamp
program met on Friday
morning, October 27, at Dr.
John Wilson’s home for a
briefing by Rita Roberts,
Outreach Coordinator of
Buncombe County’s Food
Stamp program. Present
were Dorothy AUeq, Charlotte
Bridgman, Eunice Brunson,
Polly Douglas, Ken and Mary
Durant, Hugo and Sybil
Thompson, and Nancy
Wilson. Meta Hoover was
unavoidably absent. Purpose
of the meeting was to further
our effectiveness as helpers.
The Volunteers’ job is to
prepare forms jointly with
applicants, for scrutiny and
completion by professional
Slagle attends workshop
by Dan Ward
Black Mountain Mayor
Slagle was one of seven
representatives from North
Carolina at a conference on
Balanced Growth and
Economic Development
within the Appalachian
region.
The conference, held in
Charleston W Va October 27
through 29, was sponsored by
the Appalachian Regional
Commission, which will use
the conference findings to
make recommendations to
state and federal officials.
Mrs. Slagel was appointed
to the Task Force on En
vironment and Natural
Resources at the conference
through the League of
Municipalities.
The mayor, who has
reported her impressions to
Gov. Jim Hunt, said there
were three major topics
within her task force that
affected North Carolina and
Black Mountain in par
ticular.
The most far-ranging was a
proposal at the conference to
promote a severance tax to
consumers on coal to
revitalize coal towns. Mrs.
Slagle said she opposed such a
tax, since coal companies
stood to gain more than the
residents. She said
revitalization should be
funded on a local scale.
Two topics of greater im
portance to the Swannanoa
Valley were discussions on
how more money could be
made on tourism, and ob
taining federal funding to
encourage small businesses
relating to wood products
especially as low-coat fuel.
Activities included a
banquet attended by Vice
President Walter Mondale.
who in each case must make
the final decision as to
eligibility, amount of stamps
granted, and their cost.
Volunteers received their
first briefing on May 27 after
the program was removed
from City Hall. Shortly after
that the Board of United
Methodist Church generously
offered their facilities. The
Rev. Harwood Myers reports,
“We have had no problem at
all with the Food Stamps. Our
church is happy to have its
facilities used for such a good
purpose.’
Skeptics concerned about
fraud are invited to visit a
stamp session and examine
the searching inventory that is
taken of income, assets,
family size, rent, and medical
and other expenses. All of
these data must be
documented by receipts,
canceled checks, etc. With
obviously necessary ex
ceptions such as mothers of
young children, every able
bodied person 18-65 years of
age must register for work.
Authorizations must be
renewed every two months.
An article in the Neap of
October 20 painted a bleak
picture of North Carolina’s
elderly poor, stating that onlj
about six percent of thoec
eligible are participating in
the Fook Stamp program.
Mrs. Roberts was glad to be
able to report that Buncombe
County seems to have been
one of the most successful
counties in reaching such
people.
Our local Stamp sessions
take place on the first Friday
of each month from 1 to 4 p.m.
at the Black Mountain United
Methodist Church. The
number of people served
averages about 35. Ap
plications may be made there
or at the County Social Service
Department in Asheville,
where also questions will be
answered by phone. Needy
persons who lack tran
sportation or are physically
disabled will be visited in their
homes if they will make their
problems known.
Our Valley part three
R idgecrest grows from stage stop
by Dan Ward
Ed. Note-This article if
thlrdiaa sketchy series on the
history of the Swannanoa
Valley. The main source for
this segment Is Fading Hi
Lights la Our Swannanoa
Valley, by Fred E. Mitchell.
Before Ridgecrest became
well-known as a center for
those interested in tran
sporting souls to Heaven, it
was prominent as a
transportation center of a
more worldly nature.
In the early 1800s,
Ridgecrest, or Swannanoa
Gap Station, as it was known.
was a stopover on the stage
route from Old Fort to
Asheville. The area was noted
by travellers for its thick
rhododendron groves and a
free-flowing mountain spring.
In 1857, Mill Creek Road and
Old US 70, the stage route, was
covered with a double deck of
wood and made into a turn
pike. Swannanoa Gap Station
became the toll gate for the
modem road. Until im
provements were made,
stagecoaches travelling from
Old Fort to the station had
larger wheels on one side than
on the other, to accomodate
the slope of the road. At
Ridgecrest, wheels were
Swannanoa Fire
The Swannanoa Volunteer
Fire Department will be
honored with an Appreciation
Day by the Ladies
Auxiliary in honor of Volun
teer Fire Department Week
November 6 through 12, as
proclaimed by President
Carter.
The Appreciation Day will
be November 6 from 2 to 5
p.m. at the fire station. Light
refreshments will be served.
On October 31, the Ladies
Auxiliary and the Fire
Department held a get
together at the fire depart
ment.
The department answered
one call last week. One truck
and 15 men were called to
wash down a gas spill at the
Mr. Zip store from a tank
truck overflow on October 27.
changed for the trip back
down.
The glory of the modern
turnpike was short-lived. In
1879, the rail connection
between Old Fort and
Asheville was completed in
the tunnel just east of the
conference center. At the
expense of 125 convict lives,
the greatest engineering feat
in American railroad history
made transportation of goods
to and from the Swannanoa
Valley simple.
In honor of the engineer of
the eastbound locomotive at
the rail connection, Swan
nanoa Gap Station became
known as Terrell’s Station.
Later the name was changed
to Blue Mont, in recognition of
the Blue Mont Inn, built at the
approximate site of the
Variety Store in Ridgecrest.
In 1902, O.L. Stringfield, a
member of the N.C. Baptist
Assembly, reported to the
assembly that he had found
the ideal site for assembly
grounds-at Blue Mont.
In order to buy the property,
the assembly divided it into SO
lots and sold enough lots to
make a down-payment of
$8,500 to the two former
owners.
In June, 1902, the first
congregation, eight in all,
gathered under the sky on log
seats to hear the first sermon
at the M.C. Baptist Assembly
grounds.
Later, to avoid confusion in
telegraph services, assembly
leaders changed the name of
their new development to
Ridgecrest, because Blue
Mont had the same ab
breviation as neighboring
Black Mountain.
Black Mountain
Fire Department
The Black Mountain Fire
Department answered seven
calls last week.
On October 26, they an
swered two calls on
overheated stoves. One truck
and 14 men responded to the
Floyd Crisp residence on
Ruby Avenue. No damage
was reported. Two trucks and
%
Police Report
cidents and assisted Sheriff’s
Police in issuing a warrant.
Police reported very little
vandalism on Halloween
night. They answered a total
of 85 calls last week.
The Black Mountain Police
captured a runaway from the
Juvenile Evaluation Center,
issued four traffic citations,
arrested two for public drunk,
investigated three auto ac
18 men responded to a report
of an overheated stove at the
Jerry Stafford residence on
Lytle Cove Road. Minor
damage was reported.
On October 28, two trucks
and 17 men put out a truck fire
on U.S. 70 east and one truck
and 17 men put out a brush fire
on Beach Street.
On October 80, one truck and
16 men put out leaf fires at two
locations on Laurel Avenue.
Also that day, one track and
eight men were called to wash
down after a wreck on U.S. 70
west at Blue Ridge Road.
The County Ambulance
Service made four emergency
runs, 16 routine runs and was
not needed on one.