Making History At SMS
A Shallotte Middle School team will
compete in the state History Bowl after
winning the local round. Page 9-A.
One Great Crappler
William Stanley heads the all-county team
and is named West's first county Wrestler
of the Year. Page 10-B.
THF bd??"W|ck,
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Thirty-Second Year, North Carolina, Thursday, March 3. 1994
Three Little Princesses
Tiny, Junior and Teen Miss Brunswick County
are crowned in a night of pageantry at
Supply Elementary. Page 5-B.
Beacon
50? Per Copy 40 Pages, 3 Sections, Plus Inserts
Uh, Deer!
Whose Bones
Were Under
That Purse?
BY ERIC CARLSON
It was a grisly discovery, with all
the makings for a True Detective
magazine story.
A woman's purse was found
Tuesday afternoon in a wooded area
off Georgetown Road between The
Pearl and Sandpiper Bay golf cours
es. Identification cards and papers
were scattered about the scene.
But there was something else.
Something unsettling.
Beneath the purse was a pile of
bones anil decomposed flesh. The
person who called 911 couldn't tell
if they were human, but they were
big enough to be.
Deputies and detectives con
verged on the spot The first officer
on the sccnc secured the area to pre
vent anyone from disturbing evi
dence. The State Bureau of
Investigation crime scene investiga
tor was summoned.
Other authorities tried to make
contact with someone at the address
listed on the identification cards
Arriving a short time later. Sheriff
John Carr Davis and Detective Tom
Hunter parked along Georgetown
Road. Approaching carefully to pre
serve the crime scene, Hunter exam
ined the remains. He came back
with his report.
"Deer bones," he said.
It was about that time that the
Hendersonville woman named on
the identification cards called to re
port thai tier bones were quite all
right, thank you. However, she said
her purse had been stolen recently.
Il appeared that the purse had
been tossed from a vehicle and was
later hit by a roadside mower, which
threw the contents onto the deer car
cass. Hunter said. Ironically, it was
probably the same deer that a sher
iffs deputy hit while on patrol a few
years ago, Hunter said.
"All units back in service," the
sheriff radioed.
Case closed.
Inside...
Birthdays 2B
Business News 11C
Calendar 10A
Church News 12A
Club Briefs .2B
Classified 1-lOC
Crime Report 12C
CROSSWORD 9A
Court Docket I4A
Golf 12B
Obituaries 12A
Opinion 4-5A
People In The News 4B
Plant Doctor, .3B
Sports 8-1 IB
Television 6-7B
STAFF PHOTO BY DOUG RUTTfcR
Spring Training
West Brunswick High School's Josh Baker delivers a pitch during
the Trojans' scrimmage game Saturday against the visiting New
Hanover Wildcats. The high school spring sports season is less
than two weeks away. West's baseball team opens the season
March 15 at Wilmington Hoggard.
County GOP Eyeing
Way To Name Ballot
Replacement For Fairley
IIY SUSAN USHER
A Brunswick County Board of Education member's
decision to end his bid for re-election has the local C)OP
organization looking at options for getting someone
else's name on the ballot in November.
After fellow school board members rescinded a policy
Republican Bill Fairlcy considered a key to improve
ment of the county schools, the first-term member said
last week he will no longer seek re-election.
He has not formally withdrawn as a candidate, giving
Brunswick County Republican Party officials time to
consider its alternatives.
The Southport attorney had been one of two
Republican candidates for the Di.siiiU 3 scat. Eric
Pfeiffer of Eong Beach had already submitted his formal
withdrawal from the race to the Brunswick County
Board of Elections.
If Fairley were to also formally withdraw before the
May 3 primary, that would leave the GOP without a can
didate. and possibly no chance of naming another.
Party Chairman Shirley Babson said Tuesday that
Fairley is willing to wait until after the primary to for
mally withdraw if need be to allow a replacement to be
named.
Whether that's necessary depends on one's interpreta
tion of state election law.
L.ynda Britt. supervisor of the Brunswick County
Board of Elections, said that election law provides a pro
cedure for a political party to replace a "nominee."
The party primary is the vehicle for choosing its nom
inee. Write-in candidates are allowed.
"After May 5 he will he the nominee. Fairley would
automatically become the nominee after the primary if
he is unopposed." said Britt.
If he resigns at that point, the GOP Executive
Committee can vote on a replacement for the Nov. 8 bal
lot, she said.
That nominee would face Democrat Billy Carter, who
lost the Democratic primary for the seat in 1992, but is
unopposed this time out.
Babson said she is waiting to hear from the State
Board of Elections and the state GOP organization's at
torney on when a replacement can be named.
If the party can act before the primary. Babson said
she would ask the GOP Executive Committee to vote at
its March 1(1 meeting on a replacement for Fairley.
"I was sorry to see him (Fairley) resign and I did try
to talk him out of it." said Babson. "But the important
thing is we will have a good candidate on the ballot."
She has received three recommendations on how to
fill the slot. One of those options would be to give it to
(See FAIRLEY'S, Page 2-A)
Mirror Maker Plans Pelican Plant Purchase
BV ERIC" CARLSON said. Within 12 to IS months after opening, the opera
Thanks to the efforts of a Shell Point retiree, a tion would likely employ MX)-150 people, nearly all to
Michigan manufacturing firm plans to buy the former be hired locally. Schmidt also plans to seek former
Pelican Manufacturing Co. building in Shallotte and Pelican employees to work at the plant, Comeford said.
may re-hire many of the workers who were laid off The company considered constructing a new building
when the sewing plant closed last December. at the II-acre South Brunswick Islands Committee of
The Mirrorlite company of Rockwood, Mich., makers UK) industrial park site on N.C. 130 west of Shallotte.
of bus and truck mirrors, plans to open a new branch of But the Pelican building was chosen instead.
its operations in Brunswick County and is currently ne- c , ? , .. ..
o_-.u * u ii Schmidt is currently negotiating a purchase of the
gotiating the purchase of the Smith Avenue building, ac- , ... ,, ?, .. . & r ....
. . ,, c i i .? r ? i e building with its Marion. S.C., owners. I nose papers
cording to Jere C omcford, a long-time friend of compa- . ... ' . . f * ?
_ o n o u ? i. should be signed within the next two weeks,
ny owner Bill Schmidt. ? r , ..
.... . u i . ? ?. tr> n ? Comeford said.
He s been down to visit us 10 or 12 times since we
moved here seven years ago." Comeford said. "When he "He was hoping to get moved in before Christmas,"
started talking about moving into North Carolina, I told Comeford said. "He's ready togo."
him about the Pelican building." Efforts to contact Schmidt for comment were unsuc
Schmidt plans to open an entirely new company that cessful. He did not respond to two requests for return
will be called Mirrorlite of North Carolina. Comeford calls left at his Michigan office Tuesday.
HEALTH INFO STUDENTS TO DELAY GRADUATION
Snafu Leaves
BY SUSAN USHER
Second-year Health Information Tech
nology (HIT) students at Brunswick Com
munity College say they are being "very in
convenienced both career-wise and personal
ly" because the regional program will not re
ceive national accreditation in lime for them to
graduate on schedule.
Students will complete graduation require
ments one quarter later, and must wait another
year, until October 1W5, before seeking indi
vidual professional accreditation.
"I hate it for the students," said Johnnie
Simpson, vice president tor instruction at
Would-Be BCC Grads 'Inconvenienced'
BC'C. "We're doing everything we can to ac- patient information. medical record technician in this state,
commodate them all and try to make sure they Accreditation Not Required "I guess that was the biggest disappoint
can graduate from an accredited program. Program accreditation isn't required, menl to most students?the delay and the dif
"The education director of the accrediting Simpson said, hut is to the students' advan- ference in earning potential it could mean,"
agency has told us that students do better on tage. said Lucy Keefer of Calabash. "We basically
the exam if they are out in the field working Only graduates of accredited programs are went to medical clerk's school unless we get
when they lake it. Hopefully our students will eligible to take the national Accredited Recoiu to challenge that exam."
elect to gel jobs in the fall." Technician (ART) exam offered each October. Keefer was one of six students who signed
The two-year program prepares students to Those who pass the exam are awarded the a statement released to The Brunswick
process, maintain, compile and report health designation ART, which increases their eligi- Beacon. She said two other students were ab
information. including preparing reports for bility for top pay and advancement sent the day the statement was circulated and a
agencies responsible for third-parly reimburse- According to the publication "North third chose not to sign it since she intends to
menls for private insurance. Medicaid and Carolina Health Careers'92, an ART can ex- withdraw. The students said they felt "extreme
Medicare and maintaining confidentiality of peel an average starting salary of $22,IH)() as a (See ACCREDITATION, Page 7-A)
SEASON ENDS MARCH 12
It's Last Coll For Local Oysters
by ihhk; rutter
Oyster sales have been slow since
Christmas, hut Marlene Varnam ex
pects orders to increase over the
next two weeks as area residents
rush lor their last shellfish of the
season.
"It'll pick up probably this week
end and next weekend. People will
want thai last bushel before the sea
son closes," the Varnam town oyster
dealer said I uesday
North C arolina's oyster season
ends next Saturday, March 12.
Harvest statistics lor the IW3-M4
season won't be available for some
lime, but early indications are that it
didn't stack up to the previous two.
Brunswick County commercial
fishermen harvested lX), 131 pounds
of oysters during the I'>92-93 season
and 116,515 pounds in M'vi-vj. in
the four previous seasons, shellfish
ermen averaged 62,!85 pounds.
I hose figures had state fisheries
officials concerned when oyster sea
son opened last October. They ex
pected the good harvest last season
"This season was
probably below
average. It wasn't
horrible, but it
wasn't great
either."
?Rich Carpenter
Division of Marine Fisheries
to take a toll on this year's crop.
"I feel like this season was proba
bly below average," Kith Carpenter,
southern district manager with the
N.C. Division of Marine fisheries,
said iucsiiay. "li wasn't horrible,
but it wasn't great either."
Carpenter warned last fall that the
harvest could be down this season,
in part because many of the local
oysters did not meet the minimum
si/e limit of three inches.
"When we went into the season
we just had a lot of little oysters. We
were hoping to get them up to a har
vestahle size during the season hut it
didn't happen," ( arpenter said.
The division reduced the daily
limit on commercial fishermen from
seven bushels to live bushels last
fall, hoping the change would help
the oyster supply last longer.
However, Carpenter said the low
er limit didn't help much this sea
son. "We didn't have a real good
supply this year."
Varnam said oyster sales have
been down all along the North
Carolina coast. Even in Brunswick
County, she said the demand for
oysters has not kept up with the lim
ited supply.
"Sales have been off since after
Christmas, especially in the last
month," she said. "Usually after
Christmas you sell as many as you
can get a hold of. People aren't eat
ing oysters like they were."
Carpenter said the Division ot
(See SEASON, Page 2-A)
STAf f PHOTO BY CICEIIA GOVE
f*i? |4<> O f m *?! 01 wm ** **.
? II C WIJ nc JIIUCIIVC
Flames hud engulfed one corner of this Shullotle urea residence well before firefighters were called to
the scene Friday night. The home, located on N.C. I JO about two miles west of Shallotte, is owned by
( hurles Price. The blaze was reported shortly after ft p.m. Friday. Firefighters remained on the scene
for mitre than three hours, according to a Shallotte Volunteer Fire Department report.