?THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY
Volume 35, No. 50
USPS 428-060
Hertford, Perquimans County, N.C., Thursday, Dec. 20, 1979
20 CENTS
I'TDh*
yearly JllTlg
The Hertford Volunteer Fire
Department and its Ladies
Auxiliary sat down to their
annual feast Thursday night,
and when the dinner dishes
were cleared the group was
treated to comments by for
mer state fire association
president Bobby Joyner,
remenising from old time
firemen, and a different sort
j^of Christmas caioling.
V A highlight of the night was
the presentation of the
"Fireman of the Year
Award," and this year the
coveted distinction went to
Chief Charlie Skinner.
Hertford Mayor Bill Cox
presented Skinner with a
Plaque that read, "For
dedicated and dependable
service to the town and county
as a member of the Hertford
Fire Department."
In Cox's introductory
remarks, he had this to say
about the calibre of the
Hertford VFD: "You can go
anywhere you want to look,
anywhere you want to,
professional or volunteer, and
you will truly not find a fire
department more capable
than this one."
Cox also presented two
certificates of appreciation to
firemen Sidney Eley and
Parker Newbern for the slide
presentation on the Winslow
Oil Company Fire they
prepared and showed to area
fire departments and civic
groups.
The banquet also com
memorated the department's
flap year membership ia- the
~.C. Fireman's Association
and in keeping with that event
Joyner outlined some of the
advantages of membership
and commented on fire
departments and firemen in
general.
Joyner, fire chief in Pitt
County, said he had once
computed the man hours of
the volunteer fire depart
ments in the county at
minimum wage and presented
the tabulation to the chairman
of the county board of com
missioners. "He just couldn't
believe it," Joyner said.
In traveling across the state
Joyner said he hears as much
or more from the wives of
firemen as he does from
firemen about the amount of
time spent in service.
"Every time he's gone he's
always at the fire station," is a
popular complaint of
firemen's wives, Joyner said.
He labeled the association
one of the greatest in North
Carolina, one that is respected
across the state.
Membership benefits in
clude a pension fund, line of
duty insurance and death
benefits, an ongoing
legislative program, and a
firefighting and pump school,
to mention a few of the items
Joyner enumerated.
Silas Whedbee, a retired
fireman, told some en
tertaining tales about old time
fire fighting and one of them
concerned an ill-fated call to
Winfall.
"In the 1920's the fire
department bought a Model T
fire engine," Whedbee said.
"We got a call to Winfall and
when we got in the middle of
the Causeway Bridge we ran
out of gas. Well, we got some
gas and got it started again
and it was running real good,
so good that it went right on
through Winfall and on out to
Belvidere."
The only item of business on
the agenda was the in
stallation of new officers.
Joyner installed the men and
his wife Gail, secretary of the
N.C. Fireman's Association,
installed the officers of the
LadlesAudlUty
The grand finale of the
festvities was the Christmas
caroling session.
Skinner got it started with
the reading of a contemporary
tune called "Oh Little Bank
Americard" (to be sung to the
tune of "Oh Little Town of
Bethlehem"). The song pokes
fun at a credit card Christmas
that begins on a pleasant,
cheerful note then ends in
tragedy when the bills come
due.
Then Pete Riddick, Emmett
Landing, and Skinner led the
crowd in a more traditional
collection of Christmas
favorites.
Jolly round of song
Pete Riddick (left) and Emmett Landing lead Hertford
Volunteer Firemen and their wives in a rousing round of
Christmas carols at the department's annual banquet held last
Thursday.
Fireman of the year
Chief Charlie Skinner was named "Fireman of the Year" at
the Hertford Volunteer Fire Department's banquet on Thur
sday night.
Development association
pays tribute to progress
.Last Tuesday night was a
^ght of recognition at
Angler's Cove Restaurant in
Bethel as industries and
communities were honored for
their efforts to improve the
quality of life in the Albemarle
region.
The event was the 10 county
Albemarle Area Development
Association's annual report
and banquet program, and it
drew a large erowd of
business ^and community
leaders.
Tom Bradshaw, state
secretary of transportation,
was the keynote sputa', and
in a speech laced with humor,
Bradshaw outlined a shortfall
of funds that threaten the
future of transportation in
North Carolina.
A gasoline tax that has
remained at 9 cents per gallon
since lMf and reduced con
sumption because of high
prices have combined to put
the state in the middle of a
funding crunch, he said.
? Bradshaw said, however,
at the shortfall would not
adversely affect already
funded projects to improve
U.S. 17 and other highways in
the Albemarle region.
"UJS. 17 is what we call our
major coastal highway."
Bradshaw said. "We wish it
was an interstate," he said.
The goal of the state DOT is
to have the highway four
laned across the entire state,
Bradshawsaid.
Still, the future of N.C.
transportation is clouded by a
tight budget and the secretary
said a Blue Ribbon Com
mission has been appointed by
Governor James B. Hunt, Jr.
to make a study on where
more funding can be secured.
"If we don't get a little more
money we're going to go out of
business," Bradshaw said,
adding that the commission
ahould not be passed off as
"Just a study to raise the
gasoline tax."
"Today we are looking at
the future of transportation,"
Bradshaw said. "Please stop
for a moment and share with
us your thoughts on where we
are going."
But dire forecasts of future
woe did not consume the en
tire program, as businesses
and communities were
recognised for making
positive contributions to the
area.
One industry from each
county was honored, and in
Hartford, that Industry was
the Hertford Hardware and
Supply Company, and its
proprietor, Erie Haste, Jr.
Through these awards -we
say In a small way, Thank
you for being involved in your
community'," said Mayme
Davenport, chairman of the
A A D A Community
Development Committee.
Two Perquimans County
communities received cash
awards for their efforts in
development and civic im
provement.
The Woodville community
received honorable mention in
the small community
category, and received a cash
award of ISO.
Bel vide re was the second
place winner in the large
community category, an
honor that included a (ISO
check.
The agricultural extension
service and particularly home
extension agent Paige Un
derwood coordinated com
munity development activities
in Perquimans County this
year.
New officers were elected,
aad again, two Perquimans
County residents were among
those chosen to serve.
Dsn County realtor Bill
WhseUr was eleeUd
president, vice president West
was Ed Brews of Perquimans,
Bill Meetias was selected vice
president BID Smith
wick was elected vice
president South, aad Majorie
Fields at Perquimans Ceunty
was elected secretary
treasurer.
In an industrial develop
ment committee report, C.B.
Smith announced that a data
information packet for each
town and county in the region
had been completed.
"It's a complete outline of
what you can expect from an
area," he said. The packet
includes such information as
climate, average rainfall,
income, recreational
facilities, and other reference
data.
In agriculture, committee
chairman Joe Nowell filed a
report that stated efforts to
address the problem of algae
bloom in the Chowan River to
the governor's office had
resulted in some fruition.
Nowell also reported that
the Association had endorsed
efforts to continue ap
propriations for a farm
management and marketing
specialist in North Carolina,
and had requested the
replacement of the hor
ticulture specialist in the
Tidewater station.
The financial report
projected a balance of
fl .23 at the end of this year
- (Dec. Jl).
Car stolen
at gunpoint
Two Virginia Beach youths
are alleged to have hijacked
an automobile at gunpoint
four miles south of Hertford on
Friday and taken an hour and
a half joy ride that ended in
their arrest in Williamston.
According to an account
supplied by Perquimans
County Sheriff, Julian
Broughton, Stephen Ernest
Rose picked up Ronald
Nathan Rice and Norman
Paul Lober, both 16, hit
chhiking in Morgan's Corner.
After traveling south on U.S.
17 for some period of time, one
of the the youths asked Rose to
stop so the he could "use the
bathroom."
When Rose obliged, the
youth riding in the front seat
sprayed Mace in his face and
pointed a small caliber pistol
at him, telling him to get out of
the car.
Rose did so, and the youths
continued south on U.S. 17 in
his 1976 Ford Elite
automobile.
They were arrested in
Williamston while still in
possession of the car,
Broughton said.
Highway Patrolman, M. J.
McArthur took the
preliminary report and
Deputy Sheriff Victor Lamb
later transported the two to
the Tri-County Jail in
Elizabeth City.
Rice and Lober were
charged with assault with a
deadly weapon and grand
larceny and are being held
$25,000 bond. Probable cause
hearings are scheduled for the
January 2 session of District
Court.
Hearing set on changes in
county subdivision rules
The Perquimans County
Board of Commissioners has
scheduled a public hearing at
10 a.m. on Jan. 7 to discuss
amendments to the county
subdivision that would sim
plify the sale of a single lot by
a property owner.
The hearing brought about
after county planning board
members complained to the
commissioners on more than
one occassion that the amount
of costly red tape involved in
selling property was
prohibitive to single lot sales.
It was proposed at the Dec. 3
meeting of the commissioners
that the property owner be
allowed to sell up to four in
dividual lots from the same
parcel of land without
presenting a subdivision plat
to the planning board.
This would, in effect, change
the definition of subdivision in
the county.
County attorney John
Matthews said at Monday
night's meeting, however, that
state statutes would probably
prohibit such a change in the
ordinance.
Other means of simplifying
the ordinance will be explored
prior to the hearing.
Ordinance provisions
pretaining to water
requirements for subdivisions
may also be revised at the
hearing.
Currently, the provisions
require that the developer
install lines to the county
water system where county
water is available. Planning
board members have argued
for a more concrete definition
of where water is available.
One of the more popular
means of determining
availability among planning
board members would require
that the developer hook on to
the county system if he is
within a set number of feet
from the closest county water
line.
The number of feet would
vary, however, depending on
the size of the development.
In another water related
issue, the commissioners
learned that the state
Department of Human
Resources had withdrawn its
funding committment for
Phase II of the county water
system.
Chairman Joe Nowell,
however, downplayed the
importance of the withdrawal,
saying that it occurred
because of a failure of Rivers
and Associates, the firm that
engineered the system, to
meet a paperwork deadline
set by the state.
He said that reinstatement
of grant committment would
probably be no more than a
matter of submitting the
required paperwork and
reapplying for funds.
Health group suffers setback
Supplemental information,
requested by DHEW, to the
proposed use of $200,000 in
federal funds for the Nor
theastern Rural Health
Development Association's
(NRHDA) second year of
operations in Bertie, Tyrrell,
and Perquimans Counties was
disapproved by the governing
body of the Eastern Carolina
Health Systems Agency
ECHSA) at their December
2, 1979 meeting in Greenville,
iC.
Funding of the application
was originally disapproved in
August by the ECHSA upon
the lack of evidence of local
support for NRHDA's
operations. DHEW's sub
sequent review of the ap
plication led to the request for
the supplemental information,
which the ECHSA ruled as not
meeting the criteria that
DHEW set forth.
In other action, the
governing body unamimously
approved a formal resolution
drawn up by the ECHSA long
term care task force, urging
that the State lift its
moratorium on nursing home
beds for Eastern North
Carolina.
Holiday changes
We would again like to
remind our readers and ad
vertisers of our special
holiday printing schedule.
Our Christmas edition
should be delivered by mail on
December 24. News and ad
vertising deadlines are today
(Thursday) at 5p.m.
We will follow our usual
mailing schedule for the New
Year's week paper, but
because the holiday falls on
our normal production day,
we must move our news and
advertising deadlines from
Monday at 5 p.m. to Friday,
Dec. 28 at 5 p.m.
Christmas shopping
Judith Jester and her daughter Frances were among the next
to the last minute Christmas shoppers who visited downtown
Hertford last Saturday afternoon. (Photo by Mike
MCLAUGHLIN)