July 30,
The Perquimans ^
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Vol. 66, No. 31
The only newspaper for and about Perquimans County people
Hertford. North Carolina 27944
Robinson
tapped as
interim
sheriff
Commissioners
appoint
Democratic
candidate to top
law post
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
The Perquimans County
Commissioners appointed for
mer sheriff’s deputy Ralph
Robinson as interim sheriff in
special session Monday night.
Robinson won May’s
Democratic primary election
for sheriff, defeating incum
bent David Lane 1,012 votes to
832 votes.
Lane resigned last week,
-effective July 31, to pursue
other job opportunities outside
the area. The sheriff declined
to say where he will be going
or what his new position will
be. The commissioners accept
ed his resignation Monday
night, and voted to send him a
letter of appreciation for his
service to the county.
. Sheriffs department secre
tary Bonita Williamson also
resigned effective July 31. Her
resignation was accepted by
the commissit)ners.
Williamson said Tuesday
that she has spoken with
Robinson and has agreed to
train a new secretary. She said
^h^ would do all she could to
ensure a smooth transition.
.Williamson said she is not
leaving to accept another job,
but plans to take some time to
stay at home with and enjoy
her year-old daughter.
Robinson said Tuesday
ntorning that he had no com
ment on his appointment.
Sheriffs department employ
ees also had no comment.
PCHS earns
NCHSAA
sportsmanship
honor
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
Perquimans County High
School was named runner-up
in the North Carolina High
School Athletic Association’s
sportsmanship award for the
1997-98 school year.
- The school’s eligibility
came about in part because
there were no ejections during
sports contests last year. A
comprehensive sportsmanship
plan was also submitted to the
NCHSAA.
“We’re proud that we’re
able to continue with this
(honor) for the second year in
a'row,’’ said PCHS athletic
director Harrell Thach. “We
■were runners-up in the state
for the sportsmanship award
last year.
“1 want to stress sportsman
ship even more this year at all
“tfig games, not only with play
ers, but parents and fans, with
everybody,’’ Thach continued.
The school will receive a
,certificate recognizing the
achievement at the Fall
Regional Meeting as well as a
^check for $50 to help further
■ efforts to provide sportsman-
sfijp-building activities.
WOLFMAN LEGACY LIVES ON
1st Wolf
Fest
draws
hundreds
By EMILIO SAHURIE
The Daily Advance
Across the country, Robert
“Wolfman jack’’ Smith’s influ
ence can still be heard by lis
tening to radio disc jockeys
like Howard Stern and Don
linus.
On Saturday afternoon, his
spii it was also evident as hun
dreds of motorcyclists, some
from as far away as California,
rumbled into the tiny commu
nity of Belvidere to honor the
late great DJ and raise money
for some of his favorite people
- - disabled veterans.
The motorcyclists were
among the large crowd on
hand for the first-ever
WolfFest at the late DJ’s
Belvidere estate.
The festival, which included
food vendors and live bands,
was organized to raise money
to assist disabled war veter
ans.
Throughout his radio and
television career, Wolfman
Jack was very active in causes
that supported disabled veter
ans, prisoners of war and sol
diers that were missing inac
tion, said his widow, Lou
Smith.
In fact, during the 'Vietnam
War, the DJ’s voice was broad
cast to more than 3,200 sta
tions worldwide via the Armed
Forces Radio network.
“When these veterans were
in the war, he got all this mail
(from them) and it really got to
him,’’ said Smith. “That’s how
he knew they were really hear
ing him.”
Besides veterans’ causes,
Wolfman Jack also had a pas
sion for motorcycles, said his
widow. That’s why motorcycle
PHOTO BY NORRIS GARDNER, THE DAILY ADVANCE
Lou Smith, widow of Robert “Wolfman Jack” Smith, is greeted by several real wolves after her
hour-and-a-half ride from Greenville to Belvidere for the first-ever Wolf Festival Saturday.
Hundreds of motorcyclists turned out to honor the late DJ and raise money for disabled veter
ans.
clubs across the country were
invited to Saturday’s fund
raising event.
“I grew up with him on the
radio,” said Dennis Simmons,
a 55-year-old biker from New
Hope. “It was like a right of
passage for anyone of my gen
eration.” •*
Wolfman Jack, who died of
heart failure in 1995, is bured
in front of the estate, next to
his daughter, Joy Rene Smith.
Joy Smith was scheduled to
sing at the festival, but was
tragically killed in a car acci
dent earlier this month. The
festival was dedicated to her
memory.
Throughout the afternoon,
festival-goers paid respects
before Wolfman Jack’s grave
stone. which is surrounded by
two 3-foot-tall statues of
angels. Neai’by, the
Perquimans River flows, a
reminder of the quiet times
Smith enjoyed while fishing
from a small pontoon boat.
“It’s fitting that he is buried
in this property,” said B.J.
Williamson, who has the word
“Wolfman” tattooed on his
back. “His thing was the wolf
spirit and it is only right his
animal is free.”
Williamson, who said he
was inspired by Smith to be
wdld, attended the festival with
six wolves he keeps as pets in
tow.
But far from the wildman
image he portrayed for the out
side world. Smith was
described Saturday as some
one who had a great sense of
humor, loved children and was
generous with the people he
met.
It wasn’t unusual for Smith
to go to Las Vegas, wdn a bun
dle and then give half of it
away, said his wTdow. Or for
him to play father figure for
kids in the Beverly Hills
neighborhood the Smith fami
ly called home for about 20
years.
Lou Smith recalled how her
late husband once bought his
son and daughter and their
friends musical instruments
so they could form a band. One
of those kids, Joseph Williams,
grew up to become one of the
leacj singers fob the 1970s band
Toto.
"It didn't matter what it
w'as.' Wolf would encourage all
kids to do something they
w'ere interest in,’’ Lou Smith
said. “He said all it required
was passon — you had to have
that passion for what you were
doing.
Smith, who these days over
sees her husband’s estate and
licenses his still-in-demand
image, said she still receives
letters and calls from people
who were touched by Wolfman
Jack. She lives at Belvidere.
the historic home the Smiths
renovated.
Keel building prepared for demolition
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
Inmates from the Gates
County Correctional Facility
worked all last week preparing
the Keel building on the cor
ner of Edenton Road and
Grubb streets for demolition.
The building’s contents
were emptied and the area
around the building cleared by
m
the work crews.
The town enlisted the help
of inmate labor in an effort to
lower the bid of $21,291.50 sub
mitted by Whitehurst Sand
and Gravel to demolish the
■ ■ -"y.-ft--
building. The original bid was
for cleaning out and tearing
down the building, and includ
ed hauling the contents and
tipping fees at the landfill. The
Hertford Town Council voted
to tear down the condemned
building, in June, but instruct
ed town manager John
Christensen to use inmate
labor to prepare the building,
then negotiate with
Whitehurst for an updated bid.
Christensen said he does
not know exactly how much
the inmate labor will save the
town; however, it should be
several thousand dollars. The
inmates clearned 808 tons of
detaris from the site.
Indian
Summer
Festival
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
September 19 will find the
streets of downtown Hertford
filled with the sights and
sounds of the annual Indian
Summer Festival.
A variety of entertainers
have agreed to perform for the
annual gala. Included among
this year’s confirmed perform
ers are .August, Rockin’ Willie,
Jeanie Truesdale,
Inspirational Voices, Step of
Faith, Denim and Diamonds
Dancers, and the Harbor
Lights Square Dancers.
Other festival activities will
include a pie-in-the-face
Chinese auction, games, blue
ribbon produce contest, and
more.
Crafters offering a variety
of items will line Church
Street. Festival foods will also
be available during the day.
Downtown businesses will
be offering festival specials.
The event will be topped off
with a street dance downtown.
A fish fry to raise funds for
the festival is scheduled for
Aug. 28 at Missing Mill Park.
Tickets are $5 each and are
available from downtown busi
nesses.
On July 17, the Hertford
Downtown Merchants
Association, first-year spon
sors of the festival, held a
fund-raising golf tournament
at Sound Golf Links,
Albemarle Plantation.
Tournament coordinator
Jennifer Layden of Hertford
Savings Banks said the event
proved to be a fun fund raiser.
Winners were Jeff
Mickelson, Greg Albus, Dave
Garnet and Dan Ollivant, first
place; Bruce Biggs, Tern
Meyers, Ollin B. Sykes and
Charles Evans, second place;
and Lynn Dupree, John White,
David Forbes and Paul
Washleshy, third place.
The HDMA opted to sponsor
the annual festival after the
Perquimans County Chamber
of Commerce, organizers and
promoters of the festival for 16
years, decided not to go ahead
with the event in 1998.
Chamber officials said they
had composed a plan of work
that includes epmhasis on eco
nomic development through
travel and hisoric tourism
development, and had put
financial and manpower
resources into those projects.
Not wanting to see the festi
val die, HDMA members mobi
lized to continue the Indian
Summer Festival tradition in
Perquimans County.
Outside
Inmates from the Gates County Correctional Facility begin cleaning out the Keel building on the
corner of Edenton Road and Grubb streets. The work crews emptied the building’s contents last
week and cleared the area around the building in preparation for demolition.
THURSDAY
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