TH£ only newspaper fon AND ABOUT PERQUIMANS COUNTY AND ITS PEOPLE
Pirates, Lady Pirates win big
Page 6
Third graders write fun papers
Page 7
Festival contest winners
Page 2
September 30,1999
Vol. 67. No. 37 Hertford. North Carolina 27944
The
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PERQUIMANS COUNTY LIBRARY
no W ACADEMY ST
HERTFORD NC 27944
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Perquimans
Weekly
Floyd’s flooding
frustrates Ferry
Road resident
SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
Most folks in Perquimans County hardly realized we
had a hurricane when Floyd came calling two weeks ago.
Deana and Ricky Sawyer are not among those people.
The Ferry Road residents live in one of five houses that
suffered flooding in their eight-home neighborhood.
Deana Sawyer was at home on Thursday during the
heavy rains of Floyd when she saw a neighborhood family
running towards her house. They asked for shelter in her
home because their house was starting to flood. Before
long, the Sawyers’ home, too, began to take on water.
“It came fast,” Deana Sawyer said Sunday night.
The Sawyers had about 5-6 inches of water in one part of
the house, higher in another, Deana Sawyer said. Another
house in the neighborhood had about 12-18 inches of water.
While the water was inside, the Sawyers watched tiny
fish, tadpoles and crawfish swim across the floor. When the
water ran back out, they had to tear up the flooring and the
underlayment, also. Out with the carpet, vinyl and press
board went two chairs. Now in has come mold and mildew.
And it seems that with every piece of flooring that comes
out, another new problem pops up.
“The more we go, the more we find,” Deana Sawyer said.
In addition to replacing the subfloor and carpet and vinyl,
she said the air conditioning and heating system and part
of the plumbing will have to be replaced. They also lost one
of their vehicles to the overflowing river. Ricky Sawyer has
taken time off work this week to try to make repairs to the
house.
Ricky Sawyer said his house sits about 100 yards from
the river. Deana Sawyer said the neighborhood has experi
enced flooding before, but not to the extent Floyd brought.
The water reached waist level in at least one yard, she said.
“My front yard was the river,” Deana Sawyer said.
“We’ve had it to flood down here, but nothing like-this. It
was pretty bad down here.”
One single wide mobile home in the community may be
a total loss, Deana Sawyer said. The floor has collapsed in
some places, and the family was moved to a hotel by the
Red Cross. As a matter of fact, all five families spent at
least one night in a hotel until their homes could be
checked for structural soundness.
Whatever repairs will have to be made to the Sawyer
home will come out of the family’s pockets unless they can
get disaster assistance through FEMA. Although the prop
erty sits in a flood zone, Deana Sawyer said it is in zone A,
and the insurance would have cost over $500 per year and
have a $1,500 deductible. She said they decided they could
not afford the coverage. Homeowners insurance will not
cover flood damage.
So Deana Sawyer has spent over a week completing
forms and trying to find financial help to repair her home.
Last week, emergency representatives did visit her house,
she said, but only took photos from the outside.
“There’s nothing wrong with the outside,” she said.
“They needed to come inside.”
Please see FLOOD, Page 9
Daily Advance photo
Members of the family of the late Jimmy Hunter gathered this weekend in Winfall to play softball during a tour
nament to benefit the Jim "Catfish" Hunter ALS Foundation this weekend. Three generations of Hunter men
were coached by Marvin Hunter Sr. and Pete Hunter.
Hunter clan goes to bat for ALS
SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
Three generations of
Hunter men went to bat to help
fight ALS Friday and Saturday
during a benefit men’s softball
tournament in Winfall.
With Jimmy Hunter’s niece,
Joan Rountree, leading the
tournament organization
team, about $5,000 was raised
for the ALS Foundation set up
this spring in Hunter’s honor.
“This was a great feeling
seeing this family together like
this,” Rountree said of the
Hunter Boys, the family team
sponsored by Owens Carpet of
Hertford. The boys even let
Rountree, a stand-out softball
player, have a turn at bat dur
ing an exhibition game
Saturday afternoon against
WVEC-TV Channel 13. The
hometown favorites defeated
the television station, 20-8.
The Hunter Boys were
coached by Marvin Hunter and
Pete Hunter, brothers of the
late major league pitcher.
Team members included sons
Todd and Paul; nephews
Marvin Jr. Hunter, Gary
Hunter, Kenneth Ray Boyce,
Edgar Roberson, Kelvin
Roberson and Alex Cox; and
great-nephews Travis Riddick,
Justin Roberson and Wayne
Hunter.
More than just bringing a
family together, the tourna
ment brought several commu
nities together to raise funds to
fight the disease that led to
Hunter’s untimely death earli
er this month at age 53.
Rountree said the WVEC-TV
family was very interested in
the tournament, and because
Hunter had done so much for
baseball across the Albemarle
area, Rountree and former
Perquimans baseball player
and present Gates County High
School coach Jeff Winslow
agreed to organize the tourna
ment.
Sponsors were sought, and
businesses and individuals
from across northeastern
North Carolina sponsored
teams and made donations to
the event. Sponsors included
Adroit Utilities, Inc. (Brian
Malcolm and Gregg Sipe),
Charles Ward & Co., Chowan
Hospital, Comfort Systems,
Gates County Boys, Hertford
County Big Time, Owens
Carpet, Pepsi and River City
Fraternity of Police. Donors
were Atlantic Diesel, Carolina
Trophy, Family Foods, Food
Lion, Gates County Babe Ruth
League, Jackson Wholesale,
Jimbo’s Jumbos, K-Mart,
Metaltex of Murfreesboro,
McPherson Brothers, Miller
Funeral Home, and
Perquimans County Parks and
Recreation.
Charles Ward & Company
claimed the tournament title.
Barbara Rominger of Winfall
won the 50-50 raffle and donat
ed her winnings back to the
ALS Foundation. Umpires
Robin Forehand and Gary
Cook volunteered their time to
officiate the entire tourna
ment. Rev. Keith Vaughan
served as announcer.
A full house enjoyed the
tournament Friday evening
and Saturday. The event was so
enjoyable, Rountree said it will
become an annual September
event in Perquimans.
“Everyone knows as long as
ball exists, Jimmy will always
be here with us,” stated the
game program.
Webb, White now
sell cars in Winfall
Sales vets team
up to offer good
cars, low prices
SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
Tom White and Johnny
Webb hit on a novel idea: Open
a used vehicle sales business,
don’t charge the lot fee and pro
curement or documentary
(doc) fees charged by many car
dealers and pass the savings on
to the buyers.
They’re betting their friends
and neighbors in Perquimans
County will like their new
plan, as they opened WW
Motors, Inc. at the intersection
of US. Highway 17 North and
New Hope Road on Aug. 5. The
duo held a grand opening last
Friday with a ribbon cutting
sponsored by the Chamber of
Commerce.
“Me and Johnny both are
from Hertford and we want to
provide the people here with
cars they can afford and
depend on bought from people
they know and trust,” White
said. At WW Motors, a hand
shake still seals a deal. People
must be buying into the pair’s
reasoning as they have sold 22
units already.
White said the business
partners saw a need for a sales
outlet for late-model used cars
in the county. They’re banking
that they are correct that they
can niake a living selling quali
ty cars people can afford to
drive from dealers they trust.
Most cars on the lot come
from auction houses with some
bought directly from individu
als. White said his 25 years of
experience in the vehicle sales
business helps he and Webb
choose quality cars to offer
their customers. He knows
what to look for in a good, used
vehicle.
WW will offer those vehicles
PHOTO BY SUSAN HARRIS
Local officials gathered with the owners and staff of WW Motors, Inc. in Winfall to celebrate the grand open
ing of the used vehicle sales business. Perquimans County natives Tom White and Johnny Webb own and oper
ate the business six days each week. The Chamber of Commerce sponsored a ribbon cutting to mark the day.
at the best prices possible
because they’ll keep their over
head down. White said.
“If there’s one thing that’s
been proven over the years, it’s
that low prices come from low
overhead. The only overhead
we’ve got is the pecan trees”
(that shade the corner lot).
Bank financing is available,
as well as secondary financing
from loan companies. There
will be limited in-house financ
ing also.
WW is open Monday-Friday,
9 a.m.-6 p.m. and Saturday, 9
a.m.-3 p.m. “or until the last
customers leaves.”
McKay
installed
at COA
Friday
SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
With a promise to address
the needs of the 21st century
college student, Sylvester E.
McKay was installed as tl>e
seventh president of the
College of The Albemarle
Friday.
Several hundred people
attended the ceremony at
COA’s community auditorium
including his mother, brother
and sister and their children,
who fought flooded highways
to drive from Raleigh.
During the ceremony
McKay was welcomed and
praised by representatives
from the local community, uni
versity system and state.
“He has a vision and passion
for providing higher education
services in northeastern North
Carolina,” said Harold E.
Mitchell, president of
Roanoke-Chowan Community
College and McKay’s long-time
friend.
Anne-Marie Knighton,
Edenton Town Manager and
member of Ihe.JState Board of
Community Colleges said
McKay embodies a tradition
set forth by one of the system’s
founders, Dallas Harrington,”
take people where they are and
carrying them as far as they
are willing to go.”
McKay said while COA con
sistently receives high marks
for its student services, the
school must continue becom
ing more student-oriented.
“My vision for community
colleges in general and College
of The Albemarle more specifi
cally, is to build our various
communities by reaching out
and bringing individuals to
our classrooms who need us
and can benefit from what we
have to offer,” he said. “When
possible, we must be willing to
bring the classes to their
doorsteps.”
McKay said to meet the
needs of these new students
COA will be building partner
ships with public and private
schools. Elizabeth City State
University and Roanoke Bible
College and local businesses.
COA and ECSU officials are
already developing a program
to provide joint training in geo
graphic information systems
and global positioning sys
tems. McKay said COA and
RBC are also discussing shared
courses and faculty.
“Given that COA serves
more than 140,000 individuals
spread out over 1,800 square
miles, we must expand our
ability to deliver eduction
through distance learning,”
he said. “You have noticed our
increasing number of credit
and new credit classes that we
offer over the Internet. This
growth must continued.”
Prior to joining COA,
McKay was vice-president for
curriculum and instructional
technology at Guilford
Technical Community College.
McKay is a three-time grad
uate of North Carolina State
University, first receiving a
bachelor of science degree in
psychology 1975, a master’s
degree in 1983 and his doctor
ate in 1990.