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July 2, 2003
Vol. 71, No. 27 Hertford, North Carolina 27944
Weekiy
BECKIYBD
M 0 1 2003
Fireworks
set for 4th
The 4th of July will
bring family fun at Missing
MUl Park.
The Historic Hertford
Business Association and
American Legion have
teamed up to sponsor a
Hometown America cele
bration conplete with fire
works.
Vendors selling tradi
tional fourth favorites will
set up around 4 p.m.
Loose Change will take
the stage at 5 p.m. Solidas,
gospel singers, will perform
at 7 o’clock, and Loose
Change wUl return after
wards.
Fireworks will light up
the sky over the river
around 9 p.m. There will be
collection jars on site to
allow people to donate to
the fireworks fund.
Construction moves festival
Lighting project
moves Indian
Summer Festival
to park
SUSAN R. HARRIS
Indian Summer Festival 2003
will leave downtown and move to
Missing MUl Park and the adja
cent streets.
Mary White of Historic
Hertford Business Association
said this week that downtown con
struction taking place through the
faU to install the new historic
lighting wiU make it unsafe to
hold the festival on Church Street.
“We’re not going to place people
and construction together,’’ White
said. “It’s a safety issue.”
Unfortunately, the move will
cause a cut-back in the large chU-
■ dren’s carnival-type games at the
festival due to space limitations.
White said. The games were
extremely popular last year, with
chUdren and youth waiting in line
to participate much of the day
. HHBA organizers had asked the
town for permission to close
Grubb Street from Covent Garden
to Missing MUl Park for the day in
order to set up vendor booths
eUong that corridor and save park
space for the games and rides.
They also wanted to use both East
and West Academy streets.
The town allowed HHBA to
move ahead with those plans, but
directed that residents on aU three
streets be polled and asked to
agree with the plan. Residents on
both Academy streets agreed, but
one Grubb Street resident did not.
“I wish that resident would
change his mind (and aUow us to
close Grubb Street) just for one
day,” White said.
Grubb Street would have pro
vided space for an additional 50
vendors. White said.
Not being able to use Grubb
Street wUl also limit the number
of space avaUable to vendors. The
good news is, HHBA has lowered
rental prices this year due to the
poor economy.
“We’ve lowered the rate because
the economy has been hard on
everybody,” White said.
Booths wUl rent for $35 and $50.
Items to be featured in booths
must be approved by the festival
committee. Those interested in
renting may caU White at 426-5973.
The U.S. Atlantic Fleet Band,
which earned a standing ovation
from festival-goers, wUl close this
year’s festival.
White said the band is just a
sample of the quality entertain
ment in store for the day
The talent show, which featured
incredible local talent in its pre
mier last year, wUl be back again.
Also on tap the same day wUl be
the Hearth & Harvest Festival
sponsored by the Perquimans
County Restoration Association at
the Newbold-White House.
This hands-on event introduces
visitors to life in the 18th century,
when Quaker planter Abraham
Sanders built the house, which is
the oldest standing brick house in
the state.
Period games, crafts, demon
strations and food are traditional
ly a part of Hearth & Harvest.
Winfall joined the festival last
year, and plans to offer crafts and
entertainment at the town’s water
front park.
Perquimans Heritage, Inc. wUl
provide water taxis between
Missing MUl and WinfaU parks.
Be careful
with fireworks
Some sold as
toys are
dangerous
Life on the farm
With a tumtUtuous year
behind the United States,
officials predict
Independence Day 2003 to
be a highly celebrated event
aU over the country
In North Carolina, back
yard parties and family get-
togethers are a given. In
many of these cases,
sparklers and fireworks fig
ure prominently into the
celebration, and many citi
zens disregard the poten
tial danger of these “toys.”
Insurance
Commissioner and State
Fire Marshal Jim Long cau
tions North Carolinians
against the incorporation
of fireworks into their July
4 ceremonies.
“Fireworks can pose a
more dangerous hazard
than most people think,”
said Long. “Because
they’re sold as toys and so
cheaply, anyone, even chU
dren can get their hands on
these items. Unfortunately,
the seUers do not provide
detaUed information about
using fireworks and they
don’t promote firework
safety, either.”
Fireworks merchants
may be selling Ulegal prod
Weekend
Weather
THURSDAY
High: 85
Low: 72
SCAHERED TStORMS
Friday
High:90
Low: 73
Isolated T'Storms
Saturday
High: 94
Low:73
SCVHERED rSTORMS
ucts as weU. Long said par
ents should make them
selves familiar with the
types of pyrotechnics cur
rently banned in the state,
and to remember that is
Ulegal to purchase banned
fireworks from another
state and transport them
into North Carolina.
“These rules are not in
place to put a damper on
anyone’s Independence Day
celebration,” said Long.
“They’re to protect con
sumers, consumers’ prop
erty and nearby foliage and
structures.”
The types of fireworks
permissible for use in
North Carolina include
sparklers, fountains and
novelty fireworks that do
not explode, such as “snap
and pops” and “glow
worms.” '
Fireworks that are Ule
gal include firecrackers,
ground spinners, roman
candles, bottle rockets,
mortars and any pyrotech
nic that is intended to spin,
leave the ground or fly
through the air.
Should you choose to use
legal fireworks at home,
keep the foUowing tips in
mind:
• Fireworks are not toys
and should only be handled
by responsible adults. Even
sparklers burn as hot as
1200°°F and cause hundreds
of injuries every year.
• Never point or throw
fireworks at people, pets,
cars or buUdings.
• Always use fireworks
outdoors on a paved sur
face, away from dry grass,
wooded areas and
dweUings..
• Never alter fireworks
or attempt to make your
own.
• Light one device at a
time and move away from it
quickly. Never approach
fireworks that have not
functioned or have “fiz
zled.”
• Have a hose or bucket
of water nearby in case of a
fire emergency.
• Read and follow aU
directions before lighting
fireworks. Do not buy any
devices that lack instruc
tions written in English.
• If you have questions
about fireworks legality,
contact the fire marshal.
I
I
i
The 4th of July is associated with fireworks, picnics,
watermelon and, in Perquimans County, fresh, sweet
corn on the cob. Tommy Harrell and his family have
been providing that corn for folks up and down the
East Coast for many years. At the Bear Swamp farm he
and his wife. Sherry own, the next three weeks will
see crews on site sun-up to sun down, picking, crating,
cooling and loading corn for shipment to markets
near and far. The Harrells truck a variety of vegetables
in partnership with their daughter and son-in-law,
Leah and Dennis Robertson. In fact, after crews fin
ished the first day of corn on Monday, they crated
cucumbers until 2 a.m. In addition to trucking the
corn, it is for sale to the public at the crating shelter
on Bear Swamp Road, just off Center Hill Highway.
Sheriff charging for fingerprints
Free fingerprints from
the county sheriff’s depart
ment are now available
only to those who are
arrested and printed.
Sheriff' Eric TUley said
after speaking with county
officials over the past few
weeks, a charge of $10 was
decided upon for those peo
ple who request finger
prints.
TiUey said the charge
was necessary due to the
time it takes to fingerprint
and the increasing number
of requests.
The department has
received up to eight
requests per day recently,
TiUey said. When there is
no officer in the sheriff’s
office to handle the request,
a duty officer who may be
out on patrol or serving
papers must be caUed back
into the office to perform
the fingerprints, Tilley
added.
People who apply to live
in apartments overseen by
■ the Hertford Housing
Authority, to be day care
providers and for govern
ment jobs requiring securi
ty clearances are the most
likely to request finger
prints, TiUey said.
WhUe people are gener-
aUy directed to go to law
enforcement agencies in
their own counties for fin
gerprints, TiUey said peo
ple from other counties
come to Perquimans for the
service because agencies in
other counties charge for
the service.
Please note;
Our email addresses
^ have changed.
Susan Harris
pwpubllsher@
earthlink.net
Bev Alexander
perquimansads®
earthlink.net
‘" Tina Ennis
perquimansweekly®
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