in
Aydiett earns state honor
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Newbold-White new site manager
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PCHS names top athletes
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June 14, 2006
Vol. 74, No. 24 Hertford, North Carolina 27944
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tLlT"
tIANS
Weekly
Celebrate good times
PHOTO BY SUSAN HARRIS
The PCHS class of 2006 celebrates graduation Saturday morning at Memorial Field with laughter and applause
as some classmates spray Silly String. One hundred twenty-six seniors earned diplomas during the ceremony.
PCHS graduates 126 Saturday morning
SUSAN HARRIS
They marched in to
“Pomp and Circumstance,”
heard speeches, received
their diplomas, turned
their tassles, and marched
back out to “God of Our
Fathers.”
And with that ceremony,
126 seniors at Perquimans
County High School
became graduates, and set
off to begin the next phase
of their lives.
Students reflected on
their school years and
dreamed of what is to come
as their classmates gave the
addresses.
“Our lives have been
compared to a maze,” salu-
tatorian LaReina Jordan
said in her address to the
class. “We have taken so
many turns left and right
which has landed us here
on Pirate soil celebrating
such a joyous day. In your
celebrations remember
One hurt
in wreck
MARGARET FISHER
An Elizabeth City man
incurred injuries after
speeding on his Harley-
Davidson motorcycle and
driving into a ditch.
Leonard Karl Hoppe, 37,
of 2200 Shady Drive, was
traveling north on
Woodville Road above the
speed limit on Saturday. At
about 12:50 p.m., he drove
around a corner, ran off the
road to the right, hit the
ditch bank and overturned.
Hoppe was charged with
exceeding a safe speed and
was flown to Sentara
Norfolk General Hospital.
Hoppe remained hospital
ized in fair condition on
Monday. Damage to the
vehicle is estimated to be
about $6,000.
that none of us were just
placed here like little mari
onette dolls. We all had to
work hard to get here and
this should be a celebration
of our hard work.”
Jordan took her class
mates on a memory trip
through their school years,
highlighting the lessons
learned at each level, and
thanking those who made a
difference in the lives of
the classmates.
She also left her peers
with some advice.
“Never take life for
granted and always remem
ber that if it were not for
our parents, teachers, and
other loved ones, we would
not be here today..Always
be united, motivated and
successful, outstanding
class of 2006!”
Valedictorian Patrick
Parr exorted his classmates
to remember that success
comes with a price.
“We’ve been working for
about 13 years, and it’s not
going to stop now,” he said.
“One of the things that we
are all going to have to
remember is that to be suc
cessful, we are all going to
have to work for it. You
can’t just slack off and
hope success will fall into
your laps. It takes a lot of
hard work in order to
achieve your goal.”
Parr reminded his class
mates that the success they
celebrated as they graduat
ed was attributable to all
that they have learned
throughout their school
years, and the fact that they
did not give up.
The valectorian said that
examples of working hard,
not giving up and earning
success included classmate
Shaqwita Copeland’s three
state championships in"
track, the hunter safety
team’s trip to the national
competition last year, and
the Marching Pirates’ past
Stolen trimmer recovered in Winfall
MARGARET FISHER
A weed trimmer stolen
from Hertford Hardware
on March 17 was
retrieved by police at a
residence in WinfaU.
The trimmer was one
of about 13 items that
were stolen from the
hardware store on two dif
ferent nights over the
same weekend.
Hertford police
received information that
possibly one of the stolen
items was at the Winfall
residence. On May 17, Sgt.
Jeff Johnson talked to the
resident, Felix Spicer, 50,
at 113 King Ave. The trim
mer was recovered from a
shed behind the home,
said Hertford Police Chief
Dale Vanscoy. The serial
number on the trimmer
matched one of the stolen
trimmers.
Spicer told Johnson he
was holding the trimmer
for someone, but would
not give police any addi
tional information,
Vanscoy said.
Winfall Police Chief
David Shaffer served
Spicer a warrant charg
ing him with possession
of stolen goods on May 24.
He is to appear at
Perquimans County
District Court on July 26.
“We’re continuing to
follow leads and attempt
to recover any stolen
property and anybody in
possession of. it,”
Vanscoy said.
Police said that they
have additional informa
tion and leads concerning
some of the remaining
stolen items.
The break-in occurred
in the hardware store’s
showroom on Grubb
Street after thieves broke
windows in the building.
Six trimmers, five chain
saws, a gasoline hedge
trimmer and a blower,
valued at about $3,000,
were taken.
Erie Haste, owner of
Hertford Hardware, is
offering a $500 reward to
anyone that can provide
information leading to
the arrest and conviction
of the person(s) responsi
ble.
Anyone who has infor
mation about the two
break-ins can call
Hertford Police
Department at 426-5587 or
Hertford Hardware at 426-
5211.
Towns okay
budgets
MARGARET FISHER
The towns of Hertford
and Winfall approved their
proposed budgets on
Monday night. In addition,
impact fees were raised to
$4,000 each for water and
sewer in Hertford. Tap fees
were also increased from
$800 to $1,000.
The fee increases only
affect new developments.
No other fees were
increased in Hertford.
Hertford town commis
sioners were presented
with a choice between rais
ing the impact fees to $3,500
or $4,000.
“We don’t want to have to
go back and raise it again,”
said councilor JoAnn
Morris.
Councilors also
approved changing the
name impact fee to capacity
fee after the state Court of
Appeals upheld a lower
court decision barring
school impact fees, or fees
imposed on developers to
pay for school construction.
It’s simply a name
change, said Town
Manager John
Christensen.
Winfall’s General Fund
balanced at $383,000 and
water and sewer at $312,500.
Sewer collection fees
increased by one dollar
each month.
“If we can hold this
budget year, we should have
$30,000 set aside,” said
councilor • Kenneth
Rominger.
Romminger said that the
town saved money by utiliz
ing inmates to do much of
the town’s maintenance
work on roads and grounds.
Mayor Fred Yates said
that 95 percent of billed
taxes were collected. In
addition, 12 new homes
were recently built and
occupied and three more
are hooking up to utilities
under the new impact fees.
“I think it’s tight. But I
think it’s a doable budget,”
Yates said.
season of earning top fin
ishes in band contests.
Parr quoted Thomas
Edison, who once said.
“Many of life’s failures are
people who did not realize
how close they were to suc
cess when they gave up.”
“Don’t be like one of
those people,” Parr said. “I
believe that everyone of
you here today can be suc
cessful as long as you don’t
give up.”
Honor students Matthew
Perry, Rachel Newbern and
Brittany Davenport also
had a part on the program*
During the awarding of
diplomas by school board
chair Helen Shaw, Barbara
Warren, mother of slain
class member Shakim
Warren, received his diplo
ma. A graduation gown and
red rose were laid on the
seat Warren would have
occupied at the ceremony
and were presented to his
mother.
PHOTO BY MARGARET FISHER
A fire at this Bethel mobile home has been deter
mined to be arson, but officers do not know who set
the blaze.
Fire intentional
MARGARET FISHER
A fire started in a vacant
mobile home has been
determined to be arson, but
officers have no suspects.
The fire, at 148 Bethel
Fishing Center Road, was
set under the backside of
the home where a pile of
wood was discovered.
“Evidence at the scene is
consistent with and would
lead one to believe that it
was an arson,” said
Perquimans County
Sheriff Eric Tilley.
At about 5:50 a.m. last
Wednesday, a neighbor
called central communica
tions and said there was
smoke in the area of the
home. At first, it appeared
to look like heavy fog, but
shortly after looking out a
window, the neighbor went
outside and smelled smoke.
Bethel Fire Department
responded and Hertford
Fire Department arrived
as a backup. When fire
fighters arrived, smoke
was rising from the back
and there were some
flames, said Fire Marshal
John Long.
“Ninety-eight percent of
the damage was under the
trailer,” Long said. Damage
included ductwork, pipes
and insulation.
The investigation was
turned over to the Sheriff’s
Office. There are similari
ties to some previously set
fires in the Snug Harbor
area, including wood burn
ing underneath the home,
Tilley said. This is the fifth
Continued on page 5
Weekend
Weather
Thursday
High: 83, Low: 65
Isolated Tstorms
Friday
High: 83, Low: 65
Mostly Sunny
Saturday
High: 85, Low: 67
Partly Cloudy