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VOL. 105 NO. 36
—~—
11a N
Thursday, September 9, 1993
Kings Mountain, N.C. 28086 +30¢
Schools to consider tobacco policy
Improvements to stadiums being considered
Kings Mountain's John Gamble
Stadium and Lancaster Fields are
scheduled to undergo some im-
provements over the next several
years, according to Superintendent
of Schools Dr. Bob McRae.
McRae said the playing field at
John Gamble Stadium will be re-
crowned and a new sprinkler sys-
tem added after this season, and
within the next three years new
lighting systems should be in-
stalled at the football and baseball
fields.
"Qver the years the field has sort
of leveled off," McRae said. "It
doesn't drain all that well and we
‘need to go in and raise the crown
on that field."
McRae said he hopes the school
system will have the funds to im-
prove the lighting systems at the
fields within three years - "give or
take a year."
"We have a guy coming in soon
to do a proposal on both of those
fields," he said. "We don't think the
cost is going to be quite as bad as
we originally thought, but it takes a
See Stadium. .8-A
Voters
can meet
candidates
The Kings Mountain Chamber
of Commerce will host an after-
hours get-together on Thursday,
Sept. 30 for the public to meet can-
didates for City Council and
School Board seats.
The informal meeting will be
held from 5:30-7 p.m. in the lobby
of the City Hall.
Members of the public will have
the opportunity to meet candidates
one-on-one and discuss the issues
in the upcoming elections.
Questions and answers will be on
an individual basis and no forum-
type questions will be allowed.
Light refreshments will be
served. | ;
Ruby Alexander, past president,
is serving as chairperson of the
After-Hours committee. Other
members of the committee are
Chamber President Wade Tyner,
Tim Miller of Bridges Hardware,
and Chamber Executive Secretary
Lucille Williams.
Registration
deadlines set
The deadline to register for two
upcoming elections are, September
13 for the city election which will
be held on October 5, and October
11 for the school board election
which will be November 2.
According to the Cleveland
County Board of Elections, librari-
ans have been trained, and registra-
tion is available at Mauney
Memorial Library on S. Piedmont .
Ave.
Citizens may also register at the
Board of Elections office located at
211 E. Warren St. in Shelby.
People who have moved since the
last election must register at the
Shelby office to record their
change of address.
United Fund drive to begin | KINGS MOUNTAIN PEOPLE
The 1993-1994 United Fund will
hold its kickoff luncheon on
Friday, September 10, at the Kings
Mountain Holiday. Inn. Many of
the agencies will have representa-
tives at the luncheon, along with
United Fund volunteers.
Maude Norris, president of this
year's United Fund, will present a
welcoming speech.
Leaders of two of the funded
agencies will speak. They are
Melanie McDaniel of the Youth
Assistance Program, and Rev.
Robert Haynes of the Ministerial
FUN AT THE FalR
The Kings Mountain Board of
Education will hear first reading of
an amended policy on the use of
tobacco on school grounds and will
take a look at bids for the Central
School renovation project at
Monday night's meeting at the
Kings Mountain High School li-
brary.
The meeting officially begins at
7 p.m., however there will be a re-
ception for new employees at 6:30.
Supt. Bob McRae is recom-
Haley Lail, 4, and Mom, Lisa enjoy a turn on the merry-go-round Tuesday night at the Bethware Fair.
Haley appears to have spotted a friend on the midway. The fair runs through Saturday night.
Bethware Fair a family tradition
‘That glow in the night sky out towards the
Bethware community is one of the longest running
- community fairs in the state. The Bethware Fair is in
full swing this week.
The Bethware fair, in its 46th year, opened
Monday night on the grounds of the Bethware School
to the rave reviews of almost 8,000 people.
Raeford White, President of the sponsoring
Bethware Progressive Club has been pleased with the
turnout. "Everything has been just great so far,” he
said. "We got off to a good start Monday night and
everybody seemed to really enjoy it."
The fair continues each night through Saturday,
opening at 6:00 p.m. and closing at 11:00 p.m., ex-
The rides are supplied, for the third year in a row, by
McDaniel Brothers of Pennsylvania. The exhibition
hall is crammed with displays from approximately
2000 exhibitors, most from Cleveland Cougs
few from Gaston. ;
There are arts and crafts from the youngg@people, =
antiques, quilts, antique clothing, prodfce and
canned goods. You can even marvel at a 17% pound
pumpkin, Blue and red ribbons will be awdrded to
first and second place winners in the exhibit judging.
No admission is charged at the Bethware fair. The
White Plains Shrine Club is collecting-a two dollar
Greenville, S.C.
cept for Saturday night when closing time is 11:30.
There are 18 to 20 rides, half for the little ones.
Association Helping Hand Fund
and Chaplain Service.
The Youth Assistance Program
is the latest agency to be added to
the United Fund list.
Jay Rhodes, Sr. Vice-President
at Carolina State Bank, is the
Campaign Chairman this year, and
Maude Norris is serving as
President.
The United Fund has set its goal
at $121,500, and, according to
Rhodes, they will reach that figure
and probably better it.
See Fund, 2-A
Harris on children's commission
Senator Ollie Harris, of Kings
Mountain, has been appointed to
the Commission on Children with
Special Needs by N.C. Senate
President Pro Tem Marc Basnight.
The Commission studies the ser-
vices provided by other states and
evaluates and monitors North
Carolina's programs and services
for children with special needs.
"We must do all we can to provide
all our children with the tools they
need to reach their full potential,”
says Basnight. "I know that with
Ollie's experience and commitment
he will prove to be a valuable assct
to this commission."
Senator Harris says he is hon-
ored to serve. The protection and
nurturing of our children is one of
our primary obligations. I am hon-
ored to be able to contribute to the
efforts to enhance the lives of all
North Carolina's children," he said.
Senator Harris represents the
37th district. He is currently serv-
ing his tenth term in the senate.
Harris is chairman of the Pensions
and Retirement Committee. and the
Vice-Chairman of the
Appropriations subcommittce on
Human Resources and the Children
and Human Resources Commitice.
He also serves on several other
committees.
parking fee, which will go to the Shrine Hospital in
See Bethware, 5-A
get,"
+ will be at Moss Lake. Anyone who
4 would like to join in should just
mending that the Board approve a
new policy on the possession and.
use of tobacco in school facilities.
Previously, smoking has been
banned in school facilities but stu-
dents have been allowed to have
tobacco products on their person
and there have been numerous re-
ported incidents of students smok-
ing in bathrooms.
McRae said the policy will still -
allow the use of tobacco by teach-
ers in designated areas but not in
KM Big Sweep e
to target Moss La’
North Carolina's beaches, lakes
and rivers are about to be assaulted
by hordes of people armed with lit-
ter bags, shovels and anything else
that can be used to clean up trash.
It's all part of the First Citizens
Bank Big Sweep campaign, and
the big day i is Saturday, September
18.
Eric Dixon, Assistant Vice-
President of the local First Citizens
branch is coordinating the Kings
Mountain effort. Most First
Citizens employees in Kings
Mountain will participate, and the
bank has been urging employees
and their relatives, friends and cus-
tomers to help out.
"We can use all the help we can
said Dixon. "Our involvement
show up at 8:00 a.m. for assign-
ments.”
North Carolina is one of 33
states taking part in the annual wa-
terway cleanup, which is coordi-
nated by the Center for Marine
Conservation in Washington, D.C.
Big Sweep volunteers count the
litter they collect, and that data is
the presence of students.
McRae said the new policy will
also target use of tobacco by stu-
dents and coaches on athletic
fields.
- "This policy will apply to all
school proper ol
events in whicl
pates," McRae |
apply if a stud
That would be t Ll
But we're trying =e 2
See Smo
REVAL
used to identify |
Nationally, cigarette
litter list. Last year, 2
tons of trash bagged |
was 775,438 partit MN
cigarettes. \ \
\«
hd
The Big Sweep | wir 1M
North Carolina got underway sev-
en years ago at the state's beaches
and expanded to inland waterways
two years later.
Sixty-one participants gathered
over two tons of assorted items
such as tires, paper, plastics and
other junk from the shores of
Cleveland County's waters in 1992.
The Cleveland County effort
will encompass five zones: Grover,
Moss Lake, Boiling Springs,
Polkville and Fallston.
The Kings Mountain group will
work in the Moss Lake zone.
"We'll start at 9:00 a.m. and we
should be through no later than
1:00 p.m.," said Dixon.
Anyone interested in volunteer-
ing should call Sam Lockridge in
Shelby at 484-5130, or just show
up Saturday morning.
Water level to be lowered
The water level at Moss Lake
will be lowered beginning after
Labor Day, according to City
Engineer, Tom Howard.
"We're going to take it down to
about five feet to do some repair
work, said Howard.
There's work that needs to be
done on the spillway and a depres-
sion in the bottom of the lake that
must be repaired. The actual work
will be completed in a week's time,
according to Howard, but it will
take several weeks to get the lake
adjusted down to five feet.
Another project now underway
is the extension of the gas line
down Oak Grove Rd. Howard says
the gas department has entered into
a contract with Appling Pipeline,
and about 1000 feet of new line has
already been installed.
The new line will go from Scism
Road east for approximately’
19,000 ft.
"This is an important project for
the city," said Howard, "as the new
line will mean a significant in-
crease to the utility base.
The upgrading of the city's elec-
trical system is an ongoing project.
All the old poles and cross-arms
are being removed, and upon com-
pletion, the electrical system will
have increased efficiency and capa-
bility,
By Jim Heffner
f the Herald staff
Mary Boyce McGill, at age 73,
is writing a book about her "Life
on the Farm."
Miss McGill, who now lives in
the Juniper Apartments on the cor-
ner of Juniper and W. Gold St., is
ten years removed from the farm
where she was born, and only late-
ly has started to jot down little
snippets and remembrances from
those days.
Her book is packed with stories
about corn shuckings, making mo-
lasses and chopping cotton. There
are word pictures of how it was
growing up in rural Cleveland
County during the 20's and 30's.
"For dessert, Mama would make
a big batch of tea cakes, apple cus-
tard and ginger bread,” she writcs.
The description brings smells of a
cozy farm kitchen during harvest
time, and is guaranteed to twang
the taste buds of anybody who
grew up on a farm.
Mary was one of five girls born
to Boyce and Mary Suc Weir
McGill on a farm about five miles
outside of Kings Mountain toward
Cherryville.
MARY McGILL
Two of her sisters, Willie Tone
McGill and Ruth McGill Hallman,
taught for many years in the local
school system,
Miss McGill lives alone, she never
marricd, and spends a great deal of
her time at church activities.
"A ycar or two ago,” she says, "I
got to thinking about those good
days on the farm, and [ started jot-
Mary McGill remembers life on the farm
ting down what I could remember,
just to record the history more or
less."
Questioned as to why she never
got married, Mary's eyes twinkle,
"Well, I kept company with a cou-
ple of fellows when I moved to
town but they both died. I'm look-
ing, though.”
The handwritten pages are rivet-
ing, and presented in a simple style
that is easy to read.
She describes farm life in an era
when neighbors helped neighbors,
and relatives visited for Sunday
dinner. :
"Cotton was our main crop,” she
said, "My sisters helped Daddy
work the cotton field, Mama didn't
like that much. I came along a little
late to help out in the ficlds. We
raised most of our own food. We
had a big vegetable garden and we
slaughtered four hogs a year. I did-
n't like that very much. It was too
messy. We smoked some of the
meat with oak chips. Daddy had a
special way of smoking ham. He'd
hang them in the smokehousc for a
while then take them out and mix
peppers, molasses and flour, then
we'd all pitch in and smcar the
mixture on the hams. Next we'd put
them in bags and hang them back
in the smokehouse until we needed
them.
"Christmas time we'd all gather
around the piano and sing. We
were a musical family. Two of my
sisters played piano, and Mama
played a little. Daddy sang Bass
and tenor, Mother sang alto and I
was a soprano. My father liked to
sing. He was always a member of
the church choir. I've been told I
have a good singing voice. I might
have become a professional singer,
but I didn't know how to go about
getting started. I like to sing,
though. I sang a solo in church just
last Sunday.
"We all pitched in during the
holiday season. Even though I was
the youngest, I helped with the
cooking, washing and especially
the eating. I was always a big cater,
and I have a sweet tooth. I remem-
ber Mama used to make chicken
pic in a huge dish pan."
Mary knows her family was one
of the first in Kings Mountain, she
remembers her grandfather,
Thomas James McGill who fought
See McGill, 2-A