Vol. 107 No. 51
: “66
AR HER
Thursday, December 21, 1995
By ELIZABETH STEWART
of The Herald Staff
Her doctors call Mary Elizabeth Parton their " little
walking miracle" but Cecil and Lynn Parton are confi-
dent their daughter's faith will beat the odds in her
fight against an inoperable brain tumor.
Elizabeth, a black haired brown eyed 50 pound
beauty and a kindergarten student at Bessemer City
Primary School, got an early New Year's present last
week when the Make A Wish Foundation gave her and
her parents and six-year-old sister, Samantha Lynn, a
free trip to Disney World in Florida where Elizabeth
will celebrate her seventh birthday January 26.
"They came to the house and interviewed Elizabeth
and asked her for a wish but she said what she liked to
do best was wade in the creek at her uncle Joe
Whisnant's house in Forest City," said Parton, manager
of Kings Mountain's Ramada Limited hotel.
Elizabeth chose another wish and it wasn't long be-
fore the family was notified that they would be escort-
ed via limousine to Charlotte's Douglas Airport on
January 24th where they will board a jet for Orlando,
Florida and stay at a Disney resort hotel and a week
CHRISTMAS
Girl with inoperable tumor going to Disney World
WISH
filled with everything that a little girl would enjoy.
Doctors diagnosed the tumor at the base of
Elizabeth's skull when she was 10 months old and re-
moved 40 percent of the tumor. Elizabeth recently
completed her 14th chemotherapy treatment at
Carolinas Medical Center and a nurse at CMC turned
her name in to the Make A Wish Foundation.
Elizabeth's progress has surprised her doctors who
feared she might never walk, that her balance would
be impaired and that she would have some speech im-
pediments. None of that prognosis happened and
Elizabeth walks, plays, goes to school and in the sum-
mer time wants to stay at the creek banks.
"Elizabeth is the one in a million born with an inop-
erable tumor that we read about in the medical books,"
said the doting father who estimated medical costs
have amounted to more than half a million dollars.
"Thank God we have good insurance," said Parton,
who praises the medical teams at both Carolinas
Medical Center and Duke Medical Center.
See Wish, 2-A
Elizabeth Parton, left, is entertained by a
Carolinas Medical Center clown at the hospital re-
cently. Elizabeth and her family will spend her sev-
enth birthday at Disney World compliments of the
Make A Wish Foundation.
Kings Mountain, N.C. » 28086 * 50¢
KM to pause
for Christmas
Kings Mountain citizens were busily preparing for
Christmas holidays this week. :
For most, the holidays will begin with textile firms
suspending operations on Friday for two days and up.
Most employees are receiving holidays with pay while
others are receiving gift certificates and being enter-
tained at Yule parties.
Shortest holidays will be taken by employees of
Commercial Intertech in Kings Mountain and Minette
Mills and Cleveland Products in Grover. These two
firms will close December 25 and December 26 for the
Christmas holidays. Commercial Intertech will close
January 1 and 2 for the New Year holiday but MInette
and Cleveland Products will close only January 1 for
the New Year holiday.
Other plants, including ABB Combustion
Engineering, Kings Mountain Knit Fabrics and
Mauney Hosiery, will close the full Christmas week.
Combustion Engineering closes at 7 a.m. December
22, reopening at 7 a.m. January 2.
See Christmas, 2-A
Church programs usher in Christmas season in KM
Christmas Eve candlelight com-
munion services at 11 p.m. at the
iwo Kings Mountain Lutheran
churches and 11 a.m. morning wor-
ship services at all churches
featuring special music will high-
light the Christian celebration of
Chiristmas for Kings Mountain area
people.
The traditional 11 p.m. candle-
Resurrection Lutheran Churches.
Earlier services are planned at
Kings Mountain Baptist Church
and Grace United Methodist
Churches at 5 p.m., at Second
Baptist Church at 6 p.m., at Boyce
Memorial ARP at 7 p.m., at
Central United Methodist Church
at 7:30 p.m. and First Presbyterian
Church at 9 p.m. A Christmas Eve
Mass will be conducted at Christ
Stone Street.
A Children's Christmas Eve ser-
vice will also be held at 4 p.m. at
Resurrection Church in Crescent
Hill and at St. Matthew's Lutheran
Church on Piedmont Avenue.
At First Presbyterian Church at 9
p.m. Dr. Dick Newsome will lead
the worship service which will fea-
ture the Sacrament of Holy
light communion services will be
held at St. Matthew's and
the King Catholic Church on
Communion. Special music will be
presented by the choir under the di+
FFryer's first book of poetry
to benefit Historical Museum
Hazel Herndon Fryer, affection-
ately called "Kings Mountain's
walking historian," retired in
Hendersonville nearly two years
ago but her heart is still in Kings
Mountain.
Fryer started poetry classes at
Blue Ridge Community College
about! a year ago and the love of
poetry; that she began 20 years ago
with & homemade book of poems
for her children was rekindled and
she published recently her first
book | of poetry, "One Brash
Mockingbird."
Fryer has donated 100 of her
new books to the Kings Mountain
Historical Museum Foundation and
proceeds from the sale of the books
at $10 each will benefit the local
Museurn.
Larrys Hamrick Sr., a local mem-
ber of the Museum Foundation
board, acknowledged the
Christmias gift this week and said
tacting "Che Crisis Ministry at 739-7256.
HAZEL FRYER
Rebecca Lineberger, Director of the Kings Mountain Crisis
Ministry, takes a turn ringing the bell to solicit donations to the
Ministry Friday at Kings Mountain Plaza. Money raised during the
Christmas bell-ringing project goes to help families in the Kings
Mountain and Grover area with food, clothing, heat, rent, lights, water
and medlicine throughout the year. The Crisis Ministry's needs will be
greater in 1996 because of recent plant closings and lay-offs. Anyone
may donate throughout the year through their local church or by con
copies of the book are available
from any member or from Warlick-
Hamrick Insurance Agency.
Although Fryer says she has re-
tired, she works full time as the li-
brarian at the retirement village
where she has an efficiency apart-
ment and oversees a staff of 23
who run seven satellite libraries in
the complex of 350 families.’
"We are really doing a lot of fun
things," said Fryer this week. She
joins a poetry reading/ writing
class at the local community col-
lege at least once a month and they
give readings at the library.
She attends First Presbyterian
Church but retains her membership
in the local First Presbyterian
Church. She attends musicals and
plays at nearby Asheville, Brevard
and Tryon and on weekends she
camps out on the river at Chimney
See Fryer, 2-A
Ramada Franchise Systems, Inc.
announced this week the grand
opening of Ramada Limited Kings
Mountain.
This 104-room hotel at 1300
York Road and Exit 8, I-85, was
formerly operating as the Holiday
Inn of Kings Mountain.
It is owned and operated by
rection of Shirley Austin.
Rev. Hal Schwantes will lead
the service of Holy Communion at
Central United Methodist Church
for the 7:30 p.m. Christmas Eve
service. Hayes Bishop will sing the
solo, "Sweet Little Jesus Boy" and
the Choir, under the direction of
Linda Dixon, will present special
music. Two Chrismon trees, can-
dled, red poinsettias and greenery
decdiate the sanctuary.
poetry.
Kings Mountain Motor Inn, Inc,
owned by local businessmen Odus
Smith Jr, W. K. Mauney Jr., Larry
Hamrick, Jim Ware and Mack
Lefevers.
In announcing the opening
General Manager Cecil Parton
said, "We're happy to join Ramada,
an established company that pro-
Kings Mountain People
Ce
Larry Hamrick Sr. holds up copies of H
The Choir of Dixon Presbyterian
Church, under the direction of
Nancy Hughes, will sing a
Christmas cantata at the 11 a.m.
worship service which will include
the Sacrament of Holy
Communion and the lighting of the
Christ candle signifying the close
of the Advent season.
Dennis Bolin will direct the
David: Baptist Church choir in a
program of music at the 11 am.
%
ha. : :
azel Fryer's first book of
motes quality, value and great ser-
vice to our guests. We will become
a part of the Ramada network serv-
ing guests on a nationwide basis
but we'll retain our local owner-
ship, however."
Parton said that Ramada
Limited Hotels offer a limited ser-
vice option that appeals to guests
service.
The Choir of Grace Methodist
Church will sing a Christmas musi-
cale Sunday at the 11 a.m. worship
service at Grace United Methodist
Church. At 5 p.m. Rev. Patricia
Stone will conduct the service of
Holy Communion and the church
will be decorated with candles.
A live nativity scene will be pre-
sented by adults of Grace Church
See Church, 2-A
UF drive
extended
The closing of the Clevemont
Fruit of the Loom plant in Kings
Mountain has caused a major hur- ~
dle to the finish of the Kings
Mountain United Fund campaign.
Local workers are scurrying to
complete the fund drive but Mikie
Smith, drive chairman, said that it
will be continued through the
month of December and probably
longer.
Clevemont workers are among
the major contributors to the cam-
paign and other industry is trying:
to pick up the slack but is having a
difficult time particularly at the
holiday season, said Smith.
Most of Clevemont's 400 work-
ers will complete their duties with
Clevemont by month end.
As long as the plant sits idle,
city finances also take a major hit
See Fund, 2-A
Ramada Limited comes to KM
who are looking for quality lodging
but do not require all the amenities="
of a full service hotel. He says==
Ramada offers the same quality
rooms without food and beverage
facilities, which is a savings bene-
fit passed on to guests.
See Ramada, 2-A
The compassion that Dwight
Tessneer exhibits as a professional
mortician spills over into The
Gideons, an organization he joined
seven years ago when the local
Camp was formed and which he
serves as president.
Tessneer is a familiar face at lo-
cal churches as a guest speaker
distributing Bibles. In 1994
Gideons worldwide distributed 48
million copies of the Holy Word.
Tessneer is leaving Harris
Funeral Home on December 24 af-
ter 16 years to open Cleveland
Funeral Services on Highway 74
West across from Kemet.
"lI am excited about my new
partnership with J. Robert Jones of
Shelby and stockholders Glenn
Williams and Bob Hamrick of
Boiling Springs, Tony Blanton of
Shelby and Ayden Rucker of
Rutherford County," he said.
But Tessneer said he will miss
the comraderie at the local funeral
home, a Kings Mountain institu-
tion, and the friends he has made in
the Kings Mountain area. He and
his family will continue to reside in
the White Plains Community and
belong to First Baptist Church.
Tessneer is also active in the Kings
Mountain Rotary Club.
Tessneer to open funeral home
"I appreciate the confidence that
local families have placed in me
during difficult times in their
lives," said Tessneer.
Tessneer will be going into a
new enterprise for the second time
during his life. He left the dairy
business in 1973, where he and his
father had 250 head of Holstein
and sold milk to Pet dairies in
Mecklenburg County to enter a
new profession as a mortician, a
career he said he had always
dreamed of since he was boy.
A Cleveland County native, he
See Tessneer, 2-A
DWIGHT TESSN EER