Member
North Carolina Press Association
* Vol. 109 No. 15
Schools
looking
for land
The Kings Mountain Board of
Education voted 4-1 Monday
night to build a new school in
the future and authorized a
search for 23-25 acres of land.
Over objections of Chairman
Ronnie Hawkins, the board
hedged on what type of school
would be built.
"We are doing a disservice to
the community by not saying
tonight if we plan to build a K-5
school or a 5-6 school," said
Hawkins who said the commu-
nity had already given input
that it wanted a new school and
now it's up to the board.
The motion by Shearra
Miller, seconded by Connie
Allison, was to build a new
school in the future and autho-
rize Supt. Dr. Bob McRae to
search for at least 23-25 acres of
land in the proximity of Kings
Mountain, Bethware and
Grover areas. Vice-Chairman
Billy Houze and B. S. Peeler al-
so supported the motion.
© McRae said that the decision
on grade structure could be de-
-cided later but that for now the
board needs to let the state
know if it plans to use bond
money to to build a new school.
Miller said she favors a 5-6
‘school but she "had not setiled
~ in my mind if that's the way the
community wants to go.” She
said public hearings resulted
in teachers and administrators
favoring a K-5 school and par-
ents supporting a 5-6 school
Hawkins said he got a favor-
able impression of the 5-6 con-
cept after he and other school
board members visited a school
in Clover, SC. "There are so
many pluses to building a 5-6
school,” he told the board dur-
ing a lengthy meeting.
Miller, the mother of two
children, and Peeler, a former
high school teacher, agreed that
sixth graders were not physical-
ly and emotionally ready to go
to school with older teenagers
in a middle school environ-
ment. :
Peeler joined Hawkins in
suggesting that all fifth graders
could be moved into a new
building and eliminate the
growing space problems in the
elementary grades. Then, if
money is available, the sixth
grade wing could be added.
Removing sixth graders in later
years could also free up space at
the middle school which is also
becoming crowded.
See School, 2-A
No trespassing signs
posted at Moss Lake
Eighteen Moss Lake resi-
dents got a calling card from the
City of Kings Mountain Friday
in the form of no trespassing
signs put up by staff on the
city's control strips.
City Building Inspector Jeff
Putnam, assisted by Andy
. Scoggins, put up the signs after
letters went out from City Hall
to property owners delinquent
in paying lake user fees.
Although some 50 or more
delinquent property owners
have complied with the letters
to pay up Putnam said 18 had
not.
‘Putnam said this action
means that property owners
won't have access to the lake
until the fees are paid. He said
.if back user fees aren't paid the
‘city may have to start legal
proceedings to take some piers
down.
Putnam said the control strip,
- tiated by City Council recently
adi a Er at
from pasture to
By ELIZABETH STEWART
of The Herald Staff
home of Nell and Leo Myers home.
A baby lamb, two Ewes and a Ram are owned
{and lovingly cared for by Nell Myers who bejsan n
the unusual hobby two years ago.
on her spinning frame into yarn and used to fill
warm quilts and mattress covers and to fashion
woolen caps, mittens, pin cushions, balls and tiny
rabbits and bears which she dresses and gives to
her grandchildren.
daily lives even at night when we go to bed
Bible. The Psalms writer said that "we are the
people of His pasture and the sheep of His Land,"
she said.
Nell's hobby began two years ago when she
and her husband traveled to Minnesota for Nell
to take a spinning course. And they researched
sheep raising through books they obtained there
and from observing big flocks. And she said she
is not alone in her shepherdess duties. More
women apparently raise sheep than men.
"We didn't know the first thing about sheep
when I obtained our first two baby sheep from
the Lincolnton 4-H Extension Service and they
then they had two babies," she explained.
Sheep make excellent lawnmowers, according
to Leo, who leaves the sheep raising to his wife.
Sheep eat grass down to the ground and thrive on
it. In a few days Myers will move the sheep into
another pasture and will probably take the big
Suffolk Ram to the market.
"Chris ( the pet name for the Ram) is getting
more obnoxious every day and we have to keep
UN IQUE HOBBY - Things that go baa in the night may be an unusual hobby but Nell Myers,
Long Creek Community resident, loves her job. Myers feeds her sheep, Little One, Jason and
Angel.
Nell Myers cares for her sheep
spinning wheel
Things that go Baa in the night are four sheep |
who call the pasture at the Lewis Farm Road |
The sheep were slick-shorn on Sunday and the
pounds of lanolin soft wool will be spun by Nell |
"We all know the impact that sheep have in our |
counting sheep,” laughs Nell, who said she had qo
always wanted to know more about sheep be- | |
cause many sheep expressions have origins in the |
SPINNING WOOL - Nell Myers works at her
spinning wheel, turning out yarn which she
uses to knit handmade items.
him in a separate pen from Angel, the Dorset
Ewe, and the baby lambs, Little One and Jason,"
said Nell.
Nell says the other sheep are pets but not the
Ram who by his action controls one of the pas-
tures at the back of their farm in the Long Creek
See Myers, 2-A
or r 1a
"City Council will have
to make the decision on
what steps to take next."
-Jeff Putnam
Ae
the city's property, is located
between 736 to 746 means sea
level. Adjoining property own-
ers lease the strip for access to
the waters of Moss Lake to put
up piers and most of the adjoin-
ing property owners maintain
the strip with seawall and
flowers.
"City Council will have to
make the decision on what
steps to take next,” said
Putnam.
The get tough policy was ini-
in an effort to collect hundreds
of dollars in delinquent user
fees by residents of the lake
area. waters.
NO TRESPASSING - City staffer Andy Scoggins puts up a no
trespassing sign on the city's control strip at Moss Lake.
Property owners who are delinquent in paying user fees won't
have access to the strip where their piers are located or to the
» GW
y BAL WAY
(308% a WI ot
SE
| of
The tenth annual Kings
Mountain Sports Hall of Fame
banquet and induction ceremo-
ny will be held Monday, April
14 at Kings Mountain High
School.
The dinner, catered by Town
and Country Barbecue, will be-
gin at 6:30 p.m. in the KMHS
cafeteria. The induction ceremo-
ny will follow in B.N. Barnes
Auditorium.
Roman Gabriel, former All-
American quarterback at N.C.
State University and NFL star
with the Los Angeles Rams and
Philadelphia Eagles, will be the
guest speaker.
Inductees include former
KMHS football coach Bill Bates
of Hendersonville, former
KMHS and UMass basketball
star Carl Smith, former KMHS
and Appalachian State football
and wrestling standout Chuck
Gordon, and longtime KMHS
and community supporter Carl
Champion.
Tickets are $10 each and are
available at the Kings Mountain
Herald, Carolina State Bank and
McGinnis Department Store.
They can also be purchased at
the door.
In addition to inducting its
newest members, the Hall of
Fame will honor the Kings
Mountain High football team
and KMHS tennis star Jackie
Houston for their Special
Achievement during the calen-
dar year 1996, and will also pre-
sent its first Hall of Fame schol-
arships to two deserving KMHS
senior student athletes.
Jay Rhodes of Carolina State
Bank will be the Master of
Ceremonies and will present
the Special Achievement and
scholarship awards. Hall of
Fame committee member and
KMHS football coach and ath-
letic director, Ron Massey, will
introduce the guest speaker.
Bill Bates will be presented
by one of his former players,
Perry Champion. Bates was
head football coach at KMHS
from 1962-70, compiling a 51-
36-4 overall record. His 1963
team finished 9-0-1 and shared
the Southwestern 3A
Conference title with Shelby,
and his 1964 team finished 10-1
overall and won the SWC
championship. Bates served as
athletic director at KMHS dur-
ing the building of the new high
school and most of the current
athletic facilities.
Carl Champion and Chuck
Gordon will be inducted by for-
SF
‘ve ON id
NOOR, a ]859
ROSES 3 3 ha
Fame
Monday night
9, orat his home, 739-7548.
mer KMHS football coach and
current University of Tennessee
assistant, Dan Brooks. Brooks
was Gordon's line coach his se-
nior year when he made All-
Southwestern Conference.
Gordon won the State High
School Wrestling
Championship his senior year
at KMHS and then went on to
start for four years as nose
guard at Appalachian State
University where he made All-
Southern Conference.
Champion is a longtime
sports supporter in Kings
Mountain and surrounding ar-
eas and was the organizing
chairman of the Kings
Mountain Sports Hall of Fame.
He is also being honored for his
benevolence to individuals and
organizations.
Smith, a two-time SWC
Player of the Year in basketball
at KMHS, will be inducted by
his high school teammate, Paul
Ingram, and friend Jerry Jordan.
After leading KMHS to two
conference championships and
a #1 state ranking, Smith
See Hall of Fame, 8-A
Board approves budget request
The Kings Mountain Board
of Education approved a cur-
rent expense budget for 1997-98
Monday night which includes
a request from the county com-
missioners for an increase of 9.5
percent or $2,146,910 which, if
approved, would be one of the
largest requests ever approved
for the local system by the
county board.
"Our request is not frivolous,
we need these funds to do what
we are expected to do," said
Supt. Bob McRae, sharing with
the board his budget message
he will present this month to
county commissioners.
In the budget message, he
said that for years the county's
allocation has been sufficient
due to the generosity of the
sales tax redistribution plan but
those funds have become
strained due to the significant
student growth in the Kings
Mountain schools. McRae said
the system may have to save
the lion's share of the sales tax
proceeds as it looks to building
a new school. He said for this
year the system can survive
without an increase in capital
outlay funding.
A new salary schedule for
classified employees represents
over $200,000 in the budget.
The board plans to fund the im-
plementation through a combi-
nation of resources, including a
one cent raise in the supple-
mental school tax (from 18 cents
per $100 property valuation to
19 cents) which county commis-
sioners will be asked to ap-
prove.
McRae said other resources
will include an increase in food
service prices with the plan's
funding to be rounded out with
the portion of the increase from
the county.
Other than funding for the
pay plan, McRae said the re-
quest to county commissioners
is dominated by money to con-
tinue what the system has in
place and to fund governmental
See Budget, 2-A