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Vol. 110 No. 02
A contest developed on the
first day of political filing
Monday for the office of
Cleveland County Sheriff.
Incumbent = Sheriff Dan
Crawford, who is completing
his first term, is being chal-
lenged in the May Primaries by
former deputy and former
Boiling Springs and Shelby po-
lice officer 'L. M. "Mackie"
Linnens.
The first and second day fil-
ers included political newcom-
by ELIZABETH STEWART
of The Herald Staff
At 90, Grathel Allen Lail
plays the organ every Sunday
morning at Allen Memorial
Baptist Church.
Lail, a charter member, has
been tickling the ivories since
the church organized 53 years
ago in the Long Branch
Community near Grover.
The church's first pianist,
Lail, belies her age with an atti-
tude about life that is refreshing
to her younger contemporaries.
The late Ben and Corrie Allen
donated the land adjoining
their farm for Allen Memorial
Church to build. Mrs. Lail has
fond memories of her parents
devotion to the church and
close-knit community.
Grathel, the only giri in a
family of five brothers, started
taking piano at the age of nine.
Raised on a farm, she walked 2
1/2 miles to school and was
one of two graduates of the
Class of 1925 at Grover High
School. In the fall of her and
Neeley Keeter's senior year, the
buses started running to Grover
on a dirt road that was busy
with wagons and farmers haul-
ing bales of cotton to the cotton
gin and taking corn to be
ground at her father's grist mill
where often he was paid a gal-
lon of corn meal for grinding a
bushel of corn.
She has survived all the ma-
jor wars of this century ,
Depression and difficult free
of World War II when her hus-
band, Brady, at 35 and father of
two daughters, was drafted by
90-year-old Grathel Lail
still yrs organ at church
Jhiisaay, January 8, 1998
ers and incumbents who lined
up at the Cleveland County
Board of Elections offices in
Shelby as filing began at noon
Monday. Filing for the May
Primaries ends February 2.
Interest in the county. com-
mission race got an early start
with the challenge by Kings
Mountain resident Charles
Carrigan, Democrat, and Norris
Hastings, of Shelby, Republican,
for two of the seats up for
grabs. Incumbent Bobby Malloy
Uncle Sam and served in the
Marine Corps until the war
ended.
"My younger daughter
Beverly was a week old when f
her father was drafted,” said
Mrs. Lail, who said rationing
during the War years was a con-
stant headache but that the fam-
ily still had happy times. °
"We relied on prayer and
that's how I have lived to be
90," said Lail, whose mother,
Corrie Allen, died
White Oak Manor at the age of
102. Mrs. Allen lived with her
daughter and family for 28
years before her death.
Lail's talent for playing piano
was an asset to her husband's |
quartet in which he sang tenor
at church revival meetings in
the area. Valedictorian of her
graduating class, Lail was
known as a fast reader and to-
day, even with some failing eye-
sight, has read 1100 large print
books she received free from
the Blind & Handicapped
Library at the State Library in
Raleigh. Lail enjoys audio tapes
and books which she says are
free to anyone visually im-
paired and shipped free with a
catalog to choose favorites. |
Grathel's favorite books are
light romance novels which she
can read quickly. In addition
she watches Channel 50, NBC,
CNN and TNN news to keep
abreast of current events, enjoys
her African Violets and is well
known for healing sick plants
for friends and neighbors. She
still tends her vegetable garden
and she and her brother, Frank
in 1985 at |
CRAWFORD LINNENS
filed for reelection.
Coroner Ralph Mitchem,
Kings Mountain, NC Since 1889 *50¢
Clerk of Superior Court Clerk
Linda Cline Thrift, and District
Attorney Bill Young, all
Democrats and incumbents,
filed for reelection.
Filing for seats in the 48th
House District from Cleveland
County were incumbents Rep.
Andy Dedmon, Democrat, and
Rep. Debbie Clary, Republican
and newcomer W.E. Stubbs Jr.
of Shelby, a Democrat."
Linnens, 51, resigned two
months ago as a Cleveland
A JOYFUL NOISE
GRATHEL LAIL
Allen, attend Senior Citizens
programs at the Kings
Mountain Depot three times a
week.
Lail never misses a church
service. She plays the organ by
music, mostly on flats, and has
memorized many hymns since
she suffered from glaucoma and
underwent cataract surgery.
The full-time pianist at the
church is Vickie Black.
It was Grathel and Brady
Lail's love for music that
brought the two together. Some
of their favorites that Grathel
still plays on her 1926 model re-
finished piano, are "How Great
Thou Art" and "Amazing
Grace." That piano cost $400
and Mrs. Lail recalled that it
was high price to pay back in
1926.
FIREMEN HONORED - Bethlehem Volunteer Fire Department Chief Larry McDaniel, right, pre-
sents plaques to retiring firemen Paul Williams, Don Sellers Sr., Jim Yarbro and Harold Farris, left
to right, who stand in front of the new $200,000 pumper.
"l was active in Grover First
Baptist before our church was
organized and I visited
Bethlehem Baptist Church one
Sunday and Brady caught my
eye as he sang in the choir," said
Grathel. The couple was mar-
ried 49 1/2 years before his
death in July 1981. Their chil-
dren are Beverly Lail Harry and
her husband, Robert, of Shelby;
Bradine Lail Tyner and her hus-
band, Wade, of Kings
Mountain; and two grandsons,
Patrick Hamrick and Kevin
Queen.
Lail's brothers include Frank
Allen, Elbert Allen, Pete Allen
and the late Darvin and Hoyle
Allen.
Her father died in 1959 but
See Lail, 5A
Bethlehem firemen honored
The population of the sprawl-
ing Bethlehem Community near
Kings Mountain has nearly
tripled since the Bethlehem
Volunteer Fire Department was
chartered over 33 years ago.
Recently the 30-member de-
partment honored four of their
own, three of whom are charter
members, with combined expe-
rience of over 100 years of fight-
ing fires.
Jim Yarbro, a charter member
and a volunteer for 26 years;
Don Sellers Sr., a charter mem-
ber and a volunteer for 27 years;
Paul Williams, a charter mem-
ber and a volunteer for 29 years;
and Harold Farris, a volunteer
for 24 years, were presented
plaques and jackets by Fire
Chief Larry McDaniel.
"We are really proud of these
guys and all the firemen who
have served over the years,"
said McDaniel.
Bethlehem Volunteer Fire
Department was established
December 11, 1964 with 30
Sheriff's race drawing interest
County magistrate to run for
sheriff and took a job éxpedit-
ing heavy freight for Roberts
Express. A graduate of Crest
High School, he holds an AA
degree in Police Science and
Criminal Justice and advanced
law enforcement certificates
from N. C. Training and
Standards Commission and
completed extensive law en-
forcement training through the
N. C. Justice Academy. With 23
See Filing, 3A
Building
to boom
in 1998
The building activity which
began in the year just ending is
expected to be booming in new
year '98. Planning Director
Steve Killian predicts.
Killian says he expects that
once the weather clears that
Kings Mountain citizens will
see construction nearly com-
pleted of several new building
projects and beginning con-
struction of other projects.
In addition, the city is expect- .
ing to have open a new swim-
ming pool by the summer and
is gearing up for construction of
a million dollar law enforce-
ment center.
Stewart & Cooper Architects
were in town Monday for con-
struction conferences about
both projects with City
Manager jimmy Maney.
Summit Place, the new assist-
ed living facility near the
Middle School, is about ready .
to open. "They are getting their
fire extinguisher system ap-
proved by the state this weck
and plans are shaping up nice-
ly," said Killian.
Landscapers are ready to
start with good weather at the
new Kentucky Fried Chicken on |
King Street.
CVS Pharmacy on Shelby
Road ran into some problems
with miscalculations on the
width of the canopy at a drive
in window and developers will
be appearing before the Kings
Mountain Board of Adjustment
on January 13th to ask for a
variance.
See Building, 3A
members and the first Chief
was Charlie Blalock. The de-
partment bought the first truck,
a 1982 La France, for $1 from
the Kings Mountain Fire
Department and the truck is
now housed in the Kings
Mountain Fire Museum.
Currently, the firefighting
equipment includes two
pumpers, one tanker, one utility
light truck and two brush
trucks. The newest equipment
is a $176,897 pumper with an
additional $50,000 worth of
equipment attached.
Bethlehem Volunteer Fire
Department operated strictly on
donations until a service tax
district was set up by Cleveland
County in 1979.
Firemen inducted the four re-
cent retirees as lifetime mem-
bers at their Christmas party in
December.
An active volunteer for 26
years, Yarbro served as the de-
See Firemen, 5A