Vol. 110 No. 38
This Week
Thursday
12 noon - Kings Mountain
Rotary Club meets at Ramada
Limited.
6:30 p.m. - Kings Mountain
Kiwanis Club meets at Central
United Methodist Church.
Friday
5-7:15 p.m. - Kings Mountain
High School Renaissance Club
poor man’s supper, KMHS cafete-
ria. $4.
7:30 p.m. - High school football,
Shelby at Kings Mountain.
Saturday
10 a.m. - Livermush and
Barbecue Festival, Cleveland Mall.
10 a.m.-5 p.m. - Pioneer
Days/Muzzleloaders Conclave,
Kings Mountain State park. $2
adults, $1 ages 6-12.
Inside
IB
* Perry Champion, alt and
Mearl Valentine do a professional
job as P.A. announcer and spotter
at KMHS football games
KMHS graduate Aaron Allen re-
turns as school’s first full-time ath-
letic trainer
2A
The City of Kings Mountain's
bond rating has been upgrad-
ed, meaning the city can borrow
money if it needs to. But, ac-
cording to City Manager Jimmy
Maney, the city is on sound fi-
nancial footing.
8A
All five Kings Mountain
School Board members agree
that Parker Street School should
be renamed Davidson School.
9A
You may think the dirt road
off Cherokee Street is a public
street, but it’s not. And the
owner, who says he’s fed up
“with dust and hot rods, closes
it.
Church News 8B
Classified 9-11B
Club News 5A
Obituaries 3A
Police News 10A
School News 8A
Sports 1-7B
Weddings 4A
Deaths
Bertha Blanton, 90
Kings Mountain
William Payne, 74
Grover
Rebecca Early, 58
Shelby
Charlie Whetstine, 86
Kings Mountain
William Jackson, 72
Kings Mountain
3A
First Carolina Federal
ZX a
= fe : @
—_— Z TLE J Snr =
= "7%, nS EEF NY SY S S=—
B= 3 Re ‘ x= Z x Aon hd =
- o =. Za 2 Na
VION TE
458 ]
Sma | § | &
w \ FC] We 1&1
; AE
cOQIR* LA
Thursday, September 17, 1998
Kings Mountain, NC «Since 1889 +50¢
Redrawing lines would add 727 people
Redrawing of the city's five
ward lines to add 727 newly-an-
nexed citizens would take the
inside city population to 9,401.
City Council's discussion of
ward lines took a new twist
Monday night as several mem-
‘bers pondered how voters at
some time could cast ballots for.
~ a majority of the board in mu-
nicipal elections.
Ward III Councilman Clavon
Kelly said he thought the ward
voting system should be
changed from voting within
wards.
"Voters should be able to vote
for their choice in each ward
and for mayor," he said. Kelly
said the city followed this pro-
cedure in 1990-91.
"T see the city going back-
wards to consider this method
and I would prefer to wait until
after the 2000 census to redraw
the lines again," said Ward I
Councilman Phil Hager:
Mayor Scott Neisler threw
out the suggestion that perhaps
three people could be elected at
large to give voters a chance to
vote for four people or a majori-
ty of council.
City Attorney Mickey Corry
led the public hearing on the
proposed ordinance amending
the city charter redrawing the
ward lines to take in the new
annexed areas.
"However, you could call
for a referendum to change the
mode of election," he respond-
ed to Kelly. "But all changes
must be precleared by the U. S.
Justice Department after notices
of intent, public hearings and
proper advertisements have
been done."
Corry said under the pro-
posed ordinance the city's
biggest populated area would
be Ward 5, with 1,971 people
and the city's smallest would be
Ward 3, with1,820 people.
The U. S. Census count in
1990 listed 1758 people in Ward
I; 1791 people in Ward II; 1725
people in Ward III; 1725 people
in Ward IV and 1696 people in
Ward V.
Corry said because of annex-
ation a total of 83 people are
added with the Waco Road area
annexation in Ward [; a towal of
104 are added with the Second
Street annexation in Ward 11; a
total of 27 people are added
with the Canterbury Road an-
nexation in Ward III; a total of
238 people are added with por-
tions of 74 and Summit Place in
Ward IV; and a total of 275 peo-
ple are added in Ward V with
the expansion in the Country
club and Country Creck areas
and northern side of US 74.
City Council conducted pub-
lic hearing to discuss a pro-
posed ordinance amending the
city charter regarding the re-
drawing of ward lines which
had been studied in depth by a
committee including Becky
Cook, Annie Thombs, Corry
and Councilmen Gee White,
Jerry Mullinax and Phil Hager.
Corry showed maps which il-
lustrated the six primary areas
that were annexed.
The population of Kings
Mountain as reported in the
1990 census was 8,763, Corry
said, but the addition would
bring the total to 9,401. The av-
erage ward size is 1,898.
Corry said the council can es-
tablish the new lines at the next
meeting, then publish a notice
in the newspaper. The changes
must be precleared by the
U.S Justice Department.
Hunter Caldwell,
deaf since birth,
makes all A’s,
plays football
by ELIZABETH STEWART
of The Herald Staff
Caldwe
Caldwell, has introduced his classmates and the
Patriot football team to sign language this fall in
the Middle School's first venture into deaf educa*
tion. Although he attempts to speak and lip read,
Hunter has never been able to communicate ver-
bally but that doesn't mean he considers himself
handicapped.
A champion on and off the gridiron, the tall
good looking boy is regarded by his family and
teachers as "a bright, happy go lucky kid." He can
be observed almost any day in the school cafete-
ria chatting on his hands with some of his bud-
dies. His "A" marks are the envy of his class-
mates.
Caldwell has been profoundly deaf since birth.
Diagnosed at age four months, he started learn-
ing sign language at the age of nine months and
his whole family learned with him.
"We needed to know how to tell Hunter that
we love him," said the youth's doting mother
-who drove him from Kings Mountain to
Morganton every day for six years when he was a
student at the N. C. School for the Deaf. After
four years of volunteering on the staff, Teresa be-
Signing i is getting to be a habit for seventh
graders and friends of Middle Sc
John k
Beating The Odds
ool stu dent
came an assistant teacher of deaf education there
for two years and then joined Sherwood
Elementary School in Gastonia in the hearing im-
See Caldwell, 9A
LIB STEWART/ THE HERALD
Hunter Caldwell, center, signs with his football partner, Jermaine Strong, left, and
interpreter Jenny Collins in math class at Kings Mountain Middle School.
2% $250, 000 bid to Rea
Paving,
sidewalk
projects
approved
~ With the awarding ofa i
could be omploted before or
ter.
Maney also announced the
receipt of a $50,000 state grant
from the Department of
Transportation to install five
feet of sidewalk along Cansler
- Street in the area of Bynum
Chapel Church, a priority pro-
ject of Ward I Councilman Phil
Hager for four years.
"I am just elated," said Hager,
who said the paperwork should
be in Raleigh in about 30 days.
Hager said children get off
the school bus and walk in the
street to get to their homes in‘
the apartment complexes. "It is
a very dangerous situation,” he
said.
Maney also announced that
the Department of
Transportation will let a resur-
facing contract in the spring of
1999 that will include NC 161
from the entrance to the city
park to US 74 Business and NC
See Paving 2A
KM’s first Relay for Life is Saturday
RELAY FOR LIFE - City employees plan to participate on one of the 17 teams in the first annual
24-hour Kings Mountain Relay for Life to fight cancer beginning Saturday at 8 a.m. at the city's
walking track. From left, Shirley Payne, Tripp Hord, Teresa Dowda, Fire Chief Frank Burns, Pat
Blanton, Janet Hayes, Carole Roberts and John Clemmer.
Kings Mountain
300 W. Mountain St.
739-4781
Local cancer survivors will
walk the first lap of the first an-
nual Kings Mountain Relay for
Life by the Kings Mountain
Cancer Society at 10 a.m.
Saturday at the Kings Mountain
Walking Track on Cleveland
Avenue.
The community-wide event
to fight cancer begins at 8 a.m.
Saturday and continues until 8
a.m. Sunday with entertain-
ment Saturday from 10 a.m. un-
til midnight by singers, live
bands, a 9 p.m. lighting of lu-
minaries and special music by
Fifth Sunday and participation
by 17 teams representing busi-
ness and industry promoting
bake sales, auctions, NASCAR
memorabilia, concessions, etc.
to raise money for cancer re-
search.
"We want to raise cancer
awareness and also offer the lu-
minaries at $10 each for cancer
.
Gastonia
529 S. New Hope Rd.
RTI REN
research,” said city recreation
director Tripp Hord, a member
of the planning committee.
Luminaries can be donated in
honor of, in appreciation for or
in memory of loved ones and
can be obtained at the walking
track or at the Community
Center, Fire Department and
most downtown businesses.
The luminaries will line the
small walking track.
Fire Chief Frank Burns says
that survivors who plan to walk
should be at the track at 9:30
a.m. Saturday to register so
their names can be announced
as they walk the track. MIke
Neely is chairman and Jamie
Lakey is co-chairmen of the
event.
Tents will be set up in the
park arca for the various events
and some 300 balloons will be
See Relay, 7A
TL lal
1238 E. Dixon Blvd.
484-0222
VISTI 0] (6
a