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Vol. 111 No. 04 Thursday, January 28, 1999 CLS 4ntain, NC Since 1889 «50¢
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By Alan Hodge
Local banks
on top of
Y2K problem
Of all the potential Year 2000
computer problems that might
affect most people's day-to- day
lives, glitches with banking
seem to be getting the most at-
tention. Don't think that the
banks will be caught flat-footed.
Work has been underway for
several years to make sure that
when the fateful day of January
1, 2000 rolls around, everyone's
financial dealings will go
smoothly.
The three largest banks in
North Carolina, NationsBank,
Wachovia, and First Union,
have spent large sums of money
and man-hours to address the
Y2K problem. Heading off any
Y2K "bugs" is not an option for
banks- over 80% of all banking
transactions require a computer.
City axes rec comple. |
A proposed grant application
to help fund a new recreational
complex was axed 4-3 by Kings
Mountain City Council Tuesday
night.
“It sounds good but on paper
it says the city would be re-
sponsible for matching $250,000
or dollar for dollar if a grant is
approved,” said Councilman
Gene White leading the opposi-
tion along with Councilmen
Clavon Kelly, Bob Hayes and
Jerry Mullinax.
Council members Rick
Murphrey, Norma Bridges and
Phil Hager joined Mayor Scott
Neisler in supporting a new
venture suggested by Denise
Stallings, Cleveland County
Health Director and an active
member of the Kings Mountain
Tennis Association which rec-
ommended the project along
with members of the Parks &
Recreation Commission.
Stallings presentedia draft
proposal of a new indoor facili-
ty to be constructed at Kings
Mountain High School for six
new lighted tiered tennis courts
to serve the school system and
public. She said the KM Tennis
Association wanted to hold reg-
ular clinics and tournaments for
the public and that a certified
tennis instructor has volun-
teered to direct the program
and that local builders have vol-
unteered time and labor to put
up the facility. Stallings said a
multi-purpose center would
house two racquet ball courts
with kitchen and restroom facil-
ities and a large deck would
provide space for groups to
view football games, tennis
matches and other activities.
Stallings said that she had re-
ceived wide support.
Responding to questions by
council, Supt. Dr. Bob McRae
said the school system would
provide the land but could not
i
commit to spending money at
this time due to building a new
school.
Stallings asked Council to en-
dorse the project so that she
could submit the grant to the
state. She said she thought the
city had a good chance to re-
ceive the grant money.
Neisler said the recreation
plan suggested by the Kings
Mountain Tennis Association
blends in well with the city’s
master plan for recreation and
land use plan. He said he felt
the community would back a
fundraising project. Hager con-
curred and Bridges said the city
would have to put up its own
new tennis courts at some
point. City Manager Jimmy
Maney said there are currently
no tennis courts on city proper-
ty but the city had a reciprocal
agreement with the schools,
providing the lighting for the
school tennis courts.
“It sounds good,” said Kelly.
“But when it comes to push and
shove time the city will have to
come up with the money. We
sound like Baptists, we can’t
take up a collection anytime
you want it. The bottom might
fall out.”
See Council, 2A
KM Senior Center
gets $100,000 grant
A grant for $100,000 from the
State Division of Aging for the
Kings Mountain Senior Center
has given a boost to the
Center’s plans for a new facility.
City Council Tuesday night
unanimously approved a 25
percent matching grant and
City of KM
fo celebrate
125th birthday
For example, First Union has ave the green light to proceed The City of Kings
over 70 million lines of comput- SA building ee Mountain will mark birthday
er code for customer transac- A conceptional design for 125 on February 11.
tions.
Beginning in early 1996, First
Union put a staff of 30 people
on the Y2K problem. That num-
ber has grown as the millenni-
um draws nearer. Wachovia got
on board in in early 1995 with a
$40 million anti-bug program.
NationsBank has over 200 em-
ployees working to make sure
2000 doesn't cause them any
troubles.
One way that banks set out to
identify potential Y2K problems
dates back to 1994 when polls
were taken of bank employees,
vendors, and bank departments
to find out what equipment and
operations were most vulnera-
ble to "bugs."
The results were interesting.
Not only were computers in
banks chip driven, but other
things such as elevators, heat-
ing systems, and vaults turned
out to be potential problems.
Just what can go wrong if the
Y2K "bug" bites the bank? One
“ONE PINT COMING UP- Kings Mountain High ‘School ‘student Michael a gels ready to donate
blood during the Red Cross Bloodmobile's visit to the school. Flanking Jolly are (left) Beth Willis
and Renee Galarza.
Out For Blood
First-time donors help Kings Mountain High School
reach goal of 55 pints for Cleveland Conn Red Cross
By Alan Hodge
The blood flowed freely last Wednesday at
Kings Mountain High School- but it was all for a
good cause. Visiting the school for blood
donations, the Red Cross Bloodmobile found the
students at KMHS more than willing to give.
Sponsored by the Future Homemakers of
“My grandmother had to have an operation
recently,” Jolly said. “I knew she had to have
Willis.
blood that someone donated. This made it
personal for me.”
Handling the technical end of getting the
blood was Red Cross collection specialist Beth
“We use 2000 pints of blood per day,” said
the new building is to be pre-
sented to Council at the March
30 meeting by members of the
Senior Citizen Advisory Board.
Aging Director Monty
Thornburg said the project
would be presented in phases.
Last year a grant application
for senior center funding was
turned down by the state agen-
cy. Thornburg reapplied for the
grant and got the news of the
award funding January 15.
To use the grant money the
facility must be operational by
September 30, 2001.
Council members whole-
heartedly gave the green light
to the project before a a stand-
ing-room-only audience of
mostly senior citizens who at-
tend the programs.
“The number of seniors
served by the current center
continues to increase and the
Center provides not only a
place to meet with friends but a
number of planned services,”
p.m. ceremony will include
the presentation of the new
city flag which will fly from
the third flag pole at City
Hall. He said a caricature of
wwiine new flag will appear on
all mail delivered that day by
the Kings Mountain Post
Office.
“We hope that everyone
will come out at city hall for
this flag dedication,” said
Neisler, who will present
miniature flags as a memento
of the occasion.
Other events are planned
this year to celebrate the city’s
birthday.
The Kings Mountain
Business & Professional
Association is putting up a
gazebo downtown and the
old cupola from the former
police station will top it.
problem is that if the computer America class, the blood donation drive brought ~~ Willis. “Right now there is less than a half day said Councilman Rick ono hes
nO ’ t b 7 the t 11
sees "00", a homeowner could nearly 60 Kings Mountain High students into supply-on the shelves. There is a critical need for Murphrey. : Hh Te tid a A =
be billed for 100 years of inter- the gym willing to donate blood. all types of blood.” Councilwoman Norma Was butied during the
est on January 1, 2000.
Computers that calculate cus-
tomer ages by subtracting birth
dates from 2000 could show
ages in minus years. Much
. of the problem goes back to the
1960s and 1970s when program-
mers adopted the two digit dat-
ing system so that the then-ex-
pensive computer chips would
not be overloaded with four
digit dates. As early as 1970,
mortgage bankers began realiz-
ing that something could go
wrong when 30 year mortgages
came up in 2000.
Banks won't wait until the
last minute to find out if their
Y2K programs have been
cleaned up. Most banks will
spend all of this year running
tests of their fixes. The
Comptroller of the Currency in
Washington said in mid-1997
that 85% of large banks were on
track to beat the year 2000
deadline. Smaller community
banks were behind that figure,
but most of them used PC-
based hardware which was eas-
ier to deal with.
Several banks in the Kings
Mountain area reported on their
“We had 58 students show up,”
teacher and blood drive organizer Ann Bennett.
“We made our goal of 55 pints of blood. Thirty-
nine of the students were first time donors.”
One of the students who climbed into the
donor’s chair for the first time w
said FHA
as Michael Jolly.
Thanks to the expert way in which Willis and
her colleagues went about their work, the
experience of giving blood was not as bad as
some students had feared.
- See Blood, 2A
Bridges issued an invitation to
anyone with five to seven acres
of land to donate to come for-
ward. “We need land and we
will be considering a site loca-
tion soon,” she said.
Centennial celebration.
The city of Kings Mountain
was incorporated February
11, 1874.
Mayor Scott Neisler said a 4 :
Jay Rhodes: The Voice of Kin gs Mountain
By GARY STEWART
Editor of the Herald
He's not a Kings Mountain
native, and he’s been living in
town for less than 10 years.
But the town has no greater
advocate than Jay Rhodes.
Whether it’s a church, com-
munity, civic or sports activity,
everyone knows they can call
on Rhodes to do the job right.
‘He's a former basketball
coach, college athletic director,
and banker; he’s a “good talk-
er” who is the radio voice of the
Kings Mountain Mountaineer
football team and master of cer-
emony for various events; and
most recently he has become
tive, but one he welcomes with
open arms and a lot of energy.
The KM office is open each
Monday through Friday from 9
a.m.-12 noon, but don’t think
for a second that Rhodes is
looking at this endeavor as a
part-time job. Whether he’s on
the clock or not, he’s always ea-
ger to promote the city.
Of course, the main goal of
any Chamber of Commerce is to
recruit and keep members, but
Rhodes also sees his role as
working closely with the city
and greater Cleveland County
Chamber officials to promote all
the good that’s going on in
Kings Mountain.
“We hope to see the Chamber
Year 2000 plans. Ki Vice President of the Cleveland of Commerce committed to
We've been worldng onour County Chamber of Commerce economic growth and quality of
Year 2000 project since in charge of the Kings living in the community,” he
September of 1997," said Kathy
Butler, manager of First
See Countdown, 3A
Mountain Branch.
That position brings on a new
challenge for the Maryland na-
said. “We hope the city and
See Rhodes, 3A
Jay Rhodes has settled into his new position as head of the Kings Mountain branch of the
Cleveland County Chamber of Commerce