Newspapers / The Kings Mountain Herald … / Dec. 30, 1999, edition 1 / Page 1
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Thursday, December 30, 1999 SPORTS THIS Hillman’s records top ‘99 sports story The Herald's 1 annual list of | top sports sto- ries of the year are on page 1-B, and topping the list was the record-break- ing career of Kings Mountain High football star Anthony Hillman. And on 2-B is the Herald's Kings Mountain baseball team of the century. Mountaineers win in S.C. tournament Kings Mountain High's men’s basketball team defeat- ed Wade Hampton 71-46 in the opening round of the Ramada Inn Holiday Basketball Tournament Tuesday night in Boiling Springs, SC. 3B EEE SPORTS NEXT WEEK ~ All-Century football || and basketball teams The Herald's All-Century Kings Mountain High football and basketball teams will be announced in next week’s pa- per. COMMUNITY Over 4,000 people see luminaries in KM For the first time in its four- year history, it didn’t rain on the luminary service at Kings Mountain’s Mountain Rest Cemetery. Over 4,000 people enjoyed the lights. 3A Some things to think about before new year Saturday at 12:01 a.m. marks the beginning of the year 2000 and a lot of folks are "anxious about what will hap- pen if computers read it as the year 1900. Some helpful infor- mation on what to do - and what not to do - can be found on page 3A HOLIDAY SCHEDULES w KM Schools Reopen January 4 City of KM Closed Friday and Monday ABC Stores ~~ Closed Saturday Shelby City Closed : Monday County Closed Friday KM Herald Closed Friday Banks Open 08960000 0000000000000ses000ns00srsasasasssssesssssssoesseseessesseesssessssssecssreeseececsesseeeeesssencensiereretosereeeieersiereeseteereteteceercesesseetstreseereetseestessereseeeeeseeeiress #980000 000000000000s0sseceenresecsctssitrsssssnseres resescesseeecesestenessatesssesessansnes seseeessessevescsssennesssssrssracssseesene: KINGS MOUNTAIN Herald Vol. 111 No. 52 Since 1889 St. Matthew's begins picking up the pieces $250,000 damage to historic church in Christmas fire BY ALAN HODGE Staff Writer One of Kings Mountain's most historic churches came perilously close to being de- stroyed Christmas morning. In an accidental fire whose origin is still under investigation, St. Matthew's Lutheran Church, 201 N. Piedmont Avenue, suffered damage estimated at $250,000 to portions of its structure that dat- ed to 1921. The fire was discovered around 8:20 am by Kings Mountain policeman Cpl. Chris Owens who saw smoke coming out of the rear of the church building. His quick call to the Kings Mountain Fire Department and their speedy response probably saved the building from complete destruction., “We had fire equipment and men on the scene in about three minutes,” said fire de- partment Capt. Bobby King. “It took around an hour to get the fire under control and then several more hours to secure the area. If the call had come five minutes later, the roof would have been gone.” Cold temperatures meant that sand had to be spread in the streets surrounding the church where runoff water from fire hoses was freezing on the pavement. In addition to the 22 Kings Mountain area firemen who bat- tled the blaze, another 15-20. from the Oak Grove fire department pitched in. “There is a lot of smoke and water damage to the building,” Kings said. “Several places will need structural repair.” See Church, 3A A Christmas Day fire at st. Matt Kings Mountain caused over $200,000 in damage. Rev. James ALAN HODGE/THE HERALD hew’s Lutheran Church in Dougherty (pictured) says quick response by Kings Mountain and Oak Grove firefighters saved the church from total de- struction. Carolina Cleaning Network employ- ees Lee Smith, left, and Michael Underwood load another can with refuse from the Christmas Day fire at St. Matthew's Lutheran Church. Smith says his crew will be clean- ing up for as long as three months. So 0) r 99 *¥ cesssssssssnnes eseessssssssenes csssssvans eessessescscasennn 4seseceasesssrssrentseresetescstesststesatttrrssetrtanane 0000060000000 0008000000000000000000000000000000000000000000 “eesessesseccatreariraage eesessesssssacrsssse secesscsssnsesens seesscsccscssnens tevesessteccersssssseresnssssreian sesesesssssscscsssss % dp s So, 3H Yo A ORT di, Hox, 002 403 Oly 7 7% XE [ed Dare, pr <n KM guts Nine command centers to monitor any problems BY ALAN HODGE Staff Writer A year’s worth of hard work by employees of the City of Kings Mountain will pay off this New Year’s Eve when their Y2K Taskforce swings into action. The culmination of count- less hours of study and preparation, the city’s Y2K Taskforce will be closely monitoring all Kings Mountain utility systems as well as of- fering the availability of emergency command posts to citizens throughout town. Friday night will see a team of Y2K Taskforce leaders at their positions. Members who will be on duty in a supervisory capacity include fire chief Frank Burns, police chief Richard Reynolds, computer analyst Carol George, city manager Jimmy Maney, and may- or Rick Murphrey. About 60 other Kings Mountain employees will also be on duty in the various utility departments to make sure the evening passes smoothly. “We will stay until everything appears to be functioning smoothly,” George said. One important feature of Kings Mountain's Y2K plan has been the creation of nine Command Centers to be located at various points throughout the city on New Year's Eve. Posts will be manned by members of the Kings Mountain fire department and will also be visited by city police as they make their rounds that night. The purpose of the Centers is to make available emergency personnel if any phone problems should crop up. “If citizens feel concerned in any way, they should travel to a Command Center and re- port,” said George. “We will have someone dispatched at once to check out the situation.” Command Centers will be in the following locations from midnight, December 31, to 3 am January 1: Kings Mountain High School, Phifer Road; Food Lion parking lot, Shelby Road; Resurrection Lutheran Church, Crescent Hill; Kings Mountain Hospital; Little Dan's, York Road; Public Works, McGinnis Street; Linwood and Cleveland Avenue; Temple Baptist, N. Cansler Street; Kings Mountain Police Department. In addition, radios station WKMT will be broadcasting public service announcements by Mayor Rick Murphrey about Y2K at 9, 10, and 11 pm Friday night. Kings Mountain's Y2K preparedness is the result of identifying potential problem areas, fixing the problems, retesting the problem ar- eas, and documenting the process. George and her colleagues at the City of Kings Mountain had over 900 different inventory items to check in 15 different categories ranging from gas valves to traffic lights. All but a few passed their Y2K test on the first try. “We want everyone to be confident we're Y2K ready and that it will just be another day at work,” George says. Pre-Christmas fire takes life of Theodore Etters By GARY STEWART Editor of The Herald Lawrence Etters and Teresa Falls were startled when they awakened to the sound of someone pounding on their door in the middle of the night. Lawrence started toward the front door, and through the clear night skies could see his brother Theodore’s mobile home nearby engulfed in flames. He said he quickly ran to the scene, hoping to find his broth- er outside. But his worst fears were realized when a Kings Mountain fireman told him there was a body inside. Seventy-three-year-old Charlie Theodore Etters, of 208 Bridges Street, almost made it to the back door but died in the 3 a.m. December 22 blaze that totally destroyed his mobile home, just 100 yards away from the Etters homeplace that Lawrence and Teresa now call home. It was a devastating blow to Lawrence Etters, to whom Theodore had not only been a loving older brother but also a close friend. The Etters boys - Theodore, Lawrence and Winnie - had al- ways been close. Just the afternoon before Theodore’s death, he had joined Lawrence and Winnie in trying to repair a tractor. Theodore had his last meal that evening with Lawrence and Teresa. “He was so willing to help everybody,” said Lawrence. “It didn’t have to be relatives. Anybody that needed help he was willing. He got more plea- See Etters, 3A iii ALAN HODGE / THE HERALD An early oming fire last Wednesday. at this mobile home on Bridges Street claimed the life of 73-year-old Charlie Theodore Etters FIRST NATIONAL BANK Kings Mountain 300 W. Mountain St. Celebrating 125 Years 739-4782 Gastonia | 529 New Hope Rd. Shelby Bessemer City 106 S. Lafayette St. 1225 Gastonia Hwy. 484-6200 629-3906 Member FDIC
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