Page 2A
By GARY STEWART
Editor of The Herald
If this little ring could talk,
it would probably tell some
interesting stories, not the
least of which is how it lay
near the Southern Railroad
tracks for so many years
without getting a scratch on
it.
Frances Dettmar Hayes of
Greensboro was less than a
year out of Kings Mountain
High School when the ring
disappeared in the early
1940s. She says her ring fin-
ger was so small back then -
she was 5-foot-8 and
weighed 99 pounds when
she graduated KMHS in
Dena Howell Bridges
Your Loving Family
———
Happy 40th Birthday!
1940 - it often slipped off so
“easily she didn’t miss it for
several days.
That's what she figured
when she first missed it, and
she always thought she'd
find it somewhere in
the house.
But over 25
years later,
some Kings
Mountain
National
Guardsmen
who were
doing some
clean-up
work
around the
old cannon
across from the
Joy Theater found
the ring under some
gravel.
They took the ring to their
sergeant, Charles Wilson, a
‘44 KMHS grad, and he took
it home and put it in a safe
place until he could find the
owner.
There were no yearbooks
in ‘44 because of World War
II, and Wilson said he enlist-
ed the help of a cousin and
others to try to locate the
owner, but couldn’t. The
only clues he had were that
the year 1940 was engraved
on the outside, and the ini-
tials FAD on the inside.
The years went on, and in
a conversation one day with
The Kings Mountain Herald Staff
would like To thank
J.D. Wray
for his contribution of the
new bell for our lobby counter.
Darin Aldridge an
Bluegrass Night At The Joy
Saturday Night Nov. 2, 7:00 PM
Featuring
“Mandolin Player of The Year Nominee”
the Darin Aldridge Band
with Special Guest
FLINTHILL
(Bluegrass Straight To The Point)
12 and Under $6.00
Adults $12.00
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Maranda Harris
Sophmore at
Kings Mountain
High School
Young Miss Gastonia
Most Photogenic
on Saturday,
October 5th, 2002
at Gaston College.
won
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PROCEEDS BENEFIT COUNCIL ON AGING OF CLEVELAND COUNTY
Fo WAS purchased her senior |
The Kings Mountain Herald
After 62 years, class ring
makes its way back home
Juanita Steffy, Wilson men-
tioned the ring.
Mrs. Steffy, who was in
the “40 graduating class, got
out her KMHS yearbook and
found that the only class-
mate with the initials
FAD was Frances
Alene Dettmar.
Upon
returning
home to
fetch the
7 school ring so
he could always
“remember where it
was, couldn’t find it.
Recently as he was prepar-
ing for colon cancer surgery,
Wilson said he began going
through some material at his
home and found the ring.
He immediately called Mrs.
Steffy and told her he would
bring the ring to her that
night, and asked if she
would see that it got to Mrs.
Hayes.
Learning that the ring had
been found was a big sur-
prise - a miracle in fact - for
Mrs. Hayes, who thought
she’d never see it again.’
“I honestly don’t remem-
ber when I lost it,” she said.
“When I graduated high
school I went to Brevard
College for two years and
then to Duke University
Nursing School, and I really
don’t remember if I lost it
during that time or not. It’s
been so long I had forgotten
what the ring looked like. I
thought I remembered it had
the old monument on it, and
sure enough that’s what was
. on it when it arrived.”
The most amazing thing,
though, is that the ring was
almost in mint condition,
inside and out. Her initials
inside the ring were as clear,
as they were when the ring i
JN i
year.
“I have no recollection of
being there (at the site of the
cannon),” she said. “It’s just
amazing that it was found
there.”
Wilson said he was not at
the site the day the ring was
found in the mid-sixties. The
mayor (he believes it was
during Kelly Dixon's admin-
istration) had called him
asking if the Guard could
help clean up the area
around the cannon.
“The original cannon was
a Civil War cannon,” he
recalled, “but the town
donated it for scrap during
World War II. Somebody
had gotten the idea to
replace it with a copper can-
non and it just sat there for
years with a flat tire and
grass growing up around it.
The mayor asked me if we'd
clean up around it and get a
tire to go on it.”
One of the Guardsmen
found the ring and took it to
Wilson and asked, “What is
this?”
“Why, that’s a Kings
Mountain High School
ring,” Wilson remembered
saying. He asked his cousin,
Whitey Bridges, to check in
his his yearbooks to see if he
could find someone with the
initials “FAD” and put the
ring in his desk. After a peri-
od of time, he hadn’t had
heard from Bridges so he
put the ring in an envelope
and took it home for safe
keeping.
Although he can’t remem-
ber the exact date the ring
was found, Wilson is sure it
was during the time of con-
struction of the new
National Guard Armory in
the mid-sixties. The new
high school was being built
at the same time. Thus, the
ring lay in the gravel by the
cannon for some 25 years,
and in Wilson's home for
over 35.
“So it wasn't like I was
putting the ring at the
Armory,” he said. “There
was so much junk out there
I put it somewhere where I
wouldn't lose it - but I did
17
lose it!
Mrs. Hayes says the ring
now will only fit her little
finger, so it’s safe in her jew-
elry box. It will only come
out for her to show her chil-
dren and grandchildren, and
tell the story of how it came
back to her after SO many
: ALA
“Itls amazing that the, ih
Worthen hadn't done any-
thing to it; it could have
been underground,” she
noted. “It was well pre-
served. Nothing had eroded.
Everything on it was just
perfect.
“I think it’s a miracle that
it was found, and I appreci-
ate Mr. Wilson and Juanita
Steffy getting it back to me,
she said. “The ring is 62
years old and is older than
most people living nowa-
days, but it’s in beautiful
condition. They made good
17”
things in those days!
”
Women’s conference set
at Kings Mountain church
“WWW.NTRUTH&POWER” - Women Who Worship in
Truth and Power - conference will be held November 17-23
at 7 p.m. at Remnant of Faith Christian Church, 126 West
Mountain Street, Kings Mountain.
Guest speakers include Evangelist Joanne Barber of
Gastonia, Minister Debra Ransom of Lincolnton, Co-Pastor
Stacey Brown of Charlotte, First Lady Hazeleen Smith of
Shelby, Elder Jewel McClain of Kings Mountain, Evangelist
Nellie Kirkland of Lincolnton, and Overseer Chonta
Nealous of Ezra Emmanuel Ministries in Clarksville, TN.
Special music guests include the Palmer Grove Baptist
Church Praise Team, recording artist Total Victory over
Winston Salem, Evangelist Robin Ponder, and Elder Jewel
McClain.
Bishop O.T. McCray Jr. is Overseer and Pastor of Remnant
of Faith Christian Church.
LISA RENEE LANIER
BESSEMER CITY - Lisa
Renee Lanier, 39, 308 West
Indiana Avenue, died
October 19, 2002 at Gaston
Memorial Hospital.
She was a native of
Cleveland County and
daughter of the late Jack
Lanier.
She is survived by her
mother, Thelma Styers
Lanier of Bessemer City; son
and spouse, Eric and Trina
Ray of Cherryville; daugh-
ters, Anita Ray of
Spartanburg, SC, and Kayla
Lanier and Kasie Ray of
Bessemer City; grandchild,
Ashley Ray of Spartanburg,
SC; brothers and spouses,
Jackie and Sissy Lanier of
Cherryville and Paul and
Tracy Lanier of Kings
Mountain; and sister and
spouse, Wanda and Kenny
Wells of Bessemer City.
The funeral was conduct-
ed by the Revs. Dennis
Wells and Doug Ramsey at 4
p-m. Friday at Victory
Baptist Church, Grover.
Burial was in Mountain Rest
Cemetery, Kings Mountain.
Pallbearers were David
Creighton, Jackie Lanier,
Paul Lanier, Eric Ray, Monk
Short, and K.J. Wells.
Greene Funeral Service -
West Chapel was in charge
of arrangements.
BRUCE CADWALLADER
KINGS MOUNTAIN -
Bruce Ridgway
Cadwallader, 54, 244 Dillon
Road, died October 23, 2002
at his home.
A native of Scott Air Force
Base, St. Clair Co., IL, he
was the son of the late Ave
Schroff Cadwallader. He
was employed at CA Short
Co. in Shelby for 30 years.
He is survived by his
wife, Darlene Short
Cadwallader of Kings
Mountain; father, Col. John
S. Cadwallader of Salisbury;
son, Joe Shull of Kings
Mountain; daughter,
LaChrista Shull of Kings
Mountain; brother, Craig
Cadwallader of Hermosa
Beach, CA: and Sister, Janice
C. Maddox. of, Greensboro.
The 1 yas,
ed by Sunerel ig Sonduck 1ck
at 2 p.m. Saturday at
Patterson Grove Baptist
Church. Burial was in the
church cemetery.
Memorials may be made
to American Cancer Society,
500 East Morehead Street,
Suite 211, Charlotte, NC;
Marine Corp Recruiting
Command “Toys for Tots,”
112 East Dixon Blvd.
Shelby, NC 28152; and
Patterson Grove Baptist
Church Building Fund, 301
Oak Grove Road, Kings
Mountain, NC 28086.
Harris Funeral Home was
in charge of arrangements.
ESSIE MAE DAVIS
SHELBY - Mrs. Essie Mae
Davis, 64, 414 Apt. 1 E.
Marion St., died October 27,
2002 at Cleveland Pines
Nursing Home.
A native of Lincolnton,
she was the daughter of the
late George Henry Sisk and
Elizabeth Kathleen Russ
Sisk.
She was formerly
employed at Rogers Theater
and Taste-T-Drive In. She
. was a member of Shelby
Missionary Methodist
Church.
She is survived by her
husband, Dean Davis Jr. of
Shelby; sons and daughters-
in-law, Rev. Charles Ray and
Jeannie Davis of Marion and
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Keith and Star Davis of
Shelby; daughters and sons-
‘in-law, Bernice and Roger
McDaniel and Wanda and
Jon Kee of Shelby; grand-
“children, Jim Davis of
Morganton, Amy Lunsford,
Jennifer Davis and Matthew
Davis of Marion, and Brian
Davis, Brandi Davis, Wendy
McCurry, Johnathon Kee
and Christopher Kee of
Shelby; and special friends,
Ray Arrowood and Danny
Arrowood of Grover.
The funeral was conduct-
ed by the Revs. Allen
Kniceley and David Black at
11 a.m. Wednesday at
Shelby Missionary
Methodist Church.
Entombment was in
Cleveland Memorial Park.
Memorials may be made
to the American Heart
Association, P.O. Box 2391,
Shelby, NC 28151.
Clay-Barnette Funeral
Home was in charge of
arrangements.
ROY CHITWOOD
KINGS MOUNTAIN -
Roy Chitwood, 50, 204
Fulton Street, died October
27, 2002 at his home.
He was a native of
Cleveland County and the
son of the late Ralph
Monroe Chitwood. He was
also preceded in death by
his brother, James
Chitwood, and son,
Christopher Brian Davison.
He was formerly
employed by Haywood
Pools. He was a a longtime
disc jockey for WKMT
Radio, and served in the
U.S. Army.
He is survived by his
wife, Rebecca Oliver
Chitwood of Kings
Mountain; daughter,
Jennifer Davison Wells and
husband Travis of Kings
Mountain; mother, Mary
Black Chitwood of Kings
Mountain; brother, Gettis
Chitwood of Gastonia; and
sisters, Hattie Beaver of
Lincolnton, Barbara Jackson
of Bessemer City, and Mary
Wynn of Gastonia.
, The funeral. was conduct-
ed by. the oy, Darryl :
Alexander at'3 p. Mug iis
Wednesday at Ollie Harris
Memorial Chapel. Burial
was in Mountain Rest
Cemetery.
Harris Funeral Home was
in charge of arrangements.
IRVIN FRANKLIN
SHELBY - Irvin Franklin,
70, 414 Hatcher Road, died
October 29, 2002 at his
home.
A native of Cleveland
County, he was the son of
the late Paul r. and Elizabeth
Ross Franklin.
He is survived by his sons
and their wives, Irvin and
Lynn Franklin, Mitchell and
Lila Franklin, and Winton
Franklin, all of Shelby, and
Robert and Lori Franklin of
Jacksonville, FL; daughters
and their husbands, St.
Augustean “Sissy: and
Jimmy Blanton, Alori and
Scott Hunt, and Ava and
David Bowen, all of Shelby;
brother, Jerry Franklin of
Kings Mountain; sisters,
Mary Jo and husband Arron
Everhart of Lexington and
Catherine Lail of Casar; 15
grandchildren and 12 great-
grandchildren.
The funeral will be held at
11 a.m, Friday at Way of the
Cross Baptist Church.
Visitation is from 6-8 p.m.
Thursday at Clay-Barnette
Funeral Home.
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