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Thursday, May 15, 2003 Vol. 115 No. 20
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women’s
cer team wins
second straight
SWEFH 3A title
6A
Anvil
to close
May 23
BY ABIGAIL WOLFORD
Staff Writer
For over a year Anvil
Knitwear has been phasing
down its business. Next
Friday, May 23, the business
will officially close the
dying and finishing portion
of the business. The knit-
ting part will close on June
Approximately 430 jobs
will be lost at the plant in
total, although only 100 will
be lost in the final phase of
the closing.
The business will be
merging with another tex-
tile company, and the pro-
duction will be done in
Swannanoa, near Asheville.
The major reason for the
closure is to ensure that the
company will be able to
compete with imports, said
Ernest Rome, vice president
of manufacturing support
services. The company will
have to reduce its overhead
down to the bear minimum
just to be able to compete,
he said.
Rome said that he will
miss being in Kings
Mountain. He has worked
at the current plant location
for approximately 40 years.
He said he is not planning
to relocate, at least not per-
manently. He will probably
just retire, he said.
“We certainly have
enjoyed our relationship
See Anvil, 3A
Kings Mountain's summer paving got under way Tuesday avrning on North Cansler: ©
Street. With the weatherman calling for clear skies the rest of the week, city public
works officials hope to get several miles of streets resurfaced.
GARY STEWART / HERALD
LEC nearing completion
BY ABIGAIL WOLFORD
Staff Writer
Missy Wiggins is one of
the participants who will
benefit from the new Life
Enrichment Center in Kings
Mountain. Missy usually
rides a van to the Shelby
center from Kings Mountain
each day. She is excited
about the new center
because she will not have to
ride as far.
“It will be funny leaving
here. I got used to this
place. It will be hard on me
when I leave, but I'm look-
ing forward to it,” she said.
Fifteen of the participants
will move to the new center
See LEC, 5A
ABIGAIL WOLFORD /HERALD
The new Life Enrichment Center is under construction on Kings Mountain Blvd. in Kings
Mountain. It will be completed in August and will probably open its doors in October.
Family still top priority
for 84-year-old Porter
Volunteering way of life
for KM’s Shirley Brutko
BY ABIGAIL WOLFORD
Staff Writer
Last week was National Volunteer Week. Kings
Mountain is full of volunteers who participate in everything
from constructing a playground, to planting flowers down-
town, to renovating historical landmarks.
Shirley Brutko is a volunteer who has spent years con-
tributing to her city through the gifts of her time and tal-
ents.
Brutko grew up in Raeford and first began to volunteer
during her time in high school.
“I loved doing things as a younger person. Then I got to
Kings Mountain and found lots of opportunities to volun-
teer,” she said.
Brutko has lived in Kings Mountain for over 30 years.
She raised her three children here and became involved in
the schools and in her church first.
“I've always felt like I could make a difference in my
community and in my church,” said Brutko.
She said she finds helping other people to be very excit
See Brutko, 3A
SHIRLEY BRUTKO
Kings Mountain
BY ABIGAIL WOLFORD
‘Staff Writer
Hall of Fame
ceremony 18
Saturday night
By GARY STEWART
Editor of The Herald
The stars will come out
for the 16th annual Kings
Mountain Sports Hall of
Fame banquet and induc-
tion ceremony Saturday,
May 17 at 6 p.m. at the H.
Lawrence Patrick Senior Life
and Conference Centér.
People from as far away
as Colorado and New Jersey
will be on hand to honor
this year’s inductees - World
Heavyweight Greco-Roman
Wrestling Champion
Dremiel Byers, retired Kings
Mountain High baseball
coach Barry Gibson, retired
Newberry High School foot-
ball coach and athletic direc-
tor Mike Ware, and former
Wake Forest University foot-
ball player Aubrey
Hollifield.
Tickets are $10 each and
are available at McGinnis
~ Department Store or from
any member of the Hall of
Fame committee. Tickets
will also be sold at the door.
The ticket includes a meal
and the induction ceremony.
In addition to the
inductees, the Hall of Fame
will also honor several
Kings Mountain High stu-
dents as well as two men in
the community who spent
most of their lives support-
ing youth sports.
Paul Lancaster, who died
WANT TO GO?
Where: Patrick Senior
Center.
Time: 6 PM.
Cost: $10 at the door.
‘Inductees:
Dremiel Byers, reign-
ing World Greco-
Roman heavyweight
wrestling champion.
Barry Gibson, retired
KMHS baseball coach.
Aubrey Hollifield,
former KMHS and
Wake Forest football
player.
Mike Ware, retired
Newberry, SC High
School football coach.
recently at the age of 90, and
Pressley Anderson will
receive special recognition
awards for distinguished
service in the community.
Lancaster was instrumental
in renovating the Kings
Mountain High baseball
facility in the early 1970s;
and he and others took the
lead role in building the
Kings Mountain Middle
School softball and baseball
complex as well as all of the
See Hall, 3A
Strive Not to Drive
activities set Friday
BY ABIGAIL WOLFORD
Staff Writer
Friday the city will cele-
brate its annual “Strive Not
to Drive” day with several
events. The main point of
the day is, of course, to find
an alternate form of trans-
portation.
« “Striving not to drive
eases traffic congestion,
reduces pollution, and pro-
motes good health. I want
to urge our citizens to try
using alternative forms of
transportation in our com-
Eighty-two year old Gladys Porter had seven children.
Although only two of them survived childbirth, she has
learned a bit about raising children through the years.
“I guess I was just a happy woman with children. I
enjoyed being with them,” she said.
She often played with her children. Together they would
play games, like checkers and jack rocks.
Even though she had fun with her kids, she said she
always made sure they behaved. She is concerned that
many children today are not kept under control. She also
made sure her children were in church every Sunday.
The family always lived in the country and had a garden,
fruit trees, hogs, and chickens. Porter always worked in the
garden when she was at home. She also worked cleaning
yards, washing windows, and painting houses in her com-
‘munity. She and her husband owned a painting business,
called George Porter Painting, where they would paint the
inside and outside of houses.
See Porter, 3A
O12 | FIRST NATIONAL BANK : Gastonia
a Celebrating 128 Years azote 0a 865.0233
Shelby
529 New Hope Road 106 S Lafayette St.
704-484-6200
munity for this one day,”
said Mayor Rick Murphrey:.
The day will start with the
Mayor’s Bike to Work Day,
in which interested Kings
Mountain commuters will
meet at McDonalds on West
King Street, at 7:30 a.m. and
bike to City Hall. A light
breakfast will be served at
City Hall.
City Planner, Tripp Hord,
will present an update on
the plan for more bike trails,
greenways, and walking
See Strive, 3A
GLADYS PORTER
SR
Bessemer City
225 Gastonia Hwy.
704-629-3906
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