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September 4, 2003
The Kings Mountain Herald
CLONINGER
From 1A
- Hayes, and other good friends like
Post 100 team manager Bill Abernathy,
A. L. McSwain, Rocky Homesley and
neighbors J. L. and Nelson Sellers, all
of Cherryville, and Gene Goforth and
Carl Champion of Kings Mountain
who are his hunting buddies.
A life-threatening illness causes a
man or woman to put things in per-
spective, says Cloninger, who says he
doesn't worry about how many more
years he will coach. “I would kinda
like to coach two or three more years
but God is in charge and I have put my
life in the hands of God," he said.
Right now he's enjoying church,.
family, visits with friends, and his
world champion Tree and Walker dogs.
A native of Iron Station, Cloninger
graduated from Rock Springs High
School in Denver, now East Lincoln
High. Because he lived a half mile
closer to the Lincolnton American
Legion Post than Cherryville Post 100,
he started playing Legion ball in
Lincolnton in 1957. He signed with the
Milwaukee Braves at age 17 just out of
high school and played in the minor
leagues.. At age 20, he got the nod
from Milwaukee, now the Atlanta
Braves. He pitched 13 innings for
Milwaukee in the first game in Fulton
County Stadium and Joe Torre was
catcher. The last game in Fulton
Stadium he coached the New York
Yankees in the World Series in 1997
and Cherryville's Bill Abernathy was in
the stands.
No one was more proud of the Post
100 team than Cloninger who cheered
them on while listening to the results
of the games on the radio. He sent a
congratulatory message to the players,
saying that Post 100 gave him his first
start in baseball and said he looked
forward to seeing other young players
going straight from the Legion field to
sign a baseball contract.
Cloninger's friends used to tell him
that his baseball uniform would have
to be torn off him because he would
not voluntarily take it off. "I love base-
ball," he said. As a young man he
walked a mile to play Legion ball.
Cherryville had no legion team in
1978-79 and Abernathy hired Tony to
coach the team and he set the ground
work for the 1981 Post 100 champi-
onship. Post 100 was also 1982 state
Ai champion runnerup and some of those
ih players Cloninger trained in 1980. At
7H one time Cloninger also worked for
ia Dudley Sports and then signed a con-
tract to coach the New York Yankees
‘in the minor league organization. At
one time during his youth he played
on a slow pitch team sponsored by
Howard Furniture of Denver.
He said good friend and pitching
coach with the New York Yankees Mel
Stottlemyer, also a cancer survivor,
supported him during his own chal-
lenging cancer experience.
Pitching cooly and effectively, Tony
looked more like a seasoned veteran on
the mound in 1961 than a 21 year old
rookie when his big moment as a
pitcher came with the Milwaukee
Braves, his initiatioh into big time
baseball with the Braves and subse-
quently Cincinnati Reds and St. Louis
Cardinals. He signed with the Braves
in 1958, one of the best pitchers, by all
accounts, to come out of North
Carolina. He stayed out of baseball for
14 years while his children were grow-
ing up.
His envious record in professional
baseball includes 12 years as a major
league player, 12 years as a major
league coach and three years as a field
coordinator. For 15 years he was pitch-
ing coach and bullpen coach for the
New York Yankees and went from the
Yankees in 2002 to the San Francisco
Giants as a Scout for several months
before joining the Red Sox as pitching
coach March 15, 2002.
"When I hit the grand slam well it
was really something but a second
homer was unbelievable," Cloninger
said after the Braves demolished the
San Francisco Giants with his two
grand slam homers.
Torre, the Braves catcher, called him
when Cloninger crossed the plate and
asked if he remembered touching all
the bases.
"It was history, Cloninger wrote a
page today," said Braves manager
Bobby Bragan at the time. "I'd say that
was about as impressive a page of his-
tory as I've ever seen written."
Memorabilia of those major wins are
featured on the walls of Cloninger's
comfortable den where a cabinet holds
baseballs from every game he coached
and family pictures including a paint-
ing of his boyhood home in Lincoln
County. His two baseball bats from
that famous Braves game are in the
Baseball Hall of Fame with the words
"Tony Cloninger, Hitting Pitcher
Deluxe."
Cloninger coached the New York
Yankees to win four World Series
championship games and saw World
Series action as pitching coach and in
the bullpen from 1994-2001. He was
bullpen coach for the Yanks in 1996
which he said was his most exciting
game because the Yankees beat his
former teammates the Atlanta Braves.
New York also beat San Diego in 1998;
the Braves in 1999; the Mets in 2000
and lost to Arizona in the seventh gme
of the World Series in 2001.
Son of the late Carl and Edna
Cloninger, he has four children: Tony
Lee Cloninger Jr. and wife Karen of
Denver; Darren Cloninger and wife,
Angie, of Jacksonville; Michael
Cloninger and wife, Kim, and
Meredith and Ronnie Sherrill, all of
Denver, and one step-daughter, Terry
and Marc Byers of Shelby. The family
includes 12 grandchildren.
To what does he credit his coaching
success? He keeps it simple, he says.
Cloninger is reponsible for 25 play-
ers on a team and 12 pitchers are
selected from a group of 29 or 30 for
one position after six weeks of spring
training "I try to be fair," says
Cloninger. Most important is training
pitchers how to pitch to the opposing
players. "A pitcher has to be condi-
tioned and have a sound throwing
arm," said righthander Cloninger.
Grandson Erich Cloninger, 22, is fol-
lowing in his grandfather's foot steps.
He is playing baseball in Lowell, Mass.
for the Red Sox organization. All
Cloninger's young grandsons are
active in Little League. His brother,
Ray Cloninger of Denver, played in
Cherryville Post 100's first state cham-
pionshp game in 1953. Cloninger also
has a sister, Marie Goodman of
Charlotte, and one deceased brother,
Frank.
"I've played ball all over the country
and have many friends in and out of
the game,” said Cloninger. Some of his
top current pitchers for the Red Sox
include Pedro Martinez and Derek
Lowe. Cloninger has been guest of
three presidents at the White House.
Said Cloninger, "You have to have
the breaks to win but you have to have
talented and dedicated players. I see a
lot of talent and dedication in the
Cherryville Post 100 team,"
Cloninger said his goal now is to
give something back to the community
which has been good to him.
Life is good and Cloninger tells
everyone who calls that he's happy to
have been able to work with some of
the world's top athletes.
Sports writers said of Cloninger,
even as a young rookie, that he had
"the right stuff." His goal now is to
challenge young people to have "the
right stuff" on and off the baseball
field.
Page 3A
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
Tony Cloninger an Shaker, one of his many world champi-
on dogs. Cloninger, who recently has undergone cancer
treatment, has been declared cancer free and is ready to
return to his job as pitching coach of the Boston Red Sox.
MERGER
From 1A
the attorney.
Allen said the official
appeal must be filed by
September 9 but that Shaw
indicated he will file it on
Thursday.
Neither the Supreme
* Court nor Shaw would spec-
ulate about a timeline for the
decision.
, “It’s just whenever they
(the Supreme Court) decide
if they will make a deci-
sion,” Dr. Allen said. “There
is no indication from the
attorneys at this point as to
how long that will take.”
Kings Mountain is oppos-
ing the State Board's June 1,
2000 approval of the
Cleveland County
Commissioners’ plan to
merge the Cleveland
County, Kings Mountain
and Shelby school systems.
The basis of the Kings
Mountain suit is that the
merger plan excludes some
183 students who live in
Gaston County but within
the city limits of Kings
Mountain. KMDS claims
that the school district lines
are contiguous with the city
limits, therefore the
Cleveland County
Commissioners plan should
have had the approval of the
Gaston County
Commissioners. However,
the State contends that
Kings Mountain School
District was never author-
ized by the General
Assembly to expand its
school boundaries as the city
limits expanded.
ADULT
"From 1A
math lessons he thought
* were long forgotten.
“It’s bringing it back,” he
said.
Stone’s two children are
remembering reading and
too young to realize their
mom is back in the class-
room. She plans to discour-
age quitting school as they
get older.
“Don’t quit. You have to
go back,” she said.
While Stone may be hard
on herself for dropping out,
her teacher is not.
“Everybody has situations
in their lives,” Ballard said.
The instructor enjoys her
job.
“It’s rewarding. I admire
them for going back.”
Ballard is also the librari-
an at East Elementary.
The adult basic education
class is sponsored by
Cleveland Community
College's Learning Center. It
holds classes on campus, at
East and other locations
around the county. For more
information, call 704-484-
4050.
| SHEAR
| ter. After that, she will stu-
dent teach in a kindergarten
‘classroom.
“Kindergarten is my
heart. I feel like I would be
able to make a difference.”
( Shear already has lots of
experience making a differ-
ence. She divides her work
day at Grover Elementary
between a kindergarten and
third grade classroom.
Her already infectious
smile gets even bigger as she
talks about a recent class-
room activity. Shear helped
students cut out shapes,
then directed them to place
the pieces of paper on a
larger sheet. The children
excitedly realized they had
made a human figure.
Surrounding Areas.
% Only “local” internet service provider
Local dial-up service for Kings Mountain, Shelby,
Gastonia, Bessemer City, Grover, Boiling Springs,
1 Belmont, Statesville, Charlotte, Morganton, Hickory,
t Newton, Rutherfordton, Forest City
“All of a sudden they get
it. That makes it all worth
it,” Shear said.
Shear says the faculty at
Grover and school adminis-
trators have been very
encouraging.
Shear estimates she will
complete the program by
May, 2005 or sooner
“I feel good about what I
can do for children. Children
now days need all the love
and caring they care get.”
9-11 services
planned in KM
By ANDIE BRYMER
Staff Writer
Kings Mountain will
remember the lives lost
Sept. 11, 2001 and honor
local emergency personnel
with a program next
Thursday.
The commemoration
begins at 7:30 p.m. at the
City Hall Amphitheater.
The Loch Norman Pipe
Band will play as the Kings
Mountain Honor Guard,
police and fire departments
and rescue squad march in
from Gold Street.
Boy Scouts from Troop 95,
El Bethel United Methodist,
will lead the pledge of alle-
giance. Shanna Butler will
sing the national anthem.
A video from the state
Firefighters Association will
be shown.
There will be poetry read-
ELECT Tommy
Hawkins
City Council
“Elect Tommy for Tc omorrow”
Paid for by the committee to elect Tommy Hawkins
ing. An area choir and local
minister will also participate
though names have not
been released at press time.
After a candle lighting
ceremony, there will be a
moment of silence followed
by a recessional by the pipe
band.
City events coordinator
Ellis Noell describes the
event as a “time to honor
those who have and will
serve.”
The service honors both
the emergency personnel
who lost their lives in 2001
and the local police, fire-
fighters and rescue workers
who continue to serve.
“Our local first respon-
ders would do the same
thing,” Noell said.
He praised their depth
and dedication.
The public is invited to
the service.
Ward 3
CHRISTIAN FREEDOM BAPTIST CHURCH
246 RANGE RD., KINGS MTN.
Making Disciples Ministry
FALL 2003 Bible Study Schedule
This Fall there will be twelve opportunities to learn and grow in the Lord.
Bible Study Day & Time Start Date Teacher
EOS
KINGS MOUNTAIN ] ]
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Homes of Honor | Sun. 6:00 PM Sept. 28th | Ricky & Terry Greene
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ways of handling 10:30-11:30 am Jamie Black
money.
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Marriage
Wed. 7:00 pm Sept. 24th | Stephanie Chambers
.
Precept Study
(Genesis 1)
Wed. 6:00 pm Sept. 24th Jonathan Laughter
Beginning Steps
(New Believers)
Sunday 9:15 am
Sunday School
Sept. 28th Richard Ellison &
Rusty Bridges
Mind of Christ Sunday 6:00 pm Sept. 24th Christi Gray
Disciple’s Prayer
Life
Tues. 6:00 pm Sept. 23rd Buffy Gray
Ladies Bible
Study (LBS)
Year Long Study
Tues.
9:30-11:30 am
Sept. 23rd
thru May 11th
Ashley Sullens
First Place
(Repeaters)
Wed. 6:00 pm Sept. 24th Judy Walker
Bringing Up Sunday 5:00 pm Sept. 28th Vince
Boys & Ashley Sullens
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ORIENTATION & REGISTRATION DATES: Sunday, Sept. 14th & Sept.21 at 3:30
p.m. Location:Christian Freedom Baptist Fellowship Building. All studies will be
small group, classes will fill up quickly. An orientation for each study will be held on
these dates, to introduce you to the studies.
Registration will immediately follow orientation. Here you will be able to sign up for
the study the Lord has led you, through prayer, to take. At this time, you will pay for
the materials needed for the study. If you have any questions concerning the studies
contact Vince & Ashley Sullens. 704-734-0964
ATTENTION LADIES
Ladies Bible Study (LBS) will be held on Tuesday s beginning Sept. 23. 2003 from 9:30am to
11:30am at Christian Freedom Baptist Church (Children s Bible Study available). Orientation
& Registration will be held on Sept. 9 at 9:30am. This will give everyone a chance to .
purchase books and become familiar with children class-rooms and etc. This year we will do
a 30 week study taken from the Purpose Driven Life - Doing Life Together Series . I truly
believe that through this years study that we will not only grow closer together as a group but
we as individuals will grow closer to God as we become committed to fulfilling God s
purpose for our lives. Registration for Ladies Bible Study (LBS) will also be open on our
regular days of Discipleship Registration Sept. 14 & 21 at 3:30 pm (Christian Freedom
Baptist Church Fellowship Building) for those who will not be able to come on Sept. 9 at 9:30
am, Any questions please contact Ashley Sullens 704-734-0964.