Thursday, June 28, 2007
KINGS MOUNTAIN
FAB 4TH
City’s fireworks
extravaganza
Wednesday at
Walking Track
EMILY WEAVER
eweaver@kingsmountainherald.com
July 4th is America’s birthday
and a time for fireworks, and
Kings Mountain will celebrate
the nation’s 231st birthday
Wednesday at the annual
Fabulous 4th festival at the
Walking Track in the Jake Early
Sports Complex beside the
YMCA.
What has been labeled “the
best fireworks show "within a
five county radius,” will begin
at 6 p.m. with the tunes of Chris
Marks & The Hillbilly Deluxe
band. Performing a variety of
classics from 80’s rock, southern
rock, rock-n-roll, motown,
beach, country and other genres,
the four-man local band will fill
the track with the sounds of
“yesteryear.”
In the band, Steele Vaught, of
Salisbury, plays lead guitar and
vocalist; Tony Barbee, of Locust,
is the lead vocalist, harmony
vocalist and drummer; Johnny
Webb, of Salisbury, is also the
lead and harmony vocalist and
plays the keyboard and ham-
mond organ; Ronnie Caudle, of
Aquadale, is a harmony vocalist
See Fourth, 11A
KM’S JULY 4TH SCHEDULE
6 p.m. - Ultra lights flyover,
Welcome /Introduction of band
by Special Events Director Ellis
Noell, concert by Chris Marks &
Hillbilly Deluxe.
9 p.m. - Welcome, Parade,
Introductions by KMPD Det. Lt.
Lisa Proctor, “National
Anthem” sung by Shana
Adams, Pledge of Allegiance led
by Proctor, “God Bless America”
sung by Sabrina Collias, “My
Country 'tis of Thee” sung by
Cellia Collias, Mayor Rick
Murphrey’s 4th of July address,
Patriotic Medley by Loch
Norman Pipe Band, Call to
retrieve and retrieval of colors,
Mayor and “Newman's” ride to
“Proud to be an American,” call
and answer for musket fire, and
lights out for fireworks.
KINGS MOUNTAIN
Vol. 119 No. 26
Since 1889
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EMILY WEAVER/HERALD
Members of the Kings Mountain Fire Department gathered outside of Station 1 on Monday afternoon to sign a ban-
ner that will be sent to the Charleston Fire Department next week. Left to right: Mayor Rick Murphrey, Capt. Jamie
Black, FF Bill Parker, Volunteer Randy Short, Capt. Bobby King, and Austin and Nathan Sipes. Assistant Chief Johnnie
Caldwell and Chief Frank Bums sign the banner. :
Sending prayers to fallen brothers
8 EMILY WEAVER
W eweaver@kingsmountainherald.com
Members of the Kings Mountain
Fire Department did not go
untouched by the horrific news of the
great Charleston fire that claimed the
lives of nine firemen last week.
The cries of their brothers are loud.
It carries for miles and pricks the
heart of anyone in turnout gear.
Although nothing and no one can
replace the great loss of the fallen
nine, KMFD is sending its thoughts
and prayers to the Charleston Fire
Department in the form of a signed
banner.
A handful of members gathered
outside of Station 1 on Monday after-
noon to pen their thoughts on the
sign. The 3x5 banner, printed by The
Printin” Press, is decorated with “A
Fireman's Prayer.”
The banner will be on display in the
lobby of City Hall for the public to
sign until Friday at 5 pm. Chief Frank
Burns said that they hope to get it to
Charleston Fire Department by the
first of next week. Two by two, in
silence, they signed their messages.
“Our firemen do such a wonderful
A FIREMAN’S PRAYER
“When I am called to duty, God,
wherever Flames may rage, give me
the strength to save some life whatev-
er Be its age. Help me embrace a little
child before it is too late or save an
older person from the horror of that
fate. Enable me to be alert and hear
the weakest shout and quickly and
(effectively) to put the fire out. I want
to fill my calling and to give the best
in me, to guard my every neighbor
and protect their property. And if
according to your will, I have to lose
my life, please bless with your pro-
tecting hand my children and my
wife.”
- By A. W. "Smokey" Linn of
Wichita, Kansas
job. They're dedicated and committed
to serving their community in a very
dangerous job,” said Mayor Rick
. Murphrey, adding that the city is very
proud of its fire department. “We
wanted to send something to the peo-
ple of Charleston to let them know
that we remember them and we
won't forget them. Our hearts and
prayers go out to the families of those
who lost their lives in service.”
The mayor and fire chief sent e-
mails to the mayor and fire depart-
ment in Charleston to share their sup-
port. Murphrey said that he hopes
this banner will uplift their spirits in
this dark hour.
Burns said that he heard the news
on CNN at about 6 a.m. Tuesday. He
said that although what happened in
Charleston is a great tragedy, “It
could happen to any town at any
time.”
Assistant Chief Johnnie Caldwell
has been with the Kings Mountain
Fire Department 35 years. When
asked if the Charleston tragedy
brings back memories of the “great
fire of Shelby” in 1979, he shook his
head. “No, not really. It was a whole
different set of circumstances. We lost
more in Charleston than we did in
Shelby (with 4 firemen and 1 gas
employee),” he said. But both
tragedies are haunted with gruesome
sights. He had been in the service
about seven years when he was called
out to the destruction on Warren
Street. He had to help dig out his
“fallen brother,” Nick Sharts, and a
See Charleston, 11A
pret i
coach Hussey
dies of stroke
| GARY STEWART
gstewart@kingsmountainherald.com
Former Kings Mountain High School base;
ball and basketball coach Bobby Hussey, 67,
died Tuesday after suffering a massive stroke
on Monday morning. :
Visitation is from 6-8 p.m. tonight at Raymer
Funeral Home in Huntersville. The funeral is
Friday at 10:30 a.m. at Denver United
Methodist Church. :
Hussey’s oldest son, Bo, said his father had
been diagnosed with dementia about a year
ago and had been in a Charlotte memory care
facility for the past 10 months. ‘
“It is unbelievable what can happen to the
human brain,” Bo Hussey said. “This is tough
but we all know he’s in a better place.”
Hussey coached at KMHS from 1963-70,
serving as an assistant football coach under
Bill Bates and as head girls basketball coach
before assuming the duties of head baseball
coach in the spring of 1967 and head basketball
coach in the fall of 1967. He was inducted into
the Kings Mountain Sports Hall of Fame in
1999.
Hussey built phenomenal programs in both
sports. In three years as basketball coach, he
led the Mountaineers to a 66-7 overall record
and two Southwestern 3A Conference titles.
His 1967-68 team, led by All-Americans
George Adams and Otis Cole, finished 25-1
overall, losing the Western NC High School
Athletic Association championship game to
Kannapolis. His last team here, the 1969-70
team led by Cole, won 23 straight games
See Hussey, 11A
AFTER 5S ALIVE
Summer concert series
kicks off at Patriots Park
I EMILY WEAVER :
. eweaver@kingsmountainherald.com
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Check your pulse. Still alive? Then go to
Patriot's Park after 5 today for this year’s first
After 5 Alive. =
The Kings Mountain Business
Professionals Association and Mountaineer
Partnership have joined forces once again to
provide the best After 5 Alives in Kings
Mountain. Each event, free to the public, will
be held at the Gazebo in Patriots Park from
5:30-9 p.m. 3
There are a few changes in store this year, int
regards to music and spirits. Three After 5
Alives are scheduled this summer to be held
on the last Thursday of June and July and on
Rod
Thursday, August 23. Live music from nearby
bands will headline each event. Tonight's con-
See After, 11A
KM takes hard hit
City buildings |
are going green
EMILY WEAVER
eweaver@kingsmountainherald.com
Following in the footsteps of Al Gore (“Inconvenient Truth”) and
the Academy Awards, the City of Kings Mountain is now “going
reen.”
: There are two projects in the works right now to help the city save
not only money and energy, but to cut down on waste in an effort to
save the planet. The Federal Energy Policy Act was signed into law
in 2005. “It was the first change in U.S. energy policies in 13 years. It
requires federal sectors to reduce energy consumption by two per-
cent, each year through 2015,” said Mayor Rick Murphrey. “The state
of NC, in moving to support this goal, authorized the program
Energy Performance Contracting (EPC) to help local governments
achieve energy savings. About a year ago the city began a process to
improve operating efficiencies and to fund improvements with guar-
anteed energy savings under EPC.” :
The state program authorizes certain companies to come into
municipalities and make them more energy efficient. It also gives the
cities cheaper rates on their financial loans. “We've selected Siemens
(Building Technologies) to come into our city to evaluate and look at
all of the energy systems, including lighting, heating, air condition-
ing, controls, traffic signals, street lights, utility poles, meters, all of
See Green, 11A
EMILY WEAVER/HERALD
A bad thunderstorm that rumbled through Kings Mountain on
Sunday snapped a tree limb, breaking a power line and causing
damage to a citizen's truck at 303 Watterson Street.
from thunderstorms
- EMILY WEAVER
. eweaver@kingsmountainherald.com
Kings Mountain Fire Department was out until about 2:30 Monday
morning answering calls from two bad thunderstorms that rumbled
through town Sunday night.
Fire Chief Frank Burns said that lightning struck the hand rails
that led to the front door of a house at 708 Hillside Drive. The light-
ning traveled up the rails, blew out part of the front wall and explod-
ed plaster off of the interior. Continuing its tantrum, the lightning
traveled to the closet, blowing the door off of its hinges and splin-
tering the wood. “It opened it so hard that it knocked the whole end
of the wall down,” Burns said, adding that it also blew a chunk out
of the floor joints.
With all of the damage, the lightning, surprisingly, did not cause a
fire. “It smoked it up pretty bad, but thankfully there was no fire,”
he said. “We've had a lot of people call who say they've had light-
ning damage, like the phone has quit working or their TV has blown
out. Our main radio blew out.”
But luckily, the department has back-up radios, which they need- .
ed to answer another call to 303 N. Watterson Street. Lightning
struck a tree, sending a limb crashing onto a truck parked outside.
and snapping a power line. BY
“We had a total of about 12 calls last night. A lot of them were just
nearby lightning strikes, power lines being torn down, and tree *
See Storm, 11A
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