Kings Mountain Hera.
Volume 125 ¢ Issue 48 ¢ Wednesday, November 27, 2013
kmherald.net
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Expansion named ‘Dover Foundation Annex’
ELIZABETH STEWART
lib.kmherald@gmail.com
Kings Mountain Mayor Rick
Murphrey announced Friday that
the planned 4,305 feet expansion
of the Patrick Senior Life and Con-
ference Center will be named the
“Dover Foundation Annex”
honor of the $150,000 pledge by
the foundation made to the Cen-
ter’s capital expansion campaign.
Foundation officers
Kathy Wilson, Vice President,
Harvey Hamrick, Jr. Secretary and
Amanda Scism, executive director,
1€ attended a lunch meeting and pre-
m sented a check for $37,500 to the
Dover
Harris named a
Carrousel Princess
8 ELIZABETH STEWART
lib.kmherald @gmail.com
Emily Lauren Harris, 17,
Kings Mountain High
School senior, is Kings
Mountain Carrousel
Princess chosen after inter-
views by a panel of judges
headed by a member of
Charlotte’s Carolinas Car-
rousel parade committee.
Harris, daughter of
Michael and Angela Harris,
is an honor student at
KMHS, active in the Beta
Club, National Honor Soci-
ety, French club, SAVE,
SADD, math club, an AP
scholar with honors, Renais-
sance Gold card holder four
years, and was a junior mar-
shal.
A Scholar Athlete, she
runs track and field, was
county champion in discus
as a freshman and sopho-
more, captain her junior
year, all conference and
county champion in discus
as a junior and county cham-
pion (4x400) this year; in-
door track county champion,
(300 meter) a cheerleader all
four years and captain of the
squad. She won the best in-
Emily Harris has been se-
lected as a 2013 Carrousel
Princess.
dividual cheerleading award
at EDGE Cheer Camp.
Active in the community,
she took part in the Angel
Christmas Tree project her
junior and senior years,
played Upwards soccer two
years and attended KMMS
cheerleading summer camp
two years. A member of Pat-
terson Grove Baptist
Church, she is a nursery at-
tendant and volunteers in
numerous church activities.
She said her participation
in the NC State Summer
Textile Exploration program
See HARRIS, 7A
Pulsing light show debuts
downtown Monday night
DAVE BLANTON
dave.kmherald@gmail.com
After years of running a
dazzling Christmas light
show in the Oak Grove com-
munity where he lives, elec-
tronics wizard Donnie Beard
is bringing the Beard Family
Christmas Lights to down-
town for the first time.
Beard has spent most of
his professional life tinker-
ing with computers and
electronics. It was five years
ago that he festooned his
Gold Run home with tens of
thousands of lights and
amazed his neighbors with a
light show set to music he
broadcast himself over the
radio.
Beard is spending this
weekend testing his show
and working out the kinks. It
will go live Monday night,
located between the Joy Per-
formance Theater and Patri-
ots Park. The plan is to
illuminate eight trees on
Railroad Ave. and many of
the block’s buildings for the
8 II 1
pulsing light show.
“Our goal is to put smiles
on kids’ faces,” said Beard,
who said he looks forward
each year to creating a
whole new show from
scratch.
The project, which city
officials and Beard say they
hope to continue for many
years in the future, was
helped along by a $2,500
grant from the Kings Moun-
tain Tourism Development
Authority.
Beard says he normally
uses about 60,000 individual
lights for his annual Christ-
mas show at home near Oak
Grove. But this year’s ex-
pansion to downtown means
he’ll be using double that
number.
“I’m still working on the
music,” Beard said. It’s
going to be a little some-
thing for everyone, includ-
ing some Christmas music,
some songs from The Tran-
siberian Orchestra and other
things.”
Beard has spent many
nights in the last week or so
getting the show ready, in-
cluding putting together a
new number that he didn’t
want to give many details
about.
Visitors to the light show
should tune their radios to
101.5.
Center dining room.
mayor, as its first installment of its
4-year pledge. Approximately 120
people attended the “contributor
appreciation luncheon,” held at
11:30 a.m. Friday in the Patrick
Campaign co-chairs include
Alex Bell, Kings Mountain Hospi-
tal Administrator, long-time civic
leader Mary Neisler, and Jim Prid-
gen, president of Firestone Fibers
and Textiles Co. Mrs. Neisler rec-
ognized members of the steering
committee.
Carl Elliott, campaign coordi-
nator, announced that the fundrais-
ing campaign had raised $788,403
toward its campaign goal of
chilly night outside the library.
A Christmas parade, Santa’s
Fire Truck Express and a
Jingle Bell Rockin’ Run
punctuate the holiday season
in Kings Mountain.
DAVE BLANTON
dave.kmherald@gmail.com
Children welcomed Santa Claus to
town Monday night with songs and
Christmas wish lists amid chilly
weather and a flake or two of snow at
Mauney Memorial’s annual Christmas
tree lighting.
“This is a special time of year for
me,” said Kings Mountain Mayor Rick
Murphrey, who delivered the welcome
A young girl pays a visit to Santa Claus Monday night at the Christmas tree light-
ing ceremony. Children heard a reading of “The Night Before Christmas” and
heard a presentation by elementary school singers before Santa’s arrival on a
Santa pulls into town
to light Christmas tree
before the visitor from the North Pole
Photo by DAVE BLANTON
address. “It reminds me of what
Christmas was like for me as a child,
and for my own children.”
Kids gathered around to hear the
mayor give a dramatic reading of “The
Night Before Christmas.”
Later, ahead of Santa’s arrival on a
noisy fire truck, a group of West Ele-
mentary and Grover Elementary stu-
dents entertained the crowd with
upbeat renditions of “Rock and Roll
Snow Man” and “Walking in a Winter
Wonderland.”
Not long after the man of the hour
made his entrance, he was besieged
with requests for presents: video
games, puppies, bicycles and of course
computers and other gadgets. But not
See SANTA, 7A
‘Alice’s Adventures’ opens Friday
Kings Moun-
tain Little The-
atre brings up the
curtain Friday
night at 7:30
pm. for two
weekend per-
formances of
“Alice’s Adven-
tures In Wonder-
land,” an f.
adaptation witha |
modern view to
the Lewis Car- [=
vations are sug-
gested and can be
made by calling
the Joy at 704-
730-9408 and
leaving a mes-
sage.
“Alice Ad-
| ventures in Won-
| derland” has all
the familiar char-
acters from the
classic tale with
some new char-
acters that bring
roll children’s
classic. ; ldo
The play Dewi and Zoe Eagan portray TWeedledos and smiles to appeal
4 laughter and
dates are Friday Tweedledum in the upcoming production of to the young as
and Saturday at ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’ opening at well as
Photo by Bryan Hallman young at heart
7:30 p.m. and the Joy Friday.
Sunday at 3 p.m.
and next weekend, Dec. 6 and 7, at 7:30
p.m. and 3 p.m. Dec. 8.
Nikki Wood, who directed last year’s
sell-out production of “The Best Christ-
mas Pageant Ever,” is directing the play
which appeals to all ages and features a
cast of 8-17 year olds who bring a fun
interpretation to the classic tale sure to
entertain.
The show is co-sponsored by Sav-
Way Foods. All seats are $5 and reser-
the
who get lost in
the fantastical world of wonderland.
Follow the rabbit to a delightful, en-
tertaining world of childhood fantasies
where nonsense makes quite good
sense. Alice journeys into a world of
talking animals, comic royalty and races
where the contestants run in circles.
There are also the Mad Hatter’s frantic
tea party, the watch-carrying White Rab-
bit and talking flowers. Along the way
See HOLIDAY PLAY, 7A
$1,065,000, or 74%, which he ex-
pects will be completed in early
2014, after a 7-month drive, begin-
ning in July.
Patrick Center Director Monty
Thornburg outlined the goals and
vision for the expansion project.
Holiday
events
Thanksgiving
Without few exceptions, most
Kings Mountain residents will ob-
serve Thanksgiving on Thursday.
For many, the day will be spent
going to Grandma's house, in spite of
weather, and enjoying good food
and friends, parade and football
watching on the TV and later in the
evening some may be shopping for
pre-Black Friday sales.
Early morning breakfasts will be
held at some Kings Mountain
churches. A pre-Thanksgiving serv-
ice will be held Wednesday night at
7 p.m. At Dixon Presbyterian
Church with Dixon, Victory Baptist,
and A New Beginning participating
in the service to which the public is
invited.
Schools are off for a long week-
end as well as employees of the City
of Kings Mountain.
Weeks after parade organizers
said they would have to temporarily
end because of lack of funds one of
the nation's best Thanksgiving Day
parades, the Carolinas Carrousel,
Novant Health stepped up as the title
sponsor for the next three years. The
parade will be earlier this year — at
9:30 a.m. The Charlotte parade has
been a Thanksgiving tradition for 66
years.
Routinely one of the busiest
shopping days of the year, Black Fri-
day is the beginning of the Christmas
shopping season.
Local stores are stocking their
shelves and the Chamber of Com-
merce is encouraging shoppers to
promote local businesses.
Christmas parades,
tree lightings
CHERRYVILLE — This Christ-
mas season the Cherryville Chamber
of Commerce, in conjunction with
the City of Cherryville, will have the
Christmas Tree lighting and Sing-
along Thursday, Dec. 5, at 7 p.m., in
the Mini-Park in downtown Cher-
ryville. The Cherryville High School
Marching Ironmen Band will lead
the Sing-along.
The parade, which will be held
Dec. 14 this year and starts at 10:30
a.m.
The Cherryville Chamber of
Commerce and the City of Cher-
ryville are looking for parade partic-
ipants. Anyone wishing to
participate can request an entry form
at the Chamber office. Parade float
entries deadline is Dec. 2.
“Christmas in the City," the 5th
annual holiday celebration on the
100 block of West Pennsylvania Av-
enue, will begin after the 4:30 p.m.
Christmas parade and continue until
8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 6.
BESSEMER CITY — The Jingle
Bell parade, fun slide, Moon bounce,
Little Blue Choo, live nativity scene,
See HOLIDAY EVENTS, 7A
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