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Tuesday
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Lions (Huncomu
Clinic IhitrstlaY
VOLUME 90 ■ NUMBER 76 - TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 25th, 1979 ■ KINGS MOUNTAIN, NORTH CAROLINA
Roamin* Around
Town
With
Darrell Austin
9 (Ingredlento; There will be blla of
news, very little wladom, aome
humor and commenta, aome vlewa
from other editora. Dlrectlona: Take
weekly, If poaalble, but pleaae avoid
an overdoae.)
Ruaty Baumgardner, first year
student at the Naval Academy Prep
^School In Newport, R.I., recently
wrote his father for two things ... the
Bible and a subscription to the
Herald. His dad sent him both.
When we ran Gary and Lib
Stewart’s picture a few weeks ago
when they were named co-editors of
the Herald, some of their friends
awere ribbing them about how Gary’s
MNid picture made Lib look so good.
James Ledford said “putting Gary’s
picture beside of Lib’s Is kind of like
planting an onion In a patch of
daisies.”
Hall Goforth of Kings Mountain
has quite a record In Sunday School
^attendance at First Presbyterian
Church. Sunday, he received
his 40th year perfect attendance pin.
’That’s light, 40 years and no misses.
’That’s consistency.
g o
o
u
4.>
E)o you recognize this kid? T was
his neighbor on Fulton Street for 18
years. T considered him a rival when
It came to the girls, because with his
sheepish grin and fast moves on the
Glance floor at Liake Montonla, he
vms tough competition. T won a lew
and he won a few. Who Is he and
where Is he now? See page 2-A.
Grace United Methcdlst Church
had a pinto bean supper last Friday
night. They had beans with corn-
bread, slaw and all the trimmings.
tPev. George Sherrill kept going
back for seconds, thirds and fourths.
FlnaUy liis wile said, "George, with
all you have eaten, aren’t you em
barrassed?” “Notatall,” he said. ”T
told them T was getting It for you.”
(To comment In this column, write
^Roamin’ Around Town, P.O. Box
W82, or give me a call at 739-7496.)
Lions Sponsor
Glaucoma Oinic
A free glaucoma clinic, open to the
general public. Is slated for ’TTiurs.,
TMpt. 27th, from 9 a.m. until 4:30
p.m. In First Baptist Church
Fellowship Hall.
Kings Mountain Lions Club Is
sponsoring the clinic which Is aimed
In early-detecUon of glaucoma In
adults 36 and older.
The check-up requires only
woonds to complete and will be
inducted by representatives of the
Cleveland County Health Elepart-
ment.
United Fund Kicked Off
Kings Mountain United Way for
1980 seeks a total of $66,000 for 22
agencies and was kicked off by
campaign workers at a luncheon
Wednesday at North School.
’This year’s goal Is $600 more than
the successful drive of 1979 which
was over subscribed and recorded
130.64 percent of goal.
Campaign Chairman Dr. Terry
Sellers and United Way President
Bob Boggan echoed their “ex
citement of the quality and caliber of
leadership for the campaign" at the
kick-off which featured distribution
of pledge cards and other materials
to workers in numerous divisions.
Showing of the United Way film,
"A Little Miracle,” which co-stars
veteran Kings Mountain actor Hal
England and Mickey Rooney,
opened the kick-off and President
Boggan said the film reflected the
kind of spirit which exists “in our
own people."
Divisional chairmen who were
recognized were Becky Seism,
advance gifts and correspondence;
Mike Napier and Connie Putnam,
city employes: Evelyn Hamrick,
commercial; Mark Wilson, hospital;
Alex McCallum, industry, and Dan
Brady and Charles Mauney, co-
J
'rt
A
u
UNITED WAY KICK OFF-Kings Mountain’s United
Way Campaign for 1980 Is now underway. Pictured at a
United Way kickoff luncheon are, from left. Bill
Russell, treasurer. Rev. Bob Boggan, president, Rev.
Photo by Katrena McCall
Gary Bryant, campaign chairmen-elect; Rev. Calvin
Bacon, guest speaker, and Dr. ’Terry Sellers, 1980
campaign chairman. Hie drive seeks $56,900 for 22
causes.
KM Man Volunteers For Hurricane Duty
Thogmartin Meets Fred
By GARY STEWART
Co-Editor
The steak and eggs Joe
’Thogmartin had for lunch Thursday
in Mobile, Ala., tasted as good as
anything he’s eaten In quite a while.
For five days before that, his diet
had consisted of peanut butter and
Jelly sandwiches and canned
chicken.
’Thogmartin, a Gaston County
native who owns his own chimney
sweeping business in Kings
Mountain, was called to Mobile two
weeks ago along with other mem
bers of the American Red Cross to
minister to victims of Hurricane
Frederick, which caused billions of
dollars In damage to that area of the
state.
Tt was the fifth hurricane
’Thogmartln’s been In, Including four
as a Red Cross member. The other
one, and the worst, was In Corpus
Christl, Tex., In 1961. He was In the
Air Force then.
Thogmartin spent 10 days In
Mobile, working In an evacuation
center and surveying damaged
property. He and others braved 100
mile per hour winds at no pay to
serve the victims. Most of the time
was spent without the benefit of
electricity or phoen service.
He left here on Wed., Sept. 12, and
flew to Montgomery. He had to drive
the final 180 miles as the Mobile
airport had long been closed.
“We didn’t have any traffic
problems going down,” he recalled.
“Most of the traffic was going north
out of there.” Over 320,000 people
reportedly left the area.
“Winds were already picking up
and the electricity was off In several
places when we got there at five
o’clock,” he said. “That evening I
was sent to an evacuation center
north of Mobile. ’The wind blew
almost all night and we lost part of
the roof of the community center we
were using.”
Glass windows on all sides of the
center were boarded up, but the
winds pulled the plywood off and
shattered the glasses. But no one
was Injured.
“'The house right across the street
completely lost Its roof,’’ said
Thogmartin. “Tree limbs were
everywhere and all the streets were
blocked.”
’The nxt day, Thogmartin and
other volunteers went to the hardest-
7 >1^7
JOE THOGMARTIN
hit areas, began a damage
assessment survey. Bind offered
food, housing, clothing and whatever
else was necessary to keep the
people going.
’Thogmartin recognized many of
the volunteers as those he worked
with a week earlier In Hurricane
David at Charleston, S.C. “I met
people from Oregon, Los Angeles,
Iowa and just about everywhere else
In the country," he said.
Five days after Frederick moved
on, Thogmartin said 98 percent of
Mobile was still without electricity.
’The National Guard was called In to
protect businesses from looters.
Rlpoff artists from out-of-state
came In selling a pound of Ice for two
dollars and the Mobile city council
had to pass an ordinance to prohibit
It. The city began handling the ice
business free of charge.
“I heard reports of people almost
rioting waiting In line to get Ice,"
’Thogmartin said. ’"They needed It to
keep their food from spoiling.”
After completing his damage
assessment survey, Thogmartin
worked with disaster welfare
Inquiries, helping locate people who
had not been heard from.
■"There were a lot of cases where
people In service were calling the
Red Cross because they hadn't
heard anything from their parents,”
he said. “We would find out the
status of their health and welfare
and report back.”
With no electricity, Thogmartin
said his baths were very cold
showers and cooking facilities were
zilch. Thus, the peanut butter and
jelly sandwiches.
Thogmartin said cleanup of the
area will take months, and
estimated the damage In Mobile
alone to be over a billion dollars.
The city of Mobile has huge oak
trees lining the streets,”he said.“It
looked like someone jut came In with
chain saws and pruned every one of
them. IJmbs were everywhere.
“Whole neighborhoods of people
would get together and help each
other clear trees off roofs,” he ad
ded. “You just couldn’t believe sill
the fallen trees and powerlines.”
Thogmartin said only a few deaths
were attributed directly to the
hurrlcMe.
"The problems came after the
storm” he said. "There were a lot of
chain saw accidents when people
started going out to clear property.
Hospitals were overrun with people
from chain saw accidents. And there
were a lot of car accidents because
all the traffic signals were out. I
know of one case where a mother
and all of her children died In a
house fire because of using gas by
some Improper method.”
By the time Thogmartin left
Mobile last Thursday at noon, he
said some humor had begun to come
back Into the lives of the people. “A
lot of signs were going up saying
’Frederick hell, that had to be a
woman,’ ” he said.
One good thing came out of the
storm, he said. “I ran out of
cigarettes and wasn’t able to go
purchase any fora couple of days, so
I quit smoking. I had been smoking
for 20 years,” he said
(hairmen; ' Rev. Jerry Smith,
ministers; Fred Weaver, postal
service; Andy Nelsler, professional,
and Glenda O’Shields, schools.
Chairman Sellers said that he
anticipates that the United Way
campaign will be oversubscribed
again and that totals at year-end will
be over $70,000. He encouraged
workers to encourage contributors
to give one hour’s pay per month or
one day’s pay per year In a “fair
share concept.”
Dr. Sellers’ pastor. Rev. Calvin
Bacon, pastor of Trinity Assembly of
God In Charlotte, was the keynote
speaker, challenging the volunteers
to “use problems to work for you,”
quoting the philosopher who said,
“don’t bring me your successes,
they weaken me; bring me your
problems, they strengthen me.” “A
problem”, said Bacon, “Is like a
tube of toothpaste that squeezes the
best out of you.”
Other officers recognized were
Pat Cheshire, outgoing United Way
president; Gary Bryant, 1981-82 •
campaign chairman; and Bill
Russell, secretary-treasurer.
Biggest item In the budgeted
requests for 1980 In the Greater
Kings Mountain campaign Is for the
Kings Mountain Rescue Squad
where $10,000 is asked for vehicle
operation, equipment and equip
ment maintenance.
Next biggest requests come from
the American Red Cross, where
$9,260.00 is asked, and from Girl
Scouts of America, Pioneer Council,
which seeks $6,800.00, and Boy
Scouts of America, Piedmont
Council, $6,100.00. The Red Cross
provides disaster assistance, blood
programs, flrst-ald, cardio
pulmonary rescultatlon, CPR, water
safety and veteran-serviceman
assistance. In 1978-79 they gathered
almost 6,000 pints of blood. In 43
bloodmobile visits and trained 1400
people In first aid, watersafety and
CPR.
Kings Mountain has 360 girls In the
Girl Scout program and funds also
provide materials, camping supplies
and training aids and toward a
permanent local campground.
Scouting Is a natural for boys bet
ween the ages 8-21.
Other requests In the budget:
American Social Health Association,
$92.66; N.C. Chapter Arthritis
Foundation, $769.93; Association for
Retarded Citizens, $600; Children’s
Home Society of North Carolina,
$1,271.32; Cleveland County Shelter
Home. $2,700; Community
Organization for Drug Abuse,
$1,000; Epilepsy Association of N.C.
$305.42; Florence Crlttenton Ser
vices, $594.61; International Social
Services, $18.61; Kings Mountain
High School Band, $2,800; Kings
Mountain High School Chorus,
$1,000; Kings Mountain Little
Theatre, $1,000; Kings Mountain
Ministerial Association Helping
Hand, $5,000; National Council On
Aging, $74.04; N.C. United Way,
$932.00; Research Fund of N.C.
United Way, $407.22; Salvation
Army, $1,200; and United Health
Services, $270.91.
.1
SPEAKER — Rev. Calvin Baker,
pastor of Trinity Assembly of God of
Charlotte, challenged United Fund
volunteers at last week’s kick-off
luncheon for the 1980 campaign
which seeks $66,000 In the KM area.
Pearson Wins
Grid Contest
Bobby Pearson of 914 Henry Street
hit the tie-breaker on the nose to win
last week’s Herald “Pick the Win
ners” football contest.
Pearson and tlx other contestants
correctly predicted 16 of 19 winners
in the third contest. The Georgia
Tech-Florida game ended In a tie.
Pearson predicted 35 points to be
scored In the South Carollna-Duke
game, which the Gamecocks won 36-
0. Ironically, that game was one of
the four Pearson missed, as he
picked the Blue Devils to win. His
other misses were Chase's upset loss
to R-S Central, Appalachian’s win
over Western Carolina and Gardner-
Webb’s loss to Mars Hill.
Other persons missing just four
games, but losing out on the tie
breaker, were Donald Phillips of
Clover, S.C., Michael Lowe of
Grover, Jay Roark of Grover, and
Carl A. L,ayel, Curt Pressley and
Lois Carpenter, all of Kings
Mountain.
As winner, Pearson will receive a
$76 check, which can be picked up at
the Herald office anytime Thursday.
TTie fourth contest Is Inside today's
paper. All contestants are urged to
carefully read the rules, as many
have been disqualified for one
reason or another. Most disqualified
entries come In past the Friday noon
deadline and others have been
disqualified because they have been
typewritten. Entries may be mailed
to Football Contest, P.O. Box 752,
Kings Mountain 28086, or brought by
our office at 431 North Piedmont.
Grover Postmaster
Hambright Elected
Grover Postmaster Fain Ham-
bright was recently re-elected to the
office of National Vice President of
the National League of Postmasters.
Hambright has served as chair
man of the organization's natlonad
convention for the past several
years. At the recent convention, ho
was returned to the Board with the
largest number of votes.
As a National Vice President of
the Postmasters, he will serve with
eight other Postmasters elected
nation-wide to direct the activities of
the nearly 30,000 postmasters.
Postmaster Hambright has
received numerous awards and
citation.-, among them the
prestigious N'.iUonal Postmaster of
the Year au ej the Order of the
Vest, the latter given by the nation’s
airlines In r“'':r,nUlon for the
promotion of lrprr -> ed mall service.
FAIN HAMBRIGHT