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VOLUME 94, NUMBER 54
THURSDAY, JULY 30, 1981
KINGS MOUNTAIN, NORTH CAROLINA
KM Water
Project
Approved
By GARY STEWART
Editor
Kings Mountain city commis
sioners Monday night approved
advertising of bids for materials
for water and sewer im
provements in districts three and
four.
Mayor John Moss estimated
the cost of the projects at
$65,000 in District Four and
$10,000 in District Three. The
work will be done by city work
forces.
Moss said District Four water
improvements are targeted for
the Stowe Acres area off Pied
mont Avenue, including Fair-
view, Katherine, Linwood and
Second Street areas.
‘That’s the highest area in our
water system,” Moss pointed
out, “and over the years as the
city has developed industry, we
have had considerable pressure
reduction in this area.”
The city will install an addi
tional pump and a two million
gallon storage tank at the nearby
Citizen’s Services Building on
Piedmont, which Moss said
would “augment pressure and
give adequate water pressure
and flow.”
Also, the city will install 6,000
feet of line of various sizes and
six fire hydrants. Mots said the
improvements would also im
prove fire protection for the 277
homes, seven churches and two
neighborhood groceries located
in the area.
Areas effected in District
Three will include Katherine
Avenue, Boyce Street, Monroe
Avenue, Rhodes Avenue,
Groves Street and the Nor-
thwoods area.
Moss said 1,300 feet of line
will be installed in District
Three, giving that area “ade
quate protection in compliance
with North Carolina codes.”
Also in District Three, the city
(Turn To Pag* 12-A)
‘Local Hero’ John Cissell
Is Honored By President
By GABY STEWART
Editor
John F. Cissell, the Kings
Mountain National Military
Park ranger who was credited
with saving the life of Grover
School student Kelli Harry last
December, was honored Tues
day during special ceremonies at
the Military Park.
Robert M. Baker, National
Park Service Southeast Regional
Director, presented Cissell with
the Red Cross Certificate of
Merit, the highest honor given
by the American Red Cross. It
was signed by President Ronald
Reagan.
The certificate read: ‘Tor
selfless and humane action taken
on December 18,1980, when he
administered first aid to Kelli
Harry, victim of a traffic acci
dent, and saved her life.”
herald add cissell
Cissell was at Grover School
to pick up his children, Rebecca
and J.B., on the day Kelli was
stmck by a pickup truck.
“Jim Scruggs (Grover Prin
cipal) came out of his office and
said there had been an accident
in front of the school. He knew 1
was an EMT (Emergency
Medical Technician) and asked if
I could help.
“We found Kelli in the road,”
he went on. ‘There were a lot of
people around her. I’m not sure
if they knew what to do. Kelli
was lying on her back and 1
knew she had taken an awful
hard lick. 1 knew she had head
and back injuries and was un
conscious and 1 knew we
couldn’t move her.
“1 was in hopes that when 1
opened her airways, she’d
breathe on her own,” Cissell
went on. “But she didn’t. 1 gave
her artificial respiration for
about three minutes and she
started breathing on her own.”
Cissell said he stayed with her
until the Rescue Squad arrived.
She was rushed to a Charlotte
hospital where she remained in a
coma for about eight weeks.
An improving Kelli, still in a
wheelchair but talking and smil
ing, her parents, Mr. and Mrs.
Phil Harry of Grover, and other
family members attended the
ceremonies honoring Cissell.
A television newswoman
covering the event described
Cissell as a ‘local hero.”
“1 don’t consider myself a
hero,” Cissell said. ‘There are so
many times when park rangers
and others are involved in
similar situations, and there are
so many times when they’re not
thanked at all. In this case. I’m
just glad that Kelli came out
okay.”
“Cissell said, “I’ve thought
about Kelli often since the acci
dent, and I’m just glad I was
there to do what 1 could. The
feeling is hard to describe. I’d
like to thank everybody in the
Red Cross and all the people in
volved in emergency services for
training me. They deserve the
recognition.”
Cissell, who has been
employed by the National Park
Service for eight years and at
Kings Mountain National
Military Park for four years, was
also awarded a special commen
dation by Rush Dickinson,
Director of the National Park
Service.
“Without a doubt, your ef
forts saved Kelli,” Baker said as
he presented the two awards.
Others taking part in the
ceremony were Cissell’s wife,
Norma, a Grover School
teacher. Kings Mountain Na
tional Park Superintendent Mike
Loveless, Bob Spangler, manager
of the American Red Cross
Southeast Region, and Martha
Scruggs, programs director for
the Cleveland County Red
Cross.
(Turn To Pag* 9-A)
HONORED - lohn Cissell, right, park ranger at Kings Moun
tain National Military Pork, was honored Tuesday with a Red
Cross Certificate of Merit, the highest honor given by the
American Red Cross, for his efforts lost Decembei- which saved
the life of Grover School student Kelli Harry. Cissell is pictured
here with Kelli and Robert Baker. Southeast Regional Director
of the National Pork Service.
Armed Robbery
Is Investigated
Kings Mountain police are in
vestigating an armed robbery
which occured Friday night at
Revco Drug Store in the
Westgate Shopping Center.
Detective Richard Reynolds
said a white mail, who was the
last customer in the store at clos
ing time, pulled a revolver on
store manager Bruce Summey
and a clerk, took all the money
in the cash drawer and a quanti
ty of scheduled drugs.
Tyner,
Seism
Elected
Funeral Service Today
For Charles Merck, 54
-T
Herald To Feature
KM Schools Programs
A V arious programs in the K ings
Mountain District Schools will
be featured in a series of articles
to be published in the Herald
beginning Thurs., Aug. 6.
The feature stories will be
written by school personnel and
will run for 17 consecutive
weeks.
Superintendent William Davis
will write the first article “Vital
V Statistics of Kings Mountain
District Schools.”
Other articles include:
August 13, School
Maintenance, by Assistant
Superintendent Larry Allen.
August 20, Parent Support to
the School (ilhild, by Assistant
Superintendent Howard Bryant.
August 27, Kings Mountain
* Teachers
Report
School bells will be ringing
again soon for teachers and
students in the Kings Mountain
School District.
All employees of the Kings
A Mountain School System will
report for work at Kings Moun
tain Senior High School by 8:30
a.m. on August 17, Supt. of
Schools Bill Davis has announc
ed.
The first day for students will
be on August 24, with a full
day’s schedule except for
kindergarten students.
^ Kindergarten students will
V report on a schedule to be an
nounced later.
School’s Reading Program, by
Mrs. Martha Bridges.
September 3, School
Transportation, by Larry Allen.
September 10, The School
Board and its Responsibilities, by
William Davis.
September 17, Programs for
Exceptional Children, by Jane
Shields.
September 24, Child Nutri
tion, by Mrs. Martha Wright.
October 1, School Finance in
the Kings Mountain District
Schools, by William Davis.
October 8, School Support
Services (Health, Social Services,
Attendance) by Jane Shields and
Hallie Blanton.
October 15, Physical Educa
tion and the Athletic Program,
by KMHS Principal Bob
McRae.
October 22, The Fine Arts in
Public Schools, by Mrs. Shirley
Austin and Mrs. Betsy Wells.
October 29, Vocational
Education in Kings Mountain
District Schools, by Betty Gam
ble.
- November 5, The Foreign
Language Program, by Carol
Ann Peeler.
November 12, School
Facilities and the Blue Ribbon
Facilities Committee, by William
Davis.
November 19, Parent Involve
ment in Public Schools, by
North School Principal Connie
Allison and Grover &-hool Prin
cipal Jim Scruggs.
November 26, The Communi
ty Schools Program, by Bill
Hager.
/ /
WADE TYNER
NANCY SCISM
Wade H. Tyner Jr. and Nancy
Seism have been elected to the
board of directors of Home Sav
ings and Loan.
Tyner is the president and
general manager of Wade Ford
Inc., and is the owner of Wade’s
Insurance Company. He is a
member and r»ast president of
the Kings Mountain Rotary
Club and his a charter member
and past president of the Shelby
Civitan Club.
He is an active member of
Allen Memorial Baptist Church,
where he serves as a Sunday
School teacher and chairman of
the finance committee.
He resides at Woodbridge on
Moss Lake. He is married to the
former Bradine Lail and is the
father of three children.
Mrs. Seism is vice president
-and secretary at Home Savings
and Loan, where she has been
employed since 1963. She is mar
ried to Charles Seism and has
two children, Charlotte and
Philip.
Charles Vernon Merck, the
Kings Mountain man police say
'shot and killed his wife on Mon.,
July 20,then turned the gun on
himself, died Tuesday at
Charlotte Memorial Hospital.
Merck was wounded by what
police called a “self-inflicted”
gunshot to the right side of his
head. He underwent surgery last
Tuesday and had been listed in
critical condition throughout his
stay in the hospital.
His wife, Clara Martin Merck,
51, was pronounced dead on the
scene at 12:35 p.m. Monday.
She was shot twice with a .38
calibre handgun.
Merck, 54, lived at 204 Cran
ford Drive, Kings Mountain,
and was employed at Lithium
Corporation. He was a World
War 11 veteran.
He is survived by his parents,
E.B. and Daisy Mae Bowen Mer
ck of Kings Mountain; three
sons, Ronnie Merck of Grover
and Chuck Merck and Doug
Merck, both of Kings Mountain;
four daughters, Mrs. Sheila
Smith, Mrs. Gail Peterson, Mrs.
Sissy Gibson and Miss Tammy
Merck, all of Kings Mountain;
one brother. Sonny Merck of
Cramerton and one sister, Mrs.
Grace Holbrook of Las Vegas;
and seven grandchildren.
Funeral services will be con
ducted at 4 p.m. Thursday at Se
cond Baptist Church by the Rev.
Eugene Land and the Rev.
Charles Ingle. Burial will be in
Mountain Rest Cemetery.
Bloodmobile To Visit
Kings Mountain Monday
‘Lost’ Tracy Black
Turns Up Safe, Awake
The Cleveland County Red
Cross bloodmobile will be at
First Baptist Church in Kings
Mountain Monday from 12
noon until 5:30 p.m. The visit is
being sponsored by employees of
the City of Kings Mountain.
Mrs. Martha Scruggs, pro
grams director, said donors who
gave blood at the last Kings
Mountain visit on June 30 are
ineligible to give this time.
‘There has to be a 56-day
break between donations, and
we have had trouble scheduling
the visits 56 days apart,” she
said. ‘Therefore, it is very impor
tant that other people make a
special effort to give on
Monday.”
The goal for Monday’s visit is
150 pints.
A six-year-old Kings Moun
tain girl thought to have been
lost or kidnapped turned up safe
and wide awake Monday morn
ing after spending Sunday night
in the attic of her next door
neighbor’s house.
Tracy Michele Black was the
subject of a search that began
around 11 p.m. Sunday night
and lasted until she appeared in
the home of Mrs. Joy Lawson at
10 a.m. Monday.
Around 150 police officers,
rescue personnel, friends and
neighbors, and other volunteers
searched the entire area of her
Lynn Drive home near East
School.
According to police, Tracy left
her home during an argument
between her mother, Debbie
Black, and her boyfriend, Jerry
Lawson, and went next door to
Jerry’s mother’s home.
Mrs. Lawson left the house
momentarily to check on the
couple and when she returned,
Tracy was gone. Tracy apparent
ly entered a closet and climbed
into the attic and went to sleep.
The Lawson house-except for
the attic—was searched
numerous times the night before.
A search of the entire area, in
cluding woods, ditches and
knocking on doors, continued
until about 4 a.m., Detective
Robert Dodge of the Kings
Mountain Police Department
said. When no evidence of
Tracy’s whereabouts was turned
up, the search was discontinued
until the next morning, except
by Ricky McDaniel of the Kings
Mountain Rescue Squad, who is
related to the girl. He continued
to search on his own until Tracy
was found.
You Can Win Prizes
In Herald ‘Free For Air
Hey, kids! Adults! Anyone with a little spare time on your
hands! The Herald has something for you.
Beginning today, we are beginning a ‘Tree For All” subscrip
tion drive which you can cash in on.
Here’s how it works.
Anyone selling 20 new subscriptions to the King* Mountain
Herald during the month of August may have their pick of a
number of prizes, including bicycles, an AM/FM eight-track
audiovac stereo tape player with AM/FM radio, a Kitchen Aid
food waste disposer, or an AM/FM stereo radio. Or, if you
prefer cash, you may earn one-half of each sale you make.
A full page advertisement on page 10-B of tody’s Herald
explains the subscription drive.
Any persons interested in selling are urged to come by our of
fice on East King Street betweii 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday
through Friday. There is no age limit but children under 12
must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
Subscription rates are $8.32 a year for North Carolina
residents and $9.36 a year for out-oftstate residents.