lakelife
SPRING 2020
Lake Gaston
FISHING
with friends
INTERVIEW
with a dog junkie
SHAGGING
on Lake Gaston
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inside LakeLife Lake Gaston | Spring 2020
4 Fishing with friends, guided by a pro 8 Interview with a Junkie A dog development junkie, that is 24 Lake Gaston Map
30 Spring on the Farm 36 Snapshots of nature 40 Look Back 42 Shagging on the lake
26 Hear our voices
LakeLife Lake Gaston is published quarterly by Womack Publishing Company and Lake Gaston Gazette-Observer. Ad Executive: Heather Abbott ads@lakegastongazette-observer.com 252-213-3520
Photographers: Lea Beazley, Ivan Richardson, Nancy Clayton Moorefield, and Adam Foreman
Graphic Design: Amanda Meadows
Writers: Joanna Buck, Lea Beazley, Adam Foreman and Carolyn Ross-Holmes
LakeLife Design: Hope Callahan
Cover Photo: Lea Beazley
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Page 3 Photo: Ivan Richardson Lake Gaston Gazette-Observer 378 Lizard Creek Road Littleton, NC 27850 252-586-2700 lakegastongazette-observer.com Š 2020 Womack Publishing Co. lakelifelg
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Fishing with friends, guided by a pro
Hillmon Poythress, Tim Maynard, Zakk Royce, Adam Foreman and Chris Pierce prepare for a day of fishing on Lake Gaston.
By ADAM FOREMAN
O
f all the activities to dive into around the lake, fishing lands somewhere in the Top 5. For the amateur angler, the frustration of a cheap rod and reel, the confusion of proper bait, and how do you even cast? It can be absolutely daunting. After the first snag, the wind quickly drops from the 4
n SPRING 2020 LAKELIFE
sails, and dreams of landing a prize catch seem like they’ll always be just a dream. Fear not. A cure exists for the frustrated and downtrodden fisherman in despair. A quick call to Zakk Royce of Blues Brothers Guide Service, with the tagline “Relax, fish, and learn,” can lead to that
gled and help spread everything out,” he said. “We’re battle with a blue cat you’ve been itching for. A trip was booked, and it wasn’t hard to find a few covering about as much space as three boats.” Zakk dropped a trolling motor off the front that he buddies to come along. Chris Pierce of Tangler Trash, Hillmon Poythress of HP Heating and Air, Tim Maynard, controlled with a small remote that hung off of his belt, the only angler of the bunch, and myself were ready for and a sea anchor off the back to help keep us moving slowly. a half day of fishing with Zakk. I don’t think any of us could tell, but it was about 45 He picked us up in his big blue Miracle Marine fishminutes before we got ing boat at 9 a.m. at the first bite. Zakk a public boat dock, grabbed the rod and but said he picks handed it to Hillmon, his clients up anywho began cranking where they want, on the reel. including their “Man, this is hard,” home docks. Hillmon proclaimed The lake had a few times as he been muddy after worked the fish in. a few weeks of Zakk saw the fish rain, and Zakk said before it got to the the fishing wasn’t boat and grabbed good a week or the net. As Hillmon two before, but brought it in, Zakk it was starting to could tell it was big. pick up. After pulling the He took us to big blue cat on Pea Hill Creek. board, Zakk and “It’s the only clear Tim worked to get it water in the lake untangled from the right now,” he said, net. Zakk pulled the alluding to the well hook out of its mouth hidden pump staand grabbed the cat tion disguised with a special pair of as a house that what looked like vice supplies Virginia grips. Beach with water “Their mouths will as the reason. tear your hand up,” The four of us he said. “It’s like talked while Zakk sandpaper.” hacked up a hickoHillmon was smilry shad he caught ing ear to ear as he a few days before held up the fish for a from the banks few pictures. of the Roanoke Hillmon Poythress proudly displays one of the biggest Zakk said it was probRiver. When he’s not catches of the day. ably over 20 pounds. guiding, he works on “Well, that’s the bigcatching bait fish. After Zakk dressed six hooks with about a one-inch- gest fish I’ve ever caught,” said Hillmon. “I can probthick slice of shad, he cast each line, two on each side ably count the number of fish I’ve caught on one hand.” Once we took our pictures and looked the fish over, of the boat and two off the back. Once the lines were in the water, he attached planer boards of his own design, Zakk took the vice grips from Hillmon and eased the logo and all, onto the four lines on the sides of the boat. fish back into the water. It swam off like nothing happened. “The planer boards keep the lines from getting tan-
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Tim Maynard reels in his catch.
Zakk set and cast the line again, and we continued to troll forward. “I always stay moving,” he said. “The fish are always moving.” As we trolled along waiting for the next bite, Hillmon and Chris would occasionally take a business call and move to the stern of the boat. Even in the midst of a fishing trip while on the lake, we didn’t have to disconnect. With Zakk at the helm, we could just hang out and wait for the next fish. About two hours in, Zakk pulled the lines in and fixed them to the back of his boat so we could move to another spot. We crossed the main lake and went down Little Stone House Creek. Once, we passed a boat dock with a helicopter on its roof and the first geodesic dome I’ve ever seen on the lake. Zakk turned the boat around so we were pointing back toward the main lake. He dropped the trolling motor, reset the lines, and we were fishing. As it started warming up, the fish started
biting. When a rod would bend over, we knew there was a fish on it. I pulled in the next one; it was probably under 10 pounds. Tim pulled one in that was a little bigger, then Chris finally got one. As Hillmon, Chris, and I sat comfortably under the cover of the boat, Tim and Zakk stood on the bow. Watching Tim have all the fun got to be too much, so Hillmon and I got up and pulled in another one each. At one point, we even had two fish on the line at the same time, but only one of us brought it all the way to the boat. It seemed to slow down a little bit again, and we all just sat around swapping stories and talking about how we
have to do this again. It was a great way to spend a Monday morning and start the week. We were more than four hours into the trip when Zakk started pulling the lines in and getting the boat ready to take us back to the dock. We didn’t keep a single fish, but talked about planning a fish fry for the next time we do this. For the avid fisherman or the absolute rookie, a guided trip with Blues Brothers Guide Service will be more than worth it. Ten out of 10 would do it again. For more information or to book a trip, visit bluesbroth erscharters.com.
Tim Maynard holds up his largest catch of the day.
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Kelley and Nelli in the field at an event in 2019 at the Steve Ferguson Memorial Retriever Grounds in Emporia, Va. Photo by Roy Geberth. 8
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Interview with a Junkie A Dog Development Junkie, That Is By LEA BEAZLEY
T
o say Kelley Hall of Lake Gaston is a dog development “junkie” is an understatement. She lives and breathes developing and handling her personal Labrador retrievers to compete in American Kennel Club Retriever Hunt Tests and AKC Retriever Field Trials. You see, Kelley is an amateur “dog developer” and insists I use that term rather than “dog trainer” because, as she puts it, “Just as with human children, dogs go through developmental stages, and just like any good parent should, I teach them obedience, patience, respect, good behavior, and work ethic.” It’s not really not about the competition for Kelley,
though. It’s about her journey with each of her dogs and developing them to be able to compete. For an interview-format story like this one, a writer typically sits down with her subject in a cozy chair over a cup of coffee and has a conversation. Kelley has a hard time sitting down for 5 minutes, so I joined her at multiple locations on many different days. While she worked with her dogs, and I assisted, I jumped at every opportunity to ask her questions. This is what she had to say about her obsession with dog development; her sweet, smart Labs; her former career with the U.S. Coast Guard; and how she and her husband, Randy, wound up at Lake Gaston.
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are my kids. These dogs are family, so I have to figure out how to develop each one to be the best it can be and work with what I have. We call this “training the dog we have in front of us.” I read retriever-training books, watch DVDs about retriever training, and watch a lot of YouTube videos. The videos all make it look so easy, and the dogs seem to breeze right through their training. I’ve found it’s not quite that easy. The best professional dog trainers in the country are writing books and selling DVDs. They use the best dogs in the kennel when creating the DVDs, and I’m sure there is a lot of editing involved. I’m grateful for these folks that have provided me this library for reference, but the only way to learn how to develop dogs is to develop dogs. To be good at training, it takes a great deal of experience – years of experience. Me: Tell me more specifically about what you do to develop your dogs. Kelley: Every minute I’m with my dogs, I’m developing them. When I feed them, I have them sit and wait to be released before they are allowed to eat. Once they can sit for a full minute—normally by 11 or 12 weeks old—I step behind them and call them to me with the command, “Here.” This requires them to move away from the food bowl and teaches them obedience and patience. Every time they go out a door, I teach them to sit and wait until they are released, or I go out first and call them to me. A lot of times I’ll release them to go out the door and call them to come right back in and sit. These are just very small examples, but everything I do with my dogs is an important development moment. Kelley and Sig in 2016, finishing their first Field Trial Qualifying. Sig is the first dog Kel- When I go for a walk in the woods ley ever trained for field work. Photo by Scott Bergman. with my puppies and they get ahead of the very best in this specific dog? Am I me, I jump behind a tree when they’re Me: Tell me a little about your ob- being clear about what I want, or am I not looking and play hide-and-seek with session with dog development. sending mixed signals? I try to get in- them. This teaches them that it is their side the dog’s head and figure out what responsibility to keep track of me at all times, and believe me, they learn it Kelley: I’m consumed with learning makes that dog tick. about and increasing my knowledge For AKC Hunt Tests, I have to be able quickly. I teach in such a fun way that of how to train retrievers to work in the to communicate with the dog from 150 they don’t even realize they are learnfield. Every dog is different, and I have yards. With AKC Field Trials, it is 600 ing. to learn to “read” each dog. yards. It is vital that I develop a solid Me: How and when did you first beI constantly ask myself multiple ques- foundation in communicating with my come interested in training Labrador tions: Is the dog learning and under- dogs. retrievers? standing what I’m asking? Am I pushing I believe all retrievers have a natural too fast or going too slow? Is the dog desire to retrieve. Some retrieve like it’s Kelley: My husband, Randy, and I reready to move on, or do I need to go crack cocaine, but others retrieve, well, back and repeat? What motivates this only on sunny, not-too-hot, not-too-cold ceived a yellow Lab puppy as a wedding specific dog to learn? How do I bring out days. These are my personal dogs; they gift in May 2001. Best gift ever! When SPRING 2020 LAKELIFE
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Jost and his littermate Hazel Grace, retrieving dummies in a beautiful pond on a farm near Lake Gaston in January 2020 after a hard workout. Kelley tries to incorporate “playtime� into her dog training.
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Kelley with Sig’s puppies. Photo by Donna Cowan. we picked Gunnie up—we named her after her dad, Gunner— Ron Samuels of Amber Run Kennels in Jettersville, Va., said, “Do you have time for me to show you your pup’s dad?” We said, “Yes, of course!” and Ron showed us Gunner’s skills. We saw that Gunner was a very well-trained retriever and learned that he had earned multiple titles in the retriever game and was also an incredible bird and duck retriever. Watching Gunner work was mesmerizing! That day I looked at Ron and said, “I’m going to train a dog to do that someday!” Me: When did you actually begin making your dog-training dream a reality? Kelley: I’m not sure I have yet. When I retired from the Coast Guard in 2010, my yellow Lab, Gunnie, was 10. I trained her in obedience—and she did earn an AKC Companion Dog title—but I quickly learned the obedience ring was not my cup of tea. I had also acquired Caliber, a female yellow Lab, who was now 9 years old. I competed Gunnie and Caliber in DockDogs back when the program was first getting started. DockDogs is a sport where dogs compete in jumping for distance or height from a dock into a body of water. DockDogs was a lot of fun! Caliber would fly off the dock! Gunnie passed away at age 11 from osteosarcoma, and we lost Caliber very unexpectedly a year later of leukemia. Needless to say, I was devastated. I told my family and myself that I was going to wait to get another Lab, that I wasn’t ready. Well, that lasted
less than 2 months when my family finally said, “You’re making us crazy; get a dog!” I called Amber Run Kennels, but they didn’t have any litters in the near future. I found another breeder who had one female Lab available. On impulse, I bought Sig. She is a white English headstrong firecracker! When Sig was 7 weeks old, I started searching for people in the local Hampton Roads area, where we lived at the time, who did retriever field training. Surprisingly, there is no local retriever club in Hampton Roads, but I was able to find a local guy that helped me get started. Sig is 7 now. I have learned so much in these past 7 years, but I feel like I have hardly scratched the surface. Me: When did you decide to become an amateur AKC Hunt Test and AKC Field Trial trainer, and what AKC titles or awards have your dogs earned? Kelley: Seven years ago when I got Sig, I didn’t even know and had never been to an AKC Hunt Test. I attended my first event when Sig was about 16 weeks old and an AKC Field Trial shortly after that. I entered Sig in one or two AKC Field Trials before she turned two, but we never made it to the final series. Looking back, I had no idea what I was doing and was in so far over my head. It was a learning experience, and I made so many mistakes. Considering Sig’s trainer and handler, and all the holes in her program, I think she has done pretty well. She’s earned her AKC Senior Hunter title and has finished several Field Trial Qualifyings with one being a third-place finish. In December 2014, we got Nelli, an American Lab. Nelli was going to be my husband Randy’s dog, but in January 2015, Randy was diagnosed with cancer. Our lives were completely
Kelley working with Sig at the Steve Ferguson Memorial Retriever Grounds in Emporia, Va., in November 2019. Photo by Lea Beazley.
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These adorable yellow Lab pups are from Nelli’s litter in August 2019. Photo by Mary-Rose Woodward. derailed for the next two years. I continued to train when I could, but battling cancer consumed us. Long story short, Randy won the battle and is doing great! Nelli has earned her AKC Master Hunter title and has also finished Field Trial Qualifyings, but has not yet placed. Me: As a dog developer, what is the biggest lesson you have learned along the way? Kelley: It’s impossible to narrow it down to one thing. Dog training is hard—the hardest thing I have ever tried to learn in my life. By age 10, I had my own dark room and was developing my own black and white film, which was easy. In my teen years, I learned to raise and show sheep and won Showmanship Champion two years in a row at the 4-H county fair, which came fairly easy. At age 19, I enlisted in the U.S. Coast Guard, and over the next 20 years, advanced to O-4 before retiring with 22 years of service. But training dogs? It is hard and takes so much patience. It requires slow, steady consistency. With Sig and Nelli, I didn’t understand the importance of consistency or practice. I also didn’t know, or even understand, the importance of teaching them what we call “the basics” for retriever training. For example, someone would show me a new drill, and I would make my dogs do that same drill over and over, because I didn’t know how to move them along, I didn’t know what to do next. It was a huge mistake on my part, and significantly impacted both Sig and Nelli long term. I’m huge on analogies, so let me explain it this way: It was like I taught Sig 2+2 = 4 over and over and over again. I didn’t know how to teach her 3+3 = 6, so I just kept teaching her 2+2 = 4. Sig has incredible retriever drive. I’m both sad and grateful Sig was the first dog I tried to train for fieldwork. Sad, be16
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Jost, the first male black Lab that Kelley has owned and trained. Photo by Joy Delsandro. cause had I known what I was doing, she would have been really, really good. Grateful because Sig has made me work so hard. I have learned more from her than I will from my next 10 dogs. Me: Tell me more about your talented puppy, Jost (pronounced Yost). Kelley: Jost is my 10-month-old puppy. He is a Nelli puppy, so I whelped him. Over the years, I have whelped five litters, and Jost is the first pup we have kept. He’s our first black and our first male Lab. Up until now, I’ve had all yellow females, hence my license plate “YLW-LABS.” My friend Jo Driver says, “Once you go black, you never go back.” We love having him as a part of the pack. He is a sweet, laid-back chill boy. That’s what we get for naming him after our favorite bar on the island of Jost Van Dyke in the British Virgin Islands! Me: I get a kick out of the AKC registered names because they are typically so elaborate. What are your dogs’ AKC registered names? Kelley: Sig’s AKC Registered Name is Suebels Hot Shot Sig; Nelli’s is Morning Sun from Wheels to Guns; and the AKC registered name of Jost is Seaside Sippin’ at the Soggy Dollar. I also co-own a black Lab, named Jig, with my friend, Jo Driver. Jig’s AKC registered name is Morning Sun I’m Just a Gigolo. Jo and I are training Jig together with plans to sell him as a “started field dog.” Jig is a Nelli pup and littermate to Jost. Me: I understand you also breed Labs. Tell me more about that.
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Nelli, far right, and her litter, taken around Christmas 2019. Dogs from left to right: Jost, Cooper, Hazel Grace, Kaia, and Nelli. Photo by Angie Carlisle. Kelley: When I’m not training or trying to learn how to train retrievers, I’m studying breeding Labs and whelping litters. So much goes into my breeding. My goal is to improve the breed and make a better Labrador. For example, Nelli has incredible natural talent to mark a fall. She is very even keeled, is smooth and steady, and does not get rattled easy. She doesn’t have that “crack-like” retriever drive, but she does have plenty. She’s a joy to be with in the field as well as in the house. I firmly believe the dam (mother) brings an incredible amount to the breeding. Most people ask, “Who’s the sire (or father)?” I always ask, “Who’s the dam?” I’m looking for a sire that best complements my dam. Hours, days, and months and months of research go into which dogs I’m going to breed and why. Also, I can’t express how important bloodlines and pedigrees are. People say to me, “I just want a pet; I don’t care about blood lines or pedigree.” Pet owners should care more about bloodlines and pedigrees. Every dog in Nelli’s five-generation pedigree is a titled dog. Titles prove intelligence and trainability generation after generation. Do you want a puppy that has been bred well with proven trainability, or do you want a puppy that struggles to learn even the simplest of commands? Breeding healthy dogs is incredibly important to me as well. People who are purchasing any breed of puppy should understand recommended health clearances and requirements for that particular breed. 18
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Nelli at Buck Spring Park in Littleton, N.C., in November 2019 with a duck she had successfully retrieved. Photo by Lea Beazley.
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I’m a true believer that the first eight weeks of a puppy’s life are the most important. The time a puppy is with its mom and littermates is crucial to the life of that dog. Its development during that time is vital to its successful training. Puppies are braver in a pack, so I balance what the littermates do together and the individual attention I give each one. All of my puppies start their training at 3 1/2 weeks old. I teach them to pee and poop on one side of the whelping box and to sleep and play on the other. It’s the beginning of housebreaking. It’s all fun, and they’re learning to learn. Me: Tell me about your career with the United States Coast Guard. Kelley: After graduating from high school, I enlisted in the U.S. Coast Guard. I was a radioman and telecommunication specialist for eight years. Then, in 1996, I was accepted to Coast Guard Officer Candidate School and was able to earn my officer commission. As an officer, prior to 9-11, my main focus was on search and rescue coordination. After 9-11, Coast Guard missions grew, along with Coast Guard command centers. I served as command duty officer in District 5 and Atlantic Area Command Center located in Portsmouth, Va. I also served as Command Center chief for Sector Hampton Roads and Command Center School chief in Yorktown, Va. Other duty stations where I was assigned included Air Station, Sitka, Alaska; Training Center, Petaluma, Calif.; Air Station, Elizabeth City; and Communication Station, Kodiak, Alaska. It was during my time serving in the Coast Guard that I met my husband, Randy, who was also in the Coast Guard. In 2010, I retired after 22 years of service. Me: What was like to be a female in a male-dominated field?
Look at the expression of sheer joy on Kelley’s face as she plays with her puppy, Jost, at her lake house in August 2019. Photo by Mary-Rose Woodward. 20
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Kelley: Not a single day did I feel held back or discriminated against because I was a female. I lived, breathed, and bled Coast Guard blue for 22 years, and I gave the Coast Guard 100 percent all the time. In return, the Coast Guard took good care of me. As a lieutenant, I served as mili-
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Kelley in the field with Jo Driver at the Steve Ferguson Memorial Retriever Grounds in Emporia, Va. Jo is Kelley’s training buddy and good friend. They are working with Jost and his littermate, Jig. The plan is to sell Jig as a “started field dog.” Photo by Lea Beazley. tary aide to a Coast Guard three-star admiral. What was so special about this was that the admiral was Vivian Crea, the Coast Guard’s first female to earn this rank. Admiral Crea was the Coast Guard Atlantic Area Command. Her area of responsibility was the eastern half of the United States, Caribbean, and across the pond to Europe and the Middle East. In our travels to those areas, many people had never seen a female three-star admiral, let alone one who was traveling with a female military aide. Neither Admiral Crea nor I ever thought of ourselves as females in the Coast Guard; we were simply Coast Guard members like any other.
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Me: Tell me, what would you do without Labs in your life? Kelley: My Labs are family. Without my Labs, you might as well admit me to the loony bin! I’d go crazy!
On The Lake
The Sign You WanT, The agenTS You need!
Stephanie Gainey (252) 578-3494
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2105 Eaton Ferry Road Littleton, NC
On The Lake
252-586-7257 www.OnLakeGaston.com SPRING 2020 LAKELIFE
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B-3 Alma Lynch....................................................... 1 B-2 Americamps ..................................................... 2 B-2 Anchorage ........................................................ 3 B-2 Ancor Cove ...................................................... 4 B-6 Arcadia ............................................................. 5 A-1 Baird-Martin ..................................................... 6 B-5 Bairds Point...................................................... 7 A-3 Barker .............................................................. 8 B-6 Beaver Creek ................................................... 9 B-4 Beach Ridge .................................................. 10 B-3 Beechwood .................................................... 11 A-1 Beechwood Estates ....................................... 12 C-6 Bluebird Point .................................................. 3 B-5 Blue Heron Park............................................. 14 A-2 Boyds Mill....................................................... 15 A-6 Bradley Acres ................................................. 16 A-2 Brandon Grove............................................... 17 A-4 Braswell ......................................................... 18 A-1 Breezy Acres .................................................. 19 B-6 Bridgewater Cove .......................................... 20 B-6 Buccaneer Point............................................. 22 A-2 Buckhead ....................................................... 23
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C-3 Buck Springs.................................................. 24 B-4 Buggs Point.................................................... 25 B-3 Burwell Acres ................................................. 26 C-4 Canaan Shores .............................................. 27 A-1 Cannons Ferry ............................................... 28 B-5 Carolina Pines................................................ 29 B-5 Cedar Hill ....................................................... 30 B-5 Cedar Point .................................................... 31 A-6 Cedar Ridge ................................................... 32 B-6 Cedar Ridge ................................................... 33 A-2 Champion Forest ........................................... 34 B-5 Chamelon Heights ......................................... 35 B-6 Chestnut Hills ............................................... 36 B-6 Clear Water .................................................... 37 A-1 Cliffs on the Roanoke..................................... 38 A-5 Clyde’s Retreat .............................................. 39 A-1 Cold Spring Shores ........................................ 40 A-3 Colonial Estates ............................................. 41 A-6 Colony Club ................................................... 42 C-4 Cornerstone ................................................... 43 A-5 Country Clue Shores...................................... 44 B-6 Cover Manor .................................................. 45
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B-3 Coventry......................................................... 46 B-5 Creekside Shore ............................................ 47 B-6 Crescent Beach ............................................. 48 B-6 Cross Creek ................................................... 49 B-6 Cross Cut ....................................................... 50 C-4 Deacon’s Point............................................... 51 C-4 Deercreek ...................................................... 52 B-6 Deer Haven .................................................... 53 A-6 Delbridge Estates........................................... 54 B-6 Dividing Line .................................................. 55 B-5 Dogwood Branch ........................................... 56 B-4 Dorothy Ellis Estates ...................................... 57 B-5 Dove Manor .................................................. 58 B-4 Eagle’s Cove .................................................. 59 B-5 Eagle Point..................................................... 60 C-6 Eastern Shores .............................................. 61 B-4 East Fork Plantation....................................... 62 B-4 Eaton’s Ferry Estates..................................... 63 B-6 Edwards Beach .............................................. 64 B-4 Elams Place ................................................... 65 C-5 Ellis Development .......................................... 66 A-6 Ellis Estates ................................................... 67
A-3 Eugene Clary ................................................. 68 B-5 Evergreen ...................................................... 69 B-6 Faulcon Dev ................................................... 70 B-5 Ferncliff .......................................................... 71 B-4 Fernwood Estates .......................................... 72 C-5 Forest Cove ................................................... 73 B-6 Four Season .................................................. 74 B-6 Fox Hollow ..................................................... 75 B-6 Fox Point ........................................................ 76 B-2 Fox Run ......................................................... 77 A-1 Friendly Acres ................................................ 78 B-3 Gaston Heights .............................................. 79 A-1 Granite Hall .................................................... 80 B-2 Great Creek Landing...................................... 81 B-6 Green Park..................................................... 82 B-2 Grover C. Baird Estates ................................. 83 A-4 Hammack ....................................................... 84 B-4 Happy Valley .................................................. 85 B-3 Harbor Landing .............................................. 86 B-5 Harrison ........................................................ 87 A-1 Hawks Nest Point........................................... 88 B-5 Heather Glen ................................................. 89
B-6 Heritage Pointe .............................................. 90 A-1 Hicks Hill ........................................................ 91 A-6 Hidden Acres.................................................. 92 B-3 Hillcrest Point ................................................. 93 A-1 Hinton Mills .................................................... 94 B-2 Holly Grove Estates ....................................... 95 A-6 Holly Hill Shores............................................. 96 B-3 Holly Trail ...................................................... 97 C-5 Hoot Owl Run ................................................ 98 B-4 Hunter’s Creek ............................................... 99 B-5 Indian Run.................................................... 100 B-4 Jack’s Landing ............................................. 101 A-1 Johnson ....................................................... 102 B-2 Joyceville ..................................................... 103 B-6 King Soloman’s Cove................................... 104 B-6 King’s Estates .............................................. 105 C-3 Lake Gaston Estates ................................... 106 A-6 Lake Gaston Estates.................................... 107 B-5 Lake Shores-N ............................................. 108 B-6 Lake Shores-S ............................................. 109 B-4 Lakeside....................................................... 110 B-3 Lakeview .......................................................111
B-5 Lakeview Estates (old) .................. B-2 Lakewoods .................................... B-4 Laura Woods................................. B-3 Lazy Point ..................................... C-6 Lee’s Point .................................... B-5 Little Emporia ................................ B-2 Little Ponderosa ............................ A-5 Lizard Creek.................................. B-2 Long Branch Shores ..................... B-6 Lookout Point ................................ A-6 Lost Cove ...................................... A-1 Lucy M. Shaw ............................... B-3 Lyons Creek East .......................... B-3 Lyons Creek Estates ..................... B-6 Mallard Bay ................................... C-5 Mallard Point ................................. B-4 Maple Point ................................... A-1 Maratuck ....................................... B-3 Mariners Cove............................... A-1 Martindale ..................................... B-2 Matthews Manorwoods ................. A-1 Merrymount ...................................
tates (old) ................................. 112 ................................................. 113 s................................................ 115 ................................................. 116 ................................................. 117 a ............................................... 117 osa ........................................... 118 ................................................. 119 Shores .................................... 120 nt ............................................... 121 ................................................. 122 w .............................................. 123 East ......................................... 124 Estates .................................... 125 ................................................. 126 t ................................................ 127 ................................................. 128 ................................................. 129 ve.............................................. 130 ................................................. 131 anorwoods ................................ 132 ................................................. 133
B-4 Mill Creek Landing ....................................... 134 C-6 Mistipines ..................................................... 135 B-3 Moratuck Manor ........................................... 136 B-2 Morristown ................................................... 137 B-2 Moseley........................................................ 138 B-6 Myrick Estates.............................................. 139 B-2 Nocarva........................................................ 140 B-6 Nollwoods ................................................... 141 B-6 Northampton Heights ................................... 142 B-5 Northern Cove.............................................. 143 B-5 Northern Point .............................................. 144 B-4 North Shore Acres (1) .................................. 145 B-4 North Shore Acres (2) .................................. 146 B-5 Oak Grove.................................................... 147 B-4 Oak Ridge .................................................... 148 B-3 Old Bridge Point ........................................... 149 B-3 Olde Ferry Estates ....................................... 150 B-5 Osprey Point ................................................ 151 A-6 Paradise Point.............................................. 152 B-3 Pasture Gate ................................................ 153 A-6 Pea Hill Estates............................................ 154 A-6 Pea Hill Shores ............................................ 155
B-4 Pigeon Path ................................................. 156 B-4 Pigeon Roost .............................................. 157 B-3 Pine Bluff...................................................... 158 B-5 Pine Ridge Shores ....................................... 159 B-6 Pine View ..................................................... 160 B-6 Pinewood Acres ........................................... 161 B-5 Piney Point ................................................... 162 A-3 Piney Point ................................................... 163 A-3 Poplar Creek Estates ................................... 164 A-1 Portside ........................................................ 165 B-6 Powell’s Mill Point ........................................ 166 A-6 Poythress Estates ........................................ 167 B-5 Quail Ridge .................................................. 168 B-5 Red Bug ....................................................... 169 B-3 River Bend ................................................... 170 B-4 River Forest ................................................. 171 A-1 River Ridge .................................................. 172 B-5 Riverview ..................................................... 173 B-6 Roanoke Shores .......................................... 174 B-4 Roanoke Reserve ........................................ 235 B-3 Robinson Ferry Estates ............................... 175 B-5 Rochelle Cove.............................................. 176
A-6 Rock Island Cove ......................................... 177 B-4 Ross ............................................................ 178 C-4 Salmons Point.............................................. 179 B-5 Sandy Shores .............................................. 180 B-5 Sandy Trace ................................................. 181 C-4 Settlers Cove ............................................... 182 B-4 Shadowbrook Shores................................... 183 A-3 Slouan Shores ............................................. 184 B-2 Six on Sixpound ........................................... 185 B-4 Songbird View .............................................. 186 A-6 Southside Shores......................................... 187 B-6 Speckle Cove ............................................... 188 B-4 Spinnaker Point............................................ 189 B-6 Spring Garden Estates................................. 190 B-5 Springwood .................................................. 191 B-5 Stanleystone Estates ................................... 192 B-5 Starboard Point ............................................ 193 B-4 Sillwater ....................................................... 194 C-4 Stonehouse Acres........................................ 195 A-2 St. Tammy Landing ...................................... 196 B-2 Summer Place ............................................. 197 B-5 Summerwood ............................................... 198
B-5 Sunny Acres ................................................. 199 B-5 Sunset Point................................................. 200 C-5 Tangle Oakes ............................................... 201 A-2 Tanglewood Shores ..................................... 202 C-5 Thomfield Medlin ......................................... 203 B-2 Thornton Place............................................. 204 B-5 Timber Creek ............................................... 205 B-6 Timberline Shores ........................................ 206 B-2 Timbuctu ...................................................... 207 C-5 Triton Point................................................... 208 A-2 Tudor Estates ............................................... 209 B-3 Turkey Run .................................................. 210 B-5 Turtle Point ................................................... 211 B-4 Twin Oak Shores.......................................... 212 B-5 Two Creeks .................................................. 213 B-5 Walker Hill .................................................... 214 B-3 Warren Co. Acres ......................................... 215 B-6 Waterford ..................................................... 216 B-6 Watermans Point.......................................... 217 B-6 Webbs Gate ................................................. 218 B-3 West Winds .................................................. 219 B-6 Whippoorwill Hills ......................................... 220
B-4 Whispering Pines ......................................... 221 B-4 Whitby Cove................................................. 222 C-4 Whit-Locke Point.......................................... 223 B-5 Wildwood Point ............................................ 224 B-6 Wilkins Court ................................................ 225 B-2 Will’s Landing ............................................... 226 B-4 Wilsor Oak ................................................... 227 B-4 Wilsor Pines ................................................. 228 B-6 Windy Pointe ................................................ 229 B-6 Windward Shores......................................... 230 B-3 Woodhaven .................................................. 231 B-6 Woodlake Point ............................................ 232 B-6 Woodlanndhurt............................................. 233 B-4 Woodland Shores ........................................ 234
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“When one falls, we all fall. But when one rises, we all rise.” — Elijah Lee
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Hear our voices By CAROLYN ROSS-HOLMES
T
hree years ago, a 9-year-old boy decided he wanted to do something to help his friend who had been abused. He had read stories about the work of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcom X, and Ella Baker, but was most influenced by the bravery of another young person during the Civil Rights Movement, John Lewis, the current Congressman from Georgia. He realized his age was not a deterrent from speaking out against injustice. He decided the best way he could bring attention to issues of child abuse was to have a march. He researched the requirements for doing just that, and then he saved his allowance before asking his mother, Jessica Lee, to take him to the county office to obtain the necessary permit. He held that first march with just a few people in Centennial Park in Roanoke Rapids, N.C. The following year, Elijah Lee gained more attention as a speaker at the wreath laying ceremony honoring the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. and for his extraordinary remarks as the “Bell Ringer” for the annual MLK Program held at Oak Grove Baptist Church, where all were invited to join him for his second march. The support had indeed increased. Elijah used this platform to be a voice for the unheard children that fall victim to child abuse. His consideration for the safety of the children participating
in the march was demonstrated in his strategy for the route to be contained to the circular walkway around the park, and emphasis that there’s more to a march than just marching! There were invited speakers, such as representatives from law enforcement, the courts, state legislators and community leaders. Elijah’s school, KIPPGaston College Preparatory, was there in full force with staff and students that had formed a choir for the event in which his younger sister, Trinity, used
her voice in song to support the theme of the day. There were information tables from Guardian ad Litem and C.A.R.E./The John 3:16 Center that were focused on the well-being of youth. Area churches organized their youth, such as St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, that prepared the youth for a life lesson about social justice as an obligation of all Christians. The march made headlines in local newspapers and on social media. Eli-
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jah’s voice has been heard and his message resonated with the community and Disney! Yes, Disney! The Disney organization created a new Marvel Hero Project that focuses on young people. Elijah was one of the first selected for the project. He is known as the Incredible Elijah. His super-power is empathy that is used to speak out in communities to prevent child abuse. He has been invited to speak at schools, community meetings, and area churches. His mom says he is noticed everywhere and treated as a celebrity, but he is handling it all with grace and remains humble. Elijah furthered his cause by gaining the support of Vidant North Hospital in response to his appeal to enhance one of the waiting rooms at the hospital. He envisioned creating a Pediatrics Safe Room that is child-friendly and a comforting space that will be calming to a distressed child brought in for medical care resulting from abuse. Elijah went straight to work raising the funds needed to decorate and equip the space. The hospital was so enthusiastic about Elijah’s efforts that a second waiting room was made available as well. It got even better, when he received a call one day from the Kelly Clarkson Show with an invitation to appear on the show. Elijah’s charismatic smile and confidence radiates when he speaks about his passion to prevent
child abuse to the point that it brought Clarkson to tears, along with another guest seated by Elijah on the show, Patty LaBelle. Clarkson heard about his design efforts for the hospital waiting rooms and awarded Elijah with electronics items, funds for the rooms and an opportunity for him to rest and recharge with a trip to Jamaica with his family. Elijah has packed a lot of living in his 12 years on the planet. He is very focused about his family and faith. He is an ordained minister and gave his first sermon at age 5. He continues to share the word during the fifth Sunday Youth Service at Holy City Church in Virginia. His activism has been recognized in his being awarded the Youth Impact Award from Halifax Community College, Youth Civics Service award from the Northampton County Branch of the NAACP, the Lake Gaston Regional Chamber of Commerce and a feature in People Magazine. He also received the N.C. Governor’s Student Excellence Award. He treasures a gift from his role model of youth leadership, the Rep. John Lewis, who sent him a personal note of encouragement and a signed copy of his book, “March: Book Three.” Elijah is an excellent student, enjoys riding horses and playing chess, and with a little help from his mom, takes the time to enjoy his youth. You can follow Elijah on Facebook, Instagram or visit his webpage incredibleelijah. com. April is Prevent Child Abuse Month. Look for the blue pinwheels.
n April is Child Abuse Prevention Month, a time to help people understand that nurturing relationships and environments are necessary to ensure that children thrive. n Positive interactions are the foundation for healthy brain development at any age. n Children’s brains develop best through social interaction and positive experiences with caring adults. n As more caring relationships are formed, communities become better connected. Connected communities have lower levels of crime and interpersonal violence, citizens have better physical and mental health, and less money is spent on treating social problems.
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Spring on the Farm
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By JOANNA BUCK
O
ld Man Winter has drawn his last breath. Snow shovel and sled stored. Christmas cards clipped into next year’s gift tags. Seed catalogs well read and seeds ordered. Garden soil fertilized and turned. Now I wait for the sun’s warmth of longer days to allow for planting. As I bide time, my thoughts return to my childhood, and I ponder those memories with gladness and thankfulness for the wonderment and free spirit of a small child. Mama’s first rite of spring was to give each of us a heavy dose of the much dreaded castor oil. Oh, how I despised it. She would place the bottle on the mantel for a while in order to warm it up a bit, supposedly to make it go down more easily. It did not. The big swallows of the disgusting concoction were followed by half an orange, which in my mind did not help one iota. As soon as I spotted the bottle on the mantel, I’d take a-missing for long periods of time — a game of “catch me if you can.” But Mama always prevailed and had her way with my spring cleaning. I once resisted so physically that she got a keen peach tree shoot and left red streaks on my legs. That’s how I learned to River Dance. Once my cleansing was complete, I went about helping with other spring chores. Quilts and feather-filled pillows were affixed to the clotheslines to be aired out and sunned. Peas and beans saved from the autumn harvest, bagged and hung to dry, had to be separated from their shells and readied for planting. The bags were pounded with a stick and then vigorously shaken to remove the husks, then sorted by the handful. One spring, under Sonny Boy’s guidance, we set out to dig a pond for our ducks — a toilsome effort using shovels and hoes — and all to no avail. The end result was a big mud hole rarely used
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by our ducks. They, instead, remained partial to swimming in the horse trough. One annual spring task was cleaning the hearth and surround. Once all soot was washed away, whitewashing was begun. We dug the lime mud from the creek bank just beyond our house. The whitewash was smeared on by hand and remained white until the fires of the following autumn. Daddy always bought baby chickens, which we tended in an incubator until they were teenagers. They then could manage on their own if they could escape the talons of chicken hawks. We were always on alert for the hawks and would run to help save the chickens. I loved to watch when a flock of crows chased away a hawk. Such a ruckus they made. They never caught a hawk because they couldn’t fly as high as a hawk, but they could and would chase it away. Our friends, the crows, would later become our enemies in our ripening cornfields. Some of my happy free time was filled with watching nesting birds, searching for Sally Humpbacks and Doodle Bugs. A little ditty comes to mind that I recited when stirring sand in search of Doodle Bugs. “Doodle Bug, Doodle Bug, fly away home. Your house is on fire and your children are gone. All but one. Her name is Ann. She hid under a frying pan.” We three children dug for red wigglers and spent hours on the creek bank catching crawdads and fishing for Horned Heads. We used sinkers, which Sonny Boy would have made from empty metal toothpaste tubes, flattened out with tin snips and rolled into small balls. Any fish we caught, Mama cooked. Sonny Boy once caught an eel and, upon his insistence, Mama prepared it for frying. Once the battered meat was dropped into the hot lard, the sections began wiggling all around, and there ensued a hullabaloo in the kitchen. Mama picked up that frying pan and tossed the eel, pan and all, right out the back door. No more eels! Each Easter, Mama sewed new dresses for Margaret Anne and me. My favor-
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ite dresses were made from dotted Swiss sachet with wide satin ribbon, green for Margaret Anne and pink for me. We were so excited to wear them come that special Sunday morning. One year, upon arising we discovered a drastic change in the weather had occurred overnight, cold temperatures and snow on the ground. Good grief! Mama, over our objections, made us wear winter coats over our pretty dresses. But that only lasted until we entered the church doors. We instantly shed those coats. Most attendees remained bundled up during the service, but not the two of us. We shivered for the hour of worship, but remained determined that all should see how pretty we were, and frankly, we were proud and pretty. My favorite pleasure of spring was going barefoot. The first day of May, regardless of the temperature, we were allowed to shed our shoes. We were always warned not to 34
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walk through mud holes for fear it would result in ground itch. Of course, we did just that, but without any negative results. I never knew anyone who developed ground itch, whatever that is. The soles of our feet were initially tender, but by summer’s end, we could painlessly run on a graveled road. With the exception of a few stubbed toes, running barefoot was the epitome of freedom. As I age, childhood memories become more dear. Sonny Boy is no longer with us, but Margaret Anne and I still have each other and often reminisce about times gone by, some happy, some sad, and some even hurtful, but always with thankful hearts. Our childhoods, reared on the land, and emboldened by a faithful community, have molded us into what I believe to be responsible, compassionate adults who cherish family and friends, who recognize and try to meet the needs of others and rest easily knowing our hearts are at peace.
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Snapshots of Nature Nancy Clayton Moorefield, of Tanglewood Shores, captures nature scenes around Lake Gaston. In this edition Nancy has caught the early signs of spring, the beauty of the moon and even a pair of cardinals kissing.
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Keep in Touch With What’s Happening at lake Gaston Subscribe to the Lake Gaston Gazette-Observer today for only $46 per year for Halifax, Warren and Northampton, NC and Brunswick and Mecklenburg, VA. $64 in all other areas.
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LOOK BACK
Vickie Irby submitted this photo of herself and mother around 1965 on the family pier at Pea Hill Creek. We love to receive old and current photos to feature in our magazine or newspaper, so if you have photos, you would like to share please send them to office@lakegastongazette-observer.com.
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Lakeland Pier & Boathouse Company, Inc.
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Shagging on the Lake By ADAM FOREMAN
T
he Carolinas are home to one of the most fluid, smoothest partner dances in the social dancing world. The dancers elegantly glide past each other, their feet shuffling around, barely leaving the floor. Though the dance may owe some of its roots to the Jitterbug, these dancers do not jitter. Like its counterparts in swing dancing, the shag is a six-count, eight-step dance. The basic movement follows the same two quick triple steps and one rock step formula, before starting at the beginning again. Every dancer relies on these basic steps to come back to between turns and other high-end movements. The basic steps are mirrored by the male and female dancer, or lead and follow, in other social dance circles. Basic male footwork is as follows: The male steps with his left foot forward, matches it with his right, and then slides his left foot back half a step for the first triple, called out as “one and two.” The second triple is right foot back a step, matched with the left, and then picked up and put down the right foot in place, called out as “three and four.” To finish the basic step, the male, or lead, steps back with his left, lifts his right foot up slightly before putting it down. The body should literally feel like it is rocking back and forth; this is called out as “fivesix.”At the end of the rock step, the left foot is ready to go right back into “one,” stepping forward for the second measure. That all makes sense and is easy to follow, right? Basic female footwork: Do the same thing as the male, just with the opposite feet, I think. Maybe. Obviously, the best way to learn to shag is to get in touch with the local shag dancing club and drop in for a lesson. Luckily, Lake Gaston is home to a vibrant club of more than 50 regular members who host a monthly practice dance at one couple’s repurposed garage/dance studio. The best way to keep up with notifications without being a member is to follow the Lake Gaston Shag Club on its Facebook page. Or, if Steve Owens, the Band of Oz, or The Embers are playing at a local restaurant, more than likely a few shaggers will be there burning up the dance floor and would love for you to ask them how to get involved. SPRING 2020 LAKELIFE
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According to club president Janice Haley, the group came together about three years ago with less than 20 members. They started out dancing at WatersView Restaurant on Eaton’s Ferry Road, and their numbers began to grow. Eventually, they moved their dances to the Lions Club and hosted about four dances a year, each bringing in over 75 dancers. The club also hosts a monthly meeting and practice dance at a member’s repurposed garage/ dance studio. Lake Gaston Shag Club members also travel to big shag events. Haley said that up to 30 members at a time go to the Myrtle Beach Society of Stranders shag events that feature thousands of shaggers from all over the East Coast, meeting up for over a week of dancing, lessons, and fellowship. When I attended a practice dance, Janice and her dance partner, Eddie, took about half an hour to show me the basic steps, including the female and male turn, the pivot, and a start. Janice said that in a normal class 44
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setting, she would teach just the basic footwork one week, the next week would be the turns, the third would be a start, and the fourth would be the pivot. As members trickled in, I told Janice I could take the back seat and let her get on with her regular lesson with the more than 20 members that showed up for practice. The group partnered up and formed a circle, and Janice and Eddie showed the dancers a 48-step pattern, which created a series of turns and steps, incorporating sugar foot steps and some side-to-side movements. Some of the couples picked up on it quickly, while others needed more time and observation to nail down the routine. Janice and Eddie broke the pattern into separate parts, and by the end of the lesson, most of the couples could make it through all 48 steps. According to Janice, it’s the man’s responsibility to make the lady look good. The members of the club mostly dance with the partner they came with, but as a social dance, a partner isn’t necessary. According to Janice, “If you show up, someone will dance with you.”
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