The Daily DIspatch - Tuesday, February 16, 2010 by The Daily Dispatch

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HOOPS: Vanguards fall to Louisburg In Sports

TUESDAY, February 16, 2010

Volume XCVI, No. 39

(252) 436-2700

www.hendersondispatch.com

50 cents

City wants equal share

GRANVILLE COUNTY

Needs continue despite lean times Dept. heads give long list of needs for 2010 By WILLIAM F. WEST Daily Dispatch Writer

for 2008. Winston said the reason for the change is the city wrote off approximately $800,000 in old debt for assets taken out of the former wastewater treatment plant. Expenditures were $11 million for 2009 compared to $12.7 million in 2008. Winston said 22 percent of sewer and water expenses for 2009 resulted from

OXFORD — Although Granville County’s government continues to operate on a tight budget and is facing another dismal financial picture, the needs of the department heads continue. Sheriff Brin Wilkins has a list of needs that includes a new jail control switch panel at an estimated cost of $30,000. Wilkins Wilkins said that the jail recently received a high rating from an outside inspector, but the inspector said the panel must be replaced. Additionally, Wilkins said he needs 16 cameras at a cost of about $12,000 so the surveillance equipment in the older part of the county’s lockup will be up to par with the newer section. At the jail, “We have a bunch of overtime expense” because someone is out or someone quits, Wilkins said. “We need to really to add about $10,000 to that budget just for the jail to cover overtime there due to this,” Wilkins said. Wilkins made his statement this past weekend at the twoday annual County Commission retreat. Wilkins additionally said his department is going to need 10 new cars, along with storage room for documents and evidence. Across the street at the county’s judicial center, plans are to have a single, storefront entrance, with a manned metal detector. “I need eight men to help do the work at the courthouse because we’re running part-time men in the court system right now,” Wilkins said. Of the bailiffs, Wilkins said

Please see AUDIT, page 3A

Please see GRANVILLE, page 3A

Daily Dispatch/ASHLEY STEVEN AYSCUE

Henderson City Councilwomen Sara Coffey and Mary Emma Evans listen as City Manager Ray Griffin discusses joint funding Monday evening.

Council wants 50/50 split with county on ABC revenues, recreation and parks By WILLIAM F. WEST Daily Dispatch Writer

The City Council on Monday evening agreed Vance County should contribute significantly more to the funding of joint projects and programs. The major proposal calls for changing the share from Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) revenues from the current 85 percent county/15 percent city ratio. The council agreed on a 50-50 amount for negotiation. Councilwoman Sara Coffey took the lead on the ABC matter, continuing to emphasize the Police Department

responds to calls at the new liquor store, which is off South Beckford Drive. Coffey, citing figures from other counties, said, “We’re getting about the lowest percentage.” Coffey said that Granville County gets 58 percent, followed by Oxford at 28 percent, Creedmoor at 10 percent, Stem at 2 percent and Stovall at 2 percent. And Coffey said that Person County gets 70 percent while Roxboro gets 30 percent. Councilman Garry Daeke proposed the 50-50. Coffey agreed, saying, “I mean, it’s just a lot of things that are in our favor right now that maybe wasn’t to begin with.”

Additionally, the council, as put on the table by Mayor Pro Tem Lonnie Davis, recommended changing the 55 percent city/45 percent county ratio for operating recreation and parks to a 50-50 split. The council has been discussing the joint funding matter since late last month. The city’s and the county’s intergovernmental affairs committees discussed the subject in detail on Thursday. Although a 78 percent county/22 percent city cost for non-municipal elections has not gotten much discussion, Councilman Michael Inscoe suggested scrapping Please see FUNDING, page 4A

Oxford gets clean audit for FY 2008-09 By WILLIAM F. WEST Daily Dispatch Writer

OXFORD — The City Commission received a clean audit and words of praise from the local accountant who prepared the document for Fiscal Year 2008-09. Given the weak national economy, “I think the city did a good job of managing through that,” Jim Winston said. “I mean, it’s been a tough 18 months,”

Winston said, adding he believes there’s still a bit “of toughness left coming” before the situation settles. “We’re holding on our own,” Winston also said of tax collection rates. Oxford again received a certificate of excellence in financial reporting, which is awarded to only 3 percent of the governments in the U.S. and Canada. Oxford’s revenues were $11.76 million for 2009 compared to nearly $11.87 million

‘TO SAVE A LIFE’

theater bringing faith-based movie to town By DAVID IRVINE Daily Dispatch Writer

The faith-based, teen movie “To Save a Life” is coming to Marketplace Cinema Friday and continuing through March 4. The film focuses on issues that many teenagers encounter in their high school lives, including problems related to in-groups and outsiders. It also includes what few — but still too many — teenagers experience in school: suicide of a classmate.

The movie’s plot focuses on athlete Jake Taylor, who seemingly has it all — a basketball scholarship, good looks, a cheerleader girlfriend and hangs with the in-crowd. But when a loner, an old friend from his past, shoots himself at school, his world is turned upside down and he seeks answers on how he could have made a difference. “To Save a Life” is meant to appeal to a wide audience. Which is part of the reason that the filmmakers aren’t making

too much of the fact that it is a faith-based film. “The real message of this film is to try and offer help to people that are in trouble,” Josh Weigel, who plays the role of a youth pastor in the film, said in a Los Angeles Times interview. “I don’t know what that kind of movie is called, movie with a purpose, a positive film, inspirational or redemptive film. It doesn’t really matter.” Marketplace Cinema General Manager Nancy Jo Smith said

the movie theater hopes to attract sponsorships from youth groups, churches and other organizations — both to spread the message contained in the film but also to give those groups an opportunity to raise funds for their activities. A sponsoring organization will receive 10 percent of ticket sales when a moviegoer mentions the organization before buying a ticket. The ticket price for all customPlease see MOVIE, page 3A

>> INSIDE TODAY <<

Index

Weather

Deaths

Our Hometown. . . . . . . . . . . . 2A Quick Take . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5A Opinion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6A Light Side . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7A Sports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-4B Comics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5B Classifieds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8B

Today

Henderson Mildred W. Johnson, 86 Raleigh Elizabeth F. Miravalle, 93 Silver Spring, Md. Carl Stevenson, 57

Sunny

High: 40, Low: 22

Wednesday

Sunny

High: 43, Low: 24

Details, 3A

Warrenton Vaughan Miami

Viola B. St. Sing

Louida M. Lee, 52 Ida L. Williams, 66

Obituaries, 4A

HUSBAND: PROF WENT TO RANGE BEFORE CAMPUS SHOOTING Page 8A

The Daily Dispatch

Our Hometown

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Mark It Down Today Kiwanis Club — The Kiwanis Club of Henderson meets at 6:30 p.m. at The Golden Corral Restaurant on Dabney Drive. Susan Whitten, director of the Boys and Girls Clubs of North Central North Carolina, will be the guest speaker. Interested non-members may call Opie Frazier at (252) 430-1111 for reservations or membership information. Safety council — The Kerr-Buggs Island Safety Council will meet at Western Sizzlin at 6:30 p.m. The council promotes safety in and around Kerr Reservoir through education, information, promoting safety inspections and serving as a liaison between safety-related agencies and the public. During the meeting, council members will provide information about the council’s functions and needs. In addition, a N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission officer will speak about recent changes in boating laws that could affect Kerr Lake boaters. Cpt. Charlie Ohlson will speak about Sea Tow services on Kerr Lake. Attendees will be responsible for purchasing their own meals. Please plan to attend if you are interested in the council or would like to learn more about new boating laws and Sea Tow services. For more information, contact Bryce Fleming at (252) 4387791, Gene Midyette at (252) 456-2750 or Tom Charles at (434) 738-6143.

Wednesday

Hollie Powell, AIG instructor at Aycock Elementary School (standing at far right) is shown with her fifth-grade students as they hold projects they have worked on recently as part of their studies.

Granville chamber meeting — Tim Farley, Ph.D., superintendent of Granville County Schools, will be guest presenter at the Granville Chamber of Commerce’s February monthly meeting at 7:30 a.m. Farley’s topic is “The State of Education in Granville County.” Union Bank will sponsor a continental breakfast for the meeting. For more information, call the chamber at (919) 528-4994 or (919) 693-6125. Heritage book meeting — The next Vance County Heritage Book-2010 meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. at Miss Lou’s Quilting Studio, 4735 Raleigh Road, Henderson. The public is invited to attend. For more information, call Mark at (252) 438-4000 or (919) 693-1121.

Academically gifted fifth graders at Aycock Elementary tackle unique studies

Thursday West Hills Community Watch — The West Hills/West Creek/158 By-Pass Community Watch will hold its monthly meeting at 6:30 p.m. at Maria Parham Medical Center in the auditorium. Dr. Rodney Drake and Wendy Smith from the GranvilleVance District Health Department will be the guest speakers. They will be talking on the various services offered by the health department. All neighbors are encouraged to attend. Heritage Society meeting — The Heritage Society of Franklin County will hold its monthly meeting at 6:30 p.m. at Louisburg United Methodist Church in Louisburg. Everyone who has an interest in the heritage and genealogy of Franklin County is invited to attend. For further information, contact Joe Pearce at (919) 496-3321, Annette Goyette at (252) 492-3820, or Pat or Gerald Leonard at (919) 853-3293. Chess Club — The Henderson/Vance Chess Club, affiliated with the U. S. Chess Federation, meets at the First United Methodist Church from 6 to 9:30 p.m. All are welcome, adults and youths, novice or experienced. For more information, call Rudy Abate at 438-4459 (days) or 738-0375 (evenings). Watkins Community Watch — The Watkins Community Watch will meet at 7 p.m. at the Community House. All area residents are invited to attend. Car seat clinic — The Safe Kids Henderson-Vance Coalition will sponsor a free child passenger safety car seat clinic at Walmart on N. Cooper Drive from 1-5 p.m. Seats will be available for a $20 donation. All proceeds will be used to purchase additional seats. Assistance will also be given in installing child safety seats correctly (more than 85 percent of all seats in Vance County are installed incorrectly). For more information, call Lt. Irvin Robinson at (252) 431-6061 or Officer Angela Feingold at (252) 430-3165 of the Henderson Police Department, or Lt. Michelle King at (252) 431-6047 of the Henderson Fire Department.

Friday Weight loss group — TOWN (Take Off Weight Now), a nonprofit weight loss group, will meet at Aycock Recreation Center at 11:30 a.m. Everyone is invited to attend. Sadie Hawkins Dance — The Henderson Family YMCA is sponsoring a Sadie Hawkins Dance from 6:30-8:30 p.m. for anyone 55 years and older in the community. Cost is $3/person. Light refreshments will be provided. RSVP by calling (252) 438-2144 or emailing Julia Langston at julial@henfamymca.org.

Saturday Blood drive — The Fathers Parker-Wood Council 9365 of the Knights of Columbus and the American Red Cross will host a blood drive in the Parish Hall at St. James Catholic Church from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. The church is located on the U.S. 158 Bypass in Henderson. Refreshments and a recovery area for blood donors will be available. Community march — A community march to voice concerns about ending violence, improving education and increasing jobs will begin at 11 a.m. at the corner of Dabney Drive and S. Garnett Street. The march will proceed down S. Garnett Street to Henderson Middle School. The public is invited to show support by participating. For more information, contact Bryan Hargrove at (252) 425-9527. Step show — The Warren County Step Show will be held at the Warren County Middle School Gym, 118 Campus Dr., Warrenton, at 5 p.m. Featured will be elementary, middle school and high school step teams from Henderson, Oxford, Warrenton, Greensboro, Durham, Rocky Mount and Henderson. Students & Youth from all over the state will showcase their talents at this event. Doors open at 4:30 p.m. Admission is $5 in advance; $7 on the day of the show. For information and tickets, call: (919) 616-8694, (252) 213-6576 or (252) 257-3751. The event is sponsored by the Warren County Middle School Step Team. NAACP banquet — The annual NAACP Freedom Fund Banquet will be held at 6:30 p.m. at the Vance-Granville Community College Civic Center. Eric Watson, vice president of diversity and inclusion for Food Lion, will be the guest speaker. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased by calling (252) 492-0930. Dee’s Music Barn — Dee’s Music Barn, 3101 Walters Road, Creedmoor, will be featuring Ace In The Hole with James Protreat Band at 7 p.m. For more information, call (919) 528-5878. Pruning workshop — The Vance County Cooperative Extension Center will hold a hands-on pruning workshop at 10 a.m. at the center, 305 Young St., Henderson. Learn the ins and outs of pruning trees and shrubs. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, e-mail paul_mckenzie@ncsu. edu or call (252) 438-8188.

Fifth-grade students in the academically and intellectually gifted (AIG) class at Aycock Elementary School have been studying lots of unique subjects under the direction of their instructor, Hollie Powell. This past fall, Powell planted an amaryllis bulb as the students read the directions and made sure they were followed. Each student made a written prediction of what might happen as the

amaryllis developed. For the next three weeks, students measured the plant and charted its growth. They saw the flowering plant grow one and one-half to two inches each day and then watched large red blooms form. The students plan to decide on whether they want to plant their amaryllis in the school’s courtyard garden or cut it back and keep it in their classroom for fifth graders to follow next school year.

Powell noted that a cross-curricular project kept students busy for the month of December with a “Christmas Around the World” project. Students chose a country to research specific criteria learned in social studies, science and writing. Each student presented a written report including maps, flags and symbols which were representative of their chosen country. Several students

wore costumes and shared goodies and recipes native to their studied country. The fifth graders also are now involved in perfecting various writing techniques by reporting on the fiction and non-fiction books they have read. The students have read mysteries, biographies and historical fiction books. Each student presentation is accompanied by a creative project to help tell the story.

Medical center participates in ulcer study Maria Parham Medical Center has signed a commitment to participate in the Carolinas Center for Medical Excellence National Initiative for the prevention of pressure ulcers. Maria Parham Medical Center is one of 28 acute care hospitals in North Carolina participating in the initiative. Pressure ulcers affect 2.5 million patients each year. Those most at risk of developing pressure ulcers (also called pressure sores or bed sores) are those whose mobility or sensation of pressure are impaired. This includes the elderly, stroke victims, people with dementia or head injuries and anyone who is bedridden or confined to a wheelchair. This injury is caused by unrelieved pressure to the skin, which cuts off the circulation to the area. While pressure sores can develop on any area where pressure is not relieved, it often happens over bony areas such as the heels, ankles or

the tailbone. These areas have less padding of fatty tissue or muscle, and the skin is compressed between a hard surface and the bone. Pressure ulcers can also be caused by friction on delicate skin from rubbing on sheets, casts or braces. In an effort to get needed information about this initiative to hospital staff, a committee called the Skin and Wound Action Team (SWAT) was formed. The team is led by nurses Kathy Thomas and Amanda Wilkins. Thomas is Maria Parham’s certified wound ostomy continence nurse. Thomas and Wilkins serve

as the committee’s education and resource coordinators. Additional team members consist of registered nurses from designated inpatient units who have the responsibility of serving as skin and wound care “champions” for their specific unit. Dr. Robert Noel serves as the team’s physician liaison. The assistant directors for each unit also play a role. In an effort to educate staff members to the new initiative, “Skin Care Fairs” have been held for the certified nursing assistants (CNAs). The team continues to provide resource materials and

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updates and routinely holds classes for their nursing staff. Team members have also gone out into the community and held educational sessions for nursing home staff who care for bedridden patients as well.

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From Page One

The Daily Dispatch

FIVE-DAY FORECAST FOR HENDERSON TODAY

TONIGHT

WEDNESDAY

Mostly Sunny

Clear

Mostly Sunny

40º

22º

43º 24º

THURSDAY

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

Mostly Sunny

Sunny

Mostly Sunny

46º 24º

50º 28º

50º 32º

Almanac

Sun and Moon

Temperature

Sunrise today . . . . . Sunset tonight . . . . Moonrise today . . . Moonset today . . . . Sunrise tomorrow . Sunset tomorrow . . Moonrise tomorrow Moonset tomorrow .

Raleigh -Durham through 6 p.m. yest. High . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .51 Low . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 Normal High . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54 Normal Low . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32 Record High . . . . . . . . .82 in 1989 Record Low . . . . . . . . .18 in 1960

.7:00 .5:56 .7:54 .8:34 .6:59 .5:57 .8:19 .9:32

a.m. p.m. a.m. p.m. a.m. p.m. a.m. p.m.

Moon Phases

Precipitation Yesterday . . . . . . . . . Month to date . . . . . . Normal month to date Year to date . . . . . . . . Normal year to date .

... ... .. ... ...

. . . . .

.0.03" .2.02" .1.84" .5.91" .5.86"

First 2/21

New 3/15

Last 3/7

Full 2/28

Lake Levels Elevation in feet above sea level. Data as of 7 a.m. yesterday. Lake Gaston Kerr

24-Hr. Lake Capacity Yest. Change Jordan 240 223.4 -0.9 Neuse Falls 264 258.7 -0.4

24-Hr. Capacity Yest. Change 203 199.8 -0.2 320 309.8 -0.2

Regional Weather Henderson 40/22

Winston-Salem Durham 41/23 38/23 Asheville 33/20

Rocky Mt. 42/25

Greensboro 39/23 Raleigh 42/24 Charlotte 43/24

Fayetteville 43/26

Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.

Cape Hatteras 42/31

Wilmington 46/28

Regional Cities Today

Today

Wed.

City

Hi/Lo Wx Hi/Lo Wx City

Hi/Lo Wx Hi/Lo Wx

Asheville Boone Burlington Chapel Hill Chattanooga Danville Durham Elizabeth City Elizabethton Fayetteville Goldsboro Greensboro Greenville Havelock Hendersonville

33/20 24/15 39/23 41/23 38/24 40/20 41/23 43/28 32/21 43/26 43/27 39/23 44/26 45/26 35/20

39/24 46/26 44/26 45/26 46/27 43/28 41/30 45/26 42/24 40/23 41/23 42/25 42/24 46/28 38/23

pc mc s s mc s s s mc s s s s s s

36/21 28/13 42/23 45/24 40/25 42/20 44/24 44/29 34/22 47/25 45/27 41/22 46/28 47/28 37/20

mc mc s s pc s s s mc s s s s s s

High Point Jacksonville Kinston Lumberton Myrtle Beach Morehead City Nags Head New Bern Raleigh Richmond Roanoke Rapids Rocky Mount Sanford Wilmington Winston-Salem

s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s

42/22 47/28 46/29 47/26 47/28 46/33 43/31 46/28 45/24 42/22 45/25 46/24 45/24 49/27 42/22

s s s s s s s s s s s s s s s

Weather (Wx): cl/cloudy; pc/partly cloudy; ra/rain; rs/rain & snow; s/sunny; sh/showers; sn/snow; t/thunderstorms; w/windy

Cold Front

Stationary Front

Warm Front

Low Pressure

AUDIT,

FROM PAGE 1A depreciation. Winston said that is because the city has spent so much to bring the new wastewater treatment plant on line at the site of the old one off the Interstate 85/N.C. 96 interchange. Sales tax receipts were off approximately $104,000 from the budgeted amount, Winston said. As for general fund expenditures, the city ended up on the favorable side by more than $1.35 million. Winston said the reason for such a gain is because the city held off budgeting for a new fire truck. The city this year will budget for the new fire truck. In the area of fund balance as a part of spending, the city is at slightly more than 21 percent, with the state minimum being 8 percent. The fund balance

County Schools Associate Superintendent Allan Jordan cited the need to resolve space issues at Granville Central High School. Granville Central opened in August 2007 after being plagued by cost overruns, but there are 10 modular buildings because the school is still not large enough to serve students. Jordan said the students lack the laboratories and the workshops needed for their education. “The cafeteria was designed to seat 400 students and when the school is full, there are 800,” Jordan added.

is Oxford’s piggy bank. As for the property tax collection rate, Oxford is at 95.63 percent compared to the state average of 96.92 percent. As for the motor vehicle tax collection rate, Oxford is at 92.76 percent compared to the state average of 83.47 percent. The commission heard from Winston at this month’s board meeting. In other business, the commission: • Increased the cutoff and reconnection fees for water service, chiefly to deter repeat offenders. The fee is now up from $25 to $50 for customers who more than once have been disconnected for failure to pay their bills. Additionally, the commission voted to double the deposit amounts for a new customer wanting sewer and water service. This is to help recover large amounts of money in case a new customer defaults.

Previously, the new customer was required to deposit approximately a month’s average usage charge. The new customer will still receive a refund after a year if there are not any problems with payments. • Agreed to spend $4,740 for the architectural firm of Corley Redfoot Zack to do a survey to determine the condition of the municipal gymnasium, which is downhill from City Hall. Recreation Director Mary Caudle wants the city to be ready to obtain grants, when they become available, to improve the gym. The survey is needed because there are no such documents for the gym, which along with the adjoining athletic fields and City Hall comprised the since-defunct Oxford High School.

City streets to get spring facelift

MOVIE,

passes and four coupons for free concessions to each organization to raffle. The organization may add items of its own to raffle. All raffle proceeds will go to the ers is $5.50 for daytime sponsoring organization. showings. In the evening, “To Save a Life” was the price for children ages produced by a church2 to 11 years is $5.50; for children over 12 and adults, based company, New Song Pictures, a division of New $7.50; and senior citizens, Song Ministries in Ocean$5.50. Sponsoring organizations side, Calif. It was written may also hold raffles in the and produced by Jim Britts, theater lobby. Marketplace a former youth pastor. Britts says he was inspired Cinema will donate a $15 to produce the film after movie gift card, four movie

FROM PAGE 1A

Granville County Museums

H This map shows high temperatures, type of precipitation expected and location of frontal systems at noon.

that, “I know I’ve got two that’s going to retire at the end of the year” and that, “I’m expecting more.” Efforts are being made to have a staggered schedule of courts so there will not be numerous people in the courtrooms at one time. County Emergency Services (EMS) Director Martin Bragg also said his office has overtime issues. During the fourth quarter, EMS had three full-time positions available, “but

needs replacing. There are three sections. One is over the county manager’s office and the finance office, the second is over the tax office and the sheriff’s office and the third goes back toward the jail. Phillips said the initial estimate to replace all three sections is approximately $225,000. Phillips said plans are to present information about each section so the commissioners can decide which ones need the most immediate attention and which ones could be delayed. And the list hardly stops there.

2 Adjacent Locations in Oxford, NC Events at the Granville County Historical Society Museums “Glimpses of Granville” now showing at the Harris Exhibit Hall,

High Pressure

Yesterday’s National Extremes High: 88° in Anaheim, Calif. Low: -25° in Jordan, Mont.

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OXFORD — The City Commission has given the go-ahead to repave 10 sections of municipal streets this spring. The city will use $200,000 in state Powell Bill funds to pay the costs. The repaving list: • East Dale Drive from Pine Tree Road to Ward Avenue. • Maple Drive from Lewis Street to Cross Street. • Sycamore Street from Linden Avenue to Granville Street. • Taylor Street from Lanier Street to Thomas Street. • Penn Avenue from Coleman Street to Elmwood Cemetery. • Eastway Drive from Hillside Drive to Person Street. • Greenfield Court from Meadow Heights to a cul-de-sac. • West College Street from Baker Street to Crescent Drive. • Mimosa Street from Orange Street to Elm Street. • Ward Avenue from Whitfield Drive to East Dale Drive. The city contracted with the N.C. State University-based Institute for Transportation Research and Education to survey Oxford’s streets. The commission approved the repaving list at this month’s meeting.

Contact the writer at bwest@ hendersondispatch.com.

learning that movies exert more influence on teenagers than parents, peers or church. Smith warns parents and youth group coordinators that the film is rated

PG-13. It contains scenes of smoking, drinking and marijuana use. Sexual activity is implied but not shown. And there is the suicide of one of the main characters.

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FROM PAGE 1A

we had two folks out” for medical reasons and “had another one” out for medical reasons in the first quarter, Bragg said. “Now, our policy is to use our part-time staff to fill these holes, but the thing about part time, you have a group, about 10 or 12, that come in and work all the time,” Bragg said. “The ones that don’t have other jobs that are very good, we hire,” Bragg said. “And the ones that are not working out, we let ‘em go.” County Development Services Director Scott Phillips said the roof of the county’s administrative building

er Ev

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Tuesday, February 16, 2010

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The Daily Dispatch

Local News Deaths

Mildred W. Johnson

HENDERSON — Mildred Whitmore Johnson, 86, formerly of Henderson, N.C., died Saturday, February 13, 2010, at Randolph Health and Rehabilitation Center in Asheboro, N.C. Born in Warren County, she was the daughter of the late Henry and Ruth King Whitmore. She was the widow of Carl Gresemar Johnson. Mrs. Johnson was a homemaker. A graveside funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Sunset Gardens, conducted by the Rev. Frank Sossamon. Surviving are two sons, Steve Johnson, of Fayetteville, N.C., and Bill Johnson, of Nashville, Tenn.; four grandchildren, Jessica J. Fixl, Rebecca A. Johnson, Brittany N. Johnson and Carson E. McCabe II; and seven great-grandchildren, Tyler Faller, Trista Fixl, Joshua Fixl, Cheyenne White, Martin Fletcher, Deanna Fletcher, and Harley McCabe. The family will receive friends immediately following the service at the cemetery. Arrangements are by Flowers Funeral Home. Paid Obituary

Louida M. Lee

VAUGHAN — Louida Maye Lee, 52, of Vaughan, died Sunday, Feb. 14, 2010, at the University of North Carolina Healthcare in Chapel Hill. Funeral services are incomplete at this time but will be announced later by Boyd’s Funeral Service in Warrenton.

Elizabeth F. Miravalle

RALEIGH — Elizabeth (Lib) Foster Miravalle, 93, died Feb. 13, 2010, at Hillside Nursing Center in Wake Forest. She was born in Nashville, Tenn., and moved to Raleigh when she was 3 years old. She was the daughter of Professor John Milton Foster and Bessie Schnell Foster. She graduated from St. Mary’s Junior College and

Marjorie Webster Business School in Washington, D.C., and was a member of St. Michael’s Episcopal Church. She was a member of the Junior League of Raleigh and a charter member of the Carolina Country Club, Modern Minerva Book Club, the Capital Cotillion Club, and the Nine O’Clock Circle. She was preceded in death by her husband, John H. Miravalle; sister, Virginia F. Rasmussen; brothers, John M. Foster Jr. and Albert W. Foster, and her parents. She is survived by her daughters, Lisa F. Miravalle of Henderson and Jane M. Carnes of Charlotte; a grandson; and two great-grandchildren. Funeral services will be graveside at Oakwood Cemetery today at 2 p.m. Arrangements are by Brown-Wynne Funeral Home, 300 St. Mary’s Street, Raleigh, N.C., 27605, (919) 828-4311. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Hospice of Wake County at 200 Hospice Circle, Raleigh, N.C., 27607.

Viola B. St. Sing

WARRENTON — Viola Bolton St. Sing, 86, died Monday, Feb. 15, 2010, at her residence. She was a Warren County native born to the late Macy and Sallie Thompson Bolton. She was also preceded in death by her daughter, Linda St. Sing Moseley. She was a longtime member of Warren Plains Baptist Church where she was a member of the choir and the W.M.U. The Revs. Will Aleshire and Jerry Davidson will conduct graveside services at 2 p.m. Wednesday at Warren Plains Memorial Gardens. She is survived by her husband, Zeb V. St. Sing. Pallbearers will be W.C. St. Sing, Harry St. Sing, Wilson Bolton, Jerry Bolton, Butch Bolton and Tom Thompson. Memorials may be made to Warren Plains Baptist Church, c/o Pat St. Sing, 152 St. Sing Farm Road, Warrenton, N.C. 27589. The family will receive friends from 6:30-8 p.m. today at Blaylock Funeral

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Carl Stevenson

SILVER SPRING, Md. — Carl Stevenson, 57, of Silver Spring, Md., formerly of Warren County, died Thursday, Feb. 4, 2010, at Genesis Layhill Center in Silver Spring, Md. Funeral services were conducted at 1 p.m. Saturday at Greenwood Baptist Church in Warrenton. The Rev. Eddie W. Lawrence, pastor, officiated and burial followed in the church cemetery. He is survived by his wife, Mary Steed Stevenson of Charlotte; a daughter, Loretta Stevenson of Charlotte; two sons, Antwuan Stevenson of Washington, D.C., and Carl Stevenson Jr. of Woodbridge, Va.; a grandchild; his mother, Mildred Sims Stevenson of Norlina; four sisters, Mary Louise Jones of Oxford, Catherine Stevenson of Macon, and Josephine Zollicoffer and Juanita Stevenson, both of Norlina; two brothers, Henry Stevenson of Hyattsville, Md., and Thomas Stevenson of Norlina. The family received friends Friday from 6 to 7 p.m. at Boyd’s Funeral Service Chapel in Warrenton. Arrangements are by Boyd’s Funeral Service in Warrenton.

Ida L. Williams

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

MIAMI — Ida L. Williams, 66, of Miami, Fla., died Thursday, Feb. 11, 2010, in Miami, Fla. Funeral services are incomplete at this time but will be announced later by Boyd’s Funeral Service in Warrenton.

the arrangement. This would mean the city would only continue paying 100 percent for elections for the mayor and the eight council members. And this would eliminate slightly more than $124,000 in expenses to the city, Inscoe said. No decision was made about the tax collection office, although Daeke said he believes the city should look at some kind of performance standard. Henderson pays the county 25 percent of the cost to collect taxes, with the agreement dating back to 1986. There was much discussion about the 65 percent county/35 percent city ratio for the H. Leslie Perry Memorial Library, with the council deciding further talks on the subject should be taken up by City Manager Ray Griffin and County Manager Jerry Ayscue. Over time, the city began paying the portion the city wanted to put into the library, resulting in a 50-50 funding split with the county. Ed Wyatt, who was interim city manager before the hiring of Griffin, in a letter asked Ayscue whether the county would consider a ratio of 75 percent county/25 percent city. The county’s share went up 5 percent one year and 5 percent the next, with the ratio remaining at 65 percent county and 35 percent city because of the weak national economy. Daeke on Monday evening called for a 90 percent county/10 percent city ratio, at one point saying of the county that, “I’d love to see ‘em take over the cost of the library” and emphasizing that he is trying to find raises for city staff and to fill city staff positions. Coffey also spoke out about the contin-

City wants to look at other properties to sell A meeting of the City Council’s Land Planning & Development Committee will be called at a yet-to-be specified time to look at the remaining pieces of property the city may

Daily Dispatch/ASHLEY STEVEN AYSCUE

Henderson City Councilman Michael Inscoe at the City Council’s work session Monday night. ued lack of a formal agreement between the city and the county regarding library funding. City Attorney John Zollicoffer said the council has appointment rights to half of those on the library’s board of trustees. Inscoe told Griffin, “I think you need to have that discussion and come back to us,” a reference to Griffin meeting with Ayscue about trying to evolve to a 75 percent county/25 percent city ratio. During the Thursday intergovernmental meeting, Ayscue said the county would like to be able to move forward as soon as possible with the city on selling water to the county. The county is conducting a sign up campaign for a first phase of the project and would like a 60-day time frame for a city response. During Monday evening’s discussion, Inscoe said that, because the city will be starting the municipal budgeting process this spring, if city leaders wait a full 60 days, then they may not have the information in order to make financial decisions. “I am certainly willing to look at the sale of the water to Vance County and try to give them the best possible rate that we possibly can,” Inscoe said. want to consider putting up for sale. Committee Chairman Michael Rainey made the request at the end of Monday evening’s council work session. Rainey’s request follows the council on Feb. 8 voting to accept a counteroffer of $170,940 by state Rep. Bill Faison for the city-owned Southerland’s Mill Pond tract.

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Quick Take

The Daily Dispatch

Financial markets closed Monday Financial information will not appear on this page today due to the closing of the markets Monday.

Taliban step up attacks in town

MARJAH, Afghanistan (AP) — Taliban fighters stepped up counterattacks Monday against Marines and Afghan soldiers in the militant stronghold of Marjah, slowing the allied advance to a crawl despite Afghan government claims that the insurgents are broken and on the run. Taliban fighters appeared to be slipping under cover of darkness into compounds already deemed free of weapons and explosives, then opening fire on the Marines from behind U.S. lines. Also Monday, NATO said five civilians were accidentally killed and two wounded by an airstrike when they were mistakenly believed to have been planting roadside bombs in Kandahar province, east of the Marjah offensive.

The airstrike happened one day after 12 people, half of them children, were killed by two U.S. missiles that struck a house on the outskirts of Marjah. Afghan officials said Monday that three Taliban fighters were in the house at the time of the attack. On the third day of the main attack on Marjah, Afghan commanders spoke optimistically about progress in the town of about 80,000 people, the linchpin of the Taliban logistical and opium poppy smuggling network in the militant-influenced south. Brig. Gen. Sher Mohammad Zazai, commander of Afghan troops in the south, told reporters in nearby Lashkar Gah that there had been “low resistance” in the town, adding “soon we will have Marjah cleared of enemies.”

Police: 4 dead, 1 missing in mid-NJ plane crash WALL TOWNSHIP, N.J. (AP) — A small plane preparing to land broke apart and nose-dived into a snowy field alongside a runway Monday, a witness

reported. Four people are dead and one missing after the crash, which happened in an affluent section of the state, officials said. The crash was reported at 3:45 p.m. Monday at Monmouth Executive Airport, about 35 miles east of Trenton, said Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Jim Peters. The weather was overcast, but no precipitation was falling. There’s “a very large debris field” at the airport, Peters said. Capt. Tim Clayton of the Wall Township police said authorities have identified four bodies. The names of the victims were not immediately released. Peters said the plane was a Cessna 337 Skymaster, a make known in aviation circles as a “Push Me, Pull You” because its twin engines are located in the nose and behind the fuselage. It was registered to Jack Air LLC, a Wilmington, Del., company. A telephone listing for the company was not immediately available. Peters said the National Transportation Safety Board would be the lead agency in the investigation into the cause of the crash.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Gunman shoots patient in hospital LAURINBURG, N.C. (AP) — Police say a gunman shot a patient at a hospital in Laurinburg and tried to shoot the patient’s girlfriend. Multiple media outlets reported that police say the gunfire followed a fight at a club in McColl, S.C., early Monday. Laurinburg police Capt. Kimothy Monroe said Wayne “Wolf” Simmons, the father of one of the women in the club fight, came to Scotland Memorial Hospital. He said Simmons entered a room and fired at Domario Covington, who was being treated for injuries from the fight. Monroe said Covington ran away and Simmons then tried to shoot Covington’s girlfriend, but the gun didn’t fire. Simmons was arrested in the hospital parking lot. Covington was in critical but stable condition. Police said Simmons suffered a heart attack and was transferred to a hospital.

Norovirus blamed for some NC students’ illnesses

Sec. of State: Iran near a military dictatorship

RALEIGH (AP) — Health officials in a North Carolina county say at least four of the approximately 150 people who became ill during a YMCA conference are suffering from a norovirus. Multiple media outlets reported Monday that Wake County’s environmental health director says investigators are looking for the source of the norovirus. Director Andre Pierce said in a statement that the county is taking measures to reduce the spread of illness by asking food service establishments to take precautionary measures. The students were among about 1,000 who participated in the YMCA’s 17th annual statewide Youth & Government conference in Raleigh. The symptoms they reported Friday night and Saturday morning included diarrhea, vomiting, stomach cramps and headaches.

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Monday Iran is sliding into a military dictatorship, a new assessment suggesting a rockier road ahead for U.S.-led efforts to stop Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. As the first high-level Obama administration official to make such an accusation, Clinton was reflecting an ever-dimming outlook for persuading Iran to negotiate limits on its nuclear program, which it has insisted is intended only for peaceful purposes. The U.S. and others believe Iran is headed for a nuclear bomb capability. Clinton also was revealing the logic of the administration’s plan to target the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps with a new round of international sanctions intended to compel Iran to curb its nuclear ambitions before it increases the likelihood of a military clash.

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Opinion

The Daily Dispatch

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Editorial Board: James Edwards, Publisher • jedwards@hendersondispatch.com Luke Horton, Editor • lhorton@hendersondispatch.com Don Dulin, News Editor • ddulin@hendersondispatch.com Linda Gupton, Features Editor • lgupton@hendersondispatch.com 304 S. Chestnut St./P.O. Box 908 Henderson, N.C. 27536 PHONE: 436-2700/FAX: 430-0125

Daily Meditation Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me; that by me the preaching might be fully known, and [that] all the Gentiles might hear: and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion. 2 Timothy 4:17

Our Opinion

Drug dealer program a step in right direction Get help or go to jail. That’s the message Oxford Police Chief John Wolford is sending to suspected drug dealers in Granville County. Wolford is preparing to launch a crimefighting initiative similar to a successful one in High Point. The initiative puts the drug dealers in the same room with family members, ministers and neighbors for an intervention of sorts. Those gathered will tell the drug dealers “enough is enough.” The suspected offenders will be offered the chance to return to their life of crime or sit down with a resource coordinator to help determine what they need to get back on the right track. If they choose to return to selling drugs, an officer may be paying them a visit. “If we’ve got a pending warrant, we’ll serve it the next morning,” Wolford said. “Basically, we’re trying to box ‘em in, but we’re not going to arrest them that night.” The program is for low-level criminals only, not top-level drug dealers, firearms offenders or long-term offenders with a potential for violence. The initiative has been successful in High Point — according to reports, the violent crime rate has dropped 20 percent since the program started. Any program that deals with criminals will face challenges, but Wolford is optimistic this initiative will work. But only if the community rallies to make it work. It will take churches, neighbors, law enforcement officials and businesses coming together for it to be successful. Hopefully it will be. It’s a worthy effort and one that Vance County should consider implementing. Crime has become a problem that negatively affects every aspect of life in the area. It will take community-driven initiatives like this to fix that. It will take more people saying “enough is enough.”

Other Views Federal disaster relief will ease cleanup strain

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Now that President Obama has signed a disaster declaration to help with cleanup costs from recent mountain storms, federal officials should ensure that North Carolina quickly gets it share — more than $9 million. Several North Carolina mountain counties caught a double whammy — the Dec. 18 snowstorm followed by a Christmas Day ice storm. The counties along the N.C.-Tennessee border stretch from Asheville and include Watauga and Ashe counties, where the ice storm was heaviest. The ice storm coated limbs, downing thousands of them and causing widespread power outages. Roads and bridges were damaged. Early damage and expense estimates for Watauga alone were more than $3 million. It’s estimated that the total recovery costs will be more than $12.5 million. The snow and ice, and the expense of dealing with it, continues. “Many of these same counties incurred additional costs last weekend responding to our most recent snow and ice storm,” Gov. Bev Perdue said last week in a prepared statement. The federal money should ease some of the strain that the cleanup costs have placed on the state and local governments. And more federal help may be needed before this winter is through. Winston-Salem Journal

I’ve been on a luge sled. And I’ve crashed. I’ve felt my jaw vibrate as my helmet dribbled on the ice. Felt my shoulders smack against the walls of a straightaway. Felt the discombobulation of looking down over my feet as I tried desperately to steer, pinballing off the sides, finally separating from the sled and scraping my butt down the frozen track. I was younger then and traveling with the U.S. luge team through Europe. The lugers sort of adopted me — I was the first journalist most of them had ever spoken to — and before long, they had me on the track, trying a minorleague version of what they did. The luge community in those days was small, tight, brave and low-tech, like the fighter pilots who pioneered our space program. The Americans mostly stayed in cheap hotels, slept three to a room, traveled in a van, ate candy bars for training and fixed their own sleds. They were funny, grubby, detailoriented and fearless — their love of speed was NASCAR on caffeine — but there was one thing that lowered their eyes

and softened their voices. The words “he came out of the track.” The drama of speed and g-forces You never wanted to do that. It was almost impossible. The gravitational forces of going 70 or 80 m.p.h. slammed you into Mitch the ice Albom (they are what Tribune Media bounce Services your helmet during the curves) and while you can smack and bruise yourself all over the serpentine walls, you are pretty much in the track to stay. But there is a brief window, a split second really, coming out of a curve, where the walls get low and where it is possible, if you lose control and are going too fast and the ice gods are not with you, that you could go airborne and fly out of the track. Which is what happened to an Olympic luger Friday morning, during a training

run, on the day the Vancouver Winter Games were to begin. His name was Nodar Kumaritashvili, from the former Soviet Republic of Georgia. He was a back-of-the-pack competitor, only 21 years old. When I crashed, I was going 30 m.p.h. He was going almost 90. And he’s dead. “He came out of the track.” When NBC broadcast the news, its luge commentator, Duncan Kennedy, choked up and sobbed. Kennedy was just a teenager when I was covering the team, a teenager in love with icy speed like the rest of them. Now here he was, retired, a commentator unable to comment. He knew it was the worst thing that could happen at the worst possible time, the Winter Olympics, the only moment luge is ever brought from the shadows into the light. Because of that, people need to understand. This is tragic. But it is not typical. The desire to place blame Luge is not a place to die. Mortality incidents, considering the sport — no pads, only a helmet, lying supine on a speeding sled — are exceed-

ingly rare. But several forces are at work here. First is the unquenched thirst for faster tracks. I don’t know why the Vancouver track was designed so slickly, but it’s not as if luge looks better on TV if the sliders go 95 m.p.h. vs. 85 m.p.h. This must be addressed. Also — and this went on 25 years ago when I covered the sport — host countries often limit practice time for foreign teams, hoping to preserve a home-ice advantage. Apparently, this went on in Canada. Thus, most Olympic sliders are facing a relatively unfamiliar track while under the most intense pressure to succeed. Such gamesmanship is way too dangerous. But beyond that — although an international media will no doubt blow this thing up and scold everyone in sight — mostly this was luge being luge, a dangerous canvass with a small rip that in the worst combination of circumstances can suck up an athlete and take him away. “He came out of the track.” The voices soften. The eyes lower. Only this time, the whole world was watching and is not likely to forget.

Needed: More snow in Washington, D.C. Boy, do we need more snow in Washington, D.C. You see, when it snows in Pittsburgh, my home town, or any town in the heartland, people pick up their shovels and clear their sidewalks and driveways. We are invigorated by the crisp air and a good sweat — we are cheerful as we sip hot coffee and catch up with neighbors. That’s not how Washington reacts to snow. I lived in the Washington region for nearly eight years. When the forecasters say an inch or two is on the way, panic sets in. Powerful people shut down schools, cancel flights and order “non-essential” government employees — and that covers just about everybody — to stay home. Last week in D.C., the snow fell so thick — the winds were so bitter cold — that even global warming conferences were canceled. Activists, who tell us toilet paper and bottled water are bad for the environment, flocked to supermarkets to hoard toilet paper and bottled water. Why such panic?

Because Washingtonians aren’t used to reality. In Washington, you see, a fellow can make a fine living by spewing bogus numbers and arguments to convince policymakers to write laws that favor Tom the organizations Purcell he repreDistributed by sents. Cagle Cartoons The government doesn’t much care for reality, either. If it needs more money, it just borrows or prints more. If politicians want to impose government-run health care on us, they simply contort their bill to produce estimates that have zero correlation to what the costs will turn out to be. Some are so good at this game that they enjoy 30-year careers without ever approximating reality of any kind. Unless snow falls. Snow is real. It falls at its own whim. You can slip on

it and hurt yourself. You can wreck your car in it. Commonsense people in the heartland don’t complain much when snow comes. We clear our sidewalks and driveways so the mailman won’t fall. We plan ahead. We outfit our cars with snow tires so we can get to work when the snow arrives. We prepare for reality because we will suffer reality’s consequences if we don’t. It’s not like that in Washington — reality often has no consequences there. Implement an ethanolsubsidies program that screws up markets and drives up the cost of food? Oh, well. At least their intentions were good. Pass the largest spending bill in history — one that has stimulated little, except our deficit and our debt? Oh, well. Maybe they’d better pass another. Run a massive deficit brought on by reckless spending? Oh, well. They’ll just print and borrow more dough so they can spend even more. Such is “common sense” in Washington.

When record snows fall in the heartland, our first instinct is to do what we must to keep the snow from affecting our families’ well-being. When record snows fall in D.C., the Washingtonian’s first instinct is to politicize and spin and tell us the snow is caused by global warming. Or argue that taxpayers are losing an estimated $100 million in lost work and productivity every day the government is shut down and 230,000 federal employees remain idle. That’s what John Berry, Office of Personnel Management chief, tried to do. Hey, John, here’s an offer: If you promise to keep government employees idle AFTER the snow melts, we’ll pay you $1 BILLION a day. We in the heartland know, for the most part, that the less the federal government does, the better off we are. That’s why we need more snow in Washington, D.C. Tom Purcell, is a humor columnist for the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Visit Tom on the web at www.TomPurcell.com or e-mail him at Purcell@caglecartoons.com.

Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Write Dear Abby at www.DearAbby.com or P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.

Today In client will fill History

On this date: In 1804, Lt. Stephen Decatur led a successful raid into Tripoli Harbor to burn the U.S. Navy frigate Philadelphia, which had fallen into the hands of pirates. In 1862, during the Civil War, some 14,000 Confederate soldiers surrendered at Fort Donelson, Tenn. (Union General Ulysses S. Grant’s victory earned him the nickname “Unconditional Surrender Grant.”) In 1918, Lithuania proclaimed its independence, which lasted until World War II (it again declared independence in 1990). In 1923, the burial chamber of King Tutankhamen’s recently unearthed tomb was unsealed in Egypt by English archaeologist Howard Carter. In 1959, Fidel Castro became premier of Cuba a month and a-half after the overthrow of Fulgencio Batista. In 1968, the nation’s first 911 emergency telephone system was inaugurated, in Haleyville, Ala. In 1977, Janani Luwum, the Anglican archbishop of Uganda, and two other men were killed in what Ugandan authorities said was an automobile accident. Ten years ago: Lucy Edwards, a former Bank of New York executive, and her husband, Peter Berlin, pleaded guilty in federal court in Manhattan to conspiring to launder billions of dollars from Russian bankers in one of the biggest

One year ago: Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton arrived in Tokyo to begin her first trip abroad as President Barack Obama’s chief diplomat. The government of Pakistan agreed to implement Islamic law in the northwestern region of Malakand in an attempt to pacify a spreading Taliban insurgency. In Stamford, Conn., a 200-pound chimpanzee named Travis went berserk, severely mauling its owner’s friend, Charla Nash; Travis was shot dead by police. Today’s Birthdays: Singer Patty Andrews is 92. Kim Jong Il, the president of North Korea, is 68. Actor Jeremy Bulloch is 64. Actor William Katt is 59. Actor LeVar Burton is 53. Actorrapper Ice-T is 52. Actress Lisa Loring is 52. Tennis Hall of Fame player John McEnroe is 51. Rock musician Andy Taylor is 49. Rock musician Dave Lombardo (Slayer) is 45. Rock musician Taylor Hawkins (Foofighters) is 38. Olympic gold medal runner Cathy Freeman is 37. Singer Sam Salter is 35. Thought for Today: “There are two ways to slice easily through life; to believe everything or to doubt everything. Both ways save us from thinking.” — Alfred Korzybski, Polish-American linguist (1879-1950).

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