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THOMASVILLE
Find recap of Friday’s Ledford-East Davidson football game in today’s Sports, Page 7.
Times
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
118th Year - No. 143 50 Cents
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City fined for recent wastewater overflow
Everybody’s Day
Smart Start funding cut by state BY ELIOT DUKE Staff Writer
BY KARISSA MINN Staff Writer
The state Division of Water Quality has fined the City of Thomasville $35,116 for an unpermitted sewer system overflow of 15.93 million gallons into Hamby Creek this summer. City Manager Kelly Craver said that the city will pay the fine out of the water and sewer enterprise fund, and Thomasville will have to get creative when they pull out the money. “It’s not the end of the world, but certainly, it is a $35,000 expenditure that is not budgeted for,” Craver said. “That money would typically have been spent on supplies, salaries, or equipment that would help the water and sewer department run.” The city’s original re-
See FINED, Page 12
Medical Ministry plans fall health fair BY KARISSA MINN Staff Writer
Davidson Medical Ministries Clinic (DMMC) will hold a free fall health fair on Oct. 10 from 9 a.m. to noon at the clinic’s office, located at 420 North Salisbury St. “It’s going to be a pretty awesome event,” said Sandy Motley, DMMC executive director. “It’s another opportunity for us to reach out to the underserved population of the county.” As a nonprofit agency, DMMC provides medical and dental services to county residents who are uninsured, but anyone in the local community is welcome to attend the fair. Co-sponsors for the event are the American Heart Association’s “Queen of Hearts: Going Red for Women” program that emphasizes heart disease
See FAIR, Page 12
great.” Croft said that the festival had a few less vendors sign up than usual due to the economy, and a few more cancelled because of the rain. Still, plenty of people browsed the various tables and purchase the vendors’ items. At one booth, a man wearing a tall hat demonstrated to curious onlookers the process of cooking kettle corn. Homemade
A local agency that tries to get children off to a good start in life had its budget cut by the state. Smart Start of Davidson County announced Monday that its annual budget was cut by 14 percent or nearly $600,000 for the upcoming fiscal year due to statewide financial difficulties. The cuts were a result of reductions made by the General Assembly in the midst of the national recession. The North Carolina Partnership for Children, Smart Start’s state agency, cut back its allocation to the organization as a way to meet its own financial restraints. Smart Start is an early childhood initiative designed to ensure young children get the start they need to be successful in life. “These cuts are devastating as it means our programs are not able to meet the community’s needs,” Linda Leonard, Executive Director of Smart Start of Davidson County (SSDC), said. “This is hard for all because more Davidson County families with young children as well as the child care community are facing financial hardship with the difficult economy.” As a result of the cuts, SSDC had to eliminate several services and an employee. Programs such as In Home Family Therapy through Family Services and Transportation and Car Seat Safety through the Health De-
See EVENT, Page 12
See FUNDING, Page 12
TIMES PHOTOS/LISA WALL
Above, festivalgoers line the streets despite the rain during the 101st annual Everybody’s Day Festival Saturday. Below, a young child takes a swing on one of the many amusement rides at the event.
Rain little damper at annual event BY KARISSA MINN Staff Writer Wet weather dampened the crowd but not its spirit at the 101st annual Everybody’s Day Festival, sponsored by Thomasville Medical Center. The festivalgoers were misted with a light drizzle Saturday as they enjoyed food, crafts and entertainment, their umbrellas disappearing and reappearing with the rain.
Thomasville Police Department estimated that the crowd totaled about 7,000 to 8,000 people over the course of the festival — about 1/3 of the normal attendance, but more than the Thomasville Area Chamber of Commerce expected. “The rain certainly didn’t help, but I was just amazed at how many people came and enjoyed the event,” said Chamber President Doug Croft. “I was stunned by it, really. That makes me feel
Local Chili Cook-off to spice up weekend BY ELIOT DUKE Staff Writer If there was ever a perfect sponsor for a chili cook-off, a heartburn center would be it. That’s the case this weekend as Thomasville Medical Center Heartburn Treatment Center is sponsoring the fourth annual First Presbyterian Church Chili Cook-off on Saturday. The event will last from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the church located at 21 Randolph St. There also will be live music from The Father’s Four
Community Sponsor
and Carolina Country Grass and a bake sale. Awards will be given out for the three best chili blends and the people’s choice selection. “If the chili is too hot, somebody will be there to take care of you,” Phil Griffin, Chairman of Men of the Church, said. Nearly a dozen chili experts will put their recipes to the test in an effort to dethrone 2008 champion Double D’s winning blend. Dwayne and Donna Burchett took home the trophy a year ago with a new recipe fol-
lowing two unsuccessful tries at the cook-off crown. Unfortunately, Donna Burchett fell ill the night before and was unable to bask in the glory with her husband. “We’re excited and hope to be as fortunate this year,” said Dwayne Burchett. “It’s for a good cause. To be honest, there isn’t any recipe. We know what we’re going to put it in, but when it comes to putting in this amount of this or this amount of that, we haven’t got the faintest idea. We’ve got a general
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amount of everything we put in it. We fine tune it as we go.” All the proceeds from the event will go toward four local food pantries — Cooperative Community Ministry, His Laboring Few, Fairgrove Family Resource Center and Saint Stephens Missionary Baptist Church. Griffin said having a sponsor allows all the raised money to be donated without having to deduct any expenses from the hosting the event.
See CHILI, Page 14
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