Chatham News & Record Vol. 9, Issue 12

INSIDE

Cade Elmore res a pitch during the rst playo game in Seaforth baseball history. For full coverage of the Hawks’ inaugural win, turn to page B1.

the BRIEF this week

CORA and DoorDash partner to deliver meals to kids

Chatham Outreach Alliance (CORA) Food Pantry, which provides meals and snacks — or CoraPacks — to Chatham County children facing food insecurity, has delivered more than 70,000 meals in partnership with DoorDash’s Project DASH to help ensure kids can access nutritious food without the social stigma associated with similar backpack programs.

Working closely with Chatham County Schools and using DoorDash tech and delivery drivers, CORA Food Pantry provides monthly deliveries of nutritious food staples to 160 Chatham County children struggling with food insecurity.

The packs include three meals and two snacks worth of food for each of the 116 days students aren’t in school, including weekends and holiday breaks.

UNC, Duke commencements see minor protest disruptions

At UNC Chapel Hill, proPalestinian demonstrators splattered red paint on the steps of a building hours ahead of the school’s commencement ceremony and chanted on campus while students wearing light blue graduation gowns posed for photos.

At Duke’s commencement, a small number of students walked out when the commencement speaker, comedian Jerry Seinfeld, who is Jewish, began speaking. Around the country, a number of other graduation ceremonies were disturbed by small protests, though most went o without a hitch.

NC o cials dropped from ‘eCourts’ lawsuit alleging unlawful arrests

Several state and local court o cials have been removed from a federal lawsuit led by people who allege the operation of North Carolina’s new electronic courts records system contributed to their unlawful arrest or extended jail detainment. Individual plainti s voluntarily ended civil claims against them this week. The Wake and Mecklenburg sheri s and the company hired to develop the “eCourts” system remain defendants.

The Administrative O ce of the Courts began rolling out eCourts in February 2023, and it now covers 27 counties. The plainti s allege software errors and human errors have led to multiple arrests on the same warrants and extra time in jail.

Home of the brave

The Chatham County Sheri ’s O ce Honor Guard presented

between the Carolina Hurricanes and New York Rangers

Resource O cer Jason Kane, SSgt. Chris Marcum, SSgt.

Music meets magic in Shakori Hills

Welcoming vibes, diverse music and sustainable practices abound at Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival

By Dan Reeves For Chatham News & Record

PITTSBORO — Walking into Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival, held this past weekend, the typical parking and entry head-

aches of events like these quickly disappear. The kind, welcoming sta and volunteers embodying the festival’s peaceful vibe invite each visitor to become part of a larger community. Stepping into Shakori Hills, a mystical and warming communal spirit is palpable.

Children’s laughter, tribal drumming and the calming aroma of burning camp res ll the air. Artisans line the paths throughout the grounds, selling

Siler City woman injured in Randolph County crash

A wreck near Eastern Randolph High saw one driver airlifted to the hospital

Chatham News & Record Sta

A SILER CITY woman was airlifted to UNC Hospital in Chapel Hill from a crash near Eastern Randolph High School the afternoon of May 8.

Asjiah Salome Rivera, 21, su ered serious injuries, according to the North Carolina State Highway Patrol. The incident occurred on U.S. 64 at Lee Layne Road in Randolph County.

Rivera was traveling west on U.S. 64 in a 2010 Honda and failed to stop for the red light, according to the NC

Highway Patrol report. Her car collided with a 2007 Kenworth tractor trailer driven by Corey Lewis of Kernersville. Lewis was traveling north on Lee Lyne Road, crossing U.S. 64. Lewis, 38, was uninjured in the crash, the report said. The truck he was operating was from Gas Town, Inc., of Oak Ridge. After the wreck, the truck blocked the westbound lanes on U.S. 64, which remained closed for about two hours. The helicopter for the airlift landed on the high school’s grounds.

The Randolph County Sheri ’s Department, Franklinville Fire Department and other agencies responded to the crash.

homespun clothing, jewelry and visually stunning art. Enjoying a burrito from one of the many food vendors with his wife and two kids, rst-timer Brian Mayor told me, “I’m here for all of it.”

Anchored by a stellar lineup of artists spanning various genres, the festival had something for everyone. From folk and bluegrass to world music, jazz and Americana, the musical o erings were as diverse as the attendees. Headliners included Watch-

The town’s property tax rate would hold at $0.44

By Ryan Henkel Chatham News & Record

THE TOWN of Pittsboro Board of Commissioners met Monday to consider the budget for scal year 2024-2025.

“The budget re ects the town board and sta ’s commitment to providing high quality and low cost services that provide safe and secure neighborhoods that are fundamental to the quality of life and economic vitality that we seek,” said town manager Jonathan Franklin, who presented the proposal, put together by town sta , to the board. The proposed budget comes

house (formerly Mandolin Orange), the Sam Grisman Project (led by the son of bluegrass legend David Grisman), Jupiter & Okwess, and Donna the Bu alo, promising a varied and unforgettable musical experience, with many of the nearly 7,000 attendees camping on the spacious, wooded grounds.

While music is the main attraction, patrons also enjoy heal-

in at $11,093,912, at an unchanged tax rate of $0.44. The budget includes a proposed municipal vehicle tax of $30 per vehicle annually, a $0.94 per month increase in solid waste rates to $11.28 annually, a 5.3% cost-of-living increase and a 2% merit bonus for town employees. It also includes funding for an addition-

See SHAKORI, page A10

PJ BROWN-WARD / CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

the colors before Game 3 of the NHL playo series

at PNC Arena in Raleigh on May 9. From left to right, School

Tristan Lobe and Deputy Jessie Taub.

PHOTO BY JOSH LAVALLEE / NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES

PITTSBORO, from page A1

al community police o cer.

After discussion, the budget hearing was continued to June.

The board also discussed the NCDOT Truck Route Signage Project, intended to change truck routes to keep large truck tra c out of downtown.

“In 2022, the board cited this as a priority for safety in downtown as well as additional support of economic development in downtown,” said engineering director Kent Jackson. “They adopted a resolution asking NCDOT to reassign the truck route along highway 87 and eventually onto 64-bypass and return back to 15-501N.”

Though approval has been given for the change, there’s currently a one-year delay in receiving new highway signage and NCDOT is holding the town to a 50% cost share of the $250,000 project cost. In addition, NCDOT plans to update the route down the line once Chatham Parkway is completed and to designate it as part of the route.

“The main question at hand is, do we want to spend $125,000 to have signage relocated for two to three years, for it to then be moved again?” Franklin asked. “And the other question is, why would Chatham Parkway be designated that? I’d like to hear the answer to that question rst.”

This decisions, too, will be considered next month.

And following up on a previous item, the commissioners approved a conditional rezoning request for a proposed storage site located on US Highway 64 Business West.

The Town of Pittsboro Board of Commissioners will next meet June 10.

mosaicatchathampark.com

about one cubic yard. We will load large trailers and dump trucks only with a large scoop for $10 per scoop. (Cash or check only)

Chatham Mills Farmers Market

8 a.m. – noon

Chatham Mills Farmers Market takes place every Saturday in April to October at 8 a.m. to noon and November to January at 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. It’s a growers-only market featuring fresh veggies, fruits, meats, eggs, baked goods, preserved foods, perennial plants and garden starters, handmade crafts and more. It takes place in the front parking lot and lawn in front of Chatham Mills.

May Household

Hazardous Waste Event

9 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Hazardous Waste Event events are a way for residents to dispose of hazardous materials safely. Residents will need to show their NC driver’s license or something with their current address. (Households; no hazardous waste from businesses will be accepted.) Waste accepted include items such as oil-based paints, solvents, stains, bleach, aerosols, cleaners, pesticides, brake uid, uorescent light bulbs, propane tanks, etc. For a complete list of accepted items, please visit chathamcountync.gov/hhw or contact the Solid Waste & Recycling Division at 919-542-5516.

Sidewalk Chalk Festival

5:30 – 8:30 p.m.

Weekly deadline is Monday at Noon

Chatham County community members of all ages are invited to express their creativity and create a masterpiece at the fourth annual Sidewalk Chalk Festival at The Park at Briar Chapel located at 1015 Andrews Store Rd. in Pittsboro. All Chatham County artists — amateur and professional alike — are invited to draw their chalk creations. Residents also are invited to spend the evening in the park enjoying the artwork, food trucks, art activities, yard games, free popcorn and a Movie in the Park! For more information or vendor inquiry contact Mallory Peterson at mallory.peterson@

happening

Literacy Luncheon raises $45K

The program helps teach reading and other basic skills

By Robert Owens For Chatham News & Record

THE 13TH SPRING For Literacy Luncheon raised $45,000 last month, to support Chatham Literacy’s reading programs.

Some 235 attendees came out to hear from sisters Anastasia and Estefania Tourino, spoke of the impact Chatham Literacy had made on their lives. By working with Karen Mirkovich, a volunteer with the

program, the two were able to

nd jobs, buy a house and assist family members with the immigration process. In addition to the education gained from working with Mirkovich, the Tourino sisters bene ted from the friendship and guidance she provided throughout the process. Mirkovich felt rewarded too, saying that the tutoring had changed her life as well.

Chatham County Literacy Council, or Chatham Literacy, provides assistance to Chatham residents looking to improve their abilities or to learn to read English for the rst time. The programs allow learn-

ers to practice English and improve their reading and writing abilities, as well as other essential skills such as computer literacy and basic mathematics. The programs are o ered condentially and in a small group or one-on-one setting.

Keynote speaker Brendan Slocumb, bestselling author of “The Violin Conspiracy” and Symphony of Secrets” said “It’s encouraging and inspiring to hear the stories of individuals like Anastasia and Estefania, who have worked hard to overcome challenges and succeed.” Individuals interested in becoming a tutor or donating can visit chathamliteracy.org.

THE HOUSE OF PRAYER FELLOWSHIP CHURCH

Water utilities see the highest declines

By Robert Owens For Chatham News & Record

CHATHAM COUNTY residents give the county a B+, according to the results of a recent Satisfaction Survey. First announced at the Chatham Board of Commissioners meeting on May 6, the results came with a mean of 3.45, the highest since the county started the survey and above the 2021 results of 3.33.

The survey conducted by BKL Research, polled 407 residents by phone, asked questions about quality of life in the county. Residents were selected at random, with 95% of respondents answering by cell phone though landlines numbers were included.

Speci c attention was paid to how happy residents were living and working in Chatham. The questions were phrased in an open ended manner to allow residents to elaborate and identify key areas of concern. While residents polled with a higher satisfaction rating then in previous years, multiple areas for improvement were identi ed. Issues of rapid growth in the county, related infrastructure concerns, school and education issues, a ordable housing and water quality were all common areas of concern. Taxes, road improvement and problems with tra c were also addressed.

County sta earned an Agrade, something which drew the attention of the Board of Commissioners. “My fellow Board members and I are pleased with these pos -

MAY 11

• Ryan Stallone Epps, 31, of New Hill, was arrested for possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of marijuana paraphernalia ,larceny of a motor vehicle, breaking & entering, possession of a stolen motor vehicle, and conspiring to commit felony larceny.

• Maricela Molina, 33, of Pittsboro, was arrested for simple assault. She was held without bond.

• Darinel Martinez, 39, of Chapel Hill, was arrested by Deputy Conner Bussey for breaking & entering to terrorize, assault with a deadly weapon, assault with a deadly weapon with a minor present, communicating threats, stalking, and injury to real property. He was held on a 48-hour DV hold and is scheduled to appear in Chatham CountyDistrict Court in Pittsboro on June 10.

itive results and the excellent customer service County sta provide. We look forward to working with sta on any potential areas for improvement,” said Chair Mike Dasher.

In addition to questions about living and working in Chatham County, residents surveyed were asked about their interactions with county government sta and programs.

“The survey is a great opportunity for us to hear directly from the people we serve regarding the services they receive and their satisfaction with living here in Chatham County,” Dasher said.

Across all the categories, some 24 grades increased, 46 remained the same and just ve declined, with three of those related to water utilities.

Respondents reported issues with opening and closing accounts with the water department, timely service and knowledgeable sta at a lower rate then in 2021. Sta in the Register of Deeds o ce was also rated slightly lower (A- to A) in terms of knowledge and overall sta grade. Overall, it was a solid report for the county.

• Darinel Martinez, 39, of Chapel Hill, was arrested for breaking & entering to terrorize, assault with a deadly weapon, assault with a deadly weapon with a minor present, communicating threats, stalking, injury to real property, possession of methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia, assault on a female, and crime of domestic violence.

MAY 12

• Erubiel Santana Mondragon, 20, of Siler City, was arrested for carrying a concealed handgun, speeding, no operator’s license, and failure to appear.

• On May 12, Wenceslao Arriolagomez, 22, of 112 N. Garden Ave., Siler City, was arrested by Cpl. Robert Pelkey for failure to appear. He was issued a $1,500 secured bond and is scheduled to appear in Randolph County District Court in Asheboro on May 28.

The House of Prayer Fellowship Church at 549 Horton Rd. in Goldston will be celebrating pastor Annie C. Glover 46th anniversary on Saturday and Sunday, May 18 and 19. The guest speaker for Saturday at 6 p.m. will be Pastor Dr. Carl E. Thompson Sr. from Word of Life Christian Outreach Center in Siler City. The speaker for Sunday, May 19 at 11 a.m. will be Assistant Pastor Je Covington Sr. of the House of Prayer Fellowship Church. Dinner will be served after morning service. Everyone is invited to attend this great celebration!

THE CHURCH OF GOD OF PROPHECY

The Church of God of Prophecy in Siler City will be having a yard sale May 18 starting at 7 a.m. The church is located at 907 13th St. in Siler City. The proceeds will be going to the church General Expense Fund.

ROBERTS CHAPEL MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH

Located in Goldston, the church will celebrate Women’s Day on Sunday, May 19 at 11 a.m. All are invited to come.

FRIDAY, MAY

THE CONVERSATION

Neal Robbins, publisher | Frank Hill, senior opinion editor

A

piñata, a keychain and a prayer

Thank you for this most amazing day.

MY WIFE AND I, along with our three young children, attended a party over Mother’s Day weekend. The weather was so perfect that it brought to mind e.e. cummings’ line, “thank you god for most this amazing day.” While parents talked and maybe sipped adult beverages, kids played on the basketball hoop in the driveway and a tree swing in the front yard. There were balloons, snacks and a big cake.

But this was no birthday party.

After an hour or so, the hosts asked everyone to gather beneath a large oak. A piñata was hung, but this piñata was not shaped like an animal. It looked like a ghost with beady eyes and a sinister snarl. It was cancer.

About two years ago, the youngest child in this home had been diagnosed with leukemia. She began chemotherapy right away. In the days, weeks and months that followed, her teacher created fun, at-home learning projects. Her classmates sent cards and told jokes on video calls. Neighbors and friends delivered meals and donated to GoFundMe pages. She nished her treatments and was declared to be in remission! A lover of dogs, a special sign was made for her: Woof, woof, hooray! No More Chemo!

Last weekend, we gathered around that piñata and watched as the child’s father handed her a baseball bat decorated with festive orange streamers, her favorite color.

There was no blindfold. The child xed her eyes right on that piñata cancer and, with a mighty swing, split it open! Her mom lmed with her phone, simultaneously laughing and crying, crying and laughing as the candy rained down upon the scrambling, shrieking, joyous children.

Yes, thank you for this most amazing day.

The cake read, She Kicked Cancer’s Butt. Standing quietly o to the side, I watched her bounce on a pogo stick, seemingly a picture of health. I re ected on the other children I’ve known of whom you could not say the same thing. Cancer is an evil, and as far as treatments have come, there is no magic baseball bat that can hit it out of the park or kick its butt forever. Yet, we hope, we pray and sometimes we get to celebrate.

As I was eating my slice of cake, an older gentleman introduced himself. I learned that he was a family friend from the time when the child’s mother was a girl. He had a small gift for the young honoree, wrapped in tissue paper. I asked about it, and he smiled.

“It’s a keychain,” he replied. “For all the keys she’ll need in her long life.”

The word amen can be translated as “may it be so.”

Andrew Taylor-Troutman is pastor of Chapel in the Pines Presbyterian Church as well as a writer, pizza maker, co ee drinker and student of joy.

Cycles of life obvious when spring rolls around

When those cycles come, we all will have to adjust accordingly.

FROM CHILDHOOD ON, it was obvious that math and science would not be where I made my mark in the world. Being translated, that meant not only would I not grow up to become an engineer or scientist of any kind, but it would also be a toss-up as to whether I got out of high school calculus without failing the course, much less blowing the college requirements looming on the horizon.

Instead, in school I was into English and history and civics and especially lunch, recess and end of day. Thankfully — and maybe even mercifully — my 12th grade algebra/trig experience ended with a moderately strong D-minus and the college experience took only three tries to meet the necessary two courses.

Now, as my much better half and I enter into a new world, I’m reminded of two things that my math experiences point out. You see, the rst and oldest of our brood of grandchildren is completing his high school career and he’s o to another adventure — NC State in August. Funny, but years ago as a dyed-in-the-wool UNC alumnus, the mere thought of that would have sent me into spasms. Now, somehow, it doesn’t seem like that much of a big deal … and it isn’t. Anyway, because he’s good (really good) at algebra and calculus, he’s making noises about studying to become an engineer, which brings me to the two points mentioned earlier.

One is, as the Book says, as long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease. That means that every May, countless folks will hang up their high school careers, as well as some college and even post-grad studies, to embark on another chapter of life. And that can be a bit daunting, even with well thought-out plans, preparations and prayers.

There are, of course, other milestones of life other than graduations that come around this time of year. Marriages, for one, and birthdays for another. Still, more

folks across the board graduate than get married or have babies when the calendar pages ip in May and June. So, as long as there’s the earth, some things will continue year after year after year after…

The other is that even with that large number of similarities, there are great di erences and therein, perhaps, is the real lesson in and of life. It was all I could do to open the math textbook; my 18-year-old grandson works those problems for fun.

What does it all mean? Generally speaking, for us all it means life and its cycles and patterns will continue in some way, shape, form or fashion until Kingdom Come and it doesn’t any longer. And when those cycles come, we all will have to adjust accordingly.

Secondly and speci cally as for point two, for my tribe, it means those adjustments play out di erently. For me, it’s a bit of a reminder of my own academic career and how maybe I could have been a bit more diligent in the classroom. I’ve told my grandson not to let school interfere with his education, but I’d rather he not be quite as careless as I was sometimes trying that during my time. As for his mama, she’s dealing with her own bittersweet time — happy and proud but a bit something else, especially as she looks at old photos. His grandmother, who put so much into his rst ve years, said the other night she’d just like to hug him, something not easy for her to do since she’s 5-foot-3 and he’s a foot taller. So, you see, we’re all di erent.

But you know, we all have our speci c responses to those common milestones along the way. And there is some security on this side of the Great Divide in knowing the order of those things. It’ll be a few more years before the second of our grands takes a similar step. I hope I can remember all this when that day comes.

Bob Wachs is a native of Chatham County and emeritus editor at Chatham News & Record. He serves as pastor of Bear Creek Baptist Church.

COLUMN | ANDREW TAYLOR-TROUTMAN

COLUMN | BOB WACHS

We hold the compass?

“It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.”

I’m a pretty chill person. Really. Writing excoriating letters to the editor, verbally assailing folks on social media, or yelling at the TV (except when my basketball team is losing) just isn’t my cup of tea.

A goody-two-shoes?

Far from it. However, I resist feeding my brain’s Velcro-like pull toward the negative. Wait, wait, how did Velcro sneak into this conversation?

Ah, Velcro. Are you ready? It’s an evolutionary, hard-wired Velcro-like action that orients our brains in one behavioral direction or another.

What?!

We humans are primed to look for the negative (you know, sabertooth tigers or whatever the modern versions might be) because quick judgments of BAD are what kept us alive millions of years ago, and remain part of our brain’s mainframe today.

Can we, please, move away from being cryptic toward the direction of plain ol’ easyto-understand English? I’m a simple person and science is NOT my forte.

You got it. Behavioral Velcro 101, at your service. Our brains are creatures of habit. Consider this the kindergarten version of how our (supposedly) sane minds work. After all these eons, our good ol’ brains are still survival-oriented. Defense, defense! Primed to keep our senses aware of incipient negatives that might kill us. Grrrr!

Pretending, now, we’re diving into hypercritical, shark- lled, waters, tossing out angry social media comments, and yes, letters to the editor dripping with pejoratives. My brain, wanting to do good by me, in support of my travel further down this road of defensiveness and verbal brickbats says:

“Hey, I can help you with this angry trend! I really can! You want to move further on this journey of habitual anger and criticism? Continue hard-wiring your brain synapses toward increased negativity? All it takes is a steady diet of anger and judgment. We’re on it!”

And o I go with my cape ying! Further grooving my brain in the direction of a bigtime behavioral defensive outlook across the board. Light that match, girl, and sizzle! But wait, am I being remiss? If my brain leans in the direction of seeing the good around me, what occurs then? Does this have an any impact?

You betcha! More positive behavioral inclinations start getting hard-wired into our lovely and malleable brains. An increase in those “I can nd middle-ground” synapses are created, giving us a less reactive and jaundiced view of life (and frankly, I’m just not a big fan of jaundice).

So where the heck are we? I feel a bit dizzy hearing about my brain being pulled in one direction or the other. I’m the actual compass holder of these actions? Me?

Got it in one! Choosing whether to reinforce my brain’s native drift to the negative, or a focus on the positive. And there goes Jan, once again, oscillating between one pole or the other. Sheesh! It’s dizzying. Also such a human thing. Playing up my human card, I have no compunction about copping occasional pleas for my brain’s periodic wild, behavioral, vacillations from positive to negative. Whatcha gonna do? Call Ghostbusters?

Still, I have made a choice for the particular brain direction that most speaks to me. Nonetheless, this awed, but well-intentioned human being (maybe, like you?) can frequently be directionally challenged. Life, you know. I can often be seen in search of my misplaced self-compassion stash. Hmmm… where did I last leave it?

“It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.”

— J.K. Rowling

Jan Hutton, a resident of Chatham County and retired hospice social worker, lives life with heart and humor.

Protecting freedom and democracy

These overreaching mandates are an attempt to shut down the use of natural gas and force electric appliances on families.

AS A LIMITED GOVERNMENT

conservative, I’ve always been a big believer in you having the freedom to choose what’s best for you and your family.

Sadly, the Biden Administration does not share this view. The latest example — Biden’s Department of Energy is now trying to take control of your home appliances in the name of an anti-energy agenda, imposing new burdensome regulations on appliances that you rely on every single day like dishwashers and air conditioners. These overreaching mandates are an attempt to shut down the use of natural gas and force electric appliances on families — even if they are more expensive and less reliable. This comes at a time when folks are already being crushed by rising costs thanks to in ation.

I will always prioritize the needs of hardworking families like yours. That’s why last week, I joined my House Republican colleagues in taking action against the Biden Administration’s e orts to erode your freedoms by passing the Hands o our Home Appliances Act. I was successful in getting an amendment included that would prevent the Department of Energy’s ill-advised or misguided energy e ciency standards for distribution transformers from taking e ect.

One of the many lessons we learned from the Moore County 2022 grid attack is that we cannot a ord disruptions to our grid. This amendment to the Hands o our Home Appliances Act helps protect our nation’s grid

security and strengthen our domestic supply chains.

In addition to protecting our energy grid, last week the House also took action to protect our democracy. The census informs how our government divides up congressional districts and Electoral College votes for each state. An accurate count ensures American voters have equal representation. Yet, under the current process, the census counts people who are noncitizens, like illegal migrants, in a state’s population — skewing the representation of American citizens.

American democracy depends on accurate representation and electoral integrity. The Equal Representation Act, which House Republicans passed last week, would protect our democracy by making sure that American citizens — and American citizens only — are counted when determining our voting districts.

I’m committed to preserving the integrity of our elections and to upholding the trust of the American people in their government. This common-sense legislation reinforces the foundation upon which our nation’s democracy stands, helping to foster a system that truly re ects the will of the people.

Safeguarding freedom and ensuring the integrity of our electoral processes are fundamental principles that I will always defend.

Richard Hudson represents the 9th Congressional District in Congress.

No good answers

THERE ARE NO GOOD answers to the current situation in the Gaza War.

Send letters to the editor to letters@nsjonline.com or 1201 Edwards Mill Rd., Suite 300, Raleigh, NC 27607

Letters must be signed; include the writer’s phone number, city and state; and be no longer than 300 words. Letters may be edited for style, length or clarity where necessary.

Ideas for op-eds should be sent to opinion@nsjonline.com

President Joe Biden is trying to use a pause in weapons shipments to force Israel to do more to protect civilians against “collateral damage” that a bombing campaign in Rafah would no doubt entail. But United States military o cials admit that that is easier said than done.

How do you move a million people to safety? How do you protect the hostages who are being used as human shields? And how does Israel complete its mission, which is to dismantle a terrorist organization that has threatened to repeat the massacre of Oct. 7 10,000 times?

There are no good answers. Rafah is the last remaining stronghold of Hamas. Israelis understand that it cannot be ignored. The war is not over. But a massive bombing campaign will kill thousands of innocent civilians.

Israel is increasingly isolated in the international community. But so long as Rafah remains in Hamas control, it is also in immediate jeopardy. Sloganeering is what you hear on college campuses, but it is not an answer to anything.

Biden is in a bind. Conditioning U.S. aid, which is what he appears to be doing (even though Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin rea rmed that our support for Israel is “ironclad”) will not quiet the protestors. It will not quiet Donald Trump, who told talk radio station WPHT in Philadelphia that “If anybody that’s Jewish votes for him or Democrats, they have to have their head examined. They are being treated so badly and have been for years.” In fact, Biden has been a good friend to Israel and has stood by Israel at some signi cant political cost to him since Oct. 7, while Trump snipes from the sidelines.

But the balance Biden has attempted to forge is collapsing.

Hamas is hiding in the tunnels in Rafah, using hostages as human shields. Big bombs are e ective against the reinforced tunnels but cause unacceptable civilian casualties. More precise methods may not be workable at all. What is Israel supposed to do? It cannot coexist with Hamas. It tried that, and Oct. 7 was the result. Hamas doesn’t care about its own people. The world expects Israel to care more about the Gazan people than Hamas does.

In his Senate testimony this week, Austin, while rea rming the administration’s commitment to support Israel, said, “Israel shouldn’t launch a major attack into Rafah without accounting for and protecting the civilians that are in that battle space.” But U.S. military o cials don’t say how that can be done. Israelis have issued warnings to leave Rafah, but no one doubts that could be di cult and dangerous, with Hamas threatening the safety of those who try to leave.

Israel has made clear that its battle is with Hamas and not the people of Gaza. The New York Times, based on interviews with senior administration o cials and military leaders, is reporting that “Mr. Biden initially took the position that Israel should not attack Rafah without a plan to e ectively minimize civilian casualties, but in recent weeks the White House has increasingly indicated that it did not believe such a plan was possible.”

So is the administration conditioning aid on Israel doing the impossible?

And how does that square with the commitment to “ironclad” support?

This is a di cult time to stand by Israel. It is di cult in the world community, di cult on college campuses — where a noisy minority of students is intimidating and frightening others, di cult in the media. But it bears remembering how this war started, and why, and that those who protest the loudest with simplistic sloganeering are not in fact o ering any answers for how Israel can defend itself against those who would deny its very right to exist. COLUMN

COLUMN | RICHARD HUDSON

IN MEMORY

Michael Twigg Scott

July 30th, 1959 –April 29th, 2024

Michael Twigg Scott of Johns Island, South Carolina, passed away peacefully on Monday April, 29, 2024, at Grand Strand Medical Center in Myrtle Beach.

Twigg was born on July 30, 1959, in Asheboro, North Carolina.

Following his graduation from Jordan Matthews High School in 1977, he went to work for Basic Machinery Company of nearby Siler City. He would later work in sales and as a representative for custom cabinetry companies, traveling across North and South

Carolina.

Siler City was always home, and Twigg remained close to lifelong friends there even after relocating to the South Carolina coast, where he lived most of his adult life.

With his laughter, mischievous smile and positive demeanor, he made friends from Cherry Grove to Charleston, Folly Beach to Johns Island.

He is remembered for his love of the outdoors, especially the Low Country, whose sunshine and beautiful beaches drew him in. He loved navigating area rivers, creeks and salt marshes to sh his favorite spots.

He loved Tar Heel basketball and Dallas Cowboys football.

He was preceded in death by his loving parents, John Mangum Scott and Helen Christine Scott.

He is survived by his sister, Tami Scott MacIntyre, and her husband, Peter MacIntyre, of Murrells Inlet, South Carolina.

Family and friends wish to thank caregivers at Myrtle Beach Grove, Grand Strand Medical Center and Agape Hospice of Myrtle Beach.

Those wishing to honor the life of Michael Twigg Scott are encouraged to support UNC Children’s Hospital.

JERRY PHILIP WILSON

MAY 11TH, 2024

Jerry Philip Wilson, 82, of Bear Creek, went home to be with the Lord on Saturday, May 11, 2024, surrounded by family, at Parkview Retirement Village in Sanford.

Jerry was born at home, in Bear Creek, to parents Paul Alexander and Ruby Kathleen Phillips Wilson. He was the youngest of seven children and spent much of his childhood with his Uncle Doc and Aunt Ida Phillips Gaines, who he saw as second parents. In addition to his parents, uncle, and aunt, Jerry was preceded in death by his sister Berta Mae Wilson Tillman (Ernest); brothers C.D. Wilson (Bertha), Edsel Wilson, Ray Wilson (Mary Lois), and Ralph Wilson.

He is survived by his wife of almost 60 years, Carol Phillips Wilson; son Paul Wilson and wife, Kathy, of Bear Creek; daughters, Andrea Wilson Hough and husband, Randy, of Goldston, and Rebecca Wilson Ramsey and husband, David, of Bear Creek; 11 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren; brother, Arthur Wilson and wife, Betty Jo, of Bear Creek; sisters-in-law, Barbara Jean Wilson, of Greensboro and Shirley Jean Wilson, of Siler City.

Jerry was a graduate of Chatham Central High School and later graduated from Campbell University, with a B.A. in English. He spent many years teaching English and was involved in extracurricular activities including journalism, the school paper, the Beta Club, Chess Team, and coaching tennis. Later in his career, he became the administrator and principal of Shining Light Academy in Greensboro. After retiring, Jerry continued to educate as a substitute teacher and ESL tutor.

In addition to teaching, Jerry was in full-time ministry for over 50 years. He pastored a few di erent churches in North Carolina, from Chatham to Bladen County, and spent 5 years pastoring in Fairfax, VA. Jerry’s call into the ministry also led him and his family to the mission eld. They lived in Ghana, West Africa for a year, helping to facilitate the starting and building of churches, and spreading the gospel to the unreached tribes in remote areas. Once they were back in the States, Jerry continued the ministry by taking teams into the country every summer. Even after he was no longer able to travel, his love for the Ghanaian people never waned.

Jerry loved his family. He was incredibly proud of his children, grands, and great-grands. He loved and supported each one through every hill and valley of life and would keep up with their many activities and accomplishments. He not only loved his biological family, but he had a natural and sincere way of making everyone feel like family. No matter where he was or who he was with, Jerry had a heart to love, accept, and encourage people, no matter what stage of their journey. To know Jerry was to know you were loved.

The funeral will be held at 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday, May 15, 2024 at Hickory Grove Baptist Church with Pastor Darrell Garner, Pastor Cli Daniel and Pastor Bryon Wiebold presiding. Burial will follow in the church cemetery. Visitation will be from 6:00-8:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 14, 2024 at Joyce-Brady Chapel.

In lieu of owers, donations may be made to Parkview Retirement Village, 1801 Wicker St., Sanford, NC 27330 or the Hospice of your choice.

GREGORY “GREG” LOUIS BROOKS

April 30th, 1960 – May 4th, 2024

Gregory “Greg” Louis Brooks, 64, passed away on May 4, 2024. Greg was born in Siler City on April 30, 1960, to Faye Brewer Brooks and Charlie Louis Brooks, Jr. He is survived by his parents, his daughters Natalie Leonhardt (Dalton) of Hamlet, N.C., Autumn Beane (Luke) of Asheboro, N.C.; four grandchildren, Dayton, Henry, Delaney, and Palmer; his sisters Susan Sanders of Siler City, N.C., and Wanda Constantino (Mike) of Apex, N.C.; and many nieces and nephews.

Greg was preceded in death by his brother Steven Wrenn Brooks, grandparents Charlie Louis Brooks, Sr., and Jessie Bell Branch Brooks; Wrenn C. Brewer and Esta Mae Stout Brewer.

Greg worked as a carpenter and logger. He studied at Jordan Matthews High School and Southland Bible Institute. His favorite things in life were shing, hunting, gardening, and studying his Bible. He dreamed of having a boat to go Sheephead shing at the beach anytime he wanted. We know he is now at peace with our Savior, Lord Jesus Christ.

A graveside service will be held at Fellowship Baptist Church May 21, 2024, at 2pm. Family will receive visitors in the fellowship hall following the service.

Teachers, are you looking for new opportunities to fund projects for your classroom? Central Electric is awarding up to $15,000 in Bright Ideas education grants to local educators in K-12 classrooms for the 2024-2025 school year. e nal deadline for all grant applications is Sept. 15, but don’t wait to apply. Applications submitted prior to the early-bird deadline on Aug. 15 will be entered to win one of ve $100 Visa® gi cards. Scan the QR code or visit NCBrightIdeas.com for more information or to apply!

Court rules Charlotte Catholic High could re gay teacher

The substitute wasn’t allowed to return to the school after he announced his plans to get married

By Gary D. Robertson The Associated Press

RALEIGH — A Catholic school in Charlotte had the right to re a gay teacher who announced his marriage on social media a decade ago, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday, reversing a judge’s earlier decision.

A panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Virginia, reversed a 2021 ruling that Charlotte Catholic High School and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte had violated Lonnie Billard’s federal employment protections against sex discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. The school said Billard wasn’t invited back as a substitute teacher because of his “advocacy in favor of a position that is opposed to what the church teaches about marriage,” a court document said.

U.S. District Judge Max Cogburn determined Billard — a full-time teacher for a decade until 2012 — was a lay employee for the limited purpose of teaching secular classes. Cogburn said a trial would still have to be held to determine appropriate relief for him. A 2020 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court declared Title VII also protected workers who were red for being gay or transgender.

But Circuit Judge Pamela Harris, writing Wednesday’s prevailing opinion, said that Billard fell under a “ministerial exception” to Title VII that courts have derived from the First Amendment that protects religious institutions in how they treat employees “who perform tasks so central to their religious missions — even if the tasks themselves do not advertise their religious nature.”

That included Billard — who primarily taught English as a substitute and who previously taught drama when working full-time — because Charlotte Catholic expected instructors to integrate faith throughout the curriculum, Harris wrote. And the school’s apparent expectation that Billard be ready to instruct religion as needed speaks to his role in the school’s religious mission, she added.

“The record makes clear that (Charlotte Catholic) considered it ‘vital’ to its religious mission that its teachers bring a Catholic perspective to bear on Shakespeare as well as on the Bible,” wrote Harris, who was nominated to the bench by then-President Barack Obama. “Our court has recognized before that seemingly secular tasks like the teaching of English and drama may be so imbued with religious signi cance that they implicate the ministerial exception.”

Billard, who sued in 2017, began working at the school in 2001. He met his now-husband in 2000, and they announced their decision to get married shortly after same-sex marriage was made legal in North Carolina in 2014.

In a news release, the American Civil Liberties Union and a Charlotte law rm that helped Billard le his lawsuit lamented Wednesday’s reversal as “a heartbreaking decision for our client who wanted nothing more than the freedom to perform his duties as an educator without hiding who he is or who he loves.”

The decision threatens to encroach on the rights of LGBTQ+ workers “by widening the loopholes employers may use to re people like Mr. Billard for openly discriminatory reasons,” the joint statement read.

An attorney for a group that defended the Charlotte diocese praised the decision as “a victory for people of all faiths who cherish the freedom to pass on their faith to the next generation.” The diocese operates 20 schools across North Carolina.

“The record makes clear that (Charlotte Catholic) considered it ‘vital’ to its religious mission that its teachers bring a Catholic perspective to bear on Shakespeare as well as on the Bible.”

Pamela Harris, 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals judge

LEARN ABOUT LAND - Chatham Land Experts, www.learnaboutland.com - 919-3626999.

FOR RENT

OAK VIEW AT SILER CITY - Now accepting applications for multifamily community w/ 1-, 2-, & 3-bedroom apts. Amenities include a playground, computer center, on-site laundry facilities, community garden, and much more! A ordable housing: applicants must meet income requirements. Come apply at 224 Campus Drive, Siler City, NC 27344 from 9:00 to 5:00pm or call 336-8951128 or email: oakview@partnershippm. com Credit & criminal background check required. Handicap accessible units subject to availability. Equal Housing Opportunity. Professionally managed by Partnership Property Management.

SENIOR LADY WANTED to share a 3 BR house with a family. Room and board. Must be a Christian and be independent. $600 a month. Call 919-542-8520.

POWELL SPRINGS APTS. Evergreen Construction introduces its newest independent living community for adults 55 years or older, 1 and 2 bedroom applications now being accepted. O ce hours: Tuesday and Thursday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Call 919533-6319 for more information, TDD #1800-735-2962, Equal housing opportunity, Handicapped accessible.

FOR RENT

ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS now for onebedroom apartments, adults 55 years or older. Water included, appliances furnished, on-site laundry, elevator, keyless entry. Section 8 accepted. No security deposit. Application fee $25 per adult. Call Braxton Manor, 919-663-1877. Handicap accessible. Equal Housing Opportunity.

FOR RENT - 2 bedroom one bath mobile home on 5 acres in Siler City, no pets call (919) 545-0822 leave message.

YARD SALES

CLEARANCE SALE

Carbonton Community Center 6953

Carbonton Rd. (Hwy 42 West), Sanford N.C. 27330 Everything 50-75% O - One Day Only - Friday May 17 7:00am-6:00pm

WOULD YOU LIKE TO RENT A SPACE FOR A YARD SALE?

On Hwy. 64 W. 17220, Siler City – Enclosed Fenced Area! On Friday and SaturdayBring your own tables! $10 per table – Call to Reserve – 919-545-1300-Louise Allen

HUGE INDOOR SALE – (1/2 OFF

STOREWIDE) – Fri. and Sat.

9:00 am – until – Several families – Lots of Items – Something for Everyone! Come See Us! – 17720 US Hwy.64W – Siler City, NC 273441tc 1tc

YARD SALES

The Church of God of Prophecy in Siler City will be having a yard sale May 18, 2024, starting at 7AM. The church is located at 907 13th Street, Siler City, NC 27344. The proceeds will be going to the church General Expense Fund.

AUTOS FOR SALE

RV FOR SALE - RV for sale, Damen Daybreak 2000, 75,000 miles, runs great, good tires, good air conditioner, good generator. $10,000, Financing available, 919-828-4247.

AUCTIONS

RICKY ELLINGTON AUCTIONEERSEquipment, business, liquidation, estates, land, houses, antiques, personal property, coins, furniture, consignments, bene ts, etc., NCAL #7706, 919-548-3684, 919-663-3556, rickyellingtonauctions@yahoo.com,

SERVICES

RAINBOW WATER FILTERED VACUUMS, Alice Cox, Cox’s Distributing - Rainbow - Cell: 919-548-4314, Sales, Services, Supplies. Serving public for 35 years. Rada Cutlery is also available.

JUNK CARS PICKED UP Free of charge. Due to many months of low steel prices and unstable steel markets, we cannot pay for cars at this time. Cars, trucks, and machinery will be transported and environmentally correctly recycled at no charge. 919-542-2803.

SERVICES

LETT’S TREE SERVICE - tree removal, stump grinding, lot clearing. Visa & Master Card accepted. Timber. Free estimates. 919-2583594.

DIGGING AND DEMO-Land improvements, mini-excavating, stump removal, mobile home and building tear-down, all digging. French Drains, All your digging needs. Call John Hayes, 919-548-0474.

ROOF WASHING – Softwash roof – Cleans ALL black streaks o roofs to make them look new again And to prolong the life of the shingles. Call John Hayes – 919-548-0474.

HELP WANTED

FOOD SERVICES STAFF, Pittsboro Christian Village is accepting applications for Server, Pantry Cook, and Cook. Apply in person 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday – Friday, at 1825 East St. in Pittsboro.

FOR SALE

TRAILER FOR SALE – 8’10 X 12’10 at trailer with 5ft. ramps that can be chained together to lengthen bed and is a dual axle with spare. Will haul anything you can put on the bed. Saturday morning around 9:00am is a good time to view. $1,200.00. Call 919-548-3553.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

2024-E-000021

Having quali ed as co-Executors of the Estate of MARSHA W. BEIDLER, deceased, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, this is to notify all persons having claims against the Estate of said deceased to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 24th day of July, 2024, or this notice will be plead in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment.

This the 25th day of April, 2024. c/o Elinor J. Foy, Attorney for Eliana M. Perrin and Andrew Perrin, co-Executor of the Estate of Marsha W. Beidler Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton, LLP 4101 Lake Boone Trail, Suite 300 Raleigh, NC 27607

NOTICE

ALL PERSONS, rms and corporations holding claims against Randall Thomas Brown, deceased, of Chatham County, NC are noti ed to exhibit same to the undersigned on or before August 12, 2024, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment. This 9th day of May 2024. Carrie A. Brown Exec., c/o Clarity Legal Group, PO Box 2207, Chapel Hill, NC 27515.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY NOTICE TO CREDITORS

The undersigned, having quali ed on the 23rd day of April, 2024, as Executrix of the Estate of Clarence E. White eld, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 2nd day of August, 2024, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate, please make immediate payment to the undersigned.

This 2nd day of May, 2024

Anne W. Kennedy, Executrix of the Estate of Clarence E. White eld Post O ce Box 57579 Durham, North Carolina 27717

Julia G. Henry Kennon Craver, PLLC 4011 University Drive, Suite 300 Durham, North Carolina 27707

THE CHATHAM NEWS: 5/2/2024, 5/9/2024, 5/16/2024, and 5/23/2024

REQUEST FOR BIDS

Central Piedmont Community Action, Inc (CPCA) is opening its bid for HVAC, Electrical, and Plumbing contractors in Anson, Chatham, Orange, and Richmond counties. Bids will be received May 1, 2024, through June 14, 2024, at 5:30 p.m. RFP will also be available on our website through Sept. 15, 2024 at 5:30 p.m. If you are interested in becoming a contractor for Central Piedmont Community Action in any of our counties, please contact Cesar Carmona at (919) 742-2277, ext. 105, M - TH, 7 a. m. to 4 p. m. or via email at cesarc@ cpcanc.org.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

Having quali ed as Executor of the Estate of DAVID WILLIAM STELLHORN, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, the undersigned does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against the estate of said decedent to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before July 1st, 2024, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons, rms and corporations indebted to the said estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. Elizabeth J. A. Terzian, Executor 60A Hardin Circle Chapel Hill, NC 27516.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#24E001246-180

The undersigned, SHARRON LAVONNE REGAN, having quali ed on the 7TH day of MAY, 2024, as EXECUTRIX of the Estate of CABELL JONES REGAN, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 14TH Day of AUGUST, 2024, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This is the 16TH Day of MAY 2024.

SHARRON LAVONNE REGAN, EXECUTRIX 365 THOMPSON ST. PITTSBORO, NC 27312

Run dates: M16,23,30,J6p

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA

CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#24E001239-180

The undersigned, DIANNA R. BRAFFORD AND JEFFERY LEE RACHEL, having quali ed on the 2ND day of MAY, 2024, as CO-EXECUTORS of the Estate of BARBARA T. RACHEL, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 7TH Day of AUGUST, 2024, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This is the 9TH Day of MAY, 2024.

DIANNA R. BRAFFORD, CO-EXECUTOR 495 WILLIAM LANE

LEXINGTON, NC 27295

*JEFFERY LEE RACHEL, CO-EXECUTOR

1471 PLAINFIELD CH. RD. SILER CITY, NC 27344

Run dates: M9,16,23,30p

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

ALL PERSONS, rms, and corporations having claims against Rhoda Samuels, deceased, of Chatham County, N.C., are noti ed to exhibit the same to the undersigned on or before August 16th, 2024, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment. This the 16th of May, 2024. Joy Samuels King, Executor of the Estate of Rhoda Samuels, c/o Amanda Honea, Attorney, 1033 Wade Avenue, Suite 104, Raleigh, NC 27605.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

All persons, rms and corporations having claims against Virginia M. Reid are hereby noti ed to present those claims to Maria Mercedes Garcia Espitia and Luis Villanueva Ramons, co-executors of the estate of Virginia M. Reid by August 16, 2024, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of such claims.

c/o Lace L.W. Bullock, attorney Berman & Associates 123 West Main Street, Suite M-08 Durham, NC 27701

NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND DEBTORS OF ELIZABETH FAHRION STEELE

All persons, rms and corporations having claims against Elizabeth Fahrion Steele late of Chatham County, North Carolina, are noti ed to exhibit them to The Glenmede Trust Company, N.A., and Gregory Herman-Giddens as Co-Executors of the decedent’s estate on or July 25th, 2024, c/o Brittany N. Porter, Attorney at Law, 1414 Raleigh Rd., Ste. 203, Chapel Hill, NC 27517, or be barred from their recovery.

Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment to the above-named Executor.

This the 25th day of April, 2024.

The Glenmede Trust Company, N.A. and Gregory Herman-Giddens, Co-Executors c/o Brittany N. Porter, Atty. TrustCounsel 1414 Raleigh Rd., Ste. 203 Chapel Hill, NC 27517

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#24E001229-180

The undersigned, CARRIE VANDYKE LONSKI, having quali ed on the 29TH day of APRIL, 2024, as ADMINISTRATOR of the Estate of LEWIS JENNINGS VANDYKE, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 14TH Day of AUGUST, 2024, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This is the 16TH Day of MAY 2024.

CARRI VANDYKE LONSKI, ADMINISTRATOR 1420 WEST 3RD ST SILER CITY, NC 27344

*LEWIS FADELY, ATTY

Run dates: M16,23,30,J6p

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#24E200

The undersigned, DEBORAH TURRENTINE, having quali ed on the 11TH day of APRIL, 2024, as EXECUTOR of the Estate of KENNETH TURRENTINE, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 24TH Day of JULY, 2024., or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This is the 25TH Day of APRIL, 2024.

DEBORAH TURRENTINE, EXECUTOR 1804 GADE BRYANT RD MONCURE, NC 27559

Run dates: A25,M2,9,16p

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#24E001257-180

The undersigned, BARBARA ANN JOHNSON, having quali ed on the 8TH day of MAY, 2024, as EXECUTOR of the Estate of JOHN A. JOHNSON, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 14TH Day of AUGUST, 2024, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This is the 16TH Day of MAY 2024.

BARBARA ANN JOHNSON, EXECUTOR 1601 ED CLAPP ROAD SILER CITY, NC 27344

Run dates: M16,23,30,J6p

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#2024E000188

The undersigned, MICHAEL WILLIAM BRENNAN, having quali ed on the 8TH day of APRIL, 2024, as EXECUTOR of the Estate of GAIL D. BRENNAN, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 24TH Day of JULY, 2024., or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This is the 25TH Day of APRIL, 2024.

MICHAEL WILLIAM BRENNAN, EXECUTOR

270 PYRUS PITTSBORO, NC 27312

Run dates: A25,M2,9,16p

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#2024E000204

The undersigned, LEWIS FADELY, having quali ed on the 15TH day of APRIL, 2024, as ADNINISTRATOR of the Estate of CURTIS ALLEN LEE, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 31ST Day of JULY, 2024., or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This is the 2ND Day of MAY, 2024.

LEWIS FADELY, ATTY – ADMINISTRATOR

119 NORTH FIR AVE. SILER CITY, NC 27344

Run dates: M2,9,16,23p

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#24E000212-180

The undersigned, CANDICE PIKE CLARK, having quali ed on the 30TH day of APRIL, 2024, as EXECUTRIX of the Estate of WYLMA JEAN MCCRARY, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 7TH Day of AUGUST, 2024, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This is the 9TH Day of MAY 2024.

CANDICE PIKE CLARK, EXECUTRIX 321 CLYDE CLARK RD. SILER CITY, NC 27344

Run dates: M9,16,23,30p

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#2024E000179

The undersigned, LINDA I. VILL, having quali ed on the 16TH day of APRIL, 2024, as EXECUTOR of the Estate of SONJA THEODORA WASSMANN, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 24TH Day of JULY, 2024., or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This is the 25TH Day of APRIL, 2024.

LINDA I. VILL, EXECUTOR 42 ASPETUCK PINES DRIVE NEW MILFORD, CT 06776

Run dates: A25,M2,9,16p

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#24E001230-180

The undersigned, JULIE P. FRYE, having quali ed on the 29TH day of APRIL, 2024, as ADMINISTRATOR of the Estate of MARK DARRYL PERRY, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 14TH Day of AUGUST, 2024, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This is the 16TH Day of MAY 2024.

JULIE P. FRYE, ADMINISTRATOR 94 RUSSELL CHAPEL CHURCH RD. PITTSBORO, NC 27312

Run dates: M16,23,30,J6p

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#24E233

The undersigned, JEAN FOUSHEE TYSON, having quali ed on the 26TH day of APRIL, 2024, as EXECUTOR of the Estate of MARGIE MARIE FOUSHEE, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 14TH Day of AUGUST, 2024, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This is the 16TH Day of MAY 2024.

JEAN FOUSHEE TYSON, EXECUTRIX 1344 GEORGE BASON ROAD GRAHAM, NC 27253

Run dates: My16,23,30,J6p

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#2024E000114

The undersigned, WILLARD STEVEN BRYANT, having quali ed on the 5TH day of APRIL, 2024, as EXECUTOR of the Estate of LULA SEYMOUR BRYANT, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 24TH Day of JULY, 2024., or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This is the 25TH Day of APRIL, 2024.

WILLARD STEVEN BRYANT, EXECUTOR 303 HEARNE RD. PITTSBORO, NC 27312

Run dates: A25,M2,9,16p

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

ALL PERSONS, rms and corporations holding claims against James Edward Quinn, deceased, of Chatham County, NC are noti ed to exhibit same to the undersigned on or before July 28, 2024, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment. This the 25 day of April 2024. Marie Quinn, Exec., c/o Clarity Legal Group, PO Box 2207, Chapel Hill, NC 27515.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

ALL PERSONS, rms and corporations holding claims against Alsona Chun Wong, deceased, of Chatham County, NC are noti ed to exhibit same to the undersigned on or before August 12, 2024, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment. This 9th day of May 2024. Terence Zekon Wong Exec., c/o Clarity Legal Group, PO Box 2207, Chapel Hill, NC 27515.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

All persons, rms and corporations having claims against Tiana Gibson Ayotte a/k/a Tiana Michelle Ayotte, deceased, of Chatham County, N.C., are noti ed to exhibit the same to the undersigned on or before July 26, 2024 or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent

5/2/24, 5/9/24 and 5/16/24.

CHATHAM COUNTY FY25 BUDGET HEARING NOTICE

The Chatham County budget for FY2024-25 has been submitted to the Board of Commissioners and is available for public inspection on the Chatham County website or in the o ce of the Clerk to the Board, located at 12 East Street in Pittsboro. The Chatham County Board of Commissioners will hold two public hearings on the proposed Fiscal Year 2025 Budget on Monday, May 20, 2024 at 6:00pm and Tuesday, May 21, 2024 at 6:00pm. The public is invited to attend the hearing to express their viewpoints. The hearing on May 20, 2024 will be held at the Historic Courthouse located at 9 Hillsboro Street in Pittsboro at 6:00pm. The hearing on May 21, 2024 will be held at Siler City Town Hall located at 311 North Second Avenue in Siler City at 6:00pm.

Persons having questions may contact County Clerk Jenifer Johnson at 919-542-8232 or jenifer.johnson@ chathamcountync.gov. Those wishing to speak may sign up on the county website or submit written comments to Clerk tor the Board Jenifer Johnson at PO Box 1809, Pittsboro, NC 27312 or jenifer.johnson@chathamcountync.gov.

PUBLIC HEARING NOTICE

A public hearing will be held by the Chatham County Board of Commissioners on Monday, May 20, 2024, beginning at 6:00 p.m. The hearing will be held in the courtroom of the Historic Courthouse in Pittsboro, North Carolina at 9 Hillsboro Street.

Additional information is available at the Chatham County Planning Department o ce. Speakers are requested to sign up at the meeting prior to the hearing. You may also sign up on the county website prior to the meeting at www.chathamcountync. gov by selecting the heading County Government, then Commissioner Meetings, then Public Input/ Hearing Sign Up. The public hearing may be continued to another date at the discretion of the Board of Commissioners.

The purpose of the Public Hearing is to receive input, both written and oral, on the issues listed below:

A general use legislative public hearing rezoning requested by Renago Inc to rezone Parcel 5626, located on Christian Chapel Church Rd., from R-1 Residential to Ind-H Heavy Industrial, being 37 acres, Cape Fear Township.

Substantial changes may be made following the public hearing due to verbal or written comments received or based on the Board’s discussions.

Notice to people with special needs: If you have an audio or visual impairment, unique accessibility requirements or need language assistance, please call the number listed below prior to the hearing and assistance may be provided.

If you have any questions or comments concerning these issues, please call the Chatham County Planning Department at 919-542-8204 or write to P.O. Box 54, Pittsboro N.C. 27312. Please run in your paper: May 9th and 16th, 2024

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

The proposed budget for the Town of Goldston for scal year 2024/2025 has been presented to the town council and is available for public inspection at the Town Hall Building, 40 Coral Avenue, Goldston, NC, by appointment, after 5:00 pm weekdays.

The Town of Goldston will hold a public hearing on June 3, 2024 at 7:00 pm at the Goldston Methodist Church, 185 Hillcrest Ave., Goldston NC for the purpose of receiving comments on the proposed budget. Citizens are invited to make oral or written comments. Jonathan W Hensley Mayor of Goldston

ing, centering and relaxation opportunities. Skilled practitioners o er massage, shiatsu, Reiki and other bodywork therapies to attendees, while workshops on sound healing, guided meditation and yoga for relaxation. These activities help attendees unwind, rejuvenate and nd inner peace amidst the festival’s vibrant energy.

Sustainability is more than a trendy term at this festival — it’s a fundamental practice. The grounds are immaculately maintained, and all waste is

carefully sorted for recycling or composting.

Musicians enjoy meals made from locally sourced produce, served on compostable dinnerware. Guests re ll their water bottles from deep wells on the property, minimizing plastic waste. This commitment to sustainability is not just a feature but a promise for future generations.

Family-friendly activities abound at Shakori Hills, each designed to spark joy, curiosity and personal growth: storytelling sessions, yoga classes for kids, and holistic workshops

on chakras and meditation. Additionally, there are creative workshops on tie-dye and screen-printing T-shirts, interactive science displays at the Seeing Sounds Station, mask-making and puppet shows.

Drumming for Wellness NC provides a rhythmic experience, while the Kids Bazaar allows young artists to sell their handmade crafts. These events aim to entertain, educate and inspire children and parents alike, fostering a sense of community and creativity. With such a wide range of activities, there’s always a bright moment for families at

PUBLIC MEETING NOTICE CHATHAM TRANSIT FARE INCREASE

Notice is hereby given that Chatham Transit Network, a non-urbanized public transportation system receiving assistance under 49 U.S.C Sections 5311 and 5310 of federal transit assistance programs and also receiving funding under the North Carolina Department of Transportation state transit funding programs, is proposing fare increases e ective July 1, 2024. The proposed fare increases for In-County Rural General Public transportation are as follows:

16, 23, 30, June 6, 2024]

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

ESTATE OF TAMRA ELLEN STEFFEN FILE NO: 2024 E 000137 ALL PERSONS, rms and corporations having claims against Tamra Ellen Ste en a.k.a. Tamra Stout, deceased of Chatham County, N.C., are noti ed to exhibit the same to the undersigned Eugene Albert Ste en, Executor on or before September 12, 2024, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the Decedent are asked to make immediate payment. This 2nd day of May 2024. Eugene Albert Ste en, Executor C/O Jones, Branz & Whitaker LLP, 4030 Wake Forest Rd., Ste. 300, Raleigh, NC 27609.

There will be a public meeting to discuss the changes at which time public comments will be heard and considered. The public meeting will be held on: May 28th, 2024 at 2:30pm at Chatham Transit Network, 127 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, Pittsboro NC 27312. There will be a ve (5) day comment period prior to the meetings. During the period, any comments can be made in writing to Anna Testerman, via email at a.testerman@chathamtransit.org or write to: Chatham Transit, P.O. Box 1032, Pittsboro, NC 27312.

Copies of the changes may be obtained from the above transit system o ce between 8:00am and 4:30p.m., Monday – Friday.

Any person attending the public meetings who requires accommodation for speech, hearing, language or other form of communication must notify Chatham Transit at 542-5136 at least ve (5) days before the public meeting.

Shakori Hills. The festival, imagined in 1990 by Americana band Donna the Bu alo to raise awareness for the AIDS crisis, was founded as the Finger Lakes GrassRoots Festival of Music and Dance. Held the second-to-last weekend of July in Trumansburg, New York, a small town 10 miles north of Ithaca, it draws around 20,000 attendees each summer. In the early 2000s, the band frequently toured through North Carolina and saw the potential for the Finger Lakes Grassroots Festival to grow and expand. They found the perfect

AVISO DE REUNIÓN PÚBLICA AUMENTO DE LA TARIFA DE CHATHAM TRANSIT

Por la presente se noti ca que Chatham Transit Network, un sistema de transporte público no urbanizado que recibe asistencia en virtud de las secciones 5311 y 5310 del título 49 del Código de los Estados Unidos de los programas federales de asistencia de tránsito y que también recibe fondos en virtud de los programas estatales de nanciación de tránsito del Departamento de Transporte de Carolina del Norte, propone aumentos de tarifas a partir del 1 de julio de 2024. Los aumentos de tarifas propuestos para el transporte público general rural dentro del condado son los siguientes:

Habrá una reunión pública para discutir los cambios, momento en el cual se escucharán y considerarán los comentarios públicos. La reunión pública se llevará a cabo el: 28 de mayo de 2024 a las 2:30 p. m. en Chatham Transit Network, 127 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, Pittsboro NC 27312.

Habrá un período de comentarios de cinco (5) días antes de las reuniones. Durante el período, cualquier comentario puede hacerse por escrito a Anna Testerman, por correo electrónico a a.testerman@ chathamtransit.org o por escrito a: Chatham Transit, P.O. Box 1032, Pittsboro, NC 27312. Se pueden obtener copias de los cambios en la o cina del sistema de tránsito mencionada anteriormente entre las 8:00 a.m. y las 4:30 p.m., de lunes a viernes. Cualquier persona que asista a las reuniones públicas y que requiera adaptaciones para el habla, la audición, el lenguaje u otra forma de comunicación debe noti car a Chatham Transit al 542-5136 al menos cinco (5) días antes de la reunión pública.

Music was the main attraction at Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival in Pittsboro over the weekend, with food, fun and everything from parades to yoga classes available. Elsewhere, patrons could partake in reiki, massage and other bodywork therapies from skilled practitioners.

location in Shakori Hills, an almost 80-acre plot outside Pittsboro, known for its scenic beauty and vibrant atmosphere. The Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival, rst held in 2003, carries on the original vision of the Finger Lakes festival. The music and serene natural beauty of Shakori Hills draw thousands to the four-day festival every spring and fall, but the main attraction is still the irreplicable experience and welcoming environment full of art, love and purpose — and it all happens right here in Chatham County.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA COUNTY OF CHATHAM IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE DISTRICT COURT DIVISION FILE NO.: 22JT000087-180 IN RE: “D.M.T.” DOB: 11/10/22 NOTICE OF SERVICE BY PROCESS OF PUBLICATION TO:

SHAKORI from page A1

PHOTOS COURTESY RICH LEVINE

CHATHAM SPORTS

and Colin

after

Seaforth, Chatham Central athletes sign to college programs

Seaforth’s signees feature some rst-evers for their respective sports

By Asheebo Rojas Chatham News & Record

A FEW MORE Chatham County athletes made their college decisions nal last week.

Seaforth and Chatham Central held signing day ceremonies for 2024 graduates looking to take their games to the next level. Being in its third year of existence, Seaforth had rst-ever signees for numerous sports. For a wide range of sports, including wrestling, volleyball, baseball and football, here’s a rundown of where those athletes are headed and what they accomplished in their high school careers:

Josh Miller (Seaforth wrestling, NC State)

Seaforth standout Josh Miller signed to wrestle at NC State. Miller, the rst Seaforth wrestler to sign to a college team, will join a top program in the NCAA that earned a top 15 nish in the 2024 Division 1 tournament (tied for 11th place). As a freshman at Northwood in 2021,

Miller nished as a state runner up in the 3A 106-pound weight class. In his time at Seaforth, Miller achieved a 115-2 record, a 2024 NCHSAA state title for the 120-pound weight class, another state-runner up nish in 2023, three all-conference selections and 2023 Mid-Carolina 1A/2A conference wrestler of the year honors. As of Monday, Miller is undecided on what he’ll study at NC State.

Anders Johansson (Seaforth baseball, Barton College)

Seaforth in elder and pitcher Anders Johansson signed to play baseball at Barton College, becoming Seaforth’s rst baseball signee. Johansson earned all-conference honors in his high school career, and he was one of the inaugural members of the Seaforth baseball program. In his three years with the Hawks, Johansson has been an essential part of the drastic turn around from a 3-13 season in 2022 to a 20-win season, including a deep playo run, in 2024.

Ace Weissenberger (Seaforth football, Ohio Northern)

Seaforth cornerback and wide receiver Ace Weissenberg-

er signed to play football at Ohio Northern in Ada, Ohio, becoming Seaforth’s rst football signee. Weissenberger started his high school career at Empire High School in Tuscon, Arizona, transferring to Seaforth for his senior year. Throughout his entire high school career, Weissenberger recorded 135 tackles, ve interceptions and ve touchdowns. In his one year with the Hawks, he put together a well-rounded season with 65 tackles, two tackles for loss, an interception, two fumble recoveries and two touchdowns. Weissenberger plans to study pre-law. Kelsey Hussey (Chatham Central volleyball, Pfei er University)

Chatham Central setter Kelsey Hussey signed to play volleyball at Pfei er University in Misenheimer, North Carolina. Hussey, a multi-sport athlete who also played softball and basketball, said she chose volleyball because she’s passionate about the sport, and she can “be on the court everyday and not get tired of it.” In two varsity seasons, Hussey recorded 1,074 assists, 68 kills, and 112 aces in

Seaforth reaches third round of baseball playo s

The baseball team opened its postseason run with two wins

By Asheebo Rojas Chatham News & Record

IN THE SEAFORTH baseball team’s rst ever playo run, it learned very quickly that the seeding and regular season records don’t matter.

The Hawks, the No. 7 team in the 2A East bracket who went 17-5 during the regular season, won their rst ever playo game, 3-2, over No. 26 Wallace-Rose Hill, a team that went 11-9 prior to the postseason.

Seaforth head coach Landon Jones said “it was clear” that it was his young team’s rst playo game. The Hawks struggled at the plate and made a few mistakes that

kept the game tight, but they found a way to win with the game coming down to thenal at-bat.

“Really proud (with) nding a way to win,” Jones said. “It’s our rst time here, and being here this time of year, we can’t take that for granted.”

Junior pitcher Cade Elmore felt those sentiments to start the game as he struck out three batters in the top of the rst inning.

“I thought my location was really good,” Elmore said. “That fastball outside, I was really dotting it up.”

Seaforth’s bats just couldn’t match the energy, though. Even with two batters getting hit by a pitch, the Hawks couldn’t bring them home in a hitless bottom of the rst inning.

Seaforth demolishes Granville Central in rst round of soccer playo s

So a Viana and Caitlin Erman scored six goals each

By Asheebo Rojas Chatham News & Record

NO. 4 SEAFORTH’S 12-0

win over No. 29 Granville Central in the rst round of the 2A girls’ soccer state playo s can be best described as the Soa Viana and Caitlin Erman show. Viana and Erman scored six goals each Monday night, both breaking their previous single-game goals records of ve. All of their goals were scored in the rst half as the game ended at halftime due to the mercy rule. “I’ve been coaching for 26

years, (and) they’re the best striking partnership I’ve ever had,” Seaforth head coach Giovanni Viana said. “I think they’re the best in the state.” Erman, a junior striker, scored ve goals in one game all the way back in her freshman year. For Viana, a sophomore, it happened just over two weeks ago when the Hawks beat North Moore, 9-0, on April 29. Viana broke her own record just as quickly as she scored the rst goal for Seaforth against Granville Central. Just one minute and 20 seconds into the game, sophomore Regan Willauer, leading the charge near the goal, passed the ball to the right,

PJ WARD-BROWN / CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

Seaforth’s Bauer Bowling dumps Gatorade on Dane O’Neill

Dorney

O’Neill was hit by the pitch for the walk-o win, 3-2, over Wallace-Rose Hill during the rst round of the 2A East NCHSAA playo s. This was the Hawks’ rst-ever playo game.

PHOTO COURTESY CHATHAM CENTRAL HIGH

Chatham Central’s Kelsey Hussey signs a letter of intent to play college volleyball at Pfei er University. Hussey was one of several area athletes to announce their college decisions on spring signing day last week.

Ty Willoughby win boys’ golf state titles; girls’ soccer playo s begin

By Asheebo Rojas Chatham News & Record

STATE CHAMPIONS were crowned, and Chatham County teams fought to survive in another week of postseason spring sports. Here’s a rundown of how county teams are doing on their quests for state titles as playo competition heats up:

Boys’ golf

Seaforth won its rst 2A state title at Stonebridge Golf Club in Monroe, North Carolina Tuesday. The Hawks tied with Pine Lake Prep at the end of the second round (both scored 534), and clinched the win on the ensuing playo hole.

Seaforth sophomore Ty Willoughby won the individual state title with a score of 135. Junior Gri n Ching nished in third place with a score of 142.

JT DeLoach and Matthew Ute from Pine Lake Prep received the NC Farm Bureau Sportsmanship Award.

Baseball No. 7 Seaforth had its rst playo run come to an end in a 6-1 loss to No. 2 Whiteville in the third round of the 2A playo s. Prior to the loss, Seaforth

SIGNINGS from page B1

172 sets played. She broke Chatham Central’s assist record in the fall, which was previously held by Lindsay Polston. Hussey earned Mid-Carolina 1A/2A rst-team all-conference hon-

hitting Viana in stride for a close-range shot to the back right corner.

Seven minutes later, Viana took a pass from freshman Elizabeth Platt in the middle of the attacking third and used a dribble move to nd an opening and hit under the top of the net, putting Seaforth up 2-0.

Her hat trick came with just under 26 minutes remaining in the rst half when a Granville Central player kicked the ball right to Viana who was just yards away from the goal.

About 25 seconds later, Erman got in on the action, too, pushing the lead to 4-0 with her rst goal of the night.

After Viana put in two more goals between the 17 and 14 minute marks, Erman ripped o four straight scores with help from her ability to outrun defenses and put pressure on the goalkeeper.

Erman said she didn’t really think about how many goals she was scoring because scoring as many as she could wasn’t exactly the motive, even if it is the goal.

“It was mostly about being more sel ess,” Erman said. “The goals come easier (when

in a pitch during Seaforth’s 4-1 win over West Craven in the second round of the NCHSAA playo s.

pulled out a gritty 3-2 win over No. 26 Wallace-Rose Hill in the rst round and took down No. 23 West Craven, 4-1, in the second round. No. 25 Northwood, No. 29 Jordan-Matthews and No. 26 Chatham Central (1A) all fell in the rst round with the Chargers losing to No. 8 Bunn in 10 innings, 4-3, the Jets losing to No. 4 Midway, 5-0, and the Bears losing to No. 7 Roxboro Community, 3-2. No. 6 Chatham Charter got upset in the second round of the

ors and received the WRAL

Tom Suiter Extra E ort Award in her senior year. She plans on studying psychology and criminal justice.

Anthony Lopossay (Chatham Central baseball, Cleveland

you’re making the right decision), instead of just taking everything on yourself.”

The two even made a connection with just over 6 minutes left in the rst half when Erman assisted on Viana’s sixth and record-breaking goal.

“I just love playing with Caitlin because we just know each other so well,” Viana said. “It’s not like I want to score this many goals. We just know where each other is going to be.”

Erman nished the game o with her sixth and nal goal with about four and a half minutes to play in the rst half.

With the win, Seaforth will advance to the second round of the playo s for the second time in program history. The Hawks will host No. 20 Bedding eld, a team that went 7-7 in the regular season and 5-5 in conference play, in their next game.

Viana and Erman said the keys to continuing their playo run, especially when competition gets tougher, are to start fast, listen to Coach Viana’s advice and play to their strengths.

“Don’t really worry about the other team and how good or bad they are,” Erman said.

“Play the game that we play.”

1A bracket by No. 22 Southside, 1-0.

Softball

Before to Roanoke Rapids, Jordan-Matthews took down No. 26 East Carteret, 6-1, in the rst round, and after being down 3-1 in the sixth inning, the Jets beat No. 10 North Johnston, 4-3, in the second round. On the 1A side, No. 6 Chatham Central’s season ended after a 13-3 loss to No.

Community College)

Chatham Central pitcher and out elder Anthony Lopossay signed to play baseball at Cleveland Community College in Shelby, North Carolina. Lopossay appeared at the mound in

11 Roxboro Community in the second round, and No. 8 Chatham Charter also lost in the second round to No. 9 East Columbus.

Lacrosse

After last week, all of the county’s lacrosse teams have been knocked out of the 1A/2A/3A playo s. The No. 10 Northwood boys lost to No. 2 Croatan for the second time this season, 14-8, in the third round. Seaforth’s girls, a No. 8 seed, lost to No. 1 Union Pines, 17-2, in the third round, also. With the No. 4 Northwood girls also losing to No. 5 Swansboro, 10-7, in the third round, there won’t be a Battle of Pittsboro for a 1A/2A/3A east semi nal.

Track and eld

In the NCHSAA 1A mideast regional meet, Chatham Charter senior Lucas Smith sprinted away with regional titles in the boys’ 100 meter dash (10.81 seconds), 200 meter dash (21.93) and 400 meter dash (49.14). Woods Charter nished third, Chatham Charter nished seventh and Chatham Central nished 14th in the boys’ team results. In the girls’ results, Chatham Charter nished fth, Woods Charter

each of his four years with the Bears, nishing with a career record of 20-8. He recorded 191 strikeouts and 45 walks in 158.5 innings pitched, throwing a career-high 67 strikeouts in the spring. At the plate in his senior season, Lopossay recorded

Here’s a sobering statistic: 72% of retirees say one of their biggest fears is becoming a burden on their families, according to a study Wave. If you are near retirement, how can you you won’t have to depend on grown children or other family members?

Here are a few suggestions to consider:

• Keep adding to retirement savings. Today, with a greater awareness of healthy lifestyles, many people are spending two, or even three, decades in an active retirement. To help pay for those years, then, you’ll likely need to build your retirement savings as much as possible. So, while you’re still working, try to contribute as much as you can afford to your 401(k) or other employer-sponsored retirement plan. If you are in the later stages of your career, possibly close to your peak earning power, you may be able to put in sizable sums every year.

• Choose an appropriate withdrawal rate. While it’s obviously important to build your retirement savings, it’s just as essential to make the money last. Once you retire, you’ll want to establish an appropriate withdrawal rate — that is, the amount you can take out each year from your 401(k) and other investments without running the risk of outliving your money. The amount you can safely withdraw each year will depend on a variety of factors, including your age, your account balances, rates and spousal income. In any case, selecting a suitable withdrawal rate can help go a long throughout your retirement.

• Think about downsizing. One possible way to boost your savings and add liquidity is to downsize your living arrangements. This may be an attractive option if your children are grown and your current home feels too large. Of course, downsizing is a highly personal decision — if you’ve lived in your home for

came in at sixth and Chatham Central nished 12th. For the 2A mideast regional meet, Seaforth junior Jack Anstrom owned the boys’ distance events, nishing rst in the 3200 meter run (9 minutes, 43 seconds) and the 1600 meter run (4:07.27). In the boys’ results, Seaforth nished rst while Northwood tied for 14th with Bunn and Jordan-Matthews nished 17th. Seaforth nished third, Northwood nished fth and Jordan-Matthews came in eighth place in the girls’ team results.

Boys’ tennis

None of the county’s state singles and doubles quali ers won state titles over the weekend, but there was some more success from the dual team tournaments.

In the 2A dual team bracket, No. 6 Seaforth lost to No. 14 Research Triangle in the third round, 5-1.

Girls’ soccer

It wasn’t a very competitive rst round for the girls’ soccer playo s. In the 1A bracket No. 2 Woods Charter demolished No. 31 Henderson Collegiate, 17-0. No. 29 Chatham Charter fell to No. 4 Hobbton, 12-0. On the 2A side, No. 4 Seaforth dominated No. 29 Granville Central, 12-0, thanks to six goals each from So a Viana and Caitlin Erman (career-highs for both). No. 14 Northwood took down No. 19 Camden County, 3-0, and No. 28 Jordan-Matthews lost to No. 5 East Duplin, 5-2.

a .427 batting average with two homers, four triples, three doubles and 14 RBIs. He said Cleveland Community College “felt like home” the most out of the colleges he toured, and he plans to enter the dentistry eld after his baseball career.

many years, have fond memories of raising a family in it and still enjoy the neighborhood, it can certainly be hard to leave. Consequently, you’ll need to weigh these emotional factors

Prepare for long-term care costs. If you were ever to need some type of long-term care,

of which may not be covered by Medicare or would not want to put your grown children in a position where they might feel the need possibility, you may want to consult with these costs through strategies that may be appropriate for your needs.

These aren’t the only ideas to consider in and reducing your potential dependence on your family during your retirement years. But taken together, they can give you a good start — so think about putting them to work.

This article was written by Edward Jones for use by your local Edward Jones Financial

Edward Jones, Member SIPC

Edward Jones is a licensed insurance producer in all states and Washington, D.C., through Edward D. Jones & Co., L.P. and in California, New

This article was written by Edward Jones for use

GENE GALIN / CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

Senior Anders Johansson res

Northwood’s Powell ends spring showcase with Josh Level Classic

Powell will report to UNC on June 6

By Asheebo Rojas Chatham News & Record

FORMER Northwood basketball star Drake Powell ended his tour of spring showcases with his third Josh Level Classic appearance Saturday.

Playing alongside and against the top high school basketball prospects in North Carolina, Powell, a member of Team Warriors, put on a well-rounded performance with 12 points, ve rebounds and four assists.

Team Warriors, featuring other big names such as Juke Harris and Kendre Harrison, defeated Team NGFS, 136-131.

“For my third year in the Josh Level Classic, I remember being the young guy like Cole (Cloer), Dionte (Neal), Kendre, (and) Sadiq (White),” Powell said. “To

see me now as the veteran of this event, that’s really cool to me.”

Powell will move into UNC on June 5 before reporting to

Event returns to Lahaina

The Associated Press

NC STATE, BAYLOR and Texas will be among the eight teams in the eld for the 2025 Maui Invitational.

The tournament eld announced on Tuesday also will include Oregon, Seton Hall, Southern California, UNLV and host Chaminade.

The tournament returns to the Lahaina Civic Center this November after being played in Honolulu last year following a series of res that killed 101 people and decimated the historic town of Lahaina. The 2025 bracket will be played Nov. 24-26.

NC State is coming o the program’s fourth trip to the Final Four following an unex-

the team the next day.

“I’m just looking forward to working hard every day and learning as much as I can,” Powell said.

pected run through the ACC Tournament.

Baylor is one of four teams to win at least one game in the NCAA Tournament the last ve years, including a run to the 2021 national championship.

Division II Chaminade plays in the bracket every other year and has shown a penchant for knocking o larger programs.

Caitlin Erman

Seaforth, girls’ soccer

Seaforth girls’ soccer’s Caitlin Erman earns athlete of the week honors for the week of May 7.

In the Hawks’ 12-0 win over Granville Central in the rst round of the NCHSAA 2A state playo s, Erman, a junior, scored a career-high six goals, which all came in the rst half.

Erman’s previous single-game goal record was ve, which she achieved in her freshman year in a 6-4 win over North Moore.

For the season, Erman is second in the team in both goals and assists.

PJ WARD-BROWN / CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

SIDELINE REPORT

MLB

Pirates’ Skenes makes big league debut vs. Cubs

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pirates rookie Paul Skenes made an impressive big league debut, striking out seven in four-plus innings against the Chicago Cubs. The 21-year-old Skenes allowed three runs while throwing 84 pitches, 17 of which reached at least 100 mph. A near-sellout crowd made its way into PNC Park to watch Skenes, who was the top overall pick in the 2023 draft and the top-ranked pitching prospect in baseball. Skenes’ more-famous girlfriend, LSU gymnast and social media in uencer Livvy Dunne, was there, too. Skenes is in the majors to stay after needing just seven starts to dominate opponents in Triple-A.

NASCAR

Larson not hardcore Swiftie despite trip to Paris concert

Darlington, S.C.

Kyle Larson says he is not a Swiftie, despite he and his wife taking their daughter to Paris this week to see Taylor Swift in concert. Larson said Saturday at Darlington Raceway that it was a surprise birthday trip for 6-year-old Aubrey. Larson enjoyed the show and admitted he wore a Swift-themed T-shirt and a couple of friendship bracelets. He made it clear, however, that he was not part of the ride-or-die fan base that has made Swift one of the world’s most popular entertainers. Larson won the Southern 500 at Darlington last September but had a 34th-place nish in Sunday’s race.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

6 players on cover of EA Sports’ College Football 25 video game

Michigan running back Donovan Edwards, Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers and Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter are among six players displayed on the cover of EA Sports College Football 25. The popular video game is returning after being discontinued 11 years ago. The cover for the deluxe edition of EA College Football 25 was posted online. The game is scheduled to be released in July. It stopped being made amid lawsuits accusing it of using players’ likeness without paying them. Other players on the cover are Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe, Georgia quarterback Carson Beck and Ohio State running back Quinshon Judkins.

COLLEGE

BASKETBALL

Illinois basketball’s Shannon Jr. headed to trial on rape charges

Lawrence, Kan.

A Kansas judge has ordered University of Illinois basketball standout Terrence Shannon Jr. to stand trial on a rape charge following testimony from a woman who said she was “terri ed” as she was being assaulted. Shannon is accused of committing sexual assault last September at a bar in Lawrence, Kansas. A woman told police she was at a bar when a man she later identi ed as Shannon grabbed and touched her sexually. The woman said the bar was crowded, so she couldn’t move. Shannon testi ed on Friday that he never touched the woman.

LPGA

Keselowski claims victory at Darlington Raceway

The victory ends his 3-year

By Pete Iacobelli

The Associated Press

DARLINGTON, S.C. — Brad Keselowski moved to the front when leaders Chris Buescher and Tyler Reddick hit battling for rst with nine laps left and held on to win the Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway on Sunday for his rst NASCAR win in three years.

It was Keselowski’s 36th career victory, his second at Darlington and his rst since reconnecting with magnate Jack Roush and becoming a co-owner at Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing.

“Hell of an e ort by everyone,” Keselowski said after crossing the nish line.

It appeared Keselowski’s employee at RFK, Buescher, would get the win after he passed his boss and Reddick with 29 laps to go. But Buescher and Reddick then hit and fell back, opening the door for Keselowski’s satisfying victory.

“What a heck of a day,” he said. “That battle out there with my teammate and Tyler Reddick, we

just laid it all on the line.”

Ty Gibbs was second, Josh Berry third and Denny Hamlin fourth. Chase Briscoe was fth followed by William Byron, Bubba Wallace, Justin Haley and Michael McDowell.

It was another near miss for Buescher, who lost by 0.001 seconds to Kyle Larson at Kansas in the closest nish in NASCAR history.

Buescher slid to 30th and Reddick 32nd.

Buescher confronted Reddick when both got out of their cars, after the close call cost him a NASCAR victory for a second straight week.

Buescher had lost out by 0.001 of a second at Kansas to Kyle Larson a week ago in what was the closest ending in NASCAR history. This time, Buescher lost his chance at the Goodyear 400 when Tyler Reddick tried to pass for the lead.

Reddick’s car slid up into Buescher, knocking him against the wall and ruining both their chances for a Darlington victory.

Buescher shoved Reddick and shouted that he should not have tried that move.

“I tried to back out,” Reddick said. “The last thing I wanted to do was wreck your car. I’m sorry.”

Patriots QB Maye wraps up rst taste of NFL workouts at rookie minicamp

The No. 3 overall pick out of UNC gets rst taste of pro football

The Associated Press

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — New England quarterback Drake Maye’s day at rookie minicamp wasn’t done, not by a long shot.

The No. 3 overall pick in the NFL Draft was just getting started after wrapping up practice on Saturday. After all, Patriots coach Jerod Mayo said Maye had been at the team facility “all night” on Friday.

“We’ll be here till 7, 8, 9 o’clock. Go in for a lift, then we have some meetings,” Maye said after practice behind Gillette Stadium.

“The best thing about minicamp is being around the guys for the rst time. We’re at the hotel together. We’re right across the hallway from each other, so we’ll watch the lm and look at the scripts for the next day together.

“We’ve got nothing else to do up here. Why not focus on football?”

The laser focus already has rubbed o on fellow rookies, including wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk, who was drafted one

round after Maye.

“Guy can sling it. Very condent and vocal. He’s a leader,” Polk said. “He’s setting the tone in practice, trying to get guys moving around and operating at a high level. This is new to all of us. We’re still learning and trying to get to know each other so everybody can get on the same page.”

At one point Saturday, Maye was under center with Polk lined up to his left and two more rookie receivers — one drafted (Javon Baker) and one undrafted (David Wallis) — lined up to his right. There wasn’t live contact or a pass rush to anticipate. But for Maye, it’s about soaking up as much knowledge as possible.

At times during practice, Maye talked with Patriots o ensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt. He also chatted with quarterbacks coach T.C. McCartney and o ensive assistant coach Ben McAdoo, who has been around his share of topight quarterbacks — namely Eli Manning with the New York Giants and Aaron Rodgers with the Green Bay Packers.

“T.C. is talking to us during the meetings. Coach Van Pelt will chime in when he needs to. Coach (McAdoo) is awesome,” Maye said. “All three of them know a lot of football.”

Buescher pointed to the NASCAR playo decal on his car for those, like Reddick, who’ve quali ed for the postseason. “That doesn’t work for me,” Buescher said. “We don’t have that sticker on my door right now. I need you to be better. We’ve raced each other for so long just ne.”

Buescher had said how agonizing his loss to Kyle Larson at Kansas last week was, replaying it and coming up with several things he might have done differently given another chance. At Darlington, Buescher knew who to blame.

“That’s two weeks in a row we had a shot to win races,” Buescher said. “One, I’m going to relive in my head forever at what I would’ve done di erent (at Kansas). The other, I need someone else to be more mature about it.”

Reddick continued apologizing in his post-race comments.

He said his attempted pass was aggressive and he tried to check up so he would not slide into Buescher.

“It’s tough to walk away knowing that I used someone up, took their chance away from winning the race that’s racing me really cleanly,” Reddick said. “I have to work on that and try and make

Driver Brad Keselowski holds up the trophy in Victory Lane after winning at Darlington Raceway on Sunday.

some better decisions.”

Bad day

One slip up ended the chances of two NASCAR champions. Ryan Blaney, Martin Truex Jr. and Byron were three-wide on lap 128 when Byron tagged Truex who pushed into Blaney and sent him against the wall in turn two.

The crew for Blaney, the defending Cup Series champion, could not repair the damage and his day was done. He rode up alongside Byron to signal his displeasure with Byron’s move.

“He used a little bit more race track than I thought, so I have every right to be mad and he gets away scot-free,” said Blaney, who wound up last in 36th place. Truex, the 2017 series champion, dropped from the top 10 and nished 25th.

Odds and ends Berry’s third-place nish was his best since replacing retired Kevin Harvick in the No. 4 car. ... Erik Jones, twice a winner at Darlington, nished 19th in his rst race since su ering a compression fracture in a lower vertebra during a crash at Talladega last month. ... Larson’s No. 5 paint scheme homage to Hall of Famer Terry Labonte’s 1996 title-winning car was voted the best throwback by the fans. ... The series takes a week o of points racing for the All-Star Race at historic North Wilkesboro.

Focusing on fundamentals, namely footwork, is a priority for Maye since arriving in New England.

“I’m trying out two new stances that I’m getting used to. Just getting more reps at it,” Maye said. “Footwork is huge. It’s something that’s not easy.”

The learning curve after playing in college at North Carolina will include becoming familiar with the region’s weather patterns. Practice featured a gusty breeze, a possible preview of coming attractions when November and December roll around.

“He has a lot to work on, but I have no doubt that he will put the time in,” Mayo said.

Belichick’s replacement

The Patriots are going with

Eliot Wolf to stock their roster after two decades with Bill Belichick in charge.

The team on Saturday named Wolf, 42, the executive vice president of player personnel, giving him the formal title of the job he had mostly been handling since Belichick was red. Wolf will control the 53-man roster and manage the salary cap.

Owner Robert Kraft said he wanted to observe the relationship between Wolf and coach Mayo before making it formal. Wolf is the son of Hall of Famer Ron Wolf, the former Packers general manager. Eliot Wolf has worked 20 seasons with Green Bay, Cleveland and the Patriots. He spent the last two seasons as New England’s director of scouting.

MARK STOCKWELL / AP PHOTO

New England Patriots rst-round draft pick quarterback

Drake Maye walks onto the eld during the team’s rookie minicamp.

NASCAR Cup win drought

MATT KELLEY / AP PHOTO

Hawks win NBA lottery in year where there’s no clear choice for No. 1 pick

The Hornets will pick sixth

By Andrew Seligman

The Associated Press

CHICAGO — The Atlanta Hawks won the NBA draft lottery on Sunday, landing the No. 1 pick and a potential cornerstone player in a year where there’s no clear-cut choice.

The Hawks hit the jackpot despite just 3% odds after nishing 10th in the Eastern Conference at 36-46. They dropped their nal six regular-season games and lost to the Chicago Bulls in the rst round of the play-in tournament.

The Hawks haven’t won a postseason series since a surprising run to the Eastern Conference nals in 2021. They got knocked out in the rst round in 2022 and 2023.

Atlanta has some big decisions to make this o season, including whether to break up its backcourt of Trae Young and Dejounte Murray. GM Landry Fields can build with the No. 1 pick, though it’s not clear who will be taken rst after Victor Wembanyama was the obvious choice for San Antonio last year.

Washington, Houston, San Antonio and Detroit rounded out the top ve. The Charlotte Hornets will pick sixth. The draft is June 26-27 in Brooklyn.

Washington and Detroit had the best chances to land the top pick at 14%. Only four teams have won the lottery with slimmer odds than Atlanta, with the biggest longshot being Orlando

SEAFORTH from page 1

In the top of the second inning, the momentum swung even further in the Bulldogs’ direction. Wallace -Rose Hill junior Kaiden Liu singled on a ground ball to the middle of the in eld, and he advanced to second base after a sacri ce bunt from sophomore Will Brooks in the next at-bat. Junior Dane Turner then hit a fast ball to left eld that slid under Seaforth third baseman Jaedyn Rader’s glove, sending Liu to third base. Turner stole second base in the next at-bat, and as Seaforth catcher Colin Dorney tried to throw him out, Liu reached home for the Bulldogs’ rst run.

After Seaforth went three up and three down in the bottom of the second inning, Wallace -Rose Hill led 1- 0 until the

at 1.52% in 1993. The Magic orchestrated a blockbuster draft night trade with Golden State, sending the rights to Chris Webber to the Warriors for the rights to Penny Hardaway along with three future rst-round picks. San Antonio landed a generational player last year in Wembanyama. The franchise that previously took David Robinson and Tim Duncan with the No. 1 overall pick got its next great big man, and all the Frenchman did was turn in one of the best

Hawks nally got their rst hit in the bottom of the third inning.

With one out and junior Daniel White stealing second base, Rader doubled to right center eld, sending in White to tie the game. Elmore built on that in the very next at-bat as his single to left eld sent Rader home for the 2 -1 lead.

“The key was guys ghting,” Jones said. “It was Rader in the third inning…It was (Elmore) following him up. It was (Tanner Morgan) at the start of that inning fouling a few pitches o . There was just a gradual ght. When we chip and chip and chip, we put the pressure on (Wallace -Rose Hill) that they have to load the bases (and) they have to see what happens.”

Wallace -Rose Hill tied the game in the top of the fourth

rookie seasons in NBA history.

The No. 1 pick could once again come from France, whether it’s center Alex Sarr or sharp-shooting forward Zaccharie Risacher, but that’s far from a certainty. UConn guard Stephon Castle and Kentucky’s Reed Sheppard and Rob Dillingham are both expected to be o the board within the rst few selections. The 7-foot-1, 224-pound Sarr has the size and mobility that teams crave and can defend the perimeter when he’s

inning with the help of another defensive mistake from Seaforth. With two outs, Turner hit the ball to Seaforth shortstop Anders Johansson, and when Morgan, the rst baseman, mishandled the put- out throw, Liu, the runner on second, scored once again for the Bulldogs’ second run.

The score remained 2-2 until the seventh inning as both defenses, led by their pitchers, continued to hold strong. In the bottom of the sixth, Liu, who took over for senior Dallas James on the mound to start the inning, returned the favor handed out by Elmore in the rst inning as he also struck out three batters. With a chance to take the lead in the top of the seventh inning, Lovette reached rst base safely thanks to a eld-

not blocking shots down low.

The 19-year-old from Toulouse is known for his explosiveness around the rim, though he could use some more muscle. It would help, too, if he developed into a more reliable 3-point shooter.

Sarr, whose brother Olivier plays for the Oklahoma City and played three years at Wake Forest, spent this past season in Australia’s National Basketball League.

Risacher, who was born in Spain and grew up in France, is known as a dynamic, albe -

ing error by Seaforth freshman second baseman Anthony Landano. Elmore threw Lovette out at second base in the next at-bat as a bunt forced him to advance, and all of the Bulldogs’ e orts were wasted when James got called for batter’s interference immediately after, incurring two outs.

Things also weren’t looking too good for Seaforth to start the bottom of the seventh inning. After Morgan hit a popup for the rst out, White had his back against the wall on an 0 -2 count. White responded with a single to center eld, making it safe on an error by the second baseman.

“(Liu) gave me two curveballs that kind of got me,” White said. “On that third pitch, I was like ‘there’s no way he doesn’t throw another curveball. I’ve got to hit

it streaky shooter for JL Bourg, whether he’s popping o screens or pulling up for 3-pointers. He often guards the other team’s best player.

Castle joined Andre Drummond in 2012 as UConn’s only one-and-done players when he declared for the draft in April after the Huskies’ latest NCAA championship run. The 6-foot-6 guard averaged 11.1 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists while often drawing the defensive assignment to shut down the opposition’s top perimeter player. He scored 21 in UConn’s Final Four win over Alabama and had 15 points in the championship game against Purdue. Sheppard and Dillingham both came o the bench in their lone college seasons.

Sheppard, who was voted the Southeastern Conference’s top freshman by coaches after leading the league in steals, was one of the league’s best playmakers and perimeter shooters. He was Kentucky’s No. 3 scorer at 12.5 points per contest and averaged an SEC-best 2.5 steals that ranked eighth nationally, despite starting just ve of 33 games. He also averaged 4.5 assists, 4.1 rebounds and made 52% of his 3-point attempts.

Dillingham was voted the SEC’s top sixth man after averaging 15.2 and 3.9 assists. Kentucky tied for second in the conference and earned a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament, only to get knocked out by Oakland in the round of 64. Coach John Calipari then left after 15 years for Arkansas.

this one. I don’t want to strikeout.’”

With Rader next up to bat, White advanced to third base after two wild pitches, and Liu eventually walked Rader on purpose for a double -play opportunity.

Rader then stole second base in Elmore’s following at-bat, and Elmore was also intentionally walked which loaded the bases.

Senior Dane O’Neill took the plate, and after a strike on the rst pitch, the second one hit him in the back, sending White in for the walk- o score.

“I just tried to put the ball in play,” O’Neill said. “Luckily, it hit me in the back. I’m going to feel it for a long time.”

Seaforth’s playo run continued after beating No. 23 West Craven in the second round, 4 -1.

NAM Y. HUH / AP PHOTO

NBA basketball draft prospect Kyle Filipowski takes video of himself in front of the draft lottery order before the draft lottery in Chicago.

Coming-of-age tale meets quarter-life crisis in ‘The Skunks’

Fiona Warnick makes her debut look e ortless

By Donna Edwards The Associated Press

USUALLY WHEN I see a book described as an “ambitious debut” I read it as a copout. Isn’t a debut inherently ambitious? What does that even mean?

“The Skunks” is what that means. And Fiona Warnick makes it look e ortless.

A coming-of-age novel with a quarter-life-crisis thrown in, “The Skunks” is told in a stream of consciousness with a cynical sort of oddball humor that’s completely Warnick’s own. Reading “The Skunks” is like drinking a cool glass of water on a hot summer day — it’s nothing particularly earth-shattering, but it’s wholly necessary, gratifying and gone before you know it.

The story is largely told from Isabel’s point of view. She’s a recent college grad who has returned to her hometown with

no real plans for the future. And one day, while house-sitting, she sees three baby skunks in the yard. The perfect antidote to her obsession with boys: an obsession with skunks.

Isabel’s just trying to do better in a world buzzing with diametrically opposing views of what that means. Her days are interspersed with fairytale-like skunk chapters. You can take the secondary story of the skunks as something that’s happening alongside Isabel’s story, or as something Isabel is writing to better make sense of her own life. It’s also possible that it’s just a really lovely story from the point of view of a skunk, which so happens to intersect occasionally with a human named Isabel.

The result is an unabashedly honest character study in which skunks are just as much a part of the story as people. And by the end of it, you can’t help but have a new appreciation for both species.

It’s weird. It’s fresh. It’s a big bet that people will go along for this ride. In a word, it’s ambi-

tious. And it pays o . Warnick peppers the story with fresh imagery, similes and metaphors: Isabel describes her friend as having an internal rain gauge that’s always full, whereas everyone else’s leaks, leaving them craving a thunderstorm. The author also has a knack for contrasting literary beauty with the everyday, like when she describes the skunks’ tails swishing in unison “like a ballet, or a windshield wiper.” The novel is lled with moments that are profound despite their mundanity — or could be profound if you look at it metaphorically — or just random thoughts and moments, a gentle ribbing of the reader for trying to nd meaning in every detail.

But, if you can just sit back and enjoy it, the pages breeze by almost without notice. Warnick’s smooth style and the lack of formal structure make the free- ow story y by like you’ve been swept up in a jet ow. This book passed like a dream, and was over before I knew it.

Churchill forms new government; Allen, Green Mountain Boys capture Fort Ticonderoga

The Associated Press

MAY 10

1775: Ethan Allen and his Green Mountain Boys, along with Col. Benedict Arnold, captured the British-held fortress at Ticonderoga, New York.

1869: A golden spike was driven in Promontory, Utah, marking the completion of the rst transcontinental railroad in the United States.

1933: The Nazis staged massive public book burnings in Germany.

1940: During World War II, German forces began invading the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Belgium and France. The same day, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain resigned, and Winston Churchill formed a new government.

MAY 11

1858: Minnesota became the 32nd state of the Union.

1960: Israeli agents captured Nazi war criminal Adolf

Eichmann in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

1981: Legendary reggae artist Bob Marley died in a Miami hospital at age 36 of acral lentiginous melanoma, a skin cancer that is rare but the most common type found among people of color.

MAY 12

1780: During the Revolutionary War, the besieged city of Charleston, South Carolina, surrendered to British forces.

1958: The United States and Canada signed an agreement to create the North American Air Defense Command (later the North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD).

1986: The military action-drama lm “Top Gun,” starring Tom Cruise and Kelly McGillis and released by Paramount Pictures, had its world premiere in New York.

MAY 13

1607: English colonists ar-

rived by ship at the site of what became the Jamestown settlement in Virginia (the colonists went ashore the next day).

1981: Pope John Paul II was shot and seriously wounded in St. Peter’s Square by Turkish assailant Mehmet Ali Agca.

MAY 14

1643: Louis XIV became King of France at age 4 upon the death of his father, Louis XIII.

1796: English physician Edward Jenner inoculated 8-year-old James Phipps against smallpox by using cowpox matter.

1942: The Battle of the Coral Sea, the rst naval clash fought entirely with carrier aircraft, began in the Paci c during World War II. (The outcome was considered a tactical victory for Japan but ultimately a strategic one for the Allies.)

MAY 15

1770: Marie Antoinette, age 14, married the future King Louis XVI of France, who was 15.

1866: Congress authorized minting of the rst ve-cent piece, also known as the “Shield nickel.”

1929: The rst Academy Awards were presented. “Wings” won “best production,” while Emil Jannings and Janet Gaynor were named best actor and best actress.

1939: The federal government began its rst food stamp program in Rochester, New York.

1960: The rst working laser was demonstrated at Hughes Research Laboratories in Malibu, California, by physicist Theodore Maiman.

1966: China launched the Cultural Revolution, a radical as well as deadly reform movement aimed at purging the country of “counter-revolutionaries.”

MAY 16

1862: President Abraham Lincoln signed an act establishing the Department of Agriculture.

Miniature poodle named Sage wins Westminster Kennel Club dog show

By Jennifer Peltz

The Associated Press

YORK

NEW

— For a last hurrah, it was a Sage decision.

A miniature poodle named Sage won the top prize Tuesday night at the Westminster Kennel Club dog show, in what veteran handler Kaz Hosaka said would be his nal time at the United States’ most prestigious canine event. After 45 years of competing and two best in show dogs, he plans to retire.

Sage notched the 11th triumph for poodles of various sizes at Westminster; only wire fox terriers have won more. The last miniature poodle to take the trophy was Spice, with Hosaka, in 2002.

“No words,” he said in the ring to describe his reaction to Sage’s win before supplying a few: “So happy — exciting.”

Striding briskly and proudly around the ring, the inky-black poodle “gave a great performance for me,” Hosaka added. Sage bested six other nalists to take best in show. Second went to Mercedes, a German shepherd whose handler, Kent Boyles, also has shepherded a best in show winner before.

Others in the nal round included Comet, a shih tzu who

won the big American Kennel Club National Championship last year; Monty, a giant schnauzer who arrived at Westminster as the nation’s top-ranked dog and was a Westminster nalist last year; Louis, an Afghan hound; Micah, a black cocker spaniel; and Frankie, a colored bull terrier.

While Sage was going around the ring, a protester carrying a sign urging people to “boycott breeders” tried to climb in and was quickly intercepted by se-

solutions

Sage, with handler Kaz Hosaka, competes for best in show during the 148th Westminster Kennel Club dog show, Tuesday in New York.

curity personnel. Police and the animal rights group PETA said three demonstrators were arrested. Charges have not yet been decided.

In an event where all competitors are champions in dog showing’s point system, winning can depend on subtleties and a standout turn at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, home of the U.S. Open tennis tournament.

The nal lineup was “excellent, glorious,” best in show judge

Rosalind Kramer said.

To Monty’s handler and co-owner, Katie Bernardin, “just to be in the ring with everyone else is an honor.”

“We all love our dogs. We’re trying our best,” she said in the ring after Monty’s semi nal win.

“A stallion” of a dog, he’s solid, powerful and “very spirited,” said Bernardin of Chaplin, Connecticut.

So spirited that while Bernardin was pregnant, she did obedience and other dog sports with Monty because he needed the stimulation.

Dogs rst compete against others of their breed. Then the winner of each breed goes up against others in its “group.” The seven group winners meet in the nal round.

The best in show winner gets a trophy and a place in dog-world history, but no cash prize.

Besides the winners, there were other dogs that were hits with the crowd. A lagotto Romagnolo named Harry earned a chuckle from the stadium audience by sitting up and begging for a treat from his handler, and a vizsla named Fletcher charmed spectators by jumping up on its handler after nishing a spin around the ring.

There were big cheers, too, for a playful great Pyrenees called Sebastian and a Doberman pinscher named Emilio.

Other dogs that vied in vain for a spot in the nals included Stache, a Sealyham terrier. He won the National Dog Show that was televised on Thanksgiving and took top prize at a big terrier show in Pennsylvania last fall.

Stache showcases a rare breed that’s considered vulnerable to extinction even in its native Britain.

“They’re a little-known treasure,” said Stache’s co-owner, co-breeder and handler, Margery Good of Cochranville, Pennsylvania, who has bred “Sealys” for half a century. Originally developed in Wales to hunt badgers and other burrowing game, the terriers with a “fall” of hair over their eyes are courageous but comedic — Good dubs them “silly hams.”

The Westminster show, which dates to 1877, centers on the traditional purebred judging that leads to the best in show prize. But over the last decade, the club has added agility and obedience events open to mixed-breed dogs.

And this year, the agility competition counted its rst non-purebred winner, a border collie-papillon mix named Nimble.

And Kramer, the best in show judge, made a point of thanking “every dog, whether it’s a house dog or a show dog.

“Because you make our lives whole.”

JULIA NIKHINSON / AP PHOTO

famous birthdays this week - TK 275

The Associated Press

May 12

Singer Steve Winwood is 76. Country singer Kix Brooks of Brooks and Dunn is 69. Actor Ving Rhames (“Pulp Fiction”) is 65. Actor Emilio Estevez is 62. Actress Malin Akerman (“Trophy Wife”) is 46. May 13: Actor Harvey Keitel (“Pulp Fiction”) is 85. Musician Stevie Wonder is 74. Singer Darius Rucker (Hootie and the Blow sh) is 58.

May 14

Movie director-producer George Lucas is 80. Director Robert Zemeckis (″Back to the Future”) is 73. Actor Tim Roth (“Reservoir Dogs”) is 63. Actress Cate Blanchett is 55. Singer Danny Wood of New Kids On the Block is 55. Actress Miranda Cosgrove (“iCarly”) is 31.

May 15

Friday.

Actor Nicholas Hammond (“The Sound of Music”) is 74. Musician Mike Old eld is 71. Actor Jamie-Lynn Sigler (“The Sopranos”) is 43. May 16: Actor Danny Trejo is 80. Actor Pierce Brosnan is 71. Violinist Boyd Tinsley of The Dave Matthews Band is 60. Singer Janet Jackson is 58. Actress Tori Spelling is 51. Actress Megan Fox (“Transformers”) is 38.

May 17

Actor Craig Ferguson (“The Late Late Show,” ″The Drew Carey Show”) is 61. Musician Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails is 59. Singer Jordan Knight of New Kids on the Block is 54.

May 18

Country singer Joe Bonsall of the Oak Ridge Boys is 76. Country singer George Strait is 72. Comedian Tina Fey (“30 Rock,” ″Saturday Night Live”) is 54. Musician Jack Johnson is 49.

An Independent Agency Representing

LOUIS LANZANO / AP PHOTO Singer Jordan Knight turns 54 on

JORDAN STRAUSS / INVISION VIA AP

George Lucas, pictured in 2018, turned 80 on Tuesday.

the stream

Oscar-winning ‘American Fiction’ landed Tuesday on Prime Video

The third season of “Bridgerton” will focus on the courtship of Colin and Penelope

The Associated Press

ZAC EFRON and Jeremy Allen White starring in the family wrestling dynasty in “The Iron Claw” and Brooke Shields playing the unwitting title role in the romantic comedy “Mother of the Bride” on Net ix are some of the new television, movies, music and games headed to a device near you.

Billie Eilish’s third studio album, “Hit Me Hard and Soft” and the return of “Bridgerton” are also on tap.

MOVIES TO STREAM

Cord Je erson’s Oscar-winning “American Fiction,” one of the most celebrated directorial debuts in recent years, landed on Prime Video on Tuesday. Jeffrey Wright stars as Thelonious “Monk” Ellison, a frustrated novelist who, in a drunken t of rage, pens a satirical book parodying what’s popular, only it becomes a sensation. “American Fiction” is immensely watchable, staged without ash or pretension, and relies on its sharp script and talented and charismatic actors to carry the audience through.

“Madame Web,” the muchmaligned Marvel entry in Sony’s Spider-Man universe of lms, landed Tuesday on Net ix. Dakota Johnson stars in what Bahr wrote in her review “feels like the stitched-together product of a bunch of people who weren’t actually collaborating.”

The odds are more in the favor of “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes,” which began streaming Tuesday on Starz after a successful theatrical run last November. It’s a prequel to the Hunger Games, themselves. The games are in their 10th year and ratings are agging, but a few twists and turns will catapult them to Panem’s center stage. The origin story is also for the man who will become President Coriolanus Snow, played by Donald Sutherland in the rst four lms. Here, the young, ambitious Snow is played by Tom Blythe, whose performance lifts the movie.

MUSIC TO STREAM

What can listeners expect from Billie Eilish’s third stu-

dio album, “Hit Me Hard and Soft”? It’s a mystery, and the pop star is keeping it that way for a reason. Last month, Eilish announced the album by sharing the artwork on Insta-

gram. It depicts Eilish oating in a body of water after being ejected from a door. In the caption, she wrote that she will not drop singles in advance of the release. “I wanna give it to

you all at once,” she captioned the image. “I truly could not be more proud of this album.” Here’s what we do know: Eilish once again worked with her brother and longtime collaborator Finneas on “Hit Me Hard and Soft.”

Once known as a heartthrob with the best pipes in the British boy band One Direction, Zayn Malik was the rst to courageously individuate and leave the group that kickstarted his career and launch an R&B pop career. That was a lifetime ago — now, on Friday, he will release his fourth solo studio album, “Room Under the Stairs,” dreamt up and written at his home in rural Pennsylvania. This time around he worked with the legendary country producer Dave Cobb (known for his work with Chris Stapleton, Jason Isbell and Brandi Carlile, among others) for Malik’s folkiest release to date. It’s partR&B, part-soul, part-acoustic Americana — a new, matured Malik for a new era.

Alternative rock fans, there’s a new docu-reality series for you. “Billy Corgan’s Adventures in Carnyland” is an eightpart unscripted series from The CW that follows the Smashing Pumpkins’ frontman as he navigates fatherhood, being in a band, and his other idiosyncratic pursuits as a wrestling promoter and owner of the National Wrestling Alliance. it started streaming Tuesday on the CW App and cwtv.com.

SHOWS TO STREAM Seasons one and two of “Bridgerton” followed the rst

two novels in the series by Julia Quinn. Taking place in Regency-era London, each book is about the love story of one Bridgerton family member. Season three, however, skips to book No. 4 with the friends-to-lovers courtship of Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton) and Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan). Net ix has broken the season into two parts with the rst batch of new episodes premiering Thursday. Josh Brolin leads “Outer Range” on Prime Video, a Western about neighboring ranchers battling for land that quickly turns trippy with time travel. Lili Taylor, Tom Pelphrey, Imogen Poots and Shaun Sipos also star. All seven episodes of season two drop on Thursday. The popular food competition series “Ciao House” returns for its second season on Sunday on Food Network. On the show, 12 chefs live together in a Tuscan village and compete in various culinary challenges. The contestants form alliances and rivalries. In the end, the winner gets to train under master Italian chefs. “Iron Chef” champion Alex Guarnaschelli and Gabe Bertaccini return as hosts.

VIDEO GAMES TO PLAY

Twenty-one years isn’t that much time on a cosmic scale, but for fans of the science ction epic Homeworld — who have waited since 2003 since the last full-blown installment — it has been an eternity. As Gearbox Publishing’s Homeworld 3 begins, the galaxy has enjoyed an age of prosperity thanks to the discovery of a network of hyperspace gates. The good times may be running out, though, as some of the gates are mysteriously collapsing. Developer Blackbird Interactive, which includes some veterans of the original game, promises plenty of the 3D outer space combat that made it a hit, whether you want to y solo or engage in free-for-alls against your friends. The game had lifto Monday on PC. If you prefer your mysteries a little more earthbound, Annapurna Interactive’s Lorelei and the Laser Eyes has you covered. You have been invited to explore an old hotel somewhere in Europe, where you’ll soon nd yourself “embroiled in a game of illusions.” The aesthetic is classic lm noir, with eerie black-and-white settings accented with splashes of red. Swedish studio Simogo, known for mind-benders like Year Walk and Device 6, promises “an immense amount of handcrafted puzzles,” so if you’ve been craving a really big escape room,

check in Thursday on Nintendo Switch and PC.

DARKROOM-INTERSCOPE / MERCURY VIA AP

“Hit Me Hard and Soft” by Billie Eilish, left, “Room Under the Stairs” by Zayn, right.

NETFLIX VIA AP

LIONSGATE VIA AP

Rachel Zegler, center, stars in “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.”