Chatham News & Record Vol. 147, Issue 18 by North State Journal

the BRIEF this week

Siler City robbery and shooting under investigation

A robbery and shooting incident in Siler City last Thursday is under investigation by the Chatham County Sheri and Siler City PD.

The incident began around 11:30 p.m. when a juvenile was robbed on Fairfax Street.

The victim and another juvenile pursued the suspect, leading to a shooting near Bray Park on Alston Bridge Road.

One juvenile was injured and airlifted to UNC Hospitals. Authorities believe this was an isolated incident with no ongoing threat to public safety.

Anyone with information is urged to contact the Chatham Sheri ’s O ce.

Briscoe tapped to replace retiring Truex at Joe Gibbs Racing

Chase Briscoe and Joe Gibbs Racing con rmed that the NASCAR driver will replace the retiring Martin Truex Jr. in the No. 19 Toyota for the 2025 Cup Series season.

The annoucement came days after driver Christopher Bell accidentally spoiled the surprise at a press conference.

Briscoe is set to become the rst driver among the four at Stewart-Haas Racing to land a Cup ride for 2025.

SHR announced last month it would close its organization at the end of this season. Briscoe is currently 16th in the Cup points standings.

Boy who died at nature therapy camp couldn’t breathe in tentlike structure

Medical examiners say a boy who died while enrolled in a nature therapy camp couldn’t breathe in the tentlike structure he was sleeping in.

The 12-year-old died in February in western NC while participating in the Trails Carolina wilderness program for troubled youths.

An autopsy report was released Monday. It focused on the boy’s damaged bivy, or small camping enclosure.

The bivy’s internal mesh door was torn, and a weather-resistant door was used instead to secure the opening.

Medical examiners noted that fully securing a bivy’s weather resistant opening can lead to “breathing restriction.”

Autos editor Jordan Golson found himself in Peoria, the midwest of the midwest, last week to check out Caterpillar’s most advanced machines and technology.

Turn to NSJ page A12 for all the details.

VinFast VF3 electric car on display at CES in Las Vegas in January.

VinFast puts Chatham on hold, hopes tiny, sub-$10K EV will change its fortunes

The new car, aimed at Asian markets, could buy enough time to crack the U.S. market (maybe)

By Aniruddha Ghosal The Associated Press

HANOI, Vietnam — Vietnamese automaker VinFast, for a short time the third-most valuable car company in the world, has a big problem: It just can’t sell enough cars.

Idle factories bleed money and the company’s nancial health is at stake. After nding the U.S. market a tough nut to crack, VinFast is hoping its tiniest and cheapest car yet — a roughly 10-foot-long pure battery electric mini-SUV priced at $9,200 and called the VF3 — will become Vietnam’s “national car” and win over consumers in Asian markets. Designed speci cally for the Vietnamese and other Asian markets, the VF3 is priced for

Traveling Vietnam War Memorial makes stop in North Carolina

Visitors to “The Wall That Heals” bring sentiment and re ection

By Bob Sutton Chatham News & Record

ASHEBORO — They came for many reasons, but those gathering across several days at “The Wall That Heals” had something in common.

They wanted to recognize the sacri ces of Vietnam War veterans and pay tributes to the military in general.

“The Wall That Heals” was set up on the South Asheboro Middle School baseball eld from last Wednesday through early Sunday afternoon.

“mass appeal,” according to VinFast. It expects bigger sales for it than from earlier models that were meant mainly for export to Western countries, Le Thi Thuy, Vingroup’s chairperson, said in an earnings call in April. VinFast was dreaming of breaking into the big leagues of global automakers when it launched sales in the U.S. last year and listed its shares on the

page A10

VinFast is reviewing and evaluating “all aspects of the construction process” for its Chatham County facility.

Chapel Hill bond referendum heads to voters in November

Asheboro’s Carlene and Renee Corder arrived with a speci c purpose: to honor Charles R. Chriscoe, who grew up with Carlene in the Seagrove community.

“It’s a lot of names,” Carlene Corder said after nding Chriscoe’s name on the wall.

“The Wall That Heals” is a three-quarter scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial wall in Washington, D.C., that travels around the country. The names of 58,281 men and women who died in the Vietnam War are listed.

“It’s something you should

“It’s more than I expected,” said Shawn Parrish, a Randleman resident who had served in the Air Force.

See MEMORIAL, page A10

A ordable housing, public facilities and streets and sidewalks to bene t

By Ryan Henkel Chatham News & Record

CHAPEL HILL — The Town Council wrapped up its last two meetings in mid-June before heading o for a summer break, and voted to put a major bond referendum before voters in November. The bond issuance would total $44 million — the maximum amount of debt the town can take on without raising taxes — with $15 million earmarked for a ordable housing, another $15 million for public facilities,

$7.5 million for streets and sidewalks, $4.5 million for parks and recreation facilities, and $2 million for open spaces and greenways. The referendum will be on the Chapel Hill ballots alongside votes for president and governor. In other business, the council approved a 15-year building

See VINFAST,

See CHAPEL HILL, page A7

VINFAST HANDOUT

The

JORDAN GOLSON / CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

Ozempic maker to create 1,000 jobs in Clayton

Novo Nordisk already employs nearly 2,500 people in the Triangle

The Associated Press

CLAYTON — Novo Nordisk, the maker of Ozempic and Wegovy, announced on Monday that it plans to add 1,000 jobs when another company’s manufacturing plant is built in a Raleigh suburb to expand production of the very popular weight loss and diabetes medicines, as well as other treatments.

The Danish-based company said it will invest $4.1 billion on the new facility in Clayton. The 1.4 million-square-foot (130,000 square-meter) production space for manufacturing and nishing processes would double the combined space that Novo Nordisk already has at its three plants in the Triangle area, news outlets reported. It employs nearly 2,500 workers in the region.

The announcement would mark the largest life sciences investment in state history, said Christopher Chung, CEO of the Economic Development Partnership of North Caro -

lina, the state’s independent nonpro t recruiting organization. The average salary for the new positions will be $70,000, which is above Johnston County’s average of $50,605, the partnership said in a news release.

The future production site, with construction to be completed in phases between 2027 and 2029, will be able to make multiple treatments, the company said. Novo Nordisk has been best known for making insulin to treat diabetes.

“The importance of this facility we’re making is ensuring that we are exible to both produce weight-loss products but also other chronic diseases,” Novo Nordisk vice president

Niels Laurbjerg Nielsen said. Novo Nordisk opened more than 30 years ago its rst facility in Clayton, which is about 20 miles southeast of Raleigh. The drugmaker announced in 2015 plans to double facility space in Johnston County. That work was completed in 2020 and marked the company’s rst facility outside of Denmark to manufacture active drugs.

The Johnston County commissioners approved incentives for the project on Monday before the company’s public announcement. The company would receive cash grants equivalent to a percentage of property tax if it meets investment goals.

accolades

Western Carolina 2024 Dean’s List

Western Carolina University named more than 1,000 students to the Spring 2024 Dean’s List, requiring a GPA of 3.5 or higher while completing 12 or more credit hours. Congratulations to these local students who made the list:

Pittsboro:

Ayden Pyle, Cheyenne Ellis, Collin Semrad, Justin Miller, Noa Warren

Moncure:

Taylor Godwin

Siler City:

Colin Hsieh, Emery Eldridge, Rebecca Brookshire

Snow Camp:

Christopher Snell

Chatham County native promoted to lieutenant colonel

Jason Nunn, originally from Chatham County, has been promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army. The promotion ceremony took place on June 7, in Tampa, Florida, marking a signi cant milestone in Nunn’s 17-year military career.

Nunn’s service record includes deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan as well as assignments at the Pentagon. He currently serves at U.S. Special Operations Command in Tampa.

During the ceremony, attended by family, friends and colleagues, Nunn acknowledged the support he’s received throughout his career. His wife and two children participated in the ceremony by pinning on his new rank insignia.

The promotion to lieutenant colonel re ects the Army’s recognition of Nunn’s leadership and service. His journey from Chatham County to oak leaves serves as a shining example of the community and his own dedication to service.

Stay cool: Chatham County makes plan to beat the heat

The increase in heat-related illnesses prompted a new Heat Action Plan

By Morgan Matthews For Chatham News & Record

SUMMER is the season of outdoor events and heat, and Chatham County has devised a plan to keep its residents safe from the sweltering temperatures.

“Our top priority is ensuring the safety and well-being of our community,” Steve Newton, the Chatham County Emergency Management director, said. “From setting up cooling centers to providing key resources and information, we’re committed to keeping our residents safe and comfortable during periods of high temperatures.”

Anne Lowry, the Chatham County Environmental Health director, said over the past three years, the number of emergency room visits from heat-related illnesses has increased by nearly 30% statewide. Chatham County is combating this issue with its Heat Action Plan. There are three phases to ensure the safety of the residents this summer.

Phase one, called the readiness phase, includes the training and preparation of rst responders and employers on how to recognize heat-related illnesses. The county will also con rm the locations of cooling centers that can be made available to the public if needed.

JUNE 14

• Juan Cesar Ventura, 30, of Pittsboro, was arrested for communicating threats and misdemeanor domestic violence.

JUNE 15

• Randy Lee Smith, 63, of Kernersville, was arrested for assault on a female and misdemeanor domestic violence.

JUNE 16

• Erubiel Santana Mondragon, 20, of Siler City, was arrested for making a false report to a police station and resisting/ delaying/obstructing an officer.

JUNE 17

The splash pad at Knight Farm Community Park in Pittsboro is one spot residents can cool down.

The start of phase one will begin when temperatures reach 85 degrees.

As conditions worsen, phases two and three will be initiated.

These phases may include critical actions such as issuing heat health alerts, opening cooling centers, and activating a transportation plan to make these centers more accessible.

The Heat Action Plan aims to protect the public from illnesses like heatstroke, with a particular focus on vulnerable residents such as those who are 65 and older or without air conditioning.

Several community resources are currently available to help residents stay cool.

The Department of Social Services provides energy bill assistance for income-eligible

• Irvin Uriel De La Rosa Rojas, 23, of Staley, was arrested for assault on a female and misdemeanor domestic violence.

• Amanda Ellen Brooks, 43, of Siler City, was arrested for failure to appear.

JUNE 18

• Antonius Michiel Van Dongen, 67, of Chapel Hill, was arrested for assault on a female and misdemeanor domestic violence.

JUNE 19

• Aja Nickea Sutton, 27, of Pittsboro, was arrested for failure to appear.

JUNE 22

• Coty James Glover, 40, of Staley, was arrested for possession of a firearm by a felon.

• Tammy Sherell Glover, 49, of Staley, was arrested for felony possession of cocaine and possession of drug paraphernalia.

households and distributes box fans to community members.

Chatham County Aging Services distributes box fans to those who are 60 years old or older or have a disability.

Chatham County Public Libraries serve as cooling centers during extreme heat events.

Chatham County Parks and Recreation o ers a misting machine for a quick cool-down at Southwest District Park.

The Town of Pittsboro features a splash pad for children at Knight Farm Community Park.

Chatham County’s Heat Action Plan will help keep residents cool and able to enjoy outdoor activities safely over the summer season. This plan can be used annually when temperatures begin to rise.

• Manuel Salgado Contreras, 42, of Siler City, was arrested for felony possession of cocaine, possession of a controlled substance on prison/jail premises, and possession of drug paraphernalia.

• Jamie Junior Foxx, Jr., 54, of Siler City, was arrested for misdemeanor larceny and possession of stolen goods/ property.

• Jennifer Joel Langston, 47, of Siler City, was arrested for possession of stolen property, larceny, and attempted larceny.

JUNE 23

• Tammy Renee Alexander, 53, of Siler City, was arrested for failure to appear.

• Narely Nava Campos, 18, of Liberty, was arrested for failure to appear.

SANDY BRANCH BAPTIST CHURCH

Everyone is invited to come out to our annual Fourth of July cookout at 5 p.m. on Saturday, June 29th.

We will have delicious burgers, hot dogs and all the trimmings, and yummy desserts including homemade ice cream.

There will be fun games including horseshoes and cornhole.

Please come join us at 715 Sandy Branch Church Rd. in Bear Creek.

OAKLEY BAPTIST CHURCH

We will be having our annual Ice Cream Social on Sunday, June 30th beginning at 5 p.m.

Please join us for this special occassion! Everyone is invited!

2300 Siler City–Glendon Rd. in Siler City

OLIVER’S CHAPEL AME ZION CHURCH

Everyone is invited to a Tribute for Mrs. Helen Headen, a lifelong community and church activist, on Sunday, June 30th at 2:30 p.m. at the church.

The tribute is sponsored by the MLK Community in the surrounding areas of Liberty and Staley. Mrs. Headen is the founder of the MLK Community and has been an active member for the past 32 years. She has become inactive due to an illness in the past year.

Please come out to support her and all of her endeavors!

2527 Olivers Chapel Rd, in Staley

COURTESY CAROLINA PARKS AND PLAY

THE CONVERSATION

Neal Robbins, publisher | Frank Hill, senior opinion editor

How a sanctuary inspired me

Progress may be slow and incremental, but dedication makes a di erence.

I HAD THE PRIVILEGE to learn about the Piedmont Farm Animal Refuge from Lenore Braford, the founder and interim executive director. Located in Pittsboro on 45 acres, the Refuge “is a sanctuary for rescued chickens, turkeys, ducks, geese, sheep, goats, and cows who come from lives of abuse, neglect, and abandonment.” Braford spoke about the lifelong care provided for each rescued animal, including a natural habitat where the animals can thrive outdoors. She also told stories that moved my heart and mind.

Once, a truck loaded with chickens was headed to the slaughterhouse. But something happened — maybe a bump in the road — that caused a chicken to be tossed from the moving vehicle. I imagined that many drivers hurried past, but one car stopped upon noticing a crumpled pile of white feathers by the side of the road. When this Good Samaritan saw that the bird was still breathing, they carried this hen to the Refuge.

Braford admits that the prognosis was grim. Not only had the chicken su ered abuse during her life, but she had also landed on her head in the fall from the truck, which caused massive swelling. But the Refuge does not turn away animals. The vets and animal caregivers went to work.

For two weeks, they fed and cared for this hen. One of the rst signs of recovery occurred when she opened one eye to look at her caregivers. She quickly shut it; later, she opened the

COLUMN | BOB WACHS

other eye. Today, this chicken has some scars, yet she feels the sunshine on her feathers and the dirt between her claws.

I admire Braford and her team’s dedication, including their advocacy for “compassionate and health-conscious shoppers.”

The task seems daunting. The environmental degradation that results from “factory farming” is horrifying, including animal feces dumped into tributaries and rivers. Communities living near these factory farms su er from the e ects of air pollution, with notably higher cases of asthma among children. Yet, many of these industries have high-powered lobbyists convincing our legislators to privilege pro ts over human and nonhuman lives.

The Refuge is a sanctuary, which means a safe space.

“Sanctuary” also refers to a place of worship where people come to learn and are then inspired to make a di erence in the world beyond the walls. Progress may be slow and incremental, but dedication makes a di erence.

Remember that tiny chicken who was found on the side of the road? The hen who rst opened one eye, then another? Braford and her team named that lucky hen Hope.

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.

Getting accustomed to what we’re accustomed to

As youngsters, we went for years without an air conditioner in our house or vehicle.

FROM TIME TO TIME, I’ve been called a weenie, a wimp, even a softie.

And from time to time, I’ve agreed with that assessment.

Sometimes, that charge and my agreement came at the end of a long day of, say, cutting, splitting and stacking rewood when I quit while other folks kept doing their Energizer bunny impression. It didn’t matter that I was 20 years older than everyone; the crime was that I was the rst to quit.

Same thing for getting up hay in square bales. I’ve been retired from that for some time and don’t miss it.

When those accusations arise, I nd I’ve become my father, telling those smart-aleck 40-year-olds what he used to say to me: “Just wait; you’ll understand one day.”

He was right. I do.

And so will they ... one day.

And while my other two parents — Mother Nature and Father Time — have left me with lousy shoulders, knees and hips, I nd lately there’s another part of life where the “softie” description ts.

Granted, the physical part is a big part. As a younger man, I was somewhat strong. I had pretty decent biceps from splitting wood by hand and tossing hay and lifting chicken legs and ham biscuits to my lips. Then arthritis and several surgeries set in, and a di erent song started playing. Today, I can only turn the pages of books showing pictures of young men splitting wood by hand and tossing hay; I can still, however, pick up a chicken leg or biscuit.

That other part of life I’ve begun to notice concerns temperature — not mine but the weather’s. I don’t do 90 degrees well at all. Period. And the funny thing — not funny “ha ha” but funny as in funny “interesting” — is that just like the wood splitting, at one time it never bothered me.

The last few days, with their 90-plus degrees and 411% humidity, are a good example. During those and similar ones, I’ve begun to wonder why it’s a shortcoming, and I think I’ve found a couple of reasons. Maybe you can identify with them if you have similar issues.

One is that I’m just getting older and have earned the right to fuss. One day, I was conversing with my brother and realized I was airing a long list of complaints. As I started hearing myself, I commented, “My soul; I’m turning into a grouchy old man,” to which he said, “What do you mean, turning?”

I immediately took him o my Christmas card list and struck him with my chicken leg and biscuit.

Another reason is because there’s more of me to cool than there once was. A 44-inch spare tire around the middle requires more cool air than a 36. The distance between those two isn’t just eight inches but also 40 years.

But the biggest reason of all goes back farther than those 40 years. While I’m grateful to Mr. Carrier for his air-cooling machine, we’ve gotten so used to air conditioning that without it, many of us are a bunch of whining, grouchy folks getting older and working on a spare tire or already sporting one.

As youngsters, we went for years without an air conditioner in our house or vehicle. Today’s generation may nd it di cult to believe, but once, air conditioners were an option — as in “costing more money” — on new cars. If you chose not to add A/C to your ride, you could fall back on the old standard “4-50” air conditioner: Four windows down at 50 miles an hour.

And as for houses, ours or anybody’s — you kept cool by throwing open all windows, preferably those with screens, and maybe having a big ol’ box fan in one window blowing air through the house if you had a long hall. One day, my dad got a bonus in his paycheck and went out and bought another box fan, which he installed in my room at the other end of the hall. From there, it made a breeze throughout the house that was cool enough at night to make a di erence.

Later, he evidently got another bonus and bought a 20,000-ton air conditioner I helped him install in a window on the front of our house. It was a good thing that day that I had developed some arm muscles. Later, he found a smaller used one and put it in my bedroom window where the fan had been. That was the end of sleeping with the windows open, except for the brief periods of spring and fall when it just felt good to do so.

When we started shutting up the house so, as my father said, we weren’t “cooling the whole world,” several things happened. One is that I started sleeping through the night without sweating. Two, by shutting the window, I could no longer hear the bullfrogs on Wallace Farrell’s pond.

But mostly, and I think this may be a big part of the overall problem, I started turning into the softie I am today.

While I miss hearing the frogs, I think I’ll stick with the A/C. Funny (interesting) what we get used to, isn’t it? The life lesson here, I think, is to be careful what you start to get used to; it may stick around for a long time.

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

Our dinosaur brains (yours and mine)

I’m still an instinctive, predatorchallenged human millions of years later.

I HAVE A DINOSAUR BRAIN. By the way, surprise, you also have a dinosaur brain. Dinosaur brain? Isn’t that a tad melodramatic? Nope. My deeply held values often bounce right o my dinosaur brain’s eons-old, survival-based reactivity. Boing. Gone.

Oh, you’d like an example. No problem.

I (proudly) have a bumper sticker a xed to my car: “Love Thy Neighbor — No Exceptions.” Good peace-loving Quaker that I am, you know. Choosing to model, for the world, my values. Then whomp, bounce, I watch the less-than-peace-loving part of my brain run right over my values. I’m one who judges — others — a lot (Cringe. It’s di cult to out myself. I really, really want to be perfect. Next life…).

My inherited judging re ex stampedes right over my hoped-for values of loving (all) my neighbors. (Demonstrating my sterling character, to others, just falls by the wayside due to this stampede. Ouch.) And what’s this inherited reality thing, undermining my best intentions of “loving thy neighbor?” This ummoxed human would like to know.

There’s a teeny-tiny problem with my brain (and yours): I’m innately primed to judge others so I can move safely through the world. Safely? Our collective human story goes back millions of years when survival was based on split-second judgments about dinosaurs and other predators — which ones I could eat and which could eat me. “Oh, no, get me out of here! Jeez, look at those sharp teeth!”

Making snap judgments about people and things di erent from us is still a hard-wired part of our modern brains. You might hurt me! We’re conditioned (even after all these eons) to look for the possible negatives around us. Sabertooth tigers, or whatever

COLUMN | RICHARD HUDSON

modern version, might be searching for prey (me!). Our quick judgments of perceived di erences kept us alive millions of years ago. Run like hell or ght. The rapidity of those judgments remains part of our brain’s mainframe today (and frankly, are often wrong).

Loving my neighbor without rapt attention to the possible Tyrannosaurus Rex threat probably didn’t bolster my chances of survival. Right?

Such a conundrum! I’m a modern-day “Love Thy Neighbor — No Exceptions” bumper sticker kind of gal — a human whose brain still co-exists with a hair-trigger, agesold, protective re ex. Eons have sped by, and I’m still scanning the horizon for modern-day T. Rex’s. Loving my neighbor, at rst blush? Maybe, maybe not. I’m still an instinctive, predator-challenged human millions of years later.

Nonetheless, I consciously work at upping my earned collection of new “loving my neighbor” merit badges. Doesn’t that count? (I’ve made a decent start in the merit badge department, not wishing to show o or anything.) Evolution, however, is S-L-O-W, very slow. I’m just plodding along toward greater awareness. At least, I’m plodding…

Meanwhile, my bumper sticker “Love thy neighbor — No exceptions” may be above my present pay grade for marshaling reactivity. What about something more in line with our s-l-o-w human evolution? Hey, what about this: “Humankind — Be Both.” A bumper sticker with a standard that isn’t set so high that I’m always toppling o .

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

Delivering for Fort Liberty/Fort Bragg

It provides a 19.5% pay increase for junior enlisted servicemembers and a 4.5% increase for all other servicemembers.

AS FORT LIBERTY/FORT BRAGG’S congressman, I know there is no investment more important than the one we make in the men and women stationed there, their families, and our veterans. They sacri ce so much to protect our nation and preserve the freedoms we hold so dear, and I am working to ensure they have the support and resources they deserve.

Many service members and their families are away from their communities for extended periods throughout the year and should have the best quality of life possible while they serve our country.

This year’s Servicemember Quality of Life Improvement and National Defense Authorization Act for FY25 (NDAA), which the House recently passed, ensures just that.

It provides a 19.5% pay increase for junior enlisted servicemembers and a 4.5% increase for all other servicemembers.

It also supports new military family housing and commits resources to housing maintenance so that sewage over ows, mold and bedbugs are quickly treated and prevented from reoccurring, an issue I have pushed for years now after hearing awful stories from our soldiers at Fort Liberty/ Fort Bragg. The NDAA further expands access to child care for military families and ensures our troops and their families receive the high-quality health care they deserve.

I am especially proud that the bill includes big wins for our troops and their families at Fort Liberty/Fort Bragg, including over $87 million for needed infrastructure and quality-of-life projects on the base, ranging from funding for the Child Development Center and the SOF arms room addition all the way to housekeeping

BE IN TOUCH

items like generators and water systems to keep the base clean and running. The bill also includes my provisions to strengthen oversight of military housing and prevent President Biden’s proposal to cut funding for our Special Forces unit at Fort Liberty/ Fort Bragg.

Funding important programs that help take care of those who have taken care of us — our nation’s veterans — is one of my top priorities. These heroes sacri ced so much to give us the freedoms that we have today, and we made a promise to ensure Washington works for them.

House Republicans delivered on that promise through recently passing this year’s Military Construction, Veterans A airs, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act — a plan that honors our commitment to our veterans. This legislation in fact provides $30 billion more than last year’s enacted level for veterans. It fully funds veterans’ health care, bene ts and all other VA programs, including toxic exposure-related needs, while protecting their constitutional rights from Big Bureaucracy’s assault. In addition to these measures, I also worked to include funding for VA mental health programs like suicide prevention.

This year’s NDAA and MilConVA Appropriations package represent our unwavering commitment to the brave men and women who have answered the call to serve our nation. Rest assured, I am going to continue to ght for these heroes and make clear that they will always have my support.

Richard Hudson represents North Carolina’s 9th Congressional District in Congress.

Letters addressed to the editor may be sent 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 when necessary. Ideas for op-eds should be sent to opinion@nsjonline.com.

Great debates

“PRAY FOR JACK KENNEDY,” I said to Bill Clinton, then the governor of Arkansas and lead “spinner” for the 1988 vice presidential debate in Omaha, Nebraska. We had been rehearsing that week in Austin, with Rep. Dennis Eckart playing Dan Quayle, me playing moderator Judy Woodru and Texas Sen. Lloyd Bentsen playing himself, the Democratic vice-presidential nominee. I asked Eckart/Quayle why he thought he had the experience to be president, and he answered by comparing himself to John F. Kennedy.

“Does he really do that?” Bentsen asked.

Eckart was well-prepared. He really does, we assured him.

“Well, with your permission,” the senator responded (as ever gracious, as if he needed my permission), if he does that in the debate, I’m going to call him on it. Jack Kennedy was a friend of mine. And he’s no Jack Kennedy.”

“Was he really a friend of yours (ever the fact-checker),” I responded.

“B.A. (his wife) and I went to his wedding.” From that moment on, we were praying for Jack Kennedy.

The rest is history. “Senator, you’re no Jack Kennedy” is one of the famous lines in the lore of great debates. It didn’t win the election for his running mate, Michael Dukakis (vice presidents rarely do), but it clearly won the debate. Indeed, the post-debate polls showed Bentsen handily ahead of both Quayle and Betsen’s running mate, George H.W. Bush.

It doesn’t always work out the way you plan, of course. That same year, Bill Clinton and I had rehearsed over and over with Dukakis the answer to the “Willie Horton question” (Horton was a black convicted murderer who had raped a white woman while on a weekend furlough program) about crime.

I can still recite the answer we rehearsed in my sleep these many years later. It was to make clear that Dukakis was on the side of victims, not criminals. “I know what it’s like to be the victim of crime. My brother was killed by a hit-and-run driver while on his bike and left for dead at the side of the road. My father was beaten and tied up in his medical o ce by thugs who robbed him, looking for drugs.”

But that wasn’t the answer he gave when moderator Bernard Shaw asked him what he would do if someone raped and killed his wife. “Did we just lose the election?” Barry Diller leaned over and asked me as we sat in the holding room watching the debate.

There are moments in debates that get replayed constantly, which can make or break a candidate.

“Are you better o today than you were four years ago?” candidate Ronald Reagan asked in the only debate that year against incumbent Jimmy Carter. I was in Florida working for Carter that year, and you could feel the oor cave in. Carter’s goal was to paint his challenger as a risk. Reagan handled it with aplomb (“There you go again,” he said with a smile) and changed the subject. And a close race turned into a landslide.

Expectations matter. Having portrayed Joe Biden as too old and feeble to walk and talk, Republicans are reportedly worried that he has set the bar too low. Biden has set aside time to prepare the oldfashioned way, with a team who has prepared him in the past. Donald Trump has reportedly opted to use his rallies and interviews as his primary preparation. The danger for Biden is that he will come across as too prepared, too scripted, that he will sound like his talking points. The danger for Trump is that he will do what he does at rallies — go entirely o script and rant and rave about what a victim he is instead of running on the accomplishments of his rst term.

And this is, after all, television, and how you look counts. In her wonderful new book about the ’60s, Doris Kearns Goodwin recounts how JFK won the rst televised presidential debate with Richard Nixon if you watched it on TV; Nixon fared better on the radio.

Not a coincidence. I heard Don Hewitt, the legendary “60 Minutes” producer who produced the debate for CBS, tell the story of how he arranged for a makeup artist to be available for the two candidates. When he asked them if they wanted makeup, JFK immediately declined, and then Nixon had little choice but to follow suit. Kennedy then went to his dressing room and put on makeup himself. Nixon looked swarthy and sweaty under the lights.

obituaries

Randy Wayne Andrews

Sept. 28th, 1953 –June 16th, 2024

Randy Wayne Andrews, 70, of Goldston, passed away peacefully on Sunday, June 16, 2024, with family by his side.

Mr. Andrews was born September 28, 1953, the son of Willie Reitzel and Billie Wallace Andrews. Randy was preceded in death by his father, Willie Andrews; mother, Billie Andrews; and brother, Danny Andrews.

Mr. Andrews was a founding member and the surviving owner of Siler City Trailer Repair for 41 years. He gave to his family and the people he loved in the largest and smallest ways and supported his community through service as a volunteer re ghter in

Ralph Dennis Brooks

June 21st, 2024

Ralph Dennis Brooks, 79, a native of Chatham County, went home to be with the Lord, Friday, June 21st, 2024, at home surrounded by family and loved ones.

Dennis was born in Guilford County, NC to Ralph Jenkins and Polly Paschal Brooks. He is preceded in death by his parents.

Dennis was a graduate of Chatham Central High School and NC State University. He served in the United States Air Force. After returning home, he managed Dr. John Dykers Cattle farms. Later, he worked for NCDA that led him to Hillsborough. He owned and operated Rocking B Saddle

Goldston. He was a member of Antioch Baptist Church. He adored coaching all ages of little league baseball, gol ng and watching sports. He enjoyed being the best “Pop” to his grandchildren, boating on Badin Lake, dancing, and spending time with his wife, Janice.

He is survived by wife, Janice Andrews of Badin Lake, NC, one daughter: Jenifer A. McArthur and son-in-law, Randy McArthur, of Apex, NC, one son: Chase Andrews, and daughter-in-law, Shelley Andrews, of Goldston, NC; and one sister: Tina A. Hyman, husband, Bobby Hyman, and their children Joseph and Andie, of Carthage, NC; grandchildren, Elle Andrews, Connor Andrews, and Aria McArthur.

A graveside service will be held Friday, June 21, 2024, at 10:00 AM, with Rev. John Hackney o ciating. The family will receive friends for a reception following the service at Antioch Baptist Church, 3825 Bonlee-Carbonton Road, Goldston, NC. Memorials may be made to Antioch Baptist Church.

Smith & Buckner Funeral Home is assisting the Andrews family.

Online condolences may be made at www.smithbucknerfh. com

Shop & Ranch with his lovely wife, Linda for 44 years. From a young age, he enjoyed all activities with horses and cattle. He is fondly remembered for his rodeo days, training horses, ranching, and farming which included driving and plowing the garden with his horses. His favorite activity was enjoying being home on the ranch spending time with his cattle, horses, and family up to his nal days.

Dennis is survived by his wife of 58 years, Linda Carter Brooks; his sons, David Brooks and his wife Leslie, and Keith Brooks and his wife Ellen; his grandchildren, Savannah and Ashlynn Brooks, Dawson Brooks and his wife, Brynne; and Dylan Brooks; his brother, Tim Brooks; and many nieces, nephews, and cousins. A funeral service will be held Monday, June 24th, 2024, at 11 AM, at Bonlee Baptist Church. Visitation will be from 10 – 11 am at the church with burial following the service in the church cemetery. Services will be o ciated by Reverend Chuck Link.

Smith & Buckner Funeral Home will be assisting the Brooks family.

Online condolences can be made at www.smithbucknerfh. com

Merle “Bubba” Phillips

Dec. 3rd, 1948 –June 16th, 2024

Merle “Bubba” Phillips, age 75, of Siler City, NC, passed away on June 16, 2024. He passed peacefully with his family surrounding him at the UNC Hospice House in Pittsboro.

Bubba was born December 3, 1948, in Florence County, SC, to Juanita and George Phillips. He moved to the Phillips Family homeplace in Bear Creek, NC where he lived with his parents and sisters, graduating from Chatham Central High School in 1967. Some of his best early memories were spending time with his cousins in South Carolina, hunting and shing. He married Patricia “Trish” McPherson a short time after high school graduation and soon after was drafted into the US Army and was deployed to Vietnam. He spent two years in the Army before returning to Siler City to make a home there, where he lived

for the rest of his life. Bubba worked for The Boling Company for over forty years, eventually retiring and working part time as an electrician for several more years. Bubba was an avid hunter and sherman for his entire life. He was a volunteer for the National Wild Turkey Federation for many years. There was nothing he enjoyed more than teaching his children and grandchildren about wildlife and hunting and shing with them. He probably spent more hours in the woods than in his house. When his grandchildren came along, they were the joy of his life. He never tired of playing with his grandkids, whether pulling them on sleds, pushing swings, swimming in the ocean, building snowmen or watching them at all sorts of sports events. He was lifelong member of Piney Grove Methodist Church, considering his church family an extension of his own family. He enjoyed teaching Sunday School and loved singing in the choir. Every year while he was able, he handcrafted items to sell at the annual church Harvest Sale. He rarely missed a church event and was always the rst to o er a helping hand. Bubba is survived by his wife of 56 years, Patricia, his daughter, Lori Shell (Gray) of Marvin, NC, son, Brent Phillips (Sharon) of Bear Creek, ve grandchildren, Graham, Grace, and Noah Shell and Kallie and Kolton Phillips along with his sister Martha Harris (Lynn) of

West End, NC and brother-inlaw Jerry McPherson (Joyce). He also leaves behind many beloved cousins, nieces and nephews and many cherished hunting buddies and friends. He was predeceased by his parents, Juanita and George Phillips of Bear Creek, NC, his in-laws, Dave and Dot McPherson of Siler City, and three sisters, Annie Lee Scott, Annette Underwood, Georgia Phillips.

Bubba’s family will receive family and friends at Smith and Buckner Funeral Home in Siler City on Thursday June 20 from 6:00-8:00 P.M. The family will hold a memorial service, o ciated by Rev. Herbert Lowry at Piney Grove Methodist Church at 2:00 on Friday June 21 with interment to follow immediately after in the church cemetery. There will be a reception in the church fellowship hall immediately following the memorial service. Please consider donations to Piney Grove Methodist Church Choir (PO Box 9, Siler City 27344) or the National Wild Turkey Federation (770 Augusta Rd, Edge eld, SC 29824 or your.nwtf.org, select legacy giving) in lieu of owers.

Bubba’s family would like to express their heartfelt gratitude to the doctors and nurses at NC Neurosciences Hospital and SECU Jim and Betsy Bryan Hospice Home of UNC Health Care, who provided such wonderful care to Bubba in his last days. Please share your thoughts and memories with the family at www.smithbucknerfh.com

MOHAMMAD ABU GHOSH / AP PHOTO

Noam Chomsky’s wife says reports of linguist’s death are false

The 95-year-old has been hospitalized in Brazil after su ering a stroke last year

By Hillel Italie

The Associated Press

NEW YORK — Noam Chomsky’s wife, Valeria Wasserman Chomsky, says reports Tuesday that the famed linguist and activist had died are untrue.

“No, it is false,” she wrote Tuesday in response to an emailed query from The Associated Press. Noam Chomsky,

95, had been hospitalized in Brazil while recovering from a stroke su ered a year ago, Valeria Chomsky told the AP last week. But the Bene cencia Portuguesa hospital in Sao Paulo said in a statement that Chomsky was discharged on Tuesday to continue his treatment at home.

Earlier Tuesday, Chomsky was trending on X as false reports of his death abounded. Jacobin and The New Statesman published obituaries for Chomsky, though the former changed its headline from “We Remember Noam Chomsky” to “Let’s Celebrate Noam

Chomsky.” The New Statesman took its essay by former Greek nance minister Yanis Varoufakis down altogether. Brazilian news site Diario do Centro do Mundo also took down its story announcing Chomsky’s death and issued a correction.

The Chomskys have had a residence in Brazil since 2015. Noam Chomsky, known to millions for his criticisms of U.S. foreign policy, taught for decades at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In 2017, he joined the College of Social & Behavioral Sciences at the University of Arizona in Tucson.

lease to house the Chapel Hill police department.

“The Guardians of the Hill have an old building in bad shape that is beyond renovation and repair, and there’s a coal ash site here that needs to be remediated, and we need to determine future uses for the site,” said Deputy Town Manager Mary Jane Nirdlinger.

The police department, including the emergency operations center and technology sta , will move from 828 Martin Luther King Blvd. to leased space at 7300 Millhouse Rd.

“The bene t of the proposed lease is that it allows the town adequate time to plan for a permanent space for the police department and to plan for and fund remediation of the Brown eld.”

The 15-year lease will cost $1.37 million for the rst year.

On Wednesday, the council held a concept review for a potential development project located within the Parkline East Village development near Old Chapel Hill Road and North White Oak Drive.

The concept review is the rst step in the development process. It allows the council and developers to ask each other questions and work out further details before a true site plan and rezoning request are brought back later.

“The proposal we have really is designed around the idea of connectivity of the internal streets and of creating a place that is at peace with its neighbors,” said Susana Dancy of Rockwood Development Group. “Our goal has been to work with both the approved projects and with the developer on the proposed project so that these things become part of one place. That each project is going to have its own distinctive air but they’re going to play together.”

The proposed project is on 11.6 acres of property and will have three to ve multifamily buildings with around 360 units ranging from studios to three-bedroom units. The developer for the project will be ZOM Living.

“We look for ways to study a site and see how can we wrap the unique portions of the site into a unique design and then how can we further move to nd art that is contextual and puts people at ease and wrap that into our plans,” said ZOM Living Director of Development Standards Ben Stevens. “ZOM has been looking for the right opportunity for a very long time to do work in Chapel Hill. There aren’t a lot of pieces of land like the one we’re talking about.”

According to their website, ZOM Living’s mission is to “create unique residences for people who appreciate the nest quality and craftsmanship and who love the feeling of something timeless.”

The council voiced initial concerns over the proposed height of the building, the preservation of green spaces, the limitation of parking and the number/size of a ordable housing units within the development.

“I’m sure that you’re aware of the challenges that developers are having in general to even producing market-rate housing,” Dancy said. “Right now, we are con dent that we can provide 10% of the units at 80% AMI. If you want more than that, then we need to gure out where the tradeo s are on that. It becomes possibly less viable when we start pushing those numbers.”

The Chapel Hill council will reconvene for the 2024-25 season in September. CHAPEL

Total bond amount being presented to voters in November

TOWN OF SILER CITY PUBLIC NOTICE

The public will take notice that the Board of Commissioners of the Town of Siler City proposes to accept sealed bids for the purchase of the following property:

101 East Raleigh Street having a Parcel ID of 15254

If you have questions or would like to inspect the above property, please contact Chris McCorquodale, Director of Public Works & Utilities, at (919) 742-4731 or by email at cmcorquodale@silercity.org.

Sealed bids may be submitted to the bids shall be accepted unless upon time of

to 5% of the amount of bid. The Town Board reserves the right to reject any or all bids.

Valeria Wasserman Chomsky, the wife of famed linguist Noam Chomsky (left), said reports of her husband’s death are untrue.

COURTESY TOWN OF CHAPEL HILL

The Chapel Hill Town Council.

LEARN ABOUT LAND - Chatham Land Experts, www.learnaboutland.com - 919-3626999. JY2,tfnc FOR RENT

TOWNHOUSE FOR RENT – 3 bedrooms, large living room, kitchen, dining room area, laundry hook-up, enclosed yard and garage. – lease 12 months - $1,200 rent per month, security deposit $1,850. Credit score, Experian, needs to be 600 or above. Email: furndi@hotmail.com. Please submit phone number and copy of credit score. Please call 201-232-7918. JN27,JY4,11p

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. J27c

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.

M2,tfnc

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. A2,tfnc

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. J14,tfnc

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. n/c

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. Jy6,tfnc

SERVICES

REFINISHING FURNITURE-Re nishing all types of furniture - New and OldRepairing also – FREE ESTIMATES – NELSON REFINISHING – 919-663-2117, 919-930-4616. 5tp

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. A26,tfnc

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. 919-5422803. A2,tfnc

LETT’S TREE SERVICE - tree removal, stump grinding, lot clearing. Visa & Master Card accepted. Timber. Free estimates. 919-2583594. N9,tfnc

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. N9-D31p

ROOF WASHING – Softwash

– Cleans ALL black streaks o roofs to make

new again And to prolong the life of the shingles. Call John Hayes – 919-548-0474. M28-D31p

WANTED

Song writer needs music written to great lyrics, good vocals and connections to publisher. I live in Siler City. 702-449-0250Whitney Carter. 4tp

HELP WANTED

CHATHAM MONUMENT COMPANY has an immediate job opening. This is a full-time position and involves placing monuments in the cemetery in Chatham and surrounding counties. Job requirements are: Must have a valid NC driver’s license, must be able to lift 75 pounds if necessary. Must have a good attitude, the ability to work well with others and be willing to learn. Also needs reliable transportation to and from work. Pay will be based on the individual and their ability to do the work. Apply in Person to 227 N. 2nd Ave. Siler City, NC 27344 My23,rtfnc FOOD SERVICES STAFF, Pittsboro Christian Village is accepting applications for Server, Pantry Cook, and Cook. Apply in

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#16E000096-180

The undersigned, GEORGE W. ALSTON, having quali ed on the 21ST day of JUNE 2024, as ADMINISTRATOR of the Estate of MILDRED ALSTON,

said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This is the 27th Day of JUNE 2024. GEORGE W. ALSTON, ADMINISTRATOR 930 EAST ALSTON RD. PITTSBORO, NC 27312 Run dates: J27,Jy4,11,18p

NOTICE OF SERVICE BY PROCESS OF PUBLICATION

STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA

COUNTY OF CHATHAM

IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE DISTRICT COURT DIVISION

FILE NO.: 23JT000053-180

IN RE: “A.M.S.”

DOB: 7/18/23

NOTICE OF SERVICE BY PROCESS OF PUBLICATION

TO: Biological father/Father/unknown father of the above male child, born at UNC Hospital/Chapel Hill, NC to Tina Smith. PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that a Petition has been led to terminate your parental rights to the above-referenced minor child. You have forty days from 6/27/24, the rst date of publication of this Notice to respond to said Petition by ling a written answer to the petition with the Chatham Clerk of Court. Your parental rights to the juvenile may be terminated upon failure to answer the petitions within the time prescribed.

Any attorney appointed previously in an abuse, neglect or dependency proceeding and still representing you shall continue to represent you. If you are indigent and not already represented by an attorney, you are entitled to a court-appointed attorney by contacting the Chatham County Clerk of Court.

STEPHENSON & FLEMING, L.L.P.

/s/ANGENETTE STEPHENSON

BY:

Attorney for Petitioner, CHATHAM COUNTY

DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES

109 Conner Dr. Suite 208 Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27514

Telephone: (919) 869-7795 6/27/24; 7/4/24; 7/11/24

NOTICE

Chatham County Finance O ce P O Box 608 Pittsboro, NC 27312 Finance O cer: Roy Lynch 12 East Street, Pittsboro, NC 27312 Phone: (919) 5428210 Fax: (919) 542-4261 Established 1771 Surplus Property Conveyance

Chatham County Board of Commissioners approved conveyance of surplus property on May 6th, 2024: 2002 Ford Ranger VIN 1FTYR10U62PA94624 to Chatham County Schools.

NOTICE OF HEARINGS

Town of Siler City

The following item will be considered by the Siler City Planning Board as a legislative hearing. The hearing will be conducted during the Planning Board’s regular meeting on July 8, 2024, beginning at 6:30 p.m. in the court room located in the Siler City Town Hall at 311 N. 2nd Ave. Legislative Hearing

The Town of Siler City Planning Board will consider and move to recommend a text amendment to the Town’s Uni ed Development Ordinance (UDO). The proposed text amendment, to Article XI “Supplementary Use Regulations”; Section 162 – Noise, will provide for updated noise regulations compatible with the uses allowed by-right in Light Industrial (L-I) and Heavy Industrial (H-I) zoning districts. The proposed item is available for review by contacting Timothy Mack at tmack@silercity.org or 919-726-8626. All persons interested in the outcome of this item are invited to attend the legislative hearing and present comments, testimony, and exhibits on the above referenced item.

Interested parties may also submit written comments. Written comments can be submitted by email to tmack@silercity.org. Individuals desiring to speak may sign up by registering their name and information on the sign-up sheet, located outside the entry doors to the court room.

The Town of Siler City will make appropriate arrangements to ensure that disabled persons are provided other accommodations, such arrangements may include, but are not limited to, providing interpreters for the deaf, providing taped cassettes of materials for the blind, or assuring a barrier-free location for the proceedings. This information is available in Spanish or any other language upon request. Please contact Kimberly Pickard at 919-726-8620, 311 North Second Avenue, Siler City, North Carolina 27344, or kpickard@ silercity.org for accommodations for this request. Esta información está disponible en español o en cualquier otro idioma bajo petición. Por favor, póngase en contacto con Kimberly Pickard al kpickard@silercity. org o 919-726-8625 o en 311 North Second Avenue, Siler City, North Carolina 27344 de alojamiento para esta solicitud.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of Larry Winston Ryan, File No.: 24E115 Having quali ed as executor of the estate of Larry Winston Ryan, deceased, 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 at the address below on or before the 6 day of September 2024, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons, rms, and corporations indebted to said estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This 6th day of June 2024. Dwight Ryan c/o Munson Law Firm, PLLC 894 Sparksford Drive Russellville, AR 72802

EXECUTOR’S NOTICE

GENERAL NOTICE TO CREDITORS COURT FILE: 24E001242-180

EXECUTOR’S NOTICE

Having quali ed as Executor of the Estate of Jean J. Williams, Deceased, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, this is to notify all persons, rms, and corporations having claims against the Estate to present them, duly veri ed, to the undersigned at P.O. Drawer 2958, Burlington, North Carolina 27216 on or before September 9, 2024, or this Notice will be pled in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to the said Estate should please make immediate payment. This the 6th day of June, 2024.

BENJAMIN D. OVERBY Executor

ATTORNEY FOR THE ESTATE: Benjamin D. Overby, Esquire THE VERNON LAW FIRM, P.A. P.O. Drawer 2958 Burlington, NC 27216-2958 Publish: June 6, 2024, June 13, 2024, June 20, 2024, June 27, 2024

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA NOTICE TO CREDITORS

CHATHAM COUNTY

HAVING QUALIFIED as Executor of the Estate of Jack Sipe, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, this is to notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against the estate of said deceased to present them to the undersigned on or before the 26th day of September, 2024, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. This the 20th day of June, 2024. Jacqueline Annette Shaw Administrator of the Estate of Jack Sipe 88 Sipe Farm Drive Bear Creek, North Carolina 27207 MOODY, WILLIAMS, ATWATER &

NOTICE OF SERVICE OF PROCESS BY PUBLICATION

STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA

In The District Court of Chatham County IN THE MATTER OF: James Robert Hilton, Jr.

v. Kristin Brianne Johnson, Will Spencer Johnson FILE NO. 24SP000008-180

TO: Kristin Brianne Johnson

Take notice that a pleading seeking relief against you has been led in the above-entitled action. The Nature of the relief being sought is as follows:

LEGITIMATION You are required to make defense to such pleading not later than August 6, 2024 and upon your failure to do so the party seeking service against you will apply to the Court for the relief sought.

This the 19th day of June, 2024.

POST, FOUSHEE & GORDON, P.A. /Kevin C. Foushee Kevin C. Foushee

Attorney for Petitioner 205 Courtland Drive Sanford, North Carolina 27330 (919) 775-5616 RUN DATES: June 27, 2024; July 4, 2024; July 11, 2024

PUBLIC NOTICE

Willow Oak Montessori

IDEA – Part B (611) Grant Public Notice

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEAPart B, Public Law 108.446) Project is presently being amended. The Project describes the special education programs that Willow Oak Montessori School proposes for Federal funding for the 20242025 School Year. Interested persons are encouraged to review amendments to the Project and make comments concerning the implementation of special education under this Federal Program. All comments will be considered prior to submission of the amended Project to the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction in Raleigh, North Carolina. The IDEA-Part B Project is open to the public for review and comments during the week of July 11, 2024 in the o ce of Allyssa McNeal located at 1476 Andrews Store Road Pittsboro, NC 27312 June 27 July 4

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

ESTATE OF DAVID ANDREW MCKAY

FILE NO: 2024 E 001295-180

ALL PERSONS, rms and corporations having claims against David Andrew McKay, deceased of Chatham County, N.C., are noti ed to exhibit the same to the undersigned Torlen Laut Wade, Executor on or before September 6, 2024, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the Decedent are asked to make immediate payment. This 6th day of June 2024. Torlen Laut Wade, Executor C/O Jones, Branz & Whitaker LLP, 4030 Wake Forest Rd., Ste. 300, Raleigh, NC 27609.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA NOTICE TO CREDITORS

CHATHAM COUNTY

HAVING QUALIFIED as Administrator of the Estate of Robert Jordan, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, this is to notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against the estate of said deceased to present them to the undersigned on or before the 5th day of September, 2024, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. This the 29th day of May, 2024. Phillip Douglas Jordan, Administrator of the Estate of Robert Jordan 16127 Bowridge Lane Houston, Texas 77053

MOODY, WILLIAMS, ATWATER & LEE

ATTORNEYS AT LAW

BOX 629

SILER CITY, NORTH CAROLINA 27344 (919) 663-2850 4tp

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA

NOTICE TO CREDITORS CHATHAM COUNTY

HAVING QUALIFIED as Co-Administrators of the Estate of Grady Ray Coble, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, this is to notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against the estate of said deceased to present them to the undersigned on or before the 12th day of September, 2024, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery.

This the 4th day of June, 2024. Steven Ray Coble and Annette Coble Willett, Co-Administrators of the Estate of Grady Ray Coble 6258 Airport Road Bear Creek, North Carolina 27207 MOODY, WILLIAMS, ATWATER & LEE ATTORNEYS AT LAW BOX 629 SILER CITY, NORTH CAROLINA 27344 (919) 663-2850 4tp

NOTICE TO CREDITORS:

ALL PERSONS, rms and corporations having claims against Richard Elsom Paddock, deceased, of Chatham County, N.C. are noti ed to exhibit the same to the undersigned on or before September 4, 2024, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment. This 6th day of June, 2024. Reuben Geroge Paddock, Administrator 101 Conner Drive, STE 402 Chapel Hill, NC 27514 June 6, 13, 20, 27 2024

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

CHATHAM COUNTY HAVING QUALIFIED as Co-Administrators of the Estate of Genie Lucille Coble, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, this is to notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against the estate of said deceased to present them to the undersigned on or before the 12th day of September, 2024, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. This the 4th day of June, 2024. Steven Ray Coble and Annette Coble Willett, Co-Administrators of the Estate of Genie Lucille Coble 6258 Airport Road Bear Creek, North Carolina 27207 MOODY, WILLIAMS, ATWATER & LEE

ATTORNEYS AT LAW BOX 629 SILER CITY, NORTH CAROLINA 27344 (919) 663-2850 4tp

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

The undersigned, having quali ed as the Executor of the Estate of Sandi Barbara Rose aka Sandi B. Rose,

deceased, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against the estate of said Sandi Barbara Rose aka Sandi B. Rose to exhibit them to the undersigned: Bill Ehrlich, Executor c/o Burt Langley, P.C. 149 S Lexington Ave Asheville, NC 28801 on or before September 9, 2024, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons, rms and corporations indebted to said estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned at the address listed above. This the 6th day of June, 2024. Bill Ehrlich Executor of the Estate of Sandi Barbara Rose aka Sandi B. Rose Chatham County Estate File 24 E 235

April M. Burt

Attorney for Executor, Bill Ehrlich

Burt Langley, PC 149 S Lexington Ave Asheville, NC 28801

(For Publication: Thursdays, June 6, 13, 20, and 27, 2024)

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

State of North Carolina County of Chatham IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE SUPERIOR COURT DIVISION BEFORE THE CLERK FILE NO.: 23 E 000547-180

In the Matter of the Estate of CATHERINE LUCILLE GUNTER, Deceased. NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Mary G. Marlowe, having quali ed as Ancillary Executor of the Estate of Catherine Lucille Gunter, deceased, hereby noti es all persons, rms or corporations having claims against the decedent to exhibit same to the said Mary G. Marlowe at the address below on or before September 6, 2024, or this Notice may be pleaded in bar of any payment or recovery of same. All persons indebted to said decedent will please make immediate payment to the undersigned at the address set out below. This is the 6th day of June, 2024.

Mary G. Marlowe, Ancillary Executor Estate of Catherine Lucille Gunter c/o Susan K. Hill, Esq. PO Box 2161 Carolina Beach, NC 28428 Run Date: 6/6, 6/13, 6/20, 6/27/2024

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA

CHATHAM COUNTY NOTICE TO CREDITORS

The undersigned, having quali ed on the 11th day of June, 2024 as Executor of the Estate of Constance Louise Michel, 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 September 27, 2024, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. Debtors of the Decedent are asked to make immediate payment to the undersigned. This the 27th day of June, 2024.

Valery M. Nelson Executor of the Estate of Constance Louise Michel 1424 Arborgate Circle Chapel Hill, NC 27514 For Publication on: June 27, July 4, July 11, and July 18, 2024 If there are any questions, please call Valery Nelson at 301-802-6068. Thank you

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA

CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#24E001307-180

The undersigned, DEBORAH JEAN JOHNSON, having quali ed on the 7TH day of JUNE 2024, as EXECUTOR of the Estate of BETTY G. LANE, 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 25TH Day of SEPTEMBER 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 27th Day of JUNE 2024.

DEBORAH JEAN JOHNSON, EXECUTOR 7003 NASHVILLE RD. LANHAM, MD 20706

EXECUTOR Run dates: J27,Jy4,11,18p

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA

CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#24E001263-180

The undersigned, CHRIS GRAY, having quali ed on the 10TH day of MAY 2024, as ADMINISTRATOR of the Estate of KAYETTA GRAY, 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 11TH Day of SEPTEMBER 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 13th Day of JUNE 2024.

CHRIS GRAY, ADMINISTRATOR 1106 GRACE ST. RALEIGH, NC 27604 Run dates: J13,20,27,Jy4

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of Rebecca Dale Wright Thomas Having quali ed as Executor of the Estate of Rebecca Wright Thomas, 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 at 100 Europa Drive, Suite 271, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27517, on or before the 29th day of September 2024, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons, rms, corporations indebted to the said estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This is the 27th day of June 2024.

Daniel F. Thomas, Jr., Executor

Timothy A. Nordgren Schell Bray PLLC Attorney for the Estate 100 Europa Drive, Suite 271 Chapel Hill, NC, 27517 FOR PUBLICATION: 6/27, 7/4, 7/11, 7/18, 2024

NOTICE

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY ESTATE OF SHARON JEAN GRAHAM FILE NO. 24 E001322-180

All persons, rms, and corporations having claims against the estate of Sharon Jean Graham, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, are noti ed to exhibit them to the undersigned Executor on or before the 27th day of September, 2024, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment. This the 24th day of June, 2024. Miriam Delony, Executor 1709 Smith Level Rd Chapel Hill, NC 27516 Published June 27, 2024, July 4, 2024, July 11, 2024, and July 18, 2024.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#24E001298-180 The undersigned, DAVID BYNUM RANKIN, having quali ed on the 10TH day of JUNE 2024, as EXECUTOR of the Estate of PHYLLIS JEAN RANKIN, 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 18TH Day of SEPTEMBER 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 20th Day of JUNE 2024. DAVID BYNUM RANKIN, EXECUTOR 432 MOORE MT. RD. PITTSBORO, NC 27312 Run dates: J20,27,Jy4,11p

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#24E001301-180 The undersigned, GARY L. NUNN, having quali ed on the 4TH day of JUNE 2024, as EXECUTOR of the Estate of MAXINE B. NUNN,

years that meet the following criteria: Similar size and scale Accelerated schedule Team Organization and Experience - Provide an organizational chart for the project, including all personnel assigned to this project, including all subconsultants. Provide resumes of each key team member. Schedule - Describe your plan and schedule for completing the work within the proposed schedule as noted above. Additional Information - Provide any additional information that you feel makes your rm the most quali ed for this project.

Section III – Evaluation Criteria The Town sta will perform evaluation of the proposals. The proposals will be evaluated based on the rm’s ability to meet the requirements of this RFQ. The following, equally weighted, criteria shall be used in the evaluation process: Understanding and approach to the project Firm and Team Experience Experience with the Town and the Town’s water distribution system Experience with grant administration Familiarity with the locality

Section IV - Submittal Information and Requirements

SUBMITTAL DEADLINE JULY 23, 2024 AT 10:00 AM Statements of Quali cation should be mailed or delivered to:

Chris McCorquodale Public Utilities Director Town of Siler City 311 N. Second Street PO Box 769 Siler City, NC 27344 919-742-4733 cmccorquodale@silercity.org

Envelopes should be marked “Town of Siler City RFQ –Siler City Water Transmission System Improvements.” The Town of Siler City is an Equal Opportunity employer. The Town reserves the right to disqualify from consideration statements received after the date and time speci ed above. Any statements may be withdrawn or modi ed by written request prior to the date and time of receipt provided above. In submitting these quali cations, it is understood by respondent that the Town of Siler City reserves the

Nasdaq, where its market value brie y surpassed those of General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. in late August.

Investor enthusiasm has since cooled, and its shares are trading below $4 from a peak of $82.35. VinFast is facing delays in construction of a $4 billion factory in Chatham County, where the company said in an email that it is reviewing and evaluating “all aspects of the construction process.” It’s facing legal troubles over a crash that killed four people in California. It’s also dealing with allegations of patent infringement.

VinFast’s future matters for Vietnam, both because of its ambitions dovetail with the Communist Party’s own goals and because of parent company Vingroup’s large role in the Vietnamese economy. The conglomerate began as an instant noodle company in Ukraine in 1990s and now runs all sorts of businesses.

VinFast reported a net loss of $2.39 billion last year despite a 90% increase in revenue. To patch its tattered nances, Vingroup recently sold its pro table commercial property arm, Vincom Retail. Vingroup’s founder, Pham Nhat Vuong, has committed $1 billion of his personal wealth, on top of the $11.4 billion of nancing the parent company injected into VinFast in 2017-23, according to a ling to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

“We will never let VinFast go,” he told Vingroup shareholders at their annual general meeting in April, according to state media.

The VF3 initially will be sold in emerging markets in Asia, where car buyers graduating from motorcycles to four-wheelers might not be as nnicky as Americans, said Tu Le, the founder of the consultancy Sino Auto Insights.

Just 3.1 meters long, and 1.6 meters wide and high (10 feet long and 5.2 feet wide and high), it can squeeze into narrow lanes in Asian cities but still seats ve people.

VinFast aims to sell 20,000 of these cars in Vietnam this year, and deliveries will begin in August. It’s being sold on the Southeast Asian e-commerce website Shopee, with an initial deposit of about $2,000. The company says more than 27,000 people applied to buy the car in the rst three days after orders opened on May 13.

Many, like Dieu Linh, 32, are rst-time car buyers. A businesswoman, she and her husband wanted to switch from

MEMORIAL from page A1

come and see if you can’t go to Washington,” Renee Corder said.

Rita Honeycutt, a veteran service o cer for Randolph County Veterans Services, said having the wall in Randolph County was special.

“We’ve tried to push it out as much as possible to get the word out,” Honeycutt said. “A lot of veterans can’t get to Washington to experience it.”

Honeycutt said state Sen. Da-

TAKE NOTICE

motorbikes to a car, which is safer and more comfortable during extreme heat or rains.

“The VF3 price is tempting. But I’ll wait and see how it performs on the road before I make my deposit,” she said.

VinFast plans to start selling VF3s in the Philippines this year and in Indonesia, Thai-

vid Craven Jr., who spoke during the opening ceremony, was heavily involved in supporting the bid to bring the wall to Asheboro and obtaining corresponding sponsorships.

The grounds were open to visitors around the clock for 96 hours. Group tours with a short program were available — for instance, those were conducted at 10:30 p.m. Thursday and 3 a.m. Friday upon demand. It was free to attend.

More than 1,000 people visited “The Wall That Heals” and

land, the U.S. and Europe by next year.

It opened its rst showroom in Jakarta, Indonesia’s capital, in April and says it has sold about 600 SUVs to Indonesian companies. It has begun construction of a factory in India. Even in Asian markets, VinFast faces plenty of competi-

its museum and mobile education center, set up outside the middle school, during its rst two days in Randolph County. Using a database of deceased veterans, volunteers helped visitors locate speci c names on the wall.

Honeycutt said the application process to have the wall visit Asheboro began in April 2023. Her o ce learned of the bid’s acceptance in November and has worked on many details since.

Earlier last week, “The Wall That Heals” was escorted by

tion, especially from Chinese EV maker BYD, which has already achieved a big enough scale for cost-e cient manufacturing. Chinese EV makers like BYD and Haima are rapidly expanding in Southeast Asia. But in Vietnam, VinFast’s near-monopoly over charging infrastructure — charging sta-

perhaps up to 200 motorcyclists representing American Legion Riders, Combat Veteran Riders, AmVet Riders and others from Creekside Park in Archdale to Asheboro, where it was assembled with the assistance of some Vietnam War veterans.

“I was always interested in going to the wall,” said Parrish, an Air Force veteran who visited with his son and daughter. Chris and Joanne Corsbie of Asheboro stopped by to re ect on that era and the commitments made by so many.

tions dot the country, not just in big cities but also in more remote hilly provinces — consumer mistrust of Chinese products and nationalist sentiment may give it an initial edge, said Le Hong Hiep, a visiting fellow at Singapore’s ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute.

BYD plans to launch three models — the Atto 3, Dolphin and Seal — in Vietnam next month.

VinFast must increase its sales to reduce per unit costs for its sprawling factory in northern Vietnam’s Haiphong province, which has the capacity to make around 250,000 EVs a year but is making a fraction of that.

“An idle factory just burns through money,” said Tu Le, the auto consultant.

India, the world’s third-largest car market by sales, o ers the promise of scale, but only if VinFast builds its own factory there to enable it to bene t from policies that protect local carmakers. High import taxes mean that even at $9,200, the VF3 would be too expensive for Indians, said Ishan Raghav, the managing editor of the Indian car magazine autoX.

The VF3 might appeal to Indian families looking for a compact car with a range suitable for getting around in India’s crowded cities. But newcomers have to set up broad sales and EV charging networks and that will take a few years, he said.

“All of these — manufacturing, sales and service and charging networks — are capital intensive and take time,” he said.

Vingroup has launched a company called V-Green to build its own charging infrastructure in Vietnam and other key markets. In Thailand, it plans to build its own charging infrastructure, Vu Dang Yen Hang, chief executive o cer of VinFast Thailand, told The Associated Press in an interview in March.

VinFast is racing against time.

Despite prioritizing sales in the U.S., bad reviews for its early models in the hypercompetitive market meant that it sold fewer than 1,000 cars in North America last year and only around 35,000 cars globally, below its target of at least 40,000 cars. About two-thirds of VinFast’s revenue in 2023 came from sales to a taxi service owned by Vingroup, according to a ling to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

VinFast’s main challenge is to improve its nancial performance, said Hiep.

“If they cannot sustain it long enough, they may go bankrupt,” he said.

“We were both in high school during the Vietnam War, and we wanted to support this,” Joanne Corsbie said. “We knew people who fought. Fortunately, they came home.”

“What I really like about this is its continued recognition of these folks,” Chris Corsbie said. “I was very impressed.”

Asheboro was the only site in North Carolina for “The Wall That Heals” among 33 communities nationally in 2024. The next stop for the exhibit is in Biddeford, Maine.

CAROLINA, AND MORE PARTICULARLY DESCRIBED AS FOLLOWS: LOT 1: ALL THAT CERTAIN LOT OR PARCEL OF LAND DESCRIBED AS LOT NO. 1, BLOCK “C”, AS MORE PARTICULARLY DESCRIBED AND DEFINED ON PLAT ENTITLED “OAKLAWN SILER SUBDIVISION, SILER CITY” AND RECORDED IN PLAT BOOK EN AT PAGE 39-602. REFERENCE IS MADE TO SAID PLAT FOR MORE ACCURACY AND CERTAINTY OF DESCRIPTION.

LOT 2: BEGINNING AT A POINT, SAID POINT BEING THE NORTHEAST CORNER OF LOT NO. 1, BLOCK “C’ ACCORDING TO PLAT RECORDED IN PLAT BOOK EN PAGE 39-602, CHATHAM COUNTY REGISTRY; AND RUNNING THENCE WITH THE NORTHERN LINE OF LOT NO. 1, LOT NO. 2 AND A PORTION OF LOT NO. 3 FROM THE POINT AND PLACE OF BEGINNING 125 FEET TO A POINT, BEING THE NORTHWEST CORNER OF CLARENCE GILLILAND PROPERTY AS MORE PARTICULARLY DESCRIBED IN DEED RECORDED IN BOOK 449 AT PAGE 448, CHATHAM COUNTY REGISTRY; AND RUNNING THENCE IN A NORTHERLY DIRECTION PARALLEL WITH NORTH EVERGREEN AVENUE 50 FEET TO A POINT; THENCE IN AN EASTERLY DIRECTION PARALLEL WITH THE NORTHERN BOUNDARIES OF LOTS NO. 1, NO. 2 AND A PORTION OF LOT NO. 3, 125 FEET TO A POINT IN THE EASTERN MARGIN OF NORTH

EVERGREEN AVENUE; THENCE IS A SOUTHERLY DIRECTION WITH THE EASTERN MARGIN OF NORTH AVENUE 50 FEET TO THE POINT AND PLACE

HAU DINH / AP PHOTO

Workers assemble electric cars at a VinFast factory in Hai Phong, Vietnam, in September 2023.

HAU DINH / AP PHOTO

VinFast also makes electric motorcycles, as pictured in early June.

CHATHAM

CHATHAM SPORTS

Chatham has won ve straight games as of Sunday

By Asheebo Rojas Chatham News & Record

DURHAM — After a rough start to the 2024 season, Chatham Post 292 has nally found its groove.

In a doubleheader against area foe Durham Post 416 last Thursday, Post 292 won its third and fourth games in a row, beating Durham 11-2 in game one and 2-0 in game two. The two wins gave Post 292 its sixth and seventh wins of the season and a winning record for the rst time since beating Randolph County in the season opener. After a scoreless rst inning in game one in which both teams left two runners on base, Chatham went ahead

and put the game away in the top of the second inning.

Seven hits, ve walks and multiple defensive mistakes by Durham allowed Chatham to score all 11 of its runs in the inning, and the three outs didn’t come until Post 292’snal three at-bats.

“We might’ve had (Durham) just a little bit outmanned in that game,” Post 292 coach John Headen said. “They have a young bunch.”

Chatham’s Chancelor Terry came away with two hits in the explosive inning as a bunt in his rst at-bat led to an error that allowed Ian McMillan to score Post 292’s rst run, and his single later in the inning brought Joaquin Gordon home for the ninth run.

With the help of two errors from Chatham and two straight singles, Durham -

Jennag Fadely competed in the women’s 100 breaststroke

By Asheebo Rojas Chatham News & Record

FOR FORMER Jordan-Matthews swimmer Jennah Fadely, having the opportunity to compete for a spot on the U.S. Olympic team would go as well as her mind wanted it to.

A longtime aspiration came true for Fadely last week as she competed in the U.S. Olympic swim trials at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Fadely swam in the women’s 100 breaststroke preliminaries and nished in 19th place with a time of 1 minute, 9.10 seconds, which was two spots short of qualifying for the semi nals. Although she didn’t make the Olympic roster, Fadely, going into her senior year at Kenyon College, found the trials to be “a really cool experience.”

“I’ve been wanting to go to the Olympic trials, like I’ve had my sights set on it for a long time,” Fadely said. “Leading up to it, I spent a lot of time trying to visualize what it would be like to be there because I knew it was going to be a really big venue. There’s going to be a lot of people, and I knew there was always the possibility that it was overwhelming.”

But it wasn’t. Since she’d rst seen her older sister, Morgan Fadely, swimming and started participating herself at the age of 7, Fadely had set high aspirations on her own in order to push herself to be her best. That, of course, came with the support of her father and early coach — Siler City District 5 Commissioner and Mayor Pro Tem Lewis Fadely — and her sister. As a kid, she wasn’t sure her goals would come to fruition, but she gured anything could happen if she just didn’t give up. Looking back, Fadely had de -

livered many times with heavy weights on her shoulders. She became J-M’s rst state champion in swimming after winning the 2021 girls’ 100 breaststroke, and she is a six-time national champion in college, winning in four di erent events.

When it came to winning for one’s school, especially in a team setting in which others depend on one’s performance, Fadely knew the pressure was on. But for the Olympic trials, alongside the best athletes in the country, the mind was at ease.

“My goal was just to enjoy it, be able to be there and take it all in and no become nervous,” Fadely said. “It was a big venue and it was a lot of space, but when I was on the pool deck, it felt comfortable.” At the Olympic trials, Fadely could just focus on herself and her individual race without the pressure of what a team or program needed from her.

Post 292 sits behind Post 11 in the region three standings

By Asheebo Rojas Chatham News & Record

THE WINNING streak for Chatham County Post 292 is back to zero after last week’s Heroes League action. In two one-run games, Post 292 split the outcomes, beating Wayne Post 11 19U, 2-1, and losing to South Wake for the rst time this season, 7-6. The loss, Chatham County’s second defeat of the year, broke its seven-game winning streak.

Against Post 11 on June 17, the game came down to a defensive battle.

Chatham got on the board rst in the bottom of the rst inning after an error made on Avery Kiger’s y ball sent Logan Gunter and Jaylee Williams home. Post 11 responded in the top of the second inning with its only run of the game which came after a sacri ce by Hayli Verme allowed Sarah Hess to score. Outside of that, both pitchers gave batters a hard time, and Chatham’s defense helped with crucial outs.

PJ WARD-BROWN / CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

Chatham County Post 292’s Salvador Delgado delivers a pitch against Durham at Duke’s Jack Coombs Field. Delgado had six strikeouts in his start as Chatham 292 swept Durham to extend its win streak to four games.

PHOTO COURTESY KENYON COLLEGE

Former J-M swimmer Jennah Fadely gives a thumbs up after a college race.

Chatham County softball players earn all-district honors

Fourteen Chatham County athletes made the list

By Asheebo Rojas Chatham News & Record

FOURTEEN CHATHAM

County athletes made the North Carolina Softball Coaches Association’s all-district list for District 5.

The NCSCA released the all-district list on June 19. District 5 consists of Chatham, Alamance, Caswell, Davidson, Forsyth, Guilford, Randolph, Rockingham and Stokes counties.

Players from all four of Chatham County’s traditional high schools earned all-district honors. Former Jordan-Matthews shortstop Logan Gunter was named the 2A Player of the Year for District 5. Gunter is headed to Furman to continue her softball career next season, and she is the rst Division I softball signing for Jordan-Matthews since its current softball coach Holly Clark signed to Charleston Southern in 2015.

Seaforth also earned their rst softball all-district selections in school history as two Hawks made the list.

Chatham Central produced the most all-district athletes

from page B1

Post 292 pitcher Dakota Redmon pitched all seven innings and struck out eight batters. After allowing three hits and having a runner on third base in the top of the third inning, Chatham County right elder Calissa Clendenin threw the runner out at home to prevent the tying run.

From there, both teams traded quick innings and Verme, Post 11’s pitcher, took care of business on the mound, too. She struck out seven batters in six innings, but Post 11 just couldn’t take advantage of its scoring opportunities.

In the top of the seventh with two outs and Hannah Lee in scoring position, Redmon got the last laugh, striking out Hailey King to once again halt the tying run and win the game.

On June 19 against South Wake, a team Chatham County has beaten twice this season, Post 292 had a better showing at the plate, but its opponent did just as well.

Both teams recorded nine hits and six RBIs. Kiger gave Chatham County a huge spark to start the game, hitting a tworun home run in the top of the rst inning to give Post 292 a 2-0 lead.

South Wake bounced back with an even stronger response, knocking in four hits and being walked four times to score six runs in the bottom of the rst

in the county, having six players make the 1A list. Chatham Central’s six selections are the second-most from a school on the 1A list behind High Point Christian Academy’s seven selections. Jordan-Matthews tied with McMichael to have the second-most selections in 2A ( ve).

The NCSA released the allstate list Wednesday.

Coaches from all four classi cations who are members of the NCSCA select the all-district teams. Here’s a rundown of every Chatham County all-district athlete and their stats from 2024:

CHATHAM CENTRAL (1A)

Chloe Brewer (24 games played, .438 batting average, 35 hits, 20 runs batted in, one home run)

Emma Burke (24 GP, .349 BA, 22 H, 14 RBIs, one HR)

Katherine Gaines (21 GP, .481 BA, 37 H, 22 RBIs)

Maddie Kaczmarczyk (21 GP, .429 BA, 24 H, 14 RBIs, one HR; (pitching); 14-2 record, 169 strikeouts, 2.32 earned run average)

Sallie Oldham (23 GP, .541 BA, 40 H, 28 RBIs, two HRs)

inning. The rst run may have been the most costly for Chatham County as it was scored on a wild pitch.

Down 6-2 going into the fourth inning, Chatham County’s Emma Burke chipped away at the de cit with a twoRBI double that sent Katherine Gaines and Logan Gunter home. South Wake once again responded with another run in the bottom of the inning, keeping a three-run lead until Post 292’s last chance in the top of the seventh.

With no outs, Kiger delivered once again with a two-run homer, bringing the de cit to just one run. Chatham County’s Sophia Murchison and Marcy Clark reached rst base thereafter, and while Sydney Russell grounded out for the second out of the inning, Murchison made it to third base.

Yet in the next at-bat, Lilli Hicks hit the ball right to South Wake’s shortstop, leaving Chatham County’s winning runs on base and ending the game.

Following Monday’s rematch with Post 11, Post 292 will play Post 11 twice more (July 10 and July 22) and South Wake once more (July 15).

As of Sunday, Chatham County is 7-2 overall and 2-1 in region three play, sitting in second place in the region standings behind Post 11 (3-1 in region play). Post 292’s remaining games are all against regional opponents.

BASEBALL from page B1

nally got on the board in the bottom of the fourth inning after bringing two baserunners home. The rst game ended after that inning.

Thanks to a solid pitching performance from Chatham’s Salvador Delgado, Durham only managed three hits in game one, and Delgado also struck out six batters.

Game two saw much less action with both teams combining for just six hits. After Chatham’s Janden Evans singled to start the bottom of the rst inning, Zane Overman knocked him in with a single of his own to give Post 292 a 1-0 lead.

Post 292 didn’t bring in another run until the second inning in which Eduardo Gutierrez’s sac y brought Anders Johansson home after he was hit by a pitch just two at-bats prior.

Chatham’s pitching tandem between Anthony Lopossay and Brandon Rives helped shut out

Caleigh Warf (23 GP, .338 BA, 26 H, 17 RBIs, one HR)

JORDAN-MATTHEWS

(2A)

Logan Gunter (.515 BA, .985 slugging percentage, 23 RBIs, 4 HRs)

Marcy Clark (.329 BA, 14 RBIs; (pitching); 4-0 record, 4.2 ERA)

Lilliana Hicks (.381 BA, 21 RBIs; (pitching); 14-2 record, 2.09 ERA, 110 Ks)

Sophia Murchison (.464 BA, .786 SLG, 32 RBIs, three HRs) Reagan Smith (.293 BA, 25

RBIs; (catching); seven runners caught stealing)

NORTHWOOD (2A)

Courtney Talbert (21 GP, .377 BA, 20 H, 17 RBIs, one HR)

SEAFORTH (2A)

Emma Grace Hill (20 GP, .523 BA, 34 H, 23 RBIs, two HRs; (pitching); 4-7 record, 114 Ks, 3.91 ERA)

Annika Johannson (20 GP, .510 BA, 26 H, 11 RBIs, one HR)

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Durham as they allowed just one hit each. The game ended after the top of the fth inning.

Following the doubleheader victories, Post 292 picked up its fth straight win by beating Davidson County Post 8 9-6 on Friday.

As of Sunday, Chatham is 8-6 on the year with a 3-2 record in area play.

Headen said the team’s heightened maturity and familiarity with their roles has helped Chatham to its recent success over the last two weeks.

The team is a mix of players from Chatham County high schools and schools in surrounding areas which contributed to Post 292 needing some time to put it all together earlier in the season.

“It’s good to see our guys starting to jell a little bit,”

Headen said. “These coaches and these players are starting to gure out that it’s more of a season than just one game. … It takes di erent people every day.”

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

or to apply!

Avoid These Estate Planning Mistakes

By the time you reach retirement age, you may have accumulated a 401(k), IRA and other investment accounts, along with insurance policies and physical properties. You’ll use some of these assets to support your retirement, but the rest may end up in your estate — which is why an estate plan is so important.

So, to leave a legacy for your family and those philanthropic groups you support, you need a comprehensive estate plan — and you need to avoid making mistakes. Here are some of the most common ones:

• Procrastinating – Estate planning, and its implications about our mortality, may not be a pleasant topic to think about. Yet, putting off your estate plans can be risky. If you were to pass away or become incapacitated without doing any estate planning, the results could be costly for your loved ones. One possible consequence: If you haven’t at least created a basic, simple will, the courts could decide how to divide and distribute your assets, and they may do so in a way you wouldn’t want.

• Not updating wills and other documents – Drafting a will and other legal documents, such as a living trust, is an important step in your estate planning. But you shouldn’t just create these arrangements and forget about them. Changes in your life and among your loved ones — deaths, divorce, remarriage, new children and more — may result in the need for you to update your estate plans, so it’s a good idea to review them periodically.

• – Similar your life and family situation, you may policies. These designations carry a lot of weight and can even supersede instructions in your will, so you’ll need to make sure they are current and accurate.

• Not properly titling assets in a trust –Depending on your situation, you may

which may allow your estate to avoid the time-consuming and expensive process of probate. A living trust also helps give you control over how, and when, you want your assets distributed. However, you need to retitle your assets in the name of the trust for the trust to be effective.

• Not choosing the right executor –An executor carries out your wishes based on the instructions you’ve given in your an executor’s duties is not as simple as, say, following a recipe for a basic meal. Consequently, while you might just want to pick a close family member as exeutor, you need to be sure this person is competent, good with details and won’t legal issues involved in settling an estate. If your initial choice doesn’t have these person outside the family.

Finally, here’s one more mistake: going it alone. Estate planning is not a do-it-yourself activity. To help ensure your estate plan addresses all the issues involved, you’ll need to work with a legal advisor, and possibly your tax and Devoting the necessary time and effort can help you avoid many of the mistakes that threaten the effectiveness of estate plans — and the fewer mistakes you make, the better off your This article was

CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

Emma Grace Hill delivers a pitch earlier this season. Hill was one of two Seaforth softball players chosen for all-district.

Sydney Russell delivers a pitch for Chatham Post 292 earlier this season.

SOFTBALL

ASHEEBO ROJAS / NORTH STATE JOURNAL

Local youth football player selected to NC All State Game

Lennox Mordecai

will be attending Jordan-Matthews in the fall

By Asheebo Rojas Chatham News & Record

LENNOX MORDECAI, a rising freshman football player at Jordan-Matthews, will play in the North Carolina All State Football Game held at Guilford College on Sunday.

Mordecai will compete against some of the top youth football players in the state from sixth to eighth grade.

“I was excited when I heard I got selected to be in that game,” Mordecai said.

Youth coaches help the All State Game identify top athletes by nominating players. Once players have been nominated, they go through a detailed evaluation process by the All State Game’s talent selection team of former college athletes, high school coaches and some former and current college coaches. After a seven- to 10-day evaluation process, the team informs athletes if they made the roster.

All State Games are also held for boys’ and girls’ basketball, boys’ and girls’ soccer, and volleyball in di erent states.

Mordecai played quarterback, running back and wide receiver with the Siler City Jets program last year. He said he’s most excited to showcase his running skills and his ability to play physical in front of the other coaches at the event.

Mordecai is preparing to join a Jordan-Matthews program that’s going through a transition with Kermit Carter replacing Ryan Johnson as head coach.

The Jets went 2-8 in 2023. Despite the ongoing on- eld struggles that Jordan-Matthews has endured over the years, Mordecai believes his selection to the event exempli es the caliber of

TRIALS from page B1

Before her race, Fadely did her usual routine of listening to music, jumping and pacing back and forth in the ready room. She didn’t care that it was an Olympic trial and people might question her way of doing things — the main strategy was to keep it simple

“I was excited when I heard I got selected to be in that game.”

youth football talent developed in Siler City. At the event, the players will go through a three-day itinerary starting Friday. On day one, the players will participate in a combine and media session followed by a team practice and a

and perform the race how she knows to do it.

“I don’t really think much,”

Fadely said. “I’ve done this so many times that I kind of just turn my brain o , and I know what to do without thinking about it. I don’t want to overthink it and start second guessing myself.” Said Fadely, “I don’t remem-

guest speaker. On day two, the players will end another day of team practice and another guest lecture with a skills showcase. The game will be played on the nal day at 9:45 a.m. The All State Game event organizer Matt Williams has partnered with local foster care programs to contribute more than $250,000 in backpacks, clothes and gift cards to foster kids in need since 2004. The event encourages the athletes’ families to bring gift cards to donate, and in 2023, families raised over $20,000.

ber much of my race just because I was just reacting to the race and being in there knowing that this is where I put everything into practice.”

Just about the only thing Fadely thought about before and during the race was what she wanted to get out of it. Of course, she wanted to make the Olympic team, but in the pre -

Ian McMillan

Post 292 American Legion team

McMillan put together a solid all-around week for Chatham Post 292 in its three wins over Durham Post 416 and Davidson County Post 8. In the three games, McMillan combined for two hits, three RBIs, and three runs, leading the team in hits and RBIs in the 9-6 win over Davidson County while also making some crucial defensive plays.

McMillan is headed to Brunswick Community College to continue his baseball career next spring. In his senior season with Jordan-Matthews, McMillan recorded a .429 batting average, 30 hits, 31 runs, 12 RBIs and two home runs from the plate.

liminaries, she just wanted to win her heat and have a chance at reaching the semi nals.

A little over a minute after the start of the race, Fadely didn’t quite reach those goals, but in her mind, and on the results sheet, it was still a success.

Coming into the race ranked No. 35 in the event, Fadely jumped 16 spots in the nal rankings after the rst swim.

“You had to be top 16, and I was 19, so I’ll take it,” Fadely said. “I was happy with that.”

From here, Fadely will go back to setting her mind on winning another national title at Kenyon. She feels like a push for the 2028 Olympics is “denitely” a possibility once she graduates college.

PJ WARD-BROWN / CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

COURTESY TIFFANY TYSON

Lennox Mordecai runs the ball for the Siler City Jets during a game last season.

Lennox Mordecai

SIDELINE REPORT

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

NCAA eyes expanding March Madness from current 68 teams

The NCAA has presented a plan to Division I conference commissioners that would expand the lucrative men’s and women’s basketball tournaments by four or eight teams alongside an option to leave each eld at 68 teams. If approved, the NCAA would keep its 64 -team bracket but would add play-in games involving the 10 through 12 seeds. The earliest the NCAA Tournament could expand would be the 2025-26 season and more meetings are scheduled. The men’s tournament last expanded in 2011 when it went from 64 to 68 teams. The women’s tournament matched that in 2022.

OLYMPICS

Athletics to move to 1st week of 2028 Olympics, swimming to 2nd

Los Angeles The 2028 Los Angeles Olympics announced changes it says will create an estimated $156 million in savings and revenue increases. Swimming will be held at 38,000-seat SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, basketball at Intuit Dome in Inglewood and gymnastics at Crypto.com Arena. To accommodate the opening and closing ceremonies at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and SoFi Stadium, the traditional schedules for athletics and swimming will be adjusted. Athletics will move to the rst week of the games, while swimming will be held the second week. The Los Angeles Olympics will be held from July 14-30, 2028.

MLB Yankees’ Stanton goes on injured list for 8th time in 6 seasons

New York New York Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton went on the injured list for the eighth time in six seasons, a day after straining his left hamstring. A 34-year-old former MVP, Stanton left Saturday night’s 8-3 win over the Atlanta Braves and was set to undergo imaging Sunday. Stanton doubled o the center- eld wall in the fourth inning and winced when he rounded third base on Gleyber Torres’ double. Trent Grisham pinch hit for Stanton leading o the sixth. Stanton had missed 266 of 708 games in the past ve seasons.

SOCCER

Pelé’s mother dies at age 101 in Brazil

Sao Paulo Celeste Arantes, the mother of late soccer great Pelé, died on Friday at age 101. Arantes spent the past ve years in a vegetative state and was not informed about her famous son’s death in 2022. The Brazilian Football Confederation says Arantes was hospitalized for the past eight days. The Pelé Foundation says on its social media channels that the mother of the only threetime World Cup-winning player was a role model. Pelé was one of Arantes’ three children. She was initially against her son becoming a professional footballer but gradually changed her views as her son became more successful.

Bell takes checkered ag in rainy New Hampshire

The race is the rst in Cup Series history to end with cars running on rain tires

By Dan Gelston The Associated Press

LOUDON, N.H. — Christo-

pher Bell raised a broom over his head and clutched a 24-pound lobster in Victory Lane all because he earned his third Cup win of the season in an outcome that would have been impossible before this NASCAR season.

Heck, it still looked pretty grim for most of Sunday at a rainy track.

Once the skies cleared, NASCAR busted out its latest creation it had saved for a rainy day — wet weather Goodyear tires that allowed the race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway to continue all the way to a thrilling end.

Bell mastered the Cup Series’ rst race that ended with cars running on rain tires and

pulled away after a 2-hour, 15-minute weather delay to beat darkness and the eld and win Sunday at New Hampshire.

He also swept the weekend at New Hampshire following Saturday’s win in the X nity Series.

“Hopefully that was entertaining because it was something di erent, something new, and nobody knew what to expect and what to do,” Bell said. “The guys that gured it out the quickest were the most successful.”

With darkness falling, Bell cruised past Josh Berry and Chase Briscoe and remained the driver to beat at New Hampshire. He has four wins in the X nity Series at Loudon and won a Cup race at the track for a second time.

This time, he won with 86 laps raced on the new tires.

“It was dark. It was very, very dark. That was creeping up in a hurry to being too dark to race,” Bell said. “Certainly there were

“It was something di erent, something new, and nobody knew what to expect and what to do. The guys that gured it out the quickest were the most successful.”

Christopher Bell

dry parts on the track, but there were still a lot of wet parts on the track, too. I can’t tell you how far away it was, but in my opinion, I didn’t think it was ready for the dry tires yet.”

Briscoe was second and Berry third. Kyle Larson and Chris Buescher completed the top ve.

“I think we could have probably started with the track a little bit wetter,” Briscoe said.

“The beginning was pretty fun.

We were all over the place. Five wide at times and slipping and sliding around.”

Even with the start of the race bumped up a half-hour, New Hampshire was a mess from the moment the green ag was dropped. The race was marred by wrecks that wiped some of NASCAR’s biggest stars out of contention — all while the rest of the eld tried to remain in contention and beat the looming rain that hovered over the entire weekend.

Tyler Reddick, who won at Talladega this season, held the lead when the race was redagged because of rain with 82 laps left in the scheduled 301lap race.

New Hampshire and NASCAR waited out a tornado watch, nearby lightning strikes and a severe thunderstorm warning before it could resume the race after a delay of more than two hours.

NASCAR let teams use wet-weather tires for the only second time in a points race this season. Teams had a maximum of four sets of wet-weather tires to race on the damp oval track. Teams had to take rain tires during pit stops and their position could not be a ected. They also had no choice of tire.

Lakers hire Redick as new head coach

The former Duke star and NBA veteran has no coaching experience

By Greg Beacham The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES — JJ Redick has been hired as the head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, according to reports.

The 39-year-old Redick is an extraordinary choice by the Lakers, who hired a 15-year veteran with absolutely no coaching experience to lead a franchise with 17 NBA titles, one of the biggest brand names in world sports — and LeBron James, the top scorer in league history. Redick was a pro cient outside shooter for six teams before his retirement in September 2021, when he moved into a career in broadcasting and podcasting. He joined ESPN’s lead commentary team earlier this year.

ESPN rst reported the decision. Before Redick nished broadcasting the NBA nals, he met with the Lakers last weekend and apparently did well enough to end the franchise’s lengthy coaching search. Less than two weeks after UConn coach Danny Hurley turned down the Lakers’ ardent advances, Redick accepted the job in a remarkable three-year journey from the court to the broadcast booth to

the Lakers’ bench.

Redick replaces Darvin Ham, who was red May 3 despite leading the Lakers to two playo berths and a Western Conference nals appearance in 2023. Redick began recording a regular podcast with James two months ago, and their “Mind the Game” collaboration is already wildly popular, with listeners often emerging impressed by the duo’s basketball acumen and high-level discussion of tactics

and motivation. Now these two minds will be working together for the Lakers, with Redick leading a roster headlined by James, who is six months younger than Redick. Everything is contingent on James deciding to return to play with Anthony Davis and the Lakers, of course. James, who will enter his 22nd NBA season this fall, could decline his $51.4 million contract option this month to become a free agent.

But hiring Redick seems to be another calculated move by the Lakers to maximize their chances of keeping the 20-time AllStar and the driving force behind their 2020 championship team.

Redick’s coaching experience is limited to his children’s youth teams, but he has been around the game his entire life. He is the leading scorer in the history of Duke, where he played four seasons under Mike Krzyzewski. Redick’s arrival ends another unusual o season coaching search for owner Jeanie Buss, general manager Rob Pelinka and the Lakers, who are hiring their eighth head coach since Phil Jackson’s nal departure in 2011, and their fourth since James arrived as a free agent in 2018.

Los Angeles needed six weeks to settle on Ham in the summer of 2022, but the longtime assistant coach was dismissed after the Lakers lost to defending champion Denver in the rst round of the Western Conference playo s. Ham led the Lakers to two winning seasons and a victory in the inaugural In-Season Tournament last year, but many fans and observers — and, clearly, the Lakers’ front o ce — were not impressed by his leadership or preparation.

Davis memorably said during the playo s that the Lakers “have stretches where we don’t know what we’re doing on both

STEVEN SENNE / AP PHOTO

Christopher Bell, front left, holds up a lobster while standing with his wife Morgan, front right, as they celebrate his win in

Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

PHELAN M. EBENHACK / AP PHOTO

Former Orlando Magic guard JJ Redick leaves the court after being honored by the team earlier this season. The Lakers have hired Redick for his rst coaching job.

Mays was baseball’s greatest living Hall of Famer — his heir isn’t obvious

A

look at who might step up as the face of the sport

By Noah Trister The Associated Press

AMID ALL THE tributes and memories about the legendary Willie Mays, consider this perspective on his greatness: He may have been baseball’s greatest living Hall of Famer — not just at the time of his death this week, but from the moment he was inducted in 1979.

Mays’ combination of hitting, baserunning and defensive brilliance was so extraordinary that simply calling him an all-time great feels insucient. Some sort of superlative is warranted, and while “greatest living Hall of Famer” is obviously subjective, few would dispute that Mays had a strong case.

As for who deserves that title now — well, it’s a much tougher question.

If Mays’ godson, Barry

Bonds, were in the Hall, he’d be a pretty easy choice as the game’s greatest living Hall of Famer, but PED-related controversy continues to keep him out. Here are a few other candidates for this uno cial but

compelling honor:

Rickey Henderson

Henderson is the leader among living Hall of Famers in Baseball Reference’s wins above re-

placement, and while he’s known largely for his speed, at his peak he was an all-around o ensive force. Henderson dominated the 1989 playo s with Oakland and then won his lone MVP award the following year. He retired with a career on-base percentage of .401 and is still the all-time leader in stolen bases and runs.

Mike Schmidt

In a 13-year span from 197486, the Philadelphia third baseman won three MVPs, eight National League home run titles and 10 Gold Gloves. And his numbers — which included three straight on-base percentage titles and seven 100walk seasons — have aged well through the years. Schmidt struck out a lot and rarely had a high batting average, but modern stats only enhance his status as one of the most valuable sluggers of his era.

Greg Maddux, Randy Johnson or Pedro Martinez

Take your pick from this trio of stellar pitchers who combined to win a dozen Cy Young Awards. Martinez’s 1997-2000 peak may have been the best of the bunch, although Maddux’s incredible 1992-95 stretch was limited a bit by a couple strike-shortened seasons. Johnson pitched until he was 46, and only Nolan Ryan has more strikeouts than the 6-foot-10 left-hander.

Sandy Koufax

Koufax is one of Mays’ contemporaries, but he’s been tough to evaluate historically because of his early retirement due to arm problems. From 1963-66, Koufax posted an ERA under 2.00 three times and had over 300 strikeouts three times. Then his career ended at age 30. Ken Gri ey Jr.

There’s a beautiful symmetry between Mays, the “Say Hey Kid,” and Gri ey, who was just “The Kid.” They’re even one spot apart on the career home run list. But after debuting at age 19 and combining elite slugging with electrifying play in center eld, Gri ey’s durability became an issue after he turned 30.

Honorable mention

Cal Ripken Jr. was more than just a popular player with a record-setting consecutive games streak. ... Carl Yastrzemski and Wade Boggs had similar career WAR numbers to Ripken. Yaz put up great o ensive stats during the pitcher-friendly late 1960s, and Boggs probably deserved more MVP consideration while winning ve batting titles in six years during the ’80s. ... Mariano Rivera never won a Cy Young Award or MVP, but he deserves a nod as the only player elected to the Hall unanimously.

Step down from elite college football, o cials pitch model for new sports landscape

UNC Asheville’s AD presented a new way to organize athletics at an online panel

By John Zenor The Associated Press

FACING UPHEAVAL on the way in college athletics, a handful of administrators and athletes from smaller schools have been working on a new model of governance. The hope of members of the Football Championship Subdivision and Division I-AAA (programs without football) is to give their athletes more of a say and essentially treat them more like students than employees.

It was a way to be proactive — and potentially head o future

lawsuits — amid seismic changes across college sports.

Janet Cone, the president of I-AAA athletic directors and the AD at UNC Asheville, joined colleagues to present their proposed model earlier this month at the annual convention of the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics and to others during an online panel organized by the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics.

“Our goal was to create a sustainable model that was philosophically and legally defensible and would keep our subdivisions competing in Division I,” Cone told the group.

There are 128 FCS programs that o er football, from Abilene Christian to Youngstown State. There are another approximately 90 I-AAA schools with-

out football that include basketball-focused athletic programs such as Gonzaga, Creighton and St. John’s.

Organizers say their plan would keep their schools at the D-I level while giving athletes more control over governance without resorting to legal action and perhaps provide them with a chance to earn credits toward a degree for athletics.

“I think that the response has been very positive,” said Tom Michael, athletic director at FCS school Eastern Illinois. “I think people believe that we’re down the right path. We understand we’re not at the nish line. Nobody has suggested that this is the nal version of this model.

“I think that there’s an understanding that we need to be proactive on this and we can’t sit and

wait for somebody else to try to point us in the direction or create the pathway for us.”

The group enlisted the Pictor Group as consultants last November. The plan has the stated mission of treating athletes more like other students and outlines a di erent role for coaches: Potential no-nos could include removing a player from a team as punishment or pressuring them to move into certain majors. Other proposals cover unreasonable time commitments, rules for appearance o the eld and testing for recreational drugs.

“Obviously there’s got to be some kind of control to compete at a high level but not exerting control of everything they do,” Cone said of coaches. “Those pieces are really critical to our model where the student-athletes

are going to be very involved.”

Former Abilene Christian football player Anthony Egbo Jr. and Radford volleyball player Meredith Page are among the athletes involved. They surveyed peers on what coaches expected of them and got some 100 responses to help formulate the model.

Egbo told the Knight Commission audience that the increased professionalizing of college sports has created more desire for athletes to have more say “in the development of policies that impact our experience.”

“The question that we’ve been asking is: What if there’s a better way for student-athletes to have in uence over their experience that didn’t have to go through judicial and third-party systems?”

said.

Egbo

UNC ASHEVILLE ATHLETICS

UNC Asheville athletic director Janet Cone is taking on a leadership role as smaller schools try to nd a place in the new college athletics landscape

VASHA HUNT / AP PHOTO

A memorial to Willie Mays is seen inside Rickwood Field before a baseball game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the San Francisco Giants in Birmingham, Alabama, last week.

The ruby slippers were at the heart of “The Wizard of Oz,” a beloved 1939 musical

The Associated Press

GRAND RAPIDS, Minn.

— Judy Garland’s hometown in Minnesota, where she wore a pair of ruby slippers in “The Wizard of Oz,” is raising money to purchase the prized footwear. The footwear was stolen from a local museum and later turned over to an auction company. Grand Rapids, Minnesota, where the late actress was born in 1922, is fundraising at its annual Judy Garland festival, which kicks o Thursday. The north Minnesota town is soliciting donations to bring the slippers back after an auction company takes them on an international tour before o ering them to prospective buyers in December.

“They could sell for $1 million, they could sell for $10 million. They’re priceless,” Joe Maddalena, Heritage Auctions executive vice president, told Minnesota Public Radio. “Once they’re gone, all the money in the world can’t buy them back.”

The funds will supplement the $100,000 set aside this year by Minnesota lawmakers to purchase the slippers.

Dallas-based Heritage Auctions received the slippers from Michael Shaw, the memorabilia collector who originally owned the iconic shoes. Shaw had loaned them in 2005 to the Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids, Minnesota. That summer, someone smashed through a display case and stole the sequins-and-beads-bedazzled slippers. Their whereabouts remained a mystery until the FBI recovered them in 2018.

The man who stole the slippers, Terry Jon Martin, 76, pleaded guilty in October to theft of a major artwork. He admitted to using a hammer to smash the glass of the museum’s door and display case in what his attorney said was an attempt to pull o “one last score” after turning away from a life of crime. He was sentenced in January to time served because of his poor health.

In March, a second man, 76-year-old Jerry Hal Saliterman, was charged in connection with the theft.

The ruby slippers were at the heart of “The Wizard of Oz,” a beloved 1939 musical. Garland’s character, Dorothy, danced down the Yellow Brick Road in her shiny shoes, joined by the Scarecrow, the Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion.

Garland, who died in 1969, wore several pairs during lming. Only four remain.

Maddalena, with Heritage Auctions, says he sold two other pairs of ruby slippers. Actor Leonardo DiCaprio and a group of the actor’s friends purchased one set for the Academy of Motion Pictures and Sciences.

He said advance notice could help venues like the Judy Garland Museum secure the slippers that will be auctioned in December. The museum, which includes the house where Garland lived, says it has the world’s largest collection of Garland and “Wizard of Oz” memorabilia.

“We wanted to enable places that might not normally be able to raise the funds so quickly to have plenty of time to think about it and work out ways to do that,” Maddalena said. “That’d be an amazing story. I mean, if they ended up back there, that’d be a fantastic story.”

First Walmart opens, iPhone debuts, Franz Ferdinand assassinated

Gen. George Washington took command of the Continental Army at Cambridge, Massachusetts

The Associated Press

JUNE 27

1957: Hurricane Audrey slammed into coastal Louisiana and Texas as a Category 4 storm; the initial o cial death toll from the storm was placed at 390, although a variety of state, federal and local sources have estimated the number of fatalities at between 400 and 600.

1880: Author-lecturer Helen Keller, who lived most of her life without sight or hearing, was born in Tuscumbia, Alabama.

JUNE 28

1838: Britain’s Queen Victoria was crowned in Westminster Abbey.

1914: Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife, Sophie, were shot to death in Sa-

Shiny

rajevo by Serb nationalist Gavrilo Princip, an act that sparked World War I.

1919: The Treaty of Versailles was signed in France, ending the First World War.

1939: Pan American Airways began regular trans-Atlantic air service with a ight that departed New York for Marseilles, France.

JUNE 29

1613: London’s original Globe Theatre, where many of Shakespeare’s plays were performed, was destroyed by a re sparked by a cannon shot during a performance of “Henry VIII.”

1776: The Virginia state constitution was adopted, and Patrick Henry was made governor.

2007: The rst version of the iPhone went on sale to the public; more than 2.3 billion iPhones have been sold to date.

2009: Disgraced nancier Bernard Mado received a 150year sentence for his multibillion-dollar fraud. (Mado died in prison in April 2021.)

JUNE 30

1934: Adolf Hitler launched his “blood purge” of political and military rivals in Germany in what came to be known as the “Night of the Long Knives.”

1936: Margaret Mitchell’s novel “Gone With the Wind” was released.

1958: The U.S. Senate passed the Alaska statehood bill by a vote of 64-20.

JULY 1

1867: The British North America Act made Canada a self-governing dominion of Great Britain. Until 1982, the national holiday was called Dominion Day, but it is now known as Canada Day.

1903: The rst Tour de France began. (It ended on July 19; the winner was Maurice Garin.)

1997: Hong Kong reverted to Chinese rule after 156 years as a British colony.

2004: Actor Marlon Brando died in Los Angeles at age 80.

JULY 2

1964: President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law a sweeping civil rights bill passed by Congress prohibiting discrimination and segregation based on race, color, sex, religion or national origin.

1881: President James A. Gar eld was shot by Charles J. Guiteau at the Washington railroad station; Gar eld died the following September.

1937: Aviator Amelia Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan disappeared over the Pacific Ocean while attempting to make the rst ’round-the-world ight along the equator.

1962: The rst Walmart store opened in Rogers, Arkansas.

JULY 3

1863: The pivotal three-day Civil War Battle of Gettysburg in Pennsylvania ended in a signi cant victory for the North as Confederate troops failed to breach Union positions during an assault known as Pickett’s Charge.

1775: George Washington took command of the Continental Army at Cambridge, Massachusetts.

1971: Singer Jim Morrison of The Doors died in Paris at age 27.

monolith removed from mountains outside Las Vegas; How it got there still is a mystery

It was taken down to keep tourists from trampling through the backcountry

The Associated Press

LAS VEGAS — A strange monolith found jutting out of the rocks in a remote mountain range near Las Vegas has been taken down by authorities.

How it got there is still unsolved.

“It remains unknown how the item got to its location or who might be responsible,” Las Vegas police said Friday in a series of posts on X announcing the removal of the glimmering, 6-foot-4 prism.

Its discovery over the weekend, and quick removal because of public safety and environmental concerns, revived a pandemic-era mystery that captured the public’s imagination when shiny monoliths evoking the object that appears in the Stanley Kubrick movie “2001: A Space Odyssey” began to appear around the globe.

“This thing is not from another world,” Lt. Nick Street of Utah’s Department of Public Safety said at the time.

The Utah monolith, believed to be the rst in the series, had been embedded in the rock in an area so remote that ocials didn’t immediately reveal its location for fear of people getting lost or stranded while trying to nd it. But internet sleuths quickly found the coordinates, and hordes of curious tourists eager to see and touch the otherworldly object arrived, attening plants with their cars and leaving behind human waste in the bathroom-free backcountry.

Authorities said the same concerns led them to tear down the latest monolith on Thursday.

ager of the wildlife refuge, conrmed Friday that the monolith had been removed but said she couldn’t comment on whether federal authorities have opened a criminal investigation.

The police department said the object was being kept at a secret location while authorities try to gure out the best way to dispose or store the massive structure made out of a re ective sheet of metal that was molded into a prism and secured with rebar and concrete.

Photos accompanying the department’s social media posts showed the object on its side after its removal, which left a large indent in the ground because the rebar had been buried deep into the dirt and rocks.

It was the latest discovery in a series of mysterious columns that have popped up since at least 2020.

In November of that year,

Members of the Las Vegas police search and rescue team found the object near Gass Peak, part of the vast Desert National Wildlife Refuge where bighorn sheep and desert tortoises can be found roaming.

solutions

a similar metal monolith was found deep in the Mars-like landscape of Utah’s red-rock desert. Then came sightings in Romania, central California, New Mexico and on the famed Fremont Street in downtown Las Vegas.

All of them disappeared as quickly as they popped up, adding to the lore.

It was illegally installed on federal land established to protect bighorn sheep and is home to rare plants and desert tortoises. The Desert National Wildlife Refuge, which is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, is the largest wildlife refuge outside of Alaska and can cover the state of Rhode Island twice.

Christa Weise, acting man-

The department said it “discourages anyone from venturing o marked trails or leaving objects and items behind.”

“This poses a danger to you and the environment,” Las Vegas police said. In Utah, the removal of the monolith there also left behind a hole in the red rock. The Bureau of Land Management said Friday that it was still actively investigating the Utah case.

LAS VEGAS METROPOLITAN POLICE DEPARTMENT VIA AP

Last week, the mysterious Monolith was removed from Gass Peak, part of the vast Desert National Wildlife Refuge in Nevada.

“We

famous birthdays this week

Tom Cruise turns 57, Pamela Anderson turns 52, Mel Brooks hits 98

The Associated Press

June 27: Writer-director J.J. Abrams (“Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” “Alias”) is 58. Actor Tobey Maguire is 49. Reality star Khloe Kardashian is 40.

June 28: Comedian-director Mel Brooks is 98. Actor Kathy Bates is 76. Actor John Cusack is 58. Actor Mary Stuart Masterson is 58. Singer and former “American Idol” contestant Kellie Pickler is 38.

June 29: Actor Gary Busey is 80. Drummer Ian Paice of Deep Purple is 76. Singer Don Dokken of Dokken is 71.

June 30: Actress Nancy Dussault is 83. Singer Glenn Shorrock of the Little River Band is 75. Jazz bassist Stanley Clarke is 68. Guitarist Hal Lindes of Dire Straits is 66. Actor David Alan Grier is 63. Actor Vincent D’Onofrio is 60.

July 1: Actress Olivia de Havilland is 103. Actress Leslie Caron is 88. Actor Jamie Farr is 85. Actress Jean Marsh (“Upstairs, Downstairs”) is 85. Singer Deborah Harry of Blondie is 74. Singer Fred Schneider of The B-52’s is 68. Actor Dan

in 2016, turns 52 on Monday.

Aykroyd is 67. Actor Alan Ruck (“Succession,” “Ferris Bueller’s Day O ”) is 68. Actress Pamela Anderson is 52. July 2: Jazz pianist Ahmad Jamal is 89. Writer-comedian Larry David (“Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Seinfeld”) is 72. Keyboardist Roy Bittan of the E Street Band is 70. Actress Wendy Schaal (“American Dad,” “It’s a Living”) is 65. Model-actress Jerry Hall is 63.

July 3: Writer Dave Barry is 72. Talk show host Montel Williams is 63. Actor Tom Cruise is 57. Actress Yeardley Smith (“The Simpsons”) is 55.

ARTHUR MOLA / AP PHOTO

Pamela Anderson, pictured

AP PHOTO

Comedian and director Mel Brooks, pictured here in 1966, turns 98 on Friday.

the stream

Hulu

showcases fashion icon Von Furstenberg, ‘That ’90s Show’ returns

Celine Dion gets an intimate documentary portrait in “I Am Celine Dion”

The Associated Press

THIS WEEK, Megan Thee Stallion drops her new album, Celine Dion gets an intimate documentary portrait in “I Am Celine Dion,” and Apple TV+ debuts Eva Longoria as a woman whose life changes completely in “Land of Women.”

MOVIES TO STREAM

Celine Dion gets an intimate documentary portrait in “I Am Celine Dion” (streaming on Prime Video), a lm chronicling the Canadian singer’s battle with Sti Person Syndrome. For the lm, director Irene Taylor spends time with Dion at home and in her personal life as she re ects on her career and discusses the di culties of her condition, a rare a iction that she rst divulged she was living with in 2022. Before Lily Gladstone was Oscar-nominated for Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon,” she starred in the Sundance 2023 entry “Fancy Dance,” director Erica Tremblay’s drama about life on the Seneca-Cayuga Nation reservation in Oklahoma. The lm, which debuts Friday on Apple TV+, is about Jax (Gladstone), who searches for her missing sister with her niece Roki (Isabel Deroy-Olson).

The life and style of fashion icon Diane von Furstenberg are chronicled in directors Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy and Trish Dalton’s documentary “Diane von Furstenberg: Woman in Charge,” streaming on Hulu. The lm, which kicked o the recent Tribeca Festival, proles the Belgian designer whose huge in uence on 20th-century fashion is most notable for bringing the wrap dress to prominence in 1974.

SHOWS TO STREAM

After four years, the acclaimed and award-winning German series “Babylon Berlin” has a new season available in the United States. The show is set in the 1930s as the Nazis rose to power. The rst three

seasons of “Babylon Berlin” originally streamed on Net ix. Still, those episodes and a new fourth season are available exclusively in North America on the MHz Choice streaming service.

In “Land of Women,” Eva Longoria plays Gala, a New Yorker living the good life one day and the next is left with her husband’s massive debt after he disappears. She ees to northern Spain with her mother and teenage daughter. The sh-outof-water series is based on a famous novel created for TV by the proli c Spanish TV producer Ramón Campos. The dialogue combines English, Spanish and Catalan — a language spoken in northeastern Spain.

“One of the big sources of comedy is miscommunication, which is ripe for that,” Longoria told TV critics earlier this year. The “Land of Women” debuted Wednesday on Apple TV+. Much like Hulu’s take on Catherine the Great in “The Great,” a new Prime Video series called “My Lady Jane” is an irreverent telling of the story of Lady Jane Grey. At 17, Grey became Queen for nine days before her half-sister Mary stole her support and her crown. She was then sent to the Tower of London, where she was executed. “My Lady Jane” debuts

Thursday.

Hello again, Wisconsin! The second season of “That ’90s Show” debuts on Netflix on Thursday. Season one saw Mila Kunis, Ashton Kutcher, Wilmer Valderrama, Laura Prepon and Topher Grace reprise their roles. (Danny Masterson was written out of the show as he prepared for a rape trial that ended with his conviction and a 30-year prison sentence.) Prepon is the only one from the core group who will be back for season two. The sequel series stars Callie Haverda as Leia Forman, the daughter of Grace’s Eric and Prepon’s Donna, who is visiting her grandparents, Red and Kitty, played by Kurtwood Smith and Debora Jo Rupp. Ryan Serhant of Bravo’s “Million Dollar Listing” is now fronting his Netflix show, “Owning Manhattan.” Cameras follow some of his Serhant real estate employees competing for expensive New York listings. Where Serhant pounded the pavement in “Million Dollar Listing,” the pressure is now on his staff instead. Serhant is more of a mentor in this role.

MUSIC TO STREAM

Grammy-award-winning

R&B singer Lucky Daye is preparing to release a new album on Friday titled “Algorithm.” (Think of the name as a creative reversal — he aims to make soulful music that extends beyond the predictability of machine learning.) His single “Soft” celebrates the vulnerabilities inherent in a new relationship atop big drum fills and heart-fluttering vocal harmonies.

“Megan” is Megan Thee Stallion’s third full-length album and the first to be self-released under her label, Hot Girl Productions; she promises to continue her reign as the sovereign of Hot Girl Summers. Independence looks good on her: From the raprock “COBRA,” with its fearless lyricism on everything from infidelity to depression, to the Gwen Stefani-sampling “BOA” – an imaginative take on 2004’s “What You Waiting For?” — it’s clear Megan is enjoying her creative autonomy. But don’t take it from us — a quick listen to “HISS,” an aggressive reclamation of her public image, makes it clear from the spoken-word intro.

Available on video-on-demand starting Friday, “Revival69: The Concert That Rocked the World” documents the 1969 Toronto Rock and

Roll Revival, a famous festival that featured the debut of The Plastic Ono Band — including video footage of John Lennon’s rst signi cant performance outside the Beatles, what many credit as a trigger for Lennon’s decision to leave the band. This doc o ers a behind-the-scenes look at the event and footage from its grounds, featuring talking head interviews with some musicians. And there’s a lot to celebrate with a lineup consisting of Lennon, Yoko Ono, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, the Doors, Alice Cooper and beyond.

VIDEO GAMES TO PLAY Games don’t get much sillier than Super Monkey Ball Banana Rumble, the latest version of Sega’s most adorable franchise. The premise is simple enough: You control a monkey in a ball and zip around 3D mazes while collecting fruit and other goodies. You can compete against up to 15 other primates in various multiplayer games like “Ba-Boom!” — an explosive version of hot potato. You can also take on adventure mode, with more than 200 levels that you can explore solo or with up to three friends. It is out on Nintendo

Switch.

HULU/PRIME/ APPLE TV+ VIA AP

The documentary “Diane von Furstenberg: Woman in Charge,” left, the documentary “I Am Celine Dion,” center, and the lm “Fancy Dance” are all streaming this week.

RICHARD SHOTWELL / AP PHOTO

The cast of “That ’90s Show” arrives at a special screening in Los Angeles.