North State Journal Vol. 8, Issue 17

SUSHI wins top prize at Big Rock

The crew of Sushi celebrates with the 484.5-pound marlin it caught that proved to be the winning catch of last week’s Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament. Read more in Sports on page B4.

the BRIEF this week

NC’s unemployment rate slightly below national average

Raleigh North Carolina’s seasonally adjusted May 2023 unemployment rate was 3.4%, remaining unchanged from April’s revised rate, according to the N.C. Department of Commerce. The national rate increased by 0.3 of a percentage point to 3.7%.

The state’s unemployment rate was unchanged from a year ago. The number of people employed increased by 20,351 over the month to 5,033,140 and increased by 42,690 over the past year.

The number of people unemployed decreased by 3,076 over the month to 175,754 and decreased 1,737 over the year.

Seasonally adjusted Total Nonfarm employment, as gathered through the monthly establishment survey, increased to 4,901,500 in May.

Major industries experiencing increases were leisure and hospitality services (4,300), professional and business services (3,200), trade, transportation and utilities (2,500), education and health services (1,200), government (700), information (200), and manufacturing (200).

Major industries experiencing decreases were construction (2,400), other services (2,200) and financial activities (1,300).

Despite coming in under the national average, the 3.4% rate ranks 32nd among the 50 states. The lowest rate is shared by three states, Nebraska, New Hampshire and South Dakota, at 1.9%.

NSJ STAFF

Cooper vetoes total of four bills, override votes likely

By A.P. Dillon North State Journal

RALEIGH

— Democratic

Gov. Roy Cooper vetoed four bills – one on Friday and three more Monday, bringing his total to 81 in seven years. The veto on Friday concerned a bill that would bar compelled speech in state hiring practices and in the workplace.

“In North Carolina, the diversity of our people is a strength. This legislation attempts to eliminate training that can help us understand the unconscious bias we all bring to our work

Biden officially taps Cohen for CDC director

By A.P. Dillon North State Journal

RALEIGH

— President Joe

Biden issued a press release June 16 officially announcing “his intent” to choose Dr. Mandy Cohen as the next director of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

cord protecting Americans’ health and safety.”

“As Secretary of North Carolina’s Department of Health and Human Services, Dr. Cohen developed innovative and nationally recognized programs that improved the health and lives of families across the state,” Biden’s statement reads.

and our communities,” Cooper wrote in his veto message. “It is troubling that a legislature that witnessed open racism on the floor of the House of Representatives wants to stop training aimed at creating a more effective and understanding workforce. Instead of pretending that bias and racism don’t exist, the legislature should instead encourage training that can help eliminate discrimination so we can work toward common goals.”

Senate Bill 364, titled Non-

See COOPER , page A2

Cohen served as the secretary for North Carolina’s Department of Health and Human Services under Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper. She oversaw the state’s COVID-19 response prior to her resignation in December 2021. In early 2022, Cohen went to work for Aledade, a company that describes itself as a “physician enablement company” working with “independent practices, health centers, and clinics” to improve care for their patients.

“Dr. Cohen developed innovative and nationally recognized programs that improved the health and lives of families across the state.”

Though Cohen’s medical license lapsed in 2012 and she only practiced medicine for a few years before that, Biden said Cohen “is one of the nation’s top physicians and health leaders” and that she has “experience leading large and complex organizations, and a proven track-re-

President Joe Biden

Governor’s Commission on Public University Governance makes initial recommendations

Cooper calls for increasing UNC Board of Governors membership in the name of “bipartisanship.”

ings from 2016-2019.

“These recommendations will help strengthen this system and keep it as the priceless gem and economic recruitment tool it is for our state.”

“Her leadership through the COVID-19 crisis drew bipartisan praise, as did her successful transformation of North Carolina’s Medicaid program and pivotal role in the bipartisan passage of Medicaid expansion.”

Biden’s statement also highlighted that Cohen served under the Obama administration as chief operating officer and chief of staff of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and as acting director of the Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight.

Cooper reacted on social media by tweeting “Dr. Cohen is a strong leader and a problem solver who was uniquely qualified to lead @NCDHHS. @POTUS has made an excellent choice

See COHEN, page A8

By A.P.

Dillon North State Journal

RALEIGH — On June 12, Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper announced his 15-member Commission on Public University Governance had issued its initial recommendations.

“North Carolina’s visionary leadership in higher education has distinguished our state and made a real difference for our people,” Cooper said in a press release.

Among the recommendations is a new “Center of Higher Education Governance,” a call for more transparency and accountability, and expanding the UNC Board of Governors from 24 members to upward of 32 to 36 members in the name of “bipartisanship.”

The governor’s press release included remarks by the co-chairs of the Commission, Tom Ross and Margaret Spellings. Both are past UNC System presidents; Ross served from 2011-2016 and Spell-

“Our recommendations are focused in significant part on ensuring the voices of all North Carolinians are reflected and represented on the governing boards of our universities,” said Ross. “I believe they will enhance our current university governance, increase public confidence in our university and its leaders, and make it possible for more diverse thoughts, ideas and innovations to be considered by the governing boards. Put simply, these recommendations, if adopted, will make our great University system

“One of One”

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Neal Robbins Publisher Matt Mercer Editor in Chief

Cory Lavalette Managing/Sports Editor

Frank Hill Senior Opinion Editor

Emily Roberson Business/Features Editor

Lauren Rose Design Editor

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even stronger and better.”

“These recommendations represent common-sense reforms that will help ensure our universities and their governance fully represent those who attend, are served by and who support through their tax dollars these critical institutions,” Spellings said. “We must have systems that the public understands, supports and where they are welcome to participate as well as places where they see themselves. These recommendations will help do just that.”

Other members of the committee were Lou Bissette Jr., Nicole Dobbins, Isaiah Green, Ann Goodnight, Clifford A. Jones Sr., Gary Locklear, Karen A. Popp, Cressie Thigpen Jr., John Townsend III, Brad Wilson, Sen. Gladys Robinson, and Reps. John Fraley and John Bell.

According to Cooper’s press release, “While North Carolina is rich in all types of diversity, that diversity and that strength is not reflected in public university governance today in the manner contemplated by existing state law.”

The Commission’s recommendations include:

The UNC Board of Governors should create a new Center of Higher Education Governance to optimize the use of good governance principles in higher education throughout America and to assist the Board of Governors (BOG) and Boards of Trustees (BOTs) in enhancing existing governance practices in North Carolina.

The General Assembly should increase the size of the Board of Governors from the current 24 to

Matthew 25:21

There will be eternal honors for those who have filled important places of trust and responsibility in this world, and have proved faithful in great things. There will be crowns of glory for the martyrs who, throughout the ages, have died rather than deny Christ.

But there will be rewards just as brilliant and crowns just as splendid, for those who, in lives of lowly service and self-denial and in patient endurance and humble devotion — have been faithful in the small things. God does not overlook the lowly, nor does He forget the little things. If only we are faithful in the place to which He assigns us and in the duties He gives us, we shall have our reward from God, even though our lives and our deeds are unknown and unpraised by others.

No one is endowed with all gifts. Every person has his or her own particular excellence or ability. No two have precisely the same gifts, and no two are called to fill precisely the same place in life. The role of the lowliest and the humblest with the fewest gifts, is just as important as the most brilliantly

32-36 members and that the “enlarged Board of Governors would enable additional opportunities to increase diversity pursuant to N.C General Statutes §116-7(a),” according to Cooper’s press statement.

The General Assembly should increase the size of each of the university institutional Boards of Trustees to 15 members not including ex-officio members.

All members of the Board of Governors who are not ex-officio members should be picked by the majority party in the House and in the Senate; 12 members each. The largest minority party in the House and Senate would get to pick four members each.

The General Assembly should increase the length of the terms of members of the Board of Governors and Boards of Trustees from four years to eight years.

To enhance transparency and accountability of board members, all general business meetings of the Board of Governors and each Board of Trustees should be livestreamed and recorded.

Any individual who has been serving as a registered lobbyist or as a member of the General Assembly should have a required “cooling-off” period before serving on a governing board.

Cooper claims that by using his Commission’s recommendations, “the current and future legislative leadership would not lose a single appointment,” and that “any appointments to the Boards of Trustees allocated to the Governor would not go into effect until January 2025.”

Last November, Cooper created the Commission through Executive Order 272 and tasked it

the measure by a vote of 72-46 with no Democrats supporting the bill.

discrimination and Dignity in State Work, passed both chambers with veto-proof margins.

“G overnor Cooper’s veto does nothing to promote nondiscrimination and equality,” Sen. Warren Daneil (R-Burke), a primary sponsor of the bill, said in a statement. “State employees should not have to worry about having to endorse a certain set of beliefs or ideals in order to apply for or keep their job.”

Daniel also said the bill was a “common sense” way to protect the First Amendment rights of employees and ensure workplace trainings don’t promote discriminatory concepts.

“I look forward to overriding his veto,” Daniel said.

Daniel’s statement was tweeted by Sen. Jim Perry (R-Lenoir), who said he was proud to stand with Daniel and that employees should not “be forced to swear fealty to any governor’s ideological views.”

On May 31, the House passed

The Senate voted on June 6 in a concurrence vote of 30-15. Despite the vote being mainly down party lines, three Democrats Sens. Sydney Batch (D-Wake), Marry Wills Bode (D-Wake) and Kandie Smith (D-Pitt), voted to concur.

The bill would prohibit any state agency, department or institution from compelling or soliciting an applicant for employment to “endorse or opine about beliefs, affiliations, ideals, or principles regarding matters of contemporary political debate or social action as a condition of employment.”

State agencies would be barred from requiring or compelling an applicant to show proof of support or opposition to any given topic would also be prohibited. Anyone wishing to offer their beliefs voluntarily can do so under the bill.

Senate Bill 364 also prohibits promotion of 13 concepts such as one race or sex is inherently supe -

with “evaluating the current governance structure of the University of North Carolina System” as well as each individual school. The Commission would then make recommendations to Cooper on “how to improve existing governance.”

The Commission was supposed to meet just four times before rendering its recommendations to the governor sometime on or around July 1 of this year.

At the time Cooper announced

rior to another and that an individual, solely by virtue of his or her race or sex, is inherently racist, sexist, or oppressive, as well as the belief that character traits, values, moral or ethical codes, privileges, or beliefs should be ascribed to a race or sex or to an individual because of the individual’s race or sex.

Some of the 13 concepts have been linked to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion policies or training as well as the controversial Critical Race Theory.

On Monday, June 19, Cooper vetoed Senate Bill 331 (Consumer Finance Act Amendments), Senate Bill 329 (Retail Installment Sales Act Amendments) and Senate Bill 299 (Reimburse Late Audit Costs with Sales Tax Rev.).

“At a time when the cost of living is rising, North Carolina consumers cannot afford to be hit with higher fees and interest rates on loans,” Cooper wrote in his veto of Senate Bill 331.

On Senate Bill 339, the governor’s veto message was similar to that of 331, cit-

gifted.

The great one in God’s sight is not the prominent one, but the life that fills the place it was made to fill, and does the work it was made to do. God does not ask great things; He asks only simple faithfulness — the quiet doing of what He commands.

J.R. Miller was a pastor and former editorial superintendent of the Presbyterian Board of Publication from 1880 to 1911. This is an edited version of his original. His works are now in the public domain.

he had created the Commission, both Senate Leader Phil Berger (R-Eden) and House Speaker Tim Moore’s Chief of Staff Neal Inman were skeptical of it, per comments reported by The Associated Press. “ You’d have to be naïve to think the purpose of this ‘commission’ is to do anything other than recommend the governor obtain partisan appointments to university boards,” Berger said.

Inman pointed out the state

ing the “rising cost of living.”

“At a time when the cost of living is rising, North Carolina consumers cannot afford to be hit with higher fees and interest rates on loans and purchases,” wrote Cooper in his veto of Senate Bill 339.

Senate Bill 299 garnered the governor’s longest veto message.

“It is important that local governments follow the law on auditing their finances in order to foster accountability and fiscal responsibility. While well intentioned, this legislation as written is likely to punish residents of some of our state’s smallest communities,” Cooper wrote. “Rather than having state government seize sales taxes that are needed for local government, the North Carolina General Assembly should reconsider this legislation and provide more help for these communities to make sure they do it right rather than impose financial punishment that could make matters worse.”

The four governors with veto power preceding Cooper had

constitution places governance of higher education with the General Assembly. He also agreed with Berger, writing in an email there is “no interest in changing the structure of the UNC system, regardless of whatever report this politically-motivated commission produces.”

Cooper’s press statement indicated that a “full and complete report” by his Commission will be released in the coming weeks.

a combined total of 53 vetoes among them. Cooper’s 81st veto means he holds 70% of all vetoes issued by a North Carolina governor to date.

Republicans hold supermajorities in both chambers of the General Assembly, making successful override votes of the governor’s vetoes a likely bet.

Additionally, Cooper signed two pieces of legislation: Senate Bill 729, titled CBBC Working Group Changes, and Senate Bill 58, titled Protect Critical Infrastructure.

The latter bill seeks to protect energy and water infrastructure sites after several substations were attacked in 2022. The bill received unanimous approval in both chambers of the General Assembly.

“We must protect critical infrastructure that keeps electric power and clean water available in our communities, and this bill sends a message to criminals that these irresponsible acts will not be tolerated,” Cooper said of Senate Bill 58.

“His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.”

“Parable of the Talents” by Willem de Poorter (circa 1650) in the collection of the National Gallery Prague.

AP PHOTO

Tom Ross, center, a former president of the University of North Carolina system, speaks while former UNC system President Margaret Spellings, left, and Gov. Roy Cooper, right, listen at an Executive Mansion news conference on Monday, June 12, 2023, in Raleigh, N.C. Ross and Spellings were co-chairs of a commission that examined governance issues for the UNC system.

COOPER from page A1

Murphy to Manteo

Federal employment and training grant to help respond to paper mill layoffs

Haywood County

A $7.5 million federal workforce grant will help workers who were affected by the Pactiv Evergreen layoffs in Canton and Waynesville. One-third of the total, $2.5 million, will be made available immediately, and the remainder will be distributed as needed to support workforce development efforts in the weeks and months to come. In March, Pactiv Evergreen announced plans to shut down the paper mill in Canton and substantially reduce operations at its nearby Waynesville facility, resulting in almost 1,100 layoffs.

Eligible dislocated workers may receive career services, training and supportive services.

Hildebran wins a pair of Dept. of Commerce grants

Burke County

NC.GOV

The town of Hildebran won two grant awards from the N.C. Department of Commerce. A $300,000 Resilient Neighborhoods grant will support the renovation of the town’s auditorium. The project intends to create more cultural and economic opportunities within the community. Renovations will seek to provide ADA accessibility and enhance the usability of the existing auditorium. A $49,500 Rural Community Capacity Grant will be used to create architectural plans to support the renovation of the historic Hildebran High School auditorium. The auditorium will be used by the town to create cultural and economic opportunities within the community.

NC.GOV

Juneteenth festival canceled after double shooting

Buncombe County

A t wo-day Juneteenth Festival in Asheville came to an abrupt halt after two juveniles were wounded in a shooting. All activities planned for Sunday at Pack Square Park were canceled after the shooting occurred on Saturday as festivities drew to a close on the first day of the festival. The shooting happened just before 9 p.m. in the Court Plaza area of Pack Square Park. Two juveniles with gunshot wounds were taken to Mission Hospital with serious injuries. One was released. The other remains in critical but stable condition. A 16-yearold suspect was taken into custody.

JONES & BLOUNT

Local Government Commission approves $70M Wilmington property purchase

By A.P. Dillon North State Journal

RALEIGH — The North Carolina Local Government Commission (LGC) approved a property purchase through $70 million in limited obligation bonds for the city of Wilmington at its June 6 meeting.

Biology teacher wins $1,000 award from governor

Person County

Seven public school teachers across the state will get $1,000 each for professional development as part of the Governor’s Educator Discovery Award. One of the awards went to Ashley Bailey, a biology teacher at Roxboro Community School. She will attend the National Association of Biology Teachers Professional Development Conference in Baltimore. There she will participate in hands-on learning opportunities with cutting-edge technology, learn best practices for students, and connect with other biology teachers from across the country.

NC.GOV

Attorneys plead guilty in Wisconsin

political action committee scam

Moore County Two attorneys from Moore County pled guilty in Wisconsin to charges they created a sham political action committee. The U.S. Attorney in Milwaukee announced Jack Daly and Nathanael Pendley pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit mail fraud and lying to the Federal Election Commission. The attorneys formed a political action committee they said was designed to convince former Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke to run for U.S. Senate. It raised more than $1.6 million, but most of the money was spent to personally benefit Daly and Pendley. The committee continued to raise money even after Clarke announced he wouldn’t run.

Songwriter, music industry entrepreneur sentenced to life in prison in girlfriend’s death

Durham County

A songwriter and music industry entrepreneur from Atlanta was sentenced to life in prison without parole for killing his girlfriend in Iowa. Justin Wright was found guilty of first-degree murder in April in the death of 20-year-old Wilanna Bibbs. Wright founded Camp Entertainment Worldwide in 2011. His company worked with artists that included Bow Wow, Timbaland, Kash Doll and DJ Khalid, and he became a multiplatinum songwriter. Bibbs, an aspiring singer from Durham, was shot to death on May 9, 2021, at a home in Davenport, Iowa.

5 dead in rural house fire, investigation continues

Harnett County Authorities say people were killed in a rural house fire. The Harnett County Sheriff’s Office said the cause of Sunday’s fire in the Broadway community was under investigation, and it could provide few details. Investigators with the sheriff’s office said three adults and two juveniles died in the fire. Deputies blocked off the road leading to the house as fire officials investigated the cause.

Weldon STEM teacher wins development grant

Halifax County

The Governor’s Educator Discovery Awards were announced last week. Seven teachers from around the state earned $1,000 grants to use for professional development. One of the awards went to Annabel Bello, a sustainable agriculture teacher at Weldon STEM High School Career Academies. The grant will allow Bello to attend a Horticulture Therapy Program to prepare her to develop, manage and evaluate horticultural therapy programs in her school and teach her students about the mental health benefits that can be learned through the process of growing plants and help her teach them about a unique, new career pathway in agriculture.

Inmate at prison work farm assaulted, killed by other inmates

Tyrrell County

Michael F. Crumbley, 58, died last week as a result of injuries suffered during a June 9 assault. Crumbley was an offender at the Tyrrell Prison Work Farm after a 2018 Cleveland County conviction for drug possession. He was serving a 12-year sentence and had an expected release date in January 2026. Crumbley was assaulted by other inmates at the minimum-security facility. Authorities are conducting an investigation.

AP

to enter into a $6.5 million installment purchase agreement to build a 19,000-square-foot fire station.

The LGC gave Orange County the go-ahead for $14.5 million in limited obligation bonds. Most of those funds will be for school projects but will also go toward buying county vehicles and several other facilities projects such as façade and HVAC projects, and IT projects.

yearslong affair resulting in the end of a Wake County Soil and Water supervisor’s marriage.

The purchase involves the PPD building, which is one of the tallest structures in the downtown Wilmington area and is owned by Fisher Thermo Scientific. The sale of the building was announced in spring 2022 after Fisher Thermo Scientific said it was downsizing and moving its headquarters. The city of Wilmington plans to move multiple departments out of older buildings and consolidate them in the PPD building. The city said it does not plan a tax increase to help pay for the purchase.

The LGC also approved Onslow County’s request for $68 million in limited obligation bonds to build Northeast Elementary School in the Swansboro area, $25 million in limited obligation bonds to purchase vehicles and equipment for various departments in New Hanover County, and $17.4 million in financing for Rowan County to buy, build and install five airport hangars at the Mid-Carolina Regional Airport in Salisbury. The city of Salisbury in Rowan County was given approval

Other large fiscal approvals were given to the town of Kernersville in Forsyth County for a $4.5 million installment purchase plan to renovate its Beeson Crossroads Fire Department facility and $3.1 million to the city of Rocky Mount in Nash County to remodel a city warehouse and replace a facility roof as well as sewer and water lines. Rocky Mount will also use some funds to refurbish a pool. Asheboro Housing Authority’s $10.8 million was approved, and those funds will be loaned to Asheboro Summit to buy and fix up the Asheboro Summit Apartments.

The LGC-approved water and sewer projects for the Town of Laurinburg and Edgecombe Water & Sewer District at $2.6 million each. The town of Wallace in Duplin County also received approval for $1.2 million.

NC House Speaker sued over ‘alienation of affection’ claims

NSJ Staff

RALEIGH — N.C. House Speaker Tim Moore (R-Kings Mountain) is being sued over claims he engaged in a

Scott Lassiter, an assistant principal for the Wake County Public School System, filed the lawsuit on June 18 alleging Moore had a relationship with Lassiter’s wife, Jamie Liles Lassiter. Liles Lassiter is executive director of the North Carolina Conference of Clerks of Superior Court and the couple married in 2013, according to court documents.

The lawsuit, filed in Wake County Superior Court, says Moore “used his position as one of the most powerful elected officials in North Carolina to entice Plaintiff’s wife, a mid-level employee of the state government, to participate in an illicit relationship with him.”

North Carolina is one of the few states that allows jilted spouses to sue someone for interfering in their marriage. Scott Lassiter is seeking in excess of $25,000 in damages.

“This is a baseless lawsuit from a troubled individual. We will vigorously defend this action and pursue all available legal remedies,” said Moore in a statement provided to North State Journal.

In a statement to WRAL, Liles Lassiter cast the lawsuit as “punitive” and suggested that Moore is not to blame for their estrangement.

“Our marriage was a nightmare, and since I left him it has gotten worse,” she told the television station. “We are reaching the end of our divorce process and this is how he’s lashing out.”

Lassiter’s attorney released the following statement: “The complaint speaks for itself. There is irrefutable evidence to support Mr. Lassiter’s claims.”

summer vacation

North State Journal’s summer vacation favorites

School’s out, the humidity’s up — it feels like summer. To celebrate, many of the North State Journal’s staff are sharing some of their favorite summer places and memories they have across North Carolina.

Matt Mercer, Editor in Chief

Bald Head Island

A few months after the COVID pandemic hit in March 2020 my wife and I decided to join some friends of ours for a trip to the beach.

The original destination was Carolina Beach but it was a single day at the end of the trip that left me wanting more.

At some point on Saturday evening, we were walking back to our hotel and she says to me, “ever been to Bald Head Island?”

I said no, but I’ve heard it’s pretty cool and you can’t drive there. Up to that point, that was all I knew.

We decided in that moment to drive to Southport early Sunday morning and take the ferry to BHI.

Stepping off the ferry and taking in the sights – and sounds of nature – I was enthralled.

A small part of the island is the resort-type surroundings with expensive golf carts and immaculately-dressed tourists. The rest, though, is quite literally the feeling of being in another country.

The island has thousands of years of untouched nature. Spanish moss, gorgeous trees, but something else – just the calmness of riding down a modest road on a bike taking in the island.

The venerable “Old Baldy” lighthouse gently sits at one entrance of the island. There is an old chapel next to it that still holds weekly services for both the full-time residents and parttime visitors.

At the southeastern edge is a spot I could have spent all day: Access 39. The sand, the competing ocean currents, it was a feeling I can’t quite accurately describe in words.

The day we had even with a dash to make the 5 p.m. ferry to get home was one of the best I can still remember.

As we took the 30-minute ride back to the mainland, we looked at one another and knew: we have to go back.

A.P. Dillon, Reporter

Carolina Beach

Almost annually, our family likes to head to the coast during summer vacation. While we’ve visited the Outer Banks a number of times, we keep returning to Carolina Beach, just south of the port of Wilmington.

Carolina Beach is always a winner with the kids with its shell-dotted beaches, various shops, and delicious restaurants, as well as the fun games and amusements on the boardwalk. The entire area is very family friendly and laid back – perfect for rest and relaxation. Both of my sons have declared that “no summer is complete” without Carolina Beach’s surf and sand!

A point of interest to check out is Condor, a partially sunken Civil War blockade runner ship that can be seen in the shallows about 700 yards off the coastline. The Condor is one of around 65 different shipwrecks within 50 miles of the Carolina Beach shores.

For families interested in history, wandering around the remaining walls and preserved cannons of the civil war-era Fort Fisher is a great way to spend an afternoon. Further south, the aquarium at Fort Fisher is a must-do, especially if you have younger children. A fun and interesting day trip we typically take while in the area is to tour the U.S.S. North Carolina Battleship in the Port of Wilmington.

Cory Lavalette, Managing/Sports Editor

Duck Trips to Duck on the Outer Banks during Fourth of July week have become my family’s summer getaway of choice. Duck and the surrounding towns have proven to be the perfect destination for a large group of people with differing interests.

We first went to Duck when we were a family of three in 2006, taking 3-year-old Isabelle on our first big beach trip with a combination of family and friends.

It was the start of an almost annual trip that’s become a family tradition.

What has made Duck — and, a couple of times, Corolla — such a perfect fit for us is the variety of things to do and the different houses available. When we had young children — Brodie was born in August 2007 — our needs were different than when shared a rental with other families totaling full of four of five teenagers. And what the region has to offer made our changing needs easily accommodated.

When the kids were little, several days were spent at the beach making sand castles, finding seashells and splashing in the surf. The nights were often quiet — a family-style meal each night followed by the latest animated movie.

When the kids got a little older, some beach days were exchanged for a charter fishing trip, an afternoon with Jet Skis, a trip to the North Carolina Aquarium at Roanoke Island or a visit to one of the lighthouses.

As our kids became teens, they often ventured out with their friends while the adults would enjoy morning coffee and doughnuts from nearby Duck Donuts, a quiet afternoon of reading on the deck or a nice seafood dinner. No matter what we were doing, or how old our family was, the Outer Banks has always made for a memorable week — and a family tradition that maybe our children will carry on to the next generation.

Shawn Krest, Reporter

Chang and Eng Bridge

Anyone who has planned travel in North Carolina knows the usual talking points: Mountains and beach, all in one state. But some of our most interesting trips have been when we visited, or more often, stumbled across, some of the other, offbeat travel options located in the vast area between the two popular destinations.

There are also the typical talking points when it comes to famous people who have called North Carolina home, and the state has plenty of areas where visitors can learn more and pay tribute about the luminaries who have spent time in our state, from Michael Jordan to Dale Earnhardt to Ava Gardner to Andy Griffith. Again, some of the most interesting day trips come from the people not normally associated with the state. Take, for instance, Chang and Eng Bunker. The conjoined twins were two of the most famous celebrities of the 1800s and are well-known in modern times to regular readers of the Guinness Book of World Records, where a photo of the Bunkers is an annual staple.

The brothers were born in the kingdom of Siam and are the reason that conjoined twins are still often referred to as “Siamese twins”. They made a fortune traveling in what were then called “freak shows” but eventually bought property in North Carolina and settled down with a pair of local girls (sisters) who eventually became their wives. The Bunkers retired to Mount Airy and are buried there. The town also has an exhibit celebrating their lives and has named the bridge into town after them.

Another foreign-born, widely traveled star who settled in North Carolina was Andre the Giant, the 7-foot-4 pro wrestling legend. Born in Grenoble, France, he retired to his ranch near Ellerbe, NC. While the ranch is not open to the public, the town has a museum that honors him and features some of the gear from his storied wrestling career.

From Babe Ruth’s first home run to the final resting place of the Gravedigger monster truck, there’s plenty to see in the state, if you know where to look.

Ryan Henkel, Reporter

Emerald Isle

My favorite summer vacation destination in North Carolina has to be Emerald Isle.

Every year since high school, me and my buddies have spent a week or weekend – typically whatever we can make work – down there enjoying the beach, some fishing and just all around good times.

Emerald Isle is the perfect Outer Banks beach experience, in my opinion. The sand isn’t plastered with shells and sediment and the water is typically fairly calm and pleasant. It’s not too crowded, being a fairly quiet stretch, but there’s still plenty enough to do and enjoy in the area. So whether you want to enjoy the sun or get out in the water, Emerald Isle is the perfect spot.

We always make it a tradition to hit up our favorite dining spots, including Rucker Johns, the chicken tender platter with RJ fries and cheesy grits is the way to go you can’t forget about the basket of croissant as an appetizer, Big Oak Drive In & BarB-Q, for your general southern barbeque/burger type of spot, and The Crab Shack, if we’re feeling like some great, fresh seafood.

It’s also special to me because it’s a chance to catch up and hangout with my friends like we did back in the day.

My favorite memory of Emerald Isle was in 2017. It was the summer following my first year in college and so I hadn’t really seen my friends in a while. That trip down to Emerald Isle was special for me because it brought us all back together again and after that trip we’ve made an even greater effort to keep it going as the years have gone on.

So for me, Emerald Isle is more than a destination, it’s a piece of my heart.

Jesse Deal, Reporter

Oak Island

Ever since my childhood, my family and I would often spend our summer vacation beach trips enjoying the beautiful beach-

es and quaint, small-town vibes that can be found on Oak Island in Brunswick County, about 45 minutes south of Wilmington. Whether it’s taking advantage of the spacious beach access of Long Beach, experiencing the Southport 4th of July Festival that has dazzled locals and visitors for over 200 years, or trying out the numerous mom-and-pop-styled restaurants and pubs that populate E. Oak Island Drive, the island provides a little something for everyone.

While I grew a deep, nostalgia-rooted affection for the area through the years, I never truly appreciated it the way it deserved until I temporarily lived there in 2016.

I was fresh out of college at ECU — and feeling more than a little aimless — as my family decided to build a home in a Southport neighborhood with the goal of spending lots of time there as a quasi-beach house.

However, with the rest of my family unable to join me due to work constraints, I soon found myself as the sole occupant of the home for that summer as I bonded with Oak Island’s atmosphere in a way that only comes with spending time there on an often-daily basis.

One particular memory that leaps to me is when some visiting friends and I spent nearly an entire day at “The Point,” a lovely spot at the westernmost tip of the island where the Lockwood Folly River empties into the south-facing Atlantic. With the right set of eyes, the views of the crimson sunset and Holden Beach off in the distance can trigger an elicit feeling of gratitude for this gorgeous, expansive state of North Carolina that provides a wide range of sights for all who seek to look.

Emmie Brooks, Reporter

Bayview

Brackish water waves rolling under the pier, the smell of sunscreen around the air, and tying up crab pots, are all the things that make up my favorite vacation.

There are countless places in North Carolina to find vacation, although Beaufort County offers an ideal destination for tranquility and relaxation. Bath, North Carolina has long been a destination of mine when looking for time to get away

from the busyness of everyday life. Every summer, my family and I pack up our things and head down to Bayview, a small community in Bath. This area is just close enough to a few other popular, buzzing areas, although just far enough that it is possible to find peace in the quiet. Bath itself does not consist of much more than vacation homes, locals, and a small colonial village that is now a state historic site, although, the people truly do make the place in this area. A day on vacation in Bayview typically starts with Old Town Country Kitchen. A Bath local favorite for a classic comfort breakfast. After indulging in Country Kitchen’s cheesy biscuits or eggs and bacon, my family and I “suit up” for a boat ride. The Pamlico River itself brings back countless memories for me; from exhausting my dad’s elbow driving my brother and me on the tube behind the boat to simply anchoring and going for a swim. A plus of tubing and swimming in the sun all day, were the best “boat naps” as the rolling waves of the Pamlico rocked me to sleep on the bow.

As they say, “time flies when you’re having fun”, similarly, time spent on the river can pass by quickly. My family and I typically bring the boat back to its lift typically around sunset and begin thinking about what to eat for dinner. Blackbeard’s tavern is a wonderful quick and easy pizza place in the middle of Bath, although surrounding areas such as Washington or Belhaven also have some great restaurants to offer.

Stacey Matthews, Opinion Columnist

Southport

North Carolina is filled with places to up pack the family and take on vacation or to jump in your car solo for a quick getaway — from the coast to the mountains and everywhere in between.

But though the choices are vast, my favorite spot without a doubt is Southport.

I’ve taken many summer trips there over the years, including some with family and others with friends, and the sights and sounds, not to mention the gift shops and food places by the water, never get old. The historic waterfront homes take your breath away. I

could sit on the nearby swings there and never get tired of it. For lunch, there is the Trolly Stop hot dog place, which recently changed its name to Southport Hotdog Company. My dad absolutely loved their hot dogs, and every time we visited Southport together, we would stop there at least once to partake in the deliciousness.

For a landing spot, we enjoyed the Riverside Motel, where watching the ships and boats go by was only a few footsteps away. With Oak Island being right next to Southport, we spent many an afternoon and evening enjoying the pier, where Dad fished and made new friends while Mom and I soaked up the sun and dug our toes into the cool, mushy sand.

If all goes well, Mom and I may visit Southport this summer, not just for a change of scenery but also in memory of Dad who if he was still with us would be the first out the door to get on the road. Summers in Southport. It really doesn’t get much better than that.

Valeria Cloës, Reporter

Kure Beach

I can vividly remember the first time I spent a vacation at Kure Beach in North Carolina. It was summer of 2016, only a year since I had moved to North Carolina after spending four years living in France. The beach was calm, family-friendly and colorful. Whether it’s pronounced “CURE” or “CUR-RY,” I still have no idea in June 2023.

But that summer with my family, where we spent two weeks in an Airbnb, was one of the most memorable.

One of my favorite parts of that beach is South Fort Fisher Boulevard, a road lined with beautiful live oak trees. The ocean is visible on one side of the road, and Fort Fisher State Historic Site with a museum and dunes on the other.

While I wasn’t a fan of running at the time, my mom and I would take long walks down that same path, enjoying the view and having the ocean breeze cool the sweat forming on our necks. After a few years, this path became my favorite beach running path.

And the best part: taking a dip in the ocean after those long

walks and runs.

After almost six years, Kure Beach remains our favorite beach spot in the state. Yes, Carolina Beach has the liveliness and Wrightsville has the college-age sensation, Kure Beach has the time-stopping effect.

When I’m laying in the sun, relaxing and recharging from all the hard work from the rest of the year, the stress of it evaporates and drips from my skin, absorbed by the Kure Beach sand. The Kure Beach ocean replenishes my body with newfound energy I can take home with me.

This beach cures me.

So whenever anyone asks me where they should go for summer vacation, I always answer with “Kure Beach,” however you want to pronounce it.

Lauren Rose, Design Editor

Blue Ridge Mountains Summer vacation can mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people. I’ve always felt from a young age that summertime equals rest, fun and freedom. I’m not sure I know a better way, personally, to unplug for a bit and escape the everyday routine that encompasses the rest of the year than a getaway to a destination that fills your cup and soothes your soul. For me, that destination is western North Carolina, specifically the Blue Ridge Mountains. One of my absolute favorite features about the state of North Carolina is living within driving distance of both the beach and the mountains. While most folks flock to the beach to soak up the sun, you’ll find me retreating from the heat and tourism into the mountains.

An introvert by nature, I recharge my batteries by getting away from the crowds — the more “lost” I get in nature, the more stresses of a busy work week (or year!) melt away. Hiking and driving along the Blue Ridge Parkway is one of my favorite parts of visiting out west, but small towns equally beckon me to their local eateries, galleries and boutiques in the quiet downtowns. When the day’s activities are over, having a rental with the perfect scenic view makes the downtime so much more relaxing.

Don’t get me wrong — having a day or two at the beach is almost essential. But the real getaway for me lies in the western part of this beautiful state.

north STATEment

Neal Robbins, publisher | Frank Hill, senior opinion editor

Duke University, free speech and cancel culture

HOW MANY HUNDREDS, thousands or hundreds of thousands of American citizens have been “canceled,” fired or not re-hired in the wake of Black Lives Matter (BLM) and far-left attacks on free speech?

If it is only one, it is one too many. Compelled speech as well as censored speech defeats the whole purpose of free and open inquiry on college campuses.

I used to teach a graduate masters level program at the Sanford School of Public Policy at Duke University, one of the very few conservative Republicans allowed to do so in recent memory. They were all very bright and motivated students, all of whom anyone would hope to see run for public office since they exhibit the virtues and attributes all Americans want to see in their elected leaders.

I received a notice from Fidelity Investments informing me that my “former employer” had instructed them to send information to me.

Perhaps I was one of several part-time “practitioners of the practice,” as they call some non-Ph.D. lecturers, not asked to return to teach again for budgetary or course content reasons. Maybe the class just wasn’t very good any longer. Those are all valid reasons not to ask anyone to return to teaching any class anywhere to be honest.

However, it may have had something to do with something I said about BLM in a public forum on Sept. 14, 2020. If it did, then there are some issues of free speech and the free expression of religion on campus which need to be seriously addressed.

For the first 83 minutes of the 90-minute forum, everything seemed to go well. Over 450 Duke students and friends were online for a discussion between me and a liberal Christian professor about how Christians should evaluate candidates running for office.

At minute 84, a question was asked about how a Christian should view the Black Lives Matter movement. I knew it was coming so I had prepared for it by consulting with a few black Christians who had come through The Institute for the Public Trust.

My Christian liberal Democrat Duke faculty colleague simply said: “Black Lives Matter.” Period. End of story.

Perhaps I should have parroted the same answer as well. But I think there are much deeper issues in terms of faith and free speech which needed to be addressed in such an open forum with young students. My answer went something like this, more or less:

“Since Christians believe God knows who everyone is before they were formed in the mother’s womb, every life is important regardless of race. Every life is important which means every black, white, Asian or Hispanic life ‘matters’ to God ― which is particularly relevant when one considers close to 50% of all abortions are performed on black women.”

Those are all legitimate statements based on interpretation of information, data and worldview. No one has to agree ― or disagree ― with anyone’s opinions in a free and open society. That is the very definition of “free speech.”

A female African-American grad student complained to university officials that my answers about BLM were “painful.” She took offense with me saying close to 50% of all abortions were performed on black mothers.

I am always willing to be proven wrong ― as long as it is done with facts, figures and reliable data. The actual figure is 42%. We could have spent another ten forums talking about faith and abortion ― if anyone could have stayed online for that long.

A nine-page report was compiled by several Duke faculty members almost immediately which examined my public service record, editorials and statements to see if I was a racist ― I guess. The report was sent to Duke President Vincent

EDITORIAL | STACEY MATTHEWS

Price “to see if further action was necessary.”

One week passed, and then another without being called to President Price’s office to discuss the matter. Soon thereafter, I thought the matter had passed.

On Oct. 5, 2021, over a year later, I received written notice from Fidelity Investments informing me that my “former employer” had instructed them to send information about how to rollover a small amount of money Duke University had placed in a 401k program into a private account of my own.

Was I “canceled” by Duke University? The notice from Fidelity said my “former” employer directed them to send the letter. It is the only communication I have had with Duke since 2020. I haven’t been asked to teach a fourth class at Sanford so maybe my participation in the 2020 forum had something to do with it ― or maybe it didn’t.

The point of the matter is that no one on any college campus, student or faculty member, should be censored from saying what they believe or compelled to say anything they don’t want to say. Full and free open debate is how anyone learns anything from each other or any professor ― if everyone knew as much as everyone else did, and agreed with them on everything, college would be a very boring, and very expensive, place to go for four years.

In the aftermath of the BLM movement, now would be a good time to reassert the primacy of free speech and open debate without consequences. It is the best way to repair our nation.

Pulse nightclub massacre retrospective

IT’S BEEN SEVEN YEARS since the June 12, 2016, Pulse nightclub shooting massacre in Orlando which saw 29-year-old domestic terrorist Omar Mateen open fire in the LGBT nightclub and murder 49 people, injuring 53 before being killed during a standoff with police.

As per the norm, in the immediate aftermath, the mainstream media rushed to assign blame before waiting for the facts to be laid out, pointing fingers at socalled “anti-gay” legislation from Republican lawmakers in states like Mississippi and North Carolina.

“After the tragedy in Orlando, HB2 looks even more like a gratuitous, cruel slap at gays, lesbians, and transgender people.”

In an article that ran in The Charlotte Observer, reporters from McClatchy’s D.C. bureau desperately searched for a link between such legislation and Mateen.

“Hundreds of bills to curb LGBT rights preceded Orlando attack. Is there a link?” their headline read.

And though they could find no link (because there wasn’t one), they still managed to figure out a way to blame Republicans.

“While other motives may have inspired the attack, which killed 49 people, advocates say the rate of hate crimes against LGBT people goes up when there is a debate over their rights,” the news outlet also proclaimed.

“The sponsors of the various bills say they are not intended to promote violence against LGBT people,” they wrote. And just to “prove” it, they actually asked legislators who promoted such bills if that was their intent.

Seriously.

Agenda-driven journalists in the North Carolina media led the way in pushing the “blame HB2” narrative for the Pulse murders, with The Charlotte Observer faith and values writer Tim Funk asking, “Will the debate about who can use which bathroom seem quaint after chilling narratives out of Orlando about gay men hiding in the bar’s bathroom in hopes of escaping the notice of a gun-wielding terrorist whose father told police he had been outraged at the sight of two men kissing?”

Not to be outdone, the Raleigh News and Observer editorial board insinuated HB2 should be repealed just so it didn’t come off as a “gratuitous slap” to the Pulse victims and their families and, more broadly, the LGBT community.

“Now, after the tragedy in Orlando, HB2 looks even more like a gratuitous, cruel slap at gays, lesbians, and transgender people. It is all the more embarrassing to

North Carolina than it was — and it was plenty embarrassing,” they sneered. Coming from the same newspaper that wallowed in embarrassment over their admittedly one-sided coverage of the Duke lacrosse rape hoax, the N&O’s accusations of embarrassment toward others were a sight to behold, but I digress. WRAL North Carolina Capitol bureau chief Laura Leslie was perhaps the worst of all, taking aim at North Carolina Republicans on her Facebook page while denying Mateen’s allegiance to radical Islam had anything to do with his actions.

“If you’re an elected official in NC offering ‘thoughts and prayers’ and ‘support’ in the wake of this horrific anti-gay crime,” Leslie ranted, “maybe you should think long and hard about your support of legislation that singles out LGBT people as fair game for discrimination on ‘religious freedom’ grounds. Rhetoric matters.”

In reality, Mateen had pledged allegiance to the terrorist group ISIS, was upset over U.S. actions towards Syria and Iraq, and reportedly did not even know Pulse was a gay nightclub, picking it because it wasn’t well-guarded, as mass murderers often do.

If you’re a reporter covering these stories, maybe you should think long and hard before jumping to conclusions, which could save you some embarrassment in the long run. Though elected officials are fair game for criticism, there’s also an important thing in journalism called asking questions.

And if you’re leaning in on your preconceived biases in your reporting rather than seeking out the facts and presenting them to the public, you’re doing your audience and your profession a great disservice. Facts matter.

North Carolina native Stacey Matthews has also written under the pseudonym Sister Toldjah and is a media analyst and regular contributor to RedState and Legal Insurrection.

EDITORIAL | FRANK HILL

The Duke Chapel at Duke University in Durham is shown.

President Trump, Bud Light, Target and the LA Dodgers

The elite minority is a minority.

MILLIONS OF AMERICANS’ negative reactions to the indictment of President Donald Trump are not all related to his personal appeal. They are responses to the cultural civil war being waged by an aggressive, immoral and potentially dictatorial elite minority.

There is a parallel between what is happening to Trump and the American people’s rejection of woke brainwashing.

Do not be confused: The Biden team would force Americans to buy Bud Light, shop at Target and applaud the L.A. Dodgers’ celebration of an antiChristian hate group if (or when) they could.

The entire strategy of the elite minority is based on coercing the American people into positions they would not voluntarily reach on their own.

One of the most striking lessons from polling and focus groups we have done at America’s New Majority Project is how many Americans reject the coercive wokeness embraced by the Democrat Party, academia, establishment media, the federal bureaucracy and corporate America.

For example, 89% of Americans support parents’ rights to know what’s being taught in schools over the elite minority’s effort to brainwash children. Importantly, this includes 87% of Democrats. Meanwhile, no House Democrats voted for the recent Parents Bill of Rights (HR 5) despite voters being more than 8:1 in favor.

The elite minority argues that race is the most important personal characteristic ― and that discrimination today should be used to correct past discrimination. Meanwhile, 91% of Americans favor the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s assertion that it is the content of our character, not the color of our skin, which matters.

The elite minority wants to maximize the number of people dependent on government. Our surveys indicate 74% of Americans favor a work requirement for able-bodied adults who get welfare benefits.

By 91% to 6%, Americans oppose discriminating against other Americans to provide special help for African Americans. Despite all the efforts to argue for reparations and other special advantages, even African Americans favored race neutrality by 72%.

On one of the elite minority’s biggest issues, Gallup recently reported that 69% of Americans say transgender athletes should be restricted to playing on sports teams that conform with their birth gender. This is compared to 62% in 2021. Two years of vigorous debate have only hardened opposition to biological male athletes competing with women.

Here’s the most important, practical takeaway from all this: The elite minority is a minority.

It desperately wants to change America in profound, fundamental ways. It knows that it will never convince the American people to voluntarily adopt its woke patterns and principles, so it has decided to seize the key elements of power and coerce the American people.

If parents want to protest brainwashing in their child’s school, they are called potential terrorists.

The FBI opened a “Snitch-line” (their term) at the National Threat Operations Center specifically for this.

Parents who want to be involved in their child’s thinking about gender identity are being threatened by a new bill introduced in the California legislature to make such supposed meddling child abuse. Meanwhile, more than half the country believes conducting gender transitions on children is child abuse.

You want the freedom to use a gas stove? Not in New York where Democrats are banning them in new constructions.

Gas-powered lawn equipment will be outlawed in California in 2024. New gas-powered cars will be outlawed in California by 2035.

If you publicly disagree with the elite minority, you can be coerced into learning and adopting its woke racism, sexual ideology and revised history. Look at the efforts underway in the military to replace patriotism and war fighting with Maoist-style woke mantras.

Ironically, June 8 was the 74th anniversary of the publication of George Orwell’s famous novel “1984.” Orwell was writing about an emerging totalitarianism in Great Britain. His book did not take place in Moscow or Beijing. He knew that all centers of power could be corrupted and become totalitarian (a potential about which Friedrich Hayek also warned in “The Road to Serfdom”).

The modern woke fanatics have no idea how much they resemble Orwell’s tyrants. People ask me about the specifics of the indictments against Trump. This question entirely misses the point. The indictments are an act of cultural war against the man the elite minority fears most.

Every indictment strengthens Trump with his base because it reminds them that they are being coerced and overridden by a totalitarian elite minority in America.

And they are not the only ones.

The dangerous Trump indictment

For my friends, everything; for my enemies, the law.

LAST WEEK, a Rubicon was crossed: The former president of the United States and current Republican front-runner for the presidential nomination, Donald Trump, was indicted on 37 federal felony charges relating to mishandling classified information and obstruction of justice. Needless to say, this has never happened before — and the precedent is horrifying. Trump himself campaigned in 2016 promising to “lock up” Hillary Clinton, but he certainly made no moves toward doing so once he entered the White House. But now, President Joe Biden’s Department of Justice has done just that. And that means that, turnabout being fair play, future elections will carry the risk that the loser may find him or herself in the dock in retaliation.

The choice to indict Trump is particularly egregious given the fact that in 2016, Clinton wasn’t prosecuted for similar activity. Clinton, it should be remembered, held tens of thousands of emails on a private server, dozens of which were classified; James Comey, then head of the FBI admitted that there was a good shot that foreign sources could have accessed that server; the emails themselves were then destroyed by Clinton’s team, and her hard drive cleansed; nonetheless, months later, copies of those emails showed up on the laptop of moral derelict Anthony Weiner. Suffice it to say, Hillary undoubtedly engaged in both gross negligence in handling classified information and obstruction of justice. But Comey declined to prosecute, rewriting the law in order to reach that decision.

And then there is the Biden family. Allegations surrounding corruption within the Biden family continue to abound — and yet law enforcement seems peculiarly unconcerned with such allegations. According to Republican Congress members, a whistleblower has now revealed that the Biden family received millions of dollars in exchange for favors done while Joe Biden was vice president. And yet Biden continues to receive not only the benefit of the doubt, but sycophantic treatment in the press.

Americans remember the Hillary precedent and

the Biden apathy as they see Trump in the dock this week. Trump certainly does. Now, two things can be true at once: the allegations against Trump in the federal indictment are damning, if proved true. The indictment alleges not just that Trump took home classified documents — something done by public figures ranging from Joe Biden to Mike Pence to Hillary Clinton — but that he proceeded to tell his lawyers to attest that he had turned those documents back in, all the while shifting the documents themselves around to avoid his own lawyers knowing about them; that he bragged to journalists about classified documents in his possession while acknowledging that he had not in fact declassified them; that those documents did contain highly important national security information. Had Hillary been indicted in 2016, there would be little doubt about Trump’s indictment.

But she wasn’t. Which means that our justice system seems to be following the famous Latin American saying: “For my friends, everything; for my enemies, the law.” And that double standard will not hold. Which, presumably, is why Trump is already pledging to prosecute the Biden family should he be re-elected.

We’ve entered an ugly new phase in American political history. Trump should have known that his enemies were after him; only epic narcissism and foolishness can explain his behavior in relation to the boxes of documents that have now landed him in court. But such concerns are now secondary. The real question is whether one set of rules will ever again be applied by federal law enforcement — or whether the cycle of tit-for-tat will now enter into full force.

Ben Shapiro, 39, is a graduate of UCLA and Harvard Law School, host of “The Ben Shapiro Show,” and co-founder of Daily Wire+. He is a threetime New York Times bestselling author; his latest book is “The Authoritarian Moment: How The Left Weaponized America’s Institutions Against Dissent.”

A RECENT Wall Street Journal lead story reported that “Republicans and big business broke up.”

The amount of corporate donations to Republicans was cut sharply in the last election cycle to a lower amount than in nearly a decade. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has backed many Democrats running for Congress in close and competitive races, which puts the GOP slim majority in jeopardy.

The writing is on the wall: Corporate America is increasingly aligning itself with liberal Democrats, not Republicans.

Some of this shift in corporate allegiances is due to some bad decisions by Republicans. The GOP has shortsightedly pursued a “break up Big Tech” campaign, and the party’s slide toward tariffs and away from free trade, one of the pillars of prosperity, is worrisome to any free marketeer.

We should have free trade with countries, unless they are like China, threats to American security.

The real question is whether the GOP should want or even need support from the corporate boardrooms, which are increasingly going “woke.” Maybe it is time for a divorce.

Big business is increasingly siding with big government. Democrats are passing out Biden Bucks, and corporate America lusts for free federal money. Like field mice, they gobble up the morsels the Democrats spill out of their pockets.

Corporate welfare spending in Washington is at an all-time high, with hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars pipelined into the coffers of the Climate Change Industrial Complex, semiconductor companies and other Beltway Bandit industries.

Principled free market Republicans should take a strong stand against runaway government spending and debt, against 19th-century antitrust laws enforced by super-regulators such as Federal Trade Commission Chairwoman Lina Khan, against corporate welfare programs that cultivate big business dependency on the government, and against the selfserving Wall Street doctrine of “too big to fail.”

If corporate America is against that agenda, then don’t let the door hit your fanny on the way out of the party.

An alliance between big business and big government, after all, is simply a form of what used to be called “fascism.”

What is the alternative for the GOP? It’s obvious. Republicans must be the party of the 80 million small-business men and women who employ more than 60% of our workers. Alfredo Ortiz, the head of the indispensable Job Creators Network, notes that “most small businesses don’t have PACs and lobbyists and fancy K Street Washington offices. They just want to be left alone.”

He’s right. My father ran a successful small business for 40 years outside of Chicago. He worked long hours and was gone often when I was growing up. I don’t think he ever visited Washington, D.C. He had disdain for politics and most politicians. That’s a fairly universal attitude of employers. And who can blame them given the torrent of nosy regulations by Washington lawyers, bureaucrats and politicians who know nothing about running a business or making a profit?

If big business wants to bolt and make peace with the party that hates enterprise, entrepreneurship and profit, that’s a sad commentary on the state of affairs in corporate America, not the GOP. President Calvin Coolidge once said that “90% of people who come to Washington want something they shouldn’t have.” Too often these days, our Fortune 500 companies want your and my money, and that’s something they shouldn’t have.

Stephen Moore is a senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation and a co-founder of the Committee to Unleash Prosperity.

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Republicans must be the party of small business

NATION & WORLD

Inside the deepening rivalry between Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and California Gov. Gavin Newsom

The Associated Press SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California Gov. Gavin Newsom says there’s no chance “on God’s green earth” he’s running for president in 2024, but he wants to make clear that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is running, is “weak” and “undisciplined” and “will be crushed by Donald Trump.”

DeSantis, meanwhile, likes to mock Newsom’s apparent “fixation” on Florida while insisting that the Democratic governor’s “leftist government” is destroying California.

Welcome to one of the fiercest rivalries in U.S. politics, featuring dueling term-limited governors who represent opposite ends of the ideological spectrum and lead two of the nation’s largest and most influential states. Newsom and DeSantis almost certainly won’t face each other on any ballot in 2024, but in many ways, they are defining the debate from their corners of America as the presidential primary season gets underway.

Newsom addressed both his contempt for DeSantis and loyalty to President Joe Biden — even after Tuesday’s revelations that the president’s son, Hunter, was pleading guilty to tax offenses and a gun charge — in an interview just as the Florida governor launched a two-day fundraising trek spanning at least five stops across California. The Golden State has become one of DeSantis’ favorite punching bags as he tries to avoid a direct confrontation with his chief Republican presidential rival, Trump, and the former president’s escalating legal challenges.

“He’s taking his eye off the ball,” Newsom said of DeSantis’ escalating attacks against him. “And that’s not inconsistent with my own assessment of him, which is he is a weak candidate, and he is undisciplined and will be crushed by Donald Trump, and will soon be in third or fourth in national polls.”

Representatives for DeSantis did not make the governor available for an interview. Beneath the war of words, however, strategists in both parties suggest there may be a mutually beneficial dynamic at play. As they jab at each other’s policies and personalities through comments in the press and on social media, the governors are scoring points with their respective political bases, raising money and expanding their national brands. Both men issued fundraising appeals Monday going after the other by name.

But it’s not all helpful.

Newsom, in particular, is facing nagging questions about his presidential ambitions less than a week after DeSantis dared him to “stop pussyfooting around” and launch a primary challenge against Biden.

The California governor, whose second and final term concludes at the end of 2026, has seen his national profile grow

since he easily beat back a recall attempt in 2021 and cruised to reelection last fall. He finished the midterm campaign with roughly $16 million in the bank. And in March, he channeled $10 million to a new political action committee he’s calling the Campaign for Democracy.

All the while, Newsom’s team has been moving deliberately to avoid the perception that he’s running a shadow presidential campaign just as Biden ramps up his political activities.

For example, Newsom’s new PAC is initially focusing on challenging Republican leaders in deep-red states that are largely irrelevant in the 2024 presidential race. He campaigned in Alabama, Arkansas and Mississippi in April on his first trip associated with the PAC.

Newsom is expected to avoid battleground states or key presidential primary states for the foreseeable future, his allies say.

At the same time, the California governor and his team have been in regular contact with Biden and his top aides, including Jen O’Malley Dillon, who managed the president’s 2020 campaign and serves as deputy White House chief of staff. A Biden campaign official said the president’s team coordinates closely with Newsom.

“Newsom is not going to run against Joe Biden and never would. But life is long, and Newsom is one of the prominent national Democrats. It’s part of that role to have these big national battles,” longtime Newsom adviser and friend Nathan Ballard said of the feud with DeSantis.

“There is the 2024 election, and then there is a 2028 election,” Ballard added.

Indeed, veteran Democratic consultant Roy Behr, whose clients included former California Sen. Barbara Boxer, said the two governors are engaged in what could become an early preview of the 2028 presidential contest.

“It’s not inconceivable that four years from now, these two guys could be their respective parties’ nominees,” he said. In tangling with DeSantis, who is 44, the 55-year-old Newsom is building his national brand and visibility and is “certainly trying to create opportunities for himself.”

Sacramento-based Democratic consultant Andrew Acosta said he expected the ongoing rivalry to continue given that it’s beneficial for both politicians with their core supporters. He described Newsom and DeSantis as “frenemies.”

“They both get points off it,” Acosta said. “There is a hard core of voters on both sides who think this is great.”

While polling shows that many Democrats don’t want the 80-year-old Biden to seek a second term, Newsom said there are no circumstances in which he would challenge the sitting president of his own party.

“Not on God’s green earth, as the phrase goes,” Newsom said

for CDC Director.” When the news broke that Cohen was being considered, an email inquiry to Cohen and Aledade was answered by a public relations firm.

“Neither the company nor Dr. Cohen have a comment,” Ken Baer, CEO and co-founder of Crosscut Strategies, replied in an email to North State Journal.

North Carolina Republican Sen. Ted Budd led six senators and 22 House members in a letter to Biden opposing Cohen for the role that in part called her politically partisan as well as “unfit.”

“Dr. Mandy Cohen is unfit for the position,” wrote Budd and the other lawmakers. “Dr. Cohen has politicized science, disregarded civil liberties, and spread misinformation about the efficacy and necessity of COVID vaccinations and the necessity of masks, during her time as the Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. She also has a history of engaging in partisan left-wing politics.”

The letter cites Cohen as a “proponent of unnecessary, unscientific COVID restrictions on school children” and points out she threatened legal action against school districts that didn’t comply with mask mandates.

“Why would you leave like a San Diego to come to say, Jacksonville, Florida? I see people doing that. It’s because leftist government is destroying that state. Leftist government is destroying cities all over our country. It’s destroying other states.”

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis

in the weekend interview, adding that he would be with Biden on Monday and hosting a fundraiser for him Tuesday. “I have been pretty consistently — including recently on Fox News — making the case for his candidacy.”

On Tuesday, Newsom reaffirmed his support for Biden shortly after news surfaced that the president’s son, Hunter, reached a plea deal with federal prosecutors on charges he failed to pay federal income tax and illegally possessed a weapon.

“Hunter changes nothing,” Newsom told the AP, noting that he was spending the day with Biden.

DeSantis did not plan to make any public appearances during his California fundraising tour, which included stops in Sacramento and the Bay Area on Monday and continues Tuesday with events planned for San Diego, Orange County and Los Angeles.

Over the weekend in Nevada, DeSantis noted that he’s seen a surge of “disgruntled Californians” moving to Florida.

“Why would you leave like a San Diego to come to say, Jacksonville, Florida? I see people doing that,” DeSantis told thousands of conservative activists at a weekend gathering close to the California border. “It’s because leftist government is destroying that state. Leftist government is destroying cities all over our country. It’s destroying other states.”

Former Nevada attorney general Adam Laxalt, who hosted the weekend event and leads the pro-DeSantis super PAC, said the policy contrast between the leaders of Florida and California is “a debate that our whole country needs to have.”

“California has been the model for many leftist policies. I would take the contrast between Florida’s policies and its results led by Gov. DeSantis and the California policies, any day of the week,” Laxalt said in an interview. “We can already see what leftist policies do.”

Both DeSantis and Newsom took office in 2019 and won reelection for their second and final terms in 2022. While in office, both have been buoyed by multiple billion-dollar budget surpluses and the help of statehous-

es controlled by their own party that supercharged their agendas.

In California, Newsom expanded the state’s Medicaid program to cover all eligible adults, regardless of their immigration status. He signed a raft of legislation to make it easier to get an abortion, including authorizing $20 million in state spending to help people from other states travel to California. When the U.S. Supreme Court declined to strike down an abortion law in Texas that was enforced by private lawsuits, Newsom signed a similar law in California — only he made it about guns.

And earlier this month, he proposed amending the U.S. Constitution to institute what he called a “reasonable” waiting period for all gun purchases, a ban on so-called assault rifles, universal background checks and raising the minimum age to buy a firearm to 21.

“I think Gavin Newsom is a very useful foil for Ron DeSantis, quite frankly,” said Lanhee Chen, a California Republican who attended one of DeSantis’ five California fundraisers this week. “The more kinds of crazy things that Newsom does — at least, crazy in the in the eyes of Republican voters — the more I think Ron DeSantis frankly benefits as somebody who seen as a counterweight to that.”

In Florida, DeSantis has leaned into cultural conservative issues in what he calls his “war on woke.”

Earlier this month, his administration flew groups of migrants from Texas to Sacramento to draw attention to the influx of Latin American immigrants trying to cross the U.S.-Mexico border. He did the same last fall, sending dozens of immigrants from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard, which he often highlights during his stump speeches.

DeSantis also signed and then expanded the Parental Rights in Education bill — known by critics as the “Don’t Say Gay” law, which bans instruction or classroom discussion of LGBTQ+ issues in Florida public schools for all grades. He seized control of Disney World’s governing body after the company publicly opposed the law.

The Florida governor this year also signed a law banning abortions at six weeks, which is before most women realize they’re pregnant. And he took control of a liberal arts college that he believed was indoctrinating students with leftist ideology.

While DeSantis does not have the legal entanglements that Trump faces, Newsom said Democrats may be wrong to assume the former president would be an easier candidate to defeat in the 2024 general election.

“I see deep weakness — I refer to it often — weakness with DeSantis masquerading as strength,” Newsom said. “I think he’d be a more favored candidate. But I’ll leave that judgment to more objective minds.”

Amazon debuts its headquarters complex in Virginia

Arlington, Va.

Amazon unveiled the first phase of its new headquarters complex in Virginia, a pair of gleaming, amenity-packed office towers that its leaders hope will persuade employees accustomed to working from home during the pandemic to happily return to the office.

The grand opening of the Met Park office complex in Arlington’s Crystal City neighborhood near the nation’s capital marks the biggest milestone in the headquarters project since the company announced in 2018 that it would build a second headquarters complex in northern Virginia to complement its existing headquarters in Seattle.

Initially, plans for the “HQ2” project called for Amazon to bring 25,000 jobs each to both northern Virginia and New York City. But opposition to the incentive package in New York helped derail those plans, and the Arlington complex became the sole site for HQ2.

The company committed hundreds of millions of dollars to help preserve affordable housing in the region, and the project includes a 2.5-acre park, fenced dog run and playground. Amazon even replicated its well-known banana stand from its Seattle headquarters, offering free fruit to workers and visitors.

The finished product includes rooftop gardens, pool and foosball tables, outdoor electric grills — Amazon says the building uses no fossil fuels — highquality dining options and a “dog wall” that shows photos of workers’ pets.

“I don’t want to cause any intracompany tensions, but I wonder if this should be renamed HQ1,” said Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin.

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

US confirms China has had a spy base in Cuba since at least 2019 Washington, D.C. China has been operating a spy base in Cuba since at least 2019, part of a global effort by Beijing to upgrade its intelligence-gathering capabilities, according to a Biden administration official.

The official, who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the U.S. intelligence community has been aware of China’s spying from Cuba and a larger effort to set up intelligence-gathering operations around the globe for some time.

The existence of the Chinese spy base was confirmed after The Wall Street Journal reported that China and Cuba had reached an agreement in principle to build an electronic eavesdropping station on the island. The Journal reported China planned to pay a cash-strapped Cuba billions of dollars as part of the negotiations.

The White House called the report inaccurate.

“I’ve seen that press report, it’s not accurate,” White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby. “What I can tell you is that we have been concerned since day one of this administration about China’s influence activities around the world; certainly in this hemisphere and in this region, we’re watching this very, very closely.”

The U.S. intelligence community had determined Chinese spying from Cuba has been an “ongoing” matter and is “not a new development,” the administration official said.

COHEN

Drama follows Wake to Omaha

NBA

Chris Paul surprised by trade to Wizards

Phoenix

Chris Paul came within two wins of helping bring a championship to Phoenix two seasons ago. Now the Suns have moved on from the future Hall of Fame point guard. Phoenix agreed to deal the Winston- Salem native and Wake Forest star, along with Landry Shamet and other considerations, to the Wizards in exchange for Bradley Beal. The move comes as new owner Mat Ishbia continues to make changes to the franchise just five months after taking over the team.

Phoenix fired coach Monty Williams last month, replacing him with Frank Vogel. Paul, who is on a tour promoting his new book, told “Good Morning America” on Monday, “I was surprised, too. I found out on the plane, yesterday, flying here for this. In this league, anything can happen, so you just figure out what’s next.”

GOLF

Former Duke golfer

Maguire wins second

LPGA title

Belmont, Mich.

Leona Maguire, who was a three -t ime ACC Golfer of the Year at Duke, played her final six holes in 6 under and shot an 8 -under 64 to win the Meijer LPGA Classic by two strokes for her second tour victory. Maguire made six birdies and an eagle in her bogey-free round to finish at 21-under 267. She caught playing partner Ariya Jutanugarn with an eagle on the par-5 14th hole to reach 18 under then closed with three straight birdies to pull ahead of Jutanugarn and Xiyu Lin.

Jutanugarn shot her second straight 66 and finished alone in second. Maguire had finished second in each of the last two years at event at Blythefield Country Club.

Mystery surrounds Hornets as draft approaches

Charlotte holds No. 2 pick in Thursday’s NBA Draft

By Jesse Deal North State Journal

CHARLOTTE — Heading into Thursday night’s 2023 NBA Draft, the Charlotte Hornets are hoping to make the right decisions that can help them bring a buzz to the 2023-24 campaign while finally snapping the league’s longest active playoff drought at seven consecutive seasons.

Although the Hornets have five picks in total — a pair of first-rounders (Nos. 2 and 27) as well as three second-round picks (Nos. 34, 39 and 41) — all eyes are set on Charlotte to see what the team decides to do with its first No. 2 overall pick since 2012.

Antonio at No. 1.

With a ball-heavy point guard like LaMelo Ball already in Charlotte’s mix, Miller could be a better positional fit for the Hornets’ roster as a 6-foot-9 wing who can slash and also shoot from long range. At the same time, Henderson provides a combination of court vision, defensive talent and an All-Star ceiling that would make him a betting favorite for the No. 1 overall pick most years. Kupchak’s post-lottery comments provided a slight indication that the team is now looking beyond the best-player-available strategy to drafting.

“I think we can be a little bit picky and take into consideration not only the overall talent but also the position.”

“We have a bunch of picks,” Hornets general manager Mitch Kupchak said after the draft lottery last month. “We’re going to focus on all the picks, but we’re going to spend an awful lot of time on No. 2 and get up close with who we consider to be the prospects and hopefully get to work them out.”

Hornets GM Mitch Kupchak on the second overall pick

The consensus among draft experts is that Alabama wing Brandon Miller or G League Ignite point guard Scoot Henderson will be the second player taken off the board, with generational talent Victor Wembanyama a lock to San

“That’s been our position for the last three or four years when you try to accumulate talent,” Kupchak said. “I don’t think we’re where we need to be from a talent level, but we’ve got a lot more talent now than we did two or three years ago, so I think we can be a little bit picky and take into consideration not only the overall talent but also the position.”

As first reported by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Hornets conducted a second round of workouts and interviews with Miller and Henderson on Monday as both auditioned for the No. 2 pick in outgoing owner Michael Jordan’s first in-person assessment of the two players. Jordan, who finalized the sale of

The Demon Deacons won their first two games with comebacks to continue the school’s College World Series run

By Shawn Krest North State Journal

THERE’S CONFIDENCE, and there’s wild-eyed fanatical belief. Wake Forest’s baseball team is bordering on the latter as the Demon Deacons continue their undefeated run through the NCAA Tournament with two wild wins to open College World Series play.

“We have a bunch of unwavering faith,” said pitcher Josh Hartle, who allowed two runs over six innings against LSU, striking out nine. “Doesn’t matter if we’re down 10-0 or up 10-0. We’re never out of a game. And just kudos to our team. The camaraderie, chemistry with us I think is unbreakable.”

Players always seem to say the right things about trusting teammates and believing they can win no matter what the obstacles, but the Deacs are sounding like devotees of a cult leader — easy to understand since Wake has all but walked on water so far in its postseason run.

have scored just six total runs in two games in Omaha.

Stanford scored a run in the first and another in the third to take an early 2-1 lead. Two third-inning runs gave LSU a 2-0 lead early in the second game. Then the Wake pitching staff locked things down, not allowing another run in either game to help set the stage for the comebacks.

“Our pitching staff keeps us in it and throws up zeros,” said Wake coach Tom Walter. “We got down early in both the games and our staff just kept throwing up zeros after that, and we kept making big pitches and kept making plays.”

“How can we lose? Who can beat us? It seems pretty much impossible”

Camden Minacci, Wake Forest closer

Wake’s defense also stepped up, with catcher Brock Lee making an impressive catch of a throw in the dirt to tag out a runner for a run-saving out in the eighth inning against LSU. Third baseman Brock Wilken was able to reach a ground ball that looked like it was going to get through the infield. He then made a throw from foul territory to set up Lee’s tag.

“Brock said the ball was literally still spinning in his glove when he went to throw it,” Lee said. “So just an unbelievable play to get the ball to me.”

“How can we lose?” asked closer Camden Minacci, who saved the first game and earned the win in the second. “Every single guy is having the time of their lives right now. Who can beat us?

It seems pretty much impossible.”

The Demon Deacons dominated the first two weekends of NCAA play, setting a tournament record by entering the College World Series outscoring their NCAA foes by 59 runs.

The offensive explosion was extinguished in Omaha, but Wake has relied on clutch hitting and bulldog tenacity to pull out wins over Stanford and LSU.

After not trailing in their first five NCAA games, Wake has trailed at the end of nine of the 18 CWS innings it has played through Tuesday night. The Deacs have led for just 10 total outs across the two games, pulling in front in the bottom of the eighth inning of both contests.

That’s been enough.

Wake scored 9.4 runs per game this season and 15 per contest in NCAA play, but the Deacs

With Wake’s pitching and defense keeping the Deacs in striking range late into both games, it was time for the bats to take the spotlight. Danny Corona hit a two-run single to put Wake on top against Stanford.

“I felt we were tight early and nervous and kind of got out of our plan offensively,” Walter said. “Didn’t have great at-bats, really, for the first seven innings. … But we did just enough.”

On Monday night against LSU—the only other team besides Wake that was still undefeated in NCAA play, as well as the only other team to hold the No. 1 spot in the rankings this season — Lee followed up his defensive gem in the top of the eighth with a go-ahead single in the bottom of the inning.

And with that, Wake has seemingly now won in every possible way, shutting out opponents, steamrolling them and snatching victory from the jaws of defeat.

“We talked about it before the tournament started,” Walter

REBECCA S. GRATZ | AP PHOTO

Wake Forest catcher Bennett Lee tags out LSU’s Tre’ Morgan at home plate in the eighth inning of Monday’s College World Series game in Omaha, Nebraska. The Demon Deacons won 3-2 to improve to 2-0.

NAM Y. HUH | AP PHOTO

Alabama forward Brandon Miller is still the favorite to be selected second overall by the Hornets in the 2023 NBA Draft.

TRENDING

Deion Sanders:

The Colorado football coach may have to have his left foot amputated as a result of continuing blood flow issues. Sanders had two toes amputated from the foot in 2021 while he was coaching at Jackson State, missing three games. Sanders told his medical team that if a procedure is recommended he wants to have it done before the football season begins. Sanders allowed camera crews from “Thee Pregame Show” in his meeting with surgeons, and the segment was posted Friday on YouTube.

Ja Morant:

The Grizzlies guard was suspended for the first 25 games of the upcoming season for a second social media video in which he flashed a gun. The NBA announced the suspension on Friday. Morant will also have to adhere to certain conditions before being reinstated. It is the second time he has been suspended within four months for showing a firearm on social media. He was suspended eight games in March after a video showed him with a gun in a strip club.

David Freese:

The former third baseman has declined his induction into the St. Louis Cardinals’ Hall of Fame. Freese was a postseason hero for his hometown team in helping the Cardinals win the 2011 World Series. He was chosen for the Hall of Fame by fans, garnering the most votes in online balloting for this year’s class. But in a statement Saturday, the Cardinals said Freese recently informed them he wanted to withdraw his candidacy.

Beyond the box score

POTENT QUOTABLES

Wyndham Clark won his first major title, beating Rory McIlroy by one shot to claim the U.S Open on Sunday at Los Angeles Country Club. The 29‑year‑old was playing in just his seventh major and had never finished better than 75th. His even‑par 70 was good enough to outlast McIlroy, who also shot 70. Clark finished at 10‑under 270. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler also shot 70 and finished third, three shots back.

Charlotte men’s basketball interim coach Aaron Fearne after it was announced he will coach the 49ers during the 2023-24 season.

Rickie Fowler after shooting a 75 in the final round of the U.S. Open after entering the day tied for the lead.

PRIME NUMBER

$1.79M

Amount fetched for Wilt Chamberlain’s home uniform from his rookie season with the Philadelphia Warriors in an auction. SCP Auctions says the jersey and shorts that Chamberlain wore during the 1959‑60 season were sold to filmmaker Rob Gough, and that Saturday’s sale price was a record for any vintage game‑worn basketball item.

West Virginia basketball coach Bob Huggins has resigned following a drunken driving arrest, the university announced Saturday night. Huggins, 69, was charged with driving under the influence on Friday night, and a breath test determined Huggins’ blood alcohol content was 0.21%, more than twice the legal limit.

SOCCER

Former Duke standout and 15‑year NBA veteran Mike Dunleavy Jr. is being promoted to general manager of the Golden State Warriors. He is replacing Bob Myers, who owner Joe Lacob said would leave when his contract expired at the end of June. The 42‑year‑old Dunleavy has been in a front office role for six seasons.

Gregg Berhalter was rehired as U.S. men’s national team coach through the 2026 World Cup, returning to the job after he led the Americans to the second round of last year’s tournament and then was dropped amid a feud with the Reyna family that triggered a domestic‑violence investigation. The U.S. is co‑hosting the 2026 men’s World Cup.

NBA

JOSE CARLOS FAJARDO | BAY AREA NEWS GROUP VIA AP

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

CHARLIE NEIBERGALL | AP PHOTO

“I just didn’t have it today.”

GEORGE WALKER IV | AP PHOTO

LUCAS PELTIER | AP PHOTO

“I’m prepared to lead this program.”

COURTESY CHARLOTTE ATHLETICS

Local players cope with uncertainty as NBA Draft arrives

Two Duke players and NC State’s leading scorer have a wide range of potential landing spots

By Shawn Krest North State Journal

THE NBA DRAFT will take place on Thursday in Brooklyn’s Barclays Center. The first pick will be French big man Victor Wembanyama, considered to be a once-in-a-generation, franchise-altering pick, going to San Antonio. After that, things will likely get wild.

The Charlotte Hornets pick next, and there is no consensus on who they’ll pick. The uncertainty tumbles through the first round like dominos as mock drafts have players scattered up and down the draft order below Wembanyama. Prospects with connections to North Carolina colleges are feeling the uncertainty as much as anyone as four players with local ties hope to hear their names called at some point during the night. When that will occur, however, is anybody’s guess. As usual, Duke has multiple players expected to be drafted in the first round as the Blue Devils send two more one-and-done freshmen to the league. This year, however, the Blue Devils’ prospects will not go off the board in the first few picks, and one or both may have extended waits.

The year is similar to 2017’s NBA Draft when Duke had a talented freshman class that went one-and-done. But injuries hampered their brief Duke careers, giving them a bigger question mark than usual for NBA teams.

One of the players from that Duke team six years ago entered college as one of the nation’s top prospects but missed eight games at the start of the season and battled injury all year long, not really hitting his stride until late in the season. The other was also one of the top high school players in the nation before injuries slowed him. He never found his footing in his year at Duke, missing 11 games. He entered the draft with loads of potential but little production to

show for it.

The first player, Jayson Tatum, has developed into one of the NBA’s up-and-coming stars. The latter, Harry Giles, started just 17 NBA games and hasn’t played in the league in the last two years.

Once again, the league has a pair of star-crossed Duke freshmen to choose from. Dereck Lively seems more likely to be this year’s Tatum, making teams forget about his college injuries. He got a late start to the season and struggled to get back into game shape. By the end of the year, he had developed into a shot-blocking defensive force, but his offense never really was a factor as the Blue Devils had other options by the time he was ready to contribute on that end of the floor.

Teams seem willing to roll the

dice on Lively. According to Yahoo’s mock draft, he’s one of the fastest risers in the draft class, jumping from mid-to-late first round up to late lottery or even top 10, thanks to some impressive workouts and showcase performances. He’s expected to do better in the NBA, where the game is more spread out, giving him extra room to work. His predraft performances also allowed him to show off his outside shooting and versatility, and he was more aggressive than he appeared during his season with the Blue Devils. ESPN and Bleacher Report have him in the top 10 in their mocks, while most services now mock him near the tail end of the lottery. His lowest mock is No. 23, by SB Nation. Teams aren’t as high on his

teammate, Dariq Whitehead. The wing player was almost as highly regarded entering college, but injuries also slowed the start of his season and he struggled to get up to speed, missing eight games throughout the season. His injury concerns have only gotten greater during the predraft process after reports surfaced two weeks ago that he had undergone a second procedure on his injured foot, keeping him from giving any last-minute workouts to teams.

He still has plenty of potential, but it comes with a healthy supply of question marks. Only two of the major mock drafts have him going ahead of Lively, and the consensus has him going in the mid-to-late 20s. One mock, SB Nation’s, has him selected in the lottery, and another, NBADraft.net, has him

Jordan’s sale of Hornets leaves team decisions in flux

The sale likely won’t be finalized for a month or more

By Steve Reed

The Associated Press

CHARLOTTE — The timing of Michael Jordan’s decision to sell his majority ownership stake in the Charlotte Hornets has left the organization in flux, with several looming key personnel decisions.

The Hornets have the No. 2 pick in the NBA draft on Thursday night. They also have some difficult decisions to make in free agency in early July, including whether to re-sign embattled restricted free agent Miles Bridges.

With the NBA’s Board of Governors unlikely to approve the team’s sale to an ownership group led by Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnall until at least another month or two, the question becomes who will sign off on general manager Mitch Kupchak’s potentially franchise-altering decisions this summer. Will it be Jordan, a lame duck majority owner? Or will the new ownership have a major input?

Jordan will remain on as a minority owner after the sale is approved, so he still has a vested interest in the organization. Bobby Marks, a front-office insider for ESPN, said the timing of the announcement makes this an unusual situation.

“Whether it’s Mitch or Michael making the decisions, I think you

his majority stake in the team last week, will maintain a minority stake in the franchise and remain the team’s final decision-maker until the new ownership group is approved by the league’s board of governors in a few weeks.

Sources told ESPN that Miller remains the favorite for the Hornets’ selection but that Henderson has also impressed the front office

have to keep these guys from the new ownership group in the loop,” Marks said. “... At the end of the day, they don’t technically have a say in anything yet, but I would think they have to be part of the conversation, particularly when it comes to taking on future money.”

On the surface, the No. 2 pick wouldn’t be a complicated one, with the Hornets likely choosing between G League star Scoot Henderson and Alabama’s Brandon Miller.

But Marks said the trade rumors swirling around the New Orleans Pelicans potentially be-

in his team workouts.

Additionally, those same sources alleged that both Miller and Henderson have shown excitement about getting selected by Charlotte due to the team’s recent ownership change as well as the city’s location near their respective families.

Despite the current expectations, the Hornets may have other plans entirely for draft night.

On Monday, NBA reporter

ing open to moving former No. 1 overall pick Zion Williamson to secure the second or third pick in the draft complicates things for the Hornets.

Essentially, would a trade that has long-lasting implications sit well with new ownership?

“If they have a chance to move out of the two spot, what happens when you have salary involved that stretches past this year, which means money out of their pockets? I would think you would want to get (the new ownership group’s) blessing before taking on money like that,” Marks said.

Shams Charania of The Athletic hinted that there had been talks between the Hornets and New Orleans Pelicans to possibly engineer a trade for the No. 2 pick. The Pelicans are targeting Henderson, and the return to Charlotte could be either Zion Williamson or Brandon Ingram. Of those two players, Charlotte reportedly has a higher value on Ingram. With four other draft picks

ESPN commentator Jeff Van Gundy agrees.

“I would suspect there would be conversations about who they want to draft and sign before anything is finalized,” Van Gundy said.

Both Marks and Van Gundy believe the toughest decision ahead involves whether to re-sign Bridges.

A former first-round pick out of Michigan State, Bridges had a breakout season in 2021-22. He led the team in scoring and rebounding and appeared on the verge of a huge payday last summer before felony domestic violence charges put his career on hold.

The 25-year-old Bridges wound up pleading no contest to the charges and agreed to three years of probation. He missed all of last season.

The NBA ultimately determined Bridges will serve a 10game suspension once he returns to the league. The league officially suspended him for 30 games but determined 20 games of the suspension have been served because Bridges already missed all 82 games in 2022-23.

“In terms of the new owners you have to wonder, is that what you want your first signing to be?” Marks said.

Added Van Gundy: “There is more to that (decision) than just basketball.”

Van Gundy believes the Hornets are in good hands in terms of personnel decisions with Kupchak at the helm. He believes both Jordan and the new owners will rely heav-

available following their lottery pick at No. 2, the Hornets have myriad options for how they want to handle those selections. Some draft analysts have lobbied that Charlotte should trade its No. 27 or No. 34 picks for a future firstround pick. On the flip side, the Hornets could decide to package one or some of its three second-round picks to move up into the early 20s if there is a certain player on the

falling into the second round.

The only other player with local connections who may go in the first round never actually played in the state. GG Jackson was a UNC commit for next season before reclassifying and coming to college a year early, and attending South Carolina since UNC didn’t have a scholarship available. Most mocks have him going in the final three or four picks of the first round, with a risk of him falling into Round 2.

In the second round, the local player with the best chance of being drafted is NC State’s Terquavion Smith. The Wolfpack scorer is mocked from as high as No. 31 — the first pick of the second round — to as low as 48th, but all tworound mocks had Smith getting a call.

ily upon the longtime GM’s opinion moving forward during this time of transition.

He added he was surprised when reports first surfaced that Jordan was looking to sell the team.

“He always looked to be a hands-on owner,” Van Gundy said. “I know he has the fishing and the auto racing that he’s involved in, but I still didn’t expect him to get out of the NBA. And yet he looks like he is going to make a tidy profit, so good for him.”

Jordan purchased the team for $275 million in 2010 and will sell it for a reported $3 billion.

“You win with Michael Jordan the player,” Van Gundy added. “Those type of players will make you elite for a long time. You see it with (Nikola) Jokic. It’s hard to get those players, and when you do you are set up for a long period of time. ... But the Hornets, they missed on a few high draft picks.”

After finishing 7-59 in the 201112 season, the Hornets failed to land the No. 1 pick in the lottery and missed out on star center Anthony Davis. Charlotte chose Michael Kidd-Gilchrist at No. 2, passing on Bradley Beal and Damian Lillard.

The Hornets also selected Cody Zeller fourth overall in 2013 over Giannis Antetokounmpo and Steven Adams, and swung and missed on top-10 picks Frank Kaminsky and Noah Vonleh in 2014 and 2015.

“It’s about the roster, the roster, the roster,” Van Gundy said. “The most important person in every organization is the person who picks the players.”

And the owner that signs off on them.

team’s radar. At No. 27, Charlotte has been linked in mock drafts to a group of forwards that include GG Jackson (South Carolina), Olivier Maxence-Prosper (Marquette), Kris Murray (Iowa), Rayan Rupert (New Zealand Breakers) and Brice Sensabaugh (Ohio State). Guards Brandin Podziemski (Santa Clara) and Amari Bailey (UCLA) have also been projected as picks in the late 20s.

JACOB KUPFERMAN | AP PHOTO

Michael Jordan is finalizing a deal to sell his majority share of the Charlotte Hornets, a move that will end his 13-year run overseeing the organization, the team announced Friday.

BEN MCKEOWN | AP PHOTO

Duke’s Dereck Lively II was one of college’s basketball top defensive players and is expected to be a first round pick in this week’s NBA Draft.

HORNETS from page B1

The crew of Sushi and friends celebrate as they show off checks that total more than $2.77 million for their winning

Big Rock ends in controversy

A 619.4-pound marlin was disqualified due to mutilation rules

North State Journal

FOR JUST THE SECOND time since 2014, a blue marlin weighing under 500 pounds came away as the big winner at the Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament — even though a bigger fish was weighed at the docks in Morehead City.

Sensation’s 619.4-pound blue marlin was disqualified on Sunday morning, a day after it seemingly took the tournament lead

and claimed the $739,500 Fabulous Fisherman prize, “due to mutilation caused by a shark or other marine animal,” the Big Rock said in a statement on its website.

“It was deemed that the fish was mutilated before it was landed or boated and therefore it was disqualified.

“The Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament follows IGFA rules regarding mutilated fish as outlined in Rule #23 in the Big Rock Official Rules,” the statement continued. “IGFA rules state that the following situation will disqualify a fish: ‘Mutilation to the fish, prior to landing or boating the catch,

“It’s a tough pill to swallow.”

Greg McCoy, captain of Sensation

caused by sharks, other fish, mammals, or propellers that remove or penetrate the flesh.’”

The disqualification meant the crew of Sushi had the largest confirmed catch of the week with its 484.5-pound blue marlin caught on Friday. That beat the second-place catch by Chasin’ A,

From greatest team ever to NC Hall of Fame: The long journey of Curtis Strange

The two-time U.S. Open winner led Wake Forest to back-to-back titles

By Shawn Krest North State Journal

like him … it’s something you don’t dream about because it’s too far out, too far-fetched.”

which boated a 479.8-pounder, by under five pounds. C- Student was third with its 470.2-pound marlin.

Sensation captain Greg McCoy told The Washington Post that he and his crew believed they had brought the winner to the docks.

“It’s the final hour, the final day and we fought with him for six hours,” McCoy said. “It’s a tough pill to swallow.”

When the bite mark was seen on Sensation’s catch, tournament officials huddled and Big Rock emcee Tommy Bennett told the large crowd that the rules committee would deliberate and make a decision on the marlin.

“The IGFA rule is very clear,” Bennett said. “Out of respect for the crew of the Sensation and the other 270 boats fishing in the tournament, the rules committee of

the Big Rock is going to meet and look at all of the evidence regarding this fish and make a decision.”

The next morning at 10 a.m., the Big Rock released a statement that Sensation’s blue marlin had been disqualified.

Since no boat brought in a certified 500-pound marlin, the Fabulous Fisherman money will carry over to next year. Plenty of prize money was still handed out.

Sushi banked $2.77 million of the $5.85 million purse for their winning catch. Other big winners from the tournament included Skip Hook earning $539,750 for the Level VII heaviest dolphin, a 59.3-pound catch. Chasin’ A won more than $400,000 for its second-place marlin, while C- Student claimed more than $270,000 for third place.

Palmer helped establish Wake as one of the nation’s elite golf programs, winning a pair of NCAA individual titles and becoming the first individual ACC men’s golf champion.

“It’s something you don’t dream about because it’s too far out, too far-fetched.”

RALEIGH — It’s easy to assume that someone who was a member of the best team ever would take being named to the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in stride. However, Curtis Strange was moved by the honor.

“I didn’t know truly what to expect,” he said. “Being here, around the athletes, meeting a lot of them for the first time and hearing their story, it was humbling. There’s so many good people in this world, coming off that stage where they performed, what little I did on it, what little I did in the game of golf, it just doesn’t compare to what they did.”

Strange was downplaying his golf accomplishments by more than a bit. The 2007 World Golf Hall of Famer had 29 pro wins, including 17 on the PGA Tour. He was back-to-back U.S. Open champion in 1988 and 1989 and the PGA Player of the Year in 1988, which was also the third season in which he led the tour in prize money earned.

Strange was also reluctant to take his place in the golf history of his alma mater, Wake Forest.

“I’m officially joining a very select group,” he said at his induction to the North Carolina Sports Hall in April, “including Arnold Palmer — I’ve talked a good bit about him. To officially join up with men

Strange, however, helped vault Wake into another stratosphere when he came to Winston-Salem in 1974. He teamed up with Jay Haas, Bob Byman, David Thore and Tim Saylor to give the Deacs what was described by one outlet as “a murderer’s row of collegiate golf.”

Strange won the NCAA individual title in 1974, becoming, at the time, the youngest golfer to win the honor. He led Wake to the biggest comeback in NCAA history, wiping out a 33-stroke deficit to take the national team title. Strange eagled the final hole to clinch the championship.

The following year, the crew returned intact, joined by freshman Scott Hoch, and repeated as champions. This time, Wake set another NCAA record, winning by 33 strokes to break the previous mark for victory margin by 20 strokes. Strange just missed repeating as individual champion, taking third, two strokes behind teammate Haas.

“I was making birdies out of my ear and still couldn’t catch you,” Strange told Haas at the time.

Golf Digest called the ’75 Deacs the greatest college golf team in history. Five of the players on the team became PGA regulars, combining for 38 tour wins and $41

Curtis Strange said. “We do have the ability to win games in different ways because of all our pitching and de -

fense, we can win the 3-2 game. Because of our offense, we can win the 8-6 or 10-8 game. That’s one of the things I really like about this club.”

million in earnings. At the time they were winning college titles, however, they were all about the team and the business at hand.

“I wasn’t concerned with Curtis or (second-place finisher, Alabama’s Jerry) Pate. But with my game,” Haas said after the tournament. “Our team spirit was unbelievable. The first three days was all team. Once I started realizing that we had it locked up then did I start to play for myself. But like Coach (Jesse) Haddock says, if you think about the team, individual honors will come.”

That echoed what Strange said the year before after his own individual title.

“That’s all I thought about today, playing for the team,” Strange told Sports Illustrated at the time. “We come to a golf tournament to do just one thing: play golf. We can party later.”

Strange finished third in 1976 as Wake’s quest for a three-peat fell short. The Deacs finished fourth, and Strange left with a year of eligibility remaining to join the pro tour, breaking up college golf’s greatest team ever.

“I’m glad you asked about that,” Strange said of his Wake experi-

That, and the team’s unwavering — almost unsettling — confidence.

“We’ve got some toughness to us,” Walter said. “That’s the one

ence, “because this whole process has given me a chance to really reminisce a lot about those years — three years to be exact: The recruiting process, three years of being there and then just kind of keeping up with everybody over the years. We have a very tight-knit group of alumni golfers. Most of us stay in contact with each other. We talk every once in a while, and we’re proud of what we did at Wake

thing I said to the guys in the huddle before the game, I said, ‘They don’t know how tough we are.’

We’re a tough team, tough-minded team. We don’t quit. We don’t

Forest in different generations.

“In my particular case, I still see and hear from a couple of the guys all the time. It’s given me a great chance to reminisce about those times — the good plan Coach Haddock had that gave us the opportunity (to win).”

Strange joked that there was just one thing that soured his Wake Forest experience: “The fear of going to class every day.”

give up.” Wake will next play on Wednesday, against the winner of a Tuesday elimination game between LSU and Tennessee.

PHOTO COURTESY BIG ROCK BLUE MARLIN TOURNAMENT

catch in the Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament.

WAKE FOREST from page B1

AP PHOTO

Curtis Strange, who was inducted into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame last month, competes for Wake Forest during the North and South Amateur Tournament in Pinehurst in 1975.

DEBT from page B5 the House, the commission’s clout would be diminished without Senate participation and White House buy-in. And any findings from the effort could come during a presidential election year — an unfavorable political climate for a proposal that is likely to ask for some sacrifice from the voting public.

McCarthy said one thing he could do as speaker would be to bring up recommendations from the debt commission one at a time rather than in one fell swoop.

“I could do it kind of like in a BRAC,” McCarthy said, referring to the various Base Realignment and Closure rounds initiated by the Defense Department to reduce excess infrastructure. “I could bring it directly to the floor, no amendments, you vote it up or vote it down and see what passed, see what doesn’t.”

“You can do section by section so people don’t get hung up on everything,” he said.

Rep. Steve Womack, R-Ark., said he likes the idea of a commission.

“We need to get as much of the politics out of it as we can and just give us the facts,” Womack said. “... And the facts are that 70% of this whole federal budget is on autopilot right now.”

Womack said he isn’t calling for Congress to “cut a lot of these programs, but we do have to make these programs sustainable in the future.”

On the Senate side, Sen. John Thune, the No. 2-ranking Republican, gave the commission concept his endorsement, saying “we got to start taking this stuff on.”

“I think that makes all the sense in the world. Let’s get the best experts in the room and figure out what’s the best way to fix these issues, make these programs sustainable and see if we can’t do something to address deficits and debt in a meaningful way,” Thune said.

But Sen. Ron Wyden, the Democratic chair of the Senate Finance Committee, said he sees it as a way for Republicans to pursue “ideological trophies.”

“Everything I’ve heard about it, it’s a prescription for trouble,” Wyden said, adding, “They’re looking at a glide path to reduce benefits.”

The most recent efforts to reduce deficits through the recommendations of a commission ended in failure.

In 2010, there was the Simpson-Bowles commission, led by co-chairs Alan Simpson and Erskine Bowles. They drafted a plan that mixed painful cuts to safety-net programs with big tax increases even while cutting top rates on individuals and corporations to 28% from 35%. It also would have hiked Social Security’s retirement age and scaled back popular tax deductions for health insurance and mortgage interest.

The committee’s recommendations gained the support of most of its members, but fell three votes short of the 14-vote threshold required to send the package to Congress for an upor-down vote.

Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, a member of the Simpson-Bowles panel, said the commission failed because a better mechanism was needed to ensure the recommendations were voted on by Congress. He said he continues to believe a commission is the best way to tee up for Congress the “tough political decisions” on the $31 trillion-plus debt.

The Associated Press

THE CORPORATE PARENT of Facebook and Instagram plans to open a digital gateway for kids as young as 10 years old to enter virtual reality through the Meta Quest headset, despite rising concerns about children spending too much time on social media.

Meta Platforms, which oversees a social media empire created by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, disclosed it will lower the minimum age for a Quest account from 13 years old to 10 years old in a Friday blog post. The Menlo Park, California, company framed the change coming later this year as a family-friendly way for more people to explore artificial realms that Zuckerberg touts as the “metaverse.”

The move to lure preteens into a virtual world filled with digital avatars and other technological fabrications comes just weeks after U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy called upon tech companies and lawmakers to take steps to protect children from the potentially harmful mental and emotional effects of too much exposure to social media.

Both Facebook and Instagram for years have been under fire for using tactics that get kids hooked on social media at a young age, undercutting their real-life relationships with friends and families while exposing them to the risk of online bullying and abuse by sexual predators.

In its blog post, Meta said that parents will retain control over their children’s accounts for the Quest 2 and Quest 3 headsets and promised that preteen access will be limited to “age-appropriate” apps deploying virtual reality, or VR. Preteens won’t be able to have a Quest account without explicit approval from their parents and all apps used on the platform will require parental consent, too, according to the company, which is recommending the younger age group be limited to a two-hour daily time limit on the headset.

Other safeguards will include setting all preteen accounts to a private setting by default and a pledge not to show them any ads that generate most of Meta’s revenue.

“We’re building this with our Responsible Innovation Principles and our commitment to build-

Meta blog post

ing safe, positive experiences for young people at the forefront,”

Meta wrote in the blog post.

The company also is providing parents with extensive guidance when assessing whether they should allow a 10- to -12-year-old to use a virtual reality headset. One section of the guide cites “a growing body of research examining the positive effects of VR in medical/ clinical contexts, including interventions to support the development of social competence skills, to distract from painful or anxiety-inducing medical procedures, and to support specific skill development in specialized populations,” such as children with cerebral palsy.

By expanding the potential au-

Microsoft says early June disruptions to Outlook, cloud platform, were cyberattacks

The Associated Press

BOSTON — In early June, sporadic but serious service disruptions plagued Microsoft’s flagship office suite — including the Outlook email and OneDrive file-sharing apps — and cloud computing platform. A shadowy hacktivist group claimed responsibility, saying it flooded the sites with junk traffic in distributed denial-of-service attacks.

Initially reticent to name the cause, Microsoft has now disclosed that DDoS attacks by the murky upstart were indeed to blame.

But the software giant has offered few details — and did not immediately comment on how many customers were affected and whether the impact was global. A spokeswoman confirmed that the group that calls itself Anonymous Sudan was behind the attacks. It claimed responsibility on its Telegram social media channel at the time. Some security researchers believe the group to be Russian.

Microsoft’s explanation in a blog post Friday evening followed a request by The Associated Press two days earlier. Slim on details, the post said the attacks “temporarily impacted availability” of some services. It said the attackers were focused on “disruption and publicity” and likely used rented cloud infrastructure and virtual private networks to bombard Microsoft servers from so-called botnets of zombie computers around the globe.

Microsoft said there was no evidence any customer data was ac-

cessed or compromised.

While DDoS attacks are mainly a nuisance — making websites unreachable without penetrating them — security experts say they can disrupt the work of millions if they successfully interrupt the services of a software service giant like Microsoft on which so much global commerce depends.

It’s not clear if that’s what happened here.

“We really have no way to measure the impact if Microsoft doesn’t provide that info,” said Jake Williams, a prominent cybersecurity researcher and a former National Security Agency offensive hacker. Williams said he was not aware of Outlook previously being attacked at this scale.

“We know some resources were inaccessible for some, but not

others. This often happens with DDoS of globally distributed systems,” Williams added. He said Microsoft’s apparent unwillingness to provide an objective measure of customer impact “probably speaks to the magnitude.”

Microsoft dubbed the attackers Storm-1359, using a designator it assigns to groups whose affiliation it has not yet established. Cybersecurity sleuthing tends to take time — and even then can be a challenge if the adversary is skilled.

Pro-Russian hacking groups including Killnet — which the cybersecurity firm Mandiant says is Kremlin-affiliated — have been bombarding government and other websites of Ukraine’s allies with DDoS attacks. In October, some U.S. airport sites were hit. Analyst Alexander Leslie of the cybersecu-

dience for the Quest, Zuckerberg appears to be taking another significant step toward his goal of sculpting the metaverse into a sphere that eventually will be as popular as Facebook and Instagram have become since he started the company in a college dorm room nearly 20 years ago.

The metaverse so far has mostly been a digital ghost town, even though millions of Quest headsets have been sold. The Meta division that oversees the Quest headset and metaverse lost $13.7 billion last year while bringing in $2.2 billion in revenue.

What’s more, Meta is facing formidable new competition from Apple, which last week unveiled a headset called Vision Pro that’s capable of thrusting users into virtual settings, too. The high-end headset, priced at $3,500, received enthusiastic responses in carefully staged demos, but it won’t be in stores until some time early next year. Meta already has announced the next Quest headset will cost $500 as a way to get more people to buy it before the Vision Pro is released and now is taking steps to get preteens on board.

rity firm Recorded Future said it’s unlikely Anonymous Sudan is located as it claims in Sudan, an African country. The group works closely with Killnet and other pro-Kremlin groups to spread pro-Russian propaganda and disinformation, he said.

Edward Amoroso, NYU professor and CEO of TAG Cyber, said the Microsoft incident highlights how DDoS attacks remain “a significant risk that we all just agree to avoid talking about. It’s not controversial to call this an unsolved problem.”

He said Microsoft’s difficulties fending of this particular attack suggest “a single point of failure.” The best defense against these attacks is to distribute a service massively, on a content distribution network for example.

Indeed, the techniques the attackers used are not old, said U.K. security researcher Kevin Beaumont. “One dates back to 2009,” he said.

Serious impacts from the Microsoft 365 office suite interruptions were reported on Monday June 5, peaking at 18,000 outage and problem reports on the tracker Downdetector shortly after 11 a.m. Eastern time.

On Twitter that day, Microsoft said Outlook, Microsoft Teams, SharePoint Online and OneDrive for Business were affected.

Attacks continued through the week, with Microsoft confirming on June 9 that its Azure cloud computing platform had been affected.

On June 8, the computer security news site BleepingComputer.com reported that cloud-based OneDrive file-hosting was down globally for a time. Microsoft said at the time that desktop OneDrive clients were not affected, BleepingComputer reported.

Facebook owner wants preteens to step into virtual reality with its Quest headset

“We’re building this with … our commitment to building safe, positive experiences for young people at the forefront.”

AP PHOTO

Oculus VR headsets sit on display at CES International on Jan. 8, 2019, in Las Vegas.

AP PHOTO

The Microsoft company logo is displayed.

NASCAR’s Good Ol’ Boys shake up the French countryside

By Jordan Golson North State Journal

THERE IS SOMETHING Intoxicatingly beautiful about wickedly fast cars racing through the French countryside at night. That’s probably why the 24 Heures du Mans, or, in English, the 24 Hours of Le Mans, has continued for the last 100 years. It is perhaps the world’s premier motor race; the 2023 edition was last weekend.

Some of the world’s fastest drivers transit the 8.5-mile Circuit de la Sarthe — a mix of closed public roads and a bit of dedicated racetrack in less than three-and-a-half minutes at an average speed of close to 150 miles per hour.

I had the good fortune to attend the 2016 running, when Ford returned after a multi-decade absence and won its class the first time out. Every year brings different stories, but the brief is simple: Win. There were four different classes racing this year, with more than five dozen entries. From the noholds-barred prototype hypercars to the GT cars that look almost like something you might be able to buy from your local Aston Martin or Porsche dealer, there are constant battles up and down the grid. But the biggest battle teams face is time.

The goal of an endurance race isn’t necessarily to be the fastest. Instead, the winner is the car that can travel the greatest distance in 24 hours, accounting for pit stops to refuel, change tires and drivers, and even to make repairs. It is a brutal, merciless game designed to push man and machine to their breaking point. In 2016, the year I attended, Toyota missed out on its first-ever win at Le Mans when its race-leading car broke down on the main straight on the last lap of the race. Having a big lead after 23 minutes and 57 seconds is not enough, it turns out.

But this year, the most exciting

story came from an unexpected place. Most non-racing enthusiasts think of NASCAR as a sport for rednecks where heavy cars with big V8 motors rip around a superspeedway turning left. To show that there’s much more to stock car racing than left turns and good ol’ boys, NASCAR teamed up with Hendrick Motorsports, one of the top teams in racing, to field Garage 56: a Next Gen stock car that’s been Le Mans-ified and is the talk of the paddock (and all of racing) this year. The No. 24 car, ostensibly a Chevrolet Camaro, was heavily modified from a standard NASCAR. Rather than stickers, it has functioning headlights and taillights, carbon brake discs, and a fuel cell 12 gallons larger than nor-

mal. It’s covered in a mind-boggling array of new aerodynamic components to increase downforce, and it’s a whopping 500 pounds lighter than the typical Cup car you’d find in a NASCAR race.

Le Mans teams typically field three drivers, and the Garage 56 entrant — a special slot on the grid introduced in 2012 for particularly innovative and futuristic cars that might not fit into any other category — had F1 Champion Jenson Button, 7-time NASCAR Cup Series champ Jimmie Johnson, and Le Mans winner Mike Rockenfeller behind the wheel.

But most exciting was that while the Garage 56 entry technically raced in a class of 1, it was also running against the rest of the field, particularly the sports cars. Even

more exciting? It beat the fastest GT car, a Ferrari 488 GTE EVO, by nearly four seconds in qualifying. In other words, America was ready roll into France and kick some European ass. It’s hard to put into words how unusual this car is. Compared to everybody else on the grid, this thing was huge.

There are other American entries in the race, too, including a Chevrolet Corvette C8.R and a rather bonkers hybrid Cadillac in the Hypercar class. But forget all that. With a naturally aspirated, cast-iron small block V8 under the hood, the Garage 56 car is mind-bogglingly loud and sure to keep fans tenting trackside up all night long. America.

While it’s basically impossible to watch the whole race (in 2016,

I eventually fell asleep trackside on the terrace at Ford’s hospitality building), I did my best to keep an eye on Jenson, Jimmie, and Mike, and they made us proud.

The car took 39th place, not only completing the race (which is far from a given at Le Mans), but nearly matching the best lap time of the GTE-winning Corvette Racing team. There are countless videos on TikTok of the Garage 56 entry passing other cars, including ostensibly faster LMP2 entries, usually to Free Bird or something from the Team America: World Police soundtrack.

But what a race it was. As they say, in order to finish first, first you must finish. And after 24 hours at Le Mans, sometimes that’s the sweetest victory of all.

COURTESY PHOTOS

‘The Flash’ opens to $55 million, a step off the typical superhero pace

The Associated Press DC AND WARNER BROS.’ long-in-the-works superhero movie “The Flash” opened to $55 million in its first three days in North American theaters, according to studio estimates on Sunday. Though a fair amount of money by normal standards, a sizable jump from DC’s last release, the “Shazam!” sequel, and enough for a first place start, it’s also muted by superhero standards where $100 million debut weekends are almost commonplace. The weekend also saw Pixar get its worst three-day opening ever with a $29.5 million bow by “Elemental.” It was a crowded weekend at the multiplex overall. In addition to “The Flash” and “Elemental,” the horror-comedy “The Blackening” also opened wide. The only big win was Wes Anderson’s starry “Asteroid City” which earned $720,000 from just six theaters and the distinction of having

the highest per-theater average ($132,211) since the start of the pandemic.

“The Flash” faced more complications than marketplace conditions. In addition to “The Flash” and “Elemental,” the horror-comedy “The Blackening” also opened wide. It has been in the headlines often over the past year, not because of the movie itself but because of its star Ezra Miller’s offscreen troubles, including arrests, erratic behavior and accusations of misconduct. Miller has apologized and said they are seeking mental health treatment. They also bowed out of participating in the normal publicity circuit, except for the premiere.

The studio’s leadership remained bullish on releasing their $200 million movie, however, confident in its quality and importance to future DC Studios storylines. The movie introduces the multiverse, which allowed for the return of Michael Keaton’s Bat-

man in a movie that also had Ben Affleck’s Batman.

Going into the weekend analysts expected “The Flash” to earn at least $70 million in its first three days, playing in 4,234 locations domestically. Now, it’s projected to net out with $64 million in its first four, including Monday’s Juneteenth holiday. Internationally, it made $75 million, giving it a $139 million global start.

Another obstacle was that some of the main promotional outlets — late night talk shows — are still shut down as the Writers Strike continues. Also, with the knowledge that DC is undergoing a major reset, fans might have decided to move on and wait for that.

Critics were mixed but more positive than not, with a 67% on Rotten Tomatoes. AP’s Jocelyn Noveck wrote in her review that despite some “breezily clever and entertaining” moments, “the final act bogs down in what feels like an endless, generic CGI battle and a

kitchen-sink resolution.”

Audiences polled for CinemaScore only gave the film a B, which has not historically been great news for word-of-mouth potential and longevity.

But there is a bit of a gap in the schedule before the next major blockbuster comes in “ Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” which opens on June 30.

Next week’s biggest offering is the R-rated Jennifer Lawrence comedy “ No Hard Feelings “ and the nationwide expansion of “Asteroid City.”

Second place went to “Elemental” with an estimated $29.5 million from 4,035 locations in North America – a new low for Pixar’s three-day openings. Before, that title belonged to “The Good Dinosaur” and “Onward,” which both debuted to $39 million.”

“Elemental” was greeted positively by critics, with a 76% on Rotten Tomatoes, and audiences (A CinemaScore). AP’s Jake

Coyle wrote that it’s “probably in the lower half” of the Pixar cannon but “sincere and clever, with a splash of dazzle,” it, “comes closer to rekindling some of the old Pixar magic than some recent entries.

“Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” was a very close third, in its third weekend, with $27.8 million. Sony is projecting that its domestic total will have reached $285 million through Monday.

“Transformers: Rise of the Beasts” dropped a steep 67% in its second weekend, adding $20 million to take fourth place. “The Little Mermaid” settled into fifth place with $11.6 million in its fourth weekend.

“The Blackening” was the other big release this weekend – a bit of counterprogramming to the bigger branded releases with an original horror-comedy about a group of friends, who are Black, who get together for a weekend away and find themselves on the run from a killer.

COUNTY NEWS

SCC receives national grant for small and rural libraries

Stanly Community College’s Library has been selected as one of 240 libraries to participate in Libraries

Transforming Communities: Accessible Small and Rural Communities, an American Library Association (ALA) initiative that provides community engagement and accessibility resources to small and rural libraries to help them better serve people with disabilities. The competitive award comes with a $10,000 grant that will help the library install ADA-accessible automatic opening doors to the library located in the Snyder building on the Albemarle campus. “We are so proud to be chosen for this amazing opportunity,” said Joel Ferdon, Dean of Learning Resources & Grant Management. “This grant will allow our library to get to know our residents with disabilities better. It will help us to improve our services to ensure this population feels welcome and comfortable in our space.” Many faculty, staff, students, and community members have voiced the need for the library entrance to be more accessible to individuals with physical disabilities. To learn more information about this grant and SCC’s effort to make the library more accessible, please contact Joel Ferdon at (704) 991-0261, email him at jferdon0525@stanly. edu, or visit www.stanly.edu/ library. Since 2014, ALA’s Libraries Transforming Communities initiative has reimagined the role libraries play in supporting communities.

Summer at the ballpark

Main, Uwharrie Wampus Cats Bryson Bebber hits an rbi single against the Queen City Corndogs at Don Montgomery Park in Albermarle, NC on June 15, 2023. Bottom left, Uwharrie Wampus Cats Charlie Carpenter delivers the pitch against the Queen City Corndogs. Bottom center, Uwharrie Wampus Cats Adien Wilson sides into second base. Bottom right, Uwharrie Wampus Cats Aiden Wilson is late on the tag at second base against the Queen City Corndogs.

Third annual Juneberry Jams concert series continues at Juneberry Ridge

Board also passes resolutions taking positions on state legislation

By Jesse Deal North State Journal

NORWOOD — Back for its third consecutive summer, the annual Juneberry Jams festival and concert series at Juneberry Ridge has arrived again with its unique combination of musical acts, guest speakers, spacious views and outdoor activities.

Set at the 525-acre regenerative farm and corporate retreat (formerly known as Lucky Clays Farm) at 40120 Old Cottonville Road in Norwood, each festival date offers a pair of headlining bands, a fireside chat with authors, teachers and prominent thinkers in the area of regenerative farming, as well as a mix of

farm-centered experiences for those who attend.

The summer series kicked off on June 10 with Festival Day 1’s “Soil, Bluegrass, and Beatles” theme — a night that included the Nashville-based Beatles cover group Forever Abbey Road, local bluegrass band The Trailblazers and author Daniel Griffith.

Festival Days 2 and 3 are now scheduled respectively for June 24’s “Feeding Local, Folk, & Fleetwood Mac” night and July 8’s “Ethical Meat & Break Out Country Stars” night.

The former is headlined by the Kansas City-based Fleetwood Mac cover band Landslide and supported by Asheville folk group Ashes & Arrows; the regenerative farming forum Know Your Farmers will begin the night.

Festival Day 3 is fronted by country and southern rock artist Ryan Perry with opening support

“It’s exciting because it’s new and different. This is a clean slate for Juneberry.”

Judy Carpenter

from the Charlotte-based Caroline Keller Band as well as speaker and professional farmer Meredith Leigh.

Single-day tickets are currently on sale at www.juneberry.com, starting at $25 for ages 18 and up and $15 for ages 12-17.

Juneberry Ridge founder Judy Carpenter discussed the company’s name change and rebranding in a video statement shortly after the formation of the venue.

“The company is changing, and the name is changing,” Carpenter

US House subcommittee holds energy grid hearing in Moore County

By Matt Mercer North State Journal

PINEHURST — Members of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce came to Moore County for a Congressional field hearing about securing the nation’s energy grid on June 16.

The hearing took place at the Pinehurst Village Hall just miles from the sites of attacks on two power substations that left more than 45,000 in the dark for nearly five days.

Rep. Richard Hudson, a member of the committee and resident of Southern Pines, called the field hearing essential and the start of a conversation.

“This is a day we’ve been looking forward to for a long time. Testimony we hear today will set up a national discussion on grid vulner-

ability,” Hudson said in his opening statement. The attacks, and subsequent shooting at another substation in neighboring Randolph County, created more urgency at both a state and federal level. A combined $75,000 reward for information has gone unanswered, and no arrests in the Moore County attack have been made.

A day earlier, the North Carolina General Assembly gave final approval of a bill increasing penalties for crimes relating to “injuring an energy facility,” including electric, gas and telecommunications infrastructure.

That bill, SB 58, creates a new statute making it a Class C felony to knowingly and willfully destroy, injure or otherwise damage an energy facility or attempt to do so. The statute also imposes

a $250,000 penalty and increases penalties for trespassing at the facilities.

Gov. Roy Cooper signed the bill into law on June 19.

“We must protect critical infrastructure that keeps electric power and clean water available in our communities, and this bill sends a message to criminals that these irresponsible acts will not be tolerated,” Cooper said in a statement.

South Carolina Rep. Jeff Duncan kicked off the hearing by thanking Hudson for the opportunity to come to the Sandhills to talk about the issue. Nine members of Congress toured both locations of the Dec. 3, 2022, substation attacks prior to the 10 a.m. hearing.

“America’s power grid is the

said. “It’s exciting because it’s new and different. This is a clean slate for Juneberry. Turning Lucky Clays Farm into Juneberry Ridge makes this a place where we can start anew.”

More than just a local landmark, Juneberry Ridge has become North Carolina’s largest residential renewable energy system. The farm includes rainwater-harvesting technology, an organic greenhouse and stocked fishing ponds, among many other amenities.

“There is a new sense of urgency with both our mission and our vision,” Carpenter added. “Juneberry needs to be sustainable, based on restorable agriculture and needs to make a sustainable profit as well. This company is built to last and is going to be here 300 years from now. I just want to leave the earth in better shape than it was when I got here.

PHOTOS BY PJ WARD-BROWN | NORTH STATE JOURNAL

“Join

Theme parks bounced back in 2022 from pandemic lows with revenue, if not attendance

North State Journal

ORLANDO, Fla. — Last year marked a return to normal for the theme park industry around the world with operators reporting revenues, and in some cases attendance, at par or above pre-pandemic levels, according to a new report.

Globally, the theme park industry hit a peak in 2019, the year before the spread of the COVID-19 virus forced many parks and attractions to shut down temporarily and then reopen with restrictions on attendance.

Many operators focused on improving visitor experiences through adapting app-based technologies and that paid off with revenues in 2022 that surpassed 2019 levels, even if attendance had not bounced back in the same way, according to the report released Wednesday by the Themed Entertainment Association and AECOM, the design and engineering firm.

“The pandemic revealed a sophisticated consumer base that is willing to pay more for out of home entertainment and experiences. However, consumers also demand more in terms of comfort, ease, quality, and satisfaction,” the report said. “Overall tolerance for big crowds and long waits seems to have gone down.”

The theme parks also found ways to add days for lucrative special events that attracted local visitors such as Halloween celebrations at Universal, Six Flags and Cedar Fair parks. In Orlando, Florida, the theme park capital of the U.S., attendance was

driven by domestic visitors rather than international travelers, a segment that was hurt by travel restrictions during the height of the pandemic response. The new Super Nintendo World buoyed attendance for Universal Studios Japan, the report said.

The Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World outside Orlando was the most visited park last year with more than 17.1 million

guests, an increase by more than a third over 2021 numbers but still down from the 20.9 million visitors in 2019.

Rounding out the top 5 most attended theme parks were: Disneyland in Anaheim, California, which had 16.8 million visitors, almost double the attendance in 2021 but still below the 18.6 million visitors in 2019; Tokyo Disneyland with 12 million visitors,

close to double the numbers from the previous year but still only about two-thirds of 2019’s attendance; Tokyo DisneySea with 10,1 million visitors, a three-quarters jump from 2021 but still down two-thirds from 2019; and Universal Studios Japan with 12.3 million visitors, which was more than doubled the attendance from 2021 but still lagging the 14.5 million visitors in 2019.

stanlyjournal.com

CRIME LOG

♦ MARTIN, JAMIE NICOLE (W /F/45), UNAUTHORIZED USE OF MOTOR VEHICLE, 06/18/2023, Stanly County Sheriff’s Office

♦ ROSEMAN, WALTER CHAD (W /M/51), ASSAULT ON FEMALE, 06/18/2023, Stanly County Sheriff’s Office

♦ FRITZ, JORDAN MCKAY (W /M/23), CONTRIB DELINQ MINOR, 06/16/2023, Stanly County Sheriff’s Office

♦ BLACKMON, TAMARCUS JAYVON (B /M/23), POSSESSION OF CONTROLLED SUB

PRISON/JAIL, 06/15/2023, Stanly County Sheriff’s Office

♦ BURLESON, CODY SCOTT (W /M/26), POSSESSION OF CONTROLLED SUB PRISON/JAIL, 06/15/2023, Stanly County Sheriff’s Office

♦ HARVEY, VERONICA LYNN (W /F/47), SIMPLE ASSAULT, 06/15/2023, Stanly County Sheriff’s Office

♦ MCMOORE, MICHAEL JAMES (B /M/46), ASSAULT BY STRANGULATION, 06/14/2023, Stanly County Sheriff’s Office

♦ YORK, CALEB STEPHEN (W /M/33), DV PROTECTION ORDER VIOLATION, 06/14/2023, Stanly County Sheriff’s Office

♦ DRIGGERS, JOHN MICHAEL (B /M/22), TRAFFICKING,OPIUM OR HEROIN, 06/13/2023, Stanly County Sheriff’s Office

HUDSON

world’s largest and most complex power system,” Duncan said in his opening remarks before recognizing Hudson. “We are taking a close look at these instances to determine if federal laws need to be changed in order to harden the grid, improve situational awareness and enhance grid security.”

Hudson emphasized that he wanted his colleagues to see the level of sophistication of the December 2022 attacks and how it could impact the nation if the type of attacks were replicated.

“Our region suffered millions of dollars in damage just weeks before Christmas,” Hudson said. “In response, our community stepped up. It’s inspiring to see how everyone stepped up in a time of need.”

Hudson said he would contin-

ue to push the FBI to investigate and said he shared in the frustration that the perpetrators have not been arrested.

He added that the committee members present need to know “not just the numbers and facts but the people and personal experiences from those who suffered from these attacks.”

Mark Aysta, the managing director of enterprise security at Duke Energy, told the committee that once repairs were finished following the attacks, the company spent six months conducting a review of electric assets.

“We are shifting to a tiered approach with a greater focus on potential impacts to customers,” he said. “We’ve identified opportunities to increase security and surveillance, and we’re developing implementation schedules for this

work. Investments in resiliency are a critical part of the $75 billion in grid improvements Duke Energy has planned for its electric utilities over the next decade.”

William Ray, the director of N.C. Emergency Management, called for increased federal funding and reforms in federal statutes that would allow broader disaster recovery efforts beyond a focus on natural hazards.

Following the 90-minute hearing in which questions came about lessons learned, how security can be upgraded, and what is being done on the private sector side, Hudson gave a closing statement.

“My constituents cannot afford further energy disruptions that jeopardize their safety. I am introducing the Protecting America’s Distribution Transformer Supply Chain Act in order to ensure our

electrical manufacturers can continue to do what they do best without Washington getting in their way,” he said, adding that the U.S. Department of Energy should be focusing on strengthening the supply chain for distribution transformers.

The proposed bill would repeal the U.S. Department of Energy’s authority to propose, finalize, implement, administer or enforce any energy efficiency standard for distribution transformers for the next five years.

“Today’s the beginning of the conversation to help us. Our job is to take this information and figure out what’s next. We have a responsibility to the country to look at this incident and what it tells us about the vulnerabilities of the grid if we don’t do a better job,” Hudson said before the hearing adjourned.

Hudson substation cutline: Rep. Richard Hudson (NC-09) and other members of the U.S. House Energy, Climate, and Grid Security subcommittee visit a substation that was attacked on Dec. 3, 2022.

AP PHOTO

In this Jan. 22, 2015 file photo, visitors walk toward the Sleeping Beauty’s Castle in the background at Disneyland Resprt in Anaheim, Calif.

Neal Robbins, publisher | Frank Hill, senior opinion editor

Can you define leftism?

The Left seeks to destroy the past, including the best.

AFTER A SPEECH in Romania last week, I was asked a question by a young member of the audience that, remarkably, I don’t remember ever having been asked: What is leftism?

The question seems so simple and so basic to understanding contemporary life that you would think it would be posed frequently — and if it weren’t, the reason would be that almost anyone who cares about society would already know how to answer it. But the question is rarely posed, and few know how to answer it.

“What is leftism?” is not at all the same as “What is liberalism?” Leftism and liberalism share almost no values. Indeed, perhaps the greatest tragedy of America today is that liberals do not vote their values. Leftists vote their values, and conservatives vote their values. But liberals vote for left-wing values, almost none of which they hold.

To cite but two examples: Liberals do not believe in racial segregation, whereas the left does: all-black dorms, all-black graduation exercises, different standards for blacks, etc. And liberals do not believe that males who say they are females should be allowed to compete in women’s sports; only leftists do.

If you ask people, “What is leftism?” most will respond by listing leftwing positions, not by defining it. People confuse identifying left-wing positions with knowing what leftism is. But naming left-wing positions is not the same as defining leftism.

To be fair, many people, including conservatives, cannot define conservatism either. In fact, the inability of millions of American conservatives to define conservatism is a major reason so many conservative parents don’t have conservative children.

What, then, is leftism?

Leftism is the attempt to destroy the past — every value and every institution, the good as well as what it regards as the bad.

That is why leftists, by definition, hate conservatism. Conservatism seeks to conserve the best from the past. The Left seeks to destroy the past, including the best.

The first of the modern left-wing revolutions, the French Revolution, quite consciously sought to destroy every major institution and value of French society — not just the monarchy but God, religion, the legal system, traditional notions of good and evil, the calendar, the old way of telling time, the old weights and measures, and even the names of the days of the week. In other words, the past. Just like the Left in contemporary America, the leftists of the French Revolution toppled statues — in their case, the statues of every king of France.

The next major left-wing revolution, the Russian, did the same. As the

WHO’s on first

The concentration of power in the hands of so few may be efficient and sometimes popular. But it does not tend toward sound government.

IN FEBRUARY, our administration entered negotiations with the World Health Organization to surrender United States’ authority over pandemic and related public health responses to their global purview. Ratification is expected by spring of 2024.

Amendments to the International Health Regulation seek “a global architecture for health emergency preparedness, prevention, response, and resilience (HEPR)”. This includes “global governance, financing and all HEPR systems”.

America’s sovereignty and ability to determine health care strategies independently will be lost in one strike.

The amendment to the 2005 treaty to centralize authority is pitched by the WHO as pandemic prevention, a necessary and legally binding instrument to mitigate health crises. It is intended to “hardwire into international law a top-down supra-national approach to public health.” The mandate, according to Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, extends beyond pandemics to include “hunger, poverty, ecological degradation, climate change and social and economic inequalities.” The WHO would be empowered to vaccinate, medicate, and requisition funds by fiat. USForThem, a grassroots advocate for children (USForThem. co.uk) has published a significant report on the impact of this amendment.

The concept of “One Health” would elevate the WHO to a regulatory body and an associated enforcement body, calling the plays for affiliate States in crisis situations. Revisions to the scope of this amendment include principles

Soviet dissident joke went, “In the Soviet Union the future is known; it’s the past which is always changing.”

Now you can begin to understand leftism.

In a very real sense, today’s leftism began in the 1960s with the infamous clarion call, “Never trust anyone over 30.” That phrase meant nothing less than “value nothing from the past.” Precisely what all leftism has been about — from France under its revolutionaries to Russia under the Bolsheviks to China under Mao to America under the Left.

That is why, as I have said almost every day on my radio show for years, “The Left destroys everything it touches.”

Whatever its noble-sounding rhetoric, the Left stands for nothing and therefore builds nothing (other than state power). Aside from state power, it only destroys.

Leftism in music, art, sculpture, and architecture destroyed everything beautiful and noble that had been created over all the preceding centuries.

It is destroying the universities, the high schools, and the elementary schools.

It is destroying science. More and more medical schools, for example, no longer speak of “pregnant women” but of “birthing persons.” The American Medical Association has come out in opposition to listing the sex of newborns on their birth certificates; children, the AMA holds, will eventually decide whether they are male or female, neither or both.

Like the French revolutionaries, it has redefined moral categories. It has substituted class and racial categories for moral ones. Good and evil have been replaced by black and white, male and female, rich and poor.

It is destroying the ideal of the nuclear family — a married man and woman with children. The Left has made war on “heteronormativity” and has redefined marriage.

And most telling -- even the French Revolution did not conceive of this break with the past — the Left is working to destroy the distinction between man and woman.

Days before the 2008 presidential election, then-candidate Barack Obama told a wildly cheering crowd, “We are five days away from fundamentally transforming the United States of America.”

That’s all the Left does: fundamentally transform. Destroying everything it touches is not a byproduct of leftism. It is its aim.

Dennis Prager is a nationally syndicated radio talk-show host and columnist. His commentary on Deuteronomy, the third volume of “The Rational Bible,” his five-volume commentary on the first five books of the Bible, was published in October.

of “equity, inclusivity, coherence and taking into consideration their social and economic development.” This language replaces the current scope of implementation that cites “full respect for dignity, human rights and fundamental freedoms of persons.”

Consider the appointed members and managers of the team that seeks control over United States management of public health and social services. China is a founding member, Afghanistan, Russia, Iraq and Pakistan. North Korea is on deck. These players are not known for responsible health care or even humanitarian aid. For example, in China’s social credit system, a QR-code tags each citizen to surveil and restrict movement, red-flag the infected and detain the sick in cages. The guidelines issued by the WHO and adapted by the United States Center for Disease control, CDC, have proven disastrous. But the suppression of information may be the worst foul committed in the name of public safety. Recall The Great Barrington Declaration and the cancellation of the esteemed physicians who authored and signed it. Leaks, exposes and independent reports have revealed the massive, coordinated and colluded effort by our government and media during the darkest months of the Covid pandemic. Daily briefings by the administration and the infamous Dr Fauci perpetuated the myths of the origin and contagion for Covid. As American citizens, fearful of the unknown and still trusting in the fundamental honesty of government bureaucracy, we locked down and masked up. We took a shot. We traded logic for magical thinking.

The scores of this political strategy are in and it does not look good. Crime is up, cities are down, children struggle with social and

academic skills that may take several generations to overcome. Medical personnel and civil servants are burned out and hospital supplies are limited. Very few people are unaffected in ways large and small by life interrupted by the dangerous game played on us by global decision makers.

In mid-May, Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch called the emergency measures taken during the pandemic “the greatest intrusions on civil liberties in the peacetime history of this country” killing more than 1M Americans. When schools were closed but stores stayed open, when churches could not congregate but ballgames could proceed, many understood that this had little to do with public health and everything to do with control. Winners and losers were chosen on the merits of “science” defined by conjecture.

As a warning to us, the Justice wrote “The concentration of power in the hands of so few may be efficient and sometimes popular. But it does not tend toward sound government.” Recognizing that sometimes extreme measures must be taken but they come with an additional set of problems.

As the WHO continues to negotiate the terms of the “One Health” treaty with the current administration and our neighbor States to the east and far east, recognize the high stakes in this game. America is being pitched a series of rules and regulations for coping with a pandemic health crisis. The managers of our fate may play by rules we cannot question called by an unknown umpire from another league. We cannot allow the fate of our families in crisis to be governed by authorities not vested in the best interest of our nation.

WHO’s on first…. What’s on second?

COLUMN | DENNIS PRAGER

COLUMN | CONNIE LOVELL

SIDELINE REPORT

COLLEGE SPORTS

NCAA committee recommends dropping marijuana from banned list

Indianapolis

An NCAA medical committee is recommending the removal of marijuana from its banned drug list and suggesting that testing should be limited to performance-enhancing substances. To pass, the legislation must be introduced and approved by all three NCAA divisions. A final decision is expected this fall. The recommendation comes as the U.S. is seeing more and more states allowing medical or recreational marijuana use. The proposal is one of several recommendations by the NCAA’s committee on competitive safeguards and medical aspects of sports. Other proposals include establishing a tracelevel threshold for a banned hormone and metabolic modulator.

MLB Braves cut Culberson before his father was to throw 1st pitch

Atlanta

The Atlanta Braves designated infielder Charlie Culberson for assignment before his father was set to throw out a ceremonial first pitch on Father’s Day. Culberson was cut before the team’s game against Colorado. The 34-year-old from Rome, Georgia, was brought up from Triple-A Gwinnett on May 19 but had not appeared in any games since his promotion. After Culberson was let go, the father of Braves outfielder Michael Harris II took care of the first pitch Sunday at Truist Park. Catcher Chadwick Tromp was recalled from Gwinnett.

NBA

3-time Sixth Man award winner Williams

announces retirement

Atlanta Lou Williams announced his retirement from the NBA on Sunday, ending a career after winning the league’s Sixth Man award three times and scoring more points off the bench than anyone in history. Williams played for six teams — Philadelphia, Toronto, the Los Angeles Lakers, Houston, the Los Angeles Clippers and Atlanta. He last played in the 2021-22 season with the Hawks. Out of 1,123 regularseason games played over 17 seasons, Williams came off the bench in 1,001. He scored 13,396 points off the bench, which is 2,117 more than Jamal Crawford and 2,249 more than Dell Curry.

SOCCER Homophobic chants force early end US-Mexico match

Las Vegas

The United States men’s soccer team’s 3-0 victory over Mexico was cut short Thursday night by the referee after the stadium devolved into echoes of homophobic chants from Mexico fans, who for years have directed a slur at opposing teams’ goalkeepers. Officials have been trying to stamp out the troubling tradition for just as long, with fines, banishment from stadiums, and now early finishes. Play was halted because of the deafening noise in the 90th minute. When action resumed, the persistent chanting caused Salvadoran referee Iván Barton to end the match in the eighth added minute.

Paul headed to Wizards as Suns acquire Beal

clause to be sent to the Suns, agent Mark Bartelstein said Sunday. There is a chance that the trade could eventually include a third team, particularly if a club wants to acquire Paul, but the basic framework is done.

The Associated Press

Bradley Beal will soon be part of the NBA’s newest Big 3, after the three-time All-Star agreed Sunday to be traded to the Phoenix Suns and team up with Kevin Durant and Devin Booker in a trio with serious offensive firepower and championship aspirations.

The Suns agreed to send Chris Paul, Landry Shamet and a package of future second-round picks to Washington, according to a person with knowledge of the negotiations. Some pick swaps will also be part of the trade, said the person, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the deal is pending league approval.

The biggest domino to fall was this: Beal waived his no-trade

For Phoenix, a franchise that had a 2-0 lead in the NBA Finals against Milwaukee in 2021 before falling in six games, the motivation is obvious — to win a title. The Suns will be different this coming season; Frank Vogel is succeeding the fired Monty Williams (who is now in Detroit) as coach, Paul will no longer be the starting point guard who is still searching for his first championship, and Durant and Booker will have a training camp together for the first time. It’s also the start of something new, and probably needed, in Washington. The Wizards have finished with a losing record in each of the last five years, missing the playoffs in four of those, and haven’t won a postseason series since 2018. The Wizards will pick eighth in Thursday’s draft, and Kyle Kuzma and Kristaps Por-

zingis could decide later this week to become free agents by declining player options — moves that seem likely.

The deal was struck less than a week after Denver topped Miami in the NBA Finals, and with the Heat having also spent the last few days working with the Wizards on the possibility of acquiring Beal.

It also begins a week where Victor Wembanyama will be the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft Thursday by San Antonio — and where more players could be on the move since trades frequently happen on draft night.

It is the second major acquisition for owner Mat Ishbia in Phoenix. He landed Durant for a mas-

5sive combination of players and first-round draft picks just days after formally taking over the Suns in February. There are three active players in the NBA with at least 500 games played while averaging at least 22 points per game. Phoenix now has three of them in Beal, Durant and Booker. They will make about $130 million combined next season, meaning the Suns will pay a ransom in salary and tax for this title shot.

Starting with 2017-18 — Beal’s first All-Star season — he’s averaged 26.0 points per game. That’s 10th-best in the NBA over that span. He’s been an All-Star in three of those six seasons and made AllNBA in 2020-21, when he finished second in the scoring race for the second consecutive year.

Beal is entering the second year of what could be a five-year, $251 million contract; the last of those years is at his option and would pay him $57.1 million. Over the next four years, he’s owed about $207.7 million.

Maguire comes from behind to win Meijer LPGA Classic

The Associated Press BELMONT, Mich. — Leona Maguire used a fabulous finish to avoid another near-miss at the Meijer LPGA Classic.

Maguire played her final six holes in 6 under and shot an 8-under 64 for a two-shot victory on Sunday, her second tour victory after two straight second-place finishes in the Michigan event.

The 28-year-old Maguire, from Ireland, was the runner-up at Blythefield in both 2021 and last year. She won her first LPGA Tour title last year at the Drive On Championship. Sunday’s finish was her third straight in the top 10 heading into two upcoming majors: the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship next week at Baltusrol and the U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach on July 6-9.

“The goal today was just to go out and shoot as low a score as possible and see where I ended up,” Maguire said. “This one is, I think, that little bit sweeter after coming so close two years in a row.

“I know a lot of people this week were saying you’re due one, this course owes you something, all the rest. But I suppose that’s not golf. Golf usually doesn’t work like that. But nice that it all worked out well

for me this week.”

Maguire made six birdies and an eagle in her bogey-free round to finish at 21-under 267. She caught playing partner Ariya Jutanugarn with an eagle on the par-5 14th hole to reach 18 under, then closed with three straight birdies to pull ahead of Jutanugarn and Xiyu Lin.

“My goal today was to shoot 20-under par,” Maguire said. “I

thought if I got to 20, that would be a good target to set for the girls coming behind. I didn’t look at leaderboards. ... It was obviously a bonus to go one better, 21, and obviously bogey-free on a Sunday is very nice, as well.” Maguire was solid but unspectacular on the front nine, birdieing both par 3s, and was 2 under for the day through 12 holes. She then

birdied the par-3 13th to kick off her torrid closing stretch.

She called the birdie at No. 13 “massive,” and anticipated chances to go low over the closing holes.

“It’s that kind of golf course where there’s chances, you just have to be ready to take them when you get them,” she said. “I played the par-3s really, really well today and didn’t quite play the par-5s as well as I would have liked. ... That putt going in on 13 was sort of a bit of a mental shift for me, and then obviously to get that eagle on 14 was huge.”

Jutanugarn, a 12-time winner on tour including two majors, shot her second straight 66 and finished alone in second. Lin, playing in the final group, birdied the 14th to reach 19 under but played her final four holes in 1 over to shoot 68 and finish tied for third with thirdround leader Amy Yang (69).

Hyo Joo Kim (69) was fifth. Defending champion Jennifer Kupcho had a fourth-round 69 and finished in a tie for sixth with Jasmine Suwannapura (66). Ashleigh Buhai, the 34-year-old South African who won the ShopRite LPGA Classic last week in New Jersey, was a stroke off the lead entering the final round, but struggled to a 73 and tied for 13th.

The Winston-Salem native and former Wake Forest star guard could be moved to a different team by Washington

NBA franchises Chris Paul has played for in his pro career

AP PHOTO

Chris Paul is headed to the Wizards as part of a trade that will send Bradley Beal to the Suns.

AP PHOTO

Leona Maguire shot a final round 64 on Sunday to rally past Ariya Jutanugarn and win the Meijer LPGA Classic in Belmont, Michigan.

Former North Stanly star Rhett Lowder pitches in College World Series

The Wake Forest ace is a two-time ACC Pitcher of the Year

By Jesse Deal North State Journal

A FORMER NORTH STAN-

LY Comet stepped on the mound in Omaha on Saturday as Wake Forest’s baseball team played its first College World Series opener in 68 years.

Why Walsh left the Biden admin to run the NHL players’ union

in what it cares about, just like any other workplace.

The Associated Press

MARTY WALSH wasn’t a man in a hurry to leave the Biden administration.

Less than halfway through the president’s term, Walsh was in a comfortable spot in the Cabinet as labor secretary. Then he got a call about an interesting opportunity: running the NHL Players’ Association.

The former mayor of Boston and longtime Bruins fan was intrigued and earlier this year accepted the role as executive director. Now three months in, Walsh is trying to get to know players and what they care about most, learning about everything from the Arizona Coyotes’ arena situation to the salary cap and future international competition.

“This job is more like being the mayor,” Walsh said in a wide-ranging interview with The Associated Press during the Stanley Cup Final in Las Vegas. “You wake up in the morning, you’re planning on a smooth day and there’s an issue that pops, and that’s the issue of the moment. And then when that issue’s over, there’s another issue that comes right behind it. And if there’s a celebration on anything, that celebration’s short-lived be-

cause you’re on to the next issue.”

With the current collective bargaining agreement in place through the 2025-26 season, the most pressing issue concerns the Coyotes, set to go into a second season in a 5,000-seat rink on Arizona State’s campus after a referendum for a new arena in Tempe failed.

Walsh has met more with Arizona’s players than anyone else among the nearly 200 members he has spoken to so far.

When Walsh speaks to players, he finds out what they think is good or not so good for the game.

Many, like Connor McDavid, prioritize returning to the Olympics after a lengthy absence and getting a World Cup of Hockey on the schedule, while others are more concerned with the cap going up and keeping escrow payments down.

With players aged 18-38 in various stages of their careers, he said the NHLPA membership is diverse

“One thing I’ve learned quickly is that this truly is a union because every player has a different concern,” Walsh said. “And I think it’s important for me to get to know the membership so I can represent them the best I can, understanding the challenges they have.”

Walsh, 56, also has gotten to know Commissioner Gary Bettman since taking over in March. They attended an event together at the Canadian Embassy in Washington in April and have met several times to discuss the cap, the Coyotes and more.

“To me, the vital signs seem good,” Bettman told the AP recently. “We’re getting better acquainted. I like him. I respect him. I think he’s smart. I think he’s going to be good for the players, and I look forward to working with him.”

For now, Walsh is trying to lead the way in preparing players for life after hockey and growing the game beyond the nearly $6 billion in revenue.

“There’s not many opportunities that probably could have come on my plate that I would’ve been like, ‘Oh, this is perfect,’” he said. “This is kind of my whole life coming full circle: labor movement, running a union, opportunities to grow the game, to be progressive in thinking as to how do we grow the game, how do we strengthen the union.”

Demon Deacons ace Rhett Lowder’s performance wasn’t the sharpest that he’d had this season, but the junior right-hander certainly helped his top-ranked team get the victory over No. 8 Stanford.

The Albemarle native — a two-time ACC Pitcher of the Year — allowed seven hits and two earned runs in 5⅓ innings before getting some assistance from teammate Danny Corona, who knocked in a goahead, two-run single in the eighth inning to give the Deacs a 3-2 win over the Cardinals inside Charles Schwab Field Omaha.

like he always does. I was really proud of the way he battled.”

Lowder’s resilience under pressure is a testament to his rapid growth as a pitcher over the past few seasons.

Just a few years removed from his time at North Stanly, where he was not heavily recruited by major universities, the longhaired, 6-foot-3 right-hander is now expected to be one of the first pitchers selected in the 2023 MLB Draft as a top-10 pick. His collegiate success didn’t happen at once.

While Lowder had compiled a dominating 21-3 record and 0.68 ERA in high school, he spent his freshman year with the Demon Deacons adjusting to the collegiate level of play, posting just a 6.12 ERA in 14 appearances as he struggled with his pitch speeds.

“I just had to find a way to get outs and keep us in the game.”

Rhett

After a bumpy first inning in which the Cardinals scored a quick run, Lowder eased his way into a groove throughout the rest of his start, striking out six batters and keeping Stanford’s lineup at bay.

I kinda just had to slow the game down. It was speeding up on me a little bit,” Lowder said after the contest. “I just had to keep making pitch after pitch, nothing crazy. I feel like I’ve been in some situations like that before where I don’t have my stuff. I just had to find a way to get outs and keep us in the game.”

Wake coach Tom Walter revealed that his team’s star pitcher hadn’t been feeling the best going into the game.

“He has been battling a little virus here for the last couple of days and didn’t have his good stuff,” Walter said of Lowder. “But he pitched into the sixth inning, and he gave us a chance to win

He flipped a switch in his sophomore season as he dialed up his pitch speeds across the board and cruised to an 11-3 record and 3.08 ERA.

A s a junior, he has posted a 15-0 record, 1.99 ERA and 137-22 strikeout-walk ratio with his go-to arsenal of a fastball, changeup and slider. His fastball, which didn’t quite crack 90 mph early on, sits comfortably in a mid-90s range, and his mid80s changeup continues to cause trouble for many opponents.

Recognized as the 2023 ACC Pitcher of the Year, a 2023 Collegiate Baseball first-team All-American, and receiving 2023 National Pitcher of the Year Finalist honors, Lowder was Wake’s first man up in its starting rotation entering Omaha and will continue to be going forward.

Still riding high with no losses in a double-elimination bracket, the Demon Deacons defeated No. 5 LSU on Monday night and will face the winner of LSU/Tennessee on Wednesday and Thursday, where Lowder has the chance to pitch again.

The CWS finals are set to run from June 24-26.

Antonio Brown’s tenure as arena league owner ends

The Associated Press FORMER NFL RECEIVER

Antonio Brown’s brief and chaotic tenure as a National Arena League owner appears to be over after the league terminated the Albany Empire’s membership over a failure to make its monthly payments.

The NAL on Thursday announced its board of owners unanimously reached the decision after “exhausting all avenues” over the Empire’s refusal to make its past two payments, as well as Brown refusing to pay a $1,000 fine conduct detrimental to the league over recent comments. The termination ends the Empire’s season at 1-6 and with seven games remaining.

Brown became part owner of the two-time defending champion Empire in March and then last month took over a 94% stake in the franchise based in New York’s state capital.

The NAL said that upon taking over ownership, Brown initially paid the Empire’s April assessment, before challenging it a month later and having it credited back to him, while also failing to make the team’s payment for May. Teams are required to make the payments, which represent one-seventh of the league’s monthly operating budget.

The NAL said Brown’s accountant, Alex Gunaris, informed the league “that it didn’t seem like Mr. Brown was going to pay the assessment or fine.”

A message left with Empire president Alberony Denis was not immediately returned. Albany County’s executive committee released a statement, saying: “This is an unfortunate situation. We are aware MVP Arena management is alerting ticketholders and we will be reviewing options moving forward.”

MVP Arena management, which operates the Empire’s home, announced it is refunding tickets purchased for the team’s final three home games.

Brown spent the 2010 to 2018 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers, where he emerged as one of the NFL’s top threats and twice led the league in yards receiving. His career then took a downturn due to various on- and off-field controversies, included his contract being voided by the Oakland Raiders before the start of the 2019 season.

He split his final three NFL seasons with New England and Tampa Bay, and his career ended with Brown stripping off his jer-

sey, pads and gloves while walking off the field during the Buccaneers’ 2021 regular season finale against the New York Jets. Brown announced his retirement a few months later.

The drama carried over into Brown’s tenure in Albany. Players and suppliers complained about not getting paid, the Empire changed coaches three games into the season at the same time eight players were suspended after one player filed an aggravated harass-

ment report with police over a dispute that occurred on the team bus, The Albany Times-Union reported last month.

On Wednesday, Brown conducted a television interview in which he referred to himself as receiver Antonio Brown in preparing to suit up and play in the team’s previously scheduled game against Jacksonville this weekend, and wondering if Empire owner AB will pay him the $1 million he is owed.

“When people do nefarious things, we catch them.”

Matthew Holt, president of U.S.

The former Boston mayor and labor secretary replaced Donald Fehr

Lowder, Wake Forest pitcher

“One thing I’ve learned quickly is that this truly is a union because every player has a different concern.”

Marty Walsh, NHLPA executive director

Integrity

AP PHOTO

Former U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh is getting the lay of the land in his new role as NHLPA executive director.

AP PHOTO

Former NFL receiver Antonio Brown’s brief and chaotic tenure as a National Arena League owner appears to be over after the league terminated the Albany Empire’s membership over a failure to make its monthly payments.

Cooper signs sports, horse racing betting law; wagering could begin in early 2024

The Associated Press CHARLOTTE — Regulated betting on sports and horse racing is expected to begin across North Carolina in the first half of next year, enabled by legislation Gov. Roy Cooper signed last week that greatly expands gambling opportunities in the nation’s ninth-largest state.

The Democratic governor held the bill-signing ceremony at Spectrum Center, home to the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets. It could house one of several anticipated sportsbooks allowed at or near professional sports venues as part of the law that received final approval in

the Republican-controlled General Assembly last week.

The new law says betting could begin as early as Jan. 8 or as late as mid-June 2024 for sports wagering. Supporters say the expansion will bring new revenue and jobs, as well as attract stronger in-state pro sports franchises.

“This is an historic moment for the state of North Carolina, and this will benefit our economy for generations to come,” Cooper said.

The law directs the North Carolina Lottery Commission to issue as many as 12 interactive sports wagering licenses to entities that would offer mobile and

online sports betting to customers who create accounts.

But anyone 21 or older could also make cash bets on pro, college or Olympic-style sports at the eight potential in-person betting locales associated with stadiums, arenas, golf courses and racetracks.

North Carolina will become the 29th state where mobile sports betting occurs or has been authorized, according to the American Gaming Association. Gambling on horse racing would be permitted through separate licensing and accounts.

Legal sports gambling in North Carolina is only happening

right now at the state’s three casinos, which are operated by two American Indian tribes. Essentially, the only other legal gambling in the state is a lottery that began in 2006.

Neighboring Tennessee and Virginia already allow mobile sports betting, attracting North Carolina residents to cross state lines to wager. According to bill supporters, regulating and taxing sports betting is the best way to control gambling that otherwise was happening underground or through offshore accounts.

The bill advanced this year despite opposition from a coalition of social conservatives and liberals who said the additional revenues paled in comparison to the damage more gambling addiction would place upon families and society.

A similar political alliance derailed sports gambling legislation last year by just one vote in the House, but lobbyists for legal sports wagering providers in other states and pro sports franchises kept pressing the idea and won

more support in the legislature.

The defeat “gave us the opportunity to work harder” and build support for the measure this year, Rep. Jason Saine, a Lincoln County Republican and the chief bill sponsor, said at the ceremony. “We got this over the hump and we’re so glad to do this.”

The legislation will tax sports wagering at a rate equal to 18% of gross betting revenue minus distributed winnings. Legislative analysts estimate that will generate over $100 million in sports betting taxes annually within five years, resulting in $71 million in net revenues for state coffers.

Much of the sports wagering tax revenues would go to local, regional and state athletics initiatives, athletic programs at most schools in the University of North Carolina system and problem-gambling programs. Cooper said he hoped more future proceeds would help public education. The law also authorizes the commission to set rules for live horse racing.

South Carolina GOP sets Feb. 24 date for first-in-the-South presidential primary

The Associated Press COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina Republicans have set Feb. 24 as the date of their 2024 presidential primary, a move that, if approved, the party says will give GOP White House hopefuls more time to campaign in the first-inthe-South state.

The state GOP executive committee voted unanimously to approve the measure on Saturday, party executive director Hope Walker told The Associated Press. The selection still needs approval from the Republican National Committee to be official, and Walker said that a formal submission will be sent ahead of an October deadline.

The move comes as both major parties make moves to solidify their voting calendars ahead of the 2024 nominating process.

The RNC voted last year to

maintain its voting order, with Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada going ahead of other states. By setting South Carolina’s vote on Feb. 24, Walker told AP that candidates would have more time after Nevada votes on Feb. 6 to focus their attention on the state, where support is pivotal for Republicans competing for their party’s nomination.

“This is a great opportunity for South Carolina Republicans and for our candidates and the voters in South Carolina to get to interact one on one, not just in large masses,” Walker said.

Democrats continue to struggle with President Joe Biden’s plan to overhaul his party’s 2024 presidential primary schedule. On Friday, a Democratic National Committee rules panel gave New Hampshire until Sept. 1 to comply with new rules that leaders there fiercely oppose. But the commit-

“This is a great opportunity for South Carolina Republicans and for our candidates and the voters in South Carolina to get to interact one on one, not just in large masses.”

Hope Walker, SC GOP

tee opted not to immediately offer such an extension to another battleground state, Georgia, which hasn’t set its date for next year’s primary.

At issue is Biden’s plan to strip Iowa’s caucus of its traditional post leading off primary voting and replace it with South Carolina, which would vote on Feb. 3,

2024. New Hampshire has long held the nation’s first primary after Iowa’s caucus. But under the new calendar, it would vote next, together with Nevada, on Feb. 6 — a change New Hampshire officials have decried.

Republican candidates must file with the South Carolina GOP by Oct. 31 under the approved measure. The Republican party’s first debate is scheduled for Aug. 23.

The executive committee also set candidate filing fees for the presidential primary at $50,000, a figure Walker said tracks with inflation increases since 2016, when the party charged candidates $40,000. State law requires parties to pay $20,000 per candidate to the South Carolina Election Commission, which runs the state’s primaries.

In 2015, then-South Carolina GOP Chairman Matt Moore re -

leased a study showing that the

2012 primary had boosted South Carolina’s economy by nearly $20 million. Of that, campaigns and super PACs had spent more than $11 million in ads alone, on top of overall expenditures for staffing, supplies, hotel rooms and food. “South Carolina voters are an important part of this process, and it will also help not just with the process but with the economic boom it’ll bring to our state,” Walker said.

During Saturday’s meeting, South Carolina GOP members also approved the selection of former President Donald Trump as the speaker at the Aug. 5 Silver Elephant Gala, the party’s signature fundraiser.

Drew McKissick, South Carolina’s GOP chairman, was recently reelected to a fourth term in office. He also currently serves as national co-chairman of the RNC.

STATE & NATION

Abortion providers in North Carolina file federal lawsuit challenging state’s new restrictions

The Associated Press

RALEIGH — Abortion providers in North Carolina filed a federal lawsuit Friday that challenges several provisions of a state law banning most abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy in the dwindling days before the new restrictions take effect.

Planned Parenthood South Atlantic and Dr. Beverly Gray, a Duke University OB-GYN, are asking a federal judge to block numerous provisions they argue are unclear and unconstitutional, or to place an injunction on the law to prevent it from being enforced.

Though the law may be commonly referred to as a 12-week abortion ban, the plaintiffs argue that it actually includes additional restrictions that many patients are not aware of — hurdles that will “impede health care professionals from providing quality care,” according to the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court.

“Many of these provisions are going to constrain an already very constrained abortion ecosystem in this state,” Planned Parenthood South Atlantic CEO Jenny Black told The Associated Press on Friday. “And so we really thought it was important that we challenged the elements of the law that do that.”

North Carolina has been one of the few remaining Southern states with relatively easy access to abortions in the wake of last year’s U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade. With the new restrictions set to take effect July 1, many out-of-state patients who had once viewed North Carolina

as a refuge will soon have to travel even further up the coast to access elective abortions later in pregnancy.

The lawsuit comes one month after the Republican supermajority in the state’s General Assembly approved the measure through both chambers and overrode a

veto from Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who called it “an egregious, unacceptable attack on the women of our state.”

Among the named defendants are North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein, state Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kody Kinsley and the

Poll: Democrats and Republicans share core values but still distrust each other

The Associated Press

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Americans on the right and the left have a lot more in common than they might think — including their strong distrust of each other.

A survey published last week finds that when asked about core values including fairness, compassion and personal responsibility, about nine in 10 Democrats and Republicans agreed they were very or extremely important. Yet only about a third of either group said they believed the same was true for the opposing party.

The results of the poll, conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago and the nonprofit group Starts With Us, reveal a stark truth at the source of the polarization that has a powerful grip on American politics: While most Americans agree on the core principles underlying American democracy, they no longer recognize that the other side also holds those values.

“This is a hidden opportunity for Americans to reestablish a sense of shared values,” said Tom Fishman, chief executive at Starts

With Us, a nonpartisan organization that works to bridge political polarization. Americans from both parties need to understand that they still share common values, he said, and to recognize their misconceptions about the

opposing party.

Americans have a long tradition of quarrelsome politics, dating back to before the Boston Tea Party. But with the notable exception of the Civil War, a sense of unity has kept those forces of di-

district attorneys who represent every county in the state where Gray and Planned Parenthood provide abortions.

Kinsley’s office and Stein’s office said they are reviewing the lawsuit. Stein, a Democratic candidate for governor in 2024, is an outspoken pro-abortion support-

vision at bay. Experts who study partisanship and trust say that while a certain amount of polarization is natural, it can become a significant problem when it’s exploited by political parties or when one party no longer views the other as legitimate opposition but as an enemy.

A number of factors are cited as possible causes for an increase in division, including the decline and fragmentation of legitimate news sources, politicians who stoke distrust, and social media platforms that spread misinformation while too often sorting users into echo chambers where they seldom encounter an opposing view.

“When you get worried is when polarization turns into dehumanization — a sense that the other is somehow less than human, or evil, or unable to share your decent human values,” said Nealin Parker, executive director of Common Ground USA, a group that works to resolve conflict by building trust among Americans. “That should be concerning to anybody, because those are the necessary psychological steps to doing harm to each other.”

In the survey, respondents were asked to rate the importance of six principles: personal responsibility, fair enforcement of the law, representative government, government accountability, compassion and respect across differences, and learning from the past.

er but is named in the lawsuit because it’s his job as attorney general to defend state laws in court.

Spokespeople for the Republican legislative leaders, Senate leader Phil Berger and House Speaker Tim Moore, did not immediately respond Friday to phone messages seeking comment.

Republicans pitched the 47page measure as a middle-ground change to an existing state law banning nearly all abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, without exceptions for rape or incest. The new law adds exceptions, extending the limit through 20 weeks for rape and incest and through 24 weeks for “life-limiting” fetal anomalies, including certain physical or genetic disorders that can be diagnosed prenatally.

The lawsuit challenges a requirement that sexual assault survivors obtain abortions at a hospital after 12 weeks of pregnancy. Gray, an OB-GYN, told the AP there is no procedural or medical difference between the unrestricted care she is able to provide miscarriage patients and the newly restricted care she provides abortion patients.

Similarly, Planned Parenthood clinics will be able to continue treating miscarriage patients after 12 weeks in cases where the fetus has already died but will be prohibited from providing identical care to rape and incest survivors in the context of an abortion.

“It’s the same care, and there’s zero regulations about caring for patients with miscarriages,” Gray said. “This is not about safety. This is about limiting access to abortion.”

In each case, about 90% of both Democrats and Republicans rated these values as very or extremely important. When asked if members of the opposing party thought those values were very or extremely important, however, about twothirds of respondents said no.

For example, while 91% of Republicans said they think it’s very or extremely important that citizens should learn from the past to improve the country, only about a third of Democrats said they believed that to be true of GOP voters. And while only 31% of Republicans say Democrats believe government accountability is very or extremely important, 90% of Democratic respondents said they do.

The findings reflect a phenomenon known as “affective polarization,” in which disagreements are based on animosity and a lack of trust instead of an actual debate over values or policy. Julia Minson, a professor who studies conflict and collaboration at Harvard University’s Harvard Kennedy School, said recognizing common values is a good start to bridging America’s divides.

Too often, Minson said, “We ascribe negative things to people we disagree with. We see them as an adversary that doesn’t want to be a partner. It’s very much about emotions and trust and largely divorced from actual differences.”

AP PHOTO

An early morning pedestrian is silhouetted against sunrise as he walks through the American flags on the National Mall with the U..S Capitol Building in the background in Washington, D.C. Nov. 7, 2022.

AP PHOTO

Hundreds of abortion ban veto supporters turned out to watch North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper sign a veto of the on Bicentennial Mall in Raleigh Saturday, May 19, 2023.

Randolph record

COUNTY NEWS

Asheboro police arrest

Bicentennial Park

stabbing suspect

A suspect has been arrested in connection to the stabling in downtown Asheboro this past Thursday. According to the Asheboro Police Department, officers responded to a call about a stabbing that took place at Bicentennial Park at around 3 pm. A victim was located near the fountain, but they were quickly transported from the scene by local EMS. The police department deployed a K9 to track down the suspect that fled the scene, and immediately began questioning bystanders.

On Friday, June 16, the police identified Mason Bryce Wooten as the suspect and charged him with assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, inflicting serious injury. He was placed in the Randolph County Jail under a $150,000 secured bond. At this time, the condition of the victim is still unknown.

Driver responsible for head on collision in Randleman charged with DUI

A driver who crashed headon into another vehicle after traveling on the wrong side of the road near Randleman two weeks ago is now facing several charges, including DUI and child abuse. Authorities were originally notified by someone who had a close call with the reckless driver going near West Academy Street. Within minutes of the initial call, Randolph County 911 got its first report that a wrong-way driver had crashed head-on into another vehicle.

According to a press release from the Highway Patrol, 25-yearold Brittany Nicole Davis, of Greensboro, was traveling north in the southbound lane of I-73/74 in a 2010 Volkswagen when she struck an oncoming 2013 Chevrolet. Troopers say that Davis and a four-monthold passenger sustained minor injuries and were taken to Moses H. Cone Memorial Hospital in Greensboro. The other driver suffered minor injuries and was transported to Randolph Hospital in Asheboro. Davis has been charged with driving while impaired, misdemeanor child abuse, traveling the wrong way on a highway, and having an open container of alcohol in her vehicle. Her first court appearance is scheduled for July 10.

US House subcommittee holds energy grid hearing in Moore County

By Matt Mercer North State Journal

PINEHURST — Members of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce came to Moore County for a Congressional field hearing about securing the nation’s energy grid on June 16.

The hearing took place at the Pinehurst Village Hall just miles from the sites of attacks on two power substations that left more than 45,000 in the dark for nearly five days.

Rep. Richard Hudson, a member of the committee and resident of Southern Pines, called the field hearing essential and the start of a conversation.

“This is a day we’ve been looking forward to for a long time. Testimony we hear today will set up a national discussion on grid vulnerability,” Hudson said in his

opening statement.

The attacks, and subsequent shooting at another substation in neighboring Randolph County, created more urgency at both a state and federal level. A combined $75,000 reward for information has gone unanswered, and no arrests in the Moore County attack have been made.

A day earlier, the North Carolina General Assembly gave final approval of a bill increasing penalties for crimes relating to “injuring an energy facility,” including electric, gas and telecommunications infrastructure.

That bill, SB 58, creates a new statute making it a Class C felony to knowingly and willfully destroy, injure or otherwise damage an energy facility or attempt to do so. The statute also imposes a $250,000 penalty and increases penalties for trespassing at the

Randolph Electric Membership Corporation holds 85th annual meeting

North State Journal

ASHEBORO — Randolph Electric Membership Corporation (REMC) celebrated its eighty-fifth annual meeting on Friday at Southwestern Randolph High School in Asheboro.

The theme of the meeting was “Past and Future, Always Present.”

The event kicked off with entertainment provided by The Harvesters. President Jerry Bowman called the meeting to order, and the cooperative’s general counsel, Aaron M. Christensen, presided over the meeting. Rep. Neal Jackson (R-Randolph) delivered the invocation, and the Southwestern Randolph High School Jr. ROTC presented the colors.

Christensen announced there were 1,020 Cooperative members registered, either electronically or in person, which constituted a quorum. The attendance at the event was estimated to be around 720 people, with 361 members attending the in-person business meeting and 618 members registering online.

During the business meeting,

the membership elected three directors. Scott Cole was elected to represent District 2, Jerry Bowman for District 4, and Tammie Phillips for District 7 on the REMC Board of Directors.

Bowman presented a report on the events and investments of the past year, highlighting the cooperative’s achievements. Secretary-Treasurer Billy Maness provided a financial report for 2022, indicating over $73 million in revenue and $68 million in expenses. CEO Dale Lambert addressed the theme of reliability and emphasized the commitment of Randolph EMC to providing safe, reliable, and affordable energy to its rural member-owners.

Randolph EMC has more than 32,000 members and more than 4,100 miles of line in areas of Randolph, Moore, Montgomery, Chatham, and Alamance counties.

Throughout the meeting, members had the opportunity to win various door prizes, including cash and bill credits, gift cards, bicycles, small appliances,

facilities.

Gov. Roy Cooper signed the bill into law on June 19.

“We must protect critical infrastructure that keeps electric power and clean water available in our communities, and this bill sends a message to criminals that these irresponsible acts will not be tolerated,” Cooper said in a statement.

South Carolina Rep. Jeff Duncan kicked off the hearing by thanking Hudson for the opportunity to come to the Sandhills to talk about the issue. Nine members of Congress toured both locations of the Dec. 3, 2022, substation attacks prior to the 10 a.m. hearing.

“America’s power grid is the world’s largest and most complex power system,” Duncan said in his opening remarks before recognizing Hudson. “We are taking

a close look at these instances to determine if federal laws need to be changed in order to harden the grid, improve situational awareness and enhance grid security.”

Hudson emphasized that he wanted his colleagues to see the level of sophistication of the December 2022 attacks and how it could impact the nation if the type of attacks were replicated.

“Our region suffered millions of dollars in damage just weeks before Christmas,” Hudson said. “In response, our community stepped up. It’s inspiring to see how everyone stepped up in a time of need.”

Hudson said he would continue to push the FBI to investigate and said he shared in the frustration that the perpetrators have not been arrested.

He added that the committee

Eastern Randolph High School Wrestling Room officially named after former coach

By Ryan Henkel North State Journal

ASHEBORO — The Asheboro City Council met Thursday, June 8, with multiple legislative hearings regarding land use as well as multiple change orders on existing capital projects.

The council began the meeting with four legislative hearings on the agenda. The first hearing was for a request to amend Chapter 5 - Use Regulations and Chapter 10 - Watershed Protection Regulations of the Asheboro Zoning Ordinance to allow residential developments to request a Special Intensity Allocation within the Watershed Balance Area.

COURTESY PHOTO

Rep. Richard Hudson (NC-09) and other members of the U.S. House Energy, Climate, and Grid Security subcommittee visit a substation that was attacked on Dec. 3, 2022.

“Join

Petty Foundation assists Camp Albemarle

Randolph Record NEWPORT – Richard Petty and the Petty Family Foundation are part of a joint effort to boost Camp Albermarle.

According to a release, Camp Albemarle, a 70-year-old ministry providing summer camps, educational, and recreational programs for children and youth throughout Eastern North Carolina, recently acquired a property, previously known as Camp Sam Hatcher, from the Boy Scouts of America, Eastern Carolina Council.

REMC from page 1

and local pottery.

Scott Cole, representing District 2, has been serving on the Board of Directors since 2019 and was re-elected to the position. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Appalachian State University and a Master of Science in Plant and Soil Science from NC A&T State University. Cole is currently the Environmental Health Pro -

ORDINANCE from page 1

“The Petty Family Foundation has been a long-time supporter of organizations who help children and veterans, so we are pleased to make this gift to Camp Albemarle as they expand their mission to include additional services to young people and to support medical treatments for men and women who have fought for our country,” said Rebecca Petty Moffitt, executive director of The Petty Family Foundation.

The acquisition of this 67-acre property will allow for the continued growth of the ministries and programs of Camp Albemar-

gram Director with the Montgomery County Department of Health.

Jerry Bowman, President of the Board of Directors, was also re-elected to represent District 4, a position he has held since 1993. Bowman has a long history in the automobile sales and service industry. He is a board member of Carolina Bank, an active member of the Asheboro/ Randolph Chamber of Commerce, and a past officer of the

le. The purchase was made possible by generous grants from the Burt Family Foundation and Petty Family Foundation. Additional support is being provided by the Starcke Family Foundation.

The Petty Family Foundation is also supporting the work of the Burt Family Foundation to develop other facilities, including a lacrosse field for the youth and a facility for veterans in which Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy will be available to treat traumatic brain injuries.

According to the camp, the Petty Family Foundation is also supporting the work of the Burt Family Foundation as they develop other facilities that will include a lacrosse field for kids and a facility for veterans in which Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy will be available to treat traumatic brain injuries.

Randolph Rotary Club.

Tammie Phillips, Vice President of the Board of Directors, has been representing District 7 since 2008 and was re-elected to the post. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from North Carolina State University and is employed by the North Carolina Department of Justice. Phillips is actively involved in her community and attends Tyson’s Creek Baptist Church.

The Randolph Guide is a quick look at what’s going on in Randolph County.

June 23

All Together with the NC Zoo

10:30am & 3:30pm

Have you ever wanted to befriend a box turtle, snake, or salamander?

Come out to the Asheboro Public Library this Friday to meet the NC Zoo’s animal ambassadors as they teach us how to show kindness to the animals in our own backyards!

June 24

Asheboro Farmers Market

7am – 1pm

DEATH NOTICES

♦ DeeMae Bost Sell, age 74,of Asheboro, died Tuesday, June 13, 2023 at Randolph Hospital.

♦ Peggy Sue Biernacki Leemhuis, age 60 of Franklinville, died Monday, June 12, 2023 at her home, surrounded by family.

♦ Lillian Jean Ludlum Spencer, age 75 of Randleman, died Friday June 9, 2023 at the Randolph Hospice Hose in Asheboro.

“This is a request to amend the city’s code of ordinances, specifically the ones including the watershed protection ordinance, to allow residential projects to request what’s known as a special intensity allocation just as non-residential projects are authorized within the balance of the city’s watershed area,” said Community Development Director Trevor Nuttall. “So, we are only talking about development regulations pertaining to the watershed portions of the city’s jurisdictions. What’s requested here this evening, in essence, is allowing a property owner seeking a residential project to request the same permission on a project basis that a non-residential project can request.

to R15 (CZ) to allow a residential planned unit development with up to 413 lots and with commercial uses authorized.

However, after over three hours of public comment, the council voted to continue the hearing to next month’s meeting due to the magnitude of the project and its potential impact and in order to have more time to consider and potentially address some of the concerns brought forth before the council, including environmental, traffic and noise concerns.

to convert it into a visitor center for the garden. That has been incorporated into the plan.”

The council also approved the setting of two public hearings at next month’s meeting for the purpose of reviewing annexation petitions, one requesting the contiguous annexation of four parcels of land located across from the intersection of New Century Drive and Veterans Loop Road and the other requesting the contiguous annexation of two parcels of land near the intersection of Patton Avenue and NC Highway 42.

Come out to the Asheboro Downtown Farmers Market, located at 134 S. Church Street. This event is free and open to the public!

June 26

WEEKLY FORECAST SPONSORED BY 336-629-7588

The third hearing was for a request to rezone 13.4 acres of property located south of 1195 Pineview Road from B2 (CZ) to R10 (CZ) for a 44-unit residential planned unit development, including a special intensity allocation within the Back Creek Watershed.

CALL OR TEXT

WEDNESDAY JUNE 21

THURSDAY JUNE 22

“The zoning ordinance adopted watershed protection standards to protect the city’s reservoirs under a state directive in the early ‘90s. Each watershed across the state contains both a critical area and a non-critical, or balance area, around the reservoirs. The purpose of those areas is to have a heightened level of development standards to ensure the protection of water quality.”

Following the hearing, the council approved the request. The second hearing was for a request to establish initial city zoning on properties located at the intersection of Old Cox Road and Old Humble Mill Road and on the west side of Old Cox Road from Randolph County zoning

HUDSON from page 1

members present need to know “not just the numbers and facts but the people and personal experiences from those who suffered from these attacks.”

Mark Aysta, the managing director of enterprise security at Duke Energy, told the committee that once repairs were finished following the attacks, the company spent six months conducting a review of electric assets.

“We are shifting to a tiered approach with a greater focus on potential impacts to customers,” he said. “We’ve identified opportunities to increase security and surveillance, and we’re developing implementation schedules for this work. Investments in resiliency are a critical part of the $75 billion in

♦ Addison, Bryan (M, 23), Arrested on charge of Assault on a Female, B&E w/ Intent Terror/Injure Occupant, Injury to Personal Property, on 6/14, at 965 South Creek Ct.

♦ Haney, Travis (M, 39), Arrested on charge of Misdemeanor Larceny, Possession of Stolen Goods, on 6/14, at 176 E Salisbury St.

♦ Harmon, Erica (F, 35), Arrested on

Following the hearing, the council approved the request.

The fourth hearing was for a request to rezone property located at 379-1 and 379-2 South Cox Street from OA6 to OA6 (CZ) for a congregate living facility for more than six residents, but it was continued to next month’s meeting.

The council then approved the final master plan for the David and Pauline Jarrell Center City Garden.

“The plan has been revised to collect strong community support to preserve the former dwelling on the property,” Nuttall said. “We talked about the assessment we had done for that structure and what it would take

grid improvements Duke Energy has planned for its electric utilities over the next decade.”

William Ray, the director of N.C. Emergency Management, called for increased federal funding and reforms in federal statutes that would allow broader disaster recovery efforts beyond a focus on natural hazards.

Following the 90-minute hearing in which questions came about lessons learned, how security can be upgraded, and what is being done on the private sector side, Hudson gave a closing statement.

“My constituents cannot afford further energy disruptions that jeopardize their safety. I am introducing the Protecting America’s Distribution Transformer Supply Chain Act in order to ensure our electri-

charge of Possess Heroin, Possess Drug Paraphernalia, on 6/14, at Naomi Rd & Creekridge Ctry.

♦ Kowalski, Jeremy (M, 44), Arrested on charge of Larceny of a Firearm, on 6/14, at 727 McDowell Rd.

♦ Lowery, Jessica (F, 35), Arrested on charge of Breaking and or Entering, Larceny of Dog, Larceny after Break/Enter, on 6/14, at 5892 NC

The council also approved change order number 8 for $1,457,157.04 with Terry’s Plumbing and Utilities for additional construction items for the Zoo City Sportsplex.

“Some of the work that is included in this change order includes the addition of police and fire UTV storage building to the existing maintenance building, the installation of all sidewalks in Phase 2 along with the stone installation for the parking lots and the paving of the parking lots and the main drive as well the installation of walking trails in Phase 2,” said City Engineer Michael Leonard.

Finally, the council also approved change order number 1 for $681,970 with Rodgers for additional construction items McCrary Ballpark, including the installation of the tot lot retaining wall. The Asheboro City Council will next meet July 13.

cal manufacturers can continue to do what they do best without Washington getting in their way,” he said, adding that the U.S. Department of Energy should be focusing on strengthening the supply chain for distribution transformers.

The proposed bill would repeal the U.S. Department of Energy’s authority to propose, finalize, implement, administer or enforce any energy efficiency standard for distribution transformers for the next five years.

“Today’s the beginning of the conversation to help us. Our job is to take this information and figure out what’s next. We have a responsibility to the country to look at this incident and what it tells us about the vulnerabilities of the grid if we don’t do a better job,” Hudson said before the hearing adjourned.

Hwy 62.

♦ Moore, Billy Jr. (M, 31), Arrested on charge of Misdemeanor Larceny, Possession of Stolen Goods, Communicating Threats, on 6/14, at 4305 NC Hwy 62.

♦ Beck, Bryson (M, 26), Arrested on charge of Injury to Personal Property, on 6/13, at 6254 Weeping Willow Ct.

Liberty Town Council Meeting 5:30pm

The Liberty Town Council will hold their next meeting on June 26 at the Liberty Town Hall, which is located at 239 S. Fayetteville Street.

June 27

2023 Kids Summer Movies – Storks

10am, 1pm, and 7pm

The Kids Summer Movies series returns to the Sunset Theater in Asheboro! Matinees will be held at 10am and 1pm and are $5 per person. The evening show starts at 7pm and is $8 per person! Each ticket includes a small popcorn and a drink!

Sheriff’s Office Meet & Greet 6pm – 8pm

The Randolph County Sheriff’s Office wants to meet with the public and discuss job opportunities at their Detention Center, located at 790 New Century Dr. in Asheboro.

June 28

World Tavern Poker at Carolina Tap House 7pm

Join America’s #1 Bar Poker League right in Asheboro at the Carolina Tap House! Entry is 100% free to the public and games take place every Wednesday night!

Neal Robbins, publisher | Frank Hill, senior opinion editor

Bringing Congress to the Sandhills

This field hearing was the first of many our committee will hold in our efforts to improve the security and resiliency of our nation’s energy grid.

SIX MONTHS AGO, our community was attacked. Two substations in Moore County were intentionally attacked on the evening of December 3rd, leaving my house and 45,000 of our neighbors without power for up to ten days.

In the aftermath of the attack, hospitals were impacted threatening medical treatments, schools were shut down, businesses were affected, stop lights were dark, gas stations were closed, cell signals were impacted, and water couldn’t be heated.

An attack like this could have devastated our community and we didn’t go without our struggles. But overall, I am so proud of our resilient response. In the days that followed, you truly showed the best of Moore County and the best of America.

Throughout our region, churches, small businesses, restaurants, police and fire departments, local governments, and individuals stepped up to help their neighbors and showed the true strength of our community. It was inspiring to see everyone come together in our time of need.

I also thank Sheriff Ronnie Fields and our local law enforcement for their quick response during those dark days and for their ongoing investigations to determine who is responsible for December’s attack. We must hold those responsible for this act accountable and I will continue to support law enforcement as they conduct their investigation.

Since the attack occurred, I have been in listening mode. I have heard from constituents, grid operators, community developers, the FBI and law enforcement, and business owners who have concerns with our grid’s security and resilience—all against the backdrop of historic energy costs.

As your neighbor, I share these concerns with you. And a similar, yet thankfully unsuccessful, attack in Randolph County several months ago underscores the need to address this issue. That’s why last week, I brought my colleagues from

COLUMN | CONNIE LOVELL

WHO’s on first

The concentration of power in the hands of so few may be efficient and sometimes popular. But it does not tend toward sound government.

IN FEBRUARY, our administration entered negotiations with the World Health Organization to surrender United States’ authority over pandemic and related public health responses to their global purview. Ratification is expected by spring of 2024.

Amendments to the International Health Regulation seek “a global architecture for health emergency preparedness, prevention, response, and resilience (HEPR)”. This includes “global governance, financing and all HEPR systems”.

America’s sovereignty and ability to determine health care strategies independently will be lost in one strike.

The amendment to the 2005 treaty to centralize authority is pitched by the WHO as pandemic prevention, a necessary and legally binding instrument to mitigate health crises. It is intended to “hardwire into international law a top-down supra-national approach to public health.” The mandate, according to Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, extends beyond pandemics to include “hunger, poverty, ecological degradation, climate change and social and economic inequalities.” The WHO would be empowered to vaccinate, medicate, and requisition funds by fiat. USForThem, a grassroots advocate for children (USForThem.co.uk) has published a significant report on the impact of this amendment.

The concept of “One Health” would elevate the WHO to a regulatory body and an associated enforcement body, calling the plays for affiliate States in crisis situations. Revisions to the scope of this

Congress to Moore County for a House Energy and Commerce Committee field hearing. I took my colleagues to the site of one of the attacks so they could understand the substation involved. And I introduced them to the community and people who were impacted by the attack. Just as I promised to you back in December, I brought Washington here and put real faces to the issues that rocked our community.

Before the hearing, we stopped at the Duke Energy West End substation, one of the two substations here in Moore County that was intentionally attacked. At the field hearing, experts from Duke Energy, NC Emergency Management, NC State University, and in energy security shared their testimony on the current state of our grid security and resilience and how we move forward from these attacks. There are 45,000 stories of why Moore County—and our nation—needs greater grid resilience, and my colleagues and I welcome these testimonies and your feedback in order to help do our jobs effectively.

This field hearing was the first of many our committee will hold in our efforts to improve the security and resiliency of our nation’s energy grid. It was important to me that the first hearing be here where the attack happened, and this is only the beginning of our investigations.

Being your voice in Congress is a responsibility I take extremely seriously and I will continue to make sure Washington pays attention to the concerns and needs of you and your family.

It’s an honor to represent you and the best of our community—which always shines bright, even in the dark.

Richard Hudson is serving his sixth term in the U.S. House and represents North Carolina’s 9th Congressional District. He currently serves as the chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee and is a member of the House Republican Steering Committee.

amendment include principles of “equity, inclusivity, coherence and taking into consideration their social and economic development.” This language replaces the current scope of implementation that cites “full respect for dignity, human rights and fundamental freedoms of persons.”

Consider the appointed members and managers of the team that seeks control over United States management of public health and social services. China is a founding member, Afghanistan, Russia, Iraq and Pakistan. North Korea is on deck. These players are not known for responsible health care or even humanitarian aid. For example, in China’s social credit system, a QR-code tags each citizen to surveil and restrict movement, red-flag the infected and detain the sick in cages. The guidelines issued by the WHO and adapted by the United States Center for Disease control, CDC, have proven disastrous. But the suppression of information may be the worst foul committed in the name of public safety. Recall The Great Barrington Declaration and the cancellation of the esteemed physicians who authored and signed it. Leaks, exposes and independent reports have revealed the massive, coordinated and colluded effort by our government and media during the darkest months of the Covid pandemic. Daily briefings by the administration and the infamous Dr Fauci perpetuated the myths of the origin and contagion for Covid. As American citizens, fearful of the unknown and still trusting in the fundamental honesty of government bureaucracy, we locked down and masked up. We took a shot. We traded logic for magical thinking. The scores of this political strategy are in and it does not look good. Crime is up, cities are down, children struggle with

social and academic skills that may take several generations to overcome. Medical personnel and civil servants are burned out and hospital supplies are limited. Very few people are unaffected in ways large and small by life interrupted by the dangerous game played on us by global decision makers.

In mid-May, Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch called the emergency measures taken during the pandemic “the greatest intrusions on civil liberties in the peacetime history of this country” killing more than 1M Americans. When schools were closed but stores stayed open, when churches could not congregate but ballgames could proceed, many understood that this had little to do with public health and everything to do with control. Winners and losers were chosen on the merits of “science” defined by conjecture.

As a warning to us, the Justice wrote “The concentration of power in the hands of so few may be efficient and sometimes popular. But it does not tend toward sound government.” Recognizing that sometimes extreme measures must be taken but they come with an additional set of problems.

As the WHO continues to negotiate the terms of the “One Health” treaty with the current administration and our neighbor States to the east and far east, recognize the high stakes in this game. America is being pitched a series of rules and regulations for coping with a pandemic health crisis. The managers of our fate may play by rules we cannot question called by an unknown umpire from another league. We cannot allow the fate of our families in crisis to be governed by authorities not vested in the best interest of our nation.

WHO’s on first…. What’s on second?

COLUMN | U.S. REP. RICHARD HUDSON

SIDELINE REPORT

COLLEGE SPORTS

NCAA committee recommends dropping marijuana from banned list

Indianapolis

An NCAA medical committee is recommending the removal of marijuana from its banned drug list and suggesting that testing should be limited to performance-enhancing substances. To pass, the legislation must be introduced and approved by all three NCAA divisions. A final decision is expected this fall. The recommendation comes as the U.S. is seeing more and more states allowing medical or recreational marijuana use. The proposal is one of several recommendations by the NCAA’s committee on competitive safeguards and medical aspects of sports. Other proposals include establishing a tracelevel threshold for a banned hormone and metabolic modulator.

MLB Braves cut Culberson before his father was to throw 1st pitch

Atlanta

The Atlanta Braves designated infielder Charlie Culberson for assignment before his father was set to throw out a ceremonial first pitch on Father’s Day. Culberson was cut before the team’s game against Colorado. The 34-year-old from Rome, Georgia, was brought up from Triple-A Gwinnett on May 19 but had not appeared in any games since his promotion. After Culberson was let go, the father of Braves outfielder Michael Harris II took care of the first pitch Sunday at Truist Park. Catcher Chadwick Tromp was recalled from Gwinnett.

NBA

3-time Sixth Man award winner Williams

announces retirement

Atlanta Lou Williams announced his retirement from the NBA on Sunday, ending a career after winning the league’s Sixth Man award three times and scoring more points off the bench than anyone in history. Williams played for six teams — Philadelphia, Toronto, the Los Angeles Lakers, Houston, the Los Angeles Clippers and Atlanta. He last played in the 2021-22 season with the Hawks. Out of 1,123 regularseason games played over 17 seasons, Williams came off the bench in 1,001. He scored 13,396 points off the bench, which is 2,117 more than Jamal Crawford and 2,249 more than Dell Curry.

SOCCER Homophobic chants force early end US-Mexico match

Las Vegas

The United States men’s soccer team’s 3-0 victory over Mexico was cut short Thursday night by the referee after the stadium devolved into echoes of homophobic chants from Mexico fans, who for years have directed a slur at opposing teams’ goalkeepers. Officials have been trying to stamp out the troubling tradition for just as long, with fines, banishment from stadiums, and now early finishes. Play was halted because of the deafening noise in the 90th minute. When action resumed, the persistent chanting caused Salvadoran referee Iván Barton to end the match in the eighth added minute.

Paul headed to Wizards as Suns acquire Beal

clause to be sent to the Suns, agent Mark Bartelstein said Sunday. There is a chance that the trade could eventually include a third team, particularly if a club wants to acquire Paul, but the basic framework is done.

The Associated Press

Bradley Beal will soon be part of the NBA’s newest Big 3, after the three-time All-Star agreed Sunday to be traded to the Phoenix Suns and team up with Kevin Durant and Devin Booker in a trio with serious offensive firepower and championship aspirations.

The Suns agreed to send Chris Paul, Landry Shamet and a package of future second-round picks to Washington, according to a person with knowledge of the negotiations. Some pick swaps will also be part of the trade, said the person, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the deal is pending league approval.

The biggest domino to fall was this: Beal waived his no-trade

For Phoenix, a franchise that had a 2-0 lead in the NBA Finals against Milwaukee in 2021 before falling in six games, the motivation is obvious — to win a title. The Suns will be different this coming season; Frank Vogel is succeeding the fired Monty Williams (who is now in Detroit) as coach, Paul will no longer be the starting point guard who is still searching for his first championship, and Durant and Booker will have a training camp together for the first time. It’s also the start of something new, and probably needed, in Washington. The Wizards have finished with a losing record in each of the last five years, missing the playoffs in four of those, and haven’t won a postseason series since 2018. The Wizards will pick eighth in Thursday’s draft, and Kyle Kuzma and Kristaps Por-

zingis could decide later this week to become free agents by declining player options — moves that seem likely.

The deal was struck less than a week after Denver topped Miami in the NBA Finals, and with the Heat having also spent the last few days working with the Wizards on the possibility of acquiring Beal.

It also begins a week where Victor Wembanyama will be the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft Thursday by San Antonio — and where more players could be on the move since trades frequently happen on draft night.

It is the second major acquisition for owner Mat Ishbia in Phoenix. He landed Durant for a mas-

sive combination of players and first-round draft picks just days after formally taking over the Suns in February.

5There are three active players in the NBA with at least 500 games played while averaging at least 22 points per game. Phoenix now has three of them in Beal, Durant and Booker. They will make about $130 million combined next season, meaning the Suns will pay a ransom in salary and tax for this title shot.

Starting with 2017-18 — Beal’s first All-Star season — he’s averaged 26.0 points per game. That’s 10th-best in the NBA over that span. He’s been an All-Star in three of those six seasons and made AllNBA in 2020-21, when he finished second in the scoring race for the second consecutive year.

Beal is entering the second year of what could be a five-year, $251 million contract; the last of those years is at his option and would pay him $57.1 million. Over the next four years, he’s owed about $207.7 million.

Maguire comes from behind to win Meijer LPGA Classic

The Associated Press BELMONT, Mich. — Leona Maguire used a fabulous finish to avoid another near-miss at the Meijer LPGA Classic.

Maguire played her final six holes in 6 under and shot an 8-under 64 for a two-shot victory on Sunday, her second tour victory after two straight second-place finishes in the Michigan event.

The 28-year-old Maguire, from Ireland, was the runner-up at Blythefield in both 2021 and last year. She won her first LPGA Tour title last year at the Drive On Championship. Sunday’s finish was her third straight in the top 10 heading into two upcoming majors: the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship next week at Baltusrol and the U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach on July 6-9.

“The goal today was just to go out and shoot as low a score as possible and see where I ended up,” Maguire said. “This one is, I think, that little bit sweeter after coming so close two years in a row.

“I know a lot of people this week were saying you’re due one, this course owes you something, all the rest. But I suppose that’s not golf. Golf usually doesn’t work like that. But nice that it all worked out well

for me this week.”

Maguire made six birdies and an eagle in her bogey-free round to finish at 21-under 267. She caught playing partner Ariya Jutanugarn with an eagle on the par-5 14th hole to reach 18 under, then closed with three straight birdies to pull ahead of Jutanugarn and Xiyu Lin.

“My goal today was to shoot 20-under par,” Maguire said. “I

thought if I got to 20, that would be a good target to set for the girls coming behind. I didn’t look at leaderboards. ... It was obviously a bonus to go one better, 21, and obviously bogey-free on a Sunday is very nice, as well.” Maguire was solid but unspectacular on the front nine, birdieing both par 3s, and was 2 under for the day through 12 holes. She then

birdied the par-3 13th to kick off her torrid closing stretch.

She called the birdie at No. 13 “massive,” and anticipated chances to go low over the closing holes.

“It’s that kind of golf course where there’s chances, you just have to be ready to take them when you get them,” she said. “I played the par-3s really, really well today and didn’t quite play the par-5s as well as I would have liked. ... That putt going in on 13 was sort of a bit of a mental shift for me, and then obviously to get that eagle on 14 was huge.”

Jutanugarn, a 12-time winner on tour including two majors, shot her second straight 66 and finished alone in second. Lin, playing in the final group, birdied the 14th to reach 19 under but played her final four holes in 1 over to shoot 68 and finish tied for third with thirdround leader Amy Yang (69).

Hyo Joo Kim (69) was fifth. Defending champion Jennifer Kupcho had a fourth-round 69 and finished in a tie for sixth with Jasmine Suwannapura (66). Ashleigh Buhai, the 34-year-old South African who won the ShopRite LPGA Classic last week in New Jersey, was a stroke off the lead entering the final round, but struggled to a 73 and tied for 13th.

The Winston-Salem native and former Wake Forest star guard could be moved to a different team by Washington

NBA franchises Chris Paul has played for in his pro career

AP PHOTO

Chris Paul is headed to the Wizards as part of a trade that will send Bradley Beal to the Suns.

AP PHOTO

Leona Maguire shot a final round 64 on Sunday to rally past Ariya Jutanugarn and win the Meijer LPGA Classic in Belmont, Michigan.

AMERICAN LEGION BASEBALL

Post 45 churns out more victories

Randolph Record

RANDLEMAN – A four-night stretch full of variety for Randolph County Post 45 also had a certain consistent component.

The American Legion baseball team won each of its games last week. That included stiff nonleague tests and its Area 3 Northern Division opener. Post 45 boosted its record to 11-1 entering this week.

The showdown came with Rowan County Post 342, with Post 45 winning 4-3 on Friday night at Salisbury. Tanner Marsh provided

a home run and a run-scoring double, and Pierce Leonard scored two runs. Drew Harmon, Robert Garner and Hunter Atkins combined for the Randolph County pitching.

Rowan County won 19 of its first 22 games, with two of the defeats coming to Randolph County.

Saturday night’s divisional opener resulted in a 10-0 victory against Greensboro Post 53 at Randleman High School. Starting pitcher Drake Purvis threw four no-hit innings with nine strikeouts.

Marsh and Atkins hit back-toback home runs in the sixth in-

Skylar Pugh

ning. Atkins finished with three hits.

Earlier in the week, Post 45 came off a five-day layoff and defeated visiting Mocksville-Davie County Post 54 by 8-2, with Marsh tripling and scoring two runs and Tyler Parks driving in two runs. Braxton Walker threw five shutout innings with 11 strikeouts and one walk. Post 45 went to Buies Creek and topped Wayne County 6-4, with Parks notching three hits and knocking in two runs. Samuel Asbill, Austin Lemons and Marsh did the pitching.

ZooKeepers finally find some answers

Randolph Record

ASHEBORO – The Asheboro ZooKeepers made notable progress last week.

The biggest of those achievements was finally winning a game.

The Coastal Plain League baseball team lost its first six games of the season, which already has been disjointed by playing home games at UNC Greensboro while McCrary Park renovations are ongoing. The plan is to have the ZooKeepers playing in Asheboro by the end of this week.

At least they’ve experienced success. The ZooKeepers didn’t pick up a victory until their seventh game of the season, defeating the Martinsville Mustangs 9-4 last Tuesday in Greensboro after facing a four-

run hole. Tyler McPeak’s three-run home run was an offensive highlight.

Three nights later, they swept a doubleheader from the visiting Florence Flamingos. Shortstop

Alex Lodise had a game-winning hit to end Asheboro’s 1-0 victory in the opener of the twinbill.

It was quite an introduction for Lodise, a soon-to-be Florida State player who was making his ZooKeepers debut. Lodise played for North Florida during the 2023 college season, mashed a school freshman-record 16 home runs and was an All-Atlantic Sun selection, but he’s transferring to Florida State.

Pitchers Jacob Dienes and Garrett Kangas combined for the shutout.

In the nightcap, Asheboro won 5-1 behind work on the mound by

Jacob Halford and Ethan Snyder.

Pitching became a trouble spot for Asheboro during the weekend.

A 13-4 loss Saturday at Florence was followed by Sunday’s 9-5 setback at Holly Springs.

In the Holly Springs game, Dallas Callahan of the ZooKeepers homered, but it wasn’t enough to wipe out an 8-0 hole after three innings.

So, with a 3-8 record through Sunday, the ZooKeepers were stuck in last place in the West Division. Asheboro’s .234 batting average was tied for the worst mark in the CPL.

Because of rescheduled games amid the adjustments because of McCrary Park’s status, Asheboro could be playing a total of eight home games in the last 12 days of June.

PJ WARD-BROWN | NORTH STATE JOURNAL Skylar Pugh delivers a pitch for Eastern Randolph during the recently completed softball season.

Eastern Randolph, softball

Pugh was a force in the pitching circle and at the plate for the Wildcats during her senior season. She posted eight wins to go with two saves as a pitcher. She was credited with 131 strikeouts in 69 innings.

Pugh’s four home runs were second on the team.

Eastern Randolph finished with an 18-6 record. That’s the most wins for the Wildcats since 2019.

Lowder roars in Modifieds at Caraway

Lowder was the fastest qualifier, and once he moved into the lead, he never gave up the front spot in the 40-lap race. He won for the fifth time this year at the track.

Randolph Record

JEFFERSON – Asheboro golfer Sam Davidson has made a habit of runner-up finishes.

Davidson tied for second place in the North Carolina Amateur, a four-round event that ended Sunday.

The winner was UNC Wilmington golfer Walker Isley of Oak Island. Isley shot a 3-under-par 281 at Jefferson Landing.

Davidson, a rising senior at Guilford College, and Winston-Salem’s Davis Womble, a for-

mer college golfer for Wake Forest, finished at 1-under.

Davidson was also the runner-up in the Asheboro City Amateur earlier this month.

In the N.C. Amateur, Davidson shot rounds of 68, 72, 74, and 69.

The final-round score was the best of the day Sunday.

Isley’s 64 in the first round gave him a four-shot edge on Davidson.

to begin Sunday’s round. Jake Clodfelter of Trinity missed the cut after rounds of 82 and 73.

Kevin Orlando made a late bid after a caution, but he ended up in second place. Justice Calabro, who’s the division’s points leader, ended up third, Mitchell Wright was fourth, and Junior Harvill claimed fifth.

In the Challengers class, Allen Vance cranked out another victory despite track promoter Darren Hackett’s bounty that would have rewarded a different winner.

Corey Rose was the runner-up, followed by Dante Curtis, Josh Waldron and DJ Dean. The UCARs feature included 19 drivers, with Steven Collins hanging on to win the race.

Josh Phillips was second, followed by Ron Mock, Daniel

Hughes and Jason Garwood. In the Bootleggers race, Jon Morton stayed in command for a victory, fending off Robbie Perkins and Brandon Collins. Collins also was in action in the Any Car Enduro, winning that event.

Racing returns to the speedway on June 28 with the CARS Tour Late Models competing in the Firecracker 265. This marks the second year in a row the touring series will conduct a mid-week event at that track in a throwback nod to the “Firecracker” events that Russell Hackett made so popular, according to information from the speedway.

A field of more than 25 Late Models cars is expected, while there’s also a Pro Late Models feature on the card. A national points race for U.S. Legends Cars plus Bandoleros sets the stage for the CARS Tour stop. Also, on July 1 is the annual Rusty Harpe Memorial, with a 99-lap in the SMART Modifieds Tour plus regular Modifieds, Mini Stocks, Challengers, UCARs and Bootleggers.

PJ WARD-BROWN | NORTH STATE JOURNAL

Carson Whitehead takes a swing for Randolph County Post 45.

PHOTO COURTESY OF ZOOKEEPERS

The Asheboro ZooKeepers have had mixed results from the mound during their games so far this season.

COURTESY PHOTO Sam Davidson

COURTESY PHOTO Josh Lowder, left, accepts the trophy for winning a Modifieds race at Caraway Speedway. Randolph Record

SOPHIA – Josh Lowder dominated the Modifieds race for a victory Saturday night at Caraway Speedway.

Southwestern Randolph product seeks more fast times in football

By Bob Sutton Randolph Record

ASHEBORO – Adam Cole figured out pretty early that the best way to make an impression was to do it fast.

He sprinted to a special high school career for Southwestern Randolph.

It mostly came about through football and baseball, allowing his foot speed to set him apart.

By his senior year, he became the face of the football program.

“It’s kind of a role I have to take,” he said. “It’s not like I control it. I definitely like it. It gives me a sense of responsibility, too. I like that. I definitely think I’m a leader on the field.”

That helped translate into a record career, setting the school standard for career touchdowns. He was a receiver and cornerback.

A center fielder on the baseball field, he gave track and field a try and ended up in the Class 2-A state meet as a junior.

But football has had his attention.

“I’m just not this big, huge guy you’d look at and say he’s going D-I,” Cole said this spring. “I’m 180 pounds.”

While the speed component is nice, a commitment to build himself as an overall athlete allowed him to excel.

“I was playing at 150 pounds last year,” he said last August in reference to his junior season. “I’m about 170. I want to be about 185. Just playing baseball and football and going to camps every day, I really haven’t had a day off this summer. It’s definitely not letting me gain as much as I want to.”

The workload largely paid off as Cole ended his high school career by being selected as the Male Athlete of the Year in the Piedmont Athletic Conference.

Faster, faster

Cole’s speed puts others in awe, but he looks at the fine print.

“I’ve always been fast,” he said. “I was running a 4.7 40(-yard dash). That’s honestly terrible for a receiver if you’re trying to go play college football. I’ve put in a lot of work over the summer. I’d get up early before we had baseball practice or before football practice, go do fieldwork. I’d go do work. I work out every day. I went from a 4.7 40 to a 4.4.”

For Southwestern Randolph, Cole’s speed gave the Cougars a valuable weapon.

“Fastest dude I’ve seen around here,” said Easton Clapp, a classmate and quarterback. “No one can keep up with him. Crazy fast. He can run routes like crazy.”

Opponents knew it, too.

“He’s crazy fast,” Randleman linebacker Thomas Dobias said. “He’s probably the fastest kid in our conference, for sure.”

Prior to his freshman year, Southwestern Randolph coaches had an inkling Cole might be an impact player. They had him work with varsity players in summer camps.

“I started enjoying it because I knew by my sophomore, junior, senior year, I would really be one of the best around,” he said.

A broken ankle mostly derailed

that first season in high school. He called his junior season the best when he scored 23 touchdowns.

Cole accepted the attention that followed.

“It makes me play better because I know I have a standard to play up to,” he said. “I know people are watching and really expecting a lot of me. I like that. I like the pressure knowing I have to be something. It just gives me a sense of confidence.”

As the touchdown totals soared, his reputation as a speedster grew.

“They joke about it all the time. Yeah, they know,” Cole said of the reaction from his teammates. “I don’t remember any time in four years of high school football; I don’t think I’ve ever been run down.”

Betting on himself

Cole is joining the East Carolina football program as a preferred walk-on. Division I scholarship offers weren’t coming his way, but he didn’t want to settle for anything else.

“I’m not trying to be cocky in any way, but I feel like I’m more talented than to go D-II, D-III,” he said. “I’m just betting on myself. I’m going to work my way up, and I think I’ll be on scholarship after a few years if I work as hard as I can and everything goes to plan.”

Yet he sensed interest from the Pirates and assistant coach Roy Tesh, who was his primary recruiter. Cole’s workout last year in Greenville made a difference.

“I just showed out at that camp,” he said. “They talked to me more consistent than really any other school did, which is surprising.”

At the outset, he’ll be pegged as a defensive back.

“I would rather be scoring touchdowns, but I like defense, too,” he said.

He might also try punt returns and kickoff returns.

Too fast, this time

While getting to spots on the field faster is generally a bonus, it

doesn’t always have the greatest results.

That’s what happened in the Cougars’ third-to-last football game last fall. Randleman’s Chesney Welch made a catch and took off toward the end zone.

“It was a play across the field, and I chased him down and punched the ball out,” Cole said.

“When I punched, I hit just his elbow with this pinky right here. It snapped this bone right here.”

He was pointing to his right hand.

But on that mid-October night, Cole wasn’t finished. He stayed in the game, ending up filling in at quarterback in the Cougars’ 34-7 loss.

“I played through the game,” he said. “I didn’t really feel it until I came off.”

It marked his final high school football game. The next day he went for an exam. Surgery was scheduled.

Cole sent a photo of the X-ray to Welch, who probably could have done without a reminder of the sequence.

“Adam running his 4.3 came down and poked it out,” Welch said. “You don’t want to be chased by him.”

Even now, there’s a sliver of satisfaction for Cole that came from that play. He not only caused the fumble, but he also recovered the ball.

Cole said he made the most of the rehabilitation.

“My grip strength increased because I did therapy for it,” he said. Burning up base paths

Cole’s baseball numbers might suggest a future in that sport. He led the Cougars this year by batting over .490 in addition to swatting four home runs. He had been a mainstay in the Randolph County Post 45 lineup for two years and even spent a couple of weeks with the team this spring prior to football commitments in Greenville.

“I don’t really enjoy baseball like I do football,” he said. “I go out of my way to go put in work for football. Baseball, I just kind of go out there and play.”

Played it quite well. Classmate

Tyler Parks, a North Carolina baseball signee, saw up close what Cole’s speed could do.

“With baseball, speed doesn’t slump,’ Parks said. “He can fly. He has always been fast. As he got older, he just got faster. He just keeps getting faster. I work out with Adam. It’s just unreal how quick he is.”

Show it on the track

While Cole’s speed wasn’t camouflaged, it hadn’t been on display in the most obvious way – on the track – until his junior year.

“I was joking around with the track coach: When you going to put me on the roster and let me run?” Cole remembered.

Next thing he knew, he was sprinting in the 100 meters and then taking off to go play baseball.

It resulted in more than a spring fling. Cole became the Class 2-A Midwest Regional champion in the 100 in 2022.

“I didn’t expect to go out there and win regionals, and went to the states,” he said. “I’d never run track in my life. Definitely pretty cool.”

For the most part, track became a part-time pursuit.

“I don’t practice track,” he said. “I just go to baseball.”

But extra sprinting had side benefits.

“It’s really good for me,” he said. “Because baseball isn’t a ton of running, it’s keeping me in shape. Keeping me fast. Last year when I needed to go to camps to get recruited, it helped my 40-yard dash a lot. It’s helped my form. It’s a good way to compete.”

That might have been the biggest factor. A chance to test himself in a different forum.

“Really, I just like to compete,” he said. “That’s the big thing.”

Still, at this spring’s Randolph County Championships, Cole said there were doubters. He referred to it as guys talking smack.

For his part, Cole won the 100 and 200 meters.

“It’s in one ear and out the other,” he said. “I’m a baseball player. I’m fast, too, and I can do good in things like this. Coming out here not training for track and just being able to win all these track meets like I am, makes me feel good. Really, I like to win.”

And for Cole, the faster, the better.

Left, Adam Cole competed in the 2022 Class 2-A state meet for track and field. Right, Adam Cole runs behind teammate Eli Gravely during a 2022 game.

Sarah Joyce Oliver

April 30, 1923 — June 18, 2023

Sarah Joyce Oliver, age 100, of Asheboro passed away on Sunday, June 18, 2023 at Cross Road

Retirement Community.

Mrs. Oliver was born in Pinnacle, NC on April 30, 1923 to Ham and Annie Pruitt Joyce. Sarah was a hard worker and was formerly employed with Walker Shoe Company as a machine operator. She was a member of Sawyersville Wesleyan Church. Sarah loved to cook and her specialties were persimmon pudding and coconut pie. In addition to her parents, Sarah was preceded in death by her husband, John Oliver, daughter, Maxine Pugh, son, John Wayne Neal, 6 brothers, and 3 sisters. She is survived by her sons, Rick Neal (Berta) of Asheboro and David "Randy" Neal (Lou Ann) of Asheboro; grandchildren, Wendy (Jimmy), Jennifer (Bill), Rodney (Candy), Jason (Erin), Jake (Erin), and Jaron; great grandchildren, Tyler, Trevor, Katie, Lauren, Caroline, Aaron, Parks, Kieran, Larin, Zeke, Jude, and Levi; and sisters, Patsy Brown of Asheboro and Jeral Purvis of Asheboro.

Edward "Ed" Lee McMasters

April 12, 1929 — June 17, 2023

Edward "Ed" Lee McMasters, age 94, of Asheboro passed away on Saturday, June 17, 2023 at Terra Bella Assisted Living.

Ed was born in Asheboro on April 12, 1929 to Floyd and Hattie Lindley McMasters. Ed served his country in the U.S. Marine Corps during the Korean Conflict, receiving a Purple Heart. He retired from Black & Decker and following retirement he worked part-time with Lowe's Foods. Ed was a longtime member of Union Grove Christian Church. In addition to his parents, Ed was preceded in death by his stepdaughter, Denise Deaton, 2 brothers, Richard McMasters and Cleo McMasters, and 2 sisters, Virginia Garner and Vera Forrest.

He is survived by his wife, Jettie Rich McMasters; son, Mark McMasters (Sherrill) of Winston-Salem; stepsons, Robert Morrison (Ruth) of Randleman and Barry Morrison (Kristan) of Hiwassee, VA; grandchildren, Christin McMasters and Jonathan McMasters (Joy); step grandchildren, Phillip Morrison (Cara), Steven Morrison (Heather), Tony Deaton (Karen), and Ryan Deaton; step great grandchildren, Caleb Morrison, Tyler Morrison, Garett Morrison, Sophie Morrison, and Avalee Morrison.

Stella Lindsley Bowman

March 16, 1938 — June 15, 2023

Stella L. Bowman 85, of Asheboro died Thursday, June 15, 2023 at UNC Hospice House, Pittsboro. Mrs. Bowman was born March 16, 1938 in Asheboro to William Burton and Ruby Lindsley. She lived in Asheboro and moved to Cary, NC in the midsixties. After retiring, Stella and her husband, Arthur Ray moved back to Asheboro. Stella worked at the gift shop/book store at RDU Airport for many years. She loved working at the gift shop, reading all the new books and meeting all kinds of interesting people.

In addition to her parents, Stella is preceded in death by her husband Arthur Ray Bowman and her son, Burton Ray Bowman. She is survived by; her daughter, Vanessa Hare and her husband Jim of Fuquay Varina, NC; her son Tim Bowman and his wife Doris of Asheboro; granddaughter, Nicole Proctor and her husband Adam of Sanford; grandson Michael Bowman of Raleigh; greatgranddaughter Abigail Proctor of Sanford; her sisters Miffie Moffitt of Thomasville and Linda Richardson of Jamestown and her step-sister Nancy Fogleman of Asheboro; her sister-in-laws Lula Mae Bowman of Asheboro, Merle Veasey of Florence,.SC and Betty Bowman of Asheboro; several nieces and nephews and greatnieces and nephews.

William "Bill" Fredrick Barker

November 9, 1942 — June 15, 2023

The family of William “Bill” Barker announces his passing on June 15, 2023 at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.

Bill was raised in Mt. Holly, North Carolina. He earned a BA degree at Elon College. While there, he met Patsyanna Bulla and they married in 1966.

Bill operated Barker Masonry and, later, Barker Construction. Bill was uncompromising about quality in his profession and balanced his work by always being available for his three sons; who knew their father to be generous, honest, and kind.

Bill was active within his community; serving in leadership positions with the church and receiving an award for his efforts while leading the local Cub Scouts. Bill was a proud supporter of the NC Zoological Society and gifted an endowed scholarship at Randolph Community College.

Bill will be remembered by his wife of 56 years, Patsyanna Bulla Barker; children Michael, Taylor (Rachel), and Emery (Katherine), three grandchildren; sister Betty Howe (Richard); brother Robert (Virginia), and numerous other family members and friends.

Bill was predeceased by his parents Buford and Bessie.

Catherine Rita Aspinall Frank

March 29, 1926 — June 15, 2023

Catherine Rita Aspinall Frank, age 97, of Asheboro passed away on Thursday, June 15, 2023 at Woodland Hill Center.

Mrs. Frank was born in Staten Island, NY on March 29, 1926 to George and Catherine Malloy Aspinall. Catherine was a member of St. Joseph's Catholic Church. In addition to her parents, Catherine was preceded in death by her husband, Arthur Frank, children, Eileen Lamb and David Frank, and siblings, Edward, Helen, Alice, Dorothy, and George. Catherine was a loving and devoted wife of 54 years, mother, grandmother, great grandmother, and sister. She was a great cook and was known for her stuffed peppers, potato salad, and noodle salad. Catherine enjoyed traveling to visit her family.

She is survived by her daughter, Kathleen Galvin (David) of Concord; sons, Charles Frank (Judy) of Mechanicsville, MD, Arthur Frank of Randleman, and Patrick Frank (Bach Hue) of High Point; 13 grandchildren; and several great grandchildren.

Linda Mae Gettings Simera

July 29, 1960 — June 11, 2023

Linda Mae Gettings Simera, age 62, of Asheboro passed away on Sunday, June 11, 2023 at her home following a long, hardfought battle with cancer. Linda was born in Youngstown, OH on July 29, 1960 to Raymond and Betty Gettings. She was formerly employed with Matlab and Pugh Funeral Home and was a certified welder. In addition to her parents, Linda was preceded in death by her sister, Marie Maloney. Linda was a loving, giving person, always doing for others. Linda loved animals. She is survived by her husband of 31 years, Brian Simera; daughter, Jill Gettings of Hubbard, OH; son, Longino Roman of Youngstown, OH; grandchildren, Joey and Vinny of Hubbard, OH, and Lennox of Youngstown, OH; brother, Lynn Gettings (Shelly) of Hubbard, OH, Floyd Gettings (Robin) of Hubbard, OH, and Raymond Gettings (Jean) of Hubbard, OH; sister, Betty Kohn (Mike) of Youngstown, OH; mother-in-law, Barbara Simera of Garrettsville, OH; and father-in-law, Paul Simera.

Paige Harris

May 17, 1992 - June 13, 2023

Paige Harris, 31, of Asheboro, passed away Tuesday, June 13, 2023 at her home.

Paige was born on May 17, 1992, in Guilford County. She was an employee of Cox's Harley Davidson in Asheboro. She enjoyed shopping, riding Harleys, swimming, and going to the beach. Paige was a very outgoing, free spirit that lived life her way. She loved having cookouts with her friends and spending time with her family. She is survived by her husband, Timothy Harris of the home; daughters, Shianna Brooke, Ashley Harris; son, Timothy Harris, Jr.; mother, Jane Rogers of Asheboro; sister, Jocelyn Rogers of Asheboro; brothers, Michael Bradley of Georgia, Scott Bradley of Lexington; grandbabies, Jaden Harris, Delilah Harris, Frank Harris, Alex Holder, Garrett McNeill; loving aunts and uncles; and nephew, Elijah Rogers.

Mattie Sue Kain

May 3, 1925 — June 10, 2023

Mattie Sue Kain, 98, of Winston Salem, passed away Saturday, June 10, 2023.

Sue was born in Randolph County on May 3, 1925, to Claude Hampton and Cladie Williams Fogleman. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her loving husband, Thomas Raymond Kain; and sister, Helen F. Andrews.

Mrs. Kain was of the Catholic faith. Sue was as very simple lady, she loved music, especially playing the organ at church, knitting and playing golf.

Sue is survived by two nieces and one nephew.

Robin Darlene (Musgrove) Reeder

July 24, 1959 ~ June 13, 2023

Robin Darlene Musgrove Reeder, age 63 of Franklinville, passed away Tuesday June 13, 2023 at the Randolph Hospice House in Asheboro.

A native of Guilford County, Robin was born July 24, 1959 to Treva Dilldine Johnson and the late Buddy Musgrove. In addition to her father, she is also preceded in death by first husband Timmy Clinard, second husband, Greg Reeder and grandson, Heath Clinard Jr.

Robin was a dedicated Christian and fierce God loving woman. She enjoyed trips to the beach with family, fishing and dancing. She adored Bob Segar and would always shake a leg to “Old Time Rock & Roll”, but most of all, she loved family. Robin’s kind and loving spirt will be greatly missed.

She leaves behind to cherish her memory, a daughter, Heather Clinard, two sons, Heath and Timothy Clinard, grandchildren, Brandon Simmons, Amanda Clinard, Haley Simmons, Josie Clinard, and Jacob Clinard III, mother, Treva Johnson and three great-grandchildren.

Jerry Keith Hayes

November 30, 1957 - June 10, 2023

Jerry Keith Hayes, 65, was a lifetime resident of Asheboro, North Carolina. He died peacefully on June 10, 2023, at The Randolph Hospice House. He was a 1976 graduate of Asheboro High School and served as a volunteer firefighter with Westside Fire Department. Jerry worked for 30 years at Randolph County Department of Corrections. After retirement he worked for Heart of North Carolina Visitor Center, where he loved talking with travelers on their journey. Jerry loved spending time outdoors and making others laugh.

Jerry was preceded in death by his parents, Keith and Dixie Hayes.

He leaves behind the love of his life for forty-one years, Kena Hayes (Freeman); two daughters, Kinlin Charcut and Savannah Cummins; sons-in-law, Nick Charcut and Zach Cummins; grandsons whom he adored, Brady and Beason Charcut, and Emma Cummins, his first granddaughter due in October. Surviving siblings are, Wanda Brady (Mike), Montae Hayes (Tammy), and David Hayes (Lisa).

STATE & NATION

Abortion providers in North Carolina file federal lawsuit challenging state’s new restrictions

The Associated Press

RALEIGH — Abortion providers in North Carolina filed a federal lawsuit Friday that challenges several provisions of a state law banning most abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy in the dwindling days before the new restrictions take effect.

Planned Parenthood South Atlantic and Dr. Beverly Gray, a Duke University OB-GYN, are asking a federal judge to block numerous provisions they argue are unclear and unconstitutional, or to place an injunction on the law to prevent it from being enforced.

Though the law may be commonly referred to as a 12-week abortion ban, the plaintiffs argue that it actually includes additional restrictions that many patients are not aware of — hurdles that will “impede health care professionals from providing quality care,” according to the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court.

“Many of these provisions are going to constrain an already very constrained abortion ecosystem in this state,” Planned Parenthood South Atlantic CEO Jenny Black told The Associated Press on Friday. “And so we really thought it was important that we challenged the elements of the law that do that.”

North Carolina has been one of the few remaining Southern states with relatively easy access to abortions in the wake of last year’s U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade. With the new restrictions set to take effect July 1, many out-of-state patients who had once viewed North Carolina

as a refuge will soon have to travel even further up the coast to access elective abortions later in pregnancy. The lawsuit comes one month after the Republican supermajority in the state’s General Assembly approved the measure through both chambers and overrode a

veto from Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who called it “an egregious, unacceptable attack on the women of our state.”

Among the named defendants are North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein, state Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kody Kinsley and the

Poll: Democrats and Republicans share core values but still distrust each other

The Associated Press WASHINGTON, D.C. — Americans on the right and the left have a lot more in common than they might think — including their strong distrust of each other.

A survey published last week finds that when asked about core values including fairness, compassion and personal responsibility, about nine in 10 Democrats and Republicans agreed they were very or extremely important. Yet only about a third of either group said they believed the same was true for the opposing party.

The results of the poll, conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago and the nonprofit group Starts With Us, reveal a stark truth at the source of the polarization that has a powerful grip on American politics: While most Americans agree on the core principles underlying American democracy, they no longer recognize that the other side also holds those values.

“This is a hidden opportunity for Americans to reestablish a sense of shared values,” said Tom Fishman, chief executive at Starts

With Us, a nonpartisan organization that works to bridge political polarization. Americans from both parties need to understand that they still share common values, he said, and to recognize their misconceptions about the

opposing party.

Americans have a long tradition of quarrelsome politics, dating back to before the Boston Tea Party. But with the notable exception of the Civil War, a sense of unity has kept those forces of di-

district attorneys who represent every county in the state where Gray and Planned Parenthood provide abortions. Kinsley’s office and Stein’s office said they are reviewing the lawsuit. Stein, a Democratic candidate for governor in 2024, is an outspoken pro-abortion support-

vision at bay. Experts who study partisanship and trust say that while a certain amount of polarization is natural, it can become a significant problem when it’s exploited by political parties or when one party no longer views the other as legitimate opposition but as an enemy.

A number of factors are cited as possible causes for an increase in division, including the decline and fragmentation of legitimate news sources, politicians who stoke distrust, and social media platforms that spread misinformation while too often sorting users into echo chambers where they seldom encounter an opposing view.

“When you get worried is when polarization turns into dehumanization — a sense that the other is somehow less than human, or evil, or unable to share your decent human values,” said Nealin Parker, executive director of Common Ground USA, a group that works to resolve conflict by building trust among Americans. “That should be concerning to anybody, because those are the necessary psychological steps to doing harm to each other.”

In the survey, respondents were asked to rate the importance of six principles: personal responsibility, fair enforcement of the law, representative government, government accountability, compassion and respect across differences, and learning from the past.

er but is named in the lawsuit because it’s his job as attorney general to defend state laws in court.

Spokespeople for the Republican legislative leaders, Senate leader Phil Berger and House Speaker Tim Moore, did not immediately respond Friday to phone messages seeking comment.

Republicans pitched the 47page measure as a middle-ground change to an existing state law banning nearly all abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, without exceptions for rape or incest. The new law adds exceptions, extending the limit through 20 weeks for rape and incest and through 24 weeks for “life-limiting” fetal anomalies, including certain physical or genetic disorders that can be diagnosed prenatally.

The lawsuit challenges a requirement that sexual assault survivors obtain abortions at a hospital after 12 weeks of pregnancy.

Gray, an OB-GYN, told the AP there is no procedural or medical difference between the unrestricted care she is able to provide miscarriage patients and the newly restricted care she provides abortion patients.

Similarly, Planned Parenthood clinics will be able to continue treating miscarriage patients after 12 weeks in cases where the fetus has already died but will be prohibited from providing identical care to rape and incest survivors in the context of an abortion.

“It’s the same care, and there’s zero regulations about caring for patients with miscarriages,” Gray said. “This is not about safety. This is about limiting access to abortion.”

In each case, about 90% of both Democrats and Republicans rated these values as very or extremely important. When asked if members of the opposing party thought those values were very or extremely important, however, about twothirds of respondents said no.

For example, while 91% of Republicans said they think it’s very or extremely important that citizens should learn from the past to improve the country, only about a third of Democrats said they believed that to be true of GOP voters. And while only 31% of Republicans say Democrats believe government accountability is very or extremely important, 90% of Democratic respondents said they do.

The findings reflect a phenomenon known as “affective polarization,” in which disagreements are based on animosity and a lack of trust instead of an actual debate over values or policy. Julia Minson, a professor who studies conflict and collaboration at Harvard University’s Harvard Kennedy School, said recognizing common values is a good start to bridging America’s divides.

Too often, Minson said, “We ascribe negative things to people we disagree with. We see them as an adversary that doesn’t want to be a partner. It’s very much about emotions and trust and largely divorced from actual differences.”

AP PHOTO

An early morning pedestrian is silhouetted against sunrise as he walks through the American flags on the National Mall with the U..S Capitol Building in the background in Washington, D.C. Nov. 7, 2022.

AP PHOTO

Hundreds of abortion ban veto supporters turned out to watch North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper sign a veto of the on Bicentennial Mall in Raleigh Saturday, May 19, 2023.

Annual Hot Rod Power Tour passes through Hoke County

Last Thursday, Continental Tire’s 29th annual Hot Rod Power Tour made its way through Hoke County after one of its stops at Rockingham Speedway on the way to the zMAX Dragway in Concord. The tour started at Atlanta Motor Speedway and ended Friday at Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee.

Over 6,000 cars and trucks – spanning across multiple generations – and tens of thousands of fans participate in the five-day road trip.

Hoke man arrested in connection to U.S. 401 Business shooting

Last Wednesday, Hoke County authorities arrested a man who has been accused of shooting another man in the 5000 block of U.S. Route 401 Business. According to a press release from the Hoke County Sheriff’s Office, Bryan Gibson has been charged with assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, inflicting serious injury, and was being held on a $40,000 secured bond. Deputies made the arrest after they were called to the hospital because a man showed up there with a gunshot wound. The gunshot victim has since been moved to a second hospital for additional treatment, though his condition is still unknown. Deputies were able to track down Gibson due to the assistance of a witness.

HOKE COUNTY

US House subcommittee holds energy grid hearing in Moore County

By Matt Mercer North State Journal

PINEHURST — Members of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce came to Moore County for a Congressional field hearing about securing the nation’s energy grid on June 16.

The hearing took place at the Pinehurst Village Hall just miles from the sites of attacks on two power substations that left more than 45,000 in the dark for nearly five days.

Rep. Richard Hudson, a member of the committee and resident of Southern Pines, called the field hearing essential and the start of a conversation.

“This is a day we’ve been looking forward to for a long time.

Testimony we hear today will set up a national discussion on grid vulnerability,” Hudson said in his opening statement.

The attacks, and subsequent shooting at another substation in neighboring Randolph County, created more urgency at both a state and federal level. A com-

bined $75,000 reward for information has gone unanswered, and no arrests in the Moore County attack have been made.

A day earlier, the North Carolina General Assembly gave final approval of a bill increasing penalties for crimes relating to “injuring an energy facility,” including electric, gas and telecommunications infrastructure.

That bill, SB 58, creates a new statute making it a Class C felony to knowingly and willfully destroy, injure or otherwise damage an energy facility or attempt to do so. The statute also imposes a $250,000 penalty and increases penalties for trespassing at the facilities.

Gov. Roy Cooper signed the bill into law on June 19.

“We must protect critical infrastructure that keeps electric power and clean water available in our communities, and this bill sends a message to criminals that these irresponsible acts will not be tolerated,” Cooper said in a statement.

South Carolina Rep. Jeff Dun -

can kicked off the hearing by thanking Hudson for the opportunity to come to the Sandhills to talk about the issue. Nine members of Congress toured both locations of the Dec. 3, 2022, substation attacks prior to the 10 a.m. hearing.

“America’s power grid is the world’s largest and most complex power system,” Duncan said in his opening remarks before recognizing Hudson. “We are taking a close look at these instances to determine if federal laws need to be changed in order to harden the grid, improve situational awareness and enhance grid security.”

Hudson emphasized that he wanted his colleagues to see the level of sophistication of the December 2022 attacks and how it could impact the nation if the type of attacks were replicated.

“Our region suffered millions of dollars in damage just weeks before Christmas,” Hudson said. “In response, our community stepped up. It’s inspiring to see how everyone stepped up in a

Amazon award to bring in $25,000 of funding for school district

By Ryan Henkel North State Journal

RAEFORD – The Hoke County Schools Board of Education met Tuesday, June 13, with mostly recognitions on the agenda.

The board recognized Hoke County’s two students that were selected to attend the North Carolina Governor’s School in the summer.

“Of all the AIG students across the state, 700 were chosen to attend Governor’s school this summer,” said Director of AIG and Advanced Placement Linden Cummings. “Two of our amazing students are part of those 700.

“The goal of the Governor’s School is for students to build a vibrant learning community. Each summer, selected students are invited to help build that learning community. Students are encouraged to explore; ask questions with the purpose of learning for their own sake and discovering

new possibilities that come from their instructions, without the regular pressure of tests, scores and grades.”

The two students from Hoke County High School who were selected were Alyssa Pridgeon and Akaysha Clark.

Hoke County was also designated as a Purple Star Award District, which is awarded to counties that demonstrate military-friendly practices and a commitment to military students and families.

“North Carolina’s long been home to a large population of active-duty guards, reserves and veteran armed service members,” said Executive Director of Student Support Services Peggy Owens. “In recognition of the state’s military history, the Department of Public Instruction is pleased to award over 336 schools for purple stars. Among the 336, there were 11 school districts who were designated as the district purple star award.”

The board also recognized Hoke County High School teacher Mario Malabunga who was named an Amazon Future Engineer Teacher of the Year.

Only 10 teachers are recognized nationally, and winners receive both a personal $5,000 cash award and a $25,000 award to their school district to expand computer science and robotics education at their school.

“We are happy to celebrate an all-star teacher who is working diligently to help our students in Hoke County Schools to discover all possibilities of computer science and robotics,” said Hoke County High School Associate Principal Sabrina Finkbeiner.

The board was also made aware of the awarding of a $13,000 Go Grant through the NC Outdoor Heritage Advisory Council to Scurlock Elementary that went towards the construction of a new gazebo structure on campus.

Finally, the board approved an

time of need.”

Hudson said he would continue to push the FBI to investigate and said he shared in the frustration that the perpetrators have not been arrested.

He added that the committee members present need to know “not just the numbers and facts but the people and personal experiences from those who suffered from these attacks.”

Mark Aysta, the managing director of enterprise security at Duke Energy, told the committee that once repairs were finished following the attacks, the company spent six months conducting a review of electric assets.

“We are shifting to a tiered approach with a greater focus on potential impacts to customers,” he said. “We’ve identified opportunities to increase security and surveillance, and we’re developing implementation schedules for this work. Investments in resiliency are a critical part

RFP for legal counsel services for Hoke County Schools. The deadline to receive submissions for the bid is July 7, 2023.

The Hoke County Schools Board of Education will next meet July 11.

COURTESY PHOTO

Rep. Richard Hudson (NC-09) and other members of the U.S. House Energy, Climate, and Grid Security subcommittee visit a substation that was attacked on Dec. 3, 2022.

See HUDSON, page 2

WEDNESDAY JUNE 21 HI 8 5° LO 62 ° PRECIP 3% THURSDAY JUNE 22 HI 8 3° LO 63° PRECIP 22% FRIDAY JUNE 23 HI 8 5° LO 61° PRECIP 1 8% SATURDAY JUNE 24 HI 8 5° LO 65° PRECIP 2 3% SUNDAY JUNE 25 HI 80° LO 65° PRECIP 5 8% MONDAY JUNE 26 HI 82° LO 65° PRECIP 4 3% TUESDAY JUNE 27 HI 80° LO 6 4° PRECIP 39%

♦ Richard, Charles Allen (W/M/32), Possess Stolen Goods, 06/19/2023, Hoke County Sheriff’s Office,

♦ Stewart, Courtney Paige (W/F/30), Possess Methamphetamine, 06/18/2023, Hoke County Sheriff’s Office, ♦ Forte, Justin Alexander (M/B/33), Possess Cocaine, 06/18/2023, Hoke County Sheriff’s Office,

♦ Oxendine, Donald Chandle (I/M/29), Possess Cocaine, 06/18/2023, Hoke County Sheriff’s Office,

♦ Santos, Victor Garcia (W/M/35), DWI, 06/16/2023, Hoke

William Ray, the director of N.C. Emergency Management, called for increased federal funding and reforms in federal statutes that would allow broader disaster recovery efforts beyond a focus on natural hazards.

Following the 90-minute hearing in which questions came about lessons learned, how security can be upgraded, and what is being done on the private sector side, Hudson gave a closing statement.

“My constituents cannot afford further energy disruptions that jeopardize their safety. I am introducing the Protecting America’s Distribution Transformer Supply Chain Act in

County Sheriff’s Office, ♦ Kidd, David (W/M/41), DV Protective Order Viol, 06/16/2023, Hoke County Sheriff’s Office, ♦ Streater, Milton (B/M/45), DWI, 06/16/2023, Hoke County Sheriff’s Office, ♦ Locklear, Samantha (I/F/30), Identity Fraud, 06/16/2023, Hoke County Sheriff’s Office, ♦ Chriscoe, Rockey Wallace (W/M/43), Larceny Misdemeanor, 06/15/2023, Hoke County Sheriff’s Office, ♦ Thomas, Jimmy Allen (I/M/49), Larceny Misdemeanor, 06/14/2023, Hoke County Sheriff’s Office,

order to ensure our electrical manufacturers can continue to do what they do best without Washington getting in their way,” he said, adding that the U.S. Department of Energy should be focusing on strengthening the supply chain for distribution transformers.

The proposed bill would repeal the U.S. Department of Energy’s authority to propose, finalize, implement, administer or enforce any energy efficiency standard for distribution transformers for the next five years.

“Today’s the beginning of the conversation to help us. Our job is to take this information and figure out what’s next. We have a responsibility to the country to look at this incident and what it tells us about the vulnerabilities of the grid if we don’t do a better job,” Hudson said before the hearing adjourned.

H H H H H

VOTE BOYLES JOHNNY

for our wonderful city that includes our #1 Police Department, all our hard working Fire Departments and loyal First Responders. Our city is especially blessed to have these hardworking folks.”

work together to keep our city moving in the right direction.

PLEASE

H

Neal Robbins, publisher | Frank Hill, senior opinion editor

Bringing Congress to the Sandhills

This field hearing was the first of many our committee will hold in our efforts to improve the security and resiliency of our nation’s energy grid.

SIX MONTHS AGO, our community was attacked. Two substations in Moore County were intentionally attacked on the evening of December 3rd, leaving my house and 45,000 of our neighbors without power for up to ten days.

In the aftermath of the attack, hospitals were impacted threatening medical treatments, schools were shut down, businesses were affected, stop lights were dark, gas stations were closed, cell signals were impacted, and water couldn’t be heated.

An attack like this could have devastated our community and we didn’t go without our struggles. But overall, I am so proud of our resilient response. In the days that followed, you truly showed the best of Moore County and the best of America.

Throughout our region, churches, small businesses, restaurants, police and fire departments, local governments, and individuals stepped up to help their neighbors and showed the true strength of our community. It was inspiring to see everyone come together in our time of need.

I also thank Sheriff Ronnie Fields and our local law enforcement for their quick response during those dark days and for their ongoing investigations to determine who is responsible for December’s attack. We must hold those responsible for this act accountable and I will continue to support law enforcement as they conduct their investigation.

Since the attack occurred, I have been in listening mode. I have heard from constituents, grid operators, community developers, the FBI and law enforcement, and business owners who have concerns with our grid’s security and resilience—all against the backdrop of historic energy costs.

As your neighbor, I share these concerns with you. And a similar, yet thankfully unsuccessful, attack in Randolph County several months ago underscores the need to address this issue. That’s why last week, I brought my colleagues from

WHO’s on first

The concentration of power in the hands of so few may be efficient and sometimes popular. But it does not tend toward sound government.

IN FEBRUARY, our administration entered negotiations with the World Health Organization to surrender United States’ authority over pandemic and related public health responses to their global purview. Ratification is expected by spring of 2024.

Amendments to the International Health Regulation seek “a global architecture for health emergency preparedness, prevention, response, and resilience (HEPR)”. This includes “global governance, financing and all HEPR systems”.

America’s sovereignty and ability to determine health care strategies independently will be lost in one strike.

The amendment to the 2005 treaty to centralize authority is pitched by the WHO as pandemic prevention, a necessary and legally binding instrument to mitigate health crises. It is intended to “hardwire into international law a top-down supra-national approach to public health.” The mandate, according to Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, extends beyond pandemics to include “hunger, poverty, ecological degradation, climate change and social and economic inequalities.” The WHO would be empowered to vaccinate, medicate, and requisition funds by fiat. USForThem, a grassroots advocate for children (USForThem.co.uk) has published a significant report on the impact of this amendment.

The concept of “One Health” would elevate the WHO to a regulatory body and an associated enforcement body, calling the plays for affiliate States in crisis situations. Revisions to the scope of this

Congress to Moore County for a House Energy and Commerce Committee field hearing. I took my colleagues to the site of one of the attacks so they could understand the substation involved. And I introduced them to the community and people who were impacted by the attack. Just as I promised to you back in December, I brought Washington here and put real faces to the issues that rocked our community.

Before the hearing, we stopped at the Duke Energy West End substation, one of the two substations here in Moore County that was intentionally attacked. At the field hearing, experts from Duke Energy, NC Emergency Management, NC State University, and in energy security shared their testimony on the current state of our grid security and resilience and how we move forward from these attacks. There are 45,000 stories of why Moore County—and our nation—needs greater grid resilience, and my colleagues and I welcome these testimonies and your feedback in order to help do our jobs effectively.

This field hearing was the first of many our committee will hold in our efforts to improve the security and resiliency of our nation’s energy grid. It was important to me that the first hearing be here where the attack happened, and this is only the beginning of our investigations.

Being your voice in Congress is a responsibility I take extremely seriously and I will continue to make sure Washington pays attention to the concerns and needs of you and your family.

It’s an honor to represent you and the best of our community—which always shines bright, even in the dark.

Richard Hudson is serving his sixth term in the U.S. House and represents North Carolina’s 9th Congressional District. He currently serves as the chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee and is a member of the House Republican Steering Committee.

amendment include principles of “equity, inclusivity, coherence and taking into consideration their social and economic development.” This language replaces the current scope of implementation that cites “full respect for dignity, human rights and fundamental freedoms of persons.”

Consider the appointed members and managers of the team that seeks control over United States management of public health and social services. China is a founding member, Afghanistan, Russia, Iraq and Pakistan. North Korea is on deck. These players are not known for responsible health care or even humanitarian aid. For example, in China’s social credit system, a QR-code tags each citizen to surveil and restrict movement, red-flag the infected and detain the sick in cages. The guidelines issued by the WHO and adapted by the United States Center for Disease control, CDC, have proven disastrous. But the suppression of information may be the worst foul committed in the name of public safety. Recall The Great Barrington Declaration and the cancellation of the esteemed physicians who authored and signed it. Leaks, exposes and independent reports have revealed the massive, coordinated and colluded effort by our government and media during the darkest months of the Covid pandemic. Daily briefings by the administration and the infamous Dr Fauci perpetuated the myths of the origin and contagion for Covid. As American citizens, fearful of the unknown and still trusting in the fundamental honesty of government bureaucracy, we locked down and masked up. We took a shot. We traded logic for magical thinking.

The scores of this political strategy are in and it does not look good. Crime is up, cities are down, children struggle with

social and academic skills that may take several generations to overcome. Medical personnel and civil servants are burned out and hospital supplies are limited. Very few people are unaffected in ways large and small by life interrupted by the dangerous game played on us by global decision makers.

In mid-May, Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch called the emergency measures taken during the pandemic “the greatest intrusions on civil liberties in the peacetime history of this country” killing more than 1M Americans. When schools were closed but stores stayed open, when churches could not congregate but ballgames could proceed, many understood that this had little to do with public health and everything to do with control. Winners and losers were chosen on the merits of “science” defined by conjecture.

As a warning to us, the Justice wrote “The concentration of power in the hands of so few may be efficient and sometimes popular. But it does not tend toward sound government.” Recognizing that sometimes extreme measures must be taken but they come with an additional set of problems.

As the WHO continues to negotiate the terms of the “One Health” treaty with the current administration and our neighbor States to the east and far east, recognize the high stakes in this game. America is being pitched a series of rules and regulations for coping with a pandemic health crisis. The managers of our fate may play by rules we cannot question called by an unknown umpire from another league. We cannot allow the fate of our families in crisis to be governed by authorities not vested in the best interest of our nation.

WHO’s on first…. What’s on second?

COLUMN | U.S. REP. RICHARD HUDSON

COLUMN | CONNIE LOVELL

SIDELINE REPORT

COLLEGE SPORTS

NCAA committee recommends dropping marijuana from banned list

Indianapolis

An NCAA medical committee is recommending the removal of marijuana from its banned drug list and suggesting that testing should be limited to performance-enhancing substances. To pass, the legislation must be introduced and approved by all three NCAA divisions. A final decision is expected this fall. The recommendation comes as the U.S. is seeing more and more states allowing medical or recreational marijuana use. The proposal is one of several recommendations by the NCAA’s committee on competitive safeguards and medical aspects of sports. Other proposals include establishing a trace-level threshold for a banned hormone and metabolic modulator.

MLB Braves cut Culberson before his father was to throw 1st pitch

Atlanta

The Atlanta Braves designated infielder Charlie Culberson for assignment before his father was set to throw out a ceremonial first pitch on Father’s Day. Culberson was cut before the team’s game against Colorado. The 34-year-old from Rome, Georgia, was brought up from Triple-A Gwinnett on May 19 but had not appeared in any games since his promotion.

After Culberson was let go, the father of Braves outfielder Michael Harris II took care of the first pitch Sunday at Truist Park. Catcher Chadwick Tromp was recalled from Gwinnett.

NBA 3-time Sixth Man award winner Williams announces retirement

Atlanta

Lou Williams announced his retirement from the NBA on Sunday, ending a career after winning the league’s Sixth Man award three times and scoring more points off the bench than anyone in history. Williams played for six teams — Philadelphia, Toronto, the Los Angeles Lakers, Houston, the Los Angeles Clippers and Atlanta. He last played in the 2021-22 season with the Hawks. Out of 1,123 regular-season games played over 17 seasons, Williams came off the bench in 1,001. He scored 13,396 points off the bench, which is 2,117 more than Jamal Crawford and 2,249 more than Dell Curry.

Paul headed to Wizards as Suns acquire Beal

The Winston-Salem native and former Wake Forest star guard could be moved to a different team by Washington

The Associated Press

Bradley Beal will soon be part of the NBA’s newest Big 3, after the three-time All-Star agreed Sunday to be traded to the Phoenix Suns and team up with Kevin Durant and Devin Booker in a trio with serious offensive firepower and championship aspirations.

The Suns agreed to send Chris Paul, Landry Shamet and a package of future second-round picks to Washington, according to a person with knowledge of the negotiations. Some pick swaps will also be part of the trade, said the person, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the deal is pending league approval.

The biggest domino to fall was this: Beal waived his no-trade

clause to be sent to the Suns, agent Mark Bartelstein said Sunday. There is a chance that the trade could eventually include a third team, particularly if a club wants to acquire Paul, but the basic framework is done.

For Phoenix, a franchise that had a 2-0 lead in the NBA Finals against Milwaukee in 2021 before falling in six games, the motivation is obvious — to win a title. The Suns will be different this coming season; Frank Vogel is succeeding the fired Monty Williams (who is now in Detroit) as coach, Paul will no longer be the starting point guard who is still searching for his first championship, and Durant and Booker will have a training camp together for the first time.

It’s also the start of something new, and probably needed, in Washington. The Wizards have finished with a losing record in each of the last five years, missing the playoffs in four of those, and haven’t won a postseason series since 2018. The Wizards will pick eighth in Thursday’s draft, and Kyle Kuzma and Kristaps Por-

NBA franchises Chris Paul has played for in his pro career

zingis could decide later this week to become free agents by declining player options — moves that seem likely.

The deal was struck less than a week after Denver topped Miami in the NBA Finals, and with the Heat having also spent the last few days working with the Wizards on the possibility of acquiring Beal.

It also begins a week where Victor Wembanyama will be the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft Thursday by San Antonio — and where more players could be on the move since trades frequently happen on draft night.

It is the second major acquisition for owner Mat Ishbia in Phoenix. He landed Durant for a mas-

sive combination of players and first-round draft picks just days after formally taking over the Suns in February.

5There are three active players in the NBA with at least 500 games played while averaging at least 22 points per game. Phoenix now has three of them in Beal, Durant and Booker. They will make about $130 million combined next season, meaning the Suns will pay a ransom in salary and tax for this title shot.

Starting with 2017-18 — Beal’s first All-Star season — he’s averaged 26.0 points per game. That’s 10th-best in the NBA over that span. He’s been an All-Star in three of those six seasons and made AllNBA in 2020-21, when he finished second in the scoring race for the second consecutive year.

Beal is entering the second year of what could be a five-year, $251 million contract; the last of those years is at his option and would pay him $57.1 million. Over the next four years, he’s owed about $207.7 million.

Chris Paul is headed to the Wizards as part of a trade that will send Bradley Beal to the Suns.

Antonio Brown’s tenure as arena league owner ends

The Associated Press FORMER NFL RECEIVER

Antonio Brown’s brief and chaotic tenure as a National Arena League owner appears to be over after the league terminated the Albany Empire’s membership over a failure to make its monthly payments.

The NAL on Thursday announced its board of owners unanimously reached the decision after “exhausting all avenues” over the Empire’s refusal to make its past two payments, as well as Brown refusing to pay a $1,000 fine conduct detrimental to the league over recent comments. The termination ends the Empire’s season at 1-6 and with seven games remaining.

Brown became part owner of the two-time defending champion Empire in March and then last month took over a 94% stake in the franchise based in New York’s state capital.

The NAL said that upon taking over ownership, Brown initially paid the Empire’s April assessment, before challenging it a month later and having it credited back to him, while also failing to make the team’s payment for May. Teams are required to make the payments, which represent one-seventh of the league’s monthly operating budget.

The NAL said Brown’s accountant, Alex Gunaris, informed the league “that it didn’t seem like Mr. Brown was going to pay the assessment or fine.”

A message left with Empire president Alberony Denis was not immediately returned.

Albany County’s executive committee released a statement, saying: “This is an unfortunate situation. We are aware MVP Arena management is alerting ticketholders and we will be reviewing options moving forward.” MVP Arena management, which operates the Empire’s home, announced it is refunding tickets purchased for the team’s final three home games.

Brown spent the 2010 to 2018 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steel-

ers, where he emerged as one of the NFL’s top threats and twice led the league in yards receiving. His career then took a downturn due to various on- and off-field controversies, included his contract being voided by the Oakland Raiders before the start of the 2019 season.

He split his final three NFL seasons with New England and Tampa Bay, and his career ended with Brown stripping off his jersey, pads and gloves while walking off the

field during the Buccaneers’ 2021 regular season finale against the New York Jets. Brown announced his retirement a few months later.

The drama carried over into Brown’s tenure in Albany. Players and suppliers complained about not getting paid, the Empire changed coaches three games into the season at the same time eight players were suspended after one player filed an aggravated harassment report with police over a dis-

pute that occurred on the team bus, The Albany Times-Union reported last month.

On Wednesday, Brown conducted a television interview in which he referred to himself as receiver Antonio Brown in preparing to suit up and play in the team’s previously scheduled game against Jacksonville this weekend, and wondering if Empire owner AB will pay him the $1 million he is owed.

“When people do nefarious things, we catch them.”

Matthew Holt, president of U.S. Integrity

Former NFL receiver Antonio Brown’s brief and chaotic tenure as a National Arena League owner appears to be over after the league terminated the Albany Empire’s membership over a failure to make its monthly payments.

Cooper signs sports, horse racing betting law; wagering could begin in early 2024

The Associated Press

CHARLOTTE — Regulated betting on sports and horse racing is expected to begin across North Carolina in the first half of next year, enabled by legislation Gov. Roy Cooper signed last week that greatly expands gambling opportunities in the nation’s ninth-largest state.

The Democratic governor held the bill-signing ceremony at Spectrum Center, home to the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets. It could house one of several anticipated sportsbooks allowed at or near professional sports venues as part of the law that received final approval in the Republican-controlled General Assembly last week.

The new law says betting could begin as early as Jan. 8 or as late as mid-June 2024 for sports wagering. Supporters say the expansion will bring new revenue and jobs, as well as attract stronger in-state pro sports franchises.

“This is an historic moment for the state of North Carolina, and this will benefit our economy for generations to come,” Cooper said.

The law directs the North Carolina Lottery Commission to issue as many as 12 interactive sports wagering licenses to entities that would offer mobile and online sports betting to customers who create accounts.

But anyone 21 or older could

also make cash bets on pro, college or Olympic-style sports at the eight potential in-person betting locales associated with stadiums, arenas, golf courses and racetracks.

North Carolina will become the 29th state where mobile sports betting occurs or has

been authorized, according to the American Gaming Association. Gambling on horse racing would be permitted through separate licensing and accounts.

Legal sports gambling in North Carolina is only happening right now at the state’s three casinos, which are operated by two

American Indian tribes. Essentially, the only other legal gambling in the state is a lottery that began in 2006.

Neighboring Tennessee and Virginia already allow mobile sports betting, attracting North Carolina residents to cross state lines to wager. According to bill

supporters, regulating and taxing sports betting is the best way to control gambling that otherwise was happening underground or through offshore accounts.

The bill advanced this year despite opposition from a coalition of social conservatives and liberals who said the additional revenues paled in comparison to the damage more gambling addiction would place upon families and society.

A similar political alliance derailed sports gambling legislation last year by just one vote in the House, but lobbyists for legal sports wagering providers in other states and pro sports franchises kept pressing the idea and won more support in the legislature.

The defeat “gave us the opportunity to work harder” and build support for the measure this year, Rep. Jason Saine, a Lincoln County Republican and the chief bill sponsor, said at the ceremony. “We got this over the hump and we’re so glad to do this.”

The legislation will tax sports wagering at a rate equal to 18% of gross betting revenue minus distributed winnings. Legislative analysts estimate that will generate over $100 million in sports betting taxes annually within five years, resulting in $71 million in net revenues for state coffers.

Much of the sports wagering tax revenues would go to local, regional and state athletics initiatives, athletic programs at most schools in the University of North Carolina system and problem-gambling programs. Cooper said he hoped more future proceeds would help public education. The law also authorizes the commission to set rules for live horse racing.

AP PHOTO

Gov. Roy Cooper signs House Bill 347: Sports Wagering/Horse Racing Wagering into law on Wednesday, June 14, 2023, at Spectrum Center in Charlotte.

Tiffany Nicole Thomas

October 16, 1987 ~ June 15, 2023

Ms. Tiffany Nicole Thomas age, 35 transitioned from earth to glory on June 15, 2023. She leaves to cherish her loving memories her daughter, Za'Niya M. English, parents: Pamela Thomas, Malcolme H. Graham; sister: Tia N. Thomas; brother, Kelvonte' M. Leach along with a host of other family and friends. Tiffany will be greatly missed.

Martha J Lide

July 13, 1922 ~ June 14, 2023

Ms. Martha J. Lide age, 100 went home to rest with her heavenly father on June 14, 2023. She was preceded in death by her husband James (Jim) Lide. Martha leaves to cherish her loving memories her children: Fannie Stuart, Mattie L. Lide, Lillian L. Lide, Christine Lide Wike, Belinda J. Lide along with a host of other family and friends. She will be greatly missed.

Sylvia Marie Davis

Fonville

December 28, 1949 - June 16, 2023

Sylvia Marie Davis Fonville, 73, of Raeford, NC passed away peacefully on Friday, June 16, 2023 at FirstHealth Hospice House in Pinehurst.

Sylvia was born on December 28, 1949 in Gifford, FL to the late Jessie Mae Jones. She leaves to cherish her memory, her three children; Vanessa Stewart, Stacey Fonville, and Cassandra Young (James); six grandchildren, Antonio Stewart, Janae Stewart, Karon Fonvillle, Jocelyn Williamson, Rodney Fonville and Tiauni Codallo. She also leaves a sister, Verna Prince, and brother, Alfonso E. Davis, Jr.

In addition to her beloved mother she was preceded in death by her brother-in-law Chester Prince.

Sylvia was born in Vero Beach, FL and lived there until her retirement in 2017. Her working career was spent in healthcare, where she worked as a CNA, physical and occupational therapist, and the activities director in a nursing home. Her family recognized her as a woman of strength and grace, she was selfless, kind and caring. She was an avid reader and enjoyed working jigsaw puzzles. Her favorite activities fit her personality of a loner who appreciated peace and quiet in her home. Her presence is already immensely missed and she will be forever remembered by her family and friends. She lived life as a God fearing lady, so God has gained another soldier!

Sonreah McCallum

August 7, 1995 ~ June 11, 2023

Ms. Sonreah McCallum age, 27 transitioned from earth to glory on June 11, 2023. She leaves to cherish her loving memories her children: Sincere Buie, Sakhani McCallum; mother, Apostle S. McCallum; siblings: Virginia McCallum, Ashley McCallum, Yolanda Moore, Daniell Stanton, Simeon McCallum, Jermie McCallum, James Stanton along with a host of other family and friends. Sonny will be greatly missed.

STATE & NATION

Abortion providers in North Carolina file federal lawsuit challenging state’s new restrictions

The Associated Press

RALEIGH — Abortion providers in North Carolina filed a federal lawsuit Friday that challenges several provisions of a state law banning most abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy in the dwindling days before the new restrictions take effect. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic and Dr. Beverly Gray, a Duke University OB-GYN, are asking a federal judge to block numerous provisions they argue are unclear and unconstitutional, or to place an injunction on the law to prevent it from being enforced.

Though the law may be commonly referred to as a 12-week abortion ban, the plaintiffs argue that it actually includes additional restrictions that many patients are not aware of — hurdles that will “impede health care professionals from providing quality care,” according to the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court.

“Many of these provisions are going to constrain an already very constrained abortion ecosystem in this state,” Planned Parenthood South Atlantic CEO Jenny Black told The Associated Press on Friday. “And so we really thought it was important that we challenged the elements of the law that do that.” North Carolina has been one of the few remaining Southern states with relatively easy access to abortions in the wake of last year’s U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade. With the new restrictions set to take effect July 1, many out-of-state patients who had once viewed North Carolina

as a refuge will soon have to travel even further up the coast to access elective abortions later in pregnancy. The lawsuit comes one month after the Republican supermajority in the state’s General Assembly approved the measure through both chambers and overrode a

veto from Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who called it “an egregious, unacceptable attack on the women of our state.”

Among the named defendants are North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein, state Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kody Kinsley and the

Poll: Democrats and Republicans share core values but still distrust each other

The Associated Press WASHINGTON, D.C. — Americans on the right and the left have a lot more in common than they might think — including their strong distrust of each other.

A survey published last week finds that when asked about core values including fairness, compassion and personal responsibility, about nine in 10 Democrats and Republicans agreed they were very or extremely important. Yet only about a third of either group said they believed the same was true for the opposing party.

The results of the poll, conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago and the nonprofit group Starts With Us, reveal a stark truth at the source of the polarization that has a powerful grip on American politics: While most Americans agree on the core principles underlying American democracy, they no longer recognize that the other side also holds those values.

“This is a hidden opportunity for Americans to reestablish a sense of shared values,” said Tom Fishman, chief executive at Starts

With Us, a nonpartisan organization that works to bridge political polarization. Americans from both parties need to understand that they still share common values, he said, and to recognize their misconceptions about the

opposing party.

Americans have a long tradition of quarrelsome politics, dating back to before the Boston Tea Party. But with the notable exception of the Civil War, a sense of unity has kept those forces of di-

district attorneys who represent every county in the state where Gray and Planned Parenthood provide abortions.

Kinsley’s office and Stein’s office said they are reviewing the lawsuit. Stein, a Democratic candidate for governor in 2024, is an outspoken pro-abortion support-

vision at bay. Experts who study partisanship and trust say that while a certain amount of polarization is natural, it can become a significant problem when it’s exploited by political parties or when one party no longer views the other as legitimate opposition but as an enemy.

A number of factors are cited as possible causes for an increase in division, including the decline and fragmentation of legitimate news sources, politicians who stoke distrust, and social media platforms that spread misinformation while too often sorting users into echo chambers where they seldom encounter an opposing view.

“When you get worried is when polarization turns into dehumanization — a sense that the other is somehow less than human, or evil, or unable to share your decent human values,” said Nealin Parker, executive director of Common Ground USA, a group that works to resolve conflict by building trust among Americans. “That should be concerning to anybody, because those are the necessary psychological steps to doing harm to each other.”

In the survey, respondents were asked to rate the importance of six principles: personal responsibility, fair enforcement of the law, representative government, government accountability, compassion and respect across differences, and learning from the past.

er but is named in the lawsuit because it’s his job as attorney general to defend state laws in court.

Spokespeople for the Republican legislative leaders, Senate leader Phil Berger and House Speaker Tim Moore, did not immediately respond Friday to phone messages seeking comment.

Republicans pitched the 47page measure as a middle-ground change to an existing state law banning nearly all abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, without exceptions for rape or incest. The new law adds exceptions, extending the limit through 20 weeks for rape and incest and through 24 weeks for “life-limiting” fetal anomalies, including certain physical or genetic disorders that can be diagnosed prenatally.

The lawsuit challenges a requirement that sexual assault survivors obtain abortions at a hospital after 12 weeks of pregnancy.

Gray, an OB-GYN, told the AP there is no procedural or medical difference between the unrestricted care she is able to provide miscarriage patients and the newly restricted care she provides abortion patients.

Similarly, Planned Parenthood clinics will be able to continue treating miscarriage patients after 12 weeks in cases where the fetus has already died but will be prohibited from providing identical care to rape and incest survivors in the context of an abortion.

“It’s the same care, and there’s zero regulations about caring for patients with miscarriages,” Gray said. “This is not about safety. This is about limiting access to abortion.”

In each case, about 90% of both Democrats and Republicans rated these values as very or extremely important.

When asked if members of the opposing party thought those values were very or extremely important, however, about twothirds of respondents said no.

For example, while 91% of Republicans said they think it’s very or extremely important that citizens should learn from the past to improve the country, only about a third of Democrats said they believed that to be true of GOP voters. And while only 31% of Republicans say Democrats believe government accountability is very or extremely important, 90% of Democratic respondents said they do.

The findings reflect a phenomenon known as “affective polarization,” in which disagreements are based on animosity and a lack of trust instead of an actual debate over values or policy. Julia Minson, a professor who studies conflict and collaboration at Harvard University’s Harvard Kennedy School, said recognizing common values is a good start to bridging America’s divides.

Too often, Minson said, “We ascribe negative things to people we disagree with. We see them as an adversary that doesn’t want to be a partner. It’s very much about emotions and trust and largely divorced from actual differences.”

AP PHOTO

An early morning pedestrian is silhouetted against sunrise as he walks through the American flags on the National Mall with the U..S Capitol Building in the background in Washington, D.C. Nov. 7, 2022.

AP PHOTO

Hundreds of abortion ban veto supporters turned out to watch North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper sign a veto of the on Bicentennial Mall in Raleigh Saturday, May 19, 2023.

COUNTY NEWS

WBFJ Summer Concert Series runs through Aug. 17

Forsyth County

The WBFJ Local Flavors Summer Concert Series kicked off June 15. Concerts are held at the Food Court on the upper level of Hanes Mall from 6-8 p.m. All concerts are free to the public. The WBFJ Local Flavors Summer Concert Series will be held every Thursday throughout the summer until Aug. 17 and is sponsored by Jarryd Moxley with Farm Bureau Insurance of North Carolina.

SUMMER 2023 SCHEDULE

June 22

6 p.m. — Beneath The Cross

7 p.m. — Faith J. Marks

June 29

6 p.m. — David Jayne

7 p.m. — Michael Tyree

July 6

(Off)

July 13

6 p.m. — Craig Vaughn

7 p.m. — John Lewis

July 20

6 p.m. — Anchor Ridge

Worship

7 p.m. — Ami Shoryer

July 27

6 p.m. — Melissa Roland

7 p.m. — Inspire Worship Co.

Aug. 3

6 p.m. — Fleming James

7 p.m. — Jay Boyce

Aug. 10

6 p.m. — Scott Johnson

7 p.m. — Jennifer Alvarado

Aug. 17

6 p.m. — Cindy Johnson

7 p.m. — Lucas Beam

Salem Academy and College one of seven schools nationwide to receive NASA funding to address stem gender gap

$750,000 award will help attract and retain women in science and math fields

North State Journal

WINSTON-SALEM — Salem Academy and College, located in W inston-Salem, N.C., has been selected by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to receive a grant of almost $750,000 directed to attracting and retaining women in STEM degree programs and careers. Salem’s project “Soar with Salem: A Comprehensive Program to Inspire Women and Girls to Become the Next Generation of STEM Professionals” will offer a three-year program to high school and college students providing support and resources to increase their likelihood of pursu-

ing studies and a career in STEM.

Research and experience affirm that the women who pursue and obtain college degrees in a STEM field demonstrate three key assets: resilience; engagement with science; and academic preparation in math, writing, and the sciences. Salem’s program will focus on cultivating all of these aspects of STEM preparation.

Salem Academy is the nation’s only all-girls, boarding and day high school located on a college campus with a STEAM focus. Salem College provides a liberal arts education with a distinctive focus on health across its curriculum and co-curriculum, preparing students for a range of career paths and graduate programs.

NASA affirmed Salem Academy and College’s expertise in STEAM education and health leadership,

and in developing these assets in their students. This is Salem Academy and College’s first grant ever from NASA.

“Salem Academy and College is proud to receive a grant from NASA to focus on reducing the gender gap in STEM,” Salem Academy and College President Summer J. McGee, Ph.D., CPH said. “As the nation’s oldest educational institution for girls and women, Salem has been for over 250 years and continues to be today a leader at the forefront of women’s education. It is fitting that Salem was chosen to be one of the pioneers to create opportunities for women to lead and blaze new trails all the way into space.”

“We are honored to be chosen among our elite sister institutions to continue the vital mission of promoting women’s leadership in the sciences,” McGee added. “We

will do our part to help propel women into the future, including NASA’s plans for an all-female crew to the moon.”

The award from NASA is a three-year grant for Soar with Salem to strengthen interest in health and STEAM by using Salem Academy and College students as mentors, bringing high school students to campus during the summer to focus on science, arts, math, and academic support. Under the initiative, a key outcome of Soar with Salem will be to encourage prospective students to study STEM disciplines in college with Salem College as their possible school of choice.

WBFJ

The Associated Press

OMAHA, Neb. — A few minutes after he made the defensive play of the game, Bennett Lee delivered the hit that put Wake Forest on the inside track to the College World Series finals. The Demon Deacons came from behind to win a second straight one-run game at Charles Schwab Field, beating LSU 3-2 on Monday night in the game that determined control of their bracket.

Wake Forest is 7-0 in the NCAA Tournament and bidding to become the first No. 1 national seed since 1999 to win the championship.

“Every single guy is having the time of their lives right now,” said closer Camden Minacci, who got the last five outs. “Who can beat us? It seems pretty much impossible. So the amount of fun we have is truly incredible.”

Lee, the Deacons’ catch-

er, made a spectacular play in the top of the eighth when he snagged third baseman Brock Wilken’s bouncing throw and tagged out Tre’ Morgan to keep the game tied 2-all.

“Brock Wilken made a great play to get to the ball, and Bennett was there with an unbelievable pick and tag under pressure,” Deacons coach Tom Walter said. “It was a huge play in this ball game.”

After Danny Corona lashed Thatcher Hurd’s breaking pitch down the right-field line for a double in the bottom half, Lee followed with a base hit into left that brought Corona home.

Next up for Wake Forest (5410) is a Wednesday meeting with the winner of a Tuesday matchup between SEC rivals LSU (4916) and Tennessee. The Tigers beat Tennessee 6-3 here Saturday. The Deacons would have to lose twice to be denied a spot in the finals.

LSU starter Ty Floyd limited the Deacons to two hits and matched his career high with 10 strikeouts before he lost his command in the sixth inning. He walked the first three batters, prompting coach Jay Johnson to call on Hurd (6-3) to face the national home run co-leader in Wilken. Wilken sent a ball up the middle for an RBI single, and the tying run came home when Justin Johnson hit into a double play.

The Tigers opened the scoring against Wake Forest starter Josh Hartle in the third. Tommy White singled in a run and scored from second when Morgan tripled on a fly ball left fielder Adam Cecere lost in the sun.

Hartle went six innings and struck out nine, running his season total to a Wake Forest-record 140.

The Deacons turned back the

See FUNDING, page 2

Bennett Lee delivers winning hit after making big defensive play in Deacons’ 3-2 win over LSU in CWS

The Soar with Salem initiative will result in continued collaboration between Salem Academy and Salem College to identify, 8

PHOTO COURTESY SALEM ACADEMY

Rolling toward a STEM career: a Salem Academy & College student works with a robot in a STEM class at the school.

We stand corrected:

To report an error or a suspected error, please send NSJ an email: corrections@nsjonline.com with “Correction request” in the subject line.

♦ Margaret Lorine (Ellis) “Tinner” Beauchamp 80, of Advance, died June 14, 2023.

Ronald “Ronnie” Clifton, 69, of Rural Hall, died June 14, 2023.

Delora (Debbie) Kay Findley, 68, of Forsyth County, died June 15, 2023.

Lelia “Joyce” Womble Flippin, 82, of Rural Hall, died June 17, 2023.

Joem Davis Henning, 89, of Winston-Salem, died June 14, 2023.

Rosemary Hiles, 78, died June 14, 2023.

Richard E. “Sambo” Parham, 91, of Belews Creek, died June 16, 2023.

Mildred Grace Blevins Rash, 93, of WinstonSalem, died June 15, 2023.

Richard Levi Walker Jr., 53, of Stokes County, died June 17, 2023.

Charles Franklin Wilder, 76, of Winston-Salem, died June 16, 2023.

Alpha Wall Womble, 87, died June 17, 2023.

COLUMN | DENNIS PRAGER

Can you define leftism?

AFTER A SPEECH in Romania last week, I was asked a question by a young member of the audience that, remarkably, I don’t remember ever having been asked: What is leftism?

The question seems so simple and so basic to understanding contemporary life that you would think it would be posed frequently — and if it weren’t, the reason would be that almost anyone who cares about society would already know how to answer it. But the question is rarely posed, and few know how to answer it.

“What is leftism?” is not at all the same as “What is liberalism?” Leftism and liberalism share almost no values. Indeed, perhaps the greatest tragedy of America today is that liberals do not vote their values. Leftists vote their values, and conservatives vote their values. But liberals vote for left-wing values, almost none of which they hold.

To cite but two examples: Liberals do not believe in racial segregation, whereas the left does: all-black dorms, all-black graduation exercises, different standards for blacks, etc. And liberals do not believe that males who say they are females should be allowed to compete in women’s sports; only leftists do.

If you ask people, “What is leftism?” most will respond by listing left-wing positions, not by defining it. People confuse identifying left-wing positions with knowing what leftism is. But naming left-wing positions is not the same as defining leftism.

To be fair, many people, including conservatives, cannot define conservatism either. In fact, the inability of millions of American conservatives to define conservatism is a major reason so many conservative parents don’t have conservative children.

What, then, is leftism?

Leftism is the attempt to destroy the past — every value and every institution, the good as well as what it regards as the bad.

That is why leftists, by definition, hate conservatism. Conservatism seeks to conserve the best from the past. The Left seeks to destroy the past, including the best.

The first of the modern left-wing revolutions, the French Revolution, quite consciously sought to destroy every major institution and value of French society — not just the monarchy but God, religion, the legal system, traditional notions of good and evil, the calendar, the old way of telling time, the old weights and measures, and even the names of the days of the week. In other words, the past. Just like the Left in contemporary America, the leftists of the French Revolution toppled statues — in their case, the statues of every king of France.

The next major left-wing revolution, the Russian, did the same. As the Soviet dissident joke went, “In the Soviet

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WAKE FOREST from page 1

Tigers in the eighth when things looked dire. LSU had runners on the corners with none out after Morgan doubled down the line and moved over when Hayden Travinski reached on an error.

Wilken backhanded Cade Beloso’s grounder down the line, double-pumped and bounced a throw home to Lee, who put the tag on Morgan on a close play that stood up on video review.

“As soon as the ball was hit, I took off,” Morgan said. “I knew he would have an awkward throw, so I tried to get a bit over to get in the way, but he made a great play.”

Lee said the stage was set during a mound visit when Walter told Lee to let Wilken know to throw home if the ball comes his way.

“And then Beloso hits a little

Ndl - Suspended / Revoked (M), at 7899 Reynolda Rd/turner Rd, Pfafftown, NC, on 6/18/2023 23:53.

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squibber, and that was actually a really good play by Brock,” Lee said. “He said the ball was literally still spinning in his glove when he went to throw it. And from my perspective, I’ve done millions of picks in my life and I just took over.”

The inning ended when Wilken picked up Gavin Dugas’ grounder to start a double play.

Johnson, the LSU coach, said such a tough loss can be deflating, but he reminded his players that the Arizona team he coached in 2016 lost its second game at the CWS and then won three straight to make it to the finals. In 2017, Paul Mainieri’s LSU team lost its second game and reached the finals as well.

“I have all the faith in the world in our team, that we can do that,” Johnson said. “So let’s stick to what we do. And if we do that well, then we’ll be in a good spot.”

Union the future is known; it’s the past which is always changing.”

Now you can begin to understand leftism.

In a very real sense, today’s leftism began in the 1960s with the infamous clarion call, “Never trust anyone over 30.” That phrase meant nothing less than “value nothing from the past.” Precisely what all leftism has been about — from France under its revolutionaries to Russia under the Bolsheviks to China under Mao to America under the Left.

That is why, as I have said almost every day on my radio show for years, “The Left destroys everything it touches.”

Whatever its noble-sounding rhetoric, the Left stands for nothing and therefore builds nothing (other than state power). Aside from state power, it only destroys.

Leftism in music, art, sculpture, and architecture destroyed everything beautiful and noble that had been created over all the preceding centuries.

It is destroying the universities, the high schools, and the elementary schools.

It is destroying science. More and more medical schools, for example, no longer speak of “pregnant women” but of “birthing persons.” The American Medical Association has come out in opposition to listing the sex of newborns on their birth certificates; children, the AMA holds, will eventually decide whether they are male or female, neither or both.

Like the French revolutionaries, it has redefined moral categories. It has substituted class and racial categories for moral ones. Good and evil have been replaced by black and white, male and female, rich and poor.

It is destroying the ideal of the nuclear family — a married man and woman with children. The Left has made war on “heteronormativity” and has redefined marriage.

And most telling -- even the French Revolution did not conceive of this break with the past — the Left is working to destroy the distinction between man and woman.

Days before the 2008 presidential election, thencandidate Barack Obama told a wildly cheering crowd, “We are five days away from fundamentally transforming the United States of America.”

That’s all the Left does: fundamentally transform. Destroying everything it touches is not a byproduct of leftism. It is its aim.

Dennis Prager is a nationally syndicated radio talk-show host and columnist. His commentary on Deuteronomy, the third volume of “The Rational Bible,” his five-volume commentary on the first five books of the Bible, was published in October.

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FUNDING from page 1

support, educate, and graduate a strong cohort of young women well prepared to succeed in STEM careers. In addition, Salem will expand an existing affiliation with nearby North Forsyth High School, which has a focus on health and STEM—similar to that of Salem. Soar with Salem also will foster a partnership with the United Way of Forsyth County. The co-principal investigators are Dr. Rebecca Dunn, Salem College Professor of Biology and Director of the Women in Science and Mathematics Program, and Kris Porazzi Sorrells, Salem Academy Head of School and instructor of Mathematics and Robotics.

As an initiative of the Biden/ Harris administration, NASA’s Minority University Re -

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search and Education Project (MUREP) created this funding opportunity for Women’s Colleges and Universities to help women overcome obstacles and barriers to working in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math. Through the award review and awarding process, NASA recognized that the STEM pipeline for women is weak on a national basis and reached out to women’s schools to build that pipeline.

MUREP is administered by NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement (OSTEM), which creates opportunities for students to contribute to the agency’s work and grow their confidence in STEM. For more information about OSTEM, please visit: stem.nasa.gov

The Left seeks to destroy the past, including the best.

SIDELINE REPORT

COLLEGE SPORTS

NCAA committee recommends dropping marijuana from banned list

Indianapolis

An NCAA medical committee is recommending the removal of marijuana from its banned drug list and suggesting that testing should be limited to performance-enhancing substances. To pass, the legislation must be introduced and approved by all three NCAA divisions. A final decision is expected this fall. The recommendation comes as the U.S. is seeing more and more states allowing medical or recreational marijuana use. The proposal is one of several recommendations by the NCAA’s committee on competitive safeguards and medical aspects of sports. Other proposals include establishing a tracelevel threshold for a banned hormone and metabolic modulator.

MLB Braves cut Culberson before his father was to throw 1st pitch

Atlanta

The Atlanta Braves designated infielder Charlie Culberson for assignment before his father was set to throw out a ceremonial first pitch on Father’s Day. Culberson was cut before the team’s game against Colorado. The 34-year-old from Rome, Georgia, was brought up from Triple-A Gwinnett on May 19 but had not appeared in any games since his promotion. After Culberson was let go, the father of Braves outfielder Michael Harris II took care of the first pitch Sunday at Truist Park. Catcher Chadwick Tromp was recalled from Gwinnett.

NBA

3-time Sixth Man award winner Williams announces retirement

Atlanta

Lou Williams announced his retirement from the NBA on Sunday, ending a career after winning the league’s Sixth Man award three times and scoring more points off the bench than anyone in history. Williams played for six teams — Philadelphia, Toronto, the Los Angeles Lakers, Houston, the Los Angeles Clippers and Atlanta. He last played in the 2021-22 season with the Hawks. Out of 1,123 regularseason games played over 17 seasons, Williams came off the bench in 1,001. He scored 13,396 points off the bench, which is 2,117 more than Jamal Crawford and 2,249 more than Dell Curry.

SOCCER Homophobic chants force early end US-Mexico match

Las Vegas

The United States men’s soccer team’s 3-0 victory over Mexico was cut short Thursday night by the referee after the stadium devolved into echoes of homophobic chants from Mexico fans, who for years have directed a slur at opposing teams’ goalkeepers. Officials have been trying to stamp out the troubling tradition for just as long, with fines, banishment from stadiums, and now early finishes. Play was halted because of the deafening noise in the 90th minute. When action resumed, the persistent chanting caused Salvadoran referee Iván Barton to end the match in the eighth added minute.

Paul headed to Wizards as Suns acquire Beal

clause to be sent to the Suns, agent Mark Bartelstein said Sunday. There is a chance that the trade could eventually include a third team, particularly if a club wants to acquire Paul, but the basic framework is done.

sive combination of players and first-round draft picks just days after formally taking over the Suns in February.

The Associated Press Bradley Beal will soon be part of the NBA’s newest Big 3, after the three-time All-Star agreed Sunday to be traded to the Phoenix Suns and team up with Kevin Durant and Devin Booker in a trio with serious offensive firepower and championship aspirations.

The Suns agreed to send Chris Paul, Landry Shamet and a package of future second-round picks to Washington, according to a person with knowledge of the negotiations. Some pick swaps will also be part of the trade, said the person, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the deal is pending league approval.

The biggest domino to fall was this: Beal waived his no-trade

For Phoenix, a franchise that had a 2-0 lead in the NBA Finals against Milwaukee in 2021 before falling in six games, the motivation is obvious — to win a title. The Suns will be different this coming season; Frank Vogel is succeeding the fired Monty Williams (who is now in Detroit) as coach, Paul will no longer be the starting point guard who is still searching for his first championship, and Durant and Booker will have a training camp together for the first time. It’s also the start of something new, and probably needed, in Washington. The Wizards have finished with a losing record in each of the last five years, missing the playoffs in four of those, and haven’t won a postseason series since 2018. The Wizards will pick eighth in Thursday’s draft, and Kyle Kuzma and Kristaps Por-

zingis could decide later this week to become free agents by declining player options — moves that seem likely.

The deal was struck less than a week after Denver topped Miami in the NBA Finals, and with the Heat having also spent the last few days working with the Wizards on the possibility of acquiring Beal.

It also begins a week where Victor Wembanyama will be the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft Thursday by San Antonio — and where more players could be on the move since trades frequently happen on draft night.

It is the second major acquisition for owner Mat Ishbia in Phoenix. He landed Durant for a mas-

There are three active players in the NBA with at least 500 games played while averaging at least 22 points per game. Phoenix now has three of them in Beal, Durant and Booker. They will make about $130 million combined next season, meaning the Suns will pay a ransom in salary and tax for this title shot.

Starting with 2017-18 — Beal’s first All-Star season — he’s averaged 26.0 points per game. That’s 10th-best in the NBA over that span. He’s been an All-Star in three of those six seasons and made AllNBA in 2020-21, when he finished second in the scoring race for the second consecutive year.

Beal is entering the second year of what could be a five-year, $251 million contract; the last of those years is at his option and would pay him $57.1 million. Over the next four years, he’s owed about $207.7 million.

Maguire comes from behind to win Meijer LPGA Classic

The Associated Press

BELMONT, Mich. — Leona Maguire used a fabulous finish to avoid another near-miss at the Meijer LPGA Classic.

Maguire played her final six holes in 6 under and shot an 8-under 64 for a two-shot victory on Sunday, her second tour victory after two straight second-place finishes in the Michigan event.

The 28-year-old Maguire, from Ireland, was the runner-up at Blythefield in both 2021 and last year. She won her first LPGA Tour title last year at the Drive On Championship. Sunday’s finish was her third straight in the top 10 heading into two upcoming majors: the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship next week at Baltusrol and the U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach on July 6-9.

“The goal today was just to go out and shoot as low a score as possible and see where I ended up,” Maguire said. “This one is, I think, that little bit sweeter after coming so close two years in a row.

“I know a lot of people this week were saying you’re due one, this course owes you something, all the rest. But I suppose that’s not golf. Golf usually doesn’t work like that. But nice that it all worked out well

for me this week.”

Maguire made six birdies and an eagle in her bogey-free round to finish at 21-under 267. She caught playing partner Ariya Jutanugarn with an eagle on the par-5 14th hole to reach 18 under, then closed with three straight birdies to pull ahead of Jutanugarn and Xiyu Lin.

“My goal today was to shoot 20-under par,” Maguire said. “I

thought if I got to 20, that would be a good target to set for the girls coming behind. I didn’t look at leaderboards. ... It was obviously a bonus to go one better, 21, and obviously bogey-free on a Sunday is very nice, as well.”

Maguire was solid but unspectacular on the front nine, birdieing both par 3s, and was 2 under for the day through 12 holes. She then

birdied the par-3 13th to kick off her torrid closing stretch.

She called the birdie at No. 13 “massive,” and anticipated chances to go low over the closing holes.

“It’s that kind of golf course where there’s chances, you just have to be ready to take them when you get them,” she said. “I played the par-3s really, really well today and didn’t quite play the par-5s as well as I would have liked. ... That putt going in on 13 was sort of a bit of a mental shift for me, and then obviously to get that eagle on 14 was huge.”

Jutanugarn, a 12-time winner on tour including two majors, shot her second straight 66 and finished alone in second. Lin, playing in the final group, birdied the 14th to reach 19 under but played her final four holes in 1 over to shoot 68 and finish tied for third with thirdround leader Amy Yang (69).

Hyo Joo Kim (69) was fifth. Defending champion Jennifer Kupcho had a fourth-round 69 and finished in a tie for sixth with Jasmine Suwannapura (66). Ashleigh Buhai, the 34-year-old South African who won the ShopRite LPGA Classic last week in New Jersey, was a stroke off the lead entering the final round, but struggled to a 73 and tied for 13th.

The Winston-Salem native and former Wake Forest star guard could be moved to a different team by Washington

NBA franchises Chris Paul has played for in his pro career

Chris Paul is headed to the Wizards as part of a trade that will send Bradley Beal to the Suns.

AP PHOTO

Leona Maguire shot a final round 64 on Sunday to rally past Ariya Jutanugarn and win the Meijer LPGA Classic in Belmont, Michigan.

STATE & NATION

Abortion providers in North Carolina file federal lawsuit challenging state’s new restrictions

The Associated Press

RALEIGH — Abortion providers in North Carolina filed a federal lawsuit Friday that challenges several provisions of a state law banning most abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy in the dwindling days before the new restrictions take effect.

Planned Parenthood South Atlantic and Dr. Beverly Gray, a Duke University OB-GYN, are asking a federal judge to block numerous provisions they argue are unclear and unconstitutional, or to place an injunction on the law to prevent it from being enforced.

Though the law may be commonly referred to as a 12-week abortion ban, the plaintiffs argue that it actually includes additional restrictions that many patients are not aware of — hurdles that will “impede health care professionals from providing quality care,” according to the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court.

“Many of these provisions are going to constrain an already very constrained abortion ecosystem in this state,” Planned Parenthood South Atlantic CEO Jenny Black told The Associated Press on Friday. “And so we really thought it was important that we challenged the elements of the law that do that.”

North Carolina has been one of the few remaining Southern states with relatively easy access to abortions in the wake of last year’s U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade. With the new restrictions set to take effect July 1, many out-of-state patients who had once viewed North Carolina

as a refuge will soon have to travel even further up the coast to access elective abortions later in pregnancy. The lawsuit comes one month after the Republican supermajority in the state’s General Assembly approved the measure through both chambers and overrode a

veto from Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who called it “an egregious, unacceptable attack on the women of our state.”

Among the named defendants are North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein, state Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kody Kinsley and the

Poll: Democrats and Republicans share core values but still distrust each other

The Associated Press WASHINGTON, D.C. — Americans on the right and the left have a lot more in common than they might think — including their strong distrust of each other.

A survey published last week finds that when asked about core values including fairness, compassion and personal responsibility, about nine in 10 Democrats and Republicans agreed they were very or extremely important. Yet only about a third of either group said they believed the same was true for the opposing party.

The results of the poll, conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago and the nonprofit group Starts With Us, reveal a stark truth at the source of the polarization that has a powerful grip on American politics: While most Americans agree on the core principles underlying American democracy, they no longer recognize that the other side also holds those values.

“This is a hidden opportunity for Americans to reestablish a sense of shared values,” said Tom Fishman, chief executive at Starts

With Us, a nonpartisan organization that works to bridge political polarization. Americans from both parties need to understand that they still share common values, he said, and to recognize their misconceptions about the

opposing party.

Americans have a long tradition of quarrelsome politics, dating back to before the Boston Tea Party. But with the notable exception of the Civil War, a sense of unity has kept those forces of di-

district attorneys who represent every county in the state where Gray and Planned Parenthood provide abortions.

Kinsley’s office and Stein’s office said they are reviewing the lawsuit. Stein, a Democratic candidate for governor in 2024, is an outspoken pro-abortion support-

vision at bay. Experts who study partisanship and trust say that while a certain amount of polarization is natural, it can become a significant problem when it’s exploited by political parties or when one party no longer views the other as legitimate opposition but as an enemy.

A number of factors are cited as possible causes for an increase in division, including the decline and fragmentation of legitimate news sources, politicians who stoke distrust, and social media platforms that spread misinformation while too often sorting users into echo chambers where they seldom encounter an opposing view.

“When you get worried is when polarization turns into dehumanization — a sense that the other is somehow less than human, or evil, or unable to share your decent human values,” said Nealin Parker, executive director of Common Ground USA, a group that works to resolve conflict by building trust among Americans. “That should be concerning to anybody, because those are the necessary psychological steps to doing harm to each other.”

In the survey, respondents were asked to rate the importance of six principles: personal responsibility, fair enforcement of the law, representative government, government accountability, compassion and respect across differences, and learning from the past.

er but is named in the lawsuit because it’s his job as attorney general to defend state laws in court.

Spokespeople for the Republican legislative leaders, Senate leader Phil Berger and House Speaker Tim Moore, did not immediately respond Friday to phone messages seeking comment.

Republicans pitched the 47page measure as a middle-ground change to an existing state law banning nearly all abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, without exceptions for rape or incest. The new law adds exceptions, extending the limit through 20 weeks for rape and incest and through 24 weeks for “life-limiting” fetal anomalies, including certain physical or genetic disorders that can be diagnosed prenatally.

The lawsuit challenges a requirement that sexual assault survivors obtain abortions at a hospital after 12 weeks of pregnancy. Gray, an OB-GYN, told the AP there is no procedural or medical difference between the unrestricted care she is able to provide miscarriage patients and the newly restricted care she provides abortion patients.

Similarly, Planned Parenthood clinics will be able to continue treating miscarriage patients after 12 weeks in cases where the fetus has already died but will be prohibited from providing identical care to rape and incest survivors in the context of an abortion.

“It’s the same care, and there’s zero regulations about caring for patients with miscarriages,” Gray said. “This is not about safety. This is about limiting access to abortion.”

In each case, about 90% of both Democrats and Republicans rated these values as very or extremely important. When asked if members of the opposing party thought those values were very or extremely important, however, about twothirds of respondents said no.

For example, while 91% of Republicans said they think it’s very or extremely important that citizens should learn from the past to improve the country, only about a third of Democrats said they believed that to be true of GOP voters. And while only 31% of Republicans say Democrats believe government accountability is very or extremely important, 90% of Democratic respondents said they do.

The findings reflect a phenomenon known as “affective polarization,” in which disagreements are based on animosity and a lack of trust instead of an actual debate over values or policy. Julia Minson, a professor who studies conflict and collaboration at Harvard University’s Harvard Kennedy School, said recognizing common values is a good start to bridging America’s divides.

Too often, Minson said, “We ascribe negative things to people we disagree with. We see them as an adversary that doesn’t want to be a partner. It’s very much about emotions and trust and largely divorced from actual differences.”

AP PHOTO

An early morning pedestrian is silhouetted against sunrise as he walks through the American flags on the National Mall with the U..S Capitol Building in the background in Washington, D.C. Nov. 7, 2022.

AP PHOTO

Hundreds of abortion ban veto supporters turned out to watch North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper sign a veto of the on Bicentennial Mall in Raleigh Saturday, May 19, 2023.

COUNTY NEWS

NC Rural Infrastructure Authorities approve

$160k grant for Moore County

Last Friday, the North Carolina Rural Infrastructure Authority (RIA) approved 11 grant requests to local governments totaling $4,478,850. These grants are for projects that have committed to creating 383 jobs and will attract more than $91 million in private investment. Moore County was one of the recipients of an RIA’s Existing Business Building Category grant and is set to receive $160,000 to support the renovation of a 55,000-square-foot building in Robbins. The building’s occupant, Carolina Growler, Inc., designs and manufactures specialpurpose vehicles. The company plans to create 40 new jobs and invest $238,444 in the project.

The RIA is a 17-member board that awards Rural Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and utility grant funds, which include the Building Reuse Program and the Industrial Development Fund – Utility Account program. The Building Reuse Program provides grants to local governments to renovate vacant buildings, renovate and/or expand buildings occupied by existing North Carolina companies, and renovate, expand, or construct healthcare facilities that will lead to the creation of new jobs in Tier 1 and Tier 2 counties and rural census tracts of Tier 3 counties.

For additional information about N.C. Commerce’s Rural Economic Development Division, please visit www. nccommerce.com/rd.

MOORE COUNTY

US House subcommittee holds energy grid hearing in Moore County

By Matt Mercer North State Journal

PINEHURST — Members of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce came to Moore County for a Congressional field hearing about securing the nation’s energy grid on June 16. The hearing took place at the Pinehurst Village Hall just miles from the sites of attacks on two power substations that left more than 45,000 in the dark for nearly five days.

Rep. Richard Hudson, a member of the committee and resident of Southern Pines, called the field hearing essential and the start of

a conversation. “This is a day we’ve been looking forward to for a long time. Testimony we hear today will set up a national discussion on grid vulnerability,” Hudson said in his opening statement. The attacks, and subsequent shooting at another substation in neighboring Randolph County, created more urgency at both a state and federal level. A combined $75,000 reward for information has gone unanswered, and no arrests in the Moore County attack have been made.

A day earlier, the North Carolina General Assembly gave final approval of a bill increasing pen-

alties for crimes relating to “injuring an energy facility,” including electric, gas and telecommunications infrastructure.

That bill, SB 58, creates a new statute making it a Class C felony to knowingly and willfully destroy, injure or otherwise damage an energy facility or attempt to do so. The statute also imposes a $250,000 penalty and increases penalties for trespassing at the facilities.

Gov. Roy Cooper signed the bill into law on June 19.

“We must protect critical infrastructure that keeps electric power and clean water available in our communities, and this bill sends a

message to criminals that these irresponsible acts will not be tolerated,” Cooper said in a statement.

South Carolina Rep. Jeff Duncan kicked off the hearing by thanking Hudson for the opportunity to come to the Sandhills to talk about the issue. Nine members of Congress toured both locations of the Dec. 3, 2022, substation attacks prior to the 10 a.m. hearing.

“America’s power grid is the world’s largest and most complex power system,” Duncan said in his opening remarks before rec -

See HUDSON, page 2

Pinehurst approves FY24 budget with $0.23 tax rate

Council approves adoption of Metropolitan Planning Area for urban area

By Ryan Henkel North State Journal

PINEHURST – The Village of Pinehurst Council met Tuesday, June 13, with the passing of their FY 2024 budget ordinance and the approval of a few broader county-related matters on the agenda.

The council approved the FY 2024 Budget Ordinance for the Village of Pinehurst, but before that vote took place, Mayor Pro Tem Pat Pizzella proposed an additional tax rate cut.

The original proposed tax rate in the budget is $0.23, which is already $0.08 lower than the previous tax rate and $0.005 lower than the projected revenue-neutral rate. Pizzella’s request was for the lowering of the rate by an additional penny to $0.22.

“This happened to be a unique year not only for the Village of Pinehurst but for the County of Moore because it coincided with the property tax rate revaluation for our citizens and their homes,” Pizzella said. “This past year, the average valuation increased by 49.5% for homes in the Village of Pinehurst which is a pretty steep hike. What we have before us is a pretty solid budget, but I believe we are taking a little more money than we need to run our government, which is why I would like to see the rate at which we assess our homeowners to be a little less.

“This will have the advantage of leaving a few more dollars in the hands of our tax-paying residents. I realize that it’s a small amount, but I think it makes a difference. There are people in the Village of Pinehurst that are on fixed incomes, or they find themselves widowed all of a sudden, and not everybody is as fixed as everybody else. If we can have people keep a little bit more of their money, this will be a plus for them.”

According to Pizzella, the reduction of the tax rate would amount to a difference of approximately $600,000 in the budget.

However, the motion to reduce the rate further failed 2-3, with Mayor John Strickland and councilmembers Lydia Boesch and Jeff Morgan voting against it.

“If we change the rate to a lower one now, it will cause us to have to increase the rate - according to the plans that we now have - at a faster rate and at different times into the future than we otherwise would if we set the rate this year at $0.23,” Strickland said.

“This year is not an island alone,” Morgan said. “This is part of a fiveyear plan. Whenever you’re talking about a tax cut, that plays pretty well and gets a lot of people’s attention because you think you’re saving money. But if we’re going to have these big purchases later on, we will be put in a position where we have to raise the taxes. The reason this tax rate was created was to keep it at an even plane to be able to save up for those big expenditures, and so we don’t have to, later on, raise the tax rate. You’re really popular

when you lower taxes. You’re not really popular when you raise them, and we’d be setting ourselves up to raise them in the future.”

The council also adopted a contract renewal with Lofton Garbage Services for solid waste collection in The Country Club of North Carolina.

“We contract out our solid waste services in CCNC, and so we currently have two different contractors that provide those services to us, Lofton Garbage Services and Becky’s Rubbish,” said Public Services Director Mike Apke. “Lofton currently provides the majority of homes in CCNC with service, and they do nearly 400 homes. Becky’s does about 60 homes. We have identical one-year contracts with each of them, and we renew them every year.”

The Village will pay a CPI adjustment rate, which is an increase of 5.4%, totaling $135,000 for the services.

The council also adopted a resolution of support for the Moore County Transportation Committee’s proposed STIP 7.0 Project Prioritization submission.

“What this list represents is the seven highest scoring highway projects and the seven highest scoring bike and pedestrian projects based on the last round of scoring that was done for the various eligible projects that are out there,” said Village Manager Jeff Sanborn. “This list has been sent out to all the local governments in Moore County for approval, and what will be required is approval from the majority of these local government boards.”

The council finally approved the Metropolitan Planning Area (MPA) for the Sandhills Area Metropolitan Planning Organization in conjunction with Southern Pines, Aberdeen, Pinebluff, Taylortown, Whispering Pines and Foxfire.

“This urbanized zone that the census has been tracking for a number of years was just recently recognized as such as a result of the 2020 Census because it reached a population threshold of over 50,000 which was the triggering event that required us to form a municipal planning organization,” Sanborn said.

The Village of Pinehurst will next meet June 27.

COURTESY PHOTO

Rep. Richard Hudson (NC-09) and other members of the U.S. House Energy, Climate, and Grid Security subcommittee visit a substation that was attacked on Dec. 3, 2022.

ognizing Hudson. “We are taking a close look at these instances to determine if federal laws need to be changed in order to harden the grid, improve situational awareness and enhance grid security.”

Hudson emphasized that he wanted his colleagues to see the level of sophistication of the December 2022 attacks and how it could impact the nation if the type of attacks were replicated.

“Our region suffered millions of dollars in damage just weeks before Christmas,” Hudson said. “In response, our community stepped up. It’s inspiring to see how everyone stepped up in a time of need.”

Hudson said he would continue to push the FBI to investigate and said he shared in the frustration that the perpetrators have not been arrested.

He added that the committee members present need to know “not just the numbers and facts but the people and personal experiences from those who suffered from these attacks.”

Mark Aysta, the managing di-

rector of enterprise security at Duke Energy, told the committee that once repairs were finished following the attacks, the company spent six months conducting a review of electric assets.

“We are shifting to a tiered approach with a greater focus on potential impacts to customers,” he said. “We’ve identified opportunities to increase security and surveillance, and we’re developing implementation schedules for this work. Investments in resiliency are a critical part of the $75 billion in grid improvements Duke Energy has planned for its electric utilities over the next decade.”

William Ray, the director of N.C. Emergency Management, called for increased federal funding and reforms in federal statutes that would allow broader disaster recovery efforts beyond a focus on natural hazards.

Following the 90-minute hearing in which questions came about lessons learned, how security can be upgraded, and what is being done on the private sector side, Hudson gave a closing state -

ment.

“My constituents cannot afford further energy disruptions that jeopardize their safety. I am introducing the Protecting America’s Distribution Transformer Supply Chain Act in order to ensure our electrical manufacturers can continue to do what they do best without Washington getting in their way,” he said, adding that the U.S. Department of Energy should be focusing on strengthening the supply chain for distribution transformers.

The proposed bill would repeal the U.S. Department of Energy’s authority to propose, finalize, implement, administer or enforce any energy efficiency standard for distribution transformers for the next five years.

“Today’s the beginning of the conversation to help us. Our job is to take this information and figure out what’s next. We have a responsibility to the country to look at this incident and what it tells us about the vulnerabilities of the grid if we don’t do a better job,” Hudson said before the hearing adjourned.

Here’s a quick look at what’s coming up in Moore County:

June 22

Trivia Thursday at the Brewery 6pm

Come out for Trivia at the Southern Pines Brewery! Enjoy fun and prizes each Thursday. Southern Pines Brewing Company is located at 565 Air Tool Dr., Southern Pines, NC.

Thursday Night Music Bingo

7pm

Come out to James Creek Cider House for Music Bingo with Lauren! James Creek is located at 172 US Hwy 1 Bus. in Cameron. A food truck will be on site at 8!

June 23

Carthage Farmers Market

2pm – 6pm

Come out and support your local farmers at the brand-new farmers market in Carthage! The market features fresh produce, meats, eggs, and handmade goods! The market will be set up on S. Ray Street in the parking lot across from the post office.

June 24

Moore County Farmers Market

8am – 12pm

Enjoy the Moore County Farmers Market at the Armory Sports Complex, which is located at 604 W. Morganton Road in Southern Pines! Buy local and fresh seasonal produce and products every Saturday morning from 8am until 12pm!

Neal Robbins, publisher | Frank Hill, senior opinion editor

Bringing Congress to the Sandhills

This field hearing was the first of many our committee will hold in our efforts to improve the security and resiliency of our nation’s energy grid.

SIX MONTHS AGO, our community was attacked. Two substations in Moore County were intentionally attacked on the evening of December 3rd, leaving my house and 45,000 of our neighbors without power for up to ten days.

In the aftermath of the attack, hospitals were impacted threatening medical treatments, schools were shut down, businesses were affected, stop lights were dark, gas stations were closed, cell signals were impacted, and water couldn’t be heated.

An attack like this could have devastated our community and we didn’t go without our struggles. But overall, I am so proud of our resilient response. In the days that followed, you truly showed the best of Moore County and the best of America.

Throughout our region, churches, small businesses, restaurants, police and fire departments, local governments, and individuals stepped up to help their neighbors and showed the true strength of our community. It was inspiring to see everyone come together in our time of need.

I also thank Sheriff Ronnie Fields and our local law enforcement for their quick response during those dark days and for their ongoing investigations to determine who is responsible for December’s attack. We must hold those responsible for this act accountable and I will continue to support law enforcement as they conduct their investigation.

Since the attack occurred, I have been in listening mode. I have heard from constituents, grid operators, community developers, the FBI and law enforcement, and business owners who have concerns with our grid’s security and resilience—all against the backdrop of historic energy costs.

As your neighbor, I share these concerns with you. And a similar, yet thankfully unsuccessful, attack in Randolph County several months ago underscores the need to address this issue. That’s why last week, I brought my colleagues from

WHO’s on first

The concentration of power in the hands of so few may be efficient and sometimes popular. But it does not tend toward sound government.

IN FEBRUARY, our administration entered negotiations with the World Health Organization to surrender United States’ authority over pandemic and related public health responses to their global purview. Ratification is expected by spring of 2024.

Amendments to the International Health Regulation seek “a global architecture for health emergency preparedness, prevention, response, and resilience (HEPR)”. This includes “global governance, financing and all HEPR systems”.

America’s sovereignty and ability to determine health care strategies independently will be lost in one strike.

The amendment to the 2005 treaty to centralize authority is pitched by the WHO as pandemic prevention, a necessary and legally binding instrument to mitigate health crises. It is intended to “hardwire into international law a top-down supra-national approach to public health.” The mandate, according to Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, extends beyond pandemics to include “hunger, poverty, ecological degradation, climate change and social and economic inequalities.” The WHO would be empowered to vaccinate, medicate, and requisition funds by fiat. USForThem, a grassroots advocate for children (USForThem.co.uk) has published a significant report on the impact of this amendment.

The concept of “One Health” would elevate the WHO to a regulatory body and an associated enforcement body, calling the plays for affiliate States in crisis situations. Revisions to the scope of this

Congress to Moore County for a House Energy and Commerce Committee field hearing. I took my colleagues to the site of one of the attacks so they could understand the substation involved. And I introduced them to the community and people who were impacted by the attack. Just as I promised to you back in December, I brought Washington here and put real faces to the issues that rocked our community.

Before the hearing, we stopped at the Duke Energy West End substation, one of the two substations here in Moore County that was intentionally attacked. At the field hearing, experts from Duke Energy, NC Emergency Management, NC State University, and in energy security shared their testimony on the current state of our grid security and resilience and how we move forward from these attacks. There are 45,000 stories of why Moore County—and our nation—needs greater grid resilience, and my colleagues and I welcome these testimonies and your feedback in order to help do our jobs effectively.

This field hearing was the first of many our committee will hold in our efforts to improve the security and resiliency of our nation’s energy grid. It was important to me that the first hearing be here where the attack happened, and this is only the beginning of our investigations.

Being your voice in Congress is a responsibility I take extremely seriously and I will continue to make sure Washington pays attention to the concerns and needs of you and your family.

It’s an honor to represent you and the best of our community—which always shines bright, even in the dark.

Richard Hudson is serving his sixth term in the U.S. House and represents North Carolina’s 9th Congressional District. He currently serves as the chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee and is a member of the House Republican Steering Committee.

amendment include principles of “equity, inclusivity, coherence and taking into consideration their social and economic development.” This language replaces the current scope of implementation that cites “full respect for dignity, human rights and fundamental freedoms of persons.”

Consider the appointed members and managers of the team that seeks control over United States management of public health and social services. China is a founding member, Afghanistan, Russia, Iraq and Pakistan. North Korea is on deck. These players are not known for responsible health care or even humanitarian aid. For example, in China’s social credit system, a QR-code tags each citizen to surveil and restrict movement, red-flag the infected and detain the sick in cages. The guidelines issued by the WHO and adapted by the United States Center for Disease control, CDC, have proven disastrous. But the suppression of information may be the worst foul committed in the name of public safety. Recall The Great Barrington Declaration and the cancellation of the esteemed physicians who authored and signed it. Leaks, exposes and independent reports have revealed the massive, coordinated and colluded effort by our government and media during the darkest months of the Covid pandemic. Daily briefings by the administration and the infamous Dr Fauci perpetuated the myths of the origin and contagion for Covid. As American citizens, fearful of the unknown and still trusting in the fundamental honesty of government bureaucracy, we locked down and masked up. We took a shot. We traded logic for magical thinking.

The scores of this political strategy are in and it does not look good. Crime is up, cities are down, children struggle with

social and academic skills that may take several generations to overcome. Medical personnel and civil servants are burned out and hospital supplies are limited. Very few people are unaffected in ways large and small by life interrupted by the dangerous game played on us by global decision makers.

In mid-May, Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch called the emergency measures taken during the pandemic “the greatest intrusions on civil liberties in the peacetime history of this country” killing more than 1M Americans. When schools were closed but stores stayed open, when churches could not congregate but ballgames could proceed, many understood that this had little to do with public health and everything to do with control. Winners and losers were chosen on the merits of “science” defined by conjecture.

As a warning to us, the Justice wrote “The concentration of power in the hands of so few may be efficient and sometimes popular. But it does not tend toward sound government.” Recognizing that sometimes extreme measures must be taken but they come with an additional set of problems.

As the WHO continues to negotiate the terms of the “One Health” treaty with the current administration and our neighbor States to the east and far east, recognize the high stakes in this game. America is being pitched a series of rules and regulations for coping with a pandemic health crisis. The managers of our fate may play by rules we cannot question called by an unknown umpire from another league. We cannot allow the fate of our families in crisis to be governed by authorities not vested in the best interest of our nation.

WHO’s on first…. What’s on second?

COLUMN | U.S. REP. RICHARD HUDSON

COLUMN | CONNIE LOVELL

Donald Richard Goetz

June 21, 1941 - June 17, 2023

Donald Richard Goetz, 81 of Southern Pines, passed away on June 17, 2023 at FirstHealth Moore Regional Hospital in Pinehurst.

Born on June 21, 1941 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to the late Charles and Ida Goetz.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by one brother, Charles Joseph Goetz. He is survived by his wife, Joanne Goetz; son, Mark Richard Goetz (Anyuri) of Whispering Pines; daughter, Joanna Sophia Brannon (Shawn) of Pittsburgh, PA; three sisters, Charlotte Fairweather, Carol Ann Kulbacki and Donna Lee Hartman, all of Pittsburgh, PA; also survived by six grandchildren and seven great grandchildren.

Nanette Marie Wisnowski

June 29, 1937 - June 16, 2023

Nanette Tirmarchi Wisnowski, 85, of Whispering Pines, NC; passed away peacefully on Friday, June 16, 2023 at Fox Hollow Senior Living in Pinehurst.

Nanette was born June 28, 1937 in Adams, MA to the late Anthony and Millicent Brimmer Tirmarchi, she was the oldest of their nine children.

She is survived by a son, Michael G. Wisnowski and wife Denise of Pittsboro, NC; three grandchildren, Brian, Daniel, and Carissa Wisnowski; siblings: Anthony, Joe, John, and Tom Tirmarchi, Carmella Emerald, Betsy Cooper, Ruth and Peg Tirmarchi.

In addition to her parents, she is preceded in death by her beloved husband of 56 years, George Wisnowski and their daughter Lori Hughes.

Karen Kiser Friede

September 22, 1953 - June 15, 2023

Karen Kiser Friede, beloved wife, mother and “Nona” arrived at her heavenly home on Thursday June 15, 2023, at FirstHealth Moore Regional Hospital in Pinehurst, NC she was 69 years old. Karen was born on September 22, 1953, in Norton Virginia to Archus Lincoln and Lanora Beatrice Kiser.

Karen was a graduate of Lynch High School in Lynch, KY. She was a graduate of Wayne Community College Dental Hygiene School. Karen worked as a dental hygienist and office manager for Dr. Dennison in Aberdeen for years.

Karen was a devoted member and loved her church family at Aberdeen First Baptist.

Karen was preceded in death by her daughter Heather, her parents, and her older brother Gary Kiser. Karen is survived by her husband of 49 years Robert L Friede Jr.; children, Matt (Millicent), Adam (Fiancé Leslie), daughter-in-law Jessica Smith and Lora Friede; grandchildren from oldest to youngest Rachel (Eric), Payshance, Madison, Molly, McKayla, and Chance; sister-in-law Phyllis Kiser, sisters Betty Hudson (Bill), Judy Henry (David), Jeannie Terry (Freddy); brother-in-Law Tommy Friede (Luz) and nieces and nephews that she loved dearly.

Patricia (Pat) Anne McCormick

July 30, 1962 - June 15, 2023

Patricia (Pat) Anne McCormick died unexpectedly June 15, 2023 at her home in Southern Pines, North Carolina. She was born July 30, 1962, in the suburbs of Philadelphia, PA, the daughter of Thomas William McCormick and the late Anne Rita McCormick (neé Pancarey).

Pat grew up in Ridley Park, PA and graduated from Ridley High school in 1980. She continued on to earn both her BA with honors and her MSW from Boston University.

A life-long Phillies fan, she loved baseball and also followed the Portland Sea Dogs and the Boston Red Sox. In addition to her father, she is survived by her loving daughter Anne (McCormick) Bagley; her husband, Gordon Bagley; and the newest addition to the family, her grandson Lincoln Thomas Bagley, who was born on April 1, 2023. Pat had planned to have him call her Ipa after her favorite beer.

Pat is survived by her four siblings, Michael GamelMcCormick and his wife, Sue of Newark, DE; Anne McCormick of Vero Beach, Florida; Susan (Sue) Lucius and her husband Scott of Dover, NH; and Kathleen (Kathy) Russo and her husband, Jack, of West Grove PA. She is survived by many cousins, nieces and nephews, grand nieces and nephews, colleagues, and friends.

MaryLou St. Germain

May 16, 1939 - June 14, 2023

The Bootlegger makes her last run….. June 14th, 2023 Mary lou St. Germain, Marylou Hull born May 16, 1939. Lou, Aunt Lou, Nana, the Bob-a-lou a.k.a. the Bootlegger. Her number one love and job was her family. Born May 16, 1939. Daughter of Frank and Mildred Hull. Marylou grew up in Poestenkill, New York, she was a child during World War Two. Marylou and Bob were married May 10, 1958. Together they have circled the sun for 64+ adventurous years. They worked hard and they played hard; raising a family, cooking, cleaning, camping, sailing, white water canoeing, skiing, scuba diving, water skiing, hot air balloon rides, sledding, swimming, and racing the #8, at their home track Lebanon Valley Speedway. Marylou leaves behind her legacies of love for family: Husband, Robert St. Germain: children son Timothy St. Germain married to Carla St. Germain: daughter Tamara Scannell married to Patrick Scannell and their two children Mackenzie Scannell and Sloane Scannell.

Saundra Lee Manninen

January 13, 1936 - June 13, 2023

Saundra Lee Manninen, 87, of Whispering Pines, passed suddenly at the FirstHealth Moore Regional Hospital on Tuesday, June 13th.

Born in Fostoria, OH, on Jan. 13, 1936, she was the daughter of the late Raymond and Rosalie Thompson Walker. Sandy was a graduate of Mentor High School, class of 1954 where she first met her future husband, James Manninen. After graduation, she attended Kent State University to earn a degree in education. Sandy then went to work at Mentor Elementary School as a 2nd Grade Teacher.

Sandy was the loving wife of Jim Manninen. She is survived by her sons: Mark Manninen, wife Sheila, and Matthew Manninen. Sandy was the grandmother of Erik Manninen, wife Brittney and Lindsey Miller, husband Sean. She is also survived by her three great - grandchildren: Jack, Madison and Kennedy. In addition to her parents, Sandy is preceded in death by her sister Kristine Mak and brother Stephen Walker.

John Eric Johansen

June 7, 1967 - June 14, 2023

John Eric Johansen, 56 of Southern Pines, passed on Wednesday, June 14, 2023 at his residence.

John was born in Chicago Illinois on June 7, 1967. While the family moved to Southern Pines in 1981, John remained a dedicated Chicago Bears and Chicago Cubs fan his entire life. He loved sports and enjoyed being with his friends at the VFW. John made such strong friendships throughout his life. Those friends helped him and his family so much through his final days and they are forever grateful. John, aka J2P to his closest friends, recently celebrated his 56th birthday surrounded with a large group of long-time friends.

John is survived by his father, John Stanley Johansen and mother, Diana Kay Johansen and his sister, Jennifer Johansen Taylor and husband Jonathan of Raleigh, NC.

Rosemarie Keegan

April 10, 1945 - June 14, 2023

Rosemarie Fagan Keegan, age 78 of Pinehurst, NC passed away at FirstHealth Hospice House June 14, 2023. Rosemarie was born in Philadelphia, PA on April 10, 1945 to Edward and Marie McNeil Fagan. She was a loving mother and wife. Rosemarie is survived by her husband of 40 years, Eugene Keegan; children, Mary Rollman, Regina O’Brien, Robert Rollman, Johnathan Rollman and stepson, Kenyon Keegan Martin; numerous grandchildren and sister, Marythersa Mazzuca. Rosemarie was preceded in death by her parents.

Fred Allen Ensley, Jr.

February 2, 1966 - June 10, 2023

Fred “Allen” Ensley, Jr., 57, of Carthage, NC passed away peacefully on Saturday, June 10, 2023 at FirstHealth Hospice House in Pinehurst.

Allen was born on February 2, 1966 in Moore County, NC to the late Fred Allen Ensley, Sr., and the late Barbara Ritter Ensley Luck. He was one of their three children. He is survived by his son, Trevor Ensley (Cassidy Ussery); and two sisters, Cindy Clegg (Mike) and Sherry McKay (Johnny). He was a good father and friend.

Evelyn Miller

December 15, 1925 - June 10, 2023

Evelyn Miller, 97, originally of Pinehurst Trace, passed away on June 10, 2023.

Born and raised in North Carolina, Evelyn moved to NJ in the late 1940s. She married Stanley Miller and the couple settled in Little Falls where they raised their son. After retiring, Evelyn and Stanley moved back to NC.

Evelyn is lovingly survived by her son, Scott Miller and his wife Yvonne; her sister, Nerene Lawrence Rouse; nieces, Ginger Tender, Teresa Rouse, and Debbie Tierney; and nephews, Barry Rouse, Danny Rouse, Jimmy Matthews, Steve Matthews, and Ronnie Overman. She was predeceased by her husband, Stanley.

hatham News & R e C oR d

By Valeria Cloës Chatham News & Record

PITTSBORO — Under the sizzling sun on Saturday, June 17, almost 3,000 festivalgoers looked through Black-owned vendors’ booths, admiring artwork, spices, jewelry and even honey to buy.

Others sat and enjoyed Liquid Pleasure’s music covers booming across the Chatham County Fairgrounds, while others danced along to the sounds of “Rock with You” originally sung by Michael Jackson.

The 6th Annual Juneteenth Black Arts Festival 2023 — this year’s theme “Recognizing Our Roots, Our Family, & Our Black Culture” — organized by Community Organizing for Racial Equity (CORE) took place between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. two days before June 19.

“This is a community healing moment right here,” Karinda Roebuck, executive director of CORE, said about the event.

Not only does the festival

The Silk Hope Pro Rodeo set to return on June 23 and 24

By Taylor Heeden Chatham News & Record

recognize the last freed people in the United States, but it also aims to build community, Roebuck said.

Juneteenth, which is recognized on June 19, is the commemoration of the liberation of the last enslaved people in the United States in 1865 in Galveston, Texas, two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was put in place by Abraham Lincoln in 1983.

President Joe Biden signed legislation making Juneteenth a federal holiday on June 17, 2021, and Gov. Roy Cooper officially proclaimed June 19 as Juneteenth during an N.C. Museum of History Juneteenth event, according to a press release from the Governor’s press office.

“It [the festival] is building community around our collective liberation and our collective joy,” Roebuck said. “We are here together at this joyful occasion, to celebrate — to cel-

See JUNETEENTH, page A6

SILER CITY — From cowboys with lassos to bull riders and oversized belt buckles, there will be something for everyone at the second annual Silk Hope Pro Rodeo on June 23 and 24.

Last year’s rodeo saw over 5,000 people come through the Silk Hope Ruritan Club, according to Silk Hope Pro Rodeo organizer Dennis “Strawberry” Pruitt.

“We had to turn people away that Saturday night because we didn’t have enough seating for everybody,” he said. “We had to bring in more bleachers for this year so that way we hopefully don’t have to turn people away.”

The Silk Hope Pro Rodeo will feature seven different events where cowboys and cowgirls alike will compete for best in show. From bull riding to cattle roping, Pruitt said the rodeo highlights a unique kind of athleticism from competitors.

“As soon as it’s over, you can start working on the events for next year. It’s kind

“It’s a Western way of life.”

of a year-long process really,” he said. “A lot of people who compete in the rodeo, they go work out … It is a lot of people make a living doing it. So you have to be mentally and physically able to do it.”

Rodeos began after the Civil War in 1882, when William F. Cody — more widely known as Buffalo Bill — hosted his own Wild West show in North Platte, Nebraska. However, prior to Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show, Spanish conquistadors and Mexican Vaqueros, who were in charge of herding and transporting cattle, contributed many of the skills and much of the equipment and rodeo terminology used by the American cowboy. Riding, roping and branding, along with the rope, saddle, spurs,

chaps, and even the word rodeo (“roundup”) are just a few of the things brought from the vaqueros.

“It’s a Western way of life,” Pruitt said. “We start the rodeo with prayer and with the National Anthem. All of this goes back to the roots of America, and if you ain’t never been, you need to come because it’s a sporting event that was started right here. There will be two hours of a lot of action, competition, and it’ll really be good.”

Pruitt said the Silk Hope rodeo is one he’s been looking forward to since last year. He said after the success of last year’s event, he hopes to raise rodeo patrons’ expectations with a higher capacity, even more vendors and food options and a local event people of all ages can enjoy.

“It’s a small community, but it branches out,” he said. “This also helps the Ruritan Club — they raise money there for all the stuff they do throughout the year. Lots of people in the community there get involved in coming sponsor-wise and just to help out … It’s amazing.”

Drip, drip: a timeline of Pittsboro, Sanford water system merger

By Taylor Heeden Chatham News & Record

PITTSBORO — The town of Pittsboro’s water infrastructure has been a hot-button issue for commissioners and residents alike.

Town staff and elected officials are working to develop a plan to merge Pittsboro’s water and wastewater facilities with Sanford’s, which staff argues would help alleviate limitations in the town’s current system.

The News & Record has created an updated timeline of the merger process between Pittsboro and Sanford. Here’s what’s been reported on so far:

August 2021: Board of commissioners votes to declare intent to merge with Sanford

During their last meeting of August 2021, Commissioners authorized then Town Manager Chris Kennedy to send a letter of intent to the City of Sanford to merge the two municipalities’ water and sewer capacities.

This move followed two decades of conversations and research between Sanford and Pittsboro seeking solutions to Pittsboro’s inadequate water capacity and treatment capabilities.

Kennedy’s resolution details the discussions and nego -

tiations leading up to the decision, saying it was important to document the 23 years since the town established a moratorium related to limited water capacity.

“What I endeavored upon when I was working on this resolution was when we first formally talked about coordination with the city of Sanford,” he said. “I felt like it would be appropriate and productive to map that out, going back 23 years until April of 1999, and looking at that and saying we have created opportunities for ourselves today to do better to provide water and sewer.”

The proposed Sanford-Pittsboro partnership would allow the two municipalities to “re -

gionalize the public water and wastewater utility systems of the Town of Pittsboro,” which would include water treatment plants, distribution, wastewater treatment and public wastewater collection infrastructure.

During his nearly two-year tenure as town manager, Kennedy said he has prioritized finding a solution to Pittsboro’s decades-long water capacity issues.

“I told the board when I got here I was going to work very hard to provide the town and the community generations’ worth of water and sewer capacity to the best of my ability,”

See MERGER, page A12

The board set a public hearing for June 26 to have residents and other members of the public comment on the merger agreement.

CHATHAM COUNTY EDITION OF THE NORTH STATE JOURNAL

‘This is a community healing moment’: Pittsboro celebrates Juneteenth at CORE’s 6th Annual Juneteenth Black Arts Festival 2023

Mural unveiled

A crowd of over 130 people gathered outside George Moses Horton Middle School in Pittsboro for the unveiling of the mural titled ‘Truth, Justice and Reconciliation.’ Read more about the mural unveiling on page A9.

Dennis “Strawberry” Pruitt

Chatham News & Record www.chathamnewsrecord.com

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Brooks family fundraiser

PEYTON SICKLES | CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

From between 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, June 17, at Tyson’s Creek Baptist Church in Bear Creek, N.C., the Brooks Family Chicken Dinner Fundraiser sold approximately 3,200 plates. The fundraiser was organized to help the Brooks family — Matt, Scarlett, Landon and Logan — pay for 2-month-old Logan’s hospital and related bills. Logan’s congenital heart defect, Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome, “affects about one in every 4,550 newborns in North Carolina,” according to a 2006 report by the North Carolina Birth Defects Monitoring Program within the State Center for Health Statistics in the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Public Health. Marty Shaw and Friends cooked the meals, while around 150 volunteers helped assemble the plates among other tasks, and community members donated items for the fundraiser’s auction. Patti Brooks, Logan’s grandmother, was overwhelmed with the kindness and support shown by everyone. “It’s about community,” Patti said with tears in her eyes.

ON THE AGENDA

The Pittsboro Board of Commissioners will meet on at 7 p.m. on June 26 at the Chatham County Agriculture & Conference Center.

OTHER

The Town of Siler City is developing a downtown streetscape master plan to serve as a guiding document for future public improvements that will provide for safer pedestrian experiences, convenient parking, and will stimulate positive growth. The focus of the streetscape improvements includes improved pedestrian facilities such as sidewalks and cross walks, traffic calming measures, public parking options, landscape and lighting improvements, and various other public amenities. The community engagement event on June 28 is an opportunity for the design team to present preliminary improvements in the form of graphics and images for public comment and feedback. A presentation will be made to explain the proposed improvements at 4:15 p.m. followed by an open house community design workshop and public forum. Event Date and Time: Wednesday, June 28, from 4 to 6:30 p.m. at the City Hall Courtroom, 311 N. 2nd Ave.

The Siler City Lion’s Club meetings for June at Dry Dock Seafood Restaurant, will be June 27 at 6 p.m. Join the Club, and see that you can make a difference in the world and your local community. We meet the second and fourth Tuesday of each month. Together we serve! Chatham Community Library is offering free online genealogy classes in June. Class descriptions and a registration link can be found at www.chathamcountync. gov/ComputerClasses. Call 919545-8086 or email reference@ chathamlibraries.org for more information. — Going Digital with Genealogy, Part 1: June 21, Wednesday, 3 pm. Learn what it means to go digital with your genealogy research. Jim Davis, CCL’s genealogy volunteer, will cover filing and naming systems, metadata, media files, and more. — Going Digital with Genealogy, Part 2: June 28, Wednesday, 3 pm. Learn about tools for going digital with your genealogy research, including hardware and software, backup options, and collaboration tools. Chatham Community Library will host “Raising Good Eaters,” which is part of the “Learn About Food at Your Library” series. This program is free and open to the public, Thursday, beginning June 29, from noon to1:30 p.m. at Chatham Community Library, Holmes Family Meeting Room, 197 NC-87,Pittsboro

The Goldston Public Library announces the Goldston Book Club, every second Monday of each month, from 2 to 3 p.m. Individuals who are interested in joining a book club can stop by the Goldston Public Library. The Chatham County Council on Aging will host a “Grandparents Raising Grandchildren” support group the first Tuesday of each month at 1 p.m. at the Western Chatham Senior Center, Siler City. This group is geared toward older adults who are primary caregivers and providers for their grandchildren. For more information, contact William Riggsbee at 919-742-3975 ext. 223 or email william.riggsbee@ chathamcountync.gov.

The Chatham County Council on Aging hosts a Caregiver Support Group each Monday. The group meets the first and third Mondays of the month at 3 p.m. at the Eastern Chatham Senior Center, in Pittsboro, and the second Monday at 3 p.m. at the Western Chatham Senior Center, in Siler City. The fourth Monday of each month is a virtual meeting via the Zoom platform starting at 6 p.m. This group is geared toward family members who are currently providing short — or long-term care to loved ones. For more information or to obtain virtual meeting login information, contact William Riggsbee, family caregiver specialist, at 919-742-3975 ext. 223 or email

chathamcountync.gov.

“Join the conversation”

Board meets to vote on budget

By Taylor Heeden Chatham News & Record

PITTSBORO — The board of commissioners convened on Tuesday evening to for its last meeting of the month, where commissioners were slated to talk about next year’s budget.

The amended proposed budget would raise the ad valorem tax rate from 66.5 cents to 68.5 cents per $100 of property evaluation, an increase that county officials say will allow the County to keep the allotted 7% pay increase for employee pay raises, while also providing an additional $4,400 pay increase for each employee. Like the proposed 7% increase, the additional

$4,400 pay increase is available to all permanent employees who meet or exceed expectations according to their annual review. The $4,400 amount will be prorated based on full-time equivalency.

This meeting comes after the board voted to amend 3-2 the proposed budget at the beginning of the month, with commissioners David Delaney and Franklin Gomez Flores dissenting on the matter.

The main reason behind the disagreements between the rest of the board and Delaney and Gomez Flores revolves around the county’s Board of Elections. While the budget does add a full-time Elections Systems Technician position

for the Board of Elections, it doesn’t fulfill the full requests sent to the county.

In a budget public hearing in May, members of the elections board sought a pay increase and funding for the new elections technician position. The proposed amended budget only funds the new po-

sition, not the salary increase. Delaney said in the June 5 meeting he would not approve a budget without the salary increase for the elections staff.

Elections board members said a salary increase is needed to keep elections fair and efficient in the county. They said without adequate pay for elections staff, the BOE will struggle to recruit and retain hires.

Commissioners Mike Dasher, Karen Howard and Katie Kenlan, however, disagreed with Delaney’s assessment of the funding. They argued that if the elections office saw a salary increase, departments across the county on a similar employment structure would also have to see an increased salary.

Reporters Taylor Heeden and Ben Rappaport contributed to this report.

Randolph Electric Membership Corporation holds 85th annual meeting

ASHEBORO — Randolph

Electric Membership Corporation (REMC) celebrated its eighty-fifth annual meeting on Friday at Southwestern Randolph High School in Asheboro. The theme of the meeting was “Past and Future, Always Present.”

The event kicked off with entertainment provided by The Harvesters. President Jerry Bowman called the meeting to order, and the cooperative’s general counsel, Aaron M. Christensen, presided over the meeting. Rep. Neal Jackson (R-Randolph) delivered the invocation, and the Southwestern Randolph High School Jr. ROTC presented the colors.

Christensen announced there were 1,020 Cooperative members registered, either electronically or in person, which constituted a quorum. The attendance at the event was estimated to be around 720 people, with 361 members attending the in-person business meeting and 618 members registering online.

During the business meeting, the membership elected three directors. Scott Cole was elected to represent District 2, Jerry Bowman for District 4,

and Tammie Phillips for District 7 on the REMC Board of Directors. Bowman presented a report on the events and investments of the past year, highlighting the cooperative’s achievements. Secretary-Treasurer

Billy Maness provided a financial report for 2022, indicating over $73 million in revenue and $68 million in expenses.

CEO Dale Lambert addressed the theme of reliability and emphasized the commitment of Randolph EMC to provid-

ing safe, reliable, and affordable energy to its rural member-owners.

Randolph EMC has more than 32,000 members and more than 4,100 miles of line in areas of Randolph, Moore, Montgomery, Chatham, and Alamance counties.

Throughout the meeting, members had the opportunity to win various door prizes, including cash and bill credits, gift cards, bicycles, small appliances, and local pottery.

Scott Cole, representing

District 2, has been serving on the Board of Directors since 2019 and was re-elected to the position. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Appalachian State University and a Master of Science in Plant and Soil Science from NC A&T State University. Cole is currently the Environmental Health Program Director with the Montgomery County Department of Health.

Jerry Bowman, President of the Board of Directors, was also re-elected to represent District 4, a position he has held since 1993. Bowman has a long history in the automobile sales and service industry. He is a board member of Carolina Bank, an active member of the Asheboro/Randolph Chamber of Commerce, and a past officer of the Randolph Rotary Club.

Tammie Phillips, Vice President of the Board of Directors, has been representing District 7 since 2008 and was re-elected to the post. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from North Carolina State University and is employed by the North Carolina Department of Justice. Phillips is actively involved in her community and attends Tyson’s Creek Baptist Church.

From Chatham County Sheriff’s Office

ON JUNE 8, Annie Lane Mashburn, 35, no address, Goldston, was arrested by Deputy Robert Petty for failure to appear-simple assault, and failure to appear-second degree trespassing, attempted breaking or entering a building. She was issued a $6,000 secured bond and scheduled to appear in Chatham County District Court in Pittsboro on June 28.

On June 11, Jose Israel Romero Alarcon, 20, of 515 S. Chatham Ave., Siler City, was arrested by Deputy Paul Durazo for flee to elude with motor vehicle, assault on a female-non-physical, resist, delay, obstruct, reckless driving to endanger, and failure to stop at a stop sign. He was issued a $500 secured bond and is scheduled to appear in Chatham County District Court in Pittsboro on July 17.

On June 12, Anthony Dale Barth, 46, of 77 Dairy View Road, Siler City, was arrested by Deputy Chris Scales for possession of methamphetamine, maintaining a vehicle/dwelling/place for controlled substance, simple possession of Schedule IV controlled substance, simple possession of Schedule II controlled substance, possession of marijuana up to ½ oz., possession of drug paraphernalia, possession with intent to manufacture, sell or distribute methamphetamine, and manufacture Schedule 1 controlled substance. He was issued a $50,000 secured bond and is scheduled to appear in Chatham County District Court in Pittsboro on June 12.

On June 12, Joseph Wiley Beal, 42, of 230 Waylon Stinson Drive, Goldston, was arrested by Deputy Scales for discharging a weapon into an occupied vehicle. He was issued a written promise to appear in Chatham County District Court in Pittsboro on July 17.

On June 12, Jose Israel Romero Alarcon, 20, of 515 S. Chatham Ave., Siler City, was arrested by Deputy Brooke Roberts for failure to appear-misdemeanor larceny. He was issued a $100 secured bond and was scheduled to appear in Chatham County District Court in Pittsboro on June 12.

On June 12, Tromain Edwards Wilson, 33, of 315 Fontana Circle, Siler City, was arrested by Deputy Scales for larceny of motor vehicle. He was issued a written promise to appear in Chatham County District Court in Pittsboro on July 17.

On June 12, Edgar Emanuel Rodriguez Moreno, 27, of 126 Santa Fe Circle, Siler City, was arrested by SSgt. Ashley Ellington for communicating threats and misdemeanor larceny. He was issued a written promise to appear in Chatham County District Court in Pittsboro on June 27.

Chatham News & Record

This meeting comes after the board voted 3-2 to amend the proposed budget at the beginning of the month.

COURTESY PHOTO

Two trucks from the Randolph EMC hold an American flag.

VISUAL VOICES

Neal Robbins, publisher | Frank Hill, senior opinion editor

Looking up to someone, not just measure of height

Even when things went sour never did we hear an “I told you so.” It was more like, “What did you learn?”

THESE WORDS, OF COURSE, come after the fact — A characteristic that seems to fit my nature. I won’t say I’m always slow or late, but I’ve been known to take a while to get started on some things and then to drag them out until the last ounce of life is gone.

It was the realization, I guess, that on the calendar last Sunday was Father’s Day that got me started down this road.

That and the realization that July 1, soon to be here, is their wedding anniversary date.

1933, it was.

In Bennettsville, S.C.

They “ran away.” Eloped is the formal word, I believe.

Lots of folks did that then, I’m told. For some reason it was easier to get married south of the border than at home in North Carolina. She was 15; he was 21.

I know, I know … Today that would be all sorts of crimes — child abuse, crossing state lines, underage issues and on and on. But then … Well, it was different.

She used to tell me she “was mature for my age” and she didn’t mean just physically.

She grew up the daughter of millworkers. Her dad also subsidized providing for their 12 children by working as postmaster of their little village and her mom tended a garden, scrimped and saved, and added a cup of water to the soup when necessary. The life of a child then in the days of the Great Depression would, no doubt, cause you to grow up in a hurry.

One day she met a young man of that same village. I never heard her say where, when or how; maybe she always knew him.

I don’t know. She did say he was a ladies’ man … or, at least, he thought he was. The first time they went out — to church on a Sunday night — he was late and she decided he wasn’t going to add her as a mark in his little black book, so she went on without him.

He showed up late at her house that evening after she left but made sure he was the one who walked her home from church.

I don’t know how long the courtship lasted but apparently it wasn’t extremely lengthy until that day, along with another couple as witnesses, they became Mr. and Mrs.

From that union came my two brothers and me.

They’ve been gone some time now — He left in 1992; she followed eleven years later.

I still miss them.

Tremendously.

COLUMN | JAN HUTTON

Kinder and funnier…

Where do I even start with these internal contradictions?

Um, well, how ‘bout: HUMAN, HERE!

A SURPRISING FOOD memory floated up as I peered back through the years recently. Visited a friend in Arizona many eons ago whose morning drink of choice was Pepsi. Early in the a.m., I can still see her carrying a two-liter bottle and recall my sheer disdain for the act of DRINKING sugary soda first thing in the a.m.

How could you?! How could anyone? In my value system, soda was a drink only consumed later in the day, for heaven sake’s. (Not sure who to thank for this judgmental component in my then-value system …)

“She who criticizes first hasn’t looked in the mirror.” Just made that up. And why? I’m prompted by my long-ago Pepsi memory and the desire to be the honest and challenged human being that I am.

And speaking of challenges, a late-in-life purity departure (precipitated by the pandemic) led to my current predilection for Diet Dr. Pepper (talk about retribution!).

Here’s my juicy rationalization. Considering life’s vicissitudes, sometimes a Diet Dr. Pepper nip in the early a.m. is just what one needs for being “human.” Right? Having actually forgotten the name of the years-ago early a.m. Pepsi swiller, I’m tossing mea culpa’s in the direction of Arizona. (Well, at least it’s something …)

Moving to present-day food judgments, there’s the chocolatecovered almonds drama. Purchased at my food co-op, which in my mind, greatly differentiates them from chocolate-covered almonds purchased at a regular grocery store.

At the co-op, there’s a tad less sugar and some fancy orchard name on the container. Oh, god, my inner food snob still thrives after all these years …

My point about the chocolate-covered almonds? Um, well, I have been known to sneak a handful for breakfast! Sneak?

Think of them every day.

He left in such a hurry I didn’t get to tell him goodbye. Died with his boots on. Best way to go. She lingered. I spent years telling her goodbye until that day. His was better.

It took me months to stop almost picking up the phone or turning into the nursing home. Now I look at the pictures. Remember them when something crosses my mind. Need to take out one of the old family VHS tapes and stick it in … if I could figure out how to operate the mechanism.

I really didn’t have a favorite parent; They were just different. I’m told sometimes children do like one better than the other. I suppose that’s true and maybe all right. I don’t know from my own experience. She tended to cut to the chase, offering advice and direction sometimes without asking. “Nobody cares more about your welfare than I do,” she’d say at those times.

I believe that.

He, on the other hand, would let us plow our own field, learning sometimes the hard way as we hit rock after rock. But even when things went sour never did we hear an “I told you so.” It was more like, “What did you learn?”

I read something the other day. Made me think once again about them. It was about fathers, written by Margaret Truman. I think it applies to me … Maybe to you, too, if you care to have it do so.

It said, “It’s only when you grow up and step back from him — or leave him for your own career and your own home — it’s only then that you can measure his greatness and fully appreciate it.” Their three sons were all taller than both of them. I remember once we three surrounded him in his living room and took turns patting him on top of his head, just messing with him. He squirmed and howled in protest but I think he liked it — and was proud.

We may have been taller but we still looked up to them then. Still do …

Bob Wachs is a native of Chatham County and retired long-time managing editor of the Chatham News/Chatham Record, having written a weekly column for more than 30 years. During most of his time with the newspapers, he was also a bi-vocational pastor and today serves Bear Creek Baptist Church for the second time as pastor.

Sneak! I live alone! (I guess the word “sneak“ gives this away as a self-judgment.) Where do I even start with these internal contradictions?

Um, well, how ‘bout: HUMAN, HERE! I guess that would be me, human, that is. Wait, you are, too? Oh gosh, knowing that makes me feel SO much better. I’m not alone in my humanness.

As a human, I’m just a veritable bundle of contradictions. I bet you are, too. How could we not be in this patchwork culture? The problem I face is that I’m not very nice to myself when I notice these human imperfections and contradictions. Nope, not at all.

And, of course, in the self-compassion literature (be nice to yourself!) we are reminded that talking to ourselves, with kindness, is ultimately a gift. (I’m all in for gifts, aren’t you?) While continuing to work on developing a kinder inner voice (a seemingly eternal work in progress) my chosen life raft is humor.

“Laughing doesn’t just lighten your load mentally, it actually induces physical changes in your body, including stress relief.” (Take it from the Mayo Clinic!)

Yep, this human bundle of contradictions (moi) will remind herself to giggle when consuming my next tasty handful of chocolate covered-almonds, early in the morning (perhaps, accompanied by a Diet Dr Pepper.)

And while noticing any personal behavioral inconsistencies, my lips will just curl into a smile. I’ll shake my head in irony and feel the stress drain right out of me. Kinder and funnier … Not bad, not bad at all.

Jan Hutton is a retired hospice/hospital social worker who believes in living life with heart and humor. She has happily lived in Chatham for 20 years.

COLUMN | BOB WACHS

Bringing Congress to the sandhills

THIS FIELD HEARING was the first of many our committee will hold in our efforts to improve the security and resiliency of our nation’s energy grid.

Six months ago, our community was attacked.

Two substations in Moore County were intentionally attacked on the evening of Dec. 3, leaving my house and 45,000 of our neighbors without power for up to 10 days.

In the aftermath of the attack, hospitals were impacted, threatening medical treatments, schools were shut down, businesses were affected, stoplights were dark, gas stations were closed, cell signals were impacted, and water couldn’t be heated.

An attack like this could have devastated our community, and we didn’t go without our struggles. But overall, I am so proud of our resilient response. In the days that followed, you truly showed the best of Moore County and the best of America.

Throughout our region, churches, small businesses, restaurants, police and fire departments, local governments, and individuals stepped up to help their neighbors and showed the true strength of our community. It was inspiring to see everyone come together in our time of need.

I also thank Sheriff Ronnie Fields and our local law enforcement for their quick response during those dark days and for their ongoing investigations to determine who is responsible for December’s attack. We must hold those responsible for this act accountable and I will continue to support law enforcement as they conduct their investigation.

Since the attack occurred, I have been in listening mode. I have heard from constituents, grid operators, community developers, the FBI and law enforcement, and business owners who have concerns with our grid’s security and resilience — all against the backdrop of historic energy costs.

As your neighbor, I share these concerns with you.

And a similar, yet thankfully unsuccessful, attack in Randolph County several months ago underscores the need to address this issue. That’s why last week, I brought my colleagues from Congress to Moore County for a House Energy and Commerce Committee field hearing. I took my colleagues to the site of one of the attacks so they could understand the substation involved. And I introduced them to the community and people who were impacted by the attack. Just as I promised to you back in December, I brought Washington here and put real faces to the issues that rocked our community.

Before the hearing, we stopped at the Duke Energy West End substation, one of the two substations here in Moore County that was intentionally attacked. At the field hearing, experts from Duke Energy, N.C. Emergency Management, NC State University, and in energy security shared their testimony on the current state of our grid security and resilience and how we move forward from these attacks. There are 45,000 stories of why Moore County — and our nation — needs greater grid resilience, and my colleagues and I welcome these testimonies and your feedback in order to help do our jobs effectively.

This field hearing was the first of many our committee will hold in our efforts to improve the security and resiliency of our nation’s energy grid. It was important to me that the first hearing be here where the attack happened, and this is only the beginning of our investigations.

Being your voice in Congress is a responsibility I take extremely seriously and I will continue to make sure Washington pays attention to the concerns and needs of you and your family.

It’s an honor to represent you and the best of our community — which always shines bright, even in the dark.

Republicans must be the party of small business

A RECENT WALL STREET JOURNAL lead story reported that “Republicans and big business broke up.”

The amount of corporate donations to Republicans was cut sharply in the last election cycle to a lower amount than in nearly a decade. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has backed many Democrats running for Congress in close and competitive races, which puts the GOP slim majority in jeopardy.

The writing is on the wall: Corporate America is increasingly aligning itself with liberal Democrats, not Republicans.

Some of this shift in corporate allegiances is due to some bad decisions by Republicans. The GOP has shortsightedly pursued a “break up Big Tech” campaign, and the party’s slide toward tariffs and away from free trade, one of the pillars of prosperity, is worrisome to any free marketeer.

We should have free trade with countries, unless they are like China, threats to American security.

The real question is whether the GOP should want or even need support from the corporate boardrooms, which are increasingly going “woke.” Maybe it is time for a divorce.

Big business is increasingly siding with big government. Democrats are passing out Biden Bucks, and corporate America lusts for free federal money. Like field mice, they gobble up the morsels the Democrats spill out of their pockets.

Corporate welfare spending in Washington is at an all-time high, with hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars pipelined into the coffers of the Climate Change Industrial Complex, semiconductor companies and other Beltway Bandit industries.

Principled free market Republicans should take a strong stand against runaway government spending and debt, against 19th-century antitrust laws enforced by super-regulators such as Federal Trade Commission Chairwoman Lina Khan, against corporate welfare programs that cultivate big

business dependency on the government, and against the self-serving Wall Street doctrine of “too big to fail.”

If corporate America is against that agenda, then don’t let the door hit your fanny on the way out of the party.

An alliance between big business and big government, after all, is simply a form of what used to be called “fascism.”

What is the alternative for the GOP? It’s obvious. Republicans must be the party of the 80 million small-business men and women who employ more than 60% of our workers. Alfredo Ortiz, the head of the indispensable Job Creators Network, notes that “most small businesses don’t have PACs and lobbyists and fancy K Street Washington offices. They just want to be left alone.”

He’s right. My father ran a successful small business for 40 years outside of Chicago. He worked long hours and was gone often when I was growing up. I don’t think he ever visited Washington, D.C. He had disdain for politics and most politicians. That’s a fairly universal attitude of employers. And who can blame them given the torrent of nosy regulations by Washington lawyers, bureaucrats and politicians who know nothing about running a business or making a profit?

If big business wants to bolt and make peace with the party that hates enterprise, entrepreneurship and profit, that’s a sad commentary on the state of affairs in corporate America, not the GOP. President Calvin Coolidge once said that “90% of people who come to Washington want something they shouldn’t have.” Too often these days, our Fortune 500 companies want your and my money, and that’s something they shouldn’t have.

Stephen Moore is a senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation and a co-founder of the Committee to Unleash Prosperity.

THE N.C. GENERAL ASSEMBLY is proposing to divert over $2.2 billion of taxpayer dollars, in an arguably unconstitutional manner, away from the public schools and into the hands of private and parochial schools with none of the transparency and accountability required of the public schools.

Senate Bill 406 and House Bill 832 will use tax dollars to support “Opportunity Scholarships” for the private education of children, not just from low-wealth families but, for the first time, to wealthy families and those already enrolled in private schools.

The General Assembly is allowing private and religious schools to discriminate against children based on religious beliefs and the personal characteristics. Public schools are open to all regardless of race, creed, color, sexual orientation, and religious or political beliefs.

The 1868 N.C. Constitution made clear that a responsibility of state government is to provide a free public education for all children of the state. It did not include provisions for financing private or religious education with public tax dollars.

North Carolina’s Republican and Democrat governors and enlightened leaders of the General Assembly have long championed, if not always well-financed, public education in North Carolina.

North Carolina now ranks 50th in school funding. Beginning teacher pay in North Carolina is now below every state in the Southeast, except West Virginia. N.C. is nearly $12,000 below the national average for teacher pay!

The majority of North Carolinians love and support their local public schools and teachers. They also know that a welleducated, civically engaged public is key to creating and sustaining a flourishing state in which to live.

Support public schools and teachers! Contact your Senate and House General Assembly members. Urge them to reject SB406/HB823.

Larry G. Mabe, Ed.D., retired superintendent of Chatham County Schools, Wilmington

WITH SUMMER HERE many families will begin enjoying our state’s system of state parks and lakes. But it is worth noting that common sense precautions should be taken to avoid what might otherwise turn into a nightmare.

Last weekend my wife and I were at Jordan Lake’s Vista Point area. We noticed a large number of children swimming at the Vista Point Boat Launching Beach. Fast catamaran sailboats were coming and going from that beach and the sailors were having to navigate numerous pods of swimmers (mostly children). We were astonished that no one was injured, or worse. Given that there are no less than six protected and authorized swimming beaches at Jordan Lake, why would any parent take their children swimming at a location where boats are being launched and recovered? This is a dangerous situation.

Parents, please do not put your children in danger by allowing them to play or swim in areas where boats are being launched and recovered. Use one of the designated and protected swimming areas on these lakes for your children’s safety. Swimming and boat launching do not mix!

Tim C. Clark, Pittsboro

BE IN TOUCH

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.

COLUMN | STEPHEN MOORE

COURTESY PHOTO

Rep. Richard Hudson (NC-09) and other members of the U.S. House Energy, Climate, and Grid Security subcommittee visit a substation that was attacked on Dec. 3, 2022.

Young Historians gather to celebrate N. Carolina history

North Carolina Museum of History

RALEIGH — Young historians from across the state gathered in person for the first time in three years for the North Carolina Museum of History’s 2023

Tar Heel Junior Historian Association Annual Convention.

The all-day event featured dynamic learning experiences that help young people appreciate and understand North Carolina’s rich history and recognized the junior historians for their impactful historical work on projects.

Workshops at the April convention connected to the 2022–2023 themes of Tar Heel Junior Historian magazine. Highlights included: performances from local musicians, learning how to play the dulcimer, building their own banjos and diving into the science of sound.

“Knowing about who came before us is an infectious thing,” said Dr. Darin Waters, deputy secretary of the North Carolina Office of Archives and Histo-

JUNETEENTH from page 1

ebrate the last enslaved Africans being freed. This is about all Americans now are able to be free.”

In addition, this event also aims to educate the community about Juneteenth through a lecture series with speakers Dr. Ronda Taylor Bullock, Superintendent of Chatham County Schools Dr. Anthony Jackson and Preston Cook, a play and educational booths.

All vendors and performers — like Silky Smooth Drumline, Zeta Phi Beta and Dominique Dlyric McDaniels — were Black-owned, apart from the non-profit organizations, also in attendance with booths.

Over the past six years, CORE’s Juneteenth Festival

ry during his opening remarks to the young historians. “I am hoping you’re deeply inspired and bring inspiration back with you to inspire others.”

Other presenters emphasized the importance of knowing our history, including Durham band The Beast, who said, “It is so important to know your roots. If you don’t use the roadmap given to you, you can’t know where you’re going. We must use the roadmap so we never forget where we came from and to improve the way ahead.”

This year’s awards recognized junior historians for their outstanding projects, which featured a wide variety of historical significance of people, places and events in their own communities and across our state.

From artifacts to visual arts, photography, creative writing, and more, there is plenty to learn from in this year’s student projects.

“As the Tar Heel Junior Historian Association, we believe that students can contribute to

has grown from being held at the Chatham Community Library and the Chatham County Agriculture & Conference Center needing full Chatham County Fairgrounds space, Roebuck said.

Adding to the significance of this event, the grounds on which the festival took place “was founded and operated by African Americans,” according to Chatham County Agricultural & Industrial Fair Association website.

The organization has owned the grounds since 1952 and is in its 73rd year of operation.

With the festival’s growing success and attendance year after year, CORE starts planning its annual Juneteenth Festival a year in advance.

The planning is done through

knowledge of North Carolina history,” said Jessica Pratt, curator of education outreach and THJHA program coordinator at the North Carolina Museum of History. “And it’s true. I learn new things about North Carolina history each year from the students’ projects. From local conservation efforts that saved the bluebird to the story of local students who operated a printing press, it really illustrates that kids can be great historians too.”

All winning projects are showcased in the exhibit History in Every Direction: Tar Heel Junior Historian Association Discovery Gallery, now open to museum visitors.

Authorized by the North Carolina General Assembly in 1953, the Tar Heel Junior Historian Association is sponsored by the North Carolina Museum of History, part of the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

The association is made up of a network of FREE clubs acro ss the state, with members in

CORE’s Juneteenth Organization Committee, which listens to the community to decide on vendors, food and performers, Xiomara Yanique, CORE event planner said.

She is the liaison between the committee — which meets weekly and has about 12 consistent members — and the CORE executive members, she said.

“Because this is a community-led event, my job was to hear the community and really let them run with it,” she said.

Among the committee were different leads, ones who focused on performers, vendors and others: Everything was voted on — “It was a communal decision,” Yanique said.

The event also had food trucks, a bounce house and an indoor space where the lecture

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The final 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 five $100 Visa® gift cards. Scan the QR code or visit NCBrightIdeas.com for more informaiton or to apply!

grades 4 to 12. Each club must have at least one adult adviser.

Clubs may be sponsored by public, private or home schools, or by other organizations such as museums and historical societies, 4-H groups, Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts. Clubs can be any size, from one student and one adviser to hundreds of students and several advisers. Clubs must renew their membership each school year, and new clubs can join at any time using an online application at tarheeljuniorhistorians. org.

Student, Chapter, and Adviser THJHA award winners

Awards are given for outstanding THJHA chapters and advisers, as well as for student projects. Categories of competition include media projects, art projects, literary projects and essays, an artifact search, photography projects, and a state history quiz.

Projects encourage students to understand and appreciate our state’s rich history. Groups as well as individuals received awards.

Chatham County winners

N.C. Homeschool Adventures

Winners:

series, play and puppet show took place.

Roebuck said she hopes the community learns about the importance of Juneteenth and recognizes the shifting of power.

“It’s one of those moments for a racial equity organization to understand those dynamics of shifting power, to understand those dynamics of: Juneteenth should be led by the African American community,” Roebuck said. “What happens here should be led by the African American community — That doesn’t mean we’re not welcoming others. That means that we are shifting power and taking a step back, so that their brilliance and their knowledge and their history and lived experience can shine through.”

Carolina Garceau was an honorable mention in the intermediate Creative Writing Contest for her work “Visit Beautiful Mt. Vernon Springs Health and Pleasure Resort.”

Charles Watkins was an Artifact Search winner for his submission UNC vs. Clemson Football Ticket Stub.

Everlie Walker won second place in the intermediate division of the Christopher Crittenden State History Quiz.

Hanbin Kim won first place in the N.C. Historic Architecture Photography Contest, Houses category, for his submission Bennett Place Historic Site.

Heidi Young won second place in the intermediate Creative Writing Contest for her submission “A Twisted Tail.” Young also was an Honorable Mention in the intermediate Exhibit & Visual Arts Contest for her project Chandler & Price Printing Press.

Jacob Hill won first place in the secondary division of the Christopher Crittenden State History Quiz.

Madelyn Watkins won second place in the N.C. Historic Architecture Photography Contest, Markers/Monuments category, for her submission “The Grave of Eng and Chang Bunker.”

Event Coordinator Ann Alston had more thoughts about the federal holiday: Juneteenth is like African American’s Fourth of July, she said.

“And I want them [eventgoers] to realize this is our time to celebrate,” Alston said.

For a long time Alston would hear from the community that they didn’t know Chatham County had its own Juneteenth celebration, she said. Now, she said, it’s an added benefit that the community is finally aware of the festival.

“The big lesson is that we can boogie down across racial divides, socioeconomic status all together,” Roebuck said.

With the next festival just one year away, CORE already has next year’s theme: “Freedom to Dream.”

The N.C. Museum of History honored the Tar Heel Junior Historians at their annual event.

COURTESY PHOTO

River access ribbon cutting on Deep River State Trail

Piedmont Land Conservancy

SANFORD — A Ribbon Cutting Ceremony was held at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, June 14, to celebrate two new accesses on the Deep River State Trail: Hwy. 421 Bridge — Kayak Launch at 9800 Boone Trail Road and 15501 Bridge — Kayak Launch at 4906 Hawkins Ave. Each access is equipped with custom kayak slides and steps for easier entry and exits to the Deep River. These two accesses are part of an ongoing collaborative effort to create accesses around every six miles along the Deep River.

“We have learned to truly love and appreciate our Greenways, but to love and appreciate now, our blueways is an incredible opportunity,” Sanford Mayor Rebecca Wyhof Salmon said. “And this is the start to what is going to be a phenomenal entrance system all throughout Lee County.”

The ceremony was attended by Rep. John Sauls, Mayor Salmon, representatives from Deep River Park Association, Lee County Parks & Recreation, Deep River State Trail, North Carolina State Parks, Great Trails State Coalition, Piedmont Land Conservancy, Piedmont Legacy Trails and more.

Local paddling expert and Deep River Park Association board member Chad Spivey helped manage the project by bringing together the different entities necessary to obtain permits and funding.

Lee County Parks & Recreation’s 2021 Comprehensive Master Plan and Needs Assessment indicated a need for water accesses to fully take advantage of the recreational opportunities on the Deep River in Lee County. Rep. Sauls helped secure funding for the project.

Local paddling expert and Deep River Park Association board member Chad Spivey helped manage the project by bringing together the different entities necessary to obtain permits and funding. These two accesses were created by N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission, NCDOT, N.C. State Parks and Lee County

Senior Resource Fair shines light on elder abuse

Parks & Recreation. The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission construction crew from Bryson City specializes in steep bank river access engineering and masterfully created the steps and kayak slides that are built to stand against storms and floods.

Mary Joan Pugh spoke about the Deep River State Trail and its five-year plan. This land and water trail flows through five counties from High Point to Moncure, where the Deep River merges with the Haw River to form the Cape Fear River. The fiveyear plan prioritizes building land trail segments and bridges to connect trail segments and add more river accesses to make the river more accessible to the public.

During his speech, Spivey expressed how river access can help create a “river culture” in the communities surrounding these important water resources.

For more information about the Deep River State Trail see https://trails.nc.gov/statetrails/deep-river-state-trail and for information about paddling routes and accesses in Lee County, go to https://visitsanfordnc.com/outdoor-recreation/.

By Jimmy Lewis Chatham County Council on Aging

SILER CITY — There was no shortage of purple on the premises last week at the Western Chatham Senior Center as the Chatham County Council on Aging, Chatham Health Alliance and the Chatham County Department of Social Services partnered for a Senior Resource Fair designed to raise awareness around Vulnerable Adult and Elder Abuse and Exploitation Awareness Month.

The statistics themselves are sobering. According to the National Council on Aging, up to five million older adults across the country are abused annually — whether through abuse, neglect or exploitation. Only one out of 24 abuse cases is reported to authorities, and older adults are estimated to lose at least $36.5 billion annually as a result of financial exploitation.

The Wednesday, June 7, event at the Western Center brought 15 service providers to one central location, allowing Chatham County’s older adults to gather resources on a variety of services that can help them avoid becoming one of these harrowing statistics. Chatham County Sheriff’s Office assisted with lunch for event patrons by

grilling hot dogs. “We are trying to provide information and resources for seniors in our area,” said. “Everything from assistance to agencies that can help them with issues and problems, especially with elder abuse awareness.”

In the month of May alone, a total of 631 seniors 60 years of age and over visited one of the two centers overseen by the Council on Aging in Pittsboro and Siler City. With the influx of new residents expected in Chatham in the coming years, Walters and her cohorts plan to welcome no shortage of fresh faces into the center spaces.

“We’re hoping that when they come here to check out the resources, they’ll see what we’ve got going on at the Western Center and learn about all of our programming here,” Walters said. “And know that this is a place for seniors to congregate and to learn, to exercise, to enjoy meals and socialization.”

To report suspected cases of elder abuse in Chatham County, contact the Department of Social Services at 919-5422759. For more information and additional help, call the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Division of Social Services at 800-662-7030.

This local favorite joins 12 other distinguished trails across the state

BCDC Ideas

THE HAW RIVER Trail is now an authorized state trail thanks to the perseverance of local advocates, nonprofit organizations, and North Carolina legislators Rep. Stephen M. Ross, Sen. Amy S. Galey and Rep. Dennis Riddell.

“The Haw River State Trail is a lasting tribute to the power of the community” Brian Baker, assistant county manager of Alamance County, said. “Dozens of landowners in Alamance County have shared their private property so that everyone can enjoy the beauty and power of the Haw. Thanks to that commitment, the Haw River has regained its place as the heart of Alamance County.”

The Haw River Trail provides public access to one of North Carolina’s most important natural features. The land and paddle trail allows the community to explore while helping to conserve and protect this vital resource. Local nonprofits Friends of Lower Haw River State Natural Area, Carolina Canoe Club, and The Conservation Fund were critical in orchestrating behind the scenes to make this authorization possible. Both the Alamance and Chatham counties’ board of commissioners adopt-

The Haw River Trail will join 12 other state trails and become part of the North Carolina State Parks system.

ed resolutions supporting state trail authorization.

“Adding this beloved trail to the state trails program is a special opportunity for Alamance County,” Rep. Ross said. “It is a great place to hike, paddle and enjoy the outdoors. Conserving places like the Haw River Trail also gives us cleaner air and cleaner water which will benefit our state for decades to come.”

The Haw River Trail will join 12 other state trails and become part of the North Carolina State Parks system. While a state park is operated and managed by the Division of Parks and Recreation, a state trail comprises multiple connected sections that rely on local partnerships. Each section of the trail is sponsored by a federal, state or local government agency, nonprofit organization, or private landowner.

“State trail status gives the Haw River recognition across North Carolina as a trail of

statewide significance,” Sen. Galey said. “The state trail designation welcomes attention and economic benefit from tourism and recreation to Alamance County and beyond.

The families of North Carolina have a beautiful place to splash and play for future generations.”

Hours: Mon.–Fri. 11am–5pm and Saturday 10am–4pm, Closed Sun.

The Haw River Trail boasts:

20 miles of completed land trail in Alamance County

40 miles of completed paddle trail in Alamance County

15 recreational parks and trailheads open along the trail in Alamance County

Six public access sites in Chatham County

“It’s the commitment of our North Carolina’s General Assembly to the state’s conservation trust funds that make efforts like this one possible,” NC State Director of The Conservation Fund Bill Holman said, who chairs the Land for Tomorrow Coalition. “We’re also thankful to Representative Ross for being the primary sponsor of a conservation tax credit bill that will soon pass as part of the House budget. Investment in our natural spaces ensures that residents can enjoy and explore all that North Carolina has to offer.”

The planned Haw River Trail corridor extends approximately 80 miles along the Haw River, from Haw River State Park on the Rockingham-Guilford County line through Alamance County to Jordan Lake State Recreation Area in Chatham County. Public access to the Haw River Trail in Chatham County is provided at the Lower Haw River State Natural Area, owned by State Parks and by three public access sites managed by Chatham County Parks and Recreation. The trail in Alamance County is part of the statewide Mountainsto-Sea Trail, allowing hikers to travel across the state from Clingman’s Dome in the west to Jockey’s Ridge in the east.

PHOTO BY PATRICK MUELLER

Penny Nicole Boren Nalley

December 28, 1965 ~ June 19, 2023

Penny Nicole Boren Nalley, 57, of Greensboro, NC, entered into eternal rest on June 19, 2023 at Yanceyville Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center.

Penny was born on December 28, 1965 in Mobile, AL. She grew up in Siler City, NC and spent the majority of her life in Charleston, SC and Greensboro, NC. She loved being at the beach, being a mother, and helping anyone in need. She was the proud owner of her own business, Shiny Penny Cleaning Service, and held many other service related positions throughout her life. Penny will be remembered for her beautiful smile, for her love of animals as she rescued so many, and for her greatest love, her daughter Nicole.

Penny is predeceased by her brother, Ralph McMichael Boren, II and her father, Benjamin Clark Boren, Jr. She is survived by her mother, Nancy Boren Harris of Greensboro, NC; her daughter, Nicole Nalley Oakes (Zach) of Greensboro, NC; her sisters, Kathleen Boren Stewart of Greensboro, NC and Patty Boren Baldree (Lane) of James Island, SC.

A graveside service will be held on July 8th, 2023 at 1:00pm at Oakwood Cemetery in Siler City, NC.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to SPCA of the Triad, 3163 Hines Chapel Rd, Greensboro, NC 27405. www. triadspca.org

Please respond to Natasha at Smith and Buckner to confirm.

Celebrate the life of your loved ones. Submit obituaries and death notices to be published in NSJ at obits@northstatejournal.com

MATTIE SUE KAIN

May 3, 1925 ~ June 10, 2023

Mattie Sue Kain, 98, of Winston Salem, passed away Saturday, June 10, 2023. Sue was the daughter of Claude Hampton and Cladie Williams Fogleman. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, Thomas Raymond Kain; and a sister, Helen F. Andrews. She was of the Catholic faith.

A funeral mass was held on Thursday, June 15, 202, at St. Julia Catholic Church, at 10 a.m., with Father Julio Martínez officiating. Burial followed in Oakwood Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, the family request memorials be made to Hospice of Randolph. Online condolences may be made at www.smithbucknerfh.com.

ESTHER LANGLEY SMITH

October 12, 1929 ~ June 14, 2023

Esther Langley Smith, 93, of Sanford, passed away on Wednesday, June 14, 2023, at Westfield Nursing and Rehabilitation.

She was the daughter of the late William and Eula Elkins Langley. In addition, she was preceded in death by a daughter, Beverly Buchanan and five brothers and sisters.

Mrs. Smith is survived by her husband of 72 years, Gerald Smith; daughter Karen Bryant of Sanford; sister Betty Pinson of Sanford; four grandchildren; and eight great-grandchildren.

The family received friends on Friday, June 16, 2023, from 2 to 3 p.m. at Bridges-Cameron Funeral Home. A funeral service followed at 3 p.m. with Rev. Willie Bryant officiating. Burial followed in Lee Memory Gardens. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to American Cancer Society and/or Dementia Society of America.

Condolences may be made at www.bridgescameronfuneralhome. com.

TERRY JAMES HOSICK

Terry James Hosick, 61, of Sanford, passed away on Sunday, June 11, 2023, at his home.

He was the son of the late Donald Eugene and Janet Hubbard Hosick. In addition, he was preceded in death by his wife of 17 years, Juanita. Terry was a chef.

Terry is survived by his daughters, Ruby Seward and Emily Roman, both of Illinois; siblings, Mike, David, Rob, Dianna, Barbara, Dawn; and six grandchildren.

A service of remembrance will be held at a later date.

Condolences may be made at www.bridgescameronfuneralhome. com.

HAL BROWN KELLY

March 14, 1938 ~ June 14, 2023

Hal Brown Kelly, 85, of Sanford, passed away on Wednesday, June 14, 2023, at his home.

He was the son of the late Vendral Kelly and Oma Brown Kelly. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his sister Margaret Matthews. Kelly served his country in the National Guard for several years. Hal is survived by his wife Judy Patterson Kelly of the home; sons, Mike Kelly of Broadway, Richard Kelly of Rolesville; a daughter Kay Kelly of Sanford; brothers, Ralph Kelly, Roy Kelly and Sherwin, all of Sanford; two grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.

A service of remembrance was held at Poplar Springs United Methodist Church on Saturday, June 17, 2023, at 11 a.m. with Rev. Fallon Melvin presiding. The family received friends from 10 a.m. until the funeral hour on Saturday, June 17, 2023, at the church. Burial followed in the church cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to FirstHealth Hospice or Poplar Springs United Methodist Church, 1809 Poplar Springs Road, Sanford, N.C. 27330.

Condolences may be made at www.bridgescameronfuneralhome. com.

MARIE MCLEOD CASTLEBERRY

Marie McLeod Castleberry, 88, of Sanford, passed away on Wednesday afternoon, June 14, 2023, at Westfield Rehabilitation & Health Center.

Marie was the daughter of the late Claude and Leola Wood McLeod. She had been employed at WSW Fabric Warehouse, Coca-ola (Allied Fibers Cafeteria) and Fresh Choice Café. Marie was predeceased in death by her parents, her husband of 70 years Raymond Clark Castleberry Jr.; brothers, James Franklin Mcleod, David Wood McLeod; and sister, Alice Alease McLeod Landreth.

She is survived by her children, Randy Castleberry of Broadway, Shelia Byrd of Sanford, Robin Castleberry of Broadway, Jay Castleberry of Indiana; eight grandchildren, and twelve great-grandchildren. Family and friends visited the family home Saturday, June 17, between 2 and 5 p.m.

There will be no service at this time.

In lieu of flowers and food, donations may be made to the Liberty Home Health and Hospice of Lee County, 1005 Carthage St., Sanford, N.C. 27330; Christians United Outreach Center of Lee County, 2885 Lee Ave., Sanford, N.C. 27332 (cuoclc.org).

Online condolences can be made at www. smithfuneralhomebroadway.com.

JACKIE JOHNSON HALL

May 8, 1940 ~ June 15, 2023

Jackie Johnson Hall, 83, of Sanford, passed away on Thursday, June 15, 2023, at her home.

She was the daughter of the late Wade and Myrtle Newell Johnson. Jackie was preceded in death by her husband Elbert (Cooter) Hall; brother James (Skeeter) Johnson; and son Steven Lee Hall. She worked for Social Services and the Post Office prior to retirement.

Mrs. Hall is survived by her son, Darrell Hall of the home.

A graveside service was held Wednesday, June 21, 2023, at 11 a.m. at the Johnson Family Cemetery. The family received friends at the family home.

New mural honors Black voices of the past, looks to a unified future

By Taylor Heeden Chatham News & Record

PITTSBORO — As the sun rose on Saturday morning, over 130 residents, elected officials and local Civil Rights activists gathered behind George Moses Horton Middle School to commemorate the history of Chatham County’s Black community and celebrate a future of unity and equality.

The Community Remembrance Coalition-Chatham (CRC-C) unveiled its mural project — Truth, Justice and Reconciliation — on Saturday, June 17.

According to the CRC-C webpage on the mural, the painting “shares the story of those who opened the doors for many to follow.”

The mural features seven notable Black Chatham residents who made meaningful contributions to their communities and beyond. Those seven people were Rev. Rufus Vassie Horton, Cordia Glover Leake, Louis Edgar Bland, Geraldine DeGraffenreidt, Lillie Rodgers, Charlie Baldwin Sr. and Isaiah Taylor.

Family members of those depicted in the mural were present at the unveiling, representing multiple generations of Chatham County history and trailblazing advocacy for racial equity, according to CRC-C President Mary Nettles.

“These trailblazers were chosen by several residents of East Chatham County communities who know these persons personally, and the contributions they made to the Black community,” Nettles told the crowd on Saturday. “The selected individuals opened the doors for more achievements to come … These are our ancestors who came before and sacrificed and paved the

way through in East Chatham County.”

Pittsboro Mayor Cindy Perry also provided remarks at Saturday’s event. She said as a longtime Chatham resident, she remembers a time when a painting like the one at George Moses Horton Middle wouldn’t have been approved.

“I celebrate today with you for what has become a true community … and I welcome you to Pittsboro today to honor that reconciliation,” Perry said. “I want you to know that it is so important that we’ve gathered here together and honor the special people as our way for reconciliation, which will not only resolve the past and hopefully forgives the past, but it also creates a path forward.”

It takes more than one artist to create a masterpiece such as the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation mural — It takes a village of diverse community members and a talented artist to capture their vision.

Muralist David Wilson was the person to make the CRC-C’s vision a reality. According to the biography provided by CRC-C on Wilson, he “collaborated with the Mural Committee to employ his background in design, sculpture and public art, to create this mural to memorialize the social, historical and functional context of Black History in Chatham County.”

Wilson spoke to the crowd on Saturday, where he expressed how much the project meant to him as a professional artist.

“My main takeaways from this project are not just to learn more about history in my own backyard, down the road in Durham, but to also have an understanding of this rich cultural history that’s here in Chatham County,”

“These trailblazers were chosen by several resident of East Chatham County communities who know thes persons personally, and the contributions they made to the Black community.”

Mary Nettles

he said. “I’m very thankful to the project team and being patient with me and us working together to achieve understanding on what was needed to be placed in the mural to make the message of truth, justice and reconciliation, visually impactful and engaging, and inspirational.”

The painting features several Chatham-centric Easter eggs, including two rabbits and the Chatham County Fair Ferris wheel, just to name a few. However, there are other references scattered throughout the mural relevant to Black history, one of the most prominent is the outline of Africa faded in the background with ships sailing away from it, symbolizing how many Chatham County Black residents’ ancestors came to the U.S.: the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade.

While the mural addresses Chatham County’s tainted history with racial equity, it also serves as a reminder of how far the community has evolved since those times and as a beacon of hope for the future. Pastor Rev. Corey Little said the painting’s message was derived from the voices of both Chatham’s Black natives and non-Black residents

who “stand in solidarity.”

“Despite facing discrimination and exclusion for many years, there was a proud and prolific legacy of educational institutions that helped propel Black people into significant cultural growth, supported by military service persons, churches and hard-working families,” Little said. “It helps us to counteract negative stereotypes and prejudices that often are associated with Black culture. We hope that others see a permanent piece of media that perpetually passes on a positive historical image of the African American community. It highlights the importance of diversity and inclusion in our community and encourages us to celebrate and embrace cultural differences.”

CRC-C member Bob Pearson also spoke during the unveiling on Saturday. He said during his time as an international diplomat for the U.S., he shared what he said are the “values of American life.”

“We’ve been in places where we saw dictators, we’ve been in places where we saw rampant racism, and I can say in representing those values, we are very delighted to be here today to represent to you, us Americans, the same values and the same hope that we will go where we want to go, where life is leading us to truth, justice and equality,” Pearson said. “ I can tell you that there never was a day, as proud as I am today, that this represents America. This represents who we can be, who we will be and what we want.”

Pearson said injustices such as discrimination and racism can’t be addressed by a single person — The community has to come together to reach “the doorstep of reconciliation.” He said it’s in

those moments of unity progress can be made to work toward a just and equitable future.

“You’re on the doorstep of looking every other person in the eye and respecting them … looking at every other person in the eye, knowing that they have something to contribute,” he said. “But behind us on this beautiful mural is our children — They’re holding hands. They’re walking into the future, whatever the race, whatever the color, whatever the faith. That is the future.”

Chatham County Schools Superintendent Dr. Anthony Jackson provided closing remarks at the unveiling ceremony on Saturday. He said the mural provides an opportunity for Chatham County’s students to have s “physical and very visual demonstration and depiction of history.” However, there was one thing Jackson said was important about the mural that none of the other speakers had brought up: its location.

“But it did not escape me that the very back of this mural is anchored by a school,” he said. “ I believe that moving forward we have a responsibility to be models and mentors — to help our children be better because of your commitment to ensuring that they understand their history and giving them the capacity to embrace the mystery that will be the future.”

Jackson said the diverse, multi-racial group of children depicted at the center of the mural represents the goals he has for Chatham County’s public schools: uniting and uplifting students and preparing them for what their future may bring.

“The other piece that was very, very compelling to me, are the kids down here at the bottom,” he said. “I want you to embrace the fact that the kids are watching — The kids see us through the history. I celebrate the opportunity to help prepare those kids for their future when they do the one thing that we work very hard for them to do every day. And that’s turn around and embrace the mystery of the future.”

TAKE N OTICE

dwellings; private recreation/entertainment

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY ALL PERSONS, firms and corporations holding claims against STEPHANIE HALL SCHOPPE, deceased, of Chatham County, NC are notified to exhibit same to the undersigned on or before September 12, 2023, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment.

This 8th day of June, 2023.

Marc Andre Schoppe, Executor

5 Fallen Oak Court Durham, NC 27713

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NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY ALL PERSONS, firms and corporations holding claims against CHARLIE HERBERT OLDHAM, deceased, of Chatham County, NC are notified to exhibit same to the undersigned on or before September 10, 2023, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment.

This 8th day of June, 2023. Jeffrey Todd Oldham, Administrator CTA

5777 Hwy 42 Bear Creek, NC 27207

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NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY 23 E 318 ALL PERSONS, firms and corporations holding claims against GALE C. PAIRE deceased, of Chatham County, NC are notified to exhibit same to the undersigned on or before September 10, 2023, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment.

This 8th day of June, 2023. Leslie C. Hunt, Executrix 320 E. Dameron Ave. Liberty, NC 27298

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NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY 23 E 312 ALL PERSONS, firms and corporations holding claims against CLIFFORD ARLENDO HINSHAW, deceased, of Chatham County, NC are notified to exhibit same to the undersigned on or before September 10, 2023, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment.

This 8th day of June, 2023.

Brian Hinshaw, Administrator 123 Wright Hill Drive Durham, NC 27712

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NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

The undersigned, having qualified as Executrix of the Estate of JAMES H. BOWEN, Deceased, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, firms and corporations having claims against the estate to exhibit them to the undersigned at the offices of Tillman, Whichard & Cagle, PLLC, 501 Eastowne Drive, Suite 130, Chapel Hill, NC 27514, on or before the 8th day of September, 2023, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to the estate will please make immediate payment.

This 8th day of June, 2023.

JUDITH L. BOWEN, EXECUTRIX ESTATE OF JAMES H. BOWEN Tillman, Whichard & Cagle, PLLC 501 Eastowne Drive, Suite 130 Chapel Hill, NC 27514 Jn8,Jn15,Jn22,Jn29,4tc

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA

NOTICE TO CREDITORS NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY HAVING QUALIFIED as Administrator of the Estate of John Elliott Dawson late of Chatham County, North Carolina, this is to notify all persons, firms and corporations having claims against the estate of said deceased to present them to the undersigned on or before the 6th day of September, 2023

This the 31st day of May, 2023.

Mary Holland, Administrator of the Estate of John Elliott Dawson 400 Short Road Cutchogue, NY 11935 Moody, Williams,

CLASSIFIED ADS

CHATHAM COUNTY Wanda Delores Spry qualified before the Chatham County Clerk of Court on June 2, 2023 as Ancillary Executor of the Estate of Ruffin Eldwood Redwine, Jr., 9900 S. Western, Apt. 27, Oklahoma City, OK 73129. This is to notify all persons, firms and corporations, as required by NCGS 28A-14-1, having claims against the estate of said decedent to exhibit them to the attorney designated below on or before the 6th day of September, 2023 or this notice will be pled in bar of their recovery. All persons, firms and corporations indebted to the said estate will please make immediate payments to the undersigned. Payments and claims should be presented to: M. Andrew Lucas, P.O. Box 1045, Sanford, NC 27331-1045. Sanford Law Group 1410 Elm Street PO Box 1045 Sanford, NC 27330 Jn8,Jn15,Jn22,Jn29,4tc

wish to make written comments, please send them to the Town Clerk, Carrie Bailey, PO Box 759, Pittsboro, NC 27312 or via email at cbailey@pittsboronc.gov by 4 p.m. on June 26, 2023. Jn15,Jn22,2tc CREDITOR’S NOTICE

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY Having qualified on the 2nd of June 2023, as Executor of the Estate of JULIA MALANOWSKI, deceased, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, this is to notify all persons, firms and corporations having claims against the decedent to exhibit the same to the undersigned on or before the 15th day of September 2023, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery.

All persons, firms and corporations indebted to the estate should make immediate payment. This the 9th of June, 2023 W. Woods Doster, Administrator of the Estate of Julia Malanowski 206 Hawkins Avenue Sanford, NC 27330 Attorneys: Law Offices of W. Woods Doster, P.A. 206 Hawkins Avenue Sanford, NC 27330 Jn15,Jn22,Jn29,Jy6,4tc

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY 23 E 314 ALL PERSONS, firms and corporations holding claims against ALMA THOMAS FIELDS deceased, of Chatham County, NC are notified to exhibit same to the undersigned on or before September 15, 2023, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment. This 13th day of June, 2023.

Cynthia F. Mason, Administrator 1613 Reno Sharpe Store Rd Bear Creek, NC 27207 Jn15,Jn22,Jn29,Jy6,4tp

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

TOWN OF GOLDSTON FY18 COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT

INFRASTRUCTURE (CDBG-I) PROGRAM

PUBLIC HEARING NOTICE

TOWN OF PITTSBORO

The Pittsboro Town Board of Commissioners will hold the following legislative Public Hearing on Monday, June 26, 2023, at 7:00 PM via Zoom and in person at the Chatham County Agriculture Center to consider the following item:

1. A Public Hearing to receive comments regarding a proposed merger of the Town of Pittsboro Water, Wastewater, and Reclaimed Water Systems into the City of Sanford‘s Utility System and a draft Interlocal Merger Agreement. The purpose of the public hearing is to provide interested parties with an opportunity to comment on the proposed merger and draft agreement.

SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES TO THE PROPOSED MERGER AGREEMENT MAY BE MADE FOLLOWING

THE PUBLIC HEARING. The draft Agreement is on file at the Town Engineering Department located at 287 East Street, Suite 221A, on the Utility Merger Page at https://nc-pittsboro.civicplus.com/. Please give reasonable notice to the Pittsboro Engineering Department at (919) 533-5480 if accommodation for individuals with disabilities or impairments is required. The meeting will be held via Zoom, a teleconference software, and in person. Instructions on how to join the Zoom Meeting can be found on the Town’s website at www.pittsboronc.gov. Please sign up with the Town Clerk, Carrie Bailey by 4:00 p.m. on June 26, 2023 if you wish to participate. If you wish to make written comments, please send them to the Town Clerk, Carrie Bailey, PO Box 759, Pittsboro, NC 27312 or via email at cbailey@pittsboronc.gov by 4 p.m. on June 26, 2023. Jn15,Jn22,2tc

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Notice is hereby given that the Town Board of Commissioners of the Town of Goldston will hold a public hearing on Monday, July 10, 2023, at 7:00 PM in the Town Hall, 40 Coral Avenue, Goldston, NC 27252. The purpose of the public hearing is to propose a budget revision for the CDBG-I Phase II System Improvements Project and allow residents an opportunity to express their views. The total project budget remains unchanged at $1,995,550 in CDBG-I funds (100% of total project costs) from NC Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) Division of Water Infrastructure (DWI). The proposed budget revision will not change the project’s total budget but will move funding from a line item that has excess funding to a line item that is underfunded. The project area, scope, and activities are not changing. The project area has a population that is at least 51% LMI, and therefore, 100% of the CDBG funds will be used to benefit LMI persons. Persons having any questions concerning the CDBG-I Program are urged to attend the public hearing, make their views known, and submit comments. The project amendment package will be submitted to DWI within approx. two weeks after all required CDBG forms are executed. A public information file exists at Town Hall and may be viewed upon request. For additional information or to submit written comments, please contact: Annie King-Gaines, Town Clerk, at 40 Coral Ave A, Goldston, NC 27252 or akkgaines@ americansouthgc.com, (919) 898-4441 TDD: (711). Comments should be postmarked no later than July 14, 2023, and a written response will be made within 10 business days. The Town does not discriminate based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, handicap, age, or familial status, in the CDBG program and activities. Efforts will be made to minimize displacement during project implementation and applicable utility easements, and displacement assistance as necessary will be available. Persons with disabilities, limited English proficiency, or who otherwise require special accommodations should contact the Town at (919) 898-4441 TDD: (711) at least 48 hours prior to the scheduled meeting. This information is available in Spanish or any other language upon request. Please contact Annie KingGaines, Town Clerk, at 40 Coral Ave A, Goldston, NC 27252 or akkgaines@americansouthgc.com (919) 898-4441 TDD: (711) for accommodations for this request. Esta información está disponible en español o en cualquier otro idioma bajo petición. Por favor, póngase en contacto con Annie King-Gaines, Town Clerk, at 40 Coral Ave A, Goldston, NC 27252 or akkgaines@americansouthgc.com (919) 898-4441 TDD: (711), de alojamiento para esta comunicado. Jonathan Hensley, Mayor Jn22,1tp

Executor 7156 Talton Ridge Drive Cary, NC 27519 Jn15,Jn22,Jn29,Jy6,4tp

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

CREDITORS NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY 22 E 75 ALL PERSONS, firms and corporations holding claims against LOLA F. SPRITZER deceased, of Chatham County, NC are notified to exhibit same to the undersigned on or before September 15, 2023, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment. This 13th day of June, 2023. Evan L. Spritzer, Executor 66 Rivington St. #13 New York, NY 10002 Jn15,Jn22,Jn29,Jy6,4tp STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA COUNTY OF CHATHAM IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE DISTRICT COURT DIVISION FILE NO.: 22 JT 82 IN RE: “A.J.V.” DOB: 11/8/22 NOTICE OF SERVICE BY PROCESS OF PUBLICATION TO: Biological father/Father/unknown father of the above male child, born at Central Carolina Hospital in Sanford, NC to Caren Vaughn. PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that a Petition has been filed to terminate your parental rights to the above-referenced minor child. You have forty days from 6/22/23, the first date of publication of this Notice to respond to said Petition by filing 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. BY: /s/ANGENETTE STEPHENSON Attorney for Petitioner, CHATHAM COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES 109 Conner Dr. Suite 208 Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27514 Telephone: (919) 869-7795 Jn22,Jn29,Jy6,3tc PUBLIC NOTICE The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEAPart B, Public Law 108.446)

REAL ESTATE LEARN ABOUT LAND - Chatham Land Experts, www.learnaboutland.com - 919-362-6999 Jy2,tfnc OFFICE SPACE FOR LEASE Office, Professional space for lease, now available, in downtown Pittsboro. Call 919-612-0596 for details.” Jn15,tfnc RENTALS, APARTMENTS 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. Office hours: Tuesday and Thursday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Call 919-5336319 for more information, TDD #1-800-735-2962, Equal housing opportunity, Handicapped accessible, A2,tfnc ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS now for one bedroom 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. Jy14,tfnc AUTO 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, 919-8284247. Jn8,tfncx for sale PROFORM TREADMILL with adjustable incline and speed - onboard workouts (calorie, time, distance)MP3 input and speakers (iPod capable, iPhone with aux); - Built in fan to cool you - Treadmill with proshox cushioning - sensors on handles for heart rate. Jillian Michaels workout program included. Treadmill can fold up to take up less space. Works great! $350.00. Call 919-200-3035. Jn22,1tp DRUMS FOR SALE, Pearle Cilgan cymbals. D.W. double kick,will send pictures. $1,500.00. Call 404323-3630, Jn15,22,29,Jy6,4tp AUCTIONS RICKY ELLINGTON AUCTIONEERS - Equipment, business, liquidation, estates, land, houses, antiques, personal property, coins, furniture, consignments, benefits, etc., NCAL #7706, 919-548-3684, 919663-3556, rickyellingtonauctions@yahoo.com, J6,tfnc AUCTIONEER SCOTT L. HARRIS at JHA. One Call... We sell it all!!! Real estate, personal property, estate settlement, farms & land, business liquidation. JHA has been conducting auctions in the state of NC since 1989. Fully licensed Real Estate and Auction Firm. NCAL #8420 Firm #8086 www.JerryHarrisAuction. com, 919-498-4077, J6,tfnx SERVICES CASH PAID, for JUNK CARS and pickups. Jn22,29,Jy6,13,4tp DIGGING AND DEMO - Land improvements, miniexcuvating, stump removal, mobile home and building tear down, all digging. Call John Hayes, 919548-0474. J19-Ju1,20tp RAINBOW WATER FILTERED VACUUMS, Alice Cox, Cox’s Distributing - Rainbow - Cell: 919-548-4314, Sales, Services, Supplies. Serving public for 35 years. Rada Cutlery also available. Au26,tfnc AUTO BROKERS RECYCLERS - Cash paid for Junk/ Wrecked vehicles. Call 919-545-0194. My13,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. 919542-2803. A2,tfnc LETT’S TREE SERVICE - tree removal, stump grinding, lot clearing. Visa & Master Card accepted. Timber. Free estimates. 919-258-3594. N9,tfnc HELP WANTED PINEY GROVE METHODIST CHURCH is seeking a part-time music director. Contact Cliff Stickney at (919) 818-7847 for more information. Jn15,22,29,Jy6,13,20,27,7tpx FOOD SERVICES STAFF, Pittsboro Christian Village is accepting applications for Server, Pantry Cook, and Cook. Apply in person 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday –Friday, at 1825 East St. in Pittsboro. Jy14,tfnc

Chatham County Retired School Personnel holds End of Year Celebration

By Valeria Cloës Chatham News & Record

PITTSBORO — The Chatham County Retired School Personnel (CCRSP), a branch of the North Carolina Retired School Personnel (NCRSP), hosted its End of Year Celebration from 1 to 3 p.m. on June 15 at the Chatham Community Library in the Holmes Family Meeting Room.

CCRSP and NCRSP are respectively a branch and division of the larger North Carolina Association of Educators (NCAE), whose main goal is to advocate and provide support to future, beginner and retired educators and other education personnel.

“We know that public education is extremely important,” Dawn Streets, a member of

NCRSP, said. “And even as retirees, we have a passion for the work of public schools.”

CCRSP conducts four meetings throughout the year, once in September, October, February and May, as well as the annual End of Year Celebration to reflect on and celebrate the year’s work.

In attendance was the executive board — President Edris Glover, Vice President Henry Foust, Secretary Mattie J. Fox and Treasurer Patricia Regan — NCRSP Chief Lobbyist Colleen Lanier, some of CCRSP members, and 2002 CCRSP Riley C. Fields Scholarship recipient Kristen Breedlove, among others.

Glover said that the branch regularly helps beginning teachers, showing them moral support.

“Because teaching today, it’s not like it was when we were in the classrooms,” she said. “We wanted them to know that there’s somebody there for them and with them.”

The organization did a school supply drive for beginning teachers in February 2023 where they set up supplies — from pencils, books, hand sanitizers and more — on tables at the Chatham County Agriculture & Conference Center, gave teachers bags and let them fill them up with as many supplies as they wanted, Glover said.

Glover recognized other initiatives and events the association has conducted throughout the 2022-2023 school year, including helping exceptional children, as well as recognized members who have had perfect attendance this year.

Foust proceeded by speaking about the CCRSP Riley C. Fields Scholarship — a $500 scholarship awarded to graduating Chatham County high school seniors who hope to pursue a career in education through teaching, social work, administration and counseling — and said the association was able to award three this year, he said.

Three students across Northwood, Chatham Central and Jordan-Matthews High Schools received the scholarship this year.

Glover said the association will be able to give out five scholarships next year, one for each of the recipients this year, as well as one from Seaforth and one from Chatham School of Science and Engineering.

Breedlove, who graduated

Lowes Foods to open Pittsboro location

Chatham News & Record

THE NEW LOWES FOODS in Pittsboro will have a ribbon cutting ceremony at 7:55 a.m. opening on Thursday, June 29. The store will then open at 8 a.m. Lowes Foods President Tim Lowe and other company representatives will be present.

The new Pittsboro store will feature Lowes Foods Originals, areas that are unique to Lowes Foods:

The Beer Den offers the finest selection of crafts and drafts that is fantastically varied and local. Shoppers can grab a pour and sip while they shop or fill a growler or crowler to take home. There are seasonal offerings of unique beers, special events and tap takeovers. Stop by on Thursday for half-price pints on Fridays for Friday Night Flights.

Boxcar Coffee where guests can sip on a cup of coffee while they shop or grab a smoothie for the kids. There are also limited-time seasonal offers.

The Cakery is a whimsical bakery where being square is incredibly cool. The Cakery features “Scrumptiouslyumptiously” delicious square cakes in all sizes that are assembled before your eyes, topped with icing made fresh in-store with real cream and real butter.

Cheese Shop is the place to find all things cheese right in the store — everything from traditional cheeses to rare finds.

The Community Table is a place where shoppers can gather and be inspired to try something new. Constructed of reclaimed wood from local barns, it also serves as the site for events such as recipe sam-

pling, activities for children and eating tips, including how to eat gluten-free.

SausageWorks is what you’d get if Willy Wonka had made sausage instead of chocolate. SausageWorks features locally made pork, beef and poultry sausages in an unbelievable number of flavors, from the familiar crowd-pleasers to the “Are they insane?” combinations.

At the store’s deli, guests will be able to stop by on their way home from work to pick an easy dinner or join us in the store for lunch: The deli

features selections from three Lowes Foods’ Originals — The Chicken Kitchen, The Smokehouse and Sammy’s.

The Chicken Kitchen is for all things chicken — rotisserie chicken, fried chicken, chicken wings, chicken pot pies, chicken tenders, chicken salad and Cock-a-Doodle Noodle soup. The chicken is fresh and never frozen, locally sourced, and is raised with “no antibiotics ever.”

The Smokehouse offers a daily rotation of wood-smoked meats — including beef, pork, chicken and salmon — using

a variety of woods to infuse flavor. You can pick them up ready to eat or ready to take home and heat.

Sammy’s is the place to grab a sandwich or pizza for a quick lunch or dinner. Shoppers can have these custom-made using Boar’s Head products or something from the Smokehouse and vegetables from Pick & Prep or choose to grab them and go. You can pull up a chair and eat in the store or take it home or back to work.

The stores will also have online shopping through the popular Lowes Foods To-Go.

from Northwood High School in 2002, received the scholarship, which helped her pay for her college education at UNC Greensboro.

She now works as an assistant principal at Siler City Elementary and said it felt full circle to be in attendance with her former teachers at the End of Year Celebration.

“It’s nice to be a product of Chatham, and now working in Chatham,” she said.

CCRSP has 51 members as of the week of June 12, six of which are new members, Glover said. One of the division’s goals for next year is for it to reach 60 members.

After the presentation by the executive board, the attendees were able to enjoy an ice cream social and mingle.

“We’re all here basically because we’re supporters of public education,” RuthAnn Taylor Peterson, member of CCRSP, said. “We’ve lived through seeing the importance … We want to support our educators, our future educators, and help look after our retirees.”

WHAT: Ribbon cutting and opening of Lowes Foods

WHEN: Thursday, June 29, at 7:55 a.m. followed by doors opening at 8 a.m.

WHERE: The intersection of Hwy. 15-501 and Northwood High School Road

he said. “This is an attempt — this is not a guarantee, Sanford is under no obligation to work with us or take on our water and sewer needs. We feel we have a good partner with them (Sanford).”

August 2022: Town receives first update on status of merger

Kennedy also provided an update on the merger of Pittsboro and Sanford’s wastewater utility systems.

Freese and Nichols Inc. — the consulting engineering firm on the project — has developed a scope of work, which outlines what tasks the firm would be responsible for should a merger take place.

FNI said it would help conduct a study that considers financial options and impacts, system operation, assets and other factors associated with a merger. The firm also said it would carry out a rate analysis and develop a multi-year rate plan for three scenarios: the town only, the town with a merged system and the city with a merged system.

October 2022: Commissioners hear update on force main project

Town Engineer Kent Jackson gave commissioners an update to a project relevant to the Sanford merger in October 2022. That September, the Wooten Company, on the town’s behalf, applied for a $10.5 million construction grant from the N.C. Division of Water Infrastructure to supplement the funding for the project. Jackson said he expected to hear back about the grant approval status in January.

“As we anticipate with everything with the bidding climate that the bids may be slightly higher than anticipated,” Jackson said.

Jackson also said that prior to former Town Manager Kennedy’s departure, Kennedy sent a letter to the Local Government Commission and the Division of Water Infrastructure requesting a loan in-

crease request. The request was approved a few weeks later, bringing Pittsboro’s loan approval amount to $26.5 million, Jackson said.

Feb. 15: Board votes to move forward and create an interlocal agreement

Jackson said the town approved staff to start selecting bids for two construction contracts for a wastewater systems improvements project — the Sanford Force Main project. Jackson said the town received two bids in November — one bid for the contract regarding laying down more than 67,000 feet of force main pipes and another for modifications to the town’s wastewater treatment plant.

Once receiving bids, the town entered a 90-day negotiating period with contractors to discuss costs for each of the projects. That period ended on Feb. 8, and Jackson said only one of the two contracts granted a written extension to discuss project costs; the town will have to restart the bidding process for the wastewater plant contract.

Both projects ended up being more costly than town staff originally expected, according to Jackson. The force main project’s estimated cost is around $44 million for the

Pittsboro Police Department investigates armed bank robbery

Town of Pittsboro

PITTSBORO — At approximately 10:40 a.m. on Friday, June 16, the Pittsboro Police Department was dispatched to an armed robbery at Truist Bank at 44 Powell Place Lane.

On-duty patrol officers and command staff responded to the scene. Witnesses report the suspect displayed a firearm during this robbery, but there were no injuries. The suspect had already left the premises before the arrival of our units.

Patrol officers and our detective immediately began investigating the incident and attempting to locate the perpetrator.

At this time, no one has been taken into custody. The Pittsboro Police Department wishes to reassure residents in and around Pittsboro that there’s no apparent ongoing danger related to this situation.

If anyone has any information regarding this incident, we encourage you to share that with us by calling 919-542-2911 and asking to speak with an officer with the Pittsboro Police Department.

contract, other fees and expenses. Jackson said he and his staff met with local officials and state representatives to explain the unique situation Pittsboro finds itself in with the funds for the contracts. They’ve also been in contact with Chatham Park Investors, and they’re working to find a way to “fund the gap.”

“Identifying the funding is still a challenge,” Jackson said. “As we stand today, we have $37 million in loans, through the state revolving fund against the $44 million project costs … We’ve made some progress [with Chatham Park Investors], but we have not closed the gap completely yet.”

The board of commissioners came to a consensus, asking Jackson to continue conversations with Chatham Park Investors.

March: Pittsboro receives millions in funds for water infrastructure

Chatham County municipalities were awarded more than $29 million for infrastructure projects, including $28.4 million for water and wastewater projects in Pittsboro.

For this round of funding, the state’s Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ)

received 649 applications from 91 of North Carolina’s 100 counties, and reconsidered applications from spring 2022. In total, 734 applications were considered for funding, representing requests of more than $3.5 billion. The awards are funded by a portion of $2.3 billion from the American Rescue Plan Act, State Revolving Funds (including Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funds), and Community Development Block Grant funding.

Rep. Robert Reives II (D-Dist. 54), who represents Chatham County in the N.C. House of Representatives, said investing in infrastructure projects is a necessity with the incoming development and growth.

“Chatham and Randolph are growing quickly — as fast as any other part of our state,” he said. “With that growth, we need to make investments in our water and sewer infrastructure in order to continue serving both residents and new businesses. I am glad to see this money coming into our communities to ensure clean water is available for every resident, and so that we keep pace with the needs of new industries locating here.”

June 13: Board sets public hearing for interlocal agreement draft

Charles Archer from Freese and Nichols provided a presentation on the work the firm did on the study and analysis on the merger. He talked about phase two of the study, which included a governance group made up of officials and staff from both Pittsboro and Sanford.

“We spent a lot of time talking, and we spent a lot of time outside of the meetings thinking about this,” Archer said. “It’s been a big commitment of time and of folks sharing their knowledge and insight.”

The governance group held four official meetings, according to Archer. Each meeting had a specific topic the group would focus on, including:

What a merger with Sanford would look like

Capital project financing

The merger agreement out-

line and schedule

The official merger agreement draft and schedule

The draft interlocal agreement was made available to the public in the agenda items packet for Monday evening’s meeting.

Archer broke down the highlights of the merger agreement, which “irrevocably grants Sanford the right to design, construct, operate, maintain and perform all related activities required to operate, maintain, expand, upgrade and improve Pittsboro’s Utility Systems, which includes the right to decommission, sell or otherwise dispose of property in accordance with Sanford’s water, water reclamation and sewer system standards and policies for operation and performance, level of service, reliability and redundancy.”

Sanford will also be the entity responsible for establishing system development fees and water and wastewater utility rates, according to the merger agreement. Both towns would also agree to move forward with “reasonable future growth” for the infrastructure, as well as would provide the same level of service to Pittsboro customers that Sanford customers receive.

Jackson stepped up and went on to explain eight benefits of merging water systems with Sanford. A merger could: Stabilize and reduce a need for rate increases on current or future utility users.

Allow capital projects to continue as planned.

Provide sustainable water and wastewater infrastructure solutions for the present and the future.

Create an eventual rate parity with Sanford.

Reduce or eliminate the negative impact on rate payers.

Grow the economy of scale and diversify the town’s revenue.

Create a beneficial relationship between Sanford and Pittsboro for collaboration on future projects.

Leverage future grant funding opportunities.

The board set a public hearing for June 26 to have residents and other members of the public comment on the merger agreement.

COURTESY IMAGE

Pittsboro police shared the image of a vehicle used in an armed robbery.

FILE PHOTO

COLUMN: Exploring what the Hornets should do with the No. 2 pick, B4

Seaforth’s Stevenson announces college commitment

Seaforth rising senior Jarin Stevenson announced his college decision on Wednesday night. The 6-foot-10 forward was deciding between UNC, Alabama and Virginia.

By Jeremy Vernon Chatham News & Record

Editor’s note: Stevenson announced his decision on Wednesday, well after this week’s edition of the News & Record was sent to our printer. To find out which school he ultimately chose, check chathamnewsrecord.com/ sports.

PITTSBORO — Seaforth

rising senior and top-25 recruit

Jarin Stevenson announced his college choice and whether he would reclassify on Wednesday night, after press time.

The 6-foot-10 power forward recently narrowed down his choices to UNC, Alabama and

Virginia. He was also mulling offers from N.C. State, Wake Forest, Missouri and Georgetown, but the Tar Heels, Crimson Tide and Cavaliers stood out above the rest ahead of his final announcement.

Stevenson is ranked as the No. 16 player nationally in the Class of 2024 according to 247Sports’ composite rankings, but there’s a chance he could reclassify and join a school for the 2023-24 season. Speaking with the News & Record a few weeks ago, Stevenson said he was still 50-50 on whether he wants to go to college early or stay at Seaforth another year.

All three schools, Virginia, Alabama and UNC, have available scholarships for the up -

1,011

Jarin Stevenson has scored 1,011 career points over 48 games in two seasons with Seaforth, an average of 21.1 points per game.

coming season, but they would all present Stevenson different situations upon his arrival on campus.

Alabama would probably offer Stevenson the best chance to play early, especially if he reclassifies and joins the team this upcoming season. The Crimson Tide lost several

frontcourt players during the offseason, including two power forwards. That said, head coach Nate Oats did bring in an impact big via the transfer portal in former North Dakota State star Grant Nelson (6-foot11, 235 pounds).

While the ball will flow through Nelson — who averaged 19.9 points and 9.8 rebounds per game in 2022-23 — Stevenson could find minutes off the bench or potentially earn some starts at one of the other frontcourt positions given Alabama’s lack of depth.

UNC also has some depth issues at the power forward position entering the 2023-23 season, with transfer Harrison Ingram currently slated to start

188 Chatham athletes make spring all-conference teams

By Jeremy Vernon Chatham News & Record

A TOTAL OF 188 Chatham

NIKKI WITT | CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

Seaforth sophomore Jackson Powell (10) carries the ball in a game against Bartlett Yancey during the 2022 season. The Hawks lost that game, 54-6.

Hawks football looks to make jump in Year 2

By Jeremy Vernon Chatham

News & Record

PITTSBORO — Seaforth fielded a varsity football team for the first time in 2022. The Hawks won two of the 10 games they played this past fall, but head coach Terrance Gary repeatedly preached to his team that its first season wasn’t just about wins and losses.

Now, two months away from the 2023 season, Gary

thinks his team could make some noise in its second year of competition.

“I’m excited, man,” Gary said. “We have a really young crew. They’re all working really hard and they’ve bought into the philosophy. We’re just trying to surprise some people this year.”

Gary said Seaforth has had strong numbers come out for offseason workouts, a wel-

See SEAFORTH, page B4

County athletes were selected to all-conference teams for their respective sports this spring. Sports that have their seasons during the spring are baseball, softball, girls soccer, boys tennis, boys golf, lacrosse and track and field.

Several Chatham teams made the state playoffs this spring, with two — the Northwood boys lacrosse team and the Woods Charter girls soccer team — making it all the way to the state finals. The Chargers lost to Lake Norman Charter in the 1A/2A/3A championship game, while the Wolves fell to Christ the King for the second straight year in the 1A finals.

Between the two teams, 12 athletes were named to their respective all-conference teams, with Northwood senior Will Johnson, Woods Charter senior Lucy Miller and Woods Charter junior Sienna Gray earning player of the year awards, as well.

The following is a full list of Chatham all-conference selections for the 2023 spring season.

CENTRAL 3A CONFERENCE

Baseball

Seth Davis, senior, Northwood

Nathan McWilliams, senior, Northwood

Softball

Sarah Warfford, junior, Northwood

Zoe Hatzidakis, senior, Northwood

Girls soccer

Sarah Anne Murrell,

sophomore, Northwood

Ava Arias, junior, Northwood

Sydney Cox, senior, Northwood

Brooklyn Pease, senior, Northwood

Coach of the Year — Liz Arias, Northwood

Boys tennis

Jio Sumogod, senior, Northwood

Matteus Butler, senior, Northwood

Ragul Ramesh, senior, Northwood

Boys golf

Patrick Baquero, senior, Northwood

Boys lacrosse

James Flannagan, freshman, Northwood

Will Johnson, senior,

at the position with Jae’lyn Withers, Jalen Washington and Zayden High all serving as backups. While there could be minutes available for Stevenson, Tar Heels head coach Hubert Davis has regularly stuck to six- and seven-man rotations and has hesitated to play true freshman big minutes so far in his tenure.

Last season, four-star small forward Tyler Nickel played in 25 games as a true freshman but averaged just six minutes per game. This offseason, Nickel decided to transfer to Virginia Tech to find more playing time. Stevenson could find himself in a similar scenario if

See STEVENSON, page B3

Northwood

Will Smith, senior, Northwood Taylor Laberge, senior, Northwood

Jason Walden, senior, Northwood

Ivan Grimes, freshman, Seaforth

Cameron Exley, sophomore, Seaforth

John Becker, junior, Seaforth Defensive Player of the Year — Will Johnson, Seaforth Girls track and field

Sydney Gray, freshman, Northwood (800-meter run, 4x800 relay)

Laney Babo, freshman, Northwood (300-meter hurdles, 4x400 relay)

Jacey Martinez, freshman, Northwood (4x800 relay)

Avery Adams, sophomore, Northwood (4x800 relay)

Rokia Sissoko, junior, Northwood (400-meter dash, 4x400 relay)

Skyler Adams, junior, Northwood (4x400 relay, triple jump)

Marissa Clouse, junior, Northwood (4x800 relay)

Hailey Hirschman, senior, Northwood (4x400 relay)

Sophia Cremeans, senior, Northwood (pole vault)

Runner of the Year — Rokia Sissoko, junior, Northwood Coach of the Year — Cameron Isenhour, Northwood

See ALL STATE, page B5

JAMES KIEFER | CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

Powell jumps into top 10; Wolves hire Wood as new girls basketball coach

By Jeremy Vernon Chatham News & Record

NORTHWOOD RISING senior Drake Powell keeps climbing in recruiting rankings, locking in the five-star designation he recently received. Last week, the 6-foot-6 forward jumped up to No. 9 overall in the Class of 2024 according to 247Sports.

Powell — a UNC commit — is now the top-ranked recruit from North Carolina in 247’s rankings, ahead of Duke commit Isaiah Evans and fellow Pittsboro product Jarin Stevenson. The offseason months have seen Powell raise his game while playing for Team CP3 in the EYBL, and people have taken notice.

The Northwood star is one of three players in UNC’s topranked recruiting class in 2024, along with No. 5 Ian Jackson and No. 88 James Brown. The Tar Heels also hoped to land Stevenson — a rising senior at Seaforth — to round out their class ahead of his Wednesday decision.

Powell averaged 18.6 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game for the Northwood boys’ basketball team in 2022-23, leading the Chargers to the 3A state title game before they were upended by Central Cabarrus. With more than 1,200 career points to his credit, Powell will be arguably the top returning player in all of North Carolina this upcoming high school season.

Earlier this month, Powell competed with 34 others in USA Basketball’s 2023 U19 men’s national team training camp in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Despite not being chosen for the final 12-player roster that is set to play in the FIBA U19 Men’s World Cup in Hungary starting this Friday, the Northwood product has certainly done him-

self plenty of favors with his play this offseason.

Wolves hire new girls’ basketball coach

Last week, Woods Charter announced that Carmen Wood will take over as the varsity girls basketball coach beginning with the 2023-24 season.

An assistant athletic director at Woods Charter, Wood has also been responsible for event planning, managing social media platforms and assisting in day-to-day athletic operations at the school the past several years.

Before taking this job, she previously coached Woods Charter’s

middle school girls’ team and acted as an assistant with the varsity team. Wood will try to turn things around after the Wolves had a down year in 2022-23, going 7-13 overall and missing out on the state playoffs. Woods Charter has put together a record of .500 or better in four of the past 15 seasons, the most recent coming in 2021-22 (12-7 overall). Woods Charter graduated three seniors from this past year’s team. Heading into the 2023-24 season, the Wolves’ will be led by rising senior Carolina Mitchell (15.1 points per game) and rising sophomore Wesley Oliver (11.9).

Post 292 wins third game of the season

The Chatham American Legion Post 292 baseball team picked up its third win of the season with a convincing 15-4 victory over Hamlet Post 49 on Monday night.

Carrying the team at the plate recently has been Chatham Central rising junior Matt Murchison, who was 3-for-4 with a double and a home run on Monday after going 2-for-4 in an 8-6 loss to Fuquay Varina on Saturday. Also playing well for the team is recent Grace Christian graduate T.J McGraw, who was 4-for-4 with a home run and a

double in the win over Hamlet on Monday. Chatham Central rising senior Anthony Lopossay picked up the win on the mound Monday after pitching 4.2 innings, allowing four earned runs and striking out four batters. Chatham Charter rising junior Zach Cartrette threw 1.1 innings of hitless ball in relief.

Post 292 had an overall record of 3-7 entering Tuesday’s game against Hope Mills Post 32, which occurred after press time. The team starts conference play Thursday at home against Foothills at 7 p.m. Post 292 plays its home games at Jordan-Matthews High.

SIMON BARBRE | CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

Northwood rising senior Drake Powell recently rose to No. 9 overall in 247Sports’ rankings for the Class of 2024.

CHATHAM COUNTY SPORTS

Here are some more of our best photographs showcasing Chatham County sports during the 2022-23 school year. Throughout the summer, we’ll share more shots our photographers captured from three seasons of full of high-level competition from local athletes.

he goes to UNC early and can’t make an impact right away. In this case, it might be better to wait another year and stay in the Class of 2024.

UNC’s top frontcourt player, center Armando Bacot, will graduate after the 202324 season, and his departure should open opportunities for other Tar Heel bigs to get more minutes and touches. He would also stay part of the school’s highly touted 2024 recruiting class, which includes three other players — including Northwood rising senior Drake Powell (No. 9 nationally).

It’s a similar situation at Virginia, where the Cavaliers have brought in two transfers, Jordan Minor and Jacob Groves, to ideally start at the four and five this upcoming season. Head coach Tony Bennett isn’t afraid to play true freshmen, but there might be too many players in front of Stevenson to afford him the opportunity to play.

If Stevenson decides to leave

Seaforth, he will do so as the Hawks’ all-time leading scorer with 1,011 career points over two seasons with the team. The power forward played his freshman season at Northwood, where he helped lead the Chargers to the finals of the 3A state tournament.

After the season, Stevenson was named the North Carolina Gatorade Player of the Year in boys’ basketball. He averaged 21.5 points, 11.6 rebounds and 3.7 blocks per game this past season, while the Hawks went 18-9 overall and made it to the second round of the 2A playoffs.

The loss of Stevenson would be a big hurdle for Seaforth to climb this upcoming winter. The forward led the team in pretty much every statistical category this past season. If he does leave, the Hawks’ top returning scorer would be rising senior Kooper Jones (9.1 points, 5.9 rebounds per game).

Stevenson’s dad — Jarod Stevenson — is also the head coach of the Seaforth boys, but it’s unclear whether he’d want

to stay in the role or step down to follow his son’s college career more closely.sitions given Alabama’s lack of depth.

UNC also has some depth issues at the power forward position entering the 2023-23 season, with transfer Harrison Ingram currently slated to start at the position with Jae’lyn Withers, Jalen Washington and Zayden High all serving as backups. While there could be minutes available for Stevenson, Tar Heels’ head coach Hubert Davis has regularly stuck to six- and seven-man rotations and has hesitated to play true freshman big minutes so far in his tenure.

Last season, four-star small forward Tyler Nickel played in 25 games as a true freshman but averaged just six minutes per game. This offseason, Nickel decided to transfer to Virginia Tech to find more playing time. Stevenson could find himself in a similar scenario if he goes to UNC early and can’t make an impact right away. In this case, it might be better to

wait another year and stay in the Class of 2024.

UNC’s top frontcourt player, center Armando Bacot, will graduate after the 202324 season, and his departure should open up opportunities for other Tar Heel bigs to get more minutes and touches. He would also stay part of the school’s highly-touted 2024 recruiting class, which includes three other players — including Northwood rising senior Drake Powell (No. 9 nationally).

It’s a similar situation at Virginia, where the Cavaliers have brought in two transfers, Jordan Minor and Jacob Groves, to ideally start at the four and five this upcoming season. Head coach Tony Bennett isn’t afraid to play true freshmen, but there might be too many players in front of Stevenson to afford him the opportunity to play.

Stevenson is expected to announce his college decision any day now. If he decides to leave Seaforth, he will do so as the Hawks’ all-time leading scorer with 1,011 career points over

two seasons with the team. The power forward played his freshman season at Northwood, where he helped lead the Chargers to the finals of the 3A state tournament.

After the season, Stevenson was named the North Carolina Gatorade Player of the Year in boys basketball. He averaged 21.5 points, 11.6 rebounds and 3.7 blocks per game this past season, while the Hawks went 18-9 overall and made it to the second round of the 2A playoffs.

The loss of Stevenson would be a big hurdle for Seaforth to climb this upcoming winter. The forward led the team in pretty much every statistical category this past season. If he does leave, the Hawks’ top returning scorer would be rising senior Kooper Jones (9.1 points, 5.9 rebounds per game).

Stevenson’s dad — Jarod Stevenson — is also the head coach of the Seaforth boys, but it’s unclear whether he’d want to stay in the role or step down to follow his son’s college career more closely.

STEVENSON from page 1

PEYTON SICKLES | CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

SIMON BARBRE | CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

SIMON BARBRE | CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

JAMES KIEFER | CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

What should the Hornets do with the No. 2 pick?

IT REALLY FEELS like the NBA season hasn’t ended.

I mean, less than a week after Denver secured the 2023 NBA Championship with a 4-1 series win over Miami, a huge trade was announced — Bradley Beal is heading from Washington to Phoenix in exchange for Chris Paul and some change.

in both 1992 (Shaquille O’Neal went No. 1) and 2012 (Anthony Davis went No. 1).

Charlotte’s draft history is filled with poor decisions, like trading the rights to Kobe Bryant in 1996, picking Cody Zeller fourth overall in 2012, selecting Frank Kaminsky at No. 9 in 2015, taking Malik Monk over Donovan Mitchell in 2017 and trading the rights to Shai GilgeousAlexander in 2018.

The past few weeks have seen the rumor mill hit a fever pitch, and now the NBA Draft is finally here to throw everything into complete chaos. Thursday’s No. 1 selection is already a forgone conclusion, with French superprospect Victor Wembanyama on his way to the San Antonio Spurs, but the rest of the selections are still a mystery.

Sitting at No. 2 is Charlotte, which is reportedly deciding between trading the pick or selecting either G League Ignite guard Scoot Henderson or Alabama forward Brandon Miller. While both Miller and Henderson are enticing players, I think the Hornets should move the second pick for a high-impact veteran.

How does Zion Williamson in Charlotte sound?

That’s the direction I think the Hornets should take. Prior to having LaMelo Ball fall into its lap at No. 3 overall in 2020, Charlotte had just down-right horrible draft luck. The Hornets have twice missed out on generational prospects in franchise history — picking second

SEAFORTH from page 1

come sign for a Hawks team that fielded 33 varsity players in 2022. While they should have more players on the roster this upcoming season, many players will continue to play on both sides of the ball.

One of those players is rising junior Walt Enterkin, who Gary said will play both safety and some quarterback in 2023.

Last season, Enterkin totaled 36 tackles, two tackles for loss and a forced fumble at safety

and caught eight passes for 74 yards and a touchdown at receiver.

Enterkin, along with rising juniors Aaron Teta and George Weaver, are expected to make a jump this upcoming season, according to Gary. Other players to watch out for are rising junior quarterback Joshua Brown, rising senior running back Anthony Vesce and rising senior receiver Ethan Becker.

Seeing the improvement his players have made since the program started have made

The rest of Charlotte’s draft history is filled with poor decisions, like trading the rights to Kobe Bryant in 1996, picking Cody Zeller fourth overall in 2012, selecting Frank Kaminsky at No. 9 in 2015, taking Malik Monk over Donovan Mitchell in 2017 and trading the rights to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in 2018.

Woof.

Instead of taking a swing on a player with no NBA experience, why not take the ultimate swing on Williamson, a player with undeniable talent who has struggled mightily to stay on the court since being drafted in 2019.

Williamson, a forward for the Pelicans, missed the entire 2021-22 season with a foot injury and only played in 29 games in 2022-23 before a hamstring injury sidelined him the rest of the year. Still, before his latest injury, he was averaging a staggering 26.9 points, 7.0 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game while shooting 60.8% from the field and 36.8% from 3-point range.

Williamson has plenty of Carolina ties. He was born in Salisbury and raised in South Carolina. He went to high school at Spartanburg Day, just an hour away from Charlotte, and played one season of college ball at Duke.

New Orleans is reportedly interested in jumping into the draft to take Henderson,

all the hurdles and hardships worth it, according to Gary.

“I’ve seen a change in the maturity, them seeing what it takes to be successful in football,” he said. “It’s a little bit different than the other sports. You really have to work as a team, do your part and make sure others are held accountable as well.”

Last season, Seaforth went 2-8 overall and 2-4 in the Mid-Carolina Conference. The Hawks’ two wins came against county opponents Chatham Central and Jordan Matthews,

ETFs Can Spell Opportunity

Mutual funds offer investors a chance to own shares in dozens of companies, as well as bonds, government securities and other investments. But you might be able to broaden your portfolio further by owning another type of fund — an exchange-traded fund (ETF).

An ETF, like a mutual fund, can own an array of investments, including stocks, bonds and other securities. Many ETFs are passively managed in that they track the performance of a specific index, such as the S&P 500. In this respect, they differ from most mutual funds, which tend to be actively managed — that is, the fund managers are free to buy and sell individual securities within the fund.

Another difference between ETFs and mutual funds is that ETFs are traded like stocks, so shares are bought and sold throughout the day based on the current market price, whereas mutual funds are traded just once a day, at a price calculated at the end of the trading day. Whether this ability to make intra-day trades is meaningful to you will likely depend on how active you are in managing your own investments.

For some people, the main attraction of ETFs is their tax advantages. Because many ETFs are index funds, they generally do much less buying and selling than actively managed funds — and fewer sales mean fewer taxable capital gains. These ETFs are somewhat similar to index mutual funds, which are also considered to be tax-efficient, as opposed to actively managed funds, which constantly buy and sell investments, passing on taxable capital gains to you throughout the life of the fund. (Keep in mind, though, that mutual funds that trade frequently may still be appropriate for your financial strategy. While taxes are one element to consider when evaluating mutual funds, or any investment, other factors, such

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301 E Raleigh St 919-663-1051

and apparently Williamson is on the table. But it was recently reported that Charlotte would rather take Brandon Ingram instead of Williamson in any swap. If that report is true, I think it would be another poor decision by a franchise that hasn’t delivered a playoff series win since 2004.

Ingram, who is from Kinston and also attended Duke, is a fine player, but he is three years older than the 22-year-old Williamson, and he doesn’t have the kind of star power to lift the Hornets out of mediocrity in the Eastern Conference.

Charlotte hasn’t had a seriously talented player at the four or five since Al Jefferson played with the team from 2013 to 2016. Adding Williamson to the roster would offer an instant upgrade wherever you plug him in. The amount of alley-oops should be through the roof, too.

Obviously there are concerns with Williamson, namely his health and his widely reported lack of motivation to stay in peak physical shape. What you have to hope is a move out of New Orleans and to a place much closer to home would be enough of a motivator for the two-time All-Star.

It might be hard for some people to imagine, but it’s a risk I think you must take. None of the players in this draft have the potential of Williamson, who is still only 22 and likely still years away from hitting his peak.

and they came within one score of upsetting Northwood in a 12-7 loss on Sept. 9.

Seaforth averaged 143.2 yards of offense per game during its first varsity season.

Brown was the team’s leading passer, completing 37.5% of his passes for 545 yards, four touchdowns and six interceptions. Vesce was the team’s leading rusher (34 carries, 269 yards, one touchdown) and Becker was the leading receiver (nine catches, 212 yards, two touchdowns).

The Hawks held tough on defense for most of the 2022 season, allowing 277.3 yards per game to their opponents, including 179.7 yards per game on the ground. Seaforth’s opponents also converted 40.9% of their third downs during the season. Seaforth kicks off the 2023 season on Aug. 18 at home against Purnell Swett before hitting the road in Week 2 to play Southern Lee. The Hawks open conference play on Sept. 8 at home against Graham.

as growth potential and ability to diversify your portfolio, are also important.)

ETFs typically also have lower operating costs than mutual funds, resulting in lower overall fees. Part of the reason for these lower costs is that actively managed mutual funds, by definition, usually have larger management teams devoted to researching, buying and selling securities. By contrast, passively managed ETFs may have leaner, less-costly management structures.

But while most ETFs may share the same basic operating model, many types are available. You can invest in equity ETFs, which may track stocks in a particular industry or an index of equities (S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average, and so on), or you can purchase fixed-income ETFs, which invest in bonds. ETFs are also available for currencies and commodities.

Of course, as with all investments, ETF investing does involve risk. Your principal and investment return will fluctuate in value, so when you redeem your ETF, it may be worth more or less than the original investment. Also, liquidity may be an issue. Some ETFs may be more difficult to sell than other investments, which could be a problem if you need the money quickly. And because it’s so easy to move in and out of ETFs, you might be tempted to “overtrade” rather than following an appropriate long-term investment strategy.

A financial professional can evaluate your situation and help you determine whether ETFs are suitable for your needs. At a minimum, they represent another investment opportunity that may prove useful as you work toward your financial goals.

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

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ALL STATE from page 1

Boys track and field

Trey Hudson, sophomore, Northwood (4x800 relay)

Luke Waldstein, sophomore, Northwood (high jump)

Noah Nielson, junior, Northwood (800-meter run, 1,600-meter run, 4x400 relay)

Jackson Adams, senior, Northwood (800-meter run, 1,600-meter run, 4x800 relay)

Ethan Wilson, senior, Northwood (300-meter hurdles, 4x400 relay)

Zachary Peterson, senior, Northwood (4x400 relay)

Cabot Priddle, senior, Northwood (4x400 relay)

Wiley Sikes, senior, Northwood (4x800 relay)

Jack Nicholson, senior, Northwood (long jump, triple jump, discus throw)

Field Athlete of the Year — Jack Nicholson, senior, Northwood

Coach of the Year — Cameron

Isenhour, Northwood

MID-CAROLINA

1A/2A CONFERENCE

Baseball

Matt Murchison, sophomore, Chatham Central

Zane Overman, sophomore, Chatham Central

Anthony Lopossay, junior, Chatham Central

Wesley Clewis, junior, Chatham

Central

Joaquin Gordon, junior, Chatham Central

Travis Crissman, senior, Chatham Central

Hasten Paige, senior, Chatham

Central

Collin Dorney, freshman,

Seaforth

Jadeyn Rader, freshman,

Seaforth

Cade Elmore, sophomore, Seaforth

Anders Johansson, junior,

Seaforth

Landon Moser, freshman, Jordan-Matthews

Eduardo Gutierrez, sophomore, Jordan-Matthews

Quinn Woolford, sophomore, Jordan-Matthews

Ian McMillan, junior, Jordan-

Matthews

Kelton Fuquay, junior, Jordan-

Matthews

Jackson Headen, senior, JordanMatthews

Mason Phillips, senior, Jordan-

Matthews

Keigan Burt, senior, Jordan-

Matthews

Player of the Year — Ian McMillan, junior, JordanMatthews

Pitcher of the Year — Kelton

Fuquay, junior, JordanMatthews

Softball

Emma Burke, sophomore, Chatham Central

Caleigh Warf, sophomore,

Chatham Central

Cassie McKeithan, junior, Chatham Central

Katherine Gaines, junior, Chatham Central

Kelsey Hussey, junior, Chatham

Central

Jaylee Williams, senior,

Chatham Central

Mary Gaines, senior, Chatham

Central

Shelby Holder, junior, Chatham

Central

Lilli Hicks, freshman, Jordan-

Matthews

Suesanna Lee, senior, Jordan-

Matthews

Logan Gunter, junior, Jordan-

Matthews

Macy Beavers, senior, Jordan-

Matthews

Reagan Smith, junior, Jordan-

Matthews

Marcy Clark, sophomore, Jordan-Matthews

Sophia Murchison, sophomore, Jordan-Matthews

Korbyn Kirchner, junior, Jordan-Matthews

Emma Strong, freshman,

Seaforth

Cami Brinkley, freshman,

Seaforth

Addison Clarke, sophomore,

Seaforth

Mariah Thomas, junior,

Seaforth

Player of the Year — Jaylee Williams, senior, Chatham

Central Pitcher of the Year — Mary

Gaines, senior, Chatham Central

Coach of the Year — Holly

Clark, Jordan-Matthews

Girls soccer

Katie Leonard, freshman,

Seaforth

Sydney Nezos, freshman,

Seaforth

Regan Willauer, freshman,

Seaforth

Sofia Viana, freshman, Seaforth

Luisa Olmos, freshman,

Seaforth

Caitlin Erman, sophomore,

Seaforth

Emma O’Rourke, sophomore,

Seaforth

Sam Tucker, junior, Seaforth

Jessica Parroquin, sophomore,

Jordan-Matthews

Citlaly Aguillon, sophomore,

Jordan-Matthews

Hannia Martinez, junior, Jordan-Matthews

Iris Zetino, junior, Jordan-

Matthews

Maricarmen Landa, senior, Jordan-Matthews

Anna Vicente, senior, Jordan-

Matthews

Michelle Parroquin, senior, Jordan-Matthews

Jeylin Perla, senior, JordanMatthews

Jennifer Garcia, senior, JordanMatthews

Offensive Player of the Year —

Sofia Viana, freshman, Seaforth

Goalkeeper of the Year — Jeylin

Perla, senior, Jordan-Matthews

Coach of the Year — Giovanni

Viana, Seaforth

Boys tennis

Matthew Bowser, sophomore, Seaforth

Henry McFall, sophomore,

Seaforth

Walker Magrinat, junior, Seaforth

Felton Burleigh, junior, Seaforth

Owen Strom, junior, Seaforth

Angel Gonzalez Suarez, senior, Jordan-Matthews

Ricardo Rocha Benitez, senior, Jordan-Matthews

Rodrigo Maciel Lopes, senior, Jordan-Matthews

Paul Lujan, senior, JordanMatthews

Jacob Gilliland, junior, Chatham Central

Seth Gilliland, junior, Chatham

Central

Jonavan Martin, junior, Chatham Central

Player of the Year — Walker

Magrinat, junior, Seaforth

Coach of the Year — Nia MarshPope, Jordan-Matthews

Boys golf

Ty Willoughby, freshman, Seaforth

Campbell Meador, freshman, Seaforth Gray Stewart, sophomore, Seaforth

Griffin Ching, sophomore, Seaforth

J.T DeLoach, junior, Seaforth

Noah Snyder, senior, JordanMatthews

Brian Johnson, senior, JordanMatthews

Benjamin Buckner, senior, Jordan-Matthews

Corbin Allen, senior, Chatham

Central

Player of the Year — Griffin

Ching, sophomore, Seaforth

Girls track and field

Cali O’Neil, freshman, Seaforth

Sasha Helmer, freshman, Seaforth

Sydney Haire, freshman, Seaforth

Charlie Ann George, sophomore, Seaforth

Claire Morgan, sophomore, Seaforth

Malana McLean, sophomore, Seaforth

Maja Boer, sophomore, Seaforth

Juliet VanOlinda, sophomore, Seaforth

Mia Ballachino, sophomore, Seaforth

Anavi Smith, sophomore, Seaforth

Abbie Lehman, sophomore,

Seaforth

Katie Johnson, sophomore,

Seaforth

Charlotte Haas, junior, Seaforth

Saniya White, freshman,

Jordan-Matthews

Citlaly Aguillon, sophomore,

Jordan-Matthews

Sophia Kopela, sophomore,

Jordan-Matthews

Rachel Woods, sophomore,

Jordan-Matthews

Hania Martinez, sophomore,

Jordan-Matthews

Hannah Dixon, sophomore,

Jordan-Matthews

Charley Lemons, junior, Jordan-

Matthews

Any Daniela, junior, Jordan-

Matthews

Cassidy Deshazo, junior,

Jordan-Matthews

Baldwin Jaylyn, senior, Jordan-

Matthews

Jasmine Basilio, senior, Jordan-

Matthews

Mattie Caviness, junior,

Chatham Central

Olivia Brooks, senior, Chatham

Central

Kailey Green, senior, Chatham

Central

Coach of the Year — Brittany

Christensen, Seaforth

Boys track and field

Gabriel Lowery, freshman,

Seaforth

Ryan Yoder, freshman, Seaforth

Jacob Winger, freshman,

Seaforth

Nathan Smith, sophomore,

Seaforth

Broden Jones, sophomore,

Seaforth

Johnson Brekke, sophomore,

Seaforth

Jason Antley, sophomore,

Seaforth

Will Cuicchi, sophomore,

Seaforth

Jack Anstrom, sophomore,

Seaforth

Sebastian Calderon, sophomore,

Seaforth

Walter Entrekin, sophomore,

Seaforth

Chris Scanlon, junior, Seaforth

Aiden Hernandez, freshman,

Jordan-Matthews

Nick Glover, freshman, Jordan-

Matthews

Carlo Galena, sophomore,

Jordan-Matthews

Dwight Headen, sophomore,

Jordan-Matthews

Gabriel Brewer, junior, Jordan-

Matthews

Christian Garcia Torres, junior,

Jordan-Matthews

Jerron Green, junior, Jordan-

Matthews

Elijah Hughes, junior, Jordan-

Matthews

Emir Vargas, junior, Jordan-

Matthews

Kevin Causey, junior, Jordan-

Matthews

Ahmod McCrimmon, senior, Jordan-Matthews

Aiden Harrison, senior, JordanMatthews

Coach of the Year — Tommy Johnson, Seaforth

CENTRAL TAR HEEL 1A CONFERENCE

Baseball

Westin Phillips, freshman, Chatham Charter

Zach Cartrette, sophomore, Chatham Charter

Luke Johnson, sophomore, Chatham Charter

Jonah Ridgill, junior, Chatham

Charter

Aidan Allred, junior, Chatham

Charter

Cameron Turner, senior, Chatham Charter

Player of the Year — Aidan

Allred, junior, Chatham Charter

Pitcher of the Year — Zach

Cartrette, sophomore, Chatham

Charter

Coach of the Year — Bill

Slaughter, Chatham Charter

Softball

Kynzie Jordan, freshman, Chatham Charter

Ella Ingle, sophomore, Chatham

Charter

Sawyer Bowman, sophomore, Chatham Charter

Delana Loflin, junior, Chatham

Charter

Hailie Edmondson, senior, Chatham Charter

Chelsie Hardister, senior, Chatham Charter

Girls soccer

Amelia Cherry, freshman, Woods Charter

Wesley Oliver, freshman, Woods

Charter

Megan Nowack, senior, Woods

Charter

Lucy Miller, senior, Woods

Charter

Leyla Noronha, junior, Woods

Charter

Sienna Gray, junior, Woods

Charter

Chloe Richard, senior, Woods

Charter

Tabitha Felch, senior, Chatham

Charter

Offensive Player of the Year

— Sienna Gray, junior, Woods

Charter

Defensive Player of the Year

— Lucy Miller, senior, Woods

Charter

Boys tennis

Colton Todd, junior, Chatham

Charter

Coach of the Year — Kelly

Eldridge

Boys golf

Caden Poremba, freshman, Chatham Charter

Seph Trageser, junior, Chatham Charter

Ponga la grasa en con n teneedorres s appropiados s Remueva el aceitey la grasa de utenciliosde cocina, equipos, y areas de preparación de comidas con espatulas/toallas/escobas Mentenga la grasa fuera de el agua de lavar

Ponga los desperdicios de comida en contenedores adecuados

No tire aceite o grasa en los drenajes No lave con agua freidora/planchas, ollas.cacerolas y platos hasta que el aceite y la grasa hayan sido removidos Noe useauacalientepara limpiar la grasa de las superficies No tire desperdicios de comida en l os drenajes

SILER CITY COUNTRY CLUB

accepting applications for Golf Maintenance. Competitive wages. Applications accepted at Clubhouse. Apply in person.

NASCAR’s Good Ol’ Boys shake up the French countryside

By Jordan Golson North State Journal

THERE IS SOMETHING

Intoxicatingly beautiful about wickedly fast cars racing through the French countryside at night. That’s probably why the 24 Heures du Mans, or, in English, the 24 Hours of Le Mans, has continued for the last 100 years. It is perhaps the world’s premier motor race; the 2023 edition was last weekend.

Some of the world’s fastest drivers transit the 8.5-mile Circuit de la Sarthe — a mix of closed public roads and a bit of dedicated racetrack in less than three-and-a-half minutes at an average speed of close to 150 miles per hour.

I had the good fortune to attend the 2016 running, when Ford returned after a multi-decade absence and won its class the first time out. Every year brings different stories, but the brief is simple: Win.

There were four different classes racing this year, with

more than five dozen entries. From the no-holds-barred prototype hypercars to the GT cars that look almost like something you might be able to buy from your local Aston Martin or Porsche dealer, there are constant battles up and down the grid. But the biggest battle teams face is time.

The goal of an endurance race isn’t necessarily to be the fastest. Instead, the winner is the car that can travel the greatest distance in 24 hours, accounting for pit stops to refuel, change tires and drivers, and even to make repairs. It is a brutal, merciless game designed to push man and machine to their breaking point. In 2016, the year

I attended, Toyota missed out on its first-ever win at Le Mans when its race-leading car broke down on the main straight on the last lap of the race. Having a big lead after 23 minutes and 57 seconds is not enough, it turns out.

But this year, the most exciting story came from an unex-

pected place. Most non-racing enthusiasts think of NASCAR as a sport for rednecks where heavy cars with big V8 motors rip around a superspeedway turning left. To show that there’s much more to stock car racing than left turns and good ol’ boys, NASCAR teamed up with Hendrick Motorsports, one of the top teams in racing, to field Garage 56: a Next Gen stock car that’s been Le Mans-ified and is the talk of the paddock (and all of racing) this year.

The No. 24 car, ostensibly a Chevrolet Camaro, was heavily modified from a standard NASCAR. Rather than stickers, it has functioning headlights and taillights, carbon brake discs, and a fuel cell 12 gallons larger than normal. It’s covered in a mind-boggling array of new aerodynamic components to increase downforce, and it’s a whopping 500 pounds lighter than the typical Cup car you’d find in a NASCAR race.

Le Mans teams typically field three drivers, and the Garage

56 entrant — a special slot on the grid introduced in 2012 for particularly innovative and futuristic cars that might not fit into any other category — had F1 Champion Jenson Button, 7-time NASCAR Cup Series champ Jimmie Johnson, and Le Mans winner Mike Rockenfeller behind the wheel.

But most exciting was that while the Garage 56 entry technically raced in a class of 1, it was also running against the rest of the field, particularly the sports cars. Even more exciting?

It beat the fastest GT car, a Ferrari 488 GTE EVO, by nearly four seconds in qualifying. In other words, America was ready roll into France and kick some European ass. It’s hard to put into words how unusual this car is. Compared to everybody else on the grid, this thing was huge.

There are other American entries in the race, too, including a Chevrolet Corvette C8.R and a rather bonkers hybrid Cadillac in the Hypercar class. But forget all that. With a naturally aspi-

rated, cast-iron small block V8 under the hood, the Garage 56 car is mind-bogglingly loud and sure to keep fans tenting trackside up all night long. America.

While it’s basically impossible to watch the whole race (in 2016, I eventually fell asleep trackside on the terrace at Ford’s hospitality building), I did my best to keep an eye on Jenson, Jimmie, and Mike, and they made us proud.

The car took 39th place, not only completing the race (which is far from a given at Le Mans), but nearly matching the best lap time of the GTE-winning Corvette Racing team. There are countless videos on TikTok of the Garage 56 entry passing other cars, including ostensibly faster LMP2 entries, usually to Free Bird or something from the Team America: World Police soundtrack.

But what a race it was. As they say, in order to finish first, first you must finish. And after 24 hours at Le Mans, sometimes that’s the sweetest victory of all.

COURTESY PHOTOS

… And there’s pie

By Debbie Matthews

Curious Cook

IT OCCURS TO ME, Gentle Reader, that I’ve never given you the recipe for that delightfully sweet Southern gentleman, pecan pie.

I apologize for the practically criminal omission, and in this column will correct that error.

My mom makes the most unbelievable pecan pie. It is the Platonic ideal of pecan pie. Beautiful, delicious and containing the perfect goo within, to which every pecan pie eater can attest is the most important element to a soul satisfying slice.

Some of you may remember that The Kid studied at a culinary school in Vermont. While most Vermonters can teach a doctoral level class on all things maple, pecan pie is one big puzzle to them. The Kid, although ironically not a pecan pie lover nonetheless had been raised in the presence of my mother’s confection, and the rhapsodic responses eating said pie evoked.

So, our little scholar texted Gramma down in Greensboro and asked for the recipe.

My mom texted it back … not copy and pasted, but written word for word, because, as she said, “If I type it, I know it’s right”

The folks up in New England loved the pie, as soon as they replaced most of the corn syrup for the maple version.

The Kid still cannot abide that amber-hued, tree-derived nectar from New England.

Contact me at dm@bullcity.mom.

GRAMMA’S SECRET PECAN PIE

(Recipe from Karo Syrup. Yup, that’s the secret)

1 cup Karo® Light OR Dark Corn Syrup (Ross/ Matthews clan strongly prefer the light)

3 eggs

1 cup sugar

2 tablespoons butter, melted

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) pecans

Half a batch of Boozy

Yet Flaky Pastry dough (recipe follows)

Roll dough into disk to fill 9-inch pie pan at least thirty to sixty minutes before filling and place into fridge to chill.

Preheat oven to 350 F. Place rimmed cookie sheet on the center rack in oven while preheating.

Mix corn syrup, eggs, sugar, butter and vanilla using a spoon. Stir in pecans.

Pour filling into chilled, unbaked pie crust.

Carefully place pie on the preheated cookie sheet on the center rack of oven and bake for 60 to 70 minutes (see tips for doneness, below). Cool for 2 hours on wire rack before serving.

RECIPE TIPS: Pie is done when center reaches 200 F. Tap center surface of pie lightly — It should spring back when done. For easy clean up, spray pie pan with cooking spray before placing pie crust in pan. If pie crust is over-browning, cover edges with foil.

VARIATION: coarsely chopped walnuts may be substituted for pecans to make a walnut pie.

BOOZY YET FLAKY PASTRY

1 cup butter (2 sticks), frozen, then grated on the large grate and kept frozen until used

2 ½ cups + ½ tablespoon cake flour

1 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons very cold vodka or bourbon (vodka is tasteless in the cooked crust, but bourbon adds a touch of flavor — your choice.)

5-8 tablespoons ice water

Put the butter, flour, and salt in the food processor, and pulse lightly just until the mixture resembles wet sand. Add vodka then water, 1 tablespoon at a time, pulsing briefly after each spoonful. Keep adding liquid until the dough just begins to gather into larger clumps. Pour dough onto flat surface and lightly knead just until it barely, barely comes together (there will be quite a few renegade crumbs that you have to capture and add to the larger ball of dough.)

Divide dough in half and transfer into re-sealable plastic bags and pat into disks. Let rest in refrigerator for 30 minutes. Or freeze for later.

Before baking, chill formed dough for 30 to 60 minutes.

I add vodka to lower the chances gluten developing. Gluten is the protein that makes bread dough stretchy. It also makes for a disappointingly chewy pie crust. The secret of a light flaky crust is to stop kneading the second you can press a portion of dough between your fingers and it mostly keeps its shape.

And you really, really want the crust to be cold when it hits your hot oven. This accomplishes two things. The butter will melt all at once, and the steam that is produced will create little air pockets, which contributes to a flaky mouth-feel. And there will be very little shrinkage, so the pie crust won’t retreat down the sides of the pan.