Aug. 4 - 10, 2017
bringing the local news home to northwest Guilford County since 1996
Family seeks community’s help with unsolved murder
It’s been 21 years since Skipper Parker, 19, was fatally shot at a stoplight on N.C. 68
There was quite an age gap between them, as they had the same father but different mothers. He was only four years older than me, so for the most part he felt more like my brother than my uncle.
by GILLIAN GREEN PAULEY, guest writer Aug. 2, 1996, changed our lives in so many ways. That was the day my uncle, Joe Norman “Skipper” Parker Jr., was taken from this world. Even all these years later, it still feels like a nightmare I can’t wake up from.
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Skipper Parker
Neighbors question why existing ordinance isn’t enforced by STEVE MANN
The nuisance ordinance shouldn’t be about that property (in Dorsett Downs). It should be about a policy that works for everybody without costing the town a bunch of money, without harassing any particular property owner.” Tim Jones, Stokesdale Town Council member
STOKESDALE – News an ordinance covering public nuisances on private property is on the books has left some in Stokesdale’s Dorsett Downs subdivision wondering why the ordinance isn’t enforced. Neighbors had sought help from the Town and several Guilford County departments regarding the property at 8011 Dorsett Downs, which they say has been vacant the better part of four years. The home’s yard is overgrown; railings no longer are attached to the front
When the public wants to know Volume, complexity of public records requests varies among municipalities, but one local town manager says the requests his town receives often come in like ‘rapid fire machine guns’ by PATTI STOKES
Being the eldest of four children, and the only girl, having an uncle only slightly older than me was a dream come true. Skipper was someone I could talk openly to, ask for advice, and share things with that no one else knew. As we got older, Skipper and I bonded like siblings and friends. To know him was to love him.
Skipper was my mama’s only sibling.
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steps; and an in-ground swimming pool in the backyard is filled with brown water and remnants of what used to be a pool cover. The Guilford County Sheriff’s Department has responded at least twice in the last few years to reports of suspicious activity at the property. The homeowner’s last known address is in Kentucky, but efforts by neighbors and the Northwest Observer to contact him have been unsuccessful. “People were kind of hoping
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NW GUILFORD – According to the “County and Municipal Government in North Carolina” textbook, local government’s financial records, leases and contracts, insurance policies, reports, meeting minutes, emails, etc. are all examples of records that generally must be made available to the public upon request. Most municipalities, including two in northwest Guilford County, report their public records
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IN THIS ISSUE News in Brief ...................................................3 Your Questions ...............................................4 Business owner inquires about annexation....6 Pets & Critters ............................................... 11 Service dogs change lives .........................12 Pets for adoption .........................................14 Youth Sync ...................................................18 Crime/Incident Report ................................22 Community Calendar .................................23 Business Notes .............................................24 Grins & Gripes ..............................................25 Letters/Opinions ..........................................26 Classifieds ....................................................27 Index of Advertisers ....................................31