DANCING WITH THE STARS: Special guests slated to perform Friday • Page 3A
The Sanford Herald TUESDAY, AUGUST 10, 2010
SANFORDHERALD.COM • 50 CENTS
FATAL ACCIDENT ON N.C. 87
LEE COUNTY
‘Hard working’ teen dies in wreck
Two earn ‘School of Distinction’ designation
Overhills senior killed on way home from shift at Coty; family of 4 injured By ALEXA MILAN amilan@sanfordherald.com
SANFORD — An 18-yearold Cameron man who was killed in a two-car wreck Saturday will be remembered as a hard worker who always tried to do the right thing, said Robert Sherman, a horticulture teacher at Overhills High School in Spring Lake. Sherman taught Sebas-
tian Talley in two of his horticulture classes, Talley helped him with plant sales in the greenhouse Talley on Saturdays and he advised Talley in the National FFA Organization. Talley had been elected to an officer
position in the group for the upcoming school year. “He always gave me 100 percent in cooperation and attitude,” Sherman said. “He was always willing to do more than was asked of him.” Talley was driving his Chevrolet Blazer down N.C. 87 near Winstead Road around 9 p.m. Saturday when he crossed the center
line and collided with an oncoming Ford pickup truck, according to the North Carolina Highway Patrol. Talley died at the scene, and the family of four in the pickup truck were all hospitalized. Natasha Fausz, 34, was admitted and treated at Central Carolina Hospital in
See Wreck, Page 6A
County’s schools meet 96 percent of state’s targeted goals By ALEXA MILAN amilan@sanfordherald.com
SANFORD — Academic growth rates throughout North Carolina public schools increased in the 2009-2010 school year, according to the ABCs of Public Education accountability report approved by the State Board of Education last week. The report states 88 percent of schools across the state met their academic growth goals for the year, and fewer schools were classified as low performing. For the 2009-2010 school year, 40 percent of North Carolina public schools made the top three tiers of performance, — Honor Schools of Excellence, Schools of Excellence and Schools of Distinction — up from about 25 percent in 20082009. While none of the Lee County schools fall under the first two tiers, Lee Early College and Tramway Elementary made Schools of Distinction. Ten Lee County Schools received Schools of Progress status — B.T. Bullock Elementary, Broadway Elementary, Deep River Elementary, East Lee
THE BACKSTROKE
WESLEY BEESON/The Sanford Herald
See Schools, Page 7A
Melinda Bowman (left) instructs student Bryan Najera, 9, the elementary backstroke at O.T. Sloan Pool on Monday afternoon. The pool will be a good place to be this week as the heat index is expected to surpass 100 degrees twice before the weekend.
MOORE COUNTY
QUICKREAD
OUR STATE
NATION
Carolinians get more than their fair share of snake bites Researcher estimates 19 snake bites per 100,000 residents
By ALEXA MILAN amilan@sanfordherald.com
more alarming is where the bites are taking place. Development around cities like Raleigh and Charlotte has more people in areas that were once unpopulated woodlands,
VASS — The hearing for a lawsuit against five members of the Sandhills Theatre Arts and Renaissance School board of directors is scheduled for 10:45 a.m. today, said Kieran Shanahan of Shanahan Law Group. Shanahan Law Group filed the lawsuit against the board members Friday on behalf of STARS, its parent teacher organization and three members of the board of directors. John Langley, Al Haltiwanger, Bonnie McPeake, O’Linda Gillis and Larry Graham are accused of remaining on the board beyond the maximum permitted term, holding illegal meetings in violation of the North Carolina Open Meetings Law and ignoring directives from the N.C. Office of Charter
See Snake, Page 6A
See Hearing, Page 7A
By TOM BREEN
OBAMA HEADS TO TEXAS LOOKING FOR CASH Deep in the land of George W. Bush, President Barack Obama swept through Texas on Monday pounding home education as not just an economic imperative but also a political wedge Page 10A
GULF OIL SPILL RELIEF WELL DOWN TO FINAL 100 FEET The relief well has been dubbed the ultimate solution to the drama that’s unfolded over the past three months Page 9A
Vol. 80, No. 187 Serving Lee, Chatham, Harnett and Moore counties in the heart of North Carolina
Associated Press Writer
RALEIGH — Matt Jenkins thought he had run over a stick in the road until it struck out and bit his bare foot. The marathon runner was on a lonely road near Franklin, not far from the Tennessee state line, less than three days from completing a 760-mile barefoot run across North Carolina to raise money for the Western Youth Network. That journey’s finish is now about two weeks off, as Jenkins recovers from what turned out to be a bite from a copperhead. “It felt like a yellowjacket sting on my foot at first,” he said after being treated at a nearby hospital. “I didn’t realize it was a snake bite until it
HAPPENING TODAY Lee County 2010 Idol auditions, for those 35 years old or better and love to sing, will be held at 7 p.m. at Depot Park in Sanford. In case of rain, auditions will be held at the Temple Theatre.
CALENDAR, PAGE 2A
Hearing today for school accused of illegal meetings
AP photo
A copperhead snake owned by Jake Martin of Eastover, shows its fangs as it bites down on a metal bar on Aug. 6. The likelihood of getting bitten by a snake is higher in North Carolina than the rest of the nation, and the chances will likely keep growing. started swelling up.” Jenkins’ encounter is increasingly familiar. One researcher estimates that there are 19 snakebites per 100,000 people in North Carolina, compared with a national average of four bites. Perhaps
High: 97 Low: 74
INDEX
More Weather, Page 12A
OBITUARIES
SCOTT MOONEYHAM
Sanford: Dona Brown, 84; Allyn Coggins, 54; John Whitley, 55 Cameron: Doris Martin, 55; Sebastian Talley, 18 Fuquay-Varina: Cecil Johnson, 58
Attorney General Roy Cooper has invested $7.7 million in a legal fight against the Tennessee Valley Authority Page 4A
Abby, Graham, Bridge, Sudoku............................. 6B Classifieds ..................... 10B Comics, Crosswords.......... 7B Community calendar .......... 2A Horoscope ........................ 6B Obituaries......................... 5A Opinion ............................ 4A Scoreboard ....................... 4B