February 15, 2014 by The Sumter Item

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Winter storm claims 1 life Homeless man freezes in abandoned South Sumter house BY TYLER SIMPSON tyler@theitem.com A Sumter homeless man was found dead in an abandoned home Thursday afternoon, and the extreme winter weather has been ruled as the cause of death. According to Sumter County Coroner Harvin Bullock, Jason Fleming, whose age

was unknown as of Friday afternoon, died from hypothermia in the abandoned home near Brent Street in South Sumter. He was found by a neighbor at 3:11 p.m. before the Sumter Police Department and Emergency Medical Services were called in to investigate. Bullock stated that Fleming

was not heavily dressed around the time he died. “When it’s freezing out there and you’ve got no heat, you can bundle up as much as you want to, but chances are you are not going to generate enough heat to overcome the cold,” Bullock said. Bullock spoke with Fleming’s family, who stated that

they weren’t surprised to learn that he was found dead in an abandoned building. Fleming’s son was unable to provide his date of birth to Bullock. The exact reason for Fleming occupying the house is unknown, although it is strongly possible he was there to seek shelter from the winter storm.

According to the Rev. Walter Robertson of the Samaritan House in Sumter, many homeless people, whom he refers to as “chronic homeless,” often prefer to seek shelter in abandoned buildings rather than turn to shelters. “It’s the chronic homeless

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Full service expected late Sunday Many still don’t have electricity BY BRISTOW MARCHANT bmarchant@theitem.com Slowly but surely, life is returning to normal after the biggest ice storm in a decade, although the clean-up efforts are sure to continue for days. Many people in the tri-county area were still without power on Friday as crews continued to work late into the REPORT AN night to reOUTAGE store power to as many people as In the event of a possible. power outage, Power call Black River companies Electric Coop. at are optimis(803) 469-8060. tic that a majority of Call Duke Energy residents Progress at 1 will have (800) 419-6356. their electricity restored by today, but some people could be without power until late Sunday night. Wedgefield resident Rogina Bostic is one customer who had to struggle through the storm without power. Her home lost power about 1 a.m. Wednesday, and her family of four, like many of their neighbors, had to do without for the next three days with only a brief respite. “It came back on for about

MATT WALSH / THE SUMTER ITEM

Will Barwick, along with friends Blaze Robertson, Lake Kirven and Branson Bruce, directs traffic at Guignard Drive and Miller Road, where a light was out on Thursday night. The boys said they were bored, the light was out, and they wanted to help. two minutes,” she said. Along with the challenge of dealing with the cold temperatures and the boredom of an unplugged house, Bostic also wondered what to do with the food slowly going to waste in her refrigerator. “Everybody rushed to the store (before the storm hit),” she said. “Now we have a fully stocked refrigerator and no power.” Bostic is not alone. At one point on Friday, more than

9,000 customers of Duke Energy Progress were without power in Sumter County, down from a high of 19,028 the day before. By later in the day, the number had dropped to 5,178, and an additional 1,720 were without power in Clarendon County, down from 3,881 the day before. “Our collective resources have shown dramatic results in a short period of time,” said Duke spokesman Theo Lane. “By the end of the day (Friday),

I expect you’ll see more big numbers drop.” Lane predicted service would be restored to 80 percent of Sumter County customers Friday, a goal which seemed to be met by 5 p.m. when 17.5 percent were still reportedly without power. A total of 675 linemen, some brought in from elsewhere in South Carolina and North Carolina, were working on power outages throughout Sumter, Clarendon and Williamsburg counties.

But many still face a long wait for power to be restored; an earlier news release from Duke Energy Progress said full service wouldn’t be restored to Sumter and Clarendon counties until 11:45 p.m. Sunday. Herb Leaird, CEO of Black River Electric Cooperative, set an even more ambitious goal, saying 99 percent of Black River customers would have

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National Guard thriving across state BY JADE REYNOLDS jade@theitem.com

JADE REYNOLDS / THE SUMTER ITEM

Staff Sgt. Michael Wright, left, and Staff Sgt. Lorraine Lordy, center, are two of the four full-time S.C. Army National Guard recruiters stationed in Sumter near Dillon Park and Capt. Mike Jones, right, is their commander. The Guard has played a significant role in recent conflicts, Jones said, and with the reduction in Department of Defense funds and troop drawdown, some are advocating for more resources for this branch of service.

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With the large number of airmen at Shaw Air Force Base and now soldiers from Third Army/ ARCENT in town, there is one branch of service that is sometimes overlooked in Sumter. “Sumter has always been more of an Air Force community,” said Capt. Mike Jones with the Army National Guard. “When Third Army came, I went into the same restaurant I’ve gone to for years, and the staff said, ‘we’re glad to have you.’ I was like, ‘I was here just last week.’ It’s been kind of interesting, kind of funny, but it’s nice to be recognized.”

Often thought of in times of natural disaster, as of Thursday, 232 National Guard soldiers were deployed during the ice and snow this week supporting highway operations with 14 wrecker teams and an additional 30 dump trucks hauling more than 600 tons of salt inland from Charleston, according to the S.C. Governor’s Office. The Guard population has averaged about 9,500 across the state the last few years, Jones said, and occasionally there has been a push to get that figure to 10,000. There was a surge after the 9/11 attacks, and around 2008 and 2009 when the economy dipped, there was another smaller surge, Jones said, but it has

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mostly remained steady at that figure. “There used to be a little bit of attitude, but the National Guard has kind of carried the past two major conflicts,” Jones said. “The National Guard has had above 50 percent on the ground the past decade.” In the Sumter area, 216 residents are currently with the S.C. Army National Guard, with 37 having joined just last year. There are currently 9,355 enlisted with SCARNG, Jones said. And with discussions of downsizing at the Department of Defense, some are advocating for more resources for the old

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SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2014

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Teacher Forum looks for community support for scholarship fundraiser BY RAYTEVIA EVANS revans@theitem.com The Sumter School District Teacher Forum is currently making its first effort to raise funds for scholarships for area high school students. Chairman Trevor Ivey said the organization has raised about $3,000 so far with 13 schools participating. Teacher Forum’s goal is to raise $10,000 to award five $1,000 and two $2,500 scholarships to students in the area who are interested in pursuing an education degree. “We are far away from our goal and need the support of businesses in our community,” Ivey said. After the organization decided to raise funds, committees were formed to brainstorm fundraising ideas and for writing the application. The members decided that each campus teacher of the year would set a monetary goal for their school. Ivey said many of the schools have decided to raise money by hosting dress-down days for faculty and staff and for stu-

dents at uniform-designated schools, school dances, spaghetti dinners, raffles and other events. At Alice Drive Middle School, Teacher of the Year Lee Gandy — with support from faculty and students — has raised half of the money to reach the school’s goal of $2,000. Ivey explained that he has already met with guidance counselors at Sumter, Lakewood and Crestwood high schools to finalize the marketing strategy to inform parents and students about the scholarship opportunity. Students who apply must be interested in majoring in education and attending a South Carolina university or college. Ivey emphasized that males and minorities are strongly advised to apply. “Unfortunately, we haven’t yet had any luck in securing donations from other individuals or businesses,” Ivey explained. “The bottom line is that this effort is something that everyone can get behind. We want to

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recognize the teacher talent that we have in this county and, more importantly, keep them in South Carolina’s public school system as a pipeline of recruiting talent into our profession.” The organization would like to see the community — including local political leaders, business owners and residents — get involved and make it a public challenge in helping raise the funds. Applications can be found online at the school district’s website starting next week. Students should submit applications to Shelly Galloway, Sumter School District Liaison, by March 31. After teacher forum members narrow down the finalists to about 20 applicants, the organization will conduct interviews. Donations to support the scholarship fund can be mailed to SSD Teacher Forum Scholarship Fund, ATTN: Shelly Galloway, Sumter School District, 1345 Wilson Road, Sumter, SC 29154.

RHONDA BARRICK / THE SUMTER ITEM

The cross atop of First Baptist Church on Liberty Street is framed by frozen limbs on Thursday.

Barefoot snow prints lead to beating victim

STATE BRIEFS

Rembert coalition initiates debt elimination

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

BY JADE REYNOLDS jade@theitem.com A Sumter County nonprofit is on a mission to eliminate its debt. The Rembert Area Community Coalition is launching a pledge campaign to pay off the $50,000 it still owes on the administration building. “Then everything will be debt free, except operating expenses,” said Juanita Britton, founder and chief operating officer of the organization. The plan is to send out more than 100 letters to businesses and corporations asking each to pay $1,000 over the course of the next 12

months. “We came to the realization in doing community service that having this bill that is outstanding, we can’t be as effective trying to keep everything else going,” said volunteer Harry McLeod. “Hopefully, prayerfully, we’ll get 50 (pledges) back. Whatever we get, 100 percent of those pledges are going toward this debt. Hopefully it will be paid off by this time next year.” Founded more than a dozen years ago, the Rembert Area Community Coalition serves as a resource center and program for the more than 6,200 residents, according to its website,

raccinc.org. The Community Development Corporation has a youth center that provides after-school and summer programs, as well as a senior center that offers assistance for the elderly and training programs. The group is also currently conducting a survey sponsored by the Healthy South Carolina Initiative to learn more about what community members want and need. To participate, visit raccinc.org. For more information, call the coalition administration at (803) 4322001. Reach Jade Reynolds at (803) 744-1250.

Body found 4 days after Saluda County wreck SALUDA — Authorities said a 29-year-old man has been found dead and still in his seatbelt four days after crashing his pickup truck into a creek in Saluda County. State troopers said the wreck was found Friday on Halfway Swamp Road in the northern part of the county. An investigation showed the pickup crashed about 7 a.m. Monday. The Highway Patrol says the driver lost control, running off the left side of the road and into a sign. The pickup then hit a tree and overturned in the creek. The victim was trapped in the water when he was found. The man’s name has not been released.

CAMPOBELLO — Authorities said a set of barefoot prints in the snow led them to a Spartanburg County woman who said she was beaten by her boyfriend. Sheriff’s deputies said they responded to a report of domestic violence early Thursday at a Campobello home. There, 69-year-old John Joen said his girlfriend had stabbed him with a fork before fleeing the home wearing only a nightgown. Authorities say the woman ran barefoot through the snow to escape. Deputies followed the footprints for about a mile before they found the woman hiding in another home. The woman was treated at the scene. She said she fought with her boyfriend, who choked her before she managed to escape. Deputies said Joen was charged with criminal domestic violence.

Clarendon County offers debris disposal sites for residents MANNING – Clarendon County will make available sites for the disposal of all vegetative debris associated with the recent weather. The following sites will be available for Clarendon County residents to dispose of debris only using private trucks and vehicles without charge: • Davis Station Recycling Center 5442 Moses Dingle Road Davis Station • Turbeville Recycling Center

1971 Old Manning Road Turbeville • Clarendon County Landfill 2475 J.W. Rhames Road Manning • Wash Davis Road Site (Summerton Sprayfield) Wash Davis Road Summerton • Panola Recycling Center 4773 Governor Richardson Road Summerton

• Oakdale Recycling Center 10752 Black River Road New Zion All debris sites are located adjacent to the recycling center unless otherwise noted. All commercial vendors (trucks/ vehicles contracted to dispose of vegetative debris) will be required to go to the Clarendon County Landfill to dispose of the debris and will be subject to the weight tipping fees

at the landfill. Only vegetative debris may be accepted. All sites will be open: • Today, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.; • Sunday, Feb. 16, noon to 5 p.m.; • Monday, Feb. 17, to Saturday, Feb. 22, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and • Sunday, Feb. 23, noon to 5 p.m. For more information, contact the Clarendon County Administration Office at (803) 435-0135.

HOW TO REACH US IS YOUR PAPER MISSING? ARE YOU GOING ON VACATION? 20 N. Magnolia St., Sumter, S.C. 29150 (803) 774-1200 Jack Osteen Editor and Publisher Jack@theitem.com (803) 774-1238 Braden Bunch Senior News Editor bbunch@theitem.com (803) 774-1201 Waverly Williams Sales Manager wwilliams@theitem.com (803) 774-1237

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SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2014

Attempted murder gets 8 years

POLICE BLOTTER AGGRAVATED ASSAULT

BY TYLER SIMPSON tyler@theitem.com A 24-year-old Sumter man plead guilty this week to an attempted murder charge he was arrested PRAYLOU for in April 2013, sentencing him to eight years in prison. Lavoures Dontrel Praylou was arrested on April 23, 2013, in connection with shooting a then-25-year-old victim in the right upper thigh and pelvis. According to the Sumter-Lee Regional

Detention Center website, his estimated release date is scheduled for Jan. 29, 2022. Assistant Solicitor Bronwyn McElveen said she felt Praylou knew the state had a strong case against him, considering the egregious nature of the crime and the numerous witnesses available to testify against him. In exchange for his plea agreement, the Sumter County Solicitor’s Office offered an eight-year prison term. “I guess he thought that that was a sentence he could palate in light of his offenses,” McElveen said. “Attempted murder is a violent,

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most serious offense, and he will have to serve at least 85 percent of his years sentenced.” McElveen said Praylou was previously incarcerated on other charges from other counties during the time he spent in prison, which should not impact the years he will serve for the attempted murder charge, if SCDC calculated correctly. The detention center website shows he was charged with possession of contraband while in jail, for which he was granted a surety bond of $25,000. Reports said Praylou and the victim were at a family gathering when an argu-

ment broke out between the two regarding Praylou’s girlfriend, who was previously with the victim. The argument escalated to the point Praylou pulled out a large, black semi-automatic handgun and fired one shot at the victim. Praylou fled the scene before the victim was sent to Tuomey Regional Medical Center. Two months after he was arrested, Praylou had a probationary sentence for previous drug charges revoked and was turned over to the state Department of Corrections. Reach Tyler Simpson at (803) 774-1295.

Officers responded to the 1000 block of Manning Avenue at 8:24 p.m. Wednesday where a man told them that a woman struck him in the left hand with a metal fork. Officers did notice several marks on the victim’s left hand and advised him to seek a warrant.

ARMED ROBBERY Officers responded to an armed robbery that reportedly occurred in the 10 block of Bagnal Drive between 6 and 6:05 p.m. Thursday. The victim told officers that two unknown males robbed him as one held him while the other held a long buck knife to his throat. The two unknown males ran off with the victim’s wallet containing $40 in currency.

ASSAULT AND BATTERY Officers responded to an assault and battery involving a 5-year-old child that reportedly occurred in the 1000 block of West Oakland Avenue sometime between noon and 12:20 p.m. The victim’s mother and grandfather told officers that the mother’s boyfriend assaulted the child in the face with a car seat. The suspect fled the scene in a white Impala before law enforcement arrived. Officers observed a minor laceration below the child’s left eye before he was transported to Tuomey Regional Medical Center.

STOLEN PROPERTY Two pairs of sunglasses, two dual core tablets, five compression bags and two pairs of boots were reported Thursday to have been stolen from a business on the 600 block of Miller Road sometime between 8 a.m., Dec. 24 and 7 p.m., Dec. 31. The estimated total value of the stolen items is $922. An air-conditioning unit valued at $3,000 was reported stolen at 1:13 p.m. Tuesday from a residence in the 1000 block of Georgianna Drive. A black high point 9mm valued at $500 was reported stolen from 4:11 p.m. from a residence on the 30 block of East Patricia Drive. A Hisense 55-inch flat screen television, one Sony Playstation 3 and one laptop computer were reported stolen at 5:48 p.m. Tuesday from a residence on the 5000 block of Lost Creek Drive. The estimated total value of the stolen items is $1,020. An air-conditioning unit valued at $2,000 was reported stolen at 6:20 p.m. Monday in the 6000 block of Spring Hill Road, Rembert. A black LG television valued at $500 was reportedly stolen from a residence in the 600 block of Omarest Drive between 2 a.m. and 8 a.m. Wednesday.

PHOTOS BY MATT WALSH / THE SUMTER ITEM

David Taylor cuts through an iced shrub on Thursday after a snow storm left half of Sumter without power. This gamecock statue appears stoic even with an icicle hanging from his beak.

A white Whirlpool washer, a white Whirlpool dryer and a lawnmower were reported stolen at 8:32 a.m. Thursday from a residence in the 200 block of Alexander Place. The estimated total value of the stolen items is $1,100.

VANDALISM A cemetery in the 500 block of Fish Road, Dalzell, was reported vandalized at 4:39 p.m. Thursday after an unknown suspect drove through it. The estimated total value of the damage is $1,000.

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Maine transplant adjusts to role as USC Sumter dean BY RAYTEVIA EVANS revans@theitem.com

Mom and Dad are taking care of them, so any credits they can get while still going to high school is fewer credits they have to take. So in terms of quicker time to graduation, less debt and all of those sort of things at the top of everyone’s mind today about the cost of education are helped with moving along.

Dr. Michael Sonntag, new dean for USC Sumter, has had a little time to settle into his office on campus, get used to the weather in South Carolina and meet and greet some of his students, faculty and staff. After just two weeks on the job, Sonntag sat down with The Sumter Item to discuss family, adjusting to new weather patterns, connecting with the Sumter community (its leaders and its delicious foods) and the benefits of attending technical colleges and two-year universities. TSI: How are you settling into the Sumter area and have you had any problems getting lost? MS: I’m a foodie. I love to cook, and you can tell by my physical size that I like to eat. Something I had missed being in the Northeast is the Southern food. My wife and I went to Hamptons for dinner on her last night here, and we found that to be a very nice experience. I’ve been to the Thai House, and I’ve been to Jersey Mike’s Subs, and I really enjoyed that. I cooked dinner for myself one night, but it’s more fun to cook for other people, so I’m finding I’m not cooking as much. I haven’t tried any pizza yet, but it’s next on my list, so I’m looking for a nice pizza joint. My wife went to Baker’s Sweets and brought me back a cheese Danish that was just to die for. It was probably the best cheese Danish I’ve had in a long time, if not ever. I’ve had lunch at our café a few times, and I’m very impressed. Lost, no, because with the wonders of the GPS, I’m never lost for long. I drove down Sunday afternoon outside of Sumter and went down to Lake Marion. I drove along the east side of the lake and drove down to some of the little marinas and, beautiful. The sun was going down and it was really pretty. I got a boat, and when we move all of that stuff here in June, I look forward to fishing and water skiing with the kids. So I was checking that out a bit, but I feel like I’ve been getting out and seeing the community some. TSI: For the past week or so, give us an idea of what you’ve been doing around campus and provide kind of a preliminary report. MS: I’ve spent most of the week meeting with campus leaders in the different areas, student affairs, academic affairs, business affairs, to be briefed on what’s going on in their areas. I met with a faculty organization on (Feb. 7) and was introduced to how they conduct business and the issues of the day for the faculty. I’ve been going around campus and meeting people in their offices just to see where they’re located. I made a few passes through different buildings looking for maintenance or physical issues that might jump out at a newcomer. I’ve invited the faculty and staff to report things that might need attention. I’ve been to a meeting with the Rotary Club and met many community leaders. I’ve had dinner with faculty and a couple of different people in a social setting. I’ve had dinner in a lot of restaurants to sample the food. I also drove down last week with about 10 or 12 students and Lynwood to the state legislature where it was Carolina Day, and President [Harris] Pastides rolled out to the legislature and the other campuses the notion of a tuition timeout. Pastides is proposing to the legislature that we will not raise tuition if they provide us an increase in appropriations in money from the state equivalent to what they gave us last year. It’s an attempt to try to put a cap on the cost for students and prepares us to talk about performance-based funding at some point. And that’s sort of a nationwide movement right now, to base the funding that the campus receives on the performance of students’ progress

MATT WALSH / THE SUMTER ITEM

New USC Sumter Dean Dr. Michael Sonntag has moved from Maine to Sumter and said he is getting to know the community, local leaders and the college’s faculty and students. Sonntag said he will soon focus on internal and organizational issues such as filling staff positions and involving all stakeholders of the college. to graduation and those kinds of things. I thought that was a very impressive day. Our students did exceptionally well presenting and representing us there, and it was nice to meet some of our local leaders. So we met with our local legislators, and they were all very receptive and clearly supportive of the school and our students, and I was pleased to see that. TSI: It’s been imperative to us in society to get a good education, and in a way that has kind of indicated attending a fouryear college. How do you plan to really get the idea out that taking up a trade, attending a technical college or going to a twoyear university first before transferring is a better process? MS: It’s too early for me to give you a really comprehensive answer to that. I came from a four-year institution. I’m used to thinking about a four-year institution, so I’ll be honest about that. But there are some things that are pretty easy to comment on. The two-year institution, we don’t have nearly the overhead that a four-year institution does, so tuition can be lower. It’s a fact that our tuition is lower than four-year. And as we’re working on this Palmetto College concept and trying to think about making transfer easier for students, then they can stay here for the first two years, pay lower tuition while staying at home, so they don’t have the added expenses of rooms and so forth and probably continue to work, perhaps in a job they already have locally. So at the end of those two years, if we succeed in making transfers seemingly seamless so you don’t lose a bunch of credits when you go somewhere else, then you’re essentially two years ahead at a much lower cost to you. So I think that’s the sort of bottom-line financial piece of it. I also think that two-year institutions can be better with transitions. Moving to a big four-year institution can be hard for kids that have been in smaller high schools or smaller communities. So this is that nice, safe introduction to it.

Our small size, small class size, hands-on faculty who really are here to teach is attractive to some students. Our classes are taught by Ph.D. trained faculty, not a graduate student, not folks whose minds may be somewhere else. Don’t take me wrong; I was a Ph.D. candidate, and I taught, and I loved it. That’s where I learned that I loved teaching and working with students, but our faculty are here to teach. That’s why they came. TSI: After your preliminary walkthrough of the campus and speaking with different departments, is there anything that jumps out at you that you want to focus on right now? MS: Well in the first week or so, I found, and I found this in my other position, what has come out as sort of inside baseball. So there’s some internal and organizational issues that we will want to turn our attention to. I can’t go into a lot of specifics of it right now. But over the last several years, there have been reductions and positions that weren’t filled, so I think the first thing we’re going to have to look at is can we fill some of those positions. What positions will we be filling? There has been some reorganization of departments, and several people have raised the question of organizational structure. For example, we used to have four chairs, and now we have two chairs. Is that the best structure? So we’ll be looking at that kind of stuff internally. I think externally, we’re seemingly in good shape with regard to the community. Everyone I’ve talked to has been very supportive and very encouraging. And that’s not always the case. Sometimes you find an institution that has isolated itself from the community and sort of purposely withdrawn, and I don’t think that’s the case here. I feel good about continuing the work with the community. That’s on my agenda, to make sure the community leaders know me and I know them. Somewhere I also want to have a conversation with community leaders about what

else we could be doing and if there’s something we’re not doing that they think we should be. TSI: Has interim dean Lynwood Watts given you a bit of a rundown about the university and maybe some challenges or concerns that should be addressed? MS: Lynwood has done that, and he’s doing it in an admirable way. You can simply sit down with a new guy and say, ‘Here are all the things that you need to be aware of.’ The other side is not telling you anything. ‘You figure it out.’ He’s in the middle where ‘you need to formulate your own opinion about this, but I want you to be aware that it’s floating around there as an issue.’ That’s how I would do it. That’s how Lynwood’s doing it, and I like it. My dad was always one of those guys that would tell you. You’d struggle, and you’d have a hard time, and when you’d figure it out, he’d say, ‘I knew you’d figure it out.’ So he’s doing a good job of telling me about any big issues that are floating around out there but leaving it to my own opinion. TSI: What are your thoughts on dual enrollment and connecting with Sumter School District and other local districts for partnerships? MS: I’ve heard some about this notion of dual enrollment, and I understand that in the last year or so we’ve had to change some of that. But I don’t know the details, so I can’t speak with authority on that. It’s on my agenda to get up to speed and to understand how that works in this state. I had worked with several schools in Maine around what we called early college. I think it’s the same idea that while you’re in high school, you’re taking college classes, so I’m a big fan of that as I was in Maine. It worked, and it makes sense. I have to figure out how it works here and if it makes sense. For the same reason that a two-year institution makes sense for placebound students, early enrollment in high school makes sense because they’re at home.

TSI: Are there any comparisons with South Carolina and your hometown in Texas, and is there anything you’ll miss about Maine? MS: South Carolina is the old South, the real South. Texas is cowboys, and it’s different in that regard. Texans are real independent, and I don’t necessarily think of South Carolinians in that way. I don’t know. That I’m not sure of. Maine. I’m going to miss my family, and I wish they were here already. I’ve not been many places where the summers are better. Maine summers from July to mid-October, there’s just no better place. It’s warm, but cool so you can get out and be really active, and you’re not just drenching with sweat like it is here. You really never get hot. I’m a hot-natured person, so I like it cool, and I was never hot in Maine. And because the season is so short there, I guess the plants and animals that are native have evolved or whatever for short seasons. So when the grass starts growing, it really grows. The trees, they just burst forth, the flowers come up because they have to get all of their reproduction done in a very short time. Here, the azaleas come out, and then it paces here. And that’s cool, too, because you kind of have the unfolding of color. There are also natural lakes there, and that’s something the South doesn’t have. So the characters of the lakes there are much different. The water is very beautiful in most of the lakes. It’s too cold for me to get in but wonderful fishing. My kids love to get in, but it’s cold throughout the summer. I’m not going to miss the winters. I’m not. My kids have learned to embrace it, and my son plays hockey, but there’s no hockey down here. My daughter loves to ice skate, but there’s no ice skating here. So I’ll miss sharing that time with them; for example with hockey you’re in the car, you have to drive an hour so, those were times when we were all in the car and we would get to talking. Of course, we’ll substitute that with something here. TSI: What do you want to be remembered for? What kind of impression do you want to leave when it’s all said and done? MS: It’s too early for me to say what I’ll be remembered for, but what I would like people to say in the next couple of months is that, ‘He really seems to be listening. He seems to be involving people in thinking about the university and making decisions.’ And that’s no comment on the past because that may have been done in the past. But in higher education and the governance of higher education, it’s very important that all the stakeholders be involved. Students are No. 1, and we have to serve the students. And I’ve learned over the years that a university is more than that. It’s a community of faculty, and the staff always have a huge personal and professional investment in the campus. It reflects on the community and the leaders of the community, the quality of the educational system and the benefits it brings to the community. The business and political leaders also have a stake. It’s much more than just this place and the people who work here and I want it to be said that Mike’s listening to those people. Mike thinking about those people. Mike’s involving all of those stakeholders as much as reasonably possible. That’s important to me. Reach Raytevia Evans at (803) 774-1214.

STATE | NATION

THE SUMTER ITEM

BY THE NUMBERS $228M The amount of tuition assistance the state expects to give students this school year through three merit-based scholarships

$57M The amount of tuition assistance the state expects to give students this school year through need-based scholarships

33,000 Number of Advanced Placement exams taken last school year by S.C. students

58 Percentage of last school year’s AP tests earning college credit

29 Percentage of graduates that took at least one AP exam in 2013

1950s Decade in which Advanced Placement courses began

34 Number of subjects offered for AP Source: The Associated Press

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2014

Merit scholarships may deter students from signing up for challenging classes COLUMBIA (AP) — Educators worry that lottery-backed scholarships tied to grades are deterring South Carolina’s top students from taking advanced courses in their senior year of high school. Melanie Barton, director of the Education Oversight Committee, said students are telling guidance counselors they don’t want to jeopardize their chance of getting a scholarship by taking a tough course that could bring a low grade. It appears to particularly be a concern for students expecting to receive Palmetto Fellow scholarships, awarded to classes’ top graduates. The system may actually deter high-performing students from challenging themselves academically, instead of encouraging students to take Ad-

vanced Placement or dual enrollment classes that allow them to earn college credit, Barton said. “Senior-year students are saying, ‘Mom or Dad doesn’t want me to take that AP chemistry class because they don’t want to risk losing Palmetto Fellows.’ But the student really needs it because the student wants to be pre-med. The issue becomes money versus learning,” she said Tuesday. The Education Oversight Committee does not yet have statewide numbers to back up what officials are hearing anecdotally. Gov. Nikki Haley’s budget proposal for 2014-15 includes a clause that tasks the agency with investigating the potential problem and, depending on its findings, evaluating solutions. A report to Haley

and legislative leaders would be due by Dec. 1. “Gov. Haley believes that it is important to maintain high standards for academic scholarships, but those standards should not prevent students from taking on challenges and stretching themselves academically,” said her spokesman, Doug Mayer. “Providing scholarships that potentially inhibit students from challenging themselves isn’t the answer.” Barton said the reluctance seems to be a byproduct of the economic downturn, which heightened parents’ concerns about paying increasing tuition costs. Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and dual-enrollment courses are weighted more, for GPA purposes, but even a B can be a problem for students in schools

where there’s lots of competition at the top, she said. “We’re talking about top schools with lots of kids at the tip-top, but those are the best and brightest we have,” Barton said. “And if we’re not challenging them in their senior year,” it’s a disservice to both the students and state. Palmetto Fellows can receive up to $10,000 a year toward college tuition, depending on their major, if they earn at least a 3.5 grade-point average and graduate in the top 6 percent of their class. Life Scholarships provide up to $7,500 a year for students with a minimum 3.0 GPA who rank in the top 30 percent of their class. Other students graduating with a 3.0 GPA qualify for Hope Scholarships that provide up to $2,500 for their first year of college only.

Belgian lawmakers extend euthanasia to suffering children BRUSSELS (AP) — Belgian lawmakers voted overwhelmingly on Thursday to extend the country’s euthanasia law to children under 18. The law empowers children with terminal ailments who are in great pain to ask to be put to death by their doctor if their parents agree and a psychiatrist or psychologist certifies they are conscious of what their choice signifies. It has wide public support but was opposed by some pediatricians and the country’s Roman Catholic clergy. As House of Representative members cast their ballots and an electronic tally board lit up with enough green lights to indicate the measure would carry, a lone protester in the chamber shouted “assassins!” Hans Bonte, a Socialist, said no member of the House hopes the law will ever be made use of. But he said all Belgians, including minors, deserved the right to “bid farewell to life in humane circumstances” without having to fear they were breaking the law. The 86-44 vote in the House, with 12 abstentions, followed approval by the Senate in December. Laurent Louis, an independent House

member who opposed the legislation, said the majority of his colleagues were violating the natural order. “A child is to be nurtured and protected, all the way to the end, whatever happens,” Louis said. “You don’t kill it.” Another House member, Catherine Fonck, said the legislation was riddled with flaws and didn’t address the possibility that one parent may favor euthanasia while the other is opposed. All 13 proposed amendments seeking changes in the bill were defeated. Daniel Bacquelaine, a physician and leader of the centrist Reform Movement, said it is wrong to think life and death questions should be reserved for adults. He stressed that the law imposed no obligations, and that no child, family or doctor would be forced to apply it. The law will go into effect when signed by King Philippe. The Belgian monarch is not expected to oppose the measure, said Jean-Jacques De Gucht, a co-sponsor. Belgium’s euthanasia law, passed in 2002, previously applied only to legal adults. The neighboring Netherlands allows euthanasia for children as young as 12, providing their families agree.

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

A nurse helps a baby with a respiratory mask at the intensive care unit of the Queen Fabiola Children’s Hospital in Brussels. Lawmakers in Belgium, one of the very few countries where euthanasia is legal, took the unprecedented step of voting to abolish age restrictions on who can ask to be put to death.

Bill seeks warnings on sugary drinks PRICES EFFECTIVE ON MARCH 1, 2014 SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California would become the first state to require warning labels on sodas and other sugary drinks under a proposal a state lawmaker announced Thursday. SB1000 would require the warning on the front of all beverage containers with added sweeteners that have 75 or more calories in every 12 ounces. The label would read: “STATE OF CALIFORNIA SAFETY WARNING: Drinking beverages with added sugar(s) contributes to obesity, diabetes and tooth decay.” Democratic Sen. William Monning, who proposed the bill, said there is overwhelming research showing the link between sugary drinks and those health problems, adding that the wording was developed by a national panel of nutrition and public health experts. The bill has the backing of the California Medical Association and the California Center for Public Health Advocacy. “The goal of the warning

‘We’re talking about a public health epidemic that will take more lives than gun violence.’ CALIFORNIA SEN. WILLIAM MONNING Speaking about medical impacts from sugary drinks quite simply is to give consumers the right to know what are well-established medical impacts from consuming these beverages,” Monning, from Carmel, said in a telephone interview. “We’re talking about a public health epidemic that will take more lives than gun violence.” The Latino Coalition for a Healthy California and the California Black Health Net-

work also are sponsoring the legislation, citing the heavy consumption of sugary drinks and associated health problems among minorities. A bill similar to Monning’s was introduced last year in Vermont, but it has been held in the Committee on Human Services since April. CalBev, the California arm of the Washington, D.C.-based American Beverage Association, noted that the industry already posts calorie counts on the front of many beverage containers as part of its “Clear on Calories” campaign that began in 2010. Also, drink bottles already have detailed ingredient lists and nutritional information. “We agree that obesity is a serious and complex issue,” the group said in a statement, but it called Monning’s bill “misleading” because it said just 6 percent of calories in the average American’s diet come from soda, fruit, sports and energy drinks, compared with 11 percent in sweets and desserts.

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NATION

THE SUMTER ITEM

Military nears holy grail: Pizza that lasts years BY RODRIQUE NGOWI Associated Press Writer NATICK, Mass. â&#x20AC;&#x201D; They call it the holy grail of ready-to-eat meals for soldiers: a pizza that can stay on the shelf for up to three years and still remain good to eat. Soldiers have been asking for pizza since lightweight individual field rations â&#x20AC;&#x201D; known as meals ready to eat, or MREs â&#x20AC;&#x201D; replaced canned food in 1981 for soldiers in combat zones or areas where field kitchens cannot be set up. Researchers at a U.S. military lab in Massachusetts are closing in on a recipe that doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t require any refrigeration or freezing. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You can basically take the pizza, leave it on the counter, packaged, for three years, and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d still be edible,â&#x20AC;? said Michelle Richardson, a food scientist at the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center. Scientists at the Natick labs also are responsible for developing equipment and clothing that improves soldiersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; combat effectiveness and their survival, but the quest for good pizza has become known as the holy grail there. Pizza is one of the most requested items when soldiers are asked every year what theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d like to see in their rations, said Richardson, who has spent nearly two years developing the recipe in a large kitchen full of commercial equipment. Scientistsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; efforts were long thwarted because moisture in tomato sauce, cheese and toppings migrated to the dough over time, resulting in soggy pizza that provided the perfect conditions for mold and disease-causing bacteria to grow. But on-and-off research over the past few years helped them figure out ways to prevent moisture from migrating. That includes using ingredients called humectants â&#x20AC;&#x201D; sugar, salt and syrups can do the trick â&#x20AC;&#x201D; that bind to water and keep it from getting to the dough. But that alone would not help the pizza remain fresh for three years at 80 degrees, so scientists tweaked the acidity of the sauce, cheese and dough to make it harder for oxygen and bacteria to

thrive. They also added iron filings to the package to absorb any air remaining in the pouch. How does it taste? Most soldiers havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t tried it because itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s still being developed, but Jill Bates, who runs the lab, said she was happy after tasting the latest prototype batch of pepperoni. She describes it as a pan pizza, with a crust thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a little moist and not supercrispy. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It pretty much tastes just like a typical pan pizza that you would make at home and take out of the oven or the toaster oven,â&#x20AC;? she said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The only thing missing from that experience would be itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not hot when you eat it. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s room temperature.â&#x20AC;? Turkey pepperoni pizza also will be available for soldiers who do not eat pork products. David Accetta, a former Army lieutenant colonel and spokesman for the lab, tried the pizza and also liked it. He said having food soldiers can relate to and enjoy has THE ASSOCIATED PRESS added benefits. Food technologist Tom Yang cuts a prototype pizza at the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Research, Development â&#x20AC;&#x153;In a lot of cases, when and Engineering Center in Natick, Mass. Pizza is in development to be used in individual field rations you are cold and tired and known as meals ready to eat, or MREs. hungry, having a hot meal thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s something that you like and you would get at home, it increases your morale â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and we consider that to be a force multiplier,â&#x20AC;? Accetta said. Spaghetti is the most popular MRE option. It has been on the menu since MREs were introduced, and it is the one thing that soldiers have never recommended be removed from MREs. Vegetarian tortellini is also one of the most popular choices. The lab brings in food technologists to taste recipes and give feedback. One of the technologists, Dan Nattress, agreed the pizza deserves a thumbs-up. t DV GU â&#x20AC;&#x153;It tastes pretty much Top Loading, what you would get from a pizza parlor,â&#x20AC;? he said.

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OBITUARIES

THE SUMTER ITEM

JOHN GOVIER John Govier, age 71, beloved husband of Sandra Govier, died on Monday, Feb. 10, 2014, at White Oak Manor in Columbia. Born in Detroit, Mich., he was a son of the late John Wesley Sr. and Mary Murphy Govier. Mr. Govier retired from Shaw Air Force Base after 26 years of service with the United GOVIER States Air Force. He enjoyed restoring old cars and loved 60’s music. He loved his family and will be remembered as a loving husband, father, grandfather and friend. Surviving in addition to his wife are a son, Keith John Govier and his wife, Andrea; daughter, Christine Faith Rutan and her husband, Frank, all of Sumter; two brothers, Bill Govier and his wife, Carol, and Tim Govier and his wife, Lori, all of Michigan; and two grandsons, Michael Robinson and Zachary Rutan. A funeral service will be held at 4 p.m. Sunday in the Bullock Funeral Home Chapel. Interment with military honors will take place at 9:30 a.m. Monday in Ft. Jackson National Cemetery. The family will receive friends on Sunday one hour prior to the service from 3 to 4 p.m. at Bullock Funeral Home and additional times at the home of his daughter. Memorials may be made to the Disabled Veterans, P.O. Box 14301, Cincinnati, OH 45250-0301. You may sign the family’s guest book at www.bullockfuneralhome.com. The family has chosen Bullock Funeral Home of Sumter for the arrangements.

Salem Black River Presbyterian Church. Surviving are one daughter, Mary W. Myers and her husband, Ben, of Charleston; and her sister, Evelyn Dabbs and her husband, Tommy, of Mayesville. Elmore Hill McCreight Funeral Home & Crematory, 221 Broad St., Sumter, is in charge of the arrangements, (803) 7759386.

CARRIE Y. RAGIN Carrie Yvonne Ragin was born July 7, 1941, in Summerton, to the late Edward Elijah and Sarah Woody Watson-Ragin. She exchanged time for eternity on Sunday, Feb. 9, 2014, at Trinitas Hospital in Elizabeth, N.J. Yvonne leaves to cherish her memories: three devoted sisters, Sarah Lillian (Henry Lee) Ragin-Smith of Philadelphia, Pa., Gardenia Ragin-Scott of Jersey City, N.J., and Deloris Ragin-Jones of Elizabeth, whom she lived with for the past 30 years; a brother-in-law, Leroy Hooks Sr. of South Carolina; one sister-in-law, Mary McCloud-Ragin of Virginia Beach, Va.; a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, other relatives and friends. A service of remembrance for Carrie Yvonne Ragin will be held at noon Monday at Historic Liberty Hill AME Church, 2310 Liberty Hill Road, Summerton, where the Rev. Dr. Leslie J. Lovett will bring words of comfort. The service of committal, benediction and interment will follow at the church cemetery. Fleming & DeLaine Funeral Home and Chapel of Manning is in charge of services. Online condolences may be sent to Flemingdelaine@aol. com.

THOMAS A. CAIN EVELYN YORK Evelyn York exchanged time for eternity on Saturday, Feb. 8, 2014, at Clarendon Memorial Hospital, Manning. Born Feb. 24, 1924, in the Bloomville community of Manning, she was a daughter of the late Marion Cantey and Eather York. Survivors include two sons (raised as her own) Willie York and Franklin Thompson, both of Manning; eight grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; and a sister-in-law, Mazie York of Manning. She was preceded in death by four brothers and two sisters. The service of remembrance will be held at 1 p.m. today at Holly Hill Missionary Baptist Church, 1304 Hidden Branch Road, Bloomville community, Manning. Words of consolation will be brought by the pastor, the Rev. O’Donald Dingle, assisted by the Rev. Bobby McDonald, Prince Sampson Pearson and Pastor Michael Abraham. The service of committal, benediction and interment will follow in Holly Hill Missionary Baptist Church cemetery. The family is receiving friends at the residence of her son, Willie “Jack” York, 311 Canal St., Manning. Fleming & DeLaine Funeral Home and Chapel, 302 W. Boyce St., Manning, is in charge of arrangements. Online condolences may be sent to flemingdelaine@aol. com.

ENID WALKUP THE REV. JACK WALKUP Memorial services for Enid and the Rev. Jack Walkup will be held at 1 p.m. today at

Thomas Alexander Cain, 76, husband of Edna Geddings Cain, died Friday, Feb. 14, 2014, at Mt. Pleasant Manor in Mt. Pleasant. Services will be announced by Elmore Hill McCreight Funeral Home & Crematory, 221 Broad St., Sumter, (803) 7759386.

ALAN D. CHARPENTIER Alan D. Charpentier died Thursday, Feb. 13, 2014, at his home. Services will be announced by Elmore Hill McCreight Funeral Home & Crematory, 221 Broad St., Sumter, (803) 7759386.

LARRY MACK Larry Mack was born Oct. 13, 1956, in Sumter, a son of Elizabeth J. Mack and the late Eddie Mack Sr. He departed this life on Sunday, Feb. 9, 2014, in Florence, Ky. At an early age, he joined Household of Faith Church in Camden and attended Sumter County public schools. The love of his life was Lisa Webb from Brooklyn, N.Y. Larry was a devoted son and uncle to all. He loved his family and friends with all of his heart and soul. Two brothers preceded him

FLEMING FROM PAGE A1 that I worry about the most because they’re just not going to come to the shelter, which makes it tough,” Robertson said. “Some of them just don’t want to go into a shelter or maybe they had a bad experience at a shelter, or they feel more comfortable going out on their own.” Robertson said that most homeless carry their clothing around in

in death, Robert L. Mack and William F. Mack. His survivors include his mother, Elizabeth J. Mack of Sumter; one sister, Hattie Dowdy (David) of Sumter; and six brothers, Eddie Mack Jr. (Shirley-Ann), Roosevelt Mack (Stella), Richard Mack (Michelle), Chris Mack (Crystal) and Jimmy Lee, all of Sumter, and Julius Mack (Carolyn) of Radford, N.C. Larry had a special niece who he loved and cared for, Shanequa L. Mack. Other survivors include one aunt, Hattie Pinckney of Sumter; an uncle and aunt, Mr. and Mrs. Julius Jones of Brooklyn; an additional uncle, William Mack of Brooklyn; and a host of niece and nephews. Public viewing will be held from 2 to 7 p.m. today at Job’s Mortuary. The body will be placed in the church at 2 p.m. Sunday until the hour of service. Funeral services will be held at 3 p.m. Sunday at Salem Chapel & Heritage Center, 101 S. Salem Ave., Sumter, with the Rev. Frankie Thomas officiating. Interment will follow in the Wayman Chapel AME Church cemetery. Job’s Mortuary Inc., 312 S. Main St., Sumter, is in charge of arrangements.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2014

HATTIE MAE DAVID Hattie Mae David, 65, died Thursday, Feb. 13, 2014, at Dorn VA Medical Center in Columbia. Born Aug. 16, 1948, in Clarendon County, she was a daughter of the late Cleveland and Idella Mae Lawson. The family will receive friends at the home of her brother and sister-in-law, 2327 Governor Richardson Road, Summerton. Funeral arrangements are incomplete at this time and will be announced by Summerton Funeral Home LLC, (803) 485-3755.

NORMAN E. LEWIS Norman Eugene Lewis, 59, died Friday, Feb. 14, 2014, at the Agape Senior Home in Columbia. Born in Sumter County, he was a son of John Wesley Brown and the late Clara Bell Lewis. The family will receive friends at his aunt’s residence, Mrs. A. Jenkins, 118 Webb Ave., Sumter. Funeral arrangements are incomplete and will be announced by Palmer Memorial Chapel Inc.

special friend, Tom Moore of Pinewood. Funeral services will be held at 3 p.m. Sunday in the Elmore-Cannon-Stephens Funeral Home chapel with Timothy Rodgers officiating. Burial will be in the Bethel United Methodist Church cemetery in Oswego. Grandchildren will serve as pallbearers. The family will receive friends from 4 to 6 p.m. today at Elmore-Cannon-Stephens Funeral Home and other times at the home. Elmore-Cannon-Stephens Funeral Home and Crematorium of Sumter is in charge of the arrangements.

W.C. OSBORNE TURBEVILLE — Services for the Rev. William “Claudie” Osborne, who died Feb. 12, 2014, will be held Sunday with visitation at 1 p.m. followed by funeral at 3 p.m. at Dennis Memorial Auditorium Freewill Baptist PF Campground, Pudding Swamp Road, Turbeville. Burial will follow at Olive Grove Church Cemetery, Turbeville. Floyd Funeral home of Olanta is in charge of arrangements.

CATHERINE B. CAMPBELL GUSSIE WORKMAN Gussie “Tuttah” Workman, 82, was called by God to her heavenly home on Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2014, from her earthly home. Born Oct. 15, 1931, in Sumter County, she was a daughter of the late Jessie Sr. and Lucille Dinkins Workman. Gussie was educated in the public schools of Sumter County. She accepted Christ at an early age and attended Rafting Creek Baptist Church. Gussie was known for her loving arms rocking babies to sleep. Her favorite hobbies were fishing, listening to music, walking and cleaning. She leaves to cherish her precious memories: four brothers, Jessie (Ann) Workman Jr., James Workman, and Dorsey (Eva) Workman, all of New Jersey, and Hillard Workman of Rembert; three sisters, Laura Dinkins of the home, Kathryn (Abraham) Mitchell of Rembert, and Margaret (the Rev. Freddie) Davis of Mitchellville, Md.; two aunts, Edmonia Wade and Millie Alston; one uncle, Deacon Edgar Dinkins; two brothers-in-law, James Davis Sr. and Tom Sanders; a special caregiver, Jackie Holiday; and a host of nieces, nephews, relatives and friends. She was preceded in death by her parents; her daughter, Cindy Workman; one brother, Hodge Workman; and three sisters, Lee Bertha, Vanrine Davis and Lurine Sanders. Funeral services will be held at 3 p.m. today at Rafting Creek Baptist Church, 3860 S.C. 261 North, Rembert, with the Rev. Melvin Mack, pastor, eulogist, the Rev. Burdell Hill, presiding, assisted by the Rev. Willie Dennis, the Rev. Lillian Reynolds and Minister Carol Sanders. The family is receiving friends and relatives at the home of her sister, Laura Dinkins, 4620 Easy St., Rembert. The remains will be placed in the church at 2 p.m. The funeral procession will leave at 2:30 p.m. from the home of her sister. Floral bearers will be friends of the family. Pallbearers will be nephews. Burial will be in Rafting Creek Baptist Churchyard cemetery. Online memorial messages may be sent to the family at williamsfuneralhome@sc.rr. com. Visit us on the web. Services directed by the management and staff of Williams Funeral Home Inc., 821 N. Main St., Sumter.

a plastic bag or have extra clothing stashed somewhere. “I don’t see the homeless having any problems getting clothing,” Robertson said. “A lot of churches pass out coats, and several groups come through the shelter and bring coats with them.” Fleming’s death was the only one related to the extremely low temperatures that Bullock reported. Reach Tyler Simpson at (803) 7741295.

Catherine B. Campbell, 81, wife of Edwin Campbell, died Thursday, Feb. 13, 2014, at Tuomey Regional Medical Center. She was born Dec. 11, 1932, in Dillon, a daughter of the late Wade H. and Myrtle Berry Bethea. She was a member of First Baptist Church in Sumter and was active in the Faith Sunday School Class. She was also a member of the Martha Newton Circle, the Trian Club, and the Tuesday Club. She was employed in Loris as a secretary to the superintendent at Loris High School. She was also employed in Sumter School District 17 as a secretary for personnel to the administrative office. She retired June 28, 1991. Surviving are her husband, Edwin Campbell; a daughter, Paige Ferguson and her husband, Scott Ferguson, of Moncks Corner; a sister, Jeanette Bellamy of Winston-Salem, N.C.; three grandchildren, Trey Hill, Ryan Ferguson and Katie McCleary Ferguson; and a great-grandchild, Luca Hill. She was preceded in death by a daughter, Cathy Height; and three brothers, Herbert Bethea, Grady Bethea and Wilton Bethea. A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday at First Baptist Church with the Rev. Dan Barber and the Rev. Charles Clanton officiating. Visitation will follow the service in the fellowship hall of First Baptist Church. Memorials may be made to First Baptist Church, 107 E. Liberty St., Sumter, SC 29150. Elmore-Cannon-Stephens Funeral Home and Crematorium of Sumter is in charge of the arrangements.

ROBERT M. GROOMS Robert Marion “Fish Man” Grooms, 69, husband of Debbie Anderson Grooms, died Thursday, Feb. 13, 2014, at his home. Born in Sumter, he was a son of the late Furman Sr. and Verlie Rodgers Grooms. He retired from Carolina Furniture Works after more than 40 years and served in the S.C. Army National Guard. He loved his animals. Survivors include his wife of 38 years; four children, Wayne Rodgers (Melissa) of Wedgefield, Michelle Vickers, Timothy Rodgers (Nancy) and Gregory Grooms Sr., all of Sumter; nine grandchildren; a brother, Furman Grooms Jr. (Peggy) of Sumter; three sisters, Dorothy Geddings, Grettis Welch (Charles) and Lillian Sims (Danny), all of Sumter; and a

POWER FROM PAGE A1 power restored by the end of the day Friday. “We’re going to get close,” Leaird said. “If we think we’re getting close, we’ll work all evening. Even then, we’ll probably have to work more in the morning.” About 3,000 co-op members were without power on Friday, with 1,728 out in Sumter County and 1,364 in Clarendon. For a while Thursday evening, Sumter County opened emergency warming sta-

TERRY JOHNSON Terry “T-Bone” Johnson, 43, was born Oct. 31, 1970, in Sumter, a son of Betty Johnson and the late Bobby Miller. He entered eternal rest on Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2014, at Tuomey Regional Medical Center. Survivors are his mother, Betty Johnson; a brother, Larry Johnson; a sister, Shiron Johnson; paternal sisters, Geneva Reed (Tim), Sheron Williams (Mathew), Debra Miller and Keisha Nesbitt; his companion, Lee Ann Stukes; one uncle, Larry Johnson; one aunt, Maggie Johnson; three nephews; three nieces; and a host of other relatives and friends. Viewing for Mr. Johnson will be held from 3 to 6 p.m. today at the funeral home. Services will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday at Antioch UME Church with the Rev. Damian Brown, eulogist, assisted by the Rev. Lavaron Johnson, the Rev. Dr. Richard James and the Rev. Sam Benjamin. Burial will take place in the Manning Cemetery, Pinewood. The family is receiving relatives and friends at the home of his mother, 1815 West Ave. South, Pinewood. Online memorials can be sent to comfhltj@sc.rr.com. Community Funeral Home of Sumter is in charge of these arrangements.

JUNIOUS CONYERS MANNING — Junious Conyers, widower of Louise Smith Conyers, heard his Master’s call on Friday, Feb. 14, 2014, at his residence. Born Dec. 19, 1919, he was a son of the late David and Rosena Amos Conyers. The family is receiving relatives and friends at the residence, 1252 Sterling Drive, Silver community, Manning. Funeral arrangements are incomplete and will be announced by Fleming & DeLaine Funeral Home and Chapel.

MICHAEL MONTALBANO Michael Montalbano died Saturday, Feb. 8, 2014, at his home. Services will be announced by Elmore Hill McCreight Funeral Home & Crematory, 221 Broad St., Sumter, (803) 7759386.

tions to give those without heat some relief, but by the next day, emergency personnel were more focused on clearing roadways of debris and assessing the damage so the county can apply for emergency relief from the state. “I applaud the efforts of both of the power companies,” said Erik Hayes, Sumter County’s emergency management director. “It’s been a very intensive effort the past few days.” Reach Bristow Marchant at (803) 7741272.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2014

GUARD FROM PAGE A1 militia model. “We’re the oldest branch of service based on the traditional old minutemen,” Jones said. “If I can train people and have a ready force that up until that point is in a civilian job and when called, they can perform as well as active duty, why not?” Staff Sgts. Lorraine Lordy and Michael Wright, two of the four recruiters based in Sumter, agreed. “I’ve been deployed (and) called ‘weekend warrior,’” Wright said. “But when you get all those skill sets — carpentry, plumbing, electricity — working all together, you can make things happen. We’ve showed up and proved we can hang and even do better sometimes.” Spring and summer are the main enrollment periods, the local recruiters said. Lordy said one reason for that could be that “a lot of high school students realize they have all the scholarship notices they are going to get in summer, and they realize they didn’t get as much as they wanted or needed.” Jones said this may also be the point that high school students realize they need a plan — either on their own or with encouragement from their parents. “They look at it, and they want college or something else,” he said. “We teach a lot of skills that technical colleges teach, such as welding, metal fabrication, electrician and satellite and communication systems.” In fact, the Guard has partnerships with a number of technical colleges to offer such training, Lordy said. She is taking advantage of the money-for-college aspect. “I wanted college,” said Lordy, who joined the Guard about eight years ago. “I didn’t want to do it while I was active duty, but it was so important to me. I liked active duty, and it helps me pay for college. There is still a big draw for things like that as well as family using the post-9/11 GI bill benefits and tuition assistance.” Jones earned his bachelor’s degree with no debt and is working on his master’s, which he should finish debt free, too, he said. His three children have also benefited in their higher education from his service, Jones added. Lordy said some take advantage of the student loan repayment program, for which you are required to be in basic training by your 35th birthday. A 19-year military veteran, Wright has been with the Guard since 2001 and was with the U.S. Army be-

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Don’t mix EUGENIA LAST business with pleasure. Keep personal secrets hidden, sharing only what will benefit you. Discussing the way you feel about your domestic situation is likely to lead to unsettled disagreements.

The last word in astrology

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Avoid anyone trying to get something for nothing. Resist an emotional plea for help based on little evidence. Take part in activities that will lead to selfimprovement, love, romance and happiness. GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Use information carefully. Make sure that you’re not passing along rumors. A partnership can bring you good fortune, but don’t pay someone else’s way. CANCER (June 21-July 22): Gather information and use it to your advantage. Your unique way of taking something that interests you and giving it your personal touch will attract someone who can make your life more exciting.

fore that. Some choose the Guard to stay closer to home. “I’m a mama’s boy,” Wright said. “I enjoy the military, but I have lots of family here in South Carolina. I didn’t want to keep picking up and moving every four to five years.” But that doesn’t mean you can’t travel with the Guard. Jones has been to Italy, Germany, El Salvador and Kosovo since joining in 1988, he said. Unlike active duty, the Guard offers volunteer opportunities for short-term trips in the U.S. as well as outside of the country. Others hope their Guard service will help them with civilian employment. “You get into your units, and there is such networking,” Lordy said. “You ‘family up.’ That is my favorite thing.” With the drive to hire veterans, some are looking to add service to their résumé, Jones said. “The other skill set you do get is military discipline,” he said. “With today’s employers, that’s kind of a big thing that you don’t get in some civilians in this generation. It helps motivate you to get to work and do things. It can help your civilian career go that much further that much faster if you take what the military has to offer.” But most of all, like all branches of the military, it’s about serving. “It’s something else to defend your country as a volunteer force, to believe in what your country stands for whether you’re active duty or National Guard,” Wright said. Jones likes the dual mission. “It gives me the ability to serve my country and my state in time of emergency,” he said. “South Carolina’s Guard is pretty active not only in our state, but elsewhere. We’ve helped with hurricane missions after Katrina and forest fires.” And accolades, even when they are slightly confused, are appreciated. “I’ve had people ask, ‘are you with the new Army?’” Wright said. “I tell them, ‘no, I’m with the old army,’ (and) I’ve had people tell their kids to go shake my hand. I appreciate it.” Lordy agreed. “People see the uniform and pay for coffee or my meals,” she said. “It’s awesome. It makes me feel good. Some vets were not treated as kindly.” For more information, visit Sumter Guard on Facebook or call (803) 773-4151. Reach Jade Reynolds at (803) 774-1250.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Network, take part in events or volunteer your time, and you’ll meet people who can help you reach your goals. A change in a relationship should be considered a blessing. SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Not everyone will be in agreement with you. Listen to what’s proposed and try to reach a point that allows greater stability and cooperation. A simple but unique solution will help you change the way others think. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Your enthusiasm and spontaneity will attract attention as well as suggestions. Compromise will work better than reacting emotionally to what’s offered. A change is apparent and will alter the way you’ve been living. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Invest in your skills, talents and expertise. Offer suggestions that will improve your living arrangements. Take action and get things done without complaining or using criticism.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Don’t be confused by the emotional blackmail LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Take care of any someone tries to use on you. Trying to medical or financial concerns you buy love will lead to a vulnerable have. Read the fine print and assess position personally and financially. your next move based on the Focus on what you can do to improve information you discover. You may and secure your money matters. need to make a change in order to PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Go behind maintain your position. the scenes and dig deep to find the VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): You won’t see situations clearly. Rely on a trusted information you require in order to deal with someone you need on your friend to help you assess the team. Love is in the stars, and circumstances that surround you at romance will improve your work. Any change you make should relationship with someone special. begin with you.

DAILY PLANNER

THE SUMTER ITEM

WEATHER

AccuWeather® ﬁve-day forecast for Sumter TODAY

TONIGHT

SUNDAY

MONDAY

TUESDAY

WEDNESDAY

Mostly sunny and windy

Partly cloudy

Partly sunny

Sunny

Rather cloudy, a shower possible

Chance for a couple of showers

55°

28°

57° / 32°

64° / 46°

70° / 51°

74° / 51°

Chance of rain: 5%

Chance of rain: 10%

Chance of rain: 0%

Chance of rain: 5%

Chance of rain: 30%

Winds: WNW 12-25 mph

Winds: WNW 3-6 mph

Winds: WSW 4-8 mph

Winds: S 6-12 mph

Winds: SW 4-8 mph

Winds: SW 8-16 mph

TODAY’S SOUTH CAROLINA WEATHER

Gaffney 48/28 Spartanburg 50/27

Greenville 50/26

Columbia 54/27

Temperatures shown on map are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.

Sumter 55/28

Today: Mostly sunny and windy. Winds west-northwest 12-25 mph. Sunday: Clouds giving way to some sun. Winds west-southwest 4-8 mph.

Aiken 53/24

ON THE COAST

Charleston 59/32

Today: Windy with clouds giving way to sun. High 53 to 60. Sunday: Partly sunny; pleasant in the afternoon. High 53 to 61.

LOCAL ALMANAC

LAKE LEVELS

SUMTER THROUGH 4 P.M. YESTERDAY

Today Hi/Lo/W 46/30/s 23/14/sn 69/45/s 20/12/pc 69/49/s 77/54/pc 57/44/s 34/18/sn 70/43/pc 36/17/sn 85/58/s 60/51/c 39/23/sn

SUN AND MOON 7 a.m. yest. 356.87 74.66 74.41 97.30

24-hr chg +0.16 +0.08 +0.12 +0.28

Sunrise 7:07 a.m. Moonrise 7:00 p.m.

RIVER STAGES

Sun. Hi/Lo/W 58/40/pc 28/20/pc 74/58/pc 27/16/sn 74/60/pc 73/52/pc 68/57/pc 29/17/pc 70/47/s 28/15/pc 83/56/pc 59/45/pc 39/26/c

Flood 7 a.m. stage yest. 12 8.43 19 5.50 14 7.86 14 5.65 80 77.60 24 7.90

River Black River Congaree River Lynches River Saluda River Up. Santee River Wateree River

0.00" 2.03" 1.65" 4.77" 4.07" 5.59"

NATIONAL CITIES City Atlanta Chicago Dallas Detroit Houston Los Angeles New Orleans New York Orlando Philadelphia Phoenix San Francisco Wash., DC

Full pool 360 76.8 75.5 100

Lake Murray Marion Moultrie Wateree

58° 31° 58° 35° 79° in 1949 17° in 1968

Precipitation 24 hrs ending 4 p.m. yest. Month to date Normal month to date Year to date Last year to date Normal year to date

Myrtle Beach 54/31

Manning 54/29

IN THE MOUNTAINS

Temperature High Low Normal high Normal low Record high Record low

Florence 54/28

Bishopville 53/28

Sunset Moonset

6:06 p.m. 7:09 a.m.

Last

New

First

Full

Feb. 22

Mar. 1

Mar. 8

Mar. 16

TIDES

24-hr chg +0.35 +0.40 +1.49 +1.56 +0.29 +1.30

AT MYRTLE BEACH

Today Sun.

High 9:12 a.m. 9:35 p.m. 9:45 a.m. 10:09 p.m.

Ht. 3.0 2.8 3.0 2.8

Low 3:38 a.m. 4:03 p.m. 4:16 a.m. 4:36 p.m.

Ht. -0.3 -0.1 -0.2 -0.1

REGIONAL CITIES City Asheville Athens Augusta Beaufort Cape Hatteras Charleston Charlotte Clemson Columbia Darlington Elizabeth City Elizabethtown Fayetteville

Today Hi/Lo/W 40/22/s 48/25/s 54/24/s 59/33/pc 52/33/r 59/32/pc 47/25/sh 52/28/s 54/27/s 51/27/s 48/28/r 51/28/sh 49/27/sh

Sun. Hi/Lo/W 51/26/pc 58/33/pc 61/30/pc 61/40/pc 46/35/pc 61/37/pc 50/32/pc 57/34/pc 60/32/pc 55/31/pc 45/29/pc 53/32/pc 53/31/pc

Today City Hi/Lo/W Florence 54/28/pc Gainesville 63/32/s Gastonia 48/27/s Goldsboro 49/26/sh Goose Creek 59/32/pc Greensboro 43/25/sh Greenville 50/26/s Hickory 46/26/s Hilton Head 59/38/pc Jacksonville, FL 63/33/s La Grange 48/27/s Macon 53/29/s Marietta 45/26/s

Sun. Hi/Lo/W 55/32/pc 67/40/s 52/31/pc 50/31/pc 60/37/pc 45/30/pc 56/34/pc 49/30/pc 56/44/pc 65/40/s 60/33/pc 62/36/pc 57/35/pc

Today City Hi/Lo/W Marion 43/26/s Mt. Pleasant 59/32/pc Myrtle Beach 54/31/pc Orangeburg 55/29/s Port Royal 59/33/pc Raleigh 46/26/sh Rock Hill 48/25/s Rockingham 49/24/sh Savannah 60/32/s Spartanburg 50/27/s Summerville 60/36/pc Wilmington 54/28/sh Winston-Salem 44/26/sh

Sun. Hi/Lo/W 52/31/pc 60/37/pc 54/36/pc 60/34/pc 60/40/pc 49/29/pc 52/30/pc 54/27/pc 62/38/pc 56/33/pc 58/41/pc 53/32/pc 46/31/pc

Weather(W): s–sunny, pc–partly cloudy, c–cloudy, sh–showers, t–thunderstorms, r–rain, sf–snow ﬂurries, sn–snow, i–ice

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LOTTERY NUMBERS PALMETTO CASH 5 FRIDAY

Megamillions numbers were unavailable at press time.

8-11-14-27-30 PowerUp: 3

PICK 3 FRIDAY 0-9-8 and 2-5-2

POWERBALL WEDNESDAY 36-44-49-52-57 Powerball: 1 Powerplay: 2

PICK 4 FRIDAY 0-2-3-2 and 7-9-4-1

PICTURES FROM THE PUBLIC SUBMITTED BY: David Bernshouse COMMENT: With regard to this photo taken Wednesday morning, Bernshouse comments, “Thank you, letter carriers.”

HAVE YOU TAKEN PICTURES OF INTERESTING, EXCITING, BEAUTIFUL OR HISTORICAL PLACES? Would you like to share those images with your fellow Item readers? E-mail your hi-resolution jpegs to sandrah@theitem.com, or mail to Sandra Holbert c/o The Item, P.O. Box 1677, Sumter, SC 29150. Include clearly printed or typed name of photographer and photo details. Include a self-addressed, stamped envelope for return of your photo. Amateur photographers only please.

LHS grad Bryan earns unanimous decision win on ‘Friday Night Fights’ Call: (803) 774-1241 | E-mail: sports@theitem.com

SECTION

B SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2014

USC BASEBALL

Holbrook, Carolina on mission to Omaha BY RYAN WOOD Post and Courier

what to expect. Of course, the new coach led a successful maiden season by almost any standard. The uneasiness is gone now. As South Carolina enters its second season under Holbrook, the program has maintained HOLBROOK stability. The Gamecocks went as far as the super regionals last summer, their 11th trip in the past 14 seasons. Now, Holbrook wants to take the program one step further.

COLUMBIA — There were restless nights and swirling thoughts as Chad Holbrook lay in bed one year ago, wondering what life would be like as South Carolina’s head baseball coach. There were butterflies. Entering a new role with the program where he’d spent four seasons as associate head coach, there were plenty of nerves. Holbrook faced the unknown. He was confident, prepared. But he didn’t know exactly

“I’m getting a little bit more sleep at this time of year than I was last year,” Holbrook said. “My heart’s racing a little bit slower pace than it did at this time last year. With that being said, we have some huge challenges in front of us.” It’s hard to tell what’s different for South Carolina’s baseball team in the second season with Holbrook at the helm. Third baseman Joey Pankake said the coach has never changed, whether he was helping direct former

SEE OMAHA, PAGE B2

USC ATHLETICS PHOTO

Former Sumter High and Sumter P-15’s standout Jordan Montgomery will take the mound today at Carolina Stadium at noon as South Carolina kicks off its 2014 schedule with a doubleheader against Bucknell.

PREP BASKETBALL

Ruling the region LMA boys top WH to go 5-0 in II-3A; Lady Swampcats beat rivals as well

BY EDDIE LITAKER Special To The Sumter Item

BY MICHAEL CHRISTOPHER mchristopher@theitem.com MANNING — Laurence Manning Academy varsity boys basketball head coach Will Epps had his team accomplish something no other team has done in his 9-year tenure at the helm — sweep the region title. “We’ve been doing what we’ve had to do to win,” Epps said following the Swampcats’ 70-68 victory over Wilson Hall on Friday at Bubba Davis Gymansium.“It hasn’t been pretty; it’s been a grind-it-out kind of style, but hey, I’ll take it.” Wilson Hall senior William Kinney had a chance to tie the game as he stepped to the free throw line for two attempts with 0.09 remaining and the Barons trailing by two. Much like a football coach trying to ice the placekicker, Epps used his remaining three timeouts as Kinney missed both free throws. The Swampcats finished the regular season 5-0 in Region II-3A. The Lady Swampcats were also victorious with a 52-42 victory, holding off a late Wilson Hall charge to improve to 4-2 in league play and 12-14 overall thanks to 18 points from sophomore Courtney Beatson and 15

SEE REGION, PAGE B2

Rough 4th quarter ends Bears’ season

MATT WALSH / THE SUMTER ITEM

Laurence Manning Academuy’s Vaughnte Anderson, center, drives past Wilson Hall’s Sam Watford, left, during the Swampcats’ 70-68 victory on Friday at Bubba Davis Gymnasium in Manning. With the win, LMA clinched the Region II-3A title with a 5-0 record.

After two weather-related reschedules and concerns over whether the gymnasium would have power to stage a game, Sumter Christian School’s varsity boys basketball team finally got to host its South Carolina Association of Christian Schools quarterfinal playoff game Friday afternoon. Unfortunately, a 6-0 run by Northside Christian School to open the fourth quarter doomed the Bears in a season-ending 57-49 loss. “It was about even at the end of the third quarter (tied 40-40). They simply played better than we did in the fourth quarter,” said SCS head coach Bobby Baker. “Of course, they had about five times to one free throws than we did, and they made them. Give them credit for that. I think overall, his (Northside head coach David Bates) team played harder for him, like loose balls, rebounds that could’ve went either way, but they went their way. The kids just have to want it more than they do, and plus the fact we had some real tough luck on shots tonight. They didn’t fall in, either, and that’s the way it goes. But overall I thought they just simply outplayed us.” Northside led 16-10 at the end of the first quarter before SCS sliced the lead to two, 29-27, at halftime and pulled even heading to the final quarter. In the pivotal fourth quarter, seven of the Eagles’ 17 points came at the free throw line, on 11 attempts. The Bears got a 3-point basket each from T.J. Barron, Devin Green, Nick Canty, Desmond Sigler and

SEE BEARS, PAGE B2

USC SUMTER BASEBALL

Fire Ants try to stay sharp despite limited time on field BY JUSTIN DRIGGERS jdriggers@theitem.com The first two weeks of Tim Medlin’s inaugural season with the University of South Carolina Sumter baseball team have been, in a word, frustrating. Not with what he’s seen on the field as the Fire Ants are 3-1 on the young season, but simply being able to practice or play has been a battle in and of itself. “I can’t remember the last time we had two snow or ice fronts come this close together,” Medlin said. “And I’ve

been (coaching) more than 30 years. Yeah, it’s been tough.” Winter weather has already cost USCS four games this season, including tomorrow’s scheduled doubleheader against USC Union in Union. But Sunday’s doubleheader at Riley Park against the Bantams is still set for 1 p.m. and will mark the home opener for the Fire Ants and Medlin. Still, practice time has been at a premium since late January. “We’ve played four games in two days and had a lot of irregular practice schedules,” Medlin said. “We’ve been out

of school the last few days, but we should be able to get work in (Friday) and (today). “Fortunately, we’ve got indoor batting cages so we’ve been able to get our hitters some work.” Even so, batting cages aren’t MEDLIN the same as taking live ground balls or seeing live pitching, Medlin added, and it’s especially counterproductive to a pitching staff. “You’re not really able to maintain the level of sharp-

ness you normally want your pitchers to have,” he said. Luckily, in USCS’ brief 4-game stint last weekend, the Fire Ants were able to get all of their pitchers work with encouraging results, Medlin said. “We pitched well outside of two shaky innings from (No. 1 starter) Victor (Gonzalez),” the USCS head coach said. “So we feel like the odds are pretty good that he’s going to rebound and pitch better than he did and that the rest of the guys will pitch as well as they did. “We feel really good about

our staff.” Former Sumter High and Sumter P-15’s standout Andrew Reardon had four innings of scoreless relief against the Anderson JV squad on Monday, striking out seven in the process. Dylan Miller tossed four scoreless innings to earn the victory in the first game against Anderson. David Sauer picked up a win in relief against the Newberry JV team last Sunday with Dillon Hodge working a scoreless seventh for the save.

SEE FIRE ANTS, PAGE B2

SPORTS

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2014

THE SUMTER ITEM

PREP BASKETBALL

SCISA Region 1-1A tourney field revised The start of the SCISA Region I-1A basketball tournaments at the Clarendon Hall gymnasium in Summerton were delayed once again on Friday due to the winter storm, and now the schedule has been revised to eliminate some games. The two quarterfinal games in the varsity boys tournament and the one quarterfinal game in each of the varsity girls, junior varsi-

ty girls and junior varsity boys tournaments were canceled. That means just four teams will compete in each of the tournaments. The junior varsity semifinals will be played today beginning at 2 p.m., while the varsity semifinals will be played on Monday beginning at 3:30 p.m. The championship games will be played on Tuesday beginning with the junior varsi-

ty girls at 4 p.m. The JV girls semifinals will have Andrew Jackson Academy taking Patrick Henry at 2 p.m. and Clarendon Hall will face Jefferson Davis at 4:30. The JV boys games will have Clarendon Hall taking on Patrick Henry at 3:15 and Colleton Prep will meet Andrew Jackson at 5:45. The varsity girls tournament on Monday will have

Clarendon Hall meeting AJA at 3:30 and Patrick Henry meeting Colleton Prep at 6:30. The boys semis will have AJA and CP playing at 5 while top seed St. Francis Xavier High School will meet Patrick Henry at 8. Also, Manning High School’s varsity road games against Hartsville have been rescheduled for Tuesday with a 6 p.m. start.

AREA ROUNDUP

Middle school conference title games moved to Tuesday The Sumter Middle School Conference tournament championship games will now be played on Tuesday at the Alice Drive Middle School gymnasium after originally being scheduled for today. The girls game between undefeated Alice Drive and Furman will begin at 5 p.m. The boys game featuring Bates against Mayewood will follow.

VARSITY GIRLS BASKETBALL THOMAS SUMTER 35 CALHOUN 24 ST. MATTHEWS — Thomas Sumter Academy won the SCISA Region II-2A regular-season title with a 35-24 victory over Calhoun Academy on Friday at the Calhoun gymnasium. Taylor Knudson led the Lady Generals, who finished the regular season with a 16-8 overall record and a 9-1 region mark, with 12 points. Hannah Jenkins added 11. TSA will play in the region tournament on Monday at

Dorchester Academy in St. George.

JV GIRLS BASKETBALL WILSON HALL 40 LAURENCE MANNING 27 MANNING — Wilson Hall finished the regular season with an 18-0 record as it defeated Laurence Manning Academy 40-27 on Friday at Bubba Davis Gymnasium. Mary Margaret Munn led the Lady Barons with 10 points and Courtney Clark had eight. Cora Downer led LMA with 10.

JV BOYS BASKETBALL THOMAS SUMTER 29 DORCHESTER 28 DALZELL — Thomas Sumter Academy defeated Dorchester Academy 29-28 on Friday at Edens Gymnasium. Kyle Decker and Dante Linder both had eight points for TSA.

REGION FROM PAGE B1 points from senior Emily McElveen. McElveen hit the team’s lone basket in the fourth quarter. Senior Hayley Hatfield helped hold off the Lady Barons’ late charge as she connected on two free throws to give her nine points and help push a single-digit lead to 10 with less than 10 seconds to play. “I was glad that we finished,” LMA girls head coach Kendra Rowland said. “Right there at the end it was close and I wish we would’ve done a little bit better job on our free throws. “I was very proud of the post play and being ready for the ball and finishing their shots,” she explained. “I think they did a great job of executing what we went over and I’m very proud of them.” WH junior Hannah Jordan led the team with 18 points and four steals. She connected on a key 3-point basket and helped the Lady Barons pull within six with 2:12 to play. Holly Scott also hit a clutch 3-pointer to make it a 4-point deficit with about a minute to play as WH got within four, but some late free throws clinched second place for the Lady Swampcats. Both girls teams will meet again on Monday at 3:30 p.m. at the Sumter County Civic Center in the semifinals of the region tournament. Orangeburg Prep, which won the region, will play Florence Christian at 6:30 p.m. “Laurence Manning outhustled us, out-rebounded us and we’ve got to do a better job on Monday with the intensity level and on the boards,” said Wilson Hall girls head coach Glen Rector, whose team fell to 12-10 overall and finished with a 3-2 record in league play. “They outplayed us tonight. In order for us to be suc-

OMAHA FROM PAGE B1 coach Ray Tanner’s program or calling the shots himself. But there is a certain steadiness that comes with knowing what to expect. Pankake has felt it this preseason. “I feel like we’ve all really settled in,” third baseman Joey Pankake said. “It was his first year, and we were kind of wound up, I guess. This year, we kind of settled down, settle in.” South Carolina will open its 2014 season with a doubleheader against Bucknell beginning today at noon at Carolina Stadium. The season opener originally scheduled for Friday was postponed one day because of winter weather in Columbia. It was only a one-day delay. For the Gamecocks, the extra wait could feel unbearable. Since bowing out to North Carolina in the final game of the super regionals in June, South Carolina has been on a mission. It returned the core of its potent batting lineup — along with top pitcher and former Sumter High and Sumter P-15’s standout Jordan Montgomery — for what it expects to be another College World Series appearance. “We definitely take it as a chip on our shoulder,” Montgomery said of the loss to North Carolina. “We’ll remember that once that time comes around. I feel like we’re more prepared this year already. We’re a little tougher. We’ll just see what the season unveils.” Outside expectations couldn’t be higher for USC, which won national championships in 2010 and ’11, and finished national runner-up in 2012. The Gamecocks were picked to win the loaded SEC by league coaches this year. They’re ranked No. 7 nationally by Baseball America. It’s a sign of what may come this season, and catcher Greyson Greiner is ready to find out whether his team can once again meet expectations. “We’ve got the team to be where we want to be at the end of the year,” Greiner said. “We’ve got a good mix of older guys and younger guys. The hard work we put in, in the offseason, we’ve grown closer as a team. We just want to get the right 35 guys out there. It’s going to take all 35 guys to win every game.”

FIRE ANTS FROM PAGE B1

MATT WALSH / THE SUMTER ITEM

Laurence Manning Academy’s Emily McElveen, right, battles Wilson Hall’s Hannah Jordan, bottom, for a ball during the Lady Swampcats’ 52-42 victory on Friday at Bubba Davis Gymnasium in Manning. cessful on Monday we’ve got to outplay them on Monday.” Kinney missed the first free throw as his shot rimmed out, but he almost tied the game. As his second shot missed he grabbed the rebound and put a floater that hit the backboard and fell off. He finished with nine points, 10 rebounds and two steals. The Swampcats went five of 14 from the charity stripe in the final quarter.

BEARS FROM PAGE B1 Saqoun Cole. Barron and Green led SCS in scoring with 13 and 11 points, respectively. Northside’s Malik Reddish drained three treys in the opening quarter on the way to a game-high 17 points. Joshua Luellen closed with 14 for the Eagles, while Robert Grant hit two 3s among his eight points. The game was originally scheduled to be played on Tuesday, then pushed back to Thursday. With the Eagles traveling in from the Charleston area, every effort was made to accommodate their safe travel to the game site after this week’s winter storm impacted much of the Midlands and Lowcountry.

LMA improved to 16-11 overall and will be the No. 1 seed in the tournament. Senior Vaughnte Anderson, who led LMA with 22 points and four steals, had a chance to extend the Swampcats’ 6-point lead with 22.7 seconds to play, but he missed both free throws setting up the late drama. WH sophomore Brent Carraway hit two clutch 3-pointers late to pull the Barons within a possession. He fin-

The home playoff game was a reward for SCS winning just the second conference championship in the program’s history. The Bears finished 5-1 in conference play and ended the season at 13-11 after Friday’s loss. “We’re making progress,” said Baker, who is assisted in basketball program coaching duties by Tom Cope and SCS athletic director Jimmy Davis. “We had a winning season last year and we upped that four games this year. We’ve got a good young group coming up. We want to be in that state playoff. That’s what our goal is, to win a state championship.” Northside advances to face Bob Jones Academy today in a state tournament semifinal game at Grace Christian School in West Columbia.

ished with a team-high 18 points. Senior Parker McDuffie finished with 16 points. John Ballard returned to the court after a long injury stint and added 10. The Barons fell to 12-8 overall and finished 3-2 in conference play. Wilson Hall will face Florence Christian at 5 on Monday in a semifinal game, while LMA will meet Orangeburg Prep at 8.

Despite the disappointment of not advancing further in the playoffs, Baker said his group of seniors -- Green, Shane Dennis, Aaron Washington, Nick Canty and Noah Griffin — can look back on their years as part of the SCS program with pride. “They are a good group,” Baker said. “They weren’t used to much success, and I think they’re happy from that standpoint that they ended up on a winning note as far as for the season and winning the conference championship. That’s something that they can feel good about and maybe, I hope, it sets a precedent for our younger players to do better than that next year. Basically, they just did things better than we did tonight and maybe we’ll be there next year and do it better than the other team.”

“We’re still defining roles and who certain starters are going to be,” Medlin said. “But I think over the next five or six days, those will become a lot clearer.” The majority of the lineup has already been solidified and was used throughout the 4-game set last weekend. Reardon had two runs batted in and two hits in the nightcap against Anderson. He will split time at first base and at the designated hitter spot. Shortstop Trevor Bradley was 4-for-5 in the opener against Anderson and had five hits total in the twinbill. “We kind of know what we have in terms of the lineup,” Medlin said. “Most of those positions are set, although there are a few gray areas in the outfield. But outfield flexibility isn’t a bad thing.” The only position still in flux for the most part is at catcher. Ray Murphy, Taylor Place, Preston Duckett and Mason Brett are all still in the mix, Medlin said. Duckett drove in two runs in the opening game against Anderson on Monday. “That’s a position we’d really like to solidify,” Medlin said. “We feel like all four guys are capable, we just need someone to step up and really take control of that position.”

SPORTS

THE SUMTER ITEM

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2014

OLYMPICS ROUNDUP

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Switzerland’s Sandro Viletta skis in the slalom portion of the men’s supercombined to win the gold medal on Friday at the Winter Olympics in Krasnaya Polyana, Russia.

Switzerland, Japan big winners at Sochi BY DAVID PACE The Associated Press SOCHI, Russia — A pair of skiers from Switzerland collected gold medals at the Sochi Games on Friday, and a teenager from Japan overcame a pair of falls to become the first Asian man to win an Olympic title in men’s figure skating. With competitors seeking relief from the unusually warm weather on the mountain trails, Swiss skiers earned gold in the men’s super-combined and the men’s classical-style 15-kilometer cross-country race. The haul gave the Swiss five golds, only two behind Germany. Sandro Viletta stunned the favorites to win the supercombined. Two of the favorites, defending gold medalist Bode Miller and world champion Ted Ligety, failed to win a medal. Dario Cologna added the other gold for Switzerland and his second of the games, winning the sweat-drenched 15K race. Cologna, who had ankle surgery in November, won the 30K skiathlon on Sunday. In figure skating, 19-yearold Yuzuru Hanyu claimed the men’s title, one day after Russian great Evgeni Plushenko withdrew from the

Olympics because of injury. Hanyu made a bid to take Plushenko’s mantle when he became the first skater to score more than 100 points in the men’s short program on Thursday. On the final night of the men’s competition, however, all three medalists had flawed performances. Plushenko, who won gold in the team competition at the start of the Sochi Games, came under criticism at home about his decision to drop out, leaving Russia without a contestant in the men’s finals. The outburst prompted President Vladimir Putin to come to his defense. “He really does have a big problem with his health,’’ Putin said, according to Russian news agencies. On Day 8 of the Sochi Games, three other sports awarded medals: biathlon, freestyle skiing and skeleton.

FIGURE SKATING Hanyu won the gold despite two falls during his free skate routine, largely because of the lead he built up with his record-setting short program. Canadian Patrick Chan, skating after Hanyu, won the silver despite three errors. World silver medalist Denis Ten of Kazakhstan took bronze.

SOCHI 2014 OLYMPICS

Medal count COUNTRY

B TOT

Norway United States Netherlands Russia Canada Germany Switzerland Sweden Austria Belarus China France Japan Slovenia Italy Czech Republic Poland Britain South Korea Australia Latvia Slovakia Croatia Finland Kazakhstan Ukraine

4 4 4 2 4 7 5 0 1 3 2 2 1 1 0 0 2 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0

3 3 3 5 5 2 1 5 4 0 2 0 2 1 2 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0

6 6 5 5 2 1 1 2 0 1 0 2 1 2 2 1 0 1 1 1 2 0 0 0 1 1

13 13 12 12 11 10 7 7 5 4 4 4 4 4 4 3 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 AP

CROSS-COUNTRY Sweden’s Johan Olsson captured the silver, finishing 28.5

seconds behind Cologna. Another Swede, Daniel Richardsson, took bronze.

China won silver while Lassila earned bronze.

ALPINE SKIING

Lizzy Yarnold of Britain won gold in women’s skeleton, beating rival Noelle Pikus-Pace of the United States by a full second. It was Britain’s first gold medal in Sochi. Winning the silver allowed Pikus-Pace to reach her goal of closing out her career with an Olympic medal. Elena Nikitina of Russia won the bronze.

Viletta finished the downhill and slalom runs in a combined time of 2 minutes, 45.20 seconds. Ivica Kostelic of Croatia earned the silver and Christof Innerhofer of Italy got bronze.

BIATHLON Darya Domracheva of Belarus earned her second gold medal of the games by winning the women’s 15-kilometer individual race. Domracheva, who also won the 12.5K pursuit three days ago, missed one target before finishing in 43 minutes, 19.6 seconds. Selina Gasparin of Switzerland finished 1:15.7 behind to take silver. Nadezhda Skardino of Belarus got the bronze.

FREESTYLE SKIING Alla Tsuper of Belarus pulled off a stunning upset to win gold in women’s aerials. Tsuper beat a field that included defending Olympic champion Lydia Lassila of Australia and two-time Olympic medalist Li Nina of China. The 34-year-old Tsuper had never finished higher than fifth in four previous Olympics. Xu Mengtao of

SKELETON

CURLING China and Britain won close games in the men’s tournament to move into a three-way tie with Sweden atop the 10-country field. China beat Norway 7-5, while Britain topped Denmark 8-6. In the women’s tournament, China beat South Korea, Britain defeated Japan, Russia beat Switzerland, and Denmark topped the U.S., all but eliminating the Americans from the playoffs.

ICE HOCKEY Canada topped Austria 6-0 in the preliminary rounds of men’s hockey. Also, Sweden beat Switzerland 1-0, the Czech Republic downed Latvia 4-2 and Finland defeated Norway 6-1.

NASCAR

Stewart returns to racing, undaunted by long layoff

Another title might send Gordon into retirement

BY JENNA FRYER The Associated Press

BY DAN GELSTON The Associated Press DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Jeff Gordon is prepared to retire if he can win a fifth NASCAR championship. The 42-year-old Gordon won championships in 1995, 1997, 1998 and 2001. He won all of them when NASCAR’s top series ran under the Winston Cup banner. He wants to win a Sprint Cup championship. With a family at home, a fifth title could convince him to call it quits. “If that happened, that would be all the reasons I need to say, this is it. I’m done,’’ Gordon says. “Go out on a high note.’’ Gordon said recently he was “jokingly serious’’ about retiring after another championship. At Daytona, he insisted he was serious.

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Jeff Gordon said during NASCAR media day on Friday that he could walk away if he wins his fifth Cup title this year. “I go home and I look at my trophy room. I see four trophies, championship trophies,’’ he said Thursday at Daytona 500 media day. “But they say Winston Cup on

them. You can name me a four-time Sprint Cup champion for technical reasons all you want, but to me, I’m still not. I want that before my career’s over.’’

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Tony Stewart is 20 pounds lighter and has a titanium rod in his surgically repaired right leg. As far as he’s concerned, those are the only major changes since he broke two bones in his leg in an August sprintSTEWART car crash. So when the green flag drops tonight at Daytona International Speedway for his first race since the accident, Stewart believes it will be the same old “Smoke’’ behind the wheel. “We’re not going to need a backup driver,’’ boasted Stewart, who is scheduled to be in the race car for the first time Friday for 105 minutes of practice for the exhibition Sprint Unlimited. “I feel good enough that I’m confident we’re not going to have to worry

about anything,’’ he added. “We’ve planned for anything that we think might or could go wrong, and when I say `go wrong,’ it’s not anything that’s going to take us out of the race car. It’s just a matter of making everything as comfortable as possible.’’ Stewart has not raced in more than six months, an unheard of amount of time off for a driver who makes his money racing in NASCAR yet crisscrossed the country cramming 50 or more weeknight events into his year-round schedule. Six-time champion Jimmie Johnson isn’t dismissing Stewart’s chances of making a successful return. “Tony’s a guy that when he’s motivated, he can do anything,’’ Johnson said. “And his motivation and desire to get in the car is probably higher than it’s been since he was a little kid, so it could be really dangerous for all of us, you know what I mean?’’

TELEVISION

THE SUMTER ITEM TW FT

7 PM

7:30

8 PM

8:30

9 PM 9:30 LOCAL CHANNELS

10 PM

10:30

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2014 11 PM

11:30

12 AM

2014 Olympic Winter Games: Alpine Skiing; Short Track; Speed Skating; Ski Jumping: from Sochi, Russia no~ (HD)

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Weekend TV offers more than just Olympics BY KEVIN MCDONOUGH Want proof that even the most time-wasting Internet distraction can be “educational”? Now entering its second season, “Outrageous Acts of Science” (10 p.m. Saturday, Science, TV14) showcases viral video clips from Youtube and elsewhere that feature some of science’s most fundamental principles. But don’t go looking for professors in lab coats; this is far closer to “Jackass” than “Bill Nye the Science Guy.” Many of the clips were created by backyard daredevils and “Hey, look at me!” showoffs with no idea that they were offering a brilliantly succinct demonstration of physics, chemistry, biology and engineering. A panel of experts, including astrophysicist Hakeem Oluseyi, biologist Carin Bondar and mathematician Matt Parker, can explain what we’ve just learned from the exploding beer cans, SUVs on ice and dogs on tightropes. • If there’s anything worse than being butchered by a depraved cult of mass murderers, it’s being turned into a supernatural amusement park for the “entertainment” of the morbid. “Ghost Adventures” (9 p.m. Saturday, Travel, TV-PG) enters its ninth season. The series combines the faux technology of “Ghostbusters” with the gullibility of 10-year-olds at a slumber party. In tonight’s episode, hosts Zak Bagans, Nick Groff and Aaron Goodwin look into a Los Angeles home reportedly haunted by the spirit of the late actress Sharon Tate, who was pregnant at the time she was gruesomely murdered by Manson Family members in the summer of 1969. Over the course of the season, “Ghosts” will visit a Montana ghost town, a New York City mansion and a ghost-ridden former cement factory in Salt Lake City. • If “Ghost Adventures” can disturb — or at least cash in on the spirit of murdered actress Sharon Tate — are any of us safe from posthumous exploitation? Who owns the rights to a dead person’s image, likeness and personality? Any resemblance between the cranky Carl (voice of Ed Asner) in the 2009 Pixar adventure “Up” (8 p.m. Sunday, ABC, TV-G) and the late Spencer

AROUND TOWN The Shepherd’s Center, 24 Council St., will offer free public information sessions 11-11:50 a.m. each Thursday through March 13 as follows: Feb. 20, investing in uncertain times; Feb. 27, emergency preparedness; March 6, spring gardening tips; and March 13, you are what you eat. Free income tax filing services and FAFSA applications will be provided through April 15 as follows: 9:30 a.m.-4 p.m. Fridays, 3-8 p.m. Saturdays, appointments only on Sundays, Goodwill Job-Link Center, 1028 Broad St., (803) 7745006; and 9:30 a.m.-7 p.m. Thursdays, 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays, Lee County Adult Education, 123 E. College St., Bishopville, (803) 484-4040. For details or to schedule an appointment, call Ms. Samuels at (803) 240-8355. The AARP Foundation TaxAide Program will offer free income tax assistance and electronic filing for taxpayers with low to middle incomes. All ages are welcome and you do not have to be an AARP member. Assistance will be available 9 a.m.-3 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays through April 15 at the Shepherd’s Center, 24 Council St. For details, call Lynda at (803) 469-8322. Lincoln High School Class of 1963 will meet at 2 p.m. today at Golden Corral, 2385 Walmart Blvd. A work session of plans for the 2015 class reunion will be discussed. Call Ferdinand Burns at (803) 8834464. American Legion Auxiliary Unit 202 Ballard-PalmerBates Post will meet 3-4 p.m. today at 310 Palmetto St. Call Barbara at (803) 795-3976. Enjoy an evening of dancing and music at the SPCA Valentine’s Dance 7-11 p.m. today at the Elaine D. Korn Memorial Center, 1100 S. Guignard Drive (next to the SPCA). Music will be provided by The Footnotes. Cost is $20 per person (must be 21 or older). Call (803) 773-9292. All proceeds will benefit the Sumter SPCA. The Clarendon County Branch NAACP will meet at 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 16, at Santee AME Church, 1045 Dingle Pond Road, Summerton. The Rev. Willie Starks will speak. The Lincoln High School Preservation Alumni Association will meet at 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 16, at 26 Council St. Call James Green at (803) 968-4173. The Manning Branch of the National Association of the Advancement of Colored People will meet in observance of Black History Month at 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 16, at Society Hill AME Church, S.C. 260 South, Manning.

BBC AMERICA PRESS

Graham Norton, center, welcomes, from left, Gary Oldman, Toni Collette, Nick Frost, and Hannah Reid, Dominic Major and Dan Rothman of London Grammar, on “The Graham Norton Show” at 10 p.m. today on BBC America. Tracy (1900-67) seems entirely intentional. The filmmakers freely admit that they were channeling Tracy, as well as a smidgeon of Walter Matthau (“Grumpy Old Men”), who died in 2000. I guess some of us never get to rest in peace. • The relentlessly cheerful “Good Luck Charlie” (8 p.m. Sunday, Disney, TV-G), a series about a Denver family with three, then four and now five children, concludes Sunday with an hourlong episode appropriately titled “Good Bye Charlie.” • Gloucester, Mass., fishermen search for bluefin tuna, one-at-a-time, as “Wicked Tuna” (9 p.m. Sunday, National Geographic, TV-14), enters its third season of saltwater and strong accents.

CULT CHOICE An aging and delusional belle (Vivien Leigh) relies on the kindness of her sister (Kim Hunter) and her vulgar husband (Marlon Brando) in the 1951 adaptation of Tennessee Williams’ stage drama “A Streetcar Named Desire” (12:15 a.m. Sunday, TCM).

SATURDAY’S HIGHLIGHTS • Olympics coverage (8 p.m., NBC) includes: alpine skiing, short-track speedskating,

speedskating and ski jumping. • Murder in Amish country on “Rake” (8 p.m., Fox, r, TV-14). • Jamie Foxx, Beyonce, Eddie Murphy, Jennifer Hudson and Anika Noni Rose star in the 2006 adaptation of the Broadway musical “Dreamgirls” (8 p.m., ABC, TV-14). • “48 Hours Presents: The Whole Gritty City” (9 p.m., CBS) looks at efforts of New Orleans school marching bands to keep their members free from the violence and dangers of the streets. • Gary Oldman, Toni Collette and Nick Frost appear on “The Graham Norton Show” (10 p.m., BBC America, TV-14).

apparent victory on “True Detective” (9 p.m., HBO, TV-MA). • A murder suspect offers time travel as an alibi on “Castle” (10 p.m., ABC, r, TV-PG). • Hannah finds a distraction during a long weekend on “Girls” (10 p.m., HBO, TV-MA). • Everyone has different feelings about the show’s cancellation on “Episodes” (10:30 p.m., Showtime, TV-MA).

SATURDAY SERIES A rival with limitless resources emerges on “Person of Interest” (8 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14) * Ryan tries to evade the FBI on “The Following” (9 p.m., Fox, r, TV-14).

SUNDAY’S HIGHLIGHTS • Scheduled on “60 Minutes” (7 p.m., CBS): corruption in Russia; the expensive F-35 warcraft; a profile of Cate Blanchett. • Olympics coverage (7 p.m., NBC) includes: figure skating, alpine skiing, snowboarding, speedskating and bobsled. • Deportation threatens a key witness on “The Good Wife” (9 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14). • Questions abound as to Bates’ whereabouts on the “Masterpiece Classic” presentation of “Downton Abbey” (9 p.m., PBS, TV-PG, check local listings). • Hart and Cohle celebrate an

SUNDAY SERIES Mycroft needs help on “Elementary” (8 p.m., CBS, r, TV14) * Lisa befriends a Republican on “The Simpsons” (8 p.m., Fox, r, TV-PG) * Valentine’s Day pressure on “Bob’s Burgers” (8:30 p.m., Fox, r, TV-14) * Peter is beside himself on “Family Guy” (9 p.m., Fox, r, TV14) * Steve finds his heart’s desire on “American Dad!” (9:30 p.m., Fox, r, TV-14) * Jane thinks he has Red John cornered on “The Mentalist” (10 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14). Copyright 2014, United Feature Syndicate

The Dalzell COP’s (Community Oriented Police) will meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 18, at Ebenezer Community Center, 4580 Queen Chapel Road and the corner of Ebenezer Road, Dalzell. Laura Legrande will speak on parliamentary procedure for meetings (the core advice you need for running effective, organized meetings). Call (803) 469-7789. The Pinedale Neighborhood Association will meet at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 20, at South HOPE Center, 1125 S. Lafayette Drive. Call Ferdinand Burns at (803) 968-4464. The Sumter Combat Veterans Group will meet at 10 a.m. Friday, Feb. 21, at the South HOPE Center, 1125 S. Lafayette Drive. All area veterans are invited. The Lincoln High School Preservation Alumni Association will hold a dinner fundraiser 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Friday, Feb. 21, at the Lincoln High School gymnasium, 26 Council St. Dinners are $7 per plate and consist of turkey, dressing, yellow rice, green beans and a drink. Call James Green at (803) 968-4173. The Sumter Branch NAACP will celebrate “Black History Month” at 5 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 23, at Mt. Pisgah Missionary Baptist Church, 7355 Camden Highway, Rembert. The Rev. Marion H. Newton will speak. The Sumter County Teachers Association — Retired will meet at noon Wednesday, Feb. 26, at the North HOPE Center, 904 N. Main St. Virginia Sanders will speak on the Affordable Care Act. Call Brenda Bethune at (803) 469-6588. The Sumter Benedict Alumni Club will meet at 6 p.m. Monday, March 3, at the North HOPE Center. Call Shirley Blassingame at (803) 506-4019.

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SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2014

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803-774-1234

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Auctions

Moore's Mini Storage Auction 9AM Saturday, March 1, 2014 1117 N. Main St. Sumter, SC 29153

ADVERTISE YOUR AUCTION in 105 S.C. newspapers for only $375. Your 25-word classified ad will reach more than 2.6 million readers. Call Jimmie Haynes at the S.C. Newspaper Network, 1-888-727-7377.

12- Tamika Jones 17- Danielle Laws 19- Artrell Witherspoon 38- Wanda Joe 41- Deloris Davis 54- Lakesha Anderson 87- Tammi Wright 88- Ruthell Williams 90- Courtney Lovely 92- Kameel Bellamy 94- Tina Champagne 95- Brian Gutknecht 108- Satarah Edwards 113- Linda Williams 118- Bernard Mathis 204- Joe Tomlin 206- Henry Tomlin Jr. 207- Brittany Q. Idlett 210- Lance Evans 228- Lancaster Moses 230- Shari Bracey/Archie 238- Carmarlita Williams

BUSINESS SERVICES Business Opportunities

Computers & Equipment My Computer Works. Computer problems? Viruses, spyware, email, printer issues, bad internet connections - FIX IT NOW! Professional, U.S.-based technicians. $25 off service. Call for immediate help. 1-888-269-7891

Farm Products HAY for your special animal. Round bales, 50 left. Must sell, make offer. 775-4391, 464-5960

Garage, Yard & Estate Sales EJ's Convenience & Variety 522 W Liberty St (On Corner of purdy and liberty) Come check out our new clothes $2 & up. Mon-Sat 9-5 8 Family Yard Sale Sat 8-12 11 Mason Croft Vintage Art, Furniture & more!

Exterminators

LARGE GARAGE SALE 1st & 3rd Weekend Tables $1 & Up

FIRE ANT CONTROL

FLEA MARKET BY SHAW AFB

Open every weekend. 905-4242

Sumter County Flea Mkt Hwy 378 E. 803-495-2281 500 tables. Sat. $8 free return Sun.

Jewelry Tree Service NEWMAN'S TREE SERVICE Tree removal , trimming & stump grinding. Lic & Ins.

803-316-0128

Ladies Diamond Eng ring in 14k Wht Gold, Top is Platinum, 1.50 ct t.w. center dia is 1.00 ct sol. Written appraisal $6,000, asking $2,500. Call 803-464-8897

Ricky's Tree Service Tree removal, stump grinding, Lic & ins, free quote, 803-435-2223 or cell 803-460-8747.

Ladies Diamond Eng ring in 14k Wht Gold, Top is Platinum, 1.50 ct t.w. center dia is 1.00 ct sol. Written appraisal $6,000, asking $2,500. Call 803-464-8897

STATE TREE SERVICE Worker's Comp & General liability insurance. Top quality service, lowest prices. 803-494-5175 or 803-491-5154 www.statetree.net A Notch Above Tree Care Full quality service low rates, lic./ins., free est BBB accredited 983-9721

PETS & ANIMALS

For Sale or Trade Martin's Used Appliance Washers, Dryers, Refrigerators, Stoves. Guaranteed. 803-464-5439 or 469-7311 Good condition: white electric refrigerator, flat cook top stove & dishwasher. 803-840-1035. Split Oak Firewood, $65/dump, $70/stacked. Darrell Newman 803-316-0128. Tree Service also avail.

Dogs

EMPLOYMENT Help Wanted Full-Time

AKC Maltese Female puppy. Sweeter than chocolate, She'll steal your Valentine's Heart. $500 OBO Health Guarantee in writing 803 499-1360

Pets AKC Pugs 9 weeks old. De wormed & shots $400. 494-3681

WANTED: LIFE AGENTS: Earn $500 a Day; Great Agent Benefits; Commissions Paid Daily; Liberal Underwriting; Leads, Leads, Leads; LIFE INSURANCE, LICENSE REQUIRED. Call 1-888-713-6020 COLONIAL LIFE is seeking B2B sales reps. Commissions average $56K+/yr. Training & leads. Sales experience required, LA&H license preferred. Call Elisabeth at 803-391-5536.

Help Wanted Part-Time P/T Reference Asstant Evenings Mon/Tue & wkends at the Downtown Sumter Co.Library. Apply by Feb 23rd at the Sumter Co. Library or online at: www.sumtercountylibrary.org

Trucking Opportunities

Be Your Own Boss! Own a Yogurt, Dollar, Mailbox, Party, Teen, Clothing, or Fitness Store. Worldwide, 100% Financing, OAC. From $55,900 Complete Turnkey (800)385-2160 www.drss3.com

GODBOLD ENTERPRISES Residential, Sporting Complexes, Cemeteries, Horse Pastures, Schools $85 For 1 Acre or less O: 843-407-7608 C: 843-687-4401

Seeking motivated, enthusiastic and competent Service Plumber. Must have at least 5 yrs experience, excellent communication skills and a valid driver license. Apply today at Hill Plumbing 438 N. Main St. Sumter SC. 803-773-6689

Seeking FT class a CDL driver flatbed experience and knowledge of building materials preferred. Must have clean driving record. Apply in person at 1315 20th Century Lane Manning SC 29102 NOW HIRING! Property damage inspectors needed, no experience necessary. Will train. Full-time & part-time. 877-207-6716 www.aar onspa.biz/nowhiring

Superior Transportation OTR Drivers with Class A CDL 2yrs Exp Flatbed. New 2014 Macks. Weekly Salary & Extra pay for weekends out! Call 800-736-9486 Ext 266 LAID OFF? PLANT CLOSING? Need that new job? Call Xtra Mile & enroll in CDL Class-A training today! 1-866-484-6313 / www.xtra miledrivertraining.com New Pay-For-Experience program pays up to $0.41/mile. Class A Professional Drivers Call 866-501-0946 for more details or visit SuperServiceLLC.com Drivers: Run FB with WTI. Be home every other weekend. Start up to 28% plus fuel bonus. New equipment. BCBS. Experience needed. Call 877-693-1305 Drivers HOME WEEKLY & BIWEEKLY EARN $900-$1200/WK Class A CDL & 6 Mos. Exp. Req. No Canada, HAZMAT or NYC! 877-705-9261 ADVERTISE YOUR DRIVER JOBS in 105 S.C. newspapers for only $375. Your 25-word classified ad will reach more than 2.6 million readers. Call Jimmie Haynes at the S.C. Newspaper Network, 1-888-727-7377. Driver Trainees Needed Now! Learn to drive for US Xpress! Earn $800+ per week! No experience needed! CDL -Trained and Job-Ready in 15 days! 1-888-263-7364 Experienced OTR Flatbed Drivers earn 50 up to 55 cpm loaded. $1000 sign on to Qualified drivers. Home most weekends. Call: 843-266-3731 / www.bulldoghiwa y.com EOE Train to be a PROFESSIONAL TRUCK DRIVER through Prime's Student Driver Program. Obtain your Commercial Driver's License, then get paid while training! 1-800-277-0212 driveforprime.com Owner Operators CDL-A Up to $200,000 a year. Out 2 weeks. Home as many days as needed. Lease Purchase Available. Sign On Bonus! 1-855-803-2846

Schools / Instructional MEDICAL BILLING TRAINEES NEEDED! Become a Medical Office Assistant now at Advanced College. NO EXPERIENCE NEEDED! Online training gets you job ready! HS Diploma/GED & PC/Internet needed. 1-888-528-5176

F/T Optometric Assistant. Experience preferred but not required. Must work Saturdays. Will accept resumes on Fri. Feb. 21st from 1-4 pm at H. Rubin Vision Center, 1057 Broad St., Sumter Mall. No phone calls please. EXP CONCRETE FINSHER/ Working Foreman, valid Driver license, background/drug test, leadership skills. Submit resumes to Box 349 c//o The Item, PO Box 1677 Sumter SC 29151

29 Progress St. - Sumter 775-8366 Ext. 37 Store Hours 0RQ 6DW Â&#x2021; 9:30 - 5:00 Closed Sunday

BATH SHEETS $5 EACH BATH TOWELS $4 EACH TUB MATS $2 EACH HAND TOWELS $1.25 EACH

Homes for Sale

Autos For Sale

RENTALS LET YOUR TAX MONEY PUT YOU IN A HOME!

Unfurnished Apartments Senior Living Apartments for those 62+ (Rent based on income) Shiloh-Randolph Manor 125 W. Bartlette. 775-0575 Studio/1 Bedroom apartments available EHO

Unfurnished Homes

1983 Pontiac Bonneville, 78,000 original miles. Excellent condition. Asking 3,900 OBO. 803-968-1004 or 803-983-9599

1387 Raccoon County)

(Lee

In Manning 3BR 2BA Appliances incl. $700 Mo.+ $700 Dep Call 803-460-3440 Sumter - Two brick homes: 3 Br, 1.5 Ba, C/H/A, No Sec. 8. Homes in Alcolu & Home Branch, $350 & up. Must have first month's rent & dep. Contact 803-225-0389. Dalzell, 3BR/2BR 1,800 sq ft. brick home, C/H/A, priv. lot, fenced yard. $750/mo + dep. 10 minutes from Shaw. Call 803-587-2159

3600 Dallas (Dalzell)

1997 Ford Explorer XLT, White, 4 door, V8, 164k miles. Runs good. $1,850 Call 803-468-4760 or 803-305-1566

2Br home Carolina Ave. & 2Br Apt Miller Rd. $395 mo. First mo. rent free! 774-8512 / 983-5691

Miscellaneous

Mobile Home Rentals Oaklawn MHP: 2 BR M.H.'s, water/sewer/garbage pk-up incl'd. RV parking avail. Call 494-8350

Healthcare CAREERS - Looking for caring people to train for work in hospitals, clinics, health. Financial aid if qualified. Call Centura College Charleston 888-242-3623 / Columbia 888-891-1658.

411 N. Magnolia St.

2BR 1BA 14x52 All Appliances, Sect. 8 Accepted Call 803-469-6978

REDUCE YOUR CABLE BILL!* Get a whole-home Satellite system installed at NO COST and programming starting at $19.99/mo. FREE HD/DVR Upgrade to new callers, SO CALL NOW 1-866-981-7319

STATEBURG COURTYARD 2 & 3 BRs 803-494-4015

Vacation Rentals ADVERTISE YOUR VACATION PROPERTY FOR RENT OR SALE to more than 2.6 million South Carolina newspaper readers. Your 25-word classified ad will appear in 105 S.C. newspapers for only $375. Call Jimmie Haynes at the South Carolina Newspaper Network, 1-888-727-7377.

REAL ESTATE Manufactured Housing

D.W 1037 Acres, (near Continential Tires) 3br/2ba For more info call 775-4391 or 464-5960. Financing available

HVAC Careers Start here - Heat things up with hands on training in months not years. Financial aid if qualified. Job placement assistance. Call Centura College 888-891-1658.

7 room house, 2 sheds, over 1.25 ac. Part. Furn. Asking $38,000 Call 803-406-5582.

DISH TV Retailer - Starting at $19.99/month (for 12 mos.) & High Speed Internet starting at $14.95/month (where available.) SAVE! Ask About SAME DAY Installation! CALL Now! 1-800-635-0278

Farms & Acreage FSBO: Land, Small & Large acreage. Owner financing. 803-427-3888.

TRANSPORTATION

2007 Singlewide. Owner financing with $5,000 down. Call 803-236-5953 4BR DW on 5 acres. Fin. available for good credit, Payments approx. $550/mo. Call 803-236-5953

Autos For Sale

Tax Time is Here... Low Credit Score? Been turned down for bad credit? Come try us, we do our own financing. We have 3-4-5 bedroom homes. Layaway program available. For more information, call 843-389-4215.

2012 Black Silverado 1500 5.3 Eng Excel. Cdtn. 23K mi. Call 803-968-5353

4 BR DW in Dalzell Pay approx $550 a mo. in Whispering Meadows Call 494-5010

AIRLINE CAREERS begin here Get trained as FAA certified Aviation Technician. Housing and Financial aid for qualified students. Job placement assistance. Call Aviation Institute of Maintenance 866-367-2513 DirecTV - Over 140 channels only $29.99 a month. Call Now! Triple savings! $636.00 in Savings, Free upgrade to Genie & 2013 NFL Sunday ticket free!! Start saving today! 1-800-908-5974

Hair's Auto Sales 4835 Pinewood Rd. 803-452-6020 On The Lot Financing No Credit Check, Free Warranty.

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FIREWOOD DELIVERY

469-7606 or 499-4413

TAKE AN EXTRA 10% OFF OUR ALREADY LOW-LOW PRICES THROUGH THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY

ASSORTED PANELS & SHEERS $5 EACH - UP TO $15 EACH ASSORTED KITCHEN CURTAIN SETS $12 PER SET

COMICS

THE SUMTER ITEM

BIZARRO

SOUP TO NUTZ

ANDY CAPP

GARFIELD

BEETLE BAILEY

BORN LOSER

BLONDIE

ZITS

MOTHER GOOSE

DOG EAT DOUG

DILBERT

JEFF MACNELLY’S SHOE

Journals are a last link to deceased sister’s life DEAR ABBY — My sister died suddenly. She hadn’t been ill, and it was a shock. Although she tried Dear Abby hard to have a relationABIGAIL ship with me VAN BUREN over the years, I had trouble relating to her and we weren’t close. I am sorry to say that I never took the time to get to know her. I’m left now with many questions about the sister I always had, but never really knew. As her next of kin, I’m responsible for packing up her things, and I came across several journals. I would like to

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2014

read them because I feel they would help me to understand her better, but I also feel it might be disrespectful to go through something of hers that was so personal. What do you think? Would it be wrong to read them? I wish I had her here to talk to instead of journals to snoop through. Regretful in Oakland DEAR REGRETFUL — I’m sorry for your loss, and your regrets. Because you would like to know your sibling, I think you should read her journals. While it’s sad that you have to make her acquaintance in this way, it would be better than never having known her at all. DEAR ABBY — I’m a secretary who happens to make really

THE DAILY CROSSWORD PUZZLE

good coffee. An employee who works in the building likes my coffee and has made himself comfortable at my desk in the morning before he starts work and afterward, before his second job. I am not comfortable with this. He plants himself at my desk, and I find myself having to work around him. He has become a fixture in my office and I need it to stop. How can I go about this without hurting his feelings? Not his Barista DEAR NOT —From where I sit, it looks like the man may have a crush on you. Tell him you’re flattered that he likes your coffee and he’s welcome to a cup, but he needs to drink it elsewhere. If you say it pleasantly, his feelings shouldn’t be hurt.

JUMBLE

SUDOKU

THAT SCRAMBLED WORD GAME By David L. Hoyt and Jeff Knurek

HOW TO PLAY: Each row, column and set of 3-by-3 boxes must contain the numbers 1 through 9 without repetition.

ACROSS 1 “A Different World” actress 10 More than ready to do 15 Halley’s field 16 Veronese white 17 Norwegian offerings 19 Most like a beachcomber 20 “__ Mutual Friend”: Dickens’ last completed novel 21 Royal letters 22 Texting gasp 23 Profile listing 25 “Yes!” 26 St. Peter’s Basilica attraction 29 Many roomies 30 Match 31 The first one open on Majorca in 1950 33 Lake Geneva river 35 Princess with a Wookieepedia entry 36 “I Lost It at the Movies” author 37 Narrow vents 39 Teaching method based on set theory

42 Gent 43 Moselle tributary 45 “The Love Boat” bartender 47 Hit the __ 48 “Precisely!” 49 Lucy of “Elementary” 50 Time to look forward 51 Trot 52 Aids 56 Fails to intervene 59 Spud 60 Europe’s tallest ferris wheel 61 Underhanded type 62 Mississippi has four DOWN 1 Telecommuter’s tool 2 Faith of more than 1.5 billion people 3 His was the first number retired by the Mets 4 Ireland’s __ Islands 5 Audio giant 6 Cross to bear 7 View from The Hague 8 Graph- ending 9 Cooperstown charter member 10 There’s a lot of interest in it

11 Food cooked in an imu 12 Method 13 Accruing fines, maybe 14 Did a double take? 18 Chafes 24 Kin of -ish 27 Spring bloom 28 Distract the security guard, say 30 Pampas weapons 32 Assignment 34 Half: Pref. 36 Fuel that built the Rockefeller fortune 37 Adjective for “Pygmalion” or “Major Barbara” 38 Shower paraphernalia

39 Hound 40 Like owls 41 Lock-changing tool? 42 See 57-Down 44 Luanda’s land 46 Triggers a bleep, maybe 48 Icelandic singer 53 Org. that rejects bad eggs 54 Van. alternative 55 Recent Yankee star named for Jackie Robinson 57 With 42Down, spots for sailors’ gear 58 Scand. kingdom

CLASSIFIEDS

THE ITEM

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2014

8 Cars under $5,000 1994 TOYOTA COROLLA

$4195

2002 PONTIAC SUNFIRE

$4295

1999 ISUZU TROOPER 4X4

$4449

2004 MITSUBISHI ECLIPSE

$4491

2002 TOYOTA CELICA

$4529

2004 KIA OPTIMA

$4599

2002 JEEP GRAND CHEROKEE

$4699

2003 BUICK PARK AVENUE

$4971

2000 JEEP GRAND CHEROKEE

$5949

2001 TOYOTA TACOMA

$7293

2006 CADILLAC CTS

$7349

1995 DODGE RAM 59K MILES

$7371

2005 NISSAN PATHFINDER

$7995

2005 MAZDA RX8

$8299

2007 HONDA CIVIC

$8799

2004 FORD RANGER

$8971

2006 VW JETTA

$8994

2010 NISSAN SENTRA

$10,199

2010 MAZDA 6

$10,298

2010 TOYOTA COROLLA

$10,449

2007 TOYOTA AVALON

$11,995

2007 TOYOTA AVALON

$11,995

2010 HYUNDAI ELANTRA

$11,988

2010 HONDA CIVIC

$12,579

ALL PRICES PLUS TAX AND TAGS. INCLUDES DEALER CLOSING FEE. PRICES GOOD THRU FEBRUARY 17, 2014

2540 Broad Street Sumter

803.469.9500