IN SPORTS: A look at Fire Ants’ breakthrough season
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Memorial Day statistics hit home Former SHS basketball standout drowns at beach BY COLLYN TAYLOR intern@theitem.com MYRTLE BEACH — The body of a former Sumter basketball standout was found off the coast of Myrtle Beach on Tuesday. Erick White, 20, was reported WHITE missing on Saturday after he and a 19-year-old, went in the water. According to ABC15 News in Myrtle Beach, the two began having trouble while in the water. The 19-year-old
Apex to move more production to Sumter
made it to shore safely. ABC15 reported the initial call for the drowning came at 5:45 p.m. on Saturday, and Myrtle Beach Police Department began searching for White that night. White’s body was recovered four blocks away from where he was initially reported missing. Horry County Chief Deputy Coroner Tamara Willard said the coroner’s office ruled his death an accidental drowning. White, who graduated from Sumter High School in 2014, played for the high school’s basketball team for four years. He
played varsity for two of those. He started periodically for varsity his junior season before starting every game his senior year, Sumter assistant coach Jeff Schaffer said. Schaffer said White was especially known for his defensive abilities. He led the team in assists his senior year, according to Schaffer, along with averaging 10.8 points per game. That kind of season his final year was enough to earn him AllState honors and Region VI-4A Player of the Year.
3 hurt in boating wreck BY KONSTANTIN VENGEROWSKY TAW CAW — Two Sumter men were in stable but critical condition Monday evening after being involved in a boating wreck in the Taw Caw area of Lake Marion. A third man was treated with cuts and bruises. The incident reportedly occurred when a 15-foot bass boat the men were traveling in crashed into a stand of trees about 4:15 p.m., according to Capt. Robert Mc-
Cullough of S.C. Department of Natural Resources. Two of the men were airlifted from the scene to Palmetto Health Richland. One had head and leg injuries, while the other suffered chest injuries, McCullough said. As of Tuesday evening, the names of the three men could not be released, according to McCullough. No charges have been filed, and DNR is continuing the investigation, he said.
SEE WHITE, PAGE A6
MEMORIAL DAY CELEBRATION
Park hosts 7th Veterans Appreciation Dinner
BY JIM HILLEY jim@theitem.com More workers may be coming to the Sumter area to work for Apex Tool Group, but it is unclear what the local impact may be. The tool manufacturer will close its plant in Cortland, New York, at the end of the year, APEX spokeswoman Kelly Blask said Tuesday. “We will be moving the manufacturing from there to two locations,” she said. “One is Sumter and the other is a facility we have in York, Pennsylvania.” She said it is not yet known how many jobs would be moving along with the production. “We don’t know the staffing,” she said. “We still need to assess the situation.” Blask said the process of closing the plant and moving production will take several months to play out. According to an Associated Press report, the tool company said the Cortland plant’s 89 employees will be laid off beginning in August, but they can apply for any open positions at the York and Sumter facilities. Blask reportedly told The Post-Standard of Syracuse, New York, the Cortland facility has been operating below capacity for some time. The factory makes wire rope, chain fittings and overhead lifting devices, the AP reported, and has operated in the same building in Cortland for more than a century. Apex Tool Group was awarded the 2014 Sumter Chamber of Commerce’s Manufacturer of the Year Award at the chamber’s retreat in January, citing the toolmaker’s investment of more than $21 million at the Sumter plant and bringing 180 jobs from facilities in Texas and Arkansas, as well as its generous employee benefit package. The Associated Press contributed to this article.
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PHOTOS BY RICK CARPENTER / THE SUMTER ITEM
John Perrypoole, above, a Korean War veteran, enjoys fish during the 7th Annual Veterans Appreciation Dinner and Memorial Day Celebration Fish Fry at South Sumter Park on Monday. Michael Short, left, a Desert Storm veteran, delivers a fresh supply of fried fish to Sharlene Warren who was working on one of the lines at the Veterans Appreciation Dinner on Monday. Sumter City Councilman Calvin Hastie said more than 1,000 people attended the event. “Things went very well at the fish fry to honor veterans,” he said. “We wanted to do something special this year to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War and contacted U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, who provided certificates and lapel pins for all the family members who attended.” The annual event is organized by the Veterans Appreciation Committee, a group composed of neighborhood associations around the city, in conjunction the City of Sumter Veterans Affairs office.
County foregoes tax increase, will cut local agencies BY ADRIENNE SARVIS adrienne@theitem.com After long consideration during Sumter County Council’s budget workshop on Tuesday, council decided to dismiss the option to raise taxes and instead has decided to cut funding to local government agencies to make up for the reduction of the county’s local government fund provided by the state. The decision was made after County Administrator Gary Mixon presented to council an option to raise the county millage by 5.4 mills as a solution to help balance the county’s budget and make up for the lack of funding from
the state government, an option both Councilman Charles Edens and Vice Chair Vivian Flemming-McGhaney said they would not support. Edens said he spoke with councilmen from other counties who have discussed reducing funding for state mandated agencies within their counties as a way of challenging the state. Chairwoman Naomi Sanders opposed placing the burden of on county citizens by raising taxes and instead discussed ways to get the state to take responsibility for funding. She said maybe the county should stand up to the state and let it take responsibility for its local agencies.
DEATHS, B6 Thomasina G. Gary Robert R. Russell Jr. Mary S. Walker Cynthia Ann McCoy Malcolm E. Pack Sr.
Catherine M. Urban Robert L. Whiting Sr. Eleanor C. Patterson John H. Griffin Sr. Erick White
Mixon said the state government will not provide adequate funding based on a formula that gives local municipalities 4.5 percent of the state’s general revenue fund used for the operations of state mandated agencies in Sumter. He said the county has not yet received a final amount for the funds that will be provided by the state which has made balancing the budget even more difficult. Expenditures for the county’s proposed budget are $50 million while revenues are $48.2 million leaving the county with a $1.8 million deficit. According to the summary control
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