Volume 78 • Issue 27 • Wednesday, July 3, 2013
Serving Belmont, Mount Holly, Stanley, Cramerton, and McAdenville
75¢
INSIDE... Mount Holly Pedestrian Plan Raiders Announcer Williams going strong . . . 8A McAdenville Purple Heart City . . . 3A Opinions . . . 4A
is headed down the right path By Alan Hodge
Alan.bannernews@gmail.com
At its work session last week the Mount Holly City Council got a walk-through of the town’s new Pedestrian Plan and so far it seems that everything is on the right path. The presentation was given by Alta Greenways representa-
tive Maya Agarwal who gave the council a draft of the plan with the idea for future acceptance of it coming at a later date. “In regard to a possible adoption date for the proposed Pedestrian Plan, unless I am mistaken, we are looking at August,� said City Manager Danny Jackson. “Keep in mind that some of the issues raised at last night’s meet-
ing, might affect the actual adoption date.� Agarwal’s presentation pointed out several interesting notes about the state of pedestrianism in Mount Holly including the fact that the city already has 33 miles of sidewalks in place and that 1.6 miles of the Catawba River Greenway is available for citizens to stroll,
with another 1.2 miles under design that would hook up with the Municipal Complex. The Pedestrian Plan also looks to reach eastward from Mount Holly proper, using the NC27 bridge over the Catawba River not only for vehicles, but for bicyclists and walkers as well. See PEDESTRIAN PLAN, 5A
Red, White and Belmont was fun for all!
Thompson to be inducted into MH Sports Hall of Fame
The Red, White, and Belmont events this past weekend brought folks from all over to enjoy the fun. Hayden Albanese, Ashlynn McCall, and Charlie McCall came over from Charlotte to check out downtown Belmont and all the goings-on. See more Red, White, and Belmont photos on page 8A All Red, White & Belmont photos by Alan Hodge
By Kathy Blake Special to the Banner News
James Browning Thompson knew football. He excelled at offensive and defensive tackle for his high school, college and in semi-pro, playing from his teen years until he was called away at age 24 to fly B29 bombers in World War II. Those years at Mount Holly High School, North Carolina State and with the Charlotte Clippers defined him as an athlete. “He played good, on three different levels. He was a football nut; that was his game,� said his son, Gene. “He loved that game.� But off the field, there was more to tell about the late J.B. Thompson than his excellence as a 6-foot-2, 220-pound football star. Gene, 66, who lives in Mount Holly with his wife, Libba, has a story about J.B., the daddy. It was the moment when Gene realized how much football meant to his father – football above all other sports – and how that father would take time to do something for his son. It happened during 5th-period English class. “It was 1965, the year I graduated. I played football in the fall and ran track in the spring, and he kept up with it; he was that kind of father, so he knew we were having our conference track meet,� Gene said. “We got up and ate breakfast, all of us, and he asked me, ‘Son, where’s your track meet today?’ And I said Bessemer City. And he asked what time. I told him 4 o’clock. “You have to remember, football games were always at 7, when he got off work. So he had never been to a track meet, ever. He said, ‘You know, I might just take off and come see one. This is your last one.’ And I said, ‘Really? You can get off work? I was thrilled to death.� J.B. worked 12-hour days, six or seven days a week, at the family business, Mount Holly Ice and Fuel, which sold ice for iceboxes and coal for heating. Later on, it sold tires and home heating oil. He supplied tires – for free – to the ambulances that waited on football sidelines on Friday nights. But sitting in English class, looking out the window at the practice field, Gene Thompson discovered what football really meant to his daddy. “It just dawned on me, like a light bulb went off. How many times during football season did I look over across that field and see my daddy and other men watching practice? Practice, not a game. In the afternoons,� he See THOMPSON, 5A
Seufert’s home is a living ‘time capsule’ ALAN HODGE alan.bannernews@gmail.com
There’s a time capsule in Belmont. No, it isn’t a shiny, stainless steel cylinder buried in the ground awaiting a shovel decades from now, it’s the home of retired educator Dan Seufert. The time capsule angle comes in due to the fact that most of the rooms in the lanky history buff’s digs at the corner of Central Ave. and Woodrow in Belmont are filled from floor to ceiling with an astonishing array of 18th and 19th century antiques and artifacts he’s collected over the past four decades or so. “When members of the Belmont Historical Society came over and saw what I have,� Seufert said. “They thought I should just hang a sign on the door that says ‘museum’�. Going a step further, Seufert has given Photo by Alan Hodge areas in his dwelling “themes�. For instance, one section in the kitchen is set up to pay Retired educator Dan Seufert of Belmont is a serious collector of 18th and 19th century anhomage to his ancestors who came to the tiques and artifacts. He says surrounding himself with items from that era is a relaxing alU.S. from Ireland in the 1850s. Therefore, ternative to hectic modern life. there’s a little table with a rustic place setting and plate on which is a potato and onion to rating time travel is his version of a colonial Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence, represent the meager fare of those days. era tavern so correct in period details that it a Liberty flag, punched tin lanterns, and Other antiquities on the table include a ce- looks like Ben Franklin might have just got- more. An ale cask and crockery complete the ramic milk pitcher and a bottle of Irish bev- ten up from his ale. The tavern-room fea- set-up. tures shelves holding pewter mugs, a Seufert’s living room is an exercise in erage. reproduction 1781 Philadelphia newspaper, Early American century domesticity. A The next stop on Seufert’s interior decoclay pipes, a copy of the May 20, 1775 See SEUFERT 2A
Hartge returns home to care for your pets By Sarah Gibson Special to the Banner News
Belmont’s South Point Pet Hospital is pleased to welcome Sarah Hartge, Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, into their employ. Doctor Hartge is a native of Gastonia who has returned to the area after years away. “North Carolina is my home,� she said. “Gastonia is where I grew up from the time I was five.� On the topic of how it feels to be back home after such a long time away, she stated, “It’s good. It’s weird, but it’s good.� A Hunter Huss High School graduate, Hartge was in her third
year of business school before deciding to pursue veterinary medicine. When asked what inspired her to become a vet, she said, “I was born to always have this bond with animals.� She obtained her bachelor’s of Business and went on to study biological sciences and veterinary medicine at NC State University in Raleigh, where she broke into the medical field working at the Veterinary Specialty Hospital. “I was very lucky, to go into veterinary school with specialty experience, but I like general,� she said. “In specialty, you see these clients and pets for maybe a week, but in general you can
Photo by Sarah Gibson
Dr. Sarah Hartge has joined Dr. James Dobies at South Point Pet Hospital in Belmont. Dr. Hartge is a Gaston County native who studied veterinary medicine at NC State University. be with a puppy or a kitten from the time they’re born until fif-
teen years later.� See HARTGE, 5A
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