RAEFORD & HOKE COUNTY N.C.Hoke County’s newspaper since 1905 75¢

Browsing the Files ...........2 Calendar ..................7 Classifi eds ................11 Deaths ..................6 Editorials ..................3 Worship ..................7

Wednesday, June 29, 2016No. 17 Vol. 111

www.thenews-journal.comwww.raefordnj.com

NJSOLD HERE

Look forthis symbol

to fi nd stores that sell The

News-Journal

This Week

Employee pay raise in, tax cut out

Swaths cutfor gas pipeline

Tribe recognitionbill languishes

Filing for board of education begins next week

West Hoke Elementary Beta studentsplace in top 10 out of 13,000 students

Festival assumes new name, returns to Main Street

Splash pad, computers for kids, 11 new positions funded in approved budgetBY CATHARIN SHEPARD

Staff writer

The Hoke County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved the 2016-17 budget ordinance during a called meeting

Tuesday afternoon.The approved budget of about

$44 million included a 5 percent raise for sheriff’s offi ce employees, a 2.5 percent raise for other county employees, funding for a splash pad and new basketball courts at

the Parks and Recreation complex on Highway 211, funding for 12 new county vehicles and money to pay for leasing a Chromebook or iPad for every student in Hoke County Schools, among other highlights.

The budget included funding for 11 new county employees, including a second part-time Vet-erans’ Services Offi cer who will work in tandem with the current VSO allowing the county veter-ans’ offi ce to remain open full

time. Previously, the offi ce was open only part time.

“That is a much-needed service that we need to provide,” County Manager Letitia Edens said.

Other positions added to the (See BUDGET, page 6)

BY CATHARIN SHEPARD

Staff writer

Piedmont Natural Gas is working on construction of a pipeline that will provide service to more residential and commercial customers in Hoke County.

The company sought permission from the North

Carolina DOT to extend its pipeline near several roads throughout the county. Based on the utility con-struction easement permits, the extended pipeline includes areas such as N.C. Highway 211, Strother Road, Army Road, Callo-way Road and Turnpike (See PIPELINE, page 6)

BY CATHARIN SHEPARD

Staff writer

A bill supporting the recognition of the Lumbee Tribe is still in the same Congressional committee that received it over a year ago.

H.R. 184, the “Lumbee Recognition Act,” would

extend federal recognition to the tribe, making them eligible for the services and benefi ts provided to Native Americans who are mem-bers of federally recog-nized tribes. It would also provide the Secretary of the Interior with the ability to take land into trust for the

(See TRIBE, page 12)

BY CATHARIN SHEPARD

Staff writer

Two elementary school students from Hoke County competing against children in 37 states placed in the top 10 at a national Beta Club competition in New Orleans last week.

Over a dozen fourth and fi fth grade students from West Hoke Elementary’s Beta Club traveled to the competi-tion with their families after spending months fundraising and collecting donations from the community.

Jeffry Ramos-Alejandro placed in the top 10 in the mathematics division and John Thomas Buck Squier placed in the top 10 for the language arts divi-

sion of the competition, according to West Hoke Elementary Principal A.J. Hammond. Alejandro and Squier were among the students who previously won competitions at the state level that earned them the right to take part in the national event.

The students got to spend several days in New Orleans, not only taking part in the national Beta Club’s annual meeting but also getting to enjoy the sights with their families. For some of the students, it was the fi rst time they had gotten the chance to travel outside the state, Hammond said.

West Hoke Elementary’s Beta Club members were up against over 13,000

(See Top 10, page 12)

BY CATHARIN SHEPARD

Staff writer

Filing for candidates interested in running for election to the Hoke County Board of Education begins next week, while fi ling for the Soil and Water Conser-

vation Supervisor ends this Friday.

The seats of school board members Hank Richards and Rosa McAllister-McRae are up for election this year. Richards reported that he plans to fi le to run for an-other four-year term on the

board. A retired educator, he has served on the board for 12 years.

McAllister-McRae also reported that she plans to fi le to run for election to an-other term on the board. She has served on the school board for over a decade and

serves as director of stu-dent services for Sandhills Community College Hoke Center.

Filing for candidates seeking election to the school board begins Tues-day, July 5 and continues until Monday, August 1 at

noon. Meanwhile, fi ling for the

position of Soil and Water Conservation Supervisor closes this Friday at noon. So far, only incumbent Gary Hendrix has fi led to run for the single seat up for

(See FILING, page 6)

Teen still soughtfor murder

Page 4

BY CATHARIN SHEPARD

Staff writer

How do you have a turkey festival after your original poultry-farming sponsor gets out of the turkey business?

For the volunteer board of directors of the former North Carolina Turkey Festival, the answer was to change the focus to cel-ebrating the season, not just the main course at Thanks-giving dinner.

After a one-year stint as the North Carolina Poultry Festival, the 32-year-old

Hoke County tradition will return this September 10-17 as the North Carolina Fall Festival. The name change will allow the festival to include much more than just poultry, although many fan favorite activities and events will continue, Direc-tor Melissa Pittman said.

There will probably always be people who call the festival the Turkey Fes-tival, Pittman said. After all, entire generations of Hoke County children have grown up attending the same festival that they

(See FESTIVAL, page 4)

Work in progress on Bethel Road.

The West Hoke Elementary Beta Club in New Orleans, where two members placed in the top 10 during competition.

A posting showing Ramos-Ale-jandro’s position in the top 10.

Don Steed Elementary students won the contest to create a new logo.

2 THE NEWS-JOURNAL Raeford, N.C. June 29, 2016

financial problems and the ground beneath the building is contaminated by a gasoline leak, the Hoke Com-missioners decide to buy the building and fix it up themselves.

Hoke schools are getting two new principals. Jack Burgess will lead West Hoke Middle. Randy Bridges will head East Hoke Middle. Burgess and Bridges replace outgoing Emma Mims and Leo Salzer. Mims retired last month and Salzer was fired by the school board despite a recommen-dation by then-superintendent Bob Nelson that he be kept. Meanwhile, new superintendent Bill Harrison begins work.

A superior court judge says he’ll decide by next week whether Sheriff Alex Norton can keep his job. A trial on the sheriff’s alleged maladminis-tration is concluded.

A castle is going up in Rockfish. Ingeborg Katolik and her son Gurgen Katolik are fulfilling her childhood dream. “I make it not for the normal human being,” she says. “You have enough people who like to travel and see something beautiful. I make a little paradise out here.” She plans to use it as a bread-and-breakfast, and is naming it Domroeschen, mean-ing sleeping beauty. It’s located on Jody Lane.

47 Years AgoJuly 3, 1969

The Textiles and Elastic Division of Adams-Millis Corporation in High Point (known as Tex-Elastic) announces an agreement in principle to buy the covering facilities of Raeford Fiber and Textiles Divi-sion of Uniroyal. The plant plans to double the size of the facility on Bethel Road and continue the same products with an increase in fabric used in the ladies’ support-hose line. The new manager will be Hugh Simmons. The plant was built in 1948 as Para Thread, owned by the Hoke Development Corporation and sponsored by the Chamber of Com-merce. Uniroyal took over in 1955.

Though tobacco seems to be recovering from hail damage, a tornado hits along the Cumberland-Hoke line, damaging the crop and leveling two tobacco barns. Malcolm Gillis says one barn is destroyed by fire from lightning.

The Welfare Department is no longer that; it’s now called the De-partment of Social Services.

Jimmy Attaway will be the Hoke delegate to the 23rd Annual 4-H Electric Congress in Charlotte. More than 200 boys and girls will attend.

Local Lions install new officers: Talmadge Baker, president; Dale Ormsby, first vice president; Stuart Meyers, second vice president; Bob Hughes, secretary; Ray Mansfield, treasurer; Don Vinson, Lion tamer; and Raz Autry, tail twister. Tommy Weldon is presented the Lion of the Year award. Door prizes are won by Mrs. Talmadge Baker, Mrs. Levern Clifton, Mrs. Homer Tuttle and Mrs. Sid Farress.

25 Years AgoJuly 3, 1991

As work on a courthouse annex stalls because the developer is having

Treats are served at Vacation Bible School at Raeford Presby-terian. Pictured left to right are possibly Teresa Maxwell, John MacDonald, Jeff Smith and Ruth Bowles.

A crowded Raeford pool in the days before the 4th of July.

Tornado damage at Hoke-Cumberland County line.

The Burke-Monroe Family Re-union will be held the third weekend in July.

“A Soulful Family Reunion” will begin July 22 at Cypress Bend Vineyards from 6-9 p.m.

A soccer game will be held at Cameron Village from 9 a.m. to noon July 23 and will be followed by a family-and-friends cookout at 225 Montrose Road in Raeford at 3 p.m.

On July 24, the family will gather at Avery Chapel FWB Church at 10:30 a.m. for the 11 a.m. worship service.

For more information, contact Tommy McNeill at ttmcneill@ho-tmail.com or cell at 336-926-4881.

Burke-Monroe reunion set

Order of Long Leaf Pine awardBob Barnes (right) received the Order of the Long Leaf Pine Award. He is retiring this week after 46 years in education, most recently as associate superintendent in Hoke schools. Pre-senting the award is State Rep. Garland Pierce.

BirthsMerrick and Melissa Endejann

of Chapel Hill announce the birth of a second son, Maelen Norris Endejann on June 13. Grandpar-ents are Mr. and Mrs. Wayne Mills of Raeford and Mr. and Mrs. Mike Endejann of Cincinnati, Ohio.

The following Hoke County parents have authorized the re-lease of the births of their children at FirstHealth Moore Regional Hospital in Pinehurst:

November 7, 2015

Breanna Shaw and Larry

Hamilton, Raeford, a son, Kayden Faronta Hamilton

November 10, 2015

Shaneice Grace and Donte Wilson, Raeford, a daughter, Jania Vinae Wilson

November 16, 2015

Amanda Donn and Jeremy Maynard, Raeford, a daughter, JeraMia Briann Maynard November 29, 2015

Tiffany Hurst and Kirk Pelzer Jr., Raeford, a daughter, Alayah

Shadae Pelzer December 10, 2015

Angelique and Jason Allen, Raeford, a son, Jonas Daniel Allen December 11, 2015

Tiffany Darby, Raeford, a son, Jamarion Brayden Darby

Natiua Blue and Larry Ham-ilton, Raeford, a son, Kameron Elijah Lewis Hamilton

The News-Journal also accepts birth announcements directly from parents at www.thenews-journal.com.

The board of advisors of the Hoke County Community Foun-dation announced grant awards from its community grant making fund and the Mary Archie McNeill Endowment recently.

This year’s nonprofit recipients include:

• Hoke County Partnership for Children

• Raeford-Hoke Museum• Prevent Blindness NC• Hoke County Cooperative

Extension• Hoke County Public Schools

for Don Steed Elementary• American Red Cross• NC Cooperative ExtensionThe awards were announced at

a picnic dinner on June 2 at the home of Leah and Dooie Leach in Raeford, according to John Jordan, board president.

Jordan thanked the community for its support of the Hoke County Community Foundation. “These grants are important to our com-munity and our quality of life,” he said. “Critical programs would not be possible without the generosity of many individuals and organiza-tions that have supported Hoke County’s community fund and other associated endowed funds.”

The Hoke foundation is an affiliate of the North Caro-lina Community Foundation (NCCF). In addition to Jordan,

board members include Jean Harrison (secretary-treasurer), Wanda Cohen, Shari Dahman, Vickie Lynn Farmer, William C. Fields Jr., Calvin House, Ron Huff, Leah Leach, Grace McDonald, Regina McKinney Joe, Whiteford Jones, Wanda McPhaul, Jeff McNeill and Jo-seph C. Poole Jr. Tax-deductible contributions can be made to the local community grant making fund, which is administered by the NCCF and should be made payable to the Hoke County Community Fund, PO Box 406, Raeford, NC 28376. Contribu-tions can also be made online at nccommunityfoundation.org.

Organizations get grants

Hoke High student Isis Baldwin is receiving a grant of up to $12,000 from the Golden LEAF Foundation Scholarship. Baldwin plans to attend the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

He is one of 215 students

selected to receive a $3,000 scholarship each year for up to four years of study at a participating North Carolina public university or private non-profit college or univer-sity. Recipients are from rural, economically distressed North

Carolina counties and are se-lected based on a number of criteria, including a review of school and community service activities, goals, and expressed intent to contribute to rural communities upon graduation from college.

Student gets scholarship

Oh Snap!Snapshot Contest

ENTRY DEADLINESJuly 3—VacationJuly 10 —PatrioticJuly 17—PoolJuly 24—Camping/Fishing/ OutdoorsJuly 31—Crazy PeopleAugust 7—Action/SportsAugust 14—Happy Child

Enter atwww.thenews-journal.com/ohsnap

Categories & Week Published(Deadline to enter is Sunday

before publication date)Winner printed each week

in The News-Journal & The Echo

All photos must have a person in them, and you must have their permission for the photo to be published. All ages are eligible.

$25 Per Week Winner

Category Summertime

Winner!

Garrett Quesinberry, 5, (left) and brother Jackson pause on

walk to beach. Jennifer Yates, photographer

SUMMER CAMPDAY CAMP & RESIDENTIAL CAMP IN JUNE & JULY FOR KIDS AGES 5-17 YEARS OLD

910-276-1654monroecamp.org • info@monroecamp.org

BUILD NEW SKILLS, MAKE FRIENDS, PLAY OUTSIDE & GROW IN YOUR FAITH.

$50Your business to 13,500 homes!

Call Hal at (910) 875-2121.

Small Business

Get One FREE!OR Twice A Month For $100 (Color $120)

Run 6 times & 7th one is FREE!!

Hero!

June 29, 2016 THE NEWS-JOURNAL Raeford, N.C 3

ViewpointsBy Scott MooneyhaM

Capital Press Association

Published every Wednesday by Dickson Press, Inc. Robert A. Dickson, President • Anne Dickson Fogleman, Secretary/Treasurer

119 W. Elwood Avenue, Raeford, NC 28376 • (910) 875-2121

Home Page: www.thenews-journal.com

email ads to:ads@thenews-journal.com

email classifieds to:classifieds@thenews-journal.com

email legals to: robin@thenews-journal.com

Periodical ClassPostage at Raeford, N.C.

(USPS 388-260)

Postmaster:Send address changes to:

P.O. Box 550Raeford, N.C. 28376

Ken MacDonald (ken@thenews-journal.com) ......................... Publisher

Catharin Shepard (cshepard@thenews-journal.com) ..................Reporter

Hal Nunn (hal@thenews-journal.com) .............................. Sports Writer

Hal Nunn (hal@thenews-journal.com) .................. Sales Representative

Sheila Black (sheila@thenews-journal.com) .................. Office Manager

Robin Huffman (robin@thenews-journal.com) ......Composition Design/Legal Advertising

The News-Journal welcomes letters to the editor and encourages readers to express their opinions.

Letters must be signed and include an address and phone number. The street address and phone number will not be pub-lished, but are required so we may verify authenticity. The name of

the writer and, in some cases, the town the writer is from will be published at the end of the letter.

We are not able to publish letters that are essentially thank-you cards.

We reserve the right to edit let-ters for grammar, as well as those that exceed 300 words. We will not

publish letters that we consider to be in poor taste or libelous. In some cases we may add an editor’s note as a postscript when we believe a correction, explanation or amplifi-cation is warranted. We may also, at our discretion, limit the number of times an individual writer may submit a letter for publication.

We welcome your letters

Submit letters to the editor online:Look for heading “Send Us Stuff” at

www.thenews-journal.com

One on OnePatrick Gannon,

Capitol Press Association

A wise person once said that thoughts lead to words, words lead to actions and actions lead to habits.

Of course, habits can be good or bad, and politicians can develop them, too, through their actions.

Take the “gut and amend” tac-tic of making laws, for example. That’s when a bill that’s still eligible in a legislative session and has passed some procedural hurdles is stripped of its original contents somewhere along the line and new language – often serving an entirely different purpose – is added behind the scenes.

Then the new proposal, which few people have seen, is rolled out in a General Assembly com-mittee and often approved within minutes to go to the House or Senate floor for a vote. Rarely in these situations is adequate time given to hear from opponents and proponents of the proposal.

It’s a habit that’s developed over the years in the state leg-islature, with Democrats and now Republicans in charge, and North Carolina’s lawmakers are addicted. The “gut and amend” process all but ensures the new language gets less scrutiny than it would if it had to go through the normal legislative process.

California lawmakers have suffered from the same addic-tion, causing outcry from good government groups there. Ac-cording to a recent news release from California Common Cause, “No non-emergency legislation is so important that it justifies bypassing public review.” Public

review, the group said, “serves not only to stop measures that may in fact subvert the public interest but also to ensure new policies will work well for the greatest number of people.”

The group also said that the end – a new law – doesn’t justify the means, when such means is “founded upon secrecy, the viola-tion of normal and open legislative process, and inadequate public involvement.” In other words, even good policy shouldn’t be marred by bad procedure.

Back in North Carolina, House and Senate calendars have been filled with bills as legislators work to finish their short session. But the bills that appear on committee calendars are being gutted and amended so often that it’s next to impossible for reporters and others to decide which committee meetings to attend. We can’t be in two places at once either.

Should I go to the committee expected to consider an incon-sequential bill about jury duty, which I don’t know is about to become a highly controversial bill to punish cities financially if they don’t enforce immigration laws?

Or should I go to the committee that’s supposed to hear a bill about aircraft repairs, which I don’t know is about to become a bill giving cemeteries more freedom to sell extra land. Or maybe I’ll

hit the committee with the bill about dealer license plates, which I don’t know is about to become a bill allowing handlers of service animals to keep them upon their retirements. These are just three of many examples of “gut and amend” this session. More are sure to come.

Imagine how the public feels when people who spend every day at the Legislative Building have trouble keeping up.

Legislators don’t appear will-ing or able to break themselves of their habit anytime soon.

Rep. Michael Speciale, a New Bern Republican, expressed con-cern on the House floor recently about so many bills being stripped and changed at the last minute.

“We need to look at them closely,” he said.

The response from House Speaker Tim Moore: “The chair will point out that it probably will get worse before it gets better.”

Sen. Tom Apodaca, a Hen-dersonville Republican and the Senate Rules chairman, shrugged it off. “It’s a beautiful thing, isn’t it?” Apodaca told reporters. “It just lets you know it’s almost time to go home.”

The need and desire to gut and amend so many bills this late in the session shows that the legis-lature is disorganized at best and secretive and deceptive at worst.

A wise person once said that bad habits die hard. Clearly, that’s the case here.

Patrick Gannon is the editor of The Insider State Government News Service in Raleigh. Reach him at pgannon@ncinsider.com.

Legislature is secretive and deceptive

Frog HollerPhilosopher

Ron Huff

For years, I socialized with friends and did not know their political affiliations. I have often been surprised when I discovered their allegiances because, while sometimes different from mine, they did not reduce our ability to get along and have good times to-gether. Things have become more divisive, and I now pretty much know which friends are in which camp because everyone is wear-ing their opinions on their sleeves. Emotion is driving the bus.

There has always been dis-agreement, thus the two-party system, but it used to be a little more civil. While Watergate led to Nixon’s resignation, it did not polarize the electorate like we see today. As I remember, Republi-cans held up well with dignity and did not try to justify these actions. Gerald Ford was admired by ev-eryone to a point. Carter got lots of heat, some justifiable, but I don’t remember righteous indignation by those who disliked his policies. Reagan never bore the criticism that may have been rightfully due him for his Iran Contra scandal. Obama would have been boiled in oil for doing something like that. The first Bush was widely viewed as a gentleman, and I don’t remember a lot of hate talk and blindly divisive rhetoric going on at that time.

By the time Clinton had his fling with “that woman,” it seems the tide had changed a little, and people were really passionate about it. That indiscreet act of poor judgment and human frailty, not to mention infidelity, still defines Clinton to many, and is even the basis for which some dislike Hill-

ary Clinton. Knowing what I do about the history of presidential indiscretions and human nature, I do not feel that such personal things are that relevant to good governing and should not be defining. Perhaps this indignation by Republicans backfired a little as divisiveness escalated under Bush the Second. I liked Bush as a person but I grew to really dislike the results of the policies that arose from the triumvirate of Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld. If Cheney had been hit by a bus, I would not have shed a tear. I admit that my emotions were having too much influence.

The lid blew off when Obama was elected. I don’t remember a previous congressional party directive to obstruct a president using all means before Obama. At this point, it seemed that all reason was out the door and emotion had taken over.

I can’t put my finger on what has caused this shift but I think hate, fear and entitlement are three factors. We seem to be directing the hate that the jihadists have for us towards easier targets, sometimes our own citizens. I understand that there are scary things going on out there, but there always have been and we don’t need to overreact and do irrational, unconstitutional and immoral things out of fear.

A lot of people complain loudly

that welfare is the cause of the deficit, contributes to moral decay and fosters future dependence. Public assistance programs were instituted by Congress, which is free to eliminate them if they see fit. Most of my political discus-sions are with whites, and their comments sometimes have an undertone of bigotry. Many feel that we somehow should prevent the immigration of Muslims, Latinos and any other group they happen to blame our problems on. While many shout “Constitution,” I would suggest they actually read it and realize it clearly calls for equal rights and religious free-dom for all, not just them. More and more it seems that many Americans feel entitled to have a government that reflects their particular preferences. This just is not so. Many look at the country through the eyes of provocative media trained seals who will say anything for another fish! I would rather people be blissfully ignorant than stoked with hateful lies.

Reason now seems irrelevant. There are still reasonable and in-formed voices out there, although one might have to search a bit to find them. Now is a particularly relevant time for a little reason to go along with the emotion. At a recent gathering of a few friends, I found myself yelling at a friend with different views because I could not interject what I felt were reasonable views into the debate. Emotion was taking up all the space. I have vowed to avoid these instances and speak only when spoken to. That is a real shame!

More later.

Never seen such divisive times

By thoMaS MillS

The shooting in Orlando reminds us how vulnerable we are in a society like ours. It also reminds us that there are people who hate some of us simply for who we are. And it reminds us that there really are people who hate America just because of our way of life. It also reminds us that Congress is broken.

After Newtown, after San Bernardino, and now after Or-lando, Congress has failed to take any meaningful action to curb mass shootings. Despite a longstanding threat of terrorists from foreign countries entering the US, they’ve failed to fix our broken immigration system. In short, they’ve failed in a very basic responsibility—to keep us safe.

You would have thought the mass killing of 20 six- and seven-year-old children would have spurred them to action. But it didn’t. Instead, mass shootings

have become the new normal. Each one seems more horrific than the last, though Newtown scours depths of depravity.

Too many people blame the NRA for the inaction. But it’s not their fault. They’re an organiza-tion doing their job and doing it well. No, the blame is with the members of Congress who re-fuse to stand up to the gun lobby because they’re more concerned with their re-election or campaign donations than doing what’s necessary to protect the country.

Many of those same politicians claim that terrorism, not access to high capacity clips or military-style assault weapons, is the culprit in these mass shootings. Yet they have failed to address our broken immigration system. They grandstand about mass deporta-tions or building a wall but most of the suspected terrorists in the country either arrived by airplane or were born here. They have done nothing to make our borders more

secure or to better regulate who is coming into our country.

At the very least, we should do all we can to keep weapons that can cause carnage out of the hands of potential terrorists, whether foreign or domestic, whether driven by ideology, hate, or psychosis. A start would be denying people on the no-fly list access to weapons. We should also require universal background checks for gun sales. Finally, we should lift the ban on funding research on gun violence so we better understand the factors that cause it. That’s a very modest start.

It’s time to at least try to curb the violence against innocent people. Congress should do something. Af-ter so many mass shootings, the one thing we know that doesn’t work is doing nothing. But, unfortunately, that’s what is wrong with Congress. As on so many other matters, they’re doing nothing.

Thomas Mills is the Democrat-ic nominee for North Carolina’s 8th Congressional District.

It’s time to at least try something

We Get Letters

To the Editor:To increase the awareness of

the county’s citizens and organiza-tions, here is a brief description of the existing Juvenile Crime Pre-vention Council of Hoke County, one of 100 in each of the 100 counties in the state. These coun-cils were established and funded by order of the N.C. Assembly about 20 years ago. The Assembly also determined the membership by listing the organizations they wanted to be included. They are: city chief of police, local sheriff, district attorney, chief Court Counselor, area Mental Health authority, director of county So-cial Services, county manager, a substance abuse professional, a member of the faith community, a county commissioner, two per-sons under age of 18, juvenile defense attorney, district court judge, member of the business

community, local health director, representative of the United Way or other non-profit organization, representative of Parks and Rec Department, representative of the Education Department, and up to seven members (volunteers) appointed by the board of com-missioners.

The council is to serve the at-risk youth to avoid their be-coming delinquent. The council, upon advertising for bids, selects appropriate non-profit service or-ganizations to provide applicable programs for these youths.

For some time now, the JCPC has had problems obtaining a quorum at its meetings, which has handicapped the execution of its function.

The most reliable attendees were the volunteers. Listed orga-nizations have the option to send a designee, in lieu of the chief or

administrator of the individual participating organizations.

The Sheriff’s Department was very reliable in its representation, until of late. The City Police De-partment now has a very interested and determined representative selected as designee. However, we have seen few designees from the Department of Social Services, Health Department, county man-agement, district court designee, as well as off and on county com-missioner representative.

This is a call to everyone to support the JCPC by attending regularly, if needed via a designee, in order to accomplish the goal of helping youth at risk before they cross the divide into delinquency, and also meet the obligation mandated by the N.C. Assembly to each county.

Renate DahlinRaeford

Officials aren’t stepping up for youth

Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it.

— Thomas Paine

My God! How little do my countrymen know what precious blessings they are in possession of, and which no other people on earth enjoy!

— Thomas Jefferson

He loves his country best who strives to make it best.—Robert G. Ingersoll

"Our country, right or wrong. When right to be kept right; when wrong to be put right.”

— Carl Schurz

4 THE NEWS-JOURNAL Raeford, N.C. June 29, 2016

Festival(Continued from page 1)

Class Reunions1967 — The Upchurch High

School Class of 1967 is planning its 50th Class Reunion Celebration. For more information, contact Walter Blue, 910-875-3318, Delorise Lide, 910-875-2480 or Annie Little, 910-695-5519.

1972 — The Hoke High Class of 1972 will hold a planning meeting at the Hoke Library July 9 from noon to 1:30 p.m. Contact Irene Dockery at 910-875-6921 for more information or 910-229-0771.

1975 — The Hoke County High

Class of 1975 is planning its 40th year reunion. We are searching for our members and contact informa-tion. Please respond with contact information to: trinybooks@aol.com, gbhill27@gmail.com, 910-213-7110, 910-977-9076 or 910-978-4455.

1977 — Hoke County High School Class of 1977 will meet every Monday at 7 p.m. at Virgil’s Drive-In. Any interested classmate may call James Quick at 910-273-1863.

1979— The HHS Class of 1979 will host its 37th year class reunion September 23-24, 2016. For more information call Bonnie Graham at 910-261-6601 or Brenda Ellerbee Bethea at 910-583-7623.

1998 — Planning for the class of 1998 reunion has been completed. Please contact April Bratcher at (336) 841-5388 or (336) 338-2286 cell or Damon Williams at 910-690-6707 ASAP so we can get an information packet to you via mail or email.

Hoke County amateur radio operators hosted their First Amateur Radio Field Day over the weekend at the Raeford-Hoke Museum.

The weather conditions were ideal but radio propagation was rather poor because of a sunspot cycle. Operators were Tim Mar-shall (KM4JIZ), Randy Cox (KB-5WX) and Tim Tapio (K4SHF). Donnie Smith (AD4TL), Jayson Loveday (KM4SZR) and Cliff Overby (N4LJY) also contributed their skills.

There were over 20 visitors to the event, including two Boy Scouts, Quentin Weik from Parkton and Morgan Broch from St. Pauls. They both were able to operate over two meter (ham talk for 146 MHz) to each other. Simple antennas – including one that was a 250-foot-long piece of house wire from Lowes – and

generator power were the rules of the day.

There were not a lot of contacts made but the group was able to demonstrate how communica-tions could be supported under emergency conditions, operators said.

The group thanked the trustees of the Raeford-Hoke Museum for allowing them to use the museum grounds. Operators hope to make it an annual event.

The next event in the plans is to support the Jamboree On The Air event for Boy Scouts on the third full weekend of October.

Field Day is an annual amateur radio exercise, widely sponsored by the International Amateur Ra-dio Union regions and member or-ganizations, encouraging amateur radio emergency communications preparedness among amateur radio operators. In the United

States, it is typically the largest single emergency preparedness exercise in the country, with more than 30,000 operators participat-ing each year. Field Day is always the fourth full weekend of June, beginning at 18:00 UTC Saturday and running through 20:59 UTC Sunday.

Since the first ARRL Field Day in 1933, radio amateurs throughout North America have practiced the rapid deployment of radio communications equip-ment in environments ranging from operations under tents in remote areas to operations inside Emergency Operations Centers (EOCs). Operations using emer-gency and alternative power sources are highly encouraged, since electricity and other public infrastructures are often among the first to fail during a natural disaster or severe weather.

Ham radio operators hold radio field day

Winning babyKyleigh Madison Hosley won the annual Babies on Parade competi-tion at Freedom Chapel AME Zion Church last week. She is daughter of Dominique and Makadrian Hosley and granddaughter of Frederick and Regina Bass. She is great-granddaugh-ter of William and Wanda Tiggs and Bernice Cherry.

now attend with their own chil-dren. A 30-year habit is hard to break, Pittman said, and some-times even she and the staff at the festival’s office have to catch themselves from calling it by its former name.

This year’s festival week will have many new offerings, includ-ing a fireworks display, a selfie booth, two entertainment stages and other new events. Classic events like the card tournament, Senior Day and Turkey Bowl foot-ball game will return. A parade is also on the schedule, but will feature a different route this year.

While the name is moving forward, the location is taking a step back in time to the days that children roamed up and down Main Street enjoying games as their parents shopped at vendor booths. For the first decades of its existence, the festival’s conclud-ing Saturday events were always held on Main Street. Then, the festival moved to McLauchlin Park, where it’s been for the last nine years.

Some people preferred it on Main Street while others preferred the park location, Pittman said. It

was when local businesses asked that it be moved back to Main Street that the directors made the move.

“The businesses on Main Street requested it, and citizens have been requesting it for years,” she said.

The Raeford City Council agreed to give permission for the move, and reached out to the North Carolina Department of Transportation to close the street for the day.

The festival’s original turkey mascot makes an appearance in the 2016 festival logo, which features the new “Fall Festival” aesthetic. The new logo was the winning design submitted by Don Steed Elementary in a contest. Students Ian Gill, Kadyn Tyler, Yoshua Wallace, Joseph Baker, Mimi Matthews and Leslie Helm took part in designing the logo, which will be printed on shirts and other merchandise that will be available for sale.

The festival will kick off with a fireworks show at the airport, sponsored by Paraclete XP, be-ginning at dusk September 10. The festival will also hold a 9/11 remembrance ceremony on the

10th at the Ralph Pandure VFW Post 10 building at the airport.

The bands Country on the Outskirts of Town and Rivermist, which feature a variety of modern country, country, and rock and roll music, will perform at the Saturday night concert at the Old Armory park. Tickets for the concert will be $10 with the event running from 8 p.m.-midnight. Guests are allowed to bring cool-ers, food, blankets and chairs, but glass bottles are prohibited.

The 2016 North Carolina Fall Festival Board of Directors includes Patty Webb, president; Valerie Livingston, president-elect; Deborah Davis Carpenter, secretary; Judy Pittman, treasurer; Charles Tapp, Jerry Sherman, Roderick McLinnaham, sites; Dee Pittman Inman, Crystal Johnson Gibson, special events, vendors & fundraising; Wanda McDiarmid, volunteers; Lizzie McCormick, Freddie McPhaul, Sandra Rosario, concessions; Te-resa Burke, Marian Elliot, cultural arts; Matt Lindsey, Jodie Bryant, entertainment; Felicia Locklear, Lt. Roy Downing, Ginny Phil-lips, liaisons; and Tom Squier, past president/advisor.

The McLauchlin Elementary School float in last year’s festival parade.

The Hoke County Sheriff’s Office is still searching for a 16-year-old wanted on charges of first-degree murder, burglary and robbery with a dangerous weapon.

Authorities are seeking Jordache Nebeh’yis Baldwin-Leach, 16, in connection with the April 2, 2016 shooting death of a man in the Scurlock community, the sheriff’s office announced earlier this month.

Investigators identified Bald-win-Leach as a suspect in the shooting death of A’Shadontae Devorontez Baker, 19, who was killed outside a home at 105 Lasso Lane in the Scurlock community just before 10 p.m. April 2. Baker died at the scene from a gunshot wound to the head.

Masked suspects went into the house and took property from Baker’s family, according to authorities at the time of the incident. Baker’s grandmother and a friend were inside the house during the home invasion. They

heard the shot, but didn’t witness it, and afterward were robbed at gunpoint by at least one masked suspect, officials reported.

Investigators put out a wanted for arrest notice on Baldwin-Leach June 15. He is described as 5’10” tall, 155-170 pounds, African-American with tattoos on both arms and his upper chest. He sometimes goes by the nickname “Juice” or “El Chapo.” Officials believe he is armed and may be in the area of the Wedgefield, Steeplechase and Summerfield East subdivisions.

Anyone with information about Baldwin-Leach’s where-abouts is asked to contact Detec-tive Combs at (910) 878-1212.

Investigators previously ar-rested a woman for allegedly lying to officials and withholding information related to Baker’s death. Authorities charged Jalissa Danay Dixon, 17, of the 100 block of Woodbine Drive in Raeford

with felony obstruction of justice. She was held under a $200,000 secured bond.

Hoke County Sheriff Hubert Peterkin reported that Dixon allegedly aided Baldwin-Leach during the murder investigation by providing false information to detectives.

Authorities still seeking teen wanted for murder

Baldwin-Leach

Subscription Form❑ New subscription❑ Renewal ❑ Active Military $15❑ Gift (We’ll notify recipient)

Clip, mail with payment to: The News-Journal P.O. Box 550 Raeford, N.C. 28376 (910)875-2121 for more information

Rates (including N.C. tax)

IN HOke:Print edition ........ $29(eligible for free PDF)

Senior Citizen ...... $23Active Military ...... $23OuTSIDe HOke:One year ............. $42(eligible for free PDF)

PDF only ............. $29

A-1 Gas & Food Mart ............. E. Central Ave.Andy’s ............................................... US 401Arabia Food Mart ..........................Arabia Rd.Barbee Pharmacy .........................Harris Ave.Bo’s ..............................................S. Main St.Citgo Mart ..................................Red SpringsCVS Pharmacy ............................401 BypassDaddy Mac Mini Mart ...... 6079 Turnpike Rd.Daniels’ Exxon ........................ E. Central Ave.Edinborough Restaurant. ..............S. Main St. Fast Shop ...........................W. Prospect. Ave.Five Star #2 ..................................... Hwy 211Food Lion...............................Laurinburg Rd.Food Lion.............................. Fayetteville Rd.Food Mart #4 ............................. Hwy. 211 S.Food Stop ...........................W. Prospect Ave.401 Lucky Stop ...............E. Central & 401 N.401 Shop-N-Save #1 .............Harris and 401Hardin’s ......................Rockfish Rd., RockfishHardin’s Express Stop ............... Rockfish Rd.Highway 55 .......401 Bypass & 401 BusinessHome Food Supermarket..................Main St.Howell Drug ...................................... Teal Dr.

Jay’s Food Mart ........ Hwy 211. at county lineJ&L Grocery & Meats ............... Rockfish Rd.Lucky Stop .................Hwy. 401 & Palmer St.Lucky Stop 2196 .......Rockfish Rd.&401 Bus.Mi Casita...................... 4534 Fayetteville Rd.MP Mart ............................... Hwy. 211 SouthMcNeill’s Grocery ....................... Hwy. 211 S.McPhatter’s Grocery ..... Hwy. 401 & Vass Rd.Muncheez Express ................ Fayetteville Rd.Murphy Express ................ Walmart Hwy 401The News-Journal ..................119 W. ElwoodQuality Foods ....................................McCainPoco Shop #4 ........................ E. Central Ave.Short Stop #54 ....................Davis Bridge Rd.Short Stop #64 .......................Hwy. 211 WestShort Stop #68 .......................... N. Fulton St.Something’s Brewing Coffee Shop ....7104 Fayetteville Rd.Tobacco World ...................... Fayetteville Rd.211 Food Mart ................................ Hwy 211Waffle House ....................... 401 Hwy BypassWilcoHess ................................ Aberdeen Rd.Yogi Mart ................................... Hwy. 211 S.Zip N Mart ............................. Fayetteville Rd.

The News-Journal is sold at these locations:

Subscriber information:

Name

Address

City State Zip

Phone

Your name, address (if different from above)

Name

Address

City State Zip

Phone

save online at www.thenews-journal.com

Summer TransitionPrograms

Hoke County Schools

Call your child’s school for details: Hoke High School – 910.875.2156

East Hoke Middle School – 910.875.5048 West Hoke Middle School – 910.875.3411

Sandy Grove Middle School – 910.875.3559 Student Support Services – 910.904.1067

RISING 9TH GRADERS Hoke County High School

Tuesday – Thursday, August 9 - 11, 2016 8:00 am – 3:40 pm

RISING 6TH GRADERS West Hoke Middle School Tuesday, August 2, 2016

8:00 am – 3:30 pm

Sandy Grove Middle School Wednesday, August 3, 2016

8:00 am – 3:30 pm

East Hoke Middle School Thursday, August 4, 2016

8:00 am – 3:30 pm

Free Breakfast & Lunch

**This 2x5 Ad is now just $100 per week,

minimum of three weeks.**

Summer Advertising Promotion

The Echo &The News-Journal

reach 14,000 homes each week.

Echo front page and/or color available at additional reduced cost. Deadline: Noon each Monday

Contact Wendy Tredway at 875-2121; by email at wendy@thenews-journal.com

orHal Nunn at 964-0990; hal@thenews-journal.com

Covering Raeford & Hoke County Since 1905

Like UsOn

Facebook!

Weekly newspaper serving Raeford & Hoke County

CheCk Us OUt...

• latest news updates

•heads upon weather

& much more!

Let us know about news

June 29, 2016 THE NEWS-JOURNAL Raeford, N.C 5

Sports

Sports News To Report?Call Hal Nunn at (910) 875-2121

Just Putting AroundBy hal nunn

Sports writer

The 7th annual Sakellie Daniels’ basketball camp at Hoke High School ended last weekend with over 71 people in attendance. Head girls’ bas-ketball coach Sakellie Daniels put the camp together with help from around the community and former players.

“It was another very success-ful camp and we got a lot of posi-

tive feedback from the parents,” Daniels said. One of the biggest responses was to the addition of the discussion of the business of sports and contract negotia-tions. “We wanted to give some of the kids a real perspective on what those two areas include,” Daniels said.

The three-day camp had many others devoting time to helping Coach Daniels make it happen, including Jaque Bradshaw, Jarvis Cobb, Janiyah Harrington, Iyana

Jones, Daisha Little, Mahogany Matthews, George Maynor, Angelica McDonald, Bryant Mc-Gregor, Devonte Melvin, Mikal Montgomery, Javon Parker, Beth Schmitt and Alex Wright.

Coach Daniels also mentioned that the Lady Bucks’ basketball team participated in the St. An-drews University team camp this summer and competed with other high school teams. In the camp tournament, the Lady Bucks won all three games.

The 7th annual Sakellie Daniels’ basketball camp saw over 71 participants during the three-day camp at Hoke High last week.

Sakellie Daniels’ basketballcamp huge success

By hal nunn

Sports writer

Greg Brigman, a 2005 Hoke County High School graduate and former Bucks’ soccer and baseball player, will be playing with the U.S. Paralympic Soccer team in Rio de Janeiro this fall for the Summer Olympics. In a letter sent to The News-Journal, Brigman stated that, due to the travel requirements for Team USA, he has not been able to meet his fulltime requirements as a Civil Engineer with the engineering firm that hired him after graduating from UNC Charlotte. “I was faced with an ultimatum of continuing to work as an engineer to support my family or quit my job to pursue my dreams of repre-senting the United States as a Paralympic Athlete. With the support of my wife and family, I have ultimately chosen to quit my position with the engineer-ing firm and to fully dedicate my time and efforts to being a

Paralympic Athlete for Team USA”, Brigman said.

Greg Brigman is the son of Gary and Kathy Brigman of Raeford. He was born with a mild case of Cerebral Palsy that with treatment and surger-ies could be corrected to live a normal life with a slight physi-cal disability. Through many trips to UNC Chapel Hill and physical therapy, Greg went on to play sports just like all the other kids, even making it to starter on the varsity soccer and baseball teams at Hoke High and becoming a soccer official at the Division 1 level of college sports.

If anyone would like to support Greg Brigman in his ef-forts to continue to dedicate his time and efforts to representing Team USA, feel free to contact him at 910-624-1216 or email gwbrigma@gmail.com. If you would like to write to Greg Brigman, his address is 9293 Swimming Drive, Harrisburg, NC 28075.

Greg Brigman (far right #17) poses for a photo with team-mates on the U.S. Paralympic Soccer team while they were scrimmaging a team in Papendal, Netherlands last week.

Brigman to compete in RIO, seeking financial support

Hoke 13u team wins tournament in Maryland The 13-under travel basketball team, Taking It By Force, based out of Hoke County traveled to District Heights, Maryland last weekend and went 4-0, winning all games by double figures. They were the only team from North Carolina participating. Pictured are Kelton Battle (front row, left to right), DaVonte Davis, Jordan Maynor, Jaleel Boles, Brodie Clark and Kamonte Williams; back row: Coach Kelsey Battle, Ralphael Blue, JaQuante Harris, Vincent Lathem, Angel Dean, Jalen Higgins and Coach Chris Monroe.

Hoke High - All Sports Camp

Hoke County High School will hold its annual All Sports Camp July 11 - 13 for rising third graders through rising sixth graders each day from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The cost is $10 per camper and breakfast and lunch will be served. The camp is for All Sports that are supported by Hoke County High School. Parents must sign in and out the students each day. Each student must have a waiver signed by the parent or guard-ian. For more information, contact Hoke High Athletics Director Gary Brigman at 910-286-2346.

Southeastern Soccer Academy Camp

Hoke High head soccer coach Colin McDavid will conduct a soc-cer camp August 1 - 4 at the high school soccer practice field behind the school. The times are 9 a.m. until 11:30 a.m. each day and is for kids ages six through fourteen. The cost is $40 and includes a t-shirt. For more information, contact Coach Colin McDavid at 910-280-1127 or email at cmcdavid@hcs.k12.nc.us.

Bayonet at Puppy CreekThe Wednesday shootout saw

21 players participate last week at Bayonet and the team of Elmer Capps, James Beasley and Flash Gordon took home first place with an overall score of 10-under, par 62. On Friday, June 24, in the afternoon shootout, the team of Brian Daniels, Richard Burger, Tom Flow and Flash Gordon won with an overall score of 8-under, par 64. Shootouts begin at 12:30 p.m. Wednesdays and Fridays.

Upland Trace Saturday morning group win-

ners were Tom Batchelor, John Batchelor, Ray McLemore and Jim Thompson. Mike Summers shot a 71 Saturday morning. The Saturday “Pack” group winners were Spock Matthews, Richard Cook and Lee Harless. The Sunday morning group winners were Steve Jumbelick, Guy Wall and Kris Taylor. Kris Taylor shot his best score 71. Sunday af-ternoon group winners were Mark Faour, Ken Bullock, David Black-well and Ricky Beasley.

Sports Briefs

Gas Too

High?

Call Us For All Your Transportation Needs

910-875-8696

DEDICADO A PROVEER TRANSPORTE SEGURO Y CONFIABLE

A LA COMUNIDAD DE HOKE

¡Cualquiera puede viajar!

910- 875- 8696

Llámenos para todas sus necesidades de transporte ¿La

Gasolina

Demasiado

Alta? H.A.T.S.

SERVICIO DE TRÁNSITO DEL AREA DE HOKE

6 THE NEWS-JOURNAL Raeford, N.C. June 29, 2016

Budget(Continued from page 1)

Filing(Continued from page 1)

Pipeline(Continued from page 1)

Obituaries

Hester R. DavisHester Riley Davis of Raleigh,

formerly of Raeford, died Mon-day, June 27, 2016 in Pruitt Health Care of Raleigh at the age of 92.

She was born in Danville, Virginia on December 6, 1923 to the late Harry and Bonnie Dalton Riley. She was preceded in death by her husband, Joseph P. Davis. She was a member of Ernest Myatt Presbyterian Church in Garner, and a former member of Raeford Presbyterian Church where she previously served as church secretary. She worked for many years at the law office of Willcox, McFadyen & Fields before retir-ing. She was an active resident of The Heritage of Raleigh, where she had many friends, sang in the chorus and was an accomplished bridge player.

She is survived by her daugh-ters, Alice D. Glisson and her husband John of Raeford, and Jo Ann D. Harper and her husband Tommy of Raleigh; her son, Jo-seph P. Davis III and his wife Mar-kie of Chapel Hill; grandchildren, Linda G. Clarkson (Bill Mitchell), John W. Glisson II, Harrison Harper and his wife Nicole, Joseph R. Harper, Claire Hunter Davis, Riley T. Davis, and Joseph A. Davis; great-grandchildren, Morgan Alexandra Glisson, Riley K. Harper, and Liam S. Harper; and several nieces and nephews.

Visitation will be held Friday, July 1 from 10 to 11 a.m. at Crumpler Funeral Home Chapel.

The funeral will follow in the chapel with the Rev. Michael L. McGehee officiating. Burial will be in the Raeford Cemetery.

Memorials may be made to Pruitt Hospice, c/o PruittHealth Corporation, 1626 Jeurgens Court, Norcross, GA 30093.

Online condolences may be made at www.crumplerfuneral-home.com.

Joyce C. MonroeJoyce Conoly Monroe of Ra-

eford passed away in her home of 60 years surrounded by her loved ones Thursday, June 23, 2016 at the age of 82.

She was born June 4, 1934 in Hoke County to the late James Lawrence Conoly and Ruby Bowen Conoly. She was a member of Galatia Presbyterian Church, where she had a lifetime mem-bership with the Women of the Church. She was a N.C. Extension and Community Associate for over 50 years, former chairman of the Raeford-Hoke Museum, a former advisor of the Rockfish 4-H Club, and worked in banking for 41 years.

She is survived by her loving husband of 61 years, Harold D. Monroe of Raeford; a son, Wayne H. Monroe and his wife Peggy of Raeford; two daughters, Jennie M. Gibson and her husband Danny of Raeford, and Sheila Carter (Tony Calcutt) of Raeford; two brothers, Jimmy Conoly of Raeford, and Bobby Conoly and his wife Sara of Raeford; a sister, Carolyn Riddle of Kearney, Missouri; sister-in-law, Mary Frances Conoly of Raeford; 10 grandchildren, Kim-berly Brock (Jason), Will Gibson (Crystal), Kelly Carter, Chris Carter, Sean Eastwood (Lindsey), Josh Eastwood, Scott Eastwood, Kyle Nelson, Heather Humphrey (Luke) and John Loper; and six great-grandchildren, Grayson Brock, Harper Brock, Ava Gib-son, Sean Eastwood Jr., Liam Eastwood, and Chase Eastwood.

The funeral was held at 3 p.m. Sunday, June 26 at Galatia Presbyterian Church with Pastor Brett Johnson officiating. Burial was in the church cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Galatia Presbyte-rian Church, 8800 Galatia Church Road, Fayetteville, NC 28304 or to the Raeford-Hoke Museum, PO 1383, Raeford, NC 28376.

Online condolences may be made at www.crumplerfuneral-home.com.

Ellen G. DewEllen G. Dew, 75, passed

away Monday, June 20, 2016 in her home of 48 years with her family near.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Roscoe and Cora Mae Jackson; her broth-ers, Charles Edward Jackson and Roscoe Jackson Jr.; and her sister, Carole Hagins.

She is survived by her loving husband of 56 years, Fred K. Dew Sr.; her son, Fred K. Dew Jr.; her daughter, Amanda G. Dew; her brother, William R. Jackson; her sisters, Tondea Jackson and Gena Jackson; and a large family of nieces, nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews.

She grew up in Hoke and Robeson counties and graduated from Parkton High School in 1958. She was a gifted pianist and could play anything by ear. She loved music and sang many duets with her sister while growing up in Lumber Bridge. She brought joy to a room with her musical abilities.

She loved her home, her fam-ily and God. Every holiday and any special occasion brought a twinkle to her eye. She made sure her entire house was decorated for each event. Her home brought her great pride and joy.

She was an active member of Snyder Memorial Baptist Church and was a member of the choir. She loved being part of the Sing-ing Christmas Tree. She loved to help with Sunday School for the children and loved to hold the babies, which always brought her peace.

Her life was remembered and celebrated at 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 28 at Crumpler Funeral Home in Raeford with the Rev. Tom Lee officiating. Interment was in the Raeford Cemetery.

Online condolences may be made at www.crumplerfuneral-home.com.

Hester R. Davis Joyce C. Monroe Ellen G. Dew

Road in the Five Points area and North Old Wire Road, Hall Road, Boyle Road and Balfour Road in the Dundarrach and Shannon com-munities.

The state requires a utility con-struction easement when construc-tion or utility installation is proposed within the limits of an NCDOT right-of-way.

Gas lines from a project like this one usually require easements from private property owners, according to a representative for the state utili-ties commission. Typically, compa-nies knock on doors or send letters along with phone calls to contact property owners about obtaining permission to have pipelines cross their property.

The company is careful in plan-ning out where it locates pipelines, according to the Piedmont Natural Gas website. The locations are chosen to “minimize the project’s impact on the environment, land-

owners and communities” and the process is “conducted in a deliberate and thoughtful manner, with a focus on safety.”

“As we refine the route during the planning and permitting process, we consider a number of factors including landowner concerns, envi-ronmental issues, cultural resources and constructability,” the company stated on its site.

The pipelines will be buried at least three feet underground and landowners are compensated for allowing the easement.

In North Carolina, once a natu-ral gas company is established as the service provider for a particu-lar area, the company doesn’t have to ask the state for permission to extend its lines, according to officials. However, the company must work to conform to safety and other regulations.

Piedmont Natural Gas was founded in 1951 and has lines that run from Charlotte to Wilmington

and pass through the counties south of Hoke. All together, the company maintains 25,000 miles of natural gas pipeline that provide gas to homes and businesses.

Some of those lines include the natural gas pipes that used to be part of North Carolina Natural Gas, formerly a part of Progress Energy, which Piedmont Natural Gas acquired in 2003. The com-pany currently has about one mil-lion customers in North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.

Duke Energy bought Piedmont Natural Gas last year for $4.9 billion. The sale is in its final stages.

Anyone interested in checking to see if a line is coming to their area can call 800-752-7504 to inquire. Natural gas companies typically do not provide full maps of their lines out of security concerns. For more information, contact the company or visit its website at http://www.pied-montng.com.

budget included seven positions in the Department of Social Services – including two Medicaid billing staff and one supervisor that will be permanent positions – along with one telecommunication operator, one internet technology support tech and a public health nurse.

The budget did not change the county’s current 75-cent property tax rate, but did include a sewer rate increase raising the flat rate from $15 to $16, the O&M flat rate to $4 and the rate per 1,000 gallons from $6.60 to $8.

Sheriff’s office employees were originally slated to receive the same 2.5 percent cost of living raise that all county employees will receive this year, but Sheriff Hubert Peterkin asked that some of his department’s funding be shifted to double that amount to a 5 per-cent raise, according to the board. Peterkin originally asked for three new positions and 18 cars total, but gave up funding for those line items to instead fund the raise for his employees, officials reported.

The commissioners approved the request, which did not add any additional dollars into the budget.

Commission Vice Chairman Harry Southerland said that the measure could help with recruiting and retaining good employees at the sheriff’s office.

“We’re competing with Cum-berland County, we’re competing against Robeson County, Moore County, to keep good officers here, so we’ve got to give them an increase to be competitive, because we’ve got a great department and we want to continue to allow it to

grow,” Southerland said.Commission Chairman James

Leach thanked the sheriff’s office employees, many of whom were in attendance at the meeting, for their service.

“We appreciate the work you do,” he said.

Leach added that the board could revisit the need for more of-ficers later in the year if necessary.

“We’re not writing that off. We clearly understand the county is growing as we continue to approve subdivisions…as we grow, we certainly need more employees,” he said.

Commissioner Allen Thomas also thanked the officers, and added that he had heard of concerns from sheriff’s office employees about the pay level the county offers.

“Many of you, I ask you how things are going, and some of you in confidence say we could use a little bit more money, and to know that you could go to Cumberland County any time or you could go to Moore County and make more money, but you still choose to be here and to keep us safe, that means a lot,” Thomas said. “I want you to know when we make this vote, we’re voting to support you and to let you know that we do care about what you do and how much you do for our county. We appreciate you and look forward to continue supporting you in the future.”

The sheriff’s office also re-ceived 10 new vehicles that will be fitted with the new radios that the county switched to using last year, according to Edens. Each vehicle will cost about $42,000.

The budget also included money for one new vehicle each in the Health Department and Depart-ment of Senior Services. The sher-iff’s office additionally received an additional uniform allowance and funding for a cabinet required to meet OSHA standards.

Commissioner Bobby Wright said some of the board members worked toward reducing taxes this year, but in the end it wasn’t possible to fund the departments as the board wanted and still cut taxes.

“A couple of us fought hard to get a 2 percent reduction in our taxes overall, but we looked everywhere we could, and to do the things that we’re doing, to give the increases to the sheriff’s department, increases within the schools…there are a lot of things just looking at the summary you don’t see,” Wright said. The com-missioner referenced the splash pad project, money for senior services to pay for Meals on Wheels and funding for repairs to the school system’s gym floors.

“I think, if you look after law enforcement, you look after the schools, you look after the little folks and the elderly folks, the rest will fall into place. We’re trying not to short anybody in this budget,” he said. “…I think, for the money we had available, we did a really good job.”

The budget meeting originally scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Tuesday was moved up to 2 p.m. the same afternoon. Following the meeting, the board recessed to 8:30 a.m. Wednesday to finish “cleanup” work on the current year budget.

election, according to elections officials.

Filing for the school board and soil and water board is held in the summer because both are nonpartisan races and do not require primary elections. The candidates will be on the ballot in November’s General Election.

Hoke and other North Caro-lina counties ended up holding a Congressional primary election in early June due to a federal order that required the state to redraw district boundaries to avoid racial gerrymandering. The turnout was low, but otherwise the primary went fine, Hoke County Board of Elections Director Caroline Shook reported.

“It’s going fine because it was

a small election. We didn’t have a lot of issues,” she said.

The winner of the Con-gressional primary, Republi-can incumbent Rep. Richard Hudson, will face Democrat Thomas Mills this November to determine who will represent the House of Representatives District 8 in Congress.

In the North Carolina State Senate District 21 race, incumbent Ben Clark III, a Democrat, will face Dan Travieso, a Republican.

Two seats on the Hoke County Board of Commissioners are up for election this year, with incum-bents James Leach (chairman) and Bobby Wright, both Democrats, running against Republican can-didate William “Brownie” Brown, a business owner from Rockfish.

Several local and state races remain uncontested. Register of Deeds incumbent Camille Hearst, a Democrat, will run for reelection without facing opposition. State Rep. Garland Pierce and state Rep. Ken Goodman, both Democrats, are also running for reelection unopposed.

Valid identification is required by law to vote in North Carolina, with some exceptions in certain circumstances. For more informa-tion, visit http://voterid.nc.gov. For help in obtaining valid I.D. to vote in the upcoming election, call the state’s voter outreach team at 1-866-522-4723 or contact them by email at VoterOutreach.sboe@ncsbe.gov.

General Election Day is Tues-day, November 8.

SUBSCRIBE to The News-Journal • Call 875-2121 or visit www.raefordnj.com get the paper each week in the mail

Call 919-900-0201 or download applicationfrom upmapartments.com/sandyridge

Now opeN!One Bedroom/

One Bath Units $410-$435Two Bedroom/One Bath

Units $495 - $520HH Income Restrictions

Apply HH

A Residential Community

For Individuals Aged 55 & Older

Southern Heights Baptist Church

Free concert

Five BrothersMar. 28, 7 p.m.

come hear the nationally ac-claimed Gospel group in their first performance in this area.

1356 n. oak Drivecall 875-5555

for more information.www.Southernhts.org

$31.45

Five Brothers ConcertSouthern Heights Baptist

Mar. 28, 7 p.m., Freenationally acclaimed!1356 n. oak Drive

call 875-5555 for more information.www.Southernhts.org

$18.95

CHURCHES

Call Hal or Wendyat 875-2121.

Promote

Your Events

Church NameeveNt

event Dateevent time

Address

Free to thePublic!

•Gospel Singing •Jumping Arena •Games For All Ages

EvEryonE WElcomEJoin Us And Bring Your Friends!

A fantastic day filled with fun, food and fellowship

$59.95

We Want You To Try Our Daily Specials!SUNDAY • #1 Sirloin w/Free House Salad • Reg $11.28 ....

$899

MONDAY • #1 Sirloin Reg $8.99 ................................................. $799

TUESDAY • #3 Sirloin Tips Reg $6.99 .................................... $549

WEDNESDAY • #14 Chopped Sirloin Reg $6.49 ................ $549

THURSDAY • #3 Sirloin Tips Reg $6.99 ................................ $549

FRIDAY • #5 Super Top Sirloin Reg $9.99 ......................... $899

SATURDAY • #9 Super Top Sirloin Reg $11.99 ................ $999

Meals include the biggest baked potato in town or french fries.And when you dine in...complimentary Bakery Bar and Dessert Bar.

OpenJuly 4th

7735 S. Raeford Rd, Fayetteville, NC • 910-867-3002