GOOD MORNING: Boy, Oh Boy! That thunderstorm that appeared to go on forever Wednesday night was a real doozy, wasn’t it? It sounded to me like it was never going to quit, and although I have doubts as to the accuracy of my little rain gauge, they were put to rest by that puddle of water in the driveway here at the Times office Thursday morning.
Prosecutors, defense attorneys, out-of-state criminal investigators and even law enforcement officials have complained for years about investigative practices at the State Bureau of Investigation. It took two high-profile verdict reversals and knowledge about a damning investigative series in The News and Observer before Attorney General Roy Cooper took action by replacing the Director of the SBI and suspending the bloodstain pattern analyst’s unit.
To the Editor:
Town of Louisburg officials say it was a financial decision to cut down beautiful crepe myrtles, dogwoods, boxwoods, azaleas and other shrubbery at the historic Oakwood Cemetery. The decision will save the town some money in pruning costs each year. But the small savings are an insult to the angry and surprised family members whose loved ones are buried in Oakwood Cemetery.
ORIENTAL - Dr. Tolbert Lacy Stallings Jr. died Monday, Aug. 9, 2010. Funeral services will be held at 1 p.m. today (Saturday, Aug. 14) at Oriental United Methodist Church, with the Rev. Keith Sexton officiating.
LAKE ROYALE - Ben Douglas “Doug” Long Sr., 57, died Thursday, Aug. 12, 2010. Funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. today (Saturday, Aug. 14) in the Strickland Funeral Home chapel in Wendell.
LOUISBURG – Lucille Wood Watkins, 77, died Friday morning, Aug. 13, 2010, at her home. Funeral service will be held 3 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 15, at Louisburg Baptist Church, with Dr. Reggie Rushing officiating. Burial will follow at Lancaster Memorial Park.
Leaps and Bounds Early Learning Center, located near Bunn, is a designated drop-off site for SOS, Share Our Shoes. They are accepting all sizes and styles of gently worn or new shoes (keep in mind, many children wear adult sizes)
The following personnel decisions were made Monday night, Aug. 9, by the Franklin County Board of Education.
This Sunday Abigail Taylor will be front and center at historic Cherry Hill in Inez, not merely sitting on the beautiful home’s front stairs watching and listening with rapt attention at the performers.
This Sunday, at 3 p.m., she will present her senior voice recital in the venue she loved as a child.
Ilicia Jamayne Brodie of Bunn, a transfer from Nash Community College, is the recipient of a Transfer Incentive Award at Barton College in Wilson.
The renewable scholarship will cover $1,000 of tuition for the year.
Lanikka Coley of Franklinton, a graduate of Franklinton High School, is the recipient of the John J. Harper Scholarship at Barton College in Wilson. The renewable scholarship will cover $3,000 of tuition for the freshman year.
Coley is the daughter of Veronica Coley and Louis Coley, Sr. of Franklinton. She will enter Barton College in the fall semester and plans to double major in Elementary Education (K-6) and Spanish.
Vance-Granville Community College honored 30 students who have completed its one-year Practical Nursing program during a pinning ceremony in VGCC’s Civic Center on Aug. 4. Upon receiving diplomas, graduates of the program are eligible to sit for the national exam for licensed practical nurses (LPNs). An LPN provides care in structured settings, under the direction of a registered nurse or physician.
Torre M. Evans, son of Lindel and Jeanette Evans of Castalia, has been promoted to senior airman with the 916th Maintenance Squadron, a unit of the 916th Air Refueling Wing, the Air Force Reserve tanker unit at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base.
By:
GEOFF NEVILLE, Times Sportswriter
FRANKLIN COUNTY -- Before state realignment last year, two things were annual givens about the Northern Carolina Conference volleyball standings.
Bunn and Southern Vance.
By:
GEOFF NEVILLE, Times Sportswriter
FRANKLIN COUNTY -- The 2010-11 high school sports season will officially kick off Tuesday afternoon with a boys soccer matchup between host Bunn and Northern Nash.
The ball is expected to be dropped at 4:30 p.m. for the non-conference contest.
FRANKLIN COUNTY -- The Angel Johnson Benefit Golf Tournament will be held Sept. 18 at the Zebulon Country Club.
Angel Johnson is a Bunn resident who is in need of a liver transplant. Angel is currently on a waiting list and will have the transplant as soon as possible in Atlanta.
High School Football
FRIDAY
Southern Nash at Franklinton 7:30 p.m.
C.B. Aycock at Bunn 7:30 p.m.
HENDERSON -- Vance-Granville Community College recently held its first “Boot Camp” for student-athletes.
The three-day series of sessions focused on improving the students’ non-athletic skills, with topics including study skills, time management, career exploration and managing money.
JACKSONVILLE, FLA. -- Lee Mitchell homered and drove in four runs to lead the Jacksonville Suns by the Carolina Mudcats 8-5 at the Baseball Grounds on Thursday night in a Class AA Southern League baseball matchup.
Mitchell tripled in the first two runs of the game against starter Travis Webb (L, 6-8) in the first inning, then socked a tie-breaking homer with a man on in the fifth as the Mudcats (21-26) fell into last place in the Northern Division.
CHAPEL HILL -- Seven more outstanding individuals in the annals of state prep athletics have been selected for induction into the North Carolina High School Athletic Association Hall of Fame.
Lindsay Johnson (right) and the Louisburg Lady Warriors are expected to compete for supremacy this season in the Northern Carolina Conference volleyball standings. LHS will open next weekend at the Heritage Tournament in Wake County.
By:
GARY CUNARD, Times Publisher
“There is a lot going on -- either turned over, dug up or moved around.”
With those words, architect Jon Long gave the Franklin County Board of Education a little good news Monday night during a meeting that also included a frightening warning about the financial future facing the schools.
By:
GARY CUNARD, Times Publisher
The actual cost of a proposed modular building for the Early College High School will be more than double the $490,000 cost of the modular building itself, according to school officials. The Franklin County commissioners said recently they prefer a modular structure over more expensive stick-built construction.
By:
GARY CUNARD, Times Publisher
In a move that caught many by surprise Monday night, Mary Vollmer resigned from the Franklin County Board of Education citing “personal reasons.”
Vollmer, who represents the most southern region of Franklin County, has been a school board member about six years.
She said that she is moving to Raleigh and “I don’t feel I can give the students the kind of representation they need.
Sammy Teague, nine, takes a tumble down a giant slide set up at Franklinton’s National Night Out on Saturday afternoon. Teague’s dad, John Teague, donated the slide and bouncy house for children to use during the community event.
