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  • 03knapsackWhether you love him, loathe him or are still trying to figure out who he is, former Texas congressman turned Democratic presidential hopeful Beto O’Rourke has lobbed a hot potato onto our national political stage. In addressing several examples of his youthful indiscretions — aka bad behavior — O’Rourke acknowledged that he had been treated differently than other people because of “white privilege.” Couple white privilege with O’Rourke’s gender — male — and we get “white male privilege,” a potent force indeed. 

    The definition of white male privilege is squishy, to say the least, making it difficult to pin down criteria. A general definition references systemic advantages white men have over women and people of color, some of whom have faced racism. Financial resources, educational attainment and social status all play roles, as do other factors. It is safe to say, though, that one defining litmus test is that many African-American parents deliver “the talk” to their children about how to behave if they, especially the boys, are stopped by law enforcement officers. Far fewer white parents feel compelled to do that. 

    The Republican-controlled North Carolina General Assembly has just displayed the power of white male privilege with its recent election of well-heeled members to the University of North Carolina Board of Governors, the 24-member policy-setting body for our state’s university system. Twelve members were elected by the legislature, 10 of them incumbents. The newly constituted board will have six women, three African-Americans and one Native American, with the remainder being white men. The lone Democrat, an African-American, was eligible — and sought re-election — but was not put back on the board. There are no Democratic members. This is in a state that has 51 percent women, 22 percent African-Americans and 39 percent of voters registering Democratic. 

    This is not to say that the people elected to the Board of Governors are not capable. Most of them are, but so are many people who are not white men. Clearly, some sort of privilege is at play here. 

    The concept of white privilege, including the higher subset of white male privilege, has been written about for centuries and picked up steam during the civil rights era, beginning in the 1960s, and was widely discussed in academia. As social media took hold, white privilege moved into mainstream conversations and into films and popular music. It is, however, a bit like art and pornography. We all know it when we see it, but we have trouble coming up with an actual definition. 

    Author Peggy McIntosh took a stab at defining white privilege in her 1987 essay “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack.” Wrote McIntosh, it is “an invisible weightless knapsack of assurances, tools, maps, guides, codebooks, passports, visas, clothes, compass, emergency gear, tools and blank checks.” 

    A scholar and activist, McIntosh also wrote, “as a white person, I realized I had been taught about racism as something which puts others at a disadvantage, but had been taught not to see one of its corollary aspects, white privilege which puts me at an advantage.” Putting it bluntly, McIntosh wrote, “if a traffic cop pulls me over or the IRS audits my tax returns, I can be sure I have not been singled out because of my race.” 

    It is into this context that Beto O’Rourke dropped his thoughts on white privilege and white male privilege in particular. We have yet to see whether a national discussion will follow, but it should. The reality of white privilege pervades so many aspects of American life, both private and public, and it has smoldered for centuries. 

    We will never get over it if we cannot talk about it. 

  • 06cumberland rd fire deptCumberland County rural property owners will likely see a tax increase come July. The funding subcommittee of the county’s public safety task force is unanimously recommending a 0.375 cent increase in the special fire protection service district’s tax. There are 15 fire districts in unincorporated areas of Cumberland County plus Hope Mills and Spring Lake, which are supported by property tax assessments of 0.10 cents per $100 of valuation. Five small, low-wealth fire departments receive additional assessments of 0.125 cents per $100. 

    The subcommittee voted unanimously March 19 to request that the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners adopt the tax increase effective July 1, 2019. 

    “We have heard your concerns,” said Cumberland County Manager Amy Cannon. She and Fire Commissioner Marshall Faircloth predicted the board would go along with the increase. 

    Consultant Gregory Grayson of Envirosafe Fire Support Services told the committee that “the workload and need for fire and rescue services has increased significantly.” Fire departments have become “all-hazard agencies” requiring additional salaries and training for firefighters, he added. 

    He outlined the complexities of developing a new funding model for volunteer fire departments. The city of Fayetteville Fire Department is funded with salaried, full-time firefighters. 

    The proposed county tax increase would boost total fire and rescue spending from $7.4 million to $8.9 million for fiscal year 2020. A series of supplements, incentives and grants would augment the existing baseline. They would be provided to strengthen the county’s overall fire and rescue delivery system. 

    Supplements and incentives would be based on enhanced individual department performance. The low-wealth fire departments, including Beaver Dam, Bethany, Godwin/ Falcon, Stedman and Wade, would receive annual supplements of $83,000 each for firefighter staffing. 

    Some of the seven fire chiefs who comprise the funding subcommittee spoke out with mild objections to the funding formulas. “I sometimes feel that we’re caught in the middle,” said Cumberland Road Fire Chief Steve Parish. He said his department responds to 2,000 calls annually, while others with the same number of responses have larger populations and more funding. 

    “We responded to 1,900 calls last year,” Pearce’s Mill Fire Chief Ronnie Marley said. His department’s 2018 baseline was $812,000. That’s 58 percent more than Cumberland Road’s $472,000. 

    “I have noted the level of discomfort, but you have to look at the needs of the entire county,” Assistant County Manager Tracey Jackson told the committee. 

    “We are committed to this process,” Cannon added. 

    Because all 15 rural fire departments operate independently, their individual boards of directors will also have to approve the new funding methods before county commissioners can act. The Public Safety Task Force meets next month, and county officials hope the fire chiefs will have their approvals by then. 

  • 09Tia FullerFayetteville State University’s Department of Performing and Fine Arts presents its FSU Jazz Day Festival for middle school and high school jazz bands and jazz combos Saturday, April 6, from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. 

    A concert featuring the Tia Fuller Jazz Quartet will take place at 7:30 p.m. at Seabrook Auditorium, which is located on the campus of the university. 

    “The jazz festival started last year to basically help students in our region in the jazz field — to help develop jazz programs and to help develop more appreciation for jazz itself,” said Ronald Carter, coordinator of the jazz festival and distinguished professor in the Department of Performing and Fine Arts at FSU. “This year, I am bringing in Grammy-nominated Tia Fuller, who is a performing saxophonist for Beyoncé. She still plays and records around the world with different people.” 

    The festival will include workshops, clinics and performances. “At 1:15 p.m., we will have jazz clinics presented by FSU’s jazz faculty and by Tia Fuller’s jazz group,” said Carter. “The workshops will be about how to use instruments to play jazz, how to develop the concepts, tone and language of jazz, how to play within the jazz ensemble and more.” 

    Carter added the clinics will feature drums, saxophone, piano, clarinet, flute, trumpet, trombone and other jazz instruments. 

    The first band will play at 8:30 a.m. “We will have high schools from South Carolina and North Carolina and two college groups playing,” said Carter. “We have Shaw University’s jazz band. Benedict College’s jazz band from Columbia, South Carolina, will play too.” 

    Carter added that next year the jazz festival will be bigger and that he aims to eventually start having a historically black college jazz festival. 

    “This event is educational and motivational — (it’s) a great mentorship opportunity and allows participants to meet the students (and) the jazz professors and music professors at Fayetteville State as well,” said Carter. “It is community outreach for the colleges that are coming in and also for the students that are coming in from other states as well as Raleigh and the surrounding areas.” 

    All events before 5 p.m. will be free. The clinics are open to the public. The registration fee is $200 for each participating school. General admission for the Tia Fuller Jazz Quartet concert is $5 for students and $10 for adults. For more information, to register or obtain ticket information, email Carter at rcarter11@uncfsu.edu. Tickets can be purchased at www.etix.com. 

    Photo: Tia Fuller

  • 01coverUAC032719001The Fayetteville Cumberland County Economic Development Corporation is a relatively new organization at just three years old. From partnerships to innovation to vision, this organization, along with its partners and the community, is bringing new ideas, development and dollars to Cumberland County and its municipalities. 

    In 2018, FCEDC announced 750 new jobs from Campbell Soup Company and Booz Allen Hamilton, bringing $12.5 million in new investment to the community. Under its watch, downtown has seen more than $130 million in public and private investment, and a $37 million, 4,800-seat Astros A+ Minor League Stadium is nearing completion. The Fayetteville Regional Airport has seen $35 million in renovation, and a $12.6 million investment has delivered a state-of-the-art FAST Public Transportation Center, which operates seven days a week. 

    Downtown is also now home to The CORE, an innovation corridor that connects talent, assets and resources and encourages innovation and entrepreneurship. These are just a few of the successes the FCEDC has played a part in. 

    To hear Robert Van Geons tell it, these successes are all about teamwork, and this is just the beginning. Up & Coming Weeklyrecently interviewed Van Geons to hear more of his thoughts on the topic. 

    Up & Coming Weekly:What is the Fayetteville Cumberland County Economic Development Corporation and why is it important? 

    Robert Van Geons:We were established about three years ago. We’re a public-private partnership funded by the county, the city and the private sector, with the city and county being our biggest funders. We are a nonprofit, and our job is to help companies that are here grow and to attract new businesses to Cumberland County to create jobs and bring investment to our community. 

    UCW:It seems like there are probably some challenges that come with that. 

    Van Geons:We are a one-stop shop for economic development. We do everything from sites and buildings to marketing and promotion to existing industry support grants to incentives to working with the development community. 

    This works because we have a lot of support from our elected leaders in the city and the county. We work well with the towns within the county, and the private sector has been incredibly supportive. … With their help, we’re starting to make some strides. 

    At the end of the day, if this is successful, we are only a small part of it. It’s companies that make the investments. It’s the property owners that sell the land or the buildings. It’s the local officials that approve the incentives. It’s the citizens that show up to work. We’re the piece that tries to bring them all together. 

    UCW:What do you think are some of the community’s strongest assets? 

    Van Geons:Our people are our best asset. Additionally, we have a handful of really great attributes in this community. We have the youngest workforce in the Carolinas. We’re affordable as a place to do business and as a place to live. We are internationally diverse, with I think it’s 82 languages in our schools from 86 countries. 

    And we are accessible. We are right along I-95. We have an airport and access to the Raleigh airport. We are near the deep-water ports in Wilmington. And we have both Class 1 rail providers and shortline rail in our community. 

    It’s our people. It’s our location. It’s really the quality of our overall business environment. Those are our strengths. 

    UCW:How have Fayetteville and Cumberland County grown in the last three to five years? 

    Van Geons:We’ve had some recent announcements over the last few years and some exciting developments … but overall, I think we would be right to say that our community hasn’t grown as much or as quickly as we would like. 

    And it’s something that we’re trying to build on the momentum of late. 

    Recently, we’ve seen the Campbell’s Soup project in Cedar Creek, the $150 million-plus projects being built downtown, the completion of the work being done on I-295, the widening of I-95, the Booze Allen (Hamilton) announcements and more. So, we are building momentum. We’ve seen a lot of our vacant industrial space filled, and we have people looking to build new. 

    However, we’ve seen relatively slow growth for the decade or so prior. 

    Our towns are stepping up and investing in their communities as well — from Spring Lake to Hope Mills. We are working with Falcon and Godwin, and all the towns, on economic development efforts and strategies. That’s one thing our organization has as a priority — working collaboratively across all of Cumberland County. 

    Just last week we had a meeting with representatives from all of the towns to talk about their individual economic development goals. We’ve been meeting with them individually since I arrived, and this was a time for us to bring them all together. We’re going to keep doing it every other month or so. 

    And we’re doing some work around our airport, as well, and then looking at multi-modal transportation and development. There’s no single answer to being successful. It’s going to take the multi-dimensional approach. 

    UCW:Do you think we will see some changes in the next five to 10 years? 

    Van Geons:Absolutely, I do. I think we’re going to see continued to growth in technology fields, with companies like a ACLC and Worldwide Language Resources as examples, here in our downtown. 

    Next-generation companies doing cyber security, virtual reality and distance learning are all going to be keys to that, and so we’re launching The CORE innovation center here. We’re seeing private sector developers, both locally and from well outside of our region, considering Cumberland County for new speculative development. 

    The downtown project is transforming the way people think about our community. People are seeing and recognizing the economic potential and are starting to look at us with fresh eyes. We are hosting investors from Washington, D.C., and New York and Chicago and around the southeast frequently here. 

    People are recognizing us as a great growth opportunity in a state that is growing. We don’t prosper alone in North Carolina. The momentum built by cities like Charlotte and Raleigh and Durham rubs off on us. We’re looking to leverage that. 

    UCW:How do you get different businesses and organizations to work together for the greater good and a better future? 

    Van Geons:When talking about where we were to where we are, have we always been as collaborative as we should be? Probably not — in the past. But it is a new time here, and the city and county are working well together on economic development. 

    And now we’ve got, as an example, nine organiza

    tions raising over a quarter-million dollars toward developing a communitywide brand that we all can use and benefit from. This is part of setting a joint vision for this community and working toward it as we look at what is our best tomorrow for our citizens and ask ourselves how we can effectively convey that internally and externally. 

    I think we do look at that on the workforce development side. … How do we attract talent? How do we retain talent? And how do we grow talent? And that is where we’re looking at creative things around recognizing that technology and rapid innovation will be the two major drivers of tomorrow’s economy. And so we are looking at ways to increase broadband access and extend broadband here. We are looking at ways to bring, keep and grow innovative companies and to attract next-generation technology firms to our community. 

    We have got to ensure that all of our children have access to tomorrow’s economy, which will be decided by their level of engagement with technology. 

    You are either integrated into the digital economy or you will be left behind, and we’re working hard on that to make sure no one gets left behind. I think the one thing we know for certain is that tomorrow’s workplace will evolve exponentially more rapidly. … The No. 1 skill that the next generation worker will need will be the ability to continually learn and adapt to a changing world. 

    We have another initiative going on with the workforce development board that I am co-chair of. It is a next-generation sector partnership.... We’re working with … employers to identify their talent needs multiple years in advance, so that we can work to train up our people to fill those jobs well in advance of those vacancies getting here. 

    Whether you are truck driving or you’re working with our utility providers, the graying of the workforce is real. And those are opportunities for our citizens today and tomorrow to have gainful employment versus recruiting new talent to fill that from outside. 

    UCW:Thinking about the future sounds like a fun part of your job. 

    Van Geons:I enjoy it. With SEGRA coming into town and PWC’s dark fiber and us launching The Core, which you can check out at www.corefayetteville.com, I am optimistic. I believe we need to be an innovation corridor. Sen. Kirk deViere and Rep. John Szoka have both supported this. 

    Between what happens in the private sector and Fayetteville State University, Fayetteville Technical Community College, Fort Bragg and Methodist University, we have the potential to be a leader in applied innovation — from drones to cyber to robotics to game learning. We have all of those things happening here in our community today. 

    We also need to tell our story better internally and externally, and that’s part of the branding initiative we are working on. 

    UCW:How do you lay the groundwork for attracting new businesses? 

    Van Geons:Before the end of the month, we will cross the 1,000-job mark and around $65 million dollars in total investment through our projects since I’ve been here, which is 26 months. 

    I think that’s a real positive start for us when you talk about results, but we can have exponentially more happening. And we want more. So, how do we do that? Part of it is having sites and buildings. … We work with the state and with industrial brokers around the southeast and promote our community at events and trade shows. 

    We work with our existing industry to help them help us find out about customers or suppliers that would be interested in being here. 

    UCW:What is your dream for Fayetteville and Cumberland County, and do you think we can pull it off? 

    Van Geons:I believe we can be the community where all our citizens can build a better economic future for themselves and, more importantly, for the next generation. We can be a place where generational equity is built, meaning the next generation has a better tomorrow than we did — regardless of how they came to Fayetteville. 

    UCW:What do you see as this community’s biggest challenge as far as economic development? 

    Van Geons:I think we need to continue to push forward. One of the most transformative things we could do is to find ways to help those who have suffered from chronic unemployment to get back in the workforce. 

    We are doing this with things like the expungement clinics and by developing and implementing training programs that are accessible and yield direct employment for people. We have employers looking for workers. We also have people looking for work — but when they don’t have the skills, the jobs go unfilled. 

    We need to confront the issues we face. Whether it is the opioid crisis or children not succeeding in school, it is about helping build a path for people who have been chronically unemployed. That will change so much of our economic landscape. 

    We need to continue to focus on economic development. And it will take years, not days. We need to have faith in our leadership. That’s a start. 

    We are especially grateful for support we receive from the city, the county and our board. Anything good we are accomplishing is because of them and our private sector partners.

  • 11FTCCFayetteville Technical Community College’s Association of Students for Social Justice is in its early beginnings; the group has existed for less than a year now. Members are delighted at what they have accomplished in the community in such a short time, and they look forward to what the upcoming year has in store. 

    The ASSJ originated in the FTCC Sociology Department with the idea of connecting FTCC students with the local community to build meaningful relationships, create positive social change and help those in need. Members can develop their professional growth, explore their interests in socially relevant issues and participate in community activism. 

    The club is a student-led group that includes a multi-disciplinary team of FTCC students and faculty. It has student members from a variety of majors as well as faculty members from various disciplines. Its goal is to remain diverse by welcoming all students, faculty and staff. 

    Members of the club have been involved in several activities throughout the year. These include participating in the March for Our Lives rally held in Cumberland County last March and, most recently, the Rally for the Environment held in Cumberland County this past October. Members have also been active directly at FTCC through participation in various campus events, including FTCC Student Government Association’s “Olympic games,” a fun part of SGA’s campuswide festivities for the Spring Fling and Fall Fling. 

    Most recently, the ASSJ was active at the FTCC Fall Festival by helping students register to vote for the November midterm elections. 

    The club also provides students with information regarding service-learning and community engagement opportunities. Throughout the year, ASSJ leaders provided students with opportunities to learn and participate in events like the 12th Annual Prevention of Child Abuse Conference, the Very Special Arts Festival, the Dogwood Festival and, most recently, the United Way Community Stand-down event. Club members are encouraged to participate in events they are passionate about and share their experiences with other members. 

    For the 2018 holiday season, the club collaborated with Seth’s Wish in Fayetteville. Seth’s Wish was established when a 9-year-old boy first asked his mom about helping the homeless. Seth’s Wish is community-based and focuses on combatting issues of hunger and homelessness in Fayetteville. 

    ASSJ members share the goal of creating a service-learning culture at FTCC to help students use their academic and social interests to foster community involvement. Students who are hands-on in the community will have the advantage of learning cultural awareness, critical thinking and civic responsibility. 

    Students also benefit from participating in the ASSJ because their involvement can be listed on résumé s when preparing for job opportunities. 

    The ASSJ is just one of many clubs at FTCC. For readers who are considering taking classes, learn more or register now at www.faytechcc.edu or visit the Fayetteville, Spring Lake or Fort Bragg campus locations. 

    Questions about the Association of Students for Social Justice can be directed to Karen Boyd at boydk@faytechcc.edu or Pamela Collins at collinsp@faytechcc.edu. 

  • 04Pitt eyesI have seen the future, and it’s spooky. You may have seen it, too, if you watch cable news morning shows. I was half awake, having only consumed a half-cup of coffee, as the TV blared on about the latest horrors. Mercifully, a commercial appeared where everyone was happy. Usually, news shows are sponsored by Big Pharma, pushing some drug to cure some dread disease — or pushing a drug to get you off the drug they sold you to cure a dread disease. 

    I’m looking at you, Sackler Family, purveyors of Oxycontin. You have to listen to the ugly side effects of the drug du jour while the people in the commercial are having no side effects at all. 

    This commercial was different. The people were having a great time. They were skipping long lines, getting on uncrowded airplanes, going to see sporting events and moving with the “speed of life,” as the ad said. 

    Wow. I want to move at the speed of life. Can I become one of these happy, peppy people who don’t have to wait in line like the commoners? Where do I sign up? There appear to be no side effects from this wonderful product, unlike Big Pharma’s narcotics. 

    The wonderful new product is brought to you by a company I shall rename Acme BioCooties in honor of Wile E. Coyote. Acme BioCooties takes you to the head of the line. 

    Acme BioCooties is a biometric identification company. It is the digital version of 23andMe, the DNA/ancestry testing company that’s been all the rage lately. Instead of spitting in a vial, send Acme your fingerprints and a scan of your eyeballs. You go to the head of the class, or at least the front of the line. 

    Tired of having to show pesky personal identification documents? Just sashay over to the Acme Biometric Approval 500 Machine. Take a loving look into the Ghost in the Machine’s eye scanner and press your fingertips on a finger reader. If Big Brother likes what he sees, you can skip the line. 

    This leaves all the little people in line admiring, envying and hating you for your line-skipping status. All animals are equal, some are just more equal than others. In the meantime, ask yourself the musical question: “Have I sold my soul and identity for the ability to skip other people in line?” 

    Acme brags it is currently at more than 40 airports and all major league baseball parks. Acme converts the images of your eyeballs and fingertips into a series of encrypted ones and zeros “that is unique to you and only you.” 

    What a dandy brave new world. I always wanted to be converted into a series of encrypted ones and zeros. This is the goal of all humanity: to be an encrypted number. Tattooed numbers on arms and identity papers are old hat. Biometrics will make it all so much easier to move along, track, and if we get a bit out of line, to control. 

    What could go wrong? 

    Acme proudly reports it has been approved by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. That should make you feel warm and fuzzy. Acme asks: “Are you ready to be unstoppable? Imagine every place you customarily show ID to gain entry. Now imagine Acme ID.” Acme is also seeking partners to use its biometric identifier. “It will strengthen security, increase fraud protection with real time data and analyze and leverage real-time customer data.” 

    As Jerry Lewis once sang at his MDA telethons, “You’ll never walk alone.” 

    Acme says it is always thinking about new applications powered by biometrics like “checking into doctor’s office at the tap of a finger” or paying for stuff with your finger prints. 

    The website says more than 20 million people have already signed up to be ones and zeroes. The basic price is $179 a year until you run out of money. Your biometric numbers are encrypted and securely stored in the cloud. And as we all know, the cloud is safe from being hacked. You don’t believe me? Ask the North Koreans, or a 16-year-old hacker. 

    On second thought, don’t ask. 

    Already, some stores no longer take cash, requiring credit cards. A few cities have passed ordinances outlawing cashless stores as not everyone can obtain a credit card. Too bad for the poor people. The poor have no credit cards to buy bread? As Marie Antoinette said, “Let them eat nonbiometric cake.” Most people, excepting Captain Hook, have fingers for Acme. 

    So, what have we learned today? When biometrics takes hold, rich people won’t have to wait in line. Be like Esau. Sell your soul and identity for a mess of pottage in the form of line-skipping. 

    Once biometrics becomes universal, it will do away with cash. Let your fingers and eyes do the walking through the speed of life. Just hope that you don’t run afoul of Big Brother’s rules. He might terminate your biometric identity. It could be difficult to buy vittles if you can’t pass the eye scan test because you’ve been cancelled. 

    Perhaps being an encrypted series of ones and zeroes may not turn out as well as one might hope. 

    Big Brother is watching you. Big Brother loves you. He grants and taketh away your encrypted number. Don’t make waves. You’d better be good for goodness sakes — especially if you like to eat or want to buy anything. 

  • 10BBQIs it just one more small-town business that has closed its doors? 

    Or is there more to it? 

    For North Carolina barbecue lovers, last week’s closure of Wilber’s in Goldsboro was like the loss of a family member. 

    Wilber’s has been on my list of favorite eateries for many years. And it would be in the top two or three barbecue restaurants in this state on a list made by any barbecue expert. 

    There are lots of reasons. First, Wilber’s and its owner, Wilber Shirley, had been in business since 1962 when he bought Hill’s Barbecue. Second, and arguably most important, he still cooked the old-fashioned way, over pits with wood coals and all night, slowly, carefully cooking whole hogs. The real barbecue experts say this makes all the difference. In his classic book “Tar Heel Barbecue,” Jim Early opined, “The name Wilber’s and Eastern North Carolina barbecue are synonymous.” 

    Another contributor to Wilber’s long-time success was his location on U.S. 70, right on the pathway of vacationers traveling to the coast. But in 2016 the opening of a bypass around Goldsboro changed that. It certainly made a big difference. As Wilber told local television back then, “Well of course, it’s something nobody like a businessman would be jumping up and down about.” 

    Then he added, “It’s something we can’t help, so we face the issue and whatever comes.” 

    We hoped that Wilber’s commitment to the careful and grueling process of old-fashioned cooking over wood coals would still draw customers off the new highway bypass. 

    Wilber’s pitmasters were legendary. In his book “North Carolina Barbecue: Flavored by Time,” Bob Garner described how pitmaster Ike Green “would build a fire of stacked oak logs in the fireplace. He let the fire burn down to coals for an hour or so as he trundled a wheelbarrow between the pit house and the restaurant building, loading the 40 or 50 half-pigs he would cook that night onto the pits, where they would slow-roast for nine hours.” 

    Wilber’s and other classic barbecue houses have always attracted political gatherings. Visiting politicians, if they were smart, called on Wilber Shirley. Sometimes he was active in supporting some candidates. In 1984, he was serving as treasurer for Rufus Edmisten’s campaign for governor. One morning Wilber read that Rufus had told reporters he was through with barbecue. Rufus says his first call about his unfortunate comment came from Wilbur. 

    John Shelton Reed, co-author of “Holy Smoke: The Big Book of North Carolina Barbecue” and champion of slow-cooking over wood coals, mourned, “Another of the greats is gone. Real North Carolina barbecue was already an endangered species. Soon it may be just a memory.” 

    There is something else we are losing. Wilber’s was a community gathering place where friendships were enhanced and great memories created, treasured memories similar to those shared by Gov. Roy Cooper at last week’s Main Street Conference in Salisbury. Cooper remembered riding his bike downtown in Nashville, North Carolina, for visits to the barbershop and drugstore and with the people who packed the then-thriving downtown. He said, “Our small towns and rural communities are wonderful places to live, work and raise a family.” 

    But as Scott Huler sadly points out in his new book “A Delicious Country: Rediscovering the Carolinas along the Route of John Lawson’s 1700 Expedition,” our state’s rural and small-town landscapes are struggling, “littered with empty manufacturing plants, corporate farms and forests, empty main streets and deserted houses.” 

    Real barbecue restaurants and small towns: Do all you can to preserve them, and do not miss any opportunity to enjoy them now before they are gone. 

  • 13Aneisha McMillanIt was about 15 years ago when Aneisha McMillan had an idea for a product she wanted to launch and needed a public relations firm to give her plan a boost. The problem was, she couldn’t afford to hire someone. So, she did the next best thing. She taught herself how to do it. 

    That self-training launched a new career for the Michigan-born McMillan, and now she’s bringing her business to a new storefront location on Trade Street in Hope Mills. 

    Her business, Oink Agency, will share space with her husband, Shaun McMillan’s, Drama Lab, a video audition business geared toward aspiring actors. Shaun, a retired Army ranger, is an actor with multiple film and TV credits on his resume. 

    Aneisha said her career in public relations snowballed after she was able to land products she was promoting on “Good Morning America” and other outlets. 

    “I started getting calls from other entrepreneurs who said, ‘Hey, how did you do that?’ she said. “They started asking, ‘can you do it for me?’ It turned into an actual career.’’ 

    The flying pig logo that adorns the door of her new location on Trade Street is a symbol of McMillan’s attitude toward life. 

    “My entire family has an affinity for flying pigs,’’ she said. “For us, the meaning is anything imaginable is possible if you believe in yourself, believe in your dreams. The flying pig is the embodiment of that notion. Impossible things happen every day.’’ 

    McMillan said her favorite clients are what she calls mom and pop shops. “They are fiercely driven and so passionate,’’ she said. 

    Her biggest client for now is the Halloween and Costume Association, a group of merchants who specialize in Halloween-related products including costumes and candy. 

    Last fall, McMillan collaborated with the HCA on a promotion with supermodel Heidi Klum, who was proclaimed the queen of Halloween. 

    McMillan also helped promote a national push of a petition on change.org to get people to support a permanent move of the celebration of Halloween annually to the final Saturday in October. 

    McMillan lives in the Gray’s Creek area and decided to open a storefront for her business in Hope Mills. “I love Hope Mills and love the lake,’’ she said. “I’m really excited it’s back in action. 

    “This area is amazing, and Trade Street is very nostalgic. The history behind it is pretty rich. The building itself is a great building, over 100 years old.’’ 

    Married with six children, the 44-year-old said she found solitude at home something tough to come by, so she came up with the idea of opening an office to get a little privacy. 

    “It’s definitely hard to grow as a one-person show,’’ she said. “Here, I hope I can expand, bring on some more clients and some employees.’’ 

    McMillan said the basic offerings of her business are public relations and marketing. “I’m the person to come to for big ideas,’’ she said. 

    Even companies with in-house public relations staff have called on her, she said, looking for bigger ideas or things they’ve never thought of. 

    “My kids say I make folks famous for a living,’’ she said. “I don’t know if that’s quite true, but it’s a pretty good explanation of what it is, marketing to put together multi-faceted campaigns to help people get the message out about their product via social media or direct to the media.’’ 

    To find out specifics about what McMillan’s business has to offer, visit www.oinkagency.com. 

    McMillan said while she will have an office open to the public at her new place of business, it won’t have 9-to-5 operating hours. 

    “We’re not a traditional retail storefront,’’ she said. She will use the space as needed to meet clients in person, and her husband will also use it for videotaping auditions for his Drama Lab business. 

    “Clients that want to talk should shoot me an email or call,’’ McMillan said. 

    Her email address is aneisha@oinkagency.com. Her phone number is 910-849-9003. 

    Photo: Aneisha McMillan

  • 07medicalThe health of Cumberland County residents is improving, but a new statistical report of Cumberland County’s overall health ranking leaves a lot of unanswered questions — mostly in the “why” category. The report indicates overall health outcomes improved slightly from 75 to 73 of North Carolina’s 100 counties. The rankings were released by “County Health Rankings,” a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute program. 

    Health rankings provide a comparison of the overall health of nearly every county in the nation and how a community’s overall ranking is influenced by the length and quality of life, health behaviors, clinical care, social and economic factors and physical environment. 

    “Community health rankings are a useful tool from a public health perspective,” said Duane Holder, interim Cumberland County health director. “It shows that community partners need to work together because many of these factors cannot be addressed on the individual level. The rankings show us where we live matters.” 

    Cumberland County scored high in the area of clinical care, ranking 40th in the state. Data indicates, however, that the percentage of county residents who are uninsured is less than the state. They also show that the county’s patient-to-provider ratios, to include dental and mental health care, are lower than the state average. 

    Cumberland County saw a decrease in premature deaths and improvement in the “length of life” category. The rankings also indicated areas for improvement, including smoking and adult obesity. The Health Department has identified exercise, nutrition and weight and respiratory disease as two of the nine priority areas as part of the 2019 Community Health Needs Assessment process. 

    These priorities also include: access to health services; economy; immunizations and infectious diseases; occupational and environmental health; other chronic diseases; public safety; respiratory disease; and substance abuse. The Health Department will focus on these priorities over the next three years. 

    Sexually transmitted disease rates in the county declined from the previous year but still show a need for improvement. In October, the Sexually Transmitted Disease Clinic at the Health Department extended its hours on the second and fourth Tuesday of the month from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Regular hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The clinic also increased its community outreach efforts. 

    The department is seeking the public’s opinion in the ranking of importance of the priorities. “A good health status … influences the county in all aspects of daily living,” said Holder. Residents are asked to take a few minutes to complete a survey online. To access the survey in English, go to surveymonkey.com/r/CCDPHCHNA. For a Spanish version, go to surveymonkey.com/r/CCDPHCHNAS. 

    The full rankings are available at www.countyhealthrankings.org. 

    More information about the Cumberland County Department of Public Health’s programs and services, health-related data or community resources are available by phone at 910-433-3600. Or, visit the information desk at the health department office building, 1235 Ramsey St. The website is co.cumberland. nc.us/health.aspx. Comments are welcome and can be submitted on the website at co.cumberland.nc.us/ feedback. 

  • 16swimmingHere are the top award-winners from Patriot Athletic Conference swimming this season. 

    Most points: 

    Boys — Brandon Chhoeung, Pine Forest; Zizhou Lu, Gray’s Creek 

    Girls — Sarah Morden, E.E. Smith; Amelia Shook, Cape Fear 

    Coach of the year: 

    Boys —Rick Kaiser, Gray’s Creek 

    Girls — Amey Shook, Cape Fear 

    Coaches Award: 

    Boys — Zizhou Lu, Gray’s Creek 

    Girls — Sarah Morden 

    Photo: L-R: Sarah Morden, Amelia Shook 

     

  • 02NCEditor’s note: The March 20, 2019, issue of Up & Coming Weekly featured an article by Earl Vaughan Jr. titled “Hope Mills losing UNC-Pembroke student sculptures.” The article talked about the removal of several sculptures that University of North Carolina- Pembroke art students had put on display in Hope Mills. There was a strong reaction to the article. So, Vaughan wrote a follow-up that was planned to run in this issue of Up & Coming Weekly. However, Hope Mills Commissioners Jessie Bellflowers, Meg Larson and Mike Mitchell were so outraged at the original article that they called a special meeting, which will take place prior to this issue being released. To avoid confusing the situation further, we are withholding Vaughan’s follow-up article to run at a later date. 

    On a separate note: In that same issue of Up & Coming Weekly, the cover story, “Fayetteville Cumberland Parks and Recreation Bond Referendum update: continued, exciting progress,” incorrectly stated that the bond referendum was passed by both Cumberland County and city of Fayetteville citizens. The article has been corrected in its web-based forms to state that the bond referendum was only passed by citizens of the city. 

    While election scandals, national issues and candidate announcements for 2019 and 2020 races have dominated the political headlines, North Carolina is continuing to head in the direction of greater freedom. That’s welcome. 

    I believe North Carolina state and local governments have important responsibilities. They finance or deliver critical public services. Their regulatory authority can be used to protect public health, combat fraud and resolve disputes. 

    But government power is inherently coercive. That’s quite literally what a government is, a social institution that enjoys a monopoly on the legitimate use of physical force in a given geographic area. It’s necessary. 

    It’s also dangerous, which is why we constrain the day-to-day exercise of governmental power with written federal and state constitutions, explicit grants of state authority to localities, and the common law. 

    To the extent government is limited to its essential powers, expenditures and exactions, we enjoy the freedom to make our own decisions, to form our own private agreements and associations according to our own personal values. I believe such freedom — the freedom to live as we choose as long as our actions do not endanger the equal freedom of others to do the same — is both a natural right and a practical solution to many social problems. 

    Among the 50 states, North Carolina is relatively free. There are various ways to measure this. One reasonable and consumer-friendly tool is the Cato Institute’s “Freedom in the 50 States” project. On its website, you can compare state performance on the overall index as well as on specific criteria. 

    North Carolina currently ranks 18th in Cato’s overall freedom measure. We earn better-than-average scores in economic freedom, a bundle that includes taxes, spending and regulations. We do even better, ranking 17th, in a bundle of personal freedom measures that includes educational freedom (sixth), regulations on tobacco (eighth), property rights for those accused (but not convicted) of crimes (11th) and overall incarceration rates (17th). 

    In the category of regulations on alcohol production, marketing and consumption, North Carolina ranks below average at 35th. But it looks like that ranking is going to be improving soon. The state’s beer wholesalers and emerging craft-beer industry, at loggerheads for years, have just announced a compromise that, if enacted by the General Assembly, will loosen the state’s tight restrictions on direct distribution by breweries. Other proposed legislation would reform North Carolina’s archaic and counterproductive system of ABC stores. 

    Another problematic ranking for North Carolina is in the area of health-insurance regulation. We impose too many mandates on what health plans must cover and how they can be structured and sold. Again, however, there is room for optimism. A bill to strengthen the market for association health plans, which allow businesses and individuals in the same industry to band together to get better deals on health insurance, has just passed the North Carolina Senate with a bipartisan vote and now awaits action in the House. 

    When it comes to property-rights protections, our national ranking isn’t horrible at 20th. But protections are stronger in our neighboring states of South Carolina (second), Tennessee (fourth), Georgia (11th) and Virginia (12th). The General Assembly could improve the situation this session by placing a constitutional amendment on the ballot that would limit the abuse of eminent domain and by putting a final nail in the coffin of the state’s unconstitutional Map Act, which had deprived property owners of the just compensation to which they were due as part of the process of planning and constructing state roads. 

    I don’t favor expanding freedom in North Carolina because I think North Carolinians always make the right decisions for themselves. We are flawed creatures, subject to temptations and prone to mistakes. But politicians are no less flawed than the rest of us, to put it charitably. 

    I prefer to trust the wisdom of crowds, as reflected by the outcomes of free choices by millions of people over time. We try, we err, we learn from each other. That’s freedom in practice. It works. 

  • 14Corrine ShovlainTerry Sanford’s girls soccer team is having the same kind of season so far that it’s enjoyed the last two years under head coach Karl Molnar. 

    That means two things for the Bulldogs: more wins and more pressure. 

    In the past two years, the Bulldogs topped the 20-win mark both times, while suffering only one defeat, that coming both times in the North Carolina High School Athletic Association state playoffs. Two years ago, they got all the way to the 3-A Eastern finals. Last year they lost in the third round. 

    Through March 20, this year’s team is 5-0. 

    “Obviously, the pressure just builds,’’ Molnar said. “The target seems to get bigger. Other teams continue to grow their programs, and other teams are shooting for you.’’ 

    But while the pressure is real, Molnar said it’s also a positive. “We often talk about (how) pressure is a privilege,’’ he said. “You’re doing things right (if ) the games matter that much.’’ 

    Terry Sanford’s quick start this year is an impressive accomplishment considering the graduation losses the Bulldogs suffered. 

    “We lost some very talented young ladies last year,’’ Molnar said. He mentioned standouts like Talia Parrous, Christina Rice and Ally Gustafson. 

    “Those were some big shoes to fill, but we’ve had some people step up,’’ he said. 

    One of the biggest has been junior forward and midfielder Corrine Shovlain, who leads the team in goals through March 20 with 14. 

    Kate Perko came to the Bulldog program from nearby Fayetteville Academy and has provided tough play in the middle of the field. Maiya Parrous, recently recovered from illness, is also beginning to shine. 

    Goalkeeper play is solid for Terry Sanford with senior Lindsay Bell in the net. Through March 20, Bell has only allowed one goal in 14 shots on goal. 

    But as well as the Bulldogs are playing, Molnar said they’re not in state playoff form yet. 

    “It’s still early in the season,’’ he said. 

    Also, some games Molnar was banking on to help the Bulldogs hone their performance to a finer edge won’t be played. 

    The Patriot Athletic Conference that Terry Sanford plays in has some traditionally weak programs that don’t provide Terry Sanford the strongest possible test. 

    Molnar hoped to bolster the Bulldog schedule with nonconference games against good teams from Jack Britt and Union Pines. 

    But the rash of bad weather has forced multiple rescheduled games for the Bulldogs. Since conference games are a priority, Molnar had to wipe the contests with Jack Britt and Union Pines from the slate, and now it’s unlikely those games will be played this season. 

    “We develop and push and try to get them on the same sheet of music as much as you can during the season, so you are peaking at the end of the season,’’ Molnar said. 

    That’s not easy when the teams you face in the state playoffs are seasoned, with numerous players who take part in club soccer programs year-round. 

    “Those teams that beat us in the state tournament are solid at every position,’’ Molnar said. “There’s not a weak spot on the field, and they’ve got two or three girls rotating in that aren’t weak spots.’’ 

    But that is no deterrent to the confidence of Terry Sanford players like Shovlain, who said the Bulldogs have high expectations again this season and are trying to get stronger every game, regardless of the level of competition. 

    “What we do is take every practice seriously,’’ she said. “We have to push ourselves to our best abilities. Even though we play weaker teams, we all try to push each other during those games. We all communicate and pass. We work on different plays that will help us in the playoffs.’’ 

    Shovlain feels the Bulldogs have a strong offensive attack and that the defense led by Maiya Parrous and Kara Walker is getting stronger. 

    “Working as a team is a big thing,’’ Shovlain said. “At the end of the day, if we all try our best, I think we’ll come out with a W.’’ 

    Photo: Corrine Shovlain 

  • 12FarmersThe town of Hope Mills is preparing to roll out its first farmers market in hopes of uniting consumers and area and regional farmers for the benefit of both. 

    Town manager Melissa Adams said that about a year ago she established a staff committee to see if the town could expand its successful venture with the food truck rodeo. The initial plan was to look into various areas where the town could branch out into the fields of art and culture. One of the ideas that sprung from those committee meetings was a farmers market. 

    Adams said the intent was not to compete with any existing enterprise of that nature in the Hope Mills area, but to bring an added value to the town. 

    The plan is to hold the farmers market in the areas near the municipal ball fields at the Town Hall and Parks and Recreation building complex. 

    “We’ve got the grounds we can use and we’ve got the parking,’’ Adams said. “We can try to get something off the ground and see if it can be successful.’’ 

    The initial plan is to start the farmers market the first Saturday of the month, beginning in May and running through October. 

    “If it grows and is wildly successful and our vendors say, ‘I want to come every Saturday or every other Saturday,’ we’ll look at that,” Adams said. “We don’t want to bite off more than we can chew. If it grows, great.’’ 

    Tiffany Gillstedt, deputy town clerk, has been researching farmers markets operated by other municipalities to get a better understanding of rules and regulations in place that have made them successful. 

    Adams said the Hope Mills farmers market will be governed by a mixture of rules that the town decided to adopt, along with good practices borrowed from other communities doing the same kind of thing. These rules and regulations will be posted on the town of Hope Mills website, www.townofhopemills.com, and also shared via social media, Gillstedt said. 

    Initially, all vendors will be invited from within a 100-mile radius of Hope Mills, with the additional requirement they live in North Carolina. 

    More information about how to apply to be a vendor is listed on the town website. At some point, Adams said, the town may screen vendors from outside the area and allow them to take part in the farmers market. 

    The guidelines for vendors include a detailed list of the items that can be sold at the farmers market; that list is dominated by homegrown and homemade items. All items vendors plan to sell must be submitted to the town’s Art and Culture Committee for approval. 

    No animals can be sold or given away at the market. 

    Each vendor will pay a fee of $50 that will allow that vendor to sell items at all six of the scheduled farmers markets. For a fee of $20, a vendor can attend a single farmers market and can specify on the application which month they’d like to take part. 

    Adams said the town is starting out modestly with the fee it will charge in hopes of increasing participation over time. 

    The town is also considering linking participation in the farmers market with participation at the town’s annual Ole Mill Days celebration. 

    Adams said she has been working with staff to increase the number of handmade items available at Ole Mill Days and become less dependent on manufactured items, while still allowing those types of goods to be sold. 

    The tentative plan is to give vendors who come to the farmers market a discounted fee to be a vendor at Ole Mill Days. “I would really like to see it become more of an arts and crafts festival,’’ Adams said of Ole Mill Days. “I think it would draw in a whole other group of people hungry for that type of event, something different for our citizens that brings more value to living here in Hope Mills.’’ 

    The initial farmers market will coincide with the annual Hope Mills spring cleanup and shredding event in the Town Hall area. Adams is hoping that will draw additional foot and vehicle traffic to the first farmers market. 

    The June farmers market will be held in conjunction with the town’s annual Pet Fest, which will also hopefully boost attendance. 

    Initially, the farmers market will be under the leadership of Chancer McLaughlin, the town’s development and planning administrator. 

    The hours for each farmers market will be from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. 

    Adams stressed that the farmers market program will be a work in progress and subject to any changes that the town feels will make it work better. 

    Anyone with questions about the first farmers market, what to bring or how to apply can check www.townofhopemills.com or contact McLaughlin at cmclaughlin@townofhopemills.com. 

  • Screen Shot 2019 03 19 at 122112 PMPriya Mall

    South View • Volleyball • Junior

    Mall has a 4.29 grade point average. She is a member of National Honor Society, International Baccalaureate and Hispanic National Honor Society.

     

    Screen Shot 2019 03 19 at 122123 PM

    William Pryor

    South View • Basketball/Tennis • Junior

    Pryor has a 4.3vgrade point average.vHe is a membervof NationalvHonor Societyvand International Baccalaureate. He is also student body vice president.

  • 14 Village ChristianThe North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic Association handed down penalties to Fayetteville’s Village Christian Academy last week following an investigation of alleged infractions in the school’s football program.

    The story was initially broken by Nick Stevens of High School OT, a web content subset of WRAL-TV that covers high school athletics. 

    Homar Ramirez, executive director of the NCISAA, released a statement regarding the case at Village Christian.

    In the statement, Ramirez said the NCISAA determined Village had recruited players to play football. It was determined the players were offered impermissible benefits by school personnel.

    The NCISAA placed Village on probation for the 2019-20 and 2020-21 school years. In addition, Village had to forfeit all wins in football for the 2017 and 2018 seasons. That included a state runner-up finish in 2017 and a state championship in 2018.

    The school was fined an undisclosed amount.

    The statement also said the NCISAA was satisfied with the actions the senior administration at Village had taken to resolve the matter and the measures it had implemented to prevent future incidents.

    High School OT reported that Village superintendent Tom Rider sent an email to school families that stated the school’s administration accepted the ruling of the NCISAA.

    In other news

    • Two Fayetteville high school basketball stars will be competing in this year’s Carolinas All-Star Classic basketball game on Saturday, March 23, at John T. Hoggard High School in Wilmington.

    Alexandria Scruggs of E.E. Smith and Kendal Moore of Pine Forest were both selected to play for the North Carolina girls team, which will meet a team of South Carolina all-stars. A boys game between North and South Carolina teams will follow the girls game.

    Moore has committed to North Carolina State University while Scruggs is committed to Wake Forest University.

    The action is scheduled to begin with the girls game at 6 p.m. and the boys game immediately following.

    Patty Evers, athletic director and girls basketball coach at East Bladen High School, will head the North Carolina girls team. 

    Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children and students.

    • South View High School will host a combine for the 2019 Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas on Saturday, March 23.

    Registration for all positions will be from 9 a.m. until 11 a.m. Meeting with coaches is at 11 a.m., and testing begins at 11:30 a.m. There is a $20 registration fee payable on-site.

    The Shrine Bowl, the oldest high school allstar game in the country, annually pits the top seniors from North and South Carolina in a football game that benefits the Shriners hospitals for crippled children.

    Photo: Kendal Moore

  • Screen Shot 2019 03 19 at 122101 PMHere is the Patriot Athletic All-Conference girls basketball team as chosen by the league’s head coaches.

    Coach of the Year: Dee Hardy, E.E. Smith

    Player of the Year:  Alexandria Scruggs, E.E. Smith

    First team:

    Pine Forest — Kendal Moore

    Terry Sanford — Imani Elliott, Lindsay Bell

    E.E. Smith — Daireanna McIntyre, Kendall Macauley

    Second team:

    South View — Lillian Flantos, Mia Ayers

    Terry Sanford — Kate Perko

    Pine Forest — Claresha Pruitt

    Overhills — J’Kyah Kelley

    Westover — Salome Campbell

    Honorable mention:

    Douglas Byrd — Diana Robinson

    Pine Forest — Ciara Moore

    E.E. Smith — Keonna Bryant

    Overhills — Kiana Jones

    Terry Sanford — Nyla Cooper

  • 13 Funds soughtA fundraiser is in the works to help erect a permanent sign in honor of John Daskal at the Reid Ross High School football stadium that bears his name.

    Daskal founded the football program at Reid Ross before finishing his highly successful football coaching career at Terry Sanford High School.

    Daskal’s daughters, Kristina Daskal Magyar and Kim Daskal Lee, organized the fundraiser, with assistance from former Cumberland County Schools student activities director Fred McDaniel.

    There are currently two signs at Reid Ross recognizing Daskal, one on the back of the press box and another on the scoreboard.

    Magyar said they want something more permanent, made out of brick, and resembling a sign that honors former Pine Forest High School principal Harold K. Warren located at that school’s football stadium, which is named for him.

    “If I’m correct, it’s going to be around $12,000,’’ Magyar said of the projected cost of the sign honoring Daskal. She said tentative plans are for the dimensions to be about 6 feet tall and from 15 to 20 feet wide. Magyar said if it can be included in the cost, she hopes to have a picture of her father on the sign, along with a brief biography.

    It would be located on what is now the main entrance to the stadium, a road entering from the end zone near the scoreboard. The sign would be placed outside the exterior stadium fence, she said.

    While the primary fundraiser will be a golf tournament, Magyar said people are invited to submit any donations to the effort. “We are just reaching out to alumni or any friends, people who are interested in making a donation or who want to play in the golf tournament,’’ she said.

    Magyar said the family wants to erect the sign not just to recognize Daskal’s success on the field but to honor him for the role he played in the lives of the countless young men he coached over the years.

    “A lot of boys have looked at my dad like he was their father,’’ she said. “He was the go-to guy to ask a lot of questions because they did not have that male figure in their life.’’

    Magyar said she’s heard countless stories over the years about how her father inspired young people, stories of them calling him back thanking him for the help he provided them.

    “It goes to your heart because you’re hearing from all of those kids and they just loved my dad,’’ she said, “not just my dad but all these coaches who have been a part of their lives like that.

    “When (someone is) an inspiration to somebody, people want to help because they love them that much for what they’ve done in their lives.’’

    The golf tournament is scheduled for Sunday, April 14, at Gates Four Golf and Country Club at 6775 Irongate Dr.

    The cost is $65 per player. Individuals or companies who don’t want to play in the tournament can purchase a sign for $100. Golfers can also purchase mulligans for $5.

    The first-place team will get $300 and the second- place team $150.

    Registration and lunch are at 11:30 a.m., and the tournament begins at 1 p.m.

    The deadline for entry is April 9.

    For more information about the tournament, contact the following people: Fred McDaniel, 910-709-9281; Dewayne Lee, 910-273-6773; Kristina Daskal Magyar, 910-591-0098; or Kim Daskal Lee, 910-261-9311.

  • Meetings

    For details about all meetings and activities, including location where not listed, call Town Clerk Jane Starling at 910-426-4113.

    Aquatics Feasibility Committee Wednesday, March 20, 6:30 p.m., Luther Board Room, Town Hall. This meeting will be held for the purpose of exploring potential partnership opportunities for an aquatics center.

    Appearance Commission Tuesday, March 26, 6:30 p.m., Hope Mills Parks and Recreation Center.

    Festival Committee Monday, April 1, 6 p.m., Town Hall, front conference room.

    Activities

    Operation Medicine Drop Saturday, March 23, 9 a.m.-2 p.m., Hope Mills Fire Department. Drop off outdated or unused prescription medication.

    Food Truck Rodeo Thursday, April 4, 5-8 p.m., Town Hall rear parking lot. Enjoy music, an assortment of food trucks, bouncy house and games for kids, and presentations by various public service vendors.

    Breakfast with the Easter Bunny/Easter egg hunt Saturday, April 6, 8:30 a.m-11 a.m. and 11:15 a.m., Hope Mills Recreation Center. Tickets are $6. Final day to purchase tickets is Monday, April 1. Call 910-426-4109 to reserve your spot. Easter egg hunt follows Breakfast with the Easter Bunny and is free.

    Hope Mills Area Kiwanis Club at Sammio’s, second Tuesdays at noon and fourth Tuesdays at 6 p.m. For details, call 910-237-1240.

    Promote yourself

    Email hopemills@upandcomingweekly.com.

  • 12 Food TruckEDITOR'S NOTE: Cold Stone Creamery was added as the tenth truck for May’s Hope Mills Food Truck Rodeo after the print deadline for this week's issue.

    Get ready, Hope Mills. The food trucks are coming back. Beginning Thursday, April 4, and continuing through November, the food trucks will be back the first Thursday of each month. The event will again be held in the rear parking lot of Hope Mills Town Hall, 5770 Rockfish Rd.

    Chancer McLaughlin, development and planning administrator for the town of Hope Mills, said the setup will be basically the same as last year, with each of the events starting at 5 p.m. and ending at 8 p.m.

    A live DJ will provide music for the first rodeo. When summer arrives, McLaughlin said the town will offer live bands.

    There will also be activities for children, including a bouncy house and a variety of free games. In addition, the town will have vendors on hand who will share information with the community about their various services.

    Among the vendors lined up for the first rodeo in April are the Hope Mills Community Emergency Response Team, iSign sign language and The CARE Clinic.

    “The vendors provide a service to the community,” McLaughlin said. “We are giving them the ability to share awareness about their program and the service they offer in the community.’’

    At all of the food truck rodeos, the town encourages people to bring nonperishable food items to donate to the ALMSHOUSE, a Hope Mills-based nonprofit that focuses on helping families get back on their feet and become selfsufficient, and its Kid’s Assistance Program.

    “We always do the ALMSHOUSE food drive,’’ McLaughlin said.

    Among the scheduled food trucks for the first event are A Catered Affair by Chef Glenn, Big T’s Snow on the Go, California Taco Truck, Kona Ice and Nancy Manby’s Famous Food Truck.

    McLaughlin said he strives at each food truck rodeo to have a variety of trucks so that no two trucks are competing directly with each other with the same food or specialty offerings.

    McLaughlin said the food truck events took a serious hit from bad weather last year as he had to cancel or postpone the monthly gatherings four times as two hurricanes hit Hope Mills in the fall.

    He tries to watch the weather as closely as possible and call them off or reschedule them at least a week in advance if needed.

    He said the biggest thing he learned from last year’s rodeos is that the people of Hope Mills love the food trucks, and the truck owners are appreciative. “We charge no fees for food trucks,’’ he said. “The main goal is we are trying to support the food truck community.’’

    He said the people appreciate the events because it gives them a break from preparing meals at home on a week night. “It’s a relaxing event for a school night,’’ McLaughlin said. “We provide the  a backdrop.’’

    McLaughlin said he gets his list of food trucks from the trucks that have been approved by the county health department. “I switch the trucks out every month, and we book about a month in advance,’’ he said. “We try to make sure we have at least six trucks for a variety.’’

    McLaughlin can be reached at 919-478-9023 or cmclaughlin@townofhopemills.com with questions about the rodeos or how to get a food truck involved.

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  • 11 Hope Mills artSculptures created by students at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke that have been on public display in Hope Mills for about a year are disappearing from the landscape because of a breakdown in communication between town officials and UNC-Pembroke instructors.

    Adam Walls, associate professor of art at UNCPembroke, is a Hope Mills resident. About a year ago, he worked out a plan with Hope Mills Mayor Jackie Warner for students to create sculptures that would be put on display around the town of Hope Mills.

    The plan was for the town to get new works of art to show on an annual basis, with the only cost to the town being money to purchase the supplies the students needed to create the art. But when Walls tried to communicate with the town this year about renewing the agreement, his attempts were unsuccessful. 

    “They never would return my phone calls or my emails about how we were going to go about funding the new pieces,’’ he said.

    Last year, Walls wrote a grant for the town that secured the money to construct the concrete pads on which the sculptures were displayed. This year  he said he was prepared to write a similar grant to get money for the materials to build the sculptures. That cost the town about $3,000 last year. 

    While there was an apparent breakdown in communication, possibly caused by the fact officials with the town’s Parks and Recreation Department were displaced and without phones for a good part of the year as a result of damage to the recreation center, Walls said he heard there may have been another reason for the difficulty.

    “My understanding is the board (of commissioners) was not always in favor of what the previous board might have okayed,’’ Walls said. “Because somebody else has previously agreed to it, they were probably going to shoot it down.’’

    Walls is in the process of retrieving the sculptures and returning them to their creators. He said this year’s class of students, several of them from Hope Mills, is disappointed at losing a chance for public display of their works.

    “My students from Hope Mills are really brokenhearted they don’t get to show anything in their hometown,’’ Walls said. “But there was just no funding available to us. I wanted to help write the grant to make this happen, but they weren’t forthcoming.’’

    Walls said public display of a young artist’s work is an important step in his or her career.

    “It helps them start thinking of their work as professional,’’ he said. “When you put it in a public realm like that, you are going to have thousands of people seeing your work. They may not all be art enthusiasts, but just imagine. They are going to recognize there is a value in what they’re doing.

    “Not having this exhibition opportunity kind of takes some of the value away from the students, especially the students who are from that area.’’

    Even if the town does change its mind and would like to have art return, Walls said because of his personal schedule it would be at least a year from now before new sculptures could be created to replace the ones the town is losing. “We hope it will happen in the future,’’ he said.

    Warner said she was personally disappointed the town wasn’t able to continue displaying the sculptures. She had first seen the work of UNC-Pembroke students at a similar display in Laurinburg and thought it would work in Hope Mills as well.

    “I think it added to (Municipal Park),’’ Warner said. “I can’t tell you how many people have taken pictures with them (the sculptures).’’

    Walls also said whenever he went to the park with his children this past year, he heard numerous positive comments from others there about the sculptures.

    Warner is hopeful that the town can work with Walls to bring the art back in 2020.

    “As a town, we dropped the ball,’’ she said. “Had I known it had gone so far, I would have made the effort myself.’’

     

  • 10 musicIf marriage has shown me one thing over the course of my husband and my short eight years together, it is that humans are deeply flawed. OK, it doesn’t take being married to get that. Here’s the real truth that has blindsided me — I am deeply flawed.

    Hard to admit, right? It’s difficult, sometimes, for me to lump myself in with the rest of humankind. It is way too easy to say that about everyone else, especially that guy with road rage who threw the finger up at you in traffic or the coworker who gets on your ever-loving nerves day in and day out.

    It’s why we hate going through checkout lines — the cashier is too slow, the people at the stores are crazy and it’s too crowded. So, we order online. Food. Clothes. That random part you need to fix your lawnmower. Toys. Business cards. Books. Eye glasses. A mattress in a box. Need customer service or to schedule an appointment? I’ll do it online, thank you.

    We’ve done everything to make life “convenient” and to make sure we don’t have to deal with that person who we claim brings out the worst in us. More often than not, brokenness makes us run away. It’s messy, it’s tough and it’s uncomfortable. But to admit that we ourselves are deeply flawed is deeply humbling. And it makes us vulnerable.

    I have issues that I didn’t even know were issues that play out in my everyday interaction with my husband. He knows me better than anyone, which makes these flaws I so artfully hide from everyone else — or, even worse, disguise as admirable — unable to be ignored. Now, don’t get me wrong. He has flaws too. But so does every other human being on this planet.

    If you’re breathing, you’re broken.

    But here’s the other, ironic side of that coin. We were made for community. Part of healing this brokenness is found in cultivating community. In fact, healing can’t be complete until we do. Even in the book of Genesis, God said it’s “not good for man to be alone,” so he created Eve for Adam. We were meant to know and be known by others.

    That leads me to ask, what if these relationships, these interactions with hard-to-get-alongwith people, were actually created to bring out the worst in us? What if these people don’t actually create bad reactions in us; what if these relationships are just a means by which our brokenness comes to the surface?

    What if we’re meant to use these interactions to learn more about ourselves— our ticks, our hurts, our anger, our outbursts — to see our brokenness more clearly and seek healing for it?

    What if this was all to point to Jesus and a relationship with him?

    Galatians 6:2 says, “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” James 5:16 says, “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.” Proverbs 27:17 says, “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” In Romans 1, the apostle Paul talks about being “mutually encouraged by each other’s faith.” Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 says, “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor. If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.”

    We desperately need deep, genuine relationships. We desperately need to deal with our brokenness. We need community. Isolation is used as a torture technique, for crying out loud! It can do crazy things to the mind and heart because it is so opposite to the life we were created to live.

    Relationships require vulnerability. Vulnerability is scary. Scary things are hard. But hard things are worth the effort, worth the risk and worth your time.

    Find a church. Find a community. Find a friend. Your life depends on it. Your healing depends on it. Let’s jump in. We were made for this.

  • 09 4 fridayEvery 4th Friday, downtown Fayetteville hosts a plethora of experiences and activities. Friday, March 22, folks can expect the charm of Fayetteville’s historic downtown mixed with the celebration of local businesses and entertainment. At 4th Friday, attendees can celebrate the community and learn about groups in the area and what they do. One such organization, the Arts Council of Fayetteville/ Cumberland County, says on its website, “Businesses in the four and a half block of historic downtown Fayetteville join the action and become artistic venues on 4th Friday, featuring the arts in all forms, for all ages.”

    Walk Awhile in Her Shoes is an annual event occurring on March’s 4th Friday this year that encourages local men to support sexual assault victims, advocate for justice and call for an end to sexual violence. For $30 plus shoe rental, men don red shoes of all kinds — pumps, flats and sandals, satin, sequined and leather — and walk from Hay Street to Bright Light Brewing Company. Proceeds go to the Rape Crisis Volunteers of Cumberland County. Registration includes a Tshirt, water and desserts. Search the event on Facebook or Eventbrite or email walkawhilefay@gmail.com for more information.

    The Arts Council supports individual creativity, cultural preservation, economic development and lifelong learning for all ages. The nonprofit treats 4th Friday as an opportunity to share and display art exhibitions and more. Opening 4th Friday at the council’s Arts Center, 301 Hay St., is “Picturing America’s Pastime Exhibition with Presenting Partner Fayetteville Woodpeckers: A Snapshot of the Photography Collection at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.” The exhibition will be on display through May 11. To learn more, visit the Arts Council website at www.theartscouncil.com.

    The Ellington-White Gallery, at 113 Gillespie St., will also be open to the public for 4th Friday. According to its website, the Ellington-White Gallery works to “generate and support high quality diverse cultural experiences in all of the arts and art-related disciplines.”

    4th Friday offers other experiences from local organizations ranging from museums nonprofits. The Fayetteville Area Transportation and Local History Museum hosts a variety of exhibitions for a variety of interests. Its newest exhibit, “Baseball in Fayetteville,” showcases Fayetteville’s love of baseball. The exhibit will be open throughout the year. Call 910- 433-1457 for more information.

    Fascinate-U Children’s Museum keeps children and families entertained for hours. The museum is open from 7-9 p.m. on 4th Friday, offering free admission and a craft. The craft for March is a Minion magnet. Call 910-829-9171 for details.

    City Center Gallery & Books keeps its doors open until 9 p.m. for 4th Friday, and Cape Fear Studios invites attendees to “stop in to see our newest exhibit, meet our artists and check out the new works during each 4th Friday opening.”

    To top off the festivities, the Cool Spring Downtown District will sponsor the “Clue’ville Downtown Mystery.” The event starts Friday, March 22, from 6-9 p.m., and continues Saturday, March 23, from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. CSDD’s website says, “Your favorite board game comes to life in Downtown again this year. Move from business to business, gather clues, solve the crime. Watch the culprit’s arrest at a Press Conference. Right or wrong you have a chance to win prizes. This event is FREE, and fun for the whole family!”

    The maps for these games are available at local downtown businesses as well as for download. Check the Cool Spring Downtown District Facebook Event Page for updates or call 910-223-1089.

  • 08 LumbeeThe Friends of the Library present Malinda Maynor Lowery on Sunday, March 24, from 2-4:30 p.m., in the Pate Room of Headquarters Library downtown. She will discuss her latest book, “The Lumbee Indians: An American Struggle.”

    “The library invited me to give a talk about my newest book, which is about the Lumbee Indians, from a community close (by),” said Lowery, associate professor of history and director of the Center for the Study of the American South at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. “We (Lumbees) have a lot of strong ties to Fayetteville — especially to Cumberland and Hoke counties.”

    Lowery added the book covers Lumbee history from the time of European contact to the present and addresses how the Lumbees have sustained themselves as a nation within and alongside the American nation.

    “The book is for people who are interested in public affairs and current issues, love books, are lifelong learners and have a special interest in Native American or North Carolina history,” said Lowery. “I think the library is interested because the book matches their audience, so being invited to give a talk there is a special honor for me.”

    The Lumbees are the largest tribe east of the Mississippi, and their population makes North Carolina the state with the largest American Indian population. There are about 55,000 enrolled Lumbees. Their homeland is in Robeson County and all the adjoining counties, including Hoke, Cumberland, Bladen and Scotland counties.

    “We have a long and proud history of relationships to one another and our identity is founded on our family relationships and our relationships to land,” said Lowery. “We have developed schools, churches and farms, and we have participated in and built our own institutions as well as participating in every other kind of American institution.”

    Lowery writes from a perspective many readers may not be familiar with. “Being a member of the Lumbee tribe gave me a unique access to people and views that have shaped the history,” she said. “It’s probably fairly unusual to think about reading a native history that is written by a native person.

    “Many people assume that my belonging in the tribe would bias me toward a kind of celebratory version of our history, but I think it makes writing the history a lot more complicated because you really have to deal with the bad stuff as much as you deal with the good stuff. I feel responsible, as a member of the community, to tell the whole story.

    “My goal of this book was to make an even wider audience aware of how important Lumbees have been to those kinds of moments when we as Americans are really trying to take stock of how we are going to move forward in a more equal way.”

    Her book will be available for purchase at the event. For more information, call 910-483-7727.

    Photo: Malinda Maynor Lowery

  • 07 misconductU.S. Sen. Martha McSally, R-Ariz., who is a retired U.S. Air Force colonel, was sexually assaulted by a superior officer during her 26-year career in the military. She said recently that when she tried to talk about it to military officials, she “felt like the system was raping me all over again.”

    McSally disclosed this information during a Senate Armed Services committee hearing March 7. McSally said she did not report the rape because she did not trust the system and was ashamed and confused.

    Reading from a prepared statement, she spoke of her pride in the military and her service to the country. She referred to “perpetrators” who had sexually assaulted her, an indication that she had been attacked more than once.

    Fellow senators lauded her for coming forward. “I’m deeply affected by that testimony,” said Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., who has pushed for military law changes.

    During a break, McSally spoke with a West Point graduate who detailed being raped by her commander. McSally’s revelation came soon after Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, told of her own abuse and sexual assault while in college. Ernst is a lieutenant colonel in the Iowa National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve.

    McSally and Ernst bring a new perspective to the debate in Congress on military sexual assault.

    Gillibrand has released her latest report on sexual assault in the armed services March 11, finding that many of the troubling trends from the previous two decades have continued to be a pervasive problem in the military.

    “After reviewing yet another year’s worth of sexual assault case files at four of the biggest military bases in the country, I was appalled to see that sexual assault in our military is still as pervasive as ever,” she said.

    Defense officials disagree, the Pentagon arguing that an increase in reported assaults reflects a greater willingness to report attacks rather than indicating assaults are rising. Advocates contend sexual assaults are a highly underreported crime, both in the military and society at large. Gillibrand said the public must demand that higher-ranking officials be part of the solution, not the problem.

    At least two Army general officers have been charged with sexual misconduct in the last two years. Retired Army Maj. Gen. James J. Grazioplene, 69, of Gainesville, Virginia, faces multiple counts in Prince William, Virginia, Circuit Court.

    According to court records, he was indicted on charges of rape seven months after a military judge dismissed related charges against him. The military justice system as it applies to felonies changed during that time.

    The retired two-star general had been accused by the Army of rape, following an investigation dating back to early 2015. Authorities accused Grazioplene of numerous instances of raping a young girl repeatedly between 1983 and 1989, a span in which he lived for a time in Prince William County. He also lived and worked at Fort Bragg during that time.

    Then, there was the sordid scandal of an 82nd Airborne Division assistant commanding general. Disgraced Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Sinclair pleaded guilty to having a three-year illicit affair with a subordinate officer, an Army captain. Sinclair, 51, was accused of forcible sodomy, adultery and conduct unbecoming an officer. Adultery is a crime in the Army. He struck a plea deal to avoid prison time. Sinclair was reprimanded and forced to pay a $20,000 fine. He was reduced in rank for retirement to lieutenant colonel.

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