Mothers working for the Police Department in Fayetteville will now have three locations to pump and store milk for their babies safely.

It is a federal law for workplaces to provide a safe and clean place for mothers to express milk during the workday. However, the idea of bringing up the topic can be uncomfortable and embarrassing for many women, especially those that work in a male-dominated field. It can often lead many women to pump and dump in a bathroom.

Chief Gina Hawkins tells Up & Coming Weekly that when she had her first child, she was 23 years old. She felt uncomfortable telling anyone she had to pump milk for her baby. She felt like she needed to be tough, especially as a young female cop. By being tough, you don’t ask for favors or accommodations.

“Instead, I went into nasty bathrooms in order to make sure my baby had milk. And then I had to hide what I was doing and hide how I was freezing those items. That's a lot of pressure for someone,” Hawkins said.

“When I had my second child, it was ten years later and I was still trying to keep it a secret. And I was a supervisor, and I had an office. I had to figure out how to freeze it until I got home. I knew the law, and I still didn’t want to ask for accommodations.”

Breast milk needs to be refrigerated within four hours of being expressed. Otherwise, it goes bad. Outside of just needing to feed their child, mothers who can’t safely express milk can experience mastitis - an inflammation of breast tissue that sometimes involves an infection. This inflammation can be extremely painful.

Making sure that employees are taken care of is a top priority for Hawkins. Having a clean and accessible place for mothers to pump is part of employee wellbeing. To retain and recruit new employees, Hawkins looked into innovative ways of how the FPD could help lessen the stress.

“How do you recruit people to come into this profession? You need to make sure you’re thinking about them and thinking about ways that they don’t have to stress out to come into this work environment,” Hawkins said.

A $30,000 grant has provided FPD with the funds to buy two lactation pods. These pods are secure, freestanding areas where moms can go inside and pump. It is 16 square feet and is compact.
The inside of the pod looks like an airplane seat. In front is a fold-down tray that allows parents to work on their laptops or eat a meal. To the parent's left is a shelf with an outlet that you can use to plug in a pump or your phone. There is also a coat hook, lighting and a mirror.

The pod can be locked so no one can interrupt the mom while she is expressing milk. Outside the pods are mini-refrigerators that are dedicated to storing breast milk. This ensures the milk will not be inadvertently thrown away — something that happens with community fridges in break rooms or kitchens.

The pods are placed in a discreet location, so moms don’t have to worry about who will see them entering or leaving the pod.
The two pods will be located at the Cross Creek District Police Station and the Campbellton Police Station.

The pod at Cross Creek is currently operational.
The other location where moms at the FPD can pump is in the wellness center at the headquarters in downtown Fayetteville. This room has been available to moms for the past two years.

Mark your calendars for Sept. 4 and take a day trip to Elizabethtown’s Cape Fear Vineyard & Winery for a summer concert with country music star Terri Clark, along with a couple of North Carolina groups.

Already known for their food and wine offerings, event spaces and lodging, Cape Fear Vineyard & Winery is adding music festivals.

Derrick Rice, the events director with Cape Fear Vineyard and Winery discussed the excitement of the concerts.

“It’s phenomenal. It feels like a mini-festival,” Rice said. “People come in to hang out and are tuned into the main act.”

Terri Clark has been in the country music business for over 25 years, with over five million albums sold and critically acclaimed international tours under her belt.

“I grew up listening to country music because my grandparents were musicians in the Canadian music scene,” Clark said. “My mother also played guitar and sang a lot of folk music and 60s and 70s folk rock. She taught me my first 3 chords when I was nine years old and the rest is history.”

Clark said her music career has been influenced by the “Barbara Mandrell & the Mandrell Sisters” show, Reba McEntire, The Judds and Ricky Skaggs.

Originally from Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada, Clark started at iconic Tootie's Orchid Lounge in Nashville. Her hits include “Better Things To Do,” “Poor Poor Pitiful Me” and “Girls Lie Too.” Clark has been awarded three JUNO Awards, a prestigious recognition given to Canadian artists. She was inducted into the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame in 2018.

No stranger to the Carolinas, Clark said it seems she has been performing in North Carolina more than ever this year.

“The audiences have been amazing,” she said.

Guests attending the show at Cape Fear Vineyard and Winery can expect “lots of energy, fun and all the hits,” Clark said. “And the hat too.”

The gates open at 6 p.m., and opening acts begin at 7:30 p.m.

“The Generations” is one of the groups that will perform at the concert. They hail from Bladen County, performing music infused with Americana and North Carolina blues and soul.

Also scheduled to appear is Ryleigh Madison & Dustin Chapman, an uncle and niece duo from Tabor City, North Carolina. The duo made it through “American Idol” auditions and to Hollywood. They did not win the competition but did not let it stop the family of musicians from entertaining audiences. They have a song out titled “Family Thing.”

Tickets for the concert start at $29. For more information, call 910-645-4291 or visit https://www.capefearwinery.com/.

Mayor Mitch Colvin is a District 3 resident and served as a district representative for two terms before being elected as Mayor in 2017. This will now be his third consecutive term as Mayor. Next year will mark ten years since he was first elected to the City Council.

Over that time, his focus in the past has been primarily about collaboration with the county, the state and neighboring entities.
However, 2020 brought along the COVID-19 pandemic and race relations came to the forefront of the entire country. Projects were paused, delayed and even canceled. Colvin believes 2022 has been a turning point for the city of Fayetteville.

“So now that we have turned a corner on those two things, now the focus continues to [be] the people in the community,” Colvin said.

When asked about the rising violent crime trend seen in Fayetteville, Colvin says that you have to put it into perspective.

“I think today we have some of the problems that a lot of communities our size have, but certainly it has room for improvement for sure. I accept that, but I think we have to debunk and put this in perspective as to where we are, is relative to the size. We're a community of 250,000 plus in the area and greater surrounding area,” Colvin said.

Fayetteville Police Chief Gina Hawkins told City Council last week that violent crime has increased from January to June.
Domestic assault reports are up nearly 17%, and aggravated assault reports rose by 14%.

However, the overall crime rate has decreased since 2016.
Colvin says that a carrot stick approach has to be used for the crime problem. He says the first thing the city needs to do is make sure law enforcement officers are doing their jobs. Making sure the law is being enforced.
The second part of the problem is to address underlying problems like mental health. He says 10% of the budget of the Fayetteville Police Department ends up going toward mental health.

“The quality of life is embedded in this community with mental health. If you go right down the street, you see people who are obviously in need of services. And so I want to work with the hospital, with the county and see how we can be a better partner to help address that,” Colvin said.

An idea that he wants to work more on in the upcoming term is to make sure Fayetteville residents are work-ready. He says there is a great workforce in the community, but he wants to invest in workforce training to help people get certified in different fields.

“We've had great success and [added] jobs to the economy, which is the number one priority that I had as well. And so we want to continue to build on those successes, but to bring the higher-end wage jobs and the only way I think you can do that is to invest in the workforce training, which I have some initiatives for next generation job creation,” Colvin told Up & Coming Weekly.

“I want to do a pilot program to encourage young people, particularly high school graduates or people who are changing careers, to pay for a nine month course in cyber certification and with the expectation that they will get at least a $50,000 to $60,000 job opportunity at the end of that. And that can be a game changer for a lot of people.”

Another priority for Colvin is housing. There is a 20,000 housing shortage in Fayetteville, and while a bond package has been approved to be put to voters in November to help pay for some of that, Colvin has other ideas as well — specifically around the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 and the Department of Energy.

“There could be additional dollars in there to leverage our housing ARPA funds if we make [houses] energy efficient and we encourage sustainability as we build that,” Colvin said. “So the goal is to learn about the programs that are coming.”

Last week he voted against putting the Vote Yes Fayetteville referendum on the ballot.

The Vote Yes Initiative would change the way City Council would be structured. Instead of all nine members being elected by district, four members would be elected at large, and five would be elected from districts.
City Council voted against putting the referendum on the ballot because there were concerns over the validity of the referendum's petition.
Colvin told Up & Coming Weekly he is against the initiative.

“Personally, I don't think a council structure change is necessary and the case really hasn't been made as to why this is something that is needed at this time. As a former district representative for four years and mayor, for now, three terms, I know the importance of having the point of view of a district,” Colvin said.

The goal now for Colvin is to continue representing the entire city and improve the quality of life for everyone.

Briana Smith is excited.

On Monday, she will greet her students at Ferguson-Easley Elementary School on Seabrook Road. It will be the first time she’ll see them without masks since the start of the pandemic. She’s looking forward to a traditional school year that includes social interactions with her students and colleagues for the first time in years.

Ferguson-Easely has 352 students enrolled in kindergarten through fifth grade.

“I always have the first-day jitters,’’ Smith said Friday as she cut out letters to put on her bulletin board. “But I’m not as overwhelmed as in previous years. Maybe it’s because of my experience.”

Smith teaches fifth-grade math, and only math, to what Principal Eric McLaurin calls blocked classes.
In a nearby classroom, Danielle Wynter was also putting last-minute touches on her room displays. Like Smith, Wynter is readying her room for the 19 third-graders scheduled to be in her room on Monday. But that number is growing, she said. Wynter teaches all subjects in her classroom.

And like Smith, Wynter also is looking forward to more normal settings: children interacting with each other and parents once again inside the building being a part of their children’s learning experience.

But on Monday, Wynter said, the morning will start with building a relationship with her new charges.

“I’ll have a smile on my face,” she said, emphasizing her goal to make learning fun and to get the most out of her students.

Smith and Wynter are what McLaurin calls “Gold Star teachers.’’

“They are teachers who come in this building and display exemplary leadership,” he said.

McLaurin said they are teachers who are available both inside and outside of the school for their students.

“We look at their data showing growth among their students, and their relationships with parents, students and peers, and with their knowledge of the curriculum,” McLaurin said.

Currently, six teachers are designated as Gold Star teachers. “Six right now and three more working on becoming Gold Star teachers,” he said.
The school building also appeared ready for Monday, when students on the traditional school calendar return to the classroom. Its floors are newly waxed and shiny, and hallways and classrooms are colorfully decorated with teaching materials.

McLaurin is quick to point out the school has some innovative aspects. The media center houses a broadcast booth used for daily school announcements.

The broadcast delivers news events about the school, and students operate the cameras and handle on-camera duties. But for the first few weeks, McLaurin said he would make the daily announcements.

The school also set up several outdoor classrooms with tables, chairs and benches. McLaurin said instead of talking about the weather, students sit outside and learn about weather or other outdoor learning activities.

“The building doesn’t matter. People with compassion for kids is what counts,” Smith said. “I’m just excited to be here,” she added.

Both teachers have taught at Ferguson-Easely for the past three years. Smith started her teaching career 12 years ago, and Wynter was last year’s Teacher of the Year at Ferguson-Easely.

McLaurin also came to the school as its principal three years ago. He started as a teaching assistant in 2004, became a teacher in 2009, an assistant principal in 2016, and principal in 2020.

All three are in a profession they love, and a profession that is seeing a diminishing number of educators, both on a national and local level. Cumberland County Schools earlier this week announced it had 200 vacancies in its certified classroom teachers and classroom staff, of which 117 are instructors.
McLaurin said he also fears losing good teachers through attrition. His library/media specialist is a military spouse whose husband is scheduled for reassignment elsewhere.

Wynter is a native of Jamaica here on a five-year work visa. She must return to Jamaica in two years and stay for an extended period of time before she can return to the United States.

“I love teaching and the joys it brings me,’’ Wynter said. “To help a child read or even spell their name, it’s what drives me to be here every morning at 7 a.m. and be on station at 7:15.”

Cumberland County Schools has more than 200 vacancies in its certified classroom teachers and classified staff — a number that includes 117 instructors — as the district heads into the new school year, a committee was told Aug. 25.

The school system, like others across the country, is struggling with recruiting certified teachers and other pertinent staff. The uncertified classified positions include clerical, custodial, substitutes and bus drivers.

On Thursday, the Personnel Committee of the Cumberland County Board of Education voted to approve a presentation on the state of its staff. The entire board will broach the personnel discussion at its regular monthly meeting on Sept. 13.
Ruben Reyes, the school system's associate superintendent for Human Resources, told board members that his presentation involved "the standard personnel list for this time of year. Specifically,” he said, “just teachers and classified staff, substitutes, child nutrition and bus drivers.”

Chairman Greg West asked Reyes if he could provide an overall update regarding the district’s personnel.
When it comes to overall vacancies, Reyes responded, “Certified teachers – we are at 117 teachers in pre-K-12, including exceptional children. Classified staff we’re at 101 vacancies in that. That includes clerical, custodial, and teacher's assistants. All the classified staff. And 56 unstaffed bus routes."

Board member Susan Williams said there are teacher assistants on the list trying to get certified to drive a bus, and they can’t.

“There is a waiting list,” she repeated, “and they can’t get trained, and they want to work.”

“You’re correct,” Reyes said. “There is a backlog. I know the transportation department has been working with the Department of Motor Vehicles. They have to provide trainers. We can’t go out and hire our own trainers. We looked into that. We wanted to hire as many as 10. They have to be (approved) and work for the DOT.

“We increased our allotment, but not to the extent that we would like to,” he said. “There is a training backlog. They’re working as diligently as they can …”

Board member Donna Vann wondered if the school system could propose to the DMV that it find the people and that the district would pay for them.

“Already done that,” Superintendent Marvin Connelly Jr. quipped to her laughter.

Reyes said DMV is struggling to fill those positions, as well.
Reyes also shared information about vacancies statewide.

“The latest report I saw just this morning, in terms of statewide numbers, there’s about 11,000 vacancies in public education currently,’’ he said “This is not all the districts reporting. This is based on a superintendent’s report that we participated in. And there’s about 3,700 teacher vacancies in the state of North Carolina and 11,000 total vacancies across the state.”

As far as classroom teachers, Cumberland County Schools has about 117 vacancies in pre-kindergarten through fifth grade, according to Reyes. The numbers change on a daily basis, he added.

“When we did the superintendent’s report,” he noted, “there were about 87 teacher vacancies. Classroom teachers. Exceptional children (instructors) were part of that. When we talk about teachers, we count counselors and social workers in that number. So the number I’m giving you is all our certified staff.”

“Some of our PASE (program) schools are fully staffed, and we have some that are not,” he said. “As we discussed earlier, PASE schools – you have more improvement challenges than our other schools. We're trying to track your highly qualified teachers in the schools this year, but just from an available capital standpoint, we’re struggling just like everyone across the nation.”

PASE stands for Performance, Accountability, Support and Empowerment. Those are the district's Tier 1 schools, which are dedicated as low performing by the N.C. General Assembly.

The last number he said he looked at, probably at the beginning of August, the system had hired about 330 new staff members this year. That, he added, is just part of the realities of public education.

“We’ll continue to roll up our sleeves,” Reyes said, “and work and hire the most qualified candidates.”

In response to a question from board member Carrie Sutton, he said the system has been looking at the enrollment numbers of the schools and consolidated some classes.

“Because they were really under projection,” he said.

Over the next 10 days, he said, the school system will be evaluating fall numbers. At that point, school officials will determine if they need to adjust allocations.

“But we won’t know until we return in the fall,” he said.

Students on the traditional calendar return to school on Monday, Aug. 29.

Elaina Ball is stepping down as CEO and general manager of the Fayetteville Public Works Commission effective Sept. 2, the utility announced Friday, Aug. 26.

Ball, who was the PWC’s first female CEO and general manager, will be taking a position in her home state of Texas, the utility said in a release. She joined PWC from El Paso Electric in December 2020.

Mick Noland, the utility’s chief operations officer for water resources, has been named interim CEO and general manager. He has overseen PWC’s Water Resources Division since 1993, the release said.

Ball said it has been “an honor and privilege to lead PWC.’’ She said the decision to leave was difficult because of the ties she has developed to Fayetteville and Cumberland County.

“I am making this decision for my family and for a role that … affords an opportunity to return to our home state of Texas,’’ she said in the release. “This is a terrific community that I have enjoyed being a part of and I will continue to be a strong supporter and advocate of both PWC and Fayetteville/Cumberland County.”

Ball was named CEO and general manager in October 2020 and joined the utility on Dec. 1, 2020.

“Her engagement was an immediate exercise of ‘boots on the ground’,” said Evelyn Shaw, chairwoman of the PWC board.

“It is always difficult to say goodbye to people who come into our sphere and make themselves a voluntary part of our family,” Shaw said in the release.

PWC said it has achieved several significant accomplishments during Ball’s tenure. They include:
Securing a historic low interest rate when financing $94.7 million of revenue bonds.
Maintaining base electric rates through fiscal 2023 and introducing new optional electric rates that will incentivize the adoption of electric vehicles and rooftop solar.
Finalizing PWC’s community partnership with Metronet, which is investing in $70 million of fiber optic infrastructure in Fayetteville, as well as assisting with significant other economic development projects.
Guiding PWC as it took successful legal action to improve response/responsibility for industrial polluters in the Cape Fear River.
Announcing plans for a first-of-its-kind renewable energy project that will use multiple bio-gas sources.
Expanding PWC’s battery/energy storage capacity to two MW to continue efforts to lower PWC power costs.

Shaw said the utility made great strides under Ball’s tenure.

“Ms. Ball's leadership was challenged by an international health pandemic, yet she nimbly and adroitly encouraged the PWC team toward an innovative and cutting-edge trajectory in alternative energy sources, reasonable rates for customers, respect for the environment and clean, reliable water sources for all,” Shaw said.

Two men were charged with attempted murder after a shooting in the parking lot of Cross Creek Mall on Aug. 25, according to the Fayetteville Police Department.

Police said the 22-year-old man was a targeted victim.

Police received multiple reports of shots fired about 7 p.m. Thursday at the mall on Morganton Road, according to a news release.

Witnesses at the scene told officers that two men suspected in the shooting were trying to flee in a silver Volkswagen Golf vehicle, the release said. Officers stopped the vehicle in the parking lot and detained Jahrehl Malloy, 21, and Nyhgil Kirk, 24, while members of the Aggravated Assault Unit investigated.
Investigators said that as the victim was leaving the food court at the mall, one of the suspects approached him on foot as the second hid behind a vehicle in the parking lot, the report said.

When the victim tried to evade the man who was approaching him, both suspects began shooting at him, police said.
Malloy and Kirk were each charged with attempted first-degree murder; felony conspiracy; and five counts of property damage, the report said. Each was held under a $1 million secured bond at the Cumberland County Detention Center.

The man’s name is not being released for his safety, police said.
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to contact Detective M. O’Hara at 910-605-6393 or CrimeStoppers at 910-483-TIPS (8477).

Many philanthropists prefer to remain anonymous.
Murray Duggins wants to be an example.

“I feel that a lot of people that I know will give based on other people’s gifts,” said Duggins. “I hope this starts a trend here in Fayetteville — not that I’m a trendsetter or some cool guy.”

Duggins and his wife, Nancy, have donated $2 million to the Cumberland Community Foundation to create the Murray and Nancy Duggins Family Charitable Fund, the foundation said in a news release.

“The gift represents only the third time a gift of this size has been received from a living donor,” said Mary Holmes, president and CEO of the Cumberland Community Foundation.

Murray Duggins, who is 77 and a self-described Army brat born in the small South Carolina town of Blackville, said he has been thinking about making the donation for years.

“I want to see Fayetteville grow, and things happening here indicate that,” he said. “I hope I’m a big-picture person.”

He hopes others will follow suit.

“I do think that many people I know who have money and don’t give – I hope it will make a difference,” he said.

The Dugginses have been supporting the community foundation since 2000, Holmes said, adding that the couple also give to many other local causes. This marks the second fund that they have created at the foundation, with the first being the Murray and Nancy Duggins Endowment for Cape Fear Regional Theatre.

“It’s just wonderful to see a family that has worked so hard sharing what they earned and giving back to the local community,” Holmes said in an interview on Thursday. “We appreciate when people have worked so hard and want to share in the community. I’m glad they focused on Cumberland County.”
Murray Duggins said he has been involved in planning his estate for some time and was trying to think of the best way to give back. That’s why he decided to donate to the Cumberland Community Foundation.

“It takes a little pressure off the individual to have to meet with different people and decide which is the most appropriate,” he said. “They’re pros at it. They’re pros at where to put the money and who’s doing the best job. Mary Holmes, I think, is top-drawer.”

Overall, Duggins estimated, he has given close to $3 million to philanthropic causes. Especially close to his heart are Methodist University, his alma mater; the Fayetteville Police Foundation; Snyder Memorial Baptist Church; and Cape Fear Valley Cancer Center.
Cumberland Community Foundation manages more than 600 donor funds with a total of $120 million in assets, the release said.

Some are designated for a specific charity, some are scholarship funds, and some are unrestricted, Holmes said in the release.

“This fund is a family-advised fund, meaning that Nancy and Murray will actively recommend the distributions and then pass that responsibility on to the next generation in their family. Advised funds help affluent families organize their philanthropy — like a private foundation without all the headaches,” she said in the release.

Holmes said the Dugginses’ gift is the second-largest made to the foundation by a living donor.

“It’s so nice when couples are living and decide to give back,” she said.

Holmes said she was Duggins’ banker 30 years ago.

“I can tell you, he’s a hard-working man,” she said.

Duggins, a developer of affordable housing, said he got involved in the construction industry in the early 1980s when he started developing tax-credit projects.

“I’ve been at it for 50 years,” he said. “Nancy was a dental hygienist for years. She’s been retired for 20 years, at least. Nancy has meant a lot. She was active in the Cape Fear Valley Hospital for years.”

While her husband grew up the son of an Army sergeant, Nancy Duggins, who also is 77, was the daughter of a mill worker in Hope Mills.
Murray Duggins said he has “a great love for Fayetteville — all it has meant for me and my family.”

“I want to give back to Fayetteville,” he said. “I just feel inclined to do it. I think it makes Fayetteville a stronger place. …

“I’ve done well," he said, "and I think I can make a difference. Nancy feels very strongly, too, and my family is all here, and they’ve done well. Hopefully, they’ll see the idea I’ve got. It’s easier to give and worthwhile. At my age, I see money differently than I did a few years ago. I can make a difference.”

A Cumberland County man who prosecutors said ran a drug operation from a home daycare and other locations has been sentenced to 40 years in federal prison, the U.S attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina said during a news conference Friday in Fayetteville.

Authorities said Reshod Everett, 36, led a heavily armed drug trafficking operation out of a daycare center on Ronald Reagan Drive in Fayetteville along with other locations, including an Addison Ridge apartment and a storage facility.
Drugs, multiple firearms and cash were seized from the state-licensed daycare center, Tori’s Playhouse, where children were present during the day.

“There was a deadly and potentially dangerous mix of drugs, guns and cash in the same house where children were cared for,’’ U.S. Attorney Mike Easley said. “This drug trafficker put countless lives at risk with his operation.”

Easley said the investigation began in 2018 when a gang unit of the Fayetteville Police Department was tipped to a network that was allegedly trafficking hundreds of pounds of marijuana.

“As the investigation would reveal, this case went far beyond marijuana,’’ Easley said. “Everett was a serious supplier of drugs in the Fayetteville area.”
Everett, his partner Alvin Davis and his wife, Victoria Everett, were arrested in 2018 after police found more than 100 pounds of marijuana, 346 grams of cocaine, nine firearms, drug packaging items and over $70,000 in their personal vehicles, the apartment, the storage facility and the in-home daycare, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. Victoria Everett was the owner and operator of Tori’s Playhouse.

Guns found at the daycare included handguns and loaded high-powered rifles. One of the guns had its safety set to the fire position, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

“Just a small amount of pressure on that trigger would have caused that gun to fire in the same house that parents trusted as a daycare to look after their children,” Easley said.

Easley said that as the investigation continued, the U.S. Attorney’s Office — in partnership with the Fayetteville Police Department, the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the IRS — gathered evidence and built cases against other defendants whom Everett supplied with drugs in order to obtain cooperation.

Witness testimony established that large quantities of drugs were being trafficked, including more than 56 kilos of cocaine and more than 17 kilos of marijuana dating back to 2016. Law enforcement searched cell phone records to determine locations and drug trafficking activities.
Easley said they also conducted a tax and financial investigation showing that Everett lied about his income.

“Everett lived a lavish lifestyle,’’ said Easley, who added that Everett did not report income for 2018. “He had a 3,000-square-foot house, three late-model vehicles, he took his family on vacations in California and the Caribbean. But his reported income for 2017 was negative $29,544.”

“His lavish lifestyle was not earned, it was bought and paid for by the young men he roped into his drug trafficking conspiracy and by the ill he forced upon the Fayetteville community.”

Easley said that while state charges were pending, Everett used social media and the news media to attack the Fayetteville Police Department and the Cumberland County District Attorney’s Office claiming that he was framed by police and that evidence was planted. These claims were internally investigated and proved to be false, Easley said.

He also said Everett tried to bribe and threaten witnesses and took to social media to present a deceitful campaign against law enforcement.

“I want to commend the Fayetteville Police Department and Chief Gina Hawkins and her leadership and their work to disrupt and dismantle drug traffickers in Cumberland County,’’ Easley said. “Those who bring poison and violence to our communities. Even in the face of false accusations and character attacks, your officers remained committed.”

Hawkins said perseverance is the word of the day.

“It has been a long time for our officers, our agency and our community to find out the truth,’’ Hawkins said. “We are ecstatic to get these guns off the street. Those drugs out of our community. And to show you we are in it for the long game.’’

ATF Special Agent in Charge Brian Mims said his agency worked closely with the Police Department and the U.S. Attorney’s Office to bring the case to a close.

“The threat that this subject posed to the community cannot be understated,’’ Mims said. “Large quantities of drugs and firearms, which were loaded and ready to be fired, were found inside a business that served parents and children. This was a tragedy waiting to happen.”

Mims said the partnership between agencies was instrumental in the criminal convictions.

In May, a jury found Everett guilty of six felony drug trafficking and firearm-related offenses. Along with the 40-year prison sentence, Everett was also ordered to pay $4 million of proceeds from his illegal operation.

His partner, Davis, was previously sentenced to 11 years in federal prison. Victoria Everett was not charged in federal court, authorities said.

A man has been charged in a hit-and-run crash that sent six people to the hospital on Friday night, Aug. 26, Fayetteville police said.

Cyrus E. Hayes, 24, is charged with felony hit and run, possession of an open container and a red light violation, police said in a release Saturday afternoon. He is being held at the Cumberland County Detention Center under a $20,000 secure bond.

The vehicle crash happened at approximately 11:30 p.m. at Stoney Point and Gillis Hill roads, the Fayetteville Police Department said. The inbound lane of the intersection was temporarily closed while the Traffic Unit investigated.

Six people were taken to Cape Fear Valley Medical Center and were in stable condition Saturday morning, police said

A man is in stable condition after being shot in the neck early Tuesday, Aug. 24, the Fayetteville Police Department said.

Officers responded to a report of a shooting at 1 a.m. in the area of the 700 block of Italy Street, the department said in a release.

Officers found a man with a gunshot wound to the neck. He was taken to Cape Fear Valley Medical Center and is in stable condition, the release said.

The shooting remains under investigation.

Anyone with information about this case is asked to contact Detective J. Frashure at 910-303-8967 or Crimestoppers at 910-483-TIPS (8477).

A husband and wife are both dead after a domestic disturbance on Shiloh Court on Monday night, Aug. 23, according to the Fayetteville Police Department.
Officers were sent to a home in the 1900 block of Shiloh Court about 8:30 p.m. Monday, a news release said. Tanisha Donnette Raeford, 47, had been stabbed and was pronounced dead at the scene.

A man identified as a suspect in the stabbing was seen leaving the scene, the release said.
About 9 p.m., the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office sent deputies to investigate a vehicle crash that was reported in the area of A B Carter Road and John B. Carter Road. They found John Lee Douglas, 53, dead at the scene, the release said.

A police spokesperson said Tuesday that Raeford and Douglas were married.
Investigators said the stabbing and vehicle crash are related and followed a domestic disturbance involving Raeford and Douglas.

Douglas is the suspect in the stabbing of Raeford, the news release said.
The Police Department’s Homicide Unit is investigating the case.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact Detective J. Olsen at 910-709-1958 or CrimeStoppers at 910-483-TIPS (8477) or http://fay-nccrimestoppers.org.

A Bladen County jailer driving a vehicle equipped with police lights and sirens is charged with trying to stop a woman driver Tuesday at Skibo Road and Swain Street, according to the Fayetteville Police Department.

Stephon Singleton, 51, is charged with using blue lights to stop or yield a driver and impersonating a law enforcement officer, a news release said. Singleton is a jailer at the Bladen County Detention Center.

Singleton was driving a silver Hyundai Sonata about 2 p.m. Tuesday when he tried to pull over a woman driving a Toyota Scion at Skibo Road and Swain Street, the release said. Singleton’s vehicle was equipped with law enforcement lights and sirens. He had an armor vest with “sheriff” emblazoned on it in the rear window and a ball cap with “sheriff” in the front windshield, the release said.

When Singleton got out of his vehicle, the woman driving the Scion realized he was not a police officer based on his clothing, she told investigators. The woman then drove away. She got behind Singleton’s Sonata and called 911, the release said.
Dispatchers sent a message to Fayetteville police officers telling them to be on the lookout for the suspect vehicle. It was spotted at Hay and Robeson streets, the release said.

Singleton was arrested and taken to the Cumberland County Detention Center, where he was held on a secured bond.
Investigators said anyone who may have been stopped by the driver of a Hyundai Sonata should contact CrimeStoppers at 910-483-TIPS (8477) or http://fay-nccrimestoppers.org.

After delaying action at two previous meetings on a plan to restructure city elections, the Fayetteville City Council voted 6-4 Monday night against calling a referendum on the Vote Yes Fayetteville initiative.

Voting against the restructuring of the way City Council are elected were Mayor Mitch Colvin and council members Shakeyla Ingram, Mario Benavente, D.J. Haire, Derrick Thompson and Courtney Banks-McLaughlin.

Those in favor of a referendum on the plan were Deno Hondros, Brenda McNair, Kathy Jensen and Johnny Dawkins.

The Vote Yes initiative would restructure the election process for City Council members. Instead of electing all nine members by district, four members would be elected at large and five would be elected from districts. The mayor would continue to be elected citywide.

"I was real disappointed in tonight's vote," said Bobby Hurst, one of the organizers of the Vote Yes Fayetteville initiative.

During Monday’s meeting, City Attorney Karen McDonald said questions persist about the validity of a petition calling for the referendum that was submitted by the Vote Yes Fayetteville advocacy group. McDonald said the council had directed her to contact the Cumberland County Board of Elections to inquire about whether petition organizers had followed the rules.

“I did that on Aug. 9,” McDonald said. “I did receive a response from the interim director for the Board of Elections on Aug. 16. And to this point, there appears to be — based on the response — that there remains a question regarding the validity of the petition that was submitted to the City Council for consideration.”

Angie Amaro is interim director of the county Board of Elections.

Newly elected Councilman Mario Benavente then made a motion that the City Council not proceed to put the referendum on the November ballot.
Thompson, another newcomer to the council, seconded the motion.

Mayor pro tem Dawkins then questioned McDonald, saying it appears that the letter confirming the petition is valid. He asked if she had any comment on the letter from the elections board.

“The letter said, in response to my letter — what she said specifically — my question was pursuant to (state) Statute 163-218,” McDonald said. “That statute requires a notice of circulation and the date of registration. The Board of Elections and Miss Amaro confirmed that no such registration or notice of circulation was submitted.
“Given the statute, as previously stated, the statute says that is required, so therefore there remains a question as to the validity of the petition.”

Dawkins asked McDonald if there was any case law on a state statute that deals with city charter amendments.

“I don’t think there is any case law on that,” she said. “When we talked about case law, the discussion was about the case law as it relates to 163-218 and whether it applies to these types of petitions.”

Dawkins replied: “So, we don’t know if the statute applies to the petition. Is that your guidance?”

McDonald said, “No, my guidance is that when you look at 163-218, it says a notice of circulation of a petition calling for any election or referendum shall be registered with the county Board of Elections in which the petition is to be filed. And the date of registration of the notice shall be the date of issuance and commission of circulation of the petition.

“And because we have not received that,” she added, “because the council has not received that, it appears to me to be a legitimate question as to the validity of the petition.”

Dawkins asked about her correspondence with Cumberland County Attorney Rick Moorefield.
McDonald said she had not received any correspondence from Moorefield but had a conversation with him in which he told her that there was no notice of circulation.

Dawkins said his concern is that “it appears that the petition was valid, and there also appears to be a problem with the petition itself.”

“Chances are, there will probably be litigation either way,” he said. “I wanted to let the people decide and let the people vote. But I understand the concern the council has.”

Hondros said all the council members had campaigned in the July 26 election on transparency and accountability. He said he campaigned on being the voice of the people.

“The referendum is the voice of the people,” Hondros said. “Now they should decide.”

The council then voted on the motion to reject putting the referendum on the November ballot, with the ensuing 6-4 vote.
Hurst said Fayetteville lawyer Neil Yarborough had told his committee that the notice of circulation procedure does not apply to the Vote Yes petition. He said the group could not get a clarification on the issue from the lawyer for the N.C. State Board of Elections or from Moorefield.

“Everything was done right by the rules," Hurst said.

The issue was removed from the council's agenda at a June 27 work session and its Aug. 8 meeting after questions were raised about whether the advocacy group promoting the change had filed all the necessary paperwork to put the referendum on the ballot.
CityView TODAY publisher Tony Chavonne is among the organizers of the Vote Yes initiative.

The Spring Lake Board of Aldermen on Monday night, Aug. 22, approved the Spring Lake Land Use Plan, which will be used to guide growth in the town over the next several years.

Addie Corder, a planner with the Cumberland County Planning Department, presented the plan. The plan helps create a vision for the town and its municipal area of influence area, which includes unincorporated areas toward North Fayetteville and is bounded by Harnett County and Fort Bragg.

“This area plan services 12,500 acres and serves a little over 12,000 residents,’’ Corder said. “It is also unique in that it is landlocked by Harnett County and Fort Bragg.”

Corder presented the overall vision of the plan, which included the theme “A destination not a drive-through” and a mission statement, which outlined a thriving Main Street, high-quality housing, economic opportunity, activities for families and residents and a sense of community.

Five categories were broken down for goals to include downtown, housing, quality of life, economic development and public services.
She pointed out demographics, which included a younger, more diverse community, and a large number of renters in the town.

“Something that makes Spring Lake unique from other areas in the county is that the area is very renter driven. Seventy-nine percent of units are renter occupied,” said Corder who added that the county average was 48% renter occupied.

Corder said 41% of residents were in the armed forces.
She also outlined the process for the Spring Lake Land Use Plan, which began in May 2021 and included several community engagement activities and online outreach efforts.

One of the engagement activities took place at the community kickoff meeting last October, where more than 100 residents participated. The planning staff conducted a SWOT analysis of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats at the meeting, which helped identify feedback.

“To highlight some of the feedback we got, for a strength, people noted that there was significant potential in this plan area with vacant buildings and vacant land to be developed and redeveloped,’’ she said. “Some threats that people identified were high taxes, high water bills and road connectivity issues.”

Corder said that after the community kickoff meeting, more residents, economic development professionals and business owners participated in stakeholder meetings and plan review sessions. The website, which was a new addition to the county planning process, received more than 5,000 visits for a range of engagements, including gathering information on land use and background, answering values surveys and submitting other feedback to planning staff on the draft plan.

Other key elements included future land use maps and classifications and an overview of the new flex areas, which are a new land use classification for Spring Lake and Cumberland County. Flex areas allow for a wider variety of zoning districts in areas that are undeveloped or underdeveloped and allow for areas to be more “flexible” when looking at development. Planners would still consider the use of conditional zoning to ensure the new use is in harmony with the existing and surrounding uses.

Planner Anastasia Nelson said the plan concentrated more on increasing density and infill than the last plan in 2002.
Alderman Marvin Lackman thanked residents who provided input for the plan and attended the various sessions throughout the past year.

“There are a lot of recommendations that were taken from the citizens’ concerns, their voices,’’ he said. “For the citizens out there, your voices were heard.”

The adopted plan will influence zoning decisions in Spring Lake for the next several years. It also included recommendations and policies the town can use to help shape development and redevelopment and a list of grant resources that can possibly be used to fund various projects within the plan.

No one spoke in favor or against the land use plan during a public hearing, and the motion to approve passed unanimously by the board. For more information on the land use plan, visit Spring Lake Area Land Use Plan (arcgis.com).

In other business, the board appointed Patricia Hickmon as the interim town clerk. Hickmon, who has been employed by the town since 2003, serves as the inspections clerk and executive assistant in the Inspections Department.

Hickmon also updated the board on pending site and building plans and the 28 businesses that have opened in Spring Lake since July 2021. Two businesses that have submitted site plans include the coffee shop 7 Brew for the former Biscuit Kitchen site on Bragg Boulevard and Dunkin’ Donuts, also on Bragg Boulevard.

Interim Town Manager Joe Durham and Hickmon serve as administrative officers who can approve town site plans, subdivision plans and other non-residential site plans in compliance with Chapter 160D of the N.C. General Statutes and the Chapter 42 zoning ordinance for the town.
The board met in closed session under the N.C. General Statutes for personnel at 5 p.m. and voted to come out of the closed session with no action taken right before the regularly scheduled meeting started.

Fayetteville police officers bought school supplies to contribute to a back-to-school giveaway Aug. 20 at the Fort Bragg Harley Davidson dealership on Sycamore Dairy Road, according to a news release.

Several officers donated the supplies to children headed back to class next week, the Fayetteville Police Department release said.
They purchased seven boxes of pencils, 28 packs of college-ruled notebook paper, 22 packs of crayons, nine packs of erasers, 16 folders, 13 notebooks, four packs of glue sticks, and 10 bottles of hand sanitizer, the release said.

The officers stopped by the giveaway during their work shifts to talk with the schoolchildren and their families and deliver the donations.
Meanwhile, another group of children was scheduled to get a helping hand from the Carolina Panthers football team and a local family ministry.
That giveaway was planned from 6 to 8 p.m. Monday at Balm in Gilead Family Counseling Ministries, 3110 Doc Bennett Road, according to a Cumberland County Schools news release.

During the drive-thru giveaway, students in need were scheduled to receive free backpacks, school supplies and hot meals while they last, the news release said.
The Carolina Panthers donated 5,000 bookbags and school supplies for CCS students, the release said.

A woman was stabbed to death Monday night, Aug. 22, on Shiloh Court, according to the Fayetteville Police Department.

The report of a stabbing was reported about 8:30 p.m. Monday in the 1900 block of Shiloh Drive, a news release from the Police Department said.
The woman was pronounced dead at the scene, the release said. Her identity was withheld pending notification of her family.

Homicide detectives are investigating the stabbing. A suspect was seen leaving the scene.
Anyone with information about the stabbing is asked to contact Detective J. Olson at 910-709-1958 or Crimestoppers at 910-483-TIPS (8477). Crimestoppers information can also be submitted at http://fay-nccrimestoppers.org.

Fayetteville City Council member D.J. Haire is excited to be back on City Council for his eleventh term.

Haire is the longest-serving council member on the current council. He was first sworn into office in December of 1997, and remained until November 2013. He won the district seat again in 2017, and has continued to maintain his seat representing District 4.
The 63-year-old bested challenger Thomas Greene by an overwhelming majority. He was sworn in by North Carolina Justice Mike Morgan.

“I think it went very well, just like everyone else, we're always hoping for voters to come out. So with those that came out, we're very honored and thankful for the number [of votes]that we received. Very grateful,” Haire said.

District 4 includes Bonnie Doone, Cambridge, Glen Reilly, Lake Valley, Mallard Creek, Scotty Hills, Stewart’s Creek and Woodfield.

One of the most recent projects for Haire included working with the state to drop the speed limit on sections of Pamalee Drive, Cliffdale Road and Stoney Point Road. He wanted the speed limit to change to 35 miles per hour for each section. However, the North Carolina Department of Transportation — which owns the roads — decided to change the speed limit on Pamalee Drive and Cliffdale Road from 50 to 45 mph. For Stoney Point Road, the NCDOT changed the speed limit from 55 mph to 45 mph.

“I think that's a great improvement to slow down cars in that major thoroughfare that is surrounded by residential neighborhoods,” Haire said.

Another successful project he is proud of is the extension of zoning notification for neighborhoods. Previously only houses within 500 feet would receive notification of a new zoning permit. Now, that notification area is 1,000 feet.

“In my district we're saying that [the residents] were not receiving the notices and it was because they were outside of that 500 feet but were still in the neighborhood that encompassed the zoning for construction,” Haire said.

Looking to the future, Haire wants to continue to focus on small local businesses and encourage and support them in his district. As a second-generation small business estate investor, Haire believes the community is backed by small businesses. According to Haire, $400,000 has been dedicated to helping local businesses in the first quarter alone.

“When they do well, the city does well. When we help our small businesses, and they can expand or hire new or additional employees, if their footprint can grow, where we can help increase their tax base. That's a big, big plus,” Haire said.

He is also excited to see the new Amazon distribution center scheduled to be built in his district. The 1.3 million-square-foot facility is getting built on 94 acres inside Fayetteville’s Military Industrial Park, near Interstate 295 near Fort Bragg. The center is projected to create up to 500 jobs by the time operation begins.

Other projects Haire wants to work on for District 4 include adding bathrooms in parks, developing pieces of worn-down property, and continuing to push for improved stormwater drainage.
One recent item that Haire suggested the council look into is a possible retirement plan for council members above 60 who have served at least ten years on council. Council members would not receive the money until the official leaves the City Council and each official would receive $500 per month.

Haire tells Up & Coming Weekly that he just wants the city to look into the possibility after he spoke with county commissioners and realized that the state delegation has a form of retirement/deferment plan.
Cumberland County commissioners are eligible to invest in a 401k-like matching investment plan with the county matching up to 4.9% of a board member’s salary for those who opt
to participate in the deferred retirement plan.

“It's just a matter of staff bringing that information. Nothing is a done deal. Anytime there's a council member request at a work session, it is only for information,” Haire said.

During the election of mayor pro-tem, it was Haire who nominated Johnny Dawkins and motioned for Dawkins to take on the position.
Haire also voted against the “Vote Yes Fayetteville” referendum so it would not be on the November ballot. The referendum would require that four of the nine City Council members be elected by citywide voting rather than voting by district.

The issue was that the Vote Yes group may not have followed the “notice of circulation” procedure to get signatures on its petition, according to Mayor Mitch Colvin.
The State Board of Elections decided last week that it will be up to City Council to vote on if the petition is valid or not. [At press time, the matter had not yet been decided.]

Haire wants people to know that neighborhood concerns are just as big as economic concerns. He says he wants to continue to work on community programs like crime prevention and safety groups.
He is also open to looking at old ordinances and see what needs to be updated for this growing city.

“I try my best not to let my community down as far as being at meetings. Talking with them, standing up in front of them, taking their questions. Whatever their concerns are, I'm going to continue to do the job, what I've been doing, and that's just working aggressively hard and building trust and being loyal and being committed,” Haire said.

“That's what I've tried to do since 1997, is let my word be my bond. And because of that, we have built a lot of trust.”

City Manager Doug Hewett has announced the promotion of two people onto his leadership team: Kelly Olivera has been named interim assistant city manager and Jodi Phelps has been appointed chief of staff.

Olivera had served as the city’s budget and evaluation director. Phelps was the city’s marketing and communications director. Both promotions took effect Monday, the city said in a release.
Olivera succeeds Jay Toland, who this summer was named associate superintendent of business operations for Cumberland County Schools. His last day with the city was Aug. 12, a spokeswoman for the city said.
Phelps succeeds Rebecca Jackson, who retired July 31, the spokeswoman said.

Olivera has been with the city for 11 years. She most recently worked with Hewett and the leadership team to present a balanced FY22-23 budget to the City Council that advanced city goals without a tax rate increase, the release said.

“Kelly is a proven asset to our organization and her sound decisions helped us accomplish financial goals set forth by the Council,” Hewett said in the release. “Over the next few months, she will lend her expertise to our team as we progress toward the bond referendums in November and continue moving the city forward.”

As interim assistant city manager, Olivera will oversee several departments, including budget and evaluation, the city clerk’s office, finance, human relations, human resource development and information technology, according to the city’s website.

“I am excited to step into the interim position and have the opportunity to use my experience with the city to better serve our residents, elected officials and staff,” Olivera said in the release. “Having a greater role in the continued success of our city is truly an honor.”

Olivera was hired as a financial analyst in the Finance Department in 2011 before founding the Budget and Evaluation Office in 2014 with former director Tracey Broyles and being promoted to lead the office last year, the release said. She earned her bachelor of science in accountancy from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.

Olivera will serve in the interim role while the search is conducted for a new assistant city manager, the release said. Her salary is $140,220, the spokeswoman said.

Phelps joined the city last year from UNC Pembroke, where she had served as the chief communications and marketing officer since 2016, the release said. Since joining the city, she has launched a new Strategic Communications Plan and rebranded the Marketing and Communications Department, both with the goal of elevating the city’s brand and more effectively telling the Fayetteville story, according to the release.

“Jodi quickly came up to speed on city business and used the city’s overall Strategic Plan to produce results,” Hewett said. “Her previous career experience, ability to build relationships and proven leadership make her well-suited to fill the role as our next chief of staff.”

Phelps has previously served as chief operating officer for Action Pathways in Fayetteville as well as agency advancement and communications director. She has a bachelor of arts degree in communication and history with a minor in art history from Mercer University and a master of business administration from Thomas University.

“At this time of unprecedented opportunity for Fayetteville’s continued growth, I am grateful to continue serving in this new role,” Phelps said in the release. “It is a privilege to be part of a talented team working daily to advance our strategic priorities that will positively impact the future of our city.”

A spokeswoman for the city said Phelps' salary will be $145,750.

Want to save 50% of the cost of a common surgery? Keep reading. You won’t need a coupon or Medicare. As most people become chronologically gifted, a right of passage is enjoying cataract surgery.
Though not nearly as much fun as getting your driver’s license at 16, voting at 18, or qualifying to purchase adult beverages at 21, it is age related.

The prospective patient is first subjected to something the ophthalmologist ironically refers to as the Glare Test. You sit in a darkened room as someone shines a flash light directly into your eyes and asks if you can see a chart on the wall. You can’t see the chart because there is a flash light two inches from your face painting your retinas white. Unsurprisingly, you fail the Glare Test. Ah ha, there is a cure for flunking the Glare Test.

Several thousand dollars worth of cataract surgery will make you right as rain. Coincidently, the owner of the facility where you are having your eyes examined can provide such surgery. Yet another Festivus Miracle.
Where is this rambling column about cataract surgery going? Why should I waste my time reading it, you ask yourself? Well, Gentle Reader, you have either already had cataract surgery or you will eventually get to enjoy quality time with optical laser beams and lens implants.

As previously mentioned, this surgery ain’t cheap. You can save half the cost with one simple trick. Be born as a Cyclops.
If you are already born, this solution is kind of tricky, but depending upon your religious persuasion, Zeus could make you a born-again Cyclops. In case you missed that day in Mythology class, let us review what a Cyclops is.

According to the Greek mythology, a Cyclops is an extremely strong giant with one eye in the center of his forehead. Naturally, the Cyclops will need only one cataract surgery, thereby saving 50% of the usual and customary fee. If the Cyclops’ cataract is in its early stages, wearing a monocle like Rich Uncle Pennybags, AKA Mr. Monopoly, or a 1930’s era Austrian Duke with a saber scar on his cheek could stave off the cataract surgery for several years.

If you have not been lucky enough to be born a Cyclops, how might you become one to save on cataract surgery? Allow me to once again mansplain stuff to you. In the beginning there were three Cyclops brothers who belonged to the Titan Tribe: Brontes (Thunder), Steropes (Lightning) and Arges (Bright). Their Daddy was a Titan, Uranus the Sky God and their Momma was Gaia the Earth Goddess. Obviously, they came from good stock.

If they had been living in Charleston, South Carolina at the time of Rhett Butler and Scarlett O’Hara they would have been received along with Bonnie Blue in all the best homes in Charleston. However, the Cyclops came along well before U.S. Civil War One took place.

There was an ongoing Uncivil War between the Titans and the Olympians over who was going to be the Big Kahuna to run the Elysian Fields and Earth. Uranus led the Titans. Zeus led the Olympians. As usual in Greek Mythology, there was a disturbance in the house of Uranus. Being before Rodney King, no one could just get along. Family bonds were fraught. After a particularly ugly family ruckus, Uranus locked up the Cyclops Brothers in his basement.

Prior to being locked downstairs, the Brothers had become excellent blacksmiths, specializing in really nifty weapons. Zeus learned that the Boys were pretty good making implements of destruction. He freed them from Uranus’ basement and put them to work for him making weapons.

As Vlad Putin learned to his sorrow in the Ukraine, logistics are extremely important in a war. If your weapons are better than the enemy’s stuff, you have a better chance to win.
The Boys went right to work in the Greek equivalent of current day defense contractor Northrup Grumman. They began making weapons for Zeus’ military industrial complex.

They turned out real lightning thunderbolts for Zeus to hurl at the Titans. Northrup Grumman liked Zeus’ thunderbolts so much it named its attack jet the A-10 Thunderbolt II after the Cyclops’ weapon. The A-10 jet is affectionately known as the Warthog because it is as effective as it is ugly.

As a zoological side note, baby warthogs are proof that male warthogs find female warthogs attractive. But I digress. Back to the Cyclops war machine.
In addition to Zeus’ thunderbolts, they produced the magic Trident for Poseidon the Sea God and the Invisibility Cap for Hades the God of the Underworld. With these logistical advantages, the Olympians were able to defeat the Titans without a HIMARS rocket system.

So, what have we learned today? If you weren’t born a Cyclops, go ask Zeus, I think he’ll know how to change you. One eye’s cataract is cheaper to
correct than two.

No Cyclops was harmed during the writing of this column. You are now free to wander about the country.

I watched what I thought was a documentary about an award-winning songwriter recently. The entirety of the hour was a narration written in response to a letter received from another songwriter struggling to find purpose and meaning in his life and profession.

Delivered in a voice that said, “I understand” or “I’ve been where you are,” he was clearly offering hope to the unnamed recipient. He said, “They say you write about what you know. I’m telling you my story not because it’s the best one, but because it’s the one I know the best.”

In a world built on proud factions, it’s odd that in difficult times we hear the word ‘unity’ tossed around. I’m reminded of a phrase I’ve spoken many times. Over time I went from saying it, to eventually believing it, and finally to trying to live it: There is more that unites us than there is that divides us.

In His final earthly charge to those who knew Him best in this world, Jesus says this in Matthew 28:19-20:

“Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

In our search for identity, our wondering about purpose, our struggle with the meaning of this brief life — the Son of God Himself sums it up for the church as He answers the questions asked so many times and in so many ways: Why am I here? What’s the point of the church? Do I even matter? And … how am I supposed to do this on my own?

In answering the questions His followers didn’t know enough to ask, Jesus didn’t say to feed the hungry like He did. He didn’t say heal the sick or love your neighbors like He did.

In His parting instructions to those who knew Him best, Jesus summed it all up and said we are to observe everything He commanded us to do.

Everything.

While that certainly includes feeding the hungry, healing and loving, it doesn’t stop there. And it’s not where it starts, either.

It starts with making disciples. It starts with caring enough about people right around us, those in our extended circles, and even those we haven’t — and might never — meet. Caring enough to help them find what’s best for them in this world and beyond.

I’m grateful that my story— the one I know best — contains a sidebar when someone took me aside and explained all this to me.

We could all use someone like the small-town pastor who cared enough to help me understand what Jesus taught and what that means for us now. And if what we believe is true, we’re called to be like that pastor.

Because we Christians are unified by a singular mission: helping others learn to love God and love others like Jesus did.

The little girl reading books under bed covers by flashlight is a stereotype for sure, but stereotypes develop for a reason. Zillions of little girls — and some little boys — do this every night.
So do some big girls, including this one, though these days I confidently read by bedside light secure in the knowledge that my mother is not coming to curtail my bedtime reading.
Reading has been a large part of my life since childhood, and I vividly remember seeing a newspaper photo of a book burning somewhere. I was stunned and could not understand why anyone, anywhere would burn a book. I still feel that way.

Others, however, do not.

Americans find ourselves beset by a new generation of “book banners.” Apparently actual book burnings are a bridge too far for today’s crowd of idea deniers. This group seeks not roaring bonfires but restriction and possibly regulation of what adults like you and me and our children can and cannot read. Our First Amendment guarantee of American free speech is venerated until it offends the banning crowd.

Then they appear en masse at school and library board meetings, legislative committee hearing rooms, online and on television, telling the rest of us why we cannot read about issues that make them uncomfortable. This is happening all over our nation, and North Carolina is no exception.

Their no-no’s list our nation’s long history of racism and antisemitism, including historical events like our nation’s only successful coup d’état in 1898 Wilmington. (Thank goodness the January 6th coup was unsuccessful!) Other no-no’s revolve around human sexuality, including reproduction and gender differences. Less prominently but still frowned upon by the book banning crowd are the Holocaust, Apartheid, and the early 20th century eugenics movement. First-hand accounts of any such experiences—slave narratives, Holocaust memoirs, and the like are particularly to be avoided, probably because they resonate with human suffering.

As a child I was puzzled by the idea that there were some topics some people did not want others to know about or to discuss. If I were curious about something, I generally asked my parents who answered my questions in a way I could understand.

As an adult, I understand why some people do not want certain information available.

They are afraid.

They are afraid of our nation’s racist history. They are afraid of differences in human sexuality. They are afraid of aspects of our history and our society that do not line up with their own world views. Other people’s world views be darned. If a fact or an idea does not align with their own thinking, it is a threat to be stomped down.

Uncomfortable and unwelcome truths must be at least ignored and in more extreme circumstances, lied about even in the face of overwhelming evidence and experience.
This is not new in the United States. Our Declaration of Independence and our Constitution notwithstanding, tolerance has rarely been our long suit. Remember Prohibition of the 1920s? Our nation adopted a Constitutional amendment to prohibit the production and sale of alcohol and wound up with the “Roaring 20s,” an era fueled by illegal alcohol.

If the internet has taught us anything, it is that the world — and our nation — possess endless diversity, most of it neither good nor bad, just different from what we may be accustomed to.
I have no right, God given or otherwise, to tell you what to read, to think, or to believe, and you have no right to tell me.

Beyond that, forcing others to behave in certain ways simply does not work, as we should have learned 100 years ago from Prohibition.

Now, go to the library and get a book that suits you, not someone else!

After a petition was issued in June to change how municipal districts are organized, a referendum might be on November’s ballot to restructure the nine-person Fayetteville City Council.
The proposal comes less than a year from the last time the city decided on voting districts for City Council members.

Currently, one member is selected from and represents each of the nine city districts.

According to city documents, the proposal calls for Fayetteville’s municipal districts to be reduced to five. That would result in five representatives from five separate districts within the city. The remaining four would be decided at-large, meaning all Fayetteville voters would decide on nearly half of the members of the city council.

North Carolina law requires that at-large members of any city or town council in the state be fewer or equal to half of the total elected municipal body, according to legal analysis from the UNC School of Government.

If voters approve, redistricting ahead

If the petition is validated, the measure is placed on November’s ballot and if a majority of voters approve of the restructuring, Fayetteville City Council members would be responsible for passing a new district map, like any other municipality in North Carolina.

Under the equal protection clause of the U.S. Constitution, the potential new five districts would be required to be substantially equal in population.
At a regular meeting earlier this month, council members considered the petition for approving the measure to be put on the ballot for the upcoming election in November, but the City Council delayed the approval.

City Attorney Karen McDonald said at the meeting that the council must decide on the ballot measure at its next meeting on Aug. 22 or hold a special meeting to conclude the matter.
The timing is required because of the public notice to voters that must be issued by the Cumberland County Board of Elections in a certain time frame before the election, as required by state law. Per state law, any proposed change to voting districts must have enough public notice prior to a vote.

Neither McDonald nor members of the council discussed the petition’s origin.

5,000 valid signatures prompt question

According to N.C. General Statute § 160A-104, municipalities of Fayetteville’s size only need 5,000 valid signatures on a petition to ask for a change to the structure of the City Council. U.S. census figures show that Fayetteville had an estimated 209,000 residents in 2021.

The Cumberland County Board of Elections is charged with validating the petition. According to a letter addressed to the city and signed by the board’s interim director, Angie Amaro, 5,009 of the 5,721 signatures on the petition have been verified, certifying the validity of the petition on June 13.

Upon direction from the City Council at last week’s meeting, McDonald will follow up with the Board of Elections on the petition’s validity and ask for a copy of the filed notice of the circulation of the petition.
State law requires that such a notice must be registered with the county board of elections for the petition to be valid.

The City Council will review the notice once it is obtained from the Board of Election, at its Aug. 22 meeting or a special meeting.
If the petition is ultimately deemed valid, the City Council will be required by state law to send the proposal to voters.

Then, if voters ultimately reject the proposal, the current district map will be used for the next decade until the next U.S. census recalculates the city’s population in 2030.

While North Carolina continues to outperform the rest of the country on a range of economic and social indicators, its leaders can’t afford to overlook a flashing red light on the state’s dashboard: violent crime.

According to the latest FBI data, our urban areas continue to experience rising rates. Comparing the first quarter of 2022 to the first quarter of 2021, violent crime was up 23% in Raleigh, 22% in Greensboro and Fayetteville, 7% in Durham and Wilmington, and 6% in Winston-Salem. Charlotte’s 2% increase looks comparatively tame, but it came after a bigger jump the previous year.

More generally, North Carolina’s rate of violent crime was significantly below the national average from 2009 to 2018. It shot up dramatically in 2019 to 379 reported crimes per 100,000 residents, close to the national average of 381, and again in 2020 to 419, blowing past the national average of 399.

The immediate victims were those murdered or attacked, plus family members, friends and neighbors. But the damage extends beyond them. Many North Carolinians now feel less safe. That, in turn, affects their decisions about where to live, work and spend money. And if violent crime remains more prevalent in our state than in the rest of the country, that will likely have serious economic and social consequences for North Carolina down the road.

So, what should we do about this?

Let’s start with two reality checks. First, the problem is multifaceted and not easily jammed into a partisan political frame. The surge appears to be confined to violent crimes, for example, and more specifically to homicides and aggravated assaults.

When it comes to property crimes — burglary, larceny, motor-vehicle theft, etc. — North Carolina’s rate went down in 2020, not up. Indeed, our property-crime rate has been declining fairly steadily since the early 1990s. It’s down 35% in the past decade alone. While violent crimes are more likely to be reported to law enforcement than property crimes, the effect isn’t large enough to explain such a divergence in the trend lines.

Did the tumultuous events of 2020 contribute to the surge in violence? That’s certainly plausible. The raucous protests we saw in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death may have been well-intentioned, but they created incentives for law enforcement to pull back from neighborhoods where a disproportionate share of violence occurs. The COVID pandemic itself could have contributed to the problem, as well, by reducing “eyes on the street” and accentuating the mental stresses that lead some to lash out violently.

My second reality check is about guns. Most violent crimes are also gun crimes, yes, but the weapon of choice is almost always a handgun. Whatever you think of banning “assault weapons,” its effect on violent crime would be negligible. As for banning or radically restricting the ownership of handguns, I’d view the constitutional and political barriers as insurmountable even if I favored such a policy, which I don’t.

More practical solutions exist. Even when it comes to guns, most North Carolinians would likely favor stronger measures to keep guns out of the hands of minors and the mentally ill, to crack down on “straw purchases” and other illegal trafficking, and to toughen penalties for those who use guns to commit crimes.

Speaking of behavioral health, I believe there is broad support for spending more tax dollars on community-based treatment for mental illness and drug addiction, including for the kinds of faith-based programs that tend to produce the most-lasting results. North Carolina communities can also employ such bread-and-butter solutions as installing more streetlights, keeping existing lights in better repair, installing gates in alleyways, and restoring vacant lots to productive use or at least “greening them over” with grass, trees and gardens.

We were never going to “defund the police.” As Manhattan Institute analyst Charles Fain Lehman put it, policing remains “the heart of American crime control” because of its “proven efficacy.” Still, there are other tools in our toolbox. Let’s use them.