The voter turnout in this month’s Fayetteville primary election was so small that absentee ballots had a substantial influence in the city council District 2 race. Fewer than 3% of the 31,000 registered voters in two primary districts went to the polls. Twenty-seven primary election day ballots initially separated Shakeyla M. Ingram, 28, and Janene M. Ackles, 49. A third challenger, Arnita Bristol, was a distant third in the District 2 voting and was eliminated. Next month, Ingram or Ackles will succeed Dan Culliton, who was appointed to the council to replace former councilman Tyrone Williams who resigned under pressure amid allegations of misconduct. District 2 includes East Fayetteville, portions of Haymount and much of downtown Fayetteville.

District 6 Councilman Bill Crisp, 79, decided to retire. He has served sections of West Fayetteville since the 2005 big bang annexation that brought him into office. Three candidates vied for his seat. When one more candidate than twice the number of seats available runs, all but two are eliminated in a primary election. Chris Davis and Carlos Swinger placed first and second, eliminating Mary Johnson Ferguson. Davis was endorsed by Crisp and won more than twice the number of votes Swinger received. 

Unlike the county board of commissioners and the local board of education, city council races are nonpartisan. The nine city council districts were established in 2000, following a citizen task force recommendation that resulted in a reorganization of the governing body. The only member of council elected citywide is the mayor. Mitch Colvin is unopposed and seeking his second term.

Three other incumbent council members are opposed in the November general election. District 1 member Kathy Jensen is being challenged by Valencia Handy, who has no elective office experience. Jensen is seeking a fourth term. Five-term Mayor Pro Tem Ted Mohn is opposed by Courtney Banks McLaughlin, who is also seeking elective office for the first time. District 9 Councilman Jim Arp is opposed by Yvonne Kinston, who has a leadership background in organized labor.

The city of Fayetteville is geographically the second largest city in North Carolina, encompassing 148 square miles requiring 36 polling places from fire station 17 on Bailey Lake Road on the westside to fire station 19 off Andrews Road on the northside. The North Carolina State Board of Elections provides an easy online website for a resident to locate his/her polling place.

Early voting for the general election is underway and will continue through Fri., Nov. 1. One-stop early voting is being held at the Cumberland County Board of Elections Office, located in the E. Newton Smith Center at 227 Fountainhead Lane, downtown Fayetteville. Dates and times are:

Oct. 19-20, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Oct. 23-27, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Oct. 30-Nov. 1, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

There will be a battle of massive proportion when the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra performs Heroes vs. Villains at Methodist University in Fayetteville Saturday, Oct. 19, at 7:30 p.m. Up  & Coming Weekly spoke with Deborah Teasley, FSO interim president/CEO.

UCW: Is this the first time the FSO has performed something like this?

FSO: The symphony does a variety of genres of music from many eras each season. Each season we try to offer something that appeals to everyone, whether they are looking for classical music from the baroque period (or) contemporary styles. This includes a concert of contemporary music that is readily recognized by a large number of people. Last year, it was a concert of John Williams’ music. I think everyone recognizes his movie themes. This year, we decided to have some fun with a Heroes versus Villains theme.

UCW: Who chooses the songs?

FSO: The primary responsibility for music selection is that of the music director Stefan Sanders but he takes suggestions and ideas from a number of sources. The season selections and concert themes are done by a committee led by Stefan Sanders.

UCS: Can you share the songs being performed?

FSO: The songs being performed at the Heroes versus Villains concert Oct. 18 at Methodist University are songs from Pirates of the Caribbean, “Themes from 007” (James Bond) “Wonder Woman,” “Armed Forces Salute,” “Godzilla Eats Las Vegas,” “Zarathustra,” “Star Trek through the Ages,” “The Dark Knight Rises,” “Spider Man,” “Mulan,” “Incredits” from the Incredibles, “William Tell Overture” and a tribute to John Williams.

UCW: What is the best way to describe what the audience can expect from coming to this performance?

FSO: The audience can first expect excellent music. The FSO is comprised of professional musicians. Then they can expect a good time.  There will be characters in costume, a preconcert discussion of the music by “the music nerd,” and a musical battle between the heroes and the villains. You have to be there to find out who wins.

UCW: Is there anything else you’d like the readers to know about the FSO and the Heroes vs. Villains performance?

FSO: Attendees are free to dress as their favorite character if they wish.  This concert is the same weekend as the Fayetteville Comic Con, so we are hoping that some of the people attending Comic Con will come to the concert in their costumes.

Get your tickets today for your opportunity to experience the battle of these phenomenal heroes and vicious villains firsthand. Tickets range from $10-$26 and can be purchased in advance at the FSO website: http://www.fayettevillesymphony.org/2019-2020-season-concerts/

 The Museum of the Cape Fear Historical Complex presents Hallowe’en Night Tours of the 1897 Poe House Wednesday, Oct. 23-Friday, Oct. 25, from 6-10 p.m.

“The Hallowe’en Revels Night Tours is our annual Halloween night program that we do with the Gilbert Theater,” said Megan Maxwell, 1897 Poe House education coordinator  of the Museum of the Cape Fear Historical Complex. “We have actors come in, and they portray members of the Poe Family and their friends.”

 Maxwell added this is not like a typical Poe House tour that you get during regular hours because you are seeing a short Halloween play. “We have a different theme every year, and this year’s theme is ‘Invoking the Spirit,’ so we want people to join us for a spirited visit to the 1897 Poe House,” said Maxwell.

“We are going to have a few ghosts in the house this year, so it will be a little bit different from what we have done in past years. Our event is family-friendly, so it won’t be a spooky scary haunted house.

 “All of our fall events are paid for by a grant from The Arts Council. Our foundation has to match that grant,” said Maxwell. “This is part of that grant match, and it pays for programming that we do in the fall, which includes both of these Halloween events coming up.”

 Trick or Treat at the Poe House will be held Saturday, Oct. 26, from 11 a.m.-4 p.m.

“Trick or Treat is our fun event that we do for the little kids, and we encourage families and kids to come out in their costumes,” said Maxwell. “We do have a costume contest that we run as part of that event. There is a $1 entry fee to enter the costume contest.”

Creative, historical and handmade costumes are encouraged. Prizes will be awarded for first, second and third place. The event is free and open to the public.

 The event also features the Sandbox Band from the Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill area.  “They are a kid’s band, and they play a lot of fun music for kids. They will play some Halloween songs as well,” said Maxwell. “They will have three performances that day at 11:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 p.m.”

 Maxwell added the event includes Joy the Clown, who will be doing balloon-twisting and magic tricks. Cumberland County Library will have Halloween stories, and there will be old-fashioned carnival games in the backyard. Concessions will be sold.

 Tickets for the Hallowe’en Night Tours can be purchased online for $5 plus processing fees at www.museumofthecapefear.yapsody.com. Tickets can also be purchased at the museum.
For more information call 910-500-4240.

In 2008 voters across America shouted in great numbers, and they did so again in 2016 for entirely different reasons.

In 2019 across North Carolina and in Cumberland County, voters barely even whispered. So softly did the small number of voters speak that it was hard to tell there were elections at all. The few voters who made the effort, an embarrassing 3% in Cumberland County, will have an impact on all of us much larger than their pitiful numbers would indicate. Their choices are now everyone else’s choices, whether we agree or not.

Voters of 2008 and 2016 turned out in record numbers to vote for Barack Obama and Donald Trump, vastly different presidents for sure. As impactful as each of them has been, though, chances are their actions and decisions have had far less impact on our daily lives than the decisions made by local and state elected officials.

All presidents, including Obama and Trump, have testy relationships with Congress at times, and sometimes partisan bickering is so intense there are few relationships at all. We all watch and read about Washington shenanigans, but rarely do they affect our daily lives directly and clearly. No matter what happens with the Trump impeachment effort, most of our lives are going on routinely. Ditto the terror occurring in Syria, ongoing gun control initiatives, even who gets elected to Congress. All of that occurs far from us among people most of us are unlikely ever to meet.

Our local elected officials and state legislators, on the other hand, are people we may well know — or at least have an opportunity to reach if we choose to do so.

They are our neighbors, our fellow faith members whose children may go to school with our children and individuals whom we might encounter and chat with in the produce aisle. They are people who do make decisions that directly affect our families and us and impact our daily lives regularly.

Generally speaking, legislators adopt a state budget that pays teachers, oversees schools, funds roads and oversees highway planning, funds our courts and passes criminal laws, and provides for elections at all levels. Legislators create local governments and oversee some of their functions. They license and regulate various professions, including physicians, attorneys, realtors and all sorts of personal care services.

County commissioners also provide schools, human services, public health services, law enforcement, fire and rescue services, public records such as deeds and court proceedings. Local school boards draw district lines that determine which schools our children attend, hire the people who administer our schools and teach our children, and advocate for public education.

Municipal officials are also responsible for police, fire and other public safety services. They maintain city roads, provide water and sewer services, make zoning decisions that determine where we might want to live and work and often provide mass transit, like buses.

We Americans love our politics, especially a presidential race, but where the rubber hits the road is at home, not in Washington. D.C. No matter what Obama, Trump, or any other president is up to, it is more immediate and more important to us where our children go to school and how well that school is funded, whether our water is flowing and our sewer working, whether a strip club has been zoned next door and whether 911 will show up when we need them.
Neither Obama nor Trump — or even our member of congress — is making any of those decisions. Those decisions are being made by people from our community, people we have the opportunity to talk to and share our perspectives with. The 97% of eligible voters who chose not to participate in last week’s municipal contests should ponder why they abdicated their voting privilege and responsibility when municipal decisions play a significant role in all our lives.

Our communities are successful only if citizens participate, both by considering running for political office and by voting for those who do.

In 2019 across North Carolina and in Cumberland County, voters barely even whispered.

It’s October and Spooky Season activities abound. Feeling festive? Are you a fan of “The Walking Dead”? Now you can be one of them. No, not the show. The Fayetteville Zombie Walk & Prom is returning to downtown Fayetteville on Oct. 25.

The fun starts at the Headquarters library at 4 p.m., where people participating the walk can take part in do-it-yourself zombie makeup preparations and zombie games. Headquarters library will also host the Black, White and Red Masquerade party at the same time. Dress in those colors and join the fun, which will also feature a spooky story performance and a costume contest.

At 5 p.m., the library will have a Haunted Tale. The Zombie Walk preparty begins at 6 p.m.

Once you’ve dedicated some time to perfecting your zombie look, meander down to Ray Avenue, where the walk will begin. Three local bands, The Answers, KEYSE and The Sherman Neckties, will perform this year.  Live music will go till 10 p.m. Then the fun will move to the Drunk Horse Pub for the Zombie Prom, where there will be more live music and a zombie king and queen costume contest. The winners get $100 cash and A $50 Back-A-Round Records gift card.

Aside from the zombie fun, other businesses and organizations downtown have events planned, too. The Arts Council of Fayetteville/Cumberland County will provide a variety of activities for attendees of 4th Friday. “We’re going to have a laser zombie shooting activity, but there will also be some kid-friendly alternatives as well,” said Bob Pinson, the operations director for the Arts Council. “We’re going to have the 82nd Airborne Division Band, Riser Burn, from 6:30 p.m.-8:30 p.m.” Other activities from the Arts Council will run from 6-9 p.m.

“In the back, we’re still doing our beer garden,” Pinson said. The Arts Council will also open a new exhibit on 4th Friday in partnership with Cape Fear Studios called “Cooperation.” The first part of the exhibit is at Cape Fear Studios and the second will be at the Arts Council.

Oct. 25 is the opening night of the inaugural All-American City Jazz Festival at Segra Stadium. Friday night will feature beach and shag music with the Blackwater Band, Starring the Embers, and Craig Woolard. Gates open at 5 p.m. and the show starts at 7 p.m.  The event will feature more musicians through Oct. 27. Visit https://www.sandhillsjazz.com/events for details.

At Fascinate-U Kids Museum, children can create no-sew felt monsters. Fascinate-U has free museum play every 4th Friday.

For more information about 4th Friday events, call The Cool Spring Downtown District at 910-223-1089.

When high school football officials prepare to call a game, traditionally the whole crew holds a pre-game meeting to go over any important details before the contest begins.

Sgt. 1st. Class Ryan Reis had to miss the meeting held with the rest of his crew prior to the recent Pine Forest at Westover contest, but he had a good excuse.

He arrived at the field via parachute, jumping in during a pregame exhibition by the famed United States Army’s Golden Knights parachute team.

Reis, who is a native of Tacoma, Washington, is in his third year with the Golden Knights and his second as a football official with the Southeastern Athletic Officials Association.

He got the idea to arrive at the Westover game via parachute when he first learned the Golden Knights were scheduled to jump at Westover’s homecoming game.

He was not originally assigned to the Westover game as an official, so he called Neil Buie, regional supervisor of football officials for the SAOA.

“I had refereed one of the Westover games earlier this year and knew they were in our scheduling district,’’ Reis said. He said he always thought if he ever had the opportunity, arriving via parachute at a game he was going to be officiating would be something special.

Aware that Buie sometimes has challenges scheduling officials to call games because of a current shortage in available crews, he called to see if there was any way it could be done.

“Obviously, my Army job comes first,’’ Reis said. “There’s no way around that.’’

Reis had cleared the idea with his Army superiors and Buie supported the suggestion 100%, so Reis was added to the officiating crew for the game.

Reis works any of three positions when he’s a football official, either the line judge, head linesman or back judge. For the Westover game, he was the head linesman.

The original plan for the Westover jump was for Westover principal Dr. Vernon Lowery to accompany the Golden Knights in a tandem jump.

They had done the same thing last season when Terry Sanford principal Tom Hatch jumped in to a Bulldog home game.

Unfortunately, the Golden Knights have specific criteria that must be met during a tandem jump, and conditions for Friday night prevented them from allowing Dr. Lowery to jump with the team.

But the Golden Knights themselves jumped with no problem Reis said.

Reis hoped the jump sent a message about both high school football officials and soldiers. “I understand it’s not for everybody,’’ he said. “Officiating football isn’t for everybody, and being in the Army isn’t for everybody.
“We do the things we do because we like them. Also it’s a great opportunity to show it’s an avenue of something that you can do.’’

Reis said people don’t have to be pigeonholed into doing things a certain way because of their background or certain pressures they are dealing with in life.

“There are multiple things you can do in your life that don’t necessarily have to be the standard operating way for everybody else,’’ he said.

Back row pictured from left to right: Football officials Jeremy Hall, Charles Davenport, Todd Hewlett, Greg Rooks.
Front row pictured from left to right: Golden Knights, SFC Mike Koch, SFC Ryan Reis, SSG Blake Gaynor, SGT Jason Bauder, SPC Skyler Romberg, SGT Adam Munoz.

The American Cancer Society challenges us to imagine a world free from cancer. In 2019, there will be an estimated 1,762,450 new cancer cases diagnosed and 606,880 cancer deaths in the United States. More than 20,000 of those deaths will be in North Carolina. The Mayo Clinic defines cancer as any one of a large number of diseases characterized by the development of abnormal cells that divide uncontrollably and have the ability to infiltrate and destroy normal body tissue. Cancer is the second-leading cause of death in the world. But survival rates are improving for many types of cancer, thanks to improvements in cancer screening and cancer treatment.

Locally, the Shakir Family and Friends have had several members impacted by breast cancer, and as a result, they wanted to give back to an organization supporting people in that situation. “They were led to Cape Fear Valley Health System’s Friends of the Cancer Center because of the impact we have with local cancer patients in this community,” said Sabrina Brooks, executive director of Cape Fear Valley Health Foundation. “The Shakir Family and Friends felt our work lined up with the impact they hoped to make through their events.”

These are people who want to raise money to help cancer patients.

“We brainstormed about what to do and how to get other people involved,” the Shakir Family and Friends said. “That way, we could donate more money to the foundation.”

The month of October is breast cancer awareness month and a time of year that the Shakir Family and Friends hold an annual fund-raising dinner. They hold a fish fry and raffle each spring. The Shakirs have donated more than $20,000 over the past five years, according to Brooks.

Marge Betley, with Cape Fear Valley Health, conducted interviews with the six men and women who identify as the Shakir Family and Friends. “We chose Friends of the Cancer Center because we wanted the money to directly help a family or individual in need during their battle with cancer,” they said.

“After all the hard work is done, handing Cape Fear Valley Friends of the Cancer Center the check of the money we raised … is our most favorite part of the work that we do,” family members said. Shakir family members and friends involved in the project include Charles Smith, Jeanetta Smith, Trena Shakir, Shaheed Shakir, Esther Ligon and Bernard Ligon. The Shakir Family and Friends have learned firsthand that “those that you are helping really need the help and appreciate everything that you do.”

The Shakir Family and Friends (left to right) Charles Smith, Jenetta  Smith, Trenna Shakir, Shaheed Shakir, Esther Ligon and Bernard Ligon have had several members impacted by breast cancer, and as a result, they wanted to give back to an organization supporting people in that situation.

On Oct. 19 and 20, the Crown Complex in Fayetteville will become the center of the geek universe with the Fayetteville Comic Con. Creators Michael Chaudhuri and Keith Gibbs are serious about living up to the theme, “If It’s Geek, We Got It!” This will be the fifth year of Fayetteville’s Comic Con. It will be a weekend full of all things geek, and all you need to do is show up. Everything from food to collectibles will make this weekend one worth spending at the Fayetteville Comic Con.

UCW: What made you guys decide to do this in Fayetteville?

FCC: We started this five years ago, and it was a one-day event. That first Comic Con, we had 8,500 people. We just knew then that Fayetteville really needed something like this, and we felt like they deserve it.
Plus, for anyone visiting from out of town, we are giving them a reason to stay overnight in Fayetteville. One of our guests, Jack Stauffer — a veteran of TV and musical theater and a star in Battlestar Galactica — will perform an 80-minute cabaret show on the 19th from 9-11 p.m. at the Holiday Inn West Fort Bragg in Fayetteville. People can purchase tickets in advance for that, or at the door.

UCW: For those that maybe don’t know, what’s the fascination with Comic Con?

FCC: Comic books are the seed to all things pop-culture. They all tie into a graphic representation of an idea, which often led to an illustrated nonfiction book or other written works. And, as we know today, even television shows and movies are based on comic books. In fact, we have a great line-up of sci-fi fantasy writers that come to our show every year that have panels where people can talk to them. There are topics about exploring paranormal fiction, how to write good, believable military fiction. The list goes on.

UCW: What can people look forward to if they’re coming to Comic Con this year?

FCC: We have 140 vendors, 80 craftspeople, DJ Clash from Winston Salem, GEEK Speed dating, aerialists and sword fighting. And of course, we will have Cosplay contests and Cosplay lip sync battles. But wait, we also have belly dancing, comedy with Tyler Wood, Game of Throne Tribute Band, tabletop gaming, video games and motion capture demonstrations. Plus, we have numerous panels of different celebrities and writers. And if that’s still not enough, we will have live tattooing.

We also have some great guests. For example, if you’re a “Star Wars” fan, you’ll be glad to know we have Colin Cantwell, who designed the Tie Fighter, x-wing fighter and co-designed the Death Star, here. There’s also Eric “Butterbean” Esch, a major icon of boxing during the 1990s, plus wrestling, kickboxing, MMA, and even his own geek style of writing. Plus, any “Harry Potter” fans will remember this name — Gregory Goyle. That’s right, Josh Herdman is all grown up and is now an MMA fighter, plus he is in the “Robin Hood” movie that came out last year. Josh is flying in just to attend our Comic Con.

Maybe you’re a “Stranger Things” or “Guardians of the Galaxy” fan. Actor John Jacob Anderson, who was in both, will be here to chat with our guests, and he’ll be moderating the G.I. Joe panel. If you’re interested in voice-over artists, we have them, too. Dameon Clarke is returning for his second time to our Comic Con. You’ll recognize Dameon’s voice from “Dragon Ball Z” as Cell. He’s also been a live actor in shows such as “Supernatural” and “Castle.” But he’s not our only “Dragon Ball Z” voice-over artist; we also have Stephanie Nadolny, who does the voices of Young Goku and Young Gohan. Plus, she provides the voices for several other well-known animated series. This will be her first year in Fayetteville.

We also have Power Rangers, such as Tracy Lynn Cruz and Michael Copon. Comic book creators, such as Larry Hama, Al Milgrom, Troy Little, Paris Cullins, Gary Cohn, Brian Shearer, Louis Small, Jr., Dan Johnson, Rodney Bennett, Budd Root. We will have a “Walking Dead” reunion with actors William Bell and Gregory French. We have cosplay actors Mick Grimes and Rocky Melvin. And finally, authors such as Chris Kennedy, Alex Rath and Frank Bennett. We literally have something for everyone!

We don’t run your usual type of Comic Con. We break that wall that make our guests accessible. Our guests, celebrities included, love to come to our shows so they can interact with the fans. We make a point to not just put everyone behind a table and try to make you buy an autograph or get your picture taken, every one of our guests has at least one panel or curated interview on the main stage.

We will also have raffles and door prizes. In fact, Sunday, we will have a grand raffle. The price is only $15 for one day or $25 for the whole weekend. And next year, we’ll be hosting it in April and October. We hope everyone comes out to our fan-run, family-friendly, two-day, comic book and pop-culture based extravaganza.

Find out more at http://www.fayettevillecomiccon.com/.

Editor's note: After the publication of this article, the Sandhills Jazz Society announced that, due to circumstances beyond their control, the venuefor the All-American City Jazz Festival will be changing to Festival Park, located behind Segra Stadium. The dates and times of the performances and artists performing have not changed.

What could be more All-American than a celebration of America’s unique contribution to music in one of America’s foremost patriotic cities? Welcome to Fayetteville’s first annual All-American City Jazz Festival debuting Oct. 25-27 at Festival Park. 

 “All That Jazz” is more than a catchy show tune. Dubbed “America’s classical music,” it is an accurate description of an ever-evolving musical genre that is a many-nuanced wonder. Originating in New Orleans during the late 19th century and subsequently flavored by West African, Caribbean, Latin, Afro-Cuban and European influences, jazz became the multicultural musical stew in America’s melting pot. In each decade, from the 1900s on, talented and innovative musicians improvised and expanded the genre, serving up the varied menu we can choose from today. “All That Jazz” encompasses ragtime, blues, Dixieland, swing, bebop, cool jazz, free jazz, hard bop, modal jazz, jazz-rock and jazz fusion.

 Great jazz musicians include the famous and forgotten. Among the legends are W.C. Handy, Scott Joplin, Jelly Roll Morton, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Stan Getz, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonius Monk, John Coltrane, Herbie Hancock and Miles Davis. Among jazz vocalists, Billie Holliday, Ella Fitzgerald, Dinah Washington, Ethel Waters and Louis Armstrong stand out. Carrying on today, we have the likes of Wynton and Branford Marsalis, Diana Krall and crossover artists like Harry Connick, Jr. and Norah Jones.

 Here in Fayetteville, the Sandhills Jazz Society might just be incubating the next great jazz innovator. According to its website, SJS “…encompasses a wide spectrum of jazz, blues, world, creative and improvised music including evolving forms of jazz and the technologies and media that influence jazz as an art form.” Presented by SJS, the Fayetteville-Cumberland Youth Council, and Cumberland County Tourism Development Authority and supported by a grant from the Fayetteville/Cumberland County Arts Council, the All-American Jazz Festival will be held at Festival Park.

“The Arts Council is pleased to partner with the city of Fayetteville in support of the All-American Jazz Festival,” said Greg Weber, Arts Council CEO. “Project Support Grants for 2019-2020 will help fund 26 projects. … These projects help strengthen our communities through festivals and concerts, youth education programs, art exhibitions, workshops and more.”

 The festival lineup promises something for everyone. Friday, Oct. 25, will be a night of beach and shag music with the Blackwater Band and the Embers, featuring Craig Woolard, performing. Saturday, Oct. 26, jazz stars Willie Bradley, Avery Sunshine, Julian Vaughn, Eric Darius and Brain Culbertson will perform. Sunday, Oct. 27, local high school and college jazz students will honor the legends of jazz by performing some of the standards for which they are noted.

Friday’s concert begins at 7 p.m., while the concerts Saturday and Sunday begin at 4 p.m. For more information, including ticket purchases and prices, visit www.sandhillsjazz.com.
 

The U.S. is offering a $5 million reward for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the militants who committed or aided in the deadly Oct. 4, 2017, attack on a joint U.S.-Nigerien military patrol that left four Fort Bragg soldiers dead. The U.S. Department of State’s Rewards for Justice Program is offering an additional $5 million reward for information on the whereabouts of Adnan Abu Walid al-Sahrawi, the leader of the ISIS offshoot known as Islamic State in the Greater Sahara, according to a news release.

The ISIS affiliate in West Africa claimed responsibility for the deadly attack that overwhelmed an American special operations team and roughly 30 Nigerien soldiers who accompanied the patrol near the village of Tongo Tongo, Niger. The patrol was pursuing an ISIS commander named Doundoun Cheffou when it was ambushed, resulting in the deaths of Sgt. 1st Class Jeremiah Johnson, Staff Sgt. Bryan Black, Staff Sgt. Dustin Wright and Sgt. La David Johnson. They were assigned to Army Special Forces Operational Detachment Alpha 3212.

An investigation into the deadly firefight uncovered several things that went wrong with mission planning before the patrol. The team was not authorized to conduct capture or kill missions. Team leaders were not clear in its concept of operations paperwork that they were to pursue Cheffou. However, the investigation noted that the officers who filed the paperwork were not deceptive. A few people, mostly enlisted Green Berets, were reprimanded following the ambush, including Maj. Gen. Marcus Hicks. He was the commanding officer of Special Operations forces in Africa.

Family members expressed their unhappiness in interviews with ABC News with the Pentagon’s decision not to punish other senior commanders for their role in the circumstances that led to the deadly attack. The decision that two officers in the Green Berets’ former chain of command — Col. Brad Moses and Lt. Col. David Painter — would not receive administrative punishments means that they will be eligible for future promotions and commands. Painter, according to multiple sources, received a reprimand, but it wasn’t a career-ending punishment, and he is reportedly up for a promotion.

Family members complained that Painter, as well as Moses, commander of Fort Bragg’s 3rd Special Forces Group, should be accountable for placing the team near ISIS fighters. Rep. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., who advocated for the families, called the decision to not punish higher-ranking officers “a shirking of responsibility to the memory and families of the deceased.”

The fallen soldiers in the ambush were posthumously awarded medals for valor. Wright’s family was presented with the Silver Star in August. Wright’s father said he was told his son had been nominated for the Medal of Honor, but that it “was downgraded twice” and that he would receive a posthumous Silver Star. Sgt. La David Johnson’s family was also presented with a Silver Star. He was a mechanic assigned to the special operations team. Sgt. 1st Class Jeremiah Johnson and Staff Sgt. Bryan Black were posthumously awarded Bronze Stars.

Pictured: Sgt. 1st Class Jeremiah Johnson’s widow, Myeshia

Due to the threat of severe weather Saturday from Tropical Storm Nestor, the Fall Family Festival at Harmony at Hope Mills has been postponed to a later date.

Harmony at Hope Mills, an assisted living facility, is still somewhat new to the Hope Mills community. It’s located at 7051 Rockfish Road, a short distance from Jack Britt High School.

To help introduce itself and to give back to the town it hopes to serve, Harmony is holding a Fall Family Festival on Saturday, Oct. 19, from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.

“We want to say thank you and bring the community together as well, as with our families that are currently residents,’’ said Taneshia Morris, the move-in coordinator at Harmony.

Harmony is partnering with the group that sponsors the annual Cut My City event to offer a variety of activities and services to anyone who would like to take part, especially members of the senior citizens community.

One of the big features of the festival will be free haircuts and some makeovers.

Hair dressers and professional makeup artists will be on-hand to help with the makeovers.

Morris said Harmony has reached out to local churches to ask them to nominate deserving members as candidates for the makeovers.

Around 2 p.m., Harmony will hold a seniors fashion show for anyone ages 60 and up. Morris said the fashion show will be complete with a catwalk for the participants.

There will also be senior games, carnival style, with prizes for the participants.

Other events will include a photo booth, an antique car show, a cornhole competition and a variety of food trucks.

Anyone who would like to find out additional information about the event or RSVP for the makeovers or the fashion show is asked to call by Wednesday, Oct. 16, at the latest.

The number is 910-635-0555.

“We just want people to know we are here,’’ Morris said.

The popular Gallberry Corn Maze is back for a sixth season of weekend fun for families, with a special added attraction this year.

“We are doing pig racing,’’ said Jeanette McLean, spokesperson for the corn maze.

They try to get in at least two pig races during Friday’s hours for the corn maze and as many as three or four during their longer hours on Saturday.

This year’s hours are 5-10 p.m. on Friday, noon to 10 p.m. on Saturday and 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday. The last tickets are sold each day one hour before closing.

The pigs have their own track at the corn maze, the Gallberry Nas-Hawg Speedway.

The four competing critters are named Earnhawg Jr., Danica Porkchop, Stinkerbelle (a Southern pig, of course) and Spongehawg Spampants.

The pigs are Gloucestershire old spots and were originally bred as orchard pigs. “They are actually leaner, longer pigs and aren’t messy,’’ McLean said. “They don’t root as much as a farm pig does.’’

Each pig is assigned a number and a color prior to the race and children that come to the corn maze are encouraged to cheer for the pig of their choice to win.

In addition to the racing pigs, Galberry continues with many of its traditional attractions that have made the corn maze a fall hit.

There is the jumping pillow along with a wide assortment of farm animals. They include Hee Haw the Donkey, baby goats and baby peacocks, Tom Tom the Turkey and rabbits.

Other attractions include a giant corn shack with 6,000 pounds of corn, various slides, a climbing wall, cornhole games, tic tac toe played with Styrofoam pumpkins, a barrel train and a hayride.

Of course, the main attractions are the two mazes, a one-acre children’s maze and the five-acre main maze. McLean estimates it takes about 45 minutes to walk through both mazes.

Flashlights are required in the maze after dark. They are available for sale at the concession stand but McLean said most customers use the light on their cellphones.

Tickets are $11 for everyone ages 3-65. Children under three are free. Cumberland County school teachers, seniors 66 and over and military can get a $1 discount with proper identification.

The hay ride stops at dusk for safety reasons.

All sales are cash only and there is an ATM at the main ticket gate.

The only thing a ticket doesn’t include is the popular air cannons which are three shots for $1.

Pumpkins and all food from the concession stand cost extra.

Concession items include water, soft drinks, juice boxes, funnel cakes, fried Oreos, honey buns, corn dogs, hot dogs, nachos with chili and cheese and fried corn on the cob. There are also S’Mores kits available. Fire pits are also provided.

The Gallberry Corn Maze, located on 5991 Braxton Rd., is open through Nov. 3. For more information, visit the Facebook page, Gallberry Corn Maze, the website, gallberrycornmaze.com, or call McLean at 910-309-7582.

It took a few years, but family and friends of former Reid Ross High School football coach John Daskal were finally able to celebrate the installation of a permanent sign in his honor outside the football stadium bearing his name.

It was around 2002 that the stadium, at what is now Reid Ross Classical High School, was named in honor of Daskal, the only coach the school ever knew before it closed as a traditional high school in 1984.

When Daskal finally retired in 1991, he had 211 wins, at the time the most of any high school football coach in Cumberland County history.

He was inducted into the Fayetteville Sports Club Hall of Fame in 2006.

High school football has returned to John Daskal Stadium this season as it has become the temporary home of Terry Sanford High School, which ironically was the last school where Daskal was a head coach before he retired from the profession.

Daskal’s daughters, Kim Daskal Lee and Kristina Daskal Magyar, led the push to raise money to get a permanent sign installed.

They held a golf tournament at Gates Four Golf and Country Club in April and had numerous people reach out to make donations toward the project.

A family friend, Dr. Wally Mohammed, took the lead in the construction of the sign.

Mohammed operates a restaurant in Lillington, and he and Daskal became friends when Daskal and his wife Carol first visited the restaurant years ago.

Lee praised the efforts of men who coached and/or played for her father. Among them were Fred McDaniel, Bill Yeager, Billy Starks and Reggie Pinkney.

“Every planning meeting, they were there,’’ she said. “We made so many contacts with people we would not have been able to reach out to. They have gone above and beyond.’’

The ceremony for the sign was held at halftime of a recent Terry Sanford junior varsity football game at Reid Ross.

Lee estimated about 50 alumni of Reid Ross, including some former football players of Daskal, came out for the ceremony. Pinkney, Yeager and Starks were among those attending.

“He treated all the players like sons,’’ said Pinkney, principal at Ramsey Street High School in Fayetteville. “We played so much harder for him, and that was why we were
successful.’’

Yeager, former head coach at Terry Sanford and Gray’s Creek High Schools, works as an assistant coach at Terry Sanford.

“He was just a fine man,’’ Yeager said of Daskal. “He cared about his players while he coached them and after they got through and went on doing what they do in their lives.
“He was the real deal, the whole package.’’

Starks, principal at Pine Forest Middle School, said Daskal was bigger than life and the kind of coach you would run through a brick wall for.

“He was just a good person,’’ Starks said. “He loved us, cared about us and we would do anything for him. He was just a special human being.’’

Pictured: Retired Reid Ross High school football coach John Daskal is joined by men who played and/or coached with him during his career at the ceremony. Pictured from left to right: Current Terry Sanford coach Fred McDaniel, retired Cumberland County Schools student activities director Fred McDaniel, Daskal, current Ramsey Street High School principal Reggie Pinkney, current Terry Sanford assistant coach Bill Yeager and current Pine Forest Middle School principal Billy Starks.

Brian Edkins was principal at South View High School when he first got to know Davin Schmidt. Although initially he saw him from afar, he was quickly impressed.

“I’ve never seen a coach as positive and optimistic as he was with kids,’’ Edkins said. “He’s the one you would want to coach your kid. You would hope he would pick your kid because you knew they were going to have a great experience.
“He was going to treat all the kids well.’’

Schmidt, who was an assistant soccer coach at South View and Hope Mills Middle Schools and coached many years in the Hope Mills recreation program, died earlier this month after lengthy battles with an assortment of ailments. He was 47.

“He could get the worst news in the world and somehow find a silver lining,’’ Edkins said. “It was just amazing. He would try to lead as normal a life as he could during this fight.’’

In his final year at South View, Edkins recalled a time when Schmidt’s oldest son, Davin II, was being recognized for making the A-B honor roll.

Schmidt was in the hospital at Duke at the time, but got permission from his doctors to come to South View to see his child recognized. “Throughout his battle, he tried to give as much normalcy to his family as possible,’’ Edkins said.
The battle started early in his life as Schmidt dealt with colitis and Crohn’s disease. In 2005 he was diagnosed with early stages of colon cancer and his colon was removed.

He contracted a disease that caused his bile ducts to shut down, which led to liver cancer. He fell into a protocol that made him eligible for a liver transplant, which took place in March of 2017.

Six months after the successful transplant, he was diagnosed with leukemia.

He went into remission from the leukemia for a year, and then it returned. Chemotherapy was unsuccessful, so he underwent a stem cell transplant, using stem cells from his own body.

He wanted to try a promising experimental drug, but four appeals to his insurance company to use it were denied.

His condition worsened. He developed bleeding on the brain, and the leukemia became more aggressive.

Despite his poor health, he got permission for a day pass from Duke so he could return to Fayetteville a see his twins, Darin and Drake, play soccer shortly before his death.

“Even until the end, he was not ready to go,’’ said Kelly McLaurin Schmidt, Davin's wife. “He was still fighting. It was just too much.’’

He died Oct. 3.

“He’s always coached the boys in everything,’’ Kelly said. “Soccer, basketball, baseball.’’

When he started his first recreation team in Hope Mills and named it Gators, friends assumed it was because of Schmidt’s love for the University of Florida.

Kelly said that wasn’t the case. “It’s actually from the time an alligator was found in Hope Mills Lake,’’ she said. “Everybody loved him so much. He never thought he deserved the recognition, but he does.’’

Pictured: Schmidt, an avid duck hunter posed for a picture with his dog, Jäger, after a successful day of hunting.

Trunk R Treat announcement: Due to the threat of inclement weather, the Hope Mills Parks and Recreation Department will host this year's Trunk R Treat event inside the Hope Mills Recreation Center from 6-8 p.m. this Thursday, Oct. 31. Doors will open promptly at 6 p.m. 

The Hope Mills Parks and Recreation Department continues its safe alternative to door-to-door trick or treating on Halloween with the annual Trunk R Treat event at Hope Mills Municipal Park on Rockfish Road.
This year’s Trunk R Treat is scheduled Oct. 31 from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m.

Family fun will again be the focus according to Meghan Freeman of the parks and recreation staff. Free music will be provided by Cumulus Media and there will be a costume contest. All costumes are asked to be family appropriate with no drugs, alcohol or profanity.

Freeman said the Trunk R Treat will be a free-flowing event with no single-file line for people to stand in as they go from trunk to trunk to collect candy. Families are asked to make sure each child has a bag to collect candy in.

For individuals, businesses or organizations that want to have a vehicle at the event handing out candy, they must preregister by Monday, Oct. 21.

The form they have to fill out includes information like business, organization or individual name, mailing address, a contact name, phone number and email address, along with make and model of the vehicle and the type of vehicle.
They also need to specify how many parking spaces the vehicle will require.

Anyone giving anything away from a vehicle is reminded that no homemade treats are permitted. All food items given away must be prepackaged and sealed when they are handed out.

Those taking part in the candy giveaway also should not hold any prize giveaways or games that would cause people to have to stop and stay at an individual vehicle, slowing down movement of the participants past the various vehicles.

Vehicles registered to take part in Trunk R Treat need to arrive as early as 4:30 p.m. and no later than 5:30 p.m.

Gates won’t open to the public until 6 p.m. sharp, Freeman said.

“There’s no reason for them to come super, super early,’’ she said.

Parking will be available behind the recreation center, at Rockfish Elementary School across the street and at the nearby public library. The cars giving away treats will be set up in the lot closest to the outdoor basketball court Freeman said.

For questions or concerns about Trunk R Treat, call Freeman at 910-426-4109 or email her at mhawkins@townofhopemills.com

Picture 1: Mayor Jackie Warner dressed in costume with her car at a previous Trunk R Treat.

Picture 2: Trunk R Treat, hosted by The Hope Mills Parks and Recreation Department is a safe alternative to door-to-door trick or treating.

So long, summer! Though I always tip my hat to greet the warmer months of the year, I genuinely look forward to autumn. There's something about the mornings becoming cooler and the trees shedding their leaves in a blaze of color that evoke a sense of welcome.

From the cool breezes on the coast to the amazing show of color north and west of us, North Carolina has given my family plenty of reasons to love calling North Carolina home each fall. You might be surprised to learn how many festivals and fall-flavored events there are within reach for a day or weekend trip from the Fayetteville area.

Without ever leaving home you can take in the North Carolina Fall Festival in Raeford, which kicks off a weekend of small town festivities on Oct. 17, with something to please people of all ages. If you're itching to hit the road for the weekend, you can take in the early color as you head for the hills the same weekend. The Apple Harvest Festival in Waynesville is one of the tastiest trips you can make, and the Fall LEAF Festival in Black Mountain will treat you and your entire troupe to the charm only a small mountain town can offer. If you're ready for the most unique festival of them all, you simply have to make it to the Annual Wooly Worm Festival in Wilkesboro at least once in your life.

Regardless of whether you go uphill, downhill or stay within a few miles of home, I hope you'll find a way to welcome the fall season. Embrace it and you'll find it's much more than a gateway to winter as it paves the way to shorter days and warm family celebrations.

One month-long celebration that is worth mentioning is Clergy Appreciation Month. October has been set aside as a time to express gratitude to some of the most selfless and underrated individuals you may ever meet. Too often relegated to someone we think of only on Sunday as we shake their hand and tell them, 'great message!' on our way out the door, most members of the clergy — pastors, ministers, deacons, elders — are frequently the first to respond to family emergencies from illness to injury. They bring us together as we start our journeys in marriage, and see us off as in death we do part.

I'd encourage you to take a moment to jot a little note of gratitude and send it to your pastor this year. And don't forget the youth leader. They gladly bear the burden of helping our children navigate some rough terrain in some of the most tumultuous years of their lives, and we need to show our gratitude.

This week, Up & Coming Weekly Publisher Bill Bowman yields his space to columnist Karl Merritt to discuss the challenges faced by the North Carolina Civil War & Reconstruction History Center.
For over 10 years, a group of volunteers, along with some paid staff, has been working to develop a concept for the North Carolina Civil War & Reconstruction History Center, as well as raise funds, design the building and build it. As of this writing, they have, with the help of extremely capable individuals, started to collect information consistent with their concept for the Center. Even further, millions of dollars have been raised and an award-winning architectural design is complete.

Beyond what is happening locally, the budget currently being considered by the North Carolina General Assembly includes $46 million for this project. That budget was vetoed by Gov. Roy Cooper, but the House voted to override the veto. At this moment, action by the Senate is pending.

A study conducted by ConsultEcon, Inc. in 2014 stated about the Center, “The preliminary attendance potential is estimated at 75,000 to 135,000, with a midrange estimate rounded to 105,000 in a stable year of operation.” Considering this assessment was before SEGRA Stadium, the Woodpeckers baseball team, the Prince Charles Hotel resurrection and all the other development coming to downtown, the economic impact of the Center will be substantial.

With all that in place, and the project moving ahead, Mayor Mitch Colvin, who is black, has now stated he opposes proceeding with the Center under the current concept and name. He explained that his objection is based on input from citizens — not just black citizens — who oppose the project. As best as I can determine, two considerations are central to the opposition by black citizens with whom the mayor has talked: Because of slavery references, they are uncomfortable with discussion of the Civil War and they do not trust that slavery and the Civil War will be accurately addressed. Colvin also argues that the $7.5 million that the city of Fayetteville promised to provide in support of this project can be used better elsewhere. To obtain state support, Fayetteville and Cumberland County were required to commit that they would invest $7.5 million each in the project.

The summary of Colvin’s position in the preceding paragraph is based on various reportings in The Fayetteville Observer and his comments during a public meeting Thursday, Sept. 26. I attended that meeting. It was organized by Val Applewhite, former city councilwoman, with Advance Carolina and the Fayetteville branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People as cosponsors. Given the content and flow of the meeting, I concluded it was an obvious attempt to build opposition to the Center. Aside from some elected officials, the attendees were overwhelmingly black citizens. 

Given the amazing progress that has been made to this point by organizers, the reasonable question is what gives Colvin, some City Council members, and a few vocal citizens justification to demand changes to the name and concept of this project? Do the math. Considering price increases, the cost of the Center will certainly be more than $65 million. The state will put in $46 million and forever pay the cost of operating the facility after construction. Organizers are raising millions of dollars. Cumberland Countywill provide $7.5 million. Add the fact that this is a state facility, not just for Fayetteville. For a one-time investment of $7.5 million, Fayetteville receives a tremendous economic return over many years to come.

In the final analysis, $7.5 million from Fayetteville is minuscule and will be recouped in taxes, not to mention added jobs. This being the case, why would Colvin and his group try to take over, and even risk losing, this project? My thinking is this is more identity politics. Consider the primary population categories in Fayetteville as available at http://worldpopulationreview.com: White: 45.95%; Black or African-American: 41.54%; Two or more races: 5.83%; Asian: 2.88%; Other race: 2.59%.

Here is my unpacking of that assessment. If Colvin and other black politicians, as well as some like-minded whites, can appeal to the emotions of the 41.54% of black Fayetteville citizens and drive substantial voter turnout, they can easily win elections. Add some of the other nonwhite groups, and the odds are even better. This is the game played across America.

This is not the first time Colvin has convinced some members of City Council to force a group to make major changes in their program based on an alleged concern for Fayetteville’s black citizens. It also happened in 2016. I wrote about this episode in a column titled, “Dogwood Festival Music Diversity: An Opportunity for Exercising Leadership.” Please read the column at http://www.karlmerritt.com/2017/02/03/dogwood-festival-music-diversity-an-opportunity-for-exercising-leadership/. In my estimation, Colvin, and some other members of City Council, in an atmosphere of total disrespect toward officials of the Dogwood Festival and lack of appreciation for the contributions of the Dogwood organization to this city, bullied festival organizers into adding music genres that are inconsistent with what had been a very successful concept. The Dogwood Festival was “hijacked” and the same thing is being attempted with the Center.

In preparation for writing this column, I emailed eight questions to Colvin and all nine members of City Council. Councilwoman Tisha Waddell was the only one to answer the questions in writing. Councilman Bill Crisp answered every question during a phone conversation. Councilman D.J. Haire, after some back-and-forth by email, sent one saying that he saw me at the Thursday meeting and what he said there is his position. That is, he is talking with his constituents. Mayor Colvin’s response was to ask if I sent the questions to Cumberland County Commissioners. I responded that I had not sent the questions because I understood they were still on board and asked if he knew differently. There was no further response. I received no response, email or otherwise, from the remaining members of City Council.

Space will only allow me to share responses to a few of the eight questions. One question was, “What steps are being taken by Council to accurately determine the magnitude of opposition to and support for this project?” Neither Waddell nor Crisp made any claim of an organized process for accurately measuring opposition or support. In the Thursday meeting, Haire indicated that he is holding listening sessions throughout his district. Waddell indicated that she received two phone calls and one email expressing opposition to the Center. Crisp said, from his district, one person advised him of opposition while several indicated support for the project. Given Fayetteville’s population of over 200,000, it is impossible to conclude that there is a fair and effective effort to measure opposition to the History Center. I say “opposition” because I sense there is no effort on the part of the mayor and his cohorts to measure support. If that were the case, there would be serious outreach across racial lines and presentations would be balanced.

Another question was, “Given that a previous council approved the funding and organizers have substantially moved ahead depending on that funding, do you have concern that pulling the funding will cause future distrust of Fayetteville government?” Waddell and Crisp fully recognize the danger in the wrangling that is going on regarding city support of this project. In my estimation, this discourages citizens, businesses or anybody who might be willing to invest in the advancement of this city; they must be able to trust City Council to live up to its commitments. Even further, our legislative delegation, based on a supportive vote of a previous City Council, fought to get state funding for this project. Now, at the last minute, the rug is being toyed with in what I hold is an indefensible manner. I find it laughable that, given how City Council is handling this matter, anybody would have the audacity to question the honesty and integrity of the Center organizers.

A third question: “If the $7.5 million is withdrawn, how will it be used? What will be the economic impact of the alternative use?” It has become common knowledge that the $7.5 million city commitment is not budgeted. Consequently, there is no plan for how that money would be used elsewhere. That also means no effort has been made to determine the economic impact of using the money elsewhere and how any return compares with putting it toward the Center. This failure to budget highlights, again, the trust issue with this Council.

One other question from the eight: “Have you made a public statement regarding the ‘Build it so we can burn it down’ sign that was held up by one attendee during the public hearing on this matter?” The sign referred to in this question shows in a photo accompanying an article in The Fayetteville Observer by John Henderson titled, “Fayetteville mayor: Growing number of black residents concerned about Civil War center.” The person holding the sign is sitting on the front row. Other signs are also being held up in the chamber. In their responses, Waddell and Crisp expressed concern that the sign was there but stated that they had not made any public comment. Waddell wrote: “I have not made a public statement about it, but I find all references to violence and/or criminal behavior abhorrent. I believe that regardless of whether one supports something or not, we should always support civil dialogue and should be encouraging open communication without fear of retribution.” Neither Haire nor Colvin addressed the question. I have no doubt that if such a sign were held up regarding a project supported by, and seen as favorable to the black community, the outrage from Colvin and his cohorts would be deafening. What message is received by white Fayetteville citizens?

So much for the questions.  As to the concept for this Center, it appears Colvin, and those who join him in thinking there will be an overwhelming focus on slavery and justifying the South’s actions in the Civil War, do not understand the current concept. To be fair with the mayor, I sent him an email asking what he understood the concept to be and how he wanted it changed. No response. A few months ago, I wrote a column titled “Needed: NC Civil War & Reconstruction History Center.” It is at http://www.karlmerritt.com/2019/06/25/needed-nc-civil-war-reconstruction-history-center/. The concept is to focus on the stories that show how all people were affected by, and responded to, the Civil War and Reconstruction. It does not take much effort to get accurate information on this matter of concept or the whole project. Informing and encouraging the black community to do so does not fit with the strategy and tactics of identity politics.

 In the end, due to political maneuvering, short-sightedness and misinformation, Fayetteville will probably lose this project and suffer for years to come because of doing so. That suffering will include even greater racial tension than we know now. That will be because, even though most white citizens are scared into silence where identity politics is at work; frustration, disgust, and even anger, must be present in many of them. If the concept and name are changed and the project survives, the negative impact on race relations will be the same, if not worse. What’s being done here is “treacherous territory.” Yes, another hijacking is underway.

A study conducted by ConsultEcon, Inc. in 2014 stated about the Center, “The preliminary attendance potential is estimated at 75,000 to 135,000, with a midrange estimate rounded to 105,000 in a stable year of operation.”
In preparation for writing this column, I emailed eight questions to Colvin and all nine members of City Council. Councilwoman Tisha Waddell (bottom) was the only one to answer the questions in writing. Councilman Bill Crisp (top) answered every question during a phone conversation.

The North Carolina High School Athletic Association estimates there are over 200,000 student-athletes playing for high school teams across the state.

Every year,  16 students are chosen to represent their peers on the Student Athlete Advisory Council.

This elite group of sophomores and juniors represents every region of the state and serves as the voice for all the state’s athletes, reporting directly to the NCHSAA at both a regional and state level.

This year’s SAAC includes two students from Jack Britt High School, E.J. McArthur and Colin Baumgartner. McArthur plays basketball and is the son of Britt girls’ basketball coach Nattlie McArthur.

Baumgartner competes in indoor and outdoor track, cross country and swimming.

Both are looking forward to serving on the committee and are ready to come to the table with ideas to make things better for their fellow athletes.

McArthur has already had a taste of what the SAAC does. This summer the NCHSAA sent him and some other SAAC members to a national meeting in Indianapolis, Indiana, home of the headquarters of the National Federation of State High School Associations.

They learned about problem-solving, leadership and the Unified Sports program that is designed to increase interscholastic sports opportunities for special needs students.

“One of my main goals is to get Unified Sports in all schools, not just Cumberland County, but all of North Carolina,’’ McArthur said.

While in Indianapolis the SAAC members worked with special needs children. McArthur was moved by the looks on their faces when they got the opportunity to participate in sports.

Another concern for McArthur is sportsmanship. He and Baumgartner attended the recent Region 4 meeting of the NCHSAA held in Fayetteville. During the meeting they learned that no Cumberland County School managed to avoid having a player or coach ejected from an athletic contest during the 2018-19 school year.

“We want to form an initiative to get that (the number of ejections) down,’’ McArthur said. “Respect the refs, respect the rules. Do what you have to do as an athlete, but do it accordingly.’’

He thinks it’s important that the NCHSAA is open to getting input from student-athletes. “Adults don’t really understand what students want the way students understand what we want,’’ McArthur said. “Having this committee is better because they have a direct outlet to student-athletes.’’

Baumgartner agrees. “I feel like there’s a lot of situations where we might see things going on that might not be seen at a higher level,’’ he said.

Baumgartner wants more attention to sports not often in the spotlight. One where he has a personal interest is swimming.

He is concerned about access county swimmers have to indoor pools, noting they practice at times in outdoor pools covered by an inflatable dome that sometimes collapses and causes problems.

He also has a concern about alcohol abuse by his fellow students and thinks more needs to be done by students to curb the problem.

“We shouldn’t go to a party one day and a funeral the next,’’ he said. “Having a peer tell you something I think gives it a deeper meaning and a different perspective.’’

L-R:  Jack Britt students and SAAC members E.J. McArthur and Colin Baumgartner