Obituaries — Week of 5/7/08

Frances C. Bailey
Frances Louise Cornelius Bailey, 82, 200 E. 31st St., Kannapolis, died Wednesday, April 30, 2008, at Rowan Regional Medical Center, Salisbury.
Born April 18, 1926, in Rowan County, she was a daughter of the late James and Hassie Beatty Cornelius. She attended Rowan County schools and graduated from Aggrey Memorial High School.
She retired from Cannon Mills. A member of Sill’s Creek AME Zion Church, she was a Deaconess, life member and a member of the Parent Body Oversees Missionary.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Otis Bailey, in 1999.
Survivors include daughter Kay Frances Graham of Salisbury; brother John Bell Cornelius of Salisbury; sisters Viola McHenry of Philadelphia, Pa., Jessie Cornelius and Hazeline Brawley, both of Salisbury; one granddaughter; and one great-granddaughter.
A service was held Monday, May 5, 2008, at Sill’s Creek AME Zion Church, conducted by the Rev. Jordan Boyd. Burial, church cemetery.
Noble and Kelsey Funeral Home is in charge.

James R. Verdin
SALISBURY — James R. Verdin, 66, formerly of Salisbury, died April 29, 2008, after a battle with lung cancer.
He graduated from Weir High School, Weirton, W.Va., in 1959, and Marshall University in 1963. He was a member of Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity.
He began showing dogs in 1966 and fostered many champion St. Bernards, English bulldogs and petite Bassett Griffon Vendeens through his life. He was president of Piedmont North Carolina Bulldog Club.
He was also president of Topsail Reef Home Owner’s Association and was vice president of Dolphin Shores Board of Directors.
He was an active participant and fund-raiser for Granville County Relay for Life. After being diagnosed with colon cancer in 1997, he carried the Torch of Hope several years.
He worked for several years at Clayton Homes in Oxford and had recently retired to Pinehurst.
Survivors include his wife Anne Culley Verdin, with whom he would have celebrated 45 years of marriage in June; father L. Charles Verdin, formerly of Weirton; daughters Meredith Hancock of Concord, Hillary Kessler of Telford, Pa., and Whitney Skeen of Oak Ridge; six grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.
A service was held Saturday, May 3, 2008, at Lee & Martin Funeral Home, Burgettstown, Pa., followed by a burial service at Chestnut Ridge Cemetery, Florence, Pa.
Memorials: Relay for Life of Granville County, American Cancer Society Memorial Fund, Jim Verdin Memorial Fund, P.O. Box 1611, Oxford, NC 27565.

Delores A. Hiers
Delores Annette Boll Hiers, 70, 1902 Stonewyck Ave., Kannapolis, died Tuesday, April 29, 2008, at CMC-NorthEast.
Born Sept. 28, 1937, in Jacksonville, Fla., she was a daughter of Effie Staton Bell and the late Augusta Daniel Bell.
Survivors include husband Howard Marcy Hiers; son Robert Hiers of Aynor, S.C.; and daughter Marcie Lee Hiers Pack, Kannapolis.
A service was held Friday, May 2, 2008, at Whitley’s Funeral Home, conducted by the Rev. Rodney Taylor.

Joe Henry Beaver
Joe Henry Beaver, 82, 926 S. Walnut St., Kannapolis, died Tuesday, April 29, 2008, at CMC-NorthEast.
Born Oct. 7, 1925, in Rowan County, he was the son of the late George Henry and Ola Kathleen Cook Beaver. He retired several years ago as a weaver from Cannon Mills. He was an active member of Concord First Assembly. He served his country in the U.S. Army during World War II.
Survivors include his wife, Gladys Cruse Beaver; daughters Susan Beaver Livengood of Kannapolis and Joanne Beaver Plott of Las Vegas, Nev.; son Henry A. “Tony” Beaver of Concord; brother Ralph Beaver of China Grove; four grandchildren; and 11 great-grandchildren.
A graveside service was held Friday, May 2, 2008, at Carolina Memorial Park, conducted by the Rev. Tom Whidden, the Rev. Forest Jones and Kirk Sams. Military honors were given.
Memorials: Concord First Assembly, 150 Warren C. Coleman Blvd., Concord, NC 28027.

Inez Helms Scott
CONCORD — Inez Helms Scott, 88, 220 Bishop Lane, died Sunday, April 27, 2008, at Five Oaks Manor in Concord after a period of declining health.
Born Sept. 20, 1919, in Guilford County, she was a daughter of the late William Bryce and Mary Pearl Allred Helms. She retired as a supervisor from Cato Corp. in 1981 after 35 years of employment. She was a member of Southside Baptist Church in Concord.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Leonard E. Scott, who died March 18, 1986.
Survivors include sons Jerry E. Cochran of Concord and Mickey Cochran of Miami, Fla.; brother Bobby Helms of Raleigh; sister Marie Arledge of Concord; four grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren.
A memorial service was held Tuesday, May 6, 2008, at Southside Baptist Church in Concord, conducted by the Rev. Robert Leonard and the Rev. Joey Morrison.
Memorials: Southside Baptist Church, 561 Union Cemetery Road S.W., Concord, NC 28027.
Whitley’s Funeral Home is in charge.

Pearl Sapp
CONCORD — Pearl Lorene Sapp, 92, of Cline School Road, died Tuesday, April 29, 2008, at her residence.
Born April 20, 1916, in Cabarrus County, she was daughter of the late Emmett and Ada Mollie Allman Sapp. She was a member of Boger United Church of Christ, where she taught Sunday school. She was a graduate of Mount Pleasant High School and retired from Kaysor Roth Hosiery Mill.
Survivors include brothers Emmett Sapp Jr. of Harrisburg, John and Mack Sapp, both of Concord.
A service was held Friday, May 2, 2008, at Boger United Church of Christ, officiated by the Rev. Dr. Donald McManus. Burial, church cemetery.
Memorials: Boger United Church of Christ, Scholarship Fund, 7313 Gold Hill Road, Concord, NC 28025.
Gordon Funeral Home, Mount Pleasant, was in charge.

Kannapolis Komets lead the pack
Former Brown coach Doug Wilson takes team to another level

By Mike London
Kannapolis Citizen
J.N. Fries Middle School’s Alleson Briggs idolizes Ivory Latta and aspires to be a superstar for North Carolina’s women’s basketball program five years from now.
Dreams are fine, but dreams only come true for people who work at them.
Briggs, a power forward who gets every rebound and drills 3-pointers, may get where she wants to go. She could get that big-time college scholarship because she never stops working.
Even when she’s watching television, there’s a ball in her hands.

Read more

Community Free Clinic ready for more

By Joanne Gonnerman
Kannapolis Citizen
CONCORD — When economic hard times hit, usually one of the first challenges people face is the cost of medical insurance and the health care it provides.
But thanks to the vision and effort of two local physicians 14 years ago, the uninsured and those who cannot afford health care services have a place to turn — the Community Free Clinic in Concord.
Founded in 1994 by family physicians Dr. David Lockhart and Dr. George Liles, the Community Free Clinic provides free medical care, medicine and emergency dental services to low-income and uninsured Cabarrus County residents. Physicians, nurses, pharmacists and lab technicians volunteer at the clinic, located at 528-A Lake Concord Road.
“We are an important piece to the safety net,” said Venetia Skahen, Community Free Clinic director. “We’re lucky in this community that so many people have responded to the need for this kind of program. … We still feel like people don’t know about us …”
To address that concern, the Community Free Clinic held an open house April 29 to increase awareness of its services.
“This open house is for our health-care providers, supporters and potential patients and volunteers,” said Skahen. “It’s also for those who refer patients to us, like the parish nurses at area churches. It’s important to remind the community that we’re here.”
“We’re always looking for new volunteers,” said David Thompson, volunteer coordinator.
“Volunteers attend a brief orientation to learn about the basic policies of the clinic and review the basic jobs for non-medical positions. They receive their training while on the job.”
One volunteer who brought her training with her is Dr. Erika Steinbacher, a family medicine physician with Cabarrus Family Medicine. Steinbacher has volunteered at the clinic for more that 13 years.
“I volunteer because it’s a good thing to do,” said Steinbacher. “There’s a need to help good people who can’t get health care. We have an amazing network for the uninsured.”
Those services include prescription medications, lab and X-ray services, dental extractions and referrals to specialists who see clinic patients in their private practice free of charge. Funds for these services are provided through donations, grants, fundraisers and United Way contributions.
Kannapolis resident Sharon Nesbit, 59, has received many of the clinic’s services since losing her health care insurance in 2001.
“A new company bought the company I worked for,” said Nesbit, “and they didn’t give us health insurance. I was struggling buying 15 pills every two weeks. I’d have to charge it (the medicine) and then didn’t know if I could pay for it.”
The Community Free Clinic helps Nesbit receive not only her medications but the ongoing health care services she needs. Nesbit has diabetes.
“I am going to school to better myself and so I can give back,” Nesbit said. “I was taught if someone does something for you, you should give back. I’m going to have a birthday soon … on July 24th. I have lots of friends and I’m asking them to just give me a birthday card and money. I’m giving half my birthday money to the Community Free Clinic.”
The telephone number for the clinic is 704-782-0650.

Contact Joanne Gonnerman at 704-932-3336 or jgonnerman@kannapoliscitizen.com.

Dedicating sacred grounds important to Cannon classes of 1941, 1942

By Joanie Morris
Kannapolis Citizen
R.C. Cannon was the first principal of J.W. Cannon High School when it opened in 1924. The 1927 annual was dedicated to him, the year that H.D. Walters took over the reins.
That was just one of the facts that local historian and member of the class of 1941 Norris Dearmon gave to the crowd gathered at A.L. Brown High School on a breezy Saturday morning as the classes of 1941 and 1942 gathered to dedicate a marker on the grounds of the former high school.
He also gave a quick accounting of the number of students who graduated each year, as well as when principals left and new ones were hired, changing of superintendents and fires at the school.
It was all part of the dedication ceremony, in which about 25 people took part.
Sarah Weaver, president of the class of 1942, gave an invocation, in which she called those years at J.W. Cannon High School some of the most joyful of the student’s lives.
“We remember the hallowed halls of the school that was here,” Weaver said. She spoke of the giggles and belly laughs, memories and friends at the school. “It was one of the most joyous times of our lives.”
Not everyone who attended the event was a graduate of the school. Kannapolis Mayor Bob
Misenheimer, who grew up in Concord, remembered looking forward to the J.W. Cannon Band.
In 1957, Misenheimer started his student teaching at Cannon Junior High School, which was what the school became when A.L. Brown was built.
“This place brings back a lot of memories,” said Misenheimer.
At the end of the ceremony, the classes gathered for a class picture.
Contact Joanie Morris at jmorris@kannapoliscitizen.com.

Money woes won’t affect NCRC

By Emily Ford
Kannapolis Citizen
Reported financial problems at Dole Food Co. Inc. won’t affect the N.C. Research Campus, a top official said.
“I can’t imagine anything derailing Mr. Murdock from completing his vision for the North Carolina Research Campus,” said Lynne Scott Safrit, president of campus developer Castle & Cooke North Carolina. “That project is first and foremost for him.”
David H. Murdock owns Dole Food, real estate giant Castle & Cooke and the N.C. Research Campus, a $1.5 billion biotechnology hub under construction here.
Dole, the world’s largest producer of fresh fruit and vegetables and fresh-cut flowers, is in danger of default on $350 million in bonds that mature next year, according to an April 8 report by Bloomberg News.
Skyrocketing shipping costs and higher banana tariffs in Europe have eroded the company’s ability to repay debt, Bloomberg said.
Safrit said she couldn’t comment on the debt situation at Dole, which has been described this month in online business newsletters as “distressed” and “deteriorating,” with some analysts downgrading Dole’s bond rating.
Safrit did provide the Salisbury Post with a statement from Dole spokesman Marty Ordman.
“The company is strengthening its cash flow and improving earnings,” Ordman said. “Dole is in an aggressive mode of selling assets and paying down debt.”
Ordman declined to answer questions from the Post, writing in an e-mail that the company has no comment on the situation.
According to Bloomberg, Dole is selling land in Hawaii and California to raise money to repay the debt.
Safrit said she’s not convinced the two are related.
“Dole has thousands of acres of land that probably has not been used for a long time,” she said. “They are probably just selling the land and it got wrapped up in that article about the bonds.”
Dole agreed in February to sell 2,000 acres in Hawaii for about $39 million, Bloomberg reported. Dole owns 28,000 acres of pasture, forest and farmland in Oahu and relies on less than 3,000 acres of that land to farm pineapples and other crops, Bloomberg said. Dole also may sell land in California and a flower unit, worth millions of dollars combined.
The asset sales might relieve pressure on Murdock to make an emergency cash infusion into Dole, which hasn’t posted a profit for two years, Bloomberg reported.
Murdock is worth $4.7 billion, according to Forbes magazine. He is expected to spend more than $1 billion of his personal fortune developing the Research Campus.
Safrit said she couldn’t comment on whether Murdock’s massive investment in the Research Campus would prevent him from saving Dole from default if necessary. But she added that she can’t imagine one of Murdock’s companies defaulting on any bonds.
“That’s not something that he does,” she said. Murdock does not rely on money he makes at Dole to fund the Research Campus, Safrit said. “They’re completely separate.”
Murdock, 85, stepped down as chief executive officer of Dole in June 2007, replaced by David DeLorenzo.

State alumni can buy a piece of the NCRC

By Emily Ford
Kannapolis Citizen
Wolfpack alumni and fans can buy a piece of N.C. State University’s new institute at the N.C. Research Campus.
For $100, people can purchase an inscribed brick that will pave the front porch at the N.C. State Fruit & Vegetable Science Institute. The four-story building, which N.C. State will share with Dole Food Co., is under construction and should open this summer.
N.C. State’s Pathway to Excellence brick campaign is similar to one under way by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill for its new venture in Kannapolis, the UNC Nutrition Research Institute.
The two institutes will stand next to each other on the Research Campus, and the inscribed bricks will match.
Billionaire Dole Food Co. owner David H. Murdock is building the N.C. Research Campus on the grounds of an old textile mill in downtown Kannapolis. So far, six schools in the UNC System will have a presence on campus, plus Duke University and Rowan-Cabarrus Community College.
To buy a brick for the N.C. State Fruit & Vegetable Science Institute or to learn more, call 704-2509-5400 or e-mail fvsi_info@ncsu.edu.

Intimidators hosting Fieldcrest Cannon reunion night

By Emily Ford
Kannapolis Citizen
This family reunion could fill a baseball stadium.
And it just might.
The Kannapolis Intimidators and the city of Kannapolis will sponsor the first Fieldcrest Cannon Reunion Night at the baseball stadium for former employees of the textile giant.
“We honor and respect the past,” said Eddie Smith, assistant city manager. “It’s important to us to remember those who are still here and who worked hard in the mills and how they contributed to the community.”
The May 24 event could sell out the stadium, which seats 4,900.
The first 1,000 fans will receive a 4-inch ceramic replica of Plant 1. The stadium’s concourse will become a textile museum, featuring photos, newspaper clippings and artifacts.
And during pre-game ceremonies, the team will honor several individuals with strong ties to the mill, including one unnamed person who should warm up his or her pitching arm.
“It’s going to be great,” said Norris Dearmon, longtime Kannapolis historian who is organizing memorabilia for display. “It will keep our heritage going. Stuff is changing so fast around here, it’s not even funny.”
The old mill, a global textile leader that employed more than 20,000 people in its heyday, no longer exists. It closed in 2003, throwing 4,300 people out of work in the state’s largest layoff.
The N.C. Research Campus rises in its place in downtown Kannapolis. David H. Murdock, who once owned the mill, bought the expansive abandoned facility in 2004 and demolished it, replacing it with the biotechnology center.
The change has caused mixed emotions among former millworkers.

Celebrating history
Intimidators crews have been plastering Cannon Village and other areas with flyers announcing the reunion.
And now, former Fieldcrest Cannon employees can get four free tickets to the game at four locations — the utility billing office, public works office, city hall and the parks and recreation office at Village Park.
“Come out and celebrate the history and more importantly the people who made Fieldcrest Cannon and the city of Kannapolis so special,” said Tim Mueller, vice president of the Intimidators.
While small groups of millworkers occasionally get together, Mueller said he believes this is the first time anyone has hosted a large reunion for all former mill workers.
The miniature replicas are a loose representation of Plant 1. It would have been impossible to create an exact replica, Mueller said.
“But we did make sure to pay special attention to the facade of the headquarters, the smokestacks, the water tower and the old sign,” he said.
New Kannapolis residents may not even know what the mill looked like or what it meant to the city, Smith said.
The city and the Intimidators plan to give away mini replicas every year of other important buildings, like the Core Lab at the N.C. Research Campus and even Fieldcrest Cannon stadium itself.

Memories on display
Dearmon and the Kannapolis History Associates are working hard to choose artifacts and photos from their vast collection to display at the ballpark.
They will set up four areas, each with a different theme: textile tools of the trade, schools and class pictures, World War II and photos of employees working in the mill from the 1930s through the 1990s.
They hope to get some help identifying people in the oldest pictures.
This will mark the first time that nearly 100 photographs of millworkers killed in World War II will be on display, said Dearmon, a World War II veteran himself.
He scanned the little-known photos from a scrapbook kept at the Kannapolis Public Library, compiled during World War II by a group called the War Mothers.
The 8-by-10 black-and-white images will include information about when and where each soldier was killed.
The Kannapolis History Associates continues its effort to find or build a permanent museum for textile artifacts and memorabilia, Dearmon said.
He declined to give details but said by the end of the year, the group will announce its plans.
While no one knows exactly how many former Fieldcrest Cannon employees still live in the area, Dearmon predicted that more than 1,000 will turn out for the reunion.
“There are still a bunch of old-timers around,” he said.
The Intimidators will play the Hagerstown Suns during the reunion. Gates open at 6 p.m. and the game starts at 7:05.
Contact Emily Ford at eford@salisburypost.com.

YMCA Moment — Building everything strong

If you have been in the YMCA lately, you may have noticed that there is racing décor everywhere. Some people just look around curiously, some stroll right by and don’t notice at all and a few actually ask, “What are all these racing and checkered flag decorations doing everywhere?” The answer: We are starting our engines for this year’s Strong Kids Campaign.
The Cannon Memorial YMCA raises funds each year in order to help adults, kids and families afford the YMCA and its programs. We believe that nobody should be turned away due to inability to pay; we want everyone to benefit from the YMCA and our programs. Because the YMCA is a non-profit organization we cannot discount the membership dues or program fees but we can raise the funds to make camp, swimming, basketball and other activities a reality for families in our community. We give out more than $200,000 each year to people who apply for financial assistance through our Open Doors Program.
Every day at the YMCA you come in contact with members who benefit from Open Doors assistance and you don’t even know it. In water exercise classes, there are seniors on a fixed income who could not participate without financial assistance. Your pledge might benefit the little boy who scores a goal at your child’s next soccer game. Your support, whether it’s $10 or $100, goes 100 percent to support people in our community. So the next time you make a choice to donate your time or your money, please consider giving it to the YMCA. We are building stronger communities.
For more information on the YMCA Strong Kids Scholarship Campaign, please call Traci West or Brett Crosby. The phone number is 704-939-9622.
For more information about programs and other ways to become involved with the Cannon Memorial YMCA check out our Web site www.cannonymca.org.

K-town Calendar

Now
• The A.L. Brown High School Media Center is holding its annual fundraising Book Sale now through Tuesday, May 13. New books for preschoolers through adults will be available, and all proceeds will purchase more books for the Media Center. The fundraising book sale will run weekdays 8:30 a.m.-3:30 pm. For more information, please call 704-932-6125, ext. 273.

May 12
• The Kannapolis City Council will meet beginning at 6 p.m. in the Meeting Room of the Kannapolis Train Station, 201 S. Main St.
For more information, or handicap accommodations, contact Bridgette Bell at 704-920-4303.

May 20
• The Steering Committee Interest Meeting for Habitat for Humanity Cabarrus County Women Build 2008 will be held Tuesday, May 20, beginning at 7 p.m. at the office, located at 8 Church St. S.E., Concord.
People interested in being on the steering committee should attend the meeting.

Kannapolis History Associates host annual meeting Monday at Kimball Lutheran Church

The Kannapolis History Associates will host their annual meeting Monday, May 12, beginning at 7 p.m.
The program for the evening is “Cannon Mills: Angles and Elements” a showcase of photographs honoring the mill and workers, taken by local photographer Chad Mitchell. The program is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be provided.
The Kannapolis History Associates is a 501c3 organization, founded in 1987, out of a need to preserve artifacts of the YMCA that was to be demolished. The purpose of KHA was and remains today to acquire, preserve and display written, oral and physical artifacts of the city of Kannapolis and surrounding areas of Cabarrus County. Today, the Kannapolis History Associates operate the Hinson History Room at the Kannapolis Branch of the Cannon Memorial Library and the GI House.
Both are examples of their dedication to fulfill their mission of preservation. They have also participated in the 100th anniversary of Cannon Mills, the 100th anniversary of Kannapolis, Cotton Stock festivals and other city activities. In addition, they sponsored several tours of homes and luncheons. They are preparing to build a museum that will allow them to properly identify, display and make available for everyone’s enjoyment the many artifacts they have obtained over the years and more they want to acquire.
The Kannapolis History Associates are asking everyone to search their closets, attics, basements and garages for items that tell a story about our heritage in Kannapolis and the surrounding communities in Cabarrus County. They are able to provide safe and secure storage in a thermostatically controlled, dry environment for any artifacts donated.
Items considered for donation would include but not be limited to written documents, advertising items and articles, products, tools, machinery, clothing, vehicles, property, buildings, architectural pieces, furniture, pictures and much more. Subjects of these artifacts could be churches, schools, colleges, mills, businesses, stadiums, ballparks, homes, railways, hospitals, charitable and fraternal organizations, bus lines, cab companies, phone companies, restaurants and many other sources.
The Kannapolis History Associates is also preparing to take recorded oral history from anyone who has a story to tell, regardless of how large or small or how insignificant it may seem. They want to record your memories of where you worked, attended school and church, received medical care and played sports. They are interested in your growing up years, memories of the war years, how you lived, your means of transportation and what caused you to stay in or move back to Kannapolis.
Please contact Norris Dearmon at 704-933-9314, Phil Goodman at 704-796-0803, Sonny White at 704-933-1677, or Mabel Brown at 704-933-0027 to arrange for your donation or an oral history recording.

Next Page »