North State Journal Vol. 10, Issue 29

Federal lawsuit over N.C. voter registrations resolved

Raleigh

A lawsuit led by the Trump administration over missing data in North Carolina voter registrations was resolved per a joint motion for a consent judgment order led on Sept. 3. Under the order, the North Carolina State Board of Elections is prohibited from using voter registration forms and procedures that don’t comply with the Help America Vote Act of 2002 and must regularly update the state’s voter registration records to make sure required data such as driver’s license number and the last four digits of a Social Security number are present and accurate.

USDA OK’s $221M grant for Helene farming recovery

Washington, D.C.

U.S. Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Stephen Vaden visited North Carolina on Sept. 5 and signed a $221.2 million block grant with the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to aid farmers recovering from Hurricane Helene. The funding will cover qualifying infrastructure, timber, market and future revenue losses not addressed by other programs. It is part of the $30 billion disaster relief e ort authorized by the American Relief Act of 2025. The USDA is working with 14 states, including North Carolina, to tailor block grants for agricultural recovery following 2024’s severe storms. The program will be administered by the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, which will release details for eligible producers in the coming weeks.

Durham resolution takes on ICE raids

The city council’s resolution directs sta to “uphold the 4th Amendment at their workplace”

By A.P. Dillon North State Journal

RALEIGH — The Durham City Council unanimously passed a resolution proclaiming the city to be a “Fourth Amendment Workplace” during its Sept. 5 meeting.

“The City of Durham has

historically pursued equity and safety for all residents,” the resolution states, saying “trust and cooperation of all residents” is necessary for the city to run properly before stating the text of the Fourth Amendment.

The Fourth Amendment protects citizens against unreasonable searches and seizures by the government and requires law enforcement to obtain a probable cause warrant to conduct a search or seizure.

Video released in Charlotte stabbing death

Zarutska was attacked while on a commuter train

By A.P. Dillon North State Journal

RALEIGH — Surveillance video showing the stabbing death of a young woman on Charlotte’s light rail system has dominated social media over the past few days.

WBTV obtained the footage from the Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) and released an edited version on Sept. 5. Just before 10 p.m. on Aug. 22, police said Ukrainian asylum seeker Iryna Zarutska, 23, was stabbed by 34-year-old Decarlos Brown Jr. in an unprovoked attack. Zarutska, who died from the injuries, was attacked within minutes of taking her seat on the train and stabbed three times, with at least one blow to the neck. She was taking the train to head home after nishing her shift at Zepeddie’s Pizzeria. According to her obituary,

NC Education o cials release K-12 testing results

Most pro ciency scores rose

By A.P. Dillon North State Journal

RALEIGH — The North Carolina K-12 testing results for 2024-25 were released last week, showing some improvements over the previous year.

The N.C. Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) released the results during the N.C. State Board of Education’s Sept. 3 meeting. “I’m proud of our students and educators who have worked hard to improve these metrics even as we acknowledge that our students are more than test scores,” said state Superintendent Mo Green.

“While the progress and growth shown in these reports deserves praise, we must continue our work to promote excellence for all students,” Green said. “Our plan is to Achieve Educational Excellence — for every child in North Carolina and to have the best public schools in the nation. I am eager to see this data continue to improve as we work to implement our strategic plan.”

The impacts of lost instructional days and testing waivers due to Hurricane Helene on certain districts were noted in the data ndings, as was 2024-25 being the rst academic year with no COVID-19 federal funding in the mix.

“While the progress and growth shown in these reports deserves praise, we must continue our work to promote excellence for all students.” Mo Green, state superintendent

Zarutska was a “gifted artist” who loved animals and had immigrated to the United States in August 2022 with her mother, sister and brother to escape war in her country. Brown, who is homeless, has been charged with rst-degree murder and is being held without bond. A past arrest involving a false 911 call where he told responding o cers he was being controlled by a “man-made” substance in his body has led to speculation he su ers from mental illness.

Following release of the footage, Charlotte’s Democratic Mayor Vi Lyles issued a lengthy statement that addressed Zarutska’s death in the opening sentence with her “thoughts and prayers” to the young woman’s family and friends. The rest of the statement went on to focus on the homeless and mental health of the assailant.

“Charlotte is by and large a safe city,” Lyles said. “CATS, by and large, is a safe

Iryna

See DEATH, page A8

CHARLOTTE AREA TRANSIT SYSTEM VIA AP

Iryna Zarutska, bottom right, sits in front of her attacker, alleged to be Decarlos Brown Jr., on a Charlotte commuter train on Aug. 22.

the word | The things that are above

“Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your hearts on things above! Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things!” Colossians 3:1-2

Paul reminds us that believers in Christ should live a risen life. He says, “Seek the things that are above, where Christ is.” We live on earth, walk its streets, dwell in material houses, eat its fruits, wear earthly fabrics and engage in its business. We nd happiness here.

But there is a life after this—heaven. We cannot see it; no rift in the sky reveals it. Scripture hints at its beauty and blessedness—a world without sorrow, sin, or death. Paul teaches that Christians, while on earth, should begin living this heavenly life.

A friend sent me a Lima Moth, North America’s most beautiful insect, with light green, variegated wings. In its caterpillar state, it was a worm. It died, entered a higher state, and became a butter y. This illustrates a Christian’s life: here, we are earthly; later, heavenly. “The things that are above” belong to this spiritual life, yet we must seek them now.

We belong to heaven, though on earth. In the Lord’s Prayer, we say, “thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” We must do God’s will now, as heaven’s holy ones do. The law of heavenly life should guide us here. Paul says, “Our citizenship is in heaven.” We are strangers and pilgrims on earth. Like tourists abroad, charmed by sights but longing for home, we are heaven’s citizens. Christ is our King; we owe Him allegiance and obedience. We must seek the things above, where He is. We dimly conceive these things. Nothing unloving exists there. “God is love,” and only love lives where God is. First Corinthians 13 glimpses this: “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends.” Love is a thing above, which we must have here. Truth is another. Scripture warns,

“He who utters lies shall perish.” This includes all lies—spoken or in work. A liar is dishonorable, untrusted, shut out from honorable circles. In Revelation, liars are excluded from heaven. Falsehood is contemptible; truth brings honor. Antonio Stradivari, over 250 years ago, made the nest violins, working diligently on every part, seen or unseen, saying he must do his best, or rob God. His aim was that any master holding his violin would be glad Stradivari lived and made them the best. Shakespeare called a spotless reputation the truest treasure, won by honor and truth. Charles William Eliot, the in uential 19th-century Harvard president, stated that an honorable person never harms a woman, exploits the vulnerable, or violates a trust. He is honest, sincere, candid, generous— not only with money but in judgments. Reputation grows from daily deeds. Truth is among the things above we must seek.

Earthly work is not unworthy. The New Testament never condemns secular business. Jesus asked His disciples to stay in the world, kept from its evil. Earning bread is as much a duty as prayer. Work is a means of grace; idleness draws a curse. The heart makes service sacred. A garbage collector may please Christ more than a minister if their heart is devoted. Jesus spent thirty years in carpentry, His heart with the Father. His work was as pleasing as His later ministry.

We please our Master in common tasks as in worship. A poor mother died, leaving her daughter to care for a drunken father and siblings. She was patient and loving, though unable to attend church. Some said Christ would not be pleased without churchgoing. Dying, she worried about meeting Jesus, unable to do both her duties and attend services. Her friend said, “Mary, just show Him your hands!” Her faithful hands told her story. Church is a duty—Christ meets us there. But if duties like caring for others prevent attendance, do not fear. Hands that serve and bless are like Christ’s. The things of love are the things above.

This life may seem impossible, but no divine command is. Entering heaven’s kingdom means doing heaven’s things here. It is not easy, but in doing God’s will, we learn better. When a discouraged pupil slept beside an un nished painting, the master nished it. So our Master, when we fall short, adds His touch, making our e orts beautiful. Seek the things above, and your life will grow heavenly, fully learned in glory.

J. R. Miller (1840-1912) was a pastor and former editorial superintendent of the Presbyterian Board of Publication from 1880 to 1911. His works are now in the public domain. This is an edited version of his original.

“Some of the greatest leaders ever to shape the history of the U.S. came out of schools that were in one room and at a church.”

“EduBuilder” is a new project by Parents for Educational Freedom in North Carolina

By A.P. Dillon North State Journal

RALEIGH — A nonprof-

it that has worked to facilitate North Carolina’s Opportunity Scholarship grant program is now seeking to expand private school seat capacity in rural areas of the state.

Last week, Parents for Educational Freedom in North Carolina (PEFNC) rolled out “EduBuilder,” described as a “ rst-of-its-kind initiative designed to help edupreneurs overcome barriers to starting and expanding private schools” across North Carolina.

“EduBuilder represents a bold next step for advancing educational freedom in North Carolina,” PEFNC President Mike Long said in a press release. “As demand for school choice grows, families need more private school seats so that scholarships trans-

late into real opportunities.” Long told North State Journal that EduBuilder is an attempt to “get the ball rolling” to address what he believes could be “a very big problem in the next two to three years” regarding scholar-

Awet Hagos’ arrest was the subject of a letter to former President Joe Biden

By A.P. Dillon North State Journal

RALEIGH — An illegal immigrant who was arrested following a stando with Gates County Sheri ’s deputies and North Carolina State Troopers in March 2024 is scheduled to be deported. Awet Hagos was taken into custody by deputies on Mar. 11,

ship grant award money that is available versus limited private school seat capacity.

Long named Renee Grifth, the founder and executive director of Cornerstone Christian Academy, to head

up the EduBuilder initiative.

Cornerstone Christian Academy is in its 31st year of operation, and Gri th also serves on the National Accrediting Board for the Association of Christian Teachers and Schools and on the advisory board of The Boys Initiative.

Gri th told North State Journal she believes she was selected to head up EduBuilder because the learning center model used by Cornerstone is “very adaptable to rural areas.”

“It’s a learning center model,” explained Gri th. “So instead of having a classroom, we operate a learning center, and a learning center has a combination of grades and students are taught individually rather than in a group, and so it works well in small areas where maybe the facility is small and it would not logistically be possible to put a classroom for each grade.”

Gri th noted that when schools began in the United States, they were often students of all ages in one room, typically in a church setting.

“Some of the greatest leaders ever to shape the history of the U.S. came out of schools

Renee Gri th, PEFNC EduBuilder leader

that were in one room and at a church,” Gri th added.

Starting work on the project in mid-August, Gri th said she has already had several conversations with interested parties.

“I’ve already spoken to numerous organizations and churches and people,” Gri th said. “And I’ve currently identied about 1,000 seats that we can expand in the next year, and so I’m working with them.” Gri th said EduBuilder will focus on rural areas that have a location available but may not know how to get started. She named Benson, Ellenboro and outlying areas around Hickory as places where there was active interest in expanding school choice.

“Those are some of the key areas where we started looking,” said Gri th, adding she is also waiting for some data about underserved areas from the conservative John Locke Foundation.

2024, after a four-hour stando . The incident began after Gates County Sheri ’s O ce (GCSO) received a call there was a man ring a gun outside of convenience store who was later identi ed as Hagos. Hagos, who entered the country illegally and is from Eritrea, was charged with three counts each of assault on a government o cial and resisting a public ofcer, and one count of carrying a concealed weapon.

At the time of his arrest, he was issued a $100,000 secured bond, which he did not post and was taken to the Albemarle Dis-

trict Jail. Additionally, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) placed a detainer hold on Hagos, News of the arrest reached then-Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, who issued a letter to former President Joe Biden expressing

concern that Hagos may be on the terror watch list based on information from the GCSO. The Biden administration did not respond to Robinson’s letter. North State Journal found courts records showing Hagos had been convicted and then sentenced to 60 days in jail on Oct. 7, 2024. Hagos was subsequently released after being credited for 60 days he had already spent in custody awaiting trial.

In response to an email inquiry by North State Journal, an ICE spokesperson wrote, “Awet Hagos remains in ICE custody awaiting removal. He was arrested by ICE and taken into custody on October 9, 2024. An immigration judge has ordered him removed.”

According to ICE records, Hagos is currently in the

in

COURTESY GATES COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE Awet Hagos

COURTESY PHOTOS

PEFNC President Mike Long and Cornerstone Christian Academy founder Renee Gri th lead EduBuilder.

“Christ in the House of His Parents” by John Everett Millais is a painting in the collection of Tate Britain, London.

PUBLIC DOMAIN

Panel extends Winston-Salem/ Forsyth debt interest grace period

The State Board of Education panel pushed the 1% interest penalty to Nov. 20

By A.P. Dillon North State Journal

RALEIGH — A three-member panel of the North Carolina State Board of Education decided to extend the grace period on the $3.4 million Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools owes the N.C. Department of Public Instruction.

The money owed by the district is part of a $46 million budget de cit, and its current budget is estimated at roughly $800 million. A state audit also revealed material weaknesses, including unbudgeted spending and a sharp decline in fund balances.

The panel, which met Sept. 2, was chaired by State Board of Education member John Blackburn, who was joined by the board’s chair, Eric Davis, and board member Jill Camnitz.

The panel heard from both the N.C. Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) and Deanna Kaplan, chair of the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools board (WSFCS), along with a presentation by Dionne Tunstall Jenkins, the district’s general counsel.

NCDPI said in a press release that “students achieved a three-year high in most standardized tests at the end of the 2024-25 academic year.”

The data shows that the four-year cohort graduation rate rose to 87.7%, up 0.7% from 2023-24. The new graduation rate is the “highest in the past 10 years,” according to NCDPI, however; the graduation target for 2024-25 was 91.4%. For the third year in a row, Asian students were the only subgroup to hit and exceed their four-year Cohort Graduation rate target.

Green’s Strategic Plan has set an ambitious goal of a 92% four-year graduation rate, but data from the past seven school years shows graduation rate targets have never been met.

End-of-grade and end-ofcourse testing is scored on ve levels, with only level three or above being considered grade level pro cient (GLP). If a student scores above a four, they are considered to have met “career and college readiness” requirements.

Compared to 2023–24 results, GLP on various end-of-grade tests mostly saw positive gains. Like the results from the past two years, the report found that despite some gains, no grade met its target goals in reading and math for grades 3-8.

The resolution directs city sta to “uphold the 4th amendment at their workplace and city agencies and report back to Council any barriers to e ective training on the 4th Amendment for any departments.”

The resolution also makes the claim that Immigration and Customs Enforcements (ICE) “recently engaged in a pattern of unconstitutional, warrantless workplace searches” that disrupted workplaces, including in Durham.

ICE has not responded to a request for comment.

On July 23, a plainclothes ICE agent showed up at the Durham Courthouse and detained an illegal immigrant who is a convicted felon and had a court date for domestic violence assault charge. The man was not arrested at that time.

When it became known ICE was at the courthouse, Durham County Board of Commissioners Member Nida Allam posted a warning on X that read, “Everyone be aware: ICE agents in plain clothes are at the Durham County Courthouse.”

The NCGOP responded to her

NCDPI sta , including state Superintendent Mo Green, laid out the timeline of the money owed and the policies requiring repayment. Green called the balance owed by WSFCS “unprecedented.”

NCDPI revoked WSFCS’s access to the cash request system in May due to the overdrafts’ severity and switched to a reimbursement basis for June.

As of June 30, WSFCS owed the State Public School Fund more than $11.3 million. The district had asked NCDPI to waive any penalties in July, which was rejected by NCDPI.

WSFCS formally appealed the imposition of a 1% interest penalty dictated by State Board Policy ALOT-002 on Aug. 17.

Ten days later, the district later back $7.925 million with money approved by Forsyth County commissioners, leaving a remaining balance of more than $3.4 million, which prompted NCDPI to o er a grace period through Sept. 20.

Policy ALOT-002 mandates repayment of overdrafts by the fth working day of the following month and imposes a 1% monthly penalty.

Since NCDPI had implemented new nancial systems, a “one-year hiatus” on assessing overdraft penalties and WSFCS wasn’t assessed penalties from July 2024 to June 30, 2025, on its overdrafts. If penalties had

been assessed, WSFCS would have accrued $900,000 for the 2024-25 scal year.

The presentation given by Jenkins centered on a nautical “perfect storm” theme.

“If we’re required to pay a 1% penalty on top of what is owed to the state already, then for every hole that we x on our ship, a new one will begin to leak,” Jenkins told the panel. Jenkins o ered the panel four options for WSFCS to repay the money:

• Option A would waive interest penalty entirely.

• Option B would delay the penalty until Jan. 1, 2027 (36 months).

• Option C would delay the penalty but defer payments until September 2028 and would be accompanied by a repayment plan.

• Option D requested a modi cation of state board policy of a 1% monthly compounding interest to a 1% annual assessment.

Davis asked Kaplan if there was a plan for repayment of the $3.4 million, to which she responded they were “looking into the community to help us pay some of that back.” Jenkins said they do not yet have a plan.

End-of-grade reading results

Grade 3 saw a decrease from 48.6% to 46.6%, but there were increases in fourth (52.6% to 57.8%), fth (50.2% to 52.7%), sixth (49.4% to 52.1%), seventh (48.3% to 51.8%) and eighth (51.3% to 54.0%) grades.

End-of-grade mathematics results

Statewide GLP (level three and up) increased across all grades over the 2023–24 results: Grade 3 (62.4% to 63.8%), Grade 4 (56.4% to 58.7%),

post, accusing her of “doxing” ICE agents for doing their jobs and called it “An UNACCEPTABLE action taken by an elected o cial.”

Durham Mayor Leo Williams also showed up to the courthouse and stated that ICE was “instilling widespread fear and uncertainty.”

A few hours after the ICE agent sighting at the courthouse, individuals with Siembra NC showed up to protest the man being detained by ICE. Later that day, a few dozen protesters marched through Durham. Siembra NC is a nonprofit that is a “grassroots organization focused on defending our communities from abusive employers and landlords, ICE, and bad politicos,” according to its website. The original text of that page said Siembra NC was “born in 2017 in response to Trump’s war on immigrants and the gap in support and resources for the broader Latinx community in North Carolina.”

The group is based in Greensboro and “operates primarily” in Alamance, Durham, Forsyth, Guilford, Orange, Wake, Randolph and Rockingham counties. Siembra NC, a left-leaning or-

“If we’re required to pay a 1% penalty on top of what is owed to the state already, then for every hole that we x on our ship, a new one will begin to leak.”

Dionne Tunstall Jenkins, WSFCS general counsel

Davis also asked when repayments could begin, and Jenkins indicated the earliest would be next July. Kaplan said there had been discussion about a 1% tax increase to help pay o the debt.

After a lengthy closed session to deliberate, the panel returned and Blackburn announced its decision to extend the grace period instead of one of the options WSFCS had suggested.

“We’ll now call for a motion to recommend to the full state board that it extend the grace period to the Winston board on the outstanding $3.4 million to DPI to Nov. 20, 2025,” Blackburn said.

During the board’s scheduled Sept. 4 meeting, the recommendations of the panel were presented.

Prior to the board voting on the panel’s recommendation,

pre-pandemic levels but dipped slightly from last year, going from 59.5% to 59.4%.

Biology, which also had standards changes, saw scores drop more than 5 points, going from 53.4% in 2023-24 to 48.3% this year.

Math 1’s overall GLP dropped from 51% in 2023-24 to 49.6% in 2024-25.

Math 3’s GLP was up nearly nine points over last year, going from 57.6% to 66.4%.

The ACT composite remained stable at 18.0, while WorkKeys rose nearly a point to 65.7%, up from 64.9% in 2023-24. Green’s Strategic Plan has a goal of reaching an average ACT score of 20 by 2030.

Grade 5 (57.8% to 59.0%), Grade 6 (54.1% to 57.0%), Grade 7 (50.4% to 53.4%), Grade 8 (46.7% to 48.5%).

End-of-grade science results

New standards for science were implemented in 2024–25, which invalidated making comparisons to prior years. GLP for Grade 5 came in at 62.0% and 60.0% for Grade 8.

Other testing results

English II’s GLP remained largely unchanged compared to

School growth and performance grades

Just over 70% of schools met or exceeded their growth expectations, with 1,083 schools meeting growth expectations and 714 schools exceeded expectations. These results are statistically like those of the previous school year.

In North Carolina, school grades are given on a fteen-point scale: A 85-100; B 70-84; C 55-69; D 40-54; and F 39 or less. The grades are based on individual school achievement scores, which are a combination of two weighted compo -

member Olivia Oxendine commented on the appeal.

“If you serve on this board in any capacity or even anyone listening or in the audience, I think it is important that you take some time to read the state auditor’s report,” Oxendine said, adding nance was not her wheelhouse, but the report was easy to understand.

Oxendine also said that, in her opinion, the WSFCS school board did not protect taxpayer resources.

“I was appalled in reading the eight ndings,” Oxendine said referring to the state audit. She added that “a lot of human error occurred,” and the audit “really needs to be a case study” that can “serve as an example of how not govern the resources provided by this great state.”

Oxendine recommended that the monthly stipends of the WSFCS school board members be donated to help pay o the debt.

When the board returned from closed session, the panel’s appeal recommendation to extend the grace period was approved by a vote of 5-4, but with an addition.

N.C. State Treasurer Brad Briner made a motion to amend the panel’s recommendation by adding a 0.4% interest race on the outstanding balance. That accrual would start on Oct. 1.

The board also unanimously approved a motion for the Department of Public Instruction to coordinate an investigation into the internal nancial controls used by WSFCS.

Board member Catty Moore recused herself on the votes because she is currently serving as the district’s interim superintendent.

nents: 80% test scores and 20% student academic growth. The A-F grading system has received criticism for being too shallow in only using two criteria. Green’s predecessor, Catherine Truitt, had pitched a redesign of the grading system, and a select House education committee at the General Assembly had recommended similar changes in their study report. Despite that work, lawmakers have yet to act.

This year’s data spans 2,584 schools, of which 1,040 (40.2%) received a grade of C. The next largest block was 681 (26.4%) schools receiving a D, followed by 535 (20.7%) schools receiving a B and 196 (7.6%) receiving an A. There were 132 (5.1%) schools that received an F. Schools in North Carolina receiving a D or an F for two out of three consecutive years are considered “low performing.” If more than half the schools in a district receive that rating, the district they reside in may also be considered low performing.

This year 483 schools and 18 districts were considered low performing, down from 504 schools and 23 districts last year. The data is available at NCDPI Accountability Dashboards at tinyurl.com/nsj-ncdpi.

ganization, reported more than $1.121 million in revenues in 2023. That tax year, Siembra received $100,000 from George Soros’ Open Society Action Fund and $600,000 from Soros’ Tides Foundations. The group has also received money from two funds run by dark money pass-through Arabella Advisors: Sixteen Thirty Fund ($75,000 in 2022 and $50,000 in 2021) and Windward Fund ($300,000 in 2022). Siembra NC’s “Make NC

Work” project to make cities “Fourth Amendment Workplaces” is mentioned directly in the Durham resolution. In a February thread on X, North Carolina Congressman Mark Harris (R-Indian Trail) called Siembra NC a nongovernmental organization (NGO) that was “openly impeding ICE immigration enforcement and helping illegal aliens.” Durham is the second North Carolina city to pass such a reso-

lution. At its May 20 meeting, the Carrboro Town Council passed a similarly worded measure. Like Durham, the Carrboro resolution references Siembra NC’s “Make NC Work” Fourth Amendment project. Such resolutions may be legally binding on city or town sta but cannot legally block or restrict ICE or other federal agents from performing their duties.

At least 15 arrests of illegal immigrants in North Carolina have been made public by ICE on the “worst of the worst” page on the agency’s website, including one in Durham County.

“ICE Atlanta arrested Ramon Lopez-Ruiz, a 48-year-old Mexican criminal alien, on Aug. 15,” the ICE website says. “He’s been convicted of tra cking cocaine in Durham County, North Carolina, and was sentenced to 35 to 51 months in prison.”

Various sources have reported ICE arrests totaling between 1,600 and more than 1,800 in North Carolina this year as of mid-July. ICE data shows that the Atlanta o ce — which covers the southeast, including North Carolina — shows 1,625 arrests and 1,723 detentions for criminality so far in scal year 2025.

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TESTING from page A1

COURTESY NCDPI

The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction released its annual report that showed testing results, graduation rates and more for the 2024-25 academic year.

J. SCOTT APPLEWHITE / AP PHOTO

Durham Mayor Leo Williams, pictured at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago last August, supports the city’s new resolution meant to combat ICE raids.

NATION & WORLD

Report outlines DEI impact on US medical schools

DEI’s use in admissions and hiring “jeopardize public health outcomes”

By A.P. Dillon North State Journal

RALEIGH — A new report issued by the James G. Martin Center outlines how diversity, equity and inclusion at medical schools in the United States compromises “academic standards, undermine merit-based admissions and hiring, and jeopardize public health outcomes.”

“Medical education must prioritize competence, not ideology,” Jenna A. Robinson, James G. Martin Center president said in a press release. “This report reveals the extent to which DEI policies are weakening the physician pipeline at a time when Americans need highly skilled, well-trained doctors.”

Authored by Martin Center Senior Fellow Jay Schalin, the report, “An End to Excellence: How Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Undermine Our Medical Schools,” looked at the 10 top-ranked American medical schools with respect to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs and policies.

The schools in the report include Harvard Medical School, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, University of California at San Francisco School of Medicine,

University of Michigan Medical School, Stanford University School of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Yale School of Medicine, David Ge en School of Medicine at the University of California at Los Angeles and Weill Cornell Medicine.

Schalin’s report examines how DEI policies, described as an aggressive extension of afrmative action, have eroded meritocracy in the nation’s medical schools by prioritizing race, gender and ideologies in areas like admissions, faculty hiring, curricula and student programs, potentially leading to less competent physicians and compromised health care.

Overall, the report delves into DEI’s real-world impacts, such as discriminatory admissions favoring underrepresented groups with lower MCAT

300 Hyundai workers detained at plant will return to South Korea

The Georgia facility was raided immigration o cials

By Hyung-Jin Kim

The Associated Press

SEOUL, South Korea — More than 300 South Korean workers detained following a massive immigration raid at a Hyundai plant in Georgia will be released and brought home, the South Korean government announced Sunday.

Kang Hoon-sik, chief of sta for President Lee Jae Myung, said South Korea and the U.S. had nalized negotiations on the workers’ release. He said South Korea plans to send a charter plane to bring the workers home as soon as remaining administrative steps are completed.

South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said that Seoul and Washington are discussing details on allowing all the detained workers to return on a voluntary basis. Foreign Minister Cho Hyun traveled to the U.S. earlier in the week for talks related to the workers’ releases.

U.S. immigration authorities said last Friday they detained 475 people, most of them South Korean nationals, when hun-

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transit system. However, tragic incidents like these should force us to look at what we are doing across our community to address root causes. We will never arrest our way out of issues such as homelessness and mental health. … I want to be clear that I am not villainizing those who struggle with their mental health or those who are unhoused.”

Lyles issued a second statement Monday in which she said in part that, “what we know is that this was a tragic failure by

dreds of federal agents raided Hyundai’s sprawling manufacturing site in Georgia where the Korean automaker makes electric vehicles. Agents focused on a plant that is still under construction at which Hyundai has partnered with LG Energy Solution to produce batteries that power EVs.

Cho said that more than 300 South Koreans were among the detained.

The operation was the latest in a long line of workplace raids conducted as part of the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda. But the one last Thursday is especially distinct because of its large size and because the targeted site has been touted as Georgia’s largest economic development project.

The raid stunned many in South Korea because the country is a key U.S. ally. It agreed in July to purchase $100 billion in U.S. energy and make a $350 billion investment in the U.S. in return for the U.S. lowering tari rates.

U.S. President Donald Trump said perhaps the U.S. could work out an arrangement with South Korean workers who would train U.S. citizens to do work such as battery and computer manufacturing.

the courts and magistrates.” She also said the security presence would be increase on CATS, and at least 30 additional security personnel would be added in the coming months. “E ective immediately, CATS security personnel will be re-deployed for a stronger presence on Blue Line platforms and to increase fare enforcement,” Lyles said. The Charlotte City Council is set to meet Sept. 22 to consider expanding police patrols on public transportation like CATS. Gov. Josh Stein said a Sept.

Pedestrians walk toward the Harvard Medical School, one of the universities analyzed in James G. Martin Center report, in 2022.

scores and GPAs, and notes the pushback from schools over state anti-DEI laws and President Donald Trump’s executive orders on ending DEI in higher education.

The key ndings include DEI being “entrenched” in the top institutions examined in the report, as well as DEI being “embedded” in medical courses, “often displacing core scientific content.”

The ndings also state that medical school faculty are increasingly hired for ideological reasons rather than on academic merit, and that some schools require “anti-racism” training and ideological or progressive cause “loyalty statements.”

The report also found the use of merit took a back seat to ful lling racial and other demographic preferences in admissions practices, which violates the Supreme Court’s 2023 ruling in the Students for Fair

Admissions cases against the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill and Harvard University. The ruling e ectively ended a rmative action admissions by prohibiting racial discrimination in university admissions.

To rectify the situation, Schalin’s recommendations include elimination of all DEI policies in medical schools, including possibly statutory intervention, along with mandating use of “objective” admissions criteria like MCAT scores, and ditching loyalty and diversity statements.

Schalin also says public transparency when it comes to data on hiring, admissions and other school metrics needs to be enforced, as well as the institution of oversight tools like audits and the monitoring of course materials, websites and handbooks.

Another recommendation is for schools to use “race -blind” admissions procedures to keep admissions objective and merit-based, and to ensure DEI in medical education doesn’t compromise fairness and competence.

“DEI, by any name, is blatantly and obviously anti-meritocratic; it openly substitutes such characteristics as race and gender for talent and achievement. The concept of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion fails on two fundamental principles,” the report’s conclusion states in part.

“Doctors simply must be chosen from among the most intellectually gifted and studious individuals in society, the report says in closing. “It’s time to bring back pure meritocracy in medical schools. Our lives depend on it — literally.”

COREY BULLARD / U.S. IMMIGRATION AND CUSTOMS ENFORCEMENT VIA AP Manufacturing plant employees are escorted outside the Hyundai Motor Group’s electric vehicle plant by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement o cials last Thursday in Ellabell, Georgia.

“If you don’t have people in this country right now that know about batteries, maybe we should help them along and let some people come in and train our people,” Trump said Sunday night at Andrews Air Force Base. He added that “the way you train people is bring people in that know what they’re doing, let them stay for a little while and help.”

Video released by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Saturday showed a caravan of vehicles driving up to the site and then federal agents directing workers to line up outside. Some detainees were ordered to put their hands up against a bus as they were frisked and then shackled around

8 post on X he was “heartbroken” for the family and “appalled” at the footage of the murder before segueing into a pitch for the legislature to pass the policing portion of his budget proposal.

House Speaker Destin Hall (R-Granite Falls), responded to Stein’s remarks, writing, “Crazy idea: stop coddling violent criminals and actually enforce the damn law.”

“Iryna’s murderer had been arrested FOURTEEN TIMES. Social justice warriors in the judicial system let him back out on

Missouri latest state trying to redraw districts

Je erson City, Mo.

Missouri’s Republican-led House has passed a plan to redraw the state’s congressional districts at the urging of President Donald Trump. The plan approved Tuesday now moves to the state Senate and could give Republicans a shot at winning almost all of Missouri’s U.S. House seats. The mid-decade redistricting is part of an emerging national trend, following similar e orts in Republican-led Texas and Democratic-led California. Missouri’s plan targets a Kansas City district held by a Democratic congressman by stretching it into rural Republican areas and reducing its minority voters. The Missouri NAACP has sued to try to stop the special legislative session.

Okla. school bus carrying softball team crashes, 7 hurt Minco, Okla. A school bus carrying softball team members in Oklahoma crashed into a deer and overturned, ejecting some passengers and injuring seven people, the state highway patrol said. The crash happened Monday night on U.S. Highway 152 near Minco in Grady County, about 40 miles southwest of Oklahoma City. One adult who was ejected from the bus remained in critical condition Tuesday morning, and four students were listed in stable condition, o cials said. A total of 17 passengers were on the bus when it overturned.

Macron appoints Defense minister as France’s new PM

their hands, ankles and waist. Most of the people detained were taken to an immigration detention center in Folkston, Georgia, near the Florida state line.

Steven Schrank, the lead Georgia agent of Homeland Security Investigations, said some of the detained workers had illegally crossed the U.S. border, while others had entered the country legally but had expired visas or had entered on a visa waiver that prohibited them from working.

Kang, the South Korean presidential chief of sta , said that South Korea will push to review and improve visa systems for those traveling to the U.S. on business trips for investment projects.

the streets,” Hall wrote. “Time to clean up the courts.”

“We are taking a close look at legislative action to address the public safety failures in Charlotte that led to the horri c murder of Iryna Zarutska,” Demi Dowdy, Hall’s communications director, told North State Journal. “The people of Charlotte deserve better than soft on crime policies that left Ms. Zarutska vulnerable to a violent repeat o ender.” Brown had an extensive violent criminal history of more than a dozen arrests dating back

Paris French President Macron late Tuesday appointed Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu as France’s new prime minister and tasked him with immediately trying to get the country’s fractious political parties to agree on a budget for one of the world’s biggest economies. Lecornu, 39, was the youngest defense minister in French history and architect of a major military buildup through 2030, spurred by Russia’s war in Ukraine. A longtime Macron loyalist, Lecornu is now France’s fourth prime minister in barely a year. A former conservative who joined Macron’s centrist movement in 2017, Lecornu has held posts in local governments and overseas territories.

to 2011, including a ve-year prison term for a robbery he committed using a deadly weapon.

On Tuesday, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced Brown would face federal charges in the attack.

“I have directed my attorneys to federally prosecute DeCarlos Brown Jr., a repeat violent offender with a history of violent crime, for murder,” Bondi said in a statement. “We will seek the maximum penalty for this unforgivable act of violence — he will never again see the light of day as a free man.”

DEATH

CHARLES KRUPA / AP PHOTO

THE CONVERSATION

Trip Ho end, publisher | Frank Hill, senior opinion editor

VISUAL VOICES

EDITORIAL | FRANK HILL

A lifetime of for betters or worses in about 3 months’ time

If and when you hear of someone in distress of any kind, you should just pick up your phone to call them and tell them you love them.

OUR YOUNGEST SON got married recently. When they got to the promise in their vows to be faithful for better or for worse, it had a certain poignancy this year for me. When you are in your 20s getting married, those “for betters” and “for worses” seem like they will be spread out evenly over a century ahead of you.

Watching them get married was certainly one of the major “for betters” in my wife and my life together, just as it was watching our other two sons get married and start their own families in years gone by.

Unfortunately, in late May around Memorial Day, I fell ill almost without any symptoms or indications and had to be hospitalized for a short while. One of the major “for worses” in our lifetime, for sure.

The great news on the for better side of the ledger was that two days prior to being hospitalized, our sixth grandchild and third granddaughter was born healthy and doing ne — a major “for better” in life.

Of course, I was still recovering from all the treatment from the hospital and missed out on a lot of the premarriage celebration and watching the baby come home, but I did survive the onslaught of

EDITORIAL | STACEY MATTHEWS

Charlotte

this unexpected illness with the help of some very talented doctors and sta at WakeMed.

Aside from that being a “for better” part of life, I also was on the receiving end of endless kind words, visits and prayers from friends, family and well-wishers from all parts of my life, past and present. The huge lesson I learned from all of these kind people is that part of the “for worse” side of the ledger of life is that those events and situations set the stage for these good people to do all the nice things mentioned above and become part of the “for better” side of life going forward.

That is not to say that anyone should wish for negative things to happen in their lives, but they are simply a part of regular life, and we all have to face them at some time or another. How we respond to them is how we de ne ourselves as people and how we help friends and colleagues make it through the tough times of life as well as the good ones.

We are as a much a product of our relationships and friendships as anything else in human development.

In his book “On the Road with Saint Augustine”, James K. A. Smith explores the

murder case finally gets some national attention

The crime has rocked Charlotte ahead of the city council and mayoral elections slated for November.

CRIME ISSUES are back in the spotlight, thanks in no small part to President Donald Trump taking action to federalize law enforcement in Washington, D.C., in August after a series of high-pro le violent crimes in the nation’s capital.

Touting the successes of his D.C. crime crackdown, Trump has talked about the possibility of initiating similar crackdowns in other crime hotspots like Chicago and New York City, which, of course, has prompted pushback from Democratic leaders in those cities and their respective governors.

While the debate over the legality of such a move is ongoing, another blue city with crime issues of its own has made national headlines after a shocking video was released of a murder that took place last month on the Charlotte light rail system.

Twenty-three-year-old Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska boarded the light rail car on Aug. 22, shortly before 10 p.m. Zarutska, whose family says she had recently ed Ukraine to make a better life here, had just nished her shift at a local pizzeria and presumably was trying to head home.

She never made it.

Four and a half minutes after she got on the train, a man sitting directly behind her, identi ed as 34-year-old Decarlos Brown Jr.,

pulled out a knife and stabbed her three times, killing her, in what police say was a random attack where the victim and suspect had no interactions.

The sheer randomness, brazenness and senselessness of the crime has rocked Charlotte ahead of the city council and mayoral elections slated for November.

The city’s mayor, Democrat Vi Lyles, who is up for reelection, did herself no favors with a soft-on-crime statement she issued four days after the murder, spending one whole sentence on the victim before spending several paragraphs talking about mental health and homelessness, and how the homeless shouldn’t be stigmatized.

“We will never arrest our way out (of) issues such homelessness and mental health,” she wrote. And for good measure, she added, “Also, those who are unhoused are more frequently the victim of crimes and not the perpetrators.”

A better and less tone-deaf statement would have included something about how a city cannot solve its crime problems if it keeps arresting and releasing violent repeat o enders like Brown, who was known to local law enforcement. He had 14 prior arrests including one over an alleged mental health episode where he called 911 to report a “man-made material” he said

interaction between a young Augustine as he was struggling with his conversion to Christianity and his longtime friends, some of whom were confused by his decision and wanted him to return to the fun-loving, free- owing life they had all enjoyed before Augustine started his search for truth and relationship with his mentor, Ambrose. Some people want to guide you with suggestions and exhortations to become the best person God made you to become, and those are the ones with whom you want to surround yourself on a daily basis.

If and when you hear of someone in distress of any kind, you should just pick up your phone to call them and tell them you love them, or get on the next plane and go in person to see them and tell them the same thing. Prayer works miracles, and so does close personal contact and heartfelt words of love and friendship.

Those are the “for better” moments of life, even if they come after some dark moment of a “for worse” moment. Every supportive comment, phone call or prayer I have heard in the last three months has been as sweet and appreciative as any of the highlights most people can think of that have happened in their lifetime.

was inside his body and controlling him.

Thanks to the video’s release last Friday and because members of the Trump administration, including DOT Secretary Sean Du y, are now weighing in on the case, national media outlets are nally paying attention. It has shined a harsh glare on a blue city in a reddish-purple state, one where Democratic leaders tend to spend more time focusing on so-called issues like equity and social justice, and far too little on crime.

“Charlotte’s Mayor doesn’t want the media to show you the ugly truth,” Du y wrote in response to a tweet from Lyles. “Why? Because she and other public o cials in her city bear responsibility.

“This monster had a track record longer than a CVS receipt, including prison time for robbery with a dangerous weapon, breaking and entering, and larceny. By failing to properly punish him, Charlotte failed Iryna Zarutska and North Carolinians.”

Considering the priorities of Democrat o cials in this city, I’m not optimistic we’ll soon see any meaningful change come on the public safety front as a result of this tragic case. But one thing that is for sure is that Zarutska’s murder is on the radar of the Trump administration now, which means Democratic o cials in N.C. won’t be able to sweep it under the rug anytime soon, if at all.

North Carolina native Stacey Matthews has also written under the pseudonym Sister Toldjah and is a media analyst and regular contributor to RedState and Legal Insurrection.

Trump is most consequential energy president in US history

Trump’s policy turnabout is also having major impacts on the international banking sector.

JUST EIGHT MONTHS into his second presidency, a strong case can be made that President Donald Trump must now be considered the most consequential energy president in U.S. history. A convergence of major recent international events helps prove the case.

New Lloyd’s of London CEO Patrick Tiernan moved this week to scrap the net-zero policies invoked by his predecessor, an obvious concession to the sea change in energy and climate policy direction underway in the second presidency of Trump.

Lloyd’s previous CEO, John Neal, put in place policies requiring that participants in the Lloyd’s insurance market quit insuring energy projects that don’t conform to the net-zero goals laid out by the 2016 Paris Climate Accords by the year 2030. Neal further pledged to transform the entire Lloyd’s insurance market into a pure netzero business model by 2050.

“It is important that Lloyd’s remains apolitical,” Tiernan said of the company’s change in direction. “The 2050 targets are government targets. We operate in multiple jurisdictions under di erent governments with di erent targets. We have to operate under the policies and the laws of where we operate.”

Obviously, the policies and laws in the United States, the market in which so many Lloyd’s insurers maintain major interests, have undergone a seismic shift since Trump took o ce in January, a shift that seems destined to continue for at least the next 40 months and possibly for years longer. Trump’s policy turnabout has had major impacts on the U.S. energy picture starting almost from his rst day in o ce, and now the impacts are being felt internationally.

This move by Lloyd’s is far from the only recent signal that major changes are underway.

Another bit of proof came from British major oil company Shell, which announced last Wednesday it will abandon its planned biofuels project in Rotterdam after a commercial and technical evaluation deemed it no longer competitive in a rapidly shifting marketplace. The facility was already under construction and would have become the largest biofuels plant on Earth if completed.

Shell and its fellow UK-based major, BP, have both responded to the shifting direction of the net-zero globalist ambition by dramatically scaling back their renewables investments and reallocating capital back to their core oil and gas businesses in an e ort to become more competitive with U.S. majors ExxonMobil and Chevron. It’s a race in which BP especially has

COLUMN | DAVID HARSANYI

fallen far behind and is now struggling to regain lost ground.

The Trump revolution has also had a big impact on wind developers that are majority owned by other governments, like Denmark’s Orsted and Norway’s Equinor. Equinor was forced in July to take a write-down of almost $1 billion related to its U.S. o shore wind ventures in the face of the Trump administration’s multipronged assault on that sector, one of former President Joe Biden’s biggest energy-related ambitions.

Orsted, meanwhile, having failed to attract investors to assume big pieces of its own U.S. o shore projects, is now pursuing a $9.4 billion rights issue that constitutes roughly 70% of the company’s full current market value. Orsted’s U.S. struggles also complicate Equinor’s business planning since the Norwegian company owns 10% of its Danish competitor. Fortunately for Orsted, Equinor recently pledged to plow another $1 billion into the rights issue to maintain its ownership percentage; otherwise, Equinor would have seen its position signi cantly diluted.

Trump’s policy turnabout is also having major impacts on the international banking sector. In late August, the UN-backed Net Zero Banking Alliance announced it was pausing operations amid a ood of high-pro le members rushing to abandon the cause, leading to speculation that it will soon collapse entirely.

It wasn’t hard to see all these dramatic changes and many others coming once it became obvious the United States was changing its policy direction. America’s outsized economy and consumer market have always given it outsized in uence on global events. That in uence only becomes magni ed when the Oval O ce is held by a president with Trump’s keen understanding of the power of leverage and the willingness to deploy it.

It all adds up to make Trump, without any question at all, the most consequential energy policy president in U.S. history, both at home and abroad.

David Blackmon is an energy writer and consultant based in Texas. He spent 40 years in the oil and gas business, where he specialized in public policy and communications. This column was rst published by Daily Caller News Foundation.

Open letter to my esteemed colleagues at the International Association of Genocide Scholars

As highly respected scholars, we should be better than the Gaza Health Ministry.

FRIENDS,

As a member in good standing of the International Association of Genocide Scholars, I am simply appalled by our beloved organization’s resolution declaring the con ict in Gaza a “genocide.” This elite group of academics, researchers and complete randos — I mean, I paid $125 to join this very week — has allowed our once-sterling reputation to be forever tainted.

Why do I speak up? Need it be said that as a member of the International Association of Genocide Scholars, I am apparently one of the “world’s top scholars” on the matter of genocide. It’s not just me saying this! It’s the BBC, as well as virtually every major news organization in the world. An impressive-sounding organizational name is all one needs to get into the papers. None of the reporters bothered to investigate who the “scholars” voting on this resolution were. Not even the names of the draftees were shared — a lack of transparency that undermines our credibility. Take the Jew-baiting “human rights” activist Agnes Callamard of Amnesty International, who contends that an “overwhelming majority of members of the world’s leading genocide scholars” backed a resolution that nds what is happening in Gaza “meet(s) the legal de nition of the crime.”

That is not true. A week ago, I could have voted on the genocide resolution, and my expertise is, let’s face it, predominantly in ’80s and ’90s indie rock.

Indeed, according to our dear former twoterm IAGS advisory board member Sara Brown, only 128 of the association’s approximately 500 members participated. There was no “consensus” on the resolution despite our communications o cer Emily Sample falsely claiming so to The Washington Post. We should really have a meeting about her future at our organization. While we typically debate controversial resolutions in “a virtual town hall” (or so I hear), leadership declined to hold any discussions on this matter, according to Brown. As a member in good standing, I have access to the organization’s LISTSERV, which shows there were zero comments on the resolution before its passage.

The resolution itself is an embarrassing collection of half-truths and lies. It reads like the work of an earnest college freshman

who believes hyperlinking a bunch of biased sources is tantamount to research. We repeat a litany of uncorroborated accusations made by Hamas and others. Remarkably, our resolution goes beyond the accusation of the terrorist organization. Hamas, for instance, has said that 58,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war, including 17,000 children. We contend that Israelis murdered 50,000 children alone, a completely concocted number. But, like Hamas, we don’t bother making any distinction between combatants and innocents. As highly respected scholars, we should be better than the Gaza Health Ministry.

We then cite organizations that have altered their de nition of “genocide” for this con ict to place the burden of proof on Israel rather than those making the accusation. Is this how worldrenowned scholars do their work? Because it seems like a shoddy shortcut. We don’t even link to the work of a single one of our members.

The war, which started when Hamas sent an army into Israel to murder, rape, torture and kidnap civilians, including children, is tragic. But our organization has now created a precedent that makes virtually every con ict a “genocide.” If Israel wanted to commit genocide, it would not be sending hundreds of thousands of metric tons of food and supplies to Palestinians in Gaza. It would not provide clean water and move the population away from war zones. Israel has gone out of its way to avoid civilian casualties while ghting combatants who hide behind noncombatants (something we never mention).

If a handful of unnamed members of our organization are willing to distort reality, not to mention decency, to spread the propaganda of a terrorist state, what is our scholarship really worth? The genocide accusation is a hoax. I think they know it. I think that’s why there was no debate, why the authors of the resolution aren’t named, and why barely anyone voted. We can do better.

Though I noticed as I write this letter that my membership has been rescinded.

Anyway, sincerely, David Harsanyi (former member of the International Association of Genocide Scholars)

David Harsanyi is a senior writer at the Washington Examiner.

Are your children yours?

HAVE YOU EVER seen a ght for custody of a child? The custody hearing we are witnessing as a society is unique. It will determine the future of not just one child enduring the divorce of their parents but possibly the future of all North Carolina children.

The clerk reads the docket, “The State Of North Carolina v. All Parents. The General Assembly is in session.”

The ongoing dispute has lasted for years, with Democrat o cials backing a large, controlling government and Republicans standing for families and parents. The core issue is the ownership rights to our children. At every stage, big government tries to override our authority — school curricula, the names we give to our children, wearing unnecessary masks, making medical decisions and more.

This year was no di erent, and two bills highlighted North Carolina’s ongoing custody battle: House Bill 519, the Parents’ Medical Bill of Rights, and House Bill 636, Promoting Wholesome Content for Students. The debate in both cases centers on who guides the lives of our children — state employees, doctors or parents? Republicans prevailed on parents’ rights, and both bills passed the House.

Let me be clear: I am parentally biased, not politically biased.

Why is the Democrat brass at war with parents? Perhaps it stems from Karl Marx. Marxist venom has in ltrated government, education, social issues and health care. Like Pharaoh in the bible — and all communists, for that matter — they demand control over our children.

H.B. 519 was not my bill, but as a father, it may have been the most important bill for my family this session. My wife and I have three children. Like all normal parents, we are responsible for our children, including making health care decisions. Democrat leaders seem to “crash out” every time that universal truth arises.

Even though H.B. 519 doesn’t go far enough, it makes sense for North Carolina families.

The bill tightens the conditions under which minors may receive medical treatment without parental consent and requires written parental consent for any vaccine administered to minors under 18 that is not fully FDA-approved. It also narrows the scope of services minors can consent to independently and grants parents’ full access to their child’s medical records, including treatments minors consented to — unless the records involve abuse reporting, a valid court order prohibits release, or the parent is under investigation for a crime against the child.

My family has enjoyed great medical care. Yet I can’t imagine leaving what could be some of the most important decisions concerning my children up to even the best medical professionals. Their advice will be considered, but the decision belongs to their father and mother.

H.B. 519 sent a message: Republicans stand with parents and children, while Democrat o cials do not. We should all be horri ed that history indicates that statement is accurate and not simply political hyperbole. History also testi es that family is the living, breathing foundation of our communities, not big government or ideological folly.

Opponents will say I’m projecting intent. However, families have felt the assault of that ideology, and the intent does not “feel” pure. They have wrongly spoken with our children about sex in elementary school, discussed sexual identity alternatives with our preteens, hidden our children’s medical records, asked children about our religion and political preferences at home, performed surgical procedures without our consent, allowed drag shows for children, told sons that they can be daughters, and so on.

Opponents argue that parental rights could place vulnerable minors at risk. They say that by honoring parental rights, we close o critical care for young people in crisis. Their operatives invoke stories, true or not, that break all our hearts to demand that we abdicate our parental rights. The answer is no. We all know that outside of the overwhelmingly few (groomers, pedophiles, sexual deviants and child murderers), North Carolinians are committed to protecting children, and there is no rational basis to obstruct the rights of parents.

This custody battle is unlikely to subside anytime soon. If anything, it will continue echoing through local school boards, parentprincipal meetings and legislative corridors. Parents are the ultimate advocates for their children’s well-being, uniquely equipped to safeguard both their bodies and minds. Parents love their children most, know them best and want what is best for them. Respect that.

The Parental Medical Bill of Rights, H.B. 519, is currently in the Senate. This is my rst term, so I am unsure what that means for the bill’s future. They say no bill is ever dead; however, as a resident since 2006, sadly, that only rings true for liberal initiatives being smuggled in or forced on a conservative constituency.

Our parents and grandparents would never have imagined we would be in a custody battle with the government for our children. Oh, how far we have fallen!

Nevertheless, here we are. Stay alert, don’t lose heart and protect your children.

Rep. Brian Echevarria (R-Cabarrus) represents N.C. House District 82.

Murphy to Manteo Jones & Blount

Everything is ner when made in Carolina

The N.C. Chamber has announced 30 semi nalists for its annual “Coolest Thing Made in NC” online competition, which began with a record-breaking 188 nominees. In the rst round of voting, 12,900 votes were cast across the eld of candidates. This year’s contest has 10 semi nalists in each of three categories: Small Business (1 to 99 employees); Medium Business (100 to 999 employees); and Large Business (1000-plus employees). The Chamber’s website notes this is the sixth year that the publicdriven contest

• Honda Aircraft Company HondaJet Elite II (Greensboro)

• Piedmont Pennies Original Sharp Cheddar Biscuit Bites (Charlotte) 2023

• C.R. Onsrud 5-Axis CNC Machine (Troutman)

• Fjord Inc./Chafe-Pro Static Rope Edge Protection (Burlington)

• Caterpillar Compact Track Loader (Sanford)

• beachBUB Umbrella System (Greensboro)

• Western Star 49X Vocational Truck (Cleveland, NC)

PIEDMONT

Sting yields human tra cking, weapons, drug charges

EAST

E-bike rider hit, killed by truck Watauga County Joseph Clyde Butler, 39, was riding his electric bicycle on Highway 421 near Vanderpool Road when a Ford F-250 hit him just before 9 p.m. on Saturday. Butler was airlifted to a hospital in Winston-Salem, where he died on Sunday. Troopers said he was not wearing a helmet at the time of the crash. The 58-year-old man who was driving the Ford was not hurt. N.C. Highway Patrol said charges were pending. WBTV

N.C. comedian indicted on child pornography charges Catawba County

Hickory-based comedian Jon Reep was indicted last Friday on several charges related to possession of child pornography. Catawba County jail records show the 53-year-old was arrested following an investigation by Hickory Police on one count of seconddegree sexual exploitation of a minor and three counts of third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor. The Hickory Police Department said o cers received a cyber tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in April that concerned child sexualabuse material. During the initial investigation, the account associated with the tip belonged to Reep. A search warrant was executed at the location linked to the IP address, and police say electronic devices were seized, and digital forensic analysis of these devices and other online communications were completed. Reep is known as “the Hemi guy” in Dodge Ram commercials and has a popular weekly podcast, “Carolina Reeper with Jon Reep.” NSJ

Rowan County Detectives conducted a human tra cking operation in Salisbury last week, arresting 10 people on charges related to prostitution, drugs and weapons after a 16-year-old was brought to an undercover o cer by a suspect. O cials said the juvenile had been reported missing to the CharlotteMecklenburg Police Department on March 3 and was entered as a missing child into the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The victim was turned over to the Mecklenburg County Department of Social Services.

WXI

Asheboro community searches for missing boy

Randolph County The search for a 7-year-old boy who went missing on Sunday in Asheboro was ongoing early this week. The Randolph County Sheri ’s o ce reported that 7-year-old Liam A. King went missing in the area of Forest Hills Drive in Asheboro after walking o He is around 3-foot-5 and 55 pounds with shoulder-length brown/black hair and brown eyes. Deputies warned that Liam su ers from cognitive impairments and is nonverbal. He may run away if approached.

NSJ

Greensboro community continues to see brown water

Guilford County People living in a southeast Greensboro neighborhood said brown water is showing up in their sinks, toilets and even ruining laundry. The city says it is working to address the problem. Neighbors in the Woodlea neighborhood said they’ve been dealing with this o and on for months, and a community group, Southeast GSO Coalition, met with the city water resources late last year about it. The city said it’s not just the southeast neighborhoods seeing the brown water. Neighbors said they want clearer timelines on a long-term x, as they say the problem shows up without warning, and they’re anxious about health impacts and household costs. City Water Resources Director Mike Borchers said the city gets 30 to 40 complaints about discolored water each month. He said the discoloration is iron and manganese shaken loose by hydraulic changes and growth in the system and is safe.

WGHP

Oceanana Pier remains closed after taking signi cant damage from Hurricane Erin Carteret County The Oceanana Fishing Pier is closed as damage from Hurricane Erin is being repaired, according to a social media post. Waves that were often 15-to-20feet high crashed into the Atlantic Beach pier as the hurricane passed by the coast last month. Owners said they expect the pier to be closed at least until the middle of the month as their engineering team has inspected the site and identi ed repairs that need to be made.

Ayden to develop a ordable apartments for rural working families Pitt County A groundbreaking ceremony was held for Oak Ridge Park in Ayden last week, providing 80 new a ordable apartments for working families in the area. The development was made possible through a partnership between the N.C. Housing Finance Agency and the Golden LEAF Foundation, aimed at nancing a ordable workforce housing in rural North Carolina. “Oak Ridge Park will be essential to uplifting its community with safe, a ordable housing,” said Scott Farmer, N.C. Housing Finance Agency executive director.

NSJ Shock, sadness in local restaurant owners’ murder-suicide Johnston County Family, friends and employees are grieving the loss of a Four Oaks couple who owned multiple local Mexican restaurants in Johnston County. On the doors of El Charro Grande in Dunn on Saturday was a black ribbon in honor of owners Hector Meraz Cruz and Norma Merales Mendoza. A note is also on the door stating that the restaurant will remain open this week despite the death of the owners. Johnston County deputies responded to a welfare check last Wednesday night at a home on Grants Way o Lassiter Road when they found the two dead in a shed behind the home. Investigators say Meraz Cruz shot and killed his wife before turning the gun on himself. The two had been married for 28 years, and the restaurant had been open for 13 years. Employees and family members tell local outlets that services are being planned for this upcoming weekend.

WNCN

bene t of North Carolina’s people, businesses, and communities,” said Piccone. “The AI Accelerator, along with our other initiatives, puts us in a strong position to implement swift and transformative solutions that will not only position North Carolina at the forefront of technological innovation but also uphold

NSJ

‘The Conjuring: Last Rites’ watchable for fans of long-running horror franchise

Strong on charm, weak on scares; the Warrens carry a muddled horror nale

By Bob Garver The Sun

A FEW DAYS before I saw “The Conjuring: Last Rites,” a friend of mine asked me about my plans for the weekend. I told her that I planned to see the lm, and I was excited. When she asked me why I was excited to see yet another entry in the generally middling “Conjuring” series, I blurted out, “They make such a cute couple!” “They” of course being Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga as real-life paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren, respectively. These ctionalized tales of their cases sell themselves on demonand possession-related horror, not charming family dynamics. Yet whether by design, by accident or by default, the Warrens as characters are what this series does best.

Take the opening scene, set in 1964. Ed and a pregnant Lorraine investigate the usual demonic element in the basement of an antiques shop. Lorraine insists on snooping around alone, with minimal light, and of course jump scares abound. The demonic presence causes Lorraine to go into labor early, and Ed rushes her to the hospital to give birth in a room without electricity. It looks like the baby doesn’t survive, and the darkened room is full of tears. I’m not talking about the delivery room with the parents and doctors — I’m talking about the theater full of moviegoers. This scene, its characters and its actors have been so engaging that the audience has become way more invested than they should in a movie that a few minutes earlier was easily dismissible as

schlocky horror. And then the baby survives, and at my screening it made for one of the most deafening crowd reactions I’ve ever heard. Yes, I rolled my eyes a little, since daughter Judy Warren has been a character in other, later-set “Conjuring” movies, so I could guess how the scene was going to play out, but also yes, the cheering was infectious, and it was an undeniable mark of a sequence well-done. The rest of the lm takes place in 1986, after the movie “Ghostbusters” has come out, and the Warrens are seen as jokes living in semi-retirement. Judy (Mia Tomlinson) is ready to take her next step in life, introducing her parents to her boyfriend Tony (Ben Hardy). Ed and Lor-

Howard Stern returns to SiriusXM radio show after trolling listeners

The “King of All Media” isn’t going anywhere

By Mark Kennedy

The Associated Press

NEW YORK — Howard Stern, the popular and highly paid radio host, returned to SiriusXM’s airwaves Monday after trolling listeners into thinking he had departed his long-running show. Stern, 71, who evolved from his shock jock origins to become a respected interviewer, enlisted a seemingly ustered Andy Cohen at the top of “The Howard Stern Show” to pretend to be his successor. “This was supposed to be a cleaner hand o . I’m kind of winging it,” said Cohen. Stern then came on the air and thanked the Bravo personality, who has his own SiriusXM show and podcast, for agreeing to do the bit. The stunt was the culmination of weeks of promos that promised a big reveal, following swirling speculation that Stern’s show would be canceled.

“The tabloids have spoken: Howard Stern red, canceled,” one promo video said. “Is it really bye-bye Booey?” The speculation grew after Stern postponed his return from a summer break last week.

While he did return Monday, Stern did not announce that

he had reached a new contract with SiriusXM. His current deal expires at the end of 2025.

“Here’s the truth: SiriusXM and my team have been talking about how we go forward in the future. They’ve approached me, they’ve sat down with me like they normally do, and they’re fantastic,” Stern said.

Stern joining what was then Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. in 2006 made him one of the highest-paid personalities in broadcasting and was a game-changer for both the company and the nascent satellite radio industry. His importance was highlighted on the SiriusXM homepage — tabs included For You, Music, Talk & Podcasts, Sports and Howard.

SiriusXM in the years after Stern joined has become home to top podcasts “Call Her Daddy,” “SmartLess,” “Freakonomics Radio,” “Last Podcast on the Left,” “99% Invisible” and “Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend,” and features such personalities as Trevor Noah, Kevin Hart and Stephen A. Smith.

But SiriusXM’s subscriber base has been slowly contracting, with the company reporting 33 million paid subscribers in the second quarter of 2025, a net loss of 68,000 from the rst quarter and 100,000 fewer than the same period in 2024. It is a battling a saturated satellite

raine, like most parents, are conicted about letting their baby go but also know that she can’t be their baby forever. Tony, for his part, is sweet and dedicated, if occasionally awkward. I seriously thought about recommending this movie to my horror-averse mother just for the family scenes. But I couldn’t because darker subject matter has to butt its way in. Unlike most parents, Ed and Lorraine also have to worry about lingering traces of demon possession in their daughter, which they aren’t eager to foist upon the unsuspecting Tony.

To add to the drama at home, the Warrens are desperately needed in small-town Pennsylvania. A family recently came

into possession of the world’s creepiest mirror — the same artifact that caused problems for the Warrens in the opening scene — and are now being unsurprisingly haunted. Cue every cheap spiritual horror trope like unexplained bumping sounds and things moving when they shouldn’t, as well as every cliché surrounding old heroes taking on one last mission. Judy and Tony are willing to help for the rst time ever, but Tony doesn’t know the rst thing about demons and Judy may be compromised as an instrument of the mirror-demon.

“The Conjuring: Last Rites” is a tale of two con icting tones. The loving, charming, occasionally eccentric Warren family

make for delightful “straight” scenes, but they aren’t going to sell tickets without some kind of supernatural payo . The horror scenes, while necessary for the movie’s appeal, are often drab and even more often the result of stupidity (I know demon possession is a hard pill for nonbelievers to swallow, but still …). I’m swayed enough by the Warren family to give the movie a mild recommendation, but only because the main characters all make for cute couples.

Grade: B-

“The Conjuring: Last Rites” is rated R for bloody/violent content and terror. Its running time is 135 minutes.

Howard Stern, pictured at the 2018 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

rumors of his departure from SiriusXM was a prank.

“Here’s the truth: SiriusXM and my team have been talking about how we go forward in the future. They’ve approached me, they’ve sat down with me like they normally do, and they’re fantastic.”

Howard Stern

market and competition from free, ad-supported platforms like Spotify.

Stern extended his contract with SiriusXM twice before, in

2010 and again in 2020 with a ve-year, $500 million deal, Forbes reported. He’s recently had newsy and intimate chats with Lady Gaga and Bruce Springsteen.

“He’s been with me and the company going on two decades, and so he’s pretty happy, but he’s also able, like many great artists, to stop whenever he wants,” SiriusXM president and chief content o cer Scott Greenstein told The Hollywood Reporter in 2024. “Nobody will ever replace them. We would never try to replace them.”

Stern, who has liked to call himself the “King of All Media,” rose to national fame in the 1980s during his 20-year stint at the then-WXRK in New York. At its peak, “The How-

ard Stern Show” was syndicated in 60 markets and drew over 20 million listeners. Stern was lured to satellite radio by the lucrative payday and a lack of censorship, following bruising indecency battles with the Federal Communications Commission and skittish radio executives. His past on-air bits had included parading strippers through his New York studio and persuading the band then known as The Dixie Chicks to reveal intimate details about their sex lives. His 1997 lm “Private Parts” became a box o ce hit and offered a raw, humorous look at his rise to fame. He has also authored several bestselling books and served as a judge on “America’s Got Talent” from 2012 to 2015.

MICHAEL ZORN / INVISION /AP PHOTO

Induction Ceremonies, says

WARNER BROS. PICTURES VIA AP

Vera Farmiga, left, and Mia Tomlinson star in “The Conjuring: Last Rights.”

Notice to Creditors

The undersigned having quali ed as Executor of the Estate of, Nancy Ezzell,

NOTICE

23E001229-250 STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA CUMBERLAND COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR NOTICE.

The undersigned, having quali ed as Executor of the Estate of James George, deceased, late of Cumberland County, this is to notify all persons having claims against said estate to present them to the 11th day of December, 2025 or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to the estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This is the 8th day of September 2025. Administrator of the Estate of James George. 5508 Walking Trail Way Hope Mills, NC 28314.

NOTICE

STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA In The General Court of Justice County of Cumberland Superior Court Division Estate File #25e001303-250 Administrator’s/ Executor’s Notice

The undersigned having quali ed as the Administrator of the Estate of Phyllis Annell Girard, deceased, late of Cumberland County, herby noti es all persons, rms, and corporations having claims against said estate to present their claim to the undersigned on or before the 4th day of December, 2025, which is three months after the day of the rst publication of this notice) or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All debtors of the decedent are requested to make immediate payment to the undersigned. This 4th day of September, 2025. Signed, Albert Nathaniel Love Administrator 118 Pennmark Place Fayetteville, North Carolina 28301 Of the Estate of Phyllis Annell Girard, Deceased

Notice to Creditors

Estate of Charles Taylor Huggins

Date of Birth June 19, 1960 Notice To Creditors: The decedent, Charles Taylor Huggins, who lived at 2910 Chicken Foot Rd, Hope Mills, North Carolina 28348. Died June 18, 2025. Creditors of the decedent are noti ed that all claims against the estate will be forever barred unless Presented to Michael Cox, named personal representative or proposed personal representative, at 3556 Belridge Drive, Fayetteville, North Carolina 28306, 9105743400 or to both the probate Court and the named/ proposed personal representative by December 1, 2025. This the 28th of August 2025 Michael cox, Personal Representative for the Estate 3556 Belridge Drive Fayetteville, North Carolina 28306 9105743400

NOTICE

In the general court of justice superior court division before the clerk estate le #25E001231-250 state of North Carolina Cumberland county administrator notice the undersigned having quali ed as the Executor of the Estate of Jonathan G. Hu , deceased, late of Cumberland county, this is to notify all persons having claims against said estate to present them to the undersigned on or before the 4th of December , 2025 (which is three months after the day of the rst publication of this notice) or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. All persons indebted to the estate will please make immediate payment to Sarah Hu at 239 Bent Oak Ct Raeford, NC 28376. This is the 4th of September 2025.

EXECUTOR’S NOTICE

In the General Court of Justice Superior Court Division Estate File # 25E001278-250 STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA COUNTY OF CUMBERLAND

The undersigned having quali ed as Executor of the Estate of Arthur J. Hu , late of Cumberland County, North Carolina, this is to notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to present them to the undersigned on or before December 4, 2025 at 2505 Hunting Bow Drive, Hope Mills, North Carolina 28348, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons, rms and corporations indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This the 4th day of September, 2025 Luther Wayne Hu , Executor of the Estate of Arthur J. Hu , deceased c/o Gilliam Law Firm, PLLC Post O ce Box 53555 Fayetteville, NC 28305 (910) 485-8899 09/04/2025, 09/11/2025, 09/18/2025 and 09/25/2025

NOTICE

State of North Carolina County of Cumberland

In the General Court of Justice Superior Court Division Estate File 25E001222-250

In the Matter of the Estate of Edward Keith Hairr Administrator’s Notice The undersigned, having quali ed as Administrator of the estate of Edward Keith Hairr, Eddie Hairr, deceased, late of Cumberland County, this is to notify all persons, rms, and corporations having claims against said estate to present them to the undersigned on or before the 28th day of November, 2025, (which date is three months after the day of the rst publication of this notice)or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said estate will please immediate payment to the undersigned. This 28th day of August, 2025 Bobby Ray Hairr 4428 Dunn Rd. Eastover, NC 28312 Administrator of the estate of Edward Keith Hairr, Eddie Hairr, Deceased

NOTICE

STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA

In The General Court Of Justice County of Cumberland Superior Court Division Estate File # 25E000077-250

Administrator’s Notice

The undersigned, having quali ed as Administrator of the Estate of Jerry Michael Idol, deceased, late of Cumberland County, hereby noti es all persons, rms, and corporations having claims against said estate to present their claim to the undersigned on or before the 21st day of November, 2025, (which date is three months after the day of the rst publication of this notice) or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All Debtors of the decedent are requested to make immediate payments to the undersigned. This the 21st day of August, 2025. Christopher Michael Idol Administrator 2266 Dunn Road Eastover, NC 28312 Of the Estate of Jerry Michael Idol, Deceased

NOTICE

State of North Carolina

In The General Court of Justice County of Cumberland Superior Court Division Estate File # 25E000601-250 Administrator’s/Executor’s Notice The undersigned, having quali ed as Executor of the Estate of Lorease Murchison King, deceased, late of Cumberland County, hereby noti es all persons, rms, and corporations having claims against said estate to present their claim to the undersigned on or before the 28 Day of November, 2025, (which date is three months after the day of the rst publication of this notice) or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All Debtors to the estate are requested to make immediate payment to the undersigned. This is the 21st day of August, 2025. Sheila D. Spence, Executor PO Box 153 Spring Lake, NC 28390 Of the Estate of Lorease Murchison King, Deceased 08/28/2025 09/04/2025 09/11/2025 09/18/2025

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

ESTATE OF LILY SPEARS BENDER CUMBERLAND County Estate File No. 22E000655-250 All persons, rms and corporations having claims against Lily Spears Bender, deceased, of Cumberland County, North Carolina, are noti ed to present their claims to Kenneth L Bender Jr., at 182 Aloha

NOTICE NORTH CAROLINA CUMBERLAND COUNTY In the Matter of the Estate of: GLYNIS M. SPEIGHT Deceased. EXECUTOR’S NOTICE The

Executor of

Notice The undersigned, having quali ed as Executor of the estate of David R. Sager, deceased, late of Cumberland County, hereby noti es all persons, rms, and corporations having claims against said estate to present their claim to the undersigned on or before the Twenty First day of November, 2025, (which is three after the day of the rst publication of this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All debtors of the decedent are requested to make immediate payment to the undersigned. This eighteenth day of August, of 2025 Lennon Sager 812 Poplar Drive Fayetteville, NC 28304 Of the estate of Davd R, Sager, Deceased NOTICE NOTICE TO CREDITORS ESTATE OF TOMMIE EDWARD PURSER, SR. CUMBERLAND County Estate File No. 25E001261-250 All persons, rms and corporations having claims against Tommie Edward Purser, Sr., deceased, of Cumberland County, North Carolina, are noti ed to present their claims to Tommie Edward Purser, Jr., Administrator, at 1809 Lakeshore Dr., Fayetteville, NC 28305, on or before the 29th day of November, 2025 (which date is three months after the day of the rst publication of this notice), or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. Debtors of the Decedent are requested to make immediate payment to the Executor/Administrator named above. This the 22nd day of August, 2025. Tommie Edward Purser, Jr. Administrator of the Estate of Tommie Edward Purser, Sr. Davis W. Puryear Hutchens Law Firm Attorneys for the Estate 4317 Ramsey Street Fayetteville, NC 28311 Run dates: August 28, September 4, September 11 and September 18, 2025

NOTICE IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE SUPERIOR COURT DIVISION ESTATE FILE#25E001335-250 STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA COUNTY OF CUMBERLAND Having quali ed as Executor of the Estate of Frances Christine Popp, late of Cumberland County, North Carolina, the undersigned does herby notify all persons, rms, and corporations having claims against the estate of said decedent to exhibit them to the undersigned at 12 Sand Creek Lane, Lillington, NC 27546, on or before December 4, 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons, rms, and corporations indebted to the said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. Dated this 31st day of August 2025.

Debra L. Baker, Executor of the Estate of Frances Christine Popp

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE SUPERIOR COURT DIVISION ESTATE FILE NO. 25E000230-250 STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA COUNTY OF CUMBERLAND Having quali ed as Executor of the Estate of Delno Thomas Tindale, late of Cumberland County, North Carolina, the undersigned does hereby notify all persons, rms, and corporations having claims against the estate of said decedent to exhibit them to the undersigned at 2517 Raeford Road, Fayetteville, NC 28305, on or before December 11, 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons, rms, and corporations indebted to the said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. Dated this 11th day of September, 2025. Michele Averett, Executor of the Estate of Delno Thomas Tindale NICOLE A. CORLEY MURRAY & CORLEY, P.A. N.C. BAR NO. 56459 2517 RAEFORD ROAD FAYETTEVILLE, NC 28305 – 3007 (910) 483 – 4990 COUNSEL FOR EXECUTOR

EXECUTOR’S NOTICE IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE SUPERIOR COURT DIVISION ESTATE FILE 24E000258-250 STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA CUMBERLAND COUNTY The undersigned, having quali ed as the Executor of the Estate of John Stuard Waller, late of Cumberland County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms or corporations having claims against said estate to present them to the undersigned at 690 Beard Road, Raeford, North Carolina 28376, on or before December 4, 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to the estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This the 4th day of September, 2025. Ti any Cheryl Waller Executor of the Estate of John Stuard Waller, Deceased c/o Gilliam Law Firm, PLLC J. Duane Gilliam, Jr., Attorney PO Box 53555 Fayetteville, NC 28305 09/04/2025, 09/11/2025, 09/18/2025 and 09/25/2025

NEW HANOVER

NOTICE

NORTH CAROLINA NEW HANOVER COUNTY NOTICE TO CREDITORS THE UNDERSIGNED, Clay A. Collier, having quali ed on the 25th day of July, 2025, as Executor of the Estate of William J. Baggett (25E001996-640), deceased, does hereby notify all persons, rms, and corporations having claims against said Estate that they must present them to the undersigned at DAVID E. ANDERSON, PLLC, 9111 Market Street, Suite A, Wilmington, North Carolina, 28411, on or before the 8th day of December, 2025, or the claims will be forever barred thereafter, and this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. All persons, rms, and corporations indebted to said Estate will please make prompt payment to the undersigned at the above address. This 4th day of September 2025. Clay A. Collier Executor ESTATE OF WILLIAM J. BAGGETT David Anderson Attorney at Law 9111 Market St, Ste A Wilmington, NC 28411 Publish: September 4, 2025 September 11, 2025 September 18, 2025 September 25. 2025

NOTICE

STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA COUNTY OF NEW HANOVER NOTICE TO CREDITORS The undersigned,RULDOLF ANTON BLESS AND RICHARD JOSEF BLESS, having quali ed as the Co-Executors of the Estate of MAGDALENA BLESS, Deceased, hereby noti es all persons, rms or corporations having claims against the Decedent to exhibit same to the said RULDOLF ANTON BLESS AND RICHARD JOSEF BLESS, at the address set out below, on or before December 12, 2025, or this notice may be pleaded in bar of any payment or recovery of same. All persons indebted to said Decedent will please make immediate payment to the undersigned at the address set out below. This the 29th day of August, 2025. RULDOLF ANTON BLESS AND RICHARD JOSEF BLESS Co-Executors of the Estate of MAGDALENA BLESS c/o ROBERT H. HOCHULI, JR. 219 RACINE DR., SUITE #A6 Wilmington, NC 28405

NOTICE

STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA COUNTY OF NEW HANOVER NOTICE TO CREDITORS The undersigned,MICHAEL A. GIGLIO, having quali ed as the Executor of the Estate of PAULINE MARIE GIGLIO, Deceased, hereby noti es all persons, rms or corporations having claims against the Decedent to exhibit same to the said MICHAEL A. GIGLIO, at the address set out below, on or before December 12, 2025, or this notice may be pleaded in bar of any payment or recovery of same. All persons indebted to said Decedent will please make immediate payment to the undersigned at the address set out below. This the 29th day of August, 2025. MICHAEL A. GIGLIO Executor of the Estate of PAULINE MARIE GIGLIO c/o ROBERT H. HOCHULI, JR. 219 RACINE DR., SUITE #A6 Wilmington, NC 28405

NOTICE

STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA COUNTY OF NEW HANOVER NOTICE TO CREDITORS

The undersigned,SUZETTE WEXLER GUTSIN, having quali ed as the Executor of the Estate of RICHARD ADAM GUTSIN, Deceased, hereby noti es all persons, rms or corporations having claims against the Decedent to exhibit same to the said SUZETTE WEXLER GUTSIN, at the address set out below, on or before December 12, 2025, or this notice may be pleaded in bar of any payment or recovery of same. All persons indebted to said Decedent will please make immediate payment to the undersigned at the address set out below.

This the 29th day of August, 2025. SUZETTE WEXLER GUTSIN

Executor of the Estate of RICHARD ADAM GUTSIN c/o ROBERT H. HOCHULI, JR. 219 RACINE DR., SUITE #A6 Wilmington, NC 28405

NOTICE

NORTH CAROLINA NEW HANOVER COUNTY NOTICE TO CREDITORS THE UNDERSIGNED, Danse Dare Mulvihill, having quali ed on the 21st day of July, 2025, as Executor of the Estate of Greg Michael Mulvihill (25E001794640), deceased, does hereby notify all persons, rms, and corporations having claims against said Estate that they must present them to the undersigned at DAVID E. ANDERSON, PLLC, 9111 Market Street, Suite A, Wilmington, North Carolina, 28411, on or before the 1st day of December, 2025, or the claims will be forever barred thereafter, and this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. All persons, rms, and corporations indebted to said Estate will please make prompt payment to the undersigned at the above address. This 28th day of August 2025. Danse Dare Mulvihill Executor ESTATE OF GREG MICHAEL MULVIHILL

David Anderson Attorney at Law 9111 Market St, Ste A Wilmington, NC 28411 Publish: August 28, 2025 September 4, 2025 September 11, 2025 September 18, 2025

NOTICE

STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA COUNTY OF NEW HANOVER NOTICE TO CREDITORS

The undersigned,AMY LYNN ERNST, having quali ed as the Executor of the Estate of JACQUELINE S. WADE, Deceased, hereby noti es all persons, rms or corporations having claims against the Decedent to exhibit same to the said AMY LYNN ERNST, at the address set out below, on or before December 12, 2025, or this notice may be pleaded in bar of any payment or recovery of same. All persons indebted to said Decedent will please make immediate payment to the undersigned at the address set

NC 28405

NOTICE

STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA COUNTY OF NEW HANOVER NOTICE TO CREDITORS

The undersigned,AMY LYNN ERNST, having quali ed as the Executor of the Estate of JAMES M WADE, Deceased, hereby noti es all persons, rms or corporations having claims against the Decedent to exhibit same to the said AMY LYNN ERNST, at the address set out below, on or before December 12, 2025, or this notice may be pleaded in bar of any payment or recovery of same. All persons indebted to said Decedent will please make immediate payment to the undersigned at the address set out below. This the 29th day of August, 2025. AMY LYNN ERNST Executor of the Estate of JAMES M WADE c/o ROBERT H. HOCHULI, JR. 219 RACINE DR., SUITE #A6 Wilmington, NC 28405

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Having quali ed as Administrator of the Estate of Stephen Russell Headlee, late of Randolph County, North Carolina, the undersigned does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against the estate of the decedent to exhibit them to the undersigned at the o ce of Ivey & Eggleston, Attorneys at Law, 111 Worth Street, Asheboro, North Carolina 27203, on or before November 22, 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar

Having

RANDOLPH

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

of Ivey & Eggleston, Attorneys at Law, 111 Worth Street, Asheboro, North Carolina 27203, on or before December 1, 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons, rms or corporations indebted to said estate should make immediate payment to the undersigned. This 28th day of August, 2025 Phillip Charles Lewis Executor of the Estate of Charles Carson Lewis S. SCOTT EGGLESTON, Attorney IVEY & EGGLESTON, ATTORNEYS AT LAW 111 Worth Street Asheboro, NC 27203 (336) 625-3043

PUBL/DATES: 08/28/25 09/04/25 09/11/25 09/18/25

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Having quali ed as Executor of the Estate of Carolyn T. Phillips, of Randolph County, NC, this is to notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against the estate of said deceased to exhibit them to the undersigned Administrator at the Law O ce of Andrew J. Weiner, 113 Worth Street, Asheboro, NC 27203 on or before December 5th 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of heir recovery. All persons indebted to said estate please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This the 4th day of September 2025. Lisa P. Justice, Administrator Carolyn T. Phillips, Estate Andrew J. Weiner, Attorney Gavin & Cox 113 Worth Street Asheboro, NC 27203 Telephone: 336-629-2600

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Having quali ed as Executor of the Estate of Steven Robert Rhenow, late of Randolph County, North Carolina, the undersigned does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against the estate of the decedent to exhibit them to the undersigned at the o ce of Ivey & Eggleston, Attorneys at Law, 111 Worth Street, Asheboro, North Carolina 27203, on or before December 8, 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons, rms or corporations indebted to said estate should make immediate payment to the undersigned.

This 4th day of September, 2025 Tracy S. Lane Executor of the Estate of Steven Robert Rhenow Marion “Beth” McQuaid, Attorney IVEY & EGGLESTON, ATTORNEYS AT LAW 111 Worth Street Asheboro, NC 27203 (336) 625-3043 PUBL/DATES: 09/04/25 09/11/25 09/18/25 09/25/25

NOTICE

Having quali ed as Executor of the Estate of Betty Virginia Crigger Rice aka Betty Crigger Rice aka Betty V. Rice, late of Randolph County, North Carolina, the undersigned does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against the estate of the decedent to exhibit them to the undersigned at the o ce of TAYLOR B. CALLICUTT, ATTORNEY AT LAW, PO Box 2445, Asheboro, North Carolina 27204, on or before December 4, 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons, rms or corporations indebted to said estate should make immediate payment to the undersigned. This 4th day of September, 2025 Angela Beth Briggs, Executor of the Estate of Betty Virginia Crigger Rice aka Betty Crigger Rice aka Betty V. Rice TAYLOR B. CALLICUTT ATTORNEY AT LAW PO Box 2445 Asheboro, NC 27204 (336) 953-4661

PUBL/DATES: 09/04/25 09/11/25 09/18/25 09/25/25

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Having quali ed as Co-Executors of the Estate of Roger D. Stout a/k/a Roger Dean Stout, of Randolph County, NC, this is to notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against the estate of said deceased to exhibit them to the undersigned Co-Executors at the Law O ce of Richard L. Cox, 113 Worth Street, Asheboro, NC 27203 on or before December 5th 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of heir recovery. All persons indebted to said estate please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This the 4th day of September 2025. Celia Johnson Harris and Susan Stout Grose Co-Executors Roger D. Stout a/k/a Roger Dean Stout, Estate Richard L. Cox, Attorney Gavin &

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Having

Going behind the curtain at pro wrestling, B4

the Thursday SIDELINE REPORT

NHL Hall of Fame Canadiens goaltender Dryden dies of cancer at age 78

Montreal Ken Dryden, the Hall of Fame goaltender who helped the Montreal Canadiens win six Stanley Cup titles in the 1970s, died after a ght with cancer at 78. He died peacefully Friday at his home. Dryden won the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year, the Vezina as the best goalie ve times and the Conn Smythe playo MVP while being a six-time All-Star.

NCAA SPORTS College Sports Commission reveals overstating value of NIL deals by $40M-plus

The College Sports Commission sent out a correction, saying it had overstated the amount of name, image and likeness deals it has cleared by more than $40 million. The commission blamed a clerical reporting error. The total value of deals cleared was $35.42 million instead of the $79.8 million previously announced. The $79.8 million is the total amount of all deals in the system, including those that are still pending.

TENNIS

Alcarez tops Sinner to win U.S. Open

New York Carlos Alcaraz reasserted his superiority over Jannik Sinner with a 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 victory in the U.S. Open nal. Sunday’s showdown was the third Grand Slam tournament in a row where the elite, young rivals met to decide the champion.

Alcaraz claimed his second trophy at Flushing Meadows and sixth overall at a major. Aryna Sabalenka beat Amanda Anisimova to win the women’s title.

Young loses temper, Panthers lose opener

A rare show of emotion from the quarterback may be a key moment for the team

By Shawn Krest North State Journal

WITH JUST UNDER 10 minutes remaining in the third quarter of the Panthers opening game, Bryce Young had reached his limit.

He came to the sideline after a drive failed, seven yards shy of the end zone, leaving the Panthers on the wrong end of a 20-3 score.

Coach Dave Canales placed a hand on his quarterback’s head and began talking, but Young didn’t break stride. Canales’ hand slid down the back of Young’s jersey, as he walked away from his coach. Young said something over his shoulder that did not look friendly,

then slammed down his helmet.

As far as sideline confrontations go, it was rather tame. There was no face-to-face yelling. No one had to be separated, “hold me back” style. No sideline tablets were harmed.

Both parties downplayed the moment afterward.

“I think that’s something that he and I will work through and talk about,” Canales said.

“Just competitive nature. That’s all,” Young said. “I’ll denitely do a better job of body language there.”

Still, it was a key moment in the development of Young and the Carolina Panthers. Is this going to be his team or not?

The moment of sideline re was rare for the mild-mannered Young, who, even following the most frustrating losses, sounds more like a corporate brand ambassador than a leader of men.

“And again, it’s not a consolation for today, but it gives us

“Just

some stu on lm to build o of,” he said after a loss last December. “The opportunity to identify things we’re doing well, how we continue to do it, how we build o of it, and the same mindset of how we can improve on things. So I think just being in that headspace, it’s good for growth. But now it’s on us to make sure we actually grow and take those steps.”

“The same mindset of how we can improve on things,” doesn’t roll o the NFL Films tape like, “Let’s go out like a bunch of crazed dogs,” and “being in that headspace, it’s good for growth,” isn’t exactly, “This is why you lift all them weights.”

When he wasn’t serving up corporate buzzspeak salad, he was dishing out clichés.

“Just execute. Just execute at the highest level. We respect the team we just played … a really good team.” That was young after a loss to the Eagles late last season, not to be confused with, “We just got to do a better job of executing it,” against the Chargers in the game before he was benched, or, “Credit to them. That’s a really good unit over there; they are obviously really good players. So, they deserve their credit,” against the Cowboys.

The one time Young showed re last season, addressing the team in the locker room after a near miss against the Chiefs, it made news for how out of character it was. Receiver Xavier Leggette, one of the young offensive players Young is supposed to be leading, marveled, “He changed his voice and all.” Reports out of training camp this year had Young being more vocal and confrontational. It’s a necessary step in his development. Quarterbacks need to take responsibility and hold everyone accountable. Young has

See PANTHERS, page B3

The rivalry heads to Winston-Salem for its 119th iteration

By Ryan Henkel North State Journal

NC STATE and Wake Forest will open up their conference slate this week when the two instate rivals square o in Winston-Salem on Thursday.

This will be the 119th meeting on the gridiron between the two universities and the 116th consecutive one at that, making it one of the longest continuous rivalries in Division I Football.

And while ACC basketball may be losing some of those key rivalries with the changes to scheduling, football at least has all four Tobacco Road schools locked into games through 2030.

“I’ve been around a lot of rivalries, but now to walk into the Big Four, I think it’s something really important,” said

Wake Forest coach Jake Dickert. “I think we have to preserve these games. I’m a big fan of always playing all three of them, whether that has to be nonconference or not. It’s a big thing for us, the state and hopefully all four institutions. We have to preserve rivalries.”

The Wolfpack (2-0) hold the all-time edge in the matchup with a 69-43-6 record, but the Deacons (2-0) earned the most recent victory, a 34-30nal at Carter-Finley Stadium in 2024. The matchup has almost always been a close one, with the last 10 matchups being split down the middle at ve wins a piece. In fact, of those 10 games, ve of them have been decided by just one possession.

“It’s our rst road game, rst conference game and they’re 2-0 as well, coming o a blowout victory over Western Carolina,” said NC State coach Dave Doeren. “It’s a rivalry game, our

need in

second in-state opponent and an opportunity to take our show on the road.” Thursday night’s game will also be a short turnaround for both teams, as each is coming o a Saturday win. “The mental intensity you

SHAFFER BROUGHTON FOR NORTH STATE JOURNAL

Wake Forest coach Jake Dickert meets with the media after his opening game win.

JOHN RAOUX / AP PHOTO

Carolina Panthers rookie running back Trevor Etienne (23) and his brother, Jacksonville Jaguars running back Travis Etienne Jr. (1), trade jerseys after big brother Travis had the upper hand in their opening day game.

competitive nature. That’s all.” Bryce Young

TRENDING

Yannic Walther:

The Brewers catcher prospect from Germany got two hits and drove in three runs in the last game in Carolina Mudcats history The Cats beat Fredericksburg 6-3 to end the season with a 68-60 record The Mudcats began play in 1991 and have been an teams The team will relocate to Wilson next year

George Raveling:

The Hall of Fame basketball coach died at 88 after a battle with cancer He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2015 and had a career record of 335 293 Raveling was instrumental in convincing Michael Jordan to sign with Nike leading to a landmark contract He also owned the original copy of Martin Luther King Jr ’ s “I Have a Dream speech

Will Power:

The two-time IndyCar champion left Team Penske after 17 years to join Andretti Global He will replace Colton Herta who is moving to Europe to join the Cadillac Formula 1 team as a test driver Power will drive the No. 26 Honda for Andretti Power s move comes after feeling slighted by Penske’s delay in contract negotiations Power will start with Andretti in 2026

Beyond the box score

POTENT QUOTABLES

“Coach

K ( lef t), day one, used some foul lang uage and got our at tention.”

Jason Kidd (right) on the 2008 U S men’s Olympic team, which was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame as a group

“I’m

not welcomed in their facilit y, so they aren’t welcomed in ours ”

UNC coach Bill Belicick on repor ts that he banned a Patriots scout from practice

NASCAR

Denny Hamlin won from the pole position at World Wide Technolog y R aceway,

caution 15 laps later He seized the lead from Brad Keselowsk i on the restar t

NFL Red Zone w ill no longer have seven hours of commercial free football One-to-t wo minutes of ads w ill air Sunday af ternoons and evenings this season The ads w ill occur when most games are in a commercial break or at half time Game action w ill continue to be show n alongside the ad

Ms Wuf turned 50 years old at NC State’s w in over Virg inia on Saturday The mascot made her debut in a home w in over East Carolina on Sept 6, 1975

Then know n as Miss Wuf, she was added to the mascot roster af ter NC State added three women ’ s varsit y spor ts

Number worn by Duke safet y DaShaw n Stone and receiver Jayden Moore Both were on

return early in the second half against

penalt y gave the Illini, leading by one at the time, the ball back Illinois scored on the dr ive and won 45-19

The Carolina Hurr icanes unveiled new road uniforms for the upcoming sea son

The jerseys feature a red and black storm w ith red and black str iping on a white sweater Pants, helmets and gloves w ill be red

The design wa s inspired by the special uniforms the team wore for its Stadium Ser ies outdoor game at Car ter-Finley Stadium in 2023

CONNOR HAMILTON / AP PHOTO

COURTESY CAROLINA HURRICANES

Charlotte FC eyes postseason after after record-setting turnaround

The team is in third place in the Eastern Conference standings

By Jesse Deal North State Journal

CHARLOTTE — A 2025 campaign that once appeared in danger of unraveling has instead turned into one of Major League Soccer’s most surprising stories of the year.

In its fourth season as a team, Charlotte FC (16-2-11, 50 points) has climbed to third place in the Eastern Conference after rattling o eight straight wins for the league’s longest active streak.

The run has also tied the second-longest single-season winning streak in MLS’s post-shootout era, trailing only Seattle’s nine-game surge in 2018. This turnaround has followed a sluggish stretch where Charlotte managed just one victory during a six-game span in May and June.

Since then, consistency on both sides of the ball has fueled the team’s rise, with Charlotte’s defense giving up only four goals during the current streak while the attack has produced multiple goals in ve of those games.

“To go and win eight games is

some achievement for the boys,”

Charlotte coach Dean Smith said after his club’s road 2-1 win over New England Revolution on Aug. 30. “I’m really pleased with what they keep doing at the moment. ” Smith, however, will serve a one-game suspension and miss Charlotte’s match against Inter Miami CF after picking up his third yellow card of the season. He was booked against New England for shouting at the referee following a late foul. MLS rules call for a suspension after three yellow cards for team o cials,

while players are suspended after ve.

Meanwhile, Charlotte’s surge of success has the team well-positioned in the playo race with ve regular-season matches left.

A home win against Inter Miami CF this weekend would bring the club level with the conference’s top two teams (Philadelphia Union and FC Cincinnati) in points, further cementing a place among the league’s elite heading into October.

“Obviously, winning is a great feeling, and then when you string a bunch of wins together, it feels

even better,” mid elder Brandt Bronico said. “The culture and belief that we have in the locker room, the togetherness that we have out on the eld, the will to win, going out there and believing — even if it is in the 85th or 86th minute — to grab the winner says a lot about a lot about this team.”

The former Charlotte 49ers team captain was asked if Charlotte FC’s current winning streak posed any sort of hindrance for the players.

“I think we just focus on winning and the next game. I don’t really see that as a distraction,” Bronico said.

This season has been a noticeable step up from the product Charlotte put on the eld last season.

Through 29 matches in the 2024 MLS campaign, Charlotte FC had posted a record of 10-811, totaling 38 points and sitting sixth in the Eastern Conference. The club nished the season with 14-9-11, ending with 51 points and a fth-place nish in the conference.

Charlotte FC’s winning streak has been fueled by a balanced attack, showing a team that has won contests thanks to the talents of multiple players.

Forward Idan Toklomati has emerged as the streak’s most proli c scorer, tallying multiple goals

NC pros make plays in Week 1 of NFL season

More than 118 local players were listed on NFL rosters

By Asheebo Rojas North State Journal

NORTH CAROLINA’S college football programs had quite the in uence on Week 1 of the 2025 NFL season.

Last week, 118 local college products found themselves on active rosters or reserve and practice squad lists.

UNC led the state’s institutions with 30 pro football players, and NC State fell next in line with 28. Wake Forest (20) and Duke (19) were the only other programs with more than 10 NFL players.

Local players across all levels of college football had their hand in team wins, or at least their own personal victories, in the opening week. Here’s a look at which ones had the best 2025 debuts and where to nd the rest of the local players by school.

UNC

Dallas running back Javonte Williams was a crucial piece to the Cowboys’ o ense in their season-opening 24-20 loss to the Eagles. He rushed for 54 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries.

Chargers running back Omarion Hampton made his NFL debut with 48 yards on 15 carries in a 27-21 win over Kansas City.

In his debut with the Jaguars, receiver Dyami Brown hauled in four catches for 52 yards to help Jacksonville beat Carolina 26-10.

Titans linebacker Cedric Gray began the year with eight tackles in a 20-12 loss to Denver.

Other UNC pros: British Brooks (Texans, RB), Michael Carter (Cardinals, RB), Ty Chandler (Vikings, RB), Josh Downs (Colts, WR),

PANTHERS from page B1

been long on the former — “I need to do a better job,” is one of is most common refrains — but there has been little public evidence of the latter. There were plenty of reasons for Young to lose his temper on that drive. The Panthers had moved the ball to the 6-yard line and faced second-and-two.

Running back Chuba Hubbard

Storm Duck (Dolphins, CB), Power Echols (Bears, practice squad, LB), Joshua Ezeudu (Giants, reserve/designated to return, OL), Tomon Fox (Giants, practice squad, LB), Stephen Gosnell (Bills, practice squad, WR), Charlie Heck (Buccaneers, OL), Cole Holcomb (Steelers, LB), Mack Hollins (Patriots, WR), Sam Howell (Eagles, QB), Mike Hughes (Falcons, CB), Alijah Huzzie (Texans, reserve/non-football injury, CB), Willie Lampkin (Eagles, reserve/injured, OL), Drake Maye (Patriots, QB), Bryson Nesbit (Vikings, practice squad, TE), Asim Richards (Saints, OL), Jordon Riley (Giants, practice squad, DL), Jahvaree Ritzie (Patriots, practice squad, DL), Kaimon Rucker (Ravens, practice squad, LB), MJ Stewart (Texans, S), Chazz Surratt (Seahawks, LB), Mitchell Trubisky (Bills, QB), Devontez Walker (Ravens, WR)

NC State

Bengals defensive tackle B.J. Hill had a productive opener, recording seven tackles and a sack in a 17-16 win over the Browns.

Receiver Jakobi Meyers caught 10 passes for 97 yards to help the Raiders edge the Patriots 20-13.

Linebacker Germaine Pratt also contributed to Las Vegas’ win with eight tackles.

Other NC State pros: Anthony Belton (Packers, OL), Garrett Bradbury (Patriots, OL), Jacoby Brissett (Cardinals, QB), Bradley Chubb (Dolphins, LB), AJ Cole III (Raiders, P), Zeke Correll (Vikings, reserve/ injured, OL), Cory Durden (Patriots, practice squad, DL), Ikem Ekwonu (Panthers, OL), Nyheim Hines (Chargers, practice squad, RB), Tanner Ingle (Rams, practice squad, S), Justin Jones (Cardinals, reserve/ injured, DL), Bam Knight (Cardinals, RB), Nick McCloud

gained one yard on two carries. On the second one, the play clock went below four seconds.

When the snap nally came, Young had to jump to corral it. By the time he handed o , tight end Ja’Tavion Sanders had already been knocked backward by Travon Walker, blowing up the play. On fourth down, the clock again ran down and the snap was high again. Yosh Nijman

(Bears, DB), Timothy McKay (Commanders, practice squad, OL), Dylan McMahon (Rams, practice squad, OL), Alim McNeil (Lions, reserve/physically unable to perform, DL), Larrell Murchison (Rams, DE), Kentavius Street (Falcons, practice squad, DL), Drake Thomas (Seahwaks, LB), Thayer Thomas (Broncos, WR), Joe Thuney (Bears, OL), Marquez Valdes-Scantling (49ers, WR), Payton Wilson (Steelers, LB), Russell Wilson (Giants, QB), Chandler Zavala (Panthers, OL)

Wake Forest

Broncos linebacker Justin Strnad had the best season opener of all the former Demon Deacons. Strnad recorded ve tackles and a sack against the Titans.

Other Wake Forest pros: Alex Bachman (Raiders, practice squad, WR), Boogie Basham (Panthers, practice squad, LB), Jessie Bates III (Falcons, S), Caelen Carson (Cowboys, reserve/injured, CB), Branson Combs (Jaguars, practice squad, LB), Greg Dortch (Cardinals, WR), Sam Hartman (Commanders, practice squad, QB), Justin Herron (Lions, reserve/injured, OL), Michael Jurgens (Vikings, OL), Ahmani Marshall (Browns, practice squad, RB), Malik Mustapha (49ers, active/PUP, S), AT Perry (Broncos, practice squad, WR), JJ Roberts (Buccaneers, reserve/injured, S), Ja’Sir Taylor (Chargers, DB), Zach Tom (Packers, OL), Kobie Turner (Rams, DE), Kenneth Walker III (Seahwaks, RB), Blake Whiteheart (Browns, TE), Ke’Shawn Williams (Steelers, practice squad, WR) Duke

Colts quarterback Daniel Jones had himself a day in a 33-8 blowout win over the Dolphins on Sunday. Jones com-

blew the block against Walker this time, ushing Young from the pocket. He threw to the back pylon of the end zone, while Leggette broke toward the front.

“I thought it was kind of a miscommunication,” Canales said.

The expiring playclock was also a problem, in the coach’s eyes.

“That’s something we want to get better at,” he said. “We’ll be attacking that this week. …

including a late match-winner against New England. Mid elder Pep Biel has also been key, contributing goals and assists in several games and helping keep the o ense dynamic.

Forward Wilfried Zaha provided steady production earlier in the streak, recording multiple goal contributions across six of the matches, while Bronico made a crucial impact in the latest win, scoring the equalizer before Toklomati sealed the victory.

Goalkeeper Kristijan Kahlina has been a cornerstone of the team’s defensive success during its eight-game run. The 33-year-old Croatian star leads the MLS with 103 saves and has recorded nine clean sheets, ranking him among the league’s top goalkeepers.

After hosting Inter Miami, Charlotte FC is scheduled to visit New York City FC on Sept. 20 before returning to Bank of America Stadium to host CF Montreal on Sept. 27. A road trip to D.C. United on Oct. 4 and a homenale against the Philadelphia Union on Oct. 18 will close out the slate.

With three of those upcoming games in Charlotte, the schedule o ers opportunities to strengthen playo positioning. The Inter Miami and Philadelphia matchups, in particular, could prove important, with the Union game on the nal day potentially deciding playo seeding in the Eastern Conference.

For a club that stumbled early, the recent run has marked a dramatic change in trajectory as Charlotte now has its eyes rmly set on the postseason.

272

pleted 22 passes (75.9% completion percentage) for 272 yards and a touchdown. He also ran in two scores, nishing the game with 26 rushing yards.

Other Duke pros: Graham Barton (Buccaneers, OL), Josh Blackwell (Bears, DB), Jake Bobo (Seahawks, WR), DeWayne Carter (Bills, DL), Michael Carter II (Jets, CB), Evan Deckers (Jets, LS), Victor Dimukeje (Giants, reserve/ PUP, LB), Joe Giles-Harris (Bengals, practice squad, LB), Noah Gray (Chiefs, TE), Thomas Hennessy (Jets, LS), Shaka Heyward (Bengals, LB), Riley Leonard (Colts, QB), Jacob Monk (Packers, reserve/injured/DFR, OL), Jordan Moore (Bengals, practice squad, WR), Lucas Patrick (Bengals, OL), Aeneas Peebles (Ravens, DL), Chris Rumph II (Saints, DE), Laken Tomlinson (Texans, OL)

App State

Cardinals linebacker Akeem Davis-Gaither contributed seven tackles in a 20-13 win over the Saints. That was the most tackles in a season opener for the sixth-year veteran.

Other App State pros: Nick Hampton (Rams, LB), Cooper Hodges (Jaguars, reserve/PUP, OL), D’Marco Jackson (Bears, LB), Shemar Jean-Charles (Seahawks, practice squad, CB), Kendall Lamm (Dolphins, OL), Ahmani Marshall (Browns, practice squad, RB), Sam Martin (Panthers, P), Ryan Neuzil (Falcons, OL)

East Carolina

Broncos cornerback Ja’Quan McMillian strip-sacked Titans quarterback Cam Ward on a late fourth down to seal the season-opening win.

Other ECU pros: Zay Jones (Cardinals, WR), Gardner Minshew II (Chiefs, QB), Keaton Mitchell (Ravens, RB), Shavon Revel Jr. (Cowboys, active/NFI, CB)

Those critical ve or six seconds … it doesn’t seem like a lot of time, but it’s everything to us.”

The line woes, speci cally the snapping and blocking, were also issues.

“We’ve really just got to gure out calming down the cadence part and getting everybody sorted out in the protection,” Canales said.

So it appeared that Young had a legitimate list of grievances,

Passing yards for Daniel Jones against the Dolphins

Charlotte

Steelers linebacker Alex Highsmith had a disruptive season opener with eight tackles and a sack in a 34-32 win over the Jets.

Other Charlotte pros: Larry Ogunjobi (Bills, reserve/suspended, DL), Markees Watts (Buccaneers, LB), Julius Welschof (Steelers, practice squad, LB)

Barton

Buccaneers receiver Kameron Johnson made his mark with a 54-yard punt return in the third quarter against the Falcons on Sunday. His return to the Falcons’ 32-yard line set up a go-ahead touchdown for Tampa Bay in which they led 17-10. The Buccaneers went on to win a 23-20 thriller.

NC Central pros: Brandon Codrington (Bills, CB), Ricky Lee III (Jaguars, practice squad, OL), Nick Leverett (Cardinals, practice squad, OL), Torricelli Simpkins (Saints, OL) Campbell pros: Julian Hill (Dolphins, TE), Tyler McLellan (Buccaneers, practice squad, OL)

Elon pros: Chandler Brayboy (Jaguars, practice squad, WR), Olisaemeka Udoh (Titans, OL)

Fayetteville State pros: Kion Smith (Dolphins, OT), Joshua Williams (Chiefs, CB) Lenoir-Rhyne pros: Kyle Dugger (Patriots, S), Dareke Young (Seahawks, WR)

North Carolina A&T pros: Ricky Lee III (Jaguars, practice squad, OL), Bhayshul Tuten (Jaguars, RB)

Wingate pros: Ethan Evans (Rams, P)

even if he didn’t mention them publicly. It may all be for naught. Young may not make the progress he needs to show in year three. The team may need to look elsewhere. However, it appears he’s not going to go down without a ght.

If Week 1 is any indication, it seems like he’ll have plenty of opportunities to hold teammates accountable.

CHRIS CARLSON / AP PHOTO

Charlotte FC mid elder Nick Scardina, right, heads the ball away from Toronto FC’s Tyrese Spicer during a July game.

Week two on the NC college gridiron

THE RANKINGS

1. North Carolina’s record: 13-17 (23-33 overall)

2. Johnson C. Smith: 2-0, won 28-16 over Valdosta State

3. NC State: 2-0, won 35-31 over Virginia

4. App State: 2-0, won 20-13 over Lindenwood

5. NC Wesleyan, 1-0, won 64-12 over Averett

6. Greensboro: 1-0, won at Guilford 21-7 in the Soup Bowl

7. Wake Forest: 2-0 won 42-10 over Western Carolina

8. Wingate: 1-0, no game in Week 2

9. ECU: 1-1, won 56-3 over Campbell

10. Gardner Webb: 1-1, lost 59-12 at Georgia Tech

11. Duke: 1-1, lost 45-19 to Illinois

12. Catawba: 1-1, lost 35-7 at Emory & Henry

13. Chowan, 1-1, lost 38-28 to West Alabama

14. Winston-Salem State: 1-1, won 28-25 at Mars Hill

15. UNC: 1-1, won 20-3 at Charlotte

16. UNC Pembroke: 1-1, won 31-24 over Fayetteville State

17. NC Central: 1-2, lost 54-6 at Old Dominion

18. Lenoir-Rhyne: 1-1, won 28-7 at Tusculum

19. Elon: 1-1, won 55-7 over Davidson

20. Livingstone: 1-1, won 28-17 at Allen

21. Fayetteville State: 0-2, lost 31-24 at UNC Pembroke

22. Mars Hill, 0-1, lost 28-25 to Winston-Salem State

23. Elizabeth City State: 0-2, lost 27-20 at Hampton

24. Barton: 0-2, lost 28-14 at West Virginia State

25. Guilford: 0-1, lost to Greensboro 21-7 in the Soup Bowl

26. Brevard: 0-1, lost 41-20 to Kentucky Christian

27. Methodist: 0-1, lost 25-6 at Shenandoah

28. Western Carolina: 0-2, lost 42-10 at Wake Forest

29. Campbell: 0-2, lost 56-3 at ECU

30. Charlotte: 0-2, lost at home to UNC, 20-3

31. NC A&T: 0-2, lost 68-7 at UCF

32. Shaw: 0-1, no game in Week 2

33. Davidson: 0-2, lost 55-7 at Elon

ALL-STATE PERFORMANCES FOR WEEK 2

• Quarterback: Landen Clark, Elon

• Running backs: Demond Claiborne, Wake Forest; Hollywood Smothers, NC State,

• Receiver: Songa Yates, Lenoir-Rhyne; Jakobe Lane, Chowan

• Defensive line: Jake Louro, Elon; Jasiyah Robinson, ECU

• Linebacker: Brodie Carroll, Elon; Cian Slone, NC State

• Defensive back: Samaurie Dukes, Western Carolina; TyQueron Hines, JC Smith

• Special teams: Caden Noonkester, NC State

Gorilla sanctuary: Spying on pro wrestling’s sacred ground

The last few steps before a wrestler enters the arena are important ones

By Shawn Krest North State Journal

IT HAD BEEN a tough two days for Sol Ruca. The third match in the last 48 hours for the up-and-coming WWE superstar was the most significant one. With her partner, Zaria, Ruca was in a title match for the women’s tag team belts.

Already worn down from her heavy workload, Ruca was hit with the nishing moves of several of the other wrestlers in the match — including, in an unfortunate bit of friendly re when the intended victim moved, her partner’s.

Sol was pinned, allowing the champs to keep their belts, and her limp body rolled from the ring to the arena oor. Clearly feeling guilty over accidentally hitting her partner with her lethal spear tackle, Zaria tenderly scooped up Ruca and carried her down the aisle in her arms.

The two fallen challengers, leaving one set of footprints, disappeared from view of the arena fans, stepping through the black curtain at one end of Atlanta’s State Farm Arena.

Ruca then hopped down from Zaria’s cradle, laughing and animatedly talking with her partner. As she trotted ahead toward the dressing room, Zaria swatted her on the rump.

A short time later, the healing properties of the curtain again manifest themselves as former — and future — women’s champion Naomi was hit with a chair and trash can, then slammed through a table in a brutal loss. Two referees had to support her as she limped o , only to ditch them once she was past the curtain.

Welcome to gorilla. It’s the last few steps before a pro wrestler is visible to the fans — the 10 yards that separate kayfabe from real life. It’s the small patch of real estate where wrestlers are alone to collect their thoughts and get in the mindset to perform in front of some of the most rabid and discerning fans in all entertainment.

Gorilla actually refers to the production setup that’s a couple steps farther back. The director and producers of the night’s show sit there, serving as the last faces a wrestler sees before he or she is in the spotlight, and the rst ones they see after the match. It’s named after Gorilla Monsoon, who held that role for years.

The WWE makes sure the pro -

duction people are out of view, even if a few select arena seats do o er a literal peek behind the curtain.

That doesn’t mean it’s impossible to see a gorilla in action.

Three men sit at a long table, separated from a tag team match by a few dozen feet and a large black curtain.

The one in the middle checks the countdown clock on his phone and speaks into a walkie. “One minute,” he says.

Monitors on the table show the wrestling action from several angles. In the ring, the referee taps his nger to his ear.

“I said one minute,” the timekeeper repeats.

The ring is lled with exhausted wrestlers laying prone on the mat. The ref quickly goes to each one, leaning over to examine them.

To an untrained eye, it would appear that he’s making sure everyone is still able to continue. Back in gorilla, we know better. He’s letting them know — time to wrap this up.

This is Ase’ Wrestling (pronounced “ah-SHAY), a black-owned wrestling circuit based in Charlotte. In addition to the in-house fans, Ase’ broadcasts live on YouTube. WRAL’s Chris Lea, himself a former pro wrestler, does the commentary. Former WWE tag team champion Cedric Alexander is on the card, as is Bishop Kaun, who fought last month on a pay-per-view for All Elite Wrestling, the WWE’s top competitor.

The tag bout ends on schedule, and next on the schedule is an in-ring ceremony celebrating Kaun for winning Ase’s Pan African Diaspora championship.

Kaun makes an over-the-top entrance, complete with masked warriors, an African dancer and women

Gorilla: The production center for a pro wrestling show, located right before the entrance from backstage into the arena.

laying down ower petals. Anyone who is at all familiar with wrestling knows that in-ring ceremonies are recipes for disaster. Shenanigans are about to ensue.

Darius Lockhart, the founder of Ase’ and also a wrestler in the next match on the card, leans over the gorilla table to get a good look. He suggests that they stay on “hard cam” — the classic angle that shows the entire ring, instead of switching to closer angles, perhaps because he knows what’s coming next.

Sure enough, as Kaun sits in a large wicker throne that has been placed in the ring and begins to expound on his greatness, Suge D, the former Pan African champion, walks past the production table and begins to pace back and forth along the three steps leading to the entrance through the curtain. Finally, Suge’s music hits, and he bursts through the curtain to interrupt Kaun’s big night. The two trade insults, and the intensity ratchets up. Backstage, most of the wrestlers on tonight’s card have stopped what they were doing to crowd around gorilla and watch the action on the monitor.

Suge mocks the celebration, even taking a shot at Kaun’s work for All-Elite, which earns a chorus of “oooh”s back in gorilla.

A third challenger, Isaiah Broner, arrives to join the war of words. The wicker throne goes ying, but eventually, cooler heads prevail. Back at gorilla, Lockhart steps away from the table. He gives Suge a quick note on the promo as he comes o the oor through the curtain, then he takes a deep breath. He bends forward slowly, then straightens back up. Eyes closed, his shoulders bob and weave almost imperceptibly as he runs through a sequence of moves in his head.

Finally, when the transformation from promoter/booker into wrestler is completed, he takes the three steps to the curtain. When his music hits, he steps through, away from gorilla. He’ll be back, and it won’t be long.

“Eight minutes,” the production assistant says. In the ring, the ref nods.

CONFERENCE from page B1 play, the game means a lot for both squads.

The Wolfpack have a tough conference schedule this year, with Miami and Florida State on the horizon, so they can’t a ord to drop any ACC games in which they’re favored.

NC State has been more battle tested up to this point, with two close games against FBS opponents to open their season (ECU, Virginia), and the Wolfpack will need to be on their game to get o to the start they want.

“It builds con dence, for sure (starting 2-0),” Doeren said. “And then you talk about playing till the end, and we’ve had two good football games where we had to nish to win, and we did that in both cases. It de nitely ratchets up guys’ belief that they can win any game and that it doesn’t matter the situation that we’re in.

That’s a big thing.” For Wake Forest, Thursday’s game will truly be their rst major test.

“There’s a lot of noise about it, a lot of talk about it,” Dickert said. “Obviously the (ACC) opener. I’m

a big believer that the players understand the moment. My message to those guys is that, ‘You’re wrong if your preparation changes. You’re wrong if your intensity toward this game changes.’ We understand what it means, but at the same time, the standard of how you prepare and how you approach an opponent has got to be the same.”

After a close outing against Kennesaw State in their season opener, the Demon Deacons looked much better against the Catamounts, giving a little more con dence in

Dickert’s rebuild of the program. Running back Demond Claiborne shined bright after an early exit in Week 1, but the Demon Deacons need to prove they can open the game a bit more through the air, with starting quarterback Robby Ashford having had only one passing touchdown after two games.

“O ensively, obviously you can see what happens when Demond Claiborne is out there,” Dickert said. “He’s the table setter for our o ense. Big plays, explosive plays, shot plays, a lot of really good things.”

A big win over the Wolfpack would also put Wake Forest fans more at ease and could show that the Demon Deacons are capable of overcoming what was a tough 2024 season (4-8, 2-6 ACC).

“I saw a tremendous amount of growth from Game 1 to Game 2, but our execution still isn’t to the standard,” Dickert said. “There’s still a lot to work on, which is exciting for me as a coach, and that’s really through all three phases. I thought we had good moments, but to play championship football, we need to elevate that standard.”

SHAWN KREST / NORTH STATE JOURNAL

Dressed for his upcoming match, Darius Lockhart, right, leans over to watch an in-ring promo.

SHAWN KREST / NORTH STATE JOURNAL

WWE announcer Wade Barrett takes a moment to collect his thoughts before going through the curtain and into view of the crowd.

TAKE NOTICE DURHAM

25SP000495-310

NOTICE OF FORECLOSURE SALE

NORTH CAROLINA, DURHAM COUNTY

Under and by virtue of a Power of Sale contained in that certain Deed of Trust executed by HOLLY J JOHNSON to Gwynn Edwards, & Getter PA, Trustee(s), which was dated February 29, 2024 and recorded on February 29, 2024 in Book 10059 at Page 958, Durham County Registry, North Carolina. Default having been made of the note thereby secured by the said Deed of Trust and the undersigned, Trustee Services of Carolina, LLC, having been substituted as Trustee in said Deed of Trust, and the holder of the note evidencing said default having directed that the Deed of Trust be foreclosed, the undersigned Substitute Trustee will o er for sale at the courthouse door of the county

NOTICE OF FORECLOSURE SALE

25SP000454-310

courthouse where the property is located, or the usual and customary location at the county courthouse for conducting the sale on September 25, 2025 at 11:30 AM, and will sell to the highest bidder for cash the following described property situated in Durham County, North Carolina, to wit: BEING ALL OF LOT 59, OLIVE GROVE SUBDIVISION, AS SHOWN ON THAT PLAT RECORDED IN PLAT BOOK 207, PAGS 257-266, AND ON THAT PLAT OF CORRECTION SHOWN ON THAT PLAT RECORDED IN PLAT BOOK 208, PAGES 298-307, DURHAM COUNTY REGISTRY. Save and except any releases, deeds of release or prior conveyances of record. Said property is commonly known as 1508 Underbrush Dr, Durham, NC 27703. A Certi ed Check ONLY (no personal checks) of ve percent (5%) of the purchase price, or Seven Hundred Fifty Dollars ($750.00), whichever is greater, will be required at the time of the sale. Following the expiration of the statutory upset bid period, all the remaining amounts are immediately due and owing. THIRD PARTY PURCHASERS MUST PAY

Under and by virtue of the power of sale contained in a certain Deed of Trust made by Christy Olinger and William Olinger (Deceased) (PRESENT RECORD OWNER(S): William Olinger and Christy Olinger) to Michael Lyon, Trustee(s), dated July 22, 2013, and recorded in Book No. 7324, at Page 779 in Durham County Registry, North Carolina. The Deed of Trust was modi ed by the following: A Loan Modi cation recorded on September 11, 2024, Document No. 2024108454, in Book No. 10169, at Page 545, default having been made in the payment of the promissory note secured by the said Deed of Trust and the undersigned, Substitute Trustee Services, Inc. having been substituted as Trustee in said Deed of Trust by an instrument duly recorded in the O ce of the Register of Deeds Durham County, North Carolina and the holder of the note evidencing said indebtedness having directed that the Deed of Trust be foreclosed, the undersigned Substitute Trustee will o er for sale at the courthouse door in Durham, Durham County, North Carolina, or the customary location designated for foreclosure sales, at 3:00 PM on September 23, 2025 and will sell to the highest bidder for cash the following real estate situated in Durham in the County of Durham, North Carolina, and being more particularly described as follows: Tax Id Number(s): 0851-02-79-5043 Land Situated in the County of Durham in the State of NC Beginning at a stake in the north side of the Mineral Springs Road at the southwest corner of Tract 6, as shown on the plat hereinafter referred to, and running thence North 21 degrees 00 minutes West 185 feet to a stake; thence north 53 degrees 55 minutes East 141.8 feet to a stake; thence South 20 degrees 47 minutes East 180.2 feet to a stake in the north side of the Mineral Springs Road; thence along with the north side of said road South 56 degrees 37 minutes West 55 feet to a stake; thence continuing with said road South 49 degrees 08 minutes West 88 feet to a stake; the place of beginning, and being the southwest corner of Tract 6 as shown on plat and survey on le in the o ce of the Register of Deeds of Durham County in Plot Book 34 at Page 62, to which reference is hereby made for a more particular description. Together with improvements located thereon; said property being located at 1311 North Mineral Springs Road, Durham, North Carolina. NOTE: The Company is prohibited from insuring the area or quantity of the land. The Company does not represent that any acreage or footage calculations are

NOTICE OF FORECLOSURE SALE 24 SP 000746

and by virtue of the

of

contained in a certain Deed of Trust made by Minnie Little (Deceased) (PRESENT RECORD OWNER(S): Minnie Little) to LSI Title Agency Inc., Trustee(s), dated November 23, 2009, and recorded in Book No. RE 2923, at Page 2468 in Forsyth County Registry, North Carolina, default having been made in the payment of the promissory note secured by the said Deed of Trust and the undersigned, Substitute Trustee Services, Inc. having been substituted as Trustee in said Deed of Trust by an instrument duly recorded in the O ce of the Register of Deeds Forsyth County, North Carolina and the holder of the note evidencing said indebtedness having directed that the Deed of Trust be foreclosed, the undersigned Substitute Trustee will o er for sale at the courthouse door in Winston Salem, Forsyth County, North Carolina, or the customary location designated for foreclosure sales, at 1:00 PM on September 24, 2025 and will sell to

NOTICE OF FORECLOSURE SALE 24 SP 99 Under and by virtue of the power of sale contained in a certain Deed of Trust made by Ryan Kibler Edge (PRESENT RECORD OWNER(S): Ryan Kibler Edge) to Tina Sorum, Trustee(s), dated April 6, 2022, and recorded in Book No. RE 3687, at Page 683 in Forsyth County Registry, North Carolina, default having been made in the payment of the promissory note secured by the said Deed of Trust and the undersigned, Substitute Trustee Services, Inc. having been substituted as Trustee in said Deed of Trust by an instrument duly recorded in the O ce of the Register of Deeds Forsyth County, North Carolina and the holder of the note evidencing said indebtedness having directed that the Deed of Trust be foreclosed, the undersigned Substitute Trustee will o er for sale at the courthouse door in Winston Salem, Forsyth County, North Carolina, or the customary location designated for foreclosure sales, at 1:00 PM on September 24, 2025 and will sell to the highest bidder for cash the following real estate situated in Rural Hall in the County of Forsyth, North Carolina, and being more particularly described as follows: Being a new 21,278 square foot lot cut from a portion of the property of Leola S. Barr as described in Deed Book 2214, Page 4541 in the O ce of the Register of Deeds of Forsyth County, North Carolina, and being more particularly described as follows:

SALE NORTH CAROLINA, FORSYTH COUNTY 22 SP 78 Under and by virtue of a Power of Sale contained in that certain Deed of Trust executed by Tracey R. Corbett, in the original amount of $187,201.00, payable to Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc., as nominee for First National Bank of Pennsylvania, dated February 7, 2018 and recorded on February 7, 2018 in Book RE3389, Page 2570, Forsyth County Registry. Default having been made in the payment of the note thereby secured by the said Deed of Trust and the undersigned, Anchor Trustee Services, LLC having been substituted as Trustee in said Deed of Trust by an instrument duly recorded in the O ce of the Register of Deeds of Forsyth County, North Carolina, and the holder of the note evidencing said indebtedness having directed that the Deed of Trust be foreclosed, the undersigned Substitute Trustee will

THE EXCISE TAX AND THE RECORDING COSTS FOR THEIR DEED. Said property to be o ered pursuant to this Notice of Sale is being o ered for sale, transfer and conveyance “AS IS WHERE IS.” There are no representations of warranty relating to the title or any physical, environmental, health or safety conditions existing in, on, at, or relating to the property being o ered for sale. Substitute Trustee does not have possession of the property and cannot grant access, prior to or after the sale, for purposes of inspection and/or appraisal. This sale is made subject to all prior liens, unpaid taxes, any unpaid land transfer taxes, special assessments, easements, rights of way, deeds of release, and any other encumbrances or exceptions of record. To the best of the knowledge and belief of the undersigned, the current owner(s) of the property is/are Holly J. Johnson. An Order for possession of the property may be issued pursuant to G.S. 45-21.29 in favor of the purchaser and against the party or parties in possession by the

correct. References to quantity are for identi cation purposes only. Commonly known as: 1311 North Mineral Springs Road Durham, NC 27703 Trustee may, in the Trustee’s sole discretion, delay the sale for up to three hours as provided in N.C.G.S. §45-21.23. Should the property be purchased by a third party, that party must pay the excise tax, as well as the court costs of Forty-Five Cents ($0.45) per One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) required by N.C.G.S. §7A-308(a)(1). The property to be o ered pursuant to this notice of sale is being o ered for sale, transfer and conveyance “AS IS, WHERE IS.” Neither the Trustee nor the holder of the note secured by the deed of trust/security agreement, or both, being foreclosed, nor the o cers, directors, attorneys, employees, agents or authorized representative of either the Trustee or the holder of the note make any representation or warranty relating to the title or any physical, environmental, health or safety conditions existing in, on, at or relating to the property being o ered for sale, and any and all responsibilities or liabilities arising out of or in any way relating to any such condition are expressly disclaimed. Also, this property is being sold subject to all taxes, special assessments, and prior liens or prior encumbrances of record and any recorded releases. Said property is also

the highest bidder for cash the following real estate situated in Winston Salem in the County of Forsyth, North Carolina, and being more particularly described as follows: The following described property: All that certain lot or parcel of land situated in Forsyth County, North Carolina: Being known and designated as Lot No. 111 as shown on the Map of Northwood Estates, Section 4 recorded in Plat Book 23, Page 25 in the O ce of the Register of Deeds of Forsyth County, North Carolina, reference to which is hereby made for a more particular description. Together with improvements located thereon; said property being located at 3836 Sawyer Street, Winston Salem, North Carolina. Being the same parcel conveyed to Minnie Little from Rhonda Victoria Stover Fairley and Willis Fairley, by virtue of a Deed dated 4/7/2001, recorded 4/27/2001, in Deed Book 2170, Page 2639, County of Forsyth, State of North Carolina. Assessor’s Parcel No: 6847-1-4803 Trustee may, in the Trustee’s sole discretion, delay the sale for up to three hours as provided in N.C.G.S. §45-21.23. Should the property be purchased by a third party, that party must pay the excise tax, as well as the

BEGINNING at an existing iron pipe marking the northwestern corner of the property of William Lee Adams and described in Deed Book 2117, Page 4468 and marking the northeastern corner of the property of Leola S. Barr as described in Deed Book 1174, Page 1422, thence along a new line North 30 deg. 43’ 03” East 127.41 feet to an iron pipe set, thence along a new line North 04 deg. 46’ 38” East 26.15 feet to an iron pipe set, thence along a new line South 85 deg. 09’ 59” East 97.09 feet to an iron pipe set in the eastern line of the property of Leola S. Barr and described in Deed Book 2214, Page 4541, thence South 04 deg. 07’ 23” West 191.92 feet to a point, thence North 86 deg. 33’ 49” West 12.89 feet to an existing iron in the root of a maple tree marking a common corner with the property of Beulah M. Barr as described in Deed 1267, Page 1029 and with the property of William Lee Adams and described in Deed Book 2117, Page 4468, thence North 65 deg. 16’ 31” West 151.20 feet to an existing iron pipe marking the point and place of BEGINNING. Together with improvements located thereon; said property being located at 9335 Pearl Drive, Rural Hall, North Carolina. This property is conveyed with and subject to an existing 30-foot easement as described in Deed Book 2214, Page 4541 and conveyed with and subject to a 30 foot access and utilities easement described as follows: BEGINNING at an existing iron pipe marking the northwestern corner of the property of William Lee Adams as described in Deed Book 2117, Page 4468

o er for sale at the courthouse door or other usual place of sale in Forsyth County, North Carolina, at 10:00A.M. on September 23, 2025, and will sell to the highest bidder for cash the following described property, to wit: Being known and designated as Lot 15, Lowery Mill, Section 4, Plat Book 62, Page 31, in the O ce of the Register of Deeds of Forsyth County, North Carolina, reference to which is hereby made for a more particular description. Together with improvements located hereon; said property being located at 2668 Chari Park Lane, Walkertown, NC 27051. Tax ID: 6857-79-2880.000 Third party purchasers must pay the recording costs of the trustee’s deed, any land transfer taxes, the excise tax, pursuant North Carolina General Statutes §105-228.30, in the amount of One Dollar ($1.00) per each Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) or fractional part thereof, and the Clerk of Courts fee, pursuant to North Carolina General Statutes §7A308, in the amount of Forty- ve Cents (0.45) per each One Hundred Dollars

clerk of superior court of the county in which the property is sold. Any person who occupies the property pursuant to a rental agreement entered into or renewed on or after October 1, 2007, may, after receiving the notice of sale, terminate the rental agreement by providing written notice of termination to the landlord, to be e ective on a date stated in the notice that is at least 10 days, but no more than 90 days, after the sale date contained in the notice of sale, provided that the mortgagor has not cured the default at the time the tenant provides the notice of termination [NCGS § 45-21.16A(b)(2)]. Upon termination of a rental agreement, the tenant is liable for rent due under the rental agreement prorated to the e ective date of the termination. Pursuant to NCGS §45-21.25A,

being sold subject to applicable Federal and State laws. A deposit of ve percent (5%) of the purchase price, or seven hundred fty dollars ($750.00), whichever is greater, is required and must be tendered in the form of certi ed funds at the time of the sale. If the trustee is unable to convey title to this property for any reason, the sole remedy of the purchaser is the return of the deposit. Reasons of such inability to convey include, but are not limited to, the ling of a bankruptcy petition prior to the con rmation of the sale

court costs of Forty-Five Cents ($0.45) per One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) required by N.C.G.S. §7A-308(a)(1). The property to be o ered pursuant to this notice of sale is being o ered for sale, transfer and conveyance “AS IS, WHERE IS.” Neither the Trustee nor the holder of the note secured by the deed of trust/security agreement, or both, being foreclosed, nor the o cers, directors, attorneys, employees, agents or authorized representative of either the Trustee or the holder of the note make any representation or warranty relating to the title or any physical, environmental, health or safety conditions existing in, on, at or relating to the property being o ered for sale, and any and all responsibilities or liabilities arising out of or in any way relating to any such condition are expressly disclaimed. Also, this property is being sold subject to all taxes, special assessments, and prior liens or prior encumbrances of record and any recorded releases. Said property is also being sold subject to applicable Federal and State laws. A deposit of ve percent (5%) of the purchase price, or seven hundred fty dollars ($750.00), whichever is greater, is required and must be tendered in the form of certi ed funds at the time of the sale. If the trustee is unable to convey title to this property for any reason, the sole remedy of the purchaser is the return of the deposit. Reasons of such inability to convey include, but are not limited to, the ling of a bankruptcy petition prior to the con rmation of the sale and reinstatement of the loan without the knowledge of the trustee. If the validity of the sale is challenged by any party, the trustee, in its sole discretion, if it believes the challenge to have merit, may request the court to declare the sale to be void and return the deposit. The purchaser will have no further remedy. Additional Notice for Residential Property with Less than 15 rental units, including Single-Family Residential Real Property An order for possession of the property may be issued pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 45-21.29 in favor of the purchaser and against the party or parties in possession by the clerk of superior court of the county in which the property is sold. Any person who occupies the property pursuant to a rental agreement entered into or renewed on or after October 1, 2007, may after receiving the notice of foreclosure sale, terminate the rental agreement by providing written notice of termination to the landlord, to be e ective on a date stated in the notice that is at least 10 days but not more than 90 days, after the sale date contained in this notice of sale, provided that the mortgagor has not cured the default at the time the tenant provides the notice of termination. Upon termination of a rental agreement, the tenant is liable for rent due under the rental agreement prorated to the e ective date of

43’ 03” West 127.41 feet to an existing iron pipe marking the point and place of BEGINNING. This according to a survey and plat entitled Plat of Survey Prepared for Leola S. Barr by David J. O’Brien, PLS and bearing job number 10630. Trustee may, in the Trustee’s sole discretion, delay the sale for up to three hours as provided in N.C.G.S. §45-21.23. Should the property be purchased by a third party, that party must pay the excise tax, as well as the court costs of Forty-Five Cents ($0.45) per One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) required by N.C.G.S. §7A-308(a)(1). The property to be o ered pursuant to this notice of sale is being o ered for sale, transfer and conveyance “AS IS, WHERE IS.” Neither the Trustee nor the holder of the note secured by the deed of trust/security agreement, or both, being foreclosed, nor the o cers, directors, attorneys, employees, agents or authorized representative of either the Trustee or the holder of the note make any representation or warranty relating to the title or any physical, environmental, health or safety conditions existing in, on, at or relating to the property being o ered for sale, and any and all responsibilities or liabilities arising out of or in any

($100.00) or fractional part thereof with a maximum amount of Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00). A deposit of ve percent (5%) of the bid or Seven Hundred Fifty Dollars ($750.00), whichever is greater, will be required at the time of the sale and must be tendered in the form of certi ed funds. Following the expiration of the statutory upset bid period, all the remaining amounts will be immediately due and owing. Said property to be o ered pursuant to this Notice of Sale is being o ered for sale, transfer and conveyance AS IS WHERE IS. There are no representations of warranty relating to the title or any physical, environmental, health or safety conditions existing in, on, at, or relating to the property being o ered for sale. This sale is made subject to all prior liens, unpaid taxes, special assessments, land transfer taxes, if any, and encumbrances of record. To the best of the knowledge and belief of the undersigned, the current owner of the property is Tracey R. Corbett. PLEASE TAKE NOTICE: An order for possession of the property may be

way relating to any such condition are expressly disclaimed. Also, this property is being sold subject to all taxes, special assessments, and prior liens or prior encumbrances of record and any recorded releases. Said property is also being sold subject to applicable Federal and State laws. A deposit of ve percent (5%) of the purchase price, or seven hundred fty dollars ($750.00), whichever is greater, is required and must be tendered in the form of certi ed funds at the time of the sale. If the trustee is unable to convey title to this property for any reason, the sole remedy of the purchaser is the return of the deposit. Reasons of such inability to convey include, but are not limited to, the ling of a bankruptcy petition prior to the con

issued pursuant to North Carolina General Statutes §45-21.29 in favor of the purchaser and against the party or parties in possession by the Clerk of Superior Court of the county in which the property is sold. Any person who occupies the property pursuant to a rental agreement entered into or renewed on or after October 1, 2007, may, after receiving the notice of sale, terminate the rental agreement by providing written notice of termination to the landlord, to be e ective on a date stated in the notice that is at least 10 days, but no more than 90 days, after the sale date contained in the notice of sale, provided that the mortgagor has not cured the default at the time the tenant provides the notice of termination (North Carolina General Statutes §45-21.16A(b) (2)). Upon termination of a rental agreement, the tenant is liable for rent due under the rental agreement prorated to the e ective date of termination. If the Trustee is unable to convey title to this property for any reason, the sole remedy of the purchaser is the return of the deposit. Reasons of such inability to convey include, but are not limited to, the ling of a bankruptcy petition prior to the con rmation of the sale and reinstatement of the loan without the knowledge of the trustee. If the validity of the sale is challenged by any party, the Substitute Trustee, in their sole discretion, if they believe the challenge to have merit, may request the court to declare the sale to be void and return the deposit. The purchaser will have no further remedy. Anchor Trustee Services, LLC Substitute Trustee By: ______________________________ Goddard & Peterson, PLLC 125-B Williamsboro Street Oxford, NC 27565

Remembering 343

The American ag ies over the Siler City Fire Department on Tuesday just ahead of the 24th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Three-hundred forty-three New York City re ghters were killed at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.

the BRIEF this week

Michigan judge tosses case against accused fake electors in 2020

A Michigan judge has dismissed the criminal cases against 15 people accused of acting falsely as electors for President Donald Trump in the 2020 election. District Court Judge Kristen Simmons decided in a Tuesday hearing that the cases won’t go to trial. Charges were brought by the state’s Democratic attorney general over two years ago. The people charged include a few high pro le members of the Republican Party in the battleground state. Each faced eight charges of forgery and conspiracy to commit election forgery. They had been accused of submitting certi cates that falsely said Trump won the election in Michigan.

RFK Jr.’s latest “Make America Healthy Again” report calls for oversight of drug ads

The Trump administration is urging public health agencies to prioritize investigations of vaccine injuries, prescription drug use, and the cause of autism. The call is part of a new report released Tuesday. Overseen by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the report aims to end childhood diseases in the U.S. by refocusing public health on his so-called “MAHA” movement’s priorities. The report suggests using personal medical records and health insurance data to investigate diseases and disorders, including autism. It also addresses issues like ultraprocessed food consumption and water quality. The report calls for increased oversight of prescription drug ads, especially those by social media in uencers.

Pittsboro to put out request for bids for new town hall project

The proposed facility is anticipated to have a construction cost north of $13 million

By Ryan Henkel Chatham News & Record

PITTSBORO — The Town of Pittsboro Board of Commissioners is making headway toward the construction of a new town hall building.

At its Sept. 8 meeting, the board was presented with a feasibility study — done by Hobbs Architects and Frank Land Design — for a potential town hall.

The proposed site for the new town hall will be o of J A Farrell Street, where the current Lil’ Tikes Learning Academy is located.

“This piece of land is really sandwiched between two of our major thoroughfares being East Street and Thompson Street, and it’s only three or four blocks o of Hillsboro Street,” said Hobbs Architect co-founder Taylor Hobbs. “So we’re going to have folks coming from all different directions. It is a central

location that has walkability to downtown, has walkability up to East Street, and we really think works well for its intended use.

“We’re in a real transition zone here between commercial and residential, and what we’re trying to do is respond to both, with the architecture and the development and the site layout,” Hobbs said. “Respecting the residential areas, trying to keep this a passive corner.”

The site plan lays out around 15,000 square feet on the rst oor with two separate wings (government and administrative) and then about 10,000 square feet on the second oor with spaces on both oors for o ces, conference areas, work rooms, storage, break rooms, mechanical/engineering, bathrooms as well as public spaces.

“We had several meetings with town sta to identify what the needs are for the new town hall building,” said Hobbs Ar-

“They knocked it out of the park if they were designing a showstopper town hall. From a budget standpoint, we are nervous about that cost.”

Jonathan Franklin, town manager

chitect Principal Chevon Moore.

“We then sought to arrange them in certain ways that kept the areas that were needed to be accessed by the public, easily and clearly accessible, and then also with a way to secure the areas that did not need to be accessed by the public.”

The total construction cost estimate from the architects puts the project at potentially around $14 million.

“We worked with a professional cost estimator that we’ve worked with for a couple of decades now, and he looked at the

Democratic governor, Republican legislature: How Josh Stein navigates North Carolina politics

“What they want is for whoever are in these positions to get things done that make their lives better, and that’s my job.” Gov. Josh Stein

The rst-term executive works with the GOP on storm recovery and other priorities

By Gary D. Robertson The Associated Press

FLETCHER — North Caro-

lina Gov. Josh Stein has taken an unusual approach with Republican political opponents in his rst eight months leading a highly competitive state where divided government has become the norm.

He’s trying to get along with them. Stein, who succeeded fellow Democrat Roy Cooper in January, has made an e ort to work with the GOP-controlled General Assembly on things

like storm recovery — still a top priority nearly a year since Hurricane Helene’s historic ooding — and on other issues broadly popular with North Carolinians.

He’s kept communication lines open with legislative leaders, even as they back President Donald Trump and oppose many Stein policy prescriptions.

The public, Stein said in an interview with The Associated Press, doesn’t “care whether I’m a Democrat or Republican, or that the legislature is a Democrat- or Republican-led body.”

“What they want is for whoever are in these positions to get things done that make

proposed building and the proposed site and priced it as if it were being bid today,” Moore said. “This represents if it were to go out to bid in today’s market.”

Following the presentation, the board approved town sta to move forward with the posting of a request for quotation for public facility design for construction.

“You saw a town hall that I think meets our needs size wise,” said Town Manager Jonathan Franklin. “Certainly I think they knocked it out of the park if they were designing a showstopper town hall. From a budget standpoint, we are nervous about that cost, and the timeline is tight. We have probably a couple of months to spare for when our lease is up at our current space, so I don’t think we have any time to waste.”

The Town of Pittsboro Board of Commissioners will next meet Sept. 29 for a special joint session alongside the Chatham County Board of Commissioners.

THE CHATHAM COUNTY EDITION OF NORTH STATE JOURNAL

KAREN PYRTLE / CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

CRIME LOG

Sept. 1

• Tawana Lynn Sanford, 41, of Siler City, was arrested for unauthorized use of motor vehicle.

Sept. 3

• Erin Bevan Clement, 39, of Apex, was arrested for resisting a public o cer, assault on government o cial/employee, and intoxicated and disruptive behavior.

Sept. 4

• Darryl Nicholas Jeremiah Neal, 23, of Pittsboro, was arrested for identity theft and obtaining property by false pretenses.

Sept. 5

• Justin Ellis, 38, was arrested for selling/delivering Schedule II controlled substances.

• Wesley Scott Allen Turner, 26, of Raleigh, was arrested for eeing or eluding arrest, failure to heed light or siren, reckless driving, no motorcycle endorsement, speeding, improper registration plate display, no liability insurance, and expired/no inspection.

Sept. 6

• Bigael Manzanarez, 44, was arrested for assault on a female and domestic violence.

• Maria Angelica Arroyo Aguilar, 38, was arrested for domestic violence and simple assault.

• Sara Glovier Smith, 40, homeless, was arrested for second-degree trespass.

• Tre Jordan Hopper, 32, homeless, was arrested for second-degree trespass.

Sept. 7

• Timothy T. Richmond, 53, was arrested for assault on a female, domestic violence, communicating threats, domestic violence protective order violation, assault by strangulation, second-degree kidnapping, breaking and entering to terrorize/injure, and domestic trespass.

• Jasmine Diane Roberts, 28, was arrested for driving while impaired.

GOP state Sen. Bobby Hanig announces bid to unseat Democrat Don Davis

The coastal legislator seeks the GOP nomination in the swing congressional district

The Associated Press

POWELLS POINT — A

coastal North Carolina legislator announced his bid on Wednesday for a U.S. House seat next year, looking to unseat Democratic incumbent Don Davis in what is currently the state’s only swing congressional district.

State Sen. Bobby Hanig of Currituck County said he would seek the Republican nomination for the sprawling 1st Congressional District, which covers 22 counties from the northern Outer Banks to the Raleigh metro area’s outskirts.

Davis and Rocky Mount

Mayor Sandy Roberson, also a Republican, have already led federal candidate paperwork for the 1st District seat in 2026. The o cial state election ling period is in December, with primaries set for early March.

Republicans currently hold

“I’m a proven leader who has always been a erce advocate for my constituents and our shared values and beliefs.”

State Sen. Bobby Hanig

10 of North Carolina’s 14 U.S. House seats, with the 1st District seat the only other one for which the GOP has been competitive. The November 2026 outcome will be watched closely given Republicans’ narrow U.S. House majority and e orts in other states to redraw congressional maps to favor one major party or the other.

Hanig, who was initially elected to the state House in 2018 before moving to the Senate in 2022, highlighted his support for President Donald Trump’s policies and his legislative record with his entry.

“I’m a proven leader who has always been a erce advocate for my constituents and

our shared values and beliefs,” Hanig said in a news release. “I will continue that ght when I get to Washington.”

Davis, himself a former state senator, won the 1st District seat in 2022 by defeating Republican Sandy Smith and earned a second term last fall over Republican Laurie Buckhout by less than 2 percentage points.

Roberson, who lost the GOP nomination to Smith in 2022, reported to the Federal Election Commission raising nearly $2.3 million for his campaign committee in the second quarter, of which $2 million came from his personal funds.

Hanig, a business owner and former Currituck County commissioner chairman, is perhaps best known at the Legislative Building for wearing colorful and striking suit jackets.

Hanig clashed with state Senate GOP leaders this year while opposing their e orts to ban inshore and coastal shoreline shrimp trawling. The legislation petered out in the House after shrimp industry members and their allies rallied in Raleigh against it.

Here’s a quick look at what’s coming up in Chatham County:

Sept.

13

Chatham Mills Farmers Market

8 a.m. to noon

Producers-only farmers market o ering a wide variety of goods from fresh produce to other groceries, including eggs, cheese, meat, health and wellness items and crafts. Everything is created by the vendors themselves. Lawn of the historic Chatham Mills

480 Hillsboro St. Pittsboro

Sanford Farmers Market

8:30 a.m. to noon

It creates the ideal place for local food producers to build connections within the community while giving the public a place to sample and purchase foods and crafts made by their neighbors. Experience the ultimate in food, fun and fellowship in the Sandhills region.

115 Chatham St. Sanford

Mill Town Yarns at BFM –“Sing Me a Story”

7-8:30 p.m.

Live acoustic performances by a variety of local musicians. Admission is free; donations are welcome.

Front Porch, Bynum General Store 950 Bynum Road Bynum

Sept.

17

Jazz Night at The Sycamore at Chatham Mills 6-9 p.m.

Every Wednesday night, The Sycamore hosts live Jazz Nights. The series features a rotating list of local musicians. Visitors can order their choice of appetizers from the Lounge Menu in the dining room each night. Reservations are highly recommended.

480 Hillsboro St. Suite 500 Pittsboro

Sept. 18

Opening Night of the 75th Annual Chatham County Fair

5-10 p.m.

Main attractions will include games, rides, concessions, a petting zoo and an antique car exhibition. Adult tickets are $6, children 6-12 are $4 and children 5 and under get in free.

191 Fairgrounds Road Pittsboro

Celebrity Dairy and Inn o ers gourmet food, high-level hospitality, goats

The working goat farm over-delivers when it comes to pampering guests

By Shawn Krest Chatham News & Record

A DISTINCTIVE-LOOKING goat leaned over the fence and took a mouthful of a visitor’s shirt sleeve. His mop of dark, curly hair looked almost like he was wearing a Halloween wig.

“That one is Bob Ross,” said Clare Reding, a trained chef who now is responsible for the nonhuman residents of Celebrity Dairy. That includes a chicken barn, a handful of free-range guinea hens, two llamas (“to provide security”) and the Celebrity stars—a herd of 100-plus goats.

The goats are remarkably quiet and very friendly. They’re also very aware of where the food is, whether it’s the bin of kibble just out of their reach (but, as they seem to know, well within yours) or the bag of salt they frequently snack on.

Reding, who runs the barn with her partner Cole, explains that each of the goats are supposed to be named after a famous person — hence the name of the dairy. The sheer size of the herd means they’re always looking for suggestions. And you can save the Selena Goatmez or Gordon Ram-sey puns. They’re looking for names that match the individual goats’ personality or, like Mr. Ross, their appearance.

The couple o ers full access to the farm — guests can held cuddle and feed babies during kid season, and they’re welcome at the twice-daily milkings. They’ll talk at length about the animals in their care and are happy to answer any questions — such as, “Why do goats snack on scoops of salt straight from the bag?” — even if they know the visitor won’t retain much of their detailed answer.

The Celebrity Dairy o ers day tours of the farm, but visitors should also take advantage of the Celebrity Dairy Inn, an elegant country bed and breakfast run by Brit and Fleming Pfann. The couple has run the dairy since the late 1980s, after careers in other lines of work.

The Pfanns seem genuinely thrilled to greet visitors and have not slowed down at all after nearly 40 years on the farm.

Brit is constantly headed outside to handle some task on the 300-acre property. Fleming keeps things running smoothly inside, including doing the cooking for family and guests.

The Inn’s website promises full breakfast for weekend guests

Church News

MOUNT VERNON SPRINGS PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

Will host their Annual Church Yard Sale Sat., Sept. 13 – 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.

There will be food including ham biscuits, homemade fried apple pies, baked goods, ra e tickets, furniture, tools, clothes and much more! The church is located at 1225 Mount Vernon Springs Rd. in Bear Creek.

LOVES CREEK BAPTIST CHURCH

Loves Creek Baptist Church in Siler City would like to invite everyone to their 200th Anniversary Celebration. It will be held on Sunday, Sept. 21 at 10:30 a.m. with a memorial service as well as the homecoming celebration. A covered dish lunch will be held at noon following the service. There will be photos, memorabilia and more so come join the celebration! The church is located at 1745 East 11th St. (Highway 64) in Siler City. Please note there will be no Sunday School to allow for this time of celebration. Everyone is welcome!

Cooking really doesn’t do justice to what is produced in the Inn’s industrial-sized restaurant kitchen. ... The Inn o ers monthly multicourse gourmet dinners featuring mocktails, seafood and desserts.

and “grab & go” during the week, but Fleming sco s at that policy. “If there’s even one person here,” she vows, “I’m going to cook.”

Cooking really doesn’t do justice to what Fleming produces in the Inn’s industrial-sized restaurant kitchen. Guests sit down to a table overloaded with individual fruit salads, platters of seasoned, sliced tomatoes, baskets of biscuits and a selection of jams. Then Fleming asks what you want her to make.

One morning, she offered a sampling of the Inn’s award-winning goat cheeses, as well as homemade granola, mixed with goat yogurt, to go with eggs and homemade sausage. Another morning, she made Scotch eggs —

hard-boiled eggs, breaded with sausage and baked. And all of this was for a midweek “grab & go” breakfast.

The Inn also o ers monthly multicourse gourmet dinners featuring mocktails, seafood and desserts.

The rooms are immaculately decorated and furnished with antique furniture, including cast-iron beds, chairs and armoire wardrobe cabinets. The beds are piled high with comforters and pillows, and the only thing that’s new is the high-quality mattress. Each room has a set of French doors that open onto the Inn’s large, inviting porches.

The Celebrity Dairy and Inn is an ideal spot to get away for a day trip or a longer stay. For the level of attention and hospitality, a stay with the Pfanns is one of the biggest bargains around. Our multiday, midweek stay cost less than an overnight stay at similar agritourist B&Bs around the Carolinas and Virginia.

Complaints are hard to come up with. They could have given us a hard sell on their cheese because we were ready to buy. But it wasn’t even available in their on-site gift shop. And they could have been more open-minded about suggestions for celebrity goat names. Billy (Goat) Eilish is gold. Gold.

Send your birth, death, marriage, graduation and other announcements to community@ chathamnewsrecord.com.

Weekly deadline is Monday at noon.

SHAWN KREST / CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

Two llamas provide security for the 100 goats while eyeing visitors suspiciously.

SHAWN KREST / CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

The Celebrity Dairy blends elegant rooms and food with rural charm.

obituaries

IN MEMORY

Brenda Clark

Sept. 2, 2025

It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved sister, mother, grandmother, and friend, Brenda Clark, on September 2, 2025, at age 78. Brenda’s loving

Apr. 29, 1959 – Sept. 5, 2025

Child of God, Kathy Mote Mashburn was born on April 29, 1959, in Orange County, passed away peacefully in her hometown on September 5, 2025, at the age of 66. A loving daughter, sister, aunt, and friend, Kathy will be remembered for her gentle spirit and dedication to those she loved.

Kathy’s life was enriched by her passion for gardening, where she found solace and joy among the owers and plants she so lovingly tended. She was an avid bird watcher, cherishing the quiet moments spent observing nature’s beauty. Her faith was a cornerstone of her life, and she drew strength and

heart and warm spirit will be deeply missed by all who knew her.

Brenda was preceded in death by her parents, Johnnie and Lela Mae Elkins, and cherished son, Mike Clark. She is survived by her daughter Loretta Keily and devoted siblings: Joyce Beeson, Billy Elkins, Kay Ray, and Wanda Gunter. Brenda was also a treasured grandmother, greatgrandmother, great-greatgrandmother, and aunt. She will be fondly remembered by her extensive and loving family and her close friends.

We ask that you pray for the family during this di cult time. A memorial service to celebrate Brenda’s life will be held later, and details will be shared once they are con rmed.

comfort from her relationship with God. Above all, Kathy treasured the time spent with her family and her faithful dog, Gracie.

In her earlier years, Kathy pursued higher education and earned an associate’s degree, which paved the way for a successful career in her chosen eld. Unfortunately, her career was cut short in the early 1990s when she became disabled, but she faced these challenges with grace and resilience.

Kathy is preceded in death by her beloved parents, Lessie and David Mote, brother, Jimmy Mote and her nephew, William David Mote. She leaves behind her cherished sister, Robin Michelle Mote; her niece, Shawna Williamson; her nephew, Jacob Owen Mote; and her loyal canine companion, Gracie. Services will be held at Union Grove UMC, where she was a member, 6401 Union Grove Church Rd Hillsborough, NC 27278, on Sunday September 14th at 3PM with a dinner provided afterward. Desserts will be potluck style. Please wear your favorite springtime colors, as they were her favorite and she would want to be celebrated, not mourned. Piedmont Cremation & Funeral Service is assisting the family at this time.

Celebrate the life of your loved ones. Submit obituaries and death notices to be published in Chatham News & Record at obits@chathamrecord.com

| 919-542-3057 | www.donaldsonfunerals.com

DOROTHY WATTS

We offer an on-site crematory with many options of Celebration of Life services, Traditional, and Green Burials. Call us to set an appointment to come by and learn more.

APRIL 3, 1934 – SEPT. 5, 2025

Dorothy Watts, Bennett, passed away on Friday, September 5th, 2025, at her home. The funeral will be at 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday, September 9th, 2025, at Beulah Baptist Church with Rev. Neal Jackson presiding. The visitation will be 1-2:45 p.m. prior to the service. Burial will follow in the church cemetery. The family will receive friends in the fellowship hall following the committal service. At other times, the family will receive friends at her home. Dorothy was born in Montgomery County on April 3rd, 1934, to Marshall Smith McIntyre and Onnie Webb. She was a member of Beulah Baptist Church. She lived in Rockingham for 34 years. While residing there she attended the Wesleyan Church where she taught Sunday School and sang in the choir. She held the title of Miss Rockingham in 1954. She owned and operated Gladys’ Kitchen. She later worked in bookkeeping and accounting. She also enjoyed ea marketing with selling baby clothes. She loved playing Rummy and especially winning. She also loved spending time with her grandchildren and great grandchildren. Dorothy was spoiled by her two grandsons. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, Bernie Watts, brother Neil McIntyre, and brother-in-law, Tommy Bass and son-inlaw Jimmy Preslar. Dorothy is survived by her daughter Jacquelyn Preslar (Joe Thomas) of Pittsboro, Sister, Joyce Bass of High Point, Grandsons: Brian Preslar (Renee), Brannon Preslar (Alysia) both of Bennett, Great Grandchildren; Brady, Ansley, Barrett, Ava and a host of family and friends.

MICHAEL LYNN BRADY

JAN. 22, 1957 – SEPT. 1, 2025

Michael Lynn Brady, 68, of Bennett, passed away on Monday, September 1, 2025 at UNC Hospital surrounded by his loving family. The funeral will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Friday, September 5, 2025 at Bennett Baptist Church with Rev. Dr. Jason Whitehurst and Rev. Tim Strider presiding. Burial will follow in the church cemetery. Visitation will be held from 6:00-8:00 p.m. on Thursday, September 4, 2025 at JoyceBrady Chapel. Michael was born in Chatham County on January 22, 1957, to Harvey and Ruby Brewer Brady. He was a faithful member of Bennett Baptist Church. Before retirement, he worked as a detention o cer with the Chatham County Sheri ’s O ce for eight years, following 32 years as a construction superintendent. Michael was also a volunteer reman with the Bennett Fire Department, where he served as Fire Chief for 13 years and was currently active on the Board of Directors, as well as in several other roles throughout the years. Family was at the heart of Michael’s life, and he was so proud of his grandchildren. He never missed a ball game, concert, birthday, or school event, often driving many miles in a single day to be there. He created countless memories on beach trips, sleepovers, riding four-wheelers, and running the skid steer. He also delighted in spoiling his grandchildren with ice cream, Maola chocolate milk, breakfasts, and candy from Routh’s Grocery, where they enjoyed visits with the “Old Man’s Club.” In addition to his parents, Michael was preceded in death by his grandsons, Camden and Caleb Brady; sisters, Irene Covert and Sylvia Brown and brother, Gary Dean Brady. He is survived by his wife of 48 years, Darlene Brown Brady, of the home; sons, Joshua Brady (Caroline), of Raleigh and Philip Brady (Rebecca), of Bennett; grandchildren, Emma Grace Brady, Anna Brady, Jaxon Brady and Ethan Brady; brothers, Wayne Brady (Wanda), of Siler City and Harold Brady (Ellen), of Bennett and a host of family and friends. In lieu of owers, donations may be made to the Bennett Volunteer Fire Department, PO Box 115, Bennett, NC 27208, or a blood or monetary contribution to the American Red Cross.

DOROTHY MAE FOXX SHAMBURGER

FEB. 20, 1937 – SEPT. 7, 2025

Mrs. Dorothy Mae Foxx Shamburger was born February 20, 1937 in Chatham County, NC. Dorothy was the second of ten children born to the late Willie S. & Veatrice Foxx. She was married to Henry Shamburger Sr. who preceded her in death. Dorothy was a ectionately known as Dot to her boys, family, friends & many others. Dot joined Lambert Chapel Missionary Baptist church at a very young age. She was a faithful & dedicated member until her health began to decline. Over the years Dot served as an usher & Sunday School Teacher. She took great pride in her work as a missionary and served as Missionary President for many, many years. Dot was also active in the Deep River Association. Dot worked at various places throughout her life. She was an Assistant Cafeteria Manager for Robbins Primary School in Robbins. She also held positions at Kellwood & Chatham County Group Home in Siler City. Dot was the rst black female retail manager at the rst Family Dollar store in Siler City. Dorothy Mae was proceeded in death by her parents, two brothers; Michael Anthony Foxx & Sylvester Roosevelt Foxx and two sisters Jessie Carol Davis & Eva Louise Siler. She leaves to cherish her memory four sons: Henry Shamburger Jr. of Bear Creek, Dwight Shamburger (Regina) of Aberdeen, Robert Shamberger of Liberty and Steven Shamburger of Sanford, one brother Carl Foxx (Ruth) of Siler City, four sisters; Pauline Hall, Hattie Lucille Hanner and Gwendolyn Fox Hanner (Tracy) all of Bear Creek and Mary Ann Williams of Siler City and sister-in-law Priscilla Foxx of Robbins, 11 grandchildren and a host of great-grandchildren, nieces, cousins and friends.

Joseph McNeil, helped spark protest movement at Greensboro lunch counter, dead at 83

The civil rights pioneer and retired USAF general was living in New York

By Gary D. Robertson The Associated Press

RALEIGH — Joseph McNeil, one of four North Carolina college students whose occupation of a racially segregated Woolworth’s lunch counter 65 years ago helped spark nonviolent civil rights sit-in protests across the South, died last Thursday, his university said. He was 83.

McNeil, who later became a two-star general, was one of four freshmen at North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro who sat down at the local “whites only” counter on Feb. 1, 1960. The young black men were refused service and declined to give up their seats even as the store manager and police urged them to move on. Statements from North Carolina A&T and the family did not give his cause of death or where he died. McNeil had been living in New York.

The historically black university said McNeil had recent health challenges but still managed to attend the sit-in’s 65th anniversary observance this year in Greensboro.

McNeil’s death means Jibreel Khazan — formerly Ezell Blair Jr. — is the only surviving member of the four. Franklin McCain

died in 2014 and David Richmond in 1990.

“We were quite serious, and the issue that we rallied behind was a very serious issue because it represented years of su ering and disrespect and humiliation,” McNeil said in a 2010 Associated Press story on the 50th anniversary of the sit-in and the opening of the International Civil Rights Center & Museum on the site of the old Woolworth’s store. “Segregation was an evil kind of thing that needed attention.”

On the sit-in’s rst day, the four young men stayed until the store closed. More protesters joined the next day and days following, leading to at least 1,000 by the fth day. Within weeks, sit-ins were launched in more than 50 cities in nine states. The Woolworth’s counter in Greensboro was desegregated within six months.

McNeil and his classmates “inspired a nation with their courageous, peaceful protest, powerfully embodying the idea that young people could change the world. His leadership and the example of the A&T Four continue to inspire our students today,” school Chancellor James Martin said in a news release. A monument to the four men sits on the A&T campus.

The Greensboro sit-in also led to the formation in Raleigh of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, which became a key part of the student

direct-action civil rights movement. Demonstrations between 1960 and 1965 helped pass the 1964 Civil Rights Act and the 1965 Voting Rights Act. McNeil and the sit-in participants leave a legacy of nonviolent protests that “promote equity and social justice and social change in America and throughout the world,” museum co-founder Earl Jones said Thursday.

The students decided to act when McNeil returned to school on a bus from New York — and the racial atmosphere became more and more oppressive the further south he went, according to the AP’s story in 2010.

The rst-day e ort was meticulously planned, including the purchase of school supplies and toiletries and keeping the receipts to show the lunch counter was the only portion of the store where racial segregation still prevailed.

Joseph A. McNeil grew up in coastal Wilmington and was an ROTC member at A&T. He retired as a two-star major general from the Air Force Reserves in 2001 and also worked as an investment banker. McNeil’s family said a tribute to honor his life will be announced separately. McNeil’s “legacy is a testament to the power of courage and conviction,” his son, Joseph McNeil Jr., said in the family’s statement. “His impact on the civil rights movement and his service to the nation will never be forgotten.”

Kathy Mote Mashburn

their lives better, and that’s my job,” he added. “So I will work with whoever I need to in order to make progress for the people of North Carolina.”

His results have been mixed so far. The General Assembly passed storm-relief packages but gave Stein roughly a little over half the money he requested. It overrode several of his vetoes on bills that build up immigration enforcement, weaken transgender rights and assert other GOP priorities — results that Stein laments.

But Republicans, including some who gathered with Stein at a barbecue in the mountains recently to honor local government workers’ hurricane recovery efforts, have taken notice of the efforts he’s made.

“We appreciate everything that he’s done for us,” said Larry Chapman, a Transylvania County commissioner and Trump supporter. “I’m encouraged with Stein — he seems to be a lot more interested in getting out with the people and listening to people more.”

Stein’s approach comes as Democratic governors nationwide struggle to navigate Republican gains and Trump’s sprawling agenda. While some chief executives have taken more combative stances against Trump and the GOP, others have opted for diplomacy.

Stein told those gathered in Fletcher that he was their ally on Helene, which caused more than 100 deaths in North Carolina and generated $60 billion in damages and needs. He did not mention political a liation.

“You and your constituents have been busting your tails to come back, and come back stronger than ever,” Stein said to hundreds at a park submerged during Helene. “I want you to know that I am in your corner.”

More communication, less confrontation

Stein, the former attorney general, shares many views with Cooper, who early on clashed with Republicans over the “bathroom bill” lawmakers enacted and sued them over laws that eroded his powers. Those clashes set a tone of distrust that wasn’t eliminated during his eight years at the job. Cooper is now running for the U.S. Senate.

While Stein also has sued over GOP power grabs, he’s needed good relations with Republicans on storm relief and other topics. He’s speaking regularly with new Republican House Speaker Destin Hall, longtime Senate leader Phil Berger and other legislators.

“We have di erences with him on certain policies and certain processes,” Berger said recently. But, he added, “I would say that there’s still what I would consider to be a very good relationship on a personal basis with Gov. Stein.”

Stein, himself a lawmaker until 2016, has shared credit with Republicans, inviting them to signings of bipartisan bills. Last week, Stein named a GOP legislator to co-chair an energy affordability task force.

There “was a lot of fatigue from the last eight years, of everything was a battle,” said state Rep. Jake Johnson, another

Republican. “It felt like you were just having to ght to get anything done.”

Partisan divisions remain

By North Carolina standards, Stein still has used his veto stamp frequently — 15 times so far.

He rejected measures that would expand gun access and eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

“Because you respect the people you deal with, because you’re civil with the people you deal with, doesn’t mean you don’t have real disagreements,” Stein said. “When they pass legislation that makes the state less safe or less strong, I’ll veto them.”

Berger said the vetoes prove Stein is more left-leaning than he’s portrayed himself to be.

Democrats hold the minimum number of seats necessary to uphold Stein’s vetoes if they remain

Chatham County Aging Services Weekly Activities Calendar

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united. But Stein was unable to hold them together on eight vetoes — as one to three House Democrats joined Republicans in voting to override them.

Another major veto decision looms if there’s a nal state budget, now two months overdue.

“Stein has lost some big-time issues” this year, Meredith College political science professor David McLennan said. “But it doesn’t mean that he’s not a successful governor in his rst year.”

Visiting areas damaged by Helene

Stein’s latest trip to western North Carolina marked his 34th separate day spent in the region as governor, re ecting a promise to rebuild “a more resilient region for the long haul.”

“A lot of the job is showing up,” said Chuck McGrady, a former Republican legislator from the mountains. “He

is meeting with a wide range of people, and I think he’s gotten very high grades from folks, regardless of their politics.”

Helene’s recovery began during presidential and gubernatorial campaigns and prompted accusations by Trump and allied Republicans that the response from Democratic administrations was weak.

Stein included Johnson and McGrady, now an una liated voter, on a recovery committee. And he created a recovery agency separate from a Cooper-era o ce criticized for housing repair delays after hurricanes Matthew and Florence. Stein met Trump when the president visited the hard-hit region during his rst days in o ce.

Stein said this week he’s seeking an additional $11.5 billion in aid from Congress. His administration says nancial assistance received so far from the federal government as a percentage of total damages and needs is small compared with what was provided after other recent U.S. hurricanes.

A White House spokesperson responded, saying the “request is evidence that he is un t to run a state.” Other Republicans previously said Stein’s administration hasn’t converted what money it’s received to repairs fast enough.

Stein still thinks he can get his messages across without trying to show anybody up.

“I think you can disagree with folks and still be civil, and so when I have concerns about what the administration is doing, I have no hesitation to say what I believe when it hurts North Carolina,” he said.

Judges rule NC tax cap amendments voter ID, enforceable

The trial court panel reversed a previous ruling on the gerrymandering challenge

By Gary D. Robertson

The Associated Press

RALEIGH — Two state constitutional amendments approved by voters — including a photo voter identi cation mandate — are enforceable, a trial court panel ruled three years after appeals judges declared they could be nulli ed because state lawmakers who helped put them on 2018 ballots came from districts tainted by illegal racial bias.

A panel of three Superior Court judges agreed late last week with GOP legislative leaders who wanted dismissed a lawsuit that focused on whether certain legislative actions could be voided if enough General Assembly members elected from racially gerrymandered districts swayed the outcome. The amendment referendums were put on the ballot through bills approved in part by lawmakers elected from nearly 30 districts struck down by federal courts as illegal gerrymanders.

The state Supreme Court ruled in August 2022 — when Democrats held a 4-3 seat majority — that canceling such referendum initiations was possible. But it said a trial judge who initially voided the two approved amendments in early 2019 needed to gather more evidence on the particulars. Along with the voter ID requirements, a majority of voters also approved an amendment lowering the cap on income tax rates from 10% to 7%.

The party-line majority opinion in 2022 said the initial judge had to evaluate whether leaving the amendments in place would allow improperly elected legislators to escape accountability, further exclude voters from the democratic process or amount to continued discrimination. If the answer to any is yes, the justices said, an amendment must be invalidated.

Over the next three years, however, the case was transferred to a three-judge panel. While attorneys for the state

NAACP, the lawsuit plainti , asked that the panel order the two sides to accumulate evidence for a hearing the Supreme Court directed occur, the GOP legislators’ lawyers said there was already enough information from legal briefs for the panel to rule in their favor. The three judges listened to those arguments in October 2024.

The panel’s unanimous order, issued Friday, said the state NAACP failed to “meet its burden of proof of beyond a reasonable doubt” that the General Assembly passed the voter ID and income tax cap amendments with “discriminatory intent and that the legislation actually produces a meaningful disparate impact along racial lines.” The panel was composed of two registered Republicans and one Democrat.

Spokespeople for Senate leader Phil Berger and House Speaker Destin Hall didn’t immediately respond to an email request for comment Monday. Tim Moore was speaker when the 2018 amendments were approved for the ballot.

The ruling can be appealed, and the measure could end up back at the state Supreme Court, where ve of the seven current justices are registered Republicans.

The three-judge panel also pointed out the same session of the legislature approved a law in December 2018 — weeks after the amendment was approved — that determined how photo voter ID would be implemented. The requirement has been used in elections since 2023.

“To retroactively invalidate the session law enabling the Voter ID Amendment would entrench chaos and confusion especially when the Voter ID Law was upheld by the Supreme Court,” the panel read.

As for the income tax cap, they wrote, the trial judge’s 2019 order that initially blocked both amendments, stating that a lower tax rate could harm people of color, was “at best, a speculative forecast of a disparate impact along racial lines.”

CHRIS CARLSON / AP PHOTO

North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein speaks at the Land of Sky Regional Council on Aug. 20 in Fletcher.

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NOTICE

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY

Proposed Flood Hazard Determinations for Chatham County, North Carolina and Incorporated Areas

The Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency has issued a preliminary Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM), and where applicable, Flood Insurance Study (FIS) report, re ecting proposed ood hazard determinations within Chatham County, North Carolina and Incorporated Areas. These ood hazard determinations may include the addition or modi cation of Base Flood Elevations, base ood depths, Special Flood Hazard Area boundaries or zone designations, or the regulatory oodway. Technical information or comments are solicited on the proposed ood hazard determinations shown on the preliminary FIRM and/or FIS report for Chatham County, North Carolina and Incorporated Areas. These ood hazard determinations are the basis for the oodplain management measures that your community is required to either adopt or show evidence of being already in e ect in order to qualify or remain quali ed for participation in the National Flood Insurance Program. However, before these determinations are e ective for oodplain management purposes, you will be provided an opportunity to appeal the proposed information. For information on the statutory 90-day period provided for appeals, as well as a complete listing of the communities a ected and the locations where copies of the FIRM are available for review, please visit FEMA’s website at https://www. oodmaps.fema. gov/fhm/BFE_Status/bfe_main.asp or call the FEMA Mapping and Insurance eXchange (FMIX) toll free at 1-877-FEMA MAP (1-877-336-2627).

NOTICE

STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA NOTICE TO CREDITORS COUNTY OF CHATHAM

THE UNDERSIGNED, having quali ed on the 13th day of August, 2025, as Co-Executors of the ESTATE OF GRETCHEN R. BRUCE, Deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 29th day of November, 2025 or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This, the 28th day of August, 2025. Christopher Bruce and Robin Bruce

CO-EXECUTORS ESTATE OF GRETCHEN R. BRUCE

c/o Richard G. Long III, Attorney Walker Lambe, PLLC Post O ce Box 51549 Durham, North Carolina 27717

NOTICE

STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA NOTICE TO CREDITORS COUNTY OF CHATHAM

THE UNDERSIGNED, having quali ed on the 15th day of August, 2025, as Executor of the ESTATE OF JOHN HOYT KELLEY, Deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the November 22, 2025 or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned.

This, the 21st day of August 2025. Sandra Loen Kelley

EXECUTOR ESTATE OF John Hoyt Kelley

c/o Richard G. Long III, Attorney Walker Lambe, PLLC Post O ce Box 51549 Durham, North Carolina 27717

NORTH CAROLINA

CHATHAM COUNTY NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NOTICE

The undersigned, having quali ed on the 13th day of August, 2025, as Co-Executors of the Estate of Elizabeth Fletcher, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 21st day of November, 2025, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate, please make immediate payment to the undersigned.

This 21st day of August, 2025. Kathryn Bethune and Ramon Gomez, Co-Executors of the Estate of Elizabeth Fletcher c/o Candace B. Minjares, Kennon Craver, PLLC 4011 University Drive, Suite 300 Durham, North Carolina 27707

THE CHATHAM NEWS: 8/21, 8/28, 9/4, and 9/11/2025

NOTICE

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Having quali ed as Executor of the Estate of James Denson Jones, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, the undersigned does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against the estate of the decedent to exhibit them to the undersigned at the o ce of Ivey & Eggleston, Attorneys at Law, 111 Worth Street, Asheboro, North Carolina 27203, on or before December 13th, 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons, rms or corporations indebted to said estate should make immediate payment to the undersigned.

This 11th day of September, 2025. Rebecca Fields Jones Executor of the Estate of James Denson Jones BENJAMIN SCOTT WARREN, Attorney IVEY & EGGLESTON, ATTORNEYS AT LAW 111 Worth Street Asheboro, NC 27203 (336) 625-3043 PUBL/DATES: 09/11/25 09/18/25 09/25/25 10/02/25

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

All persons having claims against Nanette Swift Melcher, of Chatham County, North Carolina, are noti ed to present them to Mathew Melcher, Executor of the Estate of Nanette Melcher, to Brittany N. Porter of NextGen Estate Solutions, 1340 Environ Way, Chapel Hill, NC 27517 or before November 28th, 2025. Failure to present a claim in timely fashion will result in this Notice being pleaded in bar of recovery against the estate, the Personal Representative, and the devisees of Nanette Melcher. Those indebted to Nanette Melcher are asked to make prompt payment to the Estate. Matthew Melcher, Executor of the Estate of Nannette Melcher

Brittany N. Porter, Attorney NextGen Estate Solutions 1340 Environ Way, Chapel Hill, NC 27517

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

25E000267-180

ALL persons having claims against William Davis Brown, deceased, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, are noti ed to exhibit the same to the undersigned on or before Nov 28 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment. This the 28th day of August, 2025.

LINDSAY BROWN, Administrator CTA C/O F. Timothy Nicholls, Nicholls & Crampton, P.A. PO Box 18237 Raleigh, NC 27619 A28, 4, 11 and 18

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Having quali ed as Administrator of the Estate of Max Allen Maples, deceased, of Chatham County, N.C., the undersigned does hereby notify all persons, rms, and corporations having claims against said estate to exhibit them on or before the 21st day of November 2025, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment. Published on the 21st day of August 2025. Shanda Hardin, Administrator, 5216 Eastview Lane, Ramseur, NC 27316.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA

CHATHAM COUNTY

25E000415-180

ALL persons having claims against Patricia Byrne Terry, deceased, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, are noti ed to exhibit the same to the undersigned on or before Dec 04 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment. This the 4th day of September, 2025.

Christina T. Morris, Executor C/O Privette Legacy Planning 1400 Crescent Green, Suite G-100 Cary, NC 27518 S4, 11, 18 and 25

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Estate of Louise Prudence Kessler Having quali ed as Limited Personal Representative of the Estate of Louise Prudence Kessler, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, the undersigned does hereby notify all persons, rms, and corporations having claims against the estate of said decedent to exhibit them to the undersigned at 100 Europa Drive, Suite 271, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27517, on or before the 23rd day of November 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons, rms, corporations indebted to the said estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned.

This is the 21st day of August 2025.

Michelle Calderone Widmann Limited Personal Representative of the Estate of Louise Prudence Kessler

Timothy A. Nordgren Schell Bray PLLC Attorney for the Estate 100 Europa Drive, Suite 271 Chapel Hill, NC, 27517 FOR PUBLICATION: 8/21, 8/28, 9/04, 9/11, 2025

CREDITOR’S NOTICE

Having quali ed on the 15th day of August, 2025, as Administrator CTA of the Estate of Frances Dowd Payne, deceased, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, this is to notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against the decedent to exhibit the same to the undersigned on or before the 28th day of November, 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons, rms and corporations indebted to the estate should make immediate payment. This is the 20th day of August, 2025. Martin Payne, Administrator CTA of the Estate of Frances Dowd Payne 3531 Mill Run Raleigh, NC 27612 Attorneys: Law O ces of Doster & Brown, P.A. 206 Hawkins Avenue Sanford, NC 27330 Publish On: August 28th, September 4th, 11th and 18th 2025.

NOTICE

ALL PERSONS, rms and corporations holding claims against Stephanie Ramos, deceased, of Chatham County, NC are noti ed to exhibit same to the undersigned on or before December 7, 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment. This 4th day of September 2025. Nilda Ramos, Admin., c/o Clarity Legal Group, PO Box 2207, Chapel Hill, NC 27515.

PUBLIC HEARING NOTICE

A public hearing will be held by the Chatham County Board of Commissioners on Monday, September 15, 2025, beginning at 6:00 p.m. The hearing will be held in the courtroom of the Historic Courthouse in Pittsboro, North Carolina at 9 Hillsboro Street, Pittsboro NC 27312. Additional information is available at the Chatham County Planning Department o ce. Speakers are requested to sign up at the meeting prior to the hearing. You may also sign up on the county website prior to the meeting at www.chathamcountync.gov by selecting the heading County Government, then Commissioner Meetings, then Public Input/Hearing Sign Up. The public hearing may be continued to another date at the discretion of the Board of Commissioners. The purpose of the Public Hearing is to receive input, both written and oral, on the issues listed below: Legislative Request: A legislative public hearing requested for a general use rezoning by Lockley Holdings LLC dba Bear Creek Fabrication, to rezone Parcel 9390, located at 1656 Campbell Rd, Bear Creek, being approximately 10.042 acres, from R-1 Residential to IH Heavy Industrial, Gulf Township.

A legislative public hearing requested by the Chatham County Planning Department to amend the e ective date of the adopted Uni ed Development Ordinance from December 31, 2025, to December 31st, 2026 as a result of legislative action S382. Substantial changes may be made following the public hearing due to verbal or written comments received or based on the Board’s discussions. Notice to people with special needs: If you have an audio or visual impairment, unique accessibility requirements or need language assistance, please call the number listed below prior to the hearing and assistance may be provided. If you have any questions or comments concerning these issues, please call the Chatham County Planning Department at 919-542-8204 or write to P.O. Box 54, Pittsboro N.C. 27312. Please run in your paper: September 4th and 11th, 2025

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

The undersigned, having quali ed as Executor of the Estate of John Kevin Conlon aka John K. Conlon, Deceased, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against the estate to exhibit them to the undersigned at the o ces of Tillman, Whichard & Cagle, PLLC, 501 Eastowne Drive, Suite 130, Chapel Hill, NC 27514, on or before the 21st day of November, 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to the estate will please make immediate payment. This 21st day of August, 2025. DONNA CONLON, EXECUTOR ESTATE OF JOHN KEVIN CONLON AKA JOHN K. CONLON

NOTICE

NORTH CAROLINA NOTICE TO CREDITORS

CHATHAM COUNTY

HAVING QUALIFIED as Executor of the Estate of Lewis Keith Kidd late of Chatham County, North Carolina, this is to notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against the estate of said deceased to present them to the undersigned on or before the 27th day of November, 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery.

This the 21st day of August, 2025. Kayla Kidd Humphries, Executor of the Estate of Lewis Keith Kidd 313 Sanctuary Way, Apt. 105 Pittsboro, North Carolina 27312 MOODY, WILLIAMS, ATWATER & LEE

ATTORNEYS AT LAW

BOX 629

SILER CITY, NORTH CAROLINA 27344 (919) 663-2850

4tp

NOTICE

NORTH CAROLINA NOTICE TO CREDITORS

CHATHAM COUNTY

HAVING QUALIFIED as Executor of the Estate of Frankie C. Mueller late of Chatham County, North Carolina, this is to notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against the estate of said deceased to present them to the undersigned on or before the 4th day of December, 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery.

This the 28th day of August, 2025. Je Mueller, Executor of the Estate Of Frankie C. Mueller 170 Dewitt Smith Road Pittsboro, North Carolina 27312

MOODY, WILLIAMS, ATWATER & LEE

ATTORNEYS AT LAW

BOX 629

SILER CITY, NORTH CAROLINA 27344 (919) 663-2850

4tp

NOTICE

NORTH CAROLINA NOTICE TO CREDITORS

CHATHAM COUNTY

HAVING QUALIFIED, as Executrix of the Estate of Floyd Teague, Jr., late of Chatham County, North Carolina, this is to notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against the estate of said deceased to present them to the undersigned on or before October 15, 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. This the 3rd day of September, 2025.

Diane T. Campbell, Executrix 1982 Epps Clark Road Siler City, North Carolina 27344 (919) 663-2533

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA

CHATHAM COUNTY FILE#25E000342-180

The undersigned, KENNETH EUGENE POWELL, having quali ed on the 1ST Day of AUGUST, 2025 as ADMINISTRATOR of the Estate of CAROLYN JEAN

MILLER POWELL, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 21ST Day NOVEMBER 2025, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This, the 21ST DAY OF AUGUST 2025.

KENNETH EUGENE POWELL, ADMINISTRATOR 3933 HIGHLAND CREEK CT. PFAFFTOWN, NC 27040

Run dates: A21,28,S4,11p

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA

CHATHAM COUNTY

25E000417-180

ALL persons having claims against Harold Fredric Terry, deceased, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, are noti ed to exhibit the same to the undersigned on or before Dec 04 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment. This the 4th day of September, 2025. Christina T. Morris, Administrator CTA C/O Privette Legacy Planning 137 Highpointe Drive Pittsboro, NC 27312 S4, 11, 18 and 25

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA

CHATHAM COUNTY

25E000473-180

ALL persons having claims against Stephen Earl Rosenthal, deceased, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, are noti ed to exhibit the same to the undersigned on or before Dec 18 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment.

This the 18th day of September, 2025.

JOAN SOBEL ROSENTHAL, Executor C/O Lenfestey, Maxie & Burger, PLLC 5640 Dillard Drive, Suite 101 Cary, North Carolina 27518 S18, 25, 2 and 9

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA

CHATHAM COUNTY

25E000272-180 ALL persons having claims against Joan Covey Lawson, deceased, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, are noti ed to exhibit the same to the undersigned on or before Nov 21 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment.

This the 21st day of August, 2025. Patrick Lawson, Limited Personal Representative C/O Brady Boyette, PLLC 1025 Dresser Court Raleigh, NC 27609 A21, 28, 4 and 11

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA

CHATHAM COUNTY

25E000463-180 ALL persons having claims against John Charles Angelillo, Jr., deceased, late of Chatham County, North Carolina, are noti ed to exhibit the same to the undersigned on or before Dec 04 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of recovery. Debtors of the decedent are asked to make immediate payment.

This the 4th day of September, 2025.

JOSEPH A. ANGELILLO, Administrator C/O Howard Stallings Law Firm PO Box 12347 Raleigh, NC 27605 S4, 11, 18 and 25

NOTICE

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION

Brooks Energy, LLC Project No. 6276-042

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR SURRENDER OF EXEMPTION ACCEPTED FOR FILING, SOLICITING COMMENTS, MOTIONS TO INTERVENE, AND PROTESTS

(September 2, 2025)

Take notice that the following hydroelectric application has been led with the Commission and is available for public inspection: a. Application Type: Surrender of Exemption b. Project No: 6276-042

c. Date Filed: August 5, 2025

d. Applicant: Brooks Energy, LLC

e. Name of Project: Lockville Dam Hydroelectric Project f. Location: The project is located on the Deep River at a point where it forms the border between Chatham and Lee counties, North Carolina. The project does not occupy any federal lands.

g. Filed Pursuant to: 18 CFR 4.102

h. Applicant Contact: William Dean Brooks, Manager, Owner, and Registered Agent, 1195 Beal Road, Goldston, NC, 27252, ncge08@gmail.com

i. FERC Contact: Kelly Fitzpatrick, (202) 502-8435, kelly. tzpatrick@ferc.gov

j. Cooperating agencies: With this notice, the Commission is inviting federal, state, local, and Tribal agencies with jurisdiction and/or special expertise with respect to environmental issues a ected by the proposal, that wish to cooperate in the preparation of any environmental document, if applicable, to follow the instructions for ling such requests described in item k below. Cooperating agencies should note the Commission’s policy that agencies that cooperate in the preparation of any environmental document cannot also intervene. See 94 FERC ¶ 61,076 (2001). k. Deadline for ling comments, motions to intervene, and protests: October 12, 2025 at 5:00pm Eastern Time.

The Commission strongly encourages electronic ling. Please le comments, motions to intervene, and protests using the Commission’s eFiling system at http://www.ferc.gov/docs- ling/e ling.asp. Commenters can submit brief comments up to 6,000 characters, without prior registration, using the eComment system at http://www.ferc.gov/docsling/ecomment.asp. For assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at FERCOnlineSupport@ ferc.gov, (866) 208-3676 (toll free), or (202) 5028659 (TTY). In lieu of electronic ling, you may submit a paper copy. Submissions sent via the U.S. Postal Service must be addressed to: Debbie-Anne A. Reese, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426. Submissions sent via any other carrier must be addressed to: Debbie-Anne A. Reese, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 12225 Wilkins Avenue, Rockville, MD 20852. The rst page of any ling should include the docket number P-6276-042. Comments emailed to Commission sta are not considered part of the Commission record. The Commission’s Rules of Practice and Procedure require all intervenors ling documents with the Commission to serve a copy of that document on each person whose name appears on the o cial service list for the project. Further, if an intervenor les comments or documents with the Commission relating to the merits of an issue that may a ect the responsibilities of a particular resource agency, they must also serve a copy of the document on that resource agency.

l. Description of Request: The applicant proposes to surrender the project exemption. The generating equipment has not operated since 2020 when hydropower generation was suspended due to necessary maintenance to the trash racks. The dam was breached in 2023. No modi cations to the existing dam, buildings, or structures and no ground disturbing activities are proposed. The applicant has already disabled the interconnection switches within the powerhouse. The applicant proposes to open the interconnection switches which tie the generation to the utility delivery point, remove the generation breakers from the panel in the vicinity of the interconnection point, and remove the wiring connecting the generation to the utility interconnection point. There will be no work on the dam or spillway. After the surrender of the exemption, the dam will be removed by American Rivers and Resource Environmental Solutions as part of American Rivers’ Watershed Restoration of the Upper Cape Fear and Lower Deep Rivers project, with funding and collaborative support from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

m. Locations of the Application: This ling may be viewed on the Commission’s website at http://www. ferc.gov using the “eLibrary” link. Enter the docket number excluding the last three digits in the docket number eld to access the document. You may also register online at http://www.ferc.gov/docs- ling/ esubscription.asp to be noti ed via email of new lings and issuances related to this or other pending projects. For assistance, call 1-866-208-3676 or e-mail FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov, for TTY, call (202) 502-8659. Agencies may obtain copies of the application directly from the applicant.

n. Individuals desiring to be included on the Commission’s mailing list should so indicate by writing to the Secretary of the Commission.

o. Comments, Protests, or Motions to Intervene: Anyone may submit comments, a protest, or a motion to intervene in accordance with the requirements of Rules of Practice and Procedure, 18 CFR 385.210, .211, .214, respectively. In determining the appropriate action to take, the Commission will consider all protests or other comments led, but only those who le a motion to intervene in accordance with the Commission’s Rules may become a party to the proceeding. Any comments, protests, or motions to intervene must be received on or before the speci ed comment date for the particular application.

p. Filing and Service of Documents: Any ling must (1) bear in all capital letters the title “COMMENTS”, “PROTEST”, or “MOTION TO INTERVENE” as applicable; (2) set forth in the heading the name of the applicant and the project number of the application to which the ling responds; (3) furnish the name, address, and telephone number of the person commenting, protesting or intervening; and (4) otherwise comply with the requirements of 18 CFR 385.2001 through 385.2005. All comments, motions to intervene, or protests must set forth their evidentiary basis. Any ling made by an intervenor must be accompanied by proof of service on all persons listed in the service list prepared by the Commission in this proceeding, in accordance with 18 CFR 385.2010.

q. The Commission’s O ce of Public Participation (OPP) supports meaningful public engagement and participation in Commission proceedings. OPP can help members of the public, including landowners, environmental justice communities, Tribal members and others, access publicly available information and navigate Commission processes. For public inquiries and assistance with making lings such as interventions, comments, or requests for rehearing, the public is encouraged to contact OPP at (202) 502-6595 or OPP@ferc.gov.

Debbie-Anne A. Reese, Secretary.

Chatham News & Record for Thursday, September 11, 2025

Conservative news network Newsmax les antitrust lawsuit against Fox News

“Fox’s behavior represents a textbook abuse of monopoly power.”

Michael J. Guzman, Newsmax lawyer

The company alleges its news rival uses intimidation to sti e competition

By David Bauder The Associated Press

NEW YORK — The conservative news network Newsmax led an antitrust lawsuit against Fox News last Wednesday, saying Fox has sought to maintain its market dominance through intimidation and exclusionary business practices designed to stie competition.

Fox has sought to block television distributors from carrying Newsmax or minimize its exposure, pressured guests not to appear on the rival network and hired private detectives to investigate Newsmax executives, said the lawsuit, led in U.S. District Court in south Florida. Newsmax seeks a jury trial. Fox, in a statement, said “Newsmax cannot sue their way out of their own competitive failures in the marketplace to chase headlines simply because

24SP001109-180 NOTICE OF FORECLOSURE SALE

NORTH CAROLINA, CHATHAM COUNTY

Under and by virtue of a Power of Sale contained in that certain Deed of Trust executed by Barry D Edwards and Sandra B Edwards to Trste, Inc, Trustee(s), which was dated January 16, 2003 and recorded on February 24, 2003 in Book 997 at Page 902, Chatham County Registry, North Carolina.

Default having been made of the note thereby secured by the said Deed of Trust and the undersigned, Trustee Services of Carolina, LLC, having been substituted as Trustee in said Deed of Trust, and the holder of the note evidencing said default having directed that the Deed of Trust be foreclosed, the undersigned Substitute Trustee will o er for sale at the courthouse door of the county courthouse where the property is located, or the usual and customary location at the county courthouse for conducting the sale on September 25, 2025 at 01:00 PM, and will sell to the highest bidder for cash the following described property situated in Chatham County, North Carolina, to wit: ALL THAT CERTAIN PROPERTY SITUATED IN THE TOWNSHIP OF MATTHEWS IN THE COUNTY OF CHATHAM AND STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA AND BEING MORE PARTICULARLY DESCRIBED IN A DEED DATED 12-28-1983 AND RECORDED 12-29-1983 IN BOOK 466 PAGE 569 AMONG THE LAND RECORDS OF THE COUNTY AND STATE SET FORTH ABOVE. And being more particularly described by metes and bounds according to said Deed as follows: FIRST TRACT: Lying and being in Matthews Township, Chatham County, North Carolina, and more particularly described as follows: BEGINNING at an iron spike in the center of U.S. Highway #421, Elizabeth C. Saunders southeast corner and running thence with Saunders’ line North 00 degrees 20’ West 503.48 feet to an old iron stake, Lyndal Joines Estate’s southeast corner; thence with Joines’ line North 00 degrees 20’ West 417.47 feet to an old iron stake and pointers, Je Joyce’s southeast corner; thence with Joyce’s line North 00 degrees 20’ West 539.06 feet to an iron stake in McPherson’s line; thence with McPherson’s line South 83 degrees 10’ East 421.86 feet to an iron stake the northwest corner of Parcel B as shown on a plat entitled “Division of a Portion of the Glosson & Esther Dale Edwards Land”, dated August 6, 1981, by James D. Hunter, R.L.S.; thence with the western margin of Parcel

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY FILE#25E000455-180

The undersigned, KENNETH A HENDERSON, having quali ed on the 18TH Day of AUGUST, 2025 as EXECUTOR of the Estate of DEBRA LYNN HENDERSON, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 28TH Day NOVEMBER 2025, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This, the 28TH DAY OF AUGUST 2025. KENNETH A HENDERSON, EXECUTOR

2294 US 64 BUSINESS W. PITTSBORO, NC 27312 Run dates: A28,S4,11,18p

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#25E000470-180

The undersigned, CINDY S. STUYVESANT, having quali ed on the 25TH Day of AUGUST, 2025 as EXECUTOR of the Estate of GERALD K. STUYVESANT, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 4TH Day DECEMBER 2025, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This, the 4TH DAY OF SEPTEMBER 2025.

CINDY S. STUYVESANT, EXECUTOR 6320 N KOLMAR AVE. CHICAGO, IL 60646 Run dates: S4,11,18,25

they can’t attract viewers.”

Newsmax, which has operated since 2014, is attacking Fox News at perhaps its most popular point: the cable network’s opinion programming has consistently beaten broadcast networks ABC, CBS and NBC in prime time over the summer months.

Its rivals pointed at a series of hardball business tactics in the complex world of television distribution. Fox’s success enables it to charge distributors “outsized” fees to carry the network, and it tries to force distributors either not to carry competitors who seek access to conservative viewers or make it hard to nd them.

Fox has also tried to deliberately block Newsmax from growing platforms like Hulu, Sling and Fubo, the complaint alleged.

“Fox’s behavior represents a textbook abuse of monopoly power,” said Newsmax lawyer Michael J. Guzman. “The law is clear: competition, not coercion, should decide what news channels Americans can watch. By leveraging its must-have status, Fox has blocked new

B South 09 degrees 26’ West 600.00 feet to an iron stake, Fred Burton’s northwest corner; thence with Burton’s line South 9 degrees 26’ West 1,500.37 feet to a point in the centerline of U.S. Highway #421; thence with the centerline of U.S. Highway #421 North 66 degrees 08’ West 42.96 feet; thence continuing with the centerline of U.S. Highway #421 North 67 degrees 03’ West 135.56 feet to a railroad spike, the point and place of BEGINNING, and containing 10.00 acres, more or less, and being all of Parcel A as shown on a plat hereinbefore referred to.

SECOND TRACT: BEGINNING at an iron stake, Fred and Sharon Burton’s northwest corner and being designated Point 31 on a plat entitled “Division of a Portion of the Glosson and Esther Dale Edwards Land”, by James D. Hunter, R.L.S., dated August 6, 1981, and running thence with the eastern margin of Parcel A as shown on said plat North 09 degrees 26’ East 600.00 feet to an iron stake in McPherson’s line; thence with McPherson’s southern boundary South 83 degrees 10’ East 348.75 feet to an iron stake; thence continuing on South 83 degrees 10’ East 46.34 feet to an iron stake, the northwest corner of Gary and Brenda Edwards; thence with Gary Edwards’ western line South 17 degrees 33’ West 655.02 feet to an iron stake, Fred Burton’s northeast corner; thence with Burton’s northern line North 74 degrees 48’ West 303.74 feet to an iron stake, the point and place of BEGINNING, and containing 5.00 acres, more or less, and being all of Parcel B as shown on a plat hereinbefore referred to. Save and except any releases, deeds of release or prior conveyances of record.

Said property is commonly known as 3476 Old US Hwy 421 N, Siler City, NC 27344.

A Certi ed Check ONLY (no personal checks) of ve percent (5%) of the purchase price, or Seven Hundred Fifty Dollars ($750.00), whichever is greater, will be required at the time of the sale. Following the expiration of the statutory upset bid period, all the remaining amounts are immediately due and owing. THIRD PARTY PURCHASERS MUST PAY THE EXCISE TAX AND THE RECORDING COSTS FOR THEIR DEED.

Said property to be o ered pursuant to this Notice of Sale is being o ered for sale, transfer and conveyance “AS IS WHERE IS.” There are no representations of warranty relating to the title or any physical, environmental, health or safety conditions existing in, on, at, or relating to the property being o ered for sale. Substitute Trustee does not have possession of the property and cannot grant access, prior to or after the

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#25E000464-180 The undersigned, CRAIGORY DUNN AND STEPHANIE DUNN, having quali ed on the 22ND Day of AUGUST, 2025 as CO-ADMINISTRATORS of the Estate of GWENDOLYN BRYANT DUNN, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 11TH Day DECEMBER 2025, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This, the 11TH DAY OF SEPTEMBER 2025. CRAIGORY DUNN, CO-ADMINISTRATOR PO BOX 37 SILER CITY, NC 27344 STEPHANIE DUNN, CO-ADMINISTRATOR 2530 KINGFISHER RD., APT.207 GRAHAM, NC 27253 Run dates: S11,18,25,O2p

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#25E00187-180 The undersigned, STEPHEN THOMAS WILLETT, having quali ed on the 18TH Day of AUGUST, 2025 as EXECUTOR of the Estate of STEPHEN LEROY WILLETT, deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 28TH Day NOVEMBER 2025, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This, the 28TH DAY OF AUGUST 2025.

STEPHEN THOMAS WILLETT, EXECUTOR 2010 EDWARDS HILL CH RD SILER CITY, NC 27344 Run dates: A28,S4,11,18p

voices, suppressed consumer choice, and extracted excess pro ts.”

The lawsuit alleges Fox used an agency to set up social media accounts that attacked Newsmax CEO Chris Ruddy, and hired private detectives to investigate Newsmax executives. “Since the inception of Newsmax’s cable channel, Newsmax has faced threats and smear intimidation tactics to hurt or undermine the company and its executives,” the lawsuit said.

When Newsmax confronted Fox regarding anti-competitive conduct, Fox News responded, “welcome to the big leagues,” the lawsuit said.

Newsmax has never approached Fox News in ratings power, but court papers in lawsuits following the 2020 election revealed that Fox executives became greatly concerned that its rival would take advantage of viewer dissatisfaction following President Donald Trump’s election loss.

“Fox may have pro ted from exclusionary tactics and intimidation tactics for years, but those days are over,” Ruddy said in a statement.

sale, for purposes of inspection and/or appraisal.

This sale is made subject to all prior liens, unpaid taxes, any unpaid land transfer taxes, special assessments, easements, rights of way, deeds of release, and any other encumbrances or exceptions of record. To the best of the knowledge and belief of the undersigned, the current owner(s) of the property is/are All Lawful Heirs of Barry D. Edwards.

An Order for possession of the property may be issued pursuant to G.S. 45-21.29 in favor of the purchaser and against the party or parties in possession by the clerk of superior court of the county in which the property is sold. Any person who occupies the property pursuant to a rental agreement entered into or renewed on or after October 1, 2007, may, after receiving the notice of sale, terminate the rental agreement by providing written notice of termination to the landlord, to be e ective on a date stated in the notice that is at least 10 days, but no more than 90 days, after the sale date contained in the notice of sale, provided that the mortgagor has not cured the default at the time the tenant provides the notice of termination [NCGS § 45-21.16A(b)(2)]. Upon termination of a rental agreement, the tenant is liable for rent due under the rental agreement prorated to the e ective date of the termination.

Pursuant to NCGS §45-21.25A, this sale may be subject to remote bids placed by bidders not physically present at the place of sale, which may be accepted by the person conducting the sale, or their agent”.

If the trustee is unable to convey title to this property for any reason, the sole remedy of the purchaser is the return of the deposit. Reasons of such inability to convey include, but are not limited to, the ling of a bankruptcy petition prior to the con rmation of the sale and reinstatement of the loan without the knowledge of the trustee. If the validity of the sale is challenged by any party, the trustee, in their sole discretion, if they believe the challenge to have merit, may request the court to declare the sale to be void and return the deposit. The purchaser will have no further remedy.

Trustee Services of Carolina, LLC Substitute Trustee Brock & Scott, PLLC Attorneys for Trustee Services of Carolina, LLC 5431 Oleander Drive Suite 200 Wilmington, NC 28403 PHONE: (910) 392-4988 File No.: 24-21473-FC01

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

FILE#25E000424-180 The undersigned, JAMES RAY HOLDER, JR., having quali ed on the 4TH Day of AUGUST, 2025 as ADMINISTRATOR, CTA of the Estate of THERESA E. HOLDER deceased, of Chatham County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to him on or before the 21ST Day NOVEMBER 2025, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This, the 21ST OF AUGUST 2025. JAMES RAY HOLDER, JR., ADMINISTRATOR CTA 462 DUBLIN DR. SANFORD, NC 27330 Run dates: A21,28,S4,11p

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

25E000480-180 NORTH CAROLINA CHATHAM COUNTY

AVISO DE AUDIENCIA PÚBLICA

Sección 5311 (ADTAP), 5310, 5339, 5307 y nanciamiento estatal aplicable, o una combinación de las mismas.

Esto es para informar al público de que se hará una audiencia pública sobre la solicitud de Compra de capital de servicio para el año scal 2027 para el Programa de transporte comunitario que se presentará al Departamento de Transporte de Carolina del Norte a más tardar el 3 de octubre de 2025. La audiencia pública se hará el 15 de septiembre de 2025 a las 6 p. m. ante la Junta de Comisionados del condado de Chatham. Las personas interesadas en asistir a la audiencia pública y que necesiten ayudas y servicios auxiliares según la Ley de Americanos con Discapacidades (Americans with Disabilities Act, ADA) o un traductor deben comunicarse con Zach Deaton a más tardar el 12 de septiembre de 2025, llamando al número de teléfono 919-542-4512 o enviando un correo electrónico a zach.deaton@chathamcountync.gov. El Programa de transporte comunitario da ayuda para coordinar los programas existentes de transporte que operan en el condado de Chatham y opciones de transporte y servicios para las comunidades en esta área de servicio. Estos servicios se prestan actualmente mediante Chatham Transit Network. Cantidad total aproximada que se solicitará para el período del 1 de julio de 2026 al 30 de junio de 2027: NOTA: La cantidad de la parte local está sujeta a la disponibilidad de fondos estatales.

Esta solicitud podrá revisarse en www.chathamcountync.gov/ agingservices a partir del 2 de septiembre de 2025. Los comentarios por escrito deben enviarse a Jenifer Johnson antes del 12 de septiembre de 2025 a jenifer.johnson@chathamcountync.gov.

The undersigned, Christopher Solow, having quali ed as Limited Personal Representative of the Estate of June R. Solow, deceased, late of Chatham County, this is to notify all persons having claims against said estate to present them to the undersigned on or before the day of December 10, 2025, or this notice will be plead in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This the 11th day of September 2025. Christopher Solow Limited Personal Representative Marie H. Hopper Attorney for the Estate Hopper Cummings, PLLC Post O ce Box 1455 Pittsboro, NC 27312 PUBLIC HEARING NOTICE Section 5311 (ADTAP), 5310, 5339, 5307 and applicable State funding, or combination thereof. This is to inform the public that a public hearing will

2027. NOTE: Local share amount is subject to State funding availability.

This application may be inspected at www.chathamcountync.gov/ agingservices from September 2, 2025.. Written comments should be directed to Jenifer Johnson before September 12, 2025 at jenifer. johnson@chathamcountync.gov

NOTICE

NORTH CAROLINA IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE DISTRICT COURT DIVISION CHATHAM COUNTY FILE NO. 15CvD000063-180

COUNTY OF CHATHAM

Plainti , NOTICE OF SERVICE OF vs. PROCESS BY PUBLICATION ADA NOBLE a/k/a ADA NOBLES, et al Defendants.

TO: The HEIRS, ASSIGNS, and DEVISEES of JOHNNY MCKINNEY a/k/a JOHN RAY MCKINNEY a/k/a JONNY MCKINNEY and spouse, if any, which may include JOHNNY MCKINNEY, JR. and spouse, if any, or any other person or entity claiming thereunder; The HEIRS, ASSIGNS, and DEVISEES of ERNEST MCKINNEY and spouse, if any, or any other person or entity claiming thereunder; The HEIRS, ASSIGNS, and DEVISEES of PATRICIA A. MCKINNEY and spouse, if any, or any other person or entity claiming thereunder; The HEIRS, ASSIGNS, and DEVISEES of JAMES THOMAS MCKINNEY and spouse, if any, or any other person or entity claiming thereunder; and The HEIRS, ASSIGNS, and DEVISEES of WILLIE DAVIS a/k/a DELORES DAVIS a/k/a DELORIS DAVIS and spouse, if any, which may include MALCOLM L. DAVIS and spouse, if any, and EBONY M. DAVIS and spouse, if any, or any other person or entity claiming thereunder A pleading seeking relief against you has been led in the aboveentitled action and notice of service of process by publication began on September 4, 2025.

The nature of the relief being sought is as follows: Foreclosure on tax parcel(s) more completely described in the Complaint, to collect delinquent ad valorem taxes (assessments). Plainti seeks to extinguish any and all claim or interest that you may have in said property.

You are required to make defense to such pleading not later than forty (40) days after the date of the rst publication of notice stated above, exclusive of such date, being forty (40) days after September 4, 2025, or by October 14, 2025, and upon your failure to do so, the party seeking service of process by publication will apply to the Court for relief sought.

This the 26th day of August, 2025.

ZACCHAEUS LEGAL SERVICES

By: ____________________________________ Mark D. Bardill/Mark B. Bardill Attorney for Plainti NC Bar #12852/56782 310 W. Jones St. P. O. Box 25 Trenton, North Carolina 28585 Telephone: (252) 448-4541

Publication dates: September 4, 2025 September 11, 2025 September 18, 2025

THE CONVERSATION

Trip Ho end, publisher | Frank Hill, senior opinion editor

Abiding love, sudden delight

Repeating my mantra reminds me to nd something delightful everywhere I go, whether at the o ce, around the neighborhood or in the doctor’s o ce.

“ABIDING LOVE, sudden delight” is my mantra these days. I whisper these words at the beginning of my early morning meditation, ponder them while walking the dog and speak them in the empty minivan at the long tra c light.

“Abiding love” is my prayer, yet I lack concrete proof that love propels the world forward. Some people would argue the laws of physics govern the universe. Others would point to the reality of human tragedy and su ering. I would never deny either of these truths, yet I also choose to believe that “the greatest of things is love” (1 Corinthians 13:13).

I trust that we are all loved — you, me, the trash collector, the divorce attorney, the teenager on their phone, the Muslim kneeling to pray, the ditch digger, the hedge fund trader, the cashier, the man asking for money on the street corner and my neighbor, Adam, who puts out a bowl of fresh water for the dogs.

Repeating my mantra reminds me to

nd something delightful everywhere I go, whether at the o ce, around the neighborhood or in the doctor’s o ce. Today’s delights included the bubbling creek, the monarch chrysalis, the smell of co ee, the taste of co ee with cinnamon, the baby’s fat legs kicking in his stroller, the brand-new shoes on the schoolkid, the backpack on the schoolkid much bigger than her, the cat purring outside the co ee shop, and the massive, shaggy dog gingerly carrying a slender stick in his mouth. The elderly man holding the other end of the leash explained with a smile: “He chooses a new stick every morning.”

After seeing that delightful dog with his daily stick, I read about a race in Queens, New York, that is 3,100 miles — not a typo or misprint. It is the longest footrace in the world, yet the course spans only a single city block. A handful of athletes jog from dawn to midnight, week after week, for 52 days.

It’s called the Sri Chinmoy

‘Have a nice day’ has di erent meanings depending on folks

“Because Americans cram so much into their lives, we tend to schedule our headaches.”

EVER NOTICE HOW sometimes we just sort of say things without really thinking much about what we say?

Take “Have a nice day,” for instance. How do you “have” a nice day? Does is mean you get to do everything you want when you want to do it? Or does it mean making the most of the day into lemonade out of lemons if that’s what you wind up with?

One of my favorites is when folks say something like, “I’d like to thank so and so” or “I’d like to take this opportunity to whatever.” I always want to say, “Well, why don’t you?” or to nish their sentence by adding “but I can’t.” Those sayings — and more — put me to thinking about what we do with our lives and how fast they y by, especially in light now of having experienced the death of the four parents my better half and I had. Not so terribly long ago as I did a modest bit of clean-up in my study, I came across a note from I-can’t-remember-who that touched on that. I’d like to share it with you. She said, “Too many people put o something that brings them joy because they haven’t thought about it, don’t have it on their schedule, didn’t know it was coming or are too rigid to depart from their routine.

“I got to thinking one day about all those women on the Titanic who passed up dessert at dinner that fateful night in an e ort to cut back. From then on, I’ve tried to be a little more exible.

“How many women out there will eat at home because their husband didn’t suggest going out to dinner until after something

had been thawed? Does the word “refrigeration” mean nothing to you?

“How often have your kids dropped in to talk and sat in silence while you watched ‘Jeopardy’ on television?

“I cannot count the times I called my sister and said, ‘How about going to lunch in a half hour?’ She would stammer, ‘I can’t. I have clothes on the line. My hair is dirty. I wish I had known yesterday. I had a late breakfast. It looks like rain.’ And my personal favorite: ‘It’s Monday.’ She died a few years ago. We never did have lunch together.

“Because Americans cram so much into their lives, we tend to schedule our headaches. We live on a sparse diet of promises we make to ourselves when all the conditions are perfect.

“We’ll go back and visit the grandparents when we get Stevie toilet-trained. We’ll entertain when we replace the living room carpet. We’ll go on a second honeymoon when we get two more kids out of college.

“Life has a way of accelerating as we get older. The days get shorter and the list of promises to ourselves gets longer. One morning we awaken and all we have to show for our lives is a litany of ‘I’m going to,’ ‘I plan on,’ and ‘Someday, when things are settled down a bit ...’

“When anyone calls my ‘seize the moment’ friend, she is open to adventure and available for trips. She keeps an open mind on new ideas. Her enthusiasm for life is contagious. You talk with her for ve minutes and you’re ready to trade your bad feet for a pair of Rollerblades and skip an elevator for a bungee cord.

Self-Transcendence 3,100 Race, which suggests the goal is really spiritual. I marveled at everything about this race, including the advice of one of the joggers, who said that the key to covering that same terrain over 6,000 times is to identify one little spot along the half-mile loop that brings you delight, then express your gratitude each time you pass it. What excellent advice, and I don’t need to travel to New York City to adhere to it. As the old hymn puts it, “Morning by morning, new mercies, I see.” I walk my dog in the same loop around the neighborhood and see a ower poking up from the crack in the sidewalk and my friend, Adam, re lling the dog’s bowl with fresh water.

Andrew Taylor-Troutman’s newest book is “This Is the Day.” He serves as pastor of Chapel in the Pines Presbyterian Church as well as a writer, pizza maker, co ee drinker and student of joy.

“My lips have not touched ice cream in 10 years. I love ice cream; it’s just that I might as well apply it directly to my stomach with a spatula and eliminate the digestive process. The other day, I stopped the car and bought a triple-decker. If my car had hit an iceberg on the way home, I would have died happy.

“Now ... go on and have a nice day. Do something you want to do, not something on your should do list. If you were going to die soon and had only one phone call you could make, who would you call and what would you say? And why are you waiting?

“Have you ever watched kids playing on a merry-go-round or listened to the rain lapping on the ground? Ever followed a butter y’s erratic ight or gazed at the sun into the fading night? Do you run through each day on the y? When you ask someone, ‘How are you?’ do you hear the reply?

“When the day is done, do you lie in your bed with the next hundred chores running through your head? Ever told your child, ‘We’ll do it tomorrow’ and in your haste not see his sorrow? Ever lost touch? Let a good friendship die? Just called to say, ‘Hi’?

“Life may not be the party we hoped for but while we’re here we might as well dance.”

And, oh yeah ... have a nice day.

Bob Wachs is a native of Chatham County and emeritus editor at Chatham News & Record. He serves as pastor of Bear Creek Baptist Church.

COLUMN | BOB WACHS

Done with it; just done

But what of my underlying drive for the spotlight? Sarcasm got me there. No way did I intend to lose access to the shining light of others’ attention.

YOURS TRULY WAS anointed by a considerable number of my high school classmates as Ms. Sarcasm. (OMG, you do not want to see that particular high school yearbook, replete with friends’ inscriptions. Mortifying!)

Most of us had a modus operandi for getting attention in high school. I was not among the classically attractive girls invited to join the popular social clubs. Nope. Nor one of the girls who, once a year, received a corsage from a secret admirer. (I was one of the girls looking on enviously.) But I was a debating and forensics whiz. (Oh, thank God for that!) Words were my modus operandi for getting attention. Sharply sarcastic and funny words.

A sponge for attention. ’Twas me. Sarcasm was the equivalent of waving “I’m here, I’m here.” Cutting words were a specialty. Any discomfort, embarrassment or pain to those who were a icted by my barbed (but very funny) comments, was irrelevant. I had my spotlight. When I hit my college years, pressing questions like ,“Who am I, really?” joined the fray along with all the other indulgences of that particular era. “Who am I, really?” kept oating up, whispering behind all my highly charged and attention-getting words. And that damn question would not go away. It began to dawn on me that my attention-seeking sarcasm was, perhaps, not the best message I could send in a fractured world. Biding time, behind my sarcastic attention-getting, was a potentially kind person.

Me? A kind person? Boring! Plain ol’ everyday vanilla.

| VICTOR JOECKS

Geez. But what of my underlying drive for the spotlight? Sarcasm got me there. No way did I intend to lose access to the shining light of others’ attention. Which left me feeling like … I’m drowning. Somebody throw me a life preserver! Please. I truly wish I could remember who threw me a life preserver when I was drowning in my own sarcasm. Whoever, or whatever, is gone with the wind. Yep, gone. Maybe it was my teenage hormones evening out. Perhaps it was the buried seed from my mother who always wanted me to be a social worker. (OK, Mom, wherever you are, you got your wish.) Whatever.

A verbal metamorphosis occurred over time. And you know, it wasn’t that hard. Only eons later did I discover I’d stumbled into the arena of a “Helpers High.” I liked it enough to stay. My brain also loved it, continuing to reward me with a surge of “feel-good” hormones for my kindness to others. Is that not Cheap Therapy, or what?

If you bump into me at the grocery store, I’m the one pleasantly nodding at other customers, sharing compliments with employees, keeping my verbal side of the street clean. Imbued with Helper’s High, (don’t you want a quickie cheap high?) kindness is a light- lled winner. Conversely, my sarcasm often left a traveled road in dire need of cleanup. No fan of cleanups, here! I have better things to do with my time, like live.

Jan Hutton, a resident of Chatham County and retired hospice social worker, lives life with heart and humor.

In defense of praying after tragedy

Leftists obsess over microaggressions, but they have no issue with their leaders mocking Christians.

THOSE WHO DENIGRATE prayer after

mass shootings reveal their own ignorance.

Last month, a man red more than 100 rounds into a Catholic church in Minneapolis. He was targeting students attending a back-to -school Mass. Tragically, he killed two children and injured 18 others. He then killed himself.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey rushed to the scene and promptly criticized Christians.

“Don’t just say this is about thoughts and prayers right now,” he said. “These kids were literally praying. It was the rst week of school. They were in a church.”

“Enough with the thoughts and prayers,” Jen Psaki, former White House press secretary, wrote on X.

In response to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defending those “who believe in the power of prayer,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom wrote on X, “These children were literally praying as they got shot at.”

Leftists obsess over microaggressions, but they have no issue with their leaders mocking Christians after Christian children were murdered for being in a Christian church.

Despite the condescension, this is an objection worth addressing.

One reason Christians pray is that there isn’t anything physically we can do in many tragic situations. But we can appeal to the God of the universe. He can protect responding o cers. He can heal the wounded and guide the doctors caring for them. He can comfort the broken-hearted. He can supernaturally intervene in ways we can’t. And of course, a police o cer on the scene shouldn’t only respond in prayer. If you don’t believe in God, that may seem silly. Fine. But you should understand why Christians pray.

There’s another contention in these statements, too: Prayer failed and, by extension, so did God. The shooter even wrote, “Where is your God” on one of the magazines for his ri e.

Anyone drawing this conclusion is unaware of the Bible and church history.

BE IN TOUCH

Pulling the plug on liberal org’s dark money empire

THE GATES FOUNDATION’S sudden $450 million divorce from Arabella Advisors isn’t about e ciency or building deeper relationships or any of the sanitized language trotted out by both sides. This is about optics and the uncomfortable fact that America’s largest philanthropic foundation could no longer deny the political risk — and stench — of being linked to a Democratic Party dark money slush fund masquerading as “philanthropy.” Calling Arabella a consulting rm is like calling a casino a “hospitality business.” At its core, Arabella manages a staggering web of seven shadowy nonpro t shells whose primary function is to funnel untraceable left-wing cash where donors want it, all while insulating them from scrutiny and public accountability.

For years, the Gates Foundation stood as one of Arabella’s biggest customers. Nearly half a billion dollars was shunted through opaque intermediaries, keeping campaign cash and progressive pet projects owing, hidden from the public ledger and protected with layers of legal and PR camou age.

Jesus, God’s only begotten Son, lived a

perfect life yet died on a cross while facing similar taunts: “He saved others, but he can’t save himself.”

Yet those mockers didn’t see what was happening right in front of them. On the cross, Jesus paid the penalty that you and I deserve for our sin. On the third day, God raised him from the dead. Jesus’ sacri ce o ers salvation to those who confess him as Lord and believe God raised him from the dead.

What looked to human eyes like the ultimate failure was God’s plan to save mankind — and o er a hope that pain and death can’t diminish.

“I consider that our present su erings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us,” Paul wrote in Romans 8.

Those families in Minneapolis weren’t the rst Christians to su er greatly. Most of the apostles were martyred for their faith. In the Roman Empire, Christians were cruci ed, burned, thrown to the lions and otherwise tortured. Since 2009, Islamists have killed more than 50,000 Christians in Nigeria.

What’s remarkable are the many stories of Christians facing their deaths with calmness, joy or even song.

In 202 or 203 A.D., a group of Christians was arrested for their faith. After being sentenced to a gruesome death, Perpetua, a young mother, wrote in her diary, “We returned to prison in high spirits.”

A narrator continued the tale. The day before their deaths, they spoke to the mob, “stressing the joy they would have in their su ering.” As she and the other martyrs died, she urged others to “stand fast in the faith and love one another.”

Nonbelievers may assume that the earthly su ering of God’s followers diminishes Him. It doesn’t, and it hasn’t for 2,000 years. Even though I often fail to live this truth out well, our hope isn’t in this world.

And when tragedy makes that hard to remember, it’s time to pray.

Victor Joecks is a columnist for the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Letters to the editor may be sent to letters@nsjonline.com or mailed to 1201 Edwards Mill Rd., Suite 300, Raleigh, NC 27607. Letters must be signed; include the writer’s phone number, city and state; and be no longer than 300 words. Letters may be edited for style, length or clarity when necessary. Ideas for op-eds should be sent to opinion@nsjonline.com.

Contact a writer or columnist: connect@northstatejournal.com

Arabella is not a grassroots facilitator; it is a private-equity-owned revenue machine, churning more than $60 million in management fees in a single year and orchestrating the single largest source of Democratic dark money ever exposed. In the 2020 and 2022 election cycles, Arabella’s funds handled a combined $5.4 billion, outstripping even the national party committees and powering every recent leftwing victory at the local, state, and federal level. Its pop-up groups appear spontaneous but are simply billionaires’ cash disguised as local activism. “Fiscal sponsorship” is the smokescreen for a complex money shu e, making possible everything from manipulating election o ces with “Zuck Bucks” to installing political operatives under the banner of civic engagement. Even left-leaning media are sounding alarm bells, branding Arabella “the indisputable heavyweight of Democratic dark money” and “an opaque network” moving untold sums through chains of groups supporting partisan causes. For all Arabella’s protestations about merely providing “operational supports,” the company’s seven “sister” nonpro ts are deeply engaged in donor management, grantmaking, political funding, and lobbying on behalf of causes that suit the Democratic machine.

So why did Gates nally scramble for the exit? In truth, mounting risk and the threat of exposure forced the foundation’s hand. With President Donald Trump back in power and regulatory scrutiny intensifying, the foundation realized that continuing business with Arabella would turn toxic in a climate bent on rooting out dark money networks. Gates Foundation spokespeople tried to spin it as a back-to-basics decision focused on direct relationships with partners, but anyone following the details knows better. Even as media tiptoe around the facts, insiders admit Arabella’s brand is so politically radioactive that nonpro ts now fear losing their Gates funding. Now they are scrambling to exit the shell game before it collapses.

Nonpro ts dependent on Gates and Arabella now face a harsh reality. They must nd new sponsors or lose generous funding, as order comes down from the top for early exits and grant freezes. The supposed civil society boom fueled by Arabella’s billions now reveals itself as a top - down, donor-driven masquerade, propped up by a handful of mega-donors and their money-laundering operatives.

With Gates pulling support, Arabella’s engine for left-wing activism faces a severe blow — and the entire donor class gets a clear warning. If Gates won’t camou age Democratic dark money, others may soon follow, leaving Arabella — and the billions it recycles year after year — dangling in public view and shrinking by the day.

For years, Arabella’s front groups have championed transparency only to pervert its meaning by funding political movements and electoral schemes with hidden cash that undermines genuine political accountability. Gates has helped nance this spectacle for nearly two decades, but when reality nally lifted the veil, even the richest donor in America realized exposure wasn’t worth the price.

If the Gates Foundation, with all its billions and elite access, nally admits the political cost of laundering money through Arabella is too high, every donor with even a shred of integrity should follow suit.

The era in which the left could count on anonymous billionaires to bankroll a fake grassroots revolution may at long last be coming to an end. The sooner these dark money machines are shut o , the closer America gets to genuine political accountability — and an end to the hypocrisy that lies at the rotten core of progressive philanthropy.

Steve Milloy is a biostatistician and lawyer, and he publishes JunkScience.com. This column was rst published by Daily Caller News Foundation.

COLUMN

CHATHAM SPORTS

&

/

Jordan-Matthews quarterback Kamarie Hadley tosses a pass during the Jets’ 58-0 win over North Stokes.

J-M snags 5 picks, cruises to 3-0 start

The Jets earned their largest win since 2010

By Asheebo Rojas Chatham News & Record

SILER CITY — The early 2010s made a comeback to Phil E. Senter Stadium on Friday.

In front of a full crowd on Siler City Youth Football night, Jordan-Matthews had ve interceptions, including three pick-sixes, to shut out North Stokes 58-0 and notch its rst 3-0 start since 2011.

The dominant victory was the Jets’ largest win since 2010 when they beat North Moore by 61 points.

“We always thought our defensive back eld probably was

our strength because we got a lot of versatile guys,” coach Kermit Carter said.

Junior safety Namir Wiley led the Jets’ no- y zone with two interceptions. He snagged his rst on the opening play of the second quarter, and on the next North Stokes possession, Wiley intercepted an errant pass and took it 22 yards to the house to give the Jets a 22-0 lead.

“The rst one, I was over top, and (Nolan Mitchell), he was there, and the ball just kind of landed in my hand,” Wiley said. “It was like ‘Oop!’ and I took o . On the pick-six, he just threw it right to me.”

Later in the second quarter, sophomore corner Lennox Mordecai undercut a short out

route and ran untouched for 70 yards to the end zone.

Junior linebacker Omar Sanford started the pick party in the rst quarter, and his return deep into Vikings’ territory led to a 1-yard touchdown run from senior Jakari Blue and an 8-0 lead for the Jets.

With the game well out of reach, even the freshmen joined the fun. Midway through a shortened fourth quarter (eight minutes instead of 12), Jaden Fisher intercepted a pass and ran 60 yards down the sideline to put the nishing touches on the nal score.

The Jets credited their big defensive night to their preparation during the practice week.

“We watched lm on them,

The crosstown rivals scored in the nal 10 minutes

By Asheebo Rojas Chatham News & Record

PITTSBORO — Seaforth and Northwood ended their rst boys’ soccer meeting of the year in a 1-1 tie on Sept. 3 after breaking a nearly 70-minute-long scoreless stalemate late in the second half.

With a

“It means the world to me because I know it means the world to this community, this team, these kids.” Kermit Carter, J-M coach GENE GALIN FOR CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

so we already knew what they were going to do,” Mordecai said. “The screen pass wasn’t working.”

Thanks to the multiple defensive scores and a 40-yard punt return by Wiley in the third quarter, the Jets’ o ense only ran 15 plays all night.

The unit also found no problem capitalizing on its abun-

dance of favorable eld position. Blue nished the night with 89 yards and three touchdowns on eight carries. Early in the third quarter, he broke loose to the outside and sti -armed a couple of defenders on the way to a 42-yard score. That touchdown gave the Jets a 44-0 lead. Senior quarterback Kamarie Hadley also ran in a 7-yard touchdown in the second quarter.

Looking at how the Jets have matched last year’s mark of three wins, the improvement is real.

Jordan-Matthews has won two straight games by more than 40 points for the rst time since 2007. It hasn’t played the

RECAP Northwood earns rst win, prepares for showdown with Seaforth

Chatham Central falls late to East Columbus

By Asheebo Rojas Chatham News & Record

Northwood 36, Bartlett Yancey 18

After a shaky start o ensively that included three rst-half turnovers, Northwood got its running game to click in its rst win of the season over Bartlett Yancey.

The Chargers rushed for 315 yards and four touchdowns Friday, and senior quarterback Grayson Cox led the way with 156 yards (9.8 yards per carry) and a score on the ground. Senior Leo Mortimer also went over 100 yards rushing with two scores. Junior Raje Torres, who started the game with a 56-yard kick return, caught the lone receiving touchdown on a 26-yard strike from Cox.

15

Total points scored in last year’s meeting between Seaforth and Northwood

nior Ryan Dibb picked up the assist on the

“I saw just a bunch of peo

Seaforth’s Victor Bullock (16) weaves through defenders during a 1-1 draw with Northwood on Sept. 3. 2 Draws in the Northwood-Seaforth series

ple crowding the goal,” Bullock said. “And it’s like a lane appeared just straight to the bottom corner, so I had to take it.” Said Dibb, “I went in with my left to ping it in. I completely whi ed it, but I barely nicked the ball, put a little backspin, and went right to Victor.”

Northwood’s defense came away with four turnovers, including three interceptions by Torres, Eli Minges and Aiden Girard. The Chargers also forced and recovered a fumble.

Princeton 50, Seaforth 34

Seaforth had no answer for Princeton’s relentless rushing attack in its third straight loss Friday.

Princeton’s sophomore quarterback Teo McPhatter rushed for 385 yards and six touchdowns on 36 carries. Senior Austin Lewallen added another 101 yards and a score on the ground.

CHATHAM NEWS

RECORD

Namir Wiley

GENE GALIN FOR CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

Jordan-Matthews, football

Jordan-Matthews junior Namir Wiley earns athlete of the week honors for the week of Sept. 1.

In the Jets’ 58-0 win over North Stokes on Friday, Wiley grabbed two interceptions, including a 22-yard pick-six, in the second quarter. Later in the game, Wiley took a punt 40 yards to the house.

Wiley has been a versatile weapon on both sides of the eld for the Jets. On top of his safety duties, Wiley has taken snaps at running back and receiver.

Woods, Chatham Charter begin boys’ soccer seasons

By Asheebo Rojas Chatham News & Record Volleyball

DESPITE PLAYING without junior outside hitter Ally Forbes, Seaforth picked up an impressive 3-1 win over Ayden-Grifton on Sept. 3. Freshman Naomi Stevenson led the way with a season-high 27 kills, set up primarily by junior Abigail Valgus (season-high 43 assists).

The night before, the Hawks won their second conference game over Durham School of Arts in straight sets.

Woods Charter defeated Central Carolina Academy 3-0 on Sept. 4. The Wolves have been rolling through opponents, winning ve consecutive games in straight sets as of Sunday.

Chatham Central split the week with a 3-0 win over College Prep and Leadership on Sept. 2 and a 3-1 loss to Wheatmore on Sept. 4.

Jordan-Matthews snapped a three-game losing streak with a 3-2 win over East Davidson. Senior Maggy Jaimes-Pulido recorded 19 assists.

Conference standings as of Sunday (overall, conference)

Four Rivers 3A/4A: 1. North Moore (6-1, 0-0); 2. Uwharrie Charter (9-3, 0-0); 3. Southwestern Randolph (5-6, 0-0); 4. Eastern Randolph (2-4, 0-0); 5. Jordan-Matthews (3-7, 0-0); 6. Northwood (1-8, 0-0)

Central Tar Heel 1A: T1. Woods Charter (7-1, 4-0); T1. Clover Garden School (6-1, 3-0); 3. River Mill (4-3, 2-1); T4. Chatham Charter (2-7, 1-2); T4. Ascend Leadership (2-3, 1-2); 6. Southern Wake Academy (1-5, 1-3); 7. Central Carolina Academy (0-6, 0-4)

Greater Triad 1A/2A: T1. Bishop McGuinness (7-2, 3-0); T1. Chatham Central (3-6, 2-0); T3. South Stokes (6-4, 2-1); T3. South Davidson (4-8, 2-1); 5. North Stokes (1-6, 1-2); T6. College Prep and Leadership (1-7, 0-3); T6. Winston-Salem Prep (1-7, 0-3) Big Seven 4A/5A: 1. Cedar Ridge (9-0, 3-0); T2. Seaforth (6-4, 2-1); T2. Orange (4-5, 2-1); T4. Carrboro (5-6, 2-2); T4. Durham School of the Arts (6-5, 2-2); T4. South Granville (3-7, 2-2); 7. J.F. Webb (5-5, 0-3) Boys’ soccer

Woods Charter opened its

season with a 4-2 loss to East Wake Academy on Sept. 2. Chatham Charter tied with Cornerstone Charter 1-1 on Sept. 3. Jordan-Matthews dominated Central Davidson 5-0 on Sept. 3 to win its second game in a row. Conference standings as of Sunday (overall, conference) Four Rivers 3A/4A: 1. Uwharrie Charter (1-0, 0-0); 2. Southwestern Randolph (61, 0-0); 3. North Moore (3-1-1, 0-0); 4. Northwood (2-1-2, 0-0); 5. Jordan-Matthews (3-3, 0-0); 6. Eastern Randolph (1-1-2, 0-0) Central Tar Heel 1A: 1. Clover Garden School (4-1, 0-0); 2. Southern Wake Academy (2-1, 0-0); 3. Ascend Leadership (2-2, 0-0); 4. Central Carolina Academy (1-3, 0-0); 5. Woods Charter (0-1, 0-0); 6. Chatham Charter (0-1-1, 0-0); 7. River Mill (0-5, 0-0)

Big Seven 4A/5A: 1. Cedar Ridge (3-2, 0-0); 2. J.F. Webb (3-2, 0-0); 3. Orange (4-3, 0-0); 4. South Granville (2-2-1, 0-0); 5. Seaforth (2-3-1, 0-0); 6. Carrboro (1-4-1, 0-0); 7. Durham School of the Arts (0-4-1, 0-0)

Girls’ tennis

Chatham Charter won its third match in a row with a 6-3 victory over Clover Garden School on Sept. 3. The Knights lost their rst match to Burlington Christian Academy 7-2 the next day.

Chatham Central had a tough

Seaforth’s Naomi Stevenson gets ready to take a swing in a game against Cardinal Gibbons on Sept. 4. She helped the Hawks take down AydenGrifton the night before with 27 kills.

week, taking a 5-4 loss to South Stokes on Sept. 2 and South Davidson 9-0 on Sept. 4. Conference standings as of Sunday (overall, conference) Four Rivers 3A/4A: T1. North Moore (1-4, 1-0); T1. Uwharrie Charter Academy (1-0, 1-0); T3. Jordan-Matthews (2-6, 0-1); T3. Southwestern Randolph (4-3, 0-1); 5. Northwood (0-2, 0-0)

Central Tar Heel 1A: 1. Chatham Charter (3-0, 0-1); 2. Clover Garden School (1-2, 0-1); 3. Southern Wake Academy (0-2, 0-0) Greater Triad 1A/2A: T1. Bishop McGuinness (1-3, 1-0); T1. South Davidson (4-0, 1-0); T1. South Stokes (1-5, 1-0); T4. Chatham Central (0-4, 0-2); T4. North Stokes (6-1, 0-1) Big Seven 4A/5A: 1. Carrboro (8-1, 4-0); T2. Orange (5-1, 2-1); T2. Seaforth (3-3, 2-1); 4. Durham School of the Arts (4-5, 2-2); 5. South Granville (1-2, 1-2); 6. Cedar Ridge (3-3, 1-3); 7. J.F. Webb (0-4, 0-3)

Cross-country

Seaforth’s William Morgan was the rst male Hawk to cross the nish line at the Big Seven Conference Meet (Orange High School track) on Sept. 2 with a time of 20 minutes, 21 seconds (22nd place). In the girls’ race, Seaforth’s Emerson Smith nished rst for her team with a time of 25:05 (29th place).

GENE GALIN FOR CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

Seaforth falls in straight sets to Cardinal Gibbons

The Crusaders bested the Hawks for the second straight year

By Asheebo Rojas Chatham News & Record

PITTSBORO — Seaforth

couldn’t hold on to its fast starts in a 3-0 loss to Cardinal Gibbons on Sept. 4.

The Hawks were the rst to 10 points in each of the rst two sets, but the Crusaders pulled away both times to win 25-18 and 25-16, respectively. Down 20-12 in the third set, Seaforth, led by freshman Naomi Stevenson and senior Josie Valgus, went on an 8-4 run, but the comeback e ort fell short.

“They’re just so good,” Seaforth coach Scott Green said.

“It’s hard to sustain a lead for a 25-point match like that. Eventually, they’re going to make some kind of run. You just have to brace

from page B1

The Hawks trailed 14-13 at halftime but were outscored 28-13 in the third quarter.

Seaforth’s o ense once again struggled to nd a consistent recipe for success. The Hawks rushed for 46 yards, and junior quarterback Duncan Parker completed ve of 21 passes. He made some explosive throws, however, including a 66-yard connection with Patrick Miller for a touchdown. Junior receiver Max Hinchman nished the night with 105 yards and two scores on three receptions.

Week 4: Northwood at Seaforth (Friday at 7 p.m.)

The Battle of Pittsboro holds a lot of weight for both teams. For Northwood, it’s a chance to climb back to .500 and start a winning streak, while for Seaforth, it’ll be one of its best opportunities to win its rst game of the season.

Last year’s meeting between the rivals came down to the nal possession during which a turnover by Seaforth deep in Northwood territory saved the Chargers in a 9-6 win.

This season’s matchup will likely be just as close with what both teams have shown so far. Both teams have played tough competition to start the year and are still trying to put together consistently good o ensive performances. Winning

“Eventually, they’re going to make some kind of run. You just have to brace yourself and be prepared for it.”

Green

Scott

yourself and be prepared for it.”

With Seaforth leading 9-6 in a crucial second set for the Hawks, Cardinal Gibbons hitters Amelia Bell, a Cornell commit, and Mary Grace Gonyeau, a Virginia commit, combined for multiple kills to help the Crusaders take a 21-14 advantage. Seaforth fell to 6-4 with the loss, which is its worst start since its rst varsity season in 2021. Cardinal Gibbons improved to 5-1 (fourth straight win) after beating the Hawks in straight sets for the second year in a row.

The Hawks have been battling through the injury of its standout outsider hitter Ally Forbes, who has been out since late August. In Forbes’ absence, Seaforth has moved Valgus to her position, and it has played a tough schedule, including Chapel Hill (lost 3-1), Cedar Ridge (lost 3-1) and Ayden-Grifton (won 3-1).

“We’ve learned that we need to be able to adjust if a team picks on one of our passers,” Green said. “A lot of teams try to serve us really short where we’re trying to adjust and pick up a short surge. We can do a better job with that. We’re trying to work on a faster o ense, so the blockers don’t have as much time to get out there and set up on us.”

The Hawks are entering the bulk of their conference schedule. Green believes his team will improve as they get more reps with the new lineup and adjustments.

the turnover battle will once again be the key Friday. After an improved o ensive showing against Princeton, it’ll be interesting to see how Seaforth can build o its positive moments in the pass game. For Northwood, watch for its ability to control the line of scrimmage and replicate its rushing attack from last week’s win.

East Columbus 22, Chatham Central 20

With Chatham Central leading 20-14 with 48 seconds left to play, East Columbus junior Christian Norton ran in a 20 -yard touchdown, and the Gators scored the two-point

conversion to defeat the Bears.

On the prior possession, Chatham Central senior Nick Glover caught a touchdown pass from sophomore Brooks Albright to give the Bears the lead. Despite the loss, Glover ended the game with seven receptions, 150 yards receiving yards and two touchdowns. Junior Hance Rameriez caught three passes for 54 yards and a score.

Chatham Central held East Columbus scoreless in the rst half, but the o ense couldn’t capitalize on defensive stops. Down 6-0 at the half, the Gators outscored Chatham Central 14-0 in the third quarter. After regaining the lead with about three minutes left, Cha-

tham Central couldn’t get the necessary stops to seal the win. A few big runs helped East Columbus set up the go-ahead score.

Week 4: Chatham Central at North Moore (Friday at 7 p.m.)

Chatham Central will look to snap a two-game skid against a familiar opponent in North Moore on Friday.

The former Mid-Carolina 1A/2A foes are both entering this game 1-2. North Moore is coming o a 38-8 loss to West Davidson.

The Mustangs are still a run-heavy team that wants to pound and deceive its opponents with its misdirection and quick hando s. Last year, North Moore defeated Chatham Central 49-0.

The Bears will have to come prepared mentally and physically to conquer North Moore’s rushing attack. This is Chatham Central’s nal nonconference game of the season.

Week 4: Jordan-Matthews at Wheatmore (Friday at 7:30 p.m.)

Jordan-Matthews will travel to Wheatmore on Friday for a chance to go 4-0 for the rst time since 2010.

Wheatmore is still looking for its rst win of the year after a 21-0 loss to South Davidson in Week 3. The Warriors gave up 299 yards on the ground in that loss. They’ve struggled to stop

the run this season, giving up more than 200 yards in two different games and over 100 rushing yards allowed in all three games.

O ensively, Wheatmore runs a balanced o ense, however, it has yet to crack 20 points this season. For Jordan-Matthews it will be worth watching to see if the defense can shut down another opponent. The Jets have given up three touchdowns all season, thanks to a group of physical linebackers and an athletic defensive back eld.

Power rankings (after Week 3)

1. Jordan-Matthews

2. Northwood

3. Chatham Central

4. Seaforth

(Last week’s rankings: 1. Jordan-Matthews; 2. Chatham Central; 3. Seaforth; 4. Northwood)

Week 4 score predictions

Seaforth 21, Northwood 14 Jordan-Matthews 34, Wheatmore 13 North Moore 37, Chatham Central 20

Prediction record (since Week 2): 6-1

GENE GALIN FOR CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

Cardinal Gibbons blockers send a Seaforth swing back over the net in a 3-0 win over the Hawks on Sept. 4.

ROUNDUP

GENE GALIN FOR CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

Northwood’s Grayson Cox runs evades a Bartlett Yancey defender in the Chargers’ rst win of the season on Sept. 5.

Hamlin advances in Cup Series playo s at Gateway

The driver’s 59th career win came from the pole and is No. 200 for Toyota

The Associated Press

MADISON, Ill. — Nothing seems to distract Denny Hamlin, and the NASCAR star proved it again with a laser-focused victory at World Wide Technology Raceway on Sunday to advance in the Cup Series playo s.

After a week in which his father was ailing and his 23XI Racing team lost a decision in its court battle with NASCAR, Hamlin compartmentalized his concerns and stayed on task for a virtually awless weekend, starting from the pole position

and leading a race-high 75 of 240 laps.

“I just step up,” Hamlin said after his series-high fth victory this season. “All I can do is just keep being a student of the game, keep trying to get better, and every week is a chance to get a little better.”

With his 59th career win, Hamlin advanced to the second round of the playo s and joined Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Chase Briscoe, who nished second after winning last week’s opener at Darlington Raceway. Chase Elliott nished third, followed by Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano as playo drivers swept the top ve spots at the 1.25-mile oval.

The No. 11 Toyota team called Hamlin to the pits for his -

nal stop with 44 laps remaining, and he cycled to the front on a caution 15 laps later. The Virginia native seized the lead from Brad Keselowski on the restart, delivering the 200th win in NASCAR’s premier series for Toyota.

The Joe Gibbs Racing star celebrated with a long burnout down the front stretch of the track outside St. Louis that is commonly referred to as Gateway, bringing boos raining down from a sellout crowd to Hamlin’s delight.

“You all can boo me, but you can either get on the bandwagon or get run over by it,” he said. “I want all the noise and all the heat.”

Relishing life as a NASCAR villain is one of many roles

“You all can boo me, but you can either get on the bandwagon or get run over by it. I want all the noise and all the heat.”

Denny Hamlin

being lled by the multitasking Hamlin, who also co-hosts a podcast while running 23XI Racing, the three-car team that he co-owns with NBA legend Michael Jordan.

It’s had little impact on the on-track performance for Hamlin, who is in his 20th Cup season driving for team owner Joe Gibbs. At Gateway, he became

the seventh driver in Cup Series history with multiple victories after his 700th start.

Team owner Joe Gibbs marvels at how Hamlin, who turns 45 in November and welcomed his third child in June, is able to juggle so much.

“He’s in one meeting after another,” Gibbs said with a laugh. “The more stu he does, the better o he is. He’s got a real drive to succeed.”

The ultimate prize would be a rst Cup championship, and Hamlin took another step toward that goal by locking into the next round ahead of the Sept. 13 race at Bristol Motor Speedway. The rst-round cuto race will trim the playo eld from 16 to 12 drivers.

SOCCER from page B1

About seven minutes later, Northwood freshman Johnny Santiago tied the game after gathering a free kick o his chest and knocking it in from close range. Senior Aidan Swaine launched the free kick from about 45 yards following a penalty.

“I was going to just hit o my foot, but I didn’t have time, so I just headed it,” Santiago said.

The battle for a late lead looked a lot like most of the game, with scoring chances being halted by displays of defensive hustle or tough luck.

from page B1

toughest competition to start the season, but in recent years, those are similar teams the Jets have been in close games with or even lost to.

Last season’s 27-0 loss to a 3-7 Carrboro team turned into a 20-15 win against the Jaguars to start 2025. The tightly contested 14-6 win over a 1-10 Chatham Central in 2024 became a 48-6 beat down two weeks ago. The win over North Stokes was the Jets’ rst shutout, regardless of competition, since 2021.

The Jets are soaring in ways they haven’t in more than a decade as they are looking to reach four wins for the rst time since 2013.

The dedication to hard work and collective buy-in during the o season is paying o . Years of struggle and disappointment are appearing in the rearview mirror for the once great program.

“It means the world to me because I know it means the world to this community, this team, these kids,” Carter said. “It just didn’t start Aug. 1. We had probably 95% of our kids in the weight room starting right after spring sports ended. You can see our kids look di erent.”

Until about the nal 15 seconds. With such little time left, Seaforth inbounded the ball in its own territory and raced down the eld for one last chance at a win. At the end of the dash, junior Andreas Trinado scored what was celebrated as a game-winning goal at the buzzer. However, the score was called o for being a tad late. “I wasn’t really thinking while I shot it,” Trinado said. “The cross came in, and I took a bad touch, but somehow it got around the guy, and I slid into it. It was crazy.” Seaforth moved to 2-3-1 with the draw, while Northwood moved to 2-1-2.

Battles between the Hawks and Chargers have come down to the wire multiple times in the past. There have been two draws and two overtime games in the series.

After three straight losses to start the season, the Hawks have seen better results on the eld as of late. Seaforth won back-to-back games the week prior with a 6-0 victory over Eastern Alamance and a 5-0 shutout against Cummings.

For the Hawks, this year has been a period of transition as coach Euro Colina took over for former coach Giovanni Viana before the season began.

He also has Logan Sparrow, the Hawks’ striker from last season, as an assistant.

“My advantage is I’m a teacher, so I know these guys on a deeper level,” Colina said. “Another key is I train with them. If they run, I run. If they do pushups, I do pushups. So I train with example.” Said Colina, “Logan’s a great supporter because he sees what the guys want. He sees things that I might not see.”

For Northwood, the focus of the young season has been “growth.” The Chargers have numerous freshmen and sophomores playing signi cant roles

on the team, and they’ve come in with con dence — enough to achieve a shutout win and only one loss (1-0 to Hillside) in the rst ve games.

“You have two freshmen coming in, starting and playing the entire game,” Northwood coach Ascary Arias said. “We have good players coming in, and these guys do not care. They don’t think you’re better than they are.”

Now the task is xing mistakes, like playing through thenal buzzer.

Northwood and Seaforth will see each other one more time at the Chargers’ house on Sept. 24.

J-M

PJ WARD-BROWN / CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD

JordanMatthews’ Jakari Blue runs with the ball against North Stokes on Sept. 5. Blue rushed for three touchdowns in the win.

CONNOR HAMILTON / AP PHOTO

Denny Hamlin, second from left, celebrates after winning Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at World Wide Technology Raceway.

SIDELINE REPORT

NFL Eagles’ Carter apologizes following ejection for spitting on Cowboys’ Prescott Philadelphia Philadelphia defensive tackle Jalen Carter apologized after he was ejected for spitting on Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott moments after the Eagles’ pregame Super Bowl championship celebration. Carter was tossed for unsportsmanlike conduct six seconds into Philadelphia’s 24 -20 victory. The Eagles were hit with a 15-yard penalty before the rst snap from scrimmage. Prescott and Carter exchanged words after the opening kicko , and Carter spit on Prescott’s jersey. Fans booed as Carter walked o slowly, holding his helmet in his hands behind his back. Carter apologized after the game.

NCAA FOOTBALL

NCAA committee recommends eliminating spring transfer window

The NCAA’s FBS Oversight Committee has recommended eliminating the spring transfer window and having just a 10-day window starting Jan. 2. The committee is also proposing that December be a recruiting dead period. The Division I Administrative Committee must approve these changes, with a vote expected before Oct. 1. FBS coaches unanimously supported the January portal proposal earlier this year. If implemented, the changes would allow coaches to focus more on coaching during bowl season. The spring portal period had many players and coaches juggling transfers and spring practice.

NBA

Clippers owner

Ballmer welcomes NBA probe, says he wasn’t involved in Leonard deal Los Angeles Los Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer welcomes the NBA’s investigation into alleged salary cap rule violations. He denies involvement in a $28 million endorsement deal between Kawhi Leonard and a sustainability company. Ballmer said he would want the NBA to investigate any team accused of similar violations. He introduced Leonard to Aspiration Fund Adviser LLC, a company he once invested in, which is now bankrupt. The Clippers denied breaking any rules. The NBA could impose penalties if violations are found. The Clippers ended their partnership with Aspiration after two years due to contractual default.

WNBA

Reese suspended by Sky for half for comments “detrimental to the team”

Chicago Angel Reese was suspended by the Chicago Sky for the rst half of the team’s game against Las Vegas for comments “detrimental to the team.” Reese already missed the team’s game last Friday because of a mandatory one-game suspension by the WNBA for picking up her eighth technical foul of the season. The two-time All-Star voiced her frustrations with the franchise, saying she “might have to move in a di erent direction and do what’s best for me” if the team doesn’t improve its outlook. She walked back those comments. She had already apologized to the team.

Carter’s ejection from Eagles’ opener was latest saliva-driven dismissal

Hall of Famers have also been involved in spitting controversies

By Dave Campbell The Associated Press

JUST SIX SECONDS into the new NFL season, Jalen Carter was already on his way out.

The kicko game in Philadelphia started with a real mouth-watering moment.

Carter left the defending champion Eagles hanging when he was ejected for spitting at Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, a saliva-driven dismissal from the eld that became the latest addition to an infamous list of the ultimate displays of disrespect in sports. The Pro Bowl defensive tackle was tossed for unsportsmanlike conduct, part of the league’s push to crack down on taunting.

Carter, who could receive further discipline from the NFL, was contrite after the game in acknowledging regret and responsibility for his act. As Carter talked trash toward the Cowboys as they huddled before the rst play from scrimmage, Prescott stepped forward and — as he recounted later — spit on the turf to clear his mouth and avoid hitting his own linemen. Carter, who was several yards away, took that as a slight and retaliated.

“It was a mistake that hap -

pened on my side. It won’t happen again,” Carter said. “I feel bad for just my teammates and fans out there.”

The expectations for expectorate etiquette are generally high in any organized society, with kids taught from young ages that spitting on or at others is simply not OK. Hence such strong reactions to seeing a person targeted by projectile saliva, let alone being on the receiving end.

Why, there’s even an entire episode of Seinfeld that aired in 1992 centering around spit, when mischievous oddballs Kramer and Newman chide friend Elaine for her new relationship with former New York Mets rst baseman Keith Hernandez because they believed he once spit at them as they heckled him for a costly error after attending a game. Hernandez later revealed to them that teammate Roger McDowell was responsible.

Here’s a glance at some other memorable spitting incidents in sports.

Luis Suárez, soccer

During a postgame tussle following the testy Leagues Cup nal won by the Seattle Sounders, Inter Miami forward Luis Suárez spit toward a Sounders sta member and grabbed a Seattle player by the neck. Suárez has long been an international standout

“It

for Uruguay with a checkered pattern of behavior, including three separate bans for biting opponents over his career. Suárez issued an apology and was handed a six-match suspension.

Victor Hanescu, tennis

After being heckled throughout his third-round match at Wimbledon in 2010, Victor Hanescu lost his cool in the fth set and spit at the taunting fans in the crowd. The Romanian was ned $15,000 by tournament o cials.

Terrell Owens, football

Triggered by the constant trash talk from DeAngelo Hall during a game in 2006, mercurial Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Terrell Owens spit in the face of the Atlanta Falcons cornerback and was ned $35,000 by the NFL.

Bill Romanowski, football

After television replays clearly showed him spitting on San Francisco 49ers wide

receiver J.J. Stokes during a Monday night game in 1997,ery Denver Broncos linebacker Bill Romanowski was ned $7,500 by the NFL.

“Sometimes when emotion is high, logic is low, and I did something that is totally unacceptable,” Romanowski said afterward.

The feud was rekindled when the two teams played three years later and Romanowski ripped Stokes for not ghting back after he spit on him.

Roberto Alomar, baseball

After being called out on a third strike in a game in 1996, Baltimore Orioles second baseman Roberto Alomar screamed at home plate umpire John Hirschbeck and spit in his face during the argument. Alomar received a ve-game suspension. The two later made amends, and Hirschbeck was one of the rst people to congratulate Alomar for his election to the Hall of Fame.

Charles Barkley, basketball

The NBA suspended Philadelphia 76ers star Charles Barkley for one game and ned him $10,000 in 1991 after he lost his temper and spit at a heckler in a courtside seat, only to hit an 8-year-old girl who was sitting behind the man instead.

Alcaraz beats rival Sinner at the U.S. Open

The win gives him a 6th Slam title and the No. 1 ranking

By Howard Fendrich The Associated Press

NEW YORK — So maybe the rst U.S. Open nal between young rivals Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner wasn’t as long, riveting and dramatic as their matchup to decide the championship at the French Open. Perhaps it wasn’t as seemingly meaningful and plot-driven as their showdown for the Wimbledon trophy.

Still, what the No. 2-seeded Alcaraz’s 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 victory over No. 1 Sinner on Sunday did do was signi cant. Alcaraz reasserted his superiority over the defending champion, wrested away the top spot in the ATP rankings and left tennis fans eager for whenever their next clash will come.

They are the rst two men in the sport’s history to face each other in three consecutive Grand Slam nals within a single season.

“I’m seeing you more than my family,” Alcaraz joked during the trophy ceremony, eliciting a grin from Sinner.

“It’s great to share the court, to share the locker rooms, everything.”

This 2-hour, 42-minute win

gave Alcaraz, a 22-year-old from Spain, leads over Sinner, a 24-year-old from Italy, of 10-5 in their head-to-head series, 6-4 in total Grand Slam trophies, and 2-1 in U.S. Open championships.

“I give lots of credit to him, because he handled the situation better than I did,” said Sinner, who lamented that his own play was too predictable. “He raised his level when he had to.”

Right from the beginning, under a closed roof because of rain earlier in the day, Sinner was outplayed by Alcaraz.

“You were better than me,” Sinner said. “I tried my best today. I couldn’t do more.”

This hard-court matchup followed Alcaraz’s victory over Sinner across 51⁄2 hours after erasing a trio of match points on the red clay at Roland-Garros in June, and Sinner’s victory over two-time reigning champ Alcaraz on the grass at the All England Club in July.

“The things ... I did well in London,” Sinner said, “he did better today.”

These guys are so, so much better than the rest of men’s tennis at the moment. Their traits are unique, their strengths multiple, their games untouchable.

They have combined to collect the past eight Slam trophies — four each — and 10 of 13. Novak Djokovic, the

24 -time major champ eliminated by Alcaraz on Friday, took the other three. Both Sinner, who had won his past 27 hard-court matches at majors, and Alcaraz offered glimpses Sunday of why they are so good, although it was rare that both were at a peak simultaneously.

Alcaraz, who ended up with twice as many winners, 42-21, was superb in the rst, third and fourth sets; Sinner’s top

e orts arrived in the second.

During his defeat at Wimbledon, Alcaraz was caught by a camera telling his team in Spanish: “From the back of the court, he’s much better than me.”

Perhaps that’s why Alcaraz was aggressive Sunday with his sledgehammer of a forehand. Whenever the smallest opening presented itself, Alcaraz barged through with that shot, going big early in points, which often worked. Sinner had dropped a total of one service game in his preceding three matches, but Alcaraz broke right away Sunday and ve times in all.

An hour and 20 minutes in, it was a set apiece, after Alcaraz ceded one for the rst time all tournament, allowing Neale Fraser to retain his distinction as the most recent man to win every set he played at the event — in 1960. These numbers say as much about Alcaraz as they do Sinner: Over the last two seasons, Sinner is 1-7 against Alcaraz — and 109-4 against everyone else.

FRANK FRANKLIN II / AP PHOTO

Carlos Alcaraz reacts after defeating Jannik Sinner to win the men’s singles nal of the U.S. Open.

“I’m seeing you more than my family.”

Carlos Alcaraz to Jannik Sinner

was a mistake that happened on my side. It won’t happen again,” Jalen Carter

Philadelphia Eagles’ Jalen Carter walks o the eld after being ejected from the NFL opening game.

R&B singer Stone’s children sue truck company for highway crash death

The church-grown singer was born in Columbia, South Carolina

By Je Amy The Associated Press

ATLANTA — Two children of R&B singer Angie Stone are suing a trucking company, truck manufacturer and others, seeking damages for an Alabama interstate crash that killed Stone.

The suit, led last Tuesday in a Georgia state court in the Atlanta suburb of Lawrenceville, says the 63-year-old Stone and the other occupants of the van survived an initial predawn wreck that resulted from the driver of their Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van losing control of the vehicle. The driver tried to steer the van back onto the highway, but it ipped over.

A passersby pulled over and helped ve of the nine occupants crawl out, but while Stone was still trying to get out, an 18-wheeler carrying a load of sugar slammed into the van, the lawsuit says. The impact ejected Stone and pinned her under the van, where she died, the lawsuit claims. Sheila Hopkins, still inside the van, su ered injuries.

Hopkins and Stone’s two children, Diamond Stone and Michael D’Angelo Archer, led the lawsuit. They’re suing the van driver, the truck driver, the

Stone’s biggest hits included “No More Rain (In This Cloud),” “Baby,” “Wish I Didn’t Miss You” and “Brotha,” and her 2001 album “Mahogany Soul” and 2007’s “The Art of Love & War” both charted.

man and companies who owned the van, the trucking company and the maker of the 18-wheel truck. The suit claims the truck’s collision avoidance system was faulty and failed to detect the van lying stationary in one lane of the interstate. The suit also claims that the truck driver was listening to music on headphones, wasn’t paying attention and never braked before slamming into the van at nearly 70 mph.

Neither trucking company CSRT of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, nor truck manufacturer Daimler Truck North America of Portland, Oregon, immediately responded to emails seeking comment. Stone was a Grammy-nominated R&B singer and member of the all-female hip -hop trio The Sequence. She was known for the hit song “Wish I Didn’t Miss You,” and ourished in the early 2000s as neo -soul began to dominate R&B. She was on her way back to her Atlanta-area home after a performance at a Mardi Gras ball in Mobile, Alabama.

In an Instagram post before the crash, Stone had told fans she was excited about upcoming events and “getting back in the mix.”

“A lot of stu is going on that I don’t want to just let out of the bag just yet,” she said. “But you can see that there’s a big grin on my face.”

The singer-songwriter created hits like “No More Rain (In This Cloud),” which reached No. 1 for 10 weeks on Billboard’s Adult R&B airplay chart; “Baby” with legendary soul singer Betty Wright, another No. 1 hit; and “Wish I Didn’t Miss You” and “Brotha.” Her 2001 album “Mahogany Soul” reached No. 22 on the Billboard 200, while 2007’s “The Art of Love & War” peaked at No. 11.

Stone’s group, The Sequence, on the trailblazing imprint Sugar Hill Records, became one of the rst female groups to record a rap song. The group’s “Funk You Up,” which has been sampled by numerous artists, including Dr. Dre. Stone later joined the trio Vertical Hold before launching her solo career.

GREGORY SMITH / AP PHOTO

R&B singer Angie Stone was killed in a fatal car crash on March 1, 2025, in Montgomery, Alabama. She was 63.

this week in history

Al-Qaida attacks U.S., William McKinley dies, General Motors founded, U.S. Constitution signed

The Associated Press

SEPT. 11

1789: Alexander Hamilton was appointed the rst U.S. secretary of the Treasury.

1941: The groundbreaking for the Pentagon took place.

1954: The Miss America pageant made its network TV debut on ABC.

2001: Nearly 3,000 people were killed as 19 al- Qaida hijackers seized four jetliners, crashing two into New York’s World Trade Center, one into the Pentagon, and one into a eld in Pennsylvania.

SEPT. 12

2013: Voyager 1, launched 36 years earlier, became the rst man-made spacecraft to leave the solar system.

1940: The Lascaux cave paintings, estimated at 17,000 years old, were discovered in southwestern France.

1962: At Rice University, President John F. Kennedy declared: “We choose to go to the moon in this decade … not because they are easy, but because they are hard.”

SEPT. 13

1788: The Congress of the Confederation authorized the rst national election and declared New York City the temporary capital.

1948: Republican Margaret Chase Smith of Maine was elected to the U.S. Senate, becoming the rst woman to serve in both houses of Congress.

1993: At the White House, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO chairman Yasser Arafat shook hands after signing an accord granting limited Palestinian autonomy.

SEPT. 14

1847: During the Mexican American War, U.S. forces under Gen. Win eld Scott took control of Mexico City.

1901: President William McKinley died in Bu alo, New York, of gunshot wounds inicted by an assassin eight days prior.

1982: Princess Grace of Monaco, formerly lm star Grace Kelly, died at age 52 of injuries from a car crash the day before.

SEPT. 15

1835: Charles Darwin reached the Galápagos Islands aboard the HMS Beagle.

1935: The Nuremberg Laws were enacted in Nazi Germany, depriving German Jews of their citizenship.

1940: The tide turned in the Battle of Britain in World War II, as the Royal Air Force in icted heavy losses upon the Luftwa e.

1963: Four black girls were killed in a bombing at the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. Three Ku Klux Klansmen were later convicted.

SEPT. 16

1810: Catholic priest Mi-

guel Hidalgo y Costilla called on his parishioners to join him in a rebellion against Spanish rule, marking the beginning of the Mexican War of Independence.

1893: The largest land run in U.S. history occurred as more than 100,000 white settlers rushed to claim land in what is now northern Oklahoma.

1908: General Motors was founded in Flint, Michigan, by William C. Durant.

1966: The Metropolitan Opera o cially opened its new opera house at New York’s Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.

SEPT. 17

1787: The Constitution of the United States was completed and signed in Philadelphia. 1862: More than 3,600 men were killed in the Civil War Battle of Antietam in Maryland.

1908: Lt. Thomas E. Selfridge became the rst person to die in a powered aircraft crash when the Wright Flyer went down at Fort Myer, Virginia. Pilot Orville Wright was seriously injured.

1944: During World War II, Allied paratroopers launched Operation Market Garden in the Netherlands.

Radiohead returns after 7 years, announce 20 new live dates

The band hasn’t performed in North Carolina since 2008

By Maria Sherman The Associated Press

NEW YORK — Something is in the water in England. After a summer de ned by the Oasis reunion, yet another beloved British rock band is set to return to the live stage: Radiohead.

The band — made up of vocalist Thom Yorke, guitarist/keyboardist Jonny Greenwood, guitarist Ed O’Brien, bassist Colin Greenwood and drummer Phil Selway — have 20 shows on the books, taking place in ve cities across Europe: Madrid, Bologna, London, Copenhagen and Berlin this November and December. They will perform four nights in each city.

Radiohead last performed in 2018, in support of their last album, 2016’s “A Moon Shaped Pool.” It is unclear if the band is preparing a new release of original material, but earlier this month, they did announce a new live album, “Hail to the Thief — Live Recordings 20032009,” arriving Oct. 31.

“Last year, we got together to rehearse, just for the hell of it. After a seven-year pause, it felt really good to play the songs again and reconnect with a musical identity that has be -

come lodged deep inside all ve of us,” Selway said in a statement. “It also made us want to play some shows together, so we hope you can make it to one of the upcoming dates. For now, it will just be these ones but who knows where this will all lead.”

In the years since their last

solutions

live performance, the members of Radiohead have been busy. Yorke and Jonny Greenwood’s art rock spino project, The Smile, has released three albums. Colin Greenwood joined Nick Cave’s live band. O’Brien released his debut solo album, “Earth” in 2020 and in 2023,

Selway released his third solo album, “Strange Dance.” Radiohead last performed in North Carolina on May 9, 2008, at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre in Charlotte as part of their acclaimed “In Rainbows” Tour. The setlist featured a mix of fan favor-

ites and deep cuts, including “There There,” “Idioteque” and “All I Need,” showcasing the band’s experimental rock and emotional intensity. It marked the band’s rst appearance in the state in over a decade and remains their most recent show in North Carolina to date.

UNITED STATES LIBRARY

OF CONGRESS VIA WIKIPEDIA

General Motors was founded on Sept. 16, 1908, in Flint, Michigan, by William C. Durant, a leading gure in the early automobile industry.

CHRIS PIZZELLO / AP PHOTO

Thom Yorke, left, and Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead perform during the band’s headlining set at the 2012 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.

*Must set up Auto Draft for 2nd Month. Offer valid through February 1st 2024.

famous birthdays this week

Guitarist Leo Kottke is 80, Barbara Bain turns 94, Oliver Stone is 79, Phil Jackson hits 80

The Associated Press

THESE CELEBRITIES have birthdays this week.

SEPT. 11

Composer Arvo Pärt is 90. Film director Brian De Palma is 85. Singer-actor- dancer Lola Falana is 83. Musician Mickey Hart is 82. Guitarist Leo Kottke is 80. Actor Amy Madigan is 75. Actor Virginia Madsen is 64. Singer Harry Connick Jr. is 58.

SEPT. 12

Actor Linda Gray is 85. Singer Maria Muldaur is 82. Author Michael Ondaatje is 82. Actor Joe Pantoliano is 74. Photographer Nan Goldin is 72. Composer Hans Zimmer is 68. TV host- commentator Greg Gutfeld is 61. Actor- comedian Louis C.K. is 58. Basketball Hall of Famer Yao Ming is 45.

SEPT. 13

Actor Barbara Bain is 94. Nobel Peace Prize laureate Óscar Arias is 85. Rock singer David Clayton-Thomas (Blood, Sweat & Tears) is 84. Actor Jacqueline Bisset is 81. Singer Peter Cetera is 81. Actor Jean Smart is 74. Olympic gold medal sprinter Michael Johnson is 58.

SEPT. 14

Architect Renzo Piano is 88. Basketball Hall of Fame coach Larry Brown is 85. Actor Sam Neill is 78. Country singer John Berry is 66. Actor Melissa Leo is 65.

SEPT. 15

Writer- director Ron Shelton is 80. Actor Tommy Lee Jones is 79. Film director Oliver Stone is 79. Football coach Pete Carroll is 74. Football Hall of Famer Dan Marino is 64. Actor Tom Hardy is 48.

SEPT. 16

Actor George Chakiris is 93. Actor Ed Begley Jr. is 76. Author-historian- lmmaker Henry Louis Gates Jr. is 75. Actor

Mickey Rourke is 73. Magician David Copper eld is 69. Retired MLB All- Star pitcher Orel Hershiser is 67. Singer Richard Marx is 62.

SEPT. 17

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, is 92. Mountaineer- explorer Reinhold Messner is 81. Basketball Hall of Fame coach Phil Jackson is 80. Actor Cassandra Peterson (“Elvira, Mistress of the Dark”) is 74. Film director Baz Luhrmann is 63. NASCAR driver Jimmie Johnson is 50.

PAUL BEATY / AP PHOTO Former Bulls and Lakers coach Phil Jackson turns 80 on Wednesday.

CHRIS PIZZELLO / AP PHOTO

Jacqueline Bisset presents the Desert Palm Achievement Award during the Palm Springs International Film Festival Awards Gala in 2025. The British actor turns 81 on Saturday.

the stream

‘Only Murders in the Building’ returns, Charlie Sheen doc, ‘The Girlfriend’ thrills

Ed Sheeran drops “Play” on Friday

The Associated Press

“ONLY MURDERS in the Building” returning for its fth season and Ed Sheeran coming back with the new pop album “Play” are some of the new television, lms, music and games headed to a device near you.

Also, among the streaming o erings worth your time: The Net ix two -part documentary “AKA Charlie Sheen” chronicles the 60 -year- old star’s up -anddown career, Robin Wright and Olivia Cooke star in a psychological thriller for Prime Video called “The Girlfriend” and R&B giant Ty Dolla $ign o ers his rst full-length album in half a decade.

MOVIES TO STREAM

The Net ix two -part documentary “AKA Charlie Sheen” chronicles the 60 -year- old star’s up -and- down career, from “Wall Street” to “winning.” The lm, now available on the streaming service, features candid interviews with Sheen, along with many friends and co -stars. Andrew Renzi (“Pepsi, Where’s My Jet?”) directs.

Clouds of IED smoke and cries of agony ll Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza’s harrowing lm, “Warfare” (HBO Max on Friday) with little but the faces of its Navy SEALs to ground the nearly real-time, based-on-a-true-story dramatization. The movie e ectively embeds viewers on a seemingly minor mission in Iraq in 2006. In her review, AP reviewer Lindsey Bahr wrote: “War-movie cliches have been rigorously rooted out of ‘Warfare,’ a terse and chillingly brutal immersion in a moment of the Iraq War.”

Andrew Ahn’s “The Wedding Banquet” (now on Paramount+) joyfully remakes and updates Ang Lee’s 1993 queer landmark lm. Ahn’s movie, starring Kelly Marie Tran, Lily Gladstone, Bowen Yang and Han Gi- chan, rebuilds Lee’s queer comedy of errors for a new generation. In her review, AP’s Lindsey Bahr praised the supporting performances by Youn Yuh-jung and Joan Chen but wished the lm

expressed more fun: “There’s a through-line about found families, but I’m not totally convinced that these people are great for each other.”

MUSIC TO STREAM

Sheeran returns with a new album on Friday, his eighth. titled “Play.” The release detours away from the acoustic introspection of his last release, 2023’s “Autumn Variations,” and instead of-

fers a kind of reserved pop music. “Azizam,” a Farsi word which translates to something approximating “my dear one,” is a cultural crossover hit; “A Little More” has a much-needed groove. It’s clear Sheeran is in it for a good time — and his loyal listeners will follow suit. Little has been made apparent about the highly anticipated, fourth studio album from R&B giant Ty Dolla $ign. Here’s what we do know:

“War-movie cliches have been rigorously rooted out of ‘Warfare,’ a terse and chillingly brutal immersion in a moment of the Iraq War.”

Lindsey Bahr, AP lm writer

It’s his rst full-length in half a decade, it arrives Friday, and the lead single, the infatuated “ALL IN,” includes an inspired sample of Wayne Wonder’s “No Letting Go.” It might be the end of summer, but that song is evidence that Ty is bringing the heat.

SERIES TO STREAM

“Only Murders in the Building” returns for its fth season on Hulu. The amateur sleuths Charles (Steve Martin), Mabel (Selena Gomez), and Oliver (Martin Short) begin the new episodes trying to gure out who murdered the doorman of their building.

Wright and Cooke star in a new psychological thriller for Prime Video called “The

Girlfriend.” Wright plays Laura, a very, very protective mother of her grown man son, Danny. Her internal alarm goes o when she meets Danny’s new girlfriend Cherry, played by Cooke. Cherry is a streetwise realtor who does not meet Laura’s standards for her son. Make no mistake, both women are unhinged. Each episode shows Laura and Cherry’s perspective, which is fun.

GAMES TO PLAY

VIDEO

Last year’s “Borderlands” movie bombed, but you can’t keep a popular franchise down. So Gearbox Software and 2K Games have returned with Borderlands 4, bringing its brash brand of comic violence back to where it belongs: your game console. It’s the apotheosis of the so-called “looter-shooter,” in which you shoot a lot of enemies and collect a lot of loot. In this chapter, you’ve landed on a prison planet ruled by a tyrant known as the Timekeeper. You must decide which rebel faction to join as well as which of the Timekeeper’s lieutenants you want to take down rst. You can play solo or join forces with up to three other Vault Hunters. Fight the power beginning Friday on PlayStation 5, Xbox X/S or PC.

JORDAN STRAUSS / INVISION / AP CONTENT SERVICES

Executive producers and actors Steve Martin, left, and Selena Gomez return for the fth season of “Only Murders in the Building” on Hulu.

SCOTT

British singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran drops his latest album, “Play,” on Friday.

NETFLIX / BLEEKER STREET / HBO MAX VIA AP

From left, “aka Charlie Sheen,” “The Wedding Banquet” and “Warfare” are out this week on Net ix, Paramount+ and HBO Max, respectively.

Duplin Journal

the BRIEF this week

Wallace Police seek public’s help in hit-and-run investigation

Wallace The Wallace Police Department is asking for the public’s assistance in locating a two-toned pickup truck involved in a hit-and-run that occurred at the Village Store on Sept. 6. Anyone who witnessed the incident or has information about the vehicle or driver is urged to contact the Wallace Police Department at 910 -285-2126.

Operation Guardian nets felony arrest in Duplin County Duplin County Two deputies from the Duplin County Sheri ’s O ce participated in a major law enforcement e ort along Interstate 40 on Aug. 27, resulting in 16 tra c stops, four citations, two written warnings, and one felony arrest for possession of a weapon with a defaced serial number. The operation, known as Operation Guardian, was a coordinated, multiagency initiative led by the North Carolina Highway Patrol, spanning the entire I-40 corridor. The mission focused on identifying and addressing human tra cking, criminal activity and tra c violations.

Duplin Senior Services faces $30K grant reduction

Kenansville

The Duplin County Senior Services Department is experiencing a $30,000 reduction in funding from the Home and Community Care Block Grant, which is allocated by the Eastern Carolina Council. This reduction was highlighted by County Manager Bryan Miller during the September County Commissioners meeting. Miller expressed concerns about the potential impact the loss of funding could have on services for local seniors. Melissa Brown, the director of the department, has temporarily reallocated internal funds to address this shortfall, but additional funding may be necessary to maintain current programs and services. According to Miller, the Eastern Carolina Council’s Area Agency on Aging team is contesting both the funding reduction and the methodology used to determine funding levels. They are currently discussing these issues with state o cials to seek a resolution. Further updates will be provided as the situation develops.

$3M state-funded shell building breaks ground near Wallace

The new facility marks a major step in Duplin County’s strategy to attract industry and jobs

By Mark Grady For Duplin Journal

WALLACE — Local dignitaries, including town and county representatives, gathered in SouthPark Industrial Center near Wallace on Sept. 3 for a groundbreaking ceremony where a new 50,000-square-foot shell building is being constructed. The shell building is the rst one in SouthPark that is being built through the Duplin County Economic Development Commission with funding from North Carolina Legislature.

“In my opinion, a shell building is one of the biggest items in the economic development toolbox,” Duplin County Economic Development Board Chairman Charley Farrior said during remarks at the event. “Having a shell building available is the rst step in getting a client

into the county. It makes a major statement about your county’s commitment to economic development.”

Farrior said the new SouthPark shell building will be the fth shell building constructed in the Wallace area since 1978. The previous ones were built by the Wallace 100 Committee,

which Farrior added is “unfortunately no longer active.”

All four of the previously constructed shell buildings are occupied by active industries.

“They have become very important to Duplin County and provide many jobs,” Farrior said. “These buildings contribute to the tax base of Du-

Duplin County eyes major bond savings at meeting

I would like to note that as of today, we have approximately 24 that we’re going to be in review for this next round of applications. I received 18 about 30 minutes ago.”

Chris Hatcher, county planner

Bond re nancing, grain storage expansion and housing rehab grants de ned the September meeting

By Ena Sellers Duplin Journal

KENANSVILLE — A proposal to re nance Duplin County’s 2016 Limited Obligation Bonds topped the agenda at the September county commissioners meeting, with ofcials approving the rst step in a process that could save the county approximately $1.4 million over the remaining life of the bonds.

In a unanimous decision, commissioners authorized Davenport & Company to explore re nancing options for the bonds. If interest rates remain favorable, re nancing could lead to signi cant savings over the remaining 10-year term.

Ty Welford, economic adviser with Davenport, explained that the bonds, originally is-

sued for school projects, can now be re nanced at a lower interest rate. This approval allows the county’s nancial adviser to seek better interest rates either in the bank market or through a public bond sale.

Welford emphasized there is no nancial risk to the county because Davenport will not be compensated if the re nancing does not proceed or does not result in favorable terms.

“It checks all the boxes that you would typically want to see as it relates to a potential re nancing,” Welford explained. “We think if we can get an attractive bank rate and a bank bid, it’s going to be a lot more cost-e ective and quick for the county to be able to do that and lock in those savings.”

The process is expected to progress swiftly, with results set to be presented to the board in November, including concrete proposals and savings calculations.

NC Forest Service

headquarters construction to begin by year’s end

“We’ve had some slowdowns, but I feel we’re getting back on track.”

Scotty Summerlin

The $6 million industrial buildout and Forest Service HQ face setbacks, but construction teams remain optimistic

By Mark Grady For Duplin Journal

KENANSVILLE — Mem-

a new facility that will signicantly increase the Forest Service’s footprint at the airport. The Forest Service already occupies two large hangars at the airport that are home to reghting and observation airplanes and helicopters.

According to Scotty Summerlin, executive director of the Duplin County Economic Development Commission, the N.C. Forest Service is relocating their Region One Headquarters from the Global Transpark in Kinston to the Duplin County Airport. The new facility will occupy space on a 12-acre tract in the Airpark. In addition to o ces, the $2.00

bers of the Duplin County Economic Development Board received an update at their regular meeting last Friday on the N.C. Forest Service’s expansion at the Duplin County Airport and Airpark. Construction is expected to begin by the end of the year on

plin County, and that’s very important.”

Speaking of the tax base, Farrior referenced the controversial recent property revaluations in the county and said he wanted to assure local taxpayers that funding for the new SouthPark

Jay Carraway will step down from his leadership role in February 2026

By Ena Sellers Duplin Journal

KENANSVILLE — After more than four decades in education, James Sprunt Community College President Jay Carraway has announced his retirement after six years at the school, e ective February 2026.

In his announcement earlier this week, Carraway underscored his commitment to continue serving the college until the end of his tenure.

“Serving as President of JSCC has been the most meaningful and rewarding period of my 43-year career in education,” said Carraway.

Carraway

“We have accomplished so much together.”

Jay Carraway, James Sprunt Community College president

THE DUPLIN COUNTY EDITION OF NORTH STATE JOURNAL

MARK GRADY FOR DUPLIN JOURNAL

O cials from Duplin County, the Town of Wallace, the Economic Development Commission, and Daniels and Daniels Construction gathered Sept. 3 to break ground on a new 50,000-square-foot shell building in the SouthPark Industrial Center near Wallace.

COURTESY

Ena Sellers

Allison Batts Advertising Representative

Carey

O ce Phone: 910 463-1240

To place a legal ad: 919 663-3232; Fax: 919 663-4042

Water Department drive -thru now fully operational

Kenansville Duplin o cials have announced that the Water Department's drive-thru window on Limestone Road in Kenansville is now open. Access through the Food Lion parking lot has been resolved, and the payment options at the drive-thru are operational.

CARRAWAY from page A1

“We have accomplished so much together.”

Since taking o ce in April 2019, Carraway has guided JSCC through signi cant changes and challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic. Under his leadership, the college has strengthened workforce development programs, increased access for underserved communities, and enhanced collaboration with local industry.

Carraway is regarded as a leader whose vision and dedication have signi cantly in uenced JSCC, contributing to a legacy of growth, innovation and community spirit. His retirement represents a notable transition in leadership for the college.

According to the college’s announcement, the Board of Trustees will initiate the search for Carraway’s successor in the near future.

THURSDAY SEPT. 11

FRIDAY SEPT. 12

Share with your community!

Send your birth, death, marriage, graduation and other announcements to community@ duplinjournal.com

Weekly deadline is Monday at noon.

SATURDAY

13

SUNDAY SEPT. 14

MONDAY SEPT. 15

Warsaw Wastewater Plant restarts after major spill into Stewarts Creek

More than 9 million gallons of partially treated wastewater were released during 10-day breakdown

By Ena Sellers Duplin Journal

WARSAW — The Warsaw Wastewater Treatment Plant is back online after a major failure that resulted in millions of gallons of partially treated wastewater owing into Stewarts Creek from Aug. 22-28

This incident is part of an ongoing series of environmental and regulatory challenges linked to chronic industrial overloading.

“During the period of repairs from Aug. 18-28, the treatment plant upset led to approximately 9.6 million gallons of partially treated waste reaching Stewarts Creek,” a spokesperson with the North

from page A1

shell building, as well as another one being built in the Airpark, did not come from property taxes. “We were able to construct both of these buildings through a special appropriation from the North Carolina General Assembly,” Farrior said.

In an interview with Duplin Journal, Duplin County Economic Development Commission Executive Director Scotty Summerlin said the $3 million cost of the new SouthPark shell building came from a total of $80 million appropriated by the state to help spur economic growth in rural areas of North Carolina. Duplin County was awarded $12 million from that special allocation.

In Farrior’s remarks, he referenced the success of a shell building constructed in nearby Wayne County as an example of an economic windfall that can come from investing in industrial properties.

BOND from page A1

In other business

• Stella Simpson, who retired after nearly 30 years with the Duplin County Department of Social Services, was honored with a county retiree plaque and the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, one of North Carolina’s highest civilian honors. She was recognized for her decades of dedicated service to the community.

• The board has approved a revision to the performance -based economic development incentive for Project Pair, which involves a $2.3 million expansion of a grain storage facility in Rose Hill. This facility belongs to a long-standing agricultural business and a key employer in Duplin County whose name was withheld for privacy.

The expansion aims to enhance e ciency during the harvest season. The revision re ects an increase in local investment from $30 million to $41 million, which prompted a change in the original incentive terms that had been previously approved. The county will reimburse a portion of the property taxes on the new improvements over a 10-year period: 80% reimbursement for the rst ve years and 50% for the fol-

Carolina Division of Water Resources (DWR) told Duplin Journal.

The DWR con rmed the treatment plan was back online as of Aug. 29. The DWR spokesperson shared that the facility is once again treating wastewater, but e orts are still underway to bring the plant into full compliance with its discharge permit limits.

This discharge incident highlights a long-standing issue with regulatory noncompliance, primarily due to industrial overloading from two major users: Villari Foods Group and C2NC.

Even before the recent failure, the plant had been facing operational challenges, including excessive levels of ammonia, nitrogen, and Biochemical Oxygen Demand, which often far exceeded the limits set under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System.

In the last couple of years, the town’s wastewater penalties have signi cantly increased, re ecting ongoing compliance issues. In 2023, total nes reached nearly $12,500, with violations occurring in September and December. In 2024, penalties surged to more than $70,000 — more than ve times the previous year’s total. By the rst quarter of 2025, nes escalated to over $115,000, with a ne of more than $54,000 recorded in March, marking the highest monthly penalty to date.

“DWR has assessed civil penalties to the town in response to violations of the treatment plant’s permit conditions, including violations of permit limits for parameters including fecal coliform, ammonia and total suspended solids in its treated wastewater e uent. The total paid in 2025 is $144,234.57,” DWR told Duplin Journal.

“In May of this year, Wayne County Development Alliance sold two shell buildings, one 50,000 square feet, one 30,000 square feet, to one industry, Pelsan Tekstil,” Farrior said. “This company plans to create 216 new jobs and invest $82.6 million in new capital.”

During closing comments at the groundbreaking ceremony, Summerlin gave the statistics on the new building, mentioning that the

lowing ve years, contingent upon the investment of at least $41 million and the creation of ve new jobs. On average, this amounts to an annual incentive of approximately $154,600, while the county will still net around $83,200 in new annual tax revenue during the incentive period.

According to Scotty Summerlin, economic development director, the project will add critical grain storage capacity, accelerate harvest operations and reduce costs for farmers in at least seven counties, thereby enhancing agricultural e ciency throughout the region. After the 10-year incentive period, the county will collect full tax revenue, and the agreement includes performance-based clawbacks to safeguard public investment.

• County Planner Chris Hatcher presented plans for the county to apply for Community Development Block Grant – Neighborhood Revitalization (CDBG-NR) funds. This program focuses on housing rehabilitation for low- and moderate-income residents.

“We would request a list of potential candidates from the county, but I would like to note that as of today, we have approximate -

TUESDAY SEPT. 16

50,000-square-foot facility will have a 30-foot-ceiling, giving it a great deal of room for a large number of potential industries. He called the recent investments by the Economic Development Commission “generational change.” Immediately after the ceremony, crews from Daniels and Daniels Construction, the Goldsboro-based company awarded the contract, began work at the site.

ly 24 that we’re going to be in review for this next round of applications. I received 18 about 30 minutes ago,” Hatcher explained, thanking Commissioner Wayne Branch for his role in building the applicant pool, having proactively reached out last year and again before the meeting to provide a detailed list of prospective applicants.

Commissioners also approved a required second public hearing, scheduled for Oct. 6, to advance the application process.

“This is reimbursed, so the county does put that money up front, but we are reimbursed 100% of this,” said Hatcher. “We are currently under two grants, two (CDBG-NR)’s right now. Both of those equaling approximately $950,000 a piece. We have $1.9 million in grant funds, which is amazing, I will say. We are helping a lot of people.”

The board also held a series of public hearings to address road naming requests. After receiving no public opposition, the board approved names for the following new lanes: Walker Estates Drive, Brothers Diaz Boulevard, Oakwood Drive, Maready Farm Lane and Brenda Gail Lane.

Here’s a quick look at what’s coming up in Duplin County:

Sept.

11

Pig Show

6 p.m.

Celebrate Ag Appreciation Week with a Pig Show at the Duplin Livestock Facility in Kenansville. The event is part of the Eastern Carolina Showmanship Circuit, highlighting local youth and agriculture. For more information, visit duplin.ces. ncsu.edu.

275 Fairgrounds Drive, Kenansville

Sept.

12

Goat Show

6 p.m.

Continue the Ag Appreciation Week festivities with a Goat Show at the Duplin Livestock Facility. As part of the Eastern Carolina Showmanship Circuit, this event highlights the dedication and skills of local youth in agriculture. For more information, visit duplin. ces.ncsu.edu.

275 Fairgrounds Drive, Kenansville

Sept.

13

Pet Day in the Park

9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Join Pet Friends of Duplin County for Pet Day in the Park at Clement Park. Enjoy food trucks, kids’ activities, a dog costume contest, a visit from the Wallace re truck, the Fresh Start Rescue event trailer and more.

209 E Clement St, Wallace

Rose Hill Grape Stomp Festival

1 to 5 p.m.

Don’t miss the annual Rose Hill Grape Stomp Festival at Duplin Winery. Celebrate nearly 50 years of vineyard hospitality with live music, delicious wine and food and nonstop fun. Join the crowd for the iconic Grape Stomp, where dancing, stomping and laughter take center stage.

505 N. Sycamore St, Rose Hill

Lamb & Heifer Shows

10 a.m.

Wrap up Ag Appreciation Week with Lamb and Heifer Shows at the Duplin Livestock Facility. The Lamb Show is followed by the Heifer Show at 1 p.m. or immediately after the Lamb Show concludes. For more information, visit duplin. ces.ncsu.edu.

275 Fairgrounds Dr., Kenansville

CEREMONY

MARK GRADY FOR DUPLIN JOURNAL

Charley Farrior, chairman of the Duplin County Economic Development Board, addresses attendees at a groundbreaking ceremony for the new shell building at SouthPark Industrial Center along N.C. Highway 11 near Wallace.

Beulaville sees residential boom as new developments take shape

The town prepares for growth with water and sewer upgrades

By Mark Grady For Duplin Journal

BEULAVILLE — Like other towns in Duplin County, Beulaville is experiencing residential growth, according to Interim Town Manager Lori Williams.

“We’ve actually got a couple of new residential developments that are going through the process for zoning, and for water and sewer,” Williams told Duplin Journal in an interview. “We also have a 40-unit apartment complex that has been released for construction.”

The apartment complex is expected to be completed in 2026.

One of the new housing developments is slated to have 122 homes, while the other will have 25, Williams said.

To prepare for growth, Beulaville has several water and sewer projects under construction, including line replacement and new tap installations.

With the in ux of new residents coming to town to occupy the new homes and apartments, Williams said Beulaville is also expanding its recreational opportunities for residents by relocating and expanding a park to be co-located with the existing recreational facility on Broad Street, where the town’s softball and baseball elds are located.

“We’ll be doing construction on a walking trail, a basketball court and a volleyball court in this phase,” Williams said. As far as new businesses

coming to town, Williams said, “We don’t have any new businesses I can report on, but all of our businesses here seem to be doing well.”

One positive business aspect that Beulaville can claim that not many other towns can report is they currently have no vacant business buildings.

Williams believes part of the success of businesses in town is due to their location.

“We’ve seen our busiest season through the summer. We are a high-tra c area on (Highways) 24 and 41. We’ve seen increased tra c over the last several months.”

While Williams has no new businesses to report, she predicts the housing growth will eventually lead to new commercial establishments choosing the town.

With two new housing developments and an apartment complex coming to town, Beulaville is expanding its recreational opportunities.

“In time, with the residential growth and an increase in population, it will inspire more businesses to come. If you can get

them in the residential areas, in time, you’ll see the growth on that side of the spectrum,” she said.

‘Where did the money go?’ Frustration boils over in Mount Olive

As residents demand answers, town o cials promise to investigate and report back

By Mark Grady For Duplin Journal

MOUNT OLIVE — The ongoing problems regarding the state-imposed sewer moratorium on the town and the recent release of a scathing audit by the N.C. Auditor’s O ce, which discovered numerous mismanagement issues within town government, were front and center during the public comment period at the Mount Olive Board of Commissioners on Monday evening.

Mount Olive citizen Dan McPhail told the board there had been a $5 million allocation toward the sewer problems in 2020, followed by an additional $15 million allocation two years later, to which the state contributed an additional $10 million.

“That’s $30 million, and we’re still under a sewer moratorium, which is increasing our taxes, and which is making new businesses not come to Mount Olive because they can’t attach to the sewer system,” McPhail said.

“It’s creating a slack or de ciency in our growth.”

McPhail asked if the original engineering company contracted to repair the issues was under a performance bond to guarantee their work.

“If it was, why wasn’t the work completed and guaranteed?” he asked. Mayor Jerome Newton responded to McPhail’s question, adding that they will nd more information, “and we’ll get back to you.”

Another town resident, Billy Wilkins, turned to the audience during his comment period and said, “I want to address you all.” Wilkins added to the list of funds previously allocated toward the sewer issues.

“Back in the early 2000s, the town borrowed $13 million to build a tree farm,” Wilkins said. “A few years back, the tree farm

was incinerated because it didn’t work. All the trees died.”

The tree farm was to be used to spray some of the sewage from the plant to utilize natural absorption.

According to Wilkins, the town signed an $8 million contract in December 2022, which was intended to address in ltration and in ow issues identi ed as the most signi cant problems at the troubled sewer plant.

Like McPhail, Wilkins questioned the town’s handling of such large appropriations.

Still addressing the audience, Wilkins concluded his remarks by saying, “I implore you to look at your next board that you have to vote for. These people are making million-dollar decisions up here.”

The recent report from the state auditor on the town was also addressed during the public comment period by resident Cindy Bell. She expressed frustration that the town had not

“They were asked not to approve the airport budget until they understood the expenditures and what was happening there. They turned a blind eye to it and it was approved.”

Cindy Bell

addressed the airport nances in the report before now.

“In May and June of 2024, more than a year ago, during the budget process, it was pointed out to this board, not a previous board, inconsistencies in the airport budget,” Bell said. “They were asked (by the citizens) not to approve the airport budget until they understood the expenditures and what was happening there. They turned a blind

eye to it, and it was approved.”

Newton acknowledged that all the residents’ concerns are valid and promised that the sta would investigate each one.

Later in the meeting, the board approved a resolution requested by interim town manager Glenn Holland authorizing TRC to prepare a funding application for water treatment system renovations. Holland told the board the new rm had already advised him of potential new funding sources the town could seek help from in tackling the ongoing sewage treatment plant challenges.

Mayor Pro-Tem Barbara Kornegay thanked Holland for his work in attempting to nd a reasonable and e ective solution to the sewage moratorium.

Gary Whaley, who operates a ight school at the airport in association with the University of Mount Olive, addressed the board and asked that everyone consider the good things hap-

pening at the airport and encouraged board members to visit the ight school to see its success. After the meeting, Whaley told Newton he was concerned the negative news about the airport could a ect recruitment for the ight school.

In other business

• The board approved a contract with CPA Beverly Stroud to reconcile the town’s bank statements and bring the nancial records from July 2024 through June 2025 current.

The town issued a proclamation honoring Greg Wiggins for his years of service to the town.

• The board also agreed to move the November board of commissioners meeting from Nov. 3 to Nov. 10 due to the elections.

MARK GRADY FOR DUPLIN JOURNAL

Mount Olive resident Dan McPhail, left, addresses the Board of Commissioners at their Sept. 8 meeting about his concerns over the large amounts of funds allocated toward the troubled town sewage treatment plant that have not resulted in any resolution to the state sewage moratorium on the town.

THE CONVERSATION

Trip Ho end, publisher | Frank Hill, senior opinion editor

VISUAL VOICES

Roy Cooper’s vetoes speak louder than his speeches after 38-year ride

on taxpayer dime

Cooper and his handlers have a huge problem to overcome — his political record.

THE CONTEST FOR the North Carolina U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Tom Tillis, who is not seeking reelection, has already garnered great interest across the nation. Political pundits, especially those who lean left, are already setting the table for former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper. As most people know, Cooper served 14 years in the North Carolina General Assembly, four years in the House and 10 years in the Senate. Then he was elected to four terms as attorney general and two terms as governor of North Carolina.

Seems to be very impressive, doesn’t it?

So for 38 of his 68 years, he has been employed by the taxpayers of North Carolina; for 24 of those years, he was a full-time employee of the state of North Carolina. Put another way, he has spent 56% of his entire life employed by the taxpayers of North Carolina. That certainly sounds like a “career politician,” doesn’t it?

He and his supporters hope that his well-crafted public image will remain upfront and kept center stage in his bid for the U.S. Senate. But we should remind him that the motto of North Carolina is Esse Quam Videri, “to be rather than to seem.”

Cooper and his handlers have a huge problem to overcome — his political record. That “record” tells the true tale. His record proves that he supports some ultra-left-wing issues. Consider just a few examples from his time as governor.

During his time as governor, he vetoed 129 House or Senate bills, many of which had good bipartisan support. The Republican majority overrode 67 of his vetoes. He vetoed all the two-year budgets even when they had bipartisan support.

In April 2019, he showed his true ultra-liberal stance by vetoing S.B. 359, the Born-Alive Survivors Protection Act. That bill simply said, “If a child survives an attempted abortion and is outside

the womb, give the child medical attention.” Cooper, with his veto, said no by not requiring that the surviving child be given medical attention. In essence, he said, just let the child who is now surviving outside the womb, die without medical attention. He vetoed e orts to require photo ID to vote. He vetoed the e orts to require political party a liation to be listed on the ballot for all judges. He vetoed all but one of the annual Farm Acts, which were dedicated to improving our hard-working farmers’ ability to produce the food and ber necessary for us to remain a free nation. He vetoed S.B. 582, the 2023 Farm Act, which included establishment of the North Carolina Farmers Appreciation Day, even though nine Democrats voted for the bill and also voted to override his veto.

Those vetoes, especially those against our farmers, were egregious enough, but let’s consider a few others that were even more egregious. He vetoed H.B. 574, which barred biological men from playing on girls’ sports teams. That means he supports transgender men in women’s sports and in women’s locker rooms. He vetoed S.B. 49, the Parents’ Bill of Rights, which gives parents the right to make decisions for their minor children. That means he believes the government, not parents, knows what is best for their children. He vetoed S.B. 20, which improved the rights of unborn children by banning late-term abortions from 20 weeks to 12 weeks.

We the people, before we vote for Cooper, should remember what he said during the 2024 presidential election: “I want to make sure Vice President Harris wins and we stop Trump.”

Rep. Jimmy Dixon represents Duplin and Wayne counties in the N.C. House of Representatives.

In defense of praying after tragedy

Leftists obsess over microaggressions, but they have no issue with their leaders mocking Christians.

THOSE WHO DENIGRATE prayer after mass shootings reveal their own ignorance.

Last month, a man red more than 100 rounds into a Catholic church in Minneapolis. He was targeting students attending a back-to-school Mass. Tragically, he killed two children and injured 18 others. He then killed himself.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey rushed to the scene and promptly criticized Christians.

“Don’t just say this is about thoughts and prayers right now,” he said. “These kids were literally praying. It was the rst week of school. They were in a church.”

“Enough with the thoughts and prayers,” Jen Psaki, former White House press secretary, wrote on X.

In response to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defending those “who believe in the power of prayer,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom wrote on X, “These children were literally praying as they got shot at.”

Leftists obsess over microaggressions, but they have no issue with their leaders mocking Christians after Christian children were murdered for being in a Christian church.

Despite the condescension, this is an objection worth addressing.

One reason Christians pray is that there isn’t anything physically we can do in many tragic situations. But we can appeal

to the God of the universe. He can protect responding o cers. He can heal the wounded and guide the doctors caring for them. He can comfort the broken-hearted. He can supernaturally intervene in ways we can’t. And of course, a police o cer on the scene shouldn’t only respond in prayer.

If you don’t believe in God, that may seem silly. Fine. But you should understand why Christians pray.

There’s another contention in these statements, too: Prayer failed and, by extension, so did God. The shooter even wrote, “Where is your God” on one of the magazines for his ri e.

Anyone drawing this conclusion is unaware of the Bible and church history.

Jesus, God’s only begotten Son, lived a perfect life yet died on a cross while facing similar taunts: “He saved others, but he can’t save himself.”

Yet those mockers didn’t see what was happening right in front of them. On the cross, Jesus paid the penalty that you and I deserve for our sin. On the third day, God raised him from the dead. Jesus’ sacri ce o ers salvation to those who confess him as Lord and believe God raised him from the dead.

What looked to human eyes like the ultimate failure was God’s plan to save mankind — and o er a hope that pain and death can’t diminish.

“I consider that our present su erings are not worth comparing with the glory

that will be revealed in us,” Paul wrote in Romans 8.

Those families in Minneapolis weren’t the rst Christians to su er greatly. Most of the apostles were martyred for their faith. In the Roman Empire, Christians were cruci ed, burned, thrown to the lions and otherwise tortured. Since 2009, Islamists have killed more than 50,000 Christians in Nigeria.

What’s remarkable are the many stories of Christians facing their deaths with calmness, joy or even song.

In 202 or 203 A.D., a group of Christians was arrested for their faith. After being sentenced to a gruesome death, Perpetua, a young mother, wrote in her diary, “We returned to prison in high spirits.”

A narrator continued the tale. The day before their deaths, they spoke to the mob, “stressing the joy they would have in their su ering.” As she and the other martyrs died, she urged others to “stand fast in the faith and love one another.”

Nonbelievers may assume that the earthly su ering of God’s followers diminishes Him. It doesn’t, and it hasn’t for 2,000 years. Even though I often fail to live this truth out well, our hope isn’t in this world.

And when tragedy makes that hard to remember, it’s time to pray.

Victor Joecks is a columnist for the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

COLUMN | REP. JIMMY DIXON

COLUMN | VICTOR JOECKS

Duplin corn crop thrives, but market prices lag

An extension agent reported a strong harvest despite the market challenges

By Mark Grady For Duplin Journal

KENANSVILLE — With fall knocking at the seasonal door, Duplin farmers are in the elds reaping what they have sown. According to Della King, eld crops agent with the North Carolina Extension Service in Kenansville, this year’s corn yield appears to be good.

“As a county, overall, we’ve got a good, decent corn crop this year, de nitely compared to last year,” King said in an interview with Duplin Journal.

One of King’s duties is yield certi cation for growers. She said the corn yields vary some

between dry land and irrigated elds.

“Dry land is averaging around 180 to 200 (bushels per acre),” King said. “We don’t have the county-wide assessments yet because growers are still picking.”

While the corn yields appear to be good this year, unfortunately for the growers, prices are down. Based on King’s assessment, corn growers are facing their own version of the proverbial Murphy’s Law when it comes to prices.

“They’ve been pretty low compared to previous years,” she said. “Some of it’s the way the cycle goes. When you’re going to have a bumper crop, the prices go down.”

Fortunately for corn growers, the back-to-back downpours over the summer didn’t do much to hamper the growth, except in a few isolated areas. King says the same can not be

said for Duplin soybean growers. Online, corn prices were averaging $3.97 per bushel this week.

“I know from a soybean standpoint, some folks had trouble getting beans planted, as far as double-crop beans that are planted behind wheat,” King said. “There were some that had to replant a couple of times because they got planted and got a downpour of rain and they just did not come up. They had to replant.”

Soybeans were planted around the mid-July time period when the area was experiencing some signi cant rainfall. King said some places got timely rain while other areas got heavy rain.

Just how much the rain affected soybeans also depends on the individual elds.

“Soil types can a ect that as well, from a drainage standpoint.”

Corn stalks are all that remain on a

corn was recently picked.

Navigating property tax appeals, relief

The revaluation appeals deadline has passed, but options remain

By Ena Sellers Duplin Journal

HUNDREDS OF Duplin County property owners are reeling from sharp increases in their 2025 property tax bills following a countywide revaluation. And while the o cial appeal deadline has passed, many still have options to challenge errors.

The local deadline to appeal assessed values with the Board of Equalization and Review (BoER) has expired, but taxpayers can still appeal under certain circumstances. These include instances where the assessed value is substantially higher than the market value, if the assessed value is inequitable compared to similar properties, or if there are issues related to situs or taxability. Additionally, appeals can be made if the assessed value was calculated incorrectly due to clerical errors. Taxpayers are encouraged to start by contacting the local tax o ce to seek a resolution.

“There are over 40,000 parcels in Duplin County and there are going to be errors made in mass appraisal,” said Tax Administrator Gary Rose. “Also, we were converting from an old tax system from the mid-’80s to a new tax system, and this caused some of the errors. We tried to catch all of the errors, but some did slip by. As we nd the errors or are made aware of errors, they are being corrected.”

According to the North Carolina Department of Revenue, in a revaluation year, state law mandates that the BoER adjourn by Dec. 1, the nal date for accepting new property tax appeals for that cycle. This does not impact appeals led on time, even if hearings occur after adjournment.

“Ours adjourned this year on June 26 since over three

“There are over 40,000 parcels in Duplin County and there are going to be errors made in mass appraisal.”

Gary Rose, tax administrator

meetings there were less than 10 appeals,” Rose told Duplin Journal via email. “Also, once they have adjourned from hearing new appeals, they can still work on appeals that had already been heard. Most times, this is for additional information. Duplin County rarely has more than a handful of appeals go to the board.” If the taxpayer is not satised with the decision of the local BoER, they can appeal to the State BoER, also known as the Property Tax Commission. Taxpayers must provide evidence that the county’s assessed value exceeds fair market value on the appraisal date. This evidence may include comparable sales, independent appraisals, repair estimates, photographs and records of the property’s condition or income/expenses for income-generating properties. There are several tax relief programs that taxpayers can consider for the next cycle:

• Elderly or Disabled Exclusion can reduce the taxable value of a qualifying homeowner’s residence by either $25,000 or 50% of its assessed value, whichever is greater. To qualify, applicants must be at least 65 years old or permanently disabled and have a household income of $38,800 or less for 2025.

The Disabled Veteran Exclusion o ers up to $45,000 in tax relief on a veteran’s or surviving spouse’s primary residence, with a 100% service-connected disability or specially adapted housing bene ts. There are no income limits for this exemption. Another relief option is

The Duplin County Economic Development Commission board hears updates on projects at the Duplin County Airport and Airpark. Delays have plagued the project of creating new infrastructure within the Airpark, but it appears a mid- October completion date may be possible.

FOREST from page A1

building will also house a training facility.

The N.C. Forest Service is a division of the North Carolina Department of Agriculture. The agency is divided into three regions in the state. Region One is divided into four divisions that serve 27 counties in eastern North Carolina.

In addition to the update on progress for the Forest Service project, Summerlin, along with three contractors appearing at the meeting remotely, gave the board the latest on the overall construction project at the Airpark that will result in the construction of two 50,000-square-foot industrial shell buildings as well as several short-stay rental units.

The shell buildings are being constructed at a total cost of $6 million.

The challenge in completing the Airpark expansion project has been the result of delays blamed on several days of heavy rain and a series of change orders requested by the contractors that have increased the cost and the time to complete the project. The discovery of bad soil at some construction sites on the airport property also contributed to slowdowns.

the Circuit Breaker Tax Deferment program. Instead of the standard exclusion, elderly or disabled seniors may cap their tax liability at 4% for an income of $37,900 or at 5% for an income up to $56,850. The home must be the owner’s permanent residence, and all owners must have lived in and owned the property for at least ve years. Any taxes above the cap are deferred and accrue as a lien on the property. The last three years of deferred taxes become due upon a “disqualifying event” such as selling the property, transferring ownership, death or ceasing to use the property as a permanent residence.

One of the most impactful tax relief programs in Duplin County is the Present-Use Value (PUV) program. It allows qualifying farmland, forestland or horticultural land to be taxed based on its current use rather than market value, potentially deferring up to 85% of the taxes.

“The Present-Use Value program is a program that was designed to protect farmland from development,” explained Rose. “The state sets a value per acre for the land, and as long as it meets certain requirements, it will be taxed at the lower value.”

However, if the property is sold, developed, or ceases to meet eligibility criteria, deferred taxes from the current year and the previous three years become due. To be eligible, the landowner must have owned the property for at least four years. For agriculture, the landowner must have at least 10 acres in production; for horticulture, a minimum of 5 acres; and for forestry, at least 20 acres must be in production. Additionally, for agriculture and horticulture, the land must have generated an average gross income of at least $1,000 over the past three years.

To explore available options that could reduce a property tax bill, contact the tax o ce at 910 -296 -2110.

The board was presented two new change orders at the meeting, including one requesting additional time to complete the last 300 feet of water line installation and another to relocate a drainage ditch.

Matthew Ferguson, a contractor on the project, told the board, “Chatham Construction is asking for an additional 14 days to be added to the contract due to water line cut sheets at West Bend Road and the delays associated with that.”’

According to the contractors, the delays were caused both by waiting for survey work on the project and coordinating with the gas company, which has a 50-foot easement on the property.

A last-minute change order

that had to be added to the agenda involves relocating of a ditch to avoid a manhole cover and the associated concrete housing. The board was told if the ditch is not moved, they could expect “severe erosive issues” at some point after the Airpark project is completed. The board approved both change orders. As a result of the delays, the originally planned completion date of July 7 has been pushed back to mid-October.

Despite the delays on the Airpark infrastructure improvements, Summerlin told the board that the contractor for the shell buildings, Daniels and Daniels Construction, is already at work.

“We’ve had some slowdowns, but I feel we’re getting back on track,” Summerlin said.

In other business, the board voted to award a $5,200 contract to Johnny Williams Land Surveying for work needed to prepare the site for seven short-stay rental units, which will include a mix of two- and three-bedroom designs, with room for additional units in the future.

MARK GRADY FOR DUPLIN JOURNAL

eld just outside Wallace on N.C. Highway 11 after the

PHOTOS BY MARK GRADY FOR STANLY NEWS JOURNAL

The North Carolina Forest Service will soon begin construction of the new Region One headquarters at the Airpark. The new headquarters, moving from Kinston, will be built on a 12 -acre tract.

School board approves key partnerships, funding

From academic partnerships to sta ex days, the board tackled a 26 -point consent agenda

By Rebecca Whitman Cooke For Duplin Journal

KENANSVILLE — The Duplin County Board of Education approved a broad range of initiatives aimed at strengthening academic partnerships, supporting sta , and improving school facilities at its Sept. 2 meeting.

The board started its agenda bt reviewing an extensive 26-point consent agenda.

Included in the consent agenda were the following approvals:

• Memorandums of Understanding between James Kenan High School and Advise NC at NC State, Duplin County Schools and UNC Greensboro, Duplin County Schools and Wayne

Community College, Duplin County Schools and National Equity Lab for the Collegein-High School program and Voices Together.

• Independent contracts for Sylvia Draughn and Christa Bass.

• Contracts with Lauren Williford, Cheryl Fuller, Joell Parker and Sheri Leavens to provide workshops for the Duplin Health Science Academy.

• A budget amendment for the 2024-25 scal year for child nutrition.

An $829 annual service agreement with Brewer Company for maintaining the check folder/sealer.

Fundraising requests from Kenansville Elementary, Wallace Elementary, Warsaw Elementary and North Duplin Junior/Senior High School.

• Service contracts for the 2025-26 school year between Duplin County Schools and APE in a Box, Jennifer Carter (Educational Interpreter) and Soliant (Teacher of the Deaf/ Hard of Hearing for ESY).

Contracts with Sandcastles Childcare, Lynda’s Funtime Junction and Louanna’s Childcare to provide NC PreK classrooms.

• The $60,000 purchase of Imagine Learning remediation software.

Submission of a supplemental application to the O ce of Head Start for nutrition education resources.

Additionally, the board approved an application to request more than $29,000 to remove water from ooding sidewalks at Beulaville Elementary. This project is applying for funding through the Public School Building Capital Fund via the North Carolina

Education Lottery. Furthermore, the board approved the continuation of ex days for certi ed and noncerti ed employees. The policy allows for six additional ex days during the 2025-26 school year, which can be used on optional teacher workdays or days when students are not in school. These days are in addition to the two ex days already provided, and they do not carry over into the next school year if unused.

Following the extensive approvals, the board went into a closed executive session for an hour. Upon returning to open session, the board approved recommendations made during the closed session.

Brent Davis, chair of the Board of Education, then requested an additional agenda item to seek approval for signing and submitting an application for the Needs-Based Public School Capital Funds Grant on behalf of the county. The board approved this request due to the application deadline being on

Duplin schools designated low-performing district

Reading and math pro ciency improved across subgroups, but seven schools’ low performance led to the district-wide designation

By Ena Sellers Duplin Journal

KENANSVILLE — Duplin

County Schools has been designated a low-performing district for the 2024–25 school year, according to new state accountability results released by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. The designation comes as more than 50% of the district’s schools received a performance grade of D and did

not meet expected growth. Seven schools were identied as low-performing, contributing to the district-wide classi cation.

Despite the overall designation, the district reported academic gains in several key areas. District-wide, pro ciency improved in reading and math for students in third through eighth grade, and all major student subgroups showed increased overall pro ciency.

“I’m proud of our students

and educators who have worked hard to improve these metrics,” State Superintendent of Public Instruction Mo Green said. “I am eager to see this data continue to improve as we work to implement our strategic plan.”

At the high school level, all four schools showed pro ciency gains in NC Math 1 and NC Math 3. However, pro ciency in English II declined. Science performance in fifth and eighth grade, along with biology, decreased this year, mainly due to the implementation of the new North Carolina Standard Course of Study and updated assessments. The State Board of

Education noted that these changes make comparisons to previous years’ results inequitable.

Positive trends were also noted in college and career readiness indicators. ACT and ACT WorkKeys performance improved, and progress for English Learners (ELs) increased. The gains coincided with statewide changes, including the lowering of the ACT benchmark score from 19 to 17 and a new EL exit composite score of 4.5, down from 4.8.

According to the report, growth data showed that four schools exceeded their expected growth, three met their

Oct. 3, which is before the next scheduled board meeting. Lastly, the board acknowledged donations made for speci c purposes to speci c schools. Highlights include:

A donation of $300 for co ee supplies for teachers at Wallace Elementary from New River Holiness Church and David Houston.

• A donation of $4,500 for a batting cage at Wallace Elementary from Hayes Skidmore.

A donation of $1,695 for the football team at Rose Hill Magnolia Elementary from Dave Fussell.

• A $1,000 donation from Anderson Smith & Wike LLC to be used as a one-time scholarship in memory of Austin Obasohan to assist a promising DCS student planning to study accounting.

“I’m proud of our students and educators who have worked hard to improve these metrics ... I am eager to see this data continue to improve as we work to implement our strategic plan.”

Mo Green, State Superintendent of Public Instruction

growth targets and six did not meet their growth targets. Performance grades for schools in the district included one B, three C’s, seven D’s and two F’s.

UMO celebrates largest nursing cohort at White Coat Ceremony

Forty students formally entered the clinical phase of the program

By Ena Sellers Duplin Journal

MOUNT OLIVE — In a historic milestone for the University of Mount Olive, 40 nursing students — the largest cohort in the school’s history — were formally welcomed into the clinical phase of the school’s nursing program during the annual White Coat Ceremony. The event marked a significant transition for the juniors as they began hands-on clinical practice.

Hosted by the university’s Division of Nursing, the ceremony celebrated the students’ entry into the next phase of their nursing education. As each student was called to the stage and received their white coat, they also recited the “Nursing Student’s Pledge of Dedication,” committing to ethical standards, compassion-

ate care and lifelong learning.

Kristin Mozingo, division chair of nursing and director of the simulation lab, praised the milestone moment, welcoming the new graduates as a rec-

ognized member of the UMO nursing community during her closing remarks.

“Next week, you will begin a rigorous but rewarding journey. Take this time to

rest and re ect, you are stepping into something extraordinary,” said Mozingo in her closing remarks. Mozingo expressed pride in the students’ accomplish-

ments and a deep sense of honor in supporting them on this journey.

“We believe in you. And we are honored to walk beside you.”

COURTESY UNIVERSITY OF MOUNT OLIVE

Forty University of Mount Olive nursing students were formally welcomed into the nursing program during the University’s annual White Coat Ceremony.

DUPLIN SPORTS Lamb-led Bulldogs rally in second half to clip Dark Horses

A late score helped Southern Nash nip James Kenan 44-42 in a game decided by a few plays

By Michael Jaenicke Duplin Journal

BAILEY — Jayden Harts eld scored his fourth touchdown with 1:11 to play to send Southern Nash to a 44-42 win over James Kenan last Friday.

The Tigers last-gasp e ort in the nal 1:03 pushed the ball to the Firebirds 19 before a hurry-up eld goal from 26 yards was too low and not long enough.

It was a game of big hits, runs between the hash marks and 2-point conversions, and a clash that neither team deserved to lose.

Tigers fall to 5A Firebirds in wild, physical slugfest Davis’

Southern Nash (1-1), a 5A school, had reinforcements and substitutions for 22 positions, though it never wore down the platooning 3A Tigers (1-1).

The Firebirds rst-half fumble was perhaps the biggest mistake in a cleanly played game that had many stoppages for injuries following football warfare.

JK led until Harts eld (26 -143) tied it at 28-28 with 8:34 to play.

“Going in I knew it would be really di cult to hold them, so I was thrilled when we jumped out early,” said JK coach Tim Grady. “I felt we’d move the ball against them, and that was tough because we had to go against one of the best defensive ends in the state (Luke Faulkner), who is also trouble as a fullback.”

“I felt we’d move the ball against them and that was tough because we had to go against one of the best defensive ends in the state.”

JK head coach Tim Grady

But JK had breakout performances from a number of players. Jeremiah Hall ran for a career-high 202 yards.

Newcomer Taulil Pearsall checked in with 59 yards on 11 carries.

CJ Hill and David Zeleya

ED topped Richlands 14-7 as the defenses gave ts to runners and passers

By Michael Jaenicke Duplin Journal

RICHLANDS — It’s hard to nd defensive battles in football games played on Saturdays and Sundays.

When it absolutely mattered the most, East Duplin got a rst down against Richlands, and the Panthers defense held its ground for a 14-7 win.

Shawn Davis burst into the endzone on the third snap of overtime, and the Panthers defense stopped the Wildcats on third and fourth

Wallace-Rose Hill scored the nal 16 points in a 22-18 win over Clinton

By Michael Jaenicke Duplin Journal

CLINTON — Jamar-

ae Lamb and Matthew Wells made up for two early mistakes as Wallace-Rose Hill rallied from an 18-6 de cit to beat Clinton 22-18 last Friday at Robinson-Lewis Field.

The win was the rst of the season for the Bulldogs and the second over their Sampson County rival, which both have state-championship trophies in their respective schools.

WRH has seven and Clinton ve. The Dark Horses (1-2) picked o a Wells pass after driving to the Clinton 17 on WRH’s rst possession. Lamb ran for 13 yards on the Bulldogs’ third possession and nearly had another rst

down before dropping the pigskin on the turf.

“The turnovers gave them life and kind of sucked the air out of us, but this was a ballgame I don’t think we don’t win the last three years,” WRH coach Kevin Motsigner said. “We handled the bad things that happened early, and our defense started laying down wood.”

Motsinger said Clinton has o ensive weapons and quality players despite a downturn in the program. The Dark Horses were 2-8 in ’24, a season after head coach Cory Johnson led them to the 2A title game and 15-1 record the previous season before leaving with illegal transfers for Marlboro County (Marlboro, SC).

“Their quarterback can at-out throw the ball, they have two backs that can y, and they still got more talent on that team than just about

downs, a yard shy of scoring.

The win avenged a 19-0 loss last season.

“Richlands played us pretty doggone good, especially defensively,” said ED coach Battle Holley, whose team travels to James Kenan on Friday for the 64th matchup between the Duplin County rivals.

“We had a couple of chances to put some distance between us and them and just couldn’t. They really run to the football. They play us hard every year, and we couldn’t get into our rhythm o ensively. And they had something to do with it.”

ED went in front 7-0 three plays into the fourth quarter via a 10-yard rumble by Davis (18-109) and Gavin Jar-

man’s PAT. Dewayne Davis had rst-down runs of 21 and 10 yards during the 8-play, 52-yard drive.

The Panthers got all but two of 242 yards on the ground, though going 6 of 15 on third down and 1-4 on fourth down. Conversely, Richland had 98 yards passing, but just 43 rushing.

The Wildcats responded on their next drive to tie it at 7-7. New quarterback DJ DiBenedetto (10-17) ran the ball three times to move the yardsticks and then found Cale Wilges for a 36-yard score to tie the game after Isaiah Betton kick split the uprights.

EDWARDO PUAC / DUPLIN JOURNAL

JK’s Jeremiah Hall ran for a career-high 202 and scored three touchdowns against Southern Nash.

THURMAN PARKER FOR DUPLIN JOURNAL

ED’s Amir Lamont, left, and Juan Benitez, right, take down Richland wideout Cale Wilkes, who scored the lone Wildcats touchdown in a 14-7 overtime win for the Panthers.

EDWARDO PUAC / DUPLIN JOURNAL

Linebacker Will Brooks, left, is a key to stopping the run and also defending in pass coverage for WRH.

Rebels deck Gators; Crusaders crush Saints

Starters built a lead and the reserves poured it on as North Duplin routed Spring Creek and HCA ripped North Wake

By Michael Jaenicke Duplin Journal

CALYPSO — North Duplin and Harrells Christian play a similar brand of football in different leagues, yet the results from the rst three weeks have been comparable.

Both are 3-0 playing and left the gridiron last Friday night with 48-0 victories.

The Rebels have outscored their nonconference foes 119 -19, while the Crusaders have a 110 -14 advantage playing three independent schools.

ND is heavily favored this Friday against Jones Senior, while HCA plays its rst of three games against established NCISAA programs.

While the Rebels start Carolina 1A Conference play on Sept. 19 against rival Lakewood, HCA won’t begin its Big East Conference slate until Oct. 3 with a trip to North Raleigh Christian.

The common theme for both the Rebels and Crusaders was crushing inferior foes, playing

nearly every player and leaving as injury-free as possible.

Rebels score four rst-quarter TDs

Carell Phillips (7-129) scored three times, Vance Carter (5-25) twice, and Quan Stephens (4-18) and Cole Grady (3-15) also broke into the end zone in the Rebels’ home opener at H.E. Grubbs Field.

Garris Warren added his second interception of the season and ran for a 2-point conversion.

ND bene tted from excellent eld position for short scores, which came after turnovers or bad special team e orts by Spring Creek (0-3).

The Gators’ 27 plays were good for negative 21 yards of offense as ND logged its second shutout of the fall.

ND scored four times in the rst 12 minutes to go in front 27-0 and added a score in each of the next three quarters.

The Rebels drove 60 yards in eight plays to go in front 7-0. Carter scored from the 2 after Phillips went on a 13-yard jaunt.

A Gator punt from their own 9 went horribly bad when ND gained possession at the 1. Stevens scored 1:05 after Phillips.

Spring Creek fumbled the ball away on its next snap as Noah

Bennett cradled the pigskin at the Gators 24. Phillips ran for a rst down and then went 15 for the score.

The tally went to 28-0 after Warrens’ pick and a 30-yard scamper by Phillips.

A 35-yard push by Carter moved the count to 35-0.

Spring Creek fumbled the second-half kicko and two plays later Phillips scored from the 33.

The Gators dropped the ball at their own 14 in the fourth and Grady, who also had an interception, found the end zone with 1:40 to play.

Up next is a Friday trip to Jones Senior (0-3), which has been outscored 155-12 this fall.

Crusaders 3-0 for second time in three seasons

HCA scored all of its points in the rst half — 27 in the rst quarter and 21 in the second.

Demetrius Jones (4-41) and Chamani Newton (3-26) each had a pair of touchdowns.

Reid Strickland hit Dashaun Mckoy for a 30-yard score, and Mckoy also blocked a punt later in the game.

Riley Falatovich logged a pick-six, and Noah Tanner blocked a punt and tied sophomore Trey Owens in tackles with seven.

Creek.

Lathen Cashwell’s eight takedowns paced the defense. Luke Weeks added ve tackles and Davis Bradshaw, Jesse Smith, Owens and Tanner had four apiece. Amir Moore and Cashwell each had 1.5 sacks.

HCA fell to High Point Christian 45-7 in the Crusaders’ nal game in 2024.

ED beat WRH for the rst time since 2023, while the Bulldogs broke the 16-match streak of 2024 champ Clinton

By Michael Jaenicke Duplin Journal

BEULAVILLE — The East Duplin and Wallace-Rose Hill soccer teams each had huge rivalry wins last week.

The Panthers started o rivalry week by breaking through to beat the Bulldogs to snap a winless streak that extended to 2022.

That match setup WRH’s win over Clinton, which snapped the Dark Horses’ 16-match winning streak.

Both victories could be mile-markers in terms condence and playing the kind of soccer that will help WRH and ED be factors in the East this fall.

Panthers roar from behind to clip Bulldogs

A goal by Felix Funez scored o an assist from Junior Ayestas and an Ayestas score via Gabriel Cubas put WRH in control early in the rst half in Beulaville last Tuesday.

But the Panthers were not buried and got scores from Yoskar Canales and Osiris Mendoza before halftime to tie it at the break.

Canales nailed a penalty kick to give ED the win and snap a ve-match losing streak to the Bulldogs.

The two schools are in di er-

EDWARDO PUAC / DUPLIN JOURNAL

JK’s Kelbert David pushes the ball past ED’s Hayes Rogers and Brayan Mendez during the Panthers’ 2-1 win last week.

ent conferences and classi cations this season as the NCHSAA went from four to eight classi cations.

“It still matters,” said ED coach Blake Lanier on facing a rival that is in the Swine Valley 3A Conference after leaving the ECC, which has been home for the Panthers for nearly two decades years. “It will always be big to our kids, especially since we hadn’t won in a

while. We checked the ball, and that helped us with possession.”

ED (3-3) lost 4-0 to WRH ve days earlier in Teachey.

“We’re never going to play as well over there as we do on our eld because our eld is so much wider and allows for us to spread the eld better,” Lanier said.

The Panthers’ schedule will continue with tough matches slated against Richlands

The Cougars are led by running back Jaylen Moore, who has 535 yards this season after going for 1,717 and 31 touchdowns last fall. His team stumped Big East member North Raleigh Christian 51-14 last Friday.

(5 - 0 -1), Dixon (4-2), White Oak (3-2) and Jacksonville (2-1-2) on tap in the next two weeks.

Play in the ECC 3A/4A starts Sept. 29.

The next day, the Panthers had a Duplin County sweep week with a 2-1 triumph over James Kenan (2-2-2) as Yobani Gomez and Dany Mendez found the back of the net in the half. The goal came after Tiger Kevin Jimenez scored in the 27th minute.

ED played without starters Oscar Ramirez, Luis Ramirez and Canales. But Lanier said Alex Ortiz, Alex Vasquez and Mendez stepped in and produced in their place.

“We gained con dence and are using this four-day break to rest and regroup,” Lanier said.

Murray changes script against Dark Horses

WRH (2-2-1) snapped a 16-match winning streak by 2024 2A champ Clinton (5-1).

The loss avenged a 5-1 setback last season when the Bulldogs went 22-4-2 and is the biggest win in ve matches for rst-year head coach Murray.

Funes punched two goals, the second of which came the second half and broke a 1-1 tie.

“He’s starting to nd the back of the net like I thought he could,” Murray said. “Junior (Ayestas) is also calming down and controlling the game. We’ve also had some sophomores and freshman giving us (quality) minutes, and we’ve seen a bunch of kids tak on the responsibility of making this team good.”

The Crusaders’ last NCISAA playo appearance was in 2023. Returning to the big show could require at least a pair of wins against Big East trifecta that includes Ravenscroft, NRC and Trinity Christian.

Clinton leads the series 10-6 since 2015. The Dark Horses were also state champs in 2018.

“Our guys have looked up to them, thinking we have to play perfect to beat them,” Murray said. “We changed that around and got our guys to understand we’re here to compete and they’re here to compete. We’re going to put our foot on the gas pedal and not stop, and I rmly believe our defense can stop anyone.”

Murray said the mental adjustment and the WRH defense were the deciding factors in the win.

“We played 11 people on offense and 11 on defense, and I think that surprised them a little,” said the former WRH player. “This is step 1 and we need 100 more steps for people to take us as serious as we want to be taken.

“The bad from East Duplin pushed us to where we needed to be. It was the best scenario after getting humbled. Our focus was realigned.”

Tigers trying to nd tread

Meanwhile JK (2-2-2) has struggled and does not have a signi cant win as the Tigers gear up for a match against Clinton this week.

And while JK can be a slow starter, it’s time for the Tigers to turn on the afterburners after a pair of letter-winners failed were ruled academically ineligible.

There’s still enough talent to be competitive. JK is 100-24-7 since 2019.

EDWARDO PUAC / DUPLIN JOURNAL

ND’s Vance Carter scored twice in a blowout win over Spring

Panthers’ Raynor developing all-around volleyball players

ED has won six of seven matches this season as several players make contributions in more than one area

By Michael Jaenicke Duplin Journal

BEULAVILLE — Scouting

the East Duplin volleyball team can’t be done by looking at statistics, such as kills, aces, digs and block. Those metrics can be misleading, especially when a handful of Panthers have similar numbers.

Head coach Susan Raynor likes well-rounded players, and the young and seasoned Panthers are merging into a dangerous foe.

Perhaps the Panthers don’t have kill-monsters, but they have a player-forming process that had led to ve wins in their rst six matches.

The lone slip was a three-set loss (25-16, 25-21, 25-22) loss to nonconference rival Wallace-Rose Hill.

The other ve matches have ended in 3-0 scores.

While the schedule will be tougher moving forward, Raynor is hoping the tone has been set. ECC play starts on this week.

“We’re working well together, and we don’t have a superstar and that helps us,” she said. “What we have are players who can play every position and backups too. We have three di erent setters, three di erent middle hitters and a defense that is really good.

Athena Teel and Lakota Flatt each had 10 kills, but Jacksonville two more than ED, but the Panthers emerged with a three set (25-23, 25-22, 25-21) win last Tuesday.

TIGERS from page B1 VOLLEYBALL ROUNDUP

returned kicko s for scores. They combined to catch three passes for 43 yards. Cameron Lyons (13-152, TD) was also a huge problem for the Tigers.

Tigers take control in rst half

Here’s how it went down in the house that Juluis Peppers built.

The red-up Tigers threw the rst of two rst-half punches by forcing a three-and-out on South Nash’s rst possession as Jacquez Smith, Jaden Garner and Hill came up big on rst and second down, and Zeleya made a key takedown on third-and-5 for force a punt.

JK then drove 65 yards in nine plays to go in front 7-0 after a 13-yard push by Hall. Pearsall had a 12-yard run up the middle to start the drive, and Hall got 15 more on a counter play and then 10 on the fth carry to get the ball to the 9. Hall scored following a false start penalty on JK. Southern Nash used 14 plays to trail 7-6 just ve plays into the second quarter as Faulkner (11-60) found the end zone from a yard away.

Hill then struck like a lightning bolt in returning the kicko 78 yards to put JK in front 14-6 at halftime.

The Firebirds’ big miscue came near the end of the half. On the 11th play of a 69-yard drive,

from page B1

anyone,” Motsiger said. “They’re good at what they do. And Clinton and James Kenan always have athletes.”

The Dark Horses skill showed when quarterback Miles McCallop (16-20 for 209 yards, two TDs) found Jonah Boone (8-73) for a 53-yard opening score.

Lamb tied it with a 9-yard run to tie it at 6-6.

Key plays in the 14 -play, 80-yard march were a third-down conversion by Wells, a fourth-and-5 jaunt by Darrius McCrimmon in which Lamb made a key block, and a 9-yard catch by Jamari Carr.

The two teams exchanged three-and-out series before McCallop was instrumental in giving the Dark Horses a 12-6 lead after Lamb’s fumble.

Yet the worst was yet to come as WRH’s defense made two

“Jacksonville is dang good and hit as hard as the Wallace girls,” Raynor said. Teel and Flatt had all but 11 kills for the Cardinals, while seven Panthers shared 29.

Senior Zoe Turner, junior Kinsey Cave and freshman Bennett Holley have been the Panthers’ best multiuse players.

“Kinsey covers all aspect of the game,” Raynor said. “Zoe’s been on re this year and has really turned it up as one of our better all-around players. And Bennett has been a help in a number of places.”

The Panthers have also gotten consistent play for Karsyn Parker and Zoe Cavanaugh.

They held a 14-3 edge in aces, four of which came from Turner, who had a team-high eight kills and 10 digs.

Cave added seven kills, three aces, seven digs and eight assists

Holley went for four kills, three aces, six digs and had a block.

Cavanaugh and Parker each delivered 14 digs.

“We have three very tough weeks coming up with three matches per week,” Raynor said. “We look much better now, but that’s when we’ll see how far we’ve come.”

Bulldogs fall to Midway in key Swine Valley matchup

Wallace-Rose Hill is on its way to winning more matches than last fall when it went 21-3.

The Bulldogs got halfway to that standard this week, though

PUAC

The all-around game of Zoe Turner has impressed Panthers head coach Susan Rayner.

losing a key Swine Valley Conference matchup to Midway. It was the rst loss of the season for head coach Kevin Williams’ squad. Kaedyn Moran had 21 kills

xand Gracyn Hall 12 as Midway (6-2) won the nal two sets at 25-23 and 25-16.

But Jansley Page (20 kills, two aces, three blocks), Angelina Cavallaro (117 kills, six digs)

Jayden Harts eld last Friday during the Firebirds’ 44-42 win.

Hall pounced on a fumble at the Tigers 6, spoiling a golden scoring opportunity for Southern Nash.

Firebirds awaken in third quarter

The Tigers upped the margin to 20-6 when Hall ran to the left side of the Firebirds defense and scored to 30 yards on a drive that was all about him af-

great plays, but on the next down McCallop hit Zaire Strickland for a 76-yard touchdown and WRH was in a 12-point hole.

Lamb takes over, ’Dawgs defense rises

Lamb was the not-so-secret square in the middle of the eld the rest of the way. If good things didn’t happen because of him, it happened for WRH because of the attention the senior garnered.

The 5-foot-11, 174-pound back ran for a career-high 278 yards and leads Duplin County in rushing with 506 yards.

“What a night for Jamarae,” Motsinger said. “We were a little at in pregame and at early, but he brought up his level a notch. At the end of the day, it’s all a battle in your head and about moving explosively.”

Lamb reversed his eld from

ter Pearsall got 20 yards in two carries to start the third quarter. Zeleya set the eld position with a 36-yard kicko return to the JK 48.

But then the silent giant woke up, and the game turned into a slugfest.

Lyons scored ve snaps later on fourth-and-3 from the 37, and the 2-point conversion made it 20-11.

Six plays later, Hall answered

left to right for an electrifying 20-yard burst, ran for a rst downs with two more carries, and then scored from the 23 when he went up the gut of the Dark Horse defense. His 2-point conversion trimmed the WRH de cit to 18-14.

The Bulldogs defense, which hassled McCallop all night even when he had success, played inspired in the nal three minutes of the third quarter and throughout the fourth.

It stopped Clinton and forced a punt on the second play of the fourth.

Lamb then started taking direct snaps, and that was a bonanza for the Bulldogs as he picked out his blocks and zoomed through openings.

Clinton knew he was coming and couldn’t stop him.

He had gains of 19 and 18 yards, and Carr picked up 15 to take the ball to the 6. Lamb

and Mattie Gavin (eight digs, 31 assists) tied it at 1-1 with a 2520 second-set win. The Raiders slipped past WRH 25-22 in the rst set in Dunn.

The two teams play in Teachy on Sept. 25.

The next day, WRH (11-1) won a 3-1 match against Trask as Cavallaro and Page combined for 35 kills. Sally Martinez had 15 digs as WRH lost the third set against its conference foe. Later in the week, the Bulldogs rattled Spring Creek (0-9). They face James Kenan, Rosewood and Jacksonville this week.

Rebels drop heartbreaker to Wildcats

Maggie Brown and Kloe DeHoyas combined for 14 kills, but North Duplin was unable to hold a 2-1 lead in a 3-2 (20-25, 25-18, 25-23, 15-25, 15-17) loss to Hobbton in a Carolina 1A/2A Conference loss that snapped the Rebels’ ve-game winning streak.

ND (7-2, 3-1) cruised to 3-0 wins over East Bladen (1-8, 1-2) and Spring Creek (0-9).

Brown had eight kills, Marissa Beran 10 digs and Lilly Fulghum 15 assists in the triumph over the Eagles.

Tigers break ve-match skid

James Kenan beat Lakewood 3-0 last week to break its ve -match losing streak. No further details were reported. JK (5-7, 1-3) plays Swine Conference contenders WRH and Princeton on back-to-back nights this week.

the 13 gave JK a 34-28 edge, which lasted all of two snaps.

A touchdown and conversion by gave Southern Nash its rst lead at 35-34.

Zeleya followed with a kicko return, and Pearsall added the conversion for a 42-36 JK lead with 5:09 to play.

The most pivotal drive came when the Firebirds went 57 yards for a nal score, milking the clock down with 12 running plays.

Tigers have no fear, prepared to protect home turf

On Friday, JK hosts county rival East Duplin. Last fall, Grady beat the Panthers 4320 for his rst win in three games. It broke a ve-game slump against ED. JK leads the all-time series 34-19.

“It’s no mercy time; we’re coming after them at our house,” he said. “These kids want to own Duplin County battles (Wallace-Rose Hill visits Warsaw on Halloween night) and then make modern history.”

with a 46-yard score, and Pearsall added the conversion to up the tally to 28-14 with 5:19 left in the third.

The Firebirds converted on fourth-and-8, and Harts eld scored on the 12th play of the march that covered 80 yards. Down 28-22, Southern Nash stumped ED’s o ense in three plays and Harts eld went 26 yards to tie it at 28-28.

Pearsall’s jet sweep score from

scored two plays later, and the Bulldogs had their rst lead at the 6:01 mark.

Three plays later, Devon Sloan recovered a Clinton fumble.

McCrimmon had a 17-yard sprint as WRH ran down the clock and took two knees for the win.

Gridiron notebook

McCrimmon, Sloan and Azaryon Clibbons each had seven tackles for the Bulldogs.

Punter Adrian Glover had two punts go for touchbacks and averaged 61 yards per punt.

Steven Acosta also made a key touchback from a kicko to give Clinton a long eld.

WRH travels to Pender (2- 0) on Friday and will stay on the road three of the next four games starting Sept. 26

“They are big and athletic, and I feel their quarterback

The matchup against Southern Nash was a perfect physical and mental preparation for both ED and WRH, though Grady said his players will be sore early this week.

“We’re 99% healthy, and we’re going to take it easy on our players’ bodies,” he said. “I think we’ve proven we can play physical enough football. Now it’s about executing in everything we do.”

was better than the starter last year,” Motsinger said.

WRH beat the Patriots 27-12 last fall, but Pender went on to nish 10-4 and lost to 1A champ Tarboro in the fourth round of the playo s. They ran for 910 yards in wins over Red Springs and West Bladen.

Motsinger said his defense has yet to put together a full game in which it dominates.

“We were great (in the secondary) against Kinston and horrific on the front end,” he said. “We were a lot better up front against Clinton with the back end having too many busts and mistakes.

“We’re young and getting there, but we’re still everyone’s Super Bowl.”

That goes with the territory in the land of ’Dawgs, who always seem to emerge as heavyweight ghters in October and November.

EDWARDO

/ DUPLIN JOURNAL

EDWARDO PUAC / DUPLIN JOURNAL

Zamarion Hall, from left, Steadman McIver, Hunter Whitman and Jaylon Smith tackle Southern Nash’s

WRH

STATS, STANDINGS AND SCHEDULES

Jamarae Lamb

EDWARDO PUAC / DUPLIN JOURNAL

WRF, football

Jamarae Lamb ran for a career-high 287 yards, scored three touchdowns and converted a 2-point conversion in Wallace-Rose Hill’s 22-18 win at Clinton.

Lamb, a highly recruiting running back, leads Duplin County in rushing (502 yards) and touchdowns (seven). He’s averaging 6.7 yards per carry.

The 5-foot-11, 174-pound senior ran for 1,361 and eight touchdowns last fall.

NOTICES

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

NORTH CAROLINA DUPLIN COUNTY FILE#25E001250-300 The undersigned, DEBORAH PATE HORRELL, having quali ed on the 25TH DAY of JUNE, 2025, as ADMINISTRATOR of the Estate of BILLY RAY PATE, deceased, of DUPLIN County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 4TH Day of DECEMBER 2025, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This the 4TH Day of SEPTEMBER 2025. DEBORAH PATE HORRELL, ADMINISTRATOR 134 SUMMER RIDGE DR. WALLACE, NC 28466

Run dates: S4,11,18,25p

NOTICE TO CREDITORS NORTH CAROLINA DUPLIN COUNTY FILE#25E001323-300 The undersigned, GERRI SMITH DEBOSE, having quali ed on the 19TH DAY of AUGUST, 2025, as ADMINISTRATOR of the Estate of AUDREY WILLIAM SMITH, deceased, of DUPLIN County, North Carolina, does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to exhibit them to the undersigned on or before the 28TH Day of NOVEMEBER 2025, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This the 28TH Day of AUGUST 2025. GERRI SMITH DEBOSE, ADMINISTRATOR 168 COTTLE LANE ROSE HILL, NC 28458

Run dates: A28th,S4,11,18p

RECEIVING

ED from page B1

The series was set up by a fumble by ED running back Aaron Hall (18-94) at the Richlands’ 8-yard line.

Both schools had another possession in regulation. Richlands forced a three-and- out, while ED forced a punt on fourth-and-7 from the Wildcats 41. The boot went just three yards and Hall made a 17-yard run before the gameclock expired.

“We won, and it’s hard to win football games,” Holley said. “We’ve played three pretty good teams now, and we kept our composure and kept ghting in this one.

“Keeshon (Mckinnie) had a big interception around the goal line like the pick he had here as a freshman. That was good because they have a good kicker and were within eld goal range.”

The interception came after DiBenedetto connected with Carson Littreal twice to move the ball inside the ED 10.

A false start backed it up ve yards, and Mckinnie squeezed DiBenedetto’s pass and ran it to the 39.

The next major move by either team came when Richlands recovered a fumble on fourth-and-10 from the ED 24. Three plays later, Betton missed a 48-yard eld goal attempt.

ED did the same thing on fourth down on its next series on the second-to-last play of the second quarter. But this time the Wildcats were 68 yards from a score.

The Panthers defense was almost perfect in the clutch, stopping Richlands 13 of 14 times on third down and all eight times on fourth down. Standing ovation for defensive stars

Shawn Davis’ eight tackles at middle linebacker paced

the defense. Esiah Bannerman had eight, Bryson Brown seven and Dewayne Davis six as ED chased DiBeneddeto around all night while also stopping the Wildcats’ running game.

Peyton Hughes totaled 13 tackles for Richlands. Tre’vaun Flanagan made 12 and Beau Mills, Rocco Welsh and Joel Roberts each had eight for Richlands (1-2).

The two teams combined for just 20 rst downs, and both schools punted four times. Jarman put both of his kicko s into the end zone.

More bone-crunching hits against JK

It was the third victory against a team that had previously beaten ED in 2024.

The Panthers now look for revenge win No. 4 by traveling

to James Kenan. The Tigers snapped ED’s ve-game winning streak in the series with a 43-20 decision last season in Beulaville.

“They were good last year and got a lot of those guys back,” Holley said of the Tigers, who went 12-2 and advanced to the fourth round of the playo s. “Their kids will play hard, and their backs are tough to tackle.”

JK fell 44-42 last Friday to Southern Nash, a team that plays a similar style to both ED and Wallace-Rose Hill. JK leads the all-time series 34-20 since 1962. Holley is 8-6 against the Tigers since arriving in Beulaville in 2011. Last fall, Tigers head coach Tim Grady got his rst win over ED in three tries.

Richlands hosts South Brunswick on the same night.

THURMAN PARKER FOR DUPLIN JOURNAL

Shawn Davis who scored both of ED’s touchdowns, pressures Richlands quarterback CJ DiBenedetto during the Panthers’ 14-7 overtime win.

obituaries

Linda Taylor Jones

Nov. 17, 1944 – Aug. 23, 2025

Linda Taylor Jones, 80, of Summerlin’s Crossroads community, Mount Olive, passed away peacefully on Saturday, August 23, at her home, surrounded by her loving family.

She is survived by her daughter, Lisa Bennett and husband Kenneth of Mount Olive; her two sons, Timothy “Hambone” Jones and his girlfriend Sylvia Stanley of Mount Olive, and Mike Jones and his wife Nancy of Kentucky. She leaves behind her beloved grandchildren, who were the apple of her eye: Duane Jones, Beth Brinson and husband Justin, Wesley Jones, Riley Pickett and wife Hillary, Michael Jones and wife Cassandra, Gina Daniels and husband Justin, and Jenna Jones and husband Karan; and ten great-grandchildren.

She is also survived by her sisters, Marie Jones and husband Henry of Albertson, and Deloris Hardy of Kinston; and sister-in-law, Kaye Taylor of Albertson.

Linda was preceded in death by her parents, Leland and Lucy Alphin Taylor; her sister, Ann Mercer; her brother, Morris Taylor; and her son, Jimmy Jones.

Born and raised in the Beautancus community, Linda worked hard all her life. She began her career as a seamstress before later working at Summerlin’s Crossroads Store, where she enjoyed keeping up with the locals and serving her well-loved hot dogs. She found peace and joy in tending to her roses, but nothing brought her greater happiness than spending time with her family— especially her grandchildren, who were the center of her world.

Linda will be remembered for her strength, her love of family, and the joy she brought to those around her. A Graveside Service was held Tuesday, August 26, in the Pineview Cemetery, Seven Springs, at 10 a.m. O ciating was the Rev. Ashley Summerlin.

Emmett G. Hall

March 13, 1941 – Sept. 2, 2025

Mr. Emmett G. Hall, age 84, of Beulaville, NC, passed away on Thursday, September 2, 2025, at Kenansville Health & Rehabilitation Center in Kenansville, NC.

A graveside service will be held on Thursday, September 4, 2025, at 11 a.m. at Hall Family Cemetery in Beulaville, NC.

Left to cherish his precious memories are his wife, Carolyn Graham Hall of Beulaville, NC; one son, Corey Hall of Wilmington, NC; four daughters: Mary Young of Raleigh, NC, Veronica Judge (Travis) of Wilmington, NC, Kimberly Hall of Beulaville, NC and Colleta Coleman (Johnathan) of Portal, GA; two sisters: Shirlynn Blow and Victoria Chasten (Jesse), both of Beulaville; nine grandchildren, two greatgrandchildren; two sisters-in-law, two brothers-in-law; numerous nieces, nephews, cousins and friends that will miss him dearly.

Gregory Steven Taylor

Oct. 10, 1960 – Aug. 28, 2025

Gregory Steven Taylor, known to all as simply Stevie Taylor, a lifelong resident of the Pleasant Grove community near Mount Olive, passed away early Thursday morning, August 28, 2025, at ECU Health Duplin General Hospital, just days after the discovery of a terminal illness.

Stevie was a happy-go-lucky kind of guy. Nothing fancy or pretentious, he was happiest trotting barefoot in the woods as he hunted in every woods, and shed in every body of water that was within the perimeters of Wayne and Duplin counties. He also assisted his family with farming and with landscaping duties at Taylor’s Nursery and Plant Farm.

Stevie is survived by his devoted companion, Rebecca Davis; his sons, Gregory Scott Taylor and Steven Daniel Hanchey, both of the Pleasant Grove area; a step-daughter, April Renee Wiggs of Albertson; a brother and sister-in-law, Shelton and Elizabeth “Tennie” Taylor of Cameron; a niece, Lecinda J. Waters; three nephews, Jamey Hinson, Jesse Lee “J.L.” Taylor, and Tim Taylor, and their families. Also surviving are grandchildren, Skyler Keith King, Jesse Adam Taylor, Eli Hanchey, Taylor Hanchey, Lucas Hanchey, Justin Allen Pearson, Clarissa Pearson, and Zachary Beaslely; and a great-grandson, Waylon King. He was preceded in death by his parents, Ashford Taylor, Annie Mae Summerlin Taylor, and Marvin Taylor; two sisters and a brother-in-law, Sylvia and Bobby Jordan, and Cynthia “Cindy” Taylor; a grandson, Evan Hanchey; and a nephew, Bobby Jordan, Jr.

Stevie’s life was re ected upon at a graveside service held Saturday, August 30, at 6 p.m. at the Will Taylor Family Cemetery on the family farm. Immediately after the service, the family received friends and relatives at the cemetery.

Homer Carroll Casteen

Sept. 2, 1942 – Sept. 2, 2025

Homer Carroll Casteen, 82, passed away on Tuesday, September 2, 2025, in ECU Health Duplin Hospital, Kenansville, NC.

The funeral service is Friday, September 5, 2025, at 7 p.m. followed by visitation at Community Funeral Home in Beulaville. The graveside service is Saturday, September 6, 2025, at 9 a.m. at Oak Ridge Memorial Park in Pink Hill.

He is survived by his wife, Jeanette Casteen of Pink Hill; his son, Homer Whaley (Sandy) of Beulaville; his daughter, Angela Miller (Bobby) of Pink Hill; grandchildren Ryan Miller, Kylie Whaley, Hanna Whaley, Emily Houston and Athena Houston. Community Funeral Home of Beulaville is honored to serve the Casteen family.

Rev. Millard Fillmore Bounds

Jan. 7, 1933 – Aug. 29, 2025

The Rev. Millard Fillmore Bounds passed away peacefully at his home in Faison on Friday, August 29, 2025.

A service of love and remembrance was held on Wednesday, September 3, 2025, at 11 a.m. at Tyndall Funeral Home. The family received friends one hour prior to the service, beginning at 10 a.m. Rev. Bounds was laid to rest following a committal service on Wednesday afternoon at 3 p.m. at Onslow Memorial Park, Jacksonville, NC.

Millard F. Bounds was born in the community of Carnes, Mississippi, on January 7, 1933, to parents Ida Isabelle Anderson and Benjamin Franklin Bounds.

Eight siblings, in order, included: Gus, Nancy, Penny, Cleo, Millard, Bill, Henry and Ira. All have preceded him to heaven. The four little brothers each won Golden Gloves Boxing Championships.

At age 14 Millard su ered a ruptured appendix sustained at football practice, but was saved by prayers and penicillin, among the rst patients to receive the drug in the deep South.

Millard graduated from Brooklyn High School and brie y attended and played basketball at William Carey College in Hattiesburg before he joined the Marine Corps to ght in the Korean Con ict, from which he was spared by Armistice. After his tour at Camp Lejeune, he married Arland Virginia Wilkins in Jacksonville. They returned to Mississippi where Millard enrolled as a ministerial student in Southeastern Baptist College in Laurel. As he launched his career as a preacher, Arland started producing babies, Lynn, Denese and Greg. Grand children ultimately followed, including: the Thornburg kids, Ben, Rebekah, Anna; the Ehrenfried kids: Ti any Bryan, Phillip, Paige, and the Bounds kids: Matthew, Joseph, Daniel, Andrew, Noah and Naomi. Great-grandsons include Jaxin and Eli. Millard worked as a school teacher and coach of various junior high sports at Dixon and Chinquapin in the 60s and 70s. He pastored numerous Baptist churches, including, in order: Calvary in Warsaw, Dobson Chapel near Kenansville, West eld in Surry County, Bear Marsh in Beautancus, Arbor Springs near Northport, AL, Island Creek in Greenevers. In semi-retirement, he served as interim pastor at Mt. Vernon, Emmaus, and Peace. Millard preached innumerable revivals throughout our region, winning souls for Jesus in 8 decades of preaching.

Constance Druicila Jennings

Feb. 20, 1942 – Aug. 31, 2025

Kinston- Ms. Constance Druicila Jennings, 83, completed her earthly journey and transitioned from labor to reward on Sunday, August 31, 2025, at UNC Lenoir Health Care. The Graveside Service will be held on Tuesday, September 9, 2025, at Pinelawn Memorial Park, 4488 US Hwy 70 East, Kinston, NC. Please keep the family lifted in prayer during their time of bereavement.

Benjamin “Benjy” Jones

Nov. 11, 1974 – Aug. 31, 2025

Benjamin “Benjy” Jones, age 50, of Wallace, passed away after a long illness on Sunday, August 31, 2025, at Signature Rehab Center in Kinston. He was born on November 11, 1974, in Pender County; the son of the late Lloyd Dean “L.D.” Jones Sr. and Joyce Hensley Jones. He was also preceded in death by his brothers Thomas Jones and Lloyd “Red Top” Jones.

Surviving to cherish his memory is his sister Angela Jones of Wallace; several nieces, nephews and extended family that loved Benjy dearly. Benjy was a good brother and uncle who loved his family. He was a jack-of-all trades and could do almost anything he put his mind to. Benjy loved to work with his hands and was a great handyman, ready to help anyone in need. He will surely be missed but never forgotten. At Benjy’s request, there will be no services.

Thurman Lee Plummer

June 2, 1960 – Sept. 1, 2025

Mr. Thurman Lee Plummer, age 65, of Wallace, NC, passed away on Monday, September 1, 2025, at ECU Health Medical Center in Greenville, NC.

A funeral service will be held on Saturday, September 6, 2025, at noon at the Rose Hill Funeral Home Chapel in Rose Hill, NC.

Left to cherish his precious memories are two sons: Thurman Plummer, II and George Aaron Plummer; one daughter, Maria Plummer; one brother, Robert Plummer (Mary); two sisters: Elizabeth Hall and Sylvia Ann Pickett; one sister-in-law, Marie Plummer and one brother-in-law, Melvin Dixon; special nephew, Samuel Dixon (Salina); best friend, Gwen Barden; numerous nieces, nephews, cousins and friends that will miss him dearly.

Endie “Robin” Ohern

May 18, 1962 – Sept. 3, 2025

Endie “Robin” Ohern, 63, passed away on Wednesday, September 3, 2025, at her home. She is preceded in death by her mother, Avie Taylor, and her brothers, Arlynn and Titus Taylor. Arrangements are incomplete at this time. She is survived by her husband, Jared Ohern, of Rose Hill; and sister, Pam Miller of Beulaville. Community Funeral Home of Beulaville is honored to serve the Ohern family.

Ivey Thomas Whaley Jr.

Feb. 1, 1950 – Aug. 30, 2025

Ivey Thomas Whaley Jr. passed away peacefully at Wallace Health and Rehab Center.

He was a member of Potters Hill Advent Christian Church.

He is survived by his wife of 52 years, Minnie Jones Whaley, son Jason Thomas Whaley (Kris), and sister Elizabeth Whaley Pearl. He is also survived by his three very special grandsons, Gavin Michael Brinkley, Gabriel Paul Price and Barrett Thomas Whaley, and numerous special nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his father, Ivey (Tom) Thomas Whaley; his mother, Rosa Thigpen Whaley; his daughter, Shannon Whaley Knowles; his sister, Minnie Pearl Price; and his special sister, Susan Jarman Crawford.

A memorial service will be held at a date and location to be determined.

The family appreciates the care and comfort he received from ECU Home Health and Hospice and from all those who have aided and supported him in his last years of life.

In lieu of owers, his family requests memorial donations to be sent to Potters Hill Advent Church, 984 Church Road, Pink Hill, NC 28572.

David Wyatt Mitchell Sr.

Jan. 10, 1965 – Sept. 5, 2025

David Wyatt Mitchell Sr., age 60, passed from this life to his eternal rest on Friday, September 5, 2025.

He was born on January 10, 1965, in Lynchburg, VA, to Arthur Wyatt and Joyce Ann Thacker Mitchell. David was also preceded in death by his daughter, Jennifer Marie Mitchell. Surviving to cherish his memory is his best friend and wife of 34 years Sharon Pierce Mitchell; children Michael Knight of Rustburg, Va, David Wyatt Mitchell, Jr. and wife Emma of Rustburg, Va and Jessie Mitchell Lee of Wallace; grandchildren, Michael, Cameron, Ryan, Bryson, Avery, Londyn and Miranda; sister Teresa Hogan and husband Wayne of Lynchburg, Va, numerous nieces, nephews, extended family and friends that loved David dearly.

David was a devoted husband and caring father, grandfather and brother. He was a hard worker who enjoyed working and providing for his family. With his witty personality, David enjoyed laughing and making others laugh with him. He was a ‘homebody’ and was happiest when he was sitting on his porch with Sharon enjoying the beautiful outdoors. Being from Virginia, David loved the mountains and loved taking Sharon there to visit. He was de nitely a family man who loved his family with all his heart. David will surely be missed, but the treasured memories of him will forever remain in the hearts of those who knew and loved him. Memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, September 9, 2025, at Quinn-McGowen Funeral Home Wallace Chapel with visitation following the service.

Louis Milford Pate Jr.

Sept. 22, 1936 –Aug. 29, 2025

Former long-time North Carolina Senator Louis Milford Pate, Jr., age 88, passed away peacefully at home in Mount Olive on Friday, August 29, 2025.

He was preceded in death by a brother, George Pate of Hopewell, Virginia, and a sister, Linda Santmier of Richmond, Virginia.

He is survived by his wife of 59 years, Joyce Garner Pate; three children, Lisa Rosen and husband, Lee, Louis “Chip” Pate III and wife, Catherine, and Frances Hill and husband, James. He is also survived by nine grandchildren: Toby Rosen, Lane Rosen, Aubrey Hill, Brynn Pate, Quint Hill, Emilia Pate, Sabine Pate, Wesley Hill, and Norah Pate, and by a sister, Beth Pate Perkinson of Richmond, Virginia.

Senator Pate was born on September 22, 1936, in Duplin County, North Carolina, to Louis Milford Pate, Sr. and Mary Best Pate. He grew up in Hopewell, Virginia, and graduated from Hopewell High School before attending Virginia Tech. In 1962, he joined the United States Air Force and was stationed at Seymour

David Warren Hepler

July 8, 1951 – Sept. 3, 2025

Mr. David Warren Hepler, age 74, of Wallace, NC, passed away on Wednesday, September 3, 2025, at home.

David Warren Hepler was born in Mt. Olive, North Carolina, on July 8, 1951. He was the son of Claude L. Hepler and Elizabeth Warren Hepler of Wallace, North Carolina.

Known as Warren to his friends, he was a product of the Duplin County School system graduating from Wallace - Rose Hill High School in 1969. He continued his education at East Carolina University a received a BA in Political Science in 1976.

In the spring of 1976, Warren joined the congressional campaign of Charles 0. Whitley. Whitley was victorious in his campaign and

Greg “Mike” Vorderburg

Nov. 20, 1946 – Sept. 6, 2025

Greg “Mike” Vorderburg, 78, of Burgaw, North Carolina, passed away peacefully on September 6, 2025. Mike was a kind and generous soul whose warmth, compassion, and unwavering faith touched the lives of everyone around him.

Born on November 20, 1946, in Toledo, Ohio, Mike lived a life de ned by love, service, and devotion to his family and community. He was an active and cherished member of Cora’s

Johnson Air Force Base when he met Joyce Garner. He proudly served his country during the Vietnam War as a B-57 navigator. Over the course of a 20-year military career, he also navigated in B-52 and F-111 aircraft, and he was stationed in diverse locations, including Florida, Nevada, and the United Kingdom. During his time in the Air Force, he earned his bachelor’s degree and MBA while raising his family.

Upon retirement from the Air Force, he joined his fatherin-law at Garner Brothers, Inc., a family-owned building supply business in Mount Olive, where his daily interactions with the community inspired him to a career in politics Senator Pate always considered it an honor to serve others. A longtime public servant, he worked for the betterment of the town and state he loved in many capacities. He served as a member of the Mount Olive Board of Commissioners and served as Mayor of Mount Olive for four terms. He also served as a member of the North Carolina House of Representatives, and as a State Senator. During his time in the Senate, he served as Deputy President Pro Tempore.

As a longtime member of First Baptist Church of Mount Olive, Louis served in many capacities; he was also a member of the Rotary Club. His deep love of music inspired his dedication to his church choir, Wayne Oratorio Society, and Third Century Singers for many years.

The Pate family held visitation at First Baptist Church Christian Life Center on Thursday, September 4, 2025, beginning at 4 p.m. A service to celebrate and honor the Senator’s life followed in the church sanctuary at 5 p.m. Interment was private.

asked Warren to join his o ce sta as a Research Assistant. Warren served in that capacity from 1977 until 1987. In 1987, Congressman Whitley retired. H. Martin Lancaster of Goldsboro, N., asked Warren to operate his North Carolina o ce of constituent services in Goldsboro as District Administrative Assistant. He served with Mr. Lancaster from 1987 until 1995. In October 1995, Warren began service with the United States Department of Agriculture as District Director for the Farm Service Agency. Warren served as District Director from 1995 until 2011.

In addition to his federal service, Warren was active in local municipal service, where he served on several town committees, including the Airport Board, the Depot Commission, the Planning Board, and the Wallace ABC Board. He was elected to the Wallace Town Council in 1995 and served for 24 consecutive years until 2019.

Mr. Hepler was married to Helen Johnson, and they shared twentynine years of love and happiness. In lieu of owers, please make memorial donations to the Masonic Home for Children, 600 College Street, Oxford, NC 27565; Wallace Depot Commission, 206 S.W. Railroad Street, Wallace, NC 28466; Pet Friends of Duplin County, Post O ce Box 152, Wallace, NC 28466.

A Celebration of Life will be announced at a later date.

Grove Church, where he faithfully participated in the men’s ministry, sharing his heart and wisdom with others. His generosity and gentle spirit made him a beacon of light to all who knew him.

Mike leaves behind his beloved wife, Jean Vorderburg, with whom he shared close to 50 years of love and memories. He is also survived by his two sons, Brian and Devon, and their wives, Yohana and Jessika. Mike was a proud and loving grandfather to his two granddaughters, So a and Olivia, who were the light of his life. He is also survived by his brother, Larry, and his cherished nieces and nephews, who will always carry his love in their hearts.

Mike will be remembered for his kind heart, his deep faith, and his sel ess generosity. His legacy of love and service will live on through his family, friends, and the Cora’s Grove Church community.

A memorial service will be held at a later date.

In lieu of owers, the family requests donations be made to Cora’s Grove Church Building Fund, 4875 Penderlea Hwy, Willard, NC 28478.

Janice Jenkins Horrell

March 24, 1943 –Sept. 3, 2025

With great love and gratitude, the family of Janice Jenkins Horrell, 82, announces her passing on Wednesday, September 3, 2025, with her loving family by her side as she entered her heavenly home.

Born on March 24, 1943, to the late Reverend Emmett and Flora Jenkins, Janice grew up surrounded by a strong foundation of faith, music, and family values that would shape the course of her life. She lived each of her 82 years with grace, kindness, and a steadfast devotion to the Lord.

Janice was preceded in death by her beloved parents; her sister, Joyce Morton; and her brother, Gerald Jenkins. She is survived by her loving siblings, Carol Bean, Eddie Jenkins, and Faye Lunsford, who will carry forward her memory with deep love and respect.

She was the devoted wife of her beloved husband of 65 years, Wade Horrell, Jr., with whom she shared a lifetime of love, laughter, and memories. Together, they built

Jackie “Jack” Turlington

Sept. 21, 1942 – Sept. 6, 2025

Jackie “Jack” V. Turlington, age 82, moved from his earthly home to his heavenly home on September 6, 2025, having lived a full and interesting life. Born in Erwin, NC, on September 21, 1942, he grew up in Harnett County working at a variety of jobs since he was a young boy – everything from selling jars and bottles he picked up on the roadside to the local ‘moonshiners’ to working in contract farm work with his father. Always curious, he loved learning about everything from catching turtles and shing with his grandfather to quilting and gardening with his mother.

Jack was married and had three young boys to provide for by the age of 23, so he took a job with the NC Dept. of Corrections, where he worked until his retirement in 1998. In his career, he worked at Central Prison, Harnett Prison, Forsyth Prison, as well as in the Area O ce in Greensboro and Graham, NC, holding the positions of Correctional O cer, Sergeant, and Special Assistant to the Area Administrator during a time of changes in

Wayne Jackson Watkins Sr.

Feb. 28, 1943 – Sept. 3, 2025

Our hearts are heavy as we share the passing of Wayne Jackson Watkins Sr., on Wednesday, September 3, 2025, at the age of 82. To know him was to know strength, resilience and love that endured through every hardship life placed before him. Wayne was born February 28, 1943, in Wilmington, the son of

a family grounded in faith and unity. She is survived by her daughter, Felecia James; her son, Richard Horrell, and his wife, Deborah; her grandchildren, Brandon Hall, Christopher Hall, and Joshua Horrell; her step-grandchildren, Dewayne Parker, Braxton Parker, and Curtis Parker; and her many great-grandchildren who brought joy to her days. She also had many nieces and nephews that she loved deeply.

Janice’s family extended far beyond traditional bonds, for she was a mother, grandmother, and friend to many. She leaves behind her nephew and adopted son, Mike Brown, and his wife, Stella; her South American daughter, Pam Ocampo; her South American sons, Sergio Escobar and Daniel Ocampo; and her adopted granddaughter, Ashley Budd. She also cherished the deep friendships she held with her best friends— Cheryl Houston, Susie Shirley, Teresa Somers, Rene Hoxie, and Diane Kissner—relationships that spanned years and stood as a true example of loyalty and sisterhood.

For 55 years, Janice faithfully lifted her voice in song, using her gift of music to share the gospel of Jesus Christ. She ministered through countless church services, concerts, and revivals, touching lives near and far. Many recognized her extraordinary talent and dedication, as she received numerous awards throughout the years, including several at the State Annual Singing Convention in Benson, North Carolina. She was also recognized as a Living Legend in Southern Gospel Music in Eastern North Carolina. Yet, her greatest reward was knowing that

how prisons were operated. He returned to Forsyth Prison as Superintendent then transferred to Pender Correctional Center as Superintendent. While at Pender, he oversaw the expansion of the facility from a 150-inmate facility with 75 sta to a 750-inmate Institution and 350 sta . He was promoted to Correctional Administrator during this expansion. He retired from DOC in 1998. Upon retirement, he received The Order of the Long Leaf Pine award from Gov. James B. Hunt.

Jack had an early and lifelong love of shing and gardening. He taught himself to cook and made delicious BBQ, which he loved sharing at church dinners. He loved building and built two homes in Pender County and a beautiful fence to help him pass the time while waiting for his liver transplant. He loved the dogs he and his wife Linda had over the years, Morgan, LaKot and Dixie. He was a member and Past Master of King Solomon Lodge #138 AF & AM, Burgaw, and Sudan Shriners. He loved his Lord and church, having served as an Elder at PikeRocky Point Presbyterian Church (Rocky Point), a Men’s Fellowship Leader at Friendly Community Baptist Church (Burgaw) and Sparta Presbyterian Church (Sparta, NC). He always believed God was working in his life because of the miracle of his transplant, and the gift of life from his donor, as well as all the events leading to and after his transplant. He was currently a member of Poston Baptist Church, Wallace, NC.

Jack married his best friend and love of his life, Linda, in 1998, and they shared the joy of traveling and camping all across the country, including a three-

the late Andrew Jackson Watkins and Rosa Lee Leonard Watkins.

For the last 20 years, Wayne was unable to speak or use his right arm due to a stroke and having a prosthetic leg due to a snake bite. He lived with many limitations that would have broken most people. Through his pain, he never stopped smiling when he saw us. That smile was his way of telling us everything words could not. It carried strength, love and courage.

Prior to his illness, Wayne was a devoted outdoorsman. He loved the woods (Old Place) and was an avid deer hunter, nding peace, joy and purpose in nature. He loved teaching the young ones about hunting. He was the toughest man we knew, his resilience and unshakable spirit were unmatched. Though his body was con ned his love for his family was boundless.

Wayne leaves behind his wife, Helen Richardson Watkins of

her songs brought people closer to the Lord.

Her ministry and legacy were celebrated in March of this year at a special concert, where her grandson, Joshua, presented her with a Legacy Award in honor of her decades of service to gospel music. That moment was a culmination of her life’s calling—a tribute to her faith, perseverance, and the countless lives she in uenced through her music.

Janice was a devoted member of Wallace Church of God, where she faithfully attended and served for many years. Her church family knew her not only as a singer, but also as a prayer warrior, encourager, and friend. Her voice lled the sanctuary, but it was her heart for worship and her unwavering love for people that left the greatest mark.

Though Janice’s earthly journey has come to an end, her in uence lives on in every life she touched. She leaves behind a legacy of faith, music, and love that will continue to inspire generations. Her family and friends nd comfort in knowing that she is now reunited with her parents, Reverend Emmett and Flora Jenkins, her sister Joyce, and her brother Gerald—and is joyfully singing in heaven’s choir, free from all pain and su ering, praising the Savior she adored.

Family and friends are invited to join us in honoring and celebrating her life on Saturday, September 13, at 3 p.m. at Christian Fellowship Church, 4017 S NC Hwy 11, Wallace, NC. Your love, prayers, and presence mean so much to our family. Her melody continues in the hearts of those who knew her, and her song will never fade.

month trip to the West Coast and back. These travels led Jack and Linda to move to Glade Valley, NC, where they lived and loved the mountain life for 10 years before returning to Burgaw due to his health. While living in Glade Valley, Jack reconnected with many of his former DOC co-workers who lived in the area, and enjoyed sharing stories of “The Good Old Days.” Some of these stories “grew with each telling”, and he’d laugh later saying that he must not have been there, because of how di erent each story was from his memory of it. Jack was preceded in death by his parents, Ralph and Nellie Turlington, son Jackie V. Turlington, Jr. and sister Joyce Denton. Jack loved all his family and is survived by his wife Linda, son Je rey Paul Turlington (Erika), Matthew Turlington, step daughter Sunna Brown (Timothy), Grandchildren Leah Zuver (Zachary), Shanon Turlington, Austin (AJ) Perdew (Mackenzie), and Sydney Frizzelle (Cody), Great-Grandchildren Kayden, Brylee, Silas, Nathan, Mason, Lilly and Maren, brother Floyd Turlington (Alice), Coats, NC; sister Faye Cornell (Tucson, AZ); and sister Elizabeth (Libby) Cockrell, Angier NC., and many extended family members.

A Celebration of Life service will be held at Quinn-McGowan Funeral Home, Burgaw Chapel, on Friday, September 12, 2025, at 2 p.m. with Pastor Chris Jarman conducting the service. The family will receive friends at the funeral home following the service.

A private internment will take place at a later date. Memorials are requested to Poston Baptist Church Building Fund, your home church, Shriners Hospitals for Children, or St. Jude’s.

62 years; sons, Wayne Jackson Watkins, Jr., (Gail) and Anthony Glenn Watkins (Diane); brother, Tex Watkins (Brenda); and sister, June Brown; grandchildren, Wayne Watkins III, Brideon Watkins, Chloe Peedin (Reagan), and River Watkins; and great grandchildren, Addison, Kairi, Waylon and Van who he adored. He also had many nieces and nephews.

He will forever be remembered for the way he endured life’s hardest battles with dignity and for the way his presence brought light into the lives of those who loved him.

Though he is no longer with us, his smile, strength, love and treasured memories will remain in our hearts forever.

A graveside service to celebrate his life will be 2 p.m. Tuesday, September 9, 2025, at Riverview Memorial Park with Pastor Billy Fowler conducting the service. The family will receive friends following the service.

Stanly NewS Journal

Remembering 343

WHAT’S HAPPENING

Michigan judge tosses case against accused fake electors in 2020

A Michigan judge has dismissed the criminal cases against 15 people accused of acting falsely as electors for President Donald Trump in the 2020 election. District Court Judge Kristen Simmons decided in a Tuesday hearing that the cases won’t go to trial. Charges were brought by the state’s Democratic attorney general over two years ago. The people charged include a few high pro le members of the Republican Party in the battleground state. Each faced eight charges of forgery and conspiracy to commit election forgery. They had been accused of submitting certi cates that falsely said Trump won the election in Michigan.

RFK Jr.’s latest “Make America Healthy Again” report calls for oversight of drug ads

The Trump administration is urging public health agencies to prioritize investigations of vaccine injuries, prescription drug use, and the cause of autism. The call is part of a new report released Tuesday. Overseen by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the report aims to end childhood diseases in the U.S. by refocusing public health on his so - called “MAHA” movement’s priorities. The report suggests using personal medical records and health insurance data to investigate diseases and disorders, including autism. It also addresses issues like ultraprocessed food consumption and water quality. The report calls for increased oversight of prescription drug ads, especially those by social media in uencers.

Commissioners approve $280K budget amendment for sewer line

The board also approved ve resolutions

By Jesse Deal Stanly News Journal

ALBEMARLE — The Stan-

ly County Board of Commissioners recently approved a $280,000 budget amendment to cover emergency repairs and a partial replacement of a degraded sewer line in Oakboro. At the commissioners’ meeting on Sept. 2, County Manager Andy Lucas told the board that in early August a section of the McCoy’s Creek force main blew out along Barbee’s Grove Church Road, spilling into a eld.

While an initial emergency repair was made, an additional section of the force main will need to be replaced as soon as possible with plastic pipe to avoid another leak at an adja-

cent location in the old ductile iron pipe.

“This budget amendment would allow us to go in and make a long-term repair to that section, cutting out sections on both sides of it and replacing it with plastic PVC, versus the ductile iron that’s currently there,” Lucas said. “This line is

part of the West Stanly Wastewater Treatment Plant project.”

The county is partnering with Rich eld-based utility contractor B.R.S. Inc. for the project, with work being part of broader e orts to strengthen the system.

“There is a long-term x coming,” Lucas said. “Unfortunate-

Stanly school board gives out recognitions to district sta

One local employee won a national award

By Jesse Deal Stanly News Journal

ALBEMARLE — Stanly County Schools recently honored employees and sta with a series of district recognitions.

During last week’s school board meeting in the Central Elementary School Auditorium, Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources Lydia Hedrick opened the ceremony by announcing the latest recipients of the district’s Stanly Stars awards.

“Each month, Stanly County Schools proudly recogniz-

es exceptional, certi ed and classi ed employees as our Stanly Stars,” Hedrick said.

Aquadale Elementary School’s teacher Meredith Lowder and data manager Sarah Lee joined South Stanly Middle School’s teacher Sarah Callicutt and data manager Heather Long as the four latest recipients in the award program.

Hedrick introduced Lowder, a new member of Aquadale Elementary’s third grade team who previously taught fourth and fth grade classes at the school.

“While change is often met with apprehension, Mrs.

“Each month, Stanly County Schools proudly recognizes exceptional, certi ed and classi ed employees as our Stanly Stars,” Lydia Hedrick, assistant superintendent of human resources

“There is a long-term x coming.”

Andy Lucas, county manager

ly, this line is in such bad shape that we’re running into issues as we’re getting USDA authorization for the project and getting it under construction.”

Later in the meeting, the board also approved ve resolutions authorizing applications for North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality grants. One resolution seeks to replace an existing 16-inch McCoy’s Creek sewer outfall line; the other line is already scheduled to be replaced as part of the West Stanly Wastewater Treatment Plant project.

THE STANLY COUNTY EDITION OF NORTH STATE JOURNAL

The American ag ies at half-mast in front of the West Stanly Fire Department on Tuesday, two days before the 24th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Three-hundred forty-three New York City re ghters were killed at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.

JESSE DEAL / STANLY NEWS JOURNAL

COURTESY STANLYTV

Stanly commissioners approved funding for a degraded sewer line during the board’s Sept. 2 meeting.

Trip

We stand corrected

To report an error or a suspected error, email: corrections@nsjonline.com with “Correction request” in the subject line. North

THURSDAY

Judges rule NC voter ID, tax cap amendments enforceable

The trial court panel reversed a previous ruling on the gerrymandering challenge

By Gary D. Robertson The Associated Press

RALEIGH — Two stateconstitutional amendments approved by North Carolina voters — including a photo voter identi cation mandate — are enforceable, a trial court panel ruled three years after appeals judges declared they could be nulli ed because state lawmakers who helped put them on 2018 ballots came from districts tainted by illegal racial bias.

A panel of three Superior Court judges agreed late last week with GOP legislative leaders who wanted dismissed a lawsuit that focused on whether certain legislative actions could be voided if enough General Assembly members elected from

CRIME LOG

Sept. 2

• Joseph Solomon E rd, 32, was arrested by SCSO for breaking or entering and rst degree trespassing.

Sept. 3

• Jshawn Montez Simons Borden, 29, was arrested by SCSO for possession of rearm by felon and discharging rearm in city.

• Derrick Rogers Blalock, 43, was arrested by SCSO for habitual larceny, driving while license revoked not impaired and resisting a public o cer with serious bodily injury.

racially gerrymandered districts swayed the outcome. The amendment referendums were put on the ballot through bills approved in part by lawmakers elected from nearly 30 districts struck down by federal courts as illegal gerrymanders.

The state Supreme Court ruled in August 2022 — when Democrats held a 4-3 seat majority — that canceling such referendum initiations was possible. But it said a trial judge who initially voided the two approved amendments in early 2019 needed to gather more evidence on the particulars. Along with the voter ID requirements, a majority of voters also approved an amendment lowering the cap on income tax rates from 10% to 7%.

The party-line majority opinion in 2022 said the initial judge had to evaluate whether leaving the amendments in place would allow improperly elected legislators to escape accountability, fur-

Sept. 5

• Taloria Denise Davis, 26, was arrested by SCSO for simple assault.

• Stevie Antwan Wilson, 37, was arrested by SCSO for maintaining a vehicle, dwelling or place for controlled substance, felony possession of Schedule II controlled substance, possession with intent to sell and deliver Schedule II controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Sept. 6

• Robert Crosland Harrison, 45, was arrested by SCSO for driving while impaired, reckless driving

ther exclude voters from the democratic process or amount to continued discrimination. If the answer to any is yes, the justices said, an amendment must be invalidated.

Over the next three years, however, the case was transferred to a three-judge panel.

That panel issued a unanimous order last Friday, saying the state NAACP failed to “meet its burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt” that the General Assembly passed the voter ID and income tax cap amendments with “discriminatory intent and that the legislation actually produces a meaningful disparate impact along racial lines.”

The ruling can be appealed to the state Supreme Court.

“To retroactively invalidate the session law enabling the Voter ID Amendment would entrench chaos and confusion especially when the Voter ID Law was upheld by the Supreme Court,” the threejudge panel wrote. Voter ID has been used since 2023.

to endanger, resisting a public o cer and possession of alcoholic beverage.

Sept. 7

• Martin Jarmis Hambrick, 51, was arrested by SCSO for assault with a deadly weapon while intoxicated and seriously injuring.

J

• ohnny Leach Price, 49, was arrested by SCSO for driving while impaired, reckless driving with wanton disregard, possession of marijuana up to one-half ounce, driving while license revoked not impaired, ctitious or altered title registration card or tag and possession of open container or consuming alcohol in passenger area.

DATE: Sunday, September 28, 2025

LOCATION: Bear Creek Church Fellowship Building • TIME: 1:00 p.m.

THINGS TO BRING:

Food - It is always enjoyable (bring lots of it)

Drinks - (some soft drinks will be provided) If you would like to bring tea, lemonade, or Kool-Aid they would be appreciated. Family - If some of our relatives have not been, please call and invite them or bring them along.

Photos - Our heritage is a very proud one. If you have photos of any reunion please bring them.

Plates, napkins and utensils are provided.

STANLY happening

Here’s

Sept. 13

Downtown

9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Local businesses come together to o er family-friendly festivities, including creative food options, games, face painting, live music and special shopping discounts to mark the occasion.

124 W. Main St. Albemarle

Sept. 16 Chair Yoga

3-3:30 p.m.

A gentle, adult yoga class geared toward those with coordination issues or di culties standing for long periods without support. No experience or mat needed for this free class.

Main Library

133 E. Main St. Albemarle

Sept. 17

Albemarle Downtown Farmers Market

8 a.m. to noon

Featuring locally grown, created and crafted items available for purchase from vendors from across Stanly County.

Market Station

501 W. Main St. Albemarle

Sept. 18

Locust Farmers Market

9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

This producers-only market o ers fresh produce, homemade foods and crafts by local creators. Conveniently located across the street from Locust Elementary School. Open May through September. Corner of 24/27 and Vella Drive

THE CONVERSATION

Trip Ho end, publisher | Frank Hill, senior opinion editor

VISUAL VOICES

COLUMN | VICTOR JOECKS

In defense of praying after tragedy

Leftists obsess over microaggressions, but they have no issue with their leaders mocking Christians.

THOSE WHO DENIGRATE prayer after mass shootings reveal their own ignorance.

Last month, a man red more than 100 rounds into a Catholic church in Minneapolis. He was targeting students attending a back-to -school Mass. Tragically, he killed two children and injured 18 others. He then killed himself.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey rushed to the scene and promptly criticized Christians.

“Don’t just say this is about thoughts and prayers right now,” he said. “These kids were literally praying. It was the rst week of school. They were in a church.”

“Enough with the thoughts and prayers,”

Jen Psaki, former White House press secretary, wrote on X.

In response to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defending those “who believe in the power of prayer,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom wrote on X, “These children were literally praying as they got shot at.”

Leftists obsess over microaggressions, but they have no issue with their leaders mocking Christians after Christian children were murdered for being in a Christian church.

Despite the condescension, this is an objection worth addressing.

One reason Christians pray is that there isn’t anything physically we can do in many tragic situations. But we can appeal to the God of the universe. He can

COLUMN | STEVE MILLOY

protect responding o cers. He can heal the wounded and guide the doctors caring for them. He can comfort the broken-hearted. He can supernaturally intervene in ways we can’t. And of course, a police o cer on the scene shouldn’t only respond in prayer.

If you don’t believe in God, that may seem silly. Fine. But you should understand why Christians pray.

There’s another contention in these statements, too: Prayer failed and, by extension, so did God. The shooter even wrote, “Where is your God” on one of the magazines for his ri e.

Anyone drawing this conclusion is unaware of the Bible and church history.

Jesus, God’s only begotten Son, lived a perfect life yet died on a cross while facing similar taunts: “He saved others, but he can’t save himself.”

Yet those mockers didn’t see what was happening right in front of them. On the cross, Jesus paid the penalty that you and I deserve for our sin. On the third day, God raised him from the dead. Jesus’ sacri ce o ers salvation to those who confess him as Lord and believe God raised him from the dead.

What looked to human eyes like the ultimate failure was God’s plan to save mankind — and o er a hope that pain and death can’t diminish.

“I consider that our present su erings are

not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us,” Paul wrote in Romans 8.

Those families in Minneapolis weren’t the rst Christians to su er greatly. Most of the apostles were martyred for their faith. In the Roman Empire, Christians were cruci ed, burned, thrown to the lions and otherwise tortured. Since 2009, Islamists have killed more than 50,000 Christians in Nigeria.

What’s remarkable are the many stories of Christians facing their deaths with calmness, joy or even song.

In 202 or 203 A.D., a group of Christians was arrested for their faith. After being sentenced to a gruesome death, Perpetua, a young mother, wrote in her diary, “We returned to prison in high spirits.”

A narrator continued the tale. The day before their deaths, they spoke to the mob, “stressing the joy they would have in their su ering.” As she and the other martyrs died, she urged others to “stand fast in the faith and love one another.”

Nonbelievers may assume that the earthly su ering of God’s followers diminishes Him. It doesn’t, and it hasn’t for 2,000 years. Even though I often fail to live this truth out well, our hope isn’t in this world.

And when tragedy makes that hard to remember, it’s time to pray.

Victor Joecks is a columnist for the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Pulling the plug on liberal org’s dark money empire

Calling Arabella a consulting rm is like calling a casino a “hospitality business.”

THE GATES FOUNDATION’S sudden $450 million divorce from Arabella Advisors isn’t about e ciency or building deeper relationships or any of the sanitized language trotted out by both sides. This is about optics and the uncomfortable fact that America’s largest philanthropic foundation could no longer deny the political risk — and stench — of being linked to a Democratic Party dark money slush fund masquerading as “philanthropy.”

Calling Arabella a consulting rm is like calling a casino a “hospitality business.” At its core, Arabella manages a staggering web of seven shadowy nonpro t shells whose primary function is to funnel untraceable left-wing cash where donors want it, all while insulating them from scrutiny and public accountability.

For years, the Gates Foundation stood as one of Arabella’s biggest customers. Nearly half a billion dollars was shunted through opaque intermediaries, keeping campaign cash and progressive pet projects owing, hidden from the public ledger and protected with layers of legal and PR camou age.

Arabella is not a grassroots facilitator; it is a private-equity-owned revenue machine, churning more than $60 million in management fees in a single year and orchestrating the single largest source of Democratic dark money ever exposed. In the 2020 and 2022 election cycles, Arabella’s funds handled a combined $5.4 billion, outstripping even the national party committees and powering every recent leftwing victory at the local, state, and federal level. Its pop-up groups appear spontaneous but are simply billionaires’ cash disguised as local activism. “Fiscal sponsorship” is the smokescreen for a complex money shu e, making possible everything from manipulating election o ces with “Zuck

Bucks” to installing political operatives under the banner of civic engagement.

Even left-leaning media are sounding alarm bells, branding Arabella “the indisputable heavyweight of Democratic dark money” and “an opaque network” moving untold sums through chains of groups supporting partisan causes. For all Arabella’s protestations about merely providing “operational supports,” the company’s seven “sister” nonpro ts are deeply engaged in donor management, grantmaking, political funding, and lobbying on behalf of causes that suit the Democratic machine.

So why did Gates nally scramble for the exit? In truth, mounting risk and the threat of exposure forced the foundation’s hand. With President Donald Trump back in power and regulatory scrutiny intensifying, the foundation realized that continuing business with Arabella would turn toxic in a climate bent on rooting out dark money networks. Gates Foundation spokespeople tried to spin it as a back-to-basics decision focused on direct relationships with partners, but anyone following the details knows better. Even as media tiptoe around the facts, insiders admit Arabella’s brand is so politically radioactive that nonpro ts now fear losing their Gates funding. Now they are scrambling to exit the shell game before it collapses.

Nonpro ts dependent on Gates and Arabella now face a harsh reality. They must nd new sponsors or lose generous funding, as order comes down from the top for early exits and grant freezes. The supposed civil society boom fueled by Arabella’s billions now reveals itself as a top-down, donordriven masquerade, propped up by a handful of mega-donors and their money-laundering operatives.

With Gates pulling support, Arabella’s engine for left-wing activism faces a severe

blow — and the entire donor class gets a clear warning. If Gates won’t camou age Democratic dark money, others may soon follow, leaving Arabella – and the billions it recycles year after year – dangling in public view and shrinking by the day.

For years, Arabella’s front groups have championed transparency only to pervert its meaning by funding political movements and electoral schemes with hidden cash that undermines genuine political accountability. Gates has helped nance this spectacle for nearly two decades, but when reality nally lifted the veil, even the richest donor in America realized exposure wasn’t worth the price.

If the Gates Foundation, with all its billions and elite access, nally admits the political cost of laundering money through Arabella is too high, every donor with even a shred of integrity should follow suit.

The era in which the left could count on anonymous billionaires to bankroll a fake grassroots revolution may at long last be coming to an end. The sooner these dark money machines are shut o , the closer America gets to genuine political accountability — and an end to the hypocrisy that lies at the rotten core of progressive philanthropy.

Steve Milloy is a biostatistician and lawyer, and he publishes JunkScience.com. This column was rst published by Daily Caller News Foundation.

Democratic governor, Republican legislature: How Josh Stein navigates North Carolina politics

The rst-term executive works with the GOP on storm recovery and other priorities

By Gary D. Robertson

The Associated Press

FLETCHER — North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein has taken an unusual approach with Republican political opponents in his rst eight months leading a highly competitive state where divided government has become the norm.

He’s trying to get along with them.

Stein, who succeeded fellow Democrat Roy Cooper in January, has made an e ort to work with the GOP-controlled General Assembly on things like storm recovery — still a top priority nearly a year since Hurricane Helene’s historic ooding — and on other issues broadly popular with North Carolinians.

He’s kept communication lines open with legislative leaders, even as they back President Donald Trump and oppose many Stein policy prescriptions.

The public, Stein said in an interview with The Associated Press, doesn’t “care whether I’m a Democrat or Republican, or that the legislature is a Democrat- or Republican-led body.”

“What they want is for whoever are in these positions to get things done that make their lives better, and that’s my job,” he added. “So I will work with whoever I need to in order to make progress for the people of North Carolina.”

His results have been mixed so far. The General Assembly passed storm-relief packages but gave Stein roughly a little over half the money he requested. It overrode several of his vetoes on bills that build up immigration enforcement, weaken transgender rights and assert other GOP priorities — results that Stein laments.

But Republicans, including some who gathered with Stein at a barbecue in the mountains recently to honor local government workers’ hurricane recovery e orts, have taken notice of the e orts he’s made.

“We appreciate everything that he’s done for us,” said Larry Chapman, a Transylvania County commissioner and Trump supporter. “I’m encouraged with Stein — he seems to

be a lot more interested in getting out with the people and listening to people more.”

Stein’s approach comes as Democratic governors nationwide struggle to navigate Republican gains and Trump’s sprawling agenda. While some chief executives have taken more combative stances against Trump and the GOP, others have opted for diplomacy.

Stein told those gathered in Fletcher that he was their ally on Helene, which caused more than 100 deaths in North Carolina and generated $60 billion in damages and needs. He did not mention political a liation.

“You and your constituents have been busting your tails to come back, and come back stronger than ever,” Stein said to hundreds at a park submerged during Helene. “I want you to know that I am in your corner.”

More communication, less confrontation

Stein, the former attorney general, shares many views with Cooper, who early on clashed with Republicans over the “bathroom bill” lawmakers enacted and sued them over laws that eroded his powers. Those clashes set a tone of distrust that wasn’t eliminated

during his eight years at the job. Cooper is now running for the U.S. Senate.

While Stein also has sued over GOP power grabs, he’s needed good relations with Republicans on storm relief and other topics. He’s speaking regularly with new Republican House Speaker Destin Hall, longtime Senate leader Phil Berger and other legislators.

“We have di erences with him on certain policies and certain processes,” Berger said recently. But, he added, “I would say that there’s still what I would consider to be a very good relationship on a personal basis with Gov. Stein.”

Stein, himself a lawmaker until 2016, has shared credit with Republicans, inviting them to signings of bipartisan bills. Last week, Stein named a GOP legislator to co-chair an energy a ordability task force.

There “was a lot of fatigue from the last eight years, of everything was a battle,” said state Rep. Jake Johnson, another Republican. “It felt like you were just having to ght to get anything done.”

Partisan divisions remain

By North Carolina standards, Stein still has used his veto stamp

“What they want is for whoever are in these positions to get things done that make their lives better, and that’s my job.”

Gov. Josh Stein

frequently — 15 times so far.

He rejected measures that would expand gun access and eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

“Because you respect the people you deal with, because you’re civil with the people you deal with, doesn’t mean you don’t have real disagreements,” Stein said. “When they pass legislation that makes the state less safe or less strong, I’ll veto them.”

Berger said the vetoes prove Stein is more left-leaning than he’s portrayed himself to be.

Democrats hold the minimum number of seats necessary to uphold Stein’s vetoes if they remain united. But Stein was unable to hold them together on eight vetoes — as one to three House Democrats joined Republicans in voting to override them.

Another major veto decision

looms if there’s a nal state budget, now two months overdue.

“Stein has lost some big-time issues” this year, Meredith College political science professor David McLennan said. “But it doesn’t mean that he’s not a successful governor in his rst year.”

Visiting areas damaged by Helene

Stein’s latest trip to western North Carolina marked his 34th separate day spent in the region as governor, re ecting a promise to rebuild “a more resilient region for the long haul.”

“A lot of the job is showing up,” said Chuck McGrady, a former Republican legislator from the mountains. “He is meeting with a wide range of people, and I think he’s gotten very high grades from folks, regardless of their politics.”

Helene’s recovery began during presidential and gubernatorial campaigns and prompted accusations by Trump and allied Republicans that the response from Democratic administrations was weak.

Stein included Johnson and McGrady, now an una liated voter, on a recovery committee. And he created a recovery agency separate from a Cooper-era o ce criticized for housing repair delays after hurricanes Matthew and Florence. Stein met Trump when the president visited the hard-hit region during his rst days in o ce.

Stein said this week he’s seeking an additional $11.5 billion in aid from Congress. His administration says nancial assistance received so far from the federal government as a percentage of total damages and needs is small compared with what was provided after other recent U.S. hurricanes.

A White House spokesperson responded, saying the “request is evidence that he is un t to run a state.” Other Republicans previously said Stein’s administration hasn’t converted what money it’s received to repairs fast enough.

Stein still thinks he can get his messages across without trying to show anybody up.

“I think you can disagree with folks and still be civil, and so when I have concerns about what the administration is doing, I have no hesitation to say what I believe when it hurts North Carolina,” he said.

CHRIS CARLSON / AP PHOTO

North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein hugs Brevard Mayor Maureen Copelof at the Land of Sky Regional Council’s event Aug. 20 in Fletcher.

CHRIS CARLSON / AP PHOTO

North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein speaks at the Land of Sky Regional Council on Aug. 20 in Fletcher.

CHRIS SEWARD / AP PHOTO

Speaker of the House Destin Hall (R-Granite Falls), top left, and Senate leader Phil Berger (R-Kings Mountain), top center, greet North Carolina

Gov. Josh Stein, bottom right, as he arrives to deliver the State of the State address at the Legislative Building on March 12 in Raleigh.

Judge OKs settlement in NC voter registration lawsuit by Justice Department

The agreement ensures compliance with federal voting law

By Gary D. Robertson

The Associated Press

RALEIGH — A federal judge on Monday approved a plan to settle a lawsuit led by President Donald Trump’s Justice Department that demanded North Carolina election o cials accumulate identi cation numbers lacking on the records of more than 100,000 registered voters.

U.S. District Judge Richard Myers signed the proposed consent agreement led a few days ago by lawyers for the department’s Civil Rights Division and the State Board of Elections. They said would it ensure the state’s compliance with federal law and avoid an expensive trial.

The May 27 lawsuit accused the state board of violating the Help America Vote Act by failing to ensure registration records were accurate for federal elections. The state board already initiated a “Registration Repair Project” in mid-July, asking that 103,000 registered voters supply missing numerical identi ers. There are close to 7.6 million registered voters in North Carolina, where statewide elections are often closely contested.

Federal and North Carolina laws have directed that since 2004 election o cials request registrants provide a voter’s driver’s license number or the last four digits of their Social Security number. For about a decade, however, the state’s registration form failed to make clear voters were supposed to provide

BUDGET from page A1

Others

distribution merger and regionalization fea-

BOARD from page A1

Lowder has embraced her new grade with curiosity, learning the di erences while helping students maintain their love of reading and building condence,” Hedrick said.

Next up was Lee, who navigates the In nite Campus student information system for Aquadale.

“Families and teachers trust her guidance as we all learn something new,” Hedrick said of Lee. “No matter how many tasks she has, each question is met with genuine care, concern and support.”

The two representatives of South Stanly Middle were addressed next.

“Mrs. Callicutt goes above and beyond to support colleagues by leading profession-

“The complaint was asking for nothing more than what we were already preparing to do.”

Sam Hayes, State Board of Elections executive director

a number if they had one, resulting in records that indicate numerical IDs have never been provided.

A previous edition of the state board, in which Democrats held

sibility study, a Stan eld sewer collection merger and regionalization feasibility study, and an update to the Stanly County Utilities Water System Master Plan.

al development sessions that strengthen the teaching sta ,” Hedrick said. “Mrs. Long plays a pivotal role at South Stanly Middle as the dedicated data manager, supporting teachers, students and the entire school community with her exceptional knowledge and commitment.”

SCS Superintendent Jarrod Dennis then recognized Staneld Elementary School teacher Daniella Laviano Robinson, who earned the 2025-26 Fulbright Teacher Exchange Award from the U.S. Department of State and the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board.

“She joins a distinguished group of 400 educators participating in this global exchange program which fosters international collaboration, cultural understanding and sharing

a majority, updated the form but declined to contact people statewide to request numbers in time for the 2024 elections. The lack of numerical IDs surfaced in litigation led by the Republican Party in 2024 and in challenges to results in a state Supreme Court race.

The board ipped to a Republican majority in early May, and the lawsuit was led soon after. It cited, in part, Trump’s broad executive order on elections in March that it said was designed to “guard against illegal voting, unlawful discrimination, and other forms

“All those would be grant applications so we would seek to pay all, or a signi cant portion, of all those projects,” Lucas said. “These are just applications and the resolutions asso -

of innovative teaching practices worldwide,” Dennis said of Robinson.

Each year, about 800 scholars teach or conduct research abroad through the Fulbright Program, while more than 2,000 recent college graduates, graduate students and early career professionals participate in research exchanges or work as English teaching assistants in schools overseas.

Since its founding in 1946, the program has given over 400,000 students, teachers, artists, professionals and scholars the opportunity to teach and conduct research abroad.

The Stanly County Board of Education will hold its next regular meeting on Oct. 7 at 6:15 p.m. in the Gene McIntyre Meeting Room at Stanly County Commons.

of fraud, error, or suspicion.”

Through public requests and mailings, the registrants in the pool already have fallen below 80,900 as voters provide information. The agreement requires another round of letters be sent by mid-December to registrants who have not responded, and for the board to provide plan updates to DOJ into 2027.

“The complaint was asking for nothing more than what we were already preparing to do, which was to look internally for this information at the same time that we were reach-

ciated with applying for them. Hopefully we’ll get the funding. We’ll be back if that is the case for the board to consider and take action on those, and that’ll come at a later date.”

ing out to the voters themselves to provide the information,” new board Executive Director Sam Hayes told reporters Monday after a board meeting. “So we’re on a path to do that now.”

People who remain on the list must vote provisionally the next time they cast a ballot and are being asked to provide an ID number at the polls. Low-turnout elections for municipal and local races are held this fall, with the rst of three rounds happening Tuesday.

While some ballots may not count in state and local races if a voter fails to provide an ID number or an alternate form of ID, the agreement makes clear ballot choices for federal o ces must be counted so long as the person is otherwise eligible to vote. The next federal elections are in March.

The Democratic National Committee earlier threatened to sue the state elections board, worried that any plan would remove people from lists of eligible voters in federal elections. Party attorney Dan Freeman last week called the agreement details a “huge victory for the DNC and, more importantly, our democracy.”

Separate from the consent agreement are an additional 98,000 registered voters who have provided a required ID number but it has not been validated by a government database. That could happen because a person changed their name when they got married, or because the number was entered wrongly into the state’s registration system.

The state elections board voted along party lines last month to require this group to cast provisional ballots until their ID numbers were validated. The board, meeting again Monday, instead agreed unanimously these voters can keep casting regular ballots as long as they have shown an ID at the polls, in keeping with state law.

The Stanly County Board of Commissioners is set to hold its next regular meeting on Oct. 6 at 6 p.m. inside the Gene

Meeting Room at

McIntyre

Stanly County Commons.

COURTESY STANLY COUNTY SCHOOLS

Left to right: Stanly County Schools employees Sarah Lee, Meredith Lowder and Sarah Callicutt pose with their Stanly Star recognitions given out by the school district.

GARY D. ROBERTSON / AP PHOTO

North Carolina State Board of Elections Executive Director Sam Hayes speaks with reporters after a board meeting on Monday in Raleigh.

Fred Stephen Hopkins

Aug. 14, 1930 – Sept. 7, 2025

Steve Hopkins, 95, of Albemarle, peacefully entered his heavenly home on Sunday, September 7, 2025, at the Taylor House. His funeral service will be held at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, September 10, 2025, at South Albemarle Baptist Church, with Pastor Danny Laws o ciating. Burial will follow at Stanly Gardens of Memory. The family will receive friends on Tuesday, September 9, 2025, from 5-7 p.m. at Stanly Funeral and Cremation Care.

Born on August 14, 1930, in Stanly County, Steve was the son of the late Fred Haywood Hopkins and Maude Carpenter Hopkins. He proudly served his country as a veteran of the United States Navy, where he developed a lifelong love of storytelling and often shared cherished memories from his time of service.

A devoted follower of Christ, Steve was a longtime member of South Albemarle Baptist Church, where his faith guided every part of his life. When asked what mattered most to him, his answer was always the same: “Jesus.” He lived out that faith daily, leading by example with a generous heart, a servant’s spirit, and an unwavering love for his family.

Steve dedicated his career to education as the principal of Endy Elementary School, where he touched the lives of countless students, families, and colleagues. After retiring from education, he followed

Betty McDonald

April 8, 1938 – Aug. 29, 2025

Betty Lankford McDonald died unexpectedly, but peacefully, on August 29, 2025, at Atrium Health Cabarrus in Concord, NC. Betty was born on April 8, 1938 to Annie Pearl Atkins and Otis Gregory Lankford. She spent her childhood in Jasper, Alabama before moving with her family to Montgomery, where she met the love of her life, Harold Lawson McDonald. Upon graduating from Sidney Lanier High School in Montgomery, Betty brie y attended Judson College, but after a proposal of marriage from Harold, transferred to Howard College in Birmingham to be with him. Betty had a number of jobs throughout her life, one of which was the coveted director of countless weddings, but her true vocation was Christian service alongside Harold in his roles as pastor of First Baptist Church of Burnsville, NC and First Baptist Church of Albemarle, NC. She acted as co-Youth Director at First Baptist Burnsville and taught many Sunday School classes at First Baptist Albemarle. As devoted as she was to her church, however, nothing in her life rivaled

OBITUARIES

his entrepreneurial spirit and pursued his passion for real estate as the owner and operator of Hopkins Real Estate.

He was a man of many talents and interests. Steve loved construction work, reading-especially the Bible, and writing stories about local history and his life, including his time in the Navy. Above all else, he loved his family deeply and wholeheartedly. He adored and spoiled his wife, children, grandchildren, and greatgrandchildren, leaving behind a legacy of faith, love, and devotion.

Steve was preceded in death by his beloved wife of 66 years, Juanita Florence Poplin Hopkins, who passed away on November 13, 2013.

He is survived by two daughters, Trina H. Smith of Albemarle and Tonya Hopkins Kerr of Charlotte; a brother, Larry Hopkins; sisters Violet Smith and Helen Swaringen, all of Norwood; four grandchildren, Wendy Holbert, Brett Smith, Derek Smith, and Erica Kerr Sued; and twelve cherished great-grandchildren. He was also preceded in death by a sister, Lesca Bundy.

The family suggests that memorial contributions be made to:

South Albemarle Baptist Church 1005 S 2nd St Albemarle, NC 28001

North Carolina Baptist Children’s Homes 204 Idol St Thomasville, NC 27360

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital https://www.stjude.org

American Cancer Society https://donate.cancer.org

Steve lived a long and ful lling life devoted to his faith, his family, and his community. His gentle spirit, kind heart, and steadfast devotion will be deeply missed but forever remembered by all who knew and loved him.

her love of and devotion to her family. Her 67-year marriage to Harold was a romance for the ages. Their devotion to each other grew stronger each year until Harold’s death separated them— but only physically—in 2024. Close behind her devotion to Harold was her adoration of her four children, her nine grandchildren, and her three great-grandchildren. Anyone who spoke with Betty for more than a few minutes would be treated to an anecdote of some recent happening (illustrated with photos) among her expansive and expanding brood. Preceding Betty in death were her daughter Lori McDonald Baysden, and her husband, the Reverend Harold McDonald. She is survived by her children Carole McDonald Lewis, and Al (Charleston, SC), Dr. Hal McDonald, and Nancy (Asheville, NC), Dr. Susan McDonald, and Lyn (Charleston, SC); her grandchildren A. D. Lewis IV, and Christie (Charleston, SC), Elizabeth Lewis (Charleston, SC), Hillary McDonald, and Nick (Leonardtown, MD), Dr. Lawson McDonald, and Julia (Fort Lauderdale, FL), Eleanor McDonald (Lyme, NH), Sydney Baysden Spivey, and Stephen (Raleigh, NC), Reilly Baysden (Raleigh, NC), Ashton Baysden, and Andrew (Raleigh, NC), and Harrison Baysden (Raleigh, NC); her great-grandchildren Miller Spivey (Raleigh, NC), West Spivey (Raleigh, NC), Elizabeth McDonald (Fort Lauderdale, FL); her brother Bob Lankford, and Margaret (Troy, AL); and her cousin Diana Ambrose (Black Mountain). A memorial service celebrating Betty’s life will be held at First Baptist Church of Albemarle, NC on Saturday, September 13 at 11:00 a.m. Donations in Betty’s memory may be made to First Baptist Church, Albemarle.

IN MEMORY

BRENDA HINSON HATHCOCK

OCT. 3, 1946 – AUG. 31, 2025

Brenda Hinson Hathcock, 78, of New London, entered eternal life on Sunday, August 31, 2025.

Born October 3, 1946, to the late Cleavie and Ruby (E rd) Hinson. She was a lifelong resident of Stanly County and a faithful member of Prospect Church.

Brenda will be fondly remembered for her gentle spirit, her kindness and the love she showed to those around her.

She is survived by her devoted husband, John Hathcock Sr.; step-son, John Hathcock Jr.; two beloved sisters, Elaine Huneycutt and Jane (David) Hatley; and adoring brother, Louis (Barbara) Hinson. She also leaves behind countless nieces and nephews. Brenda was preceded in death by her parents and brotherin-law, Larry Huneycutt.

The Memorial Service will be held on Tuesday, September 9, 2025, at 1 p.m. at Prospect Church in Albemarle.

ELDER DELORIS CHAMBERS

NOV. 7, 1947 – SEPT. 1, 2025

Deloris Chambers was born on November 7, 1947, to Horace Sr. and Gertrude Barringer Chambers. Deloris was a lifelong citizen of the West Badin community, having attended West Badin High School before nishing her senior year at North Stanly High School with the class of 1967. She graduated from Rowan Tech with an associate’s degree in Secretarial Science.

She was a dedicated public servant, a tireless advocate, and a beloved community leader. She served on the Badin Town Council for more than 30 years, serving as Councilwoman, Mayor Pro Tem, Organizer of Teens Making a Di erence, Veterans Day Parade organizer, and many other activities.

“Councilwoman Chambers was at the heart of our community,” Town of Badin Mayor W. Demar Huntley said. “She believed in bringing people together, in building bridges, and in doing the hard work of creating a town that works for everyone.”

A proud mother, grandmother, and great grandmother, Deloris Chambers often said her greatest inspiration came from her family and neighbors. Her door was always open, and her heart was always full — whether she was assisting with fundraisers, mentoring youth, or walking side-by-side with residents in times of need.

Also, Deloris was an ordained Elder and Assistant Pastor of the Church of the Living God in Badin. She loved praise and worship and was a fervent prayer warrior and astute Bible student.

She leaves to her memory a son, Rev. Reginald (Rev. Shirley) Chambers; two granddaughters:

Courtney (Terence) Bradshaw and Kennedy Chambers; a great granddaughter (Shiloh Bradshaw); sisters: Mother Lorrie Jackson and Deaconess Joretha Washington (Bishop Roy); a brother, Bishop Horace (Elder Sharon) Chambers; along with nieces, a nephew, and a host of great nieces, and nephews.

MARGARET ELLEN (HINSON) YOUNG

FEB. 1, 1951 – SEPT. 2, 2025

Early on the morning of September 2, 2025, Pastor Margaret E. Young took her ight home to be with her Lord and Savior. We pause at this time to give thanks to the Almighty God for the time He allowed us to share with her. A God-fearing woman, Pastor Young was born February 1, 1951, in Stanly County, North Carolina, to the parentage of the late Thomas Calvin and Margaret Hinson Young. She was also preceded in death by her siblings: Doris A. Butler, Dolly Hinson, Valerie Hinson, Wayne Hinson and Frankie Hinson. Pastor Young was educated in the public schools of Stanly County, graduating from North Stanly High School in New London, North Carolina.

She was a Pastor of Greater Glory Transformation Center, Salisbury, North Carolina. In her leisure, she enjoyed singing about the goodness of the Lord and reading her Bible. Those left in the sunshine of life to hold fond loving memories are her daughter, Chrystal (Charles) Krider, Salisbury, North Carolina; sons: Pastor Gerard (Yalanda) Edwards, Salisbury, North Carolina and Quintin D. Edwards (Stephanie Riopelle), New London, North Carolina, Chris Hinson, Charleston, South Carolina; nine grandchildren and three great grandchildren; sisters: Helen (Forrest) Davis, New London, North Carolina, Bernice Hinson, Raeford, North Carolina, and Jane Hinson, Washington, DC; brothers: Henry (Bonnie) Hinson, Albemarle, North Carolina and Marvin (Francine) Young, Salisbury, North Carolina; special friends: Charlie Belle Christian, Reverend Althea Harris, Roberta Hayes; a host of other relatives and friends.

GAIL THOMPSON HATHCOCK

MAY 7, 1950 – SEPT. 4, 2025

Gail Thompson Hathcock, 75, of Albemarle, passed away peacefully on Thursday, September 4, 2025, surrounded by her loving family.

A celebration of her life will be held at 5 p.m. on Sunday, September 7, 2025, in the Stanly Funeral Home Chapel, with Pastor Don Crusenberry o ciating. The family will receive friends immediately following the service at Stanly Funeral and Cremation Care of Albemarle.

Born on May 7, 1950, in Rockingham, NC, Gail was the daughter of the late George Cecil Thompson and Mae Bell Arnette Thompson. She spent much of her career as a secretary in the textile industry, where her dedication and attention to detail were admired by those who worked alongside her.

Gail was a proud member of Mt. View Baptist Church and lived her life rooted in faith. Her favorite scripture, Matthew 19:26, guided her heart and spirit: “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Those who knew Gail will remember her for her warm personality, quick wit, and love of laughter. She enjoyed shopping, traveling, and especially going on cruises — often returning with stories of unexpected adventures, like the time she got “stuck in a foreign country,” a memory she loved to laugh about. Her family describes her as talkative, protective, funny, loving, strong-willed, and delightfully stubborn — qualities that made her unforgettable.

She had a few strong dislikes — including chicken and snakes — but her heart lit up for sun owers, her favorite ower, and she adored the song “You Are My Sunshine.”

Gail is survived by her devoted husband, Ronnie Hathcock, and her three children: Michelle Sullivan (Ron) of Asheboro, Julie Myrick of Nashua, NH, and Justin Myrick (Kristi) of Candor. She also leaves behind four brothers: Whitey Thompson, Yankee Thompson (Debbie), Don Thompson, and George Thompson; and her sister Pat Couch (Ken) and her two beloved furr-babies Rocky and Roxie.

She is also survived by two stepchildren: Buck Hathcock (April) and Buster Hathcock (Angie); nine grandchildren: Mitchell Davis, Robbie Davis, Jacob Davis, Kalli Myrick, Lillie Davis, Wesley Myrick, Jordan Myrick, Karmen Barbee, and Brodie Myrick; six step-grandchildren; nine great-grandchildren; and four step-great-grandchildren. In addition she is also survived by many other family members and friends. She was preceded in death by a sister, Barbara Elane Thompson.

The family wishes to express their thanks to the Atrium Stanly ICU Sta , Respiratory Sta , Hospice Sta and Stanly County EMS Services.

Gail’s life was de ned by her love for her family, her deep faith, and the joy she found in life’s simple moments. Her laughter, strength, and sunshine will continue to live on in the hearts of those who knew and loved her.

CHARLES HARRIS SR.

DEC. 25, 1948 – SEPT. 5, 2025

Charles Melvin Harris Sr., 76, of Cottonville, passed away Friday, September 5, 2025, at Atrium Healthcare Stanly. A funeral service will be held on Monday, September 8th, 2025, at 3 p.m. at Cottonville Baptist Church. Rev. JR Murr will o ciate. A graveside service will follow in the church cemetery. The family will receive friends on Monday from 1-2 p.m. at Edwards Funeral Home in Norwood.

Charles was born on December 25, 1948, in Montgomery County to the late Jarvis and Gertie Burris Harris. He was a graduate of West Montgomery High, class of 1967. Following graduation, he married his wife, Linda Kendall Harris; and was promptly enlisted into the United States ARMY, where he served in Alaska. Upon his discharge, he spent a short time working in the sock mill and served as supervisor at several companies before he became a supervisor for Michelin– which he did until his retirement with the company. After retiring from Michelin, Charles spent as much time as he could with his church family.

Charles spent many days attending and aiding in drag races with his boys, Chuck and Michael, whom he adored greatly. He loved his entire family and cherished time with all of them, especially when spending this time at the beach. When it comes to sports teams, Charles was a strong Yankees and Duke fan. In addition to his parents, Charles was preceded in death by his brother, David Harris, and nephew, Jeremy Harris.

Charles is survived by his loving wife of 57 years, Linda Kendall Harris, of the home; his sons: Charles Harris Jr “Chuck”, and Michael Harris; brothers: Ricky Harris (Sharon), Ronnie Harris (Joyce); sister, Carol Smith (Chris); numerous nieces and nephews; and a host of great-nieces and nephews.

STANLY SPORTS

West Stanly storms past Albemarle with 43 unanswered points

The Colts notched their rst win of the season

By Jesse Deal Stanly News Journal

ALBEMARLE — West Stan-

ly’s varsity football team shook o an early stumble and rolled to its rst win of the season Friday night, defeating Albemarle 43-7 at Bulldog Stadium.

The Colts (1-0) snapped a six-game losing streak dating back to last season, while the Bulldogs (2-1) came up short as they aimed for the

school’s rst 3-0 start since 2012.

After Albemarle struck rst early in the game with a 72-yard touchdown run by sophomore AJ Butler following a mu ed punt recovery, West Stanly dominated the rest of the way with 43 unanswered points.

West coach Ralph Jackson said that while he had seen ashes of progression from his players in their previous two losses, he was excited to see his team put together a full performance they could be proud of.

“The guys played as a unit for the rst time and did things the right way,” Jackson said. “There

“The guys played as a unit for the rst time and did things the right way.”

West Stanly coach Ralph Jackson

are still a lot of mistakes for us to clean up. Hats o to (Albemarle) coach Davis. He has a really athletic team, very young. But I’m just happy for my guys to nally get a victory. … This absolutely shows us what we’re capable of.”

The Colts’ 43 points were the most the team had scored in a single game since a 45-0 home win over South Stanly back on Aug. 19, 2022.

Quarterback Dominik Danzy fueled West’s o ensive surge with four touchdowns — two passing and two rushing. The junior nished with 102 yards in the air and a team-best 162 yards on the ground.

In the rst half, Danzy connected with sophomore receivers Austin Godley and Javier Padilla on scoring strikes of 27 and 28 yards, then added a 1-yard sneak and a 68-yard burst that

gave the Colts a 27-7 lead at the break.

In the second half, West’s Logan Faile broke free for a 32-yard touchdown, kicker Alan Cruz added a 26-yard eld goal, and running back Mason Jackson capped the night with a 7-yard run into the end zone. Jackson was the Colts’ second-leading rusher with 75 ground yards.

For the Bulldogs, the team’s rushing attack that had averaged nearly 300 yards in its past two games was limited to just 39 yards; sophomore quarterback Ray Blakeney led Albemarle with 21 yards.

West Stanly is set to travel to Pageland, South Carolina, on Friday to face undefeated Central (2-0). Albemarle has a bye week before beginning Yadkin Valley Conference play Sept. 19 at home against Thomas Je erson Classical Academy (1-1).

Falcon sophomore Seth Limbert was awarded Monday

By Jesse Deal Stanly News Journal

MISENHEIMER — A

Pfei er Falcon was named USA South men’s soccer defender of the week by the conference.

The USA South Athletic Conference announced that Pfei er sophomore goalkeeper Seth Limbert, who has assumed the Falcons’ starting role this season, is the recipient of the weekly honor.

Tucker Speak (Mary Baldwin), Trey Gohr (Methodist), Ayden Miller (William Peace), Joel McGinnes (N.C. Wesleyan) and Alvaro Hermosa (Greensboro) were also nominated for the category.

In his performance last week, Limbert stopped all six shots and had his rst career shutout for the Falcons (2-0) in

a 3-0 win over Averett (1-1-1).

“I felt like we defended really well as a team. We worked really hard, and honestly made my job pretty easy,” Limbert said in a video pro le from the Falcons soccer program. “I just think we’re a really strong team collectively. I think everyone is willing to buy in this year and we’re working hard. We’re one team this year and our chemistry has been good so far.”

So far this season, the Mooresville native has played every minute of Pfei er’s two matchups after sitting back in the team’s goalkeeper depth chart last season.

Limbert was one of three goalkeepers on last year’s roster, along with junior Tommaso Cantini and senior Ali Jaafar. This fall, the sophomore has returned to the net alongside Cantini and freshman Isaac Barefoot.

Pfei er is now 2-0 for the second time in three seasons

as the Falcons look to continue their winning ways. The team hosted Piedmont at Lefko -Mills Field on Tuesday and will host Shaw on Friday, kicking o a homestand in Misenheimer following a pair of road matchups to start the year. Coming o its toughest season in more than a decade, Pfei er is trying to rebound this season under ninth-year coach Tony Faticoni as he chases the program’s rst conference championship as a USA South member. The Falcons, who posted a

“We’re one team this year and our chemistry has been good so far.”

Seth Limbert, Pfei er goalkeeper

4-8-3 record and nished seventh in the conference with a 1-5-1 mark last fall, were recently picked sixth in a 2025 preseason coaches poll. Pfei er is set to open USA South play on Sept. 27 at preseason favorite N.C. Wesleyan.

West Stanly quarterback Dominik Danzy led an o ensive unit that racked up 43 points against the Albemarle Bulldogs on Friday night.

Sophomore goalkeeper Seth Limbert recently posted his rst shutout with the Falcons.

Hamlin advances in Cup Series playo s at Gateway

“You all can boo me, but you can either get on the bandwagon or get run over by it. I want all the noise and all the heat.”

Denny Hamlin

The driver’s 59th career win came from the pole and marks the 200th rst-place nish for Toyota

The Associated Press

MADISON, Ill. — Nothing seems to distract Denny Hamlin, and the NASCAR star proved it again with a laser-focused victory at World Wide Technology Raceway on Sunday to advance in the Cup Series playo s.

After a week in which his father was ailing and his 23XI Racing team lost a decision in its court battle with NASCAR, Hamlin compartmentalized his concerns and stayed on task for a virtually awless weekend, starting from the pole position and leading a race-high 75 of 240 laps.

“I just step up,” Hamlin said after his series-high fth victory this season. “All I can do is just keep being a student of the game, keep trying to get better, and every week is a chance to get a little better.”

With his 59th career win, Hamlin advanced to the second round of the playo s and joined Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Chase Briscoe, who nished second after winning last week’s opener at Darlington Raceway. Chase Elliott nished third, followed by Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano as playo drivers swept the top ve spots at the 1.25-mile oval.

The No. 11 Toyota team called Hamlin to the pits for his nal stop with 44 laps remaining, and he cycled to the front on a caution 15 laps later. The Virginia native seized the lead from Brad Keselowski on the restart, delivering the 200th win in NASCAR’s premier series for Toyota.

The Joe Gibbs Racing star celebrated with a long burnout down the front stretch of the track outside St. Louis that is commonly referred to as Gateway, bringing boos raining down from a sellout crowd to Hamlin’s delight.

“You all can boo me, but you can either get on the bandwagon or get run over by it,” he said. “I want all the noise and all the heat.”

Relishing life as a NASCAR villain is one of many roles being lled by the multitasking Hamlin, who also co-hosts a podcast while running 23XI Racing, the three-car team that he co-owns with NBA legend Michael Jordan.

It’s had little impact on the on-track performance for Hamlin, who is in his 20th Cup season driving for team owner Joe Gibbs. At Gateway, he became the seventh driver in Cup Series history with multiple victories after his 700th start.

Team owner Joe Gibbs marvels at how Hamlin, who turns 45 in November and welcomed his third child in June, is able to juggle so much.

“He’s in one meeting after another,” Gibbs said with a laugh. “The more stu he does, the better o he is. He’s got a real drive to succeed.”

The ultimate prize would be a rst Cup championship, and Hamlin took another step toward that goal by locking into the next round ahead of the Sept. 13 race at Bristol Motor Speedway. The rst-round cuto race will trim the playo eld from 16 to 12 drivers.

CONNOR HAMILTON / AP PHOTO

Denny Hamlin, second from left, celebrates after winning Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at World Wide Technology Raceway.

South Stanly volleyball, 4-6, 1-0 in Yadkin Valley 2A/3A

Last week’s scores: Won 3-0 at Albemarle Won 3-0 at North Rowan

This week’s schedule: Sept. 9 vs. North Stanly Sept. 11 at Union Academy Sept. 15 vs. Parkwood Sept. 16 vs. Gray Stone Day

Nothing like a two-match win streak, both in three-game sweeps, to turn things around. The Rowdy Rebel Bulls snapped a three-game losing streak, posted a win in the conference opener and topped rival Albemarle. Not a bad week.

South Stanly boys’ soccer, 2-1

Last week’s scores: Lost at South Davidson, 6-3

This week’s schedule: Sept. 10 at Albemarle Sept. 15 at North Rowan

The Rowdy Rebel Bulls took their rst loss of the season, in a rematch with South Davidson. The team continues a threematch road trip this week.

West Stanly volleyball, 9-2, 5-0 in Rocky River 4A/5A

and sophomore Luke Jacobi two. Senior Axel Villegas, sophomore Blessings Byamunga and Jaimes added assists as the Colts opened league play.

North Stanly volleyball, 4-7, 1-1 in Yadkin Valley

Last week’s scores: Lost 3-2 at Union Academy Won 3-1 vs. Gray Stone Day

This week’s schedule: Sept. 9 at South Stanly Sept. 11 vs. North Rowan Sept. 13 at Southwest Randolph Sept. 13 vs. McMichael Sept. 15 vs. West Stanly

The Comets snapped a threematch losing streak and won for the rst time in their newly reconstituted conference.

North Stanly boys’ soccer, 3-4

Last week’s scores: Lost 9-0 at Wheatmore Won 2-0 at South Davidson Lost 7-0 at West Davidson

This week’s schedule: Sept. 10 vs. Union Sept. 11 vs. North Davidson Sept. 15 vs. Gray Stone Day

There is only one game on Friday in a sparse Week 4

Stanly News Journal sta

South Stanly 39, Anson 38

The NCHSAA’s o season realignment has the Rowdy Rebel Bulls getting acquainted with plenty of new opponents. South Stanly played Anson on Friday for the rst time since 2016. The Rowdy Rebel Bulls had lost in four consecutive years when the series was discontinued, but this year’s Bulls posted their rst win over the Bearcats in more than two decades.

The wild game featured ve lead changes and saw South Stanly win with a touchdown in the nal minute. Carter Callicutt carried the ball 15 times for 141 yards and three touchdowns. He also caught a 31-yard pass from Kaleb Richardson. The quarterback completed 19 of 30 passes for 269 yards and two scores.

Jasiah Holt and Wy-

att Crawford caught touchdowns, while Jayden Woods was the top target with six catches for 108 yards and a team-high 48 on the ground. Holt also had 100 kick return yards.

The win moves South Stanly to 2-1. This week, the Rowdy Rebel Bulls are o . After the break in the schedule, they face another unfamiliar foe in Bonnie Cone Leadership Academy. The Eagles are 0-3, with a 37-point loss to Hickory Grove and a 42-point loss at South Davidson. Last week, BCLA fell to Langtree Charter, 27-24. The game kicks o Sept. 19 at South at 7 p.m.

North Stanly 17, Montgomery Central 14

The Comets and Timberwolves met for the rst time ever, and North Stanly built a 17-point lead on the back of its defense. North returned a fumble for a touchdown and added a safety, as the defense came close to outscoring the Com-

ets o ense. The D also had an interception and stopped Montgomery on downs.

North Stanly then withstood a 14-point Montgomery rally in the fourth quarter to pull out the win and move to 2-1 on the season. North has this week o before playing Mountain Island Charter on the Sept. 19. The Raptors are coming o a 7-6 2024 season and are 1-1 in 2024.

West Stanly 43, Albemarle 7

We cover the Colts’ big win over the Bulldogs on B1. Albemarle is now 2-1 and has a week o to recover before facing the Thomas Je erson Classical Academy. The Gryphons are coming o a 3-8 year and opened 2025 at 1-1. West is 1-2 and takes on Central in the only action this Friday for county teams. Central is 2-0 with a shutout of Lewisville and a 55-20 win over Lamar. The Eagles were 10-3 last season.

Share with your community! Send us your births, deaths, marriages, graduations and other announcements: community@stanlynewsjournal.com Weekly deadline is Monday at Noon

Last week’s scores: Won 3-0 vs. Monroe Lost 3-2 at Southwest Randolph Won 3-0 at Forest Hills

This week’s schedule: Sept. 9 vs. Mount Pleasant Sept. 11 at Anson Sept. 15 at North Stanly

The Colts saw their fourmatch win streak snapped but bounced back quickly. They remain unbeaten in conference at 5-0.

West Stanly boys’ soccer, 3-5, 1-1 in Rocky River 4A/5A

Last week’s scores: Lost 2-1 at Parkwood Lost 5-0 at Montgomery Central Won 4-3 at Mount Pleasant

This week’s schedule: Sept. 10 vs. CATA Sept. 15 at Monroe

Sophomore Oswaldo Jaimes scored three goals this week

The Comets now have their most wins in a season in the last seven years. The team also survived four straight on the road and now return home for three. Albemarle volleyball, 2-2, 0-2 in Yadkin Valley

Last week’s scores: Lost vs. South Stanly, 3-0 Lost at Union Academy, 3-0

This week’s schedule: Sept. 10 at North Rowan Sept. 11 vs. Gray Stone Day Sept. 15 vs. TMASACCC

The Bulldogs opened conference play with their rst two losses of the season.

Albemarle boys’ soccer, 3-4

Last week’s scores: Won 13-0 vs. TMASACCC

This week’s schedule: Sept. 10 vs. South Stanly Sept. 15 at Union Academy

Sophomore Yaifeth Reyes and junior Jack Sanchez helped provide the o ense for the Bulldogs.

FILE PHOTO

South Stanly’s Carter Callicutt, shown here scoring a touchdown last season, found the end zone three times on Friday.

COURTESY NORTH STANLY BOOSTER CLUB / FACEBOOK

North Stanly volleyball poses for a team photo after beating Gray Stone Day last week.

YARD SALE

Cheerleading Fundraiser yard sale!!

Date: September 13, 2025 • Time: 7 a.m-11 a.m • Location: Jay’s Downtown Downtowner, 1230 E. Main st Albemarle Let someone else’s stu be your treasure!

FOR SALE

2009 Toyota Highlander Limited Edition • Gold with tan leather interior. Regularly serviced and garage kept. Looks, runs, drives and handles like a new car. Excellent condition. No disappointments.

$8,450 - Call 704-238-3616

Treadmill for sale • Excellent condition • $240 Call 704-238-3616

FOR RENT

Brick house • Two Bedroom, Livingroom, Dining room, One full bath all new, New kitchen, new oors, and new paint throughout. Fully renovated • Central heating and air • New refrigerator and stove.

$1700 per month • Good location • 1216 West Main Street

704-991-6486

Let’s Work Together

Full-Time

• Architect, System

• Director, Campus Food Services

• Instructor, Cosmetology (9-month)

• Instructor, English

• Program Head, Accounting

• Program Head, Electrical Line Worker

Part-Time

• Adjunct Instructor, BLET

NOTICES

NOTICE IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE SUPERIOR COURT DIVISION BEFORE THE CLERK FILE No. 25E000424-830 NORTH CAROLINA STANLY COUNTY NOTICE TO CREDITORS Having quali ed as EXECUTRIX of the estate of RICHARD C. LEONARD, deceased, of Stanly County, North Carolina, this is to notify all persons having claims against the Estate of said RICHARD C. LEONARD to present them to the undersigned on or before December 3, 2025, or the same will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate please make immediate payment. This the 3rd day of September, 2025. Executrix: Millicent Leonard 2033 Sprucewood Street Albemarle, NC 28001 Erin L. Basinger Attorney at Law PO Box 65 Albemarle, NC 28002 (704) 322-2800

NOTICE OF ADMINISTRATION

Melinda Donna Kimrey Hatley Thompson, having quali ed as Administratrix of the Estate of Jerry Ray Kimrey, deceased, late of Stanly County, North Carolina, gives this notice to all persons, rms, and corporations having claims against said estate and asks that they present such claims, duly veri ed, to the Administratrix in care of: Je Williams-Tracy, Esq. Fletcher, Tydings, et. al. 100 Queens Road, Suite 250 Charlotte, NC 28204-3199 on or before the 1st day of December 2025, or this Notice will be pled in bar of recovery. All persons, rms, and corporations indebted to said estate will please make immediate settlement with the estate. This, the 27th day of August 2025 Court File #: 25E000465-830

NOTICE

STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA COUNTY OF STANLY IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE SUPERIOR COURT DIVISION BEFORE THE CLERK FILE NUMBER 25E000485-830 IN THE MATTER OF THE ESTATE OF JAMES LARRY BOLES, SR. Having quali ed as Administrator of the Estate of James Larry Boles, Sr., this is to notify all persons, rms, and corporations having claims against the estate to present such claims to the undersigned or his attorney on or before the 10th day of December, 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to the estate will please make immediate payment. This the 10th day of September, 2025. Administrator: James Larry Boles, Jr. 72 Pine Ridge Drive Whispering Pines, NC 28237 Attorney for the estate: Connie Edwards Mosher First Street Legal 239 N 1st Street Albemarle, NC 28001 Dates of publication: September 10, 17, 24, October 1

Notice to Creditors

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NOTICE

NOTICE TO CREDITORS Having quali ed as Executor of the ESTATE OF DONNA ROSE SMART HUNEYCUTT, deceased of 16207 Pless Mill Road, Stan eld, NC 28163 (Stanly County Clerk of Court Case No. 25E000464-830), the undersigned does hereby notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against the Estate of said Decedent DONNA ROSE SMART HUNEYCUTT to present them to the undersigned RICHARD LEON HUNEYCUTT, Executor, PO Box 56, Locust, NC 28097, in care of Tanya N. Oesterreich, Oesterreich Law PLLC, at PO Box 2067, Concord, North Carolina 28026, on or before the 20th day of November, 2025, or this Notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons, rms and corporations indebted to the said ESTATE OF DONNA ROSE SMART HUNEYCUTT will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This the 20th day of August, 2025.

RICHARD LEON HUNEYCUTT, Executor ESTATE OF DONNA ROSE SMART HUNEYCUTT PO Box 56 Locust, NC 28097 c/o Tanya N. Oesterreich, Esq. Oesterreich Law PLLC PO Box 2067 Concord, North Carolina 28026

Having quali ed as Ancillary Administrator of the Estate of Lee Ernest Eiss deceased in Stanly County, this is to notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to present them, duly veri ed, to the undersigned at 8013 Ladys Secret Drive, Indian Trail, NC 28079 on or before the 20th day of November, 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate will please make immediate settlement with the undersigned. This the 20 th day of August, 2025. Dianne Hope Eiss, Executor File #25-E-187

NOTICE

NORTH CAROLINA STANLY COUNTY IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE SUPERIOR COURT DIVISION BEFORE THE CLERK FILE NO. 25E000456-830

Having quali ed as Executrix of the estate of Louvine M. Bowers a/k/a Louvine Morton Bowers, deceased, of Stanly County, North Carolina. This is to notify all persons having claims against the Estate of said Louvine M. Bowers a/k/a Louvine Morton Bowers to present them to the undersigned on or before November 20, 2025, or the same will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate please make immediate payment. This 20th day of August, 2025 Lisa Renee Bowers Casey 24325 Old Aquadale Road Albemarle, NC 28001

NOTICE

The undersigned, having quali ed as Co-Administrators of the Estate of Nila Lyn Elliott late of Stanly County, North Carolina, hereby noti es to all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said Estate to present them to the undersigned on or before November 20, 2025, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons, rms and corporations indebted to the said Estate will please make immediate payment to the undersigned. This, the 20th day of August, 2025. Ashley Grace Elliott Co-Administrator 102 Windmill Road Salisbury, North Carolina 28147 Alyvia Maurine Elliott Co-Administrator 208 Dauntly Street Upper Marlboro, MD 20774 Emily G. Thompson, Esq. Attorney for Co-Administrators Reed & Thompson, PLLC 204 Branchview Dr SE

NOTICE NORTH

‘Only Murders in the Building’ returns, Charlie Sheen doc, ‘The Girlfriend’ thrills

Ed Sheeran drops “Play” on Friday

The Associated Press

“ONLY MURDERS in the Building” returning for its fth season and Ed Sheeran coming back with the new pop album “Play” are some of the new television, lms, music and games headed to a device near you.

Also, among the streaming o erings worth your time: The Net ix two-part documentary “AKA Charlie Sheen” chronicles the 60-year-old star’s up-anddown career, Robin Wright and Olivia Cooke star in a psychological thriller for Prime Video called “The Girlfriend” and R&B giant Ty Dolla $ign o ers his rst full-length album in half a decade.

MOVIES TO STREAM

The Net ix two-part documentary “AKA Charlie Sheen” chronicles the 60-year-old star’s up-and-down career, from “Wall Street” to “winning.” The lm, now available on the streaming service, features candid interviews with Sheen, along with many friends and co-stars. Andrew Renzi (“Pepsi, Where’s My Jet?”) directs.

Clouds of IED smoke and cries of agony ll Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza’s harrowing lm, “Warfare” (HBO Max on Friday) with little but the faces of its Navy SEALs to ground the nearly real-time, based- on-a-true-story dramatization. The movie e ectively embeds viewers on a seemingly minor mission in Iraq

NOTICES

in 2006. In her review, AP reviewer Lindsey Bahr wrote: “War-movie cliches have been rigorously rooted out of ‘Warfare,’ a terse and chillingly brutal immersion in a moment of the Iraq War.” Andrew Ahn’s “The Wedding Banquet” (now on Paramount+) joyfully remakes and updates Ang Lee’s 1993 queer landmark lm. Ahn’s movie, starring Kelly Marie Tran, Lily Gladstone, Bowen Yang and Han Gi-chan, rebuilds Lee’s queer comedy of errors for a new generation. In her review, AP’s Lindsey Bahr praised the supporting performances by Youn Yuh-jung and Joan Chen but wished the lm expressed more fun: “There’s a through-line about found families, but I’m not totally convinced that these people are great for each other.”

MUSIC TO STREAM

Sheeran returns with a new album on Friday, his eighth. titled “Play.” The release detours away from the acoustic introspection of his last release, 2023’s “Autumn Variations,” and instead o ers a kind of reserved pop music. “Azizam,” a Farsi word which translates to something approximating “my dear one,” is a cultural crossover hit; “A Little More” has a much-needed groove. It’s clear Sheeran is in it for a good time — and his loyal listeners will follow suit.

Little has been made apparent about the highly anticipated, fourth studio album from R&B giant Ty Dolla $ign. Here’s what we do know: It’s his rst full-length in half a decade, it arrives Friday, and

the lead single, the infatuated “ALL IN,” includes an inspired sample of Wayne Wonder’s “No Letting Go.” It might be the end of summer, but that song is evidence that Ty is bringing the heat.

SERIES TO STREAM

“Only Murders in the Building” returns for its fth season on Hulu. The amateur sleuths Charles (Steve Martin), Mabel (Selena Gomez), and Oliver (Martin Short) begin the new episodes trying to gure out who murdered the doorman of their building.

Wright and Cooke star in a new psychological thriller for Prime Video called “The Girlfriend.” Wright plays Laura, a very, very protective mother of her grown man son, Danny. Her

for

“War-movie cliches have been rigorously rooted out of ‘Warfare,’ a terse and chillingly brutal immersion in a moment of the Iraq War.”

Lindsey Bahr, AP lm writer

internal alarm goes o when she meets Danny’s new girlfriend Cherry, played by Cooke. Cherry is a streetwise realtor who does not meet Laura’s standards for her son. Make no mistake, both women are unhinged. Each episode shows Laura and Cherry’s perspective, which is fun.

VIDEO GAMES TO PLAY

Last year’s “Borderlands” movie bombed, but you can’t keep a popular franchise down. So Gearbox Software and 2K Games have returned with Borderlands 4, bringing its brash brand of comic violence back to where it belongs: your game console. It’s the apotheosis of the so - called “looter-shooter,” in which you shoot a lot of enemies and collect a lot of loot. In this chapter, you’ve landed on a prison planet ruled by a tyrant known as the Timekeeper. You must decide which rebel faction to join as well as which of the Timekeeper’s lieutenants you want to take down rst. You can play solo or join forces with up to three other Vault Hunters. Fight the power beginning Friday on PlayStation 5, Xbox X/S or PC.

NETFLIX / BLEEKER STREET / HBO MAX VIA AP

From left, “aka Charlie Sheen,” “The Wedding Banquet” and “Warfare” are out this week on Net ix, Paramount+ and HBO Max, respectively.

JORDAN STRAUSS / INVISION / AP CONTENT SERVICES

Executive producers and actors Steve Martin, left, and Selena Gomez return

the fth season of “Only Murders in the Building” on Hulu.

Remembering 343

Winston-Salem Fire Department Station 7 is pictured Tuesday just ahead of the 24th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Three-hundred forty-three New York City re ghters were killed at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.

WHAT’S HAPPENING

Michigan judge tosses case against accused fake electors in 2020

A Michigan judge has dismissed the criminal cases against 15 people accused of acting falsely as electors for President Donald Trump in the 2020 election. District Court Judge Kristen Simmons decided in a Tuesday hearing that the cases won’t go to trial. Charges were brought by the state’s Democratic attorney general over two years ago. The people charged include a few high pro le members of the Republican Party in the battleground state. Each faced eight charges of forgery and conspiracy to commit election forgery. They had been accused of submitting certi cates that falsely said Trump won the election in Michigan.

RFK Jr.’s latest “Make America Healthy Again” report calls for oversight of drug ads

The Trump administration is urging public health agencies to prioritize investigations of vaccine injuries, prescription drug use, and the cause of autism. The call is part of a new report released Tuesday. Overseen by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the report aims to end childhood diseases in the U.S. by refocusing public health on his so - called “MAHA” movement’s priorities. The report suggests using personal medical records and health insurance data to investigate diseases and disorders, including autism. It also addresses ultraprocessed food consumption and water quality. The report calls for increased oversight of prescription drug ads, especially those by social media in uencers.

$2.00

Winston-Salem approves nancial support for hub infrastructure

The $4 million investment will support The Grounds, a mixed-use project

By Ryan Henkel Twin City Herald

WINSTON-SALEM — The Winston-Salem City Council is pledging nancial support for The Grounds project.

At its Sept. 2 meeting, the council held a hearing related to a $4 million economic development assistance package for Carter/Front Street Capital for public infrastructure improvements at The Grounds.

“The Grounds represents nearly 100 acres in the heart of Winston-Salem that is currently vacant, untaxed land,” said Carter Senior Vice President Adam Parker. “This has long been underused outside of major events and is now in a position for a transformation.

The Grounds is a 100-acre mixed-use development located near Deacon Boulevard that aims to blend residential, commercial and o ce spaces into one large community hub.

“The requested $4 million allocation from the city allocates essential infrastructure,” Parker said. “Roads, utilities, greenways, pedestrian safety and connectivity. These are not items that can be picked

up and sold and walked away. No buildings are being funded with this request. No retail, no o ce, no vertical construction whatsoever. Only shared infrastructure that bene ts the broader community and unlocks future growth.”

The state had previously provided $35 million to Winston-Salem for infrastructure serving the project.

“The state of North Carolina recognized this area and its potential to be a key economic driver,” Parker said. “The state funding was always intended to go toward a larger infrastructure package and was never intended to cover all of it. The Grounds is not over budget and never was.”

Following the hearing, the council voted 6-2 to approve the funding, with council members Scott Andree-Bowen and Barbara Burke voting against it.

“This is a bold step by the community to revitalize an entire section of town that took two huge hits when two of our largest employers pulled out,” said council member Robert Clark. “I am very condent, based on our past successes. We don’t do things helter-skelter here. Other organizations in town may do that — and they get in trouble for that, as we know — but we

“This is a bold step by the community to revitalize an entire section of town that took two huge hits when two of our largest employers pulled out.”

Council Member Robert Clark

look at these things very carefully and we go with people that we trust and who have a proven track record.”

The council also approved a ve-year lease agreement with an ownership group headed by Don Flow (CEO of Flow Automotive Companies) and Jim Brammer (CEO of Concert Stu Group) to utilize downtown, city-owned park land for a 5,000-seat amphitheater located in a vacant lot bound by Fifth, Sixth, Marshall and Spruce streets.

“This is a great opportunity for the city of Winston-Salem,” said Mayor Allen Joines. “You don’t often get the opportunity for someone to hand you a $9 million gift to your community, a wonderful venue that’s bringing 5,000 people at a time down to an event there.

“I do agree that there are concerns regarding the noise and the decibels that will be coming from that, but we’re taking steps and will take additional steps to make sure that issues around strengthening our noise

ordinances are included in this lease agreement.”

In addition, the council approved the purchase of up to 10 Gillig 29-foot clean diesel buses for the Winston-Salem Transit Authority.

“Our western eet, at large, is behind the replacement schedule,” said Director of Transportation Je Fansler. “Currently, we have 45 buses in the xed-route eet, and 24 of those are outside of what we call their useful lives.”

The total cost for the purchase is around $7.6 million.

“The intent here is solely to do a one-time purchase to catch up on how far behind we are on our replacement schedule,” Fansler said. “We want to get to the point where we can go and make good on our clean energy initiatives and replace these with the hybrid and electric eets, but until such time, we have to make demonstrated e orts to catch up given how unreliable our service is today.”

The Winston-Salem City Council will next meet Sept. 15.

Democratic governor, Republican legislature: How Josh Stein navigates North Carolina politics

The rst-term executive works with the GOP on storm recovery and other priorities

By Gary D. Robertson The Associated Press

FLETCHER — North Caro -

lina Gov. Josh Stein has taken an unusual approach with Re -

publican political opponents in his rst eight months leading a highly competitive state where divided government has become the norm.

He’s trying to get along with them.

Stein, who succeeded fellow Democrat Roy Cooper in January, has made an e ort to work with the GOP-controlled General Assembly on things like storm recovery — still a top priority nearly a year since Hurricane Helene’s historic ooding — and on other issues broadly popular with North Carolinians. He’s kept communication lines open with legislative leaders, even as they back President Donald Trump and oppose many Stein policy prescriptions.

The public, Stein said in an interview with The Associated Press, doesn’t “care whether I’m a Democrat or Republican, or that the legislature is a Democrat- or Republican-led body.”

“What they want is for whoever are in these positions to get things done that make their

TRIP HOFFEND / TWIN CITY HERALD

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lives better, and that’s my job,” he added. “So I will work with whoever I need to in order to make progress for the people of North Carolina.”

His results have been mixed so far. The General Assembly passed storm-relief packages but gave Stein roughly a little over half the money he requested. It overrode several of his vetoes on bills that build up immigration enforcement, weaken transgender rights and assert other GOP priorities — results that Stein laments.

But Republicans, including some who gathered with Stein at a barbecue in the mountains recently to honor local government workers’ hurricane recovery e orts, have taken notice of the e orts he’s made.

“We appreciate everything that he’s done for us,” said Larry Chapman, a Transylvania County commissioner and Trump supporter. “I’m encouraged with Stein — he seems to be a lot more interested in getting out with the people and listening to people more.”

Stein’s approach comes as Democratic governors nationwide struggle to navigate Republican gains and Trump’s sprawling agenda. While some chief executives have taken more combative stances against Trump and the GOP, others have opted for diplomacy.

Stein told those gathered in Fletcher that he was their ally on Helene, which caused more than 100 deaths in North Carolina and generated $60 billion in damages and needs. He did not mention political a liation.

“You and your constituents have been busting your tails to come back, and come back stronger than ever,” Stein said to hundreds at a park submerged during Helene. “I want you to know that I am in your corner.”

More communication, less confrontation

Stein, the former attorney

Judge OKs settlement in NC voter registration lawsuit by Justice Department

The agreement ensures compliance with federal voting law

By Gary D. Robertson The Associated Press

RALEIGH — A federal judge on Monday approved a plan to settle a lawsuit led by President Donald Trump’s Justice Department that demanded North Carolina election ocials accumulate identi cation numbers lacking on the records of more than 100,000 registered voters.

U.S. District Judge Richard Myers signed the proposed consent agreement led a few days ago by lawyers for the department’s Civil Rights Division and the State Board of Elections. They said would it ensure the state’s compliance with federal law and avoid an expensive trial.

The May 27 lawsuit accused the state board of violating the Help America Vote Act by failing to ensure registration records were accurate for federal elections. The state board already initiated a “Registration Repair Project” in mid-July, asking that 103,000 registered voters supply missing numerical identi ers. There are close to 7.6 million registered voters in North Carolina, where statewide elections are often closely contested.

Federal and North Carolina laws have directed that since 2004 election o cials request registrants provide a voter’s driver’s license number or the last four digits of their Social Security number. For about a decade, however, the state’s registration form failed to make clear voters were supposed to provide a number if they had one, resulting in records that indicate numerical IDs have never been provided.

A previous edition of the state board, in which Democrats held a majority, updated the form but declined to contact people statewide to request numbers in time for the 2024 elections. The lack of numerical IDs surfaced in litigation led by the Republican Party in 2024 and in challenges to results in a state Supreme Court race.

The board ipped to a Republican majority in early May, and the lawsuit was led soon after. It cited, in part, Trump’s broad executive order on elections in March that it said was designed to “guard against illegal voting, unlawful discrimination, and other forms of fraud, error, or suspicion.”

Through public requests and mailings, the registrants in the pool already have fallen below 80,900 as voters provide information. The agreement requires another round of letters be sent by mid-December

“The complaint was asking for nothing more than what we were already preparing to do.”

Sam

Hayes, State Board of Elections executive director

to registrants who have not responded, and for the board to provide plan updates to DOJ into 2027.

“The complaint was asking for nothing more than what we were already preparing to do, which was to look internally for this information at the same time that we were reaching out to the voters themselves to provide the information,” new board Executive Director Sam Hayes told reporters Monday after a board meeting. “So we’re on a path to do that now.”

People who remain on the list must vote provisionally the next time they cast a ballot and are being asked to provide an ID number at the polls. Low-turnout elections for municipal and local races are held this fall, with the rst of three rounds happening Tuesday.

While some ballots may not count in state and local races if a voter fails to provide an ID number or an alternate form of ID, the agreement makes clear ballot choices for federal o ces must be counted so long as the person is otherwise eligible to vote. The next federal elections are in March.

Regional

general, shares many views with Cooper, who early on clashed with Republicans over the “bathroom bill” lawmakers enacted and sued them over laws that eroded his powers. Those clashes set a tone of distrust that wasn’t eliminated during his eight years at the job. Cooper is now running for the U.S. Senate.

While Stein also has sued over GOP power grabs, he’s needed good relations with Republicans on storm relief and other topics. He’s speaking regularly with new Republican House Speaker Destin Hall, longtime Senate leader Phil Berger and other legislators.

“We have di erences with him on certain policies and certain processes,” Berger said recently. But, he added, “I would say that there’s still what I would consider to be a very good relationship on a personal basis with Gov. Stein.”

Stein, himself a lawmaker until 2016, has shared credit with Republicans, inviting them to signings of bipartisan bills. Last week, Stein named a GOP legislator to co-chair an energy a ordability task force.

There “was a lot of fatigue from the last eight years, of everything was a battle,” said state Rep. Jake Johnson, another Republican. “It felt like you were just having to ght to get anything done.”

Partisan divisions remain

By North Carolina standards, Stein still has used his veto stamp frequently — 15 times so far.

He rejected measures that would expand gun access and eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

“Because you respect the people you deal with, because you’re civil with the people you

deal with, doesn’t mean you don’t have real disagreements,” Stein said. “When they pass legislation that makes the state less safe or less strong, I’ll veto them.” Berger said the vetoes prove Stein is more left-leaning than he’s portrayed himself to be. Democrats hold the minimum number of seats necessary to uphold Stein’s vetoes if they remain united. But Stein was unable to hold them together on eight vetoes — as one to three House Democrats joined Republicans in voting to override them. Another major veto decision looms if there’s a nal state budget, now two months overdue.

“Stein has lost some big-time issues” this year, Meredith College political science professor David McLennan said. “But it doesn’t mean that he’s not a successful governor in his rst year.”

The Democratic National Committee earlier threatened to sue the state elections board, worried that any plan would remove people from lists of eligible voters in federal elections. Party attorney Dan Freeman last week called the agreement details a “huge victory for the DNC and, more importantly, our democracy.” Separate from the consent agreement are an additional 98,000 registered voters who have provided a required ID number but it has not been validated by a government database. That could happen because a person changed their name when they got married, or because the number was entered wrongly into the state’s registration system.

The state elections board voted along party lines last month to require this group to cast provisional ballots until their ID numbers were validated. The board, meeting again Monday, instead agreed unanimously these voters can keep casting regular ballots as long as they have shown an ID at the polls, in keeping with state law.

Visiting areas damaged by Helene

Stein’s latest trip to western North Carolina marked his 34th separate day spent in the region as governor, re ecting a promise to rebuild “a more resilient region for the long haul.”

“A lot of the job is showing up,” said Chuck McGrady, a former Republican legislator from the mountains. “He is meeting with a wide range of people, and I think he’s gotten very high grades from folks, regardless of their politics.”

Helene’s recovery began during presidential and gubernatorial campaigns and prompted accusations by Trump and allied Republicans that the response from Democratic administrations was weak.

Stein included Johnson and McGrady, now an una liated voter, on a recovery committee. And he created a recovery agency separate from a Cooper-era o ce criticized for housing repair delays after hurricanes Matthew and Florence. Stein met Trump when the president visited the hard-hit region during his rst days in o ce. Stein said this week he’s seeking an additional $11.5 billion in aid from Congress. His administration says nancial assistance received so far from the federal government as a percentage of total damages and needs is small compared with what was provided after other recent U.S. hurricanes.

A White House spokesperson responded, saying the “request is evidence that he is un t to run a state.” Other Republicans previously said Stein’s administration hasn’t converted what money it’s received to repairs fast enough.

Stein still thinks he can get his messages across without trying to show anybody up.

“I think you can disagree with folks and still be civil, and so when I have concerns about what the administration is doing, I have no hesitation to say what I believe when it hurts North Carolina,” he said.

STEIN

CHRIS CARLSON / AP PHOTO

North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein hugs Brevard Mayor Maureen Copelof at the Land of Sky

Council’s event Aug. 20 in Fletcher.

THE CONVERSATION

Trip Ho end, publisher | Frank Hill, senior opinion editor

COLUMN | VICTOR JOECKS

In defense of praying after tragedy

Leftists obsess over microaggressions, but they have no issue with their leaders mocking Christians.

THOSE WHO DENIGRATE prayer after mass shootings reveal their own ignorance.

Last month, a man red more than 100 rounds into a Catholic church in Minneapolis. He was targeting students attending a back-to -school Mass. Tragically, he killed two children and injured 18 others. He then killed himself.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey rushed to the scene and promptly criticized Christians.

“Don’t just say this is about thoughts and prayers right now,” he said. “These kids were literally praying. It was the rst week of school. They were in a church.”

“Enough with the thoughts and prayers,”

Jen Psaki, former White House press secretary, wrote on X.

In response to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defending those “who believe in the power of prayer,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom wrote on X, “These children were literally praying as they got shot at.”

Leftists obsess over microaggressions, but they have no issue with their leaders mocking Christians after Christian children were murdered for being in a Christian church.

Despite the condescension, this is an objection worth addressing.

One reason Christians pray is that there isn’t anything physically we can do in many tragic situations. But we can appeal to the God of the universe. He can

COLUMN | STEVE MILLOY

protect responding o cers. He can heal the wounded and guide the doctors caring for them. He can comfort the broken-hearted. He can supernaturally intervene in ways we can’t. And of course, a police o cer on the scene shouldn’t only respond in prayer.

If you don’t believe in God, that may seem silly. Fine. But you should understand why Christians pray.

There’s another contention in these statements, too: Prayer failed and, by extension, so did God. The shooter even wrote, “Where is your God” on one of the magazines for his ri e.

Anyone drawing this conclusion is unaware of the Bible and church history.

Jesus, God’s only begotten Son, lived a perfect life yet died on a cross while facing similar taunts: “He saved others, but he can’t save himself.”

Yet those mockers didn’t see what was happening right in front of them. On the cross, Jesus paid the penalty that you and I deserve for our sin. On the third day, God raised him from the dead. Jesus’ sacri ce o ers salvation to those who confess him as Lord and believe God raised him from the dead.

What looked to human eyes like the ultimate failure was God’s plan to save mankind — and o er a hope that pain and death can’t diminish.

“I consider that our present su erings are

not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us,” Paul wrote in Romans 8.

Those families in Minneapolis weren’t the rst Christians to su er greatly. Most of the apostles were martyred for their faith. In the Roman Empire, Christians were cruci ed, burned, thrown to the lions and otherwise tortured. Since 2009, Islamists have killed more than 50,000 Christians in Nigeria.

What’s remarkable are the many stories of Christians facing their deaths with calmness, joy or even song.

In 202 or 203 A.D., a group of Christians was arrested for their faith. After being sentenced to a gruesome death, Perpetua, a young mother, wrote in her diary, “We returned to prison in high spirits.”

A narrator continued the tale. The day before their deaths, they spoke to the mob, “stressing the joy they would have in their su ering.” As she and the other martyrs died, she urged others to “stand fast in the faith and love one another.”

Nonbelievers may assume that the earthly su ering of God’s followers diminishes Him. It doesn’t, and it hasn’t for 2,000 years. Even though I often fail to live this truth out well, our hope isn’t in this world.

And when tragedy makes that hard to remember, it’s time to pray.

Victor Joecks is a columnist for the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Pulling the plug on liberal org’s dark money empire

Calling Arabella a consulting rm is like calling a casino a “hospitality business.”

THE GATES FOUNDATION’S sudden $450 million divorce from Arabella Advisors isn’t about e ciency or building deeper relationships or any of the sanitized language trotted out by both sides. This is about optics and the uncomfortable fact that America’s largest philanthropic foundation could no longer deny the political risk — and stench — of being linked to a Democratic Party dark money slush fund masquerading as “philanthropy.”

Calling Arabella a consulting rm is like calling a casino a “hospitality business.” At its core, Arabella manages a staggering web of seven shadowy nonpro t shells whose primary function is to funnel untraceable left-wing cash where donors want it, all while insulating them from scrutiny and public accountability.

For years, the Gates Foundation stood as one of Arabella’s biggest customers. Nearly half a billion dollars was shunted through opaque intermediaries, keeping campaign cash and progressive pet projects owing, hidden from the public ledger and protected with layers of legal and PR camou age.

Arabella is not a grassroots facilitator; it is a private-equity-owned revenue machine, churning more than $60 million in management fees in a single year and orchestrating the single largest source of Democratic dark money ever exposed. In the 2020 and 2022 election cycles, Arabella’s funds handled a combined $5.4 billion, outstripping even the national party committees and powering every recent leftwing victory at the local, state, and federal level. Its pop-up groups appear spontaneous but are simply billionaires’ cash disguised as local activism. “Fiscal sponsorship” is the smokescreen for a complex money shu e, making possible everything from manipulating election o ces with “Zuck

Bucks” to installing political operatives under the banner of civic engagement.

Even left-leaning media are sounding alarm bells, branding Arabella “the indisputable heavyweight of Democratic dark money” and “an opaque network” moving untold sums through chains of groups supporting partisan causes. For all Arabella’s protestations about merely providing “operational supports,” the company’s seven “sister” nonpro ts are deeply engaged in donor management, grantmaking, political funding, and lobbying on behalf of causes that suit the Democratic machine.

So why did Gates nally scramble for the exit? In truth, mounting risk and the threat of exposure forced the foundation’s hand.

With President Donald Trump back in power and regulatory scrutiny intensifying, the foundation realized that continuing business with Arabella would turn toxic in a climate bent on rooting out dark money networks. Gates Foundation spokespeople tried to spin it as a back-to-basics decision focused on direct relationships with partners, but anyone following the details knows better. Even as media tiptoe around the facts, insiders admit Arabella’s brand is so politically radioactive that nonpro ts now fear losing their Gates funding. Now they are scrambling to exit the shell game before it collapses.

Nonpro ts dependent on Gates and Arabella now face a harsh reality. They must nd new sponsors or lose generous funding, as order comes down from the top for early exits and grant freezes. The supposed civil society boom fueled by Arabella’s billions now reveals itself as a top-down, donordriven masquerade, propped up by a handful of mega-donors and their money-laundering operatives.

With Gates pulling support, Arabella’s engine for left-wing activism faces a severe

blow — and the entire donor class gets a clear warning. If Gates won’t camou age Democratic dark money, others may soon follow, leaving Arabella – and the billions it recycles year after year – dangling in public view and shrinking by the day.

For years, Arabella’s front groups have championed transparency only to pervert its meaning by funding political movements and electoral schemes with hidden cash that undermines genuine political accountability. Gates has helped nance this spectacle for nearly two decades, but when reality nally lifted the veil, even the richest donor in America realized exposure wasn’t worth the price.

If the Gates Foundation, with all its billions and elite access, nally admits the political cost of laundering money through Arabella is too high, every donor with even a shred of integrity should follow suit.

The era in which the left could count on anonymous billionaires to bankroll a fake grassroots revolution may at long last be coming to an end. The sooner these dark money machines are shut o , the closer America gets to genuine political accountability — and an end to the hypocrisy that lies at the rotten core of progressive philanthropy.

Steve Milloy is a biostatistician and lawyer, and he publishes JunkScience.com. This column was rst published by Daily Caller News Foundation.

Duke University pilot project examining pros, cons of using arti cial intelligence in college

Faculty and students adapting as AI tools become prevalent

By Lucas Lin and Ananya Pinnameneni The Chronicle via AP

DURHAM — As generative arti cial intelligence tools like ChatGPT have become increasingly prevalent in academic settings, faculty and students have been forced to adapt.

The debut of OpenAI's ChatGPT in 2022 spread uncertainty across the higher education landscape. Many educators scrambled to create new guidelines to prevent academic dishonesty from becoming the norm in academia, while some emphasized the strengths of AI as a learning aid.

As part of a new pilot with OpenAI, all Duke undergraduate students, as well as sta , faculty and students across the University's professional schools, gained free, unlimited access to ChatGPT-4o beginning June 2. The University also announced DukeGPT, a University-managed AI interface that connects users to resources for learning and research and ensures "maximum privacy and robust data protection."

Duke launched a new Provost's Initiative to examine the opportunities and challenges AI brings to student life on May 23. The initiative will foster campus discourse on the use of AI tools and present recommendations in a report by the end of the fall 2025 semester.

The Chronicle spoke to faculty members and students to understand how generative AI is changing the classroom.

Embraced or banned

Although some professors are embracing AI as a learning aid, others have implemented blanket bans and expressed caution regarding the implications of AI on problem solving and critical thinking.

David Carlson, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering, took a "lenient" approach to AI usage in the classroom. In his machine learning course, the primary learning objective is to utilize these tools to understand and analyze data.

Carlson permits his students to use generative AI as long as they are transparent about their purpose for using the technology.

"You take credit for all of (ChatGPT's) mistakes, and you can use it to support whatever you do," Carlson said.

He added that although AI tools are "not awless," they can help provide useful secondary explanations of lectures and readings.

Matthew Engelhard, assistant

professor of biostatistics and bioinformatics, said he also adopted "a pretty hands-o approach" by encouraging the use of AI tools in his classroom.

"My approach is not to say you can't use these di erent tools," Engelhard said. "It's actually to encourage it, but to make sure that you're working with these tools interactively, such that you understand the content."

Engelhard emphasized that the use of these tools should not prevent students from learning the fundamental principles "from the ground up." Engelhard noted that students, under the pressure to perform, have incentives to rely on AI as a shortcut. However, he said using such tools might be "short-circuiting the learning process for yourself." He likened generative AI tools to calculators, highlighting that relying on a calculator hinders one from learning how addition works.

Like Engelhard, Thomas Pfau, Alice Mary Baldwin distinguished professor of English, believes that delegating learning to generative AI means students may lose the ability to evaluate the process and validity of receiving information.

"If you want to be a good athlete, you would surely not try to have someone else do the working out for you," Pfau said.

Pfau recognized the role of generative AI in the STEM elds, but he believes that such technologies have no place in the humanities, where "questions of interpretation … are really at stake." When students rely on AI to complete a sentence or nish an essay for them, they risk "losing (their)

voice." He added that AI use defeats the purpose of a university education, which is predicated on cultivating one's personhood. Henry Pickford, professor of German studies and philosophy, said that writing in the humanities serves the dual function of fostering "self-discovery" and "self-expression" for students. But with increased access to AI tools, Pickford believes students will treat writing as "discharging a duty" rather than working through intellectual challenges. "(Students) don't go through any kind of self-transformation in terms of what they believe or why they believe it," Pickford said. Additionally, the use of ChatGPT has broadened opportunities for plagiarism in his classes, leading him to adopt a stringent AI policy.

Faculty echoed similar concerns at an Aug. 4 Academic Council meeting, including Professor of History Jocelyn Olcott, who said that students who learn to use AI without personally exploring more "humanistic questions" risk being "replaced" by the technology in the future.

How faculty are adapting to generative AI

Many of the professors The Chronicle interviewed expressed di culty in discerning whether students have used AI on standard assignments. Some are resorting to a range of alternative assessment methods to mitigate potential AI usage.

Carlson, who shared that he has trouble detecting student AI use in written or coding assignments, has introduced oral presentations to class projects,

“It’s

very helpful in that it can explain concepts that are lled with jargon in a way that you can understand very well.”

Keshav Varadarajan, Duke junior

which he described as "very hard to fake."

Pickford has also incorporated oral assignments into his class, including having students present arguments through spoken defense. He has also added in-class exams to lectures that previously relied solely on papers for grading.

"I have deemphasized the use of the kind of writing assignments that invite using ChatGPT because I don't want to spend my time policing," Pickford said.

However, he recognized that ChatGPT can prove useful in generating feedback throughout the writing process, such as when evaluating whether one's outline is well-constructed.

A “tutor that's next to you every single second”

Students noted that AI chatbots can serve as a supplemental tool to learning, but they also cautioned against over-relying on such technologies.

Junior Keshav Varadarajan said he uses ChatGPT to outline and structure his writing, as well as generate code and algorithms.

"It's very helpful in that it can explain concepts that are

Conservative news network Newsmax les antitrust lawsuit against Fox News

The company alleges its news rival uses intimidation to sti e competition

By David Bauder The Associated Press

NEW YORK — The conservative news network Newsmax led an antitrust lawsuit against Fox News last Wednesday, saying Fox has sought to maintain its market dominance through intimidation and exclusionary business practices designed to sti e competition.

Fox has sought to block television distributors from carrying Newsmax or minimize its exposure, pressured guests not to appear on the rival network and hired private detectives to investigate Newsmax executives, said the lawsuit, led in U.S. District Court in south Florida. Newsmax seeks a jury trial. Fox, in a statement, said “Newsmax cannot sue their way

out of their own competitive failures in the marketplace to chase headlines simply because they can’t attract viewers.” Newsmax, which has operated since 2014, is attacking Fox News at perhaps its most popular

point: the cable network’s opinion programming has consistently beaten broadcast networks ABC, CBS and NBC in prime time over the summer months. Its rivals pointed at a series of hardball business tactics in

lled with jargon in a way that you can understand very well," Varadarajan said. Varadarajan has found it di cult at times to internalize concepts when utilizing ChatGPT because "you just go straight from the problem to the answer" without paying much thought to the problem. Varadarajan acknowledged that while AI can provide shortcuts at times, students should ultimately bear the responsibility for learning and performing critical thinking tasks.

For junior Conrad Qu, ChatGPT is like a "tutor that's next to you every single second." He said that generative AI has improved his productivity and helped him better understand course materials.

Both Varadarajan and Qu agreed that AI chatbots come in handy during time crunches or when trying to complete tasks with little e ort. However, they said they avoid using AI when it comes to content they are genuinely interested in exploring deeper.

"If it is something I care about, I will go back and really try to understand everything (and) relearn myself," Qu said.

The future of generative AI in the classroom

As generative AI technologies continue evolving, faculty members have yet to reach consensus on AI's role in higher education and whether its bene ts for students outweigh the costs.

"To me, it's very clear that it's a net positive," Carlson said. "Students are able to do more. Students are able to get support for things like debugging ... It makes a lot of things like coding and writing less frustrating."

Pfau is less optimistic about generative AI's development, raising concerns that the next generation of high school graduates will be too accustomed to chatbots coming into the college classroom. He added that many students nd themselves at a "competitive disadvantage" when the majority of their peers are utilizing such tools.

Pfau placed the responsibility on students to decide whether the use of generative AI will contribute to their intellectual growth.

"My hope remains that students will have enough self-respect and enough curiosity about discovering who they are, what their gifts are, what their aptitudes are," Pfau said. "... something we can only discover if we apply ourselves and not some AI system to the tasks that are given to us."

This story was originally published by The Chronicle and distributed through a partnership with The Associated Press.

“Fox’s behavior represents a textbook abuse of monopoly power.”

Michael J. Guzman, Newsmax lawyer

the complex world of television distribution. Fox’s success enables it to charge distributors “outsized” fees to carry the network, and it tries to force distributors either not to carry competitors who seek access to conservative viewers or make it hard to nd them.

Fox has also tried to deliberately block Newsmax from growing platforms like Hulu, Sling and Fubo, the complaint alleged.

“Fox’s behavior represents a textbook abuse of monopoly power,” said Newsmax lawyer Michael J. Guzman. “The law is clear: competition, not coercion, should decide what news channels Americans can watch. By leveraging its must-have status, Fox has blocked new voices, suppressed consumer choice, and extracted excess pro ts.”

The lawsuit alleges Fox used an agency to set up social media accounts that attacked Newsmax CEO Chris Ruddy, and hired private detectives to investigate Newsmax executives.

“Since the inception of Newsmax’s cable channel, Newsmax has faced threats and smear intimidation tactics to hurt or undermine the company and its executives,” the lawsuit said.

When Newsmax confronted Fox regarding anti-competitive conduct, Fox News responded, “welcome to the big leagues,” the lawsuit said.

Newsmax has never approached Fox News in ratings power, but court papers in lawsuits following the 2020 election revealed that Fox executives became greatly concerned that its rival would take advantage of viewer dissatisfaction following President Donald Trump’s election loss.

“Fox may have pro ted from exclusionary tactics and intimidation tactics for years, but those days are over,” Ruddy said in a statement.

GERRY BROOME / AP PHOTO

Duke University is part of a new pilot program with OpenAI’s ChatGPT.

SETH WENIG / AP PHOTO

A display shows a Newsmax logo on the day of their IPO on the oor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York on March 31.

Forsyth SPORTS

ACC, power conferences make their claim of Friday night games

The league has 12 Friday night games on this year’s schedule

By Aaron Beard The Associated Press

THERE IS ADDED zip for Louisville linebacker TJ Quinn when it comes to playing a Friday night game.

“It’s all eyes on us, and I like that,” Quinn said.

And these days, there’s a lot more chances in the Atlantic Coast Conference and across the power conferences, for that matter.

Friday nights have gone from being largely about high school football, then mid-majors and Group of Five conferences, to now another showcase for the country’s biggest leagues. The ACC has 12 Friday games this season to tie last year’s league record, while the number of those games have also increased in the Big Ten, Big 12 and the Southeastern conferences.

The leagues have marched toward those TV slots, many vacated by the Pac-12 after most of that league’s schools scattered to the ACC, Big 12 and Big Ten. The NFL has a game this Friday, too, though that’s a rarity during college football season.

The ACC started its run of Friday night games in Week 1 with Georgia Tech’s win at Colorado and Wake Forest holding o Kennesaw State.

The 2025 schedule includes No. 14 Florida State visiting Virginia (Sept. 26) and NC State (Nov. 21); UNC and new coach Bill Belichick crossing the country to face California (Oct. 17) and visiting Syracuse (Oct. 31); and No. 4 Georgia’s trip to Georgia Tech to cap the regular-season schedule (Nov. 28).

“You have to continue to modernize how you’re looking at scheduling,” ACC Commissioner

Jim Phillips said in an interview with The Associated Press. “You have to be honest with yourself about the compression that exists now on Saturdays with the number of games and the number of quality teams that are playing all over. So there’s a limited number of windows, and you have a terri c partner with ESPN.

“Friday night has become something that people are now expecting to see football. ... So nothing stays the same in life. And we’re going to be aggressive there.”

The new norm

To Phillips’ point, look at the most important event on the sport’s calendar: the College Football Playo . Last year’s rst expanded 12-team format began with Notre Dame’s home win against Indiana, the rst time the tradition-rich football independent had hosted a Friday night game.

That’s one of six Friday games in the CFP since its launch in the 2014 season, which o ers a snapshot of how much things have changed when it comes to those Friday TV windows.

That year, the Pac-12 had eight Friday regular-season

games, while the ACC had four, the Big Ten had two, and the Big 12 and SEC each had one. That power conference total (16) was less than half that of the Group of Five conferences at the Bowl Subdivision level — the American, Conference USA, Mid-American, Mountain West and Sun Belt conferences — combined for 43 that year.

But things have changed amid realignment and the formation of super-sized conferences at the top of the sport.

Beyond the ACC’s 12 Friday games, the Big Ten has 13 a year after a record 15. The Big 12 has 12 and the SEC has four, both all-time highs. And while there is some overlap with interleague matchups, that combined total (41) exceeds that of the Group of Five (34) for the third straight year.

It’s also a sign of how the business of college football has reached into days once considered sacrosanct for high school games.

“I wish there’s something I could do instead there,” Phillips said. “But I’m hoping with the announcement of when games are, that maybe those areas that are hosting those games, maybe there’s an alternative for Friday night football.”

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK

John Evans Jr.

Reagan, football

John Evans Jr. is a sophomore running back on the Reagan football team.

The Raiders beat Reidsville 35-0 to move to 3-0 on the year. Evans gained 181 yards on 21 carries, scoring three touchdowns. He also caught two passes for 50 yards.

The win was signi cant for the two touchdowns in the game Evans didn’t produce. They were the rst scores this season by a Raider other than Evans. He scored both touchdowns in a 14-0 win over Mount Tabor in the opener (gaining 260 yards) and the only touchdown in a 7-6 win over Oak Grove (gaining 89).

Hamlin advances in Cup Series playo s at Gateway

The driver’s 59th career win came from the pole and is No. 200 for Toyota

The Associated Press

MADISON, Ill. — Nothing seems to distract Denny Hamlin, and the NASCAR star proved it again with a laser-focused victory at World Wide Technology Raceway on Sunday to advance in the Cup Series playo s.

After a week in which his father was ailing and his 23XI Racing team lost a decision in its court battle with NASCAR, Hamlin compartmentalized his concerns and stayed on task for a virtually awless weekend, starting from the pole position

and leading a race-high 75 of 240 laps.

“I just step up,” Hamlin said after his series-high fth victory this season. “All I can do is just keep being a student of the game, keep trying to get better, and every week is a chance to get a little better.”

With his 59th career win, Hamlin advanced to the second round of the playo s and joined Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Chase Briscoe, who nished second after winning last week’s opener at Darlington Raceway. Chase Elliott nished third, followed by Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano as playo drivers swept the top ve spots at the 1.25-mile oval.

The No. 11 Toyota team called Hamlin to the pits for his -

nal stop with 44 laps remaining, and he cycled to the front on a caution 15 laps later. The Virginia native seized the lead from Brad Keselowski on the restart, delivering the 200th win in NASCAR’s premier series for Toyota.

The Joe Gibbs Racing star celebrated with a long burnout down the front stretch of the track outside St. Louis that is commonly referred to as Gateway, bringing boos raining down from a sellout crowd to Hamlin’s delight.

“You all can boo me, but you can either get on the bandwagon or get run over by it,” he said. “I want all the noise and all the heat.”

Relishing life as a NASCAR villain is one of many roles be -

“You all can boo me, but you can either get on the bandwagon or get run over by it. I want all the noise and all the heat.”

Denny Hamlin

ing lled by the multitasking Hamlin, who also co-hosts a podcast while running 23XI Racing, the three-car team that he co-owns with NBA legend Michael Jordan.

It’s had little impact on the on-track performance for Hamlin, who is in his 20th Cup season driving for team owner Joe Gibbs. At Gateway, he became

the seventh driver in Cup Series history with multiple victories after his 700th start.

Team owner Joe Gibbs marvels at how Hamlin, who turns 45 in November and welcomed his third child in June, is able to juggle so much.

“He’s in one meeting after another,” Gibbs said with a laugh. “The more stu he does, the better o he is. He’s got a real drive to succeed.”

The ultimate prize would be a rst Cup championship, and Hamlin took another step toward that goal by locking into the next round ahead of the Sept. 13 race at Bristol Motor Speedway. The rst-round cuto race will trim the playo eld from 16 to 12 drivers.

SHAFFER BROUGHTON FOR NORTH STATE JOURNAL

Wake Forest takes the eld for its Friday night season opener against Kennesaw State.

Denny Hamlin, second from left, celebrates after winning Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at World Wide Technology Raceway.

SIDELINE REPORT

NFL Eagles’ Carter apologizes following ejection for spitting on Cowboys’ Prescott

Philadelphia Philadelphia defensive tackle Jalen Carter apologized after he was ejected for spitting on Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott moments after the Eagles’ pregame Super Bowl championship celebration. Carter was tossed for unsportsmanlike conduct six seconds into Philadelphia’s 24 -20 victory. The Eagles were hit with a 15-yard penalty before the rst snap from scrimmage. Prescott and Carter exchanged words after the opening kicko , and Carter spit on Prescott’s jersey. Fans booed as Carter walked o slowly, holding his helmet in his hands behind his back. Carter apologized after the game.

NCAA FOOTBALL

NCAA committee recommends eliminating spring transfer window

The NCAA’s FBS Oversight Committee has recommended eliminating the spring transfer window and having just a 10-day window starting Jan. 2. The committee is also proposing that December be a recruiting dead period. The Division I Administrative Committee must approve these changes, with a vote expected before Oct. 1. FBS coaches unanimously supported the January portal proposal earlier this year. If implemented, the changes would allow coaches to focus more on coaching during bowl season. The spring portal period had many players and coaches juggling transfers and spring practice.

NBA Clippers owner

Ballmer welcomes NBA probe, says he wasn’t involved in Leonard deal Los Angeles Los Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer welcomes the NBA’s investigation into alleged salary cap rule violations. He denies involvement in a $28 million endorsement deal between Kawhi Leonard and a sustainability company. Ballmer said he would want the NBA to investigate any team accused of similar violations. He introduced Leonard to Aspiration Fund Adviser LLC, a company he once invested in, which is now bankrupt. The Clippers denied breaking any rules. The NBA could impose penalties if violations are found. The Clippers ended their partnership with Aspiration after two years due to contractual default.

WNBA

Reese suspended by Sky for half for comments “detrimental to the team”

Chicago Angel Reese was suspended by the Chicago Sky for the rst half of the team’s game against Las Vegas for comments “detrimental to the team.” Reese already missed the team’s game last Friday because of a mandatory one-game suspension by the WNBA for picking up her eighth technical foul of the season. The two-time All-Star voiced her frustrations with the franchise, saying she “might have to move in a di erent direction and do what’s best for me” if the team doesn’t improve its outlook. She walked back those comments. She had already apologized to the team.

Carter’s ejection from Eagles’ opener was latest saliva-driven dismissal

Hall of Famers have also been involved in spitting controversies

By Dave Campbell The Associated Press

JUST SIX SECONDS into the new NFL season, Jalen Carter was already on his way out.

The kicko game in Philadelphia started with a real mouth-watering moment.

Carter left the defending champion Eagles hanging when he was ejected for spitting at Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, a saliva-driven dismissal from the eld that became the latest addition to an infamous list of the ultimate displays of disrespect in sports. The Pro Bowl defensive tackle was tossed for unsportsmanlike conduct, part of the league’s push to crack down on taunting.

Carter, who could receive further discipline from the NFL, was contrite after the game in acknowledging regret and responsibility for his act. As Carter talked trash toward the Cowboys as they huddled before the rst play from scrimmage, Prescott stepped forward and — as he recounted later — spit on the turf to clear his mouth and avoid hitting his own linemen. Carter, who was several yards away, took that as a slight and retaliated.

“It was a mistake that hap -

pened on my side. It won’t happen again,” Carter said. “I feel bad for just my teammates and fans out there.”

The expectations for expectorate etiquette are generally high in any organized society, with kids taught from young ages that spitting on or at others is simply not OK. Hence such strong reactions to seeing a person targeted by projectile saliva, let alone being on the receiving end.

Why, there’s even an entire episode of Seinfeld that aired in 1992 centering around spit, when mischievous oddballs Kramer and Newman chide friend Elaine for her new relationship with former New York Mets rst baseman Keith Hernandez because they believed he once spit at them as they heckled him for a costly error after attending a game. Hernandez later revealed to them that teammate Roger McDowell was responsible.

Here’s a glance at some other memorable spitting incidents in sports.

Luis Suárez, soccer

During a postgame tussle following the testy Leagues Cup nal won by the Seattle Sounders, Inter Miami forward Luis Suárez spit toward a Sounders sta member and grabbed a Seattle player by the neck. Suárez has long been an international standout

“It was a mistake that happened on my side. It won’t happen again,”

for Uruguay with a checkered pattern of behavior, including three separate bans for biting opponents over his career.

Suárez issued an apology and was handed a six-match suspension.

Victor Hanescu, tennis

After being heckled throughout his third-round match at Wimbledon in 2010, Victor Hanescu lost his cool in the fth set and spit at the taunting fans in the crowd. The Romanian was ned $15,000 by tournament o cials.

Terrell Owens, football

Triggered by the constant trash talk from DeAngelo Hall during a game in 2006, mercurial Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Terrell Owens spit in the face of the Atlanta Falcons cornerback and was ned $35,000 by the NFL.

Bill Romanowski, football

After television replays clearly showed him spitting on San Francisco 49ers wide

receiver J.J. Stokes during a Monday night game in 1997,ery Denver Broncos linebacker Bill Romanowski was ned $7,500 by the NFL.

“Sometimes when emotion is high, logic is low, and I did something that is totally unacceptable,” Romanowski said afterward.

The feud was rekindled when the two teams played three years later and Romanowski ripped Stokes for not ghting back after he spit on him.

Roberto Alomar, baseball

After being called out on a third strike in a game in 1996, Baltimore Orioles second baseman Roberto Alomar screamed at home plate umpire John Hirschbeck and spit in his face during the argument. Alomar received a ve-game suspension. The two later made amends, and Hirschbeck was one of the rst people to congratulate Alomar for his election to the Hall of Fame.

Charles Barkley, basketball

The NBA suspended Philadelphia 76ers star Charles Barkley for one game and ned him $10,000 in 1991 after he lost his temper and spit at a heckler in a courtside seat, only to hit an 8-year-old girl who was sitting behind the man instead.

Alcaraz beats rival Sinner at the U.S. Open

The win gives him a 6th Slam title and the No. 1 ranking

By Howard Fendrich The Associated Press

NEW YORK — So maybe the rst U.S. Open nal between young rivals Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner wasn’t as long, riveting and dramatic as their matchup to decide the championship at the French Open. Perhaps it wasn’t as seemingly meaningful and plot-driven as their showdown for the Wimbledon trophy.

Still, what the No. 2-seeded Alcaraz’s 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 victory over No. 1 Sinner on Sunday did do was signi cant. Alcaraz reasserted his superiority over the defending champion, wrested away the top spot in the ATP rankings and left tennis fans eager for whenever their next clash will come.

They are the rst two men in the sport’s history to face each other in three consecutive Grand Slam nals within a single season.

“I’m seeing you more than my family,” Alcaraz joked during the trophy ceremony, eliciting a grin from Sinner.

“It’s great to share the court, to share the locker rooms, everything.”

This 2-hour, 42-minute win

gave Alcaraz, a 22-year-old from Spain, leads over Sinner, a 24-year-old from Italy, of 10-5 in their head-to-head series, 6-4 in total Grand Slam trophies, and 2-1 in U.S. Open championships.

“I give lots of credit to him, because he handled the situation better than I did,” said Sinner, who lamented that his own play was too predictable. “He raised his level when he had to.”

Right from the beginning, under a closed roof because of rain earlier in the day, Sinner was outplayed by Alcaraz.

“You were better than me,” Sinner said. “I tried my best today. I couldn’t do more.”

This hard-court matchup followed Alcaraz’s victory over Sinner across 51⁄2 hours after erasing a trio of match points on the red clay at Roland-Garros in June, and Sinner’s victory over two-time reigning champ Alcaraz on the grass at the All England Club in July.

“The things ... I did well in London,” Sinner said, “he did better today.”

These guys are so, so much better than the rest of men’s tennis at the moment. Their traits are unique, their strengths multiple, their games untouchable.

They have combined to collect the past eight Slam trophies — four each — and 10 of 13. Novak Djokovic, the

24 -time major champ elim-

inated by Alcaraz on Friday, took the other three.

Both Sinner, who had won his past 27 hard-court matches at majors, and Alcaraz offered glimpses Sunday of why they are so good, although it was rare that both were at a peak simultaneously.

Alcaraz, who ended up with twice as many winners, 42-21, was superb in the rst, third and fourth sets; Sinner’s top

“I’m seeing you more than my family.”

e orts arrived in the second. During his defeat at Wimbledon, Alcaraz was caught by a camera telling his team in Spanish: “From the back of the court, he’s much better than me.”

Perhaps that’s why Alcaraz was aggressive Sunday with his sledgehammer of a forehand. Whenever the smallest opening presented itself, Alcaraz barged through with that shot, going big early in points, which often worked. Sinner had dropped a total of one service game in his preceding three matches, but Alcaraz broke right away Sunday and ve times in all.

An hour and 20 minutes in, it was a set apiece, after Alcaraz ceded one for the rst time all tournament, allowing Neale Fraser to retain his distinction as the most recent man to win every set he played at the event — in 1960. These numbers say as much about Alcaraz as they do Sinner: Over the last two seasons, Sinner is 1-7 against Alcaraz — and 109-4 against everyone else.

FRANK FRANKLIN II / AP PHOTO

Carlos Alcaraz reacts after defeating Jannik Sinner to win the men’s singles nal of the U.S. Open.

Carlos Alcaraz to Jannik Sinner

Jalen Carter

Philadelphia Eagles’ Jalen Carter walks o the eld after being ejected from the NFL opening game.

the stream

‘Only Murders in the Building’ returns, Charlie Sheen doc, ‘The Girlfriend’ thrills

Ed Sheeran drops “Play” on Friday

The Associated Press

“ONLY MURDERS in the Building” returning for its fth season and Ed Sheeran coming back with the new pop album “Play” are some of the new television, lms, music and games headed to a device near you.

Also, among the streaming o erings worth your time: The Net ix two-part documentary “AKA Charlie Sheen” chronicles the 60-year-old star’s up-anddown career, Robin Wright and Olivia Cooke star in a psychological thriller for Prime Video called “The Girlfriend” and R&B giant Ty Dolla $ign o ers his rst full-length album in half a decade.

MOVIES TO STREAM

The Net ix two-part documentary “AKA Charlie Sheen” chronicles the 60-year-old star’s up-and-down career, from “Wall Street” to “winning.” The lm, now available on the streaming service, features candid interviews with Sheen, along with many friends and co-stars. Andrew Renzi (“Pepsi, Where’s My Jet?”) directs.

Clouds of IED smoke and cries of agony ll Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza’s harrowing lm, “Warfare” (HBO Max on Friday) with little but the faces of its Navy SEALs to ground the nearly real-time, based- on-a-true-story dramatization. The movie e ectively embeds viewers on a seemingly minor mission in Iraq in 2006. In her review, AP reviewer Lindsey Bahr wrote: “War-movie cliches have been rigorously rooted out of ‘Warfare,’ a terse and chillingly brutal immersion in a moment of the Iraq War.”

Andrew Ahn’s “The Wedding Banquet” (now on Paramount+) joyfully remakes and updates Ang Lee’s 1993 queer landmark lm. Ahn’s movie, starring Kelly Marie Tran, Lily Gladstone, Bowen Yang and Han Gi-chan, rebuilds Lee’s queer comedy of errors for a new generation. In her review, AP’s Lindsey Bahr praised the supporting performances by Youn Yuh-jung and Joan Chen but wished the lm

expressed more fun: “There’s a through-line about found families, but I’m not totally convinced that these people are great for each other.”

MUSIC TO STREAM

Sheeran returns with a new album on Friday, his eighth. titled “Play.” The release detours away from the acoustic introspection of his last release, 2023’s “Autumn Variations,” and instead of-

fers a kind of reserved pop music. “Azizam,” a Farsi word which translates to something approximating “my dear one,” is a cultural crossover hit; “A Little More” has a much-needed groove. It’s clear Sheeran is in it for a good time — and his loyal listeners will follow suit. Little has been made apparent about the highly anticipated, fourth studio album from R&B giant Ty Dolla $ign. Here’s what we do know:

“War-movie cliches have been rigorously rooted out of ‘Warfare,’ a terse and chillingly brutal immersion in a moment of the Iraq War.”

Lindsey Bahr, AP lm writer

It’s his rst full-length in half a decade, it arrives Friday, and the lead single, the infatuated “ALL IN,” includes an inspired sample of Wayne Wonder’s “No Letting Go.” It might be the end of summer, but that song is evidence that Ty is bringing the heat.

SERIES TO STREAM

“Only Murders in the Building” returns for its fth season on Hulu. The amateur sleuths Charles (Steve Martin), Mabel (Selena Gomez), and Oliver (Martin Short) begin the new episodes trying to gure out who murdered the doorman of their building.

Wright and Cooke star in a new psychological thriller for Prime Video called “The

Girlfriend.” Wright plays Laura, a very, very protective mother of her grown man son, Danny. Her internal alarm goes o when she meets Danny’s new girlfriend Cherry, played by Cooke. Cherry is a streetwise realtor who does not meet Laura’s standards for her son. Make no mistake, both women are unhinged. Each episode shows Laura and Cherry’s perspective, which is fun.

GAMES TO PLAY

VIDEO

Last year’s “Borderlands” movie bombed, but you can’t keep a popular franchise down. So Gearbox Software and 2K Games have returned with Borderlands 4, bringing its brash brand of comic violence back to where it belongs: your game console. It’s the apotheosis of the so-called “looter-shooter,” in which you shoot a lot of enemies and collect a lot of loot. In this chapter, you’ve landed on a prison planet ruled by a tyrant known as the Timekeeper. You must decide which rebel faction to join as well as which of the Timekeeper’s lieutenants you want to take down rst. You can play solo or join forces with up to three other Vault Hunters. Fight the power beginning Friday on PlayStation 5, Xbox X/S or PC.

JORDAN STRAUSS / INVISION / AP CONTENT SERVICES

Executive producers and actors Steve Martin, left, and Selena Gomez return for the fth season of “Only Murders in the Building” on Hulu.

SCOTT

British singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran drops his latest album, “Play,” on Friday.

NETFLIX / BLEEKER STREET / HBO MAX VIA AP

This combination of images shows promotional art for “aka Charlie Sheen,” from left, “The Wedding Banquet,” and “Warfare.”

STATE & NATION

Man accused of trying to assassinate Trump apologizes to potential jurors

Ryan Routh is representing himself as jury selection begins in his federal trial

By David Fischer The Associated Press

FORT PIERCE, Fla. — The man charged with trying to assassinate Donald Trump while he played golf last year in South Florida stood before a group of potential jurors in a Florida courtroom on Monday and said he was “sorry for bringing you all in here.”

Ryan Routh, wearing a gray sports coat, red tie with white stripes and khaki slacks, is representing himself in the trial that began with jury selection on Monday in the federal courthouse in Fort Pierce, Florida.

“Thank you for being here,” Routh told the rst group of 60 jurors who were brought into the courtroom after U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon introduced prosecutors and Routh to the panel.

Cannon signed o on Routh’s request to represent himself but said court-appointed attorneys needed to remain as standby counsel.

During a hearing earlier to go over questions that would be asked of jurors, Routh was partially shackled. But he did not appear to be restrained when the rst of three batches of 60

OFFICE VIA AP

potential jurors were brought into the courtroom on Monday afternoon.

Cannon dismissed the questions Routh wanted to ask jurors as irrelevant earlier Monday. They included asking jurors about their views on Gaza, the talk of the U.S. acquiring Greenland and what they would do if they were driving and saw a turtle in the road.

The judge approved most of the other questions for jurors submitted by prosecutors.

The panel of 120 potential jurors lled out questionnaires

on Monday morning and the rst group was brought into the courtroom during the afternoon session. The judge inquired about any hardships that would prevent them from sitting as jurors during a weekslong trial. Twenty-seven noted hardships and the judge dismissed 20 of them on Monday.

The other two groups of jurors will return to the courtroom on Tuesday morning for similar questioning. Those who are not dismissed will then return at 2 p.m. Tuesday for further questioning about the case and their views.

The court has blocked o four weeks for Routh’s trial, but attorneys are expecting they’ll need less time.

Jury selection was expected to take three days in an e ort to nd 12 jurors and four alternates. Opening statements were scheduled to begin Thursday, and prosecutors will begin their case immediately after that.

Cannon told Routh last week that he would be allowed to use a podium while speaking to the jury or questioning witnesses, but he would not have free rein of the courtroom.

Cannon is a Trump-appointed judge who drew scrutiny for her handling of a criminal case accusing Trump of illegally storing classi ed documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach. The case became mired

in delays as motions piled up over months, and was ultimately dismissed by Cannon last year after she concluded that the special counsel tapped by the Justice Department to investigate Trump was illegally appointed.

Routh’s trial begins nearly a year after prosecutors say a U.S. Secret Service agent thwarted Routh’s attempt to shoot the Republican presidential nominee. Routh, 59, has pleaded not guilty to charges of attempting to assassinate a major presidential candidate, assaulting a federal o cer and several rearm violations.

Just nine weeks earlier, Trump had survived another attempt on his life while campaigning in Pennsylvania. That gunman had red eight shots, with one bullet grazing Trump’s ear, before being shot by a Secret Service counter sniper.

Prosecutors have said Routh methodically plotted to kill Trump for weeks before aiming a ri e through the shrubbery as Trump played golf on Sept. 15, 2024, at his West Palm Beach country club. A Secret Service agent spotted Routh before Trump came into view. O cials said Routh aimed his ri e at the agent, who opened re, causing Routh to drop his weapon and ee without ring a shot.

Law enforcement obtained help from a witness who prosecutors said informed o cers

New Chicago immigration campaign prompts confusion as city braces for federal intervention

The Trump administration targets immigrants with criminal records in “Operation Midway Blitz”

By Sophia Tareen

The Associated Press

CHICAGO — The Department of Homeland Security trumpeted the start of a new immigration operation Monday in Chicago, stirring up fresh confusion and anxiety as the city remained on alert for a federal intervention President Donald Trump has touted for days.

Blasting so-called sanctuary laws in Chicago and Illinois, the latest e ort targets people without legal permission to live in the U.S. who have criminal records. Like other Trump administration plans, it was stamped with a splashy name, “Operation Midway Blitz,” and circulated on social media with the mugshots of 11 foreign-born men it said should be deported.

for an in ux of immigration agents and possibly the National Guard for two weeks. Numerous protests have cropped up downtown, outside a suburban military base DHS plans to use and at an immigration processing center that’s expected to be a hub of activity.

that he saw a person eeing. The witness was then own in a police helicopter to a nearby interstate where Routh was arrested, and the witnesses con rmed it was the person he had seen, prosecutors have said.

The judge last week unsealed the prosecutor’s 33-page list of exhibits that could be introduced as evidence at the trial. It says prosecutors have photos of Routh holding the same model of semi-automatic ri e found at Trump’s club.

Routh was a North Carolina construction worker who in recent years had moved to Hawaii. A self-styled mercenary leader, Routh spoke out to anyone who would listen about his dangerous, sometimes violent plans to insert himself into con icts around the world, witnesses have told The Associated Press.

In the early days of the war in Ukraine, Routh tried to recruit soldiers from Afghanistan, Moldova and Taiwan to ght the Russians. In his native Greensboro, he was arrested in 2002 for eluding a tra c stop and barricading himself from o cers with a fully automatic machine gun and a “weapon of mass destruction,” which turned out to be an explosive with a 10inch fuse.

In 2010, police searched a warehouse Routh owned and found more than 100 stolen items, from power tools and building supplies to kayaks and spa tubs. In both felony cases, judges gave Routh either probation or a suspended sentence. In addition to the federal charges, Routh also has pleaded not guilty to state charges of terrorism and attempted murder.

Monday’s announced program would play in a Chicago surge.

Adding to the confusion was a handful of immigration arrests over the weekend in Chicago, which galvanized the city’s vocal activist network and worries that it was the start of something bigger.

“This is about terrorizing our communities,” said Chicago City Council member Jeylú Gutiérrez said. “But we will not be intimidated.”

She and immigrant rights activists said that ve people arrested were “beloved community members.” Some were on their way to work when arrested Sunday. Another works as a ower vendor.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement con rmed four arrests but gave sparse information, noting criminal histories with previous arrests and one conviction for driving under the in uence.

“This ICE operation will target the criminal illegal aliens who ocked to Chicago and Illinois because they knew Governor (JB) Pritzker and his sanctuary policies would protect them and allow them to roam free on American streets,” said a statement from DHS.

Latino residents in the nation’s third-largest city.

Pritzker, who has been locked in a back-and-forth with Trump for days, criticized the move. He and Mayor Brandon Johnson have defended the state and city’s extensive sanctuary laws which bar coordination between local police and immigration agents. They’ve accused the Trump administration of using scare tactics, particularly with

“Once again, this isn’t about ghting crime. That requires support and coordination — yet we’ve experienced nothing like that over the past several weeks,” Pritzker said in a statement. “Instead of taking steps to work with us on public safety, the Trump administration’s focused on scaring Illinoisians.” Chicago has been bracing

Trump deployed the National Guard to Los Angeles over the summer and as part of his unprecedented law enforcement takeover in Washington, D.C., where he has direct legal control. For the federal intervention in Los Angeles, a judge deemed the National Guard deployment illegal, but the Trump administration got a victory related to immigration enforcement there when the U.S. Supreme Court lifted a restraining order barring agents there from stopping people solely based on their race, language, job or location.

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the Senate’s No. 2 Democrat, rejected the latest operation announced in Chicago.

“These actions don’t make us safer,” he said in a statement. “They are a waste of money, stoke fear, and represent another failed attempt at a distraction.” It remained unclear what role

“ICE has always operated in Chicago,” the agency said in a statement. “We will continue our law enforcement and public safety mission, undeterred, as we surge ICE resources in the city in coordination with our federal partners.”

DHS said the operation announced Monday would be in honor of Katie Abraham, one of two Illinois women killed in a January fatal car crash. A grand jury indicted a 29-year-old man in the hit-and-run. The Guatemalan national also faces federal false identi cation crimes.

CAROLYN KASTER / AP PHOTO

A person talks to a masked guard at the entrance of an immigration processing center Monday in Broadview, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago.

MARTIN COUNTY SHERIFF’S

Ryan Routh, the man suspected in the apparent assassination attempt of Donald Trump, was arrested in Florida in September 2024.

Randolph record

Remembering 343

The American ag ies over the Asheboro Fire Department Station Two on Wednesday just ahead of the 24th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Three-hundred forty-three New York City re ghters were killed at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.

WHAT’S HAPPENING

Michigan judge tosses case against accused fake electors in 2020

A Michigan judge has dismissed the criminal cases against 15 people accused of acting falsely as electors for President Donald Trump in the 2020 election. District Court Judge Kristen Simmons decided in a Tuesday hearing that the cases won’t go to trial. Charges were brought by the state’s Democratic attorney general over two years ago. The people charged include a few high pro le members of the Republican Party in the battleground state. Each faced eight charges of forgery and conspiracy to commit election forgery. They had been accused of submitting certi cates that falsely said Trump won the election in Michigan.

RFK Jr.’s latest “Make America Healthy Again” report calls for oversight of drug ads

Asheboro Council approves rezoning for multifamily development

The E. Ward Street project is proposed to have 12 dwelling units

By Ryan Henkel Randolph Record

ASHEBORO — The Asheboro City Council met Sept. 4 for a regular business meeting with two public hearings on the agenda.

The council rst held a hearing for a rezoning request for just over one acre of property located at 129 E. Ward St. from General Commercial to O ce-Apartment Conditional Zoning for the construction of a multifamily development.

“This request is for a multifamily development with six buildings,” said Planning and Zoning Director Justin Luck. “These are two-story buildings with one unit on the bot-

tom and one unit on the top for a total of 12 dwelling units.”

According to the site plan, the development will also have 31 available parking spaces, a grass section with picnic tables in the front as a recreational area, 6-foot sidewalks and buffers on the sides and rear.

The property is currently a vacant parking lot.

“As a realtor, market rents downtown near the center of the city, we’re constantly striving to do that, and I think this lls that,” said Re/Max Central Realty associate H.R. Gallimore, who was representing the applicant.

“It’s certainly an improvement over a vacant parking lot.”

The second hearing was for a proposed $10,000 allocation to Downtown Asheboro Inc. for the PRESERVE Asheboro grant program.

The program is adminis-

The Trump administration is urging public health agencies to prioritize investigations of vaccine injuries, prescription drug use, and the cause of autism. The call is part of a new report released Tuesday. Overseen by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the report aims to end childhood diseases in the U.S. by refocusing public health on his so-called “MAHA” movement’s priorities. The report suggests using personal medical records and health insurance data to investigate diseases and disorders, including autism. It also addresses issues like ultraprocessed food consumption and water quality. The report calls for increased oversight of prescription drug ads, especially those by social media in uencers. 12

The number of dwelling units proposed for development

tered by Downtown Asheboro Inc. and is intended to encourage historic preservation-based economic development in the downtown area.

“The premise of the program is that rehabilitating historic structures supports the city’s taxbase, serves to enhance quality of life in Asheboro and can help to ensure that any underutilized structures are put back into a productive use before they deteriorate to a point that they present a problem to the community,” said assistant city manager Trevor Nuttall.

Cheek eyes spot on city council

The sheri ’s o ce employee is looking to go from one elected board in Asheboro to another

By Bob Sutton Randolph Record

ASHEBORO — Phillip Cheek is a candidate again for an elected position in Asheboro, just with a di erent target.

Cheek, who has been on the Board of Education with Asheboro City Schools for nearly two decades, is running for a position on the Asheboro City Council.

“I still want to serve my city and try something else,” Cheek said. “Time to try something di erent.”

Many of the same voters who’ve elected Cheek to the school board will be casting ballots for city council.

Cheek lived within the school district but outside city limits until moving less than a mile away to Martin Luther

Phillip Cheek

King Drive. So now he would be eligible for either board.

Cheek, 58, works for the Randolph County Sheri ’s Ofce, assigned to the county courthouse.

There are four seats open on the city council, with incumbents Clark Bell and Walker Mo tt not seeking reelection. There are 14 candidates, with early voting in a primary beginning next week to reduce

the eld to eight candidates.

The Asheboro school board is undergoing a mandated reduction in seats across a period of several years. That will take it from an 11-member board to seven.

Cheek, who’s one of four school board members with expiring terms this year, said the number of seats shouldn’t matter “as long as they’ve got the success of the students and the teachers” at the center of the focus.

Cheek said he sensed a good team concept within the school board. He pointed to the completion of Asheboro High School’s renovation along with other infrastructure projects as among accomplishments while he has been on the board. He said he doesn’t have an agenda of speci cs regarding his run for city council.

“I want to be available to serve the people,” Cheek said. “I’m not saying Asheboro is broken. Asheboro is in a good place. I want to join in and do my part.”

The program was launched last year and has already awarded one grant.

To be eligible to apply for the grant, which has a maximum payout of $5,000, the property must lie within the downtown historic district as identi ed by the National Register and the property owner must make the application for the support.

“These are not construction dollars,” Nuttall said. “These are for consultative services intended to help property owners leverage additional nancial resources that may be out there to support a redevelopment project. So it can help a property owner pursue historic tax credits, it can help do the necessary documentation for a historic landmark designation, or even a separate nomination for the National Register.”

The Asheboro City Council will next meet Oct. 9.

Boy’s body found in Asheboro pond

The 7-year-old had been missing, setting o a search that involved several agencies

By Bob Sutton Randolph Record

ASHEBORO — The body of a 7-year-old boy who had been missing since the weekend was found in a pond, Randolph County Sheri ’s O ce announced.

Laim King’s remains were found Tuesday morning in an area near Forest Hills Drive. That was near the area where he had been reported missing.

“We are absolutely devastated,” Randolph County Sheri Gregory Seabolt said in a statement. “I wish more than anything that we had a di erent outcome — for Liam’s family, for our community, and

See BODY, page A2

PJ WARD-BROWN / RANDOLPH RECORD

THURSDAY SEPT. 11

FRIDAY SEPT. 12

Early voting set for city races

Primaries are necessary for the mayoral and city council seats in Asheboro

By Bob Sutton Randolph Record

ASHEBORO — It’s nearly primary season in the City of Asheboro.

The primary early voting begins Sept. 18 and will be held only on weekdays through Oct. 3 and then from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 4. The hours for weekday vot-

ing are from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Voting will take place at the Randolph County Board of Elections on North Fayetteville Street.

The primary’s Election Day is from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Oct. 7, when voters must vote at their assigned precinct.

Primary voters can make one selection for mayor among Jennyfer Bucardo, Eddie Burks, Brett Thompson and Joey Trogdon. Burks and Trogdon are members of the city council. The top two in the primary advance to November’s general election.

For city council, voters can make four selections from a list of 14.

The candidates are Phillip Cheek, Kevin Garcia Cordova, Jimmy E rd, Kelly Heath, Al LaPrade, Bill McCaskill, Joel McClosky, Aaron McLendon, Mary Joan Pugh, Phil Skeen, Katie Snuggs, Dave Thomas, Pamela Vuncannon and Timoty Woodle.

The top eight will be on the November ballot. There are four seats available, including two currently occupied by Heath and McCaskill.

Victory Junction to hold fundraising race

The annual event is held to provide nancial support for campers

Randolph Record sta

RANDLEMAN — Victory Junction will hold its annual Run to Victory at 7:30 a.m. Saturday on the camp’s grounds, inviting runners, walkers, rollers and strollers to help fuel life-changing camp experiences for children living with complex medical and physical needs.

For participant Cindy Heafner, it’s a way to provide

Sept. 2

life-changing experiences to children.

Last year, Heafner, who’s from Monroe, set a fundraising goal of $5,000 when she signed up for her rst Run to Victory. Within weeks, she surpassed her goal and ultimately raised $15,000.

With a mix of walking and running, Heafner also crossed a 5K nish line for the rst time.

“It was a personal goal as well as a goal for camp,” she said. “I just remember tooting my own horn for a moment that I made it.”

This weekend, Heafner will be back on the course.

• Samuel Bump, 59, of Asheboro, was arrested by Asheboro Police Department (APD) for second-degree trespassing.

Sept. 3

• Daniel Callahan, 36, of Asheboro, was arrested by APD for violation of a domestic violence protective order.

• Mark Sprouse, 48, of Asheboro, was arrested by APD for felony possession of Schedule II controlled substance, misdemeanor larceny, possession of stolen property and possession of drug paraphernalia.

• Amanda Mae Burmeister, 32, was arrested for possessing a controlled substance and possessing drug paraphernalia.

• Dakota Owen Redding, 25, was arrested for violating a domestic violence protective order.

Sept. 4

• Christopher Hicks, 39, of Asheboro, was arrested by APD for possession of heroin, possession of drug paraphernalia, carrying a

BODY from page A2

for the hundreds of rst responders and volunteers who poured their hearts into nding him alive,” the sheri said.

SATURDAY SEPT. 13

SUNDAY SEPT. 14

MONDAY SEPT. 15

TUESDAY SEPT. 16

WEDNESDAY SEPT. 17

“You don’t have to be a runner to make a di erence,” she said. “You can walk part of it. You’ve got one hour in your life to donate to this camp. That’s all it takes to do a 5K. It’s a wonderful feeling to give to camp.”

There is the 5K ($35 registration) and a shorter Fun Run ($25 registration). Participants receive a T-shirt and goodie bag. There are awards for the top three overall nishers and the top two in each age group. For information, visit victoryjunction.org/RTV.

As of last week, more than 175 people had signed up for the event.

concealed gun and possession of rearm by felon.

• Daniel Holladay, 22, of Kernersville, was arrested by Randolph County Sheri ’s O ce (RCSO) for second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor (10 counts total).

• Tommy Jordan, 36, of Seagrove, was arrested by APD for aiding and abetting felony larceny.

• Delana Poole, 37, of Randleman, was arrested by APD for tra cking in opium or heroin, possession with intent to manufacture/sell/ deliver Schedule II controlled substance, possession of controlled substance on prison/jail premises and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Sept. 5

• Bobby Jones, 45, of Asheboro, was arrested by RCSO for attempted breaking and entering, second-degree trespassing, resisting a public o cer and simple assault.

• Tashaun Cheek, 31, of Asheboro, was arrested by APD for attempted rst-degree murder and assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill in icting serious injury.

The boy had cognitive impairments, and initial information across the past couple of days from the sheri ’s ofce said that foul play wasn’t suspected.

An Amber Alert had been

issued regarding King, whose body was sent to the O ce of the Chief Medical Examiner in Raleigh. The sheri ’s o ce said that an investigation will be ongoing regarding King’s death.

Randolph Guide

Here’s a quick look at what’s coming up in Randolph County:

Sept.

13

AppleFest at Millstone Creek Orchids

9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

This event includes an opportunity to pick your own apples, take a hayride and have fresh-pressed apple cider. Admission is $18.95; children two and under admitted for free.

506 Parks Crossroads Church Road Ramseur

Sept. 13-14

Joseph Sand Kiln Opening Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, 1-5 p.m.

Traditional functional and decorative, sculptural pottery will be on sale by Joseph Sand. Wares will also be available for purchase by fellow potters Ben Peregrin, Felipe Vasquez and Owen Sand.

2555 George York Road Randleman

Sept.

13, 16 & 18

City of Asheboro Farmers Market

7 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Fresh seasonal produce, farm-fresh products, baked goods, and a variety of owers and plants are available for purchase directly from local farmers. Open weekly on Saturdays, Tuesdays and Thursdays through the end of October.

134 S. Church St. Asheboro

Sept. 15 & 17

Liberty Farmers Market

4-7 p.m.

Purchase a wide array of high-quality, fresh produce from local farmers and growers at this convenient downtown location. Open every Monday and Wednesday through the end of October.

423 W. Swannanoa Ave. Liberty

Sept. 18

Books and Banter (YA Club)

4:30-5:30 p.m.

Teens ages 13-16 meet each Thursday to talk about books and more. Every fourth Thursday, the group discusses the same book, which can be picked up ahead of time at the library.

Seagrove Public Library

530 Old Plank Road

Seagrove

THE CONVERSATION

Trip Ho end, publisher | Frank Hill, senior opinion editor

VISUAL VOICES

COLUMN | VICTOR JOECKS

In defense of praying after tragedy

Leftists obsess over microaggressions, but they have no issue with their leaders mocking Christians.

THOSE WHO DENIGRATE prayer after mass shootings reveal their own ignorance.

Last month, a man red more than 100 rounds into a Catholic church in Minneapolis. He was targeting students attending a back-to -school Mass. Tragically, he killed two children and injured 18 others. He then killed himself.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey rushed to the scene and promptly criticized Christians.

“Don’t just say this is about thoughts and prayers right now,” he said. “These kids were literally praying. It was the rst week of school. They were in a church.”

“Enough with the thoughts and prayers,”

Jen Psaki, former White House press secretary, wrote on X.

In response to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defending those “who believe in the power of prayer,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom wrote on X, “These children were literally praying as they got shot at.”

Leftists obsess over microaggressions, but they have no issue with their leaders mocking Christians after Christian children were murdered for being in a Christian church.

Despite the condescension, this is an objection worth addressing.

One reason Christians pray is that there isn’t anything physically we can do in many tragic situations. But we can appeal to the God of the universe. He can

COLUMN | STEVE MILLOY

protect responding o cers. He can heal the wounded and guide the doctors caring for them. He can comfort the broken-hearted. He can supernaturally intervene in ways we can’t. And of course, a police o cer on the scene shouldn’t only respond in prayer.

If you don’t believe in God, that may seem silly. Fine. But you should understand why Christians pray.

There’s another contention in these statements, too: Prayer failed and, by extension, so did God. The shooter even wrote, “Where is your God” on one of the magazines for his ri e.

Anyone drawing this conclusion is unaware of the Bible and church history.

Jesus, God’s only begotten Son, lived a perfect life yet died on a cross while facing similar taunts: “He saved others, but he can’t save himself.”

Yet those mockers didn’t see what was happening right in front of them. On the cross, Jesus paid the penalty that you and I deserve for our sin. On the third day, God raised him from the dead. Jesus’ sacri ce o ers salvation to those who confess him as Lord and believe God raised him from the dead.

What looked to human eyes like the ultimate failure was God’s plan to save mankind — and o er a hope that pain and death can’t diminish.

“I consider that our present su erings are

not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us,” Paul wrote in Romans 8.

Those families in Minneapolis weren’t the rst Christians to su er greatly. Most of the apostles were martyred for their faith. In the Roman Empire, Christians were cruci ed, burned, thrown to the lions and otherwise tortured. Since 2009, Islamists have killed more than 50,000 Christians in Nigeria.

What’s remarkable are the many stories of Christians facing their deaths with calmness, joy or even song.

In 202 or 203 A.D., a group of Christians was arrested for their faith. After being sentenced to a gruesome death, Perpetua, a young mother, wrote in her diary, “We returned to prison in high spirits.”

A narrator continued the tale. The day before their deaths, they spoke to the mob, “stressing the joy they would have in their su ering.” As she and the other martyrs died, she urged others to “stand fast in the faith and love one another.”

Nonbelievers may assume that the earthly su ering of God’s followers diminishes Him. It doesn’t, and it hasn’t for 2,000 years. Even though I often fail to live this truth out well, our hope isn’t in this world. And when tragedy makes that hard to remember, it’s time to pray.

Victor Joecks is a columnist for the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Pulling the plug on liberal org’s dark money empire

Calling Arabella a consulting rm is like calling a casino a “hospitality business.”

THE GATES FOUNDATION’S sudden $450 million divorce from Arabella Advisors isn’t about e ciency or building deeper relationships or any of the sanitized language trotted out by both sides. This is about optics and the uncomfortable fact that America’s largest philanthropic foundation could no longer deny the political risk — and stench — of being linked to a Democratic Party dark money slush fund masquerading as “philanthropy.”

Calling Arabella a consulting rm is like calling a casino a “hospitality business.” At its core, Arabella manages a staggering web of seven shadowy nonpro t shells whose primary function is to funnel untraceable left-wing cash where donors want it, all while insulating them from scrutiny and public accountability.

For years, the Gates Foundation stood as one of Arabella’s biggest customers. Nearly half a billion dollars was shunted through opaque intermediaries, keeping campaign cash and progressive pet projects owing, hidden from the public ledger and protected with layers of legal and PR camou age.

Arabella is not a grassroots facilitator; it is a private-equity-owned revenue machine, churning more than $60 million in management fees in a single year and orchestrating the single largest source of Democratic dark money ever exposed. In the 2020 and 2022 election cycles, Arabella’s funds handled a combined $5.4 billion, outstripping even the national party committees and powering every recent leftwing victory at the local, state, and federal level. Its pop-up groups appear spontaneous but are simply billionaires’ cash disguised as local activism. “Fiscal sponsorship” is the smokescreen for a complex money shu e, making possible everything from manipulating election o ces with “Zuck

Bucks” to installing political operatives under the banner of civic engagement.

Even left-leaning media are sounding alarm bells, branding Arabella “the indisputable heavyweight of Democratic dark money” and “an opaque network” moving untold sums through chains of groups supporting partisan causes. For all Arabella’s protestations about merely providing “operational supports,” the company’s seven “sister” nonpro ts are deeply engaged in donor management, grantmaking, political funding, and lobbying on behalf of causes that suit the Democratic machine.

So why did Gates nally scramble for the exit? In truth, mounting risk and the threat of exposure forced the foundation’s hand.

With President Donald Trump back in power and regulatory scrutiny intensifying, the foundation realized that continuing business with Arabella would turn toxic in a climate bent on rooting out dark money networks. Gates Foundation spokespeople tried to spin it as a back-to-basics decision focused on direct relationships with partners, but anyone following the details knows better. Even as media tiptoe around the facts, insiders admit Arabella’s brand is so politically radioactive that nonpro ts now fear losing their Gates funding. Now they are scrambling to exit the shell game before it collapses.

Nonpro ts dependent on Gates and Arabella now face a harsh reality. They must nd new sponsors or lose generous funding, as order comes down from the top for early exits and grant freezes. The supposed civil society boom fueled by Arabella’s billions now reveals itself as a top-down, donordriven masquerade, propped up by a handful of mega-donors and their money-laundering operatives.

With Gates pulling support, Arabella’s engine for left-wing activism faces a severe

blow — and the entire donor class gets a clear warning. If Gates won’t camou age Democratic dark money, others may soon follow, leaving Arabella – and the billions it recycles year after year – dangling in public view and shrinking by the day.

For years, Arabella’s front groups have championed transparency only to pervert its meaning by funding political movements and electoral schemes with hidden cash that undermines genuine political accountability. Gates has helped nance this spectacle for nearly two decades, but when reality nally lifted the veil, even the richest donor in America realized exposure wasn’t worth the price.

If the Gates Foundation, with all its billions and elite access, nally admits the political cost of laundering money through Arabella is too high, every donor with even a shred of integrity should follow suit.

The era in which the left could count on anonymous billionaires to bankroll a fake grassroots revolution may at long last be coming to an end. The sooner these dark money machines are shut o , the closer America gets to genuine political accountability — and an end to the hypocrisy that lies at the rotten core of progressive philanthropy.

Steve Milloy is a biostatistician and lawyer, and he publishes JunkScience.com. This column was rst published by Daily Caller News Foundation.

Silas Brooks Garner

Feb. 11, 1956 - Aug. 30, 2025

Silas Brooks Garner, 69, of New London, died Saturday, August 30, 2025, at the family’s Badin Lake home.

A graveside memorial service will be conducted at 11 a.m., Tuesday, September 9, 2025, at Pleasant Union Community Church Cemetery.

A native of Randolph County, Brooks was born on February 11, 1956. He was employed at Energizer/Eveready in Asheboro and Townsend Chicken Co. He was a graduate of Southwestern Randolph High School and a member of Farmer Methodist Church. Brooks was the son of Donald Wesley Garner and Helen Ridge Garner. Throughout his battle with cancer, Brooks loved and trusted his Lord and Savior. Brooks was a hunter; loved to sh, water ski and being at Badin Lake. He loved his dog, “Bear” and his friends, always. He had caring friends that would do anything for him. He loved his family with all his heart.

Brooks was preceded in death by his wife, Cindy Sink Garner, and his father, Donald Wesley Garner.

Brooks is survived by his daughters, Sara Garner Thompson (Zach), Paige Emilee Garner; mother, Helen Ridge Garner; and sister, Emily Annette Garner Wilson (Sandy).

We will hold him in our hearts until we can hold him in Heaven.

Jessica Michelle Branch

March 7, 1969 – Sept. 2, 2025

Jessica Michelle Branch, 56, of Franklinville, passed away on Tuesday, September 2, 2025, at her residence.

Funeral Services, 3 p.m., Saturday, at Lo in Funeral Home Chapel, Ramseur.

O ciating, Rev. Eric Branch.

Michelle was a native of Spartanburg County, South Carolina and a longtime resident of Franklinville. She was a member of El-Shaddai Ministries and was employed as a sewer at Deep River Fabricators in Franklinville with thirty years of service. Michelle was a loving mother and grandmother.

Her grandsons were the joy of her life. She enjoyed crafting and crocheting, making many beautiful blankets and quilts and she loved horses. Michelle was preceded in death by her father, Carroll Ray Branch and her brother, Stephen Ray Branch.

Survivors: boyfriend, Barry Cockman, of Ramseur, daughter, Ashlee Nicole Thompson and partner, William Jeremy Brown, of Bennett, son, Dustin Lee Thompson, of the residence, mother, Paunice Branch, of the residence, brother, Rev. Eric Branch and wife, Rose, of Franklinville, grandchildren, Brilee Ray Thompson, Gavin Walker Brown, and Billy Easton Brown, all of Bennett, and her dog, Jack.

The body will lie in repose from noon until 5 PM on Friday, September 5, at the Lo in Funeral Home.

Visitation, 1-2:45 p.m., Saturday, Lo in Funeral Home & Cremation Service, Ramseur and other times at the residence.

Cassie Thomas

April 19, 1960 - Sept. 2, 2025

Cassandra “Cassie” Leigh Hill Thomas, 65, of Trinity, passed away Tuesday, September 2, 2025, at The Randolph Hospice House in Asheboro.

Funeral services will be conducted at 4 p.m., Sunday, September 7, 2025, at Tabernacle Church of Trinity, with Pastor Randy Kelly o ciating. Burial will follow in the church cemetery.

Cassie was born on April 19, 1960, in Edinburgh, Scotland, the daughter of the late Robert Chester Hill and Clara Jean Allen Hill. She was a graduate of Southwestern Randolph High School, class of 1978. Cassie was a member of Journey Church and retired from Eveready Battery after 22 years. She loved her pets, rabbits and her dogs, Sassy and Shadow. Most importantly, she was a proud grandmother who adored her grandchildren.

She is survived by her husband, Keith Thomas of the home; daughters, April McDonald of Winston-Salem, Kelleigh Tarlton of Conway, SC; brother, Bobby Hill Jr., and wife Martha of Asheboro; grandchildren, Austin McDonald, Rebecca McDonald, Mikey Didyoung, and Austin Bryant.

The family will receive friends from 3-4 p.m. Sunday, prior to the service at the church.

Bonnye Lynn Giles York

Dec. 12, 1944 – Sept. 4, 2025

Bonnye Lynn Giles York, 80, of Asheboro, died Thursday, September 4, 2025, at Randolph Health in Asheboro.

A memorial service will be conducted at noon on Friday, September 12, 2025, at Central Church, where she was a member, with Pastor Joseph Fulk and Rev. Fred Hu stetler o ciating.

Bonnye was born on December 12, 1944, in Greenville, NC, the daughter of the late Ralph Giles and Frances Clark Giles. She was a graduate of Terry Sanford High School, Class of 1962, and later a graduate of East Carolina University, Class of 1966. Bonnye retired from being a real estate agent with Century 21. She enjoyed her bridge club, spending time at Badin Lake with her family, and skiing out west. Bonnye was involved in the Asbury Sunday School class.

In addition to her parents, Bonnye was preceded in death by her husband of 40+ years, Tommy York.

She is survived by her sons, Alan York and wife Kimberly of Asheboro, Todd York and wife Kelly of Asheboro; sister, Beverly Herbert (John) of Decatur, GA; grandchildren, Channing York, Carlyn York; and niece, SarahAnne Herbert Sadler and husband Ben.

The family will receive friends following the service in the family life center.

In lieu of owers, memorials may be made to Central Church, 300 Main St., Asheboro, NC 27203 or to Hospice of Randolph, 416 Vision Drive, Asheboro, NC 27203.

Thomas “Tom” Edney

Oct.12, 1934 – Aug. 31, 2025

Thomas “Tom” Reynolds Edney, 90, of Asheboro, passed away Sunday, August 31, 2025.

A funeral service will be conducted at 11 a.m., Wednesday, September 10, 2025, at Dayspring Baptist Church, Randleman, with Pastor Tommy Kidd o ciating. Burial with military honors will follow at Randolph Memorial Park.

Born in Bat Cave, NC, on October 12, 1934, Tom was the son of the late Glenn Reynolds Edney and Raleigh “Rollie” Hill Edney. He was retired from the United States Marine Corps after serving from 1952 until 1973, during both the Korean and Vietnam wars. After his military service, he owned and operated Edney’s Produce until 2004. Tom was a member of Dayspring Baptist Church in Randleman.

In addition to his parents, Tom was preceded in death by his son, Thomas Edney Jr., brothers Ronald “Bud” Edney, Jack Bonner and Don Bonner.

Surviving are his wife, Pamela Younts Edney of the home; daughter, Pam Edney Moore and husband Raymond of SC; honorary son, Monty Ray Beane and wife LaDonna of Randleman; sister, Susan Mull and husband Richard; brother, Joe Bonner; four grandchildren; and ve great-grandchildren.

The family will receive friends from 10-11 a.m., Wednesday, September 10, 2025, at the church prior to the service, and other times at the home of Monty and LaDonna Beane at 118 Torch Drive, Randleman, NC 27317.

Memorials may be made to Dayspring Baptist Church, 777 Bowers Lane, Randleman, NC, 27317, or Hospice of Randolph, 416 Vision Drive, Asheboro, NC, 27203.

Imogene Morris

July 27, 1950 – Sept. 6, 2025

Cathy Imogene Morris, 75, of Franklinville, died Saturday, September 6, 2025, at her home.

A graveside service will be conducted at 2 p.m., Friday, September 12, 2025, at Randolph Memorial Park, Asheboro.

Born in Randolph County NC, on July 27, 1950, Imogene was the daughter of the late, George Hubert McPherson and Bertie Gurthie Stalker McPherson. She had retired from Deep River Fabricators. In her youth, Imogene was an avid softball player.

In addition to her parents, Imogene was preceded in death by her sisters, Shirley McPherson, Diane Whittington, Gaynelle Marley; brothers, George McPherson and Larry McPherson.

Surviving are her son, Todd Morris (Gray); sisters, Patsy McNeill, Brenda McMasters; and grandson, Dalton Tyler Morris.

Memorials may be made to Spoons Chapel Christian Church, 1880 Spoons Chapel Church Road, Asheboro, NC 27205.

Brenda Clark

Aug. 7, 1947 – Sept. 2, 2025

Brenda Elkins Clark, a longtime resident of Bear Creek, North Carolina, passed away peacefully at her residence on September 2, 2025, after a courageous battle with liver cancer.

Brenda dedicated many years of her life to her work as a security guard. Her commitment and dedication to her profession were admired by her colleagues and those who had the pleasure of working alongside her.

Brenda cherished the moments she spent with her family, nding great joy and ful llment in their company. These precious times were the highlight of her life, and she held them close to her heart.

She was preceded in death by her son, Michael Clark and loving parents, Johnnie B. and Lela Campbell Elkins. Brenda leaves behind her daughter, Loretta Keily of Sanford, beloved sisters, Wanda Gunter of Asbury, Kay Ray of Siler City, Joyce Beeson of Sanford, brother Billy Elkins of Pine Blu , along with several grandchildren, greatgrandchildren, great-greatgrandchildren and numerous friends who will miss her dearly.

In accordance with her family’s wishes, private services will be held at a later date to honor Brenda’s memory.

The family wishes to extend their gratitude for the support and condolences they have received during this di cult time.

Jan Paxton Way

Aug. 19, 1948 – Sept. 4, 2025

On September 4, 2025, Jan Paxton Way, age 77, went home to be with her Heavenly Father. Cremation will be performed by Pugh Funeral Home in Randleman, NC.

Jan was preceded in death by her parents, Amos Way and Margaret (Maggie) Way. She was also preceded in death by her siblings LaRue Whittemore, Max Way, and Jerry Way.

Jan is survived by her sister, Sue Gregson of Randleman, NC, and many nieces, nephews, and cousins. Special nephew, Dwight Gregson and wife, Kathy.

Jan graduated from Southeast High School in Guilford County. She was employed in the hotel industry for many years. Jan loved her art classes and family gatherings. She passed away at Ramseur Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center.

A Celebration of Jan’s life will be at the home of Dwight and Kathy Gregson, 290 Cecylia Ct., Randleman, NC, for all of Jan’s family and friends on September 13, 2025, from 3–5 p.m.

Maria Cervantes

Dec. 3, 1953 – Sept. 2, 2025

María Del Rosario López Cervantes, de 71 años, residente de Asheboro, Carolina del Norte, falleció el 2 de Septiembre de 2025 en Forsyth Medical Center. Nació el 3 de Diciembre de 1953 en México, hija de Gumercindo López Rochín y María Elisa Cervantes Caárez. Será recordada como una mujer de fe y devoción que amaba profundamente a su familia y que dejó huella en todos los que tuvieron la dicha de conocerla. Le sobrevive su familia amorosa, quien la extrañará con cariño eterno.

La visitación se llevará a cabo el Sábado 6 de Septiembre de 2025, de 11 a.m. a 3 p.m. en Pugh Funeral Home en Asheboro. El entierro se realizará en New Hope Memorial Gardens.

Ellen McNeil

April 26, 1944 – Sept. 2, 2025

Ellen Siler McNeil, 81, of Asheboro, North Carolina, passed away on September 2, 2025, at Forsyth Medical Center in Winston-Salem. Born on April 26, 1944, in Lee County, Alabama, she led a life lled with love, family, and dedication.

Ellen was the beloved wife of James “Spanky” McNeil, with whom she shared 35 wonderful years of marriage. Her work life was marked by her long and dedicated career in the furniture industry, from which she retired after many years of service. Outside of her professional life, Ellen’s passions were in the simple joys that lled her days. She truly enjoyed cooking, tending to her garden, shopping, and most importantly, spending quality time with her family. Her love for her pets, Zoey, Sunny, and Mikah, was evident, and they held a special place in her heart.

A woman of faith, Ellen attended Sunset Avenue Church of God in Asheboro, where she found community and solace. Ellen is preceded in death by her parents, Solomon Franklin and Eunice Hayworth Siler. She is survived by her loving husband, James “Spanky” McNeil, and her sons, Mike Nelms and his ancée Pam of Asheboro; Bobby Nelms of McAllister, Oklahoma; and stepson, Marco McNeil of Archdale. Ellen is also survived by her brother, Edward Siler and his wife Pat of Merritt, North Carolina; and her cherished grandchildren, Ami Degalldo, Abi Vences, Ali Lynch, and Casey Nelms.

Her memory will be honored in a memorial service held at 11 a.m. on Thursday, September 11, 2025, at the Midstate Cremation & Funeral Service Chapel. Ellen’s warmth, kindness, and devotion to her family and friends will be dearly missed by all who had the privilege of knowing her.

Wanda Brown

Feb. 17, 1946 – Sept. 1, 2025

Wanda Elizabeth Cole Brown, age 79, of Asheboro passed away on September 1, 2025 at Cross Road Memory Care. Mrs. Brown was born in Randolph County on February 17, 1946, to Ervin and Ida Cornelison Cole. Wanda was a 1964 graduate of Seagrove High School and a graduate of Asheboro Commercial College. She was a member of Center Cross Baptist Church where she played the piano for 59 years and was the director of VBS for several years. Wanda was employed with Randolph Savings & Loan (Centura-RBC) for 17 years. Wanda became employed with Randolph Community College in 1982. She was hired as the secretary to the new Associate Degree Nursing Program and was later appointed as Administrative Assistant to then Vice-President, Dr. Larry Linker. In 1988, Wanda became the Executive Assistant to President Dr. Larry Linker (1988-2000), President Dr. Richard Heckman (20002006), and President Dr. Bob Shackleford (2007-2013). During this time Wanda also served as the Executive Assistant to the Randolph Community College Board of Trustees. Wanda retired from RCC in 2013. She formerly served on the Advisory Board at SECU. Wanda loved hanging out with the “Money Honey’s” her work friends from the bank. Wanda’s pride and joy were her 2 grandsons and she attended every ball game possible.

The family would like to express a special thank you to the sta at Cross Road Memory Care for the love and care they provided to Wanda.

She is survived by her husband of 61 years, R. Wade Brown Jr.; daughter, Donna Brown Hill (Eric) of Asheboro; grandsons, Ryan Hill (Ellis) and Ross Hill (Katie); and her faithful fur buddy, Gigi.

The family will receive friends on Wednesday, September 3, 2025 from 6:00-8:00 pm at Pugh Funeral Home, 437 Sunset Avenue in Asheboro. Funeral services will be held on Thursday, September 4, 2025 at 2 p.m. at Center Cross Baptist Church, 1789 Center Cross Church Road in Asheboro with Dr. Bob Shackleford and Pastor Bryant Madren o ciating. Interment will follow at the church cemetery. Memorials may be made in Wanda’s name, to Center Cross Baptist Church or the RCC Foundation, 629 Industrial Park Avenue, Asheboro, NC 27205.

Charles “Chuck” Lewis Steed

Dec. 3, 1929 – Aug. 30, 2025

Charles “Chuck” Lewis Steed, 95, of Kingsport, died Saturday, August 30, 2025, at NHC HealthCare in Kingsport.

A service will be conducted at 3 p.m., Saturday, September 6, 2025, at Randolph Memorial Park, Asheboro, with Mr. Charles Reeder o ciating. Entombment will follow with military honors provided by the Randolph County Honor Guard.

Charles was born on December 3, 1929, in Asheboro, NC. He was born 35 days after Black Friday, the start of the Great Depression.

Charles had an amazing life. To have a life that nearly spanned 100 years, he has seen much. When he was a young boy, many roads in Asheboro had never been paved. Some people still rode horses. The Great Depression had a lifelong impact on his life. He was always very frugal and would maintain and repair everything he used until there was nothing left throughout his life. That was the way to people had to live when

Jackie Willis Wright

Oct. 15, 1944 – Sept. 5, 2025

Jackie Willis Wright, 80, of Asheboro, passed away on Friday, September 5, 2025, surrounded by her family at home. A funeral Service will be held at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, September 10, 2025, at Lo in Funeral Home Chapel in Ramseur with Mr. Dwayne Garner o ciating. Burial will follow at Randolph Memorial Park in Asheboro.

The family will receive friends for a time of visitation on Tuesday evening from 6-8 p.m. at Lo in Funeral Home & Cremation Service in Ramseur and other times at the residence.

Jackie was born in Gaston County and was a longtime resident of Asheboro. Together, for nearly 64 years, she and her husband Orlendo created a home full of love for each of their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Jackie loved her family and was always willing to put the needs of others before her as evidenced by the care she provided for her parents, inlaws, nieces and nephews. She enjoyed being outdoors; her lawn and garden were her pride and joy and she was always going to ensure they looked “just right”. Jackie was preceded in death by her parents, Harm Arthur and Mary Sue Waters Willis as well as eight siblings.

Survivors: her husband, Orlendo L. Wright, of the home, daughters, Maxine Wright (Elizabeth) of Denton, Wanda Cox (Daniel) of Asheboro, Donna Powers (Todd) of Denton, sons, Charlie Wright (Amanda) of Asheboro, Randy Wright of Seagrove, grandchildren, Justin Cox (Kellie), Franklin Cox (Kala), Nathan Powers (Brittany), Kaylie Hall (Jake), Makayla Wright, Tristan Wright, two stepgrandchildren, Aiden and Trey Register, great-grandchildren, Holland Powers, Oakleigh Powers, Wrenlee Powers, Gunner Cox, Hunter Cox, Skylar Cox, and Raelyn Hall.

he grew up. He would get one pair of shoes per year. He went barefoot in the summer to save his shoes for winter. If the soles wore out before the next pair, he would put cardboard in his shoes to make them last until his family could a ord another pair. If someone was in need, his family would do what they could to help everyone, even though they had little. Charles embraced this caring for others throughout his life. He often helped others, at times doing things without them knowing where the help came from or taking credit. His rst two cars were used Ford Model “A”s. He graduated from Asheboro High School in 1950. He played football and ran track for “The Blue Comets.”

Proudly served in the US Navy on one of the last diesel submarines, 1950-1954, USS Runner (SS-476). The USS Runner was key in the rst development and testing of the steerable torpedoes used today. In addition to research on torpedoes, his crew patrolled the East Coast from the Caribbean to the Saint Lawrence Seaway. During his service in the Navy, he was stationed in Charleston, SC. When he and Dot had free time, they would go to town and dance the Charleston until late at night.

Charles often spoke of his fond memories of submarine service. His service had its exciting moments. Once while in port, he was credited and recognized for leading a team to ght a re on a sister submarine dock beside the Runner. They extinguished the re and prevented a potentially catastrophic re on the sister submarine. Later, while at a base in the Caribbean on a clear and beautiful sunny day, they were loading torpedoes into

Brenda Sue Kindley

May 16, 1964 – Sept. 5, 2025

Brenda Sue Kindley, lovingly known as Suzy, of Asheboro, NC, passed away on September 5, 2025, at the age of 61. Suzy was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, sister, and friend whose laughter and love touched all who knew her. She is survived by her husband, Danny Kindley; her children, JW Kindley (Leslie) and Danny Kindley (Beverly); her cherished grandchildren, Jessica Kindley, Jazmyn Kindley, Cameron Kindley, Natalie Kindley, Hayleigh Kindley, and Bentley Kindley; and her beloved great-grandson, Mathew Banks Kindley Lopez. She is also survived by her siblings, Ella Reynolds (Andy), Lora Bryant (Jerry), Harvey Willis (Jackie), and James Willis (Terry), along with many nieces, nephews, great-nieces, and great-nephews who adored her. She was preceded in death by her parents, Jim and Myrtle Willis, and her brother, Hal Willis. Suzy dedicated 35+ years of her life as a CNA with the same company, where her compassion and care left a lasting impact on countless lives.

Outside of work, she found joy in shopping, creating beautiful beaded necklaces, and most of all, spending time with her family. A Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, September 13, 2025, at 5 p.m. at Whitehall Community Church, 3335 Wesleyan Rd, Randleman, NC 27317. Family and friends are invited to gather, share stories, and honor Suzy’s memory together. In lieu of owers, the family asks that you honor Suzy’s memory by sharing a kind word or act of love with someone in your life. Suzy’s life was one lled with kindness, creativity and love. She will be remembered for her giving spirit, her devotion to family and the joy she brought into every room.

the submarine with a crane. Suddenly, a bolt of lightning came from a tiny cloud and struck the end of the torpedo. Fortunately, the torpedo didn’t detonate. After the Navy, he and Dot settled back in Asheboro, where they began their life together, built a house and started a family.

Charles worked for and retired from both General Electric and Georgia Paci c in Asheboro. He also served as a volunteer with the Asheboro Fire Department for about 30 years. He enjoyed hunting, shing, shooting sports, following NASCAR racing and camping at Myrtle Beach with his family. During the early days of NASCAR, he worked for NASCAR, scoring the races. He was the North Carolina State archery champion in 1959. He passed this knowledge and skill to Randy who was the North Carolina state champion in 1979. He lived in Asheboro from birth until 1996, when he and Dot moved to Church Hill, TN, to be closer to their son and daughterin-law. After Dot passed in 2019, Charles spent his nal years in Preston Place Assisted Living and National Health Care Skilled Nursing Facility in Kingsport, TN.

In addition to his parents, Charles was preceded in death by his wife, Dorothy “Dot” Saunders Steed, and brother, Frank W. Steed Jr.

He is survived by his son, Charles Randall “Randy” Steed, and wife, Seba of Church Hill, TN.

The family will receive friends from 1:30-2:30 p.m., on Saturday, September 6, 2025, at Ridge Funeral Home.

Memorial contributions may be made to Tunnel to Towers Foundation, 2361 Hylan Boulevard, Staten Island, NY 10306.

Keith Eugene Gallimore

March 23, 1966 –Sept. 2, 2025

Keith Eugene Gallimore, born on March 23, 1966, in Calhoun, Georgia, passed away peacefully on September 2, 2025, at Randolph Hospital in Asheboro. He was 59 years old.

Keith lived a life devoted to God, family, and his work. A steadfast believer, he was an active member of several churches throughout his life, allowing his faith to guide him in all things. His dedication to the Lord was unwavering and provided a foundation for his life and values.

A passionate sports enthusiast, Keith was a lifelong fan of the Raiders and the New York Yankees. His love for sports extended beyond fandom as he became an in uential leader in the eld of sports equipment design and installation. His work left a lasting impact on stadiums, schools, and training facilities across the country, earning him respect and admiration from peers and professionals alike.

In addition to his career and faith, Keith had a deep appreciation for history and craftsmanship, which he expressed through his passion for collecting and restoring rearms. Each piece in his collection was cherished not only as a historical artifact but as a testament to skilled artistry and tradition. Keith was preceded in death by his parents, Robert and Sarah Whit eld Gallimore. He leaves behind a loving family who will cherish his memory: his devoted wife, Mary Boydston Gallimore of the home; his children, Brett Gallimore of Asheboro, Devan Gallimore and wife Jennifer of Durham, and Sarah Trogdon and husband Seth of Asheboro; and his grandchildren, Maxton Trogdon, Colton Trogdon, Eliza Gallimore, Elliott Gallimore, and Nick Gallimore. Keith is also survived by his siblings, Carol Delahunt, Dawn McPherson, Mike Gallimore, and Shane Gallimore.

In honor of Keith’s life, his family will hold a service of remembrance at a later date, celebrating the lasting impact he has made on those who were blessed to know him. Keith’s legacy will forever remain in the hearts of those he loved and left behind. Midstate Cremation & Funeral Service in Asheboro is honored to assist the family of Mr. Keith Gallimore.

Joyce Anita Smith

July 9, 1935 – Sept. 5, 2025

Joyce Anita Smith, 90, of Asheboro, passed away peacefully in her sleep at her home on September 5, 2025.

Joyce was born on July 9, 1935, in Randolph County, the third of seven children to the late Lucille Allred Smith and Roy Lester Smith. She was a graduate of Coleridge High School.

Joyce was a longtime member of Gospel Chapel, where she served faithfully as a Sunday School teacher, choir member, and church treasurer for over 50 years. She later became a member of Balfour Baptist Church and was most recently attending Center Cross Baptist Church.

She worked for Acme McCrary during her career. Joyce loved a good drive—whether it was sister outings, to Cana for apples, to Branchville, South Carolina, to visit her sister and brother-inlaw, out west with her brother, or most recently to Carbondale, Illinois, to visit her niece. She was always willing to ride along whenever asked.

Joyce also had a deep appreciation for good food and fellowship. She was an excellent seamstress and a master at baking homemade coconut cakes. She cherished outings to restaurants and laundry days with her nieces and great-nieces. She was also grateful for the help of her great-nephews, whether it was xing her TV or lending a steady hand as she made her way to the car. She had the most loving heart, and her smile was infectious and could light up a room.

In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her sisters Marie (Joe) Auman and Patsy (Colon) Henley; her brothers Gary Smith and Darrell (Gail) Smith; her sister-in-law Rachel Freeman Smith; and her niece Deanna Ellen Smith.

She is survived by her older brother, Leslie “Buster” Smith of Asheboro, and her youngest sister and brother-in-law, Cheryl and Ken Hardee of Branchville, SC. Joyce also leaves behind many beloved nieces, nephews, great-nieces, great-nephews, extended family, and friends who will miss her dearly.

A graveside service will be held on Monday, September 8, 2025, at 11 a.m. at Mt. Tabor Community Church Cemetery, 1269 Mt. Tabor Church Rd., Asheboro, with Paster Garry Arnett o ciating. In lieu of owers, memorials can be made to Mt Tabor Community Cemetery Fund, 1269 Mt. Tabor Church Road, Asheboro, NC 27205.

STATE & NATION

Man accused of trying to assassinate Trump apologizes to potential jurors

Ryan Routh is representing himself as jury selection begins in his federal trial

By David Fischer The Associated Press

FORT PIERCE, Fla. — The man charged with trying to assassinate Donald Trump while he played golf last year in South Florida stood before a group of potential jurors in a Florida courtroom on Monday and said he was “sorry for bringing you all in here.”

Ryan Routh, wearing a gray sports coat, red tie with white stripes and khaki slacks, is representing himself in the trial that began with jury selection on Monday in the federal courthouse in Fort Pierce, Florida.

“Thank you for being here,” Routh told the rst group of 60 jurors who were brought into the courtroom after U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon introduced prosecutors and Routh to the panel.

Cannon signed o on Routh’s request to represent himself but said court-appointed attorneys needed to remain as standby counsel.

During a hearing earlier to go over questions that would be asked of jurors, Routh was partially shackled. But he did not appear to be restrained when the rst of three batches of 60

COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE VIA AP

on Monday morning and the rst group was brought into the courtroom during the afternoon session. The judge inquired about any hardships that would prevent them from sitting as jurors during a weekslong trial. Twenty-seven noted hardships and the judge dismissed 20 of them on Monday.

The other two groups of jurors will return to the courtroom on Tuesday morning for similar questioning. Those who are not dismissed will then return at 2 p.m. Tuesday for further questioning about the case and their views.

The court has blocked o four weeks for Routh’s trial, but attorneys are expecting they’ll need less time.

potential jurors were brought into the courtroom on Monday afternoon.

Cannon dismissed the questions Routh wanted to ask jurors as irrelevant earlier Monday. They included asking jurors about their views on Gaza, the talk of the U.S. acquiring Greenland and what they would do if they were driving and saw a turtle in the road.

The judge approved most of the other questions for jurors submitted by prosecutors.

The panel of 120 potential jurors lled out questionnaires

Jury selection was expected to take three days in an e ort to nd 12 jurors and four alternates. Opening statements were scheduled to begin Thursday, and prosecutors will begin their case immediately after that.

Cannon told Routh last week that he would be allowed to use a podium while speaking to the jury or questioning witnesses, but he would not have free rein of the courtroom.

Cannon is a Trump-appointed judge who drew scrutiny for her handling of a criminal case accusing Trump of illegally storing classi ed documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach. The case became mired

in delays as motions piled up over months, and was ultimately dismissed by Cannon last year after she concluded that the special counsel tapped by the Justice Department to investigate Trump was illegally appointed.

Routh’s trial begins nearly a year after prosecutors say a U.S. Secret Service agent thwarted Routh’s attempt to shoot the Republican presidential nominee. Routh, 59, has pleaded not guilty to charges of attempting to assassinate a major presidential candidate, assaulting a federal o cer and several rearm violations.

Just nine weeks earlier, Trump had survived another attempt on his life while campaigning in Pennsylvania. That gunman had red eight shots, with one bullet grazing Trump’s ear, before being shot by a Secret Service counter sniper.

Prosecutors have said Routh methodically plotted to kill Trump for weeks before aiming a ri e through the shrubbery as Trump played golf on Sept. 15, 2024, at his West Palm Beach country club. A Secret Service agent spotted Routh before Trump came into view. O cials said Routh aimed his ri e at the agent, who opened re, causing Routh to drop his weapon and ee without ring a shot.

Law enforcement obtained help from a witness who prosecutors said informed o cers

New Chicago immigration campaign prompts confusion as city braces for federal intervention

The Trump administration targets immigrants with criminal records in “Operation Midway Blitz”

By Sophia Tareen

The Associated Press

CHICAGO — The Department of Homeland Security trumpeted the start of a new immigration operation Monday in Chicago, stirring up fresh confusion and anxiety as the city remained on alert for a federal intervention President Donald Trump has touted for days.

Blasting so-called sanctuary laws in Chicago and Illinois, the latest e ort targets people without legal permission to live in the U.S. who have criminal records. Like other Trump administration plans, it was stamped with a splashy name, “Operation Midway Blitz,” and circulated on social media with the mugshots of 11 foreign-born men it said should be deported.

for an in ux of immigration agents and possibly the National Guard for two weeks. Numerous protests have cropped up downtown, outside a suburban military base DHS plans to use and at an immigration processing center that’s expected to be a hub of activity.

that he saw a person eeing. The witness was then own in a police helicopter to a nearby interstate where Routh was arrested, and the witnesses con rmed it was the person he had seen, prosecutors have said.

The judge last week unsealed the prosecutor’s 33-page list of exhibits that could be introduced as evidence at the trial. It says prosecutors have photos of Routh holding the same model of semi-automatic ri e found at Trump’s club.

Routh was a North Carolina construction worker who in recent years had moved to Hawaii. A self-styled mercenary leader, Routh spoke out to anyone who would listen about his dangerous, sometimes violent plans to insert himself into con icts around the world, witnesses have told The Associated Press.

In the early days of the war in Ukraine, Routh tried to recruit soldiers from Afghanistan, Moldova and Taiwan to ght the Russians. In his native Greensboro, he was arrested in 2002 for eluding a tra c stop and barricading himself from o cers with a fully automatic machine gun and a “weapon of mass destruction,” which turned out to be an explosive with a 10inch fuse.

In 2010, police searched a warehouse Routh owned and found more than 100 stolen items, from power tools and building supplies to kayaks and spa tubs. In both felony cases, judges gave Routh either probation or a suspended sentence. In addition to the federal charges, Routh also has pleaded not guilty to state charges of terrorism and attempted murder.

Monday’s announced program would play in a Chicago surge.

Adding to the confusion was a handful of immigration arrests over the weekend in Chicago, which galvanized the city’s vocal activist network and worries that it was the start of something bigger.

“This is about terrorizing our communities,” said Chicago City Council member Jeylú Gutiérrez said. “But we will not be intimidated.”

She and immigrant rights activists said that ve people arrested were “beloved community members.” Some were on their way to work when arrested Sunday. Another works as a ower vendor.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement con rmed four arrests but gave sparse information, noting criminal histories with previous arrests and one conviction for driving under the in uence.

“This ICE operation will target the criminal illegal aliens who ocked to Chicago and Illinois because they knew Governor (JB) Pritzker and his sanctuary policies would protect them and allow them to roam free on American streets,” said a statement from DHS.

Latino residents in the nation’s third-largest city.

Pritzker, who has been locked in a back-and-forth with Trump for days, criticized the move. He and Mayor Brandon Johnson have defended the state and city’s extensive sanctuary laws which bar coordination between local police and immigration agents. They’ve accused the Trump administration of using scare tactics, particularly with

“Once again, this isn’t about ghting crime. That requires support and coordination — yet we’ve experienced nothing like that over the past several weeks,” Pritzker said in a statement. “Instead of taking steps to work with us on public safety, the Trump administration’s focused on scaring Illinoisians.” Chicago has been bracing

Trump deployed the National Guard to Los Angeles over the summer and as part of his unprecedented law enforcement takeover in Washington, D.C., where he has direct legal control. For the federal intervention in Los Angeles, a judge deemed the National Guard deployment illegal, but the Trump administration got a victory related to immigration enforcement there when the U.S. Supreme Court lifted a restraining order barring agents there from stopping people solely based on their race, language, job or location.

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the Senate’s No. 2 Democrat, rejected the latest operation announced in Chicago.

“These actions don’t make us safer,” he said in a statement. “They are a waste of money, stoke fear, and represent another failed attempt at a distraction.” It remained unclear what role

“ICE has always operated in Chicago,” the agency said in a statement. “We will continue our law enforcement and public safety mission, undeterred, as we surge ICE resources in the city in coordination with our federal partners.”

DHS said the operation announced Monday would be in honor of Katie Abraham, one of two Illinois women killed in a January fatal car crash. A grand jury indicted a 29-year-old man in the hit-and-run. The Guatemalan national also faces federal false identi cation crimes.

CAROLYN KASTER / AP PHOTO

A person talks to a masked guard at the entrance of an immigration processing center Monday in Broadview, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago.

MARTIN

Ryan Routh, the man suspected in the apparent assassination attempt of Donald Trump, was arrested in Florida in September 2024.

RandolpH SPORTS

Randolph’s Madilyn Baker dives to the oor in front

Randleman racks up string of volleyball victories

Soccer teams in the area were involved in a few close results in notable matchups

Randolph Record sta RANDLEMAN prevailed in a ve-set home match with previously undefeated Asheboro last week in one of the area’s top matchups of the opening month of the volleyball season.

The Tigers secured a 25-21, 25-20, 9-25, 19-25, 15-11 victory.

Lilah Covington’s 14 kills and Karrington Jones’ 13 kills and Kaylee Phillips’ four aces were critical for the Tigers.

Lia George had 11 kills and 17 digs, while Emma Kate Forrester provided 11 blocks and 10 kills for Asheboro.

The conquest of Asheboro was sandwiched around Randleman’s sweeps of visiting Montgomery Central and host Central Davidson as the Tigers improved to 7-3.

• Asheboro defeated visiting Providence Grove in three sets as

FOOTBALL ROUNDUP

Kailey Brown had 19 assists and seven aces, Cora Little had 13 kills and Emma Ingold turned in 14 digs and four aces.

The Blue Comets, who won nine of their rst 10 matches, also swept visiting Trinity with Emma Little’s 15 digs, Brown’s 15 assists and Eva Vuncannon’s 14 assists and four aces among the top numbers.

• Wheatmore topped host Chatham Central in four sets.

• Providence Grove won in four sets at Eastern Randolph.

• Uwharrie Charter Acade-

Blue Comets run past Randleman to stay perfect in 2025 season

Providence Grove’s defense made huge impacts in a thumping of Southwestern Randolph Randolph Record sta

ASHEBORO — Quarterback

Dallas Brinton ran for two touchdowns and 136 yards in Asheboro’s 21-7 victory against visiting Randleman on Friday night.

Connor Brinton added 73 rushing yards and one touchdown for the Blue Comets, who have a 3-0 record for the rst time since 2006.

Asheboro scored rst on a 10-play drive, capped by Dallas Brinton’s 24-yard run with less than two minutes left in the second quarter.

Randleman responded quickly on John Kirkpatrick’s 26-yard touchdown pass to Connor Cassidy to tie the score 7-7 before halftime.

Dallas Brinton 25-yard run broke the tie in the third quarter. Connor Brinton’s 16-yard touchdown run came in the opening minute of the fourth quarter.

Kirkpatrick nished 25 of 35 for 236 yards with an intercep-

tion. He also led the Tigers (1-2) with 35 rushing yards. Cassidy racked up 120 receiving yards on seven catches. Providence Grove 31, Southwestern Randolph 0: At Asheboro, Holden Swift returned a kicko for a touchdown and Conner Haithcock in-

tercepted two passes among the four turnovers collected by the visiting Patriots’ defense. Carson Jones kicked eld goals from 35, 32 and 39 yards, with two of those in the rst half. Jackson Lawyer threw a 28-yard

my’s sweep of host Richmond County came with Caroline Way’s 15 kills and 13 digs and Emma Johnson’s 31 assists and 10 digs. That stretched UCA’s winning streak to ve matches going into this week’s Four Rivers Conference opener at Southwestern Randolph.

• Southwestern Randolph topped visiting West Stanly in ve sets and lost in four sets at Oak Grove.

BOYS’ SOCCER

Southwestern Randolph dropped its rst game of the season in a home showdown with Western Alamance.

The 2-1 result came between undefeated teams who were in state nals a year ago in their respective classes. Fernando Hernandez scored

for Southwestern Randolph o Chris Betancourt’s assist.

• Providence Grove and Eastern Randolph tied for the second time in as many weeks. The 3-3 draw came with visiting Providence Grove’s Kevin Bautista, Giovanny Arellano and Sam Peters each scoring a goal.

• Owen Leonard scored three goals as Randleman notched a 4-0 home victory against West Davidson.

That came a day after Randleman’s 1-1 draw with visiting Salisbury. Leonard scored the goal for the Tigers.

• Wheatmore’s Carter Queen scored four goals to go with one assist and Easter Dewitt scored two goals in a 9-0 home trouncing of North Stanly.

• Asheboro gave up three

See ROUNDUP, page B2

Baldwin wins after Loftin gets disquali ed

Several of the track’s regular racing divisions also held races

Randolph Record sta

SOPHIA — An unapproved part on the car of Carson Loftin resulted in his postrace disquali cation from the SMART Tour’s feature Sunday at Caraway Speedway. So Luke Baldwin, who was the runner-up on the track, inherited the victory. Loftin had controlled the tempo with comfortable margins in the 99-lap race, which was dubbed the Robert Je reys Memorial 99. Jonathan Cash moved up to second place on the results list, followed by Paul Hartwig III, Burt Myers and Danny Bohn in the eld of 21 drivers. Ryan Newman was eighth. The speedway’s weekend racing was postponed because of storms from Saturday night and shifted to Sunday, beginning with a late-afternoon green ag.

In the Carolina Crate Modi ed Series, Cody Norman notched his second victory in a row, edging Caraway

Speedway regular Jaxson Casper. Dale Ocburn, Lee Je reys and Mitchell Wright were in the next three spots among 13 entrants.

• In Chargers, Corey Wilson was the winner ahead of Cody Gri n, with Richard Shofner, points leader Matthew Smith and Jason Gallimore rounding out the top ve. The UCARs race was won by Josh Phillips, who was in control for most of the 20-lap event. Zack Moore, Austin Moore, Jeremy Kidd and Jimmy Cooper completed the top ve among 13 drivers.

• There was a postrace change in the Mini Stocks results as Steven Saunders became the winner following the disquali cation of Dennis Holdren following a car inspection. Brandon Crotts and Blaze Sanders were in the second and third positions.

There’s another race card with the track’s regular classes competing Saturday night. The classes on the docket are Chargers, Mini Stocks, UCARs, 602 Modi eds, Crown Vics, Legends and Bandoleros.

PJ WARD-BROWN / RANDOLPH RECORD

Southwestern

of teammates Kinlin Hulin (16) and Cheyenne Dixon (6) against West Stanly.

PJ WARD-BROWN / RANDOLPH RECORD

Eastern Randolph’s Caden Revelle makes a touchdown catch despite coverage from Jonah Thienel of Union Pines.

Eva Vuncannon

Asheboro, volleyball

The senior setter has helped put teammates in good positions as the Blue Comets have enjoyed a strong opening stretch of the season.

Vuncannon averaged almost 20 assists per match through the rst 10 matches of the season. She has plenty of support in terms of nishing at the net from Lia George, Emma Kate Forester, Adalynn Scherer and Kailey Brown.

Vuncannon is second on the Asheboro team in serve percentage.

Through 10 matches, the Blue Comets have nine victories – almost halfway to last year’s 19-win total.

Vuncannon also is a member of the girls’ soccer program at Asheboro.

ROUNDUP from page B1

rst-half goals in a 3-2 home loss to Greensboro Grimsley.

Zamire Bush scored four goals and added an assist as the Blue Comets responded with an 8-4 victory against previously unde-

feated Winston-Salem Atkins in Friday’s road game. Asheboro bounced back from a 3-2 halftime de cit. Ethan Muro had two goals. • Uwharrie Charter Academy lost 4-2 at home to Southern Wake on Friday.

Southwestern Randolph inducts seven into HOF

Randolph Record sta

ASHEBORO — There are seven new inductees into the Southwestern Randolph Athletics Hall of Fame on Friday.

The inductees were Reece Daniel, McKenna Hoover Gardner, Jennifer Hurley Smith, Hagan Kiser, Samantha Lagrama, Reggie Lassiter and Larry Needham. Daniel was a basketball and baseball player. Hoover played tennis, basketball and softball. Hurley was a standout softball pitcher. Kiser had a stellar softball career. Lagrama had key roles in softball, basketball and tennis. Lassiter racked up accolades in football, basketball and baseball. Needham, a graduate of Asheboro High School, was a contributor for years to the school community, including time coaching. Members of the new class were recognized on the eld during the football game vs. Providence Grove.

Alcaraz beats rival Sinner at the U.S. Open

The win gives him a 6th Slam title and the No. 1 ranking

By Howard Fendrich The Associated Press

NEW YORK — So maybe the rst U.S. Open nal between young rivals Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner wasn’t as long, riveting and dramatic as their matchup to decide the championship at the French Open. Perhaps it wasn’t as seemingly meaningful and plot-driven as their showdown for the Wimbledon trophy.

Still, what the No. 2-seeded Alcaraz’s 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 victory over No. 1 Sinner on Sunday did do was signi cant. Alcaraz reasserted his superiority over the defending champion, wrested away the top spot in the ATP rankings and left tennis fans eager for whenever their next clash will come.

They are the rst two men in the sport’s history to face each other in three consecutive Grand Slam nals within a single season.

“I’m seeing you more than my family,” Alcaraz joked during the trophy ceremony, eliciting a grin from Sinner. “It’s great to share the court, to share the locker rooms, everything.”

This 2-hour, 42-minute win gave Alcaraz, a 22-year-old from Spain, leads over Sin-

“I’m seeing you more than my

ner, a 24-year-old from Italy, of 10-5 in their head-to-head series, 6-4 in total Grand Slam trophies, and 2-1 in U.S. Open championships.

“I give lots of credit to him, because he handled the situation better than I did,” said Sinner, who lamented that his own play was too predictable. “He raised his level when he had to.”

Right from the beginning, under a closed roof because of rain earlier in the day, Sinner was outplayed by Alcaraz.

“You were better than me,” Sinner said. “I tried my best today. I couldn’t do more.”

This hard-court matchup followed Alcaraz’s victory over Sinner across 51⁄2 hours after erasing a trio of match points on the red clay at Roland-Garros in June, and Sinner’s victory over two-time reigning champ Alcaraz on the grass at the All England Club in July.

“The things ... I did well in London,” Sinner said, “he did better today.”

These guys are so, so much better than the rest of men’s tennis at the moment. Their traits are unique, their strengths multiple, their games untouchable.

This marked the third class since the launch of the Southwestern Randolph Athletics Hall of Fame.

They have combined to collect the past eight Slam trophies — four each — and 10 of 13. Novak Djokovic, the 24 -time major champ eliminated by Alcaraz on Friday, took the other three.

Both Sinner, who had won his past 27 hard-court matches at majors, and Alcaraz offered glimpses Sunday of why they are so good, although it was rare that both were at a peak simultaneously.

Alcaraz, who ended up with twice as many winners, 42-21, was superb in the rst, third and fourth sets; Sinner’s top e orts arrived in the second.

During his defeat at Wimbledon, Alcaraz was caught by a camera telling his team in Spanish: “From the back of the court, he’s much better than me.”

Perhaps that’s why Alcaraz was aggressive Sunday with his sledgehammer of a forehand. Whenever the smallest opening presented itself, Alcaraz barged through with that shot, going big early in points, which often worked.

Sinner had dropped a total of one service game in his preceding three matches, but Alcaraz broke right away Sunday and ve times in all.

An hour and 20 minutes in, it was a set apiece, after Alcaraz ceded one for the rst time all tournament, allowing Neale Fraser to retain his distinction as the most recent man to win every set he played at the event — in 1960.

These numbers say as much about Alcaraz as they do Sinner: Over the last two seasons, Sinner is 1-7 against Alcaraz — and 109-4 against everyone else.

from page B1

touchdown pass to Conner Tozer and ran in a two-point conversion. Andrew Thomas had a 27-yard touchdown run.

The Patriots, who led 14-0 at halftime, have posted back-to-back shutouts.

Southwestern Randolph is 2-1.

Union Pines 34, Eastern Randolph 7: At Cameron, the host Vikings led 20-7 at halftime and didn’t allow a second-half point. Ian Hicks threw touchdown passes to three di erent players for Union Pines (2-1).

Caden Revelle made a touchdown catch for Eastern Randolph (2-1). It marked the Wildcats’ rst regular-season road loss since the 2022

FRIDAY’S GAMES

Southwestern Randolph at Randleman

• Eastern Randolph at Providence Grove

Jordan-Matthews at Wheatmore

Trinity at Bishop McGuinness

• Asheboro at Rockingham County

opener at Eastern Alamance. South Rowan 38, Trinity 23: At China Grove, Nick Wolf

ran for 210 yards and two

touchdowns for the host Raiders (3-0). Wolf had 20 carries. Lincoln Carlberg threw a 42-yard touchdown pass to Landon Deal. Quarterback Khad’n Fuller ran for two touchdowns and a team-high 64 yards for Trinity (0-3).

South Davidson 21, Wheatmore 0: At Denton, Gage Underwood had a touchdown run among his 149 yards on the ground for the host Wildcats, who scored one touchdown in the second quarter and two more in the third quarter. George Nilson ran for 127 yards and one touchdown for South Davidson (3-0). Underwood threw a 23-yard touchdown pass to Duke Howell. Wheatmore fell to 0-3.

PJ WARD-BROWN / RANDOLPH RECORD

Jr.

FOOTBALL

FRANK FRANKLIN II / AP PHOTO

Carlos Alcaraz reacts after defeating Jannik Sinner to win the men’s singles nal of the U.S. Open.

family.”

Carlos Alcaraz to Jannik Sinner

pen & paper pursuits

this week in history

Al-Qaida attacks U.S., William McKinley dies, General Motors founded, U.S. Constitution signed

The Associated Press

SEPT. 11

1789: Alexander Hamilton was appointed the rst U.S. secretary of the Treasury.

1941: The groundbreaking for the Pentagon took place.

1954: The Miss America pageant made its network TV debut on ABC.

2001: Nearly 3,000 people were killed as 19 al-Qaida hijackers seized four jetliners, crashing two into New York’s World Trade Center, one into the Pentagon, and one into a eld in Pennsylvania.

SEPT. 12

2013: Voyager 1, launched 36 years earlier, became the rst man-made spacecraft to leave the solar system.

1940: The Lascaux cave paintings, estimated at 17,000 years old, were discovered in southwestern France.

1962: At Rice University, President John F. Kennedy declared: “We choose to go to the moon in this decade … not because they are easy, but because they are hard.”

SEPT. 13

1788: The Congress of the Confederation authorized the rst national election and declared New York City the temporary capital.

1948: Republican Margaret Chase Smith of Maine was elected to the U.S. Senate, becoming the rst woman to serve in both houses of Congress.

1993: At the White House, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO chairman Yasser Arafat shook hands after signing an accord granting limited Palestinian autonomy.

SEPT. 14

1847: During the Mexican American War, U.S. forces under Gen. Win eld Scott took control of Mexico City.

1901: President William McKinley died in Bu alo, New York, of gunshot wounds inicted by an assassin eight days prior.

1982: Princess Grace of Monaco, formerly lm star Grace Kelly, died at age 52 of injuries from a car crash the day before.

SEPT. 15

1835: Charles Darwin reached the Galápagos Islands aboard the HMS Beagle.

1935: The Nuremberg Laws were enacted in Nazi Germany, depriving German Jews of their citizenship.

1940: The tide turned in the Battle of Britain in World War II, as the Royal Air Force in icted heavy losses upon the Luftwa e.

1963: Four black girls were killed in a bombing at the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. Three Ku Klux Klansmen were later convicted.

SEPT. 16

1810: Catholic priest Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla called on his parishioners to join him in a rebellion against Spanish rule, marking the beginning of the Mexican War of Independence.

1893: The largest land run in U.S. history occurred as more than 100,000 white settlers rushed to claim land in what is now northern Oklahoma.

1908: General Motors was founded in Flint, Michigan, by William C. Durant.

1966: The Metropolitan Opera o cially opened its new opera house at New York’s Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.

SEPT. 17

1787: The Constitution of the United States was completed and signed in Philadelphia.

1862: More than 3,600 men were killed in the Civil War Battle of Antietam in Maryland.

1908: Lt. Thomas E. Selfridge became the rst person to die in a powered aircraft crash when the Wright Flyer went down at Fort Myer, Virginia. Pilot Orville Wright was seriously injured.

1944: During World War II, Allied paratroopers launched Operation Market Garden in the Netherlands.

UNITED STATES LIBRARY OF CONGRESS VIA WIKIPEDIA

General Motors was founded on Sept. 16, 1908, in Flint, Michigan, by William C. Durant, a leading gure in the early automobile industry.

DIANE BONDAREFF / AP PHOTO

The twin towers of the World Trade Center burn after hijacked planes crashed into them on Sept. 11, 2001, in New York City.

R&B singer Stone’s children sue truck company for highway crash death

The church-grown singer was born in Columbia, South Carolina

By Je Amy The Associated Press

ATLANTA — Two children of R&B singer Angie Stone are suing a trucking company, truck manufacturer and others, seeking damages for an Alabama interstate crash that killed Stone.

The suit, led last Tuesday in a Georgia state court in the Atlanta suburb of Lawrenceville, says the 63-year- old Stone and the other occupants of the van survived an initial predawn wreck that resulted from the driver of their Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van losing control of the vehicle. The driver tried to steer the van back onto the highway, but it ipped over.

A passersby pulled over and helped ve of the nine occupants crawl out, but while Stone was still trying to get out, an 18-wheeler carrying a load of sugar slammed into the van, the lawsuit says. The impact ejected Stone and pinned her under the van, where she died, the lawsuit claims. Sheila Hopkins, still inside the van, su ered injuries.

Hopkins and Stone’s two children, Diamond Stone and Michael D’Angelo Archer, led the lawsuit. They’re su-

Stone’s biggest hits included “No More Rain (In This Cloud),” “Baby,” “Wish I Didn’t Miss You” and “Brotha,” and her 2001 album “Mahogany Soul” and 2007’s “The Art of Love & War” both charted.

ing the van driver, the truck driver, the man and companies who owned the van, the trucking company and the maker of the 18-wheel truck.

The suit claims the truck’s collision avoidance system was faulty and failed to detect the van lying stationary in one lane of the interstate. The suit also claims that the truck driver was listening to music on headphones, wasn’t paying attention and never braked before slamming into the van at nearly 70 mph.

Neither trucking company CSRT of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, nor truck manufacturer Daimler Truck North America of Portland, Oregon, immediately responded to emails seeking comment.

Stone was a Grammy-nominated R&B singer and member of the all-female hip-hop trio The Sequence. She was known for the hit song “Wish I Didn’t Miss You,” and ourished in the early 2000s as neo-soul began to dominate R&B. She was on her way back to her Atlanta-area home after a performance at a Mardi Gras ball in Mobile, Alabama.

In an Instagram post before the crash, Stone had told fans she was excited about upcoming events and “getting back in the mix.”

“A lot of stu is going on that I don’t want to just let out of the bag just yet,” she said. “But you can see that there’s a big grin on my face.”

The singer-songwriter created hits like “No More Rain (In This Cloud),” which reached No. 1 for 10 weeks on Billboard’s Adult R&B airplay chart; “Baby” with legendary soul singer Betty Wright, another No. 1 hit; and “Wish I Didn’t Miss You” and “Brotha.” Her 2001 album “Mahogany Soul” reached No. 22 on the Billboard 200, while 2007’s “The Art of Love & War” peaked at No. 11.

Stone’s group, The Sequence, on the trailblazing imprint Sugar Hill Records, became one of the rst female groups to record a rap song. The group’s “Funk You Up,” which has been sampled by numerous artists, including Dr. Dre. Stone later joined the trio Vertical Hold before launching her solo career.

SOLUTIONS FOR THIS WEEK

Stranger stalks novelist on book tour in ‘All This Could Be Yours,’

An aspiring author’s success unravels as a haunting secret resurfaces

By Bruce DeSilva

The Associated Press

AUTHOR HANK PHIL-

LIPPI Ryan has written a crime novel titled “All This Could Be Yours” about an author on tour to promote a crime novel titled “All This Could Be Yours.” As Ryan says in an endnote, it’s very meta.

The ctional author is Tess Calloway, a woman and mother who quit a well-paying corporate job where she felt “invisible” in order to pursue her dream of becoming a novelist. The hero of Tess’ book is Annabelle, a woman who de es the limitations society places of women in order to do what she wishes with her “one life.”

MINOTAUR VIA AP

“All This Could Be Yours” author

for WHDH-TV, Channel 7 News in Boston.

As Tess’ book tour opens, her debut novel is already on The New York Times bestseller list. At each stop, she is greeted by adoring crowds, mostly women who chant “One life!” and proclaim that Annabelle inspired them to change their own. Nevertheless, the tour is exhausting. Every day takes Tess to a new city, a di erent hotel, a fresh crowd of admirers. She has to rely on FaceTime to keep in touch with her husband and two young children, and her vivid imagination tortures her with fears about what could be going wrong at home. Before long, however, odd things start happening on the tour. She nds a mysterious

Hank Phillippi Ryan is the bestselling author of 16 pshycological thrillers.

locket in a hotel room nightstand. At another stop, someone breaks into her room and leaves a pair of earrings. A sheet of paper with a vaguely threatening message is slid under her door. Someone takes her carry-on from an airplane overhead bin.

Worse, Tess starts getting uncomfortable personal questions about her past at bookstore appearances and on social media — uncomfortable because she has long harbored a dark secret. It’s one that she fears would destroy her new career and her family if it were ever revealed. In Tess, Ryan has created a likeable, compelling, complex character who struggles to come to terms with her past and nds the courage to confront the danger she faces. The story starts slowly, the tension building page by page toward a series of twists that readers are unlikely to see coming.

GREGORY SMITH / AP PHOTO

R&B singer Angie Stone was killed in a fatal car crash on March 1, 2025, in Montgomery, Alabama. She was 63.

Hank Phillippi Ryan, born Harriet Ann Sablosky, is an investigative reporter

famous birthdays this week

Guitarist Leo Kottke is 80, Barbara Bain turns 94, Oliver Stone is 79, Phil Jackson hits 80

The Associated Press THESE CELEBRITIES have birthdays this week.

SEPT. 11

Composer Arvo Pärt is 90. Film director Brian De Palma is 85. Singer-actor-dancer Lola Falana is 83. Musician Mickey Hart is 82. Guitarist Leo Kottke is 80. Actor Amy Madigan is 75. Actor Virginia Madsen is 64. Singer Harry Connick Jr. is 58.

SEPT. 12

Actor Linda Gray is 85. Singer Maria Muldaur is 82. Author Michael Ondaatje is 82. Actor Joe Pantoliano is 74. Photographer Nan Goldin is 72. Composer Hans Zimmer is 68. TV host-commentator Greg Gutfeld is 61. Actor-comedian Louis C.K. is 58. Basketball Hall of Famer Yao Ming is 45.

SEPT. 13

Actor Barbara Bain is 94. Nobel Peace Prize laureate Óscar Arias is 85. Rock singer David Clayton-Thomas (Blood, Sweat & Tears) is 84. Actor Jacqueline Bisset is 81. Singer Peter Cetera is 81. Actor Jean Smart is 74. Olympic gold medal sprinter Michael Johnson is 58.

SEPT. 14

Architect Renzo Piano is 88. Basketball Hall of Fame coach Larry Brown is 85. Actor Sam Neill is 78. Country singer John Berry is 66. Actor Melissa Leo is 65.

SEPT. 15

Writer-director Ron Shelton is 80. Actor Tommy Lee Jones is 79. Film director Oliver Stone is 79. Football coach Pete Carroll is 74. Football Hall of Famer Dan Marino is 64. Actor Tom Hardy is 48.

SEPT. 16

Actor George Chakiris is 93. Actor Ed Begley Jr. is 76. Author-historian- lmmaker Henry Louis Gates Jr. is 75. Actor Mickey Rourke is 73. Magician David Copper eld is 69. Retired MLB All-Star pitcher Orel Hershiser is 67. Singer Richard Marx is 62.

SEPT.

the stream

‘Only Murders in the Building’ returns, Charlie Sheen doc, ‘The

Ed Sheeran drops “Play” on Friday

The Associated Press

“ONLY MURDERS in the Building” returning for its fth season and Ed Sheeran coming back with the new pop album “Play” are some of the new television, lms, music and games headed to a device near you.

Also, among the streaming o erings worth your time: The Net ix two-part documentary “AKA Charlie Sheen” chronicles the 60-year-old star’s up-anddown career, Robin Wright and Olivia Cooke star in a psychological thriller for Prime Video called “The Girlfriend” and R&B giant Ty Dolla $ign o ers his rst full-length album in half a decade.

MOVIES TO STREAM

The Net ix two-part documentary “AKA Charlie Sheen” chronicles the 60-year-old star’s up-and-down career, from “Wall Street” to “winning.” The lm, now available on the streaming service, features candid interviews with Sheen, along with many friends and co-stars. Andrew Renzi (“Pepsi, Where’s My Jet?”) directs. Clouds of IED smoke and cries of agony ll Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza’s harrowing lm, “Warfare” (HBO Max on Friday) with little but the faces of its Navy SEALs to ground the nearly real-time, based- on-a-true-story dramatization. The movie e ectively embeds viewers on a seemingly minor mission in Iraq in 2006. In her review, AP reviewer Lindsey Bahr wrote: “War-movie cliches have been rigorously rooted out of ‘Warfare,’ a terse and chillingly brutal immersion in a moment of the Iraq War.”

Andrew Ahn’s “The Wedding Banquet” (now on Paramount+) joyfully remakes and updates Ang Lee’s 1993 queer landmark lm. Ahn’s movie, starring Kelly Marie Tran, Lily Gladstone, Bowen Yang and Han Gi-chan, rebuilds Lee’s queer comedy of errors for a new generation. In her review, AP’s Lindsey Bahr praised the supporting performances by Youn Yuh-jung and Joan Chen but wished the lm

Girlfriend’ thrills

expressed more fun: “There’s a through-line about found families, but I’m not totally convinced that these people are great for each other.”

MUSIC TO STREAM

Sheeran returns with a new album on Friday, his eighth. titled “Play.” The release detours away from the acoustic introspection of his last release, 2023’s “Autumn Variations,” and instead of-

fers a kind of reserved pop music. “Azizam,” a Farsi word which translates to something approximating “my dear one,” is a cultural crossover hit; “A Little More” has a much-needed groove. It’s clear Sheeran is in it for a good time — and his loyal listeners will follow suit. Little has been made apparent about the highly anticipated, fourth studio album from R&B giant Ty Dolla $ign. Here’s what we do know:

“War-movie cliches have been rigorously rooted out of ‘Warfare,’ a terse and chillingly brutal immersion in a moment of the Iraq War.”

Lindsey Bahr, AP lm writer

It’s his rst full-length in half a decade, it arrives Friday, and the lead single, the infatuated “ALL IN,” includes an inspired sample of Wayne Wonder’s “No Letting Go.” It might be the end of summer, but that song is evidence that Ty is bringing the heat.

SERIES TO STREAM

“Only Murders in the Building” returns for its fth season on Hulu. The amateur sleuths Charles (Steve Martin), Mabel (Selena Gomez), and Oliver (Martin Short) begin the new episodes trying to gure out who murdered the doorman of their building.

Wright and Cooke star in a new psychological thriller for Prime Video called “The

Girlfriend.” Wright plays Laura, a very, very protective mother of her grown man son, Danny. Her internal alarm goes o when she meets Danny’s new girlfriend Cherry, played by Cooke. Cherry is a streetwise realtor who does not meet Laura’s standards for her son. Make no mistake, both women are unhinged. Each episode shows Laura and Cherry’s perspective, which is fun.

VIDEO GAMES TO PLAY

Last year’s “Borderlands” movie bombed, but you can’t keep a popular franchise down. So Gearbox Software and 2K Games have returned with Borderlands 4, bringing its brash brand of comic violence back to where it belongs: your game console. It’s the apotheosis of the so-called “looter-shooter,” in which you shoot a lot of enemies and collect a lot of loot. In this chapter, you’ve landed on a prison planet ruled by a tyrant known as the Timekeeper. You must decide which rebel faction to join as well as which of the Timekeeper’s lieutenants you want to take down rst. You can play solo or join forces with up to three other Vault Hunters. Fight the power beginning Friday on PlayStation 5, Xbox X/S or PC.

JORDAN STRAUSS / INVISION / AP CONTENT SERVICES

Executive producers and actors Steve Martin, left, and Selena Gomez return for the fth season of “Only Murders in the Building” on Hulu.

SCOTT

British singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran drops his latest album, “Play,” on Friday.

NETFLIX / BLEEKER STREET / HBO MAX VIA AP

From left, “aka Charlie Sheen,” “The Wedding Banquet” and “Warfare” are out this week on Net ix, Paramount+ and HBO Max, respectively.

HOKE COUNTY

Remembering 343

The American ag ies in front of the Raeford Fire Department on Tuesday ahead of the 24th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Three-hundred forty-three New York City re ghters were killed at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.

WHAT’S HAPPENING

Michigan judge tosses case against accused fake electors in 2020

A Michigan judge has dismissed the criminal cases against 15 people accused of acting falsely as electors for President Donald Trump in the 2020 election.

District Court Judge Kristen Simmons decided in a Tuesday hearing that the cases won’t go to trial. Charges were brought by the state’s Democratic attorney general over two years ago. The people charged include a few high pro le members of the Republican Party in the battleground state. Each faced eight charges of forgery and conspiracy to commit election forgery. They had been accused of submitting certi cates that falsely said Trump won the election in Michigan.

RFK Jr.’s latest “Make America Healthy Again” report calls for oversight of drug ads

The Trump administration is urging public health agencies to prioritize investigations of vaccine injuries, prescription drug use, and the cause of autism. The call is part of a new report released Tuesday.

Overseen by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the report aims to end childhood diseases in the U.S. by refocusing public health on his so-called “MAHA” movement’s priorities. The report suggests using personal medical records and health insurance data to investigate diseases and disorders, including autism. It also addresses issues like ultraprocessed food consumption and water quality. The report calls for increased oversight of prescription drug ads, especially those by social media in uencers.

Commissioners, Sheri ’s O ce to take action against electronic gaming

The decision comes in response to a cease and desist issued by the district attorney

By Ryan Henkel North State Journal

RAEFORD — The Hoke County Board of Commissioners has moved to rectify discrepancies in its local ordinances related to electronic gambling.

At its Sept. 2 meeting, the board voted to repeal the electronic gambling device provisions within the Hoke County Zoning and Planning Ordinances, as well to revoke and and refund all permits that had previously been issued for gaming machines.

The decision comes in response to a cease and desist issued to the commission by District Attorney Mike Hardin at the end of August, stating that the county needed to change its ordinances allowing electronic gaming.

“This issue is being looked at as we speak with our counsel and our state representation because there are several North Carolina general cases that are

“There is a 30-day period for these businesses to either get in compliance with the law or shut their doors.”

Hoke County Sheri ’s O ce

being tried, appealed, tried, appealed,” said Vice Chair Harry Southerland. “If you go to Moore County, they still allow the machines, if you go to Cumberland County, they allow it, but maybe in Wake County, they might not allow them. We don’t have a rm idea on how the state is going to handle the illegal gambling machines right now, so that’s still up in the air. It’s not done, but it’s still being worked on.”

The Hoke County Sheri ’s O ce also put out another statement on Sept. 3 stating the department would be enforcing North Carolina state law in regards to electronic gambling machines starting Sept. 24.

“The press release in August is not just for public information but also, a notice to anyone operating these types of establish-

ments,” the release said. “There is a 30-day period for these businesses to either get in compliance with the law or shut their doors.”

The board also o cially approved the sale of alcohol in the county starting at 10 a.m. on Sundays.

The ordinance was previously voted on by the commissioners on Aug. 18 but required a second vote as the decision was not unanimous.

On both votes, the board voted 3-2 to approve the change to the ordinance, with Chairman James Leach and Commissioner Mary Blue McCollum voting against it.

Previously, alcohol sales in the county were not allowed until after noon, but this now will allow businesses with alcohol licenses to sell alcohol earlier.

The change is intended to help restaurants who serve Sunday brunch.

The board then approved a design-build contract with CRU for Hoke County ground water Supply phase services.

“What we’re trying to do is increase water capacity for the entire county,” said Utilities Director James McQueen. “So

the project is based on water and wastewater improvements. What this plan does is address all of the issues with replacing lines connected to the upsizing on 211 so that we can start doing them over phases.”

“In three years, we’re talking about adding at least ve new wells to our inventory,” said Commissioner Tony Hunt. “So that’s going to up our allocation of what we’re going to be able to give out as far as development and things going on in our county.”

Finally, the board approved the promotion of Teela Wilkerson to Hoke area transit services director.

Wilkerson had been working as interim director for more than a year.

“I’ve talked with quite a few members of the Transportation Board, and I know I’m in support of this,” Hunt said. “She’s been doing the job for the last year and a half and taking care of what needed to be taken care of at the department as the director. It just makes good sense to promote her from within, and I believe in promoting from within. I know she’ll continue to do a good job for us.”

Democratic governor, Republican legislature: How Josh Stein navigates North Carolina politics

The rst-term executive works with the GOP on storm recovery and other priorities

By Gary D. Robertson The Associated Press

FLETCHER — North Caro-

lina Gov. Josh Stein has taken an unusual approach with Republican political opponents in his rst eight months leading a highly competitive state where divided government has become the norm. He’s trying to get along with them.

Stein, who succeeded fellow Democrat Roy Cooper in January, has made an e ort to work with the GOP-controlled General Assembly on things like storm recovery — still a top priority nearly a year since Hurricane Helene’s historic ooding — and on other issues broadly popular with North Carolinians.

He’s kept communication lines open with legislative leaders, even as they back President Donald Trump and oppose many Stein policy prescriptions.

The public, Stein said in an interview with The Associated Press, doesn’t “care whether

I’m a Democrat or Republican, or that the legislature is a Democrat- or Republican-led body.”

“What they want is for whoever are in these positions to get things done that make their lives better, and that’s my job,” he added. “So I will work with whoever I need to in order to make progress for the people of North Carolina.” His results have been mixed so far. The General Assembly passed storm-relief packages but gave Stein roughly a little over half the money he requested. It overrode several of his vetoes on bills that build up immigration enforcement, weaken

transgender rights and assert other GOP priorities — results that Stein laments.

But Republicans, including some who gathered with Stein at a barbecue in the mountains recently to honor local government workers’ hurricane recovery e orts, have taken notice of the e orts he’s made.

“We appreciate everything that he’s done for us,” said Larry Chapman, a Transylvania County commissioner and Trump supporter. “I’m encouraged with Stein — he seems to be a lot more interested in

THE HOKE COUNTY EDITION OF NORTH STATE JOURNAL

getting out with the people and listening to people more.”

Stein’s approach comes as Democratic governors nationwide struggle to navigate Republican gains and Trump’s sprawling agenda. While some chief executives have taken more combative stances against Trump and the GOP, others have opted for diplomacy.

Stein told those gathered in Fletcher that he was their ally on Helene, which caused more than 100 deaths in North Carolina and generated $60 billion in damages and needs. He did not mention political a liation.

“You and your constituents have been busting your tails to come back, and come back stronger than ever,” Stein said to hundreds at a park submerged during Helene. “I want you to know that I am in your corner.”

More communication, less confrontation

Stein, the former attorney general, shares many views with Cooper, who early on clashed with Republicans over the “bathroom bill” lawmakers enacted and sued them over laws that eroded his powers. Those clashes set a tone of distrust that wasn’t eliminated during his eight years at the job. Cooper is now running for the U.S. Senate.

While Stein also has sued over GOP power grabs, he’s

needed good relations with Republicans on storm relief and other topics. He’s speaking regularly with new Republican House Speaker Destin Hall, longtime Senate leader Phil Berger and other legislators.

“We have di erences with him on certain policies and certain processes,” Berger said recently. But, he added, “I would say that there’s still what I would consider to be a very good relationship on a personal basis with Gov. Stein.”

Stein, himself a lawmaker until 2016, has shared credit with Republicans, inviting them to signings of bipartisan bills. Last week, Stein named a GOP legislator to co-chair an energy a ordability task force.

There “was a lot of fatigue from the last eight years, of everything was a battle,” said state Rep. Jake Johnson, another Republican. “It felt like you were just having to ght to get anything done.”

Partisan divisions remain

By North Carolina standards, Stein still has used his veto stamp frequently — 15 times so far.

He rejected measures that would expand gun access and eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

“Because you respect the people you deal with, because you’re civil with the people you deal with, doesn’t mean you don’t have real disagreements,”

Stein said. “When they pass legislation that makes the state less safe or less strong, I’ll veto them.”

Berger said the vetoes prove Stein is more left-leaning than he’s portrayed himself to be.

Democrats hold the minimum number of seats necessary to uphold Stein’s vetoes if they remain united. But Stein was unable to hold them together on eight vetoes — as one to three House Democrats joined Republicans in voting to override them.

Another major veto decision looms if there’s a nal state budget, now two months overdue.

“Stein has lost some big-time issues” this year, Meredith College political science professor David McLennan said. “But it doesn’t mean that he’s not a successful governor in his rst year.”

Visiting areas damaged by Helene

Stein’s latest trip to western North Carolina marked his 34th separate day spent in the region as governor, re ecting a promise to rebuild “a more resilient region for the long haul.”

“A lot of the job is showing up,” said Chuck McGrady, a former Republican legislator from the mountains. “He is meeting with a wide range of people, and I think he’s gotten very high grades from folks, regardless of their politics.”

Helene’s recovery began

during presidential and gubernatorial campaigns and prompted accusations by Trump and allied Republicans that the response from Democratic administrations was weak.

Stein included Johnson and McGrady, now an una liated voter, on a recovery committee. And he created a recovery agency separate from a Cooper-era o ce criticized for housing repair delays after hurricanes Matthew and Florence. Stein met Trump when the president visited the hard-hit region during his rst days in o ce.

Stein said this week he’s seeking an additional $11.5 billion in aid from Congress. His administration says nancial assistance received so far from the federal government as a percentage of total damages and needs is small compared with what was provided after other recent U.S. hurricanes.

A White House spokesperson responded, saying the “request is evidence that he is un t to run a state.” Other Republicans previously said Stein’s administration hasn’t converted what money it’s received to repairs fast enough. Stein still thinks he can get his messages across without trying to show anybody up.

“I think you can disagree with folks and still be civil, and so when I have concerns about what the administration is doing, I have no hesitation to say what I believe when it hurts North Carolina,” he said.

THE CONVERSATION

Trip Ho end, publisher | Frank Hill, senior opinion editor

VISUAL VOICES

| VICTOR JOECKS

In defense of praying after tragedy

Leftists obsess over microaggressions, but they have no issue with their leaders mocking Christians.

THOSE WHO DENIGRATE prayer after mass shootings reveal their own ignorance.

Last month, a man red more than 100 rounds into a Catholic church in Minneapolis. He was targeting students attending a back-to -school Mass. Tragically, he killed two children and injured 18 others. He then killed himself.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey rushed to the scene and promptly criticized Christians.

“Don’t just say this is about thoughts and prayers right now,” he said. “These kids were literally praying. It was the rst week of school. They were in a church.”

“Enough with the thoughts and prayers,”

Jen Psaki, former White House press secretary, wrote on X.

In response to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defending those “who believe in the power of prayer,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom wrote on X, “These children were literally praying as they got shot at.”

Leftists obsess over microaggressions, but they have no issue with their leaders mocking Christians after Christian children were murdered for being in a Christian church.

Despite the condescension, this is an objection worth addressing. One reason Christians pray is that there isn’t anything physically we can do in many tragic situations. But we can appeal to the God of the universe. He can

COLUMN | STEVE MILLOY

protect responding o cers. He can heal the wounded and guide the doctors caring for them. He can comfort the broken-hearted. He can supernaturally intervene in ways we can’t. And of course, a police o cer on the scene shouldn’t only respond in prayer.

If you don’t believe in God, that may seem silly. Fine. But you should understand why Christians pray.

There’s another contention in these statements, too: Prayer failed and, by extension, so did God. The shooter even wrote, “Where is your God” on one of the magazines for his ri e.

Anyone drawing this conclusion is unaware of the Bible and church history.

Jesus, God’s only begotten Son, lived a perfect life yet died on a cross while facing similar taunts: “He saved others, but he can’t save himself.”

Yet those mockers didn’t see what was happening right in front of them. On the cross, Jesus paid the penalty that you and I deserve for our sin. On the third day, God raised him from the dead. Jesus’ sacri ce o ers salvation to those who confess him as Lord and believe God raised him from the dead.

What looked to human eyes like the ultimate failure was God’s plan to save mankind — and o er a hope that pain and death can’t diminish.

“I consider that our present su erings are

not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us,” Paul wrote in Romans 8.

Those families in Minneapolis weren’t the rst Christians to su er greatly. Most of the apostles were martyred for their faith. In the Roman Empire, Christians were cruci ed, burned, thrown to the lions and otherwise tortured. Since 2009, Islamists have killed more than 50,000 Christians in Nigeria.

What’s remarkable are the many stories of Christians facing their deaths with calmness, joy or even song.

In 202 or 203 A.D., a group of Christians was arrested for their faith. After being sentenced to a gruesome death, Perpetua, a young mother, wrote in her diary, “We returned to prison in high spirits.”

A narrator continued the tale. The day before their deaths, they spoke to the mob, “stressing the joy they would have in their su ering.” As she and the other martyrs died, she urged others to “stand fast in the faith and love one another.”

Nonbelievers may assume that the earthly su ering of God’s followers diminishes Him. It doesn’t, and it hasn’t for 2,000 years. Even though I often fail to live this truth out well, our hope isn’t in this world.

And when tragedy makes that hard to remember, it’s time to pray.

Victor Joecks is a columnist for the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Pulling the plug on liberal org’s dark money empire

Calling Arabella a consulting rm is like calling a casino a “hospitality business.” THE GATES FOUNDATION’S sudden $450 million divorce from Arabella Advisors isn’t about e ciency or building deeper relationships or any of the sanitized language trotted out by both sides. This is about optics and the uncomfortable fact that America’s largest philanthropic foundation could no longer deny the political risk — and stench — of being linked to a Democratic Party dark money slush fund masquerading as “philanthropy.”

Calling Arabella a consulting rm is like calling a casino a “hospitality business.” At its core, Arabella manages a staggering web of seven shadowy nonpro t shells whose primary function is to funnel untraceable left-wing cash where donors want it, all while insulating them from scrutiny and public accountability.

For years, the Gates Foundation stood as one of Arabella’s biggest customers. Nearly half a billion dollars was shunted through opaque intermediaries, keeping campaign cash and progressive pet projects owing, hidden from the public ledger and protected with layers of legal and PR camou age.

Arabella is not a grassroots facilitator; it is a private-equity-owned revenue machine, churning more than $60 million in management fees in a single year and orchestrating the single largest source of Democratic dark money ever exposed. In the 2020 and 2022 election cycles, Arabella’s funds handled a combined $5.4 billion, outstripping even the national party committees and powering every recent leftwing victory at the local, state, and federal level. Its pop-up groups appear spontaneous but are simply billionaires’ cash disguised as local activism. “Fiscal sponsorship” is the smokescreen for a complex money shu e, making possible everything from manipulating election o ces with “Zuck

Bucks” to installing political operatives under the banner of civic engagement.

Even left-leaning media are sounding alarm bells, branding Arabella “the indisputable heavyweight of Democratic dark money” and “an opaque network” moving untold sums through chains of groups supporting partisan causes. For all Arabella’s protestations about merely providing “operational supports,” the company’s seven “sister” nonpro ts are deeply engaged in donor management, grantmaking, political funding, and lobbying on behalf of causes that suit the Democratic machine.

So why did Gates nally scramble for the exit? In truth, mounting risk and the threat of exposure forced the foundation’s hand. With President Donald Trump back in power and regulatory scrutiny intensifying, the foundation realized that continuing business with Arabella would turn toxic in a climate bent on rooting out dark money networks. Gates Foundation spokespeople tried to spin it as a back-to-basics decision focused on direct relationships with partners, but anyone following the details knows better. Even as media tiptoe around the facts, insiders admit Arabella’s brand is so politically radioactive that nonpro ts now fear losing their Gates funding. Now they are scrambling to exit the shell game before it collapses.

Nonpro ts dependent on Gates and Arabella now face a harsh reality. They must nd new sponsors or lose generous funding, as order comes down from the top for early exits and grant freezes. The supposed civil society boom fueled by Arabella’s billions now reveals itself as a top-down, donordriven masquerade, propped up by a handful of mega-donors and their money-laundering operatives.

With Gates pulling support, Arabella’s engine for left-wing activism faces a severe

blow — and the entire donor class gets a clear warning. If Gates won’t camou age Democratic dark money, others may soon follow, leaving Arabella – and the billions it recycles year after year – dangling in public view and shrinking by the day.

For years, Arabella’s front groups have championed transparency only to pervert its meaning by funding political movements and electoral schemes with hidden cash that undermines genuine political accountability. Gates has helped nance this spectacle for nearly two decades, but when reality nally lifted the veil, even the richest donor in America realized exposure wasn’t worth the price.

If the Gates Foundation, with all its billions and elite access, nally admits the political cost of laundering money through Arabella is too high, every donor with even a shred of integrity should follow suit.

The era in which the left could count on anonymous billionaires to bankroll a fake grassroots revolution may at long last be coming to an end. The sooner these dark money machines are shut o , the closer America gets to genuine political accountability — and an end to the hypocrisy that lies at the rotten core of progressive philanthropy.

Steve Milloy is a biostatistician and lawyer, and he publishes JunkScience.com. This column was rst published by Daily Caller News Foundation.

COLUMN

Duke University pilot project examining pros, cons of using arti cial intelligence in college

Faculty and students adapting as AI tools become prevalent

By Lucas Lin and Ananya Pinnameneni The Chronicle via AP

DURHAM — As generative arti cial intelligence tools like ChatGPT have become increasingly prevalent in academic settings, faculty and students have been forced to adapt.

The debut of OpenAI's ChatGPT in 2022 spread uncertainty across the higher education landscape. Many educators scrambled to create new guidelines to prevent academic dishonesty from becoming the norm in academia, while some emphasized the strengths of AI as a learning aid.

As part of a new pilot with OpenAI, all Duke undergraduate students, as well as sta , faculty and students across the University's professional schools, gained free, unlimited access to ChatGPT-4o beginning June 2. The University also announced DukeGPT, a University-managed AI interface that connects users to resources for learning and research and ensures "maximum privacy and robust data protection."

Duke launched a new Provost's Initiative to examine the opportunities and challenges AI brings to student life on May 23. The initiative will foster campus discourse on the use of AI tools and present recommendations in a report by the end of the fall 2025 semester.

The Chronicle spoke to faculty members and students to understand how generative AI is changing the classroom.

Embraced or banned

Although some professors are embracing AI as a learning aid, others have implemented blanket bans and expressed caution regarding the implications of AI on problem solving and critical thinking.

David Carlson, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering, took a "lenient" approach to AI usage in the classroom. In his machine learning course, the primary learning objective is to utilize these tools to understand and analyze data.

Carlson permits his students to use generative AI as long as they are transparent about their purpose for using the technology.

"You take credit for all of (ChatGPT's) mistakes, and you can use it to support whatever you do," Carlson said.

He added that although AI tools are "not awless," they can help provide useful secondary explanations of lectures and readings.

Matthew Engelhard, assistant professor of biostatistics and bioinformatics, said he also adopted "a pretty hands-o approach" by encouraging the use of AI tools in his classroom.

“It’s very helpful in that it can explain concepts that are lled with jargon in a way that you can understand very well.”

Keshav Varadarajan, Duke junior

Engelhard said. "It's actually to encourage it, but to make sure that you're working with these tools interactively, such that you understand the content."

Engelhard emphasized that the use of these tools should not prevent students from learning the fundamental principles "from the ground up." Engelhard noted that students, under the pressure to perform, have incentives to rely on AI as a shortcut. However, he said using such tools might be "short-circuiting the learning process for yourself." He likened generative AI tools to calculators, highlighting that relying on a calculator hinders one from learning how addition works.

Like Engelhard, Thomas Pfau, Alice Mary Baldwin distinguished professor of English, believes that delegating learning to generative AI means students may lose the ability to evaluate the process and validity of receiving information.

"If you want to be a good athlete, you would surely not try to have someone else do the working out for you," Pfau said.

Pfau recognized the role of generative AI in the STEM elds, but he believes that such technologies have no place in the humanities, where "questions of interpretation … are really at stake." When students rely on AI to complete a sentence or nish an essay for them, they risk "los-

university education, which is predicated on cultivating one's personhood.

Henry Pickford, professor of German studies and philosophy, said that writing in the humanities serves the dual function of fostering "self-discovery" and "self-expression" for students. But with increased access to AI tools, Pickford believes students will treat writing as "discharging a duty" rather than working through intellectual challenges. "(Students) don't go through any kind of self-transformation in terms of what they believe or why they believe it," Pickford said.

Additionally, the use of ChatGPT has broadened opportunities for plagiarism in his classes, leading him to adopt a stringent AI policy.

Faculty echoed similar concerns at an Aug. 4 Academic Council meeting, including Professor of History Jocelyn Olcott, who said that students who learn to use AI without personally exploring more "humanistic questions" risk being "replaced" by the technology in the future.

How faculty are adapting to generative AI

Many of the professors The Chronicle interviewed expressed di culty in discerning whether students have used AI on standard assignments. Some are resorting to a range of alternative assessment methods to mitigate potential AI usage.

Carlson, who shared that he has trouble detecting student AI use in written or coding assignments, has introduced oral presentations to class projects, which he described as "very hard to fake."

Pickford has also incorporated oral assignments into his class, including having students present arguments through spoken defense. He has also added

in-class exams to lectures that previously relied solely on papers for grading.

"I have deemphasized the use of the kind of writing assignments that invite using ChatGPT because I don't want to spend my time policing," Pickford said. However, he recognized that ChatGPT can prove useful in generating feedback throughout the writing process, such as when evaluating whether one's outline is well-constructed.

A “tutor that's next to you every single second”

Students noted that AI chatbots can serve as a supplemental tool to learning, but they also cautioned against over-relying on such technologies.

Junior Keshav Varadarajan said he uses ChatGPT to outline and structure his writing, as well as generate code and algorithms.

"It's very helpful in that it can explain concepts that are lled with jargon in a way that you can understand very well," Varadarajan said.

Varadarajan has found it difcult at times to internalize concepts when utilizing ChatGPT because "you just go straight from the problem to the answer" without paying much thought to the problem. Varadarajan acknowledged that while AI can provide shortcuts at times, students should ultimately bear the responsibility for learning and performing critical thinking tasks.

For junior Conrad Qu, ChatGPT is like a "tutor that's next to you every single second." He said that generative AI has improved his productivity and helped him better understand course materials.

Both Varadarajan and Qu agreed that AI chatbots come in handy during time crunches or when trying to complete tasks with little e ort. However, they

said they avoid using AI when it comes to content they are genuinely interested in exploring deeper.

"If it is something I care about, I will go back and really try to understand everything (and) relearn myself," Qu said.

The future of generative AI in the classroom

As generative AI technologies continue evolving, faculty members have yet to reach consensus on AI's role in higher education and whether its bene ts for students outweigh the costs.

"To me, it's very clear that it's a net positive," Carlson said. "Students are able to do more. Students are able to get support for things like debugging ... It makes a lot of things like coding and writing less frustrating."

Pfau is less optimistic about generative AI's development, raising concerns that the next generation of high school graduates will be too accustomed to chatbots coming into the college classroom. He added that many students nd themselves at a "competitive disadvantage" when the majority of their peers are utilizing such tools.

Pfau placed the responsibility on students to decide whether the use of generative AI will contribute to their intellectual growth.

"My hope remains that students will have enough self-respect and enough curiosity about discovering who they are, what their gifts are, what their aptitudes are," Pfau said. "... something we can only discover if we apply ourselves and not some AI system to the tasks that are given to us."

This story was originally published by The Chronicle and distributed through a partnership with The Associated Press.

Open Arms Employee of the Month

Integrity Open Arms Residents of the Month

Gwenda Sealy

Robert General has been a resident at Open Arms since August 2021. He was born in South Carolina, relocated to Richmond Virginia and later moved to North Carolina. Robert enjoys BINGO, church and knitting. He is a joy to have here at Open Arms Retirement Center.

Gwenda is a Medical Tech that has been with us for a short period of time that residents have come to love. Since May 2025, Mrs. Gwenda has been one of our Head Medical Techs and Supervisor. During her time off she enjoys being with her family and being a beautician.

Mrs. Florence Herbert has been a resident here since May 2021. She moved to North Carolina from Pennsylvania to escape the bad weather. Florence enjoys word searches, BINGO, watching TV and spending time with her friends on the Special Care Unit at Integrity Open Arms.

Mrs. Betty Purcell is from Raeford, North Carolina. She moved into our assisted living this past June. Besides being the mother of two, she worked for many years at Burlington Mills. Betty enjoys church, watching youtube and doing word searches.

We want to say a BIG THANK YOU to her for a job well done!

or questions. W here to help!

GERRY BROOME / AP PHOTO

Duke University is part of a new pilot program with OpenAI’s ChatGPT.

HOKE SPORTS

Hoke County volleyball heats up

Soccer snapped a winless skid, while football got a week to celebrate

North State Journal sta

Football

After closing August with one of the most dramatic wins in recent memory, the Bucks had a week o to revel in their success. Hoke beat South View 2115 on a last-second touchdown pass a week ago, improving to 1-1 on the year. Now the Bucks head out for their rst road game of the season. Hoke kicks o at Seventy-First at 7:30 p.m.

on Friday. The Falcons are 2-1 and riding a two-game win streak. They won 44-0 at Pine Forest this past weekend.

Volleyball

The girls’ volleyball team has won ve straight matches and hasn’t lost a set over that stretch. The 15-set win streak included a pair of 3-0 wins last week, over Purnell Swett and at E.E. Smith. Hoke has an 8-2 record on the year and will try to keep things rolling with three matches this week. Hoke hosts Overhills in its Mid-South 7A/8A conference opener. It then hosts

South View before heading to Pine Forest for its rst league road game.

Soccer

Hoke snapped a four-game winless streak with a 2-0 home win over Red Springs. The Bucks had su ered two losses and played to two ties, including an 0-1-1 record earlier in the week.

Hoke tied Southern Lee, two-all, then fell 2-1 to Purnell Swett, both at home.

Junior Josiah Miles scored in all three games. Sophomore Kim Morales and senior Smayther Velasquez also scored goals, while Carson Hewitt (3) and Derrick Patricio added assists. Goalkeeper Brentley Blumer had ve saves and Marcus Monsanto three in the shutout.

Hoke has a rematch with Red Springs on the road, then closes this week’s slate with a home game against E.E. Smith.

Hoke’s boys’ soccer team prepares for a game earlier this season.

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK

Josiah Miles

Hoke County, boys’ soccer

Josiah Miles is a junior defender on the Hoke County boys’ soccer team.

Miles scored in all three of the Bucks’ games last week, getting his hat trick for the week in just ve shots. He also had two steals in the win over Red Springs. His big week puts Miles second on the team in scoring.

ACC, power conferences make their claim of TV spots with more Friday night football games

The league has 12 Friday night games on this year’s schedule

By Aaron Beard

The Associated Press

THERE IS ADDED zip for Louisville linebacker TJ Quinn when it comes to playing a Friday night game.

“It’s all eyes on us, and I like that,” Quinn said.

And these days, there’s a lot more chances in the Atlantic Coast Conference and across the power conferences, for that matter.

Friday nights have gone from being largely about high school football, then mid-majors and Group of Five conferences, to now another showcase for the

country’s biggest leagues. The ACC has 12 Friday games this season to tie last year’s league record, while the number of those games have also increased in the Big Ten, Big 12 and the Southeastern conferences.

The leagues have marched toward those TV slots, many vacated by the Pac-12 after most of that league’s schools scattered to the ACC, Big 12 and Big Ten. The NFL has a game this Friday, too, though that’s a rarity during college football season.

The ACC started its run of Friday night games in Week 1 with Georgia Tech’s win at Colorado and Wake Forest holding o Kennesaw State.

The 2025 schedule includes No. 14 Florida State visiting Virginia (Sept. 26) and NC

State (Nov. 21); UNC and new coach Bill Belichick crossing the country to face California (Oct. 17) and visiting Syracuse (Oct. 31); and No. 4 Georgia’s trip to Georgia Tech to cap the regular-season schedule (Nov. 28).

“You have to continue to modernize how you’re looking at scheduling,” ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips said in an interview with The Associated Press. “You have to be honest with yourself about the compression that exists now on Saturdays with the number of games and the number of quality teams that are playing all over. So there’s a limited number of windows, and you have a terri c partner with ESPN.

“Friday night has become

something that people are now expecting to see football. ... So nothing stays the same in life.

And we’re going to be aggressive there.”

The new norm

To Phillips’ point, look at the most important event on the sport’s calendar: the College Football Playo . Last year’s rst expanded 12-team format began with Notre Dame’s home win against Indiana, the rst time the tradition-rich football independent had hosted a Friday night game.

That’s one of six Friday games in the CFP since its launch in the 2014 season, which o ers a snapshot of how much things have changed when it comes to those Friday TV windows.

That year, the Pac-12 had eight Friday regular-season games, while the ACC had four, the Big Ten had two, and the Big 12 and SEC each had one. That power conference total (16) was less than half that of the Group of Five conferences at the Bowl Subdivision level — the American, Conference USA, Mid-American, Mountain West and Sun Belt conferences — combined for 43 that year. But things have changed amid realignment and the formation of super-sized conferences at the top of the sport.

Beyond the ACC’s 12 Friday games, the Big Ten has 13 a year after a record 15. The Big 12 has 12 and the SEC has four, both all-time highs. And while there is some overlap with interleague matchups, that combined total (41) exceeds that of the Group of Five (34) for the third straight year.

It’s also a sign of how the business of college football has reached into days once considered sacrosanct for high school games.

COURTESY SPORTS BLAST

SIDELINE REPORT

NFL Eagles’ Carter apologizes following ejection for spitting on Cowboys’ Prescott

Philadelphia Philadelphia defensive tackle Jalen Carter apologized after he was ejected for spitting on Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott moments after the Eagles’ pregame Super Bowl championship celebration. Carter was tossed for unsportsmanlike conduct six seconds into Philadelphia’s 24 -20 victory. The Eagles were hit with a 15-yard penalty before the rst snap from scrimmage. Prescott and Carter exchanged words after the opening kicko , and Carter spit on Prescott’s jersey. Fans booed as Carter walked o slowly, holding his helmet in his hands behind his back. Carter apologized after the game.

NCAA FOOTBALL

NCAA committee recommends eliminating spring transfer window

The NCAA’s FBS Oversight Committee has recommended eliminating the spring transfer window and having just a 10-day window starting Jan. 2. The committee is also proposing that December be a recruiting dead period. The Division I Administrative Committee must approve these changes, with a vote expected before Oct. 1. FBS coaches unanimously supported the January portal proposal earlier this year. If implemented, the changes would allow coaches to focus more on coaching during bowl season. The spring portal period had many players and coaches juggling transfers and spring practice.

NBA

Clippers owner Ballmer welcomes NBA probe, says he wasn’t involved in Leonard deal Los Angeles Los Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer welcomes the NBA’s investigation into alleged salary cap rule violations. He denies involvement in a $28 million endorsement deal between Kawhi Leonard and a sustainability company. Ballmer said he would want the NBA to investigate any team accused of similar violations. He introduced Leonard to Aspiration Fund Adviser LLC, a company he once invested in, which is now bankrupt. The Clippers denied breaking any rules. The NBA could impose penalties if violations are found. The Clippers ended their partnership with Aspiration after two years due to contractual default.

WNBA Reese suspended by Sky for half for comments “detrimental to the team”

Chicago Angel Reese was suspended by the Chicago Sky for the rst half of the team’s game against Las Vegas for comments “detrimental to the team.” Reese already missed the team’s game last Friday because of a mandatory one-game suspension by the WNBA for picking up her eighth technical foul of the season. The twotime All-Star voiced her frustrations with the franchise, saying she “might have to move in a di erent direction and do what’s best for me” if the team doesn’t improve its outlook. She walked back those comments. She had already apologized to the team.

Carter’s ejection from Eagles’ opener was latest saliva-driven dismissal

Hall of Famers have also been involved in spitting controversies

By Dave Campbell The Associated Press

JUST SIX SECONDS into the new NFL season, Jalen Carter was already on his way out.

The kicko game in Philadelphia started with a real mouth-watering moment.

Carter left the defending champion Eagles hanging when he was ejected for spitting at Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, a saliva-driven dismissal from the eld that became the latest addition to an infamous list of the ultimate displays of disrespect in sports. The Pro Bowl defensive tackle was tossed for unsportsmanlike conduct, part of the league’s push to crack down on taunting.

Carter, who could receive further discipline from the NFL, was contrite after the game in acknowledging regret and responsibility for his act. As Carter talked trash toward the Cowboys as they huddled before the rst play from scrimmage, Prescott stepped forward and — as he recounted later — spit on the turf to clear his mouth and avoid hitting his own linemen. Carter, who was several yards away, took that as a slight and retaliated.

“It was a mistake that hap -

pened on my side. It won’t happen again,” Carter said. “I feel bad for just my teammates and fans out there.”

The expectations for expectorate etiquette are generally high in any organized society, with kids taught from young ages that spitting on or at others is simply not OK. Hence such strong reactions to seeing a person targeted by projectile saliva, let alone being on the receiving end.

Why, there’s even an entire episode of Seinfeld that aired in 1992 centering around spit, when mischievous oddballs Kramer and Newman chide friend Elaine for her new relationship with former New York Mets rst baseman Keith Hernandez because they believed he once spit at them as they heckled him for a costly error after attending a game. Hernandez later revealed to them that teammate Roger McDowell was responsible.

Here’s a glance at some other memorable spitting incidents in sports.

Luis Suárez, soccer

During a postgame tussle following the testy Leagues Cup nal won by the Seattle Sounders, Inter Miami forward Luis Suárez spit toward a Sounders sta member and grabbed a Seattle player by the neck. Suárez has long been an international standout

“It

for Uruguay with a checkered pattern of behavior, including three separate bans for biting opponents over his career. Suárez issued an apology and was handed a six-match suspension.

Victor Hanescu, tennis

After being heckled throughout his third-round match at Wimbledon in 2010, Victor Hanescu lost his cool in the fth set and spit at the taunting fans in the crowd. The Romanian was ned $15,000 by tournament o cials.

Terrell Owens, football

Triggered by the constant trash talk from DeAngelo Hall during a game in 2006, mercurial Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Terrell Owens spit in the face of the Atlanta Falcons cornerback and was ned $35,000 by the NFL.

Bill Romanowski, football

After television replays clearly showed him spitting on San Francisco 49ers wide

receiver J.J. Stokes during a Monday night game in 1997,ery Denver Broncos linebacker Bill Romanowski was ned $7,500 by the NFL.

“Sometimes when emotion is high, logic is low, and I did something that is totally unacceptable,” Romanowski said afterward.

The feud was rekindled when the two teams played three years later and Romanowski ripped Stokes for not ghting back after he spit on him.

Roberto Alomar, baseball

After being called out on a third strike in a game in 1996, Baltimore Orioles second baseman Roberto Alomar screamed at home plate umpire John Hirschbeck and spit in his face during the argument. Alomar received a ve-game suspension. The two later made amends, and Hirschbeck was one of the rst people to congratulate Alomar for his election to the Hall of Fame.

Charles Barkley, basketball

The NBA suspended Philadelphia 76ers star Charles Barkley for one game and ned him $10,000 in 1991 after he lost his temper and spit at a heckler in a courtside seat, only to hit an 8-year-old girl who was sitting behind the man instead.

Alcaraz beats rival Sinner at the U.S. Open

The win gives him a 6th Slam title and the No. 1 ranking

By Howard Fendrich The Associated Press

NEW YORK — So maybe the rst U.S. Open nal between young rivals Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner wasn’t as long, riveting and dramatic as their matchup to decide the championship at the French Open. Perhaps it wasn’t as seemingly meaningful and plot-driven as their showdown for the Wimbledon trophy. Still, what the No. 2-seeded Alcaraz’s 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 victory over No. 1 Sinner on Sunday did do was signi cant. Alcaraz reasserted his superiority over the defending champion, wrested away the top spot in the ATP rankings and left tennis fans eager for whenever their next clash will come.

They are the rst two men in the sport’s history to face each other in three consecutive Grand Slam nals within a single season.

“I’m seeing you more than my family,” Alcaraz joked during the trophy ceremony, eliciting a grin from Sinner. “It’s great to share the court, to share the locker rooms, everything.”

This 2-hour, 42-minute win

gave Alcaraz, a 22-year-old from Spain, leads over Sinner, a 24-year-old from Italy, of 10-5 in their head-to-head series, 6-4 in total Grand Slam trophies, and 2-1 in U.S. Open championships.

“I give lots of credit to him, because he handled the situation better than I did,” said Sinner, who lamented that his own play was too predictable. “He raised his level when he had to.”

Right from the beginning, under a closed roof because of rain earlier in the day, Sinner was outplayed by Alcaraz.

“You were better than me,” Sinner said. “I tried my best today. I couldn’t do more.”

This hard-court matchup followed Alcaraz’s victory over Sinner across 51⁄2 hours after erasing a trio of match points on the red clay at Roland-Garros in June, and Sinner’s victory over two-time reigning champ Alcaraz on the grass at the All England Club in July.

“The things ... I did well in London,” Sinner said, “he did better today.”

These guys are so, so much better than the rest of men’s tennis at the moment. Their traits are unique, their strengths multiple, their games untouchable.

They have combined to collect the past eight Slam trophies — four each — and 10 of 13. Novak Djokovic, the

24 -time major champ eliminated by Alcaraz on Friday, took the other three. Both Sinner, who had won his past 27 hard-court matches at majors, and Alcaraz offered glimpses Sunday of why they are so good, although it was rare that both were at a peak simultaneously.

Alcaraz, who ended up with twice as many winners, 42-21, was superb in the rst, third and fourth sets; Sinner’s top

e orts arrived in the second. During his defeat at Wimbledon, Alcaraz was caught by a camera telling his team in Spanish: “From the back of the court, he’s much better than me.”

Perhaps that’s why Alcaraz was aggressive Sunday with his sledgehammer of a forehand. Whenever the smallest opening presented itself, Alcaraz barged through with that shot, going big early in points, which often worked. Sinner had dropped a total of one service game in his preceding three matches, but Alcaraz broke right away Sunday and ve times in all.

An hour and 20 minutes in, it was a set apiece, after Alcaraz ceded one for the rst time all tournament, allowing Neale Fraser to retain his distinction as the most recent man to win every set he played at the event — in 1960. These numbers say as much about Alcaraz as they do Sinner: Over the last two seasons, Sinner is 1-7 against Alcaraz — and 109-4 against everyone else.

FRANK FRANKLIN II / AP PHOTO

Carlos Alcaraz reacts after defeating Jannik Sinner to win the men’s singles nal of the U.S. Open.

“I’m seeing you more than my family.”

Carlos Alcaraz to Jannik Sinner

was a mistake that happened on my side. It won’t happen again,” Jalen Carter

Philadelphia Eagles’ Jalen Carter walks o the eld after being ejected from the NFL opening game.

SFC (Ret.)

Darren L. Cisneros

Sept. 7, 1962 – Aug. 28, 2025

Sergeant First Class (Ret.)

Darren L. Cisneros passed away on August 28, 2025, surrounded by family and love after a life dedicated to service, laughter, and devotion.

Darren was born September 7, 1962, at the Westover Air Force Base in Massachusetts to his devoted parents, Joe and Oralia, who preceded him in death. Raised with strong values and humor, Darren learned early the importance of military service, loyalty, hard work, and family.

Darren is remembered as an avid football enthusiast, taking special joy in watching the Dallas Cowboys and celebrating every Ohio State victory. He cherished friendly competition— throwing darts and playing golf with friends. Darren found his greatest happiness spending time with his beloved wife and grandchildren, lling every room with laughter and genuine warmth.

Darren faithfully served his country for 21 years, including 19 years with the 82nd Airborne Division. He served in Operations Desert Shield, Desert Storm, and Iraqi Freedom. He rose to the rank of Sergeant First Class where he held vital leadership roles and was recognized with numerous awards. Following this distinguished active duty military career, Darren continue to serve his nation for another 20 years with the State Department - stationed in the US Embassy in Iraq.

Darren’s legacy of love continues through his beautiful wife, Karen; his brother Dennis; his sisters Karen and Yvonne; his loving daughter, Lindsey; sonin-law, Denny; and his treasured grandchildren, Kayleigh, Knoll, Kerrington and Keegan.

A service with full military honors will be held at noon on September 3, 2025, at Crumpler Funeral Home, 131 Harris Ave., Raeford, NC 28376.

Burial will take place at a later date, where Darren will rest eternally cherished by those whose lives he touched.

Jean Long

June 20, 1949 – Aug. 30, 2025

Jean Long, age 76, of Raeford, North Carolina, passed away on Saturday, August 30, 2025. There are no services arranged at this time.

Mary McLaughlin

Sept. 6, 1960 – Sept. 1, 2025

Mrs. Mary McLaughlin, age 64, went home to be with her Heavenly Father on September 1, 2025.

The Celebration of Life will be held on Sunday, September 7, at 2 p.m. at J.W. Turlington School. Mary will be greatly missed.

Linda Burch

Nov. 20, 1954 – Sept.1, 2025

Ms. Linda Burch, age 70, went home to rest with her Heavenly Father on September 1, 2025. The Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, September 13 at 1 p.m. at New Jerusalem Church.

Linda will be greatly missed.

Hervey Jacobs

Sept. 10, 1949 – Aug. 30, 2025

Mr. Hervey Jacobs, age 75, of Pembroke, North Carolina, was born on September 10, 1949, to the late Mr. Oscar B. Jacobs and late Mrs. Maude Locklear in Robeson County. He departed this life into eternity on Saturday, August 30, 2025, at UNC Health Southeastern in Lumberton, North Carolina. Along with his parents, he is preceded in death by three brothers, Harvey Jacobs, Eugene Jacobs and Willie Jacobs.

He leaves to cherish his memories, one sister, Bonnie Jacobs Jones of Pembroke, North Carolina; nephews, Mike Jones, Vardell Jones Jr, Dwayne Jones and a host of other relatives and friends.

Wrenn G. Barrington

May 1, 1955 – Sept. 2, 2025

Mr. Wrenn G Barrington, of Raeford, NC, passed away on Tuesday, September 2, 2025, at the age of 70.

He was born in Robeson County, NC, on May 1, 1955, to the late J.C. and Mildred Barrington.

Along with his parents, he was preceded in death by his brother, Je Barrington. He is survived by his niece, Mandy Barrington-Koon (Robby); his nephew, Matt Barrington (Jennifer); his great nieces and nephews, Bryce Barrington (Stephanie), Ashlyn Breland, Caroline Barrington, Catherine Barrington, and Anna Claire Barrington; his great- great nieces and nephews, Bradyn, Christian, Finn, and Abigail; and his former sister-in-law, Susan Barrington.

Wrenn will be put to rest in the Raeford City Cemetery with his mother and father.

Online condolences may be made on the Crumpler Funeral Home Website.

Norma Sisk

Jan. 25, 1941 – Aug. 31, 2025

Sunrise: January 25, 1941 –Sunset: August 31, 2025 Age: 84 With deep sorrow and abiding love, we announce the passing of Norma Jean Sisk, who departed this life peacefully at the age of 84. She was the cherished wife of Robert Sisk, and together they built a life rooted in devotion, laughter, and enduring love. Born in Kannapolis, N.C., Jean was a woman of quiet strength, gentle wisdom, and boundless compassion. Her greatest joy came from rearing her children and nurturing the family she held so dear. She was the heart of her home, the keeper of traditions, and the steady presence who made everyone feel safe and cherished.

Jean attended Wineco High School in Kannapolis, N.C. Her rst job was as a stocking clerk for Craftsmen Finishers. Jean also found deep ful llment in her work as a oral designer at Calico Corner in Raeford, N. C., where her creativity bloomed in every arrangement she designed. Her love of owers re ected her spirit—vibrant, thoughtful, and full of grace. She also became the manager of the Calico Florist Shop in Red Springs, N. C. She was a proud and devoted member of the local Order of the Eastern Star 226 in Raeford, where she served as Worthy Matron two times—a testament to her leadership, dedication, and the respect she earned within her community.

She is survived by her devoted husband, Robert Sisk; her two sons: Terry Sisk (Baxter Ann); Jerry Sisk (Crystal); and her daughter, Kelli Sisk; her brother, Ronald Greene (Joyce); and grandsons, Tray Sisk (Shandra) and Stephan Sisk; greatgranddaughters: Melissia and Skylar Sisk; nieces and nephews: Cheryl, Chris, Darin, and Tracy, and their children, all of whom held a special place in her heart. Jean was preceded in death by her parents, DeWitt and Ruby Greene, and her sister, Diane Basinger.

A celebration of Jean’s life will be held on September 5, at 2 p.m. at Tabernacle Baptist Church, 3219 Lindsay Rd, Raeford, NC 28376, where family and friends will gather to honor her memory and share the stories that made her unforgettable. A visitation will be held one hour prior at 1 p.m. Following the service, the interment will be at the cemetery on the church grounds.

In lieu of owers, the family kindly requests donations or memoriams to be made to Tabernacle Baptist Church, 3219 Lindsay Road, Raeford, NC 28376.

Though she may no longer walk beside us, Jean’s love remains—woven into the fabric of our lives, guiding us with the same quiet strength she always gave so freely.

July 29, 1936 – Sept. 1, 2025

Ms. Louise McMillan, age 89, went home to rest with her Heavenly Father on September 1, 2025. A Graveside Service will be held on Thursday, September 4, at 2 p.m. at Daniels Temple Church Cemetery. Louise will be greatly missed.

Albert Richardson

Aug. 11, 1941 – Sept. 1, 2025

Mr. Albert Richardson, age 84, went home to rest with his Heavenly Father on September 1, 2025.

The Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, September 6, at 11 a.m. at Sandy Grove Family Life Center.

Albert will be greatly missed.

Louise McMillian

STATE & NATION

Man accused of trying to assassinate Trump apologizes to potential jurors

Ryan Routh is representing himself as jury selection begins in his federal trial

By David Fischer The Associated Press

FORT PIERCE, Fla. — The man charged with trying to assassinate Donald Trump while he played golf last year in South Florida stood before a group of potential jurors in a Florida courtroom on Monday and said he was “sorry for bringing you all in here.”

Ryan Routh, wearing a gray sports coat, red tie with white stripes and khaki slacks, is representing himself in the trial that began with jury selection on Monday in the federal courthouse in Fort Pierce, Florida.

“Thank you for being here,” Routh told the rst group of 60 jurors who were brought into the courtroom after U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon introduced prosecutors and Routh to the panel.

Cannon signed o on Routh’s request to represent himself but said court-appointed attorneys needed to remain as standby counsel.

During a hearing earlier to go over questions that would be asked of jurors, Routh was partially shackled. But he did not appear to be restrained when the rst of three batches of 60

OFFICE VIA AP

potential jurors were brought into the courtroom on Monday afternoon.

Cannon dismissed the questions Routh wanted to ask jurors as irrelevant earlier Monday. They included asking jurors about their views on Gaza, the talk of the U.S. acquiring Greenland and what they would do if they were driving and saw a turtle in the road.

The judge approved most of the other questions for jurors submitted by prosecutors.

The panel of 120 potential jurors lled out questionnaires

on Monday morning and the rst group was brought into the courtroom during the afternoon session. The judge inquired about any hardships that would prevent them from sitting as jurors during a weekslong trial. Twenty-seven noted hardships and the judge dismissed 20 of them on Monday.

The other two groups of jurors will return to the courtroom on Tuesday morning for similar questioning. Those who are not dismissed will then return at 2 p.m. Tuesday for further questioning about the case and their views.

The court has blocked o four weeks for Routh’s trial, but attorneys are expecting they’ll need less time.

Jury selection was expected to take three days in an e ort to nd 12 jurors and four alternates. Opening statements were scheduled to begin Thursday, and prosecutors will begin their case immediately after that.

Cannon told Routh last week that he would be allowed to use a podium while speaking to the jury or questioning witnesses, but he would not have free rein of the courtroom.

Cannon is a Trump-appointed judge who drew scrutiny for her handling of a criminal case accusing Trump of illegally storing classi ed documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach. The case became mired

in delays as motions piled up over months, and was ultimately dismissed by Cannon last year after she concluded that the special counsel tapped by the Justice Department to investigate Trump was illegally appointed.

Routh’s trial begins nearly a year after prosecutors say a U.S. Secret Service agent thwarted Routh’s attempt to shoot the Republican presidential nominee. Routh, 59, has pleaded not guilty to charges of attempting to assassinate a major presidential candidate, assaulting a federal o cer and several rearm violations.

Just nine weeks earlier, Trump had survived another attempt on his life while campaigning in Pennsylvania. That gunman had red eight shots, with one bullet grazing Trump’s ear, before being shot by a Secret Service counter sniper.

Prosecutors have said Routh methodically plotted to kill Trump for weeks before aiming a ri e through the shrubbery as Trump played golf on Sept. 15, 2024, at his West Palm Beach country club. A Secret Service agent spotted Routh before Trump came into view. O cials said Routh aimed his ri e at the agent, who opened re, causing Routh to drop his weapon and ee without ring a shot.

Law enforcement obtained help from a witness who prosecutors said informed o cers

New Chicago immigration campaign prompts confusion as city braces for federal intervention

The Trump administration targets immigrants with criminal records in “Operation Midway Blitz”

By Sophia Tareen

The Associated Press

CHICAGO — The Department of Homeland Security trumpeted the start of a new immigration operation Monday in Chicago, stirring up fresh confusion and anxiety as the city remained on alert for a federal intervention President Donald Trump has touted for days.

Blasting so-called sanctuary laws in Chicago and Illinois, the latest e ort targets people without legal permission to live in the U.S. who have criminal records. Like other Trump administration plans, it was stamped with a splashy name, “Operation Midway Blitz,” and circulated on social media with the mugshots of 11 foreign-born men it said should be deported.

for an in ux of immigration agents and possibly the National Guard for two weeks. Numerous protests have cropped up downtown, outside a suburban military base DHS plans to use and at an immigration processing center that’s expected to be a hub of activity.

that he saw a person eeing. The witness was then own in a police helicopter to a nearby interstate where Routh was arrested, and the witnesses con rmed it was the person he had seen, prosecutors have said.

The judge last week unsealed the prosecutor’s 33-page list of exhibits that could be introduced as evidence at the trial. It says prosecutors have photos of Routh holding the same model of semi-automatic ri e found at Trump’s club.

Routh was a North Carolina construction worker who in recent years had moved to Hawaii. A self-styled mercenary leader, Routh spoke out to anyone who would listen about his dangerous, sometimes violent plans to insert himself into con icts around the world, witnesses have told The Associated Press.

In the early days of the war in Ukraine, Routh tried to recruit soldiers from Afghanistan, Moldova and Taiwan to ght the Russians. In his native Greensboro, he was arrested in 2002 for eluding a tra c stop and barricading himself from o cers with a fully automatic machine gun and a “weapon of mass destruction,” which turned out to be an explosive with a 10inch fuse.

In 2010, police searched a warehouse Routh owned and found more than 100 stolen items, from power tools and building supplies to kayaks and spa tubs. In both felony cases, judges gave Routh either probation or a suspended sentence. In addition to the federal charges, Routh also has pleaded not guilty to state charges of terrorism and attempted murder.

Monday’s announced program would play in a Chicago surge.

Adding to the confusion was a handful of immigration arrests over the weekend in Chicago, which galvanized the city’s vocal activist network and worries that it was the start of something bigger.

“This is about terrorizing our communities,” said Chicago City Council member Jeylú Gutiérrez said. “But we will not be intimidated.”

She and immigrant rights activists said that ve people arrested were “beloved community members.” Some were on their way to work when arrested Sunday. Another works as a ower vendor.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement con rmed four arrests but gave sparse information, noting criminal histories with previous arrests and one conviction for driving under the in uence.

Pritzker, who has been locked in a back-and-forth with Trump for days, criticized the move.

He and Mayor Brandon Johnson have defended the state and city’s extensive sanctuary laws which bar coordination between local police and immigration agents. They’ve accused the Trump administration of using scare tactics, particularly with

“This ICE operation will target the criminal illegal aliens who ocked to Chicago and Illinois because they knew Governor (JB) Pritzker and his sanctuary policies would protect them and allow them to roam free on American streets,” said a statement from DHS.

Latino residents in the nation’s third-largest city.

“Once again, this isn’t about ghting crime. That requires support and coordination — yet we’ve experienced nothing like that over the past several weeks,” Pritzker said in a statement. “Instead of taking steps to work with us on public safety, the Trump administration’s focused on scaring Illinoisians.” Chicago has been bracing

Trump deployed the National Guard to Los Angeles over the summer and as part of his unprecedented law enforcement takeover in Washington, D.C., where he has direct legal control. For the federal intervention in Los Angeles, a judge deemed the National Guard deployment illegal, but the Trump administration got a victory related to immigration enforcement there when the U.S. Supreme Court lifted a restraining order barring agents there from stopping people solely based on their race, language, job or location.

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the Senate’s No. 2 Democrat, rejected the latest operation announced in Chicago.

“These actions don’t make us safer,” he said in a statement. “They are a waste of money, stoke fear, and represent another failed attempt at a distraction.” It remained unclear what role

“ICE has always operated in Chicago,” the agency said in a statement. “We will continue our law enforcement and public safety mission, undeterred, as we surge ICE resources in the city in coordination with our federal partners.”

DHS said the operation announced Monday would be in honor of Katie Abraham, one of two Illinois women killed in a January fatal car crash. A grand jury indicted a 29-year-old man in the hit-and-run. The Guatemalan national also faces federal false identi cation crimes.

CAROLYN KASTER / AP PHOTO

A person talks to a masked guard at the entrance of an immigration processing center Monday in Broadview, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago.

MARTIN COUNTY SHERIFF’S

Ryan Routh, the man suspected in the apparent assassination attempt of Donald Trump, was arrested in Florida in September 2024.

MOORE COUNTY

Remembering 343

The American ag ies over the Southern Pines Fire Department Station One on Tuesday ahead of the 24th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Three-hundred forty-three New York City re ghters were killed at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.

WHAT’S HAPPENING

Michigan judge tosses case against accused fake electors in 2020

A Michigan judge has dismissed the criminal cases against 15 people accused of acting falsely as electors for President Donald Trump in the 2020 election. District Court Judge Kristen Simmons decided in a Tuesday hearing that the cases won’t go to trial. Charges were brought by the state’s Democratic attorney general over two years ago. The people charged include a few high pro le members of the Republican Party in the battleground state. Each faced eight charges of forgery and conspiracy to commit election forgery. They had been accused of submitting certi cates that falsely said Trump won the election in Michigan.

RFK Jr.’s latest “Make America Healthy Again” report calls for oversight of drug ads

The Trump administration is urging public health agencies to prioritize investigations of vaccine injuries, prescription drug use, and the cause of autism. The call is part of a new report released Tuesday. Overseen by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the report aims to end childhood diseases in the U.S. by refocusing public health on his so-called “MAHA” movement’s priorities. The report suggests using personal medical records and health insurance data to investigate diseases and disorders, including autism. It also addresses issues like ultraprocessed food consumption and water quality. The report calls for increased oversight of prescription drug ads, especially those by social media in uencers.

Moore County Schools dealing with SRO hiring troubles

security guards, but board chair Robin Calcutt moved the item to a newly formed ad hoc committee.

By Ryan Henkel North State Journal

CARTHAGE — Moore Coun-

ty Schools is dealing with an SRO hiring crisis despite attempts to incentivize additional hires.

Currently, the district has 14 SRO vacancies even with the previous board having voted in November 2024 to increase the gross monthly salary of each school police o cer by 10% above their current salary starting in the new year. In response to this, Superintendent Tim Locklair had proposed a contract with North Carolina Protection Group for the procurement of unarmed

“The bottom line is that we all want school resource o cers on our campuses, yet despite additional funding and raises, we are not able to nd enough applicants for these open positions,” Calcutt said. “The superintendent’s recommendation is an attempt at an additional layer of protection while we look for these applicants, but at this time, I am forming a temporary safety committee to move as quickly as possible to learn more about the root of the problem and provide some context so we might make an informed decision.”

“We all want school resource o cers on our campuses, yet despite additional funding and raises, we are not able to nd enough applicants for these open positions.”

Board Chair Robin Calcutt

The North Carolina Protection Group contract would have provided security guards at Cameron Elementary, Southern Pines Elementary, Westmoore Elementary, West End Elementary, McDeeds Creek Elementary and Sandhills Farm Life Elementary Schools at a total cost of around $335,000. The ad hoc committee is to be composed of Calcutt, Vice Chair Shannon Davis and board member Ken Benway. Board member David Hensley, however, was outspoken about the chair’s decision to not

include him in the committee.

“I respectfully question the members of the committee,” Hensley said. “I’ve been the outspoken advocate for upgrading our SROs for well over four years. I’ve been hip deep in it and, quite frankly, I have decades of experience in the law enforcement realm. There’s no one on this board, in this building, who knows more about campus law enforcement and school resource o cers than myself.”

The board also approved a third amendment to Locklair’s contract, adding an additional year of employment to it. Locklair’s contract will now run through June 30, 2029.

Finally, the board approved the purchase of a new activity bus from White’s IC Bus at a cost of just over $153,000.

The Moore County Schools Board of Education will next meet Oct. 13.

Democratic governor, Republican legislature: How Josh Stein navigates North Carolina politics

The rst-term executive works with the GOP on storm recovery and other priorities

By Gary D. Robertson The Associated Press

FLETCHER — North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein has taken an unusual approach with Republican political opponents in his rst eight months leading a highly competitive state where divided government has become the norm.

He’s trying to get along with them. Stein, who succeeded fellow Democrat Roy Cooper in January, has made an e ort to work with the GOP-controlled General Assembly on things like storm recovery — still a top priority nearly a year since Hur-

ricane Helene’s historic ooding — and on other issues broadly popular with North Carolinians.

He’s kept communication lines open with legislative leaders, even as they back President Donald Trump and oppose many Stein policy prescriptions.

The public, Stein said in an interview with The Associated Press, doesn’t “care whether I’m a Democrat or Republican, or that the legislature is a Democrat- or Republican-led body.”

“What they want is for whoever are in these positions to get things done that make their lives better, and that’s my job,” he added. “So I will work with whoever I need to in order to make progress for the people of North Carolina.”

His results have been mixed

“What they want is for whoever are in these positions to get things done that make their lives better, and that’s my job.”

Gov. Josh Stein

so far. The General Assembly passed storm-relief packages but gave Stein roughly a little over half the money he requested. It overrode several of his vetoes on bills that build up immigration enforcement, weaken transgender rights and assert other GOP priorities — results that Stein laments.

But Republicans, including some who gathered with Stein

at a barbecue in the mountains recently to honor local government workers’ hurricane recovery e orts, have taken notice of the e orts he’s made.

“We appreciate everything that he’s done for us,” said Larry Chapman, a Transylvania County commissioner and Trump supporter. “I’m encouraged with Stein — he seems to be a lot more interested in getting out with the people and listening to people more.”

Stein’s approach comes as Democratic governors nationwide struggle to navigate Republican gains and Trump’s sprawling agenda. While some chief executives have taken more combative stances against Trump and the GOP, others have opted for diplomacy.

The school board will form an ad hoc committee to try and get to the root of the issue

DAVID SINCLAIR

THE MOORE COUNTY EDITION OF NORTH

“Join the conversation” STEIN from page A1

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CRIME LOG

Sept. 2

• Kenneth Allen She eld, 41, was arrested by MCSO for larceny of motor vehicle.

Sept. 3

• Ronald Naman Shaw, 47, was arrested by MCSO for eeing or eluding arrest with a motor vehicle.

• James Christopher Blue, 52, was arrested by MCSO for resisting public o cer.

Sept. 5

• Angela Susan Morrison, 50, was arrested by MCSO for simple possession schedule III controlled substance.

• Allen Junior Goodman, 62, was arrested by MCSO for felony larceny.

Stein told those gathered in Fletcher that he was their ally on Helene, which caused more than 100 deaths in North Carolina and generated $60 billion in damages and needs. He did not mention political a liation.

“You and your constituents have been busting your tails to come back, and come back stronger than ever,” Stein said to hundreds at a park submerged during Helene. “I want you to know that I am in your corner.”

More communication, less confrontation

Stein, the former attorney general, shares many views with Cooper, who early on clashed with Republicans over the “bathroom bill” lawmakers enacted and sued them over laws that eroded his powers. Those clashes set a tone of distrust that wasn’t eliminated during his eight years at the job. Cooper is now running for the U.S. Senate.

While Stein also has sued over GOP power grabs, he’s needed good relations with Republicans on storm relief and other topics. He’s speaking regularly with new Republican House Speaker Destin Hall, longtime Senate leader Phil Berger and other legislators.

“We have di erences with him on certain policies and certain processes,” Berger said recently. But, he added, “I would say that there’s still what I would consider to be a very good relationship on a personal basis with Gov. Stein.”

Stein, himself a lawmaker until 2016, has shared credit with Republicans, inviting them to signings of bipartisan bills. Last week, Stein named a GOP legislator to co-chair an energy a ordability task force.

There “was a lot of fatigue from the last eight years, of everything was a battle,” said state Rep. Jake Johnson, another Republican. “It felt like you were just having to ght to get anything done.”

Partisan divisions remain

By North Carolina standards, Stein still has used his veto stamp frequently — 15 times so far.

He rejected measures that would expand gun access and eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

“Because you respect the people you deal with, because you’re civil with the people you deal with, doesn’t mean you don’t have real disagreements,” Stein said. “When they pass legislation that makes the state less safe or less strong, I’ll veto them.”

Berger said the vetoes prove Stein is more left-leaning than he’s portrayed himself to be.

Democrats hold the minimum number of seats necessary to uphold Stein’s vetoes if they remain united. But Stein was unable to hold them together on eight vetoes — as one to three House Democrats joined Republicans in voting to override them.

Another major veto decision looms if there’s a nal state budget, now two months overdue.

“Stein has lost some bigtime issues” this year, Meredith College political science professor David McLennan said. “But it doesn’t mean that he’s not a successful governor in his rst year.”

Visiting areas damaged by Helene

Stein’s latest trip to western North Carolina marked his 34th separate day spent in the region as governor, reecting a promise to rebuild

“a more resilient region for the long haul.”

“A lot of the job is showing up,” said Chuck McGrady, a former Republican legislator from the mountains. “He is meeting with a wide range of people, and I think he’s gotten very high grades from folks, regardless of their politics.”

Helene’s recovery began during presidential and gubernatorial campaigns and prompted accusations by Trump and allied Republicans that the response from Democratic administrations was weak.

Stein included Johnson and McGrady, now an una liated voter, on a recovery committee. And he created a recovery agency separate from a Cooper-era o ce criticized for housing repair delays after hurricanes Matthew and Florence. Stein met Trump when the president visited the hardhit region during his rst days in o ce.

Stein said this week he’s seeking an additional $11.5 billion in aid from Congress. His administration saysnancial assistance received so far from the federal government as a percentage of total damages and needs is small compared with what was provided after other recent U.S. hurricanes.

A White House spokesperson responded, saying the “request is evidence that he is un t to run a state.” Other Republicans previously said Stein’s administration hasn’t converted what money it’s received to repairs fast enough. Stein still thinks he can get his messages across without trying to show anybody up.

“I think you can disagree with folks and still be civil, and so when I have concerns about what the administration is doing, I have no hesitation to say what I believe when it hurts North Carolina,” he said.

Share with your community! Send us your births, deaths, marriages, graduations and other announcements: moorecommunity@ northstatejournal.com

Weekly deadline is Monday at Noon

Here’s a quick look at what’s coming up in and around Moore County:

Sept.

12

Premiere Weekend: “Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale” 2-4 p.m.

VIP premiere presentation includes a costume competition: come dressed in your best period costume and win a prize. Food and beverages are available. A collection of antique British cars will be on display on the lawn. Tickets are $35.

Sunrise Theater 250 NW Broad St. Southern Pines

Sept.

13

Moore County Farmers Market

8 a.m. to noon

A vast and varied selection of fresh produce and canned goods, including honey and fruit preserves and baked goods, has earned this producers-only farmers market a reputation as one of the best in the region. Visitors are treated to musical performances and complimentary appetizers prepared by local chefs using fresh, regional ingredients every Saturday throughout the summer.

156 SE Broad St. Southern Pines

Sept. 17

Dementia Caregiver Support Group

10:30 a.m.

Caregivers receive education and support along with strategies for caring for family members and other loved ones su ering from dementia. The group is led by Pat Soler and Dale Krech, certi ed facilitators through the Dementia Alliance of NC. Contact Kelly Pritchard at 910-715-4224 for more information.

Shadowlawn Room Clara McLean House 20 First Village Drive Pinehurst

Sept. 19

Chicago Tribute Band, Chi-Town Transit Authority

7 p.m.

Live musical performance. Tickets range from $35 for regular admission to $49 for VIP early admission and meet and greet with the artists before the show.

Sunrise Theater 250 NW Broad St. Southern Pines

THE CONVERSATION

Trip Ho end, publisher | Frank Hill, senior opinion editor

COLUMN | VICTOR JOECKS

In defense of praying after tragedy

Leftists obsess over microaggressions, but they have no issue with their leaders mocking Christians.

THOSE WHO DENIGRATE prayer after mass shootings reveal their own ignorance.

Last month, a man red more than 100 rounds into a Catholic church in Minneapolis. He was targeting students attending a back-to -school Mass. Tragically, he killed two children and injured 18 others. He then killed himself.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey rushed to the scene and promptly criticized Christians.

“Don’t just say this is about thoughts and prayers right now,” he said. “These kids were literally praying. It was the rst week of school. They were in a church.”

“Enough with the thoughts and prayers,”

Jen Psaki, former White House press secretary, wrote on X.

In response to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defending those “who believe in the power of prayer,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom wrote on X, “These children were literally praying as they got shot at.”

Leftists obsess over microaggressions, but they have no issue with their leaders mocking Christians after Christian children were murdered for being in a Christian church.

Despite the condescension, this is an objection worth addressing.

One reason Christians pray is that there isn’t anything physically we can do in many tragic situations. But we can appeal to the God of the universe. He can

COLUMN | STEVE MILLOY

protect responding o cers. He can heal the wounded and guide the doctors caring for them. He can comfort the broken-hearted. He can supernaturally intervene in ways we can’t. And of course, a police o cer on the scene shouldn’t only respond in prayer.

If you don’t believe in God, that may seem silly. Fine. But you should understand why Christians pray.

There’s another contention in these statements, too: Prayer failed and, by extension, so did God. The shooter even wrote, “Where is your God” on one of the magazines for his ri e.

Anyone drawing this conclusion is unaware of the Bible and church history.

Jesus, God’s only begotten Son, lived a perfect life yet died on a cross while facing similar taunts: “He saved others, but he can’t save himself.”

Yet those mockers didn’t see what was happening right in front of them. On the cross, Jesus paid the penalty that you and I deserve for our sin. On the third day, God raised him from the dead. Jesus’ sacri ce o ers salvation to those who confess him as Lord and believe God raised him from the dead.

What looked to human eyes like the ultimate failure was God’s plan to save mankind — and o er a hope that pain and death can’t diminish.

“I consider that our present su erings are

not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us,” Paul wrote in Romans 8.

Those families in Minneapolis weren’t the rst Christians to su er greatly. Most of the apostles were martyred for their faith. In the Roman Empire, Christians were cruci ed, burned, thrown to the lions and otherwise tortured. Since 2009, Islamists have killed more than 50,000 Christians in Nigeria.

What’s remarkable are the many stories of Christians facing their deaths with calmness, joy or even song.

In 202 or 203 A.D., a group of Christians was arrested for their faith. After being sentenced to a gruesome death, Perpetua, a young mother, wrote in her diary, “We returned to prison in high spirits.”

A narrator continued the tale. The day before their deaths, they spoke to the mob, “stressing the joy they would have in their su ering.” As she and the other martyrs died, she urged others to “stand fast in the faith and love one another.”

Nonbelievers may assume that the earthly su ering of God’s followers diminishes Him. It doesn’t, and it hasn’t for 2,000 years. Even though I often fail to live this truth out well, our hope isn’t in this world.

And when tragedy makes that hard to remember, it’s time to pray.

Victor Joecks is a columnist for the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Pulling the plug on liberal org’s dark money empire

Calling Arabella a consulting rm is like calling a casino a “hospitality business.”

THE GATES FOUNDATION’S sudden $450 million divorce from Arabella Advisors isn’t about e ciency or building deeper relationships or any of the sanitized language trotted out by both sides. This is about optics and the uncomfortable fact that America’s largest philanthropic foundation could no longer deny the political risk — and stench — of being linked to a Democratic Party dark money slush fund masquerading as “philanthropy.”

Calling Arabella a consulting rm is like calling a casino a “hospitality business.” At its core, Arabella manages a staggering web of seven shadowy nonpro t shells whose primary function is to funnel untraceable left-wing cash where donors want it, all while insulating them from scrutiny and public accountability.

For years, the Gates Foundation stood as one of Arabella’s biggest customers. Nearly half a billion dollars was shunted through opaque intermediaries, keeping campaign cash and progressive pet projects owing, hidden from the public ledger and protected with layers of legal and PR camou age.

Arabella is not a grassroots facilitator; it is a private-equity-owned revenue machine, churning more than $60 million in management fees in a single year and orchestrating the single largest source of Democratic dark money ever exposed. In the 2020 and 2022 election cycles, Arabella’s funds handled a combined $5.4 billion, outstripping even the national party committees and powering every recent leftwing victory at the local, state, and federal level. Its pop-up groups appear spontaneous but are simply billionaires’ cash disguised as local activism. “Fiscal sponsorship” is the smokescreen for a complex money shu e, making possible everything from manipulating election o ces with “Zuck

Bucks” to installing political operatives under the banner of civic engagement.

Even left-leaning media are sounding alarm bells, branding Arabella “the indisputable heavyweight of Democratic dark money” and “an opaque network” moving untold sums through chains of groups supporting partisan causes. For all Arabella’s protestations about merely providing “operational supports,” the company’s seven “sister” nonpro ts are deeply engaged in donor management, grantmaking, political funding, and lobbying on behalf of causes that suit the Democratic machine.

So why did Gates nally scramble for the exit? In truth, mounting risk and the threat of exposure forced the foundation’s hand.

With President Donald Trump back in power and regulatory scrutiny intensifying, the foundation realized that continuing business with Arabella would turn toxic in a climate bent on rooting out dark money networks. Gates Foundation spokespeople tried to spin it as a back-to-basics decision focused on direct relationships with partners, but anyone following the details knows better. Even as media tiptoe around the facts, insiders admit Arabella’s brand is so politically radioactive that nonpro ts now fear losing their Gates funding. Now they are scrambling to exit the shell game before it collapses.

Nonpro ts dependent on Gates and Arabella now face a harsh reality. They must nd new sponsors or lose generous funding, as order comes down from the top for early exits and grant freezes. The supposed civil society boom fueled by Arabella’s billions now reveals itself as a top-down, donordriven masquerade, propped up by a handful of mega-donors and their money-laundering operatives.

With Gates pulling support, Arabella’s engine for left-wing activism faces a severe

blow — and the entire donor class gets a clear warning. If Gates won’t camou age Democratic dark money, others may soon follow, leaving Arabella – and the billions it recycles year after year – dangling in public view and shrinking by the day.

For years, Arabella’s front groups have championed transparency only to pervert its meaning by funding political movements and electoral schemes with hidden cash that undermines genuine political accountability. Gates has helped nance this spectacle for nearly two decades, but when reality nally lifted the veil, even the richest donor in America realized exposure wasn’t worth the price.

If the Gates Foundation, with all its billions and elite access, nally admits the political cost of laundering money through Arabella is too high, every donor with even a shred of integrity should follow suit.

The era in which the left could count on anonymous billionaires to bankroll a fake grassroots revolution may at long last be coming to an end. The sooner these dark money machines are shut o , the closer America gets to genuine political accountability — and an end to the hypocrisy that lies at the rotten core of progressive philanthropy.

Steve Milloy is a biostatistician and lawyer, and he publishes JunkScience.com. This column was rst published by Daily Caller News Foundation.

Duke University pilot project examining pros, cons of using arti cial intelligence in college

Faculty and students adapting as AI tools become prevalent

By Lucas Lin and Ananya Pinnameneni The Chronicle via AP

DURHAM — As generative arti cial intelligence tools like ChatGPT have become increasingly prevalent in academic settings, faculty and students have been forced to adapt.

The debut of OpenAI's ChatGPT in 2022 spread uncertainty across the higher education landscape. Many educators scrambled to create new guidelines to prevent academic dishonesty from becoming the norm in academia, while some emphasized the strengths of AI as a learning aid.

As part of a new pilot with OpenAI, all Duke undergraduate students, as well as sta , faculty and students across the University's professional schools, gained free, unlimited access to ChatGPT-4o beginning June 2. The University also announced DukeGPT, a University-managed AI interface that connects users to resources for learning and research and ensures "maximum privacy and robust data protection."

Duke launched a new Provost's Initiative to examine the opportunities and challenges AI brings to student life on May 23. The initiative will foster campus discourse on the use of AI tools and present recommendations in a report by the end of the fall 2025 semester.

The Chronicle spoke to faculty members and students to understand how generative AI is changing the classroom.

Embraced or banned

Although some professors are embracing AI as a learning aid, others have implemented blanket bans and expressed caution regarding the implications of AI on problem solving and critical thinking.

David Carlson, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering, took a "lenient" approach to AI usage in the classroom. In his machine learning course, the primary learning objective is to utilize these tools to understand and analyze data.

Carlson permits his students to use generative AI as long as they are transparent about their purpose for using the technology.

"You take credit for all of (ChatGPT's) mistakes, and you can use it to support whatever you do," Carlson said.

He added that although AI tools are "not awless," they can help provide useful secondary explanations of lectures and readings.

Matthew Engelhard, assistant

professor of biostatistics and bioinformatics, said he also adopted "a pretty hands-o approach" by encouraging the use of AI tools in his classroom.

"My approach is not to say you can't use these di erent tools," Engelhard said. "It's actually to encourage it, but to make sure that you're working with these tools interactively, such that you understand the content."

Engelhard emphasized that the use of these tools should not prevent students from learning the fundamental principles "from the ground up." Engelhard noted that students, under the pressure to perform, have incentives to rely on AI as a shortcut. However, he said using such tools might be "short-circuiting the learning process for yourself." He likened generative AI tools to calculators, highlighting that relying on a calculator hinders one from learning how addition works.

Like Engelhard, Thomas Pfau, Alice Mary Baldwin distinguished professor of English, believes that delegating learning to generative AI means students may lose the ability to evaluate the process and validity of receiving information.

"If you want to be a good athlete, you would surely not try to have someone else do the working out for you," Pfau said.

Pfau recognized the role of generative AI in the STEM elds, but he believes that such technologies have no place in the humanities, where "questions of interpretation … are really at stake." When students rely on AI to complete a sentence or nish an essay for them, they risk "losing (their)

voice." He added that AI use defeats the purpose of a university education, which is predicated on cultivating one's personhood. Henry Pickford, professor of German studies and philosophy, said that writing in the humanities serves the dual function of fostering "self-discovery" and "self-expression" for students. But with increased access to AI tools, Pickford believes students will treat writing as "discharging a duty" rather than working through intellectual challenges. "(Students) don't go through any kind of self-transformation in terms of what they believe or why they believe it," Pickford said. Additionally, the use of ChatGPT has broadened opportunities for plagiarism in his classes, leading him to adopt a stringent AI policy.

Faculty echoed similar concerns at an Aug. 4 Academic Council meeting, including Professor of History Jocelyn Olcott, who said that students who learn to use AI without personally exploring more "humanistic questions" risk being "replaced" by the technology in the future.

How faculty are adapting to generative AI

Many of the professors The Chronicle interviewed expressed di culty in discerning whether students have used AI on standard assignments. Some are resorting to a range of alternative assessment methods to mitigate potential AI usage.

Carlson, who shared that he has trouble detecting student AI use in written or coding assignments, has introduced oral presentations to class projects,

“It’s very helpful in that it can explain concepts that are lled with jargon in a way that you can understand very well.”

Keshav Varadarajan, Duke junior

which he described as "very hard to fake."

Pickford has also incorporated oral assignments into his class, including having students present arguments through spoken defense. He has also added in-class exams to lectures that previously relied solely on papers for grading.

"I have deemphasized the use of the kind of writing assignments that invite using ChatGPT because I don't want to spend my time policing," Pickford said.

However, he recognized that ChatGPT can prove useful in generating feedback throughout the writing process, such as when evaluating whether one's outline is well-constructed.

A “tutor that's next to you every single second”

Students noted that AI chatbots can serve as a supplemental tool to learning, but they also cautioned against over-relying on such technologies.

Junior Keshav Varadarajan said he uses ChatGPT to outline and structure his writing, as well as generate code and algorithms.

"It's very helpful in that it can explain concepts that are

lled with jargon in a way that you can understand very well," Varadarajan said. Varadarajan has found it di cult at times to internalize concepts when utilizing ChatGPT because "you just go straight from the problem to the answer" without paying much thought to the problem. Varadarajan acknowledged that while AI can provide shortcuts at times, students should ultimately bear the responsibility for learning and performing critical thinking tasks.

For junior Conrad Qu, ChatGPT is like a "tutor that's next to you every single second." He said that generative AI has improved his productivity and helped him better understand course materials.

Both Varadarajan and Qu agreed that AI chatbots come in handy during time crunches or when trying to complete tasks with little e ort. However, they said they avoid using AI when it comes to content they are genuinely interested in exploring deeper.

"If it is something I care about, I will go back and really try to understand everything (and) relearn myself," Qu said.

The future of generative AI in the classroom

As generative AI technologies continue evolving, faculty members have yet to reach consensus on AI's role in higher education and whether its bene ts for students outweigh the costs.

"To me, it's very clear that it's a net positive," Carlson said. "Students are able to do more. Students are able to get support for things like debugging ... It makes a lot of things like coding and writing less frustrating."

Pfau is less optimistic about generative AI's development, raising concerns that the next generation of high school graduates will be too accustomed to chatbots coming into the college classroom. He added that many students nd themselves at a "competitive disadvantage" when the majority of their peers are utilizing such tools.

Pfau placed the responsibility on students to decide whether the use of generative AI will contribute to their intellectual growth.

"My hope remains that students will have enough self-respect and enough curiosity about discovering who they are, what their gifts are, what their aptitudes are," Pfau said. "... something we can only discover if we apply ourselves and not some AI system to the tasks that are given to us."

This story was originally published by The Chronicle and distributed through a partnership with The Associated Press.

GERRY BROOME / AP PHOTO

Duke University is part of a new pilot program with OpenAI’s ChatGPT.

MOORE SPORTS

Union Pines, Pinecrest post Week 3 victories

North Moore fell to West Davidson

North State Journal sta

Union Pines

The Vikings got back into the win column, beating Eastern Randolph 34-7 at home to improve to 2-1.

Senior quarterback Ian Hicks completed 11 of 13 passes for 162 yards and three touchdowns. He also gained 27 yards on the ground.

John Erguiza, Talik Graham and Hayne Tobias all caught touchdowns from Hicks, while Curnie Sanders ad Josiah Sandler ran for scores.

Union Pines has a bye this week then travels to West Johnston. The Wildcats are 1-1 and coming o a bye week.

North Moore

The Mustangs fell to 1-2 on the year with a 38-8 loss at West Davidson.

The Dragons completed just ve passes but ran wild on the North Moore defense. West Davidson rushed for 197 yards and four touchdowns, averaging 7.6 yards per carry.

The Mustangs will try to get back to .500 when they host Chatham Central on Friday. The Bears are 1-2 and coming o of back-to-back losses, most recently to East Columbus, 22-20, at home.

Pinecrest

Chris Najm scored from three yards out with 2:15 to play, giving Pinecrest a come-from-behind 13-10 road win over Davie County. Pinecrest improved to

2-1, escaping Davie after trailing from the rst quarter on. Najm nished with 137 yards on 24 carries. He also scored on a two-yard touchdown run in the rst quarter. Davie County put a nal scare into the Patriots, executing the two-minute drill and advancing to the Pinecrest 9-yard line. The Patriots recovered a fumble with 37 seconds remaining to pull out the victory. This week, Pinecrest hosts South View. The Tigers posted their rst win of the year, 53-17

over Gray’s Creek, to improve to 1-2.

Moore County Week 4 high school schedule

Friday Sept. 12, 7:30 p.m., Pinecrest Patriots (2-1) at South View Tigers (1-2, 6-5 in 2024)

Friday Sept. 12, 7 p.m., North Moore Mustangs (1-2) home vs. Chatham Central Bears (1-2, 1-10 in 2024)

Friday Sept. 12, 7:30 p.m., Union Pines Vikings (2-1) bye week

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK

Lawson Barrett

Pinecrest, volleyball

Lawson Barrett is a junior setter and right-side hitter on the Pinecrest volleyball team.

The Patriots beat Western Harnett and Purnell Swett last week to even their record at 4-4.

Barrett had eight service aces, six digs and 17 assists against Western Harnett and three, eight and 13 against Swett. For the season, Barrett leads Pinecrest in aces and assists, and she is fth in N.C. Class 8A in aces.

Hamlin advances in Cup Series playo s at Gateway

The driver’s 59th career win came from the pole and is No. 200 for Toyota

The Associated Press

MADISON, Ill. — Nothing seems to distract Denny Hamlin, and the NASCAR star proved it again with a laser-focused victory at World Wide Technology Raceway on Sunday to advance in the Cup Series playo s.

After a week in which his father was ailing and his 23XI Racing team lost a decision in its court battle with NASCAR, Hamlin compartmentalized his concerns and stayed on task for a virtually awless weekend, starting from the pole position

and leading a race-high 75 of 240 laps.

“I just step up,” Hamlin said after his series-high fth victory this season. “All I can do is just keep being a student of the game, keep trying to get better, and every week is a chance to get a little better.”

With his 59th career win, Hamlin advanced to the second round of the playo s and joined Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Chase Briscoe, who nished second after winning last week’s opener at Darlington Raceway.

Chase Elliott nished third, followed by Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano as playo drivers swept the top ve spots at the 1.25mile oval.

The No. 11 Toyota team called Hamlin to the pits for his -

nal stop with 44 laps remaining, and he cycled to the front on a caution 15 laps later. The Virginia native seized the lead from Brad Keselowski on the restart, delivering the 200th win in NASCAR’s premier series for Toyota.

The Joe Gibbs Racing star celebrated with a long burnout down the front stretch of the track outside St. Louis that is commonly referred to as Gateway, bringing boos raining down from a sellout crowd to Hamlin’s delight.

“You all can boo me, but you can either get on the bandwagon or get run over by it,” he said. “I want all the noise and all the heat.”

Relishing life as a NASCAR villain is one of many roles be -

“You all can boo me, but you can either get on the bandwagon or get run over by it. I want all the noise and all the heat.”

Denny Hamlin

ing lled by the multitasking Hamlin, who also co-hosts a podcast while running 23XI Racing, the three-car team that he co-owns with NBA legend Michael Jordan.

It’s had little impact on the on-track performance for Hamlin, who is in his 20th Cup season driving for team owner Joe Gibbs. At Gateway, he became

the seventh driver in Cup Series history with multiple victories after his 700th start.

Team owner Joe Gibbs marvels at how Hamlin, who turns 45 in November and welcomed his third child in June, is able to juggle so much.

“He’s in one meeting after another,” Gibbs said with a laugh. “The more stu he does, the better o he is. He’s got a real drive to succeed.”

The ultimate prize would be a rst Cup championship, and Hamlin took another step toward that goal by locking into the next round ahead of the Sept. 13 race at Bristol Motor Speedway. The rst-round cuto race will trim the playo eld from 16 to 12 drivers.

DAVID SINCLAIR FOR NORTH STATE JOURNAL

DAVID SINCLAIR FOR NORTH STATE JOURNAL

Pinecrest lines up for pregame introductions prior to their season opener.

Denny Hamlin, second from left, celebrates after winning Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at World Wide Technology Raceway.

CONNOR HAMILTON /

Lewis Scott Dunlap

April 17, 1964 – Sept. 8, 2025

Lewis Scott Dunlap passed away on Monday, September 8, 2025. The cerebration of Life service will be held at 11 a.m., Saturday, September 13, 2025, at Pleasant Hill United Methodist Church, with Reverend Vic Hill o ciating.

The family will receive friends prior to the service, beginning at 10 a.m.

A complete obituary will be posted when available.

George Alfred Jenner

Feb. 12, 1935 – Sept. 3, 2025

George Alfred Jenner, age 90, of Aberdeen, NC, passed away at home on September 3, 2025. George was born in Cook County, IL, on February 12, 1935, to George A. Jenner and Helen Humphrey Jenner.

George received an Honorable Discharge from the United States Air Force in April 1957 and began his career with Western Electric/ Bell Atlantic. He was married to Linda Reese in February 1957 and celebrated 68 years of marriage this year. George enjoyed woodworking, restoring cars, cross-country bicycling and traveling with his wife and family.

George is survived by his loving wife, Linda Reese Jenner, his son Je rey Jenner, daughters Holly Jenner, Wendy Jenner, Lindlee Miles, and Jennifer Kowalski.

George was grandfather to eight grandchildren and six greatgrandchildren. He was the uncle to Leanna Jenner Reineke Vilardo. George was preceded in death by his brother, Gary Jenner and his parents, George and Helen Jenner.

A Funeral Mass for George will be provided at the Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Pinehurst on Saturday, September 27 at 11

a.m. Memorial contributions can be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Services are entrusted to Boles Funeral Home of Southern Pines.

Jacquelin Mains Thamm

Aug. 4, 1954 – Sept. 2, 2025

Jacquelin Mains Thamm, age 71, of Pinehurst, NC, passed away on September 2, 2025.

Jacquelin was born in Daytona Beach, FL, on August 4, 1954, to Charles Jack Mains and Isobel Jean McKaynish.

Jackie always enjoyed helping other people. For over 25 years, she was a dedicated counselor and director at “Friend to Friend” in Carthage, NC. She loved her family and furry friends. She enjoyed live music and watching sports with friends.

Jacquelin is survived by her sister Linda McMillan, niece Lisa Taylor, son Taylor Nor eet, and stepchildren Dustin and Gavin Thamm. Jacquelin was preceded in death by her late Husband, Michael Thamm.

Family will receive friends on Wednesday, September 10, 2025, from 4-6 p.m. at Boles Funeral Home, Southern Pines. Memorial contributions can be made to Friend to Friend, 101 Monroe Street, Suite A, Carthage, NC 28327.

Thomas Roger Dittmann

Nov. 2, 1945 – Sept. 4, 2025

Thomas Roger Dittmann, age 79, of Whispering Pines, passed away on Thursday, September 4, 2025, at FirstHealth Moore Regional Hospital, surrounded by his family. Thomas was born in Pennsylvania on November 2, 1945, to the late Roger Dittmann and Linah Haugh Dittmann. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his brother, Louis Dittmann.

He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Shelby Dittmann; daughters, Lisa Dittmann Gertz (Mike) of Clayton, NC, Lori Hawley Schieving (Patrick) of Iowa; grandchildren, Zackary Gertz, Cody Gertz, Brogen Schieving, Patrick Schieving; three great-granddaughters and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.

He proudly served in the U.S. Navy from 1963 to 1966. Thomas worked in civil service as an electronic technician at Letterkenny Army Depot, Fort Eustis, and Fort Bragg, NC, retiring in 2001. Services will be private.

Major Jason “Pippin” Downs

Oct. 20, 1985 – Sept. 3, 2025

Major Jason “Pippin” Downs, age 39, passed away on September 3, 2025. Born and raised in Mason City, Iowa, on October 20, 1985, Jason is remembered for his profound love of family and country, his unwavering dedication to military service and his unexpected wit.

A true Hawkeye, Jason graduated from the University of Iowa before commissioning in the United States Air Force.

As an Evaluator Navigator, Jason led a distinguished career spanning over 16 years in Special Operations.

Among his proudest professional achievements was graduating from and later instructing at the prestigious United States Air Force Weapons Instructor Course. A brother-inarms within the AC-130 Gunship community, Jason’s greatest legacy lives on in the aircrew he trained and the countless lives he helped save in times of war and crisis. His devotion to duty never wavered-even after his diagnosis during his 8th and nal deployment.

Jason faced his 18-month battle with cancer with courage, grace, and determination. Throughout his ght, he remained present: supporting his family, traveling, and ful lling a lifelong dream of running a race with friends through Hobbiton, New Zealand.

Jason’s unexpected journey was long and arduous, yet it ended as he had hoped, without pain and surrounded by the love and calm of his soulmate. Gone from this world too soon, he leaves behind not only memories but enduring lessons: that human nature is beautifully complex, that the struggle between intention and action is deeply real, and that even those who falter are worthy of compassion and love.

Jason is survived by his parents, John and Laura; his sister, Nicole; his brother, JJ; his stepchildren, Thomas and Jordan; and Danielle, the love of his life.

A funeral ceremony will be held Sunday, September 14, 2025, at 1 p.m. at Boles Funeral Home, Southern Pines.

Wayne Watson

May 26, 1955 – Sept. 5, 2025

Wayne Watson, 70, passed away Friday, September 5, 2025, at his home.

The family will receive friends from 6-8 p.m. on Thursday, September 11, 2025, at Kennedy Funeral Home. A complete obituary will be posted when available.

Kennedy Funeral Home is serving the Watson family

Edward William Stringfellow

July 7, 1965 - Aug. 28, 2025

Mr. Edward William Stringfellow, 60, of Greensboro, North Carolina, entered into eternal rest on Thursday, August 28, 2025, at Moses Cone Hospital in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Edward William Stringfellow, a ectionately known as “String,” was born on July 7, 1965, at Lee County Hospital in Sanford, North Carolina, to Francis Stringfellow and the late Willie Stringfellow. He departed this life on August 28, 2025, at Moses Cone Hospital in Greensboro, North Carolina, where he resided.

In his early years, Edward served in the United States Navy and worked at St. Joseph of the Pines in Southern Pines, NC, as a Nursing Assistant. He graduated from Pinecrest High School in 1985.

Edward was preceded in death by his father, Willie Stringfellow, and a son, Ryan Williams. Those left to cherish fond memories of Edward are his mother, Frances Stringfellow; two loving siblings, Willie Stringfellow of High Point, NC and Francina Stringfellow of Southern Pines, NC; ve children, Wykey Lockwood and Tytiana King of Southern Pines, NC, Tykeshia Stringfellow of Aberdeen, NC, and Latisha Stringfellow and Zicah Bowen, also of Southern Pines; ve grandchildren; two nieces, Miesha Donaldson and Onvia Nixon; a beloved nephew, Addison Armstrong (Tequilla Armstrong); and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.

Amelia D. McLoughlin

March 10, 1926 –Aug. 31, 2025

Amelia D. McLoughlin, 99, of Southern Pines, passed peacefully at the Penick Village on Sunday, August, 31,2025. Born in Cleveland, OH, she was the daughter of the late Eugene and Mary Hellen Pyle Dowling. After her high school graduation, Amelia went on to earn her bachelor’s degree. She married Jim McLoughlin, and the couple raised two sons. Amelia and Jim relocated to the Sandhills in the mid-1990s after their retirement. She had been a long-time member of Sacred Heart Church in Pinehurst and had also been a member of The Ladies of the Red Hat.

Amelia was the wife of the late Jim McLoughlin. She was the mother of James McLoughlin, wife Cheryl, and Mike McLoughlin, wife Melanie. She was the grandmother of Kelly, Kristen McLoughlin and the late Jennifer McLoughlin. Amelia is also survived by her greatgranddaughters Emmalyn and Jenny.

A graveside ceremony will be held at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2025, at Pinelawn Memorial Park, 1105 Morganton Rd., Southern Pines. Services are entrusted to Boles Funeral Home of Southern Pines.

Melanie Maria Montesanti

Aug. 13, 1954 – Aug. 31, 2025

Melanie Maria Montesanti, age 71, of Southern Pines, NC, passed away at home on August 31, 2025. Melanie was born in Moore, NC, on August 13, 1954, to Dante S. Montesanti and Francis Occhipinti Montesanti. Melanie loved all animals, but especially cats. Melanie is survived by her sister, Adrienne C. Montesanti; longtime friend, Brenda Boroughs; close friends, Laurie Weston Davis and Scott Lincicome; fur-child, Nikki Finway; numerous cousins and many dear friends. Melanie was preceded in death by her parents and brother, Dante S. Montesanti Jr. Services at a later date.

Fred “Ted” Howard Barrows III

June 1, 1933 – Sept. 1, 2025

It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of Fred (Ted) Howard Barrows III on September 1, 2025, in Southern Pines, NC. Born on June 1, 1933, in Providence, RI, he was the son of Fred and Martha Barrows and was predeceased by his parents and his sister, Jane.

A 1951 graduate of the Governor Dummer Academy in By eld, Massachusetts, Ted went on to join the Brown University Class of 1955. While at Brown, he was a member of ROTC and later served as a Lieutenant in the United States Navy aboard the USS Wadleigh, stationed in the Mediterranean during the Suez Canal Crisis. His naval service was a source of pride throughout his life. During annual Fourth of July visits to Bristol by naval ships, he took great joy in hosting visiting crew members and even had the honor of taking the helm of a destroyer to sail into Newport.

After his service, he managed Wells, an American jewelry manufacturer based in Attleboro, Massachusetts. A gifted designer, he became especially known for his intricate silver bracelet charms with movable parts-miniature retro cars, telephones, lighthouses, pianos, and books-that have since become highly collectible.

For over 35 years, he shared a full and joyful life with his beloved wife, Jacqueline. Together, they restored the historic Seven Oaks estate in Bristol, traveled abroad, played countless rounds of golf, sailed the waters of Narragansett Bay, and celebrated many happy occasions with Brown University friends. He was not only her partner but the love of her life.

Actively cherishing his memory is his beloved wife Jacqueline, his children Gail (Clive), Tad, Jeb, and Reginald (Donna), and his niece Paula (Andrew). He was a proud grandfather to Alexandra (Andrew), Nick, Taylor (Becca), Peter (Sarah), and Josie, and delighted in his six greatgrandchildren. His family will forever remember his warmth, creativity, and adventurous spirit.

Visitation will be held at Sansone Funeral Home, 192 Wood St., Bristol, on Tuesday, September 9, 2025, from 9:3010:30 a.m. A Memorial Service will take place at the funeral home at 10:30 a.m. He will be laid to rest with Military Honors at North Burial Ground, Hope Street, Bristol.

Local arrangements are entrusted to Boles Funeral Home.

James Robert Biby

Dec. 13, 1941 – Sept. 5, 2025

In loving memory of James Robert Biby(Pop) of 1149 Joel Road in Carthage NC. He passed away peacefully at home with his family. He is survived by the love of his life, wife Patricia Ann Lawson, daughter Sue Biby Davidson with husband Kenneth Davidson, Stepson Je rey Miller with wife Cathy Miller, Stepson Benjamin Hill III with signi cant other Regina Sykes Starling. Sisters Doris Dennis of Denton, NC and Frances York of West End NC and lots of nieces and nephews, grandchildren and even great grandchildren.

Jim or Pop as he was called by family and friends loved Harley Davidson motorcycles, pig pickings with friends and shing. He was a licensed electrician and a jack of all trades. There was not much of anything he couldn’t x. His home was always a refuge for family and friends that needed a helping hand for a few days or years of loving care.

Family, friends and the land that he owned and worked for his entire life, to provide for the Biby families’ future were the driving force that kept him going for over 83 years. His faith in God was strong, and his family knows he was welcomed home in Heaven by all his family that loved him and passed too early before him. He is preceded in death by his parents Issac and Martha Biby, two sons, Jimmy Ray Biby and William Thomas(Bill) Biby, stepson Everette Eugene Miller of Knoxville TN, son Joshua Aaron Biby of Carthage NC, Grandson Jimmy McIntosh Biby(Lil Jimmy)of Carthage NC and Granddaughter Crystal Autry of Vass NC.

A graveside service will be held on Sunday, September 7, 2025 at 3 p.m. at the Biby Family Cemetery, 1071 Joel Road, Carthage, NC 28327. A visitation will start at 2 p.m. at the family home.

Edward McKoy Jr.

Nov. 2, 1940 – Aug. 29, 2025

Mr. Edward McKoy Jr., 84, of Sanford, North Carolina, entered into eternal rest on Friday, August 29, 2025, at West eld Rehabilitation & Health Center, Sanford, North Carolina.

Edward McKoy Jr., was born on November 2, 1940, to the late Edward Quentilius and Dora Elizabeth Spruill McKoy in Goldston, North Carolina.

“June”, as he was a ectionately known, was the eldest child of eight siblings. He transitioned to his Heavenly Father peacefully on Friday evening, August 29, 2025, at 6:20 p.m. in his room at West eld Rehabilitation and Health Center in Sanford, North Carolina.

“June” was educated in the Chatham County School system. He graduated from J.S. Waters High School in 1960, after which he joined the workforce fulltime. He met the lovely Beatrice Elaine Swann shortly after. They were married in December 1963, sharing more than 61 years. They raised two beautiful girls, a ectionately known and lovingly acknowledged as their daughters, Dr. Eugenia “Bootsie” Perkins and the late Monique Yvette Brooks, often referred to as “June’s Girls.”

“June” worked for the Lee County School system, Pomona Pipe Products, Howard Willett Trucking Company, Siler City Mills, Jimmy Hancock’s Trucking Company, and the Harnett County School system. He retired in 2003. Following his retirement, he embarked on a new path of entrepreneurship, starting the Senior Citizens’ Trash Service. His dedication and passion for assisting seniors in the community were the catalyst behind his vision. He did not just serve the community in this capacity, he also poured into them spiritually. He would share his testimony, the Word of God, and good sound advice whenever given the opportunity. His customers knew they could count on him. June’s work ethic and integrity spoke volumes about the man he was. Colossians 3:23

Agnes Eleanor (Holmes) McGregor

Aug. 16, 1945 – Aug. 27, 2025

Mrs. Agnes Eleanor (Holmes) McGregor, PhD, 80, of McDonough, GA (formerly of the Jackson Hamlet Community), entered into eternal rest on Wednesday, August 27, 2025.

Dr. Agnes Eleanor Holmes McGregor was the youngest daughter of Clifton Holmes and Sarah Margaret Holmes. She was born on August 16, 1945, in the Addor Community of Pineblu , North Carolina. She resided in Taylortown with her family before moving to the Jackson Hamlet Community of Aberdeen, North Carolina, when she was nine years old.

states, “And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men.” No matter what line of work “June” found himself doing, excellence would be his hallmark.

“June” was reared in the Macedonia AME Zion Church in Gulf, North Carolina, and later joined Gethsemane Holy Church under the leadership of his maternal grandmother, the late Elder Myrtle Spruill. He would later serve under the leadership of his second youngest brother, Bishop Roy L. McKoy, his pastor. “June” accepted his Lord and Savior at an early age. He was an inspiration to his younger siblings. His heart for Christ forged a passion for singing that broke chains and destroyed yokes. He started his singing career in the early fties with the Standing Echoes. He was the tenor singer for the Original Rising Stars, a group formed in 1955 consisting of his brothers, brother-in-law, cousin Robert, and church friend, the late Deacon JC Marsh. Unequivocally, “June” was the smoothest, most anointed tenor singer to ever do it! He had an undeniable melodic keen tone that was often imitated but never duplicated. You always knew when the Holy Spirit was having His way with “June”. The signs were evident as tears owed; he would pull on his jacket, grab his handkerchief, walk back and forth, raising his hand, thanking, and praising God. The love “June” had for his family was unparalleled. It was not just contained within his nuclear family. It expanded far beyond. He had a special bond with his nieces and nephews. He would bring them Christmas gifts from the time they were born until they graduated high school. There was always an adventure with “Uncle “June”” and lots of laughter, especially when he would express himself as only he could. Using phrases like: “Sho Nu , Like I Don’t Know What, Double Burger With Cheese, the Win-In-Dixie, Keep On Coming Like Ya Coming, Hold It In the Road, Cotton-Pickin, I Hauled Bricks All Up and Down In There, and everyone’s favorite: BAMA-LAM-A-LAM!” Whether it was traveling with him on the road in his 18-wheeler truck, going to a gospel singing, (or as he would call it, “the sangin”), helping him rake leaves, or just simply dining out, the love was apparent. “June” was a husband, father, son, brother, uncle, cousin, and friend. However, one of his proudest titles was “Grand Pop.” He adored his “Tiny.” She would brighten up his day any time he saw her. He talked about her often. Always beaming with excitement at the mere mention

seriously, earning the title of covaledictorian of her graduating class of Berkley High School in 1963. She earned admission to St. Augustine’s College in Raleigh, North Carolina, where she majored in elementary education. She maintained a high GPA throughout her college years, earning a spot in the honor roll during each of her four years. Agnes graduated from college in 1967 with honors.

Agnes began her lifelong love of education and service in the United States Peace Corps, where she was stationed in Jamaica, West Indies. She trained students learning to become elementary school teachers for two years before returning to San Diego to serve as an elementary school teacher herself.

In her early 20s, Agnes left San Diego and moved back to the East Coast, where she taught elementary school in the District of Columbia and Baltimore, Maryland for a total of three years. During this time, she lived with her sister, Mary, and regularly visited her Uncle James.

of her name. Due to his paralysis and being in the nursing home, he needed assistance with mobility and running errands. He would often tell his brother John to stop at the store so he could get “Tiny” something. Giving was his love language. One time, he was on a mission to nd her a bicycle. Despite his physical inability and circumstances, he was determined to get her a bike. She got that bike!

“June” was a man of great distinction and style. It was re ected in his crisp shirts, creased pants, shined shoes, groomed hair, and clean automobiles. He believed in taking care of what God blessed him with. “June” lived a whole, purpose-driven life, serving God, loving his family, singing, working, traveling, and blessing others. Even when his health declined, he found ful llment in giving and providing for others. He never used his disability as an excuse not to assist those in need. We will forever love and cherish the memories of our beloved “June”.’

Though our hearts are grieved, we nd solace in knowing if we live right, “Heaven Belongs to Us,” and “Oh What a Meeting” that will be!

During “June’s lifetime, he mourned the passing of his parents, Edward Quentilius and Dora Elizabeth Spruill McKoy, his daughter, Monique Yvette Brooks, his brother, Joe Nathan McKoy, niece, Toni Dowdy, and nephew, Kendrick Roy’el McKoy. He leaves to cherish and celebrate his memory, his loving and devoted wife, Beatrice Elaine McKoy of the home; one daughter, Dr. Eugenia “Bootsie” M. Perkins of Charlotte, NC; one granddaughter, Claudia “Ally” Alise Sanders of Charlotte, NC; six siblings, John McKoy (Golia), Bishop Roy McKoy (Alice Jean), Nancy Dowdy (Richard), Brinn McKoy (Elder Belinda), Louis “Bob” McKoy (Janice), and Michele “Marsha” Dowdy; two sisters-in-law, Phyllis Womack McKoy and Shirley Swann; a brother-in-law, Joe Swann (Brenda); two aunts, Pastor Pearline McMillian and Mrs. Emily Spruill; ten nieces, Yolanda McKoy, Larissa Dowdy, Sharon McKoy, Pamela McKoy, Kristin McKoy, Jocelyn McKoy, Kalyn McLean (Terry), Farryn McKoy, Fabrien McKoy, and Tammy Swann; eleven nephews, Elder Raychon McKoy (Robin), Elder Richard Dowdy, Stefen McKoy (Tammy), Christopher McKoy, Justin McKoy (Karmesia), Cedric McKoy, Mark Swann, Je Swann, Derrick Swann, Joel Swann, and Brian Swann (Raquel); one goddaughter, Bridgett Watson; and a host of great-nieces, greatnephews, cousins and friends.

State University in 1990 and earning a Master’s Degree and an Education Specialist Degree in Education. She became Assistant Principal of Peachcrest Elementary School after earning her advanced degrees. She earned her Doctoral Degree from Clark Atlanta University, specializing in early childhood education in the mid-1990s, after which she became the principal of Midway Elementary School.

Dr. McGregor was an instructional coordinator in the DeKalb School System’s District O ce. There, she was in charge of the county’s Pre-Kindergarten program. After serving for 41 years as an educator, she retired from the DeKalb School System in 2004.

obituaries and

at obits@northstatejournal.com

Agnes accepted Christ at an early age and became an active member of Love Grove Freewill Baptist Church in the JacksonHamlet Community, where she enjoyed attending Sunday School and began teaching the junior Sunday School class as a teenager.

Agnes attended Berkley Elementary School beginning in the third grade. She always had a smile on her face and was friendly to most people she met. Agnes took her studies

Agnes married her childhood sweetheart, Phil McGregor, in Greenville, South Carolina, in 1973. Both passionate educators, they relocated to Atlanta, Georgia. They began teaching in the DeKalb County School System, which was one of the largest school systems in the state at the time.

Agnes and Phil welcomed their rst son, Brian Sebastian McGregor, on July 27, 1976, soon followed by Sean Philip McGregor, born August 1, 1980.

Agnes and her family attended several local churches in DeKalb and Fulton Counties before eventually becoming members of Beulah Missionary Baptist Church in Decatur, Georgia, in the 1980s. Agnes continued her education, enrolling at Georgia

Agnes served faithfully at Beulah Missionary Baptist Church as a coordinator in the Christian Education Ministry, which focused on Christian discipleship and developing the church’s Bible Study curriculum. She co-founded the L.E.A.P. Program, which stood for Learning & Educational Advancement Program, and also served a term as chairperson of the Deaconess Board.

Dr. McGregor was preceded in death by her mother, Sarah Margaret Holmes, her father, Clifton Holmes, and her sister, Mary.

Those left to cherish many fond memories of Agnes are her loving husband of 52 years, Phil McGregor of McDonough, GA; her sons, Dr. Brian McGregor (Sharla) of Atlanta, GA, and Sean McGregor of McDonough; a brother, Bruce Holmes (Lenolia) of Aberdeen NC; sister Hattie McLaughlin of Pinehurst, NC; two granddaughters, Ayo McGregor and Ife McGregor of Atlanta; and a host of cousins, nieces, nephews, other family, and friends.

STATE & NATION

Man accused of trying to assassinate Trump apologizes to potential jurors

Ryan Routh is representing himself as jury selection begins in his federal trial

By David Fischer The Associated Press

FORT PIERCE, Fla. — The man charged with trying to assassinate Donald Trump while he played golf last year in South Florida stood before a group of potential jurors in a Florida courtroom on Monday and said he was “sorry for bringing you all in here.”

Ryan Routh, wearing a gray sports coat, red tie with white stripes and khaki slacks, is representing himself in the trial that began with jury selection on Monday in the federal courthouse in Fort Pierce, Florida.

“Thank you for being here,” Routh told the rst group of 60 jurors who were brought into the courtroom after U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon introduced prosecutors and Routh to the panel.

Cannon signed o on Routh’s request to represent himself but said court-appointed attorneys needed to remain as standby counsel.

During a hearing earlier to go over questions that would be asked of jurors, Routh was partially shackled. But he did not appear to be restrained when the rst of three batches of 60

VIA AP

potential jurors were brought into the courtroom on Monday afternoon.

Cannon dismissed the questions Routh wanted to ask jurors as irrelevant earlier Monday. They included asking jurors about their views on Gaza, the talk of the U.S. acquiring Greenland and what they would do if they were driving and saw a turtle in the road.

The judge approved most of the other questions for jurors submitted by prosecutors.

The panel of 120 potential jurors lled out questionnaires

on Monday morning and the rst group was brought into the courtroom during the afternoon session. The judge inquired about any hardships that would prevent them from sitting as jurors during a weekslong trial. Twenty-seven noted hardships and the judge dismissed 20 of them on Monday.

The other two groups of jurors will return to the courtroom on Tuesday morning for similar questioning. Those who are not dismissed will then return at 2 p.m. Tuesday for further questioning about the case and their views.

The court has blocked o four weeks for Routh’s trial, but attorneys are expecting they’ll need less time.

Jury selection was expected to take three days in an e ort to nd 12 jurors and four alternates. Opening statements were scheduled to begin Thursday, and prosecutors will begin their case immediately after that.

Cannon told Routh last week that he would be allowed to use a podium while speaking to the jury or questioning witnesses, but he would not have free rein of the courtroom.

Cannon is a Trump-appointed judge who drew scrutiny for her handling of a criminal case accusing Trump of illegally storing classi ed documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach. The case became mired

in delays as motions piled up over months, and was ultimately dismissed by Cannon last year after she concluded that the special counsel tapped by the Justice Department to investigate Trump was illegally appointed.

Routh’s trial begins nearly a year after prosecutors say a U.S. Secret Service agent thwarted Routh’s attempt to shoot the Republican presidential nominee. Routh, 59, has pleaded not guilty to charges of attempting to assassinate a major presidential candidate, assaulting a federal o cer and several rearm violations.

Just nine weeks earlier, Trump had survived another attempt on his life while campaigning in Pennsylvania. That gunman had red eight shots, with one bullet grazing Trump’s ear, before being shot by a Secret Service counter sniper.

Prosecutors have said Routh methodically plotted to kill Trump for weeks before aiming a ri e through the shrubbery as Trump played golf on Sept. 15, 2024, at his West Palm Beach country club. A Secret Service agent spotted Routh before Trump came into view. O cials said Routh aimed his ri e at the agent, who opened re, causing Routh to drop his weapon and ee without ring a shot.

Law enforcement obtained help from a witness who prosecutors said informed o cers

New Chicago immigration campaign prompts confusion as city braces for federal intervention

The Trump administration targets immigrants with criminal records in “Operation Midway Blitz”

By Sophia Tareen

The Associated Press

CHICAGO — The Department of Homeland Security trumpeted the start of a new immigration operation Monday in Chicago, stirring up fresh confusion and anxiety as the city remained on alert for a federal intervention President Donald Trump has touted for days.

Blasting so-called sanctuary laws in Chicago and Illinois, the latest e ort targets people without legal permission to live in the U.S. who have criminal records. Like other Trump administration plans, it was stamped with a splashy name, “Operation Midway Blitz,” and circulated on social media with the mugshots of 11 foreign-born men it said should be deported.

for an in ux of immigration agents and possibly the National Guard for two weeks. Numerous protests have cropped up downtown, outside a suburban military base DHS plans to use and at an immigration processing center that’s expected to be a hub of activity.

that he saw a person eeing. The witness was then own in a police helicopter to a nearby interstate where Routh was arrested, and the witnesses con rmed it was the person he had seen, prosecutors have said.

The judge last week unsealed the prosecutor’s 33-page list of exhibits that could be introduced as evidence at the trial. It says prosecutors have photos of Routh holding the same model of semi-automatic ri e found at Trump’s club.

Routh was a North Carolina construction worker who in recent years had moved to Hawaii. A self-styled mercenary leader, Routh spoke out to anyone who would listen about his dangerous, sometimes violent plans to insert himself into con icts around the world, witnesses have told The Associated Press.

In the early days of the war in Ukraine, Routh tried to recruit soldiers from Afghanistan, Moldova and Taiwan to ght the Russians. In his native Greensboro, he was arrested in 2002 for eluding a tra c stop and barricading himself from o cers with a fully automatic machine gun and a “weapon of mass destruction,” which turned out to be an explosive with a 10inch fuse.

In 2010, police searched a warehouse Routh owned and found more than 100 stolen items, from power tools and building supplies to kayaks and spa tubs. In both felony cases, judges gave Routh either probation or a suspended sentence. In addition to the federal charges, Routh also has pleaded not guilty to state charges of terrorism and attempted murder.

Monday’s announced program would play in a Chicago surge.

Adding to the confusion was a handful of immigration arrests over the weekend in Chicago, which galvanized the city’s vocal activist network and worries that it was the start of something bigger.

“This is about terrorizing our communities,” said Chicago City Council member Jeylú Gutiérrez said. “But we will not be intimidated.”

She and immigrant rights activists said that ve people arrested were “beloved community members.” Some were on their way to work when arrested Sunday. Another works as a ower vendor.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement con rmed four arrests but gave sparse information, noting criminal histories with previous arrests and one conviction for driving under the in uence.

Pritzker, who has been locked in a back-and-forth with Trump for days, criticized the move.

He and Mayor Brandon Johnson have defended the state and city’s extensive sanctuary laws which bar coordination between local police and immigration agents. They’ve accused the Trump administration of using scare tactics, particularly with

“This ICE operation will target the criminal illegal aliens who ocked to Chicago and Illinois because they knew Governor (JB) Pritzker and his sanctuary policies would protect them and allow them to roam free on American streets,” said a statement from DHS.

Latino residents in the nation’s third-largest city.

“Once again, this isn’t about ghting crime. That requires support and coordination — yet we’ve experienced nothing like that over the past several weeks,” Pritzker said in a statement. “Instead of taking steps to work with us on public safety, the Trump administration’s focused on scaring Illinoisians.” Chicago has been bracing

Trump deployed the National Guard to Los Angeles over the summer and as part of his unprecedented law enforcement takeover in Washington, D.C., where he has direct legal control. For the federal intervention in Los Angeles, a judge deemed the National Guard deployment illegal, but the Trump administration got a victory related to immigration enforcement there when the U.S. Supreme Court lifted a restraining order barring agents there from stopping people solely based on their race, language, job or location.

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the Senate’s No. 2 Democrat, rejected the latest operation announced in Chicago.

“These actions don’t make us safer,” he said in a statement. “They are a waste of money, stoke fear, and represent another failed attempt at a distraction.” It remained unclear what role

“ICE has always operated in Chicago,” the agency said in a statement. “We will continue our law enforcement and public safety mission, undeterred, as we surge ICE resources in the city in coordination with our federal partners.”

DHS said the operation announced Monday would be in honor of Katie Abraham, one of two Illinois women killed in a January fatal car crash. A grand jury indicted a 29-year-old man in the hit-and-run. The Guatemalan national also faces federal false identi cation crimes.

CAROLYN KASTER / AP PHOTO

A person talks to a masked guard at the entrance of an immigration processing center Monday in Broadview, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago.

MARTIN COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE

Ryan Routh, the man suspected in the apparent assassination attempt of Donald Trump, was arrested in Florida in September 2024.