Large portions of the federal government shut down on Wednesday, and it does a ect Stanly County. Though post o ces will operate as normal and Social Security o ces will remain open with more limited operations — bene ts will continue while new applications and card replacements may face delays — local USDA o ces, including the Farm Service Agency, Natural Resources Conservation Service and Rural Development, are closed until funding is restored.
WHAT’S HAPPENING
Trump declares drug cartels operating in Caribbean unlawful combatants
President Donald Trump declared that drug cartels operating in the Caribbean are unlawful combatants and said the United States is now in a “non-international armed con ict.” That’s according to a Trump administration memo obtained by The Associated Press on Thursday. A U.S. o cial familiar with the matter who was not authorized to comment publicly said Congress was noti ed about the designation by Pentagon o cials Wednesday. The move comes after the U.S. military last month carried out three deadly strikes against alleged drug smuggling boats in the Caribbean. At least two of those operations were carried out on vessels that originated from Venezuela.
AOL’s dial up internet takes its last bow, marking end of an era
Unlimited dial-up is no more.
AOL con rmed it discontinued the service on Tuesday, citing routine evaluations of its o erings. Dial-up is no longer advertised on AOL’s website, and former help pages related to the service are unavailable.
AOL, formerly America Online, introduced many households to the World Wide Web for the rst time when its dialup service launched decades ago. The creaky door to the internet was characterized by a once-ubiquitous series of beeps and buzzes heard over the phone used to connect your computer to a wider world.
Albemarle celebrates Public Power Week
The city o ers electricity through a nonpro t
By Jesse Deal Stanly News Journal
ALBEMARLE — As a mem-
ber of ElectriCities of North Carolina, Albemarle will celebrate Public Power Week on Oct. 5-11.
ElectriCities is the membership organization that provides power supply and related critical services to more than 90 community-owned electric systems in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia — collectively known as public power.
Public power utilities across the United States celebrate the annual event during the rst full week of October to help customers and stakeholders recognize the importance of reliable,
community-owned electricity.
Albemarle is a public power community, which means its electric division operates as a not-for-pro t, reinvesting revenues back into the system. A
team of lineworkers, engineers, customer service representatives and other specialists serve Albemarle’s residential and commercial customers.
Public power communities
Friends of the Stanly County Public Library to host fall book sale
The book sale runs from Oct. 8-11
By Jesse Deal Stanly News Journal
ALBEMARLE — The Friends of the Stanly County Library will hold its annual fall book sale this week in the lower level of the Albemarle library, o ering readers of all ages the chance to nd bargains while supporting local library programs.
The sale will take place at 133 E. Main St. in downtown Albemarle. Friends members with ac-
tive, paid memberships will receive early access to shop the best selections during a special preview event from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Wednesday. Memberships may be purchased or renewed at the door.
The public sale will open Thursday and Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., followed by the popular “bargain bag day” on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. On that nal day, shoppers can ll a bag of books for just $1.
Proceeds from the sale bene t the Friends of the Stanly County Library, a nonprofit
“The Friends recently had the best thing
Friends of the Stanly County Public Library
bene t from enhanced reliability as customers are without power for less than half the amount of time customers of other power providers are, according to national averages reported to the Energy Information Administration.
Per EIA data, North Carolina’s public power customers fare even better, with outages lasting only a third as long as customers of other providers. Because Albemarle provides power as a not-for-pro t service, it also allows the city to provide it at a lower cost.
“Unbeaten reliability, local control and community focus are just a few of the advantages that public power customers enjoy,” ElectriCities CEO Roy Jones said. “This week, and throughout the year, we celebrate these bene ts that provide a better quality of life in our public power communities.”
In the early 1970s, Albemarle, along with 13 other cities, joined together and bought one of the two reactors at the Catawba Nuclear Station from Duke Energy.
THE STANLY COUNTY EDITION OF NORTH STATE JOURNAL
MARIAM ZUHAIB / AP PHOTO
JESSE DEAL / STANLY NEWS JOURNAL
Albemarle’s Terex digger derrick truck is used by electrical line workers out in the eld.
happen.”
Alston Paul Burr faces DWI and felony charges following the crash
Stanly News Journal sta
ALBEMARLE — A 19-yearold Albemarle man has been arrested and charged with driving while impaired and felony hit-and-run after a pedestrian was killed in an early morning crash Wednesday.
Albemarle police responded to a vehicle collision involving a pedestrian at approximately 2:11 a.m. on Oct. 1 at the intersection of N.C. Highway 24/27 and Henson Street.
O cers found the pedestrian with critical injuries. The victim was transported to Atrium Health Stanly, where they were pronounced dead.
Here’s a quick look at what’s coming up in and around Stanly County.
Oct. 4
SCG Second Annual Fall Flip Festival
10 a.m.-4 p.m. Team performances, local vendors and food trucks. Stanly County Gymnastics 1960 Post Road Albemarle
Oct. 6
The Albemarle Police Department is working to noti-
The driver, identi ed as Alston Paul Burr of Albemarle, ed the scene following the collision. Police later located Burr at his residence and took him into custody. Burr has been charged with driving while impaired and felony hit-and-run resulting in death.
fy the victim’s next of kin and has not released the victim’s identity. Anyone with information about the investigation is asked to contact Lt. Huneycutt at 704-984-9519.
Color & Connect: Drop In 9:30-11:30 a.m. For those who need some relaxing “me” time. Come to the library and enjoy co ee or tea while you get a little creative. Supplies are provided, but feel free to bring your own.
Main Library 133 E. Main St. Albemarle
Oct. 7
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
Oct. 11
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.
The 11th Circuit can put an end to political lawfare
The law should not be twisted into a partisan tool to hammer opponents and help friends.
ALTHOUGH THE PREVIOUS administration has ended, its regulatory approach remains, harming seniors, American businesses and the economy. The Trump administration has worked to reverse some of those policies at a rapid pace, but change does not come from the executive branch alone. The courts also play a vital role.
In recent weeks, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments in a case that could overturn one of the Biden administration’s ugliest policies: using the levers of federal power to punish political opponents. Florida is challenging the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) over a sudden reinterpretation of Medicaid rules and shining a light on the seeming double standard that led CMS to cut o funding for vulnerable patients in red states while permitting blue states to move forward with gender a rmation operations.
As National Review has reported, the Biden administration suddenly dusted o obscure Medicaid rules and began imposing new restrictions on Medicaid dollars.
For decades, in both red and blue states, long-standing nancing arrangements helped hospitals optimize the resources that support the mission of caring for vulnerable patients. Then, without warning, CMS declared those arrangements illegal. The result: Red states like Florida, Texas, and Missouri were punished, while blue states like California got a free pass.
Per NRO’s reporting, emails obtained through the Freedom of Information Act reveal that CMS made these decisions at the same time consultants were pressing the agency to cut o federal funding to states like Florida.
One email even suggested this was done to pressure them into curbing conservative immigration enforcement policies.
Republican and Democratic administrations alike had long respected the exibility in the structure and application of Medicaid funding. That is why the sudden crackdown stood out as political rather than policy driven.
To be clear, it is wrong when Republicans twist the law to target their opponents, and it is wrong when Democrats do it. In this case, it was Democrats doing the targeting, and it must be addressed.
The o cial driving this e ort made the double standard unmistakable.
Rory Howe, the CMS sta er leading the charge to cripple red-state Medicaid nancing, was at the very same time approving the use of Medicaid dollars in Washington state to cover gender a rmation operations. In other words, while red states were being punished for nancing practices that had existed for years, blue states were rewarded with brand-new uses of Medicaid funds that had little to do with protecting the poor or vulnerable.
President Donald J. Trump was a personal victim of this type of lawfare. When Joe Biden and his allies failed to stop him at the ballot box, they turned to the courts, unleashing a blizzard of indictments designed not just to prosecute but to paralyze his campaign and destroy him personally. CMS ran the same playbook against conservative governors to drown them in legal and bureaucratic warfare.
For states like Florida and Texas, the practical consequences are severe. Losing Medicaid dollars under these new restrictions would leave massive holes in state budgets,
forcing o cials to choose between raising taxes and letting rural hospitals close. Ordinary Americans would lose access to care because of decisions driven less by policy than by politics.
The law should not be twisted into a partisan tool to hammer opponents and help friends. Technical jargon may make this ght sound narrow, but the larger concern is obvious. If federal agencies can reinterpret rules to punish some states today, nothing prevents them from targeting di erent groups tomorrow.
As we have seen over the past decade, lawfare corrodes faith in our institutions. Americans begin to believe the system is rigged because too often it is. The only way to stop that spiral is for the courts to draw bright lines and say no.
A proper decision by the 11th Circuit will restore limits on partisan executive power and ensure that regulation is not used as a weapon of political convenience.
Targeted retribution, whether by Republicans or Democrats, must never again become a feature of American governance. Here’s hoping the 11th Circuit agrees and acts accordingly.
Charles Condon served as the 49th attorney general of South Carolina. This column was rst published by Daily Caller News Foundation.
How JD Vance can clinch the 2028 nomination even before voting begins
VICE PRESIDENT JD VANCE , should he make the necessary strategic moves, could e ectively clinch the 2028 Republican presidential nomination before a single vote is cast. But this is hardly a done deal.
His position as the sitting vice president gives him a substantial advantage. Since 1960, eight vice presidents have run for their party’s nomination, and seven of them secured it. Only Mike Pence, President Donald Trump’s rst VP, failed to do so. Of the seven who became nominees, three — Richard Nixon, George H.W. Bush, and Joe Biden — went on to win the presidency. Historically, candidates in Vance’s position have strengthened their chances by investing early in Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina. Building goodwill in these states often translates into early delegate support.
His team needs to cultivate relationships with Republican leaders and support local, state and federal candidates in the 2025 and 2026 election cycles. Building goodwill and alliances in these states, particularly Iowa, where the rst votes are cast, is critical. Many of the political players in these states will go on to be delegates in 2028, and their early support can shape the trajectory of the race.
In parallel, Vance is already building a formidable national fundraising machine. As chairman of the Republican National Committee’s nance operation, the rst time a sitting vice president has held such a position, he has demonstrated an ability to energize
donors and generate record-breaking results.
At a New York City fundraiser, he raised $2 million in one night, with some couples contributing $250,000. In Nantucket, he brought in $3 million and set a new GOP record for the island. A day of events in Jackson Hole and Big Sky added another $4 million to the RNC’s totals. Under his leadership, the party has raised more than $96 million as of mid-2025, pulling ahead of the DNC in both fundraising and cash on hand.
His fundraising numbers suggest the potential for a national campaign and signal growing in uence with key GOP donors. However, sustaining that level of enthusiasm over multiple years will be a challenge. The ability to raise money at this level gives him a strategic advantage not just in campaign operations but in cultivating political loyalty and controlling the party infrastructure.
To build on this momentum, Vance should prioritize the formation of individual state-level PACs, compliant with state campaign nance laws. These PACs would enable his team to support targeted candidates across state and local races, while simultaneously building political loyalty and identifying grassroots leaders. Importantly, these PACs should be created in accordance with the Federal Election Commission’s Advisory Opinion 2023-09, which clari ed how federal o ceholders may establish and interact with state-level political organizations.
Rather than limiting these e orts to just the early-voting states, Vance should
strongly consider establishing PACs in all 50 states before the 2026 midterms. Doing so would allow him to support a broad range of down-ballot Republican candidates, assist state parties and build relationships with key activists, donors and elected o cials in every corner of the country. This network would give him not only campaign infrastructure but also long-term political capital.
Once the early states are secured and nancial operations are in full swing, the momentum could carry him through Super Tuesday, when a large number of delegates are awarded. With each win, his delegate count will build toward the threshold needed to secure the nomination outright and potentially before other contenders even gain traction.
If Vance continues his current trajectory of building early-state alliances, raising unprecedented sums and forming PAC networks in accordance with FEC guidance, he may enter the 2028 primary season not just as a front-runner, but as the presumptive nominee. Trey Trainor currently serves as vice chairman of the Federal Election Commission, and Jim Ellis is the founder of the Ellis Insight election analysis service. This column was rst published by Daily Caller News Foundation.
COLUMN | CHARLES CONDON
COLUMN | TREY TRAINOR AND JIM ELLIS
obituaries
IN MEMORY
BERNICE ANN DIEHL MORRISON
MARCH 3, 1937 – SEPT. 28, 2025
Bernice Ann Diehl Morrison, 88, of Midland, passed away Sunday, September 28, 2025, at Terra Bella in Harrisburg, surrounded by her family.
Bernice was born on March 3, 1937, in Bu alo, New York, to the late Edward and Agnes Diehl. She was also preceded in death by her husband, Mack Wilborn Morrison; grandson, Landon Joseph Morrison; and brother, Thomas Diehl.
Barbara Jean (Taylor) Drye
April 17, 1936 ~ January 14, 2023
Barbara Jean Taylor Drye, 86, of Oakboro, passed away Saturday, January 14, 2023 at her home.
Dwight Farmer
Russell M. Nelson, oldest president of Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, dead at 101
January 24, 1939 ~ January 15, 2023
Dwight Britten Farmer Sr., 83, of Norwood died Sunday morning, January 15, 2023 at Forrest Oakes.
Bernice graduated from Mercy School of Nursing and retired as a Registered Nurse in 1999. She was a parishioner of St. John Neumann Catholic Church in Charlotte. She was a loving mother and grandmother who found joy in life’s simple pleasures. Some of her happiest moments were spent with a book in her lap, her hands in the garden, birds at the feeder, and traveling to new places alongside her husband and friends.
Survivors include son, Tim Morrison; daughters, Theresa Morrison, Tracy (Daniel) Parsons, and Tammy (Smokey) Fisher; grandchildren, Evan and Hannah Morrison, Jamie (Je ) Matson, Quentin (Kendall) Parsons, Patrick (Kristina Fiche) Parsons, and Michael (Elizabeth) Hartsell; and great-granddaughter, Kennedy June Parsons.
Barbara was born April 17, 1936 in North Carolina to the late Robert Lee Taylor and the late Eva Belle Watts Taylor. She was also preceded in death by husband of 61 years, Keith Furr Drye, and brothers, Robert Lee Taylor, Jr. and George Kenneth Taylor.
The family will receive friends from 6-8 p.m. on Wednesday, October 1, 2025, at Hartsell Funeral Home of Midland. Bernice will be laid to rest during a private committal service at Sunset Memory Gardens, Mint Hill.
Survivors include children, Debbie (Mike) Williams of Albemarle, Teresa (Tom) Curry of Oakboro, Douglas (Tammy) Drye of Oakboro; grandchildren, Melissa (Don) Parrish of Albemarle, Samantha (Destiny) Smith of Oakboro, Bradley Smith of Oakboro, Jonathan Stover of Peachland, and Jessie Stover of Lylesville; sisterin-law, Beatrice Goodman; many nieces and nephews; and her beloved cats, Bo and Gar eld.
In lieu of owers, memorial donations may be made to Alzheimer’s Association; Alzheimer’s Disease & Dementia Help. Hartsell Funeral Home of Midland is serving the Morrison family.
Dwight was born January 24, 1939 in Stanly County to the late Walter Virgil and Martha Adkins Farmer. He was a 1957 graduate of Norwood High School and was a United States Army Veteran. He was a member of Cedar Grove United Methodist Church where he had served as church treasurer and choir member. He began his career with the Stanly County Sheri ’s Department moving to the Norwood Police Department and retiring as Chief of Police with the Town of Norwood after many years of service.
Dwight was an avid gardener, bird watcher and Carolina fan.
CHERYL GRISWOLD
JULY 4, 1961 – SEPT. 28, 2025
Cheryl Griswold, 64, of Albemarle, peacefully passed away at her home on Sunday, September 28, 2025, surrounded by her loving family.
Barbara was a member of Oakboro Baptist Church for over 60 years. She worked over 30 years at Stanly Knitting Mills. After just two years of retirement, she began managing the Oakboro Senior Center and did that for 18 years until this past week. Barbara was known for her good cooking and always taking care of others. She also loved going on day long shopping trips - she could out walk and out shop people half her age. She kept her mind and body active through gardening, word searches, and various other hobbies.
He is survived by his wife Hilda Whitley Farmer; one son D. Britten Farmer Jr. (Mary) of McLeansville, NC; one daughter Sharon Farmer Lowe (David) of Norwood; one sister Geraldine Dennis of Troy; two grandchildren, Dwight Britten “Dee” Farmer III and Whitley Rose Hui Lowe.
A celebration of Cheryl’s life will be held on Thursday, October 2, 2025, at Big Lick Baptist Church. The family will receive friends from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m., with the funeral service beginning at 2:00 p.m., o ciated by Pastor Bill Clevenger and Pastor Je Springer. Burial will follow in the church cemetery.
Born on July 4, 1961, in Rockingham County, Cheryl was the daughter of the late Jack Moore and Jean Moore, who survives her.
He was preceded in death by his son Alex, brothers, Tommy and Jimmy, sisters, Nancy, Cornelia Annabell, Glennie Mae, and Betty. Memorials may be made to Cedar Grove United Methodist Church, Cemetery or Choir Fund c/o Pam Smith 36071 Rocky River Springs Road, Norwood, NC 28128.
Cheryl is survived by her devoted husband of 27 years, Paul Griswold; sons Kevin Terry (Janice) and Howie Terry (Jessica); grandchildren Rachel Schronce (Ryder), Kevin Terry, Selena Terry, Haisley Terry, and Haxton Terry; and great-grandchild Bentley. She is also survived by her siblings Virginia Powell (Jerry), Geo Moore (Terri), Emmie Crowe (Mitch), and Kristy Vance (Scott).
She was preceded in death by her grandson, David Terry, in 2023.
Cheryl will be remembered as a loving wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and dear friend. She brought joy wherever she went with her warm personality, creative spirit, and infectious laughter. Cheryl had a passion for painting, gardening, camping and making oral arrangements; her creativity touched everything she did. She loved shing trips to the Outer Banks, spending time outdoors, listening to music and friendly games of cornhole with family and friends.
Above all, Cheryl’s life was marked by love for her family, her friends, and the many small, beautiful moments she cherished every day.
In lieu of owers, memorial donations may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association.
Stanly Funeral and Cremation Care of Albemarle is serving the Griswold family.
BARBARA ANN CLEMONS
AUG. 8, 1941 – SEPT. 29, 2025
Barbara Ann Clemons, 84, of Albemarle, passed away Monday, September 29, 2025, at home surrounded by her loving family.
Barbara was born August 8, 1941, in Georgia to the late Cleveland Lamar Allen and the late Lottie Mae Sullivan Allen.
Celebrate the life of your loved ones. Submit obituaries and death notices to be published in SCJ at obits@stanlyjournal.com
She was also preceded in death by husband, Clarence Forrest Clemons, Jr.; and sisters, Gwen Hulsey and Nancy Hanson.
Barbara was a wonderful wife, sister, mother, and granny. She loved listening to bluegrass music and spending time in the kitchen preparing outstanding meals for her family. Some of Barbara’s favorite pastimes were spent going to Cherokee with her friends. But her most cherished memories were all the days she got to be with her family.
Survivors include brother, Johnny Allen; sons, Eddie (Eva) Clemons and Wayne (Cindy) Clemons; grandchildren, Samantha, Matthew, Adam, Daniel, Neil, great-grandchildren, Makayla, Madline, Alexandra, Bryson, and Greyson.
Donations may be made to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Hartsell Funeral Home of Albemarle is serving the Clemons family.
James Roseboro
He became president of the church in 2018, the rst to reach 100 years of age
June 23, 1967 ~ January 10, 2023
The Associated Press
James Arthur Roseboro, 55, of Albemarle, passed away Tuesday, January 10, 2023 at Anson Health and Rehab.
Mr. Roseboro was born on June 23, 1967 to the late Robert and Delena Shipp Roseboro. He graduated from South Stanly High School and was employed by Triangle Brick. He enjoyed watching football and basketball, especially the Carolina TarHeels and Miami.
SALT LAKE CITY — Russell M. Nelson, the oldest-ever president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, died Saturday night at the age of 101, church o cials announced. Nelson died at his home in Salt Lake City, the church announced.
In addition to his parents he is preceded in death by his brothers and sisters: Barbara Lee Roseboro, Dorothy Brown, Verna Roseboro, Henrietta Ingram, and Harold Roseboro.
Nelson, a former heart surgeon, spent four decades in the highest levels of church leadership after he was selected in 1984 to join a top church governing body called the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. He ascended to the presidency in January 2018 when Thomas S. Monson died and in 2024 became the rst president of the faith to hit the century mark.
He is survived by his sisters: Helen (James) Roseboro Edwards of Albemarle, Mary Roseboro of Washington DC, and Marion Morrison of Albemarle; brothers: Thomas D. Roseboro of Charlotte, Robert Roseboro (Patricia) of Norwood, and Van Horne; a special friend of over 40 years, Michelle McLendon of the home; special nieces: Nybrea Montague, Knya Little, and Laquanza Crump; special nephews: Robert Jr., Desmond Roseboro, and Marcus Lilly; and God daughter, Daphne Johnson; and special friends, Vetrella Johnson and Ben McLendon.
The next president of the faith, known widely as the Mormon church, was not immediately named but is expected to be Dallin H. Oaks, per church protocol. He is the next longest-tenured member of the church’s governing Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
Sen. Mike Lee of Utah posted a warm tribute to Nelson on social media shortly after the announcement.
“For as long as I’ve known him, he has exuded — and for me, he’s come to personify — the kind of faith, humility, and quiet con dence that tends to be the constant companion of a devoted servant and follower of Jesus Christ,” Lee wrote.
Nelson made signi cant changes to church
Darrick Baldwin
January 7, 1973 ~ January 8, 2023
The former heart surgeon had a vibrant and transformative tenure, especially in 2018, his rst year, when he made a surprising announcement calling on people to stop using the shorthand names “Mormon” and “LDS” as substitutes for the full name of the religion, a sharp shift after previous church leaders spent millions to promote the moniker over decades.
Darrick Vashon Baldwin, age 50, entered eternal rest, Sunday, January 8, 2023, Albemarle, North Carolina. Born January 7, 1973, in Stanly County, North Carolina, Darrick was the son of Eddie James Baldwin Sr. and the late Phyllis Blue Baldwin. Darrick enjoyed life, always kept things lively and enjoyed making others smile. His presence is no longer in our midst, but his memory will forever live in our hearts.
Nelson also made headlines the next year when he repealed rules that banned baptisms for children of gay parents and labeled same-sex couples as sinners eligible for expulsion. Those 2015 policies had generated widespread backlash.
He was educated in the Stanly County public schools and attended Albemarle Senior High School, Albemarle.
He was a great conversationalist and loved meeting people. Darrick never met a stranger and always showed love and compassion for his fellowman. He also loved his dog, Rocky.
He is survived by his father, Eddie J. Baldwin Sr.; sisters: Crystal (Eric) Jackson, LaFondra (Stoney) Medley, and Morgan Baldwin; brothers: Eddie Baldwin Jr., Anton Baldwin, and Lamont Baldwin; a host of other relatives and friends. A limb has fallen from our family tree. We will not grieve Darrick’s death; we will celebrate his life. We give thanksgiving for the many shared memories.
But even though Nelson’s administration was gentler and more welcoming to LGBTQ+ people than those of previous presidents, the church stance on same-sex marriage didn’t change. His administration also sharpened rules limiting the participation of members who pursue gender-a rming medical procedures or change their names, pronouns or how they dress, leading to criticism that it would marginalize transgender members.
Nelson and one of his top counselors described their approach to LGBTQ+ members as trying to balance the “love of the
community where he drove a school bus and worked at the local gas station during his High School years. He graduated from Millingport High in 1954 and entered into service with the US Airforce immediately afterward. Upon return from the service, he and his high school sweetheart Julie were married in 1956. He graduated from Nashville Auto Diesel College later in 1959 and began his career as a diesel mechanic at Mitchell Distributing Company, moving his growing family to Charlotte where they lived until their retirement.
When John purchased his rst Model A Ford at the age of 17, he said that he took the car to the community mechanic when he had a small problem.The mechanic told him that if he was going to keep the car, he needed to learn to work on it. This is when John’s passion for Model A Fords began and how he spent his happiest days with his best friends from around the globe for the rest of his life!
For as long as I’ve known him, he has exuded — and for me, he’s come to personify — the kind of faith, humility, and quiet con dence that tends to be the constant companion of a devoted servant and follower of Jesus Christ.”
Sen. Mike Lee
October 11, 1944 - January 10,
Doris Elaine Jones Coleman, 78, went home into God’s presence on January 10 after a sudden illness and 1944, in the mountains of Marion,
World War II. Raymond Jones was so proud to return after the war and meet his little girl! Doris grew up in Durham, NC and graduated from Durham High School. She furthered her studies at Watts Hospital School of Nursing in Durham and graduated as a Registered Nurse in 1966.
The faith changed its guidelines to direct lay leaders never to disregard a report of abuse, a more direct instruction than previous guidelines. It also allowed children to bring a parent or adult with them during one-on-one interviews with local church leaders known as bishops.
Nelson expanded leadership, forged partnerships
Lord and the law of the Lord.” Presidents of the Utah-based faith are considered prophets who lead the church through revelations from God in collaboration with two top counselors and members of the Quorum of the Twelve.
At age 50, after years as a Detroit Diesel Mechanic he and Julie decided to take the plunge and open a full Model A Restoration Shop. They thrived at their shop in Cornelius, NC until their retirement in 1998 when they moved back to Cabarrus County. John once again set up shop in his back yard garage where he attracted a loyal group of friends who visited almost daily. While on the farm in Gold Hill, John also began a lifelong love with Alis Chalmers tractors after he restored his Dad’s tractor and began amassing his collection of tractors as well.
Doris married Rev. Dr. Ted Coleman in 1966 and had two daughters Amy and Laura. Doris raised Amy and Laura in North Augusta, SC. Doris was an incredible neonatal intensive care nurse for most of her career, and this was her passion. The Augusta Chronicle did a feature on her in 1985. She was a clinical nurse manager in Augusta, Georgia at University Hospital NICU and worked there for 20 years. During this time, Doris mentored young nurses and assisted in saving the lives of so many babies. She also worked for Pediatrician Dr. William A. Wilkes in Augusta for several years prior to her NICU career. Doris retired from the mother/baby area at Atrium Stanly in 2007 after over 40 years of nursing.
Nelson was known for leading the church through the COVID-19 pandemic and severing the faith’s century-long ties with the Boy Scouts of America, creating the church’s own youth program that also could serve the more than half of its 17 million members who live outside the U.S. and Canada.
John restored many cars of his own and had the crowning achievement of winning the most prestigious award from MARC, The Henry for a restoration that garnered top points. He was also presented with the Ken Brady Service Awardthe highest award given to members at the national level.
Nelson also appointed non-American leaders to the all-white and mostly American top governing body, and he pushed to publish regional hymnbooks that celebrate local music and culture worldwide. The president shortened Sunday services and accelerated a long-running push to build more temples, dotting the world with the faith’s lavish houses of worship despite resistance in some parts of the U.S.
The disassociation came after the Boy Scouts decided to allow LGBTQ+ youth members and adult volunteers to join.
Tenure included scrutiny over abuse reports
This is what John’s Model A Community had to say upon learning of his death: He was an active member of Wesley Chapel Methodist Church where he loved serving as greeter on Sunday mornings. He also belonged to the United Methodist Men.
During his tenure, long-simmering scrutiny swelled over the way the faith handles sexual abuse reports lodged with local leaders. An Associated Press investigation found the religion’s sexual abuse reporting hotline can be misused by its leaders to divert abuse accusations away from law enforcement and instead to church attorneys who may bury the problem, leaving victims in harm’s way.
Nelson and church leaders defended their practices, saying the hotline “has everything to do with protecting children and has nothing to do with cover-up.”
John is survived by his wife Julie Ussery Kluttz, for 66 years of the home. He is also survived by a son John David Kluttz (Kim) of Oakboro, NC; two daughters, Sally Simerson of Denver, CO and Betsy Tusa (John) of Lafayette, CO; three grandchildren, Bonnie Kluttz Sammons (Ben) of Rich eld, NC John Alexander McKinnon (Sarah) of Asheville, NC and Seth William McKinnon (Amanda) of Germany; ve great-grandchildren, Charlotte, Meredith, Grant, Victoria and Ronan. John is also preceded in death by his parents, J.S. Kluttz and Mary Wyatt Clayton Kluttz; a large and loving group of brothers and sisters, Jack Methias Kluttz, Annie Lou Kluttz Honeycutt, Jake Nelson Kluttz, Julius Kluttz, Mary Patricia Phillips and a grandson, Kevin Fowler Kluttz.
The church also faced scrutiny about closed door, one-onone interviews between youth and local adult leaders where questions might arise about identity and sexuality.
He also forged a formal partnership with the NAACP. Until 1978, the church banned black men from the lay priesthood, a policy rooted in the racist belief that black skin was a curse. The church disavowed the reasons behind the ban in a 2013 essay but never issued a formal apology. It remains one of the most sensitive topics for the church.
Doris was a gentle and sweet spirit and loved her Lord. She never met a stranger, and she always left you feeling uplifted after talking with her. She would often claim that she had “adopted” friends into her immediate family, and honestly, she never made a distinction between the two. Positivity radiated from her like sunlight. She was sel ess, funny, smart, and sentimental. During her lifetime she was an active member of First Baptist Church of Durham, First Baptist Church of Augusta, Most Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Augusta, and Palestine United Methodist Church in Albemarle. She especially loved helping at church with older adults, youth, and children.
Born in Salt Lake City in 1924, Nelson joined the religion in young adulthood. He was a doctor at the age of 22 and served a two-year Army medical tour of duty during the Korean War before resuming a medical career that included being director of thoracic surgery residency at the University of Utah. Nelson was known for his skill of precision, which made him a successful surgeon during his time in church leadership. He had a reputation for stressing obedience to law and to what he called the “covenant path,” the series of ordinances and practices that mark a life in the faith, said Mormon scholar Matthew Bowman, a religion professor at Claremont Graduate Universities.
She was especially talented at sewing from a young age and made gifts for friends, Christmas ornaments, Halloween Costumes, doll clothes, pageant dresses, prom dresses, coats, tote bags, scarves, out ts for Amy and Laura, and Christening gowns for each of her grandchildren.
Doris was preceded in death by her father Arthur Raymond Jones, her mother Mary Ellen Cameron Jones, and her sister Maryanne Jones Brantley. Survivors include her two precious daughters: Amy Cameron Coleman (partner Dr. Edward Neal Chernault) of Albemarle, NC, and Laura Lindahl Coleman Oliverio (husband David) of Cincinnati, Ohio; seven grandchildren: Cameron David Oliverio, Stephanie Jae Dejak, Luca Beatty Oliverio, Coleman John Dejak, Carson Joseph Oliverio, Ryan Nicholas Dejak, and Jadon Richard Oliverio; and numerous in-laws, nieces, nephews, cousins, and loved ones.
Nelson and his rst wife, Dantzel White, had 10 children together. After she died in 2005, Nelson married Wendy Watson in 2006.
RICK BOWMER / AP PHOTO
Church President Russell M. Nelson looks on during The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ conference in 2019.
U.S. immigration judge has denied a bid for asylum from Kilmar Abrego Garcia, whose case has become a proxy for the partisan power struggle over immigration policy.
The judge in Baltimore on Wednesday rejected an application to reopen Abrego Garcia’s 2019 asylum case, but that is not the nal word. Abrego Garcia has 30 days to appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals.
The Salvadoran national has an American wife and children and has lived in Maryland for years, but he immigrated to the United States illegally as a teenager. In 2019, he was arrested by immigration agents. He requested asylum but was not eligible because he had been in the U.S. for more than a year. But the judge ruled he could not be deported to El Salvador, where he faced danger from a gang that targeted his family. He was mistakenly deport-
organization that supports public library services across all county branches.
The sale will feature thousands of items, including hardcovers and paperbacks for children, young adults and adults. Shoppers can also browse CDs, DVDs, audiobooks and more, with most prices ranging from 25 cents to $1. Both cash and cards will be accepted.
In addition, Stanly County teachers are invited to select $5 worth of age-appropriate books for their classrooms, an ongoing e ort by the Friends group to promote literacy and learning throughout the community.
This year, a Gray Stone Day student held a donation drive from Aug. 29 to Oct. 3 in support of the Friends’ fall book sale.
“The Friends recently had the best thing happen,” the or-
ganization said in a statement.
“Caroline West, a senior at Gray Stone, held a book donation drive and received 940 books for our fall book sale. We cannot thank Caroline enough for all her hard work. Make sure you come and check out the great titles she gathered.”
Founded in 1992, the Friends of the Stanly County Library works to support and advocate for the county’s public libraries. The group raises funds for special programs, informs the
public about issues a ecting the library system and promotes literacy for all ages.
Each year, the organization sponsors events such as author presentations, workshops and seasonal book sales, along with support for the library’s annual Children’s Summer Reading Program.
For more information about the sale or membership, contact the Stanly County Library at 704-986-3755 or email stanlylibraryfriends@gmail.com.
ed to El Salvador by President Donald Trump’s administration in March and was held in a notorious prison, and his case soon became a rallying point for those who oppose the Republican president’s immigration crackdown. Facing a ruling from the Supreme Court, the administration returned him to the U.S. in June, only to immediately charge him with human smuggling.
Abrego Garcia faces criminal charges in Tennessee, based on a 2022 tra c stop. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is also seeking to deport him to a third country, proposing Uganda rst and then Eswatini, a small country in southern Africa where the king still holds absolute power. His attorneys have denounced the criminal charges and the deportation e orts, saying they are an attempt to punish him for standing up to the administration.
Abrego Garcia’s request to reopen his asylum case is a calculated risk. If approved, asylum could provide him with a green card and a path to citizenship. But if he loses, an immigration judge could remove his protection from being returned to his native country.
Join Our Team
AARP Foundation Tax-Aide is looking for friendly and service-oriented people to join our team of volunteers for the upcoming tax season.
Tax-Aide is a program that provides free tax preparation services for those that need it most. Neighbors like you help prepare tax returns or serve in other ways, like organizing client paperwork, managing computer equipment, acting as interpreters, or making sure everything runs smoothly.
There’s a role for everyone.
“Since we’re owners of the nuclear plant, we sell the power to Duke to put on their transmission system to get it to us and then we buy back from Duke,” said Bryan Chandler, Albemarle’s electric distribution superintendent. “So essentially, we’re paying Duke Energy to transmit the power from the power plant to our substations. We just basically pay for the rights to use their transmission lines. The city’s power rate is actually less per kilowatt than Duke Energy is currently by about three cents a kilowatt.”
Mutual aid also plays a large role among public power communities. In September 2024, Albemarle sent lineworkers to Morganton to help the city deal with the damage that Hurricane Helene caused to its electrical system.
“They actually ran out of poles, so we delivered ve loads of poles to them, and then we sent six guys for around a week to help them,” said Jamie Hatley, Albemarle’s electric line crew leader.
“Our guys don’t have a problem with going because at the end of the day, they’re a sister city to us as a part of ElectriCities. That’s what we’re supposed to do, to go and help each other out.”
Albemarle has several outreach e orts planned for Public Power Week.
The city’s electric division will visit local schools to give presentations and demonstrations for students at East Albemarle Elementary, Central Elementary, Endy Elementary and Millingport Elementary, among other campuses.
In addition, customer appreciation gift bags will be available at City Hall while supplies last.
Mem ber FDIC
Friends of the Stanly County Public Library holds a book sale each fall.
COURTESY FRIENDS OF THE STANLY COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY
One of the planes had just arrived in New York from Charlotte
By Josh Funk
The Associated Press
TWO DELTA Air Lines regional jets collided on the taxiway at LaGuardia Airport in New York, injuring a ight attendant, damaging a cockpit and tearing o part of a wing in what the airline described as a “low-speed collision.”
An aircraft carrying 32 people was preparing for takeo Wednesday night to Roanoke, Virginia, when its wing made contact with the fuselage of an aircraft arriving from Charlotte with 61 people aboard, according to a statement from Delta.
It wasn’t immediately clear who was at fault, but air trafc control had instructed the Virginia-bound plane “to hold short and yield to the other aircraft” before the collision, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement.
A ight attendant was taken to a hospital, according to a statement from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. One of the pilots told the tower that the ight attendant told him she hit her knee
when the planes collided, according to audio that LiveATC. net posted. There were no reports of passengers injured, the airline said.
“Their right wing clipped our nose and the cockpit. We have damage to our windscreen and ... some of our screens in here,” a pilot said, according to the air tra c control audio.
Images of the damage showed the broken wing on one plane while the other plane’s cockpit window was shattered and its nose was
deeply gouged in several places.
The plane that had landed “stopped, jerked and jumped to the right,” passenger William Lusk told ABC. ”Everyone went dead silent. And as everyone went dead silent, the pilot calmly came on and said, ‘Hey, we’ve been in a crash, everyone remain calm.’”
Close calls like this could add to worries about aviation safety in the wake of recent crashes and near misses, including the deadliest plane crash in the United States in decades, when
an Army helicopter collided with an airliner preparing to land at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.
Former NTSB and FAA crash investigator Je Guzzetti said that the ground controller lines up planes on taxiways and directs them where to go, but the pilots are expected to avoid other planes as they move at slow speeds while controllers focus on keeping the runways clear.
“You’re supposed to have situational awareness about where your wings are poking out at and what they could hit as you’re taxiing,” said Guzzetti, who is now an aviation safety consultant. “(Controllers) expect the ight crews to see each other since they’re taxiing at a slow speed. And the controller’s main function is to make sure the runway is clear for takeo and landings.”
Because this happened at night and planes typically turn o their nose lights while taxiing, it may have been more difcult for the pilots to see exactly where the other plane was, Guzzetti said. A plane’s taxi lights are on the wings. The landing lights are used to improve visibility and help make sure other pilots can see the plane, but the FAA encourages pilots to be careful not
to blind other pilots because landing lights can also impair night vision.
“Delta will work with all relevant authorities to review what occurred as safety of our customers and people comes before all else,” the statement from Delta said. “We apologize to our customers for the experience.”
The Delta Connection aircraft involved in the collision were operated by Endeavor Air. Both are CRJ-900 planes, said the FAA, which is investigating. The planes can seat 70 to 90 passengers.
LaGuardia Airport is one of 35 major airports where the FAA has installed advanced surface radar systems that help track aircraft and vehicles on the ground and alert controllers to potential con icts. It wasn’t clear what role the system played in this collision. Guzzetti said he’s not sure if that system would have sounded an audible alarm for these planes on a taxiway even though the system would have shown both planes on a display. The primary purpose of the system is to prevent collisions on runways.
The passengers on both planes were provided meals and hotel rooms and rebooked on ights leaving on Thursday.
Strong waves pounded the barrier islands
By Gary D. Robertson and Jesse Bedayn
The Associated Press
SIX UNOCCUPIED houses along North Carolina’s Outer Banks have collapsed into the ocean as Hurricanes Humberto and Imelda rumble in the Atlantic, the latest private beachfront structures to fall on the barrier islands.
Five of the homes, once propped on high stilts, collapsed Tuesday afternoon in Buxton, a community on the string of islands that make up the Outer Banks, said Mike Barber, a spokesperson for the National Park Service. A sixth in Buxton collapsed overnight, the
park service said on its website.
No injuries had been reported Tuesday, the Cape Hatteras National Seashore said in a post on social media.
In videos shown by the local station 13News Now, the homes Tuesday teetered on stilts, battered by the waves before plunging into the surf, clogging the seashore with debris, two -by-fours, cushions and an entire home as wave after wave rolled in.
The post said that more collapses are possible given the ocean conditions, and urged visitors to avoid an area stretching for miles south of the collapses, to stay clear of the debris.
Ocean overwash on Tuesday also prompted the state Transportation Department to close a portion of North Carolina High-
way 12 on Ocracoke Island. The ferry connecting Ocracoke and Hatteras islands also was suspended Tuesday, the department said.
The Outer Banksis is made up of narrow, low-lying barrier islands that have been eroding for years as rising seas swallow the land. Eighteen privately owned houses have now collapsed on Seashore beaches since 2020, the park service said.
The rst 11 were north of Buxton in Rodanthe, but a Buxton home fell into the surf two weeks ago.
The threat often increases when storms a ect the region, as is the case with the two latest hurricanes, even as they moved further out in the Atlantic. The National Weather Service issued coastal ood advisories
and warnings for parts of eastern North Carolina, and dangerous surf conditions were expected through the rest of the week.
Noah Gillam, the planning director for Dare County, which includes Buxton, said Wednesday that the most recent collapsed homes were among 35 structures that had been decerti ed for occupancy since late August — when Hurricane Erin churned in the Atlantic —
due to erosion-related damage.
A 2024 report from a group of federal, state and local ofcials said that 750 of nearly 8,800 oceanfront structures in North Carolina are considered at risk from erosion. Possible solutions include shoring up eroded beaches with dredged sand or rock, or using state or federal funding to buy out threatened homes and move or demolish them — all expensive propositions.
Stanly County Chamber of Commerce announces the 2025-2026 Class of Leadership Stanly
The Stanly County Chamber of Commerce is thrilled to announce the 2025-2026 Class of Leadership Stanly. Since 1989, the Stanly Chamber and Leadership Stanly have been ded-formed about local issues and passionate about the community’s success.
This talented group of leaders will engage in a 9-month program that includes exclusive tours and hands-on experiences and working closely with area leaders who daily tackle the community’s biggest challenges. Armed with new knowledge, connections and perspectives, Leadership Stanly graduates are well-prepared to take their places as effective community leaders.
The 24 members of the 2025-26 class are: Jason Barbee, City of Albemarle Fire; Eric Baldwin, GHA; Hailey Black, Tillery Compassionate Care; Emma Bost, What A Burger #13; Annie Brown, Stanly County; Cindy Burris, City of Albemarle Parks & Rec.; Mark Childers, Piedmont Natural Gas; April Coble, Stanly County Schools; Terry Dudney, Stanly County Schools; Dave Emrich, Emricci Pizzeria; Louisa Jane Hartsell, Hartsell Funeral Home; Jessica Honeycutt, Locust Parks & Rec., Matthew Kelly, Stanly County Public Library; Renee McRae, Pinnacle Financial Partners; Jessica Palmer, Atrium Health Stanly; Kara Pless, First Bank; Diane Robertson, Preformed Line Products; Caroline Sowards, Pfeiffer University; Ashley Spenard, Atrium Health Stanly; Stuart Talbert, Stanly Community College; Susan Tucker, Uwharrie Bank; Jordan Whitley, Faith Alive Ministries; Ric Wojcik, Fiberon and Shelli Yelton, Uwharrie Bank.
Class members participated in an orientation and a local two-day retreat in September at the Farm Bureau Livestock Arena, Juneberry Ridge and the Carolina Treetop Challenge where they engaged in team-building exercises and activities focused on getting to know classmates and understanding their own leadership styles. Participants will attend a fullday session each month from October through May to enhance their knowledge of Stanly County and cap off the experience by planning and implementing a class project.
Members of the Leadership Stanly Steering Committee include: Sylvia Lewis, Stanly Community College; Candice Lowder, Stanly Community College; Tracy Sells, Preformed Line Products; Lisa Moehn, Stanly County; Janet McClure, State Employees’ Credit Union; Kenny Kendall, Albemarle Fire Department; Taylor Smith, Fiberon; Lisa Kiser, City of Albemarle Parks and Rec; Lindsey Almond, City of Albemarle, Greta Baucom, Atrium Health Stanly and Amber Wilson, Atrium Health Stanly
will continue the program’s legacy of excellence. By fostering collaboration, understanding and innovation, these leaders will play a pivotal role in shaping the future of Stanly County.
OCTOBER EVENTS
Women in Business hosted by Cowgirl Society & Co.
Thurs., Oct. 9, 8:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. Cowgirls, Coffee and Connections! Featuring Milk & Honey Coffee Bar and Lil Buddy’s Donuts!
Business After Hours at Loping Crow Distillery Hosted by The Biz Spa Thurs., Oct. 16, 5:30 p.m.
SPECIAL EVENTS
Leadership Stanly participated in a two-day retreat on Sept 23 & Sept. 24 at various locations in Stanly County
Cawthorn seeks comeback, announces run for Congress in Fla.
He served as N.C.’s District 11 representative from 2021 to 2023
By Curt Anderson The Associated Press
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Former Republican U.S. Rep. Madison Cawthorn, who was defeated in 2022 in a North Carolina primary, is looking for a comeback by running for Congress again, this time from Florida.
Cawthorn, 30, announced in an online video Wednesday that he would seek the southwest Florida seat currently held by Rep. Byron Donalds, who is running for Florida governor. The district is overwhelmingly Republican, and Cawthorn moved there shortly after his primary defeat.
On his website, Cawthorn aligns his views closely with those of President Donald Trump on issues such as immigration restrictions, promoting gun rights and pushing against “woke ideology.”
“Madison Cawthorn knows the system is rigged against hard-working families. Washington insiders cut deals while Floridians pay the price. That’s why he’s running for Congress: to defend the America First
CHRIS SEWARD / AP PHOTO
Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C.) speaks before former President Donald Trump takes the stage at a rally on April 9, 2022, in Selma.
agenda, hold bureaucrats accountable, and put Floridians rst,” says his announcement, posted on his website.
Cawthorn served a single House term from a western North Carolina district before losing in the 2022 GOP primary to current Rep. Chuck Edwards following a reelection campaign clouded by ethical issues.
Cawthorn had vaulted into national prominence by winning the seat in 2020 at age 25. Within days of taking o ce, he spoke at the “Stop the Steal”
rally questioning Joe Biden’s presidential election victory that preceded the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.
Cawthorn soon became a leading spokesperson for Trump’s “America First” policies and conservatives in the culture wars. Trump endorsed him, but Cawthorn faced negative publicity for speeding and gun violations. He also infuriated fellow Republicans in Congress when he alleged on a podcast that he had been invited to an orgy in Washington.
Despite that, Cawthorn said he’s ready to represent the 19th congressional district from his home in Cape Coral, just north of Fort Myers.
“I’m running for Congress to stand with President Trump, defend our conservative values, and ght to stop the radical left every single time,” he said in his campaign launch video.
Other Republicans signaling their intention to run include former U.S. Rep. Chris Collins of New York, former Illinois state Sen. Jim Oberweis, Marine aviator Mike Pedersen and Sun Broadcasting President Jim Schwartzel. The lone Democrat running in the reliably Republican district so far is Howard Sapp, a community organizer who has unsuccessfully run for the state legislature.
What is hospice care?
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Palliative
STANLY SPORTS
Uwharrie Wampus Cats to join Blue Ridge League for 2026
The team is preparing for its fourth season next year
By Jesse Deal Stanly News Journal
ALBEMARLE — The Uwharrie Wampus Cats recently announced that they will be founding members of the Blue Ridge League for the 2026 season, marking their fourth summer competing out of Don Montgomery Park.
In a team press release, the collegiate wood-bat baseball team said the move will set the stage to renew old rivalries and build new ones while
league members share a common goal of showcasing minor league -type environments.
The Cats have previously played as both an independent team and as a member of the Southern Collegiate Baseball League. This past season, the Wampus Cats nished their third regular season with a 13 -14-1 record before entering the rst Blue Ridge Invitational Tournament.
“We’re excited to see all of these teams come together as league partners as we join this new league,” said Greg Sullivan, majority owner of the Wampus Cats and chairman of the Blue Ridge League. “Many of these
“We’re excited to see all of these teams come together as league partners as we join this new league.”
Greg Sullivan, Wampus Cats majority owner
teams are rivals already and adding a very good summer ball organization like the Miners will be a great t for all of the teams. Each of us are committed to great baseball and building organizations that
our fans and players will love.”
The league joins the Coastal Plain League and Appalachian League as regional collegiate summer leagues with teams in North Carolina.
It sets itself apart, however, with a strong presence in the Charlotte metro area, along with additional clubs based in Virginia and West Virginia.
The Blue Ridge League name honors two earlier Appalachian circuits — one active from 1915 to 1930 in Maryland, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, and another from 1946 to 1950 featuring Class D teams in North Carolina and Virginia.
“We’re looking forward to
Uwharrie pitcher Skylar Faircloth res a ball to the plate during a Wampus Cats home game this season.
honoring the history of baseball in the region with our name and to building new memories for baseball fans in North Carolina and beyond,” Sullivan said. Four other teams will make up the league for its inaugural season: the Winston-Salem-based Carolina Disco Turkeys, Charlotte’s Queen City Corndogs, Virginia’s Marion Hungry Mothers and the West Virginia Miners out of Beckley, West Virginia.
The Disco Turkeys, who share ownership with the Wampus Cats, have developed a rivalry with the Albemarle club over the past three seasons, highlighted by frequent matchups between the two teams. As the other local league member, the Corndogs play their home games at NCAA Division I Queens University’s stadium and have traditionally featured many top collegiate prospects from the Charlotte area.
Gray Stone soccer enjoys success in conference play
The Knights are in rst place in the YVC standings
By Jesse Deal Stanly News Journal
MISENHEIMER — With no conference losses this season, the Gray Stone Day School boys’ soccer team has found itself at the top of the Yadkin Valley Conference standings.
It’s a place where the program has been for much of the past ve years.
As the only Stanly team with a winning record, the Knights (7-2-4, 4-0-1 YVC) currently have the top record among the ve local squads, besting Albemarle (7-7, 3-2 YVC), North Stanly (4-8-1, 1-2-1 YVC), West Stanly (4-9-1, 2-3-1 Rocky River) and South Stanly (2-6, 0-5 YVC). Riding a three-match winning streak, the Knights hold a narrow lead over the Union Academy Cardinals (13-2-1, 3-0-1 YVC) in the conference standings.
The two teams met in Misenheimer on Sept. 17, battling to a 2-2 draw, and are set to meet
again later this season in a season- nale rematch in Monroe on Oct. 22. That matchup could play a key role in determining the YVC standings, with the Knights and Cardinals battling for the top spot. Albemarle is the only other
team in the conference currently holding a winning record. Gray Stone went 13-7-4 (8-2 YVC) last season, nishing second to the Cardinals — ending the Knights’ streak of ve consecutive YVC titles — before advancing to the sec-
ond round of the state playo s. This season, Gray Stone’s offense has been well-balanced, with ve players scoring at least six goals: seniors Auden Pethel and Anthony Varbanov, juniors Walker Bullard and Jackson Cotoni, and soph-
7-2-4
Record for Gray Stone Day soccer, the only county team with a winning record
omore Matthew Burleson. Bul-
competition this season, sweeping all four local opponents. Gray Stone posted wins over West Stanly (5-0 on Aug. 19), North Stanly (9-0 on Sept. 15), Albemarle (3-0 on Sept. 22) and South Stanly (9-1 on Sept. 24). Under coach Brad Harrington, Gray Stone again gearing up for another deep playo run two years after the team’s rst state championship in 2023.
COURTESY NFHS NETWORK
Gray Stone Day’s Jackson Cotoni makes a play on the ball during the Knights’ recent home game versus Union Academy.
COURTESY UWHARRIE WAMPUS CATS
City of Albemarle Leaf Pickup
Please have leaves ready on pickup day by 7a m Trucks cannot wait for you to rake, or come back to the same street until your next scheduled day DO NOT mix leaves with ANY other types of waste, including trash, bricks, rocks, sticks, or other yard waste
Please Note: Bagged leaves are collected year around if placed in bags weighing less than 50 lbs
Zay Dockery
North Stanly, football
Zay Dockery is a senior running back and defensive back for the North Stanly football team.
The Comets moved to 5-0 with a 23-6 win over Thomas Je erson, and Dockery scored all
three touchdowns in the win. He scored twice on the ground, averaging more than 10 yards per carry on his way to 113 rushing yards. He also caught a pair of passes, reaching the end zone once by air.
On the other side of the ball, Dockery had 10 tackles, including four solo stops.
ACC moving to 9-game football schedule starting next year
The latest move by the conference aligns with its Power Four peers
By Aaron Beard
The Associated Press
CHARLOTTE — The Atlantic Coast Conference is moving to a nine-game league schedule for football while having teams play at least 10 games against power-conference opponents, though there will be variables due to the league’s odd number of football-playing member schools. Commissioner Jim Phillips announced the decision, saying athletic directors had “overwhelmingly supported” the move after “incredibly intentional” discussions about scheduling options.
Going from an eight- to a nine-game model would align the ACC with its power-conference peers in the Big 12, Big Ten and Southeastern conferences after unbalanced scheduling between the conferences had been a topic of discussion, and disagreement, when it came to access for the College Football Playo .
The ACC would join the SEC — which announced its move from eight to nine last month — as the only leagues playing 10 games against Power Four opponents as a baseline in the so-called “9+1 model.”
Still, the ACC being the only power conference with an odd number of football-playing members (17) means there are wrinkles.
A person with knowledge of the decision told The Associated Press that most league teams will transition to the nine-game slate next year, though multiple teams will play eight league games and two against Power Four opponents — an “8+2 model” — to accommodate nonconference games already on the books.
By 2027, the person said, 16 of the 17 teams will play a “9+1 schedule,” while one team will have to play an “8+2” slate.
The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the league hasn’t publicized speci cs of the model. Phillips said the league will present the plan to its faculty athletic representatives for formal adoption.
“There will be additional discussions and more details to be determined, but Monday’s decision showcases the commitment and leadership of our ADs in balancing what is best for strengthening the conference and for their respective programs,” Phillips said in his statement.
The ACC had used an eight-game football schedule since Florida State’s arrival for the 1992 season, the outlier being a 10-game schedule in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Phillips had discussed the possibility of going to a ninegame schedule publicly in July during the ACC’s preseason football media days, noting it had been discussed internally multiple times. He said then that he “liked where our league is” and playing marquee non-
conference matchups had been good for the league but added: “We’ll adjust if we have to.”
The change could theoretically get trickier now with one less spot available for teams to schedule outside of league play, though ensuring 10 games against power-conference opponents — either inside or outside the ACC schedule — would add another selling point when it came to teams’ CFP résumés.
Some teams had already been hitting that 10-game target through traditional means, such as Clemson playing nonconference games against now-No. 4 LSU to open the year and its annual instate rivalry game with South Carolina out of the SEC to cap the regular season.
Others had taken some creative routes to 10, such as NC State scheduling a nonconference game against longtime ACC member Virginia this month to go with next month’s trip to Notre Dame as part of the league’s scheduling partnership with the Irish.
Playing nine league games and 10 against power-conference teams could potentially lead to a nancial boost with the league’s revenue-distribution model being revised to factor TV viewership ratings into the payouts. That change o ers the league’s biggest brands in football and men’s basketball to make more money with higher ratings against top-tier opponents, coming as the league has spent years battling a revenue gap behind the Big Ten and SEC.
Stanly vs. Stanly sports standings
A look at the rivalry games between county teams in volleyball, soccer and football
Stanly News Journal sta
THIS FALL, we’re tracking Stanly County’s rivalry games. Here’s a look at how Stanly County’s four teams have fared against each other so far this fall.
North Stanly volleyball got a 3-0 home win over South Stanly in the week’s only clash between county teams.
The Rowdy Rebel Bulls nish their Stanly-on-Stanly schedule without a rivalry game win. The Comets move a game over .500 with one left to play.
North will look to match West with four wins over Stanly teams, while Albemarle will try to get its rst county win.
Here’s how the area teams are doing in games against each other.
West Stanly 4-0
North Stanly 3-2 South Stanly 2-4 Albemarle 0-3
Remaining intracounty showdown: Oct. 7, Albemarle at North Stanly
In boys’ soccer, Albemarle beat South Stanly 6-1. Moi Carrillo, Nick Yang and Paul Mendikute each scored twice as Albemarle remained unbeaten on the pitch in Stanly showdowns. It also left South Stanly winless in such games.
A scheduled game between South and West fell victim to the weather and will instead by made up next week.
South Stanly 0-3
Upcoming intracounty showdown games
• West Stanly at North Stanly, Oct. 2
• South Stanly at North Stanly, Oct. 8
• South Stanly at West Stanly, Oct. 9
• Albemarle at North Stanly, Oct. 15
In football, the county teams again all played outside the county last week, but we have showdown games three times in October. With three showdowns to go, here are the rivalry game football standings
North Stanly 1-0
South Stanly 1-0 West Stanly 1-2 Albemarle 0-1
Next intracounty showdown: Albemarle at North Stanly, Oct. 3
Remaining games
• North Stanly at South Stanly, Oct. 10
• South Stanly at Albemarle, Oct. 31
Over all three sports, Albemarle pulled ahead of South in the standings, while North matched West for most wins.
Overall Stanly-on-Stanly standings: volleyball, soccer and football
West Stanly 5-2
North Stanly 5-3
Albemarle 3-4
South Stanly 3-7
Here are the rivalry game soccer standings. Albemarle 3-0
Share with your community! Send us your births, deaths, marriages, graduations and other announcements: community@stanlynewsjournal.com
Weekly deadline is Monday at Noon
COURTESY OF MAXPREPS
JASON JACKSON FOR NORTH STATE JOURNAL
UNC’s Jaiden Patterson intercepts the Richmond quarterback in front of the Spiders’ sideline. Games like this FBS-FCS matchup will be rarer in the ACC’s new scheduling model.
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NOTICE NOTICE OF SERVICE OF PROCESS BY PUBLICATION STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE STANLY COUNTY DISTRICT COURT DIVISION FILE NO. 25CV001341-830
ANDREW JOHNNY COE, Plainti . Vs. SAMANTHA THOMPSON, BRETT C. THOMPSON (Legal Father), And John Doe (Putative Father), Defendants.
TAKE NOTICE that a pleading seeking relief against you has been led in the above-entitled action. The nature of the relief being sought is as follows: Custody of ZAYLEIGH DENISE LINDSEY, DOB: 11/11/2019 and ZOEIGH NOELLA LINDSEY, DOB: 11/11/2019 in Stanly County, North Carolina. You are required to make defense to such Complaint not later than forty (40) days from the rst date of publication of this Notice. You may le your response with the Clerk of Superior Court for Stanly County, Civil Court Division, 201 S. Second Street, Albemarle, NC 28001 or through the North Carolina E-Courts File and Serve system (www.nccourts.com). Failure to respond in the time frame provided by law will result in Plainti making application to the Court for entry of an Order granting him custody of the named children.
This the ___ day of October, 2025, WEBSTER LAW OFFICE. P.A. /John W. Webster/ John W. Webster Attorney for Plainti 146 North 4th Street Albemarle, NC 28001 Phone: (704) 983-6900 State Bar ID: 22840
NOTICE
NORTH CAROLINA STANLY COUNTY IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE SUPERIOR COURT DIVISION BEFORE THE CLERK FILE NO. 25E000511-830
Having quali ed as Administrator of the estate of Roy James Huntley, deceased, of Stanly County, North Carolina, This is to notify all persons having claims against the Estate of said Roy James Huntley to present them to the undersigned on or before December 21, 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 September, 2025
Patrick M. Johnson 71 Suncrest Terr. NW Concord, NC 28027 Administrator
NOTICE
NORTH CAROLINA STANLY COUNTY IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE SUPERIOR COURT DIVISION BEFORE THE CLERK FILE NO. 25E000510-830
NOTICE NORTH CAROLINA,
IN
ROWAN
NORTH
DIVISION 25 CVD 1133
WAYNE FURR, JR, Plainti , Vs. HELEN MICHELLE THOMAS, Defendant, NOTICE OF SERVICE BY PROCESS OF PUBLICATION TO: HELEN MICHELLE THOMAS PLEASE BE ADVISED THAT A COMPLAINT AND SUMMONS HAVE BEEN FILED AGAINST YOU BY PLAINTIFF LARRY FURR FOR ABSOLUTE DIVORCE IN THE ROWAN COUNTY COURTHOUSE. YOU WILL HAVE UNTIL TO DECEMBER 1, 2025 TO ANSWER THIS COMPLAINT AT 210 N. MAIN STREET, SALISBURY, NORTH CAROLINA, 28144. THIS NOTICE IS SENT PURSUANT TO N.C. GEN STAT 1-597. THIS IS THE 28 DAY OF SEPTEMBER, 2025. NOTICE TO CREDITORS
NORTH CAROLINA STANLY COUNTY In the General Court of Justice
Having quali ed as Co-Executors of the estate of Betty Le er Furr, deceased, of Stanly County, North Carolina, This is to notify all persons having claims against the Estate of said Betty Le er Furr to present them to the undersigned on or before December 28, 2025, or the same will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate please make immediate payment.
This 28th day of September, 2025
Ricky Daniel Furr Sr. PO Box 846 Albemarle, NC 28002
Jerry Dale Furr PO Box 2211 Albemarle, NC 28002
NOTICE
STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA COUNTY OF STANLY IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE SUPERIOR COURT DIVISION BEFORE THE CLERK FILE #25E000429-830
NOTICE OF ADMINISTRATION
Having quali ed as Executor of the estate of Scott Randall Witmore, deceased, late of Stanly County, North Carolina, this is to notify all persons, rms and corporations having claims against said estate to present them, duly veri ed, to the undersigned at 8860 Flowes Store Road, Concord, North Carolina 28025, on or before the 21st 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 settlement with the undersigned. This the 21st day of September, 2025.
Patricia Witmore Brooks, Executor
Helene hit the reset button on one town’s goal of becoming an outdoor tourism mecca
Old Fort is trying to rebuild it’s newly-built mountain biking trails
By Allen G. Breed and Brittany Peterson The Associated Press
OLD FORT — Morning mist is still burning o the surrounding mountains when they appear: Small groups of helmeted riders on one-wheeled, skateboard-like contraptions, navigating the pitched streets, past the 30-foot granite Arrowhead Monument on the town square.
They are among the 400 or so people converging on this Blue Ridge foothills town for FloatLife Fest, which bills itself as “the ORIGINAL and LONGEST RUNNING” gathering dedicated to motorized Onewheel boards. Swelling Old Fort’s normal population by half, the mid-September festival is injecting much needed money and hope into a town still recovering a year after it was inundated by the remnants of Hurricane Helene.
“We should de nitely come back again,” says Jess Jones, a 34-year-old marine biologist from Edinburgh, Scotland.
“The vibe and the welcome that we got there was really nice.”
That the festival occurred at all is a tribute to the area’s natural beauty and the resilience of its people.
Signs of progress are mixed with still-visible scars from Helene in this town about 24 miles east of Asheville. Most of Old Fort’s shops have reopened, even as workers continue clawing away at a debris pile downtown and some homes remain unlivable.
Like other businesspeople in this tourist-dependent mountain region, bike shop owner Chad Schoenauer has been banking on a strong fall leaf-peeping season to help get him back on track after Helene. But many seem to assume Old Fort is still a wasteland.
“‘Oh, I didn’t know that you were open,’” he says is a typical reaction.
When Helene swept through, Old Fort was well on its way to remaking itself as an outdoor destination, especially after furniture manufacturer Ethan Allen laid o 325 workers when it converted its factory there into a distribution center in 2019.
“When the Ethan Allen layo happened, local leaders started coming together and
saying, ‘How do we use these beautiful natural assets that we have to diversify the manufacturing economy?’” says Kim E er, president and CEO of the McDowell Chamber of Commerce.
Named for a Revolutionary War-era stockade, the town decided to become a world-class destination for hiking, running, horseback riding and, most notably, mountain biking.
“We have a red clay that makes some of the best trails in the country,” FloatLife founder Justyn Thompson says. “The trails are epic.”
In 2021, the G5 Trail Collective — a program led by the nonpro t Camp Grier outdoors complex — got the U.S. Forest Service to agree to 42 miles of new multi-purpose trails. The e ort began paying dividends almost immediately.
“For every trail that we were able to open, we saw a new business open up in town,” says Jason McDougald, the camp’s executive director.
The collective had just completed the 21st mile of trail when Helene, in Schoenauer’s words, hit “the reset button” by washing away trails and damaging businesses.
When the storm blew through on Sept. 27, 2024, the Catawba River converged with the normally placid Mill Creek, leaving much of downtown un-
In 2021, the G5 Trail Collective — a program led by the nonpro t Camp Grier outdoors complex — got the U.S. Forest Service to agree to 42 miles of new multipurpose trails. The e ort began paying dividends almost immediately.
der several feet of muddy water. Schoenauer, who opened his Old Fort Bike Shop in 2021, says it took two days before he could make it to town to assess damage to the business housed in a refurbished 1901 former general store. “I was numb coming all the way here,” he says. “And as soon as I got o the exit, I started crying.”
The water rose more than 3 feet inside the shop, leaving behind a 10-inch layer of reddish-brown mud. The beautiful heart pine oors buckled.
Schoenauer says he su ered about $150,000 in uninsured losses.
At the Foothills Watershed mountain biking complex along the Catawba, the storm took
Thieves steal $1M worth in craft whiskey from Washington distillery
12,000 bottles of rare booze were stolen in a brazen freight fraud scheme
By Rebecca Boone The Associated Press
THIEVES WHO made o with 12,000 bottles of craft whiskey in a rare U.S. liquor heist this summer did more than just snag nearly $1 million worth of product — they also spirited away nearly half the stock of a single malt distillers had worked for more than a decade to make.
Now the Skagit Valley Sheri ’s O ce is investigating, and whiskey a cionados are wondering if — and where — the coveted bottles of Westland Distillery’s rst 10-year Garryana whiskey might turn up.
The bottles disappeared July 31, when someone in a freight truck showed up at Westland Distillery’s warehouse in Burlington, Washington, holding the paperwork that purportedly gave them the right to pick up a shipment of Westland single malt, Watchpost blended, and Garryana
whiskies bound for New Jersey.
But the bottles never arrived at their intended destination, and the “sophisticated, fraudulent carrier scheme” was discovered a week later, said Jason Moore, the managing director of the Seattle-based distillery. The 10th anniversary edition bottles of Garryana are irreplaceable, said Moore.
“This is an unfortunate and pretty extraordinary situation,” said Moore.
The Skagit County Sheri ’s O ce didn’t immediately respond to a phone message left by The Associated Press.
It could be di cult to sell the stolen goods, said Mark Gillespie, the host of the WhiskyCast podcast who has published more than 3,800 tasting notes for different whiskey varieties.
“It’s going to be really hard for whoever took this to actually get this onto the market because what they took was so rare that everybody knows about it,” Gillespie said. “We see these thefts occasionally in Scotland, where thieves will steal a trailer full of whiskey — and it usually ends up in Russia.”
But getting 12,000 bottles out
of the U.S. could be di cult because the bottles are rare and recognizable, and ipping them in the U.S. may be tough because of the nation’s three-tier system for alcohol sales. Distilleries generally have to sell liquor to distributors or wholesalers, who then sell to retailers and restaurants and bars. Selling alcohol on the secondary market — such as when individuals buy up popular bottles and then resell them for a pro t — is generally illegal.
That’s not true in much of Europe, where auction houses and other businesses specialize in secondary market sales.
“The providence of the Garryana is important because it’s their rst 10-year-old whiskey,” Gillespie said. “Basically, age statements state how old the whiskey is, and in this country you have a lot of craft distilleries that aren’t quite 10 years old. So for a craft distillery to be able to release a 10-year-old is an accomplishment.”
Westland focuses on single-malt whiskeys, a style of liquor made from barley, similar to a Scotch whiskey. But Moore says Westland has worked hard to capture the terroir of the Pa-
48 large shade trees and an 18,000-square-foot track built with banks and jumps.
“We had a septic eld, a brand-new constructed septic eld for the business that was destroyed,” says Casey McKissick, who spent the last three years developing the bike park. “Never been used; not even turned on yet. And it all went right down the river.”
McKissick says the business didn’t have ood insurance because it was too costly, and the threat of a catastrophic event seemed too remote.
The damage amounted to $150,000. Worse yet was the loss of eight months of business, including last year’s foliage season.
“We lost that really critical fourth quarter of the year, which is a beautiful fall,” McKissick says.
Blue Ridge Parkway closure slows visitors’ return
Gov. Josh Stein recently announced that travelers had spent a record $36.7 billion in the state last year. But that boom eluded the counties worst hit by Helene.
Visitor spending in Buncombe County — home to Asheville — was down nearly 11% last year compared to 2023, according to the state Department of Commerce.
In McDowell, tourist spend-
ci c Northwest inside each bottle, using locally produced grains, peat harvested from an Olympic peninsula bog and a speci c type of yeast selected to bring out the regional avors.
That’s what makes the Garryana special, he said — it’s aged in casks made from the Quercus garryana oak tree, which grows primarily in the Paci c Northwest. The limited-edition whiskey regularly wins awards, said Gillespie, and the 2023 edition was named the third-best whiskey in the world by Whisky Advocate magazine. The Garryana sells out every year, Gillespie said, and with 3,000 of this year’s 7,500-bottle release gone,
ing dropped nearly 3% in that same period. E er says this June and July, foot tra c at the county’s largest visitor center was down 50% from last year.
She blames much of that on damage to the Blue Ridge Parkway, which is consistently one of the most-visited of the national parks. About 35 miles of the North Carolina route — including long stretches in McDowell County — aren’t slated to reopen until fall 2026.
McDougald says nearly every trail in the Old Fort complex was damaged, with landslides taking out “300-foot sections of trail at a time.”
They’ve managed to reopen about 30 miles of trail, but he says about that many miles remain closed.
Schoenauer reopened his shop in December, but tra c was down by about two-thirds this summer.
“My business, revenue-wise, has shifted more to the repair side,” he says. “People trying to still recreate, but use the bike that they have just to keep it going and have some fun.”
The Watershed complex opened in June, but without the planned riverfront gazebo and performance stage. And they’ve moved the bike jumps to higher ground.
“It’s changed our way of looking at the oodplain, for sure,” McKissick says.
“This is an unfortunate and pretty extraordinary situation.”
Jason Moore, Westland Distillery
the price on the secondary market will be driven up.
Moore said the company has taken additional steps to protect its supply chain, and right now they are focusing on serving customers instead of the investigation.
“What happens from there is outside of our control, and we get excited about sharing our whiskey and engaging with the supporters we have,” Moore said.
“This is an extremely rare thing, and while it’s a setback, we’re con dent that we’re going to get to share this whiskey. We’re proud to make something people enjoy.”
Losing $1 million in stock would put a lot of distilleries out of business, but Gillespie said he expects Westland to make it through the loss, in part because it was acquired by the Paris-based Remy Cointreau Group in 2016. Still, he has some advice for people eager to get a taste of Westland’s products: stick to the legal supply chains.
“If somebody tries to o er you a case of Westland whiskey right now, I’d call the cops,” Gillespie said.
ALLEN G. BREED / AP PHOTO
Chad Schoenauer poses for a portrait beneath a sign that reads “Come Hell or High Water” in his bike shop in Old Fort in early September.
COURTESY
Nearly $1 million in Garryana 10 whiskey was stolen.
famous birthdays this week
John Mellencamp turns 74, Paul Hogan is 86, Rev. Jesse Jackson turns 84, Nona Hendryx is 81
THESE celebrities have birthdays this week:
OCT. 5
College Football Hall of Fame coach Barry Switzer is 88. Rock musician Steve Miller is 82. Rock singer Brian Johnson (AC/DC) is 78. Singer-songwriter Bob Geldof is 74. Astrophysicist and author Neil deGrasse Tyson is 67. Actor Guy Pearce is 58. Actor Kate Winslet is 50. NFL tight end Travis Kelce is 36.
OCT. 6
Actor Britt Ekland is 83. Irish politician Gerry Adams is 77. Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Tony Dungy is 70. Actor Elisabeth Shue is 62. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) is 60.
OCT. 7
Author Thomas Keneally is 90. Singer John Mellencamp is 74. Rock musician Tico Torres (Bon Jovi) is 72. Cellist YoYo Ma is 70. Recording executive and TV personality Simon Cowell is 66. Rock singer-musician Thom Yorke (Radiohead) is 57.
OCT. 8
Actor Paul Hogan is 86. Civil rights activist the Rev. Jesse Jackson is 84. Comedian Chevy Chase is 82. Author R.L. Stine is 82. Actor Sigourney Weaver is 76. Comedian Darrell Hammond is 70. Actor Matt Damon is 55.
OCT. 9
Musician Nona Hendryx is 81. Musician Jackson Browne is 77. Actor Robert Wuhl is 74. TV personality Sharon Osbourne is 73. Actor Tony Shalhoub is 72. Actor Scott Bakula is 71. Film director Guillermo del Toro is 61.
OCT. 10
Actor Peter Coyote is 84. Entertainer Ben Vereen is 79. Actor Charles Dance is 79. Rock singer David Lee Roth is 71. Football Hall of Famer Brett Favre is 56. Actor/TV host Mario Lopez is 52. NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. is 51.
SCOTT ROTH / INVISION / AP PHOTO
Neil deGrasse Tyson attends the East Hampton Library’s 21st annual Authors Night fundraiser at Herrick Park in 2025. The astrophysicist and author turns 67 on Sunday.
EVAN AGOSTINI / INVISION / AP PHOTO
Chevy Chase attends the SNL50: The Homecoming Concert at Radio City Music Hall in 2025. The actor-comedian turns 82 on Wednesday.
EVAN AGOSTINI / INVISION / AP PHOTO
Nona Hendryx attends the 48th Chaplin Award gala at Alice Tully Hall in 2023, in New York. The vocalist, record producer, songwriter, musician and author turns 81 on Thursday.
OCT. 11
Former U.S. Defense Secretary William Perry is 98. Actor Amitabh Bachchan is 83. Singer Daryl Hall (Hall and Oates) is 79. Actor David Morse is 72. Football Hall of Famer Steve Young is 64. Actor Joan Cusack is 63. Actor Jane Krakowski is 57.
Tina Turner Statue unveiled in small Tennessee community
The rock ’n’ roll queen grew up east of Memphis in Nutbush
By Adrian Sainz The Associated Press
BROWNSVILLE, Tenn.
— A 10-foot statue of rock ’n’ roll queen Tina Turner was unveiled Saturday in the rural Tennessee community where she grew up before she became a Grammy-winning singer, electrifying stage performer, and one the world’s most recognizable and popular entertainers.
The statue was unveiled during a ceremony at a park in Brownsville, located about an hour drive east of Memphis. The city of about 9,000 people is near Nutbush, the community where Turner went to school as a child. As a teen, she attended high school just steps from where the statue now stands.
The statue shows Turner with her signature wild hairdo and holding a microphone, as if she was singing on stage. It was designed by sculptor Fred Ajanogha, who said he tried to capture her exibility of movement on stage, how she held the microphone with her index nger extended, and her hair style, which he compared to the “mane of a lion.”
“She’s a great artist; I love her music. It’s a big deal and a great thing for the community to have Tina Turner in her small town.”
Karen Cook, Tina Turner fan
Turner died May 24, 2023, at age 83 after a long illness in her home in Küsnacht near Zurich. Her Grammy-winning singing career included the hit songs “Nutbush City Limits,” “Proud Mary,” “Private Dancer,” and “We Don’t Need Another Hero,” from the lm “Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome.” Her movie credits also include “Tommy” and “Last Action Hero.”
Turner teamed with husband Ike Turner for hit records and live shows in the 1960s and ’70s. She survived her troubled marriage to succeed in middle age with the chart-topping “What’s Love Got To Do With It,” released in 1984. Her admirers ranged from Mick Jagger to Beyoncé and Mariah Carey, and she was known as the “Queen of Rock ’n’ Roll.”
The unveiling was part of the annual Tina Turner Heri-
tage Days, a celebration of her life growing up in rural Tennessee before she moved away as a teenager. The statue was sculpted in clay by Ajanogha in Atlanta and cast in bronze by a West Tennessee foundry, and it took about a year to complete. It is 7 feet and 9 inches tall with a base of 2 feet, making it stand about 10 feet high. Karen Cook said she traveled from Georgia to attend the event with her friend, a cousin of Turner’s, to honor the legendary performer.
“She’s a great artist, I love her music,” said Cook, 59. “My mom listened to her a lot. It’s a big deal and a great thing for the community to have Tina Turner in her small town.”
About 50 donors gave money for the statue, including Ford Motor Co., which donated $150,000. Ford is building an electric truck factory in nearby Stanton.
The statue stands near a museum honoring Turner at the West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center in Brownsville. The museum opened in 2014 inside the renovated Flagg Grove School, a one -room building where Turner attended classes in Nutbush. The school closed in the 1960s and was used as a barn before the dilapidated building was moved by tractor-trailer from Nutbush to Brownsville.
Bad Bunny to headline 2026 Super Bowl halftime show
The Grammy winner will host “Saturday Night Live” on Oct. 4
By Jonathan Landrum Jr.
The Associated Press
LOS ANGELES — Bad Bunny will bring his Latin trap and reggaeton swagger to the NFL’s biggest stage next year: The Grammy winner will headline the Apple Music Super Bowl halftime show in Northern California.
The NFL, Apple Music and Roc Nation announced Sunday that Bad Bunny will lead the halftime festivities from Levi’s Stadium on Feb. 8 in Santa Clara, California.
The Puerto Rican superstar’s selection comes amid another career-de ning run: He’s fresh o a historic Puerto Rico residency this month that drew more than half a million fans and is leading all nominees at the Latin Grammys in November. He has become one of the world’s most streamed artists with albums such as “Un Verano Sin Ti,” an all-Spanish-language LP.
“What I’m feeling goes beyond myself,” Bad Bunny said in a statement. “It’s for those who came before me and ran countless yards so I could come in and score a touchdown… this is for my people, my culture, and our history. Ve y dile a tu abuela, que
“What I’m feeling goes beyond myself.” Bad Bunny
seremos el HALFTIME SHOW DEL SUPER BOWL.”
Roc Nation founder Jay-Z said in a statement that what Bad Bunny has “done and continues to do for Puerto Rico is truly inspiring. We are honored to have him on the world’s biggest stage.”
The 31-year-old artist born Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio has won three Grammys and 12 Latin Grammys. He has become a global ambassador for Latin music, starred in lms such as “Bullet Train,” “Caught Stealing” and “Happy Gilmore 2,” and collaborated with top fashion houses. He’ll enter the Latin Grammys as the leading nominee with 12, dethroning producer and songwriter Édgar Barrera.
Roc Nation and Emmy-winning producer Jesse Collins will serve as co-executive producers of the halftime show. Hamish Hamilton will serve as director.
“We know his dynamic performances, creative vision, and deep connection with fans will deliver the kind of unforgettable experience we’ve come to expect from this iconic cultural
Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio (aka Bad Bunny) attends the premiere of “Caught Stealing” in 2025 in New York. The Grammy-winning artist will perform during the 2026 Super Bowl halftime show.
moment,” said Jon Barker, SVP of Global Event Production for the NFL.
“His music has not only broken records but has elevated
Latin music to the center of pop-culture and we are thrilled to once again partner with the NFL and Roc Nation to deliver this historic performance
to millions of fans worldwide,” said Oliver Schusser, the vice president of Apple Music and Beats. “We know this show will be unforgettable.”
ADRIAN SAINZ / AP PHOTO
A newly unveiled statue of singer Tina Turner stands at a park on Saturday in Brownsville, Tennessee.
EVAN AGOSTINI / INVISION / AP PHOTO
this week in history
Evangelist Jim Bakker convicted, Marxist Che Guevara executed at 39, U.S. Naval Academy established
OCT. 5
1892: The Dalton Gang, notorious for train robberies, was nearly wiped out while attempting to rob two banks in Co eyville, Kansas.
1947: President Harry S. Truman delivered the rst televised White House address on the world food crisis.
1986: Nicaraguan Sandinista soldiers shot down a cargo plane carrying weapons to Contra rebels, exposing illegal arms shipments that led to the Iran-Contra Scandal.
1989: A jury in Charlotte convicted evangelist Jim Bakker of defrauding followers through his television show.
2011: Steve Jobs, the Apple founder and former chief executive who transformed everyday technology with sleek devices, died at age 56.
OCT. 6
1927: The era of talking pictures arrived with the opening of “The Jazz Singer,” starring Al Jolson.
1973: War erupted in the Middle East as Egypt and Syria launched a surprise attack on Israeli forces in the Sinai and Golan Heights during Yom Kippur.
1981: Egyptian President Anwar Sadat was assassinated by members of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad while reviewing a military parade.
OCT. 7
1765: The Stamp Act Congress convened in New York to draw up Colonial grievances against England.
1916: Georgia Tech defeated Cumberland University 222-0 in Atlanta in the most lopsided victory in college football history.
1985: Palestinian gunmen hijacked the Italian cruise ship
The Great Chicago Fire began on Oct. 8, 1871, killing hundreds and destroying almost 20,000 structures during the three-day disaster.
Achille Lauro in the Mediterranean. They killed Leon Klingho er, a Jewish American tourist in a wheelchair, and pushed him overboard.
OCT. 8
1871: The Great Chicago Fire began, killing more than 300 people and destroying more than 17,000 structures during a three-day blaze.
1956: Don Larsen pitched the only perfect game in World Series history as the New York Yankees beat the Brooklyn Dodgers 2-0 in Game 5.
1997: Scientists reported that the Mars Path nder had yielded strong evidence that Mars might once have been hospitable to life.
OCT. 9
1910: A coal dust explosion at the Starkville Mine in Colorado killed 56 miners.
1962: Uganda won independence from British rule.
1967: Marxist guerrilla leader Che Guevara, 39, was executed by the Bolivian army a day after his capture.
OCT. 10
1845: The U.S. Naval Academy was established in Annapolis, Maryland.
1911: Chinese revolutionaries
launched an uprising that led to the fall of the Qing Dynasty and the establishment of the Republic of China.
1935: George Gershwin’s opera “Porgy and Bess,” featuring an all-black cast, opened on Broadway.
1966: The Beach Boys’ single “Good Vibrations” was released by Capitol Records.
1973: Vice President Spiro T. Agnew resigned after pleading no contest to income tax evasion amid bribery accusations.
OCT. 11
1906: The San Francisco Board of Education ordered Asian students segregated into their own school. The order was rescinded after President Theodore Roosevelt intervened and agreed to limit Japanese immigration.
1984: Challenger astronaut Kathryn D. Sullivan became the rst American woman to walk in space.
1986: President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev opened two days of arms control and human rights talks in Reykjavik, Iceland.
1991: Anita Hill accused Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
DAVE CAULKIN / AP PHOTO
Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, at left with former British Prime Minister Harold Wilson, right, in 1975, was assassinated by members of Egyptian Islamic Jihad on Oct. 6, 1981.
CURRIER AND IVES / CHICAGO HISTORICAL SOCIETY VIA WIKIPEDIA
