N.C. Wildlife Resource Commission o cers were training on Lake Tillery this week, with nearly a dozen boats spotted on the water Monday. Four NCWRC boats, along with a pontoon boat, cruised the lake on the hot summer day.
WHAT’S HAPPENING
Trump administration withdraws from UNESCO again
United Nations
The Trump administration has announced that it will once again withdraw from the U.N. cultural agency UNESCO. The move Tuesday was expect and has the U.S. further retreating from international organizations. The decision to pull U.S. funding and participation from UNESCO comes two years after the Biden administration rejoined following a controversial, ve -year absence that began during President Donald Trump’s rst term. The White House cited similar concerns as it did in 2018, saying it believes U.S. involvement is not in its national interest and accusing the agency promoting anti-Israel speech. The UNESCO chief said she “deeply” regrets the U.S. decision but the agency “has prepared for it.” She denied accusations of anti-Israel bias.
Pentagon tightens rules on medical waivers to join the military
Washington, D.C.
The Pentagon says people with congestive heart failure, undergoing treatment for schizophrenia or who have a history of paraphilic disorders will no longer be eligible for a medical waiver to serve in the military. The guidance signed by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and issued Tuesday updates a list of conditions that disqualify potential recruits from service. Waivers have long been granted for a long list of medical conditions including asthma or past sports injuries. Hegseth says the change will help ensure the physical and mental capabilities of service members.
Albemarle city council reviews new study for business center
ElectriCities of N.C. sponsored the report
By Jesse Deal Stanly News Journal
ALBEMARLE — At the Albemarle City Council meeting on Monday night, councilmembers were presented with the Speculative Building Feasibility Study conducted for the Albemarle Business Center.
Sponsored by ElectriCities of N.C., in partnership with the Albemarle’s Economic Development Department, the study was designed to determine if a spec building program would be successful for the ABC — a 282-acre industrial park located adjacent to N.C. 24/27 and U.S. 52 — and to present recommendations to the council.
Crystal Morphis, founder and CEO of Creative Eco-
Crystal Morphis, founder and CEO of Creative Economic Development
addresses the council with the study’s results.
nomic Development Consulting, addressed the council with the study’s results in favor of the project, revealing that a proposed 100,000 to
200,000 square-foot concrete spec building would add up to a $8.5 million cost. Site preparation work and other contingencies would cost
Community to weigh in on Stanly County Schools at Thursday forum
The event will be held at the Farm Bureau
Livestock Arena
By Jesse Deal Stanly News Journal
ALBEMARLE — Ques-
tions, concerns and ideas regarding the future of the local public school district will be expressed by community members Thursday night at the Better Stanly County Schools Forum.
Organized by the recently developed “Reclaiming Greatness in Stanly County Schools” Facebook group, the forum will take place from 7-9 p.m. at the Farm Bureau
Livestock Arena in Albemarle.
Anyone with any connection or a liation to the SCS system is invited to attend the forum, where public discussions and presentations will take place on school consolidation, “mega schools” and the direction that the Stanly County Board of Education is going with its funding plans.
“Right now, decisions are being made that will shape the future of our schools and our kids for decades to come,” event co-organizer Andrew Mullis said in a post. “This isn’t just about buildings or budgets. It’s about whether we create schools that build
“Right now, decisions are being made that will shape the future of our schools and our kids for decades to come.”
Andrew Mullis, event co-organizer
THE STANLY COUNTY EDITION OF NORTH STATE JOURNAL
the conversation”
North State Journal
(USPS 518620)
(ISSN 2471-1365)
Neal Robbins, Publisher
Jim Sills, VP of Local Newspapers
Cory Lavalette, Senior Editor
Jordan Golson, Local News Editor
Shawn Krest, Sports Editor
Dan Reeves, Features Editor
Charles Curcio, Reporter
Jesse Deal, Reporter
PJ Ward-Brown, Photographer
BUSINESS
David Guy, Advertising Manager
Published Wednesday and Sunday as part of North State Journal
New Leaders named for the Albemarle Rotary Club
The organization will continue its support for scholarships, leadership and nonpro t programs
By Melinda Burris Stanly County Journal
ALBEMARLE — The Albemarle Rotary Club has ofcially installed new o cers for the 2025–26 year, naming George Crooker president and Louisa Jane Hartsell as president-elect.
Crooker, the former president-elect of the club, has been training to take charge for the last three years, attending seminars held in Greensboro and meeting with other president-elects across the state and the region. Crooker is director of the Stanly County YMCA.
“We are a strong club with excellent leadership that will continue to prepare for the future.”
George Crooker, new Albemarle Rotary Club president
STANLY
Here’s a quick look at what’s coming up in and around Stanly County:
July 26
Sprinkle & Splash
10 a.m. to noon
Annual Subscription Price: $100.00
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invite everyone to join us!
“I am humbled to be chosen as the president of such a prestigious Rotary Club, which has a past history of presidents that I truly love and respect!” the new president said. “I am excited to be collaborating with President-Elect Louisa Jane Hartsell, sharing her tremendous talents and vision for our future. We are a strong club with excellent leadership that will continue to prepare for the future.”
Echoing Crooker’s emphasis on the importance of service, Hartsell said, “It’s an honor to be named president-elect of the Albemarle Rotary Club. I’m especially
excited to be serving alongside President George Crooker as we carry out a shared two-year vision to align and energize our club.”
The new president-elect made it clear the focus of the new leadership team would be community-oriented.
“Together we’re working to create a more connected, purposeful and forward-thinking Rotary Club — one that re ects the heart of our members and the needs of our community,” Hartsell said. “I believe in the power of service above self, and I’m proud to help lead that mission right here in Albemarle.”
Several other members were installed into leadership positions with Melissa Smith being named president nom-
inee, Adrian Shepherd assuming the role of treasurer, James Shepherd appointed assistant treasurer and Bob Sweet named sergeant at arms. Members appointed to the club’s board of directors were Kasey Brooks, Dr. Bill Burnside, Erica Church, Jan Goetz, Martha Hughes, Elizabeth Underwood Kasimir, Janet McClure and Mandi Rogers.
Along with continuing to promote annual charitable events that have become tradition in Albemarle, Crooker said funding and sponsorship of causes related to Alzheimer’s and dementia research, along with an emphasis on endeavors to eliminate polio disease across the globe, will be front and center on the club’s agenda. There are more than 46,000 rotary clubs in 200 countries. The Albemarle chapter meets each Thursday at noon at Atrium Health Stanly’s Magnolia Room; visitors and those interested in pursuing membership are welcome to attend.
Free water fun event. Children can play in sprinklers and participate in fun yard games. Be dressed to get wet and be sure to bring sunscreen, a chair/blanket and everything else you’ll need.
240 Lions Club Drive Locust
July 28
Color & Connect:
Drop In 9:30-11:30 a.m.
For those who need some relaxing “me”
July 17
July 15
• Demecus Rhamad Hooker, 27, was arrested for assault on a female and injury to personal property.
July 16
• Cancel Christian Rodriguez, 35, was arrested for assault causing serious bodily injury.
• Christopher Wesley Alcott, 35, was arrested for assault with a deadly weapon and hit and run leaving the scene with property damage.
• Jennifer Lynn Russell, 30, was arrested for resisting a public o cer.
• Christopher Dale Williamson, 37, was arrested for assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill.
July 18
• Mark Jerome Hartsell, 39, was arrested for attempted breaking or entering a building and larceny after breaking or entering.
• Dustin James Barlow, 38, was arrested for possession of a rearm by a felon.
• Alston Dale Mcswain, 30, was arrested for possession of methamphetamine and possession of drug paraphernalia.
July 19
• Marcus Dwayne Sturdivant, 51, was arrested for assault causing physical injury to a detention employee, littering, disorderly conduct, attempted rst-degree murder, habitual misdemeanor assault, assault by strangulation, false imprisonment, and communicating threats.
July 20
• Russelvelt Dominic Deshawn Toles, 23, was arrested for driving while impaired, possession of marijuana paraphernalia, and failure to maintain lane control.
Share with your community! Send us your births, deaths, marriages, graduations and other announcements to be published in Stanly News Journal. community@stanlynewsjournal.com Weekly deadline is Monday at Noon The Stanly County Veterans Meeting will be held on Aug. 14 at 6 p.m. at VFW Post 2908 in Albemarle. All veterans are welcome to attend the meeting and voice any concerns. The Veterans Day Parade and the activities planned for the Veterans Weekend will be discussed. Any business, organization or clubs that wish to be in the parade can contact the council at 704-438-8286.
July 31
Locust
This producers-only market o ers fresh produce, homemade foods and crafts by local creators. Conveniently located across the street from Locust Elementary School. Open May through September.
Corner of 24/27 and Vella Drive Locust
Shake, Rattle & Roll 10:45-11:15 a.m.
Music and movement class for children ages 0-4 and their caregivers. These classes are designed to promote emotional, cognitive, and social development, improve social skills, and encourage caregiver/ child bonding.
Albemarle Main Library 133 E. Main St. Albemarle
THE CONVERSATION
Neal Robbins, publisher | Frank Hill, senior opinion editor
VISUAL VOICES
How the world flipped in 6 months
It turns out that staying in the U.S. consumer market is the top priority of our trading partners.
IN LESS THAN SIX MONTHS, the entire world has been turned upside down. There is no longer such a thing as conventional wisdom or the status quo.
The unthinkable has become the banal.
Take illegal immigration — remember the 10,000 daily illegal entries under former President Joe Biden?
Recall the only solution was supposedly “comprehensive immigration reform” — a euphemism for mass amnesties.
Now there is no such thing as daily new illegal immigration. It simply disappeared with commonsense enforcement of existing immigration laws — and a new president.
How about the 40,000-50,000 shortfall in military recruitment?
Remember all the causes that the generals cited for their inability to enlist soldiers: generational gangs, obesity, drugs and sti competition with private industry?
And now?
In just six months, recruitment targets are already met; the issue is mostly moot.
Why? The new Pentagon ipped the old, canceling its racist DEI programs and assuring the rural, middle-class Americans — especially white males — that they were not systemically racist after all.
Instead, they were reinvited to enlist as the critical combat cohort who died at twice their demographic share in Iraq and Afghanistan.
How about the “end of the NATO crisis,” supposedly brought on by a bullying U.S.?
Now the vast majority of NATO members have met their pledges to spend 2% of gross domestic product on defense, which will soon increase to 5%.
Iconic neutrals like Sweden and Finland have become frontline NATO nations, arming to the teeth. The smiling NATO secretary-general even called Trump the “daddy” of the alliance
What about indomitable, all-powerful, theocratic Iran, the scourge of the Middle East for nearly 50 years?
Although it had never won a war in the last half-century, its terrorist surrogates— Hezbollah, Hamas and the Houthis — were supposedly too dangerous to provoke.
Now?
Most of their expeditionary terrorists are neutered, and their leaders are in hiding or dead. Iran has no air force, no real navy, no air defenses and no active nuclear weapons program.
Its safety apparently depends only on the mood of the U.S. or Israel on any given day not to y into its airspace and take out its missiles, nuclear sites, generals or theocrats at will.
What happened to the supposedly inevitable recession, hyperin ation, stock market collapse, unemployment spikes and global trade war that last spring economists assured us would hit by summer?
Job growth is strong, and April’s in ation rate is the lowest in four years. GDP is still steady. The stock market hit a record high. Trade partners are renegotiating their surpluses with the U.S.
It turns out that staying in the U.S. consumer market is the top priority of our trading partners. It seems their preexisting and mostly undisclosed pro ts were large enough to a ord reasonable U.S. symmetrical tari s.
For now, news of tax cuts, deregulation, “drill, baby, drill” energy policies displacing Green New Deal strangulation and $8-$10 trillion in potential foreign investment has encouraged — rather than deterred — business.
Then there were our marquee elite universities, whose prestige, riches, and powerful alumni made them answerable to no one.
JULIA DEMAREE NIKHINSON / AP PHOTO
President Donald Trump, rst lady Melania Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth applaud during attend a military parade commemorating the Army’s 250th anniversary, coinciding with the president’s 79th birthday, on June 14 in Washington, D.C.
And now, after the executive and congressional crackdown on their decades of hubris?
Supposedly brilliant university presidents have resigned in shame. The public has caught on to their grant surcharge gouging.
Campuses have backed o their arrogant de ance of the Supreme Court’s civil rights rulings.
They are panicked about the public exposure of their systemic antisemitism.
They are scrambling to explain away their institutionalized ideological bias, tawdry pro tmaking schemes and mass recruitment of wealthy foreign students from illiberal regimes.
So the mighty Ivy League powerhouses are now humbling themselves to cut a deal to save their nancial hides and hopefully return to their proper mission of disinterested education.
What happened to the trans juggernaut of sex as a social construct and its bookend gospel that biological men could dominate women’s sports?
People woke up. They were no longer afraid to state that sex is binary and biologically determined. And biological men who dominate women’s sports are bullies, not heroes.
Where are the millionaire-scamming architects of Black Lives Matter now? Where is the “DEI now, tomorrow and forever” conventional wisdom?
Where is professor Ibram X. Kendi and his $30,000 Zoom lessons on how to ght racism by being racist?
They have all been exposed as the race hustlers they always were. Their creed that it is OK for supposed victims to be racist victimizers themselves was exposed as an absurd con.
So what ipped everything?
We were living in an “emperor has no clothes” make-believe world for the last few years. The people knew establishment narratives were absurd, and our supposed experts were even more ridiculous.
But few — until now — had the guts to scream “the emperor is naked” to dispel the fantasies.
When they nally did, reality returned. Victor Davis Hanson, a senior contributor for The Daily Signal, is a classicist and historian at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University and host of The Victor Davis Hanson Show. This article was rst published by The Daily Signal.
From vision to advocacy: Building a rural tech economy in Stanly County
I STARTED WITH a simple yet urgent mission: to create a mental health app that serves rural America — especially black men and boys — who are often overlooked in both health care and tech innovation. But what I quickly discovered was a much larger problem: In places like Stanly County, we lack the infrastructure that startups in metro areas take for granted. There are few — if any — incubators, accelerators or funding networks to help people like me bring visionary ideas to life.
This realization shifted my focus. I began advocating for a Tech Economy Committee at the local and state level. Why? Because without a foundation for innovation, rural communities will continue to be left behind in the digital age.
First we must educate. Then we can innovate.
Currently, less than 2% of venture capital and angel funding reaches rural America. That statistic is more than just a number — it’s a warning. If we don’t act now, our communities will continue to be left out of the economic growth driven by technology and entrepreneurship.
We must position ourselves not just to survive, but to lead. Rural voices matter. Rural innovation matters. And rural dreams, like mine, deserve the chance to become reality.
Roddrick Howell Albemarle
BE IN TOUCH
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Contact a writer or columnist: connect@ northstatejournal.com
COLUMN | VICTOR DAVIS HANSON
Oakboro celebrates Fourth of July with annual Fire Queen pageant, talent show
“If you don’t have quality industrial buildings available, then you do miss out on a lot of opportunities.”
Crystal Morphis, founder and CEO of Creative Economic Development Consulting
“That is much more expensive than it used to be a few years ago because of the escalation of construction costs and overall development costs,” Morphis said.
She explained that spec building programs are an economic development strategy to attract private sector investment and well-paying jobs because more than half of companies looking to expand prefer to move into an existing building rath-
Pageant
County Fire Queen Pageant.
Requirements for contestants are that she must live within the re district she plans to represent, not be married or ever have been married, as well as not being currently or ever pregnant.
“The Fire Queens should represent their re departments with pride and integrity,”
according to the festival website. Winners of the pageant receive a $500 college scholarship, funded by the Oakboro Fire Department Ladies’ Auxillary. Audrey Torelli was the 2025 winner of the pageant and also claimed Miss Cogeniality honors.
First runner-up in the pageant went to Jillian Bailey, who represented the Aquadale Fire Department.
The annual talent show also gathered 20 contestants, 10 each in both the youth and adult categories.
In the youth category, Johanna Ellerbee won rst place, while Kynleigh Alexander took second place and Layla Whitley was third.
For the adult division, the E-Vessel of Praise took rst, with Savannah Bennett winning second place and Michael Lanier earning third.
er than wait for one to be built.
While councilmembers were presented with the information about the spec program recommendations, no action was required at this time.
“If you don’t have quality industrial buildings available, then you do miss out on a lot of opportunities,” Morphis added. “We worked with (Albemarle EDC Director) Lindsay Almond’s o ce to determine that in 2024, Albemarle missed 67 opportunities to respond to requests for information from ex-
panding companies because of the lack of quality available industrial buildings. Those missed opportunities are things that we like to track in economic development.”
She noted that the ABC is “a very appealing industrial park” and a prime candidate for a spec building program.
“Think of it as an economic development strategy as one more tool that you have to market to companies,” Morphis said. Construction on the center be-
gan in June 2019, following the city’s purchase of the 282-acre parcel for about $1.8 million; the center’s rst build-ready pad within the park was completed in February 2024.
Per city o cials, the land will be able to accommodate anything from a 20,000 square-foot facility to a million square-foot facility, with parcels from 5 acres to 121 acres.
The Albemarle City Council is set to hold its next regular meeting Aug. 4 at 6:30 p.m. in the City Hall Council Chambers.
COURTESY PHOTOS
Audrey Torelli (left) and Jillian Bailey were the winners of the 2025 Stanly County Fire Queen Pageant.
The talent winners, from left, were Layla Whitley, Kynleigh Alexander, Johanna Ellerbee, E-Vessel of Praise, Savannah Bennett and Michael Lanier.
Ascend Academy celebrates rst year of teaching reading, math to children
The Norwood-based academy, hosted by New Life Direction Ministries, taught science and math to children in a new four-week program
By Charles Curcio Stanly News Journal
A NEW SUMMER reading and math program based in Norwood celebrated its 25 participants with a eld day and awards ceremony this past Friday.
The Ascent Summer Academy, hosted by New Life Direction Ministries in Norwood on College Street, taught students in rising grades 1-5 reading, math and life skills in a program which started June 17, took one week o for the Fourth of July and ended last Friday.
Most of the students returned Friday for the ceremony, with seven students being honored for having perfect attendance.
The academy, free for the students, ran from 9 a.m. to noon Tuesdays through Thursdays, with the goals stated ahead to prepare students for the upcoming academic year while providing a nurturing environment, enhancing skills and building up the kids’ condence in themselves.
CHARLES CURCIO / STANLY NEWS JOURNAL
Students enjoy racing during eld day for the rst Ascend Summer Academy at New Life Direction Ministries in Norwood.
“It was ordained by God. It was amazing.”
Georgette Edgerton, Ascend Summer Academy lead instructor
Georgette Edgerton, lead instructor for the academy, said she and Anita Owens-Scott — co-founder and pastor of New Life Direction Ministries with her husband, Mike — discussed hosting the ve-week program last December at a Christmas party.
“I tutor kids during the school
year,” Edgerton said. “I had about 28 kids that I tutored at my home.”
The two decided to put on a summer academy for kids, and Scott volunteered the use of the church building.
“All I needed was a venue,” Edgerton said. “I think parents ought to have a source, and I do summer reading.”
Using her master’s degree in curriculum and instruction, Edgerton set up the program while seeking donations for snacks and juices to provide a meal for students.
“It was ordained by God,” Edgerton said. “It was amazing.”
Not online did the Scotts pro-
vide the air-conditioned building during the hot summer but also all the printing and copying needs for the academy.
Every day, students read out loud a mantra regarding respect:
“Respect is showing consideration for yourself, other people and their property, treating others as you would want to be treated. We show respect when we are sensitive to the feelings of other people. When we treat someone with respect, we show they are valuable to su. Respect is having an appreciation for other people’s di erences and cultures. We show respect by how we talk to someone, the tone of voice used, and the meaning of our words. Just as important is how we listen while someone is speaking to us. When people tease, spread gossip and call people names, they are not only disrespecting someone else, they are disrespecting themselves.”
Each student had the chance to lead the entire academy in reciting the respect card every day.
Every day, students lled out a paper re ecting on the information and values they learned, stressing the use of complete sentences.
“I wanted (the kids) to become independent learners. Self-directed learners don’t depend wholeheartedly on your teacher,”
Edgerton said. “Teachers are amazing facilitators, but their job is to facilitate. Your job is to learn, and if you don’t get it from them, ask questions. If you still don’t get it, here are resources because people aren’t smart because they’re smart people. Smart people actually know how to use resources.”
The educational topics went beyond just reading and math, she added, noting musician Dexter Hinson and Jasmine Scott, the Scotts’ daughter who teaches art in Charlotte, both put on programs for students.
Students for the academy came from across Stanly and surrounding counties, with two coming from New Jersey to stay with family and attend the academy.
Edgerton said she wants to continue the program next year and possibly expand the number of students, along with welcoming in retired teachers to help with the added instructional needs of an expanded roster.
“We started with respect. My husband came up with, ‘This is the Day the Lord has made,’” she said. “You get to choose to and rejoice, be glad. … I’m so thankful and grateful (the Academy) happened. I’m so glad we didn’t just talk about it.”
Over 5 million aboveground pools recalled after deaths
Reports say nine children have drowned
The Associated Press
NEW YORK — More than 5.2 million aboveground swimming pools sold across the U.S. and Canada over the last two decades are being recalled after nine drowning deaths were reported.
The recall covers a range of Bestway, Intex Recreation and Polygroup pools that were sold by major retailers as far back as 2002. According to Monday notices published by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and Health Canada, these pools have compression straps running along the outside of the product — which “may create a
FORUM from page A1
people up or systems that wear them down. Consolidation might look like progress, but in many communities, it’s led to bigger schools, less safety, overcrowded classrooms, exhausted teachers, lost community identity, and kids slipping through the cracks. We can do better.”
Recently, the school board has come under re by some
foothold” for small children and allow them to access the water unattended.
That can pose a serious drowning risk, the safety regulators warn. To date, the CPSC believes nine children across the U.S. have drowned after gaining access to these now-recalled pools in this way. Those deaths occurred between 2007 and 2022, involving children between the ages of 22 months and 3 years old. No additional fatalities have been reported in Canada.
Consumers in possession of these pools are urged to immediately contact Bestway, Intex and/ or Polygroup to receive a free repair kit — which will consist of a rope to replace the compression strap. Owners of these pools
critics alleging that it has failed to be transparent or forthright about the direction it is taking.
Last month, the board decided to move forward with a facilities assessment by Moseley Architects that will make an evaluation of long-term planning for high school facilities within the district.
The SCS Capital Improvement Planning Committee has targeted a school consolidation
should otherwise ensure that small children cannot access the pool without supervision, regulators note — and could alternatively drain the pool until the repair is made.
All of the pools being recalled are 48 inches or taller — and can be identi ed by brand and model names listed on both the CPSC and Health Canada’s recall notices. Sales of the pools ranged by model and location, but date as far back to 2002 and as recently as 2025. About 5 million of these now-recalled pools were sold across the U.S. — including both online and in-stores at major retailers like Walmart, Target, Lowe’s, Costco and Amazon. Another 266,000 were sold in Canada.
plan that would re gure the county’s high schools with new buildings and increased enrollment numbers, potentially combining individual community high schools into larger schools.
Community forum organizers are hoping that a large group of parents, teachers, students and community leaders will attend the event so that a wide range of opinions can be shared in a public environment.
The “Reclaiming Greatness in Stanly County Schools” group has described its goals in a mission statement.
“This group is for parents, teachers, students, and community members who believe our schools deserve better, and we’re ready to speak up,” it said. “We’re here to share concerns and ideas, stay informed about school board meetings and decisions, organize for bet-
ter resources, leadership, and transparency, reclaim the greatness Stanly County schools once had — and take it even further.”
School board members have each been invited to the Better Stanly County Schools Forum; Board Member Meghan Almond con rmed she will be speaking at the event and answering questions asked by the public.
CPSC VIA AP
A child uses the compression strap to stand on aboveground pool.
James Dee Burris Sr.
April 25, 1942 – July 18, 2025
James Dee Burris Sr., age 83, of Lula, GA, passed away on Friday, July 18, 2025. He was preceded in death by his parents, Quinton Harvey and Faith Lee Burris; former wife, Betty Taylor Burris; brother, Harvey Burris; sister, Martha Kepley. Mr. Burris is survived
OBITUARIES
by his wife of 10 years, Lynda Anne Bartosh of Lula, GA; children, Beth (Richard) Hinson of Albemarle, NC, Jan (Carl) Brewer of Buford, GA, Joy (Michael) Bales of Dacula, GA, James “Jimmy” (Melanie) Burris Jr. of Lula, GA; Eight grandchildren; Five greatgrandchildren; brother, David Burris of Albemarle, NC; several nieces, nephews and cousins; his dog and best friend, “Sparky”. Mr. Burris was born on April 25, 1942, in Albemarle, NC and graduated from Badin High School. He was retired from General Motors as a Driver and managed Hunting Land in Laurens County, GA. He loved sitting in his recliner and watching TV. Grit was his favorite TV show. The family will receive friends on Sunday, July 27, 2025, from 2:00 p.m. until 4:00 p.m. in the State Room at Flanigan Funeral Home to celebrate Mr. Burris’ life.
MARY ELIZABETH HARDY DORTON
MARCH 13, 1937 – JULY 17, 2025
Mary Elizabeth Hardy Dorton, 88, passed away on Wednesday, July 17, 2025. Funeral Service will be held at 3 p.m. on Sunday, July 27, 2025, at Kimball Memorial Lutheran Church, located at 101 Vance St., Kannapolis, NC 28081. Rev. John Futterer will be o ciating. Burial will occur at Mt. Olive Lutheran Church Cemetery, located at 9400 Gold Hill Rd, Mt Pleasant, NC 28124. The family will receive friends at the church prior to the service from 1:30-2:45 p.m.
Mary was born in Lincolnton, North Carolina and grew up on a 60-acre family farm. As a child, she immediately excelled in school with excellent grades and was very proud of achieving state honors as a 4-H Club participant. After high school, she attended Lenoir Rhyne College and earned a teacher’s degree. She taught school in the Kannapolis City School System for 31 years, mostly 4th and 5th grade children.
She was preceded in death by the Reverend Richard Dorton, her husband of 25 years (1983), and son Richard Dorton Jr., (2022). She is survived by her daughter, Fonda D. Crooker (George), and grandchildren, Matthew Crooker (Ann Marie), and Daniel Crooker.
She has always been heavily involved in Kimball Lutheran Church, singing in the choir, playing the piano, teaching bible school, and on several committees and councils. She has a huge love for travel, as she has seen a good part of the world, visiting over 21 countries. Some of her highlights have been riding Camels in Australia, and swimming with turtles in the Galapagos Islands. Her other interests include gardening, reading, the beach, and animals (especially dogs and cats).
Later in life, she loved both the sta and her friends at Spring Arbor Assisted Living Center and could be seen at almost every activity they had. She lived a wonderful, fruitful life, and was adored by many.
The Crooker family would like to thank the sta of both Spring Arbor Assisted Living Center and Tillery Compassionate Care Hospice of Albemarle for all of their support and care.
In lieu of owers, memorial contributions may be made to Kimball Memorial Lutheran Church in Kannapolis or Tillery Compassionate Care of Albemarle (960 N 1st St, Albemarle, NC 28001).
Malcolm-Jamal Warner, ‘Cosby Show’ actor, dead at 54 in Costa Rica drowning
supporting actor in a comedy in 1986. Actor Viola Davis was among those giving tribute Monday.
By Javier Cordoba and Andrew Dalton
The Associated Press
SAN JOSE, Costa Rica — Malcolm-Jamal Warner, who as teenage son Theo Huxtable on “The Cosby Show” was central to a cultural phenomenon that helped de ne the 1980s, died at 54 in an accidental drowning in Costa Rica, authorities there said Monday.
Costa Rica’s Judicial Investigation Department said Warner drowned Sunday afternoon on a beach on Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast. He was swimming at Playa Cocles in Limon province when a current pulled him deeper into the ocean.
“He was rescued by people on the beach,” the department’s initial report said, but rst responders from Costa Rica’s Red Cross found him without vital signs and he was taken to the morgue.
Warner created many TV moments etched in the memories of Generation X children and their parents, including a pilot-episode argument with Cosby about grades and careers, and another episode where Theo tries in vain to hide his ear piercing from his dad.
Theo was the only son among four daughters in the household of Cosby’s Cli Huxtable and Phylicia Rashad’s Clair Huxtable on the NBC sitcom, and he would be one of the prime representations of American teenage life and Black boyhood on a show that was the most popular in America for much of its run from 1984 to 1992.
“Theo was OUR son, OUR brother, OUR friend. He was absolutely so familiar, and we rejoiced at how TV got it right!!”, The Oscar winner said on Instagram. “But Malcolm got it right ... we reveled in your life and are gutted by this loss.”
The Cosby legacy
Like the rest of the “Cosby Show” cast, Warner had to contend with the sexual assault allegations against its titular star, whose conviction in a Pennsylvania court was later overturned.
Warner told the Associated Press in 2015 that the show’s legacy was “tarnished.”
“My biggest concern is when it comes to images of people of color on television and lm,” Warner said. “We’ve always had ‘The Cosby Show’ to hold up against that. And the fact that we no longer have that, that’s the thing that saddens me the most because in a few generations the Huxtables will have been just a fairy tale.” Representatives for Cosby declined immediate comment.
Life after Theo
Warner’s rst major post-”Cosby” role came on the sitcom “Malcolm & Eddie,” co-starring with comedian Eddie Gri n in the popular series on the defunct UPN network from 1996 to 2000.
“My heart is heavy right now,” Gri n said on Instagram Monday. “Rest easy my brother for you have Won in life and now you have won forever eternal bliss..”
Theo was the only son among four daughters in the household of Cli Huxtable and Phylicia Rashad’s Clair Huxtable on the NBC sitcom.
Warner also worked as a director, helming episodes of “Malcolm & Eddie,” “Read Between the Lines,” “The Resident” and “All That.”
An actor’s childhood
Warner, named after Malcolm X and jazz pianist Ahmad Jamal, was born in 1970 in Jersey City, New Jersey. His mother, Pamela Warner, served as his manager when he began pursuing acting at age 9.
In the early 1980s, he made guest appearances on the TV shows “Matt Houston” — his rst credit — and “Fame.” Warner was 13 when he landed the role of Theo in an audition after a broad search for the right child actor.
Cosby was a major star at the time, and the show was certain to be widely seen, but few could’ve predicted the huge phenomenon it would become.
For many the lasting image of Theo, and of Warner, is of him wearing a badly botched mock designer shirt sewed by his sister Denise, played by Lisa Bonet. The “Gordon Gartrell” shirt later became a memeable image: Anthony Mackie wore one on “The Tonight Show” with Jimmy Fallon and the pro le picture on Warner’s Instagram shows a toddler sporting one.
Celebrate the life of your loved ones. Submit obituaries and death notices to be published in Stanly News Journal at obits@ northstatejournal.com
Warner worked for more than 40 years as an actor and director, also starring in the sitcoms “Malcolm & Eddie” and “Read Between the Lines,” and in the medical drama “The Resident.”
His nal credits came in TV guest roles, including a dramatic four-episode arc last year on the network procedural “9-1-1,” where he played a nurse who was a long-term survivor of a terrible re.
“I grew up with a maniacal obsession with not wanting to be one of those ‘where are they now kids,’” Warner told The Associated Press in 2015. “I feel very blessed to be able to have all of these avenues of expression ... to be where I am now and nally at a place where I can let go of that worry about having a life after ‘Cosby.’”
He played Theo Huxtable for eight seasons, appearing in each of the 197 episodes of “The Cosby Show” and earning an Emmy nomination for
In the 2010s, he starred opposite Tracee Ellis Ross as a family-blending couple for two seasons on the BET sitcom “Read Between The Lines.” He also had a role as O.J. Simpson’s friend Al Cowlings on “American Crime Story” and was a series regular on Fox’s “The Resident.”
“First I met you as Theo with the rest of the world then you were my rst TV husband,” Ross said on Instagram. “My heart is so so sad. What an actor and friend you were: warm, gentle, present, kind, thoughtful, deep, funny, elegant.” Warner’s lm roles included the 2008 rom-com “Fool’s Gold” with Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson. A poet and a musician, Warner was a Grammy winner, for best traditional R&B performance, and was nominated for best spoken word poetry album for “Hiding in Plain View.”
Warner would develop a love-hate relationship with the character.
“Theo was very good to me. And I think that show and that role is timeless. And I’m very proud of that role,” Warner said in a recent podcast interview, while noting that he’d tried to separate himself from the role and for years would recoil when fans addressed him as Theo.
“Part of the distancing for me is not wanting to see how much of Malcolm is in Theo. I remember doing the show and I always thought that Theo is corny. I want Theo to be cooler,” he told Melyssa Ford on her “Hot & Bothered” podcast.
“Somebody called me America’s favorite white Black boy. And I was 15. ... It hurt me. ... That’s cultural trauma.” Warner was married with a young daughter, but chose to not publicly disclose their names. His representatives declined immediate comment on his death.
The actor played the beloved son Theo Huxtable
DANNY MOLOSHOK / INVISION / AP
Actor and musician Malcolm-Jamal Warner poses for a portrait in 2015.
STANLY SPORTS
Wampus Cats go 1-1 in two-game home stand
Uwharrie fell to a game under .500 with three regular-season games left
By Charles Curio Stanly News Journal
ALBEMARLE — The Uwharrie Wampus Cats regular season continues to approach its end of the regular season as the Cats hosted a pair of home games Friday and Saturday night.
Uwharrie nishes the regular season with three games this week. The Cats host the Carolina Disco Turkeys on Thursday at 7 p.m., travel to Winston-Salem Friday to face the Turkeys, then round out the regular season Sunday against the Greensboro Yard Goats.
A postseason tournament is scheduled to start July 29 at Rich Park in Mocksville to include the Wampus Cats.
Friday’s game
Uwharrie 6, Troutman Dawgs 5
The phrase “Cardiac Cats” has been used to describe many
teams winning close games or coming from behind, such as the Carolina Panthers in the 2003 season.
With Albemarle’s collegiate wood bat team, the phrase worked again as Uwharrie rallied from a four-run de cit and hung on to claim another one-run win at home, 6-5 on Friday.
A solo home run in the second and two RBI singles in the fourth put Troutman up 4-0 before the Cats answered in the bottom of the fourth.
With two on and two out, Carson Whitehead reached on a dropped third strike, and an errant throw scored Blake McKinney. West Stanly’s Ben Mecimore followed with a two-RBI single to right scoring Whitehead and Shaked Baruch to pull within a run at 4-3.
In the bottom of the fth, another former West Stanly Colt, Jett Thomas, gave Uwharrie the lead, driving in two runs with a single to left.
Whitehead’s RBI sacri ce y to right eld in the bottom of the seventh turned out to be a critical run for the Cats. Troutman scored a run in the eighth to
12-6
Uwharrie’s 2025 home record
make it 6-5, then loaded the bases in the ninth with a walk and two hit batters and two outs. Mecimore then struck out the next batter to end the game.
Jesse Osbourne started on the mound for the Cats and earned the victory, allowing one earned run on ve hits with ve walks and ve strikeouts. Mecimore earned the save for Uwharrie.
Saturday’s game
Queen City Corndogs 5, Uwharrie 3 (7 innings)
The Corndogs of the Southern Collegiate Baseball League took the lead early and never trailed, handing the Wampus Cats a 5-3 home loss and dropping them to 12-13-1 on the season.
Ido Peled took the loss for the Cats, allowing two earned runs on two hits in one inning
on the mound. Skylar Faircloth pitched the next 42⁄3 innings, allowing one earned run on two hits in relief, while Rylan Furr and Malik Foster pitched thenal 12⁄3 innings. The Corndogs (15-14) took a 2-0 lead in the top of the rst with an RBI single and a sac y, but the Cats answered with a Whitehead RBI single in the bottom of the inning.
Queen City made it 4-1 with two runs in the sixth, and again
Pfei er University names new golf coach
PGA pro Drew MacBern brings more than a decade of experience to the Falcons
Stanly News Journal sta
THE PFEIFFER University athletic department added a veteran golf coach this week for the school’s men’s and women’s golf team.
Drew MacBean is a PGA Class A-12 golf professional, meaning he is registered with the PGA to coach at the university level.
MacBean has coached golf for more than 10 years and comes to the school from the Combine Academy in Charlotte, which is
a private boys’ boarding school.
He led the Academy to consecutive CAA4SC state championships the past two seasons, and his players have won 39 different individual tournaments along with many nishes in the top 10 on the Hurricane Junior Golf Tour. A total of 19 former student-athletes coached by MacBean have advanced to play at all three NCAA division levels and other college levels.
“We are thrilled to welcome Coach MacBean to Pfei er,” said Interim Athletic Director Je Childress. “His track record of building successful programs and developing student-athletes both on and o the course makes him a perfect t for our university.”
“His track record of building successful programs and developing student-athletes both on and o the course makes him a perfect t for our university.”
Pfei er interim athletic director Je Childress.
Prior to Combine Academy, MacBean rebuilt the golf programs at Millsaps College (2018–21), Marion Military Institute (2016–18), and Alcorn State University (2015–16) with
Uwharrie answered in the bottom of the same frame. Connor Lindsey, another former West Stanly Colt, drove in Thomas with a one-out in eld single, then McKinney scored Cruise Arnold with a line drive to right to pull the Cats within one 4-3. In the top of the seventh, a passed ball pushed the Corndogs’ lead to two. The Cats got a leado walk in the bottom of the seventh but could not move the runner further.
a demonstrated ability to recruit talent in the United States and abroad.
His teams won 22 tournaments, with 14 earning invidiual medalist honors, along with have 12 players named All-Conference. MAcBean also coached at UNC Pembroke and Erskine College as an assistant coach. A graduate of Campbell University with a degree in business administration and a minor in professional golf management, MacBean also holds a master’s in education from Greenville University.
“I’m honored to join the Pfei er community and excited to lead the golf programs into a new era,” MacBean said. “I look forward to building a culture of excellence, integrity, and competitive success.”
MacBean is a member of the Carolinas PGA and has had a PGA membership since 2013.
Jesse Osborne earned the win for the Cats in Friday’s home win versus the Troutman Dawgs.
PJ WARD-BROWN / STANLY NEWS JOURNAL
West Stanly’s Ben Mecimore came up big for the Wampus Cats last week.
NCAA BASKETBALL
Boozer, Flagg
take home ESPYs
Duke’s incoming freshman star and the most recent Blue Devil to play that role both won awards at the ESPYs. The annual award show created by ESPN named Cooper Flagg the best male college athlete. Flagg beat out Oklahoma state wrestler Wyatt Hendrickson, Heisman trophy winner Travis Hunter and Cornell lacrosse star CJ Kirst. Cameron Boozer, who is headed to Duke, was named the Gatorade male high school athlete of the year, beating out Alabama quarterback recruit Keelon Russell, Pirates draft pick Seth Hernandez, track stars Charlie Vause and Tate Taylor, and UNC soccer recruit Dan Klink.
NBA Anthony signs with Bucks
Milwaukee Former UNC point guard Cole Anthony signed with the Milwaukee Bucks and will get the chance to start for the Eastern Conference contender. Anthony, who spent his rst ve seasons in the NBA with Orlando, was traded to Memphis this o season. He was expected to back up Ja Morant but instead agreed to a buyout with the Grizzlies and was released, freeing him up to sign with the Bucks.
NFL Construction halted at new Titans Stadium after noose found at site Nashville, Tenn. Construction on a new enclosed stadium for the Tennessee Titans in Nashville, Tennessee, has been halted after a noose was found at the construction site. Metro Nashville Police are investigating. The Tennessee Builders Alliance, a joint venture partnership on the stadium, says it suspended construction at the site after the “racist and hateful” symbol was discovered this week. A statement to news outlets said, “We are requiring additional antibias training for every person on site, and work will resume only after a site-wide stand- down focused on inclusion and respect.”
The four-day scouting event begins Thursday
By Jesse Deal Stanly News Journal
NEW LONDON — Bronx
Carter, a rising freshman at North Stanly High School, has accepted an invitation to compete in this week’s Prep Baseball Junior Future Games (Class of 2029/30) premier scouting showcase in Emerson, Georgia.
The left-handed out elder and rst baseman is now a member of the event’s Team North Carolina roster and will receive the “unique opportunity of competing against other top-level players while representing his respective state in a high-level atmosphere,” according to Prep Baseball Report.
As an o shoot of the Future Games event for older players, the 12th annual Junior Future Games — scheduled for Thursday through Sunday at the LakePoint Sports Complex — is an invitation-only national scouting event where players will be observed by a selection of MLB and college scouts.
“Huge congrats to Comet Bronx Carter for making the Junior Future Games,” North Stanly Athletics said in a statement. “Your hard work is paying o — can’t wait to see what’s next!” Carter, 14, received strong marks from Prep Baseball’s scouting department on July 1 when he was evaluated along-
side his South Charlotte Panthers travel ball teammates.
At the plate, he recorded a maximum hitting exit velocity of 86.2 mph.
The rst day of the Junior Future Games is a full workout consisting of a 60-yard dash, batting practice, pitching evaluations, in eld and out eld drills, and exit velocity measurements in front of scouts and coaches.
Carter’s showcase with
Team North Carolina is set for 5 p.m. Thursday night. The remainder of the event shifts to team-based games and scrimmages, with a tournament-style format where every invitee competes in exhibition matchups.
“The Junior Future Games serve as a preview for young players to compete at a high level as well, featuring a three-game guarantee and single-elimination bracket play to
West Stanly to host second annual Stanly County Jamboree
The event will feature eight varsity football teams
By Jesse Deal Stanly News Journal
OAKBORO — Back for another year, the second annual Stanly County Jamboree preseason football event will take place at West Stanly High School on Aug 8 at 6 p.m.
The county’s four high school varsity football teams — West Stanly, North Stanly, South Stanly and Albemarle — will be joined by Hunter Huss, Central Cabarrus, Langtree Charter Academy and Concord as the eight schools participate in a series of head-to-head ex-
North
hibition games at Larry Wagner Stadium.
Launched last year at North Stanly’s R.N. Je ery Stadium, the scrimmage-style event will o er controlled, simultaneous preseason matchups to showcase local talent and promote the upcoming football season.
“Supporters, parents and community — it’s time to show your support,” North Stanly
coach Chad Little said in an event advertisement. “The NS Football program will share the pro ts from this event with the surrounding high schools. Please help us out and support NS Football at this event. We need you there! Roll Comets!” Little previously explained that the Stanly County Jamboree is designed to build the county’s “football brand” and that together the four local high schools will work together to make this an annual event.
“I personally think it is great that all four Stanly County high school head coaches have come together to make this happen,” he said. We all care about the future of Stanco football.”
determine a champion,” Dylan Grenz, an associate scout with Prep Baseball Report, wrote for the website Sunday. “Both the Senior and Junior Future Games are seen by over 300 college coaches from across the country every year.”
All participants will also receive a Prep Baseball website pro le complete with a picture, veri ed statistics and videos, along with a Mizuno jersey and hat.
Hosting responsibilities are set to rotate annually among the schools.
As a collaborative e ort between the local coaches, the jamboree also doubles as a fundraiser with ticket revenue shared among the schools. General admission entrance tickets for the Stanly County Jamboree are available online at gofan.co for $10. Additionally, 50/50 ra e tickets for the event are on sale at ze y.com.
With games running at the same time, the simultaneous 35-minute scrimmages will be played at the scoreboard end and eld house end of the eld. Teams will get 10 o ensive plays from the 40-yard line to the end zones.
The local 2025 high school football season will o cially kick o Aug. 22 when West Stanly hosts South Stanly, North Stanly hosts Community School of Davidson, and Albemarle travels to College Prep and Leadership Academy.
COURTESY PREP BASEBALL NORTH CAROLINA
North Stanly High School rising freshman Bronx Carter is set to play in the Prep Baseball Junior Future Games.
Hamlin survives rain delay, overtime nish to win for 2nd straight year at Dover
Distractions and rain couldn’t slow Hamlin in his fourth win of the year
By Dan Gelston The Associated Press
DOVER, Del. — Denny Hamlin shook o a setback in his court battle with NASCAR, shrugged o old tire concerns once he took a late lead ahead of a rain delay and survived a late charge from his teammate to go back-to-back at Dover Motor Speedway for the Joe Gibbs Racing driver’s series-best fourth victory of the season.
“I just love that I’m able to still do it at a high level,” Hamlin said. “Every morning when I wake up, I just hope I still got what I had yesterday.”
Hamlin won in the No. 11 Toyota for the second straight time at Dover to add to wins this season at Martinsville, Darlington and Michigan.
Hamlin has 58 Cup Series victories, leaving him two short of Kevin Harvick for 10th on the career list. The veteran Virginia driver might hit that mark this season as he chases his rst career Cup championship.
Hamlin is on the Cup Series’ short list of greatest drivers to never win a championship. He won’t let the void on an otherwise stellar resume full of Hall of Fame credentials de ne
how he feels about his career. Hamlin says it’s trophies, not titles, not he celebrates the most.
“If we do, we do. If we don’t, we don’t,” Hamlin said. “I care about wins. I want more trophies, more trophies, more trophies. When I’m done, I want to be in the list of that top -10 all-time winners. That will mean more than any other accomplishment.” Hamlin took the checkered
ag days after he su ered a setback in court with his own 23XI Racing team’s federal antitrust suit against NASCAR. Last Thursday, a federal judge rejected a request from 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports to continue racing with charters while they battle NASCAR in court, meaning their six cars will race as open entries this weekend at Dover, next week at Indianapolis and perhaps longer than that
in a move the teams say would put them at risk of going out of business. Hamlin vowed this weekend “all will be exposed” if the case goes to its scheduled Dec. 1 trial date. The courtroom drama hasn’t a ected Hamlin’s performance on the track. Hamlin held o JGR teammate Chase Briscoe for the victory. Hendrick Motorsports drivers took the next two spots, with Alex Bowman
third and Kyle Larson fourth. Hamlin held o Larson down the stretch last season to earn the second of his three career wins at the Monster Mile.
The rst July Cup race at Dover since 1969 started with steamy weather, and drivers battled the conditions inside the car during a relatively clean race until rain fell late and red- agged the race with 14 laps left. Hamlin said during the break he changed his resuit — temperatures inside the car soared to 140 degrees, and sweat kept dripping inside his visor.
He also returned to the car after the 56-minute delay with old tires. Hamlin had enough to win on cool tires at Dover and park the Toyota in Victory Lane.
There was never any real consideration to pit with the lead for fresh tires.
“We need wins,” crew chief Chris Gayle said. “How can we manufacture some way to give ourselves more opportunity for that to happen? Might not pan out, but we de nitely weren’t going to do it doing the same thing as everybody else. That was our train of thought there, and thankfully it worked out and we held on.”
He became the 19th Cup driver to win three times at Dover and the 13th driver to win consecutive races on the mile concrete track.
“I just studied some of the greats here,” Hamlin said. “I was very fortunate to have Martin Truex as a teammate. Jimmie Johnson, watching him win (11) times here. You learn from the greats and you change your game to match it, you have success like this.”
Rex White, NASCAR’s oldest living champion, dead at 95
The Taylorsville native won 28 Cup races
By Jenna Fryer
The Associated Press
CHARLOTTE — Rex White, who was the NASCAR Cup Series’ oldest living champion and a 2015 inductee into the Hall of Fame, has died. He was 95. NASCAR and the NASCAR Hall of Fame con rmed White’s death last Friday. No additional details were provided.
“Rex epitomized the formative days of NASCAR — a true pioneer whose contributions helped shape the foundation of our sport,” NASCAR chairman Jim France said. “His hard work, dedication and talent allowed him to make a living doing what he loved most — racing cars. He was the model of consistency — nishing in the top ve in nearly half of his races — and dominated the short tracks.
“On behalf of NASCAR and the France family, I want to o er our condolences to the friends and family of Rex White.”
White won the 1960 Cup Series title and 28 Cup races in a career that spanned 233 starts across nine seasons. He led the nal ve laps in 1958 at Champion Speedway in Fayetteville to earn his rst career victory and scored 13 top- ve nishes in 22 starts.
White won ve more races the next season but didn’t earn
“I saw automobiles as transportation, not the symbol of an upcoming billion-dollar sport.”
Rex White
his lone championship until 1960, when he won six times in 44 starts. He won seven times the next year, when he was runner-up to fellow Hall of Famer Ned Jarrett in the championship standings.
White then won eight times in 1962 but nished fth in the standings as he competed in only 37 of the 53 races that year. White never contested a complete season at a time when NASCAR ran as many as 62 times a year.
White notched a career-high six victories at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, where NASCAR this year returned after a lengthy absence.
He also won three times at North Wilkesboro Speedway and two times at Martinsville Speedway in Virginia.
Born during the Great Depression and raised in Taylorsville, White su ered from polio as a child, and the disease altered his gait for most of his life.
He had an early interest in cars and was working on the family Model T by the time he was 8. He had learned how to drive
two years earlier using a neighbor’s truck.
“I was unaware the car on which I labored represented hope to people around me, frustration to those trying to stop illegal moonshine,” he said. “I saw automobiles as transportation, not the symbol of an upcoming billion-dollar sport.”
White purchased his rst car in 1954 when a relative of his wife helped him with the $600 needed to buy a 1937 Ford. He immediately began racing as a means to earn a living.
White ran his rst race in the Sportsman division at West Lanham Speedway in Maryland. He went on to win the championship in his rookie season of the Sportsman division.
He moved up to NASCAR two years later, and by the time he won the championship ve seasons later, he was named both NASCAR’s most popular driver and driver of the year.
“Growing up on a North Carolina farm, Rex familiarized himself with all things mechanical and enjoyed driving anything with wheels,” said Winston Kelly, executive director for the NASCAR Hall of Fame. “Rex was among NASCAR’s pioneers who remained very visible at tracks and industry events for years. He was a dedicated ambassador who enjoyed supporting any event or activity he was requested to participate in.
“NASCAR has lost one of its true pioneers.”
DERIK HAMILTON / AP PHOTO
Denny Hamlin crosses the nish line to win Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Dover Motor Speedway.
HORACE CORT / AP PHOTO
Rex White, left, poses with the trophy he won for nishing rst in the 1962 Dixie 400 in Atlanta.
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NORTH CAROLINA IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE STANLY COUNTY SUPERIOR COURT DIVISION BEFORE THE CLERK 19-SP-64
NOTICE OF SERVICE PROCESS BY PUBLICATION
NOTICE NORTH CAROLINA IN THE GENERAL COURT OF
JOSEPH THOMAS, Petitioner, vs. SHANNON ASHLEY, Respondent.
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In The Matter Of MARK T. LOWDER, Public Administrator of the Estate of, BETTY TURNER, Deceased, Petitioner, vs. MARY HELEN WRIGHT WILLIAMS; EUNICE WRIGHT KENDALL; BONNIE WRIGHT HINSON; Heirs of James Wright Heirs of Diane Brown Wright; JAMES SWARINGEN; Heirs of Bobby Ray Wright: JOWANNA FISHER; AUSTRALIA WRIGHT; Heirs of William Earl Wright: EARL JUNIOR WRIGHT; Heirs of William Emanuel Wright: WILLIAM JAMIA WRIGHT; TYSEAN WRIGHT; WILHEMINA W. GREEN; DENISE W. HARRIS; RACHEL W. THREADGILL; Heirs of Clark Oliver Wright, Sr.: MARY TYSON WRIGHT (wife of Clark Oliver Wright, Sr. CLARK WRIGHT, JR.; AARON WRIGHT; EARL O. WRIGHT; LADEBORAH W. BRUTON; BERNICE W. WANCHIA; ANGEL W. JOHNSON; Heirs of MARTHA ELLEN WRIGHT; Heirs of Mae Esther Wright Martin:
BOBBY RUSHING, JR.; Heirs of Timothy Boyd Rushing:
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MIRANDA RUSHING; ERNEST B. RUSHING; TRAVIS L. RUSHING; MARY R. STEWART; Heirs of Elijah Wright; Heirs of Lois Wright Bennett: JAMES W. BENNETT, JR; KAREN RENA BENNETT; DAREN BENNETT; CHRISTOPHER S. BENNETT; and those persons born, unborn, and/or minors of BETTY TURNER, interested in the premises hereinafter described whose names are unknown to and cannot, after due diligence, be ascertained by the Petitioner, Respondents.
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TO:
MARY HELEN WRIGHT WILLIAMS
EUNICE WRIGHT KENDALL
BONNIE WRIGHT HINSON
JAMES SWARINGEN
JOWANNA FISHER
AUSTRALIA WRIGHT
EARL JUNIOR WRIGHT
WILLIAM JAMIA WRIGHT
TYSEAN WRIGHT
WILHEMINA W. GREEN
DENISE W. HARRIS
RACHEL W. THREADGILL
MARY TYSON WRIGHT
Tutoring Specialist, Academic Support Center
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CLARK WRIGHT, JR.
AARON WRIGHT
EARL O. WRIGHT
LADEBORAH W. BRUTON
BERNICE W. WANCHIA
ANGEL W. JOHNSON
TORRENCE LOUIE FUNDERBURK
TORRENA FUNDERBURK SMITH
BOBBY RUSHING, JR.
TIMOTHY RUSHING, JR.
MIRANDA RUSHING
ERNEST. B. RUSHING TRAVIS L. RUSHING
MARY R. STEWART
JAMES W. BENNETT, JR.
KAREN RENA BENNETT
DAREN BENNETT
CHRISTOPHER S. BENNETT
TAKE NOTICE that a pleading seeking relief against you has been led in the aboveentitled Special Proceeding. The nature of the relief being sought is as follows: Petition for sale of real estate located at 242 Pearl Street, Albemarle, North Carolina to make assets.
Petition for sale of real estate located at Vacant O NC 740 Hwy, Badin, North Carolina to make assets.
FILE NO. 25E000386-830 Having quali ed as Executor of the estate of James Vernon McSwain deceased, of Stanly County, North Carolina, This is to notify all persons having claims against the Estate of
James Vernon McSwain to present them to the undersigned on or before October 2nd, 2025, or the same will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons indebted to said Estate please make immediate payment. This 2ND day of July, 2025 Joy LeAnne McSwain Swaringen 36701 Silver Springs Rd Norwood, NC 28128
NOTICE NOTICE OF SERVICE OF PROCESS BY PUBLICATION STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA COUNTY OF STANLY IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE SUPERIOR COURT DIVISION 24CVS-00060-830 AWM PROPERTY MANAGEMENT, LLC, Plainti , v. TED RUSSELL, Take notice that a Complaint has been led in the above-entitled action. The Plainti is seeking a judgment against you. You are noti ed that you have a right to le a written answer to the Plainti within forty (40) days of the date that this notice is published; and upon your failure to le an answer within the time prescribed, the Plainti will le a motion asking the Court to grant the judgment. This the _____ day of July, 2025. Christerfer Purkey, Attorney for Plainti , NC Bar 53584 P.O. Box 192 Albemarle NC 28002
NOTICE NORTH CAROLINA STANLY COUNTY IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE SUPERIOR COURT DIVISION BEFORE THE CLERK FILE NO. 25E000380-830 Having quali ed as EXECUTOR of the estate of Carolyn S Dunn deceased, of Stanly County,
July, 2025 Mark Franklin 23227 Swift Island Road Albemarle, NC 28001
NOTICE NORTH CAROLINA STANLY COUNTY IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE SUPERIOR COURT DIVISION BEFORE THE CLERK FILE NO. 25E000409-830 Having quali ed as Administrator of the
You are required to make defense to such pleading not later than September 2, 2025 and upon your failure to do so the party seeking service against you will apply to the court for the relief sought. A hearing shall be held at 10:00 A.M. September 3, 2025 in the o ce of the Clerk of Superior Court, Room #301 of the Stanly County Courthouse, 201 S. Second St., Albemarle, NC 28001. All interested parties should appear. This the ____ day of July, 2025.
MARK T. LOWDER M.T. Lowder & Associates Attorney for Petitioner P.O. Box 1284 Albemarle, NC 28002 704-982-8558 Run Ad: July 23, 30 and August 6, 2025
Madonna, ‘Happy Gilmore 2,’ Jenna Ortega, Paul Rudd team up
Madonna drops her highly anticipated album “Veronica Electronica” on Friday
The Associated Press
ADAM SANDLER’S hockey player-turned-golfer Happy Gilmore returning for a second movie and Madonna’s long-rumored album “Veronica Electronica” are some of the new television, lms, music and games headed to a device near you.
Also, among the streaming offerings worth your time: Jenna Ortega and Paul Rudd playing father and daughter in the horror-comedy “Death of a Unicorn,” gamers get a pirate adventure with Wuchang: Fallen Feathers and Judge Judy rules on true crime in her new series for Prime Video, “Justice on Trial.”
MOVIES TO STREAM
It’s been almost 30 years since we rst met Sandler’s most famous character, but Sandler nally got the gang back together for a sequel. “Happy Gilmore 2,” coming to Net ix on Friday, brings back many familiar faces, including Julie Bowen, Ben Stiller and Christopher McDonald as Shooter McGavin, alongside an army of new co-stars from Bad Bunny to Post Malone as well as a few familiar faces in the golf world.
“If elaborate dance numbers in village squares and fantastical nightclubs and emeraldhued cities make perfect sense to you, and especially if you already love ‘Wicked,’ well then, you will likely love this lm.”
Jocelyn Noveck, AP Film Writer
This time around, Happy also has kids, including four hockey goon sons played by Ethan Cutkosky (“Shameless”), Conor Sherry (“Shake Shack”), Maxwell Jacob Friedman (a pro wrestler) and newcomer Philip Schneider. Here’s hoping it’s as quotable as the rst — we’ve been needing some new Sandlerisms.
November, and “Wicked: For Good,” is coming fast. What better time to catch up with “Wicked,” which begins streaming on Prime Video on Friday? In her review for The Associated Press, Jocelyn Noveck wrote that it might convert a nonmusical lover into one, but that, “if people breaking into song delights rather than ummoxes you, if elaborate dance numbers in village squares
and fantastical nightclubs and emerald-hued cities make perfect sense to you, and especially if you already love ‘Wicked,’ well then, you will likely love this lm.”
Ortega and Rudd play father and daughter in the horror-comedy “Death of a Unicorn” about, well, just that (and also exploitative billionaires). It was met with mixed reviews: Some enjoyed the chemistry of the characters and the fun it has with its outlandish plot, while others saw those efforts as strained and hollow. You can decide for yourself when it hits HBO Max on Friday. Richard E. Grant and Will Poulter also star.
MUSIC TO STREAM
It is the stu of pop music mythology. Madonna’s long-rumored album “Veronica Electronica” — originally conceived as a remix companion to 1998’s blockbuster “Ray of Light” —nally arrives Friday. It is that and more. Begin with the new-to-fans original demo of “Gone, Gone, Gone.”
The second and nal part of an expansive documentary series on the life and career of Billy Joel hits HBO Max on Friday. And it’s not too late to catch up on the rst half of “Billy Joel: And So It Goes,” either. It’s an in-depth look at the beloved singer-songwriter, replete with never-before-seen performance footage and more. Rock ’n’ roll fans, listen up. On
Friday, the original Alice Cooper band lineup reunites to release “The Revenge Of Alice Cooper,” the rst album in over 50 years to feature that original lineup. It gives the album a sort of revived spirit — all high-octane ri s.
SERIES TO STREAM
Judy Sheindlin, beloved for her syndicated series “Judge Judy” that ended production in 2021 after 25 years, rules on true crime in her new series for Prime Video. In “Justice on Trial,” actual criminal court cases are recreated by trial lawyers with Sheindlin presiding over the courtroom. Will she nd the right decision was made? Find out now on Prime Video. Malin Akerman and Brittany Snow star in “The Hunting Wives” for Net ix. It’s based on a thriller mystery novel by May Cobb. Snow plays Sophie, a woman whose husband’s job requires trading the East Coast for east Texas. She’s a sh out of water until she meets Margot (Akerman,) the queen bee of a group of women known as the Hunting Wives. These wives aren’t trading recipes or having tea — they like to party. Sophie nds Margot’s carefree lifestyle and con dence to be intoxicating until she gets caught up in a murder investigation. All eight episodes dropped Monday.
A new Hulu miniseries called “Washington Black” is also based
on a book of the same name, but this one was shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 2018. Set in the early 1800s, Wash — short for George Washington Black — is born into slavery in Barbados. Wash’s talent for art and curiosity catches the attention of a scientist named Titch (played by Tom Ellis), who encourages his education and creativity. When danger strikes, Titch and Wash escape in a hot-air balloon that lands in Nova Scotia. The series follows Wash’s adventures as he grows into a man played by newcomer Ernest Kingsley Jr. Sterling K. Brown is an executive producer and also has a role in the show. Stream the episodes now.
An acclaimed British crime drama called “Code of Silence” comes to BritBox on Thursday. Rose Ayling-Ellis plays a deaf cafeteria worker who begins working with the local police because of her ability to read lips. This new world is exhilarating but also dangerous. The show has already been renewed for a second season.
VIDEO GAMES TO PLAY
Last year’s Black Myth: Wukong turned Chinese folklore into a blockbuster game, and another Chinese studio is hoping to repeat that success with Wuchang: Fallen Feathers. It tells the tale of a pirate who wakes up with amnesia and a bad case of “feathering” — not only is she sprouting blue plumage, but it’s driving her insane. The adventure takes place during the end of the Ming Dynasty in the 1600s, and Chengdu-based developer Leenzee Games promises a mix of historical gures and supernatural monsters. Take ight Thursday on PlayStation 5, Xbox X/S or PC.
ADOPTABLE FRIENDS
Paul Rudd and Jenna Ortega star in “Death of a Unicorn.”
