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Thursday, September 10, 2020
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Volume 86 • Issue 36
We love our readers! • Belmont • Cramerton • Lowell • McAdenville • Mount Holly • Stanley
Thursday, September 10, 2020
Gertrude Harris has hit the century mark with style and grace By Alan Hodge alan@cfmedia.info
There have been a lot of changes in East Belmont over the decades and Gertrude Harris has seen them all which is not surprising given the fact she will be 100 years old on September 10. Gertrude’s parents were Claude and Martha Robinson. Like a lot of other folks in our area, her dad worked
in the mills while her mom kept house. Gertrude was one of eight kids. She has a sister, Sarah Shinn, who is in her mid-90s and lives in Charlotte. Gertrude attended East Belmont Elementary School and then went to Belmont High. She left to work at Acme Mill in North Belmont and retired for there at age 62. Gertrude’s grandfather
W . T . Robinson had a movie t h e a t e r Harris as a young in East “Blackie”. Belmont back in the 1920s. It was located on Catawba St. next to where Headhunters hair salon is now. “My sister and I went to the movies a lot,” Gertrude
woman. Nickname 100-year-old Gertrude Harris enjoying a day on her Volk St. porch. said. “We had a lot of fun. We would throw peanut hulls in the fan and scare the adults with the noise.” Gertrude grew into a stunningly beautiful young lady.
Belmont Public Works building renovation in final phase
Folks called her “Blackie “ due to her coal black hair. When she was 25 years old she married her husband John Harris in 1945. They had two kids, a boy and a
girl. He also worked in the textile industry and passed away in 1984. “We traveled quite a bit,” Gertrude said. “We went to See HARRIS, Page 4
“Of the Year” winners announced for Gaston County Schools
By Alan Hodge alan@cfmedia.info
The major remodeling project on the City of Belmont Public Works building at 1401 Catawba St. is entering its final phase. The 1980s era building, which has formerly occupied by Woodlawn Mills and Beltex Corp. has been used by Belmont as its public works headquarters for the past several years and a major remodeling project has transformed it from a huge concrete cavern into a modern, state of the art, efficient, spacious, and comfortable complex for the city’s business and its administrative staff. The building has a lot of space including 55K sq. ft. that will retain its use as a warehouse for city equip- The three-story glass and steel tower on the front of the new City of Belmont Public Works Dept. ment, supplies, and vehicles, building is a spectacular architectural feature. See PUBLIC WORKS, Page 6 Photo by Alan Hodge
Gaston County Schools has announced its “Of the Year” award recipients for the 2020-2021 academic year. The Zoom video conferencing platform was used to inform the finalists of the winner in each “Of the Year” category: Teacher, New Teacher, Teacher Assistant, Principal, Assistant Principal, and Central Office Administrator. Teacher of the Year and Principal of the Year Peter Jones, a biology, forensics, and physical science teacher at North Gaston High School, was chosen as the Gaston County Teacher of the Year, and Crystal Houser of Forestview High School was named the Gaston County Principal of the Year. Jones and Houser will represent Gaston County in
the Teacher of the Year and Principal of the Year regional competitions. As the winners of the school district’s most prestigious awards for educators, Jones and Houser will receive the Wells Fargo Bank Educator Apple trophy and $1,250 from Wells Fargo to use for professional development. Jones joined Gaston County Schools in 2015. He is a graduate of Lee University with a bachelor’s degree in chemistry. He says his secret to success in education is focusing on building relationships with students, parents, and colleagues. Houser joined Gaston County Schools in 1997, and before being appointed principal at Forestview, she served as the W.C. Friday See SCHOOLS, Page 9
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