HORD’S CONTAINER SERVICE (704) 466-6008 Volume 135 • Issue 39
Wednesday, September 29, 2021
kmherald.com • 704-484-1047
75¢
YMCA new staff KMPD K-9 Officer The Cleveland County Family YMCA announced the additions of Shane Ruffin and Heath Walker to the Kings Mountain YMCA staff team. Ruffin has been hired as the Operations Director for the branch. He is a Charlotte native and was most recently working with the United Way of Central Carolinas. Prior to his work with the United Way, Ruffin has had a distinguished YMCA career in the southeast. He has been an Executive in Nashville, Savannah, and Columbia. He also served as the CEO of Calhoun County in Alabama. “We are tremendously excited about adding Shane See YMCA, Page 5A
Carl Proper remembered By Loretta Cozart
Shane Ruffin new YMCA Operations Director. (Photo provided)
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KM Mainstreet’s downtown window decorating contest Kings Mountain’s Mainstreet Department put together a window decorating contest for Downtown businesses that began September 24. Businesses downtown were given props to use as decoration in their windows. Photos are posted on Facebook for the community to vote for their favorite window decoration. The contest runs from September 24 to October 14 and the winner will be announced on Friday, October 15. The business that wins the contest will receive $100 See CONTEST, Page 4A
See PROPER, Page 4A
Kings Mountain Historical Museum is preparing for the holiday sea- January Costa son and has asked the community’s help with this
By Loretta Cozart
Jolly Realty Group
year’s 19th Annual Toys, Games & Trains exhibit which opens on November 26 and runs through January 7, 2022. A large part of this annual exhibit is the display of various types of antique toys and games. If you have some old toys or games that are unique that you think people would
like to see, consider loaning them for display in the museum. Contact Director January Costa at kmhmdirector@outlook.com or call the museum at 704-7391019. They need to be contacted by November 1, with the loan items to be delivered in the first week of November.
Roseberry is found competent to stand trial By Loretta Cozart Floyd Ray Roseberry was found to be competent to stand trial, a federal judge ruled on September 22. He plead not guilty for threatening to use a weapon of mass destruction after he allegedly drove his black
Officer Carl Proper with his K-9 dog Bronco. Photo by KMPD
Scenes around downtown
Museum seeking antique toys for display at Christmas By Loretta Cozart
Carl Proper, an officer and K-9 handler with Kings Mountain Police Department, died on September 17 after a month-long battle with COVID-19. He was just 39-years old. He leaves behind a wife and three children. Proper came to KMPD in 2018 and was hired by Chief Jerry Tessneer. Current Chief Lisa Proctor remembers meeting Proper because she was a member of the hiring review board. “I was very impressed when I met Carl. He was very professional and very well spoken. He mentioned that his dream job was to become a K-9 handler for KMPD.” Prior to joining the department, Proper had been a part-time officer for several agencies, including Carolina’s Health Care’s Hospital Police and G4S Allied. He was also a past reserve officer for the town of Cramerton. Chief Proctor describes Officer Proper as outgoing and liked by everyone in
pickup truck on the sidewalk next to the Library of Congress on August 19. The ROSEBERRY federal indictment could result in him being sent to prison for life.
Roseberry, 49, is a resident of Grover who went on Facebook Live last month and threatened to detonate a bomb in a standoff that lasted about five hours and disrupted government and business in the nation’s capital. The next hearing in this case is scheduled for October 8.
Several areas in the downtown area have been topics for discussion at recent city council meetings. Michael Parker has bricked-in the back of his building located at 119 W. Mountain Street. During the July 27 City Council meeting a decision to Adopt an Ordinance to repair the “dilapidated non-residential structure” was postponed until Tuesday’s meeting. It appears steps are being taken by the owner to comply with the city’s request. Of greater concern is the alleyway between 138 and 144 W. Mountain Street. The alleyway has become See SCENES, Page 5A
Of concern to many is that sightlines down the ramp are obscured by the design which and makes pedestrians hesitant in using the alleyway. Photos by Loretta Cozart
Dire COVID-19 situation in Cleveland County forces mass gathering cancellations Local medical officials ask for help in slowing the spread of COVID-19 With t h e alarming upsurge in local COVID19 cases and hospitalizations, our local healthcare system has
become severely impacted and strained. As a result, officials within our Healthcare Industry have requested help from partners throughout the community to mitigate this incredibly transmissible disease. “As COVID-19 cases continue to rise and place a high level of demand and burden on our healthcare and hospital systems in Cleveland County, using layered prevention strate-
gies is extremely important,” said Tiffany Hansen, Cleveland County Health Director. “We value our partners and their continued commitment to protecting the health and safety of our community residents.” After careful consideration, review of county and state data and at the recommendation of our local medical providers, See DIRE, Page 4A
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