News & Sports For August 1st

Armed Robbery In Elkin
Police in Elkin are investigating an armed robbery that happened Friday afternoon. A man entered the Wachovia Branch on North Bridge Street in Elkin around 1pm, pulled out a handgun and demanded money. After receiving the cash he walked out into a minivan that was in the bank’s parking lot. Witnesses said the man wore a green ski mask, blue jeans, a blue shirt and hiking boots. Police are now viewing the bank’s security cameras, which caught the man as he pulled in & out of the lot. If anyone has information regarding the robbery, officials are asking that you call the Elkin Police Department at 835-9822.

Soldiers Honored During Sunday Ceremony
Wilkes County said goodbye to its’ National Guard troops on Sunday, as they prepared to leave for Iraq. A ceremony was held at the Walker Center at 10am Sunday morning, as family and friends stood and cheered in support. In attendance were the mayors of both Wilkesboro and North Wilkesboro, Norman Call and Steve Foster. Senator John Garwood and Representative Tracey Walker were on hand, along with Wilkesboro commissioner Gary Blevins, North Wilkesboro commissioner Robert Johnson and county commissioners Zach Henderson, Charlie Sink, Faye Byrd and Keith Elmore. Lieutenant Colonel Matt Rosseau spoke to the troops, calling for dedication and asking them to be prepared, while Lil Ingram, wife of Major General Ingram, spoke to the families abut the burden put on them while the soldiers are away. Finally both the commander of the 505th, Captain Mark MacMahon and Major General Ingram both spoke, thanking people for the support given and reminding those in attendance that we are a nation at war. The 505th Engineering Battalion, along with 30 members of the 823rd Detachment’s Quarry Team from Elkin will leave this week for extended training, then will pack up and ship off for at least a year in Iraq.

Drug Bust At Ferguson Home
Sheriff’s deputies went to a Ferguson home over the weekend, responding to a tip about possible drugs being sold inside. The homeowner told them they could come in and search, after which deputies found smoking pipes, crack cocaine, marijuana, and other drug paraphernalia. In addition, an eighteen year old girl was found inside, clearly drunk. She informed deputies that the smoking pipes were hers. 31-yr-old Jerry Ray Bowman was arrested and charged with drug possession, possession of drug paraphernalia and maintaining a home for the sale of drugs. Also 18-yr-old Jamie Evone Whitley was charged with underage drinking, drug possession and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Break-In At Wilkes Honda
Wilkesboro police were called out to investigate a break-in at Wilkes Honda late last week. Someone tossed concrete through one of the front windows at the business, walking right in. Stolen from inside was a red & black Honda dirt bike. There are no suspects, however estimated damages to the business were placed at $750. Officers are continuing the investigation.

Never Leave Your Keys Inside
A Traphill man learned last week why it’s not a good idea to leave your keys in the car. After parking his car, he left the keys inside while going into his house. The next morning, the man walked out to find the vehicle was missing. There weren’t any noises during the night or anything else to indicate someone was near the house. Two days later, the car was found in a nearby hay field, abandoned but without any damage done. The only things missing from inside was a pair of sunglasses and some CDs. Neighbors told deputies they didn’t see or hear anything unusual, despite the presence of the car inside the hay field. The investigation is ongoing.

Wilkesboro Woman Falls Victim To ID Theft
A Wilkesboro woman got a surprise when she checked her bank account online last week. Someone had withdrawn $159, which went over the limit as she didn’t have that much money inside. Apparently thieves had used her information to obtain four VISA credit cards, taking the money from the account. There are no suspects at this time.

Fox To Have Wilkes County Office
5th District Congresswoman Virginia Fox wants people of the area to know that she’s available to help whenever possible. With that in mind, the Congresswoman will be opening an office here in Wilkes County that will be in operation portions of the week. On the first and third Friday of each month, the Congresswoman will have representatives available at the Wilkes County office building from 2 til 4pm. If you’re not able to make it out during those hours, you can also send your comments or concerns to the congresswoman via her website, which is located at www.fox.house.gov.

Schools Set Open House Dates
With school just around the corner, it’s time for students to get their schedules and attend orientation. At East Wilkes High School, incoming 9th graders will have orientation on August 11th from 6 to 8pm. During that time students can check out the classrooms, talk to teachers and get information about different activities offered at East Wilkes. Then at West Wilkes Middle School, 7th and 8th graders can pick up their schedules next Tuesday, August 9th from 3 to 6pm. Orientation for incoming 6th graders will be held two days later on August 11th at three different times. Students can come in at either 3pm, 4 or 5pm.

Upcoming Teacher’s Conference
For teachers in Wilkes, summer is a time to relax and recover from the grueling demands of the other ten months in the year. In place to help meet those demands is a group called RESA, the Regional Educational Service Alliance. RESA helps teachers work on building the educational credits they’re required by the state to receive. Coming up tomorrow here in Wilkes, a conference will be going on that can help teachers do just that, before all the chaos of the classroom sets in. From August 2nd through the 4th, RESA will host “Focus on Diversity” a conference dedicated to helping teachers work with students of all educational, social and ethnic backgrounds. To register for the conference, teachers can call the RESA office here in Wilkes. Their number is 667-2191 or you can drop by their office, located just above the Wilkes Sheriff’s Department on Curtis Bridge Road.

State News

Errors Found At Randolph Community College
Federal officials have finished an investigation of Randolph Community College, uncovering several financial and administrative mistakes at the school. Letters had been sent out to several students who received too much money from the federal Pell Grant, ordering them to repay the school. Federal investigators said that was inappropriate and also blamed the school for not properly determining how much money the students should receive. As a result, the excess money may have to be repaid out of the school’s own funds.

Greensboro Police Searching For Man
Police in Greensboro are hunting today for a local man who vanished over the weekend. 84-yr-old Frank Rasche disappeared from his home early Sunday morning and hasn’t got in touch with any family or friends since. He appears to be wandering around on foot and officials were able to track him down near the Adams Farm Shopping Center, before the dogs they were using got tired and lost the scent. The only distinctive marking on the man is a six pointed star tattooed on his left arm. If anyone notices the man, officials ask that you call 911.

Durham Concert Cancelled After Wreck
The Christian group Newsong was scheduled to perform in Durham on Sunday, but that event had to be cancelled after an accident early in the morning. The details weren’t released, however it has been confirmed that no one in the group was hurt. Still the incident was severe enough for them to miss the concert, which was to be held at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park, before a USA baseball game. The game went on as scheduled at 5pm.

Attempted Robbery In Greensboro
A Dry Cleaners store in Greensboro was almost robbed over the weekend with a toy gun. A man walked in, pulled out a gun and ordered the manager to give him some money. After the manager opened up the register, she realized the gun was fake and tried to wrestle him to the ground. He was able to escape and take off running, however officials were able to retrieve the toy gun and are examining it for fingerprints.

Church Plans To Picket Marine Funeral
On Tuesday, 32-yr-old Marine Sgt. Bryan Opskar will be laid to rest in the Trinity Lutheran Church in Moorhead. However aside from friends and family, the man’s funeral will also play host to a group of picketers. Members from the Westboro Baptist Church in Kansas plans to protest at the funeral, because they believe the Marine’s death is linked to the gay agenda here in America. Sgt. Opskar died after an explosion in Iraq, however the church believes that the bomb was similar to one that was detonated at its’ compound in the early 90s, proof they say of a national attempt to stop the anti-gay movement. Police will be on hand to provide security at the funeral, in case of any conflict that breaks out.

Sports Headlines

Appalachian QB Receives Preseason Award
The season hasn’t even started yet and Richie Williams is already getting awards. Williams, the starting quarterback for Appalachian State, was named as the Southern Conference Preseason Offensive Player of the Year. The award is voted on before each season by the conference coaches. Williams is coming off a year where he tossed 24 touchdowns and threw for 3109 yards. He was also named starting quarterback of the first team in all conference selections. Appalachian will kick off their season September 3rd on the road against Eastern Kentucky.

North Carolina Players Cut
Two players from North Carolina schools saw their NFL dreams take a hit this week, as Davon Fowlkes and TA McLendon were both cut. Fowlkes, who had been working out with the Indianapolis Colts, was released by the team this week so that they could fill his spot with another running back. Fumbles were the main problem for McLendon however, as he couldn’t hold on to the ball. Local media reported that he had fumbled constantly during the last two days of practice. Left untouched in the draft, McLendon had got on with the Falcons and received an invite to training camp. However that fumbling problem was apparently not something that Coach Jim Mora Jr. wanted to deal with, so he released the former NC State star.

Minor League Scoreboard
Around the minor leagues last night, it was Hickory falling against Charleston 8-6. The loss was the Crawdads’ third in four games as starter Derek Hankins only went three innings, giving up five runs on three hits. The news wasn’t any better for the Winston Salem Warthogs, as they fell against Potomac 6-4. Warthogs starter Wes Whisler gave up six runs in 2 2/3 innings of work, for his sixth loss of the season.

Durham On Sportscenter
North Carolina will take the spotlight on ESPN later today, as Sportscenter continues its’ 50 States in 50 Days tour. Today Sportscenter makes a stop in Durham, at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park. The show will be broadcast live from the field before the Durham Bulls minor league game at 7pm, against the Charlotte Knights.

Hurricanes Pick On Defense
After a yearlong labor dispute, the NHL came one step closer to getting back on the ice this weekend, holding their annual amateur draft. The Carolina Hurricanes had the third pick and selected defenseman Jack Johnson, who experts think could be a potential franchise player.

Kahne Wins Court Battle
In NASCAR, Kasey Kahne won his court battle against Ford this week. Kahne had been sued by the automaker, who said that he violated their sponsor agreement when he went to race in the Nextel Cup circuit for Everham Motorsports. A federal judge heard the case this week and ruled in favor of Kahne, unable to find a foundation for the case. The 25-yr-old will look to get back into the Chase for the Cup when the Nextel circuit resumes with the Allstate 400 on August 7th.