News & Sports For January 23rd

Foxx To Visit Wilkes County
5th District Congresswoman Virginia Foxx will be stopping off in Wilkes County this morning, giving local people a chance to voice their concerns. The congresswoman is doing a listening tour throughout the 5th district this week, stopping off in each of the 12 counties. The meeting will go on in the Wilkes Public Library from 9-10am today. Local leaders will be there as well, to discuss issues affecting the 5th district as a whole and also Wilkes County.

Gun Stolen From Local Home
A local chicken farmer got a surprise this week when he walked out to his shed. The gun he had stored there was missing. The incident happened on the Happy Corner Road and after talking with neighbors, a suspect was found in the case. It seems that a neighbor’s son had taken the weapon back before Christmas and kept it hidden all this time in a fort he had built in the woods. The case was turned over to Juvenile Services, however the suspect’s name wasn’t released since he was under 18.

Local Churches Working To Help Hurricane Victims
Two local ministries are asking for help in reaching out to a family in need. Calvary Baptist Church has been working to rebuild a home for a family in Gulfport Mississippi. Now in connection with Rescue America Baptist Missions they want to finish the job. The group is looking for help of any kind, from physical labor to any type of donations. If you or your church can help by volunteering or through financial means, the person to call is Jean Hodges at 262-0385.

Gas Thieves Target Local Man
Instead of hitting a convenience store, gas thieves changed tactics last week and targeted a person instead. A North Wilkesboro man walked out of his house last week to find someone near his vehicle. He used the gun in his hand to fire a shot, which sent the thief running. But the man apparently didn’t leave empty handed. Two gallons of gas and the vehicle’s gas cap were missing. A description of the thief was given to sheriff’s deputies and that investigation continues.

Confusion Over Traffic Signs Leads To Wreck
Confusion over traffic signs led to an accident last week on Hwy 421. A North Wilkesboro man was getting set to turn off into the Lowes Hardware parking lot, when his light turned green. However he didn’t notice that it was simply a green light and not the green arrow giving him the right of way and turned without looking. A Salisbury man was coming from the opposite direction and couldn’t stop in time to avoid a collision. No one was injured but $3000 worth of damage was done.

Hot To Cold Mix Actually Good For Plants
Here in Wilkes winter has been a lot warmer than usual, leaving some people concerned about how the changing weather might affect their fruit crops. Be sure and tune in to the 3WC News today, as Brian will be talking with Bill Hanlin from the Cooperative Extension about what potential issues the warmer climate could pose. Then coming up tomorrow, we’ll be talking with Matt Millin from the Cooperative Extension about how the weather change affects cattle and other animals.

Thieves Hit Millers Creek House For Some Entertainment
How could someone break in and not leave behind any evidence? That’s what a Millers Creek man is wondering today. Late last week he left home to do some errands, returning that night to find over $2000 worth of items had been stolen. Included in the theft was a DVD player, a guitar, over 100 CDsa clock radio and several other items. Despite the theft, there was no sign of a break-in and no damage done to the property. That investigation continues.

Three Cars Involved With Accident On 421
Three cars were totaled after an accident last Thursday on Hwy 421. A Millers Creek woman was turning back onto 421 from the Lowes Hardware parking lot, attempting to cross three lanes of traffic in doing so. She didn’t see a Wilkesboro woman who was in the same lane she was trying to get into. The two vehicles crashed into each other, causing the second car to spin out and hit a third. Heavy damage was done to all three and Wilkes EMS was called out to the scene, however treatment was refused. An estimated $8500 in damage was done.

Blood Drive Later Today
Each day in North Carolina, 1500 pints of blood are needed. With a shelf life of just over one month, blood either has to be used quickly or it gets tossed out. With the local blood supply at critical levels right now, the Wilkes Red Cross has organized several more emergency drives including one today. The drive will be going on from 2:30 til 7pm at Center Baptist Church. Appointments aren’t needed but if you want to plan around your schedule and set up a time to give, the number to call is 838-4563.

State News

UNC Charlotte Aiding In War On Terror
UNC Charlotte is stepping to the frontlines of the war on terror. The university is working in connection with the Georgia Institute of Technology, to design programs that can aid homeland security forces in preventing attacks. The schools are helping to build an artificial analytic reasoning system, which would allow U.S. officials to study massive amounts of information all at once.

Jobs Coming To Alamance County
Good news for people living in Alamance County. More jobs are on the way. International Designer Transitions, which has a plant in Graham announced over the weekend that plans are in the works to add 50 new workers by March. The pay rate will range from $8 to $15 an hour.

Police Searching For Impersonator In Davidson County
Officials in Davidson County are searching today for a man pretending to be a police officer. In Thomasville, police received calls telling of a man in a red Ford F-150 that would pull up behind people and start flashing a blue light. After a few minutes, the man would take off down the road. Such infractions are punishable by at least a $50 fine.

Rockingham County Searching For School Superintendent
The Rockingham County school system is on the hunt for a new leader today. Superintendent Dr. William Capehard announced over the weekend that he was resigning. School officials plan to discuss potential replacements when they meet in February. Capehard said that health concerns were one of the reasons he stepped down, but declined to name the others.

Lost Prop Leads To Bomb Squad
Late last week the bomb squad was called out in Charlotte, after a construction worker found a package near I-85. The package was found near the I-85 South exit ramp and had wires sticking out along with what appeared to be a cell phone stuck to it. Police closed down the area and the bomb squad cut it open, only to find that it was a prop, accidentally left behind by the crew filming Will Ferrell’s NASCAR movie.

Sports Headlines

High School Scoreboard
In high school basketball Friday night, it went down to the wire but the Lady Cardinals of East Surry knocked off West Wilkes 48-45. West Wilkes had a chance to tie but couldn’t make the shot as the team falls to 3-15 on the season while East Surry improves to 13-5. The Lady Eagles of Wilkes Central meanwhile improved to 16-1 with a 63-48 win over Starmount. Amy Will had 19 to lead the Lady Eagles, being helped by Sarah Brown’s 17 and 14 points from Laura Rollins. The Lady Vikings of North Wilkes had some problems in the scoring department, as no one on the team put up more than 8 points. They fell 53-30 to North Surry as the Lady Greyhounds went on a 34-15 run to finish the game. It was Alleghany over the East Wilkes Lady Cardinals 53-50. Kasi Shew had 17 to lead East and Makayla Sales put in 10. On the boys side of the court, it was a rough night for Coach Larry Sears and his West Wilkes Blackhawks. They lost 85-50 to East Surry on senior night in Millers Creek. West drops to 5-12 with the loss. Also in boys action it was North Wilkes falling to North Surry 66-47.

NCAA Scoreboard
Taking a look at the college scene, it was Radford over Coastal Carolina in overtime 70-69, Elon beat Western Carolina 50-48, Winthrop beat High Point 70-67, UNC Asheville took care of VMI 83-65, NC A&T knocked off Coppin State 78-71. In other action, it was Gardner-Webb beating North Florida 71-67, UNC Charlotte getting crushed at home by George Washington 83-69 and UNC Greensboro beat Appalachian State 62-60. DJ Thompson had 22 points for the Mountaineers, who drop to 7-11 with the loss. In the ACC, it was NC State over Wake Forest 92-82. State was led by 26 points and 2 blocks from Cameron Bennerman, while the Deacons got 19 points and 8 rebounds from Eric Williams. A major upset happened on Saturday, as the unranked Georgetown Hoyas beat the Duke Blue Devils 87-84. It was mainly the J.J. Redick show, as the shooting guard put in 41 points, but he was one of only three players on Duke to finish in double figures. Duke falls to 17-1 on the year. And it was the UNC Tarheels surviving a major test against Florida State 81-80. Reyshawn Terry hit two free throws with 23 seconds left to win the game for the Heels, who were led by Wes Miller’s 18 points. Carolina improves to 11-4.

Bobcats Fall To Bucks
The Charlotte Bobcats continue to limp on, as the lineup card gets smaller and smaller. Before the game on Saturday, the team announced leading scorer Gerald Wallace will be out 6 weeks with a sprained MCL and they needed his explosiveness badly. The Bobcats lost to Milwaukee 101-91. Charlotte was led by Primoz Breznec’s 21 points and 11 rebounds, as the team drops to 11-30.

Panthers Knocked Out By Seahawks
The season came to a close on Sunday for the Carolina Panthers, as they lost to Seattle 34-14 in the NFC Championship. Carolina came limping into the game, missing both of their top tailbacks. Then in the first quarter, Carolina lost another back when Nick Goings had to leave with a concussion. The lack of a running game hurt the Panthers, who also had to deal with 3 interceptions tossed by Jake Delhomme. The Panthers will finish the season at 11-5.