Friday, March 24, 2006

A ‘Vision’ Of Success

Vision 20/20 Has Met Several Goals, But More Left To Do

Vision 20/20 is alive and well in Halifax County, according to Market Street Services Representative Alex Pearlstein, who addressed Chamber of Commerce members Tuesday at the chamber’s annual meeting and banquet.
Pearlstein’s presentation, ‘The Path To Our Future,’ highlighted Halifax’s accomplishments under the Vision 20/20 blueprint and outlined future goals for the community.
Since the program was presented to the community in June of 2004, Vision 20/20 has been presented to numerous groups across the county, formed committees to work on goals and objectives and achieved several of the key objectives and formed plans to address others, Pearlstein said.
Halifax County Chamber of Commerce President Nancy Pool agreed that the program has been successful.
“This is a grass-roots initiative,” Pool said. “It came from the people of Halifax County and we never want to move away from that. It’s got to be community-wide for it to remain successful.”
She also said that a group met with Pearlstein Wednesday to discuss Vision 20/20’s future.
“He said each we have to continue revisit the plan,” Pool said. “As goals are reached things change, it’s not a document set in stone.
“It will need modifying,” she added. “We will continue to work from the document, but it will change as we move forward.”
At the chamber banquet, Pearlstein touched on several of the county’s major accomplishments that will serve as economic catalysts for the area.
South Boston has been designated as a Virginia Main Street Community, the location of new companies, Pacific Headwear and Sun Container, and the expansions at Huber and Cherokee Tobacco, are major accomplishments that speak well of Halifax’s economic development strategy, Pearlstein said.
He also said the Riverstone Technology Park and the Virginia International Raceway (VIR) are going to be major assets to the county’s development bringing in high-tech jobs.
Moving forward, Halifax has a plan to reach goals for job retention and creation, Pearlstein said.
The Industrial Development Authority is adopting a marketing plan focused on polymers, motorsports, forest products, technology-based business and warehouse/distribution facilities.
Education is also key to the county’s future, Pearlstein said.
Much of the developing world is surpassing the U.S. in the number of engineers and highly-skilled workers they graduate each year, figures show, according to Pearlstein.
Locally, the county must create the capacity necessary to develop a highly skilled, well-trained, technologically focused workforce to serve existing and future Halifax County businesses, Pearlstein added.
Toward that end, Pearlstein pointed out that Halifax currently has more high school students enrolled in college classes than any other high school in the state, leads the state in the percentage of the population attending community colleges and recently had the Southern Virginia Higher Education Center designated as a state higher education center.
Land use, transportation and broadband will also play important roles in the county’s future, he said.
The regional backbone initiative will bring advanced broadband Internet connectivity to Southside, Route 501 is slated to receive federal funding and North Carolina has added four-laning the road north of Roxboro to it’s six-year transportation plan, he said.
Also, upgrades are planned at Tuck Airport and Halifax County zoning ordinances are being reviewed and upgraded along with the implementation of best-practice agricultural conservation tools.
Lastly, Pearlstein touched on quality of life issues that will make Halifax a vibrant community where residents can thrive and new businesses want to locate.
The Prizery, Berry Hill and Edmunds Park are all assets and other projects like a low-cost health clinic are in the works, he said.
Pearlstein said that chamber members and the community at-large should be proud of its accomplishments and continue building on the economic development momentum Halifax has established, but he warned that the community must always be vigilant.
“The economic development race is never won,” he said. “It never ends.”

 

Drug ‘Kingpin’ Sentenced To Life

Jessie James Dunaway, a 25-year-old Carrington Street, South Boston resident, was convicted and sentenced to life in prison Wednesday for operating a continuing criminal enterprise.
Dunaway’s conviction and sentence came after after a two-day jury trial in Halifax County Circuit Court.
The jury deliberated for about one hour before finding Dunaway guilty of being a “principal, or one of several principal administrators, organizer or leader of a continuing criminal enterprise which sold or possessed with the intent to sell at least five kilograms of a mixture containing cocaine base,” according to the indictment against him.
The jury also convicted Dunaway, aka Jesse James Dunaway Jr., aka J-BO, of the attempted manufacture of marijuana and conspiring to distribute less than one-half ounce of marijuana, the last charge a misdemeanor.
A defense motion to strike an additional charge against Dunaway, one for possessing a firearm while possessing with intent to distribute cocaine, was granted by Judge Leslie M. Osborn during the trial.
In addition to his life sentence, Dunaway was ordered to pay a $125,000 fine for operating a continuing criminal enterprise, to one year for attempting to manufacture marijuana and to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine for conspiring to distribute less than one-half ounce of marijuana.
“The Continuing Criminal Enterprise law is intended for Virginia’s most serious drug dealers, and the jury found that the defendant fell into that category,” said Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney and Regional Drug Prosecutor Brendan U. Dunning.
“The Commonwealth had to prove that he [Dunaway] organized and supervised five people or more in order to convict him of conducting a continuing criminal enterprise,”
added Dunning, who prosecuted the case.
“ Commonwealth evidence ‘proved 10 or more people’ may have been involved,” he continued.
“Dunaway was responsible for the distribution of more than 12 kilos of crack cocaine over a 12-month period, with a street value of more than $1 million.”
The prosecutor said that the Commonwealth entered approximately 100 exhibits into evidence and had 15 witnesses testify during the trial.
Dunaway was arrested on December 2, 2004, when the South Boston Police Department executed a search warrant at a residence on College Street, according to Major R.S.B. Pulliam, chief deputy and Narcotics Department Coordinator for the Halifax County Sheriff’s Department.
Dunaway was initially charged with one count of the distribution of crack cocaine following his arrest, with the Sheriff’s Office Narcotics Department continuing to investigate Dunaway’s alleged crack cocaine and marijuana distribution operation, according to Pulliam.
“Sheriff’s Office drug investigators were able to arrest additional individuals involved in Dunaway’s operation, and these arrests were crucial in the prosecution of Dunaway,” said Pulliam.
“The charge against Dunaway for operating a continuing criminal enterprise was for distributing more than five kilos of crack cocaine over a 12-month period, specifically from December 2, 2003 to December 2, 2004.”
Halifax County Sheriff D.J. Oakes said “the successful prosecution of this investigation is only the beginning of our renewed and continued efforts to reduce the amount of drugs distributed in our community.
“Individuals who choose this way of life will be arrested and prosecuted with the same vigor and tenacity as Dunaway,” Oakes said, noting the time taken in preparing the case for trial.
“I am proud of my Narcotics Department and the Commonwealth Attorney’s Office efforts during this investigation and prosecution of this drug kingpin,” added Oakes.
“This verdict results from the dedication, cooperation and preparation of Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney and Regional Drug Prosecutor Brendan U. Dunning, the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office Narcotics Department and the South Boston Police Department,” said Commonwealth’s Attorney Kim White.

Budget Talks Disintegrate; No Deal By Special Session

BY BOB LEWIS
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — With no progress toward a transportation funding deal, House and Senate negotiators on Wednesday suspended their budget talks at least until the General Assembly returns in special session next week.
The two sides met for about 30 minutes, much of it spent bickering over their conflicting visions of transportation reform and the money it requires in a state budget.
By breaking off their meetings, the handful of senior delegates and senators leave their colleagues nothing to debate when the special session — called explicitly to enact a budget left unfinished when the regular session ended March 11 — begins at noon Monday.
That wasn’t the only escalation Wednesday in the high-stakes transportation showdown pitting first-year Democratic Gov. Timothy M. Kaine and his moderate Republican Senate allies against anti-tax GOP House members.
Kaine’s political action committee, Moving Virginia Forward, began airing minute-long radio ads statewide. They predict cuts to essential state programs under the House plan.
‘‘Their plan won’t pay for our transportation needs. It would cut priorities like teacher pay, early childhood education and economic development funds, which would hurt jobs. The House plan is just wrong for Virginia,’’ Kaine says in the ad. It gives a toll-free number for the House information office and directs listeners to the PAC’s Web site, which they can use to e-mail their delegates.
The ad does not note that Kaine and the Senate propose about $1 billion annually in new taxes to pay for their programs. Among the increased levies would be those on gasoline and the sales of cars and homes.
The House plan is about half the size with no tax increases, but relies on erratic general fund surpluses, debt and punitive fees on serial traffic offenders for financing.
Kaine also met privately Wednesday with several key leaders of local governments large and small to enlist them in his election-style campaign against the House initiative. Among them was Fairfax County Board of Supervisors President Gerry E. Connolly, who claimed House Republicans are trying to intimidate public officials who criticize their plan.
‘‘My view is let’s have a healthy debate about this without trying to silence dissenting points of view,’’ Connolly, a Democrat, said after he and other leaders of the Virginia Association of Counties and the Virginia Municipal League met in Kaine’s office.
Connolly also is chairman of the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission, and GOP Dels. L. Scott Lingamfelter and Jeffrey M. Frederick, both of Prince William, asked the state auditor to review the NVTC’s plans to push for Virginia funding support for the Washington region’s Metro mass transit system.
Kaine also is stepping up his schedule of personal appearances to promote his and the Senate’s plans at town hall-style meetings statewide. From Saturday through Wednesday, Kaine will hold forums in Harrisonburg, Danville, Loudoun County and Chesapeake, each locality home to several GOP House members.
As of Wednesday, the House GOP had no comparable public relations effort. ‘‘We can’t compete with the governor’s PAC,’’ said Del. Philip A. Hamilton, R-Newport News.
Negotiations disintegrated Wednesday after a testy exchange between senators and delegates over a possible regional tolling, taxing and road-building authority for Hampton Roads. It would share some traits with one already operating in northern Virginia. A week ago, the idea represented the best hope for keeping the talks alive.
Sen. William Wampler, R-Bristol, pressed Del. Leo C. Wardrup for an update on efforts to create a Hampton Roads regional authority.
‘‘What you want, William, is a date when I present to you a package which has a stream of revenue in it for Hampton Roads, and I’m telling you I don’t think that’s going to happen, OK,’’ Wardrup, R-Virginia Beach, said in frustration.
Sen. R. Edward Houck, D-Spottsylvania, complained that the impasse over needs for Hampton Roads and northern Virginia pre-empted discussion of needs in the rest of the state.
‘‘We’re sort of in a lurch, and I’m getting sort of antsy that ... I can’t even get a dialogue going about transportation needs in my area till we get the Hampton Roads piece in place,’’ Houck said.
Moments later, Del. M. Kirkland Cox, R-Colonial Heights, suggested that a handful of reporters covering the contentious meeting be sent away. The journalists objected, saying that closing the meeting would violate a 2-year-old state law. The tension abated as boxed lunches for the legislators arrived.
Del. Lacey Putney, an independent from Bedford, announced after the lunch break that the negotiators would not meet again as a group until Monday.
That doesn’t mean there won’t be informal one-on-one talks among House and Senate negotiators. Since 2001, legislatures have adjourned with the budget in limbo three times, and in each instance key lawmakers occasionally talked informally and privately.

 

Comets Diamonders Drop Third In A Row

A Four-Run Sixth Inning Rally Gives Baldwin, Pa. A 4-0 Win Over HCHS

It has been an awfully long time since a Halifax County High School varsity baseball team opened its season having lost three of their first four games.
But that’s the position the Comets found themselves in Wednesday night after a 4-0 loss here to Baldwin High School.
The Comets got a stellar pitching performance from senior Jeremy Jeffress. Jeffress fanned 14 of the 26 batters he faced through the first six innings of the game. Through the first four innings, he struck out nine of the 14 batters he faced and Baldwin had not gotten a hit through the first five innings.
Jeffress yielded only two hits and three walks in the game but a pair of crucial miscues and an inability of the Comets to generate any offensive firepower left Jeffress and the Comets holding the bag with the loss.
“J.J. pitched an awesome game,” said Comets head coach Kelvin Davis.
“Everything was working for him tonight. It’s just unfortunate that he couldn’t get a win with the performance he gave tonight.”
The Comets had four hits in the game, one each from Justin Bagbey, Tony Barbour, Jacob Swillie and Kaleb Long, but couldn’t piece them together. As a result, they left five runners stranded on the sacks.
A Comets error and two walks provided Baldwin with the only three baserunners they had through the first innings of the game.
But, the Highlanders were able to get on the scoreboard with four runs in the top of the sixth inning and hold the Comets at bay through their last two trips to the plate.
The Baldwin half of the sixth inning began with J. Waldo reaching base on an error with one out. After Jeffress fanned the next batter to get the second out of the inning, he yielded a walk to to K, O’Malley to put runners on first base and second base. A catcher interference call against Comets catcher Kaleb Long put J. Englen on first base and loaded the bases.
A triple by J. Monroe gave Baldwin a quick 3-0 lead and a follow-up single by designated hitter M. Blackburn plated the fourth run of the inning. Jeffress got out of the inning by retiring S. Ayers on strikes but not before the Highlanders had grabbed a 4-0 lead.
The error and the interference call were key plays in the inning, Davis noted.
“An error here and there, someone not covering here and there, things like that happen,” Davis pointed out.
He also said the interference call against Long “shouldn’t have happened in that situation. It was costly thing. But, it’s a learning deal.”
The Comets failed to get a hit in the bottom of the sixth inning. Comets relief hurler Chris Fisher held Baldwin at bay in the top of the seventh inning, giving the Comets one last chance to pull the game out of the fire.
Halifax County came up with two hits, one from Barbour and one from Swillie, but it wasn’t enough.
The Comets will try to snap their three-game losing streak today when they play host to Tunstall. Game time at Comets field is 5 p.m.

 

Owens To Play At Hampden-Sydney College

Comets QB Will Compete For Starting Role Next Season

Bobby Owens, the Comets’ quarterback who led Halifax County to its best season since its 1991 state championship year, committed yesterday to play football for Hampden-Sydney College.
The senior signal caller made his choice known in an unofficial signing ceremony Thursday at Halifax County High School.
Hampden-Sydney College, an institution located in Prince Edward County near Farmville, plays football in the Division III Old Dominion Athletic Conference. The Tigers’ conference football opponents include Randolph-Macon College, Bridgewater, Washington and Lee, Catholic, Emory and Henry and Guilford.
Marty Favret is the head football coach for Hampden-Sydney, having finished his sixth season with the program.
Owens, the son of Frosty and Joni Owens, is the latest of several Comets who have recently played for the Tigers, including defensive end Justin Shepherd and T.C. Stevens, who handled punting and kickoff duties for the Tigers as a freshman last season.
Hampden-Sydney proved to be the perfect fit, both academically and athletically, said Owens, who visited the campus before making his final decision.
“I met with coach Hampton (assistant coach Brandon Hampton) a while back and looked more at going to Hampden-Sydney,” said Owens, who also considered Bridgewater and several others before making his choice.
“They were very good to me, I loved the campus, and I thought it was a good fit for me,” he added.
Owens was a First Team, All-Western Valley District selection as a quarterback this past season, and Second-Team All-Northwest Region.
He threw for 2,600 yards and 31 touchdowns in the 10-game regular season, while rushing for 549 yards and seven more scores, averaging more than four yards a carry.
The Comets finished with an 8-3 record after making the first round of the Northwest Region playoffs.
Owens has also been selected to play in the Virginia High School League Football All-Star game this summer.
For all his accomplishments his senior season, Owens may not have played football at all if not for a comeback from a knee injury in 2004.
He credits former athletic trainers Mike and Krista Leake with helping him get back on the field.
“It was a pretty rough road, and I wasn’t real sure if I would make it back as fast as I did,” said Owens.
“But, in my mind I thought I would play football again, and Mike and Krista worked with me every day to help me get back.”
Owens has some big shoes to fill at Hampden-Sydney, those of departed quarterback J.D. Ricca, who set numerous school records while playing the position.
“They’re short a quarterback, and I’m planning to go up there to be the starter this fall,” said Owens.
“I know it’ll be a tough job, but I’m ready for it.”
“It’s been a thrilling experience, this whole football season,” said Joni Owens.
“After what the coaching staff and players accomplished together, it was sad to see it all end, and then was the whole process of where Bobby was going to go to college.
“He decided from the very beginning that Hampden-Sydney was his first choice, he wanted to play close to home, and we’re happy it’s only an hour away.
“We thought it was a really good fit for him, and it’s what he wants.”

 

Boys Varsity Soccer Starts District Play

Comets Face E.C. Glass Here Today

The Comets varsity boys soccer team will get a good indication of how far they’ve progressed this season here tonight when they face E.C. Glass in its Western Valley District opener.
Coach Frank Shealy knows his team will have to play up to its potential to stay with the Hilltoppers, one of the top programs in the district each year.
“I know they’re the top team in the district, but we’re going into the game with confidence,” said Shealy.
“I think we have a good, solid team and I plan for us to compete with Glass tonight.”
Halifax enters the contest with a 3-1 mark, after a win and loss earlier in the week. The Comets had a good game here Wednesday against Tunstall, defeating the Trojans 4-1, but fell here Monday night to Martinsville, the Bulldogs shutting out the Comets 4-0.
Josh Shealy and Travis Smith each had two goals to lead the Comets over Tunstall.
Halifax scored first nine minutes into the contest, when Josh Lacy headed the ball upfield to Shealy who assisted Smith on the goal that made it 1-0.
That was the score at halftime, and the Comets struck again at the 10-minute mark of the second half, when Lacy assisted Shealy on a goal to make it 2-0.
Eight minutes later, Chris Rorrer took the ball to the corner and assisted Shealy for his second goal to make it 3-0, and Smith added his second goal about 10 minutes later, coming out of a scramble for the ball with Shealy, Chris Beale and a Tunstall defender.
Smith came out with the ball and knocked it home from 30 yards out for a 4-0 lead.
Tunstall scored its only goal of the game with about three minutes remaining, according to Shealy, who noted the play of goalie Les Powell as one of the keys to the win.
“We played very well, and a lot of the credit goes to Les, who made at least 18 saves, including three spectacular saves that I know of,” said Shealy.
Martinsville 4, Halifax 0
The Comets opened the week with a lackluster 4-0 loss here Monday to Martinsville, the Bulldogs leading 3-0 at halftime and adding another goal in the second half for the final margin.
“It wasn’t a good showing by us,” admitted Shealy. “I have to say Martinsville is a very talented team, they trap, pass and move the ball well.”
The Comets played good defense for most of the game, according to Shealy, but several key defensive breakdowns at inopportune times allowed the Bulldogs to score.
Shealy estimated Martinsville outshot Halifax by a 20-10 margin, scoring the first goal of the game with less than a minute gone.
The Bulldogs scored two more times in the first half, once at the 21-minute mark and again at the 32-minute mark to make it 3-0 at halftime.
Martinsville added its final goal about 30 minutes into the second half, but Shealy thought the Comets stepped it up a notch after halftime.
“We played much better in the second half, had more shots on goal and worked the ball much better,” he noted.
The Comets varsity boys soccer team’s game against E.C. Glass is scheduled to begin tonight at 7 p.m.

 

Obituaries

Christopher Arnold Rhys Bowen
Christopher Arnold Rhys Bowen of Topsail Beach, N.C. died Wednesday, March 22, 2006, in St. Augustine, Fla. He grew up in Midsomer Norton, England.
Survivors include his wife, Luanna Campbell Bowen; one sister, Helen Robinson and husband, George, of Bradford-on-Avon, England; his mother-in-law, Dorothy Campbell; a brother-in-law, Rusty Campbell; and a sister-in-law, Kit C. Hooper, all of Virgilina.
A funeral for Mr. Bowen will be held in Virgilina on March 28, at 1 p.m. at Union Christian Church with burial at the Virgilina Cemetery.
There will be no visitation but the family will receive visitors at the family home at 1033 Seventh Street in Virgilina.
Gail Seamster Hanks
Gail Seamster Hanks, 61, of 1154 White Oak Drive, South Boston died March 21, 2006, at Lynchburg General Hospital.
Mrs. Hanks was born in Halifax County April 15, 1944, the daughter of the late Mervin Haynes Seamster and Almeda Covington Seamster, and was married to William O. ‘Billy’ Hanks. She was a member of Ash Avenue Baptist Church.
Survivors include her husband; two daughters, Amy Lacks Owen and husband, Jason, and Ann Carlton Seamster and husband, Dennis, all of South Boston; three sisters, Linda S. Shelton and husband, Keith, of Halifax, Evelyn S. Jalink of Newport News, and Kaye S. Hayden and husband, Ronnie, of Danville; and three grandchildren, Lindsey G. Martin of South Boston, Morgan E. Martin of Benson, N.C. and Zachary C. Owen of South Boston.
A memorial service for Mrs. Hanks will be held tomorrow, March 25, at 11 a.m. at Ash Avenue Baptist Church with the Rev. John Eure officiating.
The family is receiving friends at the home.
Those wishing to give memorials are asked to consider Halifax Regional Hospice, 2204 Wilborn Avenue, South Boston 24592, or Ash Avenue Baptist Church Playground Fund.
James Robert Salley
James Robert ‘Jim Bob’ Salley, 82, of 2108 Cowford Road, Halifax died March 22, 2006, at Virginia Baptist Hospital in Lynchburg. He was born in Halifax County on May 12, 1923, the son of the late Charles Edward Salley Sr. and Annie Reeves Salley and was married to Gladys Trickey Salley.
Mr. Salley was a member of Dan River Baptist Church where he was a deacon. He was a member of Dan River Ruritan Club, Halifax County Bee Keepers Club, American Legion Post 8 and an Army Veteran of World War II.
Survivors include his wife; two daughters, Janice S. Lacks and husband, Richard, of Kenbridge and Geneva S. Lotspeich and husband, Clyde, of Parksley; two brothers, Charles Edward Salley Jr. of Halifax and John Henry Salley of Chesapeake; two sisters, Lucille Shotwell of Oakland, Md. and Louise S. Thomas of Roxboro, N.C.; five grandchildren, Chris Lacks and wife, Amy, of Richmond, Michael Lacks and wife, Kristen, of Lunenburg, Walt Lotspeich and wife, Natalie, of Durham, N.C., Russ Lotspeich and wife, Clare, of Midlothian, and Allen Lotspeich of Spangdahlem-U.S. Air Force Base, Germany; and five great-grandchildren, Samuel, Esther, Joshua and Jason Lacks, and Bryce Lotspeich.
Funeral services for Mr. Salley will be held tomorrow, March 25, at 11 a.m. at Dan River Baptist Church with the Rev. Doug Gibson officiating. Burial will follow in the church cemetery with Military Rites.
The family will receive friends at Powell Funeral Home this evening, March 24, from 7:00 until 8:30, and other times at the home.
Those wishing to give memorials are asked to consider Dan River Baptist Church, 1228 Dan River Church Road, Halifax, 24558, or Halifax County Cancer Association, P.O. Box 875, South Boston, 24592.
Condolences may be sent to powell@gcronline.com.