Storm Kills Power To 8,000

Wednesday’s rash of volatile summer thunderstorms produced numerous lightning strikes, one of which result in residential power loss west of South Boston.
“At about 3:30 p.m. Wednesday there was a direct lightning strike and as a result, a switch in a transmission line was knocked out and approximately 8,000 Dominion Virgina Power customers lost power,” said Dominion Virginia Power spokesman David Botkins
The location that was directly impacted was a substation about a mile west of Riverdale on U.S. 58.
“We had several substations that went dark as a result of the lightning strike,” said Botkins. “The initial bulk of the outage was 8,000, and we got 4,000 of those back within an hour,”
He said the remainder of residences came back online within a matter of hours Wednesday evening.
“It’s part of the seasonal summer, hot, muggy weather conditions that create thunderstorms and the perfect conditions for lightning strikes, and sometimes lightning strikes hit power lines,” said Botkins.
Dominion Virginia customers can call 1-888-667-3000 if they experience outages.

Turbeville, Wilson Memorial Students Are Reassigned

Students displaced by the closure of Turbeville and Wilson Memorial elementary schools will be distributed among three other county schools. The question regarding what schools those students would attend during the 2007-08 school year arose when the Halifax County School Board voted Monday to close Turbeville and Wilson Memorial.
Deputy Superintendent Larry Clark said that all the Turbeville students will attend the new Cluster Springs Elementary School this fall. The majority of Wilson Memorial students will attend Meadville Elementary, but those who live on Swain Road and that portion of Highview Road that turns into Jones Ferry Road will attend Sinai Elementary.
Clark explained that Cluster Springs Elementary will have a total of 635 students with the addition of the students from Turbeville. Meadville will have 240 and Sinai will have 322. He added that if parents have questions regarding students attending certain schools, these will be handled individually. Clark said the School Board could make adjustments to the attendance zones when it meets July 9 but no additional adjustments are expected.

New Hotel Planned For Riverdale

A 90-room Fairfield Inn & Suites is coming to Riverdale.
John Ferguson, president of Ferguson Properties, Liberty, Mo., confirmed the project yesterday. It will be located in the county on U.S. 58 just east of Slagle Fire Equipment.
“We will have 2,400 square feet of high-tech meeting space and an indoor pool,” Ferguson said in a telephone interview. “Our suites will be very well appointed,” he added.
He said the Inn will be located at the top the hill, which will offer a commanding view of the area.
“We hope to put a couple of restaurants in front,” he added.
Ferguson said that he is a general partner with South Boston Hotel Partners, LP, on the project, which is currently out for bid.
When the project gets under way, Ferguson estimated construction would take approximately 10 months.

 

Doris Smith Brookes
Doris Smith Brookes, 85, of 425 Hamilton Blvd., South Boston, died June 26, 2007 at Halifax Regional Hospital.
Mrs. Brookes was born in Halifax County on August 6, 1921, the daughter of the late Byrd W. and Irene Snead Smith. She was married to the late Samuel Owen Brookes II, and was a member of the First Presbyterian Church where she taught Sunday School. She was a member of the South Boston Garden Club and a ladies club champion for several years at Halifax Country Club.
Her survivors include her daughter, Mary Sanders Garrard and husband, Will, of Buckshoal; a son, Samuel Brookes III and wife, Marilyn, of Jackson, Miss.; three brothers: George L. ‘Lindy’ Smith and wife, Mary, of Richmond, Walker S. Smith of Midlothian, and Harry Byrd ‘H.B.’ Smith and wife, Janet, of Lynchburg; two sisters, Mary Eliza Daniels of South Boston and Rachael Locke and husband, John, of Drakes Branch.
She was also preceded in death by four brothers, Lawrence, Garland, Jimmy and Julius Smith; and a sister, Virginia Woliberg.
A funeral service will be held today, June 29, at 11 a.m., at the First Presbyterian Church with the Rev. Dr. Russell Lee officiating. Burial will follow in the Oak Ridge Cemetery.
For memorials, consider the Patrick Henry Boys and Girls Home, P.O. Box 1398, Brookneal, 24528.

Kierra Nicole Crowder
Kierra Nicole Crowder, age eight, of Nathalie died June 24, 2007, in Charlottesville.
She was the daughter of Keith R. Crowder and Patricia A. Hancock and was a second grade student at Sydnor Jennings Elementary School.
Survivors include her parents; one half sister, Tiffany Crowder of Greensboro, N.C.; grandmothers, Judy A. Hancock of Nathalie and Novella M. Medley, both of South Boston; one great-grandmother, Margaret Medley of South Boston; a devoted cousin, Terry ‘Missy’ Tucker; and numerous other relatives and friends.
Funeral services for Miss Crowder will be tomorrow, June 30, at 2 p.m. at Millstone Baptist Church in Nathalie with the Rev. Chester Spruill officiating. Burial will follow in the church cemetery.
Condolences may be emailed to Jeffressfh@aol.com.

Enoch Argyle Haley
Enoch Argyle Haley, 94, of Greenville, N.C., formerly of South Boston, died June 27, 2007.
A funeral service will be held Friday, June 29, at 10 a.m. at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Greenville. An additional service will be held 4 p.m. at Hickory Neck Episcopal Church in Toano, with burial following.
Mr. Haley was born in Toano on September 14, 1912. Graduating from The College of William and Mary, he was employed first by J.P. Taylor Company, then Universal Leaf Tobacco Company, and its subsidiaries Canadian Leaf Tobacco Company, Rhodesian Leaf Tobacco Company, and Lancaster Leaf Tobacco Company.
He was a veteran of the United States Army where he served during World War II in Europe. After retiring he worked as a consultant for the World Bank in Malawi, Universal Leaf in Indonesia and the Philippines. He also served on the First Downtown Revitalization Committee for the South Boston Community Development Corporation.
Mr. Haley was a member of Trinity Episcopal Church in South Boston where he served on the vestry, and as Junior and Senior Warden.
His wife, Nancy Gatewood Jones, and his parents, Littleberry James Haley and Hannah Elizabeth Wilkinson preceded him in death.
Survivors include a son, Enoch A. Haley Jr. and wife, Kathy, of Hampton; a daughter, Drucilla H. York and husband, Maurice, of Greenville; three granddaughters, Jessica S. Haley and Rachael C. Haley, both of Hampton, and Nancy H. York of Greenville; and one sister, Elizabeth H. Glass and husband, Forrest, of Richmond.

Roy Lacy King
Roy Lacy King, 75, of 3021 L.P. Bailey Memorial Highway, Halifax died June 26, 2007, at Virginia Baptist Hospital in Lynchburg.
Mr. King was born in Pittsylvania County October 6, 1931, the son of the late Robert King and Lillie Mae King Owen and was married to Linda Lawrence King, who survives. He was a member of McKendree United Methodist Church.
Other than his wife survivors include one son, Ronald Lacy King of Montpelier; four sisters, Virginia Hanes of Lexington, N.C., Susie Waller of Bedford, Emma Ann Thornton of Radford, and Virgie Marsh of High Point, N.C.; and three brothers, Herman King and Roger King, both of Gretna, and Burke King of Brookneal.
One sister, Irene Barbour; and four brothers, Charles, Herbert, J.L. and James King, also preceded Mr. King in death.
Funeral services will be held June 29, at 2 p.m. at Powell Funeral Home Chapel with the Revs. Brian Simmons and Joseph Lotts officiating. Burial will follow in Halifax Memorial Gardens.
The family will receive friends tomorrow evening from 7:00 until 8:30, at Powell Funeral Home Funeral Home and other times at the home.
Those wishing to give memorials are asked to consider McKendree United Methodist Church, 1100 Younger Road, Halifax, 24558, or Halifax Regional Hospice, 2204 Wilborn Avenue, South Boston, 24592.

 

American Angels Win District Title

By Doug Ford
G-V Staff Writer
The Halifax American Angels all-stars claimed the Dixie Softball District 7 Tournament title Wednesday night, scoring 13 runs the first two innings on the way to routing Motley 16-4 in four innings.
Halifax American, which finished an unbeaten run in tournament play with the win over Motley, will play in the Virginia Dixie Softball State Tournament in Amherst starting July 6.
Motley reached the championship round with a 5-3 win Tuesday over Halifax National, a win that prevented National from repeating as district champions.
Halifax American 16 Motley 4
American, needing to win only one of a potential two games to lock up the district crown, took care of business in game one, plating 13 runs in the first two innings.
Lauren Womack got things started with a leadoff single, Taylor Barnes and Elizabeth Thomas followed with walks, and Kye-Neisha Logan had an RBI single.
Cassie Lawhorn then reached base to plate two more runs and scored after Jasmine Lovelace and Sara Stephens walked and Ashley Paige Watts was hit by a pitch.
That made it 5-0 after one inning, and American exploded for eight runs in the second for a 13-0 advantage.
Sara Beth Reese, Barnes, Thomas, Logan, Lawhorn, Lovelace and Stephens drew walks and Nicole Williamson reached base on an error for three RBIs to complete the rally.
American added three runs in the fourth with two outs, Logan drawing a walk, Lawhorn getting a base hit, Lovelace and Sephens walking, Williamson with a RBI hit and Watts reaching base on a fielder’s choice.
Motley tried to rally with four runs in the bottom of the fourth on an infield hit, four walks and a fielder’s choice, but the American margin was enough to end the game at that point under the mercy rule.
The American pitching rotation of Thomas, Womack and Barnes held Motley scoreless for three innings, Thomas working two innings, Womack the third and Barnes the fourth inning.
The trio combined for nine strikeouts, with Barnes getting the final strikeout of the game.
Halifax American 12
Altavista 2
Logan hit a two-run home run and added a two-run single, and Watts drove in three runs, as Halifax American beat Altavista 12-2 in four innings to advance to the championship round.
Thomas hit a RBI single, Lawhorn hit an RBI on a fielder’s choice and Ashanti Lovelace added a base hit for American, which took a 6-2 lead after one inning and never looked back.
Womack, Barnes, Logan, Lawhorn, Stephens and Maranda Gunn walked, Thomas singled and Watts reached base on a three-run fielder’s choice in the first inning, as American quickly rebounded from two early Altavista runs to take a 6-2 lead.
The first seven batters reached base for American in the second inning, five by walks to make it 10-2.
Reese, Womack, Barnes and Thomas drew walks, before Logan hit a two-run single and Lawhorn collected an RBI when she reached base on a fielder’s choice.
After a scoreless third inning, American added two more runs in the bottom of the fourth to end the game under the mercy rule, Barnes drawing a leadoff walk and Logan smacking a two-run homer.
Womack and Barnes shared pitching duties for American, Womack hurling the first two innings, before Barnes came on to finish the game.
Womack allowed only two hits and struck out five batters, while Barnes held Altavista hitless the final two innings, finishing with four strikeouts.
Motley 5 Halifax National 3
Halifax National lost its bid to defend its district title, falling to Motley 5-3 on Tuesday.
Motley scored four runs in its first at-bat and held off Halifax National the rest of the way, despite rallies from National in the late innings.
Two base hits, two walks and National errors led to four Motley runs in the first inning, and Motley added another run on a walk and groundout in the third.
National rallied in the bottom of the third for two runs after stranding three base runners the first two innings.
Mary Glasscock, Tara Brandon, Lexi Reaves, Kirsten Doss and Lauren Spencer drew walks to plate two runs and cut National’s deficit to 5-2, and walks again accounted for National’s final run an inning later.
Savanna Jones, Emily Ingram, Cecilie Elliott and Brandon drew walks to make it 5-3, but the rally stopped there, with only two National batters reaching base in the final two innings, Randi Welcher on a walk and Jones on a fielder’s choice, both in the sixth inning.
Brandon and Ingram shared pitching duties for National against Motley, Brandon finishing with one strikeout and Ingram with six.

Halifax National Darlings Fall Short

By Doug Ford
G-V Staff Writer
The Halifax National Darlings all-stars fell behind 8-2 after one inning and saw their bid for the District 7 championship fall short Wednesday with a 21-10 loss to Altavista.
National, which stayed alive with a 22-11 win Tuesday over Brookneal, needed to win two games against Altavista the final day to claim the tourney title.
Altavista defeated Halifax American 19-15 on Tuesday to knock American out of the tourney, with both American losses coming to Altavista.
Altavista 21
Halifax National 10
National fell behind by an 8-2 margin after one inning and lost a chance at a district title by a 21-10 final score.
Michaela Farson led National with a triple, double and single, while Amber Moore, Courtney Claiborne and Terri Murray each had two hits.
Erica Allgood had a double, and Taylor Jones, Jordan Carr, Madison Hailey, Sara Moser, Abbey Bales and Dymon Patrick singles for National.
Moore, Farson, Allgood and Murray collected singles in the top of the first for two National runs, but Altavista plated eight runs on seven hits for an 8-2 advantage.
Carr, Hailey and Bales singled in the second to produce one run, but Altavista added seven for a 15-3 lead.
Farson and Allgood doubled, and Claiborne and Murray and Jones singled for three National runs in the third, and Altavista added five runs on five hits to make it 20-6, and National added its final runs in the fourth on singles by Moser, Patrick, Moore and Claiborne, along with a triple from Farson, and a fielder’s choice by Bales.
Altavista plated one run in the bottom of the fourth to end the game.
Halifax National 22 Brookneal 11
Farson had a homer and two doubles, Faith Lester a home run and two singles, Allgood a homer and double and Moser one homer to help keep National alive with a come-from-behind win over Brookneal.
Carr had a double and single, Moore, Claiborne and Hailey two singles apiece, Murray a double, and Patrick and Bales base hits for National.
National faced an uphill climb to stay alive in the tourney, Brookneal scoring seven runs on six hits, including a homer to plate seven runs in the first inning.
Consecutive one-out home runs by Lester, Farson and Allgood, a single by Claiborne, double by Murray and base hits by Carr and Hailey helped National plate five first-inning runs.
National outscored Brookneal 10-2 in the second inning to take the lead for good, Farson, Allgood and Carr with doubles, and Moore and Lester with singles. Brookneal committed five errors in the inning that helped keep the National rally alive.
Brookneal crept to within 15-11 in the top of the third with two runs on three hits, but National responded with seven runs in the bottom of the inning to make it 22-11.
Hailey, Patrick and Bales singled to lead off the inning, Moser tripled, Moore and Lester singled, Farson doubled and Claiborne singled to help National score the runs it needed to end the game after three and one-half innings under the mercy rule
Altavista 19
Halifax American 15
American got off to a good start against Altavista, leading 6-3 after one inning, but couldn’t keep up the pace despite getting 19 hits, including home runs from Mya Brandon and Sidney McLamb.
Brandon added two base hits, while Aliyah Chandler finished with a triple and two singles, Morgan Puckett and Quintasha Medley a double and single apiece, and Sydney Henderson and Katelyn Moser each two singles.
Shania Hankins, Blair Bomar, Mia Womack and Makayla Faulkner added base hits for American.
Back to back home runs from Brandon and McLamb, along with base hits from Chandler, Henderson, Puckett and Moser helped give American a 6-3 lead after one inning.
Singles from Chandler, Henderson, Hankins and Brandon helped American to a 8-3 advantage in the top of the second, but Altavista plated six runs in the bottom of the frame to take the lead for good.
Puckett doubled and scored a single run for American in the top of the third inning, and Altavista plated eight runs on six hits to make it 17-9 going into the fourth frame.
A double from Chandler and singles from Brandon, Medley and Faulkner gave American four runs in the fourth, and Altavista scored twice in its at-bat to lead 19-13.
American rallied a final time in its last at-bat, scoring twice on singles from Bomar, Moser, Womack and a double from Medley, but came up just short.

A Weekend Of Tournaments

Four separate tournaments at three different sites this weekend will have area softball and baseball fans cheering their favorites.
The Halifax County Dixie Softball Belles and Ponytails all-star teams get their chance in the spotlight starting tomorrow, as they host the District 7 Tournament at Mary Bethune Complex.
The tournament features a field of four teams, including Halifax American, Halifax National, Brookneal and Charlotte County.
Charlotte County and Brookneal open at 3 p.m., followed by opening ceremonies at 5 p.m.
The game of the day starts at 6 p.m., when Halifax National takes on Halifax American.
The Ponytails tournament features six teams, including Halifax National, Halifax American, Brookneal, Charlotte County, Altavista and Motley. Ponytails action starts at 2 p.m. with a game between Brookneal and Halifax American.
Opening ceremonies begin at 4 p.m., and the second contest, matching Altavista and Motley, is scheduled to start at 5 p.m.
Charlotte County and Halifax National finish the first day’s slate of games at 7 p.m.
Dixie Boys District Tournament Today At Day Complex
The Halifax County Dixie Boys 14-Year-Old all-stars hit the field today at 6:30 p.m. at the Day Complex against Clarksville in the Dixie Boys District Tournament.
Four teams will vie for the district title and a trip to the Dixie Boys State Tournament in Christiansburg July 20-25, with Charlotte County playing Prince Edward County in the second game at 9 p.m. tonight.
Saturday action in the double elimination tournament has the winners of Friday’s games playing at 6:30 p.m., followed by a 9 p.m. elimination game between the teams who lost in Saturday’s first round.
The 13-Year-Old Dixie Boys District Tournament was also scheduled for the Day Complex, but only the Halifax County Dixie Boys all-stars have qualified, thereby receiving an automatic bid to the state tournament.
Dixie Youth Baseball Minor League Tourney
The Dixie Youth Baseball AAA District 2 West Sub-District Tournament gets under way today at Halifax with a 6 p.m. game between South Boston and Scottsburg.
Halifax County South will battle host Halifax in the following game, scheduled at 8 p.m.
Saturday’s action starts at 6 p.m. with an elimination game between the losers of game one and game two, with the winners from day one playing at 8 p.m.
The winner from Saturday’s 6 p.m. game plays the loser of Saturday’s 8 p.m. game Sunday at 7 p.m.