Wednesday, January 24, 2007

Regional Work Force Summit Set

The executive director of the Virginia Tobacco Commission and the Virginia Secretary of Commerce and Trade will headline a half-day regional work force summit scheduled for March at the Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (HEC).
The opening session speaker for the March 7 event will be Neal Noyes, executive director of the Tobacco Commission, and Virginia Trade Secretary Patrick O. Gottschalk will speak during the luncheon, according to Nettie Simon-Owens, director of work force development for the Center.
Simon-Owens said the event will get under way at 8:30 a.m. and will conclude at 1:30 p.m. The cost for the summit is $11.
She added that the planned regional event will offer stakeholders in work force training the opportunity to think regionally about the future of Southside’s labor pool.
“The current and future work force of our localities oftentimes travel beyond their communities of residence into neighboring communities to work,” she said. “With this in mind, it is crucial that we work together to determine how best to prepare and make available these individuals for the various employment opportunities that exist.”
According to the HEC work force director, the purpose of the meeting is to offer an opportunity for employers and employees to discuss and identify issues to position the region for the future.
“From my perspective, it’s a matter of connecting the work force regionally as far as where the jobs are and where the people live,” she said. “Geographical boundaries shouldn’t be a barrier to that.”
Simon-Owens said the HEC is focused on work force training to help displaced workers prepare for future jobs in the area.
“We need to go to where people live and let them know they’re valuable to us and that we want to help prepare them for the jobs that come to us within our region,” she said. “We want to use our existing and future technological resources to best prepare workers from across the Southern Virginia region for the jobs that become available while at the same time meeting the needs of the employers.
“What is it they need and are we doing what we need to be doing to meet the needs of the employer?” she asked rhetorically. “That is why we’re having this summit.”
For more information or to register, call Simon-Owens at the Southern Virginia Higher Education Center at (434)572-5477 or 1-800-283-0098 ext. 5477.

Morris Loses Job In Georgia

Scott Morris, the leader of Gwinnett County’s economic development efforts and former Halifax County IDA executive director, is no longer employed as the vice-president of economic development for the Gwinnett County Chamber of Commerce in Georgia.
On Friday, Gwinnett County Chamber of Commerce President Jim Maran said Morris was no longer a Chamber employee, although he did not term the situation a firing or a resignation. Severance has not been discussed, he said.
“This is a very complicated situation,” Maran said. “We agreed he wouldn’t work here. It’s just better for everyone.”
Morris was arrested Wednesday at the Chamber of Commerce building, where he recently was promoted to a vice president. He is facing 195 years in prison in Virginia after being charged with 20 felony counts of possession of child pornography.
“This whole thing came as an absolute shock to us,” Maran said. “He was performing well. He was well-liked in the community. This thing kind of blindsided us.”
Maran said Georgia Bureau of Investigation officials took Morris’s computer, and over the summer confiscated equipment from the Newton County Chamber of
Commerce, where Morris served as president from May 2004 to September 2005.
Nothing was found on the Georgia computers, according to officials.
Gwinnett Daily Press Senior Writer Camie Young contributed to this story.

Slayton Honored By State Department Of Juvenile Justice

State Department of Juvenile Justice officials and Judge Frank Slayton’s judicial colleagues gathered in South Boston yesterday to honor the former state legislator and Juvenile and Domestic Court judge for his service on the Judicial Liaison Committee.
The Committee, composed of Juvenile judges and Circuit Court judges, meets with the Department of Juvenile Justice on a regular basis to discuss issues of common interest, explained Judge Frank Somerville, chairman of the DJJ-Judicial Liaison Committee.
“Judge Slayton was a valuable member of that committee because of his work as a judge, coupled with the work that he did before going on the bench,” added Somerville.
“Beginning in 1993, he was instrumental in establishing the criteria and composition of the Committee as a venue to foster greater communication between the Department of Juvenile Justice and the Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court judges,” noted the inscription on a plaque presented to Slayton.
State officials cited Slayton as leaving “a legacy of tireless and diligent effort to ensure the safety and well-being of children in crisis or at risk across the Commonwealth.”
Barry R. Green, director of the Department of Juvenile Justice, Tim Howard, deputy director of Community Programs for the Va. Department of Juvenile Justice, Judge Somerville and Judge Michael Rand made the presentation.

Obituaries

Waudieur Elizabeth Toomer Crawley

Waudieur Elizabeth Toomer Crawley, 88, of 1061 Crawley Trail, South Boston died January 19, 2007 in Hampton.
Mrs. Crawley was born in Coltsville, Pa. on January 8, 1919, to the late Horace N. Toomer and Clara Beckwith Toomer, and was married to Joseph Daniel Crawley Jr. She was a member of Cross Roads Baptist Church.
Survivors include her husband; one daughter, Elaine C. Reaves of Hampton; one son, Beckwith Crawley of South Boston; one sister, Katherine Rux Bowden of Washington, D.C.; eight grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; five step-grandchildren; one son-in-law, Cato Reaves of Hampton; two daughters-in-law, Cheryl Crawley and Oressa Crawley; and her added family, Raymond Crawley and Evelyn Crawley. One daughter, Frances; two sons, Horace and Danny; and two sisters, Alice and Belle, preceded her in death.
Funeral services for Mrs. Crawley will be held today, January 24, at 11 a.m. at Cross Roads Baptist Church with the Rev. Dennis White officiating. Burial will follow in the church cemetery.
The family is receiving friends at the home.

William Henry Roberts

William Henry Roberts, 75, of Drakes Branch died January 19, 2007, at his residence.
Mr. Roberts was born in Charlotte County June 1, 1931, to the late Dick Roberts and Elizabeth Pulliam Roberts. He was a member of Shiloh Baptist Church, Drakes Branch, and a retiree of Stanley Land and Lumber Co., Drakes Branch.
His father, four children, two sisters, and two brothers preceded him in death.
Survivors include six children, Thelma Robertson of South Hill, Patricia Saunders of Saxe, Richard Roberts of Atlanta, Ga., Kenny Roberts of South Hill, Larmonte Roberts of Chase City, and Brian Steven Roberts of San Diego, Calif.; his mother of Drakes Branch; 20 grandchildren, 13 great-grandchildren, two sons-in-law, three daughters-in-law, three sisters-in-law, and a devoted friend, Julia Roberts, of Chase City.
Funeral services for Mr. Roberts will be held at 1 p.m. tomorrow, January 25, at Shiloh Baptist Church with the Rev. Hugo Womack officiating. Burial will follow in the church cemetery.
Online condolences may be expressed at www.harrisfhc.com.

James Lewis Seamster

James Lewis Seamster, 72, of Richmond died January 19, 2007, at MCV.
Mr. Seamster was born August 14, 1934, in Halifax County to the late Sig and Carrie Williams Seamster and was married to Asoe Seamster.
Survivors include his wife of the home; four sons, James L. Seamster Jr. and wife, Cindy, and their children, Jimmy and Jessica, of Bumpass; Michael Seamster and his son, Victor, of Richmond; Mark Seamster and wife, Wanda, and their son, Luke, of Kernersville, N.C.; and Joseph Charles Seamster of Richmond; three daughters, Brenda S. Bosher and husband, Gary, and their children, Sally and Lyle, of Richmond; Teresa S. Rice and husband, Timmy, and their children, Christine and Tina, of Richmond; and Darlene Seamster of Calif.; one great-granddaughter, Hailee Gomes; one brother, Albert W. Seamster and wife, Susie, of Midlothian; three sisters, Violet S. Hazelwood of South Boston, Frances S. Clark of Scottsburg, and Marie S. Moody of Clarksville.
One brother, Luther J. Seamster; and one grandson, Joey Seamster, also preceded him in death.
Memorial services will be January 27, from 10 to 12, at the Cremation Society in Richmond.

Ruth Gates Stone

Ruth Gates Stone, 90, of Simpsonville, S.C. died January 22, 2007.
Mrs. Stone was born in Atlanta, Ga., daughter of the late Wyatt Blanton Gates and the late Julia Mastin Gates. She was of the Baptist Faith and was retired from Her Majesty.
Survivors include one daughter, Patricia Ann Aiken of Alaska; two sons, Roger William Stone of Ga., and Byron Fredrick Stone of Simpsonville; one sister, Mable Brockenfelt of Summerville, S.C.; one brother, Melvin Gates of N.C.; five grandchildren, Angie and Jenny Aiken, Becky Camilla and Kevin Stone; and six great-grandchildren. One sister, Elizabeth Griffin; and three brothers, Wyatt B. Gates, Edgar Gates and John Gates preceded Mrs. Stone in death.
Funeral services will be held tomorrow, January 25, at 11 a.m. at Cannon Funeral Home Simpsonville in Jones Chapel with visitation one hour prior to the service. Burial will follow at Graceland East Cemetery. The Rev. Tony Sisk will officiate.
Those wishing to give memorials are asked to consider Lutheran Hospice, 218A Trade Street, Greer, S.C. 29651.

Edmonds Qualifies For Regionals In Triple Jump

By Joe Chandler
Sports Editor
Halifax County High School’s Jamond Edmonds qualified for the Northwest Region Indoor Track and Field Meet in the triple jump during last weekend’s Asics High School Invitational meet at Liberty University.
Edmonds’ mark of 43 feet and three and a half inches was good enough to earn him a fifth-place finish in the event.
As a result of his effort in the meet, Edmonds will join teammates Bryan Clarke, Patrick Terry and Travis Word as those who have now qualified to compete in the Northwest Region meet.
Terry, who competes in the 55-meter dash and Word, who competes in the 55-meter hurdles, have also qualified to compete in the Group AAA state meet.
In addition to finishing fifth in the triple jump, Edmonds finished 15th in the long jump with a mark of 19-9.50.
Edmonds in the triple jump and teammate Corey Jackson, who placed seventh in the shot put with a throw of 43-11, were the only members of the Comets team to place in the Asics High School Invitational by finishing in the top eight in their respective events.
The Comets boys 4x200-meter relay team composed of Clarke, Stanley Thomas, Erik Brandon and Travis Stevens, placed 10th in that event with a time of one minute and 37.57 seconds.
Among the Comets boys competing in various individual events, Stevens placed 14th in the 55-meter race with a time of 6.82 seconds with Clarke finishing 34th with a time of 7.02 seconds. Clarke also finished in an eight-way tie for 11th place in the high jump with a leap of 5-10.
Mosley placed 30th out of a field of 65 entrants in the 300-meter race with a time of 38.56 seconds and Amanuel Coleman placed 42nd out of 65 entrants in the 500-meter race with a time of 1:16.47.
Thomas placed 57th in the boys long jump with a leap of 16-2.25.
Among the Comets girls, Stacey Hamlett placed 11th in the 55-meter dash with a time of 7.67 seconds. In addition, Hamlett placed 43rd in the in the long jump with a leap of 12-6.50 and placed 65th in the 300-meter race with a time of 50.17 seconds.
LaDonna Canada placed 14th in the shot put with a throw of 30-1and Jasmine Pointer placed 18th in the triple jump with a jump of 31-2.5.
Cherena Canada placed 35th in the 55-meter hurdles with a time of 10.72 seconds and placed 42nd in the long jump with a leap of 12-7.50.
The Comets girls 4x200-meter relay team consisting of Felicia Bowman, Canada, Brittany Foster and Hamlett finished 21st with a time of 1:58.10.

Comets Grapplers Score Pair Of Wins

By Joe Chandler
Sports Editor
The Halifax County High School wrestling team pulled out a pair of wins Saturday in the annual Amherst County Invitational.
Despite having to forfeit six, and sometimes seven weight classes, the Comets opened the event with a 33-28 win over Heritage High School and pulled out a narrow 30-29 win over Nottoway in a rare contest in which only four of the 14 weight classes were contested.
With the pair of wins, the Comets wrestling team improved its overall record to 8-13 overall in dual matches. Halifax County stands 1-2 overall against Western Valley District teams in dual matches.
The Comets were short-handed while competing in the event and had to forfeit six to seven weight classes per match.
“We had to redefine our lineup,” said Comets coach Brady Taylor, noting that his roster of wrestlers now stands at 14 wrestlers, a decrease of 13 from the start of the season.
“We had some kids that were out due to injury or illness and we had to dismiss some wrestlers for various reasons. One thing that I want to point out is that none of the wrestlers that were dismissed were dismissed because of their grades. All of our wrestlers were academically eligible at the end of the first semester.”
Despite winning only two of the five matches they competed in over the weekend, the Comets wrestlers, with eight wins under their belt, already have the distinction of having the most wins a Comets wrestling team has posted in several years.
“It has probably been at least five or six years since we’ve had at least this many wins” Taylor noted.
“We have five more matches left and we hope to pick up a few more wins before the season ends.”
Comets seniors Troy Ponce, who competes in the 140-pound weight class, had the best record among the Comets grapplers for the day, winning three of his four contests. Ponce had two pins and one win by a major decision.
Senior 285-pounder Richie Wright also had a good day with three wins in his five contests, all by a pin. Comets 135-pounder Josh Brooks also recorded three wins, two of which came by a pin and the other via a forfeit. Ralph Tuck picked up three wins on the day as well, all by a forfeit.
Freshman 189-pounder Justin Perkins won two of his four contests on the day, both by pins. Sophomore B.J. Jones, competing in the 130-pound weight class, scored two wins as well, one by a forfeit.
Jones, Taylor said, played a key role in both of the team’s wins.
“B.J. picked up a pin in the match against Heritage that sealed the win for us,” Taylor pointed out.
“He also avoided getting pinned while wrestling a very good wrestler in the Nottoway match. As a result, he gave up five points instead of the six points that he would have given up had he been pinned. We won that match against Nottoway by one point and that was the difference. We preach all the time that even in a loss you can still help the team win. That’s what B.J. did.”
Senior 171-pounder Jonathan Fallen won one of his five contests, that coming by a technical fall, and senior 140-pounder Shayna Oakes picked up a win by a forfeit. Junior 145-pounder Jonathan Chappell was winless in his five contests on the day.
The Comets wrestlers will be back in action Saturday when they hit the road to compete in the Magna Vista High School Invitational in Ridgeway. That tournament will begin at 9 a.m.
Taylor said he is looking forward to this weekend’s event which will feature wrestlers from 13 high school teams.
“This is an individual tournament,” Taylor pointed out, “and it’s a tournament we look forward to. It’s good competition for our kids. There is a good mixture of competition with a number of good, experienced veteran wrestlers with some inexperienced and developing wrestlers. We’ve had a good bunch of kids pick up wins in this tournament last year.”
Halifax County 33 Heritage 28
103 – Double Forfeit.
112 – Double Forfeit.
119 – Ralph Tuck (HC) won by forfeit.
125 – Double Forfeit.
130 – B.J. Jones (HC) pinned Martin (H) 1:36.
135 – Josh Brooks (HC) pinned Eric Reynolds (H) 53 Sec.
140 – Troy Ponce (HC) maj. dec. Cardwell Mendez (H) 11-2.
145 – Bobbitt (H) maj. dec. Jonathan Chappell (HC) 17-6.
152 – Mosley (H) won by forfeit.
160 – Evans (H) won by forfeit.
171 – Jonathan Fallen (HC) tech. fall Staples (H) 15-0.
189 – Justin Perkins (HC) pinned Bhalla (H) 3:15.
215 – Robertson (H) won by forfeit.
285 – Richie Wright (HC) pinned Hodges (H) 2:34.
Liberty 57 Halifax County 12
103 – Dustin Choate (L) won by forfeit.
112 - Jon Petersson (L) won by forfeit.
119 – Blake Day (L) won by forfeit.
125 – Ralph Tuck (HC) won by forfeit.
130 – Jessie Dempsey (L) pinned B.J. Jones (HC) 2:58.
135 – Brad Hoback (L) pinned Josh Brooks (HC) 1:30.
140 – Ryan Reynolds (L) tech. fall Troy Ponce (HC) 17-1.
145 – Cam Hoback (L) pinned Jonathan Chappell (HC) 2:45.
152 – Brian Crump (L) won by forfeit.
160 – Matt Dudley (L) won by forfeit.
171 – Ryan Balto (L) pinned Jonathan Fallen (HC) 2:38.
189 – Justin Perkins (HC) pinned Zach Masie (L) 49 Sec.
215 – Double Forfeit.
285 – Roger Shephard (L) tech. fall Richie Wright (HC) 22-7.
Amherst County 47 Halifax County 18
152 – Brown (AC) won by forfeit.
160 – Hays (AC) won by forfeit.
171 – McCarty (AC) pinned Jonathan Fallen (HC) 2:00.
189 – Ghee (AC) pinned Justin Perkins (HC) 1:42.
215 – Burrows (AC) won by forfeit.
285 – Richie Wright (HC) pinned Campbell (AC) 1:20.
103 – Double Forfeit.
112 – Hartless (AC) won by forfeit.
119 –.Double Forfeit.
125 – Double Forfeit.
130 – B.J. Jones (HC) won by forfeit.
135 – Coffman (AC) tech. fall Josh Brooks (HC) 17-0.
140 –.Troy Ponce (HC) pinned Duff (AC) 45 Sec.
145 – Jamison (AC) pinned Jonathan Chappell (HC) 20 sec.
Jefferson Forest 66 Halifax County 12
103 – Comeling (JF) won by forfeit.
112- Payne (JF) won by forfeit.
119 – Travis (JF) won by forfeit.
125 – Woodall (JF) won by forfeit.
130 – Midkiff (JF) pinned B.J. Jones (HC)
135 – Josh Brooks (HC) pinned Kelly (JF) 1:43.
140 –.Troy Ponce (HC) pinned Noake (JF) 2:56.
145 – Neal (JF) pinned Jonathan Chappell (HC) 23 Sec.
152 – Utes (JF) won by forfeit.
160 – Double Forfeit.
171 – Cox (JF) pinned Jonathan Fallen (HC) 1:20.
189 –.Pelter (JF) pinned Justin Perkins (HC) 3:58.
215 – Bowyer (JF) won by forfeit.
285 – Beamer (JF) pinned Richie Wright (HC) 1:10.
Halifax County 30 Nottoway 29
103 – Coleman (N) won by forfeit.
112- Nicholas (N) won by forfeit.
119 – Ralph Tuck (HC) won by forfeit.
125 – Double forfeit.
130 – Jackson (N) tech. fall B.J. Jones (HC) 17-1.
135 – Josh Brooks (HC) won by forfeit.
140 – Shayna Oakes (HC) won by forfeit.
145 – Major (N) pinned Jonathan Chappell (HC) 22 Sec.
152 – Double Forfeit.
160 – Double Forfeit.
171 - Harris (N) pinned Jonathan Fallen (HC) 1:19.
189 – Persons (N) won by forfeit.
215 – Double Forfeit.
285 – Richie Wright (HC) pinned Wallace (N) 13 sec.

HCS Edges Roxboro Christian 57-54

Josh Walker scored 29 points to lead the Halifax Christian School Mustangs boys basketball team to a 57-54 win over Roxboro Christian Academy Monday night.
Two Mustangs players hit double figures with Dylan Garber joining Walker in double figures with 13 points.
Dax Garber chipped in eight points for the Mustangs in the winning effort with Josh Kennon adding six points and Devin Beck scoring one point.
The game was a close one throughout with the two teams deadlocked at 9-9 at the end of the first quarter and Roxboro gaining some momentum to forge a three-point 25-22 lead at halftime.
A big third quarter allowed Halifax Christian School to regain the lead at 40-36 at the end of the third quarter. From there, the Mustangs held on to win by the three-point margin.
The Halifax Christian School Mustangs will be back in action Tuesday when they face Roxboro Christian Academy in a return engagement.