Wednesday, May 18, 2005

Virginia Sells Tobacco Bonds

Move Could Protect State’s Money From Pending Litigation

From Staff And Wire Reports

Virginia has wrapped up its sale of about $450 million in tax-exempt bonds backed by a landmark tobacco settlement.
‘‘We got great interest rates, and that means we’ve been able to put $389.8 million in the bank today for Southside and southwest Virginia,’’ Gov. Mark R. Warner said Monday.
The bonds’ interest rates range from 4.07 to 5.78, according to Warner’s spokesman Kevin Hall.
The interest rates vary according to the length of time the bonds are invested, Hall said.
Hall said yesterday that the move will set up a fund that can be used for long-term economic development initiatives in the states former tobacco regions.
“This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to set up an economic development ‘bank’ for Southside and southwest Virginia to help transform those economies," he said. “I think it’s great news."
As part of the plan, the Tobacco Commission will have an endowment set aside that the Commission can draw on as it addresses the needs of the economies of the two regions.
“It shouldn’t affect the application process for Tobacco Commission grants," Hall said.
The remainder will go into reserve funds and will cover underwriting fees.
Warner and the General Assembly first authorized a bond sale in 2002. But one year later, when the sale of about $700 million in bonds was planned, the market sank after an Illinois judge ordered Richmond-based Philip Morris USA to pay $10.1 billion in a suit over its ‘‘lights’’ cigarettes.
“We tried to go to market two years ago and the deal fell apart at the last minute because of a series of decisions in tobacco-related lawsuits," Hall said. “But we think that by waiting and bringing Virginia’s good credit rating to the market, we were able to get an even better deal this time."
In this year’s sale, Virginia conservatively chose to securitize only 25 percent of its payments under the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement.
“Virginia is expected to receive a total of about $4 billion under the tobacco settlement and this is an effort to leverage at least a portion of that payment now, up front, so we don’t face the risk of a smaller or shorter payout due to possible changes in the settlement in the future."
The issue is composed of four maturities of tax-exempt term bonds.
The bonds were rated BBB by both Fitch Ratings and Standard & Poor’s.
Moody’s Investors Service gave a lower rating of Baa3, a notch above junk-bond status. Moody’s ratings are on review, with direction uncertain.

Motive For Explosives Cache Sought

Seeking Federal Charges Pending Tests Of Materials

From Staff And Wire Reports

More information is becoming available about the events surrounding the arrest of a North Carolina man found with automatic weapons and explosives in Turbeville last week.
Christopher F. Kent, 29, was arrested Thursday after Investigator Sheldon Jennings stopped so check on a 1997 Honda Accord stopped on the side of the road near Turbeville.
In a subsequent search, federal agents in Raleigh seized what they believe were six land mines from a storage unit leased by Kent, the former Fort Bragg soldier arrested last week for having homemade bombs and an assault rifle in his vehicle.
A search warrant made public Monday said the storage unit was one of two that contained explosives. The other unit was in Danville.
Kent told Jennings he had a gun in the glove box of the car and gave permission for the vehicle to be searched, according to police.
After the investigator reportedly saw a fuse for a homemade bomb on the floorboard, he obtained a search warrant and seized from the car an SKS assault rifle, a homemade bomb made with a plastic spice container, and a $149 kit to make 50 M-80s, according to a search warrant executed by a Raleigh-based agent with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
M-80s are illegal firecrackers.
On Friday, agents searched a storage unit in Raleigh after finding a receipt for it in Kent’s car. A business card in the Raleigh unit led investigators to the Danville unit.
Sheriff Jeff Oakes said agents found a rifle, various kinds of ammunition and more types of explosives in Danville.
ATF agents were trying to determine if the explosives were real, said Mike Campbell, ATF spokesman.
Kent is being held without bail in the Halifax Regional Jail on a felony charge of carrying a concealed weapon.
Federal charges are pending while agents await the results of the testing, Campbell said.
Authorities are not sure why Kent had the explosives, Campbell said.
After the traffic stop Thursday, Kent told Halifax County investigators that he collected guns.
He also said he was moving back to his home state, Oregon, and was headed to Danville to put things in a storage unit.
Survival equipment such as tents, food rations, sleeping bags, hunting items and materials used to start fires was found in the car.
‘‘There was every item you could think of to survive in the wilderness,’’ said Maj. Richard Pulliam of the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office.
Kent told investigators that he bought the M-80 kit at a gun show held in Raleigh May 7-8 and made his living selling items on the Internet, according to the warrant.
Kent gave Virginia authorities a Sherwood, Ore., address. But a neighbor of Kent’s address in Raleigh said Kent recently broke up with his girlfriend and had been staying in area hotels.
Records show Kent served in the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg from July 2000 to June 2001.
In Cumberland County, Kent was charged, convicted and fined in 2003 for two counts of carrying a concealed weapon, according to court records.

Summit Hopes To Open New Markets

Gathering At Berry Hill Seeks To Tie Southside To Port Of Hampton Roads

Approximately 70 economic development leaders from Southside and Southwest Virginia gathered at Berry Hill Plantation Resort yesterday and Monday to work out a solution to make the Port of Hampton Roads more accessible to the state’s industries.
“One of the Port Authority officials said today that no area has come up with a workable solution to address the transportation issues,” Del. Clarke Hogan, who sits on the Tobacco Commission, said yesterday.
Hogan said the group, while not making any concrete decisions, discussed ways to make the two regions more attractive to industries in terms of transportation costs.
“It’s about spreading the net of economic development,” he said. “You have to bring in a broad group of people to make an idea work.
“That’s what today was all about.”
Hogan said that the majority of the discussion centered around two critical needs in the transportation of goods.
“A lot of the plans have to do with the need to train more truck drivers,” he said. “We also need firms to concentrate on our trucking solutions in order to bring our transportation costs down. That will make the area more attractive (to industry).
“There are some things in place that make this port more attractive versus other ports shipping lines can use," Hogan added. “By using those advantages we’ve identified, we think we can lower the transportation costs substantially."
Carthan Currin, executive director of the Tobacco Commission, suggested the area could be an ideal location large distribution center because of its accessibility to a direct route to the port and lack of congestion.
“We are not that far away," he said. “Danville and South Boston are within a reasonable drive time using (Route) 58 to get to the port."
Currin suggested that the port’s marketing division could expose the two regions to a whole new set of businesses that “otherwise wouldn’t know about Southside or Southwest Virginia."
Former Governor Gerald Baliles was the keynote speaker at the event.
“He did an incredible job in taking some very complex subject matter, transportation and education," Currin said, “and how that intertwines with the global market."

Obituaries

John Henry McKinney

John Henry McKinney, 90, of Buffalo Junction, and husband of Rosetta Wallen McKinney died May 15 in Halifax Regional Hospital.
Mr. McKinney was a native of Halifax County and was a retired farmer.
Surviving in addition to his wife is a sister Mary Watts, of South Boston; and several nieces and nephews.
Funeral services for Mr. McKinney were held May 17 at 2 p.m. in Watkins Cooper L yon Funeral Home in Clarksville with Pastor Ray Bucklew officiating. Burial followed in Bluestone Cemetery.
You may express condolences at www.wclfh.com.

Jeffery Alan Polk

Jeffery Alan Polk, 20, of 1100 Third Street, South Boston, died May 16 at his home.
Mr. Polk was born April 13, 1985, in Ashland, Pa., and worked as a mechanic at Riverdale BP Station. He was a 2002 graduate of Halifax County Senior High School and was also a musician.
A memorial service will be held this evening, May 18, at 7:00, at Brooks Funeral Home Chapel with Jim Luedtke officiating. The family will receive friends after the memorial service.
Survivors include his mother, Paula Hamm Shoup, and his stepfather, Clifford Hertzog, both of South Boston; one sister, Audrey Joy Powell and her husband, Stacy, of Halifax County; his maternal grandmother, Lois G. Hamm of South Boston; his step-grandmother, Lorraine Lewis, of Alexandria; and several cousins. He was preceded in death by his maternal grandfather, Arthur L. Hamm.
Those wishing to give memorials are asked to consider Danville Humane Society, P.O. Box 3352, Danville, 24543.

Leila Dellinger Weaver

Leila Dellinger Weaver, 89, died May 12.
She was born in Gaston County, N.C., daughter of the late Beverly Lee and Margaret Dellinger.
Mrs. Weaver was also preceded in death by her husband, Clifford A. Weaver; three brothers, Charles, Marvin and Evan Dellinger; two sisters, Pearl McKinney and Litha Lester; and a great-grandchild, James Hall Jr. Her survivors include one brother, James Dellinger of Chase City; five children, Doris Powers, William Weaver, and Clifford Weaver, all of South Boston, Joyce Henderson and husband, Edward, of Richmond, and Nancy W. Baggett of Chesapeake; six grandchildren; 12 great-grandchildren; and eight great-great-grandchildren.
There will be no funeral service, her ashes will be taken to Dale Memorial Park in Richmond by her children where they will be placed to rest with her late husband.

Gracie Elizabeth Womack Landrum

Gracie Elizabeth Womack Landrum, 89, of 7168 Philpott Road, South Boston died May 17, at her home.
Mrs. Landrum was born August 15, 1915, in Halifax County the daughter of the late John R. Womack and the late Gracie Moore Womack and was married to the late Kermit Linwood Landrum. She was a member of Ingram Christian Church.
Survivors include one daughter, Jeanette L. Carter and husband, Aubrey, of South Boston; two brothers, Claude W. Womack and William Kenneth Womack, both of Halifax; two grandchildren, Michael Welcher and wife, Denise, of Virgilina and Ronald Welcher of Vernon Hill; two great-grandchildren, Jared and Whitney Welcher of Virgilina. Other than her parents and husband, Mrs. Landrum was preceded in death by one daughter and son-in-law, Jean L. and Calvin Welcher; two sisters, Virginia W. Davis and Wilsie W. McPeters; and two brothers, Clarence and Bernard Womack.
Graveside services will be held at Ingram Christian Church Cemetery tomorrow, May 19, at 4 p.m. with the Rev. Dr. Eddie Walker officiating.
The family is receiving friends at the home of her daughter and son-in-law, 7168 Philpott Road.
Those wishing to give memorials are asked to consider Ingram Christian Church. Online memorials may be directed to powell@gcronline.com.

Elijah Henry Carrington

Elijah Henry Carrington, 90, formerly of Turbeville, died May 15, at Parham Health Care Center in Richmond.
Mr. Carrington was born December 12, 1914, in Halifax County, the son of the late William Carrington and Addine Richardson Carrington. He was a farmer.
Survivors include a number of nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.
Funeral services will be held tomorrow, May 19, at 11 a.m. at Cross Roads Baptist Church in Turbeville. The Rev. Sylvester Crawley will officiate. Burial will follow in the church cemetery.
The family will receive friends this evening, May 18, from 6 to 7, at the church and other times at the home of Willie Carrington, 1163 Flint Rock Road, Turbeville.

 

HCHS Comets Varsity Softball Facing Big Week

Games Against Franklin County To Decide District Race

BY Doug Ford
G-V STAFF WRITER

The Comets varsity softball team is in the midst of its biggest week of the season, playing two games in three days against Franklin County to determine the regular season championship in the Western Valley District and an automatic berth in the Northwest Regional Tournament.
Both teams were 6-0 in district play entering last night’s game at Franklin County, with the rematch scheduled here tomorrow at 5 p.m. A split would result in a playoff game at a neutral site to determine both the number one seed in the upcoming district tournament and Northwest Region berth.
Comets coach Melanie Saunders said Monday that the team was preparing for the two crucial games the same way it has all season.
“We’re having the same practices we’ve had all year," began Saunders. “It’s basically mental for us, we’re right where we want to be physically."
The Comets have progressed throughout the season, both at the plate, on the mound and in the field, according to Saunders, and that has benefited them greatly to this point. Halifax currently has an 11-3 record.
“We’re playing good defense and the pitchers are working hard. With Beth [Throckmorton] out, Moo [Jessica Morris] and Jessie Lloyd have really been working hard and producing on the mound. We’re getting hits from people throughout the lineup and that’s a key right now."
The Comets have used its non-district schedule to prepare for the tough district games, and that formula has proven successful.
Two of the Comets’ losses came early in the season against a Tunstall team that won its district regular season title, and the other setback was against Amherst, another solid program. Halifax has also played and won two games against a respectable Heritage club.
“We wanted as tough a team as we could play in non-district games," noted Saunders. “The whole point is to give pitchers time on the mound in pressure situations, and we moved other people around to give them experience in different positions. Some infielders have moved to the outfield and some outfielders have moved to the infield.
“It’s all about getting experience, and if you get into a situation like what happened to Beth, people may have not been ready to come out, if not for what happened in non-district games," she explained.
The Comets have reached a comfort zone as a team coming down the stretch, playing one of its better overall games here last Friday in a 6-0 win over GW.
“Coming down the stretch, everyone is feeling comfortable where they are and it took those non-district games to get them there," said Saunders.
Saunders knows how tough it is to get a win at Franklin County, and that was the task facing her team last night.
“It’s always tough to win at Franklin County," said Saunders. “They have an awesome program in a great setting. The fans are very supportive and the stands are always full. It’s tough to come away with a win, and you have to be mentally tough.
“But, we’ve worked our way to get to this point, and I think we are mentally tough.
“We’re not changing anything we’re doing this week, it’s a tough week and we know it," she added. “But, that’s what this district is all about, we’ve worked hard to get here.
“Winning the GW game gave us a strong mental boost, and we’ll have our own fans at Franklin County.
“It will come down to who’s ready and who gets the hits at the right time ."

Burton Still On Top Of His Game As A Driver

South Boston’s Jeff Burton Says His Lack Of Success Has Had More To Do With Technology Than His Driving Ability

BY Joe Chandler
G-V STAFF WRITER

It wasn’t that many seasons ago that Jeff Burton was pegged as one of the certain contenders for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series title.
The championship didn’t come and Burton’s last couple of seasons at Roush Racing were not nearly as productive as he had hoped.
However, Burton, has seen an upward movement in his fortunes in this, his first full season with Richard Childress Racing. He has steadily worked his way up in the points standings and sits 18th in the points standings, 334 points out of the lead.
The South Boston native finished 16th in Saturday’s race at Richmond after having run in the top ten for much of the race. A mechanical problem put an end to his bid for a good night.
Burton appeared to be headed for a third consecutive top-10 finish at Darlington until tire troubles late in the race derailed that effort.
While he is not at the top of the ladder with one top-five finish and two top-ten finishes this season, Burton says he is a better driver today than he was when he was pegged as a title contender.
“If you ask me today can I drive as well as I did when I won seven races in a year or whatever it was, I’d say I drive a lot better today than I did then,” Burton said.
“There have been days that I’ve run 15th in the last three years and gotten out of my car and thought, ‘you know what, there’s only a few people in the world that could have done what I did today and finished 15th.’ People don’t understand that because when you watch a quarterback throw a football, you knew whether or not he threw it in the right place. You can’t watch a racecar driver and understand why he’s running 15th instead of winning.”
Burton said his recent lack of success has more to do with technology than his driving ability.
“What has happened to me and what has happened to my level of success going down has more to do with technology and the way we had success in the past compared to the way we have success today,” Burton said.
“In the past, with Buddy (his former Roush Racing crew chief Buddy Parrott) and myself and Frank Stoddard and Tony Liberati, we had a lot of good people. We’d sit down and we’d say ‘okay, what do you think, what do you think.’ I had to make the decision. The final decision was always mine every time. Today, you have to refer to the computers and engineers and it’s a much more complicated issue because the competition has had to do that.”
Burton said that when the No. 99 team at Roush Racing was built, he was the computer.
“I was the one that said this is what we need to do, this is how we need to do it because I can feel it,” Burton explained.
“For me to be successful in today’s environment, I have to have engineering support. I have to have more support behind me than I could when I was having success, and I didn’t adapt to that quick enough. I didn’t demand enough out of Jack (car owner Jack Roush). I didn’t demand enough and say, ‘Look, I have to have better this, I have to have better that, I can’t carry the load.’ I didn’t do that because I was trying to carry the load.”
Burton says that has changed now.
“Today, I’m saying to Richard (team owner Richard Childress) ‘I’ve got to have more help with engineering, I’ve got to have more help with this, I’ve got to have more help with that if we’re going to compete with Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon and Kurt Busch and all of those guys.’ That’s the difference.”
When asked if he was becoming more comfortable with the technology, Burton says that burden rests more on the shoulders of the crew chief and the team’s engineering department.
“I might be the one that’s raising my hand and says ‘look, I don’t think we have enough technology in this area’ but our engineering staff and our crew chiefs, those are the guys that need to be bringing the technology,” Burton said.
“It’s my role to tell them what the car is doing, to give them my ideas, to tell them what I see us having as weak points, give them ideas about how I think we need to fix those weak points.”
Burton pointed out that days of a driver telling a team how to build racecars are gone.
“The days are gone of a driver being able to say, ‘Look, I know we need a little more right front spring or a little more this, a little more that,’” Burton said.
“Today’s races are won with what you bring to the track. When you pull that gun out of that trailer, that thing has got to be loaded with some heavy-firing ammunition and it’s got to be ready to go. And. If it’s not, you can’t fix it at the racetrack anymore. That’s where technology comes in, and that’s not for the drivers to do. That’s for the engineering staff and everybody that’s in charge of that to do. That’s what different today from yesterday.”
Burton said perhaps the biggest surprise to people looking at Richard Childress Racing from the outside is the amount of technology the team has.
“I think Richard Childress Racing has a persona of being out in the middle of nowhere doing things the way they were done when Dale Earnhardt was at his peak," Burton said.
“I think people don’t understand the amount of technology and the amount of engineering support and the amount of tools that we have to work with in comparison to our competitors."
Burton says that Richard Childress Racing is on the right track when it comes to technology.
“When you get behind from a technological standpoint, there’s no immediate help coming," Burton pointed out.
“All you can do is grind it out, so to speak, in an effort to get to the point where you can be competitive enough to start gaining the technology. It’s an uphill battle all the way. That’s the biggest danger that you face, whether you’re doing well or not doing well, is being able to have technology so you can compete at the highest level.
“There are a lot of ways you get behind; you can not have enough cars, not have enough technology, not have enough money, and all of those things are different," he concluded.

JV Softball Drops Two At Home To FC

Comets Fall 7-4, 1-0 To Eagles

BY Doug Ford
G-V STAFF WRITER

The Comets jayvee softball team played well enough to defeat most teams in a doubleheader here Monday against Franklin County, but not quite well enough to overcome a strong Eagles squad, losing by 7-4 and 1-0 margins in the five-inning games.
The dual setbacks dropped the Comets jayvees to 6-2 in the Western Valley District and 9-4 overall.
Halifax had chances to win both games, giving up a 3-0 lead in game one, while late errors cost it a chance for a split in game two.
Amber Bowman and Emily New provided the offensive punch for Halifax in game one, each finishing with two hits and two RBI’s, Bowman with a double and triple, while Melissa Sims (double), Jessica Alderson and Liz Trickey each had a hit.
Tracy Spencer hurled the first four and two-thirds innings in game one, giving up three earned runs on nine hits, with one strikeout and one walk. New relieved for the final out of the fifth inning.
Game two was a pitcher’s duel between New and the Franklin County pitcher, New holding the Eagles to four hits, before two Comets errors in the bottom of the fifth plated the only run of the game.
New gave up no earned runs, while recording four strikeouts and two walks in game two. Kimberly Tuck had the only hit of the game for Halifax, that coming on a second-inning single.
Things just didn’t go the Comets way Monday night, particularly in the first game, according to coach Kirk Barnes.
“This was a very disappointing loss, but the good news is that we get to see them again this week. We didn’t play badly overall, and we showed heart in battling back at the end (game one), but some things just didn’t go our way tonight. We’re still proud of this team."
Franklin County 7, Halifax 4 (Game One)
Halifax held a 3-0 lead after two innings, but Franklin County rallied for three runs in the third to tie it, and four runs in the fifth to take the lead for good in game one.
It looked to be the Comets’ game early on, a leadoff double by Sims, a one-out RBI double by Bowman and a two-out RBI single by New giving Halifax a 2-0 lead.
Bowman added another RBI in the second inning, her two-out triple driving home Liz Trickey to make it 3-0. Trickey had singled and stolen second before Bowman’s hit.
The Eagles rallied to tie the game in the third, using three base hits and a Comets error to make it 3-3, before Halifax tried to break the tie in its at-bat.
Alderson singled in the bottom of the inning, New reached on a fielder’s choice and Allie Clem walked, but Halifax failed to score, leaving the door open for the Eagles’ winning rally in the fifth.
Three consecutive singles, a Comets error and a triple yielded four runs and a 7-3 lead for Franklin County, and a Halifax rally came up short in its last at-bat.
Shayna Oakes reached on an error after a fly ball, and stole second before New plated her with an RBI single to make it 7-4. Clem drew her second walk of the game, but a flyout and strikeout cut the rally short.
Franklin County 1, Halifax 0 (Game Two)
The Comets came out on the short end of a pitcher’s duel in game two, three Halifax errors in the bottom of the fifth leading to the only run of the game.
Each team squandered scoring opportunities before the pivotal fifth inning, the Comets stranding two base runners in the first after two-out walks to Bowman and Oakes. Tuck singled with two outs and Sarah Crews reached on an error in the second, but a groundout stymied that rally.
Oakes reached on a two-out error in the third and Janie Watkins reached on a walk in the fourth, but both were stranded on base without scoring.
The Eagles had base runners in the first, second and fourth innings, but the Comets held them scoreless before the crucial fifth inning, when a Franklin County batter reached base on a two-out error.
The next batter hit a bloop single, the Comets attempting but failing to get the runner at third, and a throw to second to try for the trailing runner skipped into right field, allowing the winning home to come home.
Comets coach Kevin Neal said Halifax had opportunities to score more runs in both games, but didn’t get key hits to push them across.
“We really had one tough inning tonight," said Neal. The Franklin County girls are good players and they showed it tonight. We had some opportunities to score runs, but just didn’t get it done, but we played pretty well overall."
The Comets jayvee softball team travels to Franklin County Friday for another double header, with the first game scheduled to begin at 6 p.m.