Wednesday, June 1, 2005

South Hill Resident Dabney Eastham Killed When Struck By Car Charges are pending following an accident Monday that claimed the life of a South Hill man, according to the South Boston Police Department. Chief Mick Reed said yesterday that just before 4 p.m. Monday, a 1996 Chevrolet Lumina operated by H.E. Mills, 75, of Chalmers Street, swerved to avoid a 2003 Chevrolet pickup. Police believe the pickup stopped in the roadway in order for the driver to retrieve debris that had fallen into the road. The driver of the pickup, identified by police as Dabney Eastham, 51, of Northington Street in South Hill, was struck by the Lumina as he was standing in the roadway. Reed said that the pickup was stopped in the left lane of Hamilton Boulevard and the Mills vehicle was traveling west. Police investigators believe Mills crossed into oncoming traffic as he was attempting to avoid the pickup. “The victim had stopped in the left lane of the road,” Reed said. “As he (Mills) approached the victim, we believe he crossed the double yellow line and struck the victim.” Eastham was transported to Halifax Regional Hospital, where he died as a result of his injuries, according to police. The details of the accident are still under investigation, according to the chief. Police don’t believe alcohol was a factor in the accident, Reed said. Lieutenant B.K. Lovelace and Senior Patrol Officer Larry Kozlik are conducting the investigation.

Body Of David Allen Gregg Found Monday In Wrecked Vehicle On Route 57 The body of a man listed as missing for more than four days was discovered Monday in an automobile that police believe ran off Route 57 and overturned, according to Sgt. D.O. Cooper of the Virginia State Police. Cooper said that two juveniles on their way to a fishing hole around 3:30 Monday discovered an overturned 1987 BMW containing the body of 58-year-old David Allen Gregg of Nathalie. The BMW was found lying on its roof under a bridge crossing Big Polecat Creek just west of Route 360. Cooper said police believe the vehicle ran off the left side of the roadway, down the left shoulder and past the bridge before striking an embankment and overturning under the bridge. According to the trooper, the vehicle’s position under the bridge made it impossible to see from the roadway. It is unclear if Gregg was wearing a seatbelt. According to reports, Gregg was last seen in his Nathalie home last Tuesday and was reported missing to the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office by family members on May 26. Police are continuing to investigate the accident, Cooper said.

 

F Company Plaque Unveiled In Bedford

Three of the five remaining F Company veterans were on hand Monday as a plaque was dedicated in their honor at the National D-Day Memorial in Bedford.
The dedication of the plaque marked a solemn Memorial Day ceremony that drew thousands and the attention of media outlets like the Discovery Channel and NBC.
“Dedicated in honor of all those who served in Company F by their families, friends and the grateful citizens of Halifax County and South Boston, Virginia, with deep appreciation for their sacrifice and commitment in serving our nation,” the plaque reads in part.
The full text of the plaque gives the reader some indication of the heroic measures undertaken by the county forces.
“Activated in South Boston, Virginia, Company F, under the command of Captain William R. Callahan, was one of four infantry companies to land at H-Hour, 0630, in the 116th Infantry’s first-wave assault on Omaha Beach. Its mission was to secure the Les Moulins beach exit and penetrate inland through the enemy’s defenses before turning west in an attack towards Vierville.
“Faring better than the assault landing craft (LCA) of other companies in the first wave, all six of F Company’s LCAs made it to shore, though the rough seas and heavy smoke from the Allied naval bombardment caused three of them to land in the Easy Green sector of Omaha Beach, just east of their designated landing area on Dog Red. As the LCAs dropped their ramps, the men of F Company began their assault on either side of the Les Moulins exit, with three sections to the left of the draw and three to the right. Having plunged into surf as deep as six feet, the sodden troops made for shore as best they could. German defenders responded with intense resistance from well-emplaced machine guns, mortars, and artillery batteries in the bluffs overlooking the beach.
“Lacking the concealment provided by the smoke, the three boat teams landing east of the draw took forty-five minutes to cross the several hundred meters of sand separating them from the relative safety of the seawall. Half became casualties in the process. The three teams to the west of the draw fared better, but the company commander and most of his officers had been killed or severely wounded. Unable to mount an attack in strength, the men of F Company responded to the long months of training they had undergone by forming ad hoc patrols to scout the area for suitable exits off the beach and likely positions they could use as strong points. Demonstrating fierce determination in spite of the defenders’ withering fire, hand grenades, and mines, those who could do it quit the safety of the seawall. Seizing the initiative, they scrambled up the bluffs to neutralize fortified pillboxes, penetrate the trench network, and secure the Les Moulins draw.
“Having successfully achieved the initial objective, a much diminished F Company linked up with elements of G Company to push inland across open fields and marshes, reaching St. Laurent by late afternoon. By nightfall, the company had sustained seventy-nine casualties, including twenty-six troopers killed. F Company’s unit decorations include the Presidential Unit Citation and French Croix de Guerre with Palm."
The plaque was made possible by $10,000 collected locally.

 

Brooks Funeral Home Charges Town Breached Agreement

The first of three Alive After 5 concert series scheduled in May and June violated an agreement Brooks Funeral Home had with the town, funeral home officials charged yesterday.
The concert, sponsored by the South Boston Jaycees and Destination Downtown on Thursday, May 26, was held at Constitution Square.
Two visitations were in progress at Brooks Funeral Home during the 6-10 p.m. concert, according to Kathy Brown, president/owner of Brooks.
An agreement with the town, prior to construction of the Constitution Square stage, called for music to be prohibited until the funeral or visitation is over, according to Brown.
Officials at Brooks said the town was contacted as soon as they were aware visitations were scheduled during the Alive After 5 concert.
South Boston Manager Ted Daniel said yesterday that he has never seen an agreement made in 1996, a date provided by Brown. “I am going to wait until they come to Town Council,” added Daniel. At that time Daniel said Town Council might comment.
Brooks Funeral Home officials said yesterday that ongoing concerts at the site could destroy their business.
“Families set their own funeral and visitation times,” explained Brown. “In 70 years of business in this location, we’ve never told families when to hold services and visitation and we are not going to start now.”
One family member commented she could hear the song “Staying Alive” inside the funeral home during the visitation, funeral home officials said yesterday.
“People in grief or more or less in shock, the music was blaring, vibrating the stained glass window in the chapel,” said Betty Jones, Brooks Funeral Home vice president.
“We are disheartened with the town because we trusted them to live up to their end of the bargain and they have not,” she added.
Funeral home officials say they agreed to work with the town during two of its annual events, Harvestfest and the Christmas parade.
“They were established by the town and we did not want to see them disrupted,” said Jones. “We agreed to that and we tell people we are working with the town on these two times.”
However, Jones said that Van Eimeren (Jerry Van Eimeren, executive director of Destination Downtown) told them that if these three were successful, plans were to have one every Friday night from May through September next year. “That would destroy our business, we could not do that,” she said.
Yesterday, Van Eimeren said that “based on the success of these events and the feed-back from the people, we would like to expand upon the concert series next year.” But, he added, the number of events is an unknown at this point.
“This was our first joint venture with the Jaycees,” said Van Eimeren. “It was our first DDSB major fund-raiser. On our part, the money goes to the restoration and revitalization of downtown South Boston.”
Van Eimeren said he received a call about noon on Tuesday of last week saying Brooks had booked a visitation on Thursday.
“When I found that out, I called her back that afternoon after lunch and set up an appointment,” recalled the Destination Downtown official. “Tamyra Vest, Wayne Fuller and I went down to ask for her help. We wanted to work with them and thought they would want to work with us.”
Van Eimeren said the event sought to provide entertainment and to promote growth downtown.
“We had provided Brooks Funeral Home on May 9 a notice that we had three concert series coming up in the hopes she could make families aware,” he added. “I don’t want to come across negative to anyone, particularly a family who is grieving. We made her aware and asked her if something came up to express alternatives to families.”
Van Eimeren said options were also discussed, but that relocating the event in such a short period of time was difficult, although Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday were spent seeking options.
Problems, he said, included ABC licensing and the band.
“The Prizery was back-up for rain, but they had rescheduled knowing good weather was forecast,” said Van Eimeren.
There were other obstacles.
“The Prizery can only hold around 380 due to fire code (limitations) and we had 630-plus attend the concert, “ said the DDSB official.
Van Eimeren said he told Brooks officials that they would work to seek a new location or have the band respond during visitations by reducing the volume. “And we left it at that.”
He said the two talked Wednesday afternoon and he told her “we had researched and we would certainly try to keep the music down, but would continue the concert in Constitution Square.
“I was informed she would exercise her contract to curtail music altogether between 6 and 9 p.m.,” said Van Eimeren. “I left it at that. I hoped we could work together. Didn’t know what else to do. That was where it was left.”
The Downtown Destination officials said there was only one visitation scheduled at the first meeting with Brooks and that a second one was scheduled after that.
“I was made aware of the situation on the Tuesday before the Thursday concert, that they would have a visitation on that night and we tried to find alternative locations to hold the event but could not find any area that was suitable for the anticipated crowd and that had the electrical capacity for the band,” said Brian Cheever, president of the Jaycees.
“We didn’t want to cause any inconvenience to the families,” said the Jaycees president. “The decision was not made by the Jaycees to have the event at Constitution Square after we were informed there was an issue with the funeral home.”
Cheever said he was told Wednesday morning that the town had resolved the issue.
“This was a fund-raiser for the causes Jaycees sponsor,” he said, which includes the Christmas Toy Drive for needy boys and girls and also the Jaycees’ scholarship fund.
“We don’t know,” said Cheever, when asked about the remaining two concerts scheduled at Constitution Square in June. “We will meet in the near future to discuss the issue.”

Obituaries

Earl Green Clark

Earl Green Clark, 84, of 1138 Love Shop Road, Halifax died May 27, at Danville Regional Medical Center.
Mr. Clark was born March 24, 1921, in Halifax County the son of the late Alpha Beta Clark and the late Flossie C. Clark, and was married to Mary Ann Ford Clark. He was a member of Dan River Baptist Church, a WW II Navy Veteran, a lifetime member of the Halifax County Rescue Squad, a lifetime member of American Legion Post 8, and the Halifax County Beekeepers Association.
Survivors include his wife; one son, Mark Ford Clark of South Boston; one daughter, Barbara Clark Cole, and husband, Michael E. Cole, of Halifax; two brothers, Harry W. Clark of Halifax and Allen Berkley Clark of Fallbrook, Calif.; one sister, Lois Inez Clark of Halifax; and two grandsons, Grant Michael Cole and Andrew Ford Cole, both of Halifax.
Funeral services for Mr. Clark were held at Dan River Baptist Church May 30, at 2 p.m. with the Rev. Doug Gibson officiating. Burial followed in the church cemetery with Military Rites.
Those wishing to give memorials are asked to consider Dan River Baptist Church Building Fund or Halifax County Rescue Squad. Online memorials may be directed to Powell@gcronline.com.

Dorothy Myers Comer

Dorothy Myers Comer, 78, of 2094 Lowery Road, South Boston died May 30, at Berry Hill Nursing Home.
Mrs. Comer was born in Pittsylvania County on August 9, 1926, and was married to the late Raymond G. Comer. She was a former CNA at Berry Hill Nursing Home, and was a member of North Fork Baptist Church.
Survivors include two stepdaughters, Primrose C. Cole and her husband, Jack, of South Boston, and Jerria Comer of Roxboro, N.C.; one stepson, Henry Randolph Comer and his wife, Sandra, of South Boston; a number of step-grandchildren; step-great-grandchildren, and step-great-great-grandchildren.
Funeral services for Mrs. Comer were held May 31, at 6 p.m. at North Fork Baptist Church with the Rev. Carl Hudson officiating. Burial followed in the church cemetery.

Dabney Hughes Eastham

Dabney Hughes Eastham, 51, of South Hill died May 30, at Halifax Regional Hospital.
Mr. Eastham was the son of the late Margaret and Dabney McGhee Eastham. He was a soil scientist for the Federal Government Department of Agriculture.
His survivors include his wife, Evangeline Williams Eastham; and her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Henry L. Williams; and two sons, Evan and Franklin Eastham of South Boston.
Funeral arrangements were incomplete at press time.

Theadore ‘Pap’ Younger

Theadore ‘Pap’ Younger, 67, of 2215 Meadville Road, Halifax died May 28, at his home.
Mr. Younger was born in Halifax County on December 25, 1937, the son of the late Herman Younger and Lou Fannie Crews Younger, and was married to the late Pattie Claiborne Younger. He was a member of Banister Hill CME Church in Meadville, was a retired employee of ABB, Inc. and for a number of years was a self-employed lawnmower repairman.
Survivors include one daughter, Beth Ann Younger of Richmond; three brothers, Thomas Younger and Gordon Younger, both of Halifax, and Herman Ray Younger of Oxford, N.C.; one sister, Inez Younger Powell of Halifax; and a number of other relatives and friends.
Funeral services for Mr. Younger will be held tomorrow, June 2, at 1 p.m. at County Line Baptist Church with the Rev. Dr. Otis R. Dillard officiating. Burial will follow in Banister Hill CME Church Cemetery.
The family is receiving friends at the home. Viewing will be today, June 1, from 10 a.m. until 8 p.m., at Crawford House Chapel in Halifax.

 

Comets Advance To NW Region Tourney Semifinals; Will Face Osbourn Tonight

Ryan Gieselman’s Seventh-Inning Homer Lifted HCHS To A 4-3 Win Over Albemarle Monday Night In Charlottesville

BY Joe Chandler
G-V STAFF WRITER

When Halifax County’s Ryan Gieselman saw the curve ball from Albemarle hurler Matt Durkin start to drift over the plate he knew it was a good one.
“It (the pitch) was right there," Gieselman said.
The Comets senior, the leadoff batter for the Comets in the top of the seventh inning, turned on the pitch and blasted it over the fence to break a 3-3 deadlock and put his team on top 4-3 with what would become the game-winning hit.
“I believe this was the first time in my life I’ve ever hit a curve ball for a home run," Gieselman said with a huge grin.
“I got it off the tank of the bat. I knew it was gone right off the bat."
Not only was it the first time that Gieselman had hit a curve ball for a home run, the round tripper was his first homer of the season.
“That was big right there," Gieselman said of the second of two hits he had in the game.
“I wanted to be able to come through and pick up the team like that. That’s what I wanted to do when I got up there (to the plate)."
The Comets held Albemarle at bay in the bottom of the inning to seal a 4-3 victory and propel the Comets into a Northwest Region Tournament semifinal game tonight against Osbourn High School of Manassas.
Game time tonight in Manassas is 6 p.m.
“These guys have played so well and they deserve this," said Comets coach Kelvin Davis.
“Everything just fell into place for us tonight. These guys have really worked their butts off for me all season. To see them go one game after game is really pleasing."
The Comets, who had lived largely by playing “small ball" this season, used the long ball to stay alive in the Northwest Region tournament quarterfinal game. Halifax had two home runs that accounted for three of its four runs in the game with Blake Waller’s two-run shot in the fourth inning preceding Gieselman’s long ball in the final inning.
“These guys are seeing the ball really well now," Davis pointed out.
“ If a pitcher makes a mistake these guys are going to let him know it. That’s what happened with Gieselman and Blake. They’ve been seeing the baseball really well."
Halifax County broke open the scoreless game in the top of the fourth inning with Jeremy Jeffress, the leadoff batter in the inning, starting the inning with a single. He moved to second base when Chris Perkins grounded out and advanced to third base on a wild pitch.
Clyde Brooks plated Jeffress with a one-out single and Blake Waller followed with a two-run homer to put the Comets up 3-0.
Albemarle tied the game with three runs in the bottom of the fifth inning with the aid of two walks, two hits and a pair of untimely errors that spoiled what had been a solid performance from Comets pitcher Tyler Clarke.
Clarke had fanned five batters and yielded only two hits and two walks through four innings.
“I can’t say enough about Tyler’s performance," said Davis.
“ If we had made a couple of defensive plays behind him, we’d have been out of the inning and Tyler would have still been pitching at the end of the game."
With three runs in and two runners on base with one out, Davis brought Jeffress to the mound. Jeffress and the Comets retired the next two batters to get out of the inning.
Jeffress finished the game for the Comets, striking out five of the seven batters he would face the rest of the way. In all, he struck out six of the nine batters he faced.
While the Comets got the timely hitting and pitching pitching it needed, they also came up with some timely plays on defense, none bigger than a double play that got them out of a sticky situation in the second inning
The Patriots’ leadoff batter in the inning, Eric Robertson, walked and moved to second base on a groundout by Durkin. Mickey White laced a base hit to centerfield where Waller fielded the ball and made a perfect throw to catcher Ryland Clark who tagged out Durkin’s pinch runner, Justin Matthews, who trying to score from second base.
While that was going on, White took off for second base. That didn’t work either as Clark made a perfect throw to Justin Armistead at second base to nail White and end the inning and the Albemarle threat.

 

Halifax Comets Varsity Girls Softball Falls Short In Regional Appearance

Halifax Gets Only Two Hits In 3-0 Loss To Gar-Field

BY Doug Ford
G-V STAFF WRITER

The Comets varsity girls softball team used a combination of offensive execution, timely hitting and solid defense this season to capture its first Western Valley District championship since 2001.
Unfortunately, Halifax brought only part of that winning formula to Monday’s Northwest Region Tournament game here against Cardinal District runnerup Gar-Field, the Comets held to only two hits in a 3-0 loss that ended its season. Halifax finished its season with a 13-6 record.
The Western Valley District was 0-2 in Northwest Region games Monday, regular season winner Franklin County losing at C.D. Hylton 10-4.
Lori Reeves and Tracy Nelson got the two hits for the Comets against Gar-Field, Reeves a two-out base hit in the fourth inning and Nelson a seventh-inning single. Nelson’s base hit began a last-ditch rally that saw the Comets load the bases with two outs, before a strikeout ended the game.
Gar-Field, on the other hand, had eight hits on the day, four of them coming in a two-run fourth inning, and three more in the sixth, when the Indians plated their final run.
That was what the Comets had been doing before yesterday, but they could never get their bats moving against Gar-Field the way they had in two district tournament wins, according to coach Melanie Saunders.
“They [Gar-Field] had a couple of hits with base runners on, put down bunts when they needed them, and we had some situations where we tried to do that. But, it just wasn’t our day, and it didn’t happen for us."
Monday’s game was scoreless through three innings, the Comets having the only base runner, that coming in the first inning, when a sharply-hit ground ball by Amanda Rogers was mishandled by Gar-Field.
That put Rogers at first base with one out, but a flyout and strikeout stranded her there.
The Comets didn’t have another base runner until the bottom of the fourth, Gar-Field having scored two runs on four hits in the top of the inning to take the lead.
The Indians used a one-out bunt single and triple to plate the first run of the game. Three more singles plated another run for Gar-Field, but the Comets used a 1-2-3 double play to stop the rally. With the bases loaded, Halifax pitcher Moo Morris scooped up a ground ball, and threw to home for the second out, and catcher Nelson fired to Mallory Lawter at first to get the Comets out of trouble.
Morris pitched the first five and two thirds innings of Monday’s game, finishing with four strikeouts and no walks, before Jessie Lloyd came on to pitch the final one and one-third inning.
Halifax fought back in the bottom of the inning, Nelson drawing a two-out walk to get the Comets going. Reeves followed with her base hit to put runners on first and third, but a groundout stranded both runners to keep the deficit at two runs.
Halifax got out of a two-on, two-out situation in the top of the fifth inning, and Cari Clark was staranded after reaching base on an error in the bottom of the fifth, before Gar-Field added its final run in the top of the sixth inning, using an error and three hits.
The Comets, however, were not done yet, rallying in its last at-bat.
Nelson led off the bottom of the seventh with a base hit. Reeves and Key Ferrell reached base on fielder’s choices, and Clark and Mallory Lawter walked to load the bases with two outs, but a strikeout ended the game.
The Comets’ off-day at the plate was frustrating for Saunders, especially considering the team’s offensive production the past two games.
“You can’t take anything away from Gar-Field, but they’re not the strongest team we’ve seen this year," noted Saunders. “So, it’s a little frustrating to get beaten by a team you’re capable of beating.
“We just didn’t hit as well as we did against GW and Patrick Henry, and we could never get the momentum going our way," said Saunders.
Monday’s loss may have been difficult to take in the short term, but the Comets accomplished a great deal in reaching that point, according to Saunders.
“This doesn’t take anything away from this season and these kids to get to this point," she began, noting the Amherst game (6-5 loss) as a turning point.
“We turned it around and started playing together after that. We canceled practice the next day, just sat around and aired out some things. We talked about what makes a championship team, that it wasn’t about the individual but about the team.
Saunders said a lot of people may have doubted her team’s resiliency when hurler Beth Throckmorton was lost for the year, adding this group of Comets responded to that challenge in a big way.
“A lot of people thought we were done when Beth went out, but the pitchers, the defense and the bats showed what they have," said Saunders. “We stepped it up, got behind the pitchers, and got aggressive in the batter’s box. A lot of things happened this year to try and knock us back, but we kept fighting and fighting.
“I’m real proud of this team and the seniors. Most of them have been with me for three years and it’s hard to say goodbye. The underclassmen looked to them, and I think that after the Amherst loss they realized how much the seniors cared about them and this team."
Saunders emphasized the Comets’ cupboard is not necessarily bare, despite the loss of seniors Rogers, Nelson, Clark, Reeves, Lawter and Jessica Lewis.
We’re losing a lot of leadership, but you know what, we have some underclassmen who have been with us for two years. They know they have to step up next year and take that leadership role, and they can do it.
“I’m happy overall. Of course, I would have liked for us to win this game, but as a whole you have to look back and see how hard we fought to get here."

 

Ten Comets Softball Players Named To All-WV District Team

Nelson, Reeves, Parker, Throckmorton, Davis First-Team Selections

BY Doug Ford
G-V STAFF WRITER

The Halifax County High School varsity softball team, newly crowned Western Valley District Champions, capped an outstanding 2005 season with ten players named to the All-Western Valley District team announced Monday.
Five Comets were First-Team selections, including senior catcher Tracy Nelson, junior outfielder Jasmine Parker, junior pitcher Beth Throckmorton and freshman infielder Lashunda Davis. Comets senior and designated hitter Lori Reeves was named to the First Team as a utility player.
Three Comets infielders were All-Western Valley District Second-Team selections, including seniors Mallory Lawter and Amanda Rogers, along with sophomore Key Ferrell.
Junior pitcher Jessica “Moo” Morris was also a All-Western Valley District Second Team selection, as was senior outfielder Cari Clark.
Franklin County, which finished the regular season with an 8-0 record in the district, also placed 10 players on the All-Western Valley District Squad, including First-Team catcher Lauren Thurman, who was named Player of the Year.
GW-Danville had nine players make the All-District team, Patrick Henry had six, while E.C. Glass placed five players on the team.