ABB Construction In Full Swing

“We haven’t run into any major problems yet,” replied Halifax County Industrial Development Authority Executive Director Mike Eades when asked about construction at the South Boston ABB plant. “Everything seems to be progressing nicely,” he added.
Motorists traveling on U.S. 58 cannot help but notice the activity going on at the South Boston ABB plant. Construction on the addition began in earnest in mid-April and is expected to be completed in late February or early March, according to Eades.
Construction is progressing at the site of the old ABB parking lot. “The first thing we had to do was construct a new parking lot on the right front of the building,” Eades said.
The cost to the IDA is $16,263,174, not including ABB’s equipment, for the approximately 90,000-square-foot addition. “That amount includes the site, building, water, sewer, and the cranes used in the construction,” Eades said, “we (the IDA) already own the land.”
The cost of those cranes used in the construction is $1,429,370. “The IDA will own the cranes, and they will be used by ABB after construction is complete,” Eades said.
“The cranes will stay with the building if ABB ever moves out,” he added. “It’s easier to find a tenant for the building with the cranes already in place.”
“Right now, we’re grading and doing foundation work,” the IDA director said. “We’re on schedule and under budget, and that’s a good place to be,” he added.
In other business, the IDA is preparing to make recommendations to select a contractor for the demolition of the former Georgia-Pacific plant on Plywood Trail.
Bids have been submitted to the IDA, according to Eades, and final approval must be made by the Halifax County Board of Supervisors.
“We’ve budgeted $1,040,000 for the demolition,” Eades said. “Hopefully it’ll be a little less than that.”
Eades added that the IDA put out requests for a base-bid to demolish the plant building and four alternate bids to demolish other structures on the property and remove the concrete and asphalt.
“We’re definitely removing the building and as many of the other structures as the budget allows,” Eades said.
“If we don’t remove the concrete or asphalt, it’s not so bad. A prospective tenant may like the idea of not having to pay for new concrete and asphalt,” he explained.
The Board of Supervisors is expected to approve a contractor for the demolition at its Aug. 6 meeting.

Warner To Visit SVHEC Tuesday
Former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner will visit the Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) Tuesday to discuss broadband deployment in Southside Virginia.
He will be joined by local officials and broadband advocates.
“He has asked expressly that we invite elected officials and other community leaders who might provide him with input on how he can help us in Southern Virginia - specifically on the broadband last mile issues,” said an SVHEC spokesman
“We here at the Center, along with the Tobacco Commission and the Mid-Atlantic Broadband Board, have wanted for some time to get a resolution of the last mile connection so small businesses and public schools across the region are connected to each other in a private broadband network and to the outside Internet world,” W.W. “Ted” Bennett, executive director of the SVHEC, said yesterday.
“And with the help of Del. Clarke Hogan, the chairman of the technology committee of the Tobacco Commission, Gov. Timothy M. Kaine and former Gov. Warner, we’ve been able to retain the services of Dr. Ted Rappaport from the University of Texas and formerly of Virginia Tech, a world recognized authority on wireless communications technology and science who has been hired to help us starting off here in Southern Virginia and then the rest of the state under Gov. Warner’s leadership on the “Last Mile Commission” established by Kaine. “We hope to get this last mile issue resolved and funded,” added the executive director.
Bennett said that Dr. Rappaport will be working out of Southern Virginia and living in Chatham.
“He will be here Tuesday,” added Bennett. “We have set up a Southern Virginia working committee with Dr. Rappaport to commence our work on this last mile resolution. Gov Warner is here to talk briefly about that effort and its importance.”
Warner will tour the Higher Education Center at 10:30 a.m. and meet with elected officials and broadband advocates at 11 a.m.
The former governor was recently appointed by Kaine to co-chair, along with Secretary of Technology Aneesh Chopra, a broadband roundtable tasked with developing a “last-mile” telecommunications blueprint for advancing Kaine’s goal of ensuring broadband access for every Virginia business.

Man Injured In Motorcycle Crash

An 18-year-old Brookneal man sustained serious injuries Friday night when he crashed his motorcycle in the northwestern part of Halifax County.
According to Virginia State Trooper D.J. Cline, William Scott Leigh was injured when he apparently locked the brakes of his 2006 Suzuki GSX-750. Cline said the motorcycle struck several small trees and then hit a large tree.
The crash occurred at approximately 7:35 p.m. on Route 639, three-fourths of a mile east of Route 670.
Cline said that Leigh was transported from the site to Halifax Regional Hospital and then airlifted to the Duke University Medical Center for treatment of his injuries.
Efforts to contact Duke Medical Center Sunday to learn Leigh’s condition were unsuccessful at press time.
Cline estimated damages to the motorcycle at $6,000. Charges are pending further investigation.

Obituaries

Nannie Roberta Womack McCargo
A funeral for Nannie Roberta Womack McCargo will be held today at noon at the Crawford House Chapel with Minister Cathy McCargo officiating.
Burial will follow in the Peaceful Tabernacle Baptist Church Cemetery.
Family will receive friends at the residence, 2085 MacDonald Road, Scottsburg.
Mrs. McCargo, 76, died Wednesday, July 11, at South Boston Manor.
She was born in Halifax County on March 5, 1931, the daughter of the late Theodore Womack and Willie Medley Womack and was married to the late James L. McCargo Sr.
Mrs. McCargo was a member of Peaceful Tabernacle Baptist Church.
She is survived by three daughters, Dorothy McCargo Freeman of Apple Valley, Minn., Annette Coleman of Chesapeake and Willie McCargo Freeman of Suffolk; three sons, James McCargo Jr. of Laurel, Md., Calvin McCargo of Qatar, and Roosevelt Davis McCargo of Charleston, S.C.; 11 grandchildren; a sister, Thalia McCargo, a brother, Wilfred Lee Womack, two sons-in-law, three daughters-in-law, two sisters-in-law, a brother-in-law, a special daughter, Minster Cathy McCargo and a host of nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.

Herbert Hoover Miller
A funeral for Herbert Hoover Miller will be held today at 3 p.m. at Greater Mayfield Apostolic Church with Elder Bernard Wilkins officiating.
Burial will follow in the Oak Ridge Cemetery.
The family will receive friends at the residence, 126 Robin Hood Road in South Boston.
Mr. Miller, 78, died Wednesday, July 11, at the Woodview Nursing Home.
He was born in Halifax County on February 6, 1929, to the late Jack Miller and Nezzy Miller and was married to Daisy Edmounds Miller.
In addition to his wife, Mr. Miller is survived by eight daughters, Barbara Judge of New York, Francis Harris of the home, Louise Robertson of Richmond, Lisa Miller, Natalie Miller and Eliza Miller, all of Hackensack, N.J., Alice Miller and Niomi Miller, both of South Boston; three sons, Herbert Miller Jr., David Miller and Herman Miller, all of South Boston; two brothers, Pete Miller of Lynchburg and James Miller of Halifax; four sisters, Louise Williams of Ohio, Flossie Edmonds of Bridgeport, Conn., Beatrice Edmonds of Baltimore and Vernell Miller of South Boston; a daughter-in-law, two sons-in-law, 19 grandchildren, six great-grandchildren, a sister-in-law, and a host of nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.

Harold Allen Puryear
Harold Allen Puryear, 82, of South Boston, VA and Raleigh, NC died peacefully Saturday, July 14, 2007 with his family by his side.
Harold is survived by his wife of 59 years, Ola Whitt Puryear, his son Donnie Puryear and wife Carol; his son Andy Puryear and fiancée, Helen Lewis; and three grandchildren, Traci Puryear, Ashley Puryear, and Donnie Puryear II.
Harold was a veteran of the United States Army, proudly serving in World War II, seeing 401 days of combat in Italy, France, and Germany. He remained a member of the American Legion in South Boston Virginia and a member of the VFW in Halifax, VA.
In 1959, he established Harold A. Puryear Trucking Company, which has grown into one of the largest trucking companies in Raleigh, North Carolina.
His passion, in addition to trucking, was auto racing. He had a great love for people and he never met a stranger. He was greatly admired and will be missed by many.
Family will receive friends on Tuesday evening from 7-9 PM at Mitchell Funeral Home (7209 Glenwood Avenue.) Funeral Services will be held on Wednesday at 2 PM at the Shady Grove Methodist Church in South Boston, VA. Interment, with military honors will follow in the church cemetery.
Arrangements with Mitchell Funeral Home in Raleigh and Brooks Funeral Home in South Boston, VA.

South Boston Wins Dixie Majors State Tourney Opener

By Joe Chandler
Sports Editor
The South Boston-Halifax County Dixie Majors all-star team showed its explosiveness early in the Virginia Dixie Majors State Tournament.
Using a pair of first-inning home runs to fuel a five-run rally, South Boston cruised to an easy 13-2 win over Timberlake Saturday in the first round of the double elimination state tournament.
The win over Timberlake set up a match-up last night between South Boston and Goochland. Goochland, a team said to have three Division I college baseball prospects, advanced to the winner’s bracket with a 7-6 win Saturday over Smyth County-Marion.
Charlotte County also made its way into the winner’s bracket with an opening-round 10-5 win over Bedford Central. With that win, Charlotte County advances to tonight’s winner’s bracket contest where it will face the winner of last night’s South Boston-Goochland contest.
Tournament officials seeded all six participating teams for Saturday’s opening round based upon the results of Round Robin pool play on Friday.
Goochland ended up as the top seed with Charlotte County as the second seed and South Boston as the third seed.
South Boston split its pair of Friday games, downing Smyth County 7-2 and falling to Charlotte County 4-3 in a nail-biter.
In Saturday’s game against Timberlake, South Boston punished its opponents with 20 hits with Billy Joe Garrett, Patrick Currie, Jacob Vest and Michael Ferrell each getting three hits.
Bobby Owens, Jeremy Foster and Bret Lewis had two hits each and Matt Conner and David Clark had one hit.
South Boston started the game in a big way with a single from Owens. A single from Garrett moved Owens to second base. Currie reached base on a fielder’s choice that saw Timberlake erase Garrett for the first out.
Foster came through the first blow, a three-run homer to put South Boston up 3-0. Lewis followed it up with a solo homer to make it a 4-0 South Boston lead. Conner reached base on a hit and later scored on a hit from Ferrell to put South Boston up 5-0.
A two-run homer by Rodney Fitzgerald in the bottom of the first inning allowed Timberlake to cut its deficit to three runs at 5-2.
Garrett added another run for South Boston in the second inning when he kicked off the inning with a hit and scored when Lewis reached base on an error.
Two runs in the third inning put South Boston up 8-2. Three runs in the fifth inning and two more runs in the seventh inning completed the scoring in the 13-2 win.
Vest had a good outing on the mound, fanning seven batters and yielding six scattered hits.
Charlotte County 4
South Boston 3
South Boston split its pair of games in Friday’s Round Robin pool play to determine the seedings for the double elimination tournament that began Saturday.
Following a 7-2 win over Smyth County, South Boston lost 4-3 to Charlotte County in Friday’s nightcap.
Charlotte County opened with two runs in the top of the first inning with Brandon Madison being hit by a pitch with two out and Tyler Napier following with a two-run homer that put the visitors up 2-0.
South Boston tied the game in the bottom of the second inning when Conner led off with a walk. Ferrell came in as a pinch runner and stole second base. He scored on a double to centerfield by Jacob Vest to make it a 2-1 score.
David Clark entered the game as a pinch runner for Vest and scored on a single from Joey Rogers to tie the game at 2-2.
Charlotte County regained the lead in the top of the fourth inning. With two out and the bases loaded, Sam Catron, who had reached base on an error earlier in the inning, scored on a passed ball to put Charlotte County up 4-3.
The visitors scored again in the top of the sixth inning when Catron opened the inning with a single and Nash Baker reached base on a walk. Pinch hitter Walter Mickey reached base on a South Boston error that allowed Catron to score from second base to make it a 4-2 score.
South Boston picked up a run in the bottom of the sixth inning but it was too little too late.
Ferrell walked with one out and moved to third base on a two-out single from Garrett. Ferrell scored when Currie reached base on an error, a play that put runners at first base and third base for South Boston.
Currie stole second base to put two runners in scoring position for South Boston. The inning and the game ended for South Boston with Jeremy Foster going down on strikes.
Charlotte County had five hits in the game with Napier, Josh Haskins, Catron, Zack Guthrie and Daniel Hill each getting a hit.
The visitors also received five walks from the three South Boston pitchers and took advantage of two South Boston errors.
South Boston had three hits, one each from Vest, Rogers and Garrett. The tournament host team also took advantage of nine walks allowed by Charlotte County hurlers and one Charlotte County error.
South Boston 7 Smyth County 2
It was South Boston all the way in the host team’s opening game of the night against Smyth County. South Boston jumped on top in the first inning when Owens singled, stole second base and scored on a single by Currie.
Holding a 1-0 lead, South Boston scored two runs in the second inning to go up 3-0. Clark, who had reached base on a fielder’s choice and Ferrell who had reached base on a walk, scored in the inning to put South Boston up by a three-run margin.
A two-run homer by Foster in the bottom of the third inning gave South Boston more breathing room and upped his team’s lead to 5-0. Foster’s homer plated Currie who had reached base with a single.
Smyth County rallied for two runs in the bottom of the third inning. Garron Compton reached base with a walk and later scored on a single from Duran Carson. A single later in the inning from Timmy Whisman scored Carson to make it a 5-2 game.
South Boston added two insurance runs in the top of the fourth inning when Ferrell reached base with a single, stole second base and scored on a two-run homer by Garrett that made the eventual final 7-2 score.
The game was a good one for South Boston on the offensive end with South Boston getting nine hits. Garrett, Currie and Ferrell had two hits each with Owens, Foster and Ryan Enoch each getting a hit.
Smyth County had four hits with Whisman getting two hits and Carson and Jared Surber each getting one hit.
South Boston’s hurlers yielded four walks and the team committed three errors in the game.

Pre-Majors Rally To Top Mecklenburg

By Doug Ford
G-V Staff Writer
Aaron Mitchell slugged a two-out bases loaded double in the bottom of the seventh inning to cap a four-run rally and give the Halifax County Pre-Majors all-stars a 6-5 win over Mecklenburg County Saturday night.
Halifax, seeded six after going 0-2 in pool play on Friday, played Appomattox Sunday in the second round of the double elimination tournament.
Appomattox was a 8-1 winner over Carroll County earlier Saturday, setting up an elimination game yesterday between Mecklenburg and Carroll counties.
Halifax had led 2-0 after one inning and held that advantage before Mecklenburg tied the game with single runs in the second and fifth innings.
Mecklenburg rallied again in the top of the seventh with a RBI double from Chase Averette and two-run homer from Brad Weston, before Halifax staged its comeback in the bottom of the inning.
Sam Lantor hit a leadoff single and went to second on Markee Brooks’ groundout, scoring on a RBI single by Patches Trent to make it 5-3.
E.C. Collins flyed out to deep center field, but Bill Wooding singled to put runners at second and third, before John Nichols drew a walk to load the bases.
Josh Hudson drew a walk to plate one run, before Mitchell smacked a double down the right field line into the corner to score the game-winning runs.
Halifax took a 2-0 lead after one inning, with Collins hitting a leadoff single, and pinch runner Deion Lipscomb stealing second, before back-to-back doubles by Wooding and Nichols.
Halifax had only five base runners from the second through the sixth innings, Trent and Nichols walking in the third, and Lantor hitting a double in the fourth, while Trent hit a single and Wooding drew a walk in the fifth.
Mecklenburg cut the deficit in half in the top of the second, on a double by Weston and singles by Zach Moran and D.J. DeSantis, and tied the game in the fifth when Will Seate hit a leadoff single, and Casey Helmick reached base on a fielder’s choice, before scoring after a walk to Averette and two-out hit by Chris Overton.
Helmick reached second base on a Halifax fielding error and Averette doubled him home in the top of the seventh to give Mecklenburg a one-run lead, before Weston’s home run over the left field fence made it 5-2.
That set up the four-run rally by Halifax in the bottom of the seventh.
Collins started the game on the mound and went the distance against Mecklenburg, striking out seven batters and walking one.
Overton started the game for Mecklenburg and pitched six and two-thirds innings, before being relieved by Averette.
Overton struck out five and walked four batters, while Averette walked one batter.
Mecklenburg County 3 Halifax County 0
Halifax County managed only two hits off Mecklenburg pitching and fell to 0-2 in pool play with a 3-0 loss.
Hudson and Mitchell had base hits for Halifax, Hudson a single in the third and Mitchell a single in the sixth.
Mecklenburg broke on top with two first-inning runs on a single by Averette, walk to Overton and hit by Weston, and added its final run in the third inning on a leadoff single by Overton, walk to Dylan Novitske, a sacrifice fly by Moran and single by DeSantis.
Halifax got out of a bases loaded jam in the fourth inning, and tried to rally in the sixth, Collins reaching base on a passed ball after striking out.
A line drive out helped produce a double play for Mecklenburg, but Wooding reached second on an error and passed ball and Nichols walked.
Mitchell singled, but Wooding was caught in a rundown between third and home for the final out of the game.
Overton, Averette and Jacob Moore each pitched two innings for Mecklenburg in the game, finishing with a combined three strikeouts.
Brooks, Nichols and Michael Puryear each hurled two innings for Halifax County, the trio combining for seven strikeouts.
Carroll County 7 Halifax County 6
Halifax County led 5-3 after four innings and 6-3 after the top of the sixth, but Carroll County used a controversial call on a double down the third base line to help tie the score in the fifth and won the game in the sixth inning.
Halifax County finished with seven hits for the game, including two singles by Collins, a double by John Nichols, and base hits by Wooding, Trent, Cody Lewis, Deion Lipscomb and Chris Hunt.
It was 2-1 after one inning, Trent reaching on an error and stealing second before Wooding’s base hit put runners on the corners. Nichols hit a RBI double and Lantor reached on an error to load the bases before Wooding scored on a passed ball.
A Halifax walk, error and base hit pulled Carroll County to within 2-1 after one inning, and a walk, base hit, error and fielder’s choice tied the game for Carroll County in the third.
Lipscomb singled, Cody Thomas was hit by a pitch and Collins singled in the top of the fourth before a Trent single, Wooding walk and wild pitch made it 5-2 in favor of Halifax.
Carroll County got a leadoff double, wild pitch and run-scoring groundout to make it 5-3 after four, and Halifax added its final run in the top of the fifth to make it 6-3.
Lewis hit a leadoff single, and pinch runner Lantor went to second on a wild pitch and third on a groundout before scoring on a passed ball.
Carroll County used a single, error on an attempted force at second and a walk to load the bases in the bottom of the fifth, with a walk scoring one run.
A hard-hit ground ball down the third base line was ruled fair, scoring the two runs that tied the game, and Carroll County scored the winning run an inning later on a walk, base hit, walk and passed ball on an attempted bunt.
Hudson started the game on the mound for Halifax County, pitching two innings before giving way to Lipscomb in the third inning.
Puryear came to the mound in the bottom of the fifth and Nichols in the sixth for Halifax County, the foursome combining for six strikeouts.
Alex Ousley, Adam Crotts, Brett Anaou and Matthew Fink combined to pitch the game for Carroll County, combining for five strikeouts.

American Belles To Play For State Title

By Doug Ford
G-V Staff Writer
The Halifax American Belles will play for the Dixie Softball State Tournament title, despite a 4-0 loss to Clarksville on Sunday.
American, which won its first three games of, drew a bye and will play the winner of the Clarksville-Appomattox contest Tuesday, with the winner traveling to Marianna, Fl., July 27 for the Dixie Softball Belles World Series.
American routed Clarksville 10-2 on Friday and followed that up with two wins on Saturday, including a 4-2 win over Bedford Eastern and a close 4-3 win over Appomattox, before the loss to Clarksville on Sunday.
Caitlin Lawhorn went two-for-two at the plate, while Spencer Johanna Spencer and Sara Stewart each had a hit against Clarksville on Sunday.
Dalyn Hall pitched the first three innings for American, giving up no hits and no runs, while Kate Bane hurled the next three frames and Jennifer Lacks the seventh and final inning.
Halifax American 4
Appomattox 3
Spencer went two-for-three, including a double in the sixth inning, finishing with two RBIs, and Christine DeGeorgis saved two runs with a sliding catch in the outfield in American’s win over Appomattox.
Lawhorn went one-for-two, including a double in the fifth inning, and had one RBI, while Hall had with another RBI.
Stewart went one-for-three at the plate, while pitching the first three innings for American, allowing one run on two hits, while striking out five batters.
Bane hurled innings four through six and Lacks pitched the seventh and final frame for American.
DeGeorgis saved two runs and perhaps the game for American in the third inning, making a sliding catch in the gap for the third out of the third inning to save two runs.
Bane also contributed a key defensive play for American, snaring a hard-hit line drive at first base in the seventh inning.
Halifax American 4 Bedford Eastern 2
Lawhorn and Sharilyn Walton each finished one for two with a double and an RBI, Lawhorn driving in her run in the fourth inning, while DeGeorgis, Lacks and Bane each went one-for-three in the American win over Bedford Eastern.
Halifax American used three pitchers in the game, Hall starting the contest and hurling the first three innings, before Bane came on to pitch innings four through six.
Lacks again pitched the seventh and final frame for American, which played error-free defense in support of its pitching.
American third baseman Walton had nine putouts playing the hot corner against Bedford Eastern.
Halifax American 10 Clarksville 2
Spencer slammed a home run in the third inning and accounted for three RBIs as American started the tournament with a big win over Clarksville.
Lacks went two-for-three, including a double in the sixth inning, and Hall was also two-for-three, each driving in a pair of runs for American.
Bane went a perfect three-for-three with an RBI, Stewart one-for-two with a RBI and Lawhorn one-for-three with an RBI.
DeGeorgis also had a good day, going two-for-three at the plate, including a double in the first inning to get things started for her team.
Hall got the nod on the mound to start the game, hurling the first three innings, and Bane came on to pitch innings four, five and six, facing only three batters each inning.
Kisha Crowder finished the game with one inning of work on the mound, allowing one hit and no runs while facing five batters in the seventh inning.