Two More Arrested In Operation Cold Turkey

Two Person County men are being held in the Person County Jail as part of Operation Cold Turkey, according to Captain Larry Fears of the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office.
Fears said the two suspects, Samuel Roland Clay, 22, and Gary James Maxwell Jr., 20, were arrested Tuesday on fugitive from justice warrants by Investigator A.J. Weaver and Sergeant D.R. Harrison of the Person County Sheriff’s Department.
Felony indictments on the two men, in addition to other suspects rounded up earlier, had been handed down by Halifax County Circuit Court on June 11, Fears said.
Investigator J.D. Clay received information that Clay and Maxwell were in Person County, Fears said. The two had been indicted for the March break-in of the Alton residence of Mary Farley, Fears added. A total of six firearms were reportedly stolen from Farley’s residence.
Earlier this week, investigators and deputies with the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office arrested four individuals as part of Operation Cold Turkey.
Fears said that Clay and Maxwell will be returned to Halifax County to await trial following an extradition hearing next week.
In other police business, Deputy D.D. Irby served a warrant on Carlos E. Roberts, 21, of Chase City Wednesday. Roberts was charged with damage of a motor vehicle on July 25.
Glenn Clay, 37, of Scottsburg, was charged with possession of a controlled substance. The offense allegedly occurred Dec. 19, 2006. Investigator T.C. Spencer served the warrant July 27.

Sales Tax Holiday In Time For Back-To-School

If you’re planning on shopping for any school supplies or for clothing or shoes, this is the weekend for you!
Beginning today and continuing through Sunday, certain purchases will be exempt from the five percent state and local retail sales tax.
Sales tax will not be charged on school supplies priced at $20 or less per item, or on articles of clothing, including footwear, costing $100 or less each.
The “holiday” was first initiated by the late Del. Harry Parrish in 2006. The proposal was overwhelmingly approved by the 2006 General Assembly and signed into law by Gov. Timothy M. Kaine.
The law calls for the exemption from sales tax on back-to-school supplies, clothing and shoes to take place each year on the first Friday through Sunday in August.
This back-to-school sales tax holiday is permanent. Earlier this year, state lawmakers approved two additional sales tax holidays.
A four-day tax holiday is set for October that exempts certain energy-efficient appliances. The third will be a week long tax holiday in May for purchasing equipment to prepare for hurricanes. Both of these sales tax holidays will expire in a few years.
The first sales tax holiday last year saved Virginians an estimated $3.6 million. It’s predicted that Virginians will save approximately $3.8 million this year, according to Virginia Department of Taxation estimates.
Del. Clarke Hogan, who voted for the original sales tax holiday bill in 2006, said, “With four school-age children of my own, I understand the burden families face when preparing for the upcoming school year. This is a way for families to save real money.”
The downtown merchants in South Boston are holding a sidewalk sale today and tomorrow in conjunction with the sales tax holiday.
Destination Downtown South Boston Manager Jerry Van Eimeren said, “The downtown merchants are looking forward to this weekend, especially the clothing and shoe retailers…it gives them the chance to put their best foot forward.”
Individual retailers may choose to pay the sales tax themselves on any nonexempt items during the holiday, passing the savings on to their customers.

HUW Elects Officers Reviews Treasury, Plans Strategy

The United Way Board elected officers, reviewed its treasury and discussed launching a campaign this year during its recent reorganizational meeting.
New United Way officers are: Sharron Garrett, chairman; Denise Taylor-Forrest, vice chairman; Jules Modlinski, secretary; Wayne Conner, treasurer; Ken Perkins, assistant treasurer.
The Board also approved Matthew McCargo as South Boston’s representative to the Board.
Perkins set a pragmatic agenda for the Board which included a review of records, sorting data, preparing a financial statement and determining United Way’s audit requirements.
Holly Newton, co-chairman of the UW Campaign Strategy Committee, suggested a small fund-raising campaign this year “to get us off the ground.”
However, determining the agencies to receive United Way funding, establishing criteria, the level of support and accountability were issues Board members said must be set.
“I suggest you start at ground zero and this Board decide those issues,” William Coleman, Board acting chairman, said last week. He also called for a broad-based fund-raising campaign in the community.
Modlinski urged the Board “to build trust” in the community as it moved forward.
“Our goal should be to get money to these agencies that need it,” said Board member Leigh Felton.
Newton said that Patrick Jinks, the executive director of the Danville United Way, has offered to help Halifax County in its reorganization efforts, including helping to train volunteers and helping with the campaign kick off.
Newton also said that Felton was trying to retrieve Halifax United Way’s old database for contacts.
The Board set its next meeting for Friday, Aug. 24, at the Fuller-Roberts Conference Room at Halifax Regional Hospital.

Obituaries

Larry Lee Lovelace
Larry Lee Lovelace, 44, of Brooklyn, N.Y., died July 29, 2007.
Mr. Lovelace was born in New York on May 30, 1963, the son of Howard Lovelace and Mary Wimbush Lovelace. He was a member of Holy Trinity Baptist Church in Brooklyn.
Survivors include two sons, Larry Lovelace Jr. of Brooklyn and Lamar Lovelace of Queens, N.Y.; one daughter, Sabrina Lovelace of Brooklyn; his mother and father, both of Manalapan, N.J.; two brothers, Ron Lovelace of Danville and Shawn Lovelace of Charlotte, N.C.; one sister-in-law, Tonia Lovelace of Charlotte, N.C.; and other relatives and friends.
Funeral services for Mr. Lovelace will be held tomorrow, August 4, at 2 p.m. at County Line Baptist Church with the Rev. Dr. Lewis C. Motley officiating. Burial will follow in the Lovelace Family Cemetery.
The family will receive friends at the home of Robert and Joyce Fitzgerald, 3167 Leda Road, Nathalie.

Johnie Louis Stembridge Jr.
Johnie Louis Stembridge Jr. of Red Oak died July 31, 2007.
Mr. Stembridge was born November 17, 1940.
Survivors include his wife, Mary Jane Pulliam Stembridge of Red Oak; one daughter, Teresa S. Hayes and husband, Allen Hayes, of Nelson; one son, Michael Louis Stembridge aned wife, Pamela W. Stembridge, of Red Oak; three grandchildren, Brittany and Cheyenne Stembridge and Christopher Hayes; his sisters, Connie S. Sizemore of Clarksville, and Barbara S. Martin of Farmville.
Funeral arrangements were pending at press time.

Thelma Guthrie Wade
Thelma Guthrie Wade, 77, of Carolina Ave., Brookneal passed away Wednesday, August 1, 2007 in Brookneal. She was the wife of Beverly Mitchell Wade.
Mrs. Wade was born in Halifax County, October 6, 1929, daughter of the late Louis Rosser Guthrie and Adaline Armistead Guthrie. She was a member of Brookneal Baptist Church and a retired employee of Leggett’s Department Store in Brookneal.
In addition to her husband, she is survived by one son, Randy Wade and fiancée, Sharon Isaacs, of Gladys; one daughter, Devery W. Fisher and husband, Conald, of Nathalie; two grandchildren, Justin Wade and Michelle Wade; a great-grandchild, Kayla Wade; two step-grandchildren, Brian Fisher and Amanda Fisher; a step great-grandchild, Trace Martin. She was preceded in death by a son, Bennie Wade; two brothers, C.T. Guthrie and Wimpy Guthrie.
A funeral service for Mrs. Wade will be held at 2 p.m. tomorrow, August 4, at Brookneal Baptist Church by the Revs. Shelton Miles and Patrick Collins with burial to follow in the Roark Family Cemetery in Nathalie.
The family will receive friends from 7:00 – 8:30 this evening, August 3, at Henderson Funeral Home and Cremation Service, Brookneal and will be at the residence other times.

More Than 100 Turn Out For Football Practice

By Doug Ford
G-V Staff Writer
Comets football is off to a good start, with a total of 101 prospects taking part in the first official practice on Wednesday.
“I’m real excited about the amount of participation, and the enthusiasm and interest level is as high if not higher than any of the three season’s I’ve been here, Comets head football coach Stan Hodgin said following practice.
“The basis emphasis, not only for today but the rest of the week, is getting this group of seniors to buy into the fact that this is their team, not mine or any other coach’s,” noted Hodgin.
“It’s their team and we’re encouraging them in one-on-one settings to be team leaders, and to carry that leadership onto the field.”
The official start of practice is the latest in a series of steps toward the Comets’ season-opener August 24 at Petersburg, the first step being off-season weight training and progressing through conditioning, the summer passing league and the recently-concluded football camp.
Hodgin said he had 76 players go through the six days of camp and 101 were on hand Wednesday to try out for a spot on the varsity and jayvee roster.
That number includes a number of ninth- and tenth-graders, according to Hodgin.
“We’re still evaluating the ninth- and tenth-graders, some of whom have been with us for seven workouts, to see if they best fit the jayvee or varsity team,” he said.
The emphasis on the first nine days of practice will be fundamentals, and the players will need to become acclimated to the August heat at the same time.
Both will prove beneficial down the line, Hodgin emphasized.
“We talked about it at the end of practice. Heat is actually our friend right now and getting used to it will help us down the road.
“We’ll put on shoulder pads for practice four (Saturday), and we’ll be able to go to full pads for practice six on Tuesday.
“We’ve had a very cool last week or so, and acclimation to heat is big as is hydration. Full acclimation to the heat will make the transition to full pads much easier for our players.”
Fundamentals such as blocking, tackling and catching the ball will be emphasized the first nine practices, according to Hodgin.
“It really doesn’t matter how much football knowledge you have, if you do the little things right then you put yourself in a much better position to be successful.
“That’s exactly what we’re stressing the first nine days, to do the little things right.
“We’re trying to intertwine fundamentals with teaching our offensive and defensive schemes, and it’s just like trying to build a house,” continued Hodgin.
“First comes the foundation, then the walls and so forth, so we can put out the best possible product we’re capable of producing as coaches and players.”
Three additions to the Comets coaching staff have already made significant contributions, Hodgin said, including two new offensive line coaches, and a defensive backfield coach.
One offensive line coach, David Wojtecki, played in an offense at Glenville State which is similar to that run at Halifax County, said Hodgin.
“This will be his sixth season as a coach. He was at Tarboro High School in Eastern North Carolina and brings a lot of knowledge about our offensive schemes.”
The other new offensive line coach, James McDaniel, recently coached in Tidewater, and grew up in the Lynchburg area.
“It’s something new for us, to have two offensive line coaches,” commented Hodgin.
The third new coach, Levar Medley, is a Halifax County native and was commuting to Northern Vance High School before coming onboard with the Comets, according to Hodgin.
“He’ll be coaching the defensive corners, and he and coach [Terrell] Holloway will be taking care of the defensive backs,” said Hodgin.
“All of them fit right in from the beginning, have already had a tremendous input and have added an awful lot to an already solid staff.”
All the pieces are falling in place for the Comets thus far, and Hodgin added he was looking forward to Fan Appreciation Night on Aug. 14, as a way of showing the team’s appreciation for the support they’ve received.
“I’m real excited about Fan Appreciation Night,” said Hodgin.
“It’ll give anybody in the community a chance to come and be on the field for practice, to get in front of or behind the drills to see football at an entirely different angle.
“Concessions and merchandise will also be available, and I’d love to have a really big crowd come out.
“Of course after the game, they’ll get a chance to meet and talk to the players.”
Hodgin feels good about the progress made thus far this year and is looking for good things down the road.
“I think we’re off to a really good start,” said Hodgin. “We lost an awful lot of good guys from last year’s team, but our returning players played big roles, so we feel good about our nucleus and we’re excited about what the season could hold for us.”

Junior Boys Hope To Make Some Noise In World Series

By Doug Ford
G-V Staff Writer
Despite this being the first-ever World Series for each of them, the Halifax County Dixie Junior Boys hope to make some noise at the Dixie Junior Boys World Series in Muscle Shoals, Ala.
Halifax County plays Tennessee Saturday at 7 p.m. in the first round of the double elimination tourney, the first-ever World Series for everyone but coaches Robbie Wazeka and David Long, according to Halifax manager Bo Sons.
Counting this trip, Long has been to four World Series, while Wazeka has been to two.
“It’s my first World Series, and the team is definitely excited about going. We told them to just relax, have fun and play ball, and everything will come to them,” said Sons.
Halifax won the State Dixie Junior Boys title with a 10-5 win July 27 over Madison Heights, a team which had edged them 7-6 earlier in the tournament.
Sons is looking for the momentum created in a solid tournament run to continue as the Junior Boys World Series unfolds.
Pitching is a strong point, according to Sons, with pitchers Dylan Sons, Tyler Long, Ryan Puryear and William Worley toeing the rubber.
Sons, Long and Puryear are all left-handers, while Worley is the lone right-hander on staff.
Puryear and Sons combined for a five-inning no-hitter against Carroll County in a 16-0 win during the state tournament, while Puryear and Long combined for 16 strikeouts in a 3-2 win over Buckingham that put Halifax County in the state championship game.
Worley, Puryear and Long usually play the outfield when not pitching, while Sons goes to first base.
Behind the plate is L.J. Barnett, while Dillon Wazeka plays second and Will Nichols shortstop.
Dustin Davis is at third base and rotates to first when Sons pitches, with Cody Palmer coming over to play third.
Halifax rotates its infielders whenever a pitching change occurs without any significant drop off, and the outfielders all have strong arms, particularly Long, who threw out a couple of batters trying to take an extra base during the state tournament, one at home plate.
Robert Dawson, Kelvin Jennings and Matthew Trent, all outfielders, bring good gloves and in some cases speed to a team that Sons thinks can be competitive in Muscle Shoals, despite its relative inexperience.
Five of them, including Sons, Barnett, Long, Worley and Nichols, played together on a Halifax County Middle School team that won its regular season and conference tournament championship this spring, and that chemistry has extended into the summer, he added.
“Being on that team has helped them become more familiar with one another. When they see someone struggling in a certain area they go and talk to them.
“When they do that during a game, it can save us a timeout.
“For instance, L.J. is a leader behind the plate and runs the show. He’ll go out to the mound and calm down a pitcher, saving the coaches an official visit.”
Sons expects to stick with the same batting order in the World Series that brought success in the state tournament, with Sons leading off, Barnett batting second and Long and Worley third and fourth.
“We put a lot of pressure on our leadoff batter, and Dylan has a good on-base percentage,” explained Sons.
“L.J. is a good bunter and beats out most throws to first, and then come Tyler and William, our power hitters.
“That combination at the top has gotten us a lot of early runs and the other batters through the lineup have followed suit.”
Halifax County will take the lessons learned in the state championship title run to Muscle Shoals, including playing “small ball” in an effort to get base runners moving.
“Every time things got tough in the state, we went back to small ball and did a lot of bunting, especially the squeeze play,” noted Sons.
“Dillon Wazeka did that a couple of times and ended up on third base. It forces teams to rush things and we got some big plays off our bunting.”
Whatever the situation in the World Series, Sons expects the same enthusiasm and determination that Halifax displayed in winning the state title.
“You’ll see our boys in the dugout whooping and hollering for each other, and as long as they do that we’ll play good ball,” said Sons.
“If we get down, it’ll push us that much harder, and that’s another thing about this team. I haven’t seen them get down or hang their heads when they get down.
“It seems the harder the game is, the more they step it up,” continued Sons.
“We’re going down there to be competitive, and it’ll be fun, but we want to win some games and perhaps a World Series in the process.”

LMSC Contingent Gear Up For Sunoco 150

By Joe Chandler
Sports Editor
Adam Barker and C.E. Falk gave racing fans at South Boston Speedway the most exciting finish of the season with their crashing finish in the 150-lap NASCAR Late Model Stock Car Division race on July 21.
The two drivers were side-by-side as they raced off of the fourth turn on the final lap headed towards the checkered flag. Their cars made contact as they sped down the frontstretch and made contact a second time at the finish line as they took the checkered flag.
Both cars went into a spin and crashed into the first turn wall, leaving both drivers with heavily damaged cars and some ill feelings.
Barker won the race by a half a fender length and scored his ninth win of the season. Falk, who had led all but the final lap, had to settle for second place.
With two weeks having passed since their thrilling battle, the two young drivers and their counterparts in the NASCAR Late Model Stock Car Division are preparing to go at it again, this time in Saturday night’s Sunoco 150.
Saturday night’s Sunoco 150 racing program will include five races with a 150-lap race for the NASCAR Late Model Stock Car Division as the night’s feature event. Along with the Late Model Stock Car race, Saturday night’s action will include races for the Limited Sportsman Division, the Pure Stock Division, the regional touring Southern Vintage Modifieds and the INEX Legends Cars Series.
Qualifying time trials will start at 5:15 p.m. and the first race will start at 7 p.m.
Grandstand gates will open at 5 p.m. with the track’s Early Bird Special in effect. Adult admission will be $8 for adults until 6:30 p.m. and $10 after that. Youths ages 10-15 will be admitted for $5. Kids ages nine and under will be admitted free.
Barker will enter Saturday night’s 150-lap NASCAR Late Model Stock Car Division race with a sizeable 54-point lead over Ford driver Wayne Ramsey of Amherst, the third-place finisher in the July 21 event. Falk of Virginia Beach is in third place in the points standings, 70 points behind Ramsey.
While the top three drivers in the points standings are spread out, there is a close battle in the bottom half of the top five as Falk stands only four points ahead of Eddie Johnson of Midlothian and six points ahead of fifth-place David Triplett Jr. of Timberlake, N.C.
Over in the Limited Sportsman Division, South Boston’s Bruce Anderson appears to have things under control with a big 58-point lead over Danny Willis Jr, of Cluster Springs.
Brian Pembleton of Amelia occupies third place and stands four points behind Willis.
Terri Marks of Capron, who drives the Chevrolets maintained by the students and instructors of the Halifax County Motorsports Academy, is in fourth place but is only two points ahead of fifth-place driver Timmy Langford of Amelia.
Points races are tight in both the Budweiser Pure Stock Division and the Southern Vintage Modified Division heading into the Sunoco 150.
In the other division points races, Chuck Watkins of Stem, N.C. holds a 26-point lead over Mark Francisco of Halifax entering Saturday night’s action. Francisco’s margin over third-place driver William Ridgeway of Burlington, N.C. is much more narrow with Franciso sitting just four points ahead of Ridgeway.
Quain Moore of Callands is in fourth place, 10 points ahead of Jarrett Milam of Ringgold as the points chase in that division continues to be intense.
In the Southern Vintage Modified Division, which will be returning to action at South Boston Speedway for the first time since late June, Rodney Cook of Reidsville, N.C. holds a slim six-point edge over Donnie Lacks and Randy Smith. Ricky Seay and Darryl Lacks round out the top five in the standings.