Friday, January 23, 2004

Star Move A Boon To Planter's
Talley: Only Marketing Resource Could Be Warehouse Floor

If anyone in Halifax County could be described as elated yesterday, that person would have been New Brick Planter's Warehouse owner Charlie Payne.

After years of struggling through increasing numbers of tobacco farmers contracting directly with manufacturers, Payne said the news that Star Scientific wouldn't purchase leaf - combined with cigarette manufacturers not taking any new contracts - could prove to be a blessing for the warehouse system.

"We've struggled through the tough times," the warehouseman said. "Now we hope that we will be able to see some benefits."

"What the farmers are left with is an option," Halifax County Extension Agent Traci Talley said yesterday afternoon. "They'll have to find another avenue for sales (of Halifax County tobacco)."

Already reeling from a declining market and a significant cut in quota, Halifax County tobacco farmers suffered another blow this week with Star Scientific announcing it will not purchase any leaf under its StarCure program this year.

Talley said yesterday that it's unclear what the announcement could potentially cost the county in terms of tobacco production.

"Right now, we really don't know what's going to happen," she said.

But Payne, operator of the lone remaining warehouse in the county, said the news was indicative of the fact that contracting doesn't benefit every producer.

"We said all along that contracting would only suit a few of the companies,"
he said. "(Contracting) has lost Standard & Commercial and now Star Scientific.

"It just goes to show that the contract system is only set up for contractors and not for the smaller customers.

"We saw a decrease (in the number of companies contracting their leaf purchases) last year," he added. "It's not going the way some of the companies thought it would.

"They're creating less competition among themselves," he said.

The move will "absolutely" mean more leaf on the floor when the 2004 selling season begins, Payne said.

"I think you'll see some of the farmers (who previously sold to Star) coming to the warehouse," he said.

Talley said the announcement was the result of a merger between tobacco giants R.J. Reynolds and Brown & Williamson.

"All of this came about because of the merger," she said.

The extension agent said there had been some opposition to the move.

"There have been letters written to government officials concerning the potential loss of our sales for the 2004 season," Talley added. "We're hoping something will be done, but we simply don't know."

Currently, no other companies have indicated they will be willing to accept new contract sales of leaf this season, Talley said.

"It appears their only option is the warehouse floor," she said.

"The climate is in favor of us at this point," Payne agreed.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (U.S.D.A.) announced in December that the 2004 national tobacco quota will decrease by about 10.8 percent from the 2003 level.

This year, the national marketing quota is 471.3 million pounds, down from the 2003 quota of 526.3 million pounds.

Last year more than 83 percent, or 988,012 pounds of leaf, sold at the South Boston warehouse was purchased by The Flue-Cured Tobacco Cooperative Stabilization Corporation.

Berry Hill Goal: Open This Year

The goal is "to open Berry Hill in some fashion this year," its owners and manager confirmed this week.

The trio were hosts at the mansion Wednesday night as David Hill, president of Hill Studio, sought input from community officials, civic and business leaders about the property's future.

"To seek how Berry Hill fits into their image, what is important to the community," explained Hill following a 15-minute power-point presentation.

It was the first step in the four-month Hill Studio study.

A series of historic mansion houses, destination conference centers and destination resorts - some, like Hotel Roanoke, with public/private partnerships - were profiled by Hill during his presentation.

"This place seems to have the qualities of all three," he said.

Bill Carder, the former manager of Berry Hill for Marriott Inc., joined Berry Hill's owners Ryan Hill and Darrin Phillips as manager in January.

"I believe we need to have the town and county's support as the master plan proceeds," Carder said Wednesday night, noting the overlays of property ownership.

"Seeking the community's needs and vision is an integral part of the master plan package."

Golf courses, spas, horseback and bicycle trails, with some leading The Prizery and downtown South Boston, as well as development of an upscale retirement residential community have been aired.

Hill Studio is being asked to plan for all 1,400 to 1,500 acres, including town and county property, according to Carder.

The owners of Berry Hill, who filed for bankruptcy last year, are behind the $600,000 feasibility study, Carder said.

In response to a question, the co-owners said that there is "ongoing dialogue with creditors to keep them in the loop."

"We think we will come out of bankruptcy smoothly with a very good plan," Carder said following Wednesday night's presentation.

"We want to work with everyone to come up with a comprehensive master plan that addresses the community goals," said co-owner Ryan Hill.

Hill Studio is a Roanoke firm of architects, landscape architects and community planners with expertise in historic preservation.

Two Are Charged In Deadly Hit And Run
Monday Accident Claimed The Life Of Long Island Man

A February 18 preliminary hearing has been set for two Brookneal residents arrested early Wednesday in connection with a fatal hit and run accident that occurred on Route 40 early Monday night.

Holly Lynn Talton, 24, who police suspect was the driver of the vehicle, and passenger James Lee Altman, 43, both of Brookneal, were arraigned Wednesday in Halifax County General District Court.

Talton was charged with felony hit and run, and Altman was charged with being an accessory to felony hit and run.

Both are currently being held in the Halifax Regional Jail in lieu of a $25,000 bond.

Virginia State Police Sgt. David Cooper charged Talton, 24, as the driver of a Dodge Caravan that struck and killed 56-year-old Charlie Wayne Waller of Long Island as he was walking west along Route 40, four-tenths of a mile west of its intersection with Route 640.

Cooper said that private citizens were instrumental in the arrest of the suspects.

"Contact from a Brookneal-area couple who had heard about the accident as a result of watching the news on a Lynchburg television station led to the arrests of Talton and Altman," he said.

According to Cooper, the couple, whose identity was not released, had loaned the van to Talton, a resident of Lynchburg Avenue in Brookneal.

He said that when Talton returned the van, she told the couple she had hit something.

Cooper said the couple, after having heard about the incident on television, contacted the Brookneal Police Department.

Officers with the Brookneal department contacted Virginia State Police Trooper G.M. Gilliam about the van and Special Agent T.A. LaRue was called in to process the van for evidence.

After interviewing Talton, she and Altman were charged and taken into custody, Cooper said.

The incident is still under investigation.

Comets Prevail In Physical Battle
HCHS Remained Undefeated In District Play With A tough 63-57 Win Over Patrick Henry

By JOE CHANDLER | G-V Staff Writer

It wasn't pretty - not by anyone's imagination.

But Halifax County High School basketball coach Garrett Dillard will take a Western Valley District win over Patrick Henry any time.

In a physically rough game marred by a malady of mental errors and an injury to the team's top scorer, Craig McCargo, the Comets hung on to top the Patriots 63-57 and remain unbeaten in district play and run their record to 10-5 overall.

"We're happy with a district win and being 2-0 in the district," Dillard said.

"We feel very fortunate and blessed to win."

Indeed the Comets should.

It took a big night from Quintin Brown, who led the team with 18 points, and Jeremy Jeffress, who canned 16 points to lift the Comets off of the brink of disaster.

Brown sank 13 consecutive free throws, six of which came in the final two minutes.

Jeffress, who scored 16 points, hit a couple of key three-point shots in the third quarter to lift the Comets out of an eight-point deficit.

Those were big items for the Comets, especially after McCargo went down with an ankle injury with 6:33 left in the first half.

McCargo attempted to return to action in the third quarter but was not able to play more than a couple of minutes before having to return to the bench where he stayed the rest of the game.

"We're blessed to have guys that can step up," Dillard pointed out.

"Craig went down when the game was still in the balance. We played without him pretty much the whole night after that.

"You never know how that (playing without the team's leading scorer) affects everybody," added Dillard.

"We played without him most of the second half and still came out with a win."

The Comets bolted to an early 14-4 lead in the first five minutes and led by nine points at 16-7 at the end of the first quarter.

A basket by Derrick Sprattley in the first 30 seconds of the second quarter pushed the Comets' edge to 11 points at 18-7.

Then came the Patrick Henry surge.

The Patriots, last year's Western Valley District regular-season champion and the runner-up to the Comets in the district tournament championship game, got a basket to cut the Comets' margin to 9 points.

McCargo went down with the ankle injury about 30 seconds later and the Patriots, taking advantage of Comets miscues and missed shots, added nine more unanswered points to tie the game at 18-18 with 3:21 left in the first half.
It was a closely contested contest the rest of the first half as the Comets needed a bucket from Sprattley with a second left on the clock to gain a 24-24 deadlock at halftime.

"When you come out feeling like you can dominate a team and jump on them early sometimes you kind of back off, gamble for some steals and shoot the long ball," explained Dillard.

"We jacked up a lot of "threes" and didn't take our time and try to throw it inside early."

The intensity level of the physical aggressiveness picked up in the second half.

Chase Weddle took a pass down low to give the Comets the first lead of the second half.

The Patriots, led by Anwar Smalls and Antonio Sweatt, fought back with a 10-0 run in a quick span of about a minute and a half to take a 34-26 lead, their biggest lead of the contest.

Jeffress broke the Patriots' rally with a trey with 5:37 left in the third quarter and added another on the team's next possession to cut the Comets' deficit to three points at 35-32 with 4:45 left in the period.

Patrick Henry managed to extend its lead back out to six points before Brown broke that rally.

Brown hit two free throws with 3:41 left to bring the Comets to within four and triggered a 10-0 Comets run and capped it with a four-point play in which he was fouled while canning a three-pointer and added the free throw.

That sequence put the Comets up 42-38 with 1:56 left in the third quarter.

While the contest remained close and intense the rest of the way, Halifax County never trailed after that.

After the Patriots pulled to within two points, Jeffress added a three-pointer for the Comets to give the team a five-point edge.

Two free throws by Brown and a basket by Holeman after a steam gave the Comets a 49-42 lead at the end of the third quarter.

Patrick Henry kept the pressure on and kept the game close through the final eight minutes but the Comets turned back the Patriots' challenge.

After the Patriots made it a two-point game on basket by Smalls with 3:22 left in the game, the Comets got a big basket by Jeffress with 2:45 left to put the Comets up by four points.

The basket by Jeffress and six free throws from Brown over the final 1:57 of the game was enough to give the Comets the win.

Dillard pointed out that the aggressive, physical play on the part of Patrick Henry changed the mindset of his team and the tone of the game.

"It got us off of our game, got us unfocused," said Dillard.

"I don't think it intimidated us because we kept pushing back. I think, more than anything else, it made us think about when is the next forearm coming, when is the next elbow coming, when are they going to push off.

"We were mentally gearing up for that as opposed to thinking about running our offensive sets, thinking about playing defense," continued Dillard.

"It was almost like we were waiting on the push instead of focusing on getting through the screens and doing the things we needed to do defensively."

While the aggressive, physical play bordered on going overboard, Dillard pointed out that when it comes to district games, teams are going to take their best shot.

"In district ballgames, people show up and do what they feel they have to do to beat you," he said.

"PH came out and played aggressive and physical. I didn't like the way we responded by pushing back but, sometimes, when people push you to your limit you respond with your natural instincts.

"But we played through that and didn't get any technical fouls called on us eventhough there were times even I felt like some stuff was happening that pushed me to my limit," he added.

One particular individual battle on the floor involved Brown and the Patriots' Jack Esworthy.

That battle got so heated at one point that it appeared that Brown was on the verge of landing a technical foul.

Fortunately, for the Comets, it didn't happen.

"He (Brown) has done a great job this year keeping his composure," Dillard said.

" No. 13 (Esworthy) was keying on "Q" and went at him and kept getting his forearm in his (Brown's) chin. It took the referees a long time to call it. What bothered me was that it happened early and it was late before they ever called it. You let stuff like that go on and you can have ugly things happen. I wish the officials would have called some of that stuff early."

Dillard pointed out that it wasn't just the aggressive, physical play that hampered his team.

"It was all mental," Dillard explained.

"We had only eight turnovers. It wasn't like we were just throwing the ball away. The thing we did bad was mental mistakes, not talking, not switching like we should on defense, shooting shots that we shouldn't have shot, not catching the ball when we should have caught it. We were really fortunate and blessed to get the win."

Halifax County had 10 players in the scoring column with six points from McCargo and five points from Holeman following the 18 points by Brown and 16 points from Jeffress.

A big note of the night was the Comets' free throw shooting. Halifax County hit 16 of its 20 attempts for an 80 percent mark.

From the field, the Comets hit 20 of 53 attempts for a 37.7 percent mark. The Comets hit 9-23 attempts from three-point range for a 39.1 percent mark.

Defensively, the Comets netted 14 steals with Brown leading the way with four and Jeffress and Holeman getting three each.

Halifax County forced the Patriots to turn the ball over 18 times.

Obituaries

Florine Ragland Gunn

Florine Ragland Gunn, 83, of 200 Childs Avenue, South Boston died January 20 at Southside Regional Medical Center in Petersburg.

Mrs. Gunn was born in Halifax County on August 20, 1920, the daughter of the late Willie Ragland and Lillie A. Ragland and was married to the late George Gunn. She was a member of Mt. Olive Baptist Church.

Her survivors include two sons, George Gunn Jr. of Alexandria and Gregory Gunn of Dinwiddie; two daughters, Suzette Williams of Baltimore, Md. and Patricia Perkins of Dinwiddie; one sister, Izetta Miller of Gretna; two brothers, David Ragland of South Boston and Leslie Ragland of Martinsville; six grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

A funeral service for Mrs. Gunn will be held tomorrow, January 24 at 2 p.m. at Mt. Olive Baptist Church with the Rev. Dr. James M. Crowder officiating. Burial will follow in Oak Ridge Cemetery.

The family will receive friends at Jeffress Funeral Home Chapel this evening, January 23, from 6:00 until 8:00.

Joseph Kilby Hite

Joseph Kilby Hite, 80, of Bassett died January 21 at Memorial Hospital Martinsville/HC.

Mr. Hite was born in Virgilina the son of the late John Spencer Hite and Mary Harrell Hite and was married to Doris R. Hite.

He was a U.S. Army Veteran having served in the African Campaign during WWII; owned and operated Hite Tile and Marble Company of Collinsville; was a member of the Collinsville Lions Club; a member of the Bassett Kiwanis Club; a Boy Scout leader; a member of the Martinsville Cotillion Club; was a member of Pocahontas Bassett Baptist Church where he served as a deacon, Sunday school teacher, representative to the Henry County Missions; and was active in the Republican party.

Survivors of Mr. Hite include his wife; one daughter, Deborah Jo Hite of Bassett; two sons, John Vincent Hite and wife, Mary Kent, of Denison, Texas, and Richard Ross Hite of Fairfax; three brothers, John H. Hite of Aarons Creek, Page L. Hite of Florence, S.C. and G. Tilman Hite of Buffalo Junction; and his caregiver, Brenda Turner.

A funeral service will be held tomorrow, January 24 at 2 p.m. at Pocahontas Bassett Baptist Church in Bassett. The family will receive friends at the church one hour prior to the service and other times at the home. Burial will follow at Roselawn Burial Park, Martinsville.

Those wishing to give memorials are asked to consider the Alzheimers Association, 2728 Colonial Avenue, Suite 2, Roanoke, 24015; the Parkinsons Foundation, 710 West 168th Street, New York, N.Y. 10032; the American Heart Association, PO Box 524, Martinsville, 24114, or a charity of choice..

Jennie Baker Crenshaw Moore

Jennie Baker Crenshaw Moore, 87, of Clarksville died January 21 at Meadowview Terrace.

Mrs. Moore was born in Halifax County on May 22, 1916, the daughter of Shelton 'John' Crenshaw and Sallie Moorefield Crenshaw and was married to Edward Bryant Moore. She was a member of Pleasant Grove United Church of Christ.

Survivors include two daughters, Linda Moore and husband, Harold, of Clarksville, and June Chaney and husband, Jerry, of Louisa; three sisters, Louise Stinson of South Boston, Jean White and Helen Hackney, both of Danville; six grandchildren; and nine great-grandchildren.

Mrs. Moore was preceded in death by two brothers, Johnny and Herman Crenshaw.

A funeral service will be held today, January 23 at 2 p.m. at Powell Funeral Home Chapel with the Rev. Isaac Mooneyham officiating. Burial will follow in Pleasant Grove United Church of Christ Cemetery.

Edith Rosser

Edith Rosser, 88, of South Boston died January 19 at The Autumn Care Nursing Home in Altavista.

Mrs. Rosser was born in Pittsylvania County on September 9, 1915, the daughter of the late Howard Wesley Slayton and Lillian Martin and was married to the late Osborne Rosser. She was a member of the Mt. Nebo Pentecostal Church of Halifax.

Survivors of Mrs. Rosser include four daughters, Rev. Ellaressie Austin and husband, Louis, of Lynch Station, Beatrice Kennedy and Juanita Watkins and husband, Lee, all of Baltimore, Md., and Mattie Miles and husband, Robert, of Richmond; two sons Roosevelt Rosser and wife, Sylvia, of Franklin Park, N.J. and Herman Rosser and wife, Barbara, of Baltimore, Md.; a son-in-law, Robert Miller, of South Boston; three sisters, Estelle Waller of Long Island, Eunice Patrick and husband, L.G., and Pearl Walthal and husband,Coolidge, all of Upper Darby, Pa.; 24 grandchildren; 30 great-grandchildren; and five great-great grandchildren. One daughter, Mae Lois Miller, preceded Mrs. Rosser in death.

A funeral service will be held tomorrow, January 24, at 2 p.m. at Grace Baptist Church in Altavista.

The family will receive friends at the church this evening, January 23, from 7:00-8:00, and other times at the residence of the Rev. Ellaressie and Louis Austin at 5952 Tardy Mountain Road, Lynch Station.

Charlie Wayne Waller

Charlie Wayne Waller of 3236 Buffalo Road, Long Island, died January 19. He was the son of the late Chris Waller and Estelle Waller and was married to Ernestine Waller.

His survivors include his wife of Washington, DC; one son, Wayne Antonio Waller of Md; his mother of Long Island; four sisters, Patsy Word of Long Island, Pearlie Jean Grasty and husband, Alexander, of Long Island, Darlene Chambers and husband, Eddie, of Forest, Md., Saundra Tucker and husband, Roger, of Long Island; three brothers, Howard Waller and wife, Joyce, of Long Island, Thurman Waller and wife, Doreen, of Philadelphia, Pa., and Theodore Waller and wife, Frances, of Renan; foster sister and brothers, Mary Ellen Clark of Chatham, Eddie Clark of South Boston, Gary Barksdale of Lynchburg, and Reggie Clark of Fla.

A funeral service for Mr. Waller will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, January 25 at First Buffalo Baptist Church in Long Island with burial in the church cemetery.