It was a day to celebrate, a time of giving thanks, a time to remember the past, and a moment to cast an eye toward the future.
The Halifax Volunteer Fire Department's 50th Anniversary Celebration Saturday was all of that.
Frank Dance, the oldest living former chief of the Halifax Volunteer Fire Department cut the first slice of the colorful four foot by four foot birthday cake that was served to the 300 or so visitors that attended the mid-day ceremony.
That was the highlight of Saturday's celebration which was launched with an Emergency Services Parade through the streets of the Town of Halifax. An hour and a half long ceremony at the fire station at noon featured remarks by Sen. Virgil Goode, Del. W.W. "Ted" Bennett, Halifax Mayor Dennis Osborne, and Joe Satterfield, Chairman of the Halifax County Board of Supervisors.
Each of the four speakers lauded the fire department on the occasion of its 50th anniversary and praised the volunteers for their efforts in serving their community and county.
"We've certainly been blessed over these 50 years to have the Halifax Volunteer Fire Department," remarked Osborne.
"When you think back to when they were in the old building and see this place (the current building) I don't see how they made it."
Having listened to a history of the fire department given by fire department president H.C. Phillips during which he spoke of several major fires and instances in which the fire department ran out of water while fighting a blaze, Osborne told the gathering that negotiations are underway with the Town of South Boston to set up an emergency connection that will help ensure that the fire department will have additional water access.
Satterfield thanked the fire department members for the many hours of service that they give to their community.
"It's frightening when we think of where we'd be in our county without our volunteers," Satterfield said.
"It takes a special kind of person to get out of a warm bed at 2 a.m. on a cold winter night and travel on hazardous roads to help someone you don't even know. But, the members of this fire department do it. And, they do it willingly every time the alarm goes off. You care about each other in the Town of Halifax and Halifax County. May God give you the strength and courage to continue to volunteer your services to mankind."
Bennett also congratulated the fire department on its 50th birthday and thanked the volunteers for their service.
"We would be scared to death to think about what the lives of many (people) and the property of many (people) would have been like and lost if you hadn't been there," Bennett stated.
Goode joined his fellow speakers in expressing best wishes to the fire department and in thanking the volunteers.
"I want to thank the volunteers for their service to their community for the time that they have spent and to the families of the volunteers," Goode remarked.
"They have to be willing to sacrifice, too."
Goode pointed out that the volunteer firemen and EMS volunteers not only spend a large amount of time serving their community, they also spend a lot of time in training so that they can serve their community.
"There are more complex fires and more complex training than ever before," Goode said.
Phillips presented a detailed history of the fire department and recalled his many years of service as a fire fighter. He stated that when he first joined the fire department he thought being a fireman was fun and glorious. But, a fire in 1960 changed that view.
"We were called to a fire out in the Nathalie area," Phillips recalled.
"We were assisting Brookneal. A man burned up out there. That's when I learned being a fireman is not all fun and glorious. It's very real."
Phillips also recalled an incident that occurred at a car fire on Route 360 back in 1961.
"We didn't put on turnout gear like we do today," Phillips stated.
"The gas tank erupted. Here I was 120 pounds. Bill Rowland, at 400 pounds, was right beside me. It set me on fire. He (Rowland) picked me up and threw me across 360. I hit the grass on the other side and rolled down a ditch. When I got nerve enough to look I had some blisters here and there."
Phillips said that he was taken to Dr. Wooding and that the doctor treated him and bandaged him up to where he looked like a mummy and told him he'd be okay in a few days. He was.
"I learned a valuable lesson," noted Phillips.
"And, through the years I've treated car fires with a lot more respect."
Phillips recalled stories about various fires and how sometimes, firemen had use their ingenuity to tackle a blaze. There was one house fire that Phillips recalled that occurred in the dead of winter and, when the water supply ran out, firemen went outside, scooped up snow, and packed the walls inside the house with snow to extinguish the blaze.
Saturday's ceremony also included recognition of the fire department's lifetime members, current members, and a reading of the list of deceased fire department members.
The fire department staged a judging competition among the trucks that took part in the Emergency Services Parade. Those prize winners were:
- Best Equipped Brush Truck - Triangle;
- Best Equipped Mini-Pumper - North Halifax;
- Best Equipped Pumper (1,000 to 1,250 GPM) Affiliated With a City Or Town - Scottsburg;
- Best Equipped Pumper (1,000 to 1,250 GPM) Not Affiliated With A City Or Town - Clover;
- Best Equipped Squad Unit Of A Fire Department Affiliated With A City Or Town - South Boston;
- Best Appearing Pumper (1,000 to 1,250 GPM) Not Affiliated With A City Or Town - Cluster Springs;
- Best Appearing Pumper (1,000 to 1,250 GPM) Affiliated With A City Or Town - South Boston;
- Apparatus Coming The Farthest Distance - Virgilina;
- Best Equipped Pumper-Tanker - Virgilina.
Saturday's activities also include drawings for a handful of prizes that were given away. Johnny Pittard of Halifax won the Grand Prize, a handmade quilt that was given away by the Ladies Auxiliary.
Visitors stayed on well into the afternoon enjoying light food items that were served in the fire department's kitchen, touring the fire department building, viewing various demonstrations staged by fire department personnel, and listening to live gospel music that was provided by local performing groups.
DANVILLE, Va. (AP) - The tobacco plants in Anthony Powell's greenhouses are ready to be planted in the fields, but the weather isn't cooperating.
''This weather has been tough,'' said Powell, who has about 90 acres in Halifax County with his father Lemuel, and their partner Charlie Thompson. ''Everybody's having problems.''
Heavy rains this spring have left fields too wet for farmers to begin planting. Powell estimated that about seven inches of rain has fallen at his farm in the last two weeks alone.
The ideal planting time is the first week of May, but if the rainy weather keeps up, that won't be possible for many farmers. The danger is that the longer plants stay in the greenhouses, the greater the likelihood they will develop diseases.
Pittsylvania County grower Donnie Moore, who raises about 25 acres, said he hopes to start planting in about a week. But the wet weather has prevented him from getting into the fields to cultivate the land.
His fields have received three inches of rain since last Thursday. ''We need about three to five days for it to dry out,'' he said.
Extension agents in Halifax and Pittsylvania counties said they don't know of any farmers who have begun planting.
''We've got people ready to plant, and the plants are big enough, but it's been too wet,'' said Larry McPeters, Halifax County extension agent.
Once farmers do get into the fields, most are expecting to plant less because the U.S. Department of Agriculture cut tobacco quotas by 17 percent this year. Pittsylvania County extension agent Lee Wright expects about 8,500 acres will be planted in his county this year, down from 9,500 last year.
Powell said a quota cut was necessary to keep demand up. ''With the increases that we've had in recent years, a 17 percent quota cut just puts you back at about 1995 levels,'' he said.
Powell is more worried about the possibility of tobacco legislation that would impose hefty cigarette price increases and possibly eliminate the current quota system. Some farmers, fearing the economic impact, are shying away from investments in new equipment.
Powell, for example, decided not to invest this year in more bulk barns, which are used to cure and store tobacco before it's taken to market.
''The biggest problem is what's going on in Washington,'' he said. ''The farmers are caught in the middle and don't know what to do. There's a lot of uncertainty.''
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - Top tobacco industry executives have met privately with growers, hoping to spark grassroots opposition to anti-smoking legislation pending in Congress.
The chief executives of Philip Morris, R.J. Reynolds, Brown & Williamson and Lorillard gathered for about four hours Thursday with about 80 growers and farm group representatives from eight Southeast states at an airport hotel.
The cigarette companies brought an antitrust lawyer to make sure the discussions didn't violate fair trade laws, The News & Observer of Raleigh reported today.
Growers have been courted both by President Clinton and cigarette manufacturers for their potential lobbying strength in Congress.
Cigarette makers hoped the meeting would keep farmers firmly united with the companies they sell to, said Phil Carlton, the former North Carolina Supreme Court justice who has been the industry's lead negotiator on an overall tobacco deal.
''They (the companies) want to be certain that the growers and the manufacturers are at one,'' Carlton told The Associated Press after the meeting. ''The growers, of course, have some concerns. It has always bothered them that they were not included in the negotiations.''
A bill sponsored by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., would require the industry to pay $516 billion over 25 years for anti-smoking programs and would increase the federal cigarette tax by $1.10 a pack.
The bill also includes $28.5 billion for farmers. Carlton said companies were worried that health groups and the White House were aggressively courting growers to support the bill.
''This was a family meeting,'' said Robert Caldwell, president of the North Carolina State Grange in Greensboro. ''We will now go back and talk to growers. We have to let them know the danger of the McCain bill.
''This is a life or death issue for tobacco.''
But Arnold Hamm of the Flue-Cured Tobacco Cooperative Stabilization Corp. in Raleigh said the meeting failed to win any new support from growers.
''The truth of the matter is the farmer does have a protective piece in the McCain bill,'' he said. ''Why it may not be perfect, it certainly addresses many of the farmers' concerns. The companies were asking the farmers to abandon their lifeboat.''
The executives met with representatives of grower organizations from
North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Tennessee,
Virginia and Missouri.
WASHINGTON (AP) - Sen. Orrin Hatch says sweeping anti-tobacco legislation written by his Republican colleague Sen. John McCain is fatally flawed because it would bankrupt tobacco companies. McCain predicted it will pass and gave two reasons why: Senators are patriotic, and they can't resist the money the law will bring in from the tobacco industry.
Hatch, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, and McCain, head of the Commerce Committee, are conservatives who usually see eye-to-eye. But they've been adversaries on the tobacco issue, with Hatch last week saying that McCain's bill was ''pitiful.''
The Utah senator kept up the attack Sunday on NBC's ''Meet the Press,'' saying the legislation would push the price of a pack of cigarettes up more than $5 dollars and result in black markets and bankruptcy for the tobacco industry. The bill can't pass, he said, because ''ultimately it will not work, and if it doesn't work then all of this goes down the drain.''
But McCain, of Arizona, said his bill would win Senate approval for reasons both patriotic and ''a little crass.'' Americans expect lawmakers to do something about teen smoking, he said, and ''there's a lot of money that is going to be spent there, and politicians are very attracted to that.''
The amount of money in McCain's bill, $516 billion, is well above the $368 billion the tobacco industry agreed to last June with the attorneys general of 40 states suing it. The McCain formula includes raising the tax on cigarettes by $1.10 a pack by 2003 and giving the Food and Drug Administration new regulatory powers over tobacco.
Hatch has proposed a $398 billion package of public health and anti-smoking programs, which he proclaimed is a ''reasonable approach.'' ''I don't want to drive the tobacco companies out of business, which is what his bill will do,'' Hatch said.
''I guarantee you there is not five votes for what Sen. Hatch just asked for, and that was to go easier on the tobacco companies,'' McCain replied. He said public health organizations ''would be apoplectic at Hatch's proposals.''
Sen. John Chafee, R-R.I., part of a bipartisan group that introduced a separate, hard-hitting anti-tobacco bill, urged his colleagues to concentrate on the issue. ''Attacking each other or making this a partisan battle just takes Congress' eye off the anti-tobacco ball,'' Chafee said after his colleagues' television appearance.
McCain's legislation sailed through the Commerce Committee on a 19-1 vote and is expected to be the main vehicle when the tobacco issue goes to the Senate floor. Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott has promised floor action by late May.
The administration has pushed for the toughest possible legislation, and President Clinton has praised the McCain bill.
But the industry has said it will not go along because McCain's legislation is too harsh. There also considerable unease among conservatives in Congress, particularly in the House, about raising taxes and extending government regulatory powers.
House Speaker Newt Gingrich questions whether it is a ''Republican'' bill and proposed a far narrower package that would focus only on teen smoking and drug use.
Sen. Dan Coats, R-Ind., appearing Sunday on CBS' ''Face the Nation,'' said the McCain bill ''must be stripped down for it to pass'' and the tobacco companies must be given limited liability from lawsuits in order to get their cooperation on other issues such as advertising aimed at young people.
There also must be a resolution to the question of where the money goes, he said. Clinton has proposed using some of the revenues for health and education programs, but Coats said: ''Republicans simply aren't going to go along with it.''
Senate Democratic Leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota, also on CBS, said the Republican shift toward a smaller bill came after the tobacco industry, long a heavy contributor to Republicans, walked out. It was, Daschle said, ''a classic case of following the money.''
But he said because some Republicans, including McCain, have shown courage in standing up to the industry, ''I think there will be a tobacco deal this year.''
The five candidates seeking three South Boston Town Council seats in the May 5th election agreed on more issues than not during a two-hour political forum held Thursday evening.
All five took a conservative fiscal policy stance, most agreed town council's meeting night should be changed so that it will not conflict with the Halifax County Board of Supervisors' meeting - councilwoman Josephine Marshall noted council would take the subject up at her request on April 27 and seek public input, and four out of the five called for a reduction of the business, professional and occupation license tax.
Listening to residents' concerns and opinions, working in cooperation with the county and region for mutual benefit, getting the most for the tax dollar, economic development and education were also top topics.
Seeking re-election in the Tuesday, May 5, election are incumbents Josephine P. Marshall, a retired high school and college teacher, and businessman William C. "Buddy" Wilborn. Former councilman H.W. Starke is not seeking re-election.
Newcomers in the town council race are the Rev. Dr. Eula Payne-Williams, a local pastor, and Electric Service Co. owner Thomas S. Raab and Edward Owens, an insurance agency owner for 12 years.
Raab, Owens, Dr. Payne-Williams and Wilborn all called for a reduction in the BPOL tax with Payne-Williams calling for "a 25 percent reduction" over a three-year period.
The pastor said she was "concerned about Mom and Pop businesses" and the effect it would have on them and unemployment here.
Owens called the BPOL tax "too high," with a rate almost twice as high as the county's.
The insurance executive called for a BPOL tax reduction so that people will not build businesses "out of town" to avoid the heavier tax.
Raab called BPOL "the most unfair tax we have," noting a businessman could lose money and still have to pay the tax. He called for a reduction of the tax in order to be viable with the county.
Councilwoman Marshall noted the town had lived up to its pledge to lower taxes for its citizens and said she had supported the town's recently approved timely payment of BPOL tax benefit which will offer a 15 percent discount for all who pay in full and on time.
She also told the crowd of approximately 50 that Virginia is a low tax state, that South Boston can offer a competitive real estate tax and that business was coming into South Boston despite the BPOL tax and recent boundary adjustment.
Wilborn said he had been surprised to learn the town had had the maximum BPOL tax and called for it to be lowered 25 percent.
"I know what it is like to survive as a businessman," said Wilborn, noting he started business with the $29 box of tools his family had given him.
Owens cited economic development, fiscal responsibility, "services received for tax dollars," decision-making with accurate data and public safety and effective representation as important issues.
Owens said he heard the voices concerned about the decision making process being a closed one.
The candidate pledged to listen to the voices of the people and to be "a voice of reason" on town council.
Marshall named the high rate of unemployment locally, the school drop out rate, the need to train a workforce for the future, attraction of industry and the need for a good educational system as important issues.
Earlier, Marshall and Wilborn had noted cooperative efforts between the town and county, naming water/sewer availability for industry, CEC and the agreement to look at the feasibility of E-911 consolidation.
Building a level of trust between the governments was named by Wilborn, Dr. Payne-Williams and Raab as necessary in fostering long-range planning.
Wilborn named the drug problem as an important issue as well as the need to work with the police department to help solve the problem. He also named the town's landfill closure and related cost as an upcoming issue.
Earlier Wilborn said he "would like to see greater participation in the (town's) budget process." He said that he had been surprised more citizens did not come to the meetings and he advised them to have their voice heard.
Raab issued a strong call in support of education, particularly a proposed four-year college presence here. "We have got to have this college," said Raab.
Noting Halifax County's high unemployment, Rabb called for the development of more high tech opportunities like The Software Factory.
He also called cooperation with the county an important issue. Improved major highway connections (501), jobs, recreation and a joint five-year plan with the county, which is not set aside as has happened in the past, also were named as important issues facing town council.
Citing a Richmond Times-Dispatch editorial, Rabb noted the typical family spends more money on taxes that housing, food and clothing. "This year all have to work together to see that taxes are reduced," said the candidate.
Raab said he favored doing away with council work sessions and having discussion worked out at meetings, not a week before. He also called for better public relations for council. However, he noted he had been to many council meetings and had never been turned away when he wished to participate.
Dr. Payne-Williams named education as "very important." We must "show children the value of education," said the pastor. She said she finds people feel "disconnected from government" here. "This gap between government and people must be closed," she said.
Although she is not a South Boston native, Dr. Payne-Williams said perhaps a change is good, offering an opportunity for new and fresh ideas to take South Boston to the next level.
Owens also supported full development of CEC, distance learning and maximum participation in the DCC High Tech Center.
The political forum was organized by the Halifax County Chamber of Commerce Legislative Committee and the Town of South Boston and held at the South Boston-Halifax County Museum of Fine Arts and History.
South Boston Town Manager Ken McLawhon was positive in his assessment of the forum on Friday, noting the public needs all the information it can get in the upcoming election.
Raymond Stephen Jackson, 25, of Nathalie was charged Friday with a felony count of abduction, as well as two misdemeanor counts of assault and battery, police said.
Jackson allegedly abducted and assaulted Bobbie Jo Jackson, a household or family member, Friday at a residence on U.S. 501 in Halifax, according to the investigation.
He was also charged with assaulting Brian Michael Jones, which occurred at the same time, police added.
Jackson will be tried in the Halifax County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court on April 29 for the abduction and assault charges involving Bobbie Jo Jackson.
He will then be tried in the Halifax County General District Court on May 29 for the assault charge involving Jones. Jackson was released on bond pending his trials.
He was arrested by Halifax Town Police Sgt. Howard D. Gregory.
In other cases:
· Lorenzo Dow Ragland, 61, of Halifax was charged Thursday with a felony count of breaking an entering the residence of William Roberts Dees. The alleged incident occurred on April 7.
Ragland was also charged with a felony count of destruction of property after he caused over $1,000 in damages to Dees' residence, according to the investigation.
He was also charged with a misdemeanor count of trespassing, police added.
Ragland is currently being held in the Halifax County Jail pending his preliminary hearing in the Halifax County General District Court on June 5.
He was arrested by Halifax County Sheriff's Department Deputy David Gibson.
· Brian O'Neil Lacks, 19, of Scottsburg was charged Sunday with a misdemeanor count of assault and battery of Lisa W. Lacks, a household or family member, police said.
The alleged incident occurred the same day he was arrested, according to the investigation.
Lacks was released on bond pending his trial in the Halifax County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court on May 12.
He was arrested by HCSD Deputy S.A. Jennings.
· Latoya Tameshia Ballou, 21,of South Boston was arrested Friday on a misdemeanor count of assault and battery of Priscilla Cole, police said. The alleged incident occurred on April 19.
Ballou was released on bond pending her trial in the Halifax County General District Court on May 29.
She was arrested by HCSD Deputy Q.W. Clark.
Ned Bates, Jr. of Brooklyn, NY died Wednesday, April 22, 1998 at Beth Israel Hospital, New York, NY at the age of 53.
Mr. Bates was born in Halifax County to Bart Bates Sr. and Rebecca Palmer Bates. He was married to Sheila Jackson Bates.
His survivors include his wife; two daughters, Tara and Teri King and two sons, LaVar and Tyquane Bates, all of Brooklyn.
Funeral arrangements were incomplete.
Elva Annie Curtis of 1038 Flashback Str., Halifax died April 23, 1998 at her home at the age of 80.
Mrs. Curtis was born on June 8, 1917 in Quebec, Canada to Henry Charles Gustin and Myrtle Fields Gustin. She was married to Sherwood Stinson Curtis.
Her survivors include her daughters: Dolly C. Webb of Stafford, Betty C. Hewett of Rochester, IN, Linda Curtis and Dee C. Bomar of Halifax; a son: Dana Curtis of Willingboro, NJ; a brother: Aldie Gustin of Presque Isle, ME, six grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
A graveside service was held Saturday, April 25 at the Mt. Laurel United
Methodist Church Cemetery with the Rev. Ralph Rice officiating.
Leslie Pleasant Barksdale of Bronx, NY and formerly of Halifax County, died at the St. Barnabas Hospital in New York at the age of 92.
Born in Halifax County on October 13, 1905, he was the son of Pleasant L. Barksdale and Phoebie Anderson-Barksdale. He was a member of the Riverview Baptist Church in Coeysmans, NY and a former member of New Zion Baptist Church, Halifax Co.
His survivors include a daughter: Nina Barksdale-Walker of Richmond; son: S. Tyrone Barksdale of Washington, DC; step-children: Norene Houtman and Robert Bostic of New York; several grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Funeral services will be held Tuesday, April 28 at 12 noon at the Jeffress Funeral Home with the Rev. Willie N. Yancey officiating. Burial will follow in the New Zion Baptist Church cemetery.
The family will receive friends at the funeral home Tuesday, April 28
from 11-12:00.
Floyd Clauden of 1168 Cherry Hill Church Road, South Boston died Friday, April 24, 1998 at his residence at the age of 64.
Mr. Clauden was born in Halifax County on May 6, 1933 to Thomas Clauden and Mary Lee Bowman Clauden. He was married to Frances Hill Clauden and was a retired Army veteran. He was a member of Owen's Grove Baptist Church where he served as church treasurer and trustee and was a former employee of the City of South Boston.
His survivors include his wife; brother: John Clauden of South Boston; sister-in-law: Shirley Clauden of South Boston, and a devoted niece: Mary Clauden of South Boston.
Funeral services will be held Wednesday, April 30 at 2 p.m. at Owens Grove Baptist Church with the Rev. John Leigh officiating. Burial will follow in the Clauden Family cemetery.
The family will receive friends at the home of the deceased.
John Owen Jackson of Alton died April 24, 1998 at Halifax Regional Hospital at the age of 80.
Born in Halifax County on November 5, 1917 he was the son of Martin F. Jackson and Lizzie Cliborne Jackson and was a member of Alton Baptist Church.
His survivors include his brother: James F. Jackson of Alton and nieces and nephews.
A graveside service was held Sunday afternoon, April 26 at the Alton Baptist Chruch Cemetery with Dr. Phillip Duckett officiating.
The family will receive friends at the home of Danny Jackson, 1014 Traynham Grove Rd., Alton.