With a somber face, the Brunswick County district attorney described the horror of a Sept. 27 evening of innocent people enjoying good food, cocktails and musical entertainment in this waterfront restaurant, and life under the stars in this quaint and picturesque community. “Evil has come ashore in Southport,” Jon David said at a news conference Sunday, where he confirmed three dead and five injured in a shooting at the popular American Fish Company along Yacht Basin Dr., which looks over the Intracoastal Waterway. A 40-year-old former Marine, once stationed at Camp Lejeune, according to published reports, is charged with opening fire with a .300 Blackout Sig Sauer short-barreled rifle from his small boat hovering near the restaurant. He later was arrested by Brunswick County deputies with help from the U.S. Coast Guard, according to published reports, at a boat ramp in nearby Oak Island. We have learned that the shooter had PTSD as a result of his military service.
“Southport is a tight-knit community and is known across the state as a tight-knit community, and all of us can just imagine a warm Saturday night, a special date night, sitting on a dock by the river by the water,” Gov. Josh Stein said at a Monday news conference in the coastal town. “No one goes into that kind of special night thinking that tragedy is possible, but two nights ago here at Brunswick County, of course, it happened. It was horrific. I’m heartbroken for the families of the three people who lost their lives in this terrible incident… I know I speak for the entire state of North Carolina when I say that you are not alone in your heartache or pain. You do not grieve alone. We stand with you… We have more work to do to make sure that people are both actually safe and that they feel safe in their communities. We must fix our broken mental health care system…We have got to do better.” The deceased, according to published reports, are Joy Rogers, 64, of Southport; Solomon Banjo, 36, of Charlottesville, Va.; and Michael Durbin, 56, of Galena, Ohio. I have frequented the American Fish Company, and my heart, too, goes out to the victims and the beautiful and welcoming residents who call Southport home.
***
Voter complacency, when it comes to city elections, is at something of an all-time record high if you are paying attention to early primary voting, where the Cumberland County Board of Elections says 3,224 residents of our approximately 131,465 active and inactive registered city voters have so far cast ballots as of Wednesday afternoon. That’s about 2.4%, and that’s abysmal.
***
A confrontation Monday apparently involving two women during early primary voting at the Cumberland County Board of Elections has gone viral on Facebook, and it was ugly and out of bounds as a woman in the Mario Benavente for Mayor campaign and another near the Kathy Keefe Jensen campaign went at one another. It was laced with profanity and name-calling as Benavente tried to quell and calm the confrontation. Might be a good idea on the part of the board of elections folks to have city police or county deputies monitoring early voting on Fountainhead Lane, because this kind of political conduct is not acceptable behavior, and another reason why so many of us are turned off to this election season.
***
Mary Holmes always has said there is no more generous and giving community than Cumberland County, and she is trumpeting praise for those who have helped the Cumberland Community Foundation reach an all-time high of $152,313,772.93, with over 75% of assets. “We were so proud to pass the $150 million milestone for the first time with $152,313,772.93 in assets as of fiscal year ending June 30, 2025,” says Holmes, president and chief executive officer of the foundation. “People in this community are so generous and show their love of mankind – the definition of philanthropy – every day. By the end of October, we expect to reach $160 million. That growth is exciting because it fuels impact. CCF was able to award $9.5 million in grants and scholarships last fiscal year. That is what really matters. More people will enjoy the arts, have access to good health care, achieve a college degree or skills certification and feel safe. More companion animals will be adopted. Shut-in senior citizens will have warm meals delivered. Our botanical garden will grow its programming. Asset growth changes lives.”
***
If anyone ever said it right, Mike Nagowski certainly did Tuesday when Cape Fear Valley Health presented a $2 million check to the Fayetteville State University School of Nursing at the J.W. Seabrook Auditorium lobby to support additional nursing care in the Cape Fear Region. “I’m here to tell you hospitals run on nursing,” said Nagowski, chief executive officer of the health system. “I love my doctors, and I love my pharmacists. I love my housekeeping. I love them all. But it’s nurses who are at the bedside 24/7/365. Make no mistake here: Nurses deliver the majority of care that’s delivered at the health system.” Nagowski could not have said it better. Nursing is the most noble calling of all.
***
“A great public servant,” Bob Cogswell, the former city attorney, writes in an email about my Sept. 28 column about Beth Dail Finch, the late three-term city mayor who was honored on Sept. 24 with renaming of Cross Creek Park on Green Street to Mayor Beth Finch Park. “I had the pleasure of working with her every day while she was mayor. She is one of those that left this city a better place because of her service.” Finch, who died at age 91 on Dec. 26, 2012, was mayor from 1975-1977, 1977-1979 and 1979-1981.
***
“Morning ole buddy, I enjoyed reading your article on the tree and newspaper,” Billy Barker writes in an email about my Aug. 13 column on the unveiling of a permanent historical marker adjacent to the old Virginia live oak at the Airborne and Special Operations commemorating the U.S. Army’s 250th anniversary of the Continental Army on June 14, 1775. The tree once stood on property owned by Fayetteville Publishing Co. along Hay Street. “When the family sold the downtown properties to the city for the construction of the ASOM in 1998, we intentionally held out the parcel with the tree on it,” said Tony Chavonne, general manager of the newspaper from 1992-2004 and who later served four terms as city mayor (2005-2013). “And Mr. (Ramon) Yarborough and the family committed to continue to maintain and protect it, even after the ASOM was built.”
***
Cape Fear Botanical Garden has received a $26,414 grant from the Historic Fayetteville Foundation Fund of Cumberland Community Foundation, according to a news release. Funds will be used to support preservation and maintenance of the Hazel McCauley Heritage Garden Complex.
***
A Celebration of Life scheduled Saturday at the Airborne and Special Operations Museum for the late Gen. (Ret.) William “Buck” Kernan, former commander of the XVIII Airborne Corps on Fort Bragg, has been relocated to the 82nd Airborne Division Hall of Heroes, Building C-6841, 5108 Ardennes St, Fort Bragg, according to a spokesperson at the military base. The service is from 4 p.m-7 p.m. Gen. Kernan died at age 79 on Sept. 2 in Pinehurst.
***
The 71st Annual Cypress Springs Presbyterian Church Harvest Sale is scheduled from 4 p.m.-7 p.m. Saturday at the little, white church at the Moore County and Harnett County lines in Cameron. “Our menu features fried chicken, rice, gravy, green beans, candied yams, roll and a homemade dessert,” says Mary Smith, a lifelong church member. “Or you can choose country ham, grits with red eye gravy, green beans, candied yams, roll and dessert. Drinks include sweet and unsweetened tea, coffee and water.” Eat-in and takeout plates are $12 each. “Our live auction will begin at 7 p.m. and Sam Stout will be the auctioneer for the evening,” Smith says. “Lots of beautiful handmade items are coming in to be auctioned. Items include handmade quilts, baked goods, jams and jellies, pickles, sparkling Christmas wreaths, handmade jewelry, benches made from an original pine pew from the sanctuary, seasonal floral arrangements, a gorgeous pine straw basket, a unique drone photo of Cypress Springs (Presbyterian) from the air, and many, many more items.” All proceeds will be designated to the church building fund, Smith says, and the Vass Community Food Pantry. Take my word for it. It’s the best fried chicken you’ll ever taste.
Coming Sunday: “Soldiers wearing the uniforms of today’s American Army are both his credentials and legacy.”
Editor’s Note: A previous version of this column incorrectly stated that the Southport shooting was on Sept. 7. It was on Sept. 27. CityView apologizes for this error.
Bill Kirby Jr. can be reached at billkirby49@gmail.com or 910-624-1961.
We’re nearing our fourth year of CityView Today, and so many of you have been with us from day one in our efforts to bring the news of the city, county, community and Cape Fear region each day. We’re here with a purpose — to deliver the news that matters to you.
