Amelia Autumn Winston of Stedman is the newest member of the Cumberland County community, born at 2:20 a.m. New Year’s Day, according to a news release from Cape Fear Valley Medical Center. Little Amelia, weighing five pounds, 14 oz. and 21.65 inches long, was born at 2:20 a.m. Amelia is the daughter of Kathrine Teets and Ayden Winston of Stedman. She is the granddaughter of Jamie and Bruce Teets Jr. of Stedman and Brenda Boykin of Hamlet.
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A 25-year-old suspect has been charged with the murder of a 25-year-old man on Dec. 26 at 5009 Sante Fe Drive, according to the Fayetteville Police Department. Officers responded to a reported shooting after 8 p.m. to find the victim suffering from a gunshot wound, according to a news release. The victim died at the scene. The suspect, according to the FPD, was located by Spring Lake Police at 1 p.m. on Dec. 27 at the Walmart shopping center in Spring Lake. The victim, according to the FPD, is the 27th homicide in the city for 2024. There were, according to a CityView report by Evey Weisblat in late November, a record number of 52 homicides at the end of 2023.
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An ominous beginning of violent crime in the city as Fayetteville Police officers respond to reports of a shooting at 3:22 a.m. on New Year’s Day to discover a 36-year-old male suffering from a gunshot wound in the parking lot of the Motel 6 on the 3700 block of Bragg Boulevard, according to an FPD news release. The victim later died at Cape Fear Valley Medical Center.
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The Fayetteville-Cumberland County Crimestoppers program is offering a cash reward of up to $2,000 for information submitted to Crimestoppers that leads to an arrest. Visit fay-nccrimestoppers.org or call 910-483-8477 or 910-676-2596.
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Bundle up if you plan to be out and about over the ensuing 10 days. Nighttime temperatures, according to The Weather Channel, will be dropping into the mid and low 20s in the week ahead, including 22 degrees on Jan. 9. That’s some serious cold.
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Children of 48 families enjoyed a joyful Christmas, thanks to the Cumberland County NC Shop With A Sheriff Foundation. The foundation went shopping with families on Dec. 2 and Dec. 20, according to a Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office news release, to assure that 154 children would have gifts from Santa under the tree. The foundation, according to the release, spent $28,349.87 toward bringing smiling faces to financially struggling families in this community. The foundation benevolence is in its 29th year.
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“Bill, I just read your ‘A Blessed Christmas To All,’ on CityView, and feel compelled to say, ‘Well done my brother in Christ,’” Johnny Fermanides writes in an email about the Dec. 23 Christmas Eve The Kirby File column. “Thank you for using your God given gift of writing to proclaim Him as you have done here. The flock needs more instances of this from our leaderships and public figures. Merry Christmas and a happy & healthy 2025.”
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“Bill, I read your Christmas writings Dec. 23 and thoroughly enjoyed it,” Christine Stone writes in an email about the Christmas Eve column. “Thank you so much for putting your thoughts and beliefs into words to share. I felt the need to express my sincere appreciation and to also wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas.”
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“Don’t know how many years I have enjoyed your Christmas columns,” Neil Buie writes in an email, “but it’s a lot.”
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“A beautiful story about Christmas Eve, my favorite night of the year,” the Rev. Ben West, former pastor at Westminster Presbyterian Church, writes in an email. “Peace.”
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“Bill, I am searching for info on the Fayetteville High School class of 1965, specifically on their basketball team,” Marty McDaniel Brownlow writes in an email. “I believe they won the state championship with Rusty Clark and played against Broughton with Pete Maravich but need authentication. If you could direct me to a site or preferably if you’ve done an article on that class, I would so appreciate it. Thank you for being the go-to guy for all of us who lived in and loved Fayetteville.” FHS did play Needham Broughton that year, or maybe the year before. Rusty Clark scored 35 points, and so did Pete Maravich. I attended the game, and Maravich put on a spectacular shooting and dribbling performance. The 1965 team (25-1), behind the play of Clark and the late Eddie Martin, beat Durham, 55-53, in the N.C. Athletic Association 4-A finals at the Greensboro Coliseum, avenging its only season defeat. The 1966 team (21-5), with Chris Cammack as the floor leader, beat Myers Park, 70-69, for the NCHSAA 4-A title in front of 1,331 fans and a statewide television audience in the Greensboro Coliseum.
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A section of Camden Road west of Hope Mills will be widened to four lanes after the N.C. Department of Transportation awarded a $20.2 million contract this week. The two-lane road will be improved for safety from the Fayetteville Outer Loop interchange, which partially opened in July, to Beswick Court, which is west of the Rockfish Road intersection. The new roadway improvements will include a raised median, concrete curb and gutters and drainage structures. Work is scheduled to begin in the spring, the NCDOT says, with all roadway improvements scheduled for completion in 2028.
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My best wishes to our CityView subscribers and readers as our community embarks on 2025, and good health to all.
Next: “Good morning Mr. President”
Bill Kirby Jr. can be reached at billkirby49@gmail.com or 910-624-1961.
We’re in our third year of CityView 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.