A North Carolina Highway Patrol trooper who died in the line of duty more than 84 years ago will be remembered Friday when the law enforcement agency joins with the N.C. Department of Transportation for the dedication of the Patrolman Henry T. Timberlake Bridge scheduled at 2 p.m. at the Tony Rand Student Center at Fayetteville Technical Community College. “The patrol has served the people of our great state for over 95 years, and with that service we have lost 70 members in the line of duty, with the first being in 1929,” says Col. Freddy Johnson Jr., the Cumberland County native who is commander of the N.C. Highway Patrol. “Their service and ultimate sacrifice is something we do not take for granted as an agency, and we believe that sentiment is shared by the people of North Carolina. Our goal of remembering every one of our fallen has been a very important goal for me. Working alongside NCDOT to ensure we remember our fallen has been impactful for our agency, but more importantly, it has proven to mean everything to the families of these fallen members. With these signs, the communities our fallen members served will forever have a visible reminder of the lengths a law enforcement officer will go to protect them.” Trooper Timberlake was age 30 when his cruiser was involved in a Dec. 1, 1939, fatal crash on the Fayetteville-Dunn Highway in Cumberland County, according to a news release. The trooper was returning from the scene of a wreck near Godwin in Cumberland County. Trooper Timberlake was en route to another vehicular wreck on Lumberton Road, the release says, near what today is known as the Smithfield Road bridge over Interstate 95. More than 500 attended the trooper’s funeral in Youngsville.
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Welcome news for the county’s Southpoint Water System customers, who on Nov. 4 were cautioned to boil water because of potential E. coli. “We are grateful to our water customers for their patience and understanding as we worked through the regulatory testing set forth by the Public Water Supply Section of the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality,” says Amy Hall, public utilities project manager, in a news release issued Nov. 8. “Follow-up samples confirm that the issue with the original affected sample was isolated to that specific sample.” Good news always is welcome news.
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Downtown merchants are breathing a sigh of relief after the Fayetteville City Council at its work session on Nov. 4 postponed consideration to increase downtown public parking fees from $1 to $1.50 per hour and from $5 to $10 per day at downtown parking garages. But look for it to come up again on Jan. 6, according to a CityView report.
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A 33-year-old Lumberton woman has been identified as a homicide victim on Nov. 10 at the 5900 block of Clarkton Court in Stedman, according to the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office. It’s the 14th homicide in the county of 2024.
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Cumberland County Commissioner-elect Pavan Patel, 33, says he and his supporters placed about 4,000 campaign signs throughout the county in Patel’s successful bid to become one of three new commissioners including former N.C. Sen. Kirk deViere and Henry Tyson. Suffice it to say Patel is a politician who is serious about wanting a voice in county government.
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Should Spring Lake Mayor Kia Anthony ever give up her gavel, town residents will not have to look far for a worthy candidate in Marvin Lackman, the 57-year-old two-term town commissioner and retired Fort Liberty soldier who has lived in Spring Lake since 2012. Lackman will tell you “Spring Lake matters” to him.
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Don’t look for any Election Central gatherings at the Crown Complex ballroom in the future, if Glenn Adams has anything to say about it after a paltry turnout on Nov. 5, where there were more Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office deputies on hand for security than local candidates and their supporters. Adams, who is chairperson of the Cumberland Board of County Commissioners, says the once-popular gatherings apparently are not what they once were, and Adams is right.
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It’s not just another gymnasium out at Jack Britt High School any longer. Henceforth it will be known as Isaiah “Ike” Walker Jr. Gymnasium in honor of the boys’ varsity basketball coach, according to a news release from Cumberland County Schools. Isaiah Walker Jr. follows in the footsteps of his father, Ike Walker, the late basketball coach at E.E. Smith High School. He is the only boys’ basketball coach Jack Britt High has ever known, and his teams have won more than 300 contests since the school opened in 2000.
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“Original Cross Creek Garden Club members are smiling,” club member Sybil West says about her part in helping organize the Blue Star Memorial Veterans Day ceremony Monday at Freedom Memorial Park sponsored by the Cross Creek-Briarwood Garden Club. “It is an honor to carry the torch a few steps,” West says about Cross Creek longtime club members Elaine Nunnery, Gussie Ammons, Billie Widman, Heather Andrew, Juliet Brantley, Carolyn Campbell, Linda Chambers, Joan Elliott, Lourine Hall, Katherine Hurtado, Evolyn Joyner, Doris Lee, Bennie Melvin, Debbie Nepstad, Grace Hall, Donna Myers, Marie Phelan, June Reichle, Jacqueline Russ, Martha Claire Sutton, Marian Kirby, Carol Swinson, and Sara Frances Wade.
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Fayetteville Technical Community College says it will use a $1.5 million grant from the N.C. Community College’s Health-Cost Healthcare Expansion Grant program to enhance two FTCC health schools and launch another. “These grant funds will allow us to expand resources, enhance hands-on learning opportunities and support our students with advanced training that prepares them for the healthcare workforce,” Michelle Walden, dean of Allied Health, says in a news release. “This investment not only strengthens our programs but also empowers our students to build rewarding careers in these essential healthcare fields.” The funds, according to the release, will be earmarked for expanding the Nursing and Respiratory Therapy programs and launching a Cardiovascular Technician program in the fall of 2025.
Coming Sunday: Remembering Mr. Eddie
Bill Kirby Jr. can be reached at billkirby49@gmail.com or 910-624-1961.
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