The Arts Council’s 39th International Folk Festival with Compare Foods is a three-day festival beginning Friday, Sept. 22. During this festival, community members demonstrate and celebrate their different cultures through food, music, dance and crafts.

This year, the festival kicks off on 4th Friday with a street dance. “Sirius.B is performing,” said Mary Kinney, marketing director for the Arts Council of Fayetteville/Cumberland County. “They are actually based out of Asheville, and they have an eclectic sound that they describe as ‘absurdist gypsy folk funk punk.’ They will perform Friday on a stage in the middle of the street on the corner of Ray Street and Hay Street. They will also perform Saturday... on the main stage.” 

Saturday, Sept. 23, kicks off with one of the most popular events every year, the Parade of Nations. The parade begins at 10:30 a.m. and will wind its way through downtown Fayetteville. “This is where our friends and neighbors proceed down Hay Street wearing their cultural clothes, playing their traditional music and dancing,” Kinney said. “It is celebrating all of the different cultures, and 30 cultures will be represented.”

The parade is expected to last about an hour and a half, which makes it convenient to walk over to Festival Park at noon to enjoy the rest of the International Folk Festival. The park will be filled with performers, food vendors, musicians and arts and craft vendors. “It is every color of the rainbow, every taste you can imagine on a plate and sounds from around the world,” Kinney said. “It activates all your senses, and it is truly global. You can really have egg rolls and ox tail on the same plate. It is very authentic. The people cooking, performing, and selling arts and crafts are all people from our own community. They are celebrating their cultures in a way that we can experience.”

This year, the festival’s hours are longer. On Friday, the festival will be open from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday starts at 10:30 a.m. Festival Park opens at noon and extended hours mean it will remain open until 8 p.m. These longer hours allow for a special performance by Mystic India, an internationally acclaimed Bollywood dance spectacular. Mystic India will perform from 6:30-8 p.m. on Saturday on the main stage in Festival Park.

On Sunday, Festival Park will be open to continue the festivities from noon to 6 p.m. 

The International Folk Festival is always a rain-or-shine event. This year, 100,000 participants are expected over the weekend. There is no admission cost, but according to the Arts Council, it is a good idea to bring some cash to purchase food, beverages and crafts from the local vendors. There will be an ATM, but it often generates a long line. This is a family-friendly event, so strollers are welcome, but dogs should be left at home. “Just bring yourselves. We will be selling beer, wine, water and coke products. Everything you need will be there,” Kinney said.

Find out more at www.theartscouncil.com.

Cape Fear Regional Theatre will kick off its 2017-18 season Sept. 14 with “Dreamgirls,” the Tony Awardwinning Broadway musical that follows the rise of The Dreams, a singing trio, in the 1960s.

Some audience members may be more familiar with the 2006 film version starring Jennifer Hudson and Beyonce than the Broadway show decades before starring Jennifer Holliday, Sheryl Lee Ralph and Loretta Devine.

The story is based loosely on Diana Ross and the Supremes and other girl groups in the Motown era who found that stardom often came with compromises, said Mary Catherine Burke, CRFT’s new artistic director. Every character has a compromise to make to achieve their dream.

“It’s a film onstage,” Burke said. Director Suzanne Agins does “an exquisite job of changing the perspective of the audience with constant motions.”

The progression of time from the ’60s R&B era when The Dreams are discovered to the ’70s disco era will make the production fun for the audience with a variety of music, dance and costume changes, Burke said.

“The thing that is most exciting,” Burke said, “is 20 people singing their faces off with a live band of nine onstage.”

The large cast of 14 local and six non-local performers is indicative of one reason CFRT has been so successful and still thriving after 55 years, said Leslie Flom, marketing director for CFRT. “The whole cast, mostly young, are representatives of local, regional and national artists working side by side,” she said.

Many in the cast said being in “Dreamgirls” was on their bucket list of shows.

“The underlying theme of the show is that dream of performing,” said Ricardo Morgan, who plays Tiny Joe Dixon. A local performer and veteran of several CFRT productions, Morgan said it resonates with the audience because “everybody, no matter what walk of life, has a dream.”

Darius Jordan Lee, from Charlotte, said playing C.C. White “is one of my dream roles. Since I was a kid growing up in my grandfather’s church, I knew I wanted to be a performer.”

For cast member Marktavious Patton, who plays Curtis Taylor Jr., performing onstage is a dream he relates to his own life. From Newark, New Jersey, Patton is facing his own compromise to reach his dream of entertaining audiences like he did last year as the Tin Man in CFRT’s production of “The Wiz.”

Despite having a master’s degree in technology management and a pending job offer working for Amazon in Arizona, Patton said his ultimate dream is to make a name for himself and his family from the stage.

“I am from a poor family, I was the first to graduate college, and I faced prejudices,” Patton said. Although grateful for his opportunities and the pending offer for a “solid career,” he said, “my compromise is that it is not what I want to do.” On the heels of what he believes will be a successful run in “Dreamgirls,” Patton has given himself a time limit to book another show before his deadline to report to Arizona. “If I book a show, I’m gonna go for my dream.”

The entire cast has that kind of passion for performing and is very talented, said Burke. The cast includes leads Nattalyee Randall as Effie White, Diamond Essence White as Deena Jones, Stephanie Rocio as Lorrell Robinson, Kwame Remy as Jimmy Early, and Wilson J. Randall as Marty.

“Dreamgirls” book and lyrics are by Tom Eyen, music by Henry Krieger. The show is choreographed by Randy A. Davis.

“The cast is phenomenal,” Burke said. “You’ll leave here singing.”

“Dreamgirls” runs through Oct. 8. There will be a Military Appreciation Night on Sept. 20 with childcare and a pre-show reception. Girls Glam Night will be Sept. 22 with a pre-show hair and makeup party.

For ticket information, call the box office at  (910) 323-4233 or visit www.cfrt.org.

Operation Inherent Resolve continues in Iraq, but the Army’s 3rd Armored Corps has taken over the fight against ISIS.

Fort Bragg’s 18th Airborne Corps Headquarters element has returned home. Most of the unit’s 450 paratroopers came back over the last few weeks. Their commander, Lt. Gen. Stephen J. Townsend, and the last 40 members of the outfit, arrived last Wednesday evening. They were met at Pope Field’s green ramp by family and friends.

“Our Soldiers and units are skilled, tough and stand ready around the clock to defend America,” Townsend said before his group deployed in August of 2016. “I could not be prouder of any organization I’ve served in,” he said upon their return.

Townsend’s Combined Joint Task Force was an international coalition of 73 nations formed three years ago to defeat ISIS in Iraq and Syria. The general told news reporters gathered to greet the soldiers, “It’s not over yet, but we put a huge dent in ISIS.”

None of the Corps’ soldiers lost their lives during the 12-month deployment but 13 members of the Coalition were killed. Townsend said the Corps’ mission was to help Iraqi and Syrian forces defeat the enemy by enabling them in five ways: supplying equipment, training, intelligence, precision air and ground fires and combat advice.

“In 2014, they were broken and defeated,” Gen. Townsend said of Iraqi troops. He now says that over the past three years the Coalition has made significant progress. It has trained more than 120,000 partner forces, and 80,000 square kilometers, which were once held by the enemy, have been reunified. And 5.6 million people in Iraq and Syria have been liberated from ISIS control. Townsend said Iraqi security forces lost 10,000 troops in the fight.

In July 2017, the Iraqi city of Mosul was recaptured by security forces backed by the U.S. “In Mosul we saw the toughest fighting anyone has seen since World War II,” Townsend told reporters. He noted this is not typical warfare. War fighters had to overcome ISIS’ use of chemical weapons, explosive-laden drones, suicide missions, armored car bombs and the use of civilians as human shields. “Every victory against ISIS in Iraq and Syria makes us that much safer here at home,” Townsend said.

The Corps transitions back to Fort Bragg to reset, refit and begin training for the next mission. “It is not the nature of Paratroopers to sit on their hands. We will train hard to ensure we are ready to answer the nation’s call,” Townsend said.

Returning paratroopers enjoyed a four-day weekend. Asked what’s next for him, Townsend said he’s not looking beyond commanding 18th Airborne Corps. The 56 year-old three-star general has been the Corps’ commander for two years, which is the typical length of a tour for Fort Bragg’s commanding general.

What do Southern U.S. Army posts have in common? They’re named after Confederate officers. The man for whom Fort Bragg was named was a military leader. Camp Bragg was established in 1918 as an artillery training ground and honored native North Carolinian Gen. Braxton Bragg, who also happened to be a slave owner. He commanded the Army of Tennessee in the Civil War and later was given command of the Department of North Carolina by Jefferson Davis. History records that he was loathed by his fellow generals. Author Earl Hess titled his most recent biography “Braxton Bragg: The Most Hated Man of the Confederacy.”

There are nine other posts named for Confederate generals and a colonel, including the head of the Army, the reported Georgia chief of the Ku Klux Klan and the commander whose troops fired the opening shots of the Civil War. Both the Army and the South are tradition-bound entities that revere their pasts. The naming of the posts came long after the Civil War.

Army Col. Steve Warren, a Pentagon spokesman, has said there is “no discussion” to rename the installations. That should put to rest the anxiety of Southern heritage traditionalists. “Every Army installation is named for a soldier who holds a place in our military history,” Brig. Gen. Malcolm Frost said. “These historic names represent individuals, not causes or ideologies.” Critics point out that with a rich history of American military leaders to choose from, it’s ridiculous to keep the names of Confederate generals.

In its outline of the history of naming Army installations, the Army notes, “It was common for camps and forts to be named after local veterans with a regional connection.” All 10 of the bases located in the South honor ranking officers who served in the Confederacy:  Camp Beauregard, Louisiana, honors Louisiana native and Confederate Gen. Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard (1818-93, West Point class of 1838). He led the attack on Fort Sumter.

Fort Benning, Georgia, honors Brig. Gen. Henry Benning (1814-75), a Georgia lawyer, politician, judge and supporter of slavery. Fort Gordon, Georgia, honors Lt. Gen. John Brown Gordon (1832-1904). He was reported to be the leader of the state’s Ku Klux Klan and has “become for many Georgians, and southerners in general, the living embodiment of the Confederacy,” according to a Georgia Historical Society publication.

Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia, honors Virginian Lt. Gen. A.P. Hill (1825-65, West Point class of 1847). He had a frail physique and was frequently ill, attributes which some historians believe are linked to the gonorrhea he contracted while on furlough from West Point.

Fort Hood, Texas, honors Gen. John Bell Hood (1831-79, West Point class of 1853). Hood was wounded at Gettysburg. He led his troops in a massive assault during the Battle of Chickamauga, suffering wounds that led to the loss of his right leg.

Fort Lee, Virginia, honors Virginian General Robert E. Lee (1807-70, West Point class of 1829), the South’s commanding general by the end of the War Between the States.

Fort Pickett, Virginia, honors Maj. Gen. George Pickett (1825-75, West Point class of 1846), a Virginia native. Pickett’s 1863 charge at Gettysburg has been called “the high-water mark of the Confederacy” before ending up a Union victory.

Fort Polk, Louisiana, honors Lt. Gen. Leonidas Polk (1806-64, West Point class of 1827), an Episcopal bishop born in North Carolina. His immediate superior was Gen. Braxton Bragg.

Fort Rucker, Alabama, honors Tennessee native Col. Edmund Rucker (1835-1924) who was often called “general” but never attained the rank.

Fayetteville’s murder rate is on pace to match the city’s all-time high of 31 homicides recorded last year. Twenty people have been killed thus far in 2017, eight of them since mid-August. On Friday, Sept. 8, just before 7 p.m., police found two individuals dead when officers made entry into a home on Yellow Brick Road off Hoke Loop Road in West Fayetteville. Police spokesman, Lt. Todd Joyce, said a third person and a child were in the home when officers arrived, but had not been hurt.

This was the second double homicide in Fayetteville in a week. On Sept. 5, police found two men shot in a car parked in the Smokey Bones Bar & Grill parking lot on Skibo Road. One of them was dead; the other near death. He died three days later at Cape Fear Valley Medical Center. Twenty-four hours earlier, a female passenger in a car was killed in a drive-by shooting on Kennesaw Road. The driver was unhurt.

These most recent murder cases remain unsolved, and police ask that anyone with information notify them. Fayetteville/Cumberland County Crime Stoppers is offering cash rewards. Crime Stoppers can be reached at 483-TIPS. Anonymous information can also be submitted online at fay-nccrimestoppers.org or by downloading the free P3 Tips app available on Apple and Android devices.

Fayetteville Resident Dies in House Fire

A raging fire in a home on St. Paul Avenue in Fayetteville claimed the life of the resident over the weekend. Fayetteville firefighters found the home in the Evergreen Estates neighborhood fully engulfed in flames just after midnight on Saturday, Sept 9. A car was also on fire. Two firefighting crews entered the house to fight the blaze. “One of the crews located the victim in one of the back bedrooms,” said Assistant Fire Chief Kevin Morgan. Ambulance paramedics from Cape Fear Valley Medical Center declared the resident dead on the scene.

Firefighters battled the blaze for approximately an hour before it was fully extinguished. “Damage was done to the entire home with the bulk of the fire damage in the living room and carport area,” Morgan said. “Damage to the structure, its contents and the car was estimated to be $150,000.”  Cause of the fire and manner of death have not been determined. The origin of the fire was the living room of the home. A joint investigation involving the FFD, Fayetteville Police, ATF and SBI is underway.

North Carolina Sues Chemours

State officials have ordered Chemours to stop releasing all fluorinated compounds into the Cape Fear River and began legal action against the company to suspend its permit for discharging wastewater into the river.

The state of North Carolina initiated a lawsuit against Chemours in Bladen County Superior Court. Acting on behalf of the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality, attorneys with N.C. Department of Justice are seeking a court order against Chemours Fayetteville Works plant on the Bladen County line. In a separate letter, DEQ notified Chemours that the state has begun the process of suspending the company’s wastewater permit for failure to adequately disclose the release of GenX into the Cape Fear River.

Without the permit, the company cannot release any wastewater into the river. “Protecting people’s drinking water is our top priority, and we’ve put Chemours on notice that it must stop discharging these chemicals into the Cape Fear River immediately,” said Secretary Michael Regan of the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality. In June, DEQ and the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services began investigating the presence of GenX, a chemical made at Chemours’ Fayetteville plant, in the river.

In a letter to the company, DEQ wrote: “We have found no evidence in the permit file indicating that Chemours or DuPont (Chemours’ predecessor) disclosed the discharge to surface water of GenX compounds at the Fayetteville Works.” DuPont operated the Fayetteville Works facility that produces GenX until 2015 when Chemours was created as a spin-off company.

911 Center Negotiations Continue

City of Fayetteville and county of Cumberland officials still do not agree on who should run a planned joint emergency dispatch and call center. Some city council members are ready to move forward as originally planned with the city operating the system. But the council agreed last week to have Deputy City Manager Kristoff Bauer and Assistant County Manager Tracey Jackson continue their negotiations.

At issue are operational standards and funding. Bauer told city council some progress had been made. The ultimate decision regarding which entity of local government operates the system hinges on whether the county is willing to match the city’s operational standards. The City Communications Division is nationally accredited; the county’s is not.

Police and Public Working Together

The police will tell you that one of their biggest weapons in the fight against crime is community. Detectives have arrested a pair of men in a string of armed robberies that occurred during the pre-dawn hours of Sunday, Sept. 3, and officers are crediting the public. 

Police said active social media outlets, shared public information and phone tips led to the successful identification and apprehension of the suspects. “Providing anonymous tips through Crime Stoppers, statements and sharing information with others is a key component of community policing,” said Police Chief Gina Hawkins. “We are grateful for the relationships that have been established in our community to work together to make it safe,” she added.

Thomas Eugene Skipper, 26, and Jason Allen Gates, 28, fled to Mount Olive, North Carolina, according to police. Detectives received information of their whereabouts once their photographs were shared across social media. The FPD violent criminal apprehension team along with Mount Olive and Duplin County authorities located and arrested Gates and Skipper without incident.  They’ve been jailed, charged with robbing a customer of a Raeford Road grocery store, a patron of a local tavern and an employee of a bowling alley. The public can contact the police via Crime Stoppers by calling (910) 483-TIPS.

Wilkes Road Yard Debris Dump Reopens

The county has reopened the Wilkes Road Compost Facility at 771 Wilkes Rd., following a pesky mulch fire that closed the facility Aug. 27. No equipment or buildings were damaged in the fire.

The facility is open Monday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Wilkes Road facility accepts residential yard waste and commercial land-clearing debris. Vegetative debris is treated and sold for boiler fuel and is also used to create screened compost and mulch. Residents can purchase the screened mulch Monday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

It is time to change the conversation in this city. And to change the conversation, you must change the leadership. For Fayetteville to become a stronger more progressive city it must represent the priorities of the entire city and not just certain areas. I have worked over the last two years to reduce the inequalities that will hinder our future growth in District 2 and I am ready to work to reduce these inequalities throughout Fayetteville.

We have heard across the city that the change people want for Fayetteville is not reflected in its current priorities of our current mayor. Other city leaders say they also care about the inequalities we see but what have they done to help change this issue other than talk about what they could do. When we have 25 percent of our city living in poverty and these same leaders are barely having conversations about it, helping our people is clearly not their priority. When leaders say they are “bringing jobs” to Fayetteville, knowing these jobs pay less than a living wage, perpetuate generational poverty and forego innovative growth possibilities, then they aren’t seeing the big picture because they aren’t bringing the right kinds of jobs to Fayetteville. When leaders aren’t working to revitalize our overlooked and blighted neighborhoods, they aren’t focused on the right priorities. If city leaders aren’t actively partnering with our military, county and educational institutions to transition our workforce, they don’t have the right priorities. And unfortunately, our current leader is not having these conversations at all. It takes hard work to create the type of change we want in our city. I have rolled up my sleeves, working alongside many of you, to improve Fayetteville and I am ready to continue. This is not rhetoric. Please look at my track record of hard work in our community over the last 17 years — elected office or not.

I will continue to champion the work already in progress to achieve our shared vision for Fayetteville. It is work on collaborative initiatives like our Innovation Corridor that positions us to leverage statewide projects like BRIGHT Futures (www.ncbrightfutures. org) and grow our economy in the markets of cyber security and innovative next generation markets in partnership with local universities/colleges and private businesses. Our work includes an initiative to address poverty called “Pathways for Prosperity” (www.pathwaysforprosperity.org) that is creating a community conversation along with a series of action steps with a goal of changing the generational poverty we see in our city. We are continuing the efforts and concepts of “My Brother’s Keeper” to enhance collaboration and grow a community youth mentorship program. These initiatives, coupled with the current city council’s success in building new parks and recreation facilities, increased downtown capital investment, our new baseball stadium, use of local contracting, and Murchison Road development all align to move Fayetteville on a path toward this shared vision.

We need an innovative and driven mayor that can lead our city’s transformation and understands we all grow stronger when the county, school systems, and other municipalities grow with us and have a shared vision. We need a mayor who will stand committed to changing the future of Fayetteville. We deserve a leader who believes in collaboration and construction, not confrontation and obstruction. I am asking for your vote and I am asking you to join me if you believe that we still have work to do in creating a stronger city. I may not have been born here. I may not have gone to high school here. But Fayetteville is my home, it is my wife’s home, it is our new son’s home and it is your home. Let’s make it  better together.

Cindy Blackwell announced this week that she changed her party affiliation to Republican. She plans to actively seek the GOP nomination for Cumberland County Clerk of Court in 2018.

“When I first registered to vote in Cumberland County, I was a young adult working for an elected official,” she said. Her family was Republican, Blackwell noted, but an acquaintance persuaded her not to register with the GOP — the friend was concerned that Blackwell’s party registration might affect her job.

Blackwell said she has always voted for the candidate she considered most qualified, regardless of party, and that she believes voters will look at her qualifications and experience and choose her for Clerk of Court.

“In light of recent events in our courthouse, I just couldn’t go along with the ‘status quo’ politics. So, I made my choice and switched party affiliations. I  feel good about my decision to join the Republican delegation. It feels right,” Blackwell said.

“The race for Cumberland County Clerk of Court should be about who is the most qualified candidate and who has the knowledge, experience and knowhow to serve the people. I intend to run a fair, hon
est, respectable, but, aggressive campaign to personally meet and introduce myself to both Democratic and Republican voters across the county,” Blackwell said. “I believe the Courthouse belongs to the people. No single political party owns it, and it’s no place for partisan politics that places personal political favor over competency, qualifications and an honorable and documented track record.”

She went on to say that the average person dreads going to the courthouse in Fayetteville, because the place is slow and frustrating to deal with and that the current system just promotes the status quo.

“They’re not trying to make the courthouse work better for average folks,” she said. “I want people to know that things can get better — that voters will actually have a choice this time around. I want them to decide who is the most qualified to be the next Clerk of Court.”

I feel like an ocean liner at full speed ahead trying to make a sharp right turn. It’s not happening fast, but slow and steady the turn is coming thanks to an hour-long chat with a guy named Ralph Huff. More about him later.

I’m talking about my take on this baseball stadium that has consumed the Fayetteville City Council and many of the downtown supporters this past year. I was never against it, but I had my doubts. I want to say it’s the realist in me when in fact it could be the curmudgeon in me.

You see, I’ve witnessed many projects that were supposed to catapult our downtown to that higher level of livability. While each added something to making downtown a purposeful destination, none brought it over the top.

I was there as a Fayetteville Observer city reporter when they moved the Stein Library (now Arts Center) into the new and modern downtown Cumberland County Public Library, complete with public art and a hospitable lobby for the homeless. The library on Maiden Lane replaced an automobile dealership.

I was there when they tore up Hay Street and put in the $7 million Transit Mall, consisting of beautiful pavers, landscaping and Hurley pots. The Feds paid for most of it, and the deal was no cars on the mall, only buses. City Councilman Milo McBryde coined the term “Hurley pots” in jesting honor of downtown revitalization champion and then-Fayetteville Mayor Bill Hurley. Not everyone supported the transit mall. In fact, McBryde and his father moved their optometrist shop from Hay Street to Bragg Boulevard. He and some merchants argued that taking away on-street parking directly in front of their stores would hurt business.

I was there when they razed Hay Street’s infamous 500 block, killing off the Seven Dwarfs and a dozen other seedy watering holes.

And I served as the city’s spokesman when it refurbished the former Highsmith Rainey Hospital (turned into a 1960s Woolworths) for a City Hall. Oh, they renovated the nearly vacant Prince Charles Hotel into a historic showpiece as part of the City Hall project. It didn’t last.

Each was a spark in downtown revitalization but never a sustaining flame. Apparently, none of the sparks were big enough to ignite revitalization.

The heck with sparks. Here comes 67-year-old Ralph Huff with a flamethrower. He’s a former realtor, company manager, company owner, homebuilder, real estate developer, and now an apartment and commercial builder. He nurtured 1990 pocket change into wealth that lets him support a variety of civic and cultural programs that he says will make Fayetteville a better place to live.

Two years ago, he and about 100 friends raised $65,000 to promote the city’s parks and recreation bond referendum that pledged a tax increase to building and upgrading recreational facilities. The passing of the referendum spurred him and those friends to form Vision 2026. It’s a committee of about 125 people committed to making Fayetteville a better place to live.

The committee has a plan: build a baseball stadium in the right place, renovate the Prince Charles Hotel into a 60-unit apartment complex with a first-class hotel next door, support the Civil War History Center and build a performing arts center.

“The day we pay off the Crown Coliseum mortgage, we ought to be laying the cornerstones of the performing arts center,” Huff said.

But first, the baseball stadium. Huff finagled the City Council to move the stadium from what he called “the wrong location” to the area adjacent to the Prince Charles Hotel.  He wrangled them one by one and showed them the site behind the Prince Charles, describing how the stadium would fit on the site and in the greater scheme of things.

“I told them that the business community would not back a baseball park that was not walkable from downtown,” he said.

Maybe this time it will be more than a spark. Maybe it’ll be a home run.

That’s right, friends and neighbors; this week will break the century mark for getting your Christmas shopping done early. Time to get on board the old anxiety wagon about what to get your significant other for Christmas. As a public service, this week’s column will serve as the Gentleman’s Guide for Appropriate Gifts for the Little Woman.

Christmas is a time of tradition. What better way to figure out what tradition is than to look at Christmas ads from the mid-20th century? It was a kinder, gentler time, back when America was great. The Little Woman could be overjoyed with the gift of kitchen appliances. Ponder the gifts that once warmed the cockles of the hearts of ladies of the 1950s.

My favorite ad is for Hoover, which shows a ’50s lady in a flowered dress lying on the floor, admiring and caressing her new bow-bedecked vacuum cleaner. The ad says, “Christmas morning she’ll be happier with a Hoover.” She’s reading a thoughtful card from her husband contemplating the many happy hours she will spend vacuuming rugs as she tidies up the cottage for her man to come home to after a long day’s work. Not to be outdone, husbands can tickle the fancy of their wives with America’s most distinctive toaster, the 1948 Proctor Automatic Pop Up toaster. It’s “the ideal gift... durable … dependable, the toaster with Color Guard.” Hubby is smiling by the Christmas tree, proudly holding up the toaster as if it were his firstborn child with the caption, “Ways to please a lady.” The toaster is “guaranteed to bring a truly heart felt Thank You... there’s no extra charge for hugs and kisses.” Bring back the old spark to your marriage by giving her a toaster.

A Bird’s Custard ad features a creepy-looking Snowman holding a flaming custard with copy saying, “Everybody knows Christmas pudding is always better with Bird’s custard.” Who knew? The Tupperware ad has Wifey sitting in a yoga pose dressed in a Mrs. Santa outfit admiring a stack of Tupperware she is balancing in her hand. The ad says, “Gee, how she’s going to love this Tupperware. Who wouldn’t love these beautiful plastic food containers?” Which raises the existential question, is there anyone with a soul so dead that they would not love a beautiful plastic food container? If there were anyone so insensitive about beautiful plastic food containers, then Ronald Reagan had just the right gift for such a lout. The gift of Christmas-wrapped cartons of Chesterfield cigarettes. Ron is smoking and saying: “I’m sending Chesterfields to all my friends. That’s the merriest Christmas any smoker can have.”

If you can’t love plastic, then off with your head, have a cigarette.

Mutual of Omaha suggests the perfect gift is “Easy Mind” health insurance. Dad is in the toy store pushing Little Billy in a metal car. Billy thinks Santa will bring him the car. Imagine Billy’s surprise when he opens his present and finds a health insurance policy inside. 7-Up shows Christmas carolers in the snow about to enjoy a frosty 7-Up. “Merry Christmas to all from the All Family Drink! So pure... so good... so wholesome for everyone... including the tiniest tot.” Christmas is the perfect time to get those tiny tots hooked on 7-Up.

We all associate Reynolds Aluminum with Christmas. Reynolds’ ad shows a cheery mom decorating an aluminum Christmas tree surrounded by aluminum kitchen appliances. “Here’s a Merry Christmas combination for this year — a glittering, permanent Christmas tree of aluminum with light, bright, and lasting aluminum housewares and utensils around it.” Nothing says remember the birth of baby Jesus like an aluminum Christmas tree.

It wouldn’t be Christmas without Betty Crocker fruitcake featuring the spicy old-fashioned version or the dark deluxe mutation fruitcake. Other than roaches and Twinkies, the only thing that will survive a nuclear attack by the North Koreans will be fruitcakes. Imagine the festive fun you will have gnawing on a fruitcake in the crawl space of your house while waiting for the all-clear to sound as the radiation dies down to an almost survivable level.

The Rid Jid Knee Room Ironing table claims approval by Mrs. Santa Claus, who is sitting comfortably at her ironing board reading letters to her. She proudly announces that the ladies are unanimous, “They all want the same thing, Santa... My Ironing Table.” God rest ye, merry gentlemen if you give your wives appliances for Christmas. Ye shall be resting in the dog house. Be wise. Ignore this column. The wife you save, may be your own.

Dear Editor: Any chance the editor can pass along to Karl Merritt that Trumps fiscal year and budget does not start until October? He seems to be unaware of either that and what that might entail, in this article where he complains about the media unfairly condemning Trump.

To explain like Karl is five years old: With Trumps fiscal budget not even being a factor this year (due to this starting in October) in regards to our low unemployment numbers and strong stock market means that this is the product of Obamas presidency. Not Trumps. 

A correction should be made in your publication, because that type of mistake is just embarrassing and the result of fake news. Please have your contributors research their “facts” and provide sources in the future.

Thank you.

— Cassie (Last name withheld upon request)

Dear Editor: The comments here are in response to a letter to the editor of Up & Coming Weekly from a reader whose first name is Cassie. She took issue with statements I made in my recent column titled, “Searching for Why America is Off-Course.”

The objection appears to be to my giving President Trump credit for the lowered unemployment rate and record high levels in the stock market. She contends that credit should go to former President Barack Obama.

Regarding both these objections, I contend that the record is clear that Trump’s agenda and his actions are the drivers of lower unemployment rates and the stronger stock market. In the matter of the stock market, consider the following quote from an article by Eshe Nelson, May 25, titled, “Six months later, the ‘Trump trade’ is over.” “To be fair, currency traders were never as pumped by Trump as stock traders were. Trump’s pledge to cut taxes, spend big on infrastructure, and slash regulation sent stock markets surging to record highs—the “Trump trade,” as it came to be known.” This statement reflects the assessment rendered time and again by various sources.

As to reduced unemployment rates, Cassie does not deny gains or that the outlook is good. She challenges attributing this positive outlook to Trump.  Again, support for my position is plentiful. One source is an article by Paul Davidson, March 14, titled, “Trump’s agenda spurs CEOs’ hiring and spending plans.” It states:“The nation’s top CEOs stepped up their hiring and investment plans in the first quarter amid a burst of confidence over President Trump’s pro-business agenda, showing no signs that early political roadblocks had dimmed their optimism.

Forty-one percent of CEOs plan to increase hiring in the next six months, up from 35 percent in the fourth quarter, according to a Business Roundtable survey. Just 18 percent expect to reduce employment, down from 30 percent late last year.

And 46 percent of the top executives intend to increase capital spending, up from 35 percent. Just 13 percent plan to rein in such investment, down from 21 percent.”

As Cassie contends, I have heard others say that our improving economy is due to the actions of Obama. Obviously, I disagree and hold that information referenced above is representative of a body of commentary in support of my position. The bottom line is that Trump’s actions, along with his agenda, created an atmosphere conducive to improving the economy. I find it amazing that progress has been made in spite of Democratic obstruction and the multitude of ongoing efforts to destroy Trump’s presidency.

To this point in my response, I have not addressed Cassie’s contention that Trump not having submitted his first budget is a relevant consideration in her objection to what I wrote. I have not addressed it because I did not mention “budget” in my column and nothing presented above references the budget process. Items in Trump’s agenda will be affected by budgeting, but I do not see how that is relevant in this discussion.

As for her “To explain like Karl is five years old” statement regarding budgeting and the fiscal year arrangement, I served 21 1/2  years in the U.S. Navy as a Supply Corps officer. In two assignments, I was comptroller. My responsibilities included budgeting for and expending millions of dollars. I understand budgeting and fiscal years.

I appreciate feedback regarding what I write, whether that feedback agrees or disagrees with me. My aim, however, is to prompt thoughtful, productive examination of issues so that problem-solving civil discourse results. A major destructive force to this process is when the feedback is lacking in fact-based reasoning and/or conveys personal insults. In my estimation, Cassie employed both of these destructive tactics. I suppose the tactics are intended to intimidate me into silence. We are, in part, disintegrating as a society because far too many people in America use this approach. Those who will inherit this country from us deserve much better.

— Karl Merritt

As I write this, Labor Day has come and gone. School is back in session, families are settling into normal school year routines, sportscasters are talking about Friday night football, and students in shorts and T-shirts wearing backpacks walk down my street every afternoon.

All of this brings memories of my student days in the old Fayetteville City Schools system and the Precious Jewels’ days in its successor, Cumberland County Schools, from the perspective of a parent. The three decades that separated these experiences brought significant changes in education, including subject matter, teaching techniques, classroom design and function, greater diversity among both students and educators, not to mention what we used to call “school clothes.”

But much was the same, too.

Most of my generation and those of the Precious Jewels attended the public schools to which we were assigned. Our curricula were standardized for the most part, with some electives available in middle and high school. The experience was not exactly “one size fits all,” but there was not much variety in academic offerings. Some teachers were willing to help students pursue an area of special interest, and some were not, so most students had similar academic and social experiences during our school years. Anything outside those we explored on our own.

Things are changing in American education and changing fast. All over our country, and certainly in North Carolina, families have expanding educational options. In my day, the only children not in public schools were probably not there because of an illness or disability. There were a few independent and religious schools, but no one I knew had ever heard of charter schools, magnet schools, much less home schools where parents do double duty as moms and dads as well as teachers and athletic coaches.

Most of us, including this columnist, believe that choice is a positive development, but there are downsides. A big one is that many public school systems are losing students to the various options, including charter schools, which taxpayers also fund. Also, North Carolina offers taxpayer-funded vouchers for private schools, including religious ones, which further lessen funding for public schools.

Teachers are different as well. In my day and to some extent in the Precious Jewels’ day, women had fewer career options, with teaching remaining a popular one, in part because of its traditional calendar year and state-sponsored benefits. Today, women have far more career choices and are taking them in droves. More men are also in classrooms, but, generally speaking, teaching has become a less attractive option. Enrollment in college and university teaching programs is way down, with some schools actually closing. While Americans, including we North Carolinians, pay homage and loud lip service to the professionalism of teachers and how much we appreciate them, we pay them such low salaries that many are forced to take second and thirds jobs to support themselves and their families. According to the National Center for Educational Statistics, North Carolina teacher pay adjusted for inflation has dropped 13 percent over the last 15 years, ranking 47th in the nation in the school year 2013-14. If we were honest with ourselves, we would admit that many of our best and brightest, even those who yearn to teach, are choosing other careers out of economic necessity.

All of which brings me to a nagging worry that sometimes keeps me awake at night.

As the United States follows Western Europe in becoming more diverse and more secular, the “glue” of common experience that has historically bound us as a people is fraying.

Vastly different from the millions of veterans who were drafted into service in earlier generations, volunteer military service has resulted in well-educated, well-trained and dedicated personnel, but far fewer of them. Today, only about one-half of 1 percent of Americans are on active duty, making military service a rare rather than common national experience.

Millions of us are active in our faith, but religious diversity means this is also a less than common national experience. And, while most American children still attend public schools, more options mean that, too, will become a tie less binding.

All are reminders that the decisions we make for our own families, multiplied by millions, impact all of us and our understanding of what it means to be an American.

It was a long and hard-fought path to the “Rock the Vote” campaigns and dismal voter turnout of recent years.

In the early days of our country, voting really was a privilege, one reserved for property-owning or tax-paying white men over the age of 21.

In the 1790s, the Naturalization Act gave men born outside the U.S. who became citizens the right to vote, and various states started dropping the property requirement.

In 1870, the 15th Amendment gave nonwhite men and freed male slaves the right to vote, although several states continued to suppress this group of voters.

Native American men were granted citizenship in 1887, giving them the right to vote, but only if they would disassociate themselves from their tribes.

It was 1920 before the 19th Amendment passed, giving women the right to vote. By 1924, Native Americans, regardless of tribal affiliation, won the right to vote.

It was 1943 before the Magnuson Act granted Chinese immigrants a voice in American politics.

In 1964, the 24th Amendment declared voting cannot be denied “by reason of failure to pay any poll tax or other tax” for federal elections.

It wasn’t until 1965 that the Voting Rights Act guaranteed protection of voter registration and voting for racial minorities.

In 1971, thanks to the 26th Amendment, the voting age changed from 21 to 18.

Today, the voting requirements are:

• Be a U.S. citizen

• Be at least 18 years of age

• Reside in the county and election district in which he or she presents to vote

• Not be serving an active sentence for a felony conviction

In just over a week, on Sept. 21, onestop voting begins for the Fayetteville primary election. It includes candidates vying for mayoral and city council/commissioner/alderman positions. Voting ends Oct. 10. One-stop voting starts for the municipal winners Oct. 19 and ends Nov. 7.

Find out more about local candidates and voting policies at www. co.cumberland.nc.us/election_board/ voter_info/guide.aspx#.

Also, we are proud to debut our Hope Mills News & Views section in this week’s paper. Check it out on pages 22 and 23. Thank you for reading Up & Coming Weekly.

Former cross country coach Donna McCollum and former basketball star Murray Duggins Jr. are the members of the latest class of inductees into the Fayetteville Academy Athletic Hall of Fame.

McCollum and Duggins will be honored at a banquet and induction ceremony scheduled for Nov. 21 at the school, the same evening as the annual alumni girls’ and boys’ basket-ball games.

All inductees are enshrined with plaques that include highlights of their athletic career and a picture. The plaques are on display in the lobby of the Fayetteville Academy gym.

McCollum was primarily a cross country and track coach at Fayetteville Academy from 2002-15.

She has an incredible personal story separate from her days at the Academy. She is one of only eight American women to have climbed the tallest peak on each of the seven continents, including Mount Everest, Mount Kilimanjaro and Mount Denali.

The cousin of former American Olympic running star Mary Decker Slaney, McCollum was a candidate to be a member of the 1980 U.S. Olympic swimming team until the boycott of that year’s games was announced by President Jimmy Carter.

When she first attended a Fayetteville Academy cross country meet as a spectator, she saw runners unable to complete the race without walking.

She agreed to coach for one year, but when her players asked her to stay, she challenged them. “There are going to be sacrifices made along the way,’’ she said. “It’s not going to happen overnight. It will take us about four years to do this.’’

In 2007, her boys’ and girls’ teams at the Academy made N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association history as they were the first school to take both championships at the 2-A level in the same season.

“To take 14 teenagers and have them all be on was more than I had expected,’’ McCollum said. “We were just a little private school where most of the runners couldn’t finish three miles without walking. When they said they wanted this, they kind of woke up the schools in the area.’’

McCollum called working at the Academy a privilege and said her induction into the hall was a fitting way to end a 32-year coaching career.

Duggins Jr., a 1995 graduate of the Academy, was a member of the 1992 state championship boys’ basketball team at the school and was named conference player of the year as a senior in 1995.

He thanked former Eagle coach and current athletic director Chip Bishop for giving him a chance to play on the varsity as a freshman. “He’s one of the most accomplished basketball coaches in the state and an even better person,’’ Duggins Jr. said. “This is something I’m going to treasure.’’

Duggins Jr. said he still misses the faculty at the Academy, along with the competition and the camaraderie with his teammates. “We had four really good teams,’’ he said.

His advice to the players of today is the same that Bishop gave him when he was a player. “Always try as hard as you can,’’ Duggins Jr. said. “Never give up.’’

PHOTO: Murray Duggins Jr. stands in front of some of the plaques recognizing members of the Fayetteville Academy Athletic Hall of Fame.

The second of two annual Region Four Coaches and Officials Emergency Fund golf tournaments is scheduled Oct. 15 at Gates Four Golf and Country Club.

Fred McDaniel, retired student activities director for Cumberland County Schools and one of the original organizers of the tournament, said the event is doing everything it can to raise money for a good cause after the organizers tried to spread charity a little too far.

At one time, money from the fund went to anyone facing a personal crisis due to health or other concerns, McDaniel said. They even sent money to high schools whose athletic facilities had been damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.

But as the account balance dropped and the annual tournaments didn’t replenish the money already given away, McDaniel said the fund had to change directions. “At the moment, we’re back to where we just help coaches and officials,’’ he said. “We had to go back to the people we were looking to start with.’’

The fund began when the coaches and officials united to help former coach Mark Heil, now retired, deal with the expenses his late son incurred in dealing with serious health problems.

The first tournament was a success, but as the organizers were congratulating themselves, McDaniel said former Pine Forest and E.E. Smith football coach Dean Saffos spoke up. “He said, ‘Fellows, we need to do this all the time, every year, to look after our own,’’’ McDaniel said. “He said if we don’t look after ourselves, who’s going to do it?”

The result was a union between coaches and officials to hold the golf tournaments annually as fundraisers for the cause.

“We can’t make everything well, but we can make it better,” McDaniel said.

This year’s tournament will follow the format of past tournaments. There are slots for 32 teams. Check-in begins at 11 a.m. with lunch at 11:30 and play beginning at 1 p.m. with a shotgun start. The entry fee is $75 per golfer before Oct. 10 and $85 after. The entry fee covers a round of golf, lunch, beverages and prizes.

For further information on the tournament and how to enter, go to the official tournament website, www.regionfour.org.

PHOTO: Fred McDaniel

On the first day of school last week, Cape Fear’s Chris Matthews was getting around campus with the aid of a four-wheeled scooter. It’s not because he’s reverting to childhood or because he lost a bet.

His high school football season is over. Matthews was injured when Cape Fear played in the High School OT football jamboree at Cardinal Gibbons High School.

Two defenders fell on his leg, and the three- year starter at linebacker for last year’s Eastern  4-A champions immediately knew something  was wrong.

“I felt a pop and I started getting upset and angry,’’ Matthews said. “I knew it was going to be something bad.’’

Colt head coach Jake Thomas said Matthews suffered a clean break in the tibia in his left leg. Complicating the injury was damage to ligaments in the ankle, plus the ankle was displaced.

Add it all up, and Matthews is looking at eight weeks in a cast and up to three months or more trying to rehabilitate the injury.

“All the thoughts went through my head of not being able to play, senior year being snatched away before you’re able to play the first game,’’ he said. “That’s why I’m rolling around on the tricycle.’’

Matthews has already had surgery on his damaged leg, and he’s listening carefully to the advice of his orthopedist, Dr. Christopher Barnes at Fayetteville Orthopaedics.

But he’s also practical, and he’s still trying to make as big a contribution as he can for Cape Fear, but in a sideline role. He missed Cape Fear’s season-opening win at Clinton as he was home recuperating from surgery on his leg. But he was back on the sidelines and in the pre-game huddle with the team as it won its home opener against Cumberland County rival Seventy-First.

“You could see him when the captains go out on the field,’’ Thomas said. “He’s been a three-year starter. He was visibly upset.’’

But he knows there are other things he can do for the Colts. “He’s going to fulfill the role of helping coach the other guys,’’ Thomas said. “Now that he’s back, he’ll be around at practice, take on more of a coach’s role.’’

He’s also going to branch out into multimedia, joining Cape Fear assistant Joe Grates to co-host the second season of the Cape Fear High School football show, which will be posted weekly on You Tube.

Not that there was any chance of it happening, he won’t be forgotten by his teammates. “They want to dedicate the season to him,’’ Thomas said. The school has already ordered stickers with the No. 40 on them. As soon as they arrive, Thomas said each player will add one to his helmet.

Despite the injury, Matthews isn’t giving up on the hope of playing college football next season. That will be the focus of his rehab, he said. But the good news for him is he prepared for the possibility of injury in advance by focusing on academics and assuring himself that football alone won’t be his ticket to a college education.

“I listened to those warnings,’’ he said regarding the advice to always take care of his grades first. “It’s a contact sport and everybody is open to injury. That’s why it’s important for every athlete to keep the academics up.’’

Matthews begins his senior year with a 4.6 grade point average. He was an Up & Coming Weekly scholar athlete last season.

“Nothing will keep me down,’’ he said. “There’s a lot of negative I could look at, but as long as you focus on the positive you can get through anything and come back stronger.’’

PHOTO: Chris Matthews, Cape Fear High School

Some high school athletes have a difficult time picking a single highlight of their athletic career.

For me, it’s never been a problem. My magical moment happened on a November night in 1969 in Bryson City, North Carolina. And what happened then helped plant the seed that led me to telling the stories of future generations of coaches and athletes.

I was a sophomore at Swain County High School. I lived there with my parents while my dad was serving as pastor at Bryson City Presbyterian Church. I was good friends at church with a young man named Max Witt who was a rabid University of Tennessee football fan and who helped encourage my own growing interest in the sport.

In the fall of 1969, I was enthralled by the book “Instant Replay,” the autobiography of Green Bay Packer great Jerry Kramer, and went totally overboard. I decided to go out for the Swain County football team.

Our coach, Milton Barden, was incredibly kind to someone who had a better chance of being first to land on the moon than he did of being a football player. I finally realized I was woefully out of my league and eventually asked Coach Barden if I could be the team manager. He accepted.

So I was still around and felt like a part of the program. We got off to a 6-0 start and were looking good, then we hit the meat of our schedule and went 0-2-1 against the three teams we absolutely had to beat to make the state playoffs.

And that’s what led to that magic night. Our last game was with Towns County, Georgia. A new, struggling program that only had a handful of guys and could barely field a team.

Coach Barden decided if we couldn’t make the playoffs, maybe we could make history. He dressed every player we had, varsity and jayvee, for the game, and handed me a No. 88 jersey and said I could suit up.

This would be my first and only high school football game. Coach Barden’s plan was simple. We’d play our first team on offense and they would score with relative ease and try to allow a number of players to set some school records. As an example, our star running back, Larry Beck, rushed eight times for 427 yards. Nat Watson, my sophomore classmate and wide receiver, had three touchdown catches to give him a total of 15 for the season.

Defense was a different story. Guys of my talent level and only slightly better spent much of the night on the field. That way, Towns could score too and wouldn’t get beaten to death.

The final score was 81-46. I had a hand in two plays that led to the 46. I got totally burned on a kickoff return where the ballcarrier zipped by me. And I made my best tackle of the night on a two-point conversion try. Trouble was, the ballcarrier was five yards into the endzone at the time.

If you want to take the trouble, you can find this game listed in the online NC High School Athletic Association record book as one of the highest-scoring football games in state history. And unlike some games on that list, we set our records in regulation, without the benefit of overtime.

I was nostalgic now because this week I got a very special piece of mail from Swain County. It was a big envelope containing a Maroon Swain home jersey with the No. 88 on it — not THE jersey of course, but still my number from my one and only football game.

What does this have to do with being a reporter? Well, someone took the time to get the information on that game to Asheville’s The Citizen-Times. The following week, a reporter called coach Barden and did a column, and I got my name in the paper on the sports page for the first time in my life.

I’ve tried to make that same experience happen for young people in the 45 years I’ve been doing this. It’s also a reminder of why it’s important to make sure and tell someone in the media about what your athletes are doing. You never know when a magic moment will happen — and when history will be made.

About 30 percent of North Carolina’s 6.8 million registered voters are Republicans. So how in the world do Republicans ever win election in the Tar Heel State?

Be careful how you answer that question. GOP candidates have done quite well in recent election cycles. Yes, Republican margins in the North Carolina House and Senate are padded by favorable district maps. But they’ve still won a majority of the statewide vote for legislature in every election since 2010. By contrast, during the previous decades, Democrats often won seat majorities despite losing the “popular vote” for legislature statewide. Republicans also hold a majority on the Council of State, composed of executives elected statewide, as well as on the state court of appeals.

Obviously, GOP candidates can’t win with registered Republicans alone. They have to get other voters to cross over. So do state Democrats, who make up 39 percent of the electorate. Almost all the remaining voters are registered as unaffiliated, with about half a percentage point consisting of registered Libertarians.

To say that 30 percent of North Carolina voters are unaffiliated is not, however, to say that 30 percent of North Carolina voters begin each election as truly undecided and then “swing” to one or the other major party. Careful studies of voting behavior identify only about 10 percent to 15 percent of the electorate as true swing voters in today’s polarized politics.

A new survey commissioned by the Civitas Institute of unaffiliated voters in North Carolina offers additional support for this model of the electorate. Of its random sample of 400 unaffiliated voters, about a third said they identified more with the Republican Party than the Democrats, a comparable percentage opted for Democrat over Republican, and the remaining third were truly independent of party preference.

Those fully up-for-grabs independents, then, constitute about a tenth of the North Carolina electorate. Add a few points of registered Democrats and Republicans who aren’t strongly committed to their parties anymore, and you have a reasonable estimate of the swing-voter population in an average election.

Democratic registration has been falling for many years, with Republican registration roughly flat and unaffiliated registration way up. Nevertheless, Democrats still outnumber Republicans. The latter have to win a sizable majority of unaffiliated and mildly Democratic voters in order to be competitive.

We know it’s quite possible to do that, since Republicans have won many (although obviously not all) statewide contests in recent cycles. One reason is that unaffiliated voters, on a whole, are somewhat more amenable to Republican messages than they are to Democratic ones.

Again citing the Civitas poll, unaffiliated voters are more likely to identify as conservative than as liberal, are much more likely to identify as fiscally conservative
rather than as fiscally liberal, live mostly in suburban and rural areas, favor capital punishment, overwhelmingly favor either outright or partial repeal of Obamacare, and overwhelmingly favor a photo-ID requirement to vote.

On the other hand, unaffiliated voters are more split when it comes to social issues such as abortion. And at present, they are souring on the Republican Party as a brand. They disapprove of President Donald Trump’s job performance by a 53 percent to 43 percent margin, while approving of Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s job performance by 56 percent to 27 percent. Their favorability ratings of the Democratic Party are mixed. Their ratings of the Republican Party are not, at 28 percent favorable to 50 percent unfavorable.

This is probably a Trump phenomenon, not a larger, lasting realignment. The 2018 midterms also remain quite a ways off. In 2013, for example, a comparable Civitas poll of unaffiliated voters had Democrats up 10 percentage points over Republicans in the generic ballot for legislature. As we know, that edge didn’t stick through 2014. On the other hand, that cycle occurred under a somewhat-unpopular Democratic president. The 2018 cycle may well occur under a more-unpopular Republican one.

I’d describe the survey’s findings as good news for Democrats — with the usual admonition against counting unhatched chickens.

The Mighty Male Mentoring Program is a goaloriented program designed to support the educational and professional aspirations of minority males (also known as mentees) at Fayetteville Technical Community College. The 3M Program seeks to increase completion of developmental and curriculum courses, retention, graduation rates and rates of transfer to a UNC four-year institution. To accomplish this, the program increases exposure to academic and financial aid advising and to educational, professional and civic opportunities.

It’s uncontroverted that minority males face many personal challenges and obstacles when it comes to college education program admittance, financial resources, job skills, job placement, stereotypes, low grade point averages, low Accuplacer test scores and a sense of future direction, to name a few. This is where the 3M Program steps in with mentors and academic advising.

Advising students includes bimonthly meetings that identify some of the challenges and obstacles mentioned above in order to improve students’ knowledge and decision-making skills as well as to increase awareness and identify opportunities for active engagement. The design of bimonthly meetings also helps to increase students’ team building, communication and leadership skills.

Mentoring students involves developing a more personal, one-on-one relationship between student and advisor/mentor. Some of the mentor’s duties include coaching students on a particular skill, facilitating growth by sharing knowledge and challenging students to take risks and move beyond their comfort zone. Regular contact — at least twice a month — allows students to bond and identify with their mentor.

The 3M Program is more than just worthwhile — it’s a game changer.  That’s because its benefits are permanent. By matching students who have demonstrated a desire to succeed with dedicated faculty and staff members who serve as mentors, relationships are forged that create win-win situations.  Not only do the mentees reap tremendous rewards, but also the mentors benefit greatly.

The process begins with potential mentees filling out an application that memorializes their commitment to improve both as students and as male members of their communities. Upon acceptance, the mentees complete a contract with their mentors wherein they attest to a plan of action. Mentors are pre-screened to identify their areas of expertise and level of commitment. The bimonthly plenary meetings ensure program participants stay motivated and augment any individual meetings between mentor and mentee. In addition, numerous activities are available that reinforce the program’s mission, purpose and expectations. 

FTCC’s 3M Program continues to grow, and FTCC hopes to make significant strides this school year. The Links Inc. and a group of dedicated volunteer mentors support the efforts of the program.  Equally encouraging has been the caliber of the mentees who have been participating. 

Young men who participate in the program will explore who they are as individuals, establish goals and identify resources necessary to help them reach those goals. It is the making of a better man. Learn more about the unique, life-changing opportunities available at FTCC by visiting www.faytechcc.edu or by visiting the  Fayetteville, Spring Lake or Fort Bragg campus locations.

Sustainable Sandhills presents its Sustainable Saturdays Film Series showing of “Before the Flood” Saturday, Sept. 9, at 11 a.m. at the Cameo Art House Theatre. 

“‘Before the Flood’ follows Leonardo DiCaprio on his journey concerning climate change throughout the world and his participation in the U.N. climate talk,” said Denise Bruce, environmental outreach manager of Sustainable Sandhills. “He is considered a U.N. ambassador on climate, and he has been a celebrity that has been representative of a number of vital issues before he was famous in the movie ‘Titanic.’” Bruce added that DiCaprio visits communities in India and Miami. The film sums up what will happen to the planet if we do nothing. We need real, actionable policy from the United States and other countries, Bruce added. 

“Before the Flood” presents the dramatic changes occurring around the world now due to climate change as well as the actions individuals can take to prevent this disruption of our planet. It urges viewers to push their elected officials in supporting the use of alternative sources such as solar and wind power. 

The United States produces more greenhouse emissions per capita than any other country in the world. “What we are going to talk about is how our community here and other North Carolina communities will respond to climate change,” Bruce said. “That includes a climate change resiliency plan, and some communities are willing to do their own policymaking in terms of emission reduction and carbon capture and things like that outside of any federal policies.”

Bruce added that they are hoping to have a couple speakers come in who have a background in climate science to talk about how incidents like Hurricanes Matthew and Harvey will become a more regular occurrence along the coast.

There are many scientists who assert that the planet is in fact warming, and it is because of human activity. Luckily, Bruce said, we are in a place technologically that we can reduce the amount of fossil fuels that we burn while continuing on the track of economic growth and prosperity.

Sustainable Sandhills is an environmental nonprofit that aims to save the planet and preserve the Sandhills’s environment through education, demonstration and collaboration. The Sustainable Saturdays Film Series includes a screening of a film along with subject matter experts who attend and speak on the topic.

“Climate change is an issue beyond our community and is something our community definitely needs to engage in,” Bruce said.     

Doors open Sept. 9 at 10:30 a.m. and the show starts at 11 a.m. For more information, call (910) 484-9098.

Explore local history in a whole new way. The Downtown Alliance and the city of Fayetteville host monthly historic tours by horse and carriage lasting about 45 minutes each. “The tours cover Fayetteville’s early history,” said Hank Parfitt, founder and former president of the Downtown Alliance. “It covers colonial times, highland and lowland Scots immigrating here, the Revolutionary period, the 19th-century introduction of the railroad and some Civil War history. It is heavier on the earlier history because we really want people to understand that Fayetteville has a rich and storied past.”

This month, the tour coincides with the Lafayette Birthday Celebration, and it is a special tour. There will be a guided exploration of Cool Spring Tavern. The tavern is named after Cool Spring, an actual spring that provided water for the original town.

“The spring was where many people from all levels of society would go to get water and to socialize,” Parfitt said. “So it’s pretty perfect that the new arts district is named the Cool Spring Downtown District. For those of us that really bought into the downtown revitalization, we saw downtown as a place for people of all social classes to come and socialize.”

The tour is a rare opportunity to look inside one of the most historic buildings in North Carolina. While the interior and exterior are close to the original look of the building, it is currently being rented by Connections of Fayetteville for use as a training center to help reintegrate homeless women into the community. “The docent will be Lulie Harry,” Parfitt said. “The house has been in her family since 1860. She will talk about the history of the building, share her family history and tell some family stories. It is a fun and educational tour that no one should miss. She is a great storyteller and a great teacher.” The tour of Cool Spring Tavern will last around 25 to  30 minutes.

All the tour guides are rigorously trained, but because of the success of the tours, there is a need for more. “We have grown a lot in our second year,” Parfitt said. “We are interested in getting some more tour guides trained up. If anyone is interested, they should contact me at (910) 6788899. We have a training program. It is not very hard to be a tour guide if you like talking to people and love history. It’s a lot of fun.”

The historic tours are popular among locals and visitors alike. Advanced reservations are recommended. Tickets are $25 per person and can be purchased at City Center Gallery Books at 112 Hay St. or by calling (910) 678-8899. There is a military discount, and tickets for children between 3 and 12 years old cost $15.

The tours run from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and last about 45 minutes. The tours will depart from 232 Hay St.

Local golfers of every skill level who share two commonalities — a competitive spirit and a desire to network — have been waiting for September to tee it up. This month marks the 49th anniversary of the area’s oldest and most prestigious golf tournament, the Cumberland County Golf Championship Classic. This year the champion will be determined at Gates Four Golf and Country Club on Sept. 15 -17.

The Tournament

The CCGCC is a three-day, 54-hole stroke-play event and offers an incredible value. The entry fee is $165 and grants one practice round at Gates Four and three rounds of play in the tournament division of one’s choosing. In addition, each contestant receives five free foursome rounds to be played at Gates Four or three other popular Cumberland County golf courses, Cypress Lakes, Stryker and Baywood. Participants also receive free range balls, a commemorative gift and on-course snacks and beverages provided locally by Healy Wholesale.

Historically, the event has been dominated by male golfers. This year it debuts a new Women’s division. DeeDee Jarman, Methodist University’s deputy athletic director, is assisting tournament coordinator Bill Bowman in implementing the new division. “DeeDee knows golf and she sees the potential in offering women a competitive tournament venue,” Bowman said. “She is extremely talented, and I am excited about working with her.” Bowman went on to say that the first year is always a challenge, but he feels with Jarman’s leadership it will be extremely popular and also give Cumberland County female golfers something to look forward to each year. Jarman said she will first focus on building local women’s participation. “I would like to grow it as large as the men’s division, but, first we have to recruit women and get them involved,” she said.

The Women’s division joins the other four traditional tournament divisions: Open (for all golfers regardless of age or skill level); Senior (ages 50 and up); Super Senior (ages 66 and up); and the Championship division for those seeking the title of Cumberland County’s best golfer. Each division will have its own winner, but only those in the Championship division will be in competition for the title. In addition, the top 15 finishers from the Championship division and the top eight finishers in the Senior and Super Senior divisions automatically qualify for the Cumberland County Match Play Tournament at Highland Country Club in the spring. The Match Play has a 20-year history and is the second most prestigious golf tournament in the county.

This year, the CCGCC will implement the five new rules the U.S. Golf Association plans to activate in January 2018. These rules are designed to speed up the game and make it both more competitive and more enjoyable. They include elimination or reduction of “ball moved” penalties, relaxed putting green rules, relaxed rules for penalty areas, relaxed bunker rules, an increased reliance on player integrity, pace-of-play support and a simplified way of taking relief.

The Boose Law Firm is also sponsoring a $10,000 hole-in-one prize on hole #11.

The Pre- and Post-Parties

The Champions Reception and Pairing Party, preceding the tournament, is set for Thursday, Sept. 14, from 6-8 p.m. and is hosted by Gates Four Golf and Country Club and the Richardson Law Firm. The Champions Reception is free for tournament participants and $15 for guests. Here, entrants will renew old friendships and meet and greet past Cumberland County champions like Thomas Owen, Mike Williford, Gary Robinson, Billy West and Brian Dreier.

There will also be local dignitaries in attendance, including city, county and state officials. Rep. Billy Richardson (D - District 44) and Sen. Wesley Meredith (R - District 19) plan to be in attendance to wish the competitors well.

The trophy presentation following the conclusion of the tournament will be around 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 17. A short celebratory reception will follow to recognize and congratulate all the winners and to present CCGCC donations to three local organizations: the Kidsville News! Literacy and Education Foundation, Kay Yow Cancer Fund and First Tee of the Sandhills.

The tournament will conclude with a preview of the 50th Anniversary event in 2018 and the awarding of the biggest door prize of the tournament: A three-day, two-night stay in one of the beautiful lakeside cottages at Cape Fear Vineyard & Winery of Elizabethtown. All tournament participants are eligible to win but must be present to win.

The History, Community and Competition

The first CCGCC was played in 1969. PGA Tour professional and local Fayettevillian Chip Beck won it in both 1974 and 1976, before he turned 20 years old. The tournament has a history of providing an experience you just can’t find in other local tournaments, giving golfers the chance to prepare for whatever their golfing aspirations may be while ranking themselves against the local competition.

Local businessman Thomas Owen was the 2017 CCGCC champion. Owen said it’s the relational aspect of the tournament that has kept him competing over the years. This was Owen’s big win. Prior to winning the CCGCC, he qualified for and won the spring Match Play tournament at Highland Country Club three times.

“The level of competition this year is really strong,” he said. “The last few years we’ve had some of Cumberland County’s best golfers unable to play. It looks like this year is shaping up to have some of those players come back. And we’ve got some great local golfers here — probably better than most people realize.”

One of those top players to return is Gary Robinson. Robinson is a Fayetteville native, local businessman, and winner of the most CCGCC titles — eight in total, with his first win in 1982. Last year at this time, he was committed to the U.S. Senior Men’s Amateur Golf Championship in St. Louis, Missouri. But he’ll be back this year. Robinson said he hasn’t been playing in as many tournaments this year as he usually does — only five or six compared to his usual 15 — but he’s been practicing, and he said he’s ready. “I’m excited; I always look forward to playing in this golf tournament,” he said. “This is where I live, so I want to make my hometown proud.”

Cumberland County District Attorney Billy West is another talented local golfer with six wins at the CCGCC. He’s been playing in the tournament since 1991. “I say every year that this is my favorite golf tournament,” he said. “I’ve had the opportunity to play local, statewide and even national tournaments. But this one has a uniqueness unlike any other. People stop you in the grocery store and gas station to congratulate you if you win or play well. As far as competition, this should be the strongest field we’ve had in years. Even though I’m getting older and have less of a chance to win than I used to, I’m still excited. Thomas Owen is an obvious favorite to win. J.C. McFadyen finished second last year, tied with me. Chris Holland is a former champion who’s played well this year. Matt Hudson has been near the top of the group every year.” 

Robert Wilson Jr. of Cypress Lakes, Jeff Johnson at Stryker and Scooter Buhrman at Gates Four are all local PGA professionals who are familiar with the tournament and have worked on it for years. Buhrman won the champion title in 2007. They all agree that it will be a dogfight in the end and probably come down to about five players battling it out with Owen, Robinson and West as frontrunners. Buhrman of Gates Four added that one wild card player to watch is 16-year-old Spencer Oxendine. “He already has scholarship offers from NC State and other schools,” Buhrman said. “And this is his home course. He’s young and doesn’t have a lot of experience, but he’s a very good player, and I think he has a chance.”

Johnson of Stryker Golf Course first played in the CCGCC when he was 16, and he agreed with West that Chris Holland and Matt Hudson were players to watch this year. He added, “Even if you don’t think you have a chance to win, there are still many reasons to compete. Just because you don’t make top 30, it’s a badge of honor if you’re in the seventh flight one year and you make it your goal to be in the sixth flight the next.”

Wilson Jr., Johnson and Buhrman agreed that the tournament is headed in a good direction and that they hope to see it return to the level of participation and camaraderie-driven competition that it saw in its prime. “I remember playing back in high school, and they had so many players we played on two courses,” Buhrman said. “I’d like to see it back up to that level.”

Register for the Cumberland County Golf Championship Classic by Sept. 13 at 6 p.m at any Cumberland County golf course or by visiting CumberlandCountyGolfClassic.com. For more information, call (910) 425-6667 ext. 224.

On Sept. 14, “Romeo and Juliet” will take the stage at the Givens Performing Arts Center. This is a onenight-only performance directed by Jonathan Drahos and performed by a professional cast. “Romeo and Juliet” has seen many adaptations before, and it will be reimagined again on the GPAC stage.

“I am setting it in the 1950s,” Drahos said. “I’m doing this because I want it to resonate with the post- World War II ethos in America. That was the last bastion, last decade of innocence in America. It was pre60s and 70s where we had scandals and political factions. The feeling of the 50s in urban areas had issues with immigrants and factions becoming territorial. Families have consternation based on ethnic divisions and cultural differences that were very real. ‘Romeo and Juliet’ resonates with the xenophobic aspect that we are perhaps seeing today as well.“

Drahos’ love for Shakespeare began when he was 16. He played a soldier with a single line in a production of “Richard the II,” and that was enough to inspire him to make Shakespeare his life’s work.  He loved the language and its rhythm.

“In the modern age we are starting to devalue language, and it is important to elevate and celebrate language,” he said. “When we devalue language, we devalue communication. The danger is that when we devalue communication, we may start to devalue each other. Shakespeare elevates language and challenges people to communicate creatively.”  

While Shakespeare is a mainstay in English classes, it can still be intimidating to study his work. However, watching a live Shakespeare play is an entirely different experience. Drahos explained: “Ninety-five percent of the words that Shakespeare used we still use today. It’s the way that they are put together that makes them what I call a rhetorical scramble. Our job as artists is to unscramble them.” Drahos and the cast constantly question whether their work transforms the unfamiliar language into familiar problems and emotions. 

“We have the opportunity at GPAC to offer Southeast North Carolina a professional production of a modern interpretation of Shakespeare,” Drahos said. “I implore people to think of that as important to our community and our culture. I implore people to come out and support it.”

This year’s season at GPAC is full of a variety of high-quality productions. September will feature “Extreme Illusions & Escapes” and the musical group Derik Nelson & Family. October has martial artists and acrobats of Tianjin and “Who’s Bad: A Tribute to Michael Jackson.” In November, GPAC hosts “Cirque Dreams Holidaze.” December brings the 9th Annual Holiday Extravaganza. January features Well-Strung, a string quartet. March brings “Amazing Grace: The Musical” and “Wizard of Oz: The Musical.”

There is something for everyone this year. Call (910) 521-6000 for tickets and more information.

Fayetteville has a unique relationship with Marquis de Lafayette, the Frenchman who served as a general under George Washington during the Revolutionary War. We were the first city named after him and the only namesake city that he visited when he toured the country in 1825.

Lafayette was a remarkable man. As described by Hank Parfitt, the president of the Lafayette Society, “He was a defender of freedom and equality for all men. He was a vocal opponent of slavery his entire life. It is cool that we are named after a man with such liberal views toward equality.” 

Sept. 8-9, Fayetteville holds its annual citywide celebration of its namesake.

“It really started in 2007 with Lafayette’s 250th birthday,” Parfitt said. “That’s a huge milestone. We have to celebrate that with the unique relationship that we have, being the first city named after him. We got 20 organizations in the community, from schools, the library, the Arts Council and the paper involved. We planned for two years and had a phenomenal yearlong celebration. It was such a tremendous success that we decided to have an annual celebration on a small scale.

“We designated the weekend after Labor Day as the official weekend. It is recognized by the North Carolina House of Representatives and the U.S. Congress. Fayetteville is where North Carolina officially celebrates Lafayette’s birthday.” 

Methodist University plays a large role in the celebration. Sept. 8, Friday night, there will be Arias and Artifacts. Starting at 5:30 p.m. there will be a reception with heavy French hors d’oeuvres. “Arleen Fields will talk about the Lafayette collection at Methodist University,” Parfitt said. “It is the 50th anniversary of the collection. Nineteen original letters written by Lafayette were donated, and since then more have been added, including valuable artifacts related to the 1824/25 visit. They will also be unveiling a letter that is a new acquisition.”

After the new letter is revealed, there will be a concert of French music in Hinsdale Chapel starting at 7:30 p.m. The concert is organized by Dr. Gail Morfesis and is a short walk away from the library. Trumpet fanfare will guide the way. Tickets cost $10. The musicians and vocalists are a mix of professionals and talented students.

One of the highlights of the Lafayette Birthday Celebration is the Lafayette Trail Tour on Sept. 9, Saturday morning. The tour takes participants along the path that Lafayette would’ve taken when he visited Fayetteville. “The Lafayette Trail Tour starts at 8:30 in the morning with coffee and croissants at the Fayetteville Independent Light Infantry Museum where participants will get to see the carriage that Lafayette used,” Parfitt said. “The rest of the morning is touring the sites that Lafayette would have visited by foot or by bus. Lunch is included, and there is a gift bag for everyone.”

Tickets for the tour are $30, and advanced registration is required. They can be purchased by calling (910) 678-8899. “Major Bruce Dawes of the Fayetteville Independent Light Infantry will be leading the tour,” Parfitt said. “It is one of the best tour’s I’ve ever taken. He has an encyclopedic knowledge of this time and Fayetteville. You’ll also learn about what was happen-ing in America at this time.”

Another event is created in partnership with the Museum of the Cape Fear; it is The Festival of Yesteryear on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. There will be re-enactors who demonstrate daily life for average civilians and militia members during the Revolutionary War period. They’ll demonstrate day-to-day tasks like cooking meals and playing children’s games. There will also be Life as Art Productions demonstrating African spirituals and freedoms prayers in addition to wine tastings, talks and side walk sales downtown.

Find out more at www.lafayette-society.org.