Archive
November 8th, 2010
Adam Baker called 9-1-1 one month ago to report his daughter, Zahra Baker, missing.
Four weeks later, police continue searching for information about the 10-year-old cancer survivor who is presumed dead.
Investigators didn't search areas of Catawba or Caldwell counties on Monday, but that doesn't mean the case is cold.
"We're following up on some other leads in the investigation," said Hickory Police spokeswoman Libby Grigg.
A Hickory man accused of murder had his case continued Monday in court.
Orlando Murry Gibbs Williams, 27, of Hickory, is charged with murder after he allegedly shot and killed a man Friday.
Williams had his first appearance Monday in Catawba County District Court at the Justice Center in Newton, where his case was continued to a later date.
Williams will receive a court-appointed lawyer to represent him during the case.
Catawba County's latest employment statistics paint a more positive picture for those hoping for a job in the area.
The number of employed workers in Catawba County increased by about 1,000 since the start of the year, according to statistics from the Employment Security Commission of North Carolina. In January, 63,046 people were employed in the county, and that number increased in September to 64,026.
"Very slowly, Catawba County is moving in the right direction," said Larry Parker, acting PIO director for the Employment Security Commission of North Carolina.
The North Carolina Department of Motor vehicles wants to review a motor vehicle theft in Conover in connection with similar crimes throughout the state.
Catawba County sheriff's deputies arrested Nhia Xiong, 22, of Conover, on Friday after he allegedly stole a blue 1995 Honda Civic from a residence in Conover. Xiong then allegedly took the vehicle back to his home to disassemble the car and sell its parts.
German exchange students received a warm "wilkommen" Monday in Conover.
Several students from the University of Applied Sciences Magdeburg-Stendal in Germany visited Conver School to learn about special-needs education in the United States.
The students are part of an exchange program with Lenoir-Rhyne University that allows college students to learn teaching and education techniques in international institutions.
Marvin Ray Miller Sr., 76, of Catawba, died Saturday, Nov. 6, 2010, at Palliative CareCenter and Hospice of Catawba Valley. The Miller family has entrusted funeral arrangements to Drum Funeral Home and Cremation Services in Conover.
Robert Franklin Hall, 78, of Conover, died Sunday, Nov. 7, 2010, at Abernethy Laurels in Newton. Funeral arrangements are incomplete at Drum Funeral Home and Cremation Services in Conover.
Fla. killer of NC trooper will get life in prison
NEWTON, N.C. (AP) — The Florida man who killed a North Carolina state trooper will get life in prison after a jury could not reach a decision about his punishment.
Judge Nathaniel Poovey imposed a sentence of life in prison without parole Monday for Edwardo Wong Jr. of Ormond Beach, Fla.
After three days of deliberation, jurors said they couldn't reach consensus on whether Wong should be given the death penalty, as prosecutors wanted.
The death penalty requires a unanimous decision.
In collaboration with its production of “Welcome to Mitford,” The Green Room Community Theatre announced that Robert Inman, the playwright, will be present at each performance of the show. Inman will sell and autograph his books in the gallery of the Old Post Office Playhouse before each production. Take this opportunity to meet Inman, bring a copy of one of his books and have it signed by the author himself, or purchase one from him.
The Green Room Community Theatre will open its second show of the 2010-11 season Friday, Nov. 5.
“Welcome to Mitford” is based on the Mitford novels by Jan Karon and adapted for the stage by Robert Inman.
Father Tim Kavanagh is the much-loved rector in the close-knit mountain community of Mitford.
Father Tim’s life is absorbed with the life of his town and the pastoring of his lively congregation.
But things change radically when Father Tim takes in teenager Dooley Barlow, the unruly orphaned grandson of the church gardener.
Robert Inman, 63, grew up in a small town in Alabama, population 4,000. And, with a grin, he added, “The population is still 4,000 people.”
In Elba, Ala., grownups thought children were the most important things coming and going.
“We could feel that then – the love,” Inman said. “They let us know we mattered.
“One of the most important things we do in this life is invest in someone younger,” he added.
Life is about community, and the small-town flavor of being connected to each other.
