Archive - Dec 2010 - News Article
December 30th
As you celebrate the start of 2011, think of The O-N-E.
Send in your favorite pictures from your New Year celebrations. We want to see how Catawba County rings in a new year.
Submit pictures via our website by clicking on "submit a photo" or by e-mailing onenews@observernewsonline.com. Pictures will be published in future print editions, as well as online.
The holiday season is often a time of excess.
When the holidays are over, many people vow to rid themselves of those extra things, whether its clothing, unwanted gifts or out-of-date electronics.
The impending new year is one of the busiest times for Goodwill Industries, which sees donations increase across the state as residents adopt an "out with the old, in with the new" mentality.
The Goodwill on Lenoir-Rhyne Boulevard in Hickory received more than 150 donations Wednesday, which is twice the amount of donations the store receives on average.
Newton business owners could receive grant funds for doing the one thing everyone hopes for these days — creating jobs in the community.
Newton officials recently announced the city is eligible to apply for a Main Street Solutions grant, which can provide business and commercial property owners in the city up to $200,000 for job creation.
"For Newton and the whole state, job creation is probably the No. 1 priority," said Rob Powell, Newton commercial development coordinator.
Catawba County Sheriff's Office Capt. Roy Brown is retiring — again.
And when Brown, 62, retires Dec. 31, he'll be very cautious about where he volunteers during his second stint of retirement from a more than 30-year law enforcement career.
Volunteering five years ago at a local elementary school brought the then-retired State Bureau of Investigation agent back into law enforcement with the Catawba County Sheriff's Office.
Sheriff Coy Reid approached Brown in 2005 at a Webb A. Murray Elementary School volunteer book reading with a big question.
December 29th
Interstate 40 motorists waiting for a smoother drive through Catawba County will have to wait a few months longer.
The North Carolina Department of Transportation decided to delay paving on a stretch of I-40 from mile markers 146 to 130 after pavement deterioration led the department to rethink the current paving process.
Jim Julian never met Zahra Baker.
In fact, Julian, 53, of Stanfield, lives three hours away from Hickory, where Zahra lived for a few months of her brief life.
Despite the distance, Zahra's story touched Julian. He created the Zahra Clare Baker Memorial Foundation to honor Zahra's memory and help children, like her, who overcame tremendous life challenges.
"I felt like I wouldn't be much of a human being if I just swept this under the rug," he said.
Newton marks Bootsie Roberts Day
She worked for nine city managers and five different Newton mayors.
She helped create and develop Newton's first public information office position and the city's first citywide newsletter.
A county program benefitting youth received extra help through a state grant worth thousands of dollars.
Clinton's Corner of Catawba Inc. is a nonprofit organization designed to combat area problems facing youth and their families.
The program was one of 14 non-profit organizations throughout North Carolina to receive a grant from the Martin Luther King Jr. Commission of the state's Human Relations Council. The $2,500 grant for each of the chosen programs will fund initiatives that support King's legacy.
December 28th
The Observer News Enterprise unveiled its first-ever Fact Book this week, and the one-of-a-kind publication is a resource guide for every Catawba County citizen.
A man posing as a law enforcement officer gained access into a Newton home under the pretense of making an arrest.
The man, who was dressed in a black long-sleeved shirt and dark pants with a stripe down the leg, arrived at 1100 Aunt Hill Drive in Newton about 5 p.m. Dec. 18.
Brian Timothy Sipe, 26, who lives at the residence, answered the door to find the man standing on the property, said Catawba County Sheriff Coy Reid. The man had a gun at his side, and his clothes looked like a police uniform, Reid said.
