A Winnsboro man was arrested earlier this month after Public Safety officers found him rummaging through an upstairs room at a local church.
Vernon Dwayne Thompson, 31, of Chalmer Street in Winnsboro, was arrested June 6 and charged with burglary after officers found him inside St. Paul Baptist Church at 207 N. Garden St. Officers had responded to the scene at 9:30 a.m. after a witness reported seeing a suspicious person walking back and forth in front of the church. Officers found on the front lawn of the church a flat-screen TV and a shoulder bag containing a laptop computer and computer accessories, all of which was estimated to be worth $2,000.
The witness, a Hudson Street resident, told officers he had seen the suspect walk behind the church, where officers found a back door ajar and with the glass broken out of it. Officers searched the church and found Thompson plundering an upstairs room. Thompson was arrested and transported to the Fairfield County Detention Center.
The body of a Chester man who drowned in Lake Monticello Saturday afternoon was recovered by dive teams more than seven hours after he vanished from the surface of the lake.
According to Barkley Ramsey, Fairfield County Coroner, 24-year-old Jonathan Andrew Kornegay, of 547 W. White St. in Chester, had been swimming in the designated swimming area at the Lake Monticello Recreation Park off Meadow Lake Drive with friends when he swam out beyond the roped-off area and went under, just before 1 p.m., without resurfacing. Several dive teams, including divers from Horry and Lexington counties, happened to be in the area conducting training exercises, Ramsey said, and within 20 minutes more than 16 divers were on the scene searching the waters. The Department of Natural Resources, as well as the Fairfield County rescue squad, fire department and Sheriff’s Office also responded to the scene and assisted in the search.
Ramsey said Kornegay was found around 8 p.m. in approximately 5- to 10-feet of water, his feet tangled in a cluster of weeds at the bottom.
In 2001, Blythewood’s Drew Bates had wrapped up his study of theater at the University of South Carlina and stuck out on his own in pursuit of an acting career in Los Angeles. During the next six years he studied acting, sold tickets at Universal Studios and earned membership in the Screen Actors Guild as a featured actor in background parts in movies like Jim Carey’s The Majestic and Seabiscuit.
Bates also did voice-over for features on The History Channel and for TV commercials.
“I felt like I was on my way to where I wanted to be–in front of the camera, in the story,” Bates recalled recently at his home in Blythewood where he lives with his dad, Andy.
But on January 13, 2007, on a road trip through Texas on his way home to South Carolina, Bates’ car hit a patch of ice and was struck by an oncoming semi truck. The force of the accident crushed his C5/C6 vertebrae, leaving Bates a quadriplegic.
While his life was spun out of control–for Bates, it was only a temporary setback.
Undaunted and driven to succeed in his dream to be an actor, Bates immersed himself in his recovery. But only six months into that recovery, his mom and caretaker, Jan Bates, was diagnosed with stage four cancer. She died last year. Bates admits that her illness and death left him bereft at times. But, again, he forged on.
Today, Bates says his future is brighter than ever.
He is now an independent writer, producer and voice-over actor specializing in cartoon characters and commercials.
During the last three years he has produced his own 22-minute animated cartoon, called Red Neck Ninjas, that he has recently had the opportunity to pitch to a number of studios in Los Angeles including Disney, MTV network and The Cartoon Network. While there, he also attended the Emmy’s, and with the help of friends in high places, made the rounds of the MTV and Warner Brothers studios.
“Ironically,” Bates said, “my biggest breaks came after the accident. A previous contact in Los Angeles, John Shaffner, who has twice been CEO and Chairman of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and an Emmy award winning set designer, reached out to me, encouraged me in my endeavors and opened the right doors for me once I had my animation package ready to shop around.”
While no network has yet picked up the cartoon, Bates said he’s not discouraged.
“It takes a while, maybe several years for a studio to bite. But they will. I’m confident.”
Red Neck Ninjas is an action/comedy series for tweens 9-14 and adults 18-34. It’s about the loud, proud, country-to-the-core Knech family. As the world passes by with adventure, urbanized-outsiders and pink flamingo lawn ornaments, these country-fried, kung fu warriors under Granny’s tutelage, serve as the resident heroes in the town of Folksville.
Bates said creating animation is expensive and can run up to $10,000 per minute. He said couldn’t have created the animation for his cartoon without the help of financial benefactors as well. Family friend Joyce Hampton of Blythewood, who shared the love of all things equestrienne with Bates’ mother, Jan, is one of those benefactors.
In the fall, Bates will unveil a computer game (free download) based on his Red Neck Ninja cartoon.
“I’m trying to move the Red Neck Ninjas from a developmental concept to a recognized brand,” Bates explained.
He said the computer game takes it to the next level. “The more content I create for my brand, the better my chances are of selling it.”
In the meantime, Bates is frequently in front of cameras right here in Blythewood as several local TV stations have featured him on news programs and tell his story.
Whether featured on a local news program or creating voice over for his cartoon production, he’s obviously in his element–in front of the camera, in the story.
For more information about Bates and his animation production, go to http://www.drewbates.com/bio.html.
Most of us are aware of the Ronald McDonald houses. The very first one was called ‘the house that love built’ and opened in Philadelphia in 1974. Eagle’s football player Fred Hill had a daughter Kim being treated for leukemia at that time. Spending days and nights on waiting room benches for three years and seeing other parents going through the same situation, many unable to afford hotel rooms, Hill and his wife felt there had to be a better way.
With the help of donations from the local McDonald’s restaurant and his teammates, Hill made the first Ronald McDonald House possible. The charities group for the project was formed in 1984 in memory of McDonald’s founder Ray Kroc, well known as a strong advocate for children.
The first European Ronald McDonald House (RMH) opened in Amsterdam in 1985 and soon there were 88 of these homes worldwide. By the following year, the 100th RMH opened, this one in New York. Scholarships were soon being awarded to graduating high school seniors and an Award of Excellence for the founder of Head Start. By 1987 millions of dollars had been raised, a recycling program established, grants received and endowment gifts given to each RMH in the United States.
In the year 1994 RM houses opened in Brazil, Australia and New Zealand, bringing the total number of houses to 164 in 12 countries and increasing to 200 houses just six years later. This charity was voted one of ‘America’s 100 Best Charities of 2002’ for the second year in a row. With the donation of $60 million dollars by the widow of Mr. Kroc, 20 more family rooms opened bringing that number to 80 rooms in 10 countries. And here we are in 2012 with 309 RM houses in 52 countries, 44 RM care mobiles and 161 RM family rooms. The little girl who inspired all this, the football player’s daughter, passed away at the age of 44, but not before she saw the good that came from her illness.
Now the RMH charity has come to Fairfield County and Richland County. On June 9, more than 150 motorcycle riders travelled 72 miles in support of Ronald McDonald House Charities. This was the 11th annual charity ride called ‘RIDN 4 RNLD.’ The ride began and ended at Thunder Tower Harley-Davidson. The first bikers left at 11 a.m. with the last group leaving at noon. Refreshment stops were made a Gadget’s in Lugoff, Yesteryear’s restaurant in Ridgeway, Scottie’s Café & Grill in Blythewood and Darrell’s Place in Columbia. We went to Scottie’s to greet and speak to the riders. They were staggered in their arrival, several groups coming in at different times. They were hot and thirsty and enjoyed the stop-over at Scottie’s cool café for a drink and to get out of the 91-degree heat.
When the riders returned to the Thunder Tower they enjoyed food, beverages, live entertainment, a raffle, prize drawings and gift certificates. The participants paid a fee of $20 for riders and $10 for passengers and all proceeds went directly to benefit RMH Charities. More than 350 families are helped through the program. These families are seeking shelter and solace during stressful times. RMH provides these families a safe and caring home-away-from-home so they can be close to their hospitalized child.
If you missed this event, please watch for Lights of Hope in July; Sam’s Fine Wine & Spirits Tasting, Sept. 14; Gala & Golf, Oct. 4 – 5; Lake Carolina Wine & Food Festival, Oct. 13; McHappy Day, Nov. 20 and On Angel’s Wings in December. As Jennifer Kresslein, Development Director, said, “We truly appreciate the support from the biker community as it is because of fundraising events like RIDN 4 RNDL that we are able to continue providing the highest level of care and comfort for families of critically ill and injured children through our cornerstone programs, the Ronald McDonald House and the Ronald McDonald Family Room.”
God bless the 150-plus bikers, the four restaurant owners and those who turned out to show support for the riders as they raised money for this worthy cause.
Visitors will learn about the culture of the Gullah/Geechee community through the art of drumming when EGBE Kilimanjaro, a family of African drummers and dancers performs on Wednesday, June 13, at 10:30 a.m. This performace will be outdoors if the weather is clear. If it rains, it will be held in the gymnasium across the street at Trinity United Methodist Church. Bring something to sit on and enjoy this fun event.
If you’re looking for fun this summer, you’ll find it at the Blythewood Branch of the Richland County Public Library. Summer is always a busy time at the library, and this year there are lots of new programs and activities for kids, families, teens and adults.
“Our summer reading program is very popular this year, and better than ever,” said Lori Robbins-Murphy, a library assistant. “It’s open to everyone – adults, teens, children – even babies who participate by having someone read to them!” she added with a smile.
This year, each reader who signs up for the program gets to create a personalized reading challenge. For instance, a person who is very busy with sports, lessons, camps or family events might pledge simply to read for 30 minutes every Friday afternoon. Someone else might challenge themselves to read every book in a series, like Harry Potter or the Jack Reacher novels.
“Whether it’s about time or about quantity, we’re encouraging each reader to create a meaningful goal,” she said. “It’s completely up to the individual.”
The summer reading program runs through August 18, and those who complete their reading challenge will receive a prize and also be entered into the drawing for a Kindle Fire e-reader.
In addition to the regular Friday story times and summer programs, two special Summer Reading Celebrations will be held at Blythewood Branch this summer. We will learn about the culture of the Gullah Geechee community through the art of drumming when EGBE Kilimanjaro, a family of African Drummers and Dancers performs on Wednesday, June 13, at 10:30. This performance will be outdoors if the weather is clear. If it rains, it will be held in the gymnasium across the street at Trinity United Methodist Church. Bring something to sit on and enjoy this fun event.
Then, on Thursday, July 12, at 3:30, there will be lots of laughter when ventriloquist Steve Brogan and his hilariously funny friends join us at the library.
Besides the usual reasons for visiting the library – checking out books, CDs, DVDs or playaways, or reading magazines and newspapers – Robbins-Murphy said there’s increasing demand in the summer for computers, wireless access and free online resources such as research databases and downloadable audio and e-books. She said that to meet this demand, the library has increased the number of e-book titles available for free download to over 10,500.
“An exciting new development this summer is that the Richland County Public Library is one of 10 libraries around the country chosen as a testing site for the 3M Cloud library, a virtual hub where patrons can access thousands of e-book titles,” she said. “These downloads work on any type of e-reader, including smartphones.”
Another new resource at the library is Freegal, an online service for downloading music, which can be accessed through the library’s website.
“With a library card and PIN,” Robbins-Murphy said, “patrons can download up to three songs a week from the Sony Music Entertainment Catalog, and it’s absolutely free.”
The Blythewood branch has added an additional public computer this year – there are now eight – and offers free wireless access for those who bring their own tablets and laptops. Free use of a scanner and a fax machine is also available to the public.
And what else is changing at the library? Why, the books, of course! In order to provide a greater variety of reading materials to each branch, the county library system has begun ‘floating’ its collection of materials between branches.
“That means when an item is returned to the Blythewood branch, it stays here – even if it was originally shelved at another location,” Robbins-Murphy said. “The result is that our collection is constantly changing.”
And for young children, a fun storytime is offered at the library on Friday mornings at 10:30.
She added that library resources are also available to the elderly or shut-ins who can’t get to the library. Those patrons are encouraged to participate in the homebound program, which provides a free pickup and delivery service of books and other library materials.
“We also have an outreach program to bring library resources to community facilities like nursing homes and day care centers,” she said. “Our goal is to make sure that everyone is able to access the wonderful variety of materials, services and programs available here at the Blythewood library!”
After many years of performing on other musicians’ recording projects, Winnsboro native Susan Douglass Taylor is proud to say she has compiled a CD of her own. A CD release concert was held Saturday night at The 145 Club in downtown Winnsboro.
“My CD is ready,” said Taylor. “The CD is entitled ‘Great Falls Road.’ It has 13 original songs about where I live, and growing up in a family where there was always love and music.”
Taylor has been making music since she was old enough to climb on a piano bench. Recognizing her ability to play by ear, parents George and Clyde Douglass enrolled her in piano lessons at an early age. Her teacher was renowned composer Nelle McMaster Sprott, whose belief it was to encourage creativity and make learning fun. On Taylor’s 11th birthday, her parents gave her a guitar, and older sister Lynne taught her some chords. At age 17, she discovered a love for the five-string banjo, her father’s favorite instrument. Her parents again provided all the learning opportunities possible, which included living room jam sessions and numerous long drives to bluegrass festivals, camping in a crackly blue tent. Devoting hours daily to practice, Susan quickly progressed on the banjo, and soon joined her first “real” band, String Fever, a bluegrass ensemble of close friends. The band had a 10-year run playing regional festivals around the Carolinas, Georgia and Tennessee, winning band competitions and recording a couple of projects.
Recently, Taylor has discovered a joy for songwriting and solo performing. In addition, she sings and plays guitar with The BunchQuitters, a Western-Americana band featuring Cary Taylor (bass and vocals), Danny Harlow (mandolin, fiddle, tenor guitar and vocals) and Mark Fuqua (guitar and pedal steel). Susan also enjoys playing bluegrass with the Twang Bombers, featuring award-winning guitarist and banjoist Randy Lucas.
“Susan really has a great singing voice, is a talented musician and a wonderful song writer,” said Mary Lynn Kinley, who serves on Fairfield County Council. “She sang for us at Rotary some months back and we were all quite impressed!”
“The music is inspired locally by my family, friends and where I grew up (on Great Falls Road, now known as State Road 200),” Taylor said. “It’s about this place and people, and what makes it special. One song, ‘Little Town,’ is about things that people in a city don’t have, that we do. Another song is called ‘Old Brick Tavern,’ written about the sentimental loss of our gathering place (that burned down in early 2011).”
Many know Taylor as the Branch Manager at Provident Community Bank, where she has worked for 16 years, after starting there as a mortgage loan officer.
“I love working at the bank,” Taylor said. “The people I work for and with are so wonderful.”
Taylor now lives in her childhood home on Great Falls Road. She refers to it as “The Home Place.”
“It’s such a blessing to have come full circle back to the home my daddy built in the ‘50s, to my roots.”
If you missed the CD release party, don’t despair: More information about Taylor and the availability of her CD can be found at www.susandouglasstaylor.com.
Ashley Ghere (second from right), graphic designer for The Voice was honored last week for her work by the S.C. Press Association at their annual Palmy Awards. Ghere took home 14 awards, including a Best in Show for her work with the Ridgeway Merchants Association. She is pictured above with Susan Rowell, vice president of weeklies; Bill Rogers, executive director; and Allana Ritchie, Director of Advertising.
Ashley Ghere, graphic artist and ad designer for The Voice, was honored for her work last week with 14 Palmy Awards from the S.C. Press Association, including Best in Show in the Under 6,000 and Associate Divisions Combined category.
“Our newspaper and our advertisers are so fortunate to have such a talent at their disposal,” said Barbara Ball, publisher of The Voice. “Ashley’s work is instrumental in making The Voice a leader in the industry.”
Ghere took first place in the Small Space Ad of Less Than ¼ Page category for her Hanna Hands Farm ad, which the judges said was “very clean and eye catching; stands out on the page.”
In the ¼ – ½ Page Ad category, Ghere also took first for her Groomadog Academy ad, about which the judges said the “colors and the dog are eye catching.”
In the Fashion category, Ghere’s Daff-A-Deals ad earned first place. “The picture popped off the page,” the judges said.
The big winner for Ghere and The Voice was her work for the Ridgeway Merchant’s Association. This ad for a procrastinator’s Christmas sale not only won first place in the Merchant Group or Signature Page category, it was good enough to top the Best in Show charts for the combined divisions.
“Great headline, to the point, nice graphic, clean, easy to read captures attention quickly,” the judges said.
Ghere also earned four second place awards, including one for Michael Ross’s campaign for mayor, which took second in the Open category, as well as five third place awards.
“I really enjoy working with our advertisers,” Ghere said. “They’re cooperative and creative. My goal is to create ads that will bring them business.”
South Carolina Secretary of Commerce Bobby Hitt was the guest speaker for the Quarterly Intergovernmental meeting held last week at the office of Winnsboro Town Council member Bill Haslett.
Hitt was appointed by Gov. Nikki Haley to serve in this position in January 2011. He is the previous manager of corporate affairs at the BMW Manufacturing Company in Spartanburg and worked for 17 years at The State and The Columbia Record newspapers. He was asked by Winnsboro Mayor Roger Gaddy to speak to the local government officials about economic development issues that face Fairfield County.
“Incentives are how we set the table to get businesses,” said Hitt, who resides in Fairfield County on Lake Wateree. “Having building inventory is crucial. If you don’t have building inventory, you can’t sell your county. Interstates are the field of dreams. Companies want visibility and access.”
Hitt said the most important thing companies look at after the property is the workforce.
“Companies look around for an area with smart and clever people,” he said. “They want to see a sustainable workforce. Education is the most important thing we have to move an area forward. Quality and loyalty of the workforce is also important. Every community should think about what they have to sell. You have the proximity to Charlotte and Columbia airports. We have personality in Fairfield County. I can’t make any promises that I will treat Fairfield County any differently than other counties, but our department has placed a higher emphasis on rural areas.”
“Businesses look around a community to see how people live. It matters,” Hitt continued. “People take an impression from everything they see. It’s also important that the towns are spruced up. We need very much for the water issues here to be dealt with. I know the issue is not easy to solve.”
Hitt told the group that the trend in manufacturing is that more capital is put into technology and fewer employees are needed.
“Higher tech automotive and aviation type businesses are rapidly locating to our state. We are experiencing a manufacturing renaissance,” said Hitt. “In the past year, the state’s unemployment dropped from 12 percent down to 8.2 percent. We are adding a thousand jobs a month. The state has over 400 industry projects right now.”
Hitt gave a last bit of advice.
“A public/private partnership would build momentum. Get into a unified position. An organizational structure would give you momentum. You need to put the welcome mat out.”
“We should have an industry recruitment committee,” Gaddy said when Hitt finished.
The group discussed creating a committee of business leaders and elected officials to meet with perspective industries.
“Until you get all of the problems worked out, people won’t stop and look at you,” said County Council Chairman David Ferguson. “We don’t have any product (speculative building) right now, and not enough water for what we have now.”
“We need to get better,” said Winnsboro Town Council member Danny Miller. “We need to have the right people at the table. We want to bring jobs to the Town of Winnsboro.”
Members of the Sandy Level Baptist Church Youth Ministry will are busy raising funds for a mission trip they plan to take to Greenville, MS.
They will be holding a carwash fundraiser on Saturday, June 16, from 9 am–Noon at the Sharpe Shoppe BP on Blythewood Road at the entrance/exit to I-77.
They must raise $7,000 to cover the cost of the trip, and according to the church’s youth Pastor Jake McClure, still need to raise about $3,000 of that amount.
About 30 middle and high school students from Blythewood will take part in the ministry.
The youth missionaries have attended an 8-week training course to prepare for the trip. They will stay at the Parkview Baptist Church in Greenville.
Mornings will be spent conducting a Vacation Bible School at Solid Rock Baptist Church. Afternoons will be spent with local outreach projects for the community.
“Our students do this every year and they sacrifice a significant portion of their summer because they want to help others,” said McClure.
“The leadership of our team believes that this trip makes our students more bold in sharing Christ locally as well.
Approximately 5-10 adults will accompany the students on the week-long mission.
Financial donations are also being accepted in addition to the car wash donations.
A Winnsboro man was arrested earlier this month after Public Safety officers found him rummaging through an upstairs room at a local church.
