[Photo: Sabrina Finkbeiner, interim principal of Hoke County High School. Photo submitted by HCS.] By Catharin Shepard • Staff writer • Sabrina Finkbeiner, an administrator with more than 24 years of experience in education, will serve as the interim principal for Hoke County High School. Finkbeiner was named interim after principal Dr. Adell Baldwin announced...
By Catharin Shepard • Staff writer • Hoke County’s roadsides are suffering from a problem: from fast food wrappers to household furniture, they’ve become a dumping ground for all kinds of unsightly garbage. “Couches – it’s embarrassing – mattresses,” Commission Chairman Harry Southerland said last week at the commission meeting, as he and Vice Chairman...
In 1986, the former Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger established the designation of April as the Month of the Military Child, which acknowledges the significant role military youth play in our communities. This year’s theme is “Military Children and Youth a Resilient Force in a Changing World.” The Hoke County Schools is recognizing the service...
By Catharin Shepard • Staff writer • People buying newly built homes hooked on to county water and sewer services will likely see an increase in their purchase price, after county leaders voted to increase the local system development fees. The Hoke County Board of Commissioners voted last Monday to increase the fees charged to...
[Photo: Herman Cummings Sr., photo from his obituary.] Police suspect impaired driving may be to blame for a car accident Saturday night in Raeford that killed a 75-year-old man and injured two other people. Herman Cummings Sr., 75, of Raeford died in the two-vehicle crash, according to the Raeford Police Department. A passenger in the...
Hoke County High School will have a traditional graduation this year, according to the school’s newsletter circulated this month. The Bucks graduation will take place in person at Raz Autry Stadium on the Hoke High campus in Raeford, at 9 a.m. Saturday, June 5, according to the information. More details will be forthcoming. The school...
By Catharin Shepard • Staff writer • Hoke is one of a handful of North Carolina counties that moved up, rather than down in the state’s COVID-19 County Alert System last week. The county went from yellow, significant community spread of the virus, to orange, for substantial community spread. Hoke was one of 20 counties...
Raeford’s own Freedom Park will see lots more visitors in the coming months, as people travel to town to see the replica historic documents on display. The park was selected as one of seven sites in North Carolina for people to visit on the Tour of Honor, a nationwide motorcycle ride. The Raeford-Hoke Chamber of...
[Photo: Issuing proclamation: Howard Wallace (first row, left to right), Cathy James, Sharon Pilgrim, Angelica McDonald, Cathy Brown, Gina Daniels, Shirley Smith and Wanda Cohen; second row, commissioners Lonnie Baldwin, Allen Thomas, James Leach, Tony Hunt, and Harry Southerland. (Contributed photo)] Each year, thousands of volunteers in North Carolina donate their time and energy to...
By Catharin Shepard • Staff writer • Heart disease is still the deadliest illness for people in Hoke County, according to the Hoke County Health Department. Health Department Director Helene Edwards and Coordinator Tony Locklear presented the annual State of the County Health Report to the Board of Commissioners Monday night. The report briefed local...
By Catharin Shepard • Staff writer • Two women from Hoke County who were indicted by a grand jury in 2019 for unlawfully possessing absentee ballots, ended up taking plea deals for lesser charges, court documents showed. A grand jury indicted Wanda Faye Blue and Julia Shaw in July 2019 on charges of unlawful possession...
The Walmart in Hoke County is now part of a pilot program offering some items delivered by flying drone, for people in the coverage area. Walmart is partnering with the Flytrex company to deploy drones for some deliveries for online purchases, the company said in a press release. “Is it a bird? Is it a...
[Photo: Amy Dawson and Sherri Garcia, owners of the Tattered Twigg, fell in love with Raeford’s small town charm and decided to open a new business here.] By Catharin Shepard • Staff writer • A new business on Main Street in Raeford is bringing vintage charm and new handcrafted décor, with the grand opening of...
The Rockfish Community Chamber of Commerce is planning a drive-by scavenger hunt to bring attention to local businesses, and encourage some family fun. The plan is to have people dressed as the M&M characters Red, Yellow, Blue, Green, Orange and Brown, for hunters to find and photograph as they follow the clues and visit local...
The North Carolina Commission of Indian Affairs is announcing that it will be taking applications for the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program through April 30, 2021. Applications will be available for the following counties: Hoke, Columbus, Granville, Halifax, Person, Sampson, and Warren. Interested parties can apply online at https://nccomm.housingmanager.com/ or request a paper application...
By Catharin Shepard • Staff writer • Vaccine providers in Hoke County continue offering appointments to any adult who wishes to get vaccinated against COVID-19, though one vaccine won’t be available while federal health agencies investigate six reports of an “extremely rare,” but serious reaction possibly linked to it. The single-dose Johnson & Johnson COVID-19...
By Catharin Shepard • Staff writer • When school buses rolled this week and Hoke County public school students returned from spring break after the Easter holiday, it was the first time in more than a year that some children saw the inside of a classroom two days in a row. Hoke County Schools opened...
Maj. Freddy L. Johnson Jr., a longtime law enforcement officer and Deputy Fire Chief at Stoney Point Fire Department, will serve as the new North Carolina State Highway Patrol Commander. Gov. Roy Cooper announced Johnson’s appointment Wednesday. Johnson is the son of former Hoke Sheriff’s Office Maj. Freddy Johnson Sr., who retired from the office...
[Photo: Tex Deaton addresses the City Council. Ken MacDonald photo.] By Ken MacDonald • Publisher • Raeford City Council gave its unanimous approval to preliminary plans for a nearly 200-lot subdivision off Palmer Street behind West Hoke Middle School. At its regular monthly meeting Monday night, the board heard a handful of citizens who live...
By Catharin Shepard • Staff writer • Hoke leaders voted Monday to solicit proposals from design-build companies that can engineer and construct not only a new courthouse, but also a county administrative building. Commissioners additionally voted to hire a lobbying firm to represent Hoke County in Raleigh, with the goal of securing state dollars to...
By Catharin Shepard • Staff writer • Stephanie Slack is only 20 years old, but she’s already an accomplished artist with a job at a Southern Pines gallery and her first solo art show coming up this month. Born and raised in Raeford by her parents, Chuck and Brenda Slack, the young woman took an...
Rockfish is getting some new traffic lights in problem areas known for vehicle accidents. Davis Bridge Road at Arabia Road (at the Dollar General), and Gillis Hill Road at Lindsay Road are getting new traffic lights. “It’s been overdue,” Rockfish resident and longtime supporter Larry Chason said. Rockfish residents have organized for years to push...
The Cape Fear Valley Blood Donor Center, which helps provide blood supplies to hospitals in the region, is facing a “critical blood shortage” due to the pandemic, and hopes to help build up supplies with upcoming blood drives in Hoke County. There will be a blood drive at Rockfish Fire Department at 7600 Philippi Church...
Carolina Eye Associates, a medical and surgical eye care practice headquartered in Southern Pines, announced its acquisition of Raeford Eye Clinic effective April 2021. Established in 1986 by Dr. Tom Inman, the practice specializes in comprehensive eye care, surgical co-management, and features a state-of-the-art optical shop. “We have had a long-standing relationship with Dr. Inman...
First responders were on the scene around 1 p.m. Tuesday in front of West Hoke Middle School in response to what was initially called in as a pedestrian struck by a vehicle, but was actually two people ejected from vehicles in a wreck, according to Raeford Police. The traffic on Aberdeen Road by West Hoke...