To the Editor: My family and other families on Calloway Road want to send a special thanks out to a young lady who has made it her passion to keep Calloway Road beautiful. Mrs. Dine has been spotted every weekend briskly exercising and picking up litter. She told me she has bagged as much as...
Author: Staff
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Letter: All of us need to work on litter
To the Editor: I want to thank the News-Journal for its story “Hoke County Is Drowning in Trash” bringing the litter crisis to the attention of the citizens of Hoke County. I think it is appropriate to also say that the “boots on the ground” NCDOT employees are working very hard to keep our highways...
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View From Frog Holler—Column
In the last episode, I had struggled mightily to arrange the repair of the defective icemaker on my three-year-old refrigerator. This had led me down the perilous path of dealing with a large corporation intent on not dealing with me. I had, nevertheless, apparently cracked the code and been promised a “one time accommodation” to...
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Officers arrest two for identity theft
Investigators with the Hoke County Sheriff’s Office have arrested two people on charges of identity theft. Deputies arrested Kayla Michelle Quick, 18, and Roy Lee Mathis, 19, both of the 300 block of Wallace McLean Road, on charges of financial card theft, identity theft and felony conspiracy. Deputies responded to the 300 block of Wallace...
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County sets gaming restrictions
By Catharin Shepard Staff writer The Hoke County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved Monday night an amendment to the county zoning ordinance that will place new restrictions on local electronic gaming businesses. The board voted to approve an adjusted version of the proposed changes to the section of the zoning ordinance that governs the businesses....
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County to cut, plant trees at community forest
By Catharin Shepard Staff writer Foresters will use timber thinning and controlled burning to clean out parts of the Hoke Community Forest and replant it with native longleaf pine trees under a newly approved management plan. A steering committee of stakeholders created the plan by working in conjunction with local officials and an experienced forester....
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Early voting is slow
By Catharin Shepard Staff writer The first week of early voting got off to a slow start Thursday, with plenty of time left for voters to cast a ballot ahead of the March 3 primary election. “It’s been slow,” Hoke County Elections Director Towanna Jackson said of the turnout Monday. Between the two one-stop early...
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DA candidates address issues: Hardin
To help voters get to know the two candidates seeking election to the office of Hoke-Moore District Attorney this year, the News-Journal presents the following question-and-answer with candidates Arthur Donadio and Mike Hardin. Both candidates are Republicans and are on the Republican primary ballot in the March 3 election. No candidates of other parties filed...
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DA candidates address issues: Donadio
To help voters get to know the two candidates seeking election to the office of Hoke-Moore District Attorney this year, the News-Journal presents the following question-and-answer with candidates Arthur Donadio and Mike Hardin. Both candidates are Republicans and are on the Republican primary ballot in the March 3 election. No candidates of other parties filed...
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Other Stuff
By Ken MacDonald • The reviews are in, and the McLauchlin Park remake is a hit. If it were an Amazon product it would have 4.5 stars. If it were a movie, it would be two thumbs up. If it were a middle school lunch, it would be eaten and not thrown. The City can...
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Conference Champs
Champions In November the Hoke County High School Boys Varsity Soccer team won the SAC 8 championships. On Friday during the boys’ basketball game, the team was presented with their conference championship banner. The banner will be permanently hung in MacDonald Gym. (Photo by Ed Clemente)
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Related: DNA match brings surprise
By Catharin Shepard Staff writer When Desi Campbell took a genealogy DNA test in 2016, he hoped the results would help him connect with relatives he didn’t even know he had. It did, but not in a way he – or his extended family members – ever expected. Campbell is black, grew up in Washington,...
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Early voting starts Thursday for May primary
By Catharin Shepard Staff writer One-stop early voting begins this week ahead of the March 3 partisan primary election, with many local, state and federal races on the primary ballots. The county will open two sites as one-stop early voting locations. The Board of Elections Office, located at 227 North Main Street in the Pratt...
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First Fridays comes to downtown beginning in May
By Catharin Shepard Staff writer A food truck rodeo, a warehouse jam concert, the return of the mullet roast – with a new twist – and more events are on the way thanks to a new nonprofit set to launch Raeford’s own “First Fridays.” A group of local business owners working with the city of...
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Hoke County is drowning in trash
By Catharin Shepard Staff writer Hoke officials are actively working on possible ways to address problems with trash thrown out on public roads across the county. It’s the North Carolina Department of Transportation’s job to manage public roads, but without saying why, the NCDOT informed local government in January that the roadside trash pickup service...
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$24 million high school proposed*
By Catharin Shepard Staff writer A proposed $24 million School of Engineering facility for students in grades 9-12 could be in the county’s future to offer teens more education options, and help deal with overcrowding at the aging Hoke High campus. The Hoke County Board of Education met Monday with county commissioners and Sandhills Community...
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Gas station mix-up causes grief
By Catharin Shepard Staff writer Drivers who fueled up their vehicles at an Alco gas station near the Hoke-Moore County line earlier this month ran into problems due to a fuel delivery mix-up, according to the North Carolina Department of Agriculture. A fuel delivery driver apparently put diesel fuel in the gasoline tank and gasoline...
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Other Stuff
Not Necessarily the News By Ken MacDonald My wife had a business conference to attend in Chicago so I tagged along over the weekend, and we found ourselves on one of dozens of river tours of the city’s architecture Saturday. As you might expect this was fascinating and enjoyable, but nerd that I am, and...
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Summer heat prompts warnings, fans needed
[cmsmasters_row data_padding_bottom_mobile_v=”0″ data_padding_top_mobile_v=”0″ data_padding_bottom_mobile_h=”0″ data_padding_top_mobile_h=”0″ data_padding_bottom_tablet=”0″ data_padding_top_tablet=”0″ data_padding_bottom_laptop=”0″ data_padding_top_laptop=”0″ data_padding_bottom_large=”0″ data_padding_top_large=”0″ data_padding_bottom=”50″ data_padding_top=”0″ data_bg_parallax_ratio=”0.5″ data_bg_size=”cover” data_bg_attachment=”scroll” data_bg_repeat=”no-repeat” data_bg_position=”top center” data_color=”default” data_bot_style=”default” data_top_style=”default” data_padding_right=”3″ data_padding_left=”3″ data_width=”boxed” data_shortcode_id=”a51bvh6359″][cmsmasters_column data_width=”1/1″ data_animation_delay=”0″ data_border_style=”default” data_bg_size=”cover” data_bg_attachment=”scroll” data_bg_repeat=”no-repeat” data_bg_position=”top center” data_shortcode_id=”kb0vlc82qp”][cmsmasters_html shortcode_id=”47sjlqa7bk”]PGEgaHJlZj0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy5ob2tlbmV3cy5jb20vd3AtY29udGVudC91cGxvYWRzLzIwMjAvMDMvaGVscHVzLmpwZyIgY2xhc3M9IndwbGlnaHRib3giIGRhdGEtd2lkdGg9NDMyIGRhdGEtaGVpZ2h0PTI5MyBkYXRhLWF1dG9vcGVuPSJ0cnVlIiBkYXRhLWF1dG9vcGVuZGVsYXk9MTAwMCBkYXRhLXdlYmxpbms9Imh0dHBzOi8vZm9ybS5qb3Rmb3JtLmNvbS8yMDA4NTM0MDIyNjkxNDkiIGRhdGEtd2VibGlua3RhcmdldD0iX2JsYW5rIj48L2E+Cg==[/cmsmasters_html][/cmsmasters_column][/cmsmasters_row][cmsmasters_row][cmsmasters_column data_width=”1/1″][cmsmasters_text] By Catharin ShepardStaff writer Not only is it hot, it’s dangerously hot, according to the National Weather Service...
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Board wants pool ideas
By Catharin Shepard Staff writer The Hoke County Board of Commissioners will meet Thursday to hear proposals from several architect firms interested in designing the county’s first public swimming pool and recreation center. The board will reconvene Thursday at 9 a.m. in the commissioners’ room in the Pratt Building on Main Street to interview design...
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Goshen Medical to open clinic
By Catharin Shepard Staff writer Goshen Medical Center will open a new clinic in Raeford next month to help low-income individuals and families receive medical care. The clinic will open August 1 at 102 Southern Avenue, in the same building once occupied by a similar clinic operated by South Central Community Health Center. The new...
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Documentary features white civil rights leader
Members of the NAACP hosted a unity march—in honor of slain Hoke young people—Saturday downtown in Raeford before viewing the documentary “Al: My Brother” at Turlington School. (Ken MacDonald photo)
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Nine chosen as ‘Meritorious Men of Hoke’
The Hoke County Public Library honored nine men last week for their many years of contributions to the community by inducting them as the 2019 Meritorious Men of Hoke. This year’s class of honorees includes businessmen, church pastors, educators, and others who have given back (See MERITORIOUS, page 5) to Hoke County through their work...
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‘Is chicken livestock or is chicken an animal?’
[cmsmasters_row][cmsmasters_column data_width=”1/1″][cmsmasters_text] The answer could change the noise ordinance in Hoke County. By Catharin ShepardStaff writer A complaint over chickens could lead to changes in the Hoke County noise ordinance.Retired veteran Donnie Henderson likes to raise chickens on his four-acre property in the Reservation Road area of Ashley Heights. One of his neighbors must not...
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Soup kitchen expands services
By Diane Adame Intern The sounds of pots and pans clanking erupt throughout a blue house on Turnpike Road as volunteers prepare to feed approximately 150 people every afternoon. Previously a day care center, this blue house now operates as the new location for The Hoke County Open Door Soup Kitchen. But since its...