Ramseur Review July 2010

8/9/2019 Ramseur Review July 2010

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Ramseur ReviewTHESERVING THE FINEST LITTLE TOWN IN THE WORLD - AND SURROUNDING AREAS FREE TAKE ONE

JULY 2010 VOL. 1 ISSUE 10

PAGE1

RAMSEUR, COLERIDGE, FRANKLINVILLE

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Civitan Club Starts Up In Ramseur

In another great step towards improving andrevitalizing the local community, the town ofRamseur and surrounding areas will be kicking

off our a local chapter of Civitan Internationalcalled The Ramseur Area Civitan Club. CivitanInternational is an all-volunteer, worldwideorganization with the mission of building goodcitizenship by serving individual and communityneeds with a special emphasis on helpingthose with developmental disabilities. Civitanhas over 55,000 men, women, and teens in 24countries working together to reach out tothose less fortunate than themselves.

Interested citizens have already beenmeeting every Tuesday night from 7:00 until8:00 pm at First Christian Church in Ramseur.At the time of my interview, 21 people haveofficially become members. Once the clubreaches the 30 member mark, they will qualifyfor funding from the main organization.

We spoke with newly appointed clubpresident Randy Cox at his barbershop in

downtown Ramseur about what exactly theywill be doing in our area. Well we plan onjoining other NC clubs in helping with theSpecial Olympics and at hospitals for thedevelopmentally disabled, but there is a lot wecan do in our community, too. Cox said, Wehave already begun talked to the town abouthelping out with the Food Pantry. We also wantto lend a hand at the local rest home and otherplaces where we can really make a difference.

The Civitan Club also concentrates onraising up a new generation of leaders. Cox

plans on starting a Junior Civitan Club atEastern Randolph High School to help localteenagers develop the leadership skills andsense of civil responsibility that our country sodesperately needs in order to continue being agreat nation. This is just one step in theprocess, but a needed advancement in

awareness and action for our community. If youare interested in joining, the first officialmeeting will be on Tuesday, July 27th startingat 6:30 pm at First Christian Church ofRamseur. You can also find out more info onthe local chapter by contacting Tammy Whitleyat 879-1522 or [email protected] orA m a n d a H a n c o c k a t 3 0 2 - 1 5 4 9 o [email protected].

Randy Cox To Be Chapters First President

Put your two cents in on this story:become a fan on Facebook

July 15 (Thursday) at 10:30 a.m. Sammy the Soil Saver with JennieParks (Summer Storytime at TownHall)

July 15 (Thursday) from 6:00 - 8:00p.m. NC STEP communityleadership team meeting at Town Hall

July 19 (Monday) at 7:00 p.m. Ramseur Volunteer Fire Departmentmeeting at the Fire Station

July 22 (Thursday) at 10:30 a.m.

Ramseurs Storyteller, Ray Albright

(Summer Storytime at Town Hall)

July 24 (Saturday) from 6:00 - 8:00p.m. Just N Time performs atRamseur Lake

July 26 (Monday) at 7:00 p.m. Ramseur Volunteer Fire Department

meeting at the Fire Station

July 29 (Thursday) at 10:30 a.m. Magician and Storyteller, Mark Daniel(Summer Storytime at Town Hall)

July 29 (Thursday) at 5:00 p.m. Board of Commissioners ZoningOrdinance workshop at Town Hall
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]


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A LocalNews

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Town Moves On NCSTEP PlansKicking Off 18 Months Of AssessmentsAs reported in earlier issues of TheRamseur Review, the Town of Ramseurentered and qualified for grant money withthe North Carolina Small Town EconomicProsperity (NC STEP) program. The grant

will provide at least $25,000 and as muchas $100,000 (depending on the results ofthe programs studies) to improve theappeal and function of Ramseur. The goalof NC STEP is to help small communitiesovercome economic adversity by buildingonto existing assets and providing trainingand policies that will ultimately benefiteach of these areas. As one of theselected communities, Ramseur must

establish a plan on how best to use thisgrant money from the program.

On June 8th and 9th, severalrepresentatives of the Ramseur communityattended meetings in Raleigh at the RuralCenter. As a part of those sessions, thetown received its official award recognitionfrom NC House Speaker Joe Hackney andRural Center President Billy Ray Hall. Also

in attendance, among others, wasRepresentative Pat Hurley.

July 15th is/was (depending onwhen you are reading this) the firstmeeting at town hall to start developing acommunity profile. We want to reallyfigure out who we are as a town and howto capitalize on what we have said Town

Administrator Kevin Franklin, and well dothat using not only the concerned andmotivated locals, but some knowledgeableoutside eyes as well. This month starts ayear and a half of monthly planningmeetings. If you would like to get involved

with this process, call Kevin Franklin in hisoffice at 824-1830 or email him atkfrankl l [email protected] . Thisprocess will take an enduring commitmentfrom each volunteer but will make for abrighter future for the finest little town inthe world.

The Ramseur Barber Shop

1520 Main Street - Ramseur (336) 824-2182

Hours:

Mon/Tues: 8a - 5p - Wed: 8a - 1p

Thurs: 8a - 9p Fri: 8a - 6p Sat: 8a - 2p

From left to right: Town Commissioner RobertHesselmeyer; Tom Byrne (GM of TowerComponents, Inc.); Representative Pat Hurley;Town Administrator Kevin Franklin; CharlotteFeaster (Assistant Principal at Ramseur Elem); andDonnie Lafferty (Pres. of CauseKeepers, Inc.)

Town Administrator Kevin Franklin receives theaward on behalf of Ramseur from Speaker JoeHackney Rural Center President Billy Ray Hall.

July 15

Sammy the Soil Saver, Jennie Parks

Randolph Co. Soil & Water Conservation

July 22

Ramseurs own

Storyteller, Ray Albright

July 29Magician and

Storyteller Mark Daniel
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]


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Ramseur Police Dept.

Monthly Activity report

JUNE 2010

Ramseur FD Regains 2 Paid PositionsRecently, the town received the great newsthat they have been approved for a federalgrant allowing for 2 new full-time firefighterpositions at the Ramseur FD. As many may

already know, after the local and nationaleconomy began to falter, Ramseur lost all oftheir paid positions in budget cuts and sincethen have been operating on an all-volunteer basis. The SAFER Grant, issuedby Homeland Security, will provide themoney for 2 full time positions for at least 2years with no requirements for retention.There is a job opening for one of the spotsp o s t e d o n t h e t o w n s w e b s i t e ,

townoframseur.org, where any interestedfirefighters can get more information. Allhiring will be done before August 23rd tocomply with the SAFER Grant guidelines.

These additional spots will be celebratedand will help increase the effectiveness andshorten the overall response time.

Town of Ramseur Under VoluntaryWater Conservation Measures

Citations: 74

Traffic Offenses: 85

Warnings: 43

Parking Tickets: 0

Traffic Accidents: 8

Criminal Calls: 26

Susp. People: 17

Susp. Vehicles: 22

Doors/Wind Open: 3

Alarm Calls: 25

Domestic Calls: 15

Out of Twn Asst: 10Asst Med Rescue: 4

Animal Calls: 6

Misc Calls: 41

DWI: 0

Warrants Served: 2

On Sigh Arrest: 5

Warrants Taken Out: 3

Warrants Served: 8

Total Arrest: 18

Homicide: 0

Sexual Assault: 1

Assault: 6

Burglary: 5

Arson: 0

Fraud: 4Larcey: 6

Prop. Damage: 6

Drug Violations: 3

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30YearsServingYou!

The Summer Concert Series has gone over great so farthis year! 175+ came out to see local Bluegrass sensationNu-Blu back in June, and earlier this month over 300

people came out to enjoy all-girl Bluegrass get up SweetPotato Pie and got a great show! Dont miss any more ofthis great community entertainment at Ramseur Lake!

July 24 - Just N Time

Aug 14 - About TimeAug 28 - Harbor Light Singers

and Altered

According to the town website, Ramseur has enacted the first stage in itswritten plan for water conservation. In Stage 1, Voluntary Reductions, allwater users will be asked to reduce their normal water use by 5%. Customereducation and outreach programs will encourage water conservation andefficiency measures including: irrigating landscapes between the hours of8:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday; preventing waterwaste, runoff and watering impervious surfaces; watering plants deeply to

encourage root growth; washing only full loads in clothes and dishwashers;using spring-loaded nozzles on garden hoses; and identifying and repairingall water leaks.

If you have any questions or would like to see the full plan outline, log on towww.townoframseur.org where you can view all 5 stages of conservation,their triggers, and their enforcement. Lets help preserve Ramseurs mostvaluable resource while still cooling off this summer!

Urges city water users to conserve now
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B CountyNews

LOFLIN FUNERAL HOME

Ramseur, NC147 Coleridge Road

Locally Owned & Operated

Richard Jones - Bill Craven

Service Since 1904

(Phone) 336-824-2386

(Obituary Desk) 336-318-3585

On Tuesday, June 29, child advocates, child care professionals,volunteers and business leaders from Randolph County traveled tothe North Carolina General Assembly as part of Smart Startsstatewide Tuesdays for Tots initiative. The constituents met withRep. Pat Hurley, Rep. Harold Brubaker, and Sen. Jerry Tillman,asking them to hold the line and continue to invest in youngchildren in Randolph County. Earlier this year more than 800

community leaders from across the state voted that access toquality early education and care was a top priority for youngchildren.

The Randolph County Partnership for Children is committed toensuring that all local children have access to early education andhealth services to help them succeed in school and in life, saidPauline McKee, the Partnerships executive director. However,while the challenges facing local families continue to grow, the

funding that allows Smart Start to serve families is in jeopardy. This

meeting is to help legislators better understand the needs in ourcommunity and to ask that they hold the line and continue toinvest in young children and our state through Smart Start. Todayschildren are North Carolinas future leaders, parents and workers.Our states prosperity depends on their healthy development andgrowth.

Tuesdays for Tots is Smart Starts signature effort that takes placeduring the legislative session. On Tuesdays, advocatesrepresenting Smart Starts 77 partnerships come to Raleigh forone-on-one meetings to educate lawmakers on the challengesfacing young families and how Smart Start meets these criticalneeds.

Smart Start is North Carolina's early childhood initiative. For thepast 16 years, it has been recognized as a national model in

helping ensure that young children enter school healthy and readyto succeed. Smart Start is a public-private initiative that providesearly education and care funding to all of North Carolinas 100counties. Smart Start funds are administered at the local levelthrough nonprofit organizations called Local Partnerships. TheNorth Carolina Partnership for Children, Inc., (NCPC) is thestatewide nonprofit organization that provides oversight andtechnical assistance for local partnerships.

Smart Start has experienced funding reductions over the past 9years of $43.8 million. This amounts to a loss of $101.2 millionwhen combined with the effects of inflation. These cuts areoccurring at the same time that economists and other businessleaders are advocating that investments in young children are oneof the strongest investments not only for the short term but also forsustained growth and job creation. In fact, the North CarolinaGeneral Assemblys Legislative Study Commission on Childrenand Youth concluded: "It is critical to ensure the healthydevelopment of children in the State and improve outcomes for all

children in order to ensure the future success of our State and ourcitizens."

Local residents traveling to the North Carolina General Assemblyincluded: Lydia Craven of Franklinville, Linda Wilson of Ramseur,Amanda Ratliff of Franklinville-Ramseur Parents as Teachers,Tyson Nixon, Jennifer Beasley, Linda Bean, Mel Neill, KendellHuneycutt, Pat Woodall, Holly White, Adriana Paschal, VivianSaunders, Susie Davidson, Dawn Betts, and Colleen Mitchell.

The Randolph County Partnership for Children, a non-profitorganization, is our communitys lead organization to plan, identifyand fund programs and services for young children and theirfamilies. The Partnership for Children is a United Way of RandolphCounty agency. For more information, visit our website atwww.randolphkids.org.

Partnership for Children meets with RandolphCounty legislative delegation in Raleigh


5/12

Approximately 150 Randolph Community College students, faculty,staff, trustees, and community partners gathered in the LearningResources Center auditorium on the Asheboro Campus to hearPresident Bob Shackleford announce that RCC remains fully accredited,

but the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association ofColleges and Schools has placed RCC on warning status for the next 12months - the outcome of the reaffirmation visit by SACS in September2009. By the end of the meeting in which Dr. Shackleford outlined whathad happened during the reaffirmation process and RCC's response toSACS' single compliance recommendation for RCC, it was clear that theextended RCC family agreed with Dr. Shackleford's assessment, "Ibelieve SACS badly missed this call."

That extended family included Bob Morrison, president of Randolph

Hospital; Donald Andrews, superintendent of Randolph County Schools;and Randolph County Sheriff Maynard Reid. At the end of thepresentation, Morrison stood up and said, "We know the quality of whatyou are doing (at RCC) because we hire your graduates." Sheriff Reidagreed, "The students we hire from RCC are some of the best officersI've ever had. I'll have to disagree with SACS."

Dr. Shackleford explained that he was "quite shocked" late last weekwhen he received a call from Dr. Gerald Lord, the SACS vice presidentwho headed up RCC's visiting committee, concerning the reaffirmationstatus. The compliance recommendation had been to "hire more full-time faculty and reduce teaching loads to ensure quality of instruction."RCC's response to SACS was reducing teaching loads for 82% of thefaculty in the spring 2010 semester; hiring nine additional full-timefaculty members; eliminating overloads in all but four critical situationswhere they were unavoidable; clarifying the teaching load policy,consistent with the state norm; and clarifying the College's overloadpolicy, eliminating overloads in all but the most critical situations.

Dr. Shackleford said some response options that he rejected were to"reduce faculty teaching hours by closing the doors to new students and

unemployed citizens in a time of deep recession and highunemployment; reduce faculty salaries by 1/3 and use the money savedto hire more faculty; reduce faculty teaching loads to 15 hours, proratetheir salaries down accordingly, and use the money saved to hire morefaculty."

The SACS' committee visit had coincided in September 2009 with theworst budget crisis in North Carolina history, when the College wasmaking decisions to "get us through a time when the budget haddropped out from under us," said Shackleford. "We increased enrollmentby 16% while our budget was cut by 11%." He noted that, while theSACS visiting committee recommended a 15-hour teaching load for full-time faculty, "N.C. community colleges are simply not funded for theirfaculty to teach 15 hours." Under the budget crisis in fall 2009, "the onlyviable option was to increase faculty teaching load for one semester,assign professional staff to teach classes, and hire more adjunctinstructors to cover other classes as needed," he said. The 15-hourteaching load is also not part of the SACS standards.

In spring 2010, RCC reduced the full-time faculty teaching loads back to18-21 hours, which is normal for N.C. community colleges. Dr.

Shackleford pointed out that two other community colleges in North

Carolina, who were up for reaffirmation during the same time as RCC,were reaffirmed and have the same 18-21 hour teaching load as RCC.

Referring to a press release from the N.C. Community Colleges system

office, released today, Dr. Shackleford announced that, "Once again,RCC is one of only 11 community colleges in the state to surpass everyperformance measure set forth by the State Board of CommunityColleges." This designation of "Exceptional Performance" college hasbeen achieved by RCC for the last two years in a row, and RCC is oneof only four out of 58 North Carolina community colleges to achieve thisstatus.

In summary, Dr. Shackleford said, "I believe we made the right choice.The evidence indicates that we are one of the top-performing community

colleges in the state of North Carolina." He continued that although hecouldn't change the fact that RCC would remain on warning status forthe next 12 months as there is no right to appeal this decision, "we willpresent (SACS) with overwhelming, irrefutable evidence next spring tosupport our full reaffirmation of accreditation." Dr. Shackleford told thecrowd that he will be attending a North Carolina Community Collegepresidents' meeting this month. "I am going to the presidents' meetingwith my head held high, and I want you to go out into the community inthe same way."

PAGE 5

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RCC Announces SACS Reaffirmation Results


6/12PAGE 6

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The American Red Cross is holding a blood drive in memory of Will LittleMan Arrington on Thursday, July 29, 2010. The drive will be held atParks Crossroads Christian Church, 2057 Parks Crossroads Road, from2 PM 7 PM.

Will died of heart complications at four months old and had received atremendous amount of blood during two heart surgeries. He is survivedby his parents, Bob and Lesli Arrington and his twin sister, Calli. BobArrington is an American Red Cross recruitment operations supervisor.

All presenting donors will be entered into a drawing for a $1,000 gift cardand will also receive a special Red Cross giveaway. Most healthyindividuals who are at least 17 years of age, 16 with parental consent andweigh a minimum of 110 pounds are eligible to donate blood. Individuals

18 years of age or younger must also meet specific height and weightrequirements. The Carolinas Blood Services Region serves 103 hospitalsand must have 1,600 people donate blood or platelets each weekday tomeet the needs of hospital patients.

To schedule an appointment for the Celebration of Life Blood Drive inMemory of Will Little Man Arrington, please call Lesli Arrington at336-622-6998 or e-mail [email protected] to schedule an appointmentfor any other American Red Cross blood drive, call 1-800-RED CROSS

(733-2767) or visit redcrossblood.org.

Celebration Of Life Blood Drive In Memory Of

Will Little Man Arrington On July 29thJuly Blood Drives In

Randolph County7/15/10

Asheboro Community First United Methodist Church

224 N. Fayetteville St. Asheboro2:00 PM until 6:30 PM

Contact the Red Cross @ 629-2399Be a hero today!

7/20/10Randolph Electric Membership879 McDowell Rd. Asheboro

12:30 PM until 5:00 PMContact Jill Vanness @ 625-5177

7/26/10St Joseph Catholic Church

512 W. Wainman Ave. Asheboro1:30 PM until 6:00 PM

Contact 629-0221(Hablamos espanol!)7/30/10

Wal-mart1132 1226 E. Dixie Dr. Asheboro

2:00 PM until 6:30 PM

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7/12PAGE 7

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This beautiful, barely ridden bike has been kept in an environmentally controlled garage forfive years. Blue paint is pristine. 2,726 miles on the odometer and runs like new. Had it in to

SRS Motorsports and they changed all the fluids, new plugs and filters and NC inspectiondone. Not pictured are the leather saddlebags, back rest :add-ons include dual headlightassembly,crash bars, air intake, manual included. Ready to license and ride into the wind!


8/12

BootsNSuitsDunking Booth!! ! ! Inflatable Water SlideInflatable Slip N Slide! ! Water Games/RelaysCotton Candy! ! ! ! LOTS more FUN

Calling all Cowboys and Cowgirls!Grab your BATHING SUITS for a rip roaring afternoonofWATERFUN!

WHEN: Sunday, July 25th

following the 10:30 serviceWHERE: Freedom Family Church

In the Steak N Pizza Shopping Centerin Liberty, NC

Contact Jennifer Hand @ 919-548-2130for more information

PAGE 8

CCommunityLife

(A customer enjoying a taste)

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Local Business Spotlight: Bobby Barnes WoodworkingWe search every local nook n cranny in search of our areas entrepreneursHead south through downtown Ramseur like you are heading toColeridge and you just may miss the woodworking shop of locallaborer Bobby Barnes. I stopped by to see what made his businesssuch a diamond in the rough. In order to appreciate where he is

now, I wanted to get a feel for where he has been. Born in Cleveland, Ohio into a military family of 6, Barnesfirst came to this area as a young boy. When his father found worklocally, they settled down in the Brooklyn area of Ramseur. Aftergraduating from Eastern Randolph in 1976, Bobby began his journey into woodworking by finding out what he DIDNT want tospend his life doing. Namely, brick masonry and dry wall. But aftera local woodworker gave him a job inside his shop, Barnes knewhe had found his calling. I know it sounds crazy, but I knew this iswhat God wanted me to do. I was right where He wanted me tobe. But his career choice wasnt the only area of his life he wasletting God have. Soon after his recommitment to Christ, he met hissoulmate Christie Smith through church activities. Shes my bestfriend and I dont know what I would do without her. Even if I neverhad any success as a cabinet maker, I have her and thats all Ineed. Thankfully though, his woodworking career has proven to belong and consistent; even in tough economic times.

While gaining experience working for other local

woodworking shops like Eastern Randolph Cabinets,

Davis Cabinets, Lowes Home Improvement, etc. Barnesbegan to work towards being his own boss. Around eight

years ago, he opened the doors to his shop and began

providing his quality brand of woodworking services. I do

anything from a full kitchen to single picture frame he

laughed, Ill do it all. I asked him if the wide variety of

services (cabinets, gun cases, entertainment centers) is

the key to his longevity. Im sure thats a part of it, but I think its acombination of quality work and the good Lords blessings. I dontwant to sound arrogant, because theres a lot of great competitionout there, but youve got to be proud of the work you do. And I am.

Left: an up close look at thecraftsmanship

Below: Barnes & his work


9/12PAGE 9

At The WellA guest column

Send correspondence for At the Well to the editor

Recipe of the Month

Submit your own local recipe byemailing [email protected]

or calling 622-0416.

FRESH PEACH ICE CREAM

INGREDIENTS:1 quart milk1 10-oz pkg marshmallows2 c sugar14-oz of sweetened condensed milk2 c half & half cream3 c mashed fresh peaches

DIRECTIONS:- Combine milk and marshmallowsin Dutch oven. Cook over mediumheat, stirring constantly untilmarshmallows melt. Remove fromheat. Add sugar and remainingingredients. Mix well. Chill.- Pour mixture into freezer containerof gallon ice cream freezer. Freezeaccording to directions. Pack withadditional ice and salt and let stand

for 1-2 hours to ripen before serving.

byDorisCoxAt the center of the Village is a deep well of life-giving water where the townspeople meet. As theydraw water their voices blend in the culture, society and wisdom that they share. Each month meet

here at the well to hear those voices. We have had many scorching days this summer and this oneseems to be the hottest yet. I move at a turtle s pace, the heat having taken all energy. Across the waythere are people seeming to surround a child. With more energy, now, I make my way to see. I hearbefore I see, and it is a mans voice. It is a man folded, sitting on his heels with his arms around hislegs. He is the height of a child as he sits in this position. He is comfortable, looks cooler than the restof us, and speaks with no urgency or fear in his voice. His words flow gently like water over smoothstones. I listen but a moment and know that this is anything but the way it feels at first.

All decisions and actions are based on seven generations out he says, speaking of the people whohonor their ancestors of centuries, who honored all creation. Our legacy then speaks of the love wehave of our great-great-great-great grand children by leaving them an earth able to sustain their lives.His eyes are large, his skin leathery and rugged. I cannot place his origin. I have never seen himbefore and yet he looks like all of us, very familiar. She, our Earth Mother he continues, has 7 billionpeople to support. Try to live a single moment without depending on her. She is now losing blackblood from a punctured artery. More blood spews, in moments, than a single person could use in alifetime. Oil soaked birds sit on sticky nests, where slick black eggs will never hatch. Our web of life isbeing threatened, even as we continue depleting our resources, unchecked as that spewing hole. Thatpuncture of the Gulf floor is only one of 2,300 punctures there. My mind begins to whirl with his simpleword pictures of the plight of my world. It is not an optionfor me to simply move to another one. Whatelse do I not know about my world? Why is information kept from me, lulling me into a since of well-being, when all is NOT well.

My attention jerks back to his words, ..just go to www.storyofstuff.com and you may get another viewof the life around us. What? This guy, folded on the ground, has a foot in both the worlds of the Nativepeople and our world of technology? We all feel we have come a long way and are the mosttechnologically advanced society ever. Well, we have technology at our fingertips with texting,microwaves and computers. We can read books with no pages, just words becoming new words on apage, like the old etch-a-sketch. But, he continued gently like flowing water, can a single one of usmake these things? We can only plug them in and press the on button. We have even been robbed ofthe ability to care for ourselves. Who among us can cook a complete meal from scratch, withoutelectricity? Our parents, grandparents or great grandparents could do this easily. They raised their own

meats, vegetables and fruits. Now, most people have no idea of the steps that food takes to get to theplate, from the dirt of earth mother to their mouth. We are not better due to our technology if it gives tous with one hand and robs us with the other. Suddenly I remember how very hot it is and turn toquickly get water for the few of us there. I was concerned of what I would miss in the few minutes itwould take to return with the water. When I came back, not a single person was in the place where theman had been. I look around the area. The grass is crushed where his feet had been. I walk around ina sort of confusion. I know it is very hot, but I know also what I saw and heard. A slip of paper wavesfrom the grass. I always pick up litter and I would have picked it up earlier, had it been there. It is thesize of the fortune cookie paper. It was hand written and said, Its no use beating yourself up for whatis done in the past, you did the best you knew. When you know better you do better, and wassigned Maya Angelou.

Tears flowed. It pays to pick up litter, I thought, as I laughed and cried all at once. I cried for the eggsthat would never hatch, for the crystal clear waters of the Gulf choking with millions of gallons of blackoil pointing out the tear in our web of life. I cried for all of us, who are kept in the dark, like children,from any news or education that would cause us to rise up and rebel. I laughed because somewheredeep inside me, I felt hope for the 7 generations to come. I laughed at the silliness that had been mysmall life. Yes, Maya Angelou, I got your letter. I now know better. As I walk toward home, I am alreadyplanning to do better with my precious life.

SUBMIT YOUR STORIES

JOIN OUR TEAM

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10/12PAGE 10

Ramseur

Town HallRamseur LibraryRamseur Diner

Eastern Randolph High SchoolMajik Mushroom Coffee Shop

RBC BankBig Daddys Pizza

Ramseur Barber ShopThe Quik Chek

Loflin Funeral HomeSherrys RestaurantRamseur Pharmacy

Carol ina Tack TradersCreative Florist & Gifts

Lucks TVRamseur Fire DeptEastern Randolph Medical

Napa Auto PartsBP/McDonalds on 64

Waynes Appliance & Furniture

Franklinville

Franklinville LibraryFranklinville Restaurant

Town Hal l Office

Coleridge

Citgo Gas Station

Asheboro

YMCAJoe York Auto Sales

If you would like to have this paper

dropped off at any othe rcommunity locations, please email:

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Get The Ramseur Review atthe following fine establishments:LOCAL OBITUARIES

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To get complete obituary information, go to:www.timeformemory.com/loflin

Bobby Allen Sheron1939 - 2010Bobby Allen Sheron, 70, of 1963 Sheron CountryDr., Randleman, died Sunday, June 13, 2010 at

his residence.

Seldon Ray Henson1938 - 2010Seldon Ray Henson, 71, of 7812 Riverside Rd.,Seagrove, died Thursday, June 17, 2010 atMose s H. Con e Memo rial Hospi tal inGreensboro.

Virginia Dare Allred

1927 - 2010Virginia Dare Allred, 82, of 400 Vision Dr.,Asheboro formerly of Franklinville, died Friday,June 18, 2010 at Randolph Hospital in Asheboro.

Paisly Grace Davenport2010 - 2010Paisly Grace Davenport infant daughter ofAndrew and Ryan Davenport, of 2291 Pleasant

Ridge Rd., Ramseur, died Monday, June 21,2010 at Women's Hospital of Greensboro.

Patricia Young1934 - 2010Patricia Anne "Pat" Hancock Young, 75, ofAsheboro, died Monday, June 28, 2010 atRandolph Hospital in Asheboro.

Hazel McNeill Lucas1915 - 2010Hazel McNeill Lucas, 95, of 400 Vision Drive,Asheboro, died Monday, July 5, 2010 at

Randolph Hospital in Asheboro.

Doris Sprouse Strider1931 - 2010Doris Sprouse Strider, 78, of 420 Clark Ave.,Franklinville, died Wednesday, July 7, 2010 at herresidence.

David Theodore Hammer1939 - 2010

David Theodore Hammer, 70, of Fairview FarmRoad, Asheboro, died Saturday, July 10, 2010 athis residence.

Lacy Stanley Overman1929 - 2010Our beloved husband and father, Lacy StanleyOverman, 80, of 156 East Academy Street,Asheboro formerly of Ramseur, went home to be

with the Lord on Sunday, July 11, 2010 atRandolph Hospital in Asheboro.

The United States didnt inventslavery. (If anything) the UnitedStates invented FREEDOM. Someonename me another country that foughta civil war to make all men equal.

- Rush Limbaugh

510-A N. Greensboro Street - LibertyBehind Fidelity Bank - Beside Liberty DrugTwo times to worship: 8:30 & 10:30 am

(336) 260 - 4516www.ffcliberty.com


11/12

Freedom is another one of those words in the englishlanguage that carries so much irony and hiddenmeaning that its difficult to take it at face value.Anyone with a decent perspective of our countryshistory realizes that freedom is anything but FREE. Yetwe as relatively care-free citizens often forget that fact.As we celebrated another Independence Day this year,

I didnt feel the unadulterated enjoyment that I usually feel when Ithink about how great our lives are here in the US. I realize thereare factions of our own population who have this misplaced self-loathing because we are who we are. They usually dont bother memuch. I also know there are major threats from around the world,

people and whole cultures who have been bread to hate Americabecause of our audacity to live the lives of people blessed by a freerepublic. Those thoughts have never dampened my spirit before.

No, those things arent enough to fizzle my inner fireworks.What rains on my cookout is the realization that the majority of ourcountry doesnt realize WHO we get our freedom from. Yes, wehave freedom from slavery, oppression, and so on. But ourcountrys foundation was constructed on the freedoms bestowedupon us by our Creator. Thomas Jefferson once asked: "Can theliberties of a nation be sure when we remove their only firm basis, a

conviction in the minds of the people, that these liberties are a giftfrom God? Yet any mention of God in public arenas this July 4th

radically offends this notion of separation of church and state.

The very fabric of freedom is changing in our country. It isbeing spun into a whole new and flawed creation. Freedom in itstrue essence is the ability or opportunity to attain any lifestyle,speak any truth, and take (most) any action without fear of restraint.Freedom is a world of possibilities available for anyone who is self-reliant, willing to work towards their goals, and loving enough to (if

they see it fit) personally help those who honestly can t helpthemselves. Its a freedom worth dreaming about. Its a freedomworth fighting for. That is the freedom of our founding. But that isnot the freedom of our future. If we continue on this path, ourfreedom will look very different that the one we knew. Even now ourfreedom may not be recognizable to the Jeffersons, Washingtons,and Franklins of old.

The freedom of today is the freedom of entitlement. A foolshope that if you ask, you will have. That if you fail, you willautomatically be mulliganed back to your status quo. Wether itswith your money or body, less consequences mean no change.Equal footing is misconstrued by giving one set of people more tomake it fair. Its a freedom that sounds ok to some in theory, butnever works out in the real world. Most importantly, it s not afreedom that is given by a just, thoroughly and perfectly goodCreator. Its a freedom given by a corrupt, scandalous, andthoroughly human government. Any problem solver knows that ifthe source is compromised, the rest cannot be salvaged. That iswhat we face with this new freedom.

Listening to people over and over again, I hear afoundational flaw in their thinking. They think that our governmenthas all of this to give to us, when in fact God has the only one with

something to give. If we replace the source of our freedom, itbecomes something much different. Government is now God. Andwhile God has cattle on a thousand hills, our government (read:ourselves) has 13 trillion dollars of debt. Its a lazy, cheap, andoffensive mockery of the idea - and its nearly poised to take overthe last stronghold of freedom our world has. Did America inventfreedom? Technically no. But Michael Jordan didnt inventbasketball either. So I leave you this July with another thought fromThomas Jefferson:

A wise and frugal government, which shall restrain men frominjuring one another, which shall leave them otherwise free toregulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shallnot take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned. This is thesum of good government

PAGE 11

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OpEd: A Celebration of Freedom

Ben Suggs is the Editor of the Ramseur Review

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Ramseur Review July 2010