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Campaigns move into
high gear
Shawn Daley, Editor
March 4, 2004
Longtime politician and current governor candidate Bill Cobey is
certainly no stranger to Apex.
His campaign headquarters were located in town twice during the mid-1980s
when he was elected to Congress. At the time, Apex was the geographic
center of
the Fourth Congressional District.
One of Cobey’s closest friends and co-chairman of his campaign, Paul
“Skip” Stam, is also a longtime town resident.
So when Cobey came to Apex on Saturday afternoon to help Stam kickoff his
reelection campaign for the state House of Representatives, the two-time
chairman of the North Carolina Republican Party felt right at home.
And he didn’t hesitate to point out that, in his opinion, Stam’s guidance
helps make him the best choice for governor in the upcoming election.
“Skip has been a trusted confidant for 24 years and I believe he is the
most knowledgeable legislator in North Carolina,” said Cobey. “I
constantly check with
him on issues. He is not a figurehead, he is an active co-chairman.”
Including both congressional campaigns, this marks the third time that
Stam has co-chaired an election effort by Cobey. He is co-chairing the
current campaign
with former Raleigh mayor Tom Fetzer.
“Tom is really an expert when it comes to how to govern and how to run a
campaign,” said Cobey. “So I depend on Tom for processes and depend on
Skip to
talk issues. It makes for a very good support team for me.”
Knowing he count on the help of talented advisors, says Cobey, made the
decision to run for governor much easier.
As chairman of the state’s GOP, Cobey wanted to find a candidate who
could not only win the Republican primary in July but who could also
defeat Democrat
Gov. Mike Easley in the general election.
After looking at the six other Republican candidates, Cobey felt he was
the man who could do it.
“I think we need a good candidate and someone who can beat Easley,” said
Cobey. “As party chairman I came to the conclusion I needed to recruit
myself.
“As much as I like the other people who are running I didn’t have
confidence they could get the job done. Just winning the primary isn’t
good enough.”
Cobey believes having people like Stam and Fetzer on his team is a sign
of good leadership and will lead him to more political success.
“My first challenge is to win the primary and then the general election,”
said Cobey. “I’m confident I can do that not so much because of myself
but because my
leadership skills enables me to recruit the best people to help me. I
have the best staff, the best consultants and best co-chairmen.
“I believe that is what leadership is all about. I can assure the people
of North Carolina that I will get the best possible people to help me
govern and give them
the responsibility and authority to carry out my agenda.”
After serving in Congress, Cobey was Deputy Secretary of Transportation
and then Secretary of the Department of Environment, Health and Natural
Resources
during the administration of Gov. Jim Martin.
The Durham resident is also a former athletic director at the University
of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Cobey graduated from Emory University with a BA in chemistry. He also
earned an MBA in marketing from the Wharton School at the University of
Pennsylvania
and a master’s degree in education from the University of Pittsburgh.
“As I see it I’m the complete package,” said Cobey. “I’m the candidate
that has vision as to how to move the state forward. I share the
conservative values of
the people of North Carolina and I have the experience to do the job.”
The primary election is scheduled for July 20.
'Curves' holds food
drive
Hilary Caryl Russell, Staff Writer
March 4, 2004
One local franchise of fitness and weight loss is joining in the fight
against hunger by holding a food drive this week to benefit local food
banks.
Curves in Apex, located at 1785 W. Williams St., is participating in the
Curves International, Inc. “Food for Friends” food drive and the center
is offering
incentives in exchange for donations.
“Anyone joining the week of March 8 will get their service fees waived,”
said La-Verne Joyner, a trainer at Curves in Apex.
The drive is currently accepting non-perishable and boxed food items
during regular business hours.
This is the second year the Apex location is participating in the food
drive and having collected 747 pounds of food last year, Joyner said
she’s hoping they can
increase those numbers this year.
“This is a community service and we feel if we are friendly oriented it
not only will bring in some new business but also create more of a
communion to the
community,” said Joyner.
“There are so many people out there who are not as well off as we are,
and any time you can share you should.”
The response to the food drive has already been generous, she added,
noting that when she arrived at work Monday morning there were already
five filled
bags of donated items that had been dropped off.
“I was really impressed when I walked in,” she said.
Last year, the Curves food drive collected more than 4, 250,000 pounds of
food for communities across the nation. Curves has almost 7,000 locations
and more
than two million members.
Curves is open Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and 3 p.m.
7:30 p.m.. On Saturdays, they are open from 8 to 12 p.m.
For information about Curves or the food drive, call 303-6503.
Water plant receives
national award
Shawn Daley, Editor
March 4, 2004
Officials in Cary and Apex always knew the local drinking water was among
the best in the country.
Now they have the award to prove it.
The Cary/Apex Water Treatment Plant recently received the Director’s
Award for water safety. Less than one percent of water plants nationwide
receive such
an honor.
“We are very proud,” said Apex Public Works and Utilities Director Tim
Donnelly. “We always knew our water plant was in the top one percent and
it’s nice to
have it verified with this prestigious award.
“The credit really goes to the people responsible for the day-to-day
operations of the plant. They are the unsung heroes of the utility
business and they are at it
365 days a year.”
Cary owns 77 percent of the plant, which is located on Wembley Road near
Hwy. 64. Although Cary handles all day-to-day operations both towns must
agree on
any major issues facing the plant.
Donnelly said the success of the water plant serves as a good blueprint
for a future partnership with Cary on a regional wastewater treatment
plant.
“This award is a perfect verification of how well that partnership
between Cary and Apex has been working,” said Donnelly.
The award is designed to encourage water suppliers to implement
activities that will enhance protection against microbial contaminants.
The plant, which was built in 1993, is capable of producing up to 40
million gallons of drinking water per day. It draws its water from Jordan
Lake.
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Teens indicted in
deputy's murder
Juli Denning, Contributing writer
March 4, 2004
Last week a Wake grand jury returned a first-degree murder indictment
against Matthew Charles Grant, 18, of Apex who is charged in the shooting
death of
Wake Investigator Mark Tucker.
Lawson Allen Rankin III, 18, and Justin Daniel Franke, 18, both of Cary,
were indicted for accessory after the fact of first-degree murder.
Tucker, 49, was found dead beside his running, unmarked Ford Crown
Victoria in a field along Holly Springs Road close to his home on
February 12. He had
been shot in the face, his gun still in his holster.
Within two days of the fatal shooting, Wake County authorities charged
Grant with first-degree murder.
According to Sheriff Donnie Harrison, the Apex teen was in the field
taking target practice when Tucker's car approached. Realizing it was a
law enforcement
officer, he panicked because he was not supposed to have guns, and shot
Tucker.
Sheriff's officials said Franke and Rankin were not on the scene of the
shooting, but they allegedly tried to help Grant provide an alibi and
hide the murder
weapon, thus the accessory after the fact of first-degree murder charges.
The arrests reportedly stemmed from a tip from a citizen who called
authorities with information
The three men faced Wake District Court Judge Robert Rader during their
first court appearance on the afternoon of Tucker's funeral.
Since Grant turned 18 in July, he has been charged with at least eight
misdemeanors and nine felonies but it was in this courtroom that he faced
the most
serious charge of all - first degree murder.
"The first of which is murder in the first degree, it carries a maximum
sentence of death," said Judge Rader.
Grant could face death by lethal injection because NC State law allows
capital punishment for those who kill officers. However, the district
attorney has not yet
announced whether or not he will seek the death penalty.
Grant will be back in court at a hearing on March 11 when murder cases
are reviewed.
Tucker had worked with the sheriff's department from 1976 to 1999, when
he was appointed to the US Marshal's Office for the eastern district of
North Carolina.
He returned to the WCSO in 2002.
Tucker was the fourth Wake County deputy to die on duty in 71 years, and
the third in recent months.
The other two deputies were killed in car accidents, Frank James in
September and Phil Owens in October.
Memorial fund
A memorial fund has recently been established for Tucker's family at
Crescent State Bank.
Contributions may be made at any branch or mailed to The Mark Tucker
Memorial Fund, C/O Crescent State Bank, 1155 Kildaire Farm Road, Cary, NC
27511.
Please indicate the donation is for the Mark Tucker Memorial Fund.
In addition, the 200 Club of Wake County presented Patricia Tucker with a
check for $5,000 on February 14.
The organization also gave April James and Anitra Owens $5,000 each when
their husbands died last year in the line of duty.
The 200 Club, which was formed in June 2000, is an organization of
concerned citizens dedicated to providing immediate financial help for
the spouse and
children of police officers, sheriff deputies, firemen, EMS squad members
and NC State Highway Patrol serving in Wake County who lose their life in
the line of
duty.
If you would like to donate to this organization, call 787-8880.
Stars shine at DARE
fund-raisers
Shawn Daley, Editor
March 4, 2004
At an event headlined by stars such as Earvin “Magic” Johnson and Phil
Ford, Apex native David Raymer was just another face in the crowd.
Yet, it was because of Raymer’s experience – one shared by thousands of
other local residents – that Saturday’s Drug Abuse Resistance Education
fund-raisers
were considered so important.
As Raymer sat in the crowd at the Apex High School gymnasium he was
surprised to see Apex Police Capt. Steve Adams walk to the stage and talk
about the
local history of the DARE program.
Raymer was one of the first students taught by Adams at Apex Elementary
in 1988 and the lessons he learned stayed with him throughout his life.
“It was great to see Capt. Adams here,” said Raymer. “I didn’t even know
he was still in Apex. He taught the DARE program to us when I was in
fifth grade. He
made a huge difference in my life and I’m sure he did with my classmates
as well.”
According to Adams, nearly 20,000 students in Apex have gone through the
DARE program since he first taught it 16 years ago.
While there will always be some who decide to take the wrong path, there
are many more like Raymer who heeded the warnings against drugs.
Preparing young kids about the challenges they will face is what the DARE
program is all about.
“He taught us a lot abut what to do and what not to do and he taught
about how to handle peer pressure,” said Raymer. “That was real important
because in
fifth grade you are ready to make that big transition from elementary
school to middle school.
“A lot of things start to happen in middle school and you start to see
drugs and hear about them. (The program) was really an instrumental part
of dealing with
my future.”
Ford, a former basketball standout at the University of North Carolina,
made the trip to Apex as a way to show his support for DARE.
The three-time All-America selection had a widely publicized problem with
alcohol and feels lucky to have survived it.
He told the crowd that not all people live to talk about their bad
choices.
“I feel blessed that I’ve been given a second chance,” said Ford. “Not
everyone is that lucky. A lot of people die because (of drugs and
alcohol).”
After signing autographs for nearly 45 minutes, Ford said DARE is an
important tool in guiding young people away from serious pitfalls.
“I think it is a great organization and a great program,” said Ford.
“It’s very educational about the awareness of drugs and of alcohol, which
I also consider to
be a drug.
“The more information we can get to young kids maybe it will help them
make decisions in their life. Anytime you can put positive information in
front of
someone, not only youth but also adults, it can only help. I don’t see
how it can hurt.”
Following a bout with a stomach virus, Johnson missed the afternoon
banquet at which he was supposed to be the main speaker. The former Los
Angeles Lakers
superstar made his appearance to a standing ovation during the “Jocks vs.
Cops” charity basketball game.
Johnson spoke to the crowd for about five minutes and signed autographs
for another 15 minutes before leaving.
All money raised from both the banquet and the basketball game will go
towards the local DARE program.
The program is conducted by DARE certified law enforcement officers in
schools as a way to prevent or reduce drug abuse and violence among
children and
youth.
The emphasis of DARE is to help students recognize and resist the many
direct and subtle pressures that influence them to experiment with
alcohol, tobacco,
and drugs.
It is a program, says Raymer, that works.
“I’m living proof,” said Raymer. “I’ve had a clean criminal record
because of (Adams). The program made a big difference in my life.”
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