Visiting their students’ worlds

Tour takes teachers to kids’ neighborhoods

August 5, 2006

By BOBBY HARRELL
Index-Journal staff writer

Students traditionally take the bus to school and teachers wait for them there.
But Oakland Elementary School teachers took the bus Friday morning to students’ homes.
It’s not a case of “Freaky Friday,” the Disney movie where mother and daughter trade places for a day.
Oakland teachers traveled in two buses through students’ neighborhoods to try to learn more about the cultures students come from, said Shannon Joseph, literary interventionist at Oakland.
Merrywood Elementary School teachers also toured students’ neighborhoods in school buses Friday, Merrywood Secretary Anne Ridlehoover said.
The Oakland teachers visited the Country Homes, Raintree and Wheatfield neighborhoods near Piedmont Tech, Principal Rex Coates said.
Teachers also rode the buses Friday to the Greenwood Civic Center for the District 50 back-to-school districtwide employee in-service.
The in-service brought together teachers, bus drivers, cafeteria workers, office staff and administrators to rally for a good school year.
Joseph used to do the student homes tour at her previous school.
The tours provide teachers a window for seeing what conditions students live in, she said.
That way, teachers can have a better understanding of a student’s culture and how they need to be taught.
Teachers learn all they can about students so they can accommodate their needs, said literary coach Melinda Austin. The knowledge given by teachers to students is then passed on to the students’ families.
“My belief is that we put children first,” Austin said.
Superintendent Darrell Johnson spoke to the district’s employees at the civic center about how all of them, especially teachers, are responsible for the welfare of a child’s education.
He said his jobs as junior high boys basketball and football coach, teacher, assistant principal and assistant superintendent contributed to students’ better well-being.
“We, as teachers, are in the people-growing business,” Johnson said.
Caroline Burton said she liked that all employees were meeting this year before school instead of just the teachers.
The science lab teacher at Oakland said bringing the employees together shows how the district works as a team.
“It’s always very motivating,” Burton said.
Jennifer Parks said the in-service provides the camaraderie that the district feeds on.
“Everybody has equal pull,” said Parks, a freshman English teacher at Emerald High School.
The Greenwood and Emerald high school drum lines also performed for the district’s employees to kick off the in-service presentation.

School shopping is now in session

Tax holiday continues today, Sunday

August 5, 2006

By BOBBY HARRELL
Index-Journal staff writer

Tim DuPont has about 28 things to pick up this weekend.
Every item is for his son, Matthew.
DuPont’s son has a school supply list from Cambridge Academy that includes everything from glue and scissors to antibacterial wipes.
DuPont stopped Friday at McCaslan’s Bookstore and Office Supply to get his money’s worth of supplies during South Carolina’s sales tax holiday.
The holiday, which ends Sunday, allows South Carolinians to buy school supplies and other school-related items sales and “use” tax-free.
Many local businesses did brisk business Friday, including McCaslan’s and School Tools.
DuPont said he’ll spend about $100 on school supplies this year.
South Carolina sales tax is 5 percent on the dollar, so he’ll save about $5.
Even saving a small amount of money is important, DuPont said.
He said he waited until Friday to start shopping so he could take advantage of the holiday.
Tyra Kirby came by McCaslan’s, but not for school supplies.
She bought a birthday certificate from the bookstore for her daughter, Carson, to take to a friend’s birthday party. Kirby plans to buy most of her daughters’ — Carson and Madison’s — back-to-school materials this weekend.
Whitney Marcengill bought some books about computers and motivational posters at School Tools. She’ll use them in her classroom.
The Westview Middle School computer teacher also has been purchasing supplies for son Harrison and daughter Caroline. Marcengill already has some of the supplies. She didn’t want to fight the holiday crowds this weekend, but she has to go and buy more for Caroline.
April Timmerman said the sales tax holiday is beneficial for people buying more expensive items.
The Edgewood Middle School media specialist from Ninety Six bought a printer for the school’s library during last year’s holiday that was cheaper than the regular price.
Greenwood Mall also is participating in the tax-free holiday.
Rhonda Ervin, senior property manager with the mall, said stores will have extended hours for the tax-free weekend, adding that many people stop by for the opportunity to save a few dollars.
“It’s almost like Christmas here,” she said.
Kim Jordan, manager of Footlocker in the mall, said business is always good before school starts.
“We always do well at back-to-school (time),” she said.
Greenwood Mall will have activities for youths throughout the weekend. A large slide and games will be available today for those with receipts from Greenwood Mall stores, and Ervin said Greenwood School District 50 Superintendent Darrell Johnson will be on hand Sunday in the center court to meet and greet shoppers.

Senior Staff Writer Megan Varner contributed to this article.

Some find saving electricity too hot to handle

August 5, 2006

By Leslie Draffin
Index-Journal intern

Greenwood area residents are being urged by Duke Energy and CPW to keep their energy consumption low, even though temperatures outdoors are reaching record highs.
Earl King, of Greenwood, said he keeps his air conditioner on despite power-saving advisories.
“When you’re 78 years old, you do everything you can to keep comfortable,” he said.
“I live on the top level of an apartment building, so I have to keep the air low or it gets too hot since heat rises,” Jenna Hall, a Lander University student, said. “I have ceiling fans too that help keep the air cool.”
Tips from Duke Energy say air conditioners should only be put on low settings if higher temperatures would affect the health or safety of occupants, namely small children and the elderly.
“We just recently changed our air-conditioning unit to get one that is more efficient,” John Gilbert, of Greenwood, said. “We have a small child in the house, so we have to keep it cool, but we do try to watch our usage in other ways.”
Heather Cox, of Greenwood, said, “We keep the air pretty low because I have a small baby in the house.”
While some Greenwood residents confess to keeping temperatures low in their homes during the hot hours of the day, others say allowing temperatures to fluctuate makes their bills higher.
“We keep temperatures at around 78 degrees year-round,” Chuck Howells, a Greenwood baby boomer, said. “We have ceiling fans, too.”
“I keep the air at a steady level when I’m home by myself, although when the kids come down, I can tell a difference since they like it colder,” Sandra Felthouse, of Greenwood County, said. “We are thinking about putting some ceiling fans in too, just to help circulate the air. I just feel like my home is well insulated, so I really don’t have a problem keeping the air a little higher.”
Besides keeping air conditioners turned down, Duke Energy suggests that residents wait until evening hours to run major home appliances such as dishwashers, clothes washers and dryers.
“I do our clothes in the evening,” Sherry Ferqueron, of Greenwood, said. “But it’s usually because that is the time I have to do it.”
“We don’t do anything until around 6 or 7 p.m. at night because then it’s off peak hours,” Howells says.
Other ways residents can keep power bills down include keeping drapes and blinds closed and turning off lights.
“I keep my blinds shut at the back of my house where the sun shines directly,” Jean Whatley, of Greenwood, said.
“My wife and I only keep the lights on in the rooms where we are,” Howells said.
Ferqueron agreed with Howells, adding, “We used to leave a couple of lights on a night, but now we turn those off since the bills are so high.”
Since receiving the energy conservation tips, some residents are glad for the help from Duke Energy.
“I think the tips are good and I’m glad to see them helping us,” Hall says.
But other Greenwood residents worry about Duke Energy’s rates.
“I grew up at the lake, so I wish I could say Duke was raising rates to improve the water and repair the dam, but I just don’t think that’s the case. I really wouldn’t have a problem with paying so much if I could see Duke beautifying the lake and putting it back the way it used to be,” Gilbert said.

Prof. Felix Bauer
S.C. Holocaust Survivor

Felix Bauer, long time professor of art and music at Erskine College, died at age 92 at the Abbeville Area Medical Center on Thursday, August 3, 2006.
Born in Vienna, Austria on January 2, 1914 to Rudolf and Risa Bauer, Felix Karl Bauer grew up in that city. He attended the Realschule, studied architecture at the Technical University 1931-1933, and received a degree at the Institute of Graphic Arts and Research in 1935. He studied music composition privately with two well-known composers, Alban Berg (1933-1935) and Ernest Kanitz (1935-1937). He served in the Officers Training Unit of the Austrian Army for six months. His discharge came the day before Hitler’s Anschluss when the Nazis invaded Austria. His parents did not survive the Holocaust.
After two years in a refugee camp at Diepoldsau, Switzerland, he went with a work group to the Dominican Republic, where he lived the next six years. In the town of Sosua, he met Martha Mondschein, a registered nurse from Cologne, Germany. They were married in 1943, and their son, Boris, was born there in 1945. They came to Due West, SC 1946, becoming American citizens in 1951. Their daughter, Linda, was born in Abbeville, SC, in 1949.
Before Mr. Bauer left Vienna, he was a free-lance commercial artist. In the Dominican Republic, he conducted a choir and taught music and art in the Sosua elementary and high schools. At Erskine College, he was a music and art professor for 33 years. He started the Erskine Exhibition Center in 1958, handling some 200 exhibits during the next 22 years. His musical compositions have been performed nationally.
His compositions are now permanently housed in the University of South Carolina School of Music Library. Erskine College named him Professor Emeritus and honored him with a doctoral degree.
He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Martha Bauer; son, Boris Bauer of Easley; daughter, Linda Holly of Atlanta; and two grandchildren, Colin Bauer of Hickory, NC, and Kendra Bauer of Boston, MA.
There will be a Celebration-of-Life memorial service at the Erskine College Bowie Divinity Chapel at 4:00 P.M. Sunday, August 6, 2006. Mr. Bauer willed his body to the Medical School, University of South Carolina.
In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be given for the Bowie Art Center, Erskine College, Due West, SC 29639.
Correspondences may be sent to Mrs. Martha Bauer, PO Box 224, Due West, SC 29639.
HARRIS FUNERAL HOME, of Abbeville, is assisting the Bauer family.
PAID OBITUARY

Amber Nicole Hamilton

Services for Amber Nicole Hamilton, of 1112 Jefferson St., are 3 p.m. Sunday at Morris Chapel Baptist Church, conducted by the Rev. James McKee, assisted by the Rev. Albert Bell and Ministers Robert Dansby and Lisa Spencer. The body will be placed in the church at 2. Burial is in The Evening Star cemetery.
Pallbearers and flower bearers are cousins and friends of the family.
Honorary escorts are Greenwood High Steppers.
The family is at the home.
Robinson & Son Mortuary Inc. is in charge.
Online condolences may be sent to the family at robson@nctv.com

Macie Lollis

WARE SHOALS — Macie Medlock Lollis, of 4 W. Fleming St., widow of Richard B. Lollis, died Friday, Aug. 4, 2006 at her home.
Services will be announced by Parker-White Funeral Home.

Janette Ready

Janette Boozer Ready, 85, resident of 413 Dogwood Drive, widow of Joseph Fulton “Joe” Ready Sr., died August 3, 2006 at Self Regional Medical Center.
Born in Newberry, June 5, 1921, she was a daughter of the late Guy and Jessie Vaughan Boozer. She was a graduate of the Medical University of South Carolina and was a retired registered nurse from Greenwood Urological Associates.
Mrs. Ready was a member of South Main Street Baptist Church where she was a former Sunday School Teacher and a member of the Augusta-Nichols Faith Sunday School Class. She was a beloved mother and grandmother who was known for her kindness and caring ways and her faith in Jesus Christ.
Surviving are two sons, Joseph F. “Joe” Ready, Jr. of Greer and Robert Jan Ready of Greenwood; two grandchildren, Ashton L. Ready of Greenwood and Anna M. Ready of Washington, DC.
Funeral services will be conducted 3:30 PM Sunday at South Main Street Baptist Church with Rev. Ryan Eklund, Rev. Richard McWhite and Dr. Phil McMinn officiating.
Burial will be in Oakbrook Memorial Park.
Pallbearers will be Steve Boozer, Mark Waldrop, Rhett Carnes, Milton Senn, Jimmy Reagan, Barry Boggero and Norbert Majewski.
Honorary escort will be deacons of South Main Street Baptist Church along with Clarence Blackwell, Sammy Reighley, Jerry Bedenbaugh, Jack McDowell, Tom Jordan, Dr. Wiley Price, Dr. Richard Carter and Ralph Swygert.
The body is at Blyth Funeral Home and will be placed in the church at 2:30 PM Sunday.
The family is at the home on Dogwood Drive and will receive friends at the funeral home from 6:30 to 8:30 Saturday evening.
Memorials may be made to South Main Street Baptist Church, 1000 South Main Street, Greenwood, SC 29646.
Online condolences may be sent to the family by visiting www.blythfuneralhome.com.
Blyth Funeral Home & Cremation Services is assisting the Ready family.
PAID OBITUARY

Mary Lee Wardlaw

McCORMICK — Services for Mary Lee Wardlaw are 3 p.m. Sunday at True Vine Pentecostal Holiness Church, conducted by Bishop R.L. Attaway, Pastor Paul Jennings and Elder Rufus Jennings. The body will be placed in the church at 2. Burial is in the church cemetery.
The family is at the home, 712 Pine St. Extension.
Walker Funeral Home is in charge.

Ethel Mae Williams

EDGEFIELD — Ethel Mae Williams, of Trinity Mission Rehabilitation Center, formerly of 853 Bowie St., Greenwood, widow of Otto Williams, died Friday, Aug. 4, 2006.
The family is at the home of a niece, Lillie Ruth Jones, 108 Pelzer St., Greenwood.
Services will be announced by Robinson & Son Mortuary Inc., Greenwood.

Hornets will feature new faces in 2006

Ware Shoals coaching staff believes defense will help
take pressure off an offense that lost six starters

August 5, 2006

By JIM JOYCE
Special projects editor

WARE SHOALS — The mercury headed into the high 90s, and it was HOT.
But, for the Ware Shoals High School football team, it was just another day for practice in preparation for the 2006 season.
The Hornets, members of region I-A, are working way through drills in hopes of repeating as Region champs — something coach Jeff Murdock believes is a possibility if they can stay healthy.
The Hornets were 11-3 last year and Murdock feels they can repeat, but they first must deal with some “tough” out-of-region games.
In preseason practice, the Hornets are spending a lot of time on offense, where five new faces dot the o-line.
“It will take some time for guys to jell and learn assignments,” Murdock said. “Tyler Boggs is our center and a four-year starter, and Tommy Walker is returning. After that, everybody else up front are new faces.”
One big problem, which is creating big-time effort from two people, is the loss of the quarterback.
“Keith Stewart threw for 1,200-plus yards last year and he’ll be missed, but we have two people (Preston Lee and Ladarius Hawthorne) battling for that spot,” Murdock said. “I think the strength of our offense is our backfield.”
Tony Lomax, Lance Richardson and Patorius Leverett are rotating as wingbacks, and Murdock said, “We feel pretty good about that.”
Six offensive starters are gone, which, Murdock said, leans the coaching staff toward the belief that the ability of the defensive unit can carry a lot of weight in their success.
With a roster of 41 players, the staff will be molding players into the prospect of playing on both sides of the ball.
That will take time, and, even though the weather has been hot and uncomfortable, Murdock said it has’t put a damper on the attitudes of the players.
“They come to work every day after having a good summer lift program,” Murdock added. “They have the right mind-set to go further than last year.
“We could start 0-5 and still be the best team we’ve been in a while.

Man of honor’ shows way for others to reach goals

August 5, 2006

Some veterans around Greenwood remember Carl M. Brashear. Actually, a lot of people who saw the motion picture “Men of Honor” will remember him.
That 2000 movie starred Cuba Gooding Jr., who played Brashear, and Robert DeNiro.
Brashear, the U. S. Navy’s first black master deep-sea diver, joined the Navy in 1948 after the military was integrated. Still he faced racial taunts and even death threats. He was assigned to work in the officers’ mess.
Undaunted, he pushed himself hard for what he hoped would be a glamorous diving career. He succeeded despite running into numerous obstacles. Then, in 1966 he lost half of his left leg in a shipboard accident and his diving future looked hopeless.

BRASHEAR WOULDN’T ACCEPT defeat, though, and after a long struggle in physical therapy, and using an artificial leg, Brashear had another first. He became the Navy’s first amputee diver.
He had other problems, maybe, but a lack of determination wasn’t one of them. He retired in 1979 at the top enlisted rank of master chief petty officer, coming a long way from the fields of Tennessee with only a 7th grade education.
Brashear died recently at 75, but he will always be remembered for showing others that setbacks don’t always have to permanently set you back. He should be an inspiration for all of us, no matter our color. Carl Brashear was proof that in America even the seemingly impossible is possible with effort ..... and if you have the kind of heart that wouldn’t allow him to fail.