Lumberton Informer

Mothers are the glue that holds families, communities, churches and everything else together. They are so accustomed to juggling responsibilities that they can switch at the drop of a hat. And with the growing number of households headed by women,their load isn’t getting any lighter. There are dozens of duties that mothers perform – teacher, preacher, gourmet chef, chauffeur, personal banker, referee between kids, doctor, law enforcement officer, counselor, attorney, and the list goes on and on. Mothers are an essential piece of the family puzzle. Without her, it is incomplete. Mother’s importance tends to slip our minds; well, until Mother’s Day rolls around. On this day, we reflect on how momma shaped and molded us into the successful people that we’ve become. Then it hits us, “We owe it all to Momma!” More than twenty-five years ago, “The Chi-Lites” – an old 70’s R&B group – asked the question “Have you seen her?” Yes, I’ve seen her! And so have you. She’s in the kitchen, cookin...

If the person pulling you over look anything like the picture attached to this post, he's more than likely a fake cop. Recently, there have been reports of a person flashing a badge and gun and searching individuals for drugs. The person was allegedly hired by the management of Greentree Apartments to deal with the issues that are allegedly taking place at 297 North 10th Street, but why is this person flashing his gun and badge and searching individuals in the 900 block of Myrick Avenue, over a block away from the property he's allegedly protecting? If you do not know the officers patrolling the streets of Lumberton, then you need to find out who the officers are before allowing someone to seach you for drugs and/or drug paraphernalia. There have been reports of this individual looking into the windows of the residents of Greentree Apartments, there have been reports that this person has said some inappropriate things to underage females and there have been multiple reports tha...

Bancorp South of Lumberton will be hosting a Relay for Life event on Thursday, April 21, 2011 and Friday, April 22, 2011. You can buy a hot dog and a drink for $3.00 and all the proceeds will go to the American Cancer Society.

On April 11, 2011, News 7 aired a segment with Adrien Fortenberry, Chief of Police for the City of Lumberton. The piece was supposed to highlight the chief's displeasure with Lumberton's spike in crime, but those that watched the news report would think that the only crime that's being committed in the City of Lumberton is taking place on the corner of Myrick and North 10th Street. Some feel that the news story was an explotation piece, but what did you expect? Whenever you mix Ghett-ontario Richardson and the City of Lumberton, you're gonna get a mess. If you see Ghett-ontario Richardson, rest assured that seven is not on your side. But I can't completely blame News 7 for the story that aired because there was no shortage of individuals that wanted to shuck and jive for the news camera. There is always something going on around Myrick and North 10th Street. When I look at the corners, I see big, red stop signs, but apparently the masses see an engraved plaque...

Today, the Lumberton School District hosted a Field Day Event at the Panther Stadium. The kids looked great in their various colors as they marched to their activities. It was especially refreshing to see all the people from all over the community come out and support this event. Field Day is an annual event in Lumberton, but Melinda Carli, branch manager of the Lumberton library, saw this as an opportunity to promote the Summer Reading Program. She presented her idea to the Mayor and Board of Aldermen and they gave her permission to close the street adjacent to the library. Chief Fortenberry and his dedicated group of officers were on hand to direct traffic and help the students and teachers across the street. Jerry Walters, Lumberton Fire Chief/EMT, was on hand with his dedicated crew of workers to assist in a number of ways. They did everything from help set up the tent to clearing spills in front of the refreshment table. Members of the Lumberton Friends of the Library was also the...

What a difference a week makes? Just the other week, News 7 offered a flash in the pan news story about the millions of dollars that's being spent on the renovation of Frank Lee Homes. Fast forward to last night, and they ran a story at six and again at ten about the rise in crime throughout the City of Lumberton and guess what area was the focus of the story--you got it Frank Lee Homes. There was also an interview with Chief Fortenberry and he detailed some steps he's taking to eradicate some of the criminal elements that's taking place in the City of Lumberton. He commended the board for hiring some additional officers and plans to hire another officer and with the way things are going; they are going to need as much help as they can get. I am still on the fence when it comes to how things are conducted at the Lumberton Police Department. I don't understand how information in sworn statements become fodder for conversation or how individuals that are being served with...

Around June 18, 2010, Ben Winston, Lamar County Supervisor, District 2 ,was cited for illegally storing FEMA trailers in the City of Lumberton. After the citation was issued, Winston’s friends and family went into overdrive to put this matter to rest. Aaron Lott, who is probably the actual owner of the trailers, was the first to come to the defense of his business partner. Lott was quoted as saying that “this is the greatest economic impact the city has had in 12 years.” Ironically, after this great proclamation by Lumberton’s former mayor, the city suffered the worst budget issues ever. Throughout this whole ordeal, it was stated that the problem with the area was how it was zoned. As a matter of fact, just the other night, Winston’s other boss supporter, Paul Ockmond, stated that Larry Strahan and Terry Canaday informed him that the land would be re-zoned “heavy manufacturing” and that’s why Ben was not in violation and should not be cited for storing the FEMA trailers. Keep in...

MDOT has started working on the underpass on Hwy. 11, but I haven't heard any details about how the road closure may effect the response of ambulance services for the residents of Lumberton. Thankfully, fire chief, Jerry Walters, has completed his services and is now a certified EMT, but has anyone sat down with the ambulance service and found out how the road closure will affect their response time? In addition to the increase in traffic, there's the issue of road blocks. Yes, it's that time of year again. I don't know the purpose of the road blocks, but they are here. I don't know if the road blocks are set up for a particular purpose or if they are actually looking for certain individuals; I'm not a trained officer and I don't know if this is just part of their routine. WTBS: I don't like road blocks, especially during the summer, but is this a good use of man power? At the last board meeting, the city clerk stated that there is over $500,000 in uncol...

For the most part, the regularly scheduled board meeting of the mayor and board of aldermen could be classified as SSDD. Several individuals addressed the board, including obtaining permission to shut down a segment of the road adjacent to the library in order to have a safe trip for the students participating in the field day activities, Melinda Carli stated that the Friends of the Library will be taking part in the activities as well as Jerry Walters, Fire Chief and Adrien Fortenberry, Chief of Police. Field day will be held on April 15, 2011 from 8:00 a.m. –2:30 p.m. There was some other issues discussed regarding the airport and the sewer improvement project, but the meeting didn’t become interesting until the broached the agenda item regarding the approval of the minutes. For this segment of the meeting, I think Timothy Johnson needs to move over two places to the left since his statements clearly suggests that he is the one making all of the decisions regarding the day to day...

There will be an Old School vs. New School Basketball Game game Sunday, April 3, 2011 at Gateway's Family Life Center. Rev. Galloway is hosting the event to give our youth something productive to do with their time and energy. Many of us have said, they need something for the kids to do or they need some activities outside of school and church. Well, here's an activity for our youth. Let's come out and support this event so that it would be a success. For more information regading this game or other upcoming community events, go to facebook.com/Dabiz Southlamarco and send a friend request to have community updates sent to your facebook page.

The Lumberton Friends of the Library will be hosting a book sale today. The event will be held at the Farmer's Market location directly across from the Lumberton Public Library. Come out and support this cause. There will be plenty of books and movies available for purchase.