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Ordinance authorizes mayor to negotiate utility rates
UNION — Its ability to negotiate lower utility rates as part of an industrial recruitment incentive package benefits not only the industry being recruited but the City of Union as well as the people of Union County. Union City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to approve first reading of an ordinance authorizing the mayor to negotiate utility rate agreements as part of incentive packages to facilitate the location of new industries in Union...
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Photo by Deb Belk

Vocational Rehabilitation staff visit Civitans

Mrs. Lou Stackhouse welcomes staff members from the Union County Vocational Rehabilitation Office that recently spoke to Union Civitan club members. The Vocational Rehabilitation Office is located in Town Hall in Jonesville, S.C. Pictured is Mr. Patrick Wentz, Business Development Specialist, Mrs. Stackhouse, Mrs. Decole Gallman, Area Supervisor, Ms. Yushica Padgett, Counselor, and Mr. Ashley W. Harris, Counselor.

Vocational Rehabilitation staff visit Civitans
UNION — The staff of the Union County Vocational Rehabilitation Office recently addressed the Union Civitan Club.
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Crime Report
The Union County Sheriff’s Office reported the following arrests : — Tammy Loyd Roach, 46, of 146 Hamm St., Union, was charged with malicious damage to property and tampering with utilities around 5:20 p.m. on May 21. According to the incident report, Browns Creek Water Company had cut off the water to Roach’s residence, but the lock was broken off of the meter and the water was turned back on. Damage to the meter was estimated at $100, an...
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Victoria Foster graduates during Gardner-Webb University’s spring commencement
BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. — Gardner-Webb University is pleased to announce that Victoria Foster of Pacolet, S.C., was among over 700 students who recently graduated during its 2013 spring commencement exercises. Foster graduated with a MSN in Nursing. Located in Boiling Springs, N.C., Gardner-Webb University seeks a higher ground in higher education — one that embraces faith and intellectual freedom, balances conviction with compassion, and i...
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Local students honored for outstanding academic achievement at The Citadel
CHARLESTON — The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina, honored the following students with Gold Stars for outstanding academic achievement during the spring semester of the 2012-2013 academic year. • Daniel Ethan Boulware of Whitmire, S.C. Major: BS in Education. • Giazzi Alexander Segarra of Pauline, S.C. Major: BS in Physical Education. • Jacob Newell Robbins of Union, S.C. Major: BA in Criminal Justice. Gold Stars are aw...
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Community Calendar
Thursday, May 23 • The Wallace Thomson Hospital Volunteers holds a Book & Gift Sale in the hospital lobby from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday, May 24 • The Wallace Thomson Hospital Volunteers holds a Book & Gift Sale in the hospital lobby from 7 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday, May 27 • Lockhart Senior Citizens meet at 6 p.m. at the Masonic Lodge. Tuesday, May 28 • The Union County Senior Citizens meets at 6 p.m. at Mon Aetna Church Socia...
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Charles Warner|Daily Times
WBCU General Manager Chris Woodson hangs a City of Union banner on the wall of Tabernacle Baptist Church's Family Life Center Wednesday morning. The WBCU 15th Annual Senior Citizens Expo will be held in the Family Life Center today from 9 a.m.-2 p.m.

Senior Citizen’s Expo held today
UNION — Live music, lunch, door prizes and information on health, safety, banking and other issues will all be part of the WBCU 15th Annual Senior Citizen’s Expo at Tabernacle Baptist Church today. The event, which is sponsored by WBCU to honor senior citizens, will be held in the church’s Family Life Center today from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Chris Woodson, WBCU general manager, said Wednesday that the event will feature entertainment for the senio...
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Council approves first reading of 2013-2014 city budget
UNION — The City of Union’s proposed 2013-2014 municipal budget includes a tax increase to help balance the budget and a separate tax increase to help the city recoup a previous deficit. Union City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to approve first reading of the proposed 2013-2014 budget. The proposed budget totals $41,870,350 including the Utility Fund ($34,056,240), General Fund ($5,716,480), and Solid Waste Management Fund ($772,760). ...
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Derik Vanderford|Daily Times

David Leigh rehearses playing and singing a song for the production, as he is accompanied by his son, Michael Leigh, who plays a drum.

‘Whisperings’ cast rehearsing for performances
UNION — Boogaloo Folklife Productions — in partnership with Union County Historical Society — will present “Whisperings: Mostly True Tales from the Voices of Union’s Historic Past,” by Union native Dan O’Shields, May 31-June 2. The show will take place at four separate venues — The Inn at Merridun, the USC Union Gazebo, the Dawkins House and the Episcopal Church of the Nativity. Audience members will find their starting venue on their ticke...
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Unemployment rate falls to 12.1 percent in April
UNION COUNTY — The unemployment rate in Union County fell for third straight month in a row with approximately 20 residents finding jobs in April. The South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce announced that South Carolina’s unemployment rate decreased from 8.4 percent in March to 8 percent in April. In April 2012, the state’s unemployment rate was 9.3 percent. The report stated that April’s unemployment rate was the lowest sinc...
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Class to teach social networking skills
UNION — Feel lost when it comes to social network websites such as Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest? USC Union wants to help. USC Union will host a workshop called “Social Networking with Annie” from 4-5:30 p.m. June 10-12 in the university’s library. The class promises to teach students to set up and join social networks, post text and pictures, set up Pinterest boards, “tweet” on Twitter, as well as find and join friends. “Basically the...
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Sherbert receives Boinest Morgan Medal
UNION — The Union Music Club awards a medal each year to an outstanding piano student. This medal is the Boinest Morgan Medal, named in memory of Genie Boinest Morgan who taught piano many years in Union. The recipient this year is Jasmine Sherbert, the daughter of Ruth Sherbert. She is a junior at Union County High School and is a piano student of Suzy Smith. She performed “Invention in C Major” by Bach at the May 14 Union Music Club mee...
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Crime Report
The Union Public Safety Department reported the following arrests : — David Terrell Gallman, 28, of 106 Harris Road, Union, was charged with trespassing around 10:45 a.m. on May 20. According to the arrest warrant, Gallman was on the property of Union Housing authority on May 18, after already being placed on written trespass notice. — Kelvin Lamar Smith, 43, of 1208 West Main Street, Union, was charged with disorderly conduct around 9:4...
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Church Calendar
Saturday, May 25 9 a.m.: Mt. Calvary Baptist Church, 201 Terrapin Road, Union, hosts a prayer breakfast. Guest speaker will be Minister Verlinda Mintz of Concord Baptist Church, Gaffney. A $5 donation will be taken at the door for those who wish to join us for breakfast. All proceeds will benefit the Pastor’s Aid Committee. Sunday, May 26 1 p.m.: The Missionary Auxiliary of St. Luke Baptist Church, 718 Lukesville Road, Buffalo, ...
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Photos courtesy of Union County JROTC

On May 8, 2013 the Union County JROTC Yellow Jacket Battalion held its fourth promotion ceremonies of the 2012-2013 school year. The cadets were promoted based on their academics, physical fitness, character, and leadership. Alpha Company: C/CPL Les Wentz, C/CPL Judson Lawson, C/SFC Cole Sigmon, C/CPL Brian Best, and C/CPL Jessica Sowers.

Yellow Jacket Battalion holds promotion ceremonies
UNION COUNTY — On May 8, 2013 the Union County JROTC Yellow Jacket Battalion held its fourth promotion ceremonies of the 2012-2013 school year. The cadets were promoted based on their academics, physical fitness, character, and leadership.
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Photo submitted

Parents, students and community folks gather at Lockhart School for one of the four events held there each year.

Change does not mean a loss of values
LOCKHART — It may be difficult to believe but Lockhart, South Carolina was once a thriving community with activities and excitement thought to be reserved for larger towns. The town was populated by people moving into the area from the North Carolina mountains who were seeking jobs as the industrial revolution came to the region. The people brought with them a real sense of community, a work ethic unparalleled anywhere and a spirit of neighbo...
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Charles Warner|Daily Times
Brooks Carwile, left, Howard Gibson, center, and Ray Treadway, right, were the organizers of Monday's meeting of Concerned Citizens United for a Better Union County. The group is being formed as a means of bringing the people of Union County together to present their concerns to local government and work with government officials to address them.

Tax increases a major concern of new citizens group
UNION — The impact of tax increases and the need for the people of Union County to organize and make their voices heard in local government were among the subjects discussed at Monday’s meeting of the Concerned Citizens United for a Better Union County. The meeting, which was held at the Dave Fant Building on North Pinckney Street, drew a crowd of approximately 30 people, among them Union County Supervisor Tommy Sinclair, Union County Counc...
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Derik Vanderford|Daily Times

Rain did not hinder young fishermen during Saturday's J.A.K.E.S. Public Safety/Fun Day at Foster Park.

J.A.K.E.S. a success despite rain
Derik Vanderford Staff Writer UNION — Despite rainy weather, nearly 500 children participated in Saturday’s J.A.K.E.S. Public Safety/Fun Day on Saturday. The annual J.A.K.E.S. (Juniors Acquiring Knowledge, Ethics and Sportsmanship) Public Safety/Fun Day was hosted at Foster Park on Saturday, after the lake had been stocked with 2,400 pounds of catfish. “It went really well,” said Jessica Gallman of Union County Parks and Recreation. “...
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Derik Vanderford|Daily Times

Casey Sutton, right, is ecstatic after hearing the announcement from Chris Woodson, left, that she was the winner of Friday night's local WBCU-Texaco Country Showdown.

Sutton wins Texaco Country Showdown
Derik Vanderford Staff Writer UNION — Raleigh, N.C. resident Casey Sutton won Friday’s WBCU-Texaco Country Showdown and will advance to the statewide competition in October. The third annual WBCU-Texaco Country Showdown was held Friday evening in the USC Union Auditorium, as nine performers competed to advance to the state finals. Performers included Tiffany Littlejohn and The Broad River Band, Heath Walker, Brad Miller, Dennis Johns...
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Groups to perform in summer music series
Staff Report UNION — The Union County Chamber of Commerce and the Union County Recreation Department will host a concert series this summer consisting of four music events in Union. The event is billed as Downtown Summer Music Fest and will be held from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. — on four separate Saturdays — at the gazebo at USC Union. The concert dates are June 8, June 22, July 20, and Aug. 3. Each concert will feature a different genre of mus...
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Photo courtesy of the Union County Health Care Foundation
Union County Health Care Foundation Executive Director Katherine Childers and board members Dr. John Baarcke, Pete Berry, and William Jeter present Union Hospital District CEO Paul Newhouse and CFO Cindy Gault with a check for $23,333.55. The check, which was presented during the "Cocktails for a Cause" fundraiser held by the foundation at Nicholson Mansion earlier this month, was the final payment on the district's new cardiovascular stress testing system.

Hospital district receives $23,333.55 from foundation
Charles Warner Editor UNION — An evening of food, fellowship and cocktails was the venue for the Union Hospital District to receive a check for $23,333.55 from the Union County Health Care Foundation. Katherine Childers, foundation executive director, announced Monday that the foundation’s two-year effort to raise funds for the new cardiovascular stress testing system for Wallace Thomson Hospital’s Cardiopulmonary Services Department ha...
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Tourism commission discusses reductions in membership
Derik Vanderford Staff Writer UNION — Monday evening’s meeting of the Union County Tourism Commission included information, goodbyes and the election of a new officer. The meeting began with the committee hearing a presentation about the Union-based Trans-South Wrestling promotion and its benefits to local business. Then, commission chair Curtiss Hunter announced as of March 31, four members — Monte Lancaster, Yates Giles, Julia Garmo...
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Buffalo man charged with attempted murder
BUFFALO — A Buffalo resident was charged with two counts of attempted murder Sunday morning. At approximately 1:20 a.m. Sunday, May 19, Union County Sheriff’s Office deputies were dispatched to 234 Buffalo St., Buffalo, in reference to a subject shooting at two people walking down the street in the community. Upon arrival, deputies attempted to locate Donald Fred Harris Jr. and deputies noticed the front door on his residence being opened a...
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Dead body discovered Monday morning
UNION — The Union Public Safety Department and the Union County Coroner’s Office are investigating a body found in a wooded area off the Duncan Bypass. In a statement released Monday morning, Union County Coroner William E. Holcombe announced that the body of an adult male had been found in a wooded area behind 439 N. Duncan Bypass at around 10:42 a.m. Holcombe stated that an autopsy was scheduled to be performed on the body this morning....
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