It has been an interesting year around Kinston. We have seen more than our share of the bad but we have also seen some good.
Here are some of the more interesting events to me, along with my take on them:
The arrest of former City Councilman and prominent Kinstonbusinessman Will Barker on charges of child exploitation charges.
The charges allege Barker was in possession of “material that contains a visual representation of a minor engaging in sexual activity.”
Wait a minute … What?
I did not know the man personally but I had played basketball with him on occasion, in a church no less, and I have to say I didn’t see that one. I guess this falls under the “you never really know someone” category.
I just don’t understand how anyone, but particularly a father of young children, is into something like that. This one is just creepy.
The indictment of State Rep. Stephen LaRoque.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina indicted LaRoque in mid-July on four counts of theft and four counts of misappropriating money meant to be loaned to struggling small business owners for his personal use.
I have to say, this one didn’t surprise me at all. I sat with Free Press Managing Editor Bryan Hanks and staff writer David Anderson at the original press conference regarding the alleged misappropriations and when it ended I turned to Hanks and said, “while what he did may not be illegal, it sure is shady.”
Well, it turns out it may be illegal. Seems ironic to me that a staunch conservative clamoring about smaller government would be using federal funds to further his business in the first place, but that is neither here nor there. The fact is, the improprieties were exposed in spite of sharp criticism from those supporting LaRoque and the right.
Now, we have to wait and see what the courts say about the case. An interesting side note is the district attorney just filed some more charges related to the case.
Shootings, shootings and more shootings.
From 17-year-old Rasheed Jones’ murder to the off-duty deputy shooting at the Waffle House, it seems seldom does a week go by that we don’t hear about someone getting shot in the area. And what jumps out at me is the age of some of the shooters. These are young men.
All of the men involved in the murder of the U.S. Marshal were on the young side of their lives and yet they make the decision to go all “Wild West” that will define who they are for the rest of their lives.
What on earth are these young men thinking? If I’m being totally honest, one of the first questions I have to ask is, “how are these young people being raised?” The idea of shooting someone for what amounts to nothing is simply beyond me.
Do these people think they are going to get away with it? Do they think this will make them tougher? Or maybe it’s just simpler than that. Maybe they simply aren’t thinking or can’t think.
Another puppy mill found near Trenton.
These always bother me more than many others. People making money on innocent creatures and then not even having the decency to treat them with any form of kindness are the worst. Anyone that reads my column knows how I feel about dogs, cats and most animals. I feel our animal cruelty laws are laughable, and the way dogs in particular are treated in our area is, for the most part, sad.
I have always thought the Lenoir County Dog Park was one of Kinston’s better efforts and would like to see some additional funding get to the SPCA or any “no kill” shelter in the area. These wonderful places and wonderful people are overworked, understaffed and overwhelmed by the irresponsible, heartless pet owners that just try to rid themselves of their pet duties any way possible.
Delta Private Jets closes its doors in Kinston.
I wish I could say I was surprised to hear the news that Delta was closing its office in Kinston, but I would lying. It is sad to see yet another business jump ship and leave the area. Kinston, like many small towns across America, has seen more than its share of commercial businesses pull anchor and hightail it out of town.
There are some very good workers and even better people in Kinston and it would nice if they had good jobs, good places to shop and good places to eat. Ever since the decline of tobacco and exodus of DuPont, Kinston has been struggling to fill the void of solid middle class jobs.
Spirit AeroSystems and Sanderson Farms have been extremely accommodating and it’s nice to see a few reputable organizations such as theirs pick Kinston as their place of business. Let’s hope there are more to come.
The 250th Anniversary of Kinston
This is an impressive number and the town did it justice. It was nice to see all the history and learn how the town came to be. This entire area has some very intriguing history. Growing up outside the area, we didn’t learn much about this region, but it has a long, well-documented history that is worth learning.
The passing of Free Press mainstay and photographer Charles Buchanan
Many of us felt the loss of family and friends throughout the year. We all knew someone that affected us with their passing. Buchanan was a fixture at The Free Press. To say that he probably saw hundreds of young, fledgling reporters come and go through the newsroom is probably understating his tenure at the paper.
Charles was generally a good guy. I do not use that term loosely. In fact, I do not know but a handful of “good guys.” From a work standpoint, the patience to work with so many inexperienced reporters and editors throughout his years probably warrants some sort of sainthood.
When we were young, most of us thought we knew everything and reporting is no different. Every season, reporters fresh out of journalism school showed up on the shores of The Free Press thinking they knew how the game works because they were “on the school paper” and every year they found out in about a month that if you combined what they knew from “J school” and their work at the school paper with 99 cents, you could buy a soda.
Charles had seen it all, been through it all and, more importantly, shot it all through his camera. Despite working with some of the most headstrong, impatient people on the planet — myself at the top of that list — I never once saw him lose his temper or speak ill of someone.
His class and elegance will be missed at The Free Press, but never replaced.
I wish all a better 2013. Have a happy New Year.
Richard Clark is News Editor for ENCPublications.