DUGOUT/Kinston

The Last Dime Band will perform live at The DugOut Saturday. Cover charge is $5. On April 19, Emily Minor & Blake Kearney will perform live. Tickets are $10 in advance and $15 at the door. The DugOut is at 674 Stratford Blvd., in Stratford Plaza. For more information, call 252-208-0304.

CHAMBERSOUL CELLO & SONGS/Kinston

Shana Tucker is a cellist and singer/songwriter whose music is a mix of acoustic pop and soulful, jazz-influenced contemporary folk. She will spend Saturday in Kinston, conducting an ‘informance’ for free from 1 to 2:30 p.m. for high school students and adults. Her evening concert will begin at 7:30 p.m., all at the Community Council for the Arts, 400 N. Queen St. Concert tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door. Light hors d’oeuvres are included. For information, call 252-527-2517 or go to kinstoncca.com.

ELLIOT ENGEL/Kinston

Literary lecturer Elliot Engel will give his 50th presentation in Kinston at 3 p.m. Sunday in the Schechter Auditorium of the Kinston-Lenoir County Public Library, 510 N. Queen St. In his program, ‘The Vanderbilts: All of Them,’ Engel traces the amazing tale of this American dynasty, from Cornelius, born in 18th century, to Gloria of the designer jeans. Engel’s lecture will be followed by a wine and cheese reception. The Friends of the Library is sponsoring the program and reception, both of which are free and open to the public. For more information, call 252-527-7066, ext. 130.

SECOND SUNDAYS/Kinston

Grainger Hill’s Second Sunday Series will present “Big Band Sounds, Ballads and Broadway,” featuring Earle Abernethy, drums; Carol-Ann Tucker, vocals; Jimmy Aycock, piano; and Dave Aduddell, bass. The performance will be at 3 p.m. Sunday, with doors opening at 2 p.m., at the Community Council for the Arts, 400 N. Queen St. Tickets are $10 in advance or $12 at door, available at the arts center. The series, and each concert, is presented by the Grainger Hill Performing Arts Center in conjunction with the CCA, with all performances at the CCA. All proceeds, after expenses, will benefit Grainger Hill. For information, contact 252-527-2517 or kinstoncca.com; or 252-527-8515, Total Experience.

New album: The Raven Who Refused to Sing

Artist: Steven Wilson

Label: K Scope

Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5

Steven Wilson is best known for his tenure with Porcupine Tree, a hard rock band that flirted with prog rock tendencies. As a solo artist, Wilson has jumped the broom and delved headlong into epic, King Crimson/Genesis-inspired progressive music.

Between 1968 and 1973, bands such as Crimson, Genesis and Yes led the charge for complex, melodic rock music. Within the space of a 40-minute album, these bands could mix jazz, rock and classical motifs into songs that routinely ran more than 10 minutes in length. Procol Harum, Pink Floyd and Yes even had success with songs passing the 20-minute mark.

After punk came onto the scene in the late 1970s, prog rock was shoved out of the critical spotlight and into the same corner as heavy metal. Both genres had rabid fan bases that kept the music alive, but most music critics dismissed them because they weren’t Patti Smith.

Steven Wilson was one of those kids who defied what he was told was cool, latched onto progressive music and never let go. His third solo album, “The Raven Who Refused to Sing,” is a fresh, modern recording that evokes the spirit of his idol’s greatest moments without photocopying them.

Wilson is so in tune with what progressive rock is in 2013 that main King Crimson marm Robert Fripp tapped Wilson to oversee the re-mastered editions of King Crimson’s back catalog. This is the music equivalent of sports icon Michael Jordan asking you to help with his new sneaker design.

The album hits the ground running with a turbulent bass/drum workout on the 12-minute “Luminol,” which eventually gives way to Tom Morello-style guitar noises and crashing, orchestral chords. Drummer Marco Minnemann’s fluid style keeps everything moving along and gives the entire album a nice coat of energy.

Keyboardist Alan Holzman spent an unheard of four years in the Miles Davis touring band, so you know he’s got chops of the black belt variety. His electric piano work on “Raven” is reminiscent of “Bitches Brew”-era Joe Zawinul, thus lending a chilly undercurrent to even the brightest moments.

Vocally and lyrically, Wilson tends to stay on the darker side of the street, but he’s no shoe gazer. Just imagine if Radiohead’s Thom York had ever been hugged or eaten a steak, and that’s pretty much Wilson’s emotional territory. To be fair, it would be nearly impossible to sing about puppies and balloons when the music is as intense as the title track or “Holy Drinker.”

Wilson and the rest of this band have spent a fair amount of time on the road, and it shows. The interplay between lead guitarist Guthrie Govan and multi-instrumentalist Theo Travis is simply stunning. Wilson even breaks out the same mellotron used by King Crimson on their “In the Wake of Poseidon” album.

“The Raven Who Refused to Sing” is well paced with much excitement broken up by interludes of soft reflection. Any fan of well-played, stirring music will find much here to enjoy.

Classic album: Hound Dog Taylor & The Houserockers

Artist: Hound Dog Taylor

Label: Alligator Records

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

Hound Dog Taylor cut a wide swath during his brief recording career. His tenacious slide playing is the missing link between Elmore James and George Thorogood, and his 1971 debut lp is crammed full of it.

The label that released “Hound Dog Taylor & The Houserockers” — Alligator Records — was created because label founder Bruce Iglauer was frustrated that this genius musician couldn’t get a contract. Alligator has gone on to become the pre-eminent modern blues label, while Hound Dog Taylor’s guitar technique is to this day studied by musicians as if it were a rose bush discovered on Mars.

Recorded with his live band — drummer Ted Harvey and guitarist Brewer Phillips (who served somewhat as a bass player) — “Hound Dog Taylor & The Houserockers” is the rare instance in which someone figured out something new to do with the blues. The playing by these three men is light years away from polished, and the music is all the better for it. After all, this isn’t a ballet — this is Chicago blues at its finest.

The entire album plays like a party, with “Walking the Ceiling” getting things jumping at the outset. The playing is tight and focused, but it has a sharpness to it that makes you think a fight could break out at any minute. Taylor’s barrel-chested vocal on “Held My Baby Last Night” brings things down just long enough for everybody to catch their breath, but the respite is brief.

Phillips gets the spotlight during a mean, nasty solo on “Phillips’ Theme,” and the oft-covered but never bettered “Give Me Back My Wig” (most recently covered by R.E.M.’s Peter Buck) is one of the greatest blues-grooves this side of Paul Butterfield’s Blues Band.

“Hound Dog Taylor & The Houserockers” is essentially lightening captured in a bottle, so if you’re able, go get a case of it.

Jon Dawson’s album reviews appear every Thursday in The Free Press. Contact Jon at 252-559-1092 or jon.dawson@kinston.com. Purchase books, music and gris-gris bags at jondawson.com.

Plans are under way for the 16th annual Lenoir Community College Broadway and Beyond presentation at 7:30 p.m. April 19 in the Waller Building Auditorium.

Doors will open at 6:30 p.m. with pre-concert entertainment by Timothy Maddox of the LCC music faculty. Admission at the door is $7.

The show is produced and directed by LCC Music Program Chair Carolyn Crossland, and co-hosted by Crossland and Rick Vernon, Down East Today host. Crossland says there will be plenty of surprises throughout the evening.

Participants in this year’s show include Peggy Overton Vaughan performing “A Spoonful of Sugar” and “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” from “Mary Poppins”; Chris Raines performing “Poison Ivey” from “Smokey Joe’s Café” and bass in the men’s trio performing “Unchained Melody” from “Ghost”; Antuan Hawkins performing “Santa Fe” from “Rent” and baritone in the men’s trio; Meme performing “Could I Leave You?” from “Follies”; Amanda Stroud performing “In My Little Corner” from “Cinderella”; Jackie Golebiowski performing “Nothing” from “A Chorus Line”; and Clay Raines performing “Soliloquy” from “Henry and Mudge” and tenor in the men’s trio.

Other performers will include Krissy Boccia performing “No Business Like Show Business” from “Annie Get Your Gun” and “Maybe This Time” from “Cabaret”; Ciara DiNapoli performing “Breathe” from “In the Heights” and “Don’t Rain on My Parade” from “Funny Girl”; Nora Parker with L’Acadmie de Danse and Dr. John Herlong performing “Jitterbug Jive”; and Kinston Dance Academy with Artistic Director Jan McKenrick performing “Sing! Sing! Sing!”

For more information, contact Crossland at 252-527-6223, ext. 919, or crossland@lenoircc.edu.

Broadway and Beyond

7:30 p.m. April 19

Doors open 6:30 p.m.

Waller Building Auditorium

Lenoir Community College

Cost: $7 at door

Info: 252-527-6223, ext. 919, or crossland@lenoircc.edu

GREENVILLE — The inspired lunacy of musicians Igudesman & Joo will debut Saturday at ECU’s Wright Auditorium.

Think Mozart hijacked by Monty Python, South Park meets Bach and you have some idea of the mayhem created by Igudesman & Joo. Their mix of classical and pop music, comedy and theatre is its own art form.

Called the successors to Victor Borge and PDQ Bach, violinist Igudesman and pianist Hyung-ki Joo are comedic as well as musical virtuosi. They kick the stuffing out of classical music, mixing genres and styles, pulling heavily from pop culture with hearty doses of humor and theatricality. They relish overturning traditional attitudes towards classical music. They are serious musicians who have turned the world’s most esteemed concert halls into standing-room only comedy clubs. 

Their aim is to make classical music fun and more accessible to the public. While their spin may be irreverent, they always treat the music with the utmost respect. The duo is so seriously virtuosic that classical music heavyweights are among their biggest fans, and many have performed on stage with them.

The duo has been performing in cities across America in 2011 and 2012, including debuts at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center and a performance with the Los Angeles Philharmonic. This year’s return to the U.S. for a multi-city tour will include the Wright Auditorium concert of their hit show “Big Nightmare Music.”

The Igudesman & Joo concert is part of the ECU S. Rudolph Alexander Performing Arts Series.

Big Nightmare Music: Igudesman and Joo

With Greensboro Symphony Orchestra

7 p.m. Saturday

Wright Auditorium, ECU campus

Greenville

Tickets/Info: 252-328-5386, Central Ticket Office in Mendenhall Student Center or call 800-ECU-ARTS

WILSON — State regulators are deciding whether to fine a farm near the Wilson County line that spilled 1,000 gallons of hog waste into a Contentnea Creek tributary last month.

The N.C. Division of Water Quality is considering a recommendation for a civil penalty, according to a March 21 letter the agency sent to Stantonsburg Farm operators.

Environmental advocates reported the spill March 15 at the sow farm off Sand Pit Road southeast of Stantonsburg in northern Greene County.

The facility known as Stantonsburg Farm Inc. is a contract grower for Smithfield Foods subsidiary Murphy-Brown.

“We very much regret this unfortunate release,” Murphy Family Ventures environmental manager A.J. Linton wrote in a March 29 response to the Division of Water Quality’s violation notice. “We believe that we recovered the majority of the effluent that left the field. We plan to invest substantial capital in making meaningful corrective actions on the farm to prevent any reoccurrence in the future.”

Wilson County resident and environmental watchdog Don Webb spotted the spill and reported it to state officials. Linton said in his letter that the farm inadvertently discharged about 1,000 gallons of wastewater.

“The remediation efforts continued throughout the night,” Linton wrote. “The staff worked nearly 70 man-hours in the recovery effort. In doing so, they pumped approximately 163,000 gallons of water back into the wastewater treatment pond, making every effort to recover the estimated 1,000 gallons of effluent that had escaped the field.”

Regulators had notified Stantonsburg Farm of deficiencies in its hog waste storage system on March 11 and Jan. 9, according to Division of Water Quality records.

Hog feces and urine is stored in large ponds and used to irrigate farmland in what’s known as the lagoon and sprayfield system.

Environmental groups criticize the practice and say waste from the hog lagoons is too often discharged into public waterways.

Division of Water Quality spokeswoman Susan Massengale said Monday that regulators would consider the nature and scope of the violation as well as the farm’s response before determining whether to assess a fine.

Larry Baldwin, who monitors concentrated animal feeding operations for the nonprofit Waterkeeper Alliance, said Stantonsburg Farm should have to pay a steep price for polluting the public water supply.

“In my opinion, this one should be a significant fine because of just what we were able to see as far as how much waste actually got into the water,” Baldwin said Tuesday. “We’re talking about a significant spill.”

Baldwin said state law allows fines of $25,000 or more per day, but most farms that violate water quality standards are assessed much lower penalties of around $2,000 or $3,000.

“Unfortunately, they’re typically not very high, which is the frustrating part for us because it really doesn’t become a big enough deterrent to keep it from happening again,” Baldwin said.

The waste was discharged into an unnamed stream that flows into the Contentnea Creek, a tributary of the Neuse River. The Neuse is North Carolina’s longest river and was ranked among the nation’s 10 most endangered in 2007.

Stantonsburg Farm, Inc., is a privately owned facility producing hogs under contract for Murphy-Brown, the livestock production subsidiary of Virginia-based Smithfield Foods. Smithfield is the world’s largest pork producer.

The historic J.H. Sampson School building has a new owner after its November closing.

Lin Dawson, a Kinston native, submitted a $22,500 bid for the property in February, and the move was approved by the Lenoir County Board of Education Tuesday.

He was the only bidder and plans to turn the structure into a community haven — something like when he was growing up in East Kinston — through his nonprofit agency JH Sampson Community Life Foundation.

“I am grateful,” Dawson said after the board meeting. “It takes confidence that we can pull this off.”

The plan included four prongs of service: workforce and economic development, social services, educational enhancement and charity. Dawson said only one floor of Sampson School will be usable during the first year but within three years, it will be a fully-functioning community hub.

“We see Sampson as a full, operational community life center,” Dawson said. “It will be run as a nonprofit organization. It was a lifeline for our community.”

He told the board members about how important Sampson was to Kinston when he started attending in 1966.

“We certainly appreciate his interest in this,” said Steve Mazingo, LCS superintendent. “We think his plans will improve the school greatly and also the masses in the neighborhood.”

The next step for Dawson’s team is to begin cleaning, assessing and somehow securing grants for the building.  

It suffers poor conditions, from leaks to severe roofing damage, meaning the property’s repair costs are projected much higher than the bidding price.

“Anytime you look at the value of a facility and the value of a property, you have to look at the whole picture,” said Brent Williams, LCS executive director of operations. “You have to look at cost of ownership, condition of the property, the needs of the facility and exactly what it would take — in terms of resources — to bring the facility up to an operational standpoint.

“In this case, that bar is very hard. The needs are very intense.”

Dawson said in an earlier interview with The Free Press it would take $750,000 to bring the property back to life, and it would take a year to raise those funds.

“It seems like Mr. Dawson has a very comprehensive plan for using the property to benefit the community in a number of different entities,” Williams said. “I think it sounds like a very good and beneficial plan for the community.”

Jessika Morgan can be reached at 252-559-1078 or at jessika.morgan@kinston.com. Follow her on Twitter @JessikaMorgan.

Need a hair cut and a hot meal but only have time for one? A Kinston entrepreneur thinks he has the answer to your problem.

On May 9, local restaurateur Hines Ward will launch his latest venture, “Pasta Cuts.” The restaurant/barbershop will be located at the old Kinstonian lot at the intersection of U.S. 258 and U.S. 70.

“When I was a kid, my father used to go the barbershop and relax,” Ward said. “He’d shoot the breeze with his buddies, get caught up on the latest jokes and then get a nice haircut and shave. Nowadays, everybody’s so busy with a smartphone or an STD they’re lucky if they get to wet their toothbrush a couple of times per week.”

Ward says customers will be able to enjoy a fine Italian meal while receiving a haircut from graduates of the nation’s top accredited barber colleges.

“Our current roster boasts three graduates from Dayton Barber College, two from Diamond’s of Fort Worth, and one from Evergreen Beauty College of Greater Humptulips, Wash.,” Ward said. “As for the menu, opening day specials will be angel hair pasta, cream of mustache soup and keratin dumplings with peidra sauce. If you’d like a shave, just ask for the flavor saver with clams.”

In addition to being able to get a haircut while chowing down on a luscious lasagna lunch, Ward says manicure and pedicure services will be offered as well.

“What’s the point of getting a nice haircut if your nails are going to look like corn chips?” Ward asked. “Our licensed nail techs are armed with everything from emery boards to claw hammers. Our lead pedicurist is the woman who tamed Russel Brand’s out of control nail problem.”

Lead pedicurist Jerri Sparks concurred.

“Mr. Brand neglected his toenails for so long,” Sparks said. “People were shocked that he’d walk around New York City barefoot, but the truth of the matter is his toenails had grown out and curved under his feet. It was like he’d grown his own pair of sandals. When he walked on a hard-wood floor it sounded like he was wearing baseball cleats. I covered those disgusting feet with bacon grease and submerged them in a bucket filled with tiny fish. After about seven hours, the nails were trimmed and most of the fish were dead.”

Asked if he thought potential customers might be put off by the thought of stray hairs or toenails landing in their food, Ward turned to science for his response.

“There is plenty of protein in human nails and hair,” Ward said. “We’re still in the test marketing stage, but you can expect to see cholesterol-free baked nail clipping croutons on our salad bar within the year. As for the hair, I hope people aren’t under the illusion the dark stuff in restaurant pepper shakers is actually pepper.

“And while we’re on the subject, Vitalis doesn’t have half the calories of most Italian salad dressings.”

Ward’s previous venture — Lefty’s Restaurant — initially attracted much attention but fizzled out after only six months in operation.

“The idea to let morning commuters sell us their leftovers and then resell them to the public was ahead of it’s time,” Ward said. “A few dozen people find cigarette ashes in their Sloppy Joes and all of a sudden the Health Department thinks they can boss you around.”

Ward says any customers with weak immune systems are advised to purchase amoxicillan or ciprofloxacin tablets from vending machines in the Pasta Cuts lobby prior to mealtime.

Jon Dawson’s columns appear every Tuesday and Thursday in The Free Press. Contact Jon at 252-559-1092 or jon.dawson@kinston.com. Purchase books, music and Reuben Studdard memorabilia at jondawson.com.

Lenoir Community College’s Student Government Association celebrated its 50th year in ideal conditions.

The annual Spring Joust at the campus had near-perfect spring weather as members of student organizations mingled, held activities at their booths and competed against each other in SGA-sponsored events.

“We had fun, everybody participated and the students seemed to enjoy themselves,” said Letha Bingham, public information officer for the SGA.

About 10 organizations participated, with the Graphic Arts and Imaging Technology Club taking first place in events, with the Surgical Technology Club taking second and the Science Club placing third. The Human Services Club won best booth.

On the courtyard grass, students competed in events such as the spoon-and-marble race, ladder golf, a three-legged race, an egg toss and a baton race.

Over at the Welding Club station, students sold raffle tickets for a handmade grill put together by club members.

“We’ve got plenty of tickets, and we’re just trying to help this program up a little bit,” Welding Club member Seth Hogan said. “I think the cost of the grill was maybe $300, maybe more. Tickets are one for $3, and two for $5, and they’ll be raffled off at the end of the month.”

Oven mitts were in use at another booth, but it didn’t involve grilling.

Students Against Destructive Behavior President Brittney Carter, assisted by Velvet Tyndall of the Lenoir County Cooperative Extension service, used the mitts as a sensory deprivation tool. LCC student Jose Santibanez attempted to perform tasks while be-mitted and wearing a bandanna over his eyes.

“You know, prom time’s coming up, summertime’s getting here, and we’re trying to get our youth to think about destructive decisions, and how they can be affected,” Tyndall said.

The SGA’s sponsored the event since the founding of the governing body.

Wes Wolfe can be reached at 252-559-1075 or wes.wolfe@kinston.com. Follow him on Twitter @WolfeReports. 

If it were white, it would look like a dusting of snow.

Instead, it’s a flurry of greenish-yellow tree pollen that’s covering cars, roadways, windows and anything else that’s exposed outdoors.

Early spring is when the trees start pollinating — particularly birch, beech, oak and pine, Dr. Paul Mehlhop of The Allergy Center in Greenville said.

He added the pine pollen is what is mainly visible when spring has sprung.

“A lot of times,” he said, “people think automatically that pine is what they’re allergic to.”

But a variety of other trees carry tiny grains that can’t be seen with the naked eye.

But whether it’s visible or not, pollen is a source of disruption in the lives of people who are allergic to it with the resultant seasonal allergic rhinitis, or SAR. And it’s the more numerous microscopic grains that cause the most trouble, Mehlhop said.

“If you have a smaller pollen grain,” he said, “it stays aloft for a longer time.”

Spring’s winds are perfect for tree pollination, and just the vehicle to carry those grains into the nostrils and possibly down into the lungs, if they are small enough.

“Allergies to pollen can trigger asthma,” Mehlhop said, “so asthma is more of a serious problem.”

Dr. Michael Diamond of Kinston Community Health said asthmatics can minimize their reactions to allergens by taking their medications when the pollen count is high, use a HEPA filter in the home and change filters often.

“The best way to treat an asthma attack is to prevent it,” he said.

Melanie Abbott, RN and nursing director at the Lenoir County Health Department, said the typical symptoms of SAR are runny nose, runny and itchy eyes, sneezing, headaches and congestion.

“A lot of people just don’t feel well,” she said, “even if they don’t have those obvious symptoms. They just feel tired and sluggish.”

Over-the-counter remedies include loratadine, cetirizine or fexofenadine. Usually, people find one works better than the others, Mehlhop said.

Diamond said nasal saline rinses — such as in the Neti pot kit — clean out the nose and help break up mucus.

“It’s important to know that you should lean your face forward,” he said about using the rinses.

If symptoms continue, then a doctor can prescribe nose sprays and perform skin tests. If the skin tests are positive, immunotherapy, or allergy injections, can be started. The injections each contain a liquid extract from a common allergen.

“You can have reactions to the allergy injections,” Mehlhop said, “but that probably can be worked around. You gradually build up to the maintenance dose.”

The Centers for Disease Control reports some airborne allergens may become more allergenic with higher temperatures and carbon dioxide levels.

Weather.com forecasts a high pollen count today and Friday until rain comes in Friday night.

Tom Lonka, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Newport, said it will be quite breezy until it rains, with as much as an 80 percent chance of rain.

“It will definitely be blowing about the next couple of days,” he said Wednesday. After the rain stops early Saturday, the weekend is expected to be sunny and not too windy, he added.

Sometimes a hard rain, though, will cause the pollen to burst out after it stops. The tree pollen will continue to blow around, to some extent, until the trees green out, Lonka said.

“Usually, it gets better by the end of April,” he said.

Then the grass pollen takes over in early summer, followed by the ragweed and other weeds in late summer until there is a freeze, Mehlhop said.

Margaret Fisher can be reached at 252-559-1082 or Margaret.Fisher@Kinston.com. Follow her on Twitter @MargaretFishr.

Allergy triggers:

Trees that trigger allergies and pollinate in late winter and spring — Ash, beech, birch, cedar, cottonwood, box, elder, elm, hickory, maple, oak

Grasses that trigger allergies and pollinate in late spring and summer — Kentucky bluegrass, timothy, Johnson, Bermuda, redtop, orchard, rye, sweet vernal grasses

Source: Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America

Pollen advice:

Keep windows and doors closed, and car windows up. Use air-conditioning set on re-circulate, if needed

Avoid using window and attic fans during pollen season

Dry clothing and bedding in the dryer, not outside

Don't allow indoor/outdoor pets in your bedroom

When going outside, minimize pollen exposure

Plan outdoor activities when pollen count is low

Pollen is most widespread in the early morning

Sunglasses can help protect your eyes from pollen

Don’t mow or rake during pollen season. If you must do yard work, protect yourself (Wear NIOSH-approved face mask, hat, glasses, gloves and a long-sleeve shirt)

Vacation where pollen is low, such as the beach, or take your medications with you

Change clothing, shower and wash hair after being outdoors

Source: webmd.com

For information

To track pollen counts, visit weather.com or pollen.com

Pollen.com lists oak, birch and juniper as the top current allergens for the Goldsboro and Greenville areas and oak, poplar and maple for the New Bern area

Judgments filed with Lenoir County Clerk of Courts Civil Division, Dec 1-31, 2012:

When Matthew Burwell got out of bed Wednesday morning he only hoped to contribute to a Kinston boys tennis team win against North Lenoir.

Little did the sophomore know, he was going to be the one to win it for the Vikings.

Burwell’s tie-break forehand in doubles gave Kinston its fifth match win of the day, which propelled it to a 6-3 win and a season sweep of the Hawks at Bill Fay Park.

The Vikings took four of the six singles matches, and needed only one win in doubles to secure the victory.

Brett Shear couldn’t get to Burnwell’s shot in time, and Burwell and his partner, Nicolas Romero, celebrated.

“It feels good,” said Burwell, whose shot gave him and Romero a 9-8 win after the 7-4 tiebreaker. “When I woke up this morning I just hoped to give my team a little lift. I never thought I’d be the one to win it.”

Burwell also handled his singles opponent, Drew Proctor, 6-2 and 6-3. In all it was a good day for the sophomore.

“I played well,” he said. “I kept my composure and played my shots well.

“It’s good to sweep North Lenoir. That’s something we haven’t done in a while.”

Evan Kramer gave North Lenoir the top-seeded set with a 6-0, 6-0 win over Dan Hoang, then Will Hardy followed with a hard-earned 7-6 (8-6), 6-7 (3-7), 10-5 three-set win over Koty Wojeski. But that was it for the Hawks through the Burwell-Romero doubles win.

Julian Quintero defeated Matthew Warren 6-4, 6-0 to give Kinston a win at No. 3 singles, then Belgium foreign exchange student Stan Vanclooster defeated Austin Worley 6-0, 6-0 at No. 4.

Romero rounded out the singles matches with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Josh Varnell — Shear’s doubles partner — in No. 6.

Quintero and Vanclooster teamed up for an 8-3 win over Hardy and Worley. Kramer and Warren ended the day by defeating Hoang and Wojeski, 8-3 also.

Ryan Herman can be reached at 252-559-1073 or Ryan.Herman@Kinston.com. Follow him on Twitter: @KFPSports. 

Sorority presents service project donations

The Sigma Chapter of Beta Sigma Phi supports service projects during the year. Beta Sigma Phi is an international sorority, founded in 1931, whose purpose is threefold: social, cultural and service.

Members recently presented two checks. Ora Mae Evans and Norris King, chairwomen of the Service Committee, presented a check to Meghan King, an employee of the Ronald McDonald House in Greenville. President Jean Smith presented a check to Claude Stroud for the Shriners’ Crippled Children’s Hospital.

Each year, chapter members choose several charities to support. Others this year include Mary’s Kitchen and the International Endowment Fund for research.

Library to celebrate MLK’s ‘Letter from Birmingham Jail’

The Kinston-Lenoir County Public Library will host a program, “Letter from Birmingham Jail: A Worldwide Celebration,” at 7 p.m. Monday at the library, 510 N. Queen St. The program commemorates the 50th anniversary of one of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s most famous documents. The program is free to the public.

Initiated by the Birmingham Public Library and supported by the American Library Association, the program will be one of hundreds of readings to commemorate the “Letter” worldwide. Published in The Atlantic as “The Negro Is Your Brother,” it was written in response to a public statement of concern and caution issued by eight religious leaders of the South. It stands as one of the classic documents of the Civil Rights Movement.

During the commemoration, there will be readings from “Letter,” which scholars often have described as giving the world an additional perspective on King. After the reading, a discussion will offer personal stories of protests during the Civil Rights Movement. Patrons are encouraged to join the discussion to remember the times and celebrate King’s legacy.

For more information, contact the library at 252-527-7066 or neuselibrary.org.

Ava Gardner is program topic

GOLDSBORO — Todd Johnson, director of the Ava Gardner Museum in Smithfield, will speak at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Wayne County Museum, 116 N. William St., Goldsboro.

Johnson’s topic will be Ava Gardner, the Smithfield native who became an international celebrity for her roles in movies such as “Mogambo” with Clark Gable, “The Killers” and “Showboat.” Considered one of the most beautiful women of her day, she was married to Mickey Rooney, bandleader Artie Shaw and Frank Sinatra. She also grabbed headlines for her relationships with Howard Hughes and Ernest Hemingway.

The program is free and open to the public. Call 919-734-5023.

Library announces annual book sale

GRIFTON — The Grifton Public Library is having its annual spring sidewalk sale from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. April 20 in front of the library, 568 Queen St. The sale will conclude from 2 to 3 p.m. with a $5 all-you-can-fill bag.

Hardback and paperback books will be available. A section of adult titles, plus children and juvenile literature from popular authors, new and old, will be included. Use this opportunity to compile your summer pool and beach reading selections.

The library’s regular hours are 11:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays and 11:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Fridays. Call 252-524-0345.

SURF CITY — A longtime volunteer with the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center will be helping to protect sea turtles and marine habitat after death as she did in life.

The life of the late Elizabeth “Betsy” Kautz, who died last year after a long battle with cancer, will be celebrated this week in a unique memorial that will serve as a living, lasting tribute to Kautz as part of an artificial reef at the ocean’s bottom.

Her final resting place will be part of Dare’s Reef, the first Sea Turtle Memorial Reef, a memorial reef established through a partnership between Eternal Reefs Inc. and the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center.

“Betsy was very, very special to us and we feel it’s appropriate she’s being remembered with a place as part of the only reef in the world named for a sea turtle,” said Jean Beasley, director of the sea turtle hospital.

Kautz was a longtime volunteer with the sea turtle hospital, working on the beach where the sea turtles nest, as well as caring for the sick and injured sea turtles at the hospital. On the beach she was assistant director of the Topsail Turtle Project, the beach monitoring program, and at the sea turtle hospital she put in countless hours helping the sea turtles to recover so that they could be released back to their home in the ocean.

Dare, a female Kemp’s ridley, the most endangered of the sea turtles, was among those Kautz cared for. Dare was brought to the sea turtle to the hospital on Topsail Island in 1999 after being found in Dare County underweight for her 18 months and with injuries from boat strikes and lesions.

Prior to her planned release, Dare was evacuated from Topsail Island during Hurricane Floyd and spent four days floating in her tank with contaminated floodwaters.

Dare suffered from physical and neurological problems after that and following major surgery for a large encapsulated mass and other issues, Dare died in March 2005.

A large reef ball with Dare’s cremated remains was placed off the Topsail Island coastline on June 8, 2006, a location now known as Dare’s Reef.

“We promised Dare she would go back to the ocean and we kept that promise,” Beasley noted.

Kautz will now join Dare as part of the reef.

Eternal Reefs is back on Topsail Island today through Monday as friends and families of Kautz and four other individuals will pay tribute to their loved ones with memorial reef balls to be placed at Dare’s Reef.

Eternal Reefs mixes the cremated remains of a loved one into a large environmentally friendly concrete ball that is placed on the ocean floor, helping provide new habitat for sea turtles and other marine life and replenish diminishing natural reef systems.

A “casting” event will be held from 10 a.m. to noon at 302 Tortuga Lane in Surf City, the new facility for the Karen Beasley sea turtle hospital. During this time, family members for each individual being memorialized will have the chance to honor and remember their loved one by placing handprints in the cement and decorating the reef balls with memorabilia and plaques.

A viewing from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday will give friends and family time to see the reef balls unveiled and will also include other memorial activities.

On Monday at 8 a.m., family members will board boats for the trip to the reef to see the reef balls deployed.

For more information about memorial reef balls go to eternalreefs.com. To learn more about the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center see seaturtlehospital.org.

You can reach Jannette Pippin at 910-382-2557 or jannette.pippin@jdnews.com.

Marine Corps Capt. Matthew Krivohlavy may have been tens of thousands of miles away, flying missions in Afghanistan. But that didn’t keep him from sending a special message to his brother, who was getting married in Texas.

And what a special message it was.

Krivohlavy, an AV-8B Harrier pilot from Cherry Point, recorded a video message from the cockpit of his jet as he flew high above the sandy terrain of Afghanistan and sent it to his brother Brandon so it could be shown at his wedding reception.

“We were completely caught off guard,” said Brandon Krivohlavy, who was married April 6. “He mentioned that he was sending something to us for our wedding, and I couldn’t imagine what he could possibly send us from Afghanistan. I was thinking maybe a bottle of sand, sorta like a souvenir or something, but as soon as we saw that video, tears from my entire family just started pouring out. Tears of joy, of course. It was a very touching experience for everyone.”

He posted the video online and it has received hundreds of thousands of views, going viral as well as getting picked up by national news organizations.

The video, about 2 1/2 minutes long, features the pilot in the cockpit with hand-written cards to Brandon Krivohlavy and his new bride, Mandy Takacs. Matthew Krivohlavy reads the cards as he goes along.

“Brandon and Mandy, I can’t begin to tell you how excited I am for the both of you,” he said. “This is a day that you will remember for the rest of your lives. And I wish I could be there to share it with you.”

The pilot with Marine Attack Squadron 231 continues to flip the cards and read.

“Mandy, you are beautiful and exceptionally sweet. You are a perfect match for my brother,” the 33-year-old pilot said with his face partially hidden behind a facemask.

“Boy-O, I wish I had a horribly embarrassing story to tell about you (as payback). But I don’t.

“What I really want to say is how great of a brother you are. As kids, there were times when we wanted to kill each other. But as we both matured, we began to realize how alike we really are. It pains me that we live so far away and hardly see each other, but after visiting Austin and meeting Mandy I completely understand! The two of you have a very exciting future ahead and I wish you both the very best.”

The captain wraps up the video by reminding the couple that marriage is a journey.

“There will be ups and downs, so make the best of it. And … GO NUTS TOGETHER!”

With that, the pilot flips his visor down and does a slow roll in the jet and concludes with a wave saying “Love you both, congratulations.”

Brandon Krivohlavy, 30, said Wednesday that his brother had asked him to temporarily take the video down, but with hundreds of thousands of views as well as multiple reposts across the Internet, that may be tough to do. All the attention may have just been a bit too much for military officials in Afghanistan, Brandon said.

“It’s sad,” he said, “because the message behind it was very meaningful.”

Matthew Krivohlavy could not be reached in Afghanistan through the Cherry Point Public Affairs Office as of press time.

Children’s activities, food and fun will be happening at the Lenoir County Fairgrounds on Saturday.

The Kidz Swap will be sponsoring Family Fun Day with a Sandy Bottom fire truck, K-9 unit, the Chick-fil-A cow, Chitlin the Pig, Galaxy of Sports characters, face painting by the P.E.A.C.E. foundation, Jackson Heights Baptist Church food fundraiser, the Lenoir County Parks and Recreation game trailer and a bounce house.

“Everything’s free except for the food,” Stephanie Walker, owner of The Kidz Swap, said.

The game trailer will be bringing in a few games, such as bean bag toss, sack racing and a variety of balls, Walker said.

The Fun Day, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., is a first for The Kidz Swap, a local business that has been selling mainly gently-used children’s toys, books, games, strollers, cribs, clothes (newborn to junior) and shoes on consignment for five years. The events are held in April and October at the fairgrounds.

The consignment sale starts today and runs through Saturday. Besides children’s items, there are furniture and household goods. The Mommy Mart features maternity clothes and, new this year, women’s clothing and shoes.

“It’s a great way for parents to get rid of stuff that they no longer use,” Walker said.

There are generally 60 to 80 vendors. However, they do not sell their own items. Participants register before the sale, pay a $10 fee and The Kidz Swap does the selling. Vendors receive two-thirds of the selling price and can take part in a presale event.

The Fun Day was added this year to the swap to provide a fun activity day for children as their parents shop.

“Families can actually have fun while they’re shopping,” Walker said.

The consignment event is 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. today, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Some items on Sunday will be sold at half price, starting at 3 p.m.

Margaret Fisher can be reached at 252-559-1082 or Margaret.Fisher@Kinston.com. Follow her on Twitter @MargaretFishr.

Check it out:

What: Family Fun Day

When: 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday

Where: Lenoir County Fairgrounds, 401 Fairgrounds Road, off N.C. 11/55 South

Cost: Free

For information: thekidzswap.com

Who would put pepper on a cupcake? Or pork cracklins?

Tabitha Meready does.

She opened The Peppered Cupcake in December with not-your-average cupcakes. Her first cupcake was based on her aunt’s recipe for a savory appetizer spread with cream cheese, preserves and horseradish topped with pepper — hence came the name.

“I just had to do something that was almost taboo,” Meready said.

She began running a business out of her home in 2008 — then later through a commercial kitchen — baking sweet and savory cupcakes and delivering them to restaurants and gourmet shops in Greenville, New Bern, Emerald Isle and as far as Wilmington.

With gas prices sky-high, Meready found an opportunity to open a shop here in her hometown. Besides cupcakes like maple and bacon or sweet potato with pork cracklins, the shop sells coffee, cappuccinos, lattes and a few other items.

“I always wanted to be in the front line of the coffee thing,” Meready said.

Her idea to bake cupcakes came when she was avidly networking with other business professionals — this is her third business venture. At one of those events, she met some ladies who provided cupcakes.

She had read the book “The Purple Cow” by Seth Godin, which emphasizes transforming a business by standing out from competitors. She gave it some thought and came up with the unusual cupcakes.

The idea spread faster than cake batter when she hit the Internet with her flavorful little cakes. People have learned about her cupcakes and make a point to stop in Kinston, Meready said. They are curious and when they find something unusual, they tell others about it, she added.

“I’ve learned I’ve become a destination,” she said.

Her business partner, Shannon Foster, helps out in the kitchen and manages the business end of the shop, Meready said.

The Peppered Cupcake, 900 Oriental Ave., is open 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays. For information, call 252-686-6910 or visit thepepperedcupcake.com.

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First Citizens Bank is sponsoring a Community Shred Event from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on April 19 at 607 Plaza Blvd. A Cintas Document Management truck will destroy unwanted sensitive materials free of charge for all area residents.

This is the second year for the event, said Bill Whaley, First Citizens’ market executive in Kinston.

“It was a very successful event,” he said about last year’s shred event, “where folks could drive up with their cars.”

Elderly folks or those with disabilities can drive up and get assistance with unloading old documents such as ATM receipts, checks, tax information, credit card statements, copies of bills, mail and other papers containing personal information.

Dry paper only will be accepted (no plastics, media tapes or cardboard). There is no need to remove staples, paper clips and other bindings, and colors do not have to be separated. All materials should be in boxes and containers for quick and easy disposal.

Destroying documents by shredding them into unrecognizable pieces is the safest way to dispose of unwanted materials and provides greater protection against identity theft crimes.

“At First Citizens Bank, one of our highest priorities is protecting our customers’ personal information,” Whaley said. “We want to help all residents safeguard their vital information.”

Bank associates will be on hand to provide information about protecting personal information and offer light refreshments to attendees. A drawing will be held for a home paper shredder. The event will be held rain or shine.

For more information, contact the First Citizens Kinston Plaza office at 252-939-3066 or 252-939-3011.

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For tax day, Monday, Sears Hometown Store at Vernon Park Mall will be offering discounts on appliances, tools, vacuums, fitness equipment, patio accessories, grills, mattresses, air conditioners, power lawn and garden items and electronics.

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Also for tax day, look for special deals and coupons for area retail outlets and restaurants at dealnews.com/features/tax-day-freebies/. Arby’s, Subway, Chili’s and Office Depot are some of the businesses that will be offering specials on or around April 15.

Margaret Fisher can be reached at 252-559-1082 or Margaret.Fisher@Kinston.com. Follow her on Twitter @MargaretFishr.

Do you have a new retail business or one that’s undergone a significant change? The Free Press would like to hear about it. Contact Margaret Fisher at 252-559-1082 or Margaret.Fisher@Kinston.com.

Etta Rouse not only turned her life around by opening Kinston Assessment Treatment and Services — she stayed clean.

She is a recovering alcoholic who hasn’t had a drink in more than 25 years and works today as a certified substance abuse counselor.

“I think most people start (substance abuse) as experimenting,” Rouse said. “Mine was just a social thing to begin with. I went through a lot of crisis.”

One predicament involved a parting from her first husband.

“We separated,” she said, “and when we did, I just took a bath in it. I certainly did not plan to become an alcoholic. … Whether I inherited the factor for it or not, I drank myself into alcoholism.”

She said that as of 2001, there were 100,800 Alcoholics Anonymous support groups in 150 countries.  

Rouse went through treatment in Greensboro and in Pitt County before moving back to Kinston and opening the substance assessment center on Caswell Street.

Although the clients are mostly referrals from underage drinking or driving while intoxicated charges, Rouse said alcoholism and drug abuse are major issues in Lenoir County. She said marijuana is what people abuse most in the county — and the drug is somehow thriving.

“Marijuana is probably the No. 1 illegal drug in this county,” Rouse said. “I’ve seen an awful lot of it in this county. Where it is coming from, I don’t know, but it is alive and well.”

Once people are convicted, if referred to K.A.T.S., they must complete some form of treatment. Rouse said to prevent their visit in the first place, it takes family and self-support.

“If your body doesn’t suffer from it, the people who are around you and closest to you will suffer from it,” she said. “I was a drunk and (it made) my family crazy.” 

In Lenoir County, agency representatives said substance abuse also affects the community, sometimes in the form of gang violence and other criminal activity.

“People involved in substance abuse generally are not going to be as productive as other citizens are,” said Bill Johnson, director of the Kinston Department of Public Safety. “Some of the tie-in with substance abuse also leads to, or sometimes involves, gang activity.”

He said KDPS collaborates with partners in the city to prevent the abuse. The department hosts a program at Rochelle Middle School to discourage gang activity and highlight the dangers of substance abuse.

“We see it from teenagers on up,” Johnson said. “You have varying types of substances out there. … We see a lot of prescription drug abuse now.”

Shannon Rouse Ruiz lost her 16-year-old daughter to a prescription drug overdose in June of 2011. Kaitlyn suffered a chemically induced coma after taking a combination of Fentanyl and Xanex, which lead to her brain death.

Ruiz said Kaitlyn, who struggled with a prescription addiction for two years, was unaware of those drugs’ effects. Before her daughter’s passing, Ruiz herself wasn’t as educated about prescription drug dangers.

She started P.E.A.C.E. (Prescription Education Abuse Counseling and Empowerment) Prevention and Education less than two months after Kaitlyn’s death, which is attached to the P.E.A.C.E. Boutique, a thrift shop where proceeds are donated to prevention programs.

“Once (parents) realize there is a problem, they don’t know where to turn to get help,” Ruiz said of prescription drug abuse. “I was one of those moms. That’s one of the biggest reasons why our programs surround communication and education.

“We want parents to know the things I did not know.”

She said P.E.A.C.E. programs educate parents on where to look for drugs and what they look like. Ruiz said teens will try their parents’ prescribed medication as a popular trend.

“In Lenoir County, the age children are trying a prescription drug for the first time to get high is 9 years old,” she said.  “We have children in our schools right now in Lenoir County taking pills anywhere from Tylenol to blood pressure medication because they think it looks cool to their other friends.

“That is a sad reality.”

Ruiz suggested people prevent prescription drug abuse by asking their doctor or pharmacy for lower dosages. Additionally, a permanent drug drop box is available at the Kinston Department of Public Safety, which the P.E.A.C.E. foundation had placed in memory of Kaitlyn. The box accumulates nearly five pounds each week in efforts to prevent substance abuse.  

“Prescription drug abuse crosses every socioeconomic background there is,” Ruiz said. “It is not black, white or Hispanic. It is everyone’s problem.”

Jessika Morgan can be reached at 252-559-1078 or at jessika.morgan@kinston.com. Follow her on Twitter @JessikaMorgan.

South Lenoir had only three hits but benefited from seven Richlands walks in a 7-3 win on Thursday at South Lenoir.

Grant Tyndall went 2-for-3 with an RBI and Garrett Holland drove in three runs and had the other Blue Devils hit. Will Graves reached base three times and score three runs for South Lenoir (7-7, 4-4 East Central 2A Conference), which won for the second straight game.

Richlands (10-5-1, 4-3) led 3-2 going into the bottom of the fifth until the Blue Devils broke it open by scoring three runs.

Wyatt Janning earned the win with 1 2/3 scoreless innings of relief. Garrett Holland pitched a scoreless seventh.

Ethan Horne was saddled with the loss for the Wildcats.

BETHEL CHRISTIAN ACADEMY 11, GOLDSBORO FAITH CHRISTIAN 0 5 INN.: At Goldsboro, the Trojans picked up a non-conference win.

Alex Hardison went 2-for-4 with a double and scored three runs and eight other Bethel players recorded a hit. Tyler Antwine earned the win with three scoreless innings and five strikeouts.

The Trojans (7-6) travel to Fayetteville Baptist Academy on Monday.

GIRLS SOCCER

PARROTT ACADEMY 1, ROCKY MOUNT ACADEMY 0: At Parrott, the Patriots earned an EPIC win.

Campbell Huddle scored Parrott’s lone goal in the first half on an assist from Langley Mills, and the Patriots held on from there. Keeper Anna Sale had her second shutout in goal.

The Patriots (7-3-1, 6-1-1) host Raleigh St. David’s School on Tuesday.