Update on Aug. 11, 2019: The New York Times today published a telling story that examines the lives of recent mass shooters in the United States. No one is surprised that all are men, but also nearly all expressed anger or hatred toward women in a variety of ways to friends, via internet chat rooms, … Continue reading Remembering April 1, 1993, when a shooting spree rocked Burlington
Past imperfect
An enduring Easter family tradition
Easter was always about my grandfather. Well, that's probably overstating the case. And of course time changes things. Now it's also about my grandmother and my father and, well, many others, too. But when I was a kid growing up in the mountain town that will always be my first home, Easter was about my … Continue reading An enduring Easter family tradition
Remembering the nicest person I’ve ever known
Six years ago this week just about the nicest person I've ever known passed away after a long battle with esophageal cancer. I used to call Tom Woody the Times-News unpaid intern for life because he spent so much time in our newsroom helping his longtime spouse, newspaper administrator and columnist Frances Woody with any … Continue reading Remembering the nicest person I’ve ever known
Newspaper memories: One and done at the 1986 ACC Tournament
March 7, 1986: I kept telling myself not to be nervous on the short drive from Burlington to Greensboro. It wasn’t working. Stupid I know. After all, I was only going to a basketball game -- well, four basketball games really. No big deal. Not at all. I got up early that Friday morning after … Continue reading Newspaper memories: One and done at the 1986 ACC Tournament
The day I officially rescinded my college team fandom — in legal writing and everything
Last week marked the fourth anniversary of what became a life-altering change in my life. I disowned a sports team I had followed as a drooling and rabid fan from age 8 to 54. And I stuck to it. I dropped it like a bad habit -- cold turkey the way I stopped smoking back … Continue reading The day I officially rescinded my college team fandom — in legal writing and everything
What Billy Graham told Elon students back in 1951
When the Rev. Billy Graham visited Elon on the morning of Nov. 7, 1951 he was in the midst of a rise in national prominence that would one day lead to the label "America's Pastor." I saw that designation quite a few times on Wednesday when the famous evangelist and arguably the most notable North … Continue reading What Billy Graham told Elon students back in 1951
1956: The year Elvis visited Burlington and left high school gyms way behind
One of my favorite features we published during my second tour of duty with the Burlington Times-News was this one by Alamance County historian Walter Boyd. It's about the 18 hours music icon Elvis Presley spent in Burlington in February of 1956, including a performance at Williams High School. That story published in 2015, in … Continue reading 1956: The year Elvis visited Burlington and left high school gyms way behind
Remembering two incredible women
Over the past few days I ran across newspaper items I wrote in 2009 about the deaths of two significant woman but only available on pdfs. One I never met but who was a legend in her field -- basketball coach and advocate for cancer research. The other was someone very close to me who … Continue reading Remembering two incredible women
Throwback Thursday: Going medieval
This is a column I wrote more than 20 years ago when I used to let the chips fall in every direction. It about something a county elected official said in relation to polluted waters caused by hog farm mishaps or municipal waste. One incident in Onslow County, North Carolina led to a hog . … Continue reading Throwback Thursday: Going medieval
Is Jim Thome the first from a Burlington minor league team to make the Hall of Fame?
Jim Thome was elected to the baseball Hall of Fame on the first ballot. The announcement arrived Wednesday night from New York. There wasn't much doubt the affable Thome, with 612 career home runs and a career devoid of steroid accusations, would be elected along with fellow first-timer Chipper Jones this year. It's an outstanding … Continue reading Is Jim Thome the first from a Burlington minor league team to make the Hall of Fame?
Madison's Avenue 