Hit and Left on the Side of the Road

According to the 36-year-old man, someone hit him in the head and left him on the side of the road.  Wilkes Sheriff's Deputies were called to investigate an assault with a deadly weapon.  The victim said that he was walking along Welcome Home Church Road when he heard someone say, "Hey, Man."  Then as he was turning around to see who spoke to him, he was hit in the head.  He woke up bleeding on the side of the road.  The man went to a nearby house for help.  He was taken to WRMC and treated for his injuries.  The man is not sure who hit him or what they used to hit him; however, there is a possible suspect and charges are pending.

Stolen Tools in a Couple of Locations

Several tools were stolen in a couple of Wilkes break-ins and thefts.  First, a Thurmond property owner reported that someone forcibly entered their residence and took several things including two electric saws, chains and hooks, a tow bar, 30 fence posts, a boom pole, and an anvil.  Then in Roaring River, someone entered a shed and took two shovels, a hoe, and several hand garden tools.  There is no word on suspects with either report and the investigations are continuing.   

Economic Impact of the Greenway Locally

The 11th Annual Turtle River Regatta was held Saturday in North Wilkesboro.  Proceeds go to help the Yadkin River Greenway.   The Yadkin River Greenway Council's mission is to enhance the quality of life by ensuring the creation of a riverside greenway that connects the major institutions and neighborhoods of our community.  RG Absher explains the Greenway has a positive economic impact, too.  AIR   The next expansion of the Greenway is to connect Smoot Park and Cub Creek Park.  For more information on the Yadkin River Greenway call 336-651-8967.  

Broadway Water Association Meeting and Voting

The Broadway Water Association will have their annual meeting tonight at 7pm at the Association Office.  Two directors will be elected at tonight's meeting, and members will have a chance to vote on installing new radio meters.  Voting will begin and 6:30 and continue until 7:30.  All Broadway Water Association members are urged to attend tonight's meeting.

Wilkes Students in National Competition

The high school experience for some Wilkes students went beyond the classroom.  Four young ladies from West Wilkes High School competed recently at the National Personal Finance Challenge Championship in St. Louis, Missouri. The students are Ashley Bryan, Kristan Dotson, Adrianna Rowland and Megan Wyatt. They won the title North Carolina State Personal Finance Challenge Champions back in April. Twenty states were represented in the national competition with the winning honors going to Tennessee. The National Finance Challenge is an opportunity for students to demonstrate their knowledge of personal finance by competing with other students across the nation in a three-round competition. The journey for the 4 ladies from West High began in George Visnic’s Civics and Economics class when two teams decided to enter the Personal Finance Challenge.  The two teams from West High were in the top 8 high school teams who earned the right to advance to the state championship in April. The team of Martin Absher, Amber Blackburn, Justin Eggers and Dustin Gragg finished 5th.  Mr. Visnic and the students would like to thank sponsors Wells Fargo Bank, the North Carolina Council for Economic Education, and the West Wilkes High School family for this opportunity.

Dog-Napping

 A Thurmond woman has reported an early morning dog-napping.  The woman let her black and brown Yorkie outside about 2am.  A white minivan was in the neighbor's driveway.  Someone inside the van grabbed the little dog, and they left the area.  There are suspects in this case and charges are pending further investigation.

IRS Upcoming Furloughed Days

The Internal Revenue Service has announced additional details about the closures planned for May 24, June 14, July 5, July 22 and Aug. 30, 2013.  Due to the current budget situation, including the sequester, all IRS operations will be closed on those days. This means that all IRS offices, including all toll-free hotlines, the Taxpayer Advocate Service and the agency’s nearly 400 taxpayer assistance centers nationwide, will be closed on those days. IRS employees will be furloughed without pay. No tax returns will be processed and no compliance-related activities will take place.  The IRS noted that taxpayers should continue to file their returns and pay any taxes due as usual.  Because none of the furlough days are considered federal holidays, the shutdown will have no impact on any tax-filing deadlines. The IRS will be unable to accept or acknowledge receipt of electronically-filed returns on any day the agency is shut down.  Similarly, tax-payment deadlines are also unaffected. Further details on the impact of the shutdown on IRS procedures will be available on IRS.gov.  At a later date, the IRS may possibly announce one or two additional furlough days if necessary.

Sen Kay Hagan and the Senate Farm Bill

U.S. Senator Kay Hagan announced that the 2013 Senate Farm Bill includes programs she requested for socially disadvantaged and veteran farmers and North Carolina’s cotton and textile industries, as well as initiatives to make information about federal programs more accessible to farmers and livestock producers. Hagan wrote a letter to Senate Agriculture Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow and Ranking Member Thad Cochran to request that these programs be included in the 2013 Farm Bill.  “Agriculture is North Carolina’s biggest industry, and passing the Farm Bill is absolutely critical to ensuring our farmers have the certainty they need to operate their farms,” said Hagan. At Hagan’s request, the following additional provisions were included in the bill to support North Carolina farmers:  Additional funding for a key program that provides technical assistance to socially disadvantaged farmers in successfully acquiring, owning, operating and retaining farms; Funding for the Economic Adjustment Assistance Program (EAAP), which is vital to North Carolina’s textile and cotton producing sectors; and A plain language amendment that would make information about federal crop insurance policies more readable and accessible to farmers. Last month, she introduced a bill to remove a redundant Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulation on pesticides that places an unnecessary burden on farmers.

Another ID Theft Report Locally

As we continue to report, ID Theft or Identity Theft is an ever-increasing problem across the country and across Wilkes.  The Wilkes Sheriff's Office has been contacted several times by Wilkes residents since the beginning of the year concerning ID theft and financial fraud.  In the latest report, a Wilkesboro man told Sheriff's Investigators that he tried to get a loan from the Credit Association in Elkin.  The company ran a credit report and found that the man had two credit cards in his name.  The Wilkesboro man said he had not applied for either of those cards and does not know who might have stolen his personal information.  The Sheriff's Office is currently trying to obtain some paperwork on the credit card applications in hopes of determining a suspect.  Charges are pending further investigation.  According to the Federal Trade Commission: Identity theft happens when someone steals your personal information and uses it without your permission. It’s a serious crime that can wreak havoc with your finances, credit history, and reputation — and can take time, money, and patience to resolve. If identity thieves have your personal information, they can drain your bank account, run up charges on your credit cards, open new utility accounts, or get medical treatment on your health insurance.  For more information on protecting yourself from ID Theft or information on what to do if you become a victim of ID theft, visit the consumer division of the Federal Trade Commission at www.consumer.ftc.gov

Load the Buggy, Load the Car, and Run

Police do have the names of suspects in the theft and charges are pending.  In a report filed with the Wilkesboro Police this week, two white females are being sought for shoplifting at Big Lots.  Store Management told Police that the two women came inside the store, filled a buggy with items, and then left out the front door.  The two were loading the stolen merchandise into a Nissan Juke with store staff tried to detain them in the parking lot.  The women then left the scene with part of the stolen property in their car and the rest left in the buggy.  Store employees got a tag number of the suspect's car.  Police ran the tag and obtained a picture of a suspects that store staff identified as one of the two female shoplifters.  Again charges are pending.