‘Still Getting in Some Licks’
Retired Major Helped Develop ‘Smart Bomb’ |
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Retired Major Buddy Irwin has a storied career ranging from test pilot to helping develop the precision-guided bombs used in the war in Iraq.
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BY KATE B DICKSON
EDITOR
Even though the government says Buddy Irwin is too old to re-enlist, the retired Major knows he’s "still getting in some licks" every time a precision-guided "smart" bomb drops in Iraq.
What most would never imagine is that the special bombs are the end product of what started out as a gab session with Irwin and several others in an officer’s club at Eglin AFB, Florida.
Irwin, 65, is following the war closely from his and wife Lynda’s home off Sardis Lake Road.
He has a storied career including time as a test pilot, flying special secret missions and aeronautical engineer duties.
Irwin’s active and reserve service spanned 41 years starting in 1953 when he joined the Army as a "slick-sleeved private," followed by an active Marine tour and ending at retirement in 1994 from the U.S. Marine Corp Reserves.
And you can bet there was a lot of action and interesting work in between for the reserves, and in other jobs including those with Vought Corporation, General Dynamics and Lockheed.
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Classic Soul Sound Set
for SpringFest with Checkmates |
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BY JASON C MATTOX
SENIOR STAFF WRITER
The Checkmates will bring the sounds of classic soul music to Batesville’s SpringFest.
Singer Herbert Wiley can belt out an Otis Redding stomper, croon a Sam Cooke hit, or just let his band stretch out on a Booker T. groove. The Checkmates have become one of Oxford’s favorite party bands with a mix of covers and their own songs like the James Brown-inspired "Dog Tired" and the moving ballad "Eyes of the World."
Herbert was born in Oxford. His father was a successful African-American businessman who ran a shoe shop on Oxford’s courthouse square. Herbert would eventually take over the family business, but not before a detour into the music business.
The Checkmates formed in 1960 with Samuel Torrence on trumpet, Don Davidson on tenor saxophone, Sam Langhorn on guitar, and Jimmy T. Johnson on organ. Herbert led the band on shows in Memphis bars like Club Paradise and at North Mississippi juke-joints like the Dugout in New Albany, Big Willie’s Blue Room in Batesville, and the Backwater Inn outside Oxford.
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Pregnancy Counseling Center
Uses ‘God as the Foundation’ |
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BY JASON C MATTOX
SENIOR STAFF WRITER
Panola County women who are or believe they may be pregnant now have somewhere to turn for counseling.
Sav-A-Life of Batesville opened its doors to women in crisis in November 2002.
"We will serve anyone who comes through the door," Center Director Teresa Towles said.
"Sav-A-Life is a non-profit, non-denominational Christian ministry established for the purpose of meeting the spiritual and practical physical needs of all women facing an unplanned pregnancy by offering constructive alternatives to abortion," the organization’s mission statement says.
"We seek to reach others by proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ and to nurture through confidential counseling that recognizes the sanctity of human life as revealed in the Word of God," Towles said. "Our desire is to educate the public on the problems related to abortion in an optimistic manner that affirms the witness of the ministry and to make abortion unnecessary and undesirable in our region."
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Citing ‘Economic Times,’
Cable One Freezes Rates |
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| Subscribers to Cable One in Batesville won’t see a rate increase this year, according to a letter included in packets given to members of the Mayor and Board of Aldermen at their last meeting.
Pete Peden, general manager, wrote the company has decided to freeze the monthly rates it charges for both analog and digital services.
"We are taking into account the difficult economic times our customers are experiencing as well as the new challenges that America is facing," he said. "We’ll hold to this even though our programming rates continue to go up every year."
He said sports programming rates increase the fastest with some annual price increases rising from 15-to-32 percent.
"However, we believe that not raising our rates is the right thing to do given the current conditions," Peden said.
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