Emotions flowed in a special manner on Senior Night at Providence Grove.
Thursday night’s ceremony between the girls’ and boys’ basketball games against Wheatmore included recognition of senior basketball players and cheerleaders.
Cheerleading and boys’ basketball seniors were honored before the girls’ basketball seniors. The final of those recognitions drew a tearful standing ovation.
That’s when the parents of the late Lily Butler came onto the court. Butler, who had been a member of the girls’ program, died in July at age 17. She also had been on the cross country team.
Her parents, Chip and Carol Butler, received numerous hugs as the ceremony concluded. It was an emotional moment for seniors Maddie King, Reanna Saunders and Edi Austin as well.
Baseball
Saturday at Ramseur, the Grady Lawson Memorial Baseball Classic is scheduled with scrimmages involving several teams at Eastern Randolph.
The matchups at Grady Lawson Field are slated to involve Eastern Davidson vs. Providence Grove at 11:30 a.m., Lee County vs. Southwestern Randolph at 2 p.m. and Jordan-Matthews vs. Eastern Randolph at 4:30 p.m.
Proceeds will go to the Grady Lawson Memorial Scholarship Fund.
ASHEBORO — Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Shop Local Saturday and Cyber Monday are passed. It’s parade season in Randolph County. You can attend a Christmas parade in the county four straight days starting Thursday. One the fifth day, you can celebrate with The Embers in Randleman.
Here’s a look at the upcoming parades in Randleman, Asheboro, Liberty, Ramseur and Archdale plus a beach-music inspired Christmas concert from the Randolph Guide.
December 2
Randleman Christmas Parade | 7pm
The town’s annual Christmas parade begins at Randleman Elementary School.
December 3
Asheboro Christmas Parade | 7pm
This year’s Christmas parade will involve cars and strollers passing by stationary floats and parade participants. The route will be a circuit along W. Academy Street, Church Street, Sunset Avenue, and Bicentennial Park.
December 4
Liberty Christmas on Main Street | 11am-7pm
The town of Liberty will welcome the Christmas season with their third annual street festival, parade and tree lighting events.
Ramseur Christmas Parade | 5pm
The parade will begin at Leonard Park and proceed to downtown Ramseur.
December 5
Archdale Christmas Parade | 3pm
The Town of Archdale will hold it’s 50th Christmas Parade on Sunday.
December 6
Christmas with The Embers | 6:30pm
North Carolina legends perform Christmas classics at Randleman Elementary School. Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 at the door for Adults and $8 for kids. Call 336-495-1100 or purchase tickets at many local businesses in Randleman.
RAMSEUR — Hannah Harper’s vision for a thriving boutique began to come together even during the challenging days of the pandemic.
When she realized that expansion was feasible, she wanted that growth to happen in a place where she’s comfortable.
So downtown Ramseur became the destination for Stella Laine Boutique.
“We just grew so fast and we were looking for something much bigger,” Harper said. “I was trying to bring something like this here.”
A grand opening for the business is scheduled for 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday at the Weatherly Square store.
Harper, 24, began the business online in 2020. Last October, she opened a small store in Trinity.
“It was great just starting out,” she said. “It was kind of a test to see if it’s going to work. We outgrew that space. We wanted something with more foot traffic.”
Now, she has more than four times the amount of space.
For Ramseur, it’s an ideal addition to the business community.
“We have nothing like that in Ramseur,” said JC Parrish, a town commissioner and board member for the Ramseur/Eastern Randolph Area Chamber of Commerce. “It will be something we don’t have here. She has a big following (on social media) and people have really responded well.”
Stella Laine Boutique offers a varsities of items from shirts, purses, candles and other items. (PJ WARD-BROWN/NORTH STATE JOURNAL)
Parrish said recent additions to the downtown include Magnolias on Main 521, which specializes in antiques; Carolina Eclectic, which has antiques, souvenirs and gifts; and Two Brothers Mini Mart, a convenience store.
These businesses follow Vee’s Place Old-Fashioned Bakery.
“It started with the bakery,” Parrish said.
Ramseur mayor Vicki Caudle, owner of Blue Horseshoe Antiques and Collectibles, said attracting more people to shop in the community is vital.
“We do have a lot of energy flowing,” Caudle said. “Our Chamber has been fighting for years and years for people to realize Ramseur has potential. It has been a process.”
There have been other happenings on the local business scene. There’s new ownership of Main St. Hair Company, a downtown business. Elsewhere, Just Save Foods has been purchased by IGA, with that transition expected to take place next month.
Stella Laine Boutique is mostly focused on serving women ages 18-70. Harper said she’s interested in adding men’s hats and T-shirts as a trial.
Harper, a Faith Christian graduate, went to Randolph Community College for an associate’s degree in interior design. While a student, she worked at a small boutique in Asheboro and that gave her a taste of that environment.
She started out making handmade bracelets. Now, the offerings are much more large scale.
“It’s what I’ve always wanted to do,” Harper said.
Harper said she’s intrigued by the downtown set-up and the possibilities that exist.
“There’s nothing down here like this,” she said. “There’s not a lot of options down here.”
Caudle said she senses that there’s good cooperation among Ramseur businesses. She said the wider array of types of business can only help.
So she likes the idea of Stella Laine Boutique filling a certain niche.
“It’s another opportunity to encourage more people to come to Ramseur for more than 10 minutes,” Caudle said.
With more than 2,000 points, Brunson reached new heights
RAMSEUR — By the time Trevor Brunson reached the high school grades at Faith Christian, he was well-known on and off the basketball court.
His name figures to last in the athletic department’s record books for quite some time.
Trevor Brunson has been a standout player for Faith Christian throughout his school years. (Photo courtesy of Brunson family)
Brunson finished with 2,045 career points, averaging about 23 points per game in the process in a four-year varsity career.
This was in the works for quite some time since he moved up to the junior varsity while still in eighth grade.
“I got a lot of experience playing against older guys,” Brunson said. “It just kind of took off from there. Coach (Todd Daniel) trusted me with the ball and said, ‘Just go score.’ ”
Brunson followed instructions well.
He’s Faith Christian’s first player to reach 2,000 points in the 53 years of the school, which now has enrollment of about 330 students.
Brunson has been part of the school since preschool. By the time he became part of the 16-member graduating class in the spring, he was one of four students to be there from start to finish.
Even as some of his basketball credentials grew, he said it was best to continue his school at Faith Christian.
“It’s a different feel,” he said. “I call the whole place my family.”
He stood at about 6-foot-2 as a sophomore. When he played his last game, he was 6-6 – and yet he remained at the guard position, creating some interesting matchups.
“To tower over people is kind of weird,” he said. “At the beginning of my career, I focused a lot on perimeter shots and jump shots. When I first moved to varsity, I was pulled up to be a point guard so I just stuck with it.”
Brunson’s credentials include a two-time all-state selection in the North Carolina Christian School Association.
“He had done well against everybody,” Daniel said. “He played up in ninth grade.”
The 2,000th point came in the second round of this year’s state playoffs against Hilltop Christian. The sequence began with Brunson making a steal.
“And he was gone,” Daniel said.
Brunson drove for a dunk – and was fouled in the process.
“That was super cool,” he said.
The Eagles reached the state semifinals, falling to Berean Baptist Academy of Fayetteville. They finished with a 19-7 record.
Brunson’s impact was widespread.
“Just a phenomenal team leader. A very unselfish player,” Daniel said. “He’s very adept at driving and finishing at the basket.”
Brunson was involved in travel ball teams in fourth and fifth grade. He said he appreciated the staff at Faith Christian encouraging him as he came through the system and “they pushed me extra hard because they saw something.”
Brunson, who did all his prep scoring before turning 18 years old in April, is headed to Bob Jones University in Greenville, S.C. His connection there began more than two years ago when he went to a summer camp on campus.
The Bruins are making the transition from the National Christian College Athletic Association to NCAA Division III. Brunson plans to major in sport management.
He said he hopes his influence can follow a similar path to his time at Faith Christian.
“I had those thoughts, transferring out to somewhere bigger. I knew God wanted me there and He could use me in many ways,” he said. “I had a super career and I know I couldn’t do it without God and my coaches and teammates. They trusted me.”
