Rutherford Weekly

BRING YOUR VEHICLE BY FOR US TO LOOK AT! NO APPRAISAL FEE CHARGED! TOP DOLLAR PAID! PAID! YOUR VEHICLE VEHICLE We Want to Buy We Want to Buy www.mooresautos.com 345 South Broadway, Forest City 828-245-8067 M O O RE 'S AUTO S ALES ©communityfi rstmedia ISSUE NO. 20 • May 20, ISSUE NO. 20 • May 20, 2021 • 2021 • RutherfordWeekly.com • 828-248-1408 RutherfordWeekly.com • 828-248-1408 Our 29 th Year • Over 25,000 Weekly Readers N.C. TRACTOR & FARM SUPPLY 299 Railroad Ave., Rutherfordton • 828-288-0395 Mobile: 828-429-5008 • mf1dpshehan@gmail.com SALES • SERVICE • PARTS START THE LAWN & GARDEN SEASON WITH A NEW TRACTOR OR MOWER WITH A NEW TRACTOR OR MOWER PROUDLY SERVING RUTHERFORD, CLEVELAND, GASTON, LINCOLN, POLK COUNTIES AS THE AREAS HOMETOWN MASSEY FERGUSON DEALER. Great Selection Great Selection IT'S IT'S FREE! FREE! When Mark McCurry was in high school, his friends knew him as good for a laugh. The retired Forest City Fire Chief says retirement has turned him into a man maid. "I'm gonna sell my truck and get a van. I can put a tag on the front that reads, 'Man Van.' My wife says she's not gonna retire because she knows what's gonna happen." McCurry says his man maid duties include laundry, house cleaning, and child care. More on that later. During an afternoon of storytelling, he got the biggest laugh when he told about Butch England locking his business to run fi ght a fi re. "About two hours later, the police showed up at the fi re to say some guy had been locked inside Butch's business for the past two hours," Mark said to peels of laughter. When asked if he ever got a cat out of a tree, he said, "Oh, I've got lots of cat stories. One guy down on Wilkie Street called to say his cat was up a tree. I told him to leave out food and the cat would come down. He said the cat was on a chain. It was on a leash. I'd never seen a cat on a leash. I put on my coat and was ready to go up after the cat, but he said, 'No, that cat knows me. Let me go up after it.' I let him go, but that cat tore him up. His arms and all over were scratched. "Another time we got a cat out of a tree and as soon as it hit the ground, it ran across the yard and up another tree," McCurry said. But the deadly serious side of fi re service came out, too. Because of different products used in construction, fi res are much more dangerous now. "When I fi rst started we were dealing with gray smoke, but today the smoke is black and black smoke means much more deadly chemicals and materials are burning. To walk into a burning building today is like walking into a propane tank," he said. And today's fi refi ghters deal with all kinds of emergencies and rescues. "Who would have ever believed we would do a swift water rescue because of fl ooding. We've done four of them," McCurry said. McCurry succeeded Chief Bob Harrill who made his name in Forest City by running a shoe store. "He'd always greet you by saying, 'You look like about an eleven and a half.' He never looked at your face. He looked at your feet," McCurry remembered with more laughter. Like most fi refi ghters of his day, he began as a volunteer. "They kept saying, 'We're gonna get a new building,' but I never dreamed I would be the one to build it." The modern fi re house on Oak Street was built during McCurry's tenure as chief and often with his leadership. One of the most serious fi res McCurry and his crew fought was the PushPa fi re in downtown Forest City. He jokingly calls it the fi rst terrorist attack in the U.S. PushPa was owned by an Indian businessman who had been supporting his son overseas. "He cut the boy off and he fl ew in here, checked into a motel in Kings Mountain, went to the Army/Navy store and bought big gas cans, came to Forest City and poured gas on one wall, and then the other wall and set the whole thing, including himself, on fi re. One woman told us later, she saw him jump into his car on fi re. A highway patrolman stopped him on 85 for speeding and they took him by helicopter to a burn center. He lived and wasn't charged with anything, just deported," McCurry said. McCurry said there were several serious fi res the fi rst month he was on the job. "It was almost like somebody was trying to run me off," he said. Among the worst of those fi res was "Roger Horn's paint store behind Florence Mill. There were 55-gallon drums of paint thinner in there and they would explode and fl y into the air like bombs going off. We've had some very serious fi res." One of the biggest changes he sees is the higher and higher demands on volunteer departments with fewer volunteers coming along. He fears, "The day is gonna come when rural departments are staffed by paid personnel. The training today is so much more extensive and the dangers are so much worse." About those child care duties, McCurry says there is one house between his and wife Beverly's house and his daughter Emily Sain's house with a path running in the back. Emily works as town clerk for Forest City, a job she hankered for after having interned there during high school and college. She and husband, John Sain, produced the McCurries' three grandchildren: Rylan, 7, Weston, 4, and Emerson Belle who is 16 months. The baby's Belle came from two ancestors, one Beth and one Nell. Good creativity. Those grandchildren are now a huge part of McCurry's life. McCurry served for 10 years as a volunteer beginning in the old fi re house where city hall is now. The library was upstairs. While volunteering, he managed the local Lowe's grocery store. FIRED BY LAUGHS by Pat Jobe Reputation For Good Laughs Proves True Of McCurry STRIVING TO HELP ALL BUSINESSES SUCCEED! STRIVING TO HELP ALL BUSINESSES SUCCEED! The Mercy Award is the highest honor a LifePoint employee can receive. It is named in memory of Scott Mercy, LifePoint Hospital's Founding chairman and CEO. Mercy believed that a group of people working together toward a common goal or common vision can accomplish great things. The award commends individuals who consistently go beyond the call of duty in serving patients and community. It recognizes one employee at each hospital who best exemplifi es the spirit and values upon which the company was founded. This year's Mercy Award winner is Anagine Burns. Burns began her career with Rutherford Regional in 1999 when she started out as a housekeeper. While working, she went back to school at Isothermal Community College and received her CNA certifi cation. After receiving her CNA certifi cation, Anagine became a Mental Health Tech/CNA on the Behavioral Health Unit. Anagine has a positive attitude with her co-workers and a compassion for her patients. You will always see Anagine smiling when you pass her in the hall. In the words of her coworkers, "Anagine is always willing to go above and beyond for our patients and our hospital". Recently, Anagine battled cancer and has had ongoing treatments, despite that, she still comes to work with a smile on her face and a passion for providing high quality care to the patients. Even through signifi cant personal medical problems she has shown the motivation, courage, dedication, and empathy that is needed. In her spare time, Anagine is a devoted mother and grandmother. She can often be found working in her garden or cooking up delicious meals for her family. And of course, when she can, she likes to travel to the Philippines. Anagine is truly valued for everything that she does for patients, the hospital, and her community. TOP LIFEPOINT AWARD GOES TO ANAGINE BURNS Article Provided By: Jean Gordon. Photos Contributed. L. Mark McCurry, who served as a Forest City's fi refi ghter from 1985 until 2016, retiring as chief. The retired chief's grandson, Weston, looks like he is ready to rush into service and put out a fi re. Anagine Burns is this year's Mercy Award recipient. Anagine Burns with some of her family members at the award presentation ceremony.

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