Community members recognized by Crime Stoppers

Standing from Left: Henderson Police Lt. Irvin Robinson, Bobby Choplin, Kristen Tharpe, Edward Woodlief, Sandy Tew, Sam Franklin, George Rush Frank Sossamon
Seated from Left: Vance County Sheriff Peter White, Vance County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Jeffery P. Marrow, Henderson Police Chief Keith L. Sidwell, Henderson Police Lt. Sandra F. Lawhorne, Mrs. Morgan Coker, Mrs. Lynne Tuck

The Henderson-Vance Crime Stoppers held their fourteenth Annual Awards and Recognition Banquet yesterday evening in the fellowship hall of the South Henderson Pentecostal Holiness Church in Henderson, North Carolina.

The over three hundred attending the event included North Carolina Rep. Michael Wray, County Commissioners Dan Brummitt and Danny Wright, Henderson Fire Chief Danny Wilkerson, Henderson Mayor Pete O’Geary, Henderson City Council members Mary Emma Evans, Mike Inscoe, Brenda Peace, and Mike Rainey, council member-elect Sara Coffey, City Manager Ray Griffin, and, of course, Vance top cops in the persons of Henderson Police Chief Keith Sidwell and Vance County Sheriff Sheriff Peter White.

During opening remarks, Crime Stoppers President Rev. Frank Sossamon told the audience that the local organization has a number of very effective initiatives. To back up his claim, he noted that the North Carolina Crime Stoppers Association gave the Henderson-Vance local organization three out of five annual awards, the Program Award for its Church Watch program, the Promotional Idea of the Year Award for a series of fire house meetings, and the Board Member of the Year Award to Sossamon himself.

North Carolina Crime Stoppers Coordinator Sandy Tew was the guest speaker for the evening event. She told the audience how Crime Stoppers was formed in the wake of a 1976 shooting of a store clerk in Albuquerque, New Mexico. In an effort to solve a crime that had outraged the public, Detective Greg MacAleese asked a local TV station to re-enact and air a recreation of the crime. After the segment was shown, police received a tip leading to the arrest of the shooting suspects.

MacAleese then began to seek funding from local businesses and contributions to solicit anonymous tips, the model upon which the modern Crime Stoppers is based.

According to Tew, there are over 1,100 law enforcement agencies operating Crime Stoppers programs nationwide, with 93 in North Carolina, the third-highest concentration in the United States.

Widow of Deputy Brandon Coker, Morgan Coker (left) and mother of Deputy Coker Lynne Tuck (center) accept Special Memorial Awards from Vance County Deputy Peter White (right)

In a bittersweet moment, a Special Memorial Award was presented to Lynne Tuck and Morgan Coker, the mother and widow respectively of Vance County Deputy Brandon Coker. The deputy was killed in the line of duty last year in an automobile accident. Sheriff Peter White said to Tuck and Coker that he was grateful that Deputy Coker had chosen [law enforcement], and that he had given his life for the citizens of Vance County. He thanked both women for allowing Deputy Coker to serve.

The Tom Long Memorial Crime Stoppers Law Enforcement Award was presented to Vance County Deputy Jeffery Marrow. Sheriff White said of Marrow that he is “humble, unassuming, and gets the job done”. A Vance County native, Marrow was credited by the sheriff for serving over 200 summons per month, many of which deal with the enforcement of child support actions against “deadbeat dads”.

On the city side, the Sam Pearson Memorial Crime Stoppers Law Enforcement Award was presented to Lt. Sandra Lawhorne of the Henderson Police Department. Henderson Police Chief Keith Sidwell praised Lawhorne’s leadership of the Power Shift, crediting the law enforcement unit with 1,054 arrests, 369 warrants served, 1,624 citations issued, 878 incident reports, 59 accident investigations, and responses to 3,744 calls for service since August 8, 2008. Sidwell said that those numbers indicate that the Power Shift accounts for approximately one-third of Henderson Police Department activity.

Other awards included:

The Community Watch Award was presented to Bobby Choplin of the West Hills/West Creek/158 Bypass area. Choplin has assisting in putting up Community Watch signs in the area, was worked on the yard sign initiative, helped to lower the speed limit on a dense residential stretch of US-158, and has been instrumental in the Adopt-a-Highway program.

The Local Citizens Award was given to Kristen Tharpe, a social worker at Eaton-Johnson Middle School. Tharpe is working on the problem of truancy and is spearheading a committee whose mandate is to reduce that problem. She is also a member of the local Juvenile Crime Prevention Council, teaches a class to at-risk youth called “Uniquely Me” to help address adolescent concerns, is a member of Safe Kids Henderson-Vance, is involved in gang awareness, and is planning on participating in the start of a local Students Against Drunk Driving chapter.

The Public Service Award was presented to local Henderson radio station WIZS 1450 AM for its help in putting out “Crime of the Week” information and assisting with information dissemination in other ways. The award was accepted by George Rush on behalf of the station.

The Corporate Award was presented to Iams. Iams provides all of the dog food for city and county police K-9s.

The Business Award was given to Franklin Brother’s Nursery & Greenhouse, Inc. for providing decorative plants at Crime Stoppers functions.

Edward Woodlief was named the Crime Stoppers Board Member of the Year for his efforts in raising funds and composing and sending out mailings during the past year.

From left: Lt. Irvin Robinson, April Boyd, Jerry Hargrove, Bill Lloyd, Sara Coffey, George Rush, Jason Feingold

Recognitions for Continuous Support were given to:

West Hills Veterinary Center

South Henderson Pentecostal Holiness Church

The Daily Dispatch

Western Sizzlin

Golden Corral Family Steak House

WIZS 1450 AM

Screen Master

Carolina Lanes

98.3 WLUS-FM Lakes Media

Home in Henderson

Progress Energy

Sara Coffey