8/2/2019 Aiken Standard - March 19 - Front Page

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YOURLOCAL SOURCESINCE 1867

THURSDAY, MARCH 29, 2012 VOL. 146, NO. 89 75

Business ................... 8ACalendar ....................5CClassifieds .................5BCrossword ................ 4CComics.......................3C

Horoscopes .............. 4C

Living On The Go ......1CMovie Listings...........5COpinions ................. 13ASports ........................1BTV Listings ................2C

Weather .....................6C

Eugene Roy Anderson, AikenFabian Corley, AikenFulmond Sonney Boy Jackson, WagenerRoland Eugene Franks, Gloverville

SEE DEATHS AND FUNERALS, 6A

INSIDE

AREA DEATHS

IN THE NEWS

Aiken StandardAiken Standard

85 58SEE WEATHER, 6C

TODAYS FORECAST

Group selling T-shirts to raisemoney to send Honor Guard to D.C. Beside the Badge is selling T-shirts to raisemoney to send the ADPS Honor Guard toWashington, D.C., for National Police Week.

SEE LOCAL NEWS, 4A

Mellow Mushroom still wants to come toAiken, though the area franchise owner doesnot have any currentleads on possible loca-tions.

Shawn Ledford, whoowns both the Evans andAugusta Mellow Mush-rooms, said Wednesdayit has always been part ofhis business plan to opena restaurant in Aiken.

Weve always wantedthree, one being inAiken, he said.

At one time, Ledfordconfirmed last year, hewas negotiating a deal

for a space downtown. But, it eventually fellthrough.

He said news of eejays moving into the

former Up Your Alley space is bittersweet; hewishes eejays success, but admitted it wouldhave been a prime spot for a Mellow Mush-room.

BY HALEY HUGHEShhughes@aikenstandard.com

Mellow

Mushroomstill plansfor locationin Aiken

Teacher reinstated after book controversy

John Budway

I dont vacation asmuch. Our company(Southern EnergyManagement) drives

Priuses, which is nice.Technology helps off-set the prices with thehybrids.

High (gas) prices theyre affecting mebad. Im having to cutback on driving.

Roosevelt CrawfordI just pay the price.Theres not much I cando about it. We justdont eat out or vaca-tion as much.

Michael HendersonIm by myself. I havekids here and there,and I have to drive alot. Pay is not going upwith the price of gas.

Norma Hurst

Were going to Flori-da which is a very longdrive, so it will prob-ably cut down whatwe can do while in

Florida.

Audrey Kingrey

Its rough. You haveto pay the light billand everything else.By the time youre

done with all of that,you dont have enoughto buy groceries.

Geneva McConnell

The pain at the pump will most likely worsenin the coming months.

Gas prices are steadily rising and could beas high as $4 a gallon by the beginning of thesummer, according to AAA Carolinas. In South

Carolina, thecurrent gasprice aver-age is $3.69for regular.A week ago,the averagewas $3.62and a monthago, theaverage was

10 cents lower, according to AAA CarolinasPublic Relations Manager Cathy Hein.

Historically, South Carolina gas prices experi-ence a 40 to 50 cent increase ahead of the sum-mer travel season, Hein said, which would pushthe prices above $4.

One of the reasons the gas prices increasedearlier this year was due to oil refineries retool-ing their facilities to ensure a cleaner blend ofgasoline, said Hein.

These facilities reduce capacity, which drivesup the prices. This usually occurs around theend of winter and lasts until the beginningof April, so why havent the prices started todecline?

There are various factors that are causingthe increase, according to the AAA Carolinaswebsite. Signs of economic improvement in theUnited States are actually causing the price offuel to go up. As the European Union continuesto handle its debt crisis and the euro strength-ens or the dollar weakens, gas prices increasebecause barrels of crude oil are sold in dollars,

according to AAA.Lastly, and most prevalent in determining thecurrent oil futures, is the tension with Iran whichis threatening to interfere with sea shipments ofcrude oil in the Persian Gulf, Hein added.

BY AMY BANTON

abanton@aikenstandard.com

Aiken feels effect of rising gas prices

SEE GAS, 10A

Several members of the USC AikenAlumni Council were wrapping gift basketsfor a silent auction that will be held duringthe Pacers & Polo event Saturday, with new

Alumni Relations Director Ashley Howelljoining them.Its been phenomenal, Howell said of

her new jobs, Our alumni members arevery active.

The Pacers & Polo event at PowderhouseField the final leg of the Triple Crown will raise funds for athletic scholarships.

The Aiken Triple Crown kicked off withthe Trials on March 17. The Steeplechase,the second leg of the Triple Crown, was heldon March 24.

Donald Miles serves as the current councilpresident, while his wife Delia, also a USCAgraduate, is coordinating a new theme-basedbasket project for the second year.

I always wanted to help out with theAlumni Council, Donald Miles said. Thisopportunity gives us the chance to promotethe university and give back through schol-arships.

In addition to athletic scholarships, theAlumni Council is also raising funds forgeneral undergraduate scholarships.

The gates will open for Pacers & Polo at10:30 a.m., and the Alumni Council mem-bers will be ready for visitors to bid on thethemed baskets. The council members later

will end the bids. People who have bid canstop by the booth to see if theyve won abasket.

We came up with the theme idea lastyear, said Delia Miles.

BY ROB NOVITrnovit@aikenstandard.com

USCA alumni prepare for Pacers & Polo

STAFF PHOTO BY ROB NOVIT

GETTING READY: USC Aiken Alumni Council members Delia Miles, left, and Jessica Cawleyprepare gift baskets for a silent auction coming Saturday at the Pacers and Polo event.

SEE MUSHROOM, 10A

Keep up with thelatest gas pricesonline at www.aikenstandard.com/localgasprices.

A Schofield Middle Schoolteacher was reinstated Mon-day after being placed onpaid administrative leave forabout three weeks. The leavewas related to supplemental

book excerpts he read to hisstudents during a class ses-sion.

Earlier this month, a parenthad filed a police report con-tending one or more bookswere inappropriate or possi-bly pornographic. That reportcame on a Monday after the

parent had complained to theschool the previous Fridayafternoon.

After conducting its owninvestigation, the AikenDepartment of Public Safetydid not file any criminalcharges.

Officials said the teacher

did nothing criminal and con-sidered the case closed. Theyoffered no further details.

No further details wereimmediately available fromdistrict administrators aboutthe decision to return theteacher to class.

At the time of the police

report, school officials wereconcerned if a policy aboutpresenting supplementalmaterials had been followedappropriately and whether thematerial was age-appropriate.

One of the books, EndersGame, a science fictionnovel by Orson Scott Card is

intended for younger readers.The website commonsense-media.org cautioned parentsabout some aspects of thebook, but also called the con-tent appropriate for ages 12and older.

BY ROB NOVITrnovit@aikenstandard.com

SEE PACERS, 10A

SEE TEACHER, 10A

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