Friday, January 23, 2009

Former N.C. Gov. Scott & oldest living MLBer Werber pass away

Rob Christensen has penned a nice piece about the passing of former Gov. Bob Scott, who died today at age 79.

"Scott served as the state's chief executive from 1969 to 1973, a time of social unrest arising from racial divisions and the Vietnam War. Scott was instrumental in unifying the state's university system and helped push through the legislature the first tax on tobacco -- then a political sacred cow. ...

" 'North Carolina has lost one of our greatest governors today, and many of us have lost a friend,' Gov. Beverly Perdue said in a statement.

"Scott, she said, 'always believed that North Carolina could be a better place, with wider doors of opportunity for all our people, and he worked to make it so.' She ordered state flags to be flown at half-staff until sunset Tuesday. ..."

Across the Piedmont, in Charlotte, Bill Werber, the oldest living Major League Baseball player, died at age 100.

Werber was also the first basketball All-American at Duke.

"Werber had lived in Charlotte since 1998 at the Carriage Club retirement community to be near daughter Pat Bryant, who closely supervised his day-to-day care.

"Even into his late 90s, Werber would stay up past his normal 9 p.m. bedtime to watch Duke basketball games on TV.

"He often wore a Duke golf shirt and usually kept a Duke blanket wrapped around his legs."

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