Hot rods, cool memories: Norwayne alumni host car show
By Phyllis Moore
Published in News on August 27, 2018 5:50 AM
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From left, Cynthia Yelverton, Gail Elliott, Gladys Jones, Barbara Ruffin and Edna Artis look at the group picture on the class of '68 shirt being sold at the Norwayne Alumni Auto Showcase Saturday. Yelverton, Jones and Artis are all pictured on the shirt. Elliot was a graduate in '72 and Ruffin '69.
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Left: Khylen Sutton, 5, Jace Harris, 7, and Khalil Sutton, 6, play corn hole together during the Norwayne Alumni Auto Showcase Saturday in Fremont.
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Judges score the cars lined up on East Branch Street in Fremont on Saturday for the third annual Norwayne Alumni Auto Showcase.
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Isaac Ryals, a member of Norwayne Alumni and Friends Inc., puts the finishing touches on his car, a 1970 Olds Cutlass 442, on Saturday during the third annual Vehicle Showcase in downtown Fremont. The event, which also included food, music and a school supply drive, was a fundraiser and precursor to the organization's homecoming next weekend.
FREMONT -- Isaac Ryals stood by a barricade at Norwayne Alumni Way on Saturday morning, directing traffic and those with a car in the third annual vehicle showcase.
The pre-homecoming event also included food vendors, DJ Henry Wynn and added a back-to-school drive to collect donations of bookbags and supplies for students.
More so, though, it was a chance to support Norwayne Alumni and Friends Inc.
Ryals, Class of 1977, has been a longtime member.
He also entered one of his cars in the show -- a 1970 Olds Cutlass 442.
"The reason I'm here is because it's something that we can all give back to the community and help the kids coming up," he said. "Most of us have grown up, moved away and come back."
The car show featured new and older vehicles, as well as sports cars and classic cars.
Alfonza Edwards of Goldsboro brought his 2008 Corvette to the show.
And he's not even a graduate of Norwayne or a member of the group.
"I just came to support them," he said.
He has four other vehicles, he said, including a 1991 Grand Prix GTP, limited edition Pontiac.
"I started to drive that but I decided to drive this one," he said.
The candy apple red Corvette typically garners a lot of attention, and questions, he said.
"They usually ask, 'What's the horsepower?' Some even ask what I paid for it and a lot ask, 'When are you going to get rid of it?'" he said. "I say, 'The day after I die.'"
Samuel Forte of Goldsboro also entered a vehicle.
He said he usually drives his 2000 Ford Ranger truck but this year opted for his 2015 Camry SE.
Like Edwards, he is not an alumnus but wanted to support the cause.
"It just helps everybody," he said. "It's just like family."
In addition to the school supply drive added this year, area churches were invited to lend support.
Tony Sutton, a 1977 CBA graduate and also pastor of St. James Disciples of Christ Church in Fremont, said his church readily partnered for the weekend event.
The backdrop provided a chance to catch up with neighbors, friends and former classmates and to meet new people.
"It's just people hanging out, having a good time," Ryals said. "It's kind of like a big class reunion."
Speaking of the latter, the 46th annual Norwayne Alumni and Friends homecoming will actually take place this coming weekend.
It used to be that everything was scheduled altogether, including a parade, picnics and other festivities.
"We had to kind of space it out to get everything in," he said.
Tony Moore, vice president of the alumni group, graduated from Charles B. Aycock High School in 1977.
"We were looking for fundraisers and the Norwayne Alumni is designed to help in the community, along with scholarships and helping kids," he said.
Fellow organizer Michael Newsome said events like this not only benefit those who live in the area but also reinforce the group's purpose of taking care of the next generation.
Wynn may have served as DJ providing a musical backdrop to the outdoor gathering, but he was also a member of the group, a classmate of Ryals.
"I grew up here," he said, rattling off his pedigree of schools attended. "I went to Pikeville Elementary, Norwayne and CBA.
"I just feel like I needed to come and give something back."
The alumni group not only has a street named for it but a community building, as well.
It is used for birthday parties, family reunions, church services and other gatherings, Moore said.
Larry Jones, the group's president, is in the third year of his four-year term, he said, recalling the rich history it has of schools that no longer exist, including Norwayne High, Fremont Friendship and Pikeville Training School.
He graduated from Norwayne High in 1970, he said.
"That was the last class that graduated from the school," he said, smiling as he recalled its mascot -- the Golden Lions.