Showing posts with label Concord. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Concord. Show all posts

Sunday, March 23, 2014

Charlotte Premium Outlets Taking Shape, Scheduled to Open Mid-Summer

Posted by Jarvis Holliday On 3/23/2014 1 comment
UPDATE: The website for Charlotte Premium Outlets has gone live -- premiumoutlets.com/charlotte -- and there you'll find additional info, including details for its May 2 Job Fair and July 31-Aug 3 Grand Opening.

Over the last few weeks, I've traveled up and down Interstate 485 several times, from my home exit, Exit 16 (NC 16/Brookshire Boulevard) down past Exit 1 (NC 49/South Tryon Street). And by taking that route--most recently on Friday--I've noticed the rapid progression of construction for Charlotte Premium Outlets, which is visible from the interstate near Exit 4 (NC 160/Steele Creek Road). I used to travel along that Steele Creek Road exit often a few years ago, so I recall the large plots of vacant land around there. That's all about to change when this new outlet mall opens, with its target opening date of July 31.

Rendering of Charlotte Premium Outlets.

Charlotte Premium Outlets is a 50-50 joint venture between Simon Property Group (premiumoutlets.com) and Tanger Factory Outlet Centers (tangeroutlet.com), which each operate dozens of outlet shopping centers around the country--in the region, Simon operates Concord Mills and Gaffney Premium Outlets (as well as SouthPark Mall), for example, and Tanger operates two across North Carolina, two in Myrtle Beach, and one in Charleston. On Monday the companies announced the latest news on Charlotte Premium Outlets, including the scheduled opening date, that the number of planned stores has increased from 90 to 100, and a partial list of tenants that are already under contract.

The announced tenants are:

Adidas, American Eagle, ASICS, The Body Shop, Brooks Brothers, The Children’s Place, The Cosmetics Company Store, Crabtree & Evelyn, Fossil, Gold Toe, Haggar, Jockey, Justice, Kay Jewelers, Kitchen Collection, Le Creuset, Lindt Chocolate, Perfumania, Rack Room Shoes, Robert Wayne Footwear, Samsonite, Seiko, Skechers, Swarovski, The Uniform Company, Vitamin World, Wet Seal, and Wilson’s Leather.

That list of stores isn't anything to write home about, but keep in mind that this only reflects a little more than one-fourth of the total stores that will be housed there. And according to Construction Data Company's Building Blocks Blog, which regularly breaks news on commercial construction projects, many more tenants (more impressive ones at that) are planning stores at Charlotte Premium Outlets, such as:

Ann Taylor, BCBG Max Azria, BeBe, Calvin Klein, Charlotte Russe, Coach Store, Cole Haan, Famous Footwear, Finish Line, Guess Factory Store, Kenneth Cole, Levi's Outlet Store, Michael Kors, Oakley Vault, Perry Ellis, Polo Ralph Lauren, Saks Off Fifth, Soma, Tommy Hilfiger, White House Black Market, Zumiez, and others.

Charlotte Business Journal published a behind-the-scenes article and photo gallery of Charlotte Premium Outlets on Friday. The general manager of the outlet mall said she anticipates the first retailers will begin moving in about 60 days before the July 31 grand opening. Once completed, the stores will provide more than 900 full-time and part-time jobs.

I expect that this project will greatly transform this part of town, spurring a lot more development along I-485 Exit 4 and Steele Creek Road--pretty much the same way Northlake Mall did to its section of West W.T. Harris Boulevard when it opened in fall 2005. There were hundreds of acres of unused land around there before then. Today, there's not only the mall with its 150-plus stores, restaurants, and movie theater, but other shopping centers, big-box stores (Target, Lowe's, Best Buy), restaurants (P.F. Chang's, Mimi's Cafe, this new McDonald's), and a hotel (Drury Inn & Suites) have sprung up there over the years. New apartment complexes and townhouses have also been developed, with more currently under construction, and along the way I-485 Exit 21 opened, which helped make getting over there even more convenient.

Because of where Charlotte Premium Outlets is located, only four miles from the South Carolina border, it will undoubtedly draw plenty of shoppers from Fort Mill and Rock Hill. I also suspect it will attract a lot of visitors from Columbia because I believe this will become the closest outlet mall to them--about an hour-and-15-minute drive.


READ FULL STORY

Sunday, December 15, 2013

#ChristmasInCLT - Share Your Charlotte Christmas Experiences

Posted by Jarvis Holliday On 12/15/2013 1 comment
The Christmas season is a festive time in the Charlotte area. Decorations and Christmas trees adorn many of the public spaces like parks, streets, malls and shopping centers, and there are plenty of holiday-themed attractions to visit. I would imagine that Charlotteans and visitors are sharing some of these experiences on social media, but there didn't seem to be a prevalent hashtag being used to unite this effort. So I've suggested one: #ChristmasInCLT.


It spawned from last Monday night when I was making a quick trip to Northlake Mall. As I was walking up to the entrance at the food court wing, I was met by the mall's towering Christmas tree. I took a few photos of it and decided I would post it on Twitter. But before doing so, I did a quick search on my phone's Twitter app to see what Charlotte Christmas-related hashtags that might be out there. None of the variations I searched for had more than one or two tweets posted with them, and for a couple of those the tweets were from last Christmas. So, I decided on #ChristmasInCLT and a few of my friends have joined in.


Up to this point, I've only been using #ChristmasInCLT on Twitter, but I encourage you to use it there as well as Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr, Pinterest, and wherever else hashtags are used. Wouldn't it be great to be able to look at the experiences people are having in Charlotte during Christmastime? This would be especially fun to peruse, say, one evening while you're home--or away from home--on vacation for the holidays. So go for it! Share photos and messages from the holiday events you attend, places you go, Christmas stuff you spot, and more.



And in case you aren't in the know, here are a few of the great Christmas attractions currently underway in the Charlotte area:

Holiday on Ice
Go ice skating outdoors in Uptown. NASCAR Hall of Fame Plaza, 400 E. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., wbt.com/holidayonice.

Speedway Christmas
Drive through displays of more than 3 million lights, including on the racetrack. Charlotte Motor Speedway, 5555 Concord Pkwy. South, Concord, charlottemotorspeedway.com.


Christmas at the Library
Oh yeah, Christ is the reason for the season. Billy Graham Library, 4330 Westmont Dr., billygrahamlibrary.org.

McAdenville Christmas Lights
See why this small town is known as Christmas Town U.S.A. McAdenville, mcadenville-christmastown.com.


READ FULL STORY

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

No, GPS. There's a Sinkhole Ahead

Posted by Jarvis Holliday On 7/17/2013 No comments
Remember back when you would drive to a place that you'd never gone to before, that if you didn't know exactly how to get there you would ask for directions before you left home, and the person giving you the directions would basically guide you there by listing a series of landmarks? (Once you get on such and such street, come down about five lights and turn left by that McDonald's.) Then remember when MapQuest came along on the Internet and you would enter the address of wherever you were going, print out the directions, and take them with you? And remember when GPS devices started to become really affordable, so you bought one, placed it on your car's dashboard or windshield, and would get real-time, turn-by-turn directions to your desired destination? And finally, mobile phones started coming equipped with GPS built in, so now you could just hop in the car, type in or speak the address to where you're going, and get turn-by-turn directions. I've gotten so used to my phone instructing me on where to go. Haven't you?


Well, today I was on my way to a meeting in Concord when I encountered a large "ROAD CLOSED" sign on Harris Road, which is the name the road changes to after being Eastfield Road, near the Charlotte-Concord line. According to my GPS, I was only about five minutes from my destination, but thanks to the road being closed, I couldn't continue on the suggested route. And no matter how many nearby streets I tried turning on so that my GPS could recalculate, in hopes of it leading me in another direction, it kept pointing me back to Harris Road.

I wanted to scream: "I can't go that way because there's a sinkhole!"


I'd seen and read about numerous sinkholes popping up throughout the Charlotte area over the last several weeks, largely caused by all of this rain we've been getting. Today was my first time encountering one in person. It was relatively small compared to some of the sinkholes I've seen on the local news (and pales in comparison to sinkholes seen around the world), but it was big enough to stretch across--and force the closing of--the two-lane road.

In order to get to my meeting today, one of the guys I was going to meet with ended up having to give me old-fashioned directions over the phone, by listing a series of landmarks.

I look forward to the day when my phone's GPS has an "avoid sinkhole" button. #1stWorldProblems.


READ FULL STORY

Saturday, May 25, 2013

Charlotte's Bid for the X Games Ramps Up

Posted by Jarvis Holliday On 5/25/2013 No comments
Last month, ESPN announced that Charlotte was one of four finalists for cities to host the summer X Games for three years beginning in 2014. The other three cities being considered are Austin, Chicago, and Detroit. If Charlotte is selected, the majority of the extreme sports competitions would take place at the racing complexes at Charlotte Motor Speedway. In recent weeks, speedway officials have ramped up (see what I did there?) excitement around the possibility by launching an official website, social media accounts, and making appearances at popular Charlotte events.

This rendering shows what an X Games ramp could look like inside the zMAX Dragway at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Photos credit: xgamescltbid.com

ESPN launched this annual event in 1995 as the Extreme Games, held in Providence, Rhode Island. Two years later it was rebranded as the X Games and relocated to California, where the bulk of its run has taken place over the years. The X Games have grown significantly during the past decade and has helped many of its competitors become superstar athletes. The games now feature nearly 20 competitions in four categories: BMX Freestyle, Moto X, Skateboard, and Rally Car.

According to a study by the LA Sports & Entertainment Commission, the 2010 X Games in Los Angeles had an economic impact of at least $50 million (stats from study provided by CMS). The study also shows that in 2010, ESPN broadcast 31 hours of original content live during the games, reaching all 50 states and 175 countries. So, this would bring national and international attention to Charlotte, would be a huge benefit to the local economy, and it would be another boost to Charlotte's reputation as a great city to host large events.

Charlotte Motor Speedway, of course, is in the midst of hosting several days of events during its busiest schedule of the year, with this weekend's Coca-Cola 600 NASCAR race, which comes after last weekend's NASCAR Sprint Cup All-Star Race. ESPN and X Games officials are scheduled to visit Charlotte June 4 and 5 as part of their decision-making process, and they're expected to announce the chosen city this summer. I wonder if our connection with ESPNU and the recently announced SEC Network will carry any favor?

Fans showing support for X Games Charlotte at a recent Alive After Five event in Uptown.

You can get all the latest info and support the efforts for Charlotte's X Games bid by visiting:
The speedway has also created this promo video:



READ FULL STORY

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

The Jeff Gordon 'Test Drive' Prank Video Is Hilarious but Is It Real?

Posted by Jarvis Holliday On 3/13/2013 10 comments
Pepsi released a video yesterday of NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon playing a prank on a used car salesman. Jeff undergoes a disguise by a professional makeover artist--makeup, hair, fake skin--to shield his real identity. Then when he goes to test drive a 2009 Chevy Camaro, he takes the salesman on a wild ride, reaching top speeds, and performing incredible stunts.


The video has gone viral, receiving 1.8 million views on YouTube in the first 24 hours. It was reportedly shot at Troutman Motors in Concord, which isn't too far from the Hendrick Motorsports headquarters, home to Jeff's race team.


The three-minute-and-45-second video is entertaining and hilarious, even if you feel sorry for the unsuspecting salesman, but I'm not sure if the prank is real. The whole thing looks staged to the point that it makes me think the salesman was in on it. I guess the truth will surface soon. Actually, one way to find out would be if someone looked into whether or not the salesman in the video actually works at that dealership, rather than him being a paid actor the way I suspect. Whether the video is real or fake, it's getting Pepsi MAX a lot of attention, which is what the brand was going for.

You can see what others are saying about the video on Twitter by searching the #GordonTestDrive hashtag.
READ FULL STORY

Friday, September 21, 2012

Jeff Gordon and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Posted by Jarvis Holliday On 9/21/2012 No comments
Charlotte Motor Speedway has a flair for the dramatic that is probably unmatched by any other NASCAR racetrack in the country. Marcus Smith, president of Charlotte Motor Speedway (and son of Bruton Smith, owner of Speedway Motorsports, Inc. and its dozen-plus racetracks from coast to coast), has carried on the tradition of entertaining and wowing race fans at the Charlotte/Concord track similar to the way his predecessor Humpy Wheeler did for decades.

Yesterday, Charlotte Motor Speedway kicked off this weekend's annual Food Lion AutoFair, where more than 1,500 collectible vehicles are lining the 1.5-mile track, with Jeff Gordon and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles revealing a special paint scheme that Gordon will race in the Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on October 13. Gordon’s two-year-old son, Leo--not to be confused with Leonardo of the TMNT, was there with his dad. He's a few years younger than I was when the turtles became one of the biggest kid attractions of the 1980s and 90s--I remember watching the cartoon, going to see their movies, and wanting to "scarf down pizza" the way they did.

Jeff Gordon and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Photos by Brad Bowling/CMS Photo.

Marcus Smith surrounded by Michelangelo, Leonardo, Donatello, and Raphael.

At yesterday's press event, Gordon said if he wins the Bank of America 500 in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles paint scheme next month, he'll breakdance in victory lane. The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will be presenting the Bank of America 500 pre-race show with concerts by Nickelodeon star Victoria Justice and country music stars Big & Rich, along with a daredevil stunt by world-famous tightrope walker Nik Wallenda (more flair for the dramatic). There will be special TMNT activities, appearances, and family fun throughout the race weekend. Click here for ticket info.
READ FULL STORY

Thursday, August 9, 2012

The Avett Brothers Get their 'Shine' in Gap's New 'Icon Redefined' Collection

Posted by Jarvis Holliday On 8/09/2012 No comments
Awhile back, Gap launched its global marketing campaign for fall 2012, called Shine. Now it's introducing a new collection within that campaign, billed as Icon Redefined. To market it, the department store chain is "featuring an eclectic mix of musicians and dancers wearing Gap's signature pieces updated with a modern design point of view and rich fall color palette," according to a press release. Among those musicians are Concord natives Seth and Scott Avett of The Avett Brothers.

Credit: Gap Inc.

Joining the Avetts in the promotional campaign are pop duo Karmin; professional "Jookin" dancer Lil' Buck; singer-songwriter Lia Ices; Chinese-born San Francisco ballet dancer Yuan Yuan Tan; musician Kaki King; and singer-songwriter Nicki Bluhm. So as you can see, Gap is truly redefining icons and not going for the typical mainstream artists.

The Avett Brothers also appear in a Gap commercial, which you can see below, where they perform a snippet of their new single "Live and Die." The 30-second clip is part of an eight-week content series being featured on Gap's social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, etc.; the Avetts' image is currently Gap's Twitter background).


READ FULL STORY

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Job Fair June 7 for Charlotte-Area Military Veterans

Posted by Jarvis Holliday On 5/29/2012 No comments
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and RecruitMilitary are presenting the Hiring Our Heroes veteran job fair and opportunity expo on Thursday, June 7, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Charlotte Motor Speedway (in the ballroom of The Speedway Club, 5555 Concord Parkway South, Concord). This is a free event for military veterans, including personnel who are transitioning from active duty to civilian life, veterans who already have civilian work experience, members of the National Guard and reserves, and their spouses.


So far, 46 exhibitors and hiring companies have signed on to participate, including Verizon Communications, Bank of America / Merrill Lynch, Kellogg, Chiquita Brands, The Home Depot, Wells Fargo, Convergys, Ettain Group, State Farm, Lash Group, Oracle, and many more. Click here for more details and to register to attend. You can also see what people are saying about RecruitMilitary, the military-to-civilian recruiting firm putting on this job fair, by visiting their Facebook page, www.facebook.com/recruitmilitary.
READ FULL STORY

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

'The Hunger Games' Mania Puts N.C. in the Spotlight

Posted by Jarvis Holliday On 3/21/2012 No comments
If you know nothing else about The Hunger Games, you likely at least know that the highly anticipated movie, based on the hugely successful books, opens in theaters this Friday. The movie was filmed entirely in North Carolina, including cities such as Charlotte, Concord, and Asheville and small towns like Hildebran and Shelby. In the March issue of Charlotte magazine, I wrote about the local locations The Hunger Games production used and how the movie's projected box office revenue stacks up against other movies filmed in Charlotte.

This scene from The Hunger Games was likely filmed inside one of the Uptown Charlotte locations. Effie Trinket (Elizabeth Banks, left), Haymitch Abernathy (Woody Harrelson, center), and Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence, right).
Credit: Murray Close/thehungergamesmovie.com.

Now that the premiere of the movie is upon us--some lucky Charlotteans are being treated to an advance screening this evening--the buzz and media coverage surrounding The Hunger Games are at a fever pitch. And a lot of it is putting the spotlight on North Carolina. Below are some of the news links from the past few days:


Because of all the hype and local ties, I plan to go see The Hunger Games some time within the first two weeks. If you haven't already purchased advance tickets, you can forget about seeing it during this opening weekend. Fandango announced yesterday that the movie has sold more advance tickets than any other non-sequel ever, and that more than 2,000 showtimes have sold out. The Hunger Games is projected to bring in somewhere between $100 million and $140 million this weekend.
READ FULL STORY

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Lil Wayne Skates Through Charlotte

Posted by Jarvis Holliday On 8/09/2011 No comments
Lil Wayne had a busy day, night, and early morning in Charlotte. He brought his "I Am Still Music Tour" to Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre Sunday, with guest acts Lloyd, Far East Movement, Keri Hilson, and Rick Ross. I was fortunate enough to attend the concert and, despite the heat, it was a great show. Weezy has built up a deep catalog so he kept the hits coming Sunday night, and had several members of his YMCMB team join him on stage including Birdman, Mack Maine, Jae Millz, Gudda Gudda, Cory Gunz, and Shanell (she sang vocals on several of his songs similar to his recent MTV Unplugged show).

After the concert, Lil Wayne and crew headed to his official after-party at 5th Element nightclub in Uptown. I didn't go but I hear it was a packed house. You would've thought after the party, Lil Wayne would've gone back to his hotel (he stayed at The Ritz-Carlton). Instead he made a trip to Soul Ride SkatePark in Concord at 3 a.m. He rented out the place for him and a few friends to ride their skateboards for a couple of hours. At 5:30 a.m., he posted this tweet: "Just left Soul Ride sk8park. Awesome sesh!! Props to little Adam Z. jr and his homies for shreddin with me!! Bedtime." Below are a couple of photos of Wayne's visit that Soul Ride posted on Facebook.


If you scroll down Lil Wayne's Twitter page (@LilTunechi), you'll see that it's becoming a routine of his to go skateboarding in cities before or after his concerts. In fact, a video posted a few days ago of him at Skatepark of Tampa has gone viral. You see Wayne do a few moves, but it's mostly funny scenes of his homey Marley busting his arse. See that video below.


And apparently, Lil Wayne was loving Charlotte so much he stayed a second night and didn't fly out until this afternoon (Tuesday). His tour had an off day yesterday, so I guess he took some time to relax at The Ritz. He also had a repeat of his previous late night/early morning by going skateboarding again at a nearby skatepark. Shortly before 5 a.m. today, he posted this status on Twitter: "Just left Boardroom sk8park...shredded! Punked out on drop'n in on the 7 and a quarter ramp but I did land a fakie ollie up a ramp! Bedtime!" He's referring to The Board Room SkatePark in the Lake Norman area in Cornelius. The Board Room has posted a short video of Wayne recapping his visit to the skatepark on Facebook (click here to see it), and this photo below:


Now, back to the concert. Here's a 10-minute video I captured at Sunday's concert of Lil Wayne's intro into his 90-minute set.


READ FULL STORY

Sunday, June 26, 2011

Avett Brothers Concert to Be Shown on World’s Largest HDTV at Charlotte Motor Speedway

Posted by Jarvis Holliday On 6/26/2011 No comments
Concord's homegrown folk rock band, The Avett Brothers, are playing a sold-out concert on July 9 at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado. And when they do, fans in Concord, Charlotte, and surrounding areas will be able to watch it live, simply by going to Charlotte Motor Speedway. The speedway will air a live simulcast of The Avett Brothers' July 9 concert on its high-definition television screen. At 200-feet wide and 80-feet tall, it's the largest HDTV in the world, and it debuted last month during the May NASCAR races. The speedway will bring in concert-grade speakers for the event.

The Avett Brothers.

The massive HD screen is adding new life and entertainment options to Charlotte Motor Speedway. During the races and pre-race activities last month, music videos and tribute videos were shown on the big screen, and fans camping in the infield were treated to screenings of History Channel shows such as Top Gear and Ice Road Truckers and NASCAR-themed movies Talladega Nights and Stroker Ace. If the simulcast of The Avett Brothers' concert is a success, this could mark the beginning of similar showings for concerts or movies. Imagine how cool it would be if movie screenings of new releases are shown, like for Cars 2, or for a special premiere of Transformers 3. It would be like a drive-in on steroids.

The Avett Brothers are touring all summer, but are also recording their next album, the follow-up to their major label debut, I and Love and You, released in 2009. The band also released a live album last year, Live, Volume 3, which was recorded during a concert at Bojangles' Coliseum. They were exposed to a wider audience when they performed earlier this year at the Grammy Awards alongside Bob Dylan and Mumford & Sons. In a recent interview with Billboard.com, legendary producer Rick Rubin, who's working with The Avett Brothers again, gave a brief update on their upcoming album, which he says "is coming out beautifully."


For the July 9 concert simulcast, the speedway's gates will open at 8 p.m. Grace Potter and the Nocturnals are scheduled to begin at 9:30 p.m., and The Avett Brothers will perform around 11 p.m. Tickets are on sale now for $10 until July 1, when they'll increase to $15 until July 8; tickets purchased the day of will cost $20. Call 1-800-455-FANS (3267) to buy tickets or go to to the speedway ticket office. Visit www.charlottemotorspeedway.com for more details.
READ FULL STORY

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

No Grease! Barbershop Opens at Concord Mills

Posted by Jarvis Holliday On 4/19/2011 2 comments
Twin brothers Damian and Jermaine Johnson continue to expand their No Grease, Inc. franchise. They're now running their fourth No Grease! Barbershop with a new location they opened at Concord Mills last week. The barbershop is located in Neighborhood 5 of the massive outlet mall that's home to more than 200 stores and is North Carolina's most visited tourist attraction with an estimated 17 million visitors a year.

No Grease! recently opened at Concord Mills.

This new location is another milestone for the Johnson brothers, who raised the bar when they opened the No Grease! Exclusive Barbershop at Time Warner Cable Arena in Uptown two years ago. It's become the barbershop of choice for several high-profile clients such as business executives and professional athletes. They've also operated the No Grease! School of Tonsorial Arts, a barber school in east Charlotte, for the last eight years.

I don't know of many other locally owned barbershop franchises in Charlotte so what these guys are doing is sort of uncharted territory, a mission they began when they opened their first shop in 1997 while in their early 20s. I've gotten to know them over the last three or four years and admire not only their business acumen--they head the Urban Business Network (urbanpreneurship.org)--but also how they give back to the community such as the Cuttin' Class Community Hair Cutting Day they hold a couple of times a year in which they give free hair cuts to school children.

Jermaine and Damian Johnson at one of their free community hair cutting days last year (and me in the mirror).

For more on the No Grease! Concord Mills barbershop visit www.nogrease.com or www.concordmills.com.
READ FULL STORY

Monday, September 20, 2010

Valerie Hamilton's Case on 'Good Morning America'

Posted by Jarvis Holliday On 9/20/2010 No comments
Bad news turned to worst when 23-year-old missing woman Valerie Hamilton's body was found Saturday night inside a storage unit in southeast Charlotte. When she went missing early Wednesday morning after leaving Thomas Street Tavern in Plaza Midwood, her case quickly made local and national news because she's the daughter of Concord police Chief Merl Hamilton. This morning, Hamilton and Concord Mayor Scott Padgett appeared on Good Morning America to help bring attention to suspect Michael Neal Harvey, a registered sex offender with a long rap sheet who's now on the run.


With all of the attention Valerie's case is getting, her killer will likely be caught soon. And when the suspect is captured, I hope the media will take a look at how their coverage made it impossible for this animal to hide, and realize that if they gave this same kind of immediate coverage whenever a person went missing, particularly when there's a suspect, how much more likely it is the criminal will be caught. Just think of how these real-life cases are depicted in A&E's The First 48. Far too many missing people are never found or their abductors/killers are never brought to justice because their case lacks the sensationalism that media too often desires.

This is not to in any way diminish how tragic Valerie's murder is and I certainly offer my condolences to her family and friends. She was a young woman who taught swim lessons and loved working with children, and it's always sad to see the good die young. Hopefully, the Good Morning America broadcast, which I've posted video of below, will help lead to her killer's arrest.

READ FULL STORY
Subscribe to: Posts ( Atom )
Related Posts with Thumbnails