DATE: Monday, March 24, 1997                TAG: 9703240090

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B2   EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: Briefs 

                                            LENGTH:  144 lines

HAMPTON ROADS

Civic activists in Norfolk's ``gold sector'' will meet Saturday to discuss ideas on how neighborhoods, businesses, schools and religious organizations can help people move off welfare.

The meeting, open to the public, will be held 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. in Temple Baptist Church, 3300 Tidewater Drive, Norfolk. There will be a breakfast for $2.

The meeting is being organized by Norfolk's PACE program for community policing. The gold sector is the central part of the city.

The meeting also will explore the idea of forming a nonprofit group to seek grants for preparing welfare recipients for jobs, said Walter Dickerson, a meeting organizer.

For more information, call Dickerson, 855-6145; the Rev. Mark Pullen, 622-2876, or Susan Harrington, 664-6016.Two bodies found; both suspected homicides

Two bodies found; both suspected homicides

Police are investigating the deaths of two people during the weekend.

The body of a man believed to be in his early 20s was found between 11 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. Saturday in a home in the 800 block of W. 46th St. His identity was being withheld until relatives could be notified.

About 8:45 a.m. Sunday, construction workers found a body in the 1300 block of North Military Highway.

The victim was identified as Tyrone C. Fuller, 41, of the 4900 block of E. Princess Anne Road.

Police have not released the causes of death but listed both as suspected homicides.

Larry Hill, a police spokesman, said no arrests have been made in either case. The specific causes of death were not released.

The bodies were sent to the State Medical Examiners office for examination.

Anyone with information about the deaths should call Crime Line at 664-4040.

Pets die when fire destroys home; 4 residents unhurt

A home that was being shared by four women was destroyed Sunday afternoon, and the residents lost all their belongings. Three pet dogs died in the blaze, but no people were hurt.

The fire was reported at 4:43 p.m. in the 4000 block of Bowdens Ferry Road, behind the campus of Old Dominion University.

Jack Goldhorn, a fire department spokesman, said firefighters from Station 7 nearby were on the scene within three minutes of the alarm but, by then, the building was already engulfed in flames.

``We had initial reports of someone being in the building, but we were unable to get in right away due to the severity of the fire,'' Goldhorn said. A short time later, however, the missing resident was located and was OK.

Investigators were still looking through the debris Sunday evening, but said early indications were that the fire was accidental. The home was so badly damaged that Goldhorn said it would be condemned and torn down as soon as possible.

Two neighboring homes also received minor damage. The total damage estimate was $70,000.

Neighbors and friends and members of a local church were offering assistance to the women.

Columnist commended for

career as Virginia historian

A resolution commending George Holbert Tucker, a columnist for The Virginian-Pilot, will be presented by Speaker of the House Thomas W. Moss Jr. as an expression of the General Assembly's appreciation ``for his manifold contributions to the Commonwealth's rich historical tradition.''

Tucker, a native of Norfolk, graduated from Maury High School in 1929. Following four years with the Navy during World War II, Tucker returned to Norfolk and began writing articles on local and Virginia history for The Virginian-Pilot. From 1956 until his retirement in 1975, he wrote a weekly column called ``Tidewater Landfalls.''

He has written two critically acclaimed books on English novelist Jane Austen and has been recognized as one of the leading experts on her life and work.

In 1985, Tucker resumed writing his history column for The Virginian-Pilot and has since contributed well over 500 columns.

Daughters of American Revolution gives awards

Numerous scholarships and awards for outstanding educational and professional pursuits, and volunteerism, were awarded this weekend at the 101st state conference of the Virginia Daughters of the American Revolution at the Waterside Marriott.

The winners were:

Allison Gail Caalim of Salem High School in Virginia Beach, $1,000 Virginia DAR Scholarship.

Christina Ballesteros of Salem High School in Virginia Beach, $1,000 Virginia Nursing Scholarship.

Margaret-Anne Rebecca Gore of Madison County High School in Rochelle, $1,000 American History award. She will compete at division and national levels for an $8,000 four-year scholarship.

Mark Hartney of Yorktown, Outstanding Veteran-Patient.

Kristen Hampton of Hampton, Outstanding Youth Volunteer.

Sybil Morgan of Hampton, Outstanding DAR VAVS Volunteer.

Virginia A. Storage of Fredericksburg, Outstanding Virginia Junior.

Susan Gray Eakin of Prince George High School in Prince George, DAR Good Citizen State Award.

Meredith W. Yeatts of Crewe, winner of the fourth-grade Flag Essay Contest.

PORTSMOUTH Ground-breaking ceremony

set for opening of RiteAid

A ground-breaking ceremony for the fourth of five new RiteAid stores in Portsmouth is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Tuesday.

The store will be built at the intersection of London Boulevard and Elm Avenue on land the company is buying from the Portsmouth Redevelopment and Housing Authority. The $1 million project is expected to be completed in six months. The store will feature a drive-in pharmacy window.

The 11,000-square-foot store will replace a smaller RiteAid currently operating in London Plaza Shopping Center.

ALSO . . .

Suffolk - The AARP will sponsor a ``55 Alive'' driver refresher course from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 15 and 16, at Nansemond River Baptist Church, U.S. Route 17 and Bennetts Pasture Road. April 1 is the reservation deadline. The fee is $8. A certificate issued upon completion of the class entitles the participant to a discount on auto insurance. Call 484-1670 or 484-3423.

Chesapeake - The Chesapeake Parks and Recreation Department is sponsoring ``Peter Cottontail Hotline'' for the Easter season. Youngsters can call 382-6647 to listen to a special message from the Top Bunny himself. Children may leave a message as to whether they will attend the annual Eggstravaganza at 10 a.m. Saturday, March 29, at Chesapeake City Park.

TODAY

Chesapeake - State Del. J. Randy Forbes will be at the Chesapeake Central library from 7 to 9 p.m. to meet with citizens who have questions or comments about the 1997 General Assembly session. More information is available by calling Dee Gilmore, Forbes' legislative assistant, at 547-1000.

Portsmouth - A banquet honoring Portsmouth's 1996 First Citizen, J. Hunter Brantley Jr., is scheduled for April 7 at the Holiday Inn-Olde Towne. Tickets cost $25 per person and must be purchased by Monday from Ports Events. Call 393-9933. MEMO: Staff writers Debbie Markham, Battinto Batts, Rebecca Myers

Cutchins, Steve Stone, Kennan Newbold and Ida Kay Jordan contributed to

this report.

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