Members of the Little family are, from left, Holly, Carly and Cynthia Little, daughters and widow of Henry Little, and Charles Little, Corrinne Nicholson and Lucy Little, children and widow of Charles Little.

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     He began with the second chapter by saying that after the town received the property from the Little family, the council wrote to all interested Wadesboro citizens and formed a Park Advisory Committee headed by Jim Strayhorn and Dr. Don Altieri. "They took the ideas of the citizens and condensed them down to a written plan, but they needed a picture," Witherspoon said. An architect, Blair Israel, Regional Planner at Centralina COG, was hired.
Bill Thacker and John Witherspoon     "What you see is what he designed from what we wanted," Witherspoon said.
     Chapter Three was "we didn't have enough money. How could we find the money to build it?" Witherspoon said Wal-Mart made a donation and "an angel dropped out of heaven in the form of the Yost Foundation and got us going. We sold the timber on the land and got us a grant."
     In Chapter Four, Witherspoon said, Hugh James, director of public services for the town, and Adam Allison of Hobbs Upchurch laid out the park "as you see it today. Hugh James was invaluable -- he laid out the trail. A local contractor, Anson Contractors, gave us a wonderful bid and as you can see, they did a wonderful job."
     "We had an idea for a shelter and restrooms," Witherspoon continued, "but Max Kendall had a better idea and built them for less than we could have done otherwise."
     Witherspoon expressed thanks to the Dedication Committee, Brenda Parker and Don McRorie, who put together the food and the balloons that were released after the official remarks. Bob Blalock and Eddie Pope helped with the food, and Wal-Mart, Kentucky Fried Chicken and Pepsi Cola contributed food and drinks.
     Witherspoon then returned to "Chapter One" saying that the families of Charles and Henry Little had provided the land.
     "Without them, the park would not have been possible. Henry really wanted to see this happen. Don McRorie as mayor met with Henry and the deal went forward."
     A plaque has been placed in memory and appreciation of the Little family.

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