•Layoffs and plant closings put a damper on demand, making this the slowest buying season in several years.
•Hurt was approaching its 35th anniversary and Mayor Pete Daniel was preparing for the celebration. The town of Hurt became a reality Tuesday Jan. 3, 1967, when the elected mayor and councilmen met in public session at Hurt Elementary School to perform their first official acts and to receive the emblematic key to Clement Hill, the home place that John L. Hurt Jr. left to the people.
•Avoca Museum Educational/Volunteer Coordinator April Cheek would leave her position at the end of the year to accept a new job in Bedford.
•Whitney Woodruff's return home to her dad and grandmother after spending more than seven weeks in the hospital was a "holiday miracle." She was the sole survivor of four in a two-vehicle crash on Oct. 27, when she lost her mother, sister and cousin as they were traveling home from a Friday night Altavista High School homecoming game. She had been in the hospital, and had numerous surgeries and intensive therapies.
•Patrick Henry Boys and Girls Plantation's staff was delighted with a recent donation of 687 acres of property from C.B. Robertson III and his sister, Mary R. Morgan. This land would pave the way for a new children's home.
•The Altavista Volunteer Fire Department chief for the past nine years, Haywood Belvin, announced his resignation effective Dec. 31. New chief would be Lee Neal. Other new officers would be Doug Hall, captain; Jonathan Witt, lieutenant; and John Tucker, secretary/treasurer.
•The all-volunteer Altavista Life Saving Crew celebrated a banner year for new equipment acquisitions and thrift store contributions. The number of active members was 31, with five reserve members. Recently acquired equipment included six Life Pack 12 defibrillators and a new Jaws of Life, plus spreaders, cutters and rams.
•The new Rustburg Elementary School had been dedicated. The 80,000-square-foot school was the lowest cost per square foot of any school construction for the year in the state and won an architectural achievement at a recent Virginia School Board Association meeting.