Glenn Sumpter, 77, of Hamlet, died Sept. 8 at Duke Hospital where he had been a patient for several weeks. He was born March 30, 1933, in Brooklyn, N.Y., and was adopted at age six months by Ray and Genevieve Sumpter, who took their new baby back to their home in West Virginia. He grew up in and around Clarksburg, WV, and graduated from Roosevelt-Wilson High School and West Virginia University.

\Following graduation he worked with “Horn in the West” in Boone, prior to being drafted. During his time in the Army he served with Soldier’s Shows as an actor, and was trained in tank warfare. He came back to the United States to seek a career in acting, but found his milieu as a journalist. He worked for newspapers in Morgantown, WV and Hickory, NC, before coming to Richmond County as the editor of the Daily Journal in 1970, where he served until his retirement in 1996. His retirement was forced by a genetic illness which left him legally blind, and (as compensation, he said), he willed his eyes to the North Carolina Eye Bank for medical research. He worked on the committees of both Rockingham and Hamlet the years the two municipalities were named All-American Cities.

During his years in Richmond County, Glenn was active in many civic affairs, but none which he treasured as much as his role in founding the Richmond Community Theatre in Rockingham. He was a member of the original Board of Directors, and performed in many plays over the years. His favorite role, and the one for which he was perhaps best known, was as Willie Loman in “Death of a Salesman,” but he also especially enjoyed his role as Scrooge in “A Christmas Carol,” and as the narrator of “Our Town,” both of which roles he performed twice. He directed and acted in “Justice of Our Cause,” a local outdoor drama by the late Clark Cox, to honor the nation’s bicentennial in 1976.

Glenn was active in Lions for many years, and a founding member of the Breakfast Lions. He was named Citizen of the Year by the Civitan Club in one memorable year. He was especially pleased that he had a role in bringing I73/74 to and through Richmond County, and he took pride in his leadership in the movement to block the building of a nuclear waste site in Richmond County. He was also a member of the American Legion Post 49.

Glenn felt his greatest accomplishment was his work to help bring Cole Auditorium to the Richmond Community College campus. He was a member of the Board of Trustees for 14 years which saw unprecedented growth in the institution, and he was very active in the work of the Board to meet the goals of the college.

He was closely identified with the Daily Journal throughout his tenure there, and enjoyed writing editorials which several times won Associated Press awards for excellence in writing. Following a love of politics, he reported on the county commission for many years, and had an encyclopedic knowledge of the county’s political policies, events, and politicians. He was especially fond of telling stories of the wit and wisdom of the late Sheriff Raymond Goodman, but indeed enjoyed telling stories of any sort. He was a member and vice president of the Richmond County Senior Democrats, and was chairman of the Policies Committee of the North Carolina Senior Democrats.

He was a member of the Richmond County Arts Council for many years, and participated in numerous activities which promoted the arts in Hamlet and Richmond County. He collected recordings of classical jazz. He was proud of his Irish heritage, and was a fan of Irish folk singers and followed Irish politics and culture carefully. He visited the country in l995 and again in 2006.

Glenn was an avid fan of baseball, and had memorized a treasure trove of baseball trivia. He was particularly interested in the Braves, and several times traveled to Atlanta for games. To his own amazement, he also became a soccer fan, and watched the 2010 World Cup with great interest. He was an enthusiastic supporter of West Virginia University sports, and could be counted on to follow every football and basketball game from his alma mater.

His last writing was to contribute occasional columns to the Daily Journal, work with his wife, Robbyn, and John Hutchinson on a history of Richmond County in the 20th century, and accounts of the history of railroading in Hamlet for the Hamlet Historic Depot museum.

He is survived by his wife Robbyn; three daughters, Deirdre Sumpter and her husband Chris Jones of Bethlehem, Penn.; Elisa Jarrell of Chapel Hill, and her sons Ryan and Dylan Jarrell of Carrboro; Leslie Ray and husband Tim and their daughters Lindsay and Katelyn of Centreville, Maryland, and a brother, Ron Sumpter of Clarksburg, WV.

Visitation will be at Harrington Funeral Home in Hamlet, from 7 to 9 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 10. At other times the family will be at the home of Mrs. Charlotte Cowan, 502 Rice St.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, Sept. 11, at 11 a.m. at First United Methodist Church of Hamlet, with the Rev. Ken Buckingham officiating.

Harrington Funeral Home is serving the family.

- Paid obituary