Carolina Panthers Will Move Football Training Camp to Charlotte

The Carolina Panthers NFL training camp will move from Wofford College in Spartanburg to Charlotte, the team announced Wednesday, Dec. 6, 2023.

Panthers officials said the team will stay where it trains year-round, extending a league-wide trend to streamline football operations by remaining at the team headquarters.

"We're excited to hold training camp at our facility in Charlotte," said Kristi Coleman, president of the Carolina Panthers. "We appreciate Wofford and the Spartanburg community for their hospitality over the years. We are dedicated to the fans in South Carolina, and we will continue to bring fan and community events to the state."

Only six teams, including the Panthers, conducted training camp away from their facilities last season.

The Panthers held training camp at Bank of America Stadium and the adjacent practice fields in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Otherwise, camp has been held at Wofford College in Spartanburg.

Team officials said they are working through logistics and how best to accommodate fans during camp. Details will be shared as plans are finalized, the officials said, adding the Panthers plan to kick off the season with Fan Fest in South Carolina and will hold Back Together Football in Charlotte.

Also, as part of a larger effort to upgrade the team's practice and training facilities, the team will remove the Atrium Health Dome at the end of the regular season in January to begin work on the new practice fields.

Currently, the Panthers have one full outdoor field and about three-fourths of another, which is used for walk-throughs or individual work.

The changes will offer the ability to have three full-length practice fields. The layout will provide more space to practice and the opportunity to rotate fields to minimize wear and tear, Panthers officials said.

The fields will be ready in time for training camp.

"Removal of the Dome is the start of an ongoing process to upgrade the team's facilities," said Caroline Wright, the senior vice president and chief venues officer at Tepper Sports & Entertainment.

Wright added, "Future changes and enhancements include modifications to the fields with the goal of constructing a field house for football operations and community opportunities. In the interim, the team will be exploring options to hold practices indoors, should the need arise."

The current plan is to donate the Dome, and those discussions are ongoing, Panthers officials said.

Wofford College is the alma mater of former Panthers owner Jerry Richardson.

Additive Plastics Group Expands Manufacturing Operations in Anderson County

Additive Plastics Group, LLC (APG), a manufacturer of color and additive concentrates, specialty compounds and custom engineered products, said it is expanding in Anderson County.

The $6.2 million investment will create 24 new jobs, according to Gov. Henry McMaster's office.

State officials said APG’s industry experience, manufacturing strength and creative solutions allow the company to offer its customers the products they need to achieve their specific business growth objectives.

APG custom formulates and compounds a broad variety of polymers, enhancing both the aesthetic and mechanical performance  of these materials, while supporting a wide variety of industries and applications.

By merging science with an understanding of product goals and with keen attention to manufacturing and quality requirements, APG helps pinpoint the ideal combination of polymers and polymer additives to designed to meet the most demanding of applications, state officials said.

The company plans to upfit its existing facility located at 227 Youth Center Road in Belton. APG will also add a new, 25,000-square-foot building at the same site to accommodate increased logistics demand.

Operations will be online in October 2024. Those interested in joining APG should email Marc Vanover.

FTC: Scammers Hide Harmful Links in QR Codes to Steal Your Information

QR codes seem to be everywhere. You may have scanned one to see the menu at a restaurant or pay for public parking. And you may have used one on your phone to get into a concert or sporting event, or to board a flight.

There are countless other ways to use them, which explains their popularity. Unfortunately, scammers hide harmful links in QR codes to steal personal information.

According to a Federal Trade Commission consumer alert, there are reports of scammers covering up QR codes on parking meters with a QR code of their own.

And FTC officials say some crafty scammers might send you a QR code by text message or email and make up a reason for you to scan it. According to the FTC, these are some of the ways they try to con you:

* They lie and say they couldn't deliver your package and you need to contact them to reschedule.

* They pretend like there’s a problem with your account and you need to confirm your information.

* They lie, saying they noticed suspicious activity on your account, and you need to change your password.

These are all lies they tell you to create a sense of urgency, according to FTC officials. The officials say the scammers want you to scan the QR code and open the URL without thinking about it.

FTC officials say a scammer’s QR code could take you to a spoofed site that looks real but isn’t. And if you log in to the spoofed site, the scammers could steal any information you enter. Or the QR code could install malware that steals your information before you realize it.

So how can you protect yourself? The FTC says:

If you see a QR code in an unexpected place, inspect the URL before you open it. If it looks like a URL you recognize, make sure it’s not spoofed — look for misspellings or a switched letter.

Don’t scan a QR code in an email or text message you weren’t expecting — especially if it urges you to act immediately. If you think the message is legitimate, use a phone number or website you know is real to contact the company.

Protect your phone and accounts. Update your phone's OS to protect against hackers and protect your online accounts with strong passwords and multi-factor authentication.

Pearl Harbor Attack, Dec. 7, 1941

The National WWII Museum commemorates the Day That Will Live in Infamy.

It says in less than 90 minutes, Japanese planes destroyed or damaged 19 U.S. warships and 300 aircraft, and killed over 2,400 U.S. servicemen.

Almost half of the dead were crewmen from the battleship USS Arizona, which sank within minutes after a bomb struck its forward magazine, igniting more than a million pounds of ammunition.

The ship’s remains still lie in the waters of Pearl Harbor, a constant memorial to that terrible morning.

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