From left, James Hardin, Carey Byrd, and Richard Byrd, stand around the over 17-pound sweet potato grown in their back yard in Carrollton, Virginia, on Dec. 11, 2024.

Mr. James Billy Hardin Sr., age 91, of Fayetteville, NC, passed away on Monday, January 13, 2025, at home. He was born in Lumberton, NC on September 4, 1933 to the late Dewey & Carlatha F. Harden.