But Knightdale’s two biggest stories of the year – featuring championship trophies and “fairy-tale” endings – sure felt like tales out of tinseltown.

First, Knightdale garnered national attention as America followed the story of hometown girl Rachelle Friedman – who in June 2010 became paralyzed after falling into a pool just a month before her wedding.

Her wedding to Chris Chapman was postponed, medical bills mounted and the couple’s future together seemed fragile, Friedman has said.

But, after appearing on NBC’s “Today Show,” Friedman and Chapman found help.

In April, their home was renovated to suit Friedman’s needs: wider doors, a new shower, a lower vanity, remodeled bathrooms, a redone master suite, a new deck with a wheelchair-accessible ramp, a newly poured sidewalk, and an inside elevator.

The work – which took a mere 10 days – was that of volunteers, town officials, NBC television show “George to the Rescue” and the Remodelers Council of the Raleigh-Wake Home Builders Association.

Then, the couple’s year was punctuated on July 20 when – a year after Friedman’s life-altering injury – they married at the Fearrington House in Pittsboro.

The couple’s wedding ceremony and honeymoon to Fiji were paid for by an online wedding-advisory service.

The week of the wedding, Friedman’s story was broadcast by news outlets across the country.

Said Friedman: The experience was “like a fairy-tale.”

Title town

Not to be outdone – by anyone – Knightdale High Track and Field team brought home the 2011 state championship.

The 2011 NCHSAA 4-A state championships in indoor and outdoor track and field were the first in Knightdale history.

(Road signs will soon be erected on Knightdale Boulevard to commemorate the feat)

And in June, the team won national titles at the New Balance Nationals – held in Greensboro.

The relay team of Joseph Horton, Da’Quan Smalls, Mar-Keo Jones and Burkheart Ellis Jr. won the boys 4 x 100-meter at a time of 40.93. It marked the fastest North Carolina team time in history, and it was the first North Carolina time under 41 seconds. It was the eighth-fastest time recorded in the national event.

On the map

The release of U.S. Census data in March further proved this town’s growing popularity.

Data showed Knightdale as one of the fastest growing towns in North Carolina – nearly doubling its population from about 6,000 at the turn of the century to nearly 11,500 today.

“Knightdale’s the next hot spot in the Triangle,” Mayor Russell Killen boasts.

Growing pains

Knightdale – once represented by one person each on the Wake school board, and in the state House and state Senate, respectively – is now divided at all three levels. In the NC House, all three towns now are in District 39, a seat currently held by Darren Jackson, a Democrat. The new maps divide Knightdale into three districts: 39, 38 and 35.

Most of Knightdale – 8,711 – remains in District 39. But District 38, represented by Deborah Ross, a Democrat, now includes 1,490 Knightdale residents. District 35, held by Jennifer Weiss, a Democrat, holds 1,200 Knightdale residents.

In the NC Senate, Knightdale largely remains in District 14, represented by Dan Blue, a Democrat. But 432 Knightdale residents are now a part of District 18, represented by Bob Atwater, a Chapel Hill Democrat.

Wake’s school board earlier this year approved new voting lines that divided Knightdale between the 1st and 4th districts. Knightdale and its 11,400 residents had previously been grouped in District 1, represented by Chris Malone, a Wake Forest Republican. But more than 5,000 residents are now part of the Wake School Board District 4, represented by Keith Sutton, a Raleigh Democrat.

Harassment claims

Knightdale in May commissioned Insight Research, a Burgaw-based independent research firm, to survey residents and Knightdale town staff.

Nearly one-third of the people employed by the town of Knightdale said they experienced or observed harassment in the workplace, according to the surveys. Twenty of the town’s 61 staff members responded “Yes” to the question: “Have you ever experienced or observed harassment (age, gender, race, sexual, sexual orientation) at the Town of Knightdale?” Respondents answered anonymously. Town officials have called the harassment claims “unfounded” since no employees have submitted grievances to date. Staff survey responses also revealed concerns for lagging leadership, communication efforts, and morale. Written comments from employees reveal an overwhelming concern for a lack of communication between departments.

Abuse claims and cops

Claims mounted against two Knightdale officers this year. In January, Officer Steven Bailey arrested Mark McCain of Knightdale, at a local Blockbuster on charges of parking in a fire lane and resisting an officer. Bailey shocked McCain with his stun gun for resisting arrest after police say McCain failed to produce his license and vehicle registration.

McCain claimed he only stopped his car momentarily to return rented videos in the return box outside the store, just a few feet away from where he was parked.

In June, a judge found McCain not guilty of resisting arrest. McCain called on Knightdale police to discipline Bailey for using excessive force in arresting him.

McCain’s claim was the second such complaint against Bailey, who was accused of using excessive force in a similar situation two years ago. In August 2009, Derrick White of Scotland Neck also filed a complaint against the officer after Bailey arrested him for parking his vehicle in a fire lane. White said Bailey unnecessarily used his stun gun and drew his weapon. Unlike McCain, White was found guilty.

Also, J.R. Bullock in February filed a complaint against a Knightdale police officer for trying to deter customers from Bullock’s business, Towriffic Towing. In a letter to Bullock, Knightdale Public Safety admitted that Bullock’s claims were found to be true. The name of the officer has not been disclosed. The complaint was made public in November by Bullock, who says he is still seeking damages from the town.

Politics and races

From August to November, two of Knightdale most revered community leaders engaged in perhaps the town’s most hotly contested mayoral race. The contest between Mayor Russell Killen and Jun Lee, a popular martial arts instructor and prominent businessman, was tight and cordial until the end. Lee’s campaign faltered, he said, after news emerged about his financial quarrels with his bank and the lawsuit brought against him by a former campaign staffer. Killen won the election.

Then things got ugly. Lee blamed the newspaper for his loss. And the day after the election, the candidates exchanged testy emails in which Killen accused Lee of trying to divide the town along racial lines while on the campaign trail.

Smoke at EW Fire

In June, Eastern Wake Fire & Rescue paid four employees $86,959 for a combined 3,095 hours in vacation time, including a $60,000 payment to Station Chief George Gupton. The payments violated a county policy enacted in 2002 that prevents county employees from being compensated for more than 240 hours in unused vacation hours, Wake County Manager David Cooke said. After months of negotiations, the fire station – which is not a government arm but works as an independent contractor for the county – agreed to changes in leadership. In December, the county took control over the station’s Board of Directors and appointed a financial trustee to oversee the station’s monetary transactions.

Crime and punishment

The shooting of 17-year-old Torrahn Isaiah Hughes, shook this quiet community. Three men were arrested and charged after Hughes, of 519 Laurens Way, was gunned down near the corner of Laurens Way and Parkside Commons.

Then, in August, Rajal Amed Wisdom Sr. of Knightdale pleaded guilty to first-degree murder for shooting his daughter’s boyfriend, Nigel Ellison, in March 2010. Wisdom was given a life sentence. His son, Rajal Amed Wisdom Jr., who before his arrest was known as an up-and-coming rap artist, pleaded guilty to attempted murder and attempted assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury in the same case. He was sentenced to at least four years and eight months in prison.

Schools on the rise

Finally, Knightdale schools – long neglected by parents and school board politicos alike – are improving.

East Wake Middle and Knightdale High School both became STEM schools this year. That means that their class curriculums bring added focus to science, technology, engineering, and math. It also means support in the way of technology in classrooms (such as iPads) and training for teachers – all at no cost to the school.

The STEM program was a target of Knightdale 100, a local educational advocate which has made school improvements a priority.

“Our schools, I can say with absolute certainty, are in a better place now than they were just three or four years ago, “ Mayor Killen told The News & Observer for a column on the group.

The group – led by Shannon Hardy, Robin Woodlief, Catherine Dameron, Kathy Moghaddam, Pam Miles and Derrick Burr – presents monthly forums to educate local parents about topics ranging from eighth-grade algebra to analyzing teacher effectiveness.

“Parents are beginning to catch on as to what needs to be done, what they need to do to hold our schools accountable. And that’s a direct reflection on what the Knightdale 100 has done,” Killen said.