Crossroads Christian School Cross Country State Champions

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Congratulations to Coach Trey Snide and his Crossroads Christian School Cross Country Team!  Regular season, conference and state champions!

The State 1A meet began Friday morning at 11 o’clock in the Wilmington area.  The season of work and practice and working as a team paid off by early afternoon.

Coach Snide pulled over while driving home to appear on the 5 o’clock WIZS News.

He is, of course, no stranger to the local WIZS airwaves as the SportsTalk Host at 1 p.m. M-F, his live play by play of local sports and The Beach Music Blast program at 12 noon M-F.  This in additional to his management level position with the station.

Please enjoy the audio as Trey reflects on the day’s events and season.

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Vance County High School

J. F. Webb forfeits game to Vance County High School

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According to Joe Sharrow, Assistant Principal and Athletic Director at Vance County High School, tonight’s (Oct. 29) scheduled football game between Vance County and J. F. Webb has been canceled.  J. F. Webb has forfeited the game. This is the second game this year Webb has forfeited.  A game against Franklinton earlier this season suffered the same fate.  No reason was given for the cancellation and forfeit.  Vance County will now play in the state playoffs beginning next week. The opponent for the first round playoff matchup has yet to be determined.

The Local Skinny! Vance Furniture Celebrates 80 Years

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Eighty years ago, in 1941, Henderson’s population was just under 8,000. The U.S. was finally climbing out of The Great Depression. The attack on Pearl Harbor was less than two months away which would bring about World War II. Amid all of this, Vance Furniture Company opened its doors.

And 80 years later those doors remain open, welcoming customers into the tallest building in Henderson. It’s no skyscraper, but the five-story building does offer a unique shopping experience, complete with an antique elevator, said owner Craig Bailey.

Bailey spoke with John C. Rose on Thursday prior to The Local Skinny! broadcast segment, which can be heard below, following a Henderson-Vance Chamber of Commerce ribbon-cutting to mark the 80th anniversary of the independently owned and operated business located in the iconic building on 325 S. Garnett St.

Bailey said longtime business partner Sam Harper has been serving customers at Vance Furniture for almost 60 years – that’s at least four generations of customers, he said.

“It’s quite an accomplishment to have made it this long,” Bailey said of the family business.

The business model is simple: “We honestly want to help our customers find the items that will make their homes better,” Bailey said.

People come into the store, and instead of seeing one big showroom full of furniture, they get to travel on the elevator to each different level as they search for that perfect piece of furniture.

The furniture is carefully placed to create vignettes and themes to give customers an idea of how the pieces would look in their homes. “We get to know our customers one on one,” Bailey said, as they browse throughout the building with its tin ceilings and hardwood floors.

Eighty years is a long time to do business, and Bailey said they’ve had to change with the times, too. Recent delays brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic have created wrinkles in delivery times, he said. What used to take 4-6 weeks now takes twice as long, if not longer, he said.

Providing customers with quality service and the custom orders Vance Furniture specializes in is just one reason the business has continued to be successful.

And being around for eight decades is a perfect time “to pause and recognize where you’ve been and the people who’ve helped you over the years,” Bailey said. Despite the ebbs and flows over the years, being in downtown Henderson has been a positive experience. And Bailey said he believes the downtown area is on “the precipice of becoming a viable shopping area once again.” New interests, new people with a great vision are all positive signs for the whole community, he said.

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Barn Cat Program Saves Feral Cats/Kittens

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Community Partnership for Pets works with the Warren County Animal Ark and Warrenton Animal Clinic to help reduce the unwanted pet population in the area and to provide pet owners with options to care for their animals. A recent $50,000 grant will go a long way to help spay and neuter pets belonging to families in Warren County, said Mary Cervini, president and founder of Community Partnership for Pets.The grant comes from the Ken Barlow Family Charitable Trust in honor of Barlow’s childhood friend, Bobby Blaylock.”We wish to express our sincere appreciation to Mr. Barlow for his generosity and compassion for animals in Warren County,” Cervini said.In March 2021 the partnership offered a program that reduced the cost to spay and neuter cats – domestic or feral – from $40 to $10.The Ark, which is the county’s animal shelter, also started a Barn Cat Program designed to get feral cats and kittens out of the shelter as soon as possible. Often, feral cats and kittens are not adoptable and the barn cat program is a way to give this type of feline a second chance. The cats are spayed or neutered and then offered to families who want outdoor cats on their property or barn instead of in their home. These cats will no longer reproduce but can live out their life in an environment they are familiar with. Anyone wanting one of these cats can call the Ark for more information. There is no cost to the family who wants one of these cats; however, they must agree to provide these cats with food, water and shelter as you would any animal in your care.

According to information from the Ark, the number of cats euthanized has dropped to 18 percent from 44 percent and the number of cats leaving the Ark alive is up to 79 percent from 51 percent.  In addition, almost two dozen cats have been rehomed through the Barn Cat Program.

 

TownTalk: Michael LaChiana Investigates Things That Go Bump In The Night

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Michael LaChiana knows that old homes can create strange noises – some can be attributed to creaky floors, faulty plumbing pipes or other quirky construction features. And he can tell the difference between a plumbing problem…and the paranormal.

LaChiana has been a licensed plumber for 36 years, but he’s been fascinated with ghosts and paranormal activity for more than 40 years. As the managing director of the Heritage Hunters Society, he is producing a television program called Heritage Hunters: Journey Through The Past.

He is a ghost hunter and he captures sounds during investigations of the paranormal with high-tech equipment.

But he started out as a 14-year-old with a reel-to-reel recorder. He set up the equipment to record, and he said that he was able to capture the voice of a man screaming for mercy. There was no chance the recording picked up any outside interference, LaChiana said. After that, he was hooked.

“From there, I started researching, reading every book I could,” he told Bill Harris on Thursday’s Town Talk. He upgraded long ago to digital recorders and said he has captured much evidence of paranormal activity across North Carolina and in other countries. “I’ve traveled the world…there are so many haunted locations and I’ve captured so many things,” he said.

He’s visited sites in North Carolina like the Devil’s Tramping Grounds, the USS North Carolina battleship in Wilmington and the Country Squire Inn in Duplin County.

LaChiana is a one-man production crew – he is responsible for everything from the investigating and interviewing of local experts to the editing and final production. View the show on Amazon Prime Video. Available now is the episode on the Country Squire Inn. The next episode may be out by Christmas and will feature the Wilkesboro Jail and the true story of Tom Dooley.

He particularly enjoyed working in London, which he said is “very haunted.” Edinburgh, Scotland, is “one of the most haunted cities,” he said, which places it squarely on his bucket list of places to visit in the future.

He doesn’t do much in the way of residential investigations any more – he’s just too busy with the production company, his business and his family – but he said he has helped so many people understand the strange, unexplained activities they experience.

He goes in for a few hours alone to set up recording equipment and then just wait. “If there’s something there, there’s a very good chance we can capture it,” he added. Not literally, but digitally record it.

“I do believe that every old house has some form of former resident,” LaChiana said. He is friendly and respectful during his investigations, and he said that pays off.

“Everything isn’t dark and creepy.”

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Vance County High School

SportsTalk: Vipers Look To Rebound Against Webb

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Shocked is the word Vance County High School Head Football Coach Wilbur Pender used to describe his and his coaching staff’s reaction to the 48-0 loss to Southern Durham last Friday night. “We knew it was going to be a mountain climbing experience,” Pender said. “We didn’t make enough plays and put our defense in bad situations,” Pender added about the Viper’s performance.  Despite the great week of practice the Vipers just couldn’t get the job done against Southern Durham. “It was the perfect storm for them and a great learning experience for us,” Pender said in summation of the loss.

Even with that loss Pender feels that the Vipers have been better than expected and that he’s put a good product on the field. He’ll need it tomorrow night for the final regular season game against J. F. Webb in Oxford.  The Warriors feature Javon Bullock who has torched defenses for over 1200 yards this season and the Vipers will have to shut him down and play better offense to walk off the field with a victory. With playoffs looming for the Vipers a victory against the Warriors to wrap up the regular season will add some momentum going into round one of those playoffs next week.

 

Cooperative Extension with Jamon Glover: Disobedience, Pt. 4

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Listen live at 100.1 FM / 1450 AM / or on the live stream at WIZS.com at 11:50 a.m. Mon, Tues & Thurs.

 

Granville County Sheriff

Granville Sheriff Resigns; Former Sheriff, 3 Deputies Indicted Tuesday For Falsifying Training Records

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Granville County Sheriff Charles R. Noblin Jr. has submitted his resignation effective at 5 p.m. today (Wednesday), citing recent revelations as part of an ongoing investigation into actions of former Sheriff Brindell Wilkins. Wilkins and three deputies were indicted Tuesday with falsifying training certificates dating back to 2012.

County Attorney Jim Wrenn provided WIZS News with a copy of the resignation letter that Noblin sent Wrenn Tuesday afternoon. “Due to personal reasons beyond my control and newly discovered information brought to my attention concerning the ongoing investigation, I feel that it is in my best interest and betterment of Granville County Sheriff’s Office that I inform you of my resignation effective October 27, 2021, at 5:00 p.m.”

The ongoing investigation involves the former sheriff and three deputies who were indicted by a Wake County grand jury Tuesday afternoon on multiple felony charges of obtaining property by false pretense and felony obstruction of justice “based on allegations of falsifying and submitting training and firearm qualification records,” according to a letter from Wake District Attorney N. Lorrin Freeman to the N.C. Sheriffs’ Education and Training Standards Division in Raleigh.

In the letter addressed to Division Director Diane Konopka, Freeman named Wilkins, Sherwood Boyd, Chad Coffey and Edward Keith Campbell as the individuals alleged to be involved, which Freeman stated is an ongoing criminal matter.

The letter further stated that Noblin and Russell “Rusty” Corley may also hold falsified certifications. This information surfaced during the course of the investigation, Freeman said. Both men “signed firearm qualification forms indicating that they had completed the mandated course of fire and received passing scores when in fact they had not. Both individuals were on medical leave at the time, and in lieu of completing the necessary waiver, participated in their agency submitting fraudulent information to the Division at the direction of the others within the department,” Freeman’s letter continued.

“Inasmuch as these allegations, if proven true, would be a basis for action by your Commission as to these individuals’ justice officer certification, I am notifying you of this,” Freeman said of the indictments returned for Wilkins, Boyd, Coffey and Campbell. “There may be grounds to summarily suspend certifications for one or more of these individuals, I am willing to allow you, or an investigator with your Division, to review the investigation in this matter if you so wish.”

But she said it was determined that Noblin and Corley should not be subjects of a criminal prosecution because the actions were deemed “isolated incidents.” Rather, the individuals should be reported to the education and training standards division, as well as the agency head or employer and to the district attorney “for determinations as to these individuals’ status of employment, certification and capacity as a witness in other criminal matters,” the letter stated.

In a follow-up email from Freeman today (Wednesday), she said that because Noblin tendered his resignation he is “not subject to a criminal investigation or prosecution based on this singular incident” and it is “a matter that is appropriately handled administratively.”

County Attorney Wrenn told WIZS News today (Wednesday) that Chief Deputy Chris Smoot will step in until the county commissioners appoint someone to fill the unexpired term of sheriff. The commissioners have, as yet, made no decision on appointing anyone to fill the unexpired term, Wrenn stated.

“In resigning and not pursuing law enforcement employment, Mr. Noblin has put his agency above his personal ambition,” Freeman told WIZS News. “This now gives this department and the people of Granville County a chance to start a new era for the Granville County Sheriff Office through an election that is upcoming. Law enforcement have difficult jobs within our communities and it is critical that they work to maintain the public trust.  A strict commitment to maintaining credibility and adhering to qualification requirements is essential to being able to do this,” she stated.

The Granville County Commissioners appointed Noblin to fill the unexpired term of Wilkins, and he assumed the duties of sheriff in January 2020.