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Bigelow Out As County’s Chief Finance Officer

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Vance County Deputy County Manager/Chief Finance Officer Katherine Bigelow was relieved of her duties last week, according to County Manager Renee Perry, for fraud and falsification of records for personal profit.

“Katherine was terminated as of Feb. 9 – last Friday,” Perry told WIZS News.

Perry said Bigelow, who had said she was a licensed certified public accountant, used a license number that does not belong to her. “Katherine is not licensed as a CPA,” Perry said.

“The county has to go through an audit every year,” Perry explained, adding that “if a person identifies as a CPA, then auditors request copies of your certification.”

She said Bigelow, who has been the finance director since 2019, submitted “a certification for a CPA licensure that did not belong to her…she misrepresented herself with someone else’s licensure as a CPA.”

Just last month, Perry announced that county commissioners had agreed to a $25,000 bump in pay for Bigelow, bringing her salary to $136,503. That’s when her title was updated to Deputy County Manager/Chief Finance Officer.

Perry said the job posting was put on the county’s website after Bigelow was terminated.

“I wasn’t playing,” Perry said. “I couldn’t wait.”

Chuck Murray, who served as interim finance director before Bigelow came on board, will again serve as interim, beginning Monday, Perry said. He will help out two or three days a week.

A CPA licensure is not a requirement for the position of county finance director.

Perry cited the section in the county personnel policy that refers to “detrimental personal conduct for fraud and falsification of records for personal profit, to gain special privileges or to obtain employment” as the basis for the termination.

SportsTalk: UNC Baseball Starts Friday

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Former Kerr-Vance Academy standout and Granville County native Daniel Wilkerson is excited about Friday!  Wilkerson, assistant to the head coach for UNC Baseball, is ready to get the 15th-ranked Tar Heels on the field for the first game of the season Friday.  “I can’t sleep the night before.  It’s like Christmas morning,” Wilkerson said.

The Tar Heels open the season with a three-game series against Wagner.  The first game is Friday afternoon at 4 p.m.  The Tar Heels are just one of six ACC teams ranked in the top 15 nationally including No. 1 ranked Wake Forest.  “We didn’t play them last year and I can’t wait to go to Winston-Salem this year,” Wilkerson said.  “The rankings are meaningless.  I ignore the rankings.  We still have to go win baseball games,” Wilkerson added.

Wilkerson is also excited about his team’s prospects.  “We’ve got young arms and a good pitching staff.  We are deep in the bull pen,” said Wilkerson.

Daniel Wilkerson joined the UNC baseball program as Assistant to the head Coach and Clubhouse/Equipment manager during the 2022 fall semester.

 

Crossroads Christian School

SportsTalk: Crossroads Gets Ready For Tournament

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Scottie Richardson has reason to be happy, back-to-back regular season championships for the Crossroads Christian boys basketball team.  Richardson, the school’s athletic director, was a guest on Wednesday’s Sportstalk, and he said, “The boys will get a bye in the first round and we will play at home at 2 p.m. Saturday.”  The opponent will be the winner of the New Garden/Halifax matchup.

Richardson is very proud of the accomplishments of his team.  “This is the third year in a row the boys team has been a top 4 seed.  “We’ve played New Garden three times this year and I think we will play them a fourth time Saturday,” Richardson added.

His girls team is also in the state tournament and plays at 6 p.m. Friday against Albemarle.  “If they win, they will play again Saturday against Ridgecroft,” Richardson said.

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TownTalk: Linda Cobb, Board of Education Candidate

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Vance County Board of Education member Linda Cobb, seeking re-election to the District 5 seat, said the school district faces challenges common in many districts, and applauds leaders for their innovative efforts to provide a quality education experience for students and teachers.

Cobb was first appointed in 2019 to fill an unexpired term on the board of education, then was elected in 2020.

The county’s schools aren’t immune to challenges like bus drivers and attracting and retaining certified teachers, but Cobb said she celebrates successes like the creation of the SPARK lab to help students discover future career paths through hands-on experiences.

Her vision for the school system is “to lead and guide our students to success once they finish high school,” she said.

A couple of priorities she has on her radar include building community relationships and making sure students are “catching up” from COVID. “We can’t blame everything on COVID, but we need to make sure we have enough tutors in schools and teachers to teach the kids…what they need to know to progress to the next level,” she said.

Having been an instructor at Vance-Granville Community College for 20 years, she said she’s worked with students who are products of Vance County Schools. In close to 30 years in her role with the Department of Social Services, she’s worked with a variety of people, including children.

She continues that work in her role as a school board member, which includes strategizing “very carefully how we spend the money.”

“Our needs are growing,” she said, “but the amount of money coming to the district is not growing with the need.”

Money that comes from federal and state streams is usually already designated for particular budget items, and Cobb said she believes the district is managing those funds very well. “We just had a clean audit report,” she added.

Some of the stimulus money from the federal government was used for bonuses to employees and to other sustainable things, she said – not on one-off funding for seed money.”

“We always have to put the students first…(making sure) that they’re getting the very best education they can.”

Early voting is underway for the Mar. 5 primary elections.

 

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TownTalk: William Purvis, Board Of Education Candidate

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William Earl Purvis said he is promoting a “vision for transformation” in his bid for a seat on the Vance County Board of Education. Purvis faces incumbent and fellow Democrat Linda Cobb for the District 5 seat.

Henderson voters may remember his name from his unsuccessful bid for City Council in 2022; Purvis said his experience as an educator in a neighboring county, his background as a pastor and his training as a licensed clinician all serve to make him the right person for the job.

“I’ve talked to many parents, students and teachers,” he told WIZS News on a segment of TownTalk that aired Wednesday. “They want a voice,” and he said he would work to collaborate with the community to shape the board’s decisions.

Purvis said he’d like to have quarterly “town hall type” meetings to share with the community what’s going on in the school system.

The school system does a good job collaborating with the community now, he said. “It’s my job (to) take that even further and enhance it with all our students.”

He said his work as a clinician, pastor and educator all serve to make him an advocate for children and for school system employees.

“We’re all in this together to build a successful school system,” he said, adding that he would work to improve low-performing schools and would support all staff – teachers, administrators, custodians – to effect change.

He said he would work to promote school safety, mental health services, programs for parents and appropriate and fair building codes if he’s elected to the school board.

He’d also like to find ways to recognize students for successes that aren’t limited to academics or athletics.

“We need to recognize our kids with disabilities,” he said. “I have a spirit to advocate for the children.”

His platform is not focused on one district; rather, he is interested in what’s going on in all schools.

“I plan to lift up the school system,” he said. “If I’m elected, you will not be disappointed.”

 

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Home And Garden Show

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On the Home and Garden Show with Vance Co. Cooperative Ext.

  • If you have plants in a greenhouse or cold frame, always check the projected high temperature for the day 70F or higher. You will need to ventilate your greenhouse or cold frame.  Also have a good thermometer in these structures.
  • Do not over water seedlings in greenhouse or cold frame
  • When pruning, always wear safety glasses and gloves.
  • Cut back ornamental grasses and liriope, but be careful not to cut into emerging growth.
  • Get your Piedmont Planting guide from Cooperative Extension
  • Do a germination test on old seed.
  • Have all your lawn mowers serviced before the rush

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Early Voting Information For Granville Voters

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One-stop early voting for the Mar. 5 primary begins in less than two days and the Granville County Board of Elections reminds voters to bring a photo ID to make your trip to the polls smooth and simple.

The early voting begins Thursday, Feb. 15 and continues through Saturday, Mar. 2. The polls will be open from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. on each day and from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Mar. 2. Granville County have three options to cast their vote before the Mar. 5 primary:

  • Oxford Public Works building meeting room 127 Penn Ave., Oxford
  • South Branch Library multipurpose room, 1550 South Campus Dr., Creedmoor
  • Tar River Elementary School gymnasium, 2642 Philo White Rd., Franklinton

*Philo White Road is located off Hwy. 96 before the intersection with Hwy. 56 and is within Granville County, despite the Franklinton mailing address

To learn more about the upcoming elections, visit https://www.granvillecounty.org/government/board-of-elections/2024-primary-election/ or call the Board of Elections at 919.693.2515.

TownTalk: County Shell Building Deal Falls Through

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An optimistic person may look at the completed – and unoccupied – shell building at the Henderson-Vance Industrial Park and say “if you build it, they will come.”

The pessimist may say “don’t count your chickens before they hatch.”

Well, the shell building was built and a buyer in hand, until the 11th hour when the deal fell through.

That’s when Henderson-Vance Industrial Park, Inc. President Dan Brummitt summed up the process like a realist: “That’s real estate.”

Brummitt told WIZS News Tuesday that the deal that had seemed sewn up had, in fact, died.

The unnamed buyer had requested a 7-day extension right before the deal was to close, and then another 30-day extension after that. On the last day of the last extension, and right before the due diligence period was set to expire, the buyer backed out.

County Attorney Jonathan Care told WIZS News in an email that both sides had been in negotiations during the extension periods, but “the buyer’s agent told us in the final hour of the last day of the extension period for due diligence that the buyer would not be
proceeding forward, and (is) terminating the contract.”

The building is owned by the Henderson-Vance Industrial Park, Inc. – not by the city or the county, Care said.

“This is what we did not want to happen, as the building has been off the market now for several months, interest has continued to accrue on the construction loan, and the Industrial Park is back at square one with getting the building sold.”

Brummitt said that interest in the building is good and so it’s on to the next purchaser.

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TownTalk: City Council Addresses Trash Issue; New Fire Truck

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The Henderson City Council gave the green light Monday to fire department officials to apply for a $2.5 million FEMA grant to purchase a new ladder truck.

The department’s ladder truck has been out of commission since April 2023 and isn’t expected to come back into service for several more months.

The Council voted unanimously to provide the 5 percent match – roughly $119,000 – required by FEMA grant.

The fire department’s ISO rating could be in jeopardy if there’s no ladder truck available to answer calls or provide mutual aid when needed.

Direct quote from agenda:

“This grant will enable the fire department to purfhase a new aerial apparatus to provide adequate fire protection coverage for areas within the municipality and mutual aid districts when necessary.

Council members also voted to amend the Sanitation Ordinance in an effort to cut down on excess garbage and litter.

Customers are supposed to put all their refuse inside the rolling container provided through GFL – they’re not supposed to pile up extra bags beside the container for pickup.

Following Monday’s action, customers will be warned when they are out of compliance. After the third warning, the city will “provide” them with a second container – at the resident’s expense, which they’ll see in their monthly bill.

This had been discussed at the November 2023 Public Works Committee meeting, and it was brought back to Council Monday for review.

Listen back to Tuesday’s TownTalk to learn about other topics of discussion at the Feb. 12 City Council meeting.

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