Vance Sheriff: Butner Man Held Under $2M Bond On Kidnapping, Sex-Related Charges

/by

–      press release from Vance County Sheriff Curtis Brame

On July 8, 2024, the Vance County Sheriff’s Office received a report for a Sexual Exploitation of a Minor.

The Vance County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations Division opened an investigation into the allegation.

The reporting person alleged that Dhamani Fields, age 27 of Butner, NC had solicited a female juvenile for the purposes of performing sexual acts multiple times.

As a result of the investigation, Fields was charged with two counts of 2nd Degree Kidnapping, one count of 1st Degree Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, two counts of Indecent Liberties with a Minor, two counts of Soliciting a Minor for Prostitution, and two counts of Statutory Sexual Offense of a Child 15 years or younger.

On July 9, 2024, with the assistance of Butner Public Safety, Fields was taken into custody without incident in Butner, NC and transported back to Vance County, NC. Fields received a $2,000,000 secured bond for the charges listed and was confined to the Vance County Jail.

The investigation into this incident is still ongoing and anyone with additional information regarding this incident is encouraged to contact the Vance County Sheriff’s Office at 252.738.2200, or Henderson-Vance Crime Stoppers at 252.492.1925 or through the P3 app.

TownTalk: Renee Perry’s First 8 Months As County Manager

/by

Vance County Manager C. Renee Perry has been on the job for eight months, and during that time, she’s had plenty of issues to deal with – filling vacant positions, finalizing the county’s budget and getting up to speed about ongoing challenges involving possible restructure of the fire services, a revaluation and dismissal of a key county official.

For a “glass-half-empty” person, navigating these sometimes choppy waters could be overwhelming. But Perry’s glass seems to always be  at least half-full, and when she came on board, she said she was “excited to begin the journey.”

Perry’s first day on the job was Nov. 1, 2023, having been the deputy county manager in Halifax County.

She viewed numerous director vacancies in four county departments not as negatives, but as opportunities to build her leadership team and move forward. One director took another position within the county, another left citing family needs, and others left the county to pursue other opportunities. The finance director, however, was dismissed in February 2024 amid a cloud of suspicion of fraud and other allegations that remain under investigation.

And, one by one, those vacancies have been filled: Budget and Finance director, Animal Services manager, Planning director, Elections director.

On Tuesday, Perry announced that Ferdinand Rouse would begin his role as the county’s economic development director on Monday, July 15.

All the while, Perry was putting together the county’s budget with the added wrinkle of considering results of a property revaluation that occurs every 8 years and guiding commissioners to set a palatable tax rate that would allow the county to continue planning several capital projects, including a new jail, EMS building, 911 call center and more.

And there’s still four months until Perry celebrates her first year of occupying the county manager’s office.

CLICK PLAY!

 

TownTalk: Medical Arts Named MVP – Most Valuable Pharmacy!

/by

Medical Arts Pharmacy has been awarded the 2024 Dan Moudry Most Valuable Pharmacy award from a national pharmacy cooperative.

Chocky White accepted the award on June 24 during the annual business meeting of the Independent Pharmacy Cooperative in New Orleans.

The IPC has been around for more than 40 years – almost as long as White has been operating as a pharmacist.

He came to Henderson in 1971, fresh out of pharmacy school, and set up shop. What began as a one-man show has evolved into a staff of more than 40, including six pharmacists.

White places a priority on establishing and maintaining good relationships with his customers. “We love interacting with our patients,” he said on Wednesday’s segment of TownTalk. “We feel like that’s the most important aspect of our business.”

Daughter Cara White Kirby, who also is the company’s vice president, said her dad is a stickler for excellent customer service, encouraging – and expecting – everyone on the payroll to over-deliver in that department.

White said Henderson had seven independent pharmacies when he came on the scene. “It was slow growth for me the first 10 years or so,” he recalled. “But I gradually earned people’s support…and have grown steadily over the past 50 years. It’s been my lifetime job and I’ve loved every second of it.”

When IPC reps contacted Cara to make sure her dad would be at the pharmacy when they came to visit, she said it wouldn’t be a problem – if the pharmacy’s open, her dad’s there, she said.

“We knew we were finalists,” she said, “but when they came with balloons and a cake,” she knew something else was afoot.

“I was shocked,” said Chocky. “I thought it was somebody’s birthday.” Cara said there was a whole group of folks filming and taking photos while the pharmacy staff was helping customers and filling prescriptions.

The resulting video was shown at the meeting last month during the award presentation. “They did a beautiful job of showing off our pharmacy inside and out,” Chocky said.

The Wisconsin-based IPC is a network of more than 2,000 members who purchase pharmaceuticals, equipment and merchandise available for purchase at the independent pharmacies.

“We have a very large inventory here,” Chocky said, which benefits customers who need meds or other equipment quickly – even after-hours.

White’s been known to be at the store on nights and weekends – even Christmas Day last year.

“We’re not always open, but we’ll be here if you need us. We do whatever it takes to serve our customers,” he said.

CLICK PLAY!

 

Home And Garden Show

/by

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

  •  Farmer’s Market
  • Keep Hydrated in hot weather
  • Irrigation
  • Harvest vegetables early in the morning
  • Tomatoes suffering in heat
  • Soil Samples
  • Harvest vegetables daily
  • Prepare for fall gardens

Click Play!

 

Triangle North Business Park Among Top 15 In State For Economic Development Prospects

/by

Granville County’s Triangle North Business Park has been included among the top 15 locations in the state best positioned to successfully serve major advanced manufacturing projects as part of the state’s Selectsite Readiness Program.

The SRP was created by the General Assembly in 2023 to support the development of sites that will increase the  state’s competitiveness for new or expanded major manufacturing projects in key industries, according to information from Granville County Public Information Officer Terry Hobgood.

The Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina contracted with Site Selection Group, a national site selection firm, and Thomas & Hutton, a full-service engineering and design firm, to evaluate sites across North Carolina to determine those best positioned to serve potential advanced manufacturing  projects.

Triangle North Granville was submitted and approved from among 60 sites that were being considered using criteria including technical/engineering assessments, evaluation of workforce availability, site development costs and overall operating costs.

“Having Granville County and Triangle North recognized by EDPNC as a top fifteen site for economic development is a huge win for our community,” said Tim Karan, chair of the Granville County Board of Commissioners. “Granville County is, and will remain, a top choice for industries seeking to locate or expand in  North Carolina. Being added to the SRP shows the effects of Granville County’s investment in Triangle North to enhance thoughtful and desirable economic development opportunities for our citizens.”

In recent months, Granville County has begun to install water and sewer infrastructure to make Triangle North more desirable to industrial development and has entered into a contract with Portman Industrial, LLC for the sale of 127.16 acres in Triangle North. Portman plans to construct buildings totaling 940,000 square feet, which will be built to accommodate targeted industries that will bring higher tax values and higher paying jobs to the county. Portman Industrial plans to complete the construction of both buildings by early 2026. Vance-Granville Community College is also moving forward with plans to construct an Advanced Manufacturing Center at Triangle North.

The fifteen sites added to the North Carolina SRP are:

  • Triangle North Granville Business Park – Granville County
  • Claremont International Rail Park – Catawba County
  • Triangle Innovation Point West – Chatham County
  • Reedy Fork Industrial Site – Guilford County
  • Crown Industrial Site – Guilford County
  • US 301 Industrial Site – Halifax County
  • Ferncliff Park – Henderson County
  • North Carolina Global TransPark North Site – Lenoir County
  • Holly Shelter Business Park – New Hanover County
  • Farmville Corporate Park – Pitt County
  • Energy Way Industrial Park – Richmond County
  • Expressway Commerce Park @ Monroe South – Union County
  • Camp Helix – Wake County
  • ParkEast Ivey Site – Wayne County
  • Carolinian Innovation Park – Wilson County

For more information about the SRP, read the full report at the EDPNC website https://edpnc.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/SRP-Report-and-Cover-Letter-FINAL-07.01.2024.pdf.

Vance County Logo

Vance County Names New Economic Development Director

/by

Vance County has named Ferdinand A. Rouse as its new Economic Development director.

Rouse has served as coordinator of Raleigh’s Small Business Development Programs and also has been an economic development specialist in Adams County, CO.

He will begin his work with Vance County on Monday, July 15, according to Vance County Manager C. Renee Perry.

“I am honored and excited to have the opportunity to serve the citizens of Vance County,” Rouse said in a press release received from Perry earlier today (Tuesday).

In addition to his work in Raleigh, Rouse has worked as Minority and Women Business coordinator for the city of Greenville. He has an undergraduate degree from UNC-Charlotte and a master’s degree in business administration from ECU.

He is a certified Economic Developer and is recognized by the International Economic Development Council.

“I am more than thrilled to bring Mr. Rouse on board with the rest of the Vance County team,” Perry stated. “Ferdinand’s education and experience are a perfect fit for our needs right now.”

Wil Short Files For Seat On Soil & Water District Board

/by

One candidate has filed to run for supervisor of the Vance County Soil & Water Conservation, according to Shelly Wood, deputy director of the Vance County Board of Elections.

The filing period ended at 12 noon on Friday, July 5.

Wil Short filed as a candidate, Wood stated in an email to WIZS News.

The district board is made up of five supervisors, two of which are appointed and three of which are elected.

City Road Center Of Hope Move-In Update

/by

The new Community Partners of City Road Center of Hope men’s shelter is taking shape, and Director Darryl Jones said they’ve gotten everything into position that they can as they await those final inspections that will give them the green light to officially move in.

There are some doors and partitions that still need to be installed, Jones told WIZS News on Monday.

“We’ve moved all we can right now” Jones said, but there are other ways that folks can help out.

Jones said the shelter needs volunteers, especially for the welcome shift that occurs nightly between 5:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.

Volunteers also are needed to sign up to provide meals.

Visit cp-hope.org to learn how you can help.

 

TownTalk: Hicks Serves As Governor’s Page

/by

Connor Hicks is a young man with goals and aspirations. As the 17-year-old prepares to begin his senior year at Henderson Collegiate, he’s got his eyes not just on graduation, but on what he’ll be doing after he gets that well-earned diploma.

In order to graduate, Henderson Collegiate requires its seniors to complete a project. Hicks was doing a little online research using resources from school counselors and he came upon something that piqued his interest: the Governor’s Page Program.

“I thought it would be a good opportunity so I applied,” Hicks said on Tuesday’s TownTalk.

He was part of a group of fewer than a dozen others selected to participate in the program during the week just following Memorial Day. He spent May 28-31 in Raleigh and said he got to visit different departments of state government and see how government functions and who’s in charge – from the governor and lieutenant governor on down.

He didn’t get to meet Gov. Roy Cooper, but Hicks said he did learn how to be a better teammate – “how to be a member of a team.”

He may want to review those notes if his post-graduation plans come to fruition as he hopes: if all goes according to plan, Hicks will be joining the U.S. Marines.

“He makes me and his dad both real proud,” said his mother, Margaret. “Since he was about 11 or 12, that’s all he wanted to do – go in the service.”

His dad served in the Navy, he had uncles in the Army and his brother was in the Air Force, but Hicks said he’s got his sights on the Marines.

“It makes me feel like I’m doing something that’s bigger than myself,” he said, adding that he takes pride in knowing that he will be part of a branch of the military service that will defend the United States and its freedoms.

“It makes us really proud that he wants to go and serve his country,” his mother said.

Learn more about the Governor’s Page Program at https://governor.nc.gov/governors-page-program.

 

 

CLICK PLAY!