Vance County Sheriff: Two Arrested On Drugs Charges

/by

 – Press release from Vance County Sheriff Curtis Brame

On Thursday, June 12, 2025 members of the Vance County Sheriff’s Office VICE/Narcotics Unit and the HPD Narcotics Unit executed a search warrant at 2006 Julia Ave., Henderson, NC 27537 following a month’s long investigation into crack cocaine sales from the residence.

Investigators located and seized Crack Cocaine, Marijuana, a stolen ATV and other items of drug manufacturing equipment from the residence. Reuben Cooper was arrested and charged with Possession with intent to manufacture, sell and deliver SCH II, Felony Possession of Cocaine, Maintaining a Dwelling for Selling Controlled Substance, Possession of stolen property and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.

Ruby Cooper was charged with Possession of stolen property and Maintaining a Dwelling for Selling Controlled Substances.

Reuben Cooper was given a $120,000 secured bond and Ruby Cooper was given a bond of $60,000.

Both were placed in the Vance County Jail.

Vance County Man Arrested On Drug, Weapon Charges

/by

— Press release from Vance County Sheriff Curtis Brame

On or about the 16th day of June, 2025, the Vance County Sheriff’s Office, along with the Henderson Police Department Narcotics and Vice Unit and the NCSBI, executed a Search Warrant for illegal drugs in the Williamsboro community at 141 Cardinal Lane, Henderson N.C. 27537.

The execution was the result of a multi-agency investigation regarding illegal drug sales from suspects located within the above residence.

At the time of service of the search warrant, investigators found the home to be occupied by Obryant Keith Clark, age 49 of that address.

During the search, investigators located certain quantities of cocaine, crack cocaine, and marijuana.  Additionally, one firearm and various items of drug paraphernalia was located.

Clark faces the following charges made as a result of the investigation:

  • Possession with intent to manufacture, sell and deliver Cocaine
  • Maintaining a Dwelling to Keep/Sell/Store a Controlled Substance
  • Possession of a Firearm by a Felon
  • Possession of marijuana
  • Possession of Drug Paraphernalia

A secured bond of $50,000 was set by a magistrate.

 

TownTalk: 9th Annual Bee Jubilee Buzzes Into Granville County Expo Center Saturday, June 28

/by

The 9th annual Bee Jubilee and Food Truck Rodeo will take place on Saturday, June 28 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Granville County Convention & Expo Center.

Christy Henthorn, one of the event organizers, said the daylong celebration of all things “bee” has something for everyone, from educational workshops to live entertainment and a live auction – not to mention all the honey and beeswax products that will be available for purchase.

The event is free to the public and has evolved from a small event with a couple of hundred visitors to one that attracts thousands of folks from near and far.

There are additional children’s activities planned for this year, Henthorn said. “It will be very well rounded…there will be something for everyone.”

Anticipating hot temperatures, there will be a misting tent to help visitors keep cool, but there’s another activity that’s going to make an even bigger splash – a dunk tank.

Sign up to spend 15 minutes in the dunk tank and help raise money that will be sent to beekeepers in western North Carolina who lost hives in last fall’s flooding.

The event, hosted by the Granville County Beekeepers, celebrates all types of pollinators, Henthorn said, from honeybees to native bees, and other animals that pollinate, from insects to birds and other animals.

Workshops will be held throughout the morning on a variety of topics including Beekeeping 101, apitherapy (bee venom therapy) and planting for pollinators.

The live auction will begin at 1:30 p.m. and there will be a competition that judges local honey and products made with local honey and beeswax.

Find out all the details, including rules and categories for the judging competition at https://granvillecobeekeepers.wildapricot.org/BEE-JUBILEE

Click Play!

Home and Garden Show

/by

Home and Garden Show with Vance Co. Cooperative Ext.

Click Play

Vance County Logo

TownTalk: Commissioners Expected To Adopt $66M Budget Monday, June 23

/by

The Vance County Board of Commissioners is expected to adopt the FY 2025-26 budget at a meeting to be held at 4 p.m. on June 23. At a budget work session on Monday, June 16, commissioners discussed increasing teacher supplements, skyrocketing insurance costs and cost-of-living adjustments – all of which contributed to $3.1 million in new expenses that caused the budget to be about 10 percent more than last year’s approved budget.

County Manager C. Renee Perry said the 2025-26 budget stands at $66,383,251, which is $1.4 million more than the budget that she presented to commissioners in May.

Perry said $4,068,875 will come from the general fund to balance the budget.

With $1.2 million for health insurance, $1.2 million in additional funds to the school system and $750,000 in cost-of-living adjustments for county employees, the budget had no way to go but up.

Vance County Schools will use the extra $1.2 million to cover a supplement increase to $1,000 for certified teachers and a 2 percent adjustment for classified staff. “This will be recurring annually and it’s three pennies of the tax increase from last year,” Perry told WIZS News Tuesday morning.

During the budget work session, Commission Chair Carolyn Faines vocalized support for teachers. Despite decreasing enrollment, school consolidation and fewer teachers working in the district, Faines said, “Teachers are still teaching…it’s not about how many students or how many teachers.”

Commissioner Leo Kelly advocated for the supplement increase to show “we support you and we’re doing everything we can to keep you,” Kelly said. “I support giving them as much as we can.”

Property and liability insurance rates also climbed by $85,000, Perry said, because of the situation with the Department of Social Services child welfare liabilities takeover by the state and the ongoing issues at the detention center. And Perry Memorial Library Director Patti McNally asked for an additional $63,000 for library employees’ health insurance.

The rates had not been released when the library budget request was submitted, Perry said, so that’s why it was not included in the original request. Library employees are included among those who get health insurance from the county.

“At some point, we have to have discussions on how to possibly reduce our budget,” Perry stated to commissioners, “but also increase our tax base with economic development – we have to.”

About 20 minutes into the work session, Commissioner Tommy Hester asked where the county could look to decrease the budget.

“I’m going to bring up a touchy subject and I might as well bring it up now while we’re looking at a decrease,” Hester said.

He continued by stating that the Vance County Rescue Squad has received more than $785,000 in the past 35 months – that’s about $25,000 a month, he figured.

How much money would the county save if the rescue squad functions were placed under the umbrella of the Vance County Fire Department?

Addressing commissioners, Fire Chief Marvin Harrison said it would be a matter of millions, over 15 or 20 years’ time.

The current contract with the rescue squad ends on June 30, 2025, and commissioners agreed that a 90-day extension would allow for adequate discussion. Faines said she would like to have rescue squad representatives come to the July meeting.

Perry told WIZS News Tuesday that “the rescue squad would be funded for 90 days while Vance County Fire Department purchases equipment and apparatus needed to provide the same service that the rescue squad offers. “A lot of people in this community think that because it’s in Vance County that that’s part of the county. It is not,” Hester emphasized.

Harrison told commissioners that the county has sufficient staff trained for rescue to be successful if a consolidation occurs. Perry confirmed that statement Tuesday. “The county fire department has staff trained currently as well as other volunteer fire agencies trained to assist if needed.”

What the county lacks is the equipment necessary to do the job properly.

Harrison said the rescue squad is supposed to provide the services of heavy rescue, water rescue and another service that he didn’t specify.

Brummitt said the rescue squad assists firefighters on calls. “They…provide air bottles when they’re on scene, they refill air bottles when they’re fighting fires.”

Harrison said it would cost roughly $150,000 – a one-time cost – to purchase the equipment needed to perform the rescue services.

Click Play!

Perry Memorial Library

The Local Skinny! Perry Memorial Library Activities Heat Up As Summer Approaches

/by

There’s a “sit-in” planned for next week outside Perry Memorial Library, but it has nothing to do with protests – it’s a Community Read-In, and Youth Services Director Melody Peters says it’s a great way for folks to come out to show support for all the benefits of reading.

The invitation is open for anyone and everyone to gather on the lawn outside the library from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Wednesday, June 25. Bring a lawn chair and bring your favorite printed material – whether that’s a book, magazine or newspaper – and enjoy reading with your neighbors.

Peters said she got the idea for the “read-in” at a recent community meeting where the discussion centered around ways to help the community move forward. “We need to show solidarity around something positive,” Peters said on Tuesday’s segment of The Local Skinny!

“Reading is positive. It’s peaceful. We want to see people reading,” she said. “In a world of electronics and AI, we need books.”

There’s another program taking place in the community that is gaining traction. There are book baskets located across the county that contain three different books that are free for the taking – it’s another effort to bring books to folks who may not be able to get to the library and to support the idea that reading is an enjoyable pastime. Peters said the program is proving to be successful. “It is so exciting…the books are moving,” she said.

This is the first time she’s doing this program, and she’s pleased so far. “You put things together and you never know how it’s going to work” until  it gets going, she said.

The book baskets are located at Perry Memorial Library and at the following spots:

  • Aycock Recreation Center
  • Carolina Peanut Factory
  • Duke Primary Care Henderson
  • Henderson Family YMCA
  • Oasis of Hope Ministries
  • Sadie’s Coffee Corner
  • Starbucks, 1522 Dabney Dr.
  • Vance County Regional Farmers Market
  • Vanco Outdoor Equipment, 296 US 158

 

But reading isn’t the only thing that Peters is promoting – Saturday, June 21 is the Vance County Arts Council’s ‘Make Music Day’ and the library is the place where the day-long event will kick off.

“We’re having a musical storytime this Saturday at 12:30,” Peters said. Participants will sing songs, read stories about music and even make their own musical instrument with dry rice, a plastic egg and colorful duct tape.

Visit https://vanceartscouncil.com/event/make-music-day-saturday-june-21-2025/ for a full list of events for Make Music Day.

If you’re still looking for some fun reading activities, bring the kiddos to Family Storytime at the library on Sunday, June 22 at 3:30 p.m. The theme is “Summer” and Peters said they’ll read a story about summertime and an accompanying craft activity.

Throughout the summer, Peters said Tuesdays and Thursdays are “the” days for programming and activities.

On Tuesday, June 24, a local mobile petting zoo – yes! A mobile petting zoo called Zoo on the MOOVE will bring some of their favorite furry friends for a fun, interactive visit that begins at 11 a.m.

“These are their animals,” Peters said of the owners. “They love their animals and they want to share them with others.” Kids (and grownups, too) will get to interact with the animals and the owners will share information about them.

Then, at 4 p.m., staff from the Vance County Animal Shelter will bring some of their favorite dogs and cats who are looking for that “furever” home for a visit. Peters said the cats and dogs are always a big crowd favorite. Kids will get a chance to make dog toys out of old t-shirts and socks.

Visit https://www.perrylibrary.org/home to see a complete listing of programs and activities taking place at the library.

 

 

 

Click Play!

Ryan Preble Named Franklin County Manager

/by

— information courtesy of Franklin County Public Information Officer James F. Hicks III

The Franklin County Board of County Commissioners has selected Ryan Preble as its new county manager.

Preble, who has been Interim County Manager since November 2024, was appointed unanimously at the June 16 regular meeting of the Franklin County Board of County Commissioners following a national search.

“I am honored and humbled by the confidence that the Board has placed in me,” Preble said. “I look forward to working with the Board and department leaders to address the challenges together.”

Preble served as Assistant County Manager from January 25, 2023, until being named Interim County Manager on November 4, 2024. Previously, he served as Chief Information Officer and Project Management Director in Wayne County from 2016 until 2023. He also worked as an Enterprise Project Manager for Alliance One International in Farmville and as a Management Information Systems Supervisor for McRae & Associates. He served in various Information Technology roles with the United States Air Force and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization for more than 11 years.

After the Board of County Commissioners approved the FY26 Budget earlier in the meeting, Commissioner Logan Davis commended Preble for his leadership during the process.

“It is a tall, tall task, it is a hard job,” Davis said to Preble. “You did a phenomenal job leading.”

Preble graduated from the University of Mount Olive with a bachelor’s degree in computer information systems. He also obtained a master’s degree in information technology with a concentration in project management and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Maryland Global Campus. He has also completed the Municipal and County Administration course with the UNC School of Government and is a Certified Government Chief Information Officer.

Cooperative Extension: Disaster Preparedness, Pesticide Class, Master Gardener Training

/by

Michael Ellington, on the Vance County Cooperative Extension Report:

This segment has a few brief tips on how to be better prepared for disasters. It also reminds license holders of an upcoming pesticide class and announces an upcoming Master Gardener training course.

Links — go.ncsu.edu/commercialpesticide — https://ncdisaster.ces.ncsu.edu/preparedness/

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

Click Play!