NCDHHS Info Session About Ages 5-11 Covid Vaccine

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Update 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov 9 — If you did not get to listen live, it is still possible to watch it on social media.  The NCDHHS social media feed of the event is embedded here.

— press release from NCDHHS Monday, November 8, 2021

NCDHHS to Host Livestream Fireside Chat and Tele-Town Hall on COVID-19 Vaccines for Children Ages 5-11 on Nov. 9

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services will host a live fireside chat and tele-town hall on Tuesday, Nov. 9, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. to discuss the safety and effectiveness of the recently approved Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5–11.

NCDHHS Secretary Mandy K. Cohen, M.D, will host the event and will be joined by pediatrician Rasheeda Monroe, M.D. Dr. Monroe currently serves as the Medical Director of Primary Care Pediatrics at WakeMed. She is also the Raleigh area Campus Director of the UNC School of Medicine and the Director to the Kenan Urban Scholars program at the UNC School of Medicine.

Molly Grantham — WBTV news anchor, author, speaker and mom of three children — will moderate the conversation.

The fireside chat will livestream from both the NCDHHS and WBTV social media accounts and will also include a tele-town hall feature. Households will be invited by phone to listen in and submit questions to help ensure everyone interested can participate. People can also dial into the event by calling 855-756-7520 Ext.76807#.

This event comes as the FDA recently authorized and the CDC now recommends a lower-dose Pfizer vaccine for children ages 5–11. Children are vulnerable to the COVID-19 virus just like everyone else, and the vaccine provides a safe, tested way to help keep them healthy.

To date, more than 69% of teens between the ages of 12 and 17, and 71% of adults, have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.

Watch the livestreams on NCDHHS social media platforms: Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

NCDHHS fireside chats and tele-town halls are part of the state’s ongoing public engagement to slow the spread of COVID-19 and ensure equitable access to timely information, resources and COVID-19 vaccines.

Franklin County Logo

Renovated Franklin Plaza New Home to Several County Agencies

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Several Franklin County offices have moved to newly renovated space in Franklin Plaza on Bickett Boulevard.

The phone numbers remain the same, but the Board of Elections, Veterans Services and the Franklin Senior Center all now have office suites at 279 Bickett Boulevard, according to information from county officials.

The space also offers a multi-use, convertible space that can be used for training sessions and large group gatherings, according to information from County Manager Kim Denton.

“Franklin County has recognized the need for expanded facilities to serve our growing population and support for this project is very much appreciated,” Denton stated.

Stay tuned for a grand opening in November during which time the public is invited to tour the facility and learn more about available services.

  • Veterans Services, Suite 200, 919.496.1939, mailing address: P.O. Box 128, Louisburg, NC 27549
  • Board of Elections, Suite 300, 919.496.3898, mailing address: P.O. Box 180, Louisburg, NC 27549
  • Senior Center, Suite 400, 919.496.1131, mailing address: 279 S. Bickett Blvd., Louisburg, NC 27549

Visit www.franklincountync.us for more information.

Warren County Adds 2 To Newly Merged Community and Economic Development Dept.

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The newly formed Warren County Community and Economic Development department has added two staff members to further the mission of comprehensive and strategic development for the county.

Cynthia Jones is the assistant director of the new department, which merged with the county’s planning and zoning department over the summer. Jones replaces Ken Krulik, who retired Oct. 1 after 14 years with the county planning and zoning department. The newly formed department also is responsible for GIS and code enforcement, according to a press release from Director Charla Duncan.

Rachel Wooster started a job as a developer in mid-September.

Jones will oversee the planning, zoning, code enforcement and GIS divisions. She is a native of Nash County and has 19 years of local government experience, having previously worked in Edgecombe and Nash counties and the city of Rocky Mount. Jones is a state-certified zoning official and a member of the North Carolina Community Development Association and the state chapter of the American Planning Association.

“I have no doubt in my mind that Cynthia will be an asset to our community and economic development team,” Duncan said. “As we work toward a new vision and strategy for these department divisions, Cynthia’s talent, experience and knowledge are going to strengthen the work that we are doing for Warren County.”

County Manager Vincent Jones said Cynthia Jones brings a strong planning background to the job. “She will be instrumental in helping us modernize our operations and grow our focus on community development going forward,” he added.

Wooster is a native of Raleigh. She was recently graduated from Appalachian State University with a degree in poliical science and public administration.

“Rachel has an energy and enthusiasm for development work that I believe will resonate with both our current and future residents and businesses,” Duncan stated.

“Our goal with community and economic development, especially now that we have countywide zoning, is for our planning and economic development divisions to work with each other and not in silos. As we enter into the beginning stages of our Comprehensive Development Plan update, it’s a perfect time to think about how we want to use our land, how we want to grow, and what actions we need to take to get there,” Duncan said.

Both Wooster and Jones have offices in the Warren County Health Department complex located at 542 W. Ridgeway St. in Warrenton.

Jones can be reached at cynthiajones@warrencountync.gov and Wooster can be reached at rachelwooster@warrencountync.gov.

For more information, contact Charla Duncan, Director of Warren County Community and Economic Development at charladuncan@warrencountync.gov or call 252.257.3115. Duncan’s office is located in the County Administrative Office Building at 602 W. Ridgeway St., Warrenton.

North Carolina’s August County and Area Employment Figures Released

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Not seasonally adjusted unemployment rates decreased in 93 North Carolina counties in August and increased in two. Five remained unchanged.

Vance County came in 98th out of 100 counties, being third worst, and Warren County was just behind at 97th.

Granville County was 16th best with Chatham at the top spot and Orange, Wake and Durham in this immediate area higher in the list as well.

Franklin County was listed in North Carolina Department of Commerce information at 51st.

Vance improved 0.3% from July to August. Granville improved 0.1% in the same period. Franklin was 0.2% percent better, and Warren was unchanged.

Vance is suffering from a 7.4% unemployment rate as it’s shown in the commerce documents because, of a workforce of 16,668, there are 1,229 without work.

Warren – 468 of the eligible 6,645 labor force are without a job.

Granville – 1,128 of 29,922 have no job.

Franklin – 1,409 of 32,183 are unemployed.

The August not seasonally adjusted statewide came in at 4.4 percent.

Easley Nominated For U.S. Attorney for Eastern District Of N.C.

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Raleigh attorney Michael F. Easley, Jr. has been nominated by President Joe Biden to be a U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina.

Easley is the son of former N.C. governor Mike Easley, who served from 2001-2009.

The younger Easley is a litigation partner at the law firm of McGuireWoods LLP, where he has practiced since 2010. His practice at McGuireWoods LLP has focused on government investigations and a range of civil and criminal matters in both state and federal courts. Easley also is a member of the Criminal Justice Act Panel for the Eastern District of North Carolina, through which he has provided legal representation to indigent clients under federal indictment or investigation. He currently serves as a Council Member for the Criminal Justice Section of the North Carolina Bar Association and a member of the Board of Visitors of the University of North Carolina. He has served on the board of directors for North Carolina’s Tenth Judicial District Bar and Wake County Bar Association.

Easley graduated with honors from UNC-Chapel Hill in 2007 and earned his juris doctorate from the 2010 UNC School of Law, from which he graduated with honors and distinction.

Tuesday Is National Voter Registration Day; Register By Oct. 8 To Vote In November

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Today is National Voter Registration Day and the state board of elections has issued a statement to remind eligible individuals to register to vote and for current voters to make sure their information is up-to-date.

The voter registration deadline for the November elections is Friday, Oct. 8.

“Voting is a critical way to make an impact in your city or town, county, state and country,” said Karen Brinson Bell, executive director of the state board. “If you’re eligible, we hope to see you at the polls this fall.”

In Vance County, although Henderson’s municipal elections have been rescheduled for next year to address the redrawing district lines to comply with Census data, Kittrell and Middleburg will have elections on Nov. 2.

Eligible residents have options to register, including downloading a voter registration application and returning the form to their county board of elections. Applications can be emailed, faxed, mailed or returned in person to your board of elections office.

Eligibility requirements and other information about registering to vote can be found at NCSBE.gov. Voters can check their registration status and information via the State Board of Elections’ Voter Search tool.

National Voter Registration Day is a nonpartisan civic holiday raising awareness for voter registration and encouraging Americans to register to vote. Since the first Voter Registration Day in 2012, more than 4.5 million voters nationwide have registered to vote on the holiday.

Franklin County Logo

Gena Mccray Appointed County Attorney For Franklin

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— press release courtesy of Franklin County

Franklin County, September 22, 2021: Franklin County Commissioners unanimously appointed Gena McCray of the firm of Gena Walling McCray, PLLC, to serve as County Attorney on September 20, 2021. McCray’s appointment is effective September 27, 2021.

McCray received her undergraduate degrees in English and Psychology from South Carolina College (University of South Carolina’s Honors College). She graduated from the University of South Carolina School of Law in Columbia, South Carolina with a Juris Doctor Degree. She was born in Orangeburg, South Carolina but has been a citizen of Franklin County since 2006 when she opened her practice in Louisburg.

While attending law school, McCray served as Clerk for the Honorable Judge C. Tolbert Goolsby at the South Carolina Court of Appeals and interned one summer in Raleigh for the North Carolina Family Policy Council gaining intimate knowledge of the legislative process in North Carolina. In her third year, she served as Clerk for the respected law firm of Sweeny, Wingate & Barrow, P.A. After law school graduation, she married Michael McCray and moved to Raleigh to practice family law, criminal law, parental rights cases, estates and civil litigation. In addition, McCray supervised Wake County’s Wills and Estates Division for the Clerk of Superior Court and gained valuable insight into Estate Administration, Special Proceedings and operations of the Clerk’s Office. McCray is licensed to practice law in North Carolina and South Carolina and a member of the North Carolina Bar Association, South Carolina Bar Association, and the 9th Judicial District.

McCray has experience in Franklin County Government having served as attorney for the Department of Social Services since 2016. She said, “I am honored to have the opportunity to serve the people of Franklin County and look forward to working in this new role.”

McCray and her husband, Michael, currently reside on a small farm in Louisburg.

For additional information, please contact Kim Denton, Franklin County Manager, at (919) 496-5994.

Franklin County Logo

Franklin’s $11.4 Million Wastewater Treatment Plant Project Gets Underway With Sept. 24 Groundbreaking Ceremony

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The official ground-breaking for a $11.4 million rehabilitation project to Franklin County’s wastewater treatment plant will be held Friday at 10 a.m., according to information from the county’s public utilities department.

The treatment plant, located at 1099 Lane Store Rd. in Franklinton, was built in 1987 and has had two capacity upgrades – one in 1997 and a second in 2004. This rehabilitation project has a price tag of $11,479,000 and should be completed by February 2023.

The project is made possible through a loan from the N.C. Division of Water Infrastructure, which offered a 20-year, zero-interest loan with $217,083 in principal forgiveness.

The wastewater treatment facility serves more than 4,500 residential, commercial and industrial customers.

Call the public utilities department at 919.556.6177 to learn more or visit www.franklincountync.us.

Four-County 4-H Poultry Show Flies In To Vance Regional Farmer’s Market Oct. 23

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The 2021 Four County 4-H Poultry Show and Sale will be held Saturday, Oct. 23 at the Vance County Regional Farmer’s Market.

Check-in for youth and poultry will begin at 3 p.m. and the show will start at 4:15 p.m., according to information from Meg Wyatt, Franklin County 4-H agent.

Following the presentation of awards, the auction is scheduled to begin around 6:30 p.m. This year, Easter Eggers and Barred Rocks will be available at the auction.

The farmer’s market is located at 210 South Park Drive, Henderson.

Contact your county’s 4-H agent to learn more.
Read more at https://franklin.ces.ncsu.edu/2021/09/2021-four-county-4-h-poultry-show-and-sale-2/

Maria Parham Health

Local Covid Q & A with Maria Parham Health

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WIZS 1450 AM/ 100.1 FM News reached out to Maria Parham Health with several local covid questions. Maria Parham quickly responded through its public information officer and provided the following answers:

Q1 – How many people are currently hospitalized at Maria Parham with COVID?

A1 – We are currently treating fewer than 20 COVID-positive patients. 90% of those people are NOT vaccinated.

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Q2 – What COVID-related restrictions are placed on patients? On visitors?

A2 – We are limiting visitors to only one per day, but no visitors are allowed for COVID-19 patients with the exception of end of life circumstances. No one who is COVID-19 positive, exhibiting symptoms or has a recent exposure is permitted as a visitor at this time.

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Q3 – Is there any other relevant information you would like to share with the public?

A3 – Numbers don’t lie. The overwhelming majority of our hospitalized COVID-19 patients are unvaccinated, and vaccination is still our best defense against serious illness, hospitalization and death. We urge citizens to protect themselves, protect their families and protect our community by rolling up their sleeves and getting vaccinated against COVID-19 if they have not already done so. Maria Parham Primary Care in Henderson and Maria Parham Multispecialty Clinic in Louisburg are offering the vaccine and can be contacted directly for vaccine needs. Maria Parham Primary Care, 252.436.0440. Maria Parham Multispecialty Clinic, 919.497.8380.

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Q4 – Are you experiencing staffing issues due to the latest COVID surge?

A4 – Staffing is an industry-wide issue, and we are experiencing the same relative resource pressures in this regard as most other healthcare providers. Given the increase in volume we are experiencing, patients may expect extended wait times as our staff do their very best to provide each individual the appropriate level of care they need. We know the community understands this dynamic, and we appreciate their continued support.

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Q5 – Will an employee’s vaccination status have an effect on his or her employment status at some point?

A5 – At this time, Maria Parham Health is strongly encouraging and supporting all of our team members to become fully vaccinated against COVID-19, but vaccination is not currently required. We are aware of President Biden’s recent announcement about new federal COVID-19 vaccine requirements, and we agree that the vaccine is our best defense against this virus. Right now, we are working to understand the details of this development and the impact it will have for employees and providers at our facility.

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Maria Parham Health is an advertising client of WIZS. This is not a paid ad.