The Local Skinny! Business Spotlight: Wedding Bells And More At Hudson Manor

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Spring is in the air and many plan weddings this time of year. However, according to Melissa Cogliati, owner and operator of Hudson Manor in the Moulton Community in Franklin County, anytime of the year seems to be good for the sound of wedding bells.

Hudson Manor is a rather imposing house built around 1911 by Charlie Thomas Hudson, but by 2004 it had begun showing signs of decline. Cogliati and her husband were looking to get out of Raleigh for something more rural where he could concentrate on catering and cooking and she could start a wedding venue when they found the home. The house needed some work. A rear section that was added in the 1970’s was removed and the front porch was rebuilt to the original specifications. The Cogliati’s later added to the rear portion of the house so they could live there. Along with them came children and parents. “It’s a family compound,” Cogliati said on the Business Spotlight segment of The Local Skinny!

Improvements have continued with the addition of a wedding chapel which allows Hudson Manor to host weddings no matter what the weather. “We had a wedding in the snow,” Cogliati said. This would have been a few weeks back on one of those wintery weekends. She described that wedding as particularly beautiful. She has had couples from Vance, Warren, Granville, Franklin and other surrounding counties to book the venue for weddings, but Hudson Manor does more than just get people hitched. Last year Hudson Manor hosted a bluegrass festival, and they are available for fundraising events. Hudson Manor is open all year round.

If you have a wedding or fundraising event you can find out more information at www.thehudsonmanor.com.

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4-H Logo

Meeting Set For Mar. 8 To Plan For Annual 4-H Poultry Sale

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Parents of children between the ages of 5 and 18 with an interest in raising and showing poultry should attend a virtual meeting next week to learn about plans for the 2022 Four County 4-H Poultry Show and Sale.

The meeting will be held via Zoom beginning at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Mar. 8. The link is

https://go.ncsu.edu/4countypoultry.

The program provides 10 birds to each youth participant to raise, show and then sell. Each participant must show and sell three of the 10 birds they raise.

The birds will be auctioned at the sale, with proceeds going to the participant and to to the Four County 4-H group. Trophies also will be awarded.

Direct questions to your county’s 4-H agent.

  • In Vance County, contact Wykia Macon at 252.438.8188
  • In Granville County, contact Lina Howe or Kim Woods at 919.603.1350
  • In Warren County, contact Stephen Misenheimer or Matthew Place at 252.257.3640
  • In Franklin County, contact Meg Wyatt or Martha Mobley at 919.496.3344

Emilee Johnson New Executive Director of Operations MP Franklin

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Maria Parham Franklin has a new executive director of operations, Emilee Johnson.

Maria Parham Health announced last week, via it’s Facebook page, that Johnson had been named to the position and that she has been with Maria Parham for 19 years.

In her most recent role, she served as senior director overseeing rehabilitative services, security, medical office leasing, dietary and environmental services.

The MPH post indicated Johnson is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and that she has shown exceptional leadership qualities within the hospital and community.

Her volunteer work with the Henderson Family YMCA, Triangle North Healthcare and Adopt-A-Highway are a handful of examples of her outreach and community mindedness.

Congratulations to Emilee Johnson.

(Text and picture published with permission. Information courtesy of Maria Parham Health.)

SportsTalk: Louisburg College Hopes To Make It To The World Series

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The list of legendary college coaches in North Carolina includes the likes of Dean Smith, Jim Valvano, Mack Brown, Mike Krzyzewski, Kay Yow and many more.  One legendary coach that might get overlooked is Russell Frazier. For 40 years, from 1959 to 1999, he led the Louisburg College Hurricanes and instilled a winning tradition that the school has had since. While his school never won a national title, his teams went to the National Junior College Athletic Association’s World Series on many occasions.  Louisburg’s last trip was in 2002 but now, 20 years later, the Hurricanes have their sights set on a return to Colorado for the series.

Louisburg College Head Baseball Coach Blake Herring told our Trey Snide on SportsTalk that his players are starting to buy into the idea that the Hurricanes are strong enough this season to make a run.   “If we can get out of our league, we have a good chance to get back to the World Series,” Herring said. While he is excited at the chances the Hurricanes have he cautions, “we can’t want it more than the players.”

His team is young. All but one pitcher are freshmen. He has a new outfield and says that the left side of the infield could be the strongest part of the team. This week rain has hampered practice but it’s nowhere as bad as last season when the school had 17 games rained out.  When inclement weather keeps them off the field, he takes his players to a parking lot at the school to practice throwing and hitting. “The most stressful thing to me is playing a meteorologist,” Herring says of his job as head coach.

At 33, Herring is young and has been with the school for seven years, first as an assistant for three years before taking the head coach position four years ago. Currently the Hurricanes are 6-1 having won there last six games.

Keep up with the Hurricanes at lchurricanes.com or on You Tube at Louisburg College Official.

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TownTalk: Taking Care of Your Heart

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Dr. Mohammed Akhter, an interventional cardiologist at Maria Parham Health is helping promote the American Heart Association’s theme to “reclaim your rhythm” during the February observance of heart health awareness.

No one can deny the impact that COVID-19 has had on our brains and our hearts, Akhter told John C. Rose on Wednesday’s Town Talk. He encourages everyone to focus again on health lifestyles that can have a positive effect on our physical and mental health.

When gyms and restaurants shut down at the onset of the pandemic in 2020, it was more than just an inconvenience, Akhter said.

It’s time to get back in the groove of those lifestyle habits like regular exercise, eating healty foods and enjoying the social interactions with family and others.

During the pandemic, he said, “we couldn’t go to the gym, we were ordering food online and not socially interacting with our loved ones – that has a major effect on our health.”
The AHA made a fundamental plea to the public, he said. “Now is the time to get back to the rhythm – exercise more, eat better and spend more time with your families.”

Those are concrete examples of steps to take to improve health and reduce stress. But  diagnostic tests performed by medical professionals are needed to determine if high blood pressure or elevated cholesterol levels may also be affecting your overall heart health.

Akhter said that 1 in 2 U.S. adults have hypertension – high blood pressure – but only 1 in 4 have it under control.

He recommends that his patients try to consume less than 2 grams of sodium a day, which may mean scrutinizing food labels. In addition, he recommends 30 minutes of exercise most days, limiting alcohol use and taking medicine that is prescribed for hypertension.

Women and African Americans are two groups that are underrepresented in heart studies, he said.

Maria Parham Health promoted National Wear Red Day on Feb. 4 as a way to “express a solidarity with women who are at risk for cardiovascular disease. He said it’s the number one killer in women.

Women may experience different symptoms than men, he said, adding that is a contributing factor to the under-diagnosis of heart disease in women.

Similarly, African Americans are underrepresented in studies of heart health.

The goal is equitable health for all, Akhter said, who said that in his practice, he works hard to tailor therapies to the individual patients.

 

Got To Be NC Festival Set For May 20-22 At State Fairgrounds

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Planning is underway for the 2022 Got to Be NC Festival and registration is open now for commercial vendors and homegrown marketplace vendors to participate in the three-day event coming up in May.

The annual event will be held at the N.C. State Fairgrounds in Raleigh from May 20-22. It will feature food, wine and beer from across the state, according to information from the N.C. Department of Agriculture.

The festival also will feature one of the largest displays of antique tractors and farm equipment in the Southeast, and organizers are looking for tractor collectors and clubs to be part of the event. Plans include a daily tractor parade through the fairgrounds for tractors in working order. Participation is free and open to individuals and clubs, but pre-registration is required. Contact Pat Short at 336.706.9796 to register or for questions. National farm broadcaster Max Armstrong will be on hand to announce the Sunday, May 22, tractor parade lineup.

Food concessionaires, commercial vendors and organizations interested in exhibiting at the festival have until March 1 to complete their application at ncstatefair.org. For more information, contact Letrice Midgett, commercial space administrator, at 919-839-4502 or email at Letrice.Midgett@ncagr.gov or phone her at 919.839.4502.

April 1 is the deadline for North Carolina-based food and beverage companies to register for the festival. Prospective vendors must be members of the Got to Be NC marketing program. Got to Be NC program members should contact Sherry Barefoot at sherry.barefoot@ncagr.gov with questions.

Registration forms and vendor applications for the Homegrown Marketplace are available at https://gottobenc.com/event/gtbnc-festival/.

It’s Tax Time! Electronic Filing Could Speed Returns

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–information courtesy of the Internal Revenue Service

The 2022 tax filing season is off and running and the IRS is asking taxpayers to take extra precautions to file an accurate tax return electronically, which could help speed refunds. This year’s deadline to file is April 18, according to information from the IRS.

Employers are busy preparing those 2021 tax statements for employees, which usually arrive by the end of January.

More than 160 million individual tax returns for the 2021 tax year are expected to be filed, with most before the April 18 tax deadline.

Most taxpayers face an April 18 deadline this year due to the Emancipation Day holiday in Washington, D.C falling on April 15. The deadline to file taxes in North Carolina is April 18.

IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig noted that taxpayers need to take special care this year due to several critical tax law changes that took place in 2021 and ongoing challenges related to the pandemic.

“IRS employees are working hard to deliver a successful 2022 tax season while facing enormous challenges related to the pandemic,” Rettig said. “There are important steps people can take to ensure they avoid processing delays and get their tax refund as quickly as possible. We urge people to carefully review their taxes for accuracy before filing. And they should file electronically with direct deposit if at all possible; filing a paper tax return this year means an extended refund delay.”

For most taxpayers who file a tax return with no issues, the IRS anticipates they will receive their refund within 21 days of when they file electronically if they choose direct deposit – similar to previous years. Last year’s average tax refund was more than $2,800.

“There are simple steps that people can take that will help them navigate this challenging tax season,” Rettig said. “Filing electronically and using online resources instead of calling are just some of the steps that can help people avoid delays.”

“IRS employees will do everything possible with the available resources to serve taxpayers this year,” Rettig said. “We will work hard to deliver refunds quickly, serve as many people as possible and work to catch up on past tax returns affected by the pandemic.”

Consult a local tax professional or your personal tax consultant for guidance on completing tax returns. Following is a list of tips from the IRS:

Fastest refunds by e-filing, avoiding paper returns: Filing electronically with direct deposit and avoiding a paper tax return is more important than ever this year to avoid refund delays. If you need a tax refund quickly, do not file on paper – use software, a trusted tax professional or Free File on IRS.gov.

Avoid delays; file an accurate tax return: More than ever this year, the IRS urges people to make sure they’re ready to file an accurate tax return. An accurate tax return can avoid processing delays, extensive refund delays and later IRS notices.

Special care for EIP, advance Child Tax Credit recipients:  The IRS also encourages caution to those people who received a third Economic Impact Payment or advance Child Tax Credit in 2021. Taxpayers should ensure the amounts they’ve received are entered correctly on the tax return. Incorrect entries when reporting these payments mean the IRS will need to further review the tax return, creating an extensive delay. To help taxpayers, the IRS is mailing special letters about the stimulus payments and advance Child Tax Credit payment amounts. People can also check the amount of their payments in their Online Account available on IRS.gov.

Earned Income Tax Credit or Additional Child Tax Credit refunds: By law, the IRS cannot issue a refund involving the Earned Income Tax Credit or Additional Child Tax Credit before mid-February, though eligible people may file their returns beginning on January 24. The law provides this additional time to help the IRS stop fraudulent refunds from being issued.

Avoid phone delays; online resources best option for help: IRS.gov is the quickest and easiest option for help. IRS assisted phone lines continue to receive record numbers of calls, more than the agency can handle with its limited resources. Avoid delays: Check IRS.gov first for refund information and answers to tax questions. Establishing an Online Account on IRS.gov can also help taxpayers get information quickly. The Online Account feature has recently been expanded to allow more people to gain access.

Don’t normally file a return? Consider filing for CTC, other valuable credits: For people who don’t normally file a tax return and didn’t file a 2020 return or use the Non-Filers tool, they can still qualify for important credits they’re eligible for, including the Recovery Rebate Credit (stimulus payment), advance Child Tax Credit or the Earned Income Tax Credit. The IRS encourages people in this group to file a 2021 tax return so they can receive all the credits for which they’re eligible.

Online options for free help; answers to common questions: Use IRS.gov to get answers to tax questions, check a refund status or pay taxes. There’s no wait time or appointment needed — online tools and resources are available 24 hours a day.

Other free options for help: IRS Free File is available to any person or family who earned $73,000 or less in 2021. Qualified taxpayers can also find free one-on-one tax preparation help around the nation through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) and Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) programs.

2020 tax return still being processed? Tips to help with filing 2021 tax return: For people whose tax returns from 2020 have not yet been processed, they can still file their 2021 tax returns. For those filing electronically in this group, here’s a critical point. Taxpayers need their Adjusted Gross Income, or AGI, from their most recent tax return when they file electronically. For those waiting on their 2020 tax return to be processed, make sure to enter $0 (zero dollars) for last year’s AGI on the 2021 tax return. Visit IRS.gov for more details.

April 18 tax deadline: The filing deadline is April 18 for most taxpayers; automatic six-month extensions of time to file are available for anyone by filing Form 4868, Application for Automatic Extension of Time to File U.S. Individual Income Tax Return.

Franklin County Logo

Franklin County Seeks Input regarding EMS

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Franklin County is seeking community input in regard to Emergency Medical Services
(EMS) within Franklin County via a brief survey. The survey can be found at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/CGCZR2W or on the County’s EMS website at https://www.franklincountync.us/services/emergency-services. If you are interested in sharing your
input, this brief survey will be available until Wednesday, February 2, 2022.

The survey is part of a comprehensive EMS Study funded in the FY22 Budget by the Franklin County Board of Commissioners. The study seeks to assess the current EMS service and develop recommendations for the future. The study is being conducted by the Center for Public Safety Management (CPSM), a public safety consulting firm with both former practitioners and current EMS
leaders with first-hand knowledge and expertise in the emergency medical services field. All survey responses will be delivered directly to CPSM.

For additional information, please contact William Doerfer, Assistant County Manager, at (919) 496-5994.

TownTalk: Book Will Highlight Franklin Co. Historic Architecture

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The book chronicling historic architectural properties in Franklin County has taken a few years to come to fruition, but a few years is a drop in the bucket when you consider that Franklin County’s roots go back to well before the Revolutionary War.

But those on the Franklin County Historical Preservation Commission are anxious for the book to be published, and its chairman, Bill Harris, said Monday that he hopes the book will be ready in time for Christmas 2022.

The biggest part of the work was completed by 2018 or so, Harris told WIZS’s Trey Snide on Monday’s Town Talk. Jeroen van den Hurk and Megan Funk of the Commonwealth Heritage Group walked and drove the county, took countless photos and spoke with many people to identify previously documented historic properties and to find new structures that hadn’t previously been included in the survey completed in 1975.

That survey resulted in the small but well regarded Early Architecture of Franklin County by T.H. Pearce, Harris noted, but this new book is going to knock it out of the proverbial park.

He said the book, which is in final edits, will probably weigh in between 400 and 500 pages. A classic “coffee table” style book, it will have 800 photos – including a collection of color photos of places of particular historical significance – and the information will be organized by township, he said.

The COVID-19 pandemic is partly responsible for the delay in publication and release of the book, Harris said. And the historic preservation commission is seeking donations from individuals to help defray costs.

For a minimum donation of $100, sponsors will receive a complimentary copy of the book, along with recognition among a list of sponsors included in the publication. There are different levels of giving – platinum level is a gift of $1,000, gold is $500 and bronze is $250.

There are brochures at libraries in Oxford and Louisburg that give details of the process. Harris said he hoped to have copies at the Perry Memorial Library soon to share with anyone interested in learning more. A PDF of the brochure can be found on Facebook at Frankin, Granville, Vance, Warren Genealogy. The PDF can be downloaded.  https://www.facebook.com/groups/fgvwgeneaology.

The soon-to-be published book is a comprehensive architectural history of the county, Harris said. But it was important to the members of the commission that the book not be a dry book about architecture. There’s going to be a glossary of architectural terms and a section that Harris is calling “lost properties,” which will include photographs of “so many great houses that have been lost to time.”

There are existing photographs of structures that no longer exist, and often don’t appear in books like the one the commission is creating.

“It’s not just the architecture – it’s the stories behind the houses” and the families that lived in those homes, he said, that he hopes the book will capture.

“Anyone who has roots in Franklin County will find it interesting,” he said.

The book will be dedicated to a former Franklin County resident – Maury York – who Harris said was instrumental in the formation of the historic preservation commission. “He did so much groundwork,” he said of York, adding that he continues to offer advice and provide information to the commission. York also helped create the Tar River Center for History and Culture located on the campus of Louisburg College.

The focus of the project is not about making money – but not to lose money, either, Harris said. Rather, it’s to help promote historic tourism in the area, as well as to capture and preserve some of the qualities that make Franklin County unique.

“There’s an interest here,” Harris said, to promote tourism. And that helps to boost the local economy.

Send donations to Franklin County Historic Preservation Commission, 215 E. Nash St., Louisburg, NC 27549.

 

 

 

 

 

NCDA Junior Livestock Scholarship Applications Due Mar. 1

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Information from NCDA&CS Livestock Marketing Section

Up to 25 $2,000 scholarships are available, in addition to one $2,500 Farm Credit of N.C. Premier Scholarship.Youth who participated in N.C. State Fair junior livestock competitions are eligible to apply for N.C. State Fair Junior Livestock Scholarships. The deadline to apply is March 1.

All youth who exhibited a livestock animal at the State Fair are eligible regardless of species, class or show placement. Scholarships are good for institutes of higher learning, including community colleges and technical schools. Students must be enrolled in a minimum of 9 course hours.

The scholarship money is raised through the State Fair’s annual Sale of Champions where grand and reserve grand champions are sold at auction. A percentage of the sale total goes into this youth livestock scholarship program.

“I am proud that this scholarship program has helped many young people and their parents pay for their college education,” said Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler. “Since the program started in 2015, we have awarded over $300,000 in scholarships.”

Students will need to submit the completed application, including their State Fair junior livestock experience, a 500-word essay, academic achievements and extracurricular activities they are involved in. Youth are eligible to receive the scholarship a maximum of four times.

Applications can be downloaded at www.ncstatefair.org. Completed application packets should be returned to N.C. State Fair, Attn: Livestock Office, 1010 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-1010. For questions, contact Neil Bowman at by email at neil.bowman@ncagr.gov.