Bicycle Tour Rolls Into Town Wednesday

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Drivers in Vance and Granville counties will get to share the roads with hundreds of cyclists Wednesday when Cycle North Carolina’s annual “Mountains to Coast bicycle tour rolls into town. The bikers will be arriving in Oxford as early as 10 a.m. and will continue on toward Henderson through the afternoon.

Organizers expected as many as 900 cyclists to start the trek from Banner Elk on Sunday, and wend their way to Emerald Isle by Saturday, Oct. 7.

Participants average about 60 miles each day, which has them passing through downtown Oxford and then on to Henderson, where they’ll spend the night before moving on to the next stop.

The cyclists will have a chance to shop, eat and visit in Oxford and Henderson, and there will be activities taking place to welcome the visitors.

to On Wednesday, October 4th, the annual Cycle North Carolina Mountains to Coast Bicycle Tour will be passing through our downtown area between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. This event will bring up to 900 bicyclists to our streets, and we want to ensure that you are prepared for any potential impacts on your business.

 

 

Granville County Veterans’ Affairs Committee Sponsors Resource Fair Oct. 7

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There will be a veterans’ health and resource fair on Saturday, Oct. 7 at the National Guard Armory in Butner.

The event is free and open to the public, organizers state, and will be held from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. The Butner Armory is located at 105 Central Ave.

Veterans should bring their military ID such as DD214, NGB form 22 or VA ID card.

Veteran service officers will be on hand to assist with accessing VA benefits, eligibility and other services, including retirement, housing and employment.

There will be giveaways, including hygiene items and door prizes.

The event is sponsored by the Granville County Veterans’ Affairs Committee and has received support from a variety of local businesses.

Call Anne Williams at 919.892.5471 or Lyn Breisacher at 919.339.8352.

VGCC Logo

VGCC “Empower Her” Event Saturday, Oct. 7 In Main Campus Courtyard

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Information courtesy of Courtney Cissel, VGCC Public Information Officer

Vance-Granville Community College Foundation is hosting an event titled “Empower Her,” and invites the community to come out to the Main Campus Courtyard on Saturday, Oct. 7 to learn what it’s all about.

The event will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and will feature a variety of information from local community partners, according to information from VGCC Public Information Officer Courtney Cissel.

In addition to free activities for children, food and giveaways, participants can learn about financial counseling and career advice, as well as meal planning on a dime, makeup tips and more. The Dress for Success Mobile Boutique also will be present.

In addition to providing scholarships to deserving students, the VGCC Foundation supports a broad range of special projects involving education, training and economic development in our community. Tax-deductible donations to VGCCF have often been used to honor a person, group, business or industry with a lasting gift to education.

For more information about Empower Her or the VGCC Foundation, contact 252.738.3264 or foundation@vgcc.edu.

Vance-Granville Community Band Set To Play Sept. 30 At Granville Senior Center In Oxford

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Join the Granville County Senior Services in Oxford for a special concert on Saturday afternoon featuring the Vance-Granville Community Band.

The hour-long concert will begin at 4 p.m. and will feature a election of waltzes, marches and medleys of popular and classical music reminiscent of the Boston Pops Orchestra.

The concert is free and open to the public; stay afterward for light refreshments.

For more information, call the Senior Center at 919.693.1930.

Paws for Granville is Sept. 30th!

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The Granville County Humane Society is sponsoring Paws for Granville Sept 30 as a fun way for the community to help dogs and cats in the area.

This free event that will be held Saturday, Sept. 30 at the Granville County Expo Center on US Hwy 15 just south of Oxford, according to Angela Gooch, a Humane Society volunteer helping to spread the word about the upcoming fundraiser.

Gooch talked with WIZS’s Bill Harris on a recent segment of The Local Skinny! and said it’s been a tough year not only for The Granville County Humane Society but for shelters all over the state.

“It’s been a very difficult year with all the surrenders and sick animals that have come in,” Gooch said.

Paws for Granville is one of two fundraisers sponsored by the local humane society each year to help pay for local spay/neuter programs.

There will be a truck on site to accept donations of dog and cat food to stock the pet pantry, which is used to help low-income clients provide food for their pets.

80 plus vendors are scheduled to bring an array of handcrafted items, from jewelry to fishing lures, Gooch said. Participants can enjoy browsing among the vendor booths from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

And, as always with these events, there will be food trucks. Next Level Kennels, one of the main sponsors for the event, will have its mobile grooming van on site so Fluffy and Rover can look their best!

All across the area, animal shelters report being at capacity, and Gooch said rescue groups and foster agencies are working hard to get adoptable animals into homes.

In Granville County alone, the shelter has spent $15,000 to spay and neuter dogs and cats.

Gooch said that, typically, there are more cats that get turned in to shelters, but that has not been the case in Granville County lately.

“Dogs have been coming in great, great numbers,” she said, adding that “rescues are full and (they) have no place to go.”

Volunteers are needed for the event and the Granville Co. Humane Society is always looking for families to help with fostering animals.

“It is a labor of love and it takes a lot of time and patience,” Gooch said of her work and the work of other rescuers and fosters.

To learn more, call 919.691.9114, follow the group on Facebook, email hsgcncinfo@gmail.com or visit www.hsgc.nc.org.

 

TownTalk: Around Old Granville: Granville Street Library Gets Historical Marker

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The Granville Street Library got its own historical marker last week, distinguishing the 40-foot-by-25 foot building as the first library for African Americans. There were about 100 guests in attendance for the unveiling, performed by the library’s second librarian, Helen Amis.

Amis, now 93, took over from Maude Lassiter, who was the first person to hold the librarian’s position when the doors opened in 1942.

“She kind of made Granville Street the center of the African American community – and really Granville County,” said Mark Pace about Lassiter.

Not only is Pace the North Carolina Room specialist at Thornton Library, he also is president of the Granville County Historical Society. He spoke with WIZS’s Bill Harris on Thursday’s regular history segment of TownTalk about the significance of the library and more.

Pace said Granville County was ahead of its time regarding the library system. “It was the first library to get county funding when it was established in 1936,” he said. Shortly thereafter, a group of prominent African American citizens pushed for a library to serve the Black community. And in 1941, Roosevelt’s Works Progress Administration approved $2,200 to build the library.

The city of Oxford donated the land on Granville Street and the building went up. Pace said the building has not undergone any alterations since it opened in 1942.

First Baptist Church owns the property, and has plans to restore it, Pace said.

According to Pace, the library is the third oldest building still standing that once was owned by the county.

Once the library opened, Lassiter – from the Oak Hill community in northern Granville County – got to work to get books. By 1950, there were about 23,000 volumes. A few years later, a bookmobile was taking books to patrons out in the county. The little library averaged 3,000 borrowers a year.

Lassiter got Howard University President Mordecai Johnson to visit the library, as well as historian John Hope Franklin and poet Langston Hughes, Pace said.

“Hughes stayed at Ms. Lassiter’s house and gave readings at the library,” he said, “and at Shaw High School out at Stovall.”

By the time the Civil Rights movement was gaining momentum in 1965, the current Thornton Library in Oxford was ready to open and county officials decided to integrate the library system. The Granville Street Library remained open, but saw fewer patrons. It closed in 1975.

Placement of the marker was a joint effort of the county library system and First Baptist Church, with fund paid from donations made to the North Carolina Room.

“I was just really amazed” at the attendance for the unveiling ceremony, Pace said. “I’m pleased that that many people care.”

 

CLICK PLAY!

 

Families Living Violence Free

Families Living Violence Free Events Observe Domestic Violence Awareness Month In October

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October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month and Families Living Violence Free in Oxford is making plans to shine a light on what often can be a dark topic.

FLVF is holding a candelight vigil on Tuesday, Oct. 17, beginning at 5:30 p.m. and Peggy Roark, FLVF’s director, invites the community to participate.

The vigil is held to honor and remember victims and survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault.

The vigil will begin at 5:30 p.m. at the Georgia Henrahand Cottage on the campus of Central Children’s Home.

A quarter auction fundraiser is scheduled for Friday, Oct. 6, at The Barn at Vino in Stem, Roark said.

Each $20 tickets gets you dinner and a bidding paddle.

The doors open at 5:45 p.m. and dinner begins at 6:15 p.m. The bidding fun begins at 7 p.m., so make sure to bring those rolls of quarters!

All proceeds go to direct service for domestic violence and sexual assault victims and survivors.

There will be vendors on site at the quarter auction, so bring some “folding money,” too.

Call 919.693.3579 to purchase tickets.

Learn more at https://flvf.org/

(FLVF is an advertiser with WIZS. This is not a paid ad.)

Spiess Named Granville Veterans Services Director

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The newly named Veteran Services officer for Granville County is a familiar face taking on a new role. Albert “A.J.” Spiess was Veteran Services technician for the past year and becomes the department director to assist local veterans and their families access state and federal programs and resources.

“After a rewarding year working with Granville Veterans, I am humbled and honored to be chosen as Granville County’s new Veteran Services Officer,” said Spiess. “I feel so privileged to serve our veterans and their families.  This work, along with my previous volunteer experience with the DAV, is truly my calling. I look forward to continuing to work with Granville’s veterans and help guide them to access all the services and programs they deserve.”

Spiess is retired from the U.S. Navy. The Georgia native served 26 years and rose to the rank of Senior Chief Master at Arms (Military Police). He served on six ships – USS Butte, USS Simpson, USS Briscoe, USS Truman, USS Harpers Ferry, and USS Wasp – as a deck seaman and signalman before reaching the rank of senior chief Master at Arms.

He has an associate degree in Criminal Justice and a bachelor’s degree in Homeland Security and Emergency Management. He and his wife Corie have one child, Brooke, who is currently attending nursing school.

He has experience conducting trainings in a variety of topics ranging from anti-terrorism to senior master training instructor at the Navy Police Academy, where he oversaw major curriculum changes and provided instruction to students of varying levels of experience..

In addition to his professional experience, Spiess previously volunteered with the Disabled American Veterans, serving as chapter veteran services officer to help veterans and their families obtain benefits and services provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and other government agencies.

“The Veterans Affairs Committee is really pleased that A.J. has been chosen to lead the Veterans Services  Office,” said Committee Chair Charles Miller. “As veteran services technician, he demonstrated his commitment  to serving the needs of the veterans in our community. We are confident he is the right person to guide this department into the future.”

The Granville County Veterans Services Office is located at 141 Williamsboro St., Oxford and Creedmoor City Hall (111 Masonic Street, Creedmoor). The current office hours are Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. in Oxford and Wednesday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. in Creedmoor. To learn more about the services and programs offered, visit

https://www.granvillecounty.org/residents/veterans-services/ or call 919.693.1484.

 

Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson Featured Guest At Sept. 27 Granville GOP Fundraiser

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Current North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, who also is a Republican candidate for governor, will be a featured guest at an upcoming event sponsored by the Granville County Republican Party.

Robinson is the featured guest candidate for the event, which will be held beginning at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 27 at the Granville County Expo and Convention Center, according to information from Michael W. Magnanti, county GOP chairman.

Tickets are $35 a person. Register here:  https://granville.nc.gop/september_2023_fundraiser_event_20230927
The Expo Center is located at 4185 US Hwy. 15 south of Oxford.

Dr. Natalie Hobdy Joins Granville Primary Care

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-Information courtesy of Granville Health System Marketing and Foundation Director Lauren B. Roberson

Granville Health System has announced the addition of a family physician to its medical staff.

Dr. Natalie Hobdy has joined the Granville Primary Care practice, located on the GHS campus in Oxford.

Interim CEO of Granville Health System Adam McConnell welcomed Hobdy to the staff. “Granville Health System consistently draws top-tier professionals like Dr. Hobdy. Her dedication to patient-centered care mirrors our ethos. We aspire to be the go-to primary care provider for Granville County, ever-committed to promoting well-being, accelerating healing and inspiring hope in our communities,” McConnell stated in a press release issued Tuesday.

Hobdy is a board-certified family physician and previously worked at John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth, TX.

“I’m thrilled to be part of a system with robust support, enabling the thorough, patient-centered care I stand by. My training at John Peter Smith in Texas and at Essentia Health in Minnesota has prepared me well for rural practices catering to all ages and stages of life. I’m confident in leveraging my skills for the benefit of this community and deeply value the opportunity to care for patients and their families comprehensively.”

Over the years, Granville Health System has steadfastly committed to improving its physician services and facilities, with ongoing expansion efforts. GHS has welcomed numerous accomplished providers across diverse specialties, such as primary care, OB/GYN, ENT and gastroenterology.

 

Granville Primary Care is located at 110 Professional Park Drive, Oxford. For appointments, call 919.693.6541 or visit online at https://ghshospital.org/location/granville-primary-care-ob-gyn/.