The Local Skinny! Around Old Granville: Cemeteries

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Whether they are small family plots or large city-owned and maintained properties, cemeteries can reveal a lot about an area’s history and its beginnings. In the Around Old Granville segment of The Local Skinny! Tuesday, Bill Harris and Mark Pace discussed a few prominent cemeteries in the Vance County area, some of which have graves that date back to before the late 1800’s.

But Pace said the oldest known graves are probably in a private cemetery on an estate near Williamsboro called Montpelier. There are graves there from the late 1700’s, he said, as well as at Ashland, the site of the original Henderson family cemetery.

Two of the larger and older cemeteries in Henderson are Blacknall and Elmwood.

A group of prominent Blacks formed the Union Cemetery Company in 1887 and purchased land from the Blackwell family to create a cemetery for African Americans. But how did Blackwell become Blacknall? Pace supposes that somehow the names became confused – if you’ve ever tried to read old handwritten documents, it stands to reason that someone somewhere simply spelled the name incorrectly, thus creating Blacknall Cemetery.

There are still Reavis family graves located in the middle of Blacknall Cemetery, Pace said, because originally it belong to that family. Those graves date back to the 1860’s and ‘70’s.

“It had gotten in bad shape in the 1970’s and ‘80’s,” Pace said. A consortium of civic groups and the city got together and raised awareness about the cemetery and cleaned it up, and it is still in use today, he added.

Elmwood Cemetery, established in 1879, is located at the end of Breckenridge Street. At that time, the dead were buried either in smaller family cemeteries or in church cemeteries. As the city of Henderson grew, the need for more and bigger cemeteries grew as well. The city bought Elmwood in 1935, and there are a number of graves that were relocated there from other cemeteries. Since then, two other sections have been added to expand the cemetery, Pace said.

 

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Mark Pace

TownTalk: Mark Pace Named Granville Citizen Of The Year

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Mark Pace said he is scheduled for ten appearances in which he portrays the historical figure John Penn – a signer of the Declaration of Independence with ties to Granville County. No doubt Pace has done his fair share of research into Penn’s life, which was lived in relative obscurity after he signed that historic document. There were no awards given to those original signers – no acceptance speeches or thank you’s to be found.

Too bad, because Pace could have drawn upon Penn’s reactions when he himself was called to the dais to receive the John Penn Citizen of the Year award at Monday’s Granville County Chamber of Commerce banquet.

Annette Myers presented Pace with the award, and in comments leading up to announcing his name, she talked about the many hats that individuals wear in the community. Just before the announced his name, Myers put on the hat that Pace wears as part of the Penn costume.

Lauren Roberson, executive director of the Granville Chamber, told John C. Rose on Tuesday’s Town Talk that the John Penn winner is one of the highlights of the annual banquet.

Pace is well-known as a local historian and North Carolina Room specialist at the Richard Thornton library in Oxford. Roberson said he spreads his knowledge across the county – and beyond, and his genuine enthusiasm for history shines through

“He never turns down a request from the community” to provide assistance or research information, she said.

The annual banquet is usually held in January, but this year’s event was rescheduled because of COVID-19 safety protocols. Roberson said the evening went off without a hitch, which she said is a result of wonderful collaboration.

Outgoing president Cecilia Wheeler presided over the evening’s events. “She is such a trouper and an amazing woman,” Roberson said. Dan DeCarlo, general manager of Creedmoor Forest Products, is incoming president. “The board is excited for his leadership and vision,” she added.

UNC basketball legend Phil Ford was the evening’s keynote speaker.

“He gave an amazing keynote speech,” Roberson said. He talked about everything from his childhood to playing ball at Carolina and then in the NBA, with a focus on faith and where he is now, she said, which was both inspirational and motivational.

In a phone interview with WIZS News Tuesday afternoon, Ford said it was an honor to be at the banquet. There were “a lot of nice people, very welcoming. I was amazed at the camaraderie among the people there –  everybody seemed like one big family, everybody seemed to know each other…everybody seemed to be pulling for each other,” he said.

“It was an amazing evening and I was happy to be a small part of it.”

There was a good amount of Carolina blue among the attendees, too, and Ford graciously spoke to fans before and after the event, signing programs and taking pictures.

 

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Vance County High School

SportsTalk: Vance High School Begins Search For New Football Coach

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Last season saw the Vance Co. High School Vipers football team reach the state playoffs and were looking to more great seasons with Coach Wilbur Pender at the controls but that all changed this week with the announcement that Pender is retiring from education to spend more time with his family.  The school’s athletic director, Joe Sharrow, said players and everyone at the school was shocked and disappointed at Pender’s decision but understood his need to spend more time with his family.

It’s been the same story the last several seasons at Vance Co. High School as the last four coaches have stayed one season before moving on to another school, or in Pender’s case, retiring.  Sharrow did say that because of the football team’s success finding a new coach will be somewhat easier this off season and they hope to have someone in place before the school year is out. “There is interest from high level coaches,” Sharrow said.  “We want someone who is the right fit who will commit themselves and who will stick around,” Sharrow continued. “Where are the Wilton Basketts, the Randy Long’s, the Dave Jennings, or the Mark Perry’s?” Sharrow asked, referencing previous coaches who spent many years in their positions at Northern and Southern Vance and Vance Co. High School.

And while the school’s football program has had success this past season Sharrow is looking for a coach to build on that success. The school’s athletic programs are still recovering from the pandemic and struggled to find enough students to field teams which is only now returning to pre-pandemic levels.

Sharrow says he is now just building a team to search for the new coach which will include Principal Rey Horner. Sharrow also said the players will be consulted.  They will give him feedback on what has worked for them with previous coaches and with any luck Sharrow and his search team will find someone who is qualified and will commit to continuing to improve the Vance County Vipers football program.

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The Local Skinny! Jobs In Vance

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The H-V Chamber of Commerce and WIZS, Your Community Voice, present Jobs in Vance for March 29, 2022. The Chamber compiles the information, and it is presented here and on the radio. Contact the Henderson-Vance Chamber of Commerce at 438-8414 or email christa@hendersonvance.org to be included.

Name of the Company: Vance County Department of Social Services

Jobs Available: Full Time Custodian, Business Officer, Child Support Agents, Social Worker, Income Maintenance Case Worker, Processing Assistant, Income Maintenance Supervisor and Staff Development Specialist

Method of Contact: For more information go to the county website at http://www.vancecounty.org

 

Name of the Company: Vance County Sheriff’s Office

Jobs Available: Detention Officers, Senior Maintenance Specialist and Kitchen Worker

Method of Contact: For more information go to the county website at http://www.vancecounty.org

 

Name of the Company:  Henderson-Vance County Chamber of Commerce

Jobs Available:  Administrative Assistant/Bookkeeper.  Full-Time.  Quick Books Accounting, Receptionist Duties, Administrative Support.

Method of Contact:  Send resume to michele@hendersonvance.org or Express Employment Professionals at robin.reed@expresspros.com

 

Name of the Company:  Turning Point Community Development Corporation

Jobs Available:  Group Leader for Children’s Summer Learning Program.  Full-Time, Temporary from June 13-August 5.  Requires an Associate Degree.

Method of Contact:  Send resume to www.turningpointcdc.org/get-involved

 

 Name of the Company:  Perry Memorial Library

Jobs Available:  Library Assistant – part-time

Method of Contact: For more information go to the Vance County website at http://www.vancecounty.org

  

Name of the Company:  Boys & Girls Club of North Central North Carolina

Jobs Available: Chief Operating Officer (COO).  Full-Time, must live in Vance, Franklin, Warren, Granville or Halifax County.  Main office will be in Halifax County but travel to other B&G Clubs will be required.  Bachelors Degree and 3 years operations management required.  $60,000+ starting salary. Full Benefits.

Method of Contact:  Apply online at www.indeed.com or send resume to www.bgcncnc.org

 

Name of the Company: First Baptist Church of Henderson, NC

Jobs Available:  Administrative Assistant.  Full-time. Skills required are communications, publishing, data base management, creativity, general office duties.

Method of Contact: Send resume to fbchurch@fbchenderson.net

Some of these businesses are present or past advertisers of WIZS. Being an ad client is not a condition of being listed or broadcast. This is not a paid ad.

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Vance Charter Lacrosse Makes History

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Articles submitted by Dan Sandlin

From March 27, 2022:

Knights Winning Streak Extends to 4

The Vance Charter Knights Varsity Men’s Lacrosse team had another successful week, winning 17-0 against Voyager Academy and 17-3 against Union Pines High School. This takes the Knights to a 4-4 record this season and leads the Northern Lakes Athletic Conference.

At the Voyager Academy game, the Knights took an early lead and never looked back. Leading the way was Senior Ryan Parker (4G, 6A) and Sophomore Gavyn Sandlin (4G, 2A). Junior Lucas Satterwhite had a shutout in the goal. Other points were obtained by Junior Jahlaine Scotland (2G), Freshman Caleb Towne (2G), Junior Dominick Abate (1G), Senior Davis Suther (1G), Sophomore Adam Bobbitt (1G), Freshman Noah Wagner (1G), Senior Wyatt Yount, (1A), Junior Sam Frazier (1A) and Freshman Jackson Gordon (1G).

The Knights continued their game-winning streak at home on Friday, hosting Union Pines High School out of Moore County. This non-conference game started strong, with the Knights up 7-3 at the end of the first quarter. Union Pines was blocked from adding anything to their score the rest of the evening by the Knights Goalie Lucas Satterwhite (Junior). Leading scorers for the night were Senior Ryan Parker (7G, 4A), Sophomore Gavyn Sandlin (4G, 4A), Senior Wyatt Yount (3G, 1A). Other points came from Junior Jahlaine Scotland (2G), Junior Christian Bean (1G) and Junior Sam Frazier (1A).

Following Friday’s game, this puts Parker and Sandlin with a combined 100 points during the first 8 games of their season. Parker and Sandlin are both ranked in the top 10 for 1A/2A/3A Goals and Points and in the top 15 for Assists according to MaxPreps.

The Knights are on the road this week, traveling to Roxboro Community School on Tuesday and to Union Pines High School on Friday.

From March 20, 2022:

Vance Charter Lacrosse Makes History

Vance Charter School Men’s Lacrosse is off to a record-breaking start. The team, currently ranked first in their conference, captured a win on Friday, March 18. The team took on Roxboro Community School at home with nine of the Knights putting points on the board. Goals came from Sophomore Gavyn Sandlin (12), Senior Ryan Parker (7), Senior Wyatt Yount (3), Junior Christian Bean (3), Senior Davis Suther (1), Senior Jacob Seaman (1), Sophomore Adam Bobbitt (2) and Freshman Jackson Gordon (1). Assists throughout the game came from Ryan Parker (7), Gavyn Sandlin (6), Wyatt Yount (2), Davis Suther (1) and Freshman Caleb Towne (1). The team pulled away with a 30-1 victory over the Roxboro Bulldogs.

The game started strong with a 12-0 lead in the first quarter. At that time, a running clock began as second quarter yielded continued success for the Knights with another 7 goals on the board. Third quarter the team added another 4 points and Roxboro gained their sole goal by Nate Stovall. The Knights finished strong adding 6 more goals in the 4th quarter. Jacob Seaman carried the face-offs, winning 26 of his 30 attempts throughout the game. This success allowed the Knights to keep the ball on the offensive end.

The Knights scored their 100th point of the season during the game, a first in the program’s history. Sophomore Attackman, Gavyn Sandlin, captured the state record for most points in a single game with 12 goals and 6 assists. The previous record of 16 points in a single game was held by Gabriel Barker from West Stokes High School. Senior Attackman Ryan Parker’s contribution of 14 points (7 goals, 7 assists), ties him for 9th in the state for points in a single game.

The Knights are led by Head Coach Dennis Sandlin and Assistant Coach Dan Sandlin.

Vance Co. Regional Farmers Market

Farmers Market Kicks Off Season With Apr. 23 Spring Fling

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The Vance County Regional Farmers Market will kick off the 2022 growing and selling season with Spring Fling on Saturday, April 23.

Market Manager Pat Ayscue said the event will run from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. and will mark the official opening of the 2022 market season.

Vendors and producers will be on site with a variety of hand-crafted and homegrown items for sale.

Ayscue said the farmers market regular hours will be from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays following Spring Fling until Wednesday, June 1, when the market is open two days each week during the summer. The summer hours will be 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Ayscue said there are several Twilight Markets planned as well: Tuesday, June 28, Sept. 27 and Oct. 25 from 3 p.m.-7 p.m.

Other dates include:

  • Wednesday, Oct. 17 – mid-week market ends
  • Saturday, Nov. 19 – Handcrafted Holiday Market, 8 a.m. until 2 p.m.
  • Saturday, Dec. 17 – final sale day for 2022

 

Find and follow Vance Regional Farmers Market on Facebook to stay up-to-date on events and schedules or phone 252.438.8188.

TownTalk: Fore! VGCC 38th Annual Golf Tournament Ready To Tee Off

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In her new role as executive director of the Vance Granville Community College Foundation, Tanya Weary is preparing for the annual golf tournament, which has raised more than $1.3 million for the college over 37 years.

This year marks the 38th annual event, and Weary told John C. Rose on Monday’s Town Talk that registration is open now until April 15. Visit www.vgcc@edu/golf to sign up to play or to become an event sponsor. The tournament takes place on the afternoons of May 9 and May 10 at Henderson Country Club.

Weary, previously VGCC’s dean of business and industry solutions, said the biggest adjustment for her in her new role is that she no longer is overseeing programs and developing new programs for VGCC.

Now, as the Foundation’s executive director, her role involves making sure that VGCC has the money to continue offering programs to students and in the larger community.

When the college recently transitioned its endowment program to a nonprofit foundation, it opened up doors that allow VGCC to apply for grants, she said.

Providing scholarships for students is just one way that fundraisers like the golf tournament contribute to the success of the college.

“Our sponsors say they want to be supportive and see our students do well,” Weary said, adding that sponsors help “make college a reality for some of our students who may not be able to afford it without the support of the foundation. Sponsors make that happen.”

Sometimes, the financial needs go beyond the traditional tuition and books, she said. VGCC has funds that can help students in emergency situations, too. “It’s only because of sponsors that we can do that,” she said.

It’s not too late to sign up for sponsorship opportunities, Weary noted. Gupton’s Services is the presenting sponsor again this year, Weary said.

Other sponsors include:

 

  • Charles Boyd Chevrolet
  • Food Lion
  • Glen Raven Mills
  • Golden Skillet
  • Kilian Engineering
  • Mast Drug
  • R. Williams
  • Oxford Prepatory School
  • Select Products

Phone 252.738.3264 or email foundation@vgcc.edu to learn more.

 

 

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TownTalk: Career Day At LB Yancey School

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Students at L.B. Yancey Elementary in Henderson got a chance to interact – virtually – with a range of professionals during last week’s Career Day at the school. They also got the chance to share their career aspirations by dressing as doctors, nurses, civil servants and there was even one funeral director.

The theme for the day was “I Have a Voice – My Career, My Choice,” according to Alicia Eccleston-Clarke, event organizer. She said Career Day offered students the chance to see just how many career options await them. “Exposing them to the career opportunities available to them will hopefully serve as a way to motivate students to work hard and to do their best in school,” she said.

The staff and students were joined by a team of top-notch professionals who sparked much interest and excitement as they joined via Zoom to share details about their respective careers. The student were able to pose questions to their virtual guests. The day’s activities culminated with a student parade through the school hallways to show off their career day attire.

Fourth-grader Nathan Durham summed up Career Day this way: “It was so amazing! I wanted to be a soldier or cop or firefighter or anything! I couldn’t choose so I dressed as a funeral director.”

Guidance counselor Connie Jones and Cherie Dixon-Rose, multi-grade classroom leader at the school, were part of the organizing committee. Principal Dr. Shannon Bullock and the whole school staff worked together to make the Career Day a meaningful day for the students.

From the decorated bulletin board displays to the banner and décor, kids were excited from the moment they walked into the building. “I was overjoyed to see the level of participation from all stakeholders. Students being able to directly communicate with professionals in their desired careers will inspire them to continue working hard to achieve their goals,” Bullock said. Her comments were from a press release by VCS Director of Communication And Marketing Aarika Sandlin.

The following individuals participated in Career Day:

  • Estena Bradley – nurse Ppactitioner in the areas of Gynecology and Obstetrics from the Center for Women’s Health, Oxford;
  • Vernon Turner – on-air meteorologist for Spectrum News 1, Raleigh;
  • The Hon. Caroline S. Burnette – district court judge with the State of North Carolina;
  • Charles Gunby – chief executive officer of CG Project Management, Electrical, and Construction, LLC;
  • Michael Rice, P.E. teacher/track & basketball coach,Vance County Middle School,
  • Carlos Gunby – firefighter and paramedic EMT;
  • Camisha Gavin, realtor with CC & Co. Real Estate;
  • Jason Brown, former NFL player, author and current full-time farmer with First Fruits Farm.

 

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Granville Vance Public Health Logo

The Local Skinny! Voting On Public Health Assesement Ends March 31st

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Public health professionals have been on the front lines for more than two years during the COVID-19 pandemic. From vaccine clinics to sharing information about community spread, it seemed like Granville Vance Public Health was always working to prevent new cases of the Delta variant, then the more pervasive Omicron.

More than likely, fighting a global pandemic was not one of the top three priorities listed on the most recent GVPH Community Health Assessment. And yet, it quickly became a priority and has remained so over the past couple of years.

GVPH Director Lisa Harrison invites all adults who live in Granville or Vance counties to take a very brief survey as her agency finishes up another community health assessment – a year-long process to identify priorities on which to focus energy and funding. The survey ends Thursday, March 31.

The community health assessment team already has conducted surveys, held focus group sessions and analyzed data trends to generate a list of priority areas for the two counties.

“Please take a moment to look at the top list of priorities that have emerged in this process and vote on your own top ones,” Harrison said in her weekly email update. “We are eager to continue our work in communicable disease prevention and also, in developing programs, interventions, partnerships and services that address our top health priorities in Granville and Vance counties.”

Before you vote, you may want to watch a 12-minute video overview of the data: https://go.unc.edu/GVPriorities-DataSummary

Click here to vote: https://go.unc.edu/GVPriorities2022

GVPH has offices in Henderson, 115 Charles Rollins Rd. behind Maria Parham Health and in Oxford 1032 College St., near Granville Health System.

Visit www.gvph.org to learn more.

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