TownTalk: Farmers Appreciation Day Celebration

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The Vance County Regional Farmers Market is located close to where Leo Kelly remembers his family farmed. They weren’t big farmers, Kelly told a group gathered at the farmers market Thursday for the inaugural Farmers Appreciation Day in Vance County, but he remembers chickens, hogs and having spring, summer and fall gardens.

Kelly, vice chair of the Vance County Board of Commissioners, joined others to recognize the importance of farmers, farming and agriculture. In 2023, the Legislature set aside the second Thursday in November as Farmers Appreciation Day.

N.C. Rep. Frank Sossamon said the observance is a way to help people understand how farmers and farming affects them daily. These days, fewer people live near farms or don’t personally know farmers.

“Agriculture is more than planting corn and beans,” Sossamon said. It’s agritourism, small farmers producing specialty crops and more.

Vance County’s N.C. Cooperative Extension director Dr. Wykia Macon said she and her staff are always looking for ways to foster among young people an appreciation for agriculture and for farmers and to encourage them to get into agriculture.

Horticulture Agent Mike Ellington said he foresees changes in agriculture, but what remains, he believes, is the “sense of place, of purpose, community that agriculture creates.”

Vance County Commissioner Archie Taylor said he grew up on a farm and it helped shape the person he became.

“As I think about the professions we have,” he said, “no profession teaches our young kids more about hard work than farming.”

With the rise of urbanization, he said, fewer family farms meant that young folks didn’t have the “opportunity” to pitch in with chores like feeding livestock, chopping wood and all the other daily tasks a farm requires.

Taylor said he learned a lot from farm life, including “teaching me to get up in the morning, get started and get working.”

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The Local Skinny! Henderson Police Department To Participate In CALEA Assessment

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– Press release from Henderson Police Dept. Capt. Chris Ball

The Henderson Police Department will have a site-based assessment in early December as part of the reaccreditation process with the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies. The local police department has held accredited status since 2002.

The evaluation will take place Dec. 9-12, during which time a team of assessors will evaluate the department for adherence to national standards and will identify best practices related to life, health and safety procedures, according to information from Capt. Chris Ball of the Henderson Police Department.

There are 462 specific professional standards the department must comply with to achieve and maintain accreditation status. Reaccreditation is a thorough and demanding process, and successful completion demonstrates that policies, practices and procedures align with the highest levels of law enforcement professionalism.

Accreditation follows a four-year cycle, during which police departments like the HPD must maintain electronic records to prove compliance. The records are reviewed remotely each year, culminating in a site-based assessment in the fourth year.

As part of the process, the public is invited to submit feedback via the CALEA portal at http://cimrs2.calea.org/481.

The purpose of this public portal is to receive comments regarding an agency’s compliance with CALEA standards, engagement in the service community, delivery of public safety services and overall candidacy for accredited status. These comments can be in the form of commendations or concerns. The overall intent of the accreditation process is to provide the participating agency with information to support continuous improvement, as well as fostering the pursuit of professional excellence.

It is important to know that CALEA is not an investigatory body, and subsequently, the public portal should not be used to submit information for such purposes. Additionally, there will be no response other than acknowledgement to submissions; however, the information will be considered in context to its relevancy to compliance with standards and the tenets of CALEA® Accreditation.

Standard titles may be viewed on the CALEA website: https://www.calea.org/node/11406. The Henderson Police Department participates in the advanced level of accreditation. Questions related to the accreditation process may be directed to the Accreditation Manager at bstrother@hendersonpd.nc.gov.

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3 Face Variety Of Drug, Larceny Charges Following Traffic Stop

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— press release from the Henderson Police Department

On Tuesday, November 12, 2024, an officer with the Henderson Department located a vehicle that was involved in a retail theft from Walmart the previous day. The suspect of the larceny was observed in the passenger seat of the vehicle and a traffic stop was conducted. The vehicle and occupants were searched with narcotics and drug paraphernalia being found. As a result, the following individuals were taken into custody and face the following charges:

Jessica Edwards, 40, charged with

  • Misdemeanor Larceny and Felony Tampering with an Anti-Theft Device in relation to the Walmart incident.
  • Possession of a Schedule II Controlled Substance and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.
  • She was also served with outstanding warrants for Misdemeanor Larceny and Habitual Larceny out of Orange County, Misdemeanor Larceny from Wake County, Misdemeanor Larceny from Franklin County, four Orders for Arrest from various counties for failure to appear, and a Felony Probation Violation out of Vance County.

Edwards received a $33,000.00 secured bond for the probation violation and orders for arrest.  She was not given a bond for other charges due to pre-trial release.

Shawn Parham, 35, was served with:

  • Magistrate Summons from Vance County for Injury to Personal Property
  • Misdemeanor Probation Violation, also out of Vance County
  • He was charged with Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.

Parham received a $15,000.00 secured bond for all charges.

James Salmon, 35, was charged with:

  • Two counts of Possession of Schedule II Controlled Substance and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.

Salmon received a $15,000.00 secured bond.

All three were remanded to the Vance County Detention Center.

The Local Skinny! Henderson City Council Takes $275K Loan To Purchase Embassy Block Property

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The Henderson City Council approved Tuesday taking a $275,000 loan to purchase property in the Embassy Block area of downtown to create extra parking and a “pocket” park.

Benchmark Community Bank will provide the five-year amortized loan. The council approved the purchase of the Embassy Block in the 2024-25 budget that was adopted in June 2024.

According to City Manager Terrell Blackmon, the property that the city will purchase is bounded by Young and Montgomery streets. It doesn’t include the part of the property that faces Garnett Street. It is where Falkner Building Supply was located, and is currently part of the McGregor Hall holdings.

The council also approved paying bilingual city employees up to $2,000 extra a year for language services they provide for city business transactions with customers whose first language is not English.

Blackmon told council members that the police department has five employees who fit the bill and there are several other city employees who currently help out when needed. At most, Blackmon estimated that it could mean an extra $20,000 in the budget. The languages needed most are Spanish, Arabic and American Sign Language, he noted.

Employees would have to demonstrate their proficiency by passing an exam; details were not provided about the type of exam that would be involved.

Information in the agenda packet stated that the “objective of the incentive is to establish and strengthen relationships with other communities where English is a second language and to provide language assistance  services on a consistent basis. Additionally, the incentive will be a source for future talent for various positions and retention of multilingual staff.”

The water fountain installation at Garnett and Charles streets will be named in honor of former mayor Eddie Ellington. Ellington was the 39th mayor of Henderson and served two terms from 2015-2023.

Blackmon said the city had fielded several calls from members of the community to request that Ellington be honored in some way. He said the city’s Public Works department will create a sign that will be placed at the water fountain with Ellington’s name on it.

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TownTalk: Paws Of Hope Pantry At Pinkston Street School

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Paws of Hope, the new food pantry at Pinkston Street Elementary, was filled with well-wishers from the community Wednesday who came out to show support for a program designed to feed a child – literally and figuratively.

The new space has a fresh coat of paint – the school colors, of course – and banners hang on the walls to provide a cheery atmosphere for what organizers hope will be a place where children can learn about healthy foods and healthy habits. But most of all, they can learn that they are cared for.

“It’s about educating the total child,” said Principal Canecca Mayes. “Children can’t learn if they’re hungry.”

But the pantry isn’t just a place where Pinkston Street students can duck in, grab a snack and return to class. Henderson Mayor Melissa Elliott said it’s a place where they can shop for themselves and for their families.

“They don’t just shop for themselves,” Elliott told those gathered Wednesday for an official ribbon-cutting ceremony. “They shop for everyone in their household.” There’s a special emphasis on children who qualify for services from the McKinney-Vento Act, a federal program that identifies schoolchildren who are experiencing homelessness.

It’s been a group effort to get the pantry up and running, Elliott said. From community partners providing resources and school leaders welcoming the project to campus, to teachers and social workers on site to identify students’ needs, Elliott said she has witnessed real collaboration.

Children come to the pantry weekly, where they learn about financial literacy and making healthy food choices. They also get in a little exercise, too – although Elliott couldn’t coax any of the students present to break into their “Veggie Dance” routine.

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Henderson Man Gets 11.5 Years In Prison For Drug Trafficking

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– press release from the office of the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina Michael F. Easley, Jr.

A Henderson man was sentenced to 138 months in prison for armed drug trafficking. On August 15, 2024, Cedric Neal pled guilty to possession with the intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl and a quantity of cocaine and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

According to court documents and other information presented in court, Neal, 38, was previously sentenced to 105 months’ imprisonment for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin.  He was released from federal prison on July 27, 2022, and was placed on supervised release for five years.  By January 2023, investigators received a tip that Neal—while on supervised release—had resumed drug trafficking activities.

Investigators conducted seven controlled purchases of crack, fentanyl, or both from Neal, then executed search warrants at three locations associated with him.  The search warrants yielded fentanyl, cocaine, cocaine base, marijuana, and numerous firearms.  Ultimately, Neal was held accountable for 1,205 grams of marijuana, 451 grams of cocaine, 288 grams of fentanyl, nine grams of cocaine base, and five firearms.

Michael F. Easley, Jr., U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Louise W. Flanagan. The Henderson Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case.

The Local Skinny! Vance County Jail Update

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Six months into his new job, Maj. Johnny Hawkins provided an update to Vance County commissioners at their Nov. 4 meeting about the staff, programs and physical plant of the county’s detention center.

Hawkins began working at the jail in April, and retired with 30 years of service with the N.C. Department of Adult Corrections – two of those years were spent as chief of the Durham County Detention Center.

Hawkins said, “Some of the things that I want us to accomplish with this conversation tonight is the desire to rebrand the image of the Vance County Detention Center and the professionals that work there.”

On a daily basis, the jail exceeds its capacity of inmates and employs just half – 41 out of 82 – of the positions available.

He spoke of the seven percent pay increase and thanked the commissioners and said, “but we must do more.” He cited the example that two staff members were on night watch the evening of the meeting and said in reality two people were overseeing 190 inmates – 37 of whom are in jail on murder charges.

“I have done enough research to understand that the elephant in the room is certainly,” Hawkins said, “the desire and the need for a new detention center.”

Gradual improvements he has seen at the existing jail don’t change the fact that the facility faces continued staff shortages and outdated equipment – not to mention difficulty getting the outside vendors to complete services because they fear for their safety, he said.

And while a decent chunk of this information has been fairly well documented, what’s new in the story is the presentation Hawkins made about both improvements and desired improvements in the form of equipment, systems, policies and use of a comprehensive approach to how the jail functions.

“We’re trying to upgrade our security profile and systems … the geo management system or the round tracking system. What that does is allow us to be more efficient at our obligations with our two rounds every hour,” Hawkins said.

In addition, upgrades to surveillance and the access control system are needed to cut down on contraband and upgrades need to be made to fire and exhaust systems. Then there’s the perimeter security system and the data management system, the latter of which Hawkins said “will help us with training, help us develop policies, help us with personnel oversight and information so that we can have better processes in place so that we can effectively manage not only our personnel, our resources, but also update our policy so that staff can have direct access.”

Hawkins is looking at having a social worker, a peer support specialist, an additional maintenance technician, religious services program, vocational training – and a classroom space to hold the religious and vocational meetings.  And psychological services and community engagement programs may be on the horizon.

He thanked the commissioners again and asked them to do more.  The implication being that to rebrand it was going to require more.

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