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Local Business Transportation Survey Respondents Needed

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The Oscar Mayer Wienermobile is surely one vehicle that almost no one will ever be afforded the opportunity to drive to work.  There is a special program for that.

All fun aside, there is presently special transportation survey information out from the Henderson-Vance Chamber of Commerce.

According to Chamber President Michele Burgess, the Chamber’s Governmental and Public Affairs Division is seeking responses to the survey to identify local transportation needs.

Burgess said in an email received by WIZS News, The Chamber, “in partnership with the Community Collaborative Council, would appreciate your immediate response to a survey to help identify local transportation needs as it relates to recruiting, hiring, and maintaining employees at your business/industry.”

Follow this link to SurveyMonkey – https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/PPNTW9M

Basically, the survey is trying to determine if transportation limitations are impacting ways people travel to work, how they travel and if recruiting new workers is being affected by means of transportation.

(The Wienermobile visited the Raleigh Road Outdoor Theatre in Henderson on Friday, November 13, 2020. — If you want to read more about that, click here.  If you want to read more about the Wienermobile itself, follow this link – https://www.oscarmayer.com/wienermobile).

 

Henderson-Vance Rec and Parks Arthritis Exercise Class Tues & Thurs

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WIZS has been asked to announce:

Arthritis Exercise Class – The Henderson-Vance Recreation & Parks Department will be having Arthritis Exercise Class on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 2:30pm-3:30pm. This is a FREE low-impact, joint safe program developed for people with arthritis. This class has been proven to decrease pain and stiffness while increasing flexibility and range of motion. This class is also suitable for every fitness level. Join in by logging on to Facebook Live on the Henderson Vance Special Programs page or at Aycock Recreation Center. Participants must preregister to participate at Aycock Recreation Center. There are only 10 slots available. For more information or to register, please contact Crystal Allen at 252.431.6091 (callen@ci.henderson.nc.us) or Tara Goolsby at 252.438.3948 (tgoolsby@ci.henderson.nc.us)

City of Henderson Logo

Henderson City Council Meets Virtually May 10 at 6 p.m.

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The Henderson City Council will hold a public hearing Monday, May 10 as it considers a request to annex parcels along Red Oak Road, which extends from U.S. 158 Bypass to Dabney Road.

The public hearing will take place at the beginning of the council’s regularly scheduled meeting. The city clerk received a petition to extend the city limits to incorporate the road, just over seven acres.

Because of COVID-19 restrictions, public comments should be submitted via email to City Clerk Esther McCracken at emccrackin@ci.henderson.nc.us by 3 p.m. on Monday, May 10. The comments will be read aloud at the meeting and should be limited to three minutes per person.

Other agenda items include:

  • a request for grant funding to partially reimburse the city for purchase of bulletproof vests for new police officers and to replace broken or outdated vests. The grant comes from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance and would pay up to half the cost of a vest, which has a pricetag of more than $9,600.
  • a request from City Engineer Clark Thomas involving a stretch of 12-inch waterline along Nutbush Road. The waterline is “a critical loop in the Kerr Lake transmission/distribution system,” according to agenda information. The waterline easement through Corps property will remedy a buildup of a disinfection byproduct that must be flushed regularly. This action involves consent of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and is expected to cost $7,500 to fix. Little Environments PLLC was awarded the bid for the project. The money will be moved from the Kerr Lake Regional Water System’s reserve fund to the capital improvement plan fund.

 

Join the meeting, which begins at 6 p.m., at

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82325370925?pwd=VVd1emhVOHpHak01eW0rTVVYU24xUT09

Exams, State Tests: No Opt-outs For Students

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Vance County Schools students will begin taking exams, end-of-course (EOC) and end-of-grade (EOG) tests in less than two weeks, and school officials are working hard to make sure parents are informed about schedules and understanding the logistics  necessary to satisfy state requirements in a safe environment.

Exam schedules are posted on each school’s website, according to Aarika Sandlin, public information officer. High school students will kick off the testing season, taking  EOC and Career Technical Education (CTE) the week of May 17-21.

Testing continues through the end of May and into June for students on a year-round calendar.

“NCDPI has indicated all state exams must take place on campus,” Sandlin said in a written statement to WIZS News. “We have exam schedules for all of our schools posted on each school’s website and encourage families to contact their child’s school for specific concerns or questions,” she said.

The testing schedules provide details for students who have returned to in-person learning as well as those students who continue to learn remotely. Sandlin encouraged any parent to contact their child’s school if they have questions about the test schedule.

North Carolina students in grades 3-8 take EOGs in Reading/English Language Arts and Math. Students in grades 5 and 8 also take a Science EOG.

Students in grades 9-13 take EOC exams in Biology, English II, NC Math 1 and NC Math 3.

Exams count as a percentage of high school students’ final grades.  The state also uses this information to measure proficiency and to maintain metrics and data, Sandlin said.

There will be no school report card letter grades this year.

“There are no opt-outs for state assessments and we encourage all of our families to be present for all of their state testing,” Sandlin said.

For basic information and tips about preparing students for the standardized testing, parents can visit https://drive.google.com/file/d/1dOqA6dZ_3pShTaVc9ADOY2su2nvKn-B0/view.

Henderson, NC National Day of Prayer 2021

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Henderson, NC presents an annual National Day of Prayer Service.

This year, the tradition continues using a broadcast format.

Thank you for listening.

WIZS, Your Community Voice!

To the Glory of God Only. #ASDG

Henderson-Vance Rec and Parks Welcomes Curry Hall

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— From the Henderson-Vance Recreation and Parks Department

Curry Hall is the newest member of the Henderson-Vance Recreation and Parks Department. Curry is from Burlington, NC, and has worked in local government for over five years. He worked as a police officer in Burlington and Hillsborough before switching to the parks and recreation career field full-time. Curry has a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology from UNC-Greensboro and Master’s degree in Public Administration from Liberty University. He enjoys hiking with his fiancée, Morgan, and his Golden Retriever fur baby, Georgia, along the Haw River. Curry has a love for outdoor recreation and natural resource education.

Kerr-Tar Agency on Aging Helps Families Find Options for Care

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Family members often find themselves pitching in to help older parents, grandparents or siblings with their daily living needs. Providing that extra support, however, often comes at the expense of their own needs. And sometimes, they just need a break.

The Kerr-Tar Area Agency on Aging can help those caregivers connect with resources to assist with the kind of service – for the care receiver and the care giver, said Austin Caton, Kerr-Tar family caregiver support specialist. Caton and Camille Koonce, a certified case manager and eldercare consultant, discussed some local options with John C. Rose on Thursday’s Town Talk.

Navigating through the various programs and services can be confusing and time-consuming, but Caton can help untangle the knots for families to access the option that best suits their needs.

One program is called respite care, Caton said, which provides unpaid primary caregivers a break from the responsibilities of caring for a family member. “The caregivers are just depleted,” he said. There are vouchers funded through the Older Americans Act that can help pay for this respite care so the primary caregiver can do things like go to the grocery store or get a haircut.

“Some people will use someone they know – from church, a neighbor, a family member not living in the home,” Caton said. Other people will contact a local home care agency, and Caton can provide a professional referral. The agency will conduct an assessment and set up a schedule for the respite care, he added. The voucher can help pay for this service.

Often, caregivers are juggling the demands of a full-time job and family obligations with providing that extra care for a family member in need. There are day programs that provide those needing care with a place to spend the day while the primary caregiver is at work. These programs can cost between $50 -$75 a day, but Koonce said it may be the best option for all parties involved. Day programs offer a way for participants to socialize with one another while being supervised by a staff of caregivers.

They explained the difference between home care and home health. Home care is non-medical care, like preparing meals, light housework, medication reminders and helping a care recipient get from a chair to a bed and back again –any daily activities that person may need help with. Insurance doesn’t cover this expense, but help with paying for it may be available through veteran’s programs or long-term care insurance, for example.

Nurses provide home health care, Koonce said, and includes wound care, administering IV medication and other things that require a doctor’s orders to perform.

“There’s a big push right now for family members to stay comfortably in the home,” Caton said, “because of the skyrocketing cost of health care.” Expect to pay $9,000 -10,000 a month, he said, for a bed in a long-term skilled care facility.

Contact Caton by phone 252.436.2040 ext. 6072 or apply at www.kerrtarcog.gov.

“It’s a pretty simple process,” he said. He or others will complete an assessment – either in home or by telephone – to get started. “We want to be a wholistic, all-encompassing agency (to) help identify those needs or whatever you’re struggling with and help get you to the right place and the right services,” he said.

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TownTalk 5-5-21 VGCC Applied Technologies

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Vance-Granville Community College offers an array of certificate and degree classes under the heading of Applied Technologies – from welding to mechatronics, these programs are designed to put students on a new career path or gain additional skills in their current field of work.

Robinette Fischer chairs VGCC’s applied technology department. She and Rusty Pace, who heads up the school’s welding program, discussed the various areas of study available at the college with John C. Rose on Wednesday’s Town Talk.

Welders are in short supply in the four counties that VGCC serves, Pace said. “There is a shortage of qualified welders,” he said. On top of that, the average age of a qualified welder is late 50’s or close to 60 years, so as more workers reach retirement age, industry will be looking for replacements.

Students in the welding program can earn a two-year degree or diploma, and Pace said evening classes offered at Main Campus provide convenience for those who may be working during the day.

Fischer said she fields calls regularly from businesses and industries asking for candidates to fill job openings. Electricians, heating and cooling (HVAC) technicians and welders are just a few of the jobs that are in demand.

Andrew Lynam of Youngsville, seen here in the Welding shop on VGCC’s Main Campus, is the college’s recipient of the North Carolina Community College System Academic Excellence Award for 2018. (VGCC Photo)

“The jobs are out there,” Fischer said. “And they pay well.” More women are applying to these programs, she said. “We’re trying to market more to women and make it understood that (they are) as capable as anyone else,” she said.  “There’s no reason that women can’t go into those occupations and be successful.”

Pace said students who complete the welding program at VGCC will leave qualified in one of several areas of welding and must meet American Welding Society standards. Successful completion of the program prepares students for at least an entry-level welding job.

Other programs in the applied technologies department offer certificates, diplomas and degrees.

The carpentry program is being offered again after a pause, Fischer said. Other areas of study include electrical system studies for residential and commercial wiring, automotive, HVAC, mechatronics and electrical engineering (geared to a manufacturing environment that includes motors and other types of controls).

Whatever the program, Fischer said students have access to help all along the way. “If you’re wanting to go from ground zero to the top, we’re here for you and we’ll make that possible,” she said. We’ve got people to help you from the time you come in and say what program you’re interested in, getting you registered and started,” Fischer continued.

Pace said he and his fellow instructors help students not just have a job in welding, but have a career in welding. “The best place to start is at Vance-Granville,” he said.

Classes start May 24 for the summer term; the fall semester begins Aug. 16. Visit www.vgcc.edu to learn more.

(VGCC is an advertising client of WIZS and WIZS.com. This is not a paid ad.)

Click Play for Broadcast Audio and Full Details.

 

Small Business Winners Include WIZS

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Small businesses have borne the brunt of the economic impact brought about by the pandemic restrictions during the past year. But on Wednesday, four small businesses were recognized for their staying power in the communities in which they operate.

Thomas Ruhe, CEO of Durham-based NC Idea, spoke to Chamber of Commerce representatives and Chamber members during the Small Business of the Year awards luncheon, held at the Henderson Country Club. He congratulated the winners and commended them for stepping up during the pandemic to continue to serve their communities.

“I want to honor you for what you do,” he told the group gathered for the occasion. “You are, in a sense, first responders…economically you are on the front lines looking for signs of life” during what has been a challenging year dealing with COVID-19 lockdowns and closings.

“You are the ones figuring it out – you didn’t have the luxury of pulling back” when other businesses reverted to self-preservation mode.

Small Business Week is observed during the first week of May, and the awards luncheon was hosted by the Chambers in Franklin, Granville, Person and Vance counties, as well as the VGCC Small Business Center. Duke Energy sponsored the event.

Ruhe said one of the roles of NC Idea, an independent private foundation, is to provide grants to entrepreneurs. The foundation is building an “entrepreneurial ecosystem” in North Carolina. When small businesses thrive and help support a local economy, he said, that success bubbles up to the state level.

“You’re doing what I’m talking about,” Ruhe told the audience. Putting money in the hands of budding entrepreneurs is one way that NC Idea supports young businesses. The seed grant program awards $50,000 twice a year to entrepreneurs. “There’s no better money for an entrepreneur than grant money,” he said. From a pool of 176 applicants, he said between 6 and 8 will be chosen.

NC Idea also gives at least half of its grant funding to underserved communities – people of color, women and those who live in rural areas, he said. “This is where the impact is greater,” he added.

This year’s winners are:

Vance County – WIZS Radio John C. Rose accepted the award from Dr. Levy Brown, chair of the Henderson-Vance Chamber board. The family-owned business has been on the air since May 1, 1955 and Rose said the honor is one that he would like to share with first responders and other workers who had to be at their jobs despite the pandemic. “Using technology to do my job made it easy for me,” Rose said after accepting the award. “Really, the thanks goes to all the small businesses…but it is a particular honor for me to be able to stand here and say thank you.”

Granville County – Oxford Public Ledger

Barbara Critcher accepted the award for her husband Charles and his brother Ronnie, who own the local weekly newspaper.

Person County – Keller Williams Realty

Sherry Clayton, owner of the realty firm, accepted the award from Samantha Bagbey, who heads up the Person Chamber.

Franklin County – Heartwood Animal Hospital

Richie Veverka, Franklin Chamber’s executive director, announced the winner.