TownTalk: Medical Arts Named MVP – Most Valuable Pharmacy!

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Medical Arts Pharmacy has been awarded the 2024 Dan Moudry Most Valuable Pharmacy award from a national pharmacy cooperative.

Chocky White accepted the award on June 24 during the annual business meeting of the Independent Pharmacy Cooperative in New Orleans.

The IPC has been around for more than 40 years – almost as long as White has been operating as a pharmacist.

He came to Henderson in 1971, fresh out of pharmacy school, and set up shop. What began as a one-man show has evolved into a staff of more than 40, including six pharmacists.

White places a priority on establishing and maintaining good relationships with his customers. “We love interacting with our patients,” he said on Wednesday’s segment of TownTalk. “We feel like that’s the most important aspect of our business.”

Daughter Cara White Kirby, who also is the company’s vice president, said her dad is a stickler for excellent customer service, encouraging – and expecting – everyone on the payroll to over-deliver in that department.

White said Henderson had seven independent pharmacies when he came on the scene. “It was slow growth for me the first 10 years or so,” he recalled. “But I gradually earned people’s support…and have grown steadily over the past 50 years. It’s been my lifetime job and I’ve loved every second of it.”

When IPC reps contacted Cara to make sure her dad would be at the pharmacy when they came to visit, she said it wouldn’t be a problem – if the pharmacy’s open, her dad’s there, she said.

“We knew we were finalists,” she said, “but when they came with balloons and a cake,” she knew something else was afoot.

“I was shocked,” said Chocky. “I thought it was somebody’s birthday.” Cara said there was a whole group of folks filming and taking photos while the pharmacy staff was helping customers and filling prescriptions.

The resulting video was shown at the meeting last month during the award presentation. “They did a beautiful job of showing off our pharmacy inside and out,” Chocky said.

The Wisconsin-based IPC is a network of more than 2,000 members who purchase pharmaceuticals, equipment and merchandise available for purchase at the independent pharmacies.

“We have a very large inventory here,” Chocky said, which benefits customers who need meds or other equipment quickly – even after-hours.

White’s been known to be at the store on nights and weekends – even Christmas Day last year.

“We’re not always open, but we’ll be here if you need us. We do whatever it takes to serve our customers,” he said.

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Vance County Names New Economic Development Director

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Vance County has named Ferdinand A. Rouse as its new Economic Development director.

Rouse has served as coordinator of Raleigh’s Small Business Development Programs and also has been an economic development specialist in Adams County, CO.

He will begin his work with Vance County on Monday, July 15, according to Vance County Manager C. Renee Perry.

“I am honored and excited to have the opportunity to serve the citizens of Vance County,” Rouse said in a press release received from Perry earlier today (Tuesday).

In addition to his work in Raleigh, Rouse has worked as Minority and Women Business coordinator for the city of Greenville. He has an undergraduate degree from UNC-Charlotte and a master’s degree in business administration from ECU.

He is a certified Economic Developer and is recognized by the International Economic Development Council.

“I am more than thrilled to bring Mr. Rouse on board with the rest of the Vance County team,” Perry stated. “Ferdinand’s education and experience are a perfect fit for our needs right now.”

Wil Short Files For Seat On Soil & Water District Board

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One candidate has filed to run for supervisor of the Vance County Soil & Water Conservation, according to Shelly Wood, deputy director of the Vance County Board of Elections.

The filing period ended at 12 noon on Friday, July 5.

Wil Short filed as a candidate, Wood stated in an email to WIZS News.

The district board is made up of five supervisors, two of which are appointed and three of which are elected.

City Road Center Of Hope Move-In Update

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The new Community Partners of City Road Center of Hope men’s shelter is taking shape, and Director Darryl Jones said they’ve gotten everything into position that they can as they await those final inspections that will give them the green light to officially move in.

There are some doors and partitions that still need to be installed, Jones told WIZS News on Monday.

“We’ve moved all we can right now” Jones said, but there are other ways that folks can help out.

Jones said the shelter needs volunteers, especially for the welcome shift that occurs nightly between 5:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.

Volunteers also are needed to sign up to provide meals.

Visit cp-hope.org to learn how you can help.

 

TownTalk: Hicks Serves As Governor’s Page

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Connor Hicks is a young man with goals and aspirations. As the 17-year-old prepares to begin his senior year at Henderson Collegiate, he’s got his eyes not just on graduation, but on what he’ll be doing after he gets that well-earned diploma.

In order to graduate, Henderson Collegiate requires its seniors to complete a project. Hicks was doing a little online research using resources from school counselors and he came upon something that piqued his interest: the Governor’s Page Program.

“I thought it would be a good opportunity so I applied,” Hicks said on Tuesday’s TownTalk.

He was part of a group of fewer than a dozen others selected to participate in the program during the week just following Memorial Day. He spent May 28-31 in Raleigh and said he got to visit different departments of state government and see how government functions and who’s in charge – from the governor and lieutenant governor on down.

He didn’t get to meet Gov. Roy Cooper, but Hicks said he did learn how to be a better teammate – “how to be a member of a team.”

He may want to review those notes if his post-graduation plans come to fruition as he hopes: if all goes according to plan, Hicks will be joining the U.S. Marines.

“He makes me and his dad both real proud,” said his mother, Margaret. “Since he was about 11 or 12, that’s all he wanted to do – go in the service.”

His dad served in the Navy, he had uncles in the Army and his brother was in the Air Force, but Hicks said he’s got his sights on the Marines.

“It makes me feel like I’m doing something that’s bigger than myself,” he said, adding that he takes pride in knowing that he will be part of a branch of the military service that will defend the United States and its freedoms.

“It makes us really proud that he wants to go and serve his country,” his mother said.

Learn more about the Governor’s Page Program at https://governor.nc.gov/governors-page-program.

 

 

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The Local Skinny! Teacher Pay And State Budget

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Gov. Roy Cooper signed a dozen or so bills into law on Monday, a couple of which involve education and educators. At a time when most area school children – and teachers – are enjoying their summer vacations, Cooper signed into law small pay raises for educators and extended grants to keep childcare centers open at least in the short-term.

In signing Senate Bill 357, Cooper stated that the legislation “provides critical but limited grants to help keep childcare centers open for the next few months.” He said legislators need to do more for parents, businesses and children to extend the grants through 2025 by

“investing in our nationally recognized NC Pre-K and investing more in quality early childhood education. Our children’s future and our economy depend on it,” Cooper stated.

As for Senate Bill 332, Cooper said it “simply restates the small pay raises legislators already gave public school teachers last year.”

Citing North Carolina’s rank of 38 among the 50 states in teacher pay, Cooper said the legislature should be paying teachers “significantly more.” That ranking, coupled with the fact that North Carolina invests nearly $5,000 less per student than the national average, Cooper said North Carolina should spend more for teachers and students. “Our state has the resources to make meaningful investments to help our public school students and now is the time to do it.”

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TownTalk: Uber-Type Service Will Replace Henderson’s Around Town Shuttle

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Henderson’s Around Town Shuttle worked well for a good long time, but KARTS Executive Director Randy Cantor said it’s time for an upgrade to a more efficient concept that is designed more like the rideshare Uber than a city bus line with set stops.

Cantor, who has been in the KARTS role for about a year, said the four-county service area can be challenging. There are many employees driving many vehicles across a large geographical area, he said on Monday’s TownTalk. He assured rural clients that their services would continue as they have been – residents need only call 252.438.2573 at least 48 hours in advance to arrange transportation for doctor visits or other appointments.

But the closed-loop Around Town Shuttle that had run in Henderson is being replaced by an on-demand group of vehicles that clients can schedule by calling the KARTS dispatcher or by using their Smart phone or app.

Right now, KARTS as a whole operates on a cash-only basis, said KARTS Finance Manager Tonya Moore. But when the new micro transit concept kicks in, payment will then be possible with a card or with a phone app.

Cantor said changing the model has nothing to do with how KARTS is operating and everything to do with providing the best and most efficient service possible to clients. He said he hoped that round-trip fares for the Henderson service would be in the $10 range, but setting the price is not up to him or KARTS.

KARTS gets state and federal funding, and counties also contribute, but it’s never enough to fully cover expenses. Moore said the Around Town Shuttle had cost $1 every time a rider used the shuttle. The once robust ridership, however, had dwindled to about 300 rides a month. Cantor said using an on-demand service would be more efficient than having a shuttle drive around Henderson in a circle five days a week, eight hours a day, 40 hours a week.

Since the ability to call and arrange transportation exists and stressing that the Around Town Shuttle was only one aspect of KARTS, Cantor agreed that there is not really a gap in coverage.

The Around Town Shuttle stopped running June 30.

The newer style transportation offering may be available in as few as a couple of months.

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The Local Skinny! Commissioner Balks At City’s Reimbursement Request For Displaced Families

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In her report to the Vance County Board of Commissioners last week, County Manager C. Renee Perry said she had received a letter from Henderson City Manager Terrell Blackmon that formally requested $22,000 to reimburse the city for money it gave to families displaced when the place they were living in was shut down back in May.

Perry, however, reminded commissioners that county funds had been used to house the families to the tune of $26,905.67. “My recommendation is …there should be an offset to the cost that the county incurred,” Perry stated during the commissioners’ July 1 regular monthly meeting.

If the city and the county were to split all costs 50/50, the city and county would each pay $22,000 for the $2,000 vouchers provided earlier by the city to the displaced families AND the city would put up $13,452.84 to take care of half of the almost $27,000 that the county incurred while the shelter was in use.

According to Perry’s calculations, 8,547.16 is the more accurate number that should be considered – $22,000 minus the $13,452.84.

The commissioners ultimately took no action at the meeting.

Commissioner Yolanda Feimster expressed concern over the request. When the incident with (Motel) 121 occurred, the county provided the shelter, and all the things that went along with it – water and electricity – not to mention portable showers, toilets and overtime pay for law enforcement officers to make sure the area was safe.

“And we were never reimbursed, not one dime,” Feimster said.

She went on to call the $2,000 payment to the families who had to spend a week in the former Eaton Johnson gym-turned emergency shelter a “band-aid” approach that would have little long-term effect.

Feimster said she was sympathetic to those who had to move out of the motel that they called home, but she expressed concern that the city is asking for reimbursement for something that the county was not first consulted about.

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