The process of selecting a fire chief for the Henderson Fire Department is underway, with applications in hand and interviews being set up, according to City Manager Frank Frazier.

August 31 is the date that former Fire Chief Danny Wilkerson retired after 40 years of service to the department and 16 years as chief.  Assistant Fire Chief Steve Cordell is serving as Interim Fire Chief during the application and selection process.

Frazier said, “I have received 11 applications from human resources that I am reviewing and should be setting up interviews over the next two weeks or so.  There are several internal applicants.  Besides the internal applicants, most of the other applicants are not local.”

One of those 11 applications is that of Interim Fire Chief Cordell.  Cordell expressed his excitement about being selected as the interim chief.  He said, “I would love to be the next fire chief and to provide the leadership needed to move the department forward.”

Frazier said, “The City of Henderson Fire Department has maintained a very good record and has been actively involved in the community for many years, so we certainly want that to continue.  Our department has experienced a good amount of retirement of seasoned firefighters, so it will be important for the new chief to provide leadership to insure that training and other aspects of running the fire department are passed on to the newer firefighters.”

Cordell said, if selected as chief, he would love to continue the good things going on in the department and the opportunity to carry the department successfully into the future.

A little more than a month ago, former Chief Wilkerson said, “We restructured the department some after he (Ranger) retired, and they may do that again when I leave, but the mission is still the same.”  He agreed that it was to protect and serve.

Danny Wilkerson started as a firefighter on July 24, 1975.  On April 1, 1999, Chief Danny Wilkerson became chief as former Chief Ranger Wilkerson retired.  Ranger served 40 total years and 32 years as chief.  All together, their time protecting and serving spanned 55 consecutive years.

Wilkerson reflected to a time in 2009 when deadly fires occurred in Henderson almost back to back.  Several young people had perished.  He said, “I felt like we were doing something wrong.  That’s when we started our fire inspection program, and we haven’t had a fire death since then.  We try to get into every home in the city limits and do inspections, get the person a smoke detector and install it.”

The interviews for the new chief are being conducted by Frazier as well as the human resources director.  Applications are still being accepted as of the time of this publication.

In the wake of longtime District 5 Vance County Commissioner Eddie L. Wright passing away earlier this month on the eighth, the Vance County Board of Commissioners now faces a November ninth deadline.

Vance County Attorney Jonathan Care provided WIZS News with the North Carolina General Statute.  N.C. G. S. 153a-27 essentially means the newly appointed board member must be of the same political party, a resident of the same district, that the board shall consult the county executive committee of, in this case, the Democratic Party and, if an appointment is not made within 60 days, then the appointment is to be made by the Clerk of Court.  Neither the board nor the clerk is bound by the Democratic Executive Committee’s recommendation.

The 60-day deadline means the commissioners must approve a name to fill Wright’s unexpired term by November ninth.

As a part of the process, Archie B. Taylor, Chairman of the Vance County Board of Commissioners, has sent a request to the chairman of the local Democratic party asking for the names of individuals good for the position who fulfill the requirements.

Care said the commissioners asked for the nominations to be given “by the 16th of October, which gives the commissioners a chance to make a selection at the regular meeting on November 2 or have a special called meeting before that if they feel the need.”

The Democratic Party of Vance County met this past Saturday and elected a new chair, Audry Davis, among other officers.  Betty Boyd, who is the Third Vice Chair and in charge of publicity, told WIZS News, “(The) Executive Board will meet in the next week to nominate a replacement to finish Rev. Wright’s term.”

Whoever is appointed will fill the seat for approximately one year because the district 5 seat was already due for election in 2016 anyway.  At that point, if the appointee chooses to run for the seat, he or she will either be elected or defeated by a challenger.

Wright was first elected in 2000.  He served on the Granville-Vance Public Health District Board and was a minister of a local church.

Soon after Wright’s death, the news was not as much about this process or who the appointee would be, but rather more about Wright himself.  At that time, Taylor said Wright’s death had come as a shock to him as it had to many others.  While Wright had suffered from joint ailments for years, no one in the public seemed to expect his death.

Taylor said, “The county is going to feel his abscence.  He was a man of great faith and spiritual beliefs, an elder of the church, a pastor and preacher, and he was a champion of the little man.  He was definately wanting of a better quality of life for everyone in this county.  He was a great advocate for those who didn’t have a voice.  He is going to be missed.

“His voice of reason and compassion will be missed.  He showed his faith by his work.  (Wright) had a very supportive family during this illness.  They have been extremely supportive of him and that speaks highly of them and their spiritual values.”