Gargoyle Garden Offers Students An Outdoor Musical Classroom

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Vance County Schools held a ribbon cutting Tuesday for Gargoyle Garden, a musical garden located at the Center for Innovation (CFI), located at 219 Charles St. The garden is filled with musical instruments that provide experiences for students to learn about beats, music, echo, reverberation and more.

The garden is named after the gargoyles positioned across the facade as part of the 1930’s construction of the building.

The ribbon cutting featured Henderson-Vance Chamber of Commerce President Michele Burgess, Henderson Mayor Eddie Ellington, VCS Superintendent Dr. Cindy Bennett, Director of Fine Arts and Physical Education Andrew Markoch and the Center for Innovation Director, Dr. Destiney Ross-Putney.

The district began the planning of Gargoyle Garden during the summer of 2021. The first students were able to experience the excitement of the instruments in mid-March when the installation was completed, giving student an opportunity to learn beyond the classroom walls.

The Center for Innovation campus is home to more than 50 z-Space computers in three labs, providing virtual and augmented reality experiences. Additionally, a 600-seat auditorium, video lab, MindSphere MakerSpace lab, Simulated Lab for Interactive Career Exploration (SLICE), as well as other learning spaces are available for students to participate in facilitated, inter-district field trips. The campus is also home to three of our innovative schools, Vance Virtual Village Academy (K-12), Advance Academy (6-12) and STEM Early High School (6-8).

TownTalk: Kerr Tar Regional Council Of Governments To Hold Employment Events

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Whether you’re a high school senior looking for that first job after graduation or looking for a new career, upcoming events sponsored by the Kerr-Tar Regional Council of Governments could be just place to begin.

Business Services Manager Desiree Brooks and Youth Programs Coordinator & Equal Opportunity Officer Sharon Thomas discussed several resource and job fairs and other ongoing programs in the area designed to help people find employment.

D.N. Hix Gym in Oxford is the site of a resource and re-entry fair on April 12. In addition to Legal Aid representatives available to help individuals understand how to get their criminal records expunged, Department of Services representatives will be on hand, as well as GRRO, FGW Opportunities, the Family Resource Center, and Gang Free, Inc., public health officials and other programs designed to help with housing, transportation and food assistance.

Brooks said plans “are coming together very nicely” for this event, which is free and open to the public.

The Raleigh Road Outdoor Theatre is the site for an all-day hiring event targeting young adults on April 29. Brooks said 10 businesses have confirmed their participation. “We’re shooting for about 40 businesses and our business services team is working diligently to connect” with additional businesses,” Brooks said. They should have a complete list by the end of the week, she added.

“The morning is reserved for the region’s high school seniors,” Thomas explained. High school counselors and CTE teachers are helping to spread the word at their schools and get students registered to attend the event. The time exclusively for students is from 9:30 a.m. until 2:30 p.m.; the public is welcome to attend from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., although the target audience is the 16-24 age group.

Visit www.kerrtarworks.com to learn more.

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December Stabbing Victim Dies Of Wounds Apr. 5

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A woman who was the victim of a stabbing in late December 2021 has died of her injuries.

Vance County Sheriff Curtis R. Brame issued a press statement that said the woman died Tuesday, April 5, 2022, of injuries received on or about Dec. 31, 2021.

Roy Williams, 71, was charged in connection with the case. Charges against Williams were upgraded to murder, the statement read. He is being held without bond and was scheduled to appear in court today (Wednesday).

The Vance County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call for service at 2611 Spring Valley Rd. and, upon arrival, found the female victim with numerous injuries consistent with a violent assault.

She was taken to Maria Parham by Vance County EMS.

Avian Flu on Weekly Home and Garden Show

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Until further notice, all poultry shows and public sales of poultry are suspended until further notice because of the ongoing threat of avian influenza, according to state veterinarian Mike Martin. This includes all exhibitions, farm tours, shows, sales, flea markets, auction markets, swaps and meets pertaining to poultry and other feathered fowl in North Carolina, according to a press statement issued Tuesday by the N.C. Department of Agriculture.

Jonas Asbill, a poultry extension agent for a 20-county area that includes Vance, joined Paul McKenzie and Wayne Rowland on Wednesday’s The Local Skinny! segment to provide details about the seasonal influenza that is transmitted from wild waterfowl to domesticated and commercial poultry.

Several sites in Johnston County already have had to euthanize thousands of turkeys after finding the avian flu among the stock.

Asbill urges all poultry owners – even if you have a few layer hens in the backyard – to use strict biosecurity measures to make sure your animals stay safe. Asbill recommends that poultry stay in coops or otherwise contained and that they not come into contact with wild migratory waterfowl.

Migratory waterfowl are asymptomatic carriers of the influenza and shed the disease in their feces. Think about the Canada geese or seagulls that make stopovers at area ponds, parking lots and golf courses in the area. Local poultry owners could potentially bring back remnants of contaminated fecal matter on the bottoms of shoes and then unknowingly introduce it to their own poultry.

It’s just better to keep them contained during the annual migration times, and to keep them away from where migratory waterfowl may congregate.

“We’re a heavy ag state,” Asbill said, “and a big part is poultry.” Once a case is detected, the whole population has to be destroyed; the turkeys or broilers do not continue into the food supply chain.

While the CDC considers transmission to humans a very low risk, Asbill said there have been rare cases of the avian flu being found in other species.

“We do not make this decision lightly. HPAI is a serious threat to our poultry industry and this is a precaution to help limit the introduction of the virus to backyard and commercial flocks,” Martin said in a press statement.

North Carolina joins several other states, including Georgia, that have also cancelled or altered poultry events due to HPAI. Poultry owners across the state need to practice strict biosecurity. This includes keeping flocks indoors without access to outside and reporting sick birds to your local veterinarian, the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Veterinary Division, 919.707.3250, or the N.C. Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory System 919.733.3986.

To learn the signs of avian influenza, biosecurity tips and more information go to www.ncagr.gov/avianflu.

On the Home and Garden Show with Vance Co. Cooperative Ext.

  • Mowing season is here. Always check your lawn for objects that can become projectiles before mowing. Please No Extra Riders On Mowers. One Seat Means One Person On the Mower!
  • Check mowing height, but it’s too late for seeding, fertilizer and weed killers.
  • Vegetables you can now plant: Arugula,,Snap beans,beets,broccoli,cabbage,kale,leeks,bulb onions, Irish potatoes,turnips.
  • Avoid insecticide applications to lawns unless there is a specific identified problem.
  • Purchase healthy transplants, good color, not pot bound
  • Hold off on planting frost sensitive plants, including warm season vegetables and flowers.

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The Local Skinny! Free Christian Play Coming To Louisburg

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Thanks to the uncertainty surrounding COVID-19, a group of pastors and ministers in Franklin County had to get creative as they began planning for their annual community gathering during the Easter season.

Speaking on behalf of FACES – Franklin Area Clergical Ecumenical Society – Eddie Williams said the result is a play called “Too Young To Be Saved: My Kids Saved My Life.” Williams spoke with John C. Rose on Tuesday’s The Local Skinny! segment.

“This gospel message will be presented in a theatrical format,” he said. The performance will be Saturday, Apr. 9 at 4 p.m. at the Pete Smith Amphitheater in Louisburg. The event is free to the community, Williams said, and said local actors, singers and dancers will be among those taking the stage.

“The actors are really engaging – it’s going to be a lot of fun,” he said. Jayden Watkins is participating. Watkins, a student at Henderson Collegiate, who also is a preacher, author and podcast host. The Cook Family Singers and IDance Praise Group also will be in the performance.

“We decided to go with someone with quite a bit more experience” in play production, so FACES approached Connie Ragland, who agreed to create something special for the occasion.

“This is the first time that we’ve done it on this level – we’re really excited about it,” Williams said. “We pray that lives will be touched.”

The play is about families and their day-to-day activities, he explained. There’s an encounter with God that produces life-altering results. Ragland has written other works with similar themes, Williams said, but this particular play focuses on the role children play in the lives of families.

“It’s always fun – there’s always some comedy in there, and some singing…as the message is conveyed.”

The Pete Smith Amphitheater is located at 116 N. Main St., Louisburg. Williams said there is bench seating, so it may be a good idea to bring a lawn chair.

Williams has one more request: “Continue to pray for good weather because (the performance) IS outside!”

Contact Williams at 919.263.4119 for more information.

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West End Baptist

TownTalk: Collecting Food, Paper Products, Household Items And Gift Cards In The Month Of April

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A lot of cars and trucks drive past West End Baptist Church each day as drivers make their way up and down a very busy Dabney Drive. The church gets visitors who are in town to enjoy Kerr Lake and from others who travel along I-85.

The congregation is active in local outreach, and support organizations like Rebuilding Hope, ACTS, Grace Ministries and Lifeline Ministries. Their regular 220 Fish Fry fundraisers help in these efforts, and Jerry Parrish is helping to organize an outreach project that will help folks a little farther away.

The church is participating again this year in a Food Roundup for the N.C. Baptist Children’s Homes. Volunteers will be on hand beginning April 11 to accept donations of food, non-perishable household items and gift cards that will be delivered to the N.C. Baptist Children’s Homes located in Kinston.

“We’d love to rent a big box truck and take the food down,” Parrish told John C. Rose on Tuesday’s Town Talk. Church members have sent letters to more than 25 area churches, many of which used to belong to the former Cullen Baptist Association, to join in the project.

He said several churches have responded so far.

Last year, the church was able to collect about 40 boxes of food items and more than $2,500 in gift cards. That was a good start, despite COVID-19, Parrish said, and he said he hopes this year will be even more successful.

Anyone can make a donation to the Food Roundup, he said. Volunteers will be at the church, located at 619 Dabney Drive, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. each weekday beginning Monday, Apr. 11 through Wednesday, Apr. 18.

Contact the church at 252.438.6306, Will Flowers at 252.432.0787, or Parrish at 252.492.6353 for more information.

Visit https://www.bchfamily.org/ to view a complete list of items that are needed.

 

 

The Local Skinny! Jobs In Vance 04-05-22

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The H-V Chamber of Commerce and WIZS, Your Community Voice, present Jobs in Vance for April 5th, 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 Michelle@hendersonvance.org to be included.

JOB OPENINGS IN VANCE COUNTY – Week of Tuesday, April 5, 2022

Name of the Company: For Your Occasion Event Rentals

Jobs Available: Hiring for installers to help with set up and take down.

Method of Contact: Call 252-492-9800.  Email resume to info@FYOEventRentals.com.  Visit website at www.fyoeventrentals.com.

 

Name of the Company: Walmart Distribution Center 6091

Jobs Available: Freight Handler/Order Filler.  Full-time, 12 hour shift.  $17.55-$23.55 hour.  Fullfill store orders by pulling merchandise through layer using electronic voice control equipment, stacking on pallets, and completing tasks in other ways.

Method of Contact: Apply online at www.walmart.com (at bottom of homepage, click on careers), or apply online with www.indeed.com.

 

Name of the Company:  Vance County Public Schools

Jobs Available: Hiring for a Parent Engagement, Displace Families, and Student Liaison.  Full-time.  $24,000 – $30,000 year salary.  Willingness to develop community relationships, and have an understanding of available resources to assist our families.

Method of Contact: Apply online to www.vcs.k12.nc.us – Under programs and services tab at top of page, click on job openings.  Or call Human Resource Office at 252-492-2127.

  

Name of the Company:  Variety Wholesalers (Roses Stores) Corporate Office, located on Garnett Street in Henderson, NC

Jobs Available: Job Openings (multiple positions) for immediate hire.  Human Resource Coordinator, Payroll Specialist, Accounts Payable Clerk, Associate Buyer, Merchandise Analyst, Various Merchandise Department Buyers.

Method of Contact:  Send resume to poverton@vwstores.com or apply at www.indeed.com.

  

Name of the Company: Mars Petcare

Jobs Available:  Sanitation Operator – performs cleaning and maintains control over the microbial environment in plant through detailed cleaning of equipment and surfaces, in high-risk areas, and oversees preventive maintenance of all sanitation equipment. High School diploma required.

Method of Contact: Apply through online through NC Works at www.ncworks.gov, or go by the NC Works office in Henderson to apply at 857 South Beckford Drive, Suite G in Henderson.  252-438-6129.

 

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

Jobs Available:  Administrative Support Coordinator.  Provide organizational and administrative assistance to church staff, maintain schedules for the use of the building, special events, and assist with printing and distribution of church publications.  Proficiency in Microsoft Word, Publisher, Exel.  Excellent verbal and written skills, interpersonal skills, recordkeeping skills, marketing on social medial.  High School diploma and 2 year college degree preferred. 9-5, Monday to Thursday, 9-noon on Friday.

Method of Contact:  Send resume to Ron Cava, Senior Minister at First Baptist Church. roncava@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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Local Foundation’s Scholarship Open For College-Bound HS Seniors

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Searching for scholarships can be a full-time job for those college-bound high school seniors, but a local foundation is offering 10 scholarships to graduating seniors in the area, placing the ball in their court.

The $500 scholarships are offered through the Edmonds Tennis and Education Foundation (ETEF), a Henderson-based nonprofit dedicated to utilizing the game of tennis to provide academic and athletic opportunities for under-resourced youth throughout rural North Carolina.

To help carry out its mission, ETEF high school seniors in Vance, Granville, Warren, Franklin, Halifax, Hertford, Northampton and Bertie counties may apply. Applicants must have evidence of plans to attend college and must follow the application guidelines provided and all required documents must be received or postmarked by Apr. 30, 2022 to be considered for the scholarship award.

Visit https://www.edmondstenniseducationfoundation.org/ and find a link to the application.