The Local Skinny! Register Now To Attend Feb. 1 Expungement Clinics In Henderson, Oxford

/by

Learn how to get your criminal records expunged tomorrow (Tuesday, Feb. 1) at two free informational clinics – one in Henderson and one in Oxford.

The Kerr-Tar Reentry Roundtable is partnering with Legal Aid of North Carolina to host the events, during which Legal Aid staff will walk participants through the process of getting previous records expunged, or cleared, which could have a positive impact when applying for jobs or housing.

The clinics will be held from 2:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. at Perry Memorial Library, 205 Breckenridge St., Henderson and at the Oxford Housing Authority, 101 Hillside Dr., Oxford, according to KTCOG strategic initiatives coordinator Kisha High.

High told John C. Rose on Monday’s The Local Skinny! that the clinics are informational only; those who attend and qualify for record expungement will be notified to attend an April 12 clinic at Hix Gym in Oxford to complete the expungement process.

“This is our very first expungement event,” High said. Monthly information sessions are planned and she said most likely the expungement clinics would be held quarterly.

The Second Chance Law that went into effect in June 2020 provides information about which offenses can be expunged from a criminal record, and changes that took effect on Dec. 1, 2021 give more hope to those who wish to have records cleared.

Legal Aid staff will be ready Tuesday to clarify which charges and what type of offenses can be removed, she said.

Maybe it was a DWI or some other activity that happened earlier in a person’s life that is affecting their adult life now, High said. Even if a person’s criminal record is not able to be expunged, High said a “certificate of release” can be issued by a judge that indicates the prior record should not be held against the person.

Interested in participating? Contact Kisha High at 252. 436.2040, ext. 2008 no later than noon on Tuesday, Feb. 1.

Wayne Adcock

Adcock’s Family Humbled, Honored During Dedication Of Wayne Adcock Auditorium

/by

“It’s not work if you love what you do.” There is no more fitting statement to describe the way Wayne Adcock felt about his job as an educator, and members of the community and Vance County Schools school had a chance to remember the lifelong educator, former superintendent, mentor and friend at a special ceremony Monday at the Center for Innovation.

Vance County Schools named the auditorium for Adcock, who died in November 2020. His wife, Susan, and son John were in attendance at the ribbon-cutting and dedication. She reflected on the morning’s celebration in a telephone interview with John C. Rose.

“It was wonderful,” she said. “It was a very emotional day, but we were so humbled by the school board wanting to do that,” she said of the naming ceremony.

Adcock was so complimentary of the work that Superintendent Dr. Cindy Bennett and the school staff undertook to make the day a reality.

“We enjoyed hearing people remembering Wayne,” she said. A recurring theme throughout the remarks made on Monday included how much her husband loved working for Vance County Schools and with students. And, my, how he loved that building that now houses the Center for Innovation. He served as principal at the Charles Street campus when it was Henderson Middle School. “He was principal there 10 years,” she said. “He loved that building – he would always say it was the prettiest building in Vance County.”

But whether it was at Henderson Middle School or Northern Vance High School, Adcock said her husband genuinely loved what he did.

“He felt like he was the lucky one that got to (work) with the students,” she recalled. “He thought he was the fortunate one to get to do it.”

Several speakers gave remarks at the ribbon-cutting, and then the microphone was opened up for others to share their memories. Her son, John, offered remarks on behalf of the family.

Her husband made lifelong friends working for Vance County Schools, but it was the students that he dearly loved hearing from after they’d graduated and become successful in life.

He enjoyed his time interacting with the older high school students because he could hopefully give them advice that would “guide them in the right direction.”

David Cooper and David Westbrook are former students who now work in the field of education. Westbrook talked about advice that Adcock had given him when he was in high school “when he wasn’t always doing what he was supposed to do,” Mrs. Adcock recalled. “(Wayne) was always tickled when he’d call and seek advice,” she said.

Cooper talked about the encouragement Adcock offered him through the years.

School board chair Ruth Hartness shared the strong relationships that Adcock established with students and the guidance that he was so good at providing.

“Wayne valued education so much,” she said. He felt that it was one thing that could lift people out of poverty. He was awarded a scholarship to attend UNC-Chapel Hill, and he realized how fortunate he was to be able to continue his education.

When he’d bump in to former students or get updates on what they were doing, “he would be so happy that they’d gotten an education and were doing so well.”

Vance County Sheriff's Office

One dead, juveniles charged following shooting Jan. 19

/by

One man is dead and one juvenile is being held without bond following a shooting on Jan. 19, 2022, according to information from the Vance County Sheriff’s Office.

Sheriff Curtis R. Brame released a press statement Friday afternoon which gave details of the incident.

Deputies responded to a call at 104 Vicksboro Road and, upon arrival, discovered a man with an apparent gunshot wound to the torso. The victim was identified as Chrisdarrius Clark. Vance County EMS attempted life-saving measures, but Clark was pronounced dead at the scene.

The Vance County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations Division, along with members of the SBI, conducted an investigation into the incident that resulted in multiple juvenile charges. The charges include first-degree murder, obstruction of justice, and possession of a handgun by a minor.

A 17-year-old, who was found at the scene, was taken into secure custody by deputies without incident for the charge of first-degree murder and obstruction of justice. Two other juveniles have also been charged in relation to this incident, but no details are available about specific charges.

Anyone with information regarding this incident is urged to contact the Vance County Sheriff’s Office.

Vance County Schools Logo

Former Vance Superintendent Gregory Dies

/by

Former Superintendent of Vance County Schools Ronald Gregory died on Jan. 21.  A graveside service will take place Friday, Jan. 28 at 3 p.m. at Meadowview Memorial Park. All services will observe COVID-19 protocols of facial coverings and social distancing of six feet or more.

Gregory, 80, retired in 2015 from the school system, having served as principal, assistant superintendent and superintendent, according to information from VCS.”I had the pleasure of working with Mr. Gregory as a Vance County Board of Education member for many years,” said

Vance County Board of Education Vice-Chair Gloria J. White.

“He was surely one of a kind. He always believed that education was the great equalizer between the haves and have nots. He deeply believed that through education people could rise above their circumstances. Mr. Gregory worked tirelessly throughout his career to achieve that goal. This community has lost a great leader and warrior for education,” White said in a written statement to WIZS.

The school district issued this response: “We are truly grateful for his impact on Vance County Schools. On behalf of the Vance County School Board, superintendent and the district, we extend our heartfelt sympathies to his wife and children, as well as the extended family.”

Board Chair Ruth M. Hartness expressed her appreciation of Gregory’s commitment to the school district as well. “Vance County Schools are saddened to hear of the passing of Ronald Gregory,” Hartness said in a written statement to WIZS. “He spent many years with students in his care. He will be missed.

He was the son of the late Edward Gregory and Vertilia Oakley Gregory. He was a former Superintendent of Vance County Public Schools.

He is survived by his wife, Linda Gray Gregory; a daughter, Pherin Gregory of Henderson; two sons, Brandon Gregory of Greensboro and Ryan Gregory of Pleasant Gardens; a sister, Yvonne Kittrell of Bowie, MD; a brother Calvin “Tim” Gregory of Raleigh; and three grandchildren.

 

 

The Local Skinny! Cell Phone Tower Is A Win – Win

/by

The shiny new cell tower that was erected on city property by the police training grounds should be operational in the next few months, and Assistant City Manager Paylor Spruill said it’s a win-win for the city and for the cell service provider that owns the tower.

U.S. Cellular “found that location to be a good fit for their network,” Paylor told WIZS News Thursday. The tower that had been there was old and needed some maintenance, but the city and the cell provider reached a deal that suited both sides.

“They took the old tower down and put up the new one,” he said. And the city has “the very top of that tower for their communication.” US Cellular owns the tower and has agreed to maintain it, and for the next seven years or so, won’t be paying any rent. When that period ends, rent payments will begin.

“They gave us prime real estate for the ability to put their own tower there,” Spruill said.

Click Play

The Local Skinny! Vance Eats: Ribeyes Of Henderson

/by

When you go to a steakhouse, the usual recommendation is to order the beef. But fearless Trey Snide of WIZS Radio, always looking for a gastronomic adventure, took a different track when he visited Ribeyes in Henderson Thursday.

He ordered the pork chop.

And he was not disappointed.

On Thursday’s Vance Eats segment of The Local Skinny! his pronouncement after tasting the first bite said it all: “I am a happy man.”

The thick slab of pork is specially brined to create a mouth-watering dish, sure to delight the senses. And Trey said there was absolutely no need to add a sauce. The chop took center stage.

No doubt he made Bill Harris’s mouth water back in the studio as well, because before the segment was over, Trey promised to bring his co-worker his own chops back to the radio station.

(This is not a paid ad. Vance Eats on WIZS is a food review.)

Click Play

TownTalk: Early Granville County Courts

/by

You won’t find a copy of Leonard F. Dean’s book on the shelves alongside Erle Stanley Gardner’s Perry Mason or Carolyn Keene’s Nancy Drew series, but Mark Pace said Dean’s

Courthouses and Courts of Early Granville County, NC is somewhat of a detective story.

Dean’s book tracks down the origins of the court system – and the first courthouses – in old Granville County, and Mark Pace and Bill Harris said it reads more like a detective story than a rehash of researched facts.

The early courts of Granville County was the topic for the tri-weekly history program on Thursday’s Town Talk. They kicked off the discussion with a quick review of Dean’s book.

“It sounds dry, but it’s really quite good,” Harris said of Dean’s book. Pace agreed, calling Dean a “meticulous researcher…who makes his arguments and backs them up with facts.”

“It’s an interesting story from an interesting time,” Pace said.

The courthouse in downtown Oxford is beautiful and an iconic structure in its own right, but the 1838 structure wasn’t the first official courthouse in Granville County – that was located up near Eaton’s Ferry in the northeastern part of what is now Warren County.

Granville County, remember, used to encompass all of what is now Vance, Granville, Franklin and Warren counties. That area around present-day Eaton’s Ferry was more heavily populated than other areas – folks moved from southside Virginia into that area, Pace said.

As the population continued to grow in other parts of Granville County, people who had business at the courthouse had to travel longer distances to get to the courthouse in Eaton’s Ferry.

But it was Col. William Eaton – considered by many to be the father of Granville County – who helped to change that. Eaton owned the property where the court was located up in the northeastern part of present-day Warren County. And he also offered a more centralized property farther south, which he also owned, on which to locate a court that wouldn’t take so long to get to from the south.

This property, known as Locust Hill, is located on Ruin Creek in present-day Vance County. And it was here where the “new” courthouse conducted business, from processing applications for taverns and canneries to hearing court proceedings and naturalizing citizens. Although there was no actual courthouse, court was convened here. Pace said Eaton also ran a tavern and a store, which benefitted from the additional court traffic.

In 1764, Samuel Benton introduced legislation to move the county seat to his plantation, “Oxford” and gave the land on where the current Granville County courthouse stands.

Benton, a member of the House of Commons, owned all the adjacent property around the parcel he offered for the courthouse, from which the town of Oxford grew.

Call Pace at the North Carolina Room of Richard Thornton library at 919.693.1121 to learn more about how to get a copy of Dean’s book.

 

 

TownTalk: Chief Cordell Gives Praise To Henderson’s Firefighters

/by

Firefighters with the Henderson Fire Department stand ready to respond to calls across the city, and earlier this month, they gathered to honor several among their ranks at the 45th annual awards banquet.

Fire Chief Steve Cordell said being a firefighter requires service and dedication and the individuals with the city’s fire department are true public servants. The 45th annual banquet was Jan. 12 at Clearview Church.

Battalion Chief Lee Edmonds received the Firefighter of the Year award and Cordell told John C. Rose on Wednesday’s Town Talk that Edmonds truly deserves the recognition.

The nominating committee put forth Edmonds’ name because of his behind-the-scenes efforts in navigating the department through new reporting systems with training and troubleshooting.

“Lee was the backbone of all that,” Cordell said. He trained the firefighters and also was the first person to tackle computer-related issues on the trucks or around the station.

“When staffing levels were short, Lee would jump on the truck,” Cordell said. Edmonds would fill in for firefighters who needed to take a day off, which allowed the department to stay fully staffed and ready to answer fire calls.

Edmonds worked his way through the ranks of the fire department, from fireman to engineer to captain over fire prevention and education.

“Lee takes so much pride and (is) dedicated in that job,” Cordell said. Fire prevention is a 365-day event, he added, and Edmonds is in the community every day spreading that message, with eagerness, dedication and enthusiasm.

Firefighter Matthew Pearce was presented the Valor Award, which Cordell explained is given to a firefighter who puts their life on the line to save others. Pearce was at the Dabney Drive Food Lion buying groceries when a man asked if his grandson could see the fire truck. The firefighters took their time and gave the young fellow a tour, Cordell said. But afterward, the little guy, in his enthusiasm, dashed into the path of an oncoming car in the parking lot. “Pearce jumped out, grabbed that kid and spun his back” to the oncoming vehicle. “If anyone was going to take a direct impact, it would be him,” he added.

For unselfishly putting himself in harm’s way, Pearce was awarded the fire department’s highest honor.

Capt. William Boyd was presented the Chief’s Award, which is given to a firefighter who performs his work but who also contributes to the community away from the fire station. Boyd is a deacon in his church, a family man and he also volunteers as a coach for the local high school football team.

“Not only does he give to his church, his family and community, he served our country,” Cordell said of Boyd.

Cordell said it’s been fun to watch Boyd grow as a firefighter. First as an engine captain and now a company officer, he “takes his wealth of knowledge and takes his company of men and tries to make his firefighters better than when they came into the station” every day, he added.

Cordell also acknowledged that his department honored him with an award of appreciation, an act that rendered him speechless at the banquet and an act that, days later, he said he still is processing.

“It’s a moment that I never would have expected, but it meant the world to me,” Cordell said.

“My job is to fight for those (firefighters) to make sure they have tools and equip to be safe and to do their jobs – they’re my family. Cordell’s assessment? The city of Henderson has a great fire department,” full of individuals that work together to save and protect and serve.

Click Play