NC MedAssist

NC MedAssist Distributing OTC Meds In Oxford Mar. 11

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NC MedAssist is coming to Oxford next week to give away an assortment of over-the-counter medications including pain relief products, as well as cold and flu medicines, allergy pills and children’s medication.

The distribution will take place on Friday, March 11 – rain or shine – from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the campus of the Masonic Home for Children, 600 College St., according to information from the non-profit based in Charlotte. Triangle North Healthcare Foundation is bringing the event to the area.

Registration is not required, but you may pre-register at www.medassist.org/mobile and pick up your order on the day of the event.

Items also may be picked up for a family member or friend.

All North Carolina residents over the age of 18 are welcome to pick up medications; there are no income or ID requirements.

NC MedAssist is a non-profit pharmacy that provides access to prescription medications to the uninsured and also provides free over-the-counter medications to anyone in need through its Mobile Free Pharmacy events.

Learn more at www.medassist.org.

West End Baptist

West End Baptist Church 220 Fish Fry March 14th

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The Baptist Men of West End Baptist Church on Dabney Drive in Henderson will be sponsoring a fish fry fundraiser to support local ministries.

It will take place at 220 Seafood Restaurant in Henderson on Monday, March 14th. The time is from 4:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m.

Cost is $8.00 per plate and includes trout, slaw, french fries and hushpuppies.

Take out only.

All proceeds will be used to support local ministries including ACTS, Lifeline Ministries, Rebuilding Hope, GRACE Ministries and many others.

H-V Crime Stoppers Chicken Plate Fundraiser March 11

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To raise money and local awareness, the Henderson-Vance Crime Stoppers will have a chicken plate fundraiser on March 11 at the Vance County Rescue Squad on 1735 Maynard Road. The event will run from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tickets are $10 and are available from any board member. Tickets must be purchased in advance. It’s takeout only, and delivery can be arranged for 10 or more plates.

According to the new president of the local Henderson-Vance Crime Stoppers, Frankie Nobles, there was not a single payout request in 2021.

Either there were no indictments or convictions as a result of tips sent in anonymously or, more likely, no tips sent in at all.

“We need the community to step up,” Nobles told WIZS. He also said he believes that people may be worried that their identity will be discovered. But Nobles said that is not the case.

Calling or texting the Crime Stoppers number at 492 1925 is completely anonymous, Nobles said. The calls or messages get routed through a maze of different servers. The software that is used is safe and confidential.

He said, “We never even know who’s getting the money.”

The Local Skinny! St. Patrick’s Day Celebration Set For Downtown Henderson

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Green will be the color of the day on Thursday, Mar. 17 as the Henderson-Vance Downtown Development Commission and the Vance County Arts Council team up to sponsor a St. Patrick’s Day celebration on Breckenridge Street.

The community is invited to join in the fun from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., according to downtown development chair Amanda Ellis. There will be food trucks, music, crafts for the children as well as a scavenger hunt with prizes awarded.

Ellis said there are opportunities for community partners to sponsor the event. Sponsorship levels include “pot of gold” level at $1,000; “shamrock” level $500 and “leprechaun” level for $250.

Vendors and others who wish to set up information tables are asked to register before Monday, Feb. 28. Phone 252.425.0844 or email Ellis at amanda@rogersandrogerslawyers.com.

Alice Sallins, events committee chair of DDC, told John C. Rose earlier today (Thursday) that she hopes the event will be something the whole community will come out and enjoy.

“With enough support, we are hoping to provide free food through the food trucks,” Ellis said. The DDC also is collecting prizes for the scavenger hunt.

The Local Skinny! Around Old Granville: John Eaton

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John Eaton, apparently, did not shy away from challenges, political or personal. And back when he was President Andrew Jackson’s Secretary of War, the political and the personal challenges overlapped – a lot.

Eaton, who was born in 1790 in Halifax County near Scotland Neck, was quite a significant character in the U.S. government in the early 19th century. Local historian Mark Pace and WIZS’s Bill Harris talked about his life and work on Thursday’s Around Old Granville segment of The Local Skinny!

He was on the fast track like no other, it seemed. At age 12, he was a college student at University of North Carolina. But by 14, he dropped out and decided to study law.

He joined a wave of folks who journeyed to Nashville, TN for fame and fortune. At age 18, he was practicing law there and married Myra Lewis, the adopted daughter of Andrew Jackson.

He was elected to the U.S. Senate to represent Tennessee when he was 28 years old – two years shy of the minimum age to run for that office, Pace said.

His wife died shortly after they’d moved to an inn in Washington, DC, and it wasn’t long before Eaton became involved with the innkeeper’s daughter.

Her name was Peggy Timberlake and she was married to a much-older man who was in the military and died while on an overseas assignment. She and Eaton were married just months later, thus creating the “Petticoat Affair.”  By this time, President Jackson had tapped Eaton to be his Secretary of War, and this whole ordeal posed a real challenge.

“It was the scandal of the day,” Pace said. The Eatons were shunned by DC society and, in fact, President Andrew Jackson ordered his cabinet members – all men – to require their wives to accept Eaton’s new wife. They did not comply, and, the whole Cabinet resigned which required Jackson to appoint an entirely new group.

Eaton resigned as well, Pace said, and became minister to Spain and later, he was appointed Governor of Florida.

As minister to Spain, Pace said, he didn’t excel. Eaton, it seemed, had developed a drinking problem and Peggy became the de facto ambassador, he added.

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TownTalk: Trials And Tribulations Of Genealogy

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Lots of people dabble in genealogy in their quest to fill out a family tree, but Kim Knight has taken it to a whole different level.

Knight has a college degree in archival management and genealogical research from Brigham Young University and she’s been a genealogy professional for more than 20 years.

What began as research on her father’s side of the family has blossomed into a business that helps others find their ancestors. But the work is so much more for Knight, she told WIZS’s Bill Harris and guest host Phyllis Maynard on Thursday’s Town Talk.

Genealogy is her go-to activity when she needs to take a break from the trials of everyday life. It’s a therapy of sorts for Knight, who deals each day with the effects of traumatic brain injury. And with a cancer diagnosis.

Maynard and Harris conducted the second part of an interview with Knight as part of a regular segment called “Former Active Duty” Still Boots on the Ground” that checks in with former service members who remain active in their community to help others.

There are many available computer-based platforms to entice an amateur genealogist, but Knight said she would choose https://www.familysearch.org/.

“It’s free, easy to use and has a tremendous database already behind it,” she said.

Other free sites include https://www.findagrave.com/ and https://www.cyndislist.com/us/.

While the amateur genealogist may enjoy poring over documents in search of family history, a professional genealogist has gone through rigorous training and certification to conduct research.

It’s reading ancient documents, learning how to pick through information and collect more than just dates of birth and death that intrigue Knight.

“It’s like painting the picture of the person’s life you’re researching,” she said.

For instance, she recently helped a young Black man with some research and she found some interesting information.  “I found that his great-great-great grandmother in the 1880’s went to college, earned her degree and went on to be a teacher – that was an amazing find for this young man,” she said.

Before all the online resources became available, genealogy fieldwork involved visits to courthouse, registers of deeds, and combing through lots of documents by hand. Now, clicks of the mouse and a few keystrokes can open up whole worlds of information to genealogists.

Knight cautions anyone doing family research to take care – misinformation abounds, and it’s vitally important to make sure the data is correct before adding it to your own family history.

For Knight, that’s part of the game with genealogy.

“It’s part of the fun, actually,” she said. “It’s a kick. I really enjoy genealogy.”

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City of Henderson Logo

TownTalk: Henderson City Council Planning Retreat

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The Henderson City Council and government leaders are planning for their annual retreat, and council members agree that housing and homelessness are among the issues they expect will be up for discussion as they prioritize goals and the actions needed to achieve them.

City Manager Terrell Blackmon told WIZS News that a goal of the retreat is to craft “a blueprint for the direction of the city for the foreseeable future.” Chris Aycock of Aycock and Associates will facilitate the retreat, which will take place at Henderson Country Club beginning tomorrow (Thursday, Feb. 24) and continuing on Friday, Feb. 25.

Members of the public are welcome to attend and observe this annual strategic planning session.

Council member Melissa Elliott said a discussion about affordable housing and homelessness are important one to her. “I think they go hand in hand – that would be one of my main” issues to discuss, she told WIZS News. Other topics she hopes to discuss during the planning retreat are inclusion and diversity.

The Rev. Ola Thorpe-Cooper said she is excited about what’s ahead for Henderson and looks forward to discussing with others on the council how to tackle the issue of affordable housing and revitalizing blighted neighborhoods.

Thorpe-Cooper, William Burnette and Garry Daeke all mentioned the Elmwood URA project and plans for similar work in the Flint Hill neighborhood as positive moves forward for the city.

“We’re trying to do what we can for the city…as a whole – it’s not done overnight,” Thorpe-Cooper told WIZS News in a phone conversation.

Jason Spriggs told WIZS News Thursday that he’s concerned about housing in general, not just affordable housing. Spriggs sees a definite link between homelessness and available housing, and said people who are renting may be seeing those rents rise. He said he wants to make it easier for people to construct houses.

“It’s a tough situation for people who live here who want to stay here,” he said.

 

In addition to neighborhood redevelopment efforts, Burnette said he would like to see continued focus on downtown redevelopment and emphasis on the regional water system.

These topics and more are sure to be discussed during the retreat, which Blackmon said would begin with brief presentations by department heads during the first half-day. The session will run from 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The second day will be attended by Council only, Blackmon said, adding that all council members would be present for the session, which will be from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

“What I hope to get out of this retreat is a five-year plan with goals that have tangible actions attached,” Blackmon said. His topics of interest line up with those of Burnette, Elliott and Thorpe Cooper and include infrastructure, affordable housing and economic development.

Daeke said prospective developers most likely are interested in amenities like sidewalks and available parks, as well as appropriate lighting and landscaping as they decide where to put new housing or retail space. He said he hopes the city can secure some funding that would support providing those improvements.

“We’ve got to have some skin in the game,” he said.

Daeke said the council would probably get an update on the regional water system, which he said is very close to starting on the construction phase – perhaps as early as fall 2022.

Siting and construction of a third fire station could be a discussion, as well as finding a location for a train station as plans continue to develop around the S-Line project, which would see increased commuter and passenger service along the existing rail lines from Sanford through Henderson and on into Virginia.

Next steps include getting input about station design and layout – as well as where to locate it for best access by the community.

“It’s just incredible…having a commuter and passenger and freight rail coming through this town again is just going to open doors that we haven’t had open to us in years,” Daeke said.