TownTalk: Upcoming Municipal Elections

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Editor’s note: As part of its continuing effort to keep listeners and readers up-to-date on local issues, WIZS Radio will be sending candidates a list of questions in an effort to gather responses to be included in a special elections project that will be published and aired before the early voting period begins. 

Campaign signs are popping up along roadsides and in people’s yards, indicators that early voting for the upcoming Henderson municipal elections are not far off. Registered voters can cast ballots during the early-voting period at 500 N. Beckford Drive beginning Thursday, Sept. 18. Early voting continues Sat. Oct. 4.

Tuesday, Oct. 7 is the official Election Day, when voters will determine four seats on the eight-member City Council.

The Council Ward 1 at-large seat includes not one, but two incumbents – Council member Sara Coffey is seeking re-election, and Council member Geraldine Champion, who has the Ward 1 seat until the 2027 elections, has added her name as an at-large candidate. Newcomer Kenia Gomez-Jimenez and Clementine “Tina” Hunter also filed as candidates for the at -large seat.

Ward 2 at-large Council Member Lamont Noel is seeking to defend his seat against challengers Benjamin Buckner and George Mayo.

In the contest for the Ward 3 seat, incumbent Garry Daeke faces former Council Member Jason Spriggs and Deryl “Ms. Dee” vonWilliams.

And in the Ward 4 contest, incumbent Ola Thorpe-Cooper faces challengers Catherine “Kitty” Gill and Fred Robertson.

Anyone who lives in the city and still needs to register to vote has until 5 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 12 to do so.

The N.C. State Board of Elections has issued a press release with details and requirements about voter registration.

“To vote in a municipal election, you must be a resident of the municipality. Working within city, town, or village limits does not make a voter eligible to vote in municipal elections. Similarly, while a voter’s postal address may indicate a municipality, that does not always mean their residence is within the incorporated boundaries of the municipality,” the press release stated.

Eligible individuals who miss the regular registration deadlines may register and vote at the same time during the in-person early voting period at any early voting site in their county.

Eligible individuals have many options to register to vote, including the following:

There are 450 voters living throughout Vance County who need to provide additional information to the N.C. State Board of Elections to complete their voter registration, according to information from the SBE’s  Registration Repair Project.

Individuals with incomplete voter registrations have received, or will receive, letters stating that they need to provide additional information – their driver license number or the last four digits of their Social Security number – to update their registration.

This can be done in several different ways, including by mail, in person at their county Board of Elections office or by visiting the NCDMV secure website payments.ncdot.gov. There is no fee associated with the online method and updating twill not be made over the phone.

Check to see if your name is on the list at ncsbe.gov/registrationrepair.

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TownTalk: Sheriff Brame Pleads for Higher Pay for New Officers

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The Vance County Sheriff’s Office is between a rock and a hard place, it seems, as it faces a 20 percent vacancy rate – 12 sworn officers – including some who have recently left to take higher paying jobs in other counties.

Sheriff Curtis Brame took his plea to county commissioners during their Aug. 18 work session to ask for help in the form of funding salaries at a level that will attract officers and make them want to stay. Until salaries can become more competitive, Brame said he believes he’ll continue to face vacancies. But with so much money being put into state-mandated renovations and repairs to the jail, county commissioners and staff are at a loss as to where to find the money.

“We have lost valuable, seasoned employees,” Brame said. “Losing a deputy after two years is understandable. When you start losing investigators and SROs, that’s a wakeup call,” he said.

He said two School Resource Officers have left recently to take jobs in other counties – one went to Halifax County and a second went to Granville County.

Maj. William Mitchell recently left to take a state level job with the Standards and Training division. A lieutenant and other seasoned investigators also have left because of salaries. They can make more money elsewhere and work less, Brame said.

Brame said, “I’m here to make a plea. I am facing a crisis. I do not have enough help.”

Commissioners talked about implementing a progression pay scale, according to County Manager C. Renee Perry. That topic was referred to the Human Resources committee, and commissioners ultimately opted to give employees a one-time bonus instead.

Perry said, “We do need to move forward to allow people to move within their pay scale.” She acknowledged that the county is behind other nearby counties for starting pay – most are at $55,000, with the exception of Warren County, which is about $45,000.

The current starting pay for Vance County sheriff’s officers is just above $46,000. Both Vance and Warren counties are Tier I counties, which means they are among the 40 most distressed counties in the state when looking at the average unemployment rate, median household income, percentage growth in population and adjusted property tax base per capita.

Brame said he’d like to see the starting salary increase to $55,000.

The sheriff suggested possibly taking funds from a rainy day fund to boost salaries, something Perry told commissioners she would never recommend doing.

Board Chair Carolyn Faines said, “God knows we understand” that the sheriff’s office employees need more money.

But with all the money the county is putting into renovating the current detention facility, commissioners and county staff are hard-pressed to find even more money to boost salaries.

In response to a question from Commissioner Leo Kelly about what Brame would like to see happen, the sheriff said, “I trust our county manager,” adding that he would like to sit down and talk about numbers.

Perry and Assistant County Manager Jeremy Jones both endorsed the idea of addressing the concept of “compression” before bumping up starting salaries for deputies.

Compression is a way to address employee retention because salaries are based on experience.

At this time, Perry said it would be best to consider this for sworn personnel only, before opening it up to detention staff and other positions.

 

 

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TownTalk: Henderson City Council Special Called Meeting Friday, Aug. 22 At 3 PM

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UPDATE: Friday, Aug. 22 at 5:03 p.m.

The Henderson City Council voted 6-2 to allow City Manager/City Attorney Hassan T. Kingsberry to continue in his role through Dec. 31.

Kingsberry requested that the Council rescind his resignation so he can attend a program at the UNC School of Government. Kingsberry tendered his resignation at the regular monthly meeting of the City Council on Monday, Aug. 11 and shortly thereafter learned that he had been accepted into the program offered by the UNC School of Government in Chapel Hill.

Council Member Sara Coffey made a motion, seconded by Council Member Lamont Noel. Council members Geraldine Champion and Michael Venable voted against the motion.

The cost of the program is $4,500 and will be paid by the city.

“Keep me on so I can attend this training,” Kingsberry said in comments to the council.

Venable said he objected to spending money for Kingsberry to attend the program, knowing that he would be leaving the position.

In making the motion, Coffey said, “We need a manager and we need an attorney.”

Council Member Garry Daeke apologized to his fellow Council members for leaving a closed session Monday – during the first called meeting of the week – and not returning to the open session.

“I should have,” Daeke said in brief remarks at the beginning of the meeting. “I sincerely regret that I didn’t finish my duties,” he said.

**********

— from Henderson City Clerk Tracey Kimbrell

The Henderson City Council will hold a Special Called Meeting on Friday, Aug. 22, to hold a closed session pursuant to pursuant to NCGS § 143-318.11 (a)(6) regarding a Personnel Matter and G.S. § 143-318.11 (a)(3) Attorney-Client Privilege.  Also discussed will be THE consideration of Mayor Pro Tem position, an update on all law firms conducting investigations for the City of Henderson, and the City Manager’s participation in  the UNC School of Government Municipal and County Administration Program.

The meeting will begin at 3 p.m. at City Hall in City Council Chambers, 134 Rose Ave.  The public is welcome.

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VCSO Maj. William Mitchell Named Director Of State Sheriffs’ Training And Standards Division At N.C. Dept. Of Justice

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N.C. State Attorney General Jeff Jackson announced Wednesday that Major William L. Mitchell will serve as the new director of the North Carolina Sheriffs’ Training and Standards Division at the Department of Justice. He replaces interim Director Robin Pendergraft, who took on the role after Richard Squires retired earlier this year.

Vance County Sheriff Curtis Brame told WIZS News Wednesday afternoon that he wishes Mitchell well in his new position.

“He will be missed. He was a valuable employee to the Vance County Sheriff’s Office,” Brame said. His departure will be felt at the sheriff’s office, Brame continued.

“It’s going to be an impact on us,” Brame said, “until we can get somebody in place who’s capable and competent to do what he did. He was an asset to this office.”

The Sheriffs’ Training and Standards Division staffs the Sheriffs’ Education and Training Standards Commission, which was established in 1983 and is responsible for the certification of all justice officers, including deputy sheriffs, detention officers, and telecommunicators employed in the North Carolina’s 100 sheriffs’ offices.

“Major Mitchell’s decades of service to the people of North Carolina are a testament to his character and his integrity,” said Attorney General Jeff Jackson. “I’m thrilled that he is taking the helm of the Sheriffs’ Standards Division and leading our work with all 100 sheriffs in North Carolina. His law enforcement experience will help us do everything we can to have the best-trained, most committed public servants in law enforcement.”

“I have been privileged to work alongside some of the best officers and deputies the state of North Carolina has ever produced,” said Major William Mitchell. “As director of the Sheriffs’ Standards Division, I’ll continue to follow the rule that has guided me throughout my law enforcement career: take care, be safe, and look after one another.”

“Major Mitchell is a lifelong public servant whose experiences on the job will inform the work of the Sheriffs’ Commission to ensure our deputies and officers live up to the highest standards of the profession,” said Sheriff Alan Norman, Chair of the Sheriffs’ Education and Training Standards Commission. “I congratulate him on the appointment and look forward to working with him.”

Major Mitchell is a Johnston County native who has served in law enforcement for 33 years. He received a degree in criminal justice from Wake Technical Community College and completed basic law enforcement training in 1991. From 1992 to 1994, he served with the Youngsville Police Department. He then served with the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office until 2014, where he rose through the ranks of Sergeant and Lieutenant over the Narcotics Division, Supervisor in Charge of Multi-Agency Narcotics Units, and then Captain of the Uniform Patrol Division. He began serving with the Vance County Sheriff’s Office in 2019, initially with the Criminal Investigations Division, then as Sergeant over the Narcotics Unit and then Major of Operations.

Off duty, Major Mitchell also obtained his private investigators license in 2014 and investigates homicide cases for Indigent Defense Services in Raleigh. He is a deacon with the Louisburg Baptist Church and a volunteer with the Louisburg Fire Department.

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TownTalk: Vance County Annual Opioid Update Meeting Set For Sept. 16

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Vance County’s annual meeting to discuss the state of opioid and substance use is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 16 beginning at 4 p.m. in the county administration building.

Participants will hear a progress report concerning Vance County’s share of the opioid settlement funds – about $2.4 million so far – and they’ll also get a chance to provide input about how to spend that money.

So far, Vance County hasn’t spent any of its allocation.

During the commissioners’ work session on Monday, Aug. 18, County Manager C. Renee Perry said “We definitely need to start spending some funds.” Recalling advice she said she’d received from her professional association, “Don’t necessarily be in a rush when you spend your money, just make sure it’s beneficial to your community.”

Perry told commissioners that she’d like to see the county’s Opioid Committee expanded to include representatives from other area agencies and organizations.

Perry said, “I think it should be more than just three commissioners.” Originally, Commissioners Yolanda Feimster, Carolyn Faines and former Commissioner Sean Alston made up the committee.

At Monday’s work session, commissioners agreed by consensus to have Commissioners Dan Brummitt, Charisse Fain and Feimster serve on the committee.

Perry said she will work to get representatives from the health department, law enforcement and the courts system added.

The county sent out a request Tuesday for service providers, community organizations and people with “lived experiences” to complete applications that will be reviewed for possible appointment at the October commissioners’ meeting. The committee could have somewhere between 9 and 15 members.

Perry said she would then push for an initial meeting of the committee sometime in October.

The opioid committee serves only in an advisory capacity, Perry said, and would be offering recommendations to commissioners who ultimately will decide how to spend the money.

Some counties have funded positions and others have issued requests for proposals for programs that align with local priorities to combat the opioid crisis.

Granville County, for example, has partially funded a position within the Granville-Vance Health District. Halifax and Edgecombe counties funded community paramedic positions, Perry said. Another county has established a co-responder model and others have created peer services and support for improved access for people who can’t afford transportation and treatment.

The $2.4 million is part of what will be at least a $6.3 million funding stream to Vance County from the multi-billion opioid settlement through 2038. North Carolina’s portion of the settlement is about $1.4 billion.

Applications for the opioid committee may be obtained at https://www.vancecounty.org/or by contacting Kelly H. Grissom, Clerk to the Board at kgrissom@vancecounty.org. Please submit completed applications to 122 Young St., Suite B, Henderson, NC 27536 or kgrissom@vancecounty.org.

Visit https://ncopioidsettlement.org/ to learn more about the opioid settlement funding plan.

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TownTalk: ‘Way To Grow Fest’ Continues With Weeklong Activities

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The weeklong Way to Grow fest, in full swing in Henderson and Vance County, is shaping up to provide the community with a variety of ways to come together and support the place we call home.

At Monday’s community block parties, folks gathered at several different spots to share an easy meal and let the kids play together, conjuring up feelings of nostalgia for Tracy Mosley, director of Helping All People Excel.

When she was a child, cookouts and playing with other kids in the community all summer long were routine; it’s less so nowadays, but the Way to Grow festival is creating opportunities for children to play together and find things in common with one another instead of focusing on differences.

Mosley spoke with WIZS News Tuesday and outlined the rest of the week’s activities, leading up to the culminating street festival Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The block parties Monday “set the stage” for the rest of the week, Mosley said. “The energy is good; the vibe is great!”

Tuesday marks the launch of “Buy Local, Build Local,” a campaign that supports local businesses.  Patrons download an app on their phone and earn points or credits for shopping local.

It’s important to support small businesses and entrepreneurs, she said, but for small business owners to be successful, the whole economy around them has to be strong.

Wednesday is all about the S-Line, with a focus on what the future holds for Henderson and Vance County as plans progress to return passenger rail service to the area. Thursday brings a focus on the arts and Friday’s theme is college and careers. Come out to Southern Charm between 12 noon and 4 p.m. for Friday’s information about college and careers.

“We were very intentional about how we built this week,” Mosley said. From small business and economic development to education and the arts, the Way to Grow Fest offers a glimpse into what a future could look like when different sectors of the community come together for a common goal: helping each other to be better.

“The whole week is designed to be what we want it to be,” Mosley said, “to help Henderson and Vance County grow in the right direction.”

Visit www.waytogrowfest.com to learn more.

Saturday’s daylong festival in downtown Henderson has grown from last year. Last year, the festival stopped at Orange Street, but this year stretches one block further to include more buildings on the far end of Garnett Street, Mosley explained.

There will be more vendors and food trucks, participating shops and resource tables available for folks to enjoy, but if you don’t do anything else, Mosley said bring the kids to the Youth Village.

“They are the future of this community,” she said.

“For them to get together and get to know one another and learn how to work with each other now while they’re younger and learn that they have more in common than not, because at some point they’re going to leave this community and it’s our job to make sure that they’re getting everything that they need to be the best leaders that they can be. It’s truly a chance to invest in your future,” she said.

Learn more about Gateway CDC at www.thegatewaycdc.org

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TownTalk: Franklin-Vance-Warren Launches $3M Jubilee Center Project

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Franklin-Vance-Warren Opportunity, Inc. occupies the red brick building with the low profile up on the hill at 180 S. Beckford Dr. Through its efforts over the course of the last 60 years, FVWOPP has woven itself into the fabric of the communities it serves.

From this location, FVWOPP interacts with the community through a variety of programs that benefit pre-school age children all the way up to senior adults. The building began as Jubilee Hospital, and once served as Henderson City Hall.

By the time Abdul Sm Rasheed joined about five years ago as FVW’s CEO and senior advisor to the board, he said the first thing they had to do was fix the roof.

Community leaders gathered on Aug. 5 to launch a $3 million Jubilee Center renovation and transformation of the property, which includes much more than fixing a leaky roof. And Rasheed said it’s one way to give the facility new life by embracing its history and the role it played locally, statewide and beyond.

“We’re hoping that as we give the Jubilee facility new life,” Rasheed explained, “it will give inspiration, particularly to our young people in our community, and have them see how the future can look.”

“This project really grows out of my love for my community,” he said. “I love my community…I’m a product of this community and not a victim of all the history that some of us may want to point to and embrace. I’d rather embrace the triumphs of our community, and I consider what we are trying to do today with the Jubilee Center is a triumph that we want to announce to the world.”

The artist renderings of the project reflect the idea of bringing new life to the building. It’s not a restoration project, but more of a reimagining. Rasheed said the project isn’t abandoning the history, “but we do want to advance the image, the look, hopefully the inspiration that this facility can bring to all citizens of our community and visitors to our community.”

Roy Brown, Jr. is FVWOPP’s media and communications coordinator, and he said the groundbreaking event “Celebrating Triumphs” is bringing FVWOPP into the 21st century. Longtime programs like Head Start and Section 8 housing are making room for new programs like YouthBuild as some of the services that FVW offers.

“We want to present the public something nice,” Brown said. In addition to the outward transformation, there are plans for the building’s interior to honor numerous African Americans who have had a lasting effect on their communities. “It’s inspirational to look at a building, and the history, and where we came from and where we’re going…to inspire change throughout the whole city.”

The bulk of the funding – $2.7 million came from a U.S. Dept. of Agriculture lending program for small, rural communities.

Another $150,000 came from the Cannon Foundation and the roof repairs a few years ago were made possible by a $150,000 loan from First National Bank.

Rasheed’s 40+ years in the area of community development have cemented for him the need for public/private partnerships in projects like this.

“Public/private is the only way to address our major issues in our communities and neighborhoods,” he said.

The Section 8 housing program is sort of like that public/private partnership. The program subsidizes rents for qualified individuals.

Rasheed said it’s a $3 million initiative that brings dollars into the community for residents “to realize stable, safe housing” and pays landlords directly. “That’s a direct investment into local real estate owners,” he said.

The YouthBuild program provides wraparound services for young people 16-24 years who want to get their GED or trade certificate to make themselves employable. Rasheed said the program has helped 65 or so young people so far.

The Early Head Start and Head Start programs may be familiar to many, providing a preschool education experience before kindergarten. There are close to 500 children in both programs, he added.

With a current annual budget of about $12 million, Rasheed said there are more than 100 employees on the FVW payroll. “It has been bringing capital into this community and investing that capital into people to improve themselves and contribute to the health of the community,” he said.

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TownTalk: Around Old Granville – Henderson Cotton Mill Strike Pt.2

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The Henderson cotton mill strike of 1958 began as a relatively peaceful protest when workers and company leaders couldn’t agree about how to settle disagreements – for years, both sides had agreed to use arbitration as a way to settle disputes about a variety of grievances, said local historian Mark Pace.

And, Pace said, it seemed to work out that, over those years, about half the judgments were found in favor of the workers, and half in favor of the company.

The strike made headlines across the country and beyond, Pace noted in Thursday’s Around Old Granville segment of TownTalk with WIZS’s Bill Harris. And in February 1959, after months of being shut down, the mill management decided to take action.

“The Coopers put out a call for strike breakers,” Pace said. “they wanted to run one shift and crank up production.” The inventory of yarns and cotton that had been stockpiled was running low, and so the mill needed to be running again.

“Until that point, the strike had been relatively peaceful,” Pace said. But when strikebreakers were brought in, that’s when things turned violent.

There were at least 16 cases of bombings between February and May 1959. Warehouses were bombed, homes were bombed, windows shot out. About 150 people were arrested, but Pace said local law enforcement was stretched beyond its limits.

The mills in North Henderson and South Henderson both were outside the city limits, so it was up to the sheriff’s office to keep things calm near the mills as best they could.

Gov. Luther Hodges, himself once a textile mill vice president, Pace explained, called the State Highway Patrol into action to help keep the peace in Henderson. Eventually, however, the National Guard got involved.

A man making a cotton delivery to one of the mills was attacked by a mob of protesters,prompting a judge to rule that a maximum of eight strikers could be at the mill gate at any one time.

“At this point the textile workers were desperate,” Pace said. “They had tried going on strike, but that had not worked.” Although the union gave them stipends, it wasn’t enough.

And the longer the strike lasted, the less money the union had available.

In May 1961, there was a call to end the strike.

By then, however, the mills were back to running three full shifts – this time with non-union workers. Pace said 90 percent of the people who went on strike never went back to work at the cotton mills.

Harriet-Henderson was Vance County’s largest employer from 1895 to 2003 and had a footprint of close to half a million square feet at the height of its success.

The strike was significant, “not just for Henderson but for the South,” Pace said. The textile workers’ strike in Henderson was the last major attempt by unions to build effective unions in the southern United States in the textile industry, which was the largest industry in the South at that time, he said.

“By and large, they failed,” he said.

 

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TownTalk: Business Spotlight – Ballet Arts

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Since 1991, Ballet Arts has provided instruction to thousands of young people to learn about different genres of dance and experience the beauty of an art form that teaches life lessons in addition to dance moves.

In Wednesday’s Business Spotlight, Phil LaKernick said registration is now underway for the upcoming season of dance, which includes everything from traditional ballet and pointe to tap, hiphop, floor gymnastics and more.

Ballet Arts more or less follows the school year, offering in excess of 100 classes each week to children as young as 2 1/2, LaKernick said.

“Right now is crunch time,” LaKernick said, referring to registration in advance of a Sept. 2 start date.

Find details about class schedules, pricing and more at https://www.balletartsnc.com/.

LaKernick said that students learn so much more than just dance steps when they take classes – they also learn about dedication, precision, friendship and the responsibility of being part of a team.

Another component of Ballet Arts involves competitions – The Ballet Arts “All Stars” Company is a group of dancers between the ages of 7 and 18 who audition for a spot in the coveted group.

In more than 30 years of offering dance classes, LaKernick said Ballet Arts now has children and grandchildren of those original students back in the early 1990’s.

“It’s really good, because the people that have come to us have stuck with us,” he said.

“I wish more people would come out and do it,” he added. “It’s a learning experience…the dedication and camaraderie that is part of the whole package.”

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TownTalk: Henderson-Vance Crime Stoppers Annual Golf Tournament Shaping Up

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The annual Henderson-Vance Crime Stoppers golf tournament tees up Thursday, Aug. 14 at Kerr Lake Country Club. There are 19 teams signed up so far. Danny Wright, the local organization’s treasurer, says there’s still room to squeeze in a couple more.

Folks may be familiar with the way Crime Stoppers works, and Wright said the local organization has recently made a $5,000 reward for information in a case. Often, the reward is $2,000 or less, he said.

To be clear, the local group receives no state or federal funding – it relies on donations from individuals, businesses and other community organizations to be able to make the rewards.

Organizers hope to raise between $10,000 and $12,000 with the golf tournament.

The four-member teams pay $200 that includes a round of golf, lunch and snacks. Lunch and check-in begins at 11:30 a.m., with a shotgun start at 1 p.m.

The hole sponsors are key to generating the income, he said. Hole sponsorships are $100 and there’s still time to become a sponsor. Call Wright at 252.432.1141 to learn how.

“The reward is a bonus,” Wright explained, “something extra. We like to think that good community-minded citizens would share information without having to be paid to do so.”

Crime in communities is nothing new, and it seems sometimes that Vance County has more than its share, Wright said. It’s the advances in technology that are helping to make it simpler to share information to law enforcement agencies.

Crime Stoppers uses a P3 app in addition to a phone number for individuals to send helpful information.

But there also are links on the group’s social media page and website that facilitate to report information as well.

“For every crime that occurs, somebody somewhere sees something and knows something and we are the organization that facilitates the flow of that information into the hands of law enforcement – anonymously,” Wright said. Emphasis on the word “anonymously.”

The technology has changed, but the premise of seeing something and reporting it is the basis for Crime Stoppers.

“It’s still up to the individual in their community to want to watch and be vigilant as to what is going on in their community and report,” Wright said. “We are relying on the good faith of our community citizens. If you don’t have the safety and security of your citizens, you have absolutely nothing.”

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