TownTalk: VGCC Adult Learner Program Helps Students Return To School To Complete Degree, Program

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Vance-Granville Community College is one of five community colleges across the state selected to participate in a pilot program designed to help students return to school to complete their post-secondary education.

VGCC President Dr. Rachel Desmarais told John C. Rose on Monday’s Town Talk about the Adult Learner program and how myFutureNC and the John M. Belk Endowment are providing support to bring students back to school who left without completing a degree or certificate.

“We’re excited to be a part of this,” Demarais said, adding that the program objective complements VGCC’s vision of being “a catalyst to strengthen communities.” Helping people prepare for fulfilling employment and life-long careers is what VGCC is all about, she said.

The myFutureNC program is a statewide nonprofit organization focused on educational attainment and is the result of cross-sector collaboration between North Carolina leaders in education, business and government.

The adult learner program will work to remove barriers to education. VGCC strives to make education meaningful, but “meaningful is in the eye of the beholder,” she said. “We have to prove that meaning – we’ve got to connect people to careers…to see what they could do to use their strengths, abilities and talents.”

“We’re not getting a pot of money,” she explained. “We are getting so much more than money – we’re getting access to services that have shown they work to move the needle” to improve achievement.

Part of the program will include development of a marketing strategy to help craft the message and then get that message out to the public. One particular data tool will be especially useful, Demarais said. It will be used to identify those former VGCC students who have some college credit but haven’t completed all the requirements to get a degree or certificate.

“We need to call these folks back and … make it easy to help them finish what they started,” she said.

Through the adult learner program, Demarais said she hoped to see some results as early as 2022. “If we can increase the number of people 25 and older to come to college, that’s a leading indicator,” she noted.

It will take some creativity to reach  the 25- to 44-year-old group, who must “be able to juggle work and family life, and school life,” she said. VGCC will have to provide flexible options, making sure that the education is efficient – even shoring up and refreshing knowledge that hasn’t been used in awhile.

The adult learner program will evaluate the credits that students already have completed and determine exactly what is left to complete the course of study and get certificates of completion for programs or degrees.

An additional resource is the Second Chance Scholarship, Demarais noted. Students lose access to federal Pell Grant money if they weren’t successful with previous courses. “The only way to get (access) back is to take a class,” she said. But that takes money, which the student may not have. The Second Chance Scholarship can help.

For so many of these students, “life got in the way,” Demarais said. “We need to make it easy for them to finish what they started.”

(For full broadcast audio and details click play.)

 

TownTalk: Elder Abuse Awareness

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Keeping Older Adults Safe, Protected –

Whether it’s unintentional or purposeful, mistreatment of older adults is serious business. It’s called elder abuse and two local experts discussed the topic with John C. Rose on Thursday’s Town Talk.

Elder Abuse Awareness month is observed, appropriately enough, between Mother’s Day and Father’s Day in North Carolina; World Elder Abuse Awareness Day is June 15. In her job as long-term care ombudsman with Kerr-Tar Area Agency on Aging, Kimberly Hawkins monitors nursing homes and long-term care facilities to make sure residents’ rights are being respected. Most often, she said, residents are satisfied with the care they receive. But when a resident has a complaint, Hawkins said, it is her job “to find out what they want me to do with that information.”

In her role as advocate, Hawkins said, she sometimes needs to refer a complaint to the Department of Social Services. Deloris Cooke works in Granville County’s DSS adult protective services division. Cooke said she fields referrals from folks like Hawkins and from the community at-large.

Such a referral can come from anywhere in community, Cooke said. “Anyone has the right to call in and share any type of concern for an elderly person” – anyone over the age of 18, actually, who is disabled. It’s up to DSS personnel to determine if an allegation meets the criteria to be evaluated.

Even if a case of abuse, exploitation, neglect or self-neglect is not substantiated, Cooke said a visit to the home is in order to make sure the adult is ok. Such a “self-report” visit is one way to make sure that individuals and families know about resources that can help.

Whether it’s intentional or unintentional, abuse, neglect or exploitation of an elderly person is something that she works to prevent. Through the evaluation, she can “determine what is the situation, what has caused this and how we can resolve it,” Cooke said.

Sometimes an older person living alone can’t get to the pharmacy to pick up medications or prepare meals – that’s self-neglect.

An example of caretaker neglect could be a care recipient being left alone while the family member providing care is at work; and then there are the scammers, who prey on vulnerable older adults to cheat them out of money.

Cooke said the APS reports can be made anonymously; “we cannot and will not divulge (the name of the reporter) unless it is court-ordered,” she said. So often, the reports come from individuals who care about the well-being of the older adult. DSS has up to 45 days to complete its evaluation of the situation, and they provide the reporter with basic findings once the investigation is complete.

“Our primary job is to make sure the adult is safe,” Cooke said. Often, providing resources and putting a plan in place to keep the adult safe, is sufficient. Sometimes, however, it is necessary to file a petition to the court to have the person removed.

Hawkins said she works with a different complaint process, and sometimes she must refer a long-term care facility complaint to DSS. And, of course, she informs the facility that a complaint has been lodged. But with nursing homes, she sends referrals to the state’s department of health and human resources – with the consent of the resident or that person’s legal guardian.

“Most of the time, it’s a lack of communication,” Hawkins said of complaints she receives. High staff turnover could contribute to complaints, as well as staff that feel overworked and overwhelmed.

“We offer trainings to facilities on resident rights and appropriate actions,” Hawkins said. “Getting new information helps a lot.” She also does activities with residents – like a residents’ rights BINGO game – to raise awareness.

Events in the five-county region are having events in the next couple of weeks to observe elder abuse awareness; contact your county’s Senior Center to learn details. In Vance County, Hawkins and colleague Austin Caton will present a program on family caregiver support at the Vance County Senior Center on June 17; other counties will have contactless, drive-through events to share information about elder abuse awareness.

To learn more, contact Hawkins at 252.436.2050 or toll-free at 866.506.6223; contact Cooke at 919.693.1511.

For complete details and audio click play.

Heaven Leigh Nelson

TownTalk: July 25 Event To Raise Awareness About Drug Overdose, Help Loved Ones Remember Victims

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Patricia Drewes’ daughter, Heaven, loved to watch the sun come up. And although she was only 5-foot-4, she could play a didgeridoo – a wind instrument that Australian Aboriginal people make out of a long, hollow tree branch – like nobody’s business.

But Heaven died a little more than two years ago, the victim of a lethal drug overdose. Drewes spoke with John C. Rose on Wednesday’s Town Talk about an event set for July 25 to raise awareness about drug addiction and what Drewes calls “drug induced homicide.”

The July event will take place at the Vance County Courthouse from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. and Drewes said anyone who wants to add a loved one’s name to a banner – that will be displayed at the Henderson event and other events across the state – to contact her via social media or by telephone. “People are adding their loved ones daily,” she said. The deadline to submit names is June 11.

“We are trying to bring awareness to what is going on in our community,” Drewes said, of overdoses and deaths associated with drugs laced with fentanyl. Drewes said her daughter died because what she thought was heroin was actually pure fentanyl.  “When you do that, it’s not an overdose. When you add fentanyl, that changes everything. That’s murder,” she said.

“My child made the choice to do drugs,” Drews said. “But she did not make the choice to die.”

Since her daughter’s death, Drews has worked to raise awareness and help find resources for families struggling with addiction.

The first banner she created has more than 40 names on it – the second banner is still a work in progress, but Drewes said she’ll carry the banners to events in North Carolina and a national event later this summer in Washington, D.C.

Drewes created a Facebook group called Forgotten Victims Vance, Granville, Franklin, and Warren Counties N.C. which has helped families work through their grief as well as providing support and awareness. “You don’t have to go this alone,” she said. “We’re here to help you as much as possible.”

The harsh reality of addiction is all around, Drewes said. “Don’t ever say ‘not my child’” she warned. (Addiction) doesn’t discriminate. It can happen to anyone’s child,” she said.

For more information about adding a loved one’s name to the banner, contact Drewes at 252.204.9611 or via FB through the Forgotten Victims page.

(TownTalk Audio for June 2, 2021)

TownTalk: Camping; Fireworks; Medicaid

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WIZS, Your Community Voice.

TownTalk for June 1, 2021.

Hosts John C. Rose and Bill Harris discussed camping, local fireworks shows and Medicaid.

For complete details and audio click play.

The fireworks display and gathering that typically takes place on Kerr Lake July 4th weekend has been moved to Labor Day weekend, specifically to Saturday, Sept 4th at Satterwhite Point.

Vance County Tourism Director Pam Hester said, “It was not practical to have it. … The Board voted to move it.”

The reason is a deadline that needed to be met, which included deposits for the fireworks, came before CDC guidance changed concerning covid and before Governor Roy Cooper relaxed state mandates.

In addition, the North Carolina Parks Service is short staffed, which was going to make it very difficult to have the necessary manpower in place to host a large event at Satterwhite Point.

State of North Carolina Press Release – 

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (May 26th) announced all Medicaid beneficiaries currently eligible to transition to managed care have selected or been assigned a health plan with 97% enrolled in a plan that includes their current primary care provider (PCP) in network.

As a result, nearly all current beneficiaries will keep the same health care provider they have today when managed care launches on July 1. That means more families can continue to visit the practices and doctors who know them best and are familiar with their specific health care needs.

Beneficiaries who did not select a health plan during open enrollment, which ended on May 21, were auto-enrolled in a plan. NCDHHS’ auto-enrollment process prioritized existing relationships between beneficiaries and their PCP and, where possible, a plan that has contracted with that provider was selected for the beneficiary. A summary of NC Medicaid Managed Care enrollment by plans and regions can be found here. Confirmation notices and health plan welcome packets will be mailed to beneficiaries through June 12. Beneficiaries have until Sept. 30, 2021 to change plans for any reason.

“Ensuring beneficiaries have access to the health care they need on Day 1 of Medicaid Managed Care has been a key priority throughout this process,” said Deputy Secretary of NC Medicaid Dave Richard. “This is an important step to ensuring continuity of care for the 1.6 million Medicaid beneficiaries who will begin receiving their care through health plans on July 1.”

Federally recognized tribal members living in the tribal service area who did not choose a health plan were enrolled into the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) Tribal Option. The EBCI Tribal Option is primarily offered in five counties: Cherokee, Graham, Haywood, Jackson and Swain to federally recognized tribal members and others eligible for services through Indian Health Service (IHS).

Whether beneficiaries chose a plan during open enrollment or were auto-enrolled by NC Medicaid, everyone will have through Sept. 30, 2021, to change their health plan or primary care provider for any reason by contacting the NC Medicaid Enrollment Broker. After that, unless there is a special reason, beneficiaries must wait until their next Medicaid recertification date to change health plans.

Most beneficiaries in NC Medicaid must be enrolled in a managed care health plan. More information can be found on the “Do I Need to Choose a Health Plan?” fact sheet. Beneficiaries are encouraged to visit the NC Medicaid Enrollment Broker website at ncmedicaidplans.gov or call the Enrollment Broker at 833-870-5500 (TTY: 833-870-5588) with any additional questions.

TownTalk 05-27-21 Memorial Day Weekend

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Host John C. Rose discusses Memorial Day Weekend travel and honoring soldiers.

For complete details and audio click play.

 

TownTalk 05-26-21 Jayden Watkins Helping Others To Reach ‘Higher Heights’

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Like most teenagers, Jayden Watkins likes to spend time on social media, watching TV and talking with other kids his age. But unlike other kids, Watkins is a preacher, a podcast host and author.

Watkins is completing 7th grade at Henderson Collegiate this year. He and Town Talk host John C. Rose spoke earlier in the week. The conversation was recorded for presentation Wednesday because Watkins is in school when the show airs.

“I love what I do and all the honor goes to God,” Watkins said. His podcast is called The Preferable Podcast, and the title comes from a song that – you guessed it – the young man wrote. The podcast launched in March 2020, “right when we hit the pandemic,” he said, adding that he wanted to create a “platform for people to come and learn how to make themselves a better person and then make a better world.”

The song is dedicated to his community, he said, and he wrote it in response to numerous negative things that were happening in the area. “I was trying to help other people, most of all, to leave the past behind them and reach the heights that God would have them reach,” he said.

“Higher Heights: The Past Is Behind Me And The Future Is Before Me is the title of the book he wrote – when he was a preteen. It contains 40 devotionals and targets young people between 13-18 years.

Watkins will have a book-signing on June 13 from 2 p.m. – 5 p.m. at Tiffany’s, 110 S. Garnett St., in downtown Henderson.

Watkins said he remembered getting a little pushback from people when he was writing his book. “’What does a 9-year-old have to say?’” he said he heard from naysayers. That skepticism, which he called a roadblock, “only proves that you are doing something right,” he said. Being told he was too young to be preaching, too young to write a book, served to inspire him to persevere.

“I have a desire to encourage people,” Watkins said. The podcast is one way that he uses social media in a positive way and to provide encouragement. Along with special guests and different perspectives, the podcast includes motivational quotes to help people start their day, Watkins said.

His twin sister, Jaydah, has contributed in her own way to the podcast, Watkins said. He admits that his exposure to music popular with young people was limited, but Jaydah introduced him to hip-hop. When he listened to some of the lyrics, he could better incorporate positive messages to reach his audience.

Way back when Watkins was 9 years old, he preached his first sermon. What he called his “debut message” was given at Spring Street Missionary Baptist Church. Since then, he has preached at Nutbush and Big Ruin Creek. Watkins said he remembers his grandfather recording him as a 9-year-old so he could practice and become a better public speaker.

Yamlet Foster is Jayden’s mom. “She helps me with my ministry,” he said. “She makes sure I have what I need and that I am happy.”

He said he hopes to study political science and biblical studies in college, but he hasn’t decided which school he would like to attend.

Watkins’s book is available for purchase online at retail outlets including Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Target.

Click play for Jayden’s TownTalk broadcast audio.

 

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TownTalk 05-25-21 There’s Lots Going On In Granville County – For Locals and Tourists

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From farmer’s markets and flock swaps to sports tournaments and bee extravaganzas, Angela Allen says there’s something for everyone to enjoy in Granville County.

Allen is the county’s tourism director and talked with John C. Rose Tuesday on Town Talk about a variety of upcoming events of interest to anyone looking for ways to get out and enjoy the springtime – and looser COVID-19 restrictions.

All during the pandemic, Allen said she was getting the word out about supporting local businesses. “Now, they can really get out and support them,” she said. And it’s not just local folks supporting local businesses, she said. People from outside the area “want to get on the road and explore neighboring counties – they want to get away,” Allen said. Advertising with a statewide reach has helped her help local businesses, she said.

“We’ve laid the groundwork for people to come and explore the area as we slowly but surely open back up,” Allen added.

It may be something of a new phenomenon, but in the post-COVID world “people are really starting to search in their own backyards to see what they can ‘get into’ and how they can support local businesses,” Allen said.

Click Play or Continue Reading Below.

The Creedmoor Farmers Market is open on Wednesdays from 1-5 p.m. and on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. It is located at the American Legion building, 50 Legion St., Creedmoor. The Oxford Farmers Market is open on Saturday mornings 7 a.m. to noon. It is located at the corner of McClanahan and Lanier streets, near the police station.

If you’d rather go visit the farm itself, check out Lyon Farms in Creedmoor, Christmas Place Farms in Bullock or Dixon Farms outside Oxford for fresh strawberries, plentiful right now.

For a complete list of farms close by or across the state, download the Visitncfarms app, Allen said.

There are a couple of Memorial Day events – one at the Veterans Memorial at City Hall in Oxford and a wreath-laying ceremony at the Butner Gazebo at 10 a.m.

Although traditional media outlets continue to be effective ways to reach a wide audience, social media outlets have also become popular when it comes to “getting the word out” about events. Allen said she used to get information 3-6 months in advance of an event so she could promote it, “that window has gotten a lot shorter” since COVID, she said.

“As soon as I get the information, I try to put it up on website and social media,” Allen said. Sometimes, the event comes together in just a couple of weeks. “It’s a little bit ‘off trend’ now, but in the era of COVID, it can almost be on the day of the event” that people decide to attend.

Creedmoor’s new recreation center will kick off a “First Friday” event for families on June 4 at 7 p.m. The theme for the first event is “Wildlife” – a wildlife expert will show off some special animals and then have a “meet and greet” session, Allen said. There will be food trucks and other activities.

Southern States in Oxford is the site of a June 20 Flock Swap, where folks can find small farm animals, as well as other farm products like eggs, honey, plants. This event is from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The Granville Beekeepers will host its annual Bee Jubilee on June 26 at the Expo Center on Hwy. 15 south of Oxford. The event will be from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and beekeepers will share information about bees and pollinators. There will be a bevy of bee products available, as well as a kids zone and a farmers market.

Also on June 26, Dogs Deserve Better of Piedmont will host a Family Fun Fair at The Barn at Vino in Stem. There will be food trucks, live music, outdoor games and more than 40 vendors.

Learn more at visitgranvillenc.com.

(Granville Tourism and specifically visitgranvillenc.com is a sponsor of WIZS and wizs.com.  This is not a paid ad.)

TownTalk 5-24-21 Vance Co. Schools

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John C. Rose and Bill Harris discuss Vance County Schools including graduation, Dr. Anthony Jackson’s resignation and the search for a new superintendent.

For complete details and audio click play.

 

TownTalk 05-20-21 Dan Pezzoni, Historic Architecture Connects Families Then and Now Through Stories

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(Cover Photo Credit: Bill Garrett)

Dan Pezzoni says he always looks in the closets of the houses he visits – but it’s not because he’s nosey. He’s looking for clues that may help him better understand the history of the structure and shed some light about the people who once lived there.

Pezzoni writes about historical architecture and is currently working on a book about Franklin County architecture. He spoke with Bill Harris and Mark Pace Thursday on Town Talk about projects he’s worked on and how his love for historic architecture has grown over the years.

He said he’s written or edited a dozen or so books about a particular county or region’s historic architecture.

He admits that his alma mater, Virginia Tech, had a modernist focus in its school of architecture, but as a new graduate he learned that every state has a program to record historic architecture. He has worked extensively in North Carolina and Virginia, but has also spent time in Nevada for work. There are some “really cool” ghost towns and silver mines in Nevada that date back to the 1860’s, he said. “If you look really closely, they’re really well constructed buildings,” Pezzoni added.

Ghost towns and silver mines aside, Pezzoni said his work is as much about the stories of the people associated with the building as the building itself.

His work in Franklin County began in late 2019 and early 2020, following completion of an architectural survey. Although a book doesn’t always follow completion of a survey, folks in Franklin County decided to have one published.

For complete audio and full details click play.

The homes are part of the “heritage of the people who lived in Franklin County going back 200-plus years,” he said. The connection between the people who loved the home then and those who love and care for the home now provide a powerful connection to ensure the home will continue to be cherished.

Pezzoni said he finds that owners of old homes want to have that special connection – “they get excited about the history of their house, their farm,” he said.

Although editing can sound kind of dry or technical, Pezzoni said he wants to pull together information from multiple architectural surveys – from the 1970’s to as recent as 3 or 4 years ago – into one cohesive compilation, writing in the most engaging way possible.

Sometimes the surveys uncover previously unnoticed structures, he said, or the surveyors may have been influenced by local guides who were interested in a particular style or area. Plus, the maps that were used years ago were aerial maps, so “if you have an abandoned house in a pine forest, it’s not going to show up” on a map.

That’s why he always looks in closets – there may be a scrap of fabric, or a name of a child who dared carve or write his name and a date in a spot where Mama or Daddy would never see.

That’s the kind of information that Pezzoni can use to more precisely re-create the home’s history.

TownTalk 05-19-21 Pacific Organics Supplies Mulch, Potting Mixes Up and Down East Coast

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The name can be a little confusing, Bobby Oakley admits, but Pacific Organics is not based on the West Coast: it is a Henderson-based company, alive and well, creating container potting media from pine bark.

Oakley, who has been with Pacific Organics since its inception in 2004, is getting ready to retire, but he told John C. Rose Wednesday on Town Talk that the business continues to thrive, even during a pandemic.

In fact, business has really ramped up during the COVID-19 pandemic. Oakley called it “the Covid effect”: “Who knew that the pandemic would dramatically increase sales?” he recounted Wednesday. “Apparently people stuck at home, a lot of them thought about putting plants in the ground,” Oakley said. He said 3,500 truckloads have been shipped up and down the East Coast this year.

Increased demand for the products that Pacific produces – premium potting mix, pine bark media bases and mulch – created a slightly stressful situation for Oakley in the past year, because it meant having to find additional raw materials and then additional transport.

Oakley said Henderson was a perfect location for the business because of its proximity to interstates for shipping and to saw mills and paper mills, which generate the pine bark that they need to create their mulch and mixes.

The pine bark, a by-product of the mill processes, serves as the key ingredient for the Pacific Organics products. They ship in bulk or in loose form – there’s no packaging at their facility, which sits on 23.5 acres on Peter Gill Road.

Oakley said he loves the nursery business and the nursery supply business. When he was contacted by one of the co-founders back in 2004, he was interested in better serving an underserved market. Plus, he said, although he had a great job at the time, he was “bored.”

“I’m Interested in exploring the next phase of my life,” Oakley said of his retirement.

All I know is I’m going to the beach a lot, and read a lot,” he said. Maybe he’ll even play a little golf again. But being bored will not be on his to-do list.

Visit www.pacific-organics.com to learn more.

For complete details and audio click play.