The third concert to benefit ACTS – Area Christians Together in Service – will take place at McGregor Hall on Saturday, Sept. 16. Doors open at 6 p.m. and the program will begin at 7 p.m. ACTS Executive Director Lee Anne Peoples invites the community to come out and enjoy the music – it’s for a good cause.
Tickets are $5 to attend the “Make A Joyful Noise Unto The Lord” benefit concert, Peoples said. Children 12 and under get in free.
Tracy Dalton is cook and kitchen manager for the food bank and meal ministry that operates on William Street, and she’s just one of the featured acts on the program. ACTS volunteer and vocalist Evelyn Couch will perform as well. And Peoples said there is plenty of room on the program for additional individuals and groups to join in.
“The money goes into our general operating fund,” Peoples explained on Wednesday’s TownTalk. In addition to the cost of the food itself, there are the indirect costs associated with the Monday-Friday hot meal distribution that takes place from 11 a.m. to 12 noon.
On a normal day, she said more than 200 folks come by to pick up plates. Add the 40 or so mobile meals that go out and the daily number of meals served can easily be between 250 and 275.
Those associated costs include things like paper products needed to package the meals, as well as utility bills, she noted. “There’s a lot of dishes to wash up” after preparing all that food, she said.
“Everything has really gone up,” Peoples said, referring to increased prices for everything that goes into providing the hot meals and food boxes for households.
What else has gone up?
The need in the community.
“We have seen an increased need,” she said. ACTS served close to 50,000 meals in 2022, and that number is not going down.
The first concert was held in 2018, and Peoples said this year’s event is sure to please.
There are sponsorship levels available for the concert. Sponsor names will appear in the glossy, full-color program that will be available at the concert. Platinum level is a full-page ad for $1,000; Gold level is a half page for $500; and Silver level is a business card size for $250.
It probably comes as no surprise that the food pantry shelves could use some more items, too.
“We’re really low in the pantry now,” Peoples said.
Donations of shelf-stable food can be made any time between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. Monday through Friday, although it would be wonderful to avoid the 11 a.m. to noontime hour when they’re serving meals, Peoples said.
There is a list of useful items on the ACTS of Henderson Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ACTSofHenderson/
Any type of canned meat, vegetable or fruit would be a big help – but they have ample green beans, green peas and corn at this time.
Mail monetary donations to: ACTS of Vance County, Inc.
P.O. Box 25
Henderson, NC 27536
Learn more about how to help ACTS through donations or by volunteering by contacting Peoples at lapeoples@actsofhenderson.org.
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Maria Parham Health Schedules Free Prostate Screening Event Sept. 14
/by WIZS StaffMaria Parham Health has scheduled its annual free prostate screening for Thursday, Sept. 14.
September is Prostate Cancer Awareness month, and Maria Parham is offering the screening event from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at its Henderson location on Ruin Creek Road
The American Cancer Society recommends that all men 50 and older should be screened annually – those in high-risk groups including African American men and males with a family history of prostate cancer should start at age 45.
No appointment is needed.
Visit https://www.mariaparham.com/ or call 252.436.1656 to learn more.
TownTalk: ACTS To Hold Concert At McGregor Hall
/by Laura GabelThe third concert to benefit ACTS – Area Christians Together in Service – will take place at McGregor Hall on Saturday, Sept. 16. Doors open at 6 p.m. and the program will begin at 7 p.m. ACTS Executive Director Lee Anne Peoples invites the community to come out and enjoy the music – it’s for a good cause.
Tickets are $5 to attend the “Make A Joyful Noise Unto The Lord” benefit concert, Peoples said. Children 12 and under get in free.
Tracy Dalton is cook and kitchen manager for the food bank and meal ministry that operates on William Street, and she’s just one of the featured acts on the program. ACTS volunteer and vocalist Evelyn Couch will perform as well. And Peoples said there is plenty of room on the program for additional individuals and groups to join in.
“The money goes into our general operating fund,” Peoples explained on Wednesday’s TownTalk. In addition to the cost of the food itself, there are the indirect costs associated with the Monday-Friday hot meal distribution that takes place from 11 a.m. to 12 noon.
On a normal day, she said more than 200 folks come by to pick up plates. Add the 40 or so mobile meals that go out and the daily number of meals served can easily be between 250 and 275.
Those associated costs include things like paper products needed to package the meals, as well as utility bills, she noted. “There’s a lot of dishes to wash up” after preparing all that food, she said.
“Everything has really gone up,” Peoples said, referring to increased prices for everything that goes into providing the hot meals and food boxes for households.
What else has gone up?
The need in the community.
“We have seen an increased need,” she said. ACTS served close to 50,000 meals in 2022, and that number is not going down.
The first concert was held in 2018, and Peoples said this year’s event is sure to please.
There are sponsorship levels available for the concert. Sponsor names will appear in the glossy, full-color program that will be available at the concert. Platinum level is a full-page ad for $1,000; Gold level is a half page for $500; and Silver level is a business card size for $250.
It probably comes as no surprise that the food pantry shelves could use some more items, too.
“We’re really low in the pantry now,” Peoples said.
Donations of shelf-stable food can be made any time between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. Monday through Friday, although it would be wonderful to avoid the 11 a.m. to noontime hour when they’re serving meals, Peoples said.
There is a list of useful items on the ACTS of Henderson Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ACTSofHenderson/
Any type of canned meat, vegetable or fruit would be a big help – but they have ample green beans, green peas and corn at this time.
Mail monetary donations to: ACTS of Vance County, Inc.
P.O. Box 25
Henderson, NC 27536
Learn more about how to help ACTS through donations or by volunteering by contacting Peoples at lapeoples@actsofhenderson.org.
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Home And Garden Show
/by Bill HarrisOn the Home and Garden Show with Vance Co. Cooperative Ext.
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WIZS Radio Local News Audio 08-30-23 Noon
/by Bill HarrisClick Play to Listen. On Air at 8am, 12pm, 5pm M-F
WIZS Radio ~ 100.1FM/1450AM
Driving This Holiday Weekend? Remember: Booze It And Lose It
/by WIZS StaffState and local law enforcement officers will be out in force over the holiday weekend and beyond as part of the “Labor Day Booze It & Lose It” campaign, so as you plan to enjoy a last summertime hurrah, make sure those plans include having a designated driver. Don’t drink and drive.
Increased patrols and checkpoints will be conducted statewide through Sept. 10, to keep impaired drivers off North Carolina roads. North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein helped lead Monday’s kickoff event at the Davidson County Rest Area off Interstate 85 South. “Keeping people safe has to be Job One for all of us,” Stein said. “If you drink and drive, you will get caught. Protect yourself and others – never operate a motor vehicle if you’ve been drinking.”The “Booze It & Lose It” campaign aims to eliminate impaired driving using outreach and stepped-up law enforcement efforts. Nearly every law enforcement agency in North Carolina participates in the 29-year-old campaign. “This Labor Day, we want you to plan ahead by arranging a sober ride home from any festivities that might involve alcohol or other impairing substances,” said Mark Ezzell, director of the N.C. Governor’s Highway Safety Program, a part of the N.C. Department of Transportation. “Law Enforcement will be working extra patrols during this campaign to keep all motorists safe by catching those who don’t heed this message. There’s really no excuse.”
Alcohol is a leading contributor to fatal crashes in North Carolina, according to crash data compiled by the N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles. Between 2017 and 2022, North Carolina has averaged more than one alcohol-related vehicle fatality each day. Last year, there were 462 alcohol-related fatalities on North Carolina roads and 16 of those deaths came during the Labor Day period.
TownTalk: Hester Discusses Shell Building And Development
/by Laura GabelIt was just last fall when local government officials and others gathered at the Industrial Park outside Henderson to break ground on construction of a shell building.
Today, that building is ready to be upfitted to suit a potential buyer’s needs. County Commissioner Tommy Hester said the building is under contract to a manufacturing firm, but the company isn’t ready to make a public announcement just yet.
Hester, who chairs the Industrial Park Board, said construction went smoothly since that chilly November groundbreaking.
The idea was simple: Put up a building and have everything in place for a manufacturer or other commercial entity to come in and finish out the space to suit its particular needs.
As for this shell building, Hester said the new owner will probably still have to put in another $1 million or more to complete the building.
“You don’t want to finish it because you don’t know what upgrades they’ll want,” Hester said on Tuesday’s TownTalk. “You try to hit all of the major things that you think they’ll need,” he added. The building has a layer of gravel and a vapor barrier, as well as cargo doors and it’s expandable to 97,000 square feet.
“You’ve just got to have flexibility,” Hester said, to accommodate a variety of prospective buyers.
Hester said he predicted this building would be sold before it could be completed, and that’s just what has happened.
“I think we can do it again,” he said.
The county purchased the land for the park for $1.6 million. Add the infrastructure – with grants and from the state and federal departments of Commerce to offset costs – and the park has roads and water and sewer services. The road should be completed in December, Hester said.
The county made an investment, and Hester said it’s paying off.
“Success builds on success,” he said. “If you don’t invest, you don’t get a return.” More manufacturing means more local jobs and more money flowing to county coffers in the form of taxes.
“We’re in the right location at the right time,” Hester said of Henderson and Vance County’s proximity to Wake and Durham counties.
35 or 40 jobs over 2 or 3 year period, where growth is burgeoning.
It’s not just growth in the commercial sector, either. Hester cited housing developments in the county that could add 1,000 more homes in the next three to five years.
“The more rooftops you get here in this community, the more retail, the more you can help with quality of lives of citizens,” Hester said.
“It’s all happening faster than I thought,” he acknowledged. “I think we’re getting ready to grow.”
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The Local Skinny! Upcoming Events At Perry Memorial Library
/by WIZS StaffThe official first day of autumn is still a few weeks away, but fall programs at Perry Memorial Library are getting started this week.
Youth Services Director Melody Peters said things are shaping up for a wonderful fall at the library – come on in and have some fun!
Mother Goose story time is starting back up after a short end-of-summer break, Children 0-5 are welcome to come hear a few stories, sing a few songs and get some wiggles out, Peters said Tuesday on The Local Skinny!
Before children can read the words on a page, Peters said, they really need to hear the stories read to them.
Children pay attention to the voices as the stories are read aloud, she noted. All the senses are firing in a child’s first two years, so she takes care to choose books that are visually appealing written by diverse authors.
“It’s a fast, full 30 minutes,” Peters said of the weekly story time. “We’re not sitting still for this…we’re goint to have that song and move their bodies,” she said. They “practice” sitting while the stories are being read, but other than that, there’s a good bit of activity.
The story time uses themes and the first one is “On the Farm,” followed by “Apples” and “Fall.”
Story Time is all about “quality, not necessarily quantity,” she said. “You want to leave them wanting more.”
Speaking of more, that’s exactly what teens in grades 6-12 are getting in this season’s Life Hack series, Peters said. To kick things off, there’s STEM gaming fun in the Maker Space in September. From using the popular Wii system to learning about robots, tweens and teens can come together and just get used to coming to the library and using the creative space.
In October, they’ll have a chance to learn about electricity and actually have some hands-on learning by making electric circuits. Peters found a grant to purchase some kits filled with dozens of projects for the teens to learn with.
In November, a local bank representative is going to navigate youth through the ins and outs of personal finance. Although it’s pretty simple to wave your phone in front of a device to pay for something, the time will come when young people will need to be a little more tuned in to paycheck information, bank deposits and checking accounts.
Visit https://www.perrylibrary.org/ to learn about all the programs and services available for children and grownups alike.
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WIZS Radio Local News Audio 08-29-23 Noon
/by Bill HarrisClick Play to Listen. On Air at 8am, 12pm, 5pm M-F
WIZS Radio ~ 100.1FM/1450AM
Cooperative Extension With Paul McKenzie: What Works in the Garden
/by Bill HarrisListen live at 100.1 FM / 1450 AM / or on the live stream at WIZS.com at 11:50 a.m. Mon, Tues & Thurs.
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Granville Health System Gets 4 Stars From Centers For Medicare & Medicaid Services
/by WIZS StaffGranville Health System has received a four-star rating by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, which is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for delivering exceptional patient-centered care and ensuring their well-being.
“The Hospital Compare ratings evaluate crucial facets such as patient experience, safety protocols, care efficiency, and clinical outcomes and are paramount for healthcare institutions nationwide,” according to information from GHS Marketing & Foundation Director Lauren Roberson.
Adam McConnell, GHS Interim CEO, expressed pride in the achievement. “Our medical staff and the entire Granville Health System team have shown unwavering commitment to ensuring excellence in patient care,” McConnell said in the press statement. “This four-star rating validates the tireless dedication of our medical professionals, administrators and support staff, all united in our mission to positively impact the lives of our valued patients every single day.”
Granville Health System has implemented various initiatives to enhance patient safety, optimize treatment outcomes, and elevate the overall patient experience. Investments in medical technology, as well as fostering a compassionate environment and placing a strong emphasis on patient-centered care all contribute to the hospital’s overall quality.
The Granville Health System main campus is located at 1010 College Street, Oxford. Visit www.ghsHospital.org to learn more.