Tag Archive for: #hendersonncnews

ICYMI: N.C. SBI and Virginia State Police Coordinate Marijuana Eradication Operation

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RALEIGH – A joint North Carolina-Virginia marijuana eradication operation July 25-26 yielded more than 800 plants seized in Granville, Vance and Warren counties. Two stolen vehicles were recovered as well. On the north side of the state line, the Virginia State Police seized 25 plants and 20 guns. Charges are pending on one individual. 

North Carolina’s State Bureau of Investigation and the Virginia State Police coordinated the multi-agency operation that took place along the border of the two states.

“The partnerships we have at the state and local level and with our partners to the north made this operation successful,” said Lynn Gay, assistant special agent in charge of the SBI’s Capitol District.  “No one agency brought more to the table than another.  It was a group effort, and everyone’s input helped achieve our goal of putting illegal growers out of business.”

The N.C. State Highway Patrol, the N.C. National Guard and the SBI provided aerial surveillance. Other participants included the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission and the sheriffs’ offices from the three counties.

“In my years of being with the Virginia State Police, I have never seen a joint eradication operation between the two state bureaus to include local departments on both sides of the state line,” said Fst. Sgt. Tony Barksdale of the Virginia State Police. “I deem the operation a success and praise the efforts put forth by all agencies involved.” 

“The season is not over for the Marijuana Eradication Program,” Gay said. “We have agents trained to spot grow operations from the air and we will be back.”

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McGregor Hall Announces Acts, Introduces Series Packages for 2017-2018

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McGregor Hall Performing Arts Center is introducing discounted series packages with more than a dozen shows scheduled for the 2017-2018 season.

Series tickets go on sale Monday, July 31, with Grammy-winning Country Artist Lorrie Morgan, a Motown revue, a new stage play by a renown African-American playwright, four Christian acts, a Christmas “spectacular” and a local production of the Tony-winning musical “Hairspray” highlighting performances.

“This season, McGregor Hall gives patrons the option to purchase packages in order to save money and enjoy more entertaining experiences,” said John Wester, chairman of the center’s board of directors. “Our board has worked with the community to schedule monthly performances for every taste.”

Three series have been scheduled:

McGregor Live! will feature six shows: Lorrie Morgan, with 14 Top 10 Country music hits, on Oct. 8; “Hairspray,” performed and produced with local talent, on Oct. 27-29 and Nov. 3-5; the Christmas Wonderland holiday spectacular, Dec. 5; world-renowned magician and mentalist Joshua Lozoff, Jan. 6; Al Stewart, known for the Top 10 hits “Year of the Cat” and “Time Passages,” and his band, the Empty Pockets, Feb. 17; and the original Eagles tribute band, Hotel California, March 16. The six-show package, with a regular price of $160 if purchased individually, is priced at $125.

Heritage! will offer five shows: the Gulf Coast soul-band The Suffers, Sept. 21; “Hairspray,” Oct. 27-29 and Nov. 3-5; a new stage play, “Daddy’s Boys,” by North Carolina African-American playwright Garrett Davis, Jan. 13; the Masters of Soul Motown Revue, March 3; and Rod of God with comedian Roderick Allison, April 14. The five shows will be available for a package price of $100, which is $25 off regular ticket prices.

Joy! will feature three shows featuring five well-known Christian artists and groups: Dove- and Grammy-award winning Jason Crabb, Nov. 12; Karen Peck with New River, Feb. 23; and the Talleys with Tribute, April 7. With a regular ticket price of $75, the three-show package will be reduced to $50. Those purchasing the Joy! series can also add on the Christmas Wonderland show for a reduced price of $20.

All three series will have the option for spreading payments over four quarterly installments.

The series packages can be purchased online at any time at www.McGregorHall.org, by calling the Box Office at (252) 598-0662, or by visiting the Box Office at 201 Breckenridge Street in Henderson. When purchasing tickets online, patrons should make sure they are purchasing tickets through McGregor’s secure and trusted purchasing platform, eTix. The Box Office is open on Tuesdays through Fridays from 1 to 5 p.m. Patrons can save online fees when ordering directly with the Box Office staff.

McGregor Hall plans to bring back the popular Music at McGregor! series later in the season for patrons who enjoy classical and chamber music.

As additional entertainment options become available during the season, McGregor will be adding shows to the performance lineup. Individual tickets will be available for sale during the season, too.

Patrons will be given the opportunity to become “Friends of McGregor” with donations above and beyond the cost of series packages. “These gifts help McGregor Hall with such projects as educational outreach to area schools,” said Wester.

McGregor Hall volunteers will also be reaching out to area businesses and organizations for sponsorship opportunities through the center’s “Performances” magazine and other promotional initiatives.

“The strength of McGregor Hall is community support,” said Wester. “This support comes in many ways — attendance at events, donations, sponsorships and volunteering, among just a few. We are excited to offer these series and discounts to help more patrons be able to enjoy the great entertainment McGregor is bringing to our community.”

McGregor also offers facility rental options. The theater and the gallery are available for hosting special events for businesses, schools, civic groups, churches and other organizations.

VGCC Culinary program moves to new scheduling format

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The Vance-Granville Community College Culinary Arts program is changing the way it schedules core courses when the fall semester begins on Aug. 14. Culinary courses will now be taught in eight-week sessions rather than in the traditional 16-week semester format.

“One benefit of the eight-week format is that our students will have more concentrated time in each specific lab,” explained VGCC Culinary Arts Program Head/instructor Chef Teresa Davis. Even though each individual course will be completed in fewer weeks than under the former schedule, the amount of instructional time spent in each course will be the same. A baking class might meet for three hours each week instead of one hour, for example, allowing students to continue their training rather than waiting several days between classes.

“We think that this schedule should make it easier for many students to schedule their classes around their jobs and other responsibilities, along with any Work-Based Learning opportunities that they may have,” Davis added.

Four courses will be offered during the fall semester’s first eight-week mini-term, from Aug. 14 through Oct. 11: Sanitation & Safety (CUL-110), Baking I (CUL-160), Culinary Skills II (CUL-240) and Pastry & Confections (CUL-280).

Then, two other courses will be offered from Oct. 12 through Dec. 11: Culinary Skills I (CUL-140) and Global Cuisines (CUL-230).

The Culinary Arts degree program, based at the Masonic Home for Children at Oxford, prepares students to assume positions as trained culinary professionals in a variety of settings, including full-service restaurants, hotels, resorts, clubs, catering operations, contract foodservice, and health care facilities. In addition to the associate degree, VGCC offers certificates in “Basic Baking” and “Restaurant Hospitality.” Eligible high school students can enroll in Basic Baking through the Career & College Promise program.

For more information about the Culinary Arts program, contact Chef Teresa Davis at davist@vgcc.edu or (919) 690-0312.

Recent VGCC Culinary Arts graduate Hayya Wright of Louisburg prepares a dish in the kitchen at the Masonic Home for Children at Oxford, where the program is based. (VGCC photo)

 

Little Free Libraries Pop Up Around Henderson

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by Garry Daeke

FGV Smart Start has started the Little Free Library program as a way to promotion reading for children, literacy for adults and libraries around the community. 

It’s a “take a book, return a book” gathering place where people share their favorite literature and stories. In its most basic form, a Little Free Library is a box full of books where anyone may stop by and pick up a book (or two) and bring back another book to share.

Vance County United Way, through its United We Read, United We Succeed program, granted funds to Smart Start to start this effort. Smart Start will set up four of these libraries in the community.  Smart Start has ample supplies of  children’s books for the libraries, and  local citizens, along with the Friends of the Perry Library, will be assisting with book drives and collections to assist with additional books.

The mission is to promote literacy and the love of reading by building free book exchanges, and to build a sense of community as we share skills, creativity and wisdom across generations.

VGCC Pharmacy Technology students train foster parents

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Students in the Pharmacy Technology program at Vance-Granville Community College recently helped provide important training to Granville County foster parents.

Under the supervision of Pharmacy Technology Program Head Dr. Erica Fleming, students conducted medication management training, which is a state requirement for family foster home licensing, at the Granville County Department of Social Services (DSS). In such training, foster parents learn about understanding prescription labels, administering drugs, record-keeping, medication disposal, medication storage, psychotropic medications and medication errors. 

“VGCC offered an excellent training opportunity,” said LaVerne Smith, licensing and adoptions social worker for Granville County DSS. “The presentation was very informative and the handouts and visuals were excellent. It addressed all areas that our families need to know. This resource will be a great addition to our training repertoire. We are hoping to work in partnership with the Vance-Granville Community College Pharmacy Program to continue Medication Management training on a yearly basis.”

Fleming said that the partnership with Granville County DSS not only helped local foster parents, and in turn, foster children, but also formed part of the VGCC students’ study of community pharmacy practice.

For more information on the VGCC Pharmacy Technology program, call Dr. Fleming at (252) 738-3482.

From left, VGCC Pharmacy Technology student Tamika Everett of Creedmoor, Kristen Honaker of Henderson, Lesli Miranda of Henderson, Licensing and Adoptions Social Worker LaVerne Smith of Granville County DSS, program head Dr. Erica Fleming, Emily Adcock of Oxford and Ashley Hobgood of Henderson.

Henderson Optimist Club Hosts Annual Respect for Law Enforcement Banquet

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On July 25th the Henderson Optimist Club held their annual Respect for Law Enforcement Banquet at the Henderson Country Club.

Representatives were on hand from the Henderson Police Department, North Carolina Highway Patrol, Henderson Fire Department, Vance County Fire Department and EMS, Vance County Animal Services and the Kerr Lake Park Rangers to receive awards for department representative of the year.

Britt Sams, vice president of the Henderson Optimist Club, was on hand to assist with the award presentations.

Award Recipients by department are listed below:

Vance County Sheriff’s Office

Sergeant Donald R. Roberson Jr.

Henderson Police Department

Sergeant David Elliot

North Carolina Highway Patrol

Trooper J.A. Thomas

Henderson Fire Department

 

Battalion Chief Doug Owen

Vance County Fire/EMS

Fireman Latrel Fields

Vance County Animal Services

Officer William Spain

Kerr Lake Park Rangers

Ranger William D. Stanley

 

Notes: Trooper J.A. Thomas has nominated by Sergeant Jeff Rowan for leading the State of North Carolina in DWI arrests for three consecutive years. Trooper Thomas patrols the Vance, Granville and Warren County areas.

Fireman Latrel Fields received his award for completing 18 months worth of training in seven.

Ranger William D. Stanley thanked the Henderson Optimist Club and other area agencies for working together. The Kerr Lake Rangers ask for the assistance of other area agencies with various issues at Kerr Lake on a routine basis.

Vance County Schools announces Early College Laptop Distribution Date

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Vance County Schools

For Immediate Release

July 26, 2017

Laptop computers for Early College High School students will be given out on Monday, July 31, from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. in the school located on the top floor of Building 2 on the campus of Vance-Granville Community College near Henderson.

Students and parents should plan to pick up their laptop computer on this day. For those students who want to opt out of using a school system issued computer, the school’s opt-out form should be completed and returned to school officials.

Watercolor class offered at VGCC Main Campus

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Artist Stephen Filarsky of Franklinton will teach a Watercolor class at Vance-Granville Community College’s Main Campus this fall. The class is scheduled for Tuesdays from 9:15 a.m. until 12:15 p.m., Sept. 5 through Dec. 12, in room 5224 (Building 5).

While Filarksy will be concentrating on watercolor techniques, he will also be instructing students in whatever additional medium in which they would like to work.

Filarsky has painted watercolor portraits and landscapes professionally for 25 years but has been an artist since he was in high school. In college, he said he “studied Architectural Engineering and Drafting, but changed directions and learned and worked at gold leaf and gilding, hand lettering and design.”

Filarsky has taught “plein air” (painting outdoors) workshops in Virginia, South Carolina and North Carolina, along with workshops for Jerry’s Artarama and Art of the Carolinas. He currently gives private lessons and occasional workshops at his studio. Filarsky is a graduate of VGCC’s NC REAL Professional Craft Artists Entrepreneurship program.

The cost of the VGCC watercolor course is $100, which works out to less than $2.50 per hour of instruction. The deadline to register is Aug. 29. Registration can be completed online at www.vgcc.edu/schedules/personal-enrichment or at any VGCC campus. For more information, contact Gail Clark at (252) 738-3385 or ped@vgcc.edu.

–VGCC–

 

Twenty One graduate from EMT-Paramedic training at VGCC

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Vance-Granville Community College honored 21 students who completed the college’s Emergency Medical Technician-Paramedic program in July.

The graduates included Idabelle Proffitt of Bullock; Annie Wilbourne of Bunn; Kizer Blackburn of Durham; Chris Milton of Epsom; Ashley Denton, Nikki Henderson, Daniel Null, Jonathon Pulley and Dillon Thomas, all of Henderson; Taylor Abbott of Kittrell; Destanie Fisher of Orange County; Brent Adcock, Tina Ayscue and Justin Preddy, all of Oxford; Branden Bass of Providence (Granville County); Danielle Dixon, Andrew McDonald and Thomas McDuffie, all of Roxboro; and Justin Chambers, Kira Chambers and Luke O’Briant, all of Timberlake.

Vivian Loyd, a Registered Nurse and Paramedic Level II instructor, was the instructor for the class, which began in August of 2016. This was the first class held in VGCC’s Main Campus Building 10, the new home for Emergency Medical Services training.

EMT-Paramedic instruction includes 596 hours of didactic (classroom) training and 500 hours of clinical education, or field internship. To be eligible to take the EMT-P course, students had to have already completed a 203-hour EMT-Basic course and passed a state exam.

An EMT-Paramedic has enhanced skills beyond the EMT-Basic level, including being able to administer additional interventions and medications. The EMT-P delivers the highest level of pre-hospital medical care in North Carolina.

In order to successfully complete the EMT-P course, students had to pass several different exams, including a “scope of practice” exam. This scenario-based evaluation tested the hands-on and critical thinking skills of students, as they delivered the appropriate treatment to multiple trauma patients and dealt with pediatric, environmental, and mental-illness situations. Each student also had to complete an 80-hour Anatomy and Physiology course.

Now that the students have completed the EMT-P course, they must take the 100-question North Carolina Office of Emergency Medical Services credentialing exam to become state-certified.

VGCC offers Emergency Medical Services training from the basic to the Paramedic level, in addition to continuing education. For more information on enrolling in these courses, call EMS Coordinator/instructor Stephen Barney at (252) 738-3273.

–VGCC–

2017 Leadership Vance program comes to an end

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The Henderson-Vance Chamber of Commerce has fifteen graduates from this year’s annual Leadership Vance program.

Leadership Vance is designed to create a group of informed and dedicated leaders who will contribute to the community.  The program is organized into twelve sessions which began on February 7 with an orientation breakfast at Vance-Granville Community College and will conclude on August 3 with a graduation ceremony and dinner at Henderson Country Club.

Participants are exposed to various aspects of Henderson and Vance County, specifically in regard to city and county government, health and community resources, economic development, agriculture and natural resources, history, media, criminal justice and law.

As their community service project, this year’s class assisted with a food giveaway at the Vance County Farmer’s Market on July 13.  The giveaways take place the 2nd Thursday of every other month and are a collaborated effort of Cooperative Extension, St James Missionary Baptist Church, USDA, DSS, Vance County Sheriff’s Department and Henderson Police Department.  The class also helped Rebuilding Hope, Inc. complete a wheelchair ramp project and do some clean-up.

The class will celebrate with a graduation dinner at Henderson Country Club on Thursday, August 3.  Each participant will receive a diploma for completing the five-month course and will view a pictorial presentation of the highlights and memories made during their five months together.

Graduates of this year’s class include: Lisa Bender, Capital Campaign Coordinator-Vance Charter School; Desiree Brooks, Advertising Director-The Daily Dispatch; Norwin Fischer, Systems Operations Manager-Walmart DC 6091; Krystal Harris, Director-Vance County Dept. of Social Services; Sara Lloyd, Director of Customized Training-Vance-Granville Community College; Marty McGraw, Asset Protection Manager-Walmart DC 6091; Sheri Moss, Social Worker II – Work First-Vance County Dept. of Social Services; Jason Spriggs, Water Treatment Operator-Kerr Lake Regional Water System; Paylor Spruill, Assistant to the City Manager-City of Henderson; Joy Suther, Assistant Principal – Dabney Elementary School; Tremanisha Taylor, Youth/Adult Sports Coordinator-Henderson Family YMCA; Ursula Kennedy, Director of Nursing Operations-Maria Parham Health; Tonya Verzaal, QA Area Manager-Walmart DC 6091; Jessica West, Community Services Sergeant-City of Henderson Police Department; Sallie White, Market Leader-BB&T.