Tag Archive for: #hendersonnews

TownTalk: Mary Emma Evans Foundation Continues To Help Those in Need

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It all started with popsicles.

And young people playing ball on a basketball court in South Henderson, said Phyllis Evans.

The “it” Evans is referring to has evolved beyond popsicles and the neighborhood where Evans lives.

The Mary Emma Evans Foundation provides resources for the whole community, from tangible items like food and clothing to helping individuals learn soft skills like preparing for job interviews.

Beginning in early August, there will be a physical location for the work of this group of volunteers – many of whom are relatives of Mary Emma Evans, in whose memory the foundation was formed back in 2011.

Phyllis Evans and Phylicia Evans joined WIZS co-host Bill Harris on Monday’s TownTalk to talk about the new location, located on Parham Street. There was a ribbon-cutting recently and now the Evans foundation is expected to be up and running come the first of August.

Phyllis said it hasn’t been easy to try to function without a physical location, and she’s looking forward to having a spot where people can come in and choose items themselves.

“Everybody is all excited,” Phyllis said.

She’s hosting a free clothing giveaway Aug. 4, 5 and 6 at 331 Alexander Ave. Things get started at 8 a.m. on Aug. 4, but come early, because she hopes things will get snatched up quickly. There is a wide assortment of children’s and adult clothing available.

Phylicia Evans is one of Mary Emma’s grandchildren and she said the Parham Street location will be a spot where people can come in and get what they may need, whether it’s food or clothing. Eventually, they hope to establish a diaper bank as well.

Donations are most welcome – whether it’s food items, clothing or, of course, financial. The immediate goal is to raise $1,300 by August 1 to help get them moved in.

“We’re looking for sponsors as we open up our physical place,” Phylicia said. “It would help with the building as we continue doing the great work we’re doing in the community.”

All donations are tax-deductible, Phylicia said, and any board member who accepts donations can provide a receipt upon request.

Because they will have a permanent location, Phylicia said the foundation will be able to partner with other organizations to offer certificate programs for individuals to improve their skillsets.

“People will be able to come to us and get certifications like customer service skills, project management (and) Microsoft Office,” she said. This self-paced program not only improves knowledge, but can be a resume builder, too.

“We look forward to seeing a lot of growth and just continuing to expand” the services they can provide, she said.

Her grandmother was a staunch supporter of Henderson’s beautification efforts when she served on the City Council, Phylicia said. For that reason, the family participates in the Adopt-A-Highway program to try to tame the litter along Dabney Road near Lowe’s Home Improvement.

They picked up trash along that roadside back in January and they hope to get back out in the fall, when the weather cools a bit.

No doubt, Mary Emma would approve.

If you’d like to help, contact Phyllis Evans at 252.767.8902 or email

maryemmaevans@gmail.com.

Follow on Facebook The Mary Emma Evans Foundation or visit the website at https://www.maryemmaevansfoundation.org/

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Cooperative Extension with Wayne Rowland: Yellow Jackets

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Listen 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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WIZS News Special Report: Candidate Filing Period Closes

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Broadcast from the Vance County Board of Elections office on WIZS Radio ~ 100.1FM/1450AM

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TownTalk: ‘Way To GROW!’ Festival Coming To Downtown Henderson

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Say you’re organizing an event – complete with food, music and more – and you really want everyone to come out and enjoy themselves. One sure-fire way to make sure the whole community feels invited and welcomed is to get key leaders involved and interested.

Two people who fit that description in the Henderson area are Heather Joi Kenney and Tracy Mosley. They, along with other community partners, are introducing a street festival called Way to GROW! to focus on all aspects of entrepreneurship.

Kenney is president of Gateway CDC and Mosley is director of Helping All People Excel, a local nonprofit whose focus is access, exposure and opportunity for all youth.

They were guests on Thursday’s TownTalk to provide details about the Aug. 12 festival.

Actually, the week leading up to the Aug. 12 event is Entrepreneur Week at Gateway CDC, which is hosting a variety of workshops Monday through Thursday from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. to share information about becoming a successful, sustainable entrepreneur.

Because of her love for this community, “the beauty of its people and of the downtown area,” Kenney said she applied for – and ultimately received – a grant from NC IDEA, a statewide nonprofit whose mission is to support entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship across the state. The Way to GROW! festival “provides an opportunity for people to be entertained and to shop” among dozens of vendors who are themselves entrepreneurs.

A plus for the vendors is that there’s no fee to participate, she said.

Once she had the grant funding, “Tracy came to mind immediately,” Kenney said, adding that if anyone could make it successful, it was Mosley. “She can make it happen!”

“I’m an event planner – I love events,” Mosley said. “It’s a passion of mine and I love Henderson and the community.”

The plan is to block off Garnett Street between Orange and W. Montgomery streets for the festival. The Breckenridge Street area to Chestnut Street, as well as Wyche Street, also will accommodate pedestrian-only traffic that day.

The idea is to show prospective entrepreneurs that it’s possible to take a passion and turn it into a successful and sustainable business.

It’s one way to create and support the idea of community, Kenney said. “We are responsible for one another…Henderson’s way to grow is collectively.”

Join the fun on Saturday, Aug. 12 at 11 a.m. for food, music, vendors, and more at the Way to GROW! festival in downtown Henderson. The Queens Court of Charlotte, Jim Quick & Coastline, DJ AK and DJ Scoop, along with Chanel Scott of CheMinistry are just some of the groups providing entertainment.

To sign up to volunteer or to become a sponsor, contact Gateway CDC at 252.492.6298.

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Vance County High School

SportsTalk: Elliott Expects Big Things From Vipers On The Football Field

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With the first game less than a month away, Vance Co. Vipers head coach Aaron Elliott is looking to have a very successful season.  In Elliott’s first season as head coach, he took the Vipers to the playoffs and fully expects to be back this year.  “I think we have a great shot at a 10-win season,” Elliott said on Thursday’s SportsTalk.

The Vipers have been participating is numerous 7 on 7 camps over the last several weeks, and Elliott has been happy with what he has seen.  “We have a team full of athletes,” Elliott said.  He has been impressed with Javion Vines-Holder, the team’s quarterback.  “I started working with him in December and he has been terrific,” Elliott stated.

While the team will be a bit on the young side this year, Elliott said his offensive backfield will return intact and his receivers will be a strength for the Vipers.  The offensive line lost only one starter from last year’s team.

The Viper’s open the season at home on August 18th against Warren County.  Follow the Vipers all season long with play by play live on WIZS.

 

Cooperative Extension With Jamon Glover: A Proper Foundation

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Listen 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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Two Men In Custody Following Altercation Involving A Gun At Local Medical Clinic

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Two men were arrested Wednesday following an incident involving a gun that took place in the parking lot of Vance Family Medicine, but police say there were no injuries as a result of the gunfire.

Anthony Meadows, 22, of the Hicksboro community and Ransom Hawkins, 21, of the Gillburg community were in a physical altercation in the medical clinic’s parking lot, according to a statement issued Wednesday by Henderson Police Chief Marcus Barrow. 

Both men were treated for abrasions and contusions sustained during the fight and they are both in the custody of the Henderson Police Department, pending charges.

The gun was recovered by police.

Further details of the charges and bonds will be forthcoming, Barrow stated.  

TownTalk: County Commissioners Adopt Strategic Economic Development Plan

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The Vance County Board of Commissioners adopted a strategic plan for economic development at its July 10 meeting that creates a roadmap for future growth over the next few years.

Crystal Morphis, with Creative Economic Development Consulting, walked commissioners through the basic framework of the strategic plan, which she and her team developed over the course of the last year.

Following the presentation, Commissioner Archie Taylor expressed appreciation for the work that went into the plan’s development.

“The easy part is planning – the hard part is doing,” Morphis replied.

As part of the development process, Morphis shared results of a SWOT analysis – the acronym stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats – derived from information from almost 100 respondents from across the county.

The plan lists “ordinance enforcement” as a weakness, and, when asked by Commissioner Taylor to explain in greater detail, Morphis said it dealt with appearance and first impressions when a newcomer or prospective business owner visits.

“Code enforcement is so important,” Morphis said, for a community’s beautification and appearance.

Morphis used information and data from the respondents to create a plan tailored to take into account the area’s strengths – interstate access and proximity to urban centers like Raleigh and Durham – while working to address some of the challenges – an unskilled workforce and a lack of available housing, just to name two.

The plan lists five goals and has a three-year implementation timeline that details specific items that need to be achieved over that period:

Goal 1 – Attract, retain and foster start-up businesses

Goal 2 – Make Vance County a choice location

Goal 3 – Attract, develop and retain talent to ensure a strong pipeline for the future

Goal 4 – Strengthen local and regional connections

Goal 5 – Strengthen the Henderson-Vance Economic Development Commission

During her presentation to the commissioners, Morphis provided information from the respondents on topics such as challenges to growing their business. Some of those challenges include workforce availability, wage growth pressure, workforce training, financing, housing for workforce and finding affordable space to operate a business.

Some of the areas that the respondents wanted to see the county invest more resources in were in attracting new business and retaining existing businesses, and developing amenities like retail, dining and recreation.

Almost half of the respondents – 49 percent – cited personal or hometown connections – to the county as the reason their company is located within Vance County, Morphis noted.

The Kerr-Tar region and the state are seeing a growth in population, but Vance County and its three municipalities all have seen a drop in their overall populations, according to data from the 2010 and 2020 Census. This can also affect the available work force, which also has shrunk in Vance County since 2017, when there was a workforce pool of 17,237 to a November 2022 level of 16,639.

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TownTalk: County Commissioners Hear from Vance Recovery

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Vance Recovery is part of the Vance County Substance Abuse Collaborative, a group of providers that work each day to help clients who are battling opioid addiction.

John Mattocks is Vance Recovery’s program director and he spoke on behalf of the county collaborative to Vance County Board of Commissioners during the public comment section of the July 10 meeting.

“We serve 400 people a day burdened by twin epidemics,” Mattocks said, referring to opioid use and overdose.

The individual groups joined forces as a collaborative to try to generate “energy and focus” in light of the risks brought on by opioid use.

“We are ready to serve in whatever capacity would be helpful,” Mattocks told the commissioners.

Vance County is scheduled to receive a share of the $26 billion nationwide opioid settlement and Mattocks said the collaborative stands ready to provide support to county leaders as they determine how and where to spend those funds.

Visit https://www.morseclinics.com/locations/vance-recovery to learn more about the services provided at Vance Recovery.

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