Tag Archive for: #hendersonnews

TownTalk: Henderson Kiwanis Club

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The Henderson Kiwanis Club celebrated its 100th anniversary a couple of years ago – that’s quite an accomplishment for any group, and this local civic club is staying active as it begins its second century of service to the community.

Kiwanis Club President Danny Wilkerson said the local group has had several different long-standing fundraisers over the years – peanut sales and azalea sales, for example – but the club’s biggest fundraiser is the annual golf tournament.

This year’s tournament at Kerr Lake Country Club brought in a little more than $10,000, Wilkerson said on Tuesday’s TownTalk.

“It’s the most money we’ve ever made from a tournament,” he said. “We were just so excited about it that day,” he added. The 17 teams on the course that day, as well as a variety of sponsors and enough volunteers to have everything run smoothly, added up to a record-breaking year.

But the club doesn’t hang on to the money for long. “We take it in and push it right back into the community,” Wilkerson said, “to help the needs of the kids.”

The Kiwanis motto is Serving the Children of the World, and that’s a motto that Kiwanians take to heart. “It’s all about the kids,” Wilkerson said.

The local club established two scholarships at Vance-Granville Community College in memory of Robert Turner and Bob Harrison, and Vance County Schools Superintendent Dr. Cindy Bennett was a guest speaker at a recent club meeting.

The club provides gifts for needy children at Christmas and support youth organizations like the Boy Scouts of America, Boys & Girls Club, the Salvation Army, local library and more.

What the club needs, however, is more members. It’s down to fewer than a dozen, but Wilkerson said anyone is welcome to attend their meetings, held at 6 p.m. on the first and third Wednesdays of the month at Henderson Country Club.

He knows young parents have a lot of responsibilities raising their own families, which has affected membership in many organizations besides his own.

“We’ll feed you and hope you stick around to become a member of the club,” Wilkerson said. “We really want to attract some younger people to carry the torch forward.”

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The Local Skinny! Children’s Theatre Camp Show ‘Once Upon A Mattress’ Opens Friday, June 27

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The Children’s Theatre Camp is in its second week of its two-week program at McGregor Hall, and Mark Hopper said that 54 campers are in rehearsal now for the production of Once Upon A Mattress that will be performed this weekend.

There are three shows for the public – Friday, June 27 at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday matinees that begin at 3 p.m. The shows last about an hour, the perfect length for families with young children.

“It’s a great family-oriented show,” Hopper said, “and the duration makes it great for any age.” There’s singing and choreography – with plenty of comedic shenanigans and campy jokes, he said, that are sure to keep the audience entertained.

Jo Ellen Nowell is directing the youngsters as they prepare to put on the show about a very loud princess named Winnifred and a Queen’s attempts to find a suitable wife for her son, the Prince.

This is the fifth year for the Children’s Theatre Camp, Hopper said on Tuesday’s segment of The Local Skinny!

Charlotte Davis is cast as Winnifred and Hopper called her work “phenomenal.”

“We’ve got some unbelievably talented kids on that stage – 54 of them,” he said.

There will be a daytime performance on Friday, June 27 especially for campers at the Henderson Family YMCA and Recreation and Parks, Hopper said.

Hopefully, more young people will see others their age on stage and realize that it’s something that could be an option for them one day as well.

“We wanted to make a camp that was affordable,” Hopper said, while offering access to high-quality material, staff and equipment that McGregor Hall performances are known for.

For $100, rising 3rd graders through rising 11th graders could participate for eight hours a day and then, “at the end of two weeks, produce a quality show,” Hopper said.

Purchase tickets here: https://mcgregorhall.ludus.com/index.php

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Cooperative Extension with Michael Ellington: Plants during a Heat Wave

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Michael Ellington, on the Vance County Cooperative Extension Report:

This segment has a few key tips on how to keep your plants happy during a heat wave. Also shared are reminders for upcoming events.

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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220 Fundraiser Monday, June 30 To Help Local Magistrate, Family After House Fire

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A 220 Fundraiser will take place on Monday, June 30 to support Vance County Magistrate Mike Massenburg and his family, who lost their home and its contents in a house fire.

Take-out plates will be available from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at 220 Seafood, 1812 N. Garnett St.

Plates are $10 and you can just drive up and purchase without having purchased a ticket in advance.

Tickets had been available for purchase for the past few weeks from the Vance County Clerk of Court’s office or magistrate’s office, 156 Church St., Suite 101.  Anyone who purchased tickets in advance is asked to bring them Monday when you pick up your plates.

TownTalk: Business Spotlight – Storage Sense

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Storage Sense is open for business, and local community leaders were on hand recently for an official ribbon-cutting ceremony to welcome it to the neighborhood.

Actually, it’s just the first phase of possibly four phases that was the object of celebration on June 18, when Henderson-Vance Chamber of Commerce President Sandra Wilkerson and her staff brought the “big scissors” for the celebratory ceremony.

The property, located at the intersection of U.S. 1/Norlina Road and Warrenton Road, has been upfitted to be a convenient storage facility for anyone who needs extra space for belongings they aren’t currently using but aren’t ready to part with.

Folks who’ve lived here long enough may remember it as Skateland, which opened in 1949. Others may remember it as Moore’s, a building supply center. Most recently, it was part of John Foster Homes.

Local business owner Jason Stewardson has transformed the high-visibility location into a modern-looking space that’s set up and ready to serve the public. “It’s unbelievable the demand for storage,” he said.

At the ribbon-cutting, Stewardson said, “What you see here is Phase 1 of a three-phase project…with potentially a fourth phase with the two acres in back.” Buildings that once housed building materials and more could be transformed into boat sheds, he said.

Phase 2 is the renovation of the old Skateland building, which would provide another 250 or so storage units.

Storage Sense District Manager Doug Pierce said this area hasn’t had many new storage options recently. “I think this will be a great improvement and help the community,” Pierce said.

Chamber of Commerce Board Chair Scott Burwell congratulated Stewardson and the third-party management Storage Sense team for providing this timely service, when Henderson and Vance County are experiencing an expanding housing market.

“We’re very eager to see phase 2,” Burwell said.

Vance County Economic Development Commission Chair Ruxton Bobbitt said “it’s fantastic to see the north side of town seeing traffic” when it comes to development and said he is happy that the property has a new lease on life with this new business.

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The Local Skinny! Vance County Adopts $66M Budget; Tax Rate Stays The Same

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The Vance County Board of Commissioners adopted the $66 million FY 2025-26 budget Monday afternoon – it’s bigger by about $1.4 million than was first recommended by County Manager C. Renee Perry, but it includes more money for county school district teachers and classified staff. The budget figure Perry mentioned at a June 16 budget work session is $66,383,251, with $4,068,875 coming from the general fund to balance the budget.

Commissioners Valencia Perry and Dan Brummitt voted against the budget.

“I just feel that this budget – it’s an increase of almost 11 percent – and this is on the backs of our taxpaying citizens. I think at some point we’ve got to look at cutting expenses rather than generating new revenues,” Brummitt said. “It’s just something that we need to focus on, and hopefully this coming year, we’ll do something different that we can work towards that.”

Other items contributing to the increase in the budget are insurance costs and cost-of-living adjustments for county employees. Manager Perry told commissioners at a June 16 budget work session that health insurance costs rose by $1.2 million and $750,000 was needed for COLA costs for county employees – both of which are necessary expenditures. The commissioners were united in their support for Vance County Schools’ certified and classified staff getting more money – another $1,000 for teachers and a 2 percent salary increase for classified staff – although it wasn’t the full amount the school district had requested.

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Cooperative Extension with Wayne Rowland: Soil Samples

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Wayne Rowland, on the Vance County Cooperative Extension Report:

This segment talks about how to properly take good soil samples, and who to send the sample to once you collect it.

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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TownTalk: Pathways 2 Peace Workshop Takes Aim At Root Causes Of Violence, Violent Crime

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In its very title, the Data-To-Action workshop that took place earlier this month clearly states the mission: We have a lot of data – now, what do we do about it?

Over the course of a day and a half, close to 20 participants from a cross-section of the community shared stories, analyzed data and listened to different perspectives, all in an effort to do something about the rising rates of violence in Henderson and Vance County.

Several of the participants came to the WIZS studios Thursday to share some takeaways from that workshop and to talk about what the future holds as the newly formed nonprofit Pathways 2 Peace continues to gather momentum.

Charles Turrentine, Jr., P2P’s founder, along with Dispatch editor Gary Band and local business owners Tasha Fritz and Roy Brown, Jr., said the workshop was a way to hear from a variety of people and to try to get to the root of problems that lead to violence and violent crimes.

The workshop took place at Vance-Granville Community College on June 6 and 7 and was led by facilitators who guided participants through activities that ultimately produced three root causes that contribute to violence and violent crime in the area, Turrentine said: poverty, broken homes and absenteeism.

“Poverty and broken-down families intertwine with substance abuse, feeding the cycle,” he said.

These factors may be easily identifiable, but what actions to take to reverse the trends is what P2P is focusing on now.

As part of the workshop, the group produced an action plan – concrete ways to address the problems.

As far as a timeframe goes, Turrentine was quick to respond. “The timeframe is now,” he said, mentioning an upcoming Community Read-In, a collaboration with Perry Memorial Library that will take place on June 25.

But P2P has plans to do more, from providing mentorship opportunities and peer support for people struggling to hosting other listening sessions to hear what people want and need.

“That’s where Pathways 2 Peace can help,” Turrentine said. “We’re changing the narrative,” he said, connecting agencies and resources with the people who need them. “We’re not in silos, we’re inviting people to come out,” he said.

“We want to change the mindset,” Turrentine said. A feeling of embarrassment may have a hand in people not asking for help, he said. “It’s ok to need help if you want to do better.”

Ultimately, P2P hopes to have a physical location where people can just walk in and ask for help in finding resources, Fritz said.

Fritz is a creative professional and leads The Savvy Sisters, LLC, a local faith-led company that specializes in branding, marketing and design.

For the past 14 years, she has been working with small businesses to build websites, create logos and more.

She said she had intended to attend the workshop for a few hours, mainly because she had committed to being there.

“I went, I showed up with the attitude of ‘Let’s see what this is all about,’” Fritz said. “Once I got there…it became that much more interesting to me. The facilitators brought everything together, she said. “It turned out to be an extremely powerful session.”

From her perspective, Fritz said it’s a matter of pushing people to believe in themselves. “If we want better, we have to do better…uplift instead of tearing each other down.”

As owner of 2 Kings One City Media Co., Brown said he attended the workshop not just as a member of the business community, but as someone who has seen firsthand some of the struggles people face. Through his work offering peer support, Brown said he believes some of the problems “can be nipped in the bud” if people’s needs can be identified and addressed so they can get their lives back on track.

Connecting people to existing resources is a critical component to addressing those needs, everything from finding clothing or household items when money is tight to accessing mental health agencies or substance abuse treatment programs.

Turrentine said he wants people to be able to access resources when they need them to help them get to their destinations – it’s a temporary support that isn’t designed for long-term dependence.

“The system is not designed to be an enabler,” he said, rather, it’s “designed to help you get off the system.”

Band said he witnessed “energy, enthusiasm and engagement” during the workshop, and participants seemed to be laser-focused on the issues that are negatively affecting the city and county.

The community doesn’t necessarily need more programs, he said, but more connections.

“If we can recognize where those resources exist,” Band said, and be able to approach and engage people, the work will pay dividends.

There’s a new website that is offering just such a listing of resources called Connect to Henderson. Agencies and organizations can submit information about the services and programs they provide. The website is https://www.connect-to-henderson.com/

Turrentine said P2P is developing a board now that will create a solid foundation of like-minded people willing to work to improve those three key root causes that were identified: poverty, broken families and absenteeism.

It’s going to take strong leadership – and funding – to make sure P2P is sustainable.

“We want to sustain ourselves,” he said. “While we’re doing the business, we’re doing the work. We’re going to still continue to do the work.”

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