Tag Archive for: #hendersonnews

TownTalk: Information On The Upcoming Election

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There are several ways to cast your vote in the upcoming November general election – all well before the first Tuesday in November.

In-person early voting begins next Thursday, Oct. 17, at two polling sites in Vance County – the former Eaton Johnson gym on Beckford Drive and Aycock Rec Center on Carey Chapel Road.

Early voting continues on weekdays through Nov. 1, and concludes with Saturday voting on Nov. 2, according to information from the Vance County Board of Elections. The polling sites will be open from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. each weekday through Nov. 1 and from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 2.

County residents who still need to register to vote have a couple of options – if you want to vote on Election Day – Nov. 5 – you need to register by 5 p.m. this Friday – Oct. 11.

Tuesday, Oct. 29 is the deadline to request an absentee ballot from the board of elections. All absentee ballots must be received by the board of elections no later than 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 5.

Same day registration is available at the early-voting sites as well.

Elections officials remind voters that whether they vote in person early, by mail or on Election Day, poll workers will ask voters for a photo ID. For many voters, this will be a driver’s license, but there are other acceptable forms as well, including a free ID available from the county board of elections office or NCDMV. Voters without ID can still vote by filling out a form explaining why they can’t show ID, or by casting a provisional ballot and showing their ID at their county board of elections office by 5 p.m. Nov. 14, according to state board of elections officials.

In addition to the high-profile national and statewide races, Vance County voters have a couple of contested races that will be decided, including one seat on the board of county commissioners.

District 1 incumbent Democrat Carolyn Faines faces Republican challenger William Heitman; the other three commissioners – District 2’s Valencia Perry, District 5’s Leo Kelly, Jr. and District 6’s Yolanda Feimster are running unopposed.

Tune in to WIZS TownTalk at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 9 to hear separate interviews with Faines and Heitman.

Three members of the Vance County Board of Education face no opposition in the upcoming election – District 3’s Dorothy Gooche and District 5’s Linda Cobb are running for re-election. District 4’s Ayana Lewis, appointed to the seat in Feb. 2024, seeks her first election to the board.

Incumbent State Rep. Frank Sossamon, a Republican, is seeking a second term for the District 32 seat that includes Vance and Granville counties. He faces opposition from Democratic challenger Bryan Cohn, a former Oxford Town Commissioner, and from Libertarian candidate Ryan Brown.

A portion of Vance County is in House District 7, which has Republican incumbent Matthew Winslow facing two challengers in the upcoming election – Democrat Jesse Goslen and Libertarian Party candidate Gavin Bell.

In the District 11 State Senate race, State Sen. Lisa Stone Barnes faces off against Democratic challenger James Mercer.

In a judicial race with local interest, incumbent Carolyn J. Thompson seeks to retain her seat on the N.C. Court of Appeals. She faces challenger Tom Murry in this race. WIZS will air recorded interviews with Thompson and Murry on Thursday’s TownTalk at 11 a.m.

When voters enter the voting booth with their ballots, poised to exercise their Constitutional right, there may be some down-ballot races that include candidates whose names don’t ring a bell.

The N.C. State Board of Elections website offers a wealth of information for registered voters, including a voter guide to judicial races and even a sample ballot for voters to preview.

Visit www.ncsbe.gov to access all this information and more.

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The Local Skinny! Gun Safety And Children Next Forum Topic Hosted By Rep. Frank Sossamon

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Rep. Frank Sossamon is hosting forums to underscore the need for gun safety, especially as it pertains to children.

The evening forums are designed to share information about gun safety with families. Representatives from the N.C. Dept. of Public Safety and the Center for Safer Schools, along with others, will be on hand during the events, according to information from Sossamon’s office.

The Granville County forum will be held on Tuesday, Oct. 8 from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at Northern Granville Middle School, 3144 Webb School Rd, Oxford.

Then, on Thursday, Oct. 10, the Vance County forum will be held at E.M. Rollins Elementary School, 1600 S. Garnett St., Henderson. That forum also runs from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

The forums are free and open to the public.

 

Cooperative Extension With Wayne Rowland: Mites

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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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The Local Skinny! Vacant County Director Roles Now Filled

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Back in February, Vance County Manager C. Renee Perry was just a few months into her new job. On top of gearing up to prepare the county’s annual budget and getting up to speed on some of the unique challenges and opportunities across the county she was now responsible for, Perry also faced having to fill a good handful of county positions, including five directors of departments.

Perry turned a negative into a positive at the time, and said back in February that she chose to see the vacancies as a chance for her to build her own leadership team.

When Vance County announced Tuesday that it had selected a new Social Services Director, that “team” is officially complete.

Sandy Weaver began her new role as DSS director effective Oct. 1, as did Jeremy T. Jones as assistanc county manager.

And Perry won’t celebrate her first anniversary as county manager until Nov. 1.

One by one, the vacancies have been filled:

·       Budget and Finance director – Stephanie Williams;

·       Animal Services manager – William Coker;

·       Planning director – Sherry Moss;

·       Elections director- Haley Rawles;

·       Economic Development director – Ferdinand A. Rouse;

·       DSS director – Sandy Weaver

·       Chief Code Enforcement Officer – Bob Rosch

The code enforcement office is located in the same office as planning, but it will function as a separate department with Rosch as the department head, county staff noted.

Cooperative Extension With Jamon Glover: Rewriting the Narratives, Episode 5

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Cooperative Extension 

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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Home And Garden Show

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On the Home and Garden Show with Vance Co. Cooperative Extension: 

  • The Vance County Regional Farmers Market is only open on Saturdays now. 8am-1pm. 
  • The Vance and Warren County Beekeepers will meet October 14 at 7pm at the Vance County Regional Farmers Market. 
  • Now is the time to collect your soil samples. 
  • If you haven’t renovated your Tall Fescue Lawn you need to do it ASAP. 
  • Take Pictures of your Garden now to help visualize where you planted plants in your Garden. 
  • If you have trees that will lose their leaves, start preparing for leaf collection. Make a plan on how you are going to collect your leaves. 
  • Operate maintenance on your gardening equipment. 

The Vance County Regional Farmers Market is located at 210 Southpark Dr., Henderson, NC 27536.

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Perry Memorial Library

TownTalk: Perry Memorial Library Events Going on in October

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Ask Perry Memorial Library’s Youth Services Librarian Melody Peters what her favorite time of year is, and you’ll get an energetic, enthusiastic “Fall!” every time.

Peters is pulling out all the stops for events and programs for October, from tried-and-true favorites to new activities designed for on-the-go families.

This Friday, the library will begin its “First Fridays STEM Club” geared for preschoolers. The half-hour program runs from 10:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. and the theme is Sounds. Participants will make egg shakers using rice, and they’ll make a kazoo with cardboard tubes, wax paper and a rubber band.

She’ll do a repeat of that program later in the day for homeschool groups and families to take part in. That session will begin at 1 p.m., she said. Adding a session for homeschool groups is just another way the library is helping to meet the needs of the community, Peters noted.

Now in her third year as Youth Services Librarian, Peters said she often hears that busy families simply can’t make it to daytime programs at the library.

So, she’s planning an evening Pajama Story Time for Tuesday, Oct. 8 to accommodate those folks. The story time, which lasts about 30 minutes, begins at 6:30 p.m.

“It’s been offered in the past, but this is the first time I’ve offered it,” Peters said.

The library will host a fall festival again this year, and Peters said participation has grown over the course of her time with the library. Families are invited to take part in all the carnival-style games – there will be something for everyone, she said. The festival will be on Tuesday, Oct. 22 from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

And stick around from 5:30 p.m. to 6 p.m., because they’re planning a Trunk or Treat in the parking lot for kids to experience on their way from the festival back to their cars.

Visit https://www.perrylibrary.org/ to learn more.

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