Tag Archive for: #hendersonnews

5.4 Percent of Vance County’s Population Has Tested Covid Positive

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The total number of Covid cases in Vance County since the pandemic began equals 2,406 as of today, December 22, 2020, and that means 5.4 percent of the population of Vance County has been diagnosed with the virus.  The 883 active cases of Covid-19 right now in Vance County represents 1.98 percent of the population of the County.

Vance County has seen a net increase of 115 cases in a week or just over 16 per day.  In the past seven days, the County has experienced a total increase of 214 cases. During the same seven-day period, beginning December 16 and ending December 22, a total of 99 cases have come to an end with the person being released from isolation.

As of Tuesday, December 22, 2020, there are 883 active cases in Vance County, with 873 of them in the community at large.  With the community spread increasing, the number of dead is increasing too, three more attributed to Covid in the past week.

The number of cases calling for inpatient care in Vance County is holding steady at 23, of which the lower twenties has been the figure most of December.

Local News Audio

Noon News 12-22-20 United Way; VGCC CDL Program; Granville Co. Holiday Schedule

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Stories include:

– United Way presents grant checks to local organizations

– 100% Graduation rate for Vance Granville Community College CDL Program

– Granville Co. Government holiday schedule

For full details and audio click play.

 

20K In Grants From United Way of Vance County To Four Local Nonprofits

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THIS STORY IS PRESENTED IN PART BY DRAKE DENTISTRY

— press release courtesy United Way of Vance County by Terri Hedrick

The United Way of Vance County presented grant checks totaling $20,000 today (Monday) to four local nonprofit organizations to help needy families and individuals in Vance and Warren counties with assistance due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The grant funding was made possible with a grant from United Way Worldwide to the local United Way unit.

Each of the four organizations received a grant of $5,000.

The organizations receiving the grants include: ACTS of Vance County Inc., Life Line Outreach, Inc., Community Partners of Hope, Inc., and Alliance Rehabilitative Care Inc.

ACTS of Vance County will use the grant funding to provide meals on weekdays to homeless citizens and those who are homebound. Life Line Outreach will continue to provide services with the grant funds to abused and homeless women and children in their facility and to provide food boxes for needy families. Community Partners of Hope will utilize the funds to support operations of the organization’s shelter for homeless men and Alliance Rehabilitative Care will use the additional funds for services provided at the local Addiction Recovery Center for Men.


Gwen Williams, president of the United Way of Vance County, center in white mask, and Tommy Haithcock, first vice president of the United Way of Vance County, center in black mask, presented checks for $5,000 each to four local nonprofit organizations to meet the basic needs of disadvantaged people in Vance and Warren counties. Those accepting the checks for their organizations included, from left on the back row, Rev. Joseph Ratliff of Community Partners of Hope, Lee Anne Peoples of ACTS of Vance County, Jeanne Harrison of Alliance Rehabilitative Care, and Steve and Lynda Dalton of Life Line Outreach. Donna Stearns, a member of the United Way of Vance County Board of Directors, standing at far left on the front row, also joined the presentation.

Accepting the grant funding for each of the organizations were Lee Anne Peoples of ACTS of Vance County; Steve and Lynda Dalton of Life Line Outreach; the Rev. Joseph Ratliff of Community Partners of Hope; and Jeanne Harrison of Alliance Rehabilitative Care.

“Our United Way Board of Directors is thrilled to be able to provide these much needed grant funds to these outstanding nonprofit organizations in our community,” said Gwen Williams, board president. “We know the needs of our community are great right now as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and we are confident all four organizations will use the funds to help those most in need.”

United Way of Vance County allocated over $6,000 in grants for pandemic relief in the spring. Those funds went to ACTS of Vance County and Life Line Outreach, both located in Henderson, and the Loaves & Fishes Ministry in Warrenton, to help with food insecurities of families in Vance and Warren counties.

Williams noted that the local United Way will continue to work to secure funds from various sources, including donations from industries, businesses and individuals, to support programs that assist disadvantaged families in its coverage area of Vance and Warren counties.

Anyone interested in making a donation may do so by sending it to United Way of Vance County, P.O. Box 1352, Henderson, N.C. 27536 or through the organization’s website at unitedwayvance.org.

Local News Audio

Noon News 12-21-20 EMS Strike Team; BoE Board Members; VCHS Football

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Stories include: Vance Co. EMS requests strike team to help with COVID19; Vance Co. Board of Education sees three re-elected and sworn in; Vance Co. High School football coach says team will be ready in February.

For full details and audio click play…

 

TownTalk 12-21-20 Brian “Doc” Miller, Vance Granville Community Band, And More

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Brian “Doc” Miller is experiencing a case of Sousa rehearsal withdrawal. This condition, brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, is not affecting Miller’s enthusiasm for teaching and conducting musicians. And that’s a good thing, because he can’t wait to get the band back together.

In this case, the “band” is the Vance Granville Community Band. Miller is the band’s director, as well as the music instructor at the community college and Crosscreek Charter School in Louisburg. When the group can gather again for practice, Miller says the rehearsal room is just as they left it back in February. “We had to cancel rehearsals just abruptly…all the music left in the folders, the room set up ready for the next rehearsal,” Miller recalled during a recent interview on Town Talk. What Miller thought would be a hiccup of a couple of weeks has turned into a months-long hiatus. He holds out some hope that the band can resume in some fashion in the springtime.

“It’s been a real bummer,” Miller said, “because I certainly miss it.” The “it” is the regular Monday evening gatherings to rehearse together. “We play the good ol’ Sousa marches,” which he and the band enjoy performing, along with other classical and old standards. The band combines VGCC music students (the school offers four Band classes) and adults from the community who still enjoy playing a musical instrument. Normally, the group practices from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on Monday evenings. “It’s the highlight of my week,” said Miller. The camaraderie and shared love of music is something very special to this group. Former students of Miller also have joined the group over the years, which Miller finds rewarding.

He took over as the band’s conductor around the time he retired from teaching music at Louisburg High School. “I was missing conducting the fancy stuff, the good ol’ Sousa marches, the old-fashioned stuff that I love so much,” Miller said. “It felt like a seamless transition from Louisburg High to Vance-Granville, he added. “It’s just been a joy to work with the folks (at VGCC).”

Written story continues below…

To hear TownTalk with Brian Miller and host Bill Harris, click play…

The music program has grown over the years, both in the curriculum courses offered and the community band itself. Miller remembers going taking a smaller group to play at a nursing home in Warren County and offering music as a prelude to the Warrenton Christmas parade. Smaller programs like that, in addition to concerts like the 2019 Christmas program at MacGregor Hall in Henderson are what Miller recalls as highlights. “I just miss it tremendously, and I just hope to pick up where we left off” before rehearsals were cancelled. “We’re not abandoning it,” he said, “just suspending time for a little bit.”

Despite all the things that the pandemic restrictions have shut down, Miller maintains a positive attitude. “One of the things that COVID has taught us, the things we took for granted before, we’re not going to take for granted again,” he said. The weekly rehearsals, the performances, even the daily high school band practices are on the list of things not to be taken for granted again.

Because the charter school is operating on an A Day/B Day schedule, he is able to do some in-person teaching. Other students receive remote instruction. “I’ve had to learn how to teach online and even try to do a band rehearsal online,” Miller said, adding “that’s actually kinda fun!”

Sure, there are time lags and it isn’t always easy. “We couldn’t really get beyond whole notes,” Miller admits, and playing a piece of music together via computer isn’t possible for the students. “You learn to adapt,” he said. “I never thought I’d be doing lessons online. But you make adjustments in life.”

One positive outcome is how Miller is able to evaluate students. They record themselves playing their instrument and he can then listen and respond to them with specific feedback about tone quality and other aspects of their performance.

Miller said he always thought he was too old-fashioned to utilize some of the technology in his instruction. But learning about the online resources available to him and his students is something that he can continue using once they can resume in-person learning. “It’s actually very efficient, so we’ll learn a little something” from the pandemic restrictions.

He has always enjoyed teaching the traditional music, full of beautiful melody and tone. Whether it’s a Sousa march or Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, Miller explained, students love to re-create the music. He said he has sometimes felt like a lone voice of sorts when it comes to teaching and performing traditional or classical music. It’s not that it’s intellectual or anything, he noted, “it’s just good music.”

Miller recognizes differences in teaching new learners versus rehearsing with older, more experienced musicians. Students in high school have other obligations that can eat into valuable rehearsal time, which the community band members may not have, he noted. “But music is music, no matter the level,” he said. Fifth-graders can learn about good tone quality and how to support a note with sustained air pressure, but the VGCC Community Band members also begin their rehearsals with breathing exercises. Same concept, different level of experience.

The secret? Teaching the team concept is the key to success, whether he is working with a high school concert band or the VGCC Community Band.

“I can wave my baton all I want to and if the musicians haven’t taken the motivation” to do their part,” he said, the team will not be successful. “What we do in rehearsal is put it together – we work on balance and intonation, those things that happen when people are together. It’s the same thing I taught in high school:  band…(is) the ultimate team activity. When everybody does their part well, then we all enjoy. When someone doesn’t do their part, we all suffer.”

Vance County Schools Logo

Vance County School Board Members Take Oath of Office; Chair and Vice Chair Selected

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— press release courtesy of Vance County Schools, Public Information Officer Aarika Sandlin

Three Vance County Schools Board of Education members were recently re-elected to represent their districts: Mr. Edward B. Wilson, Mrs. Dorothy W. Gooche and Mrs. Linda S. Cobb. They each took their Oath of Office at the December 14, 2020 Board of Education meeting before Judge Caroline Burnette.

Mrs. Dorothy W. Gooche represents District 3 and has served on the Vance County Board of Education since November 2010. A Vance-Granville Community College retiree, Mrs. Gooche continues devoting herself to education in Vance County, sharing “I am honored to be re-elected to the Vance County Board of Education. Serving our students these past 10 years has been rewarding. I am constantly reminded of my role to provide ideas and recommendations that help meet the educational and developmental needs of all students, while also supporting the excellent faculty and staff that have a direct influence in the life of each student. I look forward to the continued work with the board, our schools, parents and community.”

Mr. Edward B. Wilson represents District 4 and has served on the Vance County Board of Education since November 2012. A retired Vance County Schools educator, Mr. Wilson continues to be dedicated to serving, sharing that “at first, I may have viewed it as a civic responsibility but now I view it as an opportunity to learn from the very best and most highly qualified school professionals in the state.”

Mrs. Linda S. Cobb represents District 5 and was first appointed to the Vance County Board of Education in September 2019. Retired from the Division of Social Services through the Department of Health and Human Services, Mrs. Cobb continues her commitment to serving our community. She shared “I am grateful to continue my service on the Board of Education, having the opportunity to represent our community and our students – this brings joy to me.”

The board also voted in a new chair and vice chair at the meeting. Mrs. Linda S. Cobb (District 5) will serve as the School Board Chair and Mrs. Margaret A. Ellis (District 6) as Vice-Chair.

Vance County High School

Vance County Vipers Football Using Quarantine To Transition

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WIZS SportsTalk (M-F at 1pm) with host Trey Snide and co-host Ron Noel recently featured the first-year head varsity football coach of the Vance County Vipers, Hunter Jenks.

Jenks said the first year has been a lot of good. He said, “The whole world is dealing with changes, and with changes, you just have to be open minded and make the most of it. Of what we’ve been able to do, I’ve been very pleased and excited to just start the process moving forward.”

At this moment he thinks the team is right where it needs to be as he and the other coaches try to keep the terminology familiar, like it was in the past. “One of the things we try to believe in is continual improvement and realizing everyday if you get a little bit better, then we might not be were we want to be right now, but we’ll get there,” Jenks said.

The coach thinks he has tremendous talent on his team in the younger grades. As for the seniors and returning players, names like Saimir Best, Tra’On Lyons, Kevon Burton will be familiar. Jenks said, “I’m really excited. I think we have talent in all four grades. We have some people who have really used quarantine to their advantage, and are going to be completely different players than they were last year.”

The Vipers’ season starts February 26. Vance County Friday Night Football on WIZS will be live with the play by play.

In the second segment of the show, Trey and Ron discussed the outstanding recruiting class UNC football was able to land.

Press play…

 

Vance Co EMS Lifeline Award

Vance County EMS Has Itself Reached Out For Help

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Vance County Management, on behalf of the Vance County EMS Department, has reached out to the state to ask for a strike team. The problem is positive COVID cases.

Vance County Manager Jordan McMillen told WIZS News, “We are working through a number of positive COVID cases in our EMS department as is the case in the general public and as a result additional EMS employees have been put on quarantine and sick leave reducing the number of available EMTs and Paramedics. We are working with our in-county first responders and neighboring counties to fill in any gaps…” He said the purpose of reaching out was “to make arrangements from across the state should we need additional assistance down the line.”

Vance County has already heard back from agencies from neighboring counties and beyond, and McMillen said, “…We are doing our best to work through the situation. We have also had a number of off duty firefighters who are willing to step up and assist as well. I wouldn’t say we are at crisis level, but we are doing what we need to stay ahead of it as best we can and to get our folks who are working long hours some relief.”

Vance Co EMS Lifeline Award

Vance County EMS was recently selected as a 2020 Mission Lifeline Award recipient by the American Heart Association. On Wednesday, Sept 23, 2020, County Manager Jordan McMillen and Chairman of the Board Gordon Wilder presented Paramedic Christopher Rigg with a certificate of appreciation for his role in coordinating the application process. The County also presented Director Javier Plummer and the entire department with a certificate in recognition of their accomplishments leading to this award. McMillen said the County appreciates all public safety workers and first responders and congratulates Vance EMS on this accomplishment.

Firefighters, EMTs, paramedics, deputies, police and other forms of law enforcement and emergency personal rush into burning buildings, run into homes, reach into private vehicles and more. Sometimes it’s even known these homes, buildings and vehicles have COVID positive people and patients inside. McMillen said, “While we are taking all of the precautions with PPE and other means as we can, it is inevitable that it reaches our public safety staff as well.”

These working and giving heroes are local as well as far and wide and are just the type of people who come together to serve here, there and where ever there is need.

Vance County is working with Granville Vance Public Health and “following all of their guidance,” McMillen said.

NCDOT

S-Line Rail Corridor Goes Straight Through Henderson

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The S-Line rail corridor goes straight through downtown Henderson.  The future of the route from Petersburg, Virginia down to the Virginia line and then the NC Department of Transportation’s portion from Virginia to South Carolina could spawn additional economic development for the local Henderson area.

Being a mainline portion of the Southeast Corridor and possibly a higher speed line would help too.

For now, the news is the fact that NCDOT has been awarded a grant for development planning near passenger rail stations.

Henderson Mayor Eddie Ellington is quoted in a press release from NCDOT, and he said, “Our community was founded on rail traffic in 1841. It is only natural that our resurgence is based on this same driving force for economic development, connecting us to greater opportunities. The regional cooperation and resulting benefit this project represents is government at its best.”

Julie White, NCDOT’s deputy secretary for Multimodal Transportation said in the press release: “We’re grateful to be working with cities and towns that understand how passenger rail service can spur economic development.  This as a great opportunity to use passenger rail to better connect rural and urban communities. It should serve as a model for future projects.”

In our area, Henderson and Franklinton contributed the necessary matching funds for the grant.

Franklinton Mayor Art Wright is quoted in the press release saying, “The Town of Franklinton is looking forward to working with our neighbors along the S-line to develop a community that will support passenger rail. This funding will promote Franklinton’s rich rail history and expand downtown.”

The grant money can be used to develop plans for areas around rail stations.

In Henderson, that plan will need to look at plans for the actual rail station itself.  The only actual passenger station along the line is long gone, and the metal and plexiglass hut that sat at the corner of Williams and Montgomery Streets downtown was removed after the final AMTRAK operated “Silver Star” departed for the final time in the mid 1980s.

The bigger picture is all these smaller pieces are adding up. This grant now, and the next press release about another grant later, and when the news of hiring a new Henderson-Vance Downtown Development Commission director comes, and with the recent hiring of a new Henderson-Vance Economic Development Commission director, and downtown Main Street status in Henderson, and an expanded industrial park, and other growth and development, it’s all chipping away at the problem and putting down new roads to success.

If you’d like to hear more about the S-Line, listen back to TownTalk from October 28, 2020 and NCDOT guest Jason Orthner, Rail Division Director.

 

— NCDOT Press Release

NCDOT Awarded Grant for Development Planning Near Passenger Rail Stations

​Federal funding will help communities plan for development on S-Line corridor

Raleigh — The Federal Transit Authority has awarded the N.C. Department of Transportation’s Integrated Mobility Division a $900,000 grant to help Triangle area communities create plans for development along the S-Line rail corridor.

The S-Line corridor is a passenger rail line that starts at the Virginia border, runs through Raleigh, and ends at the South Carolina state line.

“We’re grateful to be working with cities and towns that understand how passenger rail service can spur economic development,” said Julie White, NCDOT’s deputy secretary for Multimodal Transportation. “This as a great opportunity to use passenger rail to better connect rural and urban communities. It should serve as a model for future projects.”

The following towns contributed matching funds for the grant: Apex, Franklinton, Henderson, Raleigh, Sanford and Wake Forest. The towns will use the grant money to develop plans for the areas around the rail stations. The plans will explore how the rail stations will bolster economic development in their town centers and enable these communities to plan for connections to bus service, micro transit, bicycle paths and greenways.

Mayors of the towns that contributed matching funds to the grant provided the following comments.

Apex Mayor Jacques K. Gilbert said:
“The Town of Apex is thrilled to join the North Carolina Department of Transportation and our regional partners in this forward-thinking effort to plan for the future of passenger rail along the S-Line corridor. Working together, we will realize the substantial economic and mobility benefits of passenger rail for our communities.”

Franklinton Mayor Art Wright said:
“The Town of Franklinton is looking forward to working with our neighbors along the S-line to develop a community that will support passenger rail. This funding will promote Franklinton’s rich rail history and expand downtown.”

Henderson Mayor Eddie Ellington said:
“Our community was founded on rail traffic in 1841. It is only natural that our resurgence is based on this same driving force for economic development, connecting us to greater opportunities. The regional cooperation and resulting benefit this project represents is government at its best.”

Raleigh Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin said:
“This grant is crucial to moving the S-Line project ahead and restoring passenger rail service between Raleigh and Richmond. In the long-term, the S-Line will improve mobility and reduce congestion, not only in Raleigh, but across the region. I am thrilled to continue working with everyone involved in this project, and deeply appreciate FTA’s support.”

Sanford Mayor Chet Mann said:
“Sanford is thrilled with the prospect of having passenger rail on the S-Line. We have a rich train history as we were founded at the rail crossing in 1874 in what is now our Depot Park. We see multimodal transportation as a key component to any growing community. This project will usher in a new wave of economic development around an area in our town already designated for revitalization. We are grateful to be partnering with the NCDOT and all the other stakeholders involved in this project and we are beyond excited at watching what happens as this project evolves.”

Wake Forest Mayor Vivian A. Jones said:
“We’ve been working on bringing passenger rail to Wake Forest for quite a while. We recognize there’s a strong demand out there, so we are excited about this opportunity and are looking forward to getting it done.”

TownTalk 12-17-20: Pete Burgess; The Man; The Farmer; The Community Advocate

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— written from WIZS Staff contributions plus information from a VGCC press release

A farmer must cultivate his crop to ensure a productive yield. First comes the groundwork – literally. The field has to be ready for planting and then kept weed-free so the young plants can flourish. Often, the ultimate success of the crop depends on how well the field was looked after and tended to.

Talmadge R. Burgess, Sr., “Pete” to friends and colleagues, knows the value of cultivation. He has shared this philosophy locally during his decades-long work in agriculture and in service to his community. And that is why the Vance County chapter of the North Carolina Farm Bureau has created a scholarship at Vance-Granville Community College in honor of Burgess.

“We are proud to establish this scholarship to express our appreciation to Pete Burgess for his many years of service to the Farm Bureau, the farming community and Vance County as a whole,” said Thomas Shaw, president of the Vance County Farm Bureau, which Burgess once led.

In a Town Talk interview earlier this week, Burgess reflected on his livelihood, and the importance of being active in the community in which you live. “Anybody has to have help to get started,” he said. When he started out in farming in 1968, it was with the help of family. Now retired, Burgess and his wife Sylvia enjoy farming from a distance while son Talmadge continues the family tradition.

To hear the show, click play…

Tobacco has given way to other crops, Burgess noted, and his son grows hay for livestock and wheat straw for the landscaping industry. But no matter the crop the field produces, there must be a way to sell. Burgess was instrumental in establishing the Vance County Regional Farmers’ Market in Henderson, which allows local producers to showcase everything from cut flowers and tomatoes to locally sourced meats and handicrafts.

Pete Burgess Plaque

In this 2014 WIZS file photo, you can see the Pete Burgess plaque on an easel prior to being placed outside the facility’s meeting room. The VCRFM opened in 2014.

He enthusiastically recalled the steps taken to get the market from concept to reality. “That was probably the most ambitious project the Vance County Farm Bureau ever took on,” he said. It started with a pot of money from the Golden Leaf Foundation and a local group formed to determine how to spend the roughly $2 million Vance County allocation. Schools and fire departments were the top two choices to receive the money, Burgess said. But the third choice was construction of a farmers’ market, and Farm Bureau decided to take it on. ”They thought I wasn’t doing anything much,” he joked, “so they put me in charge of seeing…how to make that project a success.” It took four years to accomplish the goal, but the result is a facility that has functioned since 2014 as a venue to sell local produce as well as a gathering place for meetings and workshops. Burgess remembered how the installation of the large roll-up doors came about – at a cost of $1,500 each, they were just too expensive to include in the original project. Burgess got area businesses to sponsor the purchase of those doors, “and that was the easiest money I raised to build that farmers’ market,” he said.

The farmers’ market is a fairly recent project that Burgess was involved with, but he has long supported a variety of local programs and agencies, from fire departments to civic groups, many of which centered around the Epsom community. Whether it was the annual Lions Club pancake supper or the volunteer fire department fundraisers, Burgess feels it is important to give back.

An active community volunteer, Burgess served as a board member of the county and state Farm Bureau organizations, president and board member of the Epsom Lions Club, board member of the Epsom Volunteer Fire Department, member of the Vance County Planning Board and board member for the Henderson-Vance Chamber of Commerce. For his contributions to the county and, in particular, for his leading role in securing the land and funding for the regional farmers market, Burgess was honored by the Vance County Commissioners with the “Community Hero” award.

“Throughout his life, Pete Burgess has demonstrated an interest not only in agriculture but in giving back and supporting his community, so this scholarship is a fitting way to honor his service,” said Eddie Ferguson, VGCC’s endowment fund director. “We are grateful to the Vance County Farm Bureau for continuing to support Vance-Granville students through this new scholarship.”

The scholarship is another resource that can be used to cultivate “good” in the community and reward deserving students for their efforts in the classroom. Burgess said he was “kind of amazed at all that’s happening and what’s going on, but it’s very exciting.” The Farm Bureau is known as being an advocate of the farmer, whether it is helping with legislative matters or agricultural matters – whatever a farmer needs to be successful. Burgess seems to have employed a similar philosophy in his lifetime of service to Vance County and beyond – cultivating good habits and positive outcomes to benefit the community as a whole.

The Vance County Farm Bureau is encouraging friends of Pete Burgess to make donations to the Endowment Fund to help endow this scholarship at the Presidential Merit Award level. For more information or to make a contribution, call Kay Currin at (252) 738-3409.

Contributions to the scholarship fund can also be mailed to the Vance-Granville Community College Endowment Fund, at P.O. Box 917, Henderson, NC 27536.

Through the Endowment Fund, VGCC has awarded more than 9,700 scholarships to students since 1982. Scholarships have been endowed by numerous individuals, industries, businesses, civic groups, churches and the college’s faculty and staff. Tax-deductible donations to the VGCC Endowment Fund have often been used to honor or remember a person, group, business or industry with a lasting gift to education.