Tag Archive for: #hendersonnews

Home And Garden Show

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On the Home and Garden Show with Vance Co. Cooperative Ext.

  • With forecasted heavy rain open rows to prevent flooding in your garden
  • Plant tall fescue now.
  • Check for crusting of soil where recently planted seed in your fall garden
  • Think about how you could compost your fall leaves.
  • Prepare for inclement weather now. Emergency Kit, Have A Plan for Inclement weather!
  • Get ready to plant trees and shrubs.
  • Order bulbs that you will plant this fall.
  • Consider adding plants to your landscape that will add beauty in the winter.
  • Keep your Garden Journal up to date. Take pictures of what you grew this spring and what you have planted in the fall garden for future reference.
  • Avoid pruning.
  • Take stock of leftover garden seed.

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TownTalk: Hester Discusses Shell Building And Development

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It was just last fall when local government officials and others gathered at the Industrial Park outside Henderson to break ground on construction of a shell building.

Today, that building is ready to be upfitted to suit a potential buyer’s needs. County Commissioner Tommy Hester said the building is under contract to a manufacturing firm, but the company isn’t ready to make a public announcement just yet.

Hester, who chairs the Industrial Park Board, said construction went smoothly since that chilly November groundbreaking.

The idea was simple: Put up a building and have everything in place for a manufacturer or other commercial entity to come in and finish out the space to suit its particular needs.

As for this shell building, Hester said the new owner will probably still have to put in another $1 million or more to complete the building.

“You don’t want to finish it because you don’t know what upgrades they’ll want,” Hester said on Tuesday’s TownTalk. “You try to hit all of the major things that you think they’ll need,” he added. The building has a layer of gravel and a vapor barrier, as well as cargo doors and it’s expandable to 97,000 square feet.

“You’ve just got to have flexibility,” Hester said, to accommodate a variety of prospective buyers.

Hester said he predicted this building would be sold before it could be completed, and that’s just what has happened.

“I think we can do it again,” he said.

The county purchased the land for the park for $1.6 million. Add the infrastructure – with grants and from the state and federal departments of Commerce to offset costs – and the park has roads and water and sewer services. The road should be completed in December, Hester said.

The county made an investment, and Hester said it’s paying off.

“Success builds on success,” he said. “If you don’t invest, you don’t get a return.” More manufacturing means more local jobs and more money flowing to county coffers in the form of taxes.

“We’re in the right location at the right time,” Hester said of Henderson and Vance County’s proximity to Wake and Durham counties.

35 or 40 jobs over 2 or 3 year period, where growth is burgeoning.

It’s not just growth in the commercial sector, either. Hester cited housing developments in the county that could add 1,000 more homes in the next three to five years.

“The more rooftops you get here in this community, the more retail, the more you can help with quality of lives of citizens,” Hester said.

“It’s all happening faster than I thought,” he acknowledged. “I think we’re getting ready to grow.”

 

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Perry Memorial Library

The Local Skinny! Upcoming Events At Perry Memorial Library

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The official first day of autumn is still a few weeks away, but fall programs at Perry Memorial Library are getting started this week.

Youth Services Director Melody Peters said things are shaping up for a wonderful fall at the library – come on in and have some fun!

Mother Goose story time is starting back up after a short end-of-summer break, Children 0-5 are welcome to come hear a few stories, sing a few songs and get some wiggles out, Peters said Tuesday on The Local Skinny!

Before children can read the words on a page, Peters said, they really need to hear the stories read to them.

Children pay attention to the voices as the stories are read aloud, she noted. All the senses are firing in a child’s first two years, so she takes care to choose books that are visually appealing written by diverse authors.

“It’s a fast, full 30 minutes,” Peters said of the weekly story time. “We’re not sitting still for this…we’re goint to have that song and move their bodies,” she said. They “practice” sitting while the stories are being read, but other than that, there’s a good bit of activity.

The story time uses themes and the first one is “On the Farm,” followed by “Apples” and “Fall.”

Story Time is all about “quality, not necessarily quantity,” she said. “You want to leave them wanting more.”

Speaking of more, that’s exactly what teens in grades 6-12 are getting in this season’s Life Hack series, Peters said. To kick things off, there’s STEM gaming fun in the Maker Space in September. From using the popular Wii system to learning about robots, tweens and teens can come together and just get used to coming to the library and using the creative space.

In October, they’ll have a chance to learn about electricity and actually have some hands-on learning by making electric circuits. Peters found a grant to purchase some kits filled with dozens of projects for the teens to learn with.

In November, a local bank representative is going to navigate youth through the ins and outs of personal finance. Although it’s pretty simple to wave your phone in front of a device to pay for something, the time will come when young people will need to be a little more tuned in to paycheck information, bank deposits and checking accounts.

Visit https://www.perrylibrary.org/ to learn about all the programs and services available for children and grownups alike.

 

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Cooperative Extension With Paul McKenzie: What Works in the Garden

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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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TownTalk: Henderson Police Work With Federal Task Forces To Get Results

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It’s always a good day when a police chief receives positive comments about his officers’ professionalism and thorough investigations. And Henderson Police Chief Marcus Barrow is hearing those kinds of comments from federal district attorneys, including the head of the U.S. Eastern District Court of North Carolina.

Barrow said he got a call two Fridays ago from U.S. Attorney Michael Easley Jr. himself in connection with a federal case.

“I was honored that he called me,” Barrow said on Monday’s TownTalk. “He spoke to me and praised the work that we’ve been able to do.” Easley complimented the local department on their professionalism and the way they put cases together, Barrow said.

In a recent press release regarding the sentencing of a local man in federal court, Easley commented: “The Henderson Police Department has made major investments in the federal partnership and the people of Henderson are safer for it. This city is bringing every law enforcement tool to fight the opioid crisis, and we are proud to partner with state and local police and prosecutors to fight fentanyl trafficking and save lives.”

“We’re well established in the federal system,” Barrow said, for the way “we produce great cases,” from creating reports to collecting and processing evidence.

Click Play for Barrow on WIZS TownTalk

Some members of the local police department serve on different federal task forces of the Drug Enforcement Agency, Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Barrow said, which provides a path for some cases to be tried in federal court.

“We truly did a big investment into the federal program,” Barrow explained. With input from local district attorneys to decide which cases – usually involving guns and drugs – should go to federal court, Barrow said the trials and sentencing can happen in a “pretty swift” manner.

The main thing, he said, is that “they are removed from our community – they are the worst of the worst.”

Barrow said his department also can assist other agencies.

“It’s a big collaborative effort on our part. We’re just trying to get everybody on board…We’re just looking at the best solution for our community,” he said.

The officers who participate on the various task forces are just part of the resources that Barrow said he needs to help keep Henderson and its residents safe.

He would like to purchase something called True Narc, a system that can safely field test narcotics and protect officers from exposure to harmful drugs like Fentanyl.

He said this system will produce an immediate test result when officers are out in the field. And he’s investigating ways of paying for it.

“Instead of using taxpayers’ money, I’d rather use drug dealers’ money,” he said.

The Eastern District includes Vance, Granville, Franklin and Warren counties among the 44 easternmost counties of North Carolina. The office is responsible for prosecuting federal crimes in the district, including crimes related to terrorism, public corruption, child exploitation, firearms and narcotics.  The office also defends the United States in civil cases and collects debts owed to the United States.

TownTalk: McGregor Hall’s Inaugural Golf Tournament Sept. 15

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McGregor Hall Performing Arts Center is raising the curtain on another event next month – its inaugural golf tournament fundraiser.

Victoria Huggins, Miss North Carolina 2017, has trod the boards at McGregor Hall on several occasions. She was Belle in 2018 and Ariel last year in productions of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid.

But this year, she’s taking to the fairways and greens of Henderson Country Club and she invites the community to do the same.

“I miss y’all so much!” she exclaimed during Thursday’s TownTalk. “I’m so excited to be headed back to Henderson – and I need your help!”

The tournament will take place Friday, Sept. 15. Participants will gather at 8 a.m. and there will be a 9 a.m. shotgun start.

As marketing coordinator, Huggins is one of McGregor Hall’s staunchest supporters. She helps the 501c3 with its social media campaign and has taken on the role as golf tournament organizer.

“It’s no secret that I love McGregor Hall,” Huggins said. And she said she loves the game of golf, so a tournament fundraiser was a good match.

She’s looking for hole sponsors – she had three as of Thursday morning, so there’s an opportunity for 15 more (13 actually, because WIZS is going to take a hole on the front 9 and a hole on the back 9).

Hole sponsorships are $100; register teams of 4 for $400.

Huggins is shooting to have a minimum of 18 teams participate in the tournament. Sign up at www.mcgregorhall.org/golftournament.

There are four ways to support the McGregor Hall golf tournament: be a hole sponsor, register to play or sponsor a team, volunteer and provide branded swag for the golfers’ goodie bags.

Email Huggins at media@mcgregorhall.org to get more information.

Sponsors can be business owners, of course, but sponsors also can honor someone they know who has been in a show at McGregor Hall, she said.

McGregor Hall is a special place for the Henderson community and beyond, Huggins said. Besides being an economic catalyst, she said it’s a place that also gives young people their first taste of theater and performing arts.

For those reasons, and more, Huggins said she is excited to be able to give back to a place that has given her – and the community – so much joy.

“When we come together for a cause, we not only show up but we show off,” she said.

Convocation Kicks Off New School Year For Vance County Schools, Teachers, Staff

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-Courtesy of Aarika Sandlin, VCS Chief Officer of Communication & Innovative Support

Vance County Schools’ staff gathered on Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2023 at McGregor Hall for Convocation to celebrate the beginning of the 2023-2024 school year. This annual event brings staff from all 16 schools, transportation, maintenance and district office together.

This year, the event included a warm welcome from community members as staff arrived, with the Vance County High School cheerleaders, flag team and drum line joining. Vance County High School student, Jessica Phan, performed the National Anthem, while the Junior Air Force ROTC presented the colors. Superintendent Dr. Cindy Bennett, the Vance County Schools’ Board of Education, the Henderson Optimist Club, and the Vance County Public School Foundation all shared messages and celebrated VCS educators.

Pinkston Street Elementary was presented the Optimist Mini-Grant for the 2023-2024 school year. Each school shared a showcase video, with Vance County Middle School taking home the Best Video honor. Throughout the event, school spirit filled the air; however, Clarke Elementary took home the spirit award!

2023-24 LEAP Grant Recipients 

The Vance County Public School Foundation awarded Learning that Extends Actual Performance (LEAP) grants to eight exceptional teachers from across the district. This year’s LEAP grants align with the core pillars of Vance County Schools’ strategic plan. These projects not only demonstrate our dedication to equity and inclusion, but also emphasize sustaining a high-performance culture, foster innovation and nurture experiential learning opportunities for students.

This year’s LEAP Grant recipients are:

LEAP Into Learning Stations: Joannie Aldridge, Vance County High

Clarke’s MakerSpace: Launtia Dallas, Clarke Elementary

The Creative Minds Program: Taylor Evans, LB Yancey Elementary

Numbers Alive – Math Stackers: Natasha Rubin, Aycock Elementary

Sensory Pathways: Sarah Jeffries, Aycock Elementary

Enhancing Scientific Learning Through Hydroponics: Vicki-Ann Fullwood & Angelique Baganan, Vance County Early College High School

9-1-1 Monitor Stands: Francis Brown, Vance County High School

Vance County Schools applauds these teachers for their dedication to shaping the future of education and for their commitment to the advancement of every student in Vance County Schools.

Chamber Launches Student Leadership Institute For Rising Sophomores, Juniors

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The Henderson Vance County Chamber of Commerce is launching a new Student Leadership Institute this fall.

The program is designed to educate young leaders by providing experiences and motivating them to take an active role in their community, according to Vanessa Jones, the Chamber’s director of Programs.

Open to public, private, charter and homeschool rising sophomores and juniors attending high schools in Vance County, the leadership institute is free to attend, and space is limited. Registration deadline is Tuesday, Sept. 19.

Through education, networking, peer interaction and problem solving, the Student Leadership Institute will help prepare students for constructive and responsive involvement in community affairs.

Participants will have opportunities for interaction with their peers, as well as community-based service organizations, institutions of high education and professionals from the local community. They will gain insight into the importance of teamwork and develop a better understanding of what it means to be a leader.

Interested students should contact their high school counselor or principal and home school students should contact the Chamber at vanessa@hendersonvance.org or 252.438.8414.

Businesses can support this program through sponsorships.  The sponsorship levels are Presenting Sponsor – $1000, Gold Sponsor – $750, Silver Sponsor – $500 and Bronze Sponsor – $250.