Tag Archive for: #towntalk

TownTalk: Granville County Celebrates 275 Years

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Question: What was the largest town in Granville County in 1880?

Answer: Henderson.

It’s not a trick question, but unless you’re a local history buff, you may not know that for about 135 years, a good part of Vance County was, well, in Granville County, as were Warren and Franklin counties.

Present-day Granville County residents are preparing to celebrate the county’s 275th anniversary with a day-long event at Granville Athletic Park. About two years in the making, the celebration has something for everyone, according to planning committee members Mark Pace and Chair Sue Hinman. They joined county tourism director Angela Allen on Thursday’s Town Talk to talk about the exciting details with John C. Rose and Bill Harris.

“This is truly a celebration,” Allen said, of the county’s history, its progress, its resources – all the great things that make Granville County what it is today.

The GAP will be filled to overflowing with activities from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. for the whole family to enjoy. Balloons and clowns and games and music, to name a few, Hinman said. At 9 a.m., there will be a ribbon-cutting ceremony to officially open Phase III of the GAP, which contains new tennis courts and an inclusive playground.

Hinman, chair of the county commissioners board, said she is excited to be a part of the celebration and to be able to spread the word about the county’s 275th anniversary.

Allen said the park will be filled to overflowing with everything from live music to bouncy houses for the kids. Visit www.granvillecounty.org/275th to find a complete schedule of events.

At the sports pavilion, attendees will find a variety of resources where they can learn about the cities, towns and communities in the county.

Also available is a book written and compiled by local author Lewis Bowling. Looking Back: 275 years of Granville County History will be available for purchase, and Bowling will be on hand to sign copies, Pace said.

Of the hundreds of books that have been written about Granville and the surrounding areas, this is a “complete narrative history,” Pace said. “And this is the first one of Granville County,” he added. Among the 300 pages of the coffee-table style book are many never-before published photographs that capture Granville County’s past.

At 10 a.m., an opening ceremony will kick off the event, with presentation of colors and remarks from local dignitaries. After that, Allen said it’s time to enjoy live music in the amphitheater, food from a variety of vendors and even visit an outdoor classroom space where folks can learn about such things as the history of tobacco in the area as well as where the walking trails in the county can be found.

The Granville-Vance Health District will be on hand for COVID-19 testing as well as COVID-19 vaccines, Allen said.

The committee was formed and began planning before the pandemic, and Pace said, to be honest, there were times during the planning process when the group didn’t know whether the celebration would be able to take place at all. Allen said the committee members come from across the county and all municipalities are represented.

“It’s a great mix of community pieces,” she said. “We wanted to make this as inclusive as we possibly could.” The celebration represents the thought that went into the planning process.

Until the original county was carved up into the four counties we know today, Allen said she has learned through planning for this event that Granville County was truly a hub for the state. She said it is great to be able to “live, work and play in a community that already has a reputation of bringing people together.”

Today, about 60,000 people call Granville County home. Back in the late 1780’s, when it was just more than 40 years old, there were about 6,500 residents, and one of those residents was John Penn, North Carolina’s only signer of the Declaration of Independence. Penn died in 1788, but chances are slim to none that he ever ate a funnel cake or enjoyed a sno-cone. Visitors to the GAP next Saturday, however, could glimpse such an anachronistic sight – sort of.

Mark Pace will portray Penn during the event, sharing stories and insight from a time more than 200 years ago. And who knows? Maybe he’ll wander over to the sno-cone stand to see which flavor he prefers.

For complete details and audio click play.

 

Maria Parham Health

Rehab Can be a Key to Better Health

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Just a half hour of exercise five days a week – that’s 150 minutes total – can be just what we need to reduce the risk of an adverse health “event” and Chris Cole said we owe it to ourselves to get those heart rates up to become the best version of ourselves possible.

“We all need to be physically active. We can all do that. It’s going to lower your risk of dying early by 30 percent or more,” Cole told John C. Rose on Tuesday’s Town Talk. He said in addition to aerobic exercise, we should also adopt a resistance training program two days a week to build strength. The two activities combine to create a one-two punch against health problems.

Cole, a clinical exercise physiologist at Maria Parham Health’s rehabilitation clinic in Henderson, works with patients who already have had one of these “events” – whether heart attack, respiratory ailment or other chronic condition  – get back on the road to recovery. He talked about ways to prevent health problems, reduce risk and improve quality of life.

He and the rehab team, which also includes physicians, nurses, therapists, a clinical psychologist and a nutritionist work with patients to put together a plan tailored to the individual.

Through exercise or activity counseling, he said he tries “to get an individual to adopt physical activity in a way that’s going to reduce their risk” for future health problems. “I try to get people to their best physical shape, no matter how they show up to me.”

A big chunk of his work is during Phase 2 of a 3-phase rehabilitation plan, mostly for cardiovascular patients. Phase 1 occurs while the patient is still in hospital, usually 24-48 hours after a cardiovascular surgery. Phase 2 is an out-patient program lasting 12 weeks, during which patients come in three times a week, he said. Phase 3 patients are in maintenance and are continuing the program independently, “taking lifestyle changes into their own hands.”

Others who come to the clinic have peripheral artery disease, or PAD. Unlike coronary artery disease, which is artery disease around the heart, peripheral artery disease presents as pain in the areas like the calf or buttocks and makes walking painful.

It’s a lack of oxygen to the muscle that creates the problem, and the rehab clinic’s job is to help patients increase the distance they can walk without pain.

“If we can take 100 feet and turn it into 100 yards” that people can walk pain-free, it’s a good thing. In fact, he said patients, on average, have had a 452 percent increase in their walking distance, which Cole said is substantial.

The clinic has seen a few patients with long COVID, for whom recovery has been slow and who face overall fatigue. Interestingly, those clients are below the age of 65, the opposite of the clinic’s normal clientele. Cole said those “long-haulers” have had a 100 percent return to work rate after working with the rehab clinic team.

In an effort to try to get people to be more proactive about warding off health problems, the rehab clinic began a preventative program. “We were always reacting to a problem,” Cole said, so doctors can refer a patient with certain risk factors to participate. Although insurance will not pay, the cost is $4 a day, less than some gym memberships, he noted.

The patient has access to exercise experts, the team of medical professionals and are covered by a supervising physician. This team can evaluate and make suggestions for patients to reduce their risk for major health problems. “It’s a very effective program,” Cole said.

Barriers to services, including transportation, cost and lack of insurance coverage, can also be overcome, thanks to an endowment fund that is available to help cover costs.

“If you have risk factors, don’t hesitate to talk to your doctor,” Cole said. “We’ve got things that we can do to get you here.”

To learn more, call 252.436.6395.

(This is not a paid ad.  This is not medical advice.)

For complete details and audio click play.

 

Town Talk: Carolina Weight Loss Centers Support Clients As They Make Healthy Lifestyle Changes, Lose Pounds

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There is no secret to weight loss – it’s a simple matter of consuming fewer calories than your body burns. But if the answer is as simple as that, why is it so darned difficult to do?

Diane Varnadore, a nurse practitioner and director of Carolina Weight Loss in Henderson, said her medically assisted weight loss program takes a holistic approach that can help clients achieve their goals, with some added benefits, to boot.

“Most people cannot lose weight unless they have someone to help and guide them,” Varnadore said, adding that her center offers clients access to professionals who are passionate and dedicated to that mission makes a big difference.

Carolina Weight Loss centers offer ways to make lifestyle changes – “this is not a crash diet – it’s not a fad diet,” she said.

There are now 10 Carolina Weight Loss offices – the closest ones are here in Henderson, with centers in Oxford and Warrenton, too, Varnadore told John C. Rose on Monday’s Town Talk program.

The initial consultation fee is $100, and medical professionals create a meal and activity plan based on information about family history, medications and lifestyle. The low-fat, low-calorie meal plan has added benefits of lowering cholesterol, and can also help lower blood pressure and blood sugar, Varnadore said. Clients who join for  $100 a month come in weekly for check-ins and other services that the center provides.

“The biggest thing is to get the patient on board with the diet and then we see them weekly,” she said. “Ideally, everyone wants to see their weight go down,” but increased exercise builds muscle, which weighs more than fat. Carolina Weight Loss uses a method not always used in weight-loss offices that provides feedback to the client about their progress. The feedback helps keep clients motivated. “Also, just seeing a medical professional weekly to encourage them to follow up…is very effective,” she said.

Obesity is a medical diagnosis, and Varnadore reminds that weighing too much can put people at higher risk for other serious illnesses including some types of cancer, heart disease and stroke. Losing weight is “something you have to do for yourself,” she said. “It’s a medical necessity to reduce your co-morbidity with these other diagnoses.”

Carolina Weight Loss offers shots of B-12 and other all-natural products used to suppress appetite and decrease the fat content in the body. Some of those weight-loss medications can also lower blood sugar, she added.

“It’s really been exciting,” Varnadore said of the success of the business and opening additional locations, as far away as Rocky Mount and Goldsboro. “Most of our patients are referred by another patient,” she said. “They already know someone who’s had excellent results – they’ve heard about, they’ve seen it first-hand.”

Other services the centers offer include types of body sculpting procedures – one is called Ultra Shape, which uses ultrasonic wave to permanently destroy fat cells. A second is called Bella Shape, which is a body contouring process. It costs about $500 for three sessions. Both are non-invasive procedures; Varnadore said these are for people who have already lost weight but may want a little help to address particular areas where stubborn fat remains.

The Henderson office is open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays. Thursday visits are by appointment only – that is usually the day for new patient consults, which can take up to an hour to complete. The centers take physican referrals, but do not file insurance. Varnadore said clients can pay with a health savings account card.

To learn more, call 252.430.4375.

(This is not a paid ad. This is not medical advice.)

For complete details and audio click play.

 

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Sons Of American Revolution: Descendants Often Play Detective To Find Lost Graves Of Patriot Heroes

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The Sons of the American Revolution is, first and foremost, a fraternal and civic organization. But its members also are part detective who spend time tracking down clues and uncovering details about individuals who fought for this country’s independence from England.

Bill Riggan, a member of the Halifax Resolves chapter of the SAR, spoke with Bill Harris and Mark Pace on Thursday’s Town Talk tri-weekly history program.

The four-county area is steeped in history, and Riggan said his SAR chapter covers Vance, Granville, Franklin and Warren counties, in addition to several other counties to the north and east.

“It’s a place where we should have a lot of revolutionary era soldiers,” Riggan said. He said the National Society of SAR has 140,000 names and locations of patriots’ gravesites, and a total of 732,000 names of patriots that are available for people to attach themselves to.

Being able to prove that you are a descendant of someone who supported the revolution against the Crown may prove difficult, or at least time-consuming. There are several criteria that must be satisfied for membership to the SAR: any male lineal descendant of someone who wintered at Valley Forge or a signer of the Declaration of Independence may become a member, as well as male descendants of members of the Continental Congress or those who fought in battle during the Revolution.

But civil servants during that era are also considered patriots. “There were a lot of people who helped with the war but didn’t put on a uniform and fight,” he said. Another criterion for membership is being a descendant of a signer of the Oath of Allegiance, a petition that was circulated throughout communities that disavowed the King and supported the revolution.

Although its membership is aging, Riggan said he hopes interest in preserving history will encourage younger men to consider joining.

Several grave-marking ceremonies are scheduled for October in Franklin County, and will include the state SAR color guard, as well as local Boy Scouts and the DAR – Daughters of the American Revolution. The color guard will be in period dress – “it will be very ceremonial, very traditional,” Riggan said. The dates are Saturday, Oct. 16 and Saturday, Oct. 23.

Although the SAR doesn’t maintain gravesites – it relies on families for that –  Riggan said the group strives to identify as many as they can. He encourages anyone with information about possible gravesites  – whether found while combing through family archives or stumbling across a random grave while hunting – to contact him and he can help with verification.

“We want to honor them,” Riggan said of those long-ago patriots, whose final resting places deserve to be cared for and remembered.

Take Harrison Macon, for example. Macon fought in the Revolutionary War and he is buried in Franklin County. The now-defunct Franklin SAR chapter bore his name, thanks to founding member Dr. D.T. Smithwick, a historian from the 1930’s.

Riggan said efforts to reconstruct the records of the former Franklin chapter have turned up details that show Smithwick ordered a headstone from the VA for Macon’s grave. ”We have evidence he did that. He put that on the grave – we know that to be a fact,” Riggan said.

But where?

To learn more about the October grave-marking ceremonies or SAR membership, contact Riggan at 919.495.0706.
For complete details and audio click play.

 

TownTalk: Rob Montague and the NC Forest Service, Storm Ready

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N.C. Forest Service Gives Advice To Keep Trees Healthy, Withstand Storm’s Wind, Water

There are lots of good reasons to have trees in the landscape – they provide shade in the summer, homes and food for many animals as well as income for many landowners who manage larger tracts of woodland or tree farms.

And while it’s always important to keep an eye out for dead limbs or trees in a weakened state, weather forecasters and forestry experts are gearing up to ward off potential problems that Tropical Storm Elsa may create as it moves up the Atlantic Coast over the next day or so.

Rob Montague of the N.C. Forest Service was on Wednesday’s Town Talk to talk about the role of the forest service and precautions homeowners and landowners can take to avoid problems with trees when a storm blows in.

“Go ahead and get rid of hazard trees around your house before the storm comes through,” Montague advised. For those with larger tracts of woodlands or tree farms, it’s important to maintain a clear path to get in and out of the property.

He and his team serve Vance and Granville counties and they began planning early last week for the possible arrival of Elsa and the associated rain and wind that comes with a tropical storm or hurricane.

The forest service provides assistance to local emergency response teams as well as the N.C. Department of Agriculture during and after storms and help with tasks like clearing roads of fallen trees.

“We may be thrown into a lot of different roles if this storm proves bad,” Montague said. “The emergency response side of our job trains us” for such events as storms and wildfires.

The forest service work continues after a storm, he added, by helping landowners who may face a long-term recovery phase. The foresters help with technical assistance to get a forest management plan back on track, whether it’s a harvesting goal or getting a new forest growing.

The N.C. Forest Service can also help landowners with prescribed burns, a management strategy to keep pine stands healthy. These require careful planning, Montague said, from checking the weather forecast and knowing where the smoke will blow to having fire lines prepared ahead of the burn area. It shouldn’t be a matter of thinking at 9 a.m. one morning, ‘Hey, I’m going to light my trees on fire today,’ he added.

Prescribed burns are one strategy to cut down on the chance of wildfires, Montague said. May was a dry month and he said the forest service responded to quite a few wildfires with local fire departments. “Each of us shows up with different tools,” he explained. The fire departments have the bigger trucks and gear, and the forest service brings along smaller brush trucks and engines that allow them to get in tighter spaces. Bulldozers and airplanes that can drop water from above are also resources the forest service can call on.

Whether it’s wind and rain from a summer storm or a grass fire when conditions are extremely dry, the N.C. Forest Service provides training for its foresters and technical assistance for residents to be prepared.

“We’ve got a great group of folks ready, willing and dedicated to help out,” Montague said.

To learn more, visit www.ncforestservice.org,  call 919.693.3154  or email rob.montague@ncagr.gov.

For complete details and audio click play.

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Town Talk: Retired Colonel Helps Fellow Veterans, Stops In Henderson On 10,000-Mile Fundraiser Ride

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The numbers are staggering: Since it started in 2014, RIP Medical Debt has paid medical bills for more than 2.7 million families to the tune of $4.5 billion – that’s billion with a “B” – $90 million alone to veterans and families of veterans. And if Mikel Burroughs, a retired Army colonel, has his way, those numbers will continue to grow.

Burroughs recently completed the 3rd annual RIP Ride for Veterans motorcycle ride to raise awareness and funds for the non-profit RIP Medical Debt; he took a short detour to Henderson to meet Phyllis Maynard, a fellow veteran and local Disabled American Veterans service officer. Maynard served in the U.S. Navy as a petty officer on the USS Puget Sound. She met Burroughs through an online veterans’ support group about two years ago.

When Burroughs was in Fayetteville recently during his 32-state road trip, he decided he wanted to make the 2-hour trip to meet Maynard in person.

“It was wonderful coming in to Henderson and meeting with Phyllis,” Burroughs told John C. Rose on Town Talk, which aired Tuesday. Maynard wanted to make the visit more than just a pit stop along the 10,000-plus mile journey, so she had some other guests from the community to help her welcome Burroughs to Vance County.

Maynard said she appreciated Burroughs including a stop in Henderson on his itinerary and she “wanted it to end up being special for him – I really wanted to share it with the community,” she said. He seemed to be the “glue” of the support group, Maynard said of Burroughs. “Everybody loved the colonel,” she said, adding that the group learns from each other, from the low-stress comfort of their own homes.

The RIP Ride 4 Vets 2021 fundraising goal was $50,000. RIP Medical Debt buys debt from hospitals or from a secondary market and follows a process to determine which accounts fit the criteria to be marked as “paid in full.” Burroughs said every $1 the group spends buys $100 in medical debt.

“A lot of our veterans are struggling under the burden of health care debt across the country,” Burroughs said. Add financial burdens to those invisible illnesses like PTS (post-traumatic stress) and TBI (traumatic brain injury) and the negative effects definitely mount up.

He said two-thirds of all bankruptcies in the U.S. are the result of health-care debt.

“I’ve talked to a lot of veterans on the Warriors for Life program that are struggling financially,” Burroughs said. “I hear it first-hand – I hear it in their voice and they share and they get that off their mind…it has a profound effect on our veterans and it shouldn’t,” he said of overwhelming medical debt.

Mackenzie Scott, former wife of Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, recently gave $50 million to RIP Medical Debt. “That’s going to abolish a lot of debt” over the next three years – for civilians and veterans alike.

Relieving the stress of medical debt for veterans is just one way Burroughs contributes to the veteran community. He facilitates the Saturday Warriors for Life group – other volunteers cover the other five groups each week. And a Life Readiness Center is being planned to open on 165 acres in Costa Rica which will provide different therapies and treatments to help veterans with PTSD and TBI. The goal is to partner with Victory for Vets Inc. to have readiness centers in 32 U.S. cities. The centers use brain mapping, hyperbaric oxygen treatment and neurofeedback to address veterans’ needs.

“We’re very excited about what the future holds and what we’re going to be able to do for veterans holistically,” Burroughs said.

 

The Warriors for Life group will be a perfect place for veterans who participate in the Life Readiness Centers. “We want veterans to be able to reach out to Warriors for Life and let down the warrior barrier,” Burroughs said.  “Be vulnerable… you don’t have to prove to anyone on the call that you’re a warrior –  we already know that you’re a warrior. And you’ll always be a warrior,” he said.

“We want you to let that vulnerability down and be able to share it and get it off of your mind. Honestly, being able to share with others who have gone through similar experiences, I think it helps the healing process.”

Learn more at www.ripmedicaldebt.org.

For complete details and audio click play.

 

TownTalk: White Coat Ceremony Officially Welcomes Two Residents To MPH-Duke Partnership

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According to Maria Parham Health CEO Bert Beard, it took almost four years to come to fruition, but two new physicians donned their white coats during a ceremony Wednesday to celebrate the beginning of a residency program that focuses on providing care in rural areas.

“This is a tremendous day for Maria Parham,” Beard told the gathering of local government officials and community leaders during the white coat ceremony Wednesday afternoon, hosted by MPH.

“What would it be for Duke and Maria Parham to partner on a rural track family medicine program that could facilitate health care in rural areas of North Carolina for the future,” he recalled during opening remarks.

“This is a small start, but it’s a big step,” Beard said, adding that providing appropriate medical care in rural areas is not just a concern locally, but an issue that is getting more and more attention nationally.

The first year, residents will spend a good deal of their time learning and working at Duke University Hospital and Duke Regional in Durham. In years two and three, their time will shift to Maria Parham and the Oxford office of Duke Primary Care, according to information released earlier about the program.

Dr. Tom Koinis, a physician in the Oxford office, serves as program director. Dr. Alexa Namba, once a resident Koinis worked with in 2015 on a weekly basis at the Oxford office, also will play a role in the new partnership.

As the residents who donned their white coats on Wednesday – Dr. Rashmi Saincher and Dr. Jessica Sanders – begin their work in the program, Koinis gave them a heads-up: “as you move into the physician’s world, you’ll be a major part of that community in many different ways.”

Pastor Frank Sossamon offered a blessing of hands during the ceremony. “We don’t realize sometimes how important our hands are,” Sossamon said. Hands speak, they affirm, they comfort. And they heal, he said. His blessing called for the physicians’ hands to do all those things for the patients they see in this community.

Saincher comes from a small town outside Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. She studied medicine at St. George’s University in London and then completed clinicals in Philadelphia. Koinis said she is happy to leave all the cement of big cities for a return to small-town life.

Sanders is a native of Houston, Texas. She graduated from the University of Texas-Austin and worked for several years in New York City before realizing through volunteer work that her passion lay in helping people. She returned to her hometown and was admitted to the McGovern Medical School, part of UT-Houston.

Koinis said the local team submitted a 200-page application to be considered for the program, and the application was approved on Jan. 29, 2021. The national “resident match day” occurred on Jan. 30, so “we got in just in the nick of time,” Koinis said. Of the 20 “excellent applicants” that were interviewed, Saincher and Sanders were selected.

“I’m deeply honored and humbled to be able to lead this residency as it starts off,” he added, noting that it took a team effort to get the program off the ground. “And support from ‘big’ Duke has been really, positive, really strong.”

The residency program should be proof positive to this community and region, Beard noted earlier in the ceremony, that “our partnership with Duke is very strong and we’re going to advance it.”

TownTalk Broadcast including the Entire Ceremony

 

Henderson Police Department

Town Talk: Police Chief Barrow Discusses Trends In Gun-Related Violence

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The headlines in newspapers and online news sources across the nation seem to proclaim daily the latest incidents of a shooting or other gun-related crime; and the city of Henderson, unfortunately, is not bucking that trend.

Guns and gun violence are hot topics of conversation these days, from the locals at the barbershop to politicians in Washington, DC. Henderson Police Chief Marcus Barrow said Tuesday that he and his officers continue to work hard to keep the city safe through use of quality training and programs like a new federal grant that will help expedite processing evidence.

Barrow was on Town Talk and told John C. Rose about a grant from Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms that will help the local police force in its evidence collection. Information about shell casings and other evidence will be sent to a nationwide database for analysis and any possible matches with crimes in other areas, he explained.

“We have a great working relationship with ATF,” Barrow said. “We’ve processed 250, 275 people since I was hired as police chief through ATF.” He added that of those, 95 of those cases involved guns and drugs, which is how those cases are assigned to federal court.

Barrow said he supports a person’s Second Amendment rights to bear arms, but so often, those are the responsible gun owners – the ones who follow procedure to purchase or carry a weapon.

“I’m less worried about the guns I can see than I am the guns I can’t see,” Barrow said. He added that the recent nationwide increase in gun purchases has fueled a manufacturing frenzy. “I think we’d be astonished to know how many firearms are being manufactured on a daily basis and sold.”

But his assessment is that there is a preponderance of irresponsible gun owners, which creates a back channel for criminals and criminal activities.

For instance, he said, when you want to buy narcotics, but you don’t have cash, then you find something of value to trade for – like a gun.

Drug deals and drive-by shootings are just two activities that people in the community have become more aware of in recent times; Barrow called the incidence of drive-by shootings in North Carolina “alarming.”

“I don’t want to reach a point where it’s not alarming, where it’s the norm. I don’t want it to be the norm here,” he added. Barrow said his office gets ‘shots fired’ calls daily. Sometimes it turns out to be actual gunfire, he said, and sometimes it’s something as innocent as roofers using a nailgun at a nearby home.

Barrow said a police officer’s presence in the community is important to respond to all calls for help, but just as important is to have the right person in uniform representing the police department. “We want to make sure we put the right officer,” Barrow emphasized, adding that his officers have sometimes had to “work short.” “I refuse to put the wrong officer on the street. Making sure the right person is here and answering calls is important to me and to the agency,” he said.

For complete details and audio click play. 

 

TownTalk: July 4th Safety Tips

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From grilling to swimming, these tips will help keep you safe for the 4th of July weekend.

Please keep this information in mind.

Disclaimer – This is not advice.

Click play or read below.

– Press Release Courtesy of the State of North Carolina –

As the summer swimming season kicks into full gear, Insurance Commissioner and Safe Kids North Carolina Chair Mike Causey reminds parents and caregivers about important safety tips to reduce child drownings.

“On these warm summer days in North Carolina, many families will be drawn to activities near water,” said Commissioner Causey. “Drownings can happen so fast – before you even realize what’s happening. So, we want parents and caregivers to be particularly cautious and take steps to avoid any potential tragedies in the water.”

FOR A VIDEO MESSAGE FROM COMMISSIONER CAUSEY, CLICK HERE.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, drowning is the second leading cause of death in children ages 1-14. It is the leading cause of unintentional death in children under the age of 5.

Watch for rip currents

Rip currents are a strong channel of water extending from the shore out into the water. If you see a current of choppy, off-colored water extending from the shore, steer clear. If you do get pulled out, stay calm, let the current carry you for a while and keep breathing. Don’t try to swim against the current! Gain your composure and start swimming horizontal to the shore until you’re out of the current. Once out, swim diagonally towards the shore. If you can’t make it to the shore, wave your arms and make noise so someone can see or hear you and get help.

How do rip currents form?

When waves break more strongly than others onto the shore, they can cause a circulation in the water that produces a rip current. Rip currents tend to form near a shallow point in the water, such as a sandbar, or close to jetties and piers and can happen at any beach with breaking waves. Their force is strong enough to pull the strongest swimmer out to sea.

Heed the Warning Flags

  • Red flags indicate strong surf and currents.
  • Yellow flags indicate moderate surf and currents — the water is likely to be rough but not exceedingly dangerous. Exercise caution and stay near the lifeguards.
  • Green flags indicate the ocean is calm or clear.
  • Blue or purple flags often indicate that potentially dangerous marine life (think sharks or jellyfish) are in the area or have been spotted nearby.

 Know how to swim

  • Ocean swimming is different from swimming in a pool or lake — be prepared to deal with strong surf before running in.
  • If you’re at the beach with a child or adult who can’t swim, make sure everyone has a well-fitting lifejacket.
  • The ocean floor is not flat and beaches can change drastically from year to year. When heading into the water, be aware that the ocean floor can drop off unexpectedly, so be prepared to swim in water over your head.
  • Obey the buddy system while swimming. Keep a friend nearby in case either of you ends up needing help.
  • Pick a swimming spot close to a lifeguard. Lifeguards are there for a reason — they know and can see things about the beach that most beachgoers don’t.

Pool Safety

Safe Kids North Carolina reminds parents and caregivers to take the following precautions around pools and open water:

  • Always watch children and never leave them unattended.
  • Keep children away from pool drains, pipes and other openings.
  • Always keep a charged phone nearby.
  • Know how to perform CPR on children and adults.
  • Understand the basics of lifesaving so you can assist in an emergency.
  • Install a fence at least 4 feet high around the perimeter of the pool or spa.
  • Use self-closing and self-latching gates.
  • Ensure all pools and spas have compliant drain covers. Install an alarm on the door leading from the house to the pool.

Know the signs of drowning

Most people believe a drowning person involves flailing arms or frantic calls for help, but that scene is often incorrect. Drowning can happen quietly when a helpless person is unable to take in a breath or call for help. The CDC estimates 10% of parents watch their children drown because they don’t know what’s happening. Rescuers may have as few as 20 seconds to save a person from drowning.

For more detailed information about the water safety, go to https://www.ncosfm.gov/injury-prevention/safe-kids/water-safety

– Press Release Courtesy of the State of North Carolina –

Do your part to keep the Fourth of July safe by never driving if you are impaired.

That was the key message at Thursday’s kickoff of the annual North Carolina Governor’s Highway Safety Program’s Fourth of July Booze It & Lose it campaign, dubbed ‘Operation Firecracker.’ The event was held in Greenville.

Operation Firecracker aims to prevent alcohol-related crashes by targeting impaired drivers during the July 4th holiday season. This year’s campaign runs June 28-July 4 with law enforcement agencies running sobriety checkpoints in all 100 counties to help catch drunk drivers and reduce fatalities.

“With the summer, upcoming holidays and people emerging after quarantine — emergency departments across the state, and the first responders you see here today, will unfortunately see increases in people (especially teenagers and young people) injured or killed after making the unforgivable decision to drink and drive – a tragedy that is completely avoidable,” said Dr. Jason Hack, emergency medicine physician for East Carolina University and Vidant Medical Center in Greenville.

Thursday’s event celebrated the hard work and sacrifices made by health care workers, emergency medical services, law enforcement, military personnel, and other first responders during the pandemic. Speakers urged North Carolina drivers to help emergency responders by not drinking and driving.

“They have been keeping us and our families, friends and neighbors safe during the COVID-19 pandemic in North Carolina,” said Mark Ezzell, director of the N.C. Governor’s Highway Safety Program. “And they will be working again to keep us safe this Fourth of July, when many of us are vacationing and enjoying time with friends and family.​​

“We are grateful for their hard work. But I hope they will not have to handle any impaired driving cases this July 4th holiday.”

So far in 2021, 145 people have died in alcohol and drug-related crashes in North Carolina. While that is a decrease from this time last year, it’s not enough.

“Law enforcement will be proactively assuring our roads are safe from those that persist in drinking and driving,” said Pitt County Sheriff Paula S. Dance. “We want everyone to survive by calling a taxi, Uber, Lift or a friend.

“This one decision – drive or don’t drive – will affect everyone on the road. Make it a good decision. Save a life. It could be your own.”

The ‘Booze It & Lose It’ campaign is one of the many traffic safety campaigns led by NCGHSP, which also funds Click It or Ticket, BikeSafe NC, Watch For Me NC, and North Carolina’s Vision Zero initiative​.

Please support this cause by taking pictures and use the hashtags #BoozeIt&LoseIt #DriveSoberGetPulledOver and #NCGHSP this Fourth of July holiday.

Many folks associate summer with cookouts – and cookouts usually involve grills. Whether it’s fueled by gas or charcoal, there are a few safety precautions to remember as grillmasters work their magic to create that perfect meal.

Local SERVPRO disaster remediation specialist William Paul shared some pre-grilling safety tips from the National Fire Protection Association and the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association:

  • READY: Clean grill racks and grease trays. For gas grills, check the gas tank hose for leaks at the beginning of the season.
  • SET: Choose a safe, firm, level spot for the grill away from coolers, people and pets. Grill outside, never in a garage or under the awning on a deck, the eaves of your home, or low-hanging branches.
  • GO: Prepare the grill for cooking carefully. For charcoal grills, use a charcoal chimney with newspaper, a charcoal starter fluid, or an electric charcoal starter plugged into an outdoor-rated extension cord. For gas grills, open the lid before turning the grill on. If you smell gas after the grill is lit, do not try to move the grill. Get away from the grill and call the fire department.

While grilling:

  • SAFE ZONE: Keep children and pets at least three feet away from the hot grill, both while you are cooking and after you serve the food. Grill surfaces can remain hot for an hour or more.
  • SAFE TOOLS: Use long-handled grill utensils in good condition; avoid loose, flowing clothing; and wear flame-retardant mitts to adjust vents to help prevent burns.
  • SAFE COOKING: Keep the fire under control. Manage flareups by adjusting grill height, using grill controls, or spreading out the coal bed. Keep baking soda within reach to control grease fires. Watch for blowing embers and have a fire extinguisher, a garden hose or a bucket of sand handy to extinguish spark-triggered fires. Never attempt to move a hot grill.

“Charcoal and gas grills, barbeques and the like are involved in an average of more than 5,000 structure fires each year and almost 5,000 additional outdoor fires,” Paul stated. Grilling accidents result in 19,700 trips to the hospital annually, almost half of which are burns. Children under the age of 5 account or 39 percent of those burns, he said, citing National Fire Protection Association statistics.

TownTalk: Buzz Into The Bee Jubilee June 26 at Granville Expo Center

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Get up close and personal with bees – without getting stung – at the 5th annual Bee Jubilee Saturday in Oxford.

Christi Henthorn, president of the Granville County Beekeepers Association, and event organizer said there will be something for everyone at the event, which will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Granville County Expo Center, 4185 Hwy 15 South in Oxford.

Henthorn told John C. Rose on Thursday’s Town Talk that, in addition to supporting local vendors and bee enthusiasts, the Bee Jubilee is an opportunity to learn about these mighty pollinators.

“The vast majority of our food is either directly or indirectly related to pollinated plants,” Henthorn said. That funny-looking cucumber in your summer garden or the ill-shaped zucchini is more than likely the result of inadequate pollination, she said.

Bees are not the only pollinators, she noted, adding that bats and birds, butterflies and even annoying wasps are pollinators. And just because it buzzes does not make it a honeybee, she said. Bumblebees and carpenter bees may be pollinators, but they are not honeybees, she added.

The local vendors all have a focus of bee- an agriculture-related items, Henthorn said. There will be a silent auction and a live auction that starts at noon. See photos of the items that will be auctioned on the beekeepers’ Facebook page.

The Oxford Farmers Market will set up at the Expo Center on Saturday as well, she said. So If you go to their normal market spot downtown, they won’t be there. There will be inflatables for the kids to play on and half a dozen or more food vendors, from gourmet coffee to frozen treats.

Bee documentaries will be shown indoors, and vendors will be  outdoors under the covered arena space. The Granville Gardeners will be selling plants as well.

“Make sure when you come you mill around the whole facility,” Henthorn said.

Most counties in North Carolina have a beekeepers organization, she said, and it’s important to call a beekeeper if you find a swarm of bees on your property.

“Granville County beekeepers has a ‘swarm patrol,’ a group of beekeepers who are trained to capture swarms and remove them from wherever they are – in a tree or in a house. These people are comfortable around bees and they are willing to remove them safely. The hotline is 919.892.3670.

For complete details and audio click play.