Tag Archive for: #vancecountynews

VGCC Logo

VGCC Hosts FAFSA Day Jan. 27

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-information courtesy of VGCC Public Information Officer Courtney Cissel

Vance-Granville Community College’s Financial Aid Office invites high school students, current college students, families and adult learners to attend FAFSA Day on Saturday, Jan. 27, from 9 a.m. – 12 noon.

The event will take place at VGCC’s Main Campus in Henderson; attendees should check in at the Building 7 front lobby upon arrival.

Organized by the College Foundation of North Carolina, this free event provides one-on-one or small group help with FAFSA completion and submission, according to information from VGCC Public Information Officer Courtney Cissel.

The college welcomes anyone in the community seeking financial aid for college, not just current or prospective Vance-Granville students.

There is no requirement to accept any aid offered, but the FAFSA can help you understand your options. By filling out the FAFSA, you could access:

  • Grants and scholarships that you do not have to pay back
  • Work-study programs that allow you to earn money working at the school you attend
  • Student loan options

Completing the FAFSA is more important than ever this year for North Carolina students. It’s the process through which eligible students could receive the Next NC Scholarship, which awards a minimum of $5,000 for those attending a public state university or at least $3,000 for those attending community college. Students with the greatest need for financial aid could qualify for even more funding to help make paying for college more manageable.

Learn more or RSVP for Vance-Granville’s FAFSA Day event at www.cfnc.org/pay-for-college/fafsa-day. For additional questions, please contact VGCC’s Financial Aid Office at fao@vgcc.edu or 252.738.3280.

Chamber’s Leadership Vance 2024 Forming – Applications Due Feb. 2 By 5 P.M.

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The Leadership Vance 2024 application process is open through Friday, Feb. 2 and Henderson-Vance Chamber of Commerce President Sandra Wilkerson said participants will get an in-depth look at the county, from its rich history and varied amenities to business and industry growth and much more.

Applications should be received by 5 p.m. on Feb. 2, Wilkerson said.

“Leadership Vance is a proven, structured program, designed to create a corps of informed and dedicated emerging leaders in our community,” Wilkerson said.  Upon graduation, the program participants will be qualified to meet the present and future challenges facing Henderson and Vance County. During the months-long program, participants will get a chance to learn about all aspects of the community in which they live and work.

They also will get to learn about volunteer civic and community opportunities, as well as gain valuable insight to boost their business and career goals.

For more information, contact Wilkerson at 252.438.8414 or via email at sandra@hendersonvance.org.

Vance County Logo

Property Revaluations Hit County Mailboxes In February

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Vance County property owners will find revaluation information in their mailboxes next month, which will provide information about current market value of homes, as well as business and industrial properties. But it will be later in the year before they’ll know just how that market value calculation will affect their tax bills.

Individual property owners’ bills could go up, go down, or stay about the same – the somewhat fuzzy picture will come into focus as elected officials nail down a budget for next year. Just because your home’s current market value goes up – and it most likely will go up – does not mean that your tax bill will go up, too.

The new values took effect Jan. 1, and tax bills will go out in July. But it won’t be until June that the new tax rate will be determined.

The tax rate is what elected city and county officials will decide on when they’re calculating how much money will be needed to pay for schools, public safety, human services and more.

If the total market value of all the appraised properties increases, that means the county’s overall tax base increases. And that could mean that your tax bill stays pretty much the same, despite the fact that your property’s market value increased.

The county contracted with Vincent Valuations LLC to complete the appraisal, which included every single property in the county. State law requires counties to undertake the revaluation at least every 8 years; the last one completed in Vance County was in 2016.

In addition to complying with state law, a revaluation is necessary to maintain equitable and uniform property values among property owners throughout the county, according to a report prepared by the Vance County Tax Office.

Market value is “the most probable or most likely price that the property would sell for,” the report explained.  It is not the highest or the lowest or an average price.

Appraisers look at everything from square footage, building dimensions, type of construction and condition to help determine market value. They also consider heating and cooling systems, plumbing, the age of a building and its usefulness when making their calculations.

Revaluation is done on all residential, commercial and industrial land and structures but not on personal property like motor vehicles and boats, whose market value is adjusted each year

If a property owner reviews the revaluation notification and disagrees with the market value figure, there is a process to appeal.

The tax office report listed several examples of valid – and invalid – reasons to appeal the decision.

Property owners may choose to appeal if the market value “substantially exceeds” the actual market value of the property, or if the market value is inconsistent with the market value of similar properties within the same neighborhood.

It’s not enough, however, to state that the figure is too high or more than the insurance value of the property. Those aren’t valid reasons, the report states.

Individuals who wish to appeal should complete an informal appeal form and return it via U.S. Postal Service, fax or email.

Mail completed forms to:

Vance County Tax Office

Attn: Revaluation

122 Young St. Suite E

Henderson, NC 27536

 

Completed forms may be faxed to  252.738.2059 or emailed to taxoffice@vancecounty.org.

VGCC Celebrates MLK At Jan. 23 Event

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Information courtesy of VGCC Public Information Officer Courtney Cissel

 

The community is invited to Vance-Granville Community College Tuesday, Jan. 23 at 12:30 p.m. to celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The celebration, titled “Decreasing Inequities and Increasing Opportunities” is hosted by the VGCC Men’s Achievement Academy and V.I.E.W., Vance-Granville’s Initiative on Equity for Women.

The event will be held at the VGCC Main Campus Civic Center and is free to attend.

“Expect an inspiring speech from Dr. Kelvin Bullock, Executive Director for Equity & Professional Development for Durham Public Schools, as well as songs from the VGCC Staff Choir,” said VGCC Public Information Officer Courtney Cissel.

Please RSVP at www.vgcc.edu to help event organizers get a count of projected attendance. Refreshments will be served.

Golden Leaf Scholarship Application Period Open Now For 2024-25

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Applications are being accepted now for the 2024-25 Golden LEAF Colleges and Universities scholarships, which assists incoming college freshmen and transfer students pay for school.

There are more than 200 scholarships that will be awarded, according to information from the office of N.C. Rep. Frank Sossamon, whose District 32 includes Vance and most of Granville counties. Students in both counties are eligible to apply based on criteria that include being rural counties, economically distressed and tobacco dependent.

The scholarships could be as much as $14,000 – that breaks down to $3,500 a year for four years – for incoming freshmen attending a North Carolina college or university. Students transferring from a N.C. community college can get $3,500 a year for up to three years.

Students must be a graduating North Carolina high school senior or a currently enrolled North Carolina community college transfer student, enrolling full-time in the fall 2024 semester at a participating North Carolina public or private college or university. If a student intends to return to a rural North Carolina county after graduation, this can increase his or her chances of earning the scholarship.

Applicants must fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and demonstrate financial need as determined by the application process; have a cumulative GPA of no less than 2.5; and be a resident of a rural North Carolina county that is economically distressed and/or tobacco dependent.

For more information, visit CFNC.org or scholars.goldenleaf.org/apply/colleges-and-universities/.

TownTalk: Around Old Granville Visits Watkins Township

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At just 10.5 square miles, the Watkins township is the smallest of the 38 townships located in the geographical area once known as Granville County. It was established in 1881 – the same year that Vance County was formed from the larger Granville County, but local historian Mark Pace said while it may lack in size, the Watkins township is rich in history.

Pace and WIZS co-host Bill Harris talked about the origins of the Watkins township, or Watkins “community,” as it often is referred to by locals on Thursday’s segment of TownTalk called Around Old Granville.

Perhaps the most famous person to come from Watkins township was Henry Plummer Cheatham, who was a Congressman during Reconstruction. He served from 1889-1893 and ran the Central Children’s Home in Oxford for 35 years.

“He kept that institution going during some dark times,” Pace said, “through the Depression and the Jim Crow era.”

Another individual who hailed from Watkins township was John Bullock Watkins, a nephew of the two men for whom the township is named.

Born in 1881, Watkins was a lumber contractor in the 1940’s during World War II. Pace said Watkins “disappeared” for a while, and rumor had it he was conducting secret government business.

Turns out, that business was in the state to our west. “He went to Oak Ridge, Tennessee and helped build the facilities where the atomic bomb was developed,” Pace said.

He died in 1949, but Pace said Watkins spent a lot of time writing down stories he’d heard from his grandmother. “A lot of what we know about history here” is because of Watkins’s writings. “He did a great service to history by writing down some of what he heard,” Pace said. Watkins died in 1949.

Today, there are about 500 folks who live in Watkins, which once had a post office, a store and a railroad depot. “The depot may still be standing as an outbuilding on a farm there, believe it or not,” Pace said.

There are two churches that have been around since the 1800’s – Hermon Methodist was built in 1853 and Rehoboth Baptist Church was built in 1883. There are homes still standing that are older than those churches – the Burroughs house, located near the fire department, was built in the 1840’s in the popular Greek Revival style of the period.

Hundreds of Union troops camped there after the Civil War ended in 1865 as they made their way back home as victors.

It was another war, however, that brought the Watkins township some notoriety, however briefly, Pace noted.

It was Dec. 1945 and World War II was raging in Europe. A U.S. plane flying out of the Washington, D.C. area, encountered trouble in the air and crashed in a tobacco field in Watkins, just across from the present-day neighborhood of Huntstone along Highway 158.

“It crashed in Huntstone and bounced over 158 and landed over in the field,” Pace said.

Everyone on board parachuted to safety, and one crew member who went knocking on a door for help “and he was met by a man with a shotgun asking whether he was a German paratrooper,” Pace said.

The incident was kept kind of hush-hush to maintain wartime security, and the military sent in a crew to clean up the debris from the crash. According to Pace, the farmer who tended the field said he “hit a scrap of metal” every once in a while.

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Democratic Party

Gubernatorial Candidate Josh Stein ‘Meet And Greet’ Set For Jan. 24 At Perry Memorial Library

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Gubernatorial candidate Josh Stein will visit Henderson on Wednesday, Jan. 24, according to information from local Democratic Party officials.

Bad weather forced Stein’s Jan. 9 visit to be cancelled, and Vance County Democratic Party Chair Angela Thornton said she’s thrilled that Stein and his team rescheduled.

In an email to WIZS News Wednesday, Thornton said scheduling conflicts sometime prevent candidates from visiting as many places as they’d like.

“When we received confirmation (that) Vance County was in the works for his visit, we were thrilled…and are even more thrilled…that they made an effort to reschedule so quickly,” she stated.

The community is invited to come to the meet and greet event, which will be held at Perry Memorial Library. The doors will open at 5 p.m. and the program will begin at 5:30 p.m.

 

TownTalk: Rivera Douthit, Candidate For N.C. Lieutenant Governor

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The following is part of WIZS’s ongoing election coverage. The Mar. 5 primary is the lead-in to the November elections and WIZS strives to provide its listeners and readers with comprehensive coverage of local and state races.

Rivera Douthit is one of 10 Republican candidates who wants to be North Carolina’s next lieutenant governor.

Douthit was a guest on WIZS “TownTalk” Wednesday and talked via telephone about the election and what makes her the best candidate for the job.

She describes herself as a conservative Christian and, as such, a candidate who is passionate about issues like abortion, gun ownership and prayer in schools.

But she talked about veterans’ affairs, sex trafficking and the economy and said as lieutenant governor, she would work hard to make North Carolina a model for other states to emulate.

“I’m passionate, as a mom, about the children,” Douthit said. “I’d love to see the Bible and prayer back in schools,” she added. “That’s something I’d love to see happen.”

She said she would work to put safeguards in place to protect schoolchildren’s safety, but also wants children “learning accurate history.” She also said she wants to make sure there’s no pornography in school libraries.

She said she stands strong against abortion, adding that she would work to continue some of the forward momentum that the state has seen recently on that issue.

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Douthit grew up in Mooresville and lives there today, where she and her husband own a plumbing business. Her experience as a small business owner puts her in a good position to support small business needs.

“The economy is on everyone’s radar,” she said, calling herself “a capitalism type of woman.”

Before becoming a small business owner, Douthit said she was a critical care nurse. She stayed at home to raise children and then was called into the ministry. She said she looks at everything through a biblical lens.

“God called me to run” for office, Douthit stated. “I try to be obedient to what he asks me to do.” As she discerned running for office, Douthit said what she does not want to be is a politician; rather, she wants to “be someone who can influence people on his behalf.”

“Everything I do comes thru that lens of being intimately acquainted with the Lord.”

As lieutenant governor, Douthit said her role will be that of a bridge builder – one who presents her thoughts and ideas to both parties “and see if I can get us to meet somewhere in the middle.”

To learn more, visit rivera4nc.com.

Perry Memorial Library

The Local Skinny! Programs For Youngsters At Perry Memorial Library

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It may not have a fireplace for patrons to cozy up to as they peruse their books and magazines, but  Perry Memorial Library has a full schedule of programs that can be just the ticket for youngsters when it’s too cold to be outside.

Youth Services Director Melody Peters was with WIZS’s Bill Harris on Tuesday’s segment of The Local Skinny! to give a rundown of programs and activities to keep kids busy during the cold of winter.

Kids Connect kicks off 2024 next Tuesday at 4 p.m. A park ranger from the Kerr Lake will present a program -geared to the students in grades K-5 – about wildlife in the state recreation area.

“The ranger does a great job talking about the animals you might see, tracks you might see,” Peters said. Children will get to make a cast of an animal track that they can take home, she added.

Then, on Jan. 22, the inaugural “Community Read Aloud” will take place from 5:30 p.m. to about 6 p.m.

Participants of all ages, but especially new readers or struggling readers, will get a chance to practice reading aloud.
“It’s important to be read to,” Peters said, “even adults. You’re never too old to be read to.”

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With a nod to Valentine’s Day, the Found Object Art project on Feb. 13 will also include chocolate fondue.

Participants will get a chance to dip their favorite food items in the melted chocolate to create a yummy confection – think marshmallows, pretzels and more dipped in warm, velvety chocolate.

The fondue experience surely will inspire some creativity as participants create art with random items like bottle caps, string, nails, newspaper

“It’s an exploration in art” and a chance to be creative, Peters said. Found Object art begins at 4 p.m.

Visit https://www.perrylibrary.org/ for a complete schedule of upcoming events at the library.

TownTalk: Special “Night to Shine” Prom Slated For North Henderson Baptist Church Feb. 9

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North Henderson Baptist Church is looking forward to being a part of what arguably may be considered the biggest prom night in the world. The church is one of more than 700 locations across the globe that will be hosting “A Night to Shine” on Friday, Feb. 9 and the Rev. Eddie Nutt said prom attendees should expect to get “the absolute royal treatment.”

Sponsored by the Tim Tebow Foundation, “A Night to Shine” is in its 10th year of providing a prom experience for individuals with special needs, Nutt said on Tuesday’s TownTalk – a segment of society often overlooked when it comes to fun stuff like proms and such.

The prom is for individuals 14 and older with special needs, Nutt explained. They’ll walk the red carpet, get a limo ride around the block and enjoy an evening filled with food, music and dancing – with photographers and videographers on hand to capture those special moments. The prom will begin at 6 p.m. and will end about 9 p.m.

And all this is “to show them the love of Christ,” Nutt said, “that they are loved and they do have value.”

The goal is to have 75 folks attend the prom, and Nutt said there will be a respite room for parents or other caregivers who may want to stay close while their loved ones enjoy a few hours of music and dancing.

Please register by Friday, Feb. 2 so organizers can plan to have enough food and nametags – not to mention crowns and tiaras.

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That’s part of the “royal treatment” Nutt referred to – each prom goer will get a crown or tiara to proclaim them kings and queens of the prom.

“They will get the absolute royal treatment – it’ll be an event that they’ll remember for the rest of their lives,” Nutt said.

Register on the church website www.nhbcnc.org or phone 252.438.8012. Find the registration here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdl_ZNpdQs-TSeAmAuu49azr-n5WhnejlHKKhrZRHBJhhNXTA/viewform

North Henderson Baptist Church is located at 1211 N. Garnett St. in Henderson.

Nutt has been pastor at North Henderson Baptist Church for about three years, but he’s been thinking about how to minister and reach out to individuals with special needs for more than 10 years.

Each time he’d pray about it, read up on it or talk to others at the Baptist State Convention, he said God would speak to him and say “not now.”

But over the past few months, “God has flipped the green light, indicating the time is now,” Nutt explained.

He got a nudge from a woman back in the summer who asked if her special-needs granddaughter could attend the church’s Vacation Bible School.

Her question, specifically, was: Would her granddaughter be welcomed?

That set the wheels in motion for not only the Night to Shine prom, but also a new ministry called Jesus’ Buddies. The half-hour service is at 9 a.m. on Sundays and is specifically designed for special needs youth and their families.

The program uses puppets and lots of visuals to help youngsters with learning challenges “grasp the message and understand the love of Christ,” Nutt said. How many pastors use a flannel board and moveable biblical figures to reinforce their message? Nutt does.

During Tuesday’s program, a caller had nothing but high praise for the Jesus’ Buddies service and said her grandchild is looking forward to attending the Night to Shine prom next month.

“What a blessing North Henderson Baptist and the congregation have been to me and my special needs granddaughter. Rev. Nutt and his wife and the congregation are so friendly…they are such a blessing.”