Written in the rocks | Mt. Airy News – Mount Airy News

Messages, artifacts from a different era can be found
Here are six rocks with messages and symbols carved on them during the 19th century by Yadkin County farmer and blacksmith Samson Fleming. Local historian Fletcher Edwards will talk about these, and how to find arrowheads and other artifacts, at the Feb. 13 Surry County Genealogical Association. (Submitted photo)
The phenomenon of leaving rocks and pebbles strewn around the countryside — covered in brightly colored paint, or even with messages of kindness and encouragement written on them — seems to be all the rage in recent years.
But Fletcher Edwards of Ararat says the practice is far from new, and he has rocks with nearly 200-year-old messages carved into them to prove his point.
Edwards, an amateur historian with an expansive collections of Native American arrowheads, tools, and other rocky oddities, has at least four stones that have various carvings on them from Samson Fleming, a man who lived from 1794 to 1877.
“He was a farmer and blacksmith,” Edwards said of Fleming. He lived most, if not all, of his life near Richmond Hill in East Bend, where he owned 200 acres of farmland.
The four rocks he has, of various sizes, have all sorts of etchings on them by Fleming. Some are his initials and the date, others appear to be statements of ownership of the land where the rock was thrown, others look like random symbols.
But there may be hundreds of them, Edward said. In addition to the four he owns, he has given two to a friend, and has seen countless others owned by friends. There is one house with a stone chimney which includes a couple of the rocks, and he knows of at least a few that have made their way to South Carolina.
“He would just do these (carvings), then throw the rocks out in the field,” Edwards said.
In his later years, Edwards said Fleming may have had some sort of mental degenerative disease — his sister had to move in and become his caretaker. Nevertheless, he continued carving his messages into the stones and throwing them around.
Edwards said the Fleming stones are not the only items one can find if one knows where to look. He still regularly finds arrowheads and other tools made by Native Americans of the area.
“You can still find them, but you have to find a place that’s (freshly) plowed,” he said. This coming spring, he said he has two such farms, one in Surry County and one in Yadkin, where those plowing the fields have agreed to let him come in and hunt for arrowheads and other items after the fields are plowed.
Edwards will be giving a more in-depth talk next month at the meeting of the Surry County Genealogical Association, set for 6 p.m. on Feb. 13 at the Mount Airy Public Library.
“We are asking everyone to bring any strange looking rocks or arrowheads or Fairy Stones from Fairy Stone Park, which is in Patrick County, Virginia, to bring them,” said Esther Johnson, president of the society.
While Johnson acknowledges the talk might not strictly be about tracing and learning about family histories, Edwards’ talk will serve a twofold purpose — the first of which is to draw a crowd.
“In this day and time, it seems like people think they can find everything online about their family,” she said of the challenge of keeping people coming to groups such as the genealogical association. “We decided to try to do something different. Anything we do, we try to connect to family history.”
At the group’s last meeting, a 12-year-old youth came to talk about his extensive tracing of his family tree, which drew nearly four dozen folks to hear him talk.
Johnson is hoping for at least as big a turnout this time.
“Years ago when people were farming and they had their children out in the fields helping them that was a time when Indian arrowheads were found and a lot of other strange looking rocks or objects, sometimes old bones,” she said. “People lived a different kind of life. Playing in creeks, swinging on grape vines and sliding down red clay banks.
“We are getting to the time of year again when they will be plowing fields and years ago they would wait until a rain came after they plowed and that would uncover things plowed up in the fields. I remember seeing a man years ago out behind Bannertown school walking through a plowed field carrying a tobacco stick and everyone once in a while he would hit at something laying on the ground so he could uncover it and if it was an arrowhead or what he thought might be, he would pick it up.
“I do not see anyone doing anything like that anymore. Now would be a good time to teach children about how to do that. All of these things are still being found. You just have to take time and train yourself to look down.”
Thus, Edwards’ planned talk, not only about finding arrowheads and rocks with strange markings, but he will touch on two gold mines that were once in Surry County, which is the second purpose of the talk — to simply educate area folks on the county’s history, and what their ancestors would have seen and experienced during their lives.
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January 29, 2023
Surry Community College is offering a CPR certification class in Mount Airy next month.
The cclass will be held on Friday, Feb. 24, from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Center for Public Safety, 1220 State St., Mount Airy.
This class will certify students with the Healthcare Provider-level of CPR. The tuition is $71. Students who are part of a life-saving organization will be eligible for a tuition waiver. There is a $4 fee for each CPR card.
For more information and to register, contact Doug Underwood at 336-386-3584 or underwoodd@surry.edu.
January 29, 2023
At Monday’s meeting of the Surry County Board of Commissioners, the board will consider a non-binding resolution that would affirm the county’s pro-life stance. Supporters have been asking for a resolution that would proclaim the county as a sanctuary for life and the vote be the culmination of those efforts.
Since the U.S. Supreme Court decision that tossed Roe v. Wade just shy of its 50th anniversary, there is no uniform abortion policy from state to state. North Carolina still allows abortions before week 20 and Gov. Cooper said in July the state would not seek to prosecute women crossing state lines from a state where it is illegal to have an abortion.
The county’s position statement will reflect that while legal in the state, Surry County discourages the practice of abortion as all life from the very moment of conception deserves protection.
Similar resolutions have been passed in area counties and the Surry County resolution is a variation on the one Wilkes County, along with their legal team, put together and passed in 2021.
It begins, “A resolution of the Surry County Board of Commissioners to be a strong advocate for life and urging the citizens of the county to promote and defend the unalienable right to life and the inherent dignity of all human beings, including the unborn, from conception or fertilization through all stages of development.”
The statement is an expression of belief from the five men of the county commissioners that finds its basis with the writing of James Madison, “The accumulation of all powers, legislative, executive, and judiciary, in the same hands…may justly be pronounced the very definition of tyranny.”
“The federal judiciary has, in the opinion of the Board of Commissioners, accumulated and exercised powers far in excess of its proper role under the United States Constitution in its rulings concerning the rights of the unborn,” the resolution states.
The resolution goes on to cite the Declaration of Independence with the line learned from childhood, “All men are created equal and have been endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights,” the Declaration begins.
“That among these are life, liberty, the enjoyment of the fruits of their own labor, and the pursuit of happiness,” Article I of the Constitution of North Carolina concludes, with a subtle language tweak to the commonly known thread from the Declaration. Those statements affirm, supporters say, the right to life for the conceived.
Critics may say this is a waste of time, but Chairman Eddie Harris said the voters have a right to know how their elected officials feel about such a polarizing issue. He also noted Surry would be joining in with other counties who have already passed such a resolution such as Davie, Wilkes, Yadkin, and Ashe Counties.
There is also legal precedent for the county to pursue such a non-binding resolution as found in the ruling of Poelker v. Doe in 1977. In that case it was concluded that “the Constitution does not forbid a State or city, pursuant to democratic processes, from expressing a preference for normal childbirth.”
With such guidance in hand, the commissioners’ statement of belief reads in part:
“The Surry County Board of Commissioners desires to express its strong feeling and deep concern that all human beings in the County of Surry, at every stage of development, including before birth, should be afforded protection from acts of cruelty, and be treated humanely and with dignity.
“They further declare the county be a strong advocate for life and to urge the county’s citizens to promote and defend the unalienable right to life and the inherent dignity of all human beings, including the unborn, from conception or fertilization through all stages of development… and resolves to use all means within its power to support the sanctity of human life in accordance with its God-given responsibilities as the peoples’ elected governing body.”
Sunshine Gillam works with families at Lifeline Pregnancy Center in Elkin and supports the potential resolution. Lifeline offers counseling services to women and help in determining if she is pregnant, how far along, and what her options are. While they do not perform or refer for abortions, they do recognize that it is an option some women may be forced to consider.
“We have seen the ravages of abortion and we are seeing increases in women who are abortion minded and determined because states around us have abolished or have heartbeat laws. So, we are seeing more clients come across state lines,” she told the board.
Speaking in support of the measure at a prior meeting, Jason Johnson told the board he was in favor or protecting children. “I was born in Surry County. I am glad to have had the opportunity to be born. I’m glad we weren’t aborted, I’m glad we weren’t murdered.”
Protecting the innocent is, “The right thing to do and the Christian thing to do,” Mitch Calloway told the board.
Commissioners Larry Johnson, Bill Goins, and Mark Marion have said they firmly supported the resolution and were anti-abortion but offered a more nuanced approach to abortion.
Johnson has stated his belief that there are some circumstances when abortion may be necessary. “There are some exceptions where abortion could very well be the best choice, and it’s just a few such as mother’s life, possibly rape and incest, but I know there are other avenues too that can be discussed such as adoption. I want people to know that’s how I feel, and that’s my faith, and I am pro-life. This, in general, is a good resolution.”
“There are different perspectives,” Goins said. While he is firmly pro-life, his years in the classrooms colored his point of view and allows him to see some shades of gray. “I worked in a field where I saw some of the negatives of some of the things we talked about such as rape, incest, health of the mother.”
“This says we are pro-life and that we protect our innocent children, which is the most precious commodity on the face of the Earth,” Marion said. “I agree, there are exceptions.”
“I have lived to see these exceptions happen. Once that stuff happens to a young child or teenager, that messes with them for the rest of their lives. This is a good resolution and is far better than what I read the first time, but I wanted it to be known I had the same feelings as the others.”
Harris has stated he anticipates a large crowd to come in support of the measure Monday evening. Meetings with lots of interest in the past have exceeded fire capacity and resident have been turned away, so the county reminds that meetings are broadcast online in real time.
January 29, 2023
The phenomenon of leaving rocks and pebbles strewn around the countryside — covered in brightly colored paint, or even with messages of kindness and encouragement written on them — seems to be all the rage in recent years.
But Fletcher Edwards of Ararat says the practice is far from new, and he has rocks with nearly 200-year-old messages carved into them to prove his point.
Edwards, an amateur historian with an expansive collections of Native American arrowheads, tools, and other rocky oddities, has at least four stones that have various carvings on them from Samson Fleming, a man who lived from 1794 to 1877.
“He was a farmer and blacksmith,” Edwards said of Fleming. He lived most, if not all, of his life near Richmond Hill in East Bend, where he owned 200 acres of farmland.
The four rocks he has, of various sizes, have all sorts of etchings on them by Fleming. Some are his initials and the date, others appear to be statements of ownership of the land where the rock was thrown, others look like random symbols.
But there may be hundreds of them, Edward said. In addition to the four he owns, he has given two to a friend, and has seen countless others owned by friends. There is one house with a stone chimney which includes a couple of the rocks, and he knows of at least a few that have made their way to South Carolina.
“He would just do these (carvings), then throw the rocks out in the field,” Edwards said.
In his later years, Edwards said Fleming may have had some sort of mental degenerative disease — his sister had to move in and become his caretaker. Nevertheless, he continued carving his messages into the stones and throwing them around.
Edwards said the Fleming stones are not the only items one can find if one knows where to look. He still regularly finds arrowheads and other tools made by Native Americans of the area.
“You can still find them, but you have to find a place that’s (freshly) plowed,” he said. This coming spring, he said he has two such farms, one in Surry County and one in Yadkin, where those plowing the fields have agreed to let him come in and hunt for arrowheads and other items after the fields are plowed.
Edwards will be giving a more in-depth talk next month at the meeting of the Surry County Genealogical Association, set for 6 p.m. on Feb. 13 at the Mount Airy Public Library.
“We are asking everyone to bring any strange looking rocks or arrowheads or Fairy Stones from Fairy Stone Park, which is in Patrick County, Virginia, to bring them,” said Esther Johnson, president of the society.
While Johnson acknowledges the talk might not strictly be about tracing and learning about family histories, Edwards’ talk will serve a twofold purpose — the first of which is to draw a crowd.
“In this day and time, it seems like people think they can find everything online about their family,” she said of the challenge of keeping people coming to groups such as the genealogical association. “We decided to try to do something different. Anything we do, we try to connect to family history.”
At the group’s last meeting, a 12-year-old youth came to talk about his extensive tracing of his family tree, which drew nearly four dozen folks to hear him talk.
Johnson is hoping for at least as big a turnout this time.
“Years ago when people were farming and they had their children out in the fields helping them that was a time when Indian arrowheads were found and a lot of other strange looking rocks or objects, sometimes old bones,” she said. “People lived a different kind of life. Playing in creeks, swinging on grape vines and sliding down red clay banks.
“We are getting to the time of year again when they will be plowing fields and years ago they would wait until a rain came after they plowed and that would uncover things plowed up in the fields. I remember seeing a man years ago out behind Bannertown school walking through a plowed field carrying a tobacco stick and everyone once in a while he would hit at something laying on the ground so he could uncover it and if it was an arrowhead or what he thought might be, he would pick it up.
“I do not see anyone doing anything like that anymore. Now would be a good time to teach children about how to do that. All of these things are still being found. You just have to take time and train yourself to look down.”
Thus, Edwards’ planned talk, not only about finding arrowheads and rocks with strange markings, but he will touch on two gold mines that were once in Surry County, which is the second purpose of the talk — to simply educate area folks on the county’s history, and what their ancestors would have seen and experienced during their lives.
January 29, 2023
Linda’s Healing & Prayer Garden at Northern Regional Hospital recently was presented with the Mount Airy Parks & Recreation Appearance Commission’s Architectural Excellence Award by John Rees and Mary Lou Allred.
“Many thanks to our plant operations team for their hard work on the project and to the donors who helped make it possible for our residents, patients, visitors, and staff to enjoy for many years to come,” hospital officials said of the recognition.
January 29, 2023
Much has happened in the past 75 years — including 14 American presidents and the enduring of several wars while musical, fashion and other tastes came and went, but a local radio station has remained constant since 1948.
It was on Feb. 2 of that year — Groundhog Day — when Mount Airy’s WPAQ launched its first official broadcast at 740 on the AM dial as a flagship for the traditional string music of this region. And it’s still doing so today from a perch on Springs Road where tunes from the North Carolina foothills initially hit the airwaves.
The building of the radio station — the first in Surry County — fulfilled a dream of owner Ralph Epperson, who wanted to both preserve the music of the Blue Ridge and promote local talent while also exposing it to a wider audience.
Although Epperson died in 2006, that vision continues today with his son Kelly at the helm of the station, who has never been inclined to do things any other way.
“Since I’ve been in charge, I’ve always tried to honor my father’s promise that he made to the Federal Communications Commission,” Epperson said of the agency that licenses broadcast stations and the music the elder Epperson pledged to perpetuate. This includes devoting several hours to playing it each day.
“Seventy-five years later, I just don’t want to go against that,” Epperson added Thursday.
Celebration at Earle
That milestone will be commemorated next Saturday, Feb. 4, when a WPAQ 75th-birthday event is scheduled at the Historic Earle Theatre in downtown Mount Airy, free to the public.
Doors will open at 4 p.m., with a free screening of the documentary “Broadcast: A Man and His Dream,” directed by Jordan Nance, to begin at 4:30 p.m. It details the story of the late radio pioneer and WPAQ, including an interview with Epperson just weeks before his death.
Then at 5:45 p.m., live music will begin at the Earle by several featured groups including Travis Frye and Blue Mountain, The Country Boys, The Slate Mountain Ramblers, The Nunn Brothers and Harrison Ridge.
“I think a lot of people in the area really appreciate what we’ve done all these years,” the station owner said in looking forward to the celebration.
And by the same token, the support of musicians and listeners who have been a big part of WPAQ’s success also deserves mention.
“I am just just so grateful that people have responded to us as they have for the past 75 years,” Epperson said.
Formula for longevity
Name just about any radio station that’s been around a good while and chances are it has experienced a format change, or two, or three. It might have started as a country station, then shifted to rock and later easy listening.
Not WPAQ, still operating under the same values and with much of the same programming as in 1948 — which has been a recipe for success.
“I think just being unique, providing a format that is unlike any other that I know of,” Kelly Epperson commented in discussing its emphasis on old-time, bluegrass and gospel music.
“It’s not been easy,” he said of staying that course amid the pressures surrounding the commercial broadcast industry often guided by ratings whims.
Besides the music, the station has kept other facets alive which have defined its existence over the years.
Ralph Epperson made a standing commitment that its programming would be suitable for the entire family. And that still rings true today, according to historical information about WPAQ provided by Jennie Lowry, an announcer there who hosts its weekly Merry-Go-Round show originating live from the Earle.
Two hours of Christian programs continue to be a part of the morning lineup, while big band music has a three hour-slot on the evening programming schedule.
The station also has continued to be a source for news, and in earlier days that included tobacco market, agricultural pricing and related content that was important for listeners, the information from Lowry states.
Additionally, covering local sports has been a long tradition at WPAQ, as evidenced by this past football season when the Mount Airy High School Granite Bears won the 1-A state championship. The station broadcast the title game live, just as it had on Thanksgiving Day 1948 when the Bears also became state champs.
The information from Lowry further mentions how WPAQ has been on hand for live remote broadcasts of numerous business grand openings, including that of Mayberry Mall in 1968, and every Autumn Leaves Festival since that event began in the late 1960s.
Meanwhile, musicians continue to be encouraged to share and develop their talents as they perform live from the station’s Studio A or the stage of the Merry-Go-Round, the nation’s second-longest-running live weekly musical show of its type.
“From Day One Epperson’s commitment to serve his community with news and entertainment was paramount as he saw that the station’s programming reflected the cultural and musical values of the region,” says the information from Lowry.
“Though the facade is worn, the equipment replaced and the personnel changed, an unwavering commitment to preserving the culture of the region promises future generations the same informational and traditional music programming which their parents and grandparents enjoyed on 740 AM since 1948.”
“My dad wanted it to be a community station,” Kelly Epperson said regarding its varied offerings.
Internet presence
The local radio station’s reliance on the traditional doesn’t mean it has ignored technological innovations of the modern world.
This has included establishing an Internet presence.
Developments of recent years have included the addition of 106.7 FM and wpaq740.com, both offering 24-hour programming.
About a dozen people, both full- and part-time, now are part of the operation on Springs Road, which also includes personnel of WSYD, another local AM station which became part of its fold.
Kelly Epperson said one other possible change in the future might involve increasing the station’s broadcast power.
“I’ve always wanted to have a 50,000-watt station,” he said, compared to the present output of the local AM outlet of 10,000, with 50,000 the highest possible.
Yet such an upgrade would be quite costly and require extensive engineering studies, the station owner acknowledged.
WPAQ’s present capacity already ensures a wide reach, with Epperson recalling that he once picked up its signal while waiting at a stoplight in Harrisonburg, Virginia, located in the Shenandoah Valley more than 200 miles away.
And while his dad was alive, a commercial airline pilot reported regularly tuning in at high altitude, being able to first listen to the station in West Virginia and doing so all the way to Georgia.
Kelly Epperson, who first began working there as a high school sophomore in 1977, is proud of all WPAQ has accomplished so far.
“It has just been a blessing.”
January 29, 2023
A career disruption prompted Lisa Wagoner of Boonville to return to Surry Community College and pursue a degree in the Medical Office Administration program. She was 48 years old when she returned to school.
“I was intimated. I considered going back to school for a year before I started taking classes. I thought, ‘Am I too old for this? Can I really do this? Do I have the gumption?’” she said. “Then, I thought to myself, ‘You just got to do it. You just got to see the end.’”
Wagoner described herself as a shy person who kept to herself. Her family of three brothers and one sister moved to Forsyth County from Texas her senior year of high school due to her father finding a job in the area.
“I have always wanted to work in an office since high school,” she said. “I thought I wanted to be a teacher. I helped teachers grade papers. I have always really loved paperwork and working in an office.”
Wagoner worked for Walmart for 29 years in various roles at locations in Winston-Salem and Mocksville. She worked as a cashier, in retail management and spent 15 years in the accounts payable office.
“I really enjoyed working in the invoice office and paying bills. I would match up orders and compare to claims. It was really detailed work,” she said.
Walmart centralized the accounts payable work in the home office, and Wagoner lost her job.
“It was really rough on me. I had worked at Walmart for nine years and kept applying for the office jobs. I was so happy to get that job, and when it was over, it really broke my heart,” she said.
Then, Wagoner started managing a Vision Center for Walmart in Mocksville.
“I was there for four years. I really wanted to go back to school to get a degree, so I could work in an office setting,” Wagoner said. “I was limited at Vision Center because I wasn’t a licensed optician. Surry Community College’s Medical Office Administration program was online, so that gave me an opportunity to work and go back to school.”
In December 2021, Wagoner started working at Novant Salem Family Medicine in Winston-Salem, where she is a Patient Services Coordinator III. She checks people in for appointments, schedules appointments, collects payments, and helps patients over the phone.
“I love being on the computer. I fax prescriptions and then scan information into patient charts. I do a lot of paperwork like writing no-show letters for missed appointments and other patient correspondence,” she said. “I like interacting with patients. Most are really nice. My desk is in the reception area. We are the face of the office. We play an important part in making sure the patients have a good experience. We are the first and last folks that the patients see.”
SCC’s Medical Office Administration program offers a degree, diploma and three certificates including medical office administration, medical billing and insurance and patient services representative. The program prepares students for employment as medical administrative personnel in the areas of medical billing and coding, dental office, patient services, and medical documents.
“All of my instructors were helpful and nice,” Wagoner said. “They were always willing to answer any questions. I really enjoyed the flexibility of the online classes. If the program had been in person, I wouldn’t have been able to do it.”
She offered advice to other students who were contemplating coming back to school later in life. When she returned to school, she was the mother of two adult children and three grandchildren.
“You just have to go back to school. You are going to have a better life if you get your degree. Remind yourself that you are doing this for your future,” she said.
Wagoner said many of the computer programs she learned at Surry have helped her on the job. She is proficient in Microsoft products including Excel and Word. She can type 40 words per minute. She earned a degree in medical office administration from SCC in May 2022.
For questions about college application, financial aid, or class registration, contact Student & Workforce Services at 336-386-3264 or studentservices@surry.edu.
January 28, 2023
PILOT MOUNTAIN — Their literary efforts on behalf of veterans have led to two local youths being recognized by Pilot Mountain Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 9436 and the VFW Auxiliary during a business meeting earlier this month.
They include Buddy Poppy King Grant Carpenter and Voice of Democracy winner Aiden Richardson, who each received a certificate of appreciation and a monetary gift for essays they had written.
Grant previously had helped with a Buddy Poppy promotion of the VFW Auxiliary in late summer. This included distributing the poppies for donations along with flyers about programs the auxiliary participates in, cards, tags and coasters with crisis telephone numbers for veterans needing help.
The Buddy Poppy program of the Veterans of Foreign Wars provides compensation to former military members who assemble the poppies — replicas of vivid red flowers symbolizing the great loss of life during America’s armed conflicts.
At the recent meeting, Grant presented his essay entitled “Why is it important to honor veterans by promoting the Buddy Poppy?”
His involvement was part of the North Carolina Buddy Poppy King and Queen Contest, which is open to boys and girls ages 9-12. They are judged on their essay topics, penmanship, patriotic activities and community service.
In addition to assisting with the Buddy Poppy promotion in August, Grant has helped make greeting cards for disabled veterans, helped construct cards for cancer patients and is an active youth member at his church.
Grant is 12 years old and a sixth-grade student of the Access Books and More tutoring service in Pilot Mountain. His parents are Michael and Shelly Carpenter of Pilot Mountain.
He enjoys biking, golf, offshore fishing and many other activities.
Voice of Democracy
Also as part of the recent student recognitions by the Pilot Mountain VFW groups, Aiden Richardson presented his winning Voice of Democracy essay, “Why is the veteran important?”
The Voice of Democracy has been the VFW’s main scholarship program since 1947. Each year, nearly 80,000 high school students compete for more than $2 million in scholarships. They must write and record an audio essay on a patriotic theme through a contest open to students in grades 9-12.
A 10th-grade student at East Surry High School, Aiden is 16 years old and the son of Damion and Kara Richardson of Pilot Mountain. He is cadet captain of the Pilot Knob Fire Department, a member of the PAC Swim Team at Armfield Civic Center and that of East Surry, along with being a Boy Scout.
In presenting the two students with certificates of appreciation and monetary gifts for their essays, the VFW groups wished them much success in the future.
January 28, 2023
BLUEFIELD, VA – First Community Bankshares Inc. (NASDAQ: FCBC) this week reported net income of $12.58 million, or 77 cents per diluted common share, for the quarter which ended Dec. 31.
That represented an increase of nearly 20% over the same quarter a year ago, when net income was $10.56 million recorded in the same quarter of 2021.
“The increase is primarily attributable to an increase in net interest income of $5.39 million as well as a decrease in noninterest expense of $971,000,” the firm said in its statement. “The positive increases to income were offset by an increase in the provision for credit losses of $4.26 million compared to the same quarter of 2021.”
Net income for the year ending Dec. 31 was $46.66 million or $2.82 share.
In addition to reporting an increase in net income for the quarter, the bank’s board of directors declared a quarterly cash dividend 0f 29 cents per share to common shareholders, an increase of 2 cents, or 7.41%, over the quarterly dividend declared in the same quarter of 2021. The dividend is payable to common shareholders of record on Feb.10, and is expected to be paid on or about Feb. 24.
“This marks the 38th consecutive year of regular dividends to common shareholders,” the bank said.
During the fourth quarter, the company entered into an agreement to acquire Mount Airy-based Surrey Bancorp, the holding company for Surrey Bank and Trust.
“The acquisition will strengthen the company’s presence in western North Carolina, result in top market share in Mount Airy, and add approximately $500 million in assets,” the company said. “Surrey has a record of excellent financial performance and a very strong core deposit franchise across its seven-branch network. The acquisition is subject to customary regulatory and shareholder approvals and is expected to close in the second quarter of 2023.”
January 28, 2023
Northern Regional Hospital this week unveiled its new Anatomage Table – an advanced technological teaching tool that takes anatomy out of the textbook and into 3D digital human bodies with the highest level of detail and available.
Northern Regional Hospital is the only hospital in the greater Piedmont region to offer such an advanced teaching tool. The Hospital’s Anatomage Table was purchased with grant assistance, hospital officials said
“We are delighted to offer the Anatomage Table as another innovative teaching tool to help introduce and entice young and older students to exciting and fulfilling careers in healthcare,” said Chris A. Lumsden, President and chief executive officer of Northern Regional Hospital. “We are fully committed to further enhance patient care and safety by helping educate and train the next generation of healthcare providers. Northern`s numerous educational initiatives, combined with expanded employee educational assistance and scholarship programs, have bolstered interest in healthcare careers, helped existing employees achieve their professional goals, and improved patient care while enriching our community.”
“The Anatomage Table takes advantage of many facets of digital learning — which is the primary way students learn today,” said Daniel Combs, RN, BSN, CEN, NREMT-P, staff development & student programs nurse at Northern. “Think of the table as a supercomputer with two large screens. Students tap and swipe to view and interact with more than 2,500 anatomical structures in each digital body.
“Easily peeling away the layers of the body to see the relationship of organs, bones, muscles, veins, and nerves; as well as view the movement of body parts and functionality of bodily systems, such as blood flow within the circulatory system,” he added.
“The accuracy and vividness of the Anatomage Table’s hi-tech features should be particularly helpful to nursing students – especially those struggling with their required Anatomy & Pathology course,” said Robin Hodgin, RN, BSN, MHA, NE-BC, senior vice president and chief nursing officer at Northern. “The 3D views of structures and systems within the body will improve students’ understanding of human anatomy,” she said. “In some respects, the knowledge gained from a virtual dissection performed on the Anatomage bodies may be superior to a cadaveric dissection.”
“Over the next few weeks, we plan to invite all staff to see how this teaching tool may help enhance their clinical efforts or specialty re-certification requirements. We will then begin to incorporate the Table into a variety of existing educational programs,” said Combs.
Some of the educational efforts benefiting from the addition of the Anatomage Table to their programs include the hospital’s ongoing sponsorship of high school and middle school HOSA – Future Health Professionals groups; a new Project Lead the Way class called Medical Detectives for seventh-grade students; the hospital-developed Camp Med; and an upcoming after-school program for middle-school students interested in exploring careers in healthcare. “Our hope is to spark a love of healthcare at an early age – which may then translate into those young students completing their education and returning to Northern Regional Hospital as nurses and allied-health professionals,” said Lumsden.
January 28, 2023
Earlier this month, all Surry County middle schools attended the district MathCounts competition at Central Middle School with 48 students participating.
Central Middle School emerged as the overall winner of the district competition, though all four Surry County Schools middle schools will participate at the regional level on Feb. 13. The Central Middle team representatives were Brynna Atkins, Carter Faistl, Ryan Li, Micah Whitley, Londyn Colbert, Noah Campbell, Sebastian Frausto, Bryce Faistl, Summer Carpenter, and David Perez.
The individual winner of the competition was Ayden Hicks from Gentry Middle School.
Ayden was the individual champion after competing in the individual round by answering the most questions correctly from all competitors from each school.
Lucas White, representing Meadowview Magnet Middle School, was the Countdown Round Champion. The top 10 individuals from the Target and Sprint rounds compete in the Countdown Round. A “showdown round” was needed to break a four-way tie for the tenth spot. The top ten students were Ayden Hicks, Bryanna Atkins, Lucas White, Isaac Hawks, Ryan Li, Sebastian Frausto, Ava McPeak, Nathan Hintz, Audrey Collins, and Kynlee Venable.
“MathCounts is a wonderful opportunity for our students to compete academically. It is exciting for them to enjoy being with their peers and showcasing their mathematics abilities, both individually and collaboratively. We are thankful for all students who participated as well as the coaches and administrators who prepared for this event.” said Amy Harris, director of secondary curriculum and instruction.
The competition lasted about two-and-a-half hours, using the same format that will be used at the regional competition. Each segment was timed, some done individually and some as a team. Some segments allowed calculators and some did not. Each segment comprised the scoring for individual and team honors.
January 28, 2023
North Carolina Insurance Commissioner and State Fire Marshal Mike Causey recently announced that the Dobson Fire Department completed its routine inspection and received a 5 rating as a result.
He offered praise to the leadership of the Dobson Fire Department in December for the departments improved fire safety rating. ““I commend you and your department for your dedication and commitment to making your community a safer place to live.”
“I know you are proud of your department’s achievement and would like to share the news with the members of your community,” Causey wrote. “I also know that the majority of citizens may not be aware that the rating of their responding fire department directly impacts their property calculations.”
The inspection, conducted by officials with the Department of Insurance Office of the State Fire Marshal, is required on a regular basis as part of the North Carolina Response Rating System.
“I would like to congratulate Chief Whitaker on maintaining his class 5 inspection rating for the Town of Dobson, this took a lot of hard work for Chief Whitaker and the department members,” County Fire Marshal Jimmy Ashburn said about the accomplishment.
He explained the North Carolina Office of State Fire Marshal scores fire departments on a scale of Class 1 to Class 10, with Class 1 being the best rating awarded. The inspections take place typically every five years, he said.
Ashburn advised the ratings process considers fire station deployment within the fire district, fire department equipment, apparatus, firefighter training/certification and water supply/delivery capabilities.
“Fire districts improved their rating with Insurance Services Office Inc. (ISO), which collects statistical data that insurance companies use to determine premiums for businesses, industries and residents living within fire department districts,” Ashburn said.
“In addition to scoring the fire department, records and data from two county departments (Fire Marshal’s Office and Emergency Communications) are also analyzed during the ratings inspections,” he added. “Data is collected from 911 communications, fire prevention education, fire code enforcement, and fire investigations.”
During the routine inspection, the state is looking for proper staffing levels, sufficient equipment, proper maintenance of equipment, communications capabilities, and availability of a water source. Many of these items the department has direct control over which is why there exists a regular schedule for equipment inspection and maintenance.
A lack of water is not something the department can plan on. So equipment is the name of the game and having a pump and tanker truck available is what helps the Dobson department in this area.
The county commissioners heard a plan to stage extra pump trucks in the quadrants of the county that would add the additional pumper truck coverage to each department found within those spheres of service. Adding that coverage helps the fire rating for the whole fire district, which influences what homeowners pay for their homeowner’s insurance.
“The citizens in these fire districts should rest easy knowing that have a fine group of firefighters protecting them and their property in case of an emergency,” Causey said.
The Office of the State Fire Marshal said, “A community’s investment in fire mitigation is a proven and reliable predictor of future fire losses. Insurance companies use this information to help establish fair premiums for fire insurance — generally offering lower premiums in communities with better protection… Offering economic benefits for communities that invest in their firefighting services provides an additional incentive for improving and maintaining public fire protection.”
North Carolina law requires Office of the State Fire Marshal officials to inspect departments serving districts of 100,000 people or less, which makes up all by twelve of the state’s fire districts.
January 28, 2023
Parishioners of Elkin Valley Baptist Church were expecting to be worshiping in their brand new sanctuary by May of this year, but construction is unlikely to be completed by then after more than $793,000 the church had raised for the project was stolen by internet scammers.
The church, founded in 1884, had long outgrown the building on North Elkin Drive constructed in 1954 and had been holding services in its family life center since 2016. In September of last year, the church broke ground on a new facility after raising funds for the project for seven years.
On Nov. 4, Elkin Valley Baptist Church received an email from Landmark construction, their builder, with payment instructions. A second, nearly identical email, came in just after the first. The emails arrived on a Friday when the office was closed, church leaders explained. Upon checking the emails on Monday, a church representative responded, unknowingly, to a cloned email.
“We followed those instructions, not knowing, and paid the bill. It wasn’t until several days later that we were contacted by Landmark about paying the bill and we said, ‘we did pay the bill.’ That’s when it was discovered that someone had intercepted the email chain,” explained Senior Pastor Johnny Blevins.
Blevins said the matter was immediately reported to the Elkin Police Department who then turned the case over to the FBI.
“We’re trying to move ahead,” Blevins said of the project.
While they hope to continue, as much as possible, with the construction, Blevins said they have no idea if any of the stolen funds will be recovered.
Associate Pastor Stephen Robbins said the scam was a clever one. The second email that was a spoof of the original one sent from Landmark was identical, with all the same previous emails threads in the body of the email and company logos. The difference that went unnoticed was one letter in the email address itself.
Robbins said the church has retained a cyber investigator to search its computers to see if the scam could have come through spyware or other breach of its internet and cyber communications.
January 26, 2023
The African American Historical and Genealogical Society of Surry County installed a new slate of officers at its recent meeting on Jan. 10.
The newly elected officers are President Marie Nicholson, Vice President Adreann Belle, Treasurer Brenda Scales, and Secretary Vera Reynolds.
The society is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to collect and preserve the historical information of African Americans in Surry County and is the conservator of the historic J. J. Jones High School.
For more information on the organization visit http://www.facebook.com/AAHGSofSurryCounty or call: 336 710-1481.
January 26, 2023
Mount Airy police are investigating an incident involving a motorist fleeing a traffic stop, driving a car into the playground of a child-care center and then scaling a fence there to escape along with an accomplice.
This occurred about 1:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Kinder Care facility on South South Street, where the small car occupied by the driver and one other person was left behind.
At the time, no children were in the playground at Kinder Care, which provides day-care, pre-school and early education services beginning with nursery age. The fact weather conditions Wednesday were rainy and chilly is thought to have played a role in that.
“No one was hurt in the accident,” Brenda Fletcher, the center’s director, confirmed in an alert sent Thursday morning to parents with kids there to notify them about the hit-and-run incident.
“The suspects immediately took off, jumping the fence and leaving the area,” Fletcher further advised. The occupants of the car included a black male and a white female.
Police Chief Dale Watson said Thursday that the female involved has been identified as a juvenile, and information was being sought to aid in the apprehension of the male suspect.
He said the situation unfolded when an attempt was made by police to pull over the lime-green car they were in as part of what he termed an “investigatory stop.”
“Upon initiating the stop, they fled,” Watson said of the pair.
After the two sped away, the vehicle apparently went out of control near the Kinder Care site at 401 S. South St.
The car went through a fence on what Fletcher, the center director, termed an “older side” of the playground.
While no one was injured, the incident caused property damage for which an estimate was not immediately available.
Meanwhile, someone inside the Kinder Care facility took pictures through a window as the entire event took place, capturing images of the pair dashing past small playground riding toys en route to the fence.
The male suspect clears it first, and appears afterward to be urging the female to pull herself over.
Chief Watson commented Thursday that the situation could have been tragic had it occurred on a warm sunny day when the playground might have been filled with kids.
In light of that potential, the actions of the driver in plowing through the fence showed a total disregard for “the well-being and safety of others,” he said.
Anyone with information about the case which could lead to an arrest is asked to call the Mount Airy Police Department at 336-786-3535.
January 26, 2023
Signaling a plan to become more engaged in public policy, particularly as it relates to local businesses, the Greater Mount Airy Chamber of Commerce has scheduled a State of the County address for next month, with County Manager Chris Knopf scheduled to speak.
This is not the first such event the chamber has hosted — it has held several “state of” talks in recent years, particularly before the COVID-19 pandemic, with city, county and state leaders schedule giving presentations about the general state of affairs in their respective jurisdictions.
But this one will be the first in a series of such events in 2023, and is a signal that the chamber’s public policy committee plans to become more active, according to chamber leaders.
“For 2023, our public policy committee is the driver behind using lunches to engage with the membership (of the chamber),” said Jordon Edwards, events director for the chamber. “The 12 members on that committee who are business leaders, they are the driver behind wanting to see the public policy committee more active in 2023…public policy wasn’t pushed as much in 2021 and 2022 as they wished it would have been.”
The State of the County lunch is set for Feb. 9, from 11:30 a.m. until 1 p.m. at White Sulphur Springs. It is the first of several such events slated for this year. Edwards said a State of the City event focusing on Mount Airy is scheduled for Aug. 10 at White Sulphur Springs, and chamber officials are hoping to have one which includes state officials in November at Big Creek Lodge.
“The public policy committee is looking at doing town hall-type forums, maybe bring in county commissioners, city commissioners, people from parks and rec, planning… to do a larger, more fluid open forum,” Edwards said of other potential events. “Maybe a downtown merchant meeting so we can find out what are the issues the merchants are interested in.”
She said similar events could also be slated for Dobson and Pilot Mountain.
Tonda Phillips, chair of the chamber’s public policy committee, said she is new to the position and still getting her feet under her, but she sees the chamber being able to do more in regards to public policy. Of particular interest, she said, is to learn about what public policies might directly affect businesses in Mount Airy and Surry County.
“Public policy has never been on the forefront of the committees, as far as what they did in the community,” she said. Phillips said she would like the committee to help lead the chamber in taking a more active role in disseminating information about state and federal laws and policies to business owners and the larger community of Surry County.
”I think this event …will give us some broader information about things going on in the county,” she said of Knopf’s upcoming address. “This will be a fairly general, good overview of business and policies on a county level.” The more such information the chamber is able to find and distribute, the more it can be an advocate for its members and take a role in “things that affect business in the community.”
“I hope there are some topics we can bring to light, we can educate the public, the business owners, leaders in the community, things that bring us together and help us understand policy and procedure. Our committee can be a good resource to clarify issues or bring an educational platform to businesses…in an unbiased, neutral, nonpolitical place where we’re not taking a side or creating opinions, we just want to give good information.”
January 26, 2023
When his phone rang, Ron Niland reached into the depths of his closet to locate and dust off his town manager’s hat so he could help “get things straightened out” down in Rural Hall.
The former Mount Airy town manager and mayor answered the call and is now back at the helm of the town of 3,500 in Forsyth County following the abrupt resignation of its town manager.
“This wasn’t something I anticipated,” Niland said Wednesday while wondering aloud why his new role as interim manager for the town would be newsworthy to the folks of Surry County. He said he was happy to step back into a public service role again even though he had been trying to, “Get more retired.”
He steps in to fill the role of town manager for Rural Hall and oversee the day-to-day operations of the town and its staff of 22. He will be charged with making sure the town continues forward on projects that had already been initiated such as work on a fire station and park improvements.
Niland also pointed to the calendar and the fact that budget season is right around the corner. The fact that he has been around the business end of a budget having participated in both the writing of and implementation of a town budget means his expertise will help smooth over the transition for a town finding itself again in leadership transition.
There is not a deep bench when it comes to municipal and county level governments, so while Niland may have lost his bid to be elected mayor in Mount Airy in November, his decades of expertise were not simply lost to the wind. “It worked out to where it was mutually beneficial for both parties,” he said.
His company, All American Associated of Mount Airy Inc. was already consulting the town of Rural Hall. There was a familiarity that led them to feel this to be a good fit for all parties. “They knew I had a management background and since I was already working with them, they asked me to do it.”
All American Associates will continue in its consulting role for the town for their fee of $1,800 per month and compensation for Niland to lead Rural Hall is to be $3,000 per month; the former mayor will draw no benefits from the town.
Rural Hall’s previous town manager, Misty Meadows, resigned last week before Niland was tapped to serve. Mayor Tim Flinchum and members of city government have remained silent about her departure.
There has been some degree of confusion and controversy about a multi-car traffic accident Meadows was in while driving a town-owned car. Court documents released to some media outles show the police were not called and there was no investigation of that accident. Her insurance covered all the damage to all three vehicles as a child of hers was driving the vehicle that caused the read-end collision between the three cars — the town’s included, according to those media reports.
Separately, the town has been under review from the state treasurer’s office since November 2021 over $1.5 million that was reportedly missing from the town’s account, “Citizens and property taxpayers deserve to know that governance, competency and transparency exist with the administration of the finances of Rural Hall,” state treasurer Dale Folwell said at the time. There has been no final audit report nor has any connection been made between the traffic accident or the audit to the departure of Meadows.
Meadows was herself a replacement manager after having served as the town’s administrative assistant and town clerk before taking over as manager in late 2021. In October of that year, the town had a wave of “apparently coordinated resignations,” as Flinchum called it. Meadows’ predecessor, Town Manager Megan Garner, the Mayor Pro Tem, the town attorney, and two councilmen all quit on the same day.
Niland noted that there has been an increased difficulty in filling local and county level government jobs, a problem that is part due to declining interest in that type of work and partially a demographic shift.
“You had a large group that came through at once and the Baby Boomers are aging out. As the population available to the work force has gotten smaller, it has become harder to fill these municipal and local government jobs. You see the same problems with teachers who are hitting a wall of retirement,” he said.
There is simply a declining number of bodies in the available workforce pool he said noting that in 1990 when he applied to be Mount Airy city manager, there were 72 applicants for the job. “This last cycle there was 17. I know Mount Airy and Rural Hall are both looking for finance officers too, it’s hard to find people — the numbers just aren’t there.”
“It may hit local government more critically because these are not the highest paying jobs and now there is increased scrutiny of these jobs as well,” Niland noted, “but this is facing all professions.”
“I look forward to serving Rural Hall until such time as a new manager can be found,” he said estimating that it could take four to six months to find the next town manager.
January 26, 2023
An art therapy coloring book might seem like a fine arts or a psychology project, but for students in Dr. Kathleen Fowler’s Writing and research in the disciplines class at Surry Community College, it became a way to turn research into community service.
The purpose of the project was to engage student interest in the research process by showing them how their findings can be turned into service projects that help in their local communities. Students started by identifying their topic: teen mental health. Many teens struggle with issues such as stress, anxiety, depression, unresolved trauma, and suicidal thoughts.
The research suggested the benefits of art therapy to help teens process their emotions. Based on these research findings, the students partnered with other youth groups on the SCC campus including the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, the Knight’s Alliance, and the Math Club, and then they developed an art therapy coloring book for local teens in crisis. The result was an 88-page collection of images that brought a smile to the face.
The students contacted local organizations that routinely help teens and young adults recovering from trauma and abuse – Crossnore Communities for Children, the Children’s Center of Surry, and the YVEDDI Domestic Violence/Sexual Assault Program. Representatives at each organization were eager to receive donated copies of the coloring book and crayons.
The research that the students did for this project helped them gain perspective on how many young people in their community struggle with anxiety and depression. Their hope was to create an artistic outlet to promote mental health. In the words of the student project coordinator, Alex Young, “We see your struggle, and we want to help. Someone cares about you.”
The students realized that through informed research, they had the power to create meaningful projects and carry them through to completion.
“Students can do more than just learn about a problem. They can do something to help. It was a joy for them to see people’s faces lit up when they handed them the coloring books,” Fowler said.
January 25, 2023
• An Ararat man already headed to jail on an order for arrest for failing to appear in court worsened his situation by being charged with a felony drug violation upon being taken into custody, according to Mount Airy Police Department reports.
Leonard Ivan Conner Jr., 57, of 199 Casey Lane, was encountered at Northern Regional Hospital last Friday by officers attempting the warrant service for the arrest order that had been filed in September 2021.
He subsequently was found with a plastic baggy containing a crystal-like material and charged with possession of methamphetamine.
Conner, who police records state was confined in the Surry County Jail, with no bond figure listed, is scheduled to appear in District Court next Monday.
• U.S. Trailer Manufacturing, a business in the 1000 block of Worth Street, was the scene of a larceny discovered Sunday which also involved property damage.
A 5-foot-by-10-foot utility trailer, black in color and valued at $2,200, was taken from the site after a steel chain to a gate was cut, causing damage put at $50.
• Marty Lee Draughn, 45, of 428 Junction St., was served Monday with a criminal summons for a school attendance law violation which had been issued Friday through the Surry County clerk of court, police records state.
Draughn is facing a Feb. 10 appearance in Surry District Court.
• An undisclosed sum of money was stolen from an oil change and lubrication shop located at 2103 Rockford St. during a break-in discovered Saturday.
A garage door was kicked in to gain entry.
• Calvin Wayne Colyer, a resident of Flower Charm Lane, told police last Saturday that he had become a victim of a crime at his home involving the obtaining of property by false pretense via an online scam.
It resulted in an unknown suspect receiving $105, police records state.
January 25, 2023
Partners Health Management has issued an invitation for members of the community to participate in “Question, Persuade, and Refer Suicide Prevention Training” this weekend in Jonesville.
“In this training, you will learn how to act as a ‘Gatekeeper,’ which is something we want all our community members to learn about. This is super important information, as we are seeing an increase in our counties,” the program coordinators wrote.
Just as people trained in CPR and the Heimlich maneuver help save thousands of lives each year, people trained in QPR learn how to recognize the warning signs of suicide and how to “question, persuade, and refer” someone to help.
“Each year thousands of people, like you, are saying ‘yes’ to saving the life of a friend, colleague, sibling or neighbor. QPR can be learned in our Gatekeeper course in as little as one hour,” organizers said.
According to the Surgeon General’s National Strategy for Suicide Prevention, a Gatekeeper is someone who can recognize a crisis and the warning signs that someone may be contemplating an act of self-harm or suicide.
As a QPR-trained Gatekeeper participants will learn to recognize warning signs and know how to get help to save a life. Often this can be accomplished by providing hope to someone in need during a time of desperation.
The event is being held on Saturday, Jan. 28, from 10 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. at New Beginnings United Methodist Church located at 311 W. Main St., Jonesville.
Space in this training session is limited. For more information contact Beth Brooks, Partners Member Engagement Supervisor, at 336 527-3225.
January 25, 2023
Two Surry County men were arrested and charged with drug trafficking, among other offenses, as the result of a long-running probe by law enforcement.
Tommy Lee Coleman Jr., 30, of 8548 West Pine Street, Lowgap, and Jamie Ray Gammons, 41, of 441 Crotts Road, Mount Airy, were each arrested after search warrants were served at their homes, according to the Surry County Sheriff’s Office. Coleman was charged with 14 different criminal offenses, while Gammons was hit with six charges. Each man was jailed under secured bonds exceeding a quarter of a million dollars.
According to a statement, the first charges, against Coleman, came after a search warrant was served at his residence, 8548 West Pine Street in Lowgap, on Jan. 5 after a “month-long investigation for illegal distribution of controlled substance. During the search of the property, detectives located trafficking amount of methamphetamine, stolen firearms, marijuana, and assorted items of drug paraphernalia,” the statement said.
Detectives arrested Coleman and charged him with two counts of trafficking methamphetamine, one count of felony maintaining a drug dwelling, one count of felony possession of firearm by felon, one count of felony possession of a stolen firearm, one count of possession of marijuana, one count of possession of drug paraphernalia, and one count of possession of marijuana paraphernalia.
He was jailed under a $124,000 secured bond with a Jan. 25 court date. Additionally, he was charged with criminal processes for four counts of trafficking methamphetamine, one count of felony maintaining a drug vehicle, and one count of possession of drug paraphernalia, all of which resulted in an additional secured bond of $205,500.
On Jan. 11, county authorities executed a search warrant at Gammons’ home, at 441 Crotts Road in Mount Airy. This also came after a month-long probe, the sheriff’s office said.
“During the search of the property, detectives located trafficking amount of methamphetamine, marijuana, and assorted items of drug paraphernalia.”
Detectives arrested Gammons and charged him with two counts of trafficking methamphetamine, one count of felony maintaining a drug dwelling, one count of possession of marijuana, one count of possession of drug paraphernalia, and one count of possession of marijuana paraphernalia. Gammons was placed under a $300,000 secured bond with a Jan. 25 scheduled court date.
The statement said that during the execution of both search warrants, Surry County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by the Mount Airy Police Department, North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, and Homeland Security.
January 25, 2023
Some lottery players have meticulous systems or special numbers they rely on constantly in an effort to win, but a Mount Airy man basically stumbled into a $100,000 bounty.
Craig Cox captured that top prize in the Cash 5 Bonus Cash promotion, which he had entered unknowingly.
That promotion involves players who spend $5 or more on a single Carolina Cash 5 ticket in a retail location receiving an automatic entry into a special drawing.
Cox’s good fortune occurred last week in the second drawing for the Bonus Cash payout. Each drawing offers one prize of $100,000 and 40 prizes of $500.
“Most of the time when I play Cash 5 I buy five tickets,” the Mount Airy man told lottery officials regarding the game that involves a player matching each of five white balls, in any order, to win a jackpot.
“I guess this was a lucky break for me,” he said of his entry in the special drawing.
The 59-year-old warehouse worker had bought his Cash 5 ticket from The Cupboard No. 2, a store on Old U.S. 601 in the White Plains community just outside Mount Airy.
He subsequently journeyed to North Carolina Education Lottery headquarters in Raleigh and took home $71,250 after required state and federal tax withholdings.
“This is definitely going to help me,” added Cox, who plans to use his winnings for home renovations.
The Cash 5 Bonus Cash promotion runs through Sunday, with one more drawing scheduled. The entry deadline for the last drawing that day will set the stage for the final selection on Monday.
Cash 5 tickets cost $1, with drawings held nightly. The odds of winning a Cash 5 jackpot are 1 in 962,598, with this past Monday’s jackpot, for example, listed as $331,000.
Ticket sales from draw games make it possible for the state lottery to raise an average of $2.5 million per day for education, according to officials in Raleigh.
Last year, Surry County received $6 million, including a $1.7 million school construction grant, to support educational programs locally.
January 25, 2023
A Mount Airy woman who went missing for nearly a week after her car ran out of gas along a local road has turned up safe, according to city police.
The Jan. 18 disappearance of Rebecca Tackett Hawks, 41, had attracted regional attention after she reportedly was left stranded when the problem with the vehicle occurred on Westlake Drive near Boggs Drive off U.S. 52.
Hawks is said to have been on her way to a doctor’s appointment at the time and notified her sisters about the situation, asking for someone to bring her more fuel. But when help arrived, the keys were found in the ignition, the woman had vanished and remained so for more than six days.
Although Police Chief Dale Watson had advised earlier this week that no foul play was suspected based on evidence gathered so far, family members were especially worried because Hawks recently underwent a procedure requiring her to take medication.
The story now has a happy ending.
“She is back — we have talked with her,” Watson said Wednesday. “She is safe — she is back with her family.”
It was thought that Hawks might have been in another state during the time she was missing, but her exact whereabouts were not immediately known.
“She was back in our jurisdiction late last night or early this morning,” the police chief added Wednesday.
He said there was nothing to indicate that Hawks had been taken somewhere against her will or otherwise detained, mentioning that all actions on her part were “voluntary.”
“She was with acquaintances the whole time.”
Hawks has not disclosed to authorities where she went and why, the police chief said. “As far as I’m aware, she really didn’t provide an explanation.”
One media report quoted Hawks’ sisters as saying they weren’t sure if she had just run away, but wanted to know that she was safe.
The case of the missing local woman — including appeals to the public for information — was widely circulated among both newspapers and television stations in both North and South Carolina, through social media channels and also on YouTube.
It also attracted attention from the AWARE Foundation Inc., a non-profit organization based in Roanoke, Virginia, that helps find missing persons, which circulated word of the Mount Airy resident’s disappearance.
Information about Hawks also appeared on the websleuths.com site that spreads information about such incidents.
January 25, 2023
Art students from Gentry Middle School placed fourth in the state at the North Carolina Association for Scholastic Activities Art Showcase held at Atkins High School.
Each student created her own original artwork, within a specific category, based on the prompt “What’s So Funny.”
Two students also took first-place honors in their respective categories. The team of eight art students, and the medium in which they worked, are: Bryson Melton, printmaking; Anthony Gallegos, computer generated; Emily Cabrera, drawing; Isabella Cabrera, painting, first place honors; Maria Armenta, mixed media; Abbie Johnston, sculpture, first place honors; Gabby Richardson, photography, Catherine Chaire, collage.
January 25, 2023
STUART, Va. — An Ararat woman is facing an upcoming court appearance on a charge of attempted second-degree murder for allegedly trying to stab a man and expressing a desire to kill him.
She has been identified by the Patrick County Sheriff’s Office as Janice Marshall, 70, of 2355 Willis Gap Road.
Marshall’s arrest on the felony attempted murder charge stems from a call to that location last week.
Patrick County Sheriff Dan Smith did not respond to a Tuesday email request for information about the case and an attempt to reach him by telephone also was unsuccessful.
However, based on media reports in Virginia which referenced comments from Smith, deputies were summoned to Marshall’s home on the morning of Jan. 18 to investigate an incident there.
Those officers, Sgt. Winfred Hill and Lt. Dustin Foley, found Marshall and Benton Hall, 58, also believed to be a resident of Ararat, inside the house on Willis Gap Road.
Hall advised them that the woman had attempted to stab him with a knife, based on multiple reports quoting a news release from Patrick County authorities. A knife was located at the scene and collected as evidence.
Sheriff Smith is quoted as saying the investigation by Hill and Foley found that Marshall had made an effort to stab Hall and also advised the officers she “wished she had killed him.”
No significant injuries were reported to Hall.
There has been no information emerging about a motive and other circumstances that led to the altercation, or the relationship between Marshall and the alleged victim.
At last report, the Ararat woman was being held without privilege of bond in the Patrick County Jail at Stuart.
She was scheduled to appear in General District Court there for an arraignment last Thursday, according to court records.
But the case reportedly has been rescheduled to the Feb. 24 court session.
January 24, 2023
Mount Airy’s Debbie King was recently recognized for her work as coordinator of Toys for Tots, receiving an associate’s award from the Marine Corps League for “outstanding management of Toys for Tots.”
That management includes leading the annual Christmas effort in supplying toys for an ever-widening group of needy children in the area, despite growing challenges in collecting money and toys.
King has been a volunteer with the program for 12 years, the past five of which she has served as the director.
“We actually helped more families this year,” she said. The group helped 177 families — an increase over previous years — which meant getting presents for 503 children.
That, she explained, was just the numbers the group helped directly. Working with the Salvation Army and several other groups, she said “We helped 1,327 kids.”
Getting toys to kids has proven challenging in recent years, she said, for various reasons. In 2020, and to a lesser extent 2021, it was difficult because of COVID-19 restrictions. Those rules kept shopping crowds down, which meant donations they usually receive during the holidays from shoppers were down as well.
Then in 2022, she said another blow came when they lost their spot outside of the Walmart stores in Mount Airy and Elkin.
“Walmart changed its policy,” she said of how groups get permission to stand outside the stores and collect donations. With the loss of those days outside the local Walmart stores, visibility — and donations — dropped.
“As far as donations, we collected less, $2,000 less in 2022 than we did in 2021,” she said, adding that 2021 was already a down year because of COVID. “People coming out of Walmart, they tend to drop $10s and $20s, instead of single dollars, especially in Elkin.”
She was able to offset that by applying for grants — her agency received $1,000 recently from the Mount Airy Rotary Club.
And, King said she worked to get more businesses involved in collecting toys, which really seemed to pay dividends.
Toys for Tots often places large boxes around town at participating businesses, where customers and employees can drop new toys they’ve bought for the cause. This past year, she said her group picked up the boxes on Dec. 12.
“The donation of toys were a little slow coming in, but when we went to pick up the boxes on Dec. 12, the last day, I counted over 2,500 toys. That helped a lot, in places where I didn’t have have something a toy a child wanted, because I wasn’t able to buy enough toys, now I did because of those donations.”
She also credited a cruise-in at the National Guard Armory organized by Wes Arnder, with helping to bring in needed money and toy donations. Later, she said Arnder, along with Nick Biggs and Philip Brentle, helped tremendously in picking up the loaded toy boxes and helping them distribute the toys.
“Our Marines are very willing to help,” she said of the Marine Corps League. “But the youngest person who helps on a regular basis is 72.”
For now, she said she and others will be looking for additional ways to find partners for 2023, with the official campaign kick-off set for October, although her group will be helping with a May cruise-in to honor veterans at the National Guard Armory. “We’ll help with that, and ask for donations there. Instead of Christmas in July, we’ll make it Christmas in May.”
She is hoping more local businesses will get involved — “If every business in the chamber donated $25, I wouldn’t have to stand outside of Walmart, I wouldn’t have 70-year-olds standing outside in the cold, the rain, in the heat.” That figure, she said would meet virtually all of their needs.
January 24, 2023
The ranks of two key advisory boards in Mount Airy have been bolstered by a reappointment/appointment process, including the Mount Airy Tourism Development Authority and the city Housing Authority.
Jennifer Wilson was appointed to the tourism body, while Ellie Webb was reappointed to that group.
The Tourism Development Authority has seven voting members who oversee marketing efforts for the city using proceeds from an occupancy tax levied at lodging establishments.
They include persons from specified categories such as owners or operators of taxable tourist accommodations, representatives from the Greater Mount Airy Chamber of Commerce, persons with experience in the promotion of travel/tourism and others.
Wilson is director of sales and assistant general manager of Holiday Inn Express and was approved for a three-year term to end on Jan. 15, 2026. She is replacing Mikel Snow, who no longer was eligible for reappointment in the taxable tourist accommodations category.
Webb was reappointed to the Tourism Development Authority as a chamber representative, approved for a new three-year stint that also will expire on Jan. 15, 2026.
The Mount Airy Board of Commissioners took the actions regarding Wilson and Webb during a meeting earlier this month.
Also appointed to the tourism group to a three-year term with the same time frame was Commissioner Tom Koch, to represent the municipality.
City Finance Director Pam Stone additionally was reappointed to a one-year term as an ex-officio, non-voting member of the Tourism Development Authority, to expire on Jan. 15, 2024. Stone provides oversight of the substantial revenues involved.
Fawcett re-upped
During the same commissioners meeting, G. Thomas Fawcett was reappointed to the governing board of the Housing Authority, which oversees public housing facilities in Mount Airy.
Fawcett, whose present term will expire next month, was approved for a new five-year one to run until Feb. 16, 2028.
The Housing Authority of Mount Airy has been described as the largest landlord in town. The private, federally funded corporation manages hundreds of apartments at multiple locations.
City council members are responsible for selecting local housing authority members even though the operation manages public residential units on behalf of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
January 24, 2023
Thirteen students recently graduated from Surry Community College’s Basic Law Enforcement Training (BLET) program.
The program graduation was held Dec. 19 in the Grand Hall of the Shelton-Badgett North Carolina Center for Viticulture & Enology on Surry’s campus in Dobson.
The fall day class graduates are Brandon Davis and Zack Yarbrough of Mount Airy; Kyley Cook of Jonesville; Timothy Barker of Ronda; Dalton Poindexter of Tobaccoville; and Jeffrey Jennings of Winston-Salem. Timothy Barker was the class president.
The fall night class graduates are Colton Medlin of Boonville; Adam Gunnell of East Bend; Jaylon Driver of Mocksville; Shaun Read and Anthony Triplett of North Wilkesboro; and Devin Bullington and Alexander Jackson of Pinnacle.
Each class has a 100% pass rate on the state exam, and more than 80% of graduates were employed by the end of the course.
“The college is so proud of our BLET program,” said SCC President Dr. David Shockley. “The students performed admirably throughout the entire course of instruction, and our faculty are second to none. Additionally, I want to express my sincere gratitude to our entire law enforcement community whose continued support allows our BLET program to achieve these results.”
The Basic Law Enforcement Training program is a 739-hour program designed to prepare entry level individuals with the cognitive and physical skills to become certified police officers and deputy sheriffs in the state of North Carolina. The college schedules three classes a year. A day class is normally scheduled to start in January, a night class in May, and a second day class scheduled in June.
Persons desiring to become sworn law enforcement officers in North Carolina must successfully complete this course in its entirety and pass a state exam. To qualify for admission, an individual must meet the same requirements as those mandated by the NC Criminal Justice Standards/NC Sheriffs’ Standards Commission for a sworn law enforcement officer.
Course fees include $180 for tuition, $750 for books, a $125 ammo fee, a $40 drug test, a $3 insurance fee and approximately $200 for uniforms. Course tuition may be waived through a law enforcement agency sponsorship. Other financial assistance may also be available to qualified individuals. Prospective students should contact Jim McHone, director of law enforcement training, at 336-386-3292 or mchonej@surry.edu for an interview appointment and to receive the application packet.
January 24, 2023
East Surry High School had six Interact Students attend the Rotary Youth Peace Conference, in which Interact Students from across Surry County came together to participate in student engagement activities that helped them define what peace is and why it is important.
These students used that mindset to roll up their sleeves and work on special projects at Helping Hands and The Shepherds house. Students organized the food pantry, clothing donations, toiletry bags, and even built flower beds.
After they completed their service projects, students walked over to the City Hall of Mount Airy where they were each presented with a certificate of completion of the Rotary Youth Peace Conference by Mayor Jon Cawley and City Manager Stan Farmer.
January 24, 2023
The N.C. Department of Transportation is alerting drivers in the Pilot Mountain area of a temporary lane closure this week at a bridge on U.S. 52.
It is scheduled to begin Wednesday at 8 a.m. along a stretch of the southbound portion of that highway between mile markers 139 and 134. A contractor for the DOT will implement the closure to allow work to occur on the bridge.
The project is slated for completion Friday, weather permitting.
Crews will be repairing spalling, a condition in which concrete on the bridge deck has broken, flaked or eroded.
Motorists are reminded to slow down and remain alert when approaching the work zone.
Real-time travel information is available by visiting DriveNC.gov or following the N.C. Department of Transportation on social media.
January 24, 2023
A man who helped perpetuate the spirit of Mayberry in Mount Airy by developing one of its most-popular tourism sites has been recognized posthumously by local government officials.
Wes Collins is known for buying property at 625 S. Main St. with the intention of developing it into a site that replicated Wally’s Service Station from “The Andy Griffith Show.”
Over the years, Collins added the Mayberry Hotel and Mayberry Union High School attractions to that property, according to a city resolution prepared to honor his memory.
It also is the place where Mayberry Squad Car Tours leave from as visitors enjoy rides to key spots around town in 1960s-era Ford Galaxies reminiscent of the show.
A replica of the Mayberry Courthouse additionally is located there.
The resolution citing Collins’ contributions was highlighted during a meeting of the Mount Airy Board of Commissioners last Thursday night. It was presented to Collins’ son Chris and daughter-in-law Kelly by Mayor Jon Cawley.
Along with the resolution being read aloud to the audience assembled in council chambers by Cawley, he offered personal comments about Wes Collins, saying “he answered a question” that many local residents had heard over the years:
“People would stop you on the street and ask ‘what is there to do?’” the mayor said of a query made often by out-of-towners looking for places to be amused.
With the development of the Mayberry facilities on South Main Street — not far from City Hall — “that question stopped,” according to Cawley.
“Mr. Collins, with hard work, dedication and perseverance, developed this site to become one of the most-visited tourist attractions in Mount Airy,” the city resolution states. “Mr. Collins was a strong supporter of ‘The Andy Griffith Show’ as well as Mount Airy tourism and was a faithful participant in the Mayberry Days Parade.”
Aside from his role in Mount Airy tourism were the personal qualities exhibited by the man whom Cawley said died in late October.
“Wes Collins was a friend,” the mayor commented.
The resolution states that “his death leaves the community with a deep feeling of sorrow over the loss of such a dedicated and respected citizen.”
Collins was born in Claudville, Virginia, and worked for Quality Mills in Mount Airy, with his professional career including serving as a company liaison for Valspar and many furniture industries until retiring in 2013.
“Mr. Collins earned the respect, admiration and high regard of all with whom he came into contact and our community has suffered a great loss in his passing,” the city resolution also says. “Mr. Collins’ dedication to the citizens and visitors of Mount Airy and devotion to his family are to be commended.”
The document goes on to say that Mount Airy officials wanted to recognize Collins and “his many contributions to our city and its citizens.”
It expresses deep appreciation for his service to the community while also extending sympathy to Collins’ family over his passing.
January 23, 2023
Over the past year more than a few issues have reached the Surry County Board of Commissioners involving rezoning and the county’s Land Use Plan. More specifically, residents were able to use the language found within the plan as their ammunition in a rezoning fight that kept the corner of Quaker Road and Westfield Road as residence wanted as opposed to where developers had eyed a new Dollar General location.
The Land Use Plan is in need of revision, and the county is completing an update of the Code of Ordinances as directed by the General Assembly to conform with state general statutes. The update will allow for recommended modernization to the ordinances which will affect land use regulations.
There are updates that are being considered that would include changes to zoning subdivisions, nonconforming uses, recreational vehicles, and grandfathered salvage lots/junkyards. The issue of junkyards returning to business after a long period of closure was on issue the board heard briefly last year. This guidance will help establish the rules of the road going forward on flood, watershed, and mountain ridge protection as well as membership on the Planning Board and Board of Adjustment.
This is to be the first modernization in decades of the land use regulation and counties across the state are working to comply with the new requirements. Prior to review of the Surry County Planning Board and Board of Commissioners, the public is being solicited for their input and public comment on the changes.
Two public input sessions are going to be held, the first of which is Thursday, Jan. 26, from 4 – 7:30 p.m. at the Surry County Service Center at 915 E. Atkins St., Dobson: and, Tuesday, Jan. 31, at the same location. County Manager Chris Knopf called these “drop in” sessions so the public can stop by, leave a comment, and be right back on their way. Suggestions will be accepted by email through Feb. 17 and the board will consider the changes at that time.
A public hearing will be required before any changes can be approved, which is scheduled tentatively for March 20.
The proposed modernization and updates to the Code of Ordinances are available on the county’s website: htttp://www.co.surry.nc.us.
In other board of commissioner’s news:
– The Surry County Tax Department sent through their end of the year report showing that county residents are once again paying their taxes on time, something the board is always appreciative of. The end of year 2022 report showed the rate of collection for the county was 99.15%.
– Surry County Emergency Management Director Eric Southern made a request to make a change to his department. He was approved to reclassify one job from a clerical position to one of clerical/morgue attendant retroactive to the first of the year.
– County Human Resources reported submitted to the board a report on claims and settlements from the county’s worker’s compensation fund. In the fourth quarter of the 2022 calendar year, the department paid out $3,488.52 in wages, $16,999.56 in medical claims, and $467.07 was reported as an “other” cost totaling $20,955.15 paid out from the workers comp fund last quarter.
– Finally, it is usually easy to tell when there are Eagle Scouts to be recognized as a board meeting as the on-street parking around the Historic Courthouse in Dobson find themselves full well before the meeting’s start time. Parents tend not to want to miss the big occasion, nor does Commissioner Bill Goins miss an opportunity to recall his days as a scout and what it meant to him, “Even though the uniform doesn’t fit anymore.”
To reach the rank of Eagle Scout is the culmination of years of effort, hard work, and a capstone service project to wrap it all neatly in a bow. It is not an easy endeavor and Goins often reminds the Eagle Scouts that their accomplishment truly means something. Potential colleges and future employers will take note that of the designation of Eagle Scout and expect excellence when they are found.
Honored before the county commissioner last week were: Jacob Alan Smith, Mitchell Todd Caudle, Benjamin Isaac Delacruz, Edward Arnold Radford III, Byron Hall Carson, Bryson Patrick McBride, Marcus Jay Opsal, Max Issac Cummings-Flinchum, and Jordan Robert Inman.
The Eagle Scouts had service projects including batting cage improvements to Graham Field, a tennis backstop for practice at Mount Airy High, a trophy case to display the winnings of the West Stokes High marching band, flag pole erection, adding blessing boxes, and a kitchen renovation at First United Methodist Church of Pilot Mountain.
January 23, 2023
Information is being sought about a woman who disappeared in Mount Airy last week after her car ran out of gas, according to city police.
As of Monday, Rebecca Tackett Hawks, 41, had not been seen for five days, with information as to her whereabouts continuing to be solicited from the public.
Hawks, who has been listed with addresses in both Mount Airy and Pinnacle, is said to have vanished Wednesday in the area of Westlake Drive near Boggs Drive off U.S. 52-North in the vicinity of Westwood Recreation Park.
The car had run out of gas as Hawks was on the way to a doctor’s appointment, according to information released from one source. She was spotted after that occurred.
“At this point, we do not suspect any foul play,” city Police Chief Dale Watson said Monday, based on evidence gathered so far in the case.
Watson added that investigators are exploring all leads received to determine Hawks’ location.
“We’re doing our due diligence,” the chief said, “everything we can to make sure she is safe.”
Anyone with information about Hawks is urged to contact the Mount Airy Police Department at 336-786-3535.
When she disappeared the woman was wearing a black shirt and blue jeans, according to police. She is described as 5 feet, 3 inches tall and weighing about 110 pounds.
In addition to attempts by police and family members to locate Hawks through channels including social media, the case reportedly has attracted the attention of the AWARE Foundation Inc. It is a non-profit organization based in Roanoke, Virginia, which helps find missing persons and is circulating word of the local resident’s disappearance.
Information about Hawks also is appearing on the websleuths.com site that spreads information about such incidents.
Multiple photographs of Hawks were released as part of the search process, which have been posted by various media outlets in the Carolinas.
January 23, 2023
PILOT MOUNTAIN — The Pilot Mountain Outreach Center has received $2,400 from the Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation to help feed neighbors in their time of need. The Pilot Mountain Outreach Center will use the gift to purchase cereal for clients of the food pantry, officials there said.
Karen Caparolie, an Outreach Center director, expressed appreciation for this Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation gift, which will allow the organization to “provide a much-needed nutritious addition to our food distribution.”
The Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation is committed to supporting families facing food insecurity across its 10-state footprint. Established in 2001, the foundation provides financial support for programs and organizations dedicated to feeding local neighbors in the communities it serves. Since its inception, the foundation has awarded nearly $17 million in grants.
January 22, 2023
Plenty of business gurus are willing to spout ideas on how to grow a business, or how to create a positive corporate culture, or even how to grow sales.
On Thursday night, nearly 300 people attending the Greater Mount Airy Chamber of Commerce’s annual meeting heard not from a business school guru, but from someone who is doing it in the real world — on a nearly billion-dollar scale.
Jennifer Mauldin, president and chief client officer of Inmar Intelligence, was the keynote speaker for the 62nd annual meeting, held at Cross Creek Country Club. There, she shared some of her insights gleaned from a career at the firm, helping it grow from a $30 million a year business to one that bills nearly $1 billion annually.
First on her list is to make sure your business practices are “led by your client needs.”
She explained how that philosophy has been a driver of success at Inmar. Her firm, she explained, was one that developed and manages software which some of the nation’s largest retailers and manufacturers.
At its essence, she said retailers will often print discount coupons, the ones in this weekend’s Mount Airy News would be examples, and customers use these coupons when they shop. Her software will track the coupons once they are used at a store, ensuring retailers get payment from manufacturers for the coupon discounts given, and that retailers get only the amount of money they are due.
That technology, she explained, revolutionized the business practices of manufacturers and retailers — prior to her firm, retailers would simply bag and weigh the coupons, and then submit invoices for reimbursement for the number of coupons collected based on that weight measurement. This practice left manufacturers open to overcharges through unintentional, and sometimes intentional, fraud.
Over the years, she said, her firm discovered pharmacies were having difficulty getting proper reimbursement payments from insurance companies, often carrying those reimbursements as receivables due on their balance sheets rather than actually getting the money.
Inmar, she said, saw this and adapted its technology to be able to track — and get — the proper insurance payments due to pharmacies.
This, she said, was an example of her business seeing a potential client need, and then adapting its process and software to meet the client.
“We were dealing with businesses who had a business problem,” she said of Inmar’s expansion. “We didn’t go into a think-tank to come up with a new business” that might not meet client needs, she said.
Another key, she told those at the meeting, is to embrace technology and understand that will mean constant change and challenge.
As an example, she showed images on a screen depicting how something as simple as getting messages for a business person has changed. Twenty years ago, if a person left the office for lunch, he or she may return to find a pink “While you were gone” memo on the desk.
Along the years that gave way to big bulky bag phones individuals could carry with them, then Blackberries, and now Smart Phones — where one can not only receive messages while on the go, but set up and operate from just about any remote location using only the phone.
That technology change — and the speed with which change will occur — will continue to accelerate to far greater degrees in coming years, including the infiltration of artificial intelligence into just about every business field.
“If AI is not on your radar, you will be left behind,” she cautioned.
A third key, she said, is placing an emphasis on diversity and equality initiatives, to bring in folks from different cultural, education, and personal backgrounds.
It is that diversity within one’s workforce which is a key to growth, to finding ways to adapt to the constant change of the world.
Other speakers
Chris Lumsden, president and CEO of Northern Hospital who served as the chamber’s board chairman during 2021, was the first speaker of the night, welcoming the 270 people attending the meeting.
Lumsden remarked on the challenges the chamber and the entire Mount Airy business community has faced over the past three years, particularly with the COVID-19 pandemic, and on how much respect and admiration he has for the leadership and professionalism of outgoing chair, Connie Hamlin.
Despite all of the positive attributes of Surry County — the top-flight schools, the abundance of outdoor activities, two award-winning hospitals, and a long line of other attributes he listed — he said what makes it one of the best communities in the United States “is the people.”
“I know firsthand what a great community you have here in Surry County,” he said. “I know the quality and goodness of the people we have here in Surry County.”
Hamlin, in her remarks, thanked the chamber for “the opportunity to serve.” She said she considered it an honor to have been the chamber’s president over the past year, an “opportunity to be part of an elite group of leaders.”
Lenise Lynch, who officially took over as board chair Thursday evening, said she is excited for the opportunity to work with so many other leaders and business people in leading the chamber over the coming twelve months.
Lynch emphasized several times during her address how critical it is for all to work together as a cohesive unit.
“We are all part of a larger cause,” she said, before repeating the phrase “Teamwork makes the dream work,” which became an oft-repeated refrain during the evening. “Alone we can do little,” she said, before adding that working together the chamber — or any other organization — can do much.
With that, she led her new team — the new and returning members of the chamber’s board of directors — into taking the oath of office and getting ready to launch into the new business year.
January 22, 2023
Samantha S. Kunz, FNP-C, has joined the Family Medicine Division of Northern Regional Hospital, where she will diagnose and treat adult and pediatric patients with a wide-range of clinical conditions that require her clinical expertise.
A native of Mount Airy, 32-year-old Kunz feels that her new role at Northern – as a fully certified Family Nurse Practitioner – is the culmination of what she’s always meant to do professionally, and where she’s always meant to be.
“I spent eight years as a nurse in Northern’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and loved every minute of dealing with my patients and their families,” she said. “But I also realized that many ICU patients are readmissions, so I became determined to advance my studies so I could be at the front-end of the patient-care spectrum in order to help keep patients out of hospitals and ICUs.”
Accordingly, one of Kunz’s patient-care goals is to educate her patients about how they can minimize or manage ongoing chronic conditions such as diabetes and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, or COPD; and also advise them about the many organizational and online resources available to them. “My treatment focus is to build a trusting and compassionate relationship with patients and their families – so they know I will do my best to help keep them as healthy as possible and out of the hospital,” she explained. “I also share with my patients the most up-to-date treatments – since medicines and therapies are always changing.”
“We are delighted to welcome Samantha Kunz to our rapidly growing primary-care practice,” said Richard Herber, MD, in announcing her appointment. “Samantha brings to our team the right combination of demonstrated clinical experience, advanced nursing knowledge, and a compassion and commitment to patients that is the hallmark of quality care at Northern Family Medicine.”
After earning a bachelor of science in nursing degree from Lenoir-Rhyne University in 2014, Kunz launched her clinical career in the 10-bed Intensive Care Unit of Northern Regional Hospital. It was there that she provided comprehensive care to clinically unstable patients with both acute and chronic illnesses.
She reflects positively on the closeness that frequently develops between ICU patients and their nurses. “Such relationships were magnified during the height of the COVID pandemic, when visitors were not allowed into hospitals,” she explains. “At that time, we nurses were our patients’ families for months at a time. And for many of our elderly patients, we used our personal phones to help them Facetime with their families at home.”
Kunz also served as charge nurse for the ICU on an as-needed basis; and also functioned as nurse preceptor, which required her to teach and train new staff and nursing students who arrived on the unit. “I very much enjoyed that part of my job because I got to focus on the educational side of things,” she said.
It was also during her tenure in Northern Regional Hospital’s ICU that Kunz’s respect and admiration for her employer grew. “While I knew I wanted to advance professionally, I also knew I wanted to remain at Northern,” she said. “The hospital’s leadership team has always treated nurses very well and been very respectful of our needs and concerns. When I mentioned I wanted to continue my studies, they were very positive and encouraging, especially my manager Patty Creed manager of Critical Care Services.”
In August 2022, Kunz graduated from Western Carolina University’s master of science, family nurse practitioner program – after having successfully completed classroom coursework and multiple clinical rotations within several key specialties, including cardiology, family medicine, geriatrics, OB/GYN, and women’s health, and urgent care.
Kunz holds certifications in basic life support, advanced cardiac life support, and advanced stroke life support. She is a member of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners.
While an undergraduate at Lenoir-Rhyne, Kunz met her husband, Matt, who works as a mortgage loan officer at a local credit union. “We’ve been together for 13 years, and married for seven of those,” she said. The young couple has two daughters — four-year-old Maggie and two-year-old Hallie — and their family has been rounded-out with two small, rambunctious dachshunds.
“We enjoy spending time together, being outside; and taking the girls to events or activities where they can play,” said Kunz.
A daughter of Monty and Dawn Simpson, Kunz enjoys doing things with family. She and her mother and sister share a common bond: baking and decorating cookies. “We get together and my mom does the baking and my sister and I do the decorating – it’s very intricate.”
To schedule an appointment with Kunz, call Northern Family Medicine at 336-786-4133 or visit Northern Family Medicine online at wearenorthern.org/ family-medicine.
January 22, 2023
STUART, Va. — The Patrick County Sheriff’s Office has announced charges against and/or arrests of residents from the greater Mount Airy area recently, including:
• Janice Marshall, 70, of 2355 Willis Gap Road, Ararat, who is accused of attempted second-degree murder, a felony;
• Elvis Xavier Santiago Rivera, 24, of 2801 Doe Run Road, Ararat, who was served with a capias (arrest warrant) for failing to obey a court order. Rivera later was charged in a separate case with two felony counts of abuse/neglect of a child with reckless disregard for life;
• Robert Lee Hodge, 42, 290 Springfield Rd., Pilot Mountain, served with a capias for failing to appear in court;
• Thatcher Lindwood Robertson, 27, of 2550 Wards Gap Road, Ararat, who was picked up on a felony probation violation, with the Martinsville Police Department making the arrest for Patrick County. Robertson later was arrested on another capias for a felony probation violation by a local deputy;
• Sherri Mitchell Hazlewood, 54, of 290 Big Dan Lake Drive, Claudville, who was served with a capias for violating conditions of bail, with the James City-County Police Department making the arrest for Patrick County;
• William Dean Nelson, 33, of 133 Hattie Lane, Dobson, charged through indictment with two felony counts of possession with intent to manufacture/etc. a Schedule I or Schedule II drug, and served with a capias for failing to appear in court;
• Brine Scott Stevenson, 52, of 1998 Pedigo Ridge Road, Claudville, charged with stalking involving a reasonable fear of death/assault/etc. and assault on a family member;
• David Lee Brown, 41, of 199 Baltimore Lane, Mount Airy, served with a capias for failing to appear in court;
• Jaclyn Lankford Janey, 42, of 926 Mitchell Road, Claudville, charged with felonious possession of Schedule I or Schedule II drugs;
• Thomas David Perry, 62, of 579 Cross Creek Drive, Mount Airy, served with a capias for failing to appear in court. Henry County authorities made the arrest for Patrick;
• Daniel Carlos McNeil, 55, of 125 Quaker Road, Mount Airy, served with a capias for a felony probation violation;
• Stephanie Dawn Davis, 43, of 144 McMillian Lane, Mount Airy, charged through indictment with possession of a Schedule I or Schedule II drug, a felony.
January 21, 2023
• Damages estimated at $15,000 occurred to a vehicle this week while parked at a local auto dealership, according to Mount Airy Police Department reports.
The incident, discovered Tuesday, targeted a Jeep Cherokee that was broken into by an unknown party who then caused damage to both its interior and exterior. The crime took place in a lot at 508 N. Andy Griffith Parkway, the address for Mount Airy Toyota, with the victims listed as Jonathan Ray Wilson and Darryl Anthyen Wilson, both of Abernathy Circle in the Thurmond community.
• Chili’s Grill and Bar on Rockford Street was the scene of a theft Wednesday, when a known suspect is said to have stolen a bag belonging to an employee of the business, Carol Jean Allen of Old U.S. 52-South, Pilot Mountain.
The loss included an undisclosed sum of money and a floral lunch box, white in color and valued at $30.
No charges had been filed in the case at last report.
• Shamal Niquan Cox, 26, listed as homeless, was charged with second-degree trespassing Wednesday at Edgewood Place Apartments, after having earlier been banned from that location by Savannah Gates, the apartment manager.
Cox is scheduled to appear in Surry District Court on Feb. 13.
• Dana Raye Smith, 51, of 1619 E. Pine St., was served Sunday with a criminal summons for a harassing phone call charge that had been initiated on Jan. 13 with Jerry Ellis Thompson as the complainant.
The case is set for the Feb. 9 District Court session.
• Bradford Wayne Parker, 56, of 1142 N. Andy Griffith Parkway, was jailed without bond under a domestic hold on Jan. 12 for an alleged domestic violence protective order violation.
It had been filed on Dec. 19 with Erica Rebecca Parker of Jasper Pointe Circle as the complainant.
Bradford Wayne Parker is facing a March 2 court appearance.
January 21, 2023
Tourism increasingly is hailed as one of the main components of Mount Airy’s economy and the person heading those efforts locally has been awarded by a regional organization for expertise in that regard.
Jessica Icenhour Roberts, who is executive director of the Mount Airy Tourism Development Authority, was recognized for her work in promoting this area as a tourism destination during the annual DIY Tourism and Local Marketing Conference recently in Asheville.
Roberts was honored in front of her peers and amongst other tourism organizations and leaders in the United States during the conference with the DIY? Because We Love You! award.
This achievement was announced Wednesday by the Mount Airy Tourism Development Authority and the Tourism Partnership of Surry County, with which Roberts also has been active.
She was recognized for her use of innovative marketing and enhancing the Mayberry brand along with other tourism assets that will keep bringing future and returning visitors to Mount Airy, according to officials of the DIY Tourism Marketing Workshop.
It was formed in 2016 to provide training for industry professionals in the region and holds annual conferences in Asheville, with the most recent one at which Roberts was awarded the sixth so far.
In 2022, DIY founders Sarah Benoit, Chris Cavanaugh and Justin Belleme had decided it was time to start a new tradition to recognize communities doing incredible work in tourism marketing.
This initiative recognized the fact that the tourism industry was hit hard by the pandemic, resulting in many marketing professionals facing unprecedented challenges. DIY officials sought to celebrate their commitment, dedication and passion.
The team behind the yearly DIY conference opted to honor up to three community tourism organizations for their work and impact in the areas they serve across the Southeast region.
These were chosen on the basis of being innovative and community building through strategies that have real, tangible impact.
Roberts “a strong leader”
The local tourism advocate received her award from the Asheville entity specifically for how she has improvised and found opportunity in times of change, while staying true to the beloved “Visit Mayberry” brand, a DIY official explained.
“She is a curious, life-long learner and I think that is what makes her such a strong leader and storyteller for her region,” Sarah Benoit, one of the DIY founders, said in a statement.
“Mount Airy has been able to honor its past and keep those memories alive, while simultaneously evolving in the moment to support the community,” added Benoit, who is familiar with Roberts’ efforts over the years.
“Jessica has played a big part in the whole region’s continued success.”
In addition to Roberts, Angela Allen from Visit Granville County and Tami Reist and Angie Pierce from the Alabama Mountain Lakes Tourism Association were award recipients.
“I feel honored to be recognized by the DIY Tourism Conference for the work that I am truly passionate about,” Roberts reacted Friday afternoon.
“My goal for our tourism efforts has always been to promote what makes our community stand out amongst other destinations and makes us unique,” added the tourism official, who has been on the job locally for about 19 years.
“We want to stay relevant and dynamic with our future marketing efforts and to keep Mount Airy on the map as a great destination that keeps bringing new visitors and repeat visitors back to our area.”
Additional efforts
Along with DIY, the local official has become involved with a number of other organizations over the years to broaden Surry County’s tourism reach.
This includes serving on the governing board of the Southeast Tourism Society, which covers 13 states and the District of Columbia.
In the spring of 2021, Roberts became president of the Blue Ridge Parkway Association, considered the marketing arm of the scenic highway.
She also chairs the Executive Committee of the North Carolina Piedmont Triad Film Commission, which works to have movie and television productions shot in Surry and other communities across the region.
January 21, 2023
The Pilot Mountain Civic Club got a lot accomplished during a lunch meeting at Cousin Gary’s with a normal slate of business and new chairman Michael Warren helming his first meeting.
All other matters needed to wait though so the club could first recognize one of their own as Pilot Mountain native Nancy Carter was chosen as the 2022 Citizen of the Year. Rick Scott presented her with a custom-made piece of art from LazerEdge as a token of the club’s esteem that depicted the state with Pilot Mountain show rising above.
The club’s past president Michelle Fallin heaped praise on Carter saying, “There is not one person here with a heart as big.” Heads nodded in agreement to that assessment and Elaine Smith later added Carter was a tough woman with a lot of inner strength.
Carter went to Pilot Elementary and was among the first freshman class at East Surry High before heading for the coast where she got her nursing degree before returning to the classrooms of UNC Charlotte where she obtained her master’s degree in nursing.
She rose to become the director of nursing for Caromont Regional Medical Center, in Gastonia, after 32 years of service. Carter was recognized as a North Carolina Great 100 nurse and achieved Nurse Executive Advanced Certification during 44 years of nursing excellence doling out tender loving care.
After retirement she moved back to her hometown of Pilot Mountain and built a home with a view of what she referred to as “her side” of the mountain. One cannot blame her for wanting to make such a claim. There are many other Pilot residents who justifiably feel the same way.
Retirement, to those not yet there, may create an image of feet up and a book in hand. Carter and those of her generation don’t seem to have gotten that memo as they seem to stay busy. She renewed her membership at the First Baptist Church, joined the Civic Club, and engaged her passion for giving back to the community.
She has served as secretary of the Civic Club for four years and participated on multiple committees and fundraising events. It was mentioned during the meeting that in clubs like these the chair or the leaders rotate out, and it is often club secretaries who are stewards through it all.
Carter has had her hands full with events such as movie night, a chili cook-off, Halloween trunk or treat, and Mayfest. She and other Civic Club members feel a special relationship with the school back-pack program and working with Hope Valley Rehab Center.
Other projects have included working with Surry County Schools social workers to purchase and pack 150 bags of food for children who might not have sufficient food other than school lunches.
As a mason jar was passed around the meeting, Carter was asked if it was a swear jar, she laughed and explained it is part of an initiative to raise quarters at each meeting for the social worker to give to families that cannot afford laundry services.
For the past two years Carter has organized and prepared Christmas bags for Hope Valley so that the residents would have a gift on Christmas. The bags include a variety of personal items, warm clothing items, and even a few sweet treats. She said a thank you note recently received stated that one resident shared this was her “best Christmas ever.” Consider that one additional vote for Carter as citizen of the year.
When not juggling community projects she enjoys crocheting and has been a member of the Prayer Shawl Ministry for four years. She has made multiple blankets and “prayer squares” to be given to shut ins and nursing home residents. After the horrific school shooting in Uvalde, Texas she contacted a local church to offer aide and support facilitating sending “prayer squares” to the church to share.
An avid reader, she said she enjoys anything Irish or Scottish and loves to travel hoping to add another new destination to the dozen countries she has visited. A crafty lady, she was made a scrapbook after every trip to share highlights.
Her kids Jennifer and Jeff she described as, “The true joy of my life.” It would be folly though to not mention another child, a spoiled mini dachshund named Lady Grace. Maybe it was Lady Grace who ate the memo saying it is okay to slow down in retirement, alas Carter remains busy and said she is looking forward to a successful year with Pilot Mountain Civic Club activities.
January 20, 2023
Memories of a tragic fire near Mount Airy were evoked before the city commissioners voted unanimously to join with Surry County officials in installing a new water line at Franklin Elementary School to increase protection there.
Although Commissioner Tom Koch specifically mentioned the February 1957 blaze at a campus on the opposite end of town in Flat Rock which claimed two lives, Thursday night’s action elicited eerie similarities to another major fire at Franklin the same month.
It struck on the morning of Feb. 6, 1957, destroying the grade school portion of the longtime educational institution on South Franklin Road which then served elementary, middle and high school students, according to a Mount Airy News article published two days later.
“Mount Airy firemen were called to the scene, but without high-pressure water facilities, they soon found the task hopeless,” it reported. “Within minutes the blaze was out of control and soon thereafter the building was a mass of flames.”
No injuries resulted, which would not be the case 16 days later on Feb. 22, 1957, when Flat Rock School erupted in flames, causing the deaths of a student and a teacher trying to rescue him.
Fast-forwarding to today, Franklin Elementary has been vulnerable to a similar condition that existed in 1957 related to water availability for fire suppression. This involves a logistical issue.
Years ago, when municipal water service was supplied along South Franklin Road in front of the campus, the line and hydrants were installed on the west, opposite side of the roadway — across the street from the campus.
“Unfortunately, this arrangement has caused the hydrants to be located several hundred feet and across the road from major buildings,” city Public Works Director Mitch Williams explained in a memo. “In addition, due to fire hose lay, the road has to be closed when there is a fire on the east side.”
Such an incident occurred in August 2018, when nearby Faith Baptist Church on the same side as the school caught fire and burned due to an electrical problem.
Agreement with county
Thursday night’s action by the Mount Airy Board of Commissioners is aimed at better protecting the school, which involved approval of an interlocal agreement with the Surry County commissioners.
The fire-improvement project calls for installing a new eight-inch line of about 650 feet and two fire hydrants on school property on the east side of South Franklin Road.
A map shows that the line will go from the existing one on the west side underneath that road, then extend perpendicularly from South Franklin along an access road through school grounds covering nearly the length of the campus.
The hydrants will be strategically placed at each end of the new water line to aid the project’s purpose of increasing protection for the school and several adjoining properties.
Its $135,000 expense is being shared equally by the city and county, with a resolution approved Thursday night stating that the actual budget figure will be $142,000 to cover possible cost overruns.
“I think this is a really good thing to do,” Commissioner Koch said Thursday night after referring to the Flat Rock fire in 1957.
“There is nothing more important than protecting our children,” he added.
“I want to thank the county for bringing this to us,” Mayor Jon Cawley said of how the project stemmed from concerns by Larry Johnson, a Surry commissioner who represents the Mount Airy District.
Cawley also seemed to address possible concerns from some citizens about the city helping to fund such an effort for a county campus.
“A lot of these students who go to Franklin Elementary School are city residents,” the mayor said in reference to local school district boundaries not matching those of the municipality.
Commissioner Deborah Cochran pointed out Thursday night that some of those youths at Franklin might even grow up to become elected officials in Mount Airy.
As part of multiple votes Thursday night, the city commissioners awarded a contract for the water line project to Greenfield Utility Construction, which had submitted the low bid for the job of $135,000.
Two other construction firms also offered bids, including one of $159,250 from C.W. Cauley and Son Inc. of Patrick Springs, Virginia, and the other, a $285,939 proposal by Smith Rowe, LLC of Mount Airy.
Smith Rowe’s bid was more than double that of Greenfield Utility Construction.
The latter was recommended for the project for its lowest bid and also the company’s “excellent working relationship” with the city on past utility contracts, according to the public works director.
January 20, 2023
A long-time educator, school board leader, and community volunteer was recognized Thursday night with the Greater Mount Airy Chamber of Commerce’s Citizen of the Year Award.
Dr. Terri E. Mosley received the honor as the highlight of the chamber’s annual meeting and awards dinner, held at Cross Creek Country Club.
Mosley, who was in attendance at the meeting, had no idea she would be the recipient, nor did she know there were 15 family members on hand to witness the honor, along with her son, who was listening in on a telephone.
Traci Haynes George, who won the same award a year earlier, presented the honor to Mosley, sharing personal stories from her own time as a student and athlete studying and playing under Mosley.
George, who said she was a mediocre athlete and a student more interested in having a good time as opposed to studying hard, said Mosley is one of the people who made a major difference in her life, encouraging her that she could be successful.
“She put her personal life second, she put those children, that team, those students, first,” George said. One time, George said, she had injured her ankle during a Friday basketball practice — just the excuse she needed to skip a planned SAT session scheduled for the next morning.
Nonsense, she said Mosley told her.
“You can come home with me and stay tonight,” she recalled her former coach and teacher saying. “We’ll take care of you, we’ll keep your ankle on ice, tomorrow I’ll take you, and we’ll make sure you can put your foot up, but you’re going to take that test.”
That commitment to her kids, George said, made Mosley stand out in her ability to point so many young people in the right direction and give support they needed.
For her part Thursday, Mosley was nearly speechless upon receiving the award.
“I very humbled,” she told the more than 270 people gathered for the event. “This is just such a wonderful community…I’m just very humbled.”
After the meeting, she spent quite a bit of time accepting hugs and congratulations from her relatives, her former students, and others.
“I’m just blown away,” she said in comments after the meeting. “There are so many people in this community who are so much more deserving, people who are out in this community making a difference every day. I’ve just been blessed to be surrounded by wonderful children and wonderful adults.”
Mosley had been nominated several times in recent years, according to chamber officials, but it was her cumulative contributions to the community — particularly in the realm of education — which stood out this year as she was selected from more than a dozen nominees for the honor.
She has accomplished just about every achievement available with her career field. After beginning her career as a substitute teacher while attending the University of Kentucky working on her master’s degree, Mosley later moved to North Carolina, where she served as both a teacher and coach at North Surry High School.
After earning a doctorate degree, she served as assistant principal, principal, and later as a central office director supervising programs in student services, student accountability, media, technology, and federal programs and eventually was named assistant superintendent for instructional services for Surry County School. In 1995, she was chosen as Surry County Schools Teacher of the Year, and in 2004 she was named Surry County Schools Principal of the Year.
After retiring, she joined the Surry County Board of Education in 2014, serving multiple years as its chairman, and serving on the North Carolina School Board Association’s board of directors, before retiring from the local school board.
Although she is not officially a member of the local school system, she continues to volunteer not only for the schools, but in a number of other agencies, all focused on helping children and youth. She serves on the board for the Children’s Center of Northwest North Carolina Inc.; serves on the Surry County Juvenile Crime Prevention Council; and volunteers at Northern Regional Hospital and Surry Medical Ministries.
“I often hear of the times that Dr. Terri Mosley took care of students in her own home, paid for student meals, fees, and school expenses,” one nominee said of Mosley’s time in the school system. “Dr. Mosley has dedicated 40 plus years to serving the students of Surry County Schools.”
She is credited with being the “mastermind” behind the creation of Surry Early College of Design, and with helping to shape local school policy that led Surry County to have the highest high school graduation rate in the school system’s history.
“She made a huge impact on me as a high school athlete who could have easily taken the wrong path,” said George. During her acceptance speech last year, George listed several key mentors who helped shape her life — Moseley being one of them.
This year, in being one of several who nominated Mosley, George said “She believed in me when I did not even believe in myself. For over 30 years, she continues to rise to the top 3 of my mentors who made a difference in my life. She would take her personal time to make sure all her student athletes had what they needed and were successful during their time under her direction. She has touched so many lives, so many I could not give a grand total. She has dedicated her live to serve others, especially an advocate for children, especially those who may need more support than what they are able to receive at home.”
While George had the opportunity to publicly voice her experiences with Mosley, they were echoed by virtually everyone who nominated her, many of whom called her a visionary, a pioneer, a trailblazer, a leader with a servant’s heart, and similar descriptions.
January 20, 2023
Surry County’s Sheriff Steve C. Hiatt, school Superintendent Dr. Travis Reeves, and the entire county school board were in attendance at Tuesday’s meeting of the county commissioners to talk about school safety and a plan to add School Resource Officers (SROs).
What can be done to protect campuses from being targeted was identified last spring as a key area of emphasis during budget planning sessions. Improved brick and mortar safety such as vestibule entry, key card access, and digital cameras are essential as are the basics — like not propping doors open.
For more aid Surry County Schools received a grant to help fund additional elementary School Resource Officers and county officials now must agree to its part of the grant, which they were unable to do at their Tuesday meeting, with some members worrying about the long-term cost of adding the SROs.
“An emergency situation like an active shooter is practically on everyone’s mind, including law enforcement and first responders,” Hiatt said in support of the plan.
“The senseless injuring or killing of a child is every parent’s worst nightmare. As sheriff I want to work closely with the school board and system to promote safety on school campuses. We must protect our teachers and our students.”
“We can never be complacent and think what we have is enough,” Reeves concurred as he outlined the plan.
The Grant
Last school year there was 175 calls for law enforcement checks at the 11 county elementary school schools versus 208 in middle and high school combined. Similarly, at the elementary level there were 1,451 security checks done compared to 439 calls from middle and high school.
Hutchens said elementary calls are so high, “because our officers are checking our schools daily, the numbers are lower at middle and high schools because we have officers that are dedicated to those campuses. Hopefully as we see our elementary SRO numbers go up, we will see the checks come down so patrol officers are more focuses on patrol.”
There are two officers rotating between all eleven of Surry County’s elementary campuses now, but Pilot Mountain will be covering the cost to add an officer at Pilot Elementary and a similar plan may be feasible for Dobson Elementary.
This grant has already been approved and granted to the school system, but the county must agree to match its part of grant to keep the four middle school SROs as well add additional elementary ones.
The state is funding $264,000 for the current and next school year to fund these officers regardless of if the county adds two or three more officers. The county would be responsible for $154,000 in year one and $132,000 in year two to get the full benefit of the grant that would add two SROs.
Reeves may have found funding for a third officer. Since 2018 a state grant has provided the county with $33,333 a year each for the four middle school SROs. Surry County’s change to a Tier 1 county — essentially a downgrade showing it is a more financially needy county — presented a silver lining of additional state grant funding.
Now the annual grant funding for those same middle school officer will be $42,688 each and Reeves suggested using that savings to hire a third additional elementary school SRO.
SRO: the Swiss Army employee
Sgt. Chad Hutchens has spent 19 years of his 26 years in law enforcement as a School Resource Officer and was on hand to explain the role to the board, informing that they are a jack of all trades. SROs are fully trained and sworn law enforcement officers who can slide into that role as they did during COVID when their presence on campuses was not needed. They are essentially crossed trained as law enforcement, SRO, school counselor, and educator.
He provided the board a pie chart showing the majority of an officer’s time should be spent on patrol, observation, and interaction with the students; actual law enforcement is not the most important part of their job, rather it is to be a part of the kids’ lives to be there as an additional resource.
“We don’t want SROs to be law enforcement officers, obviously that is part of our role in keeping kids safe, but we want to make connections with kids,” Hutchens said.
Chairman Eddie Harris asked if kids are more prone to violence now than in years past. If national numbers are to be believed, Hutchens said yes and further pointed toward a relationship kids have with a thief of time, individuality, and privacy: social media.
Social media and the internet are powerful tools that when wielded poorly can cause damage and the county’s school system has an anonymous reporting system that parents and students can use so when the see something, they can say something safely and privately. Bullying, cyberbullying, and self-harm were reported as among the top referrals from the reporting line.
Hutchens said positive interactions with a SRO yield positive outcomes. In the seven years since middle school SRO launch they have seen a correlation in improved behavior of high school students “because they interacted with a school resource officer in middle school.”
To stay sharp, deputies take to the range to practice live fire training or pursuit driving. The School Resource Officer has its own qualification, and re-qualification, and Hutchens reminded the board that even during summer these officers are still hard at work on recurring training.
Deliberative decision
Commissioner Van Tucker is not one to open the county’s wallet for just anything and rarely bites the first time an appropriation reaches the board. The discussion over adding additional officers was no different and he was not going to rush, “I wonder, Dr. Reeves if we wait a month – what happens? Other than I see it makes you nervous.”
In a separate line of probing from Tucker, Hutchens agreed that a determined party may be able to make it onto a campus regardless of what security is in place. “If someone wants to get on a campus and is determined, they can. There is nothing we can do but have an armed SRO,” he said.
Tucker sounded a warning that adding an SRO is easier than taking them away when the funding disappears, which he said the state has a track history of doing. The two-year cost projections can’t go any further, Reeves said, because they cannot predict what the state’s contribution will be.
Tucker also noted those officers require training, a car, health insurance, and 401k. All are costs that only go up from day one and will be unlikely to come back off the budget. He encouraged that all options be investigated to improve school safety including metal detectors.
The board needed time to digest the proposal and there was consensus among them that the issue needed to be tabled until the board’s next meeting at which Harris said the board would be taking up a pro-life resolution that was presented by faith leaders last year.
January 20, 2023
Teens sometimes are labeled as self-absorbed and having bad attitudes, but such assessments are unfair when one considers the accomplishments of groups such as the Surry Central High School Interact Club.
That was highlighted during a recent meeting of the Rotary Club of Mount Airy which featured a speech by Katie O’Neal, the president of the group at Surry Central, and an Interact pinning ceremony.
The Mount Airy Rotarians sponsors it and other Interact clubs in the local district. The Interact program is a branch of the Rotary organization which is open to youths 12 to 18, who are provided with opportunities to serve the community.
That is true of the Surry Central Interact Club, for which Katie detailed a long list of projects when addressing Rotary members at Cross Creek Country Club — saying these could not have occurred without their support.
Many causes aided
Although COVID curtailed activities to some extent within the past year or so, the Surry Central High School group — which had about 30 members at last report — spearheaded a number of projects during that period which have included:
• Facilitating the creation of a “Take What You Need Wall” at the school last March, offering free hygiene products to students in need. This includes toothbrushes, soap, lotion, deodorant, toothpaste and other items.
These are placed in a high-traffic hallway so as to be accessible to everyone. “Individuals and organizations throughout the community and school have donated items, and we are always in need of more,” Katie added at the Rotary meeting, calling the Take What You Need Wall her club’s “biggest contribution” to the school.
• The sponsoring of a coat drive in the front lobby of the school where students, faculty and community members were asked to donate their gently used coats. Fifty coats were collected and distributed to schools across the county.
Zibbys Drycleaners and Laundry cleaned the garments at no cost.
• Providing Christmas gifts for the Angel Tree program, for which Interact is the leading sponsor at Surry Central. During the 2021 holiday season, members sponsored three Angel Tree children, shopping to meet their needs and ensuring they enjoyed a happy Christmas. The group also spearheaded Angel Tree efforts for Christmas 2022.
• The Interact Club’s participation in a school carnival during which $800 was raised for the Dobson Food Pantry.
• Collecting relief items for individuals in Florida after Hurricane Ian struck the state in September.
“We were able to see our influence even through a small contribution,” Katie mentioned.
• Helping to sponsor Drug Prevention Week last April, when speakers from the community engaged with students to highlight the struggles of individuals on drugs.
The Surry County EMS and Surry Sheriff’s Office conducted simulations to further students’ education in drug prevention.
• Helping an individual whom Katie called a “wonderful office assistant” diagnosed with breast cancer, Julie Pratt. The Surry Central Interact Club created, organized and sponsored a charitable event on her behalf last winter.
“We brought joy to the students and community through bake sales, pink strands of love and face painting — all at a basketball game on a Tuesday night,” Katie told Rotary members. “We were able to raise $8,000, and all of it went towards Julie Pratt’s fight against cancer.”
• Sponsoring and hosting a “Pink Out” football game against North Surry High in honor of Pratt and another individual, Anita Hull. Pink Out events typically are conducted during Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October to help combat the disease.
As part of what Katie called “an outpouring of involvement in our district and school,” items were sold, decorations were set up and the stands filled on both sides in honor of Pratt and Hull. A total of $4,500 was raised and distributed to them.
“Gathering together to show support for these two amazing women provided us with inspiration for further events,” the Interact Club president said.
• Fulfilling a goal for October by providing educational opportunities at Surry Central while raising funds for charitable causes. Interact sponsored Go Gold Week, during which students and faculty could donate $2 to receive a gold ribbon that showed their support for ending childhood cancer.
Items were distributed and information was given to further the community’s knowledge of children who have been battling the disease.
The effort raised $250, with all donations going to the Isabella Santos Foundation — a pediatric cancer fund that spreads awareness.
• Participating in Purple Pinky Day on Oct. 24, when the club raised money for polio prevention while teaching students about the effects of polio on the world. More than 100 students engaged in the effort by painting their pinkies purple, with all proceeds going to polio-prevention organizations.
• Sponsoring Red Ribbon Week toward the end of October to promote drug-abuse prevention. A table was set up in front of the cafeteria during lunch with merchandise, information and red ribbons. Students were able to sign a banner stating their resolve to end drug abuse.
Speakers also gave presentations to students and videos were shown in classrooms stressing the importance of saying no to drugs.
“Without the support of Mount Airy Rotary, this event would have been impossible,” said Katie, who thanked Rotarians for providing banners, merchandise and activities.
• Hosting a seventh-annual dodgeball tournament for which individuals paid a fee to enter teams consisting of faculty members and students.
“Everyone in the school watched the battle between classes,” Katie related. “We raised $120 and all proceeds went to research for Huntington’s disease.”
• Holding a recent Snowflake Ball that students were excited over, including developing, creating decorations for and promoting the event. All proceeds went to the Interact General Fund that will allow the club to sponsor and create a multitude of other events to benefit the district.
• Planning and finalizing the overall setup for the opening of the Surry Central Clothing Closet to serve families in Surry County, which Katie said members have worked diligently to create and organize and collected a “multitude of donations” for at last report.
• Gathering recently at a church in the Pine Hill community where members packed 250 shoeboxes for the Samaritan’s Purse organization
Rotary credited
“Without Mount Airy Rotary, we would be unable to organize and generate successful events that benefit our school and district,” Katie advised its members during the recent meeting.
“We would like to thank you all for supporting Interact’s involvement within our community,” she added. “You motivate us to be helpers, leaders and advocates — you motivate us to be better.”
Along with benefiting the community, Interact involvement has allowed members to develop lifelong skills and understand the need to advocate for change, the Surry Central student observed.
January 19, 2023
Surry Community College was the site of a “mysterious disappearance” where the forensic scientists put to work solving the mystery were seventh grade students from Central Middle School, Meadowview Middle School, Pilot Mountain Middle School, and J. Sam Gentry Middle School.
The event, on Dec. 9, was sponsored by the BioNetwork of the North Carolina Community College System, an organization that partnered with Surry Community College’s Science Division to host and offer class instruction.
“BioNetwork is on a mission to develop the STEM pipeline for biotechnology, manufacturing, and life science industry in North Carolina,” college officials said of the agency. “The STEM Outreach Team provides support to individual community colleges for hosting engaging, hands-on, and curriculum-aligned activities and events for all ages.” More information is available on www.ncbionetwork.org/.
The event was to promote science/STEM, biotechnology opportunities, the application of science through forensics, as well as Surry Community College programming including science classes and forensics. Career & College Promise opportunities and future careers were also highlighted. High school juniors and seniors may take many classes at SCC without any tuition cost and receive high school and college credit simultaneously. The activities also aligned with the “Project Lead the Way,” a STEM initiative with which Surry County Schools is involved.
The middle schoolers were presented with a mysterious disappearance case, and then were divided into groups where they did activities to help solve the mystery. Students conducted black dye electrophoresis to analyze dye extracted from various dark fibers. They conducted a chemical analysis of white powder to understand how chemical and physical properties can be used in a laboratory to confirm the identify of a substance.
Students did blood typing to learn how this process can be used to exclude individuals from a suspect list. Students also did a lab featuring ink chromatography and tread analysis where they learned how mixtures can be separated by physical means using chromatography techniques. Students also investigated footprints of a shoe to learn clues about the killer.
SCC faculty and staff participating in the event were Instructional Assistant Erica Issacs, Biology Instructor Cathy Wheeler, Biology Instructor Chelsea Shields, Chemistry Instructor Robin Narehood, Biology Instructor Amanda Killon-Atwood, Biology Instructor Dr. Maria Kriska, Biology Instructor Grayson Patton along with Science Division Chair Jeff Jones.
“We look forward to working with our local schools and BioNetwork again on future projects and plan on having a North Carolina Science Festival event in April,” said Jones.
Surry Community College offers a certificate, diploma, and degree in criminal justice technology with a forensic science concentration at the Center for Public Safety in Mount Airy. To learn more, contact Denise Sizemore, lead instructor of criminal justice, at 336-386-3474 or sizemoredm@surry.edu or go to www.surry.edu.
January 19, 2023
Shoals Elementary School recognized student leaders of the month for December who exhibited the trait of the month — being considerate.
“Each student chosen for the month of December demonstrated the attribute of being considerate in their classrooms and throughout the school,” school officials said in announcing those chosen.
January 19, 2023
With police in-car camera systems increasingly relied on for law enforcement operations nowadays, the Mount Airy Police Department is seeking to replace ones now being used which are “unreliable.”
Police Chief Dale Watson has proposed acquiring eight new camera units for patrol vehicles in its fleet at a cost of $104,046, a request expected to be approved by the city council today during a 6 p.m. meeting.
The motivation for this switch-over stems from L3 Mobile-Vision — which supplied Mount Airy’s existing camera systems — being acquired by another company, Safe Fleet, a transaction announced in early 2019.
This has presented problems, according to Watson.
“The previous devices from L3 were discontinued and the replacement units through Safety (Safe) Fleet are unreliable and a liability,” the police chief explained in a city government memo.
In-car camera systems are now considered the most efficient way to collect evidence against criminals when incidents occur, and at the same time are thought to make officers perform at a higher level knowing they are being recorded.
Along with promoting law enforcement transparency, cameras protect departments against unfounded lawsuits that arise in the absence of such footage.
Some police agencies also use in-car cameras as a teaching tool to show patrol officers how they might have handled traffic stops better.
Lease option pursued
Instead of buying the new in-car camera systems for Mount Airy patrol vehicles, a lease arrangement is proposed.
Watson mentioned that the department had weighed the cost of buying versus leasing the systems and believes the most-viable solution is a lease agreement through Motorola.
“With advances in technology and the costs associated, we feel the best option is to lease,” the chief stated in the memo. “Leasing will keep our agency in equipment that is supported throughout the term of the agreement.”
It calls for the eight in-car cameras to be leased over a five-year period at the rounded-up figure of $104,100 for budgetary purposes.
Along with considering a resolution tonight approving the lease agreement and payment to Motorola, the Mount Airy Board of Commissioners will consider a separate measure amending the municipality’s spending plan for the 2022-23 fiscal year to provide funding for the units.
A similar situation arose in 2019, when plans were announced for the Mount Airy Police Department to undergo a $200,671 equipment upgrade including new body cameras worn by police and portable radios.
Body cams were first used by city officers in 2014 in an effort to take transparency to a higher level rather than relying on car cameras alone. But the system eventually began to fail due to changes within the company supplying the body cams and the department’s inability to acquire dependable replacements.
This led to an agreement with Motorola Solutions after the department learned it had a program that provided a free body cam with each purchase of a portable radio.
The camera problem coincided with word that portable radios city officers had used for about 12 years no longer would be produced, accompanied by technical support and repairs being limited.
January 18, 2023
Mount Airy officials didn’t exactly strike gold, which California became famous for in the 1800s, but are optimistic about a recent visit to that state aimed at bringing a new manufacturer to town.
“It was a good meeting — very positive,” Mayor Jon Cawley said Tuesday in the wake of a trip by him and City Attorney Hugh Campbell to an unnamed destination in California to meet with representatives of a company that also hasn’t been identified.
“The company gave us the time they said they would give us,” the mayor related in reference to its promise to set aside part of a day late last week to discuss a potential operation in Mount Airy.
Cawley has said the locality reached out to that entity in the hopes of luring not only new jobs to this community and increasing its tax base, but an employer that would be a major user of the city’s surplus water supply.
This resulted in an invitation for the two Mount Airy representatives to come to California and make a pitch to the company leaders.
“And they’re going to talk amongst themselves,” Cawley said Tuesday of its aftermath. “And we’ll try on our end to answer any questions they might have.”
Normally, such an industry-recruitment trip might have been spearheaded by the Surry County Economic Development Partnership, but Todd Tucker, the head of that organization, recently resigned.
Given that absence, Cawley seems to have taken it upon himself to try to help Mount Airy economically, including the California trek, which Campbell accompanied him on in his role as city attorney.
“I’m new at this,” said Cawley, who was elected mayor in November after serving as a North Ward city commissioner since 2008.
He campaigned on the idea of the city’s chief official being the face of Mount Airy and telling “our story” in matters such as the California quest.
A precedent was set for this by Commissioner Deborah Cochran. While she earlier was serving as mayor, from 2009-2015, Cochran journeyed to West Memphis, Arkansas, as a part of a successful recruitment of the Awesome Products company.
It occupied the former Bassett Furniture plant on Sheep Farm Road just outside Mount Airy.
Cawley is hoping some word will come from the company officials in California within a month or so, although there is no firm commitment along those lines.
“They really didn’t talk about a timeline, but they are interested,” the mayor said.
The need to market Mount Airy’s excess water supply is obvious, which resulted from local textile and other companies that were heavy users shutting down over the years.
Two years ago this month, city Public Works Director Mitch Williams reported that the municipality had a water-production capacity of 8.5 million gallons per day, but only 2.3 million were being used.
January 18, 2023
Surry County’s Board of County Commissioners held a marathon meeting Tuesday in Dobson and were presented with a request for additional funding that may portend good things on the horizon for the area.
The board was told in a request from Surry Community College that participation has been so robust in Surry/Yadkin Works that the program needs more funding to add staff to oversee the operation of the workforce programs that place area students in paid internships.
“The program this year sort of exploded for them. A number of new business, industries, and governmental agencies in the county are taking advantage of this program,” County Manager Chris Knopf reported.
“Due to the number of interns they have taken on in the current semester that just started, they need to hire an additional employee to help manage the number of interns they are supervising,” he said.
There has been a renewed interest in recent years from high school students in internships and apprenticeships learning trades which are often higher paying jobs that are in demand across the nation. There are 125 interns, with 15 more in the pipeline, placed among 48 local businesses.
On that list are some of the big names in local business such as Altec, Pike Electric, and Shenandoah Furniture. Medical internships have become popular and 26 interns are found at Northern Regional Hospital while 14 are placed at the recently renamed Hugh Chatham Health Medical Center in Elkin.
Surry County also has more than a dozen interns placed with its own departments ranging from Parks and Rec, county tax office, and Surry County Schools Central Office.
To accommodate the increased demand from students and businesses alike, the college requested an additional $80,000 for the next fiscal year to add an additional Workforce Development Specialist to assist with students seeking more opportunities. The board approved and that will make the financial contribution of Surry County to the program $280,000 annually.
The surge in participation is not a future prediction but is happening in real time. Surry/Yadkin Works needs the extra staff at this moment, so the commissioners also approved an additional request for the position to fund the position through the remaining five months of fiscal year 2022-2023.
Commissioner Bill Goins asked what contribution of Yadkin County was making to the program and if they were being asked to ante up in a similar request. County Manager Chris Knopf said the additional funds were only being asked of Surry County as, “the influx of new interns are primarily from Surry County.”
Annually, Yadkin County contributes $100,000 to the operation of the Surry/Yadkin Works in conjunction with Surry County and Surry Community College.
“Surry Yadkin Works is one of, if not the best programs we have implemented for our young folks in Surry and Yadkin. I want to give a shout out to all the business who participate in the program,” said Commissioner Mark Marion, who sits on the advisory board of the program. “We really did not expect it to grow like it has, we weren’t prepared and we have to play catch up now.”
“Kudos to our young folks, the high schools, and our businesses that train them keeping them here in Surry County. That’s the biggest thing: retention. Anything we can do to help with Surry/Yadkin Works – I’m all for it,” Marion said.
“Surry/Yadkin Works is something that is working, that’s evident and it’s been working. It’s been one of the most successful programs for retaining and employing people who are homegrown in a long time,” Commissioner Van Tucker said.
“Since its inception Crystal Folger-Hawks at the college has really done an outstanding job, and Dr. David Shockley, too. They have really worked hard and worked together with the counties to promote this program, so I want to give them a shout out too,” Marion added before the board approved $33,000 be allocated from the general contingency fund to make the hire.
In other board news.
– The board agreed to a change in county administration that saw the position of Assistant to the County Manager/Public Information Officer currently held by Nathan Walls eliminated from the county payroll. The new position of Administration Officer 1 was created for Walls as he is taking on the county’s digital streaming platform Surry on the Go The service, which is in the process of launching a 24/7 streaming television channel to spread the county’s news and alerts far and wide immediately. This will help promote the county to visitors, inform on county services, and advertise county jobs available.
– Surry County Department of Health was given authorization to construct a shelter on the grounds of the county service center in Dobson to house a trailer and truck purchased with pandemic funds. The deadline for the department to spend those funds is fast approaching.
– The county rejected a $500 offer for the property found on W. Woltz Street in Dobson, which is county owned land going back to the 1880s, Knopf said. The plot has a tax value of $8,590 and the bidder asked the county to conduct a survey of the lot beforehand. The commissioners felt the county may take a loss on that offer as they rejected it.
– Finally, the county received a clean bill of financial health from the annual audit from Gould Killian CPA whose Travis Keever said there were no errors found. “An unmodified report is about as good as it gets,” he said echoing last year’s report. The county has sufficient cash on hand and the
He reported that sales tax growth in Surry County has remained strong post pandemic. That is relevant as many folks stopped going out to shop and started ordering online rather than head to Hanes Mall. Online sales mean the sales tax stays in Surry County, and Keever went on to say that the trend is starting to reverse in metro areas as shopping habits return to normal. He did not predict such a change would occur locally.
Chairman Eddie Harris made note of the placement of Elkin as a strong economic driver that brings in business to Surry County from the surrounding areas just as Mount Airy does for cross border business from Stokes County or Virginia. He was pleased with the report, “”It looks like a very positive audit.”
January 18, 2023
The greater Yadkin Valley region remains in shock over the death of four-year-old Skyler Wilson last week from what local authorities have labeled child abuse at the hands of his foster parents, Mount Airy couple Joseph and Jodi Wilson.
Court documents have allowed the timeline of the tragic events to become clearer, although not wholly. The documents revealed that Skyler reportedly died because of “a hypoxic, anoxic brain injury on Jan. 9” according to the search warrant.
“Unlike traumatic brain injuries, in which brain damage is induced by direct physical trauma, anoxic and hypoxic brain injuries are characterized by brain damage from a lack of oxygen to the brain. Anoxic and hypoxic brain injuries are commonly associated with strokes,” according to the Shepherd Center, a rehabilitation facility in Atlanta specializing in brain and spine trauma.
The Surry County Sheriff’s Office began an investigation into his death on Jan. 9 with assistance from the State Bureau of Investigation and it was during their investigation that it was discovered that he died from injuries that were sustained during abuse from his foster parents.
The call to Surry County 911 came in at 8:19 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 5 which according to the search warrant was approximately two and a half hours from the time that Jodi Wilson first sent a text message to her husband that, “something had happened with the swaddling with Skyler” and “something was wrong with Skyler’s arms” at 5:30 p.m.
Before the 911 call the Wilson’s had noticed Skyler making “wiggling” noises that came from the wagon they used for his bed after they put him down around 6:45 p.m.
They made attempts to get him to stand up right, sit upright on the couch, and offered Skyler water which were met with difficulty before he then refused more liquid. It was at this time that Joseph said, “there was nothing else that he could do and that they needed to call someone.”
Upon the arrival of EMS to the Wilson’s home on Rosecrest Drive, they reported Skyler was unresponsive and transported the boy to Brenner Children’s Hospital at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem.
At the hospital Joseph provided information to a doctor on staff that the child’s foster mother, his wife Jodi, was using a swaddling technique promoted by Nancy Thomas, an advocate of attachment therapy for children.
“Skyler’s brain injuries are consistent with ‘too much restriction used during a swaddling technique,’” according to Dr. Northrop at Brenner Children’s Hospital.
Nancy Thomas, who Joseph Wilson cited, is self-described as neither a doctor, psychiatrist, nor therapist who wrote “Attachment therapy and holding therapy are the only therapies that have proven to be effective with Attachment Disordered children” in her 1997 book “When Love Is Not Enough: A Guide to Parenting.”
According to Advocates for Children in Therapy, a group that is working to eliminate such techniques said, “Thomas’s parenting methods are based on isolation, deprivation, humiliation, and being non-communicative with the child.”
As is the procedure in such cases of potential abuse, child Protective Services made contact with the sheriff’s office in Surry County on Jan. 6 to report that Skyler had been admitted the previous day.
That day deputies arrived to execute a search warrant of the Wilson home and court documents said during execution of the warrant that investigators made note of wrist and ankle support strap braces at the home but did not take possession of them because. “Investigators did not know they contained evidentiary value at the time of the search.”
It was later revealed by Joseph Wilson to a detective that the straps were used to restrain four-year-old Skyler during the swaddling. Skyler lay at Brenner Children’s Hospital for four more days before he passed away from his injuries Monday, Jan. 9.
Joseph Wilson told investigators that there were cameras that had been recently purchased for the home. “Sometime during or after the incident with Skyler, Joseph believed that Jodi took the cameras down from inside the residence. Joseph advised the cameras had SD cards inside them that store video footage. Joseph did not know if the SD cards were taken out of the cameras or not. During the search and seizure of the cameras there were no SD cards in the cameras.”
The investigation ramped up from there and the sheriff’s office was back on Jan. 9 to execute a second warrant and removed several items from the home. Court documents said the evidence related to the child abuse investigation that was removed included SD cards, USB drives, two computers, three surveillance type cameras, two cameras with SD cards, three tablet devices from the kids’ playroom, and “journals documenting acts committed against the children.”
A woman identifying herself as Skyler’s former foster mother, who is not being identified for her family’s privacy, said Wednesday, “I do want to make sure he is remembered and not the evil that was done.” She and her family remain active in the foster system, which is part of why she feels such pain. “It physically hurts,” she said.
She recalled her former foster son by saying, “He loved playing with his siblings and just loved being around people.” He had a heart that was three times bigger than he was, she told another media outlet earlier this week, remembering his smile and bright blue eyes that could melt hearts. On social media she said, “My sweet boy! I hope you knew just how loved you were.”
January 17, 2023
RidgeCrest is accepting essay submissions for the tenth annual Senior Living Communities Silver Pen writing competition. The deadline to apply is Feb. 10. RidgeCrest will be awarding three local high school seniors with cash prizes up to $2,500 to assist with their post-graduate plans.
This year, their panel of members will be looking for essays based on the topic: Esphur Foster once stated, “We are nothing without our history.” How has someone in history personally molded your life and how?
Established in 2012, RidgeCrest’s parent company, Senior Living Communities wanted to bridge the communication gap between high school seniors and senior citizens. Each year, the program has continued to grow in success and has awarded more than $386,000 to students for college and trade school expenses.
Award recipients will be announced in spring. High school seniors are encouraged to submit early. For the full rules and to submit an essay, visit Silverpen-SLC.com/




© 2018 The Mount Airy News

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