Four Nash County residents have expressed interest in the recently vacated District Four Nash County Commissioner seat.
The seat was held by Lisa Barnes, who left the seat vacant after winning a seat on the NC House of Representatives in November. Nash County Commissioners recognized Barnes for her service at her final county meeting on December 3.

A six-month long drug operation, dubbed "Operation Silent Night," led to the arrest of 32 individuals last week.
Members of the Tar River Regional Task Force set out at daybreak on December 12 to begin locating the 52 individuals targeted based on warrants that had been secured as a result of the investigation.

HOMECOMING - Anne Richardson and Tyrone Neville sing at the start of the Helping Hands Ministry on Saturday, where a meal was served, a devotion shared and toys and clothes were picked out by families in need.

The Helping Hands Outreach Ministry recently returned to where it first began.
The ministry began at Ebenezer Pentecostal Holiness Church in Nashville several years ago but was discontinued.
Church member Anne Richardson felt led to continue with the ministry so she has been holding it in a building in the backyard of her home for the past three years.

Momeyer Ruritan Club names Tracy Hinton (right) its 2018 Ruritan of the Year. Pictured with Hinton is past Ruritan National President Wayne Outlaw.

The Momeyer Ruritan Club celebrated its volunteers on Monday night at its annual Volunteer Appreciation Banquet.
The banquet is held each year in December, where volunteers are honored for their contributions to the club.
Officers for the upcoming year are installed and special recognitions are also a part of the festivities.

The Nash-Rocky Mount Board of Education was cautioned about its low fund balance during a special called meeting last week.
Dale Smith, of Anderson, Smith and Wike, presented an audit report to board members last Wednesday.
Smith said overall, the school system's audit was good. But the fund balance, he warned, was at a low level for the size of the district.

Brian Fronefield at 208 Aspen Court wins Overall Grand Champion in Nashvlle's Lights Contest.

The winners of the first ever Town of Nashville Christmas Lights Competition were announced on Monday.
Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources Director Marguerite Bishop said there were 10 entries in the competition this year, which she was pleased with.
"For the first year, we are super happy," Bishop said. "We hope that it continues to grow."

Tommy Sasser of Nashville recently received the Diamond Jubilee Certificate for 60 years of service from the Morning Star Masonic Lodge #85 in Nashville. Pictured left to right are: Grand Master Mason of NC, Speed Hallman, Tommy Sasser, Tommy Sasser, Jr. and Tim Sasser.

Dan Vaughan sits in his Rocky Mount home with his Congressional Gold Medal and plaque that he received during a special ceremony in Burlington recently.

North Carolina Wing Headquarters in Burlington was the location for the Congressional Gold Medal ceremony on November 10, 2018 of two founding members of Civil Air Patrol (CAP) who served during World War II. The ceremony was organized by Lt. Col. Phil Saleet, Assistant Historian NC-001. Commanders representing most of the squadrons in North Carolina were present, as well as interested members.

Braswell Family Farms, one of the foremost producers of premium and specialty eggs and feed on the East Coast, was recently named one of the family businesses of the year in Triangle Business Journal's annual Family Business Awards.
The award honors multi-generational, family-owned businesses for overall excellence, innovation, ethics, philanthropy and contribution to the strength of the region.

Two Elm City men were among those recently sentenced to prision for drug conspiracy.
United States District Judge James C. Dever III sentenced Travis Kwymaine Ruffine, 29, of Wilson, to 54 months in prision followed by three years supervised release; Marcus Antwan Wiley, also known as "Mark," 29, of Elm City, to 57 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release and Michael Speight, 26, of Elm City, to 60 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release.

INCIDENTS
A failure to appear was reported on 12/4/18 at Oak Level Road and E Old Spring Hope Road
A warrant was served on 12/5/18 at E US 64 at the 463 exit

Over 100 people came out to Nash Community College last Thursday evening to receive information and offer input on a set of proposed transportation projects in the Nashville and Rocky Mount area.
Overall, the projects include widening stretches of Eastern Avenue, Sunset Avenue and North Old Carriage Road and converting the Sunset Avenue bridge over Interstate 95 into a new interchange.

A tan neutered male boxer mix dog (white on neck/chest) 65 pounds, went missing near Headliner's Salon in Nashville last Friday morning around 10:30 am. The dog jumped from its owners car and was last seen off Winstead Street near the school bus garage area. If seen please don't chase and contact Margie Wilder 252.478.0001, Donna 252.567.0151 and the Nash County Animal Shelter.

City Manager Rochelle D. Small-Toney has reopened the recruitment process for a Rocky Mount police chief. In the meantime, Captain George D. Robinson will fill the role of interim police chief, replacing Willie Williams who has served in an interim capacity since January.
Robinson has worked with the Rocky Mount Police Department since 1992 when he started as a police officer in the Patrol Services Division.

Students from Nash County, Vance County, and Johnston County Sheriff's Offices recently completed Detention Officer training at Nash Community College. The certification includes 179 hours of training designed to train qualified participants to function as officers in detention facilities. The course is governed by the North Carolina Sheriffs' and North Carolina Criminal Justice Education and Training Standards Commissions.

On Saturday, December 8, North Carolina Wesleyan College held its winter commencement at the new Rocky Mount Event Center. A large crowd of family and friends gathered to honor the approximately 200 graduates.
This is the first time in the school's history that commencement was not held on campus.

January will be a month where the Martin Luther King, Jr. Commission and the city of Rocky Mount pause to celebrate the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. through community events.
The events begin Saturday, Jan. 12, 2019 with the Martin Luther King, Jr. Commission's annual Oratorical Competition. Students in grades 6-12 are given the chance to verbally express themselves using Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s philosophy.

The Rocky Mount Garden Club hosted its monthly meeting with an informative style open discussion about the club, its history, and the current/future projects. The club president Ginger Haden opened by encouraging each member and guest to participate in the open floor discussion.
Brenda Crocker, the club parliamentarian, explained the different levels of the National Garden Club Inc.

Max Wedderin, at right, chats with Santa on Monday night at the annual Christmas in Spring Hope event. The move was originally set for Friday, December 14 but was moved due to the weather. (Graphic photo by Amanda Clark)

Jelisia Foy, 5, speaks to Santa on Monday in Spring Hope. (Graphic photo by Amanda Clark)

Spring Hope Town Manager Jae Kim was full of holiday spirit on Monday at the town's Christmas festivities. Kim helped with the carriage rides during the annual event. (Graphic photo by Amanda Clark)

Sad Fact. Approximately fifty percent of the intakes are cats. If they are feral, unless they are healthy and very young kittens, they don't go to the adoption floor. They are euthanized, Out of sight, out of mind, right? Nope, they break our hearts.
Many of them were kittens that were put outside because of various reasons as they grew older and not so cute. So they, and their offspring, survive the best they can, never trusting man again. Because of man.

"You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus." (Luke 1:31)
The gospel rests on three giant pillars: Jesus' virgin birth, his atoning death, and his bodily resurrection. The Easter season celebrates Jesus' death and resurrection. Christmas focuses solely on the virgin birth.

I have great expectations. I have great expectations for myself, my family, the church I pastor, and the community in which I live. I assume that you have expectations too. Maybe one of your expectations is to be able to open your refrigerator and find everything nice and cool. Likewise, you probably expect to open your freezer and find ice in the ice-maker and your meats and vegetables unfrozen. But maybe we can have greater expectations than these.

Final Advent Greetings, fellow followers of the Way! I do pray that this article greets you with the peace of Christ and the presence of the Spirit. What joy to know that though many places will start tearing down their Christmas decorations on the 26th, we know that the celebration has only just begun. That's right, we enter into Christmastide, a season of 12 days where we celebrate, we shout, we ring bells, we shine lights in the praise of God, who has become man, through the baby Jesus - the baby born to take away the sins of the world.

The Peachtree Baptist Church Congregation met Sunday to celebrate the coming birthday of Jesus Christ.
The Sanctuary flower arrangement Sunday was presented to glorify of God by Marta Whitehouse in loving honor of her sister, Chaidi Vaccaro, who celebrated her birthday on December 13th.

Everyone's invited to the Candlelight and Communion Service at Red Oak Baptist Church on Monday, December 24 at 8:00 pm.
Join the Red Oak United Methodist Church as they have Christmas Eve Worship in the Barn Yard on Monday, December 24 at 5:00 pm at Linda Fisher's farm. All are welcome.

Saturday, December 22 from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. at the Nashville Fire Department, 114 W Church Street, Nashville
Wednesday, December 26 from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. at Golden East Crossing Mall, 1100 N Wesleyan Blvd, Rocky Mount
Wednesday, December 26 from 2 until 6 p.m. at First Baptist Church, 200 South Church Street, Rocky Mount

AgCarolina Farm Credit recently announced a record donation of toys from members and employees for local needy children. A total of nearly 950 toys were collected in the fourth year of AgCarolina's participation in the toy drive.
The Toys for Tots campaign began in September in conjunction with member appreciation events held at AgCarolina Farm Credit's twelve branches in eastern North Carolina. Members and employees were also able to purchase raffle tickets for two rocking benches donated by a member of the Rocky Mount branch.

For the third year in a row, 100 percent of Nash Community College faculty and staff contributed to the employee campaign raising scholarship funds for deserving students. More than $34,000 was raised during this year's campaign.
"I am constantly amazed by the outpouring of support this campus receives from our faculty and staff," Vice President of Institutional Advancement and Foundation Executive Director Pam Ballew said.

The ladies of the Rocky Mount Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc, along with the staff of Opportunities Industrialization Center, Inc. (OIC), presented their annual World AIDS Day event on Saturday, December 1st. Open to the community, the event was held to raise awareness for individuals living with HIV/AIDS and to remember those who lost their battle with the disease. This year's theme is, "I know my status, do you know yours?"

Gravely Foundation has selected to support the Gravely Foundation Annual Scholarship for another fiscal year. The Foundation has been supporting Wesleyan College for over 40 years. The Gravely Scholarship is awarded annually and preference is given to students from Nash, Edgecombe, Wilson, Halifax and Franklin counties. The Gravely Foundation was created in 1945 by the children of the late J.O.W. Gravely and Lula Keen Gravely to honor their parents, and in particular their belief that all boys and girls should have the opportunity to advance themselves through education.

NC AgVentures, an NC Cooperative Extension program, provides grants to North Carolina farmers for new and innovative agricultural project ideas that will increase farm profits.
NC AgVentures program, which is supported by the NC Tobacco Trust Fund Commission, will award a minimum of 20 grants to agriculturally dependent farm families.

Community Christian Church hosted a Senior Christmas Luncheon on Wednesday, December 12 to honor the service of the seniors of the church. Some of those seniors are pictured above.

Nash Central High School students were recently recognized for their participation in the Halifax Resolves Chapter of the NC Sons of the American Revolution's Essay Contest. Amber Silver was the winner of the George S. & Stella M. Knight Essay with her work entitled, "Our Founding Mothers." Silver is the first person at Nash Central High School to win the essay competition.

North Carolina Wesleyan College took the American College Health Association's Healthy Campus Pledge and is now considered a Healthy Campus 2020 Partner. This pledge demonstrates a campus' commitment toward achieving the Healthy Campus 2020 goals and objectives. NC Wesleyan has joined a growing group of diverse, motivated institutions and organizations working every day to move campuses across our nation toward better health.

Tar River Land Conservancy (TRLC) recently purchased 152 acres along Fishing Creek in southern Warren County. The property was purchased from the family of the late Mary Louise Pullen Owen, whose parents acquired the land in 1938. Over the last 18 years, TRLC has preserved 2,407 acres of land on Fishing and Little Fishing Creeks through conservation easement agreements and land purchases.

I made my monthly visit to the hospital for labs last week, and as part of our usual greetings, I asked one of the kind ladies if she was ready for Christmas.
"I'm ready for it to be over," she said.
I gave her a hard time in that traditional Southern way, and she walked her statement back just a little in that traditional Southern way, and we both went on with our day.

Baby, it's cold outside.
Those are the words from a popular holiday tune that are apparently now under fire.
Not those words specifically but the whole song.
Apparently it's offensive.

Dear Editor: With all the commercialization of Christmas many of us forget what the true purpose is for Christmas time.
Christmas time is designed as a celebration for the greatest event since the creation of the earth. On Christmas Day 2018 years ago God brought his son to the world in human form so that he could die for us so that our sins would be forgiven, if we so requested.

This photo was found in the December 1971 Nashville Graphic archives. We're not sure where the photo was taken, but it seems these youngsters were happy to see Santa!

NASH CENTRAL PITCHING STAR TREY WHITLEY

ROCKY MOUNT -- Coach Willie Langley isn't quite sure about Trey Whitley's career stats as a member of the Nash Central High School baseball team.
But Langley certainly knows the intangible that matters most.
"When Trey pitches, we win -- it's pretty much as simple as that,'' Langley said.

FAST TO THE FINISH. A Northern Nash High School swimmer competes in the Girls 200 Freestyle during last Wednesday's latest Big East Conference Swim Meet at the Harrison Family YMCA in Rocky Mount.

ROCKY MOUNT -- Big East Conference swimmers had one final opportunity to improve their times ahead of Christmas Break during last Wednesday's league event at the Harrison Family YMCA.
Wilson Hunt's boys team continued its season-long mastery of the conference by rolling to first place with 151 points.

NASH COUNTY -- Less than two years remain before the next realignment by the North Carolina High School Athletic Association -- and the classification fate of Nash County's four public high schools is uncertain.
Northern Nash, Southern Nash and Rocky Mount are long-time members of the Class 3-A Big East Conference, while Nash Central left the Big East two years ago due to its reclassification to the Class 2-A Eastern Plains Conference.

ROCKY MOUNT -- Listed in the schedule for this week's Nash County Christmas Basketball Tournament, which will feature games at the new Rocky Mount Event Center, along with action at the Rocky Mount High School Gymnasium:

HIGH POINT -- The North Carolina Wesleyan College men's basketball team put out a great effort on Monday evening on the road as they almost upset the Div. I High Point University Panthers before falling 90-85 in overtime.
Wesleyan got out to a great start in the first half shooting 51 percent from the field and 53 percent from three while HPU shot just 37 percent as the Bishops entered the half tied with the Panthers at 40 apiece.

CARY -- Northern Nash High School's Garret Williamson had quite a day for himself during the annual Green Hope Grapple earlier this month.
Williamson won first place in the 126-pound weight classification at the individual wrestling tournament, which was held at Green Hope High School in Wake County.

NASH CENTRAL'S KALEIGH GUNTER

NASHVILLE -- It doesn't seem that long ago when Dana Kelly was a multi-sport standout at Nash Central High School.
Maybe that's because it really hasn't been that long since Kelly starred in basketball, tennis and softball for the Lady Bulldogs before continuing her tennis career at Barton College.

CHAPEL HILL -- Here are last week's results from the North Carolina High School Athletic Association State Football Championships:

BUNN -- The annual Bunn High School Holiday Boys Basketball Tournament will be held Dec. 27-29 at the Bunn Dome.
Northern Nash will return in an attempt to defend its championship, while other entrants are Bunn, Wake Forest, Faith Assembly Christian Academy, Word of God, Warren County, perennial powerhouse Kinston and East Wake, which is coached by former BHS skipper Gerald Melton.

ZEBULON -- The Carolina Mudcats are once again offering holiday ticket packages that make perfect gifts or stocking stuffers.
Available for purchase are the Snowball Package and the Toboggan Package.

A NORTHERN NASH SWIMMER

Dear Santa,nMy name is Maggie Lee Nott and I am 6 years old. I am in the first grade and I have learned so much. I have lots of homework and I am doing very good. I make my Mommie and Daddy very proud and I know that you are too Santa because you are always watching me. I would like a doll vet set, a doll classroom, and pets for my vet set. Thanks Santa. I love you and will leave you some good snacks!