NASHVILLE - A proposed 124-unit, 23 townhouse development at the end of Liberty Drive, off N-58 in Nashville has hit a snag, with a bumpy quasi-judicial hearing with the Nashville Town Council Jan. 16 resulting in any action being tabled until a full council could be on board Feb. 6.

NASHVILLE - A 2022 state grant to rehabilitate Nashville's 40-year-old sewer outfall line along Stoney Creek will click into place now that project specs have been approved by the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality.
The $85,000 pre-construction planning grant from NCDEQ's Division of Water Infrastructure Division had been awarded for the town to hire a consulting engineering firm to come up with project options, followed by a May 2023 agreement with Mack Gay & Associates to complete the study, which would address the line from Avents Lane on the West to Old Carriage Road on the East along Stoney Creek.

NC Governor Roy Cooper speaks about the importance of public education during his stop at Nashville Elementary School Tuesday morning.

NASHVILLE - Governor Roy Cooper came back to his roots Tuesday in a visit to Nashville Elementary School, where he toured classrooms and spoke with students and teachers prior to making an address in the packed Media Center and signing a proclamation designating 2024 "The Year of Public Schools."
Cooper, who attended Nashville Elementary, handed out "A Lesson Plan for Strong Schools and a Strong North Carolina" and bade the crowd of approximately 200 parents, teachers, students, school administrators and board members, business and county leaders to "do their homework" and call their elected officials to urge more teacher pay in the upcoming legislative session.

Supporters of the Spaulding Family Resource Center in Spring Hope came to make a case for continued Nash County funding, and to make sure the Center was still eligible to apply. John Perry, SFRC President, backed by Spring Hope Mayor Kyle Pritchard and former Nash County Commissioner Lou Richardson, spoke on behalf of the Spaulding Center at the Jan. 22 Nash County Board of Commissioners meeting, which was also attended by approximately twenty members of the public to show their support.

NASHVILLE - The Downtown Nashville Strong Advisory Board has shifted leadership, and has also amended by-laws regarding meeting attendance requirements for members.
Amy Beasley was elected Chair and Donna Wood Vice-Chair, with the leadership terms to last two years. Beasley was formerly Vice-Chair under Former Chair Luke Whitehead. General board appointments are for three years.

MOMEYER - Current and future firefighters-in-training at Nash Community College now have an in-house, fully functioning pumper truck to use, thanks to the Momeyer Fire Department.
Truck 174, a 1979 Continental Pumper Tanker, rolled onto the Training grounds of NCC Thursday evening, Jan. 18, and was put to immediate use for teaching a set of junior firemen.

Nash County School Board member Evelyn Bulluck, District 10 representative, was surprised with flowers and a plaque at the Board's Jan. 8 meeting. Superintendent Steve Ellis said it was to honor Bulluck's 24 years and "unwavering dedication" as a school board member.
Bulluck, who has also served as Board Chair and also as past president of the North Carolina School Boards Association, said she was surprised at the presentations.

President Joe Biden was recently campaigning in Charleston, South Carolina. He spoke at the Emanuel AME Church.
When I heard the story on the evening news, my mind went back to 2015 when a young man walked into a weekly "Prayer Meeting" being held at that church. He sat with them for almost an hour after graciously being welcomed by the pastor and those in attendance. He then proceeded to pull out a gun and murder nine church members.

People throw the word church around quite a bit, and often they have different things in mind.
Most often, I would say people have one of two things in mind, and I think this broadly corresponds with what we find in Scripture. Maybe you have the universal church in mind--that is to say, all Christians everywhere from different times and in different places. All of us together will comprise that end time and heavenly assembly we think of as the church. So when Jesus says, I've come to build my church, I think that's what he has in mind. He has a universal church in mind.

Women in Action of Red Oak Baptist Church met together on Tuesday, Jan. 16 for their monthly meeting and also started on a missions project to support a missionary in South Asia and the women there.
They had a good time tracing and cutting out materials for the project. Several of the ladies of the church will be sewing the items. The group will meet again on Tuesday, Feb. 13 at 6:30 p.m. and will continue to work on the project in addition to their regular missions program.

Eileen A. Dillon and Eileen Agnes Dillon to The E.A. Dillon Revocable Trust and E.A. Dillon; 3004 Brassfield Drive, Rocky Mount
Building Shalom, Inc. to Davonte Swinson and Lauryn Elyssa Francis; Section 1, Greenfield Park, Block A, Lot 16; $190,000
LD Land Holdings, LLC to Blue Water Properties, LLC; 1.5 acres
Amy Michelle Stewart to Brian Andrew Stewart; 2520 Buckboard Trail, Rocky Mount

Fourteen cadets graduated from Edgecombe Community College's 13th Basic Academy of Basic Law Enforcement Training in November.
The graduation ceremony featured comments by Joseph Roach, cadet in the 13th Basic Academy, and Michael Conwell, platoon leader of the 13th Basic Academy.
Graduates and their agencies are:

Building Permit Commercial
Peggy Siepka; 6950 Corporation Pkwy; sign; $5,500
Peggy Siepka; 6950 Corporation Pkwy; sign; $5,500
Peggy Siepka; 6950 Corporation Pkwy; sign; $5,500

The Golden LEAF Colleges and Universities Scholarship application for the 2024-2025 academic year is now available at CFNC.org. A total of 215 awards will be offered to first-time recipients from qualifying rural counties. Applications are due March 1, 2024.
The awards are valued at $14,000 ($3,500 per year for up to four years) for North Carolina high school students attending a participating North Carolina college or university. North Carolina community college transfer students can receive $3,500 per year for up to three years.

In case y'all didn't notice, it was cold this past weekend.
It was so cold, I offered Sox the Wonder Dog a chance to come inside for the night. He was excited but paused in the doorway and looked back at his pet cats before he strolled in.
That's right, Sox has his own pets, a collection of orange feral cats who pile into his doghouse with him every night. It is pretty luxurious, after all, layered with clothes and blankets on the inside and tarps on the outside, near the door on our covered porch.

North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper stopped in Nashville this week encouraging more support for public education.
The theme that public schools really define our community was pretty dominant throughout his message.
Many of us can remember a time when the school house was indeed the centerpiece of each respective community. School houses were filled with grades 1-12 with teachers who were most likely also from the same community.

This photo originally published in The Graphic on February 23, 1967. Mr. B.B. Ramseur, extension and food nutrition specialist at A and T College in Greensboro, discusses food and nutrition problems with local homemakers.

NASH CENTRAL'S NATALYA LANE SKIES FOR A REBOUND

ROCKY MOUNT -- They just keep getting better with each passing game.
That's the story for the 2023-24 Nash Central Lady Bulldogs, who continue to speed toward the top seed for the Class 2-A State Girls Basketball Playoffs out of the always-strong Big East Conference.

PAIR OF 12s. Northern Nash's Braylon Moore grabs a rebound as Nash Central's Kameron Tucker defends during last Friday's boys basketball game.

ROCKY MOUNT -- It's an understatement to say this has been a strange season to date for the Northern Nash High School boys basketball squad.
Coach Henry Drake has developed the NN program into a perennial powerhouse that is good for a deep playoff run each year -- including last season's Elite Eight journey.
But even with a solid core returning from that club, the Fighting Knights got off to an uncharacteristic slow start to the 2023-24 campaign.

GAINING AN ADVANTAGE. Northern Nash's Sam Huddleston tries to maintain a hold last Saturday at the Big East Conference Wrestling Tourney.

RED OAK -- Bunn may still be the three-year king of the Big East Conference Dual results, but another club was coronated last Saturday at the league's annual
Individual Tournament.
And that squad would be Southern Nash, which claimed the title at the Northern Nash High School Gymnasium.
The Firebirds led the way with 210 total points, followed by Bunn at 195 tallies.

RED OAK -- Girls wrestling is still in its infancy in the Big East Conference, but there's already an established team to beat.
And that would be the Bunn Ladycats.
Bunn rolled to the Big East Conference Individual Championship last Saturday at the historic Northern Nash High School Gymnasium.

ZEBULON -- In advance of the upcoming 2024 season at Five County Stadium, the Carolina Mudcats are now hiring part-time game day staff and seasonal full-time trainees across various departments including stadium operations, video operations, promotions, marketing, ticketing, merchandise and concessions.
Available seasonal full-time openings include inside sales trainee, box office assistant, stadium operations trainee, concessions manager. food and beverage trainee and promotions assistant.