SHARPSBURG - Three people are dead, one of those a child, and two more hospitalized after an apparent murder-suicide series of events that began in Sharpsburg, Wilson County, early Sunday morning and ended up in Battleboro.
Both the Nash County Sheriff's Office (NCSO) and the Wilson County Sheriff's Office (WCSO) have issued press releases with partial details from an ongoing death investigation begun August 11.
Kiera Massenburg, 27, and DaQuan Jones, 32, who lived together at 1301 Leggett Road, Apt. 49, Rocky Mount, died Sunday.

NASHVILLE - Six months after getting town approval to begin an "Officer-in-Training" program at the Nashville Police Department, that tree has borne fruit, with Officer Blanca Gonzalez sworn in June 21.
Gonzalez, originally from San Diego, California and a resident of Bailey with her husband, Justino Benitez and two children, is the first NPD officer to be hired through the program, which paid her a basic salary and provided school fees, books, supplies and training gear while she was at BLET (Basic Law Enforcement Training) at Wilson Community College.

Areas adjacent to Stoney Creek in Nashville experienced minor flooding last week due to Tropical Storm Debby. Pictured above, Stoney Creek Environmental Park and the Dog Park were under water through Friday.

Tropical Storm Debby has come and gone, but her damages are still visible, particularly in Wilson, Franklin, Sampson, Pender and Greene counties, where tornadoes took one life in Lucama, damaged several homes and a middle school.
Debby arrived early Thursday, August 8, bringing heavy rains, and high winds along with tornadoes and creating high water and flash flooding in many locations.

NASHVILLE - Pending final attorney approval, a New York-based company that is set to move into Nashville's Industrial Center is about to sign on the dotted line for tax incentives from both the town of Nashville and Nash County.
BuildLabs, a custom design + build firm which carried the code name "Project Lego" while still an unrealized economic development target, will be building its first U.S. manufacturing facility on Lot 4 of Nashville's Business Center, located at 101 Industry Court.

MOMEYER - As part of an ongoing effort to improve communications with town residents, the Momeyer town council has voted to purchase camera equipment for the purpose of recording town council meetings to post to YouTube.
The board voted 3-1 at its August 12 meeting to authorize Mayor Will Funderburg to price a camera, initially estimated between $60 and $200, to be mounted in the council meeting room for the purpose of recording meetings. Edward Jackson, councilman, cast the lone "no" vote.

Pictured, left to right, are Xavian Harrison, Nashville town councilman; Allen Chesser, N.C. House Representative; Brenda Brown, Nashville Mayor; Larry Taylor, Nashville town councilman.

NASHVILLE - Nashville Parks and Recreation Center, located at 200 S. Boddie Street, celebrated its grand opening with a ribbon cutting hosted by the Nashville Chamber of Commerce on Monday, Aug. 12 at its new digs, formerly the Acme Cleaners, treating the approximately 45 guests with hot dogs, chips and a drink in celebration.

Nashville is planning a redesign of its website to make it more user-friendly, and is looking for public suggestions and comments. Lou Bennett, town clerk, said input is being sought from department heads, council members and the general public in order to make the website, which has not been updated since 2016, more streamlined and with less redundant information. A link to a brief survey about the website is accessible on the town's page, townofnashville.com

RED OAK - Red Oak Zoning Officer Jackie Johnson is being lauded by her town for winning a scholarship from the North Carolina Association of Zoning Officials.
Levell Langley, Red Oak Mayor, shared the good news at the August 12 town council meeting, relaying that Johnson had been chosen to receive $1,000, to be spent on courses and training certifications of her choice.

NASHVILLE - The town of Nashville has approved an amendment to its Glover Park Interlocal Agreement with Nash County to add quarterly meetings for the purpose of avoiding duplication of athletic programs - but the agreement revision is contingent on Nash Arts coming under the umbrella of Nash County Parks and Recreation.
With a vote to the contrary by Nash Arts, that's not likely to happen.

Larceny misdemeanor reported at 10601 E NC 97, Rocky Mount on 8/7/24
Larceny felony reported at 1378 Brooke Lane, Nashville on 8/7/24
Domestic disturbance reported at 171 Sanctified Church Rd., Nashville on 8/7/24
Larceny felony reported at 2018 Bedfordshire Rd., Nashville on 8/6/24

INCIDENTS
Obtain property by false pretense reported at 213 E. Cedar St., Nashville on 8/5/24
Larceny misdemeanor at 800 E. Washington St., Nashville on 8/5/24
Receive/possession stolen property less than $1,000; possession of stolen vehicles reported at 501 W. Washington St., Nashville on 8/8/24

SPRING HOPE - The bathrooms at the Spring Hope Park now have new combination locks, with plans underway to distribute keys or codes and delegate their opening and closing to parks and rec employees.
"They're being kept locked unless there is a scheduled event," said Andrew DeIonno, town manager, who referenced recent vandalism during daylight hours to one or more bathroom sinks.

RALEIGH, N.C. - Joe Lewis Jefferson, 49, of Nashville, pled guilty for executing a scheme to defraud a program designed to help struggling North Carolinians stay in their homes during the COVID-19 pandemic. He faces up to 31 years in prison. On March 27, 2024, Jefferson's wife, Danyael Davis Jefferson, pled guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud for her role in the scheme.

Nashville town officials have approved creation of a Barn Quilt Wall on the side of the new Recreation Center at 200 Boddie Street.
Koy Worrell, Parks and Rec Director, speaking at the August 6 town council meeting, said there are three towns in North Carolina with barn quilt walls- Taylorsville, Mount Ulla and Sampson- all in the western part of the state, but said his staff would apply for Nashville's wall to be added to the Quilt Trails of the Tar & Roanoke Rivers, which is the only official quilt trail in eastern NC.

SPRING HOPE - The Spring Hope Planning Board may be due for a change in members, pending decisions on one or more applicants at the next board of commissioners meeting in September.
Reappointments and a new member appointment were on the Aug. 5 agenda for that evening's town board meeting, but any action was tabled until next month following a lengthy discussion.

SPRING HOPE- What Spring Hope's Mayor calls "the worst street in town"- Virginia Street- is on the short list for repairs, although repairs are not anticipated anytime soon.
Kyle Pritchard, Mayor, asked about an expected timeline for repairs to Virginia Street at the August 5 Board of Commissioners' meeting, commenting that it had "three cuts across the road."

SPRING HOPE - A double variance application for a property on N. Pine Street got mixed results from the Spring Hope Board of Adjustment, who approved the lot width Aug. 6 but denied continued use of a shared driveway, requiring a new driveway to be constructed.
Terry and Jenny Alford of 504 N. Pine Street, who also own the adjacent property at 502 N. Pine, applied for two variances for the 504 property, which shares a driveway with number 502 and is also short of required frontage length, being only 65 feet wide streetfront compared with 100 feet at number 502 and 149 at number 508 on its other side.

All of us wonder from time to time if God really does care about what's going on in our lives. Why? Because there are those occasions in life when "life" seems to be crashing down on us. We try our best to live for the Lord. But when things go awry, we seek his comfort and his guidance. We pray but nothing seems to come of it. "Where is he?,"we wonder.
I confess I've had those same thoughts. Jesus once had them, too. He was as a man who was dying on the cross for our sins.

Following my thoughts from last week... Do you trust God? Trust in God is expressed by believing prayer. But it is not necessarily an act of trust to ask God to get you out of trouble. That may be desperation, not dependence. Trust is displayed by thanking God in the midst of trouble. That's the message of Psalm 138: In the midst of your troubles, you still have much to thank God for. What should you thank God for in the midst of your troubles?
Give Thanks for What the Lord Has Done.

West Mount Ruritan Club President Angela Becker (right) presents a donation check from the club to West Mount Fire Department members Buck Pittman (left) and Ronald Cobb (center), in appreciation for all the men and women in the fire department do to keep the West Mount community and the community at large safe.

West Mount Volunteer Fire Department celebrated David Winstead's 63 years of service recently. Pictured, left to right, are: Russ Penka, assistant chief; Ronald Cobb, deputy chief; David Winstead; Johnny Baines, assistant chief; and Cathy Baines, assistant chief. David received an award from the NC Fire Marshal's Office for his many years of dedication along with many other awards.

Rocky Mount
8/9/2024: 11 a.m. - 5 p.m., Englewood Presbyterian Church, 100 South Englewood Drive
8/11/2024: 10 a.m. - 3 p.m., Rocky Mount Seventh-Day Adventist Church, 2045 S Halifax Rd
8/22/2024: 2 p.m. - 6 p.m., West Mount Volunteer Fire Department, 7955 West Mount Drive

RALEIGH - Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler is cautioning pet owners not to feed B&B brand pet foods, made by B&B of New Jersey, after an investigation conducted by the department's Food and Drug Protection Division determined these raw meat-based products were manufactured and distributed without the required regulatory oversight.

Laurinburg KFC Take Home, Inc. to Quick Services Realco, LLC; property along Stone Rose Avenue (now Lawrence Circle); $3,379,000
Axiom Development, LLC to Foundation Home Builders; Walnut Cove Subdivision, Phase 3, Lot 49; $68,500
Axiom Development, LLC to Foundation Home Builders; Walnut Cove Subdivision, Phase 3, Lot 48; $68,500
Axiom Development, LLC to Foundation Home Builders; Walnut Cove Subdivision, Phase 3, Lot 50; $68,500

Deck; 1020 Bryantown Rd., Spring Hope; Dagoberto Zuniga; $7,000
Detached accessory structure; 945 Cambridge Dr., Rocky Mount; Keith Price; $90,000
New single family dwelling; 9201 Otter Ct., Middlesex; Rainwater LLC Betts; $1,230,000
Detached accessory structure; 7045 Finch Rd., Bailey; Regina Hartman; $8,775

The strangest thing came in the mail this week: a catalog for Montgomery Ward.
I thought maybe the wrapper was a joke or a spoof or some kind of attention getter. After all, this place has been out of business for decades, right?
The mailer accomplished its purpose. I flipped through it and then checked the internet.
The company declared bankruptcy in the late 1990s and closed the last of its stores in 2001. That's where I got the idea that they had bitten the dust.

The Spring Hope Chamber of Commerce is gearing up for its 51st Pumpkin Festival. For those of you, like myself, who grew up in Nash County, you probably recall in our younger years the excitement and anticipation every year around mid-September knowing the Pumpkin Festival was just around the corner.
The festival has been Spring Hope's claim to fame for many years boasting the importance of fall agriculture with the pumpkin weigh-in having national ties. The event rolls out the red carpet full of family based activities, streets adorned with local vendors and a half-century tradition of the Pumpkin Festival parade.

This photo published on Sept. 10, 1953 in The Nashville Graphic. The lettermen of Nashville High School's football team were (left to right) Jimmy Smith, Tommy Evans, Ray Joyner, Ronald Sykes, Phillip Chappell, Robert Pridgen, Tommy Nelms and Jimmy Womble.

SPRING HOPE - The paperwork is complete for Spring Hope's "51st National" Pumpkin Festival, with the event license received by the Board of Commissioners August 5.
The event permit, completed by Chamber of Commerce Treasurer Claris Bissette, names the date as Saturday, Oct. 5 from 8 a.m.-10 p.m.