NASHVILLE - Despite a 48-signature petition in opposition, Nash leaders have approved conditional rezoning for a new Dollar General Market store for the West Mount area, to be built next to the West Mount Ruritan Club and just east of the intersection of West Mount Drive and S. Halifax Road.
Adam Tyson, Nash County Planner, made a presentation to county commissioners at the Oct. 7 meeting, relaying the conditional zoning request to re-zone 1.64 acres to be cut out of a larger undeveloped tract owned by the John C. Barnes Irrevocable Trust.

NASHVILLE - While the managing company of one of Nashville's Commerce Park lots is banking on NCDOT as a tenant, town council members have tabled a request for a time extension until they see the state has signed a lease.
Philip Jones, President of Legacy Development Group of Spring Hope, asked for a time extension to complete construction of a shell building, originally slated for completion by January of 2025, until June 30, 2026, citing a "lengthy bidding and approval process" for securing the long-term lease agreement.

Michael Williams explains civil war-era embalming procedures during the "Twilight at the Museum" event Saturday. Graphic photo by Nancy West-Brake

BAILEY- A Civil War field amputation, a demonstration of a turn-of-the-century embalming techniques, and a hands-on use of tools in a cadaver lab: the latest in a new horror movie? Nope. Just part of "Twilight at the Museum," a spooky season twilight event at Bailey's Country Doctor Museum on Saturday, Oct. 12.
About sixty people paid for a $5 ticket to attend the surprisingly family-friendly tour for the special event, the second time ever offered (and the first time since Covid) at the Museum, located at 7089 Peele Road, Bailey.

Early voting locations:
1) Nash County Ag Center, 1006 Eastern Ave., Nashville
2) Braswell Memorial Library, 727 Grace St., Rocky Mount
3) Nash County Medpark Building, UNC Nash Hospital Campus, 500 Nash Medical Arts mall, Rocky Mount
4) Mt. Pleasant Community Building, 7637 Harris Rd., Bailey

SPRING HOPE - An attorney for Barnes Farming of Spring Hope, whose client was issued three citations and penalties for safety violations by the North Carolina Department of Labor after a seasonal worker died in September of 2023, now claims that OSHA's basis for action was incorrect based on newly-released autopsy results which state that the worker had a pre-existing health condition.

NASHVILLE- Nash County's loss is North Carolina's gain: Sandy Hall, Director and 4-H agent for the NC Cooperative Extension's Nash County center in Nashville, has moved up to become director of the NC Cooperative Extension's Northeast district, providing leadership for more than 160 extension agents over 22 counties, including Nash and Halifax.

ROCKY MOUNT- The U.S. 64 Bypass split bridge that crosses over N.C. 58 in Nashville got its own name Oct. 9, when it was named in a NCDOT dedication ceremony for Nick and Mayo Boddie, who passed in 2011 and 2020, respectively.
The 4 p.m. ceremony, conducted at Boddie-Noell Enterprises in Rocky Mount, followed 2023 resolutions by the Nash County board of commissioners in March and by Board of Transportation in October of last year.

MOMEYER - Before any camera equipment is put in place, Momeyer town officials are working to lay out parameters for recording public meetings.
Council members voted 3-1 in August to purchase camera equipment as part of an ongoing effort to improve communications with town residents, with Edward Jackson casting the lone "no" vote, remarking at the time that he did not think posting videos of town meetings was needed.

The UNC Health Nash Board of Commissioners welcomed new member Gwen Wilkins at its October board meeting. Wilkins will fill a newly added board seat formed with the new lease agreement between the hospital and Nash County, which specifies two of the 15 hospital board seats may be filled by Nash County commissioners. The lease agreement was signed by both parties in June.
"We are excited to welcome Gwen Wilkins to the Board of Commissioners," said Dr. L. Lee Isley, president and CEO of UNC Health Nash.

RED OAK - A former Northern Nash High School Ag teacher had a birthday last month - his 83rd. Most people might mark the occasion with cake, cards or balloons, but that wasn't the case for Allan Buss. He went for a 'little' bike ride - 83 miles, one mile for each year- and took a bunch of his biking buddies with him.
This isn't the first time the biking group - which doesn't have a name but has members from Red Oak, Rocky Mount, Hollister and Pinetops - has celebrated Buss that way; this is year four, and every year, the ride gets longer.

NASHVILLE - It looked like a cross between an Easter Egg Hunt and Hide and Seek: but instead of children, the "hunters" were Nashville firefighters, using radio frequency receivers to hone in on what Chris Jenkins, Deputy Fire Marshal, had hidden in, on, or under equipment stored behind the Nashville Fire Department. Unlike Easter Eggs, the small transmitters were not brightly-colored, or edible, but were designed to carry a real life "prize": finding one could be a difference between life and death.

Duke Memorial Baptist Church in Spring Hope, in the Justice Community of Franklin County, celebrated its 100th anniversary on Saturday, Sept. 21 and Homecoming on Sunday, Sept. 22.
Saturday, church members and their families gathered with a greet and meet at 3 p.m. Tony Gupton presented the history of the church.

Several years ago, I had to fly to New York for a business meeting. It was definitely a flight I will never forget!
Aisle seats have always been the most comfortable seats on an airline to me. And since it was a two-hour flight, I asked the travel agent to reserve an aisle seat for me.
I boarded the plane and quickly found my seat. However, there was a young man with crutches that appeared in greater need of an aisle seat.

It's time for Operation Christmas Child! Red Oak Baptist Church had their kick-off on Sunday, Oct. 13. Church goal is 400 boxes which means 400 children will be told about God's love!
Women in Action enjoyed their meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 8 at Red Oak Baptist Church. The program focused on F.A.I.T.H. Riders, a motorcycle ministry began by Michele Newsome and her husband. The ministry has many chapters in the US and internationally. Each chapter is associated with a Southern Baptist Church.

It's been said everyone ought to have to work at least one day in retail or fast food just to get a better understanding about how customers can sometimes "act like they ain't got no sense."
I can update that old saying by suggesting that everyone try selling something online.
After several years break, I've gone back to selling things online on Facebook Marketplace, eBay, Sideline Swap, and even Mercari. It's part of the Mother of All Decluttering Projects.

The joke on the tip of most lips these days is there will eventually be a Dollar General on every street corner in the US. The reality of the joke is becoming more true everyday.
According to one data source, North Carolina is in the top three states for the number of Dollar General stores with 1,056 "(one store for every 9,932 people) accounting for approximately 5 percent of all locations in the US.)"

This photo of Nashville High School's football team was published in The Nashville Graphic on Sept. 16, 1954.