DOBSON — With 21% of Surry County’s population 65 or older, Medicare is a big concern locally, and the Surry Center of N.C. Cooperative Extension wants to help those seeking answers with a new open enrollment period under way.

It began today (Oct. 15) and will continue for eight weeks to give seniors enough time to review and make changes to their Medicare coverage.

In reminding about the open enrollment period, state Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey suggests that recipients compare plans and make necessary changes in the federal health insurance program during that time.

“Medicare plans and prices change,” Commissioner Causey said in a statement. “It is important for Medicare beneficiaries to take advantage of the open enrollment period by contacting local Seniors’ Health Insurance Information Program (SHIIP) counselors to save money, improve your coverage or both.”

Any changes must be made by Dec. 7 to guarantee one’s coverage will begin without interruption on Jan. 1, 2023.

One way to review and compare plans available next year is through the local Seniors’ Health Insurance Information Program counselors, according to information from the Surry County Extension unit.

SHIIP is a division of the N.C. Department of Insurance which offers free, unbiased information about Medicare, Medicare prescription drug coverage, Medicare Advantage, long-term care insurance and other health insurance issues.

In addition to helping Medicare beneficiaries compare and enroll in plans during the open enrollment period, SHIIP counselors can assist citizens in determining if they are eligible for Medicare cost-savings programs.

Those counselors are not licensed insurance agents and do not sell, endorse or oppose any product, plan or company. Persons with questions about specific plans are encouraged to contact their insurance agents or providers.

One way to review and compare plans available for 2023 includes getting one-on-one help from local SHIIP personnel by calling the Surry County Center of N.C. Cooperative Extension at 336-401-8025.

Counselors are available in both Dobson and Mount Airy. Persons interested need to call to make an appointment for either a telephone or an in-person visit, 336-401-8025 to reach the Dobson office or 336-783-8500 for the Surry County Resource Center in Mount Airy.

The local counselors are Tom Bachmann, Mike Carper, Donna Collins, Tammy Haynes and Mary Jane Jenkins, with two new volunteers who are in training, Sylvia Gentry and Donna Sutphin.

More are always sought to assist local Medicare beneficiaries.

An informational program is scheduled at the Beulah Community Club on N.C. 89 Tuesday at 7 p.m., with other educational sessions to be announced before the Dec. 7 deadline.

• Receiving that assistance through the state Seniors’ Health Insurance Information Program by calling toll free at 1-855-408-1212, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

• Visiting www.medicare.gov/find-a-plan to compare present coverage with all options available in this area and enroll in a new plan if there is a decision to make a change. A Medicare & You handbook mailed to people on that program in September can be consulted for this.

• Calling 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) 24-hours a day, seven days a week, to learn more about coverage options. TTY (text telephone device) users should call 1-877-486-2048.

More information about SHIIP and the Medicare open enrollment period is available at 1-855-408-1212 or by visiting www.ncshiip.com.

Causey advises seniors to contact a local SHIIP counselor before deciding about coverage because they might be able to receive more-affordable and better Medicare health and/or drug plan options in the area.

For example, even if someone is satisfied with his or her present Medicare Advantage or Part D plan, there could be another plan in the area that covers one’s health care and/or drugs at a better price.

Tom Joyce may be reached at 336-415-4693 or on Twitter @Me_Reporter.

Reader: A truly toxic commissioner?

The democratic process is alive and well in Surry County, where hundreds of people have greeted the start of early voting ahead of the Nov. 8 general election.

“It went great,” county Director of Elections Michella Huff advised Friday regarding the first day of early absentee/one-stop/in-person balloting on Thursday.

The day ended with 954 citizens having ventured to the two early voting locations in the county to make their choices known.

This includes a polling site in Mount Airy at the Surry County Government Resource Center at 1218 State St. behind Arby’s and in Dobson at the Board of Elections office, 915 E. Atkins St.

“Mount Airy was the busiest site yesterday with 65% of the votes being cast at that site,” Huff added Friday, when turnout also was healthy.

“It was a bit slow getting started this (Friday) morning at both locations, but it picked up around 10 a.m.,” the elections official reported, with 626 voters already logged by 2:30 p.m. She described the process as “off to a great start” overall.

“We were very pleased with the turnout for the opening day of a midterm election.”

Huff mentioned that in 2018, a comparable year to the present one, 52.5% of the electorate used one-stop early voting as its balloting method. That year included a contested race for Surry County sheriff.

“I am happy with the turnout (Thursday) with the sheriff not contested this year — that race historically brings voters out,” Huff observed.

Early voting got off to a busy start Thursday morning in Mount Airy, where attendance was steady.

Election interest is strong in the city, where eight candidates are vying for mayor and three seats on the Mount Airy Board of Commissioners in hotly contested races among each.

Some city candidates were on hand Thursday to greet voters, along with others for county government and school board seats. Overall the atmosphere was laid-back.

“The weather was perfect, the voters were eager to vote and the campaigners at both locations behaved,” Huff commented. “Let’s say the campaigners were cordial with each other and complied with the buffer zone regulations outside of the polling place at both early voting sites.”

The one-stop voting process now under way is popular due to allowing citizens to avoid possible crowds on the Nov. 8 election day and also because it offers a break to those who weren’t registered by an Oct. 14 deadline.

Those individuals may register during the early voting period and also cast a ballot at the same time, hence the “one-stop” terminology.

There were 14 new registrants Thursday and nearly the same number Friday by 2:30 p.m., according to the elections official.

Early voting will resume Monday in Mount Airy and Dobson, where ballots can be cast from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. daily through next Friday, with the same schedule in place for Oct. 31-Nov. 4.

Only one Saturday is on the early voting slate, Nov. 5, when the service will be offered at both locations from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Persons venturing to one-stop early voting sites are entitled to the same assistance as those at a polling place on Election Day, Huff has noted.

Curbside voting is available for eligible individuals at those locations, where tents are provided for this.

Despite the fact that Surry County is one of a cluster of counties with medium or high rates of COVID-19 transmission, the state department of Health and Human Services will stop offering free COVID testing through the local health department on Oct. 28.

That is the final day the Surry County Health and Nutrition Center will be offering the tests, according to a statement released by Maggie Simmons, the center’s assistant health director.

She said the tests are stopping because officials with the state determined there were too few people seeking the testing services, thus the state will no longer fund the operation.

According to the Health and Human Services website, most of North Carolina’s counties are experiencing low transmission rates of the virus. However, Surry County is seeing what the state calls “medium” levels of transmission. Alleghany and Yadkin counties, which each border Surry, are seeing high transmission rates — the only two such counties in North Carolina — and Stokes, Forsyth, Wilkes and Davie counties are all experiencing medium levels of transmission. Immediately across the border, two neighboring Virginia counties, Carroll and Grayson, are also experiencing high levels of transmission.

Nevertheless, the state has opted to cease providing the free testing services in Surry County.

“Surry County Health and Nutrition Center is grateful for the opportunity to provide this testing service to our residents; however, testing is now widely available across Surry County,” the written statement released Friday said. Some insurance carriers will cover those costs fully, while others will not. Those without insurance may find themselves paying the full cost out of pocket.

“Surry County Health and Nutrition Center has free, at-home test kits available to the public on a first-come, first-serve basis until the supply runs out,” Simmon’s statement said. “For anyone interested in receiving a free, at-home test, please visit our SCHNC Main Health front desk receptionist. Our facility is located at 118 Hamby Road, Dobson.”

The department will continue to offer COVID-19 antigen and PCR testing to any person who is a patient at one of the department’s clinics.

All totaled, there have been 25,996 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Surry County since the pandemic began, with 392 deaths attributed to the virus. Statewide, there have been 3,220,858 cases, with 26,885 deaths, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.

Simmons said individuals looking for additional testing options should visit https://covid19.ncdhhs.gov/FindTests. For more information, call the health and nutrition center at 336-401-8400 or visit its Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/SurryCountyHealthandNutritionCenter/

The N.C. Department of Transportation has announced a planned closure that will affect a bridge on Interstate 77 in Surry County.

This involves the northbound right lane on the I-77 bridge over the Fisher River, which is scheduled to be shut down temporarily next week for maintenance.

The lane closure will be in effect starting Tuesday at 8 a.m., as DOT crews work to replace a bridge approach slab.

The lane is to remain closed until Thursday at 5 p.m.

Motorists are encouraged to use caution when approaching the work zone.

Real-time travel information is available by visiting DriveNC.gov or follow NCDOT on social media (https://www.ncdot.gov/news/social-media/Pages/default.aspx)

Officials with the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission reported a third deer in North Carolina has tested positive for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD).

The deer was hunter-harvested in Surry County during the archery season approximately ten miles from the two previous positive detections in Yadkin County.

Wildlife Management Division Chief Brad Howard explained that although another detection is disappointing, it’s an encouraging sign that the agency’s response plan is working, and a lot of people are helping to put that plan into effect. There are no changes currently planned to the state’s areas of surveillance or on the restrictions that had been in place regarding transportation of deer carcasses.

“Now more than ever we need the cooperation of sportsmen and women. We need to test as many hunter-harvested deer as possible to figure out the distribution of CWD in our state and how many deer are infected,” said Howard. “It is also essential that we all understand how important it is to safely dispose of deer carcasses. Deer hunters must be vigilant and mindful of carcass disposal. The last thing we want to do is inadvertently move it to a new location in the state. We continue to stress to don’t give it a ride.”

Howard suggests hunters follow one of the following disposal methods:

– Bury the deer remains where you harvest the animal when possible.

– Double bag deer remains for disposal at the closest landfill.

– Leave the deer remains on the ground where the animal was harvested.

CWD is highly transmissible and spreads via infected saliva, urine and feces of live deer, or the movement of deer carcasses and carcass parts. Since infected deer may appear healthy, it is important that precautions are taken when transporting or disposing of deer carcasses.

Howard confirmed that the current Primary and Secondary Surveillance Areas will remain unchanged since the third detection was so close to the previous locations, and no additional regulatory changes are planned at this time.

To learn more about CWD and the Wildlife Commission’s response, visit ncwildlife.org/CWD. View 2022-23 deer hunting season dates at ncwildlife.org.

The discovery of human remains in northwestern Stokes County has solved a mystery surrounding the whereabouts of a woman who went missing from Surry more than four years ago, Sarah Ashley Hill.

This breakthrough in the cold case unfolded earlier this week after the Surry County Sheriff’s Office, in conjunction with the Stokes Sheriff’s Office and State Bureau of Investigation, executed a search warrant for property at 1791 Asbury Road in Westfield.

The search was initiated to obtain information, evidence and any other leads related to the missing-person investigation centered on Hill, who disappeared from the same general area in June 2018.

Detectives brought in specialized personnel to deploy heavy equipment in moving dirt and terrain and stabilizing an existing structure.

Search efforts led to the human remains being found beneath the floor of a pre-existing structure, rather than in the yard as previously reported.

The remains were sent to Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem.

An autopsy was performed Thursday which confirmed that the remains were those of Hill, Surry County Sheriff Steve Hiatt and Joey Lemons, the Stokes sheriff, jointly announced Friday. Officials notified relatives of the victim about that development Thursday.

Sheriffs Lemons and Hiatt indicated that their respective law enforcement families are keeping Ms. Hill’s family in their thoughts and prayers.

Authorities in Patrick County, Virginia, also have been heavily involved in the investigation from the onset due to the missing woman having an address there and officially being reported missing from that jurisdiction.

Patrick Sheriff Dan Smith reacted to the latest development Thursday.

“This is a sad outcome, our prayers are with Sara’s (Sarah’s) family, and my office stands ready to assist North Carolina authorities in any way we can,” Smith stated.

The Patrick County Sheriff’s Office requested assistance from Surry County authorities as the investigation progressed.

An attempt to reach a sister of the missing woman, April Hill Cain, for any comment she or other family members might have in light of the discovery led to this email from her Thursday:

“We the family do not have any comments at present,” Cain wrote. “Please allow us privacy at this time.”

Hill, 33, who in addition to maintaining an address in Patrick County also was known to stay with friends in North Carolina, had not been heard from since June 6, 2018.

Early that morning, Hill used her cell phone to call her older sister, Cain, a registered nurse at Hugh Chatham Memorial Hospital in Elkin, saying she was on Blue Hollow Road near Mount Airy and needed a ride.

Cain could not respond right away due to being needed at the hospital, and was unable to reach Sarah Hill after her shift ended. There was no sign of her during the intervening years.

Hill’s disappearance sparked a poster-distribution campaign with her photograph and details of the case widely disseminated in an effort to solicit information from the general public as to her whereabouts.

The missing woman’s sibling has said that in retracing her last known steps, one place Sarah Ashley Hill was possibly believed to be was a location in nearby Stokes County where the latter had been “hanging out with a guy.”

This person of interest acted suspiciously, including refusing access to his home, according to Cain, who added that she had heard the man previously was charged with rape.

Social media postings this week, apparently by residents of the area, indicated that the property in question was searched in 2018 in connection with Hill’s disappearance, and the man who lived there was a registered sex offender.

In January 2019, it was reported that law enforcement officers from multiple agencies had conducted a day-long search centered on three different sites on King Park Circle just outside Mount Airy. This is just off Blue Hollow Road, where Cain’s last contact with Hill originated.

The Surry Sheriff’s Office issued a statement on July 22, 2020 that it, in conjunction with the State Bureau of Investigation and the Patrick County Sheriff’s Office, again had converged on King Park Circle regarding a follow-up investigation on the missing person.

Yet nothing transpired from that.

The continued investigation led detectives to the property located in Stokes County, where she had been seen.

Now that the remains of Sarah Ashley Hill have been located, the investigation of her death continues, with no word on any charges against the man who lived at the Stokes location or anyone else.

“The investigation is ongoing at this time,” Friday’s joint announcement from the two sheriffs stated.

“Little to no additional information will be released to protect the integrity of the investigation,” it adds.

Anyone having any information regarding the death of Ms. Hill is “strongly encouraged” by officials to contact the Stokes County Sheriff’s Office and/or the Surry County Sheriff’s Office.

Equality In Action Inc. is starting a youth boxing program fitness program called Level Up.

Organizers say that Level Up boxing fitness will teach basic boxing skills and techniques to include cardio, shadow boxing, bag work and basic self-defense. Participants will learn stance, guard, movement, the jab cross, hook combination and more.

“Steering our youth with fitness and training and discipline goes well in the gym and in the ring, but your accomplishments are really measured outside of it,” Coach Alvin Simpson said.

The goal of the program, organizers said, is to teach discipline, respect for self and others, and to build self-esteem.

As part of the program, Equality In Action is partnering with Primetime Fitness to host a two-day boxing fitness clinic on Saturday, Nov. 5, and Sunday Nov. 6 from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. each day at Primetime Fitness.

Simpson, a two-time Olympic gold medalist coach, will oversee the program. He was the head coach of the Fort Bragg boxing team, spearheaded the Charlotte Academy boxing program for more than 20 years, and was inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame in 2015.

He is looking to train individuals in the Mount Airy area who would like to teach boxing fitness. No background in boxing is required.

Equality In Action is looking for six to ten individuals aged 18 and older, male or female, to train with Coach Simpson and eventually take over the Equality In Action Level Up program. The organization also is looking for student boxers, male and female, aged 10-16 who may be interested in boxing fitness. Individuals interested in coaching or joining the Level Up program may do so at www.equalityinaction.org or by emailing director@equalityinaction.org.

All interested coaches must submit to a background check. Registration is required for all student boxers, with a registration fee of $25.

”However, it is EIA’s intention that no child who wants to participate is left out just because of lack of money for the registration fee,” the group said. “EIA realizes that circumstances sometimes prohibit parents from being able to pay for certain sports, and it is our intention and purpose to ensure that every child who wants to participate can do so. Please send an email to the information located on this release if you or your child wishes to participate.”

Kent Knorr, an instructor at the first Mount Airy Ukulele Retreat in 2019, will be returning to teach and play with those attending the retreat. George Smith, who has taught at all three of the previous retreats, had been scheduled to oversee this year’s event, but is having to relinquish that role this year because of health reasons, according to Tanya Jones, executive director of the sponsoring Surry Arts Council will be the 2022 host.

The retreat is scheduled to run final weekend of October, for participants of all skill levels. A full story on the retreat plans and its history was published in the Oct. 15 addition of The Mount Airy News (Invasion of the ukulele players!), and is available at https://www.mtairynews.com/news/114649/invasion-of-the-ukulele-players

Knorr, who lives in Wilmington, has been performing and teaching music for more than 30 years. He’s an instrument collector and builder and has been a founder/member of seven different bands, played in studio on several albums, and has had the privilege of traveling all over the east coast to play music. In 2007, he founded the North Carolina Ukulele Academy in Wilmington, a ukulele school and shop stocked with over 300 ukuleles that offers group ukulele classes and workshops for all ages and helps students discover the joy of making music.

Participants in the Mount Airy Ukulele Retreat will have the chance to perform during the WPAQ Merry-Go-Round live radio broadcast which is held weekly in the Historic Earle Theatre. The weekend closes out with a ukulele jam on Sunday, Oct. 30 from 11 a.m. to noon.

The classes begin on Friday, October 28 with registration at 12:30 p.m. in the Andy Griffith Museum Theatre. There are multiple classes, jams, and performances throughout the weekend.

One of the key parking facilities in downtown Mount Airy is being eyed for a major facelift by city officials, who are seeking a $950,000 state grant for a revitalization project there.

“It’s been long ignored,” City Manager Stan Farming said Wednesday of the municipal parking lot on Franklin Street, located behind a row of buildings fronting North Main Street, the chief downtown artery. In addition to Franklin, the lot borders Willow Street near Moody Funeral Home.

Spaces at that corner are heavily used by shoppers and other visitors to the central business district.

But the demand for this parking resource has not been accompanied by needed improvements over the years to enhance its availability.

In 2021, a new group known as the Downtown/Small Business Development Vision Committee identified problems with that facility constructed in 1977 with little maintenance having occurred since.

The lot needs landscaping and resurfacing, along with modernizing its use of space and scope, the group reported after studying the situation in depth.

In response to the needs cited, the Mount Airy Board of Commissioners voted earlier this month to authorize the city staff to submit an application for the $950,000 to the Rural Transportation Grant Fund of the N.C. Department of Commerce.

Such funding is available through the department’s Rural Engagement and Investment Program.

If the application is successful, the money will allow the proposed parking lot revitalization project to unfold, involving various development and rehabilitation work.

Farmer added Wednesday that this would include re-striping spaces in the lot along with repaving and other repairs. Landscaping also is part of the mix, possibly including the removal of some existing trees, in addition to injecting a possible artistic highlighting Mount Airy in some way.

While the Vision group also mentioned a need for more parking spaces in the Franklin-Willow lot in its 2021 study, the plan at hand includes no expansion, according to the city manager.

“We just want to improve every parking space that’s already there,” he said Wednesday. “Right now the plan is just as is, not to add any space.”

The Franklin Street lot now has 145, according to Lizzie Morrison of the group Mount Airy Downtown Inc.

The receiving of the state grant wouldn’t require any local matching funds, which is the case with some state and federal assistance.

However, if the low bid received from a contractor for the revitalization project comes in higher than $950,000, the municipality would have to make up the difference, Farmer added.

The chance to apply for the Rural Transformation Grant to finance the parking lot refurbishing was noted in September by Assistant City Attorney Darren Lewis.

“We are excited about this funding opportunity to help with the rehabilitation and accessibility for this parking lot,” Lewis said in a city government memo.

“Our residents and visitors will benefit greatly from these improvements as we continue to promote tourism in our downtown.”

• A Winston-Salem man was jailed Monday after allegedly stealing equipment and other merchandise valued at nearly $700 from the Lowe’s Home Improvement store in Mount Airy and fleeing from a responding officer, according to city police reports.

Mark Dale Smith Jr., 40, is charged with larceny, possession of stolen goods and resisting, delaying or obstructing a public officer in the incident targeting a Shark Vertex Pro Cordless stick vacuum cleaner, a 12-volt/20-volt Max DeWalt jobsite Bluetooth speaker, an 800-amp lithium jump starter, Dawn Powerwash soap, Germ-X hand sanitizer and a 14-ounce container of Clorox Scentiva hand soap.

After taking the property valued altogether at $689 and police had arrived, Smith resisted arrest by fleeing the scene when Capt. G.E. Daughenbaugh ordered him to stop, arrest records state. He subsequently was taken into custody at the U.S. 52-U.S. 601 intersection nearby and confined in the Surry County Jail under a $3,250 secured bond, with a court appearance scheduled Friday. The merchandise was recovered intact and returned to the business.

• Ashlund Cheyenne Rhodes, 25, of Pfafftown, was arrested last Friday night on a warrant for a charge of assault, inflicting serious injury, which had been issued earlier that day with Samuel Taylor Pruitt of Pine Ridge Road as the complainant.

Rhodes was jailed without privilege of bond and slated for a court appearance this Friday.

• Benny Carl Mullens Jr., 46, of 134 Chatham Road, was jailed without bond for a charge of assault on a female after a Sept. 27 incident in which he is alleged to have struck his wife, Jennifer Cornett Mullens, in the nose with a forearm and wrapped an arm around her neck.

Minor injuries resulted, police records state, with the case set for the Nov. 21 District Court session.

• Police were told on Sept. 26 that Golf Cart Outlet on North Andy Griffith Parkway had been scammed out of an undisclosed sum of money earlier in the month by an unknown party. The means used in the false-pretense crime also was not specified.

• Carlos Eduardo Gonzalez, 45, of Kernersville, was charged with driving while impaired after the investigation of a traffic crash in the 900 block of West Lebanon Street on Sept. 25.

Gonzalez, who was behind the wheel of a 2020 Toyota RAV4, is free on a written promise to appear in Surry District Court on Nov. 14.

The North Carolina Heritage Awards are meant as a way to recognize those who have made significant contributions to preserving the state’s old time ways and its cultural history.

Perhaps it is fitting that among this year’s winners is a Mount Airy musician who learned from one of the all time greats of old-time music.

Champion fiddler Richard Bowman was among six artists from across the state who were named as Heritage Award winners earlier this week.

“It’s an honor to get an award like that,” Bowman said on Wednesday. He is primarily a fiddle player, although he plays the banjo and, at times, the autoharp.

Bowman credits some of the early giants of the old time music field for his interest and training, mentioned names such as Tommy Jarrell, Benton Flippen and Earnest East among those who led Bowman to a 49-year odyssey of learning and playing old time music.

Unlike those musicians of old days, Bowman said he did not come from a musical family.

“I lived out in the country, around a tobacco farm. My spare time was spent fishing and hunting.”

But one day nearly five decades ago, when Bowman was 20, he said his life changed.

“One Saturday I had the radio on, I heard Tommy Jarrell, it was on WPAQ, he was on The Merry-Go-Round,” Bowman recalled. The Merry-Go-Round is a weekly broadcast of old time and bluegrass music, usually broadcast live from the Historic Earle Theatre in Mount Airy.

“I had never been around that kind of music, but when I heard Tommy, that got my interest. I started following those people around when I was young,” he said of Flippen, Jarrell, East, and others such as Verlin Clifton. “I put myself where all those fiddler and banjo players were around Surry County.“

“It blossomed from there, I reckon,” he said of his musical life.

Flippen, one of those early influences on Bowman’s musical career, won the Heritage Award in 1990, as did East, the second year the North Carolina Arts Council presented the awards. Other musicians he cited as influences have also been honored with the recognition over the years.

Now, 49 years later, Bowman is proud to be recognized for keeping those old music traditions alive, and he is quick to say that, despite traveling widely and playing in multiple countries, music is not a job to him.

“I don’t look at it as being a career. I look at it as simply having fun and continuing the tradition of the old music. So far, I haven’t let the modern stuff influence the way I play, I still play the way I did when I started. The radio station has recordings of me and playing…35-40 years ago, I still sound the same. I’m as much as proud of that as I am of anything, that I’ve not let modern day stuff change the way I play.”

Despite not considering it a career, Bowman, a long-time member of the Slate Mountain Ramblers, has traveled extensively for his music. In addition to performing — and often winning competitions — at the Mount Airy Bluegrass and Old Time Convention, the Old Fiddler’s Convention in Galax, Va., and other regional festivals, he has played at the Friends of American Old Time Music Festival in the United Kingdom, the Australian Performing Arts Festival; for a music festival at the University of California—Berkeley; and many other venues. And yes, several performances on WPAQ’s Merry-Go-Round are among his playing credits.

Bowman will be formally recognized with the Heritage Award at a ceremony and dinner in May at the Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts in Raleigh.

Others joining Bowman as recipients of the 2023 North Carolina Arts Council Heritage Award are muralist Cornelio Campos, white oak basket maker Neal Thomas, Southern gospel and bluegrass musician Rhonda Gouge, and Cherokee white-oak basket maker Louise Goings and her husband, the carver Butch Goings.

“North Carolina’s traditional arts continue to reflect a unique sense of place and lived experiences of our diverse people,” Gov. Roy Cooper said Monday in announcing the winners. “I congratulate the 2023 recipients of the Heritage Award for their individual artistic accomplishments and for their commitments to the cultural life of our communities small and large, rural and urban.”

“The Heritage Awards are an opportunity to celebrate exceptional people who keep and nurture traditional creative practice, but through them, we also honor the cultural contributions of their entire communities,” said Zoe van Buren, the Arts Council’s Folklife director. “With each new cohort, we can witness the changing seasons of our state’s dynamic cultural life, see traditions emerge and adapt, and learn how North Carolinians use the arts to know who we are, where we came from, and where we are going.”

“It is an honor for the North Carolina Arts Council to be able to recognize extraordinary artists from across our state and document their unique skill sets and cultural traditions that have been passed down through generations,” said Jeff Bell, executive director of the North Carolina Arts Council. “This group of Heritage Award recipients tells a remarkable story of the diversity of North Carolina’s cultural heritage.”

Ticket prices to attend the May awards ceremony range from $18-$45, plus tax. Discounts for 10 or more tickets are available. Call 919-664-8302 or visit https://pinecone.org/event/2023-north-carolina-heritage-awards/ for more information.

It’s quite unusual for a speaker at a meeting in Mount Airy to be introduced using French, but this occurred before an official of North Carolina Granite Corp. addressed a local Rotary Club this week.

Yet regardless of the exact language used, the message conveyed by Denis Deshales was the same: the future of the local company dating to 1889 appears as solid as the product it provides.

“We’re well-positioned to go toward the future,” Deshales — speaking in English, punctuated by a thick French-Canadian accent — told members of the Rotary Club of Mount Airy, which had him as the guest speaker for its weekly meeting Tuesday afternoon.

Before taking the podium, Deshales was introduced to the audience by Vann McCoy, a local resident who is fluent in French. McCoy’s opening remarks were in that language and resembled dialogue someone might hear in a foreign movie with subtitles, which he later explained basically was stating what a great honor it was to be at the meeting.

There was no language barrier apparent when Deshales, who is site director for North Carolina Granite, came to the podium. “It’s a pleasure for me to be in Mount Airy,” he said clearly in reference to the Granite City.

Deshales, who is from Quebec City, Canada, where Polycor Inc.’s home office is located, came here in conjunction with its acquisition of North Carolina Granite Corp. in 2020.

Polycor, founded in the late 1980s, is owned by the Canadian equity investment firm Torquest, and contains more than 50 quarry and 20 manufacturing facilities throughout North America and Europe. The firm employed around 1,100 people companywide at the time it acquired the quarrying operation in the Flat Rock community.

The company had 400 employees in 2007, Deshales told Rotary members. “Now we are more than triple (that).”

That same kind of gradual growth also is being eyed locally, where Polycor officials said in 2020 the existing operation and workforce would not only be maintained with the sale but possibly expanded.

Nearly two years later, that is happening, according to Deshales.

“At this time, the market (for) the granite, it’s very good,” he said of the product quarried here, which enjoys a special distinction.

“It’s the whitest granite we have inside the company,” Deshales said of a type also known to be dotted with flecks of gray.

There is a big demand for that in urban landscaping, including curbs for streets, he said. It also is desired for commercial construction in applications such as architectural stone.

Mount Airy granite additionally has been used for buildings in New York and Washington along with structures such as monuments and mausoleums, Deshales mentioned.

The local operation now has 75 to 100 workers on site, and the Polycor official is hoping that figure will surpass 125 employees.

During a question-and-answer session, Deshales said there presently are job openings at the quarry, where the pay level has been increased within the past year to ensure sufficient workers for all facets of the operation.

“At this time it’s OK, but it’s still tough,” he said of maintaining adequate employees post-pandemically, which ideally is a mix of older hands and younger folks to learn the ropes.

There are plans to replace some equipment at North Carolina Granite, “to make sure we have the right tools for growing,” Deshales said.

Another person in the audience asked about the longevity of the raw material needed for all that. Specifically, how long is the supply of granite at Flat Rock expected to last for a site billed as the world’s largest open-face granite quarry?

“That’s a very good question,” Deshales responded, saying this had been the focus of a recent procedure on the property.

“We did a core drill this spring,” the company official explained.

“We think we have more than one hundred years of granite (left),” Deshales added. “Don’t worry about that.”

In conjunction with this, Deshales also assured that although it is in a growth mode, no encroachment of the quarry property is planned onto nearby parcels. He cited the need to avoid disrupting the adjoining neighborhood with additional blasting and the like.

Deshales, a family man who now lives in Mount Airy but makes regular trips to his home in Quebec City, plans to remain here for another year or so to make sure the local division is going well.

Aside from the unique white granite available locally, someone might ask why Polycor was interested in North Carolina as a new location and Deshales said that after being here for a while, he has an answer:

“It’s a very good place to be.”

Over the past several weeks the Surry County Board of Commissioners has approved a trio of rezoning requests for tracts of land along US 52 and Cook School Road.

At Monday night’s meeting the board heard from Planning Director Marty Needham who explained the most recent application was made to rezone 34.52 acres of land from Rural Agriculture to Highway Business.

Finding there were no public objections at the planning board and that the request fell within the Surry County Land Use Plan, the rezoning request passed the planning board before ultimately gaining approval from the county commissioners.

In rezoning cases the public is welcome to offer comment and a handful of residents spoke in objection to the rezoning plan that they felt would add more congestion and traffic onto a road that already has problems with speeding and odd sight lines.

Greg Goins said, “I don’t know if you’ve been on that road or not, but a lot of times people fly up and down that road and there’s not a lot of sight distance. I think it would be a danger to have any type of business there, honestly, I think it may be dangerous to even put a residential house there.”

He said he has lived in the area more than 50 years, and he has seen lead-footed drivers on Cook School Road “gas it” near the Dollar General. An invitation for the commissioners to observe was extended, “I think it would be worth your while to sit in my uncle’s front yard and watch people fly up and down that road.”

Douglas Goins agreed, saying the access and egress to any 30-plus acre business site would be difficult, “They are going to have a problem getting out and into the place without getting run over with some of these speeding vehicles up and down the road.”

Joseph Schuyler owns land that neighbors the acreage in question and said that the writing seemed to be on the wall when the Dollar General was built, “When you put the Dollar General there…we get where we live. We’re right off the highway, I get it. You can’t have your cake and eat it too in 2022.”

Now however the rezoning is moving closer and closer to residences and with a tract of that size, “That’s a large piece of property and when you get down toward where we’re all at, it’s going to mess with property values and our home life.”

“If we wanted to live beside a Walmart, we would have moved to Mount Airy. I’m not trying to be funny, but this could change where I’ve lived for 31 years. You’re not gonna be able to go back from this, once you do it, there’sa not going to be any going back.”

Rather than make a blanket opposition to the rezoning, Schuyler asked the board to consider only partially rezoning the acreage but said he suspected the board would vote to approve the request.

The public hearing concluded, the commissioners peppered Needham with questions about the land, its roadway frontage, and what the proposed use for the site would be. The application to the planning board noted that the rezoning would allow for “construction of workshops with sizes 50’ by 100’ and 100’ by 100’.”

Needham told the board that local businessman Bobby Koehler is a potential interested buyer of the land but that no plans have been filed.

Commissioner Van Tucker noted that rezoning requests reaching the board have become more complicated and that making decisions such as these often put him and his colleagues at odds with members of the community. Inevitably making decisions on growth for the county means making decisions on changing the way things have been — a notion some Surry County residents do not relish.

The board approved the rezoning request of the 34.52 acres which joins two other recent rezoning requests along Cook School Rd. and US 52. In all 36.39 acres along Cook School Road have now been rezoned to Highway Business. Essentially, all the wooded land behind the Dollar General over to US 52 has now been rezoned Highway Business, much to the alarm of some residents.

– County Manager Chris Knopf advised the commissioners that two new properties have been identified that upon board approval will be added to the list of county surplus properties. The county owns a lot on W. Woltz Street in Dobson with a tax value of $8,590 and another property on Bourbon Trail in Mount Airy that has a tax value of $11,4000. The property committee has looked at these properties and since they “are not deemed useful for county operations, has recommended that the county sell these properties.”

– Commissioner Tucker resumed his quest to re-home artifacts from the former Westfield Elementary School. Several items such as the WWII memorial have already been removed to other locations and Tucker asked for guidance from County Attorney Ed Woltz on the procedure to have a school bell and various Surry County School artifacts like trophies added onto the list of surplus properties and items.

– Chairman Bill Goins took a moment at the close of the meeting to clear up any misconceptions as to the board’s legislative goals regarding Article 43 which deals with transportation. He clarified that the board is seeking a change to an existing statute to have the flexibility that would allow Surry County voters to choose whether they would accept a one quarter of one cent sales tax increase.

“Other counties have the ability to use Article 43, we do not, and we would like to see some flexibility in that. That doesn’t mean we support a tax hike, the citizens of this county would be the ones that decide that, not the five men who sit on this board,” Goins said.

The board has been steadfast in their desire to leave the property tax rates at their present levels. They have also stated that the sales tax is the most equitable way of levying any across the board tax as not everyone in the county pays property taxes.

ARARAT, Va. — A recent burglary at an Ararat gun shop is the focus of an investigation not only by local authorities but a federal firearms agency.

This includes rewards of up to $5,000 being offered by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (a potential sum of $2,500) for information about the crime in conjunction with up to $2,500 from the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF).

The ATF and NSSF are seeking details that will aid the arrest and conviction of those responsible for the burglary of Rabbit Ridge Gun Shop at 1251 Rabbit Ridge Road on Sept. 22.

About 3:15 a.m. on that date, two masked individuals burglarized the store, which also goes by the name of Rabbit Ridge Enterprises.

Surveillance images show the pair stealing guns and other merchandise.

The suspects remain unknown at this time, and Patrick County Sheriff Dan Smith is urging anyone with information about the case to come forward.

Investigative efforts by the Patrick County Sheriff’s Office are gaining extra clout from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

“ATF will collaborate with our partners by offering our investigative and analytical resources to ensure that the stolen firearms are recovered,” explained Christopher Amon, acting special agent in charge of its Washington Field Division.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is the lead federal law enforcement agency with jurisdiction involving guns and violent crimes and regulates the firearms industry.

“ATF’s Crime Gun Intelligence Center will extend the resources needed to apprehend the individuals responsible for this criminal act,” Amon added.

“We call upon community members to provide any information that will assist us in locating and holding all involved accountable for this crime before they are used in a crime of violence.”

Besides the scope of the theft, Sheriff Smith pointed to a extra element involved.

“Our gun stores are the epitome of the American experience,” he said in a statement released Tuesday.

“They are the place where everyday citizens go to exercise their constitutional right to bear arms, and they shall be protected,” he vowed.

Anyone with information about the crime in Ararat can contact ATF at 888-ATF-TIPS (888-283-8477), the Patrick County Sheriff’s Office at 276-222-0460 or 911 if one of both of the suspects’ location is immediately known.

Information may also be sent to ATFTips@atf.gov, through ATF’s website at www.atf.gov/contact/atftips. Tips can be submitted anonymously using the Reportit® app or P3Tips app, available from both Google Play and the Apple App store, or by visiting www.reportit.com or P3tips.com/

A complete liquidation online auction for Rabbit Ridge has been under way in recent days listing items for sale such as ammunition, magazines, reloading supplies, gun accessories and knives.

It is being conducted by Matthews Auctioneers in Galax.

Mount Airy resident Diane Felts passed away in late September from in a drowning accident while on vacation at Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, which her friends recall was one of her favorite places.

Her friends and family are asking the public to join in this Friday in an event they are calling “Paint the World Yellow” to commemorate Felts, her family said Wednesday. They want to help other families avoid the tragic heartache of losing a loved one to a water-related accident.

An awareness campaign may prevent another family from losing someone they love, and Diane’s Law will seek changes via legislation. The website www.DianesLaw92122.com has been set up that lays out the goals the family has established in response the tragedy.

There are federal best practices established for pools, hot tubs, and water parks but states are not obligated to follow them, according to the website. Making these standards apply across the country would provide uniform standards for safety. Diane’s Law recommends the addition of trained support staff on hand in case of an emergencies and increased recurring training for non-uniformed life savers.

The family is inviting the community to join in on Friday, Oct. 21, by posting on social media or wearing yellow in member of Felts. Her son is having his special education students in Florida join on Friday with a special painting project.

“This Friday will mark one month since the tragic news and horrific accident. In memory, let’s all wear mom’s favorite color yellow. Please join us in the fight to bring awareness to water safety and the prevention of water related fatalities,” the Diane’s Law Facebook page said.

Diane Felts was a fan of the water and was no stranger to being in a pool, as her water aerobics friends at Pro Health can attest.

They firmly believe that instead of focusing on the tragedy, they are choosing to focus on the future and how steps can be taken that may improve safety around pools, hot tubs, and at water parks. “Let’s do this together, in mom’s memory,” the family wrote.

Shoals Elementary recently recognized its September Leaders of the Month.

“These students have started the year off right by demonstrating the September leadership attribute of accountability,” school officials said in announcing the students. “They were chosen for being accountable in their classrooms and throughout the school. They also get to enjoy lunch with principal Kelly Waters.”

The U.S. Navy Seabees are a specialized group of enlisted personnel trained in both combat and the craft skills of the construction industry, and a Mount Airy native is among their ranks.

Eighty years ago, members of the Navy Construction Battalions were fittingly nicknamed, “Seabees,” a play on the C and B initials — with the unit fittingly adopting a bumblebee as its mascot.

Since 1942, sailors assigned to the Navy’s Construction Force have been building and fighting around the world in historic locations and campaigns such as Guadalcanal, Iwo Jima, Normandy, the Inchon landing, Desert Storm, Operation Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom.

And Petty Officer 2nd Class Ray Hughes, a Mount Airy native, is one of its sailors who is helping to continue the proud legacy of the Seabees, according to a report from Megan Brown at the Navy Office of Community Outreach.

“The Navy was the branch for me,” said Hughes. “It is versatile and encompasses everything I thought it was going to, to make me more well-rounded.”

Hughes, a 2007 Mount Airy High School graduate, presently serves as a steelworker with Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 133 at the headquarters for naval construction forces in Gulfport, Mississippi.

Lessons Hughes learned from a local teacher are serving him well in the military, the report from Brown notes.

“I would like to thank Trish Walker,” said Hughes.

“She was my science teacher — she taught me you have to make a decision and stick with it,” he explained.

The overall values required to succeed in the Navy are similar to those found in Mount Airy, according to Hughes.

“I learned from playing football in my hometown that you need to be kind and deliberate,” the military member said. “At times of uncertainty in the Navy, it is important to (be decisive).”

Serving in the Navy means Hughes is part of a team that is taking on new importance in America’s focus on strengthening alliances, modernizing capabilities, increasing capacities and maintaining military readiness in support of the National Defense Strategy.

“The Navy protects the waters and is so versatile, which is how it contributes to national defense,” Hughes observed.

With more than 90% of all trade traveling by sea, and 95% of the world’s international phone and Internet traffic carried through fiber optic cables resting on the ocean floor, Navy officials continue to emphasize the importance of accelerating America’s advantage at sea.

“Maintaining the world’s best Navy is an investment in the security and prosperity of the United States, as well as the stability of our world,” said Adm. Mike Gilday, chief of Naval Operations.

“The U.S. Navy — forward deployed and integrated with all elements of national power — deters conflict, strengthens our alliances and partnerships and guarantees free and open access to the world’s oceans,” Gilday added.

“As the United States responds to the security environment through integrated deterrence, our Navy must continue to deploy forward and campaign with a ready, capable, combat-credible fleet.”

Hughes and the other sailors who serve have many opportunities to realize accomplishments during their military careers.

“I am most proud of my deployment in 2015,” he said. “We visited five countries and worked with other host nations’ military to fix and build schools.”

As Hughes and fellow sailors continue to train and perform missions, they take pride in continuing an 80-year legacy and serving their country in the U.S. Navy.

“We are the few that will stand for the many,” he said.

The Surry Arts Players will be performing “Shrek The Musical JR.”, directed by Shelby Coleman, this weekend with performances set for area school children and youth as well as two public performances.

More than 750 area students will be bused to the Andy Griffith Playhouse to see the show on Friday, Oct. 21 and on Monday, Oct. 24. Public performances will be held on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 22 and Oct. 23, at 3 p.m. in the Andy Griffith Playhouse. Tickets are on sale now.

Beauty is in the eye of the ogre in “Shrek The Musical JR.,” based on the Oscar-winning DreamWorks Animation film and Broadway musical. It’s a “big bright beautiful world” as everyone’s favorite ogre, Shrek, leads a cast of fairytale misfits on an adventure to rescue a princess and find true acceptance. “Part romance and part twisted fairy tale, ‘Shrek JR.’ is an irreverently fun show with a powerful message for the whole family,” organizers of the production said in announcing the performances.

The production stars Walker York as Shrek, Django Burgess as Donkey, Cassidy Mills as Human Fiona, Jazylne Rodriguez as Ogre Fiona, Claire Youell as Young Fiona, Maggie Wallace as Teen Fiona, Matthew Chelgren as Lord Farquaad, Hannah Hiatt as Dragon, and Noah Wilkes as Pinocchio.

Additional cast includes; Gracie St. Angelo, Abbie Schuyler, Elise Spencer as storytellers, Kori Hawks as Captain of the Guard; Charlie Johnson, Israel Petree, Atticus Hawks as Guards; Charlotte Banfield, Ava Chrismon, Zinnia Burgess, Sierra Nichols as Knights, Mason St. Angelo as Gingerbread Man, Genevieve Quinn as Mama Ogre, Kinston Nichols as Papa Ogre, Anderson Holladay as Little Ogre, Tanner Price as Big Bad Wolf; Thomas Holladay, Lee Bodenhamer, Brooks Harold as 3 Little Pigs, Zoey Rumsey as Wicked Witch, Reese Cox as Peter Pan, Makenna Holladay as Ugly Duckling, Molly Easter as Mama Bear, Noah Petree as Papa Bear, Lorena Arroyo as Baby Bear, David Arispe as White Rabbit, Lydia Beck as Sugarplum Fairy, Brooke Nichols as Madhatter, Revonda Petree as Pied Piper, Carleigh Jo Mills as Bishop, Samuel Holladay as Dwarf, Talea Holladay as Rooster; Prim Hawks, Alayah Amos, Addison Etringer, Maddie Youell, Kenzie White, Noelle Snow, Morgan Cooke, Jenna Hawks as Duloc citizens; Anne Rachel Sheppard, Remi Devore, Jackie Delacruz, Ella Sheets, Kaitlyn Holladay, Sidney Petree, Paisley Montgomery, Charlotte Banfield as Rat Dancers.

Serving on the production crew is director/choreographer Shelby Coleman; Music Director Katelyn Gomez; costumers Khriste Petree and Amanda Barnard; set designer Shelby Coleman; set construction Jason Petree, Sparky Hawks, David Brown and Tyler Matanick; lighting designer Tyler Matanick; props master Cassidy Mills and Shelby Coleman; set painting Ava Thomason, Ella Pomeroy and Shelby Coleman; stage crew Patrick McDaniel, Callie Grant, Peyton Alexandria, Ella Pomeroy, Ava Thomason.

“Shrek The Musical JR.” is based on the DreamWorks Animation Motion Picture and the book by William Steig. Book and Lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire and Music by Jeanine Tesori.

Tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for youth 12 and younger. Tickets are available online at www.surryarts.org, via phone at 336-786-7998, or at the Surry Arts Council office at 218 Rockford Street. For additional information, contact Marianna Juliana at 336-786-7998 or marianna@surryarts.org

DOBSON — The general election is still three weeks away, on Nov. 8, but Surry County citizens can get a head start on that process with early voting starting Thursday.

Unlike other recent elections, only two early absentee/one-stop/ in-person polling locations will be operating — in Mount Airy and Dobson — based on a decision by the N.C. State Board of Elections in September. Previous sites in Pilot Mountain and Elkin were dropped due to the costs of providing that service there not being justified by the turnout.

Along with avoiding possible crowds on Election Day, the early voting cycle offers a reprieve to persons who are not registered, county Director of Elections Michella Huff pointed out Friday, when the regular registration deadline ended at 5 p.m.

“Individuals who missed the regular voter registration deadline may register and vote at the same time during the early voting period,” Huff advised. “Their only option at this point is to register in person at an early voting site.”

This process is called “same-day registration,” since the newly registered voter can immediately cast a ballot at that site.

Those unsure of their registration status can determine that through the Surry County Board of Elections website.

When checking in at an early voting station, citizens also may update their names or addresses within the county if necessary.

Same-day registrants must attest to their eligibility and provide proof of where they live, according to information provided by the elections director.

Using same-day registration requires an individual to meet all eligibility requirements for North Carolina, including:

• Being a U.S. citizen. Citizenship documents are not required to register.

• Living in the county where one is registering, including having resided there for at least 30 days before Election Day.

The federal Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA) allows certain voters who are active-duty military or their families as well as U.S. citizens abroad special rights that provide an expedited means to register and vote by mail-in ballot.

• Being at least 18 years old, or reaching that age by the date of the general election; 16- and 17-year-olds may preregister to vote.

• Not being in jail or prison for a felony conviction.

Huff also mentioned that voters who received an absentee ballot by mail may deliver their completed ballot to an election official at an early voting site in the county.

Those ballots will be kept secure and delivered to the Surry Board of Elections for processing each night. Voters who requested an absentee ballot but have not yet returned it may vote in person during the early voting period or on Election Day.

They can discard the by-mail ballot and do not need to bring it to a polling site.

The Mount Airy early voting location is the same as usual, the Surry County Government Resource Center at 1218 State St. behind Arby’s.

In Dobson, the service will be available at the Board of Elections office at 915 E. Atkins St.

The early voting hours at both locations are 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. this Thursday and Friday and from Oct. 24-28 and Oct. 31-Nov. 4.

Only one Saturday is on the early voting schedule, Nov. 5, when the service will be offered at both locations from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Persons venturing to one-stop early voting sites are entitled to the same assistance as those at a polling place on Election Day, Huff assured.

Curbside voting is available for eligible individuals at all early voting sites and tents will provided for this.

Voters can review the choices available by accessing a sample ballot at https://vt.ncsbe.gov/RegLkup/

The Surry County Parks and Recreation Department and the Surry County Sports Hall of Fame Committee has named the 2022 class of the Surry County Sports Hall of Fame and Ring of Honor inductees.

The unveiling of the monument and induction ceremony will be held on Saturday, Nov. 5, at Surry Community College.

2022 Hall of Fame inductees are: Marli Bennett, Eddie R. Cobb, Charles Buster Cox, Elder Manuel Jessup, Daniel Merritt, and Derek Slate all of whom are recognized for the contributions on the court or field.

Entering the Ring of Honor will be the 2004 Elkin Wrestlers and A.M. “AB” Crater. Ring of Honor inductees are administrators, teams or organizations which have contributed to athletics in Surry County.

Marli Bennett is being recognized for achievement in women’s basketball. While at East Surry High she was named to the 1-A All-Conference team four times, twice recognized as 1-A Player of the Year, a McDonald’s All American, and a National AAU Champion. She continued to play at Temple University and was named to the Big 5 All-Academic Team.

Coach Eddie R. Cobb is already a member of the Mount Airy Sport Hall of Fame. The longtime coach of the Lady Bears of Mount Airy High is the five-time Northwest Coach of Year boasting six basketball conference championships, and two finals appearances. He is also credited as the founder of the girls’ golf program at Mount Airy High.

Charles Buster Cox played football for Mount Airy High and was recognized as All-County, All Conference, and played on 1968 3A State Championship team. He earned a scholarship to Duke to play football where he was a three-year starter at safety, and named to the All State Freshman team in 1970.

Elder Manuel Jessup played men’s basketball at East Surry where he was named All Conference and Player of the Year in 1974. Jessup won a scholarship to Lees-McCrae and entered their Hall of Fame in 2012. After transferring to Coastal Carolina, he set the 1977-78 single season scoring record (571 points) and remains one of Coastal Carolina’s all-timer leading scorers.

For four years Derek Slate of Mount Airy High was ranked as the schools #1 tennis player and is the youngest member of Mount Airy High School Hall of Fame, and a Mount Airy Sports Hall of Fame inductee. Slate was a four time Northwest 1-A All Conference player, Conference Player of the Year, 1A-2A State Singles Champion, and a scholarship tennis player at East Carolina University where he was the men’s tennis team Captain for three years.

Coach Daniel Merritt was the assistant coach of Surry Central High who aided the school in five cross country state titles and one for track and field. He also coached Elkin High cross country being named three times as Coach of the Year while his teams won four MVAC Cross Country titles. As Elkin’s Distance Track and Field coach they won the MVAC in 2012. He also has a myriad of personal awards for competition running both during time at Sanford Central High and at Campbell University where he was captain of both the cross country and track teams.

The 2004 Elkin Wrestlers are entering the Ring of Honor as champions. They were the 1-A Dual Team State Champions and remain the only wresting teams from Surry County to win a state championship.

A.M. “AB” Crater formed the Elkin Recreation Department in 1950. From the inception of the recreation department through 1973 he tirelessly supported the youth programs of Elkin. He was elevated to become the first official director of Elkin Parks and Recreation in 1973 and served through 1983. Crater was both baseball and basketball player for the Chatham Blanketeers.

The request to enact a moratorium on rezoning or planning requests for new businesses for which there is already a “like-fashioned” business providing the same service, in the same area, has drawn support from many of the same residents who fought hard against retail development in Sheltontown.

Some though are expressing concerns that such a change to the land use plan would send the wrong signal to businesses that may want to locate in Surry County. The proposed moratorium could have a stagnating effect on business growth in the county, Greensboro Realtor Margaret Hankins said last week.

Hankins, in remarks made by telephone last week, claimed she was representing two clients who had an interest in moving to Surry County, but the press coverage of the proposed moratorium had caused some concern both for her and the clients who she said were a retailer and a steel company.

With a potential change the land use plan for the county proposed within the moratorium request, Hankins said she is duty bound by the state real estate commission to disclose potential issues with properties her buyers may be interested in purchasing.

Todd Tucker of the Surry Economic Development Partnership said he was unaware of any such business that was considering a move to Surry County. “I have not been contacted by any steel type of business that has interest in coming to the county,” he confirmed last week.

He said that he has had conversations with out-of-town real estate agents who call with questions about the county, land availability, or even whether the county may be open to offering tax incentives to lure a new business to the county. He reiterated that no such steel business had contacted his office to make any such inquiries.

Commissioner Van Tucker and Chairman Bill Goins both also confirmed they had not been contacted by any such business entity looking to relocate to the county or heard of any inquiries being made.

Mount Airy resident Melissa Hiatt requested the county commissioners in August “enact a moratorium on zoning or permitting for 45-days of future business that there is already an existing ‘like-fashioned’ business within 5 miles unless a need is proven. A moratorium will provide time to research the need, language, and legality of enacting and enforcing a zoning ordinance.”

This was the offshoot of the battle between residents against Teramore Development LLC and the construction of a new Dollar General location on Westfield Road that the planning board approved before the commissioners voted it down following tenacious opposition from residents.

Within days of that vote, residents of Sheltontown started hearing the whispers that developers were back, this time eyeing land at Westfield Road and Indian Grove Church Road less than one mile from the previously desired location and roughly one third of a mile from Moore’s General Store.

The opposition group opposed to discount retailers entering rural communities decided to change tactics from fighting against one encroachment at a time to the proposed moratorium. The same rationale used to push back in Sheltontown was applied to the moratorium, simply that there is no need for additional retailers where existing retail already exists.

Those opposed to the moratorium have also asked about the legality of having such an action. To have a moratorium only on discount retailers would be a pinpointed change to the rules targeting one type of business only and therefore inherently discriminatory, they say.

Conversely, if the moratorium were to be simply a restriction on two “like-fashioned” businesses opening within a certain distance from one another than that may prove too broad a rule to enforce. Would the planning board or the county commissioners want to wade into a discussion on the merits of two barbers, two day care centers, or two bakeries opening within five miles from one, they asked.

As proposed to the board, the restriction on like-fashioned businesses could be overridden if “a need is proven.” That may be its own slippery slope when asking commissioners or planning board members to place a value on the worth of one business over another.

Mike Fox, representative for Teramore Development LLC, said at the board’s July meeting that it was not the county commissioners’ job “to pick winners and losers” when it comes to rezoning. Making a call on the relative merit of one business over another would be difficult which is why decisions are to be made on the best use for the land when making rezoning decisions and not on the individual business that is seeking to build on the land.

For disclosure, Hankins’s husband Randy Hankins served as real estate agent for Teramore Development LLC’s failed rezoning attempt for a Dollar General in February of this year in Rockingham County. While both are real estate agents, they conduct their real estate business separately, she said.

Surry County Commissioner Chairman Bill Goins has said the same at past board meetings, “We do a good job of listening. As I have told some of the folks, we can’t pick and choose.”

Surry County Attorney Ed Woltz weighed in the matter saying that while a moratorium may be a possibility, it is not the preferred method of making such a change. “Courts don’t like moratoriums,” he said.

What was good for the folks of Sheltontown may not be a one size fits all solution for the whole county, Van Tucker said. “Our Board of Commissioners recently denied a rezoning request by Dollar General in Sheltontown due to such a public outcry at a public hearing where the community expressed why they felt that particular rezoning would be detrimental to their community.”

“I think it would be unwise to paint this issue about new discount retailers with such a broad brush that would be applicable to the whole of Surry County,” Tucker explained via email last week. “A broad moratorium such as the one we’ve heard proposed recently may have unintended negative consequences affecting many new opportunities for future growth all over Surry County.”

“I think to place a countywide moratorium for such businesses is a bit too broad. I’m not a big fan of expanding new businesses such as video poker or adult entertainment, but for the most part and with a few exceptions as determined on a case-by-case decision by the planning board and our current ordinances, I believe Surry County should be open for business. That’s how I believe a free enterprise system works,” Tucker said.

The moratorium request appears to have stalled, but the ideas that were brought forward from the Sheltontown opposition group and their tactics in fighting back against rural retail encroachment may yet be a roadmap other communities consult for their own battles.

DOBSON — The 2022 Southeastern United Grape and Wine Symposium is set to run on Wednesday, Nov. 16, from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., and will explore the theme “Sustainability: Continuous Improvement.”

The symposium is being presented by Surry Community College’s Shelton-Badgett N.C. Center for Viticulture & Enology on Surry’s Dobson Campus. This center serves the grape and wine industry in North Carolina and throughout Southeast by providing workforce training and industry support.

The keynote speaker is Lisa Francioni, program director of the California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance, with the topic “Sustainability from Grapes to Glass: Sustainable Winegrowing in California.” Additional speakers and their topics include Tyler Franzen, technical sales representative with Enartis and Justin Taylor, winemaker with Parker-Binns Vineyard, presenting on “Modern Winemaking: Advancements in Product and Technology to Promote Best Practices;” and Dr. Kaitlin Gold, assistant professor and extension specialist of grape pathology at Cornell University, presenting on “Digging into the Data: Biopesticides for Grape Disease Control.”

The event will also include networking and a Grand Wine Tasting from 5 to 7 p.m.

Sponsors for this year’s event are Wine Business Monthly, Enartis, NC Wine, Waterloo Container Company, Wonderful Nurseries, Wright Creative Branding & Labels, G&D Chillers, Nadalié USA, North Carolina Winegrowers Association, Scott Laboratories and Double A Vineyards.

Online registration is open at symposium.surry.edu. The cost is $125 for early registration for the event, including the Grand Wine Tasting, or $50 for the Grand Wine Tasting. The deadline to register is Nov. 11.

Viticulture is the study of grape growing, and enology is the study of winemaking. Both areas of study are a part of the Viticulture and Enology program at SCC, which offers the option of a two-year degree or four certificate options in viticulture, enology, wine marketing, and tasting room operations.

Surry Community College has the only licensed, bonded winery in the Southeast as part of a community college educational program. The 2,500-gallon capacity winery has produced wine that has earned 74 medals since 2009, exhibiting the quality of the student vintages. SCC is the only college on the East Coast to teach the production of sparkling wine. The college produces about 1,500 cases of wine per year along with offering instruction for the degree program, continuing education classes, performing applied research, conducting grant work, and hosting an annual wine symposium each November.

High school juniors and seniors can take viticulture classes incorporating vineyard field work with grape science and earn classes toward completing a viticulture certificate at Surry Community College as a part of the tuition-free, Career & College Promise dual enrollment program. Anyone with questions about the program can contact Jeff Jones at 336-386-3391 or jonesjr@surry.edu. or visit surry.edu/wine.

Sure, plenty of funnel cake, ground-steak sandwiches and homemade fried apple pies were available at the Autumn Leaves Festival along with the usual jewelry, clothing and crafts, but also tucked away there was the truly unique.

Take, for example, the therapeutic cherry pit packs offered by Wendy Carter of Fuquay-Varina, which promise to relieve a variety of discomforts.

Then there were the microwave cozies of an equally uniquely named operation called Cattle Dog Crafts. Not to be left out, rarity also flavored the realm of culinary items at the festival, where something else one doesn’t see too often was selling at a rapid pace: pumpkin fudge.

Also entrenched in the realm of the unusual were earrings made from the state soil of North Carolina, bullet and shotgun shell casing jewelry and something called toys’ fairy hair.

About 160 craft-type vendors were at the festival in all, joined by about 20 offering various foods.

Wendy Carter is thought to be the lone North Carolina maker and purveyor of the cherry pit packs, described as a natural alternative to heating pads and ice packs combined.

“As far as I know, I’m the only one,” said the festival vendor of about 10 years, whose business was so brisk Saturday afternoon she could barely stop to answer questions.

“I have heard of another in Tennessee,” Carter said of someone offering such craft products that are proportionately popular. “My customers tell me they can’t find them anywhere else.”

Carter, the owner of LoriLea Creations, first got involved in making therapeutic cherry pit packs after a friend who did so asked her to help with them for a craft festival.

Turning out those items requires a little bit of doing, starting with the namesake pits.

“My husband drives up to Michigan and gets about a half a ton of them per year from a processing plant,” Carter explained, which are then formed into the packs that have all-cotton covers. They can be heated in the microwave or chilled in the freezer.

“They’re unique — they make you feel good,” she said of the pit packs that reminded one of the Icy Hot type hawked by Shaquille O’Neal, but all-natural.

Their applications include not only soothing aches and stiffness such as sore knees, shoulders and necks, but easing headaches, comforting growing pains and warming the bed, crib or cold hands and feet. The packs, which come in different shapes and sizes, conform to the body.

“It’s great for nursing moms,” was a testimonial from Paula Jones of Mount Airy as she made a purchase from Carter.

When strolling through the festival area Saturday afternoon, the sign for another vendor station couldn’t help but stop an attendee in his or her tracks: Cattle Dog Crafts.

This was the venue of Terri Johnson from Lewisville, whose specialty is the microwave bowl cozies.

These basically are protective shields that come in handy when heating up the leftover chili from last night, for example.

“You don’t burn your hands,” Johnson said of the cozies in which a bowl can fit snugly. “It insulates your hands.”

The cozies are attractively adorned with colors including those of various sports teams, reflecting an interest of Johnson’s which also explains how Cattle Dog Crafts got its name.

It honors her late canine Votto, who was an Australian cattle dog, a breed that, yes, is used in herding livestock.

Votto was named for Joey Votto, a first baseman for the Cincinnati Reds. The dog Votto died on Memorial Day from complications after knee surgery at 9.5 years of age.

“We wanted to come up with a name for our business,” Johnson said of the operation run with the help of her mother and Cattle Dog Crafts was the finalist in memory of Votto.

Other items offered by Johnson include hanging towels that are attached at the top to allow them to be used without being dropped on the floor. She also markets more conventional products such as key chains and different pet accessories.

“Everything is handmade,” Johnson said.

A long line also presented itself Saturday at a location where Steven Martin was busily selling a treat called pumpkin fudge — seemingly what results when chocolate fudge smashes into pumpkin pie inside a supercollider.

Not really. The pumpkin fudge is produced in a kitchen as are other types.

“We only make it September through Thanksgiving,” said Martin, who is associated with Bear Creek Fudge Factory, a downtown business. “It’s seasonal.”

In addition to straight pumpkin fudge is a type containing nuts.

Although folks were vigorously snatching up containers of the “orange delight,” Martin admits that pumpkin fudge is not everyone’s cup of tea.

“Some people like it and some don’t — kind of a love-hate situation.”

Those who don’t cotton to pumpkin fudge have 80 other flavors to choose from at the business.

Nearly every square of downtown Mount Airy seemed to be occupied by people Saturday afternoon, when it didn’t pay to be claustrophobic.

Aside from some sprinkles on Sunday, beautiful early fall weather boosted attendance for the Autumn Leaves Festival, which a longtime observer of the event says has returned to pre-pandemic levels.

“I think we’ve all been bottled up so long with COVID and everything,” said Yvonne Nichols, now a visitor information specialist at Mount Airy Visitor Center who was director of the festival for 24 years.

“It’s just part of my life,” she said while assisting drop-in traffic at the center during the event and witnessing its success.

“Yesterday’s turnout seemed to be larger than usual,” Nichols said of Friday, echoing the assessment of others who agreed that the healthy festival attendance figures indicate the coronavirus is no longer a major threat.

With people meandering toe to toe and elbow to elbow with nary a face mask readily visible, COVID-19 instead seemed to be a distant memory.

“I think it’s awesome,” Nichols said of the crowds inhabiting downtown Mount Airy during the weekend.

Surry Community College invites veterans to the college’s annual Veteran’s Luncheon Thursday, Nov. 10, from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. at the Shelton-Badgett North Carolina Center for Viticulture & Enology located on the grounds of SCC at 630 S. Main St., Dobson.

“The chorus from Surry Central will be doing some patriotic songs during the event. We will also have the JRTC from Surry Central presenting the colors before the luncheon,” Veterans Affairs Coordinator Jay McDougal said.

SCC officials are excited to welcome the veterans back for their first sit down luncheon after the pandemic threw a wrench into last year’s plans. The veterans were treated to a drive through boxed lunch last year out of an abundance of caution.

The event is free for veterans and more information is available, contact McDougal at 336-386-3425, or mcdougaljr@surry.edu.

The Mount Airy Planning Board has lost one member, but gained another.

Calvin Vaughn, who was appointed to the board in 2019, decided to step down after serving one term that recently expired.

Vaughn had joined the group in the wake of a decision by city officials that year to eliminate extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) zoning. It allowed Mount Airy to exercise that control in one-mile areas outside the corporate limits in order to manage and avoid negative impacts of growth on its fringes.

The ETJ phaseout included removing four members from the Mount Airy Planning Board who had represented the outside territory and replacing them with new in-town residents, including Vaughn.

The vacancy created by his departure was filled at a meeting of the Mount Airy Board of Commissioners last week, when Theresa Gray was named as Vaughn’s replacement.

She was appointed by the commissioners to a three-year term that will expire on Sept. 30, 2025.

Gray is a member of the Sunrise Rotary Club and Trinity Episcopal Church who worked in South Florida for 33 years.

The Mount Airy Planning Board is a key nine-member group that acts as an advisory board to the commissioners and often is on the front line of many growth issues.

It analyzes present and emerging land-development trends and activities in the city limits along with issuing recommendations on plans, policies, ordinances and proposals designed to maximize opportunities for growth while promoting public health, safety, morals and welfare.

The group, which meets monthly, undertakes initial studies on such matters and votes on recommendations that are forwarded to the city commissioners, who make the final decisions.

While Mount Airy is undergoing an invasion of sorts this weekend, with Autumn Leaves Festival visitors packing downtown, there is another, albeit smaller, invasion slated for later this month.

The last week of October — Oct. 28-30 — the Surry Arts Council in Mount Airy will host a ukulele retreat, the fourth consecutive year the retreat has brought together instructors and musicians of all skill levels to play and work on their ukulele skills.

The retreat grew out of a longer-term program called Mount Airy Ukulele Invasion, or MAUI, which started on a little bit of a whim.

George Smith is a local musician, song writer and music teacher. During his career he’s played probably thousands of shows and concerts. As a member of the band Mood Cultivation Project, he was part of a group which opened for Lynyrd Skynyrd, Marshall Tucker Band, and Drive By Truckers among well-known international acts.

Individually, or as part of other bands, he’s opened for Ralph Stanley, Darius Rucker and Jason Michael Carroll. and another project — Crooked Roadshow — played the side stage with the Allman Brothers.

He’s spent that time playing a variety of instruments — guitar, mandolin, banjo and piano among them — and he sings and has penned quite a few of his own songs.

But it was his wife’s sudden interest that eventually drew Smith to the ukulele.

“Jenn, and her friend Grace, both got ukuleles,” Smith recounted recently. “I was already teaching guitar, mandolin, and banjo. She wanted me to start a group class so she and her friend could learn to play together.”

“My response was no,” Smith said. “I didn’t even own a ukulele.”

Smith found his wife could be quite persistent, coming back to him multiple times until he finally gave in.

“I bought two ukuleles,” he said, and went to work teaching himself how to play. Six weeks later, he was advertising for his new ukulele class.

Still, he was offering lessons on an instrument that most people had only seen on Don Ho videos or Tiny Tim television appearances back in the 1970s, so expectations weren’t too high.

“I thought if six people showed up for this class that would be great. Seventeen people came. I was like ‘oh my gosh,’ so I quickly added a second class. One hour a week for each class. That soon grew to two days a week and 90-minutes each time.”

“There’s a community and a camaraderie that goes on,” he said of ukulele students and musicians. “People like to come in, talk — ‘how’s your family, how’s your dog,’ just talk. I needed to expand it to where there was time for people to talk.”

Part of his work in teaching, and then forming MAUI, is arranging traditional music for the ukulele. His first two songs for the group were “Time of Your Life” by Green Day and “Another Brick in the Wall” by Pink Floyd.

The MAUI effort grew larger than he anticipated, too. MAUI was supposed to be a twice-a-year effort, with weekly classes leading up to a semi-annual concert.

“By our five-year anniversary in 2018, there were 70 people enrolled in the class, it was tremendous,” Smith said.

He split the course into quarters, with four concerts a year. “We still maintained, up until March of 2020, 60 people every quarter.”

That popularity led to the first-ever Ukulele Retreat in Mount Airy in 2019, with four instructors and 100 students coming from across North Carolina and Virginia for two days of intensive workshopping, playing, and even live performances on WPAQ’s weekly Merry-Go-Round show.

That got Tanya Jones, executive director for the Surry Arts Council, thinking about how to reach out to a relative new group of musicians.

“We had been doing old-time retreats that were successful,” she said. “There are a lot of ukulele players in Mount Airy and the surrounding area and I sought funding from the Department of Cultural Resources to host a ukulele retreat. We had four instructors and 107 attended. We did receive the grant from the NCDCR for the first retreat.”

Then came COVID-19, the pandemic that brought the world to a stop in the spring of 2020. By that autumn, the arts council and Smith had developed a way to continue the retreat, but with just 20 students and Smith acting as sole instructor. That was also the agenda in 2021, with the pandemic still holding sway over the world.

This year, even though there are signs the pandemic is lessening in the U.S., Smith said the plans are still to limit enrollment to 20 students, with Smith handling the teaching duties.

“We have only had one instructor and lower numbers by design since the pandemic,” Jones said. However, that may not the be case going forward. “We do plan to continue the retreat and add instructors and attendees in the future,” she said.

Smith said the way he approaches both the MAUI course and the retreat is to find ways to involve everyone, of all skill levels — giving them pieces and opportunities to play that align with their present skill levels, while working with them to improve their playing ability.

That first year, with 100 students, he said was a blast.

“There were people drove four or five hours to be a part of it, certainly many drove two or three hours and stayed for the weekend.”

While the next two years were smaller in size and scope, he said they were no less enjoyable for him and for those attending.

“I think it’s been fantastic, even through the pandemic, people came even from Shelby to be a part of it because they wanted to come together and play music…to experience the joy of playing ukulele.”

One of his goals is for everyone to have what he calls are a “few ah ha, light bulb moments.” over the weekend — “Including me. As I teach I am always trying to learn from other people, I enjoy getting those “ah ha” moments.”

“I’ve got some fun ideas for this retreat as well. It is going to be a ton of fun, if you haven’t already gotten your ticket I would get that sooner rather than later. Contact the arts council. People should come out and do it. Learn and play and have good community and camaraderie.”

To register for the retreat, or for more information, visit https://www.surryarts.org/shows/ukulelefestival.html

To see a performance of Just Another Brick In The Wall by MAUI, visit http://www.themusicofgeorgesmith.com/lessons.html

Pilot Mountain officials want their town to be your destination location for family fun events to close out October.

After the excitement of Mount Airy’s Autumn Leaves Festival has waned it will be time for the Glow Party in downtown Pilot to be followed the next weekend with a slate of spooky events that junior vampires can sink their fangs into.

The Town of Pilot Mountain has teamed up with Ish & Ash Productions to kick things off next weekend with the Glow Party being held on Saturday, Oct. 22, from 7 – 10 p.m. on Depot Street in downtown Pilot Mountain.

This is a dance party and laser show that organizers say is a high energy, budget friendly event that “is sure to please kids of all ages.” There will be food, games, and fun with plenty of glow-in-the-dark t-shirts and other accessories available for purchase.

Tickets are available for advance purchase with individual tickets costing $5 and a family four-pack of tickets with accompanying “glow swag” included for $20. Four glow necklaces and four glow bracelets will be included with the family four pack to achieve maximum visibility and be worn while dancing during “a one of kind downtown glow party featuring a live DJ and laser show.”

If there is any gas left in the tank after boogying down at the Glow Party, the public is invited to go back to Pilot Mountain and join in and the Halloween festivities, a little early, with the Monsters on Main parade in downtown on Saturday, Oct. 29 at 7 p.m.

With Halloween falling on a Monday this year, Pilot Mountain is having its celebrations on Saturday so that more people can participate in the trunk or treat, workshop, and costume exchange leading up to the Monsters on Main Parade.

Starting a 1 p.m. there is going to be a workshop held where kids can make items that will be used during the parade later in the day. Event organizers said workshop participants will be making accessories that will be carried in the parade as the sun starts to fall. “This year’s parade will be a night so let’s get to work lighting up Main Street,” they said in social media postings. “Stop in and make a prop to carry in the parade or work on your costume during the workshop.”

The Monsters on Main theme is “Candy! Candy! Candy!” and there will be a chance to make themed candy decor to carry during the parade as part of the workshop. Supplies will be provided but will be limited, organizers said.

While the workshop is ongoing, there will also be a Halloween costume exchange happening. Bring your gently used costumes to share with other children of the community who may not have a costume of their own.

This is going to be a “leave what you can, take what you need” swap organizers, said so dig deep into those closets for forgotten Princess Elsa outfits, lonely Ninja Turtles, rusty Transformers, or whatever else may be lingering there from years gone by.

For the sake of convenience, the organizers have asked that donated costumes be on hangars if possible, noting this will make it easier “than just throwing them on a table.”

“If you have any costumes that you or the kiddos have outgrown, please share them with us,” they asked. Anyone with a costume to donate can drop it off starting at 10 a.m.; the costume exchange itself will run from 1 to 4 p.m.

After finding the perfect costume folks are encouraged to stick around and make something to carry in the Monsters on Main parade later that night.

Since it is a Halloween event with a theme of “Candy! Candy! Candy!” there really must be some candy being handed out to make it official. Therefore, there will be a Trunk or Treat held on Depot Street from 5 – 7 p.m. before the Monsters on Main parade begins. For those wanting to participate in the Trunk or Treat, sign up at: www.cognitoforms.com/downtownpilotmountain/trunkortreat.

The Monsters on Main Parade is the highlight of the evening. “This is a free, all ages, family-friendly event organized by the Downtown Events Committee that is going to focus on the costumes and decorations: no vehicles, no firetrucks, no ambulances,” organizers say.

Marchers will line along S. Stephens St. beside of Liv for Sweets Bakery to begin the parade at 7 p.m. The parade route will run from Stephens St. to Academy St.

Whether dressed as a lady bug or decked out in the finest pirate garb, the parade will mark the end of a full day of fun in Pilot Mountain that may even yield a fun sized Snickers for mom or dad when all is said and done – that seems fair.

• A Lexington man has been jailed in Mount Airy for allegedly stealing a $480 generator from a local business, according to city police reports.

The crime occurred last Tuesday at the Tractor Supply store on Rockford Street, where Thomas Edward Keene, 61, was found in possession of the generator, arrest records state.

Keene was charged with larceny and held in the Surry County Jail under a $300 secured bond. He is scheduled to appear in District Court next Friday. The stolen property was returned to the store intact.

• Nicholas Cody Hull, 32, of 102 Lakeview Drive, was charged with second-degree trespassing Wednesday at the Whistler’s Cove apartment complex off West Pine Street, from which he had been banned.

Hilda Johnson, who resides there, is listed as the complainant in the case for which Hull was incarcerated under a $300 secured bond and is slated to be in Surry District Court next Friday.

• Two women were arrested and jailed under large secured bonds on charges of assaulting and resisting officers after police responded to a fight call involving multiple individuals on Sept. 27 at the Andy Griffith Parkway Inn.

During the disturbance, Kyhia Malaysia Green, 18, allegedly behaved aggressively toward police and was charged with two felony counts of assault on a law enforcement officer, inflicting serious injury. Green further is accused of two counts each of misdemeanor assault on a government official and resisting, delaying or obstructing a public officer, along with one count of injury to personal property.

Both Kyhia Green and Faith Alexandria Green, 21, of Winston-Salem, bit, punched and kicked officers, arrest records state.

Faith Green was charged with two counts of assaulting a government official and one of resisting, delaying or obstructing a public officer for allegedly refusing to be taken into custody and pulling away from police. Two uniform shirts valued at $200 were listed as damaged.

In addition to officers J.R. Hatmaker II, B.B. Evans and R.B. Westmoreland, Rodney Shelton of Antioch Avenue and Stephen Danley of Venice, Florida, are listed as victims of the incident.

Kyhia Green was jailed under a $50,000 secured bond and Faith Green, $5,000 secured, with both slated for a Nov. 28 District Court appearance.

• Property with a total value of $2,120 was discovered stolen on Sept. 25 from an unsecured 2015 Chevrolet Silverado at Brannock and Hiatt Furniture Co. on North Main Street downtown.

Both the business and Brian Stanley Holt of Cain Road, an employee there, are listed as victims of the crime in which Milwaukee-brand products were stolen including two 18-volt floodlights and a pair of batteries, a fluke meter, an 18-volt drill and battery, two tool boxes with miscellaneous tools, a tool bag, nut driver bits and a box of masonry bits.

Also taken was a box containing various bits.

The idea of having “hazardous waste” around sounds scary, but an event scheduled next Saturday in Mount Airy will provide a means of getting rid of the household variety.

This involves the annual Household Hazardous Waste and Pesticide Collection day at Veterans Memorial Park.

Items can be brought to the park at 691 W. Lebanon St. from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The annual collection event is jointly hosted by the Surry Center of N.C. Cooperative Extension, Surry County Public Works and the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

It is an opportunity for residents to dispose of unwanted or no-longer-needed substances that might be in or around the home including paints and paint strippers, thinners, weed killers, pesticides, solvents including drain solvents, gasoline, acids and pool chemicals.

“This is stuff that can’t go into the landfill,” Tim Shores of Surry County Public Works explained Friday.

“We are solid waste and this is liquid,” he said of materials accepted at that facility compared to what can be disposed of next Saturday.

All containers should be labeled, lids closed tightly and glass bottles cushioned.

Organizers stress that the collection event is for household waste only, with no commercial waste to be allowed.

Shores mentioned that an outside company is involved in the collection and removal of the waste products received.

“That is their specialty,” he said.

Shores added that many local residents tend to take advantage of the opportunity to get rid of hazardous waste from homes.

“The volume is actually pretty good,” he said of the amounts received from year to year

Since the disposal project is an expensive endeavor, the flow is tracked to evaluate its success.

“And it goes over fairly well,” Shores said.

Last year the event allowed 1,494 pounds of unwanted pesticides and 20,366 pounds of household hazardous waste to be safely disposed of, according to figures from the Surry Center of N.C. Cooperative Extension.

This represented savings put at a conservative value of $218,600, compared to the cost of what those who participated in the event would normally have paid to dispose of the waste.

Items that shouldn’t be brought to the collection event include ammunition/explosives, radioactive materials, medicine and syringes, liquid propane and propane cylinders, infectious waste and automotive-type batteries.

DOBSON — With 21% of Surry County’s population 65 or older, Medicare is a big concern locally, and the Surry Center of N.C. Cooperative Extension wants to help those seeking answers with a new open enrollment period under way.

It began today (Oct. 15) and will continue for eight weeks to give seniors enough time to review and make changes to their Medicare coverage.

In reminding about the open enrollment period, state Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey suggests that recipients compare plans and make necessary changes in the federal health insurance program during that time.

“Medicare plans and prices change,” Commissioner Causey said in a statement. “It is important for Medicare beneficiaries to take advantage of the open enrollment period by contacting local Seniors’ Health Insurance Information Program (SHIIP) counselors to save money, improve your coverage or both.”

Any changes must be made by Dec. 7 to guarantee one’s coverage will begin without interruption on Jan. 1, 2023.

One way to review and compare plans available next year is through the local Seniors’ Health Insurance Information Program counselors, according to information from the Surry County Extension unit.

SHIIP is a division of the N.C. Department of Insurance which offers free, unbiased information about Medicare, Medicare prescription drug coverage, Medicare Advantage, long-term care insurance and other health insurance issues.

In addition to helping Medicare beneficiaries compare and enroll in plans during the open enrollment period, SHIIP counselors can assist citizens in determining if they are eligible for Medicare cost-savings programs.

Those counselors are not licensed insurance agents and do not sell, endorse or oppose any product, plan or company. Persons with questions about specific plans are encouraged to contact their insurance agents or providers.

One way to review and compare plans available for 2023 includes getting one-on-one help from local SHIIP personnel by calling the Surry County Center of N.C. Cooperative Extension at 336-401-8025.

Counselors are available in both Dobson and Mount Airy. Persons interested need to call to make an appointment for either a telephone or an in-person visit, 336-401-8025 to reach the Dobson office or 336-783-8500 for the Surry County Resource Center in Mount Airy.

The local counselors are Tom Bachmann, Mike Carper, Donna Collins, Tammy Haynes and Mary Jane Jenkins, with two new volunteers who are in training, Sylvia Gentry and Donna Sutphin.

More are always sought to assist local Medicare beneficiaries.

An informational program is scheduled at the Beulah Community Club on N.C. 89 Tuesday at 7 p.m., with other educational sessions to be announced before the Dec. 7 deadline.

• Receiving that assistance through the state Seniors’ Health Insurance Information Program by calling toll free at 1-855-408-1212, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

• Visiting www.medicare.gov/find-a-plan to compare present coverage with all options available in this area and enroll in a new plan if there is a decision to make a change. A Medicare & You handbook mailed to people on that program in September can be consulted for this.

• Calling 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) 24-hours a day, seven days a week, to learn more about coverage options. TTY (text telephone device) users should call 1-877-486-2048.

More information about SHIIP and the Medicare open enrollment period is available at 1-855-408-1212 or by visiting www.ncshiip.com.

Causey advises seniors to contact a local SHIIP counselor before deciding about coverage because they might be able to receive more-affordable and better Medicare health and/or drug plan options in the area.

For example, even if someone is satisfied with his or her present Medicare Advantage or Part D plan, there could be another plan in the area that covers one’s health care and/or drugs at a better price.

The Autumn Leaves Festival officially started Friday with an 11:30 a.m. opening ceremony — but the event was well underway before then, with thousands of people already filling Main Street.

With picture-perfect weather — clear skies and temperatures headed to the low 70s — it was hard to remember Friday was a workday for most of the world, with so many people packing downtown to browse the vendor booths, listen to live music, and catch-up with old friends.

Among those at the opening ceremony was Margaret Noonkester, a Mount Airy native who has lived the past 50 years of her life in Ararat, Virginia. Noonkester said she was onhand in 1966 for the first Autumn Leaves Festival, and that she has been at every one since.

“I always look forward to coming,” she said of the event. Noonkester, perhaps one of the few area residents who can lay claim to having attended every festival, said she particularly misses the 10-cent ham biscuits and seeing some of the booths with women and men dressed as their farming ancestors may have a century earlier.

As Greater Mount Airy Chamber of Commerce Chair Connie Hamlin said in her opening remarks during the ceremony, those early years the festival paid homage to the farmers of old, and celebrated the autumn tobacco and apple harvest.

“It used to be about having a good time,” Noonkester said of the festival. “Now, it’s money time,” she said of the gradual commercialization of some parts of the event. “It’s always been a big crowd, but nothing like today. It used to be mostly hometown folk.”

Still, Noonkester keeps coming because she said there is plenty to enjoy.

“I like the music, and just seeing how smart people are with their crafts.”

Plenty of people seemed to enjoy both music and crafters Friday. Upwards of 200 people had set up chairs and staked out spots around the bandstand to catch the live bands, and more than a few folks took to the dance floor set up there, showing off flat-footing and clogging skills.

And thousands — maybe tens of thousands — of area residents and visitors were already making their way up and down Main Street, checking out craft vendors and sampling the food from more than two dozen food booths set up throughout downtown.

Randy Collins, chamber president and CEO, said he was anticipating this weekend would be a big one for downtown.

During his opening remarks, Collins told the crowd there were more than 200 vendors and nearly three dozen live bands scheduled for the weekend, as he recounted a bit of history for the festival.

“The festival started in 1966,” he said. “We have had one every year since. COVID got us in 2020, but we were back in 2021, and we think this could be a record year,” he said of the 2022 version of the festival.

Lenise Lynch, the 2023 chamber chair-elect, said the festival is not only good for the vendors and visitors, but it is good for Mount Airy.

She said in addition to the food and crafts being sold, visitors to the festival spend money in local restaurants, at hotels, gasoline stations, and local shops. She encouraged those browsing the vendor booths to take a few minutes to visit the stores and shops lining Main Street.

“Without them and their support, this festival may not be possible,” she told the crowd.

After the opening remarks, Collins declared the festival “officially open,” Sugarloaf Band took to the stage and the big weekend was off and running.

AES Inc., an industrial repair and contract manufacturing company, has acquired an industrial electronic repair company, Computer Concepts of NC, Inc.

The process to acquire the firm began in June of this year and was finalized by the end of September. With the purchase, AES will eventually add several new positions to its location in Mount Airy.

“The acquisition of Computer Concepts of NC Inc. perfectly aligns with our core services at AES and our current growth strategy,” company CEO Nicholas Cooke said in announcing the purchase. “This acquisition allows current clients of Computer Concepts of NC Inc. to enjoy the benefits of our expanded workforce, diverse service offerings, web-based customer portal, two-year warranty, and free regional pick-up and delivery, to name a few. The acquisition will increase the technical capabilities of AES Inc. while increasing our customer base predominately throughout North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia.”

Founded in 1993, Computer Concepts of NC Inc. is a family-owned and operated company, headquartered in East Bend, with just a single full-time employee, owner Darrell Wooten. He founded the company to provide industrial electronic repair and engineering services to the textile industry.

“He has built an incredible business on the foundation of high-quality workmanship and a customer-centric focus,” Cooke said. “We, at AES, plan to continue that same level of customer service and high-quality workmanship that customers of Computer Concepts of NC Inc. have grown to know and love.”

He said that Wooten will join AES in a business development and technical advisement role “to ensure a smooth transition and continue to grow the business.”

He said the Computer Concepts operations will be moved to the AES Mount Airy repair facility. Cooke said the firm expects to complete the relocation by the first quarter of 2023, and that relocation will create three to five new positions in Mount Airy.

AES, founded in 1992, is a family-owned and operated company with more than 100 employees, providing industrial electronic, hydraulic, and mechanical equipment repair, sales of new and used equipment, as well as electronic contract manufacturing services to a global customer base.

“This is an exciting time for both Computer Concepts of NC Inc. and AES. As one unified team, we become an even stronger service provider within our industry.” Cooke said.

Tammy Joyce, an Edward Jones financial advisor in Mount Airy, recently attended the firm’s Financial Advisor Leaders Conference, which celebrates the contributions and achievements of some of the firm’s most successful financial advisors. The conference was held Sept. 29-30 in St. Louis.

During the two-day meeting, attendees heard from internal and external speakers about relevant topics, conferred on timely topics and shared best practices for serving clients.

“The care these financial advisors show for their clients is outstanding, as is the spirit of partnership they demonstrate with both clients and their branch teams. We applaud the positive impact they are making for their clients and in their communities,” said Chuck Orban, an Edward Jones principal responsible for the firm’s recognition events. “We always look forward to the camaraderie among attendees and the learning that takes place as we celebrate their hard work and the exceptional service they provide to our clients.”

Edward Jones, a FORTUNE 500 firm, provides financial services in the U.S. and through its affiliate in Canada. The firm’s nearly 19,000 financial advisors serve more than 8 million clients with a total of $1.6 trillion in client assets under care. The firm has several locations in Mount Airy and throughout Surry County.

Surry Community College’s Small Business Center is ranked #1 in the Piedmont Triad region in economic impact measured in fiscal year 2021-2022, when counting the number of new business startups and the number of jobs created and retained that are directly attributable to the college’s work in that area.

In the fiscal year 2020-2021, SCC’s Small Business Center was in the top 10 in the state for economic impact.

The Piedmont Triad region covers 11 counties including Surry, Stokes, Rockingham, Yadkin, Forsyth, Guilford, Alamance, Davie, Davidson, Randolph and Montgomery. Seven Small Business Centers are located throughout the region.

“I am proud to see Surry Community College’s Small Business Center excel and make such a significant impact on the college’s service area of Surry and Yadkin counties. Our work with business and industry continues to shine bright in North Carolina,” said SCC President Dr. David Shockley. “It is especially impressive that as a rural Small Business Center, we are creating such a considerable economic impact.”

Under Mark Harden’s leadership as director, the SBC at Surry Community College has received multiple awards during the past four years. In 2020, Harden received the North Carolina State Small Business Center’s Rookie of the Year Award. In 2021, Harden received a Level 2 Credentialing award from the N.C. Community College System Small Business Center Network.

“We are pleased to help the business community in meaningful ways especially during the challenging economic time of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Harden said. “We are happy to be here to provide support.”

Harden has counseled hundreds of aspiring entrepreneurs and small business owners while actively supporting small business start-ups, resulting in hundreds of new and retained jobs in the region. Additionally, the SCC SBC has offered more than 200 business webinars/seminars impacting 1,000 participants in the region during the past four years.

The Small Business Center provides seminars, workshops, resources and counseling to prospective business owners and existing business owners. The counseling and seminars cover a diverse range of important topics including business plans, capital funding, e-commerce, marketing, accounting, QuickBooks, income taxes, sales taxes, licenses/permits, website design and much more.

The SCC Small Business Center has facilities in Dobson, Elkin, Mount Airy, Pilot Mountain, and Yadkinville. To register for upcoming virtual seminars or to view a complete listing of the upcoming Small Business Center offerings, visit www.surry.edu/sbc.

For information about confidential, one-on-one counseling and resource referrals, contact Harden at hardenm@surry.edu or call 336-386-3685.

The identity of a man who allegedly stole a Mount Airy Fire Department vehicle and was killed when wrecking it has been released, along with more details about the unique set of circumstances surrounding that theft.

Markus Evan Beamer, 28, listed as homeless, died in the early morning hours Monday after the sport utility vehicle — taken from the fire station on Rockford Street — went of control at the intersection of U.S. 52-North and Fancy Gap Road. It flipped several times before landing on a traffic island at Fancy Gap Road.

Beamer was ejected from the 2001 Ford Expedition and pronounced dead at the scene.

Information about how he came to be at the wheel of the SUV was disclosed Thursday by city Fire Chief Zane Poindexter.

The older vehicle involved was not being relied on as any kind of first-response unit, but had been assigned for use by the person occupying a new fire inspector position.

Meanwhile, the department’s command vehicle, which is driven by a senior officer in responding to incidents, had been temporarily taken off line due to breaking down, leading personnel to rely Sunday on the SUV subsequently stolen.

“That vehicle was pulled into service that morning as a command vehicle,” Poindexter explained, and was parked outside the station.

“Upon further investigation, we have found that this vehicle was left on Fire Department property with the keys in it,” the chief advised.

The fact the keys had been left inside reflects the need to deploy mobile units quickly in case of an emergency. “And you don’t want to be looking for a set of keys,” Poindexter said of that scenario. “The command vehicle is most of the time in the station.”

He indicated that the SUV which wound up stolen normally is parked outside due to lack of space in the firehouse containing fire engine bays, where the main command vehicle also is kept. “The command vehicle wasn’t able to be moved at that time.”

This unique scenario enabled the theft of the SUV either late Sunday night or early Monday morning, when the crash occurred around 4 a.m.

“It was a mistake and we admit to it,” Poindexter said of the security lapse involved, albeit under atypical circumstances.

The SUV was not discovered missing until fire units — which routinely responded to traffic accidents and other emergencies — were dispatched to the incident with injuries involving that vehicle, according to previous reports.

Beamer apparently took advantage of the SUV’s ready availability due to being on the scene beforehand, witnessing goings-on there and seizing the opportunity.

“He had been hanging around the fire station that day (Sunday),” Poindexter said.

At one point, Beamer was spotted lying on the ground in front of the facility and fire personnel, thinking he had passed out, gave him water, the chief added.

Before this week’s incident, Beamer had been charged in a separate case with larceny of a motor vehicle and possession of a stolen motor vehicle, both felonies. He was scheduled to appear in Surry Superior Court in that case on Nov. 28.

Beamer also had been charged with other crimes, including assault on a female in September, for allegedly hitting his girlfriend, also homeless, in the face with a lighter, causing her lip to bleed, and choking the woman.

In February 2021, he was accused of possession of methamphetamine, a felony, as the result of a suspicious-person call on Hines Avenue near North Main Street.

After being thwarted by the coronavirus for two years, and Hurricane Ian more recently, the Surry County Sonker Festival has been rescheduled for Oct. 29.

The 41st-annual fall event originally was set for Oct. 1 at the historic Edwards-Franklin House, but postponed due to bad weather anticipated locally that weekend from the remnants of Hurricane Ian.

This was after the festival was cancelled in both 2020 and 2021 due to COVID-19.

Now with the pandemic and hurricane out of the picture, organizers with the Surry County Historical Society are excited that it can now be held after an absence of more than three years.

The festival is scheduled from noon to 4 p.m. on Oct. 29. When earlier postponing the event due to the weather, officials of the historical group initially were unsure about an alternate date, but it was disclosed this week.

Admission to the festival is free and open to the public.

An updated announcement from the group’s president, Dr. Annette Ayers, shows that the same slate of activities is on tap despite the four-week delay.

This will include old-time and bluegrass music performed by The Roaring Gap Rattlers and other attractions including flatfoot dancing, quilters, basketry, a pottery display, an exhibit featuring 18th- and 19th-century artifacts and more.

Tours of the Edwards-Franklin House, which dates to 1799, also will be available.

And, of course, there will be the sonkers, a type of deep-dish fruit dessert that originated in this area.

Sonker servings will be available for $4 each, with beverages costing $1.

Five different sonker flavors are on the menu, blackberry, sweet potato, peach, strawberry and cherry, Ayers has said.

Those attending the Sonker Festival are encouraged to bring lawn chairs so they can sit in the yard of the Edwards-Franklin House and enjoy the music and dancing while munching away.

The house is located at 4132 Haystack Road west of Mount Airy.

In the past, people have come from Surry and elsewhere in North Carolina along with various states such as Virginia, New York, Pennsylvania and Georgia.

DOBSON — Twelve teachers from the Surry-Yadkin Electric Membership Corporation service territory have been awarded Bright Ideas Education Grants. Employees with Surry-Yadkin EMC made surprise stops to the winning teachers recently to announce the awards.

A judge panel of retired educators from the Surry-Yadkin EMC service area blind-judged the applications in late September. The grants provide funding for classroom projects, with $7,020 being awarded overall.

This year’s local Bright Ideas grant winners, and their projects, are:

– Alicia Fallaw, a first-grade teacher at Flat Rock Elementary School in Mount Airy, will use her $476 grant for “Let’s Unlock the Love of Learning with Breakout EDU.” Through the Breakout EDU program, students will use communication, collaboration, critical thinking and creative as they work in teams to solve clues, while strengthening learning skills across all curriculum areas;

– Kellie Hunter, also a first-grade teacher at Flat Rock Elementary School, will use her $359.80 grant for “Learning is Fun when You Can Boogie,” which will include the purchase of Boogie Board ReWrite Max tablets;

– Amey King, music teacher at Flat Rock Elementary School, will use her $739.98 grant for “Strumming Along and Getting Along – Using Ukuleles to Build Community.” The project will allow students of all ages to learn to play the ukulele;

– Hannah Grill, a second-grade teacher at B.H. Tharrington Primary School in Mount Airy, will use her $513.52 grant for “Lights, Camera, Action! Using GreenScreen to bring Books to Life.” Greenscreens allow students to bring books to life using new, innovative technology;

– Juan Diaz, a teacher in the Dual-Language Immersion program at B.H. Tharrington Primary School, will use his $1,000 grant for “LegoSchoolLand in BHT,” allowing students to develop creative skills and social skills fundamental for success in the current world culture.

– Jennifer Jones, English teacher at Mount Airy High School was awarded $700 toward her project, “Meta Magic.” She will use the project to incorporate virtual reality technology in her world literature classes;

— Judea Tarn, a seventh-grade science teacher at Meadowview Middle School in Mount Airy, has been awarded a $236.70 grant. Her project, “Advance Weather Tools,” will allow the purchase of weather monitoring tools such as hygrometers, barometers, and anemometers to make students’ studies hands-on.

Other teachers who received grants include Becky Vanderheide at Mountain View Elementary School in Hays; Anna Peterson at Forbush Middle School in East Bend; Michael Holleman, an agricultural education teacher at North Wilkes High School in Hays; Anna Pardue, exceptional children’s teacher at East Wilkes High School in Ronda; and Vanessa Whicker Flynt, a kindergarten teacher at Lewisville Elementary School.

The 12 projects will touch the lives of students in the Surry-Yadkin EMC service area of Surry, Yadkin, Stokes, Wilkes and Forsyth counties.

The Bright Ideas grant program is part of Surry-Yadkin EMC’s ongoing commitment to building a brighter future through support of education. Bright Ideas grant applications are accepted by SYEMC each year from April through mid-September and winning proposals are selected in a competitive evaluation process by a panel of judges. The application process will reopen for interested teachers in April 2023.

To learn more Surry-Yadkin EMC’s programs that impact local students and communities, visit syemc.com/youth-programs. For more information about Bright Ideas grants, visit www.ncbrightideas.com.

The Patrick County Young Professionals soon will be presenting the seventh annual Stuart Spooktacular in Stuart, Virginia.

“Main Street will be transformed into a vibrant, spooky, and most importantly, a safe community celebration suitable for all ages,” the group said in announcing the Oct. 31 event. “Superheroes, witches, ghosts come one, come all! Join the fun with trick or treating, (a) Jack-O’-Lantern contest, llamas, and performances of stilt walkers, fire performers and acrobatics by the Imagine Circus!”

Festivities kick off at 5:30 p.m., the same time as judging for the table decoration contest.

“This event could not be possible without the support from our community through businesses, individuals, civic groups, and others who volunteer to participate and hand out treats,” the group said in announcing the event. “Patrick County Chamber of Commerce, Clark Gas & Oil, Town of Stuart, One Family Productions and Patrick County Tourism are also vital partners who work to bring this event to life.”

Interested businesses, organizations, churches, or individuals who would like to set up a table/booth to hand out treats need to register with the chamber of commerce office by filling out the vendor participation form, located at https://bit.ly/Spooktacular22, by calling 276-694-6012, or by visiting the chamber’s website at patrickchamber.com.

Among one of North Carolina’s most storied exports annually are thousands upon thousands of Christmas trees. This year a 78-foot Red Spruce has been chosen from the National Parks of North Carolina to be the star of the show as the official United States Capitol Christmas Tree.

The 2022 U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree is a 78-foot spruce that will come from the Pisgah National Forest and is set to be felled in early November. As trees go, this one must be something special to have been chosen for such a prominent display and to have been given the affectionate nickname “Ruby.”

Also honored to be selected as part of the Capitol Christmas Tree program is Hardy Brothers Trucking of Siloam which will be escorting the tree on a tour of the state before it reaches the Capitol for the holidays.

Company officials are honored to be participating in the tradition, said Dale Norman the director of sales and marketing for Hardy Brothers Trucking. He said that due to their 57 years of service and excellent safety rating they were selected from all the trucking companies in North Carolina to haul the tree to Washington. While they have received accolades and awards for safety this was their first time transporting such an important tree to the Capitol.

“U.S. Forestry and the U.S. Capitol chose North Carolina to provide the U.S. Capitol Christmas and being selected in 2022 to move the U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree is a true honor, considering the many trucking companies operating in North Carolina,” Norman said.

Husband-and-wife team Harold “Ed” and Deborah Kingdon have been chosen as the team that will deliver the tree to Washington. The two have been driving for Hardy Brothers since 2018 after Ed Kingdon retired from the U.S. Air Force and Air National Guard following 37 years of service and Deborah Kingdon was released from duties as chief home officer after the kids left the nest.

Every part of the procedure needs a steady hand whether it’s Hardy Brothers behind the wheel or a seasoned pro from the forestry department overseeing the delicate task of bringing Ruby down safely.

This job falls to NC Forestry employee Rodney Smith who has spent the entirety of his 30-year career working on the Uwharrie National Forest. From humble beginnings as a timber marker, he now works overseeing timber harvesting for the Uwharrie.

“I am happy just to be part of the U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree project and am incredibly honored to be the one to harvest this year’s tree,” he said. Smith will also accompany Ruby on her tour of the state before travelling north for her holiday show.

“Smith has dedicated his career to the careful care and management of trees in North Carolina’s forests,” said James Melonas, forest supervisor for the National Forests in North Carolina. “We recognize his longstanding contributions to our agency and community by proudly sharing this honor with him.”

When the cargo arrives in Washington, Norman said that an army of volunteers and donated equipment will be at the ready to unload and position Ruby on the Capitol lawn.

A challenge was issued to create ornaments for the tree that will grace the grounds of the U.S. Capitol and residents of North Carolina rose to meet it. “With help from residents across the state we exceeded our goal of 6,000 ornaments for the 2022 U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree,” the Forest Service said. “Over the course of six months, we received over 7,500 ornaments that will adorn The People’s Tree on the West Lawn of the Capitol and other trees across Washington D.C. that will be showcased through the holiday season.”

Ornaments were decorated and donated by schools, communities, and civic organizations across 125 communities in the state. Local artists were also encouraged to donate ornaments or provide materials and expertise to aid in making ornaments.

“I am amazed that we reached our goal early, but I guess I really shouldn’t be surprised that North Carolinians, and our friends and neighbors, rallied for the cause,” said Sheryl Bryan, U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree ornaments coordinator.

“I am immensely proud of the people of North Carolina and of the ornaments on this year’s trees. Each one of them has been touched with love and pride of the Old North State.”

The 78-foot red spruce will hit the road to the Capitol on Nov. 5 with a kick-off event and Harvest Celebration from 3 – 5 p.m. at the Western North Carolina Agricultural Center in Fletcher, located in Henderson County. From there the tree barnstorms across the state making appearances along the way from Murphy to, you guessed it, Manteo before arriving in Washington.

The tree is making a stop in the Granite City on Wednesday, Nov. 9, at Veterans Memorial Park from 10 a.m. – noon. Folks can sign a banner on the truck’s sides, take a virtual walk through an interactive display of the four national forests of North Carolina, and learn about each of the ecosystems found in each. Special appearances are also planned from two of the best-known faces of forestry: Woodsy Owl and Smokey Bear.

The tree does not travel alone and under the watchful eye of Hardy Brothers Trucking, the selected tree “along with companion trees and handmade ornaments will make the journey to Washington, D.C. for the official tree lighting ceremony at our nation’s capital,” the official website for all things Capitol Christmas Tree said.

North Carolina has long been one of the top producing states in the nation for Christmas trees. This is to be the latest U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree from North Carolina’s Pisgah National Forest after Fraser firs from there were selected in 1998 and 1974. The White House has also more recently selected its tree from North Carolina with Fraser firs from Jefferson travelling to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. in both 2021 and 2012; and a fir from Newland was chosen in 2018.

The N.C. Christmas Tree Association estimates the Christmas tree industry is ranked second in the nation in number of trees harvested and cash receipts.

• A Monday incident at Circle K on West Pine Street led to a Morganton man being jailed on charges of resisting, delaying or obstructing a public officer and second-degree trespassing, according to Mount Airy Police Department reports.

Randall Ivey Kincaid, 38, was encountered by officers during a welfare check at the convenience store, from which he had been banned earlier Monday by a Circle K employee, leading to his arrest on the trespassing offense.

Kincaid is alleged to have “jerked away ” from police and refused to get into a patrol vehicle and was subdued without further incident, arrest records state.

The Morganton man was confined in the Surry County Jail under a $500 secured bond and slated for a Nov. 14 appearance in District Court.

• Property valued at $150, including three keys, was stolen Monday from Poppy’s, a business on Moore Avenue, by an unknown suspect.

An employee there, Melissa Rae Johnson of Maple Grove Church Road, is listed as the victim of the crime, which netted a key to a GMC Yukon, a gold key and a silver key, along with a Siamese cat key chain.

• A person listed as homeless was arrested Monday and jailed under a large bond after allegedly refusing to leave a local motel on South Andy Griffith Parkway.

Demetrious DeShel Stroud, 41, was encountered by police at the Andy Griffith Parkway Inn, where they had been banned earlier. Stroud was given the opportunity to leave the property Monday, but refused, according to arrest records, leading to their incarceration in the county jail under a $10,000 secured bond.

Stroud is scheduled to be in Surry District Court on Nov. 14.

Mount Airy government officials who support a new downtown master plan are not expected to reconsider the measure, despite opposition among critics including a protest march last Sunday.

“I see the process going forward,” Mayor Ron Niland said Wednesday regarding the plan approved by the city commissioners in a 3-2 vote on Sept. 1.

It updated a previous master plan done in 2004 to include today’s business outlook and help guide the future of Mount Airy’s central business district and adjoining areas.

But it has met with opposition from some downtown merchants and leaders, along with citizens at large, who fear this will result in a quaint downtown adopting the “cookie-cutter” look of other places.

They see the plan’s recommendations for new flex spaces accommodating outdoor dining and additional elements — along with landscaping and other cosmetic changes, including tree plantings — as undermining what already is a charming, and thriving, downtown.

In addition to organizing Sunday’s “Save Our Main Street” march, plan opponents have circulated petitions in the hopes of getting the majority of city commissioners supporting the plan update to reconsider their Sept. 1 action.

“I don’t see that,” Mayor Niland said Wednesday of this possibility.

Niland, a firm supporter of the plan, believes the measure received sufficient study which does not necessitate another look.

“We had a lot of public meetings,” he said of a nine-month process leading to the plan’s passage. “This wasn’t done in a vacuum.”

The plan’s supporters on the council also have drawn fire for voting on the measure the same night a public hearing was held concerning the proposal. During that hearing, the majority of speakers said they were opposed to the plan as it related to changes eyed for North Main Street.

In discussing the vote on Wednesday and whether, in retrospect, it might have been a good move to delay action until further study, the mayor said, “I don’t know, I think that’s hindsight — I don’t think there was any ill will on anybody’s part.”

And in discussing any need for the matter to be revisited, “I think before anything’s done we will revisit (it),” Niland said of individual aspects of the plan.

“If and when we move forward, we will do it block by block,” he assured. “The plan is not written in stone.”

Small, “very vocal” group?

The mayor also indicated Wednesday that he believed the opposition mounted obscures the fact that many downtown business operators largely support the measure, echoing comments he and other officials made at a council meeting last Thursday.

“I walked up and down Main Street and met at least 40 or 50 property owners,” he related.

While some dislike certain parts of it, “in my conversations with property owners, they’re generally satisfied with most of the plan.”

The opposition also was addressed last Thursday by other plan supporters, including Commissioner Steve Yokeley.

Yokeley’s presentation of carefully worded remarks included his belief that no one wants to see North Main become a one-lane street lined with palm trees — another West Palm Beach, Florida, Asheville “or any place besides Mount Airy.”

The longtime commissioner then took aim at what he variously termed as “naysayers,” “fear mongers,” “doomsday prophets,” “obstructionists” and “saboteurs.”

“I wish we could expect better from this small group of very vocal but consistently negative people in our city,” Yokeley continued.

He said some claim to represent the silent majority, but are relying on suppositions, innuendos, false narratives, negative comments, misinformation, partial facts, uninformed opinions and even personal attacks to make their case.

“They can always be counted on to conjure up a toxic witches’ brew which isn’t appropriate even at Halloween,” Yokeley charged.

He says the critics should produce their own plan rather than attacking a positive one that is focused on the future. “Let’s hear what you want to do instead of what you don’t want to do.”

Yokeley said he wishes the plan opponents would take time to get the facts on all issues before developing uninformed opinions and spreading misinformation along with “outright lies.”

“Think about what we could accomplish if we all work together,” said Yokeley, who began his commentary by mentioning that “we all need to get along.”

Statements by fellow members of the city board also showed that they are entrenched in their positions.

Commissioner Marie Wood said she couldn’t understand why a good plan has become “blown out of the roof,” as evidenced by criticisms being leveled.

Wood further mentioned that she had studied every aspect included in the 78-page document from the start “and I did not see any reason to vote against it” on Sept. 1.

She agreed with Yokeley in loving Mount Airy and not wanting to lessen its charm, much of which is due to its people.

“The citizens of Mount Airy make our city and they can also break it up,” Wood said.

Commissioner Joe Zalescik spoke in the same vein.

“Everybody has a right to protest, everybody has a right to march, but you’ve got to look at the facts and not make up stuff,” Zalescik observed. “Don’t create untruths about what we do up here.”

Zalescik said he also had researched the plan from the beginning and believes one way it will help involves better mobility and walkability downtown.

Council members were prompted to offered such comments in reaction to citizens addressing the plan during a public forum at last Thursday’s meeting, including four people critical of it and two who were supportive.

Shirley Brinkley, a former Mount Airy commissioner, said during her time at the podium that the predominantly non-supportive remarks by citizens during the Sept. 1 hearing seemed to make no difference among the trio of board members voting favorably.

“I believe you had your minds made up,” Brinkley stated.

Karen Armstrong also reiterated her previous concerns about not wanting to see the small-town America embodied by North Main Street damaged.

“People don’t really want the look of Main Street to change,” Armstrong said, adding that citizens shouldn’t “stand by and do nothing.”

John Pritchard, another forum speaker, offered a simple plea to city officials: “Build on what’s successful and don’t mess it up,” he said.

“Just work on the little things and keep the history alive,” urged Devon Hays, who also spoke.

Main Street Coordinator Lizzie Morrison of the group Mount Airy Downtown Inc. offered support for the plan during the forum and sought to allay fears.

“I was born and raised here — this is my hometown — I’m not trying to erase what we love about it,” she said.

In addition, John Phillips, a business owner on North South Street, spoke positively about the downtown plan and thanked city officials for approving the measure.

“When something comes up like this, there’s always disagreements, people on different sides,” Phillips acknowledged. “It’s a myth to say ‘keep things the same’ — change is inevitable.”

The local businessman believes the plan could serve to increase revenues and lower property taxes.

Commissioner Jon Cawley, who had voted against the measure on Sept. 1 along with the board’s Tom Koch, offered his take on that outcome — and its timing.

“It was obvious to me the night we had the discussion that the public was not ready for it,” Cawley said of the plan, which the commissioners had the power to act on — or not.

Holding the vote then “was a poor decision on our part,” he asserted.

Details on the fatal auto accident Monday morning that killed one and involved a stolen Mount Airy Fire Department SUV remains murky.

Monday around 4 a.m. the fire department responded to a report of a vehicle that had flipped several times and come to rest, “On the island at Fancy Gap Road and Highway 52,” the fire department said in their press releases.

Mount Airy Fire Chief Zane Poindexter said in a statement, “Units arrived on the scene to find that our FD SUV had been stolen from our parking lot during the night and the suspect had wrecked the vehicle.”

He went on to say the driver was ejected and was pronounced dead at the scene.

“It was taken from our Rockford Street station without permission sometime during the late evening or early morning hours,” Mount Airy Assistant Fire Chief Chris Fallaw said.

“It was not discovered missing until our units were dispatched to the motor vehicle accident with injuries involving this particular vehicle,” he explained Tuesday morning.

The Mount Airy Police Department in investigating and did not respond to a request for comment before press time.

Neither agency would release the name of the deceased, nor did they comment on how a city fire department vehicle was stolen or if the person killed in the wreck was affiliated with the fire department.

Attempts to get more information on the wreck and the circumstances surrounding the theft and crash were not successful.

The big weekend is here.

Autumn Leaves Festival kicks off for the 56th time on Friday, heralding a busy three-day weekend which organizers say could see upwards of 200,000 people — or more — descend on Mount Airy to check out more than 100 craft booths, food vendors, and area businesses along Main Street and some side roads.

Begun in 1966 as a downtown gathering to recognize and celebrate the area’s rich agricultural history, the festival retains some of that early influence with old-time displays and vendors centered around agricultural products. But the event has morphed into a large crafter and food festival as well.

“Typically we can see anywhere from 100,000 to 150,000 people a day, on the weekends,” said Jordan Edwards, who serves as the Autumn Leaves Festival director as well as event director for the Greater Mount Airy Chamber of Commerce. “We’re hopeful for that crowd, and more,” she said.

Edwards, in her first year with the chamber and the festival, said the organization has had a few obstacles to overcome this year — mostly centered around the July partial collapse of the Main Oak Emporium building. Efforts have been ongoing to shore up the rest of the structure to keep the area safe, while long-term salvage plans can be put together, but Edwards said some vendor booths had to be moved from around the building.

“We’re having to keep vendors 20 feet off the building,” she said this week, adding that has resulted in the loss of about 15 vendor spaces. “That has been kind of a challenge, but a unique opportunity…We’ve really tried to expand the festival to its borders, take advantage of the side streets, which hasn’t been done in the past. The festival footprint has given us some areas that are underutilized.” That, she hopes, will mean more room for vendors and shoppers.

“We have some exciting new additions to the festival,” she said. One of those additions is what she called a “public safety touch-a-truck area.”

There, various organizations dealing with public safety — police, fire departments, emergency services — will have ambulances, trucks and squad cars on hand for close-up viewing.

“Citizens and kids can go up to their equipment, children can enjoy it, crawl up in it. People can see ambulances, ATV’s, squad cars, up close,” she said. That is planned to be set up on East Independence Boulevard, near Renfro Street.

In addition to new crafters and displays, there will be plenty of old favorites — including the return of “familiar quintessential items,” including the famous Sandy Level collard green sandwiches, returning to the festival after a few years’ absence.

The festival officially gets underway Friday with an 11:30 a.m. opening ceremony at the main bandstand, but many streets in downtown will be closing at noon on Thursday so vendor booths and the bandstand can set up.

The festival will remain open, with live music at the bandstand along with the open vendor and food booths, until 9 p.m. on Friday. Saturday, the festival officially opens at 9 a.m., open until 9 p.m., and on Sunday the event lasts from 1 until 5 p.m.

Dobson Church of Christ held a youth carnival at the church on Saturday, Oct. 8, which drew youth and families from around the community for games, food, and fun.

Eighth grade science students at Pilot Mountain Middle School in the class of Janna Blakeney and Bill Goins recently went to the creek and pond behind the school to test and compare the water quality at the two locations.

They tested temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, nitrates, phosphates, turbidity, and found several bioindicator species as part of their studies.

Mount Airy’s Autumn Leaves Festival won’t be the only game in town this weekend — there’s also the 17th annual 5k on the Greenway scheduled Saturday to benefit underserved individuals and school projects.

The event, held each year during the festival, is not just for hard-core runners.

All those folks, plus walkers and strollers, are invited to participate in the multi-faceted gathering which will include the 5K (3.1-mile) run at 8 a.m. Saturday and a half-mile run at 8:45 a.m.

It is a joint venture involving Mount Airy Parks and Recreation, the Reeves Community Center Foundation and Mount Airy City Schools.

The Lovills Creek (Emily B. Taylor) portion of the Granite City Greenway is the site of the event, which is the oldest 5K run held in the city. It was cancelled in 2020 because of COVID-19 and resumed in 2021, drawing 220 participants.

“It is a popular race each year largely due to being held on a flat and fast course and the organizations that the proceeds will benefit,” city Parks and Recreation Director Peter Raymer explained.

Proceeds from the event are to be split between the Reeves Community Center Foundation and city schools.

The foundation plans to designate its share for scholarships to assist underserved youth and disabled adults who otherwise would not be able to participate in recreational activities.

Mount Airy City Schools uses a competition to allocate its proceeds from the 5k on the Greenway.

Everyone who registers for the race can “represent” a school in the city system and the campus with the highest number of participants will win earn money toward its goal.

These include an updated playground at Tharrington Primary; special projects at Jones Intermediate; field trips and experiential learning opportunities for students at Mount Airy Middle School; and, at Mount Airy High, additional outdoor seating for lunch and learning spaces for classes.

“This challenge by Mount Airy City Schools has motivated a lot of families to register for this event, get some exercise and help make a difference,” Raymer added.

There is still time to register for 5k on the Greenway, which can be done at https://5kotg.itsyourrace.com/event.aspx?id=1710

The cost for the 5K up until Race Day is $38 for adults and $28 for youths under 18. That for the half-mile (under 10) fun run is $15.

Saturday’s starting line on the Emily B. Taylor section of the greenway is near the trail entrance behind Roses, a short distance west toward West Lebanon Street.

The 5K course includes some city streets along with the greenway.

More information about the event also is available at the It’s Your Race online site.

Throughout October, the Surry County Office of Substance Abuse Recovery (SCOSAR) is making presentations to school kids during Prevention Month. The last week of the month is when national Red Ribbon Week will be observed in Surry County, however Surry Early College held its programs early.

The 2022 Red Ribbon Week theme is “Celebrate Life. Live Drug Free,” and was created by seventh graders in Wayland, New York “The theme is a reminder that everyday Americans across the country make significant daily contributions to their communities by being the best they can be because they live drug-free,” the national Red Ribbon Campaign said.

“Given the current substance use epidemic our country, Red Ribbon Week is as important as ever,” county substance abuse outreach coordinator Charlotte Reeves said. “SCOSAR is partnering with the Mount Airy Rotary Club, Mount Airy City Schools, Surry County Schools, and Elkin City Schools to spread the word to as many students as possible by celebrating Red Ribbon Week in multiple locations.”

In a survey conducted by SCOSAR of more than 700 county residents, 94.67% of respondents felt that the age to start speaking to kids about substance abuse is during elementary or middle school while kids are most impressionable. Therefore, SCOSAR will be focusing its Red Ribbon Week events at the middle schools of the area. The Rotary Club through its youth service outreach, Interact, will be aiding in the programming at the high schools.

During school presentations DEA and local law enforcement agencies will address with students the importance of staying drug-free and the harmful side effects drugs, alcohol, and vaping can have on a developing brain.

A community approach will help get the message to more ears. Other community agencies will be working with local youth as well, including Insight Human Services, Surry Friends of Youth, and the All-Stars Prevention Group. “We are honored to have to have a partnership with these community volunteers, agencies, local law enforcement, and the DEA,” she said.

“Erin Jones is the administrator for the Interact Club, and the Early College events were really great,” Reeves said. At the Early College students and faculty held a spirit week, wore red on Thursday, homeroom teachers showed short videos about the history of Red Ribbon Week and drug facts, and the narcotics officers visited the school during lunch and gave a presentation to a large group of students.

Jones also said that Interact and student council held a car wash and agreed to take part of the money raised to buy items for Hope Valley Rehabilitation in Dobson. She said Interact wanted to include a service project within its Red Ribbon Week, so they spoke with Hope Valley and produced a list of items for us to purchase.

Throughout prevention month, SCOSAR is reminding parents, teachers, and all members of the community that prevention will be the most effective tool in combating drugs, alcohol, and vape abuse for the long term. The phrase “Talk. They hear you.” means when parents take the time to explain the dangers of substance abuse in clear terms, these messages can reach children.

The AJ Fletcher Opera School visited Shoals Elementary School recently and presented “The Bremen Town Musicians!” Students and staff enjoyed the program. Some of the students and staff joined in and became part of the cast.

On Saturday night several downtown Elkin bars and restaurants sent their staff members home early following a potential threat to staff and guests. The threats were related to a stabbing that occurred in Dobson on Oct. 2 in which five people, including a bouncer employed by Angry Troll Brewing, were seriously injured.

Elkin Police Chief Monroe Wagoner said officers were standing by ready to respond if needed in his town on Saturday.

Jessica Grogan of Southern on Main confirmed that her staff was asked to “clear the building, just in case” by law enforcement while they were cleaning up after closing on Saturday night.

There were no incidents of violence reported Saturday, but Elkin Police Captain J. Tulbert did confirm one arrest Saturday night. Information on that arrest and any possible connection to the threats was not immediately available.

Colby “Branch” Benton was one of the five victims and he remains hospitalized after having suffered serious injuries during the attack.

His family has been keeping well-wishers up to date on his status and recovery. Wednesday morning they said, “He had a good day yesterday. He is fully awake. Physical therapy and speech therapy started working with him yesterday. Baby steps… continue to pray!”

The family had annonced his ventilator was removed and Branch has stepped down from TraumaICU to Intermediate ICU. “He’s such a beast. He’s doing so good. We are so happy to see those baby blues. He is so loved and your prayers are heard, I believe that,” family members posted.

An acclaimed band will add some musical flavor in Mount Airy during the city’s annual Autumn Leaves Festival to begin later this week.

This involves a free concert by Runaway Train, which is scheduled for Friday beginning at 7:30 p.m.

It will be held at Blackmon Amphitheatre, located near the Mount Airy Municipal Building.

Runaway Train is a versatile band with local and area members which specializes in a variety of music including country, beach and contemporary/classic rock.

The free concert is being sponsored by Eagle Carports.

“They foot the bill for the amphitheatre,” said Keith Miller, a member of Runaway Train who plays rhythm guitar and is lead vocalist. “They’re just a really good company.”

Miller indicated that Runaway Train is excited to be performing in Mount Airy after two years of setbacks.

“We played in 2019 and 2020 was COVID,” he said of the pandemic that prevented a concert that year. Then in 2021, a scheduled performance was cancelled late in the day of that event due to a threat of storms which didn’t materialize.

“It never rained,” Miller said.

The Surry County School system and Wayne Farms recently celebrated the completion of the poultry lab at Surry Central High School.

“This ribbon cutting marks a new era for the poultry lab at Surry Central and the continued partnership between Surry County Schools and Wayne Farms,” school officials said in announcing the event..

Many Surry Central FFA Officers were in attendance, along with Surry County Commissioner Mark Marion, School board members Mamie M. Sutphin, Clark Goings, Dale Badgett, Melissa Key Atkinson, and those who assisted directly with the renovation project. The ceremony was also attended by representatives from Wayne Farms including Matthew Wooten, Nathan Pardue, and Lee Freeman, along with Andy VonCanon, western region agricultural education coordinator for North Carolina FFA, Bryan Cave of the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service, Gary York with WIFM Radio, and the Surry County Schools Central Office team.

The ribbon cutting featured remarks from FFA officers, Principal Misti Holloway, Board of Education Chairperson Mamie M. Sutphin, Wooten of Wayne Farms, Cave of the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service, and Superintendent Dr. Travis L. Reeves.

Renovations on the facility began in 2018, when the building was gutted in order to be outfitted with state-of-the-art equipment. The area where the poultry lab stands was once part of the larger Surry Central greenhouse structure and served as an animal science lab for years.

Wayne Farms and Hog Slat Inc. partnered to make improvements to the existing structure as well as install industry-standard equipment. Through the company’s partnership with Hog Slat, Wayne Farms secured new lights, temperature controls, fans, and louvers for the facility. Hog Slat is the largest construction contractor and manufacturer of hog production equipment and produces swine and poultry units for family farms and large corporate entities. The Surry County Schools Maintenance Department was able to provide new insulation and electrical work for the project, along with overseeing the day-to-day operations of the renovation.

“This lab mimics current production practices and provides those who might not have an opportunity otherwise to learn how the poultry industry really works. This is a place where students can raise and care for chickens in order to gain irreplaceable hands-on experiences in a live animal setting,” said Agriculture Education Teacher and FFA Advisor Sarah Johnson. “Although the classroom is a necessary part of any student’s education, it is impossible to learn what agriculture is truly about from a seat, a lecture, or a textbook.

“In this facility, my students will be able to gain a deeper insight into the cost and business realities of agriculture, the struggles, and successes that farmers face, and will also offer the opportunity for students to learn how much Surry County relies on agriculture and how the world depends on people like themselves who are willing to work hard and help others.”

“It is my belief that this facility will serve as an inspiration to our students and future farmers,” Reeves said. “This facility will give them the chance to test concepts, gain real-world knowledge, and expose them to career opportunities they may not have thought about previously. Agriculture is still the number one industry in Surry County and the state of North Carolina, making this project an investment in the industry’s future.”

Surry Central High School is also the future location of a new Live Animal Lab, further solidifying the partnership between Surry County Schools and Surry Community College. The facility will be used by teachers at Surry Central High School in the Animal Science program and instructors at Surry Community College in the animal science degree program to offer hands-on instruction on raising calves, goats, piglets, and other small animals. Students from the high school and college will receive valuable training in the field of animal science in this cooperative lab.

© 2018 The Mount Airy News