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LOUISBURG -- For years, the Louisburg High School band has given its time to delight crowds on Veterans Day.
On Tuesday, veterans took time to give back to them, presenting the band's booster club with financial support and giving band director Brian Miller a plaque for his work.
"I tell my band members that this is one of the most important performances we have all year long," Miller said while accepting the plaque during the Veterans' Day service at the High School.

LOUISBURG -- The Franklin County Board of Education saluted David Averette as the district's assistant principal of the year Monday night and later extended the school year by two days for students next year.
A veteran educator, Averette has served as assistant principal at Franklinton High School since 2007.
Earlier in the day, Averette was surprised by students, family, and faculty at Monday's pep rally at FHS and recognized for his achievement.

BUNN -- Town commissioners agreed to begin advertising their need for a new police chief.
And they tasked their outgoing chief with aiding in the transition.
Kent Winstead bested Sheriff Jerry Jones in the general election and is slated to take office on Dec. 1 -- making Nov. 30 his last day as Bunn's police chief.

LOUISBURG -- A "data collection" meeting designed to reap ideas about how to improve Louisburg's Bickett Boulevard drew very little attention last Thursday night when only about 15 persons attended, most of them government officials.
The meeting was scheduled by the Town of Louisburg and the Kerr-Tar Regional Planning Organization. It was designed as a "first step" toward improving the dangerous five-lane boulevard, according to Tony King, Louisburg's planning director.

County resident Saniyah Silver

Right now, before politics begin to boil again, better look up the term "political fratricide" because the moon and stars seem aligned to create a classic example of that over the next two years.
Fresh off a mid-term election victory, the Republicans nationwide are flush with success -- but seem likely to tear their party apart because some are ready to compromise to get things accomplished and some demand a hard-line, take-no-prisoners approach even if it means a mega-standoff in Washington where nothing gets done.

This year's mid-term election participation was pretty good.
Well, it was pretty good if you compare it to other mid-term elections.
But if you compare the actual turnout to the actual number of registered voters, it was rather pathetic.
We Americans love to talk about how the majority rules but a look at the numbers show that contention is not exactly accurate.

Unfortunately, Franklin County has seen some of its history disappear in the past year, or so.
Most controversially, county leadership destroyed documents that were being stored inside the Franklin County Courthouse basement.
Historical preservation advocates were upset that a complete inventory of documents was not attained before they were burned -- never to be recovered.

The biggest shock I got from all the post election numbers and rhetoric was that people were bragging about 17,000 more votes being cast in North Carolina in 2014 than 2010.
Many left-leaning groups used it as proof that their get-out-the-vote effort worked.
Many on the right said it proved their measures were not aimed at suppressing the vote.
They are both full of what Vice President Biden calls malarkey!

I am going to ask the pointed question; just what is the true value of the Bull Creek Golf course property? Is it $1.1 million, $822,000, $700,000, $600,000, or something much less or greater?
Quoting from Carey Johnson's article in last week's paper: "Upon examining the property -- performing due diligence -- County Attorney Pete Tomlinson said the county negotiated the price down to $600,000.
The bank and sellers agreed, he said.

Dear editor:
Thank you for your comments about the need for a new library in Louisburg. As a member of Friends of the Library and a Library Board member, I can assure you this is something both groups have been working on for years. We considered the old Walmart building and partnering with other agencies in sharing the space, but were told at that time that something else was coming in there.

Dear editor:
On Nov. 7, we arrived home from work to a horrific scene; my husband's Quarter Horse of 18 years dead in our dog's turnout area.
All of our horses have lived on this property since we moved to the Pocomoke area of Franklin County 18 years ago.

Dear editor:
In regards to the Oct. 29 letter to the editor "Giving back to community by volunteering," I was impressed by Logan's mature logic that volunteering makes a better community.
I know from experience that it gives your spirit a lift when you can do something that benefits others.

LOUISBURG - Pearl Blackwell Tharrington, 74, died Tuesday morning, Nov. 11, 2014, at her home. A memorial service will be held 11 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 13, at Mountain Grove Baptist Church with the Rev. Daren Smart officiating. The family will receive friends immediately following the service.

LOUISBURG - Funeral services for Ricky Lee Hill, 71, who died Monday, Nov. 10, 2014, will be held at 12 noon Friday, Nov. 14, at St. Matthias Episcopal Church, with Father Jemonde Taylor officiating.

FRANKLINTON - What would evolve into the greatest victory in the brief-but-storied history of Franklinton High School boys soccer appeared to be just a potential dream with midway through the second half.
Franklinton had saw its hard-fought contest with Southwest Onslow in the third round of the Class 2-A State Playoffs lean the visitors' way with 34 minutes left in the match as the Stallions tallied the first goal.

CARRBORO -- In the span of seconds, euphoria turned to anguish -- and that would prove to be the heartbreaking final chapter of Franklinton's storybook boys soccer season.
Taking on Carrboro in the Elite Eight of the Class 2-A State Playoffs, the Red Rams thought they have moved ahead with a potential Leon Gruchmann goal with seven minutes remaining in the first half.

WARRENTON -- After a bumpy stretch, the Bunn Wildcats wrapped up their regular season football schedule with a pair of clutch victories in Northern Carolina Conference action.
Because of the late streak, the Wildcats will close in third place in the NCC following a 53-22 victory over Warren County last Friday night.

LOUISBURG -- Over the past several campaigns, Louisburg College's men's basketball regular season action usually features a seemingly never-ending series of blowout victories.
That's not been the case so far in 2014-15, but LC veteran head coach Mark Vanderslice doesn't see that as a bad thing.
Vanderslice has raised the difficulty of his club's schedule this season, and it has showed as the Hurricanes are undefeated at 5-0 -- but three of those victories have come by 10 points or less.

LOUISBURG -- Louisburg's Warriors couldn't have asked for a better stretch to close out the regular season -- and head into the Class 1-A State Football Playoffs.
The Warriors won their final four outings in runaway fashion, including a 56-12 decision over Weldon last Friday night in the Tar-Roanoke Athletic Conference finale for both squads at LHS' Patterson Field.

HENDERSON -- What seemed like old times couldn't have come at a better time last night Friday for the Franklinton High School football team.
Needing a late touchdown to secure a comeback victory, FHS moved quarterback Rondez Taylor to wide receiver -- the position he starred at two years ago.

CHAPEL HILL -- Here are the first-round pairings for the Class 2-AA and Class 1-AA State Football Playoffs.

LOUISBURG -- Of the many accomplishments Thomas Winstead has enjoyed in his lifetime, few were more memorable than his two-year tenure at Louisburg College as an assistant softball coach.
Winstead, who resides in Nash County, was able to work under legendary LC skipper Sheilah Cotten -- all the while coaching his daughter, Brandy.

LOUISBURG -- The Louisburg college Hurricanes rallied for their fourth win of the young season in thrilling fashion as they shot 43% from beyond the three-point arc in route to a 103-95 men's basketball victory over rival Hargrave Military Academy last Saturday night at the Taylor Center.
LC point guard T.J. Wilson scored 24 of of his team-leading 26 points in the second half as the Hurricanes trailed by as many as nine during that span.

LOUISBURG -- A second chance is often afforded in life when you least expect it -- and when the opportunity is way past due.
Back in the mid-1980s, Mike Epps, Chad Champion and Yancey Leonard were part of Louisburg Lions youth squad that reached the championship game in their division of the East Wake Football League.
Louisburg didn't come up with a victory that day -- an outcome the trio hopes to reverse this Saturday.

GOLDSBORO -- The baseball clinic run by North Carolina High School Athletic Association Hall of Famer George Whitfield is set for its 43rd annual renewal.
The clinic is scheduled for Goldsboro High School on January 10, 2015, and features another tremendous lineup.
Registration is scheduled from 7:30-9 a.m., and then the clinic will run until 6 p.m.

The Franklin County Parks and Recreation Department Royals went 9-0 during their Fall Baseball Season under head coach Chris House. Pictured are (back, l to r) Assistant Coach Justin Edwards, Assistant Coach Chris Roark and Head Coach Chris House; (middle l to r) Austin Edwards, Nolan House, Jacob Whaley and Will Edwards; (front, l to r) Mason Morris, Gunner Rogers, Noah Sullivan, Gage Roark and Jordan Whaley.

ALBANY, GA. -- It took a second-half comeback, but Louisburg College was once again able to secure a spot in the National Junior College Athletic Association Men's Soccer National Tournament.
Facing some adversity on the road, Louisburg rode three goals from Bernardo Majano down the stretch to outlast homestanding Darton College in Southeast District Tourney action last Saturday in South Georgia.

GREENSBORO -- Sophomore Malik Adams caught three touchdown passes and senior Brice Wordsworth hauled in another to lead the North Carolina Wesleyan College football team to a dominating 31-6 USA South victory at Greensboro College last Saturday in Guilford County.
After falling behind 6-0 early, the Bishops reeled off 31 unanswered points to up their record to 5-4 on the season, 4-3 in conference action.

RALEIGH -- The Carolina Hurricanes, winners of their last 4 of 5 games, remained hot as they defeated the visiting Calgary Flames 4-1 Monday night in National Hockey League action at the PNC Arena.
The Flames opened the scoring at the 13:09 mark of the first as David Jones found the net behind Canes' goalie Cam Ward.

(L to R) Franklinton's Josh Ortiz and Southwest Onslow's Kai Bergener surge toward the ball during last Wednesday's playoff match at the FHS Football Field.

T.J. Wilson drives into the lane for LC.

Franklinton's Smith Gupton (15) sprints toward the ball near the midfield during last Wednesday night's overtime playoff victory over Southwest Onslow at home.

Louisburg's Lakito Perry (right) tries to escape the Weldon defense during last Friday night's conference football matchup.

Franklinton's Alvaro Ortiz (left) advances the ball last Wednesday against Southwest Onslow.

Franklinton's Josh Ortiz (middle) dribbles between a pair of Carrboro players during last Saturday's action in the Elite Eight of the Class 2-A Boys Soccer State Playoffs.

During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Franklin County took steps to ensure that its jail building on East Nash Street in Louisburg, which had been completed in 1875, could continue to house inmates safely and humanely.
After 1975, when a new correctional facility opened, citizens spearheaded an effort to develop a historical museum in the old jail.
The Franklin County commissioners funded several measures to improve security.

There has never been a better time to quit smoking in North Carolina than the 2014 Great American Smokeout, sponsored by the American Cancer Society, on Nov. 20. Any tobacco user who registers to quit with QuitlineNC on Nov. 20 is eligible to receive eight weeks of free nicotine patches to help them quit for good. QuitlineNC, North Carolina's telephone and online quit-smoking support service, is ready to help smokers - as well as other tobacco users - take advantage of this opportunity by working with a Quit Coach.

Thomas Allen of Zebulon announced that he was recently awarded the Old North State Award from Governor Pat McCrory. He was praised for his public service and transport service work.
Allen is a volunteer, donating his time to help the needy. Allen has been running a transportation service for over 31 years. His service covers five counties, including Wake and Franklin, helping the homeless, elderly, handicapped, disabled, blind and veterans.

Get ready to dial up for local human services and then ... have some cake.
The United Way of Franklin County in partnership with Franklin County government, county commissioners and nonprofits that serve Franklin county residents will announce that 211 will be up and going on Nov. 18. The service is part of a national system, hooked up to a North Carolina call center that allows a person to call 211, identify his county and then receive information on volunteer and human services.

LOUISBURG -- Franklin County is back in the hunt for a new finance director.
County Manager Angela Harris confirmed last week that Carrie Neal, who was to assume those duties full time on Dec. 1, has resigned.
Neal was to have been the county's finance director as well as assist the manager in capital planning, grant administration, budgeting, fiscal analysis and supervision of departments as assigned.

YOUNGSVILLE -- Franklin County sheriff's deputies arrested two people and are looking for one suspect accused of helping themselves at a local eatery.
According to a report by Dep. Dustin Vaughan, he was dispatched to the Waffle House on U.S. 1 the evening of Nov. 3 to investigate customer problems and found the doors to the 24-hour diner locked.