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LOUISBURG -- Franklin County students will soon have the option of heading back to their classrooms for a couple of days a week -- but it won't look much like the schools they've been accustomed to in recent years.
The county Board of Education, in an unusual Thursday night meeting, decided that it would be safe for students to return to school under Plan B beginning on a staggered schedule on Monday, Oct. 26.

LOUISBURG -- Although the Franklin County Board of Education has unanimously voted to return students to face-to-face classes a couple of days a week, there little consensus on that issue in the broader community.
Prior to making that decision, the board listened as its clerk, Diane Marks, read an impassioned letter from a Bunn High School teacher urging them not to take such action -- and they were provided statistics from a recent survey of staff members that shows many have similar concerns.

LOUISBURG -- Early voting starts today.
Early voting for the general election began on Thursday, Oct. 15, and runs through Oct. 31, with voting hours from 8 a.m. until 7:30 p.m, Monday through Friday.
The county's plan also includes one day of Sunday voting, Oct. 25, from 1-5 p.m.
Early voting will also be available on the following Saturdays, Oct. 17 from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m.; and Oct. 24 and Oct. 31, from 8 a.m. until 3 p.m. on both days.

LOUISBURG -- Commissioners received an update on how architects plan to move at least two county departments into their new office space in the old Walmart property.
The county agreed to lease the 35,000-square-foot space in August.
And, during a meeting on Oct. 5, representatives with Oakley Collier Architects -- the firm hired to help the county inventory and assess its space needs -- gave the public its first hints at what will go inside the building.

YOUNGSVILLE -- A long-time gestating project that will give downtown a facelift has gotten a green light.
Since 2016, the town has planned to do a Main Street Improvements Project, which, among other things, includes plans to improve modality through downtown with sidewalks and crosswalks, coupled with a plan to repave the road and redo curbs and gutters.

Caroline White, Carrigan Ewers

It was one of those good news, bad news moments last week, brought to you by your friends in county government.
It was a tossup whether to celebrate the county's action or just shake your head in despair that such a step was deemed necessary.
It came as many county decisions have come lately, with no public debate, discussion or explanation, all of which raises some interesting questions.
The county agreed to spend $75,000 to determine if it can afford to spend a whole lot more of your money to find and make useable a new source of precious water.

Any election brings with it a certain amount of shenanigans.
The November 3 election -- probably the second-most anticipated act of Democracy in my lifetime -- has all the usual calling cards.
Each day, my mailbox is littered with campaign fliers that, more often than not, become drink coasters.
I'm not exactly sure the stock of paper they use, but those things work incredibly well at keeping condensation from ruining the wood on my coffee table.

Dear editor:
2 Chronicles 7:14 says: "If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

Dear editor:
I'm just an average citizen who enjoys watching the wheels of democracy turn. I have taken an interest in the ongoing issues of the Franklin County Clerk of Court because this case strikes at the core of the democratic process. The smooth transfer of power shines as the hallmark of American democracy -- without it we become animals engaged in the fight for power and dominion over the land.

LOUISBURG--Funeral services for James Earnest Hicks, Sr., 72, who died Monday, October 12, 2020, will be held Sunday, Oct. 18, at 2 p.m. in the Richardson Funeral Home Chapel in Louisburg, with the Rev. Douglas Harris officiating. Burial will follow in the Hicks family cemetery.

LOUISBURG -- To truly display Carrigan Ewers' mound excellence, Louisburg College softball coach Eric Lee encourages a visitor to watch Ewers pitch from the protective side of a backstop just behind home plate.
"Look at that movement!,'' Lee shouts as an offering tails away from a right-handed hitter at a recent intrasquad scrimmage at Sheilah R. Cotten Field on the LC campus.

LOUISBURG -- Louisburg College's softball team has undertaken several intrasquad scrimmages this fall, but there is still no substitution for being able to take the field against an opponent.
That strategy is usually a staple of LC's fall season, but COVID-19 has forced Lady Hurricanes' veteran head coach Eric Lee to shift his focus more this time around.

TAMPA, FLA. -- East Carolina University stiffened defensively in the second half last Saturday night on the way to a 44-24 American Athletic Conference road football victory over USF at Raymond James Stadium.
The Pirates notched their first league win of the campaign while keeping the Bulls winless in conference play.

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- Southern Nash alum Zonovan 'Bam' Knight enjoyed a strong performance for the North Carolina State University Wolfpack during their 38-21 road victory last Saturday at Virginia in an Atlantic Coast Conference football showdown.
NC State upped its mark to 3-1 overall on the campaign, and the Wolfpack have won two straight games -- both on the road.
Knight, a sophomore running back, paced the Wolfpack with a team-high 101 yards on 18 carries. He also caught one pass for 12 yards.

ANNIVERSARY. In a candlelight ceremony on Sunday, July 3, 1960, Eula Bell Paschall became the bride of Joseph Lucas Gupton. The couple celebrated their 60th Wedding Anniversary on July 3, 2020 with a drive-by celebration at the couple's home. Their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren hosted the event.

WARRENTON -- An altercation that led to gunplay was expected to land a northern Franklin County man in jail.
Investigators responded to the 500 block of Jordan School Road the evening of Oct. 9 after receiving two different calls of assault involving a gun.
According to authorities, a woman went to Daniel Blake's home and the two got into an argument.

LOUISBURG -- The county's clerk of court, her attorneys and those seeking her ouster were still waiting this week on a judge's ruling.
The week of Sept. 28, Superior Court Judge Thomas H. Lock listened to arguments that would form the basis of whether or not he removed Patricia Burnette Chastain from office.

YOUNGSVILLE -- The town's ABC Board has agreed to move forward with selling its property -- making way for the town to have two liquor stores that could help offset taxes or bolster town projects.
The ABC Board has completed the upset bid process that would allow WW Properties and Rentals to buy the N. College Street building and nearly 2 acres surrounding it for $395,000. The seller is conducting due diligence, town staff said, but the sale is expected to go through.

BUNN -- Sheriff's deputies arrested a man in a stabbing case that took place in a neighborhood between Bunn and Lake Royale.
Deputies responded to 15 Queens Drive to find Mark Brodie suffering from a laceration to the arm and puncture wound to the stomach.
James Dunston was charged with misdemeanor assault for his role in the matter.

As you can imagine, we have fielded many inquiries about what is going on at the Franklin County Libraries.
A lot as it turns out! We are currently and indefinitely closed inside to the public. Our reasoning is relative to space to ensure that all of our materials are properly quarantined before releasing them to you.
We make every effort to ensure that materials are disinfected, quarantined and handled appropriately by staff before and during any transaction.

FRANKLINTON -- An officer was transported to Maria Parham and treated for injuries sustained while making an arrest in a domestic dispute last week. .
According to Chief James Davis, officer J. Wilson responded to a domestic disturbance at 23 W. Green Street the evening of Oct. 7.
Following an investigation, Wilson began to arrest a man at the scene when the suspect began fighting.