Archives

LOUISBURG -- The Franklin County Board of Elections made the Nov. 5 election official.
The Nov. 15 canvassing did extend Commissioner Mark Speed's win over Russell Bottoms for the District 3 seat -- taking a recount request off the table.
On election day, Bottoms was within 1 percent of Speed, which would have given him the ability to demand a recount.
But, after tabulating provisional and absentee ballots, Speed earned 3,716 votes to 3,633 for Bottoms -- a difference of 1.12 percent.

Emma Ruth Stewart, who served 30 years as a Louisburg council member and has been involved in many civic projects, received the prestigious Order of the Long Leaf Pine award Sunday afternoon at Louisburg College. The award was made by North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper and presented to her by Louisburg Mayor Christopher Neal. The Order of the Long Leaf Pine is presented to individuals who have a proven record of extraordinary service to the state.

LOUISBURG -- Franklin County swore in its new tax administrator this week.
John Preston was sworn in Monday and appointed as the tax administrator for Franklin County -- filling the vacancy of former Tax Administrator Marian Cascone, who resigned in July.
Dan Williams, who served in that capacity before Cascone, served the county on an interim basis until Preston was hired.

LOUISBURG -- Several major suggestions for the Louisburg Town Council to consider emerged from last Thursday's Louisburg EDC meeting, the second session for the newly formed group.
EDC members liked the idea from Chairman Will Hinton who suggested that "opening up" the land along the Tar River near the town's proposed new town hall building would turn the long-neglected river into an attractive landscape visible even from Bickett Boulevard.

READY TO RESPOND. This trio of young firefighters looked like they were ready to respond Sunday afternoon at the opening of the Louisburg Fire Department Museum. The three were seated on "Maude," the museum's fully restored 1921 American La France fire engine. From the left are Liam Gupton behind the wheel, Brookelyn Pendergrass (center) and Savana Pendergrass. They attended the official opening of the museum which volunteers plan to have open the afternoon of the third Sunday of every month from 2 to 5 p.m. -- and also for special tours that can be arranged in advance. Given the big smiles on these young people, Maude was the star attraction on Sunday. The museum is at 121 Davis Street in Louisburg.

Lena Robertson at Nov. 7 Hunger & Homeless vigil

Keep your fingers crossed and hope for the best.
Almost buried in a long Louisburg Town Council meeting last week was a kernel of good news which just might be the first step toward dealing with a long-standing problem in Franklin County.
A young Raleigh contractor named Tommy Brooks told council about his plans to build single family "affordable housing" on property that will have access from South Main and Ridley streets.

In my line of work, the 'what' is sort of the foundation of it all.
But, the 'why' is always more important than the 'how.'
And, the 'who?!?' Well, that's always juicy.
So, here's the 'what:' A story posted to WRAL's website on Tuesday and updated on Wednesday noted that our state senators were set to debate a bill that would provide Hurricane Helene assistance.

Dear editor:
I am disappointed that Franklin County Schools did not get the state funded capital outlay grant they applied for in September. This money was going to be used for building a new school for Franklinton Elementary.
Now the school system and the Board of Education are back at square one on how to fund a much needed new school.

Dear editor:
If you were interested in a career where you could be wrong more than a meteorologist and still keep your job, I have a solution. It seems to me that political pollsters can be way off the mark and still maintain credibility. Most of the national polls were inaccurate.
I do not understand how a political poll, at times with less than one thousand respondents, could show an accurate picture of the voters in an entire state.

LOUISBURG, NC--William "Billy" Nathaniel Farmer, Jr., 89, of Louisburg, passed away Friday, November 15, 2024 at his home.

LOUISBURG , NC--Barbara Leonard Perdue, 85, of Louisburg passed away at her home on Wednesday, November 13, 2024.

YOUNGSVILLE, NC--Brenda Faye Williams Williamson, of Youngsville, age 65, died November 11, 2024.

Hollister, NC--Funeral services for David "Big Jim" Williams, age 93, who died on Wednesday, November 13, 2024, were held Sunday, November 17, at 2 p.m. from the Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church in Arcola with Rev. Ed West officiating. Burial followed in the Shiloh Church Cemetery.

CASTALIA, NC -- Funeral services for Estelle "Mama Stell" Wilkins, age 98, who died on Wednesday, November 13, 2024, were held on Wednesday, November 20, 2024 at 1 p.m. from the Cedar Rock Missionary Baptist Church in Castalia with Pastor Sylvester White officiating. Burial followed in the Cedar Rock Church Cemetery.

LOUISBURG - Faye Strickland Griffin, passed away on November 17, 2024. She was a daughter of the late Staley and Lois Strickland of Louisburg. She was preceded in death by her husband of nearly fifty years, John W. Griffin, Sr.

Louisburg, NC--Funeral services are incomplete for Magdalene "Jean" Perry Drake, age 62, who died on Friday, November 1, 2024.

Rolesville, NC--Paul Logan Taylor, 68, of Rolesville, NC, formerly of Louisburg, died at his home on Tuesday, November 12, 2024.

LOUISBURG, NC--Teresa Ann Weathers, 52, of Louisburg, NC, passed away on Sunday, November 17, 2024.

BALTIMORE, MD--Vasco Wester, age 71, of Baltimore MD, died November 7, 2024, in Baltimore.

Self discipline and self control were the character traits emphasized in Franklin County Schools during October and the following students were honored for exemplifying those traits during a recent board of education meeting:
• Tiana Wilson, Louisburg Magnet High School;
• Gianluca Trujillo, Franklinton Elementary School;

CULLOWHEE, NC -- A handful of local students were amongst the more than 1,000 named to Western Carolina University's Spring 2024 Dean's List.
To qualify for this honor, students must achieve a GPA of 3.5 or higher while completing 12 or more credit hours.
The following local students made this semester Dean's List:

YOUNGSVILLE -- After hearing and seeing how dangerous downtown side streets have become, commissioners agreed to lower the speed limit on essentially every downtown street to 15 mph.
After half a dozen residents shared stories -- and video footage -- of speeders, stop-sign runners and cantankerous drivers, officials agreed to take action to limit conflicts with cars and pedestrians on its side streets.

Abigail Grace Shaeffer, 17 of Granville County is the winner of this year's James D. Speed Achievement Scholarship which is presented to a junior beef exhibitor, age 14 to 18, in the Junior Market Steer and/or Junior Beef Heifer competition at the NC State Fair. She is the daughter of Greg and April Shaeffer. The Franklin County Cattlemen's Association honored the late State Sen. Speed by establishing the academic scholarship in his memory. This year, the scholarship was increased to $1,500 and this year's winner was selected by a committee of Franklin County cattle producers and was announced at the state fair.

LOUISBURG -- Dillon Piper's defense attorney said his client has grown and matured in the nearly two years since he played a role in the death of Hamilton Woods.
Special Prosecutor Lisa Coltrain said Piper's involvement -- when compared to the trigger man, Gavin Miller -- warranted lesser punishment.
Superior Court Judge Ed Wilson apparently agreed with them both when he sentenced Piper to a year of supervised probation, determining that the 15 months Piper has already spent in jail was suitable punishment.

The efforts of the Franklin County Interfaith Council's campaign against hunger and homelessness was honored last week by the Louisburg Town Council, which passed a resolution proclaiming November 2024 Franklin County Hunger and Homeless Awareness month.

A complex, multi-tier Freedom of Information request apparently seeking to uncover the relationship between Franklin County officials, specifically Sheriff Kevin White, with a Florida public relations firm was filed this week.
The request, which contains 35 specific and detailed questions that demand information, was sent to the county, all of the county commissioners, the sheriff, this newspaper and others by Youngsville attorney Doug Berger.

LOUISBURG -- The case against a Wake Forest woman accused of drinking and driving and killing a Franklin County man -- and the Raleigh establishment that served her -- continues in civil superior court.
Wake Forest police arrested Kristen Hellier on Dec. 28, 2023 after she crashed head-on into Waleed Mohamed Abdelsattar while driving the wrong way along Capital Boulevard near Club Villas Drive -- about a mile south of the Franklin County line.

SERVICE. The Franklin County Board of Commissioners recognized Commissioners Danny Pearce and Kelli London for their service to the board. Both were elected to the board in 2024 when Pearce won the at-large District 7 seat and London won the District 1 seat. When redistricting occurred, London was double-bunked into District 3 with Commissioner Mark Speed. Both Pearce and London opted not to seek re-election. Above, Commission Chair Harry Foy, left, presented Pearce with a plaque and recognized Pearce for his service.