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WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Louisburg Town Administrator Sean Medlin received the Credentialed Manager designation from ICMA, the International City/County Management Association.
Medlin is one of more than 1,300 local government management professionals currently credentialed through the ICMA Voluntary Credentialing Program.

Franklin County Relay for Life volunteer event chair Danette Cheatham poses during the Franklin County Relay for Life cancer survivor dinner at Franklinton High School last month. The Franklin County Relay for Life main event will be held this Friday, April 24 at FHS, from 6 until 10 p.m. Survivors, caregivers and teams will walk the first lap at 6:15 p.m. For a full schedule, see the Relay for Life B section in today's edition. It's not too late to donate. All money will go to the American Cancer Society, to help the fight against cancer.

LOUISBURG -- A Franklinton neighborhood has asked Franklin County leaders to draw the line.
Specifically, a Glenn Street resident has asked leaders to keep a line -- and rowdy neighbors -- from continuing to destroy their peace and quiet.
During the Franklin County Board of Commissioners April 6 meeting, Glenn Street resident Jennifer Moody explained the dilemma that she and a dozen of her Glenn and Collins street neighbors live with:

FRANKLINTON -- Town commissioners approved a fairly status-quo budget, but there was one call for a tax decrease and another call for town officials to think beyond downtown.
Commissioner Judy McArn was the only commissioner to vote against the $4.2 million spending plan, reiterating the same call she made for a tax decrease during the board's budget work session in March.

LOUISBURG -- The cases against four suspects accused of killing a 69-year-old woman in a drive-by shooting remain pending -- two of them have already been declared exceptional.
Authorities arrested Donavan Boyd, Anarie Brown, 20, and Ny'zir Karian Miller-Stevenson, of Warrenton, and Jaquan Lynch, of Durham days after they allege they were responsible for shooting and killing Bernice Pender Massenburg, who was inside her Bert Winston Road home during the April 1, 2025 incident.

Kinsley Hockaday during Relay for Life dinner

LOUISBURG -- A Henderson man arrested on attempted killing charges is slated to appear in court this week.
Louisburg police allege Alphonso Jermain Kingsberry shot at Vernon Hicks, who was driving a car at the time of the March 2025 incident.
Authorities arrested the 39-year-old in November, charging him with assault with intent to kill, discharging a weapon into an occupied vehicle, and injury to personal property.

LOUISBURG -- A Louisburg man is slated to appear in court in June on charges that he drunkenly drove a vehicle -- and wrecked, causing a death
An order for arrest against Cody Dale Goff was stricken when he was late to Tuesday's court hearing, but Superior Court Judge S. Thomas Currin II set a $25,000 bond -- which the 28-year-old posted hours later.
In June 2024, investigators with the State Highway Patrol allege Goff was driving a 2013 Hyundai west on Gooch Road in the Epsom community when he ran off the road to the right.

If nothing else, last weekend provided ample evident that good old Mother Nature can turn on a dime -- and provide nine cents change!
From highs last week that reached the low 90s to a strange front that moved through late Saturday night and dropped temperatures from summertime highs to early March-like lows, Mother Nature certainly was fickle.
Hopefully, the temperatures around here didn't quite get to the levels of killing frosts -- which was a huge relief to strawberry growers and all those avid gardeners who were pushing the season just a bit by setting out tender plants.

Weekends in Franklin County can be feast or famine.
Two weekends ago, Youngsville was abuzz with Miracle League and litter sweep activity.
And, before that, almost every corner of Franklin County appeared to be filled with children on a mad dash for candy- and prize-filled plastic eggs to celebrate Easter.
Last weekend, though, was fairly quiet.

Dear editor: On January 22, 2019, during the commissioners' meeting, the board discussed growth in Franklin County.
Commissioners expressed concerns about managing development, warning that without careful planning, the county could face significant challenges. Following deliberations, the board voted to engage McGill and Associates to develop a comprehensive plan, with Commissioner Foy casting the sole dissenting vote.

Dear editor: In my previous letter to the editor I presented the Democrats' shady methods of raising Presidential campaign funds in their version of DEMOCRACCCCY! Now let's take a gander at what they are attempting to implement with the national vote.
The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC) is often marketed by the Democrats as a way to make "every vote count."

Dear editor: Last Friday, Trump announced total victory in the War with Iran. Not once, but 13 times in one hour.
He said Iran had "agreed to everything. Iran has agreed never to close the Strait of Hormuz again."
He claimed Iran had agreed to "stop enriching uranium forever" and was going to "hand over its enriched uranium stockpile."

YOUNGSVILLE -- Town commissioners approved a text amendment that could diversify the kinds of homes that can be built in town.
During the April 9 meeting, Commissioner Willi Stolz suggested the town go a step further by asking staff to review its planning ordinances that particularly relate to housing diversity and protecting tree canopies.
"Let's find a way to refine these ordinances or employ zoning overlays to ensure that development is in support of the future of Youngsville envisioned in our comprehensive land use and transportation plan," he said during the board's recent meeting.

LOUISBURG -- The Franklin County Board of Education made a couple of tweaks to its proposed 2026-27 budget Monday night before unanimously passing it and sending it along to the county commissioners for action, probably next month.
Meeting in a special session Monday -- one of several meetings held to refine details of the budget -- the board decided to up athletic stipends by seven percent and also boost the stipends paid to high school band directors by the same percentage.

LOUISBURG -- Residents near Triangle North Executive Airport have asked county staff to perform due diligence before expanding operations.
Airport staff, officials and engineers have been planning to expand the airport for years and, in 2023, the State Department of Transportation included the project within its 10-year State Transportation Improvement Program.
Primarily, the project includes extending the runway and realigning Airport Road to create more space at the airport for hangars.

RALEIGH -- The General Assembly will have before it on Tuesday legislation that would allow Franklin County to acquire property within three of its neighboring counties -- probably in a round-about effort to tap Kerr Lake water.
The expectation is that Franklin County would need to acquire property in those counties to help facilitate its long-term water needs.

Voncile Barnette Strickland went to be with her Lord and beloved husband, Bruce Strickland on Saturday, April 18, 2026.

TOGETHER. The Miracle League of Franklin County, law enforcement and other first responders teamed up for the annual Light It Up Blue Special Needs Community Day at the Miracle League field at Long Mill Elementary last Saturday. Above, Charlie Lord presented Nathan Gupton with a balloon animal, one of the many vendors set up during the event.

LOUISBURG -- In an unusual meeting Monday night, the Franklin County Board of Education removed the most important item on its agenda after one board member said he needed more time to study the proposed budget request.
Ultimately, the board agreed -- on a 4-to-2 vote -- to remove the budget discussion from the agenda and to schedule a special session to discuss it after board member Tom Harris said that "he needed more time" to look at the numbers before voting on the document.

LOUISBURG -- The Louisburg Town Council approved a contract for "economic development coordination and grant writing services" following a 45-minute executive session to discuss contracts on Tuesday night.
The move comes after months of discussion about how best to improve economic development prospects in town -- and how to obtain more federal and state grants.

The Miracle League of Franklin County held its Light It Up Blue event last Saturday, an opportunity for the first responder community and others to partner with special needs resources in the community. Above, Karelia McCauley gets her face painted by Sofia Lee. Concessions and other fun events took place surrounding the Miracle League baseball game at Long Mill Elementary.

LOUISBURG -- Owners of a property condemned after construction teams tore down the old theater to make way for Franklin County's new judicial complex have sued more than 30 entities tied to the demolition -- including Franklin County.
Construction crews began demolishing the old theater property on Nash Street last August, but the primary structure was torn down in December.
The demolition is set to make way for renovation and expansion of the Franklin County Courthouse Annex property.