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If you've been around this column before, especially at this time of year, you may have read something similar to what I'm about to say:
Celebrating Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with a national holiday is an incredible opportunity to share his life and legacy with folks who may not be familiar with the man who lived a relatively short life -- from 1929 until his assassination in 1968 -- but whose impact on the world continues until this day.
Folks in Louisburg held their annual event on Monday, Jan. 15.

Dear editor:
Trump claims he is immune from prosecution no matter what he might have done as president. When the judge in his immunity case asked whether he could assassinate Americans without consequence, his team said he could.

BUNN ­-- Town water customers were advised to boil water before use Tuesday night and Wednesday while water samples were being taken.
While Franklin County crews repaired a water leak on Bunn Elementary School Road on Tuesday night, water had to be shut off to the town at about 7:30 p.m., said Bunn Mayor Marsha Strawbridge.

LOUISBURG -- Playoffs?
Not since the pandemic struck have the Louisburg Lady Warriors qualified for the Class 2-A Girls Basketball State Playoffs -- but that might be changing this season.
Third-year head coach Von Quick is overseeing the most talented squad LHS has possessed since the Vanisha Wilshire Era.

CHAPEL HILL - The North Carolina High School Athletic Association will return to Winston-Salem for the 2023-24 men's and women's basketball championships from March 11-16.
For the first time ever, the NCHSAA basketball championships will be contested at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Winston-Salem.

NASH COUNTY -- For Quinton Cooley, it was the opportunity of a lifetime -- the chance to compete in the college football New Year's Day Bowl Game.
That didn't sound like an attainable proposition in the off-season when Cooley entered the transfer portal and moved from Wake Forest University to Liberty University.
Yes, Liberty has been on the rise on the gridiron for the past few years, but the Flames playing on New Year's Day?

ZEBULON -- In advance of the upcoming 2024 season at Five County Stadium, the Carolina Mudcats are hiring for select seasonal full-time positions across several departments including ticketing, stadium operations, concessions and promotions. Interested applicants are encouraged to visit carolinamudcats.com to learn more and to submit their resumes.

LOUISBURG -- During a rally celebrating the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr., Mayor Christopher Neal used terms and phrases more common on the playing field.
There's one tally that he said will matter the most -- the one cast by voters in this fall's presidential election.
"... When we hear the term GOAT [Greatest of All Time} it's most often used for athletes," Neal said Monday.

Bunn legend Mossette Heath

Youngsville, NC--Larry Edward Guy, 53, of Youngsville passed away at his home unexpectedly on January 15, 2024. Larry was born July 15, 1970 in Cumberland County, NC to Eva Mae Guy and the late James "Eddie" Edward Guy.

Raleigh, NC--Funeral services for Josephine "Phine" Dale Covington, age 72, who died on Sunday, January 14, 2024, will be held on Sunday, January 21, at 2 p.m. from the Richardson Funeral Home Chapel in Louisburg with Rev. Boone officiating. Burial will follow in the Cemetery on the Hill.

CONCORD, NC-- Fittingly, two people who spent their entire lives together now share their homegoing. Jean Eaton Weathers, 90, and Willis Pearce Weathers Sr., 92, who have known each other since age five and were married for 67 years, have passed three days apart.

Warrenton, NC--Brandon William Peterson, 31, of Warrenton, died January 14, 2024. He was born in Hillsborough County, Florida on June 16, 1992 to Yvonne Peterson and James Justiss.

Hollister, NC--Funeral services for William "Doddle Bug" Richardson, age 70, who died on Thursday, January 11, 2024, were held on Monday, January 15, at 1 p.m. from the Richardson Funeral Home Chapel in Louisburg with Rev. Thomas Richardson officiating. Burial followed in the Pleasant Grove Church Cemetery.

FRANKLINTON, NC--Bernice J. Crudup of Franklinton, died January 3, 2024 at the age of 102.

Rocky Mount, NC--Funeral services for Olivia Reaves Johnson, age 84, who died on Wednesday, January 10, 2024, will be held on Friday, January 19, at 11 a.m. from the Swift Creek Baptist Church with Rev. O. D. Sykes, officiating.

LOUISBURG, NC -- Memorial services for Mary Ann Terry Hicks, age 83, who died on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, will be at 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 13, 2024 from the Richardson Funeral Home Chapel in Louisburg.

BUNN -- Want to know which team will be the Big East Conference girls basketball regular season champion?
That's an easy one -- simply show up at Rocky Mount on January 19 and Franklinton on February 13, and the answer will become readily apparent.
Certainly, FHS and RM have distanced themselves from the rest of the Big East pack -- and their respective fates are destined to collide during those two ultra-important outings.

HENDERSON -- Vance County sheriff's deputies are looking for answers after finding three people dead over the weekend -- including a Franklin County man.
Going out to check on residents at 1064 Abbott Road -- between Kittrell and Epsom -- deputies found three people dead inside the home just after 4:30 p.m. on Jan. 6.
One of the deceased was identified as Juan Black, 47, of Southwood Drive, just outside of Louisburg.

YOUNGSVILLE -- Crews are in the final stages of erecting towers at Youngsville and Royal elementary schools -- an effort to bolster the county's emergency radio system.
A tower in or around Bunn remains pending, though.
"To make people aware," County Commissioner Michael Schriver said during the board's Jan. 2 meeting, "we're having our public service towers starting to come up, or starting to come on site.

BUNN -- On the advice of legal counsel, Bunn commissioners opted not to sponsor a civic organization with emergency medical intentions.
In the summer of 2021, volunteers in Bunn reignited the Lions Club in town for the first time in 50 years, with an eye toward performing civic duties.
And, since a number of its members have a background in emergency medical response service, the group also offered its services when emergencies necessitate.

Bunn Commissioner Don Mitchell takes the oath to serve as the town's mayor pro tem from Mayor Marsha Strawbridge during the board's Monday night meeting. The mayor pro tem assumes the duties and responsibilities of the mayor when the elected mayor is not available.

YOUNGSVILLE -- Town management and staff are urging motorists to find alternate routes through downtown.
Engineers with the State Department of Transportation have advised town officials and staff that contractors would begin mobilizing efforts to improve the Five Points intersection this week.

FRANKLIN COUNTY -- Utility crews were out Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, working to restore power to thousands of properties left in the dark following Tuesday's storm.
Before press time on Wednesday, a few hundred properties were still without power, with concentrations in Lake Royale, Centerville, east of Wood in Hollister, and in Justice and Castalia.