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Dancers with Louisburg High show out.

Meredith Roberson leads a contingent from Crosscreek Charter School in the Louisburg parade.

Youngsville Mayor Fonzie Flowers, second from right, is joined by Commissioner Larry Wiggins, Cat Redd, Joe Johnson, Scott Brame and Corey Pursche.

FRANKLIN COUNTY -- It could easily be argued that this was one of the best all-around football seasons in the history of the Big East Conference -- and for good reason.
Northern Nash piggybacked on its strong 2022 campaign by reaching the Final Four of the Class 3-A State Playoffs for the second consecutive year. Nash Central reached the fourth round of the 2-A State Playoffs -- a first in school history while also setting a new mark for victories in a single season.

Landon Michael (left) and DJ Miller (right) served as team captains this season for Franklinton High School -- and also earned spots on the prestigious 2023 All-Big East Conference Football Team.

FRANKLIN COUNTY -- Plenty of familiar prep powerhouses will be on display this weekend as the North Carolina High School Athletic Association hosts its annual state championship football games.
Two contests apiece will be held at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill and Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh.

BUNN -- Bunn's girls will return to defend their championships at the annual Bunn High School Holiday Basketball Tournament.
The three-day event will be held from December 27-29 at the historic Bunn Dome in Franklin County.
Northern Nash's girls will also be back for the tourney, but the NN boys -- several-time champions -- will not participate this time around.

LOUISBURG -- In a split vote, the Franklin County Board of Commissioners selected a new chair and vice chair -- going to an old hand and injecting new blood.
Commissioner Harry Foy has served on the board for more than three decades, but it was just the second time he's been selected as chair.
Commissioner Roxanne Bragg was elected a year ago and was chosen as the board's vice chair on Monday.

LOUISBURG -- Franklin County Manager Kim Denton made a preemptive strike -- sharing actions the county is taking to improve its animal shelter prior to the public comments.
Going back to 2019, and repeatedly the past few months, animal welfare advocates have appeared before commissioners -- during the public comment portion of the meeting -- demanding improvements at the shelter and calling for the dismissal of the director of animal services.

LOUISBURG, NC--Harry Nelson Dupree, 79, died on Saturday, December 2, 2023.

LOUISBURG, NC--Kimberlee Dawn Matthews, 50, of Louisburg, died unexpectedly on Thursday, November 30, 2023 at her home. She was born to Danny Matthews and Geraldine Matthews in Franklin County on March 27, 1973.

LOUISBURG, NC--Emily Sue Ball Hodges, 72, of Louisburg, died on Wednesday afternoon, November 29, 2023.

Emily was the daughter of the late Walter Henry Ball and Robbie Lee Lassiter Ball. Emily was born in Day, Florida and moved as a child to Louisburg with her family. She attended Louisburg High School and graduated from Franklin Christian School in 1970.

LOUISBURG, NC--Memorial services for Mary Ann "Pat" Hight, age 75, who died on Sunday, November 26, 2023, will be held on Friday, December 8, at 11 a.m. from the Richardson Funeral Home Chapel in Louisburg with Rev. Cora P. Campbell officiating.

LOUISBURG, NC--Funeral services for Douglas "Sam" Kelley, age 85, who died on Saturday, November 25, 2023, will be held on Friday, December 8, 2023 at 12 p.m. from the Shady Grove Baptist Church in Louisburg with Rev. Thomas Richardson officiating. Burial will follow in Mann-Kelley Family Cemetery.

Franklinton, NC--Funeral services for Princess "Sherrell" Richardson, age 37, who died on Monday, November 27, 2023, will be held on Monday, December 4, at 4 p.m. from the Richardson Funeral Home Chapel in Louisburg with Rev. Maurice White officiating.

RALEIGH, NC -- Liffie Belle Chamblee, 86, of Raleigh, NC, passed away on Monday, November 27, 2023.

Liffie was born on February 18, 1937 to the late Arthur and Lector Bailey. She worked for 28 years at Alcatel. She enjoyed cooking and loved music; she sang with two of her sisters with the Bailey Brother's traveling band. She was a loving wife, mother, sister, grandmother, and great-grandmother.

LOUISBURG -- What Louisburg's auditor defined as a "material weakness" and "material noncompliance" marred an otherwise rather routine audit report just before the Thanksgiving holiday.
Despite hearing this significant warning about its audit -- which involved the expenditure of just over a half million dollars on one project -- none of the town council members asked a question or had a comment about the situation.

LIGHT SHOW. Finnley Parrish and Maleigh Person pose with Santa while Jessica Williams snaps their picture.

LOUISBURG -- Franklin County emergency communications was set to start using an automated dispatch system at the end of November.
But, the county's fire chiefs asked them to delay its implementation.
And, the county listened.
This week, County Public Information Officer James Hicks said county management and emergency communications staff are reviewing revised implementation dates.

RALEIGH -- Franklin County recorded its first "zombie deer" case.
The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) confirmed a 2.5-year-old female white-tailed deer harvested in the county tested positive for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD). It was tested as part of routine surveillance by the state.

FRANKLINTON -- For decades, the only souls that knew Ira Harris' pain were mules on his family's farm.
That changed eight years ago when Harris shared his story through the Oral History Project, cultivated by Louisburg College's Tar River Center for History and Culture.
Through that medium, Harris was able to share his story integrating Franklinton High School -- where he was essentially ripped away from all he knew, forced to go to a school that made it clear they didn't want him there, suffering all the indignities that could be imagined in the rural South in the 1960s.

Board of Elections Director Michelle Chavis

LOUISBURG -- Youngsters enrolling in at least one kindergarten and one first grade class next year will have the opportunity to join a dual-language Spanish/English program that was approved last week by the Franklin County Board of Education.
The classes will be at Royal Elementary -- chosen because of its central Franklin County location -- and students will be picked via a lottery, which their parents must enter early next year.

A total of 15 students were saluted by the Franklin County Board of Education last week as those who best exemplified the featured characteristics of Self Control and Self Discipline in their respective schools.
The students each received a plaque and a bag of candy from Rhonda Schuhler, superintendent, and Elizabeth Keith, board chair, while the school board and audience clapped.

LOUISBURG -- Franklin County sheriff's deputies continue to investigate a shooting that sent a 10-year-old girl to the hospital.
The girl's injuries were not life-threatening, authorities said.
According to authorities, deputies responded to a home in the 1400 block of Pine Ridge Road in the Zebulon area of the county on the afternoon of Nov. 26 to find the girl suffering from a gunshot wound to the chest.