Recent Articles

Mark High and Tonya Lee Mitchell of Louisburg announce their engagement. Tonya is the daughter of Doris Lee of Littleton. Mark is the son of Betty Ruth Alston of Louisburg. A wedding date has not been set.

Lindsay Ann Harrison of Louisburg and Spencer Blane Duncan of Virginia Beach were united in marriage on June 25 at New Sandy Creek Baptist Church, with Pastor Tim Burgess officiating.
The bride is the daughter of Jerry and Dee Harrison of Louisburg. The groom is the son of Roxanne Allen of Kittrell and Alan Duncan of Louisburg. The grandparents of the couple are Faye Harrison, Barbara Duncan and Patricia Allen.

CULLOWHEE -- A total of 2,230 students, including seven from the Franklin County area, have been named to the Western Carolina University dean's list for spring semester 2016.
Also, 1,154 of those students, including two county residents, also achieved an additional academic honor by being named to the chancellor's list for the spring semester.

The Franklinton High School Class of 1966 recently held its 50th Class Reunion at Hill Ridge Farms in Youngsville.

We've all waited a long time to hear good news about access to medical care in Franklin County and it was a relief to finally have a chance to write about that last week.
But we're not there yet!
However, don't discount the two giant steps that have been taken toward returning a full-service emergency room to Franklin County along with a few urgent care beds.

It's been one hell of a week.
On July 5, Baton Rouge, La., police officers responded to a convenience store after midnight, after getting a report that a man, Alton Sterling, was selling CDs and threatened someone with a gun.
When officers arrived, according to reports, they asked Sterling to put his hands on the hood of a nearby vehicle. When police allege Sterling wouldn't comply with officer's orders, reports state, police tried to restrain him, using Tasers.

The largest employer in North Carolina is the government. More people receive their paychecks from a government entity than any other employer.
A government job is believed to be the most secure, carrying real benefits, of them, the most prized are healthcare and a retirement pension.
Once upon a time, a person could find a job in corporate America, work it for 30 years, and find a comfortable retirement.
Those days are gone. I could tell you endless stories of those I personally know betrayed by companies which found legal ways to break promises made to retirees.

Any state budget is massive and North Carolina's current version, just approved during the short session, also provides a plethora of material for me.
Getting into all of it would take this entire edition or more, so today I'll concentrate on one aspect.
The radicals in Raleigh transferred $500,000 from a disaster relief fund to a defense fund for HB2.
They avoided a tax increase by transferring funds earmarked to take care of an unforeseeable disaster.

Dear editor:
After hearing both views in the debate over bathrooms, Roy Cooper is the one with the extreme views.
Governor McCrory rightly pointed this out during the first gubernatorial debate, but now we'll see if the media holds Roy Cooper accountable for his radical agenda.

LOUISBURG -- Chad Barefoot of Wake Forest has been named vice president for institutional advancement of Louisburg College, according to an announcement by College President Mark La Branche.
Barefoot, a former member of the school's board of trustees, replaces Kurt Carlson who established the foundation for the college's advancement program and retired June 30 after more than six years of service to the school.

ZEBULON - Connie Mack Perry, 74, of Zebulon, died Tuesday, July 12th in his home.

LOUISBURG - Funeral services for Magdalene Perry, 84, who died Monday, July 4, 2016, were held Sunday, July 10, at Walnut Grove Baptist Church in Louisburg, with Dr. Timothy Walker, pastor, officiating. Burial followed in the Walnut Grove Church cemetery.

HENDERSON - Funeral services for Odell Branch Sr., 82, who died Monday, July 11, 2016, will be held Saturday, July 16, at 11 a.m. at Mitchell Baptist Church in Louisburg, with Dr. Daniel Lilly, pastor, officiating. Burial will follow in the Mitchell Church cemetery.

LOUISBURG - Johnny Clyde Shearon, 78, died Monday, July 11, 2016, at Franklin Oaks. Graveside services will be held Wednesday, July 13, at 10 a.m. at Oakwood Cemetery, with the Rev. Aubrey Florence officiating.

LOUISBURG - The Rev. Joyce White Hartsfield, 65, died Wednesday, July 6, 2016 at Hillcrest of Raleigh. Funeral services will be held Wednesday, July 13, at 12 noon at Franklinton High School in Franklinton. Burial will follow in the Saints' Delight UCC cemetery, Louisburg.

FRANKLINTON - Elsie Angela Dorine Harris Massenburg, 80, died Saturday, July 9, 2016. Funeral service will be held Saturday, July 16, at First Baptist Church Franklinton, with the Rev. André Johnson officiating. Interment will follow in Fairview Cemetery, Franklinton.

Zebulon - Albert Earlie Height, 31, died Wednesday, July 6, 2016. He was laid to rest by his family in a private burial.

FRANKLINTON - Mattie King Massenburg-Gray, 84, died Monday, June 27, 2016. Funeral services were held Saturday, July 9, at First Baptist Church in Franklinton, with the Rev. André L. Johnson, pastor, officiating. Interment followed in Evergreen Cemetery.

SCOTLAND NECK, NC - Ms. Ernestine Moore Ayscue, age 86, died peacefully, July 10, 2016, at Golden Living Nursing Center in Tarboro.

FRANKLINTON-Colonel (Ret.) James Ray Carnes, 84, of Louisburg passed away July 6, 2016. He is the son of the late Ransome Bayse and Mary Alma Williams Carnes. Jim was born in Gaston County, NC on August 31, 1931. He was married to the late Bobbie Jo Aaron Carnes for fifty-five years, who passed away in 2010. He is survived by his present wife of 4 years, Rev. Anita Marie James-Carnes.

BUNN - Juanita Adler, 80, died Wednesday, July 6, 2016. Funeral service will be held at 1 p.m. Monday, July 11, at Gethsemane Missionary Baptist Church, 893 Bunn Elementary School Road, Bunn. A visitation will be held from 12-1 p.m. at the church prior to the service.

FRANKLINTON -- Authorities arrested a Warrenton man they allege led them on a two-county high-speed chase that ended shortly after police shot out one of his tires on Friday morning.
"The main reason I decided to discharge my firearm," said Franklinton Police Chief John Green Jr., "was that [the suspect] was coming at me.
"Number two, I fired it in a safe direction," he said. "There were no bystanders.