• A city construction vehicle valued at $31,890 was discovered this week to have been stolen and left in a location nearby, according to Mount Airy Police Department reports.

The crime targeted a John Deere 318D skid steer loader, a compact multi-use unit. It was taken from an unlocked building on Range Road by an unknown party sometime after Aug. 19, when it was last known to be secure, and subsequently found Tuesday on a wooded area of the municipal-owned lot where the structure is located. The crime also included the theft of a battery valued at $185, which was not recovered.

• Police learned Monday that the catalytic converter had been cut from a vehicle owned by Fastenal Industrial and Construction Supplies while parked at the business on North Gilmer Street. An oxygen sensor — another part of the auto’s emissions system — also was stolen, with the property loss totaling $321.

• Logan Marie King, 32, of 130 Hill St., Elkin, was served Monday with outstanding warrants for charges of breaking and entering of a building and first-degree trespassing which had been filed through the Surry County Sheriff’s Office on Aug. 20.

King was encountered by police during a traffic stop investigation in the parking lot of Burger King on Rockford Street, which revealed that she was wanted on the charges.

No other details regarding the alleged offenses were listed. King was released under a $500 unsecured bond to appear in Surry District Court on Sept. 17.

• The license plate, number XZS6410, was stolen Sunday night from a car owned by Deborah Kay Cochran while at her home on Allred Mill Road.

Cardinals win battle against Bears

County breaks ground on new jail facility

In outlining guidelines for campaign signs recently cropping up locally in steadily increasing numbers, Chuck Morris, Mount Airy’s code enforcement officer, relied on words from an old song as a heading:

“Sign, sign everywhere a sign, blockin’ out the scenery, breakin’ my mind.”

“Well, here we are again in an election season and our streets are getting covered with ‘political’ signs and my inbox and voice mail are both getting inundated with calls,” Morris added this week regarding complaints and questions about what’s allowed.

And perhaps more importantly, what isn’t permitted, as the general election approaches on Nov. 8 — with early voting beginning on Oct. 20.

While a number of candidates for county, state and federal offices are on the ballot, issues with signs seem more concentrated in Mount Airy, where eight candidates are vying for three seats on the city council and that of mayor.

All four races in the 2022 municipal election are contested.

“Just the facts”

In responding to the flurry of sign-related activity, Morris chose to submit a “just the facts, ma’am” breakdown pertaining to signs in general and what exceptions are provided during the election season.

Legal implications for that period, as they relate to city of Mount Airy sign ordinances, can be viewed online at https://library.municode.com/nc/mount_airy/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=PTIICOOR_APXAZOOR_ARTIXSI

In addition, applicable N.C. Department of Transportation ordinances, including ones addressing political signs within municipalities, are accessible at https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/PDF/BySection/Chapter_136/GS_136-32.pdf

Among the city ordinances’ stated purposes are to encourage the effective use of signs as a means of communication while preserving the guarantee of free speech under the U.S. Constitution, yet also restricting those within public rights-of-way.

Morris pointed out that exceptions to the “typical” sign ordinance begin 30 days before the beginning date of one-stop early voting and end after the 10th day following Election Day.

To help with the signage process, he added that each candidate seeking office in Surry County was given a 12-page document that clearly defines the 2022 political sign ordinances. It is available at https://www.mountairy.org/DocumentCenter/View/3343/2022-SIGN-ORDINANCE-INFO

One consideration involves streets located in the city of Mount Airy which are not state-maintained by the N.C. Department of Transportation.

“The city of Mount Airy does not, even during an election season, allow any signs to be placed in the right-of-way for any of the city-maintained streets,” the code officer advised. “The city of Mount Airy does not, even during election season, allow for Type 2 free-standing temporary (commonly referred to as “banner”) signs on any residential-use property.

The only exception during the political season provided for in municipal ordinances relates only to Type 1 (temporary) signs, which states: “The limit on the number of Type 1 free-standing temporary signs that may be displayed on a parcel containing a use in the residential-use group is suspended.”

In referring to the distinction been municipal and state-maintained streets that are located within the city limits, Morris provided an online link to a map designating these: https://connect.ncdot.gov/municipalities/State-Street-Aid/PowellBillMaps/MountAiry_Surry_Map-2020.07.01.pdf

“The Department of Transportation typically does not allow any unauthorized sign, be it an advertisement or a political sign, to be placed in the right-of-way of any DOT-maintained streets,” Morris continued. “The exception is for political signs during the election season as defined earlier.”

Such exceptions allowing political signs in a DOT right-of-way must be in accordance with a guideline on sign placement. It states that a permittee must obtain the consent of any property owner of a residence, business or religious institution fronting the right-of-way where a sign would be erected.

• No sign shall be permitted in the right-of-way of a fully controlled access highway.

• No sign shall be closer than three feet from the edge of the pavement of the road.

• No sign shall obscure motorist visibility at an intersection.

• No sign shall be higher than 42 inches above the edge of the pavement of the road.

• No sign shall be larger than 864 square inches (six square feet).

• No sign shall obscure or replace another sign.

Complaints regarding DOT right-of-way signage should be directed to 877-368-4968, according to the local code enforcement officer.

“Whether the political sign in question is on a city street or a state-maintained street, they all fall under North Carolina General Statute 136-32,” Morris wrote.

That statute reads in part: “It is a Class III misdemeanor for a person to steal, deface, vandalize or unlawfully remove a political sign that is lawfully placed under the” listed exceptions.

In addressing the matter by providing the extensive breakdown, Morris seeks to clarify what and where political signs are permitted inside the city limits.

“And also, hopefully, our candidates will adhere to these ordinances and we all can see through the ‘clutter’ of misplaced signs.”

Along with the issue of campaign signs that are placed along streets, concerns have emerged recently about portable signs being displayed in Mount Airy.

This has included multiple instances of ones placed in the beds of trucks moved from place to place, which are regulated differently depending on whether the city limits are involved.

Surry Director of Elections Michella Huff says portable signs are allowed per the N.C. State Board of Elections Campaign Finance Manual as long as a disclosure statement (legend) is present and is 5 percent of the height of the printed space on the advertisement.

“Here at the Board of Elections, we are concerned about the disclosure statement being on the sign, that it is the correct legend and it is the proper height,” Huff stated.

But the elections director acknowledged the fact that specific city/town ordinances might treat portable signage regulations differently.

That is the case in Mount Airy.

“It is not in compliance with the (city) ordinance,” Police Chief Dale Watson said Thursday concerning the use of portable campaign signs.

“The ordinance does not allow for that.”

Coach Alex Gibbs is gone, but certainly not forgotten, judging by an event this week at which the nephew of the late Mount Airy High School and NFL coach was guest speaker.

Many football fans might recall Gibbs as the highly acclaimed offensive line coach who helped the Denver Broncos win back-to-back Super Bowl games in the late 1990s.

But 30 years before that, Gibbs was the head coach of the Mount Airy Bears for three seasons and guided them to the Class AAA Western State Championship in 1968.

Though he would go on to the bright lights of major college and pro football stadiums, Gibbs — who died in July 2021 at age 80 — considered the Granite City the place where his expertise as a coach was spawned.

“I know it meant the world to Alex,” the former coach’s nephew, Rusty Gibbs, told the Rotary Club of Mount Airy Tuesday afternoon. “His time here was extremely important.”

It proved to be a springboard for a career that would take Gibbs to college coaching gigs at schools including Duke, Kentucky, West Virginia, Ohio State, Auburn and Georgia before serving in the NFL ranks. And Rusty Gibbs’ path to Mount Airy also was somewhat circuitous.

His appearance as guest speaker for this week’s Rotary meeting at Cross Creek Country Club was arranged by member Carol Burke, who had crossed paths with him during an event in Charlotte, where Rusty Gibbs resides.

After hearing his last name mentioned, Burke inquired if he was any kin to Alex Gibbs.

“No one’s ever asked me that before,” Rusty acknowledged Tuesday during his time at the podium.

“Usually they ask me if I’m related to Joe Gibbs,” he said of the former head coach of the then-Washington Redskins who won multiple Super Bowl championships before becoming a NASCAR team owner.

Rusty Gibbs is active in economic-development projects in Charlotte, including efforts focusing on the role of sports in big business as evidenced by the presence of professional teams there such as the NFL’s Panthers and the National Basketball Association’s Hornets.

Gibbs also is involved with volunteer work in Charlotte, including NorthEndPartners and the Charlotte-Mecklenburg County Police Department.

When speaking in Mount Airy Tuesday, he could have talked about those roles, but instead his focus was on football and Alex Gibbs’ link to this community.

“Where he really got his start was in your town of Mount Airy in 1966,” Gibbs’ nephew said of a stint that began when Alex was just 25 years old, 10 years before Rusty Gibbs was born. Alex was the older brother of his father.

“When I was a kid, I only got to see Alex about once a year,” recalled Rusty, who relished those occasions when he had the chance to ask him questions and hear interesting stories. One was where, among his many stops, made the biggest impression on Coach Gibbs.

“It was probably Mount Airy, because it was all about coaching football and teaching kids,” Rusty Gibbs said of a job that sometimes included driving the bus. Alex Gibbs also developed a habit then of discussing non-football subjects with players meant to instill key life lessons in them.

Coupled with the role model he provided as “a fierce competitor,” his nephew said, Coach Gibbs stressed integrity, dedication and accountability.

His work in Mount Airy culminated with the 1968 state title victory.

“I was at that championship game,” Rotary Club member Greg Perkins said during a question-and-answer session with Rusty Gibbs. “I don’t remember it, because I was wearing diapers.”

Dr. Phillip Brown, the club’s president, mentioned that his father-in-law, Coley Burton, was a member of the 1968 Bears team.

As is the case with talented coaches, Alex Gibbs was destined to go beyond the high school level and he subsequently became defensive backs coach at Duke University in 1969. So great was his desire to break into the college ranks that Gibbs worked for free his first year there, it was revealed Tuesday.

A pivotal moment in Alex Gibbs’ career would come during the 1970s when he joined the staff at Ohio State under its legendary coach, Woody Hayes. Gibbs also was on the staffs of other highly regarded coaches such as Bobby Bowden and Pat Dye.

Hayes offered Gibbs the job of offensive coordinator with the Buckeyes, which came with the requirement that he also coach the offensive line.

This was an odd development for a man who stood only about 5-5 or 5-6 and weighed 150 pounds.

“His players were like twice the size of him,” Rusty Gibbs said.

Yet this didn’t prevent his uncle from grabbing them by the facemask and poking them in the chest when they missed blocking assignments.

In pioneering the concept of zone blocking for which he is most known, Gibbs’ style deviated from the philosophy of just having ponderous linemen push the pile forward. His method relied on schemes that were more lateral in natural, designed to create gaps for running backs to hit, which require more nimble and mobile guards, tackles and centers.

“He didn’t want hulking offensive linemen,” Gibbs’ nephew said.

His tough coaching style tended to be punctuated with expletives, Rusty added, with film clips of his uncle on the sidelines filled with bleeps.

“But he was also a very caring person,” Rusty Gibbs said. “Alex was an interesting guy.”

Gibbs additionally would coach the offensive line at Georgia in the early 1980s, when running back Herschel Walker led the Bulldogs to a national championship.

He joined the NFL in 1984 for his first of multiple stints with the Broncos, initially working as offensive line coach in Denver for three years and later returning there as an assistant head coach from 1995-2003. In 2013, he was back with the Broncos as an offensive line consultant for a season.

Gibbs also was a coach with the Los Angeles Raiders, San Diego Chargers, Indianapolis Colts, Kansas City Chiefs, Atlanta Falcons, Houston Texans and Seattle Seahawks.

Rusty Gibbs told Tuesday’s audience that he attended an event in Canton, Ohio, in June during which his uncle was honored posthumously through the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Awards of Excellence program. It recognizes individuals who contributed to the game other than as a player or head coach.

And the three years Alex Gibbs spent in Mount Airy and its influence on him in achieving such accolades hasn’t gone unnoticed among his family.

“I’m just really honored to be able be here,” Gibbs told local Rotarians in praising the role this city played in his uncle’s future success.

“You gave him the opportunity to do what he loved.”

• A wallet containing an unspecified sum of money was lost and possibly stolen in Mount Airy recently, according to city police reports.

The black and blue leather wallet — owned by Darius Odell Webster, a West Virginia Street resident — went missing on Sept. 24 in the vicinity of the Roses department store on West Independence Boulevard.

In addition to the money, it contained a debit card and a North Carolina identification card.

• Joey Keith Caudle, 31, listed as homeless, was charged with larceny on Sept. 25 after an incident at Food Lion on South Andy Griffith Parkway, where he allegedly stole wine.

Caudle was held in the Surry County Jail under a $300 secured bond and was scheduled to be in District Court on Monday of this week. The wine was recovered and returned to the store.

• Ismael Valle Maysonet, 34, who is homeless, was charged with second-degree trespassing on Sept. 25.

The case stems from Maysonet’s presence at a residence on Junction Street, where the property is posted with “No Trespassing” signs. Also, he had been told previously not to return to that location.

Maysonet is facing a Nov. 7 appearance in Surry District Court.

The recent passing of Queen Elizabeth II was a big blow to British royalty, but Mount Airy still has its own “monarch” who was celebrated during a recent event that included an appropriate beverage.

This involved the Fit For a Queen Afternoon Tea at a local residence, where the guest of honor was Betty Wright — known locally as the Queen of Preservation for her efforts to safeguard historically valuable properties.

Norm and Jeanmarie Schultz had heard about Wright’s reputation in that regard and decided that a Queen’s Tea would be appropriate for her.

The occasion unfolded at the South Main Street home of the Schultz couple. They moved to Mount Airy about a year ago and have fallen in love with the community, according to Ann Vaughn, one of those attending the afternoon tea who provided a recap of the gathering.

It was held at a house that Norm and Jeanmarie Schultz bought and renovated while maintaining the historical integrity associated with the structure, Vaughn added, so it was appropriate to recognize Betty Wright.

Twelve ladies attended the event.

“It was absolutely a wonderful occasion, dedicated to times when we used to dress up for church and found time to stop and smell the roses along the way,” Vaughn reported. This included wearing gloves and hats for an event fitting for someone known as Mount Airy’s own Queen Mother.

After signing a guest register in the foyer, those attending picked up porcelain name cards and headed toward the dining room that was elegantly decorated with a number of floral and other arrangements.

“The room and the appropriately decorated table would have rivaled anything that Alice in Wonderland or the Mad Hatter might have imagined many years ago,” in Vaughn’s view. “As a matter of fact, they would have been so envious — the Cheshire Cat would have been grinning from ear to ear hoping to catch all of the chatter in the room.”

Wright’s daughter, Tamra Thomas, brought her to the tea.

Its sandwich menu included cucumber and cream cheese along with egg salad, chicken with cranberries and bacon quiche, with the dessert list featuring scones with marmalade and butter, white chocolate and buttercream petit fours, raspberry petit fours, fruit tart, chocolate peanut butter nibbles, mini-lemon tarts, Russian tea cookies, oat lace cookies, Belgian butter thins and wedding cookies.

“Many thanks to Norm and Jeanmarie Schultz for opening up their beautiful home and sharing a delightful afternoon that was superlative in every way,” Vaughn concluded.

In conjunction with the Fit For a Queen Afternoon Tea, details on foods served there have emerged.

This includes a recipe for cucumber sandwiches, which are easy to prepare and are a great treat for any occasion:

Ingredients needed are one cucumber, peeled and sliced extremely thin; eight-ounce cream cheese, softened; fresh dill, chopped; a pinch of salt; white bread.

Mix the cream cheese, dill and salt. The cucumber can be sliced ahead of time and stored in a container of water in the refrigerator.

Spread a thin layer of the cream cheese mixture on both sides of the bread. Layer the cucumber and make the sandwich. Cut off the crusts. Cut into squares or triangles. The sandwiches are best served chilled. The extra cream cheese mix can be stored in an airtight container.

Ingredients needed: one cup of butter, softened; 3/4-cup powdered sugar; two cups of flour; one tsp. of vanilla; one cup of finely chopped pecans; extra powdered sugar for coating.

Beat the butter until fluffy. Add the other ingredients and mix well. Shape the dough into one-inch balls. Bake at 325 degrees for 14 to 18 minutes on an ungreased cookie sheet. The cookies are done when the bottoms are lightly brown. Cool completely on wire racks.

Place about two cups of powdered sugar in a large bowl with a lid (or freezer-sized Ziploc bag). Add the cooled cookies and shake to coat. Larger cookies might take up to 21 minutes to bake — so don’t get worried. If the bottoms are brown, they are cooked.

An annual Harvest Festival Saturday at Miss Angel’s Farm and Orchard also will have a Halloween twist, with a portion of the proceeds going to an organization that helps pre-teen girls get the tools they need to succeed.

The event, now in its sixth year, is scheduled from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Traditionally it has involved kids’ activities, chicken stew, pick-your-own pumpkins and other attractions, but this year the format will have an added dimension.

Organizers decided to celebrate Halloween early at Miss Angel’s Farm and Orchard, including the chance for both children and adults to compete in costume contests.

Attendees also can go trick-or-treating with vendors, carve and decorate pumpkins and play games inspired by the spooky season.

In addition to pick-your-own items, pre-picked pumpkins, apples and corn stalks to enhance one’s porch or yard Halloween decorations will be for sale. Those attending also are welcome to pick any of remaining wildflowers on the grounds free of charge.

Fresh-baked goods including various pies will be available for sale along with homemade apple butter, pumpkin butter, hot chocolate, local craft beer, wine, sangria and fresh-pressed apple cider from Miss Angel’s Farm and Orchard.

Admission will cost $10 per person, but is free for children 3 and under.

Saturday’s event will benefit LEAD Girls of North Carolina, a non-profit organization based in Winston-Salem, through a donation from part of the proceeds.

LEAD Girls of North Carolina is dedicated to providing the tools and resources that low-income/at-risk preteen girls need to become productive citizens and active leaders in their communities.

The idea of encouraging people to come out and support girls and young women in the state was a natural tie-in for Saturday’s event, since Miss Angel’s Heavenly Pies is woman-owned and operated.

Meanwhile, the farm and orchard operation provides many young local women opportunities to get hands-on learning in agriculture and also is a staple of Cobblestone Farmers Market, a sustainable, producer-only farmers market in Winston-Salem.

Organizers of Saturday’s Harvest/Halloween Festival see it as a wonderful way to support LEAD Girls and connect families in Northwest North Carolina to its mission and program.

Miss Angel’s Farm and Orchard is located at 252 Heart Lane (formerly Quarter Horse Lane), which is west of Mount Airy near Interstate 77, off N.C. 89.

Momentum has been building for a event scheduled Sunday afternoon in downtown Mount Airy which will involve a walk to “save” Main Street.

“We’re trying to put this thing together and get as much support as we can,” said one of its organizers, Martha Truskolaski, owner of the Spotted Moon gift shop downtown.

Sunday’s event, scheduled from 2 to 4 p.m., has been described as a “friendly walk” — but one with a firm purpose of demonstrating business owners’ and other citizens’ opposition to a downtown master plan update.

It was approved by the Mount Airy Board of Commissioners in a 3-2 vote on Sept. 1, despite a large audience being on hand to oppose that measure.

Concern has been raised about parts of the master plan, an update of one completed in 2004, which opponents fear would harm the existing character of the central business district.

The general concept for North Main Street includes providing what are called “flex spaces” to create more areas for outdoor dining, tree plantings and other tweaks. Flex spaces 20 feet wide are envisioned on each side of North Main Street, including sidewalks 12 to 20 feet wide, with a movable bollard system and options for parking along the way.

The plan further prescribes large flexible outdoor spaces at street corners and the burial of above-ground utility lines along with street trees, new decorative street lights and strategically placed loading zones.

Traffic along North Main would remain two lanes going one way, but there are concerns among merchants and others that the changes would eliminate parking spaces and result in other detrimental effects.

Opponents’ underlying argument is that while supporters see the proposed changes as improvements, why do anything to risk messing up what already is widely considered a Main Street appreciated by locals and tourists alike.

Those not favoring the plan have the chance to make their opinions known en masse during Sunday’s walk, which in addition to Truskolaski has been organized by others including Gail Hiatt, longtime owner of Mount Airy Tractor Co. Toyland downtown.

Participants are asked to assemble between 1 and 1:30 p.m. in the Truist (BB&T) bank parking lot at the upper end of North Main Street. They will walk through the downtown area to the Municipal Building, where speakers are expected to address those assembled.

“Our permit allows us two o’clock to four o’clock,” Truskolaski said.

Arrangements have been made to provide vehicle transports for persons who don’t think they can walk that entire distance.

“I can’t tell you exactly how many people are going to be there,” Truskolaski said late Tuesday afternoon regarding the event. “Until it actually happens and people show up, you don’t really know.”

However, one thing is clear at this point about what opponents of the master plan implications for Main Street desire.

Truskolaski says they want city officials who support the plan to reconsider possible changes that could prove harmful to the main drag through the downtown area.

They want to keep North Main Street the “charming place” it is now, she explained.

Many people share that desire, as evidenced by the heavy response to petitions being circulated on the matter and that for a recently created Facebook page to promote the “Save Main Street” movement.

It had attracted between 400 and 500 followers as of Tuesday afternoon. T-shirts bearing the message “Keep Our Downtown Charm” and “Save Our Downtown Main Street” also are being bought by organizers to help promote their cause.

“It’s just amazing the outpouring,” Truskolaski said.

The shop owner wanted to make it known that she and others aren’t opposing the entire master plan update. It’s just the parts targeting North Main Street which critics say would give it the “cookie-cutter” look of places such as Asheville and West Palm Beach, Florida.

Truskolaski indicated that it is good to have diversity downtown, as evidenced by a revamping of Market Street to create an arts and entertainment district and changes eyed for the former Spencer’s textile mill site, both nearby.

But the tradition of North Main Street should be left alone, plan opponents believe.

“Why do we need to change Main Street, is basically what we are saying,” Truskolaski advised.

Another thing Truskolaski wants to stress involves a desire to prevent Sunday’s walk, and the movement itself, from being politicized.

This year’s municipal election in Mount Airy includes three races for commissioner and one involving a sitting commissioner running against an incumbent mayor.

Some of those candidates are expected to be among the speakers Sunday at the Municipal Building, but Truskolaski doesn’t view the downtown master plan update as a campaign issue.

“This has nothing to do with politics, in my opinion.”

PINNACLE — Unlike last weekend when the remnants of Hurricane Ian put a damper on outdoor events locally, sunny skies are forecast Saturday for the return of Horne Creek Living Historical Farm’s corn shucking frolic.

For the last two years, a variable other than the weather has prevented the typically well-attended fall event from occurring.

“Yeah, COVID got us,” Horne Creek Site Manager Lisa Turney said Monday of the scenario unfolding since the last corn shucking frolic was held in 2019 — which curtailed it and other large public gatherings.

With that threat now out of the picture, excitement is running high for the 29th-annual frolic scheduled Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Horne Creek Living Historical Farm, where the centerpiece is the 1900-era Hauser family farmhouse.

It and the adjoining buildings and grounds have been preserved as a North Carolina State Historic Site to give the public an idea of what agriculture was like in the early days.

This will be in full display Saturday with activities to showcase what event organizers describe as a traditional rural frolic featuring the harvesting, shucking, shelling and grinding of corn — recreating community corn shuckings of the distant past.

Cider making, a quilt exhibit by the Surry County Quilters Guild, cooking, woodworking, spinning wool and flax, the making of apple butter and molasses, antiques, cooking demonstrations in the farmhouse, chair bottoms made with corn shucks, tobacco curing, natural dyeing, crocheting/knitting and numerous other craft demonstrations and exhibits are among attractions planned.

The list further includes a gristmill demonstration, log hewing and crosscut sawing and blacksmithing, along with others.

Old-time, bluegrass and gospel music performed by six different groups will add further spice to the gathering. The list of performers includes Candelfirth, Travis Frye and Blue Mountain, Chords of Faith, Gap Civil, Harrison’s Ridge and New River Line.

Areas of the farm to be involved other than the farmhouse include a tobacco barn, orchard, feed barn, dry house, garden and visitors center.

Various organizations will have a presence at the corn shucking frolic such as the Surry County Extension Master Gardeners, Four-H, Boy Scouts and the Surry County Beekeepers Association.

Old farm comes to live

The usual scene at the corn shucking frolic includes folks sitting on lawn chairs, which they are encouraged to bring, and bales of hay on the lawn of the farmhouse listening to music performed from a porch. And the other locations on the grounds where various demonstrations are taking place also are beehives of activity, including a well-filled corn crib.

Meanwhile, vehicles tend to line the roadway leading into the farm and fill its lot.

“I think there’s several reasons,” Turney said of the corn shucking frolic’s popularity.

One involves a sense of nostalgia and the desire to keep traditions alive.

“I think it’s because a lot of older people have done a lot of things that are highlighted,” Turney added of the various activities taking place along with shucking corn, “and they want to bring their families and show them.”

On the other end of the spectrum are attendees from urban environments who are totally unfamiliar with agricultural life and want to experience that, the site manager mentioned.

When there’s good music, food and heritage demonstrations, “I think you’ve got a winning combination,” she said.

Turney lamented the fact that another popular part of the festival, hayrides, has been discontinued for insurance reasons.

Admission to the event will cost $8 per adult and $5 for children ages 6-12, but is free for kids 5 and under.

There also will be a charge for food, drinks and some craft activities. Chicken stew, pintos, fried pies, apple cider and other items will be offered, with products and gifts available for sale at a country store on the site.

Additionally, apple trees grafted from those in the Southern Heritage Apple Orchard on the farm can be purchased.

No outside food or pets (other than service animals) will be allowed on the grounds.

Horne Creek Living Historical Farm can reached by taking the Pinnacle exit off U.S. 52, with state historic site signs leading the way from there.

DOBSON — With voting machines becoming a hot-button issue across the country in the wake of the 2020 election, efforts have been undertaken locally and statewide aimed at ensuring the integrity of those devices.

This included logic and accuracy (L&A) testing being conducted last week at the Surry County Service Center in Dobson to ensure machines will correctly read each ballot type and accurately count votes for the upcoming general election. It took place in a large meeting room beside the Surry Board of Elections office.

Three bipartisan teams of precinct officials from different areas of the county performed the testing during a planned day-long process leading to a reassuring outcome where accuracy in the voting equipment used at local precincts is concerned.

“The machines correctly read each ballot style for the upcoming general election as a result,” Surry Director of Elections Michella Huff reported.

“This is one more step in the process to reflect the machines are election-ready.”

The general election will be held on Nov. 8, but devices will be pressed into service before then when one-stop, no-excuse early voting begins at two locations, in Mount Airy and Dobson, on Oct. 20.

In anticipation of the election, the logic and accuracy testing targeted every machine used in all 100 North Carolina counties.

Under a procedure prescribed by the N.C. State Board of Elections, test ballots are marked by hand and by ballot-marking devices before being counted by a tabulator. These ballots are filled out according to a test script, which is designed to simulate the various combinations of selections citizens could make on their ballots during actual voting.

Huff advised that the machines tested in Surry were DS200 tabulators (all 33 in the county were checked) and the ExpressVote type (all 28 were tested). ExpressVote is a ballot-marking machine that can be used as an ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) device for any voter who wishes or needs to mark a ballot independently.

Federal law requires each precinct to have at least one Americans with Disabilities Act-approved voting device.

After the test ballots are run through the machines and results are printed and read, the machines are then reset to ensure no testing information remains in the devices, the local elections official explained.

And the security procedures do not end there.

“All equipment is sealed and recorded for chain of custody for opening on election morning at the polls, or on the opening of one-stop (voting) for two of the DS200s and two ExpressVotes,” Huff mentioned regarding the early balloting devices.

In addition to being sealed, the state requires voting equipment to be locked in a secure area until transported to the voting places.

Tamper-evident seals are placed on media ports, voting machines are never connected to the Internet and they also lack modems, officials say. A person would need physical access to a machine to install any type of virus or malware, they assure.

County election boards document the chain of custody of voting equipment when it is moved from its secure storage location, under state-required procedures.

Additionally, even assuming unauthorized access were possible, the tabulators recognize only approved and verified media/USB (Universal Serial Bus) interfaces and will ignore any unverified media.

Among other precautions, the coding for a particular election is encrypted and, when loaded on a machine, requires the validation of a digital signature to confirm that the data is from a trusted source.

• An Elkin man is facing a charge of assault on emergency personnel, according to Mount Airy Police Department reports.

Dee J. Wiles, 53, of 155 Apple Blossom Lane, was encountered by city officers at Northern Regional Hospital on Sept. 21, who served him with a warrant on that charge. It had been issued the day before after an incident at the hospital, where Wiles allegedly struck an employee there, Ashley Nicole Bottoms of Ararat, in the left arm with a closed fist.

Wiles was held in the Surry County Jail under a $300 secured bond and was scheduled to be in District Court Monday.

• Andrew Milton Johnson, 37, of 122 Summit Ave., was served by police with a criminal summons for a charge of assault by pointing a gun on Sept. 22.

It had been issued on July 22 with Clinton Thomas Quesinberry of Crotts Road as the complainant. Johnson is facing an appearance in Surry District Court this Friday.

• A blue recycling container owned by the city of Mount Airy was set afire by an unknown suspect on Sept. 23 at a residence on Creed Street.

Trash inside the container was ignited, resulting in damage put at $200.

On Wednesday, Sept. 21, Mayor Ron Niland visited Surry County Dance Center and participated in the pre-school Ballet & Tap class.

Surry County Dance Center located on South Main Street, recently kicked off its second season with more than 90 students enrolled from ages 3-18, along with a special student during its first class — Mount Airy Mayor Ron Niland.

His visit came just weeks after a ribbon cutting ceremony hosted by the Greater Mount Airy Chamber of Commerce, marking the business’ membership in the chamber, and the center was recently names the “Best of” for dance studios by Mount Airy News readers.

Niland stopped in to watch the pre-school dancers work on skills such as patterns, coordination, teamwork, and creativity, and even joined the dancers as they practiced their chaîne turns down the barre, to the applause of the dancers, Artistic Director and Lead Instructor Brittany Chaney, and Assistant Instructor Kaylee Edwards.

Surry County Dance Center is a franchise with the second studio located in Hillsville, Virginia, where the Carroll County Dance Center is celebrating its 26th season. The studio franchise is owned and directed by Kelly Gray Krantz with six accredited dance educational professionals on staff. For more information on the studio, visit www.surrycountydance.com or www.carrollcountydance.com

The NoneSuch Playmakers theater company is offering up an early Halloween treat as they transport their audiences back to Victorian England for their new original mystery, “The Golden Dawn Murders.”

The year is 1890. During a lavish dinner at Calderwood House, a remote family manor, prominent financier Lord Peter Alston (Brack Llewellyn) is shot dead on his own doorstep. Chief Constable Alarbus Jones (Scott Carpenter) is summoned to the scene, where he encounters an elite group of dinner guests and an odd symbol on the drawing room wall. It’s the emblem of The Order of the Golden Dawn, one of several secret societies that existed in the United Kingdom during Victorian times. Jones learns that most of those attending the dinner are members of this enigmatic group, but there seems to be no connection to the murder.

In the course of his investigation, Constable Jones encounters a young woman who was not on the guest list—Katherine Hadleigh (Rachel Macie), a former maid at Calderwood House. She tells Jones that the members of the Golden Dawn have a dangerous secret hidden behind their affluent exteriors—a secret that could bring down the British Empire. As the constable learns more about the mysterious order, he discovers that Miss Hadleigh has some shocking secrets of her own.

“Miss Hadleigh’s presence brings an element of the paranormal to our story,” said Brack Llewellyn, who wrote and directed the play. “No spoilers, though. We want the audience to make the discoveries along with Constable Jones.”

“The Golden Dawn Murders,” Llewellyn said, is a bit of a throwback to theatrical melodramas of the past.

“Most of the action takes place in one room. It’s an ensemble cast that includes some unsavory characters, a red herring or two and an unexpected ending,” Llewellyn said. “At its core the play is a whodunit, but there are larger implications for Jones as he delves into Miss Hadleigh’s allegations about the order. He’s a small town cop who finds himself in uncharted territory. We hope the audience will want to hiss at the villains and cheer for our intrepid constable.”

Besides Carpenter and Macie, the cast includes David Nielsen as textile millionaire Victor Baldridge; Christine Werner Booher as author Ann Scott Perry; NoneSuch newcomer Thomas Smith as prominent London surgeon Benjamin Stockton; Olivia Jessup as railroad heiress Melisande Portman; Brian Greene as American exporter Douglas Daughtry; Janelle Metzdorf as Lady Margaret, the murder victim’s icy widow; Branden Macie as engineering genius Hamish Upton; Jonathan Carpenter as musical prodigy Owen Anderton; Meredith Dowdy as Millicent Atwater, the cook at the manor; and Toby Bunton as Merrick, the butler.

Performances of “The Golden Dawn Murders” are Friday Oct. 7 and Saturday Oct. 8 at 7 p.m., and Sunday Oct. 9 at 2 p.m. All performances will be held at the L.H. Jones Auditorium, 215 Jones School Road, in Mount Airy.

These are “pay what you can” performances. There is no set ticket price. Patrons are asked to pay only what fits their budgets. The Playmakers adopted “pay what you can” following the pandemic shutdown to make their shows accessible to more people, whatever their means. A portion of the proceeds will go to support the Jones Family Resource Center.

As the calendar flips to October, many in the region are thinking about cool autumn days, Halloween decorations and the late-season harvest time.

But for some hoping to ensure area children and teens have a happy Christmas, this is the time to start working for the holiday season.

The annual Give A Kid A Christmas program, started by former Sheriff Graham Atkinson more than three decades ago, will be gearing up for the fundraising portion of its activities over the next week.

“The foundation board met last week,” said Dr. Travis Reeves, Surry County School superintendent. “We have letters ready, we’re getting those printed and mail merged to go out…Those will be going out in the next few days. That’s really the kickoff to our fundraiser.”

The event, begun roughly 30 years ago when Atkinson, then a deputy serving as a DARE officer in the local school system, is a massive effort joining the county school system, the Give A Kid A Christmas foundation, the Surry County Sheriff’s Office under the direction of Sheriff Steve C. Hiatt, and local businesses and volunteers.

Through various fundraising efforts, the foundation will collect money to help buy needed goods — chiefly food and clothes for underprivileged families — along with a few fun Christmas presents for the kids and teens. While they’re doing the fundraising, school counselors are working with the Salvation Army to identify kids from families who might have holiday needs, and then the program culminates near Christmas, when an army of volunteers puts together large food boxes for the families, while other volunteers use the raised funds to shop for clothes and toys for the kids.

Then, more volunteers deliver them all to households in the community.

“For over 30 years, the Give A Kid A Christmas Foundation has been a staple here in Surry County Schools to help our students with food, with clothing, the bare necessitates, and with toys,” Reeves said.

The program wasn’t always so elaborate.

Atkinson, who has served in Raleigh on the governor’s Post-Release Supervision and Parole Commission since he retired from the sheriff’s office in 2015, said he had no idea of starting a county-wide movement that would last beyond his time with the sheriff’s office.

He has many times told the story of how the program began, when he noticed a child in a local elementary school in need.

“I noticed the young man was wearing the same clothes each time I was there,” he said in 2019 during the fundraising kick-off that year. “They were obscenely small clothes. I started asking some of his teachers, and they told me he’d worn the same set of clothes to school every day. Since he was in third grade.”

He reached out for some help, finding it at Walmart, who helped the deputy provide enough clothing for that young man to provide him with a modest new wardrobe.

“If you had handed him a bar of gold, it wouldn’t have meant any more to him. For the rest of the year, his clothes may not have always been clean, but he wore those (new) clothes, and he was proud of them.”

From that beginning, and the desire to help more and more children each year, grew Atkinson’s Give A Kid A Christmas program.

This week, Atkinson said he never knew what eventually became of that child, but he recounted a few other heart-tugging incidents along the way.

“In one of our very first years, we used to get the guidance counselors to help us get the names (of kids to help). I got a request from a 17-year-old-female, when she put down what she wanted for Christmas, she put down she wanted an ax.

“Now, the law enforcement officer in me started to get worried. But…I learned this little girl’s daddy was disabled. Some well-meaning neighbors had gotten together and cut a load of wood, but they had cut it fireplace length, and all they had for heat was a wood stove. She wanted an ax so she could split the wood.

“I delivered that one in person. She got the ax, though we didn’t do that one at school,” he was quick to add. “She got an ax, but she also got some other things a 17-year-old girl should have for Christmas.”

Another story he shared brought some raw emotion to the surface, as the former sheriff said he always gets choked up relating this memory.

“I was looking through the requests when I came across a third-grade boy,” he said. “I don’t need anything,” the child had written. “But my little sister is 3 and she would really like a baby doll.

“There again, the little girl got a baby doll, but the boy also got Christmas presents. That was very early when we started doing this, but that set the tone for what we are doing today. That’s when we realized we should include siblings that are not of school age.”

Now, he said, when they identify a home in need, they try to provide gifts for all the children and teens in the household, and enough food to the family so they can make it through the Christmas break from school. Atkinson explained that for many children in Surry County, the only food they have each day is the school-supplied breakfast and lunch, with no dinner at home available some nights.

“You can imagine how hard that is for a two-week Christmas break.”

Reeves said there are many opportunities for people to help. Many groups in the schools — from student clubs collecting change to faculty and staff organizing donation drives — are working to give to the project.

A number of area residents and businesses make donations as well.

The single biggest fundraiser is what they call an annual “telethon,” which is a live-streamed event similar to television shows that raise money for various causes. Reeves said the event, to be hosted by former television weather forecaster and current local pastor Austin Caviness, along with former television anchor Cameron Kent, is set for Nov. 28. It will be live-streamed on Facebook, and possibly some other outlets.

“We’ve raised $30,000, $40,000 in one night,” he said of the telethon. “A lot of folks look to that date to give.”

While that seems like a hefty figure, the effort will use every dollar, and then some.

“Last year, we raised money for food and clothing for about 700 children,” he said. “We provided over 350 food boxes…and the food boxes weight 50-60 pounds. It’s quite a lot of food.”

On average, he said they spent about $140 per child on clothing and toys.

For those wishing to donate to the effort, there are several ways:

– Send a check to Sheriff Atkins’s Give A Kid A Christmas Foundation, PO Box 827 Dobson, NC 27017

– Send a donation via PayPal at https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/giveakidachristmas

– Sent a donation via Venmo using the email sheriffsgiveakidachristmas@gmail.com

For more information, visit the foundation’s Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/giveakidachristmas

Five stabbing victims were sent to area hospitals — three in serious condition — and a Boomer, North Carolina man has been arrested and jailed in connection with the early Sunday morning incident.

Cortlan Damaryce Clark, 21, of 289 Happy Oaks Lane, Boomer, was arrested in Wilkes County Sunday and jailed under a secured $125,000 bond, according to a release sent by Surry County Sheriff Steve C. Hiatt. Clark has been charged with five counts of assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury with intent to kill.

The charges come after an altercation became violent during a birthday party at 153 Old Wagon Trail, Dobson. The sheriff said the violence was an “isolated incident which started with a physical altercation between Mr. Clark and several of the victims,” the sheriff said,

After the altercation, the sheriff’s statement said deputies arrived at the scene at 12:42 a.m., responding to a call of a cutting or stabbing incident with multiple victims.

“When patrol deputies arrived on the scene, they found three victims with multiple stab wounds ranging in the areas of the chest, neck and/or upper extremities.” the sheriff said.

Two of the victims had already left to seek medical care, suffering from similar wounds.

”All five victims were transported and/or seen by a medical facility: Northern Regional Hospital, Hugh Chatham Hospital and/or Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Hospital,” the sheriff said, adding that three were males and two females, ranging from age 19 to age 25.

The investigation is ongoing, and Clark is scheduled to appear in Surry County District Court on Nov. 9, 2022. Other agencies involved with the case include Surry County Emergency Medical Services, South Surry Volunteer Fire Department, and the Wilkes County Sheriff’s Office.

DOBSON — For more than 30 years, Bryan Cave has been a go-to guy for local farmers in helping their operations succeed and now he is moving on to a new chapter in life.

Cave has retired as county extension director for the N.C. Cooperative Extension’s Surry Center. His last day on the job was Friday, capping a 34-year career that began in 1988 when he was hired as an assistant agricultural extension agent.

In 2007, Cave was promoted to extension director.

Through that role, Cave continued his efforts begun earlier to support and advise livestock and forage producers along with providing leadership for the county Cooperative Extension staff. It now has nine people, including the director position.

The impact Bryan Cave has made on the Surry County landscape was highlighted Tuesday when a retirement party was held at the Surry County Government Service Center in Dobson in honor of his contributions.

This included a “floating” period when well-wishers could stop by to help celebrate the milestone, along with dinner and speeches.

It is estimated that at least 200 people came through as part of the occasion involving “Bryan being put out to pasture,” as an announcement for the party stated.

The event included Cave receiving the Order of the Long Leaf Pine award, which is considered the highest civilian honor given in North Carolina. Making the presentation was Dr. Rich Bonanno, an associate dean and director at N.C. State Extension.

Cave also was presented with a personalized belt buckle from his son Joshua as a retirement gift.

Before launching his N.C. Cooperative Extension career, in 1987 Cave received a B.S. degree in animal science from N.C. State University, where he later earned a master’s degree in that field, according to information from Nicole Vernon, a staff member at the Surry Center.

He began work in Surry County with responsibilities that included providing educational opportunities and leadership to livestock and forage producers.

Within seven years, Cave had excelled in leading local producers to the point that an estimated increase in farm income exceeding $10 million had occurred and he was promoted to a full extension agent.

Over the years, Cave became known for his networking abilities, which have enabled invaluable partnerships to be formed. As county extension director, he organized and allocated resources to ensure his local staff had what has been needed to be successful, the information provided by Vernon further states.

His presence also has made a difference in places other than Surry.

For more than 10 years, N.C. Cooperative Extension utilized Cave’s skills to assist other counties where there was a vacant extension director position and he served on an interim basis in Yadkin, Wilkes, Alleghany and Stokes counties. During that time, he helped rebuild, restructure and strengthen county offices.

Cave also is credited with creating bridges that linked N.C. State University to local county government and led to greater understanding of each partner creating a more productive work environment.

During his tenure, Cave also was an advocate for farming, playing a critical role in the education of non-farm citizens of Surry County to the importance of agriculture in their lives and the economic well-being of the county, region and state.

This has included developing annual Farm Animal Day programs in local schools to connect with younger students.

Cave frequently has been invited to speak at regional economic-development training programs for business professionals in the Piedmont region, along with addressing Rotary, Ruritan and other civic groups.

His reputation for knowing the facts — which he can readily recite off the top of his head — and having an intimate knowledge of topical farm issues have been pluses in this regard.

He has served as a member of numerous economic-development and other boards and organizations such as the North Carolina Cattlemen’s Association.

Cave’s imprint is expected to have a lasting impression for years to come.

The retiree, a resident of Dobson, now plans to be involved in an unspecified part-time endeavor in addition to spending more time with his family.

It includes his wife of 35 years, Angie; their children, Joshua and Sarah; and five grandchildren.

Relief efforts for residents of Florida who were impacted by Hurricane Ian are already underway locally.

In Mount Airy donations are being accepted at Creative Designs located at 1351 S. Main Street where a trailer is parked and is ready to receive donations.

The trailer donated by William “Crab” Smith Trucking will be on the road this week to deliver supplies including trash bags, contractor trash bags, cases of water, toilet paper, paper towels and wipes for personal hygiene.

Cleaning supplies are being requested as are tarps, bungee cords, shovels, and rakes.

In times of need pets need assistance as well and organizers listed dry food for cats and dogs, as well as cat litter.

Dianne Johnson of Johnson’s Xtreme Softwash has been helping spread the word on social media to draw attention to the collection efforts, “Let’s fill this trailer, we want to get this on its way this week.”

The North Surry High School Student Council has announced a similar drive to, “Collect necessary supplies for residents impacted by Hurricane lan on Sanibel Island and the Fort Myers, Florida area.”

Over the weekend students wishing to participate as asked to pick up requested items and bring them to school on Monday.

“The time is now, and the need is great! Let’s go Greyhounds!” the announcement said.

The requested items list matches the list found above and items are to be put in the lobby at North Surry on Monday.

• A truck has been reported stolen in Mount Airy, according to city police reports.

The theft of the Jeep Comanche, owned by Terry Nelson Hill of Aims Avenue and valued at $10,000, was discovered on Sept. 22. The truck was taken from an unidentified business location at 1276 N. South St., where it had been parked the day before.

Police records describe the vehicle as black with a white stripe, but do not include a license tag number.

• Multiple vehicles were broken into at the Enterprise rental car location on Sept. 22, where an attempt also was made to steal one.

Those targeted include a 2022 Chevrolet Traverse and a 2019 Subaru Outback that police records indicate are owned by the Rockford Street business, along with the 1997 Ford F-350 flatbed truck of Jackson Trevor Hutchens, Pipers Gap Road, Galax, Virginia.

An ignition interlock device valued at $50 was listed as stolen.

• Linda Speas Duncan, 53, who is homeless, was jailed on charges of resisting, delaying or obstructing a public officer and second-degree trespassing on Sept. 20 after police responded to a disturbance call at Northern Regional Hospital.

Security personnel there had banned Speas from the premises earlier that day, but she returned. And after being taken to a magistrate’s office, the woman allegedly resisted arrest by refusing to sit down and pulling away.

Speas was held in the Surry County Jail under a $1,000 secured bond and slated for an Oct. 17 appearance in District Court.

• A book bag was stolen from the parking lot of the West Lebanon Street Food Lion on Sept. 19, representing a $340 loss.

The owner of the black Reebok book bag was identified as Anthony Dalton Stanley of Gaynelle’s Way in Lowgap. It contained personal property including Sony earbuds, miscellaneous clothing, pre-workout supplements, hair fiber and notebooks.

• Cody Matthew John Bowman, 27, of 707 Willow St., was served with a criminal summons for a larceny charge on Sept. 15, which had been issued on Sept. 12 with no other details listed.

Bowman was scheduled to be in Surry District Court on Thursday of this week.

STUART, Va. — Three Mount Airy-area residents have been arrested on charges filed by the Patrick County Sheriff’s Office in separate cases involving alleged drug, credit card fraud and break-in/larceny crimes.

The arrests were announced Thursday and include:

• Maynard Reece Green, 61, of 369 Greentown Road, Ararat, just outside Mount Airy, being accused through a six-count indictment of manufacturing/distributing a Schedule I/II controlled substance.

Green, who was arrested on Sept. 22, further was indicted on another felony charge, manufacturing/distributing an imitation Schedule I/II drug.

• Johnny Ray Gwyn, 54, of 1685 Old Highway 601, Mount Airy, is charged with breaking and entering of a building with intent to commit assault and battery; larceny; and grand larceny involving a monetary loss of more than $1,000.

All are felonies. Gwyn was arrested Wednesday.

• Kenny Gray McCreary, 42, of 2121 Asbury Road, Westfield, was arrested Wednesday on three misdemeanor counts of credit card fraud involving a value of less than $1,000.

Bond and court date information was unavailable for the three persons charged.

Hurricane Ian has made another landfall, this time in South Carolina. The U.S. National Hurricane Center says Ian’s center came ashore Friday afternoon just after 2 p.m. near Georgetown, South Carolina, with maximum sustained winds of 85 mph.

Ian previously hit Florida’s Gulf Coast as a powerful Category 4 hurricane with 150 mph winds Wednesday, flooding homes and leaving nearly 2.7 million people without power.

A hurricane warning was in effect from the Savannah River along the Georgia – South Carolina state line up to Cape Fear.

Tropical storm force winds were ongoing along much of the coast and Tropical Storm Warnings are in place across parts of the North Carolina coast from Cape Fear to Duck late Friday.

“Ian is forecast to move more quickly toward the north today followed by a turn toward the north-northwest by tonight. On the forecast track, the center of Ian will reach the coast of South Carolina today, and then move farther inland across eastern South Carolina and central North Carolina tonight and Saturday,” according to Friday’s National Weather Service statement on the storm.

In their statement the National Weather Service in Blacksburg, Virginia, issued both a wind advisory and flood watch for Surry County.

“Hurricane Ian is expected to bring widespread 2 – 4 inches of rain to parts of the area through early afternoon Saturday. Locally higher amounts up to 6 inches are also possible, especially along the Blue Ridge, and any areas where bands of heavy rain remain situated for extended periods of time,” the advisory said.

Ian was expected to maintain about the same strength before landfall late Friday, then weaken and rapidly transition into a post-tropical cyclone overnight leading into Saturday. Ian should dissipate over western North Carolina or Virginia late Saturday, the advisory notice said.

The Weather Service warns to be alert for flash flooding caused by excessive rainfall from the remnants of Ian. Excessive runoff may result in flooding of rivers, creeks, streams, and other low-lying and flood-prone locations, the notice states.

“Locally considerable flash, urban, and small stream flooding is possible today into early Saturday across portions of northwest North Carolina and southwest Virginia,” the Weather Service advised late Friday.

The National Weather Service says to monitor later forecasts and be alert as watches can become warnings in a matter of minutes. Those living in areas prone to flooding should be prepared to act should flash flooding occur.

Residents of the area are also being warned about the potential for high winds. A wind advisory period began at 10 a.m. Friday and will continue through noon Saturday. The Weather Service predicts that winds of 20 to 30 mph will come from the northeast with gusts reaching up to 40 mph expected. Gusts of up to 50 mph are possible in higher elevations and along ridgetops.

Surry County Emergency Management Director Eric Southern sounded confident in the county’s preparations. He said the fact that Ian looks to be a slow rainmaker does not change the county’s preparation or alert status.

“We are monitoring the situation electronically,” he said Friday afternoon. “Our crews have been notified who is on call, they are at home waiting for the call and have equipment ready.”

He said there has been no special guidance offered from Raleigh on statewide preparation, so Surry County is ready now for the rain and wind that are expected this weekend. Southern expected the weather to have arrived by late Friday afternoon.

“People should expect wind and rain any time now,” he said as the skies got ever darker over Mount Airy.

Southern recommended residents use the Hyper-Reach system which is a state-of-the-art mass emergency notification system designed specifically for public safety. The system provides rapid notification of severe weather, amber alerts, silver alerts and safety situations using a mix of telephone calls, text and email messages, and services designed for the hearing impaired.

Citizens can download the Hyper-Reach Anywhere app on their smartphone. Hyper-Reach Anywhere is a free smartphone app that allows individual citizens to manage and monitor the alerts they receive, for their home and office addresses, as well as addresses for friends and family.

Sign at: https://signup.hyper-reach.com/hyper_reach/sign_up_page_2/?id=88382

President Joe Biden has already issued disaster declarations for the states of Florida and South Carolina, “Last night I received a request for an emergency declaration from Gov. Henry McMaster, which I approved right away just as I did for Florida,” he said. “This allows for immediate federal funding for the state to shelter people and provide other essential support.”

Closer to home, residents have been scrambling to modify and change plans due to the fickle nature of forecasting hurricanes. Surry County Public Schools released students early, canceled field trips for Friday, and moved Friday night football games to Thursday as a precaution. The Sonker Festival, Music at the Market, Mayberry Food Truck Fest, and Civil War reenactment in Ararat, Virginia were all also moved or postponed.

Early this week as the threat of Hurricane Ian was still days away, several weekend gatherings acted in advance and moved their events indoors or rescheduled them. The Mayberry Food Truck fest has joined the list of events whose organizers have decided not to compete against the unpredictability of Hurricane Ian and has been rescheduled for a pre-Thanksgiving bash instead.

Lizzie Morrison, downtown coordinator for Mount Airy Downtown Inc. had been holding her breath throughout the week to see if the Mayberry Food Truck Fest might be able to be held this weekend despite the icky weather. “Safety is our top priority,” she said earlier this week when mulling the possibilities. “While this event is normally rain or shine, if the weather forecast hasn’t improved, we will reschedule.”

Friday morning the announcement was made that exercising an abundance of caution was better than asking diners and tourists to walk between the raindrops whilst enjoying food truck offerings. The only time folks want soggy food is when it was intended to be soggy, no offense to Mother Nature or Hurricane Ian and their suggested secret ingredient – water.

“We hate to do it, but we’ll have to postpone the Mayberry Food Truck Fest due to Hurricane Ian,” Morrison wrote Friday morning. “We have been monitoring the forecast and while this event is normally rain or shine, we will need to err on the side of caution for your safety.”

She had joked the event may seem starcrossed and has had some lousy luck with the weather, “The festival has a notorious reputation for extreme weather. We’ve had heavy rains, six inches of snow, a tornado warning mid-festival, and now a possible hurricane. It’s almost funny at this point. Nevertheless, people show up for the food trucks – it’s still a fan favorite event.”

Morrison invites everyone to try it again before the holidays, “Please plan on joining us for a big pre-Thanksgiving Food Truck feast on Sunday, Nov. 20, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. in #downtownmountairy.”

Consider the rescheduled food truck fest to be among the final warmups before Thanksgiving excess. Yet somehow also not fully outside the Atlantic hurricane season that runs to the end of November. NOAA predicts up to 21 named storms this season with six to ten expected to become major hurricanes.

If Tobias, Virginie, or Walter (all late season storm names) try to show up for that new date then Morrison may want to consider a rain dance before the 2023 Mayberry Food Truck Fest to break the bad luck.

Recently Shoals Elementary School students and staff took 30 minutes to drop everything and read as part of the school’s efforts to increase reading skills. Everyone found a comfy place to curl up and read their favorite book.

“Shoals is committed to making reading fun for all,” school staff said of the effort.

A good number of people in Mount Airy are interested in learning more about city government, judging by the interest shown in a new Mayberry Citizens Academy that will accommodate more people than first planned.

Municipal officials announced the program on Sept. 10, saying it would be limited to 15 applicants.

“We got over 20 people,” City Manager Stan Farmer said Thursday.

“And we have got room for more,” he added regarding the series of classes involved which starts next week. “So more is merrier.”

The goal of the Citizens Academy is to help Mount Airy residents better understand how local government operates while benefiting the community overall.

Such academies, also known as leadership institutes, seek to educate residents through direct contact with public officials, site visits and hands-on activities, and are fairly common throughout the nation, officials say. These programs address what is considered a knowledge gap between citizens and government.

Classes locally will include a range of topics such as city and state government relations, firefighting, police and code enforcement, public works/utilities, finance, parks and recreation and planning.

Including the first Citizens Academy session on Tuesday, a total of eight is planned each Tuesday evening over nine weeks until Nov. 29, skipping the week of Thanksgiving.

On those Tuesdays from 5:30 to 7 p.m., different subject matter pertaining to local government will be covered by the city manager or department heads. The first class will be a general introduction featuring Farmer along with City Attorney Hugh Campbell and City Clerk Nicki Brame.

Speakers will be involved in seven of the classes, with the eighth to serve as a graduation ceremony.

Farmer is pleased by the interest shown in the Citizens Academy.

“It’s encouraging that people want to learn about their local government more,” he said Thursday.

Once the number of applicants exceeded what Farmer called the “15 self-imposed limit,” organizers decided to open the program up to more people, agreeing that they can handle the greater number. There is now no specified limit, according to the manager.

However, those interested must complete a short application form available on the city website and submit it by the close of business on Monday. The form can be accessed at https://www.mountairy.org/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=427

Completed applications may be forwarded to sfarmer@mountairy.org or dropped off at City Hall.

Officials have said that applicants must be city residents, but non-Mount Airy residents might be considered if space is available. There is an emphasis on creating a diverse class from many different neighborhoods within Mount Airy.

Farmer said Thursday he thinks this has been accomplished based on the more than 20 people signed up so far.

“Demographically it appears to be pretty diverse.” This includes a balance of folks in different parts of town and also from a gender standpoint.

Food Lion Feeds, a program by Food Lion to help get food to the needy, donated 680 backpacks to Surry County elementary schools recently.

Each backpack contained Capri Suns, Food Lion Puddings, Food Lion Apple Sauce, Food Lion Mac and Cheese, Food Lion Fruit Bar, Food Lion Beans and Franks, Ramen noodles, and GM Honey Nut Cheerio Cereal cups.

“Food Lion Feeds’ mission is to put food and hope on the table for our neighbors,” the company said of the effort. “Through Food Lion Feeds, we’ve donated more than 900 million meals to individuals and families since 2014 and (are) committed to donating 1.5 billion meals by 2025.”

“I wanted to give a helping hand in making sure parents didn’t have to choose between food and buying school supplies to start the school year,” said Pilot Mountain Food Lion Store Manager Terry Easter.

The students at Dobson Elementary School recently held their Student Council Office elections. The officers elected are Aubrey Johnson, president, Aubrey Jones , vice president, Grayson Unsworth, treasurer, and Lyla Atkins, secretary. (Submitted photo)

DOBSON — A group from Patrick County, Virginia, captured the coveted band competition last Saturday at the Surry Old-Time Fiddlers Convention in Dobson.

The absence of the event for more than three years as a result of COVID-19 did not dampen musicians’ enthusiasm to be recognized as tops in their field, with Buffalo Mountain Ears from Meadows of Dan judged best band. The convention was staged at the Surry County Service Center.

A Westfield group, The Minglewood Ramblers, took second place and The Slate Mountain Ramblers of Mount Airy, third place.

Another local-based group, The Roaring Gap Rattlers of State Road, captured fourth-place honors, with The Orange Grove Hot Shots, from Hillsborough in fifth place.

Young band competition also was highly contested, led by The Greasy String Band of Mount Airy.

The Newfound Gap Band hailing from Leicester took second place and The Biscuit Eating Ramblers of Lowgap, third.

Place winners in individual categories, whose hometowns were not available, included:

• Variety — 1. Coleman Emerson, 2. Penny Kilby, 3. Milton Scott, 4. Mason Winfree, 5. Bobby Fields.

• Folk song — 1. Mark Kilianski, 2. Aaron Ratcliffe, 3. Mason Winfrey, 4. Jared Boyd, 5. Jack Zell.

• Mandolin — 1. Todd Hiatt, 2. Ralph McGee, 3. Eva Casstevens, 4. Cody Bowman.

• Bass — 1. Stacy Boyd, 2. Barbara Bowman, 3. Bill Sluys, 4. Tammy Sawyer.

• Guitar — 1. Danny Casstevens, 2. Steve Kilby, 3. Mark Kilianski, 4. Gene Anderson.

• Banjo — 1. Jared Boyd, 2. Nancy Sluys, 3. Andrew Walker, 4. Aaron Ratcliffe, 5. Josh Harrod.

• Fiddle — 1. Amy Alvey, 2. Richard Bowman, 3. Jason Phillips, 4. Travis Watts, 5. Thom Worm.

• Dance — 1. Marty Todd, 2. Barbara Bowman, 3. Marsha Todd, 4. Mason Winfree, 5. JoAnn Call.

• Best all-around performer — Jared Boyd.

• Variety — 1. Coley Palmer, 2. Emmie Davis.

• Folk song — 1. Maggie Wilkerson, 2. Levi Head, 3. Bayla Davis.

• Guitar — 1. Gavin Woodruff, 2. Judah Davis, 3. Levi Head.

• Banjo — 1. Brock Greer, 2. Bayla Davis, 3. Josiah Wilkerson.

• Fiddle — 1. Sylvie Davis, 2. Hunter Hiatt, 3. Sam Wilkerson.

• Best all-around performer – Gavin Woodruff.

Surry County Parks and Recreation has extended an invitation to members of the community to join a public meeting in which they hope to gain insights and opinions to what residents want to see in future projects.

Residents are being asked to provide feedback that will assist the department in development of the Surry County Parks and Recreation Master Plan which will guide expansion, addition, or renovation to existing parks, playgrounds, ball fields, river accesses, and trails across the county.

Furthermore, department officials are hoping members of the public will aid in updating and further developing the Fisher River Park Master Plan. Daniel White of Surry County Parks and Recreation has previously explained improvement plans he would like to see at Fisher River Park, such as replacing old playground equipment and rethinking the orientation and skill level of the mountain bike trails at the park.

Input is needed at the public meeting so that parks and recreation may seek grant funding from the Access for Parks Grant and the North Carolina Parks and Recreation Trust Fund grant. Parks and Recreation’s Bradley Key said that topics under consideration at the public meeting will include parks, programs, facilities, and amenities that may best service the community in the years to come.

The Access for Parks Grant provides $10 million to parks departments for programming designed to benefit persons with disabilities. Grant funding will be used to adapt existing equipment or build new facilities that can meet the needs of children and veterans with physical or developmental challenges. The program is administered through the N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation and the N.C. Parks and Recreation Trust Fund.

White says the Access grant is broad and considers many different forms of physical and development disabilities that may need to be accommodated for. He has said that creating greater accessibility such as having ramps that can get mobility challenged kids up “into the play” rather than watching from the sidelines.

Multi-sensory apparatus that engages in a variety of ways like tactile interactions or musical instruments incorporated into playground equipment would increase participation. White noted a xylophone is one of his bucket list ideas offering it would be interesting but is just one idea. He suggested also having areas for kids to transition into group play may benefit those with vision or hearing problem to gain comfort with their surroundings so they may more fully enjoy themselves.

“I may not be able to do it all, but I can dream and then I value-engineer,” he said with a smile from the parks and rec office in Dobson. “That’s what I do: I dream and then I value-engineer.”

The General Assembly awards funds to the Parks and Recreation Trust Fund each year and a citizen board makes the decisions on allocating funds. Since 1994 a total of 993 projects have been funded across the state totaling $236 million in granted dollars, which were then paired with local matching funds to reach $746 million in total impact for funding of parks.

Surry County has previously funded 12 projects with trust fund assistance including funding for multiple Greenway extension projects, Dobson Square Park, Westwood Park in Mount Airy, Pilot Mountain Park, and dual grants for Fisher River Park. With the county’s matching funding these 12 grants total $8.8 million of parks investment.

Through grant applications Surry County Parks and Recreation are seeking to find alternative ways of funding improvement to parks without asking for more funding from the county or the taxpayer.

White explained, “The resources that we are given in this department, we do our best to use them to the very best of our ability. To use them to their maximum potential. That’s what we are looking for, to use the resources to their max potential and leverage the dollars they are giving us into more.”

To qualify for consideration for these state grant programs, the county must hold an open meeting with input from the residents they serve. To satisfy that requirement the meeting will be held on Tuesday, Oct, 4, from 6 – 8 p.m. at Dobson Town Hall, located at 307 North Main St. in Dobson.

Refreshments will be provided at the meeting, so a grumbling stomach at a natural dinner time need not discourage participation. Parks and Recreation needs to hear from as many people as possible to ensure that the future of Surry Count’s facilities will match the wants and desires of the community.

The state told applicants, “Local governments with better plans and public involvement have received more grants.”

With more public input and guidance as to what people want to see, the better the grant application will be thus increasing the likelihood of being awarded the funding.

For more information on parks planning or the public meeting, contact Surry County Parks and Recreation at 336-401-8235.

• State Employees Credit Union on South Franklin Road has become the victim of a false pretense crime, according to Mount Airy Police Department reports.

The case surrounds an incident last Friday in which a known individual provided false documents to receive a loan of an unspecified sum. Police records indicate that a stolen payroll stub was involved in the crime that was still under investigation at last report.

• Timothy Wayne Ayers, 40, of 147 Hooks Drive, is facing a felony drug charge and vehicle-related crimes including driving while intoxicated and hit and run. Ayers was arrested last Thursday in the area of South Main Street and Buck Shoals Road during the investigation of the hit and run matter, for which no details were released.

In addition to DWI and hit and run, he is facing three other charges including possession of a Schedule I controlled substance, a felony; driving while license revoked; and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Ayers was confined in the Surry County Jail under a $2,000 secured bond and is scheduled to appear in District Court on Oct. 10.

• An unauthorized use of a motor vehicle was reported on Sept. 14 in which James Willis Lovelace of Brooklen Avenue was victimized. It involved a known individual taking his white Ford Focus, valued at $3,000, without permission in August. The matter was still under investigation at last report.

• A breaking and entering of a locked mailbox occurred on Sept. 14 at the office of a local accountant, Brenda Lineberry, located on a street known as Professional Court. Mail of an unspecified description and value was listed as stolen.

DOBSON — The general election won’t be held until Nov. 8, but Surry Countians already have begun making their choices through the absentee ballot by mail process.

“North Carolina was the first state in the nation to begin voting for the 2022 general election, being the first state to mail out absentee ballots on September ninth,” Surry Director of Elections Michella Huff advised.

“We have received requests for and mailed out 549 absentee by mail ballots,” Huff added Wednesday. “We have received 61 as of this morning.”

Under state law, any North Carolina registered voter may request, receive and vote a mail-in absentee ballot — with no special circumstance or excuse needed.

Absentee request forms can be returned only by mail or in person — except for individuals covered under the Uniformed And Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA). They may return requests via email and fax, based on information earlier released about the process.

Nov. 1, a week before the election, is listed on the Surry Board of Elections website as the last day to request an absentee ballot. The deadline for returning civilian ballots is Nov. 8 by 5 p.m. That day is also the deadline for those participating through the Uniformed And Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act.

An absentee ballot portal at https://votebymail.ncsbe.gov/app/home is available.

The mailing address for the Surry Board of Elections is P.O. Box 372, Dobson, NC, 27017, and its physical address is 915 E. Atkins St., Dobson.

Absentee by mail balloting has been a source of skepticism surrounding its security compared to in-person voting, but elections officials in North Carolina say a number of precautions exist to ensure the integrity of that process.

For one, county election officials send ballots only to registered voters who request them using official forms, according to information from the State Board of Elections which was updated this month.

Also, the voter or his or her near relative or legal guardian must fill out and sign the request form. Required information includes the voter’s date of birth, driver’s license number or last four Social Security number digits.

Teeth are behind those rules, with fraudulently or falsely completing the request form a Class I felony.

In 2022, voters must cast their ballot in the presence of two witnesses or a notary public. Witnesses are required to sign the absentee return envelope, certifying that a person marked his or her ballot and is the registered voter submitting the ballot.

If a voter forgets to sign or fails to get the witnesses to print and sign their names and provide their addresses, the ballot cannot be accepted.

Only the voter, a near relative or legal guardian may return the ballot. The county elections board keeps a log of who drops off absentee ballots.

Upon being returned, the board reviews the absentee envelope to ensure compliance with the legal requirements.

Once an absentee ballot is received, a barcode on the return envelope is scanned and linked to the person’s voter registration. The ballot envelope then is placed on an absentee report for approval by the Surry Board of Elections at a meeting that is part of the tabulation procedure.

Huff mentioned that the first absentee board meeting will be conducted next Tuesday, when members are to review and approve the initial batch of absentee by mail ballots for the general election.

At that stage, a citizen is counted as having voting and barred from casting a ballot in person at one-stop early voting sites or his or her Election Day polling place, which prevents someone from doing so more than once. If such a voter returned another ballot, it would not count.

Additionally, each absentee voter’s unique identifier barcode for the return application ensures the state system will not permit two ballots from the same person to be accepted or counted.

Other local absentee meetings are slated for Oct. 11, Oct. 18, Oct. 25, Nov. 1, Nov. 7, Nov. 8 and Nov. 17, when a supplemental one is scheduled a day before the vote canvass.

“Many people are watching North Carolina’s absentee voting process, including candidates, political parties, county boards of elections, political and data scientists and the media,” a statement from the N.C. State Board of Elections says in part. “If there are anomalies or questionable activities, they will be reported to election officials.”

The state board has a dedicated team of experienced investigators who probe credible allegations of election fraud and refer cases to prosecutors when warranted by findings, officials in Raleigh added.

While the eventual path of Hurricane Ian was not clear Wednesday, local officials were getting ready should the remnants of the storm cross over Surry County.

The hurricane made landfall on the west coast of Florida Wednesday as a category 4 storm — among the strongest — with pounding surf, heavy rain and powerful 125 mph winds inflicting serious damage.

In Surry County, where skies where still sunny and the weather pleasant, Emergency Services Director Eric Southern said preparations were underway to prepare for the storm’s arrival in the region.

“We’ve already had one meeting with the state this morning about preparation, and we’ll be doing more each day before the storm,” he said. That phone meeting was with EMS directors around North Carolina as well as state officials in Raleigh.

“Right now, we’re just getting equipment ready, making sure generators are working, we’ve got our fire departments and rescue squads on standby, checking their equipment. We’re working with local law enforcement to get ready.”

Patrick Wilson, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Blacksburg, Virginia, said Wednesday the severity of the storm when it reaches the Surry County region is still uncertain.

“It’s going to be a wet weekend, to put it lightly,” he said when checking the latest forecast. “I don’t know if we’re able to give full rainfall amounts yet, but I would prepare for several inches. A lot of this is going to depend on the track of Hurricane Ian after it makes landfall in Florida.”

He said the storm, at that time, was expected to cross over Florida and head into the Atlantic Ocean, where it could go north and likely make landfall again in South Carolina.

That is when the storm would begin making its way inland, bringing rain and wind to Surry County and the surrounding region.

“Whether we get much flooding will depend on whether we get the rain in a burst of rainfall, or of it’s more spread out over several hours so the ground can handle it.”

He said there is a high-pressure system in the region at present, which has been responsible for the string of pleasant days this week. How far the storm can penetrate that system will largely determine how far the heavy rain and wind goes inland.

“The winds aren’t going to be too bad, because it (the storm) will be weakened by that point, but we’re still going to get 30 to 40 mph winds…The first rain may arrive Friday, but the heavy stuff is going to be over the weekend.”

It is the rainfall that could be the cause of most of the damage inflicted on the area. In addition to the potential for flooding, Wilson said rain could saturate and soften the ground, making it easy for trees to be blown over during the windy portions of the storm.

“Definitely everyone should be ready for a few inches of rain and watch out for flooding.”

Southern, with EMS, said his department is planning for a worst-case scenario, as if the region might see up to 4 inches of rain, and potentially higher wind, along with flash flooding and maybe a tornado or two spawned by the storm.

He cautioned that folks should stay home if possible, and if they can’t, they should avoid driving through water on roadways — it can be deeper and swifter-moving than it appears.

He said if individuals experience power outages, they should contact their utility company immediately. If they witness trees down over roads, severe flooding with water near or entering a home, or any life-threatening emergency, those reports should be made to 911.

A number of area activities set for this weekend have been cancelled or altered. In addition to the postponement of the Civil War Re-enactment in Ararat, Virginia, and the Sonker Festival, the Music at the Market in Dobson has been moved indoors, from the Farmer’s Market to the Surry County Service Center, at 915 E. Atkins Street in Dobson.

Officials with Mount Airy City Schools said the system is planning to hold classes on Friday as normal, although that could change as the storm approaches.

“We are always in contact with our county and state emergency officials concerning the weather,” said Carrie Venable, executive officer of communications for the school system. “We will be looking closely at the radar and progress of the storm as we approach Friday. Any decision being made is also made in tandem with Elkin and Surry County Schools.”

There was no word from Surry County Schools officials on whether any plans were being made to potentially close school on Friday.

The students in Janna Blakeney’s eighth grade science class at Pilot Mountain Middle School recently spent their class time, spread over two days, learning the various properties of water.

Throughout the time they rotated through six different lab stations. The labs tested different properties of water. Students experimented with cohesion, adhesion, and density, while others exposed the students to water principles of surface tension and capillary action.

The next Music at the Market Concert scheduled for this Friday, featuring Wood Family Tradition is still going to be held despite threatening weather from the remnants of Hurricane Ian.

It will just change location.

Travis Frye, tourism director for both Surry County and Dobson, said “Due to impending weather, the next Music at the Market Concert will take place indoors at the Surry County Service Center, 915 E. Atkins Street, Dobson.”

“This indoor facility is directly across the parking lot from the Farmers Market. Chairs will be provided and Mermaids On The Go, Station 1978 Firehouse Peanuts, and Shikora Express Japanese Grill will be set up near the entrance. They will be ready to serve delicious food by 6 p.m. that may be brought into the building to eat,” he said, encouraging those who may be going to grab a bite and to not stay away due to Hurricane Ian’s threat.

Inside the Service Center will be safe and dry with no wind to mess up hairdos or send plates of food flying across Highway 601. The doors will open at 6 p.m. and show time for Wood Family Tradition will be 7 – 9 p.m. Admission to the concert is free.

Several Surry Community College faculty and staff members were recognized recently with awards given out during the fall 2022 faculty and staff meeting.

English Instructor Dr. Kathleen Fowler received Surry Community College’s Excellence in Teaching Award for 2022-2023, the highest faculty award given by SCC.

“It was an honor to present Dr. Kathleen Fowler with Surry Community College’s Excellence in Teaching Award. She is an accomplished English instructor who gives and sacrifices so much for the success of our students,” said college president Dr. David Shockley said.

Cosmetology Director Robin Minton and former Mechatronics Lead Instructor Jordan Crowson received the President’s Award for Meritorious Teaching for 2022-2023.

Donald Fowler, assistant director of the academic support center, received Surry Community College’s Distinguished Staff Award for 2022-2023, the highest staff award given by SCC.

“The employees and students at Surry Community College have known for many years that students who seek Donald Fowler’s academic assistance are successful. I was elated that he was honored as the recipient of Surry Community College’s Distinguished Staff Award,” Shockley said.

Laura Bracken, director of accessibility services, and Emily Stroud, instructional assistant of academics, received the President’s Award for Meritorious Service for 2022-2023.

Dr. Shockley made anotherannouncement during the meeting — that the college would start recognizing employees with more than 30 years of employment with a designated parking spot. Among those so recognized were Dr. Susan Worth, division chair – mathematics, 36 years of service; Cheryl Fielde, executive assistant – office of the president and board of trustees, 31 years of service; and Kim White, lead instructor – information technology, 30 years of service.

English Instructor Jon Thomas received a 20-year service pin during the his two decades of service to SCC.

The Ararat, Virginia, Ruritan Club recently made donations to two area organizations.

During the club’s September meeting, President Kathleen Loveland presented checks to Rhonda Fulcher Pruitt of the Patrick County, Virginia, Food Bank and to Kristie Young Bentley, representing the Stuart, Virginia, Rotary Club backpack program. Each representative educated the club on their respective organizations. Each of these organizations serve the students/citizens in the Ararat community.

Also during the meeting, Kristie Bentley discussed the Patrick County High School Junior/Senior Beta Club member requirements for community service.

The club had lots of business to address during the monthly meeting, including the upcoming BBQ/Cruise-In. This traditional annual fundraiser is set for Saturday, Oct. 22, at the club building, located at 4711 Ararat Highway, in Ararat.

All money raised through fundraising efforts, such as the BBQ, virtual raffles, and bingo, is funneled back into the community to help causes such as school supplies, Christmas gifts for less fortunate families and the elderly, and the local fire department and rescue squads.

“Our membership is really growing, and I think that is partially because our club so active in the community, and folks want to be a part of it,” said club Secretary Pamela Smith.

The Ararat Ruritan club meets on the first Thursday of each month at 7 p.m. for anyone to attend.

The Ararat Ruritan Club building can be rented for family gatherings, celebrations, and other activities. For more details, email AraratRuritanClub@gmail.com. More information is also available on the Ararat Ruritan Club Facebook page.

White Plains Elementary School students in grades 3-5 gathered recently to listen to speeches from 16 student council candidates, outlining their qualifications for the respective offices they were seeking.

After hearing the students went back to class and voted for president, vice president, secretary and treasurer. Courtney Farris was selected president, Capri Simmons was voted into the post of vice president), Kylee Tate was chosen as secretary, and Gracie Beasley was named treasurer.

East Surry High School Junior Maria Blakeney was named recipient of the College Board National Recognition Program, National Rural and Small Town Award, for her achievements in school and on College Board assessments.

She earned this recognition because of her academic achievements in school and her performance on the PSAT/NMSQT®, PSAT 10, and/or AP Exams.

The 2022 Homecoming Court at Mount Airy High School — as voted on by their peers — will be presented during halftime of Friday night’s football game along with the representatives for each senior member of the Granite Bears Football team.

The 2022 Homecoming Queen is voted on by the Mount Airy High School student body and will be crowned after the presentation of the court.

For more information about homecoming at Mount Airy High School contact Courtney Howlett at chowlett@mtairy.k12.nc.us or 336-789-5147.

Various local events routinely have fallen victim to the coronavirus over the past couple of years, and now the weather is wreaking havoc including prompting the postponement of two major gatherings scheduled this coming weekend.

Officials of both the Surry County Sonker Festival and the Civil War Encampment and Living History Weekend in Ararat, Virginia, have announced that neither will be held as planned.

“This is all due to the hurricane weather, the impending weather situation,” explained Tom Bishop, a spokesman for the annual Civil War event that was to be staged on Saturday and Sunday.

In response, organizers have moved it to the weekend of Oct. 8-9 in the hopes of better conditions then.

“We’re doing everything we can to get the message out,” Bishop said of the change.

Officials of the Surry County Historical Society, which conducts the sonker event that was slated for Saturday, have made a similar announcement.

“Due to the weather forecast, the board of directors of the Surry County Historical Society is postponing the Sonker Festival to a later date,” advised the group’s president, Dr. Annette Ayers.

Unlike the Civil War Encampment and Living History Weekend, no alternate schedule has been devised for the sonker event, which takes place at the historic Edwards-Franklin House on Haystack Road west of Mount Airy.

“We have not determined the date as of now,” Ayers added earlier this week.

The Surry County Sonker Festival, now in its 41st year, has not been held since 2019 because of COVID-19. It celebrates the deep-dish dessert native to this area, available for sale in multiple flavors, with a band playing traditional music, various exhibits and tours of the Edwards-Franklin House also part of the occasion.

A rainy forecast is in store for the local area this weekend as the remnants of Hurricane Ian move north, according to the National Weather Service.

Rain will reach the area late Friday and continue into the weekend.

Ian could bring widespread moderate to heavy rainfall and a flash flood threat to the region. In addition, gusty winds will be possible depending on Ian’s exact track, the National Weather Service was reporting Tuesday.

At last report, showers are likely both Saturday and Sunday, with the precipitation threat greatly diminishing on Monday.

In being shifted to Oct. 8-9, activities during the Civil War Encampment and Living History Weekend will operate under the same time frame as previously reported.

This will include mock battles both days and an exhibit featuring a replica of the CSS Hunley submarine.

“We may have some of our uniformed and period clothing people that have other commitments,” Bishop mentioned regarding re-enactment troops involved in the battle recreations and others who lend authenticity to the event.

“But this cannot be helped.”

The Civil War Encampment and Living History Weekend is held at Laurel Hill, the birthplace of Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart.

What began as a dry summer turned out to be wetter than normal in the Mount Airy area as the season progressed, according to the latest statistical report from F.G. Doggett Water Plant.

Only 2.1 inches of precipitation were recorded during June at the plant — the city’s official weather-monitoring station — and the bulk of that before summer began on June 20.

The situation reversed itself in July with the logging of a 7.59-inch rainfall total, dwarfing Mount Airy’s all-time average for the seventh month of the year, 4.90. Weather records have been kept here since 1924.

Measurable amounts were noted on 18 of July’s 31 days, with a 0.98-inch output on July 6 the most recorded for a single 24-hour period.

Not to be left out, August also saw above-average rainfall with 5.58 inches measured, compared to the August norm of 4.34 in Mount Airy.

Sixteen days had measurable amounts, topped by 1.21 inches on Aug. 13.

While September has seemed relatively dry — with no totals reported to close out the last part of the summer — precipitation remained above normal in Mount Airy as of Aug. 31.

Through that day, a total of 37.95 inches had been measured, 4.55 inches, or 13.6%, above the all-time local average for that point in the year, 33.40 inches.

July and August also were above normal in terms of mercury readings.

Temperatures averaged 76.9 degrees during July, boosted by a 93-degree reading on July 24 which was the high for the month. At the other end of the scale, a pair of 61-degree days on July 12-13 took monthly low honors.

The mercury averaged 76.9 degrees in July, compared to the all-time average for that month of 75.5 degrees.

August also was a tad warmer than normal, averaging 74.5 degrees compared to 74.3.

The high for the month, 92 degrees, occurred on Aug. 3, with a trio of 57-degree readings sharing the low-temp distinction on the 13th, 14th and 15th days of the month.

Fog was observed on 14 days during July and nine in August.

An innovative program has been greenlit in Surry County that will pair the expertise of the Surry County Office of Substance Abuse and Recovery with those of the county’s EMS to offer individuals who suffer an opioid overdose a solution that can save lives while saving the county money.

Surry County will receive $350,000 over the life of a three-year grant from the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services with federal dollars through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to train staff and deploy the EMS Bridge MAT Program.

Bridge MAT is, “A cutting edge and innovative preventive intervention intended to meet survivors of opioid overdoses attended by EMS, where they are by providing an initial dose of buprenorphine for withdrawal relief and ongoing support for medication assisted treatment (MAT) initiation in rural counties in North Carolina.”

Surry County will be among the second wave of counties selected in the state to deploy Bridge MAT, joining the ranks of Onslow and Stanley counties who were the first grant recipients and will grow the total number to ten.

The plan calls for adding two paramedics that will serve with the substance abuse and recovery office to seek outcomes for individuals suffering an overdose that will lower the “significant monetary and emotional toll” that substance use disorder has on the individuals, their family, and the community.

This program will support paramedics responding to individuals with an opioid overdose who refuse transport to an emergency department for reasons that may include lack of insurance or concerns of interaction with law enforcement. In this plan under the supervision of a waivered prescriber, the paramedics can administer the first dose of buprenorphine to alleviate some of the pain of opioid withdrawal.

The “bridge” is filling the gap from the time of the overdose until such time as that person can find the treatment that fits their needs. For a period of seven days there is follow up from Peer Support specialists of the substance abuse and recovery office Intervention Team and the new Bridge MAT paramedics. During that period, they can help make referrals to appropriate opioid use disorder treatment provider, but this takes time.

The county said there are no detoxification nor behavioral health urgent care clinics within an hour’s drive of the county in their application for the grant. Some providers who offer intensive outpatient care do not treat clients in a walk-in fashion they said. “MAT normally requires one week to schedule the client’s assessment and an additional week in an intensive outpatient program before MAT is available to clients with opioid addiction.”

Member of the county’s Intervention Team informed that clients with opioid addiction are “frequently unable to abstain from opioid use during this two-week delay while they wait for entry.” Reading between the lines, the implication is during the waiting period the individual is going to seek the path of least resistance toward alleviating that pain – back to the pills or the needle, and the cycle renews again.

The Bridge MAT program suggests a more useful course of treatment during those seven days would be one in which the individual receives ongoing treatment with doses of buprenorphine from the trained paramedics. “All medications will be oversighted through the direction of Surry County EMS Medical Director, Dr. Jason Edsall,” the county said.

Oversights have been built into this plan to ensure the proper use of the allocated federal grant funds as well as guaranteed standards for care during what will be essentially a three-year test run. “Since providers and equipment change often, treatment protocols must be reviewed in regular intervals to ensure compliance,” the county wrote.

The EMS Bridge MAT program will have also additional assistance from the Surry County Health and Nutrition Center under the direction of the county health director to oversee licensed medical care providers that will provide clinical support.

Mark Willis and the Office of Substance Abuse and Recovery will continue to be responsible for the staffing and operation of programs such as the intervention team comprised of certified peer support specialists, community transportation programs such as Ride the Road to Recovery that will support the Bridge MAT efforts. Also, data collection and analysis support will continue from county data guru Jaime Edwards who along with Paramedic Eddie Jordan compiled a wealth of information for the grant application.

Surry County EMS responses to substance use events from 2015 to 2021 increased by an alarming 277%. Instances of opioid related overdoses in the same period rose to become 40% of the total, with fentanyl involved overdoses doubling to 7% of the total number. More than 4,000 overdoses were reported in the past five years, sadly 198 of those proved fatal.

EMS has mapped overdose locations beginning in 2017 with data going back to 2010 added to form a more complete picture. The map distinguishes between overdoses that proved fatal as well as when Narcan was administered. Multiple administrations of Narcan are becoming more common as fentanyl is laced into street drugs with often lethal results.

The use and administrations of Narcan has risen dramatically with the onset of the opioid crisis. Use by first responders increased 60% between 2019 to 2021. It grew by 514% during the same period for family members and bystanders who administered the potentially lifesaving drug.

Mapping which overdoses are fatal, which required more than one dose of Narcan, and even who administered the Narcan can prove helpful in discerning the patterns of abuse in areas of the county.

The data shows patterns do repeat. “EMS responded to 24 overdose events involving duplicative clients in 2021. Between Jan. 1 and June 30…the number of EMS responses to duplicative overdose clients has almost tripled to 62. These 62 EMS responses to overdoses involved the same 21 clients.”

Based on 2021 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, the estimated national cost due to instances of opioid use disorder is $221,219 per person. If over the three-year lifetime of the Bridge MAT grant it were only to “positively intervene” on 21 patients the county said that potential savings may be more than $4.5 million.

The need for innovation was discussed as the county noted during COVID and the corresponding trend to isolation, many community outreach efforts were less successful than in previous years or lost ground when community outreach was stymied.

Officials hope Surry County EMS Bridge MAT in conjunction with peer support through the intervention team will help those who suffer an overdose alleviate their pain more quickly and aid in finding them the long-term recovery support they require to treat a potentially life-threatening disease.

Office of Substance Abuse and Recovery leaders hope that ground lost in the community fight against substance use disorder can be won back and this grant will offer new tools to that end.

DOBSON — This past weekend marked a new era for the Surry Old-Time Fiddlers Convention, in a new venue, but the absence of the event for more than three years didn’t diminish its music or spirit.

The convention enjoyed a triumphant return to a semblance of normalcy with a square dance Friday night followed by adult and youth competition the next day.

Looking at the flurry of activity Saturday, one could easily forget that because of the pandemic the Surry Old-Time Fiddlers Convention had not been held since April 2019, when the event celebrated its 10th year.

After being cancelled in both 2020 and 2021, organizers hoped the convention traditionally held in early spring could return this year. That didn’t happen then and there were indications the event might be gone for good.

This was especially disappointing for those catering to the old-time music genre, since the Dobson fiddlers convention — unlike others that feature both bluegrass and old-time — is a rarity in terms of being dedicated entirely to the latter.

But the weekend’s slate of activities showed that it is hard to keep a good thing down.

“I’m just glad that it’s back going again,” Gene Anderson of the Copeland area said Saturday before registering to compete in the adult guitar category, “very glad.”

Of course, the 3.5-year shutdown/revitalization period has been accompanied by some changes.

One involved moving the convention from its longtime location at the Surry Community College gym in Dobson to the Surry County Service Center on East Atkins Street across town.

Another difference was to shift the event from its early spring date to September.

Neither seemed to present any obstacles for either musicians or fans, with Friday night’s square dance featuring music by two groups — The Slate Mountain Ramblers and Lucas Paisley and the Stratford String Band — setting the stage for a successful weekend.

“The dance floor was as full as you could get it all night long,” said a longtime convention organizer, Buck Buckner.

“Last night was good — really good,” Buckner added Saturday.

Getting the convention back up and running again after more than three years was not as daunting a task as one might think.

“We had it pretty well figured out by now, so it’s been good,” Tammy Sawyer, another key organizer, said of the event’s rejuvenation.

“We’re happy to do it,” Sawyer added while registering contestants Saturday afternoon.

In the weeks preceding the convention, Buckner had credited Travis Frye — who in March became tourism coordinator for the Dobson Tourism Development Authority and Surry County Tourism Development Authority — with providing a boost that led to having a 2022 event.

Frye was on the stage Saturday announcing contestants while wearing a smile.

“I think it’s going really well,” he said of the convention reboot in between performances.

Frye pointed out that two hours of solid competition among youthful musicians had just occurred. “Which is a good sign,” he said of the younger generation carrying on the old-time musical tradition.

“To have it in Dobson is important because it is the center of the county,” Frye said further.

Anderson, the guitar player, who attends fiddlers conventions throughout the region, said he appreciates the “hometown” atmosphere of the Dobson event. “I like smaller festivals.”

Buckner also praised the new location for the convention at the Surry County Service Center.

“I personally like it a lot,” he said. “I think it’s wonderful that the county makes it available” for community events.

Another highlight Saturday was the continuation of a convention tradition: bestowing the Master Artist Award, which this year went posthumously to Helen White.

Frye believes that with COVID-19 now largely a blip in the rear-view mirror, it’s important to maintain the continuity of the Surry Old-Time Fiddlers Convention.

And by all indications, its weekend comeback with nary a sour note heard will allow that to happen.

Surry Community College is offering a CPR certification class that will meet at the Yadkin Center, 1001 College Drive, in Yadkinville.

The class will be held on Friday, Sept. 30, from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. This class will certify students with Healthcare Provider-level of CPR.

For more information and to register, contact Doug Underwood at 336-386-3584 or underwoodd@surry.edu. The tuition is $71. Students who are part of a life-saving organization will be eligible for a tuition waiver.

For about 45 minutes during a cool early fall morning in downtown Mount Airy, reality merged with make-believe to captivate hundreds of people attending the annual Mayberry Days Parade.

During that brief period, folks could forget about the turmoil in the nation and world and essentially be whisked back to a simpler time. It’s one existing within the confines of a black-and-white television series from the 1960s which is still wildly popular today.

Die-hard “Andy Griffith Show” fans of all ages, from both local communities and a number of states, began lining North Main Street well before the scheduled 9 a.m. start time for Saturday’s procession.

“It’s just a big family reunion every year,” Kenneth Sullivan of Cowan, Tennessee, said as he watched it from a spot near Holcomb Hardware.

Sullivan said he regularly attends Mayberry Days and its parade, during which all the visiting celebrity guests and others who have participated in various activities during the week come together in a single spot.

This provided an opportunity Saturday for those in the crowd to interact with individuals such as Ruta Lee. The familiar actress appeared in two episodes of “The Andy Griffith Show,” including one in which she played a female reporter trying to dig up dirt on Sheriff Taylor.

On Saturday, Lee was much less threatening as she rode in a Ford Mustang convertible while waving to and chatting with admirers along the way when the parade slowed on occasion.

Among additional celebrity guests was actor Daniel Roebuck, a cast member with Griffith in the “Matlock” TV series during the local native’s post-Mayberry days who also has had key roles in “The Fugitive” and other movies.

While Roebuck was another attending Mayberry Days for the first time, others were making return visits such as Ronnie Schell. He logged guest appearances on “The Andy Griffith Show,” but is best known for portraying Duke Slater on the “Gomer Pyle” program starring AGS alum Jim Nabors.

Margaret Kerry was another visiting guest star, who was the model for Tinker Bell in Walt Disney’s “Peter Pan” and rode in a vintage vehicle Saturday.

The passage of time has meant that many of the performers from “The Andy Griffith Show” have passed on to Hollywood Hereafter. Those no longer around include Griffith himself, who died in 2012.

But in a sense he lived again on Saturday in the form of a Sheriff Taylor impersonator whose large mask formed the spitting image of Andy and was warmly greeted as he meandered down the street on foot.

The parade also featured many Barney Fifes — in numbers too abundant to count — easily making that character the most-imitated on Saturday. Others were there in the guises of Opie Taylor, Floyd the barber, Otis the town drunk, members of the Darling family, Gomer and Sgt. Carter and even one man carrying a briefcase who bore a striking resemblance to Howard Sprague.

If that were not enough, there were individuals portraying characters such as the Potato Queen and Pork Princess reminiscent of the show.

Rivalling the number of Barneys who appeared Saturday were more than a few Mayberry squad car replicas, along with a number of antique vehicles of varying makes and models.

One squad car was at the front of the parade with “The Andy Griffith Show” theme music blaring from its speakers to help set the tone for the occasion.

The marching band of North Surry High School also lent its talents to the parade downtown, further inhabited by the obligatory mini-cars that have a way of infiltrating just about every such event.

The legions of loyal “Andy Griffith Show” disciples who faithfully attend Mayberry Days also have become an attraction unto themselves.

Some, including Sullivan, the visitor from Tennessee, have been a regular part of the annual celebration since it began in the early 1990s, when his son portrayed Opie.

Similar to other fans of “The Andy Griffith Show,” Sullivan has a favorite character and episode. “You gotta love Barney,” he said, almost without hesitation.

And the episode he likes most?

Sullivan mentioned “Aunt Bee’s Medicine Man” as having that distinction, about a con artist named Colonel Harvey who comes to town promoting his Indian elixir — really just repackaged booze that Aunt Bee and her friends drink and become intoxicated as a result.

There generally are no such antics exhibited by Mayberry Days fans each year — who always draw praise for being a well-behaved, engaging bunch of folks.

“It’s a good Christian environment,” Sullivan observed.

Seven area individuals recentlly graduated from the 2022 Northern Regional Leadership Academy – an educational program designed to foster the leadership potential of employees who volunteer to participate in the six-month curriculum.

The 2022 Class of Northern Leadership Academy included Meredith Ayers, Hunter Grubbs, Rylee Haynes, Sabrena Hemrick, Shawn Lambert, Kayla Melton, and Ashley Moorefield.

Author and speaker John Maxwell has noted, “The single biggest way to impact an organization is to focus on leadership development.”

Those sentiments have been put into practice by Chris A. Lumsden, FACHE, president and chief executive officer of Northern Regional Hospital. A nationally-recognized leader in healthcare administration, Lumsden asked members of his leadership team to custom-design a curriculum three years ago – using an educational model with which he was familiar – that would encourage and empower employees to become leaders.

“Leadership is not defined by a job title,” Lumsden said. “We have many leaders throughout all levels of our organization who use their own creativity, powers of persuasion, and persistence to inspire themselves and others to do great things. The goal of our Leadership Academy is to encourage those employees to strengthen and refine their leadership potential to improve patient care, and enhance our community commitment, while further advancing their own personal and professional development.”

The program has two facilitators, Jessica Arrington, director of patient access, and Keith Moser, Northern Family Medicine practice manager.

Arrington noted that the curriculum exposes participants to all aspects of hospital operations – from attending senior leadership team meetings to touring facility spaces not typically visited or seen by most employees – including the kitchen, boiler room, and rooftop. This year, the program tours included Mountain Valley Hospice, which is jointly owned by Northern Regional Hospital and Hugh Chatham Memorial Hospital.

Employees interested in enrolling in the Leadership Academy must apply and then interview with a group of hospital administrators. “We’re looking for individuals who are willing to grow and eager to expand beyond their comfort zones,” explained Moser. “Participation in the academy is not necessarily designed to be a steppingstone to promotion. Rather, it’s to enable leaders to reach their potential within the context of the organizational mission.”

Each academy semester runs for six months; and each class is limited to approximately eight participants. Students are required to attend weekly class sessions on a variety of leadership-related topics; complete a reading list; shadow selected members of the hospital’s executive team; maintain journals to help reinforce impressions and new knowledge obtained from their experiences; attend legislative field trips to better understand the relationship between business and governmental bodies; and present a final case study to serve as a formal proposal for a project or program they’d like to pursue.

Each participant is aassigned a mentor from among the hospital’s key administrators. “Mentors act as a guide and valuable resource for students – especially as students become more adept at embracing the value of teamwork and seeing and appreciating the big picture,” said Arrington – who has served as a mentor. “And mentorship, is a two-way street. By breaking down hierarchical and departmental silos, communication and teamwork are enhanced throughout the organization.”

Before earning graduation certificates, academy students present their case studies – researched project proposals that incorporate the values and practical business considerations that have been explored as part of the curriculum. To date, all proposals presented have been approved for full implementation or remain under serious consideration by the Senior Leadership Team.

“The essence of the Leadership Academy is best exemplified by the rich variety of dynamic, health-related programs and services proposed by our students,” said Lumsden. “It’s exciting and very rewarding to watch the growth of new leaders within our organization use their newfound knowledge to develop programs that further the mission of Northern Regional Hospital.”

A wide variety of case study proposals were presented to leadership, including a possible coffee shop inside Northern Regional Hospital, a mobile medical unit, gait analysis equipment for physical therapy use, geographical rounding for hospitalists, no-show improvement strategies, and hospice referral tracking.

“We are very encouraged by the early success of our Leadership Academy,” said Lumsden. “By continuing to develop leaders within our hospital, we can further improve and expand our ability to meet the healthcare needs of patients and the community. It’s a win-win-win arrangement, and further validation of the importance of educational initiatives that focus on professional development.”

Good things supposedly come to those who wait, and for fans of a locally based dessert it’s been nearly three years since they’ve been able to experience the Surry County Sonker Festival.

That pause will end next Saturday when the festival returns after being cancelled in 2020 and 2021 because of the coronavirus.

The Oct. 1 event, scheduled from 1 to 5 p.m., offers a chance to savor sonkers — its namesake deep-dish fruit dessert that originated in this area — along with old-time and bluegrass music performed by The Roaring Gap Rattlers. Other attractions are to include flatfoot dancing, quilters, basketry, a pottery display, 18th- and 19th-century artifacts and more.

All this will take place against the backdrop of the historic (1799) Edwards-Franklin House at 4132 Haystack Road west of Mount Airy, to also be open for tours.

Next weekend’s gathering marks the 41st year of the Sonker Festival spearheaded by the Surry County Historical Society.

And Dr. Annette Ayers, the group’s president, indicated that the event basically will pick up where it left off in 2019.

“I think the greatest problem, of course, is personnel,” she said of organizing the group of volunteers needed to stage the festival each year. Some of the older participants no longer are available after its lengthy interruption, but they have been replaced by a new contingent.

“Actually, the weather is a big concern,” Ayers said of an early October mixed bag that can include chilly temperatures in addition to the possibility of rain.

“We do encourage everyone to bring a lawn chair,” she said, which typically creates a laid-back setting of folks seated around the front yard of the house eating sonkers and listening to the music.

Ayers added that the focal point of the festival — the sonkers — will be just as appealing as ever for the hundreds of people who might attend based on past turnouts.

Flavors to be available include blackberry, sweet potato, peach, strawberry and cherry. Sweet potato sonkers tend to the most popular, with strawberry close behind.

“And I can promise they’ll all be delicious,” Ayers said.

While the event itself is free and open to the public, the price of the sonkers will be $4 each, with beverages to be sold for $1. As many as 800 to 1,000 dishes of sonker have been doled out from large trays laid out on a table under a tent on the grounds of the Edwards-Franklin House.

Surry County Historical Society officials also are excited about the musical talent.

“They are people that are very renowned in traditional and bluegrass music,” Ayers said of The Roaring Gap Rattlers.

One of the musicians to be involved is Mecca Jackson Lowe.

“And I think they’re going to have a group of young people — the next generation of artists,” the Surry Historical Society official said. “I think that was wonderful to include younger people.”

Organizers are hoping for a good turnout at the festival, especially by first-time attendees.

In past years, people have made their way to the event from areas both locally and throughout the Southeast.

Publications will be available for purchase.

Ayers also mentioned that membership is open for the Surry County Historical Society, which begins at $25 per year and can be done by mail at P.O. Box 469, Mount Airy, NC, 27030.

The students of Millennium Charter Academy in Mount Airy participated in their 2022 Service Day Thursday.

Students were split between projects on campus and at off-campus sites such as the Riverside Park and the L. H. Jones Family Resource Center.

“One of the ways we can build virtue and cultivate good character in our students is through an emphasis on service,” said Dr. Jarrid K. Looney, director of the upper school at Millennium Charter Academy.

MCA teacher Brandon Rouse echoed Looney, “Service Day reflects our commitment to developing our students’ character and giving back to our community.”

“We hope that our students will gain an appreciation for the importance of community service and an awareness of how rewarding serving your community can be. By partnering with local nonprofits and community organizations, we’re encouraging our students to continue helping their neighbors even after the service day ends,” he said.

Service is a requirement for students of Millennium Charter Academy. Rouse explained beginning with 2022-2023 school year, freshmen, sophomores, and juniors are all required to perform and log ten hours of community service each year in order to participate in extracurricular activities.

Incentivizing good acts from the lower-level students with rewards that may further benefit them appears to be a solution where everyone benefits for the students, educators, and the community at large. Educators and parents can agree that an engaged student is one who will have a greater likelihood of success both inside and out of the classroom.

For the upper-level students, seniors have their own set of requirements and will need to log an additional 22 hours, for a total of 32 hours of community service and submit their hours to both their advisors and instructor for government.

Dr. Looney said the goal is to have well rounded citizens exiting MCA’s halls and becoming the future leaders of Surry County. “We hope that by working alongside our students to serve our communities we can help our students to develop a love for our communities and their fellow citizens.”

Two weeks ago Surry County resident Melissa Hiatt requested the county commissioners consider enacting a 45-day moratorium on rezoning and planning requests that involve discount or dollar stores.

Hiatt is one of the leaders of the Sheltontown group that recently won a victory over such development in their community, when the board voted against a rezoning request by a development firm to put a Dollar General at the intersection of Quaker Road and Westfield Road.

At the board’s Monday meeting the commissioners heard polling data from the opposition to retail development but also for the first time heard pushback from a resident saying public opinion has no place policing private enterprise.

Word had spread of the latest targeted location for another Dollar General at Westfield Road and Indian Grove Church Road, less than one mile from the last attempted location. Hiatt said it is a rumor no longer and that residents have pieced together the facts as neighbors talked to neighbors about the potential land moves taking place.

For some of them it is not deja vu all over again because they never got over it the first time. The previous attempt by Teramore Development LLC to have the corner lot at Quaker and Westfield Roads rezoned for commercial were defeated by the county commissioners in July.

At the board’s next meeting Hiatt again explained her standing objections based on that plan and asked the board to consider issuing the moratorium on rezoning, or planning board requests pertaining to “like-fashioned” retailers such as Family Dollar or Dollar Tree to permit the county time to reexamine its land use policy. Proximity of other like retailers to the one planned would alone negate the necessity of adding another discount retailer and may dissuade future developers from considering placing a full-service grocery store in a saturated area.

Two weeks removed from the request there was no agenda item pertaining to the moratorium at this week’s board meeting. A lack of movement did nothing to calm the nerves of residents fearing what may be coming.

“We thought we made it abundantly clear we do not want their store,” Teresa Levia said of Teramore Development LLC and their previous efforts to rezone in Sheltontown. Speaking in support of the moratorium and controlled growth however does not mean she is anti-development or business she said stating, “I am for free enterprise.”

Heather Moore, of Moore’s General Store, agreed and presented the board with data from a poll their group had conducted and found the answers to be consistent amongst themselves: the same percentage answered the same way across the questions.

Of the nearly 100 participants of the survey, she reported that 94% supported a county ordinance on like-fashioned retailers and that 97% said those stores hurt locally owned businesses. The survey was confirmed to have been open to all members of the public and Moore said it remains open at this time.

The survey is found at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/35TLV6C

Like a politician with a polished stump speech, the opposition has talking points they use to make their case. Often referenced is a moratorium in Wilmington on such retail growth that never came to be. The city council there dropped the proposed language change to their land use plan when the final version was approved.

It was reported that council members perceived that there was not enough research presented on the issue and it was removed from the final language that was approved. Melissa Hiatt said she has spoken to local representatives there who have told her the issue will be revisited.

“There appeared to be no consensus on council concerning those requirements,” a city spokesperson explained in an email that was cited by the Port City Daily of Wilmington on the same date. Melissa Hiatt said Friday she has had conversations with local authorities and that they are “continuing their efforts” to make a change.

Free will vs. public want

In a new twist to the recent discussions, there was an opponent to those seeking to limit dollar-type stores. Angela Leonard said her parents had worked hard to get the money together to open a business and that after many years they retired due to health reasons. That land though is her family’s and if they wanted to open a new business on land they own, and have owned, she feels that is their right to do so.

Leonard was the first to give voice to the counterargument that individual liberties are being infringed upon by the side opposing the dollar-style stores. She asked if it was fair for residents to have such power over the potential growth or expansion of private businesses.

Moore’s General Store is often mentioned as an example of one of the existing businesses that could be hurt by new retail grown, but Leonard asked if they too would be subject to judgment on the merits of expansion by the collective opinions of the neighborhood. She went a step further asking the board rhetorically if such opposition from residents may one day follow to home improvement projects as well.

The survey that was shown to the commissioners showed that on almost all questions the answers were 90% the same – meaning Leonard knew walking up to the podium she would be speaking for a minority point of view, but she felt that was exactly the point. She asked the board, “Who is looking out for the citizens who are afraid of the backlash and may be scared to speak out?”

William Lawrence sees it differently and was one of the property owners of the home on Quaker Road where Teramore Development LLC last attempted a new location.

He noted the strong opposition and the dozens of yellow signs that had dotted Sheltontown as perhaps being part of what changed the outcome of that scenario.

Townships and communities that lack strong representation are being targeted by Teramore, he claimed, adding that not all communities have the strength to coalesce as Sheltontown did for a coordinated fight. He feels residents have a right to have a say about the quality of life in their communities.

• A Dobson woman was arrested Tuesday afternoon as a fugitive from justice in Mount Airy and jailed under a large secured bond, according to city police reports.

Amy Wall Riddle, 46, of 446 Roy Stanley Road, was encountered by officers during a suspicious-person call at a residence on Junction Street, and they found that her name had been entered in a national crime database as being wanted in Patrick County, Virginia, on an unspecified matter.

Riddle was confined in the Surry County Jail under a $20,000 secured bond and is scheduled to appear in District Court in Dobson on Oct. 17.

• A possible break-in attempt occurred Tuesday at the residence of Amanda Gail Bledsoe on Northwood Drive, where an unknown object was used to break a rear window. The damage was put at $200.

• A man who allegedly hit his girlfriend in the face with a lighter, causing her lip to bleed, and choked her was jailed without privilege of bond on Sept. 15.

Markus Evan Beamer, 28, listed as homeless, is accused of assault on a female, identified as Brittany Michelle Jackson, also homeless.

The incident occurred in a roadway area on North Main Street at West Pine Street. Beamer is scheduled to be in Surry District Court Monday.

• Camper and Mobile Home Supply, a business on Merita Street, was the scene of a break-in discovered on Sept. 14, which involved the attic of the building being entered in order to gain access to the interior. Nothing was listed as stolen, but police records indicate that damage was caused to ceiling tiles.

• A break-in involving a felonious larceny was discovered on Sept. 10 at Mayberry Portable Buildings in the 1000 block of North Andy Griffith Parkway, where equipment and other property worth thousands of dollars was taken after a lock was cut.

Included were DeWalt products listed as an air compressor, a table saw, miter saw, an impact driver, drills, a skill saw, five power tool batteries and five power tool battery chargers; a Honda generator; a Craftsman tool box with miscellaneous tools; an Rx skill saw; a Flex impact driver; a Little Giant collapsible ladder; Romex wiring cable; and three bags containing miscellaneous wiring tools.

The monetary loss from the crime totaled $7,920.

The official opening ceremony of Mayberry Days is usually a joyous occasion, with plenty of laughs and jokes, introduction of the show’s stars and other entertainers in town to put on shows, and the mayor’s proclamation recognizing Mayberry Days.

This year’s opening had all of that, but plenty of tears as well. Tears of emotion when describing friendships, and tears of longing and grief as fans said good-bye to one of “The Andy Griffith Show’s” favorite stars.

Perhaps the most emotional part of the opening ceremony was the Betty Lynn memorial. Lynn, famous for her portrayal of Thelma Lou and a Mount Airy resident for more than 15 years, passed away in October. Tanya Jones, executive director of the Surry Arts Council and a close friend of Lynn, said earlier this year that, instead of a memorial service held immediately after Lynn’s death, she wanted to include the service in this year’s Mayberry Days so that her fans could take part.

Many of those fans packed the Historic Earle Theatre Friday morning, with a standing-room only audience for both the opening ceremonies and the memorial to Lynn.

That service featured images of Lynn from her life — including pictures of her youth, on set with Andy Griffith and Don Knotts, promotional and on-set photos from various films and television shows she appeared in, along with photo spreads and other pictures. While the photos faded one to another, a recording of the song “Precious Memories,” sung by Andy Griffith, played over the theater’s speakers.

Among the crowd were fans of “The Andy Griffith Show” — some dressed as their favorite Mayberry character, or at least the character they most resembled — others dressed in Mount Airy or Mayberry t-shirts, and nearly everyone there watched in rapt attention, the only sounds that of Griffith’s deep baritone voice and the occasional sniffling or quiet sobbing from Lynn’s fans and friends.

Shortly prior to the memorial presentation, Jones and Allan Newsome, a long-time Floyd the Barber tribute artist and host of the long-running podcast “Two Chairs No Waiting,” led the opening ceremony. Guests who were in town — those who appeared on the show, their family members, or other entertainers here to put on a presentation for Mayberry Days fans — took their introductions, some making remarks, others simply acknowledging the fans.

Toward the end of the ceremony, after the mayor’s proclamation for the annual event, Jones became emotional as she described the person who would be this year’s You’re the Cats award winner, recognizing someone or some group which has made significant contributions to Mayberry Days and the effort in keeping the spirit of Mayberry, and the memories of those actors who starred in the show, alive.

Jones recalled how she had even played a role in his meeting the woman who would become his wife before revealing Jeff Koontz was winner.

Koontz said afterward he was shocked to be named the award-winner.

“I’m just a volunteer,” he said of his role in the annual gathering of the Mayberry faithful. Koontz, who lives in Brevard with his wife, Claire Armbruster, said he began volunteering with Mayberry Days in 1990, during the first such gathering when it was just a one-day event.

And he confirmed that Jones did, indeed, play a role in he and his wife meeting.

“She introduced us,” he said, adding they had been married since 2000. “I owe that to Tanya.”

While several hundred Mayberry fans were inside the Earle Theatre for the morning’s ceremonies, hundreds more were already outside, walking Main Street, taking in the sights and doing some shopping.

Among the sights many were checking out were no less than four autos made up to look like Sheriff Andy Taylor’s squad car, all parked along Main Street, while additional such cars patrolled the street.

Walt McClelland, of Johnston, Pennsylvania, was among those in town for the festival — an annual sojourn he makes with his wife and their Ford Galaxie gussied up just like one of Andy Taylor’s old squad cars.

“I bring that car down every year,” he said of the squad car, adorned with a life-sized photo of Deputy Fife in the back seat, along with pictures and flyers detailing places McClelland had taken the car. “We’ve been here every year since 2010,” he said. McClelland said he spends a good bit of the day sitting in a folding chair, next to his car, while others come along and sit next to him, ask questions about the car, striking up conversations about “The Andy Griffith Show” and untold other subjects that pop up.

Mike Pyburn and Pete Taggett were two local musicians spending their day on Main Street, next to Pyburn’s 1931 Ford Model A, while the two of them strummed a few bluegrass tunes — Pyburn on the claw hammer banjo and Taggett on the washtub bass.

Pyburn, who is retired, said he spends some time most days on Main Street, playing his music for anyone who passes by.

“I usually get a smile from people who pass by, which is all I can ask for,” he said. Pyburn said he regularly played in the downtown gazebo, but construction work at the partially collapsed Main Oak building is too much competition.

“My throat’s not strong enough to sing over that,” he said, so he moved several blocks down the street, where he and Taggett were set up on Friday.

There, Sue Creager, of Springfield, Ohio, was fascinated with the washtub bass, getting an impromptu lesson on playing the instrument from Taggett, and even a few tips on how to build her own when she returns home.

“I can’t get over the sound,” Creager said several times after stroking the long string of the instrument. Her husband, Kevin Creager, said his wife plays the dulcimer, though she may be pursuing a new interest in the washtub bass.

Kevin Creager said he and his wife have made several trips to Mount Airy, but his is the first time they’ve been able to visit the town during Mayberry Days.

“Usually, we’re working. But now we’re both retired, so we were able to come,” he said, both clearly having a good time.

And why not? Even during an emotional opening earlier in the day, Newsome, the ceremony’s emcee and resident Floyd the Barber, put it succinctly when he described what Mayberry Days means to Andy Griffith Show fans.

“It’s like going to Disney World.”

Regulatory entanglements regarding a sign initially disallowed for a new body shop in Mount Airy didn’t end with an August vote permitting it — now the owner must remove a banner supporting a candidate who aided him.

Frank Fleming recently had the banner placed on a metal sign structure in the parking lot of a former Winn-Dixie supermarket on Merita Street where he is developing the shop — a $2 million endeavor that will create jobs.

It states, “Jon Cawley For Mayor.”

Fleming says the banner was erected in response to the present city commissioner and mayoral candidate backing his efforts to finally get the existing sign approved after a lengthy ordeal surrounding municipal regulations which almost wound up in Surry Superior Court.

But a new wrinkle has materialized with Fleming being told to remove the political banner, which — yes — also violates a city ordinance, as was earlier the case with the metal sign structure. The longtime local businessman was advised of this latest development by Chuck Morris, Mount Airy’s codes enforcement officer.

“He called me yesterday,” Fleming related Thursday.

“I didn’t know there was a banner ordinance,” said the shop owner, who added that he would not have had it installed if he was aware such a regulation existed. He has been given until next Wednesday to remove the banner.

Fleming said he simply was trying to boost the candidacy of a person who assisted him during every step of the ordeal to get the metal sign structure approved.

“Jon played a big role in helping to teach me and guiding me in all this stuff,” said the local businessman, also a veteran modified race car driver of 43 years, who had little knowledge of local government beforehand.

Fleming had been denied a permit to re-use the existing sign framework Winn-Dixie left behind because it exceeded a 15-foot height limit imposed for new business developments under updated, appearance-minded municipal regulations adopted in 2016.

This led to the recent emergence of an amendment that altered distance requirements for such non-conforming signs which ultimately allowed Fleming to utilize the old one — already wired and sitting on a concrete foundation.

The Mount Airy Board of Commissioners approved that amendment in a late-August vote as a huge crowd of Fleming supporters — including state Rep. Sarah Stevens — watched from the audience.

Fleming mentioned repeatedly Thursday that he does not want to step on the toes of anyone at City Hall. He appreciates the attention everyone devoted to the sign case, even those who didn’t support his position, including members of the Mount Airy Zoning Board of Adjustment whose action led to a possible Superior Court appeal.

Yet Fleming thinks Cawley deserves extra support for his efforts in the sign issue and the sentiments behind that.

“Jon Cawley is for the citizens of this town,” the shop owner commented, including owners of businesses such as himself. Fleming has long operated his body shop from a location on Springs Road and many see the new project on Merita Street as serving to improve a long-unsightly area.

After becoming aware of the sign denial and learning that Fleming, a self-described “competitor” who planned to fight the initial ruling, Cawley assured him, “I’m going to help you all I can.” The veteran commissioner agreed that it made sense for the existing sign to be re-used, Fleming said.

His motive in erecting the banner during recent days was not to become a focal point of this year’s municipal election in which Cawley, Mount Airy’s longest-serving council member, is running against Mayor Ron Niland.

“I’ve never been a very political person,” Fleming said. “I’ve never got into politics too much.”

It was more a matter of timing.

Since the refurbishing of the old metal sign and its listing of the new body shop will take two to three months to complete, Fleming saw this as an ideal time to put up the banner promoting Cawley’s candidacy in the meantime.

However, the city regulatory bureaucracy has nixed that.

On Thursday, Morris, the codes officer, cited a restriction listed under Section 9.3-Temporary Signs in the City of Mount Airy Municipal Code of Ordinances. It states in part that such signs “shall not be affixed to a permanent sign or its supporting structure, including both building-mounted and freestanding permanent signs.”

The ordinance also makes specific reference to banners, which generally are limited to those promoting community events — while apparently ruling out ones that are political in nature.

Although the majority of the commissioners eventually came around to Cawley’s side, it was he who stood alone at first in supporting him, Fleming said.

His backing of Cawley is not intended as any disrespect toward the present mayor, Fleming stressed.

“Ron Niland has been nothing but good to me,” he said.

However, the whole sign episode has revealed special characteristics on Cawley’s part which Fleming believes are needed locally.

“Jon Cawley will be good for the citizens of Mount Airy,” the shop owner believes, if elected to its top position.

“I just think that without Jon Cawley,” Fleming asserted, “our city, our local government, won’t be as good.” `

During this year’s Mayberry Days festivities The Mount Airy Museum of Regional History will have on display the tuba that Andy Griffith played while a member of the Grace Moravian Church.

Griffith’s first foray into music was with the trombone. He worked to save money to purchase the instrument then approached Rev. Edward T. Mickey Jr., who had recently started the brass band at Grace Moravian, asking the reverend if he could teach Griffith to play. A quick study, Griffith was soon playing pretty much every instrument in the band but most often played the tuba.

“We’re really excited to be able to display this storied instrument, it’s actually a piece we’ve been hoping to be able to display for many years,” said Matt Edwards, the museum’s executive director.

In among the nearly 35,000 square feet of exhibits, the museum has permanent exhibits related to Andy Griffith and his family history and connections in Mount Airy and across the region.

Museum board member Calvin Vaughn and Grace Moravian Church band Director Hubert McMillian worked to facilitate the loan of the instrument for public display during this year’s Mayberry Days. The instrument will be on display at the museum through the weekend.

“With an entire museum dedicated to Andy’s show biz life just down the street we’re not looking to compete so much as to compliment. In reality Andy is part of a much bigger regional story that we tell here, and there are really only a few key objects that we need to tell that story and this we consider to be one of those,” Edwards said.

The Mount Airy Museum of Regional History will be open to the public Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 1 p.m. until 4 p.m. For more information contact the museum at 336-786-4478 or online at www.northcarolinamuseum.org

When school started in late August, some students at White Plains Elementary School already had a treat waiting for them. Those who completed a reading bingo sheet from the summer enjoyed a pizza celebration in the media center there.

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