r
Walker students
celebrate top
status in Lock
Up Hunger-IB
50*
482-4418
Wednesday, March 2, 2016
White, Winbome eye need for job growth
White: Kids have
to leave to find jobs
BY REGGIE PONDER
Editor
James “Jill” White said this
week that if he’s elected to
the Chowan County Board of
Commissioners he will work
to bring jobs to the county so
young people won’t have to
leave the community to find
work.
“That’s always needed in
a small town,” White said
mmamm
WHITE
of recruiting
(new business
and industry.
“When kids get
out of school
f they have to
.j leave town to
H find a job.”
But White
said it was im
portant to recruit businesses
See WHITE, 4A
Winborne: County needs to create a
welcoming environment for businesses
BY REGGIE PONDER
j Editor
i Chowan County Commissioner
I Emmett Winbome said this week
that if elected to a fifth term on the
board he would continue working
to bring businesses and jobs to the
county.
“There’s always more work to
be done,” Winbome said. “We need
to create an environment for busi
I nesses to come in here — create a
! friendly and welcoming environ
VOTE EARLY
■ Early voting in Primar)
j begins Thursday -2A
Winbome, 61,
WINBORNE a fanner in the
Rocky Hock com
munity, faces a challenge in the
March 15 Democratic Primary
from political newcomer James
“Jill” White. Early voting in the
j primary begins Thursday at
j the Chowan Board of Elec
j tions Office in the Agriculture
Building in Edenton and at the
| Northern Chowan Community
1 Center in Tyner.
“I think it’s great,” Winbome
said of having early voting avail
able at the recreation center.
Winbome said he believes the
:ounty board has been welcoming
oward new business.
See WINBORNE, 3A
BY REGGIE PONDER
Editor
State Secretary of
Natural and Cul
tural Reources Susan
Kluttz told a crowd at
the 1767 Chowan County
Courthouse Friday that
she was in town both to
celebrate the return of a
historic document process
to the courthouse and to
thank Edenton residents
for their support of the
state’s historic preservation
tax credit. ^
Kluttz, who served 14
years as mayor of Salisbury
before being appointed by
Mayor Pat Mccrory as the
state’s secretary of cultural
resources, said site believes
she has been to Edenton
more often than to any
other town or city in North
Carolina
The reason, she said, Ls
that Edenton Ls so beautiful
and .so historic.
Edenton was a strong
ally for her and the gover
nor as they far ed an uphill
battle in the legislature to
protect the historic preser
vation tax credit, she said.
Steinburg was one of
the strongest legislative
advocates for the tax credit,
according to Kluttz.
The immediate occasion
of Kluttz’s visit was the
return to its original loca
tion of a historic wooden
document process owned
by Libby Pope.
Pope has loaned the
piece to the courthouse for
two years.
"I’m thrilled that this
treasure has returned,”
Kluttz said.
Jerry Climer of tire Eden
ton Historical Commission
spoke on beluilf of Pojx\
who was unable to attend
the ceremony.
“Libby regrets that she
is unable to tie here hxiay,”
Climer said. “But, Madam
Secretary, it is a great day
to see the document press
Susan Kluttz, secretary of the N.C. Dept, of Natural and Cultural Resources, looks at the historic document press in the 1767 Chowan County
Courthouse as Tom Newbern talks about the piece's historical significance.
loaned to the Chowan
County Courthouse.”
Climer noted that the
journey of the historic
piece of furniture back to
the courthouse began when
Pope’s keen eye spotted it
at an auction.
“When the Lord’s Propri
etor went out of business
and auctioned some items,
Libby Pope saw something
others walked right by,”
Climer said. “She knew
it would fit beautifully in
Strawberry Hill and she did
not hesitate to buy it.” ,
Climer quoted an email
that Pope had sent to him:
“When I purchased the
document press, and didn’t
know its significance, I let
it sit on the front porch at
Strawberry Hill for several
weeks,” Pope said in die
emai. “Finally my neighbor,
Rodney Harrell, and his
helper, Willie Drew, loaded
it on Rodney’s pickup and
took it to Ben Hobbs for
repairs.”
She noted that die
repairs including restoring
a broken hinge on the left
door, replacing top and bot
tom molding, and adding
shelving to match the ghos)
marks on the wood.
Although it was suggest
ed to her that she replace
the lock on the door, she
decided not to replace it
but to leave it in its original
condition.
“Ben didn’t take too
long because it took up too
much space in his shop,”
Pope said in the email.
Climer explained that
by the time the docu
ment press was returned
to Strawberry Hill, Pope
had sought input from Jim
Melchor and Tom New
bem, who confirmed her
suspicion that the item was
historically significant.
Climer noted that the
See KLUTTZ, 3A
School officials eye request for increase in local funding
BY REGGIE PONDER
Editor
Edenton-ChowanSchools
officials plan to ask for ad
ditional local funding for
operating expeases in the
coming budget year — in
cluding an increase in the
P
*8
r2009 The Chowan'Herald
All Rights Reserved
076b44 813i
local salary supplement for
teachers.
School system adminis
trators and members of the
Edenton-Chowan Board of
Education discussed bud
get challenges dining their
planning retreat last week.
Superintendent Rob
Jackson spoke about chal
lenges and priorities for
the budget, including the
challenge of declining en
rollment and the priority
of teacher salary supple*
ments.
Jackson emphasized ,in
is remarks to the board that
no matter what challenges
the schools face, they must
deal with them head-on.
“Regardless of what the
seas are like we have to
learn how to sail the seas,”
Jackson said.
But statistics indicate
those seas are indeed
rough.
Recent figures presented
by Jackson show 31.8 per
cent of children in Chowan
County live in poverty and
46 percent live' in single
parent homes.
The county has a high
rate of teen pregnancy and
is ranked 18th in the state
in child obesity, he said.
Most immediately appli
cable to the schools’ chal
lenge, perhaps, Is that in
the 2016-2016 school year
only 14 percent of kinder
gartners arrived ready for
school.
Despite the challenges
the schools face in the class
room, though, the school
district has exercised fiscal
discipline in order to bal
ance the budget and begin
rebuilding the school sys
tem’s fund balance, accord
ing to Jackson. ,
“We have made tremen
dous cuts,” Jackson said.
“We have cut a lot.
“We can feel good about
the fact that we are living
within our means,” Jack
son added, referring to the
move away from dipping
into fund balance to bal
ance the budget.
But the current fund
balance for the Edenton
Chowan Schools is still
below the recommenda
tion from the N.C. Local
Government Commission,
Jackson said.
The fund balance at least
is headed in the right direc
tion now, Jackson said.
Jackson spoke about
pressure on the school
system’s budget from de
clining student enrollment.
See FUNDING, 2A
0
TUESDAY, MARCH 15™
RELAY FOR LIFE ham to 2pm a 4pm to 7pm
Benefit Lunch & Dinner
mdi
na 3 m
a