Vol. LXXII, No. 31
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Wednesday, August 10, 2005
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Single Copies 50#
Rocky Hock Playhouse provides a creative outlet
after school special
• Coirimunity Page Cl -
Moratorium is
not on agenda
in Chowan
Developments
on schedule
. Sandy Point is expected to
have as many as 1,500 dwell
ing units upon completion.
4 BY SEAN JACKSON
The Chowan Herald
In response to recent news
reports concerning moratori
ums in some North Carolina
counties, Chowan County offi
cials said Monday that they
have no plans to halt the devel
opment of subdivisions locally
A countywide moratorium
on multi-home developments
— a growing trend in the re
gion — is not in the works here,
County Manager Cliff Cope
land and County Planner
Elizabeth Bryant said.
Moratoriums are often im
posed while local governments
delve into their water and
sewer systems’ capacities.
Stoppages aren’t handed down
for tile sake of stopping resi
dential growth, the county
manager said.
“The county can’t just come
in and stop development,”
Copeland said.
Bryant agreed.
“A lot of our surrounding
counties have instituted mora
toriums,” she said, “but they
have to address specific is
sues.”
Both Copeland and Bryant
see the looming growth of
homes — and the resulting
population increase — as a po
tential benefit for Chowan
County and Edenton.
And there is no shortage of
projects in the pipeline.
The largest project, Sandy
Point, is planned to have as
many as 1,500 dwelling units—
mostly single-family homes,
with a sprinkling of condo
miniums. Sandy Point, located
south of Edenton on the
Albemarle Sound, will also
have shops, restaurants, and a
marina.
See AGENDA On Page A3
INSIDE
Calendar..C2
Church.C5
.Classifieds.D1-4
Editorials.A6
Obituaries. C6
Society. C3
Sports.B1-4
On Page Cl ...
"The Tears of
St. Lawrence"
< ■ t j , '
On 'Holladay’
Staff photos by Earline White
Visitors arrive at Holladay's Island by boat prior to the dedication ceremony held last
week. Below, Commissioners Wayne Goodwin and Louis Belfield unveil an official site
marker at Cannon's Ferry. Ribbon-cutting ceremonies were also held at both locations.
Tourist attractions dedicated
Local officials attend unveilings for
Cannon’s Ferry, Holladay’s Island
BY EARLINE WHITE
The Chowan Herald
From the Civil War to the
upcoming Edenton Bay Chal
lenge, whether in peace or in
times of conflict, the water
ways which surround Chowan
County have been more than
just a source of beauty. Last
Thursday two unique sites,
one for history buffs and an
other for the outdoor enthusi
ast, were unveiled at the
Cannon’s Ferry Civil War
Trail and Holladay’s Island
ribbon cuttings.
Alongside the still, deep wa
ters of the Chowan River, town
and county leaders as well as
members of the public wit
nessed the dedications of two
highly anticipated tourist at
tractions.
The Civil War Trail designa
tion at Cannon’s Ferry recog
nizes “Buffalo Country” where
the boundary between Federal
occupied counties to the east
and Confederate-held counties
on the west was a pivotal site
during wartime. One of 30
Civil War Trail sites in north
eastern North Carolina (and
of approximately 600 through
out the program), Cannon’s
Ferry commemorates the
Union Buffaloes at Wingfield
Plantation and fort (located
one mile south of the marker)
which had a profound effect
during the war. Attacked three
times from both sides of the
water, the Buffaloes held firm
at their fort, every assault un
Damrow calls it a day
Extension Agency’s 4-H leader returns home to
continue education, successor yet to be named
BY EARLINE WHITE
The Chowan Herald
After almost six years of
working with Chowan Coun
ty’s youth, Amy Damrow has
left her position at the Coop
erative Extension Agency as
the 4-H Youth Development
Leader.
Damrow’s many on-the-job
achievements included moti
vating children to become in
volved in their communities,
develop their own voice and
successful.
Richard Dillard Dixon, di
rect descendant of Dr. Richard
Dillard, secessionist and
owner of the Wingfield Planta
tion, was on hand for the dedi
cation along with those who
made the day’s events a reality.
Accompanying Dixon was his
brother, Edenton Town Coun
cilman Sambo Dixon and sis
ter, .Betty B. Pruden. Also on
hand reenacting famed Buffalo
leader Captain Jack Fairless
was Robert Parker of Sunbury.
Parker portrayed the man who
led the Union sympathizers at
Wingfield during 1862-1863.
Peter Rascoe, Edenton
Chowan Special Projects Of
ficer, commented at the dedica
tion that “this marker was
funded by the Edenton Histori
cal Commission and the
Chowan County Tourism De
velopment Authority. Four
highway feeder markers on NC
Highway 32 and Cannons
Ferry Road allow travelers to
become familiar (with) the
main sign’s attractive location
here at the Cannons Ferry
Riverwalk and Robert Hendrix
Park.”
Nancy Nicholls, Director of
Tourism for Chowan County,
said, “Chowan County is see
ing a lot of interest from Civil
War travelers all over the
world that have been frequent
ing sites in Maryland and Vir
ginia for the past few years.
Now, they are looking forward
to .learning more about what
took place in North Carolina
strive for excellence. Damrow
was instrumental in organiz
ing a talk with House Repre
sentative Bill Culpepper where
the young people could voice
their concerns and ask ques
tions that directly relate to
them and their future. She
pushed the students harder as
they ran for the finish line at
the Outer Banks 5Kids Run.
She was at every 4-H event,
congratulating the youth on
their hard work and giving out
hugs when their own hopes
and we are very pleased to be
able to share the significant
role that we played in the war.”
Robbie Laughton, Director
of the Edenton-Chowan Parks
and Recreation, along with the
Chowan County Commission
ers, then unveiled the
Holladay’s Island sign recog
nizing the 200-acre uninhab
ited island as a remote wilder
ness experience for outdoor
enthusiasts to enjoy.
“First observed by non-na
tive visitors in 1586, Holladay’s
Island is the newest addition to
the Albemarle Regional Ca
noe/Kayak Paddling Trail and
offers something entirely new
in Chowan County,” Laughton
said. The island, only acces
sible by water, is home to 5
camping platforms on which
people statewide have already
shown interest, Laughton
added. The platforms were
made possible through a grant
from the National Recreational
Trails -with NC Department of
See TOURIST Page A3
Amy Damrow
may have been bigger than re
ality. She saw many of her stu
See DAMROW On Page A2
College of Albemarle
set to receive funds
Nearly two million in works for
county projects, including COA
BY SEAN JACKSON
The Chowan Herald
With North Carolina law
makers poised to hammer out
a state budget — possibly
within a day or two—Chowan
County stands to reap nearly
$2 million in funding for the
2005-06 fiscal year.
Chowan County Manager
Cliff Copeland told The
Chowan Herald on Tuesday
afternoon
that state
Sen. Marc
Basnight,
state Sen
ate Pro
Tem, cal
led person
ally to tell
him that a
joint
House
Basnight Senate
Confer
ence Committee had appropri
ated $1.85 million for several
projects in the county
The House and Senate were
both scheduled to meet late
Insurance tactics
scare seniors
Medicare concerns prompts
warnings, advice from UHS
BY EARLINE WHITE
The Chowan Herald
News of aggressive market
ing of Medicare Advantage
plans by insurance companies
have caused concern among
senior citizens throughout
eastern North Carolina. With
hundreds of competitive pre
scription drug cards and re
cent Medicare reform laws,
marketing by health benefits
companies may seem mislead
ing and confusing. Seniors are
advised to think carefully
when choosing coverage
supplements and to research
plans thoroughly before mak
ing a decision.
Only weeks ago a Louisville
based heath benefits company,
Humana Inc., confirmed‘that
two of its agents were working
in Chowan County despite the
fact that Chowan Hospital,
which is owned by University
Health Systems based in
BOE seeks long range vision
Community involvement is
sought on August 17 session
From staff reports
Edenton-Chowan Schools
Board of Education members
decided at their August meet
ing to schedule a work session
regarding long range plans for
the high school.
The session, scheduled to
take place on Aug. 17 following
the system Convocation, is in
tended to create a process for
engaging the community in
planning for the long-range
development of John A.
Holmes High School, said su
Tuesday afternoon. Copeland
said he expects the more than
$17 billion budget will be
passed with the Chowan mon
ies inclu
ded.
“It’s a
done
deal,” he
added.
The big
gest chunk
targeted
for the
county is a
$1 million
appropria- t,
tion for renovations to the Col
lege of The Albemarle’s
Chowan Center on North Oja -
kum Street. Copeland said
those monies would help finish
renovations to two buildings
and a parking lot on the cam
pus.
Marge Soper, the center’s
Workforce Development Coor
dinator, was pleased to hear
that the campus would con
tinue to be improved as
See COA On Page A2
Greenville, did not accept
their payment terms. Those
seniors who signed up for the
plan are now required to pay
all charges out of pocket, un
til they disenroll with the pro
gram, local officials said.
Bill Hayes with UHS has said
that agents working in the area
for Humana enrolled seniors,
allegedly by giving them am
biguous information about the
coverage plan. Several of the
agents allegedly went door-to
door in order to attract enroll
ees, which is not an illegal
practice, but is against the
Center for Medicaid and Medi
care Services guidelines that
regulate all similar insurance
companies. The agents alleg
edly described the Humana
Gold Choice program as a free
Medicare supplement. Medi
care, however, does not fund
the plan, and local health care
See SENIORS On Page A3
perintendent Allan T. Smith.
“We won’t actually begin
construction for several
years,” Smith said. “But it’s
imperative that we begin the
planning stages now, and that
we involve our stakeholders in
those plans.”
Other business considered
by the board included:
• Financial Report - Emma
Berry presented the financial
report for the year up to July
31. The system is still awaiting
See VISION On Page A2