Newspapers / The Chowan Herald (Edenton, … / July 16, 2008, edition 1 / Page 1
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BEST OF FIVE SERIES Post 40 playoffs underway; team faces New Bern Thursday B1 Recent robberies possibly linked, officials say A4 Local Tyner farming family goes organic ci VY;./: ... :. ■■:■■■■ 482-4418 Wednesday, July 16, 2008 . v ::'^y I Low ticket sales have Rocky Hock Playhouse i owners concerned about future of productions i Benjamin Weathers I Contributing Writer After 10 years in Edenton, the fate of the i Rocky Hock Playhouse hangs in the balance of I its next three shows. The independent Christian theatre company ! is concerned about its future in Edenton due j to years of dwindling ticket sales. Last year the playhouse sold 14,000 tickets, a dramatic decrease from 20,000 when it first opened its j doors. f Owners Jeff and Gloria Emmerich said that \ they were disappointed in the drop in atten f dance which has resulted in thousands of dol | lars of loss that the couple has personally had j to absorb. The couple said that they were somewhat \ optimistic about the future but conceded that if there was not a significant increase in ticket | sales by the end of the year they will be forced | out of Edenton and into a larger community. | “We’d be sorry to leave,” said Emmerich. I “But the community has grown accustomed to us, so they haven’t supported us as much. If I people don’t start coming, it probably won’t be | here that much longer,” said Emmerich. Jeff and his wife Gloria first started the com pany in 1997 in the Outer Banks before relo | eating to Edenton. The location proved to be fruitful at first, with local patrons and others | regularly traveling from out of town. The couple was married in 1971 and has two children, now adults, Holly and Ben. Both had grown up heavily involved with theatre, and the church and had always dreamed of start ing their own Christian theatre company “Our goal was always to bring a spiritual message and bring the Bible to life,” Gloria said. The Rocky Hock Playhouse is one of very few exclusively Christian theatre companies, producing over 30 shows in the last nine years. Jeff described the decrease in attendance as part of a larger culture shift. “People are satisfied with secular entertain New county planning director sought By Rebecca Bunch Staff Writer Elizabeth Bryant, who un til recently served as town county planning director, will soon find herself out of a job because the county needs a full-time person in that capacity. A new full-time planning and inspections director will be hired in the next nine months, said Chowan Coun ty Manager Peter Rascoe. Salary range for the job is $33,700 to $60,500. In order to fill the posi tion, the part-time job held by Bryant, the department’s former full-time director, is being eliminated. INDEX A Local Editorial ..,...A7 Land Transfers..... A5 i ; v' ,' . • :.. • " /- ' • ■. B Sports Recreation News.B1 Nascar...................... B2 C Community News Upcoming Events.C2 | i Society..................C4 Obituaries.....C6 f ; Church.C7,8 I ; « | * D Classifieds v j Buy/Sell/Trade......D1 * ; Service Directory....... D2 ; Employment..D4 H : • 1 6 ""8 907 6"4 4813* ©2006 The Chowan Herald All Rights Reserved Ryan Clemens, Katie Fridsma and Rob Arbaugh star in the latest Emmerich production "Under' His Wihgs," which could be one of the last shows if sales at the theatre do not improve. ment,” he said. “Christian entertainment isn’t as valued as it was 10 years ago.” This summer the playhouse will celebrate its tenth anniversary in Edenton by reviv ing the first play the company ever produced, called “Under His Wings,” a musical based on the book of Ruth. Emmerich and his wife Gloria perform in the show, along with a cast of six other mem bers with ages ranging from 19 to 33, the ma jority of whom are theatre and performing arts students at Regent University and the Catholic University of America in Washing ton D.C. In what Emmerich describes as a gift to the community, children age 6 through 18 living in Chowan County will be admitted free. Dis counts for groups will be given as well, Jeff said. However, he reiterated that if ticket sales The recent departure of Chowan County Emergency Management Coordinator^ Patty Madry will make Bry ant the second longtime county employee to leave. Madry recently announ ced plans to use per- Bryant sonal leave time until her retirement in January. County Manager Peter Rascoe said he does not an ticipate any additional de partures in the near future. Bryant worked full-time for Edenton and Chowan County from May 2003 to May 2007. When she returned from 12 weeks of maternity leave, she came back on a part-time basis. She has remained on staff part-time ever since. Holly Colombo from the inspections department became interim director at that time. According to a job de scription provided by the county, the director’s re sponsibilities include ad ministering and enforcing ordinances for the town and county. The director is also ex pected to provide staff analysis during review of zoning and subdivision plans, as well as coordinate with local government, de velopers, property owners and contractors in addition to departments, boards and ,i commissions as necessary. Rascoe said that a state wide search for a new direc tor is being made. Applications can be found at www.chowancounty nc.gov. Rascoe said he had re cently talked with Bryant about the necessity for a full-time director and had asked her to consider work ing full-time again. He said she indicated she could not. Rascoe praised Bryant’s past work on behalf of the department and said he deeply regretted that the downturn in the economy made it necessary to elimi nate the part-time position she currently holds to hire a full-time director. “Elizabeth has done a fine job,” Rascoe said. “I really wish she could come back full-time. We would love to have her.” Bryant said she is look ing for another job that would allow her to work part-time and still spend time with her daughter, Laura Beth. “I just could not make , the choice to go full-time again and Spend less time with my family,” she said. Bryant said before her daughter’s birth she was working an average of 50 hours a week with 60-hour weeks “on occasion.” “I was averaging 10 to 12 night meetings per month,” she added. Planner Wes Haskett, who already works full time in the department, said he does not plan to ap ply for the position. didn’t significantly increase with “Under His Wings” or the company’s fall and Christmas productions, the Rocky Hock Playhouse will be no more. So far, preshow ticket sales are just under 2,000 — a third less than past summer sales. Through the good times and the bad the couple has remained committed to their faith and said they will continue working in the atre, even if it’s not in Edenton. “When you’re called on to do something, if you don’t do it, you’re miserable,” Gloria said. As “Under His Wings” cast member Ryan Clemens said, “We worry about putting food in our bellies but when we’re on stage, it feeds our soul.” “Under His Wings” will run July 15, to Aug. 16. For information, check out the company’s Web site www.rockyhockplayhouse.com. Step taken to sanction Bill Gardner, Jr. dropped days later By Vernon Fueston Contributing Writer Local Republican leaders threatened sanc tions against Bill Gardner, Jr. this week but quickly dropped the matter. If sanctioned, Gardner, a Republican county commissioner, would have been removed from the party’s leadership and disqualified from running as a Republican candidate for the next four years. The Republican leader ship cited Gardner’s signa ture on a petition support ing the candidacy of Gwen Brown as an independent. Brown is seeking the right to run against Republican Edward (Eddy) Goodwin for the second district commission seat. Goodwin beat Gardner in the May primary election. An e-mail, sent by Republican chairman Bob Steinburg, told Gardner that his signing of the petition was a violation of the party’s plan of organization. The plan prohibits any action by party of ficials publicly supporting a non-Republican, Steinburg said. Party officials may privately support whomever they wish. The letter threatened to prohibit Gardner from running for public office as a Republican for four years and disallow his participation in party activities such as local, state, or national conventions. The e-mail further stated that the executive committee would inform him of its decision by registered mail. In an interview Friday, Gardner said the fact that he signed Brown’s petition should not be seen as an endorsement. “I’m supporting the process,” Gardner said. “I’m absolutely not supporting anybody.” The petition to place Brown on the ballot as an independent was orchestrated by the Demo cratic Party. See GARDNER, Page A2 ► Two new candidates selected for commissioner runs in Nov. Gwen Brown announced candidacy yesterday; Soles also a contender By Vernon Fueston Contributing Writer Local elections officials have ap proved the petition filed by Gwen Brown to run for the second district seat on the Chowan County Board of Commissioners. She will run as an unaffiliated candi date. In a related event, Republicans have decided to run Dana Soles for the first district seat left without a Republi can challenger when no winner was declared in the primary. Brown is a life-long resident of Chowan County and is employed at Chowan Middle School, where she is the cafeteria manager as well as the director of the After School Plus program and the restitution/victims’ compensation for juveniles. Brown also works with the recre ation department, directing the girls power camp and arts and crafts pro gram. During the holidays, she is the co: ordinator of Operation Santa. Brown has been recognized by the Chamber of Commerce as a Volun teer of the Year William P. “Spec” Jones Award. She has also been hon ored by the Edenton Civic League for outstanding community service. Brown is endorsed by the local Democratic Party “She has consistently shown by her active participation in programs ben efiting the youth of Chowan County that she supports the values of this county and its communities,” said Martha Badger, Chowan County Democratic Party Chair. Brown’s petition required the sup port of 4 percent of registered voters in the second district to allow her to run. The second district comprises the precincts of East Edenton and Yeopim. Brown will run against Republican Edward (Eddy) Goodwin in the fall. No Democratic challenger was filed during the primaries when Goodwin won against incumbent Republican Bill Gardner, Jr. As a result, there will be no official Democratic challenger in the race. A petition drive to run Brown was or ganized after the primary election by the Democrats. Republicans had been considering their options until this week regard ing a candidate to represent the party for Chowan’s first district. On primary Election Day, Darryl Stallings and Dana Soles both ap peared on the ballot, even though Stallings had withdrawn shortly be fore the election. When Stallings won a majority, the election was declared without a winner. That put the decision in the hands of the Republican’s executive com mittee. The committee said it was free either to run Soles or choose an other candidate. In the end, they chose Soles. “He made a fantastic platform pre sentation to the committee,” Republi- j can Chairman Bob Steinburg said. “I think he’s going to be a great candi date." Brown
The Chowan Herald (Edenton, N.C.)
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July 16, 2008, edition 1
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