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482-4418
CfM “^^^yWednesday, January 14, 2009
Residents
may pay
bills online
1
| Program will be
| discussed at next
1 town meeting
| By Rebecca Bunch
I Steffi Writer
i A proposed new program
I that would allow Edenton
I residents to pay their util
1 ity bills with a debit or
I credit card may help cut
j costs enough to lower a
I rate increase this spring.
I If the plan is approved,
| thp- town will be partner
| ing with Voice Data Solu
I tions so that residents’
» utility bills and fees can be
| paid over the phone.
Payments could be made
I for electric and water bills
| using this method.
The service would be
| available 24 hours a day,
seven days a week, by call
ing 1-866-607-8147.
I “We are planning to use
| it to help offset a fraction of
the (utility) rate increase
that is coming in March,”
said Town Manager Anne
Marie Knighton.
Knighton said that that
the Eastern Municipal
Power Agency, which
serves the town, would be
raising its rates by four
percent.
r “So,” she said, “we are
looking at a 3.6 percent
rate increase, but hoping
we can do a 3.5 percent in
crease” by looking at the
town’s budget to see what
changes and cuts can be
made.
That comes on the heels
of a 12.5 percent util
ity rate hike approved last
September.
Knighton said the town
council would be discuss
ing the proposed plan at
Its Jan. 26 committee meet
' fig- '
f Knighton said the move
f/ould save the town thou
sands of dollars each year
Since more and more, local
Residents are already pay
ing that way
* “Over the last few years,
and especially over the last
few months, the Town of
Edenton has seen a dra
matic increase in the num
ber of customers paying
by debit or credit card,”
she said.
“The town’s cost for pro
cessing debit and credit
cards has increased from
an average of $12,000 per
year to a projected $30,000
for 2008/09.
“By offering this new
service the town will no
longer incur these process
ing fees,” Knighton added.
Knighton said that last
fall the power agency
raised its wholesale rates
by 14 percent, leading to
the town’s 12.5 percent util
ity rate increase.
“That rate increase was
the result of several fac
tors including the cost of
fuel used to generate pow
er (uranium and coal),”
she said.
Customers may also pay
their bills online by using
a link found on the town’s
■Web site, www.townofe
denton.com.
813*
©2006 The Chowan Her Jd
All Rights Reserved
EVERYONE'S THOUGHTS TURN TO INAUGURATION 2009
HISTORY IN THE MAKING
Madison Britton, seven-year-old daughter of Charles and Vickie Britton, drew this picture of the White
House while learning about the U.S. government.
If I were President
of the United States, I
would do many things
to make the world bet
ter.
Kaycee Binns,
daughter of Harvey
and Penny Binns
of Edenton, is the
proud creator of
President-elect
Barack Obama's
favorite good luck
charm, above.
First, I would keep
the world clean. Next,
I would make the gas
prices go down to $2.99
Then I would help the
Obama’s good luck
charm has local ties
By Rebecca Bunch
Staff Writer
When Kaycee Binns
started her own business in
1993 in the basement of her
home, she had no idea how
far her dream would take
her.
Today, President-Elect
Barack Obama has made
her company, Metal Mor
phosis, Inc., national news.
During his campaign,
Obama told a group of re
porters about his favorite
good luck charm.
To Kaycee’s surprise, it
was one she had created.
That story, reported by
Time magazine in its “Man
of the Year” issue honor
ing Obama, and video of his
conversation with reporters
posted on YouTube, have led
to interviews with CNN and
sick. Then I would
make the tax price go
down. Finally, in four
years, I would be done
as President.
the Today Show for Binns.
i What many people don’t
'know is that she has roots
here in Chowan County
Her dad and stepmom are
Harvey and Penny Binns,
who call Edenton home.
Just amazed
Penny Binns said that
when a photo of Obama
holding the silver pebble
bearing the word “Luck”
engraved on the front and
translated into Braille on
the back showed up in Time
magazine, she and her hus
band were thrilled for Kay
cee.
Then, when they saw the
YouTube video, Penny said,
“We were like, ‘Oh, my God,
isn’t that exciting?’ We Eire
just so proud of Kaycee, and
all she’s been able to accom
See CHARM, Page A2 >
Hospital minister pleads for Chaplains
- By Vernon Fueston
Staff Writer
Thomas Biggs says
his calling as a hospi
tal chaplain has lots of
scriptural precedent.
There are plenty of
times Jesus is shown
visiting the sick in the
New Testament. Biggs
said he can’t recall a
verse where Jesus asks
what congregation
somebody was from.
Biggs and eight other
volunteer chaplains
tend to the spiritual
needs of Chowan Hos
pital’s patients. Some
don’t have a minister
of their own, some find
themselves in the hos
pital with their pastor
out of town and others
simply need somebody
to talk to, right now.
He remembers the
case of a woman who
raced to the hospital
after learning of her
husband’s heart attack,
only to find him already
dead.
There in the emergen
cy room, she passed out
twice from the shock of
the moment. At times
like those, many people
need someone just to
help them through the
event.
Almost all ministers
regularly visit mem
bers of their congre
gation who find them
selves hospitalized. But
Biggs said the hospital
is short of volunteers
willing to tend to the
needs of the rest.
Of the eight minis
ters currently serving
as chaplain volunteers,
none are from congre
gations within the town
of Edenton. He said
the hospital could use
another 12 to 13 chap
lains.
A volunteer must be
an ordained minister in
his church and be will
ing to commit to two
hours per month visit
ing the sick after a brief
orientation session.
Biggs said hospital
chaplains are not there
to preach.
VERNON FUESTON/THE CHOWAN HERALD
Thomas Biggs, director of Chowan Hospital's chap
lains, in front of the hospital's emergency room.
“This is not a pros
elyting thing," Biggs
said. “A person’s faith
is between him and
God."
Patients fill out a
questionnaire when
entering the hospital
specifying their church
affiliation, or lack of
one, arid their willing
ness to be visited by a
chaplain.
Biggs said he tries to
make that first contact
with each patient will
ing to see a chaplain.
After that, he said his
volunteers drop in for
visits or come on re
See CHAPLAIN, Page A2 >
“We’re running with
out a negative impact
right now. We had a
waiting list of 130 cli
ents two years ago.”
— Ben Rose, DSS
State cuts
daycare
funding
By Vernon Fueston
Staff Writer
Chowan County’s funds for daycare as
jMstance were cut this month following a
statewide belt tightening due to decreased.
revenues and a widening recession.
The cuts, mandated by the state, were
made official by a county commission vote
Jan. 5, reducing the county’s social servic-,
es budget by $15,000.
The cut amounts to a. two percent reduc
tion in daycare assistance.
Social services director Ben Rose said
he doesn’t anticipate the cuts seriously af
fecting services to Chowan’s families who
need them.
He said the cut in daycare assistance
came as part of an effort by the state to re
duce spending across the board. The state
wide cuts addressed revenue shortfalls
due to the sagging national economy.
Rose said he feels fortunate the cut in
county daycare spending was only $15,000.
He said initial estimates had placed the
number at $30,000.
Demand for daycare assistance is down
in the county right now, Rose said. He said
the reduction is probably due to Chowan’s
high unemployment. People who aren’t
working don’t need daycare assistance.
Currently, there is no waiting list for
daycare assistance.
“We’re running without a negative im
pact right now,” Rose said. “We had a wait
ing list of 130 clients two years ago. ”
Rose said the cut should not create a
waiting list for daycare assistance other
than what’s needed for administrative
See DAYCARE, Page A2 ►
State increases
funds for heating
assistance
By Vernon Fueston
Staff Writer
An increase in funding for the county’s
Crisis Intervention Program will make
more money available to families in need
of short-term assistance on heating bills.
An additional $20,000 in federal money
is being funneled by the state into Chowan
for families facing an immediate financial
crisis like job loss or illness.
The additional funds will beef up the
program by over a third from its previous
budget of $56,000.
The money comes just as the county’s
jobless rate of nine percent placed it at
the eleventh highest among the state’s 100
counties.
The program is not the same as the de
partment’s low-income energy assistance
program. Crisis funds are designed to be.
a one-time fix for a short-term problem
and not for the support of families with
long term financial problems.
“We’re usually helping people who have
been displaced from work,” DSS Director
Ben Rose said. “We like to fix this to some
kind of medical need, but that can even
be something like having a one-year old
child in the house.”
The maximum benefit from the pro
gram is $600, up from $300 two years ago.
While intended as a one-time fix, Rose said
clients can rpapply for more assistance, if
needed.
The key for the Crisis program, Rose
said, is that, unlike low-income energy as
sistance, this money is intended for short
term, emergency relief.
“We like to determine that we’re not go
ing to be in same position next month,”
Rose said. “We like to be able to see that
we are actually fixing a problem.”