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Wednesday, January 19, 20ft
Student art show opens at CAC,
PAGE 6A
Holmes fields USFIRST robotics team
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Students of the Retro Ro
bot Aces (John A. Holmes)
team proudly stand by
the chassis of their robot.
Pictured (l-r) are Markel
Nowell, Ke’Vonte Norman,
San Coston, CJ Owens, Jr.*
Burrows, Allen Fox, Eddie
Moor, Haywood Holley,
Azrocky Drew, DJ Cather
and Shamar White.
By RITCHIE E. STARNES
Editor ■
Add the John A. Holmes
Aces Retro Robot Aces
Squad to the high school’s
list of competing teams.
What began as a seed
ling last summer bore fruit
Jan. 8 after a group of team
members and mentors
traveled to Raleigh to an
official kickoff of the US
FIRST Robotics Champi
onship for 2011. More than
900 students, mentors and
team leaders assembled at
Dorton Arena and watched
a broadcast on closed cir
cuit TV, featuring USFirst
founder Dean Kamen is
sue this year’s competition
rules and tasks required of
team robots.
Part of an effort to pro
mote science and tech
nology among local high
schoolers, USFIRST (For In
spiration and Recognition
of Science and Technol
ogy) Robotics Competition
(FRC) pit the innovative
talents between students.
Organizers call FRC a “var
sity sport for the mind.” It
combines the thrill of sport
with the demands of sci
ence and technology that
creates a simulation of
“real world” engineering.
Organizers consider
this an opportunity to cre
atively introduce students
See ROBOTICS, 3A
The Dream Stays Alive
STAFF PHOTO BY REBECCA BUNCH
Audience members link hands as they sing “We Shall Overcome" at the conclusion of Monday’s Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr. celebration at Swain Auditorium.
King celebration stirs memories of sacrifice, triumph
i
■
By REBECCA BUNCH
Staff Writer
Locals attending the Dr.
Martin Luther King Day
celebration at Swain Audito
rium Monday said their lives are
better because he lived.
Among them was Daisy Bem
bry of Edenton who said she has
had job opportunities that she
would never have had otherwise.
“I worked at the hospital for
a long time but now I do some
teaching,” Bembry said.
Bembry, a retired nurse’s aide,
said she also loved the fact that
blacks and whites now worship
together at her church, Shalom
International.
Bembry said the holiday hon
oring Dr. King’s legacy and his
life’s work was important to her.
‘‘To me, it symbolizes a day of
“To me, it
symbolizes a day
of freedom. I tftank
, God for what Dr.
King did to help ;
us, even though it j
cost him his life. ” ■*
Daisy Bembry
Local at Dr. Martin Luther
King Day celebration
freedom,” Bembry said. “I thank
God for what Dr. King did to help
us, even though it cost him his
life.”
Fletcher Bond of Bertie
County said he comes to Edenton
For further
coverage 1
Pastor Jordan speaks at King"
celebration, PAGE 6B. ■;
:;V: ' ^
every year to attend the celebra
tion honoring Dr. King. Bond,
who is retired, said life has im
proved since he was a young boy
growing up in the South.
“Things are definitely better
than they used to be,” Bond said.
“People treat me a lot better than
they used to.”
Susan Brothers, who is a learn
ing enhancement coordinator at
D.F. Walker School, said for her
the day is a time for remember
ing.
See KING DAY, 4A
STAFF PHOTO BY THOMAS J. TURNEY
U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan, D-N.C., shakes hands with Joslin White at
the Chowan Senior Center, Jan. 12.
Hagan: Jobs
top priority
Conversations with
Kay brought to area
By RITCHIE E. STARNES
Editor
U.S. Sen. Kay R. Hagan,
D-N.C., visited Edenton last
Wednesday and talked with
local residents and elected
officials at the Chowan
County Senior Center, part
of her Conversations with
Hagan requests
security for visit
Locals express no
fear after shooting
By RITCHIE E. STARNES
Editor
Despite Saturday's trage
dy in Arizona that killed six
-and wounded 14, including
Congresswoman Gabrielle
Giffords, those attending
U.S. Sen. Kay R. Hagan’s,
D-N.C., Wednesday visit to
Edenton expressed little
concern about similar vio
lence here.
Kay that also took her to
Camden and Manteo.
_ Before talking one-on
o’ne with visitors seated at
tables, Hagan addressed
the crowd of about 30 and
reminded them that job
creation is her main focus,
followed by reducing the!
national debt and develop
ing military-related con
tracts in North Carolina.
See HAGAN, 5A
Those present at Con
versastions with Kay at
the Chowan County Senior
Center mostly said they
consider the Tucson shoot
ing spree an isolated act of
violence from a deranged
gunman and not likely to
occur in a sleepy town like
Edenton.
“Nobody’s going to shoot
anybody here,” said John
Powell. “That was an iso
lated incident.”
Powell added that the
See SECURITY, 5A
Grant application to aid Kellogg Building Supply
Company could net
$61K, make 12 jobs
By REBEfcCA BUNCH
Staff Writer
In an effort to boost job
creation, the town plans to
apply for a grant to benefit
a building supply compa
©2009 The Chowan Herald
All Rights Reserved
ny that will soon open its'
doors here.
Town Council members
agreed unanimously at
a Jan. 11 board meeting
to have Town Manager
Anne-Marie Knighton ap
ply for a Building Renova
tion and Reuse Grant from
the North Carolina Rural
Center to benefit Kellogg
Building Supply. The Ru
ral Center is expected to
announce the names of
grant recipients in late
February.
Kellogg will soon take
over the West Queen Street
location that formerly
housed M.G. Brown.
Kellogg announced
plans in November to sign
a 5-year lease with Gary
Foreman, the owner of the
M.G. Brown building, with
an option to renew. The
company expects to gener
ate 12 new jobs as a result.
“We have been meeting
with Kellogg for years, try
ing to entice them into our
market,” Knighton said.
“When I was meeting with
Tom Blanchard (owner of
Kellogg) recently, it struck
me that he might be eligi
ble for this grant.”
Knighton said that based
on the estimated cost of
renovations—which Chris
O’Neill, vice-president of
Kellogg said is expected to
total $200,000 — the compa
ny should be eligible for a
$61,250 grant. The business
would be required to pro
vide a cash match equal to
the grant request amount
and the town would have
to contribute 3 percent of
the grant amount in cash
or in-kind services.
“If the grant is approved,
Kellogg and the property
owner would be required
to execute several docu
ments, including a loan
agreement, a performance
agreement and a promis
sory note,” Knighton said.
“Mr. (Tom) Blanchard is
confident the property
owner will execute ail
the requirements of the
grant,” Knighton added.
“The town would be re
quired to execute a formqj
grant agreement with the
Rural Center,” Knighton
added.
Several council members
said they supported giving
the business any help pos
sible, citing the dire need
for jobs in the community.
“I think it’s an excellent
opportunity for the town,
and for Kellogg,” said
Councilman Bob Quinn. ‘
And Councilman Willis
Privott said that when he
goes to Lowe’s in Elizabeth
City, he sees lots of people
from Edenton shopping
there.
“This (having Kellogg)
may help us to keep some
of that business here in
Edenton,” Privott said.
Mayor Roland Vaughan
added that Blanchard "is a
good friend of mine. He is
astounded by the number
See KELLOGG, 4A
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