482-4418
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
50*
Goodwin announces secretaiy of state bid
GOP chairman
forgoes 2nd term
By RITCHIE E. STARNES
Editor
Board of Commission
ers Chairman Eddy Good
win announced Friday
that he plans to forgo a
second term for Chowan
County in favor of a 2012
bid for secretary of state.
Goodwin, 59, said he had
given the decision care
ful consideration before
opting to
pursue the
state office.
He said he
would in
form the
Board of
Commis
sioners of
his deci
sion at its
Tuesday night scheduled
meeting.
Goodwin
Became of the first-time
commissioner’s efforts to
bring Chowan back to fis
cal solvency he hopes the
achievement will catapult
him as the first Repub
lican secretary of state,
Goodwin said. Part of his
election platform will be
to call for a restructuring
of the state’s efforts to at
tract new business.
“I think the secretary
of state needs to be over
hauled from top to bot
tom,” Goodwin said. “We
need to be a business
friendly environment. We
don’t need corporate wel
fare.”
Critical of North Caro
lina’s current efforts to at
tract new industry, Good
win said the state should
to determine why compa
nies prefer to call other
states home.
“Let’s find out why we
haven’t been successful
recruiting new business,”
Goodwin said. “Is it taxes?
Regulations? Payroll is
sues? What’s making busi
nesses go away?”
Instead of throwing
cash subsidies at selec
tive companies, Goodwin
favors systematic changes
that can be applied to both
small and large business
es. He said a free market
system better serves busi
nesses and taxpayers.
As to suspect recruit
ing efforts, Goodwin
questioned the rationale
behind offering select
businesses financial in
centives, including here
in Edenton with grants
for Walgreens, Wendy’s,
and Kellogg.
“Why give them money
to locate here? They were
coming anyway,” Goodwin
added.
As the first Republican
and four-time chairman
See GOODWIN, 3A
Economy
to blame
for area
homeless
By PETER WILLIAMS
Staff Writer
Scores of ' Albemarle
area children are homeless,
and school officials say the
economy is to blame.
Most of the five schools
districts report the num
bers this year are holding
steady or are on the rise.
Nationally, an advocacy
group devoted to elimi
nating homelessness esti
mated one in 50 kids are
homeless. The local figures
seem to be far lower than
that. There were about 200
homeless students in the
five-county area in late No
vember and early Decem
ber. There are about 15,600
students in the area.
School officials say the
numbers fluctuate year
to-year and even week-to
week and few if any are
living in a car or anything
like that. The vast major
ity are living with family
or friends.
Currituck County re
ported that 95 percent of
the homeless students are
doubling up with other fam
ilies because of economic
hardship. In early Decem
ber, Currituck reported 76
homeless students, an in
crease of 20 over last year
but just three more than
in 2009-10. Their numbers
have crept up slowly from
seven in 2006-07.
“Therejnaining5percent
of our homeless students
are either independent stu
dents or unaccompanied
youth who are living with
friends and doing what
is called ‘couch surfing,”’
said Sandy Kinzel, the as
sistant superintendent in
Currituck. “Most of our
doubled up situations are
due to families losing their
employment and/or their
own housing.”
Just across the county
line, Camden school offi
cials estimate that about
six of the district’s 1,900
students are homeless by
the federal definition. That
number has held steady for
the past five years.
Schools aj-e bound by the
McKinney-Vento Homeless
Education Act on how they
deal with students. It pro
vides money to deal with
the problem, but many
counties don’t qualify be
cause their numbers are so
small.
“Chowan County does
not receive (funds) due
to the small numbers of
See HOMELESS, 2A
0
©2009 The Chowan Herald
All Rights Reserved
\ -1
Lamb answers Q & A
By RITCHIE E. STARNES
Editor
Chowan County’s newest
county manager officially
assumed duties Tuesday.
Plans call for the former Ber
tie County manager to take the
oath of office during Tuesday
night’s Board of Commission
ers meeting. Zee B. Lamb, also
a licensed attorney, was hired
Nov. 10 following a unanimous
^yote by Chowan commissioners.
In Lamb, Chowan lands an ex
perienced county manager who
has held numerous municipal
posts, including four terms as
a commissioner in Pasquotank
County
Lamb’s employment con
tract calls for $116,000 annual
compensation and the use of
a county-owned home as a
residence. He’ll also be paid
$600 per month in travel-related
expenses."
At the request of the Chowan
Herald, Lamb obliged to com
plete a 10-question Q & A as a
way to introduce himself to.
county residents.
1) Outside of your career,
how do you spend your
leisure time?
I enjoy spending my leisure
time with my family Like other
parents with children or grand
children, my personal leisure
time is quite limited. We enjoy
traveling, boating activities,
and spending time at the beach
where my parents and siblings
live. We also enjoy attending
college football and basketball
games.
2) You are a licensed
attorney, how did your
professional.path turn toward
county government?
My father was first elected as
a Dare County commissioner
jn 1976. My aunt served as a
Pasquotank County commis
sioner and school board mem
ber. County government is in
my blood. County government
is my passion. I studied politi
McDonald’s host Bingo Babes on Wednesdays
Women play for
points, prizes
By REBECCA BUNCH
Staff Writer
For the past two years Jan Criddle
of Edenton has spent Wednesday
afternoons hanging out at McDon
ald’s. But her thoughts haven’t been
on burgers and fries.
Instead, Criddle watches a Bingo
board filled with numbers. With red
and pink colored chips in hand she
listens intently as a variety of num
bers are called out.
This particular Wednesday is no
exception.
.121, 062, G54, are called .as are
good-natured jibes such as “Whad
dya got?” and "Ya’ll better hush”
should the murmured conversa
tions between players gqt a bit too
loud.
Criddle, a careful and attentive
RLE PHOTO
Zee B. Lamb assumed duties of Chowan County’s county manager,Tuesday.
cal science and history as an
undergraduate at Duke, and
I attended graduate school in
public policy studies at Duke.
In 1986, I graduated from
UNC School of Law and started
practicing law. In 1988, I was
elected as a Pasquotank County
commissioner. From 1988 until
1997, I became very active, in
state and national county orga
nizations, serving on the Board
of Directors of both the North
Carolina Association of County
Commissioners (NCACC) and
the National Associations of
Counties (NACo).. I served on
many different local, state and
national committees by recom
mendation of the NCACC and
NACo.
When I resigned as a county
commissioner in early 1997,
I went to work in Raleigh as a
state government attorney. By
2000, I decided I wanted to re
turn to county government, and
player, said she began playing Bingo
years ago at the American Legion.
Criddle shakes her head and smiles
when asked about how her luck has
run over the years. ,
“Just average, I’d say” Criddle
says. “No better than that.”
Criddle does acknowledge,
though, that if it comes down to
a choice between talent and luck
when it comes to winning, it’s lady
luck’s favor she’d most like to have.
“I really do think luck makes all
the difference,” Criddle says.
If the thrill of winning doesn’t
bring her back to the game each
week, what does?
. “Just the chance to get out and
be with friends," Criddle says. ,
Criddle says she misses her sister,
who sds^etimes joins in the action.
“She’s gone to Florida for the win
ter, poor thing,” Criddle says with a
wicked grin. ,
See BINGO, 4A
Profile
Zee B. Lamb, age 53, mar
ried to Nancy B. Lamb, chief
assistant district attorney,
First Judicial District, State
of NC. Three children, son
Zee Robert, 23, a student at
UNC-Chapel Hill, and two
daughters, Anna Kate, 20, a
student at Duke and Caroline
Grace, 17, a high school
senior at the NC School of
Science and Math.
applied for the Bertie County
manager job where I worked for
over 11 years until last month.
I love county government,
county management and liv
ing in the northeast, so I have
chosen a career path where I
can enjoy my job and able to be
close to my parents and family.
See LAMB, 4A
Report:
Lack of
fuel cause
of crash
Pilot upgraded
to fair condition
By WILLIAM F. WEST
Staff Writer
MERRY HILL — A lack
of fuel was the apparent
cause of a recent airplane '
crash in Bertie County,
federal investigators have
determined.
Michael B. Taylor’s
plane, a 1978 single-engine
Piper, was activated to pull
fuel from the left fuel tank
to the engine, but theup
was no fuel found in the
left tank at the crash scene,
the National Transporta
tion Safety Board said in a
preliminary report.
There was no odor of
fuel and no evidence of fuel
stains around the tank, the
report said.
The right fuel tank also
was empty, although some
fuel had left blight on vege
tation beneath the right fuel
cap, the report said.
The NTSB found no evi
dence of anything having
been wrong with the plane’s
cockpit controls prior to the
crash.
The crash occurred on
Dec. 16 at Midway, between
Windsor and Edenton and
near the intersection of U.S.
Highway 17 and N.C. High
way 45.
Taylor was taken to. Pitt.
County Memorial Hospital,
where he has been upgrad
ed from critical to fair con
dition.
Taylor reportedly lived ap
proximately 150 yards from
where the plane crashed. He
had been storing the plane
at Plymouth Municipal Air
port in Washington County
The NTSB report said he
See CRASH, 3A
• STAFF PHOTO BY REBECCA BUNCH
Jan Criddle checks her Bingo board during a game at McDonald's in
Edenton. “The Bingo Babes," as the women in the group are collectively
known, meet each Wednesday afternoon to try their luck and make new
friends.. y,
t ■ v f •