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Wednesday, j«. i
. 2014
What to look
for in the new
year%om the
county, town,
hospital and
. schools^'3>
Local man among two pardoned by governor
BY CORRINE SAUNDERS
The Daily Advance
An Edenton man who
completed his sentence for
armed robbery three de
cades ago is one of two men
pardoned byvGov. Pat Mc
Croiy.
McCrory announced Fri
day the unconditional par
dons of 52-year-old Linwood
Paul Britton of Edenton and
Raise Your Right Hand
m
. STAFF PHOTO BY REBECCA BUNCH
Clerk of Court Mike McArthur (left) sports a smile as he swears in new Councilman Elton Bond Jr. during the Dec. 10 town council meeting.
Time
spring
BY REBECCA BUNCH
Staff Writer
Organizers of the town’s 300th
anniversary celebration say they
are delaying plans to bury a time
capsule on New Year’s Eve to allow
time for more items to be donated.
The burial will take place some
time this spring; a specific date has
yet to be determined. A special cel
ebration is being planned to mark
the occasion.
Bob Quinn, who chairs the an
Barker House to reopen as welcome center
BY REBECCA BUNCH
Staff Writer
Starting Jan. 6, the Barker
House will close its doors for
three weeks so that neces
sary restoration and repairs
can be made. The historic
site will reopen with an ad
ditional mission—to be the
Chowan-Edenton Welcome
Center.
The Historic Edenton
6 ""89076*44 813
HI
©2009 The Chowan Herald
All Rights Reserved
of 58-year-old Richard Allen
Brown of Panama City, Fla
According to a governor’s
office press release, McCro
iy said the men earned the
pardons because they com
pleted their sentences at
least 30 years ago and have
since become parts of their
respective communities.
“Paul Britton and Rich
ard Brown paid for their
mistakes, turned then lives
niversary
commit
tee, said
he and
others
associ
ated with
the activ
ity felt
that with
everyone focused on the holiday
season it would be difficult to
complete preparations before New
Year’s Eve.
State Historic Site will
continue to operate its Visi
tor Center for the historic
sites and, in addition, the
Barker House will provide
a welcome center for the
town and county, said Sally
Francis Kehayes, chair
woman of the Edenton
Historical Commission
that manages .the Barker
House.
“The Barker House has
been known as “the living
room’ for our community,
providing a warm welcome
to visitors,’’ Kehayes said.
“This new arrangement
provides visitors and com
munity'residents with ad
ditional services and con
around and have made sig
nificant contributions to our
community and nation,” Mc
Crory said. “They are a tes
timony to everyone that has
been convicted of a crime
that it’s never too late to
turn your life around.”
Britton was 17 when he
pleaded guilty to the armed
robbeiy of a store in Eden
ton in 1979. He was sen
tenced to 10 years in state
venience.”
EHC Executive Director
Gregg Nathan said the clos
ing was necessary to keep
the historic site looking its
best
“The first level floors
naturally need periodic
restoration,” Nathan said.
“They will be repaired and
cleaned by a light screening
and then treated with a tra
ditional velvet oil that will
beautify and protect them
for years to come.”
At the same time, Nathan
said, the center hall, dining
room and kitchen walls will
be repaired and painted.
“Historically, January has
been the slowest month of
prison.
While serving his sen
tence, Britton earned his
General Educational De
velopment degree and took
classes in electrical wiring.
He also began working for
Jimbo’s Jumbos, a peanut
company in Edenton, as
part of a work release pro
gram.
After Britton’s release
from prison in September
“Peo
ple just
seemed
to have
too many
other
things
going
on,”
Q u i n‘n
said. “So we thought this would be
the best thing we could do.”
Chowan Tourism Director Nan
cy Nicholls said she thought the
the year for tourism and
thus is the best opportunity
to close before the Barker
House assumes the role
of Edenton and Chowan
County’s Welcome Center.”
Nathan said that the con
cept of having the Barker
House become the commu
nity’s Welcome Center was
initiated due to the Sunday
and Monday closing of the
Historic Edenton State His
toric Site Visitor Center, as
mandated by the N.C. Gen
eral Assembly for all state
historic sites in this year’s
state budget The EHC,
with a mission “to effect
and encourage preserva
tion, restoration and the
1983, he continued to work
at the plant. Today, he is
Jimbo’s Jumbos’ vice presi
dent of plant operations.
Contacted this week by
the Chowan Herald, Brit
ton said he does not wish
to comment at this time but
plans to make a statement
later.
In 1974, Brown pleaded
guilty in Guilford County
to possession with intent
decision was a good one.
“I agree that giving this more
time and having the 300th com
mittee put together an inclusive
ceremony will work much better,”
Nicholls wrote in an email.
Quinn said that the delay would
allow for more churches, civic
groups and nonprofits to contrib
ute items for tire time capsule that
is scheduled to be opened 50 years
from now. Businesses are also
See CAPSULE, 2A
appropriate preservation of
the Town of Edenton and
Chowan County,” agreed
that the Barker House
could effectively fill the role
considering its location on
Edenton’s downtown wa
terfront and the fact that it
is open from 10 am. until 4
p.m. daily, including week
ends.
Nathan pointed out that
the Barker House has a his
tory of promoting tourism
in the community.
“Over the past four years
we have seen a 49 percent
increase in visitors,” Na
than said.
See WELCOME, 2A
to distribute a controlled
substance. His suspended
sentence was terminated the
next year so that he could
enlist in the U.S. Navy, where
he served for 30 years, Mc
Crary’s office said
Britton and Brown were
two of 30 people convicted
of crimes in North Carolina
ranging from first-degree'
See PARDON, 2A
Hospital
exceeds
financial
target
BY REGGIE PONDER
* Editor
Vidant Chowan Hospital
reported unusually strong
financial performance for
the fiscal year that ended
Sept. 30.
Vidant Chowan’s operat
ing margin — the hospital’s
net revenues for the year,
minus expenses — was
$7.28 million or 14.7 per
cent. Hospital officials had
budgeted a net operating
margin of $2.76 million or
5.7 percent
The hospital has budget
ed an operating margin of
$3.8 million or 7.85 percent
for the current fiscal year.
Two main factors contrib
uted to the hospital’s betfer
than-expected financial per
formance.
Brian Harvil, the hospi
tal’s chief financial officer,
explained that a significant
one-time item in Fiscal Year
2013 was that $1 million that
had been set aside to cover
any required repayments to
Medicare was added back
to the bottom line.
The hospital still has
See HOSPITAL, 2A
Chowan
man
killed in i
shooting
From staff reports , -
The shooting death of
a Chowan County man on
Dec. 22 stemmed from ah
argument that had beeo
going on for more than a
year, local
authorities
said last
week.
Dylan
Bryne Bur
ton, 21,
of Rocky
Hock
Landing
Road, Edenton, was killed
Dec. 22 around 8:30 p.ra.j
according to the Chowan
County Sheriff’s Depart
ment. X
Joshua Wayne Byrum,
21, of 227 Pamlico TYajt
’ -
See SHOOTING, 2A
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