THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY
Volume 61, No.32
Hertford, Perquimans County, N.C., Thursday, August 6,1992
35 Cents
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County churches gear
up for late summer
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revivals: Page s
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ducation:
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Parents and children
should prepare for start
of school year: Pag© 7
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Tony looks at
downtown Hertford at
street level: Page 4
Photo by Susan Hants
A ribbon-cutting was held Monday for die newest business
on U.S. Highway 17 Bypass, Astro Matt. Located at the inter
section of U.S. 17 and Church Street Extd., the store offers
residents and travelers a convenient stop for gas and food.
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Astro Mart openB store on U.S. 17 Bypass
Hp\-;: tlrawdots along the U.S. 17 Bypass
, around Hertford can now fill their gas
f tanks and their stomachs since Astro Mart
became the first convenience store on the
corridor last month.
'j Owned by Astro. Inc. of Camden, the
Hertford store offers gasoline, a delicates
sen, groceries and money orders. Store
hours are 6 a.m.-ll:30 p.m. seven days a
f week, according to manager Teton Reid.
I* Dot Johnston, delicatessen manager,
the stove is ready to prepare cooked
to-order breakfasts each morning when the
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store opens. Biscuits filled with a custom
er’s favorite breakfast combination or a
plate meal are available. Lunch and dinner
offerings include hot and cold sandwiches,
as well as plate meals. Customers may eat
at one of the eight tables in die dining
area, or choose take-out meals. The deu
closes at 9 p.m.
Reid is a stranger to neither Hertford or
Astro, Inc. The 1985 graduate of Perqui
mans County High School went on to earn
a business management degree from Liv
ingstone College in 1989. During his years
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at Livingstone. Retd worked for Astro dur
ing his breaks from school. Prior to being
named manager of the Hertford store, he
worked in the main office in Camden and
as an assistant manager.
So far, most customers have been lo
cals and travelers heading south on U.S.
17. Reid said.
Astro Mart is located in the shopping
center at the intersection of U.S. Highway
17 and Harvey Point Road owned by
Charles Ward, ft is the sixth store opened
fay Astro Mart.
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Towe earns
promotion
at Centura
Suzanne Towe has been pro
moted to vice president at Cen
tura Bank in Rocky Mount,
where she serves as branch sup
port coordinator in the Opera
tions Department. Her duties
include managing the branch
support area and providing pol
ity and procedures information
to the branches.
A Hertford native, Towe
Joined the bank In 1982 as a
teller. She received a bachelor of
arts degree in History from the
University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill, and in August will
graduate from the NCSA Mid
Management School of Banking.
Towe was a 1991 participant
in Centura Bank’s Winner’s Cir
cle, has served as a tutor in the
Cities In Schools program and as
an ambassador for the Rocky
Mount Area Chamber of Com
merce
jj 4
Towe is the daughter of Mr.
and Mrs. Clifford P. Towe cf Win
fali.
County lets water tank painting bid
The Perquimans County
commissioners Monday let a bid
to paint the county’s three water
tanks.
Southern Corosion was given
the contract at a price of
$101,975. The work had been
budgeted in earlier fiscal years,
but had been delayed, according
to county manager N. Paul Gre
gory Jr.
Gregory said the main pur
pose for painting the tanks is to
keep the water, later piped to
customers throughout the
county, clean. The contract calls
for Siouthem Corosion to put
eight coats of epoxy paint on the
inside of the tanks. The outsides
will also be painted, Gregory
said.
The commissioners also ap
proved allowing Gregory to look
to federal sources for a boat to
be used for drug enforcement
and rescue purposes. Gregory
said federal law allows for the
transfer of federal equipment to
local government agencies to use
in the war against drug traffick
ing. If a boat can be found, it
will be transferred to the county
at no cost to local taxpayers.
Cruisin'
Hartford Police officers will be cruising in were becoming costly to maintain. Officers
style, thanks to new Chevrolet Caprices that Robert Harvey and Tim Bunch will be sport
have replaced two of the Ford LTDs which Ing the new vehicles. v
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School board
wrestles with
nepotism issue
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
Should relatives of school
board members be hired to work
in the local school system?
The issue created a stir at
the Perquimans County Board of
Education meeting Monday eve
ning when Personnel Director
Paul Ward included Tanya How
ell, daughter of school board
chairman Wayne Howell, in the
list of teachers recommended for
employment for the 1992-93
school year.
“I have a real concern and
it's a growing concern...about
nepotism...” said former school
board chairman Clifford Winslow
after a motion and a second were
on the floor to approve hiring
Miss Howell and the other teach
ers recommended.
Winslow said that if Miss
Howell was hired, a majority of
school board members will have
relatives working in the system
once Wallace Nelson is sworn in
as a board member in December.
Nelson’s wife, Freda, is a tea
cher. Also having a relative em
ployed in the system is Walter
Leigh, whose wife serves as a
computer operator.
Winslow said it puts admin
istrators in “a very difficult situ
ation” if problems with an
employee who is also the rela
tive of a school board member
arise.
Leigh said there should be
and has not been favoritism or
preferential treatment given rela
tives of school board members.
He said the bomu iooks for qual
ity employees, regardless of fam
ily relationships.
Winslow said that while
Leigh’s statements were true, the
public might not perceive them
to be true. He said public percep
tion “may as well be fact.”
Board member Ben Hobbs
said that employees are not di
rectly answerable to the board,
and therefore there were “layers"
which protected both employees
and board members.
Superintendent Randall L.
Henlon recommended that the
board look at a nepotism policy.
“I personally would recom
mend that we seriously look at a
nepotism policy,” he said.
"In the long run I think It
would be advantageous to the
Perquimans County School Sys
tem,” Henlon added.
Winslow said he had brought
his concerns about a nepotism
policy to the board earlier, but
could get no support from other
board members. There is no nep
otism policy In the new policy
manual recently completed by
the board.
“Let me say one thing, I did
not solicit a Job for my daughter
from anybody in this system,”
“I have a real concern
and it’s a growing
concern...about
nepotism...”
Clifford Winslow
School board member
Howell said.
The chairman said that both
of his daughters earned teaching
certificates, but his elder chose
not to return to Perquimans
County to teach. Tanya, Howell
said, wants to come home to
work.
Howell added that he does not
intend to serve on the board for
an extended period of time, and
that his daughter should not be
overlooked for employment if she
is indeed the most qualified can
didate applying for the position.
Winslow said that he did not
doubt Miss Howell’s qualifica
tions. but felt strongly that a
point had to be made about hiring
relatives.
"In good conscience I cannot,
I cannot support this recommen
dation,” Winslow said.
Hobbs said he had never
heard the nepotism issue dis
cussed during his tenure as a
board member. He also said that
young adults who wish to return
to their home county to work
should not be penalized because
their parents choose to serve on
the board of education.
Both Leigh and Nelson ran for
and were elected to their seats on
the board while their wives were
in the employ of the school sys
tem.
Ward told board members
that the school system has an in
tensive interview process and a
thorough reference check that all
applicants must go through be
fore they are considered for em
ployment. He said that the
transfers and appointments rec
ommended Monday night would
serve to strengthen the school
system.
The board voted 3-1 in favor
of hiring the appointees, including
Miss Howell. Winslow voted
against the recommendations,
and Howell did not vote. Tlie
chairman traditionally only votes
when it is necessary to break a
tie.
Arrests are reported
The Hertford Police reported
the following arrests:
On July 29, Nelson Isaac
Jones, 32, of Route 1, Box 260,
Sunbury, was arrested and
charged with resist, obstruct and
delay, assault by pointing a gun,
and larceny from a person. A se
cured bona was set at $5,700.
On July 21. James Stanford
Griffin, 20, of Route 2, Box 33B,
Edenton, was arrested and
charged with driving while intoxi
cated and a stop sign violation. A
secured bond of $400 was set.
On July 21. Victor Edward
Oliver Jr.. 16, of 413 E. Queen
Street, Edenton, was issued a ci
tation for possessing beer by a
person less than 19 years old.
On July 21. Jeffrey Edward
Vaughn, 30. of 216 N. Church
St, Hertford, was Issued a cita
tion for speeding.
On July 29, Debra Thach
Stallings. 35. of Route 4. Box
792, Hertford, was issued a dta
tlon for speeding.
On July 31. Michael Lee
Chapman, 18, of 515 Pennsylva
nia Avenue, Hertford, was ar
rested for communicating
threats. Bond was set at $200
unsecured.
The Perquimans County
Sheriffs Department reported the
following arrests
On July 31, John Edwood
Williams, 53. of Route 1, Box 29,
Cedar Street, Hertford, was is
sued a Chowan County criminal
summons for two counts of issu
ing worthless checks.
On Aug. 8. Jeny Lynn Gur
ganus, 34. of Route 4, Hertford,
was arrested on a warrant for
simple assault. She was released
on $200 unsecured bond.
On Aug. 8. Don Wayne Jeml
gan, 41, of Route 4, Box 747,
Hertford, was arrested on a war
rant for injury to personal prop
erty. He was released on $200
unsecured bond.