THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY Volume 61, No.32 Hertford, Perquimans County, N.C., Thursday, August 6,1992 35 Cents * ■ 1 County churches gear up for late summer ■■■■ revivals: Page s : W bS! .; \ sf ■ *■ ■ m■ flPSssi ' . '•'■■*■'■ • •• •;•• -:•». •'.' aAS taflk «r " ducation: Pi > -' TJ : i-/ • , . * * ff *■? ' v> '*$£ ^ r*3?- r I Parents and children should prepare for start of school year: Pag© 7 s: : ,. ■ , • ■■■ ■■ . I i - • ;l' ■ . ■ . ’ 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. it \ t { . Vs ■ 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 i - ■■ i 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 t V f - . 1 ’ • ■ ■MW' 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. -'I',!"’'/ ** ■ -~■ - • : ^ - - * ■ • ■ - ••• .' 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 $101,975. The work had been budgeted in earlier fiscal years, but had been delayed, according to county manager N. Paul Gre gory Jr. Gregory said the main pur pose for painting the tanks is to keep the water, later piped to customers throughout the county, clean. The contract calls for Siouthem Corosion to put eight coats of epoxy paint on the inside of the tanks. The outsides will also be painted, Gregory said. The commissioners also ap proved allowing Gregory to look to federal sources for a boat to be used for drug enforcement and rescue purposes. Gregory said federal law allows for the transfer of federal equipment to local government agencies to use in the war against drug traffick ing. If a boat can be found, it will be transferred to the county at no cost to local taxpayers. Cruisin' Hartford Police officers will be cruising in were becoming costly to maintain. Officers style, thanks to new Chevrolet Caprices that Robert Harvey and Tim Bunch will be sport have replaced two of the Ford LTDs which Ing the new vehicles. v • m ; A'." V ifc& '.$*.4' • «*» * "■$ ’ ’•JT i *** i • ■ *• . -I*' » \ L: . -»>■ ■' s i -rt. ■ H.v 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.