Perspectives
Count your blessings,
not your problems
Ramblin’: Page 4 ,
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Sports: *
Pirates display heart4
and soul in season’s final
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THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY
Volume 62, No. 36
Hertford, Perquimans County, N.C., Wednesday, November 24, 1993
35 Cents
Hertford
names
manager
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
Two familiar faces will oc
cupy the Hertford town man
ager’s office beginning next
Wednesday.
The town council hired John
Christensen. 46. a local busi
nessman, to replace present
town manager W.D. “Bill" Cox.
who will retire Dec. 31. Chris
tensen will work with Cox until
that date.
“We are really pleased to
have someone with John's abili
ties and concern for the town in
this position,” Hertford Mayor
John Beers said. “We had some
real good candidates (for the po
sition) and we feel we have made
a good decision for the citizens of
Hertford."
Christensen said several fac
tors prompted him to apply for
the town manager’s position. His
degree in engineering, business
management experience and de
sire to remain in the area were
key to his decision to seek the
post.
Christensen emphasized that
Darden Department Store,
owned and operated by he and
his family, will remain open.
"The store is still a strong, vi
able business and it’s vital to the
town,” Christensen said.
Although he did not grow up
in Hertford. Christensen said he
always looked forward to visiting
his grandparents here and
spending time with the people he
characterizes as warm and
friendly. He made Hertford his
home 12 years ago when he
joined the family business.
Christensen has high hopes
for the future of Hertford.
"I think there’s a lot of pride
in Hertford and I want to built
on It.” he said. “I want to see the
town grow. We've got an oppor
tunity with the four-lanlng of
(U.S. Highway) 17 completed
that perhaps we can attract
some industry to the area.”
Christensen said that plans
for business expansion, new
businesses planning to move
here and the development of sev
eral new subdivisions will en
hance the town.
The new manager will un
doubtedly have some big shoes
to fill when Cox. the town's first
manager, leaves.
“Bill's got a tradition not just
in Hertford but in all northeast
ern North Carolina with his civic
and political career," Chris
tensen said. “I have a comforting
thought that Bill said that he
would help me as much as he
could even after he’s retired.”
Christensen said his first or
der of business will be to talk
little and listen a lot to help him
leam his new position.
“It’s going to be a challenge,”
he said. “I wont team everything
overnight”
Christensen earned a me
chanical engineering degree from
N.C. State University and
worked as an engineer for 10
years in Charlotte before moving
to Hertford. He and his wife.
Judy, an Income maintenance
worker at Perquimans County
Department of Social Services,
have three children, Amanda.
13. Emily. 9. and Lee, 7.
THE PERQUIMANS
WEEKLY
• NEWS RELEASE
Monday - 3:00 p.m.
• ADVERTISING
i Monday • 3:00 pjii.
DEADLINES:
Dream vacation
The Harrell family will have a lot to be thankful for
when they celebrate Thanksgiving. After a year of
living through the nightmare of 11-year-old Jennif
er’s Hodgkin’s disease, her bloodwork is clean, and
all five of the clan recently returned from a dream
vacation to Disney World courtesy of the Make a
.Wish Foundation. Jennifer (center); her sister, Jami
(right); brother Ryan (front); mom, Sheila; and dad,
Pat, will remember the days spent enjoying the
sights of sunny Florida and the Disney characters.
(Photo courtesy Pat and Sheila Harrell)
Family counts health among
Thanksgiving blessings
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
Pat and Sheila Harrell counted a
healthy five-month-old baby girl
among their blessings on Thanksgiv
ing Day 1982. Tomorrow, they will
give special thanks to God for that
baby’s continued presence at their
Thanksgiving table.
The little girl, Jennifer, has spent
the last 11 months of her 11 years
fighting Hodgkin's disease. Great
strides in medicine, a positive atti
tude and supportive family and
friends are the weapons the Harrell,
family has used in their battle
against the cancer that threatened
Jennifer. It appears that the victory
bugle is sounding. Doctors expect
that the always-smiling Jennifer will
one day count her own children
among her blessings on Thanksgiving
Day- ' •• '
Jennifer's .last scheduled treat
ment was last Thursday. Sheila said
the latest test results look promising
and if her daughter’s blood count
stays up, ‘she will be declared in re
mission. After being “clean,” cancer
free. for five years from the date of di
agnosis, Jennifer will be pronounced
cured. Hodgkin’s disease is 95-100
percent curable, doctors told the
Harrells. .
me iamuys oraeai Degan in me
summer of 1992. Pat said Jemrfer
seemed tired much of the time dur
ing her summer break from school,
staying inside^ and;, watching tele
vision a lot. Sheila at first attributed
Jennifer’s lack of energy to a phase,
one of many changes children experi
ence growing up. Around the end of
August, Jennifer’s lymph nodes
started swelling. - pi
*1 came home from school one
Sr with a great big red knot in the
e of my neck,” Jennifer remem
bered.
Sheila, who was an maternity
leave from her job as a legal secre
tary caring for her Infant son, took
Jennifer to the doctor. It was sus
pected that Jennifer had cat scratch
fever or some other type if infection.
Antibiotics were prescribed. Jennif
er’s lymph nodes did not respond to
any of the drugs. ; ~
v Deciding a few weeks later that
?■?
' v 4
It’s been a long 1993 for the Harrells...Tomorrow
they’ll ponder the positives, and say a special
prayer of thanks that all three of their children
are gathered at their holiday table.
the problem had gone on too long.
Sheila took Jennifer to an ear, nose
and throat specialist. The specialist
prescribed even stronger antibiotics.
There was no Improvement. A needle
biopsy was performed on the knot in
Jennifer’s neck, but the doctor could
not get enough tissue to analyze.
While other children were having vi
sions of sugar plums on Christmas
Eve. Jennifer underwent an open bi
opsy.
Pat and Sheila felt like the ball
that falls in Times Square to herald
the new year landed squarely on
their heads. After waittog a week to
hear from Jennifer's biopsy, the cou
ple spent New Year’s Eve digesting
the results: Jennifer had Hodgkin’s
disease - cancer.
Tve told several people since
then, on December 31st of 1992
when I got out of bed I was 35 years
old. When I went back to bed that
night I was 95 and I've aged every
day since," Pat said, recalling the
events of the daw.
Sheila got the call from the doc
tor with the news.
“I Just started crying,” she said.
“I had a cousin with Hodgkin’s. I
knew what it could mean.”
Pat called Sheila at her Job from
Chowan County, where he was work
ing. to see if she had heard from the
tests. Sheila told him to come to her
office. Pat, who is self-employed, told
his wife he was really busy and
needed to see some customers.
“She said. They can wait’ I knew
then something was wrong, but not
what tt was,” Pat said£*Tt wt
long ride from Chovwrn Cot
Hertford."
Like Sheila, Pat said he also
broke down when he heard the dev
astating news. :.a’,
Jennifer, unlike her parents.
v>‘ -
';
seemed to take the news in stried, re
acting with an “Ok. so now what do
we do" attitude, according to her
dad. Jennifer said she was never af
riad of dying, and her doctor ex
plained to ner exactly what her
illness meant and what her treat
ment entailed. •
When her classmates dressed in
the new outfits Sants brought, went
back to school and took spelling
tests. Jennifer got dresses, traveled
to King's Daughter Hospital in Nor
folk and took medical tests to deter
mine the best course of treatment
Since January, the spunky young
lady has undergone two surgeries,
including one % remove her spleen.
17 radiation treatments and too . j
many chemotherapy series to count
She has lost her hair, had bad reac
tions to the chemotherapy drugs and
antibiotics (her whole body has actu
ally turned pink and purple), and
had to be put to sleep to take chemo
therapy because the treatments
made ner so sick. She will undergo
one more surgery to remove the
porta-cath, the device inserted into
ner chest through which the cherno
therapy drugs enter her body.
Although she was unable to re
turn to school last year, she earned
honors at her school's spring aca
demic awards program for maintain
ing an “A” average through
homebound study. She was able to
accept her award on stage with her
classmates.
In September. Jennifer started
back to school with her peers. She's !
adjusted well to the step from el
ementary to middle school. Her body
and hair are a little thinner than her
classmates remember, but Jennifer
Pleas* see Family. Page 3 , :
Cole named
U.S. attorney
By JULIAN EURE
The Dally Advance
Janice Cole will soon be trading in her judge’s
robes for prosecutors’ garb. The 46-year-old district
court judge was named U.S. Attorney for the East
ern District by President Clinton Saturday.
cole naan t
officially been
notified of the
appointment by
the Clinton
White House at
press time. But
she did receive
a call from 1st
District Con
gresswoman
Eva Clayton on
Saturday, in
forming her of
the appoint
ment.
“Your guess
is as good as
mine.” when
Janice Cole
the White House will call. Cole said Saturday night.
“President Clinton is out of town, so 1 don't know if
it will be him or someone else who will call.”
As U.S. Attorney, Cole will be the federal gov
ernment’s chief law enforcement officer in the East
ern District, headquartered in Raleigh. It will be her
job to prosecute civil and criminal cases that come
before the federal courts.
I’m terribly excited about the appointment and
looking forward to getting in there and doing a good
job,” she said.
"I have very much enjoyed my time on the dis
trict court. But it’s always nice to take that next
step. 1 see this as a challenge.”
Cole said she doesn’t know yet when she will
start the new Job. She’s got to be approved by the
Senate first. She hopes that might be accom
plished before Thanksgiving.
"They couldn’t have a chosen a better person,”
said Clara Boswell. Clayton’s district representa
tive.
Cole, a native of Harlem, N.Y., graduated from
Fordham Law School. A former New York City po
lice officer, she also served as an Associate U.S.
Attorney for the state of New York.
Ground broken
for apartments
Albemarle Commission
gets new neighbors
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
The county-owned office building on Church
Street Is getting some new neighbors.
A ground-breaking ceremony was held earlier
this month for the 36-unit Albemarle Village Apart
ment complex. Developed by DTH Associates of
Dunn, the units are designed for elderly, hand
icapped and disabled tenants.
“This will be a development the town of Hert
ford and Perquimans County will be proud of.” said
DTH general partner Larry W. Godwin. “It's a real
enhancement to the area.”
The development was made possible through a
public/private partnership in which the developers
and owners, Albemarle Village Limited Partnership,
and the lender. Farmers Home Administration,
worked together to meet a specific housing need in
the community under FmHA's 515 Housing Pro
gram.
Godwin, one of three general partners in the
' “It will be a beautiful complex,” Godwin said.
■This is something everybody would like for their
own mother to stay in. I know I would.”
Godwin said the complex will feature 32 one
bedroom units and four two-bedroom apartments.
The development will also include an on-site man
ager, a center courtyard, commons areas, a secu
rity system and emergency call system.
“The building is a unique concept in that it’s
totally self-contained,” Godwin said. “The security
aspects of it are really unique.”
Godwin said the village is not a nursing care or
rest home facility, but an apartment building for
those who meet the income and/or age require
ments set forth by the FmHA 515 program.
DTH chose Hertford, Godwin said, because the
partnership felt that there is a need in the area and
the reception the group received from local officials
was so positive.
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