«
Craft enjoys aerial acrobatics
Page 4
PQ wins 7th district hunter safety title
Sports/Page 8
Operation
Inasmuch Page 7
LOT-^C -■’'ll
^; COLW TV U8R-^° ■
■‘iDELlY i>T
ID, 27344-15-;^
received
APR 0 9 2008
^^5 cent^
April 9, 2008
Vol. 76, No. 15 Hertford, North Carolina 27944
**News from Next Door**
New PCHS gym roof catches fire Frida
CATHY WILSON
Perquimans Weekly
A small fire in the roof
connecting the school
with its new gym closed
a classroom and caused
Perquimans County High
School to open on a modi
fied schedule Friday morn
ing.
Damage was contained
to the connector area and
is estimated by school offi
cials to be less than $5,000.
No one was injured in the
fire which was reported at
6:52 a.m.
Jonathan Nixon, direc
tor of maintenance for the
school system, said no stu
dents were inside the school
when the fire was reported.
The handful of staff pres
ent were evacuated imme
diately, he added.
Hertford Volunteer Fire
Chief Bob Reed said smoke
was coming from the roof
on the newly constructed
gym complex when the first
units arrived on the scene.
Firefighters were able to
extinguish the blaze within
20 minutes with both foam
and water.
Damage to the roof was
kept to a four-foot square
area, he said. The class
room below, which housed
health and physical educa
tion classes, received minor
damage.
“Whoever saw the smoke
this morning and called it
in saved the day,” said Reed.
“The alarm system did not
go off.”
Nixon said not enough
smoke entered the building
to cause the alarm to sound
before firefighters arrived.
The system, he added, was
recently inspected and cer
tified by the county fire
marshal and is in working
condition.
Schools Superintendent
Dr. Dwayne StaUings said
the school system sent out
a ConnectEd phone call to
parents notifying them that
school would operate on a
slightly delayed schedule.
The school resumed its nor
mal schedule and the gym
reopened around 11 a.m.
The classroom, how
ever, wiU remain closed
until Tuesday, said Nixon.
The room continues to be
ventilated to get rid of any
residual smoke, and some
ceiling tiles were taken
down. School will be closed
Monday due to a previously
scheduled teacher work
day.
“We are very fortunate
that the timing of this fire
was such that no life safety
issues arose for either our
students or our staff,” Nix
on emphasized.
While the cause of the
fire has not been deter
mined, Nixon said a roofing
contractor added a layer of
roofing membrane in that
area just the day before.
“A.R. Chesson and their
subcontractor are assum
ing responsibility for all
damages,” Nixon added.
Chesson was the contractor
overseeing construction of
the gym project that opened
March 18.
According to Nixon,
Chesson is making neces
sary repairs on the area
damaged hy the fire today.
School officials were
quick to thank the local
firefighers who responded
quickly to the scene.
“Because of the emergen
cy services’ quick response,
damage was minimal,” said
Stallings.
Hertford, WinfaU and
Bethel firefighters respond
ed while InterCounty, Du
rants Neck and Belvidere
were placed on standby.
Friday morning’s fire
seemed like deja vu’ for both
school and fire officials. On
Oct. 21, a fire on the roof
covering the media center,
computer labs, distance
learning classroom, and
administrative offices was
also linked to roof work be
ing performed by the same
subcontractor. That fire
was reported at 6:50 a.m.
on a Sunday morning by a
Hertford police officer on
routine patrol.
The October fire dam
aged the roof on the older
building while the interior
of the building sustained
both smoke and water dam
age.
Perquimans Weekly photo by CATHY WILSON
JONATHAN NIXON, DIRECTOR OF maintenance, checks the ma
chine that eliminates any water on the classroom wall follow
ing last week's fire on the roof connecting the new gym to the
old school.
Mobley campaigns in Hertford Sunday
CATHY WILSON
Staff Writer
It was cold and nasty
outside, but inside was
warm and inviting as Fifth
District Representative An
nie Mobley greeted her con
stituents with hugs during
a reception held Sunday af
ternoon at the Perquimans
County Recreation Center.
The Democrat who rep
resents Perquimans, Bertie,
Gates and Hertford coun
ties in the state legislature,
faces her first election this
year since being appointed
to serve in January 2007.
She faces opposition from
Robert Richardson in the
May 6 primary.
Mobley told those who
braved the inclement
weather she has a passion
for Northeastern North
Carolina and fights with
that passion regarding lo
cal issues and funding.
“We should be better
at getting a larger piece
of that pie,” she said. “It’s
time to stop getting just the
crumbs.”
She said her colleagues
in the general assembly for
the past year have learned
who she is and what she
stands for.
“When they say ‘no’ to
me, that just raises my cu
riosity,” she said. “It makes
me think, now where do I
go next to get the results I
i
Perquimans Weekly photo by CATHY WILSON
THE INCLEMENT WEATHER MAY have contributed to a small crowd attending a public reception in honor of Rep. Annie Mobley
Sunday. She faces her first election May 6 since being appointed to the position in January 2007.
need.”
She described herself as
having a reputation in Ra
leigh of being a committed
person, of not taking no for
an answer, and not backing
off from a fight easily.
Her remarks were sup
ported by state Sen. Ed
Jones, 4th Senatorial Dis
trict, who added his own
description of Mobley: “go
getter.”
He reminded those pres
ent that much is accom
plished in Raleigh through
seniority, and encouraged
the district to send Mob
ley back to serve one more
time.
“We know what kind
of person we’ve got right
now,” Jones said. “Elec
tions are like a box of choco
lates. You never know what
you’re gonna get.”
In addition to the state
legislators speaking, local
candidates running in the
May 6 primary who were
in attendance also were al
lowed to speak briefly.
Arlene Yates and Gail
Hfil, candidates for the
county school board, and
Mack Nixon and Tommy
Riddick, candidates for
county commissioners,
campaigned as well.
Fred Yates, chairman of
the county’s Democratic
party, said aU Democratic
candidates would be invited
to speak at the county dem
ocratic convention sched
uled for April 19 at 10 a.m.
in the county courthouse.
Hertford
birthday
kick-off
is May 4
CATHY WILSON
Staff Writer
The big birthday party
is less than a month away.
'The town of Hertford
will turn 250 years old on
May 4 and a celebration to
kick off a year-long obser
vance is planned.'
Mary Me. White, the
events
planner
hired
by the
town to
coordi
nate an
niversary events, said the
day’s happenings are set
to begin after church that
Sunday.
Food vendors will line
Church Street which will
be closed from Grubb to
Market streets. Both Cap
tain Bob’s and the Belvi
dere Ruritans will offer
lunch on the street start
ing as noon.
CONTINUED on page 2
Fabric shop fills void in local retail market
CATHY WILSON
Staff Writer
Sewing here just got
easier. A new full-service
fabric store offers one stop
shopping for aU your sew
ing needs.
Located in the Ken-Nix
Plaza at 1249 U.S. 17 South
in Elizabeth City, the Velvet
Stitch is stocked with fab
rics, notions, yarns, books,
patterns, needlecrafts, and
even handmade gifts such
as handbags and wreaths.
“There was a grand need
for a fabric store here that
offers a better variety of
sewing goods,” explained
Tiffany McPherson, owner,
as to why she opened the
store. “I either had to go to
Virginia to buy my sewing
rvH:
Perquimans Weekly photo by CATHY WILSON
THE PERQUIMANS COUNTY CHAMBER of Commerce held a
ribbon cutting Saturday morning at The Velvet Stitch, a full-
service fabric shop located in the Ken-Nix Plaza at 1249 U.S.
Highway 17 South in Elizabeth City.
items, or order it off the In
ternet. In the fabric world,
it’s aU about touching the
fabric and thread count. It
was hard to order off the
internet because you never
knew what you were get
ting because you couldn’t
touch it beforehand.”
She also offers classes
for aU ages and her store
includes lots of space with
large tables set up where
classes can be held. She
plans to hold kids’ camp
this summer teaching the
young ones how to sew
and give them something
else to do besides watching
television or playing video
games.
“Kids would like sewing
if given a chance to learn,”
McPherson said.
She also offers a wide
spectrum of alteration
services at the store by ap
pointment only on Wednes
days and Saturdays.
She can special order any
fabric or pattern needed.
Last Saturday, members
of the Perquimans County
Chamber of Commerce
held a-ribbon cutting at the
store, which was packed
with excited sewers and
needle crafters before 10
a.m.
“The support from the
community ■ has been ex
tremely overwhelming,”
grinned McPherson. “Peo
ple are so excited they have
a fabric store where they
can buy something other
than black and white thread
and not have to travel 30-40
miles to do it.”
The Velvet Stitch is open
Monday-Thursday 10 a.m.'
-6 p.m., Friday 10 a.m. - 5
p .m., and on Saturday, 9 a.m.
-2 p.m.
For more information,
caU 384-0200.
Wmimr
Thursday
High: 77 Low: 60
Partly Cloudy
Friday
High: 79 Low: 63
Mostly Cloudy
Saturday
High: 76 Low: 58
SoiVnEREDrSIORMS
6 ""89076"
7143