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Pets of the Week, Page 3
"News from Next Door"
FEBRUARY 6, 2013 - FEBRUARY 12, 2013
50 cents
Schools ask for help with security
By PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
More than 90 security
cameras protect student
and staff at the four Per
quimans County schools.
There are extra strong
locks on the doors so teach
ers can have a safe place to
hide with their children.
But education officials
admit that more can be
done to make the schools
even safer and the public
can play a big role.
The Perquimans County
School Board addressed se
curity last week during a
work session. They agreed
that the public coidd play a
role by alerting the school
if they see an issue that
needs to be addressed, said
Brenda Lassiter, a spokes
woman for the school dis
trict.
“If parents have a con
cern or they’ve heard
something from their stu
dent we want to hear it. We
need to hear it. We may be
able to connect some of the
dots that the parents can’t
connect, but there may be
issues out there.”
The school system has al
ready taken steps to make
the facilities more secure.
Each classroom has what
is called a “Columbine
Lock” that can be secured
from inside without a key
They were added about
five years ago, Lassiter
said. Before that, teachers
needed to find the key in
order to lock the classroom
door.
“If an attacker is on a
school campus and doors
aren’t locked, then the
See SECURITY, 5
Residents support Chamber at auction
By PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
T he Perquimans
County Chamber of
Commerce raised
more than $6,000 Friday to
support the organization
at the annual banquet and
auction at The Onley Place
in Belvidere.
A total of 164 people
bought tickets for the din
ner. According to Sid Eley,
the executive director, the
money is used to help keep
chamber dues as low as
possible and still provide
for workshops for mem
bers of the group.
Nearly 60 items were
donated for the auction.
One of the biggest sellers
was a solid wood turtle on
a log carved by Eric Van
de Bogart. It was the first
version he created and
fetched more than $700.
On hand for the event
was Joanne Jones, the
incoming president of the
chamber as well as Susan
Cox, the outgoing presi
dent.
“I thought it went real
well,” Jones said. “I was
real tickled with the
turnout. We had a lot of
great things donated from
area counties as well as
Perquimans County”
Guests to the event
might not have appreci
ated it, but Jones said it
took a solid day to set up
for the event and clean up
when it was over.
Eley said last week’s
event was smaller than the
year before.
“I am sure the economy
had something to do with
it,” Eley said. The cham
ber has 250 members,
but once the munber
approached 300. The good
news Eley said is the
chamber has been picking
up about one member each
month.
Last year vacation time
at three different cottages
was auctioned off. The cot
tages weren’t available for
STAFF PHOTOS BY PETER WILLIAMS
Jonathan Nixon (left), David Outland and Jon Van Dalsum sample the food at the annual Perquimans County Chamber of Com
merce auction at The Onley Place im Perquimans. Friday. Captain Bob’s catered the event.
Shirley Manley shows off a model truck being auctioned that is
being auctioned at The Onley Place Friday.
Jake Forbes conducts the auction at Friday's annual Chamber
of Commerce meeting at The Onley Place.
the auction last week.
Outgoing president
Susan Cox said the event
went weU and said it does
play an important role for
the organization.
“This is our major
fundraiser,” Cox said.
“This is how we are able to
support some of the things
we do. We are able to do
seminars and many are
free or at a minimi cost.
And we work a lot of them
through the small busi
ness center at College of
The Albemarle.”
For her part Cox is
pleased with what the
chamber has done during
the two years she’s been
president.
“There are some things
we were able to do and I
know Joanne has some
ideas she wants to work
on,” Cox said.
Gerri Layden was the
winner of the 50/50 draw
ing.
The meal was catered by
Captain Bob’s Restaurant.
Local restaurants pro
vided the hors d’oeuvres.
Those were made by
Sweet Surrenders Bakery
& GriU, One Stop Grille,
Beautiful Moon Cafe at
Beechtree, Clubhouse Res
taurant at Albemarle Plan
tation and Tommy’s Pizza
& Family Restaurant.
Incident took
place at PGHS
BY REGGIE PONDER
The Daily Advance
The District Attorney’s
Office has dismissed a mis
demeanor assault charge
against state Rep. Bob
Steinburg following the al
leged victim’s decision to
drop his complaint.
Russell Haddad, for
mer campaign manager
for Stein-
burg’s op
ponent in
last year’s
state 1st
House
District
race, an
nounced
Monday Haddad
that he was dropping the
charge because he wanted
to put the incident that
produced it behind him.
“I have spent a lot gf time
and effort to help better
the quality of life for resi
dents in North Carolina,
primarily northeastern
North Carolina,” Haddad,
a former legislative aide
to U.S. Rep. G.K. Butter
field, said in a statement
Monday. “That continues
to be my goal. Therefore,
after much thought I have
made the tough decision
to extend an olive branch
to Rep. Steinburg and drop
the simple assault charges
against him.”
While Haddad says he
stiU believes Steinburg
“should take responsibil
ity for his actions” he be
lieves dropping the charge
See STEINBURG, 4
WDB director may be hired soon
From staff reports
A new director for the
Northeastern Workforce
Development Board
could be hired very soon
according to the execu
tive director of the Hert
ford-based Albemarle
Commission.
Wendy Jewett con
firmed last week to The
Daily Advance that she
is “retiring from local
government.” She de
clined to elaborate.
She guided the devel
opment board through
a period of significant
period of change. It falls
Jewett
6 '*89076 47144 2 for US.
on Al
bemarle
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mission
Execu
tive Di
rector
Bert
Banks to
name a
replacement.
“We should be moving
fairly quickly,” Banks
told The Perquimans
Weekly on Tuesday
“We’ve got applications
in the office now and
starting next Wednes
day I plan on starting
interviewing some of
them. We should have
a decision in about 10
days after that. It’s an
important decision
The Northeastern
Workforce Develop
ment Board administers
funds through the fed
eral Workforce Invest
ment Act and serves 10
counties in northeast
ern North Carolina:
Camden, Chowan, Cur
rituck, Dare, Gates,
Hyde, Pasquotank, Per
quimans, Tyrrell and
Washington.
Pasquotank County
Commissioner Lloyd
Griffin, chairman of the
Workforce Development
Consortium Board, said
he believes Jewett will
remain in the director’s
job until sometime in
March.
Griffin said the new
See DIRECTOR, 5
Group opposes alcohol sales
By PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
A former county commis
sioner and about two dozen
supporters voiced opposi
tion Monday to the sale of
alcohol at the Perquimans
County Recreation Center.
Charles Ward spent 30
years on the board and want
ed to express his views. A
month before a local Ducks
Unlimited group appeared
before the county commis
sion to request alcohol sales
at the facility for when the
group holds it’s annual ban
quet and auction.
“I just think it’s the wrong
thing to do,” Ward said. “I’m
not saying people shouldn’t
drink, that’s perfectly up to
them, I just don’t think the
county should be involved
with it.”
Perqui
mans Coun
ty Man
ager Frank
Heath said
the board is
taking the
issue under
advisement
and that no
decision has been made.
Ward’s first point was that
allowing the sale of alcohol
for Duck’s Unlimited would
open the door to others who
want to do the same thing.
“The second thing is the
recreation center was built
for the kids. We want to set
a good example for kids and
teach them good morals and
I don’t think it’s right to be
selling alcohol 100 yards
away from them.”
Ward said he wasn’t try
ing to use his position as
a former commissioner to
sway the board. It’s their de
cision, he said.
“I’m not on the board any
more. But there ape legal
ramifications for selling al
cohol and most commission
ers are elected and I think
that people want them to do
the right thing.”
A spokesman for Duck’s
Unlimited making the origi
nal proposal in January ad
dressed the sale of alcohol
and the proximity of chil
dren at the recreation cen
ter. He said his group would
be willing to recent the en
tire facility that night so
there wouldn’t be any con
nection between kids and
alcohol.
Ward’s point is that goes
against what the recreation
See ALCOHOL, 5
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