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"News from Next Door" WEDNESDAY, AUGU "0« fOB or«
AUG 16 STD *
Steinburg may run for Senate
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County Grouping for 2017 Senate Plan
BY PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
If a set of proposed re-
districting maps become
law, Rep. Bob Steinburg
(R-Chowan) says he’ll likely
run for the First District
Senate seat next time.
Steinburg now represents
Perquimans and five other
counties in the N.C. House
of Representatives. He’s on
his third term in the House.
would include 11 counties.
It currently has eight, in
cluding Perquimans.
It’s the lure of represent
ing 11 counties that has
Steinburg thinking about
running for the Senate.
Currently the Senate
district includes Beaufort,
Camden, Chowan, Cur
rituck, Dare, Gates, Hyde,
Pasquotank and Perqui
mans comities. The new
district would gain Chowan,
The new Senate district,. Hertford, Tyrrell and Wash-
as drawn in the initial map, ington, but lose Beaufort.
Steinburg, stressed that
his intent is not to challenge
Sen. Bill Cook (R-Beaufort),
who holds the District 1
Senate seat now. Steinburg
notes that the new Senate
District 1 map doesn’t in
clude Beaufort, where Cook
lives.
Cook’s legislative aide
Jordan Hennessy said Cook
is not on the Senate Redis
tricting Committee and isn’t
yet taking a position on what
See STEINBURG, 2
SUBMITTED PHOTO
One map of proposes new N.C. Senate districts shows District 1 (in blue) includes all
of northeastern North Carolina.
PERQUIMANS hosts AG Expo
BY PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
Some area farmers are
adding a new crop to the ro
tation — grain sorghum.
Some have been growing
it all along. Both Laurence
Chappell and Gretchen
Ownley won awards last
year in a national contest.
At first sorghum resem
bles corn, but the plants
don’t grow nearly as high.
Sorghum is primarily used
as livestock feed and for
ethanol.
Sorghum produces the
same amount of ethanol
per bushel as comparable
feedstocks and uses one
third less water. As a rota
tional crop ahead of corn,
sorghum can help control
some corn diseases.
But don’t expect to see a
huge increase in sorghum
production, said Dylan Lil
ley, the Hertford-Based ag
riculture extension agent
for field crops, “It’s been
around but it’s not a widely
grown crop.”
Sorghum was just one
of the things that were dis
cussed when the Northeast
Ag Expo was held recently
in Belvidere.
Ricky Stallings, the own
er of R & R Farms, hosted
the event and more than 300
people attended.
Tlie educational field day
is an annual event that held
by NC Cooperative Exten
sion agents from Camden,
See EXPO, 2
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Grain sorghum
(left) is much
smaller than
the corn in the
background.
Top, Chris
Eure captured
farmers
harvesting
wheat just
ahead of
a heavy
thunderstorm
in June.
Senior Center
workers retiring
at end of year
BY PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Chuck
Hartman, the
pastor of Up
River Friends
Meeting,
authored and
illustrated a
children’s book
called “It must
be a weed.”
Delphine Madre, the director of the
Perquimans County Senior Center will
be stepping and the end of the year.
Also retiring will be Faye Myers, the
secretary at the center.
Madre and Myers '
are the only full-time
employees at the cen
ter. The county also
employs one part-
time worker and the
Albemarle Commis
sion has a part-time
nutrition coordinator
at the site on Harvey
Point Road.
“It’s kind of bitter-
sweet,” Madre said
last week. “I’ve really
loved my job. I don’t
love the paperwork,
but I’ve loved my job.
It’s had many won
derful blessings. I’ve
had a lot of people
pass through my
life.”
“I enjoyed it,” she said of her 24-year
career. “It wouldn’t be so difficult to
retire if you hated your job, but I love
mine.”
Madre is 69 years old and doesn’t
mind saying it.
“I don’t mind you telling you my
age, just don’t ask me my weight,” she
joked.
She started working for the county
recreation department as a secretary/
senior coordinator in July 1993.
. Madre praised the Perquimans
See RETIRING, 2
Minister writes children’s book
BY PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
Just because something may
appear different, doesn’t make it
wrong.
That is the premise of a new
children’s book authored by Chuck
Hartman, the 43-year-old pastor of
Up River Friends Meeting.
The book is called “It Must Be
A Weed.”
Hartman said he got the idea
years ago when he worked in an
HARTMAN
adult day care.
“One of the
things I did was
real the news to
the participants.
One feature was
called ‘News of
the Weird.’
“There was
one thing in
about 2001
where it said caterpillars only eat
at night. I knew that may not actu
ally be true, but it would make a
neat idea for a children’s book.”
The book will be available on
Amazon starting in September.
The cost will be $8.99.
Hartman grew up in Caswell
County- He and his wife Sonya
now live with their dog Sarah in
Perquimans County.
He did his own illustrations for
the book. He dedicates it to his
grandmother, Etheleen Walker,
thanking her for teaching him
See BOOK, 2
End of life
program planned
BY PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
Vidant Chowan Hospital
will hold a session on end of
life issues on Sept. 5 at the
Shepard-Pruden Memorial
Library from 10 a.m. until
11:30 a.m.
“Bringing up end-of-life
issues with your family can
be challenging,” said Kelly
First Responders honored by NAACP
Herr, community relations
director for the hospital.
“Making your preferences
known , in legal documents
can be even tougher. Having
conversations now, while
you’re well and not in a cri
sis, will help ensure that the
care you receive matches
what’s most important to
you.”
Herr said trained experts
will lead the free education
al session and help people
complete health care power
of attorney and living will
forms including the witness
See LIFE, 2
More than 60 Perquimans County first responders
were honored recently at an event hosted by
Perquimans County NAACP at the Perquimans
County Recreation Center. Next year there is a
black tie event planned for them. Left, Perquimans
County Sheriff’s deputies dine at a event to honor
all first responders. It was sponsored by the
Perquimans County branch of the NAACP.
SUBMITTED PHOTOS