"News from Next Door" WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 27,2017 50 cents
New chair looks to balance spending priorities
BY PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
Funding the school system is the
single largest budget item for Per
quimans County taxpayers
The new chairman of the Per
quimans County Commission has
a rather unique perspective when it
comes to both boards.
Wallace Nelson has served two
stints totally 16 years on the school
board and is now in his second
round on the county commission.
“It gives me perspective,” Nelson
NELSON
said of his service
on both boards.
“It gives be both
sides.”
He first did
eight years on the
school board be
fore serving four
as a county com
missioner. He got
off the board be
cause his mother was seriously ill.
“At that point she was by her
self,” Nelson said.
When she passed away, he ran
again for school board and served
another eight years.
He is now halfway through his
new term back on the county com
mission and in December he was
named chairman.
One thing about this term on the
commission this time vs. the first
time is the pressure on local gov
ernment
“The current philosophy with the
legislature seems more things are
being pushed back to the counties
to pay for. These things have been
funded by the state and it seems
to be more and more and driving
back to local government. I’m not
sure that’s what the state Constitu
tion meant. If that continues that is
going to a challenge we’re going to
have to face.”
He said especially in small rural
counties, like Perquimans, that puts
a burden on low-income areas.
Nelson, 65, is a pharmacist by
training. He still works at Vidant
Chowan Hospital, but he’s scaled
back his administrative roles and
now works mostly as a pharmacist
and not an administrator.
Nelson admits he’s enjoyed both
sides.
Nelson’s schedule remains busy.
He’s the Perquimans County rep
resentative on the board of health
and the College of The Albemarle
board of trustees. He’s also a re
gional board member for 'Milium,
the multi-county agency that han
dles mental health and serves on
the N.C. Seafood Marine Industrial
Park Authority. He also served two
five-year-terms on the NC Board of
See NELSON, 3
Teachers
remember
special gifts
From Staff Reports
Teachers say it’s not so much the
gift, but the thought behind it.
The Perquimans Weekly asked the
school system to reach out to teach
ers and let them talk about what the
best Christmas present they received
from a student. Lisa Lane compiled
the list.
For Lindsey Benton, a fifth grade
science teacher, her gift came from a
student with little to give.
“On the last day before Christmas
break my students were bringing me
in bought gifts,” she wrote. “One of
my students watched as they were
giving them to me and he got up and
brought me his drink and chips that
he brought that day for (a) snack.
It was super sweet that he wanted
to give me something like the other
kids were.” „
For Rachel West, a teacher at Hert
ford Grammar School, the gift was a
scarf — a one of a kind scarf.
“One of my favorite gifts was a
handmade scarf. The student bought
the material with money she had
saved and bought our favorite col
ors. The scarf wasn’t perfectly done
but I wore it with pride knowing that
this student had put her time, energy
and love into malting it. ”
Here are some other responses:
“I received a wooden sign with my
name painted on it a few years ago.
It is special to me, because the stu
dent helped paint it.” Rebecca Miller,
Pre-K
***
“A personalized notepad.”
Tara Reed, First Grade
#*
“The best Christmas present I
ever received from a student was
from a student I taught my first year
of teaching. It was a set of sequined
Christmas pins. One is a sparkly San
ta head and the other is a cute Brown
bear with a bow. I love Christmas
and try to wear something Christma-
sy to school every day in December. I
still remember the student that gave
them to me and I think of him and his
family every time I wear my pins.”
Michele Swinney, Seventh Grade
Science
“The best Christmas present I ever
See GIFTS, 2
STAFF PHOTO BY PETER WILLIAMS
A rather unique feature of the new Perquimans County Library will be a boat. It’s designed for
the children’s area and is a place where kids can climb in, sit down and enjoy a reading a book.
Library prepares for move
(EDITOR’S NOTE: This is
the first part of a two-part se
ries on the new Perquimans
County Library.)
BY PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
Anybody who has ever had to
move, even if it’s across town,
knows it can be a chore.
Michelle Lawrence is mov
ing and unlike a typical house
hold move, she’s got to pack up
41,000 books for the move to
the new home in the 500 block
of West Church Street.
Lawrence is not complaining.
She and the Perquimans County
librarians who came before her
have been waiting for this mo
ment for years.
By sometime in mid-January,
the Perquimans County library
will be in a new, bigger home.
“It’s even nicer than I thought
it would be,” Lawrence said of
the new location. “They’ve done
an awesome job.”
A contractor will handle the
actual transportation of the
books to the new location on
Church Street. Perquimans
County manager Frank Heath
made the decision out of con
cerns about having injuries if
volunteers tried to do the work.
STAFF PHOTO BY PETER WILLIAMS
Dozens of workers were busy assembling the book shelves in
the new Perquimans County Lil
ary last week.
If you figure an average book
weighs a pound, there are 20
tons of books. That doesn’t
count everything else that will
have to be moved.
The opening of the new li
brary is an exciting step for the
county, said Wallace Nelson,
the chairman of the Perquimans
County Commission.
“The dream of a new library
was many years in the making
and it is great to see it become a
reality,” Nelson said. “There are
many people in the community
that use the library and I believe
they will be very impressed and
proud of what the county has
accomplished with this project.
In addition this facility will grow
the numbers using the library
and continue to be an asset to
Perquimans County for many
years to come.
“Our new library speaks vol
umes to the priority this com
munity puts on life-long learn
ing. Many thanks go out to the
library board for their hard
work and perseverance.”
See LIBRARY, 2
White
named
regional
principal
BY PETER WILLIAMS
AND MILES LAYTON
Staff Writers
EDENTON — The princi
pal at D.F. Walker Elementa
ry School will compete next
year for the title of Wells
Fargo North Carolina Prin
cipal of the year.
Michelle White was an
nounced the winner of the
Northeast Region Principal
of the Year award during an
assembly last week in D.F.
Walker’s Hornets’ Hive au
ditorium.
Perquimans County resi
dents may remember White
from her time working at
Perquimans Central. She
was a music teacher there
from 2002 through 2009 and
then served as an instruc
tional facilitator from 2009
through 2012. She briefly
held the title of assistant
principal at Perquimans
County High School in 2012
before taking the job at
White Oak Elementary in
Chowan County.
Jason Griffin, now this
year’s N.C. Principal of the
Year, remembers working
with White at Central. Grif
fin is now principal at Hert
ford Grammar School.
Griffin recalled how when
she was a music teacher,
she monitored every detail
when organizing an enter-
tainment event. Now that
she’s a school principal,
White is just as engaged, he
said, paying close attention
to testing and other data to
improve the quality of edu
cation.
“We are so proud of you,”
Griffin said.
Likewise Perquimans Su
perintendent Matthew Chee
seman applauded White for
her achievement.
“We’re absolutely thrilled
with Michelle White being
See WHITE, 4
Jackson says he
will seek House seat
BY REGGIE PONDER
The Daily Advance
A little more than a month
after winning election to
Hertford Town Council,
Quentin Jackson has his
eyes set on higher public of
fice.
Jackson, who was sworn
in as a Hertford town coun
cilor this month, said last
week he plans to run as a
Democrat for the state Leg-
islature in
the newly
drawn 1st
House Dis
trict next
year.
He joins
two Re
publicans
— Ed
Goodwin
6
89076 47144 2
and Candice “CV” Hunter
— who have already an
nounced theirs plans to
seek the 1st House District
seat, which is being vacated
by state Rep. Bob Steinburg,
R-Chowan. Steinburg has
announced plans to seek the
See JACKSON, 2
SUBMITTED PHOTOS
Petty Officer Angela Bruce has ice cream cake with
children Laura Duncan’s class at Perquimans Central.
The students wrote cards to veterans at Albemarle
Plantation and the cake was a thank you gift.
Veterans repay gesture
BY PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
Golfers at Albemarle
Plantation returned the fa
vor to 19 students in a first
grade class at Perquimans
Central School that cre
ated thank you cards for
veterans.
For Veteran’s Day, the
members from Laura Dun
can’s class members creat
ed the cards that were sent
to the Plantation.
Duncan’s husband Lee
is the golf pro there.
Lee Duncan and his wife
of 31 years moved this year
from Columbia, S.C. where
she also taught school. He
said she’s made gestures
Students in Laura
Duncan’s class at
Perquimans Central got
an ice cream cake for a
party the week before
Christmas.
like the Veteran’s Day
cards with classes in the
past, but the reaction has
never been like this.
“It was never anything
See VETERANS, 3