Newspapers / The Perquimans Weekly (Hertford, … / July 22, 2021, edition 1 / Page 1
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4 1 THURSDAY, JULY 22, 2021 “News from Next Door” $1.00 ^SCAN ME PAGE A6 Northeast Ag Expo set for July 29 PAGE Bl Five Perqui mans students awarded scholar ships PAGE Bl Lions Club helps visually impaired student Councilman Quentin Jackson (left) is restrained by a Perquimans County sheriff’s deputy during a confrontation between Jackson and a Hertford citizen at a Town Council meeting Monday, July 12. Also reacting are Councilman Frank Norman (back left) and Mayor Earnell Brown (back right). SCREEN GRAB FROM VIDEO Citizen files charge against Jackson Morrissey claims councilor threatened him at meeting BY REGGIE PONDER Staff Writer HERTFORD — A Perqui mans County businessman has filed a complaint with a county magistrate charging Hertford Town Councilman Quentin Jackson with com municating threats. Filed Thursday, Pat rick Morrissey’s complaint stems from a heated con- JACKSON frontation between Morrissey and Jack son at the Monday, July 12, Hertford Town Council meeting. “He said he would knock me out or put me to sleep,” Morrissey said Friday, refer ring to Jackson. Jackson denied any wrongdoing when reached by phone. He said he is glad the meeting is recorded on video because the recording will support his account of events. “We’ll just have to see that justice is served,” Jack son said. “I deny all of it and can’t wait for my day in court.” Hertford Mayor Earnell Brown said she abruptly ad journed Monday’s council meeting for safety reasons. She said “words were ex changed” but she isn’t clear what was said by whom, or when, in the last moments of the meeting. Video from the meeting shows Jackson criticizing Brown for not asking citi zens to refrain from shout ing during the meeting’s public comment period. Several members of the public addressed the council at the meeting. Le nora Brown objected to a block of Hyde Park being renamed “Black Lives Mat ter.” She said citizens who See JACKSON, A2 Cooper brings vaccination effort to Gates Govenor thanked residents for getting COVID-19 vaccine at clinic BY REGGIE PONDER Staff Writer GATESVILLE — Gov. Roy Coo per continued his statewide push to get adults and children 12 and older vaccinated against COVID-19 with a visit to a vaccination clinic at the Gates County Health Depart ment Thursday, July 15. “Sickness and death can be pre vented with vaccination,” Cooper said in brief remarks outside the health department offices. Across the state about 83 percent of adults 65 and older, and nearly 60 percent of all adults, have received at lease one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, Cooper said. “That’s good news,” he said. “But there still are too many folks who aren’t vaccinated.” One group working to improve the vaccination rate is Disability Rights North Carolina, which spon sored Thursday’s clinic in Gates ville. Curtis Hill, who is Disability Rights NC’s project director for Project ACCESS (All Communi ties Count Equitably for Safety and Support), said barriers to vacci nation include challenges such as transportation but also “vaccine hesitancy.” Hill said in an interview Thurs day that vaccine hesitancy is a par ticular challenge in rural counties across eastern North Carolina, in cluding his home county of Colum bus. “You’ve got people that are just not going to take it because it’s a political thing,” Hill said. But people can move beyond po litically based hesitancy when they hear from a friend, or someone else they trust, that the vaccine is safe and effective. “We need to get factual informa tion to people,” Hill said. Gates Board of Commissioners Chairwoman Althea Riddick said she has appreciated Cooper’s lead ership during the pandemic. PHOTOS BY REGGIE PONDER/THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY Gov. Roy Cooper speaks at a vaccination clinic at the Gates County Health Department in Gatesville on Thursday, July 15. “But we are not through,” she said. “We must get everyone vacci nated.” As of Thursday morning, only 3,870 Gates residents — 33% — had received a first shot of vaccine while 3,515 — 30% — had received both doses. Freeman thanked Cooper for supporting public health. Answering a question about making it easier to get vaccinat ed, Cooper noted the simplicity of Thursday’s clinic and said “they’ve made it easier here in Gates Coun ty.” Cooper said people who are hes itant to get vaccinated should talk to their doctor and talk to trusted See COOPER, A3 Gov. Roy Cooper thanks a citizen for receiving the COVID-19 vaccine during a drive-through clinic Thursday, July 15 at the Gates County Health Department. 6 seek council seats in Hertford McDonald, White file in Winfall; incumbents not running BY REGGIE PONDER Staff Writer Incumbent Hertford town councilors Quentin Jackson and Frank Nor man III will be on the ballot alongside former councilor Gracie Felton and first-time candidates Connie Broth ¬ ers, Sandra Anderson and Martha Borders in a quest for two seats on the Hert ford Town Council. In Win fall, Valery McDonald and Pres ton White have filed for the two open coun cil seats. I n - cumbent Winfall councilors ANDERSON BORDERS Kenneth Rominger and Ar- netta Ormond did not file to seek re-election. The filing period for the November election in both towns ended at noon on Friday. Borders, who moved to Hertford after retiring from careers in retail man ¬ agement and mortgage banking and her own fiber arts business, said she is See COUNCIL, A3 Independent pharmacies face new market pressures Woodard: Low prescription med dispensing fee one of challenges BY REGGIE PONDER Staff Writer In the wake of the announcement that Todd’s Pharmacy is selling its 89076 47144' 2 Vol. 87, No. 30 WWW.PerquimansWeekly.com @2021 Perquimans Weekly All Rights Reserved stores to CVS Health, independent pharmacies in the area say they are hanging on amid rising economic pressure. Charles Woodard, owner of Woodard’s Pharmacy in Hertford, said it was hard to see the Todd’s pharmacies close. “There’s just fewer of us,” Wood ard said. The Daily Advance reported that Todd’s has sold its two locations in Elizabeth City and their pharma cies in Moyock and Camden to CVS Health. All four locations will close between Aug. 10 and Aug. 12. Todd’s principal owner William Owens told The Advance that he and his partners decided to sell the pharmacy’s two locations in Eliza beth City and sites in Camden and Moyock to CVS Health because it is becoming harder and harder to com pete with the large retail pharmacies like CVS, Walgreens and Walmart. “Community retail pharmacy has changed a lot over the last 10 years,” Owens said. “The long-term trajec tory is not in a good way and a de cision was made. In a perfect world the initial plan was to continue to run everything with my junior part ners but that doesn’t look to be an option. Every year, it gets a little bit See PHARMACIES, A3 REGGIE PONDER/THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY Andrea Moore, left, poses with Woodard’s Pharmacy owner Charles Woodard at the Hertford drugstore Friday, July 2.
The Perquimans Weekly (Hertford, N.C.)
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July 22, 2021, edition 1
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