The
QUIMANS
EEKLY
“News from Next Door”
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2021 $1.00
PAGE A2
Hertford Gram
mar’s Garney
named Byrum
Honored Scholar
PAGE A8
Museum’s
Cropsey exhibit
explores un
solved murder
PAGE A8
Pirates’
Jayden White
wins four-team
conference
cross country
race
Candidates weigh in on ending police force
Borders, Anderson, Brothers back
decision; Felton opposes it says she
BY REGGIE PONDER
Staff Writer
Candidates for Hertford Town Coun
cil in this fall’s election mostly agree the
town made the right move closing its
police department and contracting for
law enforcement services with the Per
quimans County Sheriff’s Office.
First-time candidates Martha Bor
ders, Sandra Anderson and Connie
Brothers all said they support the
town’s decision.
Former town councilor Gracie
Felton, though, said she thought it was
not the right decision.
Councilman Frank Norman III, who
is seeking re-election, said he would
not answer questions from The Perqui
mans Weekly.
Councilman Quen
tin Jackson, who also
is seeking re-election,
could not be reached
for comment for this
story.
Both Norman and
Jackson voted against
closing Hertford’s
police department,
which council decid
ed to do as of July 1,
and contracting with
the Sheriff’s Office to
provide law enforce
ment in the town.
Norman’s and Jack-
son’s seats on the
council are the only
“Town Council
made an excellent
decision to contract
with the Sheriff’s De
partment,” Borders
said. “It saves the
town lots of money,
avoids the potential
for corruption, and
ARHS: one of 10
new COVID deaths
in Perquimans
BROTHERS two up for election in
November.
Borders said she believes it was an
“excellent” decision to contract out law
enforcement to the sheriff’s office.
BORDERS keeps our citizens just
as safe if not more
(safe). I spoke about
this at council when
they were holding a
hearing regarding cit
izens’ concerns about
dissolving the police
department”
Anderson said she,
ANDERSON too, believes town
council made the right
decision in turning law enforcement in
See CANDIDATES, A9
Jollification!
REGGIE PONDER/THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY
ARHS: Four of 10 who died
in region younger than 50
BY JULIAN EURE
The Daily Advance
Albemarle Regional
Health Services report
ed 10 more deaths from
COVID-19 in its eight-coun
ty health district last week,
four of them persons be
tween the ages of 25 and
49.
Three of the deaths were
reported in Pasquotank
County, one involving a
person between 25 and 49,
ARHS said. The other two
were persons over 65.
Two COVID-related
deaths were reported in
Chowan County, and one
of those persons was also
in the 25-49 age group,
ARHS said. The other per
son who died was between
50 and 64.
COVID-related deaths
were also reported in
Bertie, Hertford, Gates,
Currituck and Perquim
ans counties last week. In
Bertie and Gates, the per
sons were in the 25-49 age
group. In Hertford, the per
son was between 50 and
64. In Currituck and Per
quimans, those who died
from COVID were over 65.
The deaths in
Pasquotank were the
99th, 100th and 101st from
COVID, making it the first
county in ARHS’ health
district to reach that mile
stone. The death in Perqui
mans was the 13th report
ed since the beginning of
the pandemic last year. In
ARHS’ eight-county dis
trict, 320 people have now
died from COVID-related
illness.
While offering his con
dolences to the families
and loved ones of the 10
COVID victims, ARHS Di
rector Battle Betts also
noted that persons con
tracting the disease con
tinue to be younger.
“We are seeing younger
and younger populations
suffer from this virus,” he
said in Friday’s report.
New COVID-19 cas
es in ARHS’ health dis
trict climbed by 535, with
half of them reported in
Pasquotank and Currituck
counties. That’s more than
130 fewer than the 670 new
cases reported the previ
ous week.
Pasquotank reported
the largest jump in new
COVID cases (154), fol
lowed by Currituck (102),
Docent Mike Soper (left) guides Bonnie McKee (center) and Penny Byrd on a tour of the historic sanctuary at
Hertford United Methodist Church during Saturday’s Jollification! event in Hertford. The annual tour of historic
homes in Perquimans County is a fundraiser for the Perquimans County Restoration Association.
Event delights history buffs, raises funds for restoration
BY REGGIE PONDER
Staff Writer
A successful Jollification!
was held in Hertford Satur
day.
Jollification! is an annual
fundraiser for the Perquim
ans County Restoration Asso
ciation. PCRA was formed in
1973 to preserve and restore
the Newbold-White House
and to encourage the preser
vation of historic homes and
other historic structures in
Perquimans County.
Saturday’s event consisted
of a tour of 11 historic homes
and other historic buildings
in downtown Hertford, and
concluded with a dinner,
cake auction and live music
by Uphill at the historic New
bold-White House.
About 100 people partic
ipated in both tire tour and
the dinner and 43 others just
took the tour. The cake auc
tion featuring three pies and
eight cakes raised $1,325. A
Black Russian cake netted
$200 and two shoo-fly pies
sold for $175 each.
The event also raised
$1,600 in “plank” pledges for
the reconstruction of an ear
ly 1700s plank house at the
Newbold-White House his
toric site. The pledge drive
had previously raised $3,500.
Bonnie McKee said she
was excited about taking the
tour.
“I just look forward to see
ing the houses,” she said.
Although she has partici
pated in similar tours other
places, this was the first time
McKee had toured historic
structures in Hertford.
Sharon Burtner also said
she had not toured historic
downtown Hertford before.
She helped out with the event
but also enjoyed taking the
tour herself.
“I think it’s wonderful,”
Burtner said. “We’re lucky
See JOLLIFICATION, A9
See DEATHS, A3
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
Children help load a Chowan County Sheriff’s Office
trailer with toys for the Chowan/Perquimans Smart
Start Partnership Toys for Tots program. The program is
now open for applications.
Smart Start now
Tourney tops $20K for ALS Foundation
taking Toys for
Tots applications
TriB won Hunter tournament,
Granny's Bomb Squad finished 2nd
BY REGGIE PONDER
Staff Writer
This year’s Jim “Catfish” Hunter ALS
Softball Tournament is expected to top
$20,000 in funds raised to help ALS pa
tients.
Vol. 87, No. 40
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@2021 Perquimans Weekly
All Rights Reserved
While we won’t know the exact
number for about a week we are very
confident that we raised North of
$20,000 over the weekend,” said Tour
nament director Guy Webb.
The championship team this year
was TriB and the runner-up was Gran
ny’s Bomb Squad.
The tournament this year was billed
as the ‘Final Farewell’ and was held
in memory of tournament co-founder
Joan Hunter, who died last year. A niece
of Catfish Hunter, Joan Hunter was “the
backbone” of the softball tournament,
according to Webb.
Webb said the 2021 tournament
T-shirts sold out.
“And that’s the first time that that’s
ever happened,” he said. He also noted
that 500 shirts were ordered this year
—twice the usual number.
Joan Hunter’s name and image are
on this year’s shirts, and Webb said peo
ple wanted to buy the T-shirts as a way
of honoring and remembering her.
“We know that’s why we sold more
shirts,” Webb said.
Because of Joan Hunter’s death, and
also because Webb now lives in the
Charlotte area, the future of the tourna
ment is uncertain.
But Jimmy Harrell, co-founder of
the Jim “Catfish” Hunter ALS Founda
tion, said the foundation will continue
to do all it can to raise money for ALS
patients moving forward.
Hopefully that will include resuming
the walk-a-thon fundraiser next year,
See SOFTBALL, A3
Last year’s toy drive successful
despite COVID obstacles
BY SARAH WILLIAMS
Chowan/Perquimans Smart Start
Partnership
It is that time of year
again.
Applications for Toys
for Tots will be taken at
Chowan/Perquimans Smart
Start Partnership the entire
month of October. Families
in Chowan and Perquimans
may apply for their children
who are 12 and younger. The
Partnership is located at 409
Old Hertford Road in Eden
ton.
Last year, donations for
Toys for Tots in the region
suffered due to COVID-19.
Pastor Rodney Coles, co
ordinator for Toys for Tots
Northeastern North Caro
lina in Greenville, collects
the majority of the toys that
are distributed in the region.
However, last year no collec
tion boxes were put out and
Greenville-based WITN did
not hold its annual Toys for
Tots toy drive, despite hav
ing more applications than
ever before.
Despite the rise in
COVID-19 infections be
cause of the delta variant,
See TOYS, A9