QU I M ANS
EEKLY
“News from Next Door”
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2021 $1.50
@ SCAN ME
PAGE A4
Columnist says
he’s “in rehab" for
being a tightwad
PAGE A6
Perquimans
Recreation
Department
announces fall
leagues’ top
teams
PAGE A6
Perquimans
beats Riverside
to advance in
NCHSAA 1A
football playoffs
cc>
cs»
c::>
‘Just show up’: Mobile Food Pantry in need of volunteers
Perquimans pantry distributes food
in recreation center parking lot
BY REGGIE PONDER
Staff Writer
There’s a chance to combat hunger
among your Perquimans County neigh
bors on the second Friday morning of
every month.
The Perquimans Mobile Food Pantry
distributes food in the parking lot at the
Perquimans County Recreation Center.
Volunteers are needed especially at 9
or 9:30 am. when the truck arrives with
food for distribution from Food Bank of
the Albemarle in Elizabeth City.
Some of the food is already boxed or
bagged but other items must be bagged
by volunteers before it’s distributed.
The food meets a need in the commu
nity.
One of those who received food from
the Mobile Food Pantry on Friday was
Joyce James.
“I come every month,” James said.
“When you get a certain income you’ve
got to come every month.”
Jason Stanberry, who volunteered Fri
day alongside fellow members of the U.S.
Coast Guard, said he was glad to have the
opportunity to help with the Mobile Food
Pantry.
“It’s a big need now with the COVID
going on and the loss of jobs and all that,”
Stanberry said. “It’s good to give back to
the community.”
Bette Butler, who helps run the month
ly mobile pantry and has volunteered
with the program for a decade or more,
explained that people don’t need to call
or pre-register to volunteer.
“All they need to do is show up,” Butler
said.
Butler said Oak Grove United Method
ist Church, where she’s a member, took a
central role in operating the Perquimans
Mobile Food Pantry about 10 years ago
and has been working with the program
ever since.
Her twin sister Bonnie Jensen also is a
longtime volunteer with the Mobile Food
Pantry.
Butler noted the work is often chal
lenging. As volunteers hurried and scur
ried to get food bagged and boxed, hun
dreds of recipients were already forming
a long line in their waiting cars.
“But it’s rewarding,” she said. “It’s some
thing we can do to serve the community.”
Perquimans County Sheriff Shelby
White and sheriff’s deputies provide vol
unteer support for the Mobile Food Pan
try on a regular basis.
Other organizations and churches
provide volunteers from time to time and
some people also volunteer on an indi
vidual basis.
REGGIE PONDER/THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY
Volunteering at the Perquimans Mobile Food Pantry
Friday were (clockwise from front left) Jason Stanberry
and Jason Upshaw from the U.S. Coast Guard and Joe
Elliott and Danny Stallings from Masonic Lodge #106 in
Hertford.
Honoring their service
Veterans Day speaker honors true heroes
Ex-town clerk:
Firing wrongful
Earhart: Heroes not rock
stars or pro athletes
BY REGGIE PONDER
Staff Writer
The speaker at the annu
al Veterans Day observance
Thursday challenged the
audience to give diligent
consideration to what it
means to be a hero.
“We’re in a time and a
place in our nation where
we are in need of real he
roes,” said Eric Earhart,
founding pastor of Upper
Room Assembly Church in
Gatesville and a veteran of
the U.S. Army and Virginia
National Guard.
Societies have a pro
pensity toward creating
“mythological heroes” and
in contemporary American
Society those include rock
stars, actors, athletes and
others associated with a
visible showing of “flash
and fire,” Earhart said.
He contrasted the mytho
logical image of a hero with
real heroes such as a young
man he knows from Gates
County who lost an eye
serving in Afghanistan and
has returned home to raise
a family and go on with his
life. The young man would
never consider himself a
hero, “but that’s exactly
what he is,” Earhart said.
Vincent Denny, First
Class Scout of Troop 150,
led the Pledge of Allegiance
REGGIE PONDER/THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY
Presenting the Colors at the Veterans Day program in Hertford Thursday, Nov. 11,
were (l-r) Dean Engelhardt, American Legion Post 126 vice commander and a U.S.
Navy veteran; Gary Kollmann, American Legion Post 126 adjutant and a U.S. Army
veteran; Jeff Creasey, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran; and Charles Overton, American
Legion Post 362 member and U.S. Army veteran.
at the Veterans Day ceremo
ny which was attended by
approximately 80 people.
Benjamin Roberts, a U.S.
Army veteran and chaplain
of American Legion Post
126, gave the invocation,
praying for peace and giv
ing thanks for veteraps’
service.
The flags of the armed
forces were also posted
by the following: Wilson
Rountree, U.S. Army veter
an, the U.S. Army flag; Pete
Perry, U.S. Marine Corps
veteran, the U.S. Marine
Corps flag; Terry Swope,
U.S. Navy veteran, the U.S.
Navy flag; Ken Rominger,
U.S. Air Force veteran, the
U.S. Air Force flag; Dean
Englehardt, U.S. Navy vet
eran, the U.S. Coast Guard
flag; and Pete Perry the U.S.
Merchant Marine flag.
Engelhardt explained
the significance of the emp
ty chair and table setting in
remembrance of prisoners
of war and soldiers missing
in action.
In closing remarks,
American Legion Post 362
Commander and U.S. Army
veteran Reggie White told
the audience that they are
surrounded by heroes in
Perquimans County.
Simpson opposed editing of
minutes, improper notarization
BY REGGIE PONDER
Staff Writer
The town of Hertford’s
former clerk publicly told
members of Town Council
last week she was wrong
fully terminated because
she refused to accede to
requests she believed were
wrong.
Olga Simpson, who ac
cording to a member of
council was fired by a split
3-2 vote on Sept. 13, public
ly objected to her dismissal
during the council’s meeting
Board approves
grandstand pact
Schools will own 300-seat
grandstand once completed
BY REGGIE PONDER
Staff Writer
The Perquimans County
Board of Education has ap
proved an agreement with the
Perquimans County Schools
Foundation Inc. for the grand
stand project at the baseball
field at the high school.
The board approved a
memorandum of understand ¬
on Monday, Nov. 8.
Simpson said she expects
many citizens are wonder
ing why she is no longer
town clerk.
“I am wondering that my
self since I did nothing to
warrant my dismissal and I
was terminated wrongfully,”
Simpson said.
Simpson said she has re
quested a formal letter of
termination from the town
but had not yet received
one.
“I am here tonight be
cause I have not received
such a letter,” she said.
Simpson said she also
See CLERK, A3
ing for the project at a special
meeting Nov. 9.
The board also approved a
contract with WYN Technolo
gies Inc. for video surveillance
equipment for Perquimans
County High School. The con
tract pays WYN $47,854.64.
Under the grandstand proj
ect agreement, the schools
foundation agrees to perform
volunteer services as speci
fied “in an effort to improve
the physical condition of the
See GRANDSTAND, A7
Awrey: Coaching venues may change, principles don’t
Former college coach brings same
approach to high school game
BY MIKE WOOD
Correspondent
HERTFORD—If you were told to
find a football coach for your school,
you would probably start with the
following requirements:
He would have to love football,
6 1 89076 47144
2
Vol. 87, No. 46
WWW.PerquimansWeekly.com
@2021 Perquimans Weekly
All Rights Reserved
and be willing to work a lot of hours,
maybe even sleep in the office once
or twice. He would know how tough
it is to win, but he wouldn’t have
any doubts about his ability to mo
tivate kids. He would be part am
bassador, part father figure, and all
man. He would have a heart for the
over-achiever, but be able to hand
out discipline like a drill sergeant
He would look like Kevin Cost
ner, and come into the room like he
was leading a parade with a smile
for everyone. He would never duck
responsibilities, be a strong family
man, and have the morals of a min
ister. He would make friends easily,
promote the program, and make ev
eryone in the building feel a part of
something great. And, by the way, it
would help if he had a lot of experi
ence.
When Perquimans County High
School hired Randy Awrey to coach
their high school football team in
2018, they pretty much checked all
the boxes. Well, the coach is a little
shorter than Costner.
It was sort of a “perfect storm”
that brought the coach to the area
He had been coaching in the college
ranks for about 35 years, and had
been a head coach at four different
universities. There was Kentucky
Wesleyan (1990-94), Lakeland Col
lege (Sheboygan, Wisconsin, 1994-
98), Saginaw Valley State University
(University Center, Michigan, 1999-
2007), and finally Concordia Univer
sity (Chicago, 2013-17). He had come
See AWREY, A7
ANDRE’ ALFRED/THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY
Randy Awrey is in his fourth season as the head football coach at
Perquimans County High School.