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"‘News from Next Door”
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 30, 2021
rn SCAN ME
PAGE A2
Foundation
makes Christmas
merrier for 100
residents with event
in Winfall
PAGE Bl
Northeast NO
trade center to
begin classes in
January
PAGE B3*
After 20 years
in Japan, couple
enjoys holidays
back in N.C.
KEYS to safe schools
REGGIE PONDER/THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY
Celebrating K.E.Y.S.’ $3,400 dona tion to Perquimans County Schools on Dec. 16 are (l-r) Sgt. David Murray of the
Perquimans County Sheriff’s Office; K.E.Y.S. board members Sherie Cartwright and Stacey White; Perquimans
County Schools Assistant Superintendent James Bunch; K.E.Y.S. founder Bridget Jernigan; and Perquimans County
Sheriff Shelby White.
$3.4K donation to aid Hertford Grammar
Funds will hi iv metal detector anti
3 hand wands for elementary school
From staff reports
Local school safety nonprofit KEYS
has donated more than $3,400 to the
Perquimans County Schools to impr ove
school safety.
On Dec. 16 Keeping Every Youth Siafe
founder Bridget Jernigan and two KEYS
board members presented a check for
$3,410.66 to the Perquimans County
Schools in a brief ceremony outside at
the schools’ central office.
Jernigan said the funding will be used
to purchase a metal detector and three
hand wands for Hertford Grammar
School.
KEYS’ sole mission is to raise funds
for safety needs in the Perquimans
County Schools for which there is not
sufficient funding in the district’s capital
outlay budget.
In the aftermath of an incident earlier
this month in which a student brought
a loaded firearm onto a school campus
in Elizabeth City, Jernigan asked Perqui
mans Schools Assistant Superintendent
James Bunch if there were any immedi
ate safety-related needs in the Perquim
ans Schools. He told her a metal detec
tor was needed for Hertford Grammar,
along with three wands.
*’ Jernigan and Perquimans Sheriff
Shelby White worked together to obtain
the $3,410.66 package price for the four
items.
KEYS had on hand $2,600. The con
tributions that made up that amount in
cluded some donations that were origi
nally for a ball that had been planned as
a fundraiser but was canceled due to the
COVID-19 pandemic.
The remaining $800 for the project
was raised by Jernigan and board mem
ber Sherie Cartwright. They contacted
five local business owners who, be
tween them, covered the balance. KEYS
See KEYS, A3
Hertford council
appoints Cole
interim manager
Former judge, US attorney
looking forward to challenge
BY REGGIE PONDER
Staff Writer
Hertford Town Council
voted Hiesday, Dec. 21, to
appoint local attorney Jan
ice McKenzie Cole to be the
town’s interim town manag
er.
The appointment is effec
tive Jan. 1. Cole will serve
as the assistant town man
ager from Dec. 28 until she
assumes full management
responsibilities Jan. 1.
Cole, a former U.S. Attor
ney, district court judge and
Perquimans County com
missioners, said Wednesday
that she is looking forward
to the new role.
“It’s a challenge and I wel
come a challenge,” she said.
Cole said she was ap
proached by town officials
and asked to consider the
interim town manager posi
tion. While she was glad to
accept the post, she is not
interested in the permanent
town manager’s job.
Hertford Mayor Earnell
Brown was enthusiastic
about Cole’s appointment
“Judge Cole’s creden
tials, experience and repu
tation make her eminently
qualified to move Hertford
forward as we search for
COLE
a perma
nent town
manager,”
Brown
said.
One of
the chal-
l e n g e s
Cole will
have as
interim
manager will be ensuring
that town government im
plements all processes and
procedures that need to be
in place. Hertford also is
looking at the potential for
significant growth and de
velopment and will need to
have infrastructure in place
to accommodate it, she said.
Cole will work with Town
Manager Pam Hurdle until
Hurdle’s retirement takes
effect on Jan. 1. Hertford of
ficials paid tribute to Hurdle
in apress release.
“The Town Council and
staff thank Manager Pam
Hurdle for her more than 23
years of service to the town
of Hertford,” the release
stales. ‘The town is grateful
for her dedicated work and
wishes her all the best in re
tirement”
Hurdle, who was ap
pointed town manager in
October 2018, announced
her retirement in August.
See COLE, A3
Region’s first case
of omicron variant
Johnson named co-Bearer of Shield at ECSU
detected in Chowan
Honor given to transfer
student with highest GPA
BY REGGIE PONDER
Staff Writer
Hertford resident Anna
Nicole Johnson believes fur
thering her education will
help her do the best possible
job as director of 911 emer
gency communications in
nearby Washington County.
Johnson, who also works
part-time as an emergency
dispatcher in Perquimans,
graduated from Elizabeth
City State University this
month with a bachelor’s de
gree in criminal justice and a
4.0-grade point average.
At EeSu’s fall commence
ment she was co-recipient of
the newly created Bearer of
the S hield honor, which rec-
ogniz.es the transfer student
with the highest cumulative
GPA
The other co-recipient
was Alexis Nicole Harper
of Princeville. Bearer of the
Mace honors, which go to
the non-transfer student with
the liighest cumulative GPA,
went; to Taylor Dawn Pierce
of Edenton.
Johnson is not content
with her current level of aca
demic achievement, though.
She has applied to master’s
degree programs at East
See JOHNSON, A3
PHOTO COURTESY ECSU
Co-Bearer of the Shield Anna Nicole Johnson of Hertford
(center) poses for a photo at Elizabeth City State
University’s 2021 winter commencement ceremony
with Chancellor Karrie Dixon (left) and ECSU Board of
Trustees Chairwoman Stephanie Johnson.
Cooper: New variant will be
dominant in NC by mid-Jan.
BY JULIAN EURE
The Daily Advance
The region’s first case
of the coronavirus vari
ant that federal health
officials say is now the
nation’s most dominant
has been found in Chow
an County, the region’s
health director said last
week.
Battle Betts Jr. said in
a press' release Dec. 21
that the omicron variant
was detected in a labo
ratory-confirmed case of
COVID-19 during a rou
tine sampling of cases last
week. He noted that while
not all lab-confirmed cas
es are “typed” to deter
mine their strain, some
are sampled to find out
which strains “are circu
lating in a community.”
The U.S. Centers for
Disease Control and Pre
vention reported last
week that omicron is now
the dominant strain of the
coronavirus in the U.S.,
accounting for 73% of new
infections. North Carolina
Gov. Roy Cooper said last
week that state health of
ficials anticipate omicron
becoming the dominant
strain in North Carolina
by mid-January.
See OMICRON, A3
Perquimans providing temporary 911 service in Gates
Gates manager: 911 staffing
shortage prompted move
From staff reports
GATESVILLE — Because of
staffing shortages at the Gates
County 911 center, Perquini-
6 1 89076 47144
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Vol. 87, No. ^2
WWW.PerquimansWeekly.com
@2021 Perquimans Weekly
All Rights Reserved
ans County’s 911 center is also
temporarily providing dispatch
ing services in the neighboring
county.
Gates County Manager Tim
Wilson said the Gates County
911 Communications Center en
acted its mutual aid agreement
with the Perquimans County 911
Center on Friday, Dec. 17.
Under the agreement, the
Gates County 911 Dispatch Cen
ter has temporarily relocated to
the 911 center in Perquimans
and Gates telecommunicators
began working at the Perquim
ans center at 6 p.m. on Dec. 17.
“Because of the urgent need in
the providing of this critical ser
vice, this move happened quick
ly, which didn’t allow for ad
vance public notification,” Gates
County Manager Tim Wilson said
in a press release Wednesday.
Wilson emphasized the move
was temporary to ensure conti
nuity of services.
“As soon as qualified person
nel are hired to fill the existing
dispatcher vacancies that neces
sitated this move, 911 dispatch
ing services will relocate back to
the Gates County 911 Dispatch
Center,” he said.
He did not provide a timetable
for when Gates expects the per
sonnel will be hired.
The main difference Gates
County residents will notice
during the change is that all 911
and administrative calls will be
answered “Perquimans County
911,” Wilson said.
“While this is what a caller will
hear, Gates County telecommu
nicators are still very involved in
the call-taking and dispatching
process,” he said.
Wilson said that regardless of
where the dispatching service
is provided, Gates citizens will
continue to receive professional
dispatching service.
“Jointly with two telecom
municators from Perquimans,
the employees are managing all
administrative and 911 calls, as
well as all radio traffic for first
responders in both counties,” he
said.
Wilson said Gates officials are
especially thankful for Perquim
ans County officials’ help. Per
quimans “has made this sudden
change as seamless as possible,”
he said, adding there have been
no disruptions to 911 service.
“A positive outcome of this
situation is that our 911 Commu
nications staff are updating our
See 911, A3