Page 5
Hartman: We're
called to carry
light of Christ
into the new year
@SCAN ME
Page 3
New Ambassadors
program to help
'grow'moreteachers
for district
Page 4
In 12 Days of
Christmas, Dec.
25 just starts the
feast
A bigger Open Door
Man convicted of
1998 PQ robbery
pardoned by gov
KESHA WILLIAMS/THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY
Kim Stites, program manager at the Open Door Food Pantry of Perquimans County, stocks shelves in the pantry's new,
expanded location at 293 Creek Drive, Hertford, on Dec. 21 in preparation for its planned opening on Wednesday. A ribbon
cutting and open house for the new 3,200-square-foot facility, co-hosted by the Perquimans Chamber of Commerce, will
be held Friday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
FROM STAFF REPORTS
A man convicted of a
robbery in Perquimans
County in 1998 when he
was a teenager is one of four
people pardoned by the
governor on Wednesday.
Gov. Roy Cooper signed
a “pardon offorgive-
ness order” for Tramayne
Jomar Hinton and three
other ex-offenders — Por
tia Bright-Pittman, W.
Samuel Fagg, and Flem
ming Ragas — accord
ing to a press release from
Cooper’s office.
The governor also com
muted the prison sen
tence ofDarnell Cherry,
who was 16 when he was
convicted of second-de
gree murder and rob
bery in the death of Rob
ert Earl Edwards Jr. and
the robbery-shooting of
Sonja Williams in Bertie
County. Cherry, who had
already served 26 years in
prison and was projected
to be released in January
2035, had his sentenced
commuted to time served.
The commutation takes
effect Jan. 3, The Associ
ated Press reported.
According to Coo
per’s office, Hinton was
16 when he committed
the robbery in Perquim
ans County for which he
was convicted. He pleaded
guilty to common law
robbery in December
1999 and was sentenced to
a minimum prison term
of 13 months and maxi
mum term of 16 months.
His sentence was sus
pended for 36 months
during which time Hinton
was placed on probation.
More PARDON | A6
Food pantry to open at new site Wednesday
Ribbon cutting at
293 Creek Drive site
planned for Friday
KESHA WILLIAMS
Staff Writer
Eating healthier is about
to get easier for Perquimans
County residents who use
Mars Creamery lets Burtons give back
PHOTO COURTESY MARY BURTON
Mary and Jim Burton opened their new hand-scooped ice
cream shop, Mars Creamery, located inside Suite F of the
Hall of Fame building in Hertford, in October.
the local food pantry.
The Open Door Food
Pantry of Perquimans
County is slated to open in
its new location at 293 Creek
Drive, Hertford, on Wednes
day at 10 a.m., 18 months
after a nearly $500,000 ren
ovation project began on
its new building, the for
mer Highway 55 restaurant.
An open house and ribbon
cutting for the new facility,
cohosted by the Perquimans
Chamber of Commerce, will
be held two days later, on Fri
day from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
During the third week of
December, volunteers were
busy transporting non-per
ishable food from the food
pantry’s former site at 220
SAVANNAH HESS
Correspondent
As the weather gr^vs
colder, local residents are
looking for treats to put
them in a festive mood.
Mars Creamery hopes
to become your next go-to
place for sweet treats.
Mars Creamery is a
hand-scooped ice cream
shop located inside Suite F
of the Hall of Fame build
ing in Hertford. It’s owned
by husband and wife Mary
and Jim Burton.
The business offers a
variety of products such as
D Ocean Highway South,
Hertford, to the new facil
ity. They also were stock
ing shelves in the new facil
ity and inserting shelves into
freezers. At 3,200 square feet,
the new pantry will have
more than twice as much
space as the former facility.
More PANTRY | A2
scoops ofice cream, sun
daes, banana splits, shakes,
coffee, tea, hot chocolate,
and canned sodas. It also
offers around 22-24 flavors
ofice cream including pep
permint, mocha almond
fudge, and orange swirl as
well as several toppings.
“Our most popular item
is definitely our banana
splits,” says Mary Burton.
“Customers can choose
three scoops ofice cream
in any flavor, up to three
sauces, whipped cream, a
cherry, and the banana.”
More CREAMERY | A2
Three mental health
agencies to merge
Trillium to merge
with Eastpointe,
Sandhills Center
FROM STAFF REPORTS
The N.C. Department
ofHealth and Human Ser
vices has approved the
consolidation of three
private nonprofit agen
cies that manage men
tal health care services
in nearly half the states
counties, including all
counties in the northeast.
DHHS Secretary Kody
H. Kinsley approved the
consolidation agreement
between Greenville-based
Trillium Health Resources
and Eastpointe Human
Services based in Beu
laville in Duplin County on
Monday. The approval also
includes consolidation of
Eastpointe and Sandhills
Center, which is based in
West End in Moore County.
The consolidation, which
takes effect Jan. 1, creates a
service region operated by
Trillium that will include
46 counties stretching from
the coast to the Piedmont,
according to a DHHS news
release. For members and
providers, the consolida
tion will occur on Feb. 1.
Trillium and the other
agencies are local manage
ment entity-managed care
organizations that man
age the care ofindividuals
with substance use, men
tal illness and intellectual/
developmental disabilities
who are either uninsured,
underinsured and served
by Medicaid.
The agencies work
with community agen
cies, licensed indepen
dent practitioners and hos
pitals to help low-income
residents obtain care. The
LME-MCO system grew
out ofthe dissolution of the
state’s public health care
system formerly managed
at the county level.
More TRILLIUM | A6
Towns get new mayors, county buys land for new school
FROM STAFF REPORTS
Editor’s note: Today, The Per
quimans Weekly takes a look back
at some ofthe top stories in the
county during 2023.
Perquimans County was busy
in 2023 as residents ofHertford
and Winfall elected new mayors,
the county and town ofHertford
both approved new budgets that
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Vol. 88, No. 52
WWW.PerquimansWeekly.com
@2021 Perquimans Weekly
All Rights Reserved
increased property tax and utility
rates, and the Lady Pirates volley-
ball team made another deep run
into the state playoffs.
Hertford and Winfall both saw
changes in leadership in the Nov.
7 municipal election. In Hertford,
Ashley Hodges was sworn in as
the town’s new mayor and Keith
Rouse and Rhonda Waters took
their oath of office as new mem
bers ofTown Council during a
Dec. 4 meeting.
“We have great schools, afford
able property, state programs
have made huge investments in
infrastructure the past couple of
years and we are seeing renova
tions all over town,” Hodges said
in an interview prior to taking
office. “We love the small-town
character and all the things that
make it great. But we don’t want
to be complacent and we want to
be looking to the future and new
ideas.”
In Winfall, Preston White was
sworn in as the town’s new mayor
and Cynthia Gale White Cun
ningham and Arnetta Ormond
were sworn in for four-year terms
as town councilors.
“My vision is this is a fresh
start for the town,” White said
in an interview after his swear
ing-in. “I know people don’t
accept change sometimes, but
change is good.”
More REVIEW | A6
THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY
Hertford town council candidates Keith Rouse (left) and Rhonda Waters
(center) and mayoral candidate Ashley Hodges pose for a photo while
doing some last-minute campaigning for the Nov. 7 municipal election
outside the Perquimans County Library. Rouse, Waters and Hodges all
won their bids for office in the November election and were sworn in
for four-year terms in December.