Emerson Chattin is not entirely sure she wants to pick up the egg her mom, Briana, is pointing out at Fisher River Park during the 2018 Surry County Parks and Recreation Easter Egg Hunt. The event is slated to return April 2, after a three-year absence. (Mount Airy News | File Photo)

A spring tradition will be returning to Surry County this year, when the Surry County Parks and Recreation holds an Easter Egg Hunt at Fisher River Park in Dobson.

The hunt was an annual tradition put on by the department until 2020. That year, as was the case with most of regular public gatherings, the event was cancelled in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Last year, still in the throes of the pandemic, it was again cancelled.

This year, with the drop in local cases, the recreation department will bring back the popular event.

“We usually tally over 600 people entering the gate,” said Bradley Key, program coordinator for parks and rec. “The event is more than just the egg hunt…between 10 and 1, community vendors, agencies, civil service groups along with their vehicles — fire trucks, Humvees, various vehicles — are on display. Families come, visit these booths, talk with representatives from these agencies.”

There is also plenty of fun, with the Easter Bunny expected to be onhand to visit with children, along with face painting, arts, crafts, and other activities.

Best of all, Key said, the event is free — though organizers are asking those attending to bring a canned food item for donation, with the food going to area food banks.

Of course, the big draw — at least for the youth — is the Easter egg hunt. Key said roughy 8,000 eggs will be there.

“Each egg will be stuffed with candy or toys and there is a grand prize Golden Egg to be found in each age group’s area,” he said.

Key explained the egg hunting is done in three shifts, with kids grouped by age. At noon those aged birth up to 3 will collect eggs, at 12:20 p.m. the 4- to 6-year-olds will be let loose on the field; and at 12:40 those aged 7 and older will have their chance.

“You don’t want to be late,” he said with a laugh. “They can clear a whole ball field of thousands of eggs in less than 5 minutes. It is amazing. Generally, each child collects at least 20 eggs.”

He does say children need to bring their own baskets, although the county will have a limited number available for those who may forget or need an additional basket.

“We would love to see a similar size crowd to what we’ve had in the past, it’s a great fun healthy activity for the families to get back involved in. Folks may have not had as much opportunity to have fun over the past couple of years. We’re happy to offer this as a chance to get out for a fun, family activity.”

He said the event is outdoors, which will limit potential COVID issues, and while masks are not required, individuals are still free to wear one if they want. The county will have hand sanitizer on hand for individuals to use, and he said there will be plenty of space for people to spread out, observing social distancing practices.

The gathering is set for April 2. For more information, visit the Parks and Recreation Facebook page.

Key said if inclement weather occurs and the event cannot be held, it will still go on — just in a drive-through format, with folks able to drive up for youth to get some goody-filled eggs.

Horne Creek Farm holding apple tree sale

Rockford Elementary’s Student Council recently held a “Rockford’s Got Talent” show. There were 24 performances by various students and classes.

More than 60 students earned their High School Equivalency (HSE) and Adult High School diplomas from Surry Community College during the 2021-2022 academic year.

Of the graduates, 22 participated in the HSE/AHS graduation held at the Surry Community College Gymnasium in Dobson.

Courtney Schmeltzer and Alfrida Bryant were guest speakers, and SCC President Dr. David Shockley presented graduates with their diplomas.

The graduation participants include Hyatt Cooke, Katie Cox, Mack Hines, Alissa Holland, Alyssia McDaniel, Vanessa Page, James Rogers, Betzabeh Vera and Jocabeth Vera of Mount Airy; Timothy Foster of Pilot Mountain; Fayth Bauguess of Elkin; Ethan Billings of Roaring River; Courtney Schmeltzer of Lawsonville; Hailyee Blanton and Alishia Smith of Boonville; Edith Navarro of Hamptonville; Jorge Benitez, Edgar Cedano, Laura Ferrera and Krystal Peterson of Yadkinville; and Alfrida Bryant of Jonesville.

Surry offers two assessment options for earning a High School Equivalency Diploma. Students can take either the General Educational Development Test or the High School Equivalency Test. Successful passage of either test results in an HSE Diploma issued by the North Carolina Board of Community Colleges. Surry offers free preparation classes to give students an opportunity to gain the knowledge and skills needed to successfully pass the test. Online preparation classes are also offered.

Surry’s Adult High School program offers an alternative to the HSE program for adults who did not graduate from high school. Anyone lacking a few credits from high school can enroll in the online program in order to acquire a high school diploma. The Adult High School program was established by SCC with affiliation agreements from local school districts. An Adult High School diploma is awarded by the number of credits and specified courses adopted by the State Board of Education as the requirement for graduation from the public high school.

For more information about SCC’s High School Equivalency programs, contact Jennifer Pardue at 336-386-3674 or Courtney Jackson at 336-386-3663.

The Surry County Historical Society this weekend is continuing its recently revived series of open house events at a local landmark.

Tours for the public are scheduled at the historic Edwards-Franklin House on Saturday and Sunday from 1 to 5 p.m. both days. These are free events to which everyone is invited, said Dr. Annette Ayers of the society.

The open house tours resumed in May after being suspended in 2020 and 2021 due to COVID-19.

Located at 4132 Haystack Road west of Mount Airy, the Edwards-Franklin House was constructed in 1799 and is considered the finest example of its architectural type in the Piedmont region.

The house was built by Gideon Edwards and later occupied by his son-in-law, Meshack Franklin, a member of Congress and brother of North Carolina Gov. Jesse Franklin, who served in the 1820s.

In 1972, the Edwards-Franklin House was bought by the Surry County Historical Society and restored to its former grandeur. The structure features many unique architectural components.

Surry Community College hosted a Graduate Career Expo recently, providing graduates with the opportunity to meet with many businesses who were recruiting employees.

“We appreciate the support of our local businesses by their participation in this inaugural event,” said Rachel L. Hiatt, SCC coordinator for Work-Based Learning and Apprenticeship Initiatives. “The college’s Purpose Center offered graduates help with resume preparation and interview skills during workshops in April.”

Businesses in attendance were Carport Central/The Central Steel Group; Chatham Nursing and Rehab; Hugh Chatham Memorial Hospital; J’s HVAC Unlimited LLC; Johnson Granite Inc.; Moore and Associates Engineering and Consulting; Mountain Valley Hospice; Ottenweller Company; Pike Electric; Prism Medical Products; Salem Electric Co.; Surry Communications; Wayne Farms LLC; and Weyerhaeuser; Workforce Unlimited.

The SCC Marketing Department took complimentary digital professional headshots of students for their social media sites during the event.

Any business representative wishing to partner with SCC to find employees, interns or apprentices should contact Hiatt 336-386-3291 or hiattr@surry.edu.

A popular event held at the Mount Airy/Surry County Airport last fall is back by popular demand. The Second Annual Auto Show and Fly In at the Airport, presented by Speedology Solutions, LLC, will be held this Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The event has a rain date of Saturday, June 18, just in case mother nature does not cooperate.

“We’re very excited to be partnering again with Speedology Solutions, LLC,” Airport Manager George Crater said. “They do a great job of coordinating, and airport staff provides the facility and handles aviation needs throughout the day.”

While the car show in 2021 was a great success and food trucks fared well, the rain impacted attendance for both spectators and the planes for the fly-in aspect of the auto show. Still, more than 120 domestic, import, classic and exotic vehicles were on hand and those in attendance got to take a leisurely stroll down the tarmac looking at all sorts of cool rides.

A big difference from the auto show last year will be that motorcycle owners are invited to show off their steel horses. Organizers of the 2022 show are hopeful that beautiful summer-like weather will boost attendance, “I expect it to be even better this year,” Crater said.

She also noted that the event moved ahead one hour so as to get as much of the event in before the heat and humidity creep in during the afternoon.

The price has been reduced from the previous show, it is $20 per show car which includes the fees for all the people in that car. General admission will be $5 each for those who are not showing.

Knowing no such event is complete without the eats, the fly in auto show will be featuring food trucks including Cilantro & Tacos and Lobster Dogs. The Dapper Bean coffee truck and Opie’s Candy Store are also slated to be in attendance.

Tickets for the event can be bought at the gate or in advance by following the link on the Mount Airy/Surry County Airport’s website: www.mascairport.com.

For those taking in the fun of the auto show and fly in, they may want to leave time in the afternoon available to take in another festival along with motorcycle ride in Mount Airy. The Mount Airy Men’s Shelter will be hosting their Mount Airy Men’s Shelter Summer Festival & Motorcycle Ride on Saturday, at Veterans Memorial Park, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

“Our first annual fundraiser is to help with the expenses of getting the shelter ready to occupy. Moving some walls, adding some showers, and getting the kitchen together,” organizer Ann Simmons said.

“Along with these beautiful motorcycles on display and the scenic motorcycle ride, there will also be lots of great vendor booths and a raffle for a grill,” she said. “The kid’s area will feature a sack race, twisty balloon guy, giant slide, kids’ removable tattoos, water balloon toss, obstacle course, football toss, corn hole, rock and craft painting, ice cream, shaved ice, and kids’ hot dogs.”

On hand will be BBQ by Aunt Bea’s, Mountain Top Concessions, Kona Ice of Mount Airy, Belle Full Vending, and Pickalicious. There are also going to be more than 40 vendors from local businesses on hand.

For the little ones there will be two bouncy castles, kids games, and activities that are free for the kids. Games operated by vendors are not, organizers want to remind.

The event is raising money for the new Mount Airy Men’s Shelter which was founded in order to give the homeless men of this area a place to sleep when they are in need.

“The creation of a men’s shelter, with onsite supportive services, has the potential to significantly decrease costs to the Surry County taxpayer. Without shelter the homeless arrive at emergency rooms, urgent care centers, and local businesses,” the group said.

For more information, visit: Facebook.com/Mt.AiryNCMensShelter

The Mount Airy Public Library will be holding an author meet and greet with Sarah McCoy of Winston-Salem this Saturday at 2 p.m.

Her latest novel, ‘Mustique Island’ is the seventh novel written by McCoy.

For this weekend’s meet and greet event, she said all are welcome as her book was written for “anyone with an open heart seeking to learn something new about an unknown place, a past time, and people unlike any other you’ve ever met before. It’s a book that welcomes all readers to its shores. It’s time the secrets were unveiled.”

McCoy paints quite a scene, “Willy May Michael was a beauty queen in her small town of Texas as a young woman. So, she’s only a beauty queen in once-upon-a-time memory alone. When the book opens in 1972, she is a mother of two grown daughters, divorced from her husband, shunned from British society, the captain of her own ship, and a new resident on Mustique Island. Thus, her tiara is just for show, like so many things on Mustique Island. Like so many things in all our lives.”

“She willingly joins this circle. She believes it’s what she wants — to be part of the world’s most exclusive upper crust,” McCoy explained. “Princess Margaret is a fellow resident, as is Mick Jagger, and guests included many of the world’s most illustrious fashion designers, magazine models, actors, and even powerful gangsters. It is an island of the most elite of celebrities. To build a life in that kind of paradise sounded too good to be true, and it was.”

The island of Mustique sits deep in the South of the Caribbean, around 60 miles to the North of the island of Granada. McCoy finds her own lineage in the Caribbean; although she moved often as military child, he mother’s family still lived mostly in Puerto Rico.

She is happy to return to her Caribbean roots in Mustique Island. “The novel is a family saga of a mother, her daughters, and all the ancestral roots and branches that tangle, catch, cradle, and bear us up to unimaginable heights. It’s wild, baby.”

That sounds like an open invitation for a new summer read. McCoy’s novel has already been graced with positive reviews while finding itself Town & Country’s Best Book of May Pick, Vox Magazine Pick of May, and Deep South Magazine‘s Summer Reading List Pick among others.

The Booklist review says in part, “McCoy’s underlying tale of women-in-crisis who claw their way back to strength carries sobering messages about the importance of family loyalty and resiliency.”

Family is important to McCoy, “I was a gypsy child my whole life and am very happy to have finally put down roots in Winston-Salem. It’s a genuinely beautiful place full of genuinely beautiful people.”

She calls herself a southern lady and with roots in Kentucky as well as Puerto Rico, she is a modern Southern woman of mixed descent. She said that her mixed background did not cause her challenges, “Not at all. In fact, it empowers me to understand that not one person on this earth is singular in his or her history.”

“We are all hybrids no matter the color of your skin, the religion you choose, the titles you are given, or the lineage from which you descend. We are one humankind. The pandemic taught us that unquestionably!”

For the self-described gypsy the future holds more of the same and she has pen to paper already, “I’m working on my next novel. So that means more time researching, traveling to the setting, and putting the characters’ stories down on paper. More time in my writing cave. I welcome that!”

For readers and aspiring authors alike, the Mount Airy Public Library invites them to attend the meet and greet Saturday at 2 p.m.

More information on Sarah McCoy can be found: sarahmccoy.com.

Local economic-development officials are hoping a large tract of now-wooded property at Mount Airy’s Westwood Industrial Park can be better marketed to companies with the help of Golden LEAF funding.

“It’s going to help us get that site ready for development,” Surry County Economic Development Partnership President Todd Tucker said Tuesday regarding $39,650 just awarded for the park located in the northwestern part of the city where some facilities now exist.

The Golden LEAF Board of Directors approved the funding for Surry through its SITE Program-Due Diligence component targeting such projects to stimulate job growth. The Golden LEAF Foundation was established in 1999 to administer money received by North Carolina through a master settlement with cigarette companies, aimed at strengthening economies of communities — with special emphasis on rural areas that have depended on tobacco.

Westwood is one of three projects in North Carolina tapped for SITE Program-Due Diligence assistance, with the others in Robeson and Martin counties. Receiving the money will allow eligible activities such as environmental assessments, archaeological analyses and mapping to be completed.

“Essentially what that is, is predevelopment work for the undeveloped tract of land,” Mount Airy Community Development Director Martin Collins explained Tuesday regarding the Westwood Park property involved.

“It’s a pretty large tract of land,” Collins added, “I’m going to say the largest tract of undeveloped land the city has presently.”

The predevelopment efforts will pinpoint the presence of wetlands or endangered species on the property along with geotechnic findings, according to Tucker, who wrote the grant application for Golden LEAF funding. Geotechnics is a branch of engineering dealing with characteristics of soil and its suitability for construction.

Industries eyeing sites for new facilities tend to be “risk-averse,” the county’s chief economic-development official says, which make them avoid locations with question marks that could disrupt timetables and cause lengthy delays.

“They just don’t know what’s there,” Tucker said of prospects who might eyeball the available property at Westwood Industrial Park, which first came on the scene in the 1980s.

“We’ve got approximately 100 acres up there in Westwood,” Tucker said of the space available for industrial development.

It is located out Boggs Drive, off Westlake Drive, to an area in the vicinity of an Andrew Pearson Design manufacturing plant adjacent to a cul-de-sac.

Now when business prospects visit the property, all they see is a large forest. This in itself can cause development problems even without wetland or endangered species issues emerging, Collins said of related tasks including cutting trees and removing stumps.

That can derail a potential project by hampering what already might be a tight time frame, the community development director mentioned.

Helping with such needs seems tailor-made for what Golden LEAF officials seek to accomplish, in the view of Don Flow, the chairman of the organization’s board.

“The need for industrial sites, especially in rural areas, was a gap identified in our strategic planning process,” Flow said in a statement. “As we have seen, ready sites are no longer a luxury but a necessity to move at the speed of business.”

Flow says the latest SITE Program projects benefiting Surry and other counties will help prepare North Carolina for economic growth opportunities.

Tucker, the Surry Economic Development Partnership official, is hopeful about the analytical activities planned at Westwood Industrial Park and the answering of key questions about any aggravating factors present.

“It’s going to help us determine all that and get ready for future development,” he advised.

“Ultimately, it’s going to make that site more marketable.”

• The laundry of a Virginia woman was stolen Monday afternoon from a business in Mount Airy, according to city police reports.

The incident occurred at 651 N. South St., the address listed for the Lady Bug cleaning establishment, where miscellaneous clothing items, a youth baseball uniform and a white sheet cover — valued altogether at $400 — were taken.

Samantha Starr Willard of Valley End Road in Ararat is listed as the victim of the crime.

• Josue Munoz, 32, of 142 Fairview Club Lane, Dobson, was charged early Sunday with impaired supervision of instruction, due to his alleged overseeing of someone else’s operation of a 2007 Hyundai Elantra while Munoz himself was legally under the influence of alcohol.

The charge stemmed from a motor vehicle collision, which police records indicate occurred in the vicinity of the Scenic Chevrolet-Buick-GMC dealership on Rockford Street. Munoz was released on a written promise to appear in Surry District Court on July 11.

• Coach’s Bar and Grill was the scene of a larceny on June 1, when a known individual left the restaurant on North Andy Griffith Parkway without paying for food valued at $48 which was ordered for a meal, listed as burgers, a hot dog and other items including a margarita.

The matter was still under investigation at last report.

• Stefanee Nikole Davis, 22, of 292 Fisher Peak Trail, Lowgap, was charged with larceny and possession of stolen goods on the night of May 29, when she allegedly stole various beauty products and a package of tortillas at Dollar General on North Renfro Street, valued altogether at $29.

Davis later was located by Officer Adam Jones at the McDonald’s fast-foot establishment nearby and admitted to stealing the merchandise, which was found in her purse during a probable-cause search, police records state.

It was returned to the store, from which Davis has been banned. In addition to the La Banderita tortillas, bottles of Suave Aroma shampoo and conditioner, Bioré skin cleanser, a Conair comb, a Studio portable manicure kit and Fit Me powdered makeup were taken.

The Lowgap woman is facing a June 20 court appearance.

• Austin Alexander Deluca, 20, of 1215 Brooklen Ave., was served with an outstanding criminal summons for a charge of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle after he was encountered by police late on the night of May 28 at Riverside Park during a security check.

The charge had been filed through the Surry County Sheriff’s Office on May 26 with Paul Swift of Maple Drive, Mount Airy, as the complainant. Deluca is scheduled to be in District Court on June 16.

• Olivia Easter Roberts, 44, of 248 Chatham Road, was served with an outstanding criminal summons for a school attendance law violation on May 26, when she was encountered by police during a civil disturbance at another home on Chatham Road.

The summons had been issued through the Surry Sheriff’s Office on May 17, with Roberts facing a July 5 court date.

• Ethan Tyler Deskins, 21, of 201 Jones School Road, was served with a criminal summons for a second-degree trespassing charge on May 26 when encountered by officers investigating a suspicious person in that area and found to be the subject of the summons that had been filed on March 17 with Tammy Pell of Jones School Road as the complainant.

Deskins was scheduled to be in District Court Wednesday.

• Matthew Thomas Jarry, 22, of 1646 Joe Layne Mill Road, Elkin, was charged with hit and run on May 24, involving a 2004 Jeep Cherokee Jarry was operating which was involved in a crash.

Police later located him on West Elm Street, but the site of the alleged hit and run was not listed. The case is set for the June 27 session of District Court.

GREENSBORO — Three-and-a-half years after Kieffer | Starlite sign company purchased Burton Signs of Mount Airy — and less than a year after announcing an expansion at the local plant — Kieffer | Starlite has opted to sell the facility as part of a company-wide, multi-month reorganization.

And in so doing, the former Burton Signworks company in Mount Airy has come full circle.

Allen Industries, a family-owned company based in Greensboro, announced on Wednesday it had acquired the Mount Airy production facility of national sign company Kieffer | Starlite earlier this spring.

The move brings together two firms which have, in some ways, always been connected. Wayne Burton, founder of what would eventually become Burton Signworks, started the Mount Airy business in 1983 — after learning the trade by working for Allen Industries.

“Wayne Burton got his start in the sign business working for Allen Industries in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s before starting Burton Electric Signs Inc. in 1974,” said Tom Allen, Allen Industries president.

Burton grew his sign business from a one-man, one-truck operation to a business with as many as 50-75 employees before eventually selling his sign company to a local business group in 2007, according to Allen Industries. Burton continued to work there until his retirement in 2010.

He ran the operation as a family-owned business, something Tom Allen said his firm does as well. His grandfather started Allen Industries in 1931 with neon signs, successfully growing into a full-service signage and architectural elements manufacturer and installation company. Now he, his brothers, and some fourth-generation family members work at the firm, which has manufacturing facilities in North Carolina, Florida, Arizona and Ohio.

The Mount Airy facility will be Allen Industries seventh location, allowing the signage company more capacity, equipment and expertise to design, build and maintain every type of signage and re-imaging program and fulfill even more projects across the U.S. and abroad. Allen Industries completed nearly 2,000 national and international installations last year.

The Mount Airy facility has already undergone some changes over the past two years. Its previous owners announced last spring it would be consolidating two area locations into one, at 699 Junction Street, and expanding its workforce and production facilities.

That owner, Kieffer | Starlite, has since undergone significant changes as well. In November, the firm announced it was “right sizing” its operations, shutting down all of its production facilities except for Mount Airy and one in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. In April, the firm announced it had been acquired by PSCO Global Group, and that acquisition included the Wisconsin plant. While the sale of the Mount Airy facility was not announced until Wednesday, that also took place in April.

Now, the local manufacturing operation is in the hands of the place where its founder got his start in the sign business.

“Wayne Burton ran his operation with the same family-oriented atmosphere we strive for at Allen Industries,” said Tom Allen. “Just as we mentored him early in his career, Wayne was well known for his nurturing of young individuals starting in the signage profession and as a result, he had the loyalty and tenure of his employees. Much like Wayne’s business, Allen Industries has many longtime employees who start here and retire with us. With the acquisition of this Mount Airy facility, the Allen-Burton legacy comes full circle and we couldn’t be more pleased to become a part of this fantastic community.”

Allen Industries plans to add employees and “bring back the numbers and culture of the former Burton Electric Signs/Burton Signworks and welcomes all applications.”

“At Allen Industries, you’ll find a family business and culture where our people are our most valuable asset and our team members work together to meet customer needs. With industry-leading benefits and incentives, associates are valued, encouraged to develop, and are rewarded for their performance,” Allen said.

For more information the company, or potential job openings there, visit www.allenindustries.com/careers.

A change in tactic was deployed Monday evening at the meeting of the board of county commissioners when another group rose during the open forum to discuss election integrity.

What had been a more broadly approached set of complaints against the 2020 election outcome, in particular voting machines and their security, was reduced to one point. More than a dozen speakers rose to explain their opinion that it is within the right of the county commissioners to request that the county move back to paper only ballots.

Keith Senter of the county Republican party again was the first speaker to rise and he reminded the commissioners that it was the anniversary of D-Day. He spoke about having courage, as those brave soldiers had, this was a recurring theme of several speakers Monday.

He asked the board to consider what would happen to the electronic voting machines had a catastrophic failure or a power outage occured, noting that the county would then revert to a hand count. In fact, he said the state already allows that a hand cast ballot shall be counted.

There are three approved voting systems in the state he advised, “ES&S, Hart InterCivic, and hand to eye ballot counting. This board may decline to accept ES&S and instead choose to have hand to eye counting of the ballots.”

After a vote is cast, he does not have confidence in it from there. “After you vote, we don’t know where the vote goes. We should. Mistrust in the voting system has to be fixed. Let’s put the machines in the closet and have hand to eye counting because state statue 163 grants you that right.”

Traci Laster offered another prayer for courage but also proclaimed that, “For far too long we have turned a blind eye to the corruption and the perversion of our electoral process. Without a shadow of a doubt our 2020 election was rigged and stolen.”

“We the people of Surry County are rising up, standing up, speaking out, uniting, and demanding our voices to be heard.” She referred to the book of Ephesians and noted that struggles against “spiritual wickedness in high places” were more pressing than those of conflict between flesh and blood, but she offered no new documentation nor evidence of her claim of a rigged election except to say, “We have seen undeniable evidence that voting machines can be compromised.”

If the commissioners wish to “regain the trust of your constituents” she said state statue 163-165 gives them the ability to adopt or decline any voting system. “Although not very common, it is time to use some common sense.” Paper ballots were used for decades without incident she reminded them. A request from the board to the county board of elections could begin the process of going back to paper ballots in Surry County in time for the general election.

That is where the group is now, they have requested the board of commissioners make a formal written request to return to paper ballots which they feel would be much safer. Jimmy Yokeley said that “where there is smoke, there is most often fire,” and many speakers pointed to the recent canvassing effort that took place in Surry County.

The canvassers, volunteers working with the GOP and not representatives of the local elections board, reported over a 41% rate of error in the canvasses completed, finding 170 instances out of 407 interviews in Surry County. These included voter registrations that did not match who lived at an address or the voter reported that the logbook did not match their 2020 voting method, the group’s members claimed at this meeting and the previous one on May 16.

With so many errors found and with the presentation made to the board on primary eve in May on election integrity Sandra Swain said, “You do have the authority to make a change, and after seeing the vulnerabilities in the current system, how can you not want to help ensure our elections are fair?”

“As Americans we have accepted election results in the past, but now there is too much opportunity for bad actors from who knows where to mess with the system. Make the change to paper ballots and hand counting.”

“If the Surry board of elections tries to stop the process, we the people will back you up. Instead of acting like a flock of ostriches and going along with the status quo — do something. Please stand up for fair elections.”

Steve Odum told the board he had raised a challenge against two voters he claimed crossed from Ararat, Virginia., to vote in the primary. Reached by phone Wednesday, he explained that he had reported the incident in real time and swore a statement to the same. He attended a hearing the week after the primary on the matter and was informed the county had no recourse due to the ruling in August of 2018 in the U.S. District Court by Judge Loretta Biggs.

Her decision threw out voter ID laws on the books at that time, and her injunction still stands to this day. As interpreted by Greensboro lawyer Mark Payne for Surry County, “In light of this order, Surry County Board of Elections is prevented from hearing this matter.”

Odum asked about taking the complaint to the state board of elections as his next course of action. Given the 3-2 partisan split of the state board of elections, he has no confidence in that path of escalation.

“What recourse do we have if we take it to the board or elections because your hands are tied, and they say they have no authority? It is a felony to vote like these folks did, but no one can prosecute and there are no consequences,” he said.

“You guys do have the authority to do something. If the states comes at you, if the board of elections come at you, you have thousands of people in this county who will stand behind you, I promise you that.”

Not everyone was feeling as supportive of the board of commissioners with some speakers questioning their courage, motives, and conservative bona fides. Tessa Saeli who ran against Vice Chair Eddie Harris in the primary she said she was not sure why she felt called to run against someone she had previously supported.

“I supported you and prayed for you because what you said on national news sources was the same thing I would have said: stand against wokeism. But now I am disappointed and now I see five cowards. Now I see why God told me to run and run hard to hold the seat you sit in, that potentially was obtained through cheating.”

After the last meeting with the guest speakers on election integrity, “Some of you were escorted out by officers of the law,” she noted. “Why? Because you were fearful of your friends? When you become afraid of your friends – there is evil in operation.”

Jimmy Yokeley asked the board to consider what can actually be done and then file a request with the state board of elections. “This is what we are requesting that you consider doing, and doing it as soon as possible, because if it is successful then come November, we can have great voter integrity in this county.”

“So instead of beating up what we can’t do, why don’t we focus on what we can do and make that written request to the North Carolina board of elections. We want to see the action and at least we deserve as citizens to see the board make that written request.”

Sandra Clement has been hired as the new principal of Pilot Mountain Elementary School, according to the Surry County Schools central office. She begins her new duties July 1.

Clement will be joining Surry County Schools from Patrick County Public Schools in Virginia, where she has 32 years of experience as an educator including the past 12 years as an elementary school principal. She fills the job vacated by Dana Draughn, who is retiring June 30 after a 30-year career in Surry County.

“Mrs. Clement brings many strengths to the Pilot Mountain Elementary administration and the District Leadership Team,” the school system office said in announcing her appointment. “Her background in early literacy, exceptional children, and leadership, with a focus on educating the whole child aligns well with the strategic plan of Surry County Schools.”

Over the past several years in Patrick County, Clement has served as the principal at Stuart Elementary, where she has provided support to 75 staff members while encouraging student and family engagement. Previously, she worked at Blue Ridge Elementary as a principal from 2011-2017 and as an assistant principal at Stuart Elementary from 2009-2011. Before taking on roles in administration, Clement worked as an English and history educator for all elementary grade levels. She also worked as an exceptional children’s teacher, during which she helped implement instruction that supported each student’s specific needs.

Clement earned her master of educational leadership degree from Radford University in Radford, Virginia. She also has a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Virginia Tech. Her certifications include Elementary Education Endorsement in K-4, Middle Education Endorsement 4-8, Administration and Supervision PreK-12, and LETRS Trainings Units 1-4.

“I want to welcome Mrs. Sandra Clement to the Surry County Schools family and specifically as the next principal at Pilot Mountain Elementary School,” said Superintendent Dr. Travis L. Reeves. “Mrs. Clement impressed our interview committee with her knowledge of early literacy instruction and her passion for serving all students. She is a dedicated educational professional that brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to Pilot Mountain Elementary School. I know the Pilot Mountain Elementary community will embrace Mrs. Clement.”

Citizens will say they want government to be tight with taxpayers’ money, but certain budget cuts are then met with strong resistance — which is the case with funding for three organizations in Mount Airy.

Annual operational support for the Surry Arts Council, Mount Airy Museum of Regional History and the public library on Rockford Street had been omitted from the city government’s proposed budget for the 2022-23 fiscal year, which was released last month.

But the Mount Airy Board of Commissioners, during its latest meeting last week, voted unanimously to restore that funding, totaling $201,150. This includes $103,650 for the library, $87,500 for the arts group and $10,000 to the museum.

That occurred as council members faced a crowd of people who had ventured to City Hall for a public hearing on the budget scheduled during that meeting.

Their presence reflected a wave of opposition arising over the proposed slashing of municipal funding for the community agencies involved, which while not part of city government annually have received such support in recognition of their tourism and cultural contributions.

“I think all of us received a lot of emails and answered a lot of emails,” Commissioner Steve Yokeley said of feedback regarding the cuts as he surveyed those poised to speak on that subject.

Before the hearing began, Yokeley made a motion to provide the allocations for the three entities by adjusting the 2022-23 spending plan to accommodate that funding.

“We’ve had two weeks to review the budget,” he said of the package received on May 19, with board members formulating opinions on some of its elements during that time.

One definite focus was the special appropriations to outside agencies, which for the present, 2021-22 fiscal year included $87,500 for the Surry Arts Council, $103,650 to the Mount Airy Public Library, $10,000 for Mount Airy Museum of Regional History, $7,500 to the Mount Airy Rescue Squad and $10,000 for Mount Airy-Surry County Airport.

However, for the next fiscal year that begins on July 1, only the rescue squad ($7,500) and airport ($20,000) were listed for funding in the preliminary budget prepared under the leadership of City Manager Stan Farmer, who assumed that post in January.

Initially within the spending plan, in lieu of a special appropriation, $206,996 was proposed for much-needed repairs to the Andy Griffith Playhouse, which houses the Surry Arts Council, and $197,322 for the library under the same scenario. Both buildings are owned by the municipality although the arts and library operations aren’t under the city government umbrella.

The lack of financial support for the operational, non-building needs of the affected agencies produced a community furor.

All that set the tone for last week’s well-populated public hearing, for which top Surry Arts Council and museum officials Tanya Jones and Matt Edwards, respectively, were present although neither spoke.

Others did, yet the preemptive move by Commissioner Yokeley largely defused the pent-up dissatisfaction that might have been intense otherwise.

One local citizen, Calvin Vaughn, expressed concern over the notion that Mount Airy Museum of Regional History was being “overlooked” in the funding mix.

The museum is the largest-single tourism driver locally, according to Vaughn, who called it a Smithsonian-like facility with more than 25,000 artifacts telling the area’s history from Native Americans until the present.

It has sustainability “beyond the Mayberry mystique,” the hearing speaker stated, adding that the museum generates $1.4 million for the local economy each year.

“Every citizen benefits from the programs and services there,” Vaughn said.

Another hearing speaker, Jennifer Johnson-Brown, social director of the RidgeCrest retirement community, also praised the facility.

“The museum is the scribe of our city,” Johnson-Brown said in her remarks to the commissioners. “You don’t want to be the eraser on the pencil that wipes out the history.”

Nicole Harrison, a mother of two daughters, spoke in favor of the Surry Arts Council funding, while also acknowledging the commissioners’ earlier action restoring that money. “I just want to say thank you,” Harrison told them.

Khriste Petree stated that her children had benefited from both the museum and Surry Arts Council.

While city leaders were in a giving mood by restoring allocations to the library, museum and arts group, this did not extend to a separate request to also provide yearly operational funding to Surry Medical Ministries. It maintains a clinic in Mount Airy which provides free medical services to people without health insurance.

A motion to that effect by Commissioner Jon Cawley was defeated 3-2. The board’s Joe Zalescik sided with Cawley on the measure.

However, two of the three members voting against it were quick to voice support for the clinic that opened in 1993.

Commissioners Tom Koch and Yokeley, who were joined in their opposition by Marie Wood, said this largely involved a matter of timing.

Cawley sought to add Surry Medical Ministries to the list of recipients for special city appropriations at the rate of $100,000 annually.

Clinic officials already are seeking $200,000 in capital support from the city’s share of American Rescue Plan Act funding for COVID relief to aid its plans for a new building to better serve patients. Cawley said the $100,000 could be used by the clinic to buy medications or meet other day-to-day needs.

“I would really like to wait,” Yokeley said of considering the annual appropriation, explaining that he believes it needs additional study, which Koch and Wood agreed with particularly in light of the clinic’s pending American Rescue Plan Act request.

City Attorney Hugh Campbell also said the special appropriations involve a carefully controlled process of requirements and expectations that must be applied to Surry Medical Ministries in order for it to receive yearly funding.

The Surry Arts Council will host a performance featuring Nadine Landry and Sammy Lind along with Kevin and Trish Fore at the Andy Griffith Museum Theatre, in the lower level of the Andy Griffith Museum, on Friday, June 10, at 7 p.m.

Nadine Landry and Stephen “Sammy” Lind are members of the internationally acclaimed Foghorn Stringband, out of Portland, Oregon. They play traditional fiddle music that has been passed on for hundreds of years, classics of the southwest Louisiana Cajun dance halls and songs that could have filled a 50s smoky bar jukebox.

Landry’s roots lie in the rural backroads of Acadian Québec, and her high lonesome vocals have delighted audiences the world over. Born in Minnesota, Lind has established himself as one of the most critically acclaimed old-time fiddle players in the country. Together they play fiddle tunes, early country and Cajun songs. They play true to the roots of American music with energy and respect. They are members of the Foghorn Stringband, the Dirk Powell Band and play with Cajun extraordinaires Jesse Lege, Joel Savoy and the Cajun Country Revival.

Kevin and Trish Fore are steeped in the traditional music of Surry County and the surrounding area. They have learned their music directly from local tradition bearers and old home recordings; they love spending time playing for people at community events, fundraisers, fiddlers’ conventions and square dances.

Music featured at this concert will include Landry and Lind performing songs and tunes as a duo and will be joined by the Fores to feature many signature tunes from the Round Peak tradition such as “Sally Ann,” “Lonesome Road Blues,” and “Breaking Up Christmas” just to name a few.

Tickets are $10 and may be purchased in advance or at the door prior to the show if available.

For additional information or to purchase tickets, visit www.surryarts.org, call the Surry Arts Council office at 336-786-7998 or email Marianna Juliana at marianna@surryarts.org.

Jim Quick & The Coastline will start a weekend filled with music at the Blackmon Amphitheatre on Thursday. The Catalinas will take the stage on Friday and Kids in America will play on Saturday. All three shows will begin at 7:30 p.m.

Pulling from the threads of soul, blues, R&B, and Americana, Jim Quick and Coastline weave together their own genre of music known as Swamp Soul. Delivered with precision by frontman Jim Quick and his band, this group captures the true, honest spirit of traditions born and bred in the small southern towns of America.

The Catalinas always play a variety of music that suits all ages. Though known for Beach Music, regionally and nationally for the mega-hit “Summertime’s Callin’ Me,” The Catalinas play all styles to a high standard of excellence.

Kids in America is a high-energy, power-packed, ultra-fun, six-piece band paying tribute to the totally awesome 1980s. Kids in America covers all genres from this timeless decade including new wave, pop, dance, rock, hair metal, and sing-along iconic ballads. Kids in America specializes in recreating the 80s visually and musically by delivering authentic sound with a vivid show for your favorite 80s hits.

Each concert will begin at 7:30 pm on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Admission to each show is $15 or a Surry Arts Council Annual Pass. Children 12 and younger are admitted free with an adult admission or annual pass. The Dairy Center, Whit’s Custard, and Thirsty Souls Community Brewing will be at the concerts to provide food, snacks, drinks, beer, and wine for purchase. No outside alcohol or coolers are allowed to be brought into the Amphitheatre area. Those attending are asked to bring a lounge chair or blanket to sit on.

Tickets are available online at www.surryarts.org, via phone at 336-786-7998, or at the Surry Arts Council office at 218 Rockford Street. For additional information, contact Marianna Juliana at 336-786-7998 or marianna@surryarts.org

A chance to visit beautiful gardens — while also supporting efforts to make public spaces more attractive in that regard — will be offered to area residents Saturday.

The Mount Airy Blooms tour will feature 10 different stops, including gardens of eight local homes. Those sites can be visited between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. on Saturday, with the event to be held rain or shine.

At one of the tour locations, the Blue House of the Gilmer-Smith Foundation at 615 N. Main St., Master Gardener demonstrations are planned and vendors also will be present there.

The tour is presented by Mount Airy garden clubs. It is held every other year, according to one of the organizers, Anne Webb.

Tickets for the tour cost $20 and can obtained at Webb Interiors on West Lebanon Street, Mount Airy Visitors Center downtown, Eventbrite.com or the various home sites involved on Saturday, including those of:

• Carla Kartanson at 1119 N. Main St.;

• Bonnie and Lane Hawks, 1301 N. Main St.;

• Kate and Mark Appler, 216 Robin Road;

• Debbie and Dennis Williams, 120 Greenbriar St., No. 1;

• Sue and Ronnie Kirkman, 129 Ashton Court;

• Judy and Lee Mills, 183 Lindsay Creed Lane;

• Capria and Pete Smith, 676 Matthews Road, Pilot Mountain;

In addition to those locations and the Blue House, the comfort station on Main Street is listed as a tour site.

Proceeds from the Mount Airy Blooms tour will benefit several appearance projects locally, including the rose garden at Joan and Howard Woltz Hospice Home and restoration of grounds at the historic Moore House.

Proceeds also are targeted for the maintenance and upkeep of the mini-garden and fountain at the junction of North Main and Renfro streets and maintenance of the pollinator garden on South Main Street near the Municipal Building.

Another beneficiary will be exceptional children’s classes at B.H. Tharrington Primary School, for which special programming is to be provided.

With the event to be held regardless of the weather, no refunds will be given, according to guidelines issued by organizers.

Well-supervised children ages 6 and older are welcome on the tour, with a ticket required for each.

No animals will be allowed, except service dogs.

Strollers, cars or motorized wheels are not permitted in the gardens, which also lack handicapped access.

No photography or sketching will be allowed at the sites.

When parking at homes, tour participants are urged to be courteous and park only along paved streets.

Restrooms will not be accessible at homes on the tour, with public facilities available in downtown Mount Airy at the comfort station and visitors center.

The Mount Airy Blooms tour is supported by various businesses, individuals and organizations including the local Garden Gate, Modern Gardeners and Mountain View garden clubs.

As part of the 50th Anniversary of the Mount Airy Blue Grass and Old-Time Fiddlers Convention this year, Surry Arts Council held increased the number of workshops it held this year — bringing in some new sessions and courses for fans.

Twenty-two musicians led 39 workshops from Tuesday through Friday at Veterans Park. The heat drove the workshops from the grandstand into the VFW Building during most of the week but on Friday, overcast skies permitted some of the workshops to be held outside.

Traditional music enthusiasts of all ages from North Carolina and beyond attended the workshops. Some took notes, some took videos, and several hundred just watched carefully and learned new songs and new techniques. There were more young people than ever before attending the workshops ensuring that the traditions will be preserved and passed on.

All these extra workshops were made possible with a grant to the Surry Arts Council from the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources and Come Hear NC, and a subgrant to Veterans Park Inc from the Grassroots Program of the North Carolina Arts Council.

• A Cana, Virginia, woman has been victimized by three crimes in Mount Airy involving the obtaining of property by false pretense, according to city police reports.

It came to light Friday that an unknown party had used the stolen debit card of Tania Beketov Yopp of Wards Gap Road to buy items at the Sheetz convenience store on Rockford Street and two businesses on Carter Street, Harbor Freight Tools and Big Lots, which constitute felonies. No loss figures were listed for the incidents.

• Sandy Vestal Hutchens, 77, of 135 Plantation Lane, was arrested last Thursday on a charge of sexual battery which had been filed on May 3 through the Surry County Sheriff’s Office with Austin Speer of Toast Road as the complainant and no other details listed.

After being served with a warrant in the case by city officers, Hutchens was released on a written promise to appear in Surry District Court on July 8.

• A break-in of a motor vehicle occurred on May 29 at the residence of Tammy Lynn Pell on Jones School Road, where property identified as Easy Glide 32-gauge pen needles and miscellaneous makeup items were removed from her 2005 Hyundai Elantra that was unsecured at the time.

DOBSON — They might be small in number, but graduates of Surry Online Magnet School were told that their impact has been huge.

“You have trailblazed your way through education,” Kristin Blake, the principal of the school with Trailblazers as a mascot said to members of its Class of 2022 during their commencement ceremony Friday afternoon in Dobson.

“And everybody here today is proud of what you have accomplished,” Blake added during the gathering also attended by about 90 family members and friends of the graduates.

The name Trailblazers not only fits Surry Online Magnet School’s unique format compared to other institutions, allowing students the option of completing a high school education via strictly online means — stressing personalized learning through unique, flexible opportunities desired for various reasons.

It also applies to the fact that Friday’s graduation program was just the second in the history of the school that is still finding its way. This year’s class numbered 13, compared to seven in 2021.

The emergence of Surry Online Magnet School during the Pandemic Era was considered groundbreaking from both a state and local standpoint.

Continue to grow, speaker urges

It was appropriate that someone who was a key part of Surry Online Magnet School’s development was the special commencement speaker, Dr. Terri Mosley, a Surry County Schools retiree who is a former principal of North Surry High among other roles.

Mosley also is an eight-year member of the Surry County Board of Education who was chairing that body when the unique campus without a campus was founded.

And while Mosley congratulated its latest batch of graduates for their achievement Friday, she said during her address that their education should continue long after leaving with diplomas in hand.

“The real class is life,” Mosley said while pointing out that the graduates already had shown their character through community activities and other means. “While you were not perfect along the way, remember the job of learning is lifelong.”

If the seniors remember nothing else from her remarks, Mosley said she hoped it would be her message Friday afternoon that along with continuing to focus on their ABCs they shouldn’t forget the three Cs — change, choices and consequences.

In making the point about change, the speaker cited a statement from Gandhi, who said that individuals must be the change that they want to see in the world.

Mosley advised the Class of 2022 that the stage is now set for it “to change the world for the better.”

Regarding choices, she hopes the departing seniors will make more good ones than bad, with the consequences part of the three Cs highlighting the need to hold oneself accountable for his or her actions.

“As you take your walk down Memory Lane, take time to say thanks to those who helped you throughout that process,” Mosley concluded.

The seniors repeated a pledge during the program in which they vowed to view their diplomas as a sacred trust and “strive to bring honor to myself and my school.”

Due to the unique circumstances that characterize the lives of some Surry Online Magnet School class members, they already have gotten a taste of the adult world, said Blake, the principal.

This has included holding down full- or part-time jobs to support their families while also pursuing a diploma, she explained.

Their already hefty accomplishments will be joined by more in the future, according to Blake, who mentioned that two of the 13 graduates will be attending four-year colleges or universities, eight will take the community college route, two will be receiving vocational training and one is directly entering the workforce.

The fact that they have reached this point while overcoming challenges posed by COVID-19 is a special achievement in itself, the principal indicated.

“As we know, these last few years have been really hard.”

PILOT MOUNTAIN — “Pressure creates diamonds” was a theme of East Surry’s graduation ceremony for the Class of 2022.

A variety of obstacles during “these uncertain times” were piled on top of the usual trials of high school, testing 126 seniors in ways much different that many that came before them. The June 3 ceremony inside David H. Diamont Stadium commemorated the graduates’ resilience and brought to a close this portion of their lives.

“The metamorphic change we have all undergone in the last four years has been genuinely remarkable,” said Senior Class President Samuel Whitt. “Shy, timid freshmen have blossomed into confident, strong seniors, ready to take on the world with fervent vigor and zeal. We have grown not only athletically, academically and artistically, but have experienced tremendous personal growth and development.”

The Class of 2022 didn’t just scrape by in what Samuel referred to as the “masked elephant in the room.” They thrived, and many diamonds were created thanks to the myriad of challenges the class overcame.

According to Principal Shannon DuPlessis, the following statistics apply to East Surry’s Class of 2022. Of the 126 graduates:

As of Friday, East Surry’s 2022 graduates had been awarded more than $1.5 million in scholarships and grants.

Following Whitt’s speech, Cardinals Sarah Taylor, Kaitlyn Wall, Mattison Wall, Sabrina Wilmoth and Riley Yard performed “Landslide,” by Fleetwood Mac.

Then came time for the presentation of diplomas. It was at this time that East Surry also recognized two particular students for their superlative academic accomplishments.

Rose Jeanette “Rosie” Craven was honored as the Class of 2022’s salutatorian. Craven attained the second-highest cumulative grade point average in the class: a weighted GPA of 4.65.

Cooper Wayne Motsinger was honored as the Class of 2022’s valedictorian. Motsinger attained the highest cumulative grade point average in the class: a weighted GPA of 4.76.

Cooper returned to the stage after all diplomas had been handed out. As student body president, Motsinger was privileged to give a speech at graduation; a speech, he joked, that he tried to ignore when running for the position the previous year.

Glancing out at a packed Diamont Stadium, Cooper admitted he was stepping out of his comfort zone by giving the speech. However, he used it to analogize the struggles he and his classmates overcame during their time at East Surry.

“Whether it be through stepping out of your comfort zone to adjust to online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic or physically stepping up to the plate to help put East Surry in a state championship game, each of you have gotten here by being uncomfortable in one way or another,” he said. “I’m sure most of you have been on the receiving end of a signature Mrs. D death glare, so I know you know that feeling of being uncomfortable. In all seriousness, for that reason, being here today is an incredible achievement, and I want to congratulate you all on making it this far.”

As his speech came to a close, Cooper provided encouraging words to his fellow graduates as they prepare to embark on their new journeys.

“Today is a day that you probably won’t ever forget,” he said. “It marks the end of a large chapter of your life, and a new one awaits you after you toss that hat. For better or worse, you won’t ever hear that first period bell or Coach Hart yelling about some amendment from the other side of the school ever again. Our days on the field and in the student section are gone, and so are the nights trying to get an essay done before 11:59 p.m. But, the relationships and memories that we have formed here will last us a lifetime.

“I cannot wait to read each of your next chapters, and I wish you the best of luck with whatever you decide to write in them.”

DOBSON — It’s great to have Medicare available, but persons who are preparing to sign up for the government-run health insurance program — or know someone who is — might be confused about where to begin.

An event planned Thursday in Dobson could provide such guidance.

The “Welcome to Medicare” session to be presented by the Surry County Seniors’ Health Insurance Information Program (SHIIP) is designed to help affected members of the public navigate what organizers call the complicated “Medicare Highway.”

The program is scheduled from 1 to 2:30 p.m. at the N.C. Cooperative Extension office at 915 E. Atkins St. in Dobson.

Seats can be reserved at 336-401-8025.

Topics to be covered include Medicare basic benefits, Medicare supplemental plans, Medicare Advantage plans and prescription drug plans.

One needn’t be on the road to Medicare to attend Thursday’s session, which is open to everyone. This includes those caring for someone or with a family member on Medicare, who could benefit from the information provided by the Seniors’ Health Insurance Information Program.

It is part of the N.C. Department of Insurance.

The national Medicare program primarily provides health insurance coverage for Americans who are 65 and older, but also for some younger people with disability status.

It began in 1965 under the Social Security Administration and now is operated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

DOBSON — Katelyn Badgett of Mount Airy, a former Surry Community College student, is traveling the nation and unearthing its history every day.

Badgett graduated from Surry Central High School and then attended Surry Community College to start her college education. She was able to complete most of her general education courses at SCC before transferring to Appalachian State University.

“Surry gave me what I needed before I moved on to a four-year college. Classes were cheaper, and the financial aid office was super helpful,” she said. Badgett received a scholarship from Surry Community College that she was able to use when transferring to Appalachian State.

At Appalachian State, Badgett completed a Bachelor of Science in archaeology with a minor in history. While a student at ASU, she worked in an archaeology lab under Dr. Cameron Gokee as a lab technician. She received hands-on experience organizing artifacts that he brought back from his work in Senegal, Africa.

Badgett works as an archaeological field technician for Environmental Research Group’s Cultural Resource Department. While the company is headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland, she spends the majority of her time traveling for work along the East Coast.

“I’ve been to some pretty interesting places. I mostly work on military bases, so I’ve seen a lot of historic military sites and old homesteads that were there before the bases,” says Badgett.

Eventually, she wants to earn a master’s degree to open up further opportunities in her career field. “I’d like to either teach or work in a museum one day. I also really want to learn more about biological anthropology, because it’s another concentration that I was interested in while attending college,” says Badgett.

Badgett looks back at her time at Surry Community College fondly. “I always recommend Surry to the younger generation. I missed the flexibility of SCC when I transferred. I had been able to work to pay for college and have Fridays off for studying and finishing homework. Also, if you’re the type of person who wants to go into a specialized field, you can earn a degree in a short time and get your life going.”

Badgett and her family have deep roots in Surry County and stay highly involved in the community. She worked at 13 Bones Restaurant in Mount Airy to pay for college and is the Color Guard instructor for North Surry High School’s marching band. Her sister, Bailey, attended SCC for both electronic engineering technology and criminal justice. Her father, Paul, also earned a degree in criminal justice at Surry.

DOBSON – The week of Earth Day saw Wayne Farms employees living up to their “Amazing Starts With Me” motto, holding a Dobson Complex Cleanup, then undertaking a joint effort uniting the Dobson Sustainability Team with city workers to spruce up the town and maintain common areas.

Wayne Farms Dobson was title sponsor for the Town of Dobson’s annual Dobson Spring Folly, a town-square community fair held in conjunction with Earth Day and featuring local business and merchant booths, food, games and prizes for hundreds of local attendees.

The Wayne Farms booth showcased company sustainability initiatives and career opportunities, complete with games and prizes focused on sustainability, recycle/reuse and other eco-friendly themes. The company also recently upgraded the local plant complex to be more energy-efficient, installing new EV Car Charging Stations at the facility as part of Wayne Farms Dobson’s ongoing effort to bolster sustainability, support community priorities. and encourage environmentally responsible corporate and individual practices at work and in everyday life.

“It was great to see our people out there making things better as part of the community where we live,” said Matthew Wooten, Wayne Farms Dobson complex manager and long-time community leader.

“We’re proud to do our part and we had a lot of fun doing it,” said Stephanie Reynolds, one of the Wayne Farms Dobson organizers.

Dobson’s approach to sustainability is part of Wayne Farms’ larger mission of sustainable operations under its “Amazing Starts With Me” organizational tenant. Focused on producing quality products, responsible stewardship of resources, humane treatment of animals, supporting employees and championing communities, the company said it has a long history of partnering on local causes. Community support in the form of financial aid, food products and volunteer labor is central to the company’s operating ethos, including assistance for local social service agencies and community organizations.

The need for sustainability is discussed often these days, and a Mount Airy sock manufacturer has received statewide recognition for making that happen within its operations.

This involved Nester Hosiery recently being presented with a 2022 Manufacturing Leadership Award for Sustainable Manufacturing by the North Carolina Manufacturing Extension Partnership.

The award program of that organization highlights companies for their commitment to the state’s industrial sector, as proven by outstanding performance in the areas of manufacturing excellence, sustainable manufacturing, innovation, workforce development and economic development/developing markets.

Nester Hosiery is a leading U.S. producer of performance merino wool socks and the parent company of the Farm to Feet sock brand.

“Sustainability is one of Nester Hosiery’s core tenants and we continually strive to improve our processes and systems to be the best global citizen we can be,” Anna Draughn, the company’s director of merchandising, said in a statement.

For example, in 2020 Nester Hosiery used 393,229 less kilowatt-hours of energy than it did in 2019 thanks to a number of energy-reduction programs including an air leak detection initiative on which it partnered with Surry Community College.

By identifying and repairing air leaks throughout Nester Hosiery’s production processes, it is estimated that the company could save 16,000 kilowatt-hours.

Along with reducing its plastic and cardboard usage, Nester has a strong internal recycling program and encourages employees lacking access to curbside recycling to bring recyclable materials from home.

In 2020, Nester Hosiery diverted 212.22 tons of those materials from the local landfill.

The company received formal recognition for its manufacturing excellence through such efforts at an awards ceremony in Durham in late May during an event called MFGCON.

It is known as North Carolina’s premier industrial conference that features the most up-to-date and relevant topics among influential manufacturing “thought leaders” in the state.

Nester Hosiery markets itself as the designer and manufacturer of the most innovative socks in the world, a key producer in the outdoor industry operating state-of-the-art knitting, finishing and packaging equipment to make premium outdoor performance socks.

It does so for leading outdoor brands and retailers as well as under its own Farm to Feet brand.

Nester Hosiery strives to have customers value the company’s manufacturing capabilities along with its commitment to social and environmental responsibility, while being an important employer and economic driver for this area.

The North Carolina Manufacturing Extension Partnership is the official representative of the MEP National Network in North Carolina.

That network is a unique public-private partnership that delivers comprehensive, proven solutions to U.S. manufacturers, fueling growth and advancing domestic production.

As time pushes forward, our collective technology advances at an ever-growing speed. Each year, new phones, computers, apps, and more are released, deeming their predecessors obsolete. It is so hard to stay ahead of the technology curve that many consumers have adopted the “if it’s not broke don’t change it” rule.

These advancements have also discarded some technologies and training as unnecessary. Craftspeople and workers such as cobblers, seamstresses, milliners, and watchmakers/repairmen are not as common as they once were. Mount Airy has a long history of these forgotten trades and arts, especially watchmaking.

Watches have been dangled from and worn on our bodies for centuries. The term “watch” appears in a multitude of documents through the years. For example, sailors and hunting parties took turns on “watch.” Many cities and towns also had watchmen, whose job it was to keep time for the community. This profession helped to keep work shifts running smoothly; they served as one big community alarm clock.

Some sources suggest that the first portable watches appeared sometime in the 15th century. These spring-driven watches needed to be wound in order to keep time. Issues such as accuracy and longevity drove horologists, a term used to describe individuals who work on timepieces or apparatuses professionally, to continue tinkering with the technology of the mechanisms themselves.

The late 18th century saw new technologies invented that aided in the cutting and manufacturing of time structural pieces that make watches work. Wristwatches entered the scene early, with Queen Elizabeth the first being gifted an arm watch in 1571, however wristwatches as we know them were not that common until military men began to wear them just after the First World War. Imagine, having to pull out a pocket watch on the battlefield.

After this time, almost everyone would have had a timepiece, and it was no easy job keeping the mechanisms working. At one time, after WW2, Mount Airy alone had more than 21 watchmakers. One of the more famed watchmakers from Mount Airy was Foye Lester Dawson (1923-2006).

Dawson owned and operated his own watch shop on Virginia Street in Downtown Mount Airy. Dawson’s Watch Repair Shop was in operation for 34 years. Inside you could see him with eyes sharp, working diligently over a timepiece illuminated by the work lamp he kept on his desk.

Dawson learned the horology trade through the North Carolina School of Watchmaking in Greensboro. After WW2 the U.S. Army offered training in various occupations for disabled veterans, watchmaking being one of those programs. He began his long career working in another shop for 23 years before venturing out on his own. His career in the watchmaking business lasted for 57 years. He was the longest, as well as the last, licensed watchmaker in Mount Airy.

While finding watchmakers on your Main Street is now uncommon, they still can be found. Several organizations still teach the art of horology, training up a generation of makers. The American Watchmakers-Clockmakers Institute is dedicated to continuing the long history of horologists in the United States. North Carolina also has two chapters of the National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors that hold meetings to keep this history alive.

Emily Morgan is the guest services manager at the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History. She and her family live in Westfield. She can be reached at eamorgan@northcarolinamuseum.org or by calling 336-786-4478, extension 229.

The Mount Airy Bluegrass and Old Time Fiddler’s Convention is often described by many as a family reunion of sorts, with folks from up and down the East Coast, as well as across the nation and even a few from other lands, descending on the town during the first weekend of June.

Once in Mount Airy, they gather, laughing and joking, telling stories, playing in jam sessions, catching up with one another. Many consider their fiddler’s convention buddies good friends, even though this might be the only time of year they see one another.

That was no different this past weekend, when the convention celebrated its 50th anniversary at Veterans Memorial Park. But there was something different this time as well — plenty of folks visiting who had never been to the event.

“We used to go to Union Grove,” said Butch Bost, who was strumming his guitar with friend Kenny Garren, who was playing a banjo. There, over the Memorial Day weekend, tens of thousands of musicians and fans would often gather, but over the years those crowds dwindled, and about a decade ago the festival closed down.

“We’ve had friends who used to go to Union Grove who come here, to Mount Airy,” he said, adding that they had encouraged Bost and Garren to visit the Granite City.

“He finally retired,” Bost said, motioning toward his lifelong friend, Garren. So, the two, who live in Fuquay-Varina, decided to visit the Mount Airy fiddlers’ convention this year.

“We’ll be back,” he said, adding the two had been impressed with the atmosphere and the musicians in Mount Airy.

“We just saw it advertised online,” said Tom Weierick. He and his wife, Jenn, were sitting among music fans Saturday, while their three children — Genevieve, Veronica and Juliet — took turns sitting in their laps, crawling down to play, and climbing along the bleachers.

The family, from Cary, drove in Friday evening to take in the concert that night and the rest of the convention on Saturday. “We just thought we’d drive up and see it,” he said. “It’s been really great. We’ve enjoyed it.”

First-timers were not limited to fans and casual musicians — many of those taking part in the various contests had never been to Mount Airy, either.

“I don’t know,” said Margo MacSweeny, a 12-year-old from Floyd, Virginia, who had just stepped off the stage after competing with her banjo, when discussing her reason for traveling to Mount Airy. “Mac just asked me if I wanted to go and compete, and I figured why not?”

The “Mac” is Mac Traynham, a music teacher who works at the Handmade Music School at the Old Country Store in Floyd.

“I’ve been teaching there for three years,” he said, making the offer of accompanying several of his students to Mount Airy each spring. None took him up on it until this year, when Margo decided to visit the convention to play.

Dakota Karper, from Capon Bridge, West Virginia, was in town to compete as well, and this was her first time at the Mount Airy gathering, although in her case there was more than just playing which brought her to town.

“I had this fiddle made in Kentucky,” she said, holding a nice, new instrument she had just used on stage during the musical competition. “I could drive all the way to Kentucky to get it, or, since he was coming to the convention, I could just meet him here and get it.”

The drive was worth it, she said.

“This is really a nice convention. I’ll be back again, for sure.”

Even one of the local volunteers helping staff the musician event was a first-timer.

“I’ve never done this before,” said Wanda Crabb, who along with Bobbie Easter were selling t-shirts and other wares for the festival, serving as information guides and helping those who were in town for the event.

“I have thoroughly enjoyed being here,” she said in between laughs and jokes shared with friends and strangers alike. “The people here, everyone I’ve talked to, are so friendly and nice.”

With all of the first-time visitors joining the regulars, convention organizer Doug Joyner said on Saturday the event had been a good one.

“It’s been great,” he said. “The weather’s been good, just about perfect, we’ve had a lot of people who come every year coming back this year.” Last year, he explained many of them were not able to travel to Mount Airy because of COVID-related travel restrictions. The year before, of course, the event was cancelled.

“They started coming in last Thursday and Friday,” he said of the fans who came in with campers and set up for several days of living at the park. He meant the last Thursday and Friday in May — more than a week before the festival officially began. “We’ve had a good crowd.”

The results of the convention’s musical and dance competition were not available at press time, but will be published in an upcoming edition of The Mount Airy News. For more information on Surry Arts Council workshops held during the convention, see page B2 of today’s paper.

• Damage has been caused to a large downtown mural, according to Mount Airy Police Department reports.

It was discovered last Saturday at The Easter Brothers mural in the Jack A. Loftis Plaza rest area on North Main Street, where an unknown party climbed the wall containing it and caused paint to chip off the artwork.

The damage was put at $50, with the victim of the injury to real property case listed as Mayberry Trading Post, a business adjoining the plaza where the mural is located on the side of its building.

• Ramiro Valadez-Guzman, 45, of 958 Newsome St., was arrested Monday on a first-degree trespassing charge after police responded to a civil disturbance call at the Chili Rojo restaurant on Newsome Street.

He allegedly refused to leave that establishment after being banned by management personnel and was held in the Surry County Jail under a $200 secured bond. The case is set for the June 13 session of District Court.

• Hibbett Sports on Rockford Street was the scene of a larceny on May 23, when Nike Vapormax tennis shoes valued at $140 were stolen from the store by an unknown suspect.

• Ricky Mitchell Sheets, 36, listed as homeless, was jailed under a $30,000 secured bond on May 22 on felony charges including threatening an executive legal official and interfering with an electronic monitoring device, which had been filed in Wake County on May 18.

Sheets was located by city officers at an Arlington Heights Lane location and fled on foot after being confronted by them only to be taken into custody on Porter Street, arrest records state. That led to an additional charge of resisting, delaying or obstructing a public officer, with Sheets scheduled to be in District Court in Dobson next Tuesday.

• Anthony James Mangine, 56, of 1630 Mount Herman Church Road, was served on May 22 with an outstanding warrant for a felony charge stemming from his alleged assault of another man with nunchucks on May 15, which caused severe lacerations.

This was reported at the home of the victim, Nicholas Richard Martin of Factory Street, where Mangine hit Martin in the face and body with the martial arts striking weapon, police records state.

Mangine, who is accused of assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury, was released on a $2,500 unsecured bond to appear in Surry District Court on June 13. An incident report filed on May 15 stated that Martin also had assaulted Mangine with a deadly weapon, but no record could be found of any charge issued against him.

• Joseph Tyrone Norman, 63, of 341 W. Virginia St., was charged with two counts of larceny on May 19 stemming from incidents at the Aldi supermarket on State Street, where he allegedly took five Black Angus ribeye steaks valued at $74, and Walmart, involving unspecified merchandise worth $113, with restitution owed in both cases.

Norman, who was taken into custody in the vicinity of the two stores on West Stewart Drive near Park Drive, was confined in the Surry County Jail under a $1,500 secured bond and slated for a June 13 appearance in District Court.

North Surry High School held commencement exercises Saturday, June 4, for the graduating class of 2022.

A sunny morning was on tap for the graduates along with their family and friends. After opening remarks from North Surry principal Dr. Paige Badgett, student body president Nydia Cabrera spoke to the graduates.

She acknowledged that she and her classmates had missed a sense of normalcy over the last two years. For showing strength and the “perseverance to complete this four-year rollercoaster,” she told the graduates she was proud of them.

It was not always an easy road for her either, “Personally, it wasn’t an easy four years, there were plenty of difficult nights when I was overwhelmed; but, just like the times I would lose my mom in Walmart, I reassure myself it will be ok. It always works out in the end.”

To the staff she offered, “Our school would be nothing without our hard-working office, guidance, nursing, and lunchroom staff. Especially our custodians, they are some of the most hard-working people I have ever had the pleasure of meeting.”

Educators had to roll with the punches of the pandemic, and the changing nature of their roles in general. “You didn’t sign up for a pandemic that completely changed your teaching methods; or a climate where we have lockdown drills, and you are a line of defense,” she said.

“I care more about your mental health and happiness than bubbles on a scantron. I am very grateful for the guidance and support of my teachers.”

Senior class president Jacey Ward addressed the student body with the message “Once a Greyhound, always a Greyhound.”

“I know it gets tossed around all the time, but I think that saying actually holds true to all of us here today. Lots of us were born Greyhounds, parents, grandparents, or siblings were Greyhounds and you remember imagining your high school experience being at North Surry.” Even for those not born into it, she said that making it through the trials and tribulations of freshman year bring everyone into the fold.

She recalled memories from the years before things went askew thanks to Covid. Extracurricular activities helped mold students into the people they have become today, as have the staff of North Surry. Ward said, “They are why you are where you are today.”

There were good times to be had like the “only true Mount Airy versus North Surry football game.” While North Surry lost, a trip to Cook Out soothed the sting of the loss. “These are all memories that cannot be erased because you are truly a Greyhound.”

As the senior class president, she joked she would see them all at the reunion, but left the class of 2022 with the following, “Giving back and appreciating this place, this community, and these people is what makes you always a Greyhound.”

“Always being a Greyhound in the future means that we need to represent this place well as we become proud alumni.”

There will be additional coverage of the North Surry High School graduation in Tuesday’s print edition of The Mount Airy News.

North Surry High School held its commencement exercises Saturday for the graduating class of 2022 at Charles D. Atkins Memorial Stadium under a sunny clear sky.

“We are gathered in the beautiful place on this beautiful morning to celebrate an accomplishment that will last a lifetime,” North Surry principal Dr. Paige Badgett said. The 156 graduating seniors were completing what she called a wonderful 13-year journey.

For her part, Badgett had begun at 8:30 a.m. on the dot, corralling the students in the gymnasium and reminding them of their order and placement. It was her last time to lead these students before giving them the final stamp of approval signifying they have met the requirements to graduate.

It was a formal ceremony, she reminded them, one that is a shared experience for the graduates and all in attendance so best manners were expected. A reminder to pay attention, mind the placement of their tassels, and directions to make crisp clean turns on the field because “it looks better” followed. Soon though, the Junior Marshals had the graduates queued up for their march and it was out of her hands.

The Greyhound graduates-to-be were met on their walk to the football field by the dedicated teachers and staff members from the school who supported and coaxed them along the way.

Before the staff were seen – they were heard, making boisterous cheers from outside that grew only louder as the line of students continued by. High fives elicited ones in return, hoots met hollers, and smiles signified the journey was nearing its end for the class of 2022.

A stirring rendition of the National Anthem from Greyhound Sounds set the mood before Dr. Badgett did the requisite heaping of praise onto graduates who she called, “an outstanding group of young people.”

Among the graduating class she reported 73% are planning to continue their education with 21% planning to attend a four-year college or university and 52% a two-year program. The track after graduation is leading 14% of the graduates directly to the work force, while 4% will be joining the armed services.

In the ranks of the graduates were 39 North Carolina Academic Scholar graduates, 40 National Honor Society members, as well as 54 National Technical Honor Society members. Between the graduates they have been awarded $4,264,000 in scholarship dollars.

“This group of seniors are special group of young people who will undoubtedly leave their mark on our community, our state, and our great nation and they embark on their own unique journey,” Badgett said before introducing Student Body president Nydia Cabrera to address her peers.

She acknowledged that she and her classmates had missed a sense of normalcy over the past two years. For showing strength and the “perseverance to complete this four-year rollercoaster,” she told the graduates she was proud of them.

It was not always an easy road for her either, “Personally, it wasn’t an easy four years, there were plenty of difficult nights when I was overwhelmed; but, just like the times I would lose my mom in Walmart, I reassure myself it will be ok. It always works out in the end.”

To the staff she offered, “Our school would be nothing without our hard-working office, guidance, nursing, and lunchroom staff. Especially our custodians, they are some of the most hard-working people I have ever had the pleasure of meeting.”

Educators had to roll with the punches of the pandemic, and the changing nature of their roles in general. “You didn’t sign up for a pandemic that completely changed your teaching methods; or a climate where we have lockdown drills, and you are a line of defense.

“I care more about your mental health and happiness than bubbles on a scantron. I am very grateful for the guidance and support of my teachers.”

Nydia, who was a multi-sport athlete while staying active in charitable work, will be entering the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to study computer science with 52 credit hours packed along with her fall semester essentials.

Senior class president Jacey Ward addressed the student body with the message: “Once a Greyhound, always a Greyhound.”

“I know it gets tossed around all the time, but I think that saying actually holds true to all of us here today. Lots of us were born Greyhounds, parents, grandparents, or siblings were Greyhounds and you remember imagining your high school experience being at North Surry.”

She recalled memories from the years before things went askew thanks to COVID. How early high school extracurricular activities helped mold students into the people they have become today. She chose activates such as cheerleading and the tennis team while also being active with blood drives to give back.

Not only the senior class president, she also held the office of Western District Vice Chair for the North Carolina Association of Student Councils. She did this while still achieving Summa Cum Laude status with 27 college credits following her to Greensboro.

There were good times to be had like the “only true Mount Airy versus North Surry football game.” While North Surry lost, a trip to Cook Out soothed the sting of the loss. “These are all memories that cannot be erased because you are truly a Greyhound.”

For Jacey, the future is taking her to the University of North Carolina at Greensboro to study in their respected apparel design program. To be in a position to enter the next chapter of her life, she gave thanks to all the educators and staff who helped her.

She asked the graduates to remember the same holds true for them, “They are why you are where you are today.”

As the senior class president, she joked she would see them all at the reunion, but left the class of 2022 with the following, “Giving back and appreciating this place, this community, and these people is what makes you always a Greyhound.

“Always being a Greyhound in the future means that we need to represent this place well as we become proud alumni.”

CHARLOTTE – Duke Energy continues to expand solar power in North Carolina with its 22.6-megawatt (MW) Stony Knoll Solar power plant in Surry County now in operation.

The project is owned and operated by Duke Energy Sustainable Solutions (DESS). The project was selected as part of the competitive bidding process established by 2017’s solar legislation in North Carolina.

The solar plant contains 76,600 panels with single-axis tracking. The plant is located on 195 acres in Dobson, near Rockford Road. The facility will power the equivalent of 5,000 homes.

“In addition to our many renewable energy projects across the nation, North Carolina continues to be fertile ground for solar power,” said Chris Fallon, president of Duke Energy Sustainable Solutions. “With the help of our partners in Surry County, we have brought online the largest solar power plant in the county.”

The facility’s design and construction of the project were performed by SOLV Energy. The solar power generated by the project will be delivered through a 20-year power purchase agreement.

North Carolina is fourth in the nation for overall solar energy. The outlook is promising for more solar energy as Duke Energy develops a proposed Carolinas Carbon Plan, which is being considered by state regulators.

“Solar power continues to play a vital part of our clean energy transition,” said Stephen De May, Duke Energy’s North Carolina president. “We expect renewables to grow significantly in the years ahead as we focus on meeting our customers’ needs for increasingly clean energy.”

Several students from Meadowview Magnet were selected to have their art pieces on display in the Viticulture Center at Surry Community College as part of the Superintendent’s Art Contest in May.

Meadowview Art Teacher Krista Culpepper told selected students, “What a great opportunity to see your work hung alongside your fellow classmates and other art students throughout the county.”

Sixth grade students selected were Ameryka Garcia-Espinosa, Dare King, John Simmons, Quinn Simandle, Anali Lopez Bedolla, Heather Childress, Juliett Martinez, Kailey Cockerham and Kynlee Venable.

Seventh grade students selected were Sadie Sherlin, Kaylin Adame, Carter Klein, Katie Waddell, and Neira Mares-Hernandez.

Eighth grade students selected were Allee Glen Kiser, Aniston Lowman, Alexis Vanhoy, Byron Brown, Colton Moore, Charlotte Williams, and Westyn McCraw.

Alexis Vanhoy brought home a first-place award for her art.

DOBSON — The recent primary election on May 17 served to whittle the field of candidates heading into the fall general election, which has since been increased by five office seekers who are taking the unaffiliated route.

In addition to the usual filings by those on the Democratic and Republican tickets for the 2022 election cycle, an option also existed for others to find places on the general election ballot without party labels attached to their names.

This is allowed by state law, which requires a nomination-by-petition process for unaffiliated candidacies to result.

In order to be on the general election ballot as unaffiliated office-seekers, candidates had to garner signatures amounting to 4% of Surry’s registered voters as of Jan. 1, which was 1,876.

A petition request form also had to be presented to the Surry County Board of Elections before candidates obtained signatures, which were due on May 17 — the day of the primary. Those names then were certified, including verifying that they are registered voters in the county and examining the signatures.

When petitioners obtain their required number of names and the petitions are certified, the process calls for the candidate to pay the appropriate filing fee, if necessary, with the elections office having each complete a notice of candidacy via petition.

With all that accomplished, county Director of Elections Michella Huff this week released a complete list of the unaffiliated candidates who cleared the hurdles.

• Frank Beals, a financial adviser in Elkin who is running for the South District seat on the Surry County Board of Commissioners now held by Republican Eddie Harris. Harris, a resident of the State Road community, won a GOP primary last month against Tessa Saeli of Elkin.

• Melissa Key Atkinson, a sitting member of the Surry County Board of Education who resides in the Copeland community. The retiree of Surry Community College was appointed in early January to the District 3 post on the school board, also known as its South District seat, to complete the unexpired term of Earlie Coe, who had resigned in November.

Meanwhile, two Republicans filed for that seat for purposes of the primary, won by Kent Whitaker of Dobson.

• Debbie Brown, an unaffiliated candidate for the Elkin Board of Education’s West District seat, for which Jennifer Kleinhekse, a Republican, was the only candidate filing to run in the primary.

• Will Ballard, who is seeking a City District seat on the Elkin school board.

• Mary Keller, another candidate for a City District slot on the Elkin Board of Education.

That district includes two seats, for which four Republicans had tossed their hats into the ring before the primary, won by Johnny M. Blevins and Earl M. Blackburn.

Huff, the county elections director, reminded Thursday that individuals were not required to change their party affiliation to run as unaffiliated-by-petition candidates.

But Atkinson did alter her status from Democratic to unaffiliated in February, which also was the case for Brown.

Ballard is unaffiliated, while Beals continues to be allied with the Republican Party and Keller, the Democratic Party.

Eleven years ago, then-graduating senior Courtney Scott wanted to honor her cousin, Carrie Elmore, who at the time was battling established the Carrie Elmore Award for her senior graduation Ewing Sarcoma, a condition the 10-year-old had battled since she was five.

Carrie, tragically, passed away the next year, in October 2021, at the age of 11, but her cousin made it possible for Carrie’s memory to live on by establishing the Carrie Elmore Award. That award grants $500 toward the cost of helping to grant a wish for a Surry County student in grades kindergarten through eighth grade.

This year, for the seventh time since its inception, the Carrie Elmore Award has been granted.

The 2022 recipient of the Carrie Elmore Award is Yoselin Avilez, an 8-year-old student at Cedar Ridge Elementary School.

Yoselin’s wish was for a “Frozen” themed playhouse. Ashley Mills, Surry County Schools Educational Foundation managing director, presented Yoselin with the gift on May 31. Gerardo Linares with the school system’s Migrant Support helped Mills coordinate the presentation and award with the family.

Kayla Scott and Courtney Oakley expressed how excited they are to present this award to Yoselin and her family. “We want this gift to help Yoselin to have fun without thinking of doctors and hospitals. We just want her to have a great time,” they said.

Yoselin’s mother expressed gratitude to the Elmore family saying, “Yoselin really loves the playhouse. It’s beautiful.” Yoselin also received a play kitchen and accessories for the playhouse.

For more information about the Surry County Schools Educational Foundation, the Carrie Elmore Award, or to make a donation to the Carrie Elmore Fund, visit www.scsfoundation.org or call Mills at 336-386-8211.

Saturday morning was bright and clear across Mount Airy — but nowhere was that more vivid than on the football field at Mount Airy High School.

There, more than 130 seniors were gathered for their graduation, accompanied by enough family, friends, and school staff to nearly fill the stadium to capacity. While some of the remarks from students and faculty talked of their past and their years in the city school system, most of the focus was on the bright, hopeful future awaiting the graduates.

“The possibilities are limitless for us, as long as we believe in ourselves,” said valedictorian Calissa Watson during her address to her classmates and the audience. She encouraged her classmates to go out into the world and, no matter their career or life choices, to “work hard and have no regrets.”

“Don’t let the fear of falling keep you from soaring,” Class President Olivia Phillips encouraged her fellow graduates.

Cass Salutatorian Dylan Tilley brought quite a bit of humor to his speech, eliciting peals of laughter from the audience. First, he said he had procrastinated in drawing up his remarks so long he had forgotten what the subject was to be — and only got a reminder Thursday, two days before graduation.

Then, most of his comments were built around how his talk could be compared to the Hollywood PG ratings —which, he said, allow for some profanity, some depictions of violence, and even brief nudity, none of which his talk contained.

After a few more laughter-inducing lines, Dylan offered this encouragement to his classmates: “No matter what comes next, take some time to live a little…Give’m hell Class of 2022.”

“I’m the proud superintendent of Mount Airy City Schools,” Kim Morrison said when she took the podium to make her remarks shortly before Principal Jason Dorsett oversaw the presentation of the diplomas.

Morrison commented on how she and others with the school system have watched the graduates, from their first days walking into BH Tharringon Primary School, grow up — many becoming involved in sports and academic teams, school clubs, church youth groups, community projects, and a host of other activities as they grew into young women and men.

She told those gathered for the ceremony Saturday that the graduating seniors had been awarded more than $3.5 million in scholarship money for college, with 79% of the students planning to continue their education in community college or at a four-year institute. Another 19%, she said, will be entering the workforce, while 2% have committed to joining the military.

“You have overcome challenges, accomplished great things…you have stood up for what you believe,” she said of the 2022 graduates.

Those experiences and growth have all blended together, carrying the graduates to this point in their lives.

“Go out and make your future…you are the light” in a world that is often dark, she said. “Your light is important every day.”

After having the graduates stand in different groups — those who have completed 160 hours or more of community service, those who had earned honors with their graduation, and other accomplishments — the moment they had all waited for arrived.

Over the next 45 or so minutes was a procession of seniors, each coming up as their name was called, accepting their diploma, then leaving the stage a high school graduate, ready to move on and make their mark in the world.

DOBSON — Those attending Surry Central High School’s graduation ceremony Thursday evening who expected the usual “today is the first day of the rest of your life” message instead heard a variation.

“Many people say today is the day we started our journey, but I disagree,” Senior Class President Kimberly Gomez Godinez told a crowd packed into the school gym.

“Our journey started a long time ago,” added Godinez, who was among 140 SCHS grads in black and gold gowns listed as receiving diplomas Thursday night and one of two student speakers on the program.

She indicated that some of her classmates had endured the usual modern laundry list of family and other hardships just to reach this point in their lives, and says much thanks are due parents and guardians playing a role in this.

“And then to top this off, we got COVID,” Godinez said of the unusual situation posed by the pandemic at Surry Central and many more educational settings in recent years — which became part of their “journey” into Real World events.

“The end of our sophomore year approached and we got sent home with no hope of returning,” she mentioned while recalling conditions in the spring of 2020 when strict bans on public gatherings were in force and online learning was the rule.

“Our school has been through a lot over the last three years,” Student Body President Cannon James Gates agreed when later delivering his address from the commencement stage.

The senior recounted the days of not being able to see friends and classmates during an extended period of COVID isolation with schools shut down, and then having to social distance once being allowed to return.

Yet there was a silver lining added to the SCHS Golden Eagles’ black and gold color scheme during the coronavirus days, according to Godinez.

Because of that, the students became more unified, she said, along with being toughened by the experiences of surviving an unprecedented time in history for society as a whole — posed by a disease that didn’t respect the walls or fences protecting campuses.

“We realized how resilient we are — I wish my classmates, my friends, the best of luck, but you won’t need it,” Godinez stated proudly.

After reading her speech in English, the graduating senior repeated it verbatim in Spanish, which she said highlighted the diversity achieved at the high school located in the center of Dobson. The roster of graduates includes many with Latino surnames.

The doses of realism served up at Thursday night’s event were accompanied by the obligatory remarks celebrating the milestone being achieved by the seniors.

Someone had to offer the usual commencement pep talk for the program, and that was Principal Misti Holloway.

“You rose to challenges along your educational journey and you conquered them,” Holloway said to the departing seniors before later assisting with the presentation of their diplomas, referencing deaths in the family and other setbacks faced.

“We are gathering in this place to celebrate an accomplishment that will last a lifetime,” the principal observed. “Graduation from high school signifies a new beginning in our lives.”

For some, that means continuing one’s education, but about 40 of the graduates plan to go directly into the workforce, according to Holloway.

Gates, the student body president — who is heading to East Carolina University to major in communications — said that during the journey by him and fellow Golden Eagles, they have been equipped with what’s needed to “soar into the Real World.”

He also offered a bit of nostalgia to highlight the bittersweetness of students’ transition, referring to a statement by the Andy Bernard character on the television series “The Office”:

“I wish there was a way to know you’re in ‘the good old days,’ before you’ve actually left them.”

Chloe Snow, an associate in arts major from Mount Airy, is the North Carolina Community College System Academic Excellence Award recipient for Surry Community College.

SCC President Dr. David Shockley recognized Snow at an SCC Board of Trustees meeting where she was given a commemorative gold medal and a letter of congratulations from the North Carolina Community College System’s president, Thomas A. Stith III. Snow has a 4.0 college GPA.

Snow is graduating from SCC and Surry Early College High School this spring. She explained that in her four years of taking college courses through her high school career, she was able to gain a clear view of her future.

Snow credits Dr. Darin Cozzens, division chair of English, Communication & Humanities, along with other English faculty for guiding her toward her career goals.

“From my instructor Mr. Heitschmidt’s English-teaching methods, encouraging words and patience, I learned how to write. From there, I took more English classes at Surry, knowing that one day, I wanted to be a writer. During my junior year, I took Dr. Cozzens’ English Literature course. From that class, I decided by the next fall that I would apply to a university in hopes of being accepted to obtain a degree in journalism,” Snow said.

Snow is a writing tutor at Surry Community College and works in the Academic Support Center’s Writing Lab. At Surry Early College High School, she serves as president of the Fellowship of Christian Students club.

In the community, Snow participates in volunteer work with a local ministry, as well as for an after-school program that helps children with reading and writing. She also participates in the youth group at her church.

Snow has been accepted into Salem College to major in professional writing and English. Upon finishing her bachelor’s degree, she plans to pursue a master’s degree in library science. Her parents are Jeff and Wendy Snow of Surry County.

Every spring, one student from each of the 58 community colleges in the North Carolina Community College System is recognized for excellence in academics. According to the system’s website, selection of the academic excellence award recipient is based on a single selection from each college. The recipient must be enrolled and have completed at least 12 semester hours in an associate degree program with a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.25. Colleges may use additional scholarship criteria beyond these minimum requirements.

Monday will see the beginning of something old and something kind of new at the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History.

The museum will be starting one of its four summer history camps, a long-time tradition at the museum. This year, however, the newness of the camp will be that the gatherings will be the first full-sized camps since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Last year we were limited to five children per camp,” said Cassandra Johnson, program and education director at the museum. This year, each of the four camps will have 15 slots for interested youth, and Johnson is hoping the sessions fill up fast — one already has 11 youth signed up.

Johnson, who describes herself as the new person on the museum staff, comes to the museum, and to planning the camps, with a science-heavy background. She has a degree in environmental studies paired with a minor in biology. That, she said, allows her to put together programs based on both science and history.

“There’s not a lot of connection between science and history in the classroom,” she said, and Johnson hopes to bridge that gap a little bit this summer, letting youth learn how important science was throughout local history.

That begins on Monday, with the STEM Jr. Camp from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m., Monday through Friday.

“We’ll do a lot of hands-on work for the kids there,” she said. Johnson said those attending will have a whole bevy of experiments awaiting them — making phones, making and launching rockets, even building test circuitry “at the appropriate age level for these kids,” along with building a bubble-blowing machine, learning about planets, along with having a park ranger come in and talk to them.

“It will be very experiment- and craft-focused…learning through play.” As they learn, she said she and her volunteers will be showing how those experiments and the science behind them have been important to the world, and specifically to the Surry County area, over the years.

The next session will be the Explorers Camp June 20-June 24, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. each day, for ages 8 to 13.

“If your child is more about being outside and hands-on, this is really the camp that I recommend,” she said. “We’ll have a butterfly display, a butterfly release, we’ll go down to Riverside Park one day, we’ll be learning basic things about bird watching, local plants, bees…making a compass…a sun dial, a little about star charting and navigating,” all skills settlers to the region and earlier residents would have used and needed.

Next will be the Passport Camp, for ages 4 to 7, July 11-July 15, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. each day.

“We’ll be learning about different cultures and art,” she said. “It’s for the kids, maybe science and engineering isn’t their strong suit, they are more arts and craft focused.”

She said the work that week will be more culture-focused, learning about the historic significance of people from various cultures settling in the region and then mixing with those already living here.

The final week of camp will be July 25-July 29, with Science Chef Camp for those age 8-13. Johnson cautions there are only four spots left for this camp.

“This has become my most beloved camp,” she said. “It’s got a lot of historical recipes; we’ll be looking at the science of cooking. We’ll mix a little learning, a lot of cake decorating, and a baking competition. We’ll create a solar oven and make a pizza in it.”

The camp also will include a field trip to one of the Main Street businesses, where the campers will get to see a larger commercial kitchen in action.

While the camps might sound like pure fun, Johnson said she’s worked hard with area educators to design a program that will reinforce and add to what the campers are learning in school, along with the fun.

“I have been talking to teachers, as well as homeschool parents, to learn what the kids are interested in, where they are in their school studies, what might be missing, then putting connections between history and science over the topics.”

While the first camp is set to begin Monday at 9 a.m., she said parents can still enroll their kids in any of the sessions, including the one beginning Monday. She said the museum has even had kids come in after missing the first day, starting their camp on Tuesday, although she said she cannot offer any price discounts for children who start late.

The cost of the camps for the general public is $100, with additional children in a family getting a $10 discount for the week. For museum members, she said the cost is discounted $20, so one child would cost $80, additional children from the same family would cost $70.

Johnson said a full-year family membership is $55. In addition to the camp discounts, that also gets members discounts on additional workshops and classes throughout the year, free admission to the museum, and discounts on some items in the gift shop.

As for the individual camp sessions, Johnson said she asks parents to pack a snack for their child, because there is a brief snack period each day. For more information about the camps, or the museum, call 336-786-4478 or visit the website at https://www.northcarolinamuseum.org/.

The Surry Arts Council has received a $50,000 grant from the Chorus America Music Education Partnerships Grants program.

Through a new funding opportunity, Chorus America’s inaugural Music Education Partnerships Grants program provides funding of more than $1 million to 22 community organizations across the United States and Canada working to increase access to choral music education and promote non-arts learning and cultural literacy. The projects funded in the 2022-2023 school year also uphold the principles of access, diversity, equity, and inclusion.

The Surry Arts Council is one of 22 grantees located across the program’s four regions – British Columbia/Northwest U.S., Central Appalachia, Southwest U.S., and Upper Midwest – that each received grants ranging from $25,000-$50,000.

The Surry Arts Council is partnering with the Mount Airy City Schools and the Surry County Schools to support a choral program for three elementary and middle schools. The students will be a part of a weekly after-school choral program taught by certified music educators in the school systems. The students will be immersed in choral music education and will also be taught different musical cultures by local guest musicians who will provide the students with authentic performance techniques and history relating to the music genre focus of each of the three schools. The students will be bused home following the after-school classes.

Participating students will also take part in monthly gatherings led by Surry Arts Council Artistic and Technical Director Tyler Matanick. These will be held at the Andy Griffith Playhouse and Historic Earle Theatre. These gatherings will promote cultural exchange among all the students in the participating schools.

For additional information, contact the Surry Arts Council at 336-786-7998 or email marianna@surryarts.org.

Citizens have a chance to weigh in on Mount Airy’s proposed budget for the 2022-23 fiscal year during a public hearing today.

The hearing, required as part of the annual city budgeting process, will be held during a 6 p.m. meeting of the Mount Airy Board of Commissioners.

City Manager Stan Farmer released the preliminary spending plan on May 19 and it has been available for public review in the Municipal Building since.

Budget elements that tend to spark concern among local residents — projected increases in the property tax rate or water-sewer charges — are not forecast for the next fiscal year that begins on July 1.

The proposed budget calls for the tax rate to stay at 60 cents per $100 of assessed valuation, in addition to no utility hikes. That tax rate has been in place since 2018, when city property taxes were raised by 25%

No tax hike is proposed despite the 2022-23 spending plan, totaling $18,437,250, being about 24% higher than the budget adopted in June 2021 for the present fiscal year, $14.9 million. It also is 7% above the adjusted spending plan for this year, which totaled $17,232,929 as of late March.

Those figures pertain to Mount Airy’s general fund spending, with the city maintaining a separate water-sewer budget that is supported by user fees under an enterprise fund arrangement. It is put at $7,409,750 for 2022-23.

The reason for the much-higher general fund package is the inclusion of about $3.2 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding allocated to Mount Airy as part of a nationwide COVID-relief package.

Most of that money is earmarked for a long list of projects to be undertaken during the next fiscal year mainly including major building and equipment needs at City Hall, Reeves Community Center and elsewhere.

These have a total price tag of nearly $3 million, part of total capital investment fund expenditures projected at $4.43 million. This will enable the city to make needed facility improvements while also providing non-profit appropriations “to maximize community offerings,” Farmer states in a budget message.

It is proposed that $128,500 be taken from Mount Airy’s fund balance, or savings, to help finance the American Rescue Plan Act-designated projects.

Personnel costs account for 55% of the proposed general fund budget, with full-time municipal employees recommended to receive a $1,500 raise for the next fiscal year.

One area of the preliminary budget that could generate some public hearing comments concerns special annual appropriations.

These are allocated to outside agencies that, while not part of city government, play vital roles in the community.

Last year this included $87,500 for the Surry Arts Council, $103,650 to the Mount Airy Public Library, $10,000 for Mount Airy Museum of Regional History, $7,500 to the Mount Airy Rescue Squad and $10,000 for Mount Airy-Surry County Airport, a total of $218,650.

For 2022-23, only the rescue squad ($7,500) and airport ($20,000) are listed for funding.

In lieu of a special appropriation, $206,996 is proposed for much-needed repairs to the Andy Griffith Playhouse, which houses the Surry Arts Council, and $197,322 for the library under the same scenario. Both buildings are owned by the municipality although the council and library operations are not under the municipal umbrella.

On the heels of the public hearing, the commissioners typically hold a special budget session later in June to discuss related issues and subsequently adopt the spending plan for the next fiscal year.

• A break-in at a local residence has resulted in the theft of a Nintendo PlayStation gaming console valued at $600, according to Mount Airy Police Department reports.

The crime was discovered last Friday at the home of Alice Aurieua Zimmerman and Luis Hose Jackson, who are both listed as victims. Entry was gained by unknown means.

• Injury to real property occurred at Food Lion on West Lebanon Street during a May 24 incident in which a known individual shoved electronic sliding doors open at the store, causing damage put at $300.

The case was still under investigation at last report.

• A vandalism was discovered at Mayberry Mall on May 21, which involved multiple windows being broken on a 1997 Honda Civic owned by Francis Allen, a resident of Glade Valley Road, by an unknown suspect.

This included two glass windshield panels and two windows on the driver’s side, damage totaling $350.

• A 2019 Honda Ruckus moped, valued at $2,800 and owned by Daniel Leonard Cox, was stolen on May 20 from his residence on Banner Street. It was bearing license tag number MA96227 and described as black in color.

• Jonas Garcia, 26, of 109 Mobile Way, was served with outstanding criminal summonses for charges of injury to personal property and simple assault on May 16, which had been issued in August 2020 through the Surry County Sheriff’s Office with Erick Anibal Sanchez, a homeless person, listed as the complainant.

Garcia was encountered by city officers during a domestic call in the 400 block of Worth Street, which led to the discovery of the unserved summonses. He is scheduled to appear in District Court on June 10.

• Billy Jackson Ledford III, 33, listed as a resident of Winston-Salem, was arrested at an Inglebrook Trail location on May 15 and charged with misuse of the 911 system and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Ledford is alleged to have dialed 911 multiple times for no reason, police records state. He was held in the Surry County Jail under a $1,000 secured bond and slated for a June 13 appearance in District Court.

While Livia Livengood is a career educator who can speak four languages, her multi-talented background established over the years did not include being an expert baker.

However, that changed in recent months with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has been accompanied by the local resident spending much time around the oven in addition to her teaching job at Mount Airy High School.

Livenwood, who hails from Romania, was so touched by the plight of Ukrainian refugees that she began baking and selling bread from the kitchen of her home to help them financially. And at last report, that effort had generated more than $12,000 — including 142 loaves as of Monday afternoon.

“I just wanted to do something to help,” said Livengood, who has worked at the high school for 16 years, presently teaching Spanish.

Though her bread-making charity project coincided with the Russian attack on Ukraine, she was not exactly a novice in the baking department although it was a skill learned only relatively recently.

“I’m not (a baker by tradition),” Livengood said without hesitation, explaining that the embracing of that role stemmed from her own family’s needs as a result of the pandemic.

“You didn’t know if you were going to find bread in the store,” she explained.

So after the Ukrainian invasion, Livengood naturally turned to her newfound baking abilities as a way to aid the refugees, initially generating a tidy sum in one week via that method for a UNICEF program. “I was surprised to raise $400.”

Earlier, she and daughter Laura, 16, had baked bread together to provide agility components for a local dog park spearheaded by Rotary Club members.

Livengood’s Ukrainian assistance ratcheted up quite a bit after seeing refugees up close and personal rather than as just as random individuals on television.

This occurred due to some taking refuge in her native country Romania, located in the same part of the world as Ukraine, who struck a chord with the local woman upon witnessing them.

A German pastor of a church in Romania who was taking care of an initial 17 refugees, including a number of kids, posted a photo of the group. “He is putting them up in the German parochial church,” Livengood said.

“I saw the children and thought, ‘I need to do more for the children,”’ she added concerning the expanding of her Ukrainian aid efforts, while also mentioning that many worthwhile organizations are providing assistance.

“This pastor is the brother of one of my best friends from high school,” Livengood explained. “He did not even ask for help, he just posted the picture, and I was saddened by that — I just wanted to do something to help.”

Consumer prices are much higher in Romania than here, according to the Mount Airy High teacher.

“Everything is double there,” Livengood related, including an electric bill of $2,000 per month where the refugees have been housed. “I don’t know how people there survive and make it, it costs so much to live.”

Thousands of dollars were spent just to bring the refugees over from Ukraine.

Livia Livengood suddenly found herself juggling the teaching job at Mount Airy High School with a growing bread-making sideline, which certainly involved a marketable product, given her previous fundraising success for UNICEF and the dog park. “Everybody likes bread.”

This eventually would include baking four to six loaves per day in her kitchen at home. “It’s a yeast bread,” she said of the product involved. “It looks and tastes like sourdough.”

The process is not as easy as it might sound, with the bread dough having to be set up at the end of each day, Livengood advised. “And it rises during the night.” The dough also must be kneaded, with the baking done in the mornings before the teacher heads to school.

There was one occasion in which Livengood overtaxed her oven and almost set the house on fire. “That was a bad idea,” she admits, which also included burning all four loaves baking at the time.

Her family has been quite understanding about the undertaking, she indicated, which in addition to her daughter includes husband Rob and son Luca, 14.

Livia and Rob met in 2001 when he was overseas serving with the Peace Corps. She came to Mount Airy in 2004.

“I have been teaching at the high school for 16 years,” said Livengood, who along with now instructing Spanish also taught German for a couple of years. Overall, she speaks those two languages, plus English and Romanian.

After running at maximum production, the baking operation gradually has scaled down, going from four to two loaves daily and now about two every other day.

“Right now it’s very manageable,” Livengood said.

“The response was very overwhelming — in a very positive way,” Livengood said of the bread-making campaign. The order/sales process for loaves has been conducted through a Facebook page she maintains to aid the Ukrainians.

This was bolstered by the many followers she has amassed over the years, including former students and others. “I do have quite a following, which helps.”

A suggested charge, or donation, for each loaf is $20, with the option of paying more — due to the extra motivation of assisting a downtrodden people rather than just getting one’s full money’s worth.

“Some give $20 and some give $100 — it’s up to people what they want to give,” Livengood said. “A lot of people just wanted the bread.”

Besides its sales, contributions to assist the Ukrainians have come in other ways.

Livengood mentioned being at a charity event to promote their cause earlier this year at Miss Angel’s Farm. “A total stranger gave me $500.”

Central Methodist Church also donated $1,000.

Meanwhile, Donna Bailey has been baking cinnamon rolls in support of the fundraiser, and Harlan Stone has baked a couple of loaves of bread for the effort.

Some people have donated flour, including Chris Wishart, the chef at Old North State Winery, who gave a 60-pound bag. The Xi Alpha Pi Chapter of Beta Sigma Phi of Mount Airy donated $500, with group members giving more individually.

Among other assistance, Pamela Hicks raised $1,000 by donating two of her paintings to the Ukrainian fundraiser, including setting up a silent auction online which saved Livengood time. She also expressed thanks to Mark Walker and Stanton Denman for getting the paintings, and an anonymous donor who contributed $400.

“People have been giving so much,” the teacher/baker observed. “The generosity of people has been amazing.”

All the money goes to the church in Romania.

Livengood pointed out that the refugees will continue to need rent and other assistance as they settle into new homes and she plans to maintain her bread-making endeavor indefinitely.

“As long as it can help.”

The NC Trail Days Festival is returning to Elkin Thursday through Sunday with a full schedule of events for lovers of the great outdoors.

The four-day festival is an ideal chance to spend the weekend in and around Elkin while enjoying guided and self-guided hikes, Yadkin River excursions, outdoor exhibitors, art, and live music.

“NC Trail Days is Elkin’s way of celebrating our beautiful Foothills region, our network of trails and our great community spirit. All trails lead to Elkin!” the festival website announces.

“From the Mountains-To-Sea Trail (MST), the Overmountain Victory Trail, and the Yadkin River State Paddle Trail to the Yadkin Valley Wine Trail, Downtown Elkin Mural Trail or even the Surry County sonker trail there is a trail for everyone,” organizers said.

The NC Trail Days welcome gathering is planned for 5 p.m. on Thursday at the Yadkin Valley Heritage and Trails Center. The gathering will feature live music and wine, beer and food available for purchase.

While the kickoff is in the evening, Thursday’s schedule starts early at 8 a.m. and includes Yadkin River excursions; hiking the MST in Stone Mountain State Park; a hike from Grassy Creek Vineyard to Carter Falls (with post hike glass of wine); stone painting and scavenger hunt for kids of all ages; a hike of historic downtown Elkin; an evening run along the Stone Mountain Loop Trail; and The Martha Bassett Show at Reeves Theater.

Friday has a quilt show; Pokémon GO guided hike in Elkin and the Overmountain Victory Trail; a hike of Widows Creek along the MST trail; a 10+ mile hike of the Basin Trail; a hike of moonshine stills along Garden Creek; Forest Bathing, or the immersion into nature to improve mental wellbeing; music from pianist Zach Groff; a Surry 250 lecture on the natural beauty and heritage of the area; Paul Thorn at Reeves Theater; and a Downtown Block Party & Low Country Boil.

Saturday events include the Yadkin River Run 5k/10k; Yadkin Valley Rotary Club’s pancake breakfast; the Carter Falls hike which will include a viewing of the future site of the Bridge of Dreams, a suspension bridge that is to take the MST across Elkin Creek; a hike of the E&A Rail Trail; and the 40 Mile Tour de Trail bike ride.

Other events include a farmer’s market; vendor village; guided tours of the Bluff Mountain Bike Trail; the “You Can Build a Teardrop Camper Too” workshop; a strenuous 3-mile hike of Wells Knob; and several live music acts throughout the day and scattered in eateries in the evenings part of the Downtown Music Trail.

Sunday wraps the festival with several of the previous day’s events being offered again and the Insane Terrain 5k; an outdoor multi-faith service; and traditional Celtic music from Fiddle Dee Dee with food from The Hot Dog Boy Food Truck.

It is a full schedule, and some elements may be subject to change. The full listing can be found at: https://www.nctraildays.com/2022schedule. The event is dog friendly; Elkin and Jonesville do require that dogs be on a leash in the town limits.

Parking may be found via on street parking in downtown Elkin and side streets as well as at several town parking lots. Drivers are advised to look for the purple signs with a “P” for parking. There is also downtown parking at the Heritage & Trails Visitor Center on Standard Street, Elkin Farmer’s Market at the corner of Business 21 and Market Street, at Municipal Park in Elkin and at Elkin High School on Elk Spur Street and at Elkin Elementary School on Church Street.

Organizers say, “Bring your bikes, boats, and boots and enjoy the weekend with trail lovers from all over on our many trails in and around Elkin.” With high temperatures Friday through Sunday forecast in the low 80s, follow any marked trail – or make one of you own – to Elkin this weekend for NC Trail Days 2022.

Surry Central High School art students had a number of their works on display at the Viticulture Center at Surry Community College earlier this month as part of the annual Superintendent’s Art Contest.

Among those who participated in the contest, and the category of their are, were:

3D Sculpture — Chesney Brady, Gracie Weaver, Haley Johnson, Hollie Culbertson, Natalie Branch, Lanie Fitzgerald, and Natalyna Torres;

Digital Media and Photography — Abigail Baker, Aylin Rodriguez, Fisher Freeman, Joy Tilley, Lanie Fitzgerald, McKenna Merritt, Natalyna Torres, Selena Ruiz-Sias;

Drawing — Amber McDevitt, Dayanna Flores Armenta, Gracie Weaver, Isaac Eller, Joy Tilley, Landon Wright, Rafael Hernandez;

Mixed Media — Alaina Smith, Amber McDevitt, Daniel Patricio-Maldonado, Emerie Elswick-Guden, Hannah Carter, Joshua Marion, Joy Tilley, Kayli Grizzell;

Painting — Dayanna Flores Armenta, Hannah Carter, Isaac Eller, Joshua Marion, Joy Tilley, Lanie Fitzgerald, Natalyna Torres, and Selena Ruiz-Sias.

A request to place a mural monument for The Easter Brothers musical group in downtown Mount Airy has sparked a wider discussion about the need for a policy regarding such memorial requests.

City officials who are exploring this regulation also say a way should be found to better direct visitors to murals and other attractions downtown in general.

The issue at hand was sparked by a request from Grant Welch to put a marker in Jack A. Loftis Plaza on North Main Street, a public rest area.

Welch is a local citizen who spearheaded an effort to have a large mural painted on a wall at the plaza of The Easter Brothers, a legendary local gospel bluegrass group, which was completed last year.

“People don’t know the mural is there,” Mayor Ron Niland said regarding the nature of the monument request during the last meeting of the city council on May 19.

“The purpose of this (the marker) is to direct them to the mural.” Downtown visitors might not be able to notice The Easter Brothers mural at all depending on their line of vision.

“Grant has a point, that when people are walking they don’t always see the mural,” Commissioner Jon Cawley said.

Based on a schematic design presented to city officials, the monument would rest at the edge of the plaza near the sidewalk and be about 3 feet tall and 24 inches wide. Plans call for it to contain the words “Easter Brothers mural” and an arrow pointing to the artwork.

It is proposed to be made of black granite with white lettering and a glossy finish.

While the mural plan might seem simple enough, the implications for its placement proved to be anything but during the council’s discussion.

One concern raised by Commissioner Steve Yokeley centers on the original purpose of the plaza that opened in 2011 — to honor a well-respected former mayor who has since died.

“If we do this,” Yokeley said of pursuing the Easter memorial, “I would like to get the approval of the Loftis family for anything else put there to honor somebody else.”

Yokeley added that there is a reason for the facility being named Jack A. Loftis Plaza. “I certainly think we need to continue to honor his name.”

The mayor said he has no problem highlighting the musical group itself. “The Easter Brothers were such a big part of our community,” Niland mentioned, adding that Welch has been “passionate” about the project.

Another revelation that arose during the recent meeting was that the city government lacks a comprehensive policy to handle requests such as that for the Easter monument involving memorial items placed on public property.

City Planning Director Andy Goodall confirmed that there there are no specific standards in place for codes enforcement of such markers.

“We don’t have a formal policy and that’s why the few (requests) that we’ve had have come before the board,” he said of the city commissioners.

Goodall said that previously two “monument-style benches” had been OK’d for a downtown alleyway containing a restored Coca-Cola mural.

Yokeley also recalled that a request for a memorial bench on the City Hall grounds was denied by officials.

Assistant City Manager Darren Lewis, former recreation director, said there is a program for naming items such as benches and picnic tables along the greenway and similar locations in memory or honor of someone. Lewis suggesting that this also could be applied downtown.

The matter of who would foot the bill for memorial markers also emerged as a consideration, with the mayor saying the municipality should do so when public spaces are involved— “rather than put that responsibility on private individuals.”

And city officials say that there should be a systematic way to guide downtown visitors to attractions not only including The Easter Brothers mural, but one honoring late singer Melva Houston, the Andy and Opie statue and a recently completed Andy Griffith mural.

Goodall suggested that publishing a brochure containing maps and other pertinent information distributed at Mount Airy Visitors Center might be a better way to do this than a marker.

“If a marker is only three feet tall, if a car is parked there people won’t see it anyway,” the planning director reasoned.

It was noted during the meeting that a downtown master plan update now underway contains a goal to provide more wayfinding signage in the downtown section which would address the issue raised about helping visitors find sites.

But in the meantime, city officials directed the Planning Department to work with local travel and tourism officials to come back with a temporary solution until the wayfinding program is fully established.

Meanwhile, City Manager Stan Farmer mentioned that a simple sign directing tourists and others toward the Easter mural could be placed in a flower bed at the Loftis plaza, a step that has since been implemented.

“I think this is a good start,” the mayor said of the preliminary plans.

Rhonda Baylor does not mean to sound boastful, but she is pretty content with life these days after some years of struggle. She remembers the version of herself that first arrived in Mount Airy 16 years ago and a lot has changed since those days for the better.

Boastful, no, but she is appreciative to be where she is now for it was not always this way. To honor those who aided her along the way and helped her to be on the solid footing where she finds herself now: she wants to give back to the homeless of Mount Airy.

On Saturday, June 4, Baylor will begin a new give back effort by offering a lunch and clothing giveaway for the homeless from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. in the parking lot of the 461 South Street North, #1, Mount Airy.

“We are going to have hot dogs, snacks and drinks,” she said. “Also, we are going to be giving away some clothing to those who need it.”

Baylor hopes to make this a regularly occurring event and said she would like to see it happening every month. She is grateful to the business for allowing her to hold the first event in their lot, but this is to be a onetime event at that location. “I want to find a more permanent place to do this,” she added.

At this time, she is not sure where the next location may be, access to the South Street parking lot is for this upcoming event only.

For now, she is placing her faith above knowing that the path forward will be revealed in due time. She said of her mission, “It has to be led by God, it’s all for the glory of God.”

Having a little faith has been a key for Baylor and she has already seen that faith come through when in 2011 the Baylor’s took ownership of their new Habitat for Humanity home. She said on that happy day, “I would like to thank each and every one who participated in helping us build this home, because without you, it wouldn’t be possible, so thank God for everything.”

It took the help of the community to get the Habitat home built and she is aware that she needs help from the community to grow her outreach into something that will last. By getting the word out now she hopes to be able to get more donations to make a bigger impact on a community in need going forward.

Alcoholism and homelessness clouded her outlook on life for many years and it was for that very reason that she made the journey in the first place. A recovery program that she had been working with found her housing in Mount Airy, and so she made the trek.

Armed with only three trash bags full of clothes, a beat up black and white TV, and a desire to improve herself – she arrived. Little did she did know that the journey was going to be a one-way trip. As is so often the case with people who move to Surry County, she fell in love with the area and chose never to leave.

With her situation improved and years of sober living in her rear-view mirror, her goal is to serve to the community and those who are in need. She said it clearly, “God put this on my heart. I am doing okay now, I have a house, two cars and got my associates in general education earlier this month. Things are going good for me — so I want to give back.”

“There is a great homeless problem in this area,” she observed noting the situation that she has seen in and around the county. She knows that the options for the homeless, especially men, are limited and it is here she sees an area to serve her fellow man and in turn her faith. In aiding in the carrying of another’s burdens she hopes she can be effective in changing outcomes and feels that will be its own reward.

With plans on the horizon for other groups to open transitional housing on Rawley Avenue and the ongoing goal to open a permanent Mount Airy Men’s Shelter, thankfully there are more options forthcoming. Baylor is happy to see other groups’ projects coming together — even if they are organizations she is not involved with — but knows those options will take time to come into service.

The Rawley Avenue transitional home needs to be converted from its current state of apartments into a mix of single residence apartments and dorm style multi-person units. Meanwhile, the men’s shelter is eyeing a vacant building in the area around Northern Regional Hospital after a previous plan to build on West Lebanon Street proved too costly.

Baylor seeks to be a stopgap that will help the homeless get from today to that day when a proposed permanent all-weather shelter opens its doors. For now, a simple offering of food or some fresh clothing is going to be the starting point for her efforts.

A common chorus that comes from these members of the community who feel driven to offer these meals, shelters against the elements, or clothing and toys to kids at the holidays is a desire to give back.

She is not alone as there are people around the community working diligently to improve the lives of others. Baylor needed an assist and getting that helping hand changed the trajectory of her life so now she feels compelled to do the same for someone else.

A crowd gathered under the hot sun Monday at the Mount Airy War Memorial only to be reminded of the harsher circumstances that have claimed lives of military personnel to preserve ideals of freedom that still live.

“Memorial Day is a time to remember and celebrate,” special speaker Stan Farmer said of its dual nature during an annual city program held in observance of that holiday attended by citizens reveling in the patriotism of the occasion.

“Though sadness touches our hearts, courage and bravery are two Memorial Day traditions that will carry on long after the sadness subsides and we ourselves are long gone,” added Farmer, a former Marine who became city manager in January.

“The meaning of memorial is ‘in memory,’” he told those assembled. They included veterans of the Korean, Vietnam and Middle East wars along with uniformed city Honor Guard personnel, Veterans of Foreign Wars Memorial Honor Guard units and Junior ROTC cadets — joined by city and county government officials.

“With this in mind, we know the true meaning of Memorial Day, to honor and remember all those American service members who died defending our freedom — our right to be free,” Farmer said.

“Reason for this day”

And it is not enough just to recognize the war dead, but to realize that their lives — and sacrifices — have that lasting meaning, reminded Mayor Ron Niland, who also spoke Monday. “I want us not to forget the reason for this day.”

Niland evoked words of two seemingly diverse sources Monday — Abraham Lincoln and The Statler Brothers country music group.

The mayor said he believed words Lincoln uttered during his Gettysburg Address best exemplify the meaning of Memorial Day in speaking after that battle about those killed when he said “that these dead shall not have died in vain.”

Rather, they ensured that a free government will exist forever, Lincoln stated.

Niland also referred to lyrics in a Statler Brothers song about a grieving mother approaching the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., which contains the names of those lost in that war.

While recalling how much she loved and missed her son who was listed, the woman says while looking toward Heaven, “Lord could you tell him, he’s more than a name on a wall.”

In addition, Niland read a city government Memorial Day proclamation Monday. It states that while the special day was first observed in May 1868 after the Civil War, those willing to put their lives on the line for the country have hailed from every generation.

Pastor D.M. Dalton, president of the Mount Airy Ministerial Association, who delivered the invocation for Monday’s program and special remarks, said these military members have reflected the lessons of Scripture to take “the old paths” and “the good way.”

Those who’ve made the supreme sacrifice should be honored every day, the mayor said. “But we should honor them especially on Memorial Day.”

Farmer, who told those assembled Monday that he was stationed at Camp Lejeune 30 years ago this month while in the U.S. Marine Corps, said what they accomplished and service personnel continue to defend are the foundation of the life everyone enjoys today.

“It’s the soldier, not the reporter, who has given us the freedom of the press,” Farmer said. “It’s the sailor, not the poet, who gave us the freedom of speech — it’s the Marines, not the politicians, who ensure us our right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness — it’s the airman, who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag and whose coffin is draped by that flag.”

Farmer pointed out that many of those who died have been mere youths with their whole lives ahead of them.

“We know who they are, as we visit the cemeteries and note the deaths of their shortened lives on their headstones,” the former Marine said. “We know their loved ones, their fathers and mothers, their children and the friends who shall always miss them.”

Other highlights of Monday’s program included a raising of the American flag and wreath placement by the Mount Airy Honor Guard, local student Cassidy Mills’ singing of the national anthem, a group recital of the Pledge of Allegiance and a flag-folding ceremony by cadets with the North Surry High School Air Force Junior ROTC.

The event concluded with a rifle volley salute by members of two local Veterans of Foreign Wars Memorial Honor Guard units, from Mount Airy VFW Post 2019 and Pilot Mountain Post 9436, and their playing of “Taps.”

“What a great day!” Mayor Niland said.

Fourteen students recently graduated from Surry Community College’s Truck Driver Training Program at the Yadkin Center.

The graduates include Kyle Dowell, Michael Jones, Emily Parker and Justin Smith of Mount Airy; Ardella Walsh of Pilot Mountain; Christopher Moore of Siloam; Marcie McKinney of Elkin; Osiel Burgos of Jonesville; Stacey Deel of Yadkinville; Jeff Lowe of Boonville; Tosha McCoy of Purlear; along with Travis Booth, Jay Murat and Michael Norrell of Winston-Salem.

Surry Community College will be offering another section of Truck Driver Training starting in the summer. The class will run from Monday, August 1 through Tuesday, Oct. 4, and will meet from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

“Median pay for truck drivers is $47,100 per year, according to the United States Department of Labor,” college officials said. “Drivers with experience can make more than $50,000. With a shortage of up to 12,000 truck drivers in North Carolina and as many as 200,000 nationally, CDL-certified drivers will easily be able to find jobs. The U.S. Department of Labor says the profession is expected to keep growing – by 6% during 2020-2030.”

“There are currently job openings for truck drivers locally and nationally. We developed this program as a direct response to the requests from local truck driving representatives who need skilled applicants to fill job vacancies,” said SCC President Dr. David Shockley.

The SCC Truck Driver Training Program teaches proper driving procedures, safe driver responsibility, commercial motor vehicle laws and regulations, and the basic principles and practices for operating commercial vehicles. The coursework includes motor vehicle laws and regulations, map reading, vehicle maintenance, safety procedures, daily logs, defensive driving, freight handling, security and fire protection.

Highway driving training exercises and classroom lectures are used to develop the students’ knowledge and skills. Graduates are qualified to take the Commercial Driver’s License Test and are employable by commercial trucking firms. They may also become owner-operators and work as private contract haulers.

Admission requirements include official driving record; physical examination; reading placement test score of 40 or higher; disclosure form; high school transcript; and drug testing.

For more information about SCC’s Truck Driver Training Program, contact the Yadkin Center at 336-386-3580. The tuition is $1,876, and some students qualify for a tuition scholarship. To check eligibility, visit www.surry.edu/funding.

KING – A routine traffic stop turned deadly on Newsome Road just after midnight on Sunday morning.

Two King Police officers stopped a vehicle at around 12:40 a.m. Once the car pulled over, several suspects jumped out of the car and ran, according to King Police Chief Boyette.

Officers gave chase, and at some point one of the suspects began firing at them. One of the King officers was fit by the gunfire, and both he and his partner returned fire.

The officer who was shot — whose name is not being published for safety concerns while the case is still ongoing — underwent surgery in Winston-Salem and should recover. The second officer was not wounded.

One of the suspects in the confrontation is dead, but it is not yet clear at this time if the person died from officer fire. The suspect’s cause of death is under investigation, according to Chief Boyette.

The State Bureau of Investigation is in charge of all investigations when a police officer-shooting is involved.

The officer who was shot is a three-year veteran, having joined the King Police Department in May 2019.

Saturday night/Sunday morning was busy for local law enforcement, as there was a homicide in Germanton and a deadly roll-over accident on Highway 704 in the northeastern part of Stokes County. The suspect in the Germanton murder has been apprehended.

The 50th Annual Mount Airy Blue Grass and Old-Time Fiddlers Convention, featured in a story on page 1A today, will feature more workshops than ever this year.

These will take place on Tuesday, May 31 through Friday, June 3 from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. each day at the Grandstand at Veterans Park. It brings master musicians directly to attendees who want to learn from them and play with them. The workshops are another way to enhance the experience for those from across the nation attending the Fiddlers Convention.

Instructors include Wes Clifton, Darrius Flowers, Kevin Fore, Trish Fore, Chester McMillian, Michael Motley, Lucas Pasley, Aaron Ratcliffe, Bill Sluys, Nancy Sluys, Martha Spencer, Emily Spencer, Kirk Sutphin, Adam Lowe, Mecca Lowe, Tammy Sawyers, Jim Vipperman, and the Mustard Cutters Band.

The workshops begin on Tuesday at 10 a.m. There are multiple classes in fiddle, banjo, and guitar as well as dances, jams, workshops focusing on vocals and playing together.

During the first weekend of June, thousands of old-time musicians and enthusiasts from all over the country and the world congregate at Mount Airy’s Veterans Memorial Park for the annual Fiddlers Convention. This year, the celebration of the 50th Annual Convention is featuring extra opportunities funded by the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources and Come Hear NC. The Surry Arts Council received these funds that will be used to pay area musicians to host these free workshops.

The Tuesday through Thursday workshops are sponsored in part by a grant from the North Carolina Department of Natural & Cultural Resources, with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts and the North Carolina Arts Council, a division of the North Carolina Department of Natural & Cultural Resources along with Come Hear NC.

The Friday workshops are funded in part by a subgrant from the Surry Arts Council to Veterans Memorial Park Inc. with funding from a Grassroots Grant from the North Carolina Arts Council, a division of the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

The workshops are all free. There is no advance registration. Instructors will gather at the grandstand prior to each class. A complete schedule of workshops may be picked up at the Veterans Park gate. For additional information contact marianna@surryarts.org.

On Memorial Day we remember those who have died in military service to this nation, its allies, and ideals. We think of rows of white marble crosses, cemeteries decorated with small fluttering flags. We think of the sacrifices made, our eyes welling with tears and our throats growing tight at the thought of the young men and women who pay the price for our collective freedoms.

They have made it possible for us to enjoy life in our hometowns. As they struggle in the hardships of the frontline, we move through a mundane world, complaining about price hikes, or how our favorite team lost the game. In America we are so insulated from the horrors of war it’s sometimes easy to forget the realities our service personnel deal with on a daily basis. We find out about their deaths days or weeks later.

The Korean War was a vicious conflict almost lost in a century of influential military actions and tremendous economic growth. But 70 years ago hundreds of young men and women from this region served in those unforgiving hills. Today we remember a few who never returned.

What began as a civil war between communist North Korea and the Democratic south soon boiled over into what many people saw as a proxy war between the USSR and the USA. The third major military engagement in 35 years, the Korean War raged in a land most knew little about.

All the while life continued on the home front. Here is a look at what was happening back home, here in Surry County, along with significant events related to the war.

June 25, 1950 – Soviet-backed North Korean soldiers invade the Western-allied Republic of Korea. The North Carolina congressional delegation unanimously supports President Harry Truman’s orders to deploy troops.

What began as a civil war between the Communist north and the Democratic south, soon boiled over into what many people saw as a proxy war between the USSR and the USA. The third major military engagement in 35 years, the Korean Conflict raged in a land most knew little about …. All the while, life continued on the home front.

August 1950 – The Central Telephone Company, based in Mount Airy, is granted permission to raise rates across the region from Mount Airy to Boonville, North Wilkesboro to Yadkinville.

The Bright Leaf Drive-In opens, dramatically changing the local teenage social scene.

A polio outbreak has shuttered Wythe County, Virginia, causing the town’s baseball team to withdraw from the Blue Ridge League. The Bassett, Virginia, team steps in as the deep-seeded rivalry between Mount Airy’s Graniteers and Elkin’s Blanketeers keeps fans riveted.

The Surry County Selective Service Board reopens its office in the courthouse. They ask all to “register immediately after their (18th) birthday” and those who are already registered to update their information if they have moved or married since.

The local National Guard heavy artillery unit, the 426th, is given a 30-notice for mobilization.

American is returning to the battlefield.

Surry County men were not part of the first call in the draft for the Korean conflict. There had been a delay in getting the office reactivated but would be expected to send draftees in the second call.

Some, however, were already there.

Sgt James Crouse, 21, Marine, killed Sept 26. – State Highway Patrolman JP Rhyne of Mount Airy knocked on Claude and Gladys Crouse’ door with news no parent wants to hear. The family home was just across the Alleghany County line in Ennice. He was the eldest of the Crouse’ four children, named for his grandfather, Jim Crouse, who lived at Fisher’s River near Lowgap on old Hwy 89. He’d already served three years in the Marines and reenlisted in November.

Crouse was the first Alleghany County soldier to die in Korea. More than 177,000 North Carolinians served in the war, with 784 killed and 201 listed as either prisoners of war or missing in action.

January 1951 – Mount Airy breaks ground for the Reeves Memorial Community Center.

The Surry County Chapter of the Gold Star Mothers is founded, an organization for mothers of soldiers killed in action. The Mount Airy News reported more than 50 county mothers were known to be eligible from World War II losses at the time.

Corp. Winfred Nelson Dawson, Jr., 18, Air Force, killed Jan. 1 – One of nine children born to Winfred and Nellie Dawson of Ararat, Virginia, he was part of the storied 335th Fighter Squadron.

August 1951 – Mount Airy’s First Baptist congregation launches a major building program.

Pvt. Samuel Carlise Hamlin, 21, Army, Killed Nov. 21 – Part of Gen. MacArthur’s 1st Cavalry, Hamlin was posthumously awarded the Silver Star “for gallantry in action” in the Chorwon region of Korea.

April 1953 – Surry authorities struggle to bring a rabies epidemic under control.

Pvt. Merlin Marshall, 21, Army Medic, Missing in Action April 18 – One of the region’s last casualties, Merlin was last seen attending his fallen comrades of the 7th Infantry Division. His remains were never recovered, and he was presumed dead the next year. The White Plains High School graduate is remembered in the National Memorial Cemetery in Honolulu where the names of nearly 30,000 military personnel Missing in Action or Lost at Sea are inscribed.

May 1, 1953 – Mount Airy’s Martin Memorial Hospital is destroyed by fire.

The war was fierce but stagnant much of the time as troops dug in to hold ground, often in brutally cold temperatures, sometimes as low as 25 degrees below zero. Hostilities dragged on until July 1953 when an armistice was signed, and an uneasy peace was reached.

Often called the Forgotten War, the war seems lost in history between the better-known WWII and Vietnam. It is time we remember. The Mount Airy Museum of Regional History has very little information about anything to do with the Korean War and those who served.

If you have photos, letters, mementos, or family stories about people who served in this war, consider contacting curator Amy Snyder. Such items can be scanned or recorded so future generations understand the price of freedom.

Kate Rauhauser-Smith is a volunteer for the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History with 22 years in journalism before joining the museum. She and her family moved to Mount Airy in 2005 from Pennsylvania where she was also involved with museums and history tours.

The weather for the first weekend in June possibly will be sunny and hot, but there’s a 100% chance of pleasant sounds during the 50th annual Mount Airy Bluegrass and Old-Time Fiddlers Convention.

In celebration of this milestone, a special concert is planned Thursday night to help kick off the convention that will feature competition both Friday and next Saturday when it concludes.

And free old-time and bluegrass workshops are offered from Tuesday to Friday, designed to perpetuate the area musical legacy for another 50 years or more through passing it on to younger generations.

The Mount Airy Bluegrass and Old-Time Fiddlers Convention is held on the grounds of Veterans Memorial Park at 691 W. Lebanon St.

Established in 1972, it is dedicated to the two musical genres, along with dance, and traditionally is held on the first weekend in June — although the coronavirus forced its cancellation in 2020.

The event resumed in 2021 and gradually is recapturing its pre-pandemic stature based on attendance by the public and participation of musicians vying for cash prizes, trophies and ribbons in various competition categories.

“We’re about halfway there, I guess, three-quarters, something like that,” Veterans Memorial Park President Doug Joyner said this week of the convention’s recovery from COVID, judging by last year’s event and interest in the one upcoming.

Based on everything that’s happened, this year’s golden anniversary has special significance, Joyner added.

“It’s been going on a half-century,” he said of the convention, “and we’re glad that the park can be putting it on every year (now).”

Joyner hopes fans will come out and help celebrate the occasion.

The convention officially starts Friday at 7 p.m. and will resume next Saturday at 9:30 a.m. for a day-long slate.

However, there are always early arrivals who set up shop in camping areas at the park and provide music throughout the week.

The competition categories at the convention are open to both youth and adults, including old-time and bluegrass band, bluegrass and old-time fiddle, bluegrass and old-time (clawhammer) banjo, guitar, mandolin, bass, dobro, dulcimer, autoharp, folk song and dance.

In addition to the performances during the convention, many impromptu jam sessions typically can be found when circulating around the grounds — and one never knows who might be involved.

Members of the group Donna the Buffalo have been spotted over the years along with other notable musicians such as Dom Flemmons of The Carolina Chocolate Drops.

The special Thursday night concert to celebrate the convention’s 50th anniversary will feature The Junior Sisk Band on the main stage at the park.

It is scheduled for 7 p.m., with $20 wristband tickets for the performance to be sold at the gate.

The admission cost to the park to attend both Friday and Saturday sessions is a $10 wristband each day.

Joyner says interest is high among musicians, including many returning performers.

“These people, they like to pick and grin,” he said.

“They keep emailing about it,” Joyner related. “I got a phone call the other night from a guy in England.”

That individual wanted to attend the convention in June 2021, but was prevented from doing so by COVID travel restrictions.

Joyner said he also has been contacted by a band in Russia which might show up for the event.

While convention organizers don’t relish capitalizing on others’ misfortune, the Mount Airy gathering also stands to benefit from the apparent demise of an early spring event in Dobson, the Surry Old-Time Fiddlers Convention. It has been cancelled the last three years due to the coronavirus and other factors.

“I think it will help us,” Joyner said of that development, particularly among the old-time musicians the Dobson convention was geared toward who desire a performance outlet to fill the void.

Another highlight of the convention week will be the free workshops in both the old-time and bluegrass styles.

The sessions are scheduled Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the grandstand area at Veterans Memorial Park.

Workshops are to feature the fiddle, banjo, vocals, guitar, jams, dance and more, organizers say.

Participating instructors and bands will include Emily Spencer, Martha Spencer, Kirk Sutphin, Kevin Fore, Chester McMillian, Wes Clifton, Trish Fore, The Mustard Cutters Band, The Pilot Mountain Bobcats, Nancy and Bill Sluys, Darrius Flowers and others.

A number of award-winning performers from the Galax fiddlers convention and others are among their ranks.

The special week-long workshops are made possible by grants from the Grassroots Program of the North Carolina Arts Council, with additional funding provided by the state Department of Natural and Cultural Resources in honor of the convention’s 50th anniversary.

A complete schedule of workshops, jams and dances will be available at the park gate, according to organizers.

More information about the convention can be found at https://www.surryarts.org/mafiddlersconvention/index.html More information about the workshops can be found on page B12 of today’s paper.

© 2018 The Mount Airy News