The Nashville Chamber of Commerce will welcome one of the fastest growing country music artists to the Original Nashville as the headliner of the 28th Annual Blooming Festival.
Drew Baldridge, a Nashville based independent country artist, built his career on honest songs, relentless hustle, and a deep connection with fans.
His breakout single, "She's Somebody's Daughter," became a viral sensation and made country music history as the first self-released debut to hit No. 1 on country radio.

NASHVILLE - The Nash County Public Safety Committee, comprised of a mix of county commissioners and staff, has been operating without minutes shared with commissioners and for its scheduled meeting April 16th, also denied access to The Graphic.
"The County Attorney (Mike Gaynor) does not believe that the committee meeting (April 16) is a public meeting. There is no quorum of the Board present and the meeting is not advertised.

OFFICIAL DAY - Nashville Junction owner Michael Hurt (navy blue suit) is joined by Nashville Mayor Brenda Brown, town council members, family, friends, chamber members and Junction tenants for the official ribbon cutting.

NASHVILLE - Five years after the former Nashville Building Supply building changed hands, the transformation of the historic building- now called the Nashville Junction- is now complete, culminating in a full house of fourteen tenants and a formal ribbon-cutting April 17.
Owner-developer Michael Hurt, reflecting on the many twists and turns in the road to get here, said "it's amazing how God works." Content at last with the project culmination, Hurt said that by the time the last business, Sawmill Pizza, opens its doors later this month, the Junction will have created over 50 jobs.

CASTALIA - Facing a housing surge that could nearly double the town's population, Castalia's Board of Commissioners have proposed a two cents tax rate increase to prepare local streets for the coming influx. During a budget workshop last Tuesday, commissioners tentatively agreed to waive their own pay raises to help fund the town's primary infrastructure needs but insisted on a 2.8 percent cost-of-living adjustment for the town clerk. However, commissioners stopped short of fully funding a $25,000 request from the fire department for new turnout gear, instead opting to give $5,000 in the upcoming budget year and re-evaluate the request annually.

NASHVILLE - An appeal contesting a Nash County designation about a dangerous dog- in this case, a 100-pound Presa Canario, or possibly a Cane Corso, that has attacked four people- was overthrown April 16th in a lengthy quasi-judicial hearing in the Nash County administration building.
"Chops," the dog, is being held at the Nash County Pet Connection Center after he was surrendered by his owner, 29-year-old Nicholas Alan Vester of Battleboro, March 19 as part of a bond agreement relating to criminal charges that were filed against Vester in connection with the latest bite incident.

Jason and Ryker Gupton from Rocky Mount ride in the 9th annual Scripture Run which raised $13,000 to send youth to summer camp. Graphic photo by Nancy West Brake

ROCKY MOUNT - The 9th annual Scripture Ride, a biker event dedicated as a fund-raiser to send youth to summer camp, roared through parts of Nash County for several hours Saturday, April 18th.
Organized at the Shenandoah Baptist Church, 3894 Shenandoah Drive, Rocky Mount, the event drew 70 participants, with uncounted others turning out just for the raffle and lunch.

RED OAK- Following the town of Nashville and soon, Nash County, the town of Red Oak is raising its sewer rates to keep up with a 15% rise imposed by the city of Rocky Mount.
"We need to go up 15% on (the sewer rates) but we're still not breaking even," commented Levell Langley, Mayor, at the April 13th town council meeting.
Langley said the town basically got into the 'sewer business' to support the school; Red Oak Elementary, Red Oak Middle School, the Fire Department and First Bank & Trust Co. of Virginia are all sewer customers, while the total number of customers is 18, Langley said.

NASHVILLE - The people have spoken concerning their wishes for Stoney Creek Environmental Park- and now Parks and Rec is on it, having formulated a master plan reflecting most voted-on priorities and come up with funding plans.
Koy Worrell, Parks and Rec Director, presented details for three phases of park development in the "Stoney Creek Environmental Park Master Plan" at the April 15 town council meeting.

NASHVILLE - The much-anticipated question of what business would be going into 608 Western Avenue, the site of a renovated home owned by Michael Hurt that was recently rezoned to Office & Industrial, has been answered: it's going to be leased by the Nashville Police Department.
"We haven't had enough space in our police station to house our police investigators for a number of years," states the approved agenda item at the April 15 town council meeting.

Recently, Rory McIlroy won the Master's Golf Tournament in Augusta, GA, for the second win in a row!
You often hear that the Saturday of the tournament is their "moving day". That is the name professional golfers refer to on the Saturday of the tournament. It's the day when they position themselves to win on Sunday.
The Bible also talks about a "Moving Day". It reports that sometime between Jesus' crucifixion and His resurrection, Jesus went to hell.

What can we learn from a conversation between two teachers?
John 2:23-25 ESV
[23] Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he was doing. [24] But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people [25] and needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man.
John 3:1-3 ESV

Women in Action of Red Oak Baptist Church met at the church on Tuesday, April 14. Members continued working on the Pillowcase Dress project by cutting out more dresses to be sewn. They also had their missions program and prayer time. The group also continued planning for the upcoming "Go Fish!" Missions Celebration they are hosting at the church. The next Women in Action meeting will be Tuesday, May 12 at the church.

Continuing the discussion from last week on inspiration, biblical scholar Matthew Barrett warns, "If we reject inspiration, we are rejecting the Bible's testimony concerning itself. . . . it is difficult to ignore the evidence that the Bible does affirm its own inspiration. Scripture is not silent on its identity and origin." Therefore, based upon the historical fact that Jesus was raised from the dead by God, we should expect God to speak directly and inerrantly to us through His inspired Word.
Inerrancy naturally flows from a flawless God who "breathes out" Scripture. However, inerrancy is sometimes misunderstood, meaning that the Bible has no errors.

Mark Lyons and Ashley Lyons to Dave Baker and Denise Merreot; 672 Chimeny Hill Way, Rocky Mount; $45,500
Winstead Properties NC, LLC to CMH Homes, Inc.; Spring Hope Meadows Subdivision, Phase 1, Lot 2; $65,000
Starlight Homes North Carolina, LLC to Tyler Denzel Lee and Tammie Renee Lee; Bryson's Ridge, Lot 151; $310,000
Terrence Michael Silk and Stephanie Renee Silk to William D. Purser; Section 2, Candlewood Subdivision, Block D, Lot 12

I've got a significant birthday this week. How can that be, you say? Didn't this space just contain a birthday celebration just a few weeks ago? The one where the lady at church referred to me as "one of the young people"?
It was a glorious time I want to hold onto. But this week marks 10 years since a doctor shook me awake and said, "Happy birthday, Mr. Brantley." At UNC Hospital, they call the day you get a transplant "your new birthday."

For those who are loyal readers of The Nashville Graphic, whether a new reader or a long-time subscriber, you know it's pretty clear that our mission, and purpose, is to serve as a watchdog of local government. Of course we also cover the fun and good news in our communities such as those seen on today's front page. We honestly enjoy the fun times the most when we can showcase all the good that's happening!
When it comes to making sure the public is informed about things that mean the most and affect our daily lives, we always place priority to make sure you, the citizens, are informed and we work hard to protect that freedom.

To the Editor, Today, our rivers are facing a growing threat: hyperscale data centers.
As the demand for generative AI continues to grow, the demand for land in our communities to place data centers grows as well. Data centers present a significant threat to water quantity and water quality. Facilities can consume up to 5 million gallons of freshwater every day in order to cool their equipment, water typically drawn from local treatment plants that source water from our rivers.

This photo was published in The Nashville Graphic on Oct. 24, 1968. Joe Braswell (right), commander of American Legion Post 110, inspects one of six signs erected by the Post beside roads leading into Nashville. Bill Joyner (left) and Willard Inscoe were on the committee in charge of the project, along with Thurman Hyde, who was not present when the picture was made.