NASHVILLE - The newly revised Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) for Nash County - which contains some entirely new sections on Conservation Subdivisions, 'Granny Pods' and Data Centers- has been hashed through by county commissioners and the county planning board.
The next steps will be to have a shorter public presentation, with public input allowed, later this month followed by official adoption by both the planning board and board of commissioners. Public hearings will be held at both of those meetings.

Angela Manning, Public Health Director

NASHVILLE - Nash County has two new department heads; Angela Manning, Public Health Director, and Ashley Howell, Animal Services Director.
Manning and Howell both began their jobs June 1st, the same day they were introduced to county commissioners.
Manning, who recently served as Deputy Director of the Pitt County Health Department, has 22 years' experience in public health. Manning also worked as Environmental Health Director for Pitt and Wilson Counties and has served in numerous statewide leadership roles,

NASHVILLE - A second attempt by the town of Spring Hope to have Nash County approve the expansion of its extra-territorial jurisdiction (ETJ) by up to one mile past its current ETJ border has been denied again by commissioner vote, this time unanimously.
A previous ETJ expansion request made April 6th was also voted down, with the condition imposed that a public hearing be held prior to the matter being reconsidered.

NASHVILLE - Just prior to Nash County's FY 27 budget hearing June 1st - with the budget scheduled for adoption June 15th - 7 new line-item additions, most coming from the Sheriff's Office- got thrown in the pot. Each was heavily debated by commissioners with individual consensus votes taken.
After Monday's action, another $1.3 million was added, bringing the total county budget to $162,037,492.

NASHVILLE - Move over, snowflakes and poinsettias: Nashville's Christmas decorations may be getting ready to make a big jump into diversification after members of the Downtown Strong Advisory Board chose three different new designs to invest in, subject to town council approval.
Meeting May 26th, an abbreviated DSAB (which was missing five of its members) met with Sam Hardwick of Mosca Designs, the company that made the town's current Christmas lights, and picked out three totally different designs they'd like to see added to the town's décor: a pair of entwined candy canes, a green wreath with red bow, and a triple poinsettia light.

NASHVILLE - A public hearing held on Nashville's FY27 budget, passed Tuesday night, garnered no inherent criticism except for shared frustration from utility rate increases passed down from Rocky Mount.
The balanced budget totals $17,440,217, which is up 4% from last year's. It has a two-cent increase in the town's property tax rate from 59 to 61 cents, per $100 assessed value, the same as it was two years ago.

NASHVILLE - The combination of Nashville sports venues and Nash County-produced sports team activity has produced talk about potential economic benefits from a hotel built in Nashville.
Thomas Gillespie, Nash County Parks and Recreation Director, made a presentation May 20th to Nashville town council members. Gillespie said he was there to provide information about revenue that county programs bring into Nashville.

SPRING HOPE - The town of Spring Hope has officially adopted its FY 2027 budget, with commissioners voting unanimously to pass it at their June 1st meeting after a public hearing attracted no comment.
The town budget balances at $3,143,390, with about $2.1 million in the General Fund and a little over $1 million in the Water and Sewer fund. Its tax rate will remain the same at 67 cents per $100 valuation.

The Clark family pitched in to help with the downtown clean-up day. Pictured above are Brendin, Corbin, Amanda, Devin and Allen Clark.

A power outage that affected over 5,000 Duke Energy customers turned out the lights in parts of Nashville, Red Oak and Dortches Monday afternoon.
Beth Townsend, Duke Energy Government and Community Relations for the NC East Region, said that outage began at 5:31 p.m. June 1st when there was equipment failure on part of Duke's transmission system in Nash County.
Businesses in Nashville's downtown area went dark, as did traffic lights, prompting Nashville Police Department to station officers at intersections to safely direct traffic.

ROCKY MOUNT- A Faith Christian School Spring graduate and Nash County resident, Fenner Parker, has received the Morehead-Cain Scholarship to UNC Chapel Hill.
The Morehead-Cain Scholarship, merit-based, covers full tuition, room and board, books, and summer enrichment programs.
Parker is his class president at Faith Christian and also serves as president of the school's YMCA Youth and Government delegation. He is also captain of the varsity boy's tennis team.

Girl Scout Troop #3249 presents the town of Red Oak with the North Carolina Coastal Pines Girl Scout Troop Community award. Troop Leader Meta Wells presented Mayor Langley with a plaque at the May 11th town council meeting. The presentation as made in appreciation for Red Oak allowing the Troop to hold their meetings in the town cabin and for the town's assistance over the past 30 years.

NASHVILLE- They may be incarcerated now, but they've still served their country- and one group of veterans at Nash Correctional has come forward in a big way.
Anthony Rogers Jr., Director of Nash County Veterans Services, unveiled a $1,000 check at the April 16th meeting of the Nash Human Services Board. The check was from the "Military Service Club" at Nash Correctional.
According to Talena Lee, Warden at Nash Correctional Institution, the club has eleven participating offenders.

"If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved." (Romans 10:9)
All of us have likely heard the saying, "Confession is good for the soul". It's an old Scottish proverb. However, most people that repeat it leave out one word. The proverb actually reads, "Open confession is good for the soul".
There is biblical truth to this saying as well. The Bible supports the conclusion that without open confession, salvation is not guaranteed.

Critics of theism and Christianity claim not only that God is dead but that He never truly existed in the first place. For if the God of Christianity truly exists, then why is there so much pain and suffering in the world? Atheists and Christians alike call this apparent conundrum; "The Problem of Evil." The logical problem of evil presents as a question: "If the God of Christianity is omnipotent (all-powerful), omniscient (all-knowing), and omnibenevolent (all-caring), then why is there evil in the world?" Did God create the evil that befalls man? If He, in fact, did not create evil, then where did it come from?

You can still register children for Rainforest Falls Vacation Bible School at Red Oak Baptist Church. Registration online has closed but you can register at the church prior to and the day of VBS. Rainforest Falls VBS will be held on June 8-11 at 6:30 p.m.- 8:30 p.m. with supper at 5 p.m. each evening. See you there!
Women in Action will meet on Tuesday, June 16 at 6:30 p.m. in the main building at Red Oak Baptist Church. "Cultivating Missions" is the theme for the evening. The meeting will include their regular program as well as making plans for the summer and taking a "sneak peek" at the exciting new year of WMU.

The Carolina Hurricanes recent successes have caused a chaotic scramble at my house.
This is the first time they've played in the Stanley Cup Finals when Kristi and I will not be there.
There are a few things involved in this: we're super busy and very important people; Raleigh traffic; and tickets in the nosebleed section were over $1,200 each when I checked. So, for all of those reasons, but mostly the last one.

A young man visited me at the newspaper office the week following the Blooming Festival. He was extremely polite and complimented the chamber for organizing the festival. He continued to explain that while walking his dogs, he noticed small trash in the edges of yards from the parade where the town's street sweeper couldn't reach. Some areas also had candy stuck to the sidewalks. Rather than barking, he politely asked if the chamber would support him in a clean-up day effort. The word "absolutely" couldn't come out of my mouth fast enough!

This photo published in The Nashville Graphic on July 13, 1976. The Nashville Jaycettes received their charter in a ceremony at Birchwood Country Club.