Recent Articles

Gregory Donald Richardson, 63, of Nashville, passed away August 6, 2015.

Phillip Harold Boone, 62, passed away Monday, August 10, 2015.

STANHOPE - From the standpoint of potential, this could very well be the most diverse, prolific offense the Southern Nash Football Firebirds have fielded during the Brian Foster Era.
Southern returns quarterback Zack Foster -- who broke the school single-season passing mark last fall -- along with a talented group of receivers, including East Carolina University commit Tahj Deans.

RED OAK -- Randy Raper has made extensive progress in his two seasons at Northern Nash -- winning nine games while helping rebuild a program that had hit a tough stretch before Raper arrived in Red Oak from Wilson Hunt.
Raper built Hunt into a Big East Conference gridiron powerhouse during his storied tenure there, and he appears to have the Knights pointed in a positive direction heading into the Aug. 21 regular season opener on the road at Corinth Holders in Wendell.

RED OAK -- Even with the loss of some talented seniors, expectations will once again be high this fall for the tradition-rich Northern Nash boys cross country program.
The Knights, who claimed the Class 3-A East Regional Championship last fall, will have an opportunity to defend that title on Oct. 31 at NN's home course on Red Oak Middle School.

RED OAK -- Red Oak Middle School's 2015 football season will begin Sept. 17 at home against Wilson Forest Hills.
All contests will begin at 4 p.m. Admission will be $5 for adults and $3 for students.
The Tigers will play seven games in addition to taking part in the Nash County Jamboree on Sept. 9 at Rocky Mount High School.
The Tri-County Conference Championship will be held on Nov. 5.

ZEBULON -- Keith Curcio hit a score-tying single in the sixth and Johan Camargo brought in the go-ahead run with a squeeze bunt in the eighth as the Carolina Mudcats won the finale of a three-game series 3-2 against the Nationals in front of 5,550 at Five County Stadium on Sunday night.
The Nationals (51-61, 18-24) led the Mudcats (58-55, 24-20) 2-0 into the sixth before Curcio locked it up at 2-2 with a two-out chopping single to center off left-handed reliever Jake Walsh.

ROCKY MOUNT -- New coach Chris Lee has found the hunger he was looking for during Nash Central High School's first official week of football practice.
As Lee acclimates himself to NCHS after a strong six-year stint at Louisburg, he continues to see a team -- and a school -- starving for success on the gridiron.
"The kids here, the students here -- everybody wants a winner,'' Lee said. "And it's not just in football, either.
"There is a lot of talent at this school. It's just a matter of keeping everybody on the same page. There is no reason this school shouldn't be successful in athletics.''

RED OAK -- Northern Nash High School has named Mr. Bernard (Bard) Collins as its new Varsity Baseball Head Coach.
Collins is currently serving at Northern Nash High School as a Career and Technical Education Teacher and will begin his coaching duties immediately.
"We are excited about the future of the Northern Nash High School Varsity Baseball Team with Coach Collins as the leader," said Angela Miller, Director of Athletic Activities for Nash-Rocky Mount Public Schools.

RED OAK -- Northern Nash will host its annual Fighting Knights Preseason Soccer Jamboree today on the NNHS campus.
The host Fighting Knights will participate in the scrimmage-style event along with Southern Nash, Corinth Holders, Wilson Hunt and D.H. Conley.
With the exception of the last match between Northern and Southern, all scrimmages will last 20 minutes.
Action begins at 4:30. Admission will be $5 per person. A full concession stand will be available.

LOUISBURG -- Louisburg College Athletic Director Mike Holloman announced Monday that Michelle Carlson will serve as the Canes' head softball coach.
"Michelle brings a lot of softball playing and coaching experience to Louisburg," Holloman said. "She has been successful as a player, head high school coach, and college assistant coach. With six years of coaching experience, I am confident that Coach Carlson will be a great addition to our coaching staff."
Carlson comes to Louisburg after three seasons as an assistant at Radford University.

Southern Nash High School assistant coaches Buddy Williams (top right) and Brian Batchelor (bottom right) check the alignment of the Firebirds' offensive line during a recent football practice session on the SNHS campus in Stanhope.

Northern Nash High School superfan Corey Mercer, Jr., was excited about the start of fall football practice last week. Mercer's father, Corey, is an assisant coach for the Knights, who will take part in today's Nash County Jamboree in Stanhope.

ELM CITY -- Listed are last weekend's results from action at County Line Raceway:

An argument among friends turned deadly last Thursday night on Sixth Street in Nashville.
According to Nashville Police Chief Tom Bashore, four individuals were hanging out at a home at 628 Sixth Street. The four went inside and an argument erupted between 63-year-old Greg Richardson and another man.
Bashore said according to witnesses, Richardson walked over and struck the other man, cutting him in the eye. A fight ensued, with the two men on the ground.
"There was a fight that took place," Bashore said. "The victim had struck the other individual."

Wilson Police are continuing their search for a woman reported missing last week.
Officers and Detectives with the Wilson Police Department are searching for Isabel Calvo Palacios, who was reported missing on August 4.
Palacios is a 20-year-old Hispanic female, reportedly from the Bailey area. She has brown eyes and brown hair, possibly with highlights. Palacios, known by friends and family as "Chaveli,"is 5'2" tall and weighs around 110 pounds.

Nash-Rocky Mount Schools students will start classes August 24th. A special Back-To-School edition is inside today's Nashville Graphic which includes information and calendars. Pictured above, Ja'Kaila and Kailyn Hendricks enjoy snacks during a meet and greet held at Nashville Elementary last week. The girls are accompanied by their mother, Shelly Hendricks. Students and parents met Nashville Elementary's new principal, Quintin Mangano.

A speed limit reduction request that was tabled at July's Nashville Town Council meeting made it back to the agenda this month.
Cedar Street residents submitted a petition to Nashville's Planning Department requesting the speed limit be dropped from 35 to 20 miles per hour. The town's Technical Review Committee reviewed the request and recommended the speed be adjusted to 25 miles per hour to be consistent with the speed limit on Elm Street which runs parallel to Cedar Street.

Nashville's Town Council adopted a $488,435.00 capital project last week for the installation and repair of sidewalks on the west side of Alston Street from Circle Drive to Circle Drive and the north side of Washington Street from First Street all the way to Walmart on Eastern Avenue, and awarded the project to BCS Contractors of Nashville.
The project has been on the table for years and has been delayed due to changes in regulations by the Department of Transportation.

A local chapter for the Friends of the National Rifle Association (NRA) has formed in Nash County and is planning a fund-raiser on August 27.
The National Rifle Association (NRA) is an American nonprofit organization which advocates for gun rights.
The Friends of the NRA is strictly a fundraising organization, said Buddy Gwaltney, a volunteer with the newly formed Nash County Friends of the NRA. The group raises money to contribute primarily to local youth organizations.

Monday was a big day for Addie Leigh Bailey, as she celebrated her 100th birthday.
To celebrate the milestone, friends and family hosted two parties, one on Sunday and another on Monday, August 10, the actual birthday of Bailey.
Bailey was born on August 10, 1915 and grew up in the Oak Level Community.
She attended Oak Level School and graduated from Nashville High School.

Each week, a group of men get together at Birchwood Country Club for a round of golf.
Recently, the group got together for a different reason; to celebrate the 100th birthday of one of their members.
The men, called the Seniors of Birchwood, or SOB's, held a breakfast honoring Herb Stallings, who turned 100 on August 4.
Stallings has been playing golf at Birchwood since 1960. Though he doesn't play anymore, he still comes out to visit the group.

Nashville Mayor Donald Street (right) swears in Leonard Barefoot as Nashville's Interim Town Manager during the town's August 4th meeting. Barefoot is a resident of China Grove and most recently served as the interim city manager for Ayden. Nashville's interim post will be his fifth interim position since he retired as the City Manager of Sanford in 2007. Barefoot took the helm of Nashville as Preston Mitchell left for a similar position in Reidsville. Mitchell served as the town manager of Nashville for almost 10 years.

A local man has joined Nash County's Office of the NC Cooperative Extension Service.
Matt Stevens will conduct educational programs in areas of commercial horticulture, consumer horticulture and pesticide education.
Stevens brings 10 years of experience from Halifax County. He served as an assistant then associate and then moved up to a full-time Agriculture Extension Agent.
He received his Bachelor's Degree in Plant Science and Master Degree in Horticulture Science from the University of Maryland.

Michael "Moe" Deloach and A.J. Whitehead are both familiar with the recipe to build a successful team and now the two long-time friends have partnered opening a new restaurant in Castalia. Moe & AJ's opened in July next to the L&L Food Store at 8909 Main Street.
Deloach, a Nash County native and Northern Nash High graduate, is a professional basketball player in Europe. Whitehead is a retired high school basketball coach from Edgecombe County and was one of the owners of D's Wingz in Rocky Mount.