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Bladen County Native, Kelva Autry-Jones will be the speaker for the Bladen County Training School-Bladen Central High School Alumni Association’s Annual Awards Banquet.  Jones is the daughter of Kevin and Johnice Autry of Elizabethtown, NC.  She is a 2004 graduate of East Bladen High School. She holds a BS Degree in Education from Fayetteville State University. She also holds a double Master’s Degree in Biology and Math from Fayetteville State University and is a Doctorate candidate at Capella University in Minneapolis, MN.

After teaching school for several years in Hoke County, she taught for two years at Diyafah International School in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. She also taught for one year at Suzhou –Singapore International School in Suzhou, Jiangsu, China.

After realizing there is no place like home she returned to North Carolina and is teaching in Wake County. She and her husband Jonathan and their children Kaliya and Jonathan Jr. live in Willow Springs, NC.

The Banquet will be held on Saturday, September 8, 2018 at The Paul Brown Building in Elizabethtown, NC. Along with scholarships, awards will be presented to individuals for Community Service, Spiritual Guidance and Service to the Youth.  Paul Brown Academy’s National Award winning Rifle & Drill Team will also perform. The Banquet will begin and 7:00 PM and the public is invited.

U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos today recognized eight North Carolina schools as National Blue Ribbon Schools for 2018. The recognition is based on a school’s overall academic performance or progress in closing achievement gaps among student subgroups.

“I’m pleased to celebrate with you as your school is named a National Blue Ribbon School,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos in a video message to the honorees. “We recognize and honor your important work in preparing students for successful careers and meaningful lives. Congratulations on your students’ accomplishments and for your extraordinary commitment to meeting their unique needs.”

The coveted National Blue Ribbon Schools award affirms the hard work of educators, families and communities in creating safe and welcoming schools where students master challenging and engaging content. 

State Superintendent Mark Johnson congratulated North Carolina’s recipients as leaders for schools across the state in demonstrating effective teaching and learning aimed at helping all students achieve the American dream.

“The teachers, other educators and parents in these schools should be proud of this recognition,” Johnson said. “It’s affirmation of all of their efforts to make the classroom experience as meaningful and productive as possible. Well done.”

Now in its 36th year, the National Blue Ribbon Schools Program has bestowed recognition on more than 8,800 schools, including 349 schools honored this year. On November 7 and 8, the Secretary and the Department of Education will celebrate with all honorees at an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C.

All schools are honored in one of two performance categories, based on all student scores, subgroup student scores and graduation rates:

Exemplary High Performing Schools are among their state’s highest performing schools as measured by state assessments or nationally normed tests.

Exemplary Achievement Gap Closing Schools are among their state’s highest performing schools in closing achievement gaps between a school’s subgroups and all students over the past five years.

All eight of North Carolina’s schools recognized this year for the Blue Ribbon designation were selected as Exemplary High Performing Schools.

Up to 420 schools may be nominated each year. The Department invites National Blue Ribbon School nominations from the top education official in all states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, the Department of Defense Education Activity and the Bureau of Indian Education. Private schools are nominated by The Council for American Private Education (CAPE).

North Carolina’s Blue Ribbon Schools for 2018:

School Name                                                                  School District

Clement Elementary School                                           Sampson County Schools

Eastover-Central Elementary School of Arts                  Cumberland County Schools

Glenn C. Marlow Elementary School                             Henderson County Schools

Haywood Early College                                                  Haywood County Schools

Kitty Hawk Elementary School                                       Dare County Schools

Socrates Academy                                                         Charter school; Matthews

The STEM Early College at N.C. A&T                            Guilford County Schools

W.J. Gurganus Elementary School                                Craven County Schools

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has awarded an $8.8 million grant to the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction in support of NC Project ACTIVATE, a five-year program that increases mental health awareness for students, provides training for staff in recognizing and accommodating students with mental health needs, continues research into early prevention plans for substance abuse, and more.

The federal 2018 Project AWARE (Advancing Wellness and Resilience in Education) grants are awarded to state education agencies with the goal to build or expand their capacity to oversee school-aged youth and local education agencies. North Carolina’s demonstration project will receive a total of $8.8 million over five years.

Three school districts have been chosen for the pilot: Cleveland County Schools, Rockingham County Schools, and Beaufort County Schools.

The DPI Exceptional Children division will collaborate with the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services to fulfill the grant’s duties and initiatives, including:

improving school engagement and decreasing school disciplinary events for pre-school through 12th grade;
reducing the school dropout rate, rate of attempted suicide, and substance use by increasing the number of at-risk students receiving supplemental and intensive mental-health and substance-use supports;
improving mental-health supports and services through increased family and community-agency engagement; and
training school staff to recognize and respond to student mental-health needs.

“This pilot program fits well into our focus on mental health needs and school safety,” said Maria Pitre-Martin, deputy superintendent of district support. “We hope to show academic and behavioral results in these three districts that we can then scale statewide.”

The $8.8 million funding begins with $1.7 million this federal fiscal year, which started Oct. 1.

Contributed

Linda Burney, Executive Director of Bladen Community College, received the prestigious NC CORD Distinguished Service Award last week at the NC CORD annual conference recently held at Central Carolina Community College.

The award recognizes those who have served the organization and the cause of resource development in NC Community Colleges for many years. It is only awarded when a candidate of merit is nominated. Recipients have distinguished themselves among their peers with innovations, mentoring, team building and meeting significant fundraising goals. Ms. Burney is a past president of NC CORD.

Pictured with Mrs. Burney as she received the award is Bladen Community College President, Dr. William Findt. Dr. Findt was also recognized at the conference for the occasion of his upcoming retirement. Dr. Findt has served for many years as the organization’s liaison from the North Carolina Association of Community College Presidents.

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The Kiwanis Club of Elizabethtown is a civic organization dedicated to serving our communities. The youth are a priority to the club. Each year the club donates up to five scholarships to local high school students, assists with heading up and maintaining Key Club(s) in the area high school(s) and offers assistance to the North Carolina Boys and Girls Clubs at Lake Waccamaw.

This year the club’s discussions about the annual Can Food Drive acknowledged the great need of communities since Hurricane Florence. The local group decided to offer a friendly, healthy competition which challenged East Bladen High School and West Bladen High School to see which school could collect the most canned food items for the Bladen Crisis Center, a local food bank in Bladen County.

The idea for the challenge was for both schools to collect as many cans as possible through October 31st and then a trophy would be presented to the school with the most cans collected. The club decided to offer the challenge this year to start an annual can food drive contest between the two high schools. Dr. Wray, Principal at East Bladen High School, and Mrs. Peggy Hester at West Bladen High School accepted the challenge from the club without hesitation, according to club members.

Both schools exceeded expectations with their collections. East Bladen High School collected a total of 5,079 cans and West Bladen High School took home the trophy by collecting a total of 7,689 cans.

“This was a totally unexpected amount in volume,” Jeff Futrell, Kiwanis of Elizabethtown President said. “Kudos to both schools. I think this was awesome and definitely at a much needed time for the community,” he added.

This year’s can food drive kicked off the annual contest mid-October and the students, staff, parents and communities still did an amazing job. On behalf of all the members in the Kiwanis Club of Elizabethtown, “THANK YOU to all who participated in this worth while contest.”

The Kiwanians have challenged the two schools to start collecting cans each year now beginning on October 1st until October 31st. Each year the trophy is to be presented to the winner of the can food drive during half-time of the East Bladen verses West Bladen High School Varsity Football.

For the two schools to have collected over 12,500 cans in less than a month for the local food bank is a demonstration of who great communities are when they work together.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Duke Energy is providing more than $1.1 million to support 11 North Carolina environmental nonprofit organizations to preserve, protect and enhance natural heritage across the state.

“North Carolina is home to some of the nation’s most beautiful and treasured natural resources,” said Stephen De May, Duke Energy’s North Carolina president. “We are proud to support initiatives that protect wildlife and natural resources and encourage people to enjoy and care for their surrounding environment.”

Each organization received a $100,000 grant to support environmental projects, wildlife conservation efforts and educational programs that will improve the environment in their communities.

The Conservation Trust of North Carolina, for example, will use its grant to provide service opportunities for diverse youth and young adults to complete high priority conservation projects across the state.

“Conservation Trust for North Carolina (CTNC) is honored to continue our partnership with Duke Energy Foundation for a fourth year,” said Chris Canfield, CTNC Executive Director. “The Youth Conservation Corps program is an integral part of CTNC’s mission to engage North Carolina’s young people in community-based conservation projects. Their participation builds a sense of pride and ownership in preserving their natural and public lands for years to come.”

Here is a complete list of the 11 grant recipients with project summaries.

The Foundation annually funds more than $30 million to communities throughout Duke Energy’s seven-state service area. In 2017, the company donated more than $19 million to nonprofit organizations in North Carolina.

Lumber River Council of Governments Present Regional Awards On December 13, 2018, the Lumber River Council of Governments (LRCOG) celebrated 46 years of excellence and recognized individuals who have generously given their time and energy towards the work of the LRCOG. LRCOG Board of Directors Chairman, Mary Jo Adams, presided over the event.

Jean Lloyd, of Council, was named as the Regional Aging Advisory Council Member of the Year. Lloyd has served with the Council since 2016. During the seventy-fifth session of the North Carolina Senior Tar Heel Legislature held on October 2nd in Chapel Hill, Ms. Lloyd was recognized for her 15 years of service advocating for older adults within our great state.

Lloyd’s award was presented by Perry Blanks, Mayor of East Arcadia.

Former City Councilman Leon Maynor, of the City of Lumberton, was the recipient of the Calvin Haggins Award for Outstanding LRCOG Board Member of the Year. Jacqueline (Jackie) Johnson, Clerk for the Town of Maxton, received the Annie Kohnen Award for the Regional Clerk of the Year. Ricky Harris, Robeson County Manager, received the John K. McNeill, Jr. Region N Manager of the Year Award. Lee Berry, Mayor of Ellerbe, was the recipient of the first Leon Maynor Local Leadership Award. J.D. Willis, of Laurinburg, was the recipient of the L.E. McLaughlin, Jr. and Bob Gentry Regional Leadership Award.

Additionally, each board and advisory council serving the LRCOG presented an award to their outstanding members. Those honored were James (Guy) R. McCook, Jr., of Scotland County, as the Rural Planning Organization Transportation Advisory Committee Member of the Year; Jean Lloyd, of Bladen County, as the Aging Advisory Council Member of the Year; and Dr. Dale McInnis, of Richmond County, as the Dr. Stanley Richardson Award for Workforce Development Board Member of the Year.

The LRCOG provides an array of programs and services to the member governments located within its region: Bladen, Hoke, Richmond, Robeson and Scotland Counties. It serves as an administrative and service delivery arm for federal, state, regional and local programs of its member governments.

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The Annual Meeting of the North Carolina Farm Bureau Federation was held December 2-4 at the Sheraton Four Seasons and Joseph S. Koury Convention Center in Greensboro, NC.

Congratulations to Bladen County Farm Bureau President Albert Beatty who was recognized among his peers at the Presidents’ and Agents’ Luncheon. Farm Bureau President Larry Wooten presented each winning County President with a limited edition Case knife. Each county’s agency force worked hard to qualify their County President for this recognition. Special plaques were also presented to the agents and agencies whose production was superior during the contest period.

Contributed

Bladen Community College (BCC) recently received its largest donation to date from the BB&T Charitable fund in the amount of $250,000.

The funds are earmarked for the college to develop a technology curriculum to train and prepare students to be workforce ready, potentially for BB&T’s Client Care Center, and other businesses requiring these skill sets.

“Our partnerships with Bladen Community College represents a long-term commitment to the future of our region,” said BB&T Southeastern Regional President Phil Marion. “Through the programs offered at community colleges we hope to help students improve interpersonal skills, expand the ability to make better decisions and develop business acumen.”

“This is a major gift for Bladen Community College and helped us reach the goal of one million dollars donated to the college’s foundation,” stated BCC’s President, Dr. William Findt.

Dr. Findt added “The partnership with BB&T will yield benefits for the community’s workforce and beyond.”

BB&T is one of the largest financial services holding companies in the nation with $222.7 billion in assets and market capitalization of approximately $39.1 billion, as of June 30. Based in Winston-Salem, the company operates more than 1,900 financial centers in 15 states and Washington, D.C.

Basic Law Enforcement Training (BLET) students at Bladen Community College have received educational scholarships through the James B. Collins BLET Endowed Scholarship.

The James B. Collins BLET Endowed Scholarship was established as a living memorial to former Deputy Collins who served with the Bladen County Sheriff’s Department before his death.  For more information about the BLET program at BCC, call 910 879-5536 or visit our website, www.bladencc.edu?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss

Pictured from left to right are BLET School Director John Trogdon, student scholarship recipient Justin Reason, , student scholarship recipient James G. Smith II, BCC Foundation Director Linda Burney, student scholarship recipient Preston W. O’Briant, Criminal Justice Instructor Jeremy Humphries, and BCC Executive Vice- President and Chief Academic Officer, Jeff Kornegay.

Sheriff Office Promotion Ceremony

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By Erin Smith

The Bladen County Sheriff’s Office conducted a promotions ceremony on Thursday afternoon.

“We have had a very successful four years,” said Sheriff McVicker.

Several deputies received promotions. Those receiving promotions were: William Donald Britt who was promoted to the rank of Corporal and Joshua Blake Pittman was promoted to the rank of Corporal; Sean Gibson was promoted to the rank of Sergeant; Daniel Wilkins was promoted to the rank of Sergeant; Sean Cason was promoted to the rank of Sergeant; and Travis Deaver was promoted to the rank of Sergeant.

Sheriff McVicker took the time to thank all of the deputies for their hard work and their service to the Sheriff’s Office. He also thanked the three inmates, Frank Edens Jr. Rosendo Morales-Sanchez, Roy William Smith, for their quick thinking that saved the life of Deputy James Smith. They were recognized prior to the promotion ceremony.

“I am so very proud of all of the people in this office. I look forward to working them every single day,” said Sheriff McVicker.

Sheriff McVicker added that each individual is well trained and understands their job.

“I am so looking forward to seeing what they are going to turn out to be. These people one day are going to be running the Sheriff’s Office and I feel like if they do, that we have achieved something,” said Sheriff McVicker.

Sheriff’s Office Chaplain Warren Hill closed the ceremony with prayer.

Eight Harrells Christian Academy students were recognized last Thursday, January 10th at the Terrific Kids, Golden Resource, and Jammin’ for Jesus celebration. Kiwanis Club representative Bobby Spell attended the ceremony to present Terrific Kid certificates. Aubrey Edwards, Matilda Parker, Arabella Wasserman, Lilly Kate Rogers, Sammy Martin, Adriana Wasserman, Laney Bell, and Ray Anna Ginn were selected by their teachers for being inquisitive and energetic in the classroom.  These students showed great effort and really stood out to their teachers in these categories.  Congratulations to all of these young Crusaders!

Pictured in the photo at the top of the page are: Top row from the left: Adriana Wasserman, Laney Bell, and RayAnna Ginn. Bottom row from left: Sammy Martin, Lilly Kate Rogers, Matilda Parker, Aubrey Edwards, and Arabella Wasserman.

RALEIGH – Hickory-based Merchants Distributors, LLC, or MDI, has been named the 2019 N.C. Exporter of the Year by the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

The award recognizes individuals or companies that have made a positive impact on N.C. agricultural exports. Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler presented the award to John Gray, director of commercial accounts for the distribution company, during the Ag Development Forum Jan. 31 at the State Fairgrounds in Raleigh.

“MDI began distributing to supermarkets in 1931 and now distributes to retail grocery stores and distributors in 35 countries throughout the world,” Troxler said. “Alex and Lee George built their business around the principles of hard work and service to customers. MDI continues to pride itself on its customer focus and valuing its employees, customers and suppliers.

“MDI has worked with NCDA&CS to promote North Carolina manufacturing companies and to expose their products to an international customer base,” Troxler said. “The company has grown astronomically over the years and supports North Carolina’s No. 1 industry, agriculture.”

MDI has over a million square feet of distribution space offering distribution and business services to full-service grocery stores. With its international presence, MDI utilizes seven different East Coast ports from Miami to Elizabeth, N.J.

Contributed

Bladenboro Primary School has announced the honor roll for the  second nine weeks grading period for the 2018-19 school year.

3rd Grade “A” Honor Roll

Talon Bailey, Joshua Blackmon, Makenna Bryan,Venus Cortez Garcia, Alayiah Cromartie, Nicholas Hilburn, ShaMoni McNair, Tylar Moretz,  Norman Ramos George, Ashley Shaw, Talon Storms, and Andrew Wren.

3rd Grade “A/B” Honor Roll  

Lucas Bryant, Chloe Courtney, Natalie Galloway, Marissa Hall, Benjamin Hester, Eric Hester, Cameron Heverly, MaKenzie Jackson, Laken Johnson, Corie Joyner, Jayson Labra, Harley McCabe, Amiya McCarty-Maxfield,  Georgianna McLean, Saira Ortiz Ramirez, Ryleigh Owens, Marilyn Sagastume, Rafael Santos, Aniyah Swain, Aidan Thompson, Chloe Walters, Carson White, and Aniya Willis.

3rd Grade Principal’s List

Joey Cain

4th Grade Superintendent’s List

Chase Bryan and Conner Sykes.

4th Grade “A” Honor Roll

Blake Britt, Brayden Bryan, Kimberly Dowless Karlee Gause, Ashten Johnson, DaShawn Leach and Josey Pait.

4th Grade “A/B” Honor Roll

Ashley Baiza-Rivon, Hartleigh Britt, Natalie Britt, Ryleigh Brothers, Peyton Burney, Cameron Byers,  Ashton Davis, Kelsey Davis, Shawnesty Deaver, Izela Del Valle-Serrano, Benjamin Diaz, Colin Elkins, Jewel Gregg, Jamie Harvey, Lily Hester, Bryonna Livingston, JaNya McKeithan, Jay’Shawn McKenzie, Lukas McLean, Chelsie Packer, Mary Beth Pittman, Madison Powell, Brody Rhodes, Arionna Robinson, Emma Singletary, LeAnn Stanley, Trinity Steger, Shane Sykes, Armando Vazquez Ramirez, and Colin Willoughby.

The University of North Carolina at Pembroke announced the Chancellor’s and Honors list for the Fall 2018 semester.

Chancellor’s List

Bladenboro: Marley Lane, Charity Pait, Darria Parker, Hunter Willoughby

Clarkton: Alexander Coates

Elizabethtown: Kayla Pipkin, Harmony Weathers

Harrells: Tabitha Cain

Tar Heel: Laura Bellamy

Honors List

Bladenboro: Elizabeth Allbright, Rachel Bryan, Kaitlyn Gause, Sydney Jackson, Bryanna Lane, Alanna Ludlum, Codi Pait, Sameria Shipman, Katya Vasquez

Clarkton: Joseph Miller

Elizabethtown: April Atkinson, Nicolas Bauer, Zackary Bridgers, Kathryn Cole, Antwon Johnson, Adonis Johnson

Garland: Demi Meiklejohn

Harrells: LaDaisa Murphy

Tar Heel: Amber Wyatt

White Oak: Hannah Malcom, Martina Johnson

Four County Electric Membership Corporation awards $10,000 in scholarships through the foundations of community colleges in its service area to students who have outstanding academic abilities and a need for financial assistance to further their goal of a college education.

Pictured left to right for the presentation of a $2,500 scholarship check by Four County Electric Membership to Bladen Community College is Charles Ray Peterson, Bladen Community College Director of Customized Training, Jimmy Smith, Director of Economic & Community Development of Four County Electric Membership,  Dr. Amanda Lee, Bladen Community College President, and Linda Burney, Bladen Community College Foundation Director.

For the full application process and eligibility requirements, interested students should contact Samantha Benson, Bladen Community College Director of Financial Aid by April 15, 2019.

The North Carolina Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts sponsors poster, essay, public speaking, computer generated slide show, and computer generated poster contests at District, Area and State levels.

These contests provide students in third through ninth grades opportunities to become aware of and share their concerns for soil and water conservation.  Bladen Soil and Water Conservation District is pleased to announce this year’s District first and second place winners.  First place entries advance to competition at the Area 7 level; Area 7 winners will advance to State Competition.  Bladen Soil and Water District expresses appreciation to this year’s judges, Willie Beard, Supervisor on the Bladen Soil and Water Conservation District; Kelsey Edwards, Bladen County Library director, and Rodney Musselwhite, program technician with Farm Service Agency.

Winners for this year’s contests with the theme, “The Living Soil” are:

The first and second place district winners, teachers, judges, and other guests will be recognized at an Awards Luncheon in March at the Cape Fear Vineyard and Winery.  We congratulate all our students for their hard work and success, and thank all the parents and teachers for their continued efforts.

West Bladen High School has released their honor roll for the second quarter of the first semester.

“Superintendent’s List” – Any student with a grade of 96 in all Q2 classes and no more than seven cumulative absences during first semester.

Miguel Aguilar, Olivia Allen, Arely Alonzo, Tamia Barber, Christina Bautista, Kaylee Bedsole, Joshua Benson, Kayla Burney, Caroline Davis, Hannah Nicole Davis, Dylan Dove, Sydney Dove, Haleigh Fields, Kailey Gause, Kyla Gore, Samaria Grant, Kacy Gunter, Makaylie Hammonds, Amelia Harris, Ashley Hunsinger, Timothy Moore, Shaunessy McMillian, Roberto Muniz Villalta, Katie Nye, Bryan Padilla, Dalton Pait, Tara Rogers, Abigail Young (12th), Itzel Zuniga

“A” Honor Roll – Any student with a grade of 90 or above in all classes and no more than seven cumulative absences.

Nicholas Alioto, Ashley Argueta Martiniz, Shyra Ballard, Justus Belle, Hannah Bobby, Alexander Brisson, Amelia Brisson, Autumn Brisson, Ricky Brisson, John-Franklin Brust, Jacob Bryan, Madison Bullard,  Molly Burney, Cody Carlton, Janet Chavez, Wesley Chavez, Kevin Chen, Cailey Collier, Armani Cowan, Elijah Crabtree, Dalton Davis, Ethan Davis, Marnisha Drake, Emily Epps, Zachary Everitte, Marley Fletcher, Iveth Garcia, Chad Garner, Haley Gillespie, Jennifer Gonzalez, Lauren Gooden, Kailey Guyton, Richard Hermann, Jose Hernandez Barrera, Jose Hernandez Osorio, Hannah Hester, Jacob Hester, Mikayla Hester, Karla Hinson, Bailey Howell, Jaya Howell, Lauren Hunt, Del’Vondra Johnson, Sabrina Johnson (10th),  Catyna Jones-Gibbs, Hannah Kriner, Nathan Landreth, Callie Lewis, Cara Beth Lewis, Haley Lewis, Shaniya Lewis, Natalie Ludlum, Sandra Maldonado-Ortiz, Alexandria McKoy, Abigail McLaughlin, Cali Mers, Issac Meshaw, Kayla Norris, Shawn Oxendine, Kaylee Page, Caitlyn Pait, Sean Pait, Shelby Pharr, Rylan Pittman, Kieara Porter, Ashley Powers, Alexis Ray, Tinyauh Rhoda, Karlee Roberts, Ivanay Rosales Marchand, Summer Russ, Atzel Salvador-Gonzalez, Daniel Sanchez Lopez, Brady Sasser, Olivia Sholar, Ellie Grace Smith, Samuel Smith, Alyssa Suggs, Abdul Taylor, Jr., Cameron Taylor, Kaitlyn Townsend, Adam Valenta, Madison Walters, Sidnee Walters, Logan West, Phoebe Williams, Katelyn Willoughby, Abigail Young (10th), Ana Zurita Posas

“A/B” Honor Roll – Any student with a grade of 80 or above in all classes and no more than seven cumulative absences.

Paola Alonzo-Ortiz, Katherine Alvarez, Hannah Arnett, Christopher Bailey, Padocia Baldwin, Kerron Baldwin-Washington, Jalen Baxley, Walter Baxley, Kaitlyn Beder, Alyssa Bell, Kai Belle, Jordan Benson, Wyatt Bordeaux, Rebecca Bowman, Tyre Boykin, Mixi Bravo, Gustavo Bravo Verdugo, Leeann Brigman, Taylor Brigman, Caroline Brisson, Conner Brisson, Nathan Brisson, Kelsey Britt, Owen Britt, Andrew Bryan, Kristina Bryan, Nolan Bryant, Elijah Bullard, Johnathan Bullard, Maria Bustos, Raven Butler, Roxana Campos, Eric Canady, India Carney, Eduardo Carranza Toledo, Tucker Carroll, Alara Cashwell, Mikayla Chatman, Ian Clark, Jacquelin Contreras, Elexis Corrothers, , Marisa Council, Anna Cruz Torres, Jadde Cruzalta Vergara, Ashlyn Cox, Gerardo Cristobal, Tyneshia David, Katelynn Davis, Marie DeLeon, Harlin Diaz, Shailon Drake, Kolby Edwards, Nyasia Ellison, Citlalli Estrade Valadez, Ever Estrada Valadez, Blake Evers, Hayley Evers, Karla Feliz Marroquin, Mark Flores-Reyes, Alexa Foster, Lydia Foster, Edgar Fuentes Garcia, Uriel Garcia Ortiz, Estrella Garcia-Sanchez, Jennifer Gaytan Morales, Haley George, Nicholas Gibson, Jaheim Gilbert, Ja’Land Gillespie, Christian Gomez Santos, Andrew Gonzalez, Andres Gonzalez-Monroy, Conner Gordon, Gloria Guerra, Luis Guijosa Santiago, Katie Guyton, Ethan Hales, Benjamin Hall, Drew Harris, Kenia Hernandez Velasquez, Caroline Hester, Holly Hester, Jackson Hoffman, Dana Hunsinger, Christopher Hunt, Stephen Hunt, Kimberly Jones, Nathan Kinlaw, Amber Knepper, Jessica Labra, Kionne Lacy, Savannah Lee, Tagura Lennon, Jaheim Lesane, Emani Lloyd, Derrick Long, Jacob Long, Elena Lopez, Jacob Lopez, Miguel Lopez, Miguel Lopez-Garcia, Ivanay Louis, Richelle Maldonado Barrios, Iris Marroquin, Destiny Martinez, Sage McDonald, Dajuan McDowell, Nijeah McKoy, Mikayla Meadows, Josie Miller, Nicholas Morales, Essance Murphy, Dylan Nance, Vanessa Nance, Brady Norris, Madison Pait, Jesus Perez Perez, Anniya Phillips, Mackenzie Phillips, Trenton Pittman, James Kenneth Priest, Emily Rose Reaves, Kyla Reed, Albert Reyes-Gonzalez, Heidi Reyna Vicencio, Allen Roberts, Kayla Roberts, Ashton Robeson, Marcos Rojas-Jacinto, Mohagany Rozier, Alaysia Ruffin, Joel Russ, Nicki Russ, Clinton Ryckeley, Grace Sadler, Donna Salvador, Fabiola Sandoval Barrios, Doug Sessoms, Ariel Shaw, Andrea Shipman, Celicia Sims, Alyssa Smith, Chaley Smith, Demia Smith, Emma Smith, James Smith, Brandon Stocks,  Donovan Stone, Devon Strange, Matthew Strange, Lauren Taylor, Ronald Thompson, Leonardo Vasquez, Alejandra Vasquez-Ramirez, Braxton Vuncannon, Brandon Walden, Kylee Ward, Conner West, Elizabeth West, Lainy West, Alexcia White, Colby White, Grayson White, Szkharia Whitfield, Marisa Williams, Colton Wilson, Nikita Wilcox

Principal’s List  – Any student with improvement in each class from Q1 to Q2 and no more than seven cumulative absences.

Larry Council, Shailon Drake, Katelynn Edwards, Haleigh Fields, Jose Hernandez Osorio, Jacob Hester, Karla Hinson, Dana Hunsinger, Nathan Kinlaw, Richard Lewis, Shaniya Lewis, Zaidarius McKenzie, Any’e McKoy, Alicia Newton, Angeles Silva

RALEIGH – The State Highway Patrol honored 55 sworn and 11 civilian members today during a promotional ceremony held at Colonial Baptist Church in Cary.

First Sgt. C. M. Hardee, who is currently assigned to Troop B Cumberland County, was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant and his new duty station will be Troop B Headquarters.  Lt. Hardee has also served in the past in Troop B Columbus County.

The ceremony began with an invocation offered by Pastor Steve Stadtmiller followed by the singing of the National Anthem by Trp. Joey Garrett.  Offering welcome and remarks to those in attendance, Colonel Glenn McNeill Jr. spoke of the expectations required by each individual rank.

“Your new position requires the acceptance and affirmation of an oath, a commitment to God, country, state, to North Carolina’s citizens and to your colleagues,” said McNeill.  “Your sworn commitment is that you will, to the best of your ability, perform the duties of your office.”

Providing the keynote address, Governor Roy Cooper commended the excellent work demonstrated by each member, focusing on the attribute of leadership.

“To be a leader, you must be willing to do yourself anything you order someone else to do. You must set an example with your actions as well as your words,” said Cooper.  “I’m grateful every single day for the service of law enforcement officers across our state, particularly the men and women of the North Carolina Highway Patrol.  True leadership is a quality in short supply but I believe each of you have exhibited the qualities that make you a leader.”

The oath of office for each respective sworn rank was administered by Anita Earls, Associate Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court.  Following the oath, Lt. Colonel Alan Melvin recognized civilian members receiving a promotion.  Concluding the service, a benediction was offered by SHP Chaplain Phillip Bland.

Bladenboro Primary Schools has announced the Terrific Kids winners and the Terrific Kids certificate winner for the month of February.

Pictured with Bladenboro Primary School principal Deborah Guyton, Paisley Dowless, kindergartner who was the winner of a twenty-five dollar gift certificate to Pizza Palace of Bladenboro. First Citizens Bank of Bladenboro donates twenty-five dollars for the purchase of the Pizza Palace gift certificate to the winner of the monthly drawing at each of the Terrific Kid ceremonies for the school year.

Pictured are the recent recipients of the Terrific Kid award at Bladenboro Primary School. Every other month the students who are chosen Terrific Kids are recognized at a ceremony where they receive a Terrific Kids certificate, bumper sticker, and pencil.  A big Thank you goes to the Kiwanis Club of Columbus County who sponsors the Terrific Kid program at Bladenboro Primary School.