WALLACE — After an extensive renovation, the veterans memorial fountain in front of Wallace Town Hall and Police Department was rededicated during a brief ceremony on Friday morning, May 24. The fountain honors Emanuel Pickett, a detective captain with the Wallace PD and a staff sergeant in the Army National Guard, who was killed in Iraq in 2008, as well as other veterans who paid the ultimate price in combat.
Pickett’s family members were in attendance at the ceremony, as well as town officials and a few local residents.
“It is truly a special day for the town of Wallace as we rededicate this fountain today,” said Wallace Mayor Jason Wells.
“This is a project that’s been in the works for a while,” the mayor said of the fountain renovation. “You know, Emanuel meant a lot to this town, both as a police officer who rose to the rank of captain for over 13 years, but also serving in the Army National Guard and making the ultimate sacrifice so we can all continue to live in the land of the free in the greatest country in the world.”
Rob Lapp, interim pastor at Wallace Presbyterian Church gave the invocation, recalling Jesus’ words: “Greater love has no one than this, that they would lay down their life for their friend.”
Harvey Knowles also played the Army anthem and “God Bless America” on the harmonica.
Timberly Southerland, Emanuel’s daughter, stated, “My dad meant a lot to the town and the town meant a lot to him, so to see the town still coming out for him 16 years later, and to be here with his family, it means a lot to us.”
Kem Pickett, Emanuel’s older brother, also spoke during the ceremony, saying that Emanuel was killed on his birthday and he hasn’t celebrated a birthday ever since. “But, we all grew up in Wallace,” he said. “We lived here all our lives. I’m 57 years old. I wish he was here longer.”
Emanuel was killed at the age of 34 in a mortar attack.
Wells remembered that Emanuel always did things quietly without seeking glory or praise. “It speaks to the person he was,” he said, adding that he hoped all those present had “a Memorial Day weekend that is full of joy and family time, but also remember the reason for the holiday.”
Eason will go down in history as the mastermind behind the Warsaw Veterans Mural, leaving a legacy to be remembered
The Town of Warsaw is mourning the loss of Commissioner Russell Eason, who passed away on May 27, 2024 at his home in Warsaw.
Eason, a U.S. National Guard veteran and former Warsaw Mayor (2013-2017), was known for his kind spirit and his involvement in the community. He was in his second term as town commissioner, and served a bit over five years in that capacity.
Today, Eason’s legacy stands tall at the corner of College and Front streets in Warsaw, reminding onlookers of the town’s deep military roots. The late veteran spearheaded the funding and commissioning of the veterans mural, a 70-foot-long wall art that he envisioned to represent the people of Warsaw and the town’s pride — the oldest consecutive running Veterans Day Parade in the state of North Carolina. Eason’s brainchild was unveiled in 2022 and was the culmination of a dream come true.
“When I met him, he was serving as mayor, and during that time he was striving to improve the town. He had a desire for the town to grow as well as the infrastructure to be repaired and updated as much as possible,” Mayor A.J. Connors told Duplin Journal. “His desire was to make Warsaw a better place to live. He really loved Warsaw.”
Eason was a dedicated public servant who served his community in many capacities.
“He served as a police officer here in Warsaw many years ago. He became an entrepreneur, and he owned a land clearing business hauling materials and debris, and he sat on the county planning board,” said Mayor Connors as he reminisced on Eason’s career as a public servant.
He volunteered time and resources at the Warsaw Veterans Memorial Museum where he served on the board. From fundraising to outreach efforts, he advocated for upgrades and renovations at the museum, helping secure funding needed to preserve the town’s rich military legacy and provide more accessibility to those visiting the museum in a wheelchair. The humble veteran was proud of his hometown and was the first one to help in his community.
“I remember one of our storms that we had here, trees had fallen down on the road, and he brought out his own personal equipment to help get it cleared off the road,” said Mayor Connors. “He was a down-to-earth type of person.”
“He wanted to increase the town and activities. He created a farm fest that he used to have in the springtime every year. … While he was serving, they started a conversation with C2 North Carolina to bring the biogas — that was started during his time as mayor,” said Mayor Connors. “His objectives were always to try to increase things here.”
Connors also shared that Eason had a desire to bring softball and baseball to the Warsaw Recreation Center to host tournaments and was a big advocate for senior citizens. “He pushed to open up the recreation center so that the county could bring lunch for senior citizens.”
A service will be held on Saturday, June 8 at Community Funeral Home of Warsaw at 2 p.m.. Eason is survived by his wife Crystal Eason; son Dail Eason and wife, Meridith Brown Eason; stepson Shawn Michael Brown; stepdaughter Michelle Catherin Brown and two grandchildren, Fallon Lanier and Willow Brown Eason.
WALLACE — Nine years ago, Jimmy Dixon, who represents Duplin County in the N.C. House of Representatives, was determined to get more kids off of computer and phone screens and into the great outdoors. Last Tuesday night, May 14, he was awarded for his efforts by the North Carolina Youth Outdoors Engagement Commission.
Dixon received the Founding Legislator Award from the commission, which held its first-ever NC Youth Outdoors Engagement Invitational at the River Landing Clubhouse in Wallace.
In 2015, Dixon sponsored House Bill 640, the North Carolina Outdoor Heritage Act, which created what is now known as the North Carolina Youth Outdoor Engagement Commission.
“By 2015, it had become evident that kids were spending less time outdoors and more time indoors on screens,” said Justin Burr, executive director of the NC Youth Outdoor Engagement Commission. “Lawmakers knew that that couldn’t go unchecked. Studies are frequently being published that demonstrate the negative effects of excessive screen time on the mental and physical health and overall well-being of youth and adults. Our commission is working to reverse those trends for students across the state. Since being established, the commission has taken seriously the task of encouraging less screen time, and more green time in North Carolina.”
The commission does this through offering NC Go Outside grants to schools and nonprofit organizations to take students on outdoors field trips. “We also provide grants to fund construction of on-campus outdoor education-based structures,” Burr said. “So field trips take students kayaking or hiking at a local state park, to the zoo, or to an outdoor shooting range to learn gun skills and shooting safety. We have provided schools the opportunity to construct everything from an outdoor classroom or a greenhouse to an archery range.”
There’s also the newest program, the Trailblazers Club. “It was established in 2023 as an after-school club with a goal of giving students outdoor experiences that may not be accessible to them otherwise,” Burr explained.
A patch program also allows youth to earn patches for accomplishing individual challenges like catching their first fish, shooting their first squirrel or demonstrating proficiency in archery. There were a total of 2,755 patches awarded in 2023.
All of these programs combined have reached more than 280,000 youth throughout the state in 98 counties since the commission began in 2019. More than $9.1 million in grants have been awarded to schools and nonprofit organizations by the commission.
“Without this guy right here, this wouldn’t have happened,” said Wendell “Dell” Murphy, Jr., chairman of the NC Youth Outdoors Engagement Commission, before handing the Founding Legislator Award to Jimmy Dixon. “Rep. Dixon said I’m going to take this on, I’m going to put something on that’s going to be lasting in North Carolina, and it’s gonna be this organization that you are all here representing tonight.”
After receiving the award, Dixon said, “This is a great honor. As Speaker Moore said, we were delighted to be able to work with a lot of people and there are two of them here that remain behind the scenes, but I’m going to recognize them here: Nelson Freeman and Cameron Boltes. They work hard.”
“Ladies and gentlemen,” he continued. “America is going to need saving again. And if we don’t fulfill our responsibilities to the next generation, we will not be honoring the heritage that we have of great men and women who have gone before us so that we have the magnificent privilege of prosperity.”
Also at the May 14 event, Legislators Sen. Brent Jackson (Bladen, Duplin, Jones, Pender and Sampson Counties), Sen. Jim Perry (Beaufort, Craven and Lenoir Counties), Rep. John Bell (Wayne County), and Rep. Jason Saine (Lincoln County) were awarded Legislator of the Year honors for their work in helping the commission to come about and be successful.
Speaker of the House Tim Moore, who represents Cleveland and Rutherford counties, was also honored during the event for his work with the commission.
And finally, three statewide leaders — Bob Barnhill, Richard Childress and Eddie Smith, Jr. — were the first inductees into the NC Outdoors Hall of Fame.
A $135K hazard mitigation grant will fund the move
The Town of Magnolia was recently awarded a hazard mitigation grant of $135,000 to help with disaster prevention. According to Town Manager Charles “Twig” Rollins, the funding will enable them to move the town’s sewer plant electrical service to higher ground — away from the current area which is prone to flash flooding.
“The old electrical service was put there, like, 30 years ago and it’s in the flood-prone area,” Rollins told Duplin Journal, adding that when they have heavy rains and flash flooding, that area floods and if it gets bad it could cause the power to go off at the wastewater treatment plant.
“So, this will get it out of that flash-flood area into higher ground,” he explained. The next step for the town is to put it out for bid, and once it goes through the process, the town will schedule it with Duke Energy and make the transition.
“I anticipate it’d probably be by the end of summer before the project would be complete, to early fall,” said Rollins, adding that it will be an easy transition. He doesn’t expect power outages, but they have a generator in case of any eventuality.
“We’ll inform the public if the power goes out. If we do, it will be very momentarily, would be my suspicion, but that’s going to be left up to the electrical people,” said Rollins.
In other news, at the May 14 regular meeting, the Magnolia town board accepted an offer from Blackburn Development to buy 32 acres of land that the town owns.
“Based on the zoning, it could possibly mean up to 100 new houses,” said Rollins about the offer, which is currently in the upset bid process.
“And when that’s all said and done, the only thing that can be done on that piece of property is residential based on its current zoning.”
Rollins shared that this could be a game changer for the town of Magnolia.
“The potential is a nice subdivision with a significant increase in the population of Magnolia, with all the benefits that come with new growth, and hopefully it will attract more service businesses to our area,” he said.
Rollins added that it could potentially increase the town’s population by 25% or more.
The North Carolina Office of State Fire Marshal announced the recipients of the 2024 Volunteer Fire Department Fund, also known as Fire Grant, on May 15. A combined total of $302,076.16 will help 14 volunteer fire departments purchase equipment using matching funds.
“Fire and rescue organizations protect our communities large and small across North Carolina, but sometimes their budgets don’t grow with their responsibilities,” stated Brian Taylor, State Fire Marshal in the announcement. “Our emergency service personnel should be supported with the best equipment and supplies needed to do their jobs correctly and safely.”
The letters notifying each fire department of the grant award and thanking them for their hard work and dedication were sent last week.
The 2024 Fire Grant recipients in Duplin County are as follows:
Albertson Volunteer Fire Department was awarded $40,000.
Calypso Volunteer Fire Department, Inc. was awarded $33,087.50
Chinquapin Volunteer Fire and Rescue Squad, Inc. was awarded $9,314.02
Faison Fire and Rescue, Inc. was awarded $24,185.
Fountaintown Fire Department was awarded $19,400.50
Greenevers Volunteer Fire Department, Inc. was awarded $23,155.50
Kenansville Fire Department was awarded $27,762.50
Lyman Volunteer Fire Department, Inc. was awarded $8,620.67
Magnolia Volunteer Fire Department, Inc. was awarded $4,693.04
Oak Wolfe Fire Department was awarded $11,150.
Pin Hook Volunteer Fire Department, Inc. was awarded $35,422.50
Pleasant Grove Volunteer Fire & EMS Department was awarded $9,106.50
Sarecta Fire Department was awarded $16,203.43
Teachey Volunteer Fire Dept., Inc. was awarded $39,975.
According to the OSFM these funds must be matched dollar-for-dollar for up to $40,000, unless the fire department receives less than $50,000 per year from municipal and county funding, in which case the volunteer fire department will need to match $1 for each $3 of grant funds. The grant award is administered through the NC Department of Insurance.
The Volunteer Fire Department Fund was created in 1988 by the General Assembly to help volunteer units raise funds for their firefighting equipment and supplies.
WARSAW — A $900 bill for an existing water tap brought light to some inefficiencies in the Town of Warsaw’s record keeping during the town board’s regular monthly meeting, last week.
Cecil Lennon appeared in front of the town board on May 13 to address issues with a bill to install a new tap at an old property he purchased that already had a tap.
This is not the first time Lennon was asked to pay for a new tap in property he purchased to renovate, nor the first time he had to appear in front of the town board to get solutions.
Lennon explained if there was water going to the property at some point in the past, there was an existing tap there and he should not have to pay for a new tap.
“If there is a tap that is already set and it is there, why do I have to pay for a new tap of $900? This is the second time it has happened. Where does the $900 accumulate from and why?” Lennon asked the board.
The property located on Prospect Street used to be the home of Jay McCoy, according to Commissioner Tommy Jones, who worked in the Public Works Department over two decades ago and knew the family.
“We’re supposed to have (records) so we can go back and pull records up at any time. There should be some records of Jay McCoy paying water and sewer. … He worked for me, for the town, for 10 years,” said Jones. “I know that property had a water and sewer tap because we made that water and sewer tap.”
Commissioner Jones shared with the board that in the past when a person moved out of a home, the policy was for the town to take the meter and put a lock on it and when the next person would move in, they would restore the service.
Lea Turner, Warsaw’s Town Manager said the tap was not a viable line, explaining that after Public Works investigated, they reported the line did not have water.
“A new tap has to be connected so that you have water to the address,” Turner told Lennon.
Craig Armstrong, the Public Works supervisor told the board that upon inspection, “there was a three-quarter inch line sticking straight up. No valve, no nothing.”
He explained that the line to the main is across the road and to find out what is going on, and find where the tap is at, they would need to dig up a whole section of the road that has asphalt and cement. Armstrong explained that when his department runs across a viable tap, they let the town manager know so the town can issue a refund.
“When he talked to me about it, we went over there and the only thing that was there was a three-quarter inch line sticking up out of the meter box. So that tells me right here that the service has not been viable for years,” said Armstrong.
When Lennon questioned Public Works about the shut-off valve, Armstrong responded that his technician put a cap on the line.
“At first when I inquired about it, they were telling me there was no service there,” said Lennon. “There was no record of service there. So, I took a shovel, and I dug down to that shut-off valve. Buddy went over, cut off the shut-off valve and put a cap on it. Now he is sitting there telling me there was no shut-off valve there. I don’t think that is fair.”
Courtesy Photo
Lennon proceeded to share the photographs he took of the shut-off valve with the board.
After some discussion, the technician asked the mayor to correct himself.
“I believe it might have been a valve there. Maybe I cut the valve off. In order to make sure there was no water on that line. … When I cut the line, I capped it, but there is no water on the line.”
Mayor A.J. Connors called for a pause, so the board could address other agenda items and go back to Lennon’s issue at the end.
Upon returning to the discussion about Lennon’s tap, Armstrong requested to speak and provided a recap of the actions taken by his department, then explained that because they don’t know the location of the tap, he would not recommend digging for it due to the cost involved.
“In a situation like that, it’s a whole lot easier just to leave that tap abandoned and install a new tap,” said Armstrong.
After much discussion, the board approved a motion to absorb the cost of the meter for Lennon’s water line. He will be charged a restoration fee. While the Board agreed that record keeping was key, the concern is having enough manpower.
“Something needs to be done in this town, on the way things are handled,” Lennon told Duplin Journal, pointing out the lack of accountability and the hurdles needed to get some type of resolution.
“They told me there was no water there — because it was buried — so I physically went out, dug it up, took a picture of it. That is when they called [public Works] for an investigation. Instead of him [technician] reporting back and taking pictures he went, cut the cutoff valve, and put a cap on it and said it was just a pipe on the ground,” said Lennon.
“I don’t know how long the Town of Warsaw has been doing this to people, but I just happened to be one of the ones who actually spoke out on it.”
“No one has records of James McCoy paying the water bill. Where is the record at? They didn’t have records of the people on West College Street living there paying the water bill. … The water meter is still there. … “They don’t have records. It doesn’t make sense… The guy lived there and raised his family in that building. I just happened to purchase the property and started renovating the building.”
“If you got no records, you can’t show credibility,” said Lennon.
“And when this situation came out the town manager wanted to take my $900 from [the property on West College Street/Highway 24] and apply it to this and asked me to pay another $900 for the sewer tap,” said Lennon.
“When I got involved, they told me there was no water there. … I took a picture of that meter and the other two boxes. And then they tell me it is disconnected, you gotta pay for a tap,” Lennon told Duplin Journal, adding that he paid for it and later went in front of the board like he did this time.
“They kept my money for three months before they returned it to me and I was unaware until one of the managers asked me if I got my refund,” said Lennon.
“I don’t know what kind of shenanigans is going on in the township of Warsaw, but how long has it been going on like this,” he said.
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