GRANVILLE COUNTY TOURISM DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY: The Granville Tourism Development Authority (TDA) is seeking qualified grant applicants for the 2025-2026 mini-grant program.

The Granville TDA’s mini-grant program seeks to assist Granville County organizations and agencies in the promotion and marketing of events and activities that encourage tourism and create an economic impact. Funded projects should create visitor spending with a goal of helping stimulate events/activities that can grow and eventually thrive on their own merit, without direct public funding. Any approved funding should be considered as a supplemental resource only.

Eligible organizations include Granville County-based community groups, nonprofit organizations, and municipalities or recognized communities located within Granville County. For-profit groups cannot apply for grant funding unless the event’s revenue will benefit a community-supported organization. Any group can request a sponsorship from the Granville TDA in writing followed by a presentation to the Tourism Development Authority Board of Directors.

Priority will be given to projects that encourage out-of-county visitors, with primary consideration given to those that promote the Granville TDA’s mission of marketing the area as a travel destination. The tourism industry’s definition of a “visitor” is an individual trekking outside of 50 miles to attend an event or activity. Events planned for off-peak times may receive higher priority.

Total funding of any event, project or program will not be greater than 25 percent of the total project budget and will not exceed $5,000. Included with the request can be a one-time artist/entertainment allowance of up to $1,000.

Grant applications or sponsorship requests for inclusion in the upcoming fiscal year budget will be accepted until May 19, 2025. The Granville TDA Board of Director will review applications and make recommendations for approval during their June board meeting. Award recipients will be notified after July 1, 2025, when the new
fiscal year begins.

Applications are available online at www.granvillecounty.org/TourismMiniGrant or through the Granville County Tourism Development office located at 124 Hillsboro Street in Oxford.

Those interested may also contact Angela Allen, Tourism Director, at (919) 693-6125 or angela.allen@granvillecounty.org.

Oxford, N.C., April 1, 2025, Granville Health System (GHS) is excited to announce  the installation of a brand-new, state-of-the-art fluoroscopy machine as part of ongoing enhancements to our Imaging Department. This advanced technology allows for faster, more precise diagnostic imaging and improved patient comfort, further elevating the high-quality care GHS provides to the community.

GHS is proud to continue investing in tools and resources that help our patients receive high quality care without leaving Granville County.

“At GHS, we’re always looking for ways to better serve our neighbors,” said Adam McConnell, CEO, “Meeting the growing needs of our community means continuing to invest in technology, people, and spaces that support excellent care. This upgrade is part of that promise, and there is more to come.”

GHS is committed to keeping our community informed as we continue expanding and modernizing services to meet evolving healthcare needs in our surrounding area.

About Granville Health System:

For over a century, Granville Health System has been at the forefront  of quality healthcare. To cater to the evolving needs of its community, Granville Health System has extended its services throughout Granville County, ensuring convenient medical care access for its residents. The Granville Health System main campus can be found at 1010 College Street, Oxford, North Carolina. For more details, visit GHS online at www.ghsHospital.org.

Media Contact:
Lauren Roberson, Marketing & Foundation Director
Granville Health System
lbroberson@granvillemedical.com
919.690.2148

GRANVILLE COUNTY ANIMAL MANAGEMENT: The usually quiet community of Stem recently had its peace disturbed when an elusive and mischievous goat embarked on a solo adventure, leaving residents and Animal Control officers scratching their heads. Little did they know, this wasn’t just any stray goat—but a master escape
artist with the agility of a ninja.

It all started with a report to Granville County Animal Control about a stray goat spotted in the area. Officers rushed to the scene, but when they arrived the goat had already vanished just as mysteriously as it had appeared; all while making a mockery out of all attempts to capture it by residents.

Animal Control decided to set up a corral and feeding station to tempt the goat into being contained long enough so that it could be detained. The corral was set up by Officer William “Billy” Spain. It quickly attracted the goat, and officers immediately saw what locals had already informed them; this goat was a master of evasive maneuvers. Residents and officers watched in disbelief as the goat—who could only be described as a Houdini with hooves—escaped from the makeshift corral like a pro. Maybe the Greatest of All Time (G.O.A.T.)?

After realizing they had encountered a truly formidable opponent, officers modified the corral by reinforcing weak spots and ensuring there were no gaps large enough for the goat to squeeze through. After some intense work, he was finally detained. "It was like trying to catch a whirlwind," Officer Spain laughed. "But in the end, we
got the G.O.A.T."

The goat has been placed at Blind Spot Animal Sanctuary in Rougemont and is now named Billy, after his captor. And Officer Billy Spain is now officially known as the G.O.A.T.

GRANVILLE COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES: Granville County officials gathered on April 4 to commemorate the beginning of Child Abuse Prevention Month with a pinwheel ceremony held at the Oxford Department of Social Services (DSS) office. DSS staff were joined by members of the Granville County Social Services Board, the Granville County Board of Commissioners, and Sheriff Robert Fountain to show their commitment to ending child abuse with a message of hope for strong families and a supportive community that allows children to reach their full potential.

“Every child deserves the opportunity to thrive, and every family deserves the support to build a strong foundation for their children,” said Granville County Social Services Director LaToya Toussaint. “It takes all of us working together — from business leaders to policymakers to community advocates — to ensure that families have what they need to help their children reach their full potential.”

Throughout the month of April, Granville County DSS joins Positive Childhood Alliance North Carolina (PCANC) and other partners across the state with a Child Abuse Prevention Month campaign theme of, “Powered by Hope, Strengthened by Prevention.”

The vision at the heart of this campaign is simple: All children and families should be able to live purposeful and happy lives with hope for the future. To achieve this vision, the community must prioritize child maltreatment prevention and work to support families and communities while ensuring that families have the resources,
support, and connections they need before challenges become crises.

“For every $10 spent on child welfare in the U.S., only $1.50 goes toward prevention—we can and must do better,” said Sharon Hirsch, President and CEO of PCANC. “By investing in family resource centers and community-based solutions, we can ensure families have the support they need. When we shift our focus to prevention, we create a future where all children grow up in safe, stable, and nurturing environments, surrounded by positive experiences and hope.”

Get involved with Child Abuse Prevention Month this April by taking action to urge lawmakers to prioritize policies that strengthen families and communities on April 9, 2025, during Digital Advocacy Day. Find your legislators by visiting the NC General Assembly website: www.ncleg.gov/findyourlegislators and learn more about policies that strengthen families and communities at the PCANC website: https://positivechildhoodalliancenc.org/policy/

Granville County DSS is 1 of 100 county-administered social services agencies in North Carolina that provides an array of human supportive services that are authorized and funded by federal and state legislatures as well as local county governments. Social service programs enable economically disadvantaged families to meet basic survival needs and provide opportunities for families to gain self sufficiency through employment. Other DSS programs focus on the protection, prevention, and remediation of abuse, neglect, dependency, and/or exploitation of children and adults. If you suspect abuse, neglect, or abandonment of a child(ren) please call 919- 693-1511 from 8:30 am to 5 pm, Monday through Friday and ask to speak to a Child Protective Services Intake Specialist. On weekends, holidays, or after 5 pm, please call 9-1-1 and the operator will be able to assist you.

For more information, visit our website at www.granvillecounty.org/463/Social-Services

Owner Todd Allred originally opened in the basement beneath The Hub on Main in October 2023.

Vinyl purchases have skyrocketed to 1.2 billion in sales in 2024 since a gradual resurgence began in 2006, and picked up steam with the initiation of Record Store Day (RSD) events which are immensely popular. Other formats of physical media such as CDs have also regained in popularity.

Todd and his staff provide a diverse selection of music in their larger Main Street location. OX4D Music now offers thousands of titles, adding more new and used records all the time. They are focused on providing knowledgeable and friendly customer service in a comfortable environment with plenty of space to browse and listen to music.

Todd began collecting vinyl in the seventies as a small child after his father introduced him to bands he immediately liked. Todd explains, “I have never stopped buying records and CDs and amassed thousands of albums. OX4D Music has allowed me to transition from an obsessed collector to a business owner able to share those and many more great records with our local community. We want to be YOUR local record store.”

OX4D MUSIC is open Tuesday through Friday from 11 AM to 7:30 PM, Saturday from 10:00 AM to 7:30 PM, and on Sunday from 12 PM until 6 PM. Contact OX4D Music via phone at (984) 514-8148 and e-mail at info@ox4dmusic.com. The website address is www.OX4DMusic.com. Social handles are Facebook OX4D Music and Instagram ox4d_music.

Celebrating its move and expansion to the new 125 Main Street location, OX4D Music, in coordination with the Granville County Chamber of Commerce will host a Ribbon Cutting on Saturday, April 12, 2025 at 9:30 AM 

Events following to include pastries by Strong Arm Baking, delicious Hot dogs around back by The Pushcart (weather-permitting), Popcorn courtesy of Wilkinson Creative Co. and delicious, unique coffee from She Chose Down at Angel Wings Bookstore and Bistro. Other snacks & (non-alcoholic) drinks are available for purchase inside. OX4D Music is a proud champion of Oxford Social District events, so Alcoholic beverages may be brought in as long as they are in the approved Social District cups. 

Also 12% off ALL used vinyl and cd's, and great music and fun all day long!

CONTACT: TODD ALLRED at (984) 514-8148 or e-mail at info@ox4dmusic.com for additional information.

EAST GREENSBORO, N.C. (April 2, 2025) When Elvin and Madeline Eaton of Fairport Farm in Kittrell, North Carolina, decided to try growing produce and microgreens as a retirement venture, they resolved to do things differently on their quarter-acre farm: No tilling, no commercial fertilizers or pesticides, and beds that stayed in place for multiple seasons, rather than rotating.

They also wanted to be a source of nutrient-dense, readily available produce for the Kerr-Tar region, which includes some of the state’s most food insecure municipalities in Franklin, Granville, Person, Vance and Warren counties.

Just three years later, their efforts have paid off. The Granville couple are N.C. Small Farmers of the Year, the annual award given through North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University Cooperative Extension during Small Farms Week. The tribute to small-scale agriculture is presented by Cooperative Extension at N.C. A&T annually in March.

“We’re more than surprised,” Elvin Eaton said after the award was announced. “We grow so different — we grow all year long, we grow covered, we grow without chemical fertilizer or pesticides. Soil health is the basis of our farm. This is far out of the norm for people in our area, but when they see the results, a lot of people have been super receptive.

“We really didn’t think we had a chance. We were just happy being nominated, honestly.”

Meet the Eatons: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpSAdVveTG8&t=2s

More than 400 farmers, ranchers, Extension agents and partners from across the state came to A&T’s campus to attend N.C. Cooperative Extension’s 39th annual Small Farms Week, which this year centered around the theme “Next Gen Agriculture” and included educational workshops and panel discussions focused on the needs of the next generation of growers, from technological to educational.

The week kicked off Monday, March 24, in Warren County, home of Patrick Brown of Brown Family Farms, the 2024 Co-Small Farmer of the Year; and closed Friday, March 28, in Cumberland County at Secret Garden Bees, the honey farm of James and Christi Hartman, 2024’s other Co-Small Farmer of the Year.

“Winning the N.C. Small Farmer of the Year award helped our farm to grow,” Brown said. “We were able to expand our markets, and being able to provide technical assistance and share information with other farmers helped solidify our farm.”

The Small Farmer of the Year award was presented Wednesday, March 26, at A&T Cooperative Extension’s annual luncheon.

“This year, we have three amazing Small Farmer of the Year finalists,” said M. Ray McKinnie, Ph.D., associate College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences dean and Extension administrator. “They have shown us what it means to be next-generation farmers with their ingenuity and dedication to the profession, and to helping their communities thrive.

The weeklong annual celebration was launched by Extension in 1985 to connect with small-scale farmers — including minority farmers and those in underserved communities — to ensure they receive the latest research-based information on farming techniques, new tools and technologies. It also gives the public a chance to meet their agricultural neighbors and learn about farm operations and food?production.

Using five 100-foot-high tunnels — greenhouses without air conditioning — on just one quarter of an acre of their 12-acre Century Farm, the Eatons have grown their retirement venture into a profitable, civic-minded enterprise. A Certified Naturally Grown farm, they grow microgreens, kale, collard and mustard greens, broccoli and a variety of lettuces in addition to tomatoes, potatoes, onions and carrots, supporting a farmers’ market business and a direct-sell business.

The couple also are major contributors to food-donation programs at the Granville Veterans’ Life Center and the Farm to Fridge Program, a collaboration between Cooperative Extension and the library system that allows farmers to stock a fridge with free, fresh, surplus produce that people can pick up as needed.

“The Eatons are amazing advocates for agriculture in our community,” said Wendy Tatum, N.C. Cooperative Extension food and built environment agent in Granville County, who nominated the couple for the award. “If I had to describe them in three words, it would be passionate, knowledgeable and they want to give back to the community —they are collaborative.”

Farm to Fridge is an example of that community spirit, Tatum said. Before their involvement, the program was struggling. With attention from Tatum and encouragement to the farming community from the Eatons, the program is thriving.

“Since June last year, Farm to Fridge has taken in 65,000 pounds of produce that would normally be waste and put it back into our county,” Tatum said.

Madeline Eaton serves on the Kerr-Tar Regional Council of Governments, a regional planning organization.

“There is a tremendous need for food in our system,” she said. “As a teacher, I saw food insecurity — my children were happy to have a packet of ketchup for dinner to put on their potato chips. When you understand that the need is that dire, you are compelled to take action, and that’s ultimately why we’re here —because we want to change that and teach people that they can grow their own food and grow for their community.”

The Eatons credit Granville County Cooperative Extension for much of their success.

“We have a really great Extension office. Without them, we probably wouldn’t be here,” Elvin Eaton said. “The Extension network is a vital part of any agricultural or even gardening venture. There’s so much information they’re just waiting to give you. All you have to do is ask.”

“I really am overwhelmed,” Madeline Eaton said of the award. “And I’m grateful, because it’s recognition from our farming community — people who understand and share the value of having fresh food in your local area. The experience that farmers share, and their willingness to pass on that information, has had such an impact on our success and every other farmer’s success.

“We have such a sense of pride that people who do what we do want to recognize us for our small efforts."

For more on this year’s Small Farmers of the Year, visit the Small Farms Week page.

GRANVILLE COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: Charla Duncan has been selected to serve as the next Granville County Economic Development Director. Duncan returns to Granville County government with over ten years of experience in economic development and local government administration. She will lead economic development recruitment and retention efforts on behalf of Granville County with a particular focus on the development of the Triangle North Granville Business Park.

Duncan comes to Granville following six years in Warren County in various roles, most recently serving as Director of Community & Economic Development after initially being appointed to the position of Senior Assistant to the County Manager before becoming Warren’s Interim Economic Development Director.

Her time in Warren County featured major accomplishments including identification and land acquisition of three county- owned sites for future development, securing over $5 million in development grant funding, spearheading Warren County’s 2022 Comprehensive Plan update, and establishing a Board of Directors plus hiring professional staff for the Warren County Tourism Development Authority.

Duncan also served as the county lead on the NC Department of Transportation S-Line passenger rail project, led efforts to expand local broadband internet access, and oversaw efforts to cultivate the expansion of Glen Raven fabric manufacturing –a project that invested over $80 million and created over thirty new jobs at their Norlina plant.

Duncan’s accomplishments led to her being named a Trailblazer by Business NC in 2022 and the Emerging Leader of the Year by the NC Economic Development Association in 2023. She currently represents the North Central Prosperity Zone on the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina (EDPNC) Economic Development Advisory Council (EDAC) – a fifteen-county region that includes Granville.

Duncan is also no stranger to Granville County Government. Before her time in Warren County, Duncan spent over three years in the Granville County Administration Office as Grant Coordinator and Management Analyst. “I cut my teeth on county government with Granville County, and I'm truly excited to come back to an organization and a community that feels like home in many ways,” said Duncan. “I developed a lot of great relationships while I was a public servant here from 2016-2019, and I look forward to building on that history. As a native of Warren County, I'm grown from Kerr-Tar soil, and I bring with me a deep respect for our rural communities and what we have to offer, as well as protect. I believe in responsible development, and I'm eager to work with Granville County residents, businesses, and leaders on a thoughtful, creative, and intentional pathway forward for the community.”

Duncan is an NC Certified Economic Developer (NCCED) and a graduate of the UNC School of Government Municipal and County Administration program. She received her bachelor’s degree in English with a Secondary Education Licensure from UNC Greensboro and a master’s degree in public and Nonprofit Management from New York University. Duncan resides in the Warren County community of Wise with her husband Daniel. She has a planned start date of May 1, 2025.

For more information about Granville County Economic Development, visit www.growwithgranville.com