February 2020
Events February 8th Civitan Soup Pg.7 8th Town Meeting Pg 1 10th Town Meeting Pg 1 12 blood drive pg 15 13th Town Meeting Pg 1 17 Town Budget pg 13 20 servsafe pg 8 22 blood drive pg 15
Future Events March 13thPancakes Pg.13 14th BBQ Supper Pg.7 18 Chamber Luncheon 21 Rotary Raffle pg 8 28 blood drive pg 25 Deadline Next Issue
February 28th
Release Date March 6th
The Liberty Leader Newspaper
Liberty: We Are At The Crossroads Story by Trish Redding I'm a lifelong resident of Liberty. At the age of almost half a century, I feel like I may have some valuable knowledge of the town my great-great-great grandparents settled in. I hear negative remarks all the time about how we are a dying town. Locals don't support local businesses. I see a lot of finger pointing, but until we acknowledge a few things from our past, nothing will change. People who have lived here less than 30 years may need to gain some understanding of what Liberty used to be like before the decline. Growing up in Liberty in the 1970's was wonderful! Most, if not all, of our parents had jobs in town. Jobs in the many factories were plentiful. We had appliance stores, shoe stores, clothing stores, two full size grocery stores, car dealerships, etc. Curtis Theater was the place to be on Friday and Saturday nights to watch the latest movies. The restaurants always drew good crowds and had consistently good food. We also drew in plenty of out of town people because of our alcohol sales (neighboring towns at the time were dry). The climate began changing in the early 1980's. The hosiery mills were closing their doors. Kellwood (which is the building behind the Liberty Showcase) was the last one to close. My mom was the plant nurse there. I can remember sneaking in to see her after school. She ended up going to Greensboro to take a nursing job. Everyone else had to find employment elsewhere. Liberty did not have enough jobs for all of these people. Gregson Furniture (now known as Charter), which employed my dad, was the only one that stayed. I was young, but I remember the sadness that was felt all over town. People settled into their new jobs outside of town. They drove to Greensboro, Asheboro, Siler City, or even further for work. They learned to do their business while they were out of town for convenience. The small Liberty businesses struggled and suffered through the loss of the people. Liberty became a bedroom community only. It was a place to sleep between working. And the citizens for a long time were okay with that identity. Fast forward to the past ten years and we see new interest in revitalizing Liberty. New people are moving to this town all the time to take advantage of its peace and quiet. It's time for us to appreciate the gem we really have. We want our town to survive. In light of recent events, we've realized it's time to put our money where our mouth is. Those old habits of leaving town to shop must stop. If it can be bought in Liberty, It must be bought in Liberty. If the service can be done in Liberty, It must be done in Liberty. Perhaps, with this renewed commitment to our town, we can improve. I'm proud to say I live in this town. I work in this town. My husband works in this town. I raise my children in this town. Most importantly, I thank God every day I'm in this town.
Volume 18 Issue 2
Town Of Liberty Public Hearing Topic Police Dept Reminder: The first of three Public Hearings in February to discuss the Police Department is this Saturday February 8, 2020 10AM at Town Hall. The other Hearings are scheduled for Monday February 10, 2020 at 6PM and Thursday February 13,2020 at 6PM. Let your voice be heard. Come Learn Info. Knowledge is POWER.
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Serving Liberty, Staley, Snow Camp, Julian, Climax, Ramseur & Franklinville www.libertynewspaper.org Page 1 of 24 2020 Volume Free Monthly Newspaper February 18 * Issue 2
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