Wayne Week — June 30, 2024

N E W OL D NORT H M E DI A PR E SE N T S A W E E K LY N E WS M AG A Z I N E

J U N E 30, 2 024

N E WOL DNORT H .C OM

Wayne

WEEK

SPECIAL REPORT

He insulted Pikeville employees, residents, and the law enforcement community as he boasted about his plan to change the town's form of government and conduct a mass firing called "Operation Clean Sweep" against the advice of state leaders and entities. But Mayor Garrett Johnston had no idea that the nearly-four-hour conversation was being recorded.

BY KEN FINE

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★

★

Ballot inside!

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. Wayne WEEK . newoldnorth.com

CONTENTS 5 On the 4th, let us all pause JUNE 30, 2024 Volume 1, Issue 47

NEWOLDNORTH .CO M

EDITORIAL EDITOR Ken Fine EDITOR Renee Carey DESIGN DIRECTOR Shan Stumpf PHOTOGRAPHY DIRECTOR Casey Mozingo

ADVERTISING ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Hallie Hulse Evans ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Stephanie Lack ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Lara Landers

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New Old North Media LLC

CONTACTS EDITORS

kfine@newoldnorth.com rcarey@newoldnorth.com

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hevans@newoldnorth.com

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llanders@newoldnorth.com

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We will not be publishing a July 7 edition of Wayne Week as we — and, we hope, all of you — take some time to reflect on just how fortunate we are to live in the United States of America.

6 Our take

This week’s cover story involves one of the most shocking turn of events we have seen in our decades covering both this community and others. And we believe it is proof that it is time for the residents of Pikeville to take their town back.

8 Special Report: Pikeville

Back in January, Pikeville Mayor Garrett Johnston invited two town residents into his home for what turned into a nearly four-hour conversation. During the chat, which was recorded without his knowledge, he unwrapped his vision for the future of the town — which included everything from changing the form of government to firing nearly every one of the town’s employees.

10 Johnston attacks cops

Pikeville’s mayor launched personal attacks against the town’s police chief and the men under his command.

11 Mayor allegedly took gifts

Pikeville Town Manager Tim Biggerstaff sounded the alarm after the town’s mayor allegedly accepted “two boxes full” of gifts from a man expected to do work for the town in the future.

14 Best of the Boot

For the first time in the history of Wayne County’s favorite “Best of” contest, we have a paper ballot. Take a look and vote for your favorites.

OFFICE 219 N. John Street Goldsboro, N.C. 27530 919-648-9905 © 2024 NEW OLD NORTH MEDIA LLC All rights reserved. Material may not be reproduced without permission.

COVER DESIGN BY SHAN STUMPF

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{ EDITORS’ NOTE }

T

ON THE 4TH, LET US ALL PAUSE

here are a lot of people these days who don’t seem to know a whole lot about history.

So, when they trot out their “anti-America” rhetoric and trash every principle put forth by our founding fathers, well that includes denigrating the very symbol of our nation.

Our flag.

Yet, in the coming week, many of those same people will likely not hesitate to take the day off and gather around for the fireworks that are part of our annual Independence Day celebrations.

They won’t realize that those sparks that blossom into beautiful displays symbolize the battle that raged while Francis Scott Key wrote “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

And they will not remember Paul Revere and his sounding of the alarm that warned townspeople and patriots who were ready to do battle to earn their freedom that they needed to gather and to prepare to fight.

They won’t also understand that the men who gathered in a little town called Philadelphia, who traveled from across the

Eastern seaboard and south, met to talk about freedom and how a nation would be born and governed — at great personal risk.

They knew they were waging war against a formidable opponent.

They knew there would be a cost.

But they united to battle the British and

to create the documents that have formed the foundation of what we know today as the United States.

If not for their bravery — and that of the men who fought those long battles under enormous odds, the women and families who kept the home fires burning, and those who sounded the alarms and spread the word — there would be no U.S.A. We can’t imagine how hard it was, how many times they thought about giving up.

No food. No supplies. Undermanned and outgunned.

But they had something special — the hunger for freedom and a spirit that would not quit.

We still have it today.

And that is what makes this country so unique and so worth fighting for.

Yes, there are some who have forgotten those milestones and victories — or the price of the battles.

They listen to rot from those whose 20-20 hindsight does not recognize what this nation has accomplished, how miraculous that initial

victory was, and how far we have come.

They ignore the battles we have waged across the world in the name of freedom and the history that has been changed by the descendants of that small band of freedom fighters and those whose quest for a new life brought them here.

We are strong, despite what others say.

And we will never forget the generations of heroes who have made sure that flag flew and who stood watch and fought the battles for us and for others who could not.

So, this coming week, like you, we will enjoy the holiday — there will be no edition of Wayne Week next week, our acknowledgement that this is truly a time to pause and to reflect.

We are a nation to be proud of and a people with heart, courage, and an understanding of what freedom means and what it takes to protect it.

We hope that, like us, you will celebrate that as you enjoy those “rockets’ red glare.”

God bless the U.S.A and the men and women who are still, to this day, fighting to protect it. n

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{our TAKE }

GET OUT

W

e have talked a lot about what happens when you don’t pay attention to who is running your city or your county.

You get blowhards who think that the mere fact that a small percentage of their community elected them to office means that they have somehow been handed the tablets from on high.

They get full of themselves.

They think they do not have to answer to the people who elected them because, in a moment of divine intervention, they have become all-knowing.

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So, it doesn’t matter if they don’t follow the rules.

And they certainly don’t think they should have to run their decisions by the people they swore they would serve.

What do the little people know, anyway? And what they don’t know, for sure, won’t hurt them.

And in some cases, those same people — the men and women who run for local office, who make decisions that affect our families every day — use their posts for their own benefit.

They hire relatives, make backdoor deals and, in the worst scenarios, get a few kickbacks on the side.

It is about money. It is about power. And it is how you end

up with widespread corruption.

We have uncovered quite a bit of that in recent months — and some of it is pretty hard to take.

But we have not seen a more egregious example of what happens when someone gets a little too full of himself than what we are seeing in Pikeville — a mayor who decided that he has been anointed rather than elected, and who simply ignores the rules, even when they come from Raleigh.

Now, if you are living in Goldsboro, Mount Olive, or if the county commissioners are your only connection to government, you might think, “Well, this is going to be fun to

read, but thank goodness nothing like that is happening here.”

We beg to differ.

If you have been following Wayne Week’s coverage, you have seen a whole bunch of just this sort of malarkey in many dark corners across the county.

From the Register of Deeds who can’t seem to do her job to the sheriff who still leads a department — even after two members of his trusted inner circle got arrested for bidrigging and drug trafficking — leadership concerns remain all over this community.

And don’t forget that as you read this, Mount Olive is under state investigation and former Fremont officials were just excoriated by state watchdogs.

Then, there is the ongoing saga of the Wayne County Board of Education and the school district it runs.

There is not enough space for that one. Not this week, anyway.

So, when we tell you that Garrett Johnston, the mayor of Pikeville, has been caught on tape saying some pretty irresponsible and scary things — and that some of his recent actions suggest that he really doesn’t understand that “mayor” doesn’t mean “dictator” — you will see that this is yet another example of why you have to keep such a close eye on those whom you put into office, especially when they are close to home.

There are many reasons that Johnston needs to go. Now. The first is the simple fact that he thinks the state’s open meeting laws — and the requirement that the public is notified when its governing body is meeting or making a big decision like changing the town’s form of government — don’t apply to him.

In fact, he seems to dismiss them in the taped-recorded conversation that he had with someone he thought was an ally.

A bunch of rednecks who don’t know any better — that’s how he saw the people he promised to represent. Why would he care what they thought?

So, Johnston moved forward — telling his confidante that he was not only a ruler who had the rest of the board members in the palm of his hand, but that he was a “hurricane” that was going to stir up and take over in a rush of brilliance to manipulate the town of Pikeville into exactly the sort of “fiefdom” that happens when a little guy gets a big idea and thinks he is the master of the universe and the allknowing savior.

In other words, he thinks he is a player.

Eye roll.

We assume by now that you have already read our cover story.

So, you’re probably pretty angry if you live in Pikeville, and probably rolling on

the floor laughing if you are just a voyeur of this unbelievably arrogant and delusional “visionary leader.”

We admit it would be pretty comical, if it were not so incredibly scary.

But just in case you missed the significance, read back over the comments that Johnston made about his town manager, his police chief, and the officers who serve there.

Daddy issues? Well, that’s one way to look at law enforcement, we suppose.

But it seems more likely that perhaps Johnston might have been looking in a mirror

So, Pikeville residents, you know what to do. Go to your town council meeting. Demand accountability.

Express yourself — peacefully and respectfully — and start the ball rolling to get yourself a new mayor.

when he came up with that one.

Sure, the comments are vulgar and ridiculous.

Sure, they are disrespectful.

But they are also something else — illegal.

You can’t talk about your employees that way — a fact that Johnston acknowledges during that “secret” meeting.

Check the text.

“I’m breaking the law.”

He says it.

If you run a business, you know what happens when someone violates personnel law like that.

That’s right ladies and gentlemen. You. Get. Sued.

Speaking of illegal, if you have read the Pikeville package, you have also learned that Johnston accepted gifts in violation of North Carolina General Statute 138A-32 — and that the very man, Town Manager Tim Biggerstaff, he claims is too dumb and too much of a “pushover” to be trusted in the job, is the one who alerted the town attorney about the conduct.

Sounds like Biggerstaff is a little more astute than the mayor gave him credit for.

There are many, many reasons to call for the immediate removal of Johnston, who should never, ever, be allowed even close to a gavel or political office again.

These are exactly the kind of people we have been warned would sneak into the fold if we took our eyes off the ball — if no one was looking.

And, truth be told, we would not have known a portion of what Johnston and his cohort of “yes men” were doing if it were not for two people — the man who just happened to walk by Pikeville Town Hall one day and saw the notice about the impending board meeting to discuss the town’s form of government, and the person who secretly recorded Johnston’s conversation — which is legal in North Carolina by the way, in case you were wondering.

He would have carried out his “hurricane” without the town being any wiser — and in the blink of an eye, Pikeville’s future would be changed forever, or at least until the Local Government Commission got wind of the attempted coup d’etat.

You see, the LGC has already bailed the town out once.

After another problematic and well, honestly, incompetent, leadership stint, the state commission came down, straightened out the mess, and left instructions — directions that an arrogant Johnston blatantly chose to ignore.

He thought he could make things happen behind the scenes and they would stick because he was mayor.

He thought he could clean out the town’s employees and its police department and rid himself of anyone who might object to his plans for the town because he was just so clever.

He thought he could disrespect the community of people who trusted him and elected him because they weren’t educated enough to understand his grand plan or interested enough to boot him out of office.

He thought he could stage a coup of sorts and change the town’s form of government without public input or scrutiny — because, of course, only he had the smarts to lead and, if the obstacles could be removed, he would have no checks or balances to stop him.

And, amusingly, he thought he could namedrop, make some outrageous claims of support he did not have, and that he could launch a career that might take him a whole lot further than the mayor’s office in Pikeville.

(Read N.C. House Majority Leader John Bell’s reaction. It’s priceless.)

Johnston is everything that is wrong with today’s political animal, and the scariest part is that he is not alone.

The pandemic made us preoccupied, and the caustic nature of political discourse today made us frightened to speak and reluctant to get involved. And the magnitude of the mess nationally made us too distracted to see the much more damaging activity closer to home.

We sat back.

We just hoped everything would be OK. We did not realize just how much damage could be done when we don’t pay attention to the names on the ballot or the decisions that are being made behind gavels and in board rooms all across our community.

No, Garrett Johnston is not alone.

There are others who are using public office to benefit themselves and who don’t think any of you are watching.

But we know better.

That’s why so many of you are coming to us to get to the bottom of it.

You aren’t willing to sit back and watch and shake your heads anymore.

You are getting involved.

And because you are, we are cleaning up this county, and your representatives are much more aware that they are going to be held accountable for decisions — and deals — they make.

So, Pikeville residents, you know what to do.

Go to your town council meeting.

Demand accountability.

Express yourself — peacefully and respectfully — and start the ball rolling to get yourself a new mayor.

And then, if you are someone who cares about your town, who might have sat back because “there are other people who can do the job better,” throw your hat in the ring to lead your community.

The time to get involved is now.

It is how we will save our county — by holding these arrogant, selfish, and incompetent (and in some cases dirty) politicians accountable — one vote at a time.

And here’s a message for you, Mr. Johnston.

You might be a “hurricane,” but you are far from the “visionary leader” you proclaim yourself to be. And the funny thing about hurricanes is that once they pass, the communities they ravaged always seem to come back stronger — particularly when good people like John Bell help them pick up the pieces. n newoldnorth.com

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Editor’s Note: Back in January, Pikeville Mayor Garrett Johnston invited two town residents into his home for what turned into a nearly four-hour conversation.

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SPECIAL REPORT

He insulted Pikeville employees, residents, and the law enforcement community as he boasted about his plan to change the town's form of government and conduct a mass firing called "Operation Clean Sweep" against the advice of state leaders and entities. But Mayor Garrett Johnston had no idea that the nearlyfour-hour conversation was being recorded.

BY KEN FINE

8

. Wayne WEEK . newoldnorth.com

he purpose of the meeting was to convince one of the residents to apply for a vacant seat on the Board of Commissioners — and to give the mayor an opportunity to sell her on his plan to change Pikeville’s form of government and to fire the majority of the town’s employees.

What Johnston did not know is that the conversation was being recorded — a maneuver that is legal in North Carolina, a state that requires that only one of the parties involved consents to such activity.

The full audio file, which was obtained

by Wayne Week, contains everything from a detailed explanation by Johnston of how he planned to, in essence, take over the town to personal attacks on Pikeville Police Chief Rodney Jarman, law enforcement officers in general, Town Manager Tim Biggerstaff, and several other town employees.

In addition to the recording, the contents of the conversation were independently confirmed by the two people who met with the mayor that day. They have asked to not be identified.

N

orth Carolina House Majority Leader John Bell is concerned.

So is State Treasurer Dale Folwell.

So is the Local Government Commission.

And so is the League of Municipalities.

The June 10 decision, by an incomplete Pikeville Board of Commissioners — two seats on the board currently sit vacant — to buck the state’s guidance and switch forms of government to give the mayor and commissioners more power has been the talk of Raleigh since it happened, especially since one of the recommendations the LGC made when it relinquished control of the town was to install a manager-council system.

Bell said as much during an interview with Wayne Week Tuesday evening.

“With the conversations that I’ve had, unprovoked, there’s a lot of people concerned with what’s going on

in Pikeville right now,” he said. “I’ve had two different entities approach me. One would be the League of Municipalities and the other would be the LGC. It was labeled to me as concerns with the possibility of changing governments and with the leadership in the town.”

But what those entities do not know is that Pikeville Mayor Garrett Johnston has been planning the move for months — and has been telling people that the League, the LGC, and Bell blessed the move.

During a nearly-four-hour conversation with two town residents at his home in January, Johnston laid out his plan — one that included not only switching forms of government to give himself and other members of the board more control, but also firing the vast majority of Pikeville’s employees.

The mayor had no idea that the conversation was being recorded, a maneuver that is legal in North Carolina, a state that only requires that one of the parties involved consents to such activity.

Based on the audio, which was obtained by Wayne Week and independently verified, Johnston said he had the green light from leaders in Raleigh to move forward with his plan.

“The UNC School of Government is backing this. The League of Municipalities is backing this. And the Local Government Commission has given us the thumbs up,” Johnston said.

But Folwell and Bell said that is not true.

“The Local Government Commission staff recommended a manager-council governance structure for Pikeville,” Folwell told Wayne Week Tuesday. “Our position has not changed.”

Bell agreed.

“Everywhere they have tried this it’s failed, and the town has gone into disarray,” he said.

“That’s why the manager form of government is the best choice. In my extremely brief conversation with Mayor Johnston, when he brought it up, I told him that having a town manager is the right way to go.”

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s reported in the May 26 edition of Wayne Week, the idea of changing the form of Pikeville’s government first surfaced when a public hearing was called to allow for discussion of the potential change.

But the meeting was not publicized in accordance with open meetings law — and was, instead, announced via a piece of paper taped to the front door of Town Hall the day of the event.

The item also did not appear on the town’s published agenda.

In fact, it wasn’t until the beginning of the board’s May 13 session that seemingly-confused Town Manager Tim Biggerstaff figured out how to add it to the docket.

“Are we going to do the public hearing before we get into the agenda or is that part of the agenda?” he asked.

The mayor responded.

“Let’s just squeeze that in before old business,” he said.

And some 20 minutes later, the commissioners, with no vote to approve the measure to amend its agenda, did just that.

All of the above are violations of N.C. Open Meetings Law. Folwell, who was involved in the takeover of the town in April 2021, when Pikeville had only 4.8 percent of restricted funds available to meet its $765,000 budget and was at risk of missing five debt payments totaling $158,000, seemed concerned — both about the potential change of government and how notice of the public hearing was delivered.

“I’m always concerned about decreased transparency, decreased competency, and increased conflicts of interest,” he told Wayne Week.

good administrators.”

“Those who are elected may be popular with the voters, but may be amateurs when it comes to running a county or city,” she said.

But their concerns fell on deaf ears, and the board voted to, as Johnston put it, “change the charter of the town” anyway — despite the ire expressed by several town residents who were in attendance.

W

ith Pikeville set to change its form of government July 1, Johnston and the three men currently serving on what is supposed to be a five-person board will have the power to do everything from hiring and firing to rewriting the town’s charter.

And they will also have more control over Pikeville’s future.

Let's take our downtown back from the poor people and make (it) trendy again.

And during her time at the UNC School of Government, Dr. Vaughn Mamlin Upshaw panned the form of government Pikeville’s board seemed keen on switching back to May 13.

“There are two major weaknesses,” she wrote. “The first is the absence of any real concentration of executive authority and responsibility, as decision-making ultimately rests with the board of commissioners or city council as a group. Responsibility for operating the local government is divided among and shared by all members of the governing board, making it administration by committee. Strong, consistent direction depends on maintaining general agreement, which may be difficult at times.”

And the second, according to Upshaw, is the “fact” that “politicians are not necessarily

During that conversation in January, Johnston outlined several of his goals.

One of them was to transform downtown.

“Let’s take our downtown back from the poor people and make (it) trendy again,” he said.

Another involved determining how to spend the $1 million Bell secured for the town from the state budget.

But Johnston, whom sources inside Town Hall said is the “only one” who has had “any say” in how the money would be spent, did not seem concerned about the gravity of being in charge of such a large sum.

In fact, he argued that he might be the only one in town smart enough to handle it.

“All these ideas came out of my head. I’m a

visionary leader,” he said. “I don’t mean this in a mean way, but there’s very few people that have enough imagination to spend or manage $1 million.”

He also shared his plan to restructure the government — from which commissioners would be in charge of which departments to his goal of ousting the majority of the town’s current employees.

“Just know that there is something called, ‘Operation Clean Sweep,’ that is ready to go into effect,” Johnston said. “We can pick them off one at a time.”

And he implied town residents would be none the wiser.

“Most (Pikeville residents) don’t know what the hell is goin’ on,” Johnston said.

“Some people don’t know that the state took us over, which means they don’t know we’ve been freed from the state.”

So, he assured the people he was talking to — one of them a resident he said he was “rooting for” to get one of the board’s vacant seats — that he could ensure his vision was executed without issue as long as the change of government happened.

And then, once he fulfilled “Operation Clean Sweep,” he would replace those employees with “interns” and “volunteers” through a program he said he “kind of snuck in there.”

“Then, guess what? I’m never paying the whole salary to anybody,” he said. “I’m never paying retirement.”

But for Bell, perhaps the most troubling thing about what Johnston said was that he seems to have forgotten whom he serves.

He referred to himself as a “milliondollar mayor.”

“So, when you think about me, you better think in millions,” Johnston said.

He relished his reputation as someone who “made waves.”

“I’m a flippin’ hurricane. You’ll figure that out before long,” Johnston said. “I’m all about waves.”

And he, according to the House Majority Leader, misrepresented supposed conversations between the two — specifically about Bell backing the change of government and, according to Johnston, saying, “John Bell has already said, ‘So what you’re telling me is that I just need to stick a funnel in Pikeville and throw in every bit of money in it I can.’”

“Yes,” Bell said, when asked if he was concerned that Johnston was, now that the government has been changed, in control of the $1 million he secured for Pikeville. “Short answer is yes. Mayor Johnston needs to remember that he’s elected by the citizens of the Town of Pikeville and he answers to the citizens of the Town of Pikeville. He seems to have forgotten that and it’s troubling for sure.”n Special report continued on page 10 newoldnorth.com

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SPECIAL REPORT: PIKEVILLE

MAYOR: COPS HAVE “DADDY ISSUES,” CHIEF IS “NARCISSIST” WHO HAS “GOTTA GO QUICK.” During a conversation with town residents, Pikeville Mayor Garrett Johnston attacked the town’s police chief and the officers under his command.

H

e called the police chief a “no neck,” “big ass,” “narcissist.”

He said the “law enforcement crowd” was “guys with daddy issues that need a badge to feel powerful.”

He characterized two of Pikeville’s newest police hires as “little stick figures.”

And he alleged that town lawmen had deliberately allowed a “crack house” to remain in operation so they could arrest the people running it months down the road to bolster the PPD’s budding K-9 program.

Pikeville Mayor Garrett Johnston said all of those things — violating, by his own admission, town employees’ statutorilyguaranteed right to confidentiality — to two town residents in January, unaware that the conversation was being recorded.

That recording — which is legal in North Carolina, as the state requires only one party involved in the discussion to consent to the recording — was recently obtained

by Wayne Week.

Johnston himself acknowledges that talking about personnel — and their performance — was against the law.

“I’m breaking the law by sharing personnel issues,” he said.

But he did it anyway — at times laughing after he hurled insults at the men sworn to protect the town.

The majority of the personal attacks were directed at Police Chief Rodney Jarman — a man Johnston called a “manipulator” who, despite having worked in law enforcement since 2009, was not fit for the position.

“There’s not another agency in Wayne County that will hire him,” the mayor said.

“That should say something to you.”

But Jarman was not the only person in the department Johnston took aim at.

In fact, at one point, he summed up his feelings about every officer in Pikeville’s department — and the law enforcement community as a whole.

“The law enforcement crowd, you’re 10

. Wayne WEEK . newoldnorth.com

The law enforcement crowd, you're gettin' guys with daddy issues that need a badge to feel powerful.

Police Chief Rodney Jarman

gettin’ guys with daddy issues that need a badge to feel powerful. Knowing that we’re going to be dealing with those kinds of personalities, we just need strong leadership over them to keep them in line,” Johnston said. “We know they’re coming with issues.”

First-time officers, he added, are problematic because they “just don’t know what to do with the badge.”

And the town’s most recent hires “need to go” because “these guys worship Jarman.”

But their chief needs to be fired, too, the mayor told the residents.

“If we leave Jarman too long, he’s going to create a whole lot of trouble,” Johnston said. “So, he’s gotta go quick.”

Only then can the mayor cut the PPD’s budget.

“The police department takes up about

$400,000 of our budget and that leaves almost nothing for everybody else,” Johnston said. “That needs to be torn through.”

But the mayor didn’t stop with discussing the chief ’s employment status.

He also alleged Jarman knowingly allowed a “crack house” — a property he described and then identified — to operate in town without consequences.

“We have a house in this town right now that is suspected to be providing crack as well as marijuana. It’s well-known about,” Johnston said. “That house could have been dealt with a long time ago. It’s been allowed to sit there and there is mention that they’re going to take care of it in the spring. Well, that just happens to coincide with Jarman’s big K-9 program. Narcissist.

In the meantime, guess how many kids

in this town have gotten drugs from that house.”

When asked if he would like to respond to the attacks levied against him and his men by the mayor, Jarman declined.

And he also declined to comment on whether he would seek legal recourse now that Johnston has discussed — with town residents — his employment status, competency, and job performance.

As for the allegations that he, as a police chief, deliberately instructed his men to avoid busting up a “crack house” for future gain, he again opted for a “no comment.”

But he did provide a statement as a show of support to those members of the Pikeville Police Department he said take pride in keeping their neighbors safe — men he said sacrifice every day by knowingly putting their lives on the line.

“We base what we do on our department motto, which is, ‘Proud, Professional, Proactive.’ That’s what we’re going to continue to do. That’s what I feel like the officers we have put in place are doing. And that’s just not from the leadership. That’s from the bottom to the top,” Jarman said.

“Everyone plays an important role here and we all keep that motto, that mission, in mind.

So, we’re going to continue to support — and be honored to serve — this community.

The majority here in Pikeville, they know that this department is doing the very best that it can with the equipment that we’re allocated and the officers that we have.

Everybody is struggling in law enforcement with recruitment and retention. Well, we’re one of the only departments that I know of that’s fully staffed. I think that speaks for itself. It speaks volumes about the kind of agency and the kind of atmosphere we’re trying to create here. So, we will continue to maintain that professionalism. And we will continue to be proud — not just proud, but Pikeville proud — to serve this community.” n

SPECIAL REPORT: PIKEVILLE

MAYOR ALLEGEDLY RECEIVED GIFTS IN VIOLATION OF STATE STATUTE

Pikeville Mayor Garrett Johnston allegedly accepted “two boxes full of gifts” from his daughter’s college soccer coach — a man the mayor is allegedly championing to help him create and sustain a $400,000 soccer complex in town.

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ccording to several eyewitnesses, Pikeville Mayor Garrett Johnston accepted “two boxes full of gifts” from a man the mayor has said will bring soccer programming to the town after a $400,000 soccer complex is constructed.

The man also happens to be Johnston’s daughter’s college coach at Mid-Atlantic Christian University.

Emails obtained by Wayne Week via a records request fulfilled by the town detail how Town Manager Tim Biggerstaff reacted to what he perceived as something he was obligated to report.

At first, he reached out to Town Attorney Harry Lorello.

“I will leave out name and any details out at this point, but whom do you report or ask if there is a possible conflict of interest or ethics violation for receiving gifts from someone you are doing business with and spending a large amount of public funds on a project that greatly benefit the person giving the gifts,” Biggerstaff asked.

Lorello responded.

“Tim – thanks for asking. Can you please provide the specific details of what you or the staff witnessed?” he wrote. “You can omit the receiving party’s name at this time, but I’d need the details down to the T. This may be innocuous, or it may be very serious, it’s very fact dependent.”

Biggerstaff replied with a detailed accounting of the events that unfolded. (Note: This a word-for-word transcription of the email sent by Biggerstaff to Town Attorney Harry Lorello. It has not been edited for spelling or grammar.)

“Jim Givargis, soccer coach from Mid-Atlantic Christian University in Elizabeth City, NC and previously known to be working with elected official on future soccer program development for Pikeville, come into the town hall on Friday, May 10th asking our clerk if the elected official was here. Wendy said no and that he doesn’t have an office in town hall.

Mr. Givargis then said he had called that elected official but he didn’t answer. Mentioned he was

City Manager Tim Biggerstaff

supposed to be in Pikeville by 10am but he had gotten lost and it was now after 12. He said he had some gifts for him and asked if he could leave them here in town hall. Wendy referred him to me in which he told me the same thing. I said he could put it in the back room. He went to his truck and brought in two boxes full of items. He told me that he was out of town for the official’s wedding anniversary so he brought the family some gifts and other items. In the box he showed me a personalized soccer ball, a cook book for official’s wife, a collectible wine bottle from the 1980 something World Cup with wine in it, a medieval style helmet for the daughter, a tshirt with the town’s name on it to be approved for future sales, and a sample of turf for the human foosball field he’s designing for the town to build in this new complex. He asked if I knew about the foosball and I said no. He was excited to tell me that he is designing it and will be one of the first one of its kind in the US and that we needed concrete or blacktop

for this turf. He also asked to see the future storage space for his soccer supplies so I showed him the space in the concession stand. While there, he spoke about wanting to obtain a booth at the Freedom Fireworks as his friend designs shirts and other things and maybe they could set up and sale items.

On Monday, May 13th, the official came over to collect the boxes. Myself and Wendy were away at the time. Our PT billing clerk, Monique, was here when he came to collect them. Witness to the items were Wendy Holland, Rodney Jarman, myself, and my foster son, Landon who was here for a few minutes to visit and get a drink when Mr. Givargis came by. Let me know if anything else is needed or who it should be reported to.”

Assuming the town properly fulfilled Wayne Week’s Freedom of Information Act records request, Lorello has not responded in the nearly two months since Biggerstaff’s narrative was sent.

North Carolina General Statue 138A-32

prohibits a “public servant” from accepting gifts for a variety of reasons. Among them are if the person giving the gift “is doing or is seeking to do business of any kind with the public servant’s employing entity” or “is engaged in activities that are regulated or controlled by the public servant’s employing entity.”

And given the fact that the coach told Biggerstaff that he is working on the soccer complex project — and several officials inside Town Hall have said Johnston has championed the coach as a future Pikeville contract employee — the mayor receiving gifts from him appears to be a violation of state statue.

Attempts to reach Lorello — which included a note left for him at his law firm, Everett, Womble & Lawrence — for comment have been unsuccessful. n Special report continued on page 12 newoldnorth.com

. Wayne WEEK . 11

SPECIAL REPORT: PIKEVILLE

MAYOR: “OPERATION CLEAN SWEEP” WILL TARGET PIKEVILLE EMPLOYEES

Pikeville Mayor Garrett Johnston laid out his plan to, after he gained the power to hire and fire after a change of government was approved, get rid of the vast majority of the town’s employees.

H

e made fun of an employee he said was “dyslexic” and therefore could not be trusted to “read meters.”

He claimed another was recovering from cancer and was “basically just here for the benefits.”

He attacked several people who applied for the town manager position in 2022 — calling one of them a “big, lazy, slob.”

But Pikeville Mayor Garrett Johnston’s most searing evaluation of town employees was saved for Town Manager Tim Biggerstaff, whom he called everything from “dickless” and “spineless” to a “pushover” before inferring there was something inappropriate about the fact that he adopted a 13-year-old boy.

And all of this was said in January during a nearly-four-hour discussion with two town residents — a conversation that revolved heavily around what he admitted were confidential personnel matters.

“I’m breaking the law by sharing personnel issues,” Johnston, at one point, said.

The purpose of the meeting — a meeting that was recorded, legally, without the mayor’s knowledge (in North Carolina, only one of the parties must consent to the recording) — was, in part, to gain support for what Johnston called “Operation Clean Sweep,” a process that, should the Town Board of Commissioners vote to change the form of government, would involve firing nearly every person employed by the town.

B

ased on the conversation, Johnston’s main concern involved two people — Biggerstaff and former Public Works employee Bobby Hunt.

But the mayor unwrapped just how he intended to get rid of both of them.

In Hunt’s case, the board was planning, Johnston said, to create a new position — one that would render Hunt’s services obsolete.

“The unicorn is the sewer plant operator director over Public Works. The reason 12

. Wayne WEEK . newoldnorth.com

Pikeville Town Hall

why we’re doing that is because if we hire a director, that gets rid of the supervisor role, which is the guy we’re trying to get rid of,” Johnston said. “We eliminate that position altogether which means he has to apply for a different job within the town or he no longer has a job. I did that to coddle Mr. Manager here because he refused to deal with any kind of real issue or conflict.”

Getting rid of Biggerstaff, though, would be “easier.”

“The manager works for the board — at the pleasure of the board — and we can fire him at any time without cause,” Johnston said. “So, when we decide we’re done — he can wear the wrong aftershave one day and piss us off — we can fire him. There’s nothing he can do about it.”

But why?

According to the mayor, Biggerstaff is a “total pushover” who is “scared of technology” and only got the job because the candidate pool was less-than-desirable.

“In defense of our hiring decision, we went through two advertisements and we literally got Chris Farley’s twin. I’m not kidding. The guy was hilarious. … To employ him though?

No. He’s a big, lazy slob,” Johnston said.

“Then, we got one guy who’s got an arrest warrant for beating his wife at the Circle K. No. Not OK with me. Then, we’ve got another lady who’s got three pending cases for embezzlement. We cannot get qualified people at our budget level.”

So, they “settled” for Biggerstaff.

“Honestly, that was the best out of everything that showed up,” Johnston said.

The mayor continued that when it comes to Biggerstaff, there are two options.

One is firing him with no cause.

The other is changing the form of government and demoting him to ensure a “smooth transition.”

“If we change forms of government, we bump him down for three months. We’re throwing a bone. I don’t want to do it and I certainly don’t want to go over three months.

Initially, (Commissioner) Matt (Thomas) asked for six. I said, ‘No. I’ll give you three at best,’” Johnston said. “I said, ‘If it’s up to me, he’d go.’ But in order to make this strategy work and to ensure a smooth transition, we’ll bump him down for three months. Once

he’s bumped down, the hiring and firing, it goes through the mayor — it goes through whichever commissioner we have that a, is willing, and b, understands the hiring and firing process.”

When asked how being fired would hurt Biggerstaff financially, the mayor said it wasn’t his “problem.”

“He did just buy a house in town. Not my fault. He did just take on a 13-year-old foster child — a boy. Not sure how I feel about that,” Johnston said. “His personal life, we’re not allowed to talk about, which means I’m not allowed to consider that in the decision here. But I can’t sleep at night right now knowing that none of this is gonna happen, none of that’s gonna happen, until we get rid of our employees.”

That included Donald Hill.

“He’s basically just here for the benefits.

He’s recovering from cancer,” Johnston said.

“He loves to stir up trouble. He loves to poke the bear. And he’s wearing out.”

And Gabe Branson.

“Gabe gets up there and he’s a dyslexic,” Johnston said, laughing. “Usually not a good thing when he reads your meter.”

But mostly, he focused on Biggerstaff — stating again and again that he could not move forward with his plan to change the town’s form of government with him in a leadership position.

“Do I believe for a second that I want to begin a program as detailed and as potentially life-altering as this with the guy we have? No.” Johnston said. “Because I’m just starting out with a turd.”

Editor’s Note: We have spoken with every employee Johnston referenced during his January conversation. All of them gave us the OK to publish what he said about them during that meeting. We also called Commissioner Matt Thomas — and spoke, face-to-face, with Johnston — in attempts to get comment for this package. Neither men provided responses by press time. n

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FOR BOARD OF EDUCATION AT-L ARGE No candidate or candidate’s committee is responsible for the content of this advertisement. Paid for by Mark and Lauren Metzler. newoldnorth.com

. Wayne WEEK . 13

★

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OFFICIAL BALLOT Here is the ballot for Wayne County’s 2024 Best of the Boot voting. We’ve provided this multi-page paper ballot for those that are more comfortable filling out a physical ballot. Digital voting will also available for those who are more comfortable with that format in the coming weeks Please check ONE box next to your choice in each category.

Note that several categories — those that drew an overwhelm-

ing number of nominations — require a write-in entry. Please provide ONE answer in the space provided.

Return the finished ballot pages to the New Old North office: 219 N. JOHN STREET GOLDSBORO, NC 27530

OR, follow New Old North on Facebook to access the digital ballot.

Voting deadline is July 22, so get your ballots in on time to make sure they count!

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Casey’s Garden Center Elroy Farms Market Eastern Wayne FFA Larry’s Flowers and Produce Longs Plant Farm Jericho Farms Lowes Morganically Grown Oak Wolfe Farm On-Site Timmy’s Roadside Walmart

BEST ADVERTISING/ MARKETING FIRM p p p p p

AccuCopy Big Blue Couch Media Curtis Media Group Emily Linton New Old North Media

p Like It Up Media p Reese Sign Company p The Buzz

BEST ENGINEERING FIRM

Worrell Contracting Cox-Edwards JSmith Civil McDavid Associates BR Kornegay Harris Steel Erectors Goshen Engineering Smith Engineering & Design Benton & Associates TA Loving Bryan K. Jones Consulting Engineers p Walk the Line p Prolec-GE Waukesha p p p p p p p p p p p

BEST ATTORNEY Fill in the blank

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BEST COCKTAILS p Applebee’s p Azul Tequilas p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

Mexican Bar & Grill Brisas Carl & ’Chelle’s Grill Room Chili’s Church The Borough Cooper’s Tavern Deuces Saloon Dos Marias East Coast Wings + Grill Heroes Sports Oyster Bar & Grill Jay’s Kitchen Jay’s 108 Mezcalito La Rancherita Laughing Owl Logan’s Roadhouse Longhorn Steakhouse Los Fogones Morgan’s Outback Flying Shamrock Texas Roadhouse Silver Spur The Hideout Village Steakhouse Vailhouse Oyster Bar & Grill Wanda’s Well Travelled Beer

BEST ICE CREAM p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

Baskin Robbins Burger King Coldstone Creamery The Concession Stand Cookout Cry Freedom Missions DQ From the Heart Heritage Farms General Store Hwy 55 Ice Storm Nahunta Grill Pikeville Dawg House Sprinkles Stay Sweet

p p p p

Sweet Frog Tastee Freeze Terry’s Tasty Shoppe Turtle Creek Trading

BEST ATTORNEY Fill in the blank

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BEST PRODUCE p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

Harris Teeter Walmart Country Fruit Stand #2 Elroy Farmers Market Larry’s Produce Britt Farms ALDI J&J Produce Rosewood Produce Stand Sister Oaks Farm West Family Farms Country Fruit Stand #1 Food Lion Piggly Wiggly Carli Cs Country Fruit Stand #3

BEST BARTENDERS p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

Well Travelled Beer Brewmasters Village Steakhouse UpNorth Torrero’s Three65 Walnut Creek Country Club’ Laughing Owl Jay’s Kitchen The Owlamo GBW: The Filling Station Goldsboro Brew Works Silver Spur Texas Roadhouse East Coast Wings + Grill Cooper’s Tavern Outback R&R Brewing Co. Morgan’s Main Street (Fremont) Longhorn Steakhouse The Borough Carl & ’Chelle’s Grill Room Los Fogones Church First Brew Elk’s Lodge Heroes Sports Oyster Bar & Grill East Coast Wings + Grill Deuces Saloon Brisas Azul Tequilas Mexican Bar & Grill Wanda’s Lane Tree Country Club The Firehouse Flying Shamrock Dos Marias

BEST COFFEE p p p p p p

2nd Amendment on Main Bean Sweet B&G Grill Starbucks (Wayne) Starbucks (Berkeley) Gypsy Bean Continued on page 20

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2024 BEST OF THE BOOT BALLOT Continued from page 18 p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

Labrar Coffee Café Le Doux Cry Freedom Missions Dunkin’ Hardees Heritage Farms General Store Kathy’s Kitchen Lamar’s Café McDonald’s Milltown Java Pikeville Dawg House Sheetz Simply Cinnamon Southern Ground The Warehouse Turtle Creek Trading Co. Bojangle’s Krispy Kreme McDonald’s Lantern Inn Burger King Wendy’s

BEST BREWERY p p p p p p

Goldsboro Brew Works GBW: The Filling Station Brewmasters Well Travelled Beer R&R Brewing Co. Flying Shamrock

BEST BARISTAS p p p p p p p p p

Bean Sweet Starbucks (Wayne) Starbucks (Berkeley) Gypsy Bean Labrar Coffee Café Le Doux Cry Freedom Missions Lamar’s Café Southern Ground

BEST CATERER Fill in the blank

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BEST FOOD TRUCK

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BEST HAIR SALON p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

20

Roy’s Salon A Nu U Hair Design His & Hers Styling Salon Kairos Hair Studio Shear Bliss Salon Gloss Hair Studio William & Radford Hair Salon The Loft Hair Studio & Spa Hairology Salon of Goldsboro Great Clips Jeffrey Scott Salon Panache Hair & Body Loft Merle Norman/Nails-N-More House of Styles Jupiter Blue Salon & Arty Gallery Meraki Salon I Candy Styling Salon C&L Studio Hair Expressions Total Image Ultimate Raaz Hair Salon Studio 21 Hair Design

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Emerge Med Spa & Salon Cut & Strut Salon Legend’s Hair & Nail Salon Southern Sass Salon Val’s Hairport Transformations Salon Hail Razors Barbershop Parlour One Natalie’s Hair & Tanning Salon L&L Hair Design Fantastic Sam’s Cut & Color Jennifer’s Chair Hair Salon Mystiques Salon Salon 150 Majestic Kuts New Day Salon Making a Difference Salon Hair Lounge Manetamers Sport Clips Christ Made A Way Barber Shop The Beauty Room Color Me Crazy Hair Salon Judee’s Hair & Body Hair X Karli Captains Cuts A cut above Airman Cuts All American Barbershop AR Hair Salon Babes-N-Blades Blush Beauty by Ricki Sugar Magnolia The Hair Lab The Brow Bar Shear Shape Hair Salon Shear Madness Salon Sei Bella Phenomenal Stylez Judee’s Hair & Body Hair Masters Hair by Tia Wilson Hair by Chelsea Blake Reflections Full Service Hair Salon p Heavenly Divine p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

BEST DENTIST p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

Smith, Adams & Pilkington Family Dentistry Stovall Dental Hinnant Family Dentistry Sean Hamilton, DDS LaFevers Dental Team McLamb Place Dental Goldsboro Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontics Goldsboro Family Dental Amy Batten, DDS Mount Olive Family Dentistry Fremont Family Dentistry Dr. P Alston Daniel Jr., DDS Brinkley Dental Miller and Associates Family Dentistry Carolina Dental Arts Riccobene Associates Family Dentistry Lane & Associates Family Dentistry Immediate Dental Care Rosewood Dental

BEST PHARMACY p p p p

Wayne Pharmacy Downtown Pharmacy Harris Teeter Rosewood Pharmacy

p Fremont Pharmacy p Wayne Employee p p p p p p p p p p p p p

Benefit Pharmacy Southeast Family Pharmacy Walgreens (Berkeley Boulevard) Raper Drugs Sam’s Club CVS Coors Walmart Parker Drug Co. Marmac Pharmacy Raper Drugs Walgreens (Mount Olive) Food Lion (Pikeville) Seymour Johnson Air Force Base Pharmacy

BEST VETERINARIAN p p p p p p p p p

Berkeley Veterinary Clinic Landmark Animal Clinic Waylin Animal Clinic Spring Creek Animal Clinic North Wayne Animal Clinic Eastwaye Veterinary Clinic Wayne Veterinary Hospital Goldsboro Veterinary Hospital Mt. Olive Veterinary Hospital

BEST SPA p p p p p p p p p

Skin Therapy Day Spa Emerge Med Spa & Salon The Loft Hair Studio & Spa Body & Soul Sugar Magnolia Beauty Studio Radiant Serenity Esthetics & Spa Beauty of You & Spa Oasis Day Spa Skin and Body by Lauren

The Bodywork Barn Merle Norman/Nails-N-More Pretty Nails & Spa Panache Nails & Spa Top Nails Panache Hair & Body Loft Moore Medical Massage The Cosmetic Bar Absolute Nails & Spa Beach Bumz Tanning Spa The Bodywork Barn Diamond Nail & Lashes Gloss Hair Studio Goldsboro Spine Center I Love Nails & Spa Innerbloom Beauty McLamb Wellness and Aesthetics p Natural Beauty Aesthetics p Headdress Day Spa & Salon p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

BEST MENTAL HEALTH PROVIDER Fill in the blank

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BEST PET GROOMER p p p p p p p p p p

Eli’s Friends Berkeley Veterinary Clinic Cutts 4 Muttz The Groom Room Sandy’s Poodle Parlor Fluff & Scissor PetSmart 2 Paws Up Groomingdails Mount Olive Animal Hospital

p p p p

Shrado Kennels Carolina Dog Styling Bark and Bone Goldsboro Veterinary Hospital

BEST TANNING SALON p p p p p p p p p p p p

B’s on Breazeale Dream-Makers Beach Bumz Island Tan Planet Fitness Ultimate Raaz Body Perfect Boutique and Tan A New Tropical Tan & Nails The Loft Hair Studio & Spa Natalie’s Hair & Tanning Salon Bronzed by Burroughs Sun of a Gun

BEST LOCAL MENTOR

Fill in the blank

____________________________

p p p p p p

Parker Family Eye Center Dr. Terry Forrest, MD Charles Zwerling, MD Dr. William Easterling, OD 20/20 Vision Center Eye 1 Optical

BEST HOSPICE CARE p p p p p p

Kitty Askins Brian Center Helping Hands Family Care Wayne UNC Health Care Community Home Care & Hospice Gentiva Hospice

BEST ORTHODONTIST

p Potts Orthodontics p Goldsboro Pediatric Dentistry

and Orthodontics

p LaFevers Dental Team p Hinnant Family Dentistry p Riccobene Associates

Family Dentistry

p Smith, Adams & Pilkington

BEST GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEE

BEST NURSE

____________________________

____________________________

BEST EYE DOCTOR

BEST DOCTOR

Fill in the blank

p p p p p p

Atlantic Eye Center Mitchell Eye Center Walmart Eye Center Waynesborough Ophthalmology Mount Olive Eye Care Allison Radford

Fill in the blank

Fill in the blank

____________________________

2024 BEST OF THE BOOT BALLOT

Keen Plumbing Keen Plumbing Co.Co.

2 02 3

2022

BEST FURNITURE STORE p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

Jernigan Furniture Daniels Furniture Bobby Denning Red Shed Crawford Furniture Co. Vintage Collectibles & More Ashley InJoy Thrift Store Down East Furniture Rose Brothers Furniture The Shoppes at Royall Marketplace Furniture Fair Anderson’s Interiors The Pickett Fence House of Furniture Badcock Home Furniture & More Furniture Fair Gene Fields’ House of Furniture Unlimited Home Services

BEST HEALTH CARE PROVIDER Fill in the blank

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BEST CHIROPRACTOR

Nels Nelsen, DC Chiropractic First Chiropractic Advantage Democko Chiropractic Goldsboro Spine Center Berkeley Chiropractic Mt. Olive Chiropractic Clinic Nackley Chiropractic & Acupuncture p Betterment Center p Goldsboro Physical Therapy p MotionWorks Physical Therapy

p Impress Me Screen Printing

& Promotions

p Things from the Past

Antiques and Collectibles Emily’s Boutique Harbor Freight Tools Sassy Frassy Designs The Baby Barn Shy Boutique Foxquarter Vintage & Wholesale Ashley Nichole Designs Anna Jack’s Childrens Boutique Blaykely Boutique Buttons & Bows Boutique Elite Fashions Dress’d by the Social South First Impression Clothing & Accessories p Kitschy Kat’s Custom Jewelry p p p p p p p p p p p p p

BEST TEACHER — ELEMENTARY

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BEST BOUTIQUE

p

p p p p p p

Staples Walmart Target Kornegay Printing Harris Teeter AccuCopy

BEST LOCAL MUSICIAN Fill in the blank

Fill in the blank

p p p p p p p p p p

p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

BEST OFFICE SUPPLY STORE

BEST LOCAL ARTIST

Fill in the blank

BEST TEACHER — HIGH

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BEST JEWELRY STORE

Barnes Jewelers Jewelry Unlimited Alan Sutton Jewelry Kay Jewelers Buddy’s Jewelry Spence Jewelry & Repair Cry Freedom Missions Creations x Court Indigo Ocean Violet & Wesley

BEST THRIFT/ VINTAGE STORE

InJoy Thrift Store Salvation Army Second Fling Airman’s Attic Lola’s Vintiques Habitat for Humanity ReStore Churches in Action Goodwill The Shoppes at Royall Marketplace p Once Upon a Child p Treasure Hunt Liquidators p New 2 U p House of Fordham p Area Churches in Action Thrift Shop p Goldsboro Antique Mall p The Baby Barn p Birdy’s Fabulous Finds p Mrs. Kat’s Thrift Store p Vintage Collectibles & More p Rye Always Fresh p p p p p p p p p

“Service since 1923.”

Floor & Home

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BEST TEACHER — MIDDLE

“Service since 1923”

p Tarheel Flooring p Lowe’s p Direct Carpet

____________________________

Fill in the blank

Bicycle World 3 Olive Chic Uniquley R’s Cry Freedom Missions Shoppe Heritage Farms General Store The Noun Rye Always Fresh Carolina Pine The Pickett Fence Meg’s Shoppe Norma’s The Art Market The Shoppes at Royall Marketplace 2nd Amendment on Main Artisan’s Village Vintage Collectibles and More JP’s Embroidery InJoy Thrift Shop From the Heart EcoRo Creations Sugar Babies Boutique Mimi’s Boutique EZ Bait & Tackle Lola’s Vintiques Gold City House of Music Southern Momma Boutique Southern Rust Vintage Market & Gifts B’s on Breazele

p Abbey Carpet p Premiere Carpet & Flooring p Johnson Carpet One

Fill in the blank

p p p p p p p p

p p p p p p p p p p p p p

BEST CARPET/FLOORING

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BEST GOLF COURSE p p p p

Lane Tree Country Club Walnut Creek Country Club Goldsboro Municipal Golf Course Southern Wayne Country Club

BEST COMMUNITY EVENT/FESTIVAL p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

Wings Over Wayne NC Freedom Fest NC Pickle Festival Touch-a-Truck Center Street Jam Downtown Lights Up Wayne Regional Agricultural Fair Dillard-Goldsboro Alumni Reunion Daffodil Festival Three Eagles Rotary Beer and Wine Festival Taste of Wayne Reading Between the Wines Goldsboro Christmas Parade Relay for Life Fall Fun on the Farm Jingle in the Park Dance for Christ ECA Christmas Bazaar Pikeville 4th of July Celebration Ole Timey Day Festival Walk for Multiple Sclerosis Eggstravaganza Beyond (Bethel Church) Community Coffee Cures for the Colors We Dig It! Farm Fest Market on Mulberry Mother’s Day Market at Odom Farming Co. Night in Bethlehem at Stoney Creek Church Pickle Drop Night to Shine St. Baldrick’s Weekend’s on the Farm at Brooke’s Fresh Cut Flower Farm Continued on page 22

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2024 BEST OF THE BOOT BALLOT Continued from page 21 p Sunday at the Farm

p p p p p p

at West Family Farms p Goldsboro Ballet’s The Nutcracker p Annual Shad Tournament

BEST CHURCH

BEST CONSTRUCTION COMPANY

Fill in the blank

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BEST PROFESSOR — UMO Fill in the blank

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BEST PROFESSOR — WCC Fill in the blank

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BEST VENUE p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

The Firehouse The Maxwell Center The HUB The Southerland-Burnette House Lane Tree Country Club Cry Freedom Missions The Venue Goldsboro Goldsboro Event Center Clubhouse Ent. Always Chosen Event Space The Pointe The Big Barn The Terrace Room Walnut Creek Country Club The Cornealius Properties Wayne County Museum The Grantham House Odom Farming Co. Elli-Brell Farms Sleepy Creek Club House The Paramount Theatre Goldsborough Bridge Battlefield Waynesborough Park

BEST LAW FIRM

p Haithcock Barfield Hulse & King p Riddle & Brantley p Warren, Kerr, Walston,

Taylor & Smith

p Dees, Smith, Powell, Jarrett, p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

22

Dees & Jones Warren & Warren Barber & Webster Kellum Law Firm Whitaker & Hamer Nina Fields Jackson Attorney at Law Reagan Hinton Darrell Brown P.A. Walker Allen Law Benton Family Law Strickland Agner Pittman Baddour, Parker, Hine & Hale Everett, Womble & Lawrence Rebecca Kinsey Whitaker & Hamer Jason M. Blackburn King Law Firm Rory C. Eddings Attorney at Law Walker, Allen, Grice, Ammons, Foy, Klick & McCullough

Toyota of Goldsboro Sanders Motor Co. Mozingo’s Auto Sales Classic Dodge Jeep Ram Darryl Floars Motorcars Sandhill Motors

p p p p

Rouse Law Office Hamilton & Bain Law W. Mack Rice PA Attorney at Law The Law Office of Aries Brinson

BEST DAYCARE Fill in the blank

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BEST PRIVATE SCHOOL

Wayne Country Day Wayne Christian Wayne Montessori School The Children’s House St. Mary’s p Protestant Preschool & Kindergarten p Little Bulldogs p Faith Christian Academy p p p p

BEST NON-PROFIT Fill in the blank

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BEST EDUCATIONAL ADVOCACY GROUP p p p p p p p p p p p

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Literacy Connections Communities Supporting Schools Partnership for Children Passionate Beginnings Wayne County Public Library WAGES Autism Society The Exchange Club United Way Wayne Opportunity Center Fellowship of Christian Athletes

BEST FLORIST p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

Brooke’s Fresh Cut Flowers Flowers for You Front Porch Florist Pinkney Farm Green Thumb Florist Pinewood Florist Casey Garden Center All About Flowers Rose’s Florist Harris Teeter The Finest Details Flower Creations Cheryl’s Floral Designs Parkside Florist Cathy’s Flowers Thomas Dean Florist Fremont Flowers & Gifts Dills Blooms Gracefully Grown Morganically Grown Engaging Events by Wendy That Pedal Babe

BEST PHOTOGRAPHER Fill in the blank

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BEST REAL ESTATE AGENT Fill in the blank

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BEST REAL ESTATE AGENCY p Keller Williams Realty p p p p

Platinum – East Berkshire Hathaway – McMillen & Associates Coldwell Banker - Howard Perry and Walston REA Properties Down Home Realty

p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

Statewide Realty Kornegay Realty The Firm Redpoint Real Estate East Pointe Real Estate Group Eagles/REMAX Underwood Properties Silver Real Estate Saylors Real Estate & Appraisals Seymour Homes Realty Keller Williams Flagship Realty Group Legacy Builder Wilkins & Lancaster Wayne Realty

BEST HOTEL p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

Hampton Inn Holiday Inn Express TownePlace Suites by Marriott Sleep Inn Home2 Suites Irish Inn Best Western Country Inn & Suites The Barrister’s Loft Plum Tree Gardens Blue Yonder AirBNB Irish Inn The Record Rack The Lofts on James

BEST CAR DEALERSHIP p p p p p p p p p p p p

Deacon Jones Auto Group Team Chevrolet of Goldsboro Sports Durst Matthews Motors Pennington Automotive Spriggs Auto Sales Doug Henry Buick GMC Best Used Cars Hopewell Auto Sales Vann’s Auto Sales Classic Chrysler Jeep Dodge p Ram Fiat of Goldsboro

p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

Allen Grading Daniels and Daniels Barbour Brothers Construction Best Sand and Gravel T.A. Loving Stone Construction Woodard and Company Waynesboro Builders Toler Construction Co. Bailey Homes Worrell Contracting Co. Langston Winford Construction Carolina Bay Construction Scott Construction Company Doug Herring Construction Price Construction Development Billy Brock Construction Teachey Construction M.V. Legacy Construction Griffin Steel & Supply Wayne Roofing Linton Builders and Custom Design Legacy Homes Langston Construction Ken Jones Construction Jill Young Designs Hope’s Site Development Good Ole Boys Concrete Construction Edgerton Home Builders Heritage Building Solutions Down Home Renovations Gerken Construction Co. Jackson Builders S.T. Wooten Eastern Building Solutions Malpass Builders Construction Managers, Inc. House Custom Carpentry Riggs Custom Construction C&E Construction Enterprises Darden & Son Construction Custer’s Home Maintenance and Repair Jay Multiservice Goldsboro Builders Supply

BEST HEATING AND AIR p p p p p p p p p p p p p

Jackson and Sons Cooley Plumbing Quinn Heating & Cooling E.T. Ferrell & Son Heating & Air Conditioning Herring Heating & Air Conditioning New Hope Heating & Air Conditioning Seagle HVAC Ace Heating & Cooling Balance Heating & Air Anderson Heating & Cooling Barfield Brothers Heating and Cooling A1 Heating & Cooling Daniels Heating and Air Conditioning

Collins Heating and Cooling Roscoe & Sons Heating & Air Grantham Heat & A/C Air Heaven Scott Heating & Air Conditioning New Hope Gas Company Lizak Heating and Air Crawford Mechanical Services Davis Heating & Cooling Cunningham Heating & Cooling New Hope Heating and Air Conditioning p Allen Heating & Air Conditioning p Scott Grady Service Co. p p p p p p p p p p p

BEST PEST CONTROL p p p p p p p p p

Arrest-a-Pest Canady’s Termite & Pest Control The Pest Dr. Griffin Exterminating Freedom Wildlife Solutions H T Pest Services Invisabarrier Terminix Webb Pest Management

BEST CAR WASH p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

ABC Rocket Wash ModWash GW’s Quick Wash Scrubbles Attention to Detail Ojay’s Auto Detailing Center Zips Car Wash T&T Raks Auto Detailing Laser Wash Kwik Klean Car Wash Dynamic Detailing Pirate Cove Carwash L&K Detailing Diamond Detailing College Car Wash Case’s Detailing Absolute Perfection Auto Detailing

BEST HARDWARE STORE p p p p p p p p p p p p p p

Red Devil Hardware Jones True Value Delmus’ Hardware Tractor Supply Co. Grantham True Value Harbor Freight Lowe’s Rosewood Outdoor Power Equipment and Supply Farmer’s Ace Roberts Machine & Supply Co. Grantham Ace Hardware Builder’s Discount Center Goldsboro Builder’s Supply Musgrave Equipment Co.

BEST LANDSCAPE COMPANY Fill in the blank

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