Valentine's Day is upon us and Fayetteville and Fort Bragg have some unique and fun options for everyone. Looking for a "Gal"entine's event drop in at the Fayetteville Pie Company for some music bingo. Out of love with love? Head to Bright Light Brewing Company to Axe your Ex. Want to celebrate with the whole family? Dirtbag Ales Brewery and Taproom has you covered. Looking for romance, head over to Fort Bragg's Iron Mike Conference Center for a romantic meal and music. Read on for all the fun and all of the details.

Events in and around Fayetteville for Valentine’s Day

Valentine’s Music Bingo
Fayetteville Pie company is hosting a Valentine’s Day-themed music bingo on Feb. 11 from 6 to 8 p.m. The event will be held at 253 Westwood Shopping Center. Perfect for gal pals and friends or date night attendees who can expect duets, sexy hits and love ballads. Call 910-483-4097 for additional information.

Hearts and Hops: A Family Valentine’s Celebration
Dirtbag Ales Brewery and Taproom is hosting a family-friendly Heart Day celebration. Attendees can purchase crafts and baked goods from the Bird’s Nest Montessori School, create crafts with KidsPeace, have faces painted by Artistic Brush Face Painting and take photos in a photo booth by Raul Ruberia Photos. There will be live music. Dirtbag Ales is located at 5435 Corporation Drive. For additional information call 910-426-2537.

Axe Your Ex
Axes & Exes will be at Bright Light Brewing Company on Feb. 13 for the ultimate anti-Valentine’s Day event. Just bring a picture of your ex and $10 and you can throw an axe at the picture. Bring an extra $5 if you need BLBC to print your picture out for you. Baja Dogs will be serving food from 5 to 8 p.m. with a special heartbreak meal. This event begins at 3 p.m. at 444 West Russell St. Suite 102. For additional information call 910-339-0464.

Fort Bragg Valentine’s Day Events

Valentine's Day Dueling Pianos
Celebrate Valentine’s Day a little early at the Iron Mike Conference Center. Cost is $80 per couple and the event promises an evening of fun, laughter, music and great food. Tickets include the show, dinner for two with a glass of champagne for each person. This event is open to the public and sponsored by the Gary Sinise Foundation. For information or to book by Feb. 9 call 910-907-2582

Guns and Roses
The Rod and Gun Club on Fort Bragg is hosting a Valentine’s Range Day. The cost is $40 per couple. Couples must provide own guns, ammunition, ear pieces and eye protection. Ear pieces, eye protection and additional targets are available for purchase at the range. The event will be held from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Feb 11-13. The Cost includes range time, a free shooting target, a Valentine’s Day gift box and a chance to win a one year membership at the range. This event is open to the public and organizers ask that interested parties register at McKeller’s Lodge by 1 p.m. on Feb. 10. For additional information call 910-907-5253

Sometimes we take life a little bit too seriously. That is why we look to the arts for a reprieve. In watching a theatrical production, we become emersed in another world and forget about our unique problems for a while.

The Gilbert Theater is presenting "The Last Days of Judas Iscariot." It is a crazy take on, as the title indicates, the last days of Judas Iscariot. Pulitzer-prize-winning playwright Stephen Adly Guirgis created the show. It debuted first Off-Broadway at The Public Theater on March 2, 2005, directed by the late Philip Seymour Hoffman.

The show centers around a court case deciding the ultimate fate of Judas Iscariot. The resulting decision will determine Judas Iscariots goes to Heaven or Hell. During the show, the characters are in Purgatory. The bailiff is a Barney Fife-like character played by Justin Gore-Pike. Gore-Pike also plays Judas.

"Judas is a sad, haunted person," Gore-Pike said.

The play utilizes flashbacks to an imagined childhood and lawyers who call for such witnesses as Mother Teresa, Caiaphas, Saint Monica, Sigmund Freud and Satan.

El Fayoumy, the lawyer, is in hell and thinks that he proves his worth that he belongs in Heaven or at least Purgatory by prosecuting this case.

The witnesses are funny and provide comic relief. Mother Teresa cannot hear very well. El Fayoumy gets her earphones, and then she can hear, and she also comments on how attractive El Fayoumy is.
Saint Monica is brash and uses harsh language, not something you would imagine in a play centered around Judas Iscariot.

Sigmund Freud is as one would imagine and brings some comic relief to a serious subject.

Satan, played by Matt Gore, takes a solemn subject and character and makes light of him.

Gore-Pike describes the play as "a fun, dark comedy."

The play is not for children as there is a lot of foul language, especially by Saint Monica, played by Deannah Robinson. It may also be offensive to religiously devout Christians and Jews.

The stars of "The Last Days of Judas Iscariot" are Eden Kinsey, who plays Fabiana Cunningham, a lawyer in the Judas case. The other star is El Fayoumy, played by Chris Walker.

Walker describes the show as " thought-provoking and leaves you with something to talk about... filled with many fun-loving actors who take a serious subject and flip it into something funny."

"The biggest takeaway is to never be afraid to challenge the system when it needs to be challenged," Gore-Pike explained. "Never be afraid to ask questions."

"It is more about self- forgiveness than God's forgiveness," said Walker. "Jesus doesn't care what Judas did. He is forgiven."

In the end, Jesus, played by Michael Ormiston, comes to Judas, played by Gore-Pike, and washes Judas's feet, proof that Judas was forgiven.

News Flash: The Winter Olympics will be in full force when this column appears. The Olympics are brought to us by that paragon of human rights, Communist China. This year’s event will be spiced up by the Rona, Chinese soldiers in HazMat suits, wall-to-wall nasal swabs, and the inscrutable sport of Curling. It’s going to be huge. Have you been pondering the historic origin of this fine event? The Olympics have been around even longer than Betty White, RIP. Mr. Google reports the ancient Greeks started the festivities around 776 BC. The Greeks ran the Olympics every four years from 776 BC to 425 A.D. That works out to about 1200 years, not a bad run. After a brief pause of 1471 years, the modern Olympics resumed in 1896 in Athens, Greece, for those of you counting.

Let’s take a ride in Mr. Peabody’s Way Back Machine to find out how the games began. Like most events that happened over 2700 years ago, the birth of the original games is shrouded in a bit of mystery. Here are three Greek stories about how the games came to be. Uh oh, herein lies yet another column mangling Greek mythology. Beware. Beware.

Version One says the Olympics began at Olympia when Zeus defeated his father, Cronus. Cronus was not a candidate for Dad of the Year. He ate his children to keep them from overthrowing him. Zeus’ mom substituted a rock for Baby Zeus, which Cronus ate, thinking the rock was Baby Zeus. Hence the term dumb as a rock was born.

Version Two says Hercules gets credit for the Olympics by celebrating his victory over King Augeas. The King hired Herc to clean out his stables. Herc did his job, but then the King reneged on paying him. Troubles ensued. Herc terminated the King with extreme prejudice. Then it was Party On, Herc. The Olympics were born.

My favorite Olympic origin story involves Prince Pelops of Ionia. The Greek King Oenomaeus decided to give the hand, and the rest, of his lovely daughter Hippodamia in marriage to anyone who could beat him in a chariot race. Pelops jumped at the chance to win Hippodamia. His love for her was as overwhelming as the love felt by Claude King for Clifton Clowers’ pretty young daughter in the classic song Wolverton Mountain. Pelops’ love for her was big as the sky. He wrote her a love poem promising: “Sure as the vine twines round the stump, you are my darling sugar lump.”

Pelops went all out to win the chariot race. In the first documented case of Olympic cheating in sports history, Pelops came up with a nefarious plan. He got a team of magic horses from his old buddy Poseidon the God of the Sea. It is unclear if the equines were originally sea horses. No matter. If magic horses weren’t enough, Pelops bribed Myrtilus the Chariot Master to sabotage King O’s chariot. Myrtilus pulled out the linchpins holding the chariot’s wheels to their axles. He replaced the pins with wax replicas. Once the race started, the heat from the spinning chariot wheels melted the fake wax linchpins causing the wheels of King O’s chariot to fall off. King O got tangled in the reins of the chariot. He was dragged to a painful gooey death by his team of horses. Naturally, Pelops won the race and Hippodamia.

In the case of the old double-cross switcheroo, when Myrtilus came to collect the rest of his fee for waxing the chariot, Pelops refused to pay him. Instead, Pelops threw Myrtilus off a convenient cliff to his death on the rocks far below. Pelops operated on Stalin’s theory: No Man, No Problem. Or the pirates’ theory that dead men tell no tales. But the story doesn’t end there. Myrtilus’ ghost began haunting Pelops. The haunting became such an irritation for Pelops that he realized the only way to rid himself of this meddlesome ghost was to perform the ritual Funeral Games.

Nowadays, people stand around at funerals viewing the deceased guest of honor saying: “My, oh my, don’t he look natural? He never looked that good in life,” before retiring to the Fellowship Hall to eat fried chicken, deviled eggs and potato salad. Back in Greek mythology days, people performed the precursors of Frank Costanza’s Festivus Feats of Strength by having athletic Funeral Games like races, rassling and javelin throwing.

To get rid of Myrtilus’ ghost, Pelops put on a giant set of Funeral Games which gave birth to the Olympics. A funeral today with javelin tossing would be much more entertaining than just eating deviled eggs and discussing why the Tar Heel basketball team is so erratic. But I digress.

So, what have we learned today? Once again, precious little. However, we can now have an enhanced appreciation of the long history of cheating in the Olympic games. The Chinese, Russian and North Korean teams’ efforts along these lines are just following the traditional Olympic Spirit initiated by Myrtilus and his waxed linchpins. Don’t get upset. Forget it, Jake. It’s Chinatown.

The renovations at Cape Fear Regional Theatre came just in time — just in time for the girl from Kansas in sparkling red heels. The theater's production of "The Wizard of Oz" does justice to the classic tale of Dorothy Gale and her three unlikely road companions. A new sound system, lighting and pyrotechnics bring an added measure of engagement and thrill to the audience.

Beyond the technical aspects of the show, the quality of acting really brought the musical together. Fayetteville native Kiara Hines took the stage as that eternal optimist, the most loyal of friends, Dorothy Gale. Hines was charismatic and a great embodiment of Dorothy. She floated around the stage just like a sunny teenager who cannot be dismayed even with plenty of reason for concern presents itself. Hines nailed Dorothy's innocence and juvenile behaviors. Her mannerism and voice perfectly balanced with the three co-stars that often shared the stage.

The first of those co-stars, Lee Jean Jr., played the sometimes timid, brain-searching scarecrow. He was a mighty force next to Harris. Lee's own ability to carry his character's happy-go-lucky, doubtless behaviors into dance-like movement on the stage was perfect for this straw-filled friend. He was what seemed like the closest of Dorothy's friends, bringing truth to one of Dorothy's last lines, "I think I'll miss you most of all." During this show, the scarecrow did feel like one of the most comforting of friends.

Tinman, played by Michael LoBalsamo, was the next to enter the stage beside the duo. LoBalsamo and Jean's witty banter played wonderfully against

Dorothy's child-like questions and demeanor. LoBalsamo's movements were fluid or perhaps not so fluid, as called for by his rust-challenged character. He frequently left the audience hoping for more of his lines, as he was full of heart.

And lastly, but by far not the least, was Nicholas Pearson as the cowardly lion. Pearson's version of this character was perfectly played with terrific voice acting and very well-timed comedic lines. He often left the audience laughing at his additions to each conversation. Children in the audience seemed to take to the lovability of his character. They appeared to look forward to each swing of his tail, a sudden exhibit of cowardice or fainting.

The four friends were well-suited to come up against both the Wicked Witch of the West, played by Becca Vourvoulas and Glenda, the Good Witch, played by Nicki Hart. The actors succeeded in bringing their characters to life on stage. Vourvoulas nailed the voice and shrill laughter of Dorothy's green-faced foe.

While the music in this musical was not bad, Harris herself belting out a beautiful version of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," the lines and interactions between the characters were by far the most captivating portion of the show and an excellent reason to purchase a ticket. The four main characters stole the show more often than their counterparts. If the show had more conversations between them, the audience would not be found wanting.

The only distraction from Oz was the use of the face shields for the actors on stage. They sometimes caught the shine of stage lights. While this addition might be the best solution in the covid-era of on-stage productions for safety, it would have been nice to watch the talent of the actors without this occasional pull back to reality. For how well-performed this production was, the audience wanted to stay in Oz, even if only for just a little while.

Damien Mathis has a nervous energy, either from years spent as an infantryman in the Marines or from all the ideas for artwork floating around his head. He would call it an overactive imagination. Whatever it is, he talks quickly and paces back and forth in his garage. There is excitement there. He becomes impassioned when he speaks about his artwork and the dramatic influence of other Black artists on history. This space has become one of his studio areas, a setting to hone his in on purpose.

"I have enough space in here to work, so I figured I would save money and just focus on my craft," he says as he continues down one side of his garage slash studio. "Some paintings take months; some take years."

Mathis says art is an idea, and an idea cannot be contained. For a lot of his works, the frame itself is incomplete. As he walks around, he stops at a piece of artwork, the subject popping through the portion of the frame.

"An idea is bigger than what you know of it," he said. "When you come into something that inspires you, that's the tip of the iceberg. That's how I think about it."

He picks up a nine-foot piece of artwork and glances it over. He begins to talk about the importance of color and how everything real is made "piece by piece." Colors are layers. Everything has layers and dimensions, even when capturing human pigments. When he speaks about it, it's as if he's traveling down his own colorful, art-filled rabbit hole that leads to a land where knowledge transfers through art.

"You can use color to change the perspective of the room or environment. I want to show something visually and put it together."

He then returns to pacing and continues to talk.

For Mathis, art is a true testament to his will and patience when researching the history of the Black artists he is embodying. He has been doing a series of paintings that capture Black artists and the importance of their work. He says this is important work, but it is hard to capture history in a visually correct way. Once he does his research, he puts the pieces together with as much thought and detail as he says the history deserves.

"I have to work backwards. I have to look into peoples' families' lives. Most of their pictures are black and white pictures," he said. "I have to do a lot of research on my end to make sure I'm visually correct."

Mathis set out to build a career in the military with the Marines. He was an M249 Squad Automatic Weapon (SAW) gunner in the infantry and served during three deployments, two of which were combat-related. On his second deployment, Mathis saw a lot of close calls and felt sure on the third deployment, he "wasn't going to be so lucky." Fortunately for Mathis, he returned home, and he did so with a perspective that saw him approaching his life differently than he had before.

"At a young age, I was kind of thrown to the wolves … and from that point on, I could never not take things serious because I could see how serious life could be," he said.

When Mathis returned, he felt he was still making adjustments for the years he spent in the military. His family took notice and stepped in. For Mathis, it was a battle he didn't know he "was going through at the time."

"I went through day terrors. The whole nine yards," he said. "All of us try to play the strong role when you don't need to be that way. And that's why I took painting seriously."

He continues to pace and explains the pacing is a by-product of years of carrying ammunition. His back pain is a physical reminder of his former life and a reminder to give art everything he can.

Mathis first attended undergraduate school in Pennsylvania for art. The program was not right for him. He was "taught in a way you could see it coming." He wanted to feel challenged. He was searching for a teaching method he hadn't entirely found. He decided to transfer to Fayetteville State University, majoring in Studio Art. FSU is where he would eventually meet Soni Martin, Shane Booth and Dwight Smith — three professors he credits as impacting his view of the world and art. They let him be rebellious, he says, in his way.

"Most school settings, you can be put into a box and never know," he said. "It was a different experience. They let you find yourself. Then they taught you how to control yourself."

Mathis started with a love of drawing, but Smith convinced him to explore painting and taught him how to paint. Booth taught him perspective, and Martin taught him the intellectual side of art. He said she knew it so well; it felt like it was a part of her. He says that each of them brought him to a better understanding of himself and art.

He has now been painting for seven years, showing his work in different states, including South Carolina, Florida and Kansas. No matter where it is, though, it has all become about one thing for him — visually showing that art can be knowledge. It can embody history.

"Art has recorded our history in a way that stuck the emotion of it in there. It's visual glory. I didn't want to miss that within my work. I didn't want to miss the opportunity to teach someone while they are visually engaging in my work."

And above all else, he asks himself, "what can I do in my lifetime that will stand the test of time?" Mathis admits it's a lot to place upon himself, but his experiences to this point have taught him it's a crucial question.

It's a question he's obligated to ask for himself and those black artists that came before him.

When he thinks of his future projects or where he wants to take his art, he does so in terms of four to six months from now, even longer sometimes. He is focusing on featuring artists like Jacob Lawrence and displaying the importance of their work. Lawrence's paintings focused on The Great Migration — the time between 1916 and 1970 when African Americans moved to the Northeast searching for better jobs.

"I came across an artist that studied that time period. It showed me I should be doing for my generation what others have down for their generations," Mathis said, nodding his head. "There's a lot of things I feel that Black people didn't get to learn in the last 40 to 50 years. The lack of knowledge, discrimination … the whole nine. We all know."

For him, this project now is a way to honor people from periods where they may not have had the resources to record their pieces of history. Mathis would like to help carry that history into the future. He wants to continue the passing down of knowledge visually. Mathis has a piece at the upcoming show at Gallery 208 at 208 Rowan Street.

As for his future and where he plans to be, Mathis only has one answer — art.

"It's just a part of you. You don't think it's a job. You think this is what I'm supposed to be doing. Life can be just a canvas to you."

The Department of Justice has held two meetings with the Fayetteville-Cumberland Human Relations Commission over the future of the Market House. These private meetings are part of the Justice Department’s City-SPRIT program, bringing together diverse community stakeholders such as community groups, faith‐based organizations, civil rights organizations, and law enforcement. They wish to develop collaborative solutions to reduce conflict, improve communication, and minimize the potential for future conflict.

The Department of Justice will be compiling a report summarizing the results of the two meetings from October and January. According to city officials, that report will be presented to the Fayetteville City Council in March or April.

Previously city council members have heard about the costs of possibly relocating the Market House to Lamon Park, Arsenal Park, or the Cape Fear River Park site. However, relocation would cost the city more than 2 million dollars.

Other options presented to City Council last year included making art exhibits in the Market House highlighting the history, having a monthly market with an emphasis for people of color vendors, having themed events for the educational community, and making a structural modification to the building.

All moves to repurpose the Market House from the city were put on hold by the council until after the City-SPIRIT meetings.

Well, it's big news in North Carolina when the Fayetteville/Cumberland County CEO of the Economic Development Corporation announces industry giant Amazon is bringing 500 new jobs into our community with its 1.3 million square foot distribution center. That's precisely what Robert Van Geons reported last week. This announcement marks the second Amazon facility to grace our community. An Amazon delivery center will open on Dunn Road soon. These announcements are excellent news and are a pretty good indication that Van Geons has additional positive economic news forthcoming.

What makes the Fayetteville community so attractive, you may ask? Well, many things, but I would think the two biggest influencers are our location with easy access to the I-95 North-South corridor and a young and abundant labor force of thousands of men and women exiting Ft. Bragg each year. So, what's not to like about creating hundreds of jobs and bringing thousands of new residents into our community? With this being the case, you would think the City of Fayetteville would be doing everything possible to welcome these new arrivals by showcasing our unique local amenities that create and enhance our quality of life. Indeed, we would want to welcome these newcomers, introduce them to our diverse resources, invite them to engage in our abundant cultural activities, explore our historic Downtown, shop in our stores and eat in our restaurants. At best, you would think city leadership would not intentionally create barriers for this kind of introduction and indoctrination. You would think.

Well, I was surprised to learn that the Downtown Alliance Vice-President C. John Malzone announced that they would be introducing and circulating petitions asking the City to eliminate evening parking fees Downtown because the Alliance feels these fees are stifling the growth and development of local downtown businesses. The Alliance is a non-profit 501(c)(6) entity of people, organizations, and businesses in downtown Fayetteville. Over the last decade, the Alliance has invested in and nurtured a hospitable, consumer-friendly downtown business district. They have facilitated many changes that have allowed businesses to grow, expand and prosper by implementing suggestions and improvements that have made the Fayetteville Historic downtown experience more inviting, exciting, and enjoyable. Outdoor merchandising, better signage and sidewalk dining options are just a few of their many accomplishments. These business and property owners are located in a Municipal Service District. The MSD requires that they pay an additional self-imposed property tax. This allows Alliance members to have a voice on how these tax dollars are spent and weigh in on policies and ordinances that directly and indirectly affect their businesses and livelihoods.

Specifically, the Downtown Alliance will distribute petitions to downtown businesses, make them available online, and ask all residents to sign on and support the demand to end nighttime paid parking and charges for event parking during ball games. The petition also supports limiting the number of event paid-parking locations and hours. Free evening weekend parking supports downtown businesses, restaurants, museums and entertainment venues that visitors and residents love and support. This action comes 18 months after enforced paid parking went into effect. During this period, it has become evident that people avoid coming downtown in the evenings to enjoy movies, dining, shopping, fitness and even just walking to enjoy the city's ambiance. Alliance members are adamant that there should be no on-street parking enforcement after 5 p.m. at any time. Without a doubt, paid parking and evening enforcement drives away visitors and customers. It's a complaint heard repeatedly and is becoming too hard to ignore. Paid parking after 5 p.m. and during events on weekends has harmed downtown businesses' cultural and economic vitality. We agree. This practice hinders patrons and investors and penalizes visitors who readily support downtown Fayetteville, art venues, restaurants or cultural events. We don't agree with or understand why the Downtown Alliance organization carries this initiative forward by itself? The evening and event parking fees are a problem that affects the members and operations of several organizations. Is there support from the Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce? The Cool Spring Downtown District? Fayetteville Convention & Visitors Bureau? And, the Arts Council? These are questions that need to be answered.

The Downtown Alliance is made up of business people. Entrepreneurs operate bottom-line, profit and loss operations that become a reality and "hard truth" of their success or failure. These are not agencies that depend on government funding, specialized community grants or donations through the generosity of others. These folks have their livelihoods on the line every day. These small to medium-size local companies are the lifeblood of a prosperous city center. Up & Coming Weekly supports this petition and feels the City of Fayetteville should be doing everything within its power to encourage, support and nurture these businesses rather than continually imposing barriers and hardships impeding their success. The organizations mentioned above, all relevant in their own right, need to step up and support those who have readily and unselfishly invested in Fayetteville's Historic Downtown community. I end with this reality and insight: Every prosperous City has a thriving downtown community. It's time to dismantle all the organizational silos, count the empty storefronts and the businesses that have come and gone out of business trying to support the downtown community, and start working as a dynamic coalition in support of a city we love.

To support this initiative, contact the Downtown Alliance at shopdowntownfaync@gmail.com, www.faydta.com, Facebook/fayDTA. To sign the petition, contact any Downtown Alliance downtown merchant or sign online at www.change.org/freeparkingdowntownfaync. For more information or questions about the petition, contact C. John Malzone 910-813-7378. And, as always, thank you for reading Up & Coming Weekly.

Online retail powerhouse Amazon confirmed a new 1.3 million-square-foot facility in Cumberland County last week, bringing with it hundreds of jobs and hundreds of thousands in property tax revenue.

The “fulfillment center,” where Amazon workers pack and ship online orders, is currently under construction at the Military Business Park in Fayetteville on Bragg Boulevard.

In an incentive package unanimously approved in November by both the Fayetteville City Council and the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners, the city and county will each grant Amazon $1.25 million toward construction costs, totaling $2.5 million.

This is if Amazon spends more than $5 million on the necessary relocation of a flare site, which is used when maintenance on a gas line is required. The company said it wanted the site relocated due to safety concerns about its close proximity to the facility, according to county documents.

After that $5 million spending mark, the city and county grants kick in at 50% of additional costs with the maximum at the $2.5 million mark.

To keep the grant money, Amazon will be required to create and maintain at least 500 jobs with an average annual wage at just under $33,000.

“It mitigates the additional costs the company may face regarding certain infrastructure improvements that are needed,” Robert Van Geons, president and CEO of Fayetteville Cumberland County Economic Development Corp., said in a phone interview Monday.

“In our case, because our incentives are paid based on performance, it mitigates risk for the community.”

The company will also be required to invest more than $100 million in real estate improvements.

The company would bring in more than $800,000 in annual property tax revenue for Cumberland County and up to $650,000 for Fayetteville, according to city and county documents.

Operations at the Amazon facility are set to begin in 2023.

How Amazon wages compare to other jobs in Cumberland
The 500 new jobs at Amazon will pay an average of $33,000 per year, and none of the jobs will pay below the company’s minimum of $15 an hour, which calculates to just over $31,000 annually.

“That in itself is positive,” Van Geons said. “That is above the average for a warehouse worker and a higher wage than many of our service-industry folks, which is a very large segment of our economy here in Cumberland County.”

According to the latest wage data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics in May 2020, package handlers in freight warehouses in Fayetteville are paid an annual average of just over $27,000, among over 1,300 workers.

Among the nearly 13,000 employees who work in food preparation, the annual average is about $22,500.

Retail workers make an average of just under $27,000.

Amazon’s average is even higher than that for laborers in Fayetteville’s construction industry, which is just below $32,000 in the latest BLS report.

And Van Geons said that the initial total of 500 jobs is a minimum. The county expects to see more job growth at Amazon going forward.

But Amazon’s average wage is still lower than the county’s average annual wage overall, which is around $45,500.

The company’s wages are also under what is needed to afford a two-bedroom apartment in Cumberland County. In its 2021 housing need report, the N.C. Housing Coalition estimates that just over $34,750 in annual income would be needed to afford a unit of that size in the county.

The N.C. Housing Coalition, along with most other affordable housing advocacy organizations, considers a home to be affordable if it takes up 30% or less of the resident’s income.

According to the organization’s report, nearly half of all renters, who are disproportionately low-wage service workers, pay more than 30% of their income on housing costs.

Even with the shortcomings of Amazon’s average wage, Van Geons said the increase in hourly wage would still increase many people’s incomes.

“It’s a step in the right direction for our community, that entry-level wage,” he said.

“Being able to come in and get a position that in some cases is five, six, seven dollars higher than what was available prior. … It will help people afford housing and all their expenses better than if it were not here.”

Cumberland’s high unemployment rate
In 2020, Cumberland County’s unemployment rate averaged 9.5%, according to BLS.

The rate is higher than the state average of 7.3% and the eighth-highest among all counties in North Carolina.

Even before the pandemic derailed the economy, Cumberland’s rate trended high. In 2019, the average was 5%, the 13th-highest county. North Carolina’s average unemployment rate that year was 3.8%.

Van Geons said Amazon’s arrival could start to change that.

“We do have higher-than-average unemployment here in North Carolina, compared to some of our peers,” he said. “This project is so welcomed in that way. It’ll provide jobs for those that haven’t been able to get back into the economy post-COVID.”

Correction: The $5 million that Amazon will receive and spend from Cumberland County and the city of Fayetteville will be used to relocate a flare site on a gas line. An earlier version of the article described the purpose of the funds incorrectly.

Photo Credit: Construction on a new Amazon facility in Fayetteville continues in late December. Photo courtesy of the Fayetteville Cumberland County Economic Development Corporation

Fayetteville Police have arrested a 23-year-old man for allegedly murdering his 10-month-old son.

On Feb. 3, officers with the Fayetteville Police Department responded to reports of an unresponsive ten-month-old along the 1800 block of Gola Drive around 3:59 p.m. The child was transported to Cape Fear Valley Medical Center but succumbed to his injuries.

The autopsy determined the manner of death to be a homicide.

Trenton Terrell Powell was arrested on Feb. 7 and is being charged with First Degree Murder and Felony Child Abuse Inflicting Serious Physical Injury. Powell is at the Cumberland County Detention Center under no bond.

Fayetteville City Council has decided to not look further into the allegations that former Councilwoman Tisha Wadell made in her resignation letter.

Wadell asked the Fayetteville City Council to investigate the following:

• The allegation that Mayor Mitch Colvin destroyed public records by having his cell phone wiped clean (phone number 910.987.0590) and any involvement of any member of City Staff
• The involvement of Johnathan Charleston regarding any business with Bernhard Capital Partners or their representatives
• The involvement of Mayor Mitch Colvin regarding any business with Bernhard Capital Partners or any of their representatives - to include Mayor Steve Benjamin
• Members of Council contacted by or having discussions with Attorney Johnathan Charleston or any of his representatives regarding Dismass Charities before, during, or after the initial Special Use Permit was brought to us for consideration? If this happened, it would be a direct violation of the law/policy regarding Special Use Permits.

In November, Councilwoman Yvonne Kinston asked the Audit Committee to review the allegations and to, as a group, ask the whole of City Council to discuss whether or not to do an independent investigation into the Mayor. The Council voted 4-0 and the motion was going to be presented to City Council at the beginning of December.

However, the Chair of the Audit Committee, Johnny Dawkins, pulled the item last minute - despite voting on it.

Dawkins told Up & Coming Weekly that he voted on it initially because it would just be a discussion item, not a recommendation for the council to go one way or another.

“In the two weeks or so between the Audit Committee Meeting and the Work Session, I reviewed the bylaws of the Audit Committee, and it appeared to me that the issue is not something in our purview,” Dawkins said.

According to the City’s website, the Audit Committee’s “primary purpose is to assist the City Council in fulfilling its oversight responsibilities for the overall stewardship of the City’s financial affairs.”

Dawkins told Up & Coming Weekly that he believes these allegations should go to the Ethics Committee and not the Audit Committee since no city funds, or misuse of city funds was brought up in the allegations.

“There’s never been a time when I was chairman, where I pulled an item like this. I went to enough law school to know that this is not in the purview of the Audit Committee, but the city attorney wouldn’t give me a definite answer on that,” Dawkins said.

On Jan. 28, Kinston brought up the issue in the Audit Committee. She asked Dawkins why he pulled the unanimous voted-on item from the December work session and he said that he did not feel like it should have been up to the Audit Committee to bring this topic forward.

However, when the two other committee members backed Kinston up, Dawkins conceded and said he was fine putting it up, as long as Kinston presented it and it had her name on it.

This all cumulated Monday night when City Council’s Work Session officially discussed a possible investigation. Colvin recused himself from the conversation immediately and did not vote on it.

The biggest argument against the investigation, coming from Councilman Larry Wright, is that external organizations already conducted investigations into the allegations.

This is referring to the investigation made by CityView TODAY’s investigative reporter Greg Barnes. He found that there were no signs of corruption regarding Bernhard Capital Partners’ efforts to take over the PWC, however, he did find a lack of transparency by people trying to broker a deal with the equity firm.

The allegations that Barnes did not yet look into in a published article includes Colvin allegedly destroying public records when he had his cell phone “wiped clean” during an investigation that led to the resignation of former City Councilman Tyrone Williams in 2018, that some council members may have improperly or illegally discussed a special use permit for Dismas Charities, which wants to build a halfway house for federal prisoners on land along Cain Road, or whether building permits and certificates of appropriateness were handled properly for a downtown building that Colvin has an interest in.

The council denied the motion for an external investigation 5 to 4. The people who voted against the investigation were Christopher Davis, Kathy Jensen, D.J. Haire, Wright and Dawkins. The people who voted in favor of the investigation were councilmembers Antonio Jones, Shakeyla Ingram, Courtney Banks-Mclaughlin and Kinston.

Plan C Crypto, a California-based data mining company, will open a Regional Headquarters facility in Fayetteville. The Fayetteville site will be the company's fourth mining facility in North Carolina, one being in Wilson.

According to the Fayetteville Cumberland County Economic Development Corporation, Plan C Crypto expects to create 19 jobs by the end of the year, with more to follow. They are looking for skilled professionals in the electrical, security and information technology fields. The company is targeting military veterans and spouses as potential employees for the positions.

 “Attracting high-tech jobs and new investments to Cumberland County and Fayetteville is a major priority for our community, and this announcement is an indication that we are achieving results,” said Robert Van Geons, FCEDC President & CEO. “Our region is an ideal location for innovative companies focused on business growth. By opening its regional headquarters here, this cryptocurrency facility shows we are a competitive location for technology-driven operations. We are grateful for the support of Elaina Ball, CEO and General Manager of Fayetteville Public Works Commission and her team, and for the hard work of FCEDC Vice President Rob Patton, whose efforts were critical in bringing this project to our community. Announcements like these would not be possible without the support we receive from the City of Fayetteville and Cumberland County.”

Plan C Crypto is expected to go online in the fall of 2022, however, the location of the site was not announced.

Plan C Crypto’s CEO Antonio Bestard stated that the company is excited to invest in the area.

“Fayetteville has everything we want to see for a world-class facility, including a business-friendly climate, strong existing infrastructure, and talented workforce," Bestard said. “We will use demand response proof of work mining to bring zonal grid stability at the substation level and bring high-paying jobs to the region.”

Cumberland County Sheriff's Office is investigating a deadly shooting that occurred Monday morning.

Detectives with the Cumberland County Sheriff's Office found 40-year-old Omar Bakar inside a vacant home near Charles Thigpen Drive and Doc Bennett Road around 2:39 a.m. He was pronounced dead at the scene. 

Detectives believe this is not a random shooting.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Homicide Detective Sergeant R. Brinkley (910) 677-5463 or Crimestoppers at (910) 483-TIPS (8477). Crimestoppers information can also be submitted electronically, by visiting http://fay-nccrimestoppers.org and completing the anonymous online tip sheet.

The Fayetteville Police Department has arrested one out of two men who are being suspects in the murder of Eddie Saez in early January.

Saez was murdered in his own store, Southern City Swag Boutique, on Jan. 4 along Yadkin Road.

28-year-old Rasheem Lopez Grant was arrested in South Carolina by the Columbia Police Department and was transported to Cumberland County. He is being charged with First Degree Murder, Possession of a firearm by a felon, conspiracy and robbery with a deadly weapon. Grant is currently at the Cumberland County Jail where he remains under no bond.

Detectives are still looking for the identity of the second suspect and the Infinity SUV (pictured below) that was seen at the scene of the murder. Anyone with any information should call Detective J. Olsen at (910) 709-1958 or Crimestoppers at (910) 483-TIPS (8477).

One man is dead following a shooting Sunday morning along the 5700 block of Weatherford Road.

Officers with the Fayetteville Police Department responded to the reported shooting around 12:56 a.m. 48-year-old Trenton Douglas was found with a gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.

Detectives have arrested 52-year-old Gary Duncan. He is being charged with First Degree Murder. He is at the Cumberland County Detention Center under no bond.

Political gerrymandering is dead in North Carolina, at least for now.

The state Supreme Court issued an order late Friday striking down the Republican-drawn political maps slated to be used for the rest of the decade. Groups challenging the maps hit a grand slam, winning on each of their constitutional claims.

A 4-3 majority of the Supreme Court found that the state legislative and congressional maps were “unconstitutional beyond a reasonable doubt under the free elections clause, the equal protection clause, the free speech clause and the freedom of assembly clause of the North Carolina Constitution,” according to the order, written by Democratic Justice Robin Hudson.

The General Assembly will have to redraw maps and submit them by noon Feb. 18 to a three-judge panel in Superior Court for approval.

If the panel decides the General Assembly’s new maps don’t meet the court’s new standards, it can select maps submitted by the groups who sued the state. Whatever the trial court selects, the state or any of the challengers can appeal the decision by 5 p.m. Feb. 23.

That’s the day before candidate filing is set to open again, so there is a chance North Carolina will see a repeat of what happened in December, when the courts shut down candidate filing — then reopened it, then shut it down again.

Because of the tight timeline, the Supreme Court only issued an order, not an opinion, meaning that it told the relevant groups what they had to do next but did not describe the full legal justifications underpinning the decision. The opinion will be submitted later, according to the document.

Chief Justice Paul Newby, a Republican elected in 2020, expressed his frustration with the decision in a snappy dissent, writing that the Democratic-majority court interpreted the constitution in such a way that left “no limits to this Court’s power.”

Since the state constitution does not put an explicit limit on partisan gerrymandering, Newby argued, the only ways to do so are by statute or a constitutional amendment. Both would require the legislature to act to limit its own authority to draw partisan maps.

Either the General Assembly takes the Supreme Court’s order and attempts to draw constitutional maps or takes the risk that the courts will choose maps submitted by the groups that sued. It will also have to submit the data it used to draw the maps and the methods used to measure partisan fairness.

The Supreme Court recommended, but did not require, five different metrics for measuring the partisan fairness of a map.

“​​To comply with the limitations contained in the North Carolina Constitution, which are applicable to redistricting plans, the General Assembly must not diminish or dilute any individual’s vote on the basis of partisan affiliation,” the majority wrote.

But Newby wrote those guidelines are “vague and undefined,” meaning only the court itself will be able to define the constitutionality of new maps.

“The question of how much partisan consideration is unconstitutional remains a mystery, as does what is meant by ‘substantially equal voting power on the basis of partisan affiliation,’” Newby wrote.

The Republican-controlled legislature, which drew the maps and whose leaders are the named defendants in the case, can partially appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court, at least regarding the congressional map.

Though it’s speculation, that appeal is likely, according to Catawba College political science professor Michael Bitzer.

 Photo Credit: The Supreme Court of North Carolina building in Raleigh. Courtesy of the state courts.

State Capitol Police cited a protester for second-degree trespassing Wednesday outside the N.C. Judicial Center as he called for the arrest of an off-duty Cumberland County sheriff’s deputy who, weeks prior in Fayetteville, fatally shot Jason Walker, an unarmed Black man.

Shaun McMillan, an activist in Fayetteville, was leading a small protest right outside the building when a State Capitol Police officer approached and asked him to conduct the gathering off state property.

State Capitol Police Sgt. Michele Larson said a permit is required to protest on the grounds of the N.C. Judicial Center.

McMillan initially refused to relocate and continued to protest, along with a few others from across the state, until an officer handcuffed him.

Minutes later, officers released McMillan and cited him for second-degree trespassing.

Larson said they decided to release him because they wanted the protesters to speak their minds, as long as they did so legally.

After being released, McMillan and the rest of the protesters continued to gather on the public sidewalk just outside the N.C. Judicial Center premises.\

Reason for protest

On Jan. 8, Jeffrey Hash, an off-duty Cumberland County sheriff’s deputy, shot and killed Walker following an incident where Hash alleges that Walker stepped onto the street in front of his truck, ripped off a windshield wiper and broke his windshield.

In police body-cam footage released a week later, Walker’s father, in a witness interview with officers on the scene, seemed to confirm Hash’s retelling.

“(Jason Walker) pulled off one of the daggone windshield wipers and hit the windshield,” Walker’s father said in the video.

In the days after the shooting, Fayetteville Police Chief Gina Hawkins referred the investigation to the State Bureau of Investigation. Cumberland County District Attorney Billy West handed any potential prosecution to the N.C. Conference of District Attorneys, which is housed at the N.C. Judicial Center, where Wednesday’s protests took place.

Officials sought this outside help to limit a conflict of interest, Carolina Public Press previously reported.

McMillan said in a phone interview prior to Wednesday’s protest that Hash should have been arrested immediately following the shooting. He called it “a critical mistake” by the Fayetteville Police Department.

“This is overdue,” he said. “Our patience is gone. We don’t have patience for a system that would allow somebody to be gunned down in their own neighborhood without so much as an arrest.”

He called on Kimberly Spahos, director of the N.C. Conference of District Attorneys, to press charges and have Hash arrested.

While the conference would lead any potential prosecution against Hash, Spahos said in a phone interview prior to the protest that no charging decision can be made amid an ongoing criminal investigation.

“We can’t make a charging decision on this case or any case until the investigation is complete,” she said. “It would be imprudent and improper to do so.” 

Once the SBI completes its investigation and submits its findings to the Conference of DAs, Spahos said a charging decision can be made based on that report.

She is bound by the rules of professional conduct from speaking on any facts regarding an ongoing investigation, she said.

The SBI coming in to investigate officer shootings is standard procedure legislated by the General Assembly last year, as long as certain public officials, such as Fayetteville Police Chief Hawkins, request it.

“This is a standard process for how this is handled,” Spahos said. “We wait for the full investigation to be complete before we make decisions.” 

McMillan said he understands the process and hopes Hash will be charged when possible.

“As soon as that SBI investigation is completed, she will make the decision, and we hope that she makes the right one,” he said.

Photo Credit: State Capitol Police handcuff Fayetteville activist Shaun McMillan while he protests outside the N.C. Judicial Center in Raleigh on Feb. 2, 2022. Police said McMillan was protesting without a permit. Officers released him minutes later and cited him for second-degree trespassing. Ben Sessoms / Carolina Public Press

President Joe Biden will be sending 2,000 troops from Fort Bragg to Poland and Germany in the coming days, according to Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby. Kirby also confirmed that 1,000 service members from a Stryker squadron currently in Germany will be repositioned to Romania.

"The 82nd Airborne Division is deploying components of an Infantry Brigade Combat Team and key enablers to Poland and the 18th Airborne Corps is moving a Joint Task Force-capable headquarters to Germany," Kirby said in a press briefing Wednesday morning. 

Kirby said that these forces will not fight in Ukraine, rather they will give support to the allies of the United States. He also reiterated that these are not permanent moves.

"They are moved designed to respond to the current security environment," Kirby said. "Moreover, these forces are not going to fight in Ukraine. They're going to ensure the robust defense of our NATO allies."

The 82nd Airborne Division was chosen because they were already on heightened alert and they are multi-mission capable.

"I think their versatility, their ability to move quickly, and to conduct a range of missions across a range of contigencies which is well-proven, that is why the Secretary has ordered them to go," Kirby said.

These troops are separate from the 8,500 troops who were placed on alert in January for a possible deployment to Europe with the NATO Response Force.

Photo Credit: Fort Bragg Paraglide 

Amazon has confirmed they are building a 1.3 million-square-foot fulfillment facility at the Military Business Park. According to a press release, this new facility will create more than 500 full-time jobs with hundreds of additional part-time opportunities.  

“Amazon is excited to expand operations in Cumberland County, North Carolina, investing in a new fulfillment center in Fayetteville,” said Amazon Spokesperson Nikki Forman. “We are committed to providing efficient delivery for customers and creating hundreds of jobs

This is the second building Amazon has under construction in Cumberland County. In May of 2021, Amazon announced a new last-mile facility. That facility is currently under construction at 1005 Dunn Road.

“I welcome the significant positive impact that Amazon will make here. The fact that Amazon has twice selected to invest in our area sends a strong signal to other potential employers about the many wonderful benefits this region has to offer, from our central location to the thriving workforce, and excellent business climate," Fayetteville Mayor Mitch Colvin said in the press release.

The City of Fayetteville and Cumberland County each approved up to $1.25 million to help assist with infrastructure improvements. For Amazon to receive the grants it must commit to investing $100 million in real estate and equipment in Cumberland County over the next five years and hire more than 500 full-time workers with an average annual wage of about $33,000.

“This Amazon facility in the Military Business Park means hundreds of new jobs for our County, as well as economic growth and advancement. This transformative investment is a major win for our community,” said County Commission Chairman Glenn Adams. “A sincere thanks goes out to Amazon’s representatives as well as Cloteen Jasmin, Senior Vice President of Development at Ryan Companies, who have been collaborating with FCEDC on the project since April. This project has an incredibly aggressive timeline, and we cannot wait to celebrate its opening in 2023. Thanks to all those who collaborated to make this a success.”

The new warehouse facility at the Military Business Park is expected to open in 2023. 

The Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra has adapted significantly in the past two years due to the pandemic. And it continues to adjust based on changes with COVID-19.

In the original season schedule, the Feb. 5 performance was a joint performance with the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra and the Fayetteville Youth Orchestra. One hundred musicians would be playing side-by-side in a concert called "Better Together."

However, due to the most recent COVID-19 regulations, that 100-person symphony could not perform.

"Our goal is really to just keep moving forward. We do not want to go backwards from COVID," Anna Meyer, community engagement manager for the FSO, told Up & Coming Weekly. "We just want to keep the momentum going that we've built. And we're willing to revise our programming to fit the current societal implications of COVID."

While the Youth Symphony will not be performing with FSO this year, the professional orchestra wanted to highlight young people and their impact on music.

Wunderkinds (pronounced Vunder-kids) is a German word meaning child wonders — also known as child prodigies. In the classical music world, many well-known composers people still love today were considered Wunderkinds. Wolfgang Mozart wrote his first symphony at the age of 8, and Felix Mendelssohn started composing around the age of 12.

The FSO "Wunderkind" performance will feature a local prodigy, 15-year-old double bass player Gavin Hardy. Hardy is from Winston-Salem and won FSO's Harlan Duenow Young Artist Concerto Competition. He began playing double bass at the age of 12, and when he was in middle school, he was the first chair of the Forsyth County "All County" Orchestra for two years straight. Last year he was one of ten finalists from around the world at the International Society of Bassists Solo Competition. Hardy participated in the 15-to-18-year-old division.

This concert will be the first subscription concert in 2022 as "Too Hot to Handel" was rescheduled for March. However, Meyer says they are still excited for people to come and support them.

"We've seen some lower numbers than we've seen in previous years, but we've still seen a lot of community members. At our 'Messiah' concert in December, we had around 300 people there. We filled the church up to capacity. So, we are seeing people," Meyer said. "We believe that people want to be out in a safe way and support local arts in the community."

The performance will occur at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church on Feb. 5 at 7:30 p.m. The total concert run-time is an hour and 15 minutes with no intermission.

Tickets may be purchased online, over the phone at 910-433-4690, or in person. Tickets range from $5 to $25, and anyone five and younger can attend for free. For the originally scheduled "Better Together" performance, ticket holders will have their tickets automatically transferred to "Wunderkinds."

The Spring Lake's Board of Alderman met on Jan. 24. Among the topics discussed was a resolution supporting the stormwater program, which was approved, allowing the mayor to have voting authority, staggered terms, and confirming the meeting scheduled for Feb. 14. The Board also entered a closed session for just under an hour due to an N.C. General statute for personnel.

The discussion on the mayor's ability to vote met opposition from Mayor Pro Tem Robyn Chadwick with concerns for abuse of power and Alderman Marvin Lackman, who felt there were more pressing matters for Spring Lake.

"With everything going on in the town, I think we should concentrate on the issues at hand rather than a vote for you," Alderman said to Mayor Kia Anthony.

Alderwoman Sona Cooper expressed her desire to see the community have a say.

"Take it to the people and see how they feel about it and take it from there, " Cooper said.

Spring Lake Town Attorney Jonathan Charleston said that referendum was possible on the mayor's voting power, and Anthony asked Charleston to research options to present at a future meeting.

The meeting was adjourned immediately following the closed session.

It is a myth that adults cannot learn to ski because I started skiing when I was forty. It is easier for children, but these days, many adults are taking lessons. Skiing is an engaging aerobic and anaerobic sport that the entire family can enjoy. The Baby Boomer generation continues to hit the slopes, and it is not unusual to see skiers in their seventies.

Making a good plan for your ski trip is essential to having an enjoyable experience. Look for a beginner-friendly slope with a good rental department and quality instructors. In the beginning, avoid investing in expensive ski clothes and equipment to see if you like the sport. Wearing water-resistant clothing will help keep you dry when you fall. Let’s face it: you will fall, get cold, and get snow down your pants. Your clothing should be layered, moisture-wicking and avoid cotton because it absorbs sweat and will make you colder. My advice to the beginner is to buy an inexpensive pair of bibs, a jacket, a good pair of gloves and wear sunglasses with a holder strap or goggles and a helmet. Rent your skis or snowboard and go early because the lines are usually long. It takes a while to properly fit equipment, not to mention how long it takes you to get settled and put it on. Go to a ski slope that offers other activities such as ice skating or tubing for other group members that may not be interested in the sport.

A lesson or lessons are a prerequisite for navigating your skis or snowboards, to learn starting, stopping, and getting on and off the lift. Going straight to the top is no way to learn how to ski or snowboard and can be dangerous for you and the others around you when you are unable to stop. The “bunny slope, “ as it is affectionately called, is there for a reason and a fantastic way to learn and build confidence. Hydration is also a key factor for endurance during the day, taking breaks and eating something nutritious.

Choosing a slope suited for your level of experience is essential for building good memories and helping you look forward to your next trip. I have skied out west and in the North Carolina mountains, including Beach, Sugar, Appalachian, and West Virginia, including Winterplace and Snowshoe. The ambiance of the North Carolina mountains is perfect for skiing and shopping. Still, the downsides are the popularity and crowds. My suggestion for beginners would be Winterplace in West Virginia, which is usually less crowded with various beginner-friendly runs. Try to schedule that trip on weekdays instead of the weekend if you love the North Carolina mountains to avoid crowds.

Churches or schools offer road trips or weekends for youths, and these options are a fantastic way for your children to try skiing with supervision. Planning will save you time and money if you decide on taking a family trip. Plan out your lift tickets, available times, ski packages that include rentals, lessons and account for any days that may be sold out. Ski season on the east coast typically runs mid-December through March.

Adults learning to ski should take lessons from a qualified instructor to learn the basics and opt-out of lessons from those eager friends that want to teach you.

Enjoy that friend time later while you talk about your runs!

Live, love life with skiing and snowboarding!

As a publication, we get suggestions and requests weekly for content coverage. We cannot always follow up on every idea sent our way, whether because we have already budgeted the space in the paper or because we have already committed resources elsewhere. But, sometimes, the suggestion is so heartfelt, timely and important that you just make space where otherwise there might not have been. This is how it went a few weeks ago when Tammy Thurman, community relations manager at Piedmont Natural Gas and vice chairwoman of the Greater Fayetteville Chamber, approached Up & Coming Weekly to cover Black History Month in a unique and important way. We met and discussed her vision. Some stories everyone knows explained Thurman. No matter their origins, some stories are told and retold every February, but there are more. Stories that go unnoticed but are equally important.

As Thurman explained, stories are repeated every February, and the leaders who are spoken into the fabric of our community and society through those stories are hugely important. But the lesser told stories, shared on a smaller scale, are quietly told among people of color, and they deserve a louder voice and a broader audience. It is these stories Thurman hoped we, at Up & Coming Weekly, would help to amplify.

This month we will be featuring a series on local Fayetteville Black history heroes. This week and for the next three consecutive weeks, we will feature the story of a Fayetteville-connected Black folk hero. We will share an account from the past that marks the struggles and triumphs in the history of our local Black community. This week we share the story of Isaac Hammond and the Fifer’s Grave, shared with us in an interview with Charles Anderson Jr., a history lecturer at Fayetteville State University (see page15). In the following weeks we will tell the stories of Robert R. Taylor, architect and educator; Mable C. Smith, local politician and fighter for the disenfranchised; and Charles Waddell Chesnutt, political activist and author. We are reaching out to Black community members to help us tell these stories, both through their time via interviews or through their writing.

In addition to our local Black History Heroes from Fayetteville’s past, we will also be speaking with Black community members making a difference and impacting our Fayetteville community today. Look for our cover story next week on a local veteran artist mentioned on pages 12-13, this week, Damien Mathis. And in the issue hitting stands on Feb. 16, we will be profiling veteran business owner Joseph Dewberry.

Join us on this journey while we share stories that may get overlooked in national headlines but are a vital part of the unique, diverse and storied Fayetteville community’s Black History. Pick up our paper each week this February or click in via our website and social media to read about and hear these voices.

Thank you for reading Up & Coming Weekly.

The Fayetteville History Museum will be opening a new exhibit: “African Americans on the River.”

This exhibit honors Black History Month and will become a semi-permanent feature in the Museum.

This exhibit highlights numerous free and enslaved African Americans who were integral to the story of the Cape Fear River and the region, including revered Steamboat Pilot Daniel Buxton. Also featured, are stories of resilience including one of the dozens of free African Americans who traveled down the river journeying to a new life in Liberia.

Admission is free to the Museum and galleries are open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.The Fayetteville History Museum is located at 325 Franklin Street and is operated by the Historic and Natural Resources District of Fayetteville-Cumberland Parks and Recreation.

The Arts Council of Fayetteville/Cumberland County Director of Operations, Antonio Renteria, has been selected as an Emerging Leaders of Color (ELC). The ELC is a free professional leadership development program and team-building workshop for early to mid-career arts and cultural administrators of color. Eighteen individuals from each of South Arts’ nine-state region were selected for the second Southern cohort of the program.

Renteria will participate in professional development and leadership training offered in partnership with South Arts and the Western States Arts Federation. The ELC Program provides tools, continued learning opportunities, and networks to arts administrators of color who seek to build their capacity as leaders in the arts and culture sector.

Staff, faculty, and alumni affiliated with the ELC Program selected Renteria because he exemplifies qualities in arts leadership and has the capacity to be a leader at his organization and in the broader community.

“I am committed to building relationships with local artists, nonprofit organizations, and other community partners who make Fayetteville a vibrant and welcoming community for artists and other creatives,” Renteria said in a press release.

Americans have traditionally valued education in general and higher education in particular. Harvard University was founded in 1636, more than a century before the United States managed to birth itself. As our newly formed nation was gelling, North Carolina legislators chartered our country’s first public university, what is now known as the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. It is worth a mention here that an education-hungry young man named Hinton James walked close to 150 miles — you read that correctly — from his home in Wilmington to Chapel Hill to enroll as UNC’s first student. He was UNC’s only student for about two weeks until some others turned up, for an initial 1798 graduating glass of six. A 20th-century dormitory in Chapel Hill is named in James’ honor.

Since young Hinton took his long walk, millions of American families have sacrificed and saved, borrowed and sought financial aid to make higher education possible for those they love. Over the centuries, more and more of us have achieved that goal. Higher education has made us professionals of all stripes, led to successful careers in many fields and enriched countless lives the way only an understanding of the world around us can.

Here comes the challenging news.

The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center reports that about one million fewer undergraduate students enrolled in higher education institutions in 2021 than in 2019. The declines are seen at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, at public and private institutions, at four-year institutions, most dramatically at community colleges and for-profit institutions. The declines are more pronounced among minority students as well.

While a million fewer students over two years is an eye-popping statistic, the trend is not new.

College enrollment has been declining for at least a decade, in part because our nation’s low birthrate means fewer 18-year-olds to enroll at all and because the cost of college continues to spiral. The COVID-19 pandemic, still besetting us in 2022, has merely accelerated the trend. “The reality is that the pandemic has disrupted the education of the next generation of young professionals, and that’s going to have immense consequences on the career options, their livelihoods,” said Doug Shapiro, executive director, Student Clearinghouse.

Shapiro is correct, of course, because educational attainment correlates with lifetime earnings. At the same time, declining higher education enrollment scares the socks off employers looking at fewer skilled workers in their immediate future.

COVID-19 and high costs are apparent factors in the decline, but other factors may be at work as well.In 2013 70% of adult Americans told Gallup pollsters they believed a college education was “very important.” In pre-Covid 2019, only 51% thought so.

Both students and parents are debating the value of higher education compared to its price tags, but is there something more? Something more nebulous and more difficult to pin down?

It is clear many Americans have thrown traditional scholarship and learning to the winds for reasons the rest of us will never know, much less understand.

How else do we account for Covid-deniers, anti-vaxxers, conspiracy theorists of all sorts—people who persist in their beliefs and behaviors despite scholarship and scientific evidence to the contrary? How else do we perceive a seemingly growing anti-intellectualism in our nation? I saw a woman on television tell a reporter that she simply did not care about the facts. “I just believe what I believe,” came out of her mouth before an international audience.

We need a visit from Hinton James to help us remember why education is important to us as individuals and as a nation.