Local News

Winter relief: How the county protects most vulnerable

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Wednesday, 10 December 2025

Written by Jamie Bishop

As nighttime temperatures dip below freezing, Cumberland County officials are preparing for another demanding season of “White Flag” shelter operations, an emergency system designed to keep unhoused residents safe when the cold turns dangerous.
The county’s White Flag program, managed by Cumberland County Emergency Services, activates only during severe weather nights when the National Weather Service forecasts temperatures at or below 32 degrees. When the threshold is met, local shelters open additional beds and extend hours to ensure no one is left outside in life-threatening conditions.
Garry Crumpler, who oversees emergency management for the county, said the system is straightforward but critical.
“A White Flag night isn’t just about cold weather,” he explained. “It’s about the reality that some people in our community have nowhere else to go, and we refuse to let winter decide their fate.”
Once activated, the White Flag plan relies on a patchwork of community partners, churches, nonprofit facilities, and service organizations that agree to open their doors when conditions worsen. Some locations provide 25 beds; others may offer only a handful.
The goal is consistency, not scale: every partner commits to operating safely, serving hot meals, and offering overnight protection. Transportation is another essential piece.
On White Flag nights, residents without resources can be brought to designated pickup points, where county staff or partner agencies transport them to the shelter hosting that evening’s activation.
“The biggest misconception,” Crumpler said, “is that this program is permanent at one site. It’s not. It rotates because partners have different capacities, and we’re making the best use of what each organization can offer.”
For individuals living outdoors or in unstable conditions, the White Flag system can mean the difference between survival and severe injury. Frostbite risk increases dramatically as temperatures fall, and county leaders have stressed that winter weather affects more than the homeless population alone: individuals living in unheated buildings, cars, or temporary spaces may also seek emergency shelter. Last winter, county emergency services documented dozens of activation nights and an even greater number of requests for assistance. While some residents return night after night during cold stretches, officials say many also come in waves, the newly displaced, the recently unemployed, veterans coping with harsh conditions, and families forced into cars or motels.
“We never ask anyone to prove hardship,” Crumpler noted. “If the cold brings you to the door, that is enough. We are here to keep people alive, not to interrogate them.”
While the program has grown steadily each year, shelter capacity remains the biggest challenge. Some partner organizations can only accept single adults, leaving limited options for families, couples, or parents with children. The county has issued multiple calls for additional nonprofit partners, particularly those equipped to serve vulnerable populations with more complex needs.
Crumpler acknowledged the difficulty, saying community resources often lag behind community need.
“We’d love to have a facility where families, individuals, and seniors can be under the same roof,” he said. “Right now, we’re doing the best we can with the partners we have. The support is strong, but the demand is stronger.”
Several organizations have expressed interest in joining the network this year, though no final agreements have been announced. County leaders say they remain open to proposals and welcome any group with the capacity and willingness to take on the responsibility.
Emergency staff emphasize that despite its seasonal focus, the White Flag system speaks to a broader issue: housing insecurity is no longer limited to a small subset of the population. Rising rents, fewer affordable units, and a growing number of displaced residents have made winter preparations increasingly urgent.
“It’s not just homelessness as people imagine it,” Crumpler said. “It’s folks living in cars, families doubled up in unsafe homes, people leaving hospitals with nowhere to go. The White Flag program gives them a safer option even if it’s only for one night.”
Advocates say that the stability offered by a warm meal, a clean cot, and a secure building often leads residents to additional services such as case management, mental health resources, or employment assistance in the days and weeks after a shelter stay.
As December advances, county officials stress that communication is essential. Residents can check the Cumberland County Emergency Services website for updates and shelter locations or call the county’s information line for transportation arrangements.
Crumpler said the program’s philosophy remains unchanged, even as demands grow.
“Our measure of success is simple,” he said. “If someone survives a night they might not have survived otherwise, then the White Flag did its job.”
With winter forecasted to bring several extended cold snaps, staff and volunteers are bracing for a busy season — one that will require ongoing coordination and community support.
“We’ll be ready,” Crumpler added. “Cold weather doesn’t wait, and neither do we.”

Chamber launches health insurance option for small businesses

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Wednesday, 10 December 2025

Written by Anna White

Small businesses often face barriers when trying to provide their employees with quality health benefits; high premiums, limited plan options, budget constraints, and administrative burdens are among the top challenges. Without quality benefits, businesses struggle to retain talent, reduce turnover, and foster healthy and stable workplaces. Employees understandably leave for larger corporations that can negotiate better rates with insurance companies.
That’s why the Greater Fayetteville Chamber launched a new, affordable health insurance option for small businesses with two to fifty employees. Carolina HealthWorks, an option made possible by the NC Chamber, Blue Cross NC, and Consoliplex, offers high quality benefits that typically only large employers can afford.
“The Greater Fayetteville Chamber has long recognized the need for an affordable, accessible health insurance solution for small business members,” said Greater Fayetteville Chamber President and CEO, Nat Robertson. He said the program development began over a year ago, and enrollment opened on Nov. 1.
“It took months of coordination, compliance review, and detailed planning to ensure that the launch would be sustainable, competitive, and genuinely beneficial for our smaller Chamber members.”
Behind the scenes, efforts that led to the launch included gaining regulatory approval from the NC Department of Insurance, analyzing data, and designing a plan.
“The Greater Fayetteville Chamber conducted extensive outreach to understand member needs and ensure the program would be accessible for businesses with two to fifty employees. Together with the NC Chamber, we also built the enrollment and communication framework, so Chamber members could immediately access the program when enrollment opened on November 1st,” he said.
Since opening enrollment, Robertson says they’ve seen a positive response, with many smaller Chamber members saying this was the first health insurance option they found that fit their needs. Those interested in the program include employers who previously didn’t offer insurance coverage due to cost, and employers who want to improve the benefits they already offer.
“Interest and inquiries continue to grow, and insurance agents and benefit partners are actively helping businesses navigate the enrollment process,” said Robertson. He says the chamber is committed to supporting members throughout the enrollment process so that they can make the most of these new resources. The Chamber’s goal is to provide solutions that make a real difference for members, and Carolina HealthWorks promises to do that by improving employees’ quality of life, elevating businesses’ competitiveness, and contributing to a stronger local economy.
Carolina HealthWorks is available only to members of the NC Chamber or participating local chambers, according to their website. Considered a “special multiple employer welfare arrangement,” employers can enjoy competitive rates, fixed monthly payments, and multiple plan options, including health savings accounts, no deductibles, dental coverage, and vision coverage. The program includes more than 2 million doctors and hospitals nationwide, coverage in nearly 200 countries and territories, and health and wellness programs at no additional cost.
“We want our members to know that programs like Carolina HealthWorks represent the core of what the Greater Fayetteville Chamber strives to do,” said Robertson. “This health insurance option is one of the most impactful benefits we have been able to offer, and we encourage any business with two to 50 employees to explore it and see whether it meets their needs."

Chamber opposes interbasin transfer certificate request

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Wednesday, 10 December 2025

Written by Staff Report

The Greater Fayetteville Chamber announced today its formal opposition to the Town of Fuquay-Varina's application for an Interbasin Transfer Certificate, which would allow the transfer of up to 6.17 million gallons per day of water from the Cape Fear River Basin to the Neuse River Basin.
The Chamber's Board of Directors has passed a resolution voicing significant concerns about the potential negative impacts this transfer would have on the Cape Fear region's future water supply, residential needs, industrial growth, environment and long-term economic development.
The Greater Fayetteville Chamber, representing over a thousand downstream businesses, believes maintaining local water resources is critical for the Cape Fear region and is concerned about the impact on the water supply and future development. The Greater Fayetteville Chamber leadership believes that removing this volume of water poses significant risks to the future growth of Fayetteville, Cumberland County and the region.
“Water is one of our most critical economic assets,” Greater Fayetteville Chamber President/CEO Nat Robertson said. “Taking water and not returning it to the same basin raises so many red flags. I’m proud of our organization standing up for our residents and businesses and future development downstream that this IBT threatens.”
The Greater Fayetteville Chamber highlights several key concerns:
• Threats to Long-Term Water Availability: The proposed diversion could impair current and future water supply for hundreds of thousands of residents and businesses depending on the
Cape Fear River Basin.
• Economic Risk: Reallocating water away from the Cape Fear Basin without a requirement to return that supply could hinder future development opportunities for communities within the originating basin, including those in Cumberland County.
• Environmental Impact: Large-scale interbasin transfers can create adverse cumulative impacts on water quality, instream flows, and fish and wildlife habitats—which would affect communities from Sanford to Wilmington.
• Insufficient Exploration of Alternatives: State regulations require that all feasible options within the receiving basin be thoroughly evaluated and prioritized before requesting an interbasin transfer.
Accordingly, the Greater Fayetteville Chamber formally opposes Fuquay-Varina’s IBT request and urges the North Carolina Environmental Management Commission to prioritize the needs of existing and future users of the Cape Fear River Basin as it evaluates the proposal. The Chamber calls for careful consideration of both the potential harms and the available alternatives before any final decision is reached.
The Greater Fayetteville Chamber urges the North Carolina Environmental Management Commission to reject the IBT request and consider the long-term effects on the source basin. Public hearings on the draft Environmental Impact Statement are being held.
Additional information and the draft EIS are available on the NCDEQ website at https://bit.ly/4iRPCYk
For more information about the Greater Fayetteville Chamber, visit www.faybiz.com.

Government Watch: City Council sworn in; NC Delegates named Job Champions

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Wednesday, 10 December 2025

Written by Jami McLaughlin

There was a full house on Dec. 4 for the NC Department of Environmental Quality public hearing on the Town of Fuquay-Varina’s request for an interbasin transfer certificate to transfer up to 6.17 million gallons per day of water from the Cape Fear River Basin to the Neuse River Basin.