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The Weekly Report showcases the activities and accomplishments of the many Departments

within Rutherford County Government. Click on the directory lists, headings and text in blue to be linked to more information.

Department Directory

Agriculture/Cooperative Extension

Airport

Board of Elections

Building Inspections

County Manager

County Commissioners

Economic Development

Emergency Medical Services

Fire Marshal

Finance

Human Resources

Information Technology

Library

Public Works and Planning

Register of Deeds

Revenue

Senior Center

Social Services

Soil and Water

Solid Waste

Transit

Tourism Development Authority

Veteran Services

Weekly Report

Highlight of Departmental Activities

September 17, 2018

TRYON - Watch FEI World Equestrian Games, September 11-23 at the

Tryon International Equestrian Center, from the comfort of home.

NBC Sports will air nearly 65 hours of WEG Tryon 2018 coverage, in-

cluding a record 57 live hours, starting Wednesday, Sept. 12, presented

across NBC, NBCSN and Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA.

WEG Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tryon2018/

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Board of Elections

911 Communications Center

Call Summary

Rutherford County Communications

240 N. Washington Street

Rutherfordton, NC 28139

Report Date: 09/02/2018 to 09/08/2018

Total 911 Calls

Total Admin Calls

Total Calls

837

2,049

2,886

Agriculture/Cooperative Extension

Click on link below to register for public safety messages:

https://local.nixle.com/register/

Hannah Bundy reporting:

• attended Extension Engage state leadership board meeting in Durham, NC.

• taught Natives and Wildlife gardening class (1-4 and 5-8 pm on 9/11).

• NACDEP Host Committee meeting

Director Debbie Bedford and staff:

• Ballots have been approved and are in the process of being printed.

• We have started sending emailed ballots to overseas and military voters and will begin mailing civilian

ballots once they are received from the printer.

• We continue to work with our precinct Chief Judges to fill all of the poll worker positions for Election

Day.

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County Manager and Commissioners

Listed are several events, meetings, and activities in which the County Manager, Commissioners and staff

were involved with the following individuals, departments and businesses:

• Planning and Projects

• Solid Waste

• 9-11 Remembrance Event, Forest City

• IPDC Regional Economic Development Day, Shelby, NC

• Airport Agenda Review

• Tour Thermal Belt Rail Trail Paving Project

• County Attorney

• Hurricane Florence Coordination Conference Call

• Historic Preservation Commission

• TDA Implementation Committee

Other activities and events this week included

Lake Lure Town Council Meeting, meetings with

citizens, numerous calls, interoffice meetings,

conference calls, public relations, advising, and

preparation for various responsibilities.

Chairman Bryan King with Polk County Commis-

sioner Chairman Jake Johnson at the WEG Open-

ing Ceremony, September 11, 2018 (pictured

right).

This past Tuesday, September 11, Forest City Fire

& Rescue conducted a memorial ceremony recog-

nizing all those who lost their lives on September

11, 2001 when America was attacked by terrorists

(pictured below).

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State of Emergency declared in

Rutherford County

A state of emergency has been declared for Rutherford County as Hurricane Florence's path trends

south. "Based on the latest path projections for Hurricane Florence passing south of Rutherford

County through South Carolina, which places our County on the NE side of the storm event, we felt

that it was in the best interest of our citizens to fully prepare for any emergency actions warranted

due to the imminent threat of this storm event," County Manager Steve Garrison said of the declara-

tion in a release. Article by WLOS Staff, Wednesday, September 12th 2018

Rutherford County State of Emergency Proclamation

Continue to check the links below for weather updates:

Rutherford County website: https://www.rutherfordcountync.gov/

Rutherford County Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Rutherford-County-Government-North-Carolina-

154255941300928/

County Manager and Commissioners continued from page 3

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Hurricane Florence Information

From NC Red Cross

How to Prepare:

Don’t Panic, Be Prepared!

• Encourage your contacts to download the Red Cross Emergency App for real-time updates on

changing conditions, preparedness and safety information, and information about shelters and re-

sources nearby.

• Stay current on local official and media alerts and advisories and head their advice.

• Double check (or build) your emergency kit. It contains a 3-day supply of what you need in case of

power outages or you need to shelter-in-place for a few days. This link has a great list for everything

that should be included. Families can make it a constructive activity and opportunity to talk calmly

about storms and being prepared in order to keep ourselves safe.

• Last, Facebook has a check-in feature during disasters and the Red Cross uses Safe and Well, where

you can register and let your family know you are safe after an event. Please share and consider us-

ing these.

The best thing we can do is prepare ourselves and our families NOW. Your local government, emergen-

cy management, Red Cross, and community partners are working hard and over-time to make sure you

and your communities are as safe as possible; responses are already planned and ready even before they

are needed. Do your part now to prepare and take care those around you.

How to Help:

The American Red Cross needs Volunteers in South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia to help sup-

port Hurricane Florence relief efforts. We need help maintaining and setting up sheltering facilities, reg-

istering clients, maintaining client information, serving meals, and general housekeeping. If you live in

these areas and are willing to volunteer for a 6-12 hour shift, please apply now: redcross.org/volunteer.

This is an expedited application process specific to Hurricane Florence response efforts.

Become a Volunteer

For Donations:

Visit redcross.org, call 1- 800-RED CROSS or text t “RED CROSS” to 90999 to make a $10 donation,

or visit redcross.org/donate

American Red Cross

Donations enable the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from this disaster.

The Red Cross honors donor intent. Donations to disaster relief allow the Red Cross to spend the money

where and how it is most needed.

READ MORE: Hurricane Florence Information from NC Red Cross

County Manager and Commissioners continued from pages 3-4

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Fire Marshal/Emergency Management

Finance Department

The Finance Office processed and accounts payable. Several interdepartmental meetings were attended by

director and staff.

Fire Marshal Hamrick and staff took extra pre-

cautions preparing for Hurricane Florence, in-

cluding fueling all necessary vehicles, working

with IT to ensure technology readiness, checking

water rescue gear, preparing tools, chainsaws,

etc.

…… and with the help of Sparky!

(Pictured on pages 6-7.)

Fire Marshal and staff also had two origin and

cause investigations, several follow-ups, and

they have held and attended several storm prepa-

ration meetings this week. They will continue to

hold preparedness meetings as needed.

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Human Resources

Information Technology

The HR Director held meetings to discuss personnel issues, exit interviews, and retirements. The HR Spe-

cialist conducted new hire orientation. Open enrollment for health insurance is just around the corner.

Employees have begun receiving information from the State Health Plan through mail and email. Coloni-

al open enrollment is scheduled for October 29-November 2, 2018.

Please keep Tom and Linda Johnson in your prayers. As many of you know,

Tom has been EDC Director for many years. His wife, Linda, lost her mother

last Friday and her father the following Tuesday. A joint memorial service was

held on Thursday, September 13th, at St. John's Lutheran Church in Spartanburg,

SC.

Also, remember Rachel Bland and family in your thoughts and prayers. Rachel’s

stepdad passed away Thursday, September 13th.

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Library

Erika Woody (Haynes Branch)

New Books New CDs

Harbor Me by Jacqueline Woodson

Crown of Souls by Ronie Kendig

Conspiracy of Silence by Ronie Kendig

Congo Dawn by Jeanette Windle

The Glass Ocean by Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig, and Ka-

ren White

The Forbidden Door by Dean Koontz

Juror #3 by James Patterson

Heaven vs. Reincarnation by Dharma

Can Cockatoos County by Twos?

Lullaby Classics

What’s Been Going:

• Completed August’s monthly report.

• Changed the day of Build It Club.

• Making preparations for our Harry Potter party.

• Maintenance replaced the soap dispensers in our restrooms and replaced one of our water fountains.

What’s Coming Up:

• Build It Club- Mondays @ 3:30pm

• Story Time- Tuesdays @ 10:30am

• iSpy- all month long

• 20 Years of Harry Potter- all month long

• What’s Your Hogwarts House- all month long

Maria Davis (County)

We have been so busy at Rutherford County Library ordering books, processing books, putting books out

for use by our awesome patrons, planning programs, hosting programs, brainstorming, smoozing with our

patrons, and even more!

If you haven’t been in to one of our County libraries recently, you need to come on back. We have so

much going on that you will be amazed. We have something for everyone!

We would like to welcome Jessica Flores as our new part-time Library Assistant!! Jessica comes to us as a

liaison to the Hispanic community. We look forward to getting to know Jessica and utilizing her many tal-

ents.

As we all prepare, anticipate, and worry about Hurricane Florence, Stephanie Long (Circulation Manager

of County Library) suggests that you have one book, per person, per inch of forecasted rain. That means if

you are a 4-person household and they are predicting 5 inches of rain, each person should have 5 books

ready to read. We are here for all your Hurricane Florence reading needs!

Thanks to Tim and Shannon for quickly repairing our sewer problem on Tuesday. You guys are a LIFE

SAVER!!

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Library continued from page 9

Joy Sharp (County)

Mountains Branch Library enjoyed two great programs this week! Monday we welcomed Wolf Man Rob

for a fascinating and informative program on wolves and coyotes. He shared a wealth of current infor-

mation about the species, their ecology and evolution. We are looking forward to having Wolf Man Rob

return later this year for an encore presentation! Stay tuned for more information.

Tuesday the Mountains Branch Genealogy Club welcomed Theresa Deibert from the Bostic Lincoln Cen-

ter to explore the mystery of whether Abraham Lincoln was actually a Tar Heel, born in Rutherford Coun-

ty. We enjoyed a great turnout for this intriguing local legend.

Do not forget our Saturday Pancakes in Pajamas program for ages 3-8. We’ll share pancake stories, a pan-

cake relay, and of course, LOTS and LOTS of yummy pancakes!

Joy and Angie worked on statistics and monthly reports, as well, and cataloged new adult, juvenile and

audio books, as well as DVDs for our collection.

Tamara Edwards (County)

This week we had lots of fun with our “Bubbles” themed story time at each of our branches. We read sto-

ries, sang and danced, and of course, blew bubbles.

We are looking forward to our “Feet and Shoes” themed story time next week. We are looking forward to

Talk Like A Pirate Day Wednesday the 19th and our Harry Potter party on Thursday the 20th.

We will also be starting our middle school and elementary school book clubs next week.

Stephanie Long (County)

Circulation Manager completed the following tasks this week:

• pulled 25 lease books off of the new shelf to be shipped back to Baker & Taylor.

• completed Modules 2 - 4 of the Passport Acceptance Agent Training for New Agents.

• submitted order cards to library director for DVDs requested by patrons.

• provided an overview of front-desk procedures for new part-time library assistant.

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Library continued from pages 9-10

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Library continued from pages 9-11

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Register of Deeds

The Register of Deeds office works with the public everyday and continues to give prompt, courteous

and accurate service.

Transaction Group

Totals

Certified Vital Records

182

Marriage Licenses

8

Recorded Deeds

67

Recorded Deeds of Trust

33

Recorded Certificates of Satisfaction

48

Recorded Various Other Documents

48

Oath Given to Notary Publics

2

Recorded Plats/Surveys

6

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Revenue Department

Customer Service Totals

Phone Calls 447

Customer Service Assistance 209

Information/Data Requests 1

Website Hits 3,807

County Growth Indicators

Deeds Reviewed 26

Collections Progress

Deeds Certified 16

Total Taxes Collected 1,181,465.92

• Just a reminder that the 2019 Schedule of Values are still open for inspection at the Revenue

Department. If you would like to look at them, stop by the Customer Service counter. The

schedules are also available on the Revenue page of our county website.

• Rutherford County Chairman Bryan King has issued a State of Emergency for Rutherford

County.

• With the upcoming weather, please be prepared and stay safe in the coming days.

• It was nice to see so many in our county honoring the memories of all the lives lost in the 9/11

attack. This event in our history should never be forgotten. There were so many that gave their

lives that day to keep us safe. We also need to hold all our current emergency personnel in the

highest respect while they are helping keep us safe in good and bad times.

• Issued one garnishment with total of $1,242.52 and one bank attachment with a total of

$80.43.

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Senior Center

What a fun jammed-packed week we have had at the Senior

Center! In honor of National Grandparents Day, we started

the week with “Grahams for Grandparents”—where all

grandparents were invited to stop by the conference room

for a sweet treat. White Oak of Rutherfordton did our

monthly Blood Pressure Clinic and 31 seniors participated.

The Coloring Club met and we had Zumba after hours with

Wavolyn Norville.

On Tuesday, Kindred at Home sponsored a “Sip and Paint

Class” with Cassie Hallman. During this session, seniors

painted a beautiful garden scene on a wine bottle (pictured

right).

Later that day, one our senior participants, Jean Al-

ler, taught a class on making a “Witch’s Hat Door

Hanger”. As you can see by the pictures, the seniors

really enjoyed themselves at both of these fun and

informative classes (pictured left and below).

Mid-week, Barbara Hill and the Red Hot Chili Steppers

Walking Club took a morning trip to the Purple Marlin

Walking Trail for some exercise and fellowship with each

other. After lunch, she took a group of seniors to

Hamrick’s in Gaffney for some “shopping therapy” and

of course, they stopped by and had ice cream before re-

turning to the Center!

The week wrapped up with the 14th annual Prime of Life

Festival—a Senior Lifestyle and Wellness Event at the

Foundation at ICC. Senior Center staff had a great time sharing information about the Center with everyone.

Admission was free and they enjoyed a free lunch, breakout sessions, interactive exhibits, entertainment,

giveaways, and prizes. The event was sponsored by Time-Out Management and the Senior Center had a

booth (pictured on page 16).

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Senior Center continued from page 15

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Soil & Water

Sheriff’s Office

Your future is filled with ribbons and curls

for you’ve been blessed with a new baby girl! Enjoy

your grand-bundle-of-joy!

Congratulations to Shelly Owens, Sheriff’s Office,

whose beautiful baby granddaughter was born this

week.

Name: Lauren McKenzie Owens

Birthdate: September 10, 2018

Weight: 6 lbs. 4 oz.

Height: 19 inches long

Pictured right: Shelly’s daughter-in-law and grand-

daughters, Emily and Lauren.

The District Administration and Education Specialist worked on:

• District Meeting minutes and Supervisor travel.

• Farmland program update.

• Field Day, Farm City and Education planning.

The Resource Conservation Administrator spent the week:

• working on Conservation plans.

• working with Second Broad Watershed Commission.

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Tourism Development Authority

Solid Waste

Visit our website for a full list of events and times at: timeofyourlifenc.com or call our Welcome Center

at 828.287.6113. If you have any questions, comments or concerns please contact Taylor Hardin, Admin-

istrative Assistant for the TDA at 828-287-6013 or by email at taylor.hardin@rutherfordcountync.gov.

If you need to pick up travel guides for your business or you would like to be added to the newsletter dis-

tribution list, please contact Project Manager Karen Tegen at 828-287-6130 or by email at

kren.tegen@rutherfordcountync.gov.

Customers served

508

Loads hauled from Centers

78

MSW loads to Lenoir

47

Recycling loads to Conover

4

Tire customers

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• The director met with County Manager, Human Resources, participated in EPA webinar, worked on

reports and budget.

• The office staff took care of customers, worked on grants and reports.

• The staff at the transfer station has been busy processing and inspecting, MSW and recycling tonnag-

es.

• The C&D staff continues to process C&D tonnages coming in while maintaining the grounds.

• The airport staff continues to work on maintaining the grounds at the airport.

• The Shop is busy with preventative maintenance and repairs to equipment and vehicles.

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Transportation Services

EMS:

Rutherford County EMS focused this week on Hurricane preparedness and Director and Operations Man-

ager also participated in multiple EMRT meetings.

We also continue to prepare for an influx of visitors in regards to the World Equestrian Games. During our

monthly in service last week, we reviewed the components of the Incident Command System and everyone

worked together on a table top exercise involving a bus accident on Hwy 74 and how we would respond to

take care of the injured and mitigate the incident.

Emergency Calls 158

Non-Emergency Calls 18

Type of Call # of Calls

Transfer/Interfacility/Palliative Care 32

Sick Person 22

Traffic Accident 18

Falls 16

Breathing Problem 14

Stroke/CVA 10

Unconscious/Fainting 9

Chest Pain (Non-Traumatic) 9

Heart Problems/AICD 6

Psychiatric Problem/Abnormal Behavior/Suicide At-

tempt

6

Allergic Reaction/Stings 5

Cardiac Arrest/Death 4

Convulsions/Seizure 4

No Other Appropriate Choice 4

Hemorrhage/Laceration 3

Diabetic Problem 3

Traumatic Injury 3

Abdominal Pain/Problems 1

Assault 1

Back Pain (Non-Traumatic) 1

Burns/Explosion 1

Choking 1

Heat/Cold Exposure 1

Medical Alarm 1

Overdose/Poisoning/Ingestion 1

Stab/Gunshot Wound/Penetrating Trauma 1

Unknown Problem/Person Down 1

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Transit:

Operations Manager and Office Coordinator attended a

webinar on Managed Care that will roll out across the state

beginning in 2019. Director has submitted 4th Quarter 2018

Opstats Report to NCDOT. Transit would like to welcome

two new part-time drivers to our team, Polly Watson and

John Carver. John is a former driver that is already in the

field working and Polly is completing her training working

with other drivers by riding and driving with them to pre-

pare her for driving solo. Transit staff is currently preparing

our employees for the potential of being activated to assist

with an Emergency Evacuations due to Hurricane Florence.

We are also continue to be available if needed to assist with

the WEG transportation needs.

Transportation Services continued from page 19

TYPE

CURRENT

WEEK

WEEKLY AVG

Total Miles

8,895

9,000

Local Trips

1,211

1,148

Out of County Trips

65

71

Unduplicated Passengers

205

194

Total Revenue

$16,064

$15,919

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Veteran Services

Assisted veterans in the past week with claims, benefits, and other services: 80

Faxes sent for veteran claims, pension, compensation and records: 92

VETERANS COFFEE & CONVERSATION

Date: Thursday, September 20th 2018 Time: 9 to 10:30 location: 303 Fairground Road, Spindale, NC 28160

Guest Speaker: Sherry Lavender Rutherford County Tax Office Department Head

For more information contact Resa Thompson @ 828.287.6185

Saturday, September 29th 11-1

@ 303 Fairground Road, Spindale

We are having an “End of Summer Bash” in order to

thank all of our Rutherford County veterans and

our 2017-2018 donation partners.

There will be:

• Drawings

• Contests

• Corn hole games

• Food (catered by Domino’s Pizza)

• Prizes

All veterans and their families are invited

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Open every Saturday until October 27

Rutherford County Farmers Market Recurring weekly on Saturday from 9 am – 1 pm

The Rutherford County Farmers Market is located at 172 Depot Street in Forest City. Walk through

the covered pavilion to meet local farmers and artisans. Look through the flowers and plants from lo-

cal nurseries, shop for fruits and veggies, admire the arts and crafts from our talented artists, and en-

joy the activities and events that happen throughout the season. Click here to sign up for our weekly

list of what farmers will be at market each week, and to find out what they're bringing with them:

http://eepurl.com/dqPO21

October 5

Race for the Gold Soapbox Derby Build your car and get ready to race through downtown Rutherfordton in this high energy event. 6:30

PM – 10:00 PM – Rutherfordton. Why should kids have all the fun? Our adult only soapbox derby is

the only one of its kind in the region and is a fabulous way to show your community spirit. Have you

ever dreamed of owning your own NASCAR team? This is your big chance as companies, churches,

schools and other organizations build their own cars to compete or sponsor independent teams. What

a unique and high impact promotional opportunity!! Local sportsmen can build their own cars, too

(refer to the rules page located on rutherfordtown.com for details).

October 6

Hilltop Fall Festival 9 am The Hilltop Festival is held the first Saturday of October in our historic Downtown. It is our favorite

way to usher in fall and one of the most popular festivals of the year. You’ll fall in love with this festi-

val as a number of events take over the streets: Get a jump start on your holiday shopping and take

advantage of our huge selection of vendors from all over the region. Face painting, rock walls, inflata-

bles, pony rides and more await kids of all ages. The best bands of the region fill our Courthouse

Stage. Be sure to check out all the entries to our annual Scarecrow Contest. The best in festival food

and irresistible homemade desserts and more from local churches await you. Interested in being a ven-

dor or a competitor in one of our races? Download an application get registered.

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County Commissioners County Office

Bryan A. King, Chairman Alan Toney, Vice Chairman Hazel Haynes, Clerk to Board

Michael Benfield, Eddie Holland, Greg Lovelace Richard Williams, County Attorney

Follow us online! www.rutherfordcountync.gov

County Manager Steve Garrison

Kimberly Aldridge, Weekly Report Editor

828.287.6060

Upcoming Events

Saturday, September 22: ROC Broad River Fall Sweep at 10 am. Email

trails@rutherfordoutdoor.org or call 828-351-3235 to sign up to

clean a river section. ROC will provide trash bags and gloves.

We have a few extra boats available.

Saturday, September 29: ROC Walk with Brother Wolf. Reg-

istration required. Email Dana Bradley at dana@rutherfordoutdoor.org or

call 828-351-3235 to sign up.

Sunday, September 30: ROC hike at Walnut Creek Preserve. This moderate

hike will be around 5 miles and sights will include a

waterfall and beautiful view of the mountains. Meet at

the Rutherford County Office Building (289 N. Main

Street, Rutherfordton) at 9 am to carpool or at Walnut

Creek Preserve at 9:30 am.

Email us at trails@rutherfordoutdoor.org or call (828) 351-3235 if you would like to sign up for any of

the ROC workdays, clean-ups, or group hikes/river floats.