VOLUME 10 ISSUE 6 | THURSDAY, APRIL 3, 2025
DUPLINJOURNAL.COM
Duplin Journal THE DUPLIN COUNTY EDITION OF NORTH STATE JOURNAL
the
BRIEF this week
Join Hog Wild Cook-off Saturday Beulaville Beulaville’s annual Hog Wild Cook-off will be Saturday, April 5 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the corner of Highway 241 and Highway 41. Parking will be available beside the Realo store. The event will feature performances by Lily White and the Band of Oz starting at noon. There will be a variety of vendors, live local entertainment, a cake walk, children’s games, a 50/50 raffle and more. BBQ plates will be available for $10. The event is free.
Spring into Wellness April 12; receive free health screenings Wallace The Duplin Coalition for Health and Wallace Train Depot announced their first Spring into Wellness Community Health Fair will take place on April 12 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Wallace Train Depot at 206 S. Railroad St. in Wallace. The event will feature a variety of free health screenings, including blood pressure, cholesterol and glucose checks, along with educational resources and information on wellness. There will be fresh produce, family‑friendly activities, giveaways and more. Open to all community members, this is an opportunity for individuals and families to access health and wellness resources.
Free culinary medicine program offered through ECU Duplin County ECU Health is offering a free culinary medicine program, Dining With a Doc, on April 15 at 5 p.m. at ECU Health. This cooking demonstration is open to the community at no cost and provides education and skills to create healthy, plant-based meals. It includes recipes, and lifestyle medicine lecture notes. Registration is required. Contact wellness@ecuhealth.org to register.
Connect with local employers at Duplin Job Fair
K.D.BEARD / DUPLIN JOURNAL
An AgFest attendee tries to go the full 8 seconds at the University of Mount Olive’s biggest-ever AgFest last week.
UMO AgFest sees record attendance The annual event connects students with careers in agriculture By K.D. Beard Duplin Journal MOUNT OLIVE — The University of Mount Olive’s AgFest saw record attendance last Thursday as more than 2,200 students, educators, exhibitors and volunteers gathered to take part in the annual celebration of all things agriculture — and to learn about valuable career and academic prospects in the rap-
idly growing field. “I think there’s a lot of times that people hear agriculture and they automatically think farming. And that’s kind of the limit,” said Edward Olive, director of the Lois G. Britt Agribusiness Center at UMO. At the event, students got to meet with farm- and nonfarm employers and groups to learn about agricultural opportunities that go beyond the obvious. It also acts as a recruiting event for the university, with nearly two dozen incoming students each year having attended
Edward Olive, Lois G. Britt Agribusiness Center director AgFest in the past. Seventy-five schools across the Carolinas were represented at the event. Ahead of an alumni meet and greet with country music sing-
See AGFEST, page A2
Body found believed to be missing Pink Hill woman The Sheriff’s Office is waiting for autopsy results to confirm the identity of the body By Ena Sellers Duplin Journal AUTHORITIES are investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of a woman whose lifeless body was found in Pink Hill near a field located in the area of Burncoat and Jimmy Lee roads in Duplin County last week. According to law enforcement,
the Duplin County Sheriff’s Office received a call March 26 from a citizen who found a body abandoned in a cutdown near a field. Investigators believe the remains belong to Jamie Brooke Kennedy, who was reported missing from the Pink Hill area earlier in March. “The clothing found on the body matches the description of what Jamie Brooke Kennedy was wearing when she was reported missing on March 9, 2025,” the Sheriff’s Office wrote in a social media post. The 34-year-old woman was
last seen on Maxwell Mill Road near Albertson on March 2. Authorities had previously requested public assistance in locating Kennedy, and on March 21, Duplin County Crime Stoppers offered a reward for any information leading to Kennedy’s whereabouts. The recovered body has been sent to the North Carolina Medical Examiners’ Office for a complete autopsy to confirm the victim’s identity. The Sheriff’s Office stated that they are working in collaboration with the NCSBI in this investigation and will release
Second graders dive into agriculture at Duplin Grows
Kenansville The 2025 Duplin County Job Fair will be on Thursday, April 17 from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at James Sprunt Community College. The event is open to the public. The event will offer the opportunity to connect with local employers and discover job opportunities. The rain date is April 24.
The annual two-day event brought agriculture to life for young learners through hands-on activities By Ena Sellers Duplin Journal
COURTESY CHARMAE KENDALL / NC COOPERATIVE EXTENSION
$2.00
“We have tried to make it a little bit better every year.”
er Walker Montgomery, UMO President H. Edward Croom addressed attendees. “What you’re doing for bringing students here today is monumental,” Croom said. “I know it’s not always easy taking a group of high school students off for field trips and this type of activity. I appreciate that, from a principal’s, from a former school superintendent’s perspective.” Wallace-Rose Hill High School agriculture teacher and UMO alumnus Danielle Trim-
Children take an ice cream break after a busy day at the county’s annual Duplin Grows agriculture celebration.
KENANSVILLE — Last week, the Duplin Events Center came alive with excitement as second-grade students from all elementary schools across Duplin County arrived to participate in Duplin Grows. The annual event has become more of a tradition and a vibrant celebration of agriculture, uniting students, enthusiastic volunteers, dedicated teachers and passionate agricultural professionals for two days of hands-on learning and exploration. See GROWS, page A5
more information following the completion of the autopsy. Sheriff Stratton Stokes expressed gratitude to the Duplin County Department of Public Safety, the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation for their support in conducting searches since Kennedy’s disappearance. Anyone with information about this case is urged to contact Detective Sgt. Jon Green at the Duplin County Sheriff’s Office at 910-296-2150 or the Duplin County Crime Stoppers Tip Line at 910-372-9202.