VOLUME 10 ISSUE 7 | THURSDAY, APRIL 10, 2025
DUPLINJOURNAL.COM
Duplin Journal THE DUPLIN COUNTY EDITION OF NORTH STATE JOURNAL
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BRIEF this week
Senior Services center holding annual shred-a-thon Kenansville Duplin County Senior Services is hosting a shred‑athon event on Monday, April 28 from 10 a.m. to noon. Participants will have the chance to shred old documents such as old tax records, employment records, bank statements and anything else to reduce clutter in their homes and protect themselves against identity theft. The event will be at the side parking lot of the Duplin County Senior Services at 156 Duplin Commons Drive in Kenansville. Last year, seniors shredded 1,500 pounds of paper during the first shred-a-thon. For more information, call Duplin County Senior Services at 910-296-2140.
Enrollment open for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library Kenansville Duplin County Partnership for Children is still enrolling Duplin children in Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. Call 910-296-2000 for more information on how to register your child.
Duplin offers new fraud detection notification service Duplin County The Duplin County Register of Deeds Office provides a Fraud Detection Notification service to help citizens monitor for fraudulent activity. This free service alerts individuals via email when documents matching their names, such as powers of attorney or deeds, are filed. People can provide their name, email address, and up to five names to monitor by signing up. Those interested can register at duplinrod.com. For more information, call 910‑296‑2108.
Duplin County hosts annual Pinwheels for Prevention event Kenansville In honor of Child Abuse Prevention Month, Guardian at Litem, Duplin County Department of Social Services and Duplin County Partnership for Children will be hosting a Pinwheels for Prevention event on April 16 at 165 Agriculture Drive in Kenansville to help bring awareness to child abuse in the community. Kickoff & Walk will occur at 9:30 a.m., with the annual Pinwheel Ceremony to follow inside the Ed Emory Building at 10 a.m. Light refreshments will be served after the ceremony.
$2.00
NC PUBLIC SCHOOLS / FACEBOOK
State Superintendent Mo Green embarked on a student-led tour through Wallace Elementary last week to see STEAMA in action as part of his “Mo Wants to Know” tour.
State superintendent comes to Duplin Mo Green’s stop at Wallace Elementary comes as part of his “Mo Wants to Know” tour By K.D. Beard Duplin Journal WALLACE — Duplin Coun‑ ty Schools welcomed North Carolina State Superintendent Maurice “Mo” Green to Wallace Elementary last week for a stu‑ dent-led tour demonstrating the district’s STEAMA model with dynamic, hands-on learning ex‑ periences. Green is currently visiting all eight regions of the state as part of his “Mo Wants to Know” tour to gather insight for the N.C. Department of Pub‑ lic Instruction’s strategic plan
by holding listening and learn‑ ing sessions at schools through‑ out the state. Students ambassadors and staff, alongside Board of Educa‑ tion Chairman Brent Davis and Vice Chairman Reginald Ke‑ nan, welcomed Green to Wal‑ lace Elementary on Monday morning, where his tour began with a second grade classroom Open Court phonics lesson on vowel blends, followed by a col‑ laborative pollination experi‑ ment that demonstrated how bees transfer pollen. Green fielded questions from students
“We are grateful for the support of NCDPI and look forward to our continued partnership ensuring student success.” Austin Obasohan on topics such as school safe‑ ty and emphasized the impor‑ tance of hiring great teachers and leaders, providing schools with safety resources and teach‑ ing students to be proactive in school safety. Following a Living Litera‑
ture presentation by BETA stu‑ dents that brought stories to life through creativity and dedica‑ tion, Green spoke to members of the Drama Club about the pow‑ er of the cultural arts and ex‑ plained how theatre and music performances can help students express themselves and build confidence. The tour next took the state superintendent to the school’s outdoor learning area, where students were engaged in an in‑ tegrated literacy and math les‑ son. AG Club students proudly showcased their work in plant‑ ing, fertilizing, and caring for thriving flocks of chickens and See GREEN, page A2
Beulaville addresses waterline break at monthly meeting The town is under a boil water advisory while samples are tested By K.D. Beard Duplin Journal BEULAVILLE — Resi‑ dents raised concerns over the town’s ongoing water project at the board’s regular meeting on Monday evening following an April 7 break in the main line. The incident has placed Beu‑ laville townsfolk under a boil water advisory until the samples
sent for testing have returned. On Monday afternoon, Town Manager Lori Williams issued advisories to inform the public about the break in the main wa‑ ter line, which has resulted in pe‑ riods of low water pressure and outages in the distribution sys‑ tem. Residents were advised to boil all water used for human consumption — including wa‑ ter used for making ice, brush‑ ing teeth, washing dishes and preparing food, or to use bottled water. This precaution is neces‑ sary as low or no pressure can in‑ crease the risk of back siphonage,
“We could get those notices back by Wednesday afternoon late, or it could be Thursday morning.” Lori Williams, Town Manager which may introduce bacteria into the water system. “Once they pull the sam‑ ples and they have to be sent off, there’s a 24-hour testing peri‑
DCOM serves over 2,000 people monthly in Duplin County Helping hands expand programs to meet growing community needs By Ena Sellers Duplin Journal WALLACE — Duplin Christian Out‑ reach Ministries (DCOM) Crisis Cen‑ ter plays a vital role supporting individu‑ als and families facing crisis situations in Duplin County. Jeralene Merritt, director of DCOM Crisis Center told Duplin Journal cli‑ ents typically seek food, utilities and rent assistance. Merritt, who has been with DCOM since in 2020, has seen the organization evolve over the years, adding new pro‑ grams and partnerships to meet the in‑ creasing needs of the community. They have expanded their pantries from two to six locations and introduced programs, including the backpack ministry, money management assistance and support for the homeless.
“We have added a thrift store,” Mer‑ ritt noted, adding that they have also in‑ creased the financial support they provide to clients. Merritt, who works part time at the center, shared that over 105 volunteers are involved in various programs, play‑ ing a crucial role in DCOM’s operations. On service days, DCOM serves a signifi‑ cant number of people, assisting between 10 to 28 clients within a span of 2.5 hours. “We see, just in this office, on Tuesdays and Thursdays for two hours and a half, we can see anywhere from 10 to 28 cli‑ ents,” said Merritt. “We serve over 2,000 clients in Duplin County in food every month.” The organization was initially inspired by local pastors who recognized the need for a central location to help those in cri‑ sis, as many were going from church to church seeking assistance. DCOM was founded by pastors in Wallace who ob‑ served this pattern and decided it was essential to establish a centralized hub See DCOM, page A5
od,” said Williams in response to a citizen’s inquiry. “We could get those notices back by Wednes‑ day afternoon late, or it could be Thursday morning.” Though residents expressed concern with a perceived lack of communication from the town regarding the break, Wil‑ liams explained that two notic‑ es had been sent: one when the leak began and another with ad‑ ditional information, including the boil water advisory. She ad‑ vised that a third notice will be See BEULAVILLE, page A2