Editor’s Note: “Community Review” is a regular column in Mount Airy News that features commentary from Mount Airy and Surrey community leaders.
This month is Board Appreciation Month, and I wrote this column last year. I think it’s worth posting again with a little update. We thank our Board of Education. Mount Airy City Schools (MACS) has a wonderful Board of Education (BOE). Members go out of their way to volunteer their time to support the superintendent and the district, and to hear from the community. This professional team attends board meetings twice a month, participates in many school events throughout the year, and conducts training sessions throughout the state. The duties of the Board of Directors include:
– Develop policies consistent with state law to set standards, accountability, and evaluate school district core operations;
– Protect the school district, staff, and especially students in all interactions with other government agencies and the public.
Our BOE does this for free and the members volunteer most of their time and energy. They allow staff to oversee the day-to-day operations of the district and provide support to the superintendent and leadership team. They are present and involved in the community and follow the heartbeat of the community. We know they are the guardians of the children. In their role, they support families and put the interests of the school district first in their hearts and actions.
Our board chair is Tim Matthews, a local pharmacist. Tim has served on the board of directors for 26 years and three of his children are graduates of Mount Airy City Schools. Tim’s wife, Sandy, retired from MACS, was an excellent teacher of the children. When asked about board membership, Tim responded that “the opportunity to serve, see the plan develop, and influence future leaders” is a great way to solidify MACS’ continued growth and leadership. He likes that Mount Airy City Schools is “ready to innovate, take risks, and always put the interests of students above other considerations.”
Ben Cook is a local business owner. He is married to Lona and graduated from MACS. Ben says that the desire to make a difference in the lives of our students, no matter how small, inspired him to become a board member. He also said that he enjoys the “small community and family atmosphere” of our school district and “knowing that our teachers enjoy working in our school system.”
Wendy Carriker, Jamie Brant, Thomas Horton, Randy Moore and Kyle Leonard are members of the Board of Education. Together they serve and lead their seats on the Board, supporting the future of MACS County. The staff and board team worked together to make a decision in the best interests of the families in the Mount Airy community.
Wendy Carriker served as chairman of the board for 14 years. She is married to Chip Carriker and has two daughters who are MACS graduates. She is an entrepreneur with her own business and is often seen on our Blue Bear Cafe and Blue Bear Bus programs. She helps students understand how to start their own business and serve others successfully. “The truth is that we have a small school system and we are a family. I love that our staff and students really care about each other and want the best for each other,” Wendy said.
Jamie Brant, a Mount Airy alumnus, is the Area Sales Manager and currently serves as Vice Chairman of the Board. She is married to Tim and they have two daughters who are both members of the 1A (Back to Back) Double State Championship teams. “Believing that teaching is the most difficult profession, but also one of the most important,” motivates her to become a board member, because she understands that “we must continue to support teachers.”
Thomas Horton’s wife, Christy Horton, a MACS nurse, has four children who have accepted or are attending MACS. He is a corporate engineer who wants to serve the community in his capacity as a student council member. Thomas said that his love of public service was instilled in him “because of the example my parents set at an early age.”
When asked what motivated him to become a board member, Randy Moore said, “To continue to serve our children and our community and make a difference.” He retired from the military and was appointed to the board of directors in 2020. You can see him in a military vehicle at events in the city.
Kyle Leonard was appointed to the board of directors in 2018 and is married to Mary Alice. They have four children who are or will be studying at Mount Airy City Schools. Kyle is a welfare advisor serving the local community. Kyle says, “One of the things I love about MACS is that we have a close-knit family culture. As a small school district, we can innovate and provide a great educational experience for all of our students.”
Collectively, our board of directors helps set the direction of the district through its strategic plans. Over the years, the board has worked closely with staff to spearhead initiatives such as the construction of the Community Central Office, which has become a community outreach center in recent years. They helped launch the first bilingual program that families love, is a great job of developing the workforce, and our alumni are fluent in both languages. They support administrators, faculty, and staff with incremental pay increases, bonuses, and a family-friendly and staff-friendly calendar.
Amazing arts programs, professional technical education and funding for innovative programs are the hallmarks of MACS, and the Board of Directors provides the conditions and support for these programs to flourish. These board members do a great job helping families in the Mount Airy community. Many families were attracted and stayed because of the wonderful programs and staff in the area. Our community, which is one of the best in the state, has a strong, child-centered council leadership.
Members of the MACS Education Committee advocate for the interests of children. They lead the way in the most challenging times of modern education and should be commended for bringing students back safely and continuing to support their growth and development. If you see these guys in the city, be sure to thank them for their service. If you would like to be part of this community of excellence and leadership, please visit http://www.mtairy.k12.nc.us. More information about the committee can be found on our website in the Education Committee tab.
During this year’s Surry Countians Continuing the Dream, we took the time to honor the local bison soldiers in our community who served their country. For those who may have missed this, let me fill in for you.
Let’s start from the very beginning. Who are the Buffalo Soldiers? African Americans have served in every American war, but the Civil War changed the way they served.
As the civil war took such a toll on the military as we fought within ourselves, it became clear that the military needed more trained men to fight. On July 28, 1866, the Army Reorganization Act authorized several new units, including two cavalry units (9th and 10th) and two African American infantry units (24th and 25th). More than half of the “colored troops of the Civil War” signed up, and for the first time African Americans were considered regular troops.
These units were primarily raised to help rebuild the country after the war and aid in the westward expansion of the United States. It is believed that the Plains Native Americans gave the name “Buffalo Soldier”, but the exact reason for the name is unknown. According to most historians, the soldiers’ curly hair resembled buffalo skin or their ferocious fighting style are the most popular guesses today.
During this time there are records of gentlemen serving in the infantry and cavalry throughout North Carolina. African Americans were the first advocates and rangers of national parks.
Through their heroism, some Buffalo soldiers were able to get better jobs, own property, and gain access to higher education. Meanwhile, several Buffalo soldiers were lynched on their return and were not really welcomed home as heroes.
Bison soldiers went on to fight in the Spanish–American War, the Philippine–American War, and, of course, World War I. When the United States entered World War I, two African-American volunteer corps were formed: the 92nd and 93rd Infantry Divisions. In total, 350,000 African Americans participated in the war, including James Henry Taylor, who received the medal and the Victory Medal and grew up here.
Another native who served was Robert “Bob” Hughes, Sr., who was born in Pilot Hills and graduated from what became known as J. J. Jones High School. From 1917 to 1918 he served as a Buffalo soldier and fought on the French front. He also continued his legacy of service through his three sons, all of whom would serve as Buffalo soldiers during World War II.
The eldest son, Walter William “Bill” Bell Hughes, graduated from J. J. Jones High School and was accepted into North Carolina Agricultural and Technical College along with his younger brother Robert, but they were drafted into the army before they could enroll.
Instead, Walter continued to serve in the 365th Infantry Regiment (92nd Division) from November 1942 to April 1947. Between 1945 and 1946 he was stationed in various places and fought in Italy for about six months, where he worked as a mechanic, repairing everything from tanks and jeeps to aircraft. Speaking about his stay at the front, he said: “I was lucky to stay alive, they shot me like a rabbit.”
The second son, James Caters “JK” Hughes, was drafted in 1943 and is best known for his deployment to Okinawa, Japan. During his service, he was awarded a Rifle Shooter and a TSWG Carbine in .45 Expert. He even received the rank of mobile sergeant before being honorably discharged in 1947.
Unlike his brothers, the third son, Robert Hughes II, was assigned to the Navy. He joined the army in 1944, became a gunner, worked as a transporter in California, and then began to help load ships with ammunition. He was then promoted to a dangerous job as a crane operator, and recalls: “The workers were told that some of the ammunition was unexploded and some were live, but we didn’t know which ones.”
The Hughes family in Surrey County were not the only Buffalo soldiers in the area; brothers John and Fred Lovell served in World War II and were born in Stokes County to five brothers (Paul, Harrison, Lewis, Edward and Aaron Reynolds). These are just a few of the people our community has helped.
Buffalo soldiers ended their service during the Korean War in 1951 after President Truman issued Executive Order 9981 to end segregation in the military, but their history lives on. These soldiers not only helped America become a huge nation and eventually a global superpower, but also helped our communities become what they are today.
Cassandra Johnson, Director of Programs and Education at the Mount Airy Regional Museum of History, loves to inspire others to learn the history of the little, everyday aspects of our lives as we commute to work or shop.
Celebrate Groundhog Day on Thursday, February 2nd. Did the rodent see its own shadow? This is really zero difference, as we have six more weeks of winter (maybe more). The calendar says we have at least six more weeks of winter, no matter what the lazy Groundhog Phil predicts. Spring can arrive on March 21, while winter can last for weeks. Groundhogs are a bad excuse for weather forecasters, and they’re bad forecasters. Their predictions are as superficial as they really are. The best harbingers are frogs on the bank of a stream, active birds at the feeders and robins jumping across the lawn, small buds on the trees of dogwood, daffodils, hyacinths and crocuses, the cry of crows and the coldness of pigeons. Everyone foreshadows the coming of spring, without any prophecy and boasting. Marmots are pretenders and enemies of the garden.
Valentine’s Day is less than two weeks away. In shops, salons and flower shops, as well as supermarkets, there is still plenty to choose from. Now is the time to order flowers to confirm delivery. Most stores have a complete inventory of cards, candies, perfumes, potted plants, gift cards from businesses, shops and restaurants. There are many more options for Valentine’s Day, but don’t wait until the last minute, who knows, Valentine’s Day can be surprise snow!
Red Velvet Cake for Valentine’s Day will be the decoration of your table for Valentine’s Day, decorated with cream cheese, icing and red hearts with cinnamon. The whole family will love this cake, and making it is not difficult at all. You will need 1/2 cup Crisco fat, 2 light margarine sticks, 3 cups sugar, 5 large eggs, 1/2 cup Hershey’s cocoa, 1 tablespoon vanilla, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 3 cups flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder. a glass of milk and four tablespoons of red food coloring. Combine margarine and Crisco butter, add sugar one cup at a time and beat well. Add eggs one at a time, beating each egg well. Add salt, vanilla and Hershey’s cocoa powder. Add baking powder to regular flour. Add half of the flour mixture to the dough, add half a glass of milk and mix well. Add the remaining flour and milk and beat on low speed until smooth. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Oil and flour a baking sheet, cut a piece of waxed paper to fit in the bottom of the pan, then grease and flour the waxed paper. Pour the batter into a piping pan and bake for 90 minutes, or until the cake is firm and crumbly on the sides and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Refrigerate the cake for half an hour, then remove from the mold, mix together one three-ounce package of cream cheese, one pack of light margarine, two cups of 10x confectioner’s sugar, one teaspoon of vanilla and half to make cream cheese frosting cups. for completely cooled cakes, chop the pecans. Mix all the ingredients well and spread on the cooled cake. Decorate the cake with red cinnamon hearts. Place the cake in the cake lid. You can also use brown sugar crystals to decorate cakes.
As we begin our short February, we are expecting a couple of big snowfalls. We look forward to him covering the earth with his beautiful white veil. This is good news for lawns, gardens, and children, but bad news for hibernating insects, pests, and pest larvae. Excited, just waiting for the snow forecast.
My mom is one of the biggest snow lovers in the world. In Northeast North Carolina, when it snows, she always makes bowls of Carolina ice cream while it covers the ground. There is nothing better than a bowl of ice cream on a winter evening. There are many recipes for snow cream but not many recipes in a cookbook, the recipe my mom used to create a rich, creamy, thick, delicious bowl of snow cream, today we present her recipe. Beat large eggs until fluffy. Add two and a half cups of sugar and beat in the eggs. Add two large cans of condensed milk and three cups of milk, three teaspoons of pure vanilla extract and a pinch of salt. If you love making chocolate ice cream, you can add a bottle of Hershey’s Chocolate Syrup to the mix. If you like strawberry sorbet, add a liter of fresh strawberries or a liter of frozen strawberries (defrost and run through a blender on “shredded” mode). Add the berries to the snow cream mixture along with a tablespoon of the strawberry dressing. After mixing all the ingredients, it’s time to collect the snow to add it to the mixture. Gather snow from a clean, pristine area, scrape off a few inches, and fill a large pot with clean, fluffy snow. Add the collected snow to the mixture until it is as thick as you want. Eat slowly because the ice cream is cold. Leftover snow cream can be frozen in the refrigerator. My mom always freezes a batch as a summer afternoon dog treat. Where does she like to collect snow? On a pile of coal in the yard!
Old urban legend, you shouldn’t eat the first snow of the year because where it snows, there are bacteria in the atmosphere. It’s the equivalent of a grandmother’s tale that’s been around for generations, and they’re the equivalent of a bunch of beds. My mom used to make snow cream from every snow that fell in the winter. This posed no risk to her health and she lived to be 90 years old. If snow does anything, it kills bacteria on the soil surface. It’s nice to know that past generations had so much free time and there’s nothing better than making up these stupid legends that are nothing but gloom and doom.
Winter is still at least six weeks away, but there are faint signs of spring on the lawn. Hyacinth bulb spikes emerge from crushed leaf layers, a welcome shade of green as we approach February. Another sign of spring are the hordes of wild onions displayed around the lawn. They are hardy and can tolerate high temperatures until mid-May. They can be cut to the ground with a weed trimmer to control their growth. More robins in the lawn looking for worms, grubs and other insects. Many are with us all year round.
A beautiful and useful perennial is the bleeding heart bush, with dark red hearts and white teardrops on each flower. They bloom every year from late spring to mid-summer. Most nurseries have them in stock and make a great Valentine’s Day gift. They are available in decorated foil containers. In the spring, they can be transplanted outside for perennial coloring and unusual beauty. This is one lover who will keep on giving.
Most flower shops, nurseries, and supermarkets sell potted Valentine’s Day rhododendrons in foil-wrapped pots and containers. They can be enjoyed now, and planted outside in the spring.
Giant pandas and asparagus ferns hibernate in the semi-dark living room. They grow fast and we prune them several times over the winter. This helps them grow. They are fed Flower-Tone organic flower food once a month and water every ten days. Around May 1, they will be moved to a semi-sunny place on deck until mid-October.
“It’s all about the heart,” Mandy explains to her best friend why she married Jimmy and not Billy. She said, “When I was with Billy, I thought he was the most charming and witty guy I’ve ever known.” Mandy’s friend asked, “Then why didn’t you marry him?” Mandy replied, “Because when I’m with Jimmy, he makes me feel like the most charming, witty, and nicest person he’s ever met.”
“Arrogant Preachers”. The pastor asked his wife, “How many great pastors do you think there are in America?” The wife replied, “I really don’t know, but maybe one less than you think!”
The shortest month of the year has begun. We start the month with some cold weather knowledge. The legend says: “If there is a lot of snow in February, the summer will be sunny.” Despite the short period of time, several inches of snow still fall this month.
Strawberry desserts are wonderful in all four seasons of the year. This recipe is easy to make and comes out smooth and creamy. You will need a six-ounce box of strawberry jelly, a large can of crushed pineapple, an eighth of a box of cream cheese, an eight-ounce cup of sour cream, a half cup of sugar, a can of Cool Whip, a half cup of chopped pecans, and a can of Comstock Strawberry Cobbler. Add two cups of boiling water to the jelly box and dissolve. Add a glass of cold water and dissolve. Stir grated pineapple and strawberries into the jelly. Place in the refrigerator overnight. The next day, whisk together softened cream cheese, sour cream, cold whipped cream, and 1/2 cup sugar and spread over jelly mixture. Sprinkle the chopped pecans with the whipped mixture. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Groundhog Day or Candlemas (as we prefer to call it) falls on Thursday, February 2nd. The full moon occurs on the night of Sunday, February 5th. This moon will be called “Full Snow Moon”. Abraham Lincoln’s birthday is Sunday, February 12th. The moon reaches its last quarter on Monday, February 13th. Valentine’s Day will be celebrated on Tuesday, February 14th. Presidents Day will be celebrated on Monday, February 20. The moon enters a new phase from Monday, February 20th. Carnival starts on Tuesday, February 21st. Ash Wednesday – Wednesday, February 22nd. George Washington’s birthday is Wednesday, February 22nd. The moon reaches its first quarter on Monday, February 27th.
Editor’s Note: The Reader’s Diary is a regular column written by locals, Surrey natives and Mount Airy News readers. If you have readership material, please email it to Jon Peters at jpeters@mtairynews.com.
Three-foot icicles hung from the roof, and the windows were “hoarfrost” and we thought it was winter until one of Grandpa’s “old ice storms” swept down the mountain. It flew straight out of the Screaming Owl (with teeth and claws), driven by a screeching gust of wind blowing the snow sideways. On the dark north-facing cliffs (where the sun does not shine in winter), the green bay leaves have curled up in tubes from the cold, and the stream has frozen over. Then we learned what winter is.
Survival is a matter of shelter, firewood, thick blankets, and groceries stored in the basement last summer, and (thank God) we are “satisfied.” We stuffed the doors and windows with rags and newspapers to keep the cold wind out. “Close the door, young man” Did you grow up in a barn? You will freeze us all to death. “
The warmest place in the house was next to the red-hot wood stove, and after we had fed the animals, milked them and “populated” them with additional firewood and spring water, we stayed there until bedtime. Then Mom folded all our blankets on the bed. “If we hadn’t frozen first, we would have suffocated under all the covers.” We crawled into our icy beds, shivering until warm, and fell asleep peacefully away from harm. The next morning, Dad re-lit the heater, breaking the ice in the bucket, and we shivered again until we were warm.
Post time: Feb-18-2023