Greenville Magazine

Greenville LIFE in the EAST

WINTER 2020

Library marks 90th year a

Beacon of Hope INSIDE:

HARDEE’S MILESTONE, ALIVE WELLNESS, LOCAL-OPOLY, EASY RIDER

GUIDING YOU HOME since 1906

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Greenville: Life In The East

Winter 2020

contents Publisher Robin L. Quillon Editor Bobby Burns Contributing writers Bob Garner, Melissa Glen, Ginger Livingston, Karen Eckert, Deborah Griffin Photographers Deborah Griffin, Melissa Glen and Aaron Himes with the City of Greenville Regional Advertising Director Craig Springer

Advertising representatives Tom Little, Christina Ruotolo, Ken Rhodes & Rubie Smith Creative services director Jessica Harris Creative services Lora Jernigan, Emily Leach Layout design Jasmine Blount Greenville: Life in the East is a

4 8

CHAR-BROILED BUSINESS

A BEACON OF HOPE

14 20 22

ALIVE & WELL

LOCAL-OPLY

EASY RIDER

FROM THE EDITOR

publication of The Daily Reflector and Adams Publishing Group ENC. Contents may not be reproduced without the consent of the publisher.

Greenville LIFE in the EAST

WINTER 2020

Library marks 90th year a

Beacon of Hope INSIDE:

HARDEE’S MILESTONE, ALIVE WELLNESS, LOCAL-OPOLY, EASY RIDER

The story of Sheppard Library truly is remarkable, and in a way has come full circle. It opened in 1930, when the Great Depression gripped Greenville and the rest of the country. As Karen Eckert describes in this issue’s cover story, hammers were swinging on Evans street at a time when many faced great hardship. The library opened during that tumultuous period as a beacon of hope and a light of knowledge. Now, Sheppard is again operating in tumultuous times — and it is serving as a beacon of a new normal while the community adjusts to COVID-19. Staff and leadership have found ways to continuously serve us throughout the pandemic, and as we celebrate its 90th year, we feel truly fortunate that to have one of the best local libraries around. We hope you enjoy reading more about it as well as our stories about the evolution of Hardee’s, the new IV therapy business, Alive Wellness, the Local-Opoly shopping game, and a great piece about a lucky guy who won a truck.

We wish you all the best in this holiday season and look for better days in the year to come.

— Bobby Burns

Sheppard Memorial Library Aaron Hines/ City of Greenville

Winter 2020

Greenville: Life In The East

3

CHAR-BROILED

BUSINESS Wilber Hardee started Hardee’s Hamburgers in Greenville 60 years ago. His successors built the little stand on 14th Street into a national franchise.

By Bob Garner

The Daily Reflector

S

ixty years ago, 42-year old restaurateur Wilber Hardee opened the very first Hardee’s at the corner of Charles Boulevard and 14th Street in Greenville.

The brand-new eatery was located near the campus of what was then East Carolina Teacher’s College (later to become ECU), getting started not quite a

year after the first McDonald’s in North Carolina had opened in Greensboro.

Hardee had visited the Greensboro McDonald’s one Sunday morning and liked what

he saw of the simple menu and profit potential. He thought he could do even better with the concept by adding char-grills to give the burgers more flavor than the McDonald’s patties, which were cooked on a flat-top grill.

After Hardee opened the business on Sept. 3, 1960, it was immediately successful.

The menu’s only items were hamburgers and cheeseburgers, milk shakes, soft drinks and fried apple pies. Hamburgers were 15 cents and cheeseburgers were 20 cents, with Hardee later claiming that the simple offerings represented the “best menu I ever had.”

After a few months, the new burger joint’s owner set out to open a second location in Rocky Mount. There, Hardee met accountant Leonard Rawls and Jim Gardner, son of a big Rocky Mount dairy owner who would become lieutenant governor. They suggested selling franchises, which they enthused could make them all rich. The three incorporated Hardee’s Drive-Ins, each listed as a board member with equal votes, and the second location opened in 1961.

Hardee fell out with Rawls and Gardner almost immediately about subsequent written agreements and the fact that he was routinely outvoted by the two other men.

Before long, he decided he wanted out, and he ended up selling his name to Rawls and Gardner for either $20,000 or $37,000, depending on which account you accept.

With Rawls and Gardner basically portraying themselves as the founders and their Rocky Mount location as the first Hardee’s, Wilber went back to Greenville, where he experimented with other hot dog and hamburger concepts, eventually starting up an initially successful small chain of fast-food restaurants called “Little Mint.” For a period, until that business began to falter, Hardee drove expensive cars and otherwise crafted a lavish existence, which began to include heavy drinking. His wife of 35 years died suddenly during this period, and by 1975, Hardee felt he had hit bottom.

Hardee’s, meanwhile, continued to expand (even with Gardner soon leaving the

The original Hardee’s Hamburgers, above, opened Sept. 3, 1960, on 14th Street near Charles Boulevard.

Today, Hardee’s franchisees like Bodie-Noelle operate hundreds of modern stores on street corners everywhere.

Wilber Hardee sold his interest in the restaurants in 1961 and opened several others, including a chain called The Little Mint.

Mayo Boddie Sr. knew Wilber Hardee and was an early franchise in 1962.

Bill Boddie, now chairman and chief executive officer of Boddie-Noell, is the second generation of Boddie leadership of the North Carolina-based company.

venture to run for Congress and start other business ventures) until it became, for a short time in 1987, the third-largest restaurant chain in America. By then, Hardee’s was being run by Imasco, a Canadian company. The business was acquired by CKE of California, which also owned the Carl’s Jr. chain, in 1997. CKE, now headquartered in Tennessee, presently owns around 1,800 Hardee’s locations across the U.S. and in 14 foreign countries.

Even before Hardee split with Rawls and Gardner, the two Rocky Mount residents had begun pitching Hardee’s franchises to just about everyone they knew, including two Rocky Mount brothers, Mayo and Nick Boddie. Mayo, who had dropped out of UNC, is reported to have said at first that there was no way to make money selling 15 cent burgers, and that he didn’t want to get in the restaurant business anyhow.

However, after the two Boddie brothers saw the lines forming at the new, second Hardee’s location in Rocky Mount in 1961, they were sold. They partnered with their uncle, Carleton Noell, also of Rocky Mount, and bought five Hardee’s franchises, paying $1,500 apiece. The Boddie-Noelle partnership opened its first Hardee’s location in Fayetteville in 1962, on the road leading to the Fort Bragg army base.

That first Fayetteville restaurant obviously secured a prime location, and it was phenomenally successful. Boddie-Noell Enterprises was also fortunate in many of its other location choices — so much so that it quickly became the largest Hardee’s franchisee in the country. Today, Boddie-Noell owns 380 Hardee’s locations across the Carolinas, Virginia and eastern Kentucky.

The company owns the Hardee’s in the Bell’s Fork area on Charles Boulevard in

Greenville — the other two Greenville stores are operated by Charlotte-based Morning Star — and both Hardee’s locations in Washington. The conglomerate also operates several other restaurant chains, along with numerous other businesses.

Boddie-Noell also holds the lion’s share of credit for kicking off the breakfast biscuit boom, not only at Hardee’s but throughout the restaurant industry, as well as making a solid success of hand-breaded chicken tenders throughout all Hardee’s restaurants.

(The chicken tenders concept originated within the chain of 27 Texas Steak House and Saloon locations operated by Boddie-Noell.)

Boddie-Noell is still headquartered in Rocky Mount, where the late Mayo Boddie’s two sons, Bill and Mike, serve as chairman and CEO and president, respectively.

Although Hardee’s worldwide has grown a bit weaker as a corporate entity in recent years, with considerable turnover, decreased share of the fast food market and lower earnings, Boddie-Noell Enterprises has generally remained considerably more stable even while embracing a nimbler commitment to customer tastes and preferences in its various locations.

Speaking of his father, Mayo, CEO Bill Boddie told me, “Dad and Uncle Nick tried

to take care of the people, knowing that

According to Mike, “At first he didn’t

if they did, the people would take care of

think there was any way someone was

the company. Dad may have borrowed the

going to get up at 3 a.m. every day to make

words of our slogan, ‘We believe in people,’

biscuits, but we soon found out that not

from a sign he once saw on the wall at a car

only did a lot of women and men consider

dealership, but he really put the concept

it an art, but they also like to get their work

into action.”

done and get off work by 11.”

President Mike Boddie added, “Other

The COVID-19 pandemic has obviously

people in the industry are astounded at

been a mixed bag for all fast-food

our longevity - just about all our people at

enterprises, including Hardee’s and Boddie-

the director level and up have been with

Noell. On the negative side, on-site and

us for more than 25 years. My father was

headquarters staff have all had to deal with

entrepreneurial and good at seeing what

staffing shortages growing out of contact

people liked and sort of ‘where the action

tracing and quarantining. On the plus side

was,’ but he knew he needed a stable group

of the ledger, COVID has vastly increased

of people backing him and Nick up: folks

Boddie-Noell and Hardee’s take-out

who would dive down into the details of

business, in both volume and reputation,

how to make things happen in terms of

from around 60 to near 90 percent. It has

distribution, equipment, financing and the

also helped spur the growth of its delivery

like.”

service with companies such as Door Dash – What about flexibility to accommodate

to the point that 280 of Boddie-Noell’s 380

customer preferences? Bill Boddie pointed

locations now deliver, covering all but the

out that whereas Hardee’s corporate “sort

smallest geographic markets.

of gave up” on bone-in fried chicken after

Along with every other aspect of

a several-year experiment, more than 80

existence, the worldwide fast-food industry

Boddie-Noell Hardee’s locations still offer

has grown mind-numbingly intricate, even

fried-chicken by the piece, along with the

without the COVID-19 scourge. Bill Boddie

newer chicken tenders. (For example, both

solemnly observes, “Wilber Hardee and

Hardee’s locations in Washington, run by

all the others would be blown away by

Boddie-Noell, still offer bone-in chicken,

the complexity of this business nowadays.

along with the newer, corporate-endorsed

Whether it’s regulations, labor issues, health

chicken tenders.) The Greenville location on

concerns or whatever – it’s just so doggone

Charles Boulevard/Highway 43 has coleslaw

hard to sell a cheeseburger.”

available to go with their popular chili hot

Speaking of cheeseburgers, the

dogs, even though most locations around

mid-size Hardee’s double cheeseburger

the country do not. And Boddie-Noell

(smaller than the 1/3-pound Thickburger

Hardee’s locations still use hand-dipped

line of sandwiches) is Mike Boddie’s

Hershey’s ice cream for its milkshakes.

personal favorite. “If I had to eat one thing

You might say the franchising giant

from Hardee’s every day for the rest of my

considers its Hardee’s locations as outlets

life,” he laughs, it would be the double

for pretty much anything it wants to try.

cheeseburger – mainly because it’s the

Mayo Boddie didn’t merely start

ns out the ille Hardee’s lea of the Greenv Mayo Boddie, d an k An employee Nic . in 1962, top locations service window front of their first Hardee’s in ille Hardee’s from left, stand of the Greenv e on of e ye plo mer during a in 1962. An em a young custo the shop with stands outside 62. promotion in 19

6

easiest to handle going down the road.”

Hardee’s (and the fast-food industry’s)

Bill Boddie’s personal go-to is the

breakfast biscuit business in the Tidewater

chicken tenders he helped adapt to

area of Virginia. He also laid the groundwork

Hardee’s from the Boddie-Noell Texas

for his sons Bill and Mike to establish a

Steakhouse and Saloon chain – although

yearly biscuit-maker’s certification process,

he is also fond of the mid-size, one-patty

to build “esprit de corps” among this

Famous Star burger.

segment of its location staff through distinct

Both men mentioned that they

uniforms and to promote yearly biscuit-

were particularly partial to the corporate-

baking regional and grand championships.

supported Frisco breakfast sandwich, which

Greenville: Life In The East

Winter 2020

At f i r s t h e d i d n ’ t t h i n k t h e r e w a s a n y w ay s o m e o n e w a s g o i n g t o g e t u p at 3 a . m . e v e r y d ay t o m a k e b i s c u i t s , b u t w e s o o n f o u n d o u t t h at n o t o n ly d i d a l o t o f w o m e n a n d m e n c o n s i d e r i t a n a r t b u t t h e y a l s o l i k e t o g e t t h e i r w o r k d o n e a n d g e t o f f at 1 1 . » Later in life, Hardee became a devout Christian.

features toasted sourdough bread, thinly

baptized and basically turned his life

sliced ham, folded egg and both American

around. At the end of his final, less-than-

and Swiss cheese.

successful restaurant venture, he had his

Whatever happened to Wilber Hardee,

wife started a gospel tract outreach.

At age 82, he was finally introduced

in Greenville? In short, he continued to

at a Hardee’s 40th-anniversary corporate

bounce from one restaurant concept to

gathering in California as the actual

another, never really becoming solidly

founder of Hardee’s, having been gradually

successful in a financial sense. However,

worked into the company’s history for a

after his low point in the mid-1970s, he

number of years before that. He died in

met an evangelical Christian woman (who

2008 at age 89 – recognized but essentially

later became his second wife), stopped

unremunerated for his short-lived flash of

drinking, started attending church, was

inspiration.

Y REF DAIL LECT

RE

OR

THE

the proprietor of that very first Hardee’s

F L E C T O R.C O M

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Greenville: Life In The East

7

Sheppard Memorial Library has been at the center of Greenville’s culture since it opened in October 1930. A 2000 expansion added a new facade, top right, and large spaces for collections, visitors and staff that left the old exterior wall exposed. A new bookmobile was added in 2017 and an outdoor chess park in 2018. Library director Greg Needham said volunteers like Dick Wolfe are Sheppard’s backbone, bottom right.

A

Beacon of Hope AFTER 90 YEARS, SHEPPARD MEMORIAL LIBRARY CONTINUES AS A JEWEL OF KNOWLEDGE AND SERVICE

by Karen Eckert

G

by Deborah Griffin

azing at the grand structure of Sheppard Memorial Library at 530 Evans St., a visitor might think it was built at a time of great economic prosperity.

But that is not the case.

In fact, the library, which celebrated its 90th anniversary this year,

opened in the early days of the Great Depression.

“Not very far into the Depression when people were wondering what’s happening, there was this project and hammers swinging and craftsmen working right there in a very visible position,” said Greg Needham, Sheppard’s director of libraries.

“It was a beacon of hope,” Needham said.

Getting Started Several events led up to the swinging of those first hammers in 1930.

Around the turn of the 20th century, members of local women’s book clubs, knowing that not everyone could afford to purchase books, saw the need for a city library, said Ralph Scott, chairman of the Sheppard Memorial Library Board of Trustees and professor of academic library services at East Carolina University.

The first library was housed inside the Evans Street School, which was built in 1903, according to the Greenville Historic Preservation Commission.

A postcard, top, captured Sheppard Memorial Library shortly after it opened. Library Director Greg Needham, seated with portraits of people influential in the lifespan of the library, praised community support like the Friends of Sheppard Library’s annual book sale. Bottom, the 2000 expansion blended old and new sections of the library.

However, the school, and the library books along with it, burned in January of 1929.

The city recalled all the surviving books and built a temporary wooden structure, also on Evans Street, to house them.

However, leading citizens at the time saw

the Virginia border and the Florida state line, except for libraries in Savannah and Charleston, Nelms said.

“We were always a leader in the east. We were sort of the flagship system for eastern North Carolina,” he said.

a normal year.

Ten years ago, about 1 percent of those items were e-materials, he said. Now it’s up to about 10 percent.

E-materials have not taken the place of traditional books, though, Needham said.

the need for a more permanent structure,

The planners of the 1999-2000 expansion

Paper books still remain the lion’s share

and they approached Harper Donelson

wanted to give the new section a whole

Sheppard, a Pitt County native living in

different look from the original building with

Pennsylvania who had become a wealthy

its traditional Corinthian columns, Nelms

Fulfilling a mission

man in the shoe industry.

said.

According to Sheppard’s official mission

of what is checked out, he said.

Harper Sheppard was asked “for $20,000

“(At the same time) one of the things we

statement, one goal of the library is to

to build a real library as a memorial to his

wanted to do was maintain the integrity and

promote the joys of reading and life-long

father, William Henry Haywood Sheppard,

the beauty of the existing building, which

learning.

a longtime Pitt County Clerk of Court,”

had been expanded in 1969, as well,” Nelms

according to historical accounts.

said.

Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library provides a specific example of how the

Sheppard liked the idea and offered to

In 2018, the library saw the addition of

give $50,000. When he saw the architectural

the outdoor chess and checkers park with

Sheppard partners with READ ENC to

plans for the new library, he increased his

life-size playing pieces on the library’s

provide the Imagination Library, which the

donation to $60,000 so that no expense

central lawn.

General Assembly now funds, Needham said.

would be spared, according to reports.

Construction on the library began in early 1930 and was completed by early October

Another exterior project in the works is

Through this program, families, regardless

the expansion of WiFi access in the library’s

of income, register their children from birth

parking lot, Scott said.

to age 5 to receive age-appropriate books

of that same year.

“The beautiful neo-classical library was formally presented to the city on Oct. 15, 1930, by Harper’s son, Lawrence B.

with their names on them each month, Advancing with Technology Nelms remembers that automation was on the horizon when he started in the 1980s.

Sheppard, with many people from all over

The transition from the traditional card

the state present and UNC system president

catalog to an automated system, as well

Frank Porter Graham making the address,”

as the use of microcomputers for internal

according to accounts of the day.

operations occurred on his watch, he said.

“When (the library) started out, it was just

Growth and expansion

library carries out this mission.

books,” Needham said.

according to officials.

Newborns receive their first books while still in the hospital then books are delivered to the children’s homes each month. The children keep the books.

“In Greenville/Pitt County we have twice the registration of the state average for Imagination Library,” Needham said.

The idea is to instill a love of reading in a

In the 1960s the library established

As time went on, it started providing

child from a very young age, Needham said.

the East and Carver branches, and those

computers and internet access to the public,

“As you raise up more readers, you’re just

branches were eventually expanded,

Nelms said.

according to Willie Nelms, director emeritus of the library.

Over time, branches in Winterville and

Needham recalls how 10 years ago e-books and e-materials really got off the ground.

going to have more and more people reading as they go through their whole lives.”

Then they become life-long learners, which is to everyone’s benefit, Needham

Bethel also were added, said Nelms, who is

People began owning their own devices,

Sheppard’s longest-serving director, from

such as a Kindle, a Nook or a tablet, he

Another goal of the library is to promote

1981-2010.

said, and the library made e-books and

economic growth, according to its mission

downloadable audio books available, he

statement.

The library also operates a bookmobile that travels all over Greenville and Pitt County, Needham said.

said.

said.

The library offers classes in how to write

The library has even made magazines

resumes and apply for jobs, Scott said, and

In 1999-2000, the library was expanded

available for reading on personal devices,

many people use the library’s computers to

by 34,000 square-feet, bringing the total to

Scott said, a service he said he has personally

search for employment opportunities.

60,500.

enjoyed.

The bulk of financial support for the

The expansion more than doubled the

There are 65,000 active library

library comes from the City of Greenville

facility’s size, making it the largest public

cardholders, Needham said, and 500,000

and Pitt County as the library serves both,

library building east of I-95 between

items are checked out at any given time in

Scott said.

10

Greenville: Life In The East

Winter 2020

There is some funding from the state and from the towns of Bethel and Winterville, according to officials.

In addition, the Friends of the Library, a volunteer organization, holds very popular book sales that benefit the library, Scott said.

“We appreciate very much the community’s support,” Scott said, adding that he hopes that support will continue.

Meeting challenges, facing the future Just as the earliest founders of Sheppard Memorial Library met with challenges, subsequent directors have faced them as well.

Nelms said that, heading up the library in the 1980s, he encountered economic inflation.

Today Needham and his staff are operating a library system during a pandemic.

An archival photo shows the library not long after its construction.

Some activities are on hold, such as the use of meeting rooms and any tutoring that might ordinarily take place, Scott said.

As for the future, Needham said the library’s main goal will be

Some of the library’s programs, such as the toddlers’ and preschoolers’ story hours, are being delivered virtually instead of in person, Needham said.

to continue to adapt to the community’s needs.

“The library has been there for a lot of history and we expect to be there for a lot more history,” he said.

But, overall, the library is actually booming because the

For more information, visit www.sheppardlibrary.org.

community has reached out for books to read, he said.

“We’re really excited that people are reading to get an escape from COVID,” he said.

The preference for paper books over ebooks has remained the same during the pandemic, he said.

“There’s technology fatigue,” Needham said.

People have to rely so much more now on electronic devices during the pandemic, for example through texting, e-mailing, cell phone use and Zoom meetings, he said.

Needham said he realizes that the pandemic is only temporary, and he sees parallels with the Great Depression.

“The library came through (back then) and the world came through,” Needham said.

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This project is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under grant number H80CS10607 Health Center Program, in the amount of $8,654,913 or 48% of total program costs with $8,956,453 or 50% financed with nongovernmental sources. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement by, HRSA, HHS, or the U.S. Government. For more information, please visit HRSA.gov. GCHC is licensed by the state of North Carolina, led by an independent Board of Directors and is an FQHC Program grantee under 42 U.S.C. 254. GCHC receives HHS funding and has Public Health Service (PHS) deemed status with respect to certain health or health-related claims, including medical malpractice claims, for itself and its covered individuals.

Winter 2020

Greenville: Life In The East

11

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reenville native Ashley Elks is bringing a new level of wellness to town, one drip at a time.

The founder of Alive Wellness, the area’s

first intravenous vitamin and hydration therapy medical spa, she opened for business in October. Located inside of the Nucleus in Uptown coworking space on Evans Street, customers can order from a menu of vitamin-infused IV therapies, geared to help them rehydrate, recover,

Owner of Alive Wellness Ashley Elks (Right) knows the importance of IV hydration therapy. She follows her own advice and receives the therapy on a regular basis.

IV’s are administered in a spa-like setting inside Nucleus on Evans.

revive and thrive.

As a nurse and director of stroke and neuroscience at Vidant, Elks is no stranger to illness and disease. She has been in the Elks holds a few of the frips that are available at Alive Wellness in the form of an I/V.

business of taking care of people since graduating with a nursing degree from East Carolina University in 2011.

But it wasn’t until after she became alarmingly sick in 2017 that her focus shifted from after-care to prevention and wellness.

Before her diagnosis of ulcerative colitis, an inflammatory bowel disease that prevents the absorption of vitamins and minerals, Elks was, at times, confined to her bed for weeks. She even slept on her bathroom floor when trips to the bathroom left her too exhausted to return to bed.

As a mom of a 2-year-old at the time, she became increasingly frustrated.

“I couldn’t be a good mom, a good leader, a good employee, a good wife — I couldn’t do anything. It became a chore just to walk from my bedroom to the kitchen — I would be so short of breath.”

She lost valuable time, she said. “There are weeks of life that just went by.”

Emergency surgery to remove her colon was the turning point in her health. She

Entrepreneur says IV therapy business was born from her own bout with disease

ended up having an ostomy, a procedure that allows bodily waste to pass through to a prosthetic known as a pouch, or an ostomy bag, on the outside of the body.

“I had not really encountered illness personally,” said Elks, who at 31 is now recovered and raising two sons, ages 2

by Deborah Griffin

by Deborah Griffin

and 5, with her husband Jordan. “There is something that changes your perspective when it happens to you, or someone you

14

Greenville: Life In The East

Winter 2020

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Winter 2020

Greenville: Life In The East

15

Diane Edwards CSSS, GREEN, SRES

2019 Centurion Producer

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Registered Nurse Tyaylor McJunkins prepares a drip to be administered to a patron of Alive Wellness.

Elks holds a few of the frips that are available at Alive Wellness in the form of an I/V.

love.”

He said the pandemic has caused many to reassess the way they

Road to wellness

take care of themselves.

Growing up, her family was healthy. She graduated from South

“If anything, COVID has highlighted the importance we should

Central and married her high school sweetheart. Her mother, Lisa

place on health and wellness. By bringing IV hydration and integrative

Brewington, has been a nurse at Vidant 30 years and her father,

wellness to Uptown Greenville, it further advances the innovative

Robert Brewington, was with the Greenville Police Department for

health community in eastern North Carolina,” he said.

decades. Her sister, Lauren, is a school teacher.

Elks approached Dr. Manjunath Markandaya, a neurologist and

Her bout with colitis made her wonder how much wellness and prevention might play in averting the illnesses and the diseases she sees on a daily basis at Vidant.

neurointensivist, to be the medical director.

“We are both like-minded,” she said. “We both want to reshape how we take care of people — we love alternative strategies of

“I realized, we have got to do a better job of taking care of our

managing chronic diseases.”

whole body,” she said.

“I know it sounds crazy, but I was literally driving down the road and I had a compelling thought: ‘You need to start a business to take care of people.’”

At her lowest, her body could not absorb vitamins or stay hydrated. IV

Markandaya and Elks together

It is pretty exciting. To have access to IV hydration for various ailments — like the cold and flu — and to help optimize health for athletes, is such an asset for our community.”

Rick Dalyai, Greenville neurosurgeon

hydration during her illness taught

developed the formulas for the wellness-drip cocktails, while Markandaya oversees all the clinical work. The IV’s contain a higher concentration of vitamins than can be found in food or oral vitamins, and intravenous delivery is more efficient and effective.

her the value of the therapy. The experience inspired her to open Alive Wellness.

“When vitamins and nutrients are infused directly into the bloodstream with IV therapy, the absorption rate is 90 to 100

She chose the name because she wants everyone to feel alive and take the best care possible of their bodies.

percent,” Elks said. Only about 30 percent can be absorbed from swallowing vitamins, though Elks encourages clients to take

“I want people to experience more than just barely getting through the day.”

multivitamins.

A team of registered nurses, employed full-time elsewhere,

Elks blames the American lifestyle for a general lack of wellness in the population.

administer the IVs. The process takes about 45 minutes.

“There is an IV for general wellness, and one for immunity — which

“I think in our fast-paced society we’ve gotten used to feeling tired — because we are all busy — and exhausted. But you shouldn’t have to feel like that,” she said.

is great for the upcoming flu season and COVID-19,” Elks said.

“IV therapy is so good for people who have any gut issues, and people who have had bariatric weight loss surgery. Anything that messes up the gut is going to mess up your ability to absorb and

Bringing it home

process vitamins,” she added.

Extensive research and consultations with doctors she worked with validated a need for an IV hydration therapy service in Greenville.

Before moving to Greenville, neurosurgeon Rick Dalyai, saw places offering IV hydration and integrative medicine in Philadelphia.

“It is pretty exciting,” he said. “To have access to IV hydration for various ailments — like the cold and flu — and to help optimize health for athletes, is such an asset for our community.”

18

“We also do shots, like Vitamin D — which we are all chronically deficient in — and Vitamin B-12 — which I love for energy,” she said.

Most people will experience benefits from the drips or shots for at least three to four weeks, but frequency needs will vary from person to person. “Some will want a treatment every week, some once a month and some every other month,” she said.

“The whole goal of Alive Wellness is to make people feel better. I

Greenville: Life In The East

Winter 2020

want people to notice a difference in how they feel.”

Making a difference The concept may be new to Greenville, but IV therapy has been around at least 15 years, and can be found mostly in larger cities.

Elks said when she was severely dehydrated, in need of hydration therapy, she went to the emergency department or urgent care. “I would get two to three bags of fluid. The cost was over $800. That is not feasible on a regular basis,” Elks said.

Alive Wellness IVs range from $120-$160. Shots begin at $25.

Memberships and packages are also available. Insurance does not normally cover the cost. “My full intent for Alive Wellness is that it becomes an even broader wellness company. Medicine has changed so much, and our world is changing so rapidly. A lot of times people are not going to the doctor’s office simply because they can’t get there.

They can’t — or won’t — take time off of work — because they don’t prioritize self-care.”

For the future, she envisions a Door-Dash-style of delivery. “A nurse could come to where you are,” she said. “There are tons of other wellness strategies out there that don’t involve medicine.” She said she hopes to partner with nutritionists and health coaches that can help structure individual wellness plans and help people follow through on them.

“This is about meeting the needs of my community and my home.

I am very passionately in love with eastern North Carolina,” she said.

“We are in a rural, under-served, under-insured — or uninsured — population, with a lack of, or limited access to health care and wellness.

There is so much work that needs to happen on the prevention side,” she added. “It is not uncommon now for 20-year-olds to come in (to the hospital) with strokes, diabetes and high blood pressure. That was unheard of 50 years ago. I think part of it is the culture we are living in — where everyone is working way too hard, and no one has time

TRADE YOUR JOB FOR A CAREER!

to cook a meal anymore.”

She said it is no longer about finding balance. “It is just synergy — because it all mixes together nowadays. My hope is that we will

n n

eventually offer blogs and pod-casts, and bring in experts in different specialties to talk about wellness,” she added. “I want to get people

n

comfortable talking about self-care, self-love self-worth. All the stuff I had to learn — it is really important.”

n

She hopes to make a difference in peoples’ lives.“That is my goal.

You need champions in your life. If we have the opportunity to be a champion for someone, to help them learn to take care of themselves, then it is success.”

n

Just the facts Alive Wellness, at 509 Evans St., offers more than a dozen IV cocktails and injections. IVs range between $120-$160.

Shots begin at $25. Memberships and packages are available.

Insurance does not normally cover the cost. Services are by appointment only at www.alivewellnesspllc.com Phone: 252-228-5505 Email: ashley@alivewellnesspllc.com Winter 2020

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Greenville: Life In The East

19

Ashlea Tievy hands a patron of the Painted Peacock a receipt they can be used with the game of Local-Opoly to possibly win money.

SHOPPING LOCAL FOR FUN AND PRIZES

Local-Opoly encourages shoppers to keep their dollars at home during the holiday season

by Ginger Livingston

by Deborah Griffin

Greenville shoppers can round a game

“If you spend locally, more of those

and educates them about the services they

board of restaurants, retailers and service

dollars will be circulated locally,” said Frank

have to offer. In the case of E&S Hemp, they

providers this holiday season for a chance t o

who opened his business in 2011. “It will

can learn about the benefits of CDB and

collect at least $500 while supporting local

help your neighbor keep their job which

other hemp products.

businesses.

means they are going to be able to pay their

“We’ve only been doing it a couple of

Local-Opoly encourages people to shop

mortgage which means you won’t have a

weeks now, but definitely each week we are

at 50-area businesses grouped into five-

neighborhood blighted by foreclosures

seeing a handful of new customers,” she said

property blocks. Shopper’s will be entered

down the road.

not long after the game started.

into $500 drawings for each property block

“If you keep the money local with the

“Some people even have the little paper

they complete, and into a $1,000 grand prize

people you know, friendly faces you see, I

with them and they’ll pull it out, others

drawing. The Greenville Pitt County Chamber

feel it does better for everyone,” Frank said.

mention it. They say we saw your name on

of Commerce and several chamber members

“The cost is usually the same and if it’s a few

here and wanted to see what you are about,

are sponsoring the game.

pennies more, it’s staying local.”

or they went somewhere else and someone

It’s a clever, fun way for people to learn

Retailers are trying their best to lure

about businesses in the community, said

shoppers away from big online competitors

Others have said they have driven by the

Susan Bucci, owner of The Painted Peacock, a

like Amazon to keep dollars in the local

shop and thought about stopping and the

paint-your-own pottery store located at 631

economy. The coronavirus pandemic has

game gave them a reason to stop, she said.

Red Banks Road. Bucci, is playing the game

pushed more and more people to Amazon

E&S Hemp Company has operated for two

personally and her business is a participating

and others, even though local businesses

years, selling smokeable flour, tincture oil,

retailer.

have taken health and safety precautions

topical products, tea, coffee, edibles, beauty

and many of them have their own online

products and other hemp-derived products,

options.

Shackelford said. She’s glad the Local-Opoly

“It’s very achievable. It doesn’t seem very overwhelming,” Bucci said. “I see a block and say ‘Oh I already go there and there but this place is new, I’ll go check them out.”

“People already go to these stores, so now there is a way for the ones already

recommended they come here.”

allows her to talk about the benefits of CBD with new people.

It’s also a chance to show people that local

visiting them to get something in return,

“A lot of people right now are having a lot

businesses sell many of the same products

playing a game along the way,” said

of stress issues or are at home dealing with

that online retailers offer, said Harry Frank,

Melissa Shackelford, manager of E&S

the issues of the world,” Shackelford said.

owner of Blue Ox Games, 2713 E. 10th St.,

Hemp Company, 675 W. Fire Tower Road,

which sells “everything geeky and awesome”

Winterville.

along with offering game-playing space.

20

It also introduces them to new businesses Greenville: Life In The East

The game is entertaining and helps build community spirit during the holidays, said Kate Teel, chamber president.

Winter 2020

631 Red Banks Rd.

CHEER FOR THE ECU PIR ATES!

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just weren’t always open for people to come in.”

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our local community,” Teel said. “The free

customers and offered curbside

spaces really give them an opportunity to

delivery.

connect a little bit more and to think outside

Bucci’s business has

the box. We get so caught up in the hustle

evolved. She now sells

and bustle of life and the holidays, take a

custom painted items such

few minutes to appreciate those around you

as pumpkins with a family

and enjoy where we live.”

name. She also sells to-go

Locally owned businesses have been

kits that allow people to paint

affected differently by the pandemic. The

pottery at home. She recently

Painted Peacock was closed five weeks,

partnered with East Carolina

Bucci said.

University Alumni Association

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Prior to the pandemic, close to 100

to offer a line of pirate-theme

people could be in the shop. Under current

dgifts called “The Captain

guidelines, Bucci can host 32 people at

Collection.” All items are made

most inside.

from scratch and can be stamped with customer names using real

nded David Crisp is ha e Ox a reciept at Blu ic com Games for a . book purchase

gold glazes.

the distancing aspect and everything, a full

Ten percent of sales go to the

house could be seven people,” she said.

association’s scholarship fund, Bucci

And there have been days when that has

said.

“I think it’s going to make some

Like the Painted Peacock, a lot of Blue Ox

wonderful gifts for the Pirate that

Games business focused on gatherings like

has everything,” she said. “I am really

game nights and tournaments.

excited about it. During some dark

Frank said that portion of his business

times it let me be creative and have

remains closed because he doesn’t have

some fun. I almost felt guilty getting to

the space to accommodate the required

work on this because it was so much fun,”

social distancing. He’s moved some gaming

Bucci said.

activities online.

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consist of the “Go” corner, a “Go to jail” spot,

While not part of the gameplay, Teel said

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516 Cot anche St.

210 Eas t 5th St.

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2115 E. Fire Tower Rd.

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Grand prize and property drawings will

Local-Opoly

take place at the Chamber and be broadcast via Facebook Live on Dec. 8.

“We’re still shipping products. When

The Local-Opoly game continues through

we couldn’t have people in the store

Dec. 4. Visit greenvillenc.org/shoplocal for

All receipts and proof of visits must be

we provided curbside service and local

complete rules and to download and print

turned in to the Greenville-Pitt County

delivery,” Frank said. “I didn’t want to not

and gameboard.

Chamber of Chamber by 3 p.m. Dec. 4.

Winter 2020

Greenville: Life In The East

21

Wheeler is an independent owneroperators affiliated with Landstar.

EASY RIDER Local trucker wins new rig to finish out career

C

hristmas came early for

By Melissa Glen

the truck or $500.

three levels of EPA emissions changes since

Greenville truck driver Steve

Wheeler said he and his wife had “a

that truck was built 20 years ago,” he said

Wheeler when he won a

peace” about the truck. “My wife is very

of his old Volvo. “If you breathe the air that

brand new Freightliner

prayerful,” he said. “She said ‘I’m just praying

goes into the intake, and you breathe the

Cascadia long hauler that will allow him to

it will be God’s will, if God wants you to have

air coming out of the exhaust, it’s actually

ride into the sunset.

this truck, you will get it.” Wheeler said after

cleaner coming out of the exhaust.”

After a 39-year career and the miles to

his wife retires in a few years, they plan to

And the timing couldn’t have been better

show for it, Wheeler was one of four finalists

use the truck to help check off their bucket

for Wheeler, who was actually in the process

for the $160,000 truck as part of an annual

list by traveling around the country while

of buying a new truck when he found out he

contest sponsored by the the company he

making deliveries.

was a finalist.

drives for, Landstar.

“We are gonna be a lot slower paced,” he

“I was getting ready to spend $50-60,000

“I’ve never won anything in my life and

said. “We are going to go somewhere and

on a used truck,” he said. “I was going to

this truck was such a blessing,” Wheeler said.

spend two or three days enjoying the sights,

buy, it back in March, and then when COVID

Landstar System is a transportation services

go to Alaska and spend three weeks.”

hit it was better just to be a little more

company specializing in third-party logistics.

Until then, he is just happy to have a

Wheeler has contracted with them the past

more reliable and safer ride while driving

Wheeler said he is lucky he waited,

six years.

his route, which usually adds up to 2,500-

because the truck he won had no cost at all.

3,000 miles a week.

He said Landstar even paid the tax and title

The contest included 10,000 owner-

conservative at that point.”

operators. Each earned one entry for every

“It makes it a lot safer out here when you

fee. “I know 2020 has been a horrible year

10 loads safely delivered during the contest

have the different technology they have on

for a lot of people but I really can’t say so,”

period year. Wheeler said he received almost

these,” he said. “It’s definitely a lot different

he said.

twice as many entries as most other drivers

from my (old) truck in that regard.”

since he had twice the number of safe deliveries the average driver had.

Landstar announced the four finalist in September, and he was one of them. The

Wheeler drove as an employee, not a

This technology includes radar, along with

contract owner-operator, for four other

an adaptive cruise control system, where the

companies before he started with Landstar.

truck can be set to stay 240 feet away from

Each company eventually went out of

any cars around it.

business.

winner was announced at a Zoom meeting

Not only are the amenities better for the

It was then that he decided he wanted to

on Sep. 18, during National Truck Driver

driver with the newer truck, but they are

go into business himself and was pointed in

Appreciation week. In the live meeting,

also better for the environment as a whole,

the direction of Landstar, he said.

each finalist had to pick a different box on

according to Wheeler.

the screen revealing whether they had won

22

“It’s a lot cleaner, because we have had Greenville: Life In The East

“Everybody said you will never go wrong doing business with them and Winter 2020

you really don’t, because they are the

While his career as a truck driver has

“I love listening to books, listening to

back office, they facilitate things, but

taken up the majority of his life, Wheeler

podcasts, listening to music and you have a

we are independent and our agents and

had a few careers prior to getting behind

lot of time to do that,” Wheeler said. “I love

customers are independent.”

the wheel.

to challenge myself and try to learn new

For Wheeler, having the flexibility to

In college at East Carolina University,

things. It’s almost like you can get an MBA.”

create routes that work best for him has

Wheeler worked at the school newspaper,

Wheeler said his love for his job has

been one of his favorite aspects of working

the Fountainhead, as a sports writer and

led to him giving back to other owner-

with the company. Specifically, he has

continued working in journalism as a

operators. For about five years now, he

enjoyed being able to visit his oldest

freelancer at the Rocky Mount Telegram

has used his free time as a way to mentor

daughter who lives in Chicago, since he

after graduating.

people on his business model over the

goes through there every week.

He also owned a beach music club

phone. “It’s a way to put your hand down

In his time as a truck driver, Wheeler

called the Riverboat in Rocky Mount during

and give people a step up. It’s a difficult

said he has been able to observe a lot of

the late 1970s to 1981. Wheeler said his

place for somebody to come to, because

bad habits on the roadways, especially the

time as a club owner inspires many of his

nobody tells you where to go and what to

use of cellphones. He said over half of the

musical choices on the road, which usually

do it’s all up to you,” Wheeler said. “The

people he sees are on their phone while

ends up being beach music. Wheeler said

world would be a lot better if we all did

driving. He encouraged people to follow

when journalism didn’t seem to be a field

better at passing along what we know.”

the lead of truckers and find hands-free

he could go far in, he started to look for

options to prevent causing accidents.

other avenues to be successful.

And he’s not stopping there. Wheeler said he plans to start posting his advice

“I went to truck driving school for two

headset or bluetooth in their car, but we

months and the rest was history,” he said.

“This business has been great to me for

have to in trucks,” Wheeler said. “I can

One of his favorite things about being

the last six years and even as a company

get a $2,750 fine if I’m talking without

a truck driver is the solitude and the

driver for 33 years before that it was great

this headset on, and Landstar would get a

opportunities to learn new skills on the

for me. I want other people to have that

$27,500 fine on top of that.”

road.

same level of success and enjoy it.”

on Youtube and as podcasts.

Y REF DAIL LECT

RE

OR

THE

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