Inside A3 Chamber of Commerce officers sworn in
Powhatan, Virginia B1 Powhatan wrestling dominates on Senior Night
Vol. XXXIV No. o. 28
January 13, 2021
Businesses share how grants helped in 2020 By Laura McFarland Editor
POWHATAN – The shutdown that happened in early 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic was a huge hit to businesses, especially small businesses that have little room for error when it comes to making enough revenue to survive. In Powhatan County, the local government sought to ease the burden a little by dedicating $517,404 of its federal CARES Act funding to Business Assistance Grants for local small businesses. County staff proposed the different uses of the CARES Act money Powhatan received throughout 2020 and the board of supervisors approved the uses. While the grants, which came in late summer and early fall, would definitely not be enough to solve all of their troubles, the hope was to help as many busi-
PHOTO BY LAURA McFARLAND
Sunshine Art and Lessons owner Shelley Crawford, left, instructs student Haley Bauer. Crawford received a business grant from the county that she said was essential to re-opening her business after the shut down.
nesses as possible with the available funds meet some of the needs that would help them continue to operate, said Roxanne Salerno, economic development program manager. “Overall through the grant process, it has been great to be able to give something back to them during this time. It is hard to help people when you don’t know what the next few months are going to look like,” she said. In total, the county disbursed $268,771 to 24 approved applicants in Round 1 and $105,000 to nine recipients in Round 2 of the Business Assistance Grants, Salerno said. Despite receiving a decent amount of applications, Salerno said the number of completed applications was lower than expected. The first application round was from Aug. 24 to Sept. 9, 2020, and the see GRANTS, pg. 4
Proposed Cumberland landfill reaches milestone in DEQ process By Laura McFarland Editor
Jayne Lloyd picks up a wheelchair accessible van the Powhatan Department of Social Services purchased from Gene Miller, right, so the county can serve wheelchair bound seniors. PHOTO COURTESY OF POWHATAN DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES
County buys wheelchair accessible van By Laura McFarland Editor
Prsrt. Standard U.S. POSTAGE PAID Powhatan, VA Permit No.19
POWHATAN – Powhatan County will soon be capable of better serving some of its most vulnerable citizens because of a recently purchased
wheelchair accessible van. The Powhatan Department of Social Services bought a used 2014 Ford E250 cargo van intending for it to be used to serve wheelchair bound senior citizens as part of its Ride Assee VAN, pg. 6
POWHATAN – The controversial Green Ridge Recycling and Disposal Facility proposed in Cumberland County near the Powhatan County line recently reached a big milestone in its efforts to receive a solid waste permit from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). After almost a full year of submitting documents for review, a letter was issued by the DEQ on Dec. 11, 2020, saying that the company’s Notice of Intent and Part A application had been reviewed and appeared to be administratively complete. The Part A Permit application, which focuses mainly on siting evaluation, will now be further reviewed for technical adequacy and regulatory compliance, according to DEQ documents. In the original plans approved at the local level by the Cumberland County Board
see GREEN RIDGE, pg. 5
MLK ceremony honors youth scholarship winners By Laura McFarland Editor
DELIVER TO: Postal Patron Powhatan, VA 23139
of Supervisors in June 2018, the company planned to use between 500 and 650 acres of the 1,200-acre property in two designated areas – an eastern and a western cell – to dump waste. However, the company announced in December 2019 that it was eliminating the eastern fill – the cell closest to Miller Lane in Cumberland and to the Powhatan County border – from its plans, dropping the project down to 240 acres that it proposes to use for waste. Jay Smith, a spokesman for Green Ridge Recycling and Disposal Facility, said that in addition to reviewing the company’s Part A application, DEQ will also carry out a needs analysis to determine if there is a need in Virginia for another landfill. While the company waits for the review, it is also continuing to work with the Virginia Department of Transportation
P
OWHATAN – When co-chair April Gray realized that Powhatan’s annual celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day would have to be either canceled or altered in some way for 2021 – its 10th year – she was obviously disappointed. But she said she got over it quickly. Although there were plenty of big plans for making the 10th anniversary the biggest one yet before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the trappings were never the real focus of the annual community breakfast; it was always supposed to be about the youth, she said. And when the 2021 MLK Youth Day Scholarship Awards Ceremony is held virtually at 10 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 18, that is exactly what the modified event will celebrate. The theme for this year’s event is “We’ve Come this Far by Faith.” Use the following link to join the Zoom meeting: https:// powhatan.zoom. us/j/84999619957?pwd=OGQ 4aTRwQXljY3lXcHlPcXp0WmdiQT09. The meeting ID is 849 9961 9957. Traditionally, the community event brings several hundred people out for breakfast and an amazing show celebrating local youth with speeches, music, and awards. In lieu of an in-person event, organizers decided to make the 10th event special by raising the funds to offer 10 young people $1,000 scholarships. “I just had a great vision that whatever we did was going to be rewarding for our young people,” she said. “That is basically our goal, is to encourage and reward our young people. If we were disappointed, it wasn’t long. It was overshadowed by the fact that we could still do something great
for our young people.” The awards ceremony on Jan. 18 will recognize and celebrate the students. While the event details are still being finalized, Gray said that Dr. Lynn Clayton-Prince would run the ceremony and the Rev. Dr. Carole Selby, who is the scholarship committee chairman, would speak. To help make this year’s event more special, organizers decided to put together a special 10-year edition journal booklet that would highlight the youth and supporters of the annual MLK event, former recipients, as well as looking back at 2020 and how students have been impacted by the pandemic. Through selling advertising in the booklets and donations, organizers were thrilled to realize they had exceeded their fundraising goals, Gray said. In the end, they were able to offer eight PHS students a $1,200 scholarship, one student a $500 scholarship, and one PHS graduate a $1,000 scholarship. Organizers were grateful for the support and how it shows students who have had a tough school year, especially seniors, that the community is behind them, she added. “It always feels really, really good, but we can accomplish much more and we won’t stop trying to accomplish more. We have to encourage our young people. Our children are our future and our return is only as good as our investment,” she said. Gray said the special 10th anniversary booklet will be mailed out after the event to sponsors, advertisers, and people who gave $20 or more in donations to the scholarship fund. Those interested in purchasing the special commemorative book may do so by contacting Little Zion Baptist Church at 804-375-9404.
Congratulations MLK Youth Day Scholarship Recipients! see page 6 for student profiles