Chatham Magazine April/May 2020

30 What’s Up in Downtown Pittsboro?

54 At Home on the Haw

80 Governors Club Garden April/May 2020 vol. 3, no. 6

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APRIL / MAY

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38

THE WOMEN’S ISSUE 38 LYSANDRA WEBER of geekchicfashion 40 LUCY KURZ of Carolina Air Care 42 MELISSA FOGARTY of Central Carolina Community College 44 JAYCEE SANSOM, BELLA OCAMPO, MOLLY HUX & STEPHANIE HELBERT of Chatham School of Science and Engineering 46 JILL EHRENFELD of Bold Real Estate 47 EDNA VILLASENOR Chatham Family Violence Prevention Services GLORIA MALDONADO Siler City Police Department

CONTENTS FEATURE 30 A NEW LOOK AT DOWNTOWN A trip to downtown Pittsboro can last a day and then some, even if you live only blocks away

50 AMY BLANK WILSON of UNC School of Social Work

6 LETTER 18 FIVE EVENTS NOT TO MISS

HOME & GARDEN

22 NOTED

54 RIVER RETREAT This couple built a home with a dream view that overlooks the Haw River

94 COOKING WITH SHERI A quick and easy dinner from local chef and author Sheri Castle

64 ‘A DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH’ Dennis and Cee Koehler transformed a cabin in the woods into a gathering spot for three generations of family 80 STOP AND SMELL THE FLOWERS A sneak peek at a Governors Club home featured on this year’s Chapel Hill garden tour 84 HOW DOES YOUR GARDEN GROW? Spring planting advice from Pittsboro landscaper Paige Moody

48 CHERYL CHAMBLEE of Chatham Arts Council

DEPARTMENTS & COLUMNS

90 ‘THE GHOSTS OF NEW HOPE’ A local writer explores his family history and the creation of Jordan Lake

96 DINING GUIDE 99 ON THE TABLE Moon Asian Bistro 102 ENGAGEMENT Ashtyn Beeler & Chase Golden 103 WEDDINGS Matthew Henderson & Coltrane Milholen Lauren Boening & Logan Poe

PEOPLE & PLACES 10 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Breakfast 12 CORA’s Empty Bowls 13 Real Housewives of Chatham County’s Super Bowl feast for first responders

51 MARY WALLACE former Pittsboro mayor

14 ‘We Fight Like Family’ fundraiser at Jordan-Matthews High School

ROBYN ALLGOOD entrepreneur & founder of Jamie’s Vision

16 McIntyre’s Books’ Crime Scene Mystery Bookfest 17 Snow day

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CHATHAM MAGAZINE

W

hen I sat down to write this introduction to our annual Women’s Issue, I was stuck for a topic – until a friend, Catherine Hobbs, asked me to lunch with her 98-year-old grandmother-in-law, Lois Ann Hobbs. I had recently won homemade bread that Lois Ann had baked for a charity auction, and she wanted to meet the person who would spend $55 dollars on two loaves.

The Hobbs family has lived in and around Pittsboro for generations. Lois Ann now lives at an assisted living facility nearby, so we met at a local restaurant.

She told me how, as a young mother, she and her husband bought an old mill and restored it as their family grew. Each time a child was born, she says, they swept out another corner. She told me how she bakes bread every Saturday, two hours from start to finish. (She invited me to come over to bake with her and, yes, I am going!) She talked about how, in the 1980s, she went to the local newspaper to pitch the idea of writing a gardening column. She had no writing experience and no knowledge of gardening – and she got the job! Even at 98, Lois Ann continues to surprise herself.

She dreaded the idea of assisted living, she says, but has been totally surprised by the community she has built. Lunch with Lois Ann made me think about how I, too, want to be fearless and bold, and never stop finding possibilities for what’s next.

I joined Chatham Magazine in 2017, and I spend most days traveling around the county to introduce people to our publication. Not a week has gone by that I haven’t met a remarkable woman who made me feel the way Lois Ann did at lunch.

That’s the energy we are trying to capture with these stories, which start on page 38. These are women who will inspire you, make you consider your own potential and, if you’re very lucky, you’ll learn a few things, even if it’s just a tip or two on how to make a perfect loaf of bread. CM

APRIL / MAY 2020

Chris Elkins  chris@chathammagazinenc.com

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PEOPLE & PLACES

1

2

3

4

Remembering MLK

PHOTOGRAPHY BY MATT WHITE

5

6

A crowd of close to 200 packed the fellowship hall of Siler City’s Holy Trinity United Holy Church in mid-January for the West Chatham NAACP’s annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Breakfast. The event welcomed government, business and community figures from around the county. Keynote speaker Rev. Xavier Daniels, youth minister of Simon Temple AME Zion Church in Fayetteville, addressed the modern legacy of Dr. King.

Chatham County Commissioner Diana Hales recalled days of turmoil at her college in rural Indiana after the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. CM 1 Rev. Carl E. Thompson Sr., Chatham County Commissioner Diana Hales, Rev. Xavier Daniels and Aamir Mapp, 14.

2 Ann Alston, West Chatham NAACP President Larry Brooks and Vickie Cheek.

3 Jaidyn Mason, 12, Jean Mason and Joseph Mason, 6.

4 Pittsboro Town Commissioner Pamela Baldwin and Shirley Emerson.

5 Mattie Woods and Rev. Charles Mathews.

6 Jennifer Scotton and David Scotton.

10

CHATHAM MAGAZINE

APRIL / MAY 2020

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PEOPLE & PLACES

1

2

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5

3

8

6

7

Bowled Over

1 Dylan Perry, owner of The Modern Life Deli & Drinks, and Breakaway Cafe general manager Sabine Farer-Buers.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY MATT WHITE

More than 40 local pottery, glass and woodworking artists and 14 restaurants came together to raise $21,000 for CORA, the Pittsboro food pantry, during its February Empty Bowls fundraiser. Close to 400 guests circulated among chef stations around a Galloway Ridge ballroom, sampling distinctive soup creations from each. Guests picked Galloway’s lobster bisque as the top creation, edging out entrants from Postal Fish Company, Angelina’s Kitchen, The Root Cellar Cafe & Catering, Breakaway Cafe, Carolina Brewery, The City Tap, Fearrington House Inn, Tarantini Italian Restaurant, The Pittsboro Roadhouse, Small B&B and Cafe and The Modern Life Deli & Drinks. Each guest took home one of the “empty bowls” as a handmade symbol of local food insecurity. CORA reported providing food and nutritional help to 11,000 people in 2019. CM 12

CHATHAM MAGAZINE

APRIL / MAY 2020

2 The Zehner family: Cassie, 14, Dawn, Jeff and Cammie, 16.

3 Barbara Thomas and Preston Thomas.

4 Ceanna Urbanski, Jeremie Miller and Chatham Magazine’s Lauren Phillips.

5 CORA volunteers Jillian McNaught, 16, Remi Jones, 14, Israel Hall, 16, Gatlin Black, 16, and Eliza Hall, 14.

6 Nikki Brown, Madilyn Brown, 2, Marcia King, Steffi Greenhill and Zack Greenhill.

7 Candi McKay, Susan Sigmon and Tom McKay. 8 Eileen Bogan, 9, and Heather Honeycutt.

PEOPLE & PLACES

1

2

Halftime with Heroes PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF HEATHER JOHNSON

A civic-minded group of Pittsboro women who call themselves the Real Housewives of Chatham County brought a Super Bowl feast to firefighters at the Moncure Fire station. The Housewives are an informal association with about 40 members who decided in 2016 to convert their frequent social gatherings into charity and serviceminded events. This year marked their third annual visit to a Chatham fire station to feed on-duty first responders and their families during the big game. The women have organized service days at senior centers, back-to-school backpack drives and volunteer work with the Chatham Literacy Council. CM

1 Jennifer Shi and Caroline Shi, 15.

2 “Housewives” Randi Markowitz, Debbie Cameron, Ashlie Campbell, Chatham Magazine’s Heather Johnson, Shana O’Leary and Jessica Grimes.

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CHATHAM MAGAZINE

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PEOPLE & PLACES

1

2

‘We Fight Like Family’ PHOTOGRAPHY BY MATT WHITE

Teachers and staff from JordanMatthews High School and Siler City Elementary School dove for loose balls, fought for rebounds and dunked like old rivals in late January, but neither side cared much who came out ahead. The only winner in the “We Fight Like Family” fundraiser game among the schools’ staff members was colleague Johnna Canipe, a Siler City teacher who left her position in late 2019 to undergo cancer treatment.

Her children, Brenan, 16, and Ainsley, 14, both attend Jordan-Matthews.

As her colleagues battled on the court, Johnna sat courtside, cheering, laughing and reuniting with students she had not seen in months. When the game was over, several staffers shaved off their hair at mid-court. The event raised $7,000. CM

3

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1 Madison Scott, 16, and TeeAnna Cheek, 15.

2 Maria Pulido, Itzel Ocelot, Larry Savage, David Tan, William Urena Blanco and Joseph Glenn.

3 Charles Byrd dunks for a basket.

4 Wendi Pillars, Jessica Sandel and Mina Ritter.

5 Betzy Hernandez, 11, Leslie Ruiz, 19, Wendy Hernandez, 7, and Ashley Ruiz, 16.

6 Johnna Canipe and Kaye Pluth.

14

CHATHAM MAGAZINE

APRIL / MAY 2020

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CHATHAM MAGAZINE

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PEOPLE & PLACES 1

2

1 Author Jamie Mason, McIntyre’s Books’ and Beltie Prize judge Pete Mock and author Lee Goldberg.

Give your home the protection it deserves.

2 Beltie Mystery Prize winner S.J. Rozan and Crime Scene keynote speaker Thomas Perry sign books.

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CHATHAM MAGAZINE

APRIL / MAY 2020

in Fearrington welcomed true crime fans, mystery solvers and murderinos to its first Crime Scene Mystery Bookfest in early February. Writers and fans mingled and took their own “booking” photos during a pre-festival cocktail reception. The main event featured panel discussions with authors from around the country in both fiction and nonfiction crime-related genres. The highlight of the two-day Bookfest was the announcement of the shop’s annual “Beltie Mystery Prize,” which is handpicked by McIntyre’s Pete Mock, the shop’s adult book buyer. Pete reads more than 100 mystery novels each year to select the winner of the prize.

For 2020, he chose New York City author S.J. Rozan’s “Paper Son.” CM McIntyre’s Books Village

PEOPLE & PLACES

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7 1 Lila Grace Childress, 1, Bonlee.

2 Connor Durso, 14, Pittsboro.

3 Skylar Breedlove, 11, Hunter Breedlove, 6, Kristen Breedlove and their dog, Fletcher, in Goldston.

Let It Snow, Let It Snow For one day in late February, local kids (and parents and dogs) went outside to play in the snow. They enjoyed sledding, snowball fights and even dressing up as snow princesses before it all melted away. CM

4 Claire Harman, 3, Goldston.

Photo courtesy of Angie Hinkle, Dreamy Days Photography 5 Camille Klaus, 1, Pittsboro.

6 Emily Moran and Tilly Moran, 8, Siler City.

7 Madilyn Bolejack, 10, Pittsboro.

APRIL / MAY 2020

CHATHAM MAGAZINE

17

APRIL 18, 7 a.m.

Teams and individuals test their endurance on a 1.35-mile loop near Jordan Lake for 12 (or just 6) hours.

Proceeds benefit the Chatham County Partnership for Children. chathamkids.org/events/12-hour

PHOTO BY HANNAH LEE

Jordan Lake 12-Hour Challenge

Miles of Hope Cycle and 5K APRIL 25, 8 a.m. – noon Launched by a local family, this fun run and bike race benefits the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Both races start at the Chatham County Justice Center, and cyclists can challenge themselves on 22-, 44- and 62-mile routes. The day includes a pancake breakfast, live music and other family-friendly activities. bit.ly/cff5krunwalkorcycle

FIVE EVENTS YOU WON’T WANT TO MISS

Compiled by Katie Barham

18

CHATHAM MAGAZINE

Ryder Murphy and John Cheek, both 9, get creative at ClydeFEST.

ClydeFEST APRIL 25, 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.

This annual festival celebrates local artist Clyde Jones and his colorful “critters” at Earl Thompson Park in Bynum. There will be old-fashioned carnival games, arts and crafts, live music and more. chathamartscouncil.org/clydefest

Spring Chicken Festival MAY 2, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.

This second annual event, which takes place in downtown Siler City, features a Ferris wheel, mechanical and inflatable attractions, a classic car show, a rock climbing wall, a beer garden hosted by Oasis Open Air Market and much more. silercity.org

APRIL / MAY 2020

Local on Main: PBO's Farm & Art Dinner MAY 17, 5:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. hosts dinner for over 200 guests on a table that stretches two blocks. Sponsored by Main Street Pittsboro, local farmers and chefs serve up farm-fresh fare amidst live music and art displays for a unique community feast. mainstreetpittsboro.org CM Hillsboro Street

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APRIL / MAY 2020

CHATHAM MAGAZINE

19

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researchers say, appear to be coming from a Burlington-area wastewater treatment plant that discharges into the Haw River, Pittsboro’s primary civic water source.

HULK SMASH POLLUTION Actor Mark Ruffalo took in the view of the Haw River from the Bynum Bridge during a recent visit with local water activists. The actor, well known for portraying the Hulk in “The Avengers” movies, is publicly outspoken on water pollution and access issues. He stopped in Pittsboro while filming a documentary on North Carolina’s water supplies. Emily Sutton of the Haw River Assembly (left) and Katie Bryant of the town’s Water Quality Task Force (right, behind Mark), among other activists, took Mark to Bynum for a bird’s-eye view of the Haw. In 2019, two Duke University professors found that Pittsboro has the highest level of “forever chemicals” – synthetic compounds that will never break down naturally and are linked to cancer – of any community in the Triangle. The chemicals,

LET US KNOW WHAT YOU'VE HEARD! EMAIL NOTED@CHATHAMMAGAZINENC.COM 22

CHATHAM MAGAZINE

GOOD TO BE THE KING In January, Bynum Front Porch hosted “A Tribute to Elvis” fundraiser at the Chatham County Agriculture & Conference Center,

which featured Elvis impersonator Stephen Freeman and other local performers. The event raised $4,500 to fund grants to local artists.

Stephen had the crowd all shook up, including Front Porch board members Cynthia Raxter (top, with the King), Martha Collins and Nina Siegler (bottom).

Compiled by Cam Edson

played football for Duke University before beginning an NFL coaching career.

Gwendalyn Chapman,

13, wrote and directed an original short film, “Camp of the Dead,” for horror-focused production company HMF Productions.

According to HMF’s press release, Gwendalyn was an actor in another film, “Texas Chainsaw Massacre: Carnage – A Fan Film” when officials with the Walkertown, North Carolina-based company invited her to submit a horror screenplay for production.

WHAT’S NEW? The Chatham Rabbits will release their album, “The Yoke is Easy, The Burden is Full” on May 1. The sophomore album from the husband-wife folk duo is available for preorder on their website.

BIG BREAKS PHOTO BY CINDY POINDEXTER

NOTED.

WHAT WE’VE HEARD AROUND CHATHAM

Former JordanMatthews High School

football star and Siler City native George Edwards was hired as a senior defensive assistant for the Dallas Cowboys in January. After graduating from Jordan-Matthews in 1985, George

APRIL / MAY 2020

The Creative Goat,

a new arts and crafts supply shop, opened at 630 East St. in Pittsboro in February.

opened an office in Siler City in January. It’s the third location for Realty World Carolina Properties in Chatham.

Realty World Carolina Properties

A 147-acre tract off Pea Ridge Road in Moncure will soon be a new county park. Chatham County Parks & Recreation officials say a purchase of land from the Lola Tart Parker Trust for Parkers Ridge Park was finalized in late 2019. Park officials say they are preparing final plans for the park after a series of public input meetings in late 2019. The park will be named in memory of former residents Atlas and Lola Parker, whose relatives attended the announcement (above).

Pittsboro’s new town hall project moved into its final design phase in January.

The 42,000-square-foot facility, designed

by Hobbs Architects, will be located on Salisbury Street. Construction could start as early as the fall, pending funding approval.

In January, state Department of Transportation workers began a $1.6 million upgrade project on the 49-yearold bridges that carry U.S. 64 over Jordan Lake. Work is planned through Sept. 1, during which traffic will shift to one lane in both directions. 

In February, Briar Chapel resident Kimberly Maloney raced for a spot on the U.S. Olympic team in the games’ longest event, the marathon.

She didn’t make the cut, but running in the Olympic trials marked her reentry into the world of competitive running, a journey that began soon after she moved to Chatham in 2018.

“My main takeaway from the whole experience was the importance of surrounding myself with people who are irrationally positive and optimistic and your biggest advocate,” Kimberly says.

At the Olympic trials in Atlanta, Kimberly paced with a former teammate through mile 25. She clocked a time of 2:44:04, placing 107th out of 390 women. The race was only her second marathon. She qualified for the trials in her first race in January.

Kimberly graduated from Clemson University in 2011 as an All-American distance runner and coached at the University of South Carolina while earning a master’s in public health. She ran professionally with the Greenville Track Club in South Carolina for five years but thought she had put running behind her when she moved here to join her husband, Marty, during his last year of law school at UNC. As she settled into a new job as a project manager at Frank Porter Graham Childhood Development Institute at UNC, Kimberly says she was hesitant to jump back into running. She knew she might get frustrated if she couldn’t devote the time necessary to be competitive.

“Sometimes, I can just overthink things,” Kimberly says. “‘Well, what if this happens? What if that happens?’ But I just started trying to run for fun again.”

She began running casually with two friends in Raleigh who both suggested she look into the Raleigh Distance Project (RDP), an all-female team of 10 middle- and long-distance runners. As she met those members, Kimberly says she felt more comfortable recommitting to serious running.

“I know when I commit to something, I’m all in,” Kimberly says. At Clemson, she walked on to the cross-country team as a sophomore, having not run cross country or track in high school. “It can be a lot. I know what it takes to be the best.”

Trusting her gut, Kimberly formally joined RDP in October 2018 and found a tight-knit support network that allowed her to find a balance among running, family and work. She trains with the team two or three times a week and also participates in more casual group runs and workouts at UNC. She often runs on the trail system in Briar Chapel, particularly for recovery runs, where the hills and twists force her to slow down. She also puts in miles on the Chatham portion of the American Tobacco Trail and in Chapel Hill’s Carolina North Forest and Bolin Creek Trail.

Running for a spot in the Olympics, she says, was a unique experience. “This one I’m really proud of,” Kimberly says. “That has given me a lot of excitement and momentum to continue with some energy and joy for the sport.”

PHOTO COURTESY OF KIMBERLY MALONEY

PHOTO COURTESY OF CHATHAM COUNTY PARKS AND RECREATION

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

OLYMPIC DREAMS

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Virginia. Carter hopes to qualify for the national motocross competition held in Tennessee in August.

Jordan-Matthews High School senior Damaris Castillo won first place in the National Association for Bilingual Education (NABE) 2020 Student Essay Competition in January and attended the 49th Annual NABE Conference in Las Vegas in late February.

The Chatham County Schools’ Teachers of the Year are: • Stephanie Dunn,

Bennett School, exceptional children

• Connie McCleary,

Bonlee School,

third grade • Christopher Hart,

IN OUR SCHOOLS In February, Northwood High School freshman Dream Walker placed fourth in the North Carolina High School Athletic Association Women’s Invitational Wrestling Tournament, the girls equivalent to a state championship meet.

Dream started wrestling with the Chatham Elite Wrestling Club in fifth grade. After taking a break from the sport in middle school, she decided to join the boy’s wrestling team at Northwood.

“It motivates me to work harder, and when I get my hand raised, it makes all the hard work worth it,” Dream says.

four years of college. Ann plays clarinet in All-County Band and participates in student council, National Beta Club and drama club.

eighth grade • Elizabeth Vaughn, Chatham School of

Horton Middle School, eighth grade

• Sonja Kitchings,

J.S. Waters School, reading specialist

• Lisa Morse,

Jordan-Matthews High School, 12th grade history teacher

• Malinda Quinn,

Margaret B. Pollard Middle School, sixth grade

• Shanyse Alston,

Moncure School, kindergarten/first grade

Cole

Perry Harrison Elementary School

CHATHAM MAGAZINE

Chatham Middle School,

• Christina Tomlin,

Silk Hope School

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• Britni Brefka,

Science & Engineering, ninth-10th grade

Many 6-year-olds like to play in the mud, but few do it like Carter Schutté.

In November, the then-5-year-old

seventh grader Ann was one of 15 students in the state awarded a Victor E. Bell Jr. Scholarship from College Foundation Inc. in January. Bell Scholars receive $2,000 per year from the time of the award through

Chatham Central High School, ninth-12th grade

kindergartener rode his child-size dirt bike to first place in the 50cc 4-8 Limited Stock PeeWee division at the MidAtlantic Moonlight Series in Axton,

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• Susan Landis,

North Chatham Elementary School, third grade

• Jason Amy,

Northwood High School, athletic director

• David Smith,

Perry Harrison Elementary School, music

• Kandyce Wood,

Pittsboro Elementary School, first grade

NOTED

• Angela Vanore,

Silk Hope School,

sixth grade • Paula Payne,

Siler City Elementary School, kindergarten

• Becky Bouldin,

Virginia Cross Elementary School, exceptional children

Officials from Chatham County Schools and population data specialists from N.C. State held four public meetings in January and February to discuss attendance zoning for Seaforth High School off Seaforth Road in Pittsboro.

Seaforth is slated to open in 2021, absorbing some Northwood freshmen and sophomores. Upperclassmen will remain at Northwood. The Chatham County Board of Education expects to make a final decision on assignments for the school by the end of the summer.

NEW TO COWORKING? Come try out Perch for FREE A boutique coworking space that blends productivity, creativity, wellness and friendship.

PERKS • Conference room • Private desks/office suites • Phone booths • 24/7 availability • Access to community events

106 GREENSBORO ST | SUITE E | CARRBORO 1 0 2 H IL L S BO R O S T | P IT TS BO R O 9 1 9. 2 6 0. 5 3 1 3 | P E R CH - COWO R K IN G . CO M

MARK YOUR CALENDARS hosts its annual Spring for Literacy Luncheon at the Governors Club clubhouse April 29 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Author Cassandra King Conroy will discuss her novels and latest work, “Tell Me a Story: My Life with Pat Conroy.” The book details her marriage with the famed North Carolina author, who passed away in 2016.

Chatham Literacy

Jump rope classes & camps for all ages

will run May 1-3 in Briar Chapel. A 5K run/walk will be held May 2 at 9 a.m. at Great Meadow Park, with a kids’ run at 10:30 a.m.

The games also host a pickleball tournament at The Courts at Boulder Point, offering men’s doubles, women’s doubles and mixed doubles. The games benefit the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation in Raleigh.  The BC Games

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NOTED

hosts its 2020 Senior Games between April 24 and May 8 for athletes 50 and older. Top performers advance to the North Carolina Senior Games in September and October. In 2019, almost two dozen

PHOTO BY JOE JOHNSON

Aging

Chatham County seniors took home medals at the state games in Raleigh in events that included basketball shooting, table tennis mixed doubles and table tennis singles (at left).

Bringing Healthy Smiles to Chapel Hill

Are you in need of oral surgery?

Whether it’s to remove one or more teeth, implants, or something more involved, you probably have a lot of questions and concerns. What are my options? What can I expect? Will I be in pain? It’s normal to be apprehensive about a surgical procedure and at Chapel Hill Implant and Oral Surgery Center, we understand. That is why Dr. Hill has created a top notch facility and a team of professionals whose singular goal is to help you understand your options and make your procedure as stress-free as possible.

Meet Dr. David Lee Hill, Jr. People who meet Dr. Hill are quickly won over by his knowledge and easy-going style. He is a stickler for detail and in his profession, every little detail matters. His commitment to patient safety and surgical precision as well as his uncompromising philosophy toward care is reflected in the state-of-the-art surgical facility he has designed from the ground up. He also places emphasis on his patient’s comfort and it shows - from the warm and inviting surroundings to the caring staff, focused on the patient’s well being.

If your case calls for implant or oral surgery, let Dr. Hill and his capable team welcome you for a tour and a discussion about your unique needs.

Dr. David Lee Hill, Jr. Oral & Maxillofacial Surgeon

77 VilCom Center Drive, Suite 120 Chapel Hill, NC 27514 919-238-9961

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FAREWELL Former Pittsboro Mayor Cindy Perry tells a story about how Alice Lloyd came to work at Pittsboro’s Town Hall. In the mid-1970s, Cindy says, the staff got behind on transcribing minutes from official meetings. Pages and pages of handwritten notes, which recorded the legal workings, votes and discussions of the Board of Commissioners, had accumulated and were disorganized.

Fed up, one official stopped by the newly built Northwood High School and asked the typing teacher who their best student was.

The reply was quick: “Alice.”

Still in high school, Alice began typing up the minutes on weekends and during her evenings.

She caught up on the work faster than anyone in town hall expected and asked for more to do. She never left. At least, not until February, when, after 45 years with the town, and 30 as town clerk, Alice retired.

“She wore so many hats, I can’t tell you how many there were,” Cindy says.

Kim Caraganis,

executive director of Communities in Schools (CIS) of Chatham County,

retired after 30 years of service in April. Tych Cowdin, current program director, will take over her position. “Tych has the skills, relationships and heart to lead this agency into the future,” Kim says. CM

PHOTO COURTESY OF CIS

Chatham County Council on

Special Advertising Section Our local nonprofits, how they support the community and how you can get involved

Wish List Volunteer tutors Volunteers for boards and committees Office supplies, especially printer ink Adult learners!

Upcoming Events Spring for Literacy Luncheon • Featuring Cassandra King Conroy, author of Tell Me a Story: My Life with Pat Conroy • April 29, 2020: 11am-2pm • Governors Club, Chapel Hill • $100/ticket ($75 is tax deductible) Lowcountry Getaway Raffle • 3-night/4-day luxury trip for two at Montage Palmetto Bluff resort in Bluffton, SC (valued at $4,000) • Personalized tour of the Pat Conroy Literary Center • Up to $1,000 in spending money for travel, food and activities • Tickets are $100; only 250 sold

Our Mission Chatham Literacy helps adults, living or working in Chatham County, N. C., acquire the literacy and educational skills they need to function successfully in society.

Brag Lines

Background

Chatham Literacy is an established, growing organization that is providing much needed free and individualized adult literacy services within Chatham County. We provide tutoring services to help adults improve their skills in reading, writing and math; learn English; prepare for the citizenship exam; and increase workforce soft skills, computer skills and finance management skills.

Chatham Literacy is an established, growing organization that is providing much needed free and individualized adult literacy services within Chatham County. We provide tutoring services to help adults improve their skills in reading, writing and math; learn English; prepare for the citizenship exam; and increase workforce soft skills, computer skills and finance management skills.

Literacy leads to gainful employment, financial and family stability, improved health care, and better outcomes for the next generation.

Chatham Literacy promotes adult literacy within the community one person at a time.

• Drawing on April 29, 2020 To get your luncheon or raffle ticket, call (919) 241-1269 or visit www. chathamliteracy.org.

Tutor Training • May 15, 2020: 9am-4pm • August 28, 2020: 9am-4pm • Contact Travis Patterson at (919) 930-7284

Get in Touch P.O. Box 1696 606 E. 3rd St. Pittsboro, NC 27312 Phone: 919-742-0578 Website: www.chathamliteracy.org

Facebook.com/chathamliteracy

Special Advertising Section Our local nonprofits, how they support the community and how you can get involved

Wish List We have a diverse and active Board of Directors that invites community engagement. While we welcome volunteers from all backgrounds, we have a special need for individuals with experience in the following: • Development and Fundraising

Our Mission

The Chatham County Partnership for Children (CCPC) promotes opportunities for all young children in Chatham County to grow up safe, healthy, and able to succeed.

In collaboration with our community partners, we plan, fund, and implement quality early childhood education, health, and family support initiatives.

Our mission is to provide: • Smart Start Family Support Services (Child Care Subsidies and Focus on Fathers) • NC Pre-Kindergarten Program • Child Care Resource and Referral Services • Child Care Search Call Center • Child Care Health and Behavior Consultation • Child Care Food Program Sponsorship • Professional Development for Early Childhood Educators • Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library and the Raising A Reader program

Brag Lines:

In the last year, we have provided: • 400+ subsidies for child care to low-income working parents with young children.

• 268 at-risk 4-year old children with high quality early education in NC Pre-K • 104 referrals to caregivers seeking high quality childcare 20 fathers with support through our Focus on Fathers program • 1707 children received books through the Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library • 2844 children received nutritious meals in 64 child care facilities • 209 early childhood educators with professional development • 40 young children at risk for expulsion with behavior consultation support • 985 children in child care with higher trained and supported teachers

• Training and support to pediatric practices for early identification of children with special needs

Background:

Smart Start was launched by former Governor Jim Hunt in 1993 to address the concern that many children were beginning school unprepared to be successful.

Chatham Friends of Children conducted a needs assessment and CCPC was selected as the local Smart Start lead agency in 1994. The Partnership merged with Child Care Networks in 2016 to provide a higher level of service. CCPC serves all children in Chatham County by connecting them with early education opportunities to help them thrive and reach their highest potential.

• Grant Writing • Communications • Special Education and Disabilities Volunteers are matched with an active committee, and engagement does not require Board Membership. We ask that you are passionate about helping our young children ages 0-5 in Chatham County prepare for a successful lifetime of learning.

Upcoming Events • APRIL 18: Jordan Lake 12-Hour Challenge Individuals and teams compete for total laps they can run on a 1.35-mile loop near Jordan Lake in 12 or six hours.

• APRIL 25: Day of the Books A free family event promoting literacy, the arts and early childhood education.

Providing a bilingual Spanish-English book for every child attending and hands-on art, reading under the circus tent, music, dancing and piñatas for everyone! Lunch is also provided.

• AUGUST 18: New Board Orientation Interested in making a difference in the lives of children? Explore our website www.chathamkids.org where you can learn more about the Partnership and find a volunteer application for Board Membership and other volunteer activities.

Get in Touch: Genevieve Megginson Executive Diretor

genevieve@chathamkids.org www.chathamkids.org

Special Advertising Section Our local nonprofits, how they support the community and how you can get involved

Wish List

Our Mission Duke Children’s is committed to achieving and maintaining a standard of excellence in all we do. Most importantly, we consistently strive to make the patient experience a model of quality care through advanced treatment, compassionate support and full family participation and communication.

Our mission is to provide:

Your options for supporting Duke Children’s are as varied as the children we treat. You can give a gift today. Or, you can plan a transformational gift to underwrite research that could lead to a cure, fund a program to enhance patient quality-of-life or lay the foundation for future endeavors.

No matter which route you take, we will work with you to ensure that your generosity makes a difference in the lives of our young patients and their families.

For more information on making a gift to Duke Children’s, please visit giving.dukechildrens.org/waysto-give.

Signature Events

•

Excellence in the clinical care of infants and children

•

Innovation in basic and applied research

•

Leadership in the education of health care professionals

•

Advocacy for children’s health

giving.dukechildrens.org/

•

Patient and family centered care

events/over-the-edge

•

The Duke Children’s Gala giving.dukechildrens.org/ events/duke-childrens-gala

•

Over the Edge for Duke Children’s

•

The MIX 101.5 Radiothon for Duke Children’s giving.dukechildrens.org/ events/radiothon

Background

Brag Lines

Duke Children’s serves patients in the Triangle and

As a major pediatric teaching hospital, Duke

beyond and strives to provide the highest quality

Children’s educates tomorrow’s leading physicians

care through advanced treatment, compassionate

and researchers. As one of the largest southeastern

support, and full family participation. Duke

pediatric providers, Duke Children’s addresses health

Children’s is recognized for its clinical programs,

equity through clinical service, research, education

research initiatives, educational opportunities

and community engagement. Duke Children’s

for medical students, residents, and fellows,

researchers and physicians are internationally

and strong advocacy efforts for children. Duke

recognized for ground-breaking discoveries, and

Children’s is affiliated with the Department of

remarkable advances have emerged from both

Pediatrics at Duke University School of Medicine.

laboratory studies and the investigation of new therapies in patients. Discoveries made here impact children around the world.

Get in Touch!

Websites: giving.dukechildrens.org dukehealth.org/dukechildrens

A NE W LOOK AT

DOWNTOWN A TRIP TO DOWNTOWN PITTSBORO CAN LAST A DAY AND THEN SOME, EVEN IF YOU LIVE ONLY BLOCKS AWAY

BY JOHN WELLS

PHOTOGRAPHY BY BETH MANN

S

itting at Blue Dot Coffee, it’s easy for me to feel like a tourist in my own backyard. I live just a few blocks away, and part of why I love Pittsboro is because it feels so familiar and inviting every time I walk over to Hillsboro Street,

Jacques and Wendy Dufour have been selling eclectic collectibles for two decades at French Connections.

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DOWNTOWN PITTSBORO

A CONTINUING CARE RETIREMENT COMMUNITY

whether it’s for a coffee and a treat, for dinner or to shop.

I’ve begun to notice that downtown is downright bustling with creativity, business and history.

As quaint a town as Pittsboro undeniably is, it’s surprisingly challenging to narrow down a “must-do” list. I recently realized that a day trip to Pittsboro requires at least four mornings of breakfasts. The lemon ricotta hotcakes

LIVE MOR E

Can you actually savor your next move?

Retirement living that offers more remains the guiding principle behind Carolina Meadows.

Six well-appointed venues offer dining that ranges from casual to gourmet, all serving delectable, healthy and locally-sourced goodness. Each offers an environment calculated to nourish the body and stimulate the spirit.

MO RE F L AVORS .

“We have so many choices for dining, a marvelous chef and a superb staff that serves and orchestrates it all.”

—Karl

1-800-458-6756 www.carolinameadows.org Carolina Meadows offers the EQUITY ADVANTAGETM

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DOWNTOWNERS Maria Parker-Lewis and her husband, Greg Lewis, opened The Pittsboro Roadhouse in 2012, moving from Cary to Chatham. Maria is a driving force in the revitalization of downtown, serving as president of Main Street Pittsboro. She’s helped bring innovative new events to Hillsboro Street, like Local on Main.

The group is also working to open a Chatham County Welcome Center in a former bank building on the Pittsboro circle. “We want the Welcome Center to be a source of information for visitors and locals, a chance to really get to know our community through businesses, information and other activities,” Maria says. Along with brochures, there are plans for “a walking tour of historic downtown Pittsboro, and even an interactive mural [via a smartphone app] on the north-facing wall of the center,” she adds. The center will “support Pittsboro and Chatham County’s continuing cultural vitality in a way that reaches out to visitors and welcomes residents.”

MEDLIN-DAVIS CLEANERS PRESENTS

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Briar Chapel Governors Club

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Convenient! You don’t even need to be home.

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Green, environmentally friendly cleaning process.

We offer dry-cleaning, laundry, wash dry fold, rug cleaning, pillow renovation and much more!

Online at: medlindavis.com Email: ballan@medlindavis.com Call: (919) 480-7943

DOWNTOWN PITTSBORO

DOWNTOWNERS Jacques Dufour and Wendy Dufour import unique fabrics, gifts and home décor as the owners of French Connections. Open since 2000, the shop’s can’t-miss lawn displays – with dozens of colorful, eye-catching metal sculptures laid out at the top of Hillsboro Street – are a famous part of downtown’s streetscape.

Jacques says he’s “seen a lot,” including a lull in the mid-2000s when many stores closed. “Fortunately, we don’t see many boarded windows anymore,” Jacques says.

Pittsboro, he says, has become an arts destination that “has put us on the map.”

“The town’s gone through a positive transformation,” he says. “There’s more being offered, more variety, which makes for a more vibrant experience throughout the town.”

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at Small B&B and Cafe are a local classic.

But then again, you want to share the home cooking and generous portions at Virlie’s Grill (along with Al’s Diner, just outside of downtown). But you also can’t miss The Phoenix Bakery or Willy’s Cinnamon Rolls Etc. (forget everything you thought you knew about those gooey treats).

But what about the end of the day?

It’s a wonderful idea to plan an evening downtown, of course, but you might never leave Salisbury Street. You could start with a wine tasting at Vino!! Wine Shop, catch a fun show with an all-kid cast at Sweet Bee Theater, then indulge in a multi-course gourmet seafood dinner at Postal Fish Company and a nightcap with live music at The City Tap

DOWNTOWN PITTSBORO

TARHEEL GETAWAYS

By Land or By Sea

We’re your One Stop Shop for your Vacation Needs!

Have travel questions? Ready to book your next trip? Call us! tarheelgetaways.com • 984.234.5099 • Pittsboro, NC

WHY JOIN

SNAP

Local on Main, a unique dinner event down the center of Hillsboro Street, hosts more than 200 diners with farmto-table dishes. This year’s is May 17.

(or, poke around the corner for a sundae at S&T’s Soda Shoppe). With that itinerary, you’ll cover a whole night, but only a few hundred yards.

For an afternoon’s worth of shopping, just cross the intersection of Hillsboro and Thompson Streets a few times. Loose Leaf Botanicals, a tea and gift shop, is a delightful new addition right next door to Circle City Books & Music, where you can spend hours browsing music and titles. Just across the street, Elizabeth’s Pizza

INDUSTRY’S BEST FITNESS EQUIPMENT

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PITTSBORO / CHATHAM

Conveniently located next to Lowes Home Improvement. pittsboronc@snapfitness.com / snapfitness.com/pittsboronc

APRIL / MAY 2020

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DOWNTOWN PITTSBORO

New Horizons Downtown owners Catherine McLeod and Sara McLeod.

The clothing and lifestyle store has a second branch on West Street.

PRESERVING THE PAST, DESIGNING THE FUTURE. Thank you for voting for us as your Favorite Architect!

IN THE HEART OF HISTORIC PITTSBORO 159 W. SALISBURY STREET I PITTSBORO NC

919.545.2004

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remains a true local favorite, with pizza by the slice or a full pie, plus a menu loaded with Italian favorites.

As you head down Hillsboro toward the Historic Chatham County Courthouse, you hit Pittsboro’s “style row.” New Horizons Downtown and Screaming for Vintage have every fashionable look covered, while two galleries – Liquidambar Gallery & Gifts and The Joyful Jewel – are hubs for local artists, the latter with a live music room.

And the courthouse circle is where old truly meets new. Inside the courthouse is the Chatham Historical Museum, which features exhibits and archives of where we’ve been. But right across the street, a former bank branch is being refitted as a new Chatham County Welcome Center by the downtown business group Main Street Pittsboro.

Maria Parker-Lewis, who with her husband, Greg Lewis, runs The Pittsboro Roadhouse, is the group’s president.

“We see the space as an opportunity to promote economic vitality and showcase what Chatham County has to offer,” she says.

The Roadhouse remains a staple of downtown food and music, along with The Modern Life Deli & Drinks, just steps away. Both unveiled new spaces and renovations in the last year. And this spring, a whole new kind of business – Perch Coworking – will open an office next to M2 Graphics. CM

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NORTH CAROLINA

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FRENCH CONNECTIONS A unique market of Interior decor, gifts and fabrics from France and Africa with yard art from Mexico.

178 Hillsboro St, Pittsboro, NC 919-545-9296 •  Like Us

www.french-nc.com

Local on Main: PBO’s Farm & Art Dinner

Pittsboro Blooms in Spring & Circle City Art Loop Summer Friday, April 3 Dine S

oll Str

To purchase your tickets at $103 each, point your smartphone’s camera at this QR code or enter the URL below it into your browser.

Proceeds benefit Main Street Pittsboro and will help continue our mission of revitalizing Pittsboro’s historic downtown district.

MainStreetPittsboro.org

p Sip Savor ho

You’re invited to join us to celebrate small family farms, culinary creativity, and visual and performing arts at Local on Main: PBO’s Farm & Art Dinner on Sunday, May 17th. Enjoy ingredients from 20+regional farms, dishes from 10 local chefs, and art from local musicians and creatives.

First Sunday Artisan Fair * Sunday, April 5 Circle City Art Loop Friday, May 1 First Sunday Artisan Fair * Sunday, May 3 Local on Main Dinner Sunday, May 17 Circle City Art Loop Friday, June 5 First Sunday Artisan Fair * Sunday, June 7 Circle City Art Loop Friday, July 3 Summer Fest * * Coordinated by Sunday, July 5 ShopPittsboro.com

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Women of

ACHIEVEMENT NOW IN ITS THIRD YEAR, THIS ISSUE HONORS THE WOMEN IN OUR COMMUNITY WHO ARE EXEMPLARY IN THEIR FIELDS, FROM HEALTH CARE TO THE ARTS TO SOCIAL JUSTICE AND BEYOND

BY MATT WHITE

ysandra Weber worked in a corporate

Lysandra WEBER

OWNER/DESIGNER,GEEKCHICFASHION

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marketing department for 12 years before she got fed up with searching in vain for office clothes that were both flattering and comfortable.

“I have a very hourglass [shaped] body,” she says. “I just wanted comfortable skirts.” She launched geekchicfashion in 2014 with a vision of creating professional styles that were modern, comfortable and confidence-boosting. “I understand how fashion affects how women feel about themselves,” Lysandra says.

APRIL / MAY 2020

PHOTOGRAPHY BY BETH MANN

Lysandra makes all of geekchicfashion’s clothes by hand in her home studio just outside of Pittsboro. She focuses on edgy and unique styles that follow current fashion trends but give a discreet wink to her own “inner geek,” with ideas inspired by science and math. “It’s called ‘geekchic’ because all of the styles have a subtle geekiness to them,” she says. The “Summation Skirt” features brightly colored plus signs while the “Bioluminescence Skirt” has splashes of bright color inspired by the natural phenomenon of living creatures that glow in the dark. “I keep it a little nerdy,”

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THE WOMEN'S ISSUE

Lysandra says. “If you wore it and didn’t understand any of that stuff, it would still look modern and cute, and you’d feel good in it.” To fit bodies of all shapes, she uses jersey fabric, the same form-fitting material found in some yoga pants. “I wanted to create a brand that would fit a lot of sizes.”

A Michigan native, Lysandra moved to Pittsboro in 2010 with her husband, Adam, while she attended UNC’s KenanFlagler Business School. “We found a community to belong to,” Lysandra says, “both for me, [artistically], and for our family.” Her studio is lined with racks of clothing and sewing machines around a large cutting table, where she measures and cuts her designs. In the corner is her desk where she keeps journals full of ideas. Sometimes her kids – Astrid, 4, and Calvin, 6 – visit the studio, though she tries to keep business and family time separate. “The reality is, if the skirt doesn’t get made, the world doesn’t end,” she says. “I try not to come into [the studio] after I pick up my kids because I want to be present.”

She spends most weekends on the road. One weekend, she might be at Durham’s Patchwork Market or CenterFest. On another, she’s in Chicago for Show of Hands, a major craft show for handmade products. She has a trip planned soon to the Essence Festival in New Orleans. Customers who like what they see often come back through her website, she says.

Eventually, Lysandra says, she’d like to expand to work with a manufacturer but won’t lose sight of her mission. “I hope to continue the conversation and the mind shift in women about how we think about ourselves,” she says. “I want to show people through my business that anybody can wear whatever they want and feel amazing about it.” – by Lindsay Rusczak 40

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Lucy KURZ

PEDIATRIC TRANSPORT RESPIRATORY THERAPIST, CAROLINA AIR CARE Lucy joined UNC Hospitals in 1995 in the neonatal and pediatric intensive care unit.

Shortly after, she learned about Carolina Air Care and began working for the emergency air and transport agency as a respiratory therapist. She has lived in Pittsboro since 1999 with her husband, Jim, a physician at North Chatham Pediatrics and Internal Medicine, and their four children: Tyler, 19, John, 17, CJ, 16, and Marissa, 14. John is a senior at Northwood High School, CJ a junior, and Marissa is in eighth grade at Margaret B. Pollard Middle School.

M

onitors blinking, flashing screens, worried faces and blades pounding the air – chuff, chuff, chuff – so loud that it engulfs your thoughts.

It’s difficult to stay calm in a situation that involves any type of emergency transportation when you’re an adult – imagine the same scenario for a child, one who needs to be airlifted on a helicopter.

For the many gravely sick children whose lives depend on a rapid flight to a hospital by Carolina Air Care, there is one voice helping them ignore all the noise: Lucy Kurz’s. “Baaay-beeee shark, doo doo doo doo doo doo,” she sings the widely popular kids’ song. “Baby shark, doo doo doo doo doo doo.”

As a pediatric respiratory specialist, Lucy flies or rides in ambulances every week with children who are chronically sick, keeping them breathing and calm on the way to a hospital and, ultimately, helping them get back home to their families. As a mother of four, Lucy understands how those kids and their parents feel.

THE WOMEN'S ISSUE

Lucy transports patients on both helicopters and ambulances.

She sometimes flies dozens of times a month.

“I can put myself in the parents’ shoes and empathize with them even more,” she says. “If that was my kid, you know, how would I want them consoled by somebody in the back of a helicopter?”

No matter the situation, she remains composed. There’s even a smile in her eyes.

“You learn over time to be in the moment with a patient,” she says. “You

have to set your feelings aside from what’s going on, because you have to be focused. Deal with the urgent situation.

Our kids are really, really sick.”

One flight from a few years ago sticks with her: A critically ill infant, who was in the middle of a seemingly endless series of tests, procedures and treatments, needed an emergency transport. The baby, she says, had been through “the most [an] ICU can do for somebody” but remained in a dire condition. As Lucy flew with the child, she kept the baby on a lastditch life support procedure known as extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, or ECMO, which bypasses a patient’s failing lungs by directly oxygenating their blood outside the body.

A month later, Lucy was again on the pediatric floor after transporting another child to the hospital. She and her partner dropped off their patient, and then walked past a room with a last name they recognized.

“We kind of peeked in, and the mom [of the baby] was in there,” Lucy says.

“She immediately recognized us, hugged us and thanked us. Wanted us to hold the baby and took our picture with the baby.

“We both felt awesome about that,” she says. “That’s what makes it all worthwhile is when you can actually see that you’re helping. A lot of people will say, ‘I don’t understand how you can deal with all those sick babies and kids.

Doesn’t that make you sad?’” Lucy says.

“You don’t want to think of anybody’s baby or child being that sick, but I think of it as though I’m helping them. ... And I’m helping them get back to how a baby or child should be.

“I try to do what parents would want to have done for their child.”

– by Hannah Lee 

APRIL / MAY 2020

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Melissa FOGARTY

MEDICAL ASSISTING PROGRAM DIRECTOR/ LEAD INSTRUCTOR, CENTRAL CAROLINA COMMUNITY COLLEGE Born in Charlotte, Melissa moved here in 1989 and has been an educator at Chatham’s only community college for nearly two decades. She has three children: Erin, Kayla and Justin; and three grandchildren, Astrid, 1, Luke, 4, and Evelynn, 5. Melissa often stops into The Phoenix Bakery and S&T’s Soda Shoppe; she has fond memories of bringing her youngest child, Erin, to S&T’s after cheerleading competitions. Melissa and her husband, Dale, will celebrate their 25th anniversary this summer.

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in 1998 and continues to teach medical classes in the new building, which is located just outside Briar Chapel. She is also quick to jump into the classroom to help with the many skills taught in the building, from practicing inserting IVs to entral Carolina Community College’s exam room procedures. recently opened Chatham Health An extension of the college’s main Sciences Center was so new in its Chatham campus in Pittsboro, the center first few weeks of classes that its provides classes in medical requirements location was not showing up on Google like anatomy, physiology, microbiology Maps – one of many hiccups Melissa and laboratory procedures.

Fogerty had to solve as the facility’s first Being a member of the CCCC on-site director. Melissa’s been in charge community feels like being a part of a of the new campus since it opened family, Melissa says, and the campus is in January, with duties ranging from “developing [their] new family” as they teaching classes to prepping budgets to continue to get to know one another. filling in driving directions for visitors Community colleges across the country when Google fails. have seen growth in recent years as Melissa certainly knows her way students look for specialized training around CCCC, the community college and cheaper alternatives to four-year with campuses in Chatham, Lee and schools. The new campus is part of Harnett counties. She’s worked at CCCC’s reaction to that wave. “We the school for 19 years grew where we needed to and has no intention of grow, we changed when leaving. “If they’ll allow we needed to change, we “Melissa brings a wealth of me to stay, I plan to stay,” evolved to the times,” knowledge and she says.

Melissa says. leadership to When CCCC announced She’s ready to continue her role,” says Lisa Baker, the it was building a medicalher work within her new dean of CCCC’s focused campus, Melissa leadership role, though Health Sciences and Human knew she’d be a good fit, her heart remains attached Services having taught medical to teaching. “I love the program. “She assistance and other health interactions that we get to has already hit the ground skills her whole career. have with our students,” running.”

She believes she was also Melissa says. “Watching chosen to be the building’s them blossom from being director for her work ethic scared to death that first and because she is “detail day of school to graduating oriented, very organized.” and the level of confidence She has worked on five that they gain. That makes CCCC campuses since work a lot easier.” graduating from the school – by Sterling Roberts 

C

APRIL / MAY 2020

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43

THE WOMEN'S ISSUE Jaycee Sansom, 17, who lives in Pittsboro, was drawn to CSSE for

its smaller learning environment.

The school provided Jaycee the chance to take courses like advanced physics, calculus and differential equations. “[This program] is better suited for me and how I want to advance than a regular high school would’ve been,” she says. “I’ve always been interested in making stuff and trying to improve the world.

Computers have always been a hobby for me. I’ve never really wanted to do anything other than work with computers.” She has already been accepted to her “dream college,” UNC, and plans to study computer science.

Jaycee SANSOM Bella OCAMPO Molly HUX Stephanie HELBERT

CHATHAM SCHOOL OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING, CLASS OF 2020 44

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“[CSSE] does a very good job of being inclusive,” says Bella Ocampo, 17, who lives in Siler City. “I feel like I’m able to be myself and speak up for myself.” Bella, who lives in Siler City, has always been driven to get ahead, and CSSE was a perfect fit. “It was growing up very quickly and having to be mature,” she says, “this school has made me better at adapting to change.” Bella is still waiting to hear back from both some instate and out-of-state colleges.

Wherever she ends up, she plans to major in economics, minor in Latino studies and attend law school to become an immigration lawyer. “It’s a personal matter, and it would be very fulfilling for me.”

Four years ago, Chatham middle school students were given the opportunity to opt out of traditional high school and enroll instead at the new Chatham School of Science and Engineering (CSSE).

Forgoing a big campus experience, they would concentrate on STEMfocused academics, spend their freshman and sophomore years in a small school building in Siler City and their junior and senior years taking classes at Central Carolina Community College in Pittsboro, completing an associate degree. This spring, the four girls pictured here at CCCC – along with classmate Annabelle Crook of Pittsboro – will be the school’s first female graduates.

APRIL / MAY 2020

Molly Hux,

17, was looking for a challenge and wanted to be surrounded by kids who took school as seriously as she does.

She found both at CSSE. “There’s been a lot of empowerment and definitely a lot of encouragement for us,” she says. “It feels good to be completing goals and graduating [while also] being a female and setting ways for other girls to have a role model.”

Molly, who lives in Apex, hasn’t picked a college yet, but knows she wants to study philosophy and go on to law school.

Stephanie Helbert, 17,

THE WOMEN'S ISSUE

chose CSSE to get a head start on college. “It means a lot to me to be one of the first graduating girls because a lot of the misconceptions about women in science can be disproved.”

Stephanie, who lives in North Chatham, hopes to attend N.C. State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine. She also plans to study psychology, which she says she discovered at CSSE. “Developmental psychology is my favorite class because I’ve gotten to speak my mind.”

– by Anna Elsasser 

APRIL / MAY 2020

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Jill EHRENFELD

FOUNDER, BOLD REAL ESTATE Jill is the top-selling real estate agent in Chatham and Orange counties. Born in Pittsburgh, she spent two decades working at investment management company Federated Investors but came to Chapel Hill when her sons attended UNC. “They both notified me that they were not moving back to Pittsburgh,” she says. “That was basically a gotcha.”

J

doesn’t call herself a wine expert, but she knows what she likes – “cabs,” or cabernets, she says, without hesitation – and she has an enviable collection in her Governors Club home.

“I was very, very lucky,” she says.

After selling a couple’s home near her own, her client wanted to thin down a 500-bottle collection, some of which were worth hundreds of dollars. For about half the stock, “He said, ‘I’m going to make you an offer you can’t refuse,’” Jill recalls. “‘I’m going to charge you 20 bucks a bottle.’”

Jill laughs. Of her own wines, she says, “my most expensive bottle was 25 bucks!”

That story is about wine but also about making a deal, which for Jill is a second nature reflex, honed over a 19-year corporate career and parlayed in the last decade into her position as Chatham’s top-selling real estate agent as the owner of Bold Real Estate, according to the Triangle Business Journal. Jill sold homes worth a total of $28 million in 2018, the eighth highest in the Triangle and the most in Chatham and Orange counties. She started her real estate career in 2005 as 46

ill Ehrenfeld

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her sons, Chris and Brian Ehrenfeld, began careers as homebuilders. Chris owns Bold Construction and Brian owns BuildEx. Jill grew Domicile Realty, purchasing Governors Club Realty in 2012. Today, she lists about six out of every 10 sales in Governors Club. (Domicile changed its name to Bold in January.)

The story about stumbling into an enviable wine collection, she says, takes her mind back to growing up in Pittsburgh’s Little Italy, where her father – a cement mason who immigrated to the

APRIL / MAY 2020

THE WOMEN'S ISSUE

U.S. at 18 – made his own wine in their basement.

“He would buy boxes and boxes of grapes,” Jill says. “He made it in a wooden [wine press]. I still have that in my garage. The whole house would smell like [cabernet]. Then in a couple of years, we would have really good vinegar.”

Carlo and Mafelda Giammarco spoke only Italian with their four children, of whom Jill was the youngest. And whatever success Jill has now, she says, traces back to them.

“Really strong family values and work ethic,” Jill says. “Every day was hard work; every meal was a homemade meal.

Our clothes were all homemade clothes.

It was very different than what you have today. When you jump into the present, it’s hard to believe.”

After college, Jill got married and taught in a public school until she had Chris and Brian. Leaving a job to care for kids at home, she says, was typical of the time.

“You just sort of quit work,” she says.

“That was part of it.” She spent the next seven years raising her sons, and then looked for work again. She found she had a knack for sales and public speaking, thanks to years of teaching. Those skills led her to Federated Investors, a giant Pittsburgh-based investment firm, where she was soon teaching techniques to the firm’s overwhelmingly male sales staff.

She was well prepared.

“I taught high school seniors,” Jill says. “In English Lit. And they give you Shakespeare to teach to them because nobody has money for books. You better be damn good, you know?”

She spent nearly 20 years at Federated and is often asked about breaking a “glass ceiling.” She laughs. “Honey, it wasn’t glass,” she says. “It was a cement ceiling.”

– by Matt White

Edna VILLASENOR & Gloria MALDONADO

Edna and Gloria both work as domestic violence victim advocates; Edna for the county-run Chatham Family Violence Prevention Services, Gloria for the Siler City Police Department.

Gloria came to North Carolina from California and found her way into domestic violence advocacy through volunteer work with her church. Edna worked with the Family Violence & Rape Crisis Services in Pittsboro until it closed in 2018.

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ADVOCATES

E

began working for Chatham dna Villasenor

Family Violence Prevention Services six

years ago, helping women experiencing domestic abuse file protective orders, connect with community services and find emergency transportation and housing. She soon met Gloria Maldonado, an advocate for domestic violence victims for the Siler City Police Department, who would refer women to Edna for assistance. The two forged a friendship around their advocacy work, and together formed a support group in early 2019 in Siler City for Latinas and Hispanic women dealing with domestic violence.

A year later, the group generally draws close to a dozen women.

They meet in a private location, and the members talk openly with one another over dinner. Child care is provided at each meeting.

Gloria and Edna guide the sessions, but the participants lead the conversations. 

PHOTO BY ANDREA & MARCUS PHOTOGRAPHY

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“One of my goals is to see women go walking on their own and not be scared ...” Gloria says, “[so they can] walk forward to continue with their lives.”

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“We want to create a safe space for clients to come and talk and feel supported and not judged,” Edna says.

“We also want them to trust our program and trust law enforcement.”

The women who attend have different cases but share similar struggles.

They are also all Latina. All sessions are in Spanish.

According to the Census, Hispanics and Latinos make up less than a fifth of Chatham County’s population but close to half of Siler City’s. According to Siler City Police Chief Mike Wagner, women in the Hispanic community can face additional hardships when confronting domestic violence. Navigating law enforcement channels, he says, is difficult for any woman, as they worry about child care, jobs, household income and other factors.

But, the chief says, a language barrier can make finding aid more difficult.

Edna and Gloria say their support group allows these women to talk about their cases and how to spot signs of abuse. The members are also connected to resources that assist them in obtaining restraining orders and legal services. It is a refuge, and Gloria says she wouldn’t hesitate to contact the police at any time during meetings to ensure the women there are safe.

Gloria says several women have opened up about their cases and that they are no longer afraid or ashamed. She admires their strength and wants to help empower them to no longer be seen as victims.

Gloria and Edna hope the group can expand and establish partnerships with community resources. Gloria would also like to bring in counselors and therapists to speak to the members.

“They are strong,” Gloria says.

“They just need someone to stand beside them and tell them they can do it.”

– by Ava Eucker APRIL / MAY 2020

Cheryl CHAMBLEE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CHATHAM ARTS COUNCIL

In eight years under Cheryl’s leadership, the Chatham Arts Council has grown into one of the area’s defining nonprofits, with a year-round slate of festivals, outreach and in-school programming. After graduating from Duke University with theater and sociology degrees in 1997, Cheryl worked with the Harris Theater for Music and Dance in Chicago and co-founded her own theater company, Both Hands. She returned to North Carolina in 2002.

C

heryl Chamblee believes that art fills a

fundamental human need – the need to be seen.

As the executive director of the Chatham Arts Council, she’s spearheaded a program that brings local artists into schools. It has produced transformative moments, like when a hard-to-reach child connects with an artist.

“Principals and teachers alike have come up to me or to an artist after residency, tears running down their faces, saying, ‘How did you know that kid has never been seen by his peers or his teachers in a positive light? There [are] so many struggles that that kid has,’” Cheryl says. “‘How did you know that was the kid who needed to be pulled up on the stage?’”

It’s those moments Cheryl cherishes.

Her own introduction to the arts dates back to her elementary school in Raleigh, when her class put on a performance of “Babes in Toyland.”

“I was in second grade, and I can still remember it,” Cheryl says. “I remember my costume. I remember what it felt like to be proud of myself for doing something in front of other people.”

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Cheryl took over as the council’s executive director in 2012, just as the organization reached a crossroads. It had long sponsored local artists and festivals but wanted to explore new avenues of outreach. After a two-year retooling, Cheryl led the council’s reboot in 2014 with the primary goals of investing in artists and getting the arts represented in Chatham schools.

The Artists-in-Schools initiative does just what the name implies – local artists perform and teach workshops at area schools. It began in just two schools in its first year of implementation; in the 201920 school year, the program will reach 13 public elementary schools. Exposure to the arts, Cheryl believes, has benefits that extend to multiple facets of education.

Students involved in the arts are four times more likely to be recognized for academic achievement and three times more likely to run for class office. Cheryl says the goal is to reach all Chatham schools by 2025.

Cheryl also fortified ClydeFEST, a festival centered around the work of Bynum folk artist Clyde Jones, and introduced a “Meet This Artist” series online.

Outside of her work with the council, Cheryl started One Broken Teapot, a productivity consulting business aimed at artists and nonprofit leaders. Through that, she ran “The Letters Project”: after participants filled out a questionnaire, Cheryl wrote a short story once a week based on one of their responses and shared it with the entire group.

At its core, The Letters Project reflects what Cheryl does best: use artistic measures to help people know they are seen and linked to one another.

“People feeling connected to other people, that can save the world,” Cheryl says. “That means art can save the world, right?” – by Cam Edson  APRIL / MAY 2020

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A

Amy Blank WILSON

ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, UNC SCHOOL OF SOCIAL WORK

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Amy moved to Briar Chapel in 2014 from Cleveland, Ohio, to take a position as an assistant professor at the UNC School of Social Work. Within a year, she received the school’s Proposal Development Award. She became an associate professor last year, and in February, she was appointed by the UNC Board of Governors as the Prudence F. and Peter J. Meehan Early Career Distinguished Scholar in the School of Social Work. She and her husband, Matt, have two children: Zack, 14, and Grace, 11, who attend Margaret B. Pollard Middle and Perry Harrison Elementary, respectively.

APRIL / MAY 2020

my Wilson could

have chosen another life. One as a licensed attorney, meticulously reading and rereading case files in a courtroom.

One preaching and guiding others to their own salvation, like her father, a minister. One educating the next generation, like her mother, a teacher.

Instead, she’s researching in and around the concrete walls of several prisons – it’s still a job designed around helping others, sure, but it’s her version.

“Living a life of service is not something new to me,” Amy says.

Attending to prisoners with mental illnesses has been her life’s work for almost two decades. Her scholarly articles on mental health in the prison system have been published in 30 academic journals and cited hundreds of times. In 2018, UNC recognized her as a Thorp Faculty Engaged Scholar, awarding her $10,000 to fund her efforts for two more years.

It’s a career that’s driven by a desire for change, from her time as a foster care worker after college to her role as a parole officer, monitoring former convicts as they navigate their newfound freedom.

“We have a system that has let people down time and time again – people with mental illness, anyway,” Amy says.

“They have no hope. And if you don’t have hope, then you’re not going to be able to withstand the pressures of life to try something different. If we can’t come through with basic things like food and clothing, shelter, on that first day of release ...” she trails off, frustrated with the results she’s seen.

As a UNC School of Social Work professor, she strives to teach that lesson to her five doctoral students who accompany her during long, detailed

THE WOMEN'S ISSUE

interviews with prisoners, which she calls a “structured cognitive behavioral intervention.” Her goal is to understand the prisoners’ way of thinking and, hopefully, to reshape their feelings about reentry into society. The question always at the forefront of Amy’s mind is: How do we provide the support that people with mental illnesses need to live successfully in the community?

Believing there were few good answers to that question, Amy built her own: She launched Tiny Homes Village at the Farm at Penny Lane – 15 affordable homes for people with mental illnesses on a fixed income – in 2017 with colleague Thava Mahadevan of the UNC School of Medicine.

That summer, Amy hosted nine eligible renters for overnight visits at the project’s first completed house, so they could understand the vision.

She remembers one man who was in disbelief: What it would mean to him to have a living room to just ... sit. His own kitchen. A porch, fresh air. A bedroom, not a crevice under a bridge. This house could soon be a neighborhood for people like him. And, for one night, this would be his home.

“I would do anything to have something like this,” he told Amy, holding back tears.

“Being able to have a voice, national discourses, doing work that people point to as models that others want to use, I’m coming [around] more and more to understanding the privilege,” Amy says. “It’s a lot of hard work, and there’s some luck in there. I owe a lot to the people who have helped me, especially in terms of people who’ve participated in my research. I make sure that I honor them and do the work to push it forward.” – by Hannah Lee

A

Mary WALLACE FORMER MAYOR

& Robyn ALLGOOD ENTREPRENUER

Mary was the first woman to serve as mayor of Pittsboro, capping a 13-year career on the town’s Board of Commissioners in the 1970s and 1980s. Robyn, Mary’s daughter, owns several businesses and spearheads children’s charity Jamie’s Vision, which she founded from her own commitment to public service – a trait she says she learned from watching her mom.

ll Mary Wallace wanted to do was be in the game.

Growing up just outside Moncure, she attended the town’s small school and was one of the star players on its basketball team. But for her senior year, she switched to the larger (now closed) Pittsboro High School.

“I had played since I was a freshman,” Mary says. “I just knew when I got to Pittsboro, I wouldn’t have a position.”

But she started every game, which gave her a front-row seat for a major leap forward in girls’ basketball: Through her junior year, girls in North Carolina played a half-court version of the game, with just two players allowed to run the full court while other players remained on one end.

But her last year, Mary says, girls played the same game as the boys.

It’s a metaphor that’s followed Mary: Whenever opportunities for women began to expand in Pittsboro – on the basketball court, in politics and in business – Mary Wallace was in the game.

In the early 1970s, she opened Mary’s Hairstyling just off Pittsboro’s traffic circle.

By the end of the decade, she was on the town’s Board of Commissioners and, by the mid-1980s, she was the first woman to serve as mayor.

Mary’s daughter, Robyn Allgood, says, Pittsboro women knew where to take their

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opinions. “Back then, ladies got their hair done once a week,” she says. “They got it washed and teased up.” If they had thoughts on local politics, Robyn says, “she was right there in the courthouse circle with the beauty shop, so most of the time they just went in there.”

During her time as a commissioner, the town adopted development plans and built infrastructure, like a new water plant, launching decades of growth. Still, Mary says, she kept an eye out for residents for whom the boom did few favors.

“We had such a small town and such a small budget that it was very difficult to do a lot, but I think we accomplished quite a bit,” Mary says. “One of the things that has really impressed me, even today, that we did, was approve Walnut Grove [Apartments].” The 40-unit complex for low-income seniors remains open today.

“Some people back then were a little hesitant because we had subsidized housing, and that doesn’t always turn out to be what you hope it will be,” Mary says.

“So many elderly people have gone there to live out their later years when they weren’t able to maintain a household.”

LIKE MOTHER, LIKE DAUGHTER Growing up as the daughter of a mayor was an early education in public service, Robyn says: “I remember one night in the middle of the night, somebody called, and their water was dirty. ... I guess they thought Mom was going to come fix it.

I always saw her doing things for others and serving her community.”

While volunteering with the local rescue squad, Robyn met firefighter Bill Allgood.

The two have been married for 23 years, together raising Bill’s daughter, Candice, and their own two children, Mary McKenzie and Montgomery. Drawn to work with kids, Robyn opened Robyn’s Nest Creative 52

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A special thank you to the Old Lystra Inn for the use of their property to photograph Amy, Jill, Robyn, Mary, Melissa and Lysandra.

Learning Center day care just south of

downtown in 2000. She also owns clothing store M2 Graphics on Hillsboro Street. And she spent countless hours volunteering as a booster parent at Northwood High School.

“There was a group of us that served together [on the booster club] for several years,” she says. “We decided we really wanted to do something that made a difference, and we wanted it to be geared toward children.”

In February 2017, Robyn founded Jamie’s Vision, a nonprofit focused on local children, in memory of her cousin Jamie Hipp Hinsley, who loved working with kids but passed away in 2017. The organization has raised more than $70,000 in its first three years, funding a range of outreach.

“Most of the time, the person in need is not the person who comes to us,” Robyn says. “Somebody else will tell us, ‘Did you hear about this little boy who needs help?’”

One of the group’s first projects was a fundraising campaign, Be A Warrior For Lily, which raised $6,000 in a day through donations at the Pittsboro traffic circle and a cornhole tournament at Carolina Brewery for a 9-month-old with cancer.

More recently, the group paid the rent and utilities for a Siler City family with a son facing cancer treatment. And last Thanksgiving, the group collected and donated 10 ready-to-cook turkey meals to each of Chatham’s 17 public schools, where staff members sent the meals home with families who were in need.

In all her projects, Robyn says, she is just following what she learned from Mary.

“I guess the foundation was laid growing up, by her,” Robyn says. “I really feel like maybe we don’t teach our younger generation that [lesson] like we should, but I can honestly say the family I grew up in always did things for others.” – by Matt White CM

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H O M E

&

G A R D E N

RIVER

RETRE AT THIS COUPLE HAD A RIVERSIDE LOT WITH A DREAM VIEW AFTER FINDING A SECLUDED PIECE OF LAND THAT OVERLOOKS THE HAW RIVER

BY MATT WHITE

PHOTOGRAPHY BY BETH MANN

A

fter selling a home in Chapel Hill in 2015, Kate Paradis and Scott Zimmerman thought about buying a vacation home.

“We decided to look along the Haw River for a house rather than a beach or mountain house,”

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APRIL / MAY 2020

PHOTO BY TZU CHEN PHOTOGRAPHY

APRIL / MAY 2020

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HOME & GARDEN

LEFT Kate stands by the courtyard patio and its infinity pool that overlooks the Haw River.

Kate says. “We wouldn’t use those houses often, and this would be close enough that our children wouldn’t feel like they were a world away.”

A home with a view of the Haw is one of Chatham’s most prized real estate parcels. The river – wide and broad enough to have once powered more than 40 textile mills as it passed through the county – has almost no waterfront development along its length. Scott, an attorney, soon found out why: the Haw is protected by a 100-foot riparian buffer that forbids disturbance for development.

Still, the pair was able to find a thin strip of land along a river bend a few miles north of the Haw River Bridge, where Highway 15-501 crosses the waterway. Scott met the owner and took a walking tour of the property, 56

CHATHAM MAGAZINE

APRIL / MAY 2020

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HOME & GARDEN

ABOVE The roof is convex to funnel rainwater into the two 5,000-gallon water tanks on either side of the house. BELOW Kate and Scott call their new home “Hawsome.”

Scott says, “We just can’t believe we’re living here.”

which was little more than a heavily wooded, long gravel driveway through undisturbed forest and trails.

“I walked it with this guy, and he gets to the end of the road and takes off into the trees,” Scott remembers. “I asked, ‘Where are you going?’ He said, ‘Where you’re going to build your house.’”

The hike into the woods ended atop a bluff that overlooked a series of rapids – the exact spot where, after 536 days of construction, Kate and Scott moved into the home early this year.

In 2017 the couple began working with Chapel Hill architect Arielle Condoret Schechter. Arielle’s final design produced a low-slung, light-filled, 2,700-square-foot home as unique as its views. Prior to construction, however, 58

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APRIL / MAY 2020

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HOME & GARDEN

ABOVE Kate and Scott are happy to finally be settled in their new home after more than 500 days of construction.

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huge rocks needed to be removed where the house was to be built and a completely custom-built home contributed to the lengthy construction timetable.

The property includes both a woodturning workshop for Scott and an art studio for Kate, who owns Galerie Pied-a-Terre art gallery in Carrboro.

The couple even have a word they use for their new home: “Hawsome.”

Much of the home’s exterior surface is either windows or a combination of wood and tan stucco, which helps the house blend into its environment. Much of the living room wall is dedicated to a 20-foot sliding glass door.

“That’s why we’re here, to look at the river,” Kate says. She jokes that, from the water, nobody will actually see

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HOME & GARDEN

their house: “Going down the rapids, people look straight ahead.”

To build the house, they enlisted Scott’s step-father, Bill Tate, who owns Village Building Company, and Scott’s sister, Laura Zimmerman Whayne, to oversee construction. The home’s plans outlined a place that would not only be an escape from workaday life, but also a place to detach, which extends to its utilities. They wanted a net-zero house that could be as much off the grid as practical.

The home has a 20-megawatt solar system and geothermal heating. The roof is convex, sloping inward from the edges, funneling rain to two 5,000-gallon water tanks on either side of the house. The rainwater system

could provide 100 days of water after just one or two big storms. They also have a well.

With just two bedrooms, it is a home designed almost exclusively to the specifications of Kate and Scott. The couple lives alone, but they often get visits from their grown kids. Kate’s daughter, Lili, lives in Durham with her daughter, Nina, 3 (Kate’s other daughter, Maggie, lives in New York City) while Scott’s sons, Matthew and Bradley, live 20 minutes away.

“Our kids are out of the house, which is why we built a relatively small home,” Scott laughs. “We tell them the extra bedroom is for parents or for grandchildren.” CM

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BELOW A view of the home from its backyard.

DENNIS AND CEE KOEHLER DIDN’T GO LOOKING FOR A CABIN IN THE WOODS, BUT THE ONE THEY FOUND IS NOW A GATHERING SPOT FOR THREE GENERATIONS OF FAMILY

D

BY MATT WHITE

PHOTOGRAPHY BY BETH MANN

and Cee Koehler moved into Briar Chapel in 2011, relocating from Georgia to be closer to Cee’s daughter, Ashley Freuler, who was pursuing a doctorate at UNC. “We had no intention of leaving there,” Dennis says.

But in late 2016, they got a call from Ashley, telling ennis

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HOME & GARDEN

LEFT The windows in the living room were repurposed from an exterior sliding door original to the house. RIGHT The wardrobe in the master bedroom was built from wood salvaged from the property. The harps on top were fashioned by Cee’s father.

them a property just down the road was for sale. Ashley and her husband, Aaron Freuler, live off Mount Olive Church Road with their three boys, Miles, 10, and twins Charlie and Porter, 6. The Freuler’s part of Chatham, off Highway 87, is only a 10-minute drive from Briar Chapel but feels a world away from that neighborhood’s manicured lawns and busy streets. Ashley believed the

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Dennis and Cee’s grandsons, Isaac, 10, Miles, 10, Charlie, 6, Porter, 6, and Jude, 8, play in the backyard.

property was just the kind of secluded spot that could be a family treasure.

“She said, ‘You gotta come see this,’” Dennis says. “It was a diamond in the rough.”

The hidden jewel that Ashley sent her dad to scope out was a cabin built from the frames of former tobacco shacks, connected and furnished into one home. The cabin sat on more than 5 acres of land near a small pond.

Dennis immediately pictured the home and the property as a perfect gathering spot for all three generations of their blended family. Besides the Freulers, Dennis’ son Justin and his wife, Emily Koehler, live in Cary and visit often with their sons, Isaac, 10, and Jude, 8. Dennis called Cee and told her, “I’m sold.”

The cabin, the couple soon learned, was previously owned by Jonathan Grumette, a local pioneer in the nowbooming business of recaptured hardwoods. Beginning in the 1980s, Jonathan prowled local forests looking for abandoned cabins and tobacco shacks. He would

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HOME & GARDEN

LEFT Justin and Emily above the kitchen, which was was the home’s living room before Cee and Dennis’ renovations.

RIGHT The master bedroom’s spot in the northwest corner of the home allows for great views without harsh morning light.

tear them down by hand and, from the lumber, cut boards for hardwood floors. Jonathan passed away in 2015, but his company, BABA Antique Wooden Floors, remains in Pittsboro, their specialty floors sought after by upscale home builders and designers across the country. The Koehlers purchased the property from Jonathan’s estate.

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The floors are also one of the few very areas of the home the Koehlers haven’t refurbished or redesigned since moving in. The Koehlers remodeled every room in the house, including a complete rebuild of the former living room into a modern kitchen. They also added several cosmetic improvements, like putting

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ABOVE LEFT This stone fireplace is original to the house and was the only source of heat for the former homeowner. ABOVE RIGHT The boys enjoy s’mores around the outdoor fire pit. “Cee and I sit out here every night with a glass of wine, when it’s warm,” Dennis says.

in a pergola. Though now a wellpolished gem, the building process was far from glamorous.

“We lived entirely in one bedroom and cooked off the grill,” Dennis says. “The [grandkids] thought it was the coolest.”

For family gatherings, they built a large fire pit, hung swings high in nearby trees and strung up an obstacle course. But they still left traces of the cabin’s heritage. When they arrived, they found a necklace with a cross pendant hanging in a bathroom. They left it in place when they redid the room. “We’ve tried to keep the novelty of the original house,” Dennis says. CM

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PHOTOGRAPHY BY BETH MANN

ust like Canterbury bells, forget-me-nots and hollyhocks, the two-day Chapel Hill Garden Tour blooms every other year. Even with the extra time between exhibitions, it takes a lot of finetuning and focus to produce each show. 

ABOVE This hydrangea is sensitive to the pH of the soil. It grows pink in alkaline soils and blue in soils that are more acidic. BELOW Carol named this small garden for its statue’s success in attracting birds.

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CHATHAM MAGAZINE

APRIL / MAY 2020

CHAPEL HILL GARDEN TOUR APRIL 25-26 The Chapel Hill Garden Club hosts its 13th biennial garden tour, drawing inspiration from diverse properties with views from hillside to lakeside. Tickets are $25 in advance and $35 on tour days. chapelhillgardenclub.net/2020-tour-home-page

APRIL / MAY 2020

CHATHAM MAGAZINE

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HOME & GARDEN

The 2020 “Vision & View” tour showcases the North Carolina Botanical Garden and five other private gardens, in addition to the McNeel Garden: PROTZMAN-BROWN GARDEN The Eastwood Lake garden surrounds a midcentury modern home, designed by architect Arthur Cogswell, with flower- and shrublined paths and a spectacular view of the water where it joins Cedar Fork Creek.

DUBOSE HOUSE GARDEN Explore the old-world elegance of the Georgian Revival-style garden tucked away near UNC’s Rizzo Center in Meadowmont.

PULMAN GARDEN This “Rocks Star” garden in Governors Club features a visionary use of rock, terracing and deerresistant planting on steep slopes.

RONALD MCDONALD HOUSE GARDEN The modern interior courtyard was designed and installed just two years ago by renowned landscape architect Chip Callaway. A lowmaintenance design across one acre, the garden acts as a serene oasis for guests of the House during difficult times.

BADDOUR GARDEN Former UNC athletic director Dick Baddour and his wife, Lynda Baddour, started lovingly building their colorful, high-contrast, multidimensional garden in 2011. Frostproof gardenia perfumes the ascent to an elevated deck wreathed with fragrant wisteria that overlooks the Baddours’ idyllic creation.

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That’s the job of the Chapel Hill Garden Club, which hosts the tour and helps maintain and educate others on community and public gardens. It was founded in 1931 and currently has about 130 members. In 2018, the tour attracted some 1,500 visitors from across the state. This year’s tour – dubbed “Vision & View” – previews seven gardens, stretching into Chatham County for the first time ever with two gardens in Governors Club.

“This is a huge scoop for the tour, as there are some spectacular gardens hidden behind the Governors Club gates,” says Tour Chair Gill Roberts.

“We have several Garden Club members who live there, and it is mainly due to their negotiation efforts with the property owners’ association that we have access.”

Master gardener and “tree collector” Carol McNeel – owner of the McNeel Garden on Archdale Drive – relishes pairing eclectic plants and artwork around her estate, which she believes is home to close to 100 different tree species.

“Our garden isn’t particularly organized,” Carol says. “I mean, it might look like it to some people, but it’s not. It’s not formal at all. If I see a hole in the soil, I plant something, and if it does well, fine.

And if it doesn’t, then I move it.”

APRIL / MAY 2020

Carol says she expects her garden to showcase close to 160 azalea bushes, 53 rhododendron plants and 19 camellias during the tour. The garden, which starts at the bottom of a wide, flat driveway, also features a greenhouse and an infinity pool. It also includes Carol’s whimsical touches. Visitors can try to spot little sprites, a cat sticking out from under a tree, a little man Carol calls “Flat Stanley” and other sculptures.

Even if you can’t tell a carnation from a chrysanthemum, those on the tour appreciate the opportunity to step into

private home gardens that reflects their owners’ personal vision.

“When you can get into somebody’s backyard, it satisfies an urge that we all have to see them,” says Gail Norwood, a former club president. “You know, what we can’t see from the street. You get in there, and you feel like you’re being shown something very special.” CM

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HOW DOES YOUR GARDEN

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How did you choose landscaping?

I kind of always knew what I wanted to do. Grandma and Granddad were farmers, and I was always with them in the summer, riding tractors and stuff. [Growing up in Virginia Beach, Virginia,] I worked in a garden center and nursery. I went to Virginia Tech to study horticulture.

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to focus on the residential side and stay out of the commercial side – focus on plants and people rather than businesses and money. It was a real clear choice. I love plants, and I’m fascinated by the science.

Whenever I get overwhelmed by dayto-day life, I take it back to square one and think about the plants.

For April and May, what’s good for planting? By April, you can pretty much do anything. You probably want to wait on tender annuals (vegetables or other frostprone plants). If you have tomato seedlings, you can put them in, but if you put them in [and] we get a frost, you have to think about covering them, so why not wait? By April 15 – by Tax Day – you can put out vegetable seedlings and most annuals.

And just because Lowe’s has it does not necessarily mean you should plant it. I buy a lot of things from Lowe’s in Pittsboro, but it might be a good idea to support your local garden center, and they’re generally a little later.

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HOME & GARDEN

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agent on speed dial. It’s a free service through N.C. State [University].

Sometime in May, you want to put a first application of fertilizer for [grasses like] Bermuda, zoysia and St. Augustine.

APRIL / MAY 2020

How about something people don’t think of planting that you love? A couple of my absolute favorites [are trees] that have four seasons of interest. Coral bark Japanese maples are absolutely a winner all the way around. And autumnalis cherry. It blooms in the spring and fall. [Both have] fall color and winter bark stems.

And all the new varieties of butterfly bushes. People say, “Oh, I don’t want those, they get to be 8 feet tall and flop over.” Now they have new varieti.es created by

HOME & GARDEN

[horticulturists] at N.C. State: the dwarf butterfly series. They offer something different. Like in Briar Chapel, where lawns are smaller than they used to be. You don’t have to have an 8-foot plant, you can have a 3-foot plant.

You know what I hate? Those Japanese beetles. Any advice?

Not a whole lot. Buy a beetle bag [trap], and hang it away from your lawn so they’ll go to your neighbors!

[Paige laughs.] The biggest thing is not to freak out. You can pick them off or shake the branch. Or you can use Safer soap or neem oil. The best thing about the oil is it’s organic. It’s not going to damage the plant. CM

Feels Like Family

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Located in The Veranda at Briar Chapel

58 Chapelton Court, Suite 120 Chapel Hill, NC 919.942.2922

APRIL / MAY 2020

www.dlcofchapelhill.com

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H O M E

‘ THE

&

G A R D E N

GHOSTS OF

NEW

’ HOPE

BY JENNINGS DIXON

Well, the hives are gone, I lost my bees Chickens are sleepin’ In the willow trees Cow’s in water up past her knees Three feet high and risin’ – Johnny Cash, “Five Feet High and Rising”

Jennings Dixon’s family roots trace to Edward and Mary Farrar, who in 1818 founded New Hope township – a community that was swallowed by the inundation of Jordan Lake in 1971. In this essay – abridged here – Jennings draws on his family’s history and long interviews with his grandmother, Jean Farrar. Before the flood, she and her husband, Thomas Farrar, physically moved their home two miles. Jean and Thomas eventually resettled in Harnett County.

Read the full essay at dialects.home.blog.

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I

know I’m close when I feel the bump in the road, and it starts to go uphill.

I look out over the fields of tobacco to a tall silo that always has a star at the top around Christmas, and then finally pull into Granny Jean’s yard.

Granny’s house is long and faded yellow, with five old rocking chairs and a swing on the porch.

Inside, she’s on her chair like usual.

Her hair is short and permed like it’s always been, and she’s watching Westerns on TV – “Gunsmoke” or “Bonanza.” I still can’t tell them apart. There’s an old piano against the wall with three copies of the same United Methodist hymnal sitting on top. Above the piano is a portrait of my mother, Suzanne, and her two brothers, taken many years before I was born.

I can smell that she’s already cooking lunch. Pork loin, Granny tells me. She asks

APRIL / MAY 2020

me to get the jar of green beans from the pantry to put on the stove and to not forget to put a piece of fatback in the pot for extra flavor. Granny bought the jar last weekend at the harvest sale at her church, which she’s attended for nearly 50 years, since she moved here.

Since she left Chatham County. Since they drowned her family farm – my family’s farm – under Jordan Lake.

Asking Granny about moving is taboo.

But if she’s sitting down watching a Western, sipping on her coffee, you can ease her into a conversation about it. I ask Granny why she likes watching Westerns so much. There is always a good guy and a bad guy, she says, and the good guy always wins. I wonder how many times that’s happened in her 85 years.

“I remember the day we sold the cows like it had happened last week. The sky was nice and blue that morning, and it was cool outside. There was a light breeze.

It was a terrible day. One of the worst days. Thomas had been in a car crash a few weeks before, and he was stuck [in a Chapel Hill hospital] while I had to be in control of the farm. We were still moving things, and we were growing new crops for the year, and it was tough not having him around. And then we had to sell the cows.

He would call me up every afternoon from the hospital on days when I couldn’t go up to visit him. Every time on that phone he would ask me the same question, ‘Have you sold those cows yet?’ And every time I told him I was just about to do so, but he knew that I wasn’t. He knew I didn’t want to sell those damn cows.

We had always been dairy farmers. But we weren’t in Chatham County anymore, we were in Harnett County, thanks to the lake that was putting our home under

water. And on this new farm of ours, we didn’t have the space.

I knew I had to do it before he got home. I waited and waited for those men to come up to take them cows away. They needed to do it quick, because the man with the hospital bed was also coming to install it for Thomas. And the ambulance needed to come by so I could lead them to Chapel Hill to bring Thomas home.

The men finally showed up and were all jackasses, the way they were herding those cows onto their trailers, with their hollering and yelling. It just about made me sick. It marked the end of our dairy farmer lives. I went back inside because I couldn’t look on anymore.

It was terrible. That was one of the biggest mistakes I made.”

When Edward Farrar and Mary H. Minter arrived in Chatham from Virginia in 1818, they settled in a wide valley five miles east of Pittsboro. They called their homestead “New Hope Valley” because that’s what they were looking for – a fresh start. They established a 350-acre dairy farm and, in 1827, founded a Methodist church, which today survives as Ebenezer United Methodist Church. The church still stands on the shores of Jordan Lake, where Edward and Mary’s descendants moved it 144 years later to escape the flood.

Born in 1944, Thomas Farrar – Papa Tom – was 6-foot-4, taller than anyone else in the family. He was a farmer, a Navy man, a husband, a father and a writer. He was kind-hearted and gentle but had an intimidating scar that trailed from his chin to the bottom of his neck.

When he was 8 or 9, Papa Tom had heard a train coming in the distance. Not living too far from the railroad, he ran to go catch up with it, but was stopped by a barbed wire fence.

Papa Tom grew up in the family home, built by his father, Roy Farrar (who Granny always called “Mr. Farrar”). I grew up in the same house, but not in the same place. The staircase creaks with every step, and there are two holes halfway up in the wooden wall. They were made to put poles through when the family moved the house two miles east to escape the flood.

“Horrible. It was horrible. We had known for a few years that there would be a lake. There was talk and whispers every so often about the potential for a dam. And soon all those rumors became a reality. We would go fuss and fight with them. But we knew in the end that it would do no good for us. We and the rest of the community were just a bunch of old farming families, and they were the government.

They made us move everything off the land. All of our houses and buildings, they wanted them all gone. They gave us compensation, but it was so sickeningly low it did no good to us. We moved a few houses and a few little log cabins, but that was it. We also moved the church down the road to where it sits now. The government told us that we FROM TOP Jean Farrar – Granny Jean – and the author, Jennings Dixon.

Roy Farrar (left) with his son Lewis and two farmhands. Roy is Jennings’ greatgrandfather.

The home Roy built on the family’s New Hope farm before it was moved two miles east. Jennings grew up in the house near Ebenezer Church Recreation Area.

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HOME & GARDEN

had to dig up all the graves and relocate them to where the church would be.

Thomas didn’t want to do that. He wanted the dead to rest in peace.

worked on the dairy farm until 1971, when the B. Everett Jordan Dam was built eight miles south and more than a hundred feet higher than New Hope.

Granny was born in 1934. Her father was a metal worker in Greensboro who could never be guaranteed work. Being the oldest with three brothers, her father told her that they didn’t have the means or the money to send her to college, and she told him “That’s OK, I’ll do it myself.”

She spent more time working in the dining hall than she did studying at the Woman’s College in Greensboro, but she paid every last penny herself. After college, she rented a basement from a lady whose nephew, Thomas, was just back from the Navy. They married in November 1959 and moved to his family’s New Hope farm, into what used to be the chicken house. They had three children, my two uncles and my mother. They lived and

“People stole from us blind. One Sunday, we had gone to church and we had this old buggy sitting in our front yard. It was the one that Mr. and Mrs. Farrar would ride around in before they had a car. By the time we had come back home for lunch at around noon, the wheels on that buggy were gone. We were about to lose all of our land, and with people stealing our things, we were soon left with squat.

Thomas had predicted that by the time we settled down and started the farm in Harnett County, it would take us 12 years to get back to the kind of income we had been making in Chatham.

It didn’t take 12 years. We never got back. We never got close.” CM

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APRIL / MAY 2020

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SPRING DELIGHTS COOKING WITH SHERI Sheri Castle is an award-winning author, cook and teacher who lives in Fearrington Village.

She teaches classes in the newly refurbished The Cottage at Fearrington each month.

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his beautiful dinner is quick and easy for weeknights, yet impressive enough for company. The key is strategic shopping, ensuring you begin with the tastiest asparagus and mushrooms and your favorite ready-touse mushroom ravioli. With ingredients on hand, this meal is ready to impress in fewer than 20 minutes.

Asparagus has become a year-round grocery item, but locally grown and impeccably fresh varieties – the tastiest of all – remain a springtime delicacy.

Look for firm spears with tightly closed, purplish tips – a better sign of freshness

APRIL / MAY 2020

PHOTOGRAPHY BY BETH MANN

and tenderness than stalk size. It’s best to use asparagus the day it’s purchased, but to keep it on hand longer, treat it like a bouquet of fresh flowers: Remove any twist ties or rubber bands, and stand the stalks upright in a tall jar holding only enough water in the bottom to keep their ends moist. Store in the fridge.

I’ve been reading recently how mushrooms have surged in popularity and varieties, so there’s no need to settle for bland and boring white buttons. I like the flavor and appearance of shiitake mushrooms in this dish, but go with whatever looks best in the market. Cremini or a wild blend are good substitutes. Local farmers markets are a wonderful source for freshly harvested mushrooms, but

MUSHROOM RAVIOLI WITH ASPARAGUS, SHIITAKES AND BROWNED BUTTER Serves 4 1 bunch asparagus (roughly 10 oz.)

5 Tbsp. butter, divided 1½ cups thinly sliced shiitake mushroom caps (about 5 oz.)

12 to 16 oz. mushroom ravioli ¼ cup walnut pieces Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper ¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese Snap off and discard the tough ends of asparagus. Cut spears into bitesize pieces.

Melt 1 Tbsp. butter in a large skillet over high heat. Add mushrooms, and stir to coat. Cook until browned and tender, about 2 minutes, stirring continuously.

Transfer to a plate and spread into single layer.

Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Have a bowl of ice water ready. Add asparagus to boiling water; cook only until crisptender, 1 to 2 minutes, depending on the size of stalks. With a slotted spoon, immediately transfer asparagus to ice water to stop the cooking and set color. Drain well.

Return pan of water to a boil and cook ravioli according to package directions. Drain and return to the still-warm pot, off heat. Add asparagus and mushrooms. Cover to keep warm.

Cook remaining butter in a skillet over medium heat without stirring until it stops bubbling, foams, turns golden brown and smells nutty – usually about 2 minutes total – gently swirling pan as needed for even cooking. Add walnuts, and stir to scrape browned butter bits from bottom of skillet.

Add ravioli mixture to skillet and toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper.

Divide among serving plates.

Sprinkle with cheese, and serve at once.

For information on Sheri’s classes and cookbooks, visit shericastle.com.

you’ll find more varieties in a grocery store than you might expect.

The only thing tastier than butter is browned butter, which serves as the sauce for this pasta dish. It’s easy to do, but be patient. It looks as though nothing is happening in the pan for the first minute or so, and then suddenly, the large

bubbles will cook away and the melted butter will be covered in small foam that looks like a freshly poured Diet Coke. A few seconds later, that foam will begin to turn brown. Lift the pan from the heat and gently swirl to ensure the butter browns evenly. As soon as it smells like buttered toast, it’s ready. CM

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TASTE

RESTAURANTS, DELIS AND BISTROS advertisers boxed in color

NORTH CHATHAM

BRIAR CHAPEL 501 Pharmacy Scoops of Maple View Farm ice cream, plus malts and shakes.

98 Chapelton Ct., Ste. 300; 984-999-0501; 501rx.com

Breakaway Cafe A casual “cyclinginspired” cafe serving breakfast, lunch, dinner and small plates, along with Counter Culture coffee, beer, wine and Maple View Farm ice cream. 58 Chapelton Ct., Ste. 100; 984-234-3010; breakawaync.co Capp’s Pizzeria & Trattoria Traditional Italian cuisine including homemade fresh pastas, salads, sandwiches and a trattoria menu.

79 Falling Springs Dr., Ste. 140; 919-240-4104; cappspizzeria.com Town Hall Burger and Beer Gourmet burgers plus shared plates, tacos, wings and salads. 58 Chapelton Ct.; 984-234-3504; townhallburgerandbeer.com Governors Village Al’s Burger Shack Classic gourmet burger and fries joint, featuring an expanded menu with sandwiches, seafood, soups and salads along with a full bar. 50050 Governors Dr.; 984-999-4069; alsburgershack.com Flair Restaurant & Wine Bar Highquality French-influenced American food, coffee, wine, beer and Sunday brunch.

50100 Governors Dr.; 919-967-9990; flairforfoodrestaurant.com Papa John’s Pizza Pizza crafted with quality. 50010 Governors Dr.; 919-968-7272; papajohns.com Tarantini Italian cuisine. 50160 Governors Dr.; 919-942-4240; tarantinirestaurant.com

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North Chatham Village/Cole Park Plaza Captain John’s Dockside Fish & Crab House American seafood dishes. 11550 U.S. Hwy. 15501 N.; 919-968-7955; docksidechapelhill.com

The Fearrington House Restaurant Fine-dining French cuisine offering a chef’s tasting menu. Fearrington Village Center; 919-542-2121; fearrington.com/house

Guanajuato Mexican Restaurant Mexican dishes with vegetarian options.

11552 U.S. Hwy. 15-501 N., Ste. 205; 919-9298012; guanajuatomexicanrestaurant.net

House of Hops Relaxed bar and bottle shop with a large craft beer selection on tap. 112 Russet Run; 919-542-3435; houseofhopsnc.com

Marco’s Pizza Traditional Italian dishes and pizzas. 141 Chatham Downs Dr., Ste. 201; 919-391-4090; marcos.com

New Japan Hibachi-style Japanese cooking, dine in or carry out. 90 Lowes Dr.; 919-542-4380

Moon Asian Bistro Asian fusion restaurant offering sushi, Chinese dishes like sweet-andsour chicken, Thai curry dishes, rice and noodles. 111 Knox Way, Ste. 100; 919-869-7894; moonasianbistroch.com Panda Garden Chinese dishes like chow mein and egg foo young, dine in or take out. 11312 U.S. Hwy. 15-501; 919-960-8000; chapelhillpandagarden.com Village Pizza and Pasta A neighborhood pizza place serving up subs, calzones, pastas and salads. 11312 U.S. Hwy. 15-501 S., Ste. 300; 919-960-3232; villagepizzapasta.com

PITTSBORO

U.S. 15-501/Fearrington Village Allen & Son BBQ N.C. barbecue. 5650 U.S. 15-501; 919-542-2294; stubbsandsonbbq.com The Belted Goat Casual dining for breakfast, lunch, dinner. Coffee & wine shop. Fearrington Village; 919-545-5717; fearrington.com/belted-goat Carolina Brewery Pub fare from local sources like Boxcarr Handmade Cheese and Lilly Den Farm. 120 Lowes Dr.; 919-545-2330; carolinabrewery.com/pittsboro-brewery Compadres Tequila Lounge Mexican restaurant with a variety of classic dishes.

193 Lowes Dr.; 919-704-8374; compadresnc.com

APRIL / MAY 2020

Papa John’s Pizza Pizza crafted with quality.

120 Lowes Dr.; 919-545-7272; papajohns.com Roost Beer Garden Wood-fired pizza, local brews and live music. Open April through September. 2000 Fearrington Village Center; 919-542-2121; fearrington.com/roost

The Root Cellar Sandwiches, prepared salads, desserts and more. Beer and wine only; outdoor dining.

35 Suttles Rd.; 919-542-1062; 750 MLK Jr. Blvd., Chapel Hill; 919-967-3663; rootcellarchapelhill.com East Street China Inn Chinese dishes, dine in or carry out. 630 East St.; 919-545-0259 Copeland Springs Farm & Kitchen Farmto-table restaurant serving grains and greens bowls in addition to small plates/ bar snacks. 193B Lorax Ln.; 919-261-7211; copelandspringsfarm.com Greek Kouzina Made from scratch hummus, gyros, kebabs and more. 964 East St.; 919-542-9950; greekkouzina.com Hwy 55 Burgers, Shakes & Fries Burgers, cheesesteaks and frozen custard. 987 East St.; 919-542-1312; hwy55.com/locations/pittsboro Michoacán Mexican Grill Traditional Mexican dishes including arroz con pollo and burrito texano. 440 East St.; 919-704-8751

San Felipe Mexican dishes including fajitas, burritos and combo plates.

630 East St.; 919-542-1008; sanfelipenc.com Small B&B Cafe Farm-to-table breakfast and lunch. 219 East St.; 919-537-1909; smallbandbcafe.com Starrlight Mead Tastings of honey wines and honey. The Beverage District, 130 Lorax Ln. 919-533-6314; starrlightmead.com West Street Al’s Diner Traditional American classics for breakfast, lunch and supper.

535 West St.; 919-542-5800 Angelina’s Kitchen Seasonal dishes of the Greek and Southwestern variety including gyros, rice bowls and family dinners for pickup. 23 Rectory St.; 919-545-5505; angelinaskitchenonline.com ODDCO Art and design store and music venue featuring regional craft beers. 684 West St.; 919-704-8832; realoddstuff.com The Phoenix Bakery Small-batch, seasonal baked goods like apple pie doughnuts,

caramel-pecan rolls, scones, cookies and specialty cakes.

664 West St.; 919-542-4452; thephoenixbakerync.com Hillsboro Street/Downtown Aromatic Roasters Small-batch coffee shop specializing in espresso shots, Aztec mochas, raspberry lemonade, chai lattes and Thai teas. 697 Hillsboro St.; 919-259-4749; aromaticroasters.com

NEWS BITES

As of press time, O'Ya Cantina was on track to open in the Veranda shopping center in March with a menu of Mexican- and Peruvian-influenced fare. The taqueria is adjacent to owner David Sadeghi's popular Town Hall Burger and Beer.

Blue Dot Coffee Joe Van Gogh coffee, lattes, smoothies and pastries. 53 Hillsboro St.; 919704-8064

Davenport’s Café Diem Carrboro Coffee Roasters coffee and espresso offerings, plus tea and alternative milk/sugar-free options. 439 Hillsboro St.; 919-704-4239; davenportscafediem.com The City Tap Hoagie and grilled sandwiches, plus classic bar snacks. 89 Hillsboro St.; 919-545-0562; thecitytap.com

John’s Italian Pizza Restaurant Pizzas, pastas, wraps, calzones and strombolis. 122 Sanford Rd.; 919-542-5027; johnspizzarestaurant.com

Buzz Cafe at Chatham Marketplace Sandwiches, daily changing hot bar, sushi, salads and baked goods. Chatham Mills; 919-542-2643; chathammarketplace.coop

The Mod Wood-fired pizza, salads, small plates and a full bar. 46 Sanford Rd.; 919-533-6883; themodernlifedeli.com

The Country Bakeress Cakes, decorated cupcakes, pastries and other sweet treats.

200 Sanford Rd., Ste. 9; 919-606-8111; thecountrybakeress.com

La Dolce Vita

wood-fired pizza • housemade pastas sammies • salads • desserts

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Authentic Italian Pizza • Calzones • Focaccia Sandwiches Salads • Pasta • Gluten Free Options • Tempting Desserts Homemade Gelato • Espresso • Beer • Wine

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226 Carthage Street • Sanford, NC

919.777.5277

ldvpizzeria.com PITTSBOROROADHOUSE.COM

APRIL / MAY 2020

@ldvpizzeria

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DINING GUIDE

Elizabeth’s Pizza Pizzas, calzones, sandwiches, salads and pasta.

160 Hillsboro St.; 919-545-9292; elizabethspizza pittsboro.com Pickle Jar Cafe Fresh American classics with a twist. 480 Hillsboro St.; 919-704-8878; picklejarcafe.com

The Pittsboro Roadhouse Hearty American fare like smoked gouda mac ‘n’ cheese, plus burgers and salads. 39 West St.; 919-542-2432; pittsbororoadhouse.com

S&T’s Soda Shoppe Soda fountain, American fare. 85 Hillsboro St.; 919-545-0007; sandtsodashoppe.com Sweet Bee Caffé Blue ribbon-winning chocolates, coffees and baked goods with rotating art exhibits. 18A East Salisbury St.; 919-533-6997 Virlie’s Grill Breakfast, lunch and supper options like biscuits, salads, subs and barbecue. 58 Hillsboro St.; 919-542-0376; virliesgrill.com Willy’s Cinnamon Rolls Etc. Bakery selling cinnamon rolls, scones, muffins, cookies and bread with ’40s and ’50s flair. 35 W. Chatham St.; 252-305-9227; willysrolls.com

Bestfood Cafeteria Southern comfort food.

220 E. 11th St.; 919-742-2475 (cafeteria), 919-742-6033 (steakhouse); bestfoodsilercity.com Brownie Lu’s Restaurant Southern comfort food for breakfast, lunch and dinner. 919 N. Second Ave.; 919-799-7250 Chris’ Drive-in Burgers, hot dogs and fries.

1329 N. Second Ave.; 919-663-2333 Compadres Mexican Restaurant A variety of classic dishes. 115 Siler Crossing; 919-663-5600; compadresnc.com Courtyard Coffee and Soda Cafe Coffee, Italian sodas, smoothies and bakery items.

138 N. Chatham Ave.; 919-663-2152 Dry Dock Seafood A variety of seafood dishes and daily specials. 408 N. Second Ave.; 919-742-2177; drydockseafood.com

SANFORD La Dolce Vita Pizzeria Salads, specialty pizza, focaccia sandwiches and dessert, with an outdoor patio.

226 Carthage St.; 919-777-5277; ldvpizzeria.com

Postal Fish Company Fresh seafood from North Carolina’s coast prepared thoughtfully by chefs James Clark and Bill Hartley. 75 W. Salisbury St.; 919-704-8612; postalfishcompany.com

SILER CITY

Elizabeth’s Pizza Pizzas, calzones, sandwiches, salads and pasta. 119 Siler Crossing; 919-6635555; elizabethspizzasilercity.com Hayley Bales Steakhouse American-style salads, steaks, chicken and seafood.

220 E. 11th St.; 919-742-6033; hayleybalessteakhouse.letseat.at Johnson’s Drive In Burgers, hot dogs and fries on Highway 64 since 1946. 1520 E. 11th St.

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ki ds Sa ndwiches

ssics t Cla kfas a e r B

Burgers

ON THE TABLE

MOON ASIAN BISTRO 111 KNOX WAY, STE. 100, CHAPEL HILL 919-869-7894 MOONASIANBISTROCH.COM

Z

iYan Sit moved to New York City from Fujian, China, when he was 14. “The first day I came here, I stayed home,” he says. “Second day, my father brought me to the restaurant.

I started to learn how to clean, check out, but I go to high school, too. I helped him on the weekends.”

After moving to northern Chatham County to join family, he couldn’t find a decent sit-down Asian restaurant within 10 miles of Pittsboro. So he opened Moon Asian Bistro in Polks Village in 2016.

He wanted his restaurant to be more than takeout. In New York, he says, “it was a Chinese restaurant. They only do Chinese.

But when I moved here, I tried to make it a little bit different.

Make an Asian restaurant.”

Moon Asian’s menu offers dishes with roots in China, Thailand and Vietnam, along with a sushi bar that includes one of ZiYan’s favorites: the vegetarian Green Dragon Roll ($13). Avocado covers the top of the tightly packed roll, and a thin layer of rice binds the sweet potato, asparagus and kampyo shavings within, topped with a drizzle of eel sauce. “It’s very healthy,” ZiYan says.

Moon Asian is the only restaurant in Chatham with a sushi bar and has a loyal following of lunch diners and takeout customers.

But one recent positive review meant a little more to ZiYan. “[My father] came here last month and said, ‘Oh, it’s much better than what I did,’” ZiYan laughs. – Hannah Lee CM

APRIL / MAY 2020

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DINING GUIDE

H O N O R I N G

O U R

2020

Nericcio’s Family Restaurant All-day breakfast, Italian dishes, subs, burgers and more. 1110 N. Second Ave.; 919-799-7647

The Town Hall Grill Sandwiches, steak,seafood. 410 Market St.; 919-960-8696; thetownhallgrill.com

New China Inn Chinese dishes. Dine in or carry out. 203 Chatham Sq.; 919-663-0889

Weaver Street Market Hot bar and salad bar for breakfast, lunch and dinner. 716 Market St.; 919-929-2009; weaverstreetmarket.coop

Oasis Fresh Market & Deli Local and organic soups, sandwiches and Mediterranean specialties. 117 S. Chatham Ave.; 919-799-7434; oasisfreshmarket.com San Felipe Mexican dishes including fajitas, burritos and combo plates. 102 Walmart Supercenter; 919-663-7333; sanfelipenc.com The Whiskey Barrel Cafe Burgers and barbecue. 113 W. Raleigh St.; 919-663-1758

CHAPEL HILL

Southern Village Al’s Burger Shack Gourmet burgers and fries made with local ingredients. 708 Market St.; 919-914-6694; 516 W. Franklin St.; 919-904-7659;alsburgershack.com

ALSO CHECK OUT THESE AREA RESTAURANTS Radius Wood-fired pizzas, housemade pastas, sandwiches, salads and desserts.

Outdoor dining.

112 N. Churton St., Hillsborough; 919-245-0601; radiuspizzeria.net

La Vita Dolce Espresso & Gelato Café Pastries, sorbet, gelato. 610 Market St., Ste. 101-C; 919-968-1635; lavitadolcecafe.com Rasa Malaysia Authentic Malaysian dishes. 410 Market St.; 984-234-0256; rasamalaysiach.com

Hungry yet?

MAY 29, 2020 C A R O L I N A

I N N

SPONSORED BY

ASIAN BISTRO

Carolina Inn • Aesthetic Solutions Wake Radiology at UNC Rex Healthcare Ellis Family Law • Edwards Jones US Foods

Asian Fusion Restaurant

Voted Favorite Pizza and Italian

Produced by Shannon Media Inc.

160 Hillsboro St Pittsboro, NC ELIZABETHSPIZZAPITTSBORO.COM

919.545.9292

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APRIL / MAY 2020

Specializing in Chinese, Thai and Japanese, including Hibachi, Teriyaki and Sushi · Patio Dining 111 Knox Way, Chapel Hill Polk’s Village behind UNC Pediatrics

moonasianbistro.com

(919) 869 7894 or (919) 869 7819

RADIUS

ECLECTIC COMFORT CUISINE • WOODFIRED BRICK OVEN PIZZA • FULL BAR • EVENT CATERING

BOOK OUR FIRESIDE ROOM FOR ANY OCCASION! RECEPTIONS & REHEARSAL DINNERS, SHOWERS, BIRTHDAYS & ANNIVERSARIES, MEETINGS & LUNCHEONS

112 N. CHURTON STREET • DOWNTOWN HISTORIC HILLSBOROUGH

919.245.0601 • radiuspizzeria.net •   

ENGAGEMENT

Beeler & Golden

BY IYANA JONES-REESE PHOTOGRAPHY BY KATIE BRITT PHOTOGRAPHY, KATIEBRITTPHOTOGRAPHY.COM

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and Chase Golden were recent college graduates when they were set up on a blind lunch date by friends Josh Lull and Ann Marie Lull.

It went so well that Chase, a Northwood High School graduate, invited Ashtyn to be his date to a wedding reception happening that same night, turning their first date into an eight-hour event.

On Sept. 1, 2019, Chase’s cousin, Anjelica Nouman, took Ashtyn on a tour of the Historic Chatham County Courthouse under the guise of scoping out a possible field trip for Anjelica, who teaches third grade at Perry Harrison Elementary. But Ashtyn’s “tour” ended shtyn Beeler

with a surprise: Chase waiting on one knee. After she said yes, the couple went across the street to The Modern Life Deli & Drinks, where an engagement party was waiting for them.

The pair will marry in July at the Rose Hill Plantation in Nashville, North Carolina. Chase’s parents, Tony Golden and Lori Golden, and his stepfather, Jimmy Stubbs, and stepmother, Sheryl Golden, will be in attendance, as will Ashtyn’s parents, David Beeler and Penny Beeler.

Chase is currently a firefighter for the City of Raleigh, and Ashtyn is a teacher for Wake County Public Schools. The couple plans to live in Pittsboro. CM

MODERN CONSCIENTIOUS DENTISTRY

We offer comprehensive preventive and restorative dental treatment for most ages. From simple cleanings to periodontal concerns, our hygienists are very qualified to render the best and most appropriate service for each patient. Our range of treatment offered covers everything from sealants to complex implant-related options.

At Pittsboro Family Dentistry, there is no one-size-fits-all attitude here, and we are happy to work with patients to make sure clinical assessments and proposed treatment makes sense to each individual.

Please call or email us today to schedule your next appointment.

Dr. Samir Naik Dr. Eva Ku

987 East Street | Suite H | Pittsboro, NC 27312 M - Th 9:00-4:30 | Fri 9:00-1:00

919.545.9500 pittsborofamilydentistry@gmail.com

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WEDDING

Henderson & Milholen

BY JANET ALSAS PHOTOGRAPHY BY FOXHOUSE STUDIO, FOXHOUSESTUDIO.COM

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iler City’s Coltrane Milholen

and exchanged vows on Dec. 28, 2019, at the Biltmore Forest Country Club in Asheville. The ceremony’s location brought together Matthew’s love of the outdoors and mountains – he’s worked at both Yellowstone National Park and the Grand Canyon – and Coltrane’s family ties to the Asheville area.

Her sister, Sidney Milholen Kinsella, was also married in the city, and her brother attended high school nearby.

“It was a beautiful, romantic, winter mountain wedding,” Coltrane says. “We wanted to make sure that we had a really personal ceremony that was about us.” Mountains have played a special part in the pair’s relationship: They took their formal engagement pictures on top of Hawksbill Mountain in western North Carolina and honeymooned in Switzerland, skiing in the Alps.

The two met in 2016 in Raleigh.

Coltrane’s friend Ashley Foy invited Matthew and his friends to join their table for a drink. Coltrane and Matthew hit it off and planned their first date the next week.

Two years later, Coltrane, daughter of Hal and Julia-Brent Milholen, and Matthew, son of Charlotte’s Bill Henderson and Elizabeth Broyles, were engaged. Matthew proposed with a ring that belonged to Coltrane’s grandmother, Harriet Crawford, which was recast into a new design.

Matthew Henderson

Coltrane’s bridesmaids were childhood friends Ashley, Courtney Danielle Lemons, Alexandra Harris Evans, Anna Perry McBee and Meredith-Leigh Rouse Pleasants.

Sidney was the maid of honor. Matthew’s brother, Patrick Henderson, was the best man, and his groomsmen included Coltrane’s brother, Harold Jennings Milholen III. Matthew’s youth minister, Tim Dean, officiated the wedding. CM APRIL / MAY 2020

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WEDDING

Boening & Poe

BY JANET ALSAS PHOTOGRAPHY BY HEBA SALAMA, HEBASALAMA.COM

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met Logan Poe when she joined friend Kaitlyn Wolf’s family on a trip to Nags Head Beach in 2004. Logan, Kaitlyn’s cousin, tried to impress Lauren by catching her a fish and, when he did, well, she was hooked.

The two began dating steadily in 2006, and Logan proposed in March 2018 along the Riverwalk in Hillsborough.

Logan works at an engineering firm in Carrboro but grew up in northern Chatham County, where his parents, Clark and Ellen Poe, still live. He graduated from Northwood High School.

Lauren is a third grade teacher at Morris Grove Elementary in Chapel Hill, where she grew up. Her mom, Peggy Bohn, currently lives in Texas; her father, Rob Boening, passed away when Lauren was in college at UNC. The couple exchanged vows May 25, 2019, at Forest Hall at Chatham Mills.

Lauren walked down the aisle with her mom. Her sister, Sarah Boening, served as maid of honor and her brother, Jack Boening, officiated. The ceremony included tokens of remembrance to Logan’s brother, Christopher Poe, who passed away nine months before the auren Boening

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wedding. The couple honored Christopher by listing him as best man in the wedding program and leaving his spot unfilled throughout the ceremony. The wedding party also included Logan’s longtime friends Stephen Brown and Jerrell Swepson as groomsmen and Lauren’s lifelong friends Krista Bohn and Shannon Poplaski as bridesmaids. Jerrell, however, made one memorable snafu – he lost the bride’s ring.

“That's classic Jerrell for you,” Lauren says. “We all thought he was [joking], and then we saw his face and realized, ‘Oh, he’s serious.’”

The ring was found later, though not in time for the ceremony. Instead, Lauren borrowed one of the bridesmaid’s rings, and the happy day went on. CM

APRIL / MAY 2020

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