YVRCA Steering Committee Meeting

Today I attended the by-weekly meetings for the Yadkin Valley Regional Career Academy Steering Committee. In attendance were Barry Sink (co-chair), Mack McCary (project manager), Ben Ross (Ex.Director of Davidson Vision), Dr. Sandy Lee (Davidson County Schools, Assistant Superintendent) and Terri Mosley (Surry County Schools, Assistant Superintendent.)

We are preparing for a very large federal grant and we spent most of our time dealing with the grant application. The next biggest agenda item was preparing for the August 11th, Elected officials meeting in Surry -- Barry, Mack and I will be presenting.

I want to thank all of the individuals from the four counties for all their hard work in making this possible.

Below is a YouTube link of a video that describes the Academy in more detail:

YouTube Video >>

Clark to Host Hospice Benefit

I just received a visit from Laura Owen, Hospice CEO, and I have been asked to help host the 16th annual Friends of Hospice Benefit. My answer was "yes" and I am looking forward to working with Laura to help this benefit be a success.

I recently had a relative to pass and in his last days he was serviced by the Hospice organization and their staff. This facility is a blessing to our community and we need to do all we can to help.

If you have not given in the past or if you are a regurlar donor be sure to consider donating to the benefit - either by a simple donation or purchasing a ticket and attending the event. I have attached the Dispatch article below for you to read about the event. Hopefully, I will see you soon at the event.

Dispatch article >>

Congratulations to Lexington Native

I wanted to congratulate my friend and campaign supporter, Lexington native, Ross Coppley. He has just signed his first Nashville contract. Your hard work is paying off. We all wish you well and continued success. We look forward to your bright future.

Dispatch article >>

Supporters

I just received a wonderful photograph from a wonderful set of supporters. Thank you all.

Twitter and Facebook

I've started a twitter account so you can keep up with campaign news and some interesting community happenings that are affecting Lexington. You can follow me here: http://twitter.com/#/newellclark.

We've also started a Citizens for Newell Clark page for those of you on Facebook.

Filing

The filing period started today. I finished a little after 12:30pm. It was nice to have my family attend, as well as several members of my staff. Ruth Honeycutt and her staff do a wonderful job for the Board of Elections.

Also today several new faces filed for at-large council seats. Congratulations to Rev. Dr. Hebert Miller and Frank Calicutt - both of these gentleman work tirelessly for Lexington and their community. I am glad they have decided to try and represent their home in an elected position. Good luck to all involved.

http://www.the-dispatch.com/article/filing

Lexington Passenger Rail Committee

We hold our monthly passenger rail meeting today in Lexington. William Deal, chairman, lead the meeting and briefed us on the current progress. The city has received a grant to do several projects in the depot district and I am personally excited about the possibilities. The expansion of this district and development of this area is key to Lexington's future. I would like to thank several committee members for their work on this valuable project - William Deal, Frank Stoner, Jo Ellen Edwards, Ken Davis, Commissioner Kepley, Jeanne Johnston, Ben Ross and Robert and Ramona Phelps - to name a few.

Antionette Kerr's Article

Thank you Antionette for a wonderfully written column on the future of Lexington. We need to do more for our current businesses and entrepreneurs, see the link included.

http://www.the-dispatch.com/antionette

Freedom Tabernacle Visit

After attending my home church, 1st. United Methodist, I visited Freedom Tabernacle and Rev. Donald Hill. What a great congregation and group of citizens. The music, message and fellowship were great. Thank you for the reception and opportunity to be with your congregation and addressing their questions. I look forward to returning.

1st United Methodist Men's Breakfast

I attended the 1st United Methodist Men's breakfast this morning and what a wonderful guest speaker. Pamela Harvey, as she is know around town; however she is also know as Pamela Adams- US Army Colonel retired after 30 years of service and Iraq veteran. She shared with us her one year tour in Iraq with photos and stories. What a wonderful spirit and patriot. I have the greatest respect for our men and women in uniform. Thank you all for your service and sacrifice for this country and her citizens.

Lunch with Terrance

I had lunch today with Terrance Gerald, Lexington Housing Authority Ex. Director. I must say that I am learning about the housing authority and it's role in the city for our citizens. In talking with Mr. Gerald we have challenges, but we can over come a lot of these challenges if we work together to accomplish a goal. The key here being that we work "together."

Meeting with State Superintendent, Dr. June Atkinson

Today I met with NC School Superintendent June Atkinson in Raleigh. Also in the meeting were Dr. Tony Habit and Dr. Dana Wallace of the NC New School Project. The meeting included a discussion of funding strategies and I was able to brief the group about the various memorandums of understanding that have been signed by school systems relating to the Yadkin Valley Regional Career Academy. It was a very positive meeting and I look forward to continuing a good relationship with state officials as the Career Academy moves forward.

NC Tomorrow Meeting

Today I met with Betty Huskins about her organization, North Carolina Tomorrow. Betty and NC Tomorrow are working directly with the state on a strategic plan for economic development. North Carolina is currently reevaluating how it will support small businesses and entrepreneurs. It is wonderful to see the state making that part of its big picture economic development plan.

One of my major goals for Lexington is to strongly support the small businesses and entrepreneurs that give so much to our city. I will certainly work with the state to make sure we are doing all we can to help businesses in our community.

Summer Stroll, Uptown Lexington

The summer stroll this evening was a wonderful event. It was great to be in uptown Lexington visiting neighbors and friends in the community. I hope everyone had a great evening in our beautiful city! It is always great to visits our friends at High Rock Outfitters, Naples, Cafe 35, Backyard Retreat, Mission Pottery, Perfect Blend, All about Education, Jo Jo's Ice Cream, Black Dog, Lanier's and the Candy Factory - to just name a few.

Yadkin Valley Regional Career Academy Site Visits

This morning I visited several potential sites for the Yadkin Valley Career Academy. We looked at a number of industrial buildings near highway 64 in Lexington, including the Lexington Motor Company facility. I continue to be extremely optimistic about the Career Academy and about the positive impact it will have on our community!