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Police arrest driver, passenger after Fletcher chase

Henderson County News

City doles out $99,794 to 27 nonprofits

The Hendersonville City Council approved $99,794 worth of appropriations to nonprofits involved in the arts, health and human services, education and tourism and business promotion during a final budget-drafting workshop on Friday.   Read Story »

Henderson County News

Ask Matt ... how much lottery money county gets

Q. What do our Henderson County schools get from the NC lottery and how is it used? Each year the state legislature decides how to divvy up the lottery money. In FY 2018, local education programs received $5,471,546. The biggest slice of the pie, $3,348,747, went for non-instructional support (school staff, custodians, and substitute teachers). School construction got $922,332, prekindergarten (at risk four-year-old children) received $547,665, another $386,343 went for financial aid for students, and $266,459 went to school-provided transportation (bus drivers and gas). Only about a quarter of the gross lottery revenue goes to education; the rest covers winners’ prizes, retailer commissions, and overhead. Distribution among counties is based on public school system population except for financial aid and prekindergarten which is governed by statewide need. Each K-12student roughly gets the equivalent of $370 from the lottery. Tracking a $1½ billion ticket   Many of you have heard of the $1.5 billion winner in the South Carolina Education Lottery. Since that person just came forward to claim the prize money we dispatched a crack news team to the site of the drawing – Simpsonville, SC. We drove down winding country roads passing by large homes that only a lottery winner could afford. And there it was, at one corner of a crossroads, the now famous blue-roofed KC Mart No. 7. The convenience store was hidden behind eight gas pumps, two of which were out of order. Hanging in the front window was a large banner – “We sold a Mega Millions Ticket Worth $1.5 BILLION!” Our fact-finding crew approached a lady standing outside smoking a cigarette. We asked if she knew who won the lottery. “Nope, I only know what I hear in the news,” replied Sabrina. But she did know that the winner was a woman. That was it. Sabrina walked inside, took her position at the grill and started frying a $5.49 Philly cheesesteak for a lunch customer. We continued to talk but still no clues. She thinks the lucky lady who has now claimed the money ($877,784,124 after taxes) does not live in Simpsonville. Sabrina believes the two never met because the ticket was purchased at night. KC Mart’s owner received $50,000 for selling the winning ticket but Sabrina said the grill cooks received nothing. That seemed cold because a “billion dollar ticket winner” banner hung directly over the grill. After filling our tank with cheap South Carolina gas, we headed home without buying a lottery ticket evoking the “lightning never strikes twice” axiom (this publication notwithstanding). Because South Carolina permits lottery winners to remain anonymous, we may never know the identity of the lucky lady. Lottery officials did share one piece of stunning news. It seems that a simple act of kindness by a fellow customer allowed the lottery winner to step ahead in line and purchase her ticket. How lucky! But if she is reading this, be a sport. Return to the scene and drop a couple of Benjamins in Sabrina’s tip jar. And then treat yourself to a nice Philly cheesesteak.   * * * * * Send questions to askmattm@gmail.com.   Read Story »

Henderson County News

Rhythm & Brews '19: One less act, lots more taps

HENDERSONVILLE — The 2019 edition of the popular Rhythm & Brews concert series has something new when it comes to the rhythm and the brews.   Read Story »

Hendersonville News

'Newsies,' HHS senior class play, opens tonight

Hendersonville High School senior class play opens tonight, a production as tradition demands that is chosen by the students and serves as a parting gift to the school and community.   Read Story »

Henderson County News

County IT director dies suddenly at Courthouse

Becky Snyder, Henderson County's information technology director, died suddenly and unexpectedly while working at the Historic Courthouse on Tuesday despite "herculean and heroic" efforts to save her. The Historic Courthouse employees and other county personnel were stunned to hear the news of Snyder's death. She was a person many of them because she worked on computer and software issues countywide. The wife of retired Henderson County library director Bill Snyder, Becky Snyder had been the county's IT director for 13 years and had worked in computer technology with the county before that. "She was a wonderful person, a kind person, a caring person and a thoughtful person," County Manager Steve Wyatt said. "She was a maternal person to many county, I have been hearing from many county employees. She's a great part of the team," he added, committed to government service for the right reasons — to make things better for her fellow employees and the public. "Becky left us yesterday morning," he said. "She was at work with Ms. (Amy) Brantley (the assistant county manager) and apparently the Man Upstairs had a problem with software that he could not fix and called on the best person he could think of. She left us suddenly, completely at peace. "I was there within about a minute and every staff member and emergency personnel were there. It's a little bit stunning. The efforts of staff and emergency personnel to intervene were nothing short of herculean and heroic. They deserve our heartfelt appreciation." In the end, despite the efforts, the rescue personnel were unable to save her. Wyatt said he did not know a cause of death. "These matters are settled in a way that defies comprehension for us," Wyatt said. A memorial service is planned, he said, but no arrangements have been finalized.   Read Story »

Edneyville News

UNC Charlotte shooting victim is grandson of Edneyville woman

One of two UNC Charlotte students killed in the shooting is a graduate of T.C. Roberson High and the grandson of an Edneyville woman.   Read Story »

Henderson County News

Don't miss this week's Hendersonville Lightning (212)

Don't miss this week's Hendersonville Lightning.    Read Story »

Henderson County News

Emerging leaders program taps Edwards

Sen. Chuck Edwards was selected for the 2019 Class of Emerging Legislative Leaders Program through the State Legislative Leaders Foundation after his nomination by Senate President Pro-Tempore Phil Berger.   Read Story »

Henderson County News

HMS students go back inside after smoke forced evacuation

First responders evacuated Hendersonville Middle School this morning after a report of smoke in the building. The students were on sitting, standing and playing in the large practice field outside under sunny skies while firefighters looked for the cause. "There's no children in danger," Hendersonville police Lt. R.S. Olsen said outside the school. Hendersonville Fire Department was dispatched to the school just before 11 a.m. following reports of smoke in the cafeteria area, the city said. Firefighters determined that the smoke originated from the HVAC system in an area above the cafeteria. All students and faculty remained safe during the incident and returned to their classrooms at 11:40, the city said.     Read Story »

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