WATAUGA — Headed into the summer time months, the Watauga County Board of Commissioners’ agenda was mild and forward-focused at its typical April meeting.
The commissioners study a resolution recognizing May possibly as Psychological Wellness Recognition Month, declaring that “mental wellbeing is crucial to everyone’s overall well being and well-getting, and mental diseases are prevalent in our county, point out and country, with a single in five grownups going through a mental health situation,” the resolution said.
The resolution also dealt with the stigma and ensuing discrimination close to psychological wellbeing as a “primary impediment to early identification and effective procedure of people with psychological illness and their skill to recover and guide complete and successful lives.”
Coming up on the 1 yr anniversary of the 13-hour standoff on April 28, 2021, commissioner Billy Kennedy pointed out that what occurred previous April was “the worst instance of what can take place in a psychological health disaster.”
As the Watauga Democrat previously described, on April 28, 2021, Sgt. Chris Ward and K9 Deputy Logan Fox responded to a welfare look at at 553 Hardaman Circle. Fox died at the scene and Ward died right after remaining airlifted to Johnson Town Healthcare Center for remedy, in accordance to the Watauga County Sheriff’s Business, and the standoff finished soon after 13 hrs with Barnes’ loss of life.
Commissioner John Welch reported that a lot of local community associates have been impacted by these losses, and the Ligon spouse and children has been impacted as properly. He said the board is holding the Ligon relatives, the families of the fallen officers and all involved in their minds during this time.
Before in the month, the commissioners also declared April 28 as a Working day of Remembrance, and April as the Month of Remembrance for Watauga County’s Fallen Law Enforcement Officers, the Watauga Democrat previously documented.
Finance Director for the county, Misty Watson, tackled the commissioners to approve funds amendments reflecting allocations, expenditures and grants the county has obtained. The county gained a grant for just more than $19,000 to obtain new radar machines for the Watauga County Sheriff’s Business office for the reason that its radars were at the close of their lifespans.
The county been given its yearly grant for the senior well being insurance policies information software and the county will be reimbursed $15,000 for legal fees and Pc licenses for social service’s personal computer programs.
The commissioners allocated $10,000 in March to the Financial Progress Committee for the Boonerang Competition and the board also allocated $20,000 for Habitat Humanity, as the Watauga Democrat previously noted and North Carolina lottery resources amounting $300,000 and $685,000 for different expenses and county Funds Enhancement Prepare tasks.
Seeking forward to the summer months, the commissioners listened to from Matt Snyder, director of the Watauga County Board of Elections, about approving maintenance for election programs. Snyder stated the Board of Elections programs to use the exact maintenance firm as before to check out and adjust the scanning machines that test Watauga’s paper ballots.
Snyder mentioned that the gear, for each regulation, is serviced every year and this yr they experienced six equipment, which offered with issues that the support firm set.
With primary elections on the horizon, the Board of Commissioners will change their assembly destinations to accommodate the Board of Elections utilizing the commissioner’s boardroom for voting. The Could conference for the commissioners will go to Tuesday, Could 24, and the meetings scheduled for May 3 and July 19 will transpire at their routinely scheduled time of 5:30 p.m. but at the community room of the Watauga County Neighborhood Recreation Heart, situated at 231 Intricate Travel.
On top of that, the commissioners will keep their spending plan function classes on Thursday, May 12 and Friday May possibly 13 to explore the approaching fiscal year’s spending budget priorities.
Marisa Mecke is a Report for America corps member for Mountain Occasions Publications. Report for The united states is a countrywide nonprofit service program which places journalists in area newsrooms to report on below covered troubles.
More Stories
Amid nationwide psychological well being crisis, suicide prevention hotlines battle with repeat callers
California regulation aims to force people today with psychological disease to get assistance
California is initial condition to ban 4 food items additives for most cancers, other well being challenges : NPR