Monday, May 7 Community Center: Workforce Development Report:1 to 3 pm. Dr. Whitney Knollenberg of North Carolina State University has been collecting data from Ocracoke business owners, residents and policy makers regarding what makes Ocracoke a great place to work and live. This study focused on identifying community resources that are currently supporting the tourism workforce on Ocracoke and those community resources that need greater investment to support the tourism workforce. Community Center: Hyde County Board of Commissioners, 5 pm. (tax equalization review hearing); 6 p.m. board meeting Ocracoke Bar & Grille: Kate McNally, 7 pm
Tuesday, May 8 Gaffer’s: Barryoke Karaoke and Dance Party, 9 pm
Wednesday, May 9 Ocracoke School Information Hwy Room: Hyde County Board of Education, 5 pm
Berkley Manor: OCBA Civic Affairs meeting, 6:30 p.m. Agenda includes a presentation of the OCBA 2018-2019 budget as funded, a Passenger Ferry update from the Ferry Division, and update on the Tram project, and a tentative update from the Ocracoke Foundation on the Community Square project. Ocracoke Bar & Grille: Kim France, 7 pm Gaffer’s: Texas Hold ‘Em Poker, 7 pm
Thursday, May 10 Community Center: Ocracoke Advisory Planning Board, 4:30 pm
Ocracoke Volunteer Fire Dept., 7 p.m. Volunteers always needed. DAJIO: Raygun Ruby, 8 pm Ocracoke Bar & Grille: Kate McNally, 7 pm
Friday, May 11 British Cemetery Ceremony at British Cemetery Road, 11 am. Ocracoke Bar & Grille: TBA, 7 pm Coyote Music Den: Martin Garrish & Friends “Playing Your Ocracoke Memories,” with Coyote and special guests each week, 8 pm (doors at 7:30). Gaffer’s: Daniel Jordan Band, 8:30 pm
Saturday, May 12 Ocracoke Oyster Co.: Martin Garrish & Friends, 6:30 pm Deepwater Theater: Salem Select Choir, 7 p.m. Free; donations appreciated Ocracoke Bar & Grille: TBA, 7 pm Gaffer’s: Daniel Jordan Band, 8:30 pm
Sunday, May 13 Ocracoke Bar & Grille: Kim France, 7 pm
Gaynelle Tillett during a 2014 WUNC-TV interview about her fig cakes. Photo courtesy of Art Mines
Gaynelle Spencer Tillett was an Ocracoke brand.
That brand was her famous fig cake, which was sold in the Ocracoke Seafood Company up until a few days after she died April 13 at home at the age of 81.
The following are edited excerpts from the eulogy given by Ruth Toth during Tillett’s funeral April 17 in the Ocracoke Assembly of God Church of which Tillett was a member. Toth, who as a newcomer to the island was mentored by Tillett while both worked at the erstwhile Island Inn restaurant, was a lifelong friend:
Born on May 18, 1936, to the late Herman B. and Flora Burrus Spencer in Miss Erma’s house across from Albert Styron’s store, Gaynelle lived her entire life on Ocracoke. She has one sister, Louelle Spencer Midgett, and she and Louelle were very close and loved each other dearly.
Gaynelle’s greatest joy was her son Ricky. The first thought that enters your mind is how close and sweet their relationship was and will always be. For every step of Ricky’s life, Gaynelle was in front of him, encouraging him, providing for him and teaching him.
Ricky saw how devoted Gaynelle was to both of her parents and how one should care for your parents. Likewise, Ricky provided care for Gaynelle during her illnesses.
I think the happiest day of Gaynelle’s life was the day that Ricky and Cindy (Gregory) got married in March.
Gaynelle prayed that someone special would come into Ricky’s life. She said her prayers were answered in spades. Not only did she get a beautiful and kind daughter-in-law, but she also got eight grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren. Nothing brought her more comfort than to know that Ricky had so much love in his life.
Gaynelle was not only a very special person in our community, she was also a “brand.”
She would put up, on average, 50 cases of fig preserves every summer to sell in the local gift shops, and she started selling fig cakes in 2007.
In any newspaper or magazine article about Ocracoke figs, Gaynelle would be featured. When the Raleigh News & Observer published an article listing the top 100 foods in North Carolina, Gaynelle’s fig cake made the list, but not just fig cake. It was “Gaynelle’s fig cake.”
She appeared on television in 2014 on WUNC “N.C. Now” in an interview with Bob Garner, the WUNC food correspondent and a fig cake fan. In the interview, Garner asked if he could come to her kitchen and observe her at work.
Without any hesitation whatsoever, she said, “No.”
He also asked her if she entered the fig cake contest at our local Fig Festival. She replied, no, that she didn’t have time or need for that. He asked her if people knew about her fig cake and she replied, “Well, they do now.”
Gaynelle loved to feed people. She loved to share her time-honored special dishes with friends and developed a recipe for seafood fritters that included crabmeat, scallops and clams. She would make 80 fritters at a time and Ricky would deliver them around the island. Stewed shrimp and corn dumplings were another of her specialties.
Gaynelle retired from the N.C. Ferry Division but she liked to keep busy in her retirement.
Gaynelle worked in the fish house retail shop and became a special member of the Working Watermen’s family. She was so tiny that she could barely see or be seen over the counter. The customers just loved her and would ask so many questions about growing up here.
“She was a treasure,” said Pattie Plyler, fish house manager
Gaynelle and her friend (the late) Maxine Mason had a special bond. Maxine had about the best laugh in the world, and Gaynelle could bring it out with her constant joking.
Gaynelle knew that Maxine hated sunflowers. So, of course, Gaynelle would secretly plant sunflowers in Maxine’s garden just to get a rise out of her. Jenny Mason, Maxine’s daughter and Gaynelle’s surrogate granddaughter, said she could only hope to have a lifelong friend like that.
Gaynelle and Joyce Spencer also had many good times together in recent years. The two spent many an evening riding around the village in Joyce’s golf cart.
A very maternal person, Gaynelle took special interests in many of the girls who came to Ocracoke to work summers. She would rent rooms to some of them. For $25 a week, you got room, board and laundry and were treated just like family.
Ricky and Cindy would like to acknowledge the whole community, too many to name, who have been supportive in so many ways, who dropped off food, sat with her, provided for their wedding reception and made sure she was OK during the (2017) power outage.
Gaynelle lived a very full life. She worked hard and long, she played hard, she prayed often, and she developed and cherished her relationships with others, whether they were family, friends or someone she had just met for the first time.
A new foal, Winnie, was born to the Ocracoke pony herd on May 3. Photo courtesy of NPS.
The Ocracoke pony herd has a new member, the Cape Hatteras National Seashore has announced.
A new foal, Winnie was born on May 3. Her mother is Sacajawea, a mare from Shackleford Banks who joined the Ocracoke herd in 2010, and her father is Captain Marvin Howard.
The foal was named by the Ocracoke School students after Winnie Blount, a former slave from Washington, Beaufort County, who lived on Ocracoke.
According to Ocracoke Island Journal, a blog by Philip Howard, by the end of the Civil War in 1865 all of Ocracoke’s former slaves had fled the island. Winnie Blount (“Aunt Winnie”) and her husband Harkus (Hercules) Blount, moved to Ocracoke from Blount’s Creek, N.C., with a Williams family in 1866/1867. Harkus was a boat builder and carpenter; Aunt Winnie (ca. 1825 – 1925), worked as a domestic. The Blounts were the only post-Civil War black family to call Ocracoke home for more than 100 years.
Winnie will stay close to her mother for at least six months and will join the rest of the herd sometime in the fall.
For more National Park Service information regarding the Ocracoke Ponies and how you can participate in the “Adopt-A-Pony” program, click here.
New foal Winnie and her mother Sacajawea. Photo courtesy of NPS
Editor’s note: This story features the two Democratic candidates running for the Swan Quarter county commissioner seat in Tuesday’s primary. A later story will provide information on other candidates running for state and federal offices. Sample ballot and all Hyde County voter precinct locations are below.
By Peter Vankevich
Hyde County Democratic and unaffiliated voters will have two candidates for the commissioner seat in Swan Quarter Township to vote on in Tuesday’s primary election.
No county commissioner candidates are on the Republican primary ballot.
Voting on Ocracoke will be held from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the Ocracoke Volunteer Fire Department, 822 Irvin Garrish Highway. Other Hyde County voter precinct locations are listed below.
After representing Swan Quarter Township for many years, County Commissioner Dick Tunnell decided not to seek reelection. Two Democratic candidates, James (Little Brother) Topping and Joseph (Joey) Williams, filed to run for that seat.
Commissioner Barry Swindell of Currituck Township also opted not to seek reelection. Ken Collier filed papers to run as a Republican and Shannon Swindell as a unaffiliate. Both will be on the November general election ballot. No Democrats filed for Currituck Township.
In Hyde County, all commissioners are elected at large so that regardless of where residents live, all residents vote for all commissioners, and candidates must meet residency requirements to run in a township.
County commissioners serve four-year terms which are staggered. So, two county commissioners are up for election this year and three seats (now held by Benjamin Simmons III, Tom Pahl and Earl Pugh Jr.) will be up for election in 2020.
Registered Democrats can vote for one of these Swan Quarter candidates as can registered unaffiliated voters who request a Democrat ballot. Unaffiliated voters may vote in North Carolina primaries but must choose either a Democratic or Republican ballot. They cannot choose both ballots. The Green Party and Libertarian Party are also official North Carolina political parties, but have no candidates in Hyde County this year.
Decisions made by county commissioners can have a major impact on residents’ daily lives, especially because in Hyde County, the commissioners are the only government. There are no incorporated municipalities.
The Board of Commissioners have many important responsibilities such as approving the governmental budget, which includes an annual appropriation for the school district. The commissioners set property tax rates and sets policies and guidelines for land-use changes and development. Monthly meetings are open to the public.
The two Democratic Swan Quarter candidates have provided the following information:
James (Little Brother) Topping, age, 66
James (Little Brother) Topping,
I am retired and have lived my entire life in Hyde County. I attended O.A. Peay School and graduated from Mattamuskeet High School.
I worked as a corrections officer at the Hyde Correctional Institution and previous to that as a home improvement contractor.
Why I am running: As a former county commissioner representing Swan Quarter from 1989 to 1991, I know the duties of a commissioner to make the county a better place for our young and elderly to live and work. Since I served on the board, Hyde County has decreased in population, family businesses and no one wants to work or bring a business here. We need to make the mainland a better place to live.
The education school system has failed us, and we no longer have local people as teachers.
I have been a concerned citizen all my life and can’t leave this earth knowing that I didn’t try.
It has nothing to do with race. It has to do with all the citizens and all citizens be treated fairly.
I will work with the islanders in any way I can to help them. I want to represent the entire county, including Ocracoke.
Joseph (Joey) Williams, Age 42
I grew up in Swan Quarter and have lived here most of my life. I did live in Pitt County for about nine years. I have worked in corrections and law enforcement since 1996. I am currently a marine patrol officer assigned to the
Joseph (Joey) Williams
Engelhard area. Prior to working with the Marine Patrol, I was a corporal with the Hyde County Sheriff’s Office for six years. I am a certified general instructor, Taser instructor and firearms instructor. I have been married to my wife Nikki for 13 years, and I have three daughters.
Why I am running: I have always enjoyed serving the public. With Commissioner Tunnell not seeking reelection I saw an opportunity to serve the citizens of Hyde County.
The opioid epidemic is crippling many rural areas. School safety for the children of the county (mainland and Ocracoke) is important. I would like to see an animal control program started. Several ordinances need to be rewritten so they are enforceable. I strongly support the Sheriff’s Office, EMS, and the fire departments of the county and would like to see more funding going to them (grant funding would be ideal). The citizens of Hyde County deserve the best and most professional service possible. There are lots more issues facing Hyde County and I, if elected, would always be open to discussing them with anyone to better serve the citizens of Hyde County.
The British Cemetery ceremony and reception this year will be on the same day of the actual event 76 years ago during World War II.
The remembrance of those lost in the conflict that reached Ocracoke’s shores is scheduled for 11 a.m. Friday, May 11, to honor the sinking of the HMT Bedfordshire off the coast here May 11, 1942, during the Battle of the Atlantic (1939 to 1945).
That day, the bodies of four British sailors washed ashore after a German U-boat torpedoed the Bedforshire, a British trawler pressed into military service.
For six months, before the United States entered the war, British military ships staged their voyages in Canada and traveled down the Atlantic Ocean to ferry supplies to British war ships. A German U-boat brigade parked off the coast from New York to Florida let loose their fire and sank nearly 400 largely unarmed merchant vessels, hampering the delivery of badly needed food and war supplies to England.
Two of the sailors were identified: Sub Lieutenant Thomas Cunningham and Ordinary Telegraphist Second Class Stanley Craig. The others are unknown.
Ocracoke islanders rallied and donated land on which the four are interred and which is one of only two such pieces of Great Britain on American soil.
Since then, the Ocracoke community has remembered these four sailors every year in a ceremony organized by the War Graves Committee on Hatteras, which holds a similar ceremony in Buxton, the other British cemetery where four other British sailors are interred, the day before the Ocracoke one.
Crystal Canterbury, who volunteers to organize the Ocracoke event, said that among the various military, government and diplomatic officials attending will be Commander Martin Connell of the British Royal Navy and Captain Dermot Mulholland, Royal Canadian Navy.
Audience members at the annual British Cemetery Ceremony bow their heads during the closing prayer. Photo: C. LeinbachBritish Ceremony 2016. Photo: P. Vankevich
Dr. Whitney Knollenberg will present her findings on her recent study on Ocracoke workforce development from 1 to 3 p.m. Monday (May 7) in the Community Center.
Knollenberg, of North Carolina State University, has been collecting data from Ocracoke business owners, residents and policy makers regarding what makes Ocracoke a great place to work and live.
This study focused on identifying community resources that are currently supporting the tourism workforce on Ocracoke and those community resources that need greater investment to support the tourism workforce.
Those are interested in the results of the study but unable to attend the presentation may contact Knollenberg at wgknolle@ncsu.edu.
Among the OCBA’s Civic meeting at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday (May 9) in the Berkley Manor will be a presentation of the association’s 2018-2019 budget.
Also on the agenda will be updates from the N.C. Ferry Division on the passenger ferry and the village tram and an update from the National Park Service.
A possible update on the Community Square repaving project.
Updated May 4: The Coast Guard Sector North Carolina restored radio communication capabilities today. Repairs were completed at approximately 4 a.m.
An HC-130 Hercules airplane was launched Thursday night to monitor radio communications in the North Carolina Captain of the Port Zone until repairs were completed.
WILMINGTON— May 3 Coast Guard Sector North Carolina reported a loss of radio communication capability Thursday.
In a press release issued Thursday night, the Coast Guard said it cannot monitor radio traffic offshore but gave no reasons why. The agency urges mariners to use extreme caution throughout the North Carolina Captain of the Port Zone.
Mariners are reminded to check all safety equipment, carry a fully charged cell phone and file a float plan with a friend or family member before getting underway.
If in distress, mariners should attempt to call Sector North Carolina at 910-343-3880.
A C-130 will be launched Thursday night to monitor communications in the North Carolina COTP Zone, but this temporary solution is not sustainable. The estimated time of repair is unknown, but the Coast Guard is developing a radio coverage plan in the event repairs cannot be fixed for an extended period.
A Gervais’ beaked whale in stressed condition washed to shore near the Ramp 67 entrance on Ocracoke Tuesday afternoon.
Lisa Loos, from Winston-Salem, was fishing on the beach when she noticed it.
“We thought we saw dolphins playing off the sand bar and I started walking towards them,” she said. “Then I thought it was a shark because a fin was sticking up. Then we realized it was a whale. As it got close to shore, it started to thrash since the water was not deep enough.
“So, we called the Park Service and they showed up in about 20 minutes.” The whale eventually beached and perished.
Gervais’ beaked whale still alive on May 1, 2018. Photo by Lisa Loos
The next day, a necropsy was performed to determine the cause of death and learn more about the species. The whale measured 14.5 feet and weighed 2,065 pounds.
Paul Doshkov, a biotechnician and lead Marine Mammal Response Coordinator with the National Park Service stationed in Bodie Island, said this species of whale can be found in the deep waters off the Carolina coasts.
“We usually get one or two of this species that land on the Outer Banks per year,” he said.
The first recorded specimen of a Gervais’ beaked whale (Mesoplodon europaeus) was found floating in the English Channel sometime around 1840. It is named after the French scientist Paul Gervais, who in 1855 described it as a new species.
Beaked whales are members of the family Ziphiidae, which consists of 22 species and are named for their elongated beaks. Because of their deep-sea habitat, little is known about them, though it is believed they feed primarily on squid. Doshkov noted that the necropsy did not reveal any food in the stomach to analyze.
Most of the known information about this whale comes from necropsy analysis of strandings since they are rarely seen at sea.
Wayne Justice from the N.C. Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores is a team member of the N.C. Marine Mammal Stranding Network. He took the Cedar Island ferry to help with the Park Service with the necropsy.
“We are here to assist in any way we can, “he said. “We will look for signs of injuries or illness it may have been suffering from and try to gain some insight and knowledge to learn about the history of this animal.”
He noted it is uncommon to see a highly intelligent marine mammal that would end up on the beach for no reason.
“You just don’t see beached whales that are healthy,” he said. “There is usually a major illness or sickness that it is already in place. The reality is that they are already too weak, and the currents push them to the beach.
‘What we have learned is that even if we got it back into the water, it will usually end up again on the beach and there are a lot of scavengers that will predate on an animal in a weakened condition.
“While it is sad to see such a highly intelligent animal in a condition like this, it is an opportunity to learn more about them.”
Doshkov said the cranial section of the vertebral column of this whale will go UNC-Wilmington and the ear bones will go to an institution in France for an acoustic trauma study.
Jocelyn Wright, the Lead Biological Sciences Technician on Ocracoke, was on the scene.
People should stay clear of any whales in distress and to call the Park Service if one is observed, she said.
Whales are covered under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 and should not be approached. Additionally, due to their massive size, bystanders could be injured if one moves in an unexpected manner.
The Cape Hatteras National Seashore Sea Turtle and Marine Mammal Stranding hotline to report endangered or dead whales is 252-216-6892.
Other whales that have been stranded on the beaches of North Carolina in recent years have been dwarf and pygmy sperm whales and humpbacks.
Ocracoke Community Park ballfield. Photo: C. Leinbach
Editor’s note: Ocracoke youth baseball teams play Dare County teams from Hatteras to Rodanthe.
By Vince O’Neal and Jim McClain
The Ocracoke Orioles hosted the Reds on Saturday (April 21). Jacob Daniels had a strong four-inning shut-out performance. He also hit an in-the-park home run.
Noah O’Neal also added another in-the-park homer and Landon Fuller finished the game with a walk-off homer in the fourth inning as the Orioles dominated in a 10-0 victory.
Jacob Daniels was awarded the game ball for his performance on the mound along with his offensive effort.
The Marlins won a fierce contest against the Mariners, 2-1, giving Coach Jim McClain a nice birthday present. The game balls went to Malli Harrell and Petros Burleson in recognition of their first base-hits in a baseball game.
Tuesday’s away games, April 24, were rained out.
Last Saturday, April 28, the teams were back in action with home games.
The Orioles took on the Angels with Noah O’Neal the starting pitcher. The game was a back-and-forth battle with the Angels taking a quick five-run lead in the first inning on several errors and sloppy play.
The O’s rebounded with five runs of their own, and the first inning ended in a tie.
Nathan Contreras took the hill in the second and the Angels added three more runs to take an 8 to 5 lead as the Orioles continued their defensive woes.
The Ocracoke bats heated up as they managed to tie the score at eight. Finn Kattenburg took the mound and pitched well stifling the Angels, and the home team took a 13-to-8 lead in the fifth on a strong line drive by Auggie Giagu who was awarded the game ball for his key hit.
The Angels added one more run in the sixth and Ocracoke held on for a 13-9 victory in this battle at Ocracoke Community Park.
The same day, the Marlins came out strong against the powerhouse Nationals. Players with the Ocracoke middle school baseball team helped the team out in warm-ups and it paid off. As a team, the Marlins hit better than ever before and made some outstanding plays in the field.
The scoreboard didn’t go the Marlin’s way in this game, but the team tries to not pay attention to the score until the umpire declares the game is over. Everyone had a great day and had great fun. The game ball was awarded to Charles Hodgson for his best-ever hitting performance.
On Saturday (May 5), home games at the Community Park will feature Marlins taking on the Dodgers and the Orioles face off against the Braves.
Anglers at the annual Ocracoke Invitational Surf Fishing Tournament Thursday and Friday (May 3 and 4) will vie for the largest and most fish. Photo: C. Leinbach
By Connie Leinbach
The Ocracoke Invitational Surf Fishing Tournament this year celebrates the 35th anniversary of serious fishing fun.
Tournament co-director Woody Billings is geared up and said 72 teams will compete for the largest and most fish caught during four sessions Thursday and Friday (May 3 and 4) along the beach from the NPS campground to Southpoint.
Billings has been a part of the tournament for 30 of those 35 years.
Merchandise and raffle ticket sales open from 2 to 5 p.m. today (Wednesday, May 2) in the Community Center, and the public is invited to the kick-off party Thursday, May 3, at 7 p.m. in Howard’s Pub with The Michael Clark Band featuring Tracy Clark.
A pig pickin’ barbecue dinner prepared by the Carolina Boys from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Friday, May 4, is free and open to the public, followed by awards.
“I was asked in 1990 to be a judge and the next year I was head judge,” Billings said, a position he still holds, and which makes him the longest acting fish judge on the Outer Banks.
This tournament is a catch-and-release, and fish caught must be at least 11 inches long to receive a score. Teams receive points for largest and most fish caught.
Results each year vary. “It’s springtime, and the water is still cold,” Billings said. “Fishing in the fall is generally better.” During the sessions, Billings drives up and down the beach checking in with the teams and refereeing the judging because “size matters.”
Woody Billings, co-director of the Ocracoke Invitational Surf Fishing Tournament, makes a point. Photo courtesy of Woody Billings
All judges and those who tally the results, sell merchandise, obtain raffle items and winners’ gifts are volunteers.
After expenses, proceeds from the event—team fees, merchandise sales, raffles and program ads–are distributed to various island nonprofits.
This year, the tourney donated about $7,000 to island nonprofits, said Sharon Miller, tournament treasurer, who gathers raffle prizes. The tournament also awards two $1,000 scholarships to graduating Ocracoke School seniors each year.
Composed of both men and women, the regional and local teams, many of which have been included since the tournament’s inception, sport colorful names, such as “Pheasant Pluckers,” “Fish Lips,” “Misfit Mermaids” and “Hooligans Marauders.” Some have sponsors, team logos and shirts with slogans, such as “Tight Lines.”
Several local teams are part of the fishing action.
Rex O’Neal, of the local “Ocracroakers,” last year sat on the back of his truck out of the heavy easterly winds that hampered results on the second day.
“You can’t pen cattle in an easterly wind,” he said about the lack of bites.
Back in the last century, cattle roamed the island and locals would corral them for butchering.
“In this wind, you don’t even try,” O’Neal said. “But we’re not faring bad sitting here having a beverage.”
Fishing action at the 2017 OISFT.
The camaraderie is the main thing.
“If we catch fish or not, we’re having fun,” said Charles Dickinson, also an Ocracroaker.
Following the final fishing action on Friday, team members scrutinize the scoreboard outside the Community Center and swap stories. Often, even though teams may catch fish, those fish are not eligible for scoring.
As he reviewed the scoreboard last year, Jamie Jackson of the Ocracoke Internationals noted that his team scored zero.
“That’s why they call it ‘fishing,’ not ‘catching!’” he said.
The Carolina Boys, who provide the Friday night barbecue, have been a part of the tournament since its beginning. Sometimes they hand out promotional stickers saying, “Best meat on the beach.”
Hank Edwards, whose father was the original Carolina Boy, said last year that his group of 11 prepared four whole hogs, 150 pounds of potatoes, 12 gallons of coleslaw and 38 pounds of black-eyed peas.
City Beverage is among the many sponsors who support the event with cash, goods and prizes.
Judging a fish caught last year.Checking the fishing scoreboard.Rex O’Neal partakes of the Carolina Boys pig pickin barbecue last year that will take place again this Friday night.The awards ceremony in the Community Center.
