Up & Coming Weekly

March 20, 2018

Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.

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4 UCW MARCH 21-27, 2018 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM BILL BOWMAN, Publisher, UP & COMING WEEKLY. COMMENTS? BILL@upandcomingweekly.com. 910-484-6200. PUBLISHER'S PEN STAFF PUBLISHER Bill Bowman Bill@upandcomingweekly.com ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER/ EDITOR Stephanie Crider editor@upandcomingweekly.com OPERATIONS DIRECTOR Paulette Naylor accounting@upandcomingweekly.com ASSISTANT EDITOR Leslie Pyo leslie@upandcomingweekly.com SENIOR REPORTER Jeff Thompson news@upandcomingweekly.com SENIOR SPORTS EDITOR Earl Vaughan Jr. GRAPHIC DESIGNER Elizabeth Long art@upandcomingweekly.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS D.G. Martin, Pitt Dickey, Margaret Dickson, John Hood, Jim Jones, Shanessa Fenner, Jason Brady, Lauren Vanderveen, Matthew Skipper, Shane Wilson SALES ADMINISTRATOR/ DISTRIBUTION MANAGER Laurel Handforth laurel@upandcomingweekly.com MARKETING/SALES Linda McAlister Brown linda@upandcomingweekly.com ––––––––––– Up & Coming Weekly www.upandcomingweekly.com 208 Rowan St. P.O. Box 53461 Fayetteville, NC 28305 PHONE: (910) 484-6200 FAX: (910) 484-9218 Up & Coming Weekly is a "Quality of Life" publication with local features, news and information on what's happening in and around the Fayetteville/Cumberland County community. Up & Coming Weekly is published weekly on Wednesdays. Up & Coming Weekly wel- comes manuscripts, photographs and artwork for publication consideration, but assumes no responsibility for them. We cannot accept responsibility for the return of unsolicited manuscripts or material. Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. The publisher reserves the right to edit or reject copy submitted for publication. Up & Coming Weekly is free of charge and distributed at indoor and outdoor locations throughout Fayetteville, Fort Bragg, Pope Air Force Base, Hope Mills and Spring Lake. Readers are limited to one copy per person. ©2018 by F&B Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction or use of editorial or advertisements without permission is strictly prohibited. Cover art/Various ads with art graphics designed with various elements from: vecteezy.com and freepik.com. I have written about it often: Hope Mills is a beautiful, thriving, All-American community filled with possibilities and destined for growth, development and economic success. Its population, at over 16,000, has nearly tripled over the last two decades, and by the look of things, the town will continue to enjoy consistent, healthy and moderate growth throughout the next decade and beyond. Hope Mills maintains a charm and small-town feeling that continues to draw newcomers. Its rich history and idyllic lake make Hope Mills a place people want to move to raise their families and pursue the Ameri- can Dream. Good schools, economic op- portunities and friendly people continue to pull new residents to settle in the town. Under the guidance and leadership of Mayor Jackie Warner, the Hope Mills Board of Commissioners have a perfect balance of history, tradition, tenacity, intelligence and vision to embrace progress and oppor- tunity and to assure Hope Mills' future. If the town of Hope Mills were a com- pany whose stock traded on Wall Street, a well-informed trader might advise a client to examine and evaluate the talent, experi- ence and capabilities of its management team and staff to establish the company's worth and potential. Hope Mills would be hot stock because this is where Hope Mills Town Manager Melissa Adams excels. Her common sense, dedication and leadership skills are only surpassed by her organizational abilities, making her a respected leader to the many town employees and department heads that report to her. Adams and Warner are the near perfect municipal dynamic duo who, together, will successfully take Hope Mills into the future with confidence and solid leader- ship that will benefit the town for genera- tions to come. Up & Coming Weekly community news- paper will be there in support. So, now that all the hubba-hubba con- troversy is over about the town partnering with Up & Coming Weekly to create its own community media voice, I would like to personally say "thank you" to all the resi- dents and businesses who supported us and the Hope Mills Initiative. ey took the time to understand and embrace the real purpose of the program and the long-term objectives and vision of the project. It was never about the money. It was about creating a media vehicle that re- flected a positive voice and image for the town of Hope Mills. Up & Coming Weekly committed to share its 23-year-old reputa- tion, mission and mandates with the town to tell the Hope Mills story – not just to the 16,000 plus residents of Hope Mills but to all of Fayetteville, Fort Bragg and Cumberland County. e $28,000 cost was just a convenient diversion and easy distraction from the real underlying fear of media competition and losing control of the narrative. e Hope Mills Initiative was conceived when the perception was at its highest that e Fayetteville Observer's Sandspur had pretty much deserted Hope Mills. Well, not any- more. Our media commitment to the town has now rejuvenated e Sandspur. It's hard not to notice how much atten- tion Hope Mills is now getting from e Fayetteville Observer since the Hope Mills Commissioners' decision not to renew Up & Coming Weekly's partnership. ere has been a plethora of Hope Mills profiles, stories, editorials, articles and even a front page "above the fold" feature. ey even hosted a meet-and-greet social to solidify their new promise and commitment of more news and editorials for the town. To this, we say "Great!" and "Mission accomplished." is is the type of attention and respect Hope Mills should have been getting all along. We hope it continues. Competition is a good thing. Without it, me- diocrity becomes the standard. As a news- paper publisher, I've always been adamant that there is no exclusivity in media. at's why it's called the free press. No individual has the right to own or control a single voice or opinion. is also holds true for elec- tronic communications and social media. Beware of anyone (person, organization or business) who attempts to restrict, censor, silence or influence your free speech or thought processes through intimidation. For they are attempting to control the narrative. Here is the good news. Up & Coming Weekly is not going away. Hope Mills is in Cumberland County, and we intend to continue to be a positive voice. Now, Hope Mills residents will have more town news and information to share. Not only will we keep them informed on local issues, we will be their conduit for other wonderful and exciting things taking place in Cumberland County. We will make a difference. e most recurring issue and concern presented to me regarding discontinuing the Hope Mills Initiative was about the low voter turnout during Hope Mills elec- tions. Believe me, you will see this change dramatically over the years. Why? Because the residents will know what's going on in the town. ey will be better informed by having consistent and reliable access to information about the candidates and important issues affecting them and their families. You will also see new, younger and enthusiastic residents stepping up to participate and be involved with Hope Mills just for the betterment of the town, thus assuring their future. Hope Mills, North Carolina, is the mouse that roared! And we hear you loud and clear. ank you for reading Up & Coming Weekly. Hope Mills: The mouse that roared part II by BILL BOWMAN Hope Mills' population has nearly tripled over the last two decades. Its rich history and idyllic lake make the town a place people want to raise their families.

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