Hometown Heroes

Nominate a Hometown Hero!

Hometown Hero: Danita Mason-Hogans

by Jordan Beyle | August 24, 2026 | Hometown Heroes, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Hero, presented by the O. Max Gardner Foundation, is Danita Mason-Hogans. Mason-Hogans recently took a team of local students across the American south as part of her own nonprofit Bridging the Gap centering on starting conversations based in...

Hometown Heroes: Madeline Blobe and Allison Worthy

by Jordan Beyle | August 17, 2026 | Hometown Heroes, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Heroes, presented by the O. Max Gardner Foundation, are Madeline Blobe and Allison Worthy. Blobe and Worthy are with the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School Foundation. Every year since 2008, the Public School Foundation has hosted a teacher supply...

Hometown Hero: Kathy Allee

by Jordan Beyle | August 10, 2026 | Hometown Heroes, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Hero, presented by the O. Max Gardner Foundation, is Kathy Allee. Allee is a volunteer and parent mentor for Family Reading Partners. She is first in line for every need both big and small, from making treats for weekend getaways to organizing a...

Hometown Hero: Emily Sutton

by Jordan Beyle | August 3, 2026 | Hometown Heroes, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Hero, presented by the O. Max Gardner Foundation, is Emily Sutton. Sutton is the executive director and river keeper of the Haw River Assembly, a nonprofit whose mission is to restore and protect the Haw River, Jordan Lake, and the entire...

Hometown Hero: Mike Naglich

by Jordan Beyle | July 27, 2026 | Hometown Heroes, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Hero, presented by the O. Max Gardner Foundation, is Mike Naglich. Naglich is a retired nurse with a long career of heroic efforts around the world and his latest is a trip to Ukraine to deliver supplies for residents in the war zone. He's making...

Hometown Heroes: Todd LoFrese, TJ Laughrey, Andy Olson, and Jim Ray

by Jordan Beyle | July 20, 2026 | Hometown Heroes, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Heroes, presented by the O. Max Gardner Foundation, are Todd LoFrese, TJ Laughrey, Andy Olson and Jim Ray. They've spent the last few weeks biking across the country to raise awareness and money for the Be Loud Sophie Foundation in Chapel Hill....

Hometown Hero: Jennie Knowlton

by Jordan Beyle | July 13, 2026 | Hometown Heroes, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Hero, presented by the O. Max Gardner Foundation, is Jennie Knowlton. Knowlton is the founder of the Quilt Maker Cafe in Pittsboro. They first launched in 2021 as a mobile restaurant, but they just opened their first permanent location in May. The...

Hometown Hero: Andrew Taylor-Troutman

by Jordan Beyle | July 6, 2026 | Hometown Heroes, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Hero, presented by the O. Max Gardner Foundation, is Andrew Taylor-Troutman. Taylor-Troutman is the author of "Little Big Moments" on Chapelboro.com and the pastor at Chapel in the Pines Presbyterian Church. They've teamed up with a national...

Hometown Hero: Charles DeBose

by Jordan Beyle | June 29, 2026 | Hometown Heroes, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Hero, presented by O. Max Gardner Foundation, is Charles DeBose. DeBose's work supports not just one nonprofit but many. He serves as the director of operations for the Extraordinary Thrift Store where he does many different things. He also works...

Hometown Hero: Amy Slaughter

by Jordan Beyle | June 22, 2026 | Hometown Heroes, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Hero, presented by the O. Max Gardner Foundation, is Amy Slaughter. Slaughter is a realtor who works with the nonprofit Community Home Trust. Slaughter completes the home buying transaction, making sure the buyers are able to work with their...

Hometown Hero: Maggie Funkhouser

by Staff | Jul 18, 2022 | Hometown Heroes, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week’s Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, is Maggie Funkhouser -- manager of the Carrboro Farmer's Market who joined the team in 2019 and has worked ever since to keep the market open and local farmers connected to the community! But, of course,...

Hometown Hero: Anita Brown-Graham

by Staff | Jul 11, 2022 | Hometown Heroes, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week’s Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, is Anita Brown-Graham! A professor at the UNC School of Government, Brown-Graham is the founder and director of the ncIMPACT Initiative, which works to expand capacity for UNC to work with public officials...

Hometown Hero: Laura McDow

by Staff | Jul 5, 2022 | Hometown Heroes, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week’s Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, is Laura McDow! A young activist and organizer, McDow missed her own high school graduation as she planned and attended protests and marches for stricter gun safety laws in North Carolina and across the...

Hometown Hero: Fred Stipe

by Staff | Jun 27, 2022 | Hometown Heroes | 0 Comments

This week’s Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, is Fred Stipe. Stipe, a long-time Chapel Hill resident, is the board chair of the South Orange Rescue Squad. Having been a member since 1997, he's helped lead the volunteer EMS group through its 30th, 40th...

Hometown Hero: Kendall Lytle

by Staff | Jun 20, 2022 | Hometown Heroes, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, is Kendall Lytle, a young activist and leader in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro community. As president of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro NAACP Youth Council and the Carrboro Youth Advisory Board, Lytle is active and...

Hometown Hero: Jared Greenlee

by Staff | Jun 13, 2022 | Hometown Heroes, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, is Orange County Sheriff's deputy John Greenlee, recently honored as North Carolina Deputy of the Year by Mothers Against Drunk Driving! Greenlee is this week's Hometown Hero for his dedication to making the...

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