Hometown Heroes

Hometown Hero: Ivette Mercado

by Jordan Beyle | March 23, 2026 | Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, is Ivette Mercado. Mercado is a full time administrator at Glenwood Elementary School and for the last 23 years she has run the after school program at Dobbins Hill Community Center, helping hundreds of kids...

Hometown Hero: Pat Richardson

by Jordan Beyle | March 16, 2026 | Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, is Pat Richardson. Richardson is the founder of the Monet Richardson Community Foundation. The MRCF is named after Pat's daughter Krissy, a hometown hero in her own right, who launched a program with the...

Hometown Hero: Carol Chandler and Cindi Ebert

by Jordan Beyle | March 9, 2026 | Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Heroes, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, are Carol Chandler and Cindi Ebert. Chandler and Ebert were both recently recognized with Chatham County's 6 Over 60 Award, honoring older adults who make their community a better place. They've both spent...

Hometown Hero: Nataliia Bondarenko

by Jordan Beyle | March 2, 2026 | Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, is Nataliia Bondarenko. Bondarenko is the outreach coordinator for the Center for Slavic, Eurasian, and East European Studies at UNC. She came here after the beginning of the war in Ukraine. In her role at...

Hometown Hero: Paul Slack

by Jordan Beyle | February 23, 2026 | Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, is Paul Slack. Slack is the chief civil rights officer for Orange County. He and his team make sure all county services are equally open and accessible for everyone and that everyone in Orange County knows...

Hometown Hero: Christy Jones

by Jordan Beyle | February 17, 2026 | Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, is Christy Jones. Jones is a member of the East Chapel Hill rotary club and Christ United Methodist Church in Southern Village. She recently brought both groups together for a meal packing event last month...

Hometown Hero: Caroline White

by Jordan Beyle | February 9, 2026 | Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, is Caroline White. White is a senior at UNC and the president of Solar Equity, a student run nonprofit that's been around for four years. Solar Equity gives solar energy access to others who might not...

Hometown Hero: Sheryl Zimmerman

by Jordan Beyle | February 2, 2026 | Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, is Sheryl Zimmerman. Zimmerman is a distinguished professor at UNC whose work is directly and indirectly helping millions of people nationwide with the Center for Excellence in Assisted Living. The center...

Hometown Hero: Kirby Saunders

by Jordan Beyle | January 26, 2026 | Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, is Kirby Saunders. Saunders is Orange County's Emergency Services Director. He and his team are responsible for coordinating the local response to winter storm Fern. That effort includes setting up locations...

Hometown Hero: Joseph Megel

by Jordan Beyle | January 19, 2026 | Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, Town Square | 0 Comments

This week's Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint, is Joseph Megel. After 22 years teaching in UNC's department of communication, Megel is headed into retirement. He's been a beloved teacher for many UNC students, but he's best known for the Process Series,...

Marianne Jones: Hometown Hero

by Staff | May 19, 2016 | Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint | 0 Comments

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Chela Tu: Hometown Hero

by Staff | May 18, 2016 | Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint | 0 Comments

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Cliff Jones: Hometown Hero

by Staff | May 17, 2016 | Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint | 0 Comments

Cliff Jones is Tuesday's Hometown Hero. Cliff has volunteered with Cub Scout Pack 283 in Chapel Hill for years. He's been a cub master, a den leader, and an activities coordinator with the pack. He also volunteers for Boy Scout Troop 45. John Turner calls Cliff the...

Nancy Holt: Hometown Hero

by Staff | May 16, 2016 | Hometown Hero, presented by Hendrick Southpoint | 0 Comments

Nancy Holt is Monday's Hometown Hero. Recently, Preserve Rural Orange honored Nancy with a new award that will bear her name. The Nancy Holt Award will recognize citizen activists committed to addressing toxic pollutants in the environment. Holt has spent decades...