<p><span>Wilson City Council members approved a slight increase to the $15 million budget for a new downtown parking garage on Thursday.</span></p>
<p><span>&ldquo;First of all, I&rsquo;m all for it,&rdquo; Councilman James Johnson said when shown three versions of the garage with various architectural upgrades. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve always gone first-class, so we are not going to do anything basic with this project, especially in that growth area.&rdquo;</span></p>
<p><span>Johnson and Councilmen Donald Evans, Derrick Creech and Michael Bell concurred in favoring the second option with brick to match the new BB&amp;T building and the planned construction for the adjacent YMCA and mixed-use development. The proposal included brackets and banners to adorn two sides of the structure. The project would cost $14,901,018 without the upgrades, but the brick and banners brings the total to $15,131,018.</span></p>
<p><span>According to a preliminary timeline, construction of the pre-cast walls with the brick inlays will start immediately, with work beginning on-site this summer. Construction is expected to take less than a year to complete.</span></p>
<p><span>Also during the 7 p.m. virtual meeting, the council discussed several rezoning requests and amendments to the unified development ordinance to comply with state statutes. The changes necessitate public hearings, and since state law requires an additional 24 hours of public comment before taking action, the council will reconvene at 6 p.m. Monday to vote on the matters.</span></p>
<p><span>Wilson residents who wish to submit a comment can email their remarks to City Clerk Tonya West at twest@wilsonnc.org. Commenters are asked to include their name, address and phone number along with where they can be reached during Monday&rsquo;s meeting. For questions on the public comment process, email West or call her at 252-399-2302.</span></p>

Wilson City Council approves $15M parking garage design

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<p><span class="CharOverride-3">Without federal financial aid, Elizabeth Herrera says her family wouldn&#x2019;t have been able to send her to college. </span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">Now, Herrera is on a mission to inform college hopefuls that filling out a Free Application for Federal Student Aid is the first step to receiving financial assistance. </span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">The 2015 Beddingfield High School graduate attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as a Covenant scholar and graduated debt-free in May 2019. Herrera is now employed with the Carolina College Advising Corps as a full-time college adviser in Chatham County. The CACC is an AmeriCorps program.</span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">Help from two Beddingfield teachers, Carrie Maravi and Glenn Griffin, made the difference for Herrera in 2015. </span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">&#x201C;They guided me, they helped me through my UNC application, and if it wasn&#x2019;t for them, I don&#x2019;t know if I would have been at UNC,&#x201D; she said.</span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">Herrera, one of 10 siblings in her family, said she wasn&#x2019;t familiar with college. </span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">&#x201C;I have realized that it is a cycle of first-generation, low-income students not knowing even what college is or how is it going to promote them, how is it going to promote their living situation or how it gives them access into a higher-paying job after they graduate,&#x201D; Herrera said. &#x201C;It really has become one of my passions to help students and just explain the process and be the bridge between Spanish-speaking parents and the students who don&#x2019;t know what this process is and explaining it.&#x201D;</span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">Herrera said FAFSA completion rates have declined in the past few years.</span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">&#x201C;It is money that is going unclaimed that these students can use,&#x201D; Herrera said. &#x201C;It is out there for them to use if only they were to fill out the application.&#x201D;</span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">Aid isn&#x2019;t just for students going to a four-year university. </span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">&#x201C;It may just mean getting a certificate or a diploma from a community college just so they can get paid a little bit more on top of just having that high school diploma,&#x201D; Herrera said.</span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">According to the education nonprofit myFutureNC, state students left $107 million in funding on the table by forgoing the FAFSA in 2020. </span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">David Lyndon, executive director of secondary education at Wilson County Schools, said the district&#x2019;s FAFSA completion rate fell from 50% to 54% in 2020-21 to 25-29% for the 2021-22 academic year. </span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">Figures for Wilson County&#x2019;s public high schools seem to show a decline from before to after the COVID-19 pandemic. </span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">&#x201C;While there are no distinguishable disparities, Wilson County Schools will continue to work closely with students and their families to provide services that guide and assist students in preparing for the transition after high school,&#x201D; Lyndon said. &#x201C;Wilson County Schools is committed to supporting our college-bound students. Informing students about FAFSA is a priority. However, applying for FAFSA is a family decision and one that we can only encourage.&#x201D;</span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">In the district&#x2019;s class of 2020, 303 seniors planned to attend community college, 275 seniors planned to attend a college or university.</span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">In addition to the schools&#x2019; regular counselors, both Fike and Hunt have had Carolina College Advising Corps advisers. In February, Beddingfield brought on a new CCAC adviser to help students with FAFSA applications and other college-related questions.</span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">Herrera said language is a factor for the Spanish-speaking population.</span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">&#x201C;That is another big obstacle, the parent not knowing what they are filling out,&#x201D; Herrera said. &#x201C;It really makes them feel safe when they have someone who is able to speak their language and to be able to give them the information in their language about what they are filling out.&#x201D;</span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">Herrera said she is really passionate about making students aware of what they can get by filling out the FAFSA. </span></p> <p><span class="CharOverride-3">&#x201C;Beddingfield still holds a big place in my heart,&#x201D; Herrera said. &#x201C;If I am able to make one difference for another student that is in a similar position as I was when I was a high school stu</span><span class="CharOverride-3">dent in Wilson County, I hope to be able to make their application process a little bit easier.&#x201D;</span></p>

Fewer students apply for college aid

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<p>Scenery at the intersection of Pine and Nash streets has changed drastically with the BB&amp;T towers&#x2019; December implosion, but new development is on the horizon for the roughly 6.2 acres in downtown Wilson.</p> <p>&#x201C;The general site development and what the public will see as movement on that site will start in the next 30 to 60 days,&#x201D; said NSV Development principal Andrew Holton. &#x201C;There are a couple of regulatory boxes we still have to check, so that is not a firm time frame, but that is the goal.&#x201D;</p> <p>Truist &#x2014; formerly BB&amp;T &#x2014; announced plans in August 2018 to replace the aging office towers on Nash Street with a new $35 million facility around the corner. The project included a land swap with the city giving up the former Paul V. Berry Hickory Grove Park for the towers&#x2019; site. </p> <p>Two months later, the Healthcare Foundation of Wilson announced plans to partner with Wilson Family YMCA to launch an after-school program for area middle school students. In October 2019, city officials announced plans to give part of the Nash Street property for the YMCA and Healthcare Foundation facility and allow NSV to redevelop the Pine Street corner for retail and residential use.</p> <p>&#x201C;The synergies of having a corporate office anchor like Truist, having a YMCA and the multi-family units all on the same campus will be a massive shift for that whole part of the Nash Street corridor,&#x201D; Holton said. &#x201C;The complement of uses, the activity that is going to spill out into other community and retail uses in the downtown corridor is going to be phenomenal.&#x201D;</p> <br><h5>MIXED-USE DEVELOPMENT</h5> <p>Initial project plans called for more than 200 residential units and up to 20,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space. Holton said the plan has evolved to incorporate more living spaces, leaving less square footage for commercial development.</p> <p>&#x201C;We had a conversation with city downtown staff this week and are trying to really understand where the gaps in the market are, so the Nash Street space can unlock a different type of tenant and identify folks who have been looking for a finished white-box retail space,&#x201D; he said, noting &#x201C;white box&#x201D; is an industry term referring to a commercial space that offers a blank slate ready for tenants to upfit. &#x201C;We&#x2019;re doing analysis now, and my hope is in the next 90-120 days, we&#x2019;ll have a good sense of who are some of the folks most interested in this being a part of this project and moving forward.&#x201D;</p> <p>Construction on the new YMCA and the parking garage will start first, Holton explained, with the mixed-use development following.</p> <p>&#x201C;The Y&#x2019;s time frame is what wags the dog, so we&#x2019;ve said all along that we want that to get up and rolling while doing everything we can to support their schedule,&#x201D; he said. &#x201C;Once we get that process rolling, we&#x2019;ll try to accelerate the multi-family so it is the smallest window possible for completion of the parking deck, multi-family and the YMCA.&#x201D;</p> <br><h5>PARKING GARAGE</h5> <p>It&#x2019;s been just over a year since city officials announced plans to add about 700 new spaces in a parking garage to serve the Pine Street project. The Wilson City Council approved design plans for the $15 million project in January to ensure the garage fits in with surrounding development.</p> <p>During its Feb. 18 meeting, the council approved plans to provide Truist with 445 parking spots while the garage is being built and 590 spots in the deck, which is slated to be complete by May 31, 2022. </p> <p>According to the agreement, 570 of those spots will be available for non-permit holders outside the bank&#x2019;s reserved hours of 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays. </p> <p>&#x201C;I don&#x2019;t want to be so bold (to say) that this project wouldn&#x2019;t have happened if not for the parking garage, but it is pretty darn close to that,&#x201D; Holton said. </p> <p>He added that parking is a significant hurdle with building residential units, and Truist required so many spots for employees that without a parking garage, land wouldn&#x2019;t be available for other uses. </p> <p>&#x201C;By concentrating parking in a smaller footprint on the site, it makes all the other elements make sense and stimulate this whole area of town,&#x201D; Holton said. &#x201C;It is going to be so exciting when you see the new structures arising and all the energy that is going to be there. This development brings more value than just the addition to the tax base.&#x201D;</p> <br><h5>YMCA AND HEALTHCARE FOUNDATION FACILITY</h5> <p>Healthcare Foundation Executive Director Denise O&#x2019;Hara said the youth facility shared with the YMCA is being designed to ensure it serves all Wilsonians.</p> <p>&#x201C;While someone may not have children, I don&#x2019;t think there is any more important asset than our youth, because they are the future of our community,&#x201D; she said. &#x201C;They are the ones who are going to be the rock of our community in the future, and it is important to give them opportunities where they have mentors they can learn from and experience things that will make them better adults.&#x201D;</p> <p>Council members on Feb. 18 officially conveyed 2.48 acres of the former towers&#x2019; site to the Healthcare Foundation for the roughly 75,000-square-foot building that will be at least three stories tall. </p> <p>O&#x2019;Hara and YMCA Executive Director Kathie Davis said members from both organizations&#x2019; boards have continually met with architects to develop a design with shared spaces to maximize building efficiencies. The facility&#x2019;s amenities will be announced in the coming months; $22 million has been earmarked for the project. </p> <p>&#x201C;We want the after-school middle school program to grow, and the Y is committed to sustaining that program, so we want to make sure the spaces can be used appropriately for that,&#x201D; O&#x2019;Hara said. &#x201C;A lot of time has gone into that, and we&#x2019;re currently engaged in giving shape to all those spaces to make sure this facility can be best optimized for future use.&#x201D;</p> <p>Plans call for construction to be complete so the after-school program can launch in August 2022. Davis said that timeline offers light at the end of the tunnel for students and families enduring challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic.</p> <p>&#x201C;I was on a call yesterday where we were talking about the isolation and learning disruption of this pandemic, so this will be a generation of catching up,&#x201D; she said. &#x201C;We want to be leaders in this catching up process, but it will take support of the entire community to be successful and hopefully make this absolutely trailblazing effort into a national model.&#x201D; </p>

Wilson's landscape evolving with YMCA project

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<p>Barton College has announced the naming of the David S. Hicks Family Sports Operation Center. A $1 million gift made by alumnus David S. Hicks matches the largest alumni gift in the college&#x2019;s history. </p> <p>President Douglas N. Searcy said the college is grateful for Hicks&#x2019; generosity and commitment to his alma mater.  </p> <p>&#x201C;Upon completion, the David S. Hicks Family Sports Operation Center will provide an exceptional space to support our expanding athletics program and will be recognized as a premier collegiate athletics facility among NCAA Division II programs,&#x201D; Searcy said. </p> <p>The center has undergone a significant Phase I renovation from its original use as the 39-year-old J.C. Harris Cadillac dealership located near the college&#x2019;s main campus.</p> <p>&#x201C;When presented with this vision and opportunity from President Doug Searcy and&#xA0;Tom&#xA0;Maze, assistant vice president for leadership giving, I was excited to step up and help provide Barton College with the best possible facility and resources to recruit, retain and develop top student athletes,&#x201D; Hicks said. &#x201C;Our family is delighted to be able to make a meaningful gift to the campus, with the goal of providing student-athletes, coaches and staff new opportunities for additional success. We couldn&#x2019;t be more thrilled to support such an impactful project in the life of Barton College.&#x201D; </p> <p>While Hicks attributes his values and faith to lessons he learned from his parents while growing up on a small tobacco farm in Spring Hope, he said his skill set for career success was forged during his Barton experience. </p> <p>Hicks said Barton &#x2014; then Atlantic Christian College &#x2014; proved to be the perfect environment for him to find his passion for business and finance. He balanced his academic studies in the School of Business with his fraternal commitment to Alpha Sigma Phi while working part-time jobs throughout his college years.</p> <p>Hicks noted that through leadership opportunities on campus, including serving as president of his fraternity, he also learned about developing relationships, building camaraderie and encouraging teamwork. He said these crucial soft skills have complemented his business acumen and served him well throughout his career.</p> <p>Hicks completed his Bachelor of Science degree in business administration in 1984 and immediately began working at Wachovia Bank in the finance division. By 1997, Hicks took a leap of faith and established North State Acceptance, a specialty finance company that purchases and services retail sales contracts from car dealerships. The company also offered personal loans for emergencies, college and other needs. </p> <p>His company grew from a single location to 12 offices in five states before he decided to sell it in 2013. </p> <p>Today, Hicks continues to influence the business market through a variety of business ventures, including the purchase and redevelopment of the former Hardee&#x2019;s and RBC Centura North American headquarters campus in Rocky Mount. The location is now the N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles headquarters. </p> <p>Hicks and his wife, Jill, have three sons. Zack, Barton class of 2014, works in the family business, and his wife, Melanie, teaches at Southern Nash High School, where she also coaches softball and volleyball. The Hickses also have twin sons, Austin and Spencer. Austin is a junior at Barton this year, and Spencer is a junior at N.C. State University. </p> <p>&#x201C;The Hicks family represents so much of what is great about Barton College,&#x201D; said Archer Bane, executive director of institutional advancement. &#x201C;As passionate alumni, the willingness to make such a generous gift not only is a vote of confidence for the strategic vision of our institution, but it signals to other alumni that we welcome and want their involvement and support.&#x201D;</p> <p>The David S. Hicks Family Sports Operations Center features a large, glassed-in conference room and offices for coaching staff. The building&#x2019;s interior currently includes football and men&#x2019;s and women&#x2019;s lacrosse locker rooms and additional athletic training rooms. There also are two outdoor practice fields adjacent to the building. </p> <p>Following Phase II, the sports operations center will include an indoor turf facility as well as additional group meeting rooms and offices. </p> <p>&#x201C;I am incredibly proud to be involved with my alma mater, and I challenge fellow alumni and friends of the college to join me in investing in Barton,&#x201D; Hicks said. &#x201C;We have an opportunity to immediately impact the lives of the current students, faculty and staff and programs while also helping to shape the college&#x2019;s future. Right now is the perfect time to get more involved.&#x201D;</p>

Barton College graduate donates $1 million for athletic center

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<p>In its first four months of operation, Wilson&rsquo;s on-demand public transit system more than tripled the former bus system&rsquo;s ridership. Participation may increase further as the city extends service hours.</p>
<p>Ride currently operates from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, but starting on Monday, the service will run from 5:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Rides aren&rsquo;t available on Sundays.</p>
<p>&ldquo;I do see Rides in my district a lot, and I appreciate all you are doing, so I hope it continues to grow,&rdquo; Councilwoman Gillettia Morgan told city staff and representatives from Via, the company that operates Ride, during the Wilson City Council&rsquo;s Feb. 18 meeting.</p>
<p>Via representatives Sean Sauter and Ben McCabe presented a report on the system&rsquo;s use since Ride launched on Sept. 1.The fixed-route bus system averaged 300-400 riders a week, but Ride averaged three times that within the first month. Demand and utilization of the system continued to grow with about 250 new riders in October, November and December, on top of about 450 existing riders each month.</p>
<p>In the four-month period, 24,401 rides were completed with an average wait time of 13.4 minutes. According to the survey, almost 90% of rides were for essential trips, including 52% for employees commuting to and from work.</p>
<p>City Manager Grant Goings said the expansion of hours is due in part to those using Ride for transportation to and from work. He noted that a recent study through the Wilson Chamber of Commerce determined the top two barriers to employment for Wilsonians were transportation and child care. At that time, Goings said the city made a commitment to address the transportation challenge.</p>
<p>Councilman Derrick Creech said Ride has actually addressed both issues for area parents, noting conversations he&rsquo;s had with one parent in particular.</p>
<p>&ldquo;He let me know that Ride got him to work on time, so he has extra money to go toward child care, but it also allows him to get back home to care for his son,&rdquo; Creech said. &ldquo;So Ride has actually addressed both issues.&rdquo;</p>
<p>When Ride was launched, the system used eight vehicles and quickly expanded to 10. Now there are 13 vehicles traversing the city for $1.50 per trip.</p>
<p>Sauter said three vehicles are wheelchair-accessible, and more than half of the drivers are trained to assist users with disabilities. McCabe added that Via plans to hire more drivers to reduce wait times.</p>
<p>Visit the shortened link tinyurl.com/pw3y5vap for more information on Ride. The Via app is free for Android and Apple devices, but residents without a smartphone can call 252-595-5357 to set up an account. Passengers without debit or credit cards can prepay for rides, with bundle discounts available.</p>
<style>#qp_main3458543 .qp_btna:hover input {background:#00355F!important} #qp_all3458543 {max-width:815px; margin:0 auto;}</style>
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<div id="qp_main3458543" fp="720a40e7-105" results="0" style="border-radius: 0px; margin: 0 auto 10px auto; padding: 0.8em; background-color: #fff; font-family: 'Open Sans', sans-serif, Arial; color: #000; border: 1px solid #DBD9D9; max-width: 815px; box-sizing: border-box; text-align: left;">
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<div style="padding: 0.8em; line-height: 1.3em;">What do you think of Wilson's Ride on-demand transit service?</div>
</div>
<form id="qp_form3458543" action="//www.poll-maker.com/results3458543x720a40e7-105" method="post" target="_blank" style="display: inline; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">
<div style="padding: 0px;"><input type="hidden" name="qp_d3458543" value="44253.4196064851-44253.419604881" />
<div style="display: block; color: #6b6b6b; font-family: 'Open Sans', sans-serif, Arial; font-size: 1em; line-height: 1.5; padding: 13px 8px 11px; margin: 10px 0px; clear: both;" class="qp_a" onclick="var c=this.getElementsByTagName('INPUT')[0]; if((!event.target?event.srcElement:event.target).tagName!='INPUT'){c.checked=(c.type=='radio'?true:!c.checked)};var i=this.parentNode.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('INPUT');for(var k=0;k!=i.length;k=k+1){i[k].parentNode.parentNode.setAttribute('sel',i[k].checked?1:0)}"><span style="display: block; padding-left: 30px; cursor: inherit;"><input style="float: left; width: 20px; margin-left: -25px; margin-top: 2px; padding: 0px; height: 20px; -webkit-appearance: radio;" name="qp_v3458543" type="radio" value="1" />Great improvement over fixed-route buses</span></div>
<div style="display: block; color: #6b6b6b; font-family: 'Open Sans', sans-serif, Arial; font-size: 1em; line-height: 1.5; padding: 13px 8px 11px; margin: 10px 0px; clear: both;" class="qp_a" onclick="var c=this.getElementsByTagName('INPUT')[0]; if((!event.target?event.srcElement:event.target).tagName!='INPUT'){c.checked=(c.type=='radio'?true:!c.checked)};var i=this.parentNode.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('INPUT');for(var k=0;k!=i.length;k=k+1){i[k].parentNode.parentNode.setAttribute('sel',i[k].checked?1:0)}"><span style="display: block; padding-left: 30px; cursor: inherit;"><input style="float: left; width: 20px; margin-left: -25px; margin-top: 2px; padding: 0px; height: 20px; -webkit-appearance: radio;" name="qp_v3458543" type="radio" value="2" />Good concept, but I'd like later service hours</span></div>
<div style="display: block; color: #6b6b6b; font-family: 'Open Sans', sans-serif, Arial; font-size: 1em; line-height: 1.5; padding: 13px 8px 11px; margin: 10px 0px; clear: both;" class="qp_a" onclick="var c=this.getElementsByTagName('INPUT')[0]; if((!event.target?event.srcElement:event.target).tagName!='INPUT'){c.checked=(c.type=='radio'?true:!c.checked)};var i=this.parentNode.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('INPUT');for(var k=0;k!=i.length;k=k+1){i[k].parentNode.parentNode.setAttribute('sel',i[k].checked?1:0)}"><span style="display: block; padding-left: 30px; cursor: inherit;"><input style="float: left; width: 20px; margin-left: -25px; margin-top: 2px; padding: 0px; height: 20px; -webkit-appearance: radio;" name="qp_v3458543" type="radio" value="3" />I preferred the former bus system</span></div>
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Ride extends on-demand transit hours

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<p>With several diehard BBC fans in my life, I had heard of &#x201C;The Great British Baking Show&#x201D; over the years, but it never piqued my interest enough to add it to my Netflix queue. However, after a mind-boggling number of pandemic-binged shows, I settled down to watch an episode last October with my fianc&#xE9; and his mother.</p> <p>We all soon became enthralled with a seemingly endless stream of ingredients, methods and recipes we&#x2019;d never even knew existed. Even though we spent a fair bit of each episode Googling one thing or another, we marathoned season after season while realizing our British counterparts apparently are taught way more about the culinary arts than the average American.</p> <p>For the uninitiated, each episode consists of three baking challenges within a theme such as breads, chocolate or pastry. The contestants usually are given the parameters of two of those challenges to develop a recipe and practice before the weekend competitions, but the third challenge is often an obscure recipe with vague directions that often leave the participants producing less than stellar baked goods. At the end of the episode, one of the bakers earns the title of star baker while a second is sent packing.</p> <p>Well, fast forward to season 11 that took place in early 2020 with the contestants, hosts, judges and crew all quarantined for the duration of filming. It was interesting to kick off 2021 watching this season and realizing that while nearly a year had transpired since the episodes were filmed, COVID-19 is still altering our daily lives. As such, my fianc&#xE9; and I began discussing our Valentine&#x2019;s Day plans. Ultimately we opted to forgo eating out, instead testing our own British baking skills by making a few recipes from the show.</p> <p>Prior to watching the show, I&#x2019;d never really contemplated making pastry from scratch, and my only recollection of the word &#x201C;pasty&#x201D; is from Harry Potter. I soon realized that a pasty is basically a hand pie &#x2014; think fancy Hot Pocket &#x2014; to provide workers with a portable and filling lunch on the go. </p> <p>One of the contestants, Laura, made one that the judges described as heavenly tasting, so we looked up the recipe on thegreatbritishbakeoff.co.uk and set about translating the ingredients and measurements into ones we understood.</p> <p>Despite being woefully unsure of our pastry-making skills, we spent Valentine&#x2019;s Day creating this deliciously posh pie that we both decided we&#x2019;d happily have again. Here&#x2019;s hoping you enjoy it as much as we did.</p>

An American attempt at British baking

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<p><span>2020. What a year it was. People across the world were ready to see 2020 close and a new year begin.<span class="Apple-converted-space">&nbsp;</span></span></p>
<p><span>Though we are not out of the woods yet, we welcome 2021 with cautious optimism. The start of a new year, particularly this year, is a great time to talk about prevention of cancer and other illnesses and setting goals we can actually achieve. But this year, instead of talking just about diseases like cancer and heart disease, we need to focus on surviving pandemics as well.</span></p>
<p><span>Despite the fact that our health and well-being are threatened by foes old (cancer) and new (COVID-19), there are basic preventions we can take to improve our chances of survival. A very wise person once said, &ldquo;The only behavior we can be responsible for changing is our own.&rdquo;<span class="Apple-converted-space">&nbsp;</span></span></p>
<p><span>Not surprisingly, most of the ways we can prevent illness and increase survival is by changing our own behaviors. Here&rsquo;s an example: No matter which major disease runs in our families or our communities &mdash; heart disease, stroke, cancer (and now COVID) &mdash; we have a better shot of preventing, surviving and even thriving beyond these illnesses if we eat right, control our weight, don&rsquo;t smoke or chew tobacco and exercise and sleep well. It has never been clearer that these behaviors lead to better outcomes. The difficulty lies in setting those goals and keeping to them.</span></p>
<p><span>We&rsquo;ve all heard, &ldquo;Where there&rsquo;s a will, there&rsquo;s a way,&rdquo; but &ldquo;willingness&rdquo; is very different from &ldquo;willfulness.&rdquo; We all know someone who has tried to quit smoking or start exercising and failed many times. But then one day, he just put the cigarettes down or lost weight by changing eating habits.<span class="Apple-converted-space">&nbsp;</span></span></p>
<p><span>What was different about this time? People successful in changing habits often respond with, &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know, I was just ready.&rdquo; Willingness is accepting where you are and what it&rsquo;s going to take for you to change. When you&rsquo;re ready, you&rsquo;re willing, and suddenly you&rsquo;re able. <span class="Apple-converted-space">&nbsp;</span></span></p>
<p><span>Rather than make lofty goals for 2021, try focusing on something smaller, doable and linked to better health. Choose goals that you may be ready to tackle. That can be as simple as adding an apple to your diet every day or wearing a face mask when you are outside of your home. Or maybe you park in a parking spot farther away from the store so you can increase the number of steps you walk.<span class="Apple-converted-space">&nbsp;</span></span></p>
<p><span>Plan to add healthful habits every day. And really plan it, as in go to the store and buy apples. Pack them in your lunch. Don&rsquo;t let them sit on the counter degrading. Focus on adding something easy and healthful, and then with intention and mindfulness, achieve that goal. Don&rsquo;t forget to congratulate yourself when you do achieve the goal.</span></p>
<p><span>In 2021, focus on becoming more healthful, one small, measurable step at a time. As these build into a path to greater health, disease risks will go down or give you the opportunity to improve the outcomes for any disease you may battle. We, as a nation, are in this pandemic together. Let&rsquo;s raise each other up and support a healthier, happier nation as we move forward into a healthier, happier 2021. Wilson Medical is here to help. <span class="Apple-converted-space">&nbsp;</span></span></p>
<p><span>Call Courtney Harlow, oncology director, at 252-399-8741 for information on smoking cessation.</span></p>
<p><span><i><strong>Catherine Gaines</strong> is physician assistant in the Duke Cancer Network.<span class="Apple-converted-space">&nbsp;</span></i></span></p>

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