BY MIKE FUHRMAN After more than 30 years in this business, I am rarely surprised by anything that happens at a local candidates’ forum. On Thursday night, during the Iredell
Category: Perspectives
BY MIKE FUHRMAN The stakes are incredibly high as Statesville voters prepare to go to the polls to select the city’s next mayor. It has become abundantly clear to me
Books that deal with controversial topics often reflect teens’ real-life situations BY COOPER HALL All around the world books are being banned in schools. This means a lot of students
BY SHELLIE TAYLOR This year, the Statesville library will celebrate its 100th anniversary. To wrap up Women’s History Month and celebrate National Library Week in April, I’d like to highlight
BY TODD CARVER The Iredell-Statesville Schools Board of Education has experienced a great deal of scrutiny lately due to certain books in our schools’ libraries. I would like to take
BY JOE HUDSON Don’t bother calling me for continued discussion of the Duke and Carolina basketball game; I’m not home. I must go down to the seas again, to the
Edtor’s Note: Paula Price made the following comments during the April 4 meeting of the Iredell County Board of Commissioners. BY PAULA PRICE Good evening, Mr. Chairman and Members of
BY JANE HINSON April 4-10, 2022, is National Public Health Week. I want to take this opportunity to thank the individuals who work at the Iredell County Health Department, which
BY THERESA KNIGHT The Mooresville Graded School District Board February meeting included over three hours of school improvement plan presentations by the principals of each school in the district. Presenter
BY MIKE FUHRMAN The Iredell-Statesville Schools Board of Education has taken a stand for common sense and for parental rights in the face public pressure from a group of would-be
BY SHELLIE TAYLOR During Women’s History Month, it’s important to recognize the contributions of women from around the country. It always means a little bit more to us when we
BY BLAKE PALMER During their March 1 meeting, our Board of Commissioners approved of an astounding $11 million in corporate economic incentives for two companies. In one meeting, our Board
BY JOE HUDSON Iredell Free News recently reported that the Statesville City Council “waded through eight separate public hearings for residential and industrial projects that city officials believe signal a
BY JOSEPH GLASGOW If I was the mayor of Statesville, my involvement with the selection of the next police chief would be paramount given the city council-manager system that our
“Evil is powerless if the good are unafraid.” President Ronald Regan BY DARREN CAMPBELL I have struggled to comprehend that 2021 was one of the deadliest years on record for
Correction: An earlier version of this column incorrectly reported that Councilman Frederick Foster represents Ward 4. He represents Ward 6. BY MIKE FUHRMAN If you were expecting – or hoping
BY AMY FREEZE Fifth Street Ministries saw growing needs, change and so much community support in 2021! In 2021, Fifth Street’s emergency shelter provided 8417 nights for 131 men, women
BY MIKE FUHRMAN As we mark our sixth anniversary today, I want to take the opportunity to thank our readers and advertising partners for your continuing support of Iredell Free
BY BLAKE PALMER A conservative governing philosophy encompasses fiscal discipline. Such self-restraint has eluded our Board of Commissioners, which has engaged in reckless spending that has led to a ballooning
BY MIKE FUHRMAN Too many Iredell County residents continue to be admitted to the hospital — and far too many are dying — after testing positive for COVID-19. During the
BY JEFF JAMES Like many of you, I hoped that 2022 would see an end COVID-19, and all of its variants would be subsiding. That has not happened, and just
BY JOSEPH GLASGOW The Statesville City Council should create an Office of Public Integrity to ensure that city officials act in the public’s interest. It is quite evident that ethics
If you woke up in Iredell County today, Merry Christmas! We are all fortunate to live in such a caring and giving community. Here’s a list of Christmas blessings: We
BY NELSON GRANADE As we enter the Christmas season, you can just feel the excitement in the air. Children smile a bit wider. Holiday lights take over the dark winter
BY MIKE FUHRMAN Years from now, when the history of the COVID-19 pandemic is written, the scientists who developed the vaccines and the frontline healthcare workers who risked their
BY JOHN A. FRALEY Throughout my career in the private sector as well as during my service as a member of the N.C. House of Representatives, I have witnessed firsthand
BY KEN ROBERTSON JR. There are moments in our lives when we see or hear something that has a profound impact on how we think, and more importantly, how
TO THE EDITOR: Our city hall has conceived a 2045 Land Development Plan which will direct growth in our town for the next two decades. The new plan, created behind
BY JOSEPH GLASGOW Homelessness and hunger are colossal problems in America. No one should have to worry about whether they will have food on their plate or a roof over
BY DAVID L. PRESSLY JR. In the fall of 2019, the City of Statesville Planning Department requested proposals from qualified planning firms to update the city’s land development plan. City
BY AMY FREEZE Saturday, November 13, marked the beginning of Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week. In the United States, 44 million people are at risk of suffering from hunger while
BY NELSON GRANADE We all have heard the following quote from Mr. Rogers: “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would
BY KEN ROBERTSON I am old enough to remember Ronald Regan’s presidency. I recall being surprised the media presented the news as if Reagan personally set the price of gasoline.
BY BLAKE PALMER The Iredell-Statesville Schools Board of Education is currently engaged in a redistricting effort with the goal of passing a new district map by November 1. The Board
BY DARREN CAMPBELL Vince Lombardi once said, “The price of success is hard work, dedication to the job at hand, and the determination that whether we win or lose, we
Dear Elected Officials: I am a retired Army LTC with 22 years of service. I speak from experience. During my entire career, I was held accountable for every penny’s worth