Sea Turtle Hospital News On March 17 everybody is Irish, at least Irish enough to wear something green, eat corned beef and cabbage and drink a brew that turns your tongue an odd color for the day. And we’re celebrating the month of March at the hospital by featuring three of our exceptional greens for adoption. Long-time patient “Canal” heads the list. Canal has been with us since 2015 after admission...

These Pender County CountOnMeNC businesses have taken additional training and implemented new procedures in light of COVID-19. These businesses have pledged to: Ensure staff wear cloth face coverings if they cannot keep six feet apart. Ensure safe sanitation practices are followed. Administer health checks to all staff prior to shift start. Make sure indoor and outdoor seating meets all physical distancing guidelines....

The Governor of North Carolina announced on February 24, 2021, that he is lifting the modified stay-at-home order, which included a curfew from 10 PM to 5 AM. Executive Order 195 signals the easing of restrictions in NC. Within the parameters of this order, our tourism businesses are open to visitors and community members with restrictions in place and recommendations on operating. This means that our food &...

Sea Turtle Hospital News Well, it was nice while it lasted. We should have known better than to think that those above-average temperatures would continue until spring. And if we thought for even one minute that this was maybe, just maybe the year we wouldn’t be seeing an influx of NC cold-stuns in late January and early February our hopes were just that - hopes. We recently admitted seven little greens, all...

2021 Virtual New Year’s Eve Blueberry Drop Receives Awards BURGAW – Town of Burgaw’s event is a recipient of two awards from the North Carolina Association of Festivals and Events (NCAFE). The 2021 Virtual New Year's Eve Blueberry Drop was recognized as 2021 Excellence Award Winners from the NC Association of Festivals & Events during their Annual Virtual Show Fest 2021 Event Innovators...

Sea turtle hospital names new executive director The Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center (KBSTRRC) Board of Directors and Staff are pleased to welcome our new executive director, Kathy Zagzebski. Clearly, no one person will ever be able to fill the very large footprint of our Founder and current Executive Director, Jean Beasley. But after more than four decades in the “turtle business”...

National Plan for Vacation Day, Jan. 26 Join us and US Travel in celebrating National Plan for Vacation Day, Jan. 26 National Plan for Vacation Day, celebrated on the last Tuesday of January, is a day to encourage Americans to plan their time off. Save the date: National Plan for Vacation Day is January 26, 2021. Thousands of organizations join this annual, nationwide event to encourage Americans to plan their vacation....

BURGAW – Pender County’s GIS mapping department pulled together a wealth of information from Pender County Parks and Recreation and Pender County Tourism to create an interactive Web-based map. The map shows parks, trails, natural areas, community centers, and places of public interest managed by different agencies. “Whether you want to swim, go boating, see a museum, or experience some history,...

NCDOT releases the State of Aviation report Henderson Field contributes to local economy PENDER COUNTY – The North Carolina Department of Transportation released its annual report, The State of Aviation, this week. The report highlights the contribution of airports across the state. “Publicly owned airports contribute $61 billion to the state’s economy annually and supports 373,000 jobs,”...

Sea Turtle Hospital News We’ve admitted and rehabilitated cold stunned turtles for, well, forever. We’re always sympathetic to their plight: they were just happily going about their everyday turtle lives before being suddenly stopped in their tracks by forces outside of their control. After having the same thing done to all of us in 2020 we have a greater appreciation for how these critters must feel. We...

Moores Creek National Battlefield to Receive Donation from Sons of the American Revolution Currie, NC- The staff and volunteers of Moores Creek National Battlefield would like to thank the members of the Lower Cape Fear Chapter of the North Carolina Society, Sons of the American Revolution (NCSSAR) for their recent donation to the park of $1,300. The Sons of the American Revolution is an authorized "non-profit,...

Sea Turtle Hospital News It’s been a strangely calm fall at the hospital, largely due to Covid restrictions and not being able to invite you all in but also because we have relatively few patients. Not that we’re hoping for the ginormous influx of cold-stuns that New England is dealing with! So, when we have some time between morning feedings and late morning turtle care talk often turns to our years at the...

Virtual New Year’s Eve Blueberry Drop planned for Burgaw BURGAW – The Town of Burgaw, Pender County, and the North Carolina Blueberry Festival welcome the return of the annual New Year’s Eve Blueberry Drop on Dec. 31. “The 2019 Blueberry Drop was another huge success,” said Cody Suggs, Burgaw Parks and Recreation director. “Although the event will not be in person this year,...

Currie, NC- In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Moores Creek National Battlefield will not be able to host the annual Anniversary Program this year. However, the park will hold a "virtual" Anniversary event beginning at 10 am. on Saturday February 27 and continuing through Sunday February 28, via Facebook Live, on our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/moorescreeknps) as well as on our other social media outlets,...

There's plenty to do this holiday season Even with pandemic restrictions, creative organizations have found a way to make the season merry and bright. December is here & the holiday season has begun! Let us be your guide this holiday season on the top spots to experience your holiday cheer & to feel merry and bright! Events are going to be experienced a little differently this year but there...

We love Pender Spenders! Pender County retailers are using our Pender Spender stickers to empower shoppers that It Matters Where You Shop. Thank you for being a Pender Spender! #ShopPender

Today is #NationalTakeAHikeDay! Hop on one of Pender County's many trails like the statewide Mountains-to-Sea Trail or Visit Moores Creek National Battlefield and hike the same path that revolutionary soldiers did. Visit the Town of Burgaw and hop on the Osgood Greenway and Urban Trail and walk past historic sites and famous filming locations. Or if you're looking for something more adventurous check...

If you’re feeling like nothing good has happened this year let us offer you a little ray of sunshine. There were one-hundred-seven sea turtle nests on Topsail beaches over the summer, and almost all of them hatched. We lost only one to a hurricane, and the fate of the three nests laid very late in the season will depend on how cold it gets over the next few weeks. But by and large those ambitious turtle mamas...

Pender County Tourism and Pender County Parks and Recreation created a 2021 wall calendar featuring favorite photos from the Nature Photo Contest conducted last March. “We highlighted some of the winning photographs as well as photos that were judges’ favorites,” said Tammy Proctor, Pender County Tourism Director. “We also included important community events, such as the Anniversary of the...

It’s been a frustrating year for everybody, but especially for hospital staff. Normally at this point we would have welcomed about 50,000-to-60,000 visitors to our hospital through our public tours, and we’d be continuing those tours through mid-December. But this year: zip. Covid has kept us locked inside, but thankfully, by being vigilant with masking we’ve managed to keep Covid totally out of the...

It Matters Where You Shop! We are encouraging residents to shop virtually and online with our local businesses to give unique and beautiful gifts this holiday season. Pender County loses sales tax money to our surrounding counties when we shop outside our home county. This year, more than any other year, we need to support our local businesses. These are the businesses that support our community throughout the year....

Did you miss the Ghosts of Pender's Past Drive-In Movie Theater? Done differently this year, our talented local actors created scenes for a Ghost Walk Movie, hear tales of mystery about Pender County. Well, never fret we may not be able to publish Stephen King's Silver Bullet but below is where you can watch Ghost Walk: The Movie! Watch your favorite local actors and actresses in tales from Pender County. Just...

Pender County Tourism's new video has been released. Take a vacation to the Beach You Remember, in a county brimming with history, culinary delights, and outdoor adventures. COVID and safety conscious, Pender County, Topsail Beach, Surf City, and the Town of Burgaw our county seat are great places to explore anew! Great beach vacations, historic sites, and culinary delights can be found in Pender County, NC,...

Our goal is to get all our businesses registered with this statewide program! Statistics show that businesses are more successful if their customers feel safe in their establishments. Join us to learn how the Count On Me NC program can benefit your business! Count On Me NC is a public health pledge and online free curriculum/course that once completed, gives businesses a logo and sign they can display at their...

Big flippers, little flippers and every size in between left their mark on Topsail in the past few weeks. In between hatchings, hurricanes and rip currents we managed to get thirty-one of our “graduates” back home. Most of these guys and gals had been with us since they cold-stunned last winter so saying that everybody, everybody was ready for a change of scenery would be an understatement. Of course, with...