Woke up during the night thinking about a former part-time manager for the town of Bladenboro who made a huge difference in several areas of Bladen County.
His name was David (Dave) Bartlett. Not sure how he arrived in this area. I first met him while he was employed as a planner for the Lumber River Council of Government and I was a county commissioner. Next, he was Fairmont city manager (part-time), later added Bladenboro to his resume’. He was a smart young man.
The Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program was just beginning to be offered from the federal government. He knew the rules and knew that Bladenboro was not large enough to apply, so he suggested the county and towns in the county make on application, and work together. We, a committee representing all the local governments in the county, (one from each location) except White Lake, they were not eligible, based on the federal rules, signed off on the application. East Arcadia eventually pulled out of the group, applied and failed to receive funding.
We requested $500,000, and were awarded $480,000. Bladenboro received funding for lights for a town park, Clarkton used their money to renovate the old railroad depot (it served for period as town office), Elizabethtown purchased a lot for a recreation site and added playground equipment for youngsters, Dublin used their funds to upgrade their water facility, Tar Heel purchased a site across from the school and eventually built a building later used by the fire department and rescue squad. Committee members voted to award East Arcadia funds to roof a multi-purpose building in the town used by youngsters as a recreation site. The county’s portion of the grant was used to begin construction of a county park, near the NC Highway Patrol Station, between Elizabethtown and Clarkton.
None would have likely ever happened had it not been for Dave Bartlett.
He later left the area, moved to Moore County, Seven Lakes to be exact. I looked up his name and best I can tell he still lives in the area, he is in his 70s. Actually, I visited him a couple of times a long time ago before I retired as I traveled the state with my job.
While digging into the past, I discovered this is my second Thoughts related to Dave Bartlett. The last was September 1, 2015. Heck, I forgot it and bet you did to. Worth repeating.
With all the ‘crap’ going on today, particularly at the state and national level, nice to think about a ‘good guy’ at the local level who made a difference.
A tree is known by its fruit; a man by his deeds. A good deed is never lost; he who sows courtesy reaps friendship, and he who plants kindness gathers love. Saint Basil
Better do a good deed near home than go far away to burn incense. Amelia Earhart
A good deed is not just a duty, but above all, a privilege. Shari Arison
Even a smile is a good deed. Shari Arison
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