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NEW BERN, NC. The popular exhibit that wowed thousands at the North Carolina History Center in celebration of the New Bern Historical Society’s 100^th Anniversary, has found a new home. It will now grace the walls of New Bern’s DoubleTree Hotel. In partnership with the DoubleTree, the Historical Society has now installed its exhibit “Through the Looking Glass, A Journey with the Storytellers” and it is open and available to the public. This exhibit features hundreds of images from New Bern’s past sharing the stories of many who made our town what it is. You’ll meet folks from Judge Gaston to Abraham Galloway and Gilbert Waters to Miss Gertrude Carraway. You’ll marvel at the many images from our past.

In 2023, the New Bern Historical Society celebrated its 100^th Anniversary. After 100 years, the Historical Society has a large collection of images and artifacts of New Bern’s history. Many of these have been hidden for years. After working for three years with the design team from Design Dimension in Raleigh, the exhibit was developed and shared with the public at the Duffy Gallery in the NC History Center. That exhibit came down in January of 2024, but the Historical Society was determined to continue to offer all these wonderful images to the public. The partnership with the DoubleTree has allowed that to happen.

Executive Director Anthony Giardino has pursued this project since taking the post. “This incredible exhibit is the result of years of leadership, planning, fundraising, and a vision to share these images with the New Bern community. Our Centennial Committee, Board of Directors, generous donors, John Haroldson and Rowena Arroza of DoubleTree Hilton, and Design Dimension are the true champions in bringing this vision to fruition. Thank you to all involved!”

Visitors to the exhibit were delighted! “I’m definitely coming back, there’s so much to see!” “This is the best exhibit I’ve seen here!” and “There is so much I never knew, and I was born here!” These are just a few of the comments from the visitor’s book during the exhibit’s 9-month life at the History Center. Now we are thrilled to have this exhibit for years to come on display at the DoubleTree Hilton.

Visitors are welcome to visit the exhibit during business hours at the DoubleTree by Hilton at the New Bern Riverfront at 100 Middle Street in New Bern.

The mission of the New Bern Historical Society is to celebrate and promote New Bern and its heritage through events and education. Offices are located in the historic Attmore-Oliver House at 511 Broad Street in New Bern. For more information, call 252-638-8558 or go www.NewBernHistorical.org or www.facebook.com/NewBernHistoricalSociety.

— Source: New Bern Historical Society

April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month and N.C. Guardian ad Litem District 4 is raising awareness with events and stressing the need for area child advocate volunteers.

The Guardian ad Litem program equips local volunteers to serve abused and neglected children by advocating for their best interest in court, said Antoinette Boskey, district administrator of N.C. Guardian ad Litem District 4.

The volunteers are everyday people from all walks of life who are recruited and trained to advocate for children in foster care and provide a consistent, reliable adult presence for them during a difficult time in their lives.

Boskey said the district needs more Guardian ad Litem child advocate volunteers to help end child abuse and neglect by supporting children and their families.

“Our volunteers’ first priority is to keep families together whenever safe and possible,” Boskey said. “Foster care is only a temporary solution to the problems at hand.

“We need to create long term support networks that work to care for families, make reunification a possibility, and help break the cycle for the next generation.”

Locally, N.C. Guardian ad Litem District 4 served 348 children in the foster care system in Carteret, Craven, and Pamlico counties in 2024, Boskey said. The program currently serves 248 children.

Boskey said that 81 of the children are in need of a child advocate volunteer.

Child advocate volunteers are assigned to one child or sibling group to advocate for their best interest in court, school and other settings.

They get to know the child and everyone involved in their life, such as parents, family members, foster parents, therapists, caseworkers and teachers, to develop a realistic picture of the child’s unique situation.

Volunteers engage those important to the child and family to build a network of support that provides the family with resources for after the case ends.

They also make recommendations to the judge overseeing the child’s case, with the goal of ensuring safety for children and resources for the family.

“There is always a need for more N.C. Guardian ad Litem volunteers,” said Boskey. “By becoming a volunteer, you can take your efforts beyond just awareness and do your part to help support children and families in crisis right here in our community.

“This April, consider stepping up to make a difference by becoming a N.C. Guardian ad Litem volunteer.”

When reunification is not a possibility for the children they serve, Guardian ad Litem volunteers work to find others who provide a positive, healthy and loving environment, which can include relatives, friends or other adults who are important in the child’s life to ultimately keep the child connected to their home community.

“We at N.C. Guardian ad Litem District 4 always hope for the day when Guardian ad Litem, foster care and a national month dedicated to child abuse prevention are no longer needed because all children are growing up safe, secure and supported with their families,” Boskey said. “Until then, we will continue to seek more members of the community to join our growing movement so that we can provide a N.C. Guardian ad Litem volunteer for every child who needs one.”

For more information on N.C. Guardian ad Litem, visit http://www.volunteerforgal.org/.

Area residents can also get involved with N.C. Guardian ad Litem District 4 and raise awareness for child abuse prevention by participating in the district’s special events in April.

The first event, a Child Abuse Prevention Opening Ceremony, is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, at 402 Broad St., in New Bern.

N.C. Guardian ad Litem District 4 will host a Go Blue Day on Friday, April 4. People can join in spreading awareness by wearing blue and posting their Go Blue photos on social media with the hashtag #itisyourbusiness.

N.C. Guardian ad Litem District 4 will also promote child well-being with a pinwheel garden and parade at noon on April 16. Attendees will meet at the First Citizen’s Sculpture Park at the corner of Middle and Broad streets in downtown New Bern.

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Chatsworth Products will invest $11 million in an expansion at its New Bern facility that makes IT equipment. The Simi Valley, California-based company expects the expansion to add about 45 jobs to its workforce.

Also known as CPI, the 100% employee-owned company manufactures infrastructure hardware and equipment for the information and communication technology industries. It specializes in engineering thermal, power and cable solutions to help power data centers, in addition to enterprise networking and industrial enclosures. The expansion in New Bern will increase its production capacity and allow CPI to introduce new product lines.

“Chatsworth Products has been delivering innovative data center infrastructure solutions for over 34 years to our global customer base fueled by our employee-ownership culture,” said CEO Ted Behrens in a release.

New positions include machine operators, packers and warehouse staff. Annual wages for new positions will average $50,224, which exceeds the Craven County average of $48,770. The new jobs could potentially create an annual payroll impact of more than $2.2 million for the region.

Chatsworth has had an operation in New Bern since 1993. Chatsworth now employs 230 workers in New Bern, says Jeff Wood, director of Craven County Economic Development. The company expects its investment to grow to $15 million with the addition of 150 jobs within five years, Wood says. Chatsworth has a total 755 U.S. employees and about 60 assigned internationally.

A performance-based grant of $100,000 from the One North Carolina Fund awarded to Chatsworth Products will help facilitate the company’s expansion. Companies receive no money upfront and must meet job creation and capital investment targets to qualify for payment. The company also will receive $50,000 worth of local incentives, Wood says.

CPI operates from multiple sites worldwide, including offices in Mexico, Canada, China, the Middle East and the United Kingdom. CPI’s manufacturing facilities are located in the United States, Asia and Europe. Other U.S. locations include Georgetown and Round Rock, Texas.

Greenville’s Grover Gaming has agreed to sell its charitable gambling division to slot machine manufacturer Light & Wonder for total consideration of as much as $1.05 billion. That includes $850 million in cash upon the deal’s closing, and potentially $200 million more depending on achieving certain financial targets through 2028.

Grover is owned by Garrett Blackwelder, an East Carolina University graduate who founded the company 12 years ago. Employing more than 400 people, the company develops software, the content for games such as Piggy’s Big Break, Video Lottery Terminals, and gaming systems for tribal casinos and charitable gaming jurisdictions. Its more than 10,000 leased electronic pull-tab units in North Dakota, Ohio, Virginia, Kentucky and New Hampshire operate under a recurring revenue model.

The sale price is about 7.7 times the company’s adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $111 million in 2024, according to Bloomberg News.

Grover is selling about half of its operation, while retaining the rest as an independent entity, company officials said. Blackwelder plans to remain with the company.

Electronic pull-tab devices combine bingo and scratch-off lottery tickets, allowing players to win money if they get the right combination of numbers or symbols.

In 2021, Grover said it had raised more than $200 million for charitable organizations such as the Loyal Order of the Moose, Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion, Bloomberg said. The devices are typically located in the lodges of fraternal groups, but some states allow them in bars and restaurants.

Las Vegas-based Light & Wonder said in a statement the purchase will give the company a strong position in a rapidly growing market. It aims to extend its slot-machine titles into online gambling and other types of betting.

Light & Wonder expects the transaction to close by June 30. It was formerly known as Scientific Games before rebranding in 2022.

Grover Gaming employs people in nine states, including a design studio in Wilmington and a software development center in Chicago. Goldman Sachs & Co. is acting as financial adviser to the company.

“Grover Gaming is a leading player in charitable gaming, a category that has experienced significant growth in recent years,” Light & Wonder CEO Matt Wilson said. “This transaction complements our position as the leading cross-platform global games company by adding another compelling regulated adjacency to our profile.”

Blackwelder said, “Light & Wonder is an ideal partner for us, given our similar company cultures and dedication to innovation and customer service.’’

Grover Cheif Development Officer Kevin Morse added, “The real winners are the charities and fraternals in these markets, because of the exciting game content L&W brings to the table. We are excited to see charitable gaming taken to a new level.”

Light & Wonder has a market cap of nearly $9 billion. Shares have gained 5% in the past year and 246% over the past five years.

Goldman Sachs & Co. acted as financial adviser to Grover Gaming, and Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP is serving as a legal adviser.

The best-selling author shares secrets for experiencing his beloved home like a local.

In This Article

Before he became a New York Times best-selling author, Nicholas Sparks was a pharmaceutical rep. In the early 1990s, his employer transferred him to North Carolina. Unfamiliar with where he might want to live, he visited the city of New Bern in eastern North Carolina. After attending a Christmas flotilla and finding himself smitten with the small-town charm, Sparks made the move to New Bern, the state’s first capital city and the birthplace of Pepsi-Cola. Thirty years later, he still calls New Bern home. The place has left such an impression on Sparks that he even chose to set some of his most popular novels (including A Bend in the Road, The Return, The Wedding, and most notablyThe Notebook) in the town.

What To Do

When guests come to visit, whether relatives, friends, or colleagues, the first thing Sparks does is take them on a tour of the historic downtown district, saying “I have in fact done a few of the historic tours in my past, so I now provide my guests a personal tour. I’m a small town guy, so I love the historic area and the downtown. I think it’s beautiful."

For those who aren’t lucky enough to get a private tour from Sparks himself, he suggests taking an organized tour of the historic area, or exploring on your own using the city’s self-guided tour resources. One highlight of any tour is Tryon Palace, the first capital of North Carolina, and its accompanying North Carolina History Center where you can learn more about the state’s history.

Where To Eat

Sparks loves a number of restaurants in New Bern. His top picks when he’s deciding on somewhere to take his guests for lunch downtown include The Chelsea Restaurant, Morgan’s Tavern & Grill, Cypress Hall Kitchen + Bar, or Captain Ratty’s if he’s in the mood for seafood. He notes that all are reasonably priced and have great food. One thing he says everyone must try? Mema’s Famous Strawberry Cake at Cypress Hall.

“It’s a recipe that the chef’s grandma made for the first year of the restaurant, maybe longer, maybe less,” says Sparks of the uber-popular strawberry and vanilla cake.

Festivals To Attend

Another part of living in New Bern that Sparks cherishes is the city’s enthusiasm for festivals. Some of his favorites are MumFest in October, Coastal Carolina Flotilla and Parade in December, and the Shriner’s Parade in January. “The town goes all out for those kinds of things,” he says of the town’s healthy calendar of special events.

Where To Unwind

New Bern was built at the confluence of the Neuse River and Trent River, and the easy accessibility to water is something that Sparks has always admired about his hometown.

“When I'm in the mood to just unwind, I'll go up Brice’s Creek on the jet ski or in the boat. It changes with the seasons, and it's just beautiful,” he says. “It's really easy to just kind of float along up there and think to yourself, ‘This hasn't changed in 300 years or more.’”

While Sparks says the views admittedly don’t have the majesty of panoramic vistas you’ll see out west in places like the Grand Canyon or Grand Tetons, he maintains that his little corner of the world is “pretty darn beautiful in its own special way, especially around sunset.” “There are few places like it,” he says.

When asked where he enjoys reading a book in New Bern, he says his favorite spot, aside from his own backyard, is Union Point Park, which is located at the point of the Neuse and Trent Rivers. “There's shade and there’s a gazebo,” he says. “It’s a beautiful place to sit. Another place I go is the Cedar Grove Cemetery or the cemetery at Christ Episcopal Church, under the trees with the Spanish moss.”

Sparks loves to end his days by sitting on his back porch, “watching the play of light as it changes over the course of a day into evening.” And once the sun goes down, there’s still more to see. “You see a lot of stars here and shooting stars,” he says. “It's got its charms when you sit out and hear crickets, and there’s fireflies too. You just kind of let the day happen to you. It's very peaceful, and it's very beautiful.”