TARBORO —
Paulette Briggs, 41, had been trying for years to go back to school. A high school dropout, she wanted to impress on her children the importance of education.
But each time the Tarboro woman tried to work toward her GED diploma, she became frustrated and quit again.
“One of the things that made me quit was a lack of confidence,” Briggs says. “It sticks with you longer than you realize.”
When her youngest daughter decided to quit school last year, Briggs says she knew she had to try again. And this time – thanks to a little role reversal – it worked.
On Oct. 3, mother and daughter – Paulette Briggs, 41. and then 16-year-old Olivia Briggs – earned their GED diplomas from Edgecombe Community College (ECC). They both plan to participate in the college’s graduation ceremony in May 2013.
“Today, I have a GED because of my daughter,” Paulette Briggs says. “I didn’t want to do it, but she pushed me. I got up one morning, and I didn’t feel like going to class.
“[Olivia Briggs] said, ‘OK, I guess I’ll be dumb, too.’ I would have quit again if not for her.”
Olivia Briggs, now 17, says she knew her mother had a hectic lifestyle raising three children and helping pets through her animal rescue work.
“I knew she was going to regret it if she didn’t finish,” Olivia Briggs says. “And I knew she was too smart not to do well.”
“When I was younger, if I didn’t have the confidence to do something, my mom pushed me to do it. I figured I’d turn around and return the favor.”
Although both mother and daughter left school early, their childhoods were completely different, Paulette Briggs says. While she was a rebellious teen who regularly ran away from home and dropped out of school in the seventh grade, her daughter was a good student.
When the family home in Nash County went through foreclosure in 2011, Olivia Briggs decided she didn’t want to start over in high school after the family moved to Tarboro – their third move in nine years. So, the mother-daughter duo hatched a plan to attend ECC.
“The school was great,” Paulette says. “(The instructor) took an interest in us and was very helpful. I felt very comfortable.”
Now that the two have GED diplomas, they both plan to continue their education – Olivia possibly in social work and her mother in business classes.
“I’m so proud of her,” Olivia Briggs says of her mother. “I knew she could do it. And now I’m more confident. I have the drive to do more.”
So does her mother. Paulette Briggs says she has a long list of goals she wants to accomplish now that she’s completed that first step that began so many years ago.
“There’s so much I want to do,” she says. “None of my goals are going to change the world, but they might change somebody’s world.”
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Paulette Briggs (left) and her 17-year-old daughter Olivia, of Tarboro, both earned their GED diplomas from Edgecombe Community College on Oct. 3 They both plan to continue their education, Paulette in business and Olivia possibly in social work. The Daily Southerner
Mother, daughter earn GED at ECC
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Nathan Sherrod (left) and his twin brother Melvin, of Tarboro, enjoy a carnival ride Saturday afternoon at the Happening on the Common. Abrams Rentals provided the rides.
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HAPPENING ON THE COMMON
Tarboro’s Town Common was clearly the center of activity in town Saturday, with cars lining the streets surrounding the common, music that could be heard from blocks away, and a sea of people navigating their way through the vendors’ tables under a canopy of trees. The occasion was the 43rd Annual Happening on the Common.
- Entertainment variety highlights Saturdays Happening
- PINETOPS 300
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HAPPENING ON THE COMMON
- Local News
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Two suspects arrested on 36 charges; third issued citation
After executing a search warrant Thursday on a residence at 500 W. Johnston St. in Tarboro, police officers arrested two suspects for possessing a small amount of marijuana and issued a third suspect a citation for possessing a glass pipe to smoke the drugs.
After the marijuana was found, officers notified two of the three suspects that they also had additional warrants on them from the department's "Spring Fling" drug campaign where they had sold marijuana to undercover officers. - Introductory Latin class beginning Tuesday
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Two suspects arrested on 36 charges; third issued citation
- Sports
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Tony Everett, of Wake Forest, backs his Chevrolet truck named DoeRunner up as he prepares to pull in the four wheel drive event Friday night.
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Pinetops 300
PINETOPS – With the threat of rain during the weekend, it put a little damper on the Pinetops 300 Tractor and Truck Pull attendance. Friday night there was a large crowd in attendance, but not the amount it has been the last several years. There was 500 less people in attendance Friday then there was a year ago, but it didn't stop the pullers from slinging mud everywhere. The fans in one section even had a chance to see what it looked like when a belt breaks on a fine tuned machine. During the Mini Modified run, Thomas Coleman, of Stoneville, had a belt break on his KB 526 Pure Hell ride and the belt slung into the crowd. No one was injured.
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Pinetops 300
- Opinion
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My 13 years have been lucky
It was 13 years Sunday that a drought was broken in Big Spring, Texas, After that, we ate Mexican for dinner with a gathering of family and friends.
The next day, a Saturday, Stephanie and I joined one another in marriage under a beautiful little gazebo by Comanche Trail Lake, fed by the historic spring from which the community draws its name.
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My 13 years have been lucky
- Lifestyles
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Corbett/Chasse Wedding
Brittney Joyce Corbett and Kenneth Robert Chasse, Jr. were united in marriage on April 6th, 2013, at 5:30pm at the Imperial Centre in Rocky Mount. The Rev. Carrol Bradbury officiated the ceremony.
The Rehearsal Dinner was hosted by Shirley and Donald Foreman, Grandparents of the Groom and also Elisha and Kenneth Chasse, Parents of the Groom, at Pizza Inn in Rocky Mount.
The Bride is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. William Durwood Corbett of Macclesfield, NC. The Groom is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Robert Leonel Chasse, Sr. of Pinetops, NC.
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- Obituaries Archives
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MATTIE RUTH BULLOCK
BELVOIR — Mrs. Mattie Ruth Bullock, 81, passed away on Saturday, May 18, 2013. The funeral service will be conducted Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. in the Wilkerson Funeral Chapel. Burial will be in Evergreen Memorial Park, Wilson.
Mrs. Bullock, a native of Wilson County and a lifelong resident of Pitt County, was a graduate of Belvoir-Falkland High School. She was engaged in farming with her husband until 1989 and was a charter member of Belvoir Free Will Baptist Church. - CLAYTON JERELL EPPS
- NONA DEE EZZELLE
- JESSE CLARENCE GARDNER JR.
- CHRISTINE GORHAM
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MATTIE RUTH BULLOCK
- Food
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Budget Friendly Deliciousness
It's nice to be able to put a good meal on the table without having to spend a fortune. Today's recipes are easy, delicious and inexpensive. But, they won't taste inexpensive. I hope that you will give them a try.
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- Events
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Edgecombe Events May 20
Edgecombe Events should be submitted by noon the day before publication. Items eligible include notices of local meetings and activities of non-profit organizations, clubs, schools and civic groups in the community. Information should be brief and typewritten, neatly printed or via e-mail. Questions? 823-3106 or e-mail: events@dailysoutherner.com. Leave a daytime contact phone number.
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Edgecombe Events May 20
- Our Community
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Stocks Elementary School celebrates Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Week
In celebration of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Week, Stocks Elementary School hosted several guest speakers and exciting activities during the first week of May.
- HOBGOOD SCIENCE FAIR
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