🌱 Wilmington Native Crowned Queen Azalea + Man Crashes Into Airport

Hello, everybody. I'm here with your Sunday edition of the Wilmington Patch newsletter, filled with everything you need to know about what's happening in town.

But first, your local weather:

• Monday: Breezy and warmer. High: 65 Low: 37.

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Here are the top three stories in Wilmington today:

1. Wilmington native Carli Batson has been crowned the 76th Queen Azalea at the North Carolina Azalea Festival. Batson competed at the 100th Anniversary Miss America Competition where she raised over $30,000 for arts programs across North Carolina. Batson, a 2022 graduate of Appalachian State University also served as the 83rd Miss North Carolina in 2021. (WWAY NewsChannel 3)
2. Tray Anthony Dvorak was taken into custody earlier this week for driving a vehicle into the Wilmington International Airport claiming, "the devil made him do it." Thursday night, the New Handover County Sheriff's Office responded to a call of a vehicle breaching the airport's fence and driving onto the tarmac. Dvorak was pursued by authorities resulting in him crashing through doors and windows of the terminal and ending up inside. He was charged with assault, trespassing on airport property, speeding to elude arrest disorderly conduct, and resisting a government official. (WRAL News)
3. A New Hanover County Sheriff's deputy was involved in an accident this past week. The two-car crash happened at 3rd and Castle Streets when a driver pulled in front of the deputy. More information is to come on the incident, but the deputy has been taken to the hospital for further observation in what appears to be non-life-threatening injuries. (WECT)

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Today in Wilmington:

• Crafty Mondays - MLK Community Center (10:00 AM)
• A Little Lunch Music: The Reverón Piano Trio At McErny Gallery at WHQR (12:00 PM)
• Jazz At Lincoln Center: Songs We Love - The Wilson Center (7:30 PM)

From my notebook:

• The New Hanover County Schools is showing its support for the McLeod family for the loss of Darnell McLeod (DJ). Please keep the family in your thoughts as they go through this difficult time. (New Hanover County Schools via Facebook)
• The new "Scream" movie was released over the weekend, and the city reminisced on memories of when the previous movie in the series was filmed in Wilmington. Dewey calling Sidney at the Riverwalk still shakes us to the core! (City of Wilmington, NC Government via Facebook)
• The walking trail is currently in the works at Hanover Pines Park. Here are a few recent pictures of the path being installed right over the wetlands for the community to use. (New Hanover County Parks & Gardens via Facebook)

Thanks for following along and staying informed! I'll see you around.

— Lauren Kubiak

About me: Lauren is an Editor for Lightning Media Partners. She graduated from Rowan University with a Bachelor’s in journalism. She was previously a full-time editor at an association management firm, editing peer-reviewed nursing journals, textbooks, and newsletters.