🗞️ Kernersville police answered 269 domestic violence calls last year

🗞️ Free walk-in flu shots are now available at Forsyth County Public Health

🗞️ N.C. 66 at Old Hollow Road in Walkertown closes this weekend for drain work

🗞️ Your Tuesday in Kernersville: aldermen vote tonight, $3 fair day and a crisp, sunny forecast

☀️ Sunny and crisp | High: 71°F | Low: 46°F

Tuesday is a picture-perfect fall day, with sunshine from start to finish, a light northeast breeze and a high near 71. It turns chilly after sunset under a clear sky, dropping to around 46, so bring a jacket if you're headed to the fair or the aldermen meeting tonight. Wednesday warms back up to near 77 with more sunshine.

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and a routine proclamation at last week's Forsyth County Board of Commissioners meeting put hard numbers on a problem that usually stays behind closed doors, including here in Kernersville.

Commissioner Gloria Whisenhunt shared figures for the fiscal year that ran from July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026. During that span, the Kernersville Police Department responded to 269 domestic violence incidents. Across the county, Winston-Salem police responded to 3,172 and the Forsyth County Sheriff's Office responded to 2,242.

The court numbers were just as sobering. The Forsyth County District Attorney's office prosecuted 2,303 domestic violence cases, and the county clerk of court recorded 796 domestic violence protective orders. Statewide, 69 killings related to domestic violence and 22 murder-suicides had been recorded this year as of last Thursday.

The proclamation also recognized the work of the Bridges to Hope Family Justice Center, which serves victims in Forsyth County. Winston-Salem Journal columnist Scott Sexton, who wrote about the numbers, summed up the reaction in one line: “What are we doing to each other?”

A way to help this week. The Drive Out Domestic Violence Golf Tournament tees off Friday, Oct. 9, from 1:30 to 6:30 p.m. at Pine Knolls Golf Club, 1100 Quail Hollow Rd., with proceeds benefiting Next Step Ministries.

If you need help. The National Domestic Violence Hotline is free, confidential and available 24 hours a day at 1-800-799-7233, or by texting START to 88788. In an emergency, call 911.

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Flu season is on the way, and Forsyth County Public Health began offering free walk-in flu shots on Monday, Oct. 5, at 799 N. Highland Ave. in Winston-Salem.

According to the county's October announcement, hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday, and 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Thursday. No appointment is needed. If you have Medicaid or private insurance, bring your card.

The announcement doesn't spell out which vaccines are in stock or which ages the walk-in clinic serves, so it's worth calling ahead at 336-703-3100, especially if you're bringing a child or an older relative. The CDC prefers high-dose, recombinant or adjuvanted flu vaccines for adults 65 and older, so older adults may want to ask whether one is available. September and October are generally the best months to get the shot.

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If your weekend plans take you toward Walkertown, plan for a detour. A contractor for the N.C. Department of Transportation will close N.C. 66 at Old Hollow Road from 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 9, until 6 a.m. Monday, Oct. 12, weather permitting.

The nearly half-mile closure gives crews room to install a new 60-inch storm drain crossing at Lowery Mill Creek as part of the N.C. 66 widening project. A signed detour will help drivers reach points on either side of the closure. With Friday night football and the final weekend of the Carolina Classic Fair on the calendar, give yourself a few extra minutes.

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Tuesday brings sunshine and a high near 71, followed by a clear, chilly night in the mid-40s. Here's what's happening around town.

Aldermen vote tonight. The Board of Aldermen meets at 6:30 p.m. at Town Hall, 134 E. Mountain St. On the agenda: final votes on rezoning and annexing about 54.7 acres near N.C. 66 South and Interstate 40 for 670 apartments, and on the Paul J. Ciener Gardens Foundation's request to rezone 5.9 acres on Bost Street for townhomes and other denser housing. The meeting also streams on the town's YouTube channel.

$3 fair day. Every admission ticket to the Carolina Classic Fair is $3 all day Tuesday, and the gates open at 11 a.m. The fair runs through Sunday, Oct. 11.

At the library. Paddison Memorial Branch Library, 248 Harmon Ln., hosts STEAM for Tweens at 4 p.m. It's free.

Still detouring. Pecan Lane stays closed to through traffic for water and sewer work through Sunday, Oct. 11.

A quick errand. If a flu shot is on your to-do list, the county's free walk-in clinic is open until 4:30 p.m. Tuesday. Details are in the story above.