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WINDSOR – Mount Olive Missionary Baptist Church will host an event on Saturday, Sept. 24 aimed at assisting school-aged children in dealing with issues facing young people today.

“Help Me to Survive and Protect Myself” features a youth panel discussion targeting middle school and high school students in Bertie and Hertford counties.

The event begins at 10 a.m. and will feature Pitt County Sheriff Paula Dance as the keynote speaker. Dance is Pitt County’s first-ever African American Sheriff and the first African American female to hold the office of Sheriff in North Carolina.

Special guests include Northampton County native Eddie M. Buffaloe Jr., Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Public Safety, and NC State Senator Don Davis. Buffaloe’s topic will center on how to control gun violence in North Carolina schools.

Other topics to be covered include:

Life Style Expected in Public Schools & Bullying – Dr. Otis Smallwood, Superintendent, Bertie County Schools;

How to Proceed If You are Stopped by Law Enforcement Officers Malcom Cherry, North Carolina State Highway Patrol;

Young People Staying out of Trouble with the Law and We Do Not Want to Arrest You – Hertford County Sheriff Dexter Hayes and Bertie County Sheriff-Elect Tyrone Ruffin

Refrain from Using Drugs: Sheldon L. Rhines, Probation/Parole Officer, NC Department of Public Safety;

How to Fight Stress, Depression and Peer Pressure as a Youth – Ka Toya Jordan, Outpatient Therapist, Integrated Family Services, PLLC; and

You Do Not Want to Come to Court and Stand in Front of Me – The Honorable Teresa R. Freeman and The Honorable Vershenia Ballance Johnson, District Court Judges, State of North Carolina – 6th Judicial District.

Those unable to attend in-person can view the event on Facebook Live (Mount Olive MB Church) or by conference call (667-930-7351, us pin # 2902578). You can also choose to sit in your vehicle at the church parking lot and tune in to 98.1 FM.

The church is located at 102 Mt. Olive Road, Windsor.

To learn more about the event, contact Linda McNair-Moore at 252-862-4022 or email: randlmoore@net-change.com.