On July 16, 1976, the North Carolina Rural Water Association, Inc® (NCRWA) was incorporated as a non-profit corporation under the authority of the NC Secretary of State. NCRWA’s humble, yet service-focused, existence was much the vision of the initial Board of Directors, which included:
Organized from the very beginning to serve as “the voice” of the water and wastewater systems across the state", NCRWA quickly took its place as a leading advocate for the members in the state and soon afterward assisted in the organization of the National Rural Water Association (www.nrwa.org) to provide a consolidated voice for systems in the nation’s capital.
In 1977, NCRWA began providing on-site technical assistance and training for systems and operators across the state. Later adding Source Water and Well Head Protection Planning to its services, NCRWA quickly became recognized as a leading resource in all of these areas. Today, NCRWA continues these efforts by providing services from Board Training to Rate Studies to Leak Detection Assistance to Certification Schools to ensure that our members are able to meet the ever increasing demands placed on them. Although the list is too long to include every service, NCRWA has developed a reputation for assisting with just about any need a system has.
NCRWA has a reputation for great leadership among its ranks. NCRWA Presidents and Executive Directors dating back to the beginning have included:
- Jasper (Jap) Younts of Davidson Water, Inc.
- Boyce Sink of Davidson Water, Inc.
- N.W McGee of the Town of Conover
- William D. Hicks of Dan River Water
- J.A. Mize of Iredell Water, Inc.
- W.P. Wootten of West Iredell Water, Inc.
- Lynn Norton of Alexander County Water, Inc.
Organized from the very beginning to serve as “the voice” of the water and wastewater systems across the state", NCRWA quickly took its place as a leading advocate for the members in the state and soon afterward assisted in the organization of the National Rural Water Association (www.nrwa.org) to provide a consolidated voice for systems in the nation’s capital.
In 1977, NCRWA began providing on-site technical assistance and training for systems and operators across the state. Later adding Source Water and Well Head Protection Planning to its services, NCRWA quickly became recognized as a leading resource in all of these areas. Today, NCRWA continues these efforts by providing services from Board Training to Rate Studies to Leak Detection Assistance to Certification Schools to ensure that our members are able to meet the ever increasing demands placed on them. Although the list is too long to include every service, NCRWA has developed a reputation for assisting with just about any need a system has.
NCRWA has a reputation for great leadership among its ranks. NCRWA Presidents and Executive Directors dating back to the beginning have included:
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Presidents
July 22, 1976 - 1985: J.A. Younts of Davidson Water, Inc 1985 – 1987: Rodney Tart of Harnett County Public Utilities 1987 – 1989: Mike Richardson of Montgomery County Water 1989 – 1991: Rodney Tart of Harnett County Public Utilities 1991 – 1993: Pete Post of the Town of Montreat 1993 - 1995: Marty Wilson of the City of Graham 1995 – 1997: Henry Waldroup of the City of Concord 1997 - 1999: Ron McGrady of Mulberry-Fairplains Water 1999 – 2001: Wayne Jenkins of Northampton County Water 2001 – 2003: Mervis Joyner of Bell Arthur Water Corporation 2003 – 2005: Eddie Coltrain of Wayne Water Districts 2005 – 2007: Earl Newman of the Town of Laurel Park 2007 – 2009: Gregg Stabler of Davidson Water, Inc 2009 – 2011: David Wortman of Icard Water Corporation 2011 – 2013: Macon Robertson of Warren County Public Utilities 2013 – 2015: Neil Carpenter of Maggie Valley Sanitary District 2015 – 2017: Barry Sutton of Eastern Pines Water Corporation 2017 - 2019: Keith Hoilman of the Town of Newland 2019 - 2021: Todd Taylor of the Orange Water and Sewer Authority 2021 - 2023: Lisa Smith-Perri West Carteret Water Corporation 2023 - present: Wilmer Melton City of Kannapolis |
Executive Directors
1977 – 1981: Paul Gosnell (Mr. Gosnell was titled Program Manager as the titles of Administrator and Executive Director were not added till later for the position) 1981 – 1994: Roger Swann 1994 - 1997: Sammy Boyette 1997 – 1998: Robert (Bob) Schley 1998 – 2002 Sammy Boyette 2002 – 2004: Jim Higdon 2004 – 2007: Dean Gaster 2007 – 2021: Daniel Wilson, PE 2021 - 2023: Brian Grogan 2024 - Present Heather Somers |
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Wilmer Melton
NCRWA Board President 2023 |
Why is NCRWA based in Welcome, NC?
Concluding, one question is regularly asked by our members: “Why is NCRWA based in Welcome, NC?”
Davidson Water, Inc. (also based in Welcome, NC) took a very instrumental role in the foundation of NCRWA. Given the centralized and accessible location of Welcome in the state along with the generosity of Davidson Water to, first, house NCRWA’s offices in their facility for a brief period and later to assist in locating a nearby office for NCRWA, the Association sprouted its roots there and never let go. Welcome, today, still represents the rural atmosphere of many of our members and has continued to be an outstanding location for our headquarters. As NCRWA grew, we later purchased our current office building in Welcome and have continued to thrive in service to our members.
NCRWA has worked hard for the past few years to archive our history. However, like many organizations, our early days were less documented than recent years. If you have information pertaining to the early days of NCRWA, we would enjoy capturing this information. This would include photos, magazines from pre-1991, award information, or anything else that you may have related to the history of NCRWA. So send us your story about the early days so that it can be cherished for generations to come.
