A weekend for remembering our veterans and reflecting on our community connections

My thanks to Lennie, who was kind enough to send this note recently about my Sunday columns: “They are timely and down to earth with no preachiness.”

A Church who is not too preachy. I like that.

Others will disagree, but I’m on #TeamLennie this week. I’ll take praise when it happens.

It’s a long weekend for many in the Triangle, so I’ll attempt to minimize the preachiness and offer two suggestions:

Remember the military veterans in your family, especially those who died in service to our country. Wake County has the largest number of veterans in the state.

The News & Observer is in the business of informing and engaging with the Triangle audience. But the Triangle is a complex region, and your interests vary exponentially. Because you’re busy, let me summarize three stories from The News & Observer that might be worth your time during this extended weekend:

The Canes are the Triangle’s team

The Carolina Hurricanes are no longer in the championship hunt. No joy. No hugging the Stanley Cup this year.

You can’t deny fans for processing the season in different ways. Raleigh Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin offered this Tweet to Caniacs: “I am going to focus on the positive. An incredible season. A great Stadium Series. The loudest fans in the @NHL!Thank you @Canes for a memorable year ... You have turned Raleigh into one of the best hockey cities in the country!”

The N&O’s Luke DeCock, Chip Alexander and Robert Willett covered road and home games during the playoffs. They endured the travel grind that comes with constant flights and forgettable meals. And they offered context of what every win — and loss — meant for the franchise’s legacy.

Luke DeCock’s column summarized the season in Luke’s distinctive way: “Another year has passed. Another opportunity gone. Another sweep in the conference finals, the third straight since 2006. Another year ticks by for this core, which came closer this season than any to justifying the excitement that has built around it, only to come to this most ignominious end.”

Pollutants and the state’s approach

We recommend spending time with Exposed & Overlooked, an exclusive investigation from The Charlotte Observer’s Gavin Off and The News & Observer’s Adam Wagner. Readers have consistently told us they want locally relevant investigative journalism; the stories from Gavin and Adam are as important as the air you breathe and the water you consume.

This passage is illuminating: “... when the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality considers air, water or other permits to allow the release of limited pollution, it rarely assesses all of the other pollutants close by. Nor does it usually assess how adding a new pollution source could disproportionately burden people living in the area.”

Their data dive shows that where North Carolinians are clustered, so are potential pollutants.

NC lawmaker in national spotlight

What if the United States defaults? And who is going to keep it from happening?

This national political drama is both a local and state story because of Rep. Patrick McHenry’s significant role.

The N&O’s Danielle Battaglia is marvelous at finding ways to stand out in a crowded D.C. press corps. She got McHenry to speak exclusively about his role in the negotiations.

This quote from Danielle’s story illuminates McHenry’s impact:

“I think the fact that (House Speaker Kevin McCarthy) asked Patrick McHenry to be in the room shows his confidence in him,” said Rep. Richard Hudson, a Republican from Southern Pines and chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee. “I think he’s become a very trusted member of the Republican conference, and I think that’s good for North Carolina.”

Thanks for your consideration.

May this weekend be about reading, reflecting and remembering that — despite our differences — we are connected by community and country.

Am I being preachy? A bit.

But you didn’t have to thumb through the hymnal to find these verses.

Bill Church is executive editor of The News & Observer. He’s proud to have been raised in an Air Force family.

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