Hi Durham! We have the latest buzz right here. Let's keep you in the loop and get this morning started right! ☕️️
In today's newsletter:
Also on today's calendar: Fest Fest! and 9 more events.
Today's riddle: What are the two favorite words for a shark to hear? 🤔 (Answer below!)
1. What It Takes to Keep History from Fading, Shriveling, or Molding (indyweek.com) — Durham residents can view three rare early-1800s copies of the Declaration of Independence, now on display at Duke's Nasher Museum after a stint at the Durham County Main Library. Conservator Meg Brown explains the painstaking conservation work and why bringing nationally significant documents to Durham matters for connecting locals with tangible, unchangeable pieces of history.
2. Mount Vernon Baptist Church Celebrates 140 Years in Durham's Historic Black Community (caro.news) — Mount Vernon Baptist Church is celebrating 140 years rooted in Durham's historic Black community, remaining on Roxboro Street despite decades of urban renewal and gentrification pressures. The congregation has supported civil rights efforts, hosts NAACP meetings, and now combats displacement by buying nearby land and partnering with Durham Habitat for Humanity to create affordable homes that keep longtime neighbors in place.
3. Keep It Durham-Owned Initiative Aims to Expand Employee Ownership of Local Businesses (indyweek.com) — Durham has launched the "Keep It Durham-Owned" campaign to help local business owners, many nearing retirement, transition their companies to employees instead of closing or selling out. Through 2027, the city and partner organizations will offer free advising on employee-ownership models, aiming to preserve Durham jobs, culture, and neighborhood-based businesses for the long term.
4. Durham non-profit helps community with AI knowledge (wral.com) — A Durham nonprofit, Digital Durham, just partnered with the City of Durham to host its first "Digital Empowerment Day," helping residents understand AI tools while staying safe from scams. With North Carolina losing millions to AI-related internet crimes, the workshops, speakers, and hands-on sessions aimed to build confidence for all ages, including seniors and their caregivers.
5. I-Team: Water main breaks top 200 across Triangle in 2026 (abc11.com) — Durham has logged more than 141 water main breaks so far this year, part of over 200 combined with Raleigh, as aging pipes strain under a growing customer base. While Raleigh officials blame infrastructure age and temperature more than demand, Durham Water Management has not explained its spike, leaving local residents to wonder about future outages and reliability.
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Ok Durham! So now you're in the loop about what's happening today. Thanks for reading, and see you in your inbox next time! Oh -- and if you like what you're reading, invite a friend to Patch AM!
-- The Patch AM Team
P.S. The answer to today's riddle: "MAN OVERBOARD!" (Thank you M J. for sending it in!)
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