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At the Dare Board of Commissioners meeting Sept. 8, Chairman Robert L. Woodard announced that Roanoke Island Historical Association will receive $1 million to mitigate lost revenue from the shutdown of The Lost Colony drama this summer.

The funding, the largest grant that the association as ever received, comes from the General Assembly’s legislation to distribute federal coronavirus relief funding and disaster recovery funds.

“This is huge,” said Woodard, who praised the county’s legislative delegation. “It’s a lifesaver.”

Other mitigation relief will go to the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum, which will share $1 million with seven other entities, including Museum of the Albemarle and maritime museums in Beaufort and Southport.

The Department of Natural and Cultural Resources will distribute $9.4 million to arts councils across the state on a per capital basis in counties with a population of less than one million.

The North Carolina Aquarium Society will receive $1.5 million.

The legislation, H1105, also provides $2.1 million to address needs at state parks and trails for items such as trail construction and maintenance, updates at public-facing facilities, temporary employees for cleaning and safety.

The legislation moves to assist free clinics and health centers. The legislation, which Gov. Roy Cooper has indicated he will sign, allocates $12.425 million to the Association of Free and Charitable Clinics to cover the cost of eligible health services during the pandemic. Clinic members in northeastern North Carolina are Community Care Clinic of Dare, 425 Health Center Dr., Nags Head, and Albemarle Hospital Foundation Community Care Clinic, 918 Greenleaf St., Elizabeth City.

A like amount, $12.425 million, goes to the North Carolina Health Center Association distributed to cover the cost of eligible health services during the pandemic. Community Health Centers in this area are Ocracoke Health Center, 305 Back Road; Engelhard Medical Center, 33270 U.S. 264; and Albemarle Hospital Authority Gateway Community Health Center, 1129 Horseshoe Rd., Elizabeth City.

Taking care of children was a priority for the General Assembly.

– $4.35 million goes to the state’s Division of Social Service to serve children in foster care.

– $4.3 million to the Children’s Advocacy Centers of North Carolina, Inc., a nonprofit corporation, to be distributed to child advocacy centers in this State that are in good standing with CACNC to cover the cost of increased child caseloads and the statewide provision of more effective and available virtual counseling assist with increased costs due to the COVID-19.

– $440.54 million to the Department of Revenue for grants to help families with qualifying children in North Carolina by providing economic support to assist with virtual schooling and childcare costs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Section 4.12 of the act gives more details.

– $500,000 to the Department of Public Instruction to be allocated on the basis of average daily membership to all public school units in Bertie County, Camden County, Chowan County, Perquimans County, Tyrrell County and Washington County in response to COVID-19 for school nutrition services, transportation services, technology, remote instruction materials and services, personal protective equipment, temperature screening tools and other goods and services necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

– $35 million to the state’s Division of Social Services to provide operational grants to licensed child care providers

– $8 million to the state’s Division of Child Development and Early Education to provide assistance payments to parents using remote learning opportunities for the care of their children.

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