CHATHAM SCENE | BEN RAPPAPORT

Goldston mayor proves his town is ‘a diamond in the rough’

The Chatham Chamber of Commerce hosted a development briefing last Wednesday. The event featured speakers from local government, Central Carolina Community College and Chatham Economic Development Corporation.
The Chatham Chamber of Commerce hosted a development briefing last Wednesday. The event featured speakers from local government, Central Carolina Community College and Chatham Economic Development Corporation.
Staff photo by Ben Rappaport
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PITTSBORO — The crowd selfie has become a staple of many artists and performers. They fire up their smartphone on stage, point the front-facing camera toward the crowd and click as the crowd cheers and jostles to be included in the frame.

One may expect this sort of thing when attending a small-venue concert or show. I didn’t, however, expect to see a crowd selfie to be taken at last week’s Development Briefing, hosted by the Chatham Chamber of Commerce at the Chatham County Agriculture & Conference Center in Pittsboro. It felt like the equivalent of showing off that you’re at a work meeting, or posting on Facebook about how cool it was that you just got to send an email. 

But that’s also why Goldston Mayor Jonathan Hensley’s decision to take the crowd selfie was so fantastic.

“My wife’s never going to believe this,” he told the audience, smiling with his phone held high. 

The Chamber’s briefing last Wednesday included an array of speakers from across the county touting growth and assessing how different sectors were preparing for challenges. Leaders from local governments, Central Carolina Community College, the Chatham Economic Development Corporation, Chatham Park and more shared updates with the crowd of about 200 community members.

There’s plenty to be excited about in Chatham, Wednesday’s presenters made clear. Speakers lauded that the county has economic opportunities abound and more on the horizon, that CCCC is creating workforce training opportunities, and new businesses are popping up daily. 

Much of the praise for the development of the county included things we’ve all been hearing for months. The highlight, however, came from Hensley.

Despite being the mayor of the small town of Goldston, Hensley often refers to himself as “not a politician.” He prefers the title of “just a dude.” And in many ways, he is.

It was a breath of fresh air to hear Hensley stray away from the script during his remarks to the crowd.

The most notable progress in Goldston is that the town of just 239 people was recently connected to fiber internet through a partnership with Randolph Communications. Through the partnership, more than 350 locations, including homes and businesses, will be able to access at least 300 Mbps fiber internet.

The project is already underway and the main line is expected to be completed by October.

Hensley highlighted the accomplishment for his town by explaining he would soon be able to win many more “Call of Duty” matches against his friends in other towns because his internet wouldn’t cause the games to lag.

“If you want to see a meltdown, watch me get to the final four remaining only to lose because of a lag,” Hensley joked. 

And while poking fun about Goldston’s small size and improving his video game scores engaged the audience, Hensley is doing more than a stand-up routine. He’s getting things done.

Beyond the fiber internet connection, which is notable as is, Henlsey has also led an effort to renovate Goldston’s parks by adding pickleball courts, as well as repaving the tennis and basketball courts. 

The town is also in the midst of a downtown beautification project, adding electric vehicle chargers at its library and stop signs to its Main Street intersections.

“I really want Goldston to be a home,” Henlsey said. “I want us to be a diamond in the rough.”

The projects Goldston is undertaking don’t have the sizzle of a Wolfspeed or VinFast announcement, or generate the same buzz as a workforce training center at CCCC. But that doesn’t make them any less important. 

Things like crosswalks and libraries make small towns feel like home. It makes them exciting places to live, work and play. To hear someone like Hensley bring a fresh energy and excited approach to the seemingly mundane are what make communities special.

In the year since I’ve been reporting on Chatham County I’ve gone to at least half a dozen of these kinds of networking breakfasts like the one put on by the Chamber last Wednesday. They start to blur together in topic and scope. But Hensley brought a rejuvenating energy when speaking about his beloved hometown of Goldston, and a desire to share it with Wednesday’s crowd. 

It’s that passion for our communities that I believe we could all use more of in this day and age. 

Reporter Ben Rappaport can be reached at brappaport@chathamnr.com or on Twitter @b_rappaport

Chatham Scene, Chatham Chamber of Commerce, development briefing, Goldston, Jonathan Hensley