Thirteen tons.

It’s not an early version of the classic Tennessee Ernie Ford tune, but how much roadside garbage has been collected in Richmond County over the past two months.

While North Carolina has become more accommodating to those outside the two-party paradigm, with the recent recognition of the Green and Constitution parties, third-party and unaffiliated voters are still getting the shaft.

We applaud Richmond County’s law enforcement officers who recently went through Crisis Intervention Team training, learning how to better deal with those who may be mentally ill or have developmental disabilities.

ROCKINGHAM — Eleven teams rolled in to Strikers Bowling Alley Monday evening to support the arts in Richmond County.

HAMLET — One local senior center is offering a free class to help Richmond County residents who take care of their family members or close friends.

RALEIGH — State Sen. Tom McInnis was recently appointed to several committees, two of which he will serve as co-chairman.

ROCKINGHAM — The Richmond County Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Foundation Committee has four days of events scheduled this year to honor the fallen civil rights hero using the theme “Unity: Yes We Can!”

HAMLET — Police are asking the public’s help in identifying a person of interest they believe was involved in a New Year’s Eve larceny at a grocery store.

ROCKINGHAM — As 2018 comes to a close, we decided to take a look back at some of Richmond County’s top news stories of the year.

We had students from L.J. Bell Elementary stop by and tour the studio earlier this month, as you've probably seen at the beginning of Live at 5.

Before they left, they dropped off their letters to Santa, which we are posting in three parts. Download the third batch of letters by clicking the link below.