Creedmoor’s Pecan Hill Community Honors Cheryl T. Smith, Barbara L. Morton & Annie E. Lyon

Creedmoor, NC — The annual Pecan Hill Reunion of community members is traditionally held each Labor Day in Harris Park on Pecan Hill in Creedmoor. The event was canceled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the group still honored three women for their commitment to the Pecan Hill community.

The Pecan Hill Reunion committee presented Lifetime Achievement awards to Cheryl Thomas Smith, Minister Barbara Lyon Morton, and Annie Estes Lyon. This is the fifth year this award has been given. The criteria for awardee selection is that the recipient must be a former resident of Pecan Hill as well as having longevity and dedication to the Reunion.

“Some of the members met over Zoom for a mini-celebration,” said President Dora Ann Jones Robinson. “We hope to hold our annual reunion next year on Labor Day.”

Cheryl T. Smith, having grown up in Creedmoor, has resided in Durham, NC for over fifty years. She retired from the City of Durham after forty-four years of service while working in several capacities involving human services. Smith considers her biggest achievements are the ability to communicate well with others and motherhood.

Rev. Barbara L. Morton still maintains her home in Creedmoor but also resides in Charlotte, NC, where she works as a Licensed Practical Nurse. She is the Co-Founder of Precious in His Sight Ministries and former New Members’ Teacher of Praise and Worship at Christian Faith Center (Creedmoor). A former chair of Hawley High School (Creedmoor NC) Alumni Association, she served on the County of Granville Strategic Planning Committee and the 250th Celebration Committee. Morton was a member of N.C. National Guard 823rd Medical Detachment.

Annie E. Lyon is retired from Granville County School System where she worked as a Teacher’s Assistant. She describes herself as a prominent pilar of Creedmoor, serving as a volunteer worker for seniors and children and a caretaker.

Formerly known as Creedmoor Heights, Pecan Hill is nestled on Watson Street and originally built in the 1940s to provide housing for African American workers during World War II.

Reprint permission granted by Butner Creedmoor News