What Am I Doing For Our Community?

The first Holly Ridge Bee Festival was a great success. Our committee was made up of local volunteers that all believe in the importance of giving Bees a fighting chance.  It is my goal that this festival will continue to grow each year, and to become better and better with more displays, plants and vendors. 

Not only do I own and operate Surf City Guns and Ammo (located in Holly Ridge) but I also own and operate Paradise Axe and Arcade with my family. It is not easy to run a small business, but the joy I see in my customers makes it all worth it. 

After purchasing one of the last remaining structures from Camp Davis during WWII, I knew we couldn't let this important part of our community's history be forgotten. Putting on the 75th Anniversary of Camp Davis Celebration in April of 2015 was amazing. Over 3,000 people came to our town and learned about this part of history. I firmly believe we need to keep this part of history alive. 

For over a decade I wrote an article titled "Topsail Gun Gal" for a newspaper, Topsail Advertiser, until it closed down in 2021. Understanding the need for a local paper, I worked with my daughter, who is now the publisher of the Topsail Times Newspaper. I continue to write my article, to share my thoughts and ideas, and hopefully add some humor. Don't let the title be misleading, I write about a lot more than guns. 

My father was born in Wilmington, NC in 1922 and his extensive family has been a large part of this community for decades. My great uncle Harvey Jones owned Dolphin Pier on Topsail, which is where I found my love for the Topsail area. My husband, Richard "Ricky" Royal, was born in Holly Ridge and so were my two children, Raquel and Colt. Keeping family friendly activities, adding more festivals and having more events for the youngest through the oldest members of Holly Ridge community is essential to its growth. 

I graduated from PACE University in New York with a Bachelor's Degree in Criminal Justice with a minor in Equine Science. Horses have always been a passion. I am a licensed North Carolina General Contractor and a Federal Firearms License Holder. Over the years we have built several beautiful homes and businesses in the local area and I do my best to stay up on all the changing building codes and regulations. I believe in making things simple and easy to understand and know that Holly Ridge is currently working through different committees to get this started, but there is a long road ahead. We need to have ONLINE permitting, as most of our local neighboring communities already do, which simplifies the process.