SoundPure Acquires Raleigh-based Indoor Storm

Durham specialty music equipment and guitar store, SoundPure LLC,  has acquired Raleigh-based guitar shop Indoor Storm. Indoor Storm will move its employees and inventory to SoundPure’s Durham location at 808 Washington St by the end of January.

Longtime Durham Diner Closes

Paschall’s Café, a small restaurant located on Holloway Street has closed. The diner-style hot dog and hamburger restaurant was opened and operated by the Paschall family for more than 19 years.

Gragg Promoted to DPAC's Senior Director of Marketing

Rachel Gragg has been promoted to the position of Senior Director of Marketing for Durham Performing Arts Center. Gragg previously held the dual role of Director of Marketing of Concerts and Director of Public Relations. DPAC's outgoing marketing director, Linda Charlton, has taken the position of vice president for marketing and audience development at the N.C. Symphony.

"Voice of Cameron Indoor Stadium" Passes Away at Age 78

Duke men's basketball public address announcer and the "Voice of Cameron Indoor Stadium" for 40 years, Art Chandler has passed away at the age of 78. Chandler announced his first gave in 1970 and retired from the position at the close of the 2009-10 season. In his four decades at the scorers table, Chandler saw four national championship teams, 12 ACC Tournament champs and a plethora of All-Americas. Arthur C. Chandler Jr., MD, was also a longtime Duke medicine faculty member.

Rev. Cayer to Become Lead Minister of Eno River Unitarian Universalist

The Rev. Deborah Cayer will become lead minister at Eno River Unitarian Universalist Fellowship during Installation Weekend in February 2012. Cayer has served as the congregation's assistant minister for Spiritual Development since June 2011 and will be the fourth lead minister of Eno River Unitarian Universalist Fellowship since it was founded in 1966.

Durham Nonprofits Win American Tobacco Christmas Tree Challenge

Durham-based nonprofits TROSA, The Scrap Exchange, the Durham Economic Resource Center, Trips for Kids, the Coalition to Unchain Dogs were among the winners of American Tobacco's second annual Christmas tree challenge. The winners were chosen from the 59 Triangle nonprofits that participated in the Christmas tree decorating contest. Prizes ranged from $1,000 to $2,500 and were judged by fans and special judges.

Durham's KeySource Bank to Merge with Bank of North Carolina

Durham-based KeySource Commercial Bank will merge with Thomasville-based Bank of North Carolina. KeySource bank was founded five years ago to serve small and mid-sized organizations based in the Triangle. The deal is expected to close in Spring of 2012.

Durham-Based Lab Rats Studios to Release First Game Via Apple App Store

Durham-based game developer Lab Rats Studio will release its first game, M.U.S.E., through Apple's App Store. The action game will sell for $5.99 for use on the iPhone, iPad or iPad touch. Lab Rats Studio is the first company to finish a game through Durham video game accelerator program, Joystick Labs.

Eight Durham Girls Earn Scouting's Highest Honor

Eight Durham girls have earned the Silver Award, Girl Scouting's highest honor: Emma Voorhees, Megan Chiang, Sejal Mahajan, Casandra Keesee, Kylie Verbiest, Sujuta Kishnani, Lyndsey Hannah, Safiya Jennings, and Ariana Nicholson. They are all members of are all members of Durham Girl Scout Troop 514.

Eight Duke Faculty Elected to American Association for the Advancement of Science

Five scientists from Duke University Medical Center and three from Duke University have been elected fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). They are recognized for scientifically or socially distinguished efforts to advance science or its applications. The AAAS fellows are:

Richard Brennan, Ph.D., chair of the Duke Department of Biochemistry; Bryan Cullen, Ph.D., professor of molecular genetics and microbiology; Mariano Garcia-Blanco, M.D., Ph.D., professor of medicine and professor of molecular genetics and microbiology; Sue Jinks-Robertson, Ph.D., professor of molecular genetics and microbiology; Donald McDonnell, Ph.D., Glaxo-Wellcome Professor of Molecular and Cellular Biology and chair of the Duke Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology; Ingrid Daubechies, Ph.D., James B. Duke Professor of Mathematics; Xinnian Dong, Ph.D., professor of biology, for her research on the interactions of plants and microbes; and Dan Kiehart, Ph.D., chair of the Department of Biology.

Bulls Broadcaster Joins the Tampa Bay Rays

Durham Bulls broadcaster Neil Solondz has been named the Tampa Bay Rays' new pre- and postgame radio host. Solondz has been with the Durham Bulls, Tampa Bay's Triple-A affiliate, since 2004.

Ingram to Serve Second Term on Board for Southern Association of Colleges

Bill Ingram, president of Durham Technical Community College, was appointed to a second term on the Board of Trustees for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.

New Bar 'Surf Club' Opens at 703 Rigsbee

Durham's newest bar Surf Club has opened at 703 Rigsbee, next door to The Bar and up the street from Motorco, Fullsteam and Geer Street Garden. Surf Club is owned and operated by Rhys Botica of popular Durham bars Whiskey, Bull McCabes and The Federal.

Retiring Sheriff Honored With State's Highest Civilian Honor

Retiring Durham County Sheriff Worth Hill was awarded the state's highest civilian honor, the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, by Gov. Beverly Perdue. Hill's retirement will be effective January 1, 2012; his service to Durham county was just three years short of five terms.

Stern Promoted to CEO of Bell & Howell

Bell & Howell President Leslie F. Stern has been promoted to Chief Executive Officer and will replace George Marton whose retirement will become effective December 31, 2011. Bell & Howell is headquartered in Durham and is a leading provider of solutions and services for paper-based and digital messaging solutions.

Blue Devils Offensive Line Coach Returns to Ole Miss

After four seasons as offensive line coach and running-game coordinator for Cutliff's Duke Blue Devis, Matt Luke will return to his native state of Mississippi to join the Rebels coaching staff at Ole Miss as offensive line coach.

Justice Stevens to Speak at 2012 Duke Law Hooding Ceremony

Supreme Court Associate Justice John Paul Stevens, who served 35 years on the court before retiring in June 2010, will be the speaker at Duke Law’s annual hooding ceremony honoring the Class of 2012. The ceremony will take place at 5:15pm on Saturday, May 12, 2012 at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

NCCU Awards 608 Degrees at Fall Commencement

N.C. Central University awarded 608 bachelor's, master's and law degrees at its Fall commencement. John Silvanus Wilson Jr., executive director of the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities, delivered the commencement speech.

Carolina Friends School Student Wins 'Best in High School Designer Craft' Title

Durham local and Carolina Friends School student, Nick Shear, won the title of Best in High School Designer Craft from the Carolina Designer Craftsmen Guild for the spruce-top guitar he made as his sophomore end-of-year experience project.

'Boho on 9th' Boutique Opens on Ninth Street

Boho on 9th, a clothing boutique and gift store, has opened on the second floor at 704 Ninth St. The store is located above Wavelengths Salon and is under the same ownership.

38 Durham Public Schools Educators Earn Certification

Thirty-eight Durham Public Schools teachers earned certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards in the month of November. The total number of credentialed educators in the district is now 361.

SugarCRM to Open Durham Office

SugarCRM, a California-based customer relations management software company is opening an office in Durham. The Durham office, located at 4307 Emperor Blvd., Suite 120, will open with 12 employees and focus on sales and support services.

Cousin to Become New Chairman of Durham Committee

Former County Commissioner Phil Cousin will replace Lavonia Allison as the chairman of the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People.

Triangle Parkway Open, Toll-free Until Jan. 3

The Triangle Parkway opened today as the state's first toll road. The road, which will be toll-free until Jan. 3, connects I-40 at N.C. 147 in Durham County with N.C. 540 in Wake County, cutting through Research Triangle Park.

NCCU Law School Dean to Return to Private Practice

The dean of N.C. Central's law school, Raymond Pierce, will step down from his role to return to private practice. Under Pierce's leadership, applications to N.C. Central's law school tripled and alumni donations increased.

Duke Chapel Dean to Step Down

The Rev. Dr. Samuel Wells, dean of Duke Chapel since 2005, will step down from his role to become the vicar of St Martin-in-the-Fields in London early next summer.

Trustee Pledges $25 Million Gift to Duke University

Jack Bovender, vice chair of the Board of Trustees, and wife Barbara have pledged a $25 million gift to Duke University. The funds will be distributed among the Fuqua School of Business ($10 million), Trinity College of Arts & Sciences ($10 million) and the School of Nursing ($5 million).

Fish House to Open in Former Shabu Shabu Location

The Fish House, a restaurant and wine bar serving primarily grilled fish such as swordfish, salmon, tilapia and tuna, is opening at 4020 Durham-Chapel Hill Blvd. The Fish House is a new venture by the owners of Shabu Shabu which closed in October; the Fish House will open in the same location.

Duke Professor to Receive Modern Lanuage Association Lifetime Achievement Award

Duke University's Professor of Comparative Literature and Romance studies, Fredric Jameson, will receive the sixth Award for Lifetime Scholarly Achievement from the Modern Language Association (MLA). Jameson has won acclaim for his work as a cultural theorist and literary critic, in particular for his work on Marxism. 

Marsalis Music Releases Harry Connick Jr.'s "The Happy Elf"

Branford Marsalis' record label, Marsalis Music, has just released the holiday album "The Happy Elf" by the Harry Connick Jr. Trio as part of the label's "Connick on Piano" collection.

Big Daddy's Grill Now Open Downtown

Big Daddy’s Grill has opened at 508 N. Mangum St and is open for lunch daily except Sundays.

Claymakers to Become Nonprofit in 2012

Central Park arts organization Claymakers, which offers classes in clay and ceramics, will become a nonprofit organization at the start of the new year.

Duke AIDS Researchers Awarded $37.2 Million Gates Foundation Grant

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation awarded three grants totaling $37.2 million to Duke University Medical Center researchers for HIV projects in collaboration with the AIDS Vaccine Discovery program.