She drives DoorDash, with mom riding shotgun

Plus: Cotsco planned for Indian Land; New tech bank in South End?; Adult care facility headed to Blacklion spot; December's rezonings; Traffic deaths fall; CATS drivers authorize strike

Jan 09, 2023

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For a retired hospice social worker and her 95-year-old mother, delivering carryout in the outskirts of Charlotte is a way to enjoy life’s scenery — together

Sharon Moore (right) takes turns with her sister caring for their mom, Sadie (left), in Sadie’s home outside Charlotte. Delivering DoorDash is an activity that gets them out of the house. “When all is said and done, you want to know you did the best that you could do,” Moore says.

by Ken Garfield

Thirty-three years as a hospice social worker has brought Sharon Moore to this place: Burger King on Highway 16 to pick up two bacon double cheeseburgers, one cheeseburger and an eight-piece chicken nuggets.

The fast food isn’t the source of the comfort she provides in her new role, though if it doesn’t clog its recipients’ arteries, it ought to cure their lunchtime craving. Sharon doesn’t know who that is since she was instructed to leave it by the side door and not to ring the doorbell because there are dogs inside.

Sharon is all about serving her hungry customers. But Job No. 1 now is tending to the precious lady riding shotgun, balancing the bag of goodies on her lap. That’s her mother, 95-year-old Sadie. If getting out of the house and riding around the countryside brightens however many days Sadie has left, then Sharon is thrilled to deliver takeout.

Meet the DoorDash driver for whom the $6.25 she earned for the Burger King run is far from her true reward. And meet her co-pilot.

“We love each other and we take care of each other,” Sharon says, looking to her mom.

“Yup,” Sadie answers.

“That’s our job,” Sharon responds.

(A word before we go on. The protective daughter she is, Sharon asked us not to share her mother’s last name or where she lives.)

An honor and a blessing

Sharon, 66, sat at the bedside of hundreds, perhaps thousands, of the sick and dying during her career with Hospice & Palliative Care Charlotte Region (HPCCR), from social work coordinator to senior director. Whoever the patient and whatever their story, her job was to ease their burden and support them as best she could. Some wanted to talk about death and heaven. A dying woman in her 30s asked Sharon to help her leave a card and personal note for her daughter to open on special occasions like her 16th birthday and wedding day. Sharon says her goal was to help clients and their families deal with whatever was most important that day. The issues weren’t always cosmic. “I can’t pay my power bill and the power is going to be shut off.” “What is going to happen to my dog when I die?”

Thirty-three years of standing with patients and families at the threshold, hoping to lead them to a place of acceptance and peace?

“It was an honor and a blessing, and it was hard,” Sharon says.

She retired in November for another honor, blessing and hardship — caring for Sadie. “You honor your mother and your father,” Sharon says. “That’s what we’re living by. When all is said and done, you want to know you did the best that you could do.”

Green beans, thrift stores, DQ Blizzard

For the last 2½ years, Sharon and her sister, Karen, have been taking turns staying with Sadie 24/7 in the house in rural North Carolina where Sadie has lived for 50 years. Sadie is under hospice care and deals with mild dementia. Karen, a retired hospice nurse, drives eight-plus hours from her home in Hamilton, Ohio. Sharon drives an hour from her home in Matthews.

There is no hesitation on either one’s part. “This is what we want to do,” Sharon says. Her husband, Ed, often stays with her during her shift with Sadie. With their two children grown and out of the house, they are able to do this. Ed is also a willing caregiver. He and his brother took turns caring for their mother before she died at 101.

Sadie grew up on a Kentucky farm and worked in furniture and spice factories while she and her husband, Eddie, were raising their children in Ohio and then North Carolina. Eddie died in 2000. Sadie is one of those people who has to be doing something. “Piddling,” she calls it. Her freezer is filled with bounty from her garden, including 52 quarts of green beans she canned last July. Sadie hopes to get back in the garden this coming summer.

There can be a downside to working in the yard at her age. Last September, she fell and broke her ankle pulling weeds. Her piddling now is done mostly from a recliner in the den, a Bible, family photos and glass of water beside her. She enjoys shredding paper, tearing it in two and tossing it out. The morning The Ledger writer arrived, Sadie was filling a long string with beads of many colors, ignoring The Food Channel show playing on the TV. When all else fails, she is content to pick lint off the laundry.

For Sadie and others who are confined to their homes by age and illness, piddling will have to do. But if it’s possible, there is nothing more freeing than leaving behind the recliner even for an hour. Karen takes her mom to thrift stores. “I like bargains,” Sadie says. Then there’s the retired social worker turned caregiver turned DoorDash driver.

Sharon wouldn’t try this in Charlotte. Too much traffic. But in her hometown, where the country roads go for miles and there are only a handful of restaurants to drive to, the couple of days a week she does. DoorDash becomes an escape for the two of them. Plus, $6.25 is $6.25. Sometimes, Sharon will string together deliveries and make $50 on one DoorDash voyage.

It’s not always the usual fast-food fare. She once delivered a Dairy Queen Blizzard to the customer before it melted. Whatever the order, including that ice-cold Blizzard, Sharon’s co-pilot is happy to hold it. Sometimes they stop and reward themselves with a burger. Then it’s back home to piddle anew, Sadie having held up her end of the deal.

“She pays attention,” Sharon says, “and mainly just enjoys the scenery.”

Sharon and Sadie

According to the AARP and National Alliance for Caregiving, nearly 53 million Americans provided unpaid care to a family member or friend in 2020. As medical science finds new ways to prolong life, that number will surely rise.

More of us will be called on to drop everything — the kids’ soccer games, date night with your spouse, free time — to tend to a loved one. Some will cook their dinner, give them their meds, take them to the bathroom and tuck them in with pure love and patience. Others will squabble with a sibling over whose turn it is to stay with Mom this weekend and whose turn it is to pay for groceries. Who can say how many caregivers will surrender to exhaustion and bitterness, knowing that for all they are doing, they are fighting an unbeatable foe. Time and illness.

Then there are Sharon and Sadie.

The DoorDash assignment comes in and Sharon wheels around in the Dollar General parking lot and heads to Burger King. Sadie has her assignment down pat. Pay attention and enjoy the scenery. For a moment, you forget about the families for whom caregiving becomes traumatic. You forget that the driver is a caregiver and the co-pilot is nearing the end of life. It’s a Thursday afternoon in a small town outside Charlotte, and mother and daughter are out for a joy ride.

Freelance writer/editor Ken Garfield is a frequent contributor to The Ledger, including the Ways of Life newsletter that celebrates the lives of the recently departed. Reach him at garfieldken3129@gmail.com.

Today’s supporting sponsor is Landon A. Dunn, attorney-at-law in Matthews:

Hot dog! Costco makes plans for a new warehouse club in Indian Land; would be 4th in Charlotte region

Here’s some hot retail news that’s sure to make some Ballantyne-area Ledger readers swoon: Costco is scoping out plans for a new spot about three miles south of the state line on Lancaster Highway in Indian Land., S.C.

A Traffic Impact Analysis filed in Lancaster County shows that Costco is looking to build a new store on the east side of Lancaster Highway, south of Possum Hollow Road, on a vacant site between Transformation Church and the Indian Land YMCA, according to Ledger media partner Untap Indian Land. (It’s a free Substack newsletter keeping tabs on development in Indian Land — you should sign up, if that topic interests you.)

Plans reveal that the project is slated to be 151,000 s.f. and include a 24-pump gas station, with 799 parking spaces. Crosland Southeast is the developer on the project. According to Untap Indian Land, the land was initially planned to be The Indian Land Technology Park and will be next to the mixed-use site called The Exchange Indian Land. The land is already zoned commercial.

Plenty still needs to happen, though, before plans are approved by state and county officials and the masses descend for mega-boxes of Cheerios, vats of peanut butter, discounted gas and the $1.50 hotdog-soda combo.

Once the traffic plan is reviewed by county and state officials, there will be additional reviews by multiple county departments, which could take months, a Lancaster County official told Untap Indian Land’s Casey Wilson. According to planning documents, construction wouldn’t start until 2025.

A Costco spokesperson contacted by The Ledger on Friday wouldn’t confirm any plans for a new Indian Land location, saying by email that “it is our company policy to not comment regarding future Costco warehouses until we are ready to share details about the new location (usually 2-3 months in advance).”

Rumors and speculation about a possible Costco location have been swirling along the state line for years, as new neighborhoods have sprung up, many with families looking to load up their SUVs or minivans with bulk discount goods.

There are nearly 600 Costco warehouses in the U.S., but only three in the Charlotte region: on Tyvola Road in Charlotte, in Matthews and in Mooresville. —CB

Another new bank headed to town? Looks like Silicon Valley Bank is taking space at The Line in South End

Silicon Valley Bank — a bank based in, you guessed it, Silicon Valley — appears to be opening its first Charlotte location, in South End.

A building permit issued Dec. 29 shows that Silicon Valley Bank plans $7M in construction at 2151 Hawkins St., Unit 1100. That’s the address of The Line, the new 16-story office building next to the old Sycamore Brewing in South End. (The taproom plans to move to the ground level of the office building.)

The bank also has more than a dozen Charlotte job listings on employment websites. We’re not aware of any announcement about the bank, which specializes in offering banking services to commercial clients, especially tech companies and start-ups. Its only other North Carolina office is in Raleigh.

The Ledger reported in September 2021 (🔒) that the bank was hiring for positions in Charlotte, but a spokeswoman at the time said that was because Charlotte has a great pool of financial talent and the jobs were remote. —TM

Adult day and healthcare facility heading to a portion of the soon-to-close Blacklion retail space

A medical office building will replace what is currently the Blacklion home decor marketplace near the corner of Pineville-Matthews and Park roads. The Blacklion will close Jan. 31 after 26 years. (Rendering courtesy of MVP Properties)

An adult day and healthcare facility has signed a lease on a 10,655 s.f. space at The Plaza at Park 51, where longtime home décor retailer Blacklion is getting ready to close.

Gracious Living is a facility for disabled or impaired adults or those “just in need of supervised, social activities,” according to an announcement Friday from MVP Properties about the new location. Gracious Living currently has one location in Huntersville.

Other tenants who’ve signed at The Plaza at Park 51 include Tryon Medical Partners, Oncology Specialists of Charlotte PA and a dentist. The site is across the street from Atrium Health Pineville. More than 11,000 s.f. of space remains available, according to MVP Properties, which said it plans to start renovations in March 2023 and be ready for tenants in the fourth quarter of 2023. —CB

Related Ledger articles:

“Blacklion to close final store in Pineville” (🔒, Aug. 3, 2022)
“Exclusive: New retailer emerges to take Blacklion’s place” (Aug. 4, 2022)

December’s hot rezoning action 🔥

It’s time once again to examine last month’s rezoning filings — which on its face, sure, sounds boring but actually can provide an early heads up on developments headed to your neighborhood.

Highlights from December include plans for:

83 townhomes between Statesville Road and I-77, north of I-85
60 townhomes near Mint Hill
234 apartments in southwest Charlotte
274 townhomes in Steele Creek
a county crisis center off Brookshire Boulevard

Go to December's hot rezonings

Here’s a handy map with the sites that would be affected:

We know rezonings aren’t everyone’s cup of tea. But if you’re in the real estate industry or happen to live by one of these sites, you might be interested. —TM

In brief:

Covid upgraded to ‘high’: Mecklenburg County is now considered in the “high” level of Covid transmission by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The county health department advises to stay home if you are not feeling well and to consider wearing a mask in public indoor spaces. (WBTV).
Strike authorized by CATS bus drivers: Charlotte Area Transit System bus drivers voted 254-14 to authorize a strike, though the vote doesn’t mean a strike will happen, an unnamed source told WCNC. The bus drivers’ union is negotiating with the private company that runs Charlotte’s bus service. (WCNC)
Charlotte traffic deaths: There were at least 61 people killed on Charlotte roads in 2022, which is fewer than in recent years. About one-third of the people killed in traffic accidents were pedestrians, and 29% were motorcycle drivers or passengers. The tally does not include traffic deaths on interstates. (Queen City Nerve)
Leeper contract up for vote: The Charlotte City Council is scheduled to vote Tuesday to award a $78.2M wastewater pump station contract to a joint venture that includes R.J. Leeper Construction. The vote, which was postponed from last month, follows a determination by the district attorney’s office that council member James “Smuggie” Mitchell does not hold a significant ownership stake in the construction company, which could have violated conflict-of-interest laws.
CMS transportation concerns: Some parents at Highland Renaissance Academy in northeast Charlotte say that they’re concerned that their children did not get home on the school bus one evening until 6:45 p.m., when they are usually home by 3:45. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools said in a statement that it has terminated the contract with the transportation vendor that was transporting the students. (WBTV)

Taking stock

Unless you are a day trader, checking your stocks daily is unhealthy. So how about weekly? How local stocks of note fared last week (through Friday’s close), and year to date:

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Executive editor: Tony Mecia; Managing editor: Cristina Bolling; Staff writer: Lindsey Banks; Contributing editor: Tim Whitmire, CXN Advisory; Contributing photographer/videographer: Kevin Young, The 5 and 2 Project

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