Guilford County Register of Deeds Jeff Thigpen is known for pushing – in a very good way – the boundaries of what a county deeds office should do.
He’s added passport services as well as a program that supports local businesses and veterans by offering veteran’s discounts on goods and services – and he’s even taken old slave ownership documents and put them in an easily searchable database.
And, with a podcast series that now has 30 episodes under its belt, Thigpen and his humble office is voluntarily taking on one of the most difficult aspects of the human condition. How to handle grief after the death of a loved one and how to deal with other types of serious grief.
The podcast – aptly titled “Good Grief” – is available on the Guilford County Register of Deeds website and on all major podcast platforms.
The connection with the deeds office is that the department is the keeper of death certificates, and Thigpen is interested in helping people address the difficult challenges that end of life issues bring.
A description of the podcasts notes, “Talking about death can be uncomfortable, but avoiding those conversations can cause harm and confusion down the road.”
Thigpen and his cohost Community Health Facilitator Carly Malcolm address a wide variety of difficult topics related to grief that often take the podcast in interesting directions. For instance, in one episode, the two talk with Guilford County Animal Services Director Jorge Ortega about dealing with the grief of losing a pet, and they even address the grief animals feel when they come into the animal shelter as a bonded pair and then are separated. Ortega said that’s one reason the shelter places such a high priority on keeping those pairs of animals together.
Good Grief episodes also direct people to resources and documents that will help them work through a troubling time.
Here’s the deeds office’s summary of the Good Grief podcast and its history: “Jeff and Carly tackle this discomfort head-on by speaking unapologetically about issues of death and dying. Experts join us as guests to answer questions and share a wealth of knowledge with listeners. What was expected to be just a handful of episodes has morphed into over 30 interviews with community and faith leaders, caregivers, healthcare professionals, funeral directors, and so many more. As a local poet and author Catherine S. Buck writes within an untitled poem, ‘Too soon the years began to fly.’ We must have these conversations now before the years fly by and miss opportunities to inform our decisions regarding end of life.”
What an excellent initiative!
I reckon Mr Thigpen has modernized the office well, but a year ago I left a message that was never acknowledged.
[ Is the threat of home title theft something that I should be concerned about, or is it nothing to worry about? ]
Anyone who used to drink at College Hill Sundries in the days of Angel & Champ can’t be all bad…
Cheers!
Get Jeff to tell us about “ten percent plus.” Hint: it involved intentional deception by a person running for political office.
Pray tell.
Wayne–No intentional deception. It was very a straight forward plan and approach. I have receipts too. All my campaign material and public comments said the same thing and news reports. I supported the Republican 10% plan for that year 98-99. Then “a process to get to a school bond on the ballot. “. The transition included ending the redistricting process; prioritizing construction projects and then putting a bond on the ballot. I actually considered 10% of the county budget for school construction projects for the 99-00 county budget but it made no sense based on the county’s needs. County Manager Roger Cotton agreed at the time and his recommendations were consistent with my position. In addition, we did exactly what I said. The county manager recommended a $200 million bond with no tax increase be put on the ballot. We did it and it passed with maybe, 60% of Guilford County voters approving it. The first school bond passed in over 20 years in Guilford County.
“Ten Percent Plus”. No intentional deception Wayne. I supported the Republican “10% Plan” to fund school construction through FY 98-99. Then “Plus” included several steps: ending the GCS Redistricting Process; prioritizing school projects for construction, then putting a school bond on the ballot for Guilford County Voters. Former County Manager Roger Cotton recommended a $200 school bond referendum in the next budget cycle which was consistent with my position. Of course in May 1999, Republican Commissioners tried to pigeon hole me into carrying the 10% plan blindly forward into the next budget which was not fiscally sound. In due course, consistent with the 10% Plus position, the school bond passed with nearly 60% of the vote and funded more projects than 10% Plan alone would fund along with the strain it would’ve created on the county budget. With that said, I appreciated the leadership of Republican Commissioners who supported the 10% plan from 1996-98.
Coincidentally, I attempted to contact the Register of Deeds office via phone yesterday and after being on hold for 25 minutes finally gave up. I guess core responsibilities fall to the wayside when new initiatives become the main focus.
Yeah, I feel like I want to commend this guy, but if he’s not taking care of basic customer service he’s just another incompetent bureaucrat.
Disappointing.
Buddy K, please contact me directly if you still need help. My cell is 336-451-5300. Jeff T
Buddy K, sorry we did not get to you in a timely fashion. No excuses but we were down staff due to Christmas and New Year’s and had a ton of foot traffic 12/28 and 12/29 and did 129 passport applications on those two days. If you still need help please call my cell: 336-451-5300. Again, sorry for that. Jeff
Austin, really apologize if I missed that call. At times, there are individuals and situations that come up where questionable folks or groups monkey around with public records. We have property fraud alert that you can sign up for that will give you an email alert if someone files documents with the name variations you may provide for the alert. I know its late but here’s the link.
https://www.guilfordcountync.gov/our-county/register-of-deeds/property-fraud-alert
Bravo! Jeff Thigpen talks the talk AND walks the walk. We’re blessed to have him in our County.