SOUTHPORT — Four parks and recreation employees were put on paid leave in Southport this week, though one of them tendered her resignation as of Thursday. An investigation is underway into missing funds in the department, with a state agency heading the case.
Port City Daily has learned two of the employees on paid leave are department head Heather Hemphill and program director Maureen “Cookie” Moore. The remaining two employees are alleged to be Moore’s daughters, according to a verifiable source close to the matter.
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Port City Daily asked the city how much the employees are being paid during their absence but didn’t hear back by press.
The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation is looking into at least $17,000 of missing funds, including from Southport’s annual youth basketball league. The background source alleged the money was stolen systematically, though Hemphill was surprised by the unfolding events. The news outlet attempted to reach the program director without success.
On March 12 — one day after the town announced the parks and recreation department was temporarily shut down and the employees were suspended — Moore turned in her letter of resignation. The letter wasn’t shared by the city though its spokesperson, ChyAnn Ketchum, confirmed Moore stepped down.
All parks and rec facilities — including the city gym, parks and recreation building, Southport Senior Center and Jaycee Building — have been closed until further notice, as there is no one in the department to run them. Groundskeepers remain working, but the before- and afterschool programs were overseen by two of the four employees on paid administrative leave, including Moore, the source explained.
They further verified missing money came to light after Southport Manager Noah Saldo requested an audit of the town’s finances, specifically the parks and recreation department. The audit took place from September 2025 until February 2026 and unveiled $17,000 was missing, the source confirmed.
While neither the SBI nor the city officially answered how much money was unaccounted for due to the ongoing investigation, SBI spokesperson Chad Flowers said it was a felonious amount — meaning $1,000 or more.
Southport Police Chief Todd Coring referred the case to the SBI on March 11 for third-party oversight, due to the close-knit nature of the city’s government, police and parks and rec employees.
It is unclear if the shortage was only from the basketball program or other parks and rec revenue streams. According to the 2025-2026 adopted budget, parks and rec has $1 million allocated from the city’s general fund and the department is projected to bring $54,000 in revenue.
The youth basketball program, which operates at the beginning of every year out of the city gym, had 173 participants this past season; the program costs $60 for in-city residents, $70 for non-city residents. However, the books accounted for less than a third of the total, the background source explained.
The delta triggered an “internal flag,” discovered by one of the city’s finance employees who have children in the program. She learned at the end of January her cash payment was never delivered to town hall when she went to look for it.
The financial investigation began shortly thereafter.
The background source revealed the department deals with “a lot of cash” as it relates to programs, events and concessions.
Another audit is being launched into prior years, to see if funds were shorted elsewhere, they added; Moore has worked for the department since 2019. The SBI also will probe into previous years, though it’s currently unclear how far back it will go.
State law requires municipalities to submit an independent audit of its finances annually; these are typically due by Dec. 31, six months after the June 30 close of the fiscal year for most local governments. However, the last audit submitted would have been for the 2024-2025 fiscal year, which may not have captured current missing parks and recreation revenue.
At the March 12 Southport Board of Aldermen meeting, Bonnie Bray, who has run for the alderman office and is the former city finance director, was concerned about resident children being “ripped away from their afterschool care providers at the drop of a hat.”
She also told the aldermen during public comment the whole situation lacked transparency and called the news blindsiding.
The city sent out a press release to the community and media on March 11 about the shuttering of the parks and rec facilities, the SBI investigation and employees being suspended. However, details were sparse and the city noted it would not comment on an active case.
“I can tell you in the absence of information, there’s a lot of information going around,” Bray told the aldermen. “I understand you all were not informed of this. I understand that it’s possible that this actually started developing back in September.”
Port City Daily’s source said the aldermen and four suspended parks and recreation employees found out about the audit on March 11 — the same as the public.
Thursday, Alderman Robert Carroll agreed with Bray about a lack of transparency and it prompting the public to presume the worst.
“So a lot of people are calling, and they’re making assumptions that we’re talking hundreds of thousands of dollars, millions of dollars,” he said.
Port City Daily reached out to City Manager Saldo to confirm why the audit was kept under wraps from the aldermen and staff, and to inquire about the investigation but did not hear back by press.
“I support the city manager and his decision and what he is doing regarding the situation and investigation underway for the parks and recreation department,” Alderman Lowe Davis said during the meeting. “It is an extremely unfortunate set of circumstances, and yet, his hands were pretty much tied. There were no other ways to deal with this.”
The town could press charges against any perpetrators, though SBI spokesperson Flowers said the investigation is still in its early stages so it remains unclear when the case will wrap and whether it will officially be brought before a judge.
Tips or comments? Email Emily Sawaked at emily@portcitydaily.com
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