September 2009 Archives

SkyLine Membership Corporation will hold their annual membership meeting this weekend at Ashe County High School. According to Karen Powell, SkyLine's Public Relations Director, this weekend's meeting will be the 53rd annual membership meeting the corporation has held. Member registration will begin at 9:30 Saturday morning and the actual meeting will begin an hour later. The meeting will include reports from officers, election of directors and recognition of participants of the SkyLine youth programs. The meeting will also feature children's activities, a complimentary barbecue lunch, and live bluegrass music. Interested residents can find more information about this meeting by contacting SkyLine Membership Corporation at 1-800-759-2226.

Though a "late frost" took most of the apple blooms in the spring, the High Country still has a chance to celebrate one of its favorite crops. The Southern Appalachian Historical Association is hosting its annual Apple Festival on Saturday, Oct. 3. The event is held on the "Horn in the West" grounds in Boone and features entertainment, crafts, vendors, food and fun. The event is free, though donations are accepted to help maintain the Hickory Ridge Homestead, a gathering of structures designed to capture the Colonial period from the late 1700s. The amphitheater that hosts the outdoor drama "Horn in the West" will also be part of the festival grounds. The Apple Festival will feature performances by Kevin Carter and Full Assurance, Son Road Bluegrass Band, Neil Wilson, storytellers, cloggers and a host of children's activities. There will also be pumpkin painting and a pie-eating contest, as well as the crowning of the King and Queen of the Apple Festival. Baked apple concoctions will be available, as well as traditional festival staples, apple cider, basket weaving and other craft demonstrations. The Apple Festival hours are from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

State Senator Steve Goss said a lot of positive ideas came out of his healthcare town hall meeting that was held earlier this month in Wilkesboro. Goss said the turnout was greater than expected and that participants were a good mix of young and old, healthcare providers, and experienced users of the current healthcare system. The senator said the meeting was "exceptionally civil" and said although not everyone was on the same page, there was a thoughtful exchange of views. A few suggestions participants had for Goss were to tort reform aimed at reducing the cost of malpractice insurance, making hospitals and insurance companies send bills that can be understood by the average person, and to allow more insurance companies to compete for business within the state.

The Watauga County Democratic Party announced they will hold their annual Fall Rally this upcoming weekend. According to party officials a live auction will be held.  Items up for grab include "internships for a day" in the state Senate and House with Senator Steve Goss and Representative Cullie Tarleton, lunch with Boone Mayor Loretta Clawson, a half-day of yard work by Boone Town Councilman Rennie Brantz, a "ride-along" with Watauga County Sheriff Len Haygaman, a fly-over of Watauga County with pilot-Commissioner William Winkler III, and several other goods and services donated by Democratic elected officials. The dinner also includes a silent auction and several guest speakers. The dinner will be held on Saturday, October 3 at 5pm at Watauga High School. Tickets cost $10 and are available by stopping by the Appalachian Antique Mall in downtown Boone.  Tickets will also be available at the door.

Rangers at the Blue Ridge Parkway have several free events scheduled for this week. Ranger Amy Ren-franz said wildlife experts will present a seminar about animals in the area that either hibernate or migrate to warmer regions.  This 40-minute program will be held at the Julian Price Park Amphitheater on Friday evening at 7pm. Rangers will also lead a discussion about what we can do to reduce our carbon footprint on Saturday evening at 7PM at the Julian Price Park Amphitheater.An autumn nature hike will be held on Sunday afternoon at 4PM.  Renfranz said the one-hour hike will begin at the Bass Lake Parking Area. You're running out of time to take guided tours of the Cone Manor. These tours are held every Saturday and Sunday until October 18, but reservations are required.  Interested residents can call (828) 295-3782 for more information. As always, these events are free and open to the public.

Wachovia Bank is participating in APPALACHIAN sTATE'S homecoming parade and will be introducing Wells Fargo to the Boone community! Yosef (ASU's mascot) will ride the stagecoach through the parade along with Wachovia leaders and the Wells Fargo stagecoach and horses. Jason Triplett, Wachovia Market President for Watauga, Wilkes and Ashe Counties said "We at Wachovia are excited to be a part of Wells Fargo and know that our combined company will be able to do even more for our customers and the local community". The parade will begin at Rivers Street in front of Raley Hall and will continue down King Street, ending at Legends on the ASU Campus. The parade is Saturday, Oct. 10, from 10:30-11:30 AM.

Locally run financial institution, AF Bank, has re-branded itself to LifeStore Banking Insurance. Around 40 residents, including Boone Mayor Loretta Clawson and Boone Area Chamber of Commerce President Dan Mayer, were on hand as LifeStore unveiled their new store today. The name isn't the only thing that's changed with LifeStore, as the interior of all their locations have been renovated and bank officials have changed their focus from simply a financial institution to what they call a "retail store for life." This is the 15th name change LifeStore has undergone in its 70-year history. Bank officials stressed the name change and re-branding does not mean the bank has been purchased or that the bank has merged with another company, it was simply time for the bank to transition with the needs of its customers. LifeStore is headquartered in West Jefferson where president Bob Washburn was on location today. There are also branches in North Wilkesboro, Sparta, Lenoir, and several other towns in western North Carolina.

The Watauga County Chapter of Safe Kids along with members of the Boone and Blowing Rock Fire Departments want to invite the public to "Safety Saturday at Lowe's hardware" on Blowing Rock Road on Saturday, September 26th from 10 am to 1pm. Accidental home injury is a huge problem, resulting in nearly 20,000 deaths and more than 21 million medical visits each year in America. Most tragic injuries and deaths could be prevented, if consumers knew how to eliminate the danger zones in their homes to keep their loved ones safer. Lowe's, the Home Safety Council, and Safe Kids have joined forces to promote awareness of home safety and to show consumers how simple it is to protect their family and home. Information on smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, child safety device, fire extinguishers, and other safety equipment will be available. Comprised of volunteers and full-time staff, the boone fire department's mission is to minimize the risk of fire and other hazards. For more information on any of boone fire department's programs, call 828-268-6180.

Appalachian Regional Healthcare System announced Monday the consolidation of the lab and x-ray departments between Blowing Rock Hospital and Watauga Medical Center, effective October 1. These changes further the effort to provide quality healthcare to the community of Blowing Rock and the region, in the most efficient way. Emergency department services will continue to be provided 24 hours/day, 7 days/week. In addition, patients will continue to have access to outpatient lab and x-ray services.  These services will be available to patients in the emergency department, facility and clinic. The main lab at Watauga Medical Center will process the majority of the lab specimens collected at blowing rock hospital, however certain lab tests will continue to be performed at Blowing Rock Hospital. The changes will position Blowing Rock Hospital to remain viable financially as the healthcare system helps transition the facility into a new state-of-the-art post acute care center. The new facility is being designed in a neighborhood concept with 12-20 rooms with short and long-term rehabilitation, long-term care, Alzheimers/Dementia unit.  In addition to the post-acute, or post-hospital services, the facility will also house "Blowing Rock Medical Clinic" to serve the medical needs of the residents of Blowing Rock. The goal is to have a facility like no other in this region. For more information about Blowing Rock Hospital or Appalachian Regional Healthcare System, visit www.apprhs.org.

The North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service's Watauga County Advisory Council met monday to discuss operation medicine cabinet, an effort to collect and dispose of unused pharmaceutical drugs to keep them out of local waterways. Dr. Shea Tuberty, biology professor at Appalachian State University, said toxicology studies had suggested contaminant levels were building up in the environment. "when you flush the toilet, each and every time you're contributing to the chemicals in the river," Tuberty said. The public could address contamination by taking advantage of "take-back programs" and having the drugs incinerated. Tuberty said opponents of Boone's planned 4 million-gallon water intake on the new river in Todd had brought up pharmaceutical contamination as an issue, and he said he was "staying on the fence." Operation Medicine Cabinet takes place Oct. 3 from 9 a.m. until noon. The collection points are the three food lion grocery stores in the county and at seven devils town hall.