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News from the Roanoke Valley for May 21, 2010.
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Community | News | Per spect ive NewsRoanoke.com
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May 21 - 27, 2010
PAGE 2WEEKEND
Keister’sSweet
P6– Roanoker Melissa Keister finds her calling in the specialty sweets and cheesecake business.
ChampsState
P7– The North Cross Varsity Lacrosse team runs the table and comes home as the 2010 VISAA Div III. Champions.
ProjectThe Mary
P11– An original Gospel musical being performed in Roanoke will benefit the fam-ily of JoAnthony Page.
HistorySaving
P4– Mike Keeler says hard economic times are no ex-cuse for not protecting our irreplaceable heritage.
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Every summer Gary Hunt talks 20-25 people into taking a trip to Belize, asking them to carry on a plane the maximum amount permitted in school supplies – 100 pounds each – bound for impoverished students on that island nation. They then stay for a vacation, often taking advan-tage of special rates that Hunt has ne-gotiated over the past 20 years. He calls himself the “Bookbag Santa,” and this year he’s taken on a second mission.
Hunt is looking to collect a second ton of school supplies, then ship them off to Haiti, which was ravaged by an earthquake several months ago. “We always end up with [more] perfectly good stuff [than goes to Belize],” Hunt noted as people strolled by his Belize table at last Saturday’s Local Colors cel-
ebration. Instead of offering it to local churches he’s looking for someone that can ship it all to Haiti – from pencils and staplers, to backpacks and three-ring binders.
Last year 26 people took the trip to Belize; more than 20 people wrote their names down on Hunt’s legal pad Satur-day, expressing an interest in the Belize trip at the end of July. “This has been a
big response,” he noted. Meanwhile, Local Colors visitors
could view dozens of booths, each cen-tered on a different nationality; they could also sample food from around the world or watch music and dance performances on the Elmwood Park amphitheater stage. “People seem to really enjoy it,” said organizer Pearl Fu, who called the crowd “the largest we ever had.”
The crowds enjoyed everything from classical music to Hip Hop in Creole, and a host of dance performances. Sur-veying the bustling area on a perfect day, Fu deemed the 20th anniversary edition of Local Colors “a success.”
See bookbagsanta.com or call 342-2083 for information on donating school supplies for Haiti and Belize – or to learn more about the group traveling to Belize.
[Perspective]
Photo by Jessica Dodds
Four Burundi choir singers pray while chanting “Hallelujah.”
Robin’s Eggs and Graduation
City Council Mulls Sale of PropertiesThe sale of Fire Station #9 to Mahlon
P. Maxey, Vice President of Maxey Seat Cover Center Inc., went smoothly at Monday’s 7:00 p.m. Council meeting. With council member Anita Price ab-sent, the Mayor and five council mem-bers voted unanimously to approve the sale. Fire station #9 is located at 514 24th St. NW, adjacent to Maxey’s business, and was assessed at $308,900 with its use as a fire station. Maxey’s offer of $100,000 was accepted.
The recommendation by City Man-ager Chris Morrill was to sell fire station
#5, located at 215 12th Street NW, to Re-building Together-Roanoke, Inc., (RTR) for $12,768. RTR assists elderly and dis-abled homeowners in maintaining their residences.
There were two other potential buyers who pleaded their case for the building Monday.
Roanoke county resident Jamey Brads, a 1st lieutenant for fire station #5, asked council to con-sider his offer for the property. In addition to using the fire station for fire depart-ment memorabilia, Brads wants to add
his certified fire gear repair and cleaning service to the proposal. He upped his of-fer to $25,000. “I saw no better place to do it than an old fire station and continue to serve the men that served [fire station #5] for so long,” concluded Brads.
Speaking for the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity was Coach George “Killa” Miller. “For more than 75 years the fra-
ternity has assisted Roanoke citizens,” explained Miller. The fraternity plans to initiate a ten block drug educational pro-gram using fire station #5.
Mayor Bowers recused himself, which led to the lack of six council members to affirm the successful offerer. The award was set aside until the June 21 council meeting when all council members will be present.
In response to a question posed by Councilman Dave Trinkle, City Attorney Bill Hackworth explained that award of the fire station was a policy decision by council, and not a bidding process. They
[City Council]
SW County Schools Will Do the Shuffle
> CONTINUEDP3: Fire Sale
For weeks I have been watching a mamma Robin diligently tend her nest in the climb-ing rose bush outside my back door. While she kept a watchful eye as we came and went – her determination never wavered. Her job was to protect the four brilliant blue eggs – and she was succeeding.
Saturday morning was the big event. I sud-denly saw a tiny yellow beak pop up over the edge of the nest. Momma Robin was now tirelessly flying from the grass to the nest with little bits of food. While I didn’t want to upset her task – I couldn’t contain
Photo by Stephanie Koehler
Robin’s eggs and roses are a sure sign of Spring and maybe something more . . .
The Roanoke County School Board approved a plan recently that will shuffle stu-dents around over the next few years in southwest Roa-noke County at all levels: el-ementary, middle and high schools. With two schools currently exceeding capacity (Oak Grove Elementary, Hid-den Valley High School) and some students having to share lockers at Cave Spring Middle School and at Hidden Valley High, the School Board was aiming for better balance.
Part of the problem stems from the fact that Cave Spring M i d d l e School is in dire need of ex-pansion. That would siphon students away from Hidden Valley Middle School and ultimately the high school of the same name, which was at or above capacity shortly after it opened eight years ago.
The School Board held several public input sessions months ago, gauging how
[Education]
Optionfor Market Vendors Emerges
The doors will slam shut to the public on September 6, and it won’t be for “fall cleaning.” It’s the last day Roanokers can get a meal from Burger in the Square, New York Subs or a greeting from Zorba’s Adel Eltawansy.
According to Rob Ledger, Director of Economic Develop-ment for Roanoke City, contrac-tors will begin re nov at i ng September 13. By mid-May 2011, the old and / or new ten-ants can start their build-out for either an eatery or retail space in the renovated building.
There will be less parking with the sidewalk expansion on Mar-ket and Wall streets – only par-allel parking will remain on one side.
When the current tenants move out, they may be gone for good. There seems to be no
[Market]
John Venable addresses market vendors earlier this week.
Local Colors Participants Collecting Supplies for HaitiThis Year’s Event Gets Record Turnout
[Good Works]
> CONTINUEDP2 County Schools
> CONTINUEDP3: Market Vendors
By Gene [email protected]
Continued on Page 2
District Lines Redrawn to Alleviate Crowding
Mike Keeler
Page 2 | The Roanoke Star-Sentinel | 5/21/10 - 5/27/10 NewsRoanoke.com
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myself. I gathered up a stepladder, mirror and camera to see the newest members of the neighborhood. First there was one…then two…then three. I marveled at the ac-complishment of this small creature -- lov-ingly producing three offspring…but it was the fourth blue egg sitting in the nest that got me thinking.
Was she sad one hadn’t hatched – or happy for three healthy babies? Did she see it as a 25% failure or 75% success? As I watched her switch from “nurturer/protec-tor” mode to “teaching them how to survive the world” mode – I was suddenly struck by the similarities of human behavior. My mind immediately focused on all the par-ents who – during this graduation season – are watching their kids “leave the nest.”
In the coming days – thousands of young adults will heading out into the world. It’s staggering and exciting to think that among the graduates walking across a stage -- di-ploma in hand – will be the future President
of the United States, future Supreme Court Justices, Nobel Prize winners, inventors, teachers, scientists and artists. What mark will these young minds make on the world where we live?
As I watched this Robin take care of her young – a different question came to mind. What is the impact we have made on these graduates who are now entering adulthood? Let’s face it…. kids learn their lessons from adults. What is our responsibility as men-tors, role models, parents, advisors, teach-ers, neighbors, and friends? What kind of example are we setting?
Have we instilled confidence or fostered dependency? Have we modeled grace or tolerated selfishness? Have we offered boundaries or created obstacles? Have fail-ures been lessons or simply punishments? Have we built self-esteem or created a sense of entitlement? Have we set the example of forgiveness or judgment? Have we raised children to create the world we want – or
raised them to survive the world we cre-ated?
So, as we scurry about to purchase the best gift for graduation -- perhaps the best thing we can give is some thoughtful reflec-tions on the lessons we intended and some encouragement on the world we know they can create. Chances are the graduation pen will run out of ink and the watch will fall out of style – but your words will leave an indelible mark.
Last – but not least -- I encourage you to take a few moments to think about the momma Robin and the simplicity of her annual parenting ritual. Make a home and stay close by. Keep them warm and feed them well. Celebrate the successes and forgive the failures. Teach them the basics and show them the world. And finally…. let them fly.
By Stephanie Koehlerstephaniekoehler@cox,net
> Graduation From page 1
southwest county residents felt about realigning atten-dance zones. The redistrict-ing plans for elementary schools take effect with the 2011-2012 school year; sec-ondary schools will be re-aligned the following fall.
Affected will be some stu-dents at Cave Spring, Clear-brook, Green Valley, Oak Grove and Penn Forest ele-mentary schools, Cave Spring and Hidden Valley middle schools and at Cave Spring and Hidden Valley high schools.
“With the completion of renovations and expansions to Cave Spring and Green Valley elementary schools, we see an opportune time to adjust the elementary school attendance areas, to allow us to better use the additional instructional space resulting from the renovations,” said Roanoke County Schools Deputy Superintendent Allen Journell.
Preliminary architectural and engineering work for the Cave Spring Middle School renovations is also in prog-ress. “Additional space at Cave Spring Middle will allow us to adjust the secondary atten-dance areas [and further] re-duce the crowded conditions at Hidden Valley High,” said Journell, noting there would be better balance in the en-rollments at Cave Spring and Hidden Valley high schools.
Hidden Valley currently has about 400 more students than does Cave Spring. The south-west county high school at-tendance zone was carved up when Hidden Valley opened its doors in 2002.
> County Schools From page 1
By Gene [email protected]
Elementary School Zone Map
Secondary School Zone Map
Page 3 | The Roanoke Star-Sentinel | 5/21/10 - 5/27/10 NewsRoanoke.com
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Roanoke’s venerable “Fes-tival in the Park” returns with four days of music, food, cul-ture, arts and crafts and more, to Elmwood Park May 28-31. According to information on the website (eventzone.org), the musical acts scheduled to ap-pear on the main stage amphi-theater at Elmwood Park have a total of 17 Top 30 hits, spread across several different genres.
“The concerts will be just killer,” vows Event Zone execu-tive director Larry Landolt. The private agency, funded in part by Roanoke City, also oversees other downtown events, includ-ing the Party in the Park series and the Big Lick Blues Festival (Oct. 2 this year).
Returning this year is the high-def big screen that will en-able concertgoers to see what’s happening on stage even if they are sitting at a distance. Fami-lies often like to come during the day, when there is no charge, as there is at night for concerts. “The daytime activities are go-ing to be very cool,” promises Landolt. New this year is Larry’s Tropical Bird Show, Dr. Laura
Mann’s “Opera-tunity” Show and the Mega- Extreme Obsta-cle Course & Bungee Run.
“Festival in the Park may in fact have outgrown Elmwood Park,” said Landolt, who is eye-ing the city property on Reserve Avenue for next spring. Once several buildings are demol-ished (Parks & Rec., the Nation-al Guard Armory) as scheduled, there will be even more room.
“We would be excited about a venue that’s bigger,” notes Landolt, whose organization helped out during the John Hi-att concert on the old Victory Stadium site. “[Festival in the Park] is getting so darned big,” he adds, and the current venue “was never designed for those things.”
The Big Lick Blues Festival this October 2 has a “70 percent chance,” said Landolt of being relocated there from Elmwood Park this year as well. He sees the Hiatt concert and the up-coming Down by the River Fes-tival on July 11, as a “soft chal-lenge” for Roanoke – will the valley support major events in an outdoor venue? “We want
to see if that [demand] truly ex-ists,” said Landolt, who will help provide support for the July 11 event as well.
Landolt also doesn’t think that an “out of town entity” needs to be brought in to man-age an amphitheater if one ever gets built. Kirk Avenue Music Hall promoter Gary Jackson and “Ed Walker’s money,” he notes, helped make Hiatt a re-ality. “We now … have a track record of showing we can do it.”
This year’s Festival in the park will feature Rodney Atkins, who will kick things off with a con-cert on Friday, May 28. Follow-ing many years’ tradition, the Beatles tribute band 1964 will wrap up the festival on May 31, Memorial Day.
Chris Young, Atkins and Sister Hazel, all scheduled to perform next weekend, have had num-ber one hits. And as in years past, Festival in the Park should be a hit for the tens of thousands that are expected to show up.
Festival in the Park Returns – Could Be Elsewhere Next Year
could “continue to study the matter until [coun-cil] votes on it,” said Hackworth.
Another Sale Pending:Scott and Ascension Horchler want to buy
the former Buena Vista Recreation Center for $75,000. Scott Horchler is employed by SunTrust in Richmond, Virginia. According to SunTrust, Horchler has transitioned from a Community Development position to one involving Govern-ment Regulations.
In an e-mail, Assistant Manager Brian Townsend said, “The Horchlers propose to continue to use
a portion of the building as a ‘reception hall’ in a manner that the building had previously been utilized, and would renovate the remainder of the house as their residence. The property will need to be rezoned to accommodate the use as a single family residential dwelling in part.”
Three of the 12.7 acres will go with the prop-erty for that price if approved by city council. The exact use of the building after historic renovation remains unclear.
City manager Chris Morrill advised council in a letter attached to Monday’s council agenda that
the property is valued at $250,000 and includes the mansion and three acres. The letter states that a 2003 assessment to renovate the mansion was $285,000.
The entire 12.7-acre parcel is assessed at $764,000 according the city’s GIS website. A pub-lic hearing on the sale will take place June 7 at 2:00 p.m.
Activist Decries Gaskins’ Position on GangsDuring the public hearing Jeff Artis of the
Southern Christian Leadership Conference took the opportunity to voice his displeasure on retir-
ing Chief Joe Gaskins’ reluctance to acknowledge gangs in Roanoke City. “We know the gangs are here – we know the gangs are engaged in all types of criminal activity,” said Artis. He asked council to “clearly let the folks know in Roanoke that yes gangs are a problem … this is a request for pre-vention.”
> Fire Sale From page 1
By Valerie [email protected]
incentive coming from council, city administra-tion or the Market Foundation to entice them to return.
Coming to the rescue -- or at least offering an option -- John Garland, President of Spectrum Design, plans renovation of 16 West Church Av-enue next door to Heironimus. It’s the building that bears the name “Downtown Sports Club” on the front. The only current tenant is a chiroprac-tor who will stay in the renovated building.
According to Garland and Chris Venable, Spectrum senior associate, the ground floor ven-dor stalls can be ready for tenants when the doors close on the Market building. They can transition directly to “16 West” in September.
The location, which once housed former S & W
Cafeteria, has some “essential elements for eater-ies,” claimed Venable.
“We are still exploring ideas … you tell us what you need,” said Garland to the Market vendors.
BB&T will finance the $2 million renovation. After completion, they expect to get Historic Tax credits, Enterprise Zone credits and façade grants to offset the cost.
In addition, they are also luring a grocery store and pharmacy to the first floor. The flexible de-sign will have twelve stalls - six 12 by 20 feet with hood ventilation, depending on the use. Other stalls are unique in size and shape.
The yet-to-be-revealed fitness center for the second floor is an 80 percent certainty, according to Venable. The third floor will include six apart-
ments of about 800 square feet and will rent for about $850 a month.
The hope is to get a mix of eateries and retail businesses. Ledger called it “a different model” compared to the Market building. Limited park-ing would primarily attract those who either work or live and work downtown.
Darrell Morris of Poe and Cronk Real Estate Group will handle leasing. Garland said that Spectrum would “handle day to day manage-ment, needs and complaints.”
Venable said that rent would be less or compet-itive to what the city currently charges the Market building tenants. They would prefer 5-year leases, but are willing to work with any tenant wanting to return to the renovated Market building.
Garland explained that to draw customers it would take more than one Market tenant to re-locate. It’s now up to the vendors to express their interest and needs.
Michael Jirousek, owner of Tokyo Express, was concerned about parking for takeout orders. Louis Wilson, who co-owns Burger in the Square with his wife Anita Wilson, said by phone he would talk to Garland further. The Wilsons have already opened a second Burger in the Square at Cave Spring Corners in Roanoke County.
> Market Vendors From page 1
By Valerie [email protected]
Madison Middle School teacher John Marks is the 2010 Roanoke City Public Schools Teacher of the Year. He received a $1,000 check from n’Telos dur-
ing the TOY banquet last night at the Jefferson Center. Marks teaches math to sixth graders at James Madison Middle School. He will now advance to compete
in the statewide competition. In considering the award
Madison Middle School prin-cipal Debra Deitrich said, “He has such a true passion for his subject and has the ability to infuse this passion into his daily lessons. His classroom is a dy-namic place that motivates all students to achieve their very best—regardless of ability level or special needs. Marks is truly an exceptional educator and is an asset to our students and to our division.”
During last night’s award banquet all 29 TOY Roanoke City Schools nominees were pampered with a limo ride to the event from Prestige Limou-sine Service and then escorted down a red carpet.
Madison Middle School Teacher Named Teacher of the Year
John Marks and School Superintendent Rita Bishop.
Kimberly Stevens, food ser-vice director at Hidden Valley High School, is one of only six food service directors compet-ing for a national award to be presented in July. She is quick to credit her staff of nine with her success. “If I win an award, then this team wins an award” she states enthusiastically.
One has only to look at her self-described “bling hat” to get an idea of the awards she has won and the service she has provided. Her black vi-sor is covered in award and service pins. It is the second thing that is noticed after her warm smile and joyful person-ality.
In order to be eligible for a national award, Stevens had to win first in the state and also in her region. She is the current holder of the regional Louise Sublette Award of Excellence, conveyed to her by the School Nutrition Association (SNA). The regional Louise Sublette Award of Excellence is in memory of Louise Sublette, a leader in school foodservice programs in Tennessee and in SNA.
During Sublette’s 43 years in the profession, she worked with many areas of foodser-vice—public schools, colleges, hospitals and elderly feed-ing programs. SNA celebrates school nutrition profession-als and their commitment to providing safe, healthy and well-balanced meals during the national School Nutri-tion Employee Week (SNEW), May 3-7.
Two years ago Stevens re-ceived an award for turning the physical appearance of the school cafeteria from an insti-tutional setting to a warm and inviting café environment. This year she has been award-ed for her dedication and work ethic in providing nutritious meals for her students.
She is responsible for im-proving the a la carte breakfast choices at the school to reflect a nutritionally dense, high fi-ber, low fat and low sugar life-
style. As a result of her efforts, breakfast participation at the school has increased by 6% in the last year, exceeding her own goal. Ever the goal set-ter, she already knows what she wants the number to be next year and she has a plan in place to make it happen.
The star of her breakfast menu is the “ultimate break-fast round,” a tasty whole grain breakfast cookie with 260 calories and 6 grams of fi-ber. Stevens can easily quote the numbers of her favorite choices on her menu and of-ten posts them for students to see. She is able to point out how she has changed items,
resulting in an increase in the nutritional intake of her students, sometimes without their awareness.
Rhonda Huffman, Nutri-tion Coordinator of Roanoke County Schools, and State president of SNA, says “we’re very proud of Kim -- she goes above and beyond her job description.” That fact is evi-denced by Steven’s Trimming Titans Program. Eight faculty and seventeen students par-ticipated in her nutrition and exercise program. Huffman states that nineteen schools out of twenty six have a break-fast program in place.
Stevens has worked for the county school system for ten years. She is a self starter who left her stay- at- home career and engaged in many training programs to reach her posi-tion as food service director at Hidden Valley. Because of her efforts, Hidden Valley School serves a breakfast fit for a champion.
Hidden Valley Food Service Director Competes for Award
By Christine [email protected]
Kimberly Stevens
By Gene [email protected]
PersPectivePage 4 | The Roanoke Star-Sentinel | 5/21/10 - 5/27/10 NewsRoanoke.com
Find the answers online: TheRoanokeStar.com Have a clue and answer you’d like to see?
email: [email protected]
Star~Sentinel Crossword
By Don Waterfield
Local Crossword for 5/21/2010
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ACROSS
1 Quiet! 3 British drink 5 Back On The ____ is a kid''s consignment shop
in Tanglewood Mall. 7 Crawling
11 Thin sheets of metal 12 Condemn 14 What a baby does 15 In Roanoke VA it’s against the law to advertise
on tombstones True or False? 17 Tree sloth 18 Internal Revenue Service 19 Church usher 24 Small ground plot 25 Descendant 26 Fee 27 Amoebas 29 Shout 30 April (abbr.) 31 Post script
DOWN
1 Afflict 2 Stack 4 LSD 6 Tie 7 Cry softly 8 Rio de Janeiro 9 Wing
10 Ape 11 Potato sticks 13 Wall painting 14 Swab 16 Time zone 20 American College of Physicians (abbr.) 21 Directory (abbr.) 22 Water closet 23 Catch 24 Tallest mountain nearest to roanoke salem and
vinton area and holds the broadcast towers for our television stations.
26 Russian ruler 28 Name of the japanese monkey who bolted from
the roanoke city zoo.
Local Crossword for 5/21/2010
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14 15 16
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19 20 21 22 23 24
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www.CrosswordWeaver.com
ACROSS
1 Quiet! 3 British drink 5 Back On The ____ is a kid''s consignment shop
in Tanglewood Mall. 7 Crawling
11 Thin sheets of metal 12 Condemn 14 What a baby does 15 In Roanoke VA it’s against the law to advertise
on tombstones True or False? 17 Tree sloth 18 Internal Revenue Service 19 Church usher 24 Small ground plot 25 Descendant 26 Fee 27 Amoebas 29 Shout 30 April (abbr.) 31 Post script
DOWN
1 Afflict 2 Stack 4 LSD 6 Tie 7 Cry softly 8 Rio de Janeiro 9 Wing
10 Ape 11 Potato sticks 13 Wall painting 14 Swab 16 Time zone 20 American College of Physicians (abbr.) 21 Directory (abbr.) 22 Water closet 23 Catch 24 Tallest mountain nearest to roanoke salem and
vinton area and holds the broadcast towers for our television stations.
26 Russian ruler 28 Name of the japanese monkey who bolted from
the roanoke city zoo.
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A favorite phrase reminds me that “in wonder is the beginning of wisdom.” And I would sug-gest that, in the darkness of the night sky, for so many of us, has come the beginning of wonder.
And yet, over a large por-tion of the developed world, less than 100 stars are visible in the night sky—often, fewer than 10. During the occasional grid-failure black-outs in large American cities, urban popula-tions have been “star struck” to see the Milky Way for the first time, between skyscrapers and from their own back yards.
Here in northeastern Floyd County, we see the edge of our own galaxy often, but less in-tensely than we did even a de-cade ago. The orange glow of Salem and Christiansburg’s 460 bypass lighting have obliterated an uncertain portion of our stars by their misdirected lights. Urban sky glow can extend up to 150 miles from its source.
To appreciate the growth in numbers of errant light sources that lead to astronomi-cal sky pollution, one needs do no more than look at a night map of the world from space (nightearth.com) or remember a flight you’ve taken anywhere in the eastern US after dark. It’s amazing how lit-up our nation is at all hours.
The surprising thing is how much of that ground-produced light is allowed to shine UP into space rather than out and down where it is needed. This is known as clutter: bright, con-fusing and excessive groupings of light sources that contribute
to urban sky glow, light trespass and glare.
Outdoor lighting that shines directly upward is reported to waste 3.6 million tons of coal or 12.9 million barrels of oil a year. This flagrant misuse of energy doesn’t even include lights left on in cities overnight in empty office buildings.
Better lighting tech-nology is possible (in-cluding shielding and motion-sensing), and might soon be man-dated. Darksky.org offers both education-al and practical infor-mation on using less and better lighting—a future change that must start at home.
Besides unwanted light in the sky, there is the matter of envi-ronmental light pollution and its impact on both wildlife and human health and behavior. The most widely recognized consequences of stray light on wildlife is perhaps in its effect on migrating birds and sea turtles.
The response to light among earth’s animals is hardwired into their nervous systems, and beachfront lighting or illumi-nated towers or skyscrapers give signals that misdirect them to their deaths. Hundreds of mil-lions of birds die every year from collisions with illuminated towers and buildings. We’re only just beginning to appreci-ate the unintended impact of light injury, and not just for the wildlife.
Studies show that the circadi-an (daily light-dark) cycle con-
trols from ten to fifteen percent of our genes, so the disruption of this pattern can cause a lot of health problems—even cancers. This is particularly an issue for shift workers over time. You will hear more about the role of light in human health in the coming years.
Consider that in June 2009, the Ameri-can Medical Associa-tion “adopted resolu-tions that support the reduction of light pol-lution and glare and advocate for the use of energy efficient, fully shielded outdoor lighting. Ongoing re-search continues to probe the connection
between natural darkness and human health.”
Let’s start locally to re-em-brace the dark. Visit a nearby observatory at SELU, Apple Ridge, or Primland to see what you’ve been missing in the cos-mos. Take yourself and your children out at night this sum-mer, regularly and on purpose. Carry along a copy of “Stars: A New Way to See Them” by H. A. Rey (highly recommended by my kids!) Become reacquainted with the dome of night and the wonders it can offer. http://bit.ly/9umZaL Light up a child’s life by introducing them to one of our lesser-known natural re-sources: the marvel of SW Vir-gina's star-studded darkness!
Sources: http://bit.ly/cCqfrf
Natural Resource Preservation Plea: Preserve Our Dark Night Skies
Fred First
Contact Fred [email protected]
Take, for example, the case of the Old Barracks. The Colony of New Jersey built five military bar-racks in 1758; the one in Trenton was at that time the largest building in town. In 1776, the "Old Trenton Barracks" was captured and occupied by British and Hessian soldiers, after they had chased George Washington clear out of New Jersey. But on Christmas night, Washington and 2400 patriots crossed the Delaware (ask your kids just where was he go-ing, their answers will scare you) and marched through a winter gale to win a miraculous victory right outside the Old Barracks' front door. This, togeth-er with subsequent victories at Second Trenton and Princeton, is remembered as the "10 crucial days" which saved the American Revolution.
From 1777-1783, the Old Barracks served as a military hospital. In that capacity, it was the site of perhaps the first successful mass smallpox inoculations in his-tory. After the war, the building fell into disrepair. During Trenton's industrialization, the building became an apartment complex and at one point even had a road punched through it. But then a group of patriotic local women stepped in. They bought the building in 1902 and fully restored it by 1916. Along the way, they donated it to the State (the Statehouse is right next door), with the legal stipulation that they would run it and the State would fund its maintenance "forever." Today, the Old Barracks is a National Historic Landmark and
a living history center hosting over 20,000 school children and other visitors every year.
But now the Old Barracks is facing an entirely different kind of battle. New Jersey Governor Chris Christie recently announced severe budget cuts for every historic landmark in the state, in-cluding the complete elimination of state funding
for the Old Barracks. This elimination may result in the Old Barracks closing its doors for the first time since 1914. (You can see more about the Old Bar-racks budget cut at www.youtube.com/user/TheOldBarracks)
So what's the cost of saving the place where the United States was saved? Less than a half million dollars. That should be easy to find, right? But the State claims it doesn't have it. Corpo-
rations have their own troubles. Pri-vate donations are hard to come by. And the budgetary clock is ticking.
Three days before the Battle of Trenton, Thom-as Paine wrote, "These are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine pa-triot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, de-serves the love and thanks of man and woman." Perhaps there are some who will stand by the Old Barracks in THIS time of crisis. But if not, a criti-cal piece of America's heritage will be . . . history.
Can You Put A Price Tag On Your Heritage?
South of the great Alpine passes in eastern Swit-zerland the feel is decidedly Italian. Emerging from the Gotthard tunnel, which lies under the pass of the same name, one finds the Swiss German –schwyzertutsch- replaced by predominately Ital-ian, with a little Romansch thrown in too. We’re on a train headed south along a route which has been used for commerce and conquest –both inextrica-bly linked of course- for at least 5,000 years. Most of the route into Italy is hemmed in on both sides by the flanks of impressive Alpine peaks or their robust foothills. The passage to this day is watched over by ruined castles and towers, ghostly remind-ers of the historical importance of this route.
We spend an afternoon in the vil-lage of Thusis, climbing high over the town to visit the vertiginous ruins of Obertagstein castle, a medieval outpost. Surrounded by substantial portions of precisely placed stone, it’s not too diffi-cult to imagine being a lookout, moni-toring movement of men and materials in the valley below.
This part of Switzerland is known as Ticino –the German speakers call it Tessen- and it has a character all its own. Not only are all the signs in Ital-ian, but the further south one travels the more Mediterranean is the ambiance. More sunshine graces Ticinese valleys than reaches the brooding Alps further north, and vineyards cover terraced mountainsides.
Bellinzona interrupts our train ride south. This picturesque town, a favorite of the English painter William Turner, has been a fortress since Roman times. It holds a prime position in guarding ac-cess to three high Alpine passes: the Gotthard, the Lukmanier and the San Bernadino. Three castles stand here, reinforced by the Milanese forces in the 1200’s to repel the Swiss invaders from north of the Gotthard. To no avail, by the way. Today Bellin-zona embraces her status of being part of Switzer-land. Make no mistake, the Ticinesi are proud of their Swiss heritage and nationality, but also cher-ish their Italian-ness, especially when it comes to Dolce Vita. These Swiss will just as quickly scoot off to Milan for their chic big-city needs as they will to Zurich.
Further south Locarno beckons. This city on the shores of Lago Maggiore was a glass-manu-facturing town in Roman times, and its excellent Castello Visconteo museum is home to an exten-sive collection of Roman and Bronze Age artifacts. Yes, a lot of humanity has passed this way prior to my humble forays here. For the past few centuries sunny Locarno with its palm trees swaying in the Fohn breeze, has been attracting tourists from the chilly north.
Another lake side city on the Italian fringes of Switzerland is Lugano, and it begs the restless soul for an overnight stay. I obey the call, and we find a simple pension with tiny rooms a stone’s throw
from the lake. The proprietress knows enough “ho-tel English” to get us settled in nicely. The tangled cobblestone streets of Lugano are easily shared by plainly-dressed old ladies carrying baskets of cut flowers as well as flashy folk in their Aston Mar-tins and Maseratis who are in town to tend to their money. Lugano, like Zurich, is an international center of banking, and if there’s anything the Swiss do particularly well it’s handle money.
The Lago di Lugano shoreline is prime for walk-ing and we hike to Gandria, an hour away along the shore above the blue-green water. We walk through groves of olive trees and terraced vineyards, down quiet lanes through silent, tiny villages. Gandria is
a jumble of buildings crowded onto the steep lakeside. It’s on the passenger boat line, so we take the next boat back to Lu-gano, the sun sinking low over the water and hills beyond.
Riding a Swiss Post bus from Lugano to Tirano, our route enters Italy as the road follows the Lago di Como shore-line. The 100-year-old Bernina Express train line heads back into Switzerland from Tirano and elegantly climbs over Bernina Pass, at 2323m the highest pass in the Alps over which a rail line
passes. The Swiss are consummate engineers, with tunnel building their forte. Swiss trains go places that normal people would deem impossible. My Swiss friend Roli tells me that his countrymen are forever building tunnels. “We see a mountain and –besides climb it- we must build a rail tunnel through it!” He gleefully points out on the map a dotted line representing the longest tunnel in the world. Under the Alps, on the Zurich to Milan rail line the finished tunnel will be 58 kilometers long. Under construction for several years now, it will be completed by about 2018. And they’re working on it twenty-four hours a day.
Just beyond and below Albula Pass, which is still buried in snow in late April, we get off the train at Preda to walk the rail line trail to Bergun. The Swiss, justly proud of their engineering feats, have created this 8 Km hiking trail to highlight some of the Bernina railway’s engineering elegance in the form of corkscrew tunnels and soaring stone via-ducts.
We enter the Ober Engadine valley and come to the town of Pontresina, where our hostess Reka, surrounded by her busy and bright-eyed little bam-binos, welcomes us to the backpacker’s hostel. She feeds us potato rosti and other simple delicious fare as dusk falls over the valley. Later, son Taylor and I stroll a meadow above town, watching for the first stars to appear. More than that, we’re watching for the full moon to rise above the towns of St. Moritz and Sameden across the valley.
As that orb comes into view, preceded by a glow silhouetting the craggy skyline, my mind is full of recurring thoughts about being far from home, un-der the same celestial bodies that marvel me there,
but in a much different land; a land of different heritage, history, landscape and people. Different ideas and different ways of doing things. And it occurs to me that this is what it’s all about, keeping ones eyes open to the possibili-ties in looking at things from dif-ferent perspectives of time and place.
It’s a beautiful night. I look out the window of the hostel before I drift off to sleep. The moonglade on St. Moritz lake is spectacular, but I can’t keep my eyes open and soon I’m dreaming about digging a tunnel under Mill Mountain.
Just a Taste of Ticino
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PersPectiveNewsRoanoke.com 5/21/10 - 5/27/10 |The Roanoke Star-Sentinel |Page 5
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Who’s “Jack” in the name of that wonderful spring wild-flower throughout our region called Jack-in-the-pulpit?
Jack-in-the-pulpit has long fascinated naturalists, herbal-ists, botanists, and even art-ists. Perhaps the most famous artistic depiction is Georgia O’Keefe’s oil-on-canvas por-trayals that she painted in the 1930’s, sensuous renderings wherein O’Keefe believed that the most profound knowledge of the subject revealed its abstract form.
This native plant, also called Indian turnip, is unmistak-able in our moist woods and bot-tomlands: an her-baceous perennial growing from a corm with trifoli-ate leaves and a flower contained in a spadix, or club, covered by a striped hood reminiscent of an old-fashioned pulpit. Taken to-gether, the spadix and hood supposedly look like a Sun-day-morning preacher ready to deliver his sermon from his lofty podium to passersby. To me, however, this other-worldly wildflower seems like a meeting place for woodland imps and naughty spirits. Just a quick peek at its various names in folklore tells you that it’s held us spellbound for generations: Brown Dragon, Devil’s Ear, Dragonroot, and Memory Root.
Jack-in-the-pulpit blooms from April to June and is pol-linated by gnats, flies, and mosquitoes attracted to its smell and heat, the produc-tion of which is typical of arums. The fruit ripens in late summer and fall, turning from shiny green to bright red before the plant goes dormant. Along with may-apples, trilliums, bluebells, bleeding heart, and Solo-mon’s seal, Jack-in-the-pulpit is a dramatic addition to our spring palette of wildflowers throughout the region.
Most folks do not know that Jack-in-the-pulpit has the extraordinary ability to change sexes from year to year, depending on its nutri-tion during the growing sea-son. If poor soil conditions, or if transplanted, then it will set male flower buds and one set of leaf buds. If good soil conditions, it will produce female flower buds and an
extra set of leaf buds, thereby increasing its ability to photo-synthesize sugars and fortify its seeds with nutrients. So one trifoliate leaf indicates a male flower and two trifoli-ate leaves indicate a female. Perhaps then we should re-name this wildflower as Jack-or-Jill-in the-pulpit! Sexual-ity, it seems, is much more laissez-faire among the plant and animal kingdoms than
our prudish tastes might otherwise prescribe for the economy of nature.
But who in the world was Jack?
I searched my botanical refer-ences and scoured on-line sources to no avail. Then it dawned on me. The name, Jack, is common in folk-
lore: Jack-in-the-box, Jack o’lantern, Jack the giant slay-er, Appalachia Jack, stingy Jack, even Jack Torrance in “The Shining.” It’s a generic signal, if you will, for every-man. First recorded in Eu-rope in the 13th century, the name appeared in the United States in Virginia prior to 1800, signifying an ill-disci-plined or mischievous young man, a trickster-hero often motivated by poverty, quick-witted, fussy, sometimes na-ïve, always successful.
So there’s Jack, standing in his pulpit, ready to wreck havoc on an unsuspecting world. But what kind of mis-chief might he cause in this seeming innocent, even rev-erential, setting?
Let me draw your attention back to two other common names for Jack-in-the-pulpit: Dragonroot and Memory Root. The first connotes fire. The second portends some-thing unforgettable. Both are accurate descriptors of the horrific sensation you will have if somehow you eat the corm of this plant. It’s a fire in your mouth that you will never forget!
Years ago, while standing in the middle of a West Virginia swamp, I was handed a large corm of Jack-in-the-pulpit by two so-called friends who raved about its exquisite fla-vor and then encouraged me to eat the darn thing … which I did promptly, com-pletely, naively, regrettably. Within moments, my mouth was under attack, thousands
and thousands of tiny crystal-line knives plunging into the moist lining of my cheeks and throat. No matter how much spitting and gagging, I could not stop the fire in my mouth. The pain continued for 5 or 10 minutes, eventually di-minishing from an intense burning sensation to mild irritation and then to just a horrible memory. My friends rolled with wicked laughter at my demise.
The chemical reaction in my mouth resulted from the water in my saliva mixing with crystals of calcium ox-alate found in Jack-in-the-pulpit. Even a small dose of calcium oxalate is enough to cause intense burning sensa-tions. In greater doses, how-ever, these crystals can cause severe digestive upset, breath-ing difficulties, and even con-vulsions and death. Recovery from oxalate poisoning is pos-sible, but permanent liver and kidney damage may also have occurred. Good grief, Char-lie Brown! It was a nefarious prank indeed that my friends played on me in that remote West Virginia swamp!
Its other name, Indian tur-nip, refers to its varied treat-ments by Native Americans for sore eyes, rheumatisms, bronchitis, snake bites and even sterility. One account from the Meskwaki Indians, the “people of red earth” of Algonquian origin, maintains that they used the plant to poison the meats of their en-emies.
No matter its usage by us humans, Jack-in-the-pulpit is an intriguing native plant with a long-standing my-thology. It also introduces a phantasmagoric beauty to our woodlands and swamps during the spring emergence of wildflowers. Above all, it provides us with an impor-tant lesson about the natural world: like animals, plants have defenses to ward off their predators. Let us all ex-ercise caution when tempted to sample the emerging ver-nal banquet throughout the Roanoke Valley!
“Who’s Jack Anyway?”
H. Bruce Rinker, PhD
H. Bruce Rinker, Ph.D. Science Department Chairman
As I gazed upon my son’s desk today I smiled, the truth stood before me – his desk tells the story of who he is on this day in time with far greater detail than any photograph ever could. An old wooden treasure box, a small George Washington tin with two rocks inside, a few special coins, several star wars figures and a scattering of lego pieces, some half finished homework, a golf ball, more rocks, a wooden dinosaur puzzle and some jolly rancher wrappers – all together with some other unique and very important objects in a big unorganized pile on a very small desk.
My children’s desks always frustrate me because they are a mess even when all else is clean. But today I saw their desks as a Holy place - a window into their world; a place where daily treasures end up, the story of their history for that day. If you love them and cherish the lives they lead then it can be like gaz-ing upon the Constitution of the United States, it is the soul of their life in that moment cap-tured and preserved.
Do you remember this story, “The Littlest Angel” by Charles Tazwell? The little angel gave his treasure box to Jesus on the day of His birth. In the box was a butterfly with golden wings captured one summer day in the hills of Jerusalem, a sky blue egg from a bird’s nest in the olive tree outside his kitchen door, two white stones found on a river bank where he and his friends played and a tooth marked leather strap, once worn by his beloved dog.
In the story God held up this gift as the one that pleased Him the most. Tazwell writes, “And the voice of God spoke, saying: Of all the gifts of the angels, I find that this small box pleases me most. Its contents are of the earth and of man, and my Son is born to be king of both. These are the things my Son, too, will know and love and cherish and then will leave behind when His task is done.” Those inspired
words alone change the value of that common rock found on my son’s desk and it changes the value of each moment of each day.
I found a GREAT treasure box at our preschool yard sale a few weeks back. It looks ancient like it may have been found on a pirate’s ship. I gave it to my son and told him to put all the things he treasures most in there. The start of summer is a great time for the gift of a treasure box. Give one to your child and see what ends up in there.
Speaking of treasures - here's a fabulous salmon recipe for the barbie from Cooking Light Magazine - give it a go!4 Anaheim chiles Cooking spray 2 shucked ears corn 1 cup diced tomato 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro 6 tablespoons fresh lime juice 1 teaspoon salt, divided 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided 1 teaspoon ground cumin 4 (6-ounce) skinless salmon fillets
-Place chiles on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 5 minutes on each side or un-til blackened. Place chiles in a heavy-duty zip-top plastic bag; seal. Let stand 5 minutes. Peel chiles; cut in half lengthwise. Discard seeds and membranes. Cut chiles into 1/4-inch strips.
-Place corn on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 10 minutes or until lightly browned, turning occasionally. Cool slightly. Cut kernels from cobs.
-Combine chiles, corn, toma-to, cilantro, and juice; toss gen-tly. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper.
-Combine remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, remaining 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, and cumin, stirring well. Rub spice mixture evenly over both sides of salmon. Place salmon on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 4 minutes on each side or until fish flakes easily when test-ed with a fork or until desired degree of firmness. Serve with relish.
Grilled Salmon with Roasted Corn Relish
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The neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) staff at Carilion Clinic Children’s Hospital hosted a birth-day party on May 15 in honor of the graduates of the NICU who are between one and two years in age. The party has taken place since the early 1980s and is held as a way to celebrate all the hard work that is put into helping babies get better and stronger.
The NICU has between 600 and 700 patients come through each year and is the “regional re-ferral center” for southwest Virginia, serving a
100 mile radius. Many family, friends, and NICU staff members were on hand for the event. Diane Goode has worked as a nurse in the NICU since 1967, and has witnessed a lot of improvements in technology for their small patients. Her role car-ing for babies is apparently unforgettable; she once had a lady approach her, saying “You took care of my son 31 years ago!” Cindy Johnson, also a NICU nurse who attended the party, called her job “very very rewarding … there are lots of miracles.”
By Cheryl [email protected]
It is sometimes hard to dis-tinguish between serendipity and the fruits of a talent tried. In Melissa Keister’s case, it’s some of both, and the oh-so-sweet result is her business, “Sweet Keister’s” -- which delivers des-serts of all kinds, including her ever-popular signature dessert, cheesecake.
Keister’s freshly made cheese-cakes and desserts are available to individuals, who comprise the bulk of her sales, and can also be found at some popu-lar local eateries, including So Ro Chill & Grille, and even Pit Boss, whose customers are par-tial to her Key Lime pie and, to complement the recent event, “Kentucky Derby” pie.
For years, Keister has enjoyed baking and dessert making; she started out making the tradi-tional New York style cheese-cake and gradually branched out from there. Before long, her reputation preceded her (she was always asked to “bring a cheesecake” to family / friend functions), so, bring cheese-cake she did - along with other desserts that have become part of her staple “menu,” which in-cludes brownies, cookies and more.
Keister, who catered a few small events, had been mulling the idea of starting a business when a friend, Mark Claytor, asked her if she could do all the desserts for his Christmas Open House. Keister decided “let’s just go for it,” using the Open House as a test. She sup-plied all the desserts for free, desiring only feedback, saying, “I wanted to see how it went” so she would know what to concentrate on for the busi-ness. (That's one lucky Mark Claytor.)
Her treats were so well re-ceived she knew she was onto something. When she and partner Kenny Prickitt put their heads together, one of the first items on the agenda
was a name for the new busi-ness. Laughing, Keister says that “There are sweet Melissa’s everywhere; when Kenny came up with ‘Sweet Keister’s – Sim-ply delicious, no butts about it’ – it was so hilarious we decided let’s just go with it.”
Keister uses only fresh ingre-dients and says “the product you’re receiving is made yester-day; nothing is frozen.” There are a few cakes that require a two-day process so she asks customers to give her a two to three day notice for orders, and a little more time on larger or-ders. She doesn’t hesitate a sec-ond when asked which flavors are the best sellers: “Red Velvet and Blueberry.” She says Red Velvet is “the ‘one’ -- the eye-popping show-stopper -- and people love it.”
So Ro Chill & Grille owner
Angela Drinkard says that both “Red Velvet, and the Berryli-cious -- made with three dif-ferent kinds of berries -- are the most popular.” She adds that customers love the cheese-cakes; she even had one lady call ahead to make sure they still had a slice of the one she planned to order for dessert and had them “hold” it for her.
Keister introduces people to her desserts by taking samples to potential customers and by setting up a booth at commu-nity events, such as the Vinton Wine festival she recently at-tended. She says she quickly learned that rather than ask questions, it is better to “watch people’s expression when they try some – their face will tell you everything you want to know.” She adds that people “always have something to say… it gets you tickled when they say ‘oooh’ and ‘aaah’… they’re really enjoying it, which is good.”
Currently a home-based operation, Sweet Keister’s has plenty of room to grow right where they are. Keister is en-joying her delivery business, although she says it would be a dream of hers to “one day have an establishment called ‘Sweet Keister’s’” even though she ad-mits that “it would be a lot of work running a place like that.” For now, she may have found her niche, and she adds that when her customers tell her “they are sold out, that is the biggest compliment.”
For more information, visit sweetkeisters.com which in-cludes a list of the many flavors of cheesecake available, and to order, email [email protected] or call 540-397-5253.
Sweet Keister’s Delivers Unforgettable Desserts
Melissa Keister displays samples at a recent event in Roanoke.Rebecca Jackson with son Gavin.
Erica Coen, with 20 month old daughter Ella, who was in the NICU just under four weeks.
Jordan Anderson holds 20 month old son Aiden, who was born six weeks early.
Myia Harris-Moore, 16 months, with her parents, Dustin Moore and Amber Harris. Myia has fully recovered from the birth defect gastro-schisis, a condition in which the intes-tines are outside the infant’s abdomen.
Allyson Lester with son Jayden Ferrara. The family travelled from West Virginia so Jayden could be treated in Roanoke.
Christine Land holds daughter Megan, who has had five defects in her heart repaired.
NICU Celebration Brings Families Together
By Cheryl [email protected]
sPortsSend sports pictures, announcements
and story ideas to [email protected] 5/21/10 - 5/27/10 |The Roanoke Star-Sentinel |Page 7
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Raiders Win 2010 State Lacrosse Championship
Sophomore attackman Paul Ross drives hard for the Raiders.
Game MVP George Revercomb eludes 2 Wakefield defenders to set up one of his 3 goals and 5 assists.
The 2010 VISAA Division III State Champion North Cross Raiders.
North Cross defenseman Matt Watson shields the ball from a Wakefield player.
The North Cross School Varsity Lacrosse Team won the Division III VISAA (Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association) State title after de-feating Wakefield School, 14 6, on Sat., May 15. The state title is the first for North Cross School lacrosse.
"I am so happy for our guys. They have really earned this title,” said Head Coach Stephen Belderes, who is also an upper school math teacher. Belderes also credits the NCS middle school lacrosse program, and coach Chris Pollock for teach-ing students to play the game well at such a young age.
Paul Ross ’12 scored four goals and George Revercomb ’12 added three goals and five assists Saturday. Morgan Moskal ’11 added three goals and an as-sist for NCS (11-4), while Paul McNeil ’12 added 11 saves. Revercomb was named MVP of the championship game.
Dean of Students Chris Da-vies, who is also a history teach-er, is the team’s assistant coach.
A championship banner will be hung in the School’s James R. Muscaro Game Gymnaisum.
NCS athletic teams have seen much success in recent school years, bringing home state titles in Varsity Volleyball in 2009,
Varsity Football in 2008, and Varsity Boys' Soccer in 2007.
One of the main goals of the NCS athletic program is to give every child in the middle and upper schools the opportunity to participate in the athletic pro-gram. Each year approximately 90 percent of NCS students par-ticipate on at least one of the 31 teams offered.
“We are very fortunate to have a dedicated coaching staff that teaches our student-athletes not only the skills necessary to be successful in their sport but also life lessons that they will carry with them throughout life,” said Athletic Director Donna Satter-white. “The work of our coaches and student-athletes has result-ed in two state championships and eight teams participating in state tournaments this year,” she added.
Hidden Valley Clinches River Ridge Regular Season Title
Hidden Valley broke open a tight game by scoring three runs in the fifth and two in the sixth to pick up the 9-3 win over the Salem Spartans. The Titans improved to 8-1 in the district and clinched first place heading into tournament play next week. Salem dropped to 6-3.
Salem shortstop #12 Alex Stepp sidesteps the slide by Hidden Valley #19 Cam Hodge to turn a double play for the Spartans.
Hidden Valley base runner #3 Beau Bredberg slides safely to the plate as Salem catcher Carter Williamson looks for the ball.
Photos and recap by Bill Turner
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Page 8 | The Roanoke Star-Sentinel | 5/21/10 - 5/27/10
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Traditionally, Myrtle Beach is a tough place for opposing teams to play. In 2008, the Atlanta Braves Advanced-A affiliate led the minors with 89 wins, capping a phenomenal stretch that saw the Peli-cans battling for division titles nearly every year. But in six meetings this year, including three this past weekend at BB&T Coastal Field, the Salem Red Sox have completely thrashed the Pelicans. Salem has gone 6-0 against the lowly birds and has won by a grand total of 35 runs. The aggregate score looks more like something you might see from a Virginia Tech nonleague mismatch. In six games, it’s Red Sox 49, Pelicans 14.
Without a doubt, the highlight of the most recent weekend on the beach was Saturday eve-ning’s bid for perfection. Behind starter Stolmy Pimentel, the Red Sox held the Pelicans without a single baserunner into the eighth inning. Pi-mentel, Salem’s 20-year old Opening Day starter in 2010, mixed his powerful fastball, knee-buck-ling curveball, and his deceptive changeup for six consecutive 1-2-3 innings. The Dominican Republic-native struck out four, while inducing four ground-outs and ten air-outs. Due to pitch count restrictions, he departed after throwing 74 tosses in six innings.
Perfection continued in reliever Will Latimer’s first inning of work, as the southpaw from Colora-do threw a perfect seventh. But Gerry Rodriguez led off the eighth inning with a double for Myrtle Beach, breaking the stretch of 21 Pelicans retired in succession to open the game. Myrtle Beach managed their only run on the night in the eighth inning, but it was not nearly enough to outscore the offensive explosion from Salem.
Though easily overshadowed by the pitching
staff’s bid for history, the offense erupted for a season-high 19 hits on Saturday night in Salem’s 9-1 win. Four different Red Sox batters mustered three hits apiece. In the series, Salem’s offense tab-ulated a .336 batting average and scored 20 runs, winning the three games by totals of 8-2, 9-1, and 3-2. Catcher/DH Ryan Lavarnway led the team with seven hits and four RBI in the three games, while right-fielder Alex Hassan belted Salem’s only homer in the series, a two-run blast in the third inning on Saturday. While Pimentel’s per-fection was the story of the weekend for the Salem arms, the Sox’ other starters—Alex Wilson and Brock Huntzinger—also pitched very well, earn-ing victories for their efforts.
The Salem Red Sox return home Friday, May 21st as part of their “Pink in the Park Weekend” presented by Kroger. The weekend is dedicated to raising breast cancer awareness and funds for Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Giveaways for the first 1,000 fans include a pink Salem Sox T-Shirt on Friday courtesy of Lewis-Gale Medical Cen-ter, and a pink Salem Sox recycle bag on Sunday courtesy of Kroger. The Salem Sox players will be wearing pink jerseys on Saturday Night, and fans will be able to bid on each player’s jersey to receive it from the player after the game. The annual pink jersey auction is sponsored by The Back Resort. 100% of the proceeds will go to Susan G. Komen for the Cure.
The team takes Monday, May 24th off but will return home for a three game home series against the Winston-Salem Dash starting Tuesday, May 25th. Visit Salemsox.com or call 389-3333 for more promotional info and tickets.
Sox Shine Like the Sun in Myrtle Beach - Prepare for Home Stand
27th Scott Robertson Memorial Golf Tournament
Linda Luo -- this year’s field had representatives from 17 foreign countries.
The Scott Robertson Golf Board presents Jessica Korda the championship trophy.
Drew Czuchry-Boys 15-18 winner scores- 67-68-69- 204 ( 9 under par).
Jessica Korda - Girls 15-18 winner scores-68-70-69 - 207 (6 under par).
Photos by Bill Turner
FCS Clinches Regional Title but Falls to Mount Carmel in Quarter Finals
The Faith Christian girls soccer team (14-0-1) picked up another South Region title, winning over the Roanoke Valley Christian Eagles in convincing fashion by a score of 3-0. The lady Warriors moved on to face Mount Carmel of Luray and played them to a 1-1 halftime tie before giving up two second half goals and falling 3-1 in a VACA state quarterfinal Tuesday evening on the Faith Christian field. The Warriors ended the season with a record of 14-1-1.
Faith Chistian Mackenzie Clinton (in white) is hit as she battles a Mount Carmel player for the ball.
Faith Christian #14 Sarah Graninger gets off a shot in the second half against Mount Carmel.
Photos by Bill Turner
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I found the greatest love of allInside of me.The greatest love of allIs easy to achieve.Learning to love yourself.It is the greatest love of all.
These lyrics come from a Whitney Houston hit, “The Greatest Love of All,” which has become something of a Baby Boomer anthem. She urged children to find “all the beauty they possess inside.”
We Boomers loved that song because we wanted to find our worth apart from our parents’ approval of us. Of course, when we became parents, we sought to build our children’s self-worth through our ap-proval of them. The point is, self-acceptance has been our Holy Grail.
I sympathize with this desire to build self-esteem. I agree that the golden rule, “Love your neighbor as you love yourself,” assumes a healthy love of oneself. However, I want to offer a warning. If we are not careful, our desire for worth can lead us to hurt oth-ers and ourselves.
In true Baby Boomer fash-ion, I want to commend a “step program” to self-worth that comes from Bernard of Clairvaux who lived over nine centuries ago.
1. One begins, Bernard says, by loving oneself for one's own sake.
Some of Bernard’s con-temporaries so emphasized original sin that they totally condemned this kind of self love. Bernard agreed that it is dangerous to remain in this early stage. Those who live in faithful service of their own needs and desires can wreck havoc in relationships and in communities.
However, a child is born into this kind of self love and there is nothing wrong with it. A baby has no choice but to be self-centered. Bernard doesn’t want to break a child of this kind of self-esteem, but to help the child grow to realize that there others are valuable too. This realization that oth-ers matter too may be a baby
step, but is a first step toward a greater love of God.
2. The second level of love is loving God for one’s own sake.
Bernard’s second level of love evolves as one becomes aware that “If I want what is best for me, then I’ll love and serve the one who can do far more for me than I can do for myself.”
Though Bernard’s second level of love is still immature, it is the level of spirituality of many believers. It is why many believe in God. It is why most people join a church. “I want to be loved, so I will love God.” “I want to be saved, so I’ll believe in God.” “I want to be blessed, so I’ll keep God’s commandments.”
Clearly stuck in this second level are those who make the claim that without the threat of hell there would be in in-centive to be a good person. Do you catch the assumption in that sentence? “If it were left completely up to me, what I know to be good is not what I want for me.”
Is that true? Is there no other reason not to cheat on a spouse except not to be caught? Is there no other reason not to steal than the fear of ending up in jail? Is there no other rea-son for serving God than the fear of eternal damnation?
Again, Bernard doesn’t con-demn this level of self-love. He knows that a four year old may love his parents, but the threat of consequences may be what keeps him from violating cer-tain rules. But a parents hopes a child grows into someone who loves the good for the sake of the good. And this brings us to Bernard’s third level of love
3. Bernard’s third level of love is loving God for God’s sake.
Threats of damnation are no longer relevant. One’s life has meaning and value in lov-ing and serving the God who first loved us. It is difficult for us Boomers to understand the ancient mystics who practiced self-denial as a daily discipline, but their prayers for the people
and their heartfelt devotion to daily submission energized the church and resulted in tre-mendous ministries of com-passion in otherwise dark and brutal times.
That’s how it works, this “agape” love of God -it leads to an ability to love another so much that one can put their interests ahead of one’s own. One can even lay down one’s life for a family member like a spouse or a child, or a friend, or a community (or even, if one takes Jesus’ radical vision to be Gospel truth, an en-emy).
Yet, Bernard would say that “agape” is not the highest level of love. There is one higher.
4. The highest level of love is to love yourself for God's sake.
When Jesus said that the greatest love is the willing-ness to lay down one’s life for another, it was not because one’s own life is of no worth. When he gave his own life on the cross, it was not because Jesus counted his life to be of no value. Yes, we are sinners, but, our core identity begins in what God finds salvageable, not in what we find flawed.
Imagine the risen Christ asking of anyone who strug-gles with self worth: “Why consider worthless one for whom I died?” Or, to turn a question into an affirmation: “Don’t deem unworthy what I deemed to be a pearl of great price.”
I began the column by not-ing that to love one’s neighbor as oneself assumes that one loves oneself. Before Jesus ar-ticulated that golden rule, he first said this: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength.” That self-worth we Boomers have been so frantic to find, is found in love of God. To truly love God is to love those God loves…such as the world… such as you.
George Anderson is the se-nior pastor at Second Presbyte-rian Church in Roanoke, Visit them on the web at spres.org
Preacher’s CornerBernard, 4 Levels of Love by George C. Anderson
There were some tears, there were a few laughs, and there were moments when the audience sucked in its collective breath in pride and amazement at what the graduating seniors of the Student United Way program had to say about themselves, their times, their community, and the future last Tuesday night at the Hotel Roanoke.
Having been chosen as pio-neers in a pilot Student United Way program, when they were but wee sophomores three short years ago, the young men and women made their farewell speeches to their parents, United Way staff and board members, teachers, and of course, each other. They spoke of great op-portunities to demonstrate leadership and responsibility and how much they treasured this chance to give, advocate, and volunteer (the United Way motto). A sampling:
On visiting the Turning Point and other United Way-supported programs early in their Student United Way ori-entation:
When we visited the [battered women's shelter], there were some high school students there hiding out from us, because they didn't want to be recognized and it dawned on me that these were real people and everyone knows someone who has been helped by United Way.
“I had no idea that this hap-pened here.”
“It was heartbreaking.”“The closest I ever came to
that before was watching Life-time with my mother.”
“It opened my eyes.” On learning about United
Way:“I learned that United Way
is related to all these different agencies.”
“United Way is so dedicated and it's in it for the people of the Roanoke Valley.”
“I have learned the definition of giving - time and money.”
“United Way helps the com-munity and brings the commu-nity together.”
“It's many agencies coming together for one goal.”
On their time in Student United Way:
“I was flattered, but I had no idea what I was getting into - what a great experience it was going to be.”
“People are so generous here.”“We raised $ 1,700 in our stu-
dent/ faculty volleyball game not bad for the first year!”
“I leaned valuable lessons Ill take with me to college.”
“We met CEOS from big busi-nesses around the Roanoke Val-ley.”
“This big thing has changed the person who I am, changed my fundamental beliefs.”
“I got to collaborate with stu-dents from around the Roanoke
Valley to help people.”“One young man, confined to
a wheelchair as a result of child-hood cancer, said, Even though I can’t do the stand-up Helping Hand (a large white hand cos-tume that people can get inside of to represent United Way), I can give back to the community that gave straight to me when I needed it. I’m very honored and proud to be one of the guinea pigs, and I’m glad this program is continuing next year.”
Jean Glontz, United Way board member, who with Lucy Walton, former board mem-ber, lead the inaugural group, thanked the parents for letting us have them for a short time. We are so proud of them, and you can see why.
By Linda [email protected]
Student United Way's Graduating Seniors Give Farewell Speeches
St. Thomas of Canterbury Anglican Catholic Church
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A few weeks ago, the family and I were return-ing from our trip out West, circling Lynchburg preparing for our landing when I overheard an-other air passenger behind me make a comment to another passenger "why did they do that?" She was referring to Candlers Mountain which constructed a fake ski slope which has become, to this particular resident, an eye sore above the city. No doubt, a neat idea at first, but I am certain that there are those wondering "why the heck did we support this?" Mill Mountain is no different. Rockledge Inn, perhaps a cool idea to many, but if it becomes a fixture on the mountain, there will be those who will have buyer's remorse or those who have been ignoring the topic (or out of the loop altogether) who will say, "who the heck gave approval to put that up there?" (See www.liberty.edu/snowflex)
In reality it is a very similar situation to what we are facing in Roanoke, except that Mill Mountain is public land and Candlers Mountain is private. And being public, our local government is sup-pose to be the voice of the people, but sometimes those governing are hard of hearing since their ears are normally stuffed with "potential" tax dol-lars. When will City Council move the Valley in a forward direction by listening to the majority of the people and stop toying with this idea of devel-oping Mill Mountain? Did we not learn anything
from the Taubman Museum project? Another great idea, funded significantly by the city (free land and 4 million dollars), lots of hype and initial excitement, but now, hurting from the so-called poor economy and basic lack of interest. It's a shame.
Watch or read all the recent stories about the very tough times faced by the "Taubman Muse-um" with "Rockledge Inn." It will be no different.
As for me, an athlete and recreational advocate (not an environmentalist, but "commonsensal-ist"), I am for protecting Mill Mountain from ridiculous development because there is no iden-tifiable benefit to the majority of citizens in Roa-noke City to build a restaurant masked as a "com-munity center."
If I want to ski, I will fly to Colorado or hop in my car to where snow actually exists. If I need a place to eat, Roanoke is ranked as having the most restaurants per capita of any city in the country. Clearly, there are plenty of eating establishments to satisfy any craving.
Roanoke is on the map because of destinations like Mill Mountain, for its minimized develop-ment and beauty - not for having another place to stuff one’s face.
- Ron Glowczynski, Roanoke
Commentary: Take a Lesson from Lynchburg on Mill Mountain
Traditionally, Congress is expected to agree on a budget for the upcoming fiscal year by April 15th. It is this budget process at the beginning of each year where the decision is made regarding total federal spending for the year. It is the budget that sets the stage for how fiscally responsible govern-ment spending will be. Since the passage of the Budget Act of 1974, the House of Representatives has never failed to pass an initial budget to set the spending priorities for the following fiscal year. However, we are now a month past the deadline and Speaker Pelosi and the Democratic Leader-ship are showing no signs of complying with the law and coming forward with a budget for fiscal year 2011.
Families and small businesses all across our na-tion understand what it means to make tough de-cisions each day about what they can and cannot afford. They understand the importance of creat-ing and living by a budget. Unfortunately, instead of making the tough choices necessary to reduce spending, the Majority in Congress has decided to forgo a budget altogether. Just four years ago the same leaders who are now shirking their re-sponsibility and choosing to move forward with-out a budget were very clear on how important the budget process is to the operation of the fed-eral government. In 2006, Con-gressman Steny Hoyer, who is now the House Majority Leader, was quoted as saying enacting a budget was “the most basic re-sponsibility of governing” and Congressman John Spratt, who is now the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, said “if you can’t budget, you can’t govern.”
Without the passage of a fed-eral budget the reckless spending that has run rampant in Congress
will only continue. We have already seen the pas-sage, without my support, of the so-called “eco-nomic stimulus” legislation which was supposed to put Americans back to work. Not only did the stimulus legislation fail to create jobs but it is now estimated to be costing American taxpayers over $1 trillion including interest.
Not only should Congress produce a budget but, I am a strong supporter of several measures that promote the establishment of a balanced bud-get and the elimination of wasteful government programs, including a Constitutional amend-ment that I introduced which requires the federal government to balance its budget. Congress must steadfastly hold the line on government spend-ing which is why I have consistently voted for the tightest budgets offered each year.
As elected officials and stewards of the tax-payer’s money, we have a responsibility to put to-gether a sustainable budget and stick to it. The Congress must continue to work to rein in spend-ing and put to practice a spending approach that many Americans already live by: if you don’t have it, don’t spend it.
- Bob GoodlatteTo contact me go to: www.goodlatte.house.gov.
Commentary: Congress Needs a Budget
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The first of what could be sev-eral “Batteries Plus” franchise stores in Roanoke has opened at 4801F Valley View Blvd., next to Starbucks and in front of Super Wal-Mart. A store centered just around batteries of all types? “Why not?” says district man-ager Ken Burket, who came up from Nashville to help oversee the franchise opening last week. Another store opened in Lynch-burg a few weeks ago.
After all, as a press release notes, batteries are now a 24 bil-lion dollar a year business in the U.S., and with all the electronic gear people use nowadays, hav-ing quick access to replacement batteries is a must for many. The Wisconsin-based chain has some 400 outlets around the country and has been recog-nized by Inc. Magazine as the nation’s fastest growing special-ty retailer.
Batteries Plus (open 7 days a week in Roanoke) can also rebuild battery packs at its in-store tech centers. “We can put new cells in and it’s good as new,” said Burket, who used to work at corporate headquarters before moving south. Batteries Plus also carries a complete line of specialty light bulbs, many of the compact fluorescent style that can save users “hundreds of dollars,” according to Burket.
About 4000 batteries and 1000 light bulbs are in stock lo-cally. Batteries Plus tries to take in as many old units as it can for recycling purposes, since many of the materials can be reused. “We are all very conscious of being green,” said Burket.
As for the size of the industry, Burket said many don’t realize how big it is. “The proliferation of different types of batteries is phenomenal,” said Burket. “New ones are being released almost daily… you never think about [batteries] until it doesn’t power your device any more. Then you search and search for the replacement battery. We’d like to have them come here first and save them all the trouble of looking around.”
Burket is scouting out sev-eral other venues in Roanoke for expansion and calls the Valley View Mall site (phone 265-5788) “a fantastic location.” Even on the first day “traffic was promising,” he noted.
From tiny batteries for hear-ing aids to heavy duty ones for semi trucks, Batteries Plus aims to provide one stop shop shop-ping for those that need batter-ies, chargers and specialty bulbs. “No matter what battery you need,” vows Burket, “most likely we’ll have it.”
“Batteries Plus” Grows Niche Business
District Manager Ken Burket in the new Valley View store.
CAMTS Accreditation includes critical care ground transportation and Life-Guard emergen-cy helicopters
Carilion Clinic Patient Transportation (CCPT) has been granted accreditation from the Com-mission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Systems (CAMTS). The accreditation is based on an extensive site survey and valid for three years. CCPT has been accredited by CAMTS since 2004. CAMTS accreditation represents the high-est levels of quality, treatment, safety, leadership, and education standards in the industry.
"We are proud to announce Carilion Clinic Pa-tient Transportation's accreditation," said CAMTS Executive Director Eileen Frazer. "CCPT provides highly skilled ground and flight nurse / paramedic
/ EMT teams to care for adult, pediatric and neo-natal patients."
"While accreditation is not required, we volun-tarily engage in the rigorous CAMTS review pro-cess to maintain our focus on constant improve-ment, and to assure the public that we provide the highest level of quality care and safety," said CCPT Senior Director Paul Davenport.
CCPT provides basic and advanced life support ambulance service, 911 response, ground critical care and air medical service with bases through-out Southwestern Virginia. All services are coor-dinated through a communications center based in Roanoke. CCPT provides service throughout Virginia, and into portions of West Virginia, North Carolina and Tennessee.
Carilion Clinic Patient Transportation Receives National Accreditation
HomeTown Bankshares Cor-poration, the holding company of HomeTown Bank, reported increased earnings for the first quarter ended March 31, 2010. Earnings for the first quarter of 2010 were $255 thousand compared to a profit of $194 thousand for the first quarter of 2009.
After a $77,000 gain on sale of other real estate in 2010 and a $160,000 securities gain in 2009, income from operations totaled $178,000 in 2010 com-pared to $34,000 in 2009. Net income available to common shareholders for the first quar-ter of 2010 was $105,000 after preferred dividends of $150,000 vs. $34,000 in 2009. Preferred dividends were payable on the Company’s $10 million pre-
ferred equity issued via the Capital Purchase Program dur-ing the third quarter of 2009. After preferred dividends, earn-ings per share available to com-mon shareholders were $0.04 per share in 2010 compared to $0.07 per share for the first quarter of 2009.
Earnings performance in 2010 was enhanced by a 50% increase in net interest income to $2.5 million, $817,000 higher than the same period of 2009. In addition, the Bank’s net in-terest margin has increased each quarter since the first quarter of 2009 from 2.90% to 3.13% for the first quarter of 2010. Continued loan growth, higher yielding investments and consistent repricing of deposit liabilities, in line with current
and historically low levels of interest rates, contributed to the improved margins.
Non-interest income contin-ued to be an important con-tributor to the Company’s year-to-date financial performance for 2010. A sizable increase in the number of transaction ac-counts and revenues associated with these accounts resulted in a 37% increase in service charge income. The Bank also realized a $77,000 gain from the sale of other real estate owned. Income from residential mortgages thus far in 2010 was down from 2009 due to a sluggish mortgage mar-ket during the first quarter.
“We are very pleased with the consistent increase in earnings that we continued to realize in the first quarter of 2010, “said Susan K. Still, President and CEO. “Our focus throughout 2010 will be to grow earnings by continuing to increase our yield on earning assets and effectively controlling funding costs.”
HomeTown Bankshares Reports First Quarter Earnings Increase
Joshua Smith, Executive Chef of Local Roots, has been personally chosen by P. Allen Smith to cook for his Garden Home Dinner at Moss Mountain Farm in Arkansas during the month of July.
Local Roots Chef Gets Nod
“Be prepared" is a motto for more groups than just the Boy Scouts. Leaders from busi-nesses, schools, hospitals, and nonprofit groups throughout the Roanoke Valley came to the Jefferson Center Monday to learn more about how they would continue to operate after a disaster. Members of the Vir-ginia Department of Emergen-cy Management were present to discuss the importance of devel-oping a continuity of operations (COOP) plan.
Brian Baker, with Beck Di-saster Recovery, a contractor with VDEM, advised the guests to build on their existing plans. He remarked, “It’s hard to start with a blank piece of paper” and said many businesses did some kind of planning in advance of the H1N1 flu, so they could just build on that.
Other speakers emphasized that every employee should be involved to some extent in the process of developing a COOP plan, because the definition of an essential service differs from de-partment to department within each business. They urged em-ployees to rehearse the plan, like a home fire drill, so it becomes second nature. The goal is that when a disaster does occur, re-action will be automatic.
Donna Pletch, with the Vir-ginia Department of Emergen-cy Services, has had experience having to work from a remote location. "There have been times when I was working in downtown (Richmond before VDEM) that … they [emer-
gency personnel] evacuated the whole building and they didn't let people in for three days be-cause they thought someone had tampered with the HVAC system."
She spoke of carrying a "Go Kit" in front of her laptop bag. It contains the COOP plan and other essential information to operate the business. These include "formatted computer discs -- normally you don't need to format them nowadays -- but flash drives, cell phones, char-gers and things like that, just basics that you might need."
She recommends that more than one person in the business have a copy of the Go Kit with them in case someone is out of town. The larger the agency, the more varied the needs. "What some people need in parts of VDEM are going to be different than what I would need. Those in the Emergency Operations Center [personnel] are going to have different things maybe in their Go Kit than what I would need. I would need our COOP
plan; they might need contacts for people on other state agen-cies that support the EOC. So it's whatever your critical func-tions are within that agency or essential functions and what you might need to carry those out."
She says you may want to confer with “similar sized com-panies and draft a Memoran-dum of Understanding.” For instance, if something happens, can you share space for awhile?
She says it's also very im-portant to have relationships with local fire and police de-partments. "I can't stress that enough because then they know what you've got. If you've got hazardous materials in your fa-cility, the fire department should know that." They could use your building for training and get to learn the layout as well as the people who work there. All that could save precious time in the event of a disaster.
Be Ready In Case Disaster Strikes
By Beverly [email protected]
A panel of experts fields questions at last Monday’s seminar.
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arts & cultureNewsRoanoke.com 5/21/10 - 5/27/10 |The Roanoke Star-Sentinel |Page 11
The Roanoke Symphony Orchestra with David Stewart Wiley, Music Director, has an-nounced its 2010-2011 Picnic at the Pops concert series. The RSO's Pops series includes three concerts during the 2010-2011 season, offering a choice of ta-ble seating or stadium seating, presented at the Salem Civic Center. Concert goers enjoy a unique experience with com-binations of full symphony or-chestra, choruses, and pops solo artists, in a casual atmosphere that begins well before the mu-sic begins.
This year's Pops series will open with Blake Shelton on October 29, 2010, and con-tinues with the RSO's popular and traditional Holiday Pops Spectacular on December 10, 2010. Internationally acclaimed singer and Roanoke native, Jane Powell, along with the Roanoke Symphony Chorus and Roa-noke College Children's Choir join the RSO on stage for Holi-day Pops. Rounding out the series is star singer, songwriter and guitarist Boz Scaggs in con-cert with the RSO on April 8, 2011. The series is sponsored by A Friend of the RSO.
The series begins with coun-try star Blake Shelton perform-ing songs from his chart top-ping albums. Shelton put his mark on the country music
scene in 2001 when his first sin-gle "Austin," became a five-week #1 single. Each of his first three albums went gold and each pro-duced a chart topping single - "Austin" from his self titled first album; "The Baby" from The
Dreamer, and "Some Beach" from Barn and Grill. His fourth album, Pure BS, also went gold and produced a back to back #1 single "Home." In 2008 Starting Fires produced "She Wouldn't Be Gone," another #1 single that solidified Blake's reputation as a vocalist. Shelton's live shows
are renowned as some of popu-lar music's most enjoyable. His latest CD, Hillbilly Bone, was released on March 2, 2010 and is receiving rave reviews.
Following the series opener by Blake Shelton is the RSO's Holiday Pops Spectacular in December. The concert will fea-ture internationally acclaimed singer Jane Powell.
A native of Roanoke, Pow-ell comes home and goes on stage with the RSO & Chorus at the Salem Civic Center with maestro David Stewart Wi-ley conducting. Powell began her career in Roanoke and has since demonstrated her five-octave-plus range to audiences throughout the United States, Canada and the Caribbean. Her musical flexibility of R&B, Jazz, Reggae and Gospel, along with her playful personality and humor has captivated audience members for decades.
Powell has worked with such acts as Lou Rawls, The Crusad-ers, Joan Jett, Melba Moore, and Ray Charles among many oth-ers. In reference to opening for Ray Charles, The Washington Post said, "she stole the night from a legend." Powell creates powerful music by singing from the heart and uplifts the spirits of any audience.
To conclude the Pops series, the RSO and singer songwriter and guitarist Boz Scaggs will perform in concert together on April 8, 2011. Scaggs began his career as the lead singer for the Steve Miller Band.
In the 1970's Scaggs broke out on his own and gained fame with several top 20 hits along with a #2 album in Silk Degrees. Silk Degrees sold over 4 mil-lion copies and brought Scaggs a Grammy award for best R&B song in "Lowdown."Scaggs' wide range of musicianship lead him to release over 15 albums including blues albums such as Come on Home, and jazz albums such as But Beautiful, which debuted as #1 on the jazz charts.
His latest CD, Speak Low, is a collection of jazz covers, such as Duke Ellington's, "Do Nothing Til' You Hear From Me." Scaggs continues to sell out tour dates across the nation and his wide range of music keeps audiences pleased.
Current RSO Pops series subscribers may renew their
subscriptions now for the 2010-2011 Pops series. Beginning July 1, 2010, subscriptions for the Pops series will go on sale to the general public. Single event tickets will go on sale August 30, 2010, and will range from $20- $80 each.
For more information about RSO concerts and events in the current season, visit www.rso.com or call the RSO box office at (540) 343-9127.
Stars of Symphony Series
Blake Shelton
Boz Scaggs
Jane Powell
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Composer and lyricist Dana “Grace” Frank-lin Pannell couldn’t recall exactly how many Christian-themed productions she has put to-gether over the years. “Ten to twenty” was her estimate last Saturday, when the Roanoker staged “The Mary Project” as a benefit at Pilgrim Baptist Church in northwest Roanoke, aiding the parents of a 16 year old boy who died recently from com-plications of sickle cell anemia.
The late JoAnthony Page was a student at Wil-liam Fleming High School; his father Tommy preaches at his own church in Salem (Acting Faith Ministries in Salem), while his mother Nicole is an evangelist. Nicole and Grace Pannell did all of the singing and acting during the 12 vignettes of The Mary Project last Saturday, with proceeds going to help defray the burial expenses for JoAnthony.
“Since birth he had issues [with sickle cell ane-mia] but he never once complained,” said Page about her son. “He always had joy [and] was truly my inspiration.” JoAnthony lost all his toes to the disease and almost passed away in 2006. “We ex-pected him to come back again but God had a different plan for him.” Sickle cell anemia, which is prevalent in the African American community, attacks red blood cells and robs the body of oxy-gen. “We’re just moving forward,” said Page in the aftermath of their son’s death.
Pannell wrote music, centered on the Virgin Mary and Mary Magdalene, as they encounter Christ before, during and after his crucifixion. Two backup singers and a four-piece ensemble back up the two lead singers/actors. Pannell never studied music in school, and to complicate mat-ters, she can’t hear herself sing. She is grateful when she says, “I truly know that it was a gift.” The Mary Project is now headed on the road, includ-ing a date on an Air Force base in Georgia.
On May 29, a benefit concert at William Flem-ing High School will raise money for sickle cell
anemia research. Featured will be a student group called the Dorky Boys that JoAnthony used to play with. Page calls them “smart kids that have found a way to be smart and make it okay.” JoAn-thony played bass for the group.
One of Grace Pannell’s ten brothers introduced her last Saturday as “the author and producer extraordinaire of our family.” The Mary Project featured music with a pop sensibility, tinged with some soul, reverence and even humor in parts.
As for teaming up with Pannell again on The Mary Project (they’ve collaborated before), Page called it “phenomenal.” Pannell asked her if she needed help financially; it took awhile but Page admitted JoAnthony’s funeral expenses were an issue.
Pannell decided then that donations received for her “1 Above Productions” play would go to the Pages. “It was heartfelt and it was genuine, and I love her for it,” said Page.
Pannell has also put together a soundtrack CD and a DVD of The Mary Project; call 330-3709 for more information.
The “Mary Project” Aids Family of William Fleming Student
By Gene [email protected]
Mary” Nicole Page (left) and Grace Pannell in “The Mary Project” at Pilgrim Baptist Church.
Three members of the Red Stick Ramblers from Lafayette, Louisiana, will kick off the 2010 concert season Friday, May 28th at the Blue Ridge Music Center (milepost 213 on the Blue Ridge Parkway). The Music Center has evening concerts weekly through mid September in the outdoor amphitheater at the foot of beautiful Fisher Peak (only 10 miles from Galax).
The Redstick Ramblers will bring their jazz tinged, spicy blend of Cajun music from the deep South to Galax for the first time. In addition to Cajun tunes, the band will offer a mix of old-time, honky-tonk, swing and blues tunes billed to "captivate dancers and listeners alike."
The Red Sticks new album, “My Suitcase is Always Packed” is their fifth album and second for Sugar Hill Records. It fea-tures traditional and original tunes and songs that are accord-ing to one reviewer "structurally daring and lyrically evocative, while still resounding proudly with the echoes of the tradi-tions that inspired them . . . Ca-jun music developed along the same timeline as local old-time and bluegrass traditions and has many of the same musical influ-ences."
Opening band for the show will be Back-Step - traditional, Round Peak-style string band from Mount Airy, N.C.
Advance tickets and info are available online at www.blueridgemusiccenter.org or by calling the Blue Ridge Mu-sic Center at (276) 236-5309. Tickets will also be available at the gate. Admission: $15. Chil-
dren 12 and under are admit-ted free. Concert: 7pm. Seating begins at 5:30 p.m. the day of the show. No pets or alcohol. Picnic food is permitted. Lawn-chairs, blankets, and flashlights recommended. Concessions are available. The Blue Ridge Music Center is operated jointly by the nonprofit National Council for the Traditional Arts and the National
Park Service. Admission to the Music Center and gift store is free.
Blue Ridge Music Center 2010 Concert Season
May 28 (Fri) - Red Stick Ramblers / Backstep $15
June 5 - Ginny Hawker & Tracy Schwarz / Benton Flippen Band $10
June 12 - Appalachian Song-sters: Nat Reese, Melissa Mck-inney, Tina Liza Jones/ Mac Snow and the Round Peak Ramblers. $15
June 18 (Fri) - Hot Pickers Guitar Concert: Wayne Hen-derson & friends $10
June 26 - Gandydancer / New Ballards Branch Bogtrot-ters $10
July 3 - Holiday Concert: Crooked Road Ramblers / The Wolfe Brothers $5
July 10 - Claire Lynch Band / The Barr Family $15
July 17 - Clack Mountain / Zephyr Lightening Bolts $10
July 24 - Larnell Starkey & The Spiritual Seven / Pathway Bluegrass Band $15
July 31 - Kruger Brothers / John Lilly & the Cheating Hearts $15
Aug 8 (Sun) - Tony Rice Unit / Rich In Tradition $20
Aug 14 - No Concert (Enjoy the 75th Annual Galax Fiddlers Convention)
Aug 21 - Piano Concert: Daryl Davis, Gary Patton & guests $15
Aug 28 - Paul Williams & The Victory Trio / Carl Jones & Beverly Smith $15
Sept 4 - Family Traditions Concert: The Sheets Fam-ily Band / Dale Jett & Hello Stranger $10
September 10,11,12 - Blue Ridge Parkway 75th Anniver-sary Weekend performances at BRMC.
For more information go to:blueridgemusiccenter.org
Blue Ridge Music Center Kicks Off Concert Season
RSR’s Linzay Young.
Virginia’s Roanoke Valley Branch of the National League of American Pen Women, winner of the 2009 Perry Kendig Award, has announced its 10th Annual Poetry Competition.
This year the organization is celebrating Women in the Arts and all poems should address this as the theme of the work.
Rene Parks Lanier, Jr., Professor of English emer-itus at Radford University, will judge the poems. Professor Lanier served for many years as Poet-in-the-Schools at numerous Virginia counties and has been published in many small press and academic magazines. He also served five years as president of the Appalachian Writers' Association.
Proceeds from the Poetry Competition fund an annual scholarship, given to adult women who have returned to school.
Postmark deadline for entries is July 30, 2010. Cost per poem is $5.00. Make checks payable to Roanoke Valley Branch, NLAPW. Mail entries to: Co-Chairman, Peggy Shifflett, 700 Cherrywood Road, Salem, VA 24153.
Prizes are $100, $75, $50 and Honorable Mention $5. Rules are available at http://roanokepenwomen.blogspot.com. Entries which do not adhere to the rules will not be considered.
10th Annual Poetry Competition Offers $100 First Prize
Page 12 | The Roanoke Star-Sentinel | 5/21/10 - 5/27/10 NewsRoanoke.com
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Front row (left to right): Jennie Tully, Lisa Haemmerlin, Dorothy Zackmann, Marion Hody Back row (left to right): Margaret Ann Hoag, Dale Hahn, Ruth DeVerter, Winnie Bloom.
The Athenian Society for the Arts and Sciences recently cel-ebrated the 30th anniversary of their founding. The organization has contributed countless vol-unteer hours and thousands of dollars to art and science organi-zations in Roanoke throughout the years. To join or get more information contact Center in the Square.
Salem’s Spartan Field was the setting last Friday for the 14th Annual “Tug For Tots” fundraiser for C.H.I.P (The Child Health Investment Partnership). The event set records for donations and participation. A total of 30 teams signed up, donating $1000 each to face off in a good old-fashioned Tug of War competition. Winning the heavyweight division was Accellent, with the Roanoke City Sheriff’s Office taking the lightweight title and Allstate capturing the feather-weight crown. The fun continued as the event concluded with a “Pig Drop,” featuring 100 pink stuffed pigs being dropped out of a helicopter onto the field. This, too, contributed funds for C.H.I.P., which provides free health care for children in the Roanoke Valley who do not have health insurance.
Athenians Anniversary Big Tug For Tots
The Grandin Village Busi-ness Association and the Greater Raleigh Court Civic League are co-sponsoring the sixth Annual Grandin Village Block Party, Sunday May 23rd from 2-5 p.m.
Grandin Road will be closed to traffic between Memorial Avenue and Westover Avenue to allow for the street fair. This annual gathering provides an opportunity for neighbors to
meet and enjoy free family fun, music and activities.
Please join in for an after-noon filled with food and friends. Events include live entertainment, children’s ac-tivities, and the annual favor-ite – hot dogs and dessert! The Block Party is free and every-one’s invited.
This annual event is part of Roanoke City’s Neighborhood Month, a celebration of unity
and neighborhood pride. During the month of May, neighborhood groups sponsor events to come together as one community and celebrate our neighborhoods.
For more information go
to: www.grandinvillage.org or contact Susan Stump at (540) 777-1790 or Kelly List at 540-467-1047
Grandin Village Block Party
