SEPTEMBER 2, 2010 ISSUE
News Watch
A Quick Look at News Across the Region
Samaritan’s Purse Staff Worker Released in Sudan
International aid worker Flavia Wagner was released August 30 after being held hostage for 105 days in Sudan. The 35-year-old employee of international relief organization Samaritan’s Purse, based in Boone, is exhausted but in good health and currently in Nyala, according to a press release.
Initially, two Samaritan’s Purse employees and a Sudanese driver were abducted at approximately 5:30 p.m. on May 18 in Sudan. The three hostages were part of a 10-person team doing educational assessments in local communities in the region. The two-vehicle convoy was stopped by eight armed men 15 miles southwest of Nyala in Sudan’s Darfur region.
The two Sudanese men were released unharmed and without explanation on May 25 in Thur, Darfur.
During her captivity, Wagner was allowed to contact her family and Samaritan’s Purse staff numerous times. During the process, Samaritan’s Purse worked with U.S. and Sudanese government officials to secure her release.
Samaritan's Purse has 548 national and expat staff in Sudan. The nonprofit organization provides immediate response to the physical and spiritual needs of individuals in crisis situations.
Avery County Habitat For Humanity Dedicates New Home
On August 29, the Avery County Habitat for Humanity dedicated a new home fo Chasidie Hudson and her children Dakota and Sienna in the Milford Meadows subdivision in Elk Park.
Hudson performed “sweat equity;” attended classes in consumer credit counseling, household budgeting, neighborhood relations and homeowner maintenance; and made advance payments on her closing costs. This is all so she could take on the obligation of a 20-year, no-interest mortgage.
Habitat operates through the help of many churches, work groups, friends and the Avery County community. If you know someone in need of decent and affordable housing or would like to volunteer for Habitat for Humanity, call the office at 828-733-1909.
North Carolina Awarded Up to $400M in Federal Race to the Top Funding
According to a press release from N.C. Rep. Cullie Tarleton, North Carolina officials have learned that the state won up to $400 million through the federal Race to the Top program.
North Carolina is one of just 11 states that have received grants through the competitive program so far. The money will be used to finance the Governor’s Career and College: Ready, Set, Go! program, with half of it going directly to the state’s 115 school systems.
The Ready, Set, Go! program has three main goals: 1. Increase the number of students who can read, write and do math at the end of third grade. 2. Increase the number of students who perform at or above grade level. 3. Increase the number of students taking college credit courses while in high school; graduating from high school; going to college; and completing a degree from community colleges, colleges and universities.
Among the initiatives to be funded through the Race to the Top funding are updating the state’s Standard Course of Study and school accountability system to reflect internationally benchmarked standards and assessments that prepare students for success in college and the workplace; establishing and increasing the use of robust data systems that measure student success and inform teachers, principals and policymakers about how to improve services for students; increasing teacher and principal effectiveness; and turning around the lowest-achieving schools.
The grant will pay to increase the size of North Carolina’s Teach for America program from 367 to 550 teachers, expand the number of low-performing students who have access to high-quality teachers online by 500 and provide a “boot camp” for lateral entry and out-of-state teachers hired at low-performing schools, the release said.
According to Tarleton’s release, North Carolina also recently received an unexpected $300 million from the federal government to help keep teachers in classrooms. Some of this money will be spent this year to rehire teachers who were laid off, but much of the money will be used to augment education spending in the next fiscal year.
Beech Mountain, West Jefferson Receive Clean Water Grants
The N.C. Rural Economic Development Center recently awarded 67 grants totaling $5.2 million to create jobs and address clean water needs throughout North Carolina. The grants will assist communities in 46 rural counties and create 375 jobs.
The center's board of directors approved the grants August 25. The grants were made possible by appropriations of the N.C. General Assembly.
In the High Country, the towns of Beech Mountain and West Jefferson received Clean Water Grants, which are awarded to assist water and sewer projects that address infrastructure related to public and environmental health.
The Town of Beech Mountain received a $40,000 grant to develop a water and sewer capital improvement plan. The Town of West Jefferson received $40,000 for a video inspection and evaluation of the sewer system.
The N.C. Rural Economic Development Center is a private, nonprofit organization whose mission is to develop sound economic strategies that improve the quality of life in rural North Carolina, with a special focus on individuals with low to moderate incomes and communities with limited resources.
For more information about the Rural Center, click to www.ncruralcenter.org.
Valle Crucis School Media Center Awarded State Grant
Valle Crucis School has been awarded a $10,000 School Library Collection Development Grant by the State Library of North Carolina, a division of the Department of Cultural resources. The grant was awarded to help strengthen the school’s book collection in the media center.
The School Library Collection Development Grant for Valle Crucis School was one of 76 such grants awarded this year to public school libraries statewide with federal Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) funds, but Valle Crucis was the only school in Watauga County to receive the grant. LSTA funds are made possible by a grant from the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services.
The single-year grants are only for purchasing books and cannot be used to replace existing funding for the media center. The grants also require that every $4 of grant funds must be matched with at least $1 of local funds. At Valle Crucis, the local grant match was funded through the Parent Teachers Students Association.
“This school grant helps us build a strong book collection to support the school’s curriculum,” said Valle Crucis Media Specialist Wendy Nicholson in a press release. “It is a constant struggle to maintain a collection that is current and meets our staff and student needs. We are thankful for the grant and we send out a big thank you to our PTSA for helping make it possible.”
Valle Crucis School serves students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade and has a current enrollment of 387 students.
Democrats Host Grand Opening of Headquarters on Labor Day
The Watauga County Democratic Party will host an open house and hotdog cookout at the grand opening of its headquarters at 770 West King Street in downtown Boone on Labor Day, Monday, September 6, from noon to 3:00 p.m.
Billy Kennedy, candidate for Congress in North Carolina’s 5th District, will be on hand to greet visitors, as will many of the Democrats running for local county offices.
Visitors may enjoy free hotdogs and other snacks, pick up campaign materials and yard signs and volunteer for many local activities. For more information, call 828-264-4707.
Burr Continues to Lead Among Unaffiliated Voters in NC
Unaffiliated voters in North Carolina continue to lean toward incumbent Republican U.S. Sen. Richard Burr by a 39 percent to 32 percent margin against Democratic opponent Secretary of State Elaine Marshall, according to a new National Research Inc. poll released by the Civitas Institute.
According to the live caller poll of 400 unaffiliated likely voters, 39 percent said they would vote for Burr if the election for U.S. Senate were held today. Thirty-two percent said they would vote for Marshall, and 7 percent said they would vote for Libertarian candidate Michael Beitler. Twenty-one percent of voters said they are undecided.
Among voters who said they are most likely to vote in 2010, Burr’s lead increases to 44 percent over Marshall’s 29 percent.
“Unaffiliated voters across the state who, in the 2008 election cycle, voted for President Obama and Senator Hagan are now increasingly leaning toward Republican candidates,” said Civitas Institute Senior Legislative Analyst Chris Hayes in a press release.
“Although Marshall has served in North Carolina political office for several years, voters still appear unsure of who she is,” added Hayes. “There is still time for both candidates to increase their name identification among undecided unaffiliated voters, but Marshall’s lack of resources puts her at a serious disadvantage.”
For more information on Civitas polling, click to www.nccivitas.org/media/poll-results.
Boone Police Officer Medals in Can-Am Games
Boone Police Lt. Andy Le Beau traveled to Dublin, Ohio, in August to compete in the 2010 Can-Am Police & Fire Games. The games are held at a different location every two years, with hundreds of police officers and firefighters from across Canada and the United States competing against each other in events ranging from golf to ice hockey.
Le Beau, who has been with the Town of Boone Police Department since 2002, competed in four bicycling events, including a time trial, criterium, sprint competition and road race. Le Beau won medals in three of the four races. He placed third in the 10-mile time trial, completing the course in 23:24. He also placed third in the criterium. His best result was a gold medal in the sprint competition, finishing first in the 500-meter sprints.
Red Cross Warns Beachgoers About Hurricane Earl
The chain of Atlantic storms has been causing powerful rip currents all along the East Coast. With the Labor Day holiday weekend only a few days away, the American Red Cross advises anyone visiting eastern shore points to swim only on lifeguard-protected beaches, within the designated swimming areas.
If caught in a rip current, remember the following:
• Remain calm to conserve energy and think clearly.
• Never fight against the current.
• Swim out of the current in a direction following the shoreline. When out of the current, swim at an angle—away from the current—towards shore.
• If unable to swim out of the rip current, float or calmly tread water. When out of the current, swim towards shore.
• If unable to reach shore, yell for help and draw attention to yourself.
• Stay at least 100 feet away from piers and jetties. Permanent rip currents often exist near these structures.
Hurricane preparedness tips and ways to help people affected by the storm are available at www.redcross.org.
August Second Warmest in Grandfather Mountain’s Recorded History
Warm temperatures recorded at the official U.S. Weather Service reporting station located next to Grandfather Mountain’s Mile High Swinging Bridge make this August the second warmest in the attraction's history. This follows the mountain's warmest June and July already entered into the record books this year.
The average high temperature of 72.71 degrees was 4.23 degrees warmer than normal for August, and the average low temperature of 59.48 degrees was 3.28 degrees above normal for this time of year. August 2007 still stands as the warmest August ever at Grandfather Mountain.
Daily high temperature records were broken three times during the month and tied three times.
The rainfall total for the month was up and is still up for the year. The rainfall total of 9.47 inches was 3.62 inches (62 percent) above the 55-year average rainfall total for August of 5.85 inches. Rain for the year-to-date totals 49.6 inches, which is 6.13 inches (14 percent) above the 55-year norm of 43.47 inches.
An old mountain tradition states that the number of foggy mornings in August tells how many snowstorms to expect in the coming winter. Fourteen foggy mornings were recorded at Grandfather Mountain, so according to the folklore, a total of 14 snowstorms can be expected. Last winter's brutal weather was preceded by 17 recorded August fogs in 2009.
There was one wind gust over 60 mph recorded during August at Grandfather Mountain—64 mph on August 6.
For more information on the 55 years of weather data from Grandfather Mountain, see the interactive weather database at www.grandfather.com.
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