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Eighty percent of students engaged with Roanoke’s West End Center graduate high school, despite being eco-nomically disadvantaged and at greater risk of academic fail-ure, thanks to programs that foster academic success. That statistic, which is significantly higher than the city-wide rate, was one of the reasons Foun-dation for Roanoke Valley recently awarded two grants totaling $20,000 from its Un-restricted Funds to West End Center for its Reading Ad-venture Program. The Cen-ter’s program, which works in partnership with Apple Ridge Farm, is designed to improve literacy skills among Roanoke’s at-risk youth.

According to Joy Parrish, West End Center’s Executive Director, results from the read-ing program show that 94 per-cent of students have increased their reading levels by one grade level or more, 11 percent have increased their reading levels by two grade levels, and 80 percent of students have demonstrated an enjoyment for reading by spontaneously

choosing a book to read with-out prompting.

“Spontaneously choosing a book at the appropriate level is indicative of an enjoyment of reading. That enjoyment can unlock the entire world for a child,” says Parrish.

“The Foundation was im-pressed with the results of this program, and we wanted to help insure that many more youth would be able to ben-efit from it in the years ahead,” notes Alan Ronk, Executive

Carilion Clinic has intro-duced a new treatment for pa-tients who experience cardiac arrest and are resuscitated. The treatment involves using spe-cial equipment and procedures to cool the patient’s body, also known as hypothermia therapy. During cardiac arrest, the brain and organs compete for the di-minishing supply of oxygen, often leading to brain damage in patients who survive. Hy-pothermia therapy cools the body, which slows metabolism and reduces the brain’s need for oxygen, giving rescue workers and doctors more time to treat the cardiac arrest and prevent or reduce brain damage.

Carilion Clinic has selected a cooling process manufactured by Arctic Sun Inc. The technol-ogy uses gel pads to carefully lower a patient’s body temperature to 33 degrees Celsius (91.4 degrees Fahr-enheit). The Arctic Sun pads are designed to allow hospital per-sonnel to perform all necessary tests and procedures, including

X-ray and MRI, without inter-rupting the cooling process. After the patient’s condition has been stabilized and cooled for 24 hours, the same Arctic

Sun system is used to warm the patient slowly to normal body temperature.

“I’ve personally been in-volved in launching hypo-thermia therapy at two other institutions using the Arctic Sun technology and can attest

to the tremendous outcomes this treatment can provide,” ex-plains John Burton, M.D., chair of emergency medicine at Car-ilion Clinic. “This process is less time and labor intensive than other cooling methods and we’re eager to start using the technology to improve patient outcomes.”

“Launching this new therapy

Technicians practice applying super cooled compresses to a training dummy.

ID3 Racers Sweep Through RoanokeNew Council Member Hits The Ground Running

Two new council mem-bers took the dais last Tuesday. Councilman Ray Ferris felt his way through with little to say, while Councilman Bill Bestpitch trended heavily in the opposite direction.

In adopting council’s organi-zational meeting schedule for the upcoming year, Bestpitch interjected saying, “This [coun-cil chambers] is much better for conducting the business of the c o u n c i l than room 159.” Best-p i t c h noted that there was ample citizen seating in council chambers compared to the cramped EOC room. Work sessions are held in room 159, or EOC, located in the base-ment. “It was much less disrup-tive in this room if people want to come and go for the various briefings,” he said. He was not suggesting that they be televised.

Vice-Mayor Dave Trinkle

[Council Notes]

Councilmen Bill Bestpitch (L) and Ray Ferris (R) share a moment during last Monday’s City Council Meeting.

Non-profits Send Kids on a Reading Adventure

[Medicine]

> CONTINUEDP2: Council

Carilion Introduces Hypothermia Therapy to Southwest Virginia

Frankie Robbins tutors Tashaun Dixon at the WEC.

Hoppin’Market

P4– Downtown Roanoke Incorporated’s “City Market Saturdays,” presents a variety of new weekend happenings.

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P7– The summer swim meet season heats up as Ashley Plantation and Spring Run visit Castle Rock.

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P4 – Confessed “Berry-holic” Mary Jo Shannon admits that she gets a little crazy when it comes to pursuing her favorite sum-mer quarry.

> CONTINUEDP2: Hypothermia

> CONTINUEDP3: Non-profits

Photo by Steve Curtiss

The Independence Day Three - “ID3” - bike races put on another great show for Roanokers last weekend with two races on Sunday and Monday that sent racers careening through downtown streets as well as a Mill Mountain time trial on Saturday that put even the best climbers through some serious paces. (See Coverage by Bill Turner on Page 2.) Professionals, semi-professionals and amateurs all took part in the races and two 9-and-under children’s events were held downtown as well. The event, now in its third year, continues to grow with over 600 riders participating through-out the long weekend. Race Director Ron Glowczynski reported that the feedback from several of the top racers centered on what a great town Roanoke is to visit, with several participants remarking that “hotels, restaurants and other attractions are all so conveniently located and close to the courses themselves . . .” A very well kept secret? We think so . . . But hopefully the “quality of life” word will keep getting out.

Mary Jo Shannon

Page 2 | The Roanoke Star-Sentinel | 7/9/10 - 7/15/10 NewsRoanoke.com

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is the result of years of hard work and dedication on the part of many people,” says Joseph Austin, M.D., medical director for the cardiac care unit at Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital. “Hypo-thermia therapy requires a unified approach to care and we are so excited to have the support and coordination of all areas to make this a reality.”

Carilion Clinic is partnering with regional emergency medical services (EMS) in Southwest Virginia to introduce this new treat-ment. EMS can begin the cooling in the field through intravenous ice-chilled saline and ice packs. Upon arrival to the hospital, the patient may receive iced saline, ice packs and cooling pads.

“In the last 50 years of attempting resuscitations, our success rate

had not really improved much, with only about five percent of sud-den cardiac arrest (SCA) victims leaving the hospital nationally. This has been a source of great frustration for providers,” said Charles Lane, M.D., emergency medicine physician at Carilion Clinic and the regional medical director for Western Virginia EMS Council. “We will bundle induced hypothermia with an intensely managed program to develop a specialized care center for those who have suffered SCA. For certain types of SCA, this results in almost a ten-fold increase in survival. We are looking to making significant im-provements in survival and quality of life.”

- For more information, please visit CarilionClinic.org.

> Hypothermia From page 1

asked for clarification of the kind of meetings Bestpitch had in mind, referring to joint meet-ings with boards and authori-ties. Bestpitch then read lan-guage that allows, by a council resolution, that meetings can be held at another location.

Trinkle held the opposite view, that if “a meeting requires more formality, more room, or more [audio visual]” then it can be held in council chambers. Council member Anita Price wondered how the wording could capture “both worlds.”

City Manager Chris Morrill was asked to add his views and agreed that “the ideal would be to be able to televise our work-shops.” Morrill agreed with Trinkle that council chambers are very formal and not condu-cive to “give and take” between council members.

Bestpitch said that “we can already conduct briefings in council chambers” and that he “would have difficulty” support-ing an expenditure to outfit the EOC. (In 2009 then City Man-ager Darlene Burcham quoted the cost at $55,181 to outfit the EOC for television briefings.) Bestpitch’s amendment to hold a 9:00 a.m. briefing in council chambers was seconded by Fer-ris but fell short of a majority. Only Bestpitch voted for it.

Further Council Discus-sion:

The removal of two items on the consent agenda caused some confusion. One was to discuss in closed session the disposition

of fire station #5, prior to decid-ing which of the three offers to accept. Bestpitch requested that the closed session be removed from the consent agenda.

Bestpitch made it very clear that all he was asking for was to remove the closed session from the consent agenda to be discussed separately. “We’ve already had more discussion on the consent agenda than is permitted under parliamentary procedure,” said Bestpitch. Ros-en, Trinkle and Mayor Bowers voted against removing it from the consent agenda 3-4.

Bowers left for a court hear-ing and handed the reins to Vice-Mayor Trinkle. Bestpitch then asked for “a simple yes or no answer to … whether identi-fication of the subject [of closed session] would adversely affect the bargaining position and negotiating strategy of the city.” Morrill responded, “In this case I don’t believe it would.”

He then asked the city at-torney, Bill Hackworth, if it would be possible in the future to identify the subject of closed meetings; for example, identify-ing the tax number or street ad-dress of property to be acquired or disposed of.

Hackworth said it would be possible, but wondered who would make the call on whether it “adversely affected the city’s bargaining position. Hack-worth thought that “it undoes the purpose for having a closed meeting.” Bestpitch said that the person who requests the closed

meeting could make that call. “In today’s closed meeting, that would be the city manager,” re-marked Bestpitch.

Hackworth feared coun-cil would “be besieged by the press and the public” should the subject of closed sessions be di-vulged. Rosen thought that “this council has been extraordinari-ly transparent.” He believed it a dangerous path to go down in identifying closed session subjects ad hoc. “It’s not saying we don’t support transparency,” said Rosen.

New council member Ray Ferris said he was relieved that many of the tough issues were resolved before July 1. “We still have some tough issues to consider,” said Ferris. He ad-mitted that it is a challenge to make decisions that are “fair to everybody.” He is committed to involving the citizens in the process. Ferris said he seconded Bestpitch’s motion to open up for discussion moving briefings to council chambers, though he believed that logistics made it impractical. “By raising it, it will be something we will discuss every time we have something to talk about,” concluded Ferris.

In other business:City manager Chris Morrill

amended the trash collection for the physically challenged. The requirement to have a year-ly doctor’s certificate was elimi-nated.

Bestpitch’s concern over park-ing garage maintenance defer-ral, as presented in the financial

report, was clarified as being cosmetic in nature – painting and cleaning.

The director of finance, Ann Shawver, said there was signifi-cant improvement to the origi-nal revenue projection for fiscal year 2010. The prior projection that revenue would be down 3% compared to FY09 was dropped to only 1.7%. There have been three to eight months of con-secutive improvement in tax collections. Areas of improve-ments were: sales tax, lodging tax, cigarette tax, admission tax, and food tax.

The city’s portion of school funding is now down to $1 mil-lion, but it is a significant im-provement over the $2.5 million projected earlier. Shawver also noted improvement in Roa-noke’s unemployment rate.

A public hearing will be held for award of Fire station #5 on August 2 at 2 p.m. to the Que House, Inc. – Gamma Alpha Chapter of Omega Psi Phi, Inc. A public hearing on the same day will be held for an alterna-tive location at 530 8th Street, SW for the second offerer for the fire station, Rebuilding To-gether Roanoke (RTR). Eco-nomic development personnel will work with the third offerer, Jamie Brads, owner of Blue Ridge Rescue Supply.

> Council From page 1

By Valerie [email protected]

Race “Day One” of the ID3 3-day cycling stages proved to be anything but a walk in the park Saturday. The strenuous 1.87 mile course up the infamous old winding road to the top of Mill Mountain put time-trial cycling to the ultimate test as part of the 2010 Coventry Commonwealth Games.

Roanoker Bernie Sanders, a 10-year cycling veteran with over 250 races under his belt, spelled it out after completing his run - “This was a S-U-F-F-E-R-F-E-S-T,” Saunders, 60, laughed. “This race is as tough as any of them. The race up Wintergreen Mountain (near Charlottesville) is several times longer mileage-wise, but Mill Mountain is just as steep.”

The cyclists started at the cor-ner of Belleview and Walnut Av-enues, but after a short series of rises and plateaus up Walnut to-

ward the JP Fishburn Parkway, the route took a hard right onto Sylvan Road as the adventure be-gan. Once the only route by car to Mill Mountain summit, zoo, and the star, the narrow road has hairpin curves, switchbacks and ascends in a manner clearly not for the faint of heart.

The vertical rise of the course is slightly over 900 feet and in-cludes a classic bridge-tunnel. The finish line is located next to the overlook at the base of the iconic star.

Most of the riders were part of sponsored cycling teams, but the camaraderie among all was amazing as they congratulated each other at the finish line for just making it to the top. Several riders pedaled over to the wall at the courses end, and virtually collapsed in exhaustion look-ing for a prized bottle of water. One rider said it was a 1.87 mile

course with 1.5 miles of pure pain.

Not all of the cyclists, howev-er, outwardly showed the effect of the climb. The brother-sister combo of Adam and Emily Croft rolled successfully across the finish to the cheers of the crowd. “It was really hard,” Adam Croft admitted. “I’ve been in competi-tive races throughout the State of Virginia for three years.” Sister Emily, also a 3-year competitive cycler, agreed- “It’s really steep, but it’s really fun. That middle part was tough.”

Incidentally, Adam was the youngest rider Saturday at the ripe age of nine. Emily checked in at 13. After an interview with a television crew, both appeared ready to challenge the course a second time.

As one rider prepared to take the shorter and calmer route back down the Fishburn Park-

way to the starting area, he noted, “We’ll be back tomorrow for the stage-2 Criterium in downtown. At least those laps are flat.”

By Bill [email protected]

Mill Mountain Hill Climb Proves More Than “Sufferfest”

Brittany MacDonald begins her initial ascent up Mill Mt.

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Director of Foundation for Roanoke Valley.The Reading Adventure Program utilizes prov-

en success of the High Scope curriculum, based on listening, phonics, developing vocabulary, and writing to teach and improve basic literacy skills to children in kindergarten through the sixth grade. Students attend the program twice a week during the school year and daily during the sum-mer months. Children in kindergarten through

third grade focus on letter-sound correspondence, phonemes, spelling patterns, creative writing, sight vocabulary, and fluency. Fourth, fifth, and sixth graders continue practicing foundational skills, but also learn to integrate automatic word identification, comprehension, and writing skills.

“Making a critical difference in a child’s ability to read holds long-term positive ramifications for the community, and we are glad that some of our

many endowment donors have provided unre-stricted resources that enable us to significantly fund quality programs like the Reading Adven-ture Program, “ adds Ronk.

Foundation for Roanoke Valley has served the Roanoke Valley for more than 20 years. The Foundation currently administers over 240 named endowment funds on behalf of the com-munity. Unrestricted endowments are particu-

larly powerful as they provide the Foundation with the flexibility over time to seek out and fund highly effective programs across a wide-range of community needs. Folks interested in establish-ing their own personal or family legacy through an unrestricted endowment or any of the many other types of endowment funds offered by the community foundation should visit www.foun-dationforroanokevalley.org.

> Non-profits From page 1

Congressman Bob Goodlatte has called on the D-Day Memorial Foundation to re-move the controversial bust of Soviet dicta-tor Josef Stalin which was recently placed at the National D-Day Memorial, alongside the busts of the true heroes of World War II -- Winston Churchill, Franklin Roosevelt, Charles de Gaulle, Harry Truman and oth-ers.

Congressman Goodlatte is a co-sponsor of legislation currently being considered before the House of Representatives which calls on the U.S. Department of the Interior to conduct a feasibility study to determine if the National D-Day Memorial should be designated as part of the National Park Service (NPS). The addition of the Stalin bust on the grounds of the National D-Day Memorial, which is devoted to the heroes of World War II, has added unneeded contro-versy to this effort to save the Memorial.

As a solution to the ongoing controversy, Congressman Goodlatte strongly urged the National D-Day Memorial Foundation to follow precedent which has been set by the Saratoga National Historical Park in Sara-toga, New York.

During the Revolutionary War, the battle of Saratoga was a turning point and Ameri-can General Benedict Arnold emerged as one of the heroes. However, Arnold is probably most famously known as the trai-tor who later deserted the Americans and joined the British Army, leading British

troops into Virginia. In 1877, in honor of the 100th anniver-

sary of the American victory at Saratoga, a monument was constructed to honor the American heroes of the Battle of Saratoga. The monument consists of four separate niches – one for General Horatio Gates, one for General Philip Schuyler, one for Colonel Daniel Morgan and the fourth one, which would be for General Benedict Arnold, remains empty. (To view pictures of the monument at the Saratoga Historical Park, containing the empty niche, visit the Na-tional Park Service website at: http://www.nps.gov/sara/photosmultimedia/saratoga-monument-virtual-tour-part-3.htm)

“While I have heard the argument that Josef Stalin’s bust should be placed at the D-Day Memorial because of his role in sup-porting the Allied countries during World War II, making the Communist dictator a prominent part of the D-Day Memorial is inconsistent with our veterans’ fight against the horrors perpetuated by his rule,” said Congressman Goodlatte. “The commis-sioning of a bust and public display of one’s likeness is a traditional symbol of tribute and honor which is unbefitting a violent dictator such as Josef Stalin. The National D-Day Memorial Foundation should fol-low the lead of the Saratoga National His-torical Park and remove the bust of Stalin from its pedestal, leaving the empty pedes-tal. His contributions to the Allied victory

along with the atrocities that he committed against his own people are well document-ed in the plaque that currently hangs at the Memorial.”

Congressman Goodlatte has heard from numerous constituents, including various local veterans’ organizations, who strongly oppose the placement of the Stalin bust on the grounds of the National D-Day Memo-rial. In response to these inquiries, Con-gressman Goodlatte has written multiple letters to the National D-Day Memorial Foundation requesting that the Stalin bust have no place at this memorial which is meant to honor the brave young men who sacrificed their lives to protect the freedoms we hold so very dear.

Goodlatte continued, “Josef Stalin was a paranoid megalomaniac responsible for the slaughter of millions of his citizens and others. As leader of the Soviet Union, he led a campaign of terror including mass ex-ecutions and forced labor in work camps at home in the Soviet Union and he oversaw the spread of communism throughout east-ern Europe and is responsible for the Cold War. The appropriate location for the bust of such a dark and sinister man is off in a dark closet, but the empty pedestal and tell-ing plaque should remain as a reminder of this aspect of World War II history.”

Goodlatte Proposes Solution To Stalin Bust ControversyThe Rescue Mission held a

“Tooth Fairy” day last Friday to offer free dental services to patients, most of whom were guests at the Mission. Accord-ing to Lee Clark, Director of Development and Adminis-tration, the project included a total of 76 volunteers. He was pleased that “some phy-sicians who came here today have agreed to come back on a regular basis.” Pictured is Dr.

Thompson, as-sisted by Murri Deveaux, as he confers with patient Marsha Lambert. Kyle Edgell, who works at the mission, played the part of the Tooth Fairy.

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One of the best parts of be-ing a columnist is the feedback that finds its way to me. Fre-quently, I will hear from some-one who has read a column and has something to say about it. A recent entry, “Fathers: Look-ing Back . . . Looking Forward,” brought one of the more re-markable comments.

More than thirty years ago, our office hired an excellent car-diac care nurse, Donna Althoff. She had been an experienced nurse in the Roanoke Memorial CCU so we knew her qualifi-cations were beyond question. What none of us knew was how entwined our lives would become. She and her husband, Bill, a Roanoke po-liceman, had recently had a child. When the baby, a little boy arrived, joyful anticipation turned to heart-wrenching anxiety: Thomas was born with transposition of the great vessels of his heart. The life expectancy of such chil-dren is measured in months. Donna and Bill took him to the MCV where, at age 1, he had a procedure to partially correct the problem. He survived the surgery, grew stronger and at age 8 had a Fontan procedure, an operation to correct the mal-ady. In those days it was a tre-mendously risky proposition, but it offered the only chance to approach a normal life. The surgery was performed at the Mayo Clinic under the watchful eye of Dr. Gordon Danielson, an international superstar in such realms. It went well and

after a few years, Thomas could keep up with his peers.

His parents, both consum-mate professionals, went through all of that with a clamped-jaw determination and faith that all would be well. Not once did I ever hear a com-plaint about their difficulties or see any sign that they were dis-couraged. Donna advanced to head nurse in our office and Bill, rose from patrolman to Captain in Roanoke’s Finest.

Thomas and his younger brother, Daniel, continued their growth and my memories of fam-ily trials faded as de-cades passed. When retirement came for Bill, they moved to North Myrtle Beach and I enjoyed the

Christmas cards that regularly ar-rived with tidbits

of family information.When I wrote my fathers day

article, I wondered what, if any, responsive chord it might strike in those who read it. When I returned from a trip, I found an e-mail from Donna. Thomas, now 31, had seen the article and sent it to his parents. He and Heather now have a baby girl of their own. Her name is Kayden. It was wonderful to hear from them and catch up of all that has happened.

Thomas is manager of The Westlake Cinema and settling well into fatherhood. Donna commented as we recently chatted that when she watches Thomas holding his baby she sees a side of him that she had not known. That happens to a

lot of young parents, of that I am certain.

To hear that he continues to prosper was reward enough, but it gave me a moment to reflect on what the Althoff family, and those like them, have endured. In times where Thomas’ life hung in the balance, I wondered if I would have the strength his parents showed if one of my girls were in a similar situation. One never knows what reaction one might have to such stress. I like to think that I would have found the grace and strength they did; I’m certainly not sure that would be the case.

Through it all, the Althoff’s have had an amazing faith in God and felt that was the sus-taining force for them. Today, that belief is as strong as it was in those times so long ago.

Although I tend to put great stock in my personal strength to deal with whatever life may deliver, I find it hard to believe that those without an Invisible means of support could do as well.

Donna and her family are well settled; Bill in his retirement, but Donna still works in a cardi-ology office. Through the years I shared many patients with car-diologists in the Myrtle Beach Hospital. Should you have a cardiac problem while visiting there, you should count yourself very lucky if she were involved in your care. Just as Thomas and Daniel can testify, you couldn’t be in better hands.

Sometimes Good Things Happen

Contact Hayden [email protected]

Hayden Hollingsworth

My husband considers me a bit “loony.” Why, when the temperature is in the nineties, would anyone in their right mind choose to bundle up in a long sleeved shirt and long pants, spend the day fighting brambles, poison ivy, gnats and possibly snakes; then re-turn home, like the loser in a battle with a bobcat -- stained red with blood and berry juice? Sometimes I question my own sanity, especially when I probe for a stubborn thorn, try to dis-guise my scratched hands, or nurse a persistent case of poison ivy.

Despite these hin-drances, when July rolls around I find my-self wondering what the berry crop is like this summer. Finally, I succumb, don my protective clothing, douse myself with in-sect repellent, round up my bucket and a sturdy stick, and head for the berry patch.

I hesitate to tell you where I find my berries. This is not en-tirely self-serving. That would deprive you of a major part of the joy of berry picking -- the thrill of finding a spot where the berries are abundant. In the late spring I scout mountain roads and the fences in pasture fields. When I spot arching spans of new canes filled with white blossoms, I make a mental note: return in July.

I learned this strategy as a child and still find it exciting. During the Depression, children con-tributed to the family economy by gathering berries and nuts. From the first wild strawberries in late May until October winds showered the ground with wal-nuts and hickory nuts, we spent hours reaping harvests we did not sow, contemplating the deli-

cious pies, cakes and jams they would provide.

I suppose nostalgia plays a part in my quest for the wild fruits. But it's more than that. For me, berry picking is a spiri-tual experience. Berries grow in abandoned remote areas, away from the noise of traffic and the busyness of modern life. The sheer silence is soothing. Silence -- punctuated only by the occasional rustle of a rabbit startled by this invasion of his briar patch, or the lyrical war-bling of a mockingbird. I find

my body relaxing and my mind freed from anxiety, contemplat-ing deeper and more meaningful matters.

The abundance of dark ripe fruit and clusters of bright red berries – promise

of more to come – speak to me of God's goodness in provid-

ing for his creatures. I meditate on the words of Psalm 67: “ The earth has yielded its increase; God, our God has blessed us. God has blessed us; let all the ends of the earth fear him!”

Each cane is covered with berries, and each berry is load-ed with seeds. How wonderful that those seeds are still viable after passing through the birds' digestive systems! New berries are planted, not just in this spot but wherever the birds fly and drop the seeds. The very place where berries grow, abandoned areas, where storms have bro-ken trees, show how God brings good out of an apparently hope-less situation.

Abundant Spring and early summer rain has produced the nicest blackberries I've picked in years. Most are as large as the first joint of my thumb, covered with clusters of tiny purplish spheres. My fingers slide be-neath each one and separate it from the branch. Plunk, plunk! They drop into the bucket. Soon the bottom is covered and no sound is heard as the berries accumulate.

God could have been satis-fied just providing food for his creatures, but he went the extra mile with beauty and taste. If I time my picking day right, I also find red raspberries that ripen

before the peak of the black-berry season. Each one is like a ruby, glistening in the sunlight. I gather them thankfully, plac-ing my bucket beneath the clus-ters to catch the berries as they drop. If they fall to the ground amid the tangle of poison ivy and dead branches they can never be retrieved. Sometimes my carelessness causes me to lose them. Sometimes their loss cannot be prevented -- merely pulling the vine toward me can cause them to fall. So it is with life. We make mistakes and things just happen. No need to fret. I move on and soon locate another loaded cane.

My stick is a simple but cru-cial piece of equipment. I probe the area ahead before stepping into a thicket to avoid surpris-ing a snake or other critter. If I should hear a warning rattle I can retreat -- I hope! So far I have not encountered a snake, but they tend to lurk around dead trees and underbrush where berries and poison ivy thrive.

I also use the stick to spread the branches, revealing the fruit hidden beneath the leaves, or to pull a cane nearer. Occasionally a long cane will snag my shirt, its thorns piercing the cloth and puncturing my skin. I become entangled, unable to pull free. I imagine a scene from a science fiction movie, where the bri-ars snare a human and devour her on the spot. But my trusty stick pushes the cane away and I step aside, free again. Another metaphor. Tangled and snared by temptation. "Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me."

It begins to rain, a light sum-mer shower. Soon my shirt and hat are soaked, but I want to fill my bucket. Just as I am about to head for my car, I spot a patch of the reddest, ripest raspber-ries I've seen all day. They are deep inside a thicket, far from the path, hovering above a pile of broken tree limbs. Common sense says I would be foolish to go after them. I recall lines from Browning, "Ah, but a man’s reach should exceed his grasp, or what's a heaven for?" The quotation seems appropri-ate. Reluctantly, I turn away and head for the car, hoping some bird will drop the seeds of those superior berries in a more ac-cessible spot.

Once I have scrubbed away the oil from the poison ivy and diligently searched for ticks that may have invaded my body, I am ready to enjoy the spoils of my search. No amount of money could purchase a single precious berry. Like the Little Red Hen, I will share them with my own little chicks -- city-bred grandchildren who might oth-erwise never know the taste of hot blackberry cobbler, home-made blackberry jam, or fresh blackberries with cream. Ah, the extraordinary joys of sum-mer!

Confessions Of A Wild Berry Picker

Contact Mary Jo [email protected]

Mary Jo Shannon

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There doesn’t seem to be a shortage of reasons to visit downtown Roanoke these days, but that hasn’t stopped a local organization from offering a few more. Downtown Roanoke Incorporated’s “City Market Saturdays,” have presented a variety of programs on Saturday mornings and will con-tinue to do so until October.

Sponsored by Haley Toyota, City Market Sat-urdays offers cooking demonstrations, live music and even health screenings to those that can tear themselves away from the Farmer’s Market, City Market food court, the museums or other goings-on in the area. Haley is bringing in a different new car to show off every weekend to add some more fun in the mix.

Lyndsay Smith, Communications and Program Manager for Downtown Roanoke Inc. (DRI), said City Market Saturdays now includes last year’s Music on the Market program, which was cur-tailed as a separate event due to budget issues. “We’re just mixing it up,” said Smith.

The cooking demos staged by local restaurants and culinary schools take place on the second Saturday of every month through September. Other weekends will feature music and assorted programs, with the last Saturday of the month fo-cused on information and how-to sessions.

At a City Market Saturday event several weeks ago nurses from Carilion Clinic were checking blood pressure, body mass index and other vital signs, while handing out information on various

health issues.“It’s a great venue,” said Community Outreach

representative Edie Naughton (RN), who noted that they had seen “a lot of out-of-towners … on their way to somewhere else,” visit the booth. Teen pregnancy, diabetes and breast health awareness were also part of Carilion’s message. “We’re trying to grab some people and hopefully [send] them away with a little more information,” said Naugh-ton. “We’ve found some people that need atten-tion and should probably see a doctor.”

“Just to do something different on Saturdays,” said Smith of the motivation for City Market Sat-urdays, “because we are a seven day a week mar-ket.” It’s not hard to find the downtown market area crowded on a weekday when local businesses are open, “but what’s the draw to get people down

here on a Saturday?” asks Smith.This Saturday (July 10) features

another “Chef on the Market Day,” with demonstrations by the Virginia Western Culinary Insti-tute. Appetizers take center stage from 11:30 a.m. -12:30 p.m., with entrees from 1:30 - 2:30. July 17 features music by the Poison Bottom Boys. Virginia Western chefs-in-training will return on August 14 for another demon-stration.

As the market area bustled with locals and tourists, the Carilion Clinic booth pulled in its fair share of visitors on a re-cent Saturday afternoon. “We’re very fortunate to have a Farmer’s Market like this,” said Naughton, adding that DRI asked them to be a part of City Market Satur-days.

For a complete schedule, visit downtownroanoke.org

City Market Saturdays: One More Reason To Come Downtown

Carilion Clinic was part of a recent City Mar-ket Saturdays program.

By Gene [email protected]

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A few weeks ago my daughter had the best time at First Bap-tist’s Vacation Bible School. She went with a friend while my son was attending the VBS at our church (Raleigh Court Pres-byterian.) Both children com-plained at the start of the sum-mer - they said, “Mom - VBS is for babies!” But I just gave them the four word answer that leaves no room for discussion ("We are doing this.") and so away we went! My son complained the first day as he walked through the door but I didn't hear a thing afterwards because he had such a good time. My daughter was amazed by her VBS experience and now she says she wants to be a Baptist.

It seems a lot of Vacation Bi-ble Schools happen in early June but you can always find them going on throughout the sum-mer if you look. The activities are wonderful and there are al-ways new friendships born since the programs reach out into the community at large and not just within the church walls. One very important factor, especially in this day and age, is that these camps are almost always free.

In summers past, as well as this one (when my kids ap-peared to be too old), I have underestimated the power of VBS. They still love it and it is as entertaining as any expen-sive camp I might send them to, but most importantly it teaches them the things they need to know to become the people God intended them be. The typical VBS is for elementary age chil-dren but once you are too old to participate in the activities you can become a youth helper - my son thought his youth helper was the coolest guy ever!

I really believe in these pro-grams and encourage every-one to take advantage of these wonderful jewels that are avail-

able in our community for your children. Summer is indeed too short in many ways but for us moms it can be very long in others . . . Everyone wins with VBS! This fun snack recipe can be used in any Western themed VBS or on a camping trip with your church, friends or family.

1/2 C. Light Corn Syrup1 C. Brown Sugar1/2 C. Butter, Melted2 Tsp Vanilla3 C. Quick Cooking Oats1 1/2 C. Fruit, Seed & Nut Trail Mix3/4 C. Mini Chocolate ChipsLarge Pretzel RodsAdditions might be: shredded coconut, M&Ms, marshmal-lows, etc.

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees -In a large bowl mix corn

syrup, brown sugar, butter and vanilla until well blended.

-Stir in oats. Add trail mix and chocolate chips. Stir in ad-ditional goodies 1/4 C. at a time, making sure that the mix is still sticky enough to mold around the sticks.

*Marshmallows are not rec-ommended for the granola

sticks but may be added if you are going to cut the granola into bars.

-Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

-Measure out 1/2 C. of grano-la and shape into a log. Starting from the bottom of the log, stick the pretzel into the granola, shaping it around the pretzel. Do not worry about the shape because you will be reshaping it after it bakes. Fill the baking sheet side by side with 5 granola pretzel rods. Make sure you leave ample room between each one.

-Bake for 14-15 minutes or until light brown. Do not panic when you see that the granola has melted away from the pret-zel rod. Once the sticks have baked for the required time, removed the tray from the oven and working quickly with two knives simply mold and shape the granola back around the pretzel sticks. As the granola cools, it will harden around the pretzel stick.

-This recipe makes about 10 granola sticks depending on how much granola mix you measure out for each pretzel rod.

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So why not visit southeast England when it’s cold, wet, and dark? That’s the way it is much of the time anyway, and when we’re back home and it’s oppressively hot summertime in Virginia we can look back and say, “ahhhh, I’d like to step into a day like that right now”.

Such as it is, the wind-driven rain is lashing the southern coast at Beachy Head, a na-ture preserve just west of Eastbourne, an hour and a half train ride from London. I can hardly see my brother up ahead. We’re on a part of the 130 km. South Downs Trail which crosses the open space of the Head. This section of the trail features a particularly impressive section of chalk cliffs for which this coast is known. On nice days this place is popular with paraglider pilots, but this is not one of those days. We hike bent into the wind, our rain jackets soon proving inadequate. It’s exhila-rating to gaze several hundred feet down to the sea from the unstable cliff tops; the waves crash-ing through the mid-day gloom.

Soon we’re on the bus headed east to Pe-vensey, eating chutney sandwiches we picked up at a grocery along the way. It turns out that I’m not a big fan of c h u t n e y, but hey “when in Rome… “. The fortress ruins on the coast at Pe- vensey are impressive. The R o m a n s built the fort in the year 279 and abandoned it after a few hundred years. Then the Nor- mans took it over in 1166 when they invaded Eng- land and William the Conquer-or became King. That was the result of the Battle of Hastings, I’m sure you remember.

The town of Hastings is famous for the legendary battle, of course, but beyond that it is a pleasant little fishing village. Interestingly, there is no protected harbour; the fishing boats are pushed and dragged into the sea from the shingle beach utilizing various mechanical assistance, including heavy equipment. Seeing the heavy-duty wooden fishing vessels being pushed around unceremoni-ously by a bulldozer is fascinating. On this day the sound of the waves crashing on the shore is amaz-ing, the shingles tumbling over themselves like shards of china plates. There is some commotion in pushing some of the boats higher up the shore out of reach of the leaping waves. “Ahhh, but she’s nasty out..” one of the fisherman remarks to me with a shake of his head. We’re glad to be on –rela-tively- dry ground.

The white cliffs of Dover are grey on the day we’re in town. In fact, when we emerge from the rail station we can hardly see Dover Castle through the low dark clouds scudding over us. The prim little woman in the ticket booth at the castle seems pleased to have some visitors, and explains entry to the Neopoleanic and WWII era tunnels, and the ancient castle, with an extra dose of enthusiasm. Sheets of rain chase us up the broad walk that leads to the war-time tunnels.

The high promontory that Dover Castle (circa 1000 AD) now occupies is shared by the ancient ruins of a Roman light-house, testament to the histori-cal significance of this piece of ground. There are strategic tun-nels dug into the cliffs from the time of Napolean’s threat to Eng-land. And during the dark days of WWII war planes of the Nazi Luftwaffe flew directly overhead on their bombing missions to English cities. Earlier, when war with Germany was recognized as inevitable, the British built a complex compound of tunnels

and command posts (some joining with the Na-poleonic ones) in the cliffs and under the castle, and the modern-day tour of the eerie facilities is fascinating. From these stark subterranean of-fices, some with small windows cut through the high cliffs, Montgomery coordinated the massive evacuation of Dunkirk. This harrowing operation involved mobilizing approximately 900 commer-cial and civilian vessels, and 330,000 people were evacuated.

Emerging from the tunnels into a light mist, I’m relieved that it’s not wartime now –not here any-way, I quickly remind myself. Contemplating how there is always the misery of war at various places throughout the world at any given moment, I walk silently and thoughtfully up the winding ap-proach to the castle gates.

Our timing for visiting Dover Castle is seren-dipitously good. An extensive restoration of inte-rior furnishings, embroidery and weaving, accu-rate to Henry II’s rein circa 1100, was completed just prior to our arrival. The interpreters share their knowledge -not to mention their infectious enthusiasm- of the painstakingly researched and carried out restoration.

We learn about Thomas Becket and his rela-tionship with King Henry II. They were friends when young but later fell out over the Law of Church versus the Law of Royalty when Becket became the Archbishop of Canterbury, just down the road from Dover. So much was the ill will, in fact, that it is believed that the murder of Becket in the cathedral by four knights was ordered by King Henry himself. I’m reminded of “Death in the Cathedral” by T.S. Eliot.

On the train ride back to London’s Victoria Station we eat our hastily-procured lunch, or is it dinner? A meal of ready-made sandwiches from a busy English grocer is always a good bet, chutney notwithstanding. The cheery conductor points out Canterbury Cathedral as we roll through the town of the same name.

No time to stop there today, however . . . Night-time at Trafalgar Square and Piccadilly Circus awaits

Contact John [email protected]

The Grey Cliffs of Dover

The “Grey-White” Cliffs of Dover.

John W. Robinson


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In the Jewish synagogue, the Torah (which also makes up the first five books of the Christian Old Testament) is written on scrolls of parchment and stored in the Ark, usually an inset in that synagogue wall which faces Jerusalem. During Shabbat and other special occasions of wor-ship, the Torah scrolls are re-moved from the Ark. The rabbi reads or the cantor chants from the Torah in a way analogous to the Sunday readings in Chris-tian churches, and similarly to the way a Catholic or Episco-pal priest reads from the missal during Holy Communion.

Parchment is derived from animal skin, and as such it does not absorb ink. Were the rabbi’s assistant to point to the words on the Torah scroll with a finger, oil would smudge the words,

marring the sacred text. Con-sequently, in Jewish worship a pointer is used, called the yad.

At a Bar Mitzvah, the young man coming of age is given the privilege of reading from the Torah scroll. Recently, a St. John’s parishioner attended the Bar Mitzvah of her grandson in Washington, D.C., and she was struck by the reverent and respectful way the yad was used to point to the Torah text. She subsequently purchased a yad and presented it to St. John’s for our own use during Holy Eu-charist.

Our new yad is a beautiful and ornate thing. It is silver, and its detail is striking. The tip of the yad is shaped like a human hand, and it even includes lines and creases on the palm. Were one not to know the yad’s pur-pose, it could easily stand alone as a work of craftsmanship and art.

But the yad does have a pur-pose, which is to point beyond itself. In our worship, the yad draws the eyes of the priest to the words of God’s great love and sacrifice for humankind, and those words themselves draw the soul into communion with that very God, changing us from mere creatures into adopt-

ed children.If you’ll permit the simile,

God calls us to be like the yad. Too often in our culture, there is a preoccupation with self, a tacit belief that life’s central point is self-affirmation. We believe that our gifts, our accomplishments, and our abundance ought to point back to ourselves as indi-cators of our value and worth. But this is not the message of Holy Scripture, and it does not define the life of faith. Our lives are blessed so that we may be a blessing. We are gifted so that we can point back to the salva-tion story of God’s overwhelm-ing love and be drawn into that love in our relationships with God and with his children.

That is the very purpose of our lives. We are to point to the One who “to the poor pro-claimed the good news of sal-vation; to prisoners, freedom; to the sorrowful, joy,” the One who “rising from the grave, destroyed death, and made the whole creation new.”

Reverend Barkley Thompson is the senior pastor at St. John’s Episcopal Church. During the summer, St. John’s gathers for Sunday worship at 8 a.m., 10 a.m., and 5 p.m. www.stjohn-sroanoke.org

Preacher’s Corner: To Whom Do We Point?Referencing the article "Sec-

ond Roanoke Tea Party Big Success" by Carla Bream in the July 10 16, 2010 issue of The Roanoke-Star Sentinel, I have to say this rally was not as successful as the Roanoke Tea Party had hoped.

Frankly, this movement scares me to death, especially in their support of the Fair Tax which they say will be better but in actuality, the consumer will end up paying all taxes for goods and big business, which will be exempt from their cur-

rent taxation, will end up get-ting richer and the poor will end up getting poorer.

This falls directly into what conservatives want all along and that is to cater to the rich and big business while stand-ing on the backs of the poor, taxing the poor and middle class to death thus casting the middle class into the pov-erty levels of the poor. The conservatives are trying to achieve these goals by selling a fraudulent bill of goods to the ignorant and the desperate

which is what the Tea Party is primarily composed.

It makes me extremely angry when the Tea Party quotes the forefathers to fit their agenda and pervert history to their own designs. This movement is a threat to the nation and I firmly believe it is a precursor to destroying democracy and creating a new type of dicta-torship or even communism.

Obviously Virginians were not fooled by the Tea Party considering last spring's elec-tion where none of the three Tea Party candidates were elected to office.

So I would like to urge peo-ple, do not be fooled by the Tea Party. If you support them, you are ultimately throwing yourself into the proverbial estuary of sewage without a paddle.

Sidney Vaught, Roanoke

Letter: Tea Party Unsuccessful and Misleading

My name is Forest, Forest Gump and “I may not be a smart man but I know what transparency is” and it ain’t here in River City.

The Roanoke Times July 1 editorial: “Openness and transparency” presses the two new council members to make good on their campaign prom-ise of transparency and openness. The RTEB hints that the last council made progress in that regard. Phooey!

Council briefings are where most decisions are made. One could even argue voting takes place at briefings. Mayor Bowers though makes verbal ref-erence to it not being a vote. It’s just a “consensus” show of hands or grunt of approval – a go-ahead to city administration on a project direction.

“Public input” then follows and befuddled citi-zen’s exiting council chambers mumble “they al-ready had their minds made up.” Imagine that.

Televised briefings were campaign promises in the last election too. After the new council took office the city manager then Burcham brought to council the cost and impediments to televising briefings in the EOC. If you ever wondered what EOC stands for it is the “Emergency Operations Center” – in case of a terrorist attack or natural disaster <snicker here if you like>.

Council members suggested the city manager look into taping briefings at a minimal hourly rate and have them available for replay online. It was never revisited again.

The briefing room (the basement - room 159 or EOC) is so crowded at times with television cam-era tripods and interested citizens you can’t get to the coffee pot <sigh>. Seriously citizens and staff are bumping into each other. Media are jockey-ing for seats and shuffling microphones around the table.

Mayor Bowers leaned back in his chair so far one time he almost landed in my lap. And if you

sit behind Councilman Court Rosen you can read his text messages <pointed sigh>. Cases are being made that text messaging during public meetings is open to FOIA requests. It seems citizens have become suspicious that council members are se-cretly texting each other regarding agenda items.

Number one on the RTEB transparency list in the July 1 editorial asked for topic clarification for closed sessions. Meaning name the “subject” of closed session before closing the door to citizen’s prying eyes. Try arguing that point with the city attorney William Hackworth. Hackworth doesn’t agree with the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). No matter that Virginia’s FOIA Advisory Council has consistently written opinions to the contrary - the city attorney just doesn’t happen to agree. I’ll try that tact with a judge and see how that works for me.

Roanoke county names the subject very clearly on their agenda and it hasn’t hurt them one bit.

To end my little tirade let me paraphrase a member of the media. I asked him why he didn’t threaten litigation to force FOIA compliance? I’ll never forget – he said, “we have to pick our bat-tles.” If John Q. Public doesn’t care then we don’t care.

He had a point – if the populace is not clamor-ing for transparency then the vocal few that iden-tify the FOIA transgressions are whistling in the wind.

Valerie Garner, Roanoke

Editor's Note - Valerie Garner is a regular con-tributing reporter to the Roanoke Star Sentinel and like everyone else in the world, she has an opinion. Don't be shy - send us yours.

Commentary: Editorial Board Takes a Stab at Transparency

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This year the General Assem-bly considered 2,135 bills and a significant number of resolu-tions. Governor Bob McDon-nell signed 871 of the bills into law after they were passed by the Senate and House of Delegates. The vast majority of these new laws went into effect on July 1st. Below are brief summaries of some of the new laws that have drawn the most interest from Virginia Citizens:

Business/ JobsFifty million dollars in fi-

nancial incentives will be made available to recruit new busi-nesses to Virginia.

State economic grants may be used for the construction of private buildings for companies that create 25 or more jobs.

Veterans are exempt from the handling fee charged by the Department of Business As-sistance in connection with the establishment and operation of a small business.

No resident of the Com-monwealth shall be required to maintain a health insurance policy.

Companies that create at least 50 new jobs are eligible for $1,000 tax credits for each new job.

Good GovernmentGeneral Assembly members

are required to disclose sources of income they receive from state or local governments or advisory agencies. This require-ment mirrors the pre-existing policy on income from private

sector sources of income.The Governor, his Political

Action Committee, or any per-tinent Secretaries are prohibited from knowingly soliciting or accepting contributions, gifts, or other items worth more than $50 from any bidders or offer-ors, their controlling persons, or persons acting on their behalf, who have submitted bids or proposals for public contracts worth $5 million.

Virginia state agencies are required to enroll in the federal government's E-Verify program by December 1, 2012 and use the program to check on the le-gal employment status of every newly hired employee.

CrimePrisoners who owe fines,

court costs, and other penalties are required to contribute part of their pay from work programs to relieving this obligation.

Killing newborns who are still connected by the umbilical cord will be considered homicide. A loophole previously existed that made it legal for newborns to be killed several hours after they were born if the umbilical cord was uncut and the placenta re-mained attached.

The death penalty for mur-dering law enforcement officials is extended to fire marshals and their assistants, auxiliary police officers, and auxiliary police deputies.

A $10 additional fee will be added to the penalty for all criminal convictions to raise

money for Internet Crimes Against Children units.

DrivingThe general highway speed

limit on highways where it is currently 65 MPH may be in-creased to 70 MPH after VDOT review.

Specialty license plates will be available to supporters of the Virginia Kids Eat Free program, supporters of the Professor Gar-field Foundation, supporters of Planned Parenthood, support-ers of the Virginia Retail Alli-ance, supporters of the Virginia Recycling Association, and supporters of the Washington Capitals hockey team.

All drivers and passengers under 18 must wear a seat belt regardless of where they are sit-ting in the car.

The penalty for exceeding the speed limit raises from $5 per mile over the speed limit to $6.

EducationPublic institutions of higher

education may establish college partnership laboratory schools.

Policies allowing the creation of virtual school programs and establishing public charter schools were relaxed.

Contracts for purchasing Board of Education approved textbooks for grades 6-12 must allow the purchase of electronic textbooks.

- Information provided by the Office of VA State Senator Ralph Smith - District 22

Over 870 New Laws Begin in VA

sPorts 7/9/10 - 7/15/10 |The Roanoke Star-Sentinel |Page 7

Send sports pictures, announcements and story ideas to

[email protected]

Tournaments start at 7 p.m., not 6 p.m. Free practice starts at 6 p.m.

In the caption of the Top 5 fin-ishers. Troy's last name should have been Sarver, not Sarber.

Dennis Biesma was shown playing hole # 8, not Clayton Craft.

17 Members of Pizzazz Star City Twirlers, under the direc-tion of Coach Joan Duus and Assistant Coach Marie Free-man, competed in the Com-monwealth State Games of Vir-ginia Baton Competition held at Hidden Valley High School on June 5th.

This was the second year for the Contest to be held here in Roanoke and it was well attend-ed by over 50 Twirlers.

Other local groups that at-tended were the Emeraldettes from Vinton and the Timber-lake Sweethearts from Lynch-burg.

Members of the Pizzazz Team include: Rachel Benton, Danielle Cormier, Hannah He-bert, Elizabeth Hudson, Alicia Hughes, Miranda Hughes, Re-becca Keller, Rori Leftiwich, Kyra Leonard, Megan McCo-nnell, Stephanie Meriwether, Kylie Ordonez, Lana Dayle Roach, Meredith Smith, Sa-mantha Taylor, Olivia Thomas, Haley Vogel.

Pizzazz took Gold Medals in the following Team Competi-tions:

Tiny Tot Half Time, Junior Half Time, Juvenile Small Dance

Twirl, Junior Small Dance Twirl, Junior Medium Dance Twirl and Junior Pom Pon Team.

Commonwealth Games of VirginiaBaton Competition Results

2010-Beginner Class—Sitting L to R—Kyra & Alicia; Kneeling Rori, Kylie & Lana Dayle; Standing Miranda, Haley & Hannah.

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It’s gotten to the point where the winning is just accepted and folks might be starting to feel a little bad for the Myrtle Beach Pelicans. After Salem’s 10-6 win on Monday night, the Red Sox have improved to 12-1 in 2010 against their Southern-Division rivals from South Carolina. The aggregate score of those 13 matchups: Red Sox 86, Pelicans 41. Jeepers!

The lopsidedness of the ri-valry (if you can even call it that) has been even more staggering at the Pelicans home digs of BB&T Coastal Field. Heading into Tuesday night’s series finale, the Red Sox had won 11 consec-utive games in Myrtle Beach, a streak that began on July 5, 2009. Salem has walloped the Pelicans in their own backyard over this stretch, dominating by a com-bined score of 84-28 in the 11 games of the streak. Again, the one-sidedness of this eviscera-tion has begun to feel a little un-comfortable. But, alas, the Red Sox continue to win ballgames. Salem’s third consecutive win on Monday night improved the full season record to 47-35.

After going hitless with three strikeouts in the opener in Myr-tle Beach, All-Star third-base-man Will Middlebrooks awak-ened offensively on Sunday and Monday, going 5-9 with eight RBI in the two games, high-lighted by a 7th inning grand slam on Monday. Middlebrooks’ blast cleared the wall in straight-away center field, a mammoth and timely shot that gave Salem plenty of cushion to perpetuate their dominance over the Peli-cans.

Earlier in the series, the Red Sox picked up a 2-0 shutout vic-tory and a 10-4 triumph by the beach. In the opener, newcomer Mark Holliman, Michael Lee, and Cesar Cabral combined on a three-hit shutout and Salem

catcher Tim Federowicz con-nected on a first-inning two-run single against Pelicans ace Julio Teheran to plate the only runs of the game. The next day, Salem utilized a seven-run fifth inning to roll past the Pelicans. The first six batters in the inning reached and the Sox led 10-2 heading into the ninth before the Peli-cans scored two more in garbage time.

The current road trip is no ordinary swing through the Carolina League, for after play-ing series’ in Myrtle Beach and Kinston, the Red Sox journey to the northeast - departing typical Carolina League territory for the “Futures at Fenway” spectacle in Boston. Salem will play the Potomac Nationals in the sec-ond half of a doubleheader at Fenway Park on July 10, a mo-mentous occasion for the minor leaguers as they get the unique

opportunity to play at America’s most beloved ballpark.

Salem returns home on Monday, July 12 for a double-header against Potomac be-ginning at 5:30 at Lewis-Gale Field. Following an off-day on Tuesday the 13th, Salem will host the first-half champs from Winston-Salem for four straight from Wednesday thru Saturday. The homestand will include the Salem Red Sox’ Annual “Wing Fling” competition on Thursday where fans can sample wings from around the region and vote to determine who has the best wing in the Roanoke Valley. Friday’s game will feature post-game fireworks and the first 1,000 fans through the gate on Saturday will receive a Daisuke Matsuzaka Bobblehead compli-ments of WSLS.

Salem Continues to Dominate Myrtle Beach

Correction: July 2nd Edition - “Putt

Putt Masters”

Monday July 12Roanoke Main Library 10:30 a.m.Gainsboro Library 2 p.m.

Tuesday July 13Jackson Park Library 10:30 a.m.Raleigh Court Library 2 p.m.

Friday July 16Melrose Library 10:30 a.m.Williamson Road Library 2 p.m.

Please phone 540-853-2955 for more information

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Ashley Plantation's Jacob Terry kicks up the water in the 25-meter.

Jenna Alam of the AP Stingrays waits for her call to the platform.

Ashley Plantation and Spring Run Visit Castle Rock

Castle Rock's Bailey Rob-erts checks her 50-meter time after an impressive run.

Grace Aheron of Spring Run shows her enthusiasm as she is called to the platform.

Swimmers make a splash as they leave the platform in the 50-meter freestyle.

Oscar Tejeda runs the bases during a recent Red Sox game.

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valley BusinessPage 8 | The Roanoke Star-Sentinel | 7/9/10 - 7/15/10 NewsRoanoke.com

Ben Peyton has long been acquainted with Christian broadcasting. His father, Harry Peyton, a minister, began airing religious programs in 1937 and later switched to the management side of broadcasting. In 1991, the younger Peyton, a former pastor himself, bought an off-air radio station in Roanoke and aired contemporary Christian programming, before changing to a Southern Gospel format. As time passed, Southern Gospel music “just dried up,” in Peyton’s words, primarily due to lack of interest on the part of audiences and advertisers.

“So we began to consider alternatives,” said Peyton -- one being Christian talk. A friend in Lynchburg who has what Peyton describes as “a hybrid talk station … really encouraged me to give serious consideration to do what we’re doing today.”

Beginning on April 1, 2009, the former WWWR (3WR) — now known as WFJX (or Fox Radio 910AM.) — located in southeast Roanoke, began airing a line-up of conserva-tive talk, news, and sports. After some tinker-ing along the way, the station’s current week-day line-up features such conservative radio heavyweights as Laura Ingraham, Jay Sekulow, Dennis Miller, Dr. Laura Schlesinger, Fred Thompson, and Jim Bohannon. Dan Patrick hosts a sports talk show weekdays from 7 - 9 p.m. The station carries high school sports as

well.Morning and weekends feature Christian

programs, as well as talk programs. Laura Ingraham was a significant catch for WFJX, which at one time carried “The Dave Ramsey Show” before losing it to WFIR. “We were talking one day,” explains Peyton’s son Blair, WFJX’s operations manager, “and we were like, ‘You know, why don’t we see if we can maybe get Laura Ingraham on?’ … Because they only run her on WFIR [for one hour], and we have the time available here to run her show live for three hours. And when that came through, we were like, ‘Well, maybe we should go ahead and . . . see if we can get some [other] big names on the station.”

In addition to a line-up of nationally rec-ognized conservative talkers, WFJX features its own locally-based talk show host, Marcus Wagner, who presents his outspoken, opin-ionated conservative take on current events live, weekdays, from 6 to 7 p.m. Wagner and WFJX initially hooked up when he called to say how much he enjoyed the station.

“He and I,” Ben Peyton recalls, “got together and had coffee one time, and he proceeded to tell me that he had done this sort of thing up in Radford. We talked to him more about a sales representative [position] than an an-nouncer.” Wagner, however, wanted to host “because that’s his passion,” Peyton continues.

“Basically, the decision for him to come on board had more to do with . . . what we felt his ability was to bring in income and to meet clients and sales . . . the announcing was just something he wanted to do and we agreed that this could work.”

The response to Wagner’s show took Blair Peyton by surprise. “It’s been very favorable. Being . . . a local show, and not being so well known in the area, I didn’t expect as positive a response as we’ve gotten. So it’s been great.”

Not everything on WFJX is serious—as is the case with “The Blair & Christie Show,” air-ing weekends (Saturday at 11 a.m., Sunday at 1 p.m.). Hosted by Blair Peyton and WFJX public affairs director Christie Quackenbush, the show eschews weighty topics in favor of a lighthearted tone, and arose out of the need to fill the station’s weekend schedule. Longtime friends and TV aficionados, Blair and Quack-enbush go on the air and talk about television and their personal events.

Peyton doesn’t see the station as overly com-peting with Roanoke’s other, more established conservative talk radio station, WFIR. The latter, he says, has “really big names, and we’re just . . . contributing to the market, bringing some other options.”

Referring to Wheeler Broadcasting, (Owners of WFIR, K92 and Q99) Ben Peyton explains, “They are probably the largest, most success-

ful group of radio stations in the market place with some excellent signals. We’re just trying to produce an excellent quality program that gives the people a choice. We’ve got a little dif-ferent, unique approach and kind of sense that our sound is a little more youthful sounding in news-talk—if that’s possible—than WFIR . . . As long as our station performs for advertis-ers . . . selling their products, bring people in the door—that’s all that matters.”

By Melvin E. Matthews, [email protected]

Fox Radio 910: Christian Radio Switches To Conservative Talk Format

Photo by Gene Marrano

The new format has been a winner for WFJX and owner Ben Peyton.

It takes courage to start a new venture when your child is in college and the numbers predict that you won’t live as many more years as you have already lived. Courage, in this case, comes in the form of petite, and snappy-eyed Kristi P’Simer. When faced with the decision to leave the career path she had followed for 28 years, and pursue a fulfilling way to work out the rest of her years before retirement, she chose a road less traveled for someone in her circumstance -- starting over with her own business.

Encouragement came in many forms, not the least of which was an offer from a friend to renovate her commercial space for a frame shop. Thus, “Simply Framing by Kristi” be-came a reality.

On a recent day at the new shop, artists dropped by and phoned, and customers sought solutions from the resident “expert.” Through it all, the look of delight never left Kristi’s eyes. She readily admits that she had spent years in a comfort zone -- perhaps even a rut -- and now says, “I’m having a blast.” That’s quite an admis-sion for a new business owner in this difficult economic era.

The shop is dot-ted with works by local artists, pre-senting a colorful backdrop for the labor-intensive job of framing customers’ trea-sures. The wall behind the cus-tomer service counter contains an artful display of personal trea-sures, framed and preserved behind glass.

P’Simer is quick to explain that contrary to com-mon perception, great framing can be afford-able for everyone. She puts her art background and creative talents into treating customers’ pieces as if they were her own, to create a fin-ished product they are thrilled with. She also

puts her heart into treating them the way she would like to be treated, which explains why art-ists and customers alike have followed her and support her new venture. P’Simer also offers a very competitive commission struc-ture for the artists who sell and dis-play in her shop.

Having been in-volved in art and framing for years, P’Simer knew she would need to offer

a wide array of options in order to put together the high quality work she is known for. Her shop carries a large selection of mouldings and mats, including over 2000 samples, and also has in-stock inventory. All framing is performed

to CPF standards, and she offers conservation framing. She will accept rush orders and all work is done on site.

For those less experienced, or unsure about their piece, she always suggests that clients frame for the picture, rather than frame for their décor. “The frame should be a minimal distrac-tion,” she explains as she turns to answer the phone. Good advice from an artist who prides herself on providing the perfect framework for the treasured possessions her customers bring through the door.

P’Simer plans to run her shop with her cus-tomers as the focus, promising, “We turn your treasures and memories into works of art . . . our quality is unsurpassed. If it means some-thing to you, it is important to us.” She invites customers to come in for a free estimate.

Simply Framing by Kristi is located at 3203 Brambleton Ave. and is open M-F 9-5 and Sat 9-2. For more information call 400-6600 or visit www.simplyframingbykristi.com

Long Time Framer Steps Out on Her Own

By Christine [email protected]

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With several events already completed, and this weekend’s high school baseball showcase at Kiwanis Field, the Coventry Commonwealth Games are indeed underway. Between now and next week, the “Main Games Weekend,” from July 15-18, about 10,000 athletes and their families will descend on the Roanoke Valley to take part in competitive events that range from basket-ball to badminton, from arm wrestling to chess and disc golf.

One highlight of the Commonwealth Games, which have been held in Roanoke for all 21 years: an Olympic-style opening ceremony, complete with a parade of athletes, keynote speaker and a featured musician.

The opening ceremonies take place at the Roanoke Civic Cen-ter Coliseum on Friday, July 16, beginning at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $5 for adults, students 6-17 are $3 and five & under are free. American Idol finalist Bucky Covington (season 5) will perform a set at the ceremony and short track speed skater JR Celski is the motivational keynote speaker. The Washington State native spent time away from home as a youngster, sacrificing family life in order to train as a speed skater.

Celski also overcame a serious injury caused by an errant skate to win two bronze medals at the recent Winter Olympics in Van-couver. In the past, the Coventry Commonwealth Games have also featured Olympic gold medalists from a variety of sports. New this year is a tailgate party beforehand, held indoors at the Special Events Center from 5-7 p.m. Games, food and other ac-tivities will take place at the tailgate, which is open to everyone with opening ceremony tickets.

Judo (held in Norfolk) and “Ultimate Frisbee” are among the

handful of new sports being staged this year. The competitive Frisbee event, to be held at Green Hill Park, is an activity that is now “played a lot in college” according to Virginia Amateur Sports president Pete Lampman.

Registration in many of the individual sports “happen to be up,” added Lampman. Record numbers turned out for the hill climb in Roanoke last weekend. He wanted to use the new Green Ridge Recreation Center for part of the 3-on-3 basketball tour-nament, but the Roanoke County facility is so busy that couldn’t be worked out. Even so, Lampman hopes to steer participants to Green Ridge for recreational swimming after their events are over for the day.

VAS is the Roanoke-based group that stages the Common-wealth Games and has managed to keep them in the Star City year after year, even as other cities have made pitches, recogniz-ing the multi-million dollar impact every year from those that come here to eat, sleep and play.

For those interested in getting a head start on the Main Games weekend, the baseball competition at Kiwanis Field this week-end will feature four teams of Virginia high school juniors and seniors, split up by region. Dozens of college coaches and pro scouts will be in attendance, often with radar guns in hand to measure a pitcher’s speed.

There is an impressive level of baseball talent in the Com-monwealth – current major league standouts like David Wright, Ryan Zimerman, the Uptons (BJ and Justin) and Brandon Inge played high school ball in Virginia. Some appeared at the Com-monwealth Games, and played at the former home of Salem’s

pro baseball team.Lampman was still looking for “a few more” volunteers that

could help at the opening ceremonies as of early this week. VAS, which features a small handful of paid staff members, leans heavily on volunteers for the Commonwealth Games and other events it stages during the year. “Things are going well – we’re pleased,” said Lampman of the upcoming competition sched-uled for the Main Games weekend.

(See www.commonwealthgames.org for more information and a schedule of events)

Commonwealth Games Return to Roanoke Valley

Pete Lampman is president of Virginia Amateur Sports.

By Gene [email protected]

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