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Today’s Email Announcements

Upcoming Programs at Grandfather Mountain State Park

Kites and History Presentation

Fri, 04/01/2016 – 4:00pm to 5:00pm

Location:  Park Office – 9872 Hwy 105 S, Suite 6, Banner Elk (Google Map: https://goo.gl/Uq0vrX)

Program length is 45 minutes long – additional time added to make kites if participants want.

In honor of National kite month Ranger Sicard will be presenting a PowerPoint that reveals the many ways kites have had major influences in our Nation and world’s history of events.  TRUE OR False; The Niagara Fall Suspension Bridge was created from a kite’s string?  True!  Come and learn about the boy named Homan Walsh who’s kite was the beginning of the Niagara Falls Suspension Bridge as well other people and situations where kites paved the way for our future and successes in world which we live in today.  For those attending the program and would like to make a kite to take home call the park office to secure the materials which will provided free of charge through the Park.

Camouflage

Fri, 04/15/2016 – 4:00pm to 5:30pm

Location:  Boone Fork Parking Area (Just north of the 300 Milepost on Blue Ridge Parkway) (GPS: 36.120076,-81.781358)http://goo.gl/dEizYH

Appropriate for all ages; children 16 and under must be accompanied by adult.  Please leave pets at home.

How many times have you walked passed something and not realized it was there until it was pointed out to you or it moved? Chances are pretty good this has happened to you and if so this program is for you.  Join Ranger Sicard to celebrate “Take A Child Outside Week” and learn the many ways animals use camouflage in the wild and also how to be more attentive when hiking out on the trails to notice more neat things than what is right on the trail.  This will be about a 30 minute program consisting of a presentation and an interactive part for attendees to try and locate several “staged” animals in the area around where the program is held.

100 Mile Hike (Nuwati Trail)

Fri, 04/22/2016 – 10:00am to 1:00pm

Location:  Boone Fork Parking Area (Just north of the 300 Milepost on Blue Ridge Parkway) (GPS: 36.120076,-81.781358)http://goo.gl/dEizYH

Appropriate for ages 8 and up.  Children under 16 must be accompanied by adult.  Please leave pets at home.
(2-mile hike round trip  |  Difficulty Level: Easy to Moderate)

Celebrate the North Carolina State Parks’ Centennial with Grandfather Mountain’s 100 Mile Challenge.   Hikers can log more miles for their challenge with our Nuwati Trail Hike. This two mile guided hike will take hikers along the Nuwati Trail, which follows the track of an old logging road. It’s an easy but rocky hike, including a spectacular view of the Boone Bowl and Calloway Peak from Storyteller’s Rock. Dress appropriately for the weather conditions and sturdy hiking shoes or boots are suggested. This will be approximately a 3 hour hike so please bring any water or snacks you will need to complete the hike.   Download 100 Mile hiking log at http://www.ncparks.gov/grandfather-mountain-state-park/activities.

Grandfather Mountain 100-Mile Challenge

Fri, 04/22/2016 – 12:00pm to 4:00pm

Location:  Boone Fork Parking Area (Just north of the 300 Milepost on Blue Ridge Parkway) (GPS: 36.120076,-81.781358)

Appropriate for all ages.  Children under 16 must be accompanied by adult. Please leave pets at home.
(4-mile hike round trip  |  Difficulty Level: Moderate to Strenuous)

Celebrate Earth Day with one of our park’s Centennial 100-Mile Challenge events.  Hikers will join a ranger on a 4-mile hike – hiking the Nuwati Trail to the Cragway Trail, up to Flat Rock View and returning on the Daniel Boone Scout Trail. The hike will be at a slow, but moderately strenuous pace and last about 4 hours.  Hikers should dress for current weather conditions and wear sturdy hiking boots.  Bring water and snacks.  Download 100 Mile hiking log at http://www.ncparks.gov/grandfather-mountain-state-park/activities.

Science Behind Water

Sat, 04/23/2016 – 2:00pm to 4:00pm

Location:  Profile Parking Area, Hwy 105 S, Banner Elk (GPS: 36.121990, -81.829993)

In honor of Science week, join Ranger Sicard at the Profile Trail parking lot anytime between 2 and 4 p.m. to learn some interesting tricks and science behind water and its effects on the environment and manmade objects.  The activities will take approximately 15 minutes to complete and can be done at any time during the schedule program time of 2:00-4:00pm.   http://www.ncsciencefestival.org/2016_event/grandfather-mountain

Emerging Spring Wildflowers at Grandfather Mountain

Sun, 04/24/2016 – 4:00PM-6:00pm

Location:  Profile Parking Area, Hwy 105 S, Banner Elk (Google Map:https://goo.gl/dBX99s)

In honor of Science week, join Ranger Appling in documenting emerging spring wildflowers to add to our bloom calendar. By maintaining this database we can help predict bloom dates, show trends and better understand what effects lead to plant emergence and blooming.  http://www.ncsciencefestival.org/2016_event/emerging

This program will be in conjunction with the Wildflower Walk at 4:00PM.

Need Help with Medicare Preventative Benefits?

Your Medicare benefits can do more than help cover the costs of doctor and hospital bills. Medicare’s preventive benefits help you to be proactive with your health in order to avoid serious illnesses or chronic conditions such as diabetes, heart disease and cancer.

Whether you get a flu vaccine, are screened for diabetes or other illnesses, or want help to quit smoking, Medicare preventive services are covered no matter what kind of

Medicare health plan you have. Preventive services can catch health problems early when treatment works best and can keep you from getting certain diseases or illnesses.

Preventive services include exams, lab tests, screenings, vaccines, monitoring and information to help you take care of your own health.

Medicare covers preventive care whether you’re in Original Medicare or a Medicare

Advantage Plan (also known as a private health plan). If you have Original Medicare, you pay no coinsurance or deductible for certain preventive services if you see a provider who participates in Medicare. Medicare Advantage Plans must also cover the full cost for preventive services that are free under Original Medicare as long as you follow the plan’s rules. Call your plan for details.

Keep in mind, you may have costs related to some of these preventive services if your provider makes a diagnosis during the service or performs additional procedures. For example, if your provider removes a polyp during a colonoscopy, the colonoscopy will be considered diagnostic and costs may apply.

The following is a list of preventive services that are covered with no deductible or coinsurance:

  • Welcome to Medicare Preventive Visit
  • Annual Wellness Visit
  • One-time Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Screening
  • Alcohol Misuse Screening and Counseling
  • Mammogram Screening
  • Breast Examination
  • Cervical Cancer Screening
  • Colon Cancer Screening
  • Depression Screening
  • Diabetes Screening
  • Heart Disease Screening
  • HIV Screening
  • Medical Nutritional Therapy
  • Obesity Screening and Counseling
  • Osteoporosis Screening
  • Prostate Cancer Screening
  • Smoking Cessation
  • Sexual Transmitted Infection Screening
  • Vaccines

If you have questions about Medicare’s preventive benefits, contact SHIIP, the North Carolina Seniors’ Health Insurance Information Program, at 855-408-1212 to speak with a trained counselor or to request a free brochure or you can call your local SHIIP office at 828-265-8090. SHIIP is part of the North Carolina Department of Insurance and assists people who have questions about Medicare, Medicare Part D, Medicare supplement, Medicare Advantage and long term care insurance. SHIIP also helps citizens recognize and prevent Medicare billing errors and possible fraud and abuse through the N.C. Senior Medicare Patrol program.

Trained SHIIP counselors are available for free, unbiased counseling appointments in all 100 North Carolina counties. Learn more at www.ncshiip.com.

Adrian Tait Selected as NC Regional Director for ResCare

(Boone, NC) Adrian Tait, Director of the High Country Workforce Development Board (HCWDB), has been selected as the North Carolina Regional Director for ResCare Workforce Services. He will assume this role next month.

Since 2011, Tait has served as director of the HCWDB and has helped the board continue to grow into a dynamic, demand-driven organization. The NCWorks Career Centers – which are overseen by the HCWDB – served 1,090 businesses and more than 15,000 job seekers across its seven-county region last year.

Through his leadership and collaborations with business, education, government, and non-profit leaders, the HCWDB has developed innovative solutions for the region such as partnering on unique strategies to re-engage students who have dropped out of school and regional collaborative initiatives to help more regional businesses find the talent they need to compete.

“The High Country Workforce Development Board is known nationally for our innovative approaches thanks for Adrian’s vision and leadership,” said Sallie Woodring, chair of the workforce development board. “He has worked hard for our region and also shared his passion across North Carolina over the past five years. His progressive approach and enthusiasm will be missed.”

ResCare Workforce Services is a national workforce services provider with operations in 330 locations across 29 states serving more than 1 million job seekers and thousands of employers annually. In his new role with ResCare, Tait will work with its operations throughout North Carolina, in partnership with local workforce boards and the broader NCWorks system, continuing to strengthen NCWorks Career Centers in many parts of the state. ResCare currently operates in five workforce regions in NC with 19 locations and more than 150 ResCare staff.

“While I am certainly excited to step into this new role, it is also with some sadness that I leave the High Country Workforce Development Board,” Tait said. “We’ve been a part of transforming the workforce system here in the mountains and beyond, and I’m proud of our staff and our board members.”

Woodring stated that the HCWDB will appoint an interim leader while it conducts a national search for Tait’s replacement.

The High Country Workforce Development Board oversees the workforce development system in the counties of Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Mitchell, Watauga, Wilkes, and Yancey. Its mission is to help employers meet their workforce needs, help individuals build careers, strengthen the local economy, and meet the challenges of global competition.

The HCWDB’s work reaches adults seeking more meaningful careers, dislocated workers aiming to regain employment, and young adults focused on getting the right start in life. The HCWDB also represents employers from a broad range of leading industries that need workers with the training, skills, and dedication to produce important products and services for a global marketplace. For both, the HCWDB helps guide the efforts of public and community resources to enhance the workforce capabilities.

Wells Fargo’s David Carroll to Speak at ASU March 24

David Carroll, executive vice president of wealth and investment management (WIM) will be the speaker for the spring Harlan E. Boyles Distinguished Lecture at Appalachian State University.

The event, sponsored by the Walker College of Business, is Thursday, March 24, at 10 a.m. in Holmes Convocation Center on Appalachian’s campus and is free and open to the public. For more information, call 828-262-2057.

A financial services veteran with more than 36 years in the industry, Carroll joined Wachovia Bank & Trust Company in 1979 and then Wachovia’s predecessor, First Union National Bank, in 1981. From 2005 until the merger with Wells Fargo, Carroll served as senior executive vice president and head of Wachovia’s Capital Management Group, which included retail brokerage, asset management and retirement and investment products. Previously, he was head of corporate services and merger integration, chief of eCommerce and technology, and head of First Union’s General Banking Group region in Florida and earlier in Georgia.

Carroll earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration from UNC Chapel Hill. He is a board member of Trees Charlotte, the UNC Chapel Hill Foundation and the Chapel Hill Investment Fund. He also serves and on the Board of Visitors at UNC’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Approximately 34,000 team members in the wealth and investment management unit provide a full range of personalized wealth management, investment and retirement products and services to clients across U.S.-based businesses. Through its sub-brands — Wells Fargo Advisors, The Private Bank, Abbot Downing, Wells Fargo Institutional Retirement & Trust, and Wells Fargo Asset Management — WIM delivers financial planning, private banking, credit, investment management and fiduciary services to high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth individuals and families.

It also serves customers’ brokerage needs, supplies retirement and trust services to institutional clients and provides investment management capabilities to global institutional clients through separate accounts and the Wells Fargo Advantage Funds.

WIM manages and administers $1.6 trillion in client assets, including $178 billion in deposits, and holds $63 billion in loans.

About the Boyles Lecture Series

The Distinguished CEO Lecture Series began in spring 1988. In October 1991 the biannual series was dedicated to Harlan E. Boyles, who served as State Treasurer of North Carolina for 24 years. Boyles died in 2003.

The series provides an opportunity for students, faculty and members of the community to meet outstanding business leaders.

Free Autism Day Camp Set for April 15-17 at Camp Sky Ranch

Camp Crinkleroot, a free day camp April 15-17, is recruiting campers ages 8-14 with autism spectrum disorders. The retreat will be held at the Camp Sky Ranch facility in Blowing Rock. It will be staffed by trained Appalachian State University volunteers.

Camp Crinkleroot is a program sponsored by Appalachian’s Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina Institute for Health and Human Services within the Beaver College of Health Sciences. It provides parents and caretakers with free respite care, offers children on the autism spectrum the opportunity to participate in typical camp activities that have been modified for their specific needs and celebrates April as autism awareness month. Siblings of campers are also invited to attend and will participate in all camp activities as well as special camp activities designed for them.

Children will have one-on-one supervision and be encouraged to take part in expressive arts and nature activities, field games, s’mores making and other camp fun.

 Applications are due by April 1. Availability is limited to 15 campers.

Parents and caregivers interested in participating in this program should contact Mary Sheryl Horine at horinems@appstate.edu to receive a camp application and information or visit http://www.ihhs.appstate.edu/community/crinkleroot.