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Today’s Email Announcements

1) Mountain Laurel Quilt Guild to Meet on Thursday, Dec. 3

The Mountain Laurel Quilt Guild will have its Christmas luncheon on Thursday, December 3rd, at 11:30 AM.  We will meet at the Laurel Fork Baptist Church off Aho Road.  From Boone take 321 south to Aho Road and turn left. Go 1.8 miles and turn left onto Laurel Fork Church Road (there will be a sign on the right hand side of the road for the church). Go up the hill and the church is there.  If you are coming from Blowing Rock turn right on Aho Road. We will have soup, sandwiches, desserts and soft drinks.  There will be a drawing for a quilt and an interesting program.  Call Dolores at 295-6148 if you have any questions.

2) Lessons and Carols at St. Mary of the Hills on Sunday, Dec. 6

The choir of St. Mary of the Hills Episcopal Church, along with the St. Cecelia children’s choir, will present a traditional Advent Lessons and Carols service Sunday afternoon, December 6th at 3:00 pm. The service will be held in the church, and everyone is truly welcome.

Familiar to Christians everywhere through BBC broadcasts from King’s Chapel, Cambridge, the service tells the story of the fall of Adam, the promise of the Messiah, and the birth of Jesus thorugh short Bible readings interspersed with carols and hymns. Sung in Anglican churches all over the world since the 1880’s, the service is a lovely part of the preparation for Christmas and the celebration of the miracle of God’s love as expressed by the birth of the Christ child.

Although the terms “carol” and “hymn” are often used interchangeably, hymns are intended to teach us some point of theology, while carols – just like the stained glass windows in medieval cathedrals – tell a Bible story in a way both joyous and reverential. Music for this Lessons and Carols includes – Adam lay ybounden by Warlock, the traditional Appalachian carol I wonder as I wander, a traditional spiritual I Wanna Be Ready, Lo How a Rose, Healey Willan’s I beheld her, the lively Spanish carol Riu, riu, chiu, and the lovely lullaby Bethlehem down by Warlock.

3) LMC’s Dr. Skeate Awarded First Whalen Master Teacher Grant

Dr. Skeate, professor of wildlife biology and coordinator of the Wildlife Biology Program at Lees-McRae College, has received the Whalen Master Teacher Grant to fund student research projects for the Belize Foundation for Research and Environmental Education (BFREE). As a scholar involved in tropical research for many years, he understands the challenges and is working to improve the student experience.

“Ecological research projects require data input over a long period of time, and unfortunately, spending long periods of time at a tropical research station is challenging for faculty and students,” he said. “The goal of this project is to develop long-term, collaborative studies that create opportunities for visiting students to contribute their findings during a brief stay at the BFREE field station.”

Dr. Skeate’s grant will enable a tree fruit phenology study to record the presence or absence of ripe fruit, and a large mammal camera trap project to track species diversity and habitat usage. Both are designed to involve visiting students in long-term data collection.

As the data from these projects accumulate, students will be able to access this information on the BFREE website prior to their trip to the field station, and then follow new research after returning to the States. The BFREE field station will be the first to adopt the approach of using student groups to collect data over time.

A Whalen Master Teacher is a faculty member who is committed to engaging in research and scholarship that leads to the development and implementation of an innovative pedagogical or applied technique or method recognized in his or her field. The technique or method must be proven to enhance teaching and learning in a particular area of study and presented at a national or international conference or comparable educational venue.

Nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina, Lees-McRae College is a private, four-year college offering diverse baccalaureate degrees, strong athletic programs and outstanding faculty. With more than 1,000 students hailing from 30 states and 10 countries, Lees-McRae’s broad core curriculum is enhanced by field-specific career preparation and experiential learning. For more information, please visit www.lmc.edu

For more information, please contact Meghan McCandless, director of communications, at mccandlessm@lmc.edu or 828.898.8729.

4) See Holiday Comedy “Dashing Through the Snow” in Mountain City Dec. 3-5

Johnson County Community Theatre presents the Jones, Hope and Wooten holiday comedy “DASHING THROUGH THE SNOW” in Mountain City, TN. Start your Christmas season in a great mood with Johnson County Community Theatre on December 3-5 at 7pm and December 6 at 3pm at Heritage Hall. It’s the most wonderful time of the year at The Snowflake Inn in Tinsel, Texas where the guests are mysterious, over the top and just plain hilarious! Advance adult tickets are $10, call Heritage Hall at 423-727-7444 for tickets and more information.

5) Smartphone Photography Workshop Set for Dec. 4 at Library

December 4, 2015 – Watauga County Public Library – Meeting Room

Most of us carry a very capable camera in our pockets, but few understand how truly powerful this device can be. Focusing specifically on editing in Snapspeed, this workshop will introduce tools and techniques to make better images with a smartphone.

Join ASU Photography Professor, Josh White, (recently published in the National Geographic) for this informative workshop on Friday, December 4th at 4:00 PM.

6) Cancer Center’s Second Annual Lighting of the Tree Scheduled for Dec. 3

The Seby B. Jones Regional Cancer Center‘s 2nd annual Lighting of the Tree ceremony is scheduled for Thursday, December 3 from 6 – 7 pm in Watauga Medical Center‘s auditorium atrium located at 336 Deerfield Road, Boone, NC. The public is welcome to attend and honor and/or remember loved ones who have faced cancer, no matter where they were treated.

The ceremony will feature the lighting of the tree, refreshments, live music and an opportunity to fellowship with Cancer Center staff, neighbors and friends. In addition, participants may purchase commemorative porcelain ornaments in honor/or memory of a loved one that will be placed on the tree prior to the ceremony. A volunteer decorating committee will carefully hand paint each honoree’s name onto their respective ornament. Ornament orders are by donation only and must be received by December 1st to ensure they are completed in time for the ceremony. All donations will benefit the Cancer Resource Alliance (CRA), a Seby B. Jones Cancer Center program designed to help cancer survivors and their families find support during and after diagnosis and treatment.

The Lighting of the Tree ceremony is open to people of all faiths. In addition to the ceremony tree located at Watauga Medical Center, the Cancer Center staff will also decorate a second tree in the Medical Oncology lobby on the first floor of the Cancer Center.

To order an ornament or to learn more about the Lighting of the Tree ceremony, call 828-262-4332 or visit https://apprhs.org/events.