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Today’s Email Announcements

Writers Advocate to Speak in Boone, 3/31

Ginger B. Collins, author, poet and advocate for writers, “a coppertop on the mountain”, will share her experience of working with writers to build writing communities.  She has worked in with an Atlanta as the publicity chairman for the Atlanta Writers Club. She will  talk about her experience as the founder of Alleghany Writers, which is a a thriving new writers’ organization. Her talk will take place in 3rd Place on Appalachian St.,  in Boone. The event will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday 31st March 

Her topic will be “Creating a Writers’ community”.  Behind The Stacks poetry group will host the event. It is free and open to all. 

For any other information call Mary Gray at 828-264-5620.

 

Get a Taste of Technical Theatre with Wilkes Playmakers: Backstage Courses Series, March-May 

Set Design / Model Box Making – Lucas Matney, instructor:  In this workshop, participants will look at a script or story and design the set for a scene. They will learn about the process a set designer goes through, create a mood board of their ideas and then in groups create a scale model of their design in a model box.   March 31, 2018   9 am – 1 pm

Costuming Design – Heather Dean, instructor:  This course is intended for ages 13 and over. Participants in this workshop will look at characters from an upcoming Wilkes Playmakers production. They will look at the role of costume designer and consider what a costume says about a character.  They will create a simple mood board of ideas, look at frugal ways of costuming (including repurposing clothing to fit a design need) and create a simple pattern from large paper. April 7, 2018   9 am – 1 pm

Intro to Set Construction – Lucas Matney, instructor:  In this workshop, participants will learn basic materials, techniques and conventions of traditional stage set construction.  An emphasis will be placed upon tool safety, identifying materials and hardware and basic stage carpentry.  This will be a hands-on workshop. Participants will work in groups to construct units of core stage scenery.     April 14, 2018   9 am – 1 pm

Intro to Costume Construction / Basic Sewing – Heather Dean, instructor:  This course is intended for ages 13 and over.  Participants will learn sewing machine and tool basics, how to layout a pattern, how to pin and cut fabric, and how to sew simple straight and curved seams. Participants will construct simple unit of costuming that could be used in upcoming Wilkes Playmakers production.  Fabric and patterns will be provided.  Participants are asked to bring a pair of fabric scissors.   Participants who can bring their own portable sewing machine will be given a 20% discount on fee for this course.   April 21, 2018   9 am – 1 pm

So You Want to be in Film?_ Jared Shumate, instructor: This course is targeted to participants who have never acted before or who have some theatrical experience which they want to develop for film work.  Participants will learn how to adjust their movements and performance based upon camera positioning and will gain confidence in acting in front of the camera. Participants will learn different ways actors can find work in the film industry  as well as basic information regarding what to look for in an agent,  getting headshots and skills needed for auditioning in film.  May 12, 2018   9am – 1 pm    This course is limited to 6 participants.

Directing in Community Theatre – Instructor Paula Joines:  This course is intended for ages 18 and over who have had some experience in community theatre previously.  Course will focus upon script analysis and preparation, casting, the phases of the rehearsal process, making the most of rehearsal time, basic blocking / stage movement, working with the production team and tips for growing confident community theatre actors.   May 26, 2018    9 am – 1 pm

All courses taught at Benton Hall, 300 D Street, North Wilkesboro

Fee for each course is $30 and includes materials

This series of courses is designed for ages 16 and over unless otherwise noted.   

Register in advance online by emailing wpeducation@wilkes.net  or by calling (336) 838-7529

Minimum of 4 participants per course is required.  Maximum enrollment is 12 participants unless noted otherwise. 

 

Appalachian Gastroenterology Will Join Appalachian Regional Healthcare System, April 1

Boone, NC (March 26, 2018) – Appalachian Gastroenterology, also known as AppGastro, will become a member of Appalachian Regional Healthcare System (ARHS) on April 1, 2018. The practice, which is located less than a mile from Watauga Medical Center, will join Appalachian Regional Medical Associates (ARMA), the healthcare system’s multi-specialty practice group.

 

Established in 1997, AppGastro specializes in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of diseases that affect the digestive tract. Patients are often referred to AppGastro if they need to schedule a colonoscopy or if they suffer from acid reflux, indigestion, nausea, bloating, gallbladder disorders or abdominal pain.

 
The practice is staffed by its founding board-certified gastroenterologist Douglas Trate, MD. Dr. Trate earned his undergraduate degree in Biology at the University of Pennsylvania and his Doctor of Medicine degree at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey. His post graduate training included a three-year internal medicine residency and a three-year fellowship in gastroenterology at Temple University. Dr. Trate is joined in practice by Kimberly Taylor, FNP-C and Leah Leska, FNP-BC.
 
Dr. Douglas Trate said of the transition, “After more than 20 years of private practice, we have decided that it’s time to just practice medicine and let someone else help us with the business aspect of running a medical practice. In this changing medical landscape, partnering with the hospital allows us to continue to deliver the best quality coordinated care, at the same time remain competitive by providing resources to hire top-notch staff, acquire state-of-the-art training and technology.”
 
“We are very pleased to welcome AppGastro into the Appalachian Regional Medical Associates family,” said Robert Johnston, Vice President of Ambulatory Services and Clinical Integration. “Our goal in ARMA is to integrate our collective services in order to provide the best care possible for our patients.”
 
The Boone office location, 870 State Farm Rd, Suite 102, as well as the phone number 828-264-0029 will remain the same.
 
To schedule an appointment at AppGastro, call 828-264-0029. To learn more about Appalachian Regional Healthcare System visit apprhs.org.
 

 

Boone Area Lions Hold Country Breakfast, 4/7                             

 Where can you get all you can eat country breakfast for only $7?   Eggs, pancakes, bacon and country ham will be on the menu when the Boone Area Lions Club holds its annual Country Breakfast on Saturday, April 7 from 7:00 – 11:00 am in the Fellowship Hall of the First Baptist Church of Boone on King Street. All are invited to eat in or take out. Tickets are available at the door for $7 for adults and $4 for children 6 and under.

 The Boone Area Lions Club was founded in 1936 and was the first service club in Boone.  The  Lions will conduct a Blood Drive on May 1 at the Holiday Inn Express and sponsor the Lions Vision and Hearing screening unit on June 30 at Walmart. Lions’ flags are displayed on seven holidays in downtown Boone and on Hwy 421. The first flags will be flown on May 19 for Armed Forces Day.

 The proceeds from the Country Breakfast are used to support community projects aiding the visually and hearing impaired children and adults of the High Country.  Lions assist those in need of glasses with the assistance of  NC Lions, Inc. The club also assists local visually impaired residents by paying for the registration for one week summer camp sessions at Camp Dogwood on Lake Norman. Local residents are also able to participate in the Visually Impaired Persons fishing tournament at Nag’s Head in October.

 The Boone Area Lions will also be collecting used eyeglasses during the breakfast to be sent to people in need in other countries. Last year Lions distributed more than six million glasses in developing nations. Local residents are urged to drop off used glasses, dark glasses, cell phones and hearing aids during the morning. Lions Club brooms will also be on sale.

 Lions, who were first formed in 1917, have been celebrating 100 years of service this year and are recognized worldwide for their service to people who are blind and visually impaired. This service began when Helen Keller challenged Lions to become “knights of the blind, in the crusade against darkness” during the 1925 Lions Clubs International convention, and the organization has followed that direction in the 93 years since.  Lions Clubs International is the largest international service organization in the world with more than1.4 million members in 46,000 clubs in more than 210 countries and geographical locations.

 In addition, Lions make a strong commitment to young people through many youth programs. The Boone club supports a Cub Scout pack and a Little League baseball team. Lions also work to improve the environment, build homes for the disabled, support diabetes education,  and, through the Lions Club International Foundation, provide disaster relief around the work.

 The Boone Area Lions Club meets for a lunch meeting at 12:00 pm on the first and third Tuesday of every month at the Sagebrush Restaurant.  For further information about the Lions or to attend a meeting, call Lion Roger Bodo at 828-260-2019.

 

High Country Writers Guest Speaker, April 12

Thursday, April 12, 2 pm

Watauga County Public Library, 140 Queen Street, Boone, North Carolina

Please join us for a special visit with Susan Rivers, author of the Civil War – era novel The Second Mrs. Hockaday.

Rivers’ debut novel, The Second Mrs. Hockaday, published by Algonquin Books, was a People Magazine “Best New Books Pick,” a Woman’s Day “Editor’s Desk Pick” in 2017, an IndieNext, Library Reads and SIBA Winter OKRA Pick and was selected by the online publication, BookBrowse, as one of The Best Books for Book Clubs in 2018. The novel was a finalist for The Center for Fiction First Novel Prize 2017.

People Magazine called it “suspenseful and satisfying,” Woman’s Day described it as a “page-turner…meticulously researched and beautifully written,” Kirkus characterized it as “a compulsively readable work” and the Charlotte Observer called it “spellbinding.” Booklist, which gave the novel a starred review, wrote that “this galvanizing historical portrait of courage , determination and abiding love mesmerizes and shocks.”

Inspired by a true incident, this novel takes place at the conclusion of the American Civil War, when a young soldier’s wife in South Carolina goes on trial for murdering an infant she bore while her husband was far away, fighting with Lee’s army. Placidia Hockaday, the protagonist, struggles with the unraveling of the social order in her Southern homeland even as her views on race and family are transformed. A love story, a story of racial divide, and a story of the South as it fell in the war, The Second Mrs. Hockaday reveals how that generation — and the next — began to see their world anew.

Rivers began her writing career as a playwright, receiving the Julie Harris Playwriting Award and the New York Drama League Award, working as an NEA Writer-in-Residence in San Francisco, and being named as a finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn Award for British and American Women Playwrights.

Fiction became her focus after moving to the Carolinas in 1995.  She holds an MFA in Fiction-writing from Queens University of Charlotte in North Carolina and was awarded a Regional Artist Grant from the Arts and Sciences Council there.

The author lives with her husband in a former cotton-mill town in upstate South Carolina, where stories and stray animals are thick on the ground. None are turned away.

Ms. Rivers will be speaking to the High Country Writers at the Watauga County Public Library at 10 am on April 12, followed by a presentation for a general audience at 2 pm. All are welcome to attend both events.

 

Day Trips With Watauga County Parks and Rec, April 18-May 25

HCSG Day Trippin’

 

Men’s Senior Softball League Signup, June- September

Senior softball flier-2

 

Caldwell County – Call For Artists – Caldwell Visual Artists Competition, Submission Deadline Mid June

The Caldwell Arts Council is pleased to announce the 42nd Annual Caldwell Visual Artists Competition scheduled for June 22-July 28, 2018.

Cash prizes will be awarded at the opening reception June 22, 2018, 5:00-7:00 p.m.

This competition is open to 2-D (paintings, collage, etc.) and 3-D (pottery, small sculpture, etc.) visual artists 18 years of age or older who reside, work, attend school or take art classes in Caldwell County.  Photography is excluded from this competition; however, Caldwell Arts Council will host a new photography competition in January 2019!

A non-refundable entry fee of $25 entitles each artist to display two works of art. Artwork must be delivered either June 15 (9am-5pm),June 16 (10am-2pm) or June 18 (9am-5pm).

The details and prospectus are available on the website: www.caldwellarts.com or by calling 828-754-2486.