1000 x 90

Today’s Email Announcements

Blue Ridge Parkway hosting ‘Wilderness Skills: What to do when…’ program May 26

On Saturday, May 26, the Blue Ridge Parkway Evening Program will be “Wilderness Skills: What to do when…” at 7:30 p.m. at the Linville Falls Campground Amphitheater, located at milepost 316.

During your adventures along the Blue Ridge Parkway, you may encounter wildlife. This can be an awe inspiring event or one filled with fear. Come find out how to deal with these encounters so that both you and the wildlife can continue to enjoy your time along the parkway.

The program is free to the public and will last approximately 45 minutes.

Amateur Radio License Test Session June 16

The Watauga Amateur Radio Club (http://wataugahamradio.net) will hold an Amateur Radio License Test Session inWalker Hall*, Room 103a, on the ASU campus at 121 Bodenheimer Drive beginning at 12:30 pm on Saturday, June 16. Please bring a photo ID, $10 test fee (cash or check), pencils, and optionally a calculator (nongraphing). You must provide either your Social Security Number or Federal Registration Number (FRN).

You may obtain an FRN from the FCC before the test; visit https://apps.fcc.gov/cores/html/Register_New_FRN.htm to get started.

Hurricane Maria devestated Puerto Rico on Sept 20, 2017. On Oct 6, over two weeks later, nearly 85% of Puerto Rico was still without cell phone coverage; ham radio was *the* way to communicate.

Normally, six to eight hours after a power outage, cell phone towers will run out of reserve battery power cutting off cell phone service. Become an amateur radio operator and be ready to help in a disaster.

For more information, email Bill Bauldry at [email protected]

* View a map at https://maps.appstate.edu/campus-map/22.

Blue Ridge Parkway Seeking Volunteers

The Blue Ridge Parkway needs volunteers to help this season at the Cone Manor and the Linn Cove Visitors Center.

If you would like to help out, please call Ranger Chuck Robertson at the Sandy Flats Ranger Station, 828-348-3519.

Appalachian Regional Library Wins ‘The Great American Read’ Programming Grant from PBS and ALA

Appalachian Regional Library will receive a grant from the American Library Association (ALA) and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) to host programs in conjunction with “The Great American Read,” an eight-part television series and multi-platform initiative that celebrates the joy of reading and the books we love.
 
“The Great American Read programming grant gives our communities an opportunity to be part of a national conversation about the power of literature to inform and shape the lives of all Americans, and also, we expect it will be a bunch of fun,” says Laura McPherson, Adult Services Librarian at Ashe County Public Library.
 
More than 220 public libraries applied for the $2,000 grants, which will support public programs around the series. Appalachian Regional Library – which includes the public libraries in Ashe, Watauga and Wilkes counties – was one of just 50 libraries nationwide to be selected.
 
The library’s programming for “The Great American Read” will kick off at 1 p.m. on May 19with events at each of the main libraries in Boone, North Wilkesboro, and West Jefferson, where the names of the top 100 books will be announced, voting will begin, and attendees will get a sneak peek of the two-hour PBS premiere. Refreshments will be served. For more information about this and other events, visit www.arlibrary.org.
 
In addition to the grant money, Appalachian Regional Library will receive a DVD collection of the series with public performance rights; a hardcover copy of the companion book, “The Great American Read: The Book of Books” by PBS (Black Dog & Leventhal, August 21, 2018); and other resources.
 
The libraries will also have the opportunity to host “sneak peek” screenings of the series premiere and five theme episodes before they broadcast to the public.
Premiering May 22, “The Great American Read” will engage audiences with a list of 100 diverse books, encouraging audiences to read the books, vote from the list of 100, and share their personal connections to the titles.
 
The two-hour launch episode will kick off a summer of reading and voting. In fall 2018, seven new episodes will air, featuring appearances by celebrities, athletes, experts, authors and everyday Americans advocating for their favorite book, culminating with a finale that reveals America’s best-loved novel as chosen by the American public.