Rutherford Weekly

Our 18th Year • Issue No. 36 • September 9, 2010 Having Tax Problems? Local Courteous Service TAX DEBT CONSULTANTS 50+ Years Prior IRS Experience Serving Western NC & Upstate SC J & L Tax Consultants, LLC “SMALL T WN FRIENDL “SMALL TOWN FRIENDL Y”® Y” 369 Butler Road, Forest City, North Carolina 28043 • Phone: 828-248-1408 • Judith Johnson 704-692-0837 Leila Annunziata 828-606-9451 Email: advertising@rutherfordweekly.com RUTHERFORD COUNTY SENIOR CENTER NAMED “CENTER OF EXCELLENCE” Pages 16-1 VacuuA1 Janitoriali acuum & Jan torial A1 m Vacuum Floor Cleanersloor Cleaners Repairsepairs Wood 352 W. Main St. Forest City Your 828-245-4977 Mon-Fri 8:30-5 www.vacscents.com Coupon Network See page 30. See page 30. OUR MAGIC OWLS! OUR MAGIC OWLS! for for Commemorative Commemorative InsertInsert Page 23 age 23 See See Youth from St. Paul Lutheran in Newton returned for a 4th summer to help senior adults in need. They installed 3 ramps, including 2 used ones donated by local families. Summer at Rutherford Housing Partnership (RHP) is synonymous with hands-on ministry. That’s when we pair interested church youth volunteers with those needing urgent repairs through RHP. This summer youth from 19 churches have adopted projects and provided urgently needed repairs for 21 homeowners- from replacing roofs and building ramps to putting up ceiling tiles and replacing rotten fl oors. Among those churches providing volunteers this summer have been: “$ Entry form on page 15 Financial & Legal Financial & Legal Guidance See page 14. Guidance See page 14. acuum Wood Filters Vacuum acuum Belts Bags Belts Bags ilters es 16-17 “Rutherford County Senior Center provides opportunities for senior adults to help them maintain and enhance their quality of life.” The Rutherford County Senior Center’s mission statement encompasses the attitude behind their latest award. The Senior Center is pleased to announce that they have been named a “Center of Excellence” by the State of North Carolina’s Division of Aging and Adult Services, which is a Division of the NC Department of Health and Human Services. The certi- fi cation was presented June 30, 2010, and will be effective until June 29, 2015. The staff has worked for many months in preparation for the on-site review. This is the fi rst time the Rutherford County Senior Center has applied for this award. Centers can be named either a Center of Merit or a Center of Excellence. County Manager, John Condrey stated, “Becoming a Center of Excellence is a tribute to the hard work of the staff at the Senior Center. On any given day seniors can go to the center and enjoy various opportunities to socialize with their peers, attend health and information programs, join in special activities, have a nutritious meal, or maybe take a day trip. The Senior Center program is enhanced through many volunteers. Many help at the center and others deliver meals to homebound senior citizens across the county. This award will help enhance our program and increase the center’s reach.” There were numerous reasons the Center chose to pursue this certifi cation. The certifi cation enhances a center’s professionalism, provides accountability, assures quality services, improves credibility, markets the organization, identifi es excel- lence, provides a snapshot of the organization, and promotes consistency/uniform standard. The Division of Aging and Adult Services (DAAS) also links funding to the level of certifi cation. Prior to the certifi cation, the Rutherford County Senior Center was able to get one share of state funding. However, now that they are a Center of Excel- lence, they will be able to access three shares. The Senior Center has six full-time employees and nineteen part-time employees. Employees handle scheduling, maintenance, training, meal delivery, event plan- ning, and many more tasks. There are fi ve locations in Rutherford County. The main Center is on Callahan-Koon Road in Spindale and is open Monday-Friday from 8:30am–5pm. The other four are satellite locations at the Shingle Hollow Community Center, Southern Baptist Church in Ruth, Henrietta Baptist Church in Henrietta and Bethel Baptist Church in Ellenboro. These satellite locations are open Monday-Friday from 9:00am-1:00pm. All fi ve locations serve a hot lunch daily, that meet one-third of the recommended daily allowance by USDA standards. A lot of hours, including overtime hours, by staff were given in order to get the entire paperwork ready in time for the certifi cation. However, by going through this process, the Center found ways to improve the services, programs and opportuni- Barbara Hill- Activity Coordinator, Patsy Wilson- Director, and Louise Allison- Administrative Assistant. ties for older adults of Rutherford County. September is Senior Center Month and our local center has daily activities planned throughout the month. The Center has found it is successful to “sell” the programs, not the Center in general. People are often reluctant to claim a connec- tion to a Center if it conjures up an image of people in rocking chairs just staring at the wall. But, if they can claim to be a part of a specifi c program, that’s a whole other story. Many seniors consider themselves a part of the exercise classes: Fun Time Cheerleading, Tai Chi, Aerobics, Silver Striders, Jazz, Tap, Line Dance and Senior Games. They claim ownership of the Needlework, Stitchery, and Art Groups to name a few. It makes it easier for newcomers to step through the door if they have a group to belong to. In July 2010, there were 162 Senior Centers in North Carolina that were eligible to go through the application/certifi cation process. Six are at the Merit Level and seventy at the Level of Excellence. RUTHERFORD HOUSING PARTNERSHIP... HELPING THOSE IN NEED RUTHERFORD HOUSING PARTNERSHIP... HELPING THOSE IN NEED Mission Unidiversity: a partnership of First Baptist High Point, First Baptist Greenville, SC, and Park Road Baptist in Charlotte, brought its summer missions trip to Rutherford County in June. Home Missions: Adaville Baptist in Spindale and Floyd’s Creek Baptist in Forest City joined forces in July to stay at home for their summer missions experience. illumiNATION; a program of Salem United Method- ist in Bostic, brought in groups from Lilesville United Methodist, Avery Parish Methodist churches, and First United Methodist Salisbury in July. St. Paul Lutheran in Newton and Branch Creek Com- munity Church of Harleysville, Pa. each returned to Rutherford County for another week of hands-on mis- sions work. Lebanon Road Church of Christ in Nashville, TN; not only adopted a local Church of Christ congregation to help but also helped complete a roof for an RHP client. Taking the City 2010; was a partnership of seven county church youth groups, led by First Baptist Church Spin- dale, and included Corinth Baptist, Gray’s Creek Bap- tist, Green Hill Baptist, Mount Pleasant Baptist, Pleas- ant View Community Church and Temple Baptist- who chose to stay at home to do missions this summer. The work is rewarding on so many levels. Those with Terry Ware gave 3 days in July to helping a group from Avery County build a handicap ramp. disabilities get access to their homes; widows get leaky roofs replaced. But most particularly rewarding are the relationships that grow between the young people and the homeowners and between the young people and the adults who lead them in this work. Among this summer’s skilled leaders were: Tim Bov- ender, Rutherfordton; Bill Chapman, Rutherfordton; Jim Culver. Forest City; Dennis Danner, Bostic; Earl Greene, Ellenboro; Chris Henson, Forest City; Billy Honeycutt, Rutherfordton; Gary McCabe, Rutherfordton; James Schmitt, Spindale; Tommy Sims, Rutherfordton; James Upton, Forest City; Terry Ware, Rutherfordton RHP is looking for skilled Volunteers! Are you a skilled worker? If you would like to help RHP with urgently needed repairs to those in need, call them at 828-248-3431. 5,000 Rebate on ALL MODELS. Your satisfaction is our priority.” 2626 S. York Rd. • Gastonia, NC 704-824-4000 The Carolina Turn Key Home at $610 per month with approved credit ©CommunityFirstMedia 16,000 copies THURSDAY! winner! EVER URSD winner! EVERY URSD You could be our nextour next $ ou could be 100 100 6,000 copies

• Cover