February 22, 2008

Joy Menius was doing double or triple duty today- providing not only our piano accompaniment, but hopping up to the head table and introducing our program by Tonya Hayes and Allison Dark, with the Children’s Home. Not only that, she brought her mother-in-law Henri Menius as a guest (something which actually got John to the meeting early and sitting beside her on the dias). Daughter Amanda was with Dad Dale Lambert. Jim Campbell, visiting from the Randolph club, was our only Rotarian guest.

Our student guests were both from Asheboro High: Elizabeth Blakely, daughter of Kelly and James Chriscoe, is in the band and on the tennis team, and plans to attend ASU and become a nurse. Joe Boyle, son of Michael and Gayle Boyle, is also on the tennis team, runs cross country, and is in the band. He plans to attend NCSU and study engineering.

Richard Garkalns was at the back table hawking the Human Race sponsored by the Volunteer Center. Register with Richard and win a a 19″ HDTV.

Condolences to James Gouty on the passing of his mother. Break a leg to Phil Shore, starring this week at the Sunset Theater in Harvey.

Carol Matney introduced new member Christy Smith, who lives with her husband Greg on an 80-acre produce farm near Ramseur. She is the daughter of Allen nad Brenda Flow ers, attended UNC-G, and runs Horizon Consulting Services. President HR welcomed her to the club and awarded her our usual bundle of paraphenalia.

Tar Wheels Past: Red wrote on September 23, 1965, about John Bunch’s four boys. Ed was leaving the scene, and Bill’s response to “Who Started the Fight?” was “the nearest one.”

Joy Menius rose to introduce our speaker Tonya Hayes of the Children’s Home Society of North Carolina, who lives in Level Cross with her family. Allison Dark, their Director of Development, ran the powerpoint show. Joy noted with emotion that both of the Meius children were adopted through the Children’s Home.

The Children’s Home is 105 years old. It was started by Greensboro businessmen (the same ones who founded the Chamber of Commerce) in order to keep orphans off the streets. Child Abuse and neglect is still a big problem in North Carolina, says Tonya, with children under age 4 the most vulnerable. A child dies every 9 days in North Carolina from abuse and maltreatment. The state has 100,000 children in foster care, with 3,000 of them having been permanently separated from the biological parents. Most of these kids are between the ages of 6 and 16, and most of them wait an average of 3 years for adoption. Of the kids older than 16 who age out of foster care on their 18th birthday, 70% end up homeless, and 76% end up in prison.

Since its founding in 1902 the Children’s Home has placed more than 13,500 children for adoption. In FY 2007 they served more than 6200 families and children, providing more than 40,000 total days of foster care. But even at that level, Children’s Home Society could find homes for just 36% of the children referred for foster care. Between 1940 and 1970, CHS placed an average of 350 kids per year with adoptive parents, but in 2007 they placed just 200 (46%) in adoptive homes. The reason for the decline in placements is that they receive fewer infants– most available children are “older”– more than 5 years old.

CHS spends about $15,000 per adoption in finding and preparing the families and counseling the children. Their annual budget is over $8 million, of which more than 85% goes to client services. They are a United Way agency, too!

[Editorial note: the good-looking couple who flashed past in the CHS video were Eric and Christy Luckenbach of Asheboro, who have adopted their two children through CHS. Your Scribe would point out that CHS (while top quality service) is not the only provider of foster care or adoption coordination in the Piedmont. I am actually now licensed as a foster parent through the Randolph County Department of Social Services, and there are other options even beyond that.]

February 15, 2008

[The Scribe apologizes for the quality of today's pictures, but he forgot the real camera.  This is what a cell phone camera can do...]

Joy welcomed the packed house at Asheboro Rotary today with poundy Broadway hits like Strike Up the Band . Guests decorated nearly every table, along with red balloons and candy hearts, courtesy of Jaci B, and tasty little chocolate bon-bons at each place, courtesy of our speaker. Quite Upscale! Phil Shore caught the theme by using the invocation to seek Divine intervention to make the world a sweeter place.

We were covered up with guests today, and Rebecca Redding introduced Kim Newsome, with Talmadge Baker; Mimi and Chris Cooper, parents of the speaker, with Linda Cranford; Dr. Christine Giarmo, with Jaci B; Christie Smith with Carol Matney; Darren Allen with partner Alan Pugh; Elizabeth Mason with husband Rodney; Emily Ledwell with Jerry Hill; and Jill Hayes, guidance counselor with Randleman High. Visiting Rotarians were Jim Campbell, from the Randolph Club; former District Governor Henry Brown, from Pinehurst, and Jeannine Thompson, from the Bakersfield, CA. club.

That brought us to our numerous student guests, introduced by Mini Singh. From AHS, we had Kori Chriscoe and Julia Apoian. Kori is the daughter of Keith and Julie Chriscoe (not our Keith, but doubtless distantly related). She’s in the National Honor society and volunteers with Big Brothers/ Big Sisters, and plans to attend UNC-W and become a physician’s assistant in dermatology. Julie is the daughter of Sue and Steve Poe Apoian. She plays saxaphone with the “Zero Period” (i.e., 7:30 AM) jazz band, flute in the marching band and wind ensemble, and plans to major in chemistry and spanish at ASU, then attend Emory for medical school.

Also today we were pleased to have Patricia Fiorelli and Matt Johnson, seniors at Randleman High. Patricia is a varsity cheerleader and the key club secretary. Her father Joe is Kyle Petty’s car chief at Petty Enterprises, and her mother is a Randolph County School dropout prevention counselor. She plans to attend ASU or Chapel Hill and become a physical therapist. Matt Johnson is the grandson of Richard Earl Johnson, past District Governor and former member of this club. He plays football and basketball and plans to attend ASU. But he came prepared for a talent show, as he proceeded to show off his senior project: a guitar that he built himself, over the course of 61 hours of work, under the guidance of his mentor Gerald Hampton. Just to show that it works, Matt played and sang the Kenny Chesney song, “No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problem.” And he wins this week’s compulsive overacheiver award, hands down!

Past President Prithi temporarily replaced President HR at the podium this week. There was no revived Vegetarian Time, but Prithi did point out that research has shown that passionate love-making was the aerobic equivalent of a four-mile walk. No shoes are required, piped up George Bain, in homage to Matt’s song. And if you can’t walk four miles, come see me professionally, says urologist Dr. Prithi. Hmm.

At last we came to the real program, sponsored by Linda Cranford and the Social Committee. Did You Know, asked Linda, that 300 years ago chocolate was thought to be an aphrodisiac, and was only served as a liquid, and only to men? [Hey, it hasn't even been 300 years, and people are already swallowing Viagra and Levitra like candy!]

Leslie Cooper, daughter of County Health Department Director Mimi Cooper (and grand-daughter of retired AHS typing teacher Anne Moore), is a 2000 graduate of Asheboro High, who majored in nutrition and restaurant management at UNC-G. She received a Grande Plume at the French Culinary Institute, worked in a number of restaurants, and finally returned to Randolph County to start her own business, Love Chocolate (www.eatlovechocolate.com), based in her grandmother’s kitchen outside Ramseur.

Leslie says that she is a custom maker of hand-made chocolate truffles and caramels, and can make about 500 pieces per day. The big chocolate gift times are Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, and Weddings, so she’s coming off one of her peak periods. She sells at Weaver Street Market in Chapel Hill and Carrboro, and exhibits at Bridal Shows, such as one coming up soon at Castle McCulloch, near High Point. She started her own business so she could be a leader in something in the culinary field. Commercial chocolate has a one-year package life because of added vegetable fat; her chocolate only has a one month shelf life because she uses only the most natural ingredients.

She had a power point show about the making of chocolate. Cocoa pods come from South American trees in the “chocolate belt” around the equator; seeds ferment in the sun until “nibs” (the actual raw chocolate) are produced. The nibs are ground to separate out the cocoa butter from the cocoa solids; then “conking” adds sugar and vanilla and emulsifiers to make the smooth creamy chocolate first invented by the Swiss. (Dutch-processed chocolate is much darker; the original beverage chocolate was very bitter, as sugar wasn’t added until Europeans started drinking it).

Leslie brought some of her bon-bons for everyone, and told us how she’d made them. Chocolate is delicate to cook with, and must be tempered like steel to be stronger, harder and more durable. Well-tempered chocolate is shiny, hard, snaps when you break it, and should not melt at body termperature. She melts the raw chocolate at 120 degrees, then cools it to 80, then tempers it to about 90. She pours that into a mold, then shakes and beats and bangs it to get the air bubbles out. The she flips the mold upside down and pours the excess chocolate out, creating the outside shell in the mold. When that cools she call fill it with “ganoche,” a truffle filling. The tempered chocolate will gradually cool and shrink and pop right out of the mold.

Chocolate has caffeine in it, and a chemical called theobromide which is poisonous to dogs. It hits them like a mega-dose of caffeine, but a 60-pound dog (she accidently experimented on one of her greyhounds) must eat a whole pound of chocolate to have a heart attack.

White chocolate technically has no cocoa in it; it is made of cocoa butter, sugar, milk powder and vanilla. Cocoa butter is light colored; cocoa powder is dark, and chocolate is normally dark because the powder suspends in the fat. That’s why melted chocolate sometimes looks clear or yellow- because the fat is separating from the cocoa. Dutch-processed chocolate is much darker, and it’s dark chocolate that has the antioxidants that doctors now recommend. Drink red wine and eat chocolate every day, and live to be 100! Leslie says. (And it’s all vegetarian, says Prithi).

February 8, 2008

    This week’s entry was writ by the practiced pen of Scribe Emeritus Philip Shore.  Sorry, but he didn’t draw any pretty pictures….

When Joy Menius dusted the piano your humble scribe thought she was going to launch into ”Kitten On the Keys”.  Instead she provided our chatter with a background of sunny songs including “I Got Rythym” and who could ask for anything more?

            President H.R. called the meeting to order with a stoutly rung gong.  Prior to the Pledge of Allegiance he announced three serious occurrences: that we hold in sympathy the family of Elizabeth Cox in the death of her mother; that Sandy Grey had sustained a fall that required surgical treatment of his arm; and the news that Father Jay Hobbs formerly of the Church of the Good Shepherd and a former Asheboro Rotarian had died just this morning.

            Rebecca Redding introduced our guests.  Christie Smith, guest of Carol Matney, has been circulated and will not be a guest much longer.  Carol made her pay for her meal.  Now that is serious.  Cindy Wilkins, guest of James Gouty, made an announcement about the Randolph Historical Association Valentine’s fundraiser.  Gale Thomas brought Lee Lennon and Henry Trollinger brought Pan Vuncannon. President H.R. had to behave today because Vickie Gallimore was the lone Randolph Rotarian present.

             The Sergeant-at-Arms team asked the scribe to note the receipt of a lovely thank you note from H.R.’s family expressing appreciation for the concern and sympathy expressed at the death of his mother last week.

            Henry Trollinger introduced two Asheboro High School student guests.  Hal Davis wants to be an English teacher.  He is co-editor-in-chief of The Ash Hi Chat and technical editor of Ash Hi Life.  He plans to attend UNC-G to study English education and then to return to Asheboro to teach.

            Lauran Breedlove is the Spanish Club treasurer; she is a Girl Scout and a member of the Key Club.  Her sport is golf.  Lauran plans to attend UNC-Chapel Hill to pursue a degree in physical therapy.

            Absentee Linda Cranford sent word for us not to miss next week’s Valentine’s program—she has arranged for Leslie Cooper, a real, live, and local choclatier.  Bring your sweetie!

            Rob Reese introduced our newest Rotarian: Shawn Mabe.  Shawn is the city officer at RBC-Centura.  President H.R. welcomed her into the club with her pin and other Rotary regalia.  Welcome, Shawn!

            Our program had a Rotary Foundation Theme.  Bill Batten let pictures do the talking.  He chose three stories of the great changes brought about by the Polio Plus campaign.  The stories were included in a recent issue of The Rotarian Video Magazine.  All three focused on India. After asking for a show of hands of those who participated in the first Polio Plus fundraising, Bill said that what we were going to watch should be considered to be a big THANK YOU.

            The first story was called The Last Hurdle.  It concerned the ongoing effort to eliminate polio in the state of Uttar Pradesh.  This presentation showed international cooperation of Indian nationals and visiting Rotarians from Georgia, USA, in a week long push to administer doses of polio vaccine to the children of the state.  After one day 17 million children had been treated but that was only half of the target population.  After a week 136 million doses had been given nationally.  It was stated that in some areas 3 doses were needed to prevent the return of polio whereas in other places as many as 17 or 18 were required—this latter was true of the Uttar Pradesh region.

            The second story was called From Crawling To Walking.  It was a case study of a boy named Asif who had had polio.  He was able to walk if he held his left leg with his hand.  Asif was a candidate for a surgical cure.  The surgery was one of 550 such cases sponsored by a Rotary Foundation Matching Grant.  The story showed the problem, the treatment, and the resultant beginning of a new life, much improved, thanks to Rotary.

            The final piece was called Success Stories.  One aspect of Polio Plus that we don’t think of immediately is the care and support needed by those who missed the preventative care and suffered the disease.  Rotary serves these people also with the opportunity for rehabilitation and, then, job training.  This article showed several young adults in physical therapy followed by classroom training in useful, gainful occupations.

            Altogether the three short films gave an impressive overview of the gigantic successes of Polio Plus with a realistic survey of what is left to be done (with the encouragement to get out there and finish it!).

            Bill asked what the original local goal of Polio Plus was—the answer $20,000.  And how much was raised?  $80,000.  Eloquent testimony of organization, effort and generosity of spirit, don’t you think?

February 1, 2008

Unbeknownst to Your Scribe, Febuary First was National Wear Red Day to create awareness of women’s heart disease. A good many of our tribe did get that memo, however, and were appropriately attired, starting with Steve Eblin and April Thornton at the head table. Others were scattered out amongst the crowd, but I think the red on Tom Hansen’s jersey had more to do with the Super Bowl than with heart disease….

John Grey opened with a prayer, and we pledged and tested and etc. as usual. Mini Singh introduced guests David Harrington , with Jaci Betts, Emily Ledwell with Jerry Hill, and Jim Campbell of the Randolph Club. Alan Pugh introduced student guests Alexandria Smith and Bryce Duncan from AHS. Alexandria is the daughter of Todd and Marquita Shrewsbury; she plays varsity soccer, is active in many other areas, works at Zeko’s and plans to attend UNC to become a pediatric dentist. Bryce, sporting a natty bow tie, is the son of Elyse and William Duncan, runs track and cross country, is an Eagle Scout, has been accepted at Southern Wesleyan University but is currently looking into joining the Air Force.  He has also been trained to cook barbecue at Zack’s out in Tabernacle, so his future appears to be assured.

President HR thanked the Club for its support after the passing of his mother last Friday, and noted that Elizabeth Cox’s mother also passed away this week.  He read to the Club from the Triad Business Journal, which had articles about the Zoo School, Bob Morrison and the hospital expansion, and a little article quoting Keith Chrisco entitled “Asheboro Confronts Liquor Divide.”  Dipping into the historical well, he read from the Tar Wheel of December 6, 1944, where a kindly parent offerred a $50,000 incentive for the first grandchild, and cleared the dinner table.

Our program, introduced by Steve Eblin, was Asheboro Police Chief Gary Mason.  Gary, the son of former APD officer and late High Sheriff of Randolph County Bob Mason, himself joined the APD in 1978.  He received his BA from Guilford College, attends Crossroads Baptist Church, and coaches just about every youth league imaginable.  He has been married to Joanna for 20 years, has a 17 year old daughter and a 13 year old son.

Gary started on the bottom rung of the police department and after 21 years, rose to the top.  Twenty years ago he was offered a year for more money in Alamance County, but stayed in Asheboro and was promoted to sergeant a week later.  He has been Chief since 1999, and says his bad habits have gradually dropped away to one:  he doesn’t drink, smoke, dip or chew to relieve stress, but he does admit to overeating.

Chief Mason gave the club an overview of crime and crime prevention in our community.  Something new is theft of valuable metal, which people sell to recyclers.  There have been thefts of catalytic converters from cars, copper piping from home plumbing, and wire and cable from the telephone and power companies.  Gary also warned against leaving your broken-down car along the interstate- people will drag it off to crush it for the metal.

In narcotics, there has recently been a epidemic of fake dope being sold- the flow of cocaine is so restricted that pushers sell just about anything white and powdery.  In 2006, more than 5 million grams of cocaine were seized; in 2007 that declined by more than half, indicating the flow was being cut off at our borders.   3600 pounds of “Gold Leaf” marijuana was recently seized in an Asheboro warehouse, and it was estimated to be worth about $6.5 million.   The amount of methamphetamine seized has tripled, but the street price has declined- this is due to an increase in the huge amounts coming in from other places.  Heroin has never been popular in Randolph County, but there is a significant market for it in High Point and Greensboro.

Asheboro still has prostitution on the East Side, and minimal gang activity– the Chief thinks gang members like here, but are more active in Durham and Greensboro, which have regular gang-related club shootings.  Gangs do control drug traffic; “Sir13″ controls up to the southern side of Asheboro, and the Latin Kings from Greensboro control from the north down.  There was recently a hit on a leader of the southern gang at his home in a gated community in Seven Lakes, in Moore County.  Gary thinks AHS is as drug-free and gang-free as any school in the state, thanks in part to its two SROs.

The APD is currently in a generational transition, Gary says.  Out of the 82 people in the department, many of the Chief’s generation are reaching employment maturity.  Just yesterday Timmy Lee retired after 30 years working the streets, vice, and the detective bureau.   Major Tony York, his “right hand man,” retired last summer after 32 years.  And Gary is looking at the day when he too will retire- perhaps within the next couple of years!