A little different information

We usually don't deviate too far off of the political news of the county, but as a favor to a wonderful organization, we have decided to make an exception for none other than "Big Brothers, Big Sisters"....Ross is a full fledged Big Brother, and I am not as worthy, and struggle with my time management, but I do the lunchtime mentoring - all I do is go to lunch with a little girl twice a week....so if you know of anyone who can help tell them to look at this:

We NEED You!

Big Brothers Big Sisters is urgently seeking mentors to fulfill its goal of 40 mentors before Sept 1st.
All you have to do is eat lunch with a child at a local school, twice a week.

Without mentors, our program will not last.

Things to know:
· There’s almost no one so busy that they can’t find a way to fit in an hour a week.
· You can always help by spreading the word at your workplace, neighborhood, church, etc…
· Anyone over the age of 18 can be a mentor. No special skills required.
· These meetings take place during your lunch break from work.
· This is a great volunteer experience for retirees.

Some Facts:
· A new study finds that adults mentored as children through Big Brothers Big Sisters are more likely than peers with similar backgrounds but who were not involved in the program to have a four-year college degree, household incomes of $75,000 or greater and strong relationships with their spouses, children and friends.
· School-based mentoring is not a tutoring program. However, research has shown that of all children matched with a Big in school:
o 58% improved their school performance
o 65% showed higher levels of self-confidence
o 55% had a better attitude toward school

Contact Info:
Tiffany Johnson
In- School Match Specialist
Big Brothers Big Sisters
1225 West Main Street
Danville , VA 24541
434-334-7622
Fax: 434-791-3781
Email: Tiffanybbbs@dancom.com

Keep it up and Pass it On!!

Marshall Ecker's Blog is getting some attention, with his question to the citizens about whether or not they would like to see the Sunday Blue laws abolished. If you haven't left a comment, please go to his blog and do it - and then pass it on to all your friends and tell them to do the same...let's get this question out to the citizens....we can grow this thing - but we all have to help!

Please Go to Marshall Ecker's Blog

Marshall has a very relevant question on his blog regarding the Sunday Blue Laws. This is a very important issue in our county and will have critical effects on our revenue and tax rates in years to come. Please take time to answer his question, and also ask your friends to go there and answer his question, even if they don't normally follow these blogs. This is a way to interact with local government, and it is vital to our county. The link to his blog in on the right hand side of this blog under "Marshall Ecker's Reports" - don't click on his email - click on the link to his Reports. Please, please go there and give him a comment. Thank you.

Meeting July 21, 09 - A small WIN!

I had to come right home and post a small bit of information about the board meeting tonight....Fred Ingram put Beer & Wine Sales on Sunday back on the floor and motioned that it be put on the November ballot for the Callands-Gretna district only. It was seconded this time by Hank Davis and the vote went as follows:
Ingram - Yes
Barber - No
Snead - No
Harville - No
Pritchett - Yes
Davis - Yes
Ecker - Yes

This is a WIN for the Callands-Gretna District! As I have said before, to me it's not about John Doe running to the Quickie Mart on Sunday for a beer - this is about Economic Development and revenue.

Most of the people that are so vehement about Sunday beer and wine sales don't mind leaving church and going to Danville to Applebees - or Altavista or Lynchburg....they are leaving the county to give revenue to another locality....

I realize that Sunday Beer and Wine Sales still won't allow a chain restaurant to locate in the Callands-Gretna district - this will take liquor by the drink. But it's a step in that direction. A step toward a growing future for the county - and initially Gretna; a step towards keeping revenue in the county on Sunday...

So if you see Fred Ingram, or any of the other Supervisors that supported him in seeking development of his district - tell them thank you.

The Next Meeting for the Board of Supervisors...

Is this Tuesday, July 21st at 7:00 p.m. As always we plan to attend and get some of this on video...but we encourage you to try and attend....get a group together and come. The more people that attend, the more that issues will be better understood, and the word about our county governing processes can be spread to the citizens. The most difficult battle that is faced is not that of any particular supervisor, or a particular issue...it is that of apathy of the citizens...if the citizens don't care about what happens in their own government, then it's more than an uphill battle.

Indeed, our supervisors need to realize that they are "public servants" and they are not placed in our government simply to satisfy their own agendas - but the citizenry must step up to the plate as well, to oversee and monitor their own government....

Our taxes are set to go up, to 13 or 14 cents on the dollar in just a couple of years...and it's a done deal....there was little argument - at least in relationship to the citizen popluation...and, basically, in my eyes, the Four Block did what they wanted anyway, which was to put a bandaid on the problem, for now, and let it hit a couple of years down the road, costing the public about 4.9 million to refinance bonds....yes, folks, the refinance Cost the county citizens that much...on top of what was already owed.

Do the citizens have a voice in this government - I can tell you that some of them do not. There seems to be too much rivalry between board members and it allows little room for true compromise and working together for the good of all the people.

Again, please try to make the meetings on the first Monday and third Tuesday of each month at 7:00 pm in the Edwin Shields Courthouse. Tell everyone you know...tell the public to start attending these meetings and voice their opinions to their Supervisor.

Anonymous Comment

Following is a comment left on this site from an anonymous reader:

Anonymous said...
You missed out on the whole disussion over Tim Barber steering the new water line away from Whispering Pines to Inman Road where his busines partners have a bunch of residential lots for sale. Why do you think the gang of four is now backing off the Whispering Pines water diversion, after voting on it last meeting? It's because the cat got out of the bag two weeks ago and Barber went scrambling to the Commonwealth Attorney to find out if he should have made public disclosure about steering the water line to benefit his business partners.

And don't you think Snead, chariman of the BOS Personnel Cttee, should have made public disclosure that he was appointing his own brother to be acting director of the PCSA? Keep posted; more coming.

Here are some clips from the meeting

Editorial: To go along with these three clips from Monday night's meeting, I want to say I am apalled that Fred Ingram's motion to put Sunday Beer and Wine Sales on the Ballot died a slow "death by Board" at the meeting on July 6. What is the problem? Put it on the ballot - let the citizens decide. It's not up to the Board to guess. I personally feel like it will add much needed revenue to the county - it's not going to promote drunkeness - if people want to drink, they are going to the surrounding localities on Sunday and spending their money in another county, city or town. Corky Medaglia also spoke at the meeting as to why this is now becoming an important issue to Tomahawk Mills Winery. Seems to have fallen on deaf ears, for the most part. Why is this happening? The Board of Supervisors is impeding business and losing revenue to the surrounding counties.

And, when C&E's Restaurant told the Board that the water line up Rt. 40 was inadequate, watch the snide comment made later in the meeting:

Meeting July 6, 2009

Well, I'll be brief...most of the meeting was routine - general county business. All supervisors were in attendance except Mr. Ecker, who was on vacation.

Mr. Allan Gross and Mr. Phillip Lovelace spoke as did a few others, about the lead levels in Mr. Gross's well. In short, the history of the well is as follows: Before the drilling, his water was fine. The exploratory drilling started, and Mr. Gross's well water became contaminated. The drilling stopped and the holes were topped off, and his well water became alright again. This speaks to the point that the drilling was, indeed, responsible for the contamination of his well. Mr Lovelace also brought up a good and valid point. If a small drilling could cause that much water damamge, what will happen if uranium mining is allowed and a site that is 250 acres is mined...

Mrs. Carolyn Pritchett asked to speak to the Board, and asked that Ross Johnson read her statement, because she was very hoarse. Mr. Johnson did so. Her statement asked several questions and also asked that each supervisor answer her in written letter. She stated that although the water line had been run up 40, the pressure was too low to sustain use, and that three fire hydrants that were supposed to be installed had not been, due to the fact that they could not operate with such low pressure. She asked why there was so much money spent on the southern end of the county and wondered why the water and sewer could not be put in and made to work properly on the line up Route 40.

There are a number of businesses that need the water pressure and the sewer line or they will not be able to expand - or even operate properly - Centra Health Medical Center being one of these businesses.

There were a couple of moments, though, during the Board meeting that were mind-stunning. Fred Ingram motioned to put Beer and Wine Sales on Sunday on the ballot for each district. A second was needed and none was given. There was a heavy silence in the room as time was given for someone to second the motion. Nothing.

Then, when the Board was discussing water lines in another part of the county, Mr. Harville made a comment along the lines of "Why do we do this, when we give them what they want - they don't appreciate it" and he was referring to Mrs. Pritchett's questions about the water and sewer.

The rest of the meeting was generalized - alotting money for Camp 15 renovation; moeny for the sheriff's dept. which we are glad they agree to this.

Then the meeting went into closed session, where a new business or industry is interested in the county, that has made no prior announcement.

Check out Ecker's blog!

Follow the link to Ecker's blog! There is actually a discussion popping up! Add your opinion to it!

Ecker has questions for the Public

Please use the following link on the right hand side of this page to go to Marshall Ecker's blog and answer his questions...he has posted two questions on his site that he wants all county citizens to weigh in on.

Easy as ABC (license, that is)

Hi, folks. I am going to give voice to my thoughts on Sunday beer, and also liquor by the drink. I am a sold-out Christian, through and through. Haven't always been, but I am now. I love the Lord, and thank Jesus every day for my Salvation.

But, I don't see the issues about beer and liquor as particularly religous ones. I see them as economic ones. Without these laws, Pittsylvania County cannot entice restaurants, such as Applebees - or any of a plethora of nice restaurants! Without nice restaurants, businesses don't want to locate...it's just a vicious circle. For instance, if we had liquor by the drink in Pittsylvania County, we may already have a restaurant in Gretna near the Hampton Inn. Believe me, restaurants don't just locate in a region because the people ask them to. it's strictly business folks, and many things are taken into consideration - traffic counts, demographics, and licensing efforts, and for those restaurants that serve mixed drinks, (and many do) the public issues surrounding liquor by the drink.

Businesses like to be in areas populated with good places to eat, as well. Of course, that's only a preference - but it's still a viable preference.

And, I'm sure you all know by now that one of the reasons - and I say one, because obviously there were several, but one of the larger reasons Walmart decided against location in Blairs is because there would be no Sunday Beer sales.

People, you're not solving a thing by keeping beer sales out of the county on Sunday - the county is losing valuable revenue...because people can go to any surrounding county and buy, and they do. So those of you who may be against this need to know that it's not saving a thing - the only thing it's doing, again, is causing our citizens that prefer beer to have to drive farther, and give money to other localities. Face it, you may not drink and you may not agree with those who do - but agree or not, there are people that like beer. Let them get it in our county - at least, we'll be gaining something!

I'd like to hear your comments - in fact, please use the email on the side to email your supervisor. Maybe they'll read it....

Next meeting

Monday night, July 6th is the next scheduled Board of Supervisors Meeting. Come if y0u can, and if you can't, stay on this blog....we'll keep posting.

Happy Independence Day and thank God that brave men and women have given their all to keep us free.