Articles

10th Main Street Event Has Record Turnout

“It was cold, but there were a few people standing or sitting along the wall in front of the courthouse. Winter or summer, there were always people there. The boy wondered if they knew it was Christmas.” - from “Sounder” by William Howard Armstrong

As the Rockbridge NAACP prepares to enter a fourth year of supporting area students with funds from the Ted DeLaney grant program, the chapter reports that it has provided upwards of $20,000 for higher education and summer and afterschool programs in its first three years of giving.

Area residents are invited to attend the next meeting of the Rockbridge Regional Fair board of directors on Wednesday, Dec. 13, at 7 p.m. in the second-floor conference room of the Rockbridge County Administrative Building at 150 S. Main St., Lexington.

Looking At Careers

Grace Episcopal Church will offer a service of Light in the Darkness Sunday, Dec. 10, at 5 p.m.

The Stone Church of the Brethren in Buena Vista presented a living nativity program outside the church Sunday evening, complete with a reading of the Christmas story by the Rev. Galen Combs (below left) and singing. (Stephanie Mikels Blevins photos)

Sunday, Dec. 10

Community Bible Study is now enrolling for the winter/spring semester which begins Wednesday, Jan. 3, and ends May 8.

The Music at Noon concert series at Lexington Presbyterian Church will present keyboardists Daniel Brinson and William McCorkle in three concerts on Wednesdays, Dec. 6, 13 and 20, all at noon in the Lexington Presbyterian sanctuary.

There was a time we would have talked about current events. Dad and I would have imagined what the World Series would have been like if the Phillies had made it. We would have laughed together over New Yorker cartoons, snacked on cashews, and listened to Boz Scaggs.

Hearing the refrain from “Over the River and Through the Woods” may evoke Norman Rockwell style memories of visiting grandparents over the holiday season. These days, however, Grandma and Grandpa are just as likely to do the traveling as their younger relatives.

VPAS Cafe members in Lexington enjoy companionship and artistic expression as they paint with watercolors at a recent cafe gathering. Research shows painting is good for older adults. It engages the mind, boosts mood, and improves manual dexterity. Learn more about VPAS Cafes by calling (540) 261-7474.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently released an updated plant hardiness zone map and the new map suggests Rockbridge County is slightly warmer than suggested by the previous plant hardiness zone map released in 2012.

Melissa R. Kerin, associate professor of art history at Washington and Lee University, has been selected as the next Roger Mudd Professor of Ethics and director of the university’s Roger Mudd Center for Ethics.

The hours for the December book sale at Rockbridge Regional Library will be Thursday, Dec. 7, 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.; Friday, Dec. 8, 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; and Saturday, Dec. 9, from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Despite significant rains of recent weeks, a drought watch advisory remains in effect in the Rockbridge area and neighboring localities, according to a press release issued last week by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality in coordination with the Virginia Drought Monitoring Task Force.

The following area students are among those attending college this fall. Their names were submitted to The News-Gazette for its annual Off to College list.

Rockbridge

The Faith Mountain Express rolled through the streets of Lexington during the Lexington Christmas parade Friday, representing one of many area churches who participated in the parade. (Joann Ware photo)

CEO Sherri McKinney-Frantz of Blue Ridge CASA presents the Most Donations Award to Reid Mackey at the M4K Stache Bash Nov. 29 at Devils Backbone. Also pictured is Sam Collins who won Best Stache, and Lexington Mayor Frank Friedman who had the most donors. Blue Ridge CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) launched its first “Mustaches for Kids” (M4K) fundraiser this fall, a creative campaign aimed at raising funds to support abused and neglected children in the community. For more information about M4K, visit www.m4kblueridge.org or contact Chelsey Hughes at chelsey@blueridgecasa. org or Rosanne Facciolo at [email protected]. (photo by Julie Goodrich)