Raleigh, NC — Beth Jarvis, Executive Director of Spare Some for Autism, has announced that NBC17 (WNCN) has agreed to be the media sponsor for the upcoming Spare Some for Autism Celebrity/CEO Kids Bowling Challenge. The event is scheduled for March 2. Spare Some for Autism is a non-profit dedicated to improving the quality of life for children with Autism.
“The support and involvement of NBC17 will do a lot to spread the word about the bowling challenge as well as educate the public about Autism Spectrum Disorder,” said Jarvis. “The station has stepped up to provide media support, as well as getting some of its on-air personalities involved in the challenge.”
Rowdy Gaines, winner of three Olympic Gold medals, is known as the “voice of swimming” and has worked with CBS, TNT and ESPN as a regular announcer for swimming and other events, and called his fourth Olympic telecast for NBC at the 2004 Games in Athens, Greece. He will again be part of the NBC broadcast team in 2008 for the Beijing Olympics.
“Rowdy’s support and involvement to this event and its cause will generate lots of excitement,” continued Jarvis. “The positive role model that he is to young people across the country makes him a perfect addition to the Spare Some for Autism Bowling Challenge.”
About the Spare Some for Autism Bowling Challenge
The first Spare Some for Autism Bowling Challenge will be held Sunday, March 2, 2008 at AMF Pleasant Valley from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Local celebrities include members of the Carolina Hurricanes and other CEOs from around the Triangle. Proceeds from the 2008 Spare Some for Autism Bowling Challenge will benefit the Wake County Public School System’s special-needs area in the form of a grant to further their work with students with autism.
About Spare Some for Autism
Spare Some for Autism seeks to improve the quality of life for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. We are dedicated to funding programs that will directly impact the individuals that suffer from ASD and allow them to achieve their highest level of independence within their home, school, and community, all while gaining respect and support for themselves.
Read More:CarolinaNewsWire
RALEIGH, N.C. – Mary Freeman, president and CEO of the Tammy Lynn Center for Developmental Disabilities, has announced the 2008 date for 23rd annual A Toast to the Triangle™. The event is scheduled for Mar. 9 at 5:30 p.m. at North Carolina State University’s McKimmon Center in Raleigh. The Toast raises funds for the Tammy Lynn Memorial Foundation, Inc., which supports the children and adults of the Tammy Lynn Center for Developmental Disabilities. The Center provides educational, residential, and family support services for children and adults with special needs.
The event offers guests samples from over 40 of the area’s finest restaurants, caterers and purveyors of fine wines and specialty beers, as well as friendly competition among the participants. The 2007 Toast raised almost $175,000 for the Tammy Lynn Memorial Foundation and more than 1,300 guests were in attendance.
“We are honored to host the 23rd annual A Toast to the Triangle,” said Freeman. “Each year, we are happy to host an event that brings the local community together to support such an important cause.”
About the Tammy Lynn Memorial Foundation, Inc.:
The Tammy Lynn Memorial Foundation, Inc., founded in 1969, supports the children and adults of the Tammy Lynn Center for Developmental Disabilities. The Center provides programs for children and adults with special needs, including educational services, respite care, early childhood intervention, residential services and a summer program. The Tammy Lynn Center serves nearly 400 children and families each year. For more information, please visit www.tammylynncenter.org.
About the Tammy Lynn Center:
Located on a nine-acre campus near North Carolina State University in Raleigh, the Tammy Lynn Center for Developmental Disabilities (TLCDD) offers educational, residential and family support services to children and adults with special needs. In its 38th year, the Center remains committed to providing the individuals it serves with the opportunity to maximize their abilities and potential in a loving, nurturing environment. TLCDD is owned by the Tammy Lynn Memorial Foundation, Inc. and is independently operated by TLC Operations, Inc. Both corporations are under the parent company Tammy Lynn Center, Inc. All organizations are nonprofit entities (510(c)(3), and contributions are tax deductible. For more information, please visit www.tammylynncenter.org
Read More:CarolinaNewsWire
CARY, N.C. — Jim Anderson, Vice President of Crosland¹s Raleigh Land Division and Director of Raleigh Operations, has announced that Crosland will participate as an exhibitor in the Cary Business Expo 2007 taking place Wednesday, November 7 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The Business Expo is an event of the Cary Chamber of Commerce and will be held in the Grand Ballroom at the Prestonwood Country Club in Cary.
Business Expo 2007 is free to the public and will showcase nearly 100 Chamber businesses. The event will include free sales seminars, giveaway and food.
Crosland employs 75 people in the Triangle market and currently has more than 1,400 multi-family units in the development pipeline, 750,000 square feet of retail space and six single-family communities that include 3,000 residential lots purchased or under contract. Crosland currently manages nine apartment communities in the Triangle area including Dobbins Hill, The Apartments at Meadowmont, Wakefield Glen, The Apartments at Oberlin Court, Regency Place, Litchford Park, North Forest, Weston Lakeside and Southpoint Village. For more, visit croslandraleigh.com.
About Crosland LLC
Founded in 1937, Crosland is one of the most prominent diversified real estate companies in the Southeast and is recognized as a leading community builder. Its expertise in retail, multifamily, office, land development and general contracting enables it to be an innovator in multi- and mixed-use development
Read More:CarolinaNewsWire
The Wake County Library System will hold its annual book sale Nov. 14 through 18 in the former Super Kmart building at 4121 New Bern Ave., between New Hope Road and Corporation Parkway, in East Raleigh.More than 500,000 books will be available for sale. Cash and checks will be accepted. The library is encouraging people to bring hand trucks or book carts.
Books remaining after the sale will be shredded for recycling.
Proceeds will go to Wake County as library revenue.
For information on book prices or to volunteer, go to www .wakegov.com/libraries and click on “Library Booksale.” Or you can volunteer by picking up a form at any library branch.
SOURCE: NEWS & OBSERVER
Façade grants will assist property owners with
projects that will improve the overall appearance
of Downtown Garner.
Garner, NC – September 24, 2007 – The Garner
Revitalization Association (GRA) announces a
Façade Grant Program that will help downtown
property and improve the overall appearance of
Downtown Garner. The Facade Grant Program
will provide up to $5,000 in financial assistance
to property owners for improvements made to
the façades of buildings in the Downtown Garner
Central Business District.
Initial funding for the grant program is being
provided by the Town of Garner. The GRA will
administer the program and provide design assistance
to help property owners make historically
appropriate selections for improvement
projects. The GRA will work closely with Town
of Garner’s Planning and Inspections departments
to help applicants obtain the necessary
information and permits required for their projects.
A workshop will be held in early November to
assist property owners with the application
process. For additional information about the
Façade Grant Program, contact the GRA office
at 773-4402 or at downtowngarner@nc.rr.com.
The Garner
Rev i t al i z a -
tion Association
is
r e c r u i t i ng
volunteers
to assist
with the final
installation
of
H.O.P.E Playground,
the
handicap accessible playground being
built at Garner Recreational Park. The
workday has been set for Saturday, October
20th beginning at 8:00am. Volunteers
are needed to complete final building
of the playground including installation
of the borders and safety mulch
and landscaping around the site. Volunteers
are asked to bring their own tools,
such as: shovels, garden rakes, pitchforks,
wheelbarrows and sledge hammers.
Volunteer registration will began
at 8:00am and work will get underway
by 8:30 a.m.
Anyone wishing to volunteer can contact
the GRA office at 773-4402 or visit
the website, www.downtowngarner.com,
and click on the Volunteer button. Advanced
registration is not required, but
will assist in adequately planning for the
workday.
A ribbon cutting ceremony and community
celebration will be scheduled once
the installation has been completed.
Raleigh will close some downtown streets starting tonight for the third annual Ray Price Capital City Bike Fest. More than 100,000 people are expected for the “motorcycle lifestyle” event, which runs Friday and Saturday and features live music, food, gear manufacturers and custom bike builders.WHEN: The bike fest runs from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday. It’s billed as a family-friendly event with a children’s fun zone where parents can drop off their children.
TRAFFIC: Besides the street closings (see map), congestion is expected from as many as 500 motorcycles that are expected to leave the Ray Price Harley-Davidson dealership on South Saunders Street at 5:53 p.m. Friday and drive to Fayetteville Street, continue along Martin Street and end at Moore Square in an official, police-escorted kick-off parade.
Also, a police-escorted charity ride will leave the dealership about 1 p.m. Friday and travel to the N.C. Army National Guard Aviation Flight Facility and Armory near the Raleigh-Durham International Airport in Morrisville. Riders will return to the dealership at 3:30 p.m.
INFORMATION: www.rayprice.com.
SOURCE: News & Observer
Motorcycles will rally as new museum opens
RALEIGH - Saturday’s grand opening of the downtown children’s museum will include fun new mascots, Chinese ribbon dancers and opportunities to plant a pretend garden.
Across the street, at a gathering of thousands of motorcyclists, a tent sponsored by U.S. Smokeless Tobacco will invite “city slickers, tenderfeet and virgin dippers” to learn how to cheat at cards and to watch a sinuous model dance on a bar.
At least 100,000 people are expected downtown for the third annual Ray Price Capital City Bike Fest and the opening of the so-far unnamed museum in the former space for Exploris, the struggling museum about world cultures that closed this month.
Bikers will start roaring in today for the event, which includes a performance in Moore Square tonight by Great White (the band known for its 2003 Rhode Island performance that left 100 people dead after a fire). It runs through Saturday night.
Several city streets, from Fayetteville Street to Moore Square and City Market, are shut to accommodate the rally.
A thousand children can get pretty loud. Even they will have a tough time competing with the noise from hundreds of motorcycle engines, which can average 100 decibels (think chainsaw or jackhammer).
“We’re thinking the more the merrier,” said Sally Edwards, president and CEO of the new museum.
The museum picked Saturday primarily because it was the day it could open a new traveling exhibit about children from around the world. The new museum is the product of the consolidation of Playspace, a children’s museum geared toward toddlers and preschoolers, and Exploris, which both closed Labor Day weekend.
Edwards said grand opening organizers made sure most of the events were inside the 80,000-square-foot museum because of Bike Fest. But, she said, there are plans to integrate motorcycles into the grand opening, though she wouldn’t say how.
Edwards didn’t think the clashing events were a problem but recommended that people plan in advance.
“The parts of downtown that are closed are really not important entrances to the museum,” she said.
Doug Grissom, assistant director of the Raleigh convention center, who helped produce Bike Fest, said the event has been on the same weekend for the past two years. And while some might think of bikers as hard-core partiers with leather chaps and scruffy beards, the reality is much different, he said. The event is billed as a family-friendly affair and includes a children’s entertainment zone run by a couple of Christian groups.
Read More: News & Obserber
As the evening gray faded to black, Branson Kimball felt something all too familiar hit his face, his arms, his legs. “Here we go again,” he muttered.Before long the spitting begat sprinkles that begat a light rain; the escalation was again under way. It was Wednesday night, about 8 p.m. Aug. 22. Kimball, who is 39 and lives in Durham, had been on his bike for all but maybe three or four of the past 45 hours, since leaving the outskirts of Paris at 9:50 Monday evening, riding his bike west to Brest on the coast, then turning around for the return trip to Paris. He’d ridden about 500 miles, stopping for a total of perhaps an hour to eat, maybe three to sleep. Of those 40-plus hours, more than half had been in the rain. A cold rain. At times, a cold, driving rain, almost always at night.
Now, it looked like he and riding buddies Glenn Himstedt of Bristol, Va., and J.D. Stewart of Greensboro were in for, unbelievably, yet another night of rain.
“I was starting to get a little down,” says Kimball, a former racer who has ridden his bike across North Carolina three times. He thinks for a moment, then downgrades his assessment.
“It was my toughest time on a bike, ever.”
Finally, when the rain became a deluge, he proposed the obvious: “This is insane. We need to stop and get some rest.”
Stewart was exhausted and couldn’t see. Himstedt was worse: He was wearing glasses and was relying on the taillights of his partners to squint his way along. Pulling over at the next village, checking into a warm, cozy pension and having a bowl of hot soup made perfect sense.
“Can’t,” the two shouted over the rain. “Gotta keep moving.”
It seems crazy
Every four years since 1891, distance-obsessed cyclists known as randonneurs have gathered to undertake one of the more ambitious challenges in sports: the 1,200-kilometer Paris-Brest-Paris bike ride. Twelve hundred kilometers — about 750 miles American — seems an insane distance to ride a bike. Couple that with the fact that the ride must be completed in 90 hours — or 31/2 days — and insane is redefined. By comparison, the annual Cycle North Carolina statewide bike ride takes seven days to cover about 450 miles.
Actually, not everyone who participates has to do the distance in 90 hours. Some elect to do it in less. The record: 38 hours and 55 minutes. That’s averaging almost 19 mph — without stopping.
The obvious question: Why? Why ride a bike 31/2 days on very little sleep? Why ride past some of the planet’s most gorgeous countryside in the dead of night? Why put yourself through an ordeal that can leave key parts of your body numb for weeks and months to come?
Stewart ponders the question. “Overall … It’s a good experience.” This from a man who once rode his bike 3,700 miles from Montana to the Arctic Circle and two years ago climbed Cho Oyu, the world’s sixth highest mountain at 26,901 feet.
“Psychologically,” he says, “this was worse.”
“It was the greatest thing I’ve ever done,” Kimball says three weeks after returning to Durham. “But it was also the hardest thing I’ve ever done. … There were some amazing things I saw and experienced,” says Kimball. “But that doesn’t mean it was all good.”
Exciting and terrifying
Kimball started taking long weekend rides last fall, took longer rides in the winter and by spring was ready for the rigorous qualifying rides. Paris-Brest-Paris aspirants must complete 200-, 300-, 400- and 600-kilometer rides, all within a set amount of time, over the span of about two months. Before he knew it, he was queued up with 4,500 other cyclists from around the world in the Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, a stadium on the outskirts of Paris, headlamp ablaze, waiting to pedal into the heart of France.
Read More: News & Observer
