Domestic Violence Victims Workshop.

I wanted to take a minute and pass on this information. Domestic Violence is a continuing issue in the US and these concerned citizens would like to help.


We are now taking referrals

for the
Stokes Parents Domestic Violence Victims Workshop.



Focus of workshop

We will be assisting the attendees in safety planning for themselves and their children and talking about the impact of domestic violence on children, as well as identifying some formal and informal supports that may be available to the families.



Referral Process

We accept registration from agencies and individuals. Registration form is attached (see brochure). You may mail registration to P.O. Box 172 Danbury NC, 27016 or simply reply to this email with completed registration attached.

If you prefer, you may register by phone on Mondays only, by calling the number listed (336-406-4467) on the attached brochure.



This workshop is scheduled for Saturday, September 26, 2009 from 9:30 am to 4:30 pm. The location is the Walnut Cove Library on Main Street in Walnut Cove.



Class size is limited so refer early.

The cost of this workshop is 25 dollars per person, but no one will be turned away for inability to pay.



Lunch and an activity will be provided by the women’s mission group of Calvary Baptist Church in Belews Creek.



Please contact us with questions, suggestions or offers of assistance.

Thanks.

Sharon Conrad

Stokes Parents

Just because it is fall

it doesn't mean that outside activities need be put on hold. Below you will find a list of events to be held during the month of September at Hanging Rock State Park. Don't become a couch potato just yet. Get outside and have some fun!

September 24-30-Hanging Rock State Park would like to invite you to “Take a Child Outside Week”-Children can reconnect with nature and parents can reconnect with children in North Carolina’s State Parks. The state parks will make available exciting Get Outside kits to families and small groups that prompt do-it-yourself activities to rediscover nature’s wonder. For more information about North Carolina state parks and their environmental education programs and events go to www.ncparks.gov



Here is a listing of special programs that Hanging Rock will have to offer this week:

Sept. 24-3:00 pm-Terrific Tress Hike-Take a short hike along the handicapped trail as we discuss trees.-Meet at the visitor center.

Sept. 25-1:00 pm-Meet at the Troy’s Den parking lot for a leisurely hike to one of the least visited waterfalls in the park.

Sept. 26-2:00 pm- Take a relaxing hike to one of the five waterfalls in the park. Meet at the trailhead to the Upper Cascades.

Sept. 27-2:00 pm-Track casting. What kind of track does your favorite animal make. Meet at the bathhouse.

Sept. 29-3:00 pm-Meet at the Lower Cascades parking lot for a nature hike to one of the most scenic waterfalls in the park.

Local views

Hanging Rock State Park in Stokes County. 500,000 people a year visit this park, making it a local treasure and one of the top ten most visited parks in NC.

Three Weeks to Go

The Stokes Stomp is just over three weeks away. It is hard to believe that there will be between 15 and 20,000 people in Danbury that weekend. It will be my first visit and I have volunteered to work in the Arts Council Booth on Saturday. This will give me a chance to meet a lot of people and learn more about the event. Mark your calendars and be ready for a really busy time in Stokes County.

In addition to the "Stomp", the Walnut Festival is Scheduled for Friday Sept 11. Visit the Town of Walnut Cove's web site for more details. The Stokes County Fair begins on the 14th in King and runs through the 19th. King Fest is the first weekend in October. High School Football is going on each Friday night and that is just the beginning.

We were awarded a $15,000.00 Incumbent Workers Grant last week. We are very close to making our web site building project a reality. There are six pilot companies already selected to allow us to work out the kinks and we should be building site full bore in 2010. If you have a business in Stokes County or know of someone in the county that does not have a web site, have them get in touch with me. There will be a media campaign set up to make this known through-out the county but I am so excited that I wanted to tell some folks about this now (not sure how many because this is a new blog).

We should soon have a visitor information center in Danbury a the library. This will fill a big need and allow us to start getting more information in the hands of our visitors. We hope to have this open by Stomp Weekend. Stay tuned for more...

Classes at Camp Sertoma

This is a repost from yesterday, as all my information did not show on the previous blog. Through the efforts of the folks at Camp Sertoma, Stokes Core and Forsyth Technical institute, there will be several classes offered this fall at the camp. You may call 336-493-2482 for more information. The classes offered have the potential to lead to employment in a very timely manner.

Financial A$$i$tance MAY be available for Electrician Helper,


Intro to Masonry, Landscape, Welding, Computer and Keyboarding Classes.


Call 336-593-2482 for information to see if you qualify.

This assistance made possible through the


Northwest Piedmont Council of Governments and WorkForce Development.





Electrician Helper

Course Code 35193 $188

8/31-12/2 M/W 6-9 pm


Intro to Masonry

Course Code 35155 $178

8/31-12/2 M/W 6-9 pm


Landscape Technician $ 68

Course Code 35257

8/31-12/2 M/W 6-9 pm


Welding ARC Basic $198

Course Code 35156


Welding MIG $198

Course Code 35258




Both Welding Classes Begin in Fall



Computer Basics

Course Code 35426 $68

11/24-12/17 T/Th 9 am-noon


Into to Keyboarding

Course Code 35429 $178

8/25-11/12 T/Th 9 am-noon


Painting: Mixed Media

Course Code 35165 $35

10/6-10/27 Tue 9 am-noon

or 34994 $25

11/10-12/1 Tue 9 am-noon


Photography: Nature $25

Course Code 35225

9/15 Tue 9 am-noon

Course Code 35227

11/10 Tue 9 am-noon

Face Book Article

For those of you who don't read the Stokes News, below if a reprint of an article from last weeks paper on the Stokes Travel-Tourism and Development facebook page. It quotes me a number of times but this isn't about me. This is about developing a community around technology. This is about helping the citizens and former citizens of the county to share information and build better lives. I believe that by using this technology in unique ways we can get a jump on the rest of the world. Heres hoping that I am right.

County joins Facebook frenzy
by Leslie Bray Evans4 days ago

One of the hottest social networking websites in the world is now being used by Stokes County to enhance economic development. Stokes has a Facebook page where people can become fans of the county. Since Economic Development Director Alan Wood created the page about three months ago, nearly 600 people have become fans of the county on the page entitled Stokes Travel-Tourism and Development.

“It seems to be popular with people who have ties to the area and are missing their home,” Wood notes. He says he is using the page to promote local events and businesses. Already he has links to over 60 companies and civic organizations, with plans to add even more links in the future. And if a picture is worth a thousand words, then Stokes County’s page is in great shape; it boasts four photo albums with about 100 pictures.

Wood states that the goal of the Facebook page is not to advertise the businesses in the county but rather to serve as a fun place to share information. “I think it can stir interest in the events that we try and help publicize and hopefully help to build a sense of community,” he elaborates.

With the page still in its infant stages, Wood is working on several ideas for increasing the fan base. One of the newer features is a blog called “Stokes Folks.” The focus of this latest addition to the Facebook page is business, industry, interesting items, people, opportunities and events from Stokes County. Wood has high hopes for the blog, “I hope that people will participate and let me know what is going on in the county.”

The page also contains information on animals that are available for adoption at the Stokes County Animal Shelter. “I have a special place in my heart for these unfortunate animals,” Wood confesses, “and I hope this information helps at least a few of them find homes.” In just one day recently, 18 animals were rescued from the shelter and one was adopted—19 animals in one day! That was all of the animals listed on the Facebook page except for one adult cat.

Plans are in the works for the Facebook page to be linked to the new Stokes County Economic Development website as well as the new travel and tourism site that is being created. These plans fit into the economic development strategy of using social networking, web-based marketing, and normal marketing channels to help local businesses access untapped markets.

A January 2009 Compete.com study ranked Facebook as the most used social network by worldwide monthly active users, followed by MySpace. It is a privately-owned corporation where users can add friends, send them messages, and update their own personal profiles to update friends. A Facebook user can also join networks that are organized by workplace, school, city and region.

Facebook was founded in 2005 by Harvard University student, Mark Zuckerberg, and his roommates, Dustin Moskovitz and Chris Hughes. The three men were fellow computer science majors. Zuckerberg took the name for his brainchild website from the colloquial name of a book that was traditionally given to new students at his former high school, Phillips Exeter Academy. The “Facebook” of his alma mater shows the faces and gives the names of the students and faculty at the academy.

At first only Harvard students could access the new service, but soon it spread to other colleges in the Boston area, the Ivy League, and Stanford University. The next step in Facebook’s expansion was its availability to any university student, followed by high school students, and ultimately to anyone aged 13 and over. Today, Facebook has over 250 million active users from all over the world.

And now some of those users are fans of Stokes County. This is yet another example of the county’s continuing use of modern technology to promote the economic development of Stokes County.

I am convinced that educaction and the willingness to learn will be the way to success in the future. To this end, Forsyth Tech and Stokes Core have joined together to offer continuing education classes at Camp Sertoma. The information below will show you who to contact and the courses that are being offered. This is an opportunity to increase your skills and prepare for your future. Please contact the number below for more information.

Sertoma -4H Center on

Moore’s Springs Rd.

Is the latest addition to Forsyth Tech’s Stokes County locations for

Continuing Education Classes

Call 593-2482 for Information

Financial A$$i$tance MAY be available for Electrician Helper,

Intro to Masonry, Landscape, Welding, Computer and Keyboarding Classes.

Call 336-593-2482 for information to see if you qualify.

This assistance made possible through the

Northwest Piedmont Council of Governments and WorkForce Development.

Electrician Helper

Course Code 35193 $188

8/31-12/2 M/W 6-9 pm

Intro to Masonry

Course Code 35155 $178

8/31-12/2 M/W 6-9 pm

Landscape Technician $ 68

Course Code 35257

8/31-12/2 M/W 6-9 pm

Welding ARC Basic $198

Course Code 35156

Welding MIG $198

Course Code 35258

Both Welding Classes Begin in Fall

Computer Basics

Course Code 35426 $68

11/24-12/17 T/Th 9 am-noon

Into to Keyboarding

Course Code 35429 $178

8/25-11/12 T/Th 9 am-noon

Painting: Mixed Media

Course Code 35165 $35

10/6-10/27 Tue 9 am-noon

or 34994 $25

11/10-12/1 Tue 9 am-noon

Photography: Nature $25

Course Code 35225

9/15 Tue 9 am-noon

Course Code 35227

11/10 Tue 9 am-noon

Stokes Stomp Update and More

Tomorrow is a big day for the EDC and our plan of work. If we get an approval for our Incumbent Workers Grant, we can go full speed ahead with our web site development program for our local businesses. Keep your fingers crossed!

It is 24 days until Stokes Stomp 2009. I am posting your first look at the events of the weekend. This is not final and is subject to change. It looks like a great event and a wonderful time. This is just part of the excitement that is taking place in Stokes County during this time. Keep your eye on the visitstokesnc web site and visit the Stokes Travel/Tourism and Devleopment facebook page for more.
The 35th Annual
Stokes Stomp
Festival On The Dan
Saturday
Entertainment Schedule
10:30 -11:30 AM
Stokes Stomp Parade
11:30 AM-12:15 PM
North, South, West Stokes Bands
12:15 PM-12:30 PM
Stokes Opportunity Center Singers
12:30-1:30 PM
Black Diamond
1:30-1:45 PM
North Stokes Cheerleaders
1:45-2:45 PM
Zephyr Lightning Bolts
2:45-3:00 PM
CC Dance Company
3:00-4:15 PM
Wood and Steel
4:15-4:30 PM
CC Dance Company
4:30-5:15 PM Holly Creek Girls
5:30-7:00 PM Blues Creek

Sunday
Entertainment Schedule
9:00 AM
Stomp Canoe & Kayak Demonstration
12:30-1:30 PM
The Ramshackles
1:30 PM-1:45 PM
West Stokes
Cheerleaders
1:45-3:00 PM
Flat Out Bluegrass
3:00-3:15 PM
Miss Joyce’s Dance Studio
3:15-4:45 PM
Kopper Kanyon
4:45 PM
Duck Race
4:45 PM-5:00 PM
Miss Joyce’s Dance Studio
5:00-5:30 PM
Stokes All Star Jam


Major Sponsors:

North Carolina Arts Council
Ben and Lemma Apple Foundation
RJ Reynolds American Foundation
Town of Danbury
Pepsi Bottling Ventures
NewBridge Bank
Artists Way Creations
Danbury General Store
Grady Burgin & Charlotte Offerdahl
King Music Center
King’s Cabin Salon & Day Spa
Dan River Company
Rainbow Print and Copy
Republic Waste