Radford U celebrates centennial

BY CODY DALTON

RADFORD – Radford University culminated its historic one-hundredth anniversary Wednesday with a Centennial Charter Day Celebration.

Graduates of Radford from 1925 to 2010 were present for the ceremony and marched in to the celebration with bagpipes leading the way.

Also in attendance were two special guests – Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell and keynote speaker Blake Mycoskie, founder and chief shoe giver for TOMS Shoes. TOMS is a company that gives a pair of shoes to a needy child for every pair the company sells.

Mycoskie focused on his company around the chief message of the ceremony, which was service to the community. So far, his company has given away 400,000 pairs of shoes to children.

Gov. McDonnell applauded Mycoskie for his efforts and talked about service.

“Especially in these trying economic times, (service) is something we need to continue to remind us of the hallmark of the United States,” McDonnell said. “I believe that for 233 years America has believed in the ‘golden rule’ – do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

Shirley Watson, a 1960 graduate of Radford and representative of the alumni, gave a detailed timeline of the many events that had changed Radford and added to the history of the school.

“Our name may have changed five times,” Watson said. But, “we have always been Radford’s history and our alumni are the fabric of America.”

In 1910, Radford was founded by Dr. John Preston McConnell as the State Normal and Industrial School for Women at Radford. The college was a women’s college, which offered just a two-year degree in “rural arts.”

The school would be renamed in 1924 as the State Teachers College at Radford, which focused on educating teachers who were local to the area. Virginia Tech would incorporate into the campus just 19 years later in 1943, when the State Teachers College became the Women’s Division of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.

After it was desegregated in the 1960s, the college cut ties with Virginia Tech and became Radford College. Men started to be admitted to the college by 1972 and a graduate studies program also was developed that year.

The final change happened in 1979, when the school finally became known as Radford University.

Just before the festivities of the day came to a close, Radford University president Penelope Kyle closed with an emphatic speech about the university’s past and its future as it moves forward.

“We are a university that has made its mark in the first century, Kyle said. “We will continue to make a mark in the century that lies ahead.”

Census officials warn of scams

By CODY DALTON
cody@southwesttimes.com



Census officials warn residents to be cautious of potential scams that could occur as Census officials start making door-to-door visits in May.

The best way to avoid scams and a door-to-door visit from the Census Bureau, is to stay off the non-response list by completing census forms and returning them by April 15. Door-to-door visits will begin on May 1.

All Census employees will wear an ID badge, which does not have a photo, and will be carrying a bag with the Census logo on it. If you are suspicious of a potential employee, you may ask for a photo ID, which will be their driver's license.
Census employees will never ask to enter a home or ask for valuable personal information, such as social security numbers, bank account numbers, or income information.

"If you feel that someone is misrepresenting themselves, or you have any concerns you should contact your local law enforcement agency immediately," said Karen Wesley, Partnership Specialist with U.S. Census Bureau.

In 2000, the last year the census was conducted, 72 percent of Virginians returned their census forms by mail. For every 1 percent growth in the national mail participation rate, taxpayers are saved $85 million.

For information on the census and the current mailback rate for your area, visit the census website at www.2010.census.gov.

Census sites launch today

By CODY DALTON
cody@southwesttimes.com



Five census sites will launch today, which will help the residents of Pulaski and Dublin file their 2010 U.S. Census information.

There be five total sites. Two of those sites will be considered "Be Counted" Sites, where the forms needed to complete the census will be available at a kiosk located at both the Town of Dublin building and Pulaski County Administration building.

The three other sites will actually include on-site personnel, who will help members of both localities to complete their census information.

In 2000, 72% of residents in Virginia mailed back their census information to be counted. The government has bumped up their publicity for the campaign, including more commercials and even a NASCAR sponsorship to help.

For ever 1% of forms that are mailed back in, the State of Virginia will receive 80 million dollars from that.

These five sites will remain open until April 15. If a census form is not completed, those who did not complete one will by filed on a non-response list and may have a door-to-door visit from a census employee after May 1.

For more information about the census and these locations, contact Jess Frye at 304-685-9628 or email jessfrye.asst@yahoo.com.

Comcast billing center to close

By CODY DALTON
cody@southwesttimes.com



Announced on March 1 and effective as of April 1, the Comcast billing center, located on 641 East Main Street in Pulaski, will be closing.

According to a press release sent by Director of Government and Community Affairs Paul Comes, the decision was made due in part to the low volume the billing center receives. The plan is for consolidation of the many payment centers along with those in Blacksburg, which will help to make the current operations in both localities more efficient.
After the billing center closes, residents will have three options for making payments or dropping off equipment. These are:

• Frazier Repairs & Elf's Alterations at 72 West Main Street;
• Pulaski Express at 303 Fifth Street NE; and
• Pulaski Express at 4334 County Pulaski Drive

Residents who have Comcast in the area will receive a notice through a bill message and a sign will also hang on the door of the current building telling of the change. For more information, you can contact Paul Comes at (540) 974-5123.

NRV Regional Jail dedicates expansion

By CODY DALTON
cody@southwesttimes.com



On Friday, officials from Pulaski, Bland, Carroll, Floyd, Giles, Grayson, Radford, and Wythe came together for a special ceremony to dedicate the renovation and expansion of the New River Valley Regional Jail.

The facility cost $55.2 million, with half of the cost provided by the Virginia State Compensation Board. It is five stories and has 139,000 square feet of operational space. It will cost approximately $27.81 per day to house each inmate.

"The biggest benefit is relieving the overcrowdedness," said Gerald McPeak, Superintendent of NRV Regional Jail Authority. "The old facility (houses) 371 inmates. The new facility boosts that capacity by over 400.

The decision to expand the facility was made in 2005. The following year, Thompson & Litton architecture firm was hired to oversee the plans. Balfour Beatty and English Construction officially started the project in March of 2008 and it was just recently completed.

Among the many new features the jail will offer are direct supervision rooms, which allow the police officers to keep constant observation of every inmate at the facility.

"The officers will be in the housing units with the inmates 24 hours a day, seven days a week," McPeak said. "They can prevent the fights. They can detect when damage is done to the facility and try to prevent that."

There are also two types of cells that will help to separate the extreme and less extreme inmates from being housed together.

"Minimal custody inmates will be in the cells where there are four bunks," McPeak said. "Medium custody inmates will be in the cells where there are two bunks. It is just a classification issue. Classification is based on their crimes and their behavior in here. If they are a youthful offender, we don't want to put them in an area where there are career type criminals. It just helps us to split the inmate population and make it a safer environment."



Also helping with the control of the inmates are new video visitations, which keep the inmate contained, but still allow them to talk to and see their loved ones on a video screen while they are in the lobby.

"It's a time saver," McPeak said. "We don't have to move the inmates as much because of the video visitation we have now. We don't have to move them for recreation because they have recreation within their housing units now. It is a much more efficient facility."

Local band pledging fun and charity

By CODY DALTON
cody@southwesttimes.com



Consisting of all junior students at Pulaski County High School, 'Now & Then' is a local garage/rock/punk group that is looking to make a splash.

The members of the band – Alex Alcantara, Garett King, Travis Kissinger, and Stephen Southard – formed the band on Dec. 19, 2008 after meeting in Garret's garage.

"We were in a band in eighth grade that wasn't doing much, so we took a break," King said. "We decided to come up to my house and play some music by ourselves. We tried to find a drummer and a bass player. From then on, Alex knew Travis, so he came up and started playing drums for us. We booked a small show at Robinson Tract Community Center. We brought Stephen in two weeks prior to that. Now and Then was formed."

Alcantara and King have sing vocals and play guitar, while Southard plays bass. They have been doing so for three years. Kissinger plays drums and has been playing them for two years.

Their inspirations are worldwide bands Blink 182 and All Time Low, as well as another local band Without A Fight. The band's name comes from an interesting concept that was first brought up by Alcantara's mother.

"We used to play some songs from AC/DC and bands like that," Alcantara said. "Then we started working our way up and playing things from the 1990's. She said they were songs from now and then, so we decided we should be called 'Now and Then'."

Since that time, the band has played some smaller shows around the area, including a Haiti benefit concert this past Saturday at Carroll County High School with many other local bands, such as Texas Side Project, The Three Came As One, Shotgun Saints, Without A Fight, Aside Ocean, and much more. The show raised over $500 for the relief effort in Haiti.

"To raise a pretty good amount of money and entertain at the same time was pretty awesome," Southard said. "We hope we can do it again sometime."

The band has many songs written and are planning to create a CD, but they are needing help from sponsors in order to do so.

"We are working on selling some shirts right now," Kissinger said. "People can come to our shows or visit our MySpace if they want to buy one."

The band will be playing again on April 26 at the Stage (formerly Kazemers). For more information on the band and when they will be playing, you can visit the band’s MySpace page, www.myspace.com/nowandthen2009 or contact their manager, John King, at 540-980-1475.

Bondcote donates fabrics to Haiti

By CODY DALTON
cody@southwesttimes.com



DUBLIN – The Bondcote Corporation helped the relief effort in Haiti on Wednesday by donating much needed fabric for shelters.

The opportunity to donate came up after the company had made an inquiry a few years ago to help with another disaster relief effort.

"When the earthquakes first happened in China in 2008, we went to the government and asked if we could help," said Bondcote President & CEO Ted Anderson. "They didn't need our help at the time, but they put our name on a list for future relief efforts. Then we just got an email from America's Development Foundation asking for our help with the Haiti relief."

In total, eight football fields or 68,000 linear feet worth of fabric were donated to the effort. An official ceremony was held on Wednesday beginning at 8 a.m. The container holding the fabrics was closed at 9 a.m.

The truck loaded with the fabric then left, heading for the Port of Norfolk. After leaving Norfolk, the shipment will travel to Portauprice in Haiti and should arrive by the end of the month.

Among the many in attendance at the donation were Bondcote President/CEO Ted Anderson, Plant Manager Donald Kemp, Shipping Manger June Flinchum, Shipping Supervisor Jeff Foutz, and Administrative Assistant Sue Ramsey.

The fabrics being sent will help to make shelter for those estimated one million who are homeless and want to stay dry.

According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), only one quarter of all Haiti survivors (approximately 250,000) are receiving any kind of shelter. That leaves 750,000 without a shelter of any kind.

The fabric donated should help those who will experience the rough Caribbean storm season, which occurs in June and July. It was estimated that over 800 temporary shelters could be built with the fabric being sent.

BondCote is located at 4090 Pepperell Way in Dublin. They have been manfacturing since 1949 and currently have 110 employees. They cote fabric for industrial and governmental applications.