RAY'S FLORIST and GREENHOUSE ...
will hold its annual holiday open house this Friday and Saturday, Dec. 1 and 2, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. During the open house, shoppers at Ray's can save 20 percent throughout the store. Stop by for refreshments and register for door prizes. For more information, see the ad in this issue. Ray's is located next to Harold's Supermarket on West Main Street.
EVERYONE IS INVITED ...
to the annual open house and special stamp cancellation for Christmas cards Dec. 8 and 9 during Dillsboro's Luminaire from 5 to 9 p.m. Folks can mail cards, letters, packages and purchase Christmas stamps during the event. Postmaster Linda Bryant and clerk Dave Marker invite everyone to bring their cards and letters during the entire month of December for the free, unique postal cancellation to be applied. Customers may cancel their own cards or the post office staff at Dillsboro will be happy to do it.
FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH ...
of Sylva will hold its sixth annual Christmas Bazaar today (Thursday) through Saturday, Dec. 2. Hours today and Friday are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., and on Saturday the event will be held from 8 a.m. until noon. Every year popular items are repeated and new items are introduced. Everyone is invited to come and shop.
ALLISON'S ...
Chevrolet-Oldsmobile-Jeep will be the site of a free car seat checkup Saturday, Dec. 2, from 1 to 4 p.m. Your child's car seat can be checked by an expert. Research indicates that four of five child safety seats are used incorrectly. A limited number of free car seats will be available to eligible families through the Jackson County Department of Public Health. The car seat safety check is sponsored by Allison's, the health department, Smart Start and the N.C. Highway Patrol. For more information, call 586-8994.
COUNTRY LEGEND ...
Charlie Daniels will perform at Harrah's Cherokee Casino this Friday and Saturday, Dec. 1 and 2, at 8 p.m. When you hear a classic Charlie Daniels Band performance like "The Devil Went Down to Georgia," you hear music that knows no clear genre. It is a distinctive blend of folk, southern boogie, country fiddle and electric rock. Daniels' greatest honor came in 1998 when top stars and two former presidents paid tribute as he was named the recipient of the Pioneer Award given by the Academy of Country Music. Tickets for the Charlie Daniels Band are $25 and are currently on sale. They can be purchased at the Harrah's Cherokee Pavilion box office or by calling 1-800-HARRAHS.
VENTURE OUT ...
the outdoor supplier owned and operated by Mona Gersky and Leslie Rojohn, is closing. Citing an "over-saturation" with regard to outdoor clothing and gear, Mona and Leslie have announced that they'll consolidate their efforts into their other business, Lighten Up, a candle shop in Dillsboro. When they opened Venture Out in 1988, it was the only specialty outdoor store within an hour's driving radius, and now there are eight, they said. The two hope all their loyal customers will shop with them at Lighten Up on Front Street in Dillsboro. They plan to expand into a new location (the former Duck Decoys) and add furniture and accessories to their existing inventory of candles and holders.
VOLUME I ...
of the Jackson County Heritage Book is being reprinted, and a prepublication sale is under way. Only those who order and pay for a book in advance will be certain of obtaining one. Delivery will be early next year. The deadline to order is Friday, Jan. 5. Send check or money order for $69 per copy (includes tax and shipping from publisher) to Jackson County Heritage Book, P.O. Box 2108, Cullowhee, N.C. 28723. For information, call Roy and Ruth Shuler at 293-5227.
LOOKING FOR ...
a gift for someone who has everything? Here's a seasonal suggestion - a 2001 Western North Carolina Weather Calendar. Published by the University of North Carolina at Asheville's atmospheric science department, the unique 12-month wall calendar features Asheville climatological data, including monthly temperature and precipitation normals, monthly heating and cooling degree days, plus daily norms for maximum and minimum temperatures. The calendar also includes moon phases, daily sunrise and sunset times, and a climatological data table of normals, means and extremes for Asheville updated to 1999. The cost of the calendar is $5 postage included. Send a check payable to Weather Calendar to Alex Huang, UNCA Atmospheric Science Dept., One University Heights, CPO 2450, Asheville, N.C. 28804.
WACHOVIA BANK ...
recently received the Outstanding Business Award in Western North Carolina from the National Society of Fund Raising Executives. The award is based on annual philanthropic activities of local foundations, organizations and businesses. Gracia Slater, director of development for the N.C. Center for the Advancement of Teaching, nominated Wachovia. John Houser, regional vice president for Wachovia, accepted the award. While the bank's contribution to worthy causes are nice, he said, he is also proud of the individual volunteer efforts made by Wachovians throughout WNC. Rick Kirkpatrick, executive for the Sylva and Cullowhee banks, is president of the United Fund of Jackson County. "Wachovia encourages all of its employees to give back to the communities in which they live and work," Kirkpatrick said.
INTERESTED IN MAKING ...
money while staying at home? Remember that if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Better Business Bureaus across North America have confirmed this in a year-long study of work-at-home companies that advertise in newspapers, magazines, on the Internet and on signs posted in various communities. Operation Job Fraud and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service coordinated the project.
The task force identified a variety of work-at-home occupations, including envelope stuffing, product assembly, medical billing, mystery shopping and business opportunities such as vitamin sales, auto-dialing machines, selling advertising on the Internet and telemarketing of videotapes, books and seminars.
While the ads claim high earnings, the task force found no evidence of people actually making the promised money. Rather, after paying advance "registration" fees or "good-faith" deposits, the consumer receives nothing or is provided with information that encourages involvement in an illegal scheme or supplies to assemble a product that is virtually impossible to complete.
Most prevalent are product assembly and envelope stuffing. In most assembly, the company sends specific instructions for the worker to follow, warning the items will be rejected and no money earned if products do not meet the company's standards.
"Our experience shows that even that the most competent of workers couldn't meet these so-called standards," said Norma Messer, president of the BBB in Asheville. "The only one getting rich is the person who owns the company."
Typical stuffing offers, which have been around since the Great Depression, promote earnings of $1 or $2 per envelope and promise that a worker can make thousands of dollars monthly. Some advertised offers also pledge to refund the advance fee once a thousand envelopes are stuffed. It doesn't happen.
The BBB offers a pamphlet on such offers. Consumers may go to www.bbb.org and obtain it or they may call the Buncombe County office at 1-800-452-2882. The BBB's Asheville web address is www.asheville.bbb.org.
The Sylva Herald receives such ads each week. While the newspaper tries to screen and exclude advertising thought to be fraudulent, occasionally one slips into the paper, said Herald Publisher Jim Gray.
"We urge our readers to watch out for such ads in other publications that may not be as vigilant," he said.
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