Blood drive in Fincastle on Thursday, April 9
Editor:
The Bloodmobile will be at the Fincastle United Methodist Church Family Life Center from 12 noon until 6 p.m. Thursday, April 9.
We collected 38 units in February. Thanks to all doors and volunteers. Thanks to Sally Field and Robbin Saunders for providing the homemade cakes and cookies and Doris Rexrode for coordinating the snacks. Thanks to Three Li’l Pigs in Daleville for the barbeque sandwiches provided for all the donors and volunteers.
Join the American Red Cross and the American Cancer Society as we work together to encourage people across the country to give blood.
The blood drive is considered an essential service during this pandemic. The Red Cross has assured us that they are taking every precaution to protect to the extent possible all donors, volunteers and Red Cross staff. However, the decision to attend this blood drive remains a decision that must be made by each individual considering all factors including possible prior exposure, current health, age and all underlying health issues. If you choose to come, thank you. The collection is very poor due to this pandemic and the need continues to rise. If you choose not to come, we understand and respect your decision.
Sam Saunders
Fincastle Coordinator
| Wind turbines are wasteful, inefficient
Editor: I have concerns about putting wind turbines in Botetourt County. Government mandates requiring renewable energy (wind turbines) have been making the air dirtier. As of right now, wind turbines must be backed up by conventional power plants (read coal and natural gas) for times when the wind slows or stops altogether. Since it often takes many hours to get conventional power plants running to function as backups, they are kept running at a rate great enough to take over for the wind turbines. Much of the country is creating power with two systems at the same time! This creates additional pollution not only through energy-intensive production of the turbines themselves, but because the energy must be provided in the exact amount needed at the very time it is needed to avoid damage to the electricity transmission systems. The plants often must be moderated to follow the wind fluctuations, which cause them to burn additional fuel and release additional sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, and mercury into the air. Nancy Kamwell Fincastle
|
Open up Fincastle’s ‘Big Spring’
Editor:
The Fincastle Garden Club did the town, especially the children, a great disfavor when it closed the open waterway of the Big Spring branch1 When it was an open branch, it was full of spring lizards, crayfish, tadpoles and tiny minnows. It was a child’s paradise!
Please open this treasure back up from the three big slate rocks to the former little bridge to the many streams which were south of the old Trainor (Westerman) house. There were four pipes at the large limestone rocks, three open and one feeding the K.B. Stoner orchard.
These pipes came out of the rocks into a spring basin and flowed under a four-foot bridge that people stood on to put their buckets under the big branch flowing from the three open pipes.
The flow will not be full at first, but water has a way of seeking its own level, so nature will do the rest in time.
The branch was about four feet in width and free flowing.
We could open the water flow to the ditch at the little bridge (rearranging the little bridge, if necessary). Then later on, drain the stinking, mosquito-infested pond. This would allow the waterbed to proceed to its original site to the streambed southwest of the old Westerman (Trainor) house. Then it will empty into Town Branch, as intended.
Let’s open this treasure back up as nature intended. Please.
Bob Waid
Fincastle
