LINDEMAN: Help Our Accomack Neighbors Fight Arson
By BRUCE LINDEMAN
Cape Charles Wave
March 28, 2013
Since mid-November, 74 arsons in Accomack County have been recorded. Investigators are trying desperately to find the person or persons responsible and have recently announced an award of up to $5,000 for information leading to the capture of the arsonist(s) from the Virginia Chapter of the International Association of Arson Investigators (http://www.vaiaai.com).
Since these fires have been widespread, fighting the blazes has involved many local volunteer fire departments throughout the county –- departments with limited funds to respond to the extraordinary number of calls.
These blazes have stressed many of Accomack’s volunteer fire and rescue personnel to the point where they are running out of supplies and the budget to replace them. To date, these brave men and women have logged 3,700 hours fighting these fires.
How can we help? I asked Billie Jean Miles at the Accomack County Department of Public Safety. Below is the information she sent me.
Volunteer! There are fifteen volunteer fire & rescue stations located in Accomack County. A complete list with contact information can be found at http://www.acdps.net/page/volunteer-fire-and-rescue.
There are various ways one could volunteer and not necessarily be a firefighter and/or EMS provider. Maybe you have some extra time to help clean equipment or fire hoses, assist with one of their upcoming fundraisers, staff the rehab unit, or provide administrative support. Contact your local station to see how you could make a difference.
Give! An account has been established for monetary donations. All donations are tax-deductible. Donations can be dropped off at any Shore Bank location or mailed to Shore Bank (c/o Accomack Firefighter’s Assistance Fund), P.O. Box 920, Onley VA 23418. [Read more…]
SHORE THING: One Lucky Dog
“Lucky” — also affectionately known as “Mayor of Cape Charles.”
By GEORGE SOUTHERN
Cape Charles Wave
March 25, 2013
My wife and I are walkers (and joggers of a sort), and a big attraction of the Historic District is its walkability. So, most mornings for the past couple of years we have been “making our rounds.”
First we head to the beach, then out to the end of the pier, thence up Front Street (Mason Avenue, but I’m trying to sound like a local), left on Peach, then through Central Park, continuing on Monroe past Fig, all the way to Bahama Road (reachable from Monroe by foot but not by car).
From there we cross Lake Foster, approaching the gated community of Jellybean Village. And since what happens from that point possibly involves illegal activity, I’ll just conclude by saying that eventually we wind up back in the Historic District.
That’s a generic description of our “rounds,” which might run in the opposite direction the next day, and which also might entail detours, side paths, and shortcuts.
It’s a good way to meet people – and dogs (and cats).
In the people category, we’ve made a good friend who makes his rounds much more faithfully than we. But unlike us, he never varies his route. Visit the Natural Area Preserve behind the WACO building any morning (and I do mean any morning, rain or shine) and you’ll likely see him coming or going.
In the dog category, we’ve met any number. I consider myself very much a “dog person,” so I feel some jealousy that, invariably, any dog we encounter ignores me in favor of getting attention from my wife. She greets them, compliments them, and rubs them. Of course they like her! [Read more…]
LETTER: County Should Not Cut School Board Positions
March 23, 2013
DEAR EDITOR,
We would like to register our disagreement as well as displeasure concerning the consideration by the Northampton County Board of Supervisors with the elimination of the two at-large members of the school board, thereby reducing the number of members from seven to five.
Removing the two at-large positions for this first election will possibly eliminate candidates who happen to live in the same district. Currently, if as many as three citizens worthy of being elected live in the same district, they nevertheless are able to run for election (two at-large and one in the district) with the possibility of being elected.
With the elimination of the two at-large positions only one of those three candidates can be elected. The chance for diversity of all kinds so necessary in our community will be lessened. We need more voices rather than less at this very important time. [Read more…]
LETTER: Make Old Library Available to Community Groups
March 12, 2013
DEAR EDITOR,
Cape Charles is about to have a beautiful new library. The old library building and excess computers should be provided to organizations that are focused on community activities, both educational and recreational.
Concerned Citizens of Cape Charles, a non-profit organization, was formed by local residents in 1989. The working class community organized to be better informed, educated, and empowered to become a part of the civic decision-making process, and to accept responsibility for self improvement and in turn community improvements at a time when the Town did not have the human or financial resources to sustain itself.
The organization’s mission is to improve the lives and living conditions of the working class residents through human development and the creation and development of a sustainable community.
Concerned Citizens became the advocate and the voice for the disenfranchised. The organization brought many resources to Cape Charles, including hundreds of student volunteers who worked on community projects including installing shelves in the Library, painting a senior’s house, moving scenery at Arts Enter, and gardening at the Museum.
The group also fought for changes to promote community stability such as zoning laws that allowed in-fill housing development and other laws favorable to improving the quality of life.
Channel 10 was on our side when the Town wanted to use $1.2 million in Community Development Block Grants for infrastructure improvements instead of the most critical need of housing rehabilitation.
Concerned Citizens also brought national media attention to its fight to save the predominantly African-American Northeast neighborhood when a developer’s plan for a resort retirement community would have destroyed the neighborhood and displaced its residents. [Read more…]
LETTER:
Group Seeks to Preserve Cape Charles Colored School
Rosenwald School at November 19, 2011, dedication of historical marker (ESVA.net photo)
March 6, 2013
DEAR EDITOR,
There are no front yard signs in support of “the other Old School Cape Charles.” However, there is definitely an effort gaining momentum to preserve the history of another Cape Charles former public school building.
This movement has been characterized not by spirited debate and public hearings, but by the same quiet dignity and determination that led to the creation in 1928 of the Cape Charles Colored School.
The school is situated just over the hump from the Historic District to the Bay Creek golf community. It is an unassuming red brick building. Spray paint evidences its brief history as an eel processing plant. The modest structure belies the storied and important history of the school. [Read more…]
SHORE THING: The Troll Under the Bridge
By GEORGE SOUTHERN
Cape Charles Wave
February 18, 2013
The Bridge-Tunnel Commission’s surprising decision to lower tolls for some commuters just might be like the first bricks chipped away from the Berlin Wall.
By itself it may not be that meaningful, but if it starts a trend, who knows where it might end?
Could the action escalate to the point that we no longer fear the “Toll Troll” under the bridge, lurking to gobble up travelers’ wallets?
I wonder why, after all these years, the Bridge-Tunnel Commission made a concession to Eastern Shore residents?
Is there finally a recognition that the crushing toll is the major reason that Northampton is the poorest county in the state of Virginia?
The $12 Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel (CBBT) toll is the highest in the United States by far.
The Verrazano-Narrows Bridge toll into New York City is $13, but the other direction is free, so the average toll is $6.50. Motorcyclists pay $5.50, or an average of $2.75 both ways.
(And why does our Bridge-Tunnel charge the same rate for a motorcycle as for a 2-axle truck?)
The Overseas Highway to Key West spans 127 miles, with the longest bridge in the chain stretching seven miles. The last toll was collected in 1954. Now it’s free.
FREE!
The CBBT carries like a badge of honor the distinction of being built and maintained totally by tolls.
As if that’s something to be proud of. [Read more…]
COMMENTARY:
Anonymous School Survey Biased and Cowardly
By TED WARNER
February 13, 2013
Recently a survey was circulated though email by an unnamed “local community group” in an attempt to explore “perceptions of the local school options” and “local Eastern Shore schools.” It was reported by the Cape Charles Wave. The survey was not appreciated and accomplished nothing. Its organizers should be ashamed.
And who are the organizers? They are anonymous; anonymity has no place in the public discourse.
At a basic level, we must exchange ideas in order to make any progress. That’s why testimony has value in a democracy. That’s how minds are changed. And, because we sign our names to our ideas, democracy is done in the light of day and personal accountability.
It matters that I sign my name to this letter; it means that tomorrow, someone can approach me on Mason Avenue and speak to me about it. My boss will see it. I can’t hide from what I’m saying here, but I’m going to say it anyway. Because it matters.
But this anonymous group has deliberately chosen to excuse themselves from that system of accountability. They are hiding. They are cowards.
There is also something psychologically violent about this anonymous survey. It is not, as it claims, an exploration. Its suspicious and shoddy methodology reveals its own bias. [Read more…]
LETTER: Innkeeper Warns of ‘Certified Check’ Scams
January 31, 2013
DEAR EDITOR:
There is a rental scam going on that we should all be aware of.
It begins with a rather normal reservation request on line. Prices and dates are confirmed. These are often unusual names — I have received a reservation request from Lychagina Kudryashov claiming to be in Ukraine (but I have also received requests from England). Often the requests come from “priests” coming on retreat or extended stays.
People do not stay at B&B’s for a month!
The requests also usually have some sort of grammatical error, leaving out words or capitalization.
Sometimes it helps to respond by asking questions. The scammers usually cannot say what airport they are coming into, or even their form of transportation.
The scam is that they claim that they cannot give a credit card number for deposit over the Internet or phone because of security reasons. Instead, they promise to send a check.
They then send a check for a huge amount of money, asking that you deposit it and send on the rest to a travel agent or whatever.
The scam is that it is a fake cashiers check, and they are playing with the time it takes for the bank to realize that the check is fake.
If you do send on the extra money as a “courtesy” to your international guest, you have been scammed.
Recently I received a cashiers check for $5,450 from the Credit Union of Atlanta, Georgia. It looks very legitimate.
I called the bank’s security and they told me it was fraudulent, not from their bank, and that they have been trying to catch up to the forgers for some time. [Read more…]
