Chapel Hill town council member Bill Thorpe died this past weekend.
Here’s the official statement from the town:

Town of Chapel Hill flags are at half-staff in memory of long-time Councilmember Bill Thorpe, who passed away at his home Saturday, September 27, 2008.
Councilmember Thorpe, a resident of Chapel Hill for nearly 40 years, served on the Council for a total of 11 years. He first served on the Council from 1977 to 1981, served another term from 1983 to 1987, and returned to the Council on Dec. 5, 2005, nearly three decades after he was elected the first time. He served as Mayor pro-tem from 1985 to 1987. More »

Downturn hits the charts throughout Orange County

Kirk Ross
Staff Writer

Closer ties with UNC and RTP, more coordination in recruiting between local governments, setting up an economic incentive program and leveraging a new Orange County Airport were among the ideas discussed Tuesday at an Orange County development briefing at UNC’s Friday Center.

One by one, planners from Carrboro, Chapel Hill, Orange County and Hillsborough spelled out in detail what the 150 or so business leaders assembled already knew or suspected: Commercial and residential construction is down considerably from heights hit in 2000.
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Susan Dickson
Staff Writer

Over the past few years, beer drinkers in North Carolina have seen their options expand on local taps and grocery store shelves, as breweries from all over the world began distributing their beer in the Tar Heel state.

Until several years ago, the borders were closed to many breweries’ beers because of a law that banned beer with 6 percent alcohol by volume or higher. After groups like Pop the Cap lobbied for beverage options other than Bud, Miller and the like, state lawmakers lifted the ban in 2005.
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Taylor Sisk
Staff Writer

This story is the third in a series about mental health care
in North Carolina.
[Breakdown series main page]

“There’s a lot of story,” says Valerie Kramer, assessing the narrative of her only child, Jeff.

“I get really angry,” Kramer says. “I see him so sick, and my son is a very bright person. He made ‘A’s in school; he won awards. All his cousins went to college and are very smart and successful in life, and I thought, ‘Jeff will do that.’”
At 19, Jeff Kramer, now 24, was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia.
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This time of year is beautiful beyond description. I’m challenged to focus on a single plant.

A morning glory, Ipomoea purpurea, is scrambling over a cultivated coastal beauty-berry, Callicarpa americana. The vine’s pale purple flowers call attention to the iridescent purple-pink berries of the shrub. The tall burgundy-and-green-colored pokeweed, Phytolacca americana, towering over golden-yellow plumes of common goldenrod, Solidago altissima, make me thankful that I did not pull them earlier in the summer. On the deck, several volunteer bur marigolds, Bidens aristosa, in pots of peppers and tomatoes, stand head high with hundreds of bright yellow daisy-like flowers. The still vigorously flowering near-by scarlet-red coral honeysuckle, Lonicera sempervirens, helps sustain lingering hummingbirds. The engaging beauty of all this wild floral extravagance is my reward for encouraging nature’s impulses.
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A part of this delightful time of year includes the enticement of feasts, festivals and auctions sponsored by the many local nonprofits that provide services to the underserved among us.

One of my favorites since it started in 2001 is Vintage Faire, an Upmarket Tag Sale, that raises money each year for the Mental Health Association (MHA) of Orange County.
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Thursday Sept 25

ArtsCenter: Seth Walker. 9:30pm, $12-14
Blue Horn Lounge: Tain Collins. 9pm
Cat’s Cradle: Black Kids, The Virgins, Magic Wands. 8pm, $15 adv/$17 day of
The Cave: EARLY: Truckstop Coffee. LATE: Pistolero, Resist Not.
Local 506: The Broken West, Hammer No More The Fingers. 9:30pm, $8
Milltown: Jimmy Winchell, Andrew Deutch. 10pm, Free
Nightlight: SNMNMNM, Soft Targets, Troy Smith, DJ Soulful Love. 9pm
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Rich Fowler
Staff Writer

Chapel Hill’s Halloween celebration has gotten too big, too expensive and too difficult to manage, according to a report by Chapel Hill Chief of Police Brian Curran and Parks and Recreation director Butch Kisiah. The Chapel Hill Town Council heard Curran and Kisiah’s report on plans for taming the celebration at their business meeting on Monday night.
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Chatham County Social Services offices in Pittsboro will be closed to the public and will not have phone service from noon to 1 p.m. on Oct. 3 because of a scheduled move of employees. In addition, the child support office will be closed the entire day.

During the time the phones will be disconnected, residents who need to make emergency calls to social services to report cases of abuse or neglect should call 642-6988.

Renovations to the original Chatham County Social Services building on Camp Drive in Pittsboro are nearly complete and employees will move into the renovated offices. The Child Support Office is also moving into the renovated building on Camp Drive from its Chatham Street location.

Orange County Emergency Services recognized Carrboro Fire-Rescue on Friday for becoming the first fire department in Orange County with all firefighters certified at the Emergency Medical Technician Basic (EMT-B) level.

The initiative to certify all Carrboro firefighters began more than a year ago. EMT-Bs must attend an accredited State of North Carolina training program with a minimum of 150 hours of initial education and 24 hours of continuing education per year once certified.

EMT-Bs are trained in CPR, traumatic injury treatment and basic airway techniques, as well as other emergency medical procedures.

The Orange County Animal Services Department will offer low-cost rabies vaccination clinics in recognition of the second annual World Rabies Day, Sept. 28.

Clinics will be offered on Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon at the Orange County Animal Shelter on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in Chapel Hill and from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Orange County Government Services Annex on South Cameron Street in Hillsborough.

The vaccination fee is $5, which must be paid in cash. Both one- and three-year vaccinations will be offered at both clinics. To receive a three-year vaccination, bring your pet’s most recent vaccination certificate. Dogs must be on leashes and cats must be in carriers. Animals that may be nervous or unsettled should be kept in a vehicle for their vaccination. For more information, call 245-2075.

Elecciones

Elecciones Cuidadanos, ya mismo empieza el voto por adelantado- cuando uno puede registrarse para votar y votar a la vez. Del 16 de octubre al 1 de noviembre. Lunes a sábado. Horario de 9a.m. a 4p.m. en: la biblioteca de la ciudad de Chapel Hill; el municipio de Carrboro; la biblioteca del condado de Orange, en Hillsborough. Horario de 12p.m. a 7p.m. en: el centro de ancianos Seymour; el centro de servicios humanos Northern. Traiga identificación. También se puede registrarse el martes, el 4 de Noviembre, el cual es el día oficial de las elecciones presidenciales, pero sólo en el sitio que corresponde al distrito de su domicilio.
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James Roger Gooch, 83, passed away on Sept. 19th at his home in Chapel Hill surrounded by his family.

Jim was a sixth-generation Chapel Hillian and the son of Blanche Pendgraft Gooch and Charles Gooch.
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Frances Oakley Watson, age 87, died Sept. 14 at The Methodist Retirement Home at Croasdaile Village in Durham after an extended illness.
For most of her life, she lived in Carrboro, where she retired from the UNC Hospital after 25 years of service. She was an active member of Carrboro United Methodist Church for over 60 years.
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The Strowd Roses Foundation has announced an application deadline of Oct. 31 for its last quarterly round of grants for 2008. Applicants must be tax-exempt nonprofit organizations or individuals whose projects operate in, or primarily to, benefit residents of, Chapel Hill and Carrboro. Complete guidelines and application forms are available at www.strowdroses.org or by writing to Strowd Roses, Inc., Attn: Jennifer Boger, P. O. Box 3558, Chapel Hill, NC 27515-3558.
In August, the foundation awarded grants totaling $85,500.