Mardi Gras Party Coming In February

Each year the Catholic tradition of Mardi Gras, or Shrove Tuesday is played out around the globe as a final night of celebration before the Lenten Season, or time of penance begins which leads up to persecution and death of Our Lord and the Joyous day of Jesus’ Resurrection on Easter Sunday. This party or celebration is the “last fling”or party until Easter time. Since everyone loves a reason to hold a party, the world in general has adopted this party and Mardi Gras which is French for “Fat Tuesday”, is celebrated around the world. In Fairfield Bay, you can find an annual Mardi Gras at St. Francis of Assisi Parish hall. On Saturday, February 18, 2012 from 7 – 10:30 p.m.,The Little Red River Band provides live music for dancing, refreshments are available and tickets are on sale for $15. per person. Everyone is welcome and encouraged to participate. To obtain tickets, call the parish office at 884-3349 Tuesday through Thursday or contact Therese Preusser at 884-3049.

All Boxes Are Not The Same

Most of us take pride in the amount of material we are able to recycle from our households each week, even at the risk of being called recycling geeks or the trash police at home, school and work. However, because of closer scrutiny by the cardboard mills, we need to be more careful about what we call “cardboard” these days. What cardboard mills use is corrugated box material (honeycomb design between two layers of paper). That includes, and is basically limited to, corrugated shipping and product boxes and dividers, take-out pizza boxes (with all food removed) and brown paper bags. Because of the increased scrutiny of the material that recycling centers ship to the mills, the following materials are not acceptable: #1 No chipboard boxes – These are single ply boxes that are grey on the inside. The paper fibers in these boxes are at the end of their recycling life. That means no Cheerios, Hamburger Helper or macaroni and cheese boxes or boxes like them. As much as we want to recycle them, the mills set the rules. #2 No wet strength boxes – Cartons and boxes that hold wet and frozen items have a lot of glue and wax on them. The reason those cola 12-packs and frozen pizza boxes are so hard to open is they are heavily glued. Wet strength boxes are considered a contaminant by the cardboard industry. By checking to see that these items aren’t in our recycling bins, we save our recycling center employees a lot of extra work and help them keep their quality up to standard. Please help spread the word that these materials are not recyclable. Thank you!

Exciting Changes Come To The Country Club

Indian Hills Country Club has a new atmosphere, a new menu and new suppliers for fresh meats and fish. Things have definitely changed for the better in every way that counts when you are thinking of dining out. Thanks in large part to the addition of Clint Stevens, who has a very strong background in fine dining and holds a culinary arts degree that is serving us well. Clint has lots of experience in planning, preparing and serving delicious dishes that will surprise and delight you. If you haven’t been out to the Club in the last few weeks, you are missing out on lots of good food, a welcoming and gracious staff and very good service. Since there have been major changes in everything from food supplies, preparation, wait staff and even housekeeping and decor, you owe it to yourselves to pick up the phone, call your friends and family and make a reservation for a dinner you will thoroughly enjoy. Please note the hours of operation are as follows: Tuesday and Thursday: 11 to 2; Wednesday 11 to 8; Friday and Saturday 11 to 9 p.m. and closed on Sunday and Monday. John asked us to convey the flexibility that the Club offers. If you arrive for dinner at 8:30 on Friday or Saturday evening, you will still enjoy a pleasant and unhurried experience. If you have a favorite dish that is not shown on the menu, you can request it anyway. So long as the ingredients are in the kitchen, your dish will be prepared. In other words, you will discover that the Country Club is much more user-friendly these days. After all, without you there can be no club! A Valentine’s Dinner and Dance will be held on Friday, February 10. Dinner will start at 5 p.m. with seating available until 9 p.m. in the 19th hole and the Sunset Room. The menu will be our normal menu with some fresh specials. Dancing will be in the Fairfield Room from 6-9 p.m. with entertainment by “Handmade Moments.” To find out more visit their facebook page www.facebook.com/pages/Handmade-Moments. We will not be serving food in the Fairfield Room but drink service will be available there.

Sara Michael Library Director File of Life forms and their unmistakable red vinyl envelopes have been available at the Fairfield Bay Library since April of 2011. To date, hundreds of File of Life packets have been picked up and placed on refrigerators in case of an emergency. Bob Chaloupek, head of the Fairfield Bay Emergency Medical Services says, “The awareness and distribution of the File of Life is a great success. We have found far more File of Lifes ready for us at recent emergency calls. The File of Life saves time and that can save a life” The EMS volunteers appreciate the residents taking the time to have these ready for them. If you live in Fairfield Bay and have not picked up your File of Life yet, please do so anytime during library hours. (M, T, TH 1-4, W, F 10-5 Sat 10- 12:30) The library volunteers will help you with any questions you may have. It will take you 5-15 minutes to complete and may prove invaluable. Fairfield Bay EMS invites you to explore volunteer opportunities. There are several different positions with different levels of training involved. No previous medical background is necessary yet is always welcome. The EMS needs drivers, first responders, EMT trainees and more. Pick up a brochure outlining volunteer opportunities at the Fairfield Bay Library and/or call EMS Captain Bob Chaloupek at 253-1232 with your questions. Please jump in with the questions…they are not a commitment…..and you just might find a great fit. Look for an EMS open house in the very near future.

AARP Tax-Aide Program Free Tax Help

The AARP Tax-Aide Program will begin the first week of February at the Fairfield Bay Senior Center. This program provides assistance in preparing and filing 2011 federal and state income tax returns for taxpayers with low and moderate-income, with special attention to those age 60 and older. This assistance will be available by appointment only, through April 15. All assistance is free and confidential. Taxpayers are requested to schedule their appointment after they have received all of their 2011 tax reporting documents, such as W-2’s, Social Security Forms SSA-1099, 1099 forms, brokerage statements, and other year end tax documents. Taxpayers must provide a social security card for each taxpayer and dependent. They should also bring a copy of their 2010 tax return, and all income statements. Taxpayers who itemize deductions should prepare a summary and bring receipts for their 2011 expenses such as medical expenses, charitable contributions, real estate and personal property taxes, and mortgage interest paid. Please call the Fairfield Bay Chamber of Commerce office at 884-3324 to schedule an appointment.

Piano Needed At The Education Center

When was the last time you played that old piano? And what would you give for someone to haul it away for free, knowing that it would fall into very good hands and be played and enjoyed! The City of Fairfield Bay needs a piano for the Education Center. They would love to receive a donation of your much loved and seldom used instrument. Rest assured that this donation would be tax deductible. Who knows what talent lies in wait, and will be revealed once the piano becomes available for lessons. If you have a piano to donate or know someone else who does, just call 884-4440.

Bringing The CALL To Van Buren Co.

The C.A.L.L. stands for “Children of Arkansas Loved for a Lifetime.” It was started in Arkansas in 2006, by Mary Carl Pederson, wife of Jason Pederson, well known as the “Seven On Your Side” Consumer Affairs Reporter for KTHV. Mrs. Pederson’s vision is “to have no waiting children in Arkansas Foster care, but instead to have waiting, Christian families ready to take them in.” The CALL is currently active in over 20 counties and over 600 children have been placed since 2006. We feel that now is the time for Van Buren and Searcy Counties to get on board with this mission. Recently, a group of concerned citizens began meeting and taking steps forward to bring the call to these two counties. A steering committee was formed and they are in the process of seeking volunteers to fill the positions needed to accomplish this task. Any member of the committee would be honored to speak in your church or organization and give you more information on how you as an individual, a church or organization can help wit this. For information, please contact Lori Treat, our County Coordinator, at 501-339-7146 or Peggy Hardy at 253-7722.

NYC New Year’s Eve In Fairfield Bay

What a night! The sold out crowd of Fairfield Bay residents and guests at the Indian Hills Country Club said good-bye to 2011 and welcomed 2012 at a fabulous New York City, New Year’s Eve celebration. As the party goers entered the Country Club, Jennifer Mook took their pictures in front of a painted skyline of New York City and the George Washington Bridge and e-mailed them immediately to the guests. The Fairfield Room was aglow with lights, tinsel, top hats, feathers, and lots of glitz and glitter throughout the room. The dance floor was highlighted with lights encased in black and white bubbles of mesh and the disc jockey’s set-up provided a background to it all. While the evening’s ‘big band’ sound filled the room, an abundance of wonderful hors d’oeuvres of catfish, ribs, chicken, cheese, veggies, etc. prepared by the IHCC staff were served. Soon thereafter, music from the 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s brought the dancers to the dance floor. With waltzes, the “snake” through the room, familiar renditions of YMCA, the twist, and rock n’ roll, the dance floor was consistently full. When the New Year arrived, East Coast time, and with the technical expertise of Don Johnson and Jennifer Mook, the projector screen was lowered and through the magic of the internet, everyone joined with the Times Square crowd and watched the ball drop, welcoming in the New Year. It was a great way to welcome 2012. With the creative talents of Carlene Barra, Freida McClellan, Patsy Weidanz, and Sheryl Paxton the Country Club was decorated as if it were a NYC New Year’s Eve. The famous sales talent of Mary Baker and others she recruited to sell tickets was the key to a successful event. The Event Committee would like to say a special thank you to John Spies and the entire staff at the Country Club for making the evening a special one in Fairfield Bay.

Happy New Year to All,

FFBCC Board of Directors Events Committee, Carlene Barra, Chair

Holocaust And Education Talk To Pangburn School

Fred Hilsenrath I was invited to talk yet again, about my holocaust experiences, to students of the Pangburn School. The students were very interested to hear my story about the ghastly events in 1938 to 1945 when 10 million people were exterminated and among these 6 million Jews. We had fled Germany in 1938 to my grandparents in Romania. Soon thereafter Romania joined the Germans and we were again under the German persecution threat. We were deported to the newly occupied Ukraine. Many of our Fairfield Bay residents have heard my story but this time I combined the story with an educational message to about 300 students from grade 5 to 12. The purpose of the telling of these memoirs is not only that this history should be known and not be forgotten but we must extract a lesson about how to avoid a repeat. It is often said that we rarely learn a lesson and therefore history repeats. If indeed we are not aware of happenings around us, if indeed we remain uncritical of dangerous developments in our public life, if indeed we don’t really care to intervene by strongly expressing our views and opinions but only timidly speak up when it is too late, then we can expect history to repeat. I reminded the students in front of me that our future will be in their hands. While receiving education they do not only learn specific facts but they also develop critical and analytical thinking; they will become ‘cultured’ citizens. Culture implies familiarity with a broad number of subjects and implies ability to judge what is worthy and what is not, it implies critical but constructive analysis about where we as a society and a nation are going. Yes it is a responsibility but the rewards are worth it. I urged the students to take their education seriously and to appreciate their teacher’s efforts. Education is not a disciplinary punishment. Each of the students will greatly benefit from education, socially and economically. The joint effect of knowledge combined with critical thinking will preserve our cherished freedom.

Lakeshore Construction Project

A new Greers Ferry Lake water intake project has been proposed for the Cove Creek area. A permit application has been submitted to the Corps of Engineers by the Lonoke White Public Water Authority for a water intake that would supply eight or more communities to the south of Greers Ferry Lake. Public Notice 1994-12124-4 was issued by the Corps on December 8, 2011. An expiration date of January 2, 2012 was set for public comments. Due to the lack of media reporting, the public has been relatively unaware of the project. On January 12th the Corps extended the Public Comment period to Friday, January 27, 2012. The current proposal is a major change from the permit plans made previously. Originally, a vertical shaft was to be drilled a distance from the shoreline with horizontal intake lines then extended into the lake. The actual intakes would have been well below the lake surface as are current water intakes. Due to cost and other considerations the new plans call for sloping lines from a treatment facility down into the lake. The submerged lines would have vertical projections for water intake screens at several elevations, with the intent of drawing “best quality water” according to varied lake levels. The only drawback to this arrangement appears to be the 457 feet mean sea level (MSL) elevation at which the highest intakes would be constructed. This would create permanent structures varying from several feet below the lake surface to several feet above the surface, depending on lake water levels. Either case would present a danger to boaters, swimmers, fishermen, and recreation in the nearby Cove Creek camping and boat launch area. The aesthetics of projections above the water would be a detriment to property values, tourism, and the attraction of the area. Limiting intake elevations to 450’ MSL would eliminate these problems by keeping the structures well below the surface, except in an extreme drop in lake level. Greers Ferry Lake water has been safely provided to customers from intakes no higher than 450’ MSL for 40 years. No water quality tests were made during high water levels to determine the advantage, if any, of intakes at 457’ MSL. Allowing intakes at 457’ MSL would set a precedent for building all intakes and structures in the lake to dangerous levels. Please contact Sarah Chitwood, Project Manager, Little Rock District Corps of Engineers, Regulatory Division, P.O. Box 867, Little Rock, AR , 72203-0867 or email: sarah.l.chitwood@usace.army.us to request limiting water intakes to an elevation of 450’ MSL. You may add any concerns over earthmoving and fill that will be part of the construction. No sketches or illustrations of the finished project have been presented. The public deserves to see the effect of changes to public property through visual illustrations or a Public Hearing. For questions about this ad/article please contact Save Greers Ferry Lake, Inc. at SGFL@artelco.com

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