Eureka ECA

Eureka ECA met Tuesday, April 19, at the Moore County Agriculture Center.

Six members and two guests attended our meeting. The program “Reading Our Soil Tests” was presented by agriculture agent Taylor Williams.

Members learned how to correct problems in both vegetable gardens and flower beds.

Members were pleased to have won Achievement Day awards in three areas: leadership skills and marketing, community service, and home, food, environment safety. The club is still awaiting a response from its soldier to begin working on “Adopt a Soldier.”

Roadside pickup was held on April 25.

A bake sale is planned for Mother’s Day weekend at Highlanders Farm. The sale will be held Saturday, May 7, from 9 a.m. until the items are sold. Prices of items will range from 50 cents and up.

Upcoming events include volunteering for the Dixie Youth World Series held in August and planning a Save Our Shoes campaign later in the year.

At the close of the meeting, a tree was planted at the Moore County Ag Center in memory of Buna McLeod. McLeod was a member of ECA for more than 50 years and served as a leader in both our club and the county. A brief ceremony was held, and a plaque will be placed at the base of the tree.

The next meeting of the club will be May 17, at 2 p.m. at the Ag Center.

Members are asked to bring snacks for the Snack Pack Pals program. The program will be presented by Shiela Klein, of RSVP. She will be discussing volunteer opportunities in the area.

Beta Zeta

The Beta Zeta Chapter of the Alpha Delta Kappa Sorority for women educators held its April meeting at Rhett’s Cafe in Southern Pines.

The tables were decorated with an Easter motif by hostesses Elizabeth Edwards, Gail Page and Ann Spong.

An inspirational devotional was given by Joanne Walters.

The program for the evening was given by Barbara Barnes, who is affiliated with Premier Designs Jewelry, a Christian company. Jewelry was made available for purchase by the membership of the sorority. Profits from this sale were donated by Barnes to the sorority for its scholarship fund.

Committee reports were given by Judy Boroughs, treasurer; Elizabeth Edwards, scholarship; Carolyn Hatcher, picnic committee, and Carol Steed, altruistic committee.

Several door prizes were awarded from membership drawings.

The next meeting will be the annual picnic held May 31 at the Sandhills Community College picnic shelter. If there is rain, the picnic will take place in the cafeteria in Dempsey Hall.

Chess Club

The Sandhills Chess Club meets every Monday and Thursday at the Moore County Senior Center on U.S. 15-501, two miles north of the Pinehurst Traffic Circle.

Monday meetings are at 2:45 p.m., and Thursday meetings are at 7 p.m.

Call Joe McDonald at (910) 315-1233 for more information.

John Blue UDC

The John Blue Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy met at the Postmaster’s House in Aberdeen Thursday, April 21, for its monthly meeting.

Hostesses Lynda Turbeville and Evalyn Abbott served cheesecake topped with whipped cream and strawberries, cashews and iced tea. They decorated with Easter decorations.

Chaplain Louise Buchan led in the pledges and ritual. Recording Secretary Jean Slate read the minutes, which were approved as written. In the absence of the treasurer, President Dorothy Thomas read the treasurer’s report. Vice President Paula Caddell gave the group information on the UDC 150 year pins, which are now available for purchase. Harriet Sloan gave a registrar’s report.

Old business included the plans for the cleaning of Confederate and Union tombstones by Powell Funeral Home, who has volunteered to do this for the UDC.

New business that was discussed was plans for the upcoming Confederate Memorial Day on May 21, at Old Bethesda Church and Cemetery.

The guest speaker will be Trent Carter, who will speak on “Why Did N.C. Secede?”

The program begins at 10 a.m.

Harriet Sloan gave the program on St. Alban’s Raid. She brought out some very interesting facts. The program ended with the singing of traditional Southern music.

Sandhills Photo Club

The Sandhills Photography Club meets from 7 to 9 p.m. Monday, May 9, at Christ Fellowship Church, Midland and Pee Dee roads, Southern Pines. 

The program will be presented by Donna Ford, who will give a slide show and presentation on “Sports Photography.”

Ford provides many sports photos for The Pilot. She will be teaching members how to improve their sports photographs.

“Guests are encouraged to join us for the meetings,” says a spokesman.

For information, visit www.sandhillsphotoclub.org.

Men’s Fellowship

The Sandhills Men’s Fellowship welcomes David Michael Wolff as the guest speaker at the Tuesday, May 10, breakfast meeting.

Wolff is the principal conductor for the Carolina Philharmonic and the musical director for the Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church, in Pinehurst.

He made his orchestral debut as piano soloist at the age of 12. Three years later he entered the University of Washington on full scholarship, majoring in Romance languages and piano performance as a student of Robin McCabe. He later moved to New York City and obtained his master’s degree under the direction of Byron Janis, celebrated pupil of Vladimir Horowitz.

Wolff has won numerous prizes in international competitions, including grand prize in the Naomi Management International Competition in New York City.  He was then presented in recital at Carnegie Hall, where he continues to appear regularly, both as pianist and conductor.

In 2004, he won five consecutive first prizes in international competitions in Europe and as a result was engaged for numerous solo recitals in Europe. Hundreds of performances across North America, Europe and Asia have solidified his reputation as one of the foremost performing artists of his generation.

Wolff is an avid linguist, fluent in five languages, and is a sought-after coach of international opera stars as well as aspiring concert pianists. His diverse interests have led to collaborations with such artists as Mikhail Baryshnikov and to numerous commissions to arrange and compose works for opera, modern dance and other multi-media projects.

The Sandhills Men’s Fellowship meets at the Pinehurst Member’s Club at 7:45 a.m. for fellowship, followed by a breakfast buffet at 8 a.m. The meetings are open to all men who are interested in great speakers from the pool of extraordinary residents of the area.

For additional information contact Tom Stewart at (910) 295-9775.

Computer Club

The Computer Club of the Sandhills meets Monday, May 9, at 4 p.m. on the lower level of the village hall in Whispering Pines.

The meeting will feature two guest speakers from Wachovia Bank, a Wells Fargo Company. Jessica Kovach, a customer sales and service representative, together with Tatjanna Williams, a teller, will speak on “Identify Theft Protection.”

“Learn how you can improve the security of your online banking using your personal computer,” says a spokesman. “You can also understand how the many credit/debit card transactions you are making daily are being protected.”

The computer club meets the second Monday of each month at 4 p.m. Membership is open to computer users with all levels of expertise. Visitors are always welcome.

For more information, contact Gary Goss at (910) 215-9290.

Coin Club

The Moore Numismatic Association (MNA) Coin Club will meet at 7 p.m., Wednesday, May 4, at a new location, the Southern Pines Civic Club house, located 105 S. Ashe St., behind the town tennis courts, at the corner of Ashe Street and Pennsylvania Avenue.

Meetings are held on the first Wednesday of each month. Meetings consist of coin news and events, member presentations and discussions and a coin raffle and auction.

Club membership is $15 per year, $6 for those 17 and under.

“New members are always welcome,” says Paul Brill, secretary-treasurer.

Call Brill at (910) 638-4542 for more information.

SCC Computer Club

Sandhills Community College Computer Club’s last monthly meeting will be held Thursday, May 5, at 3:30 p.m. in Room 103 in Van Dusen Hall at the college’s main campus.

This month’s speaker will be Bob Temme, community services coordinator, with the Southern Pines Police Department.

He will give a presentation on the Southern Pines Police Department’s new crime mapping and analysis for the effective deployment of limited police resources and crime reduction.

Time permitting, he will also discuss state, local and federal databases utilized in criminal investigations.

“This meeting is open to the public,” says a spokesman.

Women

Of Weymouth

Larry Allen and Stephen Smith will provide the entertainment for the Women of Weymouth’s annual Strawberry Festival Monday, May 16.

Allen is a professor of English at Sandhills Community College, where he currently teaches five classes. Allen is originally from Durham and attended NCSU. He has been with SCC since 1980, straight from receiving his graduate degree.

In addition to riding his bicycle and organic gardening, he likes all kinds of music and plays the mandolin. Allen plays with a group called Second Childhood, a traditional string band.

Smith was born in Easton, Md., graduated from Elon College and attended UNC Greensboro, where he received his master’s degree in 1971. His poems, stories, columns, and reviews have appeared in many periodicals and anthologies.

He is the author of seven previous books of poetry and prose and his latest book is titled “A Short Report on the Fire at Woolworths,” which he dedicated in part to Allen.

Smith is the recipient of the Poetry Northwest Young Poet’s Prize, the Zoe Kincaid Brockman Prize for poetry and four North Carolina Press awards. A past professor at SCC, he lives in Southern Pines and contributes columns, reviews and features to The Pilot and PineStraw magazine.

A guitar player, Smith will combine his talents with Allen’s, providing the May 16 program of music and song.

The Strawberry Festival begins at 10:30 a.m. and is a luncheon program. The cost for the lunch is $5 for members and $10 for guests.

Reservations are required and can be made by calling Marion Gaida at (910) 295-0591.

Aberdeen Home

And Garden

The Aberdeen Home and Garden Club held its April meeting at the Southern Pines Retirement Community with 20 members present.

President Jenny Veasey presided over the business meeting, held in the theater. The awards committee reported placement of plaques at 502 Poplar St., 701 Bethesda Ave., 1108 Hardister St., and 1102 Glendale Drive for outstanding yards.

Mary Lou Black, president elect, passed sign-up sheets for member responsibilities and obligations. The club voted to purchase a bird bath appropriate for the landscaping project at the Postmaster’s House in Aberdeen.

Rich Garner, who had extended a warm welcome to the club, then gave an informative overview of the property followed by a tour of the facility. Club members were invited into the dining room for a lunch prepared by chef Roger Harvey.

Hostesses Sarah Ahmad and Elease Goodwin presented a container garden to Garner in appreciation for hospitality show to the club.