Back to school day
The Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools PTA Council will sponsor its annual “Back to School Day†on Saturday, August 25 at University Mall.
Students and parents are invited to the gathering, which will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the mall on Estes Drive. Representatives from each of the district’s schools will be available to provide information about starting back to school, organizing supply lists, PTA memberships, bus schedules and more. In addition, most schools will have spirit wear available for sale.
The event is sponsored by the PTA Council and University Mall.
Love Canal activist to speak in Saxapahaw
Lois Gibbs, executive director of the Center for Health, Environment and Justice, will speak on community activism next Sunday, August 19 from 1 to 4 p.m. at the River Landing Inn, located just outside Saxapahaw. Gibbs is best known for her successful effort, in 1980, to relocate 900 families away from Love Canal, in Niagara Falls, New York, beneath which 21,000 tons of buried chemical waste was found. After an alarming number of miscarriages and with children experiencing a range of serious health issues, Gibbs spearheaded an investigation that led to Pres. Jimmy Carter declaring a federal emergency. The relocated families were reimbursed for their homes.
Gibbs will focus her talk on doing battle with industries that pollute. Several local activists will also speak. The event is free. For more information, contact Sue Dayton at (336) 525-2003 or sdayton@swep.com.
Gibbs will then also be at a press conference and rally the following day, August 20, at 11:30 a.m., in front of the Old Capitol building in Raleigh.
Heat relief available
The Orange County Department of Social Services has received donations of window air conditioners from Orange Congregations in Mission and has purchased fans to help low-income citizens cope with the heat. Orange County residents can apply at the Chapel Hill office located at 2501 Homestead Road or the Hillsborough office at 300 West Tryon Street
To be eligible, recipients must be at or below 200 percent of the poverty threshold. The income limit is approximately $1,700 a month for an individual and $3,400 for a family of four. Because of the limited supply, those requesting air conditioners must also have a medical need and the ability to pick-up and install the unit.
The agency also can help pay past-due utility bills to keep a resident’s electricity from being turned off.
Cops to greet students
The Chapel Hill Police Department Community Services Unit will be greeting students in the community on Monday, August 20 as a part of its “Good Neighbor Initiative,†designed to encourage students to become better integrated into the community.
Community Services officers and representatives from the Dean of Student Affairs Office will join volunteers from UNC-Chapel Hill and Empowerment Inc. in a walk through the Northside, Pine Knolls and Cameron-Mcauley neighborhoods, beginning at 3 p.m., to deliver information packets to new residents.
For more information, contact Lt.Kevin Gunter at 969-2068.