Do You Qualify for Food Assistance?

The Buncombe County Sheriff's Office will be hosting another Citizens' Academy for 2009.

After 80 years Commissioners move out of the Courthouse.

Fraudulent emails, purporting to be from Delta, have apparently been sent to consumers in the last 24 hours.

Held every year on the third Tuesday in March, the American Diabetes Alert is an annual one-day call-to-action for people to find out if they are at risk for diabetes.

Beginning April 6, 2009, employees of the US Census will begin canvassing Buncombe County neighborhoods to get address information.

Recently we asked our readers to ask any questions they had regarding the County. In the next few weeks we will share some of the questions and answers that resulted.

Changes have been made to the Food Assistance Program -- if you are eligible, we want you enrolled!

MoveAbout is a fun and easy way for organizations to encourage their employees and members to increase physical activity, improve overall health and possibly win some prizes!

Support Special Olympics Buncombe County athletes and have a great time at the 1st Annual Spare Me Bowling Tournament.

Please consider giving a home to one of these wonderful pets! The shelter is okay, but I would love to have a home of my own!

Congratulations to Melissa Roberts for her Easy Lasagna recipe!

Thursday, March 19 -- 6pm
Swannanoa Library
101 West Charleston Street
250-6486

Join Carol Pimental, local counselor, organizing consultant, and community advocate, as she leads you through a journey to rediscover the difference between money and true fulfillment.

Sponsored by the Friends of the Swannanoa Library.

Learn how to preserve high acid foods safely by water bath canning. Come away knowing the importance of following food preservation guidelines and adjusting for higher mountain altitudes, as well as the equipment necessary for safe canning.

This demonstration workshop will be part of the Organic Growers School on March 21st and 22nd. Visit their website for more information or to register - www.organicgrowersschool.org.

Home improvement tax credits are now available for home improvements “placed in service” from January 1, 2009 through December 31, 2009. Any qualified home improvements made in 2008 are not eligible for the tax credit.

Home improvement tax credits are available for insulation, replacement windows, water heaters, certain high efficiency heating and cooling equipment, and biomass stoves. See Tax Credits for Energy Efficiency. The maximum amount that a taxpayer may claim from all of these tax credits combined is $500 over the lifetime of the tax credit (2006, 2007 & 2009).

If you are building a new home, you can qualify for the tax credit for photovoltaic’s, solar water heaters, small wind systems and fuel cells, but not the tax credits for windows, doors, insulation, roofs, HVAC, or non-solar water heaters.

View the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidance for consumers:

IRS Notice 2006-26 (PDF)

Seeds planted directly in the garden often need to be thinned after the seedlings emerge. Don't let the plants get too large before thinning them out. It is best to thin when they have only 1 to 2 “true leaves” (the leaves that come after the “seed leaves” that look like the plant’s mature leaves).

One technique is to use scissors to snip off extra plants to avoid damaging the roots of the remaining plants. If you need them elsewhere, seedlings can be carefully dug and transplanted by using a tool like a knife or fork to gently lift the little plant from below. Water the patch after thinning, especially if you pull the extra plants, thereby disturbing the surviving plant roots.

Recommended final spacing for lettuce and greens is 6 inches. Carrots and beets can be as close as 2 inches. Peas should be 1 inch apart, and beans 3-4 inches.

For more information, call Buncombe County Cooperative Extension at 255-5522.

The Buncombe County Juvenile Crime Prevention Council (JCPC) announces the availability of $6,000 in intervention and prevention funds for services to court involved youth. JCPC funds require a local cash or in-kind match of 30%.

Based on the needs in Buncombe County the following service is needed:

• Counseling services, specifically equine assisted therapy. Equine assisted psychotherapy incorporates horses experientially for emotional growth and learning. It is a collaborative effort between a licensed therapist and a horse professional working with the clients and horses to address treatment goals.

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