Newspaper Page Text
Boerne, Texas, a Inside: Son of a Confederate soldier turns 98 — page 6C
great destination
March 3,
2010
V ENTURING DEEP into
the earth to the beautiful
caverns below, spending
a few hours in delightful shops and
enjoying a leisurely lunch are among
the highlights of
a recent visit to
Boeme, Texas.
During a long
weekend trip to
San Antonio,
I took a day
trip to Boeme
(pronounced
Bemie) and fell
in love with the
Texas town. We
spent just one
day in Boeme
but there is so much to do that you
should plan to stay for a few days.
German immigrants first settled
the land where Boeme is located
over 150 years ago and there are
more than 140 historic structures
in the town. You will find your
self relaxing as soon as you begin
your adventure in Boeme. The
small town atmosphere provides a
perfect combination of old world
charm and Texas hospitality.
We began our visit with a little
spelunking at Cascade Caverns
and Cave Without A Name.
Scott Kyle, owner of Cascade
Caverns, joined our tour led by
guide, Amanda. Kyle, an architect,
inherited the caverns from his uncle.
He has lots of plans for improve
ments, including upgrading all of
the lighting inside the caves.
A favorite stop in the quarter-
mile walk through the caverns is
the Imagination Room where, if
you look closely, you will see that
some of the formations resemble
Snoopy, Shrek, Charlie Brown
and other cartoon characters.
The walk through the caverns
stops at the Cathedral Room which
has a 100-foot water fall. Church
services were held in this area of
the caverns during World War n.
While upgrades are planned,
Kyle wants to keep the old
Americana mystique of the cav
erns as a tourist attraction.
Cascade Caverns first opened
to the public for tours in 1932.
The grounds include 55 full
hook up camp sites and another
50 tent/partial camp sites.
For more information, go to
www.cascadecavems.com.
Cave Without a Name got its name
when a contest was held with school
children making suggestions. One
young boy said the cave was so beau
tiful that words couldn’t describe it.
Before going down the 126 steps
that lead you into the caverns, we
stopped at the original entrance
to the cave. It’s just a hole in the
ground where farmers noticed steam
coming up from the rocks in the
1920s. In 1939, the caves open to
the public as a tourist attraction.
Concerts are held in the caverns.
Check out the website, www.cave-
withoutaname.com, for a sched
ule and for more information.
After our morning climbing all
over the caves, we were ready for
lunch. Cypress Grille, located in the
downtown area, offers sandwiches,
salads and other entrees. I chose
the house smoked salmon club
with avocado, tomatoes and crisp
prosciutto and it was great. I also
tried one of the savory crab beignet
appetizers and it was crisp and tasty.
The afternoon was spent in the
specialty shops of Boeme, where
you will find some unique and
beautiful gifts. Antiques, home fur
nishings, clothes and accessories,
books, jewelry and arts and crafts
are among the items offered.
Festivals are held year-round and
those offered include: Chuck Wagon
Cook-off (February); Heritage
Gathering (March), Parade of Artists
(April), Art in the Park (May),
Berges Fest (June), Kendall County
Fair (September), Key to the Hills
Antique Show (October), Dickens
on Main (November) and A Hill
Country Christmas (December). Each
month, a Second Saturday art festival
is held. A complimentary trolley,
as well as hors d’oeuvres at many
locations, make this a fun outing.
While we didn’t stay in Boeme
overnight, we saw plenty of
options to do so. Resorts, bed
and breakfast inns and motels
are all located in the town.
My brief visit to Boeme left me
wanting to return. Area attractions
on my list next time are the Cibolo
Nature Center, the Agricultural
Heritage Museum and Enchanted
Springs Ranch, where you can
experience a wild west adventure.
For more information, go to www.
visitboeme.org and www.boemeart.
com or call toll free, 888-842-8080.
Angela Gan’ is an editor with
MainStreet Newspapers Inc. She can
be reached at AngieEditor@aol.com.
angela
gary
0 The Jackson Herald
Jana Adams Mitcham,
Features Editor 706-367-8760
jana@mainstreetnews. com
Section C
“With me being 13, no one would have listened to what I wanted if I did not have someone to advocate
for me. I had no idea where to even start telling the judge what I wanted and why it would be an approved
environment for me....Thanks to my CASA worker I went home with a family who were not only more
than capable of taking care of me, but loving me as one of their own children. ”
— Jacke, on her CASA experience
A CASA story
Teenager, volunteer share their CASA experience
BY JANA A. MITCHAM
ACKE IS 17, a high school
senior with plans to attend col
lege and pursue her dream of
becoming an emergency room physi
cian.
But when she was 13, her life was
in crisis.
The help of a stranger who became
a friend and an advocate made the
difference. With the help of Lisa (only
first names are shared here), a volun
teer with Piedmont CASA — court
appointed special advocates for chil
dren who work with a child and with
the court and other relevant organiza
tions— Jacke found a welcoming home
and family, and her future.
“I was 13 when I was taken away
from my family and assigned a CASA
worker,” Jacke said. “Being in a situa
tion where I knew no one was a very
hard experience and was made easier
with a CASA worker. Having someone
there to assess my wants and help initi
ate the process needed to place me in a
home where I am happy and well taken
care of helped lift the burden I carried
on my shoulders. Of course it was still
a pressing time for me, but having Lisa
there was a tremendous help.”
The role of a trained CASA volun
teer is to advocate for a child in the
Piedmont Judicial System.
Lisa has served as a CASA volun
teer for three and a half years and has
worked with three different cases; she
has taken the past year off because of
other commitments, but plans to return
to the volunteer work, which she said is
a way to have a child’s voice heard in a
difficult situation.
“I think it is so important that we give
all children a voice,” Lisa said. “CASA
was a way for me to do this. When I
was in high school I often thought about
becoming a lawyer and advocating for
children. Circumstances changed my
path. I was fortunate to find a way to
still fulfill this dream. CASA allows me
to help a child through one of the tough
est times they can go through.”
To prepare volunteers who will be
appointed by court order to a child’s
case, CASA offers a training class. The
class is a total of 40 hours, with 30
hours classroom and 10 hours in the
courtroom.
“The CASA supervisors are great
about working with volunteers to
accommodate their schedule,” Lisa said.
“I went to training classes at night. In
addition, we have to maintain 12 hours
of in service training each year to keep
our certification active. We do this by
attending conferences, workshops and
peer meetings... I still keep in touch
with the CASA program by attending
peer meetings and checking in. I am
hoping to take another case soon. ”
According to Annette Raymond,
Piedmont CASA executive director, the
program currently has 61 volunteers
working with 99 children. These vol-
‘ CASAblanca *
fundraiser ahead
T HE FIFTH annual
CASAblanca fund
raiser to benefit the
Piedmont CASA will be held
Saturday, March 13 at 7 p.m. at
the Jefferson Civic Center.
All proceeds from the event
directly benefit children in foster
care in Barrow, Jackson and Banks
counties by providing them with
a CASA volunteer - an impartial
adult specially trained to advo
cate for the child’s interest as
they work their way through
the courts and social services
systems.
For $75 ($60 for senior citi
zens), participants will get a buf
fet dinner, bar with beer and
wine, and $5,000 in play money
for casino-style gaming - from
cards to craps. All participants
are also entered into a grand
prize drawing, and the winner
receives a free week at a house
at Lake Hartwell, complete with
jet skis and boat.
Tickets are available at PakMail,
the Superior Court Clerk’s office
and Piedmont CASA.
CASA BOARD
Piedmont CASA is governed by
a board of directors of community
volunteers. The board raises funds
through CASAblanca and other
events.
Board members:
•Joe Vogt (Chair, plant manager
Rhodia)
• Kimberly Parker (Vice Chair, home
builder)
•Jennifer Justice (Secretary, social
worker, Barrow County Schools)
•Tony Finelli (Treasurer, First Georgia)
•diAna Huckins (Buhler Quality
Yarns)
•Wanda Barnett (Attorney)
•Rhonda Thompson (Appraisers of
Georgia)
• Susan Dyer (Homemaker)
• Mark Owen (Public Relations, Jackson
EMC)
•Tom Murphy (CEO, Murphy
Consulting, Inc. (MURCON))
Advisory board members:
•Juvenile Court Judge Kevin
Guidry
•CASA Volunteer Margie Scott
continued on page 2C
Want more information?
For more information on Piedmont CASA, call 706-367-6375 or visit www.piedmontcasa.org.
Former Piedmont CASA child attends conference
AT STATE
CONFERENCE
Pictured (L-R) Duaine
Hathaway (execu
tive director, Georgia
CASA), Patsy Tillman
(Piedmont CASA vol-
u nteer), Codey Metcalf
(former Piedmont
CASA child, now
18), Michael Piraino
(executive director,
National CASA) and
Kim Phillips (Gwinnett
Children’s Shelter), at
a Georgia CASA con
ference.
JCCO group gets congratulatory words from the First Lady
A letter from Michelle Obama
By Jana A. Mitcham
HE TOP OF the letter
head reads, simply, “The
White House.”
Dated January 28, 2010, the let
ter is from Michelle Obama to Jim
Scott on behalf of Jackson County
Community Outreach.
In response to a letter Scott sent
to Mrs. Obama in 2009 highlighting
the good works of the JCCO, the
First Lady notes: “Active citizens
and strong organizations are the
cornerstone of our democracy, so I
thank you and all those you work
with for engaging in the important
work of true citizenship.”
“We wanted to let the people
in Washington know people out
here, non-paid volunteers, are tak
ing them up on their challenge,”
Scott said. “(Locally) we want to
inspire people to volunteer more
and to see the work we’ve been
doing for 12 years...This letter was
a morale booster for our (JCCO)
people, too.”
In his letter to the First Lady,
Scott notes the Obamas’ interest in
HR 1388, The National Community
Service Act (The Give Act), which
“highlights the need for volunteer-
ism.”
“We are at a critical moment in
our Nation’s history, and we need
an all-hands-on-deck approach to
solve the problems that we face,”
Mrs. Obama’s letter reads. “America
needs your hands, your hearts and
your hard work now more than ever.
History tells us that when we come
together as a Nation with a sense of
purpose and a spirit of service, no
challenge is too great.”
Started in 1998 by clergy and
private citizens, JCCO is now com
prised of 18 volunteers who contrib
ute 1,800 to 2,000 hours annually.
The JCCO activities include fund
raising for scholarships, managing
the scholarship award program,
meeting with contributors and spon
soring a student essay contest.
This week, JCCO members are
sending out scholarship appli
cation packages to area schools,
with $10,500 worth of scholarship
money to be awarded in May —
nine $1,000 scholarships and one
$1,500 scholarship named in honor
of former Commerce minister, Dr.
Tom Lewis. To date, the JCCO
has awarded more than $70,000
in scholarships to Jackson County
students.
“We are advised that the need is
significant,” Scott said. “We wel
come ongoing contributions during
the year to address 2011-12....The
great barometer of need is the (great)
increase in applications for free and
reduced lunches due to the 10.3 per
cent unemployment in our county.”
Contributions may be sent to:
Jackson County Community
Outreach, RO. Box 746, Commerce,
GA 30529.
MEMBERS, OFFICERS
AND ADVISORS
JCCO members: Doris Brown,
chair, essay committee; Mary Dixon,
chair, scholarship committee; Fred
Haley, associate member; Charlotte
Johnson, chair, banquet committee;
Mary L. Fitch, Gail Paulson, and
Annette K. Raymond, essay commit
tee; Kathie Faulkner, media and com-
JCCO scholarships
Jackson County Community
Outreach will present nine
$1,000 scholarships and one
$1,500 scholarship in May to
Jackson County students. See
page 3C for more application
and details on the March 12
deadline.
munication; Alice Rucker and Betty J.
Scott, scholarship and banquet com
mittee; and Daryl W. Scott, banquet
committee.
Officers and board members: Jim
Scott, president: Van Dixon, vice
president; Rev. B.H. Bailey, treasur
er; Anita Brown-Jackson, secretary;
Eugene Gilliam, operations direc
tor; and Julious Johnson and Angela
Jackson, board members.
External advisory committee:
Dr. Andy Byers, retired superinten
dent, Jackson County schools: Joe
Averette, chief financial officer,
TenCate Geosynthetics: Elton Collins,
retired president, Community Bank
and Trust; and Jim Shaw, president,
Mountain Valley Bank.