Notepad

Girl talk

Girls ages 12 to 16 are invited to take part in the Sister-to-Sister Summit on Saturday, May 2 at Warren Wilson College. Sexual harassment, violence, teen sex, substance abuse and body image are among the topics scheduled for discussion.

The summit — part of a national series of such events — is being sponsored by the Asheville branch of the American Association of University Women, the Pisgah Girl Scout Council, Warren Wilson College and the YWCA. The goal is to “give girls a safe and confidential forum to talk freely about issues,” according to a press release about the event.

To find out more, call LaDonna Albert of the Pisgah Girl Scout Council at (800) 522-6280.

New public land

On April 2, the Nature Conservancy bought a 17,829 acre tract of land in North Carolina’s Piedmont region from J.R. Rollins, Inc. for $13.4 million. The property will be transferred to the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission. The Rollins Tract, to be renamed the South Mountains Game Lands, will be open to the public for outdoor activities, including hiking, fishing and hunting. The purchase — North Carolina’s largest single-transaction land acquisition for conservation — was four years in the making. The tract includes old-growth forests and is home to black bear, bobcats, mink, brook trout and assorted songbirds.

For more info, call Susie Hamrick Jones at (828) 437-9930.

Breast cancer screening

The Asheville Breast Center Mobile Mammography Van will be parked at the YWCA on on Tuesday, April 21 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Center urges women 40 years and older, or those with a family history of breast cancer, to make an appointment. Mammograms are free to eligible women (Medicare, Medicaid and most insurance is accepted); others pay $65. The screenings should take no more than 20 minutes.

Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths among American women ages 20 to 54, according to the press release. But with early detection, 92 percent of breast cancer cases can be treated successfully.

Call 254-7206 for more info.

Clean elections speaker

State Sen. Wib Gulley, lead sponsor of the N.C. Clean Elections Act, will speak about the bill and the political realities of campaign-finance reform on Sunday, April 19 in Pack Memorial Library’s Lord Auditorium, starting at 2:30 p.m. The event is free.

Gulley, a third-term senator representing the 13th District (Durham), has also worked for public transportation and government protection of watersheds. The N.C. Clean Elections Act calls for spending limits and a public-financing option for elections in the state.

For more info, call Ken Schapira at 258-3900.

Medicaid by mail

Buncombe County parents and guardians who want Medicaid benefits for their children can now apply by mail. Department of Social Services staff can answer general questions about Medicaid by phone; they’ll also mail callers an application for the Caring Program for Children, which provides similar coverage to Medicaid but has different guidelines.

To learn more, call the DSS at 255-5561.

Which way to greenway?

Community workshops to review the draft recommendations of Asheville’s Greenways Master Plan will be held on Wednesday, April 22 at Haw Creek Elementary School and on Thursday, April 23 at the Shiloh Community Center. Both sessions start at 7 p.m.

A greenway is a kind of linear park: a corridor of protected land that usually follows natural features (such as ridges or rivers) or artificial ones (canals, abandoned railroad tracks, etc.). Greenways are often used for such activities as bike riding, running and walking. When completed, the Greenways Master Plan will identify potential greenway corridors in Asheville and make recommendations on how to get a city greenways system built.

For more info, call Samantha Lefko at 259-5849.

Li’lbits

U.S. Rep. Charles Taylor — together with 113 other members of Congress (mostly Republicans) — was presented with the 1997 Americans for Tax Reform “Friends of the Taxpayer” award on April 1. • Wayne McDevitt, secretary of the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, will speak at Warren Wilson College’s Kittredge Auditorium on Thursday, April 23 at 7 p.m., as part of the college’s “Earth Week” celebration (which also includes a French Broad River cleanup on Sunday, April 19). For more info about McDevitt’s speech, call 298-3325. For more info about the river cleanup, call 252-8474. • Manna Food Bank in Asheville recently received 43,067 pounds of food and $63,000 from Ingles Markets, Inc. Part of both totals was collected at the 1997 Ingles Giving Tree, which was set up in the Asheville Mall during the winter holidays, to receive community donations. • Learn safety skills for women at a self-defense seminar on Saturday, April 18 at the airport Holiday Inn, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The cost is $10 in advance, $15 at the door. Call 684-1213, Ext. 301 or 328 for more info. • Western North Carolina’s new area code is 828. The old 704 area code will continue to work until Oct. 5. For more info, call Bell South Mobility at (888) 327-1900.

Go to the Orange and White game

A group of local residents will be traveling by bus to the University of Tennessee to watch the annual Orange and White football scrimmage on Saturday, April 18. Trip-goers will leave the Tabernacle Missionary Church at 56 Walton St. at 3 p.m. on Saturday, April 18 (the day of the game), and return at about midnight. The cost of the trip is $14 for students, and $16 for everyone else. The price includes the game ticket, but no meals.

Call Claudia or Richard at T.L.C. Florist at 253-6678 for more info.

Party in the ‘hood

All are invited to a party for “the ‘hood,” to be held at the Pisgah View Apartments baseball field on Saturday, April 18, beginning at noon.

The party will feature music, puppets, food, drink, crafts and dance contests. There will also be toys for the kids (toy donations welcome).

For more info, call the Rev. Barbara Hines at 253-1060.

Grassroots media

Grassroots organizations can get the lowdown on how to use the media to advance their causes by attending a workshop led by Robert Bray, a grassroots organizer and media expert, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, April 18 in the Clean Water Fund conference room at 29-1/2 Page Avenue. The workshop is free, and includes lunch and snacks. Register ASAP. The workshop will also be offered in Raleigh on Tuesday, April 16.

For details, call the Clean Water Fund of North Carolina at 251-1291.