June and Rick Brooks w ? ? ? . Reprinred from August I, 1984 News and Observer Josh Brooks parents turn time, money into aid LAURINBURG TAP) ? With what remains of $112,000 in dona tions, the parents of Josh Brooks are trying to provide others with the same kind of financial assis tance they received when their 9-month-old son needed a liver transplant. Since its beginning in January, the Josh Brooks Living Memorial Transplant Association has spent more than $30,000. The association is based in the bedroom that belonged to the 9-month-old child who died in November, 15 days after receiving a liver transplant in a Minnesota hospital. Josh's mother, June, the associ ation's only full-time employee, spends about 14 hours a day f counseling families, providing fi nancial support and encouraging people to donate organs and blood. The association's board of direc tors has authorized her to send up to $2,000 to any family with a transplant patient. One check for $290 went to a family strapped by doctor bills so the mortgage payment could be made. Mrs. Brooks said she often sent money to help families bqy medicine and make car pay ments. She also sent money to a couple whose daughter had just died after a transplant. "We sent them $500 and just said on the note to spend it where it's needed most," Mrs. Brooks said. "We knew they didn't have any money, even for a dress to bury her in. We didn't question where the money went." Mrs. Brooks said she found out about most transplant patients through The Children's Trans plant Association in Dallas, a national organization for which Mrs. Brooks is a public relations director, and her husband, Rick, is a vice president. Mrs. Brooks said about $30,000 was left from the donations sent during Josh's illness. The family used about $30,000 for his medical I expenses, and the rest has been used to pay Mrs. Brooks' salary, office expenses and travel ex penses. Donations have averaged about $20 a week since the associ ation was started, she said. In October or November, the association plans to sponsor a celebrity auction and benefit din ner, Mrs. Brooks said. About 180 items that were donated from celebrities will be auctioned to help raise money, including a trumpet from jazz musician Dizzy Gillespie and a pair of pants from singer Tom Jones. The local association also is in the beginning stages of planning a home in Durham for transplant patients' families at Duke Univer sity, where liver transplants may begin this year, Mrs. Brooks said. She also will work to establish a support group for families at Duke, where she spends much of her time counseling families deal ing with a transplant patient. Mrs. Brooks even works with families to solve insurance prob lems because many insurance companies are slow-to process claims. Many hospitals require 80 percent of the cost of a transplant operation before a patient can be admitted. "Especially with these liver transplants, you don't have much time (to wait for insurance pro cessing)," she said. Mrs. Brooks also speaks to groups encouraging people to do nate their organs and blood, tell ing Josh's story of struggle before and after the liver transplant. "Hearing testimony takes the fear of donating away," Mrs. Brooks said. "They understand better, and they see that it really is the gift of life." Mrs. Brooks said there had been an increase in the number of people signing donor cards since Josh's death. "We feel it's definitely coming a long way from where it had been," Mrs. Brooks said. "We've made people aware of bow impor tant it is to give." EXTENSION SCENE Br.? EXTENSION SERVICE by John G. Richardson Robeson County Extension Chairman I was quoted recently as saying that Robeson County looked very much like a "Garden of Eden." Actually, the part of my statement that the reporter left out was a preceding comment that I made. "When compared to previous years, Robeson County looked like a 'Garden of Eden.'" Regardless of the play on words, the excellent growing conditions that existed during the entire month of July have surely created an atmosphere of hope and restrained excitement among many of our farmers in hopes that this just might be the best production year in a long, long time. Yet, as positive as the situation appears, and even though the com crop is essentially made and tobacco harvest is progressing well, the thousands of acres of soybeans that are being grown are a prime target for an insect invasion. Several farmers have recently noticed corn earworm moths flying in prolific numbers and have expressed some concern as to whether they should begin spraying their soybeans immediately. When we hear this type of question, we almost shudder when we think of the possibility that continuously exists for wholesale spraying to be done even though threshold levels of com earworms or other soybean insects may not be present. We believe that it is critical for every soybean grower to know and understand that beneficial insects are in the fields working every day and contribute greatly to the overall well being of a crop. Yet, when the sprayer comes out and the insecticide is applied, the beneficial insects are killed right along with the destructive insects that the spray is initially targeted for. Therefore, as farmers understand this principle, many have gained a much greater appreciation for the need for continuous scouting and an understanding of threshold levels of insects prior to making a decision to spray, even though the corn earwprm moths may be flying like mad. Since the weather conditions have been so favorable for excellent soybean foliage growth, a nice canopy has already been formed in a majority of fields. The beauty of this nice canopy existing is that the earworm moths, as they make their flight over the fields, see no place to deposit their eggs and continue to fly. As a result fo this phenomenon, while there may be a pretty significant egg lay on border rows, scouting in many places throughout the field may indicate very clearly that threshold levels do not exist in a given field. On standard width rows, the commonly used threshold level for corn earworms is two per foot of row. On narrow row beans this threshold level shold be reduced in order to account for the greater number of plants and feet of row that are available for the corn earworms to attack. In addition to the canopy phenomenon, it has also been learned that corn earworms and stink bugs both show i preferences for certain varieties and even for planting dates. Thus, the only solution for excellent and appropriate soybean insect control this year is for the fields to be scouted about every two days and insecticide applications made based solely on the level of infestation of known crop-injurying insects rather than simply making a decision to spray based on the level of insect infestation that may exist on neighboring farms or in other communities. Anyone who would like to obtain additional information on crop insects and threshold levels is encouraged to call or stop by the County Extension Office in Lumberton. ?m '> "> No-tn | ? D^ 6uting Co aaai?-5 *? A!,soc ar?-e ? ^TH^YLVANI/^SUPERSET*^^^! f m RXC178WA 19-In. Best j Color .Picture Proven the best for 7 years In a row. The Sylvania Superset is tops ? in independent consumer prefer ence tests Rated the BEST 19" ? COLOR PICTURE ... over Zenith. # RCA and even Sony. The Sylvania W SUPERSET. # # COME IN AND SEE THE AMAZING SUPEKSET"! IT S THE WINNER I $ ^FORBES^COLORPICJinj^J 5 ? ? 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