Rocky Hock paintball wars
"The only thing that doesn't come off in the
1m wash is the welts," one paintball veteran
j?^explains while suiting up for combat. A7
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482-4418
Wednesday, December 3>, 2008
50*
money
and the
planet
Energy expert to
speak on reduc
ing electric power
consumption
By Vernon Fueston
Staff Writer
Edenton energy expert Cy
Rich will present his views
on cutting electric power
consumption in the town
and county to two civic and
environmental groups this
weekend.
His presentation will con
centrate on specific ways lo
cal residents and businesses
can save both money and the
planet.
His pro
gram, “Sus
tainable En
ergy and the
Future” will
be presented
. at Edenton’s
First Pres
byterian
Church, Sat- Rich
urday at 11
a.m.
The Chowan/Edenton
Environmental Group and
Change for America are
sponsoring the program.
i Rich has practical experi
ence in the field of energy
and energy conservation.
He started his career in
the natural gas business and
went on to help form a part
nership in France that dis
tributed electricity and the
fuel to generate it around
the country.
Today, Rich helps run a
firm that invests in alter
native energy sources and
serves on the governor’s en
ergy policy council.
He also teaches energy
policy at Duke and is the
chairman of North Caroli
na’s Environmental Defense
Fund.
Rich said his presentation
will concentrate on energy
conservation rather than ex
otic and expensive ways to
generate electricity.
He said relatively inex
pensive steps like energy
efficient lighting, insulation
and the sealing of ductwork
and drafts can save most
households about 15 percent
in energy costs each year.
But Rich said there are
hurdles to overcome in mak
ing those improvements.
Many of Chowan’s homes
are older and often its resi
dents poorer than those in
larger communities.
While subsidies are avail
able to the poorest county
residents, Rich said those
See GREEN, Page A2>
"It's noise all day long," mother Suzanne Bass said. "It's pure music."
——flffl" T -T" 1 l1 I g"T"‘f T1 Ill' 1" ' ■ 1 l —- .. I— —rm
Vernon Fueston
Shane Bass, with the help of new cochlear implants, gets to hear the noises his Christmas presents make.
new “ears”
By Vernon Fueston
Staff Writer
Nine months after stun
ning cutting-edge surgery
restored a two year-old
Edenton boy’s hearing, his
parents have high hopes he
will start school two years
from now, able to hear, speak
and learn with his class.
Bryan and Suzanne Bass
made a bold decision back
in March to push ahead with
surgery, despite the decision
by their health insurance
company to deny coverage
for the cochlear implants
that have effectively cured
their son’s deafness.
The company took the po
sition that Shane’s implants
were “hearing aids,” not
covered under the policy.
That meant the family
had to go $100,000 in debt,
but Suzanne Bass said there
was never any choice. -
Unless the surgery was
Man gets Christmas
call from President
Chowan deputy
Neil Ambrose one
of 10 given honor
Story by Army Staff Sgt.
Emily J. Russell
JTF Guantanamo Public
Affairs i
GUANTANAMO BAY,
Cuba — It’s not every day
a trooper receives a phone
call from President George
done while he was two or
three years old, Shane would
require special education at
a deaf school in Wilson.
Resident donate money
Neighbors from around
Chowan County and the
country chipped in to make
it possible for Shane to hear.
“We expected to have a
few donations coming in,
but nothing like what we
got,” Bryan Bass said, over
whelmed by the community
response.
“We still get contributions
from people, $10 here and
there for Christmas presents
and the like.”
An article in the Chowan
Herald brought Shane’s situ
ation to the public’s atten
tion just before his surgery.
Reprinted in the Daily Ad
vance, the article made its
way onto wire services and
Web sites around the coun
try.
W. Bush. ' *
For Coast Guard Petty
Officer 2nd Class Neil Am
brose, however, Dec. 24 was
that day.
“It was an honor,” said
Ambrose of speaking with
Bush.
“I was shocked that I was
selected out of hundreds of
thousands of deployed mem
bers.”
“At first he called me by
The Bass family received
contributions from people
they’d never heard from in
New York and Florida.
Radio talk-show host Rush
Limbaugh, himself a cochle
ar implant recipient, even
sent a contribution, request
ing a copy of the paper.
But it’s the response of
friends and neighbors that
impressed Bryan and Su
zanne.
“Everybody I can think
of in Chowan County gave
something,” Bryan said.
“We just are in the best lit
tle community in the world.
Chowan County has the big
gest heart.”
A noisy two-year old
Today, Shane has a spo
ken vocabulary of 50 spoken
words and 25 signs, some
thing his therapists find re
markable.
They credit the fact that he
is one of only two children
my name,” he continued.
“He said, ‘Neil, this is Presi
dent Bush, how are you to
day?’”
Ambrose replied that he
was fine, and thanked Presi
dent Bush for “all he’s done
for the Coast Guard and mil
itary members over the past
eight y^ars.” ■
Ambrose chatted with
the president, with Bush
asking, “How’s the weather
down there?”
“It’s warm,” Ambrose re
plied. “How would you like
to join us?”
The call lasted a moment
longer before President
in North Carolina who’ve
received implants for each
ear.
The use of dual implants
is said to markedly increase
the clarity of the sound
Shane hears.
Microphones pinned to
the back of Shane’s shirt
collar transmit signals to
receptors implanted under
the skin on either side of
Shane’s skull.
Magnets under the skin
hold the connection in place,
allowing electrical signals to
directly stimulate the nerves
in his ear.
Shane took to the implants
immediately.
Doctors had warned he
might find his first sounds
traumatic, but his first re
sponse was one of pure won
der. Since then his progress
has been remarkable.
Suzanne said she first no
ticed something was wrong
See BASS, Page A2 >
Bush delivered his tradi
tional Christmas message.
According to Ambrose,
President Bush said, “On
behalf of Laura and myself,
I want you to pass along to
other deployed members
that we appreciate your ser
vice and wish you a Merry
Christmas, especially to the
mighty Coast Guard.”
“I specifically remember
him saying, ‘the mighty
Coast Guard,”’ Ambrose
said, smiling.
The Christmas Eve phone
call has become a tradition
for President Bush. Each
See CALL, Page A2 >•
Boat
workers
lose jobs
Unemployment in
county reaches 16
year high
By Rebecca Bunch
Staff Writer
Thirty-five Albemarle
Boats employees placed oh
extended leave in October
were told recently they will
not be called back to work in
2009.
This comes on the heels of
published reports that Chow
an County is now experienc
ing its highest unemploy
ment rate in almost 16 years.
Brenna Preisser, human
resources director for Brun
wick Corp., which owns Al- .
bemarle Boats in Edenton,
said workers received the
news Dec. 10.
She said that 30 employees
currently remain on the job
in the plant. ’
For other boat building op
erations in the community,
things are holding steady for
now.
Staying open
Preisser said Albemarle
chose to keep a core group of
employees who could carry
out most any function neces
sary and that they are now
“performing multiple jobs”
to keep the facility opera
tional.
Administrative offices at
the plant also remain open,
Preisser said.
She said the company is
hopeful the economy will
improve and that no further ,
cuts will be necessary.
Ricky Coltrain, director
of the local ECS office, said
those workers had been re
ceiving jobless benefits un
der an attached claim filed
by Albemarle when the work
furlough was announced.
An attached claim indi
cates that a business plans to
call back employees covered
by that claim, he said.
Coltrain said those work
ers would now need to file in
dividual claims to continue
receiving checks.
Coming back *;l
Regulator Marine also '
placed over 60 of its 78 em
ployees on an extended work
See JOBS, Page A2 >
Coast Guard Petty Officer 2nd
Class Neil Ambrose received a
presidential phone call Christ
mas Eve morning with a holi
day greeting from Pfesident
George Bush.