Newspapers / The Yancey Journal (Burnsville, … / June 6, 1974, edition 1 / Page 8
Part of The Yancey Journal (Burnsville, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
PAGE 8 S THE YANCEY JOURNAL NOW A NEW WAY TO SERVE IN THE ARMY RESERVE. From July Ist through September 30th men without previous military service can enlist in local Army Reserve units for a new, shorter period of actual unit participation. It’s a whole new way to serve. And it’s available right now. Since this offer applies only in certain areas, call the Army Reserve center nearest yoiffor further information. a THE ARMY RESERVE. rr pays to GO TO MEETINGS. _ "A NICE PLACE FOR A” LADY TO WORK I Btae Bd! Has Optrigs Avaiable I "cent vnt wmi I Me At Micaville.” Blue Bell Offers: I Job Security With Steady Work Pleasant Working I Conditions Group Hospitalization And Life Insurance Plans With Costs Shared By Blue Bell, Inc. Paid Holidays And Vacation Company Store Privileges Wrangler Clothes For The Entire Family At Discount Prices. Applications Are Now Being Taken Mondays Through Fridays From B.Coa.m. To 2.30p.m. BELL, INC. I DIVISION Micaville Plant MlcavH/e, H. Carolina 675-4772 JUNE 6, 1974 . Scout Ceremony Eight Brownies received their wings and a gift from Troop 86 during the Brownie Fly-up Ceremony held Tuesday, May 28 in the Community Building. The Brownies receiv ed their Junior Hahdbook before flying into Troop 88 where they said their Girl Scout Promise and received their Girl Scout pin. The Brownies were Mary Banks, Sharon McClure, Regina Pitman, Theresa Presnell, Vick ie Shepherd, Laura Holcombe, Julie Buchanan ancFLisa Young. The Junior Girl Scout Re dedication and Investiture Ce remony of Junior Troon 88 was held that afternoon also. Since the first of the year, five girls entered Troop 88: Sonya Riddle, Angie Wheeler, Ann and Audra Biddix, and Sherri Styles. Junior Cadette Bridging Ce remony, in which 15 girls from Troop 88 bridged into the Junior Cadette Troop, took place with the following girls involved: Tonya Allen, Donna Braith waite, Julia Canipe, Mary Fen der, Johnna Hall, Michelle Laws, Crystal McGalliard, Sherri Phillips, Susan Pitman, Amy Proffitt, Renee Riddle Sherri Styles, Sonya Riddle, Ann Biddix, and Toni Banks. ■ An Equal Opportunity Employer . feL im* 'v; h * ? '****/& v 1 L - *. «*. m J W&M Brownies Receive Wings At Fly-Up Ceremony Forest Service Celebrates Del W. Thorsen, Supervisor of the National Forests in North Carolina, announced today that the Forest Service is celebrating the 50th anniversary of wilder ness in the United States. It was on June 3, 1924 that the first Wilderness was set aside on the nation's public lands, on the Gila National Forest in New Mexico. The U.S. Forest Service is tremendously proud of its role in initiating the Wilderness con cept on federal lands. Ninety seven percent of the existing 10.7 million acre National Wil derness system is on National Forest lands. The Wilderness Act of Sep tember 3, 1964 says that Wil Questions And Answers gjjjfV! ■ On Westco Rate Increase Q. Why does the company need a rate increase? A. In a few words, we need more money to pay for the service improvements and expansion of facilities required to meet the needs of our customers. The approximately $500,000 in additional revenues we have requested is the minimum needed to do that job. Q. Is financing service improvements the only reason for the requested increase? A. No. We also have to have additional money to pay competitive wages and salaries to our employees so we don't lose them to other companies, and to keep our earnings at a level that is high enough to attract the outside investor who loans us money for service improvement projects. Q. But what about current service problems? A. Yes, we have some problems today. But we've made progress—we've added toll circuits, we've completely eliminated multi party service, we've hired additional people, and installed new cable. Q. How large is the company now? A. We now serve 21,655 telephones, compared with 19,884 in 1972. Q. What about the cost of running the company? A. We've all seen the increase in our individual cost of living. It's been the same for the company. Here's an example of what’s ' happened in the last year and a half. Our payroll in North Carolina has increased from approximately $2.8 million to $3.4 million. Westco's maintenance costs have gone from $420,400 to $543,900. Q. Haven't these cost increases been balanced by the increase in new customers? A. True, we do have more telephones today, and higher revenues. But each of thpse new phones costs us more to install and maintain. Any in crease in revenues is offset by higher maintenance, construction, tax, and interest costs. Q. Didn't you just have a rate increase? A. We requested rate relief in 1972, but we were granted only about 44 percent of what we needed. The rate increase generated only about $241,000, before taxes. Q. Then where did you get the money to pay for those service improvements? A. The parent company, Continental Telephone Corporation, invested over $2 million in our North Carolina companies, Westco Telephone Company and Western Carolina Telephone Company, and we borrowed the rest of the money we needed. r Q. Can't the parent company invest more? A. Yes, but not enough to completely meet our needs. It's up to us to find the money we need. derness is “Federal land where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man retaining its primeval character and influence, without perman ent improvements or human habitation...generally appears to have been affected primarily by the forces of nature, with the imprint of man’s work substan tially unnotictfable.” Mr. Thorsen went on to say that he is proud to have two of the three Eastern Wilderness Areas located in North Carolina. The third is located in New Hampshire. Several additional areas in the east are being considered by Congress for Wilderness classification. In North Carolina the 7,500 acre Linville Gorge Wilderness Area near Marion is spectacu larly beautiful, with steep slopes, curious rock formations, and overhanging cliffs. For twelve miles, the Gorge en closes the Linville River, which drops 2,000 feet into the valleys below. There are many varieties of plants and wildlife. An entrance permit is re quired which can be obtained at the District Ranger’s Office in the Library Building in Marion. The 13,600 acre Shining Rock Wilderness Area, located south of Canton, is named for the unique geological formation of a white quartz outcropping that can be seen miles away. Elevations rise from 3,500 to Q. Can't you borrow more? A. Before we c«in borrow more for Westco, and to ensure that we will be able to borrow in the future, we need higher earnings—we have to be sble to pay back our debts. Q. How do low earnings affect service? A. In this way. Earnings are the main gauge the outside investor looks at when he's making up his mind on which company to invest in. Obviously, he'll only put his money in a financially healthy company. We have to compete for his investment; therefore, if our earnings are inadequate, he'll simply go elsewhere. And we depend on his investment to finance service improvement and expansion projects. * Q. Aren't there alternate means open to the company for raising the money it needs to meet its service obligations? A. No. Increasing our rates is the last course open to us. We tried everything to control costs and to gain maximum revenues from our current operations. Even with higher rates we'll have to operate as economically as possible to meet our commitments. Q. What about the immediate rate increase you requested? A. Because of the critical economic condition of our company, as part of our rate increase request we asked for immediate, emergency relief. If approved, the increase would amount to no more than 20 percent of the individual customer's basic service rate. (The basic local service rate does not include charges for extensions or other periphery equipment.) These funds would-be collected under bond. Q. What happens to these funds if your request is approved? A. Funds collected under bond are subject to refund, with interest, if the North Carolina Utilities Commission ultimately grants rate relief that's less than the amount requested on an emergency basis. So, if we're ultimately granted less, the customer gets back the difference, plus interest. If we're ultimately granted more, the amount we've already added is just put toward it, and the customer is charged the difference. Q. What happens now? A. The North Carolina Utilities Commission, which regulates utility companies in the state, will study our application and rule on what it feels are fair and reasonable earnings for the company. They will rule on our request for emergency funds as well as the new rate structure we've proposed. Q. What will the rate increase mean in terms of service? A. We are committed to providing the best, most reliable service possible. We estimate we'll need to invest at least $6.3 million over the next two years to meet that commitment. The additional revenues we’ve requested will give us the means to continue our current pace of * improvements and allow us to handle future customer demands. 6,030 feet at Cold Mountain. There are miles of trails through out the Wilderness, and camp ing is permitted. An entrance permit is also required for Shining Rock Wilderness, which may be obtained at the Ranger Station on U.S. 276 near Pisgah Forest, N.C. . stock . in/^merica. Buy U. S. Savings Bonds
The Yancey Journal (Burnsville, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
June 6, 1974, edition 1
8
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75