EMS subcommittee to meet

WHO: EMS Subcommittee of the Governor’s Trauma Advisory Council

WHAT: Scheduled Meeting

WHEN: Tuesday, June 12, at 3 p.m.

WHERE: Freeway Medical Tower, Room #801 (EMS), 5800 West 10th Street, Little Rock

WHY: This is a scheduled subcommittee meeting for general business related to state-wide efforts to build a trauma system in Arkansas.

Note: The meeting is open to the general public. If you have any questions or need directions, please contact the Trauma Section at 501-671-1428.

Conference Call Option: Members and guests who need to attend by conference call should follow these steps:

· To access the conference call, please phone: 1-800-390-5809

· Once you have reached the conference call center, you may use participant code 6711428 to join the meeting by phone.

Benton Chamber luncheon

Don't forget to register for the First Thursday Lunch that will be this Thursday, June 7, at noon. It's going to be on the lawn of the Saline County Courthouse and it is FREE!

It will be a great time of fellowship and will also kick-off the car raffle fundraiser associated with the 2nd annual Glitz & Garland to be held in November. The fundraiser benefits the Saline Memorial Health Foundation and the Benton Area Chamber of Commerce.

The program will be presented by Everett Buick-GMC, presenting sponsor of Glitz & Garland. Lunch will be hamburgers and hot dogs with all the fixins and will be FREE. This lunch is open to everyone, not only Chamber members.
The car to be given away via a raffle at Glitz & Garland will be unveiled at the luncheon and tickets will go on sale. Raffle tickets are $100 each and only 500 will be sold. One person in attendance at the luncheon will walk away with a free raffle ticket! Make sure you register at the event so your name will be placed in the drawing.

We want to express our appreciation to First Security Bank for the use of the Teal Grill and for providing the meat for the lunch. Also, a huge thank you to Everett Buick-GMC for once again sponsoring Glitz & Garland and for providing the vehicle for the raffle.

Although lunch is FREE, please register so we can get an approximate number of people for the food. 

Date:		June 7
Time:		12  to 1 p.m.
Location:		Saline County Courthouse Lawn
Contact:		Benton Area Chamber of Commerce, 501-315-8272
Email:		reception@bentonchamber.com
Date/Time Details:		Thursday, June 7, 12:00 p.m.
Fees/Admission:		FREE!!!

Give blood on Flag Day

Blood donors can ‘FEEL WILD’ about giving Thursday, June 14, from 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at an Arkansas Blood Institute (ABI) summer blood drive. Hot Springs Village POA will sponsor the community event at the Ponce Center on 1101 DeSoto Boulevard, Room A.

Donors will experience the incredibly wild satisfaction of saving up to three peoples’ lives! Each will receive a T-shirt, featuring zoo wildlife.

“Summer is a time for fun,” said John Armitage, M.D., ABI president and CEO, “but first, we can ease concerns for those in our area who rely on blood donors by taking just an hour to give.”

Since as many as three patients’ lives in area hospitals are saved each time someone gives blood, donors can always feel good. Arkansas Blood Institute provides every drop of blood needed by patients in 17 counties, including National Park Medical Center and Mercy Hospital Hot Springs.

Anyone who is healthy and 16 years of age* can usually give blood, and donations can be made every 56 days. Health screenings and Donor Rewards points, redeemable in ABI’s online store, are also provided to donors.

Through a special initiative to support Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, any donor can forgo the T-shirt offered in appreciation for giving. In turn, Arkansas Blood Institute will make a monetary donation of similar value to Arkansas Children’s Hospital. It’s a chance to ‘doubly give’ to pediatric medical research, community outreach and treatment initiatives for the children of Arkansas and through the life-saving gift of blood.

To schedule an appointment, call 877-340-8777, or visit www.arkbi.org.

* 16 year olds must weigh at least 125 and provide signed parental permission, 17 year olds must weigh at least 125 pounds, 18+ year olds must weigh at least 110 pounds.

Birthday yesterday, blog later today

I've been off celebrating my birthday. More posts this evening.

Request, yes, Enforce, doesn't seem legal

The following is a press release from the Village POA.

"Due to extremely high temperatures combined with low rain fall, the Hot Springs Village Property Owners Association will be enforcing water conservation regulations.

These regulations include (1) odd/even use of outside potable water, which is determined by street address. For example, an even street address number would water on even numbered days of the month.

(2) No daylight watering is permitted. Watering must be conducted from dusk to dawn.

(3) Sprinkling cycles are limited to a maximum of one hour at a time.

Because of the hotter than normal temperatures and water usage reaching 3.8 million gallons this week, it is imperative that residents be extremely conservative when using water for landscaping.

Violators are subject to having their sprinkler systems disconnected.

Water treatment capacity is currently limited to 4 million gallons per day. Expansion of the water treatment plant is in the design stage.

Until temperatures decrease and rainfall occurs, Village residents are asked to conserve water and control usage of potable water.

If you have any questions, please contact the Public Works Department at 501-922-5524."

The vandalism of sprinkler systems on private property for spaying water paid for by the private property owner does not seem like legal recourse to me.

I think a request for voluntary participation for the greater good would be more in line. But, then again in a community that has taken away curbside recycling, there is no longer a sense of  doing good for the sake of the community.

Smartphone App from Garland County Sheriff's Department

Garland County Sheriff Larry Sanders announced today that his office is the second agency in the state to launch a smart-phone app that allows the office to communicate much more effectively with the community. The Garland County Sheriff’s Department app is a free download for users and is currently available for Android smart devices, with an app for the IPhone coming soon.

Users of the app will have access to real-time detention center information plus lists of non-custodial parents and most-wanted criminals. The Sheriff’s Department will also be able to send news and alerts directly to users’ smart-phones – notifying them about anything from bank robberies and missing persons, weather warnings and more.

“The most beneficial and significant feature of this app is that it lets us get important information right to people’s fingertips and, as an ad supported app, at no cost to the taxpayers” said Sheriff Sanders. “The app greatly improves our ability to serve the public, and that’s what we’re here for. We’re thrilled that we can provide this to the community.” Additionally, and as an added benefit, once the app is paid for through the advertising, the County will start receiving a percentage of the ad proceeds.

The app is also fully integrated with the county’s victim notification service, VINE (Victim Information and Notification Everyday).

“We know that more and more people are getting the information they need from their smart-phones,” said Sheriff Sanders. “We want to make sure we’re using the latest communication technology to keep the public informed, and this app lets us do that.”

Cruise to benefit Susan G. Koman Foundation with the folks from Home Plate

Jim and Aundrea Sparks of Home Plate would like to invite everyone to join them on the first ever Home Plate Cruise for the Cure! They have negotiated a very special cruise at a very special price and for a great cause, Breast Cancer.

Carnival Cruise Lines will help donate a potentially incredible amount of money to the Susan G. Koman for the Cure every time the Sparks book eight cabins in the group, and by the way everyone will have FUN!

8 Interior Cabins = $339 donation
8 Exterior Cabins = $399 donation
8 Balcony Cabins = $539 donation
8 Suite Cabins = $739 donation

The Sparks want to fill up the boat.

Just think of the potential. The cruise is scheduled for October 8. Cruisers will set sail on the Carnival Triumph from Galveston, Texas on a five night cruise to Progresso and Cozumel, Mexico.

The Sparks chose this cruise for several reasons.

#1 Carnival is very affordable

#2 Galveston is close to us which means a one day drive or an inexpensive flight for between $59 - $77 each way.

#3 October is not only Breast Cancer Awareness month, but the weather is ideal in Mexico this time of the year.

The prices listed for cruise fares, flights, and hotel accomidations do not include taxes and fees and are subject to change. The Sparks encourage everyone to at least consider travel insurance. A deposit now of $200 per person is required to hold your cabin and your balance is due August 9. The group name is Home Plate Cafe Group and the group number is 110NM6.

Day 1: Galveston, Texas 

Day 2 : At sea

Day 3 : Cozumel, Mexico

Day 4: Progresso, Mexico

Day 5 : At Sea Day 6 : Galveston, Texas

If you have any questions regarding this first ever Home Plate Cruise For The Cure please call Jim at 601-238-8350 or Aundrea at 601-421-4239 and we will help get you booked.

Village Heifer Club off for the summer

The Village Heifer Club will not meet again until August. The scheduled dates for the fall meetings are on the FOURTH WEDNESDAY at Kirk in the Pines Presbyterian.

AUGUST 22, SEPTEMBER 26, OCTOBER 24, NOVEMBER 28. Please mark your calendars now for Heifer Club meeting dates. General Meetings will start at 2:00.

The "Steering Committee" and Living Gift Market Chairs will meet at 1:00 before the general meetings. We will try to have speakers. Suggestions for speakers are welcome.

After party for Tri-the-Village

Make plans to participate in Tri-the-Village, Hot Springs Village’s first sprint triathlon, June 9. Even if you don’t compete, Join the Fun by cheering on the participants! The event will include a 500-yard swim at Balboa Lake, a 13.5 mile cycle ride and 3.5 mile run on Magellan Golf Course cart path and will end at Balboa Pavilion.

The race will begin at 7 a.m. and end at Balboa Pavilion. Race participants, sponsors, volunteers and cheerleaders are invited to attend an after party with great food sponsored and cooked by Newks Express Café including chicken, steak, salad, pasta and more at Balboa Pavilion from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Register now for TRI-the-Village Registration link (copy and paste into web browser): http://www.dltevents.com/on-road-events/triathlons/69-tri-the-village.html. 

NOTE: Participants must have a USAT Annual Membership or purchase a One-Day Membership when registering.

For more information, go to Escape2HSV.com