News briefs

Movies Coming to Charles Town
A new movie house is planned for Charles Town. The opening date for the movie house is slated to be June 1, 2012. The theater's main screen will have 250 seats, and the other two screens will have hold between 100 and 150 consumers.
The building will be a 30,000-square-foot commercial retail building. The Movie house will be located at the Windmill Crossing. The theater will feature a four-screen movie theater. The building will be designed along the lines of the Berkeley Theatres Inc. and The Commercial Associates Real Estate signed a lease agreement Friday morning.
The theater will be called, Windmill Cinemas 4. The owner Bob Elliott in published reports says that the movie house will hire 10 full and part time employees.
The ticket prices are reported to be between $6.00 and $8.00.
Hospital provides spiritual care
According to a press release from the West Virginia University Hospitals-East's Jefferson Memorial Hospital the spiritual care of the patients is an important factor in their recovery. The
Spiritual Care Services provides emotional and spiritual support to patients, their families, hospital staff and volunteers.
An integral part of the health care team, volunteer chaplain associates representing many faiths are available to offer spiritual and emotional support, and listen with openness and understanding.
"We recently established Spiritual Care Services at Jefferson Memorial Hospital because we believe that spirituality is important for the health and well being of our patients and staff," said Arlene Fernandez-Anderson, executive resident at Jefferson Memorial Hospital.
Chaplain associates receive special training to give emotional and spiritual support to those dealing with critical illness in time of need or when requested. They also provide routine visits to patients on a scheduled basis and provide on-call spiritual care for emergency situations or when needed.
As part of continued efforts to strengthen Spiritual Care Services at WVUH-East, Jefferson Memorial Hospital has also established a Spiritual Worship Service at 1 p.m. every Sunday. This service is held in the chapel, located on the first floor, and is provided by the volunteer chaplains. The service is open to patients, visitors, family members, staff and the community.
U.S. 340 meeting draws crowd
A large crowd of citizens turned up at a meeting about the future of the area along 340 between Charles town And Harpers Ferry. The meeting was held this past Tuesday at the KYA Campground.
Three land use proposals were presented at the meeting. According to county Zoning Administrator Steve Barney the study proposed three scenarios for land use along U.S. 340. First of which would limit growth to within municipalities' urban growth boundaries. The second plan would allow for some mixed-use development outside UGB areas while allowing the county to retain some rural features along the roadway. The third plan would be to have a full build and development along the U.S. 340 corridor.
This was the fourth in a series of public meetings. The County staff is asking the residence of Jefferson County to picture what they would like to see along that stretch of 340.
The next meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. Jan. 19, 2012, in the public meeting room of the Charles Town Library in Charles town.
The Departments of Planning and Zoning can be reached at 304-728-3228 or by emailing "mailto:planningdepartment@jeffersoncountywv.org". Additional information on the study is available online at "http://www.jeffersoncountywv.org/rt340.html".
NARFE members to meet Dec. 14
CHARLES TOWN - The Jefferson County Chapter of the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association will meet at noon Dec. 14 at Epic Buffet in Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races for a meeting/holiday luncheon.
For more information, visit jefed.homestead.com.
Compiled by James P. Whipple

Happing’s around the County

It’s a Wonderful Life at the OOH
It’s a Wonderful Life Adapted for the stage by James W. Rodgers and Based on the film by Frank Capra will be performed Fridays December 9 & 16 Saturdays, December 10 & 17, Thursday, December 15, Sunday matinees, December 11 & 18
This is the charming story of how George Bailey learns what the world would be like if he had never been born. We find in George Bailey an American everyman, with the ideals of loyalty, a strong work ethic and a love of community. When a quirky angel, looking to earn his wings, takes on the task of showing George that one man can truly make a difference in this world, we are all reminded that the love of family and friends is what is most important. This holiday classic has been delighting audiences since 1946.
Christmas Home tours in Charles Town
Saturday, Dec. 10 – Christmas Home Tour & Market - Market will be open 10am to 5pm in the lower level of the Charles Town Library. Special gift items and greenery will be available for purchase. Homes tour is 11am to 4pm and tickets are available at the Market or in advance by calling 304-724-8871. Tickets are $15/adult and $2/child.
Happy Holidays!
Jefferson County Community Choir
The Jefferson County Community Choir was recently formed to boost community spirits and raise funds for community needs. The choir has 50 active members with ages ranging from 18 – 70. The group is directed by Roberta Ranelli and the accompanist is Laura Crosby. Information about the choir can be found on its Facebook page at "http://www.facebook.com/" \l "%21/groups/144242072341255/"
The choir’s debut concert is Sunday, December 4th at 4 p.m. at Jefferson High School. Admission is only $5.00 or a donation of your choice. All proceeds from this event will go to Jefferson High School specifically for new risers in the music department. The ones there are very old and in need of replacement.
The choir will be performing many styles of music including classical, spirituals, show tunes, seasonal, holiday and Christmas music. There will be some lovely solos, and a few surprises!
The audience will be invited to Sing Along during the program and a Silent Auction will be held with some wonderful items being put on the block! Additional information about this event can be found on Facebook at "http://www.facebook.com/" \l "%21/events/106095072838442/"
Join in the fun and help get the choir off to a great start!!For additional information contact Roberta Ranelli at "mailto:rranelli@frontiernet.net"
Author: Barbara Simpson Carducci Book Signing Event

WHEN: 12-17-2011

TIME: 1:00 p.m.

WHERE: Around the Block Books, 120 N Hatcher Ave., Purcellville, VA 20132WHAT: Barbara Simpson Carducci, a resident of Round Hill, VA, will be available to sign copies of her Children's book, Storee Wryter Gets a Dog.
Join Storee as she learns to train her puppy to be helpful and soothing. Watch as Storee visits a classroom of special needs children, using her dog to reach out. And have fun with Storee as she gains new experiences certain to help her create her next bestseller! But most important of all, find inspiration for your next masterpiece as you read Storee Wryter Gets a Dog.
Media AlertTate Music Group Artist Spirit 2 Spirit Performance

WHEN: 12-17-11

TIME: 12 Noon - 10 p.m.
WHERE: Liberty House Ministries, 6016 Old Silver Hill Rd., District Heights, MD

WHAT: Spirit 2 Spirit will be performing songs from the album, You Better Get Ready.For more information, contact Alex Russell at 888-361-9473 or arussell@tatepublishing.com

APUS WV Eastern Panhandle Colloquium Proposal Due Dec. 18

Just a reminder that presentation and panel proposals for the APUS Colloquium on Eastern Panhandle history and identity are due December 18 (next Friday). I would like to have the program settled before the end of the year, so if you have not sent one already and you would like to participate please forward me a proposal per the instructions in the CFP below. These can be submitted in the text of an email or as an attachment. And please feel free to forward this announcement to others who might be interested in submitting a proposal for more information contact. Bradley J. Wiles, MA, MLIS University Archivist American Public University System American Military University American Public University111 W. Congress Street, Charles Town, WV 25414 T 304-724-2670 F 304-724-0937 "mailto:bwiles@apus.edu" "http://www.apus.edu/"
Call for Papers/Presentations
American Public University System in Charles Town, West Virginia will host a one-day multi-disciplinary colloquium on the history and identity of the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. Individuals or groups are welcome to submit presentation and panel proposals addressing various aspects of the culture, politics, religion, demography, economics, and geography (though not limited to these) within the broader historical context of the Eastern Panhandle, both pre- and post-statehood.
The tentative date and location for the colloquium is Saturday March 10, 2012 at the American Public University System Library and Research Center in Charles Town. Scholars at all levels from the Eastern Panhandle are encouraged to submit, however proposals will be accepted from candidates throughout the state and region.
Presentations should be based on original works and group panel submissions should include a moderator to unify the individual presentations and subsequent discussion. The ultimate goal of the colloquium is to produce a publication of its proceedings, so priority will be given to previously unpublished work.
To submit a proposal or for more information contact Brad Wiles at 304-724-2670 or "mailto:bwiles@apus.edu"
Submissions should include the following:
-Name and contact information
-Affiliation or credentials
-Presentation/Panel topic or title with brief abstract (100 words)
-Audio-visual or other specifications

The Gift Of Reading

(NAPSI)—Reading is more than fun. It’s a valuable skill that helps children succeed in school and later in life. That’s why books are a great gift for the kids on your list.
This season’s favorite titles include the following:
• “Every Thing On It” is a new book of unpublished poems and artwork by the beloved Shel Silverstein. All ages.
• “Everything Goes: On Land” by Brian Biggs is a celebration of cars, trucks, motorcycles, bicycles and other things that go on land. Ages 4-8.
• “Liesl & Po” by Lauren Oliver, illustrated by Kei Acedera, has been described as “a gorgeous story—timeless and magical,” by Newbery Medalist Rebecca Stead. Ages 8-12.
• “If You Give A Dog A Donut” by Laura Numeroff, illustrated by Felicia Bond is the eighth book in the No. 1 New York Times bestselling blockbuster “If You Give” series, starring Dog! Ages 3-7.
• “A Christmas Goodnight” by Nola Buck, illustrated by Sarah Jane Wright combines the ever popular theme of “Christmas in the Manger” with the reassuring simplicity of “Goodnight Moon.” Ages 2-5.
• “Wildwood” by Colin Meloy, lead singer of the band The Decemberists, and Carson Ellis, illustrator of “The Mysterious Benedict Society,” is the first book in an epic middle-grade fantasy series. Full of magic, wonder and danger, it has been described as nothing less than an American “Narnia.” Ages 9 and up.
• “Fancy Nancy: Splendiferous Christmas” by Jane O’Connor and illustrated by Robin Preiss Glasser offers a chance to celebrate Christmas with Fancy Nancy. Ages 4-7.
• “Breadcrumbs” by Anne Ursu is a stunning and heartbreaking story of growing up wrapped in a modern-day fantasy, inspired by the classic Hans Christian Andersen tale “The Snow Queen.” Ages 8-12.
• “The Happy Elf Book” and CD is based on the beloved song and Christmas special “The Happy Elf.” It’s a holiday classic in the making from Grammy Award-winning musician Harry Connick, Jr. Illustrated by Dan Andreasen. Ages 4-8.
• “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever” by Barbara Robinson, illustrated by Laura Cornell, is a picture book adaptation of the beloved best-selling novel about the holiday misadventures of the worst kids in the history of the world. Ages 4-8.
• “Littlest Evergreen” by Henry Cole is the timely environmental story of a little tree that grows up peacefully on a hillside, then is taken by humans to become a decorative object in their home. Ages 4-7.
• “Little Bea and the Snowy Day” by Daniel Roode is a bright accessible story in which Little Bea and her friends spend the perfect winter day outdoors. Ages 2-5.
Encouraging kids to love reading is a gift that lasts a lifetime.

25th Annual Live Nativity Pageant Scheduled

PHOTOS:
BELOW First Live Nativity. Left to Right: Chuck Hampton playing Joseph, JoAnne Alexander playing Mary.
Right Live Nativity Pageant Today: Left to Right: Paige and Ron Phifer as Mary and Joseph.

On Monday, December 19, and Tuesday, December 20, Oakland United Methodist Church in Charles Town will mark the twenty-fifth year that they have been bringing the Christmas story to life by performing their Annual Live Nativity Pageant in their amphitheater.
Held on the church’s then bare lot off Oakland Terrace in Charles Town, Oakland Church’s first nativity in 1986 was almost as humble a beginning as the real nativity. The subdivision road had been paved just 5 months before and there was nothing on the lot except for the make-shift stable and a temporary power pole. The manger was a temporary structure put together with two-by-fours nailed together. Pastor Kent Tice ran the sound system from the back of his mini-van. Tice’s wife and Oakland’s senior pastor, Reverend JoAnne Alexander recalls, “Snow flakes falling at the end of the first pageant made it extra special”On that very first night of the production in 1986, Mary and Joseph were played by Patty & Doug Harrison. The next night, Joseph and Mary were played by Chuck Hampton and Reverend JoAnne Alexander. Baby Jesus was played by her son, Elijah. Reverend Alexander says, “Playing Mary the first year and holding the baby Jesus—Elijah. That was a powerful experience.”
Their three-year-old son Joshua Alexander played a shepherd. Rick Blackford, Kraymer Witt and Bill Dickson were the first wise men. Since that night, Rick Blackford has been in Oakland’s Live Nativity Pageant every year.
In the quarter of a century since that first pageant on a bare lot, the Live Nativity Pageant has become an essential part of Oakland Church’s Christmas tradition held on December 19 and 20, no matter what day of the week the dates fall on. Except in 2009, when the pageant was cancelled both nights because of over 2 feet of snow. The next day, church member Robert McCoy brought in a bobcat and plowed the whole amphitheatre and the path for the wise men, who make their appearance from the Alexander-Tice backyard, which is located next door to the church. That year, the pageant was performed on December 23, instead of the 19 and 20th.
From a cast and crew of thirty people and a single sheep, the production has grown to include an average of thirty to thirty-five cast (including many children playing angels and shepherds) plus a crew working behind the scenes. The production takes at least seventy-five people to pull off each night with volunteers helping with costumes, tending to the live animals, serving refreshments, and a host of other duties. Between the two nights, over a hundred people are involved in the production every year.
That is not counting two sheep, one cow, and one (usually stubborn) donkey.
The Tice-Alexander family (Oakland Church pastors Kent Tice and JoAnne Alexander, and their three children Joshua Alexander, Sheerah Tice, and Elijah Tice) have produced and directed the production every year. The very first year, daughter Sheerah Tice was too young to be an angel and too old to be the Baby Jesus. Since then, she has participated every year, moving up the ranks to the Senior Angel. One year, she played the role of Mary with Dennis Magaha playing the role of Joseph. In recent years, she has sung the production’s closing song.
The show must go on has been lived out more than once at Oakland Church when it comes their Live Nativity Pageant as they have jumped a few hurdles (sometimes literally) to bring the Christmas story to life at the church’s outdoor amphitheater.
A few years ago, when thieves broke into the control booth after the night of the first production and made off with the sound equipment, which still had the audio tape for the show, the church scrambled together to do the show anyway. Pastor Kent Tice narrated into a mike from the sound booth.
Except for the very first production, and one year, a baby from the congregation has always played the role of the Baby Jesus. One year, they were forced to use a Cabbage Patch doll for the role because the congregation had no babies. “We just didn’t have any babies that year,” Pastor Kent Tice says.
Reverend JoAnne Alexander is often cast in the role of the “mid-wife”. “I am usually, huddled in the dark in the barn with the baby, listening to the strains of music, feeling the beauty and the peace of this event, and passing the baby through the door in the darkness to the waiting Mary and Joseph.”
Since his debut performance as the first baby Jesus, Elijah Tice has been demoted to head shepherd. Oakland’s high school youth co-leader, Elijah directs the performance’s other shepherds, mostly played by children, while tending to the live sheep. During most of the production, they are gathered around a live bonfire several feet away from the amphitheater. One year, at the portion of the play where Gabriel suddenly appears to shepherds after the birth of Jesus, the sheep became equally frightened. One jumped into the fire. 　Bill Schweitzer, who was a shepherd that night, pulled the sheep out of the flames and said that it miraculously didn’t have a mark on it, not even singed.
While his younger brother was demoted from the role of Jesus, Joshua Alexander has been promoted from the littlest shepherd to Gabriel the archangel. Before his promotion, Joshua played a shepherd. One year, when the herd included a live baby lamb, whose mother had died while giving birth the day before. Joshua recalls coddling the baby lamb the whole evening and then felt something warm and wet in his lap.
The live donkey has been the critter with the most stories in Oakland Church’s Live Nativity pageant history. Most of the stories are told by men who have had the experience of playing Joseph. “He is always stubborn,” Reverend JoAnne Alexander says about the animal star. “We never know what he’s going to do.” The church had used the same donkey every year until his death a few years ago, at which time he was replaced with another donkey, who is equally unpredictable. The donkey is provided every year by long-time Jefferson resident Garnet Payne and his grandson Stony.
Terri Lynn Zaleski recalls her husband, Jack, having an unpleasant experience with his four-legged cast member when they played Mary and Joseph in the 1997 production. “While Mary is doing her scene with Gabriel out front, Joseph is waiting with the donkey behind the amphitheater. As soon as her scene is over, Mary has to run back to get on the donkey for them to come back out. Well, the year we played Mary and Joseph, while Mary was ‘on-stage’ with Gabriel; backstage, the donkey was literally dragging Joseph through the fields behind the amphitheater and trampling him.” Jack Zaleski, Oakland’s business manager, says it was a miracle he got back to the amphitheater with the donkey and collected himself in time to go to Bethlehem.
Oakland’s business manager is not the only one to suffer physical hardship for the sake of the production. Reverend JoAnne Alexander has jumped more than one hurdle. “One year, while running in the dark between the trees to check on the wise men right before the show started, I thought the path was clear, but I ended up hitting a small picnic table my kids used as a swing stand and did a flip right over it! I tucked and rolled when I hit it and ended up with just a knot on my leg where I hit the table!”
Why does Oakland Church keep on doing it? After all the scrambling to replace stolen audio equipment; tending to bruised hips after doing back flips over tables; putting out the flames of frightened sheep; and wrestling donkeys suffering from superiority issues; then comes the moment when it all comes together.
You feel the touch of the wind on your nose and cheeks and the sweet taste of hot cocoa. If you listen, you hear the call of the cow and sheep. You watch and you see, and you, along with everyone waiting and watching, and you remember—Ah, this is the reason for the season!
Oakland Church invites you to come and be a part of it: Monday, December 19, and Tuesday, December 20. 7:30 pm. Admission is free. Bring your family and plenty of warm blankets. Refreshments will be served inside the fellowship hall following the performance.
Oakland also invites you to join in their other Christmas celebrations: On Saturday, Christmas Eve, a Children’s Christmas Program will be held at 7:00 pm. A Candle Lighting Service will be held at 11:00 pm. On Sunday, Christmas Day, brunch will be held from 9:00-10:30 am, with the worship celebration held at 10:45 am.
Oakland Church is located at 70 Oakland Terrace, ½ mile beyond the Route 9 Bypass. For more information, call Oakland Church at 304-725-3737 or visit their website at "http://oakland-church.net" for more information.

County Notices

Meeting Cancelled
The regularly scheduled Jefferson County Planning Commission meeting to be held on December 13, 2011 has been cancelled.

County Commission of Jefferson County Impact Fees
The County Commission of Jefferson County will hold a public hearing
concerning Impact Fees on Wednesday, December 14, 2011 at 7:00 p.m. in
County Commission meeting room located at the Old Charles Town Library
Meeting Room on the ground floor of the Library, 200 East Washington
Street, Charles Town, WV 25414.
The purpose of this public hearing is to gather public input on the
proposal by the Jefferson County Economic Development Authority to
suspend the Law Enforcement and Fire & EMS impact fees for new
commercial development for a minimum period of 2 years.
The decision will be made at County Commission meeting on Thursday,
December 15, 2011.
By Order of The County
Commission of Jefferson County