Your WBFJ Family Station Forecast: Rain, mainly this afternoon and this evening. High near 50
A thunderstorm possible before midnight…Low overnight 45.
Does your teen need a prom dress? How about a FREE prom dress? Union Ridge UMC on Old Lexington Road in Winston-Salem is inviting teen girls and their moms to stop by this Wednesday (March 16) from 3 to 6pm during its Blessed Dress – Prom Dress Giveaway. Teen girls need to have an adult female with them. Non perishable food donations will be collected to benefit Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina. Need more info? Call 414-2670 or 788-2672
UPDATE: A third explosion in 4 days has caused even more damage at the earthquake crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant, located north of Tokyo. Residents within 12 miles of the nuclear power plant have been ordered to evacuate because of dangerous levels of radiation. The U.S Navy reporting that 17 crew members from the USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier were exposed to low-level radiation during earthquake rescue operations. www.npr.org/2011/03/15/134552475/radiation-fears-rise-at-japanese-power-plant
http://blogs.voanews.com/breaking-news/2011/03/15/dangerous-radiation-levels-reported-near-stricken-nuclear-plant-2/
Members of Calvary Baptist Church in Winston-Salem have donated $10,000 dollars toward relief efforts in Japan. The church is partnering with the North Carolina Baptist Men's Disaster Response Team which already has people on the ground in Japan to determine which areas are in most need of help.
If you are looking for a way to help in the Relief efforts in Japan go to our website. Check out links for Samaritan’s Purse, World Vision and the Salvation Army…
www.wbfj.fm/event6.html
Check out ‘before and after’ photos of the devastated areas in Japan…
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2011/03/13/world/asia/satellite-photos-japan-before-and-after-tsunami.html?src=ISMR_HP_LO_MST_FB
Facebook (Open discussion group): This site is giving updates about those on the ground in Japan. http://www.facebook.com/search.php?q=pickard%20newmarket&init=quick&tas=0.9192275159627625#!/home.php?sk=group_158389390884633&ap=1
Comedian Gilbert Gottfried has been fired as the abrasive duck voice on the AFLAC commercials…after posting a string of mocking jokes about the earthquake and tsunami in Japan on Twitter over the weekend. Gottfried’s tasteless tweets could be damaging to Aflac’s image in Japan, because the company does 75% of its business in Japan. One in four homes in Japan buys health insurance from Aflac. Aflac announced before the incident that it would donate $1.2 million dollars to the International Red Cross to help with disaster assistance in Japan. FYI: Gottfried’s voice is NOT the voice of the Aflac in Japan. Instead, the Aflac duck voice has a softer, sweeter voice in Japanese commercials. A talent search is underway for Gottfried’s replacement. www.wxii12.com/entertainment/27193109/detail.html
Tip of the day: The best time of the week to purchase airline tickets is Tuesday and Wednesdays, usually 21 days before your flight. Typically, airlines reduce their prices Tuesday evenings and Wednesday mornings. (ShePrep)
A bill requiring voters to show a valid photo ID in order to vote on Election Day in North Carolina is making its way through the House in Raleigh. The Bill also contains other campaign finance provisions added in direct response to the investigation of former Gov. Mike Easley's campaign. www.wxii12.com/news/27197866/detail.html
Karen Oliver, a teacher at Erwin Montessori in Greensboro, has received Harris Teeter’s Teachers of Excellence award for 2010-2011. Ms. Oliver teaches Reading for the Hearing Impaired for First and Second graders. She has been with Erwin Montessori since 2003 and working with hearing impaired students since 1988. More info: http://www.harristeeter.com/
“Eat Out to Help Habitat” happens this week through Saturday. (March 12 – 19). Each year, local high schools have a ‘friendly competition’ to see who can raise the most money to build the ‘Habitat Youth United House’. Participating restaurants including Chick-Fil-A, Beef O’Brady’s , Midtown Café and River Birch Lodge will contribute a percentage of their sales on a particular day to a partner high school. School schedules online at http://www.habitatforsyth.org/...
click on the ‘raise The Roof’ logo. (News Blog)
The father of a 10-year-old boy who started a fire at the Ashbrook Pointe Apartments in Greensboro on Sunday is pleading for understanding. The dad saying that the blaze was all an accident and that his son was simply curious about fire. Police will not say whether the boy will face any type of charges, but the parents definitely will not. http://www.myfox8.com/news/wghp-story-greensboro-apartment-fire-110313,0,3439118.story
Have you finished filling in your brackets?????
The First round of the NCAA Tournament starts later this evening.
UNC-Asheville plays at 6:40pm…Clemson plays at 9:10pm
NCAA Bracket http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/ncaa-tournament/brackets/viewable_men
Bracket Manager (interactive) http://mayhem.cbssports.com/splash/mayhem/spln/opm?ttag=BM11_on_all_cspt_cb_ao_0002
March Madness…are you ready? According to a report from outplacement company Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc., an estimated 8.4 million work hours will be lost to ‘March Madness’ (during the annual three-week long NCAA tournament). According to a CareerBuilder survey of more than 3,900 workers…one in five workers said they have participated in March Madness pools at work. (28% of male workers and 11% of female workers said they have put money down after filling out their tournament brackets).
FYI: ‘March Madness’ will cost US offices an estimated $192 million dollars.
www.mainstreet.com/article/career/work/life-balance/march-madness-costs-offices-192-million
Countless fans, and even people who aren't big basketball fans, are filling out their brackets. But, could your office ‘tournament pool’ be illegal? If money is involved with the winning, technically…YES. The NC statute states, in part, "...any person or organization that operates any game of chance or any person who plays at or bets on any game of chance at which money, property, or other thing of value is bet... shall be guilty of a Class 2 misdemeanor." A detective with the Guilford County Sheriff's Office said while they're not sending investigators out to offices looking for people participating in pools, she recommends using common sense. Don't go bragging about how much money you're putting in or winning on social media. http://www.digtriad.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=166395&catid=57
