Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, March 9, 1994                   TAG: 9403140023
SECTION: AMERICAN WOMEN'S SHOW                    PAGE: 2   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: ANNE PIEDMONT
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

WOMEN'S SHOW OFFERS SOMETHING FOR WHOLE FAMILY

In addition to the Southern Living Cooking School, which returns to the Roanoke Valley after a seven-year absence, the Women's Show offers celebrities; products; the Bridal Show; automobile displays and information; special seniors programming; and seminars on almost any topic imaginable.

And, as in years past, there will be activities to interest all members of the family. But, stresses Coordinator Brenda Liles, the primary emphasis is on women.

The show also is a "shopping show," featuring products from "every area that touches a woman's life," said Liles.

The show kicks off Thursday night with a first-ever sneak preview fund-raiser for the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra. Proceeds from the $5 tickets will benefit the Youth Symphony Education & Scholarship Fund.

The Southern Living Cooking School, sponsored by the Roanoke Times & World-News, will have two shows, 10 a.m. to noon on both Friday and Saturday. The theme is "Simply Southern," Liles said, featuring traditional southern fare. Participants will receive a cookbook and gift bag, and be eligible for door prizes. Only 1,500 tickets per show will be sold. The cost is $4, which includes admission to the rest of the Women's Show.

The show officially opens Friday at noon with Victoria Bond of the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra assisting with the festivities. Show hours are noon to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and noon to 6 p.m. Sunday. The show starts after the cooking school "so you won't miss anything," says Liles.

The cooking fun continues Friday night with Roanoke's own Larry Bly and Laban Johnson of "Cookin' Cheap." And, throughout the weekend, chefs from the American Federation of Culinary Chefs will be in the kitchen cooking everything from "healthy to decadent," said Liles.

Saturday also is Seniors Day ($2 admission for Senior Citizens), featuring special seminars on such topics as "Senior Citizen's Cataracts & Glaucoma - Seniors Shouldn't Have A Dim View" and "Osteoporosis-Beyond Calcium."

On the entertainment stage will be The Ageless Wonders, whose appearance last year was cancelled by the blizzard. The Lynchburg-based group of 50 traveling performers crisscross the United States and Canada singing and dancing and promoting a high quality of life for senior citizens. Their bus, The Spirit of Lynchburg, has taken them to Disney World and the White House. They perform, on average, twice a week at home.

The group was founded by Frances Howard and Erma Styles with the objective of helping people through a contagious spirit of joyful - and enthusiastic - love. A long-range goal of the organization is to help establish similar groups in other areas to enhance the quality of life for senior citizens everywhere.

Their repertoire includes a patriotic narrative of "I Hear America Singing," a mixture of old favorites in "A Potpourri of Memories," a nostalgic visit to the 1890s with "Let's Sing the Old Songs," a toe-tapping trip "Down the Road of Country Music" and a musical "Kaleidoscope."

Saturday also features an appearance and car care clinic by Lyn St. James, 1992 Indianapolis 500 Rookie-of-the-Year and a consumer adviser to the Ford Motor Company.

Sunday offers the annual Bridal Show, the highlight of which will be the fashion show - featuring something old and something new. The "something new" is Lady L bridal fashions, provided by Lazarus, which sells the line locally. Mixed in with the new is the old: replicas of three White House wedding gowns on loan from the Roanoke Valley History Museum.

The museum's collection includes six of these gowns, donated by Elizabeth Arden, and each gown is representative of the fashion history of its time.

Food Lion will have a large presence at the show throughout the weekend with 30 food vendors offering sampling and coupons.

And, for the children - and the child in all of us - Mill Mountain Zoo will offer "Ed-Zoo-Cation" featuring animals from the zoo.

Liles promises the weekend will have something to offer every woman, and her family.