ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, November 3, 1996 TAG: 9611010078
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 8 EDITION: METRO
Volunteers sought
The League of Older Americans' Foster Grandparent and Senior Companion Programs has an urgent need for volunteers.
Both programs offer a tax-free stipend of $2.45 per house, reimbursement for transportation, meals during service, annual health examinations, accident and liability insurance while on duty, plus other benefits.
To apply, individuals must be at least 60 years of age, retired and on a limited income. There is no educational requirement. Individuals must participate in pre-service orientation and training workshops.
FGP volunteers spend four hours per week helping children with special needs. There is an immediate need for 15 volunteers to work in community child care facilities in the Roanoke, Salem, Clifton Forge and Covington areas.
SCP has 10 openings for volunteers in Covington, Clifton Forge, Craig, Roanoke and Botetourt counties. Companions spend their four hours with another older person in nursing homes, adult care centers and private homes.
For more information, call 345-0451 (Roanoke), 884-2892 (Botetourt) or 962-0465 (Alleghany area).
Oak Ridge opens
The Oak Ridge Estate is now open to the public for tours and special events.
The Nelson County property provides a combination of historical significance, diverse architectural structures and expansive vistas of almost 5,000 acres.
The estate's 19th-century owners included an international tobacco entrepreneur, who built the original mansion around 1802, his daughter who was mistress of the plantation, a rector of the University of Virginia and a former Confederate congressman from South Carolina.
In the 20th century, the property was owned by Nelson County native Thomas Fortune Ryan, who made several additions and alterations to the original mansion and established a formal Italian garden. He erected more than 80 outbuildings, many of them still standing, such as the rotunda greenhouse, carriage house, railroad station, dairy complex and spring house.
The tour costs $10 for adults, $9 for senior citizens and $5 for ages 8-18.
Oak Ridge is 35 miles from Lynchburg and Charlottesville off Va. 29. For more information, call (804) 263-8676.
National hunger reading
``The Share Our Strength Writer's Harvest: The National Reading'' on Nov. 14 at Hollins College will include Adrian Blevins-Church, R.H.W. Dillard, Cathryn Hankla, Jeanne Larsen, Opal Moore, Marilyn Moriarty and Eric Trethewey. Writers in bookstores and college campuses nationwide will read from their works as part of the country's largest literary benefit to fight hunger. Proceeds from the Hollins event will go to the Roanoke Area Food Bank. The readings will begin at 8 p.m. in the Green Drawing Room in the Main Building. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students.
LENGTH: Medium: 59 linesby CNB