ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, February 6, 1997 TAG: 9702060062
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-4 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: STAUNTON
Callers thought they were getting Del. Vance Wilkins' office at the Virginia General Assembly. Instead, they got a former Dallas Cowboys cheerleader's pager.
``Hello,'' said the recording by Rhonda Dawson, now an American Airlines flight attendant living near Dallas. ``You have reached Rhonda's personal pager. I will return your call at my earliest convenience, so at the sound of the tone you know what to say, and you know what to do.''
Dawson's pager started buzzing this week after several newspapers published a letter from Wilkins that gave an incorrect number for his Richmond office. The letter encouraged state employees to call and comment on the state's pay system.
Dawson said the first call came while she was shopping, and a steady stream soon followed.
``I started getting pages a couple of days ago,'' she said Tuesday. ``One was from an elderly man who said he was a retired employee, and he was wanting to know how this would affect him. It sounded like something pretty important.''
There were several hang-ups, she said, and a few people just laughed. Eventually, she was contacted by someone on Wilkins' staff about the mistake.
``It was an honest mistake,'' said David Root, legislative aide to Wilkins, R-Amherst County and the House of Delegates' minority leader. ``As soon as I found out about it, I paged her and she called back.''
Root advised Dawson to ignore the pages she receives from Virginia. Dawson was understanding but was worried about her bill, since she is charged by the number of pages she receives.
Wilkins' correct number is (804)786-1618.
- Associated Press
LENGTH: Short : 42 lines KEYWORDS: GENERAL ASSEMBLY 1997by CNB