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Special to the DailySpecial to the DailyChristina Harrison, a Battle Mountain High School student, studied and worked at a newspaper in Australia through the Vail Valley Exchange program.
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VAIL – Students interested in the Vail Valley Exchange program can attend a meeting from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., Thursday at the Vail Public Library. Through the program, two local high school juniors host a pair of Australian students, then head Down Under themselves. Juniors at Vail Mountain School or Battle Mountain High School are eligible. Applications for the next exchange program are due Oct. 15. For more information, visit: http://www.vvex.org.

AVON Donations are flowing in for Hurricane Katrina survivors as non-profits and organizations take stock of current and future relief efforts.Locally, the local branch of the American Red Cross is providing food and shelter to a handful of evacuees in Eagle County.We meet with people to evaluate their needs, then we work to meet those needs, said Nettie Reynolds of the Red Cross.The Salvation Army has also assisted evacuees in the area. To continue hurricane relief efforts, were working with employers who plan to bring evacuees to the Vail Valley to work, said Greg Osteen of the Salvation Army. Weve raised roughly $40,000 to $45,000 to provide services to relocated families in Eagle County. Everyone who arrives in need will be served, Osteen added. Were ready to go, as soon as were called upon.Donations made to the Vail Valley Salvation Army hurricane relief effort are used locally first. Whatever money is not used in Eagle County will be sent to hurricane stricken areas on the Gulf Coast, Osteen said. Alpine Bank announced community and employee donations to relief exceeded $393,000 for the American Red Cross. The bank committed to match donations up to $25,000, while customers Richard and Susan Goodwin, of Snowmass, matched another $25,000. Its an honor to make this kind of donation on behalf of the communities in western Colorado, said Glenn Davis, Alpine Bank president. Its a testament to the generosity of the communities we live and work in.Community members can continue to make donations to American Red Cross Hurricane Relief at any Alpine Bank location or online with a credit card at http://www.alpinebank.com. Anyone in need of services, or interested in making a donation to the local Red Cross can call 328-3044. To learn more about the Vail Valley Salvation Army, its services or make a donation call 926-3704.

EAGLE – Eagle Public Library will begin a monthly teen book club on Monday nights from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m., beginning this Monday (Oct. 3.) The Monday Night Book Club is designed for students going into grades 6 and up. At the first meeting, kids will have an opportunity to participate in a state-wide poster contest, with the theme of “Lost.”They will also learn more about the Colorado Blue Spruce Young Adult book award. Copies for November and December book discussions will also be given to interested participants. The free paperbacks are funded by Friends of Eagle Valley Library District.On Nov. 7, the group will meet for pizza and discuss “Hoot” by Carl Hiaasen. On Dec. 5, the book will be “Amulet of Switzerland” by Jonathan Stroud. Discussion will be followed by a gift paperback exchange and holiday treats.For more information, please call Youth Services Librarian Robyn Bryant at 328-8811.



Henri-Karen Stone is in Kuwait City teaching at the Partners in Participation Regional Women’s Campaign School.The purpose of the program is to provide training in political development and advocacy to encourage woman to participate in politics, as candidates and volunteers, in the Middle East and North Africa.”I am honored to have been selected to serve the women of the Middle East in their struggle for equality and voting rights,” Stone said. “The progress of democracies in this region is tied directly to our struggle against terrorism. These brave women are on the front lines fighting for the future of their children and their countries.”Stone said her interest in foreign affairs began in high school when she attended conference on Middle Eastern Affairs at Harvard University, near her home in the Boston area. She studied Arabic and Spanish at the University of Colorado. She has worked on the campaigns of several Republicans, including Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell and her husband, Eagle County Commissioner Tom Stone. She was formerly the chairwoman of the Eagle County Republicans, president of the High Country Republican Women, and delegate to the 2000 Republican presidential convention.

EAGLE COUNTY – The Nov. 1 election in Eagle County will be done only by mail.Ballots will be mailed between Oct. 7 and Oct. 17 to everyone on the county’s “active voter” lists. Ballots the post office can’t deliver will be returned to the Clerk and Recorder’s office in Eagle. Voters who do not receive ballots can call the clerk’s office. Requests for absentee ballots can be picked up at the clerk’s offices in Avon, Eagle and El Jebel or online at eaglecounty.us/clerk. Spanish translations are also available. Completed ballots must be returned to the Clerk and Recorder’s office no later than 7 p.m. Nov. 1. Voters can return their ballots by mail, or bring them to one of the three clerk’s offices. All offices are open from 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 7 a.m.-7 p.m. on Election Day.The last day to register to vote in this fall’s election is Oct. 3. Voters who are already registered but have moved or changed mailing addresses must update their records by Oct. 3. For more information, call 328-8728.

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GLENWOOD SPRINGS – The Whitewater Courses and Parks 2005 conference will be held Oct. 5-7 at the Ramada Inn in Glenwood Springs. It will be immediately followed by the Whitewater Symposium 2005, scheduled for Oct. 7-10 at the Rock Gardens resort on the Colorado River in No Name, just east of Glenwood Springs.As the parks are becoming increasingly popular, communities are wanting to know how to create parks and to learn from the experiences of other communities that have them, said Lori Hogan, a member of a committee that has been working with Glenwood Springs to try to open a whitewater park in Glenwood Springs.Hogan said as many as 100 people are expected to attend the conference, and a similar number probably will participate in the symposium. The conference is expected to draw participants from the United States and Canada. Organizers are encouraging participation by federal, state and local management agencies; professionals such as hydrologists, engineers and developers; and paddlers and conservation and recreation groups.Conference topics include design considerations, funding options, economic impacts of courses, risk management, and the stakeholder development process. Hogan said the symposium will include top paddlers and instructors, and representatives from paddle clubs and schools, along with others.”It’s basically a meeting of the minds of where this industry is going and how they can sustain it,” she said.More information about the conference may be found at http://www.whitewatercoursesandparks2005.com. The symposium Web site is http://www.wwsymposium.com.Vail, Colorado


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