Old-time fiddle contest set for Saturday in Ashland

ASHLAND, Ky. — Fiddlers and music lovers are invited to the 16th annual Ed Haley Old Time Fiddle Festival Saturday in downtown Ashland.

A morning fiddle demonstration from 10:00 to 11:15 a.m. in the Christian Life Center on Winchester Avenue will focus on the tunes and techniques of “old time” Appalachian music.

An Old Time Fiddle Contest will start at 12:30 p.m. in the Christian Life Center. This is an open category for all styles of old time fiddle.

Contestants will play two tunes of choice. Judging criteria include intonation, timing, difficulty, expression and technique. Highest scores will go to contestants playing old time tunes in an appropriate old time style.

A special Ed Haley Fiddle Contest will follow the old time fiddle contest. This contest is open to all Old Time Fiddle contestants.

Contest registration is from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The Old Time Fiddle Contest entry fee is $10 for adults and seniors, and $5 for teens. This fee includes optional entry in the Ed Haley Fiddle Contest. There is no admission charge.

For more information, contact contest chair Gayle Fritz at 606-324-5366 or go to the web site at www.poagelandingdays.com.

Actors needed at the Paramount

ASHLAND, Ky. —Calling aspiring actors of all ages!

Paramount Players will be performing “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever” in December and we are having auditions Monday at 6:30 p.m.

Directors need a lot of children. If you aren’t familiar with the play, it is the best pageant ever.

It is a hilarious Christmas tale about a couple struggling to put on a church pageant and faced with casting the Herdman children — probably the most inventively awful children in history. Mayhem ensues when the Herdmans collide head on with the Christmas story. So show up at the Paramount and audition for a part. We are looking for actors of all ages and all experience levels and we need lots of kids.

Oh, so you don’t feel like you have enough experience to act on the big stage? Well if you are one of those people who feel like you want some training, then we can help you with that too.

There is a class called “All About Auditioning” today. You can learn everything you need to know about auditioning and the workshop includes a practice audition.

The class is one hour long and is $20. Children ages 6 – 11 can attend the 6:30 – 7:30 p.m. class; ages 12 – adult 7:30 – 9 p.m.

And if you have a penchant toward musical theatre, well there is a class for that!

“Dance for Musical Theatre” meets every Tuesday evening from now through May. This is the perfect place to learn stage presence, character movement, basic dance steps and how to ace a dance audition. It is for ages 6 to adult. The class for ages 6 – 11 meets from 4:30 – 5:30 p.m.; ages 12 – adult: 5:30 – 6:30 p.m.. The cost is $40 per month.

For more information on workshops or auditions, call Melanie Sweeney, education director at 606.324.3175 ext. 311. Audition information is also available at www.paramountartscenter.com.

Chilifest 2010 set for Saturday

Huntington, W.Va. — WSAZ NewsChannel 3 and Chili Willi’s Mexican Cantina present the 27th Annual Original ChiliFest Saturday in downtown Huntington on Third Avenue at Pullman Square.

The streets of Huntington will fill with “chili heads” as the winner of this “much heated” event qualifies to represent West Virginia at the ICS (International Chili Society) World’s Chili Championship in Manchester, New Hampshire on Oct.1-3.

ChiliFest is a charity cook-off, benefiting the Ronald McDonald House of Huntington.  Chili sample tickets are $1 each or six for $5  ChiliFest begins at 11 a.m. and concludes at 6 p.m. with the announcement of the winners and the live drawing for the Toyota Camry LE.

Economy not hurting Cabell’s fundraising

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (AP) — The economy doesn’t appear to be hurting Cabell Huntington Hospital’s bid to raise $12 million for a new children’s hospital.

Hospital Chief Operating Officer David Graley tells the Charleston Daily Mail that the hospital has raised about $9.5 million so far. About $4.6 million of that came from three anonymous donors.

The majority of the contributions have come from a 50-mile radius of West Virginia’s second largest city. The hospital serves patients in West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio.

Donations have come from a variety of places, including a baseball team in Winfield, which sold armbands, and Teays Valley Christian School students who sold lemonade.

“People in Appalachia take care of their own,” Graley said.

The project still needs to be approved by the state, but Graley says its hoped construction can start next year and be completed by 2013. The hospital plans to submit its application to the state Health Care Review Authority by the end of the year.

The children’s hospital will have its own entrance to keep children segregated from adult patients who may be suffering from injuries or illnesses that could frighten the youngsters, Graley said.

The unit will feature private rooms and play areas.

Ashland Town Center to again host annual Magical Night of Giving

ASHLAND, Ky. — Ashland Town Center officials announced today that local charities and non-profit organizations in the Tri-State area will receive a huge boost over the 2010 holiday season, thanks to Glimcher Realty Trust’s annual Magical Night of Giving fundraising event.

This year’s event at Ashland Town Center will take place on Sunday, Nov. 21 from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.

The mall will host Magical Night of Giving as its official kick-off to the holiday season and an opportunity for guests to enjoy an evening of exclusive savings throughout the mall, prize giveaways and holiday entertainment.

The mall joins with many local non-profit organizations that support this community event by selling tickets, for which they keep 100 percent of the proceeds. In 2009, Ashland Town Center’s event attracted 65 non-profit organizations and raised over $62,000 for the non-profit organizations that participated in ticket sales.

“Magical Night of Giving allows the Ashland Town Center to support multiple non-profit organizations in one event,” explains General Manager, Merri Hurn.

“Last year, the event raised over $62,000 for 62 non-profit groups in the Tri-State area.” Hurn stated, “This event would not be a success without the help from our sponsorship partners and local businesses. Last year we awarded over $13,000 in prizes, thanks to our sponsors.”

Non-profit and volunteer organizations interested in raising money through this event can contact the mall at 606-325-9570 or via email at jbloss@glimcher.com.