Braving cold weather and rain, participants in the first ever Rift Raft River Race met on the Levisa River on Saturday to collect trash and race toward the finish line.
  The Rift Raft River Race, sponsored by the students of the Appalachian School of Law and the Environmental Law Society, encouraged participants to ride down the Levisa River, collecting old tires, discarded pop bottles and anything else littering Grundy's most beloved waterway.
  "It was a shame the weather didn't cooperate," says Brandon Dale, Emory & Henry Assistant Director of the Outdoor Program. "But, hopefully, the event will continue and grow."
  Dale and his wife Megan are 1998 and 2000 graduates of Grundy High School, respectively, who were visiting their families in Grundy over the Easter holiday when they learned about the river race. Dale, who says he always picks up the Virginia Mountaineer when he's in town, read about the Rift Raft River Race and asked Megan if she'd like to participate.
  According to Dale, the couple had already been discussing a spring trip to the Breaks and decided to replace it with the river race.
  And despite the rain, Dale says he can't wait to participate again.
  Not only is it nice to go canoeing, it's a great thing to do to clean up our Southwest Virginia waterways, he says.
  "I think the event went great," ASL student and event founder Dustin Bergman says. "It's a step and, as long as we keep moving forward, I think it will become a very big event."
  As for the colder weather, Bergman suggests the event may be moved to the fall semester, when the lower temperatures are not as common and ASL students won't be as concerned with final exams.
  Regardless, he says the event was a success.
  "Overall we pulled 383 pounds of trash out of the river, which is a substantial amount especially since we only had six people go down the river," says Bergman. "I think it's definitely a worthy cause and we're already looking forward to this fall when we'll navigate the mighty Levisa once more."
  As the Appalachian School of Law encourages its students to become involved in the community by requiring 25 hours of community service per semester, Bergman says, this particular project seemed to jump right out at him.
  "I just moved up here this past fall to start law school and noticed how trash-filled the Levisa River was and had this idea about a river race, where the goal would be to collect as much trash as possible," says Bergman. "I presented the idea to the Environmental Law Society and they decided to take it on as their major spring event."
  One of the most important things the river race can bring about would be a sense of pride for the community in its residents, Bergman says.
  "Grundy is in the process of getting a face life and the Levisa is a central component to the nature of the town," he says. "As the town makes these changes, it would be nice if the people of this community can change and grow with it and learn how important the ecosystem is to the livelihood of the community. So along with cleaning up the river, it is our hope that we'll begin to raise some community awareness as to the effects of pollution."
  And, to raise community awareness, Bergman said educating younger generations could be a key component of this. That is why the proceeds of the Rift Raft River Race will go toward sending a child from the Grundy area to an outdoor/environmental awareness summer program.
  "As everyone knows, kids like to talk. So it is our sincere hope that by giving at least one child the experience, other children will be able to live and learn vicariously through that child," Bergman says.
  "We're hoping to make this an annual event and hope that every following year this event continues to grow and raise awareness," he says.

For more of the story, see the print edition of the Mountaineer, on sale at newsstands now.  For more information on how to subscribe to the Mountaineer, call 276-935-2123 today.

by JoBeth Wampler
Staff Reporter
  Locked in and up all night, the Eighth Annual Youth Lock-In, sponsored by Youth Outreach of Buchanan County drew in approximately 400 students at Twin Valley High School last Friday.
  "That's the most we've ever had," Belinda Honaker says. "Every year it just keeps growing."
  When the Youth Lock-In was held eight years ago in 1999 at Whitewood High School, between 50 and 75 students attended. Since those early beginnings, it has grown to one of the county's largest youth events.
  With such a large turnout, Honaker says she hopes to expand the event throughout Buchanan County, possibly dividing it into two events based on grade level.
  A live band, skits, inflatable rides, mechanical bull, laser tag, volleyball and a giant Twister game were just a few of the activities sixth through twelfth graders enjoyed at the lock-in.
  "But, the point is not just to have all fun," says Honaker. "It's to have fun and include a message."
  Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent William Brad Mullins, a former graduate of Whitewood High School, was one of those on hand to talk to students -- in this case, about the dangers of giving out personal information online.
  The idea to invite Mullins to speak at the event came in a conversation with Honaker and her husband, Alan, and Mullins' aunt and uncle.
  "We just thought he'd be great," Honaker says.
  Mullins, who is currently assigned to the Philadelphia Cyber Task Force, spoke to students on "How to Avoid Internet Predators" and "Internet Safety."
  The Buchanan County Sheriff's Office K-9 unit also made an appearance, displaying the dog's tactics and ability to sniff out crime.
  One of the most memorable presentations was when youth minister Joel Horn blasted students with the sounds of a baby's cry at around 5 a.m.
  Comparing the cry to the nagging needs of an addiction, Horn asked the students what to do when a baby cries. Of course, many of the students shouted that you must feed it.
  "He told them that's exactly what an addiction is," Honaker says. "You must feed it."
  He urged students never to go down the path that leads to addiction.
  But, one of the most important parts of the program was adult-student interaction.
  Each volunteer wore Youth Lock-In tee-shirts, which helped identify them to those attending the event. Throughout the night, students were told they could talk to any volunteer about any problems going on at home or in school. According to Honaker, the response always shows her how needed programs like these are in Buchanan County.
  "Every year, we have children talking to us," she says. "There's such a need for these types of programs for kids."

For more of the story, see the print edition of the Mountaineer, on sale at newsstands now.  For more information on how to subscribe to the Mountaineer, call 276-935-2123 today.

by Scotty Wampler
Staff Reporter
  Buchanan County employees will receive a pay raise of $1,500 across the board assuming the preliminary 2007-08 county budget gains approval.
  The board of supervisors tentatively agreed to the pay increase during a scheduled budget work-session last Wednesday. Six of seven board members were present for the session. Garden Supervisor Buddy Fuller was not in attendance. The meeting was held in the conference room of the county E-911 office on Slate Creek.
  The $1,500 figure was decided on after County Administrator W.J. Caudill averaged the salaries of non-constitutional county positions based on the 4 percent raise already announced by the state for constitutional officers. That figure -- $1,330 -- was rounded up to $1,500.
  "Plug in $1,500 straight across the board," North Grundy Chairman Carroll Branham suggested.
  Caudill said the effect on the budget after the raises are reflected would be minimal, totaling $75,086.
  "You probably won't even notice it," he said.