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GOOD Friday morning! |
| I hope your week has been a great one so far – ours has been a busy one, that’s for sure! Wednesday was our annual Cookie Contest and I wanted you to see a photo of the crowd that came through to have a look at the cookie displays this year. It was amazing! They kept coming and coming and it was such a wonderful event! |
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The Pilot staff (and we’ve been short-staffed the past week or so) has been in the Christmas spirit for nearly a week now: from decorating our foyer to taking part in the Christmas by the Sea parade last Saturday to tomorrow hosting a booth at the Arts & Crafts festival in Franklin Square Park – if holiday spirit had its photo taken, it would be The State Port Pilot staff! Events will wind down a bit after this weekend, but I just wanted to take some time in this space to thank my staff members – my friends – who jumped in to all these activities this season. We get the paper out every week – but they’ve done a whole lot more recently, and they’re just the best. That being said, I hope you all have a fun weekend and I’ll see you here next week! |
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New News |
Here’s what we’re working on for next week’s |
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| O CHRISTMAS TREE Children place ornaments on the Boiling Spring Lakes Christmas tree to prepare it for the annual lighting ceremony. SHELL IT OUT An Oak Island advisory group and nonprofit is looking to restore the storm-battered oyster reefs at Veterans Park. READY TO LAUNCH Southport receives a $141,000 state grant to help build its West West Street kayak launch. CLEAN REPORT Town of St. James gets a clean audit report for 2022 with high marks for its financial standing. |
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CITY UPDATE Southport aldermen take action on numerous items at their monthly meeting – including a Southport Crossing plat. |
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A GOOD place for a walkThe State Port Pilot this week includes a story about a proposed Davis Canal Nature Trail on Oak Island. If constructed, it would would span the distance from Middleton Avenue to the recreation center at SE 31st Street. The two-mile trail would include observation points and spotlight what Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee member Bill Millard called “the natural wonders of Oak Island.” |
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To see a full resolution version of the proposed walkway, click the image above. |
Providing greater access to our area’s natural beauty is a worthy goal on its own. But it’s also becoming more and more obvious how physical activity in those settings can make a huge difference in the health and well-being of the people in our community. From enhancing memory, increasing creativity and social engagement to reducing stress and depression, experts agree, spending more time in nature settings improves our health. |
Our area is rich with opportunities to embrace this idea and Oak Island is a prime example. The beach side, south of Davis Canal, gets the most attention, but the sometimes overlooked forest canopy and canal can also be explored by way of a network of walking and biking trails. Three marsh overwalks offer short and long loops through the woods and across the slough, canal and marshes. These paths are a great way to enjoy the shade and discover the island’s hidden flora and fauna. Other trails can be found at the Point on the west end of the island, Bill Smith Park on the mainland at 4410 Fish Factory Road, the Nature Center at 5202 East Yacht Drive and the recreation center at 31st Street (one end-point of the proposed new trail). The process for building the Davis Canal Nature Trail is just beginning. If accomplished, it would be the newest addition to Oak Island’s network of walking trails – described by experienced hikers as the island’s “hidden gem.” Read more at stateportpilot.com:
• Two-mile trail could showcase town's 'natural wonders'
• Oak Island approves rebuilding marsh walkovers
• Oak Island’s secret paths
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Do you have a “happy story” about good people doing good things in the community that you'd like to share with your fellow readers? Submit your uplifting idea or anecdote for Below the Fold to hello@stateportpilot.com. |
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December 9 - National Christmas Card Day: Sir Henry Cole, a member of the British civil service, created the modern concept of the Christmas card along with his artist friend, John Horsley, in 1843, as a means to encourage more people to use the new British postal system. Christmas cards inevitably reached the USA in the 1840s.
December 10 - Dewey Decimal System Day: Melvil Dewey, the creator of the famed Dewey Decimal System which classifies mostly non-fiction library books and resources, was born on December 10, 1851, in New York and this date has been adopted to celebrate and honor him annually.
December 11 - Holiday Food Drive for the Needy Animals Day: Animal welfare is by no means a recent concept in human history. Philosophers like Aristotle believed that domestic animals were born with a purpose and that we should appreciate their social and economic contributions to humankind.
December 12 - Gingerbread House Day: before the decorative cookie led the popularity contest on the holiday dessert table, baking gingerbread was acknowledged as a specific profession. In the 17th century, only professional gingerbread bakers were allowed to make gingerbread, except at Christmas and Easter, when anyone was allowed to bake it.
December 13 - National Horse Day: In 2004, Congress designated December 13 as National Horse Day and, since then, Americans have been taking the day to celebrate and appreciate the role of the horse in not only helping our country become what it is today, but also its current role in the modern era.
December 14 - More GOOD Today Day: This holiday aims to help society by encouraging kindness and generosity. Doing good can refer to any gestures of kindness. It can be holding a door for someone, getting someone a cup of coffee, or just sharing a smile and being polite.
December 15 - Bill of Rights Day: It’s an important day to celebrate America’s Constitution and the framework of society that ascribes rights and freedoms to society. Bill of Rights Day commemorates the ratification of the first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
FOMO? Did you miss a previous edition of the GOOD NEWSLETTER?
We’ve got you covered! Check out the archive here.
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Reader Photo Showcase |
The theme for this week’s showcase is “kids” and we received another batch of great images. Check out the beautiful, early morning twilight captured by Nick Noble, below. GOOD readers never disappoint.
Thanks to everyone for sharing your kids with us.
Don’t forget to take a look at the gallery and check out next week’s theme below. |
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Grandkids in the ocean at early morning Blue Hour. Submitted by Nick Noble. |
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More photos from James Coffer, Hannah Branam and Joey Robinson. |
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Recipe of the week |
Calderetta Serve up seafood this Christmas Eve The holiday season is full of various traditions. One that’s popular among Italian-Americans on Christmas Eve is called “Festa dei sette pesci (Feast of the Seven Fishes).” When participating in this tradition, celebrants enjoy seven or more seafood dishes.
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| Recipe of the Week
Each week we present a new recipe and we’d love to feature yours! Submission deadline is noon, Wednesday. | |
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Those gorgeous eyes you’re staring at belong to Loretta, our newest Pet of the week. Thanks to Wendy Lawson for sharing her with us.
Don’t forget to submit your own pet photos and visit our gallery to see all the adorable images from past weeks. |
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| The Pet of the Week Showcase
Each week we feature a new pet submitted by you, our GOOD readers. The deadline is noon, Wednesday. | |
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See the complete collection in our Pet of the Week Showcase Gallery! |
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It’s Friday! Presented by Up Your Arts, here’s the weekend line-up, full of music and activities for everyone. |
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Friday, December 9 |
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Light Up the Night Christmas Parade @ Whittler’s Bench (Southport) Dirk and Todd @ Lowe’s Food of Southport Wes Hunter @ the Joyce (Leland) Nancy Olive @ Mavericks Pointe (Sunset Beach) Del Mar Trio @ Ports of Call (Southport) Hair Trigger @ Oak Island Moose Lodge The Last Night of Ballyhoo @ Brunswick Little Theater R&R Music @ The Pub of Southport JP + 3 @ Second Wind
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Saturday, December 10 |
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Winterfest @ Franklin Square Park (Southport) Live music (TBD) @ The Grape and Ale R&R Music @ American Fish Company Jubilee @ the Joyce (Leland) Mike McManus @ Chance’s Steak and Sea (Shallotte) Southport Winterfest Flotilla @ Waterfront Park The Last Night of Ballyhoo @ Brunswick Little Theater 52nd Street Band @ Lazy Turtle Bar & Grill Live Music (TBD) @ The Pub of Southport MADD Dog Radio @ The Tiki Tavern Jacknife @ Second Wind
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Sunday, December 11 |
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Tie Dye Sunday with Mike Sobieski @ The Tiki Tavern Open Beach Jam with Dennis Walton @ The Lazy Turtle (OKI) The Last Night of Ballyhoo @ Brunswick Little Theater Brunswick Big Band, Brunswick Concert Band, and Brunswick Brass @ Hatch Auditorium (Caswell Beach) A Charlie Brown Christmas Album w/ Charlene Brown Trio @ Saint Peter Evangelical Lutheran Church
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“You may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing that we call ‘failure’ is not the falling down, but the staying down.” –Mary Pickford |
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Like it digital?If you've made it to this point of A GOOD NEWSLETTER, we're thinking that you might appreciate our weekly digital edition of the newspaper,
The e-Pilot. | |
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Have a really GOOD weekend! |
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