It has often been said that Christmas is the season of giving as much as it is the season of receiving, and for that reason several City of Rolla Departments, including the City’s Employee Advisory Committee, are supporting and assisting with efforts to contribute to the 20th annual “Fill A Ford for the Holidays” Christmas food drive that is currently underway at Denny Ford Lincoln Mercury (located on Bishop Highway) to assist our area’s food pantries.
The City’s Employee Advisory Committee (EAC), which consists of employee representatives from each of the City’s eight departments, is asking City employees to drop off non-perishable or canned food items at various City departments/facilities located throughout the city. At City Hall (901 N. Elm Street) alone, there are four boxes (decorated with holiday gift wrapping) located in the lobby of every floor. Similar boxes are also located at The Centre, (1200 N. Holloway Street), where a raffle ticket is given to anyone who donates five cans of food. The winning entry will receive one $100 discount/savings on an annual Centre membership. Other City departments that are also participating include: the Rolla Police Department headquarters (corner of 11th and Elm Streets), the Rolla Recycling Center (located at 2141 Old St. James Road), the City’s Sanitation Department (located on Sharp Avenue off 18th Street) and the City of Rolla Fire & Rescue Headquarters, Fire Station #1, located on 10th Street (BB Hyw.) across the street from Greentree Christian Church.
Speaking of the season of giving, The Centre staff once again sponsored the G.R.A.C.E. For Christmas Tree inside the lobby of The Centre where Centre members and residents fulfilled the wishes of children of various ages by adopting a star and donating Christmas gifts. This year The Centre also partnered with various groups to bring a little holiday cheer. Kicks for Kids, a dream project of new Life Ministries, provided shoes to foster children through The Partnership. And a three-day canned food drive to support the Fill A Ford for the Holidays again allowed Centre members to easily see the needs of area families.
While you are at The Centre you may also want to check out the unique and extensive Santa Claus collection consisting of all shapes, sizes and nationalities that are attractively displayed in the glass cases in the lobby. The Santa display was provided by local residents Don and Nancy Brackhahn, who are generously sharing their extensive Santa Claus memorabilia with Centre members and the community throughout the holiday season.
Severe winter weather has hit the Rolla area a little earlier than usual this year, and it is somewhat of a wake-up call to everyone to be prepared for cold weather days, icy roads, icy sidewalks and dangerous driving conditions. It is often said that one of the biggest culprits of traffic accidents is excessive speed and not heeding the conditions of the road. With Christmas just days away, last minute shopping, holiday and family get-togethers, weather and driving conditions can sometimes be an afterthought. Unfortunately, that is what can sometimes lead to avoidable accidents on slippery sidewalks, parking lots and our roadways. The City of Rolla’s Street Department, the Phelps County Highway Department and Missouri Department of Transportation (MODOT) all keep a close eye on the weather conditions, and will often be salting and plowing your roads in the middle of the night so iced-over and snow-covered roads aren’t as slick as they might otherwise be.
The City’s Public Works Department is aware that salt is hard on the environment, on concrete, on automobiles and is increasing significantly in price. So in order to reduce the negative aspects and increase cost of salt, the City is relying more on a combination of saw dust, sand and beat juice with less salt.
Remember, the best way to stay safe during the kind of unpredictable ice and snow storms we have in South Central Missouri, is to stay abreast of the latest weather reports, take a few minutes to warm up your automobile, de-ice your windshields and windows, and if possible, spread a little de-icing salt on your porches, sidewalks and driveways where there is a lot of pedestrian traffic. Sometimes the most dangerous patch of ground is that step before and after you enter or exit your vehicle.
Have a safe week, and remember to ‘shop local’ whenever possible.
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