Before we get to the newsletter, let me reiterate the plea for proctors for EOCs and end-of-year tests in all our schools. Guidance counselors in our schools are truly desperate for proctors and we’re an excellent source of person-power for them. We know what schools sound and smell and feel like, we know instinctively when something isn’t quite right or when it is, we have an innate knowledge of the testing process – let’s face it, we’re PERFECT for the job! Please, please, please call the high school or the elementary school for which you have a geographical or professional preference and volunteer to help.
The Red Pencil 
Newsletter of Watauga County Retired School Personnel
Vol.XV, No.5 May 2013__________________________
May Meeting
When: Thursday, 16 May 2013
Where: Deerfield Methodist Church
How much: $10, check payable to Watauga County NCRSP
What: Annual presentation of scholarship
Memorial service
Please bring any food staples you wish, especially powdered milk, canned soups, and cereals. Bring the aluminum tabs from soda cans, pet food cans, and soup cans; they go to help the Ronald McDonald Houses. If you can manage it, include a bag of cat or dog food for our four-legged friends at the Humane Society.
If your caller has not contacted you by the 11th of May, call Margaret Sigmon at 264-2036 or email her at margaretsigmon@bellsouth.net. Please understand that an accurate accounting of our attendees is extremely important, since that is the number of people for whom George will cook. Callers make every effort to reach all the names on their lists, but you can help by responding to your caller or by notifying Margaret.
In a practice we began several years ago, we will have meals for sale for $5 after our meeting if we have enough food to do so. If you are having guests or eating alone for dinner or just love George’s wonderful food, place your order as you arrive or stay for a few moments after the meeting.
President’s Message
Our May meeting is almost upon us and I can't believe another year has passed! Is it possible that I may have missed a month or two?
I've resisted the urge to plant so far. We all know what happens in these mountains when we give in to the false hope of an "early" spring, but now I'm really ready to get my hands dirty.
When we think about NCRSP, our membership is our garden. We will not have the official list of the newly retired teachers by our next meeting, but if you know of colleagues who may be retiring soon or are already retired but not yet part of our unit, please consider reaching out to them yourself. We can send the letters and invitations, but it is often that personal contact from a friend that can make the difference.
As retirees, our experience and dedication afford us the ability and opportunity to give back to the community and to help each other along the way. That same experience can also tempt us into disappointment and disillusionment as we see the very foundation of the educational system we worked so hard to improve being undermined. At such times, I try to remember and adopt the attitude of Voltaire's Candide, who, after witnessing and experiencing almost insurmountable hardship, simply responded with "we must cultivate our garden.” Let’s all get our hands wonderfully dirty!
See you on the 16th!
RETIREMENT ALERT:
Every year some of our active colleagues become our retired colleagues and that’s when we’re pleased to encourage them to join us in NCRSP. If you know of folks who are retiring this year, please give their names to Barbara or Roland Moy, 264-8811, or Dot Barker, 264-3621, for a formal invitation and then issue a personal invitation for them to come to our August breakfast with you. Remember that their first meal with us is free.
The simple and best truth is that everyone in our organization is on the Membership Committee and we are the first line of recruitment.
Important Bits and Pieces:
Our memorial service in May will honor two members of our chapter who have died this year, Mary Graham and Helen Trexler.
Please remember to keep up with your volunteer hours. At a time when our membership and our mission are being challenged by the state legislature, explaining the value of our contributions to the community is more important than ever.
A special birthday notice: Lee Stroupe’s mother, Helen Holubek, is celebrating her 90th birthday on May 24. Perhaps you’d like to send a card to Helen Holubek, 326 Woodland Dr., Boone NC 28607.
For your calendar: As of right now, the 2013-2014 school year begins in Watauga County on Monday, August 19. Mark your calendar now and plan to attend our annual breakfast meeting at 9A on that date. Note that the school calendar is a matter of statewide debate at this time and the beginning of school may change. We will all be notified in plenty of time to make appropriate arrangements.
All the schools in Watauga County will need more proctors than ever this spring for end-of-course tests. If you can give three hours or so to a school near you in early June, please phone the school to see how you can help.
Don’t forget to make regular visits to our blogspot at http://wcrsp.blogspot.com/ for the latest local news about your NCRSP chapter, and go to www.ncae.org to sign up for daily political briefings about legislation that affects retired school personnel. Other helpful sites include www.ncrsp.org for our NC Retired School Personnel and www.ncga.state.nc.us/ for the NC General Assembly. To share news of our own unit activities and members, please get in touch with Nanci Tolbert Nance, ntn@skybest.com or 828.963-8892.
A small chuckle:
A silver-haired lady called her neighbor and said, “Please come over here and help me. I have a killer jigsaw puzzle and I can’t figure out how to get started.”
The neighbor asked, “What is it supposed to be when it’s finished?”
“Well, according to the picture on the box, it’s a rooster.”
The neighbor arrived shortly and the little lady showed him where she had the puzzle spread all over the table. He studied it carefully for a few moments, looked at the box, and said, “First, no matter what we do, we’re not going to be able to assemble these pieces into anything that looks like a rooster. Second, I want you to relax. Let’s have a nice cup of tea.
“And then,” he said with a deep sigh ……
“We’ll put all the corn flakes back in the box
