Getting there will require community-wide commitment to help win new customers, officials say

By DAVID BORAKS
DavidsonNews.net

MOORESVILLE – Could the money-losing MI-Connection Communications System swing from red ink to black in just 12 months? MI-Connection officials think it can be done, with a revved-up marketing campaign that sends town commissioners on sales pitches to community groups and businesses, and enlists citizens to refer new customers in exchange for cash rewards or donations to their favorite charities.

That’s the gist of a new community-focused marketing campaign that MI-Connection officials presented Monday night during an unusual 90-minute joint meeting between the system’s board of directors and the town boards of Davidson and Mooresville, which own the area cable and internet system.
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Davidson’s “Pave the Way to Save the Library” campaign has raised $40,000 as of Monday, Aug. 16, toward its $175,000 goal. The money is needed to keep the branch on the Village Green open for the coming year amid big county budget cuts.
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CORNELIUS – Our Towns Habitat for Humanity ReStore has signed a lease for its second ReStore in the Lake Norman Area, at the former Staples on Highway 150, off I-77 Exit 36. The store is expected to open in October, and the Cornelius location will also remain open.
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A group of paddlers is traveling from the river’s headwaters to Blythe Landing in Cornelius, where they’ll celebrate Friday.

By LUKAS JOHNSON
The Charlotte Observer

A small group of friends of the Catawba River are in the midst of a weeklong kayak trip to raise awareness for the Catawba River.

The nonprofit foundation American Rivers in 2008 designated the Catawba as “the most endangered river in the United States,” adding, “the Catawba is not currently the most-polluted river in the United States, but is most threatened by current trends of development and poor water management.”

Development along the river and its lakes creates “more sediment runoff, more stormwater runoff and more sewage,” the organization said. Read the full story

Library Task Force chair Randy Kincaid (right) speaks during the meeting. With him, from left: Kim Fleming, Leland Park, Pamela Mahony, and Mayor John Woods. (David Boraks/DavidsonNews.net)

By DAVID BORAKS
DavidsonNews.net

Davidson’s “Pave the Way to Save the Library” campaign is off to a quick start as contributions in the first week came in just under $20,000. The total includes $12,000 in gifts from more than 500 people at an Aug. 3 open house at the Davidson branch on the Village Green.

That report came at Monday’s meeting of the Davidson Library Task Force, Read the full story

Dozens of jugglers from throughout the Southeast will converge on Davidson the weekend of Sept. 3-5 for the 20th annual Hurricane Hugo Juggling Festival and its centerpiece event, the Vaudeville Extravaganza. For more on the event, including ticket information, go to the Guide, CLICK HERE>

Ilene Giangiordano reads with Brielle on the library porch Tuesday. They come at least once a week. (David Boraks/DavidsonNews.net)

Ilene Giangiordano of Davidson and her daughter Brielle, 4, are regulars at the Davidson public library branch. Their visit Tuesday was about more than reading – they were there to find out more about the $175,000 fund-raising campaign to keep the library open for the coming year amid big county budget cuts.

“It’s important for us to save the library. We come a lot,” said Ms. Giangiordano. They come about once a week to the branch, and also visit the Cornelius branch – often for children’s programs, which would be lost if the branches closed.

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Following is a letter being sent this week to local residents from the Davidson Library Committee.

Dear Davidson Residents:

The Davidson Public Library needs your help. Two decades ago, you may have been part of the community effort to build a new library for Davidson. Now we need your assistance in keeping it open.

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