Supporters toured the new Loaves & Fishes Pantry Friday, Jan. 28. (David Boraks/DavidsonNews.net)

The Loaves & Fishes Pantry at Ada Jenkins Center on Davidson’s West Side has new and bigger home this week, which supporters say will help it serve an exploding population of people in need. In a ceremony Friday, Jan. 28, more than 100 supporters and volunteers dedicated a new $300,000 pantry on the other side of the building that expands both its space and services.
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David Farlow (left), 14, Carson Talbert (center), 16, and Cole Van, 14, at Community School of Davidson alternative gift fair 12/10/10. They were at a both supporting the public library fund-raising campaign. (Karen Cimino Wilson photo)

Rather than buying another Christmas sweater or a knick-knack that collects dust on a shelf, Community School of Davidson’s ninth graders are hoping shoppers looking for the perfect holiday gifts will stop by the high school on Armour Street today (Friday) for the school’s first alternative gift fair.

Students have spent weeks preparing for the fair, which is modeled after a similar event at Davidson College. Participants will have an opportunity to learn about eight local charitable organizations and give donations to the organizations in lieu of a traditional holiday gift. Read the full story

Davidson Cornelius Day Care Center becomes Davidson Cornelius Child Development Center; state rating and finances begin to rebound, thanks in part to community support

By MICHELE MILLER HOUCK
DavidsonNews.net

On Aug. 21, 2009, Davidson Cornelius Day Care Center announced it needed to raise $64,000 in three weeks to keep its doors open through the end of that year. Now a little more than a year after that near-death experience, board members are looking to the future with cautious optimism and giving thanks for an outpouring of community support that has included donations of more than $180,000.

A fund-raising letter that went out on Monday cited some of the milestones over the past year and highlighted the center’s recent accomplishments. It also brought news that the center – on Gamble Street on Davidson’s West Side – is adopting a new name, Davidson Cornelius Child Development Center. Read the full story

The 3rd annual North Mecklenburg Senior Center Hawaiian Luau fund-raiser will be Wednesday Aug. 18 from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the Senior Center, at The River Church, 18731 W. Catawba Ave. Cornelius. The luau is open to the public and includes food, games, entertainment, a bake sale and a silent auction. Read the full story

The United Way of Central Carolinas’ board of directors on Tuesday approved the 2010-2011 funding recommendations of United Way’s volunteer-led Community Investment Councils, including $981,000 in aid for nonprofits in the Mooresville/Lake Norman Area – an increase of about 9 percent.

Local agencies that got funding include Davidson’s Ada Jenkins Center, the local office of United Family Services, and Our Towns Habitat for Humanity. (Full list below.) Read the full story

Davidson-Cornelius Day Care on Tuesday withdrew its request for a $300,000 line of credit from the Town of Davidson, saying it recognizes that the town faces a tight budget and must honor other funding commitments. The financially-troubled center, on Gamble Street on Davidson’s West Side, told Town Board members at a work session Tuesday night that it is lining up the financing it needs from a local community bank. Read the full story

Davidson’s public library branch has apparently avoided an imminent shutdown because of county budget problems, but the Cornelius branch will close as soon as April 3 because of massive budget cuts by Mecklenburg County. The Charlotte Mecklenburg Library board of trustees approved 148 layoffs at a meeting in Charlotte Thursday afternoon, and those layoffs triggered the branch closings. Read the full story

By MICHELE MILLER HOUCK
DavidsonNews.net

The Town of Davidson is considering a request from the financially troubled Davidson Cornelius Day Care for a $300,000 letter of credit to cover back withholding taxes and operating expenses. Read the full story