Attention Middle School Students and Parents – Come out on Tuesday, April 17th for NMS School Info Night. Access will cover the early college awareness program and SOL preparation from teachers. Dinner will be served. A $100 VA 529 Scholarship drawing will take place. See you there.
Riverside Shore Nurse Earns DAISY Recognition for Outstanding Care
Onancock, Va –New mom, Maggie Thompson, was “scared, disappointed and tired” when she found out that she would need an emergency c-section after spending 30 hours trying to deliver her baby. But the potentially stressful situation was instead positive and uplifting due to the skillful and compassionate care from Riverside Shore Memorial Hospital (RSMH) nurse Leslie Escalante, RN.
“I was so lucky to have Leslie on what was one of the scariest nights of my life,” said Thompson, who praised Escalante’s calm manner while addressing any concerns she had and answering “question after question from me, my husband and my family.”
Escalante’s concern for her patient didn’t stop there. She made sure that Thompson’s wishes after delivery were taken care of as well. “She earned my trust and never let me down.”
This dedication to patient care has earned Escalante RSMH’s second DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses, which was created by the National DAISY Foundation to recognize “outstanding clinical skill, personal acts of kindness and compassion to patients and families.” The first ever DAISY Award given out at RSMH went to nurse Lee Johnson in the ICU at the end of 2017.
“I was speechless when I learned of the nomination and award. For patients and family to take the time to write a nomination and show up for the award presentation meant so much,” said Escalante, who has been with RSMH in its Mother/Baby Unit for nearly a year. “As a nurse you know you’re making a difference, but this has shown me just how much of an impact we can make on our patient’s lives.”
“We chose to recognize Leslie’s patient care because it perfectly illustrates how excellent nursing takes care of both the clinical and emotional needs of the patient, said Deborah Brown, MBA, BSN, Nurse Executive at RSMH. “A personal connection from a nurse can make a huge and lasting impact on the lives of our patients and their families.”
While the award recognizes extraordinary nursing, Escalante insists it’s all in a day’s work. “I just did what I always do. I treat patients the way I would want to be treated,” she said.
As a DAISY recipient, Escalante received special recognition at the hospital. Along with cinnamon rolls, which are a DAISY Foundation tradition, she received a special hand-carved “Healer’s Touch” stone sculpture.
First Lady of Virginia Pamela Northam Keynote Speaker for Environmental Symposium
VIRGINIA BEACH — A press release by Chuck Payne, environmental planner for the city said Virginia Beach will host a conference of regional environmental organizations.
In affiliation with the Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuary Partnership, Virginia Institute of Marine Science and The Nature Conservancy, and the City of Virginia Beach will host the “2018 North Landing River/Albemarle Sound Estuarine Symposium” on April 19 at the Virginia Beach Convention Center.
Keynote speakers at the event include First Lady of Virginia Pamela Northam and Virginia Secretary of Natural Resources Matthew Strickler.
The symposium aims to identify, protect, and restore the resources of the North Landing River in Virginia Beach and the Albemarle Sound in Northeastern North Carolina.
The one-day event is designed to cultivate stakeholder collaboration, while providing awareness to identifying, protecting, and restoring the significant resources of the North Landing River/Albemarle Sound.
Afternoon panel discussions, networking opportunities and poster sessions are also planned, according to a news release.
History Notes this week of April 8th
1093: Dedication of Winchester Cathedral, the nominal home of King Arthur’s roundtable.
1388: An army of Swiss soldiers, outnumbered 16:1, defeats a Hapsburg army of over 6,500 in the Battle of Nafels, a rout by about 400 armed citizens of the cantonment of Glarus and a handful of knights from other parts of Swiss Confederation. The battle was the final act in the long-running conflict between the ever-expansionist Hapsburg Empire and the farmers and shopkeepers of the central Alps. After this battle, the Swiss kept their independence.
1413: After five years of increasingly bitter fighting with the Welsh, the 27-year-old Henry of Monmouth is crowned King Henry V of England on the death of his father, Henry IV. The young king almost immediately turned his attention to regaining historic landholdings in France against the Valois dynasty.
1521: Continuing his exploration of the Philippine archipelago, Ferdinand Magellan lands on the island of Cebu. You can guess what’s coming in the next two weeks.
1570: Birth of Guy Fawkes, a key figure of the famous Gunpowder Plot to destroy Parliament in 1605.
1585: Departure from England of a five-ship fleet, organized and funded by Sir Walter Raleigh, to create a permanent English colony in the New World. The group eventually landed and set up camp on the shores of Roanoke Island on North Carolina’s Albemarle Sound. The settlement maintained a tenuous toehold on the land; between conflict with the local Indian tribes, and lack of a viable means to sustain their need for food, the success of the enterprise was dubious. Raleigh commissioned John White two years later to go back to Roanoke with a small fleet for re-supply and reinforcement, including 115 more colonists. When they arrived they found no one except a bleached out skeleton. White stayed long enough to help the new group get re-established, and promised to return with more supplies the following Spring. Multiple delays- war, piracy, hurricanes slowed progress until he stepped ashore in August of 1590. Not a trace of the new colony could be found. The only clue was the word “CROATOAN” carved into a tree, and the letters “CRO-” in another. Thus named, The Lost Colony of the Outer Banks. After the English colonies took hold along the coast, there were for years reports of “blue-eyed” Indians who inhabited the tidewater regions of North Carolina and Virginia, provoking theories about the fate of the Lost Colony.
1606: King James I grants a royal charter to the Virginia Company of London, a joint stock company that will finance British colonization of North America north of Cape Fear (think Roanoke Colony) and south of Plymouth
1730: Dedication of Shearith Israel- the first synagogue in NYC.
1778: Commanding his brig USS Ranger, Captain John Paul Jones departs Brest, France on a raiding mission against British interests in the Irish Sea. It is the first offensive naval action of the American Revolution, and the attacks take the British completely by surprise. In a particularly daring raid into his native Scotland, Jones sails into Kirkcudbright Bay with a view to abduct the Earl of Selkirk and hold him hostage for the release of American sailors held by the British. The earl is not at home but the crew takes the liberty to steal his silver, including his wife’s teapot, still warm and full of her morning tea. The raids continue for several more weeks, and after capturing HMS Duke, Jones returns to Brest where he will seek a larger ship and make plans for more raids as the year progresses. [Read more…]
The Opiates Crisis: Medical and Law Enforcement Perspectives
Science and Philosophy Seminar of the Eastern Shore of Virginia has scheduled its next seminar, “The Opiates Crisis: Medical and Law Enforcement Perspectives”. The free 90-minute seminar will be at 12:30 p.m. on Friday, Apr 13 in the Lecture Hall of the Eastern Shore Community College, 29300 Lankford Hwy, Melfa, VA 23410.
Virginia State Police Investigator Senior Special Agent Charles Misuna and Dr. Frances Williams, MD will discuss opiate and substance abuse from medical and law enforcement viewpoints, and their efforts to combat the problem.
Williams employs her years of experience treating pain as a hospice medical director to understand the use and abuse of opiates.
Misuna has spent the last ten years of a long career investigating drug diversion and pharmaceutical cases.
History Notes detailed: Lee’s Surrender at Appomattox
After a week-long retreat up the Appomattox River from Petersburg, a lengthy and hard engagement with Union forces at Saylor Creek, Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia was surrounded by the Union army. On April 8th, Robert E. Lee agrees to surrender the Army of Northern Virginia to Lieutenant General U.S. Grant. In the week leading up to their meeting this day, the two generals exchanged notes that reflect the grace of both men. Their first notes follow:
April 9th 1865:
“… then there is nothing left me but to go and see General Grant, and I would rather die a thousand deaths…”
–Robert E. Lee, April 9, 1865
Grant to Lee:
“General R.E. Lee, Commanding C.S.A.:
5 P.M., April 7th, 1865.
The results of the last week must convince you of the hopelessness of further resistance on the part of the Army of Northern Virginia in this struggle. I feel that it is so, and regard it as my duty to shift from myself the responsibility of any further effusion of blood by asking of you the surrender of that portion of the Confederate States army known as the Army of Northern Virginia.
U.S.Grant, Lieutenant-General”
The note was carried through the Confederate lines and Lee promptly responded:
Lee to Grant:
“April 7th, 1865.
General: I have received your note of this date. Though not entertaining the opinion you express of the hopelessness of further resistance on the part of the Army of Northern Virginia, I reciprocate your desire to avoid useless effusion of blood, and therefore, before considering your proposition, ask the terms you will offer on condition of its surrender.
R.E. Lee, General.”
Lee finally made the decision to stop the fighting and asked to meet General Grant face to face.
Lee dressed for the meeting in his best dress uniform, including a ceremonial sword he only wore when making formal rounds in Richmond. He was accompanied to the meeting by Generals Longstreet and Gordon. Grant was on his horse riding up from Farmville when he received Lee’s final note regarding place and time for their meeting, two o’clock in the afternoon at the MeLean house in Appomattox. Grant spurred his horse and galloped the final four miles, arriving mud-spattered and winded. He apologized for his appearance and after a few minutes of remembrances about their days in the Mexican campaign they began to discuss terms. Grant acknowledged he knew that the Confederate’s rations were low (they had, in fact, had nothing to eat for five days, and the Federals had captured their supply train) and offered assistance; Lee responded with a request for 25,000 rations for his men. As they continued to talk Lee halted the conversation and asked Grant to write it out:
————————
Surrender Terms at Appomattox, 1865
General R.E. Lee,
Commanding C.S.A.
APPOMATTOX Ct H., Va.,
April 9,1865,
General; In accordance with the substance of my letter to you of the 8th inst., I propose to receive the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia on the following terms, to wit: Rolls of all officers and men to be made in duplicate, one copy to be given to an officer to be designated by me, the other to be retained by such officer or officers as you may designate. The officers to give their individual paroles not to take up arms against the Government of the United States until properly [exchanged], and each company or regimental commander to sign a like parole for the men of their commands. The arms, artillery, and public property to be parked, and stacked, and turned over to the officers appointed by me to receive them. This will not embrace the side-arms of the officers, nor their private horses or baggage. This done, each officer and man will be allowed to return to his home, not to be disturbed by the United States authorities so long as they observe their paroles, and the laws in force where they may reside.
Very respectfully,
U.S. Grant,
Lieutenant-General
Lee then noted that the horses used in his army were the personal property of the men and they would be much needed to put in crops as they went home. Grant immediately agreed that the horses could go with the men and Lee noted that this would help ease the transition.
The meeting at Appomattox ended four years of war — over 360,000 Union soldiers died, over 260,000 Confederates. The war accounted for more American combat deaths than in all our other wars combined.
These notes come from the website, “Surrender at Appomattox, 1865,” Eye Witness to History, www.eyewitnesstohistory.com (1997).
Sen. Tim Kaine Discusses Offshore Drilling Concerns
WACHAPREAGUE, Va.- U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine invited local businesses and community leaders to Wachapreague on Monday morning to start a conversation about the Trump Administration’s proposal to open up Virginia’s waters to offshore oil and gas drilling.
Leaders and officials gather around the table discussing their concerns, focusing on the effect an oil spill could have on the Eastern Shore’s economy.
Since tourism is such a big factor in nearly all aspects of Virginia’s economy, officials from Wallops Island, Chincoteague, and Assateague all opposed the drilling.
“Five thousand families who are in the fishing industry, aquaculture, have weighed in against it,” Kaine added.
2.5 million cubic yards of material to be dredged near mouth of the Bay
A press release from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says that 2.5 million cubic yards of mud, silt, sand and other material will be dredged from the Cape Henry Channel at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay near Norfolk. This channel leads into the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. The approach is critical for shipping lines to reach the port of Baltimore.
Great Locks Dredge and Dock, based in Oak Brook, Ill., was awarded a $14.5 million contract to dredge the channel to a depth of 51 feet, plus another foot of “overdepth” — an allowance to account for unanticipated variations in the bottom surface.
The Baltimore District Commander for the Corps of Engineers will oversee the dredging.
The project, which will conclude by the fall, is part of regular maintenance to allow the port of Baltimore to continue to accommodate massive vessels carrying cars, containers and other cargo.
The dredged material is being placed at the nearby Dam Neck Ocean Dredge Material Disposal Site.
Gov. Ralph Northam vetoes bill banning sanctuary cities
RICHMOND, Va. – Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, D, vetoed a bill Monday that would have prohibited the establishment of sanctuary cities, an issue that dominated his race for governor last year.
The bill was a single sentence: “No locality shall adopt any ordinance, procedure, or policy that restricts the enforcement of federal immigration laws.”
Northam suggested the legislation would require Virginia cities and towns to shoulder the burden of enforcing federal immigration law, either by deputizing local police or by holding undocumented inmates in local lockups. He called the measure “unnecessary and divisive.”
“This legislation would force local law enforcement agencies to use precious resources to perform functions that are the responsibility of federal immigration enforcement agencies,” Northam wrote in a statement accompanying the veto. “It also sends a chilling message to communities across Virginia that could have negative impacts on public safety.”
Del. Ben Cline, R-Rockbridge, who sponsored the bill, said the measure was intended only to ban localities from interfering federal immigration actions, not press them into service.
“Ensuring that Virginia localities abide by federal immigration laws is a matter of public safety and upholding the rule of law, ” Cline said. “Governor Northam’s veto of my bill to ban sanctuary cities in Virginia is indefensible.”
The General Assembly will have a chance to override Northam’s veto when it reconvenes for its “veto session” April 18. But it is unlikely to do so because the measure passed both chambers narrowly.
Watch for Whales off of Shore, Virginia Beach
New Voluntary Slow Speed Zone to Protect Right Whales
NOAA Fisheries announces that the voluntary vessel speed restriction zone (Dynamic Management Area or DMA) has been established to protect a group of five right whales sighted 69 nautical miles northeast of Virginia Beach on April 10.
Mariners are requested to route around this area or transit through it at 10 knots or less.
VOLUNTARY DYNAMIC MANAGEMENT AREAS (DMAs)
Mariners are requested to avoid or transit at 10 knots or less inside the following areas where persistent aggregations of right whales have been sighted. Find out more about ship strike reduction efforts.
Northeast of Virginia Beach, VA — In effect through April 24.
37 41 N
36 58 N
075 06 W
074 13 W
ACTIVE SEASONAL MANAGEMENT AREAS (SMAs)
Mandatory speed restrictions of 10 knots or less (50 CFR 224.105) are in effect in the following areas:
Cape Cod Bay SMA in effect through May 15, 2018
Block Island SMA in effect through April 30, 2018
New York, Philadelphia and Norfolk SMA kn effect through April 30, 2018
Right Whales in Crisis
The year 2017 was devastating for North Atlantic right whales, which suffered a loss of 17 whales–about 4 percent of their population–an alarming number for such a critically endangered species with a population currently estimated at about 450 animals.
In August 2017, NOAA Fisheries declared the increase in right whale mortalities an “Unusual Mortality Event,” which helps the agency direct additional scientific and financial resources to investigating, understanding, and reducing the mortalities in partnership with the Marine Mammal Stranding Network, Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans, and outside experts from the scientific research community.
On January 22, the first right whale mortality of 2018 was spotted off the Virginia coast.
More Info:
Recent right whale sightings
Download the Whale Alert app for iPad and iPhone
Acoustic detections in Cape Cod Bay and the Boston TSS
Send a blank message to receive a return email listing all current U.S. DMAs and SMAs.
Details and graphics of all ship strike management zones currently in effect.
Reminder: Approaching a right whale closer than 500 yards in a violation of federal and state law.
Please report all right whale sightings to 866-755-NOAA (6622).
Questions? Contact Jennifer Goebel, Regional Office, at 978-281-9175
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