GEM will hold the following programs in February and early March:

Monday, Feb. 6, 2:30 p.m., Living With Heart Failure. To register call Albemarle Health at 252-334-4157.

Tuesday, Feb. 7, Questions about Preventing Memory Loss, 1 p.m., Baum Center, 2 p.m., Dare County Center.

Wednesday, Feb. 8, Snacking with a Specialist and confusion, Dr. Mullen, 3 p.m., Bau Center.

Tuesday, Feb. 14, Learning and Enrichment, 2 p.m., Jockey’s Ridge, will include walk and craft with ranger Jennifer Cox.

Wednesday, Feb. 15, SUP+PER Club, dinner, craft music, UUCOB in Kitty Hawk, 3-6 p.m.

Tuesday, Feb. 21, Scam Jam, Noon to 3 p.m., Currituck Senior Center, lunch included. For information call Diane Bray, director.

Thursday, March 2, Program With a Purpose, Dare County Center, 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Outer Banks Hospital will offer heart screenings in the lobby every Thursday in February, 2, 9, 16, 23, 8-10 a.m.

Tests included will be total cholesterol (HDL, LDL, triglycerides), blood pressure, glucose, body mass index. Karla Coughenour, regisstered dietitio, will interpret the results and provide counseling. No appointment is necessary.

The kick-off for Dare County’s Relay for Life will be held Saturday, Jan. 28, 1-5 p.m., at  Kitty Hawk United Methodist Church. For information contact: Katie Pendry 202-1232 katiependry@gmail.com.

Included in the event will be a dessert tasting contest. Have a member from your team create a dessert to bring to the event, there will be a guest pastry chef their to judge all desserts. The team with the best dessert will win. Make sure to label your dessertw with what kind it is and team name. Awards will be given from last year’s progress, there will be live music, a guest survivor or speaker, a slide show from last year’s relay and more. There will also be barbecue, fried chicken and sides. (Courtesy www.obxCommonGood.org)

A sushi rolling class will be held at The Dare County Center Thursday, Jan. 26, 6 p.m.

The cost is $10. If you are interested, sign up at the front office. At least eight people must be interested.

If you are 55 or older and need assistance filing your taxes, call The Dare County Center at 475-9271 for available appointment dates.

You will need to bring the following items to your appointment: picture ID, Social Security card or taxpayer Id, all w-3s, 1099s and 1098s and last year’s tax return.

“50 and Footloose,” a semi-formal dance for those 50 and older, will be held at The Dare County Center Friday, Feb. 24, 7-10 p.m.

The cost is $8 per person to go towards refreshments and the entertainment, DJ Harvey. Sign up at the center.

HERE’S A GOOD IDEA ! Now that I know it is the law,- I will do it for sure.

Any time you call an 800 number (for a credit card, banking, charter communications, health and other insurance, computer help desk, etc) and you find that you’re talking to a foreign customer service representative (perhaps in India, Philippines, etc), please consider doing the following: After you connect and you realize that the customer service repesentative is not from the USA (you can always ask if you are not sure about the accent), please, very politely (this is not about trashing other cultures) just say, “I’d like to speak to a customer service representative in the United States of America .” The rep might suggests talking to his/her manager, but, again, politely say, “Thank you, but I’d like to speak to a customer service representative in the USA .” You will be immediately connected to a representative in the U.S.A.

That’s the rule and the LAW. It takes less than one minute to have your call re-directed to the USA . Tonight when I got redirected to a USA rep, I asked again to make sure – and yes, she was from Fort Lauderdale . Imagine what would happen if every U.S. citizen insisted on talking to only U.S. phone reps from this day on. Consider how that would ultimately impact the amount of U.S. jobs that would need to be created ASAP.

If I tell 10 people to consider this and you tell 10 people to consider doing this, it becomes an exercise in viral marketing 101. Remember – the goal here is to restore jobs back here at home – not to be abrupt or rude to a foreign phone rep. You may even get correct answers, good advice, and solutions to your problem – in real English. If you agree, please tell 10 people you know, and ask them to tell 10 people they know. (Courtesy Shirley Venente)

Dare County transportation has added Greenville to its service as an out of county destination.

Service to Greenville will available on the second and fourth Wednesday of the month. The trips are for medical purposes only and must be scheduled at least two days in advance by calling Dare County transportation. Appointments are preferred further in advance to ensure availability. Passengers will be picked up at their home and can be taken to any medical facility in Greenville. A fare in the amount of $14 will cover the cost of the round trip. For further information please call 252-475-5640.