Western Branch Scouts get ready for bird count

“How do you help a sick bird? You tweet it!” Pack 212 Cub Scouts laughed at the joke as they studied birds in our area. They learned, for example, the difference between a grackle, blackbird and a crow, and that “the crow is the smartest bird in the USA.” The cubs were at their Jan. 26 meeting at the Aldersgate Campus of New Creation United Methodist on Taylor Road. They looked at slides and listened to birdcalls in a presentation by the National Audubon Society. The boys mimicked each call: when the presenter sang the Carolina Chickadee’s song, the boys started “chick-a-dee-dee-dee-ing,” making the room sound like a rookery. This was in preparation for the Great Backyard Bird Count. Birders young and old, experienced and not, will participate in counting, recording and reporting what they can witness in at least 15 minutes, or more, for this 15th annual event Feb. 17-20. Cornell University’s Lab of Ornithology processed information from 92,000 reports filed online in last year’s effort. To earn points toward a World Conservation Badge for Boy Scouts, Pack 212’s cubs will hold their bird watch at the Hoffler Creek Wildlife Preserve on Feb. 18, the perfect place. But it can be done anywhere, at the beach, in the backyard, wherever birds are in the United States and Canada. You can do it, too, as a “citizen scientist.” Check out www.birdcount.org.        

Another new church is in town. This one is so new it doesn’t have a permanent home yet. But its temporary home sure is a lot of fun. Bethel Church Chesapeake is worshipping at the Cinemark 12 movies at Chesapeake Square. Parishioner Carol Hood says attendees get refreshments – a cup of coffee and a treat – but, “alas, no popcorn!” It is a site-church, an offshoot of a larger charismatic church in Hampton. Many people in our community like Carol, who lives in Forest Hills, were attending the Peninsula church. Worship was made more convenient for them when the Chesapeake site was established last October. The congregation first gathered in the old Cinemark 10, then transferred to Cinemark 12 when it opened in December. Everyone likes the new location, especially the men, who are enjoying the comfortable theatre seats. Sunday services are at 9:30 a.m.; groups for leadership, young adults, Bible study, couples, and grief recovery meet in local homes. For details about Bethel Church Chesapeake, contact pastor Kelvin Evans at kelvinevans@mac.com, or 508-9014.   

Jessica was a worrier. She worried about monsters, going to the dentist and getting a haircut. And she really worried about reading out loud in front of others. This was the story, “Hooray for Reading Day,” that reading specialist Mrs. Vick read to children in the Chittum Elementary library after a PTA meeting Jan. 24. The kids had come in their pajamas to hear stories read by teachers, librarians and principals in honor of National Reading Month. Teachers wore pajamas, too. I saw one walking down the hall in her jammies with a stuffed animal under each arm. In an elegant black robe, Mrs. Vick suggested to the kids listening to her story that, if they are afraid to read aloud before a group, practice first on their stuffed animals or family pet. Jessica practiced on Wiggles the dog, who was a very good listener. After the story time, everyone enjoyed milk and cookies. Then it was bedtime.

Tell me your stories at lindalamm@cox.net, 483-9055.

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