🌱 Hollins Fire Volunteers Being Investigated + No New Hep A Cases

Morning, everybody! It's Saturday and I hope everyone had a good week. Let's take a look at what's going on around the 'noke.

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First, today's weather:

Mostly sunny and pleasant.

High: 82 Low: 63.

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Here are the top five stories in Roanoke today:

1. The Hollins Fire and Rescue Volunteer Squad based out of Station No. 5 on Barrens Road have all been suspended pending an investigation into the squad's operations and funds. No charges have been filed yet, but Roanoke County Police and Roanoke County's Internal Auditor are investigating unspecified complaints. "There will be no disruption in the delivery of fire and rescue services to the Hollins area,” Amy Whittaker, a public information officer with the county said. The station has a staff of career fire professionals and the suspensions only effect the volunteer portion of the squad. (WDBJ)
2. A Botetourt County man, Jerry Lee Orange, 45, has been charged with abduction, stalking, simple assault and sexual assault, the Botetourt County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. Orange allegedly attacked a mail carrier on August 2 and is being held in the Botetourt-Craig Regional Jail pending the investigation results. Orange has been charged with and pled guilty to assault before and had been on supervised probation after being released from a seven-month sentence in relation to the assault of police officer in 2018. Details of the assault on the mail carrier have not been released. (Roanoke Times)
3. An award-winning author and historian, Sheree Scarborough, will be giving a speech on August 24 in conjunction with A New Look at Link: His Life and Legacy, an exhibit of seldom seen photographs of O. Winston Link at Downtown Roanoke's Link Museum on Shenandoah Avenue. Scarborough is the author of “African American Railroad Workers of Roanoke: Oral Histories of the Norfolk & Western,” a work in which she conducted numerous interviews with Norfolk & Western Railway workers to gain a picture of life from segregation to a more diverse workforce. Doors open at 6:15 p.m. and her speech begins at 7 p.m. (Historical Society of Western Virginia Press Release.)
4. “Love With Skin On” is a Roanoke-based organization whose motto is "Be Love, Do stuff" and is centered on doing simple acts of kindness in the community to demonstrate God's immense, no strings attached love. Founded by former pastor Debra Ferrell, the mission of the organization is to put kindness in action. "People tend to do a lot of talking, and I feel we need to put our hands and our feet to that and do stuff. My whole philosophy is there’s always a way you can be kind to somebody. There is always someone who could use a little kindness. Kindness is compassion in action," said Ferrell. Ferrell regularly enlists the help of her grandkids and they do projects such as placing encouraging yard signs in peoples' yards, painting unique rocks and placing them in rock gardens, and celebrating National Rubber Ducky Day by handing out rubber ducks around town. (WSLS, Love With Skin On)
5. The Roanoke City and Allegheny District health department has not received any new Hep A case reports from any restaurants in several weeks now, but some local area restaurants are taking precautions anyways. Mac and Bob’s on Main St. in Salem vaccinated its employees for Hep A at a clinic held Thursday morning and will offer another clinic next week for employees who were not available for the first one. "I’ve been doing this 42 years, and a lot of things have happened to our business over the years. We’ve had a class action suit, we’ve had a fire, we’ve had a pandemic, so these things actually happen and we’re trying to be proactive," said Bob Rotanz, the Bob in Mac and Bob's. The restaurant has not been the site of any Hep A reports or outbreaks. (WDBJ)

Today in Roanoke:

• American Legion 5k & Craft Show at Salem Memorial Ballpark (8 a.m.)
• A Space to Move Through: Yoga for Grief at Evergreen Burial Park (9 a.m.)
• Artisan Saturday at Explore Park (10 a.m.)
• Harvest Tours at Virginia Mountain Vineyards (1 p.m.)
• Brew at the Zoo at Mill Mountain Zoo (5:30 p.m.)
• JJ Grey & Mofro at Dr. Pepper Park (6 p.m.)
• Jefferson Center Presents: Maria Bamford (8 p.m.)
• Epic ’80s Party presented by Out of Spite at Schooners (9:30 p.m.)

From my notebook:

• Roanoke College: "The Roanoke College men's soccer team is in Spain this week for pre-season play. They will compete in three matches, tour cultural sites as well as attend FC Barcelona's opening match for the 2022-2023 La Liga season. GO MAROONS!" (Roanoke College via Instagram)
• Roanoke County Public Schools: "We had a great start to the 2022-2023 school year this morning! We're thrilled to welcome our newest students and welcome back our returning students. We're especially proud to welcome the Class of 2023 for their senior year!" (Roanoke County Public Schools via Facebook)
• Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center of Roanoke: "Intern Stephanie (Cornell University) expertly handled this Snapping Turtle who was admitted from the Roanoke River after a brave rescuer noticed that it had fishing gear stuck in his mouth. The turtle also had an older shell fracture." (Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center of Roanoke via Facebook)
• Roanoke Valley SPCA: "A huge shout out to our friends at the Regional Center for Animal Care & Protection. As you know, most dogs that arrive at a shelter are not the most trusting of humans, so when they escape their collar, it's especially challenging to ge..." (Roanoke Valley SPCA via Facebook)
• Roanoke County Police Department: "Today our SWAT team trained at multiple locations. Our SWAT team is constantly training to keep their tactics up to date to protect our community in some of the most vulnerable times. Interested in being a future SWAT member? Give us a call." (Roanoke County Police Department via Facebook)
• Roanoke Outside: "The Harvest Tour is Sunday. It’s a 39-mile road cycling adventure through Botetourt County that stops at six different farms and ends with wine and a three course meal at @stoneybrookvineyards." (Roanoke Outside via Instagram)

Alrighty. There you have it. You're officially in the loop for today! I'll see you tomorrow.

— Ian

About me: Ian Graham is a novelist, screenwriter, and freelance contributing writer. His interests are in politics, history, and religion and the stories and characters he writes about are centered on the explosive conflicts created when the three intersect. He is a firm believer in being yourself… unless you can be Batman. Always be Batman.

Have a news tip or suggestion for an upcoming Roanoke Daily? Contact me at roanoke@patch.com