Via: Andalusia Star News

Stitches are just in Louise Walker’s blood.

The former travel nurse is the owner of Pale Moon Yarns – Andalusia’s newest arts and crafts supply store.

Located across from the Andalusia Public Library, Walker has transformed the storefront into a rainbow-colored collection of fibers and a welcoming site for creativity.

“I’ve knitted and crocheted forever,” Walker said. “When my husband took the job teaching at the middle school, I had just been offered a director of nursing position in Iowa. I couldn’t do that to my family, and when we got to Andalusia, we fell in love.

“But there was no place to feed my hobby,” she said.

With the introduction of Pinterest and other crafting sites, the interest in crafting has exploded, and after realizing she had to travel outside the area to sites in Fairhope and Mobile to get her yarn supplies, Walker said she decided to capitalize on both the love of the hobby.

“The great thing about knitting and crocheting is that anyone can do it,” Walker said. “Once you get the basics down, your only limit is your imagination.”

Walker said she has made everything from socks and scarves to vests, hats and gloves.

“But not a lot of sweaters,” she said. “Those take too long, and I wouldn’t want to give them away.”

Inside the store, one will find all the necessary... READ MORE>

Rep. Martha Roby (R-Montgomery) said Congress has much work to be done in the weeks before the August break if it wants to avoid 11th hour budgeting.

Speaking to the Andalusia Rotary Club during Congress’s district work week break, Roby explained that if she and her colleagues don’t work through appropriations bills, Congress keeps government operating with a continuing resolution, which extends and existing budget, or with an omnibus bill that takes all appropriations together.

Budgets are comprised of mandatory spending programs, like Social Security and Medicare, and appropriation spending, she said. Two-thirds of the government’s expenses are for mandatory spending, she said.

Asked specifically if Congress could “defund” an agency or government official with which it wasn’t happy, Roby said it would be difficult because of the way that budgets have been handled in recent years.

“Technically, you could defund that line item, but then you would have to get it passed in the Senate,” she said. “It depends upon whether it is part of the omnibus or continuing resolution or the appropriations process.

“We can, but whether it ends up in what’s put in place at the 11th hour before the government shuts down, it probably is not a reality,” she said.

House members recently “marked up” a proposed reauthorization of the farm bill, she said.

“We defunded the ability that if you qualify for energy assistance, you are not automatically enrolled in food stamps,” she said. “You can still qualify, but it is a separate process. Because we did that, we saved billions of dollars.”

Most of the nutrition programs in the farm bill are mandatory spending, she said, and have nothing to do with farming.

When government is funded with an omnibus bill, she said, “it’s thousands of pages, who knows what’s in it, and it’s just a bad way to do business.”

Roby also:

• Was asked about efforts to secure a government contract for American Apparel, which was underbid by less than one percent recently for a government uniform contract, and subsequently laid off 225 workers in Opp. Roby said ethics rules prevent members of Congress from intervening in the process.

• Asked about gunrights, Roby said, “I am a gun owner and a strong supporter of the Second Amendment. ”

Reference the school shootings in Connecticut, she said, “When something like that happens, our instincts tell us to do something. Lawmakers think, ‘we need to go pass a law.’ It’s a reactionary thing.

“I don’t think we need any more laws. We need to deal with enforcing the laws we already have,” she said.

• As chairman of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, Roby said she recently sat through five hours of classified briefings on Benghazi.

“Because it is classified, there is only so much I can say,” she said. “But the investigation is ongoing, from the defense standpoint, dealing with the timeline and assets.

“I know that the American lives that were lost is of deep concern to those in this room,” she said. “You have my commitment to get to the bottom of it, and it is a huge responsibility.”

- Andalusia Star News

Andalusia’s Huhtamaki announced a $1.9 million expansion project Tuesday that will add 13 new employees to the payroll.

Known locally as the “box factory,” the former Paris Packaging plant employed 20 in 2001. It was acquired by the Huhtamaki Group, whose North America segment is a leading manufacturer of packaging for the foodservice industry and retail markets. Current employment has grown to 49, corporate officials said.

New machinery and equipment installed as part of the expansion will be used to promote continuous operation and growth by the company that manufactures folded cartons and related products and improvement of its flexographic printing capabilities.

Huhtamaki North America is a leading manufacturer of consumer goods packaging as well as tableware, cups, folding cartons, containers, carriers, trays and serviceware for the foodservice industry and retail markets. Its product portfolio includes Chinet®.

Rick Clifton, president and CEO of the Covington County Economic Development Commission, said the plant is a continuing example of how a public/private partnership can work for the benefit of all.

“Huhtamaki has shown its commitment to this plant and our community,” Clifton said. “We hope this is just the beginning and will lead to more expansion as business grows.”

Andalusia Mayor Earl Johnson said it was “more great news for Andalusia.”

“With Steven Dendy’s leadership and his staff’s hard work, experience, and dedication, Huhtamaki continues to excel,” Johnson said. “Andalusia is fortunate to have such a winner as Huhtamaki in our community and we look forward to its continued success.”

- Andalusia Star News

Do your children love Spiderman, Green Lantern, Batman, Iron Man, Superman or the like?

Next week’s comic art camp may be for them.

Andalusia native Kevin Stokes will take children on an adventure that will include a take-home art kit.

The camp, which is held in partnership with Covington County 4-H, will begin June 3 and end June 7, and will take place from noon until 4 p.m. each day at the Covington County Extension auditorium.

The camp is open for campers ages 9 to 19, and is open to a maximum of 25 students.

Cost is $30 and will include all art supplies, a take-home art kit, and art lessons from Stokes.

4-H will also provide a free lunch each day to participants.

Tanya Bales of Covington County 4-H said she’s been working to get Stokes to Andalusia for the past five years because his mother, Susan Stokes, worked with her at the extension office.

“I have been putting a bug into his mother’s ear for like five years,” she said. “I was so excited that it worked out. With his job, he is often here and there, wherever they need him.”

Stokes is a professional artist whose work is published with Dynamite Publishing.

His expertise is in the area of comic-style art although he has experience in other art styles including caricature portraits.

Stokes has worked with DC and Marvel comics and has worked on projects with Stan Lee.

His work has been featured in episodes of the TV series “Smallville,” which was based on the comic book story of Superman.

For more information or to register for this event, visit the Covington County Extension Office or contact Bales at 222-1125.

- Andalusia Star News