Elizabethton Star from Elizabethton, Tennessee • 3

Binge drinking proves deadly to more than one young adult DEAR ABBY: I'm writing regarding "Worried Mom" from Montana who is fright ened about her children drink ing "21 shots" on their 21st birthday She is rightfully con cerned about this so called "rite of passage" We lost our daughter Kim to binge drink 7j ing two years ago on Nov 25 She con sumed be tween 22 and 24 shots in a four hour peri od and died in her dorm room She was only 18 Did she know the danger she put herself in? No We now have a Web site that lists the signs of alcohol poisoning and what to do The URL is wwwkimsawarenessnet To lose a child over a sense less mistake causes pain that never goes away Young adults must realize that if they in dulge in any kind of binge drinking they could never see tomorrow MOTHER WHO'S BEEN THERE UP PER DARBY PA Beware! MINNESOTA MOM DEAR ABBY: I work on a military base Several months ago we heard the tragic news that a service member had died after "celebrating" his 21st birthday by drinking 21 shots It turned out to be his last birthday The cause of death was alcohol poisoning Despite all the warnings and lectures it still happened Please parents tell your children it is NOT "fine" It's deadly My heart goes out to the parents of that young man READER IN KNOB NOS TERMO DEAR ABBY: In my home town a man took his son to the local bowling alley on his 21st birthday and proceeded to buy him 21 shots of liquor Two hours later the "birthday boy" was dead and his father was in jail There's no way the human body can process that much al cohol in a few hours DOUG ROM SACRAMEN TO DEAR ABBY: If my daugh ter hadn't had a friend who Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren also known as Jeanne Phillips and was founded by her mother Pauline Phillips Write Dear Abby at wWwDearAbbycom or PO Box 69440 Los Angeles CA90069 DEAR ABBY: In Minnesota the practice is called "Power Hour" and theperson turning 21 tries to drink 21 shots be tween midnight and 1 amof his or her birthday We begged our son not to do it We told him the danger He too insist ed "It's fine!" At 1:30 am we got a phone call from the hos pital where he spent the next 12 hours on life support We were lucky Our son nearly died This foolish dangerous practice can lead to tragedy drinking Luckily I was able to get her to the ER on time Liter ally hundreds of kids die every year because of this A college Web site wwwcollegedrink ingpreventiongov address es this issue in a fact based peer run straight forward fo rum Let "Worried Mom" and other concerned parents know about it This is a plague among our children Knowing the facts is the only way to keep from dying THANK UL MOTHER VENTURA CALI brought her home to me she DE ABT MOTHERrTPleaseAvould have from Binge accept my deepest sympathy for your loss as well as my thanks for reaching out to warn parents and young adults about this practice If your letter saves even one life your effort will have been worth it After "Worried Mom's" letter appeared I was deluged with mail Read on: Weekend concerts at the Paramount Christmas with the Mantovani Chorus and Orchestra will i come to the Paramount Theatre in Bristol on riday Dec 2 with showtime at 8 pm Like Santa's workshop Maritovani's Christmas concerts are rich in their offerings big and dramatic festive and fun devo tional and humorous Tickets are $30 for adults and $27 for seniors and adults On Saturday Dec 3 Doyle Lawson Quicksilver will be in concert at 7 pm The group has another hit album with the re lease of "You Gotta Dig A Little Deeper" Those attending are reminded to bring one non perishable food item to be given to area food banks Receptacles will be placed in the lobby to collect items Tickets for the Doyle Lawson Quicksilver Concert are $20 Christmas parades Saturday in Mountain City Greeneville The town of Mountain City will have its annual Christmas parade this Saturday Dec 3 Those attending are invited to enjoy storytelling Santa and his elves plus many famous characters such as Pooh Tigger Mickey Minnie and many others at the Johnson County Welcome Center before and during the annual Christmas parade The parade will be held at 1 pm Also the Christmas parade in Greeneville will be held Sat urday at 2 pm 1 CLEARlOOm OUR LOWEST PRICE EVER! Welded rame Sash Non prorated Warranty Experience Professional Installation Property Improvement Management Group LLC 2005 Brookside Lane Kingsport TN 37660 DOUBLE PANE INSULATED GMSJANYsiaWHfflS DOUBLE HUNG WINDOW 185 CALL TODAY 423 247 5641 I UH STAR THURSDAY DECEMBER 2005 Page 3 LeConte Lodge closes for season IfeA Mt LeConte Inn MOUNT LECONTE (AP) month ago Henry Neel was serving with the 278th Regimental Combat Team of the Tennessee National Guard in Iraq Last week he reported for duty as the winter caretaker of LeConte Lodge a job that will find him spending the next four months virtually alone atop Mount LeConte the third highest peak in Great Smoky Mountains National Park It was dark on Tuesday when Neel who is 58 and lives in Jefferson City fi nally reached the lodge A winter storm had dumped almost a foot of snow over the mountains and the thermometer at LeConte Lodge elevation 6593 feet registered 16 degrees Of the 36 guests scheduled to arrive that night only 12 had made it up the mountain: It was the last night of LeConte Lodge's 2005 season and everyone was enjoying hot chocolate around the kerosene lamps when the door blew open and in walked Neel tall lanky and wearing an Army shirt beneath his fleece jacket "I just spent 11 months and four days in 120 degree heat" Neel said "I've been dreaming about weather like this but I didn't expect it this soon I thought I'd ease into it" While all the guests had reached LeConte Lodge by way of the 66 mile Rainbow alls Trail Neel had hiked up the Alum Cave Bluff Trail a shorter but more technical approach in icy weather Neel has worked as a crewmember at LeConte Lodge since 1996 He applied for the winter caretaker position in April while in Iraq running security for mili tary convoys east of Baghdad "I just want to be somewhere where I don't have to make life and death deci sions" Neel said "I wanted to come up here and take care of me for a while" Among the guests who had braved the snow were Jack and Debby McKe own a Canadian couple who now live in California Die hard adventure travel ers the McKeowns have climbed Mount Kilimanjaro trekked in Nepal and re cently spent two weeks in Iceland "This is colder than Iceland" Debby McKeown said "We had no idea the Smokies were this beautiful" It took Levon and Len Gassett of Meigs Ga a little more than seven hours to reach the lodge Although the couple had made numerous visits to LeConte Lodge this was their first time trudging through the wind and snow "You get your reservations months ahead you play the cards you're dealt with" Len said LeConte Lodge opens at the end of March and closes just before Thanksgiv ing The complex of seven cabins three lodges and a dining room constitute the highest resort east of the Mississippi River Located on the Tennessee side of the Smokies the lodge can accommo date about 50 guests a night and usually stays booked throughout the season This year about 12000 overnight guests and 12000 day hikers visited LeConte Lodge or 10 years Danny Strange an anes thesiologist from Cookeville and his wife Diane a registered nurse have been making reservations at LeConte Lodge for the final few days of the sea son "It's a special time when everything is winding down" Danny said "We al ways pray it will snow Today was spec tacular the best we've ever seen" That night after a supper of soup beef and gravy mashed potatoes green beans and spiced apples the guests re tired to their propane heated cabins to sleep under woolen blankets The next morning the official closing of the lodge for the 2005 season began The temperature was 8 degrees Hoar frost clung to the evergreens and the windows were coated with ice The air was so clear you could see all the way to Cumberland Gap Tim Line manager of LeConte Lodge oversaw the process of shutting off the gas breaking down the solar panels and draining the water lines Meanwhile back at the dining room a crewmember rang the breakfast bell and the guests filed in to feast on pan cakes scrambled eggs Canadian bacon grits and biscuits After breakfast the staff removed all the blankets and kerosene lamps from the cabins and stored them in the dining room Windows were boarded up cab ins were locked and last but not least the crew and assorted friends sat down to a celebratory breakfast of eggs Bene dict and champagne SUNCOM SunCom WIRELESS Buy one Get one ree Holiday Phone Sale Plus add a line for only 10 a month in Wireless Harry Connick Jr Q) 1 877 Call Sun ft wwwsuncomcom Or hurry in Offer ends December 3rd OR BUSINESS SOLUTIONS CALL 1 888 387 5641 Motorola V220 CameraPhone Retail value $149 each OR REE OVERNIGHT DELIVERY CALL 1 877 225 5786 £E3 iOS JOHNSON CITY 2221 Roan St 423 677 6000 KINGSPORT 1785 Eastman Rd 423 677 6010 3077 Henry Dr Kingsport 423 723 1055 STARCOM Bristol Mall 276466 1900 1159 Volunteer Pkwy Bristol '423 990 2355 2011 Roan StJohnson City 423 772 5130 ELIZABETHTON WIRELESS 428 Railroad St Elizabethton 423 542 3125 US WIRELESS 2742 State St Bristol 423 793 0226 3120 Peoples St Johnson City 423 722 0626 2101 Henry Dr Kingsport 423 245 8040 1001 Stone Or Kingsport 423 2458885 2 for $19 Sony Ericsson J300 Color Screen wSpeakerphone Retail value $119 each Nokia 6102 first flip phone lutu vuuci rnviic Retail value $189 each SUNCOM STORE LOCATIONS Please call fol extended 'AXy holiday store hours BRISTOL Bristol Commons 42346 5800 1 THINGS WE WANT YOU TO KNOW These offers are good while supplies last require credit approval and the phone must be activated whenpurchased Add a line not available on SunCom America Plan Phone and Plan offers require a new two year agreement You may incur a $35 one time activation charge when signing up a $10 one time activation charge to add a line and a $200 early termination charge if you cancel service early Maximum of five lines per account Contact us for all the details SunCom brings you Truth in Wireless our way of doing business SunCom We get it WIN A CHRYSLER 300 Enter the SunComMinutes and Miles Sweepstakes for your chance to win Go to: wwwsuncomsweepscom Sweepstakes ends 123005 'L 71WW AUTHORIZED AIRTIME COMMUNICATIONS Southern Marketplace Johnson City 423 677 1201 Clothier Manon 276 7834711 Hi IO 2 for $89 2 for I wiS Im I WIN A CHRYSLER 300 Enter the SunComMinutes and Miles Sweepstakes for your chance to win Go to: i wwwsuncomsweepscom Sweepstakes ends 123005 Q) 877 Call Sun wwwsuncomcom Or hurry in Offer ends December 3rd Ba Mt LeConte Inn.