Mailing list for the Person County Beekeepers Association, Roxboro, NC

[Lynn S Wilson <wilsonls AT esinc.net>]

Dear Person County Beekeepers,

A team of 4 students from our area who call themselves “The Bee Aware Team” won a $25,000 grant in a national science competition last year. They have partnered with Grandfather Mountain and used these funds to create a “Honey Bee Haven”. Grandfather Mountain is one of North Carolina’s top tourist attractions. With over 250,000 visitors annually they are an optimal place to spread awareness. One of the key elements of the team’s awareness project was creating a NC Save The Honey Bee specialty license plate. The Bee Aware, Save the Honey Bee plate can be seen below. Revenue from this plate will help fund educational outreach materials and other ongoing expenses related to the habitat, as well as supporting honey bee research at NC State University. 

Until recently, a specialty plate required a bill to be passed before orders for the plate could be taken. The team’s plate was completed and submitted to Senator Soucek in January of 2014. Unfortunately, the NC senate was not allowing any new bills to be introduced until this current session.  

We believe that the Bee Haven will be an effective tool in educating the thousands of annual visitors about the struggles honey bees are facing and also in educating them to ways in which they can help. Grandfather Mountain plans to feature the Honey Bee Haven in educational tours to the 2,500 school children who visit every year. They have committed to displaying the team’s brochures and signage in their gift and fudge shops. By ordering our plate you will be helping this worthwhile awareness project. You can read more about the Grandfather Honey Bee Haven, here. 

We chose a full plate design rather than the “First in Flight” plate because we felt it would be easier to read and identify. The cost for this plate is just $15. The North Carolina DMV requires 500 pre-paid applications before it will consider the initial plate application. These applications must be processed as a single submission with one check.  To comply with this requirement, applications will be collected by the WCBA, combined into a package and submitted to DMV with one check from the Watauga County Beekeepers Association. Deadline is May 1, 2015. We have already gotten close to 100 applications. Please help us spread awareness by ordering your plate today. Complete this application and mail it along with your check or money order to: 

WCBA c/o Lyn Soeder

3458 Railroad Grade Rd.

Todd, NC 28604 

$5.00 from every license plate sale will support Grandfather Mountain Honey Bee Haven and NC State University Agriculture Program.
A plate with sequential numbers determined by DMV (standard) can be ordered for $15.00
A plate with a personalized message (4 spaces allowed) can be ordered for an additional $30.00.
Yearly renewal fees will depend on your choice of plate and other personal property and vehicle taxes.
  

You can also download a blank license plate application from the DMV website at http://www.ncdot.gov/download/dmv/MVR-27PPA.pdf

Thank you for your support. Please forward this email to your club members and anyone else you think might be interested.

Lyn Soeder

President, WCBA 

(Watauga County Beekeepers Association)

 

                     Save The Honey Bee Plate 

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                                  Bee Aware Team

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