With summer in full swing and 4th of July weekend around the corner, here are some tips to help you keep your activities safe and fun!

Life preservers Aren’t Just for Kids. It’s not enough to just have life jackets on board – wear them! In an accident, people rarely have time to reach for a life jacket. This rule applies to adults and children. More people in their 30’s die in boating accidents than any other age group. Today you can even get vests for your boating dog. Remember, it is a NC law that children 12 years of age and below must wear a life jacket at all times when in a boat or PWC.

Watch the Back of the Boat. Carbon monoxide kills in minutes. Tell your passengers where your exhaust pipes are located and turn your engine off when people are in the water. Don’t let people “ski” or “teak-surf” by holding on to the back of the boat. Some states have made teak-surfing illegal after several tragic deaths. Carbon monoxide detectors are standard on most new boats; older boats install devices for less than $100.

Alcohol and Boating Don’t Mix. More than 50 percent of drowning result from boating incidents involving alcohol. You don’t drink and drive, so don’t boat and drive.

Boats Need TLC Too. When you’re out on the water, make sure your gas tanks are vented and bilges are free of vapors, oil, waster and grease. Carry a charged fire extinguisher. Have your boat’s operating systems checked yearly by a certified marine technician. The Coast Guard Auxiliary and US Power Squadrons also offer free vessel safety checks.

Experience Counts! The US Coast Guard states that operator errors account for 70% of all boating accidents. Make sure anyone who drives your boat is properly trained. You can also earn boat insurance discounts from some insurance companies if you complete a safety course with the Coast Guard Auxiliary or US Power Squadrons. Most courses cost around $30.00, but there is one that is free for the twenty-five and under driver. It is: http://www.boatus.org/onlinecourse/NorthCarolina.asp  

Don’t forget the new law. Anyone under the age of 26 is required to pass a certified boater education class in order to legally operate any water vessel with a motor of 10 horsepower or more on NC waterways.

Sites for information: www.uscgboating.org      http://www.boatus.org  www.nws.cgaux.org/    http://www.boatus.org/onlinecourse/statelaws/ncarolina.html

Tonight’s the night!  Morrow Insurance is sponsoring tonight’s Music On Main Street featuring Asheville’s 96.5 House Band.  The show starts at 7:00pm at the Visitor’s Center.  Bring a chair and get ready for some fun times!

Look for the Morrow gang and be sure to say “Hello!”

The LIVE UNITED 5K and 10K Road and Trail Race will held on June 25, 2011 beginning at 6:00pm at North Henderson High. The 10k and 5k courses will let you experience everything Western North Carolina has to offer runners. The races are set in a residential and country setting on paved and gravel surfaces with a portion of both races on a creek bordered trail.  The race has an exciting end on the High School track in the stadium.

 Preregistration is $30 and registration is $35 the day of the race.  For more information, visit http://www.liveunitedhc.org/live-united-10k-race.html.

Morrow Insurance Agency is a proud sponsor of this event.

Executive Vice President Jim Rasmussen recently represented Morrow Insurance at the Henderson County Chamber of Commerce Industrial Appreciation Pig Pickin.  It was a great night of socializing, food and music.  Morrow is proud to have Jim representing the agency on the Chamber Board of Directors.

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Please join us this Friday night for Music On Main sponsored by Morrow Insurance.  This week’s entertainment will be Asheville’s 96.5 House Band and the Hendersonville Antique Car Club will host a Classic Car Show.  Bring a chair and sit back, relax and enjoy the music from 7:00-9:00 pm.

Put on your dancing shoes and head to Music On Main Street for some good toe tapping music.  Be sure to look for the Morrow gang!

With summer around the corner, some of us are getting out on our bicycles. Bicycles are the most vulnerable of all vehicles on the road, and extra safety precautions should always be taken when riding. As road users, bicyclists must be highly visible; often drivers of vehicles have a difficult time seeing them in traffic. Remember to follow all the same rights and responsibilities as automobile drivers. Below are a few other rules to follow on your safe journey.

• Obey all traffic laws. Ride with traffic; obey all signs and signals.
• Be aware of surrounding traffic, especially when riding in traffic with large trucks and buses that make wide turns. Don’t sneak in between vehicles, and never assume that drivers see bicyclists or hand signals.
• Ride with another biker. It is best to have a buddy in case you get hurt, break down, etc. However, don’t ride side by side and keep distance in between the two bikes for passing automobiles.
• Take your cell phone and a small bike repair kit. Make sure you inspect your bike for safety before taking off.
• IT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO WEAR A BIKE HELMET!

North Carolina and three other southern states lead the nation in the number of billion-dollar weather-related disasters since 1980.  Most of those disasters are tropical-storm related.

The North Carolina coast is the most vulnerable to a direct hurricane strike, but inland cities and towns across the state can also be devastated by the high winds and potential tornados, storm surges, flooding and landslides from hurricanes and tropical storms.

During hurricane season, from June 1 to November 30, you should have a family emergency plan in place and a family emergency supplies kit assembled.

Also:

• Know your evacuation routes and locate your local emergency shelters.
• Don’t get caught by surprise. There is not enough time to think of everything you need to do when a hurricane gets close.
• As a hurricane moves closer to your area, begin monitoring the weather reports every hour.
• Listen for hurricane watches and warnings.
• Put fuel in all vehicles and withdraw some cash from the bank. Gas stations and banks may be closed after a hurricane.
• If authorities ask you to evacuate, do so promptly.
• If you evacuate, be alert to flooded or washed-out roads. Just a few inches of water can float a car.  Remember:  Turn Around, Don’t Drown.
• Keep a photo I.D. that shows your home address. This may become important when asking a police officer or National Guard member for permission to re-enter your neighborhood.
• There is never enough time to get ready for nature’s fiercest weather. Give yourself and your family a head start.

A home in Henderson county was recently lost in a fire due to a faulty dishwasher.  This is a reminder to us all that we should always use caution in operating any appliance.  Here are a few tips:

• Never leave household appliances running unattended. Make sure they have completed their  cycle and shut off before you leave the house.
• Get acquainted with the manual (or find your model’s manual online). It will help you operate your spplisnce and the manual is a great place to turn to spot and troubleshoot problems.
• Take care to have the wiring and electrical components inspected occasionally (annually or bi-annually), or more often if you experience  electrical issues in your house (circuit breakers that trip or fuses that blow frequently).
• If you’re buying an appliance used, or buying a house with appliances included, have the wiring and electrical components inspected and certified by a professional.
• Check the Consumer Products Safety Commission website for information on recalled appliances.

Be safe!

Area business leaders had the opportunity to experience camp activities first hand last Thursday at the second Camp Field Day at Camp Ton-A-Wandah in Flat Rock. The event is held to educate area businesses about the impact of the region’s camp industry.  Teams from 19 businesses competed in camp activities such as riflery, archery, rock climbing, ping-pong, cornhole, canoeing and horseback riding. The day ended with the traditional campfire and s’mores.  Morrow Insurance was well represented by employees Charlie Cranford, Marsh Dark, Wendy Ferguson, Will Hendricks and Jennie Reed.  Wendy’s husband Todd even joined the gang for the day of fun and team building.

This marks the first year that Morrow Insurance will be sponsoring the Henderson County Relay for Life.  This year’s event will be held on Friday, May 20^th at the WNC Agriculture Center.  Opening ceremonies will start at 6pm with activities going all through the night.  Our team will be selling glow necklaces and peanuts at the event to raise money for our team’s contribution to the American Cancer Society.  We will have a team member on the track all night walking, because the idea behind Relay for Life is that cancer never sleeps and for one night neither do the people fighting for a cure.   Our team members from the office this year are Colleen Hobbick, Carolyn Wilson, Priscilla Tinsley, Charlie Cranford, Will Hendricks, Jean Persons, Wendy  Ferguson, Cylin Sheafer, Beth Fagan, Jennie Reed, Fay Ryan, and Christina Dinardo.

Please join our team or make a donation to help the American Cancer Society create a world with less cancer and more birthdays. Together, we can help make sure that cancer never steals another year of anyone’s life!

Admission is free, and there will be tons of food, music and good times for adults and children. Please stop by and support your Morrow Insurance team and also the American Cancer Society.  If you can not make the event but would still like to donate, please contact team captains Christina Dinardo or Colleen Hobbick. You may also use a credit card on our team website to make a donation using the link below. Thank you again for helping support our community and a great cause!

http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR?team_id=872562&pg=team&fr_id=33398

As you are doing your gardening and yard work getting ready for the summer, below are some suggestions to keep your home safe from a brush fire. It is also a good tip to share with friends and neighbors who may need a little tender, loving care.

• Clear branches and tree limbs a minimum of 10 feet from around any chimneys.
• Provide a spark arrester on all chimneys; the screen’s mesh must be ½ inch.
• Clear all leaves, pine needles, and debris from the roof and gutters.
• Be sure the street address is clearly posted, in a color that contrasts with the background.
• To protect against unusual hazards, such as hot winds, clear away all dry weeds, brush, rubbish, dry leaves, and dead trees on your property a distance of 100 feet or more from all structures.
• Maintain at least 10 feet of clearance around liquid propane gas tanks.
• Install protection posts around liquid propane tanks if the possibility of vehicle damage exists.
• Comply with requirements for approved spark plug arresters on the exhaust systems of off-road vehicles, tractors and other equipment used around the home.
• It is important to have a FIRE BREAK around your property. Avoid landscaping with natural vegetation. Rhododendron, azaleas, laurels, hemlocks and other resinous evergreens including the pine needles we use for ground cover are all flash fuels. If you live on the side of a mountain, you are even more vulnerable. Upwinds and downdrafts help spread a fire. You should have at least a 30-60 foot area around the house for a FIRE BREAK. Use hardwood mulch instead of pine needles. When you plant, intersperse deciduous trees with evergreens.
• Make sure your hoses and connectors are in proper working condition.
• Keep firewood piles away from the house.
• Dispose of fireplace and grill ashes in a metal bucket and soak with water.
• Have an escape plan.

Thank you and be safe!

There are several bills pending in the state Legislature that would revamp the way the state sets auto rates and give insurers more latitude — up to 15 and 20 percent —to raise rates.

North Carolina’s auto rate system is unlike any other in the country. All 175 insurers file their rate plans with the North Carolina Rate Bureau, which proposes a statewide base rate on behalf of all companies. The commissioner can then place a cap on rates. Companies can only adjust individual policies by offering discounts.

North Carolina has among the lowest auto insurance rates in the country, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and Insure.com.

North Carolina Insurance Commissioner Wayne Goodwin says the current system helps all consumers and those backing changes just want to make more money off North Carolina drivers.  “The bottom line here is this: insurance companies want more of your money. These proposals would no doubt lead to higher car insurance rates.”

For more information on this proposed legislation, read this article posted by Insurance Journal.

With April showers arriving a little early, we hope everyone is staying dry. But what if you drop your cell phone in a puddle of water?

Even if a wet cell phone seems dead, there’s a good chance it can be resuscitated. Just make sure you act fast–the longer the water sits inside, the greater the likelihood it will destroy the phone for good.

While consumers are conditioned to send back broken merchandise, your phone’s warranty probably doesn’t cover water damage.

The first step: Immediately cut the power by removing the battery. I know it’s tempting, but resist the urge to power up your phone to see if it works. However, just turning it on can short out the circuits. If you have a GSM phone (the type used by AT&T and T-Mobile), you’ll want to remove the SIM card as well. Even if your phone turns out to be beyond repair, the SIM should retain a lot of its onboard information, such as the contacts in your phone book.

With the battery safely set aside, you now have one goal, to dry your phone, and dry it fast. If you let the moisture evaporate naturally, the chance of corrosion damaging the phone’s innards increases. Instead, blow or suck the water out. But don’t use a hair dryer. Its heat can fry your phone’s insides. Instead use a can of compressed air, an air compressor set to a low psi or a vacuum cleaner (a wet/dry Shop-Vac would be perfect). The idea is to use air to push or pull moisture out through the same channels it entered.

Finally, use a desiccant to wick away any leftover moisture. The most convenient choice is uncooked rice. Just leave the phone (and its disconnected battery) submerged in a bowl of grains overnight. If you’re worried about rice dust getting inside your phone, you can instead use the packets of silica gel that often come stuffed in the pockets of new clothes. But acting fast is far more important than avoiding a little dust, so don’t waste time shopping if you don’t already have a drawer full of silica gel.

The most important thing to remember is to avoid heat. That means no hair dryers, ovens, microwaves or extended periods in direct sunlight. While heat will certainly evaporate the moisture, it could also warp components and melt adhesives. Those fragile glues are also why you’ll want to avoid dunking the phone in rubbing alcohol. Alcohol is a solvent and can dissolve the internal adhesives. However, if you drop your phone in the toilet, it’s okay to wipe the outside with alcohol to disinfect it.

One final, perhaps surprising, note: If your phone gets soaked in salt water, you should probably flush the whole thing in fresh water before it dries. When salt water evaporates, it leaves crystals that can damage a phone’s fragile components. Just be sure to remove the battery before flooding the device.

The Henderson County Red Cross Heroes campaign is wrapping up and has raised more than three times the original goal.  The announcement was made Thursday, March 31, 2011 at breakfast meeting by executive director, Mike Williams.  By the end of the day, more than $31,000 had been raised with contributions still coming in.

“This is the first time we’ve ever done this,” said Charlie Cranford, chair for the campaign, which sends out local heroes to collect donations for the Red Cross. “It’s just nice to know we live in a community where everyone helps each other out.”

Morrow Insurance’s Charlie Cranford was chair of the campaign and had nine co-chairs who worked with him to raise the funds.  Other Morrow Heroes assisting with the campaign were Joyce Biddix, Christina Dinardo, Beth Fagan, Linda Thomas and Carolyn Wilson.

Congratulations to all for a job well done.

Click here to read a full account of the announcement on www,blueridgenow.com.