The West Virginia Offices of the Insurance Commissioner (WVOIC) will host its fifth Health Insurance Exchange public forum in Shepherdstown at 6 p.m. Jan. 6 in Storer Ballroom at Shepherd University.

The Health Insurance Exchange aims at organizing the health insurance market for business and individual consumers. It will determine eligibility for public plans and subsidies, make health insurance selection easier by organizing health plan information and conduct enrollment into a selected plan.

“I believe that providing information and listening directly to stakeholders, as part of the design and development phase, is paramount for success of the exchange; therefore, we are undertaking this project that will provide information to, and gather input from, stakeholders around the state,” West Virginia Insurance Commissioner Jane Cline stated in a press release.

These forums will educate the public about what is in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) concerning the Exchange, educate the public about what the WVOIC has accomplished to date with respect to exchange planning, outline critical areas where stakeholder input is needed, receive stakeholder input and gather public ideas on the exchange and develop community of interest policy groups to further develop exchange plans.

The WVOIC team encourages participation from as many people as possible and multiple methods of collecting input will be provided.

The final Health Insurance Exchange public forum will be held in Charleston on Jan. 10 in the Capitol Room of Building 7 at the Capitol Complex.

Applications being accepted for program

MORGANTOWN – The Appalachian Education Initiative is now accepting applications for student instrumentalists interested in auditioning for the 2011 Kennedy Center/National Symphony Orchestra Summer Music Institute at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. The four-week institute will be from June 27 to July 25, 2011.

The program is open to students ages 15 to 20 who are seriously considering orchestral music as a career. This year, the National Trustees’ fellowships may be awarded to students who play violin, viola, cello, string bass, flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, French horn, trumpet, trombone, tuba, and harp.

Each student accepted into the Program attends on full scholarship, which includes housing, food allowance and local transportation during their stay in Washington, D.C. Round-trip transportation to and from Washington, D.C., is not included.

To apply for the program, students must complete an application and provide a CD or DVD with an orchestral excerpt and a prepared solo piece.

Applications must be submitted to the AEI office in Morgantown by Jan. 28, 2011. A West Virginia selection committee will review the applications and submit a list of five finalists to the Kennedy Center in February. The final student selections will be announced at the end of March.

Application forms and additional information about musical submissions can be found on the AEI website, www.aeiarts.org, or by contacting Lou Karas, AEI executive director, at 304-225-0101 or lkaras@aeiarts.org.

LostDogCoffee to host group show Jan. 11

Open call to artists: Open to everyone. All media.

For a group show at LostDogCoffee in Shepherdstown, hanging Jan. 11, 2011.

Theme: “A positive Apocalypse.”How will your happy end be? The higher ground of a beautiful ending.

Due to limitations of our space, submissions cannot exceed 4’x4′.

Deadline for submissions is Jan. 10, 2011. Bring all art to LostDogCoffee, 134 E. German St., Shepherdstown between Jan. 5 and 10.

For more information go to www.lostdogcoffee.com, call 304-876-0871 or email lostdogcoffee@gmail.com.

County awarded $22K grant from department

CHARLES TOWN – The Jefferson County Commission, in partnership with the Cities of Ranson and Charles Town, has been awarded a $22,600 Chesapeake Bay Enhancement Grant by the WV Division of Forestry.

This grant will build on an effort initiated in 2009 in which Jefferson County, with the assistance of the West Virginia Potomac Tributary Strategy Implementation Team, began an Urban Tree Canopy (UTC) assessment project.

The county, in its effort to foster wider acceptance of voluntary best management practices (BMPs) for urban tree conservation and plantings, first developed an UTC assessment to determine the extent and location of tree canopy throughout the county. Preserving and extending the tree canopy will reduce excessive storm water runoff, mitigate the impact of impervious surfaces and protect local waters and the Chesapeake Bay.

The Division of Forestry UTC grant will have two primary purposes: the development and adoption of an UTC Goal for the County and its municipalities; and the organization and implementation of a several specific planting projects on public property for the spring of 2011.

The grant is intended to help the county take the next step to protect and enhance the tree canopy within Jefferson County.

An intern from Shepherd University has been hired to facilitate the UTC Goal setting project and oversee the implementation of tree plantings under this grant.

For more information contact Herb Peddicord, West Virginia Division of Forestry at 304-229-2665.

MVB financials shows its positive progress

MARTINSBURG/CHARLES TOWN Regional community bank leader MVB Bank released third quarter 2010 earnings and banking news highlights.

“Our financials show the positive progress being made in 2010,” stated Larry Mazza, CEO, in a press release.

“In the third quarter we crossed a milestone of more than $400 million in assets.”

The bank’s balance sheet grew 18.5 percent from last year with increases in loans and deposits. The third quarter’s net income was $620,000, or up 59 percent to the comparable quarter in 2009.

And in the first nine months of this year, the bank’s net income was $1,555,000, up 35 percent compared to the same time last year.

MVB also launched its new web site, www.mostvaluablebank.com, focusing on staying attuned with clients’ demands and with a look and features which are easy for clients, who routinely use the Internet as the preferred method of banking.

Spaghetti dinner set for Jan. 14 at local fire hall

The Good Shepherd Caregivers will host a spaghetti dinner fundraiser Jan. 14 from 6 until 8 p.m. at the Shepherdstown Fire Hall.

The menu includes spaghetti, salad, bread, drinks and desserts.

Tickets cost $10 for adults, $5 for children and children ages 5 and younger get in free.

For more information, call 304-876-3325 or 304-725-2262 or visit their new offices at 7311 Martinsburg Pike, Shepherdstown.