The Stitchin' Post Gifts at 104 S. Main St. will be celebrating the birthday of Sasha, the store's cat, Saturday with special events and a portion of the day's sales donated to Faithful Friends Animal Sanctuary.

The all-day party will feature giveaways, drawings, prizes, birthday cake and punch.

Those who bring a donation of dog or cat food or supplies will receive a goody bag from Sasha. There will also be free gifts for each child.

Faithful Friends will have someone there all day to answer questions and provide information about the group.

For more information, contact the store at 704-637-0708.

Financial workshop

Mary Moose and Cathy S. Foster recently attended the "Why Women Are Winning" conference in Chicago.

The two-day workshop focused on women as financial advisers and women as financial decision makers in their households. During breakout sessions, advisors discussed different approaches to money and investing that female clients face as well as the unique financial planning challenges faced by widows, divorcees' and single women.

Moose has been a financial adviser since 1998. She is the founder and president of Victory Wealth Management Inc. in China Grove and is a Registered Principal with her broker dealer, Advantage Capital Corp.

Foster has worked in the financial services industry for more than eight years and is a wealth plan design manager at Victory.

Diabetes educator

Anju Agarwal has achieved Certified Diabetes Educator Status.

Agarwal has been a clinical dietitian and diabetes educator at Lake Norman Regional Medical Center in Mooresville since December 2003. She handles diabetes self-management education, insulin pump training, gestational diabetes management and post-surgical nutrition education. She also coordinates nutrition management for weight loss surgery patients as well as for the hospital's Level III neonatal Special Care Nursery.

She received CDE status from the National Certification Board for Diabetes Educators by successfully completing the Certification Examination for Diabetes Educators. Candidates must meet rigorous eligibility requirements to be able to take the exam. Achieving certification status demonstrates that Agarwal possesses distinct specialized knowledge to promote quality of care for people with diabetes.

Team Realty agent

Debbie Thomforde has joined Team Realty of Salisbury Inc.

She relocated to Salisbury about three years ago from New Jersey, where she was a Realtor. She has completed North Carolina licensing requirements at Superior School of Real Estate.

New CPA

Bradley Wade Whitley of Salisbury is one of 50 applicants to receive licensure as Certified Public Accountants in North Carolina Aug. 18 by the N.C. State Board of CPA Examiners.

He passed the uniform CPA exam and satisfied the education, work experience and moral character requirements of the board.

Tax pro meeting

Bill Retallick, a CPA in Granite Quarry, recently attended a regional meeting of the National Society of Tax Professionals.

At the session, he earned continuing education hours on the subject of limited liability companies and other U.S. income tax topics.

GrowMaster training

Two local Southern States employees recently attended a comprehensive three-day training program designed to qualify them as Certified GrowMaster Specialists.

They are Kevin Fisher. a field sales associate for Southern States Cooperative in the Salisbury and Statesville area, and Tim Penninger at the Salisbury location.

The training is designed to augment the existing knowledge base of employees involved in advising the co-op's customers on issues related to crop production. It provides new and updated information and qualifies for continuing education units by the American Society of Agronomy, a national organization that certifies crop advisors and agronomists through examination.

R3 Center workshops

The R3 Center will offer career development workshops and resume clinics in September for adults in Cabarrus and Rowan counties. All are free

The center, at 164 Dale Earnhardt Blvd. in Kannapolis, will begin new office hours in September. They are 8 a.m.-8 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday and 8 a.m.-noon Saturday.

The September schedule includes:

- New Client Mondays, orientation for new R3 Center clients, 9:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. Sept. 8, 15, 22 and 29

- The ABCs of Computer Usage, 9:30 a.m. Sept. 5

- Top Jobs for Your Personality, 9:30 a.m. Sept. 9

- Looking for Work with a Criminal Record, 9:30 a.m. Sept. 12

- Is It Time for More Training? 6 p.m. Sept. 16

- Stand Out from the Competition, 6 p.m. Sept. 17

- Lay-Off Survival Tips, 9:30 a.m. Sept. 19

- Looking for Work at 50+, 9:30 a.m. Sept. 23

- Interview Techniques, 9:30 a.m. Sept. 24

The R3 Center will also offer free resume clinics to help job searchers improve their current resume or create a new one. They are scheduled for 2 p.m. Sept. 4, 9:30 a.m. Sept. 10, 6 p.m. Sept. 18 and 9:30 a.m. Sept. 26.

"N.C. Research Campus Careers 101" workshop will also be offered in September to help individuals learn more about the types of jobs being created by the N.C. Research Campus and the training and education needed to qualify for these positions. Call 704-216-7201 for a complete schedule of workshops and to reserve seats.

Due to the popularity of its free workshops, clients should call the center in advance and reserve a seat.

For more information, call 704-216-7201 or visit http://www.rowancabarrus. edu/r3center/.

Genesis awards

The Salisbury Center of Genesis Healthcare recognized 13 employees with service awards during its August general staff meeting.

They are:

One year: Willie Shannon Miller, Ashley Young, Cathy Allison and Michael Farmer, nursing; Jachovia Farris, dietary; and Ashley Banks, admissions.

Three years: Weedor Free, Rhakeea Horton, Stephanie Deese, Kweta Dolo and April Espinoza, nursing.

10 years: Hazel McCree, nursing, and Minnola Walker, housekeeping.

Caregiver for August

Morgan Wright has been named Caregiver of the Month for August at Home Instead Senior Care, 625 W. Innes St.

This award is given to an employee who goes above and beyond the call of duty in caring for seniors with whom they are entrusted.

Wright joined the Salisbury team in May.

"Morgan is a great caregiver, and, even though she is one of our younger team members, we feel confident in her great ability to show care, concern and patience with all her clients," said Jessica Bryans, recruitment/retention coordinator. "She can handle any situation with poise and grace and her heart for seniors is obvious."

Wright lives in Salisbury and plans to pursue a physician's assistant degree in pediatrics at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte this fall.

Bank promotes Martin

CommunityOne Bank has named Rhonda O. Martin as Cash Management Officer serving communities throughout the bank's western and midwestern regions.

Martin previously was a Business Banker at the bank's office on Jake Alexander Boulevard in Salisbury.

"Rhonda has served the business community in Salisbury with distinction and has a wealth of experience in banking," said Skip Wood, midwestern regional president for CommunityOne. "Her enthusiasm, professional experience and leadership skills are a valuable asset to our company and benefit the many customers and communities we serve."

A native of Rowan County, Martin has more than 11 years of banking experience. She is a graduate of King's College as well as RMA/ECU Commercial Lending School and Leadership Rowan. She is a current board member of Civitan Club of Salisbury and an active volunteer for United Way.

She, husband Clai and children Seth and Taylor live in Salisbury and attend St. Mark's Lutheran Church in China Grove.

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Linda Braswell compiles the Rowan Roundup of companies, organizations and individuals. You can submit information about new businesses, honors and management promotions to her at the Salisbury Post, P.O. Box 4639, Salisbury, NC 28145-4639; fax it to 704-639-0003; or e-mail lbraswell@ salisburypost.com. Please include a daytime phone number.

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