William George of Rockwell received third place honors at the 25th Annual Electrical Apprentice Contest at the N.C. State Fair on Oct. 21.
He is an electrician for Preferred Electric.
He competed against more than 30 others in the exercises for first, second and third place titles.
Salisbury resident on college council
CHARLESTON, S.C. ó The College of Charleston Department of Communication Advisory Council elected Salisbury resident Ruth Kinzey, founder and president of The Kinzey Co., to the Council at its most recent on-campus meeting.
Kinzey is known for developing strategic and comprehensive communication strategies.
She has worked in the grocery retail, trucking, natural gas and computer software industries. A monthly contributor for The American Business Journal, Kinzey’s columns have appeared in numerous Business Journals nationwide. She taught public relations, public speaking and journalism at UNC-Charlotte and authored “Using Public Relations Strategies to Promote Your Nonprofit Organization.” Kinzey has an M.A. from the University of Iowa in journalism, with an emphasis on public relations. She is a magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Coe College, where she earned a triple major in speech, English and secondary education.
The Department of Communication Advisory Council promotes the recognition and progress of communication instruction at the College of Charleston.

Old Stone Winery places at State Fair
Rowan County’s Old Stone Winery won several ribbons at the N.C. State Fair in October.
Their Chambourcin wine, which is French hybrid (a dark color with a medium body finish), won double gold at the fair, and their semi-sweet white Muscadine won gold.
The following Old Stone Winery wines also won: semi-sweet red Muscadine, Wild Horse Blush (sweet) Muscadine and sweet white Muscadine received silver; the blackberry wine, peach wine and 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon won bronze.
Research campus has furniture supplier
KANNAPOLIS ó As university researchers and businesses from around the world embark on scientific discoveries in health and nutrition at the N.C. Research Campus, CORT is providing the flexibility and cost savings afforded by renting furniture for homes and offices.
The N.C. Research Campus has selected the Berkshire Hathaway company as the preferred provider of rental furniture.
The research campus is a public-private collaboration among businesses and North Carolina’s public and private universities as a hub for experts leading research in biotechnology, health, nutrition and agriculture.
“Working with CORT provides businesses opening offices on the campus with the flexibility to rent office furniture,” said Clyde Higgs, vice president of business development at the Research Campus. “Rental furniture for homes can also be an ideal solution for scientists and other workers on temporary assignments.”
CORT is the only national furniture rental provider.
“We help businesses establish temporary or permanent offices quickly and adjust their inventory of furniture to fit their needs,” said Ron Steinbrink, district general manager in CORT’s Charlotte office. “We also know that researchers and scientists from around the world travel to the N.C. Research Campus for temporary assignments, and we provide a broad range of solutions, including furniture rental, to ease those transitions for employees and their families.”
For more information, visit www.cort.com.

Thomas Hoke Antique Warehouse celebrates first anniversary
In celebration of its first anniversary, Thomas Hoke Antique Warehouse offered discounts on its 6,500-square-foot collection at 125 Lane Parkway. The collection of 18th and 19th century furniture and accessories was hand-selected by sole proprietor Thomas Hoke during his 31 trips through England and France.
His focus is finding comfortable pieces that can be treasured for many decades.
The warehouse is open to the public every Saturday just off Interstate 85 on Peeler Road. Call with questions at 704-467-3456.
Eco Carolinas program expands ‘green’ verification
HARRISBURG ó Environmental Carolinas, a new pro-business organization that assists and promotes the environmental efforts of Carolina companies, has expanded its Eco Carolinas certification program to include an industry-first “green” verification process.
Founded by leading environmental advocate Neil C. Swiacki earlier this year, Environmental Carolinas works with businesses to green them from the inside out. The company’s Eco Carolinas certification is setting a standard for green business improvement and green business transparency.
Coca-Cola Bottling Co. Consolidated, Graebel Van Lines of North Carolina, Embassy Suites of Charlotte/Concord, and Garmon & Company of Charlotte have recently earned the Eco Carolinas Certification, giving customers, employees and the community an around-the-clock ability to monitor and participate in their green performance.
The new Eco Carolinas Certification process just launched this month is called Double Verification. Environmental Carolinas combined its Voice of the Marketplace with a panel of experts to provide Eco Carolinas-certified businesses with quality feedback and a new level of transparency in the industry.
The Voice from the Marketplace feedback component on the Environmental Carolinas Web site collects comments, concerns and feedback from the marketplace about the efforts of Eco Carolinas-certified businesses.
Feedback is then sent to the Environmental Carolinas monitoring panel for further review and action.
Jeff DeSart, a LEED-accredited professional, is a member of the monitoring panel.
DeSart said the double verification process demonstrates a strong commitment to ensuring quality and integrity to the Eco Carolinas certification.
“Environmental Carolinas has taken a new and important approach to giving businesses important feedback in a reliable and unique process,” DeSart said. “With this new process, the Eco Carolinas certification includes distinct benefits to both certified businesses and the marketplace.”
Environmental Carolinas awards its Eco Carolinas certification to businesses that focus on greening their internal operations and their “green DNA.”
It bases its certification on the principles of the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, the Environmental Protection Agency and Energy Star programs.
For more information, visit www.ecocarolinas.com.
Bank of Carolinas reports profit
MOCKSVILLE ó Bank of the Carolinas Corp. reported net income of $782,000 for the quarter ending Sept. 30, as compared to a net loss of $2.7 million in the third quarter of 2008.
Net income available to common shareholders for the three months ending Sept. 30 was $470,000, or 12 cents per diluted share, compared to a net loss of 69 cents per common share in the 2008 quarter.
For the nine-month period ending Sept. 30, the company reported a net loss of $1.35 million compared to a net loss of $2.98 million for the same period of 2008.
The net loss available to common shareholders for the nine-month period of 2009 was $1.76 million, or 45 cents per common share compared to a net loss of 76 cents per share in the first nine months of 2008.
Improved interest margins from lower funding costs, gains from sales of securities and moderating provisions for loan losses were mainly responsible for the improvements.
Net interest income, the company’s most significant source of revenue, totaled $4.1 million in the third quarter, a 36.1 percent increase from the 2008 quarter. For the first nine months of 2009, net interest income was $10.3 million, a 9.4 percent increase from the comparable period of 2008.
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