| Missing elderly couple found safe
An elderly couple who left a Thanksgiving dinner in Deptford and headed home to Pennsauken about 10 miles away spent more than 24 hours driving around lost before their car slid into a ditch and they were found by police in Ocean County about 50 miles away. Albert Hansel, 85, and his wife, Veronica, 84, were reported missing by their daughter, Joan Daniels of Deptford, after they failed to arrive at their home Thursday night, Plumsted Township police said. "He made a wrong turn, and from there it just got worse for them," Plumsted Police Officer Matt Petrecca said. The couple were not injured when their car landed in a ditch off Route 539 near Route 537 at 7:15 p.m. Friday, police said. The 1999 Chevrolet Lumina needed only a tow to get out of the gully, and the couple would have been on their way if officers had not sensed something was amiss and checked the license plate.
On top of his game
CHARLOTTE - Michael Tarwater is at the top of his game. As chief executive officer of Carolinas HealthCare System, this soft-spoken man controls a health care empire that stretches from the Blue Ridge Mountains to the low country of South Carolina. He is confident in CHS's position and dominance in the Charlotte Metro Region. Tarwater, 54, is a Texas native and came to Charlotte in 1981 as an assistant administrator and worked his way up the ranks at the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Hospital Authority, a precursor to CHS. He served as the hospital system's chief operating officer before being named CEO in 2002 and his influence goes beyond the Charlotte region. He sits on the State Health Coordinating Council, the body that approves the state health facility plan each year. He also a member of the North Carolina Institute of Health, serves on the UNC School of Public Health Advisory Council and has been involved with the North Carolina Hospital Association, the main health care lobbying organization in the state.
More than 100 monks in new Burma march
Witnesses say more than 100 chanting monks in northern Burma are marching for the first time since a crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrations. The monks, in the town of Pakokku, did not shout slogans or make political statements as they marched for about an hour. The town was the scene of some of the monk-led pro-democracy protests that were stamped out after troops opened fire on demonstrators during the September 26-27 crackdown. The monks started their march at Shwegu Pagoda in Pakokku, a centre for Buddhist learning with more than 80 monasteries about 630km northwest of the country's commercial centre of Rangoon. They marched for nearly one hour chatting Buddhist prayers without incident, and then returned to the respective monasteries, two monks said in telephone interviews.
Travel advice, gear and festivals to help you plan your trips
From Lindsey Lane of Austin. After dropping our bags at our hotel near the Louvre, my daughter Gabriella and I ambled our way to the Eiffel Tower through Jardin des Tuileries with me sort of nudging our walk in the direction of the Orangerie. Thirty years ago, I had stumbled upon the Orangerie and found Monet's "Waterlilies." It was a surprise. I had had no idea they were there in the basement. It was quiet. Very beautiful. I felt like I'd fallen into another world far from the hot summer craziness of Paris. This time, because the Orangerie was in its fourth incarnation as a museum, the "Waterlilies" had risen from the basement to the main floor, in two white egg-shaped rooms. At first, I was angry that it was crowded. How could I possibly claim any kind of restfulness in this insanity? Still, I sat.
Trees Bring Soldiers Holiday Cheer
Some local farmers are providing servicemembers and their families some Christmas cheer. Some National Guard members from in 427th Brigade Support Battalion in Rochester were out in Ontario County Wednesday picking up trees that are headed to Fort Drum. The trees were all donated from local farmers to the "Trees for Troops" program. Darling's Tree Farm in Clifton Springs is just one pick-up point nationwide. FEDEX then takes the collected trees and delivers them to different bases in the U.S. and around the world. "I think that Christmas is big thing for most families and [this is] gives them a warmer Christmas," said Dick Darling, owner of Darling's Tree Farm. “A lot of these families don't have money. Maybe the troops have been shipped out and the families are on base or in a foreign country.
More than 100 Buddhist monks march in Myanmar for first time since crackdown
YANGON, Myanmar - Two monks in Myanmar say more than 100 Buddhist monks marched and chanted in a northern region of the country for nearly an hour Wednesday The march marked the first public demonstration since the government's deadly crackdown last month on pro-democracy protesters The monks in Pakokku made no political statements and shouted no slogans, but their march was meant as a sign of support for the earlier, anti-government rallies led by monks in many of Myanmar's cities in September. Those demonstrations were crushed when troops fired on protesters Sept. 27-28 in a crackdown that left at least 20 people dead by the government's count. Opposition groups say as many as 200 people may have been killed. The crackdown by Myanmar's Junta government drew considerable international criticism.
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