MEDFORD, Ore. — Darcey Mann-Self has been the president of the Pear Blossom Festival for the last 17 years.

Born and raised in Southern Oregon, Darcey attended Southern Oregon State College and now works at Insurance Marketplace, Inc. as the boss’s right hand man. She is thrilled to be hitting the dance floor again, 21 years after her last dance lesson for her wedding.

The 4th Annual Dancing With The Rogue Valley Stars will take place Saturday, November 10th at the North Medford High School Auditorium. There will be a 2 p.m. matinee show and another show at 7 p.m. Tickets are $15 for the matinee and $20 for the evening. You can find a link to buy tickets here, or you can get them at any Premier West Bank.

MEDFORD, Ore. – The clock is winding down to the end of the Coats For Kids Campaign. There are just hours left to donate a new or gently coat to keep a local child warm this winter.

Even the smallest donation from a small person can make a big difference. Coats of all sizes are coming in on Thursday, the final day of the Coats For Kids Campaign. The last day of the drive follows the pattern seen throughout the month as thousands of Southern Oregonians donate their coats to keep local children warm this winter.

Still, it is not enough. As the drive nears its end we are still in need of size small and medium coats, specifically sizes 8-10 for girls. Although there is only one more day for you to throw a coat in the bin, the work is just getting started for the volunteers who will make sure these coats go to local children in need.

You can donate through the end of the night at any barrel throughout Southern Oregon. For a full list of donation sites, click here.

MEDFORD, Ore. – There is just one more week to get your donation in to help a local child stay warm this winter. All this month, we’ve been asking for your help to collect coats that can be given to kids in our communities who need them. Behind the scenes of our Coats For Kids Campaign, volunteers are making sure those coats go to the children who need them most.

Every year, it’s the community making a statement by supporting NewsWatch 12′s Coats For Kids Campaign. This year, Bri Glick is joining volunteers from Windermere Van Vleet and Associates for her senior project. She’s going through hundreds of coats, organizing them into sizes and even playing the part of fashion police for the coats headed to high schoolers like herself.

“The kids coats are adorable and I’ve seen a few that I would actually wear myself,” said Glick.

The coats not only keep students warm this winter, but ensure they don’t feel left out at school.

“I think it is really important, because we’re helping kids that can’t take care of themselves with that kind of stuff, giving them something they don’t have to be ashamed of,” said Glick.

All of the coats have been separated by size, now Windermere volunteers will bundle the coats up for the schools and then it will be time for what they say is one of the best parts of the campaign: delivering them to the schools.

“We just love doing it for the kids and we like delivering the coats to the schools and we get a lot of satisfaction out of getting the coats to the kids,” said Terri Stefanson of Windermere Van Vleet & Associates.

It’s a campaign that is teaching Bri about how a small donation can make a big difference and how one student can help another. With just one more week to donate, we are in need of little boy’s coats. Remember, you can donate a gently-used or new coat at any location with a red barrel. You will find them throughout Southern Oregon, we have a full list of donation sites here.  The last day to donate is next Thursday.

The dance showdown is less than a month away on November 10th. So far, about 12% of the tickets have been sold. Contestants like Pear Blossom Festival President Darcey mann-self have been squeezing in every dance practice possible.

“It’s an awesome opportunity to benefit the Sparrow Clubs and USA Dance, but also just so they can see that ballroom dancing can be a fun thing, that it’s not just old stodgy people dancing, there’s a lot of young people, it’s fun, it’s refreshing, it’s very exciting,” said Darcey Mann-Self

You can see Darcey and the other 11 contestants, including NewsWatch 12′s Erin Maxson and Chris Leone, on November 10th at North Medford High School. The 2 p.m. matinee show is $15. The 7 p.m. evening show is $20.

Money raised benefits sparrow clubs and the youth scholarship program of the Soutehrn Oregon Chapter of USA Dance. You can buy tickets at any Premiere West Branch or online.

The cooler temperatures are on the way and when they do arrive, we want to make sure our local kids will be ready! This year’s Coats For Kids drive runs today through October 25th.

Below is a list of locations where you can find our red barrels to drop off a coat:

ASHLAND:
Bi-Mart
Rite Aid
“A” Street Animal Clinic
Jon Snowden State Farm
YMCA
Windemere Van Vleet
Papa Murphy’s
Ashland Library

MEDFORD:
Fire Headquarters
Fire Station #2
Fire Station #4
Best Buy
Bi-Mart West
Blackbird
Papa Murphy’s
Fred Meyer
Rogue Valley Mall
Eagles Lodge
K.I.D.S.
Access, Inc.
Elks Lodge
Fire Station #3
Fire Station #5
Fire Station #6
Bi-Mart
Rite Aid
Windemere Van Vleet
Papa Murphy’s
Rogue Valley Medical Center
Providence Hospital

CENTRAL POINT:
Crater Animal Clinic
Papa Murphy’s
Ray’s Food Place
West Coast Appliance

JACKSONVILLE:
Cycle Analysis
Ray’s Food Place

ROGUE RIVER:
River City Realty

WHITE CITY:
Papa Murphy’s
Rogue Family Center

EAGLE POINT:
City Hall
Chase Bank
Premier West Bank
Ray’s Food Place
Rogue Federal Credit Union
Upper Rogue Independent
Wal-Mart Super Center
Widermere Trails End

SHADY COVE:
Shady Cove Market
Windermere Trails End

GRANTS PASS:
Club NW Kid Zone
Rite Aid
Fred Meyer
Papa Murphy’s
JC Penney
ReMax
Boys & Girls Club
Coalition for Kids
Charlie Brown Square Dance Club
Edward Jones

SELMA:
Ray’s Food Place

CAVE JUNCTION:
Shop Smart

KLAMATH FALLS:
Papa Murphy’s
Bi-Mart
Fred Meyer
Big R
XL Cleaners
Dr. Walle DDS MS

Harry and David says this year, the company yielded more peaches than ever before. The peaches will get distributed to Jackson, Josephine, Klamath and Northern California counties.

Harry and David plans to pull more peaches this week and hold them in storage for ACCESS. The company has donated peaches to food banks for the last 5 years.

There are three different fires in the complex in the Rogue River Siskiyou National Forest. The three fires were previously known as the “Lick Fire”, “Goff Fire”, and “Hello Fire.”

The Rogue Valley Growers and Crafters Market announced that Jackson County received near quadruple increase in the amount of Farm Direct Nutrition Program (FDNP) coupons this summer, meaning practically 6,000 coupons will be issued by the end of season for circulation.

The FDNP coupons are pre-printed checks that are specifically designated to purchase locally-produced fresh, unprocessed fruits and vegetables. They are distributed to low-income seniors and families enrolled in WIC. According to Farmers Market Coalition, nationwide 1.9 million WIC mothers and 863,000 low-income seniors were able to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables directly from farmers in 2011 through the Farmers Market Nutrition Programs.

For more information, call the Rogue Valley Growers Market Business Manager, Lori Hopkinson, at 541-210-2763. You can also visit the Rogue Valley Farmers Market on Facebook and the web at rvgrowersmarket.com.

Brady Adams is being celebrated by Evergreen Federal Bank this Saturday at Riverside Park. A bronze sculpture of Adams will be unveiled at the ceremony.

Adams is being honored for his part in dozens of community projects that have raised thousands of dollars for non-profit groups in Grants Pass. Most recently in June, Adams walked from Grants Pass to Ashland to raise awareness for wheelchair-accessible playgrounds.

The Newswatch 12 personalities hit the kickball field to raise money for the Ethan Jostad Foundation for Childhood Cancer. Overall, the foundation raised almost $900 dollars in a Newswatch 12 victory.