About Fannin County, GA

Fannin Regional Hospital sponsors a Healthy Woman event occassionally and the latest one was a real

treat. Chef Hans Rueffert, renowned Southern Chef, and Sara Auman, local gourmet aficionado teamed

up to prepare some wonderful healthy dishes at the well appointed kitchen located in Town and Country

Furniture in Blue Ridge where cooking shows are occassionally videoed here. This beautiful store offers

quality rustic furniture and accessories for local log cabin owners.


Menu
Red Bean and Chickpea Salad

Dried Fruit and Nut Salad with Minted Yogurt

Rainbow Trout with Orange-Mustard Grenoble

Chef Hans Rueffert

If you haven't heard of Chef Hans Rueffert, you are really missing out, not only on great cooking ideas and techniques but a truly moving story of his battle with cancer. Hans grew up in Jasper Georgia over their family restaurant, the Woodbridge Inn. (Great place to eat by the way, put it on your list). Hans host his own cooking show and was selected out of 10,000 applicants to be one of the 8 finalist (the only Southerner in the finals) to compete on Food Channel's "The Next Food Network Star." Hans finished third in the competition. Check out his cookbooks and his blog.

Sara Auman

For great gourmet goodies, visit Proprietress Sara Auman at her upscale boutique "Out of the Blue" located in downtown Blue Ridge. Sara will introduce visitors to varied selection of the finest wines and foods from all over the world. Shop for fine French table linens, hand-painted Italian ceramics and furniture. This is the kind of gallery one will find in New York, Atlanta or Miami. Not what one would expect in our quaint mountain town of Blue Ridge at the foothills of the ancient Applalachians. Pleasantly unexpected!

Click Here for Healthy Woman Upcoming programs in June Fannin Regional Hospital Resource

If you would like a copy of the recipes Hans and Sara prepared, email me donna@ellijay.com

Donna Yates, Georgia Realtor
Specializing in North Georgia Blue Ridge Mountain Real Estate
Coldwell Banker High Country Realty
706-632-7311 x252 office
706-633-0644 cell (direct)
Blue Ridge, Georgia 30513

"Your best interest above mine, Everytime!"

THIS IS NOT THE MONEY YOU COULD HAVE SAVED WITH GEICO...IT'S BETTER!!!

There is good news for Georgia home buyers and sellers! This month, in addition to the federal $8,000 tax credit, Georgia has an additional state tax credit for home buyers in 2009. The tax credit legislation was signed into law on May 11, 2009 by Governor Sonny Perdue, with the help of House Sponsor Ron Stephens (Savannah), House Ways and Means Chairman Larry O'Neal (Warner Robins) and Senate Chairman Chip Pearson (Dawsonville).

The amount of the credit is 1.2% of the purchase price up to $1,800 non-repayable, to be spread equally annually, over the next three years. A great thing about the Georgia tax credit is that unlike the federal tax initiative, this money is not limited to just first-time homebuyers, but ALL single family residences (1 per family). The credit is only available to buyers of eligible single family residences who close between June 1 and November 30 of 2009.

There are also no income limits for home buyers, either. The only stipulation buyers should be aware of is that to qualify for the tax credit, the home must have been listed for sale prior to May 11th, 2009; as the intent of the law was to reduce the overstock of our state's inventory. Also, in our market, second-home purchases do not qualify for this tax credit. Still, this is one more nudge to move our economy in the right direction, and every little bit helps. GO GEORGIA!

I’m very excited to announce that I am part of a new Real Estate team that is representing our area’s first “Certified Green” development. At the beginning of this year, my self and two of m y co-workers decided to enroll in the real estate classes to receive our National Association of Realtors GREEN designation. We now, unoriginally, call ourselves “The Green Team.”

We did not get this designation just because we had an interest in the new eco-friendly trends that are influencing builders these days, though we do, but we were spurred on because we were trying to secure the listings of a new developer who is "Green" through and though. We have succeeded, and now are the proud representatives of Toccoa Camp in beautiful Blue Ridge Georgia .

This gated, six homesite community features homes that are not only certified at the highest level by EarthCraft, but also by Energy Star. Even the land, which is fronted on the Toccoa River, has special rainwater drainage filtration to insure that the run off is cleaned before it reenters the river.

There are only 2 building lots still available. There are also two spectacular waterfront homes for sale. The first Home is a Nantucket-style Lodge with all the “Green” bells and whistles, and boasts 4 Large Master Suites and 4 acres with frontage on a USFS stocked Trout Stream. The second is an enormous, sprawling Rustic Ranch retreat with soaring 18 foot ceilings and flanked by rushing riverfront rapids on 2 sides of its park-like stetting.

I am very proud to be a part of this project, because there is no place that needs “Green” more than Blue Ridge Georgia. Our county is surrounded by pristine National Forest and Wildlife Management areas, so keeping the landscape in tune with nature and preserving the natural beauty of our region is a major concern of the entire community. I hope this is just the first of many “Green” projects to come.

BLUE RIDGE GEORGIA AREA CALENDAR OF EVENTS FOR JUNE 2009

June 1 – Oct. 30 / Pickin’ in the Park
Thursdays at Downtown Ellijay/Horseshoe Bend park in McCaysville. Local Musician jam gathering. Bluegrass, country, Gospel and rock-n-Roll 6pm – dark. Free Family Fun! All are Welcome! (706) 635-5961 wilmar225@yahoo.com

June 4 – Aug. 27 / BINGO
Kiwanis Fairgrounds 124 Jones St. in Blue Ridge. Grand prize: $500 Gas Card! Doors open MONDAYS @ 6pm and THURSDAYS @ 7pm. Adults and Children &10 per card. All proceeds go to benefit the Empty Stocking Fund. www.blueridgekiwanis.org

June 4 – 6 / Atlantic Hot Air Balloon Race
Helen, GA. 36th annual Balloon Race begins at 7am on June 4th. Tethered rides and activities June 5th & 6th. (706) 878-2271

June 5 – 7 / Roots & Music Festival
Hwy 76, Hiawassee. Traditional Country, Bluegrass, Americana & Folk Music. Anderson Music Hall. Bring your instruments and join in! Arts & Crafts booths and tasty cuisine as well! (706) 896-4191 www.georgiamountainfairgrounds.com

June 5 / Senior Fishing Rodeo
Chattahoochee Natl. Fish Hatchery. Adults ages 55 & older – great fishing! Participants must bring their own fishing gear & bait. Free lunch provided. 9am – 12pm (706) 838-4723

June 6 / Family Fishing Festival
9am – 12pm. Chattahoochee Natl. fish hatchery. Children 16 and under fish free! Learn about environmental conservation, trout fishing and USDA. T-shirts and great food! (706) 838-4723

June 6 / Blue Ridge Story Tellers
7pm at the Blue Ridge Community Theatre, 11 Mountain St in Blue Ridge. Music and Storytelling and an evening of family fun! Tickets $5. Benefits the Sunny D Children’s Theatre scholarship fund. (706) 374-5616 www.blueridgecommunitytheatre.com

June 8 – 12 / Family Camp
Unicoi State Park, Helen, GA. 9am – 12pm. Make your family vacation memorable by attending fun classes and workshops with your family. Activities include, canoeing, archery, stream studies, wilderness survival and more! No age limit. (706) 878-2201 ext. 305. (706) 878-2201 www.gastateparks.org

June 15 – 28 / Sunny D. Children’s Camp
9am – 2pm This years theme: “Sunny D. Remembers When,” A tribute to the early days of radio, television and film. Campers will be divided into 3 age groups and a will participate in a production at the end of Camp for friends and family. (706) 632-9223 www.blueridgecommunitytheater.com

June 19 – 20 / Music & Comedy Fest
Jonica Gap Campground. 1412 Haygood rd. in Mineral Bluff. Celebrating women in music, comedy and the arts. Camping recommended but daily passes are also available for $15. Passes good from 10am-11pm “Fighting cancer one song and one laugh at a time.” (706) 374-5465 www.jonicagapcampground.com

June 20 / Lewis Grizzard- In His Own Words
Performing Arts Center by Fannin County High School in Blue Ridge. Actor Steve Cool brings Lewis Grizzard to life in this hilarious “fun” raiser. Tickets $15 to benefit the Blue Ridge Community Theatre. (706) 632-9223 www.blueridgecommunitytheater.com

I love being part of a small town community because the members of this township are not so great in number and so extremely busy that they don’t know or notice their neighbors. The way this community cares for those less fortunate is what really stands out in this dog-eat-dog busy world we so often find ourselves living in.

This season ground was broken for the first component of a new program being developed here in Blue Ridge. "Feed Fannin" is a volunteer group with the mission to eliminate hunger and help feed the less fortunate in our area with fresh grown food.

All produce grown will be donated to feed the people at the homeless shelter in Fannin County’s Family Connections Resource Center.


“Feed Fannin” is modeled off of the Cartecay community garden in Gilmer County. That group began 5 years ago on a small donated plot, and they managed to produce over 700 lbs of vegetables in its first year. Only five years later, their goal is is up to 22,000 lbs in their now 45,000 sq ft garden.

Over 50 volunteers, many senior citizens, are in the process of fertilizing, planting and hoping to encourage residents to donate manure for the strictly organic garden. The organization even received a brand new Kubota tractor, donated by “Mason Equipment Rental & Tire Center. Everyone in the community is invited to participate.

Those that don’t have money to give can still contribute by donating their time to the garden to help those who are less fortunate. If you don’t have the time, but would like to make a financial donation, your money will be used to buy seed and fertilizer and nothing will go to waste in this eco-friendly endeavor.

To volunteer or for more information on this program, call (706) 632-6063. Just one more reason Blue Ridge is “Good For The Soul”. I love this community!