Maple View is leasing the land for free, allowing Orange Grove to keep costs for the building less than $50,000.

Thanks also goes to Kim and Bryant Dodson for offering land on their farm as an alternative. It is worth noting that Orange Grove's main fire station sits on land that was donated by Charles Snipes of Anilorac Farm.

The new substation will assure that 1,000 families have fire insurance coverage under new Department of Insurance Roles, which say homes must be within six miles of their primary fire station.

Planning for the building started last summer when Orange Grove learned that part of their service area was impacted by the new insurance rules.

After looking at several alternatives, Chief Tommy Holmes and President Bill Waddell decided that the new substation was the best option. The new substation is expected to be completed by July 1, without impacting Orange Grove's 2012 fire tax rate.

This act of cooperation serves as an example to us all.

Roses to American Airlines for awarding a $4,000 grant to the Orange County Rape Crisis Center.

These funds from the American Airlines Kids Are Something Special Endowment of the Triangle Community Foundation will support the center's Community Education program, which works to prevent sexual violence in our community.

The Safe Touch program teaches local elementary school students to identify and report unwanted touches and to "say no, get away, and tell someone." Lessons for middle school students include Internet safety and cyberbullying, preventing sexual bullying, and learning the confidence and skills to safely intervene when witnessing bullying. These education efforts prevent violence in our schools and lay the groundwork for preventing violence as adults.

Roses to Vance and Joyce Remick, not for closing the General Store Cafe in downtown Pittboro, but for opening it.

The Remicks launched the business about a decade ago, just off the traffic circle in the center of downtown Pittsboro. The cafe became a little bit of everything - a cozy and comfortable eatery famous for its burritos and its sensational chicken salad, an art gallery that highlighted the work of local artists, an entertainment venue that brought live bluegrass and jazz to the little Chatham County town. It was a symbol of the evolution of Chatham County into a home for artists, political progressives and small organic farmers.

Alas, the store's owners and investors launched a $1.4 million expansion in 2008 - just before the recession struck. That put the cafe in a financial hole it couldn't climb out of, and the partners eventually came to the difficult conclusion that closing was the only feasible option. It's a loss for Pittsboro and for everyone who loved the cafe.