Local

So often foster parents don't get the recognition they deserve for their contributions to children who have been taken out of traumatic situations, but that wasn't the case May 15.

At Etta's Kitchen in Lancaster, the local S.C. Department of Social Services office showed its foster parents how much they're appreciated with a banquet.

DSS takes children taken out of abusive or neglect situations as deemed by the courts.

The children are then placed into the foster program for placement in a nurturing environment with qualified foster parents.

A slumping economy and changes in state law have affected how money will be allocated within the local school district.

The Lancaster County school board took its first look at the proposed 2008-09 budget Tuesday night.

District finance director Tony Walker told the board that cuts will have to be made to balance the budget, which lists revenue at just over $77 million. Expenditures in the proposed budget exceed revenue by more than $1.3 million.

You may be enjoying a long weekend for Memorial Day, but the S.C. Highway Patrol and other law enforcement agencies will have extra officers on the roads.

The Memorial Day weekend is considered the unofficial start of the summer vacation season.

It also kicks off what the Highway Patrol calls the 100 Deadly Days of Summer, as traffic deaths often go up during the summer, with more people traveling to vacation destinations between Memorial Day and Labor Day.

INDIAN LAND Opening Senior Helpers is Seth Zamek's way of giving back, he said.

When his mother-in-law suffered a broken hip after a fall, the family needed a professional caregiver, Zamek said.

The experience left such an impression on Zamek and his wife, Jennie, that they decided to open their own Senior Helpers caregiving franchise after Jennie's mother died.

Senior Helpers offers companion and personal in-home health-care services, primarily for the elderly, that range from one-hour to 24-hour care, Zamek said.