Gardnerville couple makes magazine cover

Last summer when Ding Medic owners Dawn and Rick Ackerson were first contacted by Auto Reconditioning magazine for an article, Dawn thought that, at most, it would be an item.

"They contacted a local photographer who came out and took the photo, we did some phone interviews and talked back and forth," she said. "I was expecting a story inside."

What they weren't expecting was to be on the cover of a trade magazine distributed in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

"I wasn't expecting the cover and I wasn't expecting a three-page spread," Dawn said. "They sent me 12 of the magazines. This is huge for us."

Former R-C photographer Belinda Grant took the cover picture and the couple included photos of Rick working for the spread.

The article describes how the Ackersons started in their home in 2005 and grew to a company that employs one full-time and four part-time workers.

The couple moved to Carson Valley in July 2004.

Ding Medic repairs windshields, plastic bumpers, upholstery, provides paint protection, touch-up and dent enhancement inside of a 60-mile radius of Douglas County.

For more information, visit www.thedingmedic.com or 783-1040.

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Carson Valley Girl Scouts are gathering school supplies to send to Iraqi and Afghan children. Troop No. 633 is participating in Operation Iraqi Children to collect new and used school supplies.

The scouts are gathering pretty specific items to produce a school supply kit consisting of a blunt pair of scissors, a ruler with metric makings, a dozen pencils, a pencil sharpener, a large eraser, a box of colored pencils, package of paper, a composition book, three folders and a zippered pencil bag.

A donation box has been set up in Piñon Hills Elementary School and the girls are using some of the proceeds from their cookie sales to purchase items for the kits.

Sue Carnes is one of the two people involved in the project. Stuffed animals, jump ropes, flying disks and sports balls and a pump may also be donated.

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I'm asked pretty regularly how I decide which letters to the editor I run.

I've had the question a couple of times over the last couple of weeks. The implication, though no one has come out and said it, is that I shred letters from anyone other than the folks on the slower side of the growth debate.

Of course if that were true, I wouldn't be publishing the above guest opinion by Keith Ruben or the occasional piece by Don Miner or Lynn Hettrick.

The fact is I rarely see a letter from someone who is for growth or at least opposes the Sustainable Growth Initiative. When I've received them, I've generally printed them.

One of folks asking the question, a longtime reader, had a pretty good point when he said that he looks at the bottom to see who wrote the letter before he decides to read it.

That's one of the reasons to price of admission into the letters column is a name and residence. While I think it's important everyone get a chance to say what they need to within proper limits, not everyone wants to listen and that's OK.

Those limits are pretty simple. We'll print two letters a month from a single writer and those letters should be no longer than 500 words. In comparison, the editorial I prepare to reflect the newspaper's opinion averages fewer than 300 words.

We do have some regulars among letter writers and they tend to be slow growthers. We also have regular thank-you letter writers and others who write on national politics.

There are letters and passages in letters that I won't print. My personal favorites are letter writing campaigns where people just put their names on a line and fax it off. People, you are supposed to retype the letter. Then at least you have a chance of getting the first one by me. I also don't take kindly to someone putting their name on spam and sending that in as their own opinion.

At what point do I decide that everything that needs to be said on an issue has been said?

I don't believe that point exists. As long as people are writing their own material and are willing to sign their name, then I'm willing to print it. If readers decide they've had enough, then they don't have to read it.

-- Kurt Hildebrand is editor of The Record-Courier. Reach him at khildebrand@recordcourier.com or 782-5121.