The closure of  Pearisburg restaurant The Bank Food and Drink is temporary, owner Linda Hayes said Tuesday.

The restaurant closed May 31 after chef Cunninghame West accepted a job as executive chef over two new restaurants in Houston, Hayes said.

"It was an opportunity he could not turn down and we're excited for him," she said. "As a result, that meant he was not able to complete the lease. But we certainly understood, and you can't deny someone that opportunity."

The restaurant should reopen under new management before the end of the month, Hayes said.

In the meantime, the restaurant is being painted and the kitchen is getting some new equipment, she said.

The Hayeses bought the 100-year-old building and renovated it, opening the restaurant in 2005. They also own The Inn at Riverbend in Giles County.

-- Amy Matzke-Fawcett

People needed to help in Blacksburg

Volunteers of all kinds are needed in the town of Blacksburg this summer.

The Celebration Chorus is looking for singers to perform for the town’s Fourth of July festivities. The group, now in its 20th year, performs with the Blacksburg Community Band and Blacksburg Community Strings.

Sign-up sheets and rehearsal schedules are in the Blacksburg Community Center and Blacksburg parks and recreation office. For more information, contact Dean Crane, the town’s parks and recreation director, at 961-1135 or Ed Schwartz, director of the community band, at 231-4975 or 808-6102.

Volunteers are also needed to work during the town’s annual Steppin’ Out festival set for Aug. 7-8. Work available includes selling T-shirts, setting up booths, running errands and general cleanup work.

For more information, call Laureen Blakemore of the Downtown Merchants of Blacksburg, at 951-0454.

U.S. Forest Servic eseeks applications

The U.S. Forest Service is looking for people interested in filling four positions on the 11-member Southern Region Recreation Resource Advisory Committee.
The committee provides recommendations on recreation fees to the agency for National Forest System lands on the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests in Virginia, West Virginia and Kentucky and across the southern region.

Nominations for the three-year positions will be accepted through July 31 One member will be selected to represent each of the following interests: wildlife viewing/visiting interpretive sites, non-motorized recreation, local environmental groups and tourism official representing the state.

For more information, see www.fs.fed.us/passespermits/rrac.shtml or call Caroline Mitchell, (501) 321-5318.

Food box orders being taken today
Food box orders are being taken from 4 to 6 p.m. today at Radford Chrisitan Church for the Outreach Food Ministry, a nonprofit program open to everyone.
Pickup is Friday. For more information, contact 577-2267 or outreachfoodministry.com.

— The Roanoke Times