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In the Mood for Food?

What could be better than gourmet coffee‚ ice cream and live music? You can get all three and more at No Beans About It‚ a coffee bar/restaurant/entertainment venue in downtown Littleton.

Owners Jack and Kathy Lafoon opened No Beans About It as a coffee and ice-cream shop but have recently expanded to an adjacent space called Main Street Station.

The couple offers a nightly dinner special Thursday through Saturday in the off-season and more often during the summer‚ when more people are enjoying nearby Lake Gaston.

Specials can range from smoked tuna and Cornish hens to lamb shank and grilled swordfish.

“People who come from the big cities have all the conveniences they want‚” Jack Lafoon says. “Folks here want them too‚ but it’s a little hard to make a living providing them‚ so we have to dictate what we serve.”

No Beans About It also offers breakfast items such as biscuits and omelets‚ and features a daily lunch special and sandwiches. The cafe also regularly features comedians and live music.

A Centennial Celebration

The KapStone Kraft Paper Corp. has been an important member of the Roanoke Valley community for 100 years.

Founded in October 1907‚ the mill was the first in the nation to manufacture Kraft pulp using a new pulping process imported from Europe.

“We are very proud of our rich history in the Roanoke Valley‚” says Anitra J. Collins‚ vice president of mill operations.

In 2006‚ the mill produced 46‚000 tons of Kraft liner and 360‚000 tons of Kraft paper‚ used in bags for cement‚ charcoal‚ flour‚ pet food‚ fast food and grocery stores‚ and for shinglewrap and corrugated boxes.

The mill‚ which was acquired by KapStone Paper and Packaging Corp. in 2007‚ employs 497 and occupies about 1‚600 acres.

In 2006‚ the company and its employees gave back more than $140‚000 to the community through various contributions and employee campaigns for United Way and Consolidated Charities.

Water, Water Everywhere

The 25‚000 people served by the Roanoke Rapids Sanitary District can feel good about their water supply and wastewater treatment.

“We not only meet state and EPA requirements‚ we exceed them‚” says Chief Executive Officer Dan Brown. “We’ve always had good water‚ and we get good marks for site reviews and lab results.”

The primary water supply is Roanoke Rapids Lake‚ with additional emergency intakes from the Roanoke River.

The water treatment plant has a capacity of 10 million gallons per day but typically pumps 4.5 to 5 million gallons per day through more than 8‚500 service connections.

Likewise‚ the wastewater treatment plant has a design capacity of 8.34 million gallons per day but typically treats 3.4 to 4 million gallons‚ coming from about 129 miles of pipes. The plant has an emergency generator large enough to power the entire plant in the event of a power loss.

A Powerful Foundation

Sure‚ Dominion North Carolina Power lights up the valley‚ but the company also brightens the lives of area residents in numerous other ways.

Through its Dominion Foundation‚ the power supplier supports a wide range of environmental‚ educational‚ cultural‚ community development and health and human services in the Roanoke Valley.

Over its entire service area‚ the Dominion Foundation contributes more than $10 million annually.

In the Roanoke Valley‚ the largest gift to date has been $150‚000 for Phase II of development work for the Roanoke Canal Trail‚ which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Dominion employees have also pitched in with volunteer work along the trail‚ according to Bryant Brooks‚ senior manager for state and local affairs.

“We also support a lot of smaller projects every year‚” Brooks says. These include the Sylvan Heights Waterfowl Center‚ a refuge for 170 bird species that recently completed a new Waterfowl Park & Eco-Center‚ and other projects related to science‚ math‚ the environment and technology.

They Reeled in a Winner

It’s hard to believe that a frog-shaped fishing lure would lead to a multimillion-dollar company.

But that was Flambeau’s first product back in 1947 and today‚ Flambeau Products Corp. is a $350 million company with several locations.

The branch in Weldon manufactures plastic blow-molded products‚ ranging from gas tanks for lawn mowers to tool kits and cases for chain saws.

This injection-molding process‚ named for the air that’s blown in like a balloon‚ keeps around 150 employees busy on three shifts at a 123‚200-square-foot plant.

Built in 1975 and formerly owned by W.R. Grace‚ it’s been part of the Wisconsin-based Flambeau Products since 1994.

“They’ve [the owners] built a $350 million company out of it‚” says Operations Director David Burke. “The average person never sees what we make because it’s under the dashboards of cars or under the hoods of lawn mowers.”

The Weldon facility’s outlet store features products made at all eight Flambeau locations. These range from tackle boxes and decoys to realistic lawn wildlife.

Story by Jim Elliot
Photo by Ian Curcio

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