Wilmington, NC News

If you want to help those who were displaced by the recent wildfires at Myrtle Beach, a special fund has been set up at the Horry State Bank.

A group of residents living in the Barefoot Resort Area formed the account for neighbors and friends who have been displaced.

If you want to donate to the Barefoot residents’ fire fund, you can mail a check made out to the fund to: 3100 Marsh Glen Drive, North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina 29582.

If you are in need for a visit to the dentist, but can not afford it, here is your chance to get some free care.

UNCW pre-dental students and dental professionals spent the day setting up for a free clinic that will be held Friday and Saturday. The clinic will provide cleanings, fillings, and extractions to children and adults who can not afford them or do not have dental insurance.

The pre-dental students are happy to help those in need, while getting the experience. “You don’t get the opportunity much to come and actually assist,” said Cliff Wilson. “You get to learn from the dentists, too, that come out here. So it’s good hands on experience you don’t usually get.”

The free dental clinic will be at Wesley Memorial United Methodist Church at 1401 South College Road. Registration begins at 7:00 a.m. both days and patients will be seen on a first come, first served basis.

It takes some hard work to do what a group of area guys have done; they took a bad situation, getting laid off, and turned it into cash, by doing odd jobs for folks around town.

No job is too small or too big, especially when you are trying to make a living. That’s the sales pitch behind the business of doing odd jobs. With a simple ad, and a little word of mouth, doing odd jobs has been keeping Paul Whitehouse and John Garrelli busy.

Thursday’s job was installing a chain link fence.

The business plan is simple, “Trying to save people money and make a living,” Whitehouse stated.

Whitehouse lost his job a couple months ago along with his friend John Garrelli, so they decided to go into business together.

“We do good quality work and cheap, and the economy is really bad right now, and we got to do what we got to do,” Garrelli said.

Thursday it was a fence, tomorrow it could be moving furniture; that’s a day in the life of doing odd jobs.

Paul said they’ve even done jobs for as little as a dollar. While their sign does say P’s Odd Jobs, sometime the requests they get are a little odd-er than expected. “We got a phone call and the lady just needed help hanging pictures. We didn’t charge her anything we just went and helped.”

This is third time they have been hired for a job on this property. They obviously have a satisfied customer.

“We’ve saved some money because I checked with a fence company, so I’m pleased it has saved me some money,” said Marie McKeithan.

The crew of odd jobs consider themselves as guys at the bottom just trying find their way back to the top. These guys don’t have a business license for odd jobs, though they are certified in their own trades.

WWAY spoke with a representative from the Better Business Bureau who says there could be a risk involved in hiring someone who is not licensed and insured. She recommends asking for references from past customers, and considers getting something in writing

Living at the coast, most of us know the joys of being outside in the sunshine. But we don’t always remember how important it is to slather on the sunscreen.

“My best friend was 23 when she passed away two weeks ago from melanoma, skin cancer. She was 17 when she was first diagnosed, but 23 when she passed away,” said Jenn Corson.

Jennifer Shoe had a small discolored mole on her chest that rapidly developed into skin cancer. She, like many teens, frequented tanning beds in high school. Surgical Oncologist Dr. Kotwall said, “For young women, in their twenties to 35, unfortunately, it’s one of the leading causes of cancer deaths.”

The problem is not limited to women. “All my life, I spent a lot of time at the beach, and I’d wear sunscreens but I’d wear like 10, sometimes nothing at all, just the oil and try to tan,” said skin cancer survivor Thomas Heffernan. “And the thing was we had to have a tan, it’s the summertime, you have to look good when you go to the beach or when you go to the pool. I probably was my own worst enemy.”

Last year, a mole under Thomas’ arm turned out to be stage four skin cancer. But he was fortunate, after two surgeries and treatment, he was pronounced cancer free.

Skin cancer is the most common type of cancer in the US, striking one million Americans each year. Some people think SPF 4 is enough, but doctors disagree. They say you need to use at least SPF 30, and the key is to reapply every couple of hours.

Doctor Kotwall says skin cancer is very treatable if it is caught early on. He says keep an eye on moles that have a dark center, irregular border, or that change over time. If it looks abnormal, get it checked out. “Listen to your spouse, or your girlfriend or boyfriend, and if they see something that’s different and they keep nagging you, they’re doing it to help you, and then go see somebody,” said Kotwall.

Some like Thomas are lucky, but as a cancer survivor there is one lesson learned. “Wear some sunscreen. I can say that now, but I didn’t do it when I was younger. But I wish I had,” Heffernan said.

Corson said, “She’s no longer with us because of it. It’s really important to wear your sunscreen, just plain and simple. Silly as that sounds, as much as you hear it and as often as you hear it, it’s so important.”

Dermatologists say a good sunscreen contains zinc oxide or titanium dioxide as its main ingredient. They also recommend wearing a hat and sunglasses, and staying out of the sun between 10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m., when the sun’s rays are at their strongest.