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January 31-- This is the last year in the schoolhouse for veteran Vidalia educator Rosetta Summersett. She's retiring this year after more than 35 years in education, the last five of which have been spent as the assistant principal at J.R. Trippe Middle School. Before that, she taught seven years in Treutlen County and 23 years at Vidalia High School. She's says the biggest change she's seen in her career is the decline of the parent in the education of children. Mrs. Summersett also feels kids today need more supervision outside the classroom.
January 31-- When you watch the Superbowl Sunday, check the grass. As reported earlier, it's Georgia sod from Jennings Turf Farm based in Treutlen County. And when you attend Vidalia Indian football games this year, you'll see the same sod as that installed for Superbowl 39 in Jacksonville. Vidalia High School athletic director Chunk Reid reports the same Pennington Seed turf is being installed on the new football field on "The Reservation." Reid expects the sod to be laid in the next few weeks.
January 31-- Vidalia police stopped early last Friday morning to check on a man asleep behind the wheel of his car parked at the corner of Fourth and Jackson Streets in Vidalia. That started a four-mile police chase which ended in Montgomery County with no injuries and limited property damage. Officers say Marlon McLemore of Ailey faces multiple charges including DUI and possession of cocaine and marijuana.
January 29-- A group of volunteers headed by Ann Todd of Vidalia has begun planning for Toombs County's centennial celebration. The county was founded August 18, 1905 and Todd's committee is working with backing from the Toombs County commission to come up with events and activities between now and then to observe the county's 100th year. If you would like to be involved, call the Toombs County commissioner's office. The centennial theme is "Toombs County - Then, Today and Tomorrow."
January 29-- Vidalia businesswoman Marsha Temples is the new chairperson of the Toombs-Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce. She succeeds Allen Rice and assumed the job at the chamber's annual meeting last Thursday night. One of her goals is to improve communications among chamber members and in the community. She plans to initiate an on-line "Community Calendar" at the chamber to help various clubs and organizations minimize conflicts as they plan events for the public.
January 29-- Over 300 high students from 27 South Georgia schools were in Vidalia Friday for their annual region meeting and competition. Hank Oddi from Vidalia High School won first place in the FBLA competition with VHS chapter president Cameron Bridges placing second. Tyler George of VHS won first place in web design.
January 27-- The good news is that abused spouses have a place to go for help, the bad news is there are too many of them. "The Refuge" domestic violence shelter in Vidalia has been open for a little over six months, and chairperson Karen Brantley says they've already had over 800 crisis calls, served over 7,000 meals, and provided over 2,000 bed nights for women and children.
Most shelters provide a place to stay for only 30 days, however, Brantley says "The Refuge" has a goal of providing long-term assistance. "It takes more than a month to rebuild shattered lives," she says. The shelter can house up to 24 families at a time and is in close contact with local law enforcement officers who turn to the shelter to help domestic violence victims. Brantley urges women in danger to call "The Refuge" at 538-9936.
While the shelter has no religious affiliation, Brantley says she can only describe the results she's seen so far as "miracles."
January 26-- World War II veterans who helped find the remains of this area's Private Odell Sharpe in Belgium will attend Sharpe's military funeral Sunday afternoon in Montgomery County. Private Sharp's remains were found due to the efforts of the 99th Infantry Division's MIA Project headed by Vernon Swanson of Illinois. Swanson says he promised himself he would search for missing soldiers after a friend was killed during the Battle of the Bulge. According to Swanson, the MIA project owes much of its success to four residents of Belgium who actually search battle areas based on Army records which are researched and provided by Swanson and other vets of the 99th Division.
Private Sharpe was 19 years old when he died. Funeral services with full military honors will be held Sunday afternoon at two o'clock at Ronnie L. Stewart Family Funeral Service of Vidalia with burial at the Dead River Cemetery near Uvalda.
January 25-- Vidalia pilot David Lovins has lost a year-long court battle with the city of Vidalia. Lovins had turned down offers from the city to buy a hangar he uses at the Vidalia Regional Airport. Other hangar owners agreed to sell their hangars to the city when the city started efforts to improve airport facilities. At a November hearing before Judge Walter McMillan in Toombs County Superior Court, Lovinds said he wanted $98,000 for the hangar and legal expenses related to his court case. Monday Judge McMillan ruled that the hangar had to be removed from the airport at the owner's expense. If not removed by March 26, the hangar becomes city property, according to the judge's order.
January 25-- We should know by February 5th if the latest bid-opening for the one-way pairing project in Vidalia will result in a contract for the project. The state Department of Transportation opened bids January 21st and says it will take two weeks before a contract decision is made. A bid-opening on the project last October was thrown out when state officials said the $15.6 million dollar bid was too high.
January 25-- Governor Sonny Perdue has reappointed 88-year-old Jim L. Gillis, Jr. of Soperton to the State Forestry Commission. Gillis is currently serving as chairman of the commission.
January 25-- Southeastern Technical College in Vidalia is trying to make it easier for people to get a GED diploma. If you have a computer and access to the Internet, you can now get your high school diploma from Southeastern Tech. Tracey Adams of the school says on-line education will help people who have trouble attending on-campus classes because of childcare, transportation or work scheduling.
January 24-- A woman who replied to an email about anti-military attitudes at a Vidalia service station has herself become a target. Paige McDuffie says she was trying to correct some errors she saw in the email and got hate mail in return. Her business in downtown Vidalia was also "egged" over the weekend.
Meanwhile, Lance Corporal Caleb Harrison, the 19-year-old Marine who was refused service by an Indian female clerk at the downtown Vidalia BP station, disputes the owner's contention that the woman's reaction was a communications problem. Harrison says "there's no doubt in my mind" about the woman's reaction when she saw his Marine Corps ID card and said, "no serve, no serve." He reports he won't go back to the store, but says there's no place for things like the egging incident at McDuffie's store.
McDuffie, whose family has a long history of military service, is afraid the issue is dividing the community and is causing some to act more like terrorists than citizens of a free country.
January 21-- A man stopped at a State Patrol road check in Tattnall County Friday morning sped away and started a high speed police chase through Tattnall, Toombs and Evans counties. Sergeant Bill Lee says the rental car stopped at the road block and police asked the woman driver to exit the car while they checked the rental car agreement. At that point, the male occupant slid under the wheel and took off with officers in pursuit. In Reidsville, he eluded a state patrol car driven by Trooper Jay Williams which collided with a car driven by Tattnall County jailer Aaron Collins. Trooper Williams has a broken sternum and Collins suffered a broken leg.
The chase continued West through Tattnall County, into Toombs County and into Lyons and then back East out Highway 292 toward Collins. It ended in Evans County West of Bellville where the man lost control and overturned in a pond. Sergeant Lee says the man has a number of aliases and is on parole from the state of New York. He suffered two broken legs in the wreck and was taken to the Evans County hospital. The picture above is courtesy of Rhett Zorn whose car was almost hit by the man during the chase.
January 21-- A Toombs County man was flown to a Savannah hospital via LifeStar Thursday after a farm tractor overturned. The Toombs County Sheriff's Office reports John Brinson was pinned underneath the tractor when it flipped on the Bud Jordan Road in south Toombs County. Toombs County EMA personnel freed Brinson from the tractor.
January 21-- The appeal of former Vidalian Dr. Carl Drury in his murder-for-hire case has been turned down the the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals. Drury was convicted in February, 2002 on four counts of violating the federal murder-for-hire statute and one county of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. Drury hired a "hit man" who was actually an undercover ATF agent to kill his wife. He's currently serving a 17-year sentence in a federal prison.
January 20-- An email circulating in the Vidalia area claims a clerk at a local service station refused to sell coffee to a U.S. Marine. The Marine, Lance Corporal Caleb Harrison of Vidalia, has since returned to duty at Camp Lejuene, however, his father, Phillip Harrison says the incident happened Sunday, January 2nd at the BP Station at the corner of Jackson Street and Highway 280 downtown. He says the female clerk, of Indian descent, saw the Marine Corps logo on Caleb's wallet when he tried to pay for a cup of coffee and said "no service, no service" followed by comments about Marines and killing.
The owner of the station, N.R. Patel of Vidalia, believes the Indian woman's broken English caused a misunderstanding with Corporal Harrison. He says she's Hindu, not Muslim, and has no political agenda. Meanwhile, another U.S. soldier, Staff Sergeant Amy Lawler of Vidalia, says she had problems pumping gas at the station in December, but gave it little thought until she heard about the Harrison incident.
Mr. Patel has been in the U.S. over a dozen years and says he loves America and the clerk in question no longer works at the station. Phillip Harrison says his son has been back to the station following the incident and has had courteous service from other employees at the store. He also notes the email about the incident contains a couple of errors, i.e., his son has not yet served in Iraq and there were no other customers in the store when the incident with the clerk occurred.
January 19-- A veteran teacher is the Special Education Teacher of the Year in the Toombs County school system. Sabrina Campbell started teaching in 1980, and she's spent the last four years with special ed students at Toombs County High School. Currently, there are 113 students enrolled in the school's program. Just like with all students, Campbell says parents are an important part of the education team. She also says she gets extra satisfaction when her special ed students make progress in the classroom. According to school officials, special ed students make up nearly 20 percent of the students in Toombs County schools with 43 teachers and staff assigned to meet their needs.
January 18-- Toombs County continues to receive federal and state assistance in funding its new industrial park on U.S. Highway One north of Lyons. Governor Sonny Perdue led a delegation of state officials presenting "One Georgia Fund" checks Tuesday in Fitzgerald. Fund director Nancy Cobb says the tobacco settlement money is helping rural counties foster economic development. The $500,000 presentation to the Toombs County Development Authority will help it pay for the county's 100,000 square foot speculative building. Bill Mitchell of the Development Authority reports four manufacturing prospects have already expressed an interest in the building. He says the Authority has received almost $2 million in state and federal grants and low interest loans to help finance the park.
January 17-- Sixty years after he died in the Battle of the Bulge, a local soldier is coming home. Army records say that 19-year-old Private Odell Sharp died on Christmas Day, 1944, when his unit was hit by friendly anti-tank artillery fire in the Ardennes Forest near Elsenborn, Belgium. Had he lived, Private Sharp would have been 79 today. His younger brother is 74-year-old George Sharp who lives not far from Alston just inside the Toombs County line. The soldiers remains were found last September in what authorities presume was his foxhole. Sharp says a funeral with full military honors will be conducted for his brother at the Dead River Cemetery near Uvalda on Sunday, January 30 with Ronnie L. Stewart Family Funeral Service of Vidalia in charge of local arrangements. "After all these years, we finally have closure. This is wonderful," Sharpe said.
January 15-- A freshman at Toombs County High School is the Georgia winner of the annual Voice of Democracy essay contest sponsored by the VFW Auxiliary. Fourteen-year-old Mary Catherine Farrell says much of her inspiration to write the essay came from conversations with her late grandfather about his naval service in World War II. Auxiliary essay organizer Shirley Curl says this is the first time an area student has won the statewide contest, and she's excited about Mary Catherine's chances in national competition this March in Washington. The national winner receives a $25,000 scholarship from the VFW.
January 13-- If you're the parent of a student in middle school or high school, would you want to know every time your kid made an "F" on one of his school tests or assignments? A member of the Vidalia School Board wants schools to send a certified letter in such cases. Lisa Adams says too many parents don't know their kids are having academic problems until report cards come out, and "by then it's too late." Adams suggested at the school board's January meeting that the school board be proactive in trying to involve parents in their children's schooling.
Board chairman Bill Bedingfield questioned the cost in time and money of such a program, and school superintendent Dr. Tim Smith said it would probably mean hiring another employee to handle the paperwork. It was also noted the school's already have a program where concerned parents can get a weekly report each Friday on their student's school performance. Adams says if her idea saved only a few students from failure, it would be worth the investment. The board asked the superintendent to run the suggestion by school principals and report back.
The school board also voted to reimburse the Vidalia High School band boosters $11,000 for instruments and music which the club has bought for the band in the past. The money will help the band boosters reach their goal of $35,000 to buy new uniforms for the Indian marching band.
And school superintendent Smith also cautioned board members regarding state promises to increase school funding this year. He said there's a danger the promised two percent pay raise for teachers will be transferred from operating accounts and result in a net decrease to local school systems.
January 13-- The mayor of Higgston says the city will have to apply for and receive a federal or state grant before it can build a new fire and ambulance station. The fire department sent a request for bids to three area contractors late last year which said the winning bid would be announced December 31st. However, Mayor Debbie Henry said the city "was only seeking cost estimates" and does not yet have the money to fund the project. Bids ranged from a low of nearly $183,000 from J&P and Sons Construction to a high of nearly $310,000 from Van Page and Associates. No action was taken on the bids at the council's January 4th meeting.
January 11-- One of Lyon's oldest landmark hotels was destroyed by fire Tuesday night. Police Chief Ricky Newsome says his department got the call to the Elberta Hotel on U.S. One downtown about 8:30 and notified the Lyons Fire Department which responded immediately. Within an hour, the early 1900's two-story building began caving in and Mayor John Moore credited firemen with keeping the fire from spreading to other downtown buildings. Three people who rented rooms in the building escaped. In addition to apartments in the old hotel, Sager Tax Service and a paper store were in the building. Lyons Better Hometown manager Joy Lewis reports the building was in the process of renovation to improve economic development in downtown Lyons. There were no injuries and officials don't know how the fire started.
January 11-- A 20-year-old veteran of the Toombs County Emergency Management Agency is its new director. Lynn Moore was selected to succeed retired director Ronald Widener at the January meeting of the Toombs County commission. Moore says a core group of volunteers has been serving the EMA for years. In addition to attracting more EMA helpers, the new director is looking for state and federal grants to get new emergency equipment including a vehicle and communications equipment.
Toombs commissioners also appointed George Chapman and Ann Bedingfield of Vidalia to the county board of Family and Children's Services, and reappointed Sonny Odom to the Board of Tax Assessors. They also authorized commissioner Louie Powell to form a citizens advisory committee aimed at finding better ways of handling trash in Toombs County.
January 11-- A reward is being offered for information leading to the return of two antique tractors stolen from a farm shed off Highway 29 north of Higgston. Chris Braddy reports the Allis-Chalmers tractors, 1950 and 1959 models, were taken early last Friday morning and says a witness saw them being loaded on a black trailer. He's offering a $500 reward and asks you to call his cell, 293-3303, if you have seen two faded red tractors in your area.
January 9-- A woman whose hands were caught in a metal press escaped with no broken bones. Officials with the Lyons police department and Toombs County EMA say Rebecca Phillips was running a 75-ton press at Lyons Tool and Machine Friday when her hands were caught in the press. It took nearly an hour for rescuers to free the woman. They say x-rays revealed no broken bones in either of her hands.
January 9-- A Montgomery County woman is in the Toombs County jail in connection with the death of her husband. GBI reports say 55-year-old Sharon Wicker of Mount Vernon was arrested after she allegedly stabbed her husband, 48-year-old Leo Wicker, during a fight at their home at 101 Graham Lane in Mount Vernon.
January 9-- Lyons police are asking the public for help in finding a man who robbed the Fast Break convenience store at the intersection of Highway280 and U.S. One last Wednesday morning between seven and 7:30. They describe the holdup man as a black male, about six feet tall, 150 pounds, and wearing a black jacket with white stripes down the arms. He wore a black mask during the robbery. If you have information, call Lyons police at 526-3638.
January 9-- Tattnall County officials say they will take their time hiring a new county manager to succeed Betty Hall of Lyons. Hall was the chief clerk for the Toombs County commission before taking the county manager's job in Tattnall County in July, 2003. According to the Tattnall Journal, the county commission voted not to reappoint Hall to the job at their first meeting of the new year. Commissioner Daniel Shuman was quoted as saying a new manager will be hired sometime this year.
January 9-- More local governments seem to be favoring non-partisan elections for local officials. Late last year the Laurens County Commission passed a resolution that the county sheriff be elected on a non-partisan basis. This means local candidates do not have to be affiliated with any political party, i.e., Republican, Democrat, etc.
At their first meeting of the new year, the Soperton News reports Treutlen County commissioners okayed a resolution for all county officers to run without declaring a party affiliation. This would allow voters to vote for the candidate of their choice, something not always possible in primary elections where voters were prohibited from voting more than one party ballot.
January 6-- When you watch the Super Bowl February 6th in Jacksonville's Alltel Stadium, check the grass on the field. The sod was raised by Phillip Jennings of Soperton on one of his 13 turf farms in east Georgia. Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue and TV satellite trucks from as far away as Jacksonville gathered on Jenning's turf farm near the small Washington County town of Riddleville Thursday. Governor Perdue mowed the first cut of sod which will provide the footing for NFL players in the Super Bowl. Jennings taught high school agriculture for 15 years before deciding to pursue turf farming in 1998. Now his company ships Georgia turf worldwide. Among those at the Thursday turf-cutting, NFL turf expert George Toma who said the turf cultivated by Jennings more than meets NFL specs and is ready for play. Toma says the sod will be cut in strips and transported to Jacksonville for the big game.
January 4-- Montgomery County commissioners have elected District 5 commissioner Charles Truett, Jr. of Uvalda to serve as the commission's chairman. Truett is a newly elected commissioner and will be assisted by incumbent District 3 commissioner Brandon Braddy who was elected vice-chairman.
Three of the five commissioners are new to the job and much of their first monthly meeting Tuesday was spent discussing procedures and agreeing they need to learn more about county road maintenance and personnel policies. They plan to meet again January 22nd for an orientation on the county road department.
The commission agreed to buy new computer software for the tax commissioner, magistrate and probate judge, reappointed lawyer Mackie Bryant as county attorney, and heard a report from former county manager Keith Hamilton that the county is in stable financial condition as it starts the new year. Over 30 applicants have applied for Hamilton's old job and chairman Truett says he hopes a new county manager will be hired within a month.
January 4-- The Southern Company shut down one of its nuclear reactors Monday night to repair a leak in a containment building. Company spokesman Steve Higgenbottom said it is a planned outage in a non-radioactive area of the plant and there's no cause for public alarm.
January 2-- A six-months investigation has resulted in the arrest of four people whom police are charging with drug offenses, and cruelty to children and animals. Toombs County Sheriff Junior Kight says an early-morning raid was made by deputies, GBI, drug and ATF agents at 227 Reedy Creek Circle in north Toombs County.
Sheriff Kight says drugs with an estimated street value of $150,000 were seized and officers found two children in the drug den plus pits bulls chained outside in need of emergency medical treatment. Firearms and $6,000 in cash were also confiscated. Police report 26-year-old Paul Harden and 18-year-old Toshia McCloon were living in the trailer. Also arrested were 25-year-old James Edwards of Toombs County and 29-year-old Andrew Jones of Daytona Beach. The sheriff says numerous citizen complaints sparked the investigation. The two children were placed in the care of the Toombs County Department of Family and Children Services.
January 2-- Police are urging area residents to check their mailboxes and report any suspicious contents. Sheriff Junior Kight says an unexploded PVC pipe containing gunpowder was found in a mailbox in south Toombs County. He says Vidalia police also questioned several juveniles in the city regarding the placement of plastic containers containing volatile cleaning agent in mail boxes in the city. Some mail boxes were damaged by small explosions, according to the sheriff. Such devices are illegal and the ATF and the GBI are investigating.
January 2-- Nine people died on Georgia highways during the New Year's holiday weekend. However, the Georgia State Patrol in Reidsville reports no traffic deaths in our area. Post troopers investigated 13 accidents during the period.
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(A Note to Readers: The items on these pages are summaries of local radio news stories aired on the three radio stations operated by Vidalia Communications Corporation, i.e., WVOP, 970AM; WTCQ-FM, 98Q at 97.7 mhz; and WYUM-FM, Sweet Onion Country, at 101.7FM. Complete reports are aired near the bottom of almost every hour on these stations.)
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January 31
Veteran Educator Retiring
January 31
VHS Gets Super-Sod
January 31
Sleeping Drunk Apprehended
January 29
Toombs Centennial Planning
Temples is New Chamber Chairperson
Region FBLA Meets in Vidalia
January 27
"The Refuge" Shelter Swamped
January 26
Veterans Will Attend Sharpe Funeral
Private Odell Sharpe January 25
Court Orders Hangar Moved
DOT Opens One-Way Pairing Bids
Governor Reappoints Gillis
STC Offering GED On-Line
January 24
BP, Part 2
January 21
Three-County Chase Ends in Pond
Photographer: Rhett Zorn Tractor Overturns on Man
Drury Appeal Denied
January 20
Email Claims Clerk Anti-American
January 19
Special Ed Teacher of Year
January 18
One-Georgia Loan to Toombs County
January 17
Odell Sharp is Coming Home
January 15
Toombs Student Wins State Award
January 13
School Board Member Wants Parents Notified
January 13
Higgston Council Seeking New Fire Station
January 11
Fire Destroys Lyons Landmark
Moore Named EMA Director
Reward for Tractors
January 9
Lucky Lady
Montgomery County Stabbing Death
Lyons Police Look for Robber
Tattnall Will Hire New County Manager
Treutlen Commissioners Endorse Non-Partisan County Officials
January 6
Georgia Sod to Super Bowl
January 4
Montgomery Chairman Elected
Plant Hatch Reactor Shut Down
January 2
Drug, Child and Animal Abuse
Check Your Mailbox
Fatality Free Weekend in Area
References
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URL: http://toombs.150m.com/news/radio/2005/January.htm Updated: Tuesday, February 01, 2005. Top