Tuesday, Feb. 12, 2019
Tifton, Georgia
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HAROLD HARPER
DIES – TIFTON'S
'MR. MAIN STREET'
LED THE REBIRTH OF DOWNTOWN TIFTON
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By FRANK SAYLES JR.
Tifton Grapevine
With the death
Tuesday
of
Harold G. Harper Sr.
, Tifton lost a
true visionary
whose impact on
Downtown Tifton
will be felt for
decades
to come.
Harper
, 89, died peacefully at his residence. He was
working
up to the end,
developing
into
apartments
the
second
of the old
twin-brick warehouse buildings
on Tift Avenue.
He had already
developed
the
other twin-brick building
into
loft apartments
and a
restaurant
.
I
n the early
1980s
when
Downtown Tifton
was
declining
as many businesses had fled to the mall, to shopping centers and to be near the Interstate,
Harper
began
rehabilitating historic buildings
in the
downtown
district. In
1982
, he
restored
the former
Wilton Hotel
into the
Wilton Arms Apartments
.
But his most
ambitious project
was
restoring
the once-grand, decaying
Myon Hotel
. Through a
partnership
with the
city
in
1984-86
, the
Myon
was
restored
into
Tifton City Hall
, private
apartments
and
retail
space. The Myon is the
anchor
of
downtown
Tifton and
helped spur
other
restoration
and
development
.
Harper continued
redeveloping
downtown historic properties,
including the
old Union Depot
into unique and well-appointed loft apartments as well as
The Avenue
apartment building on Tift Avenue.
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"I don't know how you
capture the spirit
of a man like
Harold Harper
in a sentence or two. He
loved Tifton
and was the
catalyst
for the
success
that changed
Downton Tifton
for the better, said Mayor
Julie Smith
.
"Even at
89
years old he continued to
work every day
, and you can't go anywhere in town that you don't see the
results
of
his vision
. I
loved him
with all my heart. He was a
dear friend
. I'd imagine that right now he's in
Heaven
planning to
renovate
something that will be
spectacular
when it's complete," the
mayor
said.
"He will be
greatly missed
. We keep his family in our prayers."
During his more than
35
years of tireless work
rehabilitating downtown
buildings, Harper received
numerous awards
and
recognitions
, among them the Georgia Downtown Association Award for
Excellence in Design
, the
Governor's Community Development Award
, the Tifton-Tift County Chamber of Commerce's
John Hunt Entrepreneur of the Year Award
and the Chamber's
"Wall of Fame"
designation, the renaming of Tifton's
First Street
to
Harold Harper Way
and the
Georgia Cities Foundation's Renaissance Award
recognizing Harper for making a "
significant contribution
to the
revitalization
" of
Downtown Tifton
.
"Without a
viable downtown
, you're not going to have that much of a
community
,"
Harper
told city officials from across
Georgia
when receiving the latter award in
Savannah
.
The
funeral
will be at
11 a.m. Friday
in the Chapel of Albritton Funeral Directors.
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VIDEO:
The Georgia Cities Foundation made this video about Harper when he received the organization's Renaissance Award in 2016.
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S.GA. HOME SHOW A SUCCESS
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By BONNIE SAYLES
Tifton Grapevine
The second annual
South Georgia Home Showcase
, with close to
1,000
attendees, was “wonderful,” said
Jay Short
, CEO of
Short & Paul Supply Co.
about the event
Tuesday
, Feb. 12, at the
UGA Tifton Campus Conference Center
.
Seventy-three booths, representing
120
manufacturing companies, showcased the
products
and
services
available throughout our region. The event was co-sponsored by
Conger LP Gas
and
Short & Paulk
.
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“We go to shows all over the country, and we can’t show everything we are able to offer our clients through our stores,”
Short
said. Here at the home show, he said, “we are bringing the shows we go to back home to our
community
.”
Vendors showcased gas logs, refrigerators, grills, washing machines, doors, windows, generators, the wide variety of roofing shingles available to the public, and more. Cooking, gardening and decorating
demonstrations
were ongoing.
“New products, new applications and new installation methods” were showcased, Short said.
Also, the event provided
continuing education classes
to
contractors
, who are required to keep their certifications up to date.
“We provided
16
continuing education classes that our contractors attended,” Short said. The two charities that benefited from the event where linked to the idea of
building
and
education
.
The $10 admission charge at the door went to the
capital campaign building fund
of
Ruth’s Cottage
domestic violence shelter. Donations at the
concessions
table went to
Literacy Volunteers of Tifton-Tift County
, which provides
tutoring
for adults to take the
GED
exams.
“We’re tied in both with education and building. That’s where
literacy
comes in, to educate our
workforce
,” Short said. “Everyone who comes here is
investing
in our community. We’re doing this to help meet some needs in the community.”
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TIFT BOE SETS
SCHOOL CALENDARS
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The
Tift County Board of Education
on
Tuesday night
approved the
school calendars
for both the
2019-2020
and the
2020-2021
school years.
For
next school year
, classes begin this
Aug. 5
, and that school year ends
May 22, 2020.
Copies
of the
calendar
are available
Here!
The
school system
said the dates are being added to the
Google calendar
that is located on this same page.
Parents
and
students
may subscribe to the Google calendar to automatically get the dates added to their calendar.
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TIFT COUNTY RELAY FOR LIFE
SEEK PAGEANT CONTESTANTS
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Relay For Life of Tift County
is seeking
female contestants
to participate in the
Relay For Life of Tift County Pageant
to be held
March 9
at
Southern Regional Technical College
in Tifton.
Age
groups fall into
two-year categories
ranging from
0-23
years of age. The entry fee is
$50
with additional categories for
$10
. All
proceeds
will be donated to the
America Cancer Society.
Registration
forms and applications must be received by
March 2
. All participants will receive a
certificate
. Optional winners will receive a
medal
. All runners up will receive an engraved tray.
The
queens
in each age group will be expected to appear at the
Tift Relay for Life
at the
E.B. Hamilton Complex
on
April 26
. They will all be recognized on stage.
Queens
are also expected to be in the
Tifton Christmas parade
, which is the
first Saturday
in
December
.
“It’s such a phenomenal experience to be able to compete and to represent such a wonderful organization,” said
Isabella Connor
, reigning
Ms. Relay For Life of Tift County.
“Being able to be a part of the
Relay For Life
community is an experience that I would recommend to anyone.”
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CAST READY FOR 'THE TEMPEST'
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The
cast
has been set, and
rehearsals
are underway for the
Baldwin Players
’ spring production of
“The Tempest”
on
March 7-9
at
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College
.
Dr.
Brian Ray
, director of the Baldwin Players, said “
The Tempest
” is sure to bring
Howard Auditorium
to life during this performance.
“Filled with
magic
, hidden
powers
and
supernatural
beings, this
Shakespearean
performance will send the audience’s imagination on a spiraling journey through the sands of a remote island,”
Ray
said. “The plot features
Prospero
, a sorcerer, and
Antonio
, his evil brother, in a conniving performance.”
Prospero will be played by
Peter Pinnow
from
Tifton
.
Caroline Kirkland
, a biology major from
Tifton
, will star as Miranda.
Alan Milton
from
Tifton
will be featured as Alonso; and
Luke Hillman
, a history and government major from
Sparks
, will star as Caliban.
Corey Douglas
, a student from
Sylvester
aiming for his associate of fine arts degree in instrumental music, will play the role of Antonio. Sebastian will be played by
Jeffrey Murray
, a theater major from
Camilla;
and
Hannah Moseley
, an agricultural communication major from
Cochran
, will star as Ariel. A recent graduate of ABAC,
Ty Gore
from
Tifton
, will play Ferdinand.
Craig Wells
from
Tifton
will play Gonzalo, and
Angel Rewis
, a history and modern culture major from
Homerville
, will play the role of Stephano.
Hayli Ary
, a nursing major from
Valdosta
, will be featured as Trinculo; and Boatswain will be played by
Joshua Rogers
from
Tifton
.
Tickets
are available at
$10
per person at the door. Admission for students, faculty and staff is
free
with a valid
ABAC ID
. For information, contact
Ray
at
bray@abac.edu
or at
229-391-4969
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BEAUTY SPOTS OF THE MONTH
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•••••••••••••••••••••••••••
The
Keep Tift Beautiful
organization is recognizing
Jane Campbell
at
820 Baldwin Drive
,
Tifton, as the residential
Beauty Spot of the Month.
Synovus Bank
at
218 Love Ave.
is this month's commercial
Beauty Spot
.
••••••••••••••••••••••••
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WOMAN'S CLUB HEARS ABOUT HOLY LAND, CREATES SCHOLARSHIP
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The
Tifton 20th Century Library Club
(Tifton Woman’s Club)
January
meeting included a program on
Israel
and the
creation
of a
special scholarship
.
Debbie Thompson
recently returned from a
10-day
trip to the
Holy Land
and shared her experiences.
Thompson
showed
pictures
of her and her husband being
baptized
in the
Jordan River
and a
map
of the region.
During the business session, the club
established
an
ABAC scholarship
to
honor
two long-serving members –
Irene Blalock
and
Harriet Herring
. They have served the woman’s club for
50
years, and the club wanted to show their
appreciation
for their service.
The
Blalock/Herring Scholarship
will be given
annually
to a
high school senior
planning to attend
ABAC
. The scholarship will be in addition to the
Whiddon/Bargeron Scholarship
already in place by the club for a
high school senior
.
Club members also worked on
No-Sew blankets
as a service project.
Tifton 20th Century Library Club
meets at
3 p.m.
on the
second Tuesday
of each month at
Leroy Rogers Senior Center
. For information, contact Membership Chairman Genie McCook,
geniemccook68@yahoo.com
; or President
Shirene Daniell
,
shirenedaniell@gmail.com
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Tifton Grapevine
e-published every Tuesday and Friday
Frank Sayles Jr.
Editor & Publisher
Bonnie Sayles
Managing Editor
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A Service of
Sayles Unlimited Marketing LLC
, Tifton, Georgia
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