Friday, Aug. 9, 2019
Tifton, Georgia
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ABAC READIES
FOR BIG YEAR
CAMPUS HOUSING FULL; CLASSES TO START TUESDAY
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With
fall semester classes beginning next
Tuesday,
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College approaches the 2019-20 academic year with
residence halls jammed to
capacity and
more students
studying to be
nurses and
agricultural education teachers.
Dr.
Chris Kinsey
, residence life director, took a few moments from
freshman move-in
day
on Thursday afternoon to confirm that
ABAC Place
and
ABAC Lakeside
are at
capacity
.
“We are
completely full
,” Kinsey said as parents and new students enjoyed the helping hands of ABAC students, faculty and staff during the move-in process. “That puts us at
1,322
students
living on campus
this fall. We could have a few who do not show but we’ll have some other students ready to take those rooms. It has been a
big year
for
housing
.”
And
more students are
expected in the
nursing program this
semester.
“Even with
3.1 million
registered nurses and
240,000
nurse practitioners, there is a continued
shortage
of
nurses
,” said Dr.
Jaibun Earp
, dean of the School of Nursing and Health Sciences. “A
nurse
can
go anywhere
in the world and find a nursing position. It’s a very
demanding
profession but also a very
rewarding profession
.”
Another program that will
experience growth
is
agricultural education
. The program had
180
students in
2018
and expects
205
students this fall. At the ABAC commencement ceremony in
May
, a total of
26
ag ed students graduated with their bachelor’s degree, the
highest number
of
agricultural education graduates
of any college or university in the
Southeast
.
ABAC
experienced a
record enrollment
last year with
4,291
students from
30
countries,
18
states, and
155
of Georgia’s
159
counties.
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SAYLES ANNOUNCES
RE-ELECTION CANDIDACY FOR CITY COUNCIL
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Frank Sayles Jr.
of
Tifton
is announcing his
candidacy
for
re-election
to represent
District Four
on
Tifton City Council
.
"Our
city
has
accomplished
a
lot
in the past three-and-a-half years, and there’s
much more to be done
,"
Sayles
said. "I would be
honored
to again
represent
our
citizens
as we help
Tifton grow
while
maintaining
our
quality of life
."
Sayles
said the
City Council
has been
tackling
several
longstanding issues
, such as improving
infrastructure
.
"
Improvement
takes time, and we must keep
making progress
. I am especially
proud
that we were finally
able to repave 16th Street
and are
now upgrading
the
water lines
and
repaving Chesnutt Avenue
,”
Sayles
said.
“We have also made
major improvements
to
Fulwood Park
, including
adding
a
dog park
and
walking trail
.”
Sayles
has
extensive involvement
in the
community
, currently serving as
vice chairman
of the
Tifton Downtown Development Authority
. He is the immediate
past chairman
and a
founding member
of the
Tifton-Tift County Public Library Foundation
.
He is on the
board
and is a
past president
of the
Tifton-Tift County Foundation for Educational Excellence
; has
served
on the board of the
United Way of South Central Georgia
, where he has been
president
and
campaign chairman
; is a member of the
Tifton Rotary Club
, where he is a
past president
; and has served
two terms
as
president
of the
Tiftarea YMCA
.
He has been
vice chairman
of the
Tifton-Tift County Chamber of Commerce
; has served as
secretary
of the
Tifton Merchants Association
; and has spent several years on the
steering committee
for
Tifton's Hometown Holidays Christmas Celebration.
Sayles
currently
operates
a
marketing
and
communications
business. He previously
managed
an
assisted living facility
in
Tifton
, previously spent
12
years as
publisher
of
The Tifton Gazette
and has served as an
editor, reporter
and
newspaper executive
at papers in
Valdosta
and
Dalton, Ga.
; in
Florence
and
Charleston, S.C.
; and in
Virginia
and
West Virginia
.
As a
journalist
, he has covered
government
at
all levels
– from
city councils, state legislatures, governor's offices, Congress and the presidency
, interviewing
four Presidents of the United States
. He also was involved as an
industry leader
, serving as
president
of the
Georgia AP (Associated Press) Association
in
Atlanta
; serving on the
board
of the
Georgia Press Educational Foundation
; serving as a
committee chairman
of the
Georgia Press Association
; and
conducting seminars
for the
Southern Newspapers Publishers Association
.
A
graduate
of
Old Dominion University
, Sayles has had
management training
at the
Medill School of Journalism
and the
Kellogg School of Management
at
Northwestern University
.
He
resides
in
Tifton's Historic District
with his wife,
Bonnie
.
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TIFT 4-H'er REPRESENTS COUNTY, STATE AT SOUTHERN REGIONAL HORSE EVENT
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Lydia Connell
represented
Tift County
and the
state of Georgia
in the
Southern Regional 4-H Horse Championships
last weekend in
Perry
.
As the new
Georgia 4-H Horse Master
,
Connell
was
asked
to
carry
the
Georgia state flag
during the
opening ceremony
for the
finals
. The event brings together
13 states
to
compete
in a
horse show
and
educational contests
at the
Georgia National Fair Grounds and Agricenter.
Overall,
Connell
won
fifth place
in
poles
,
14th
in
barrels
and
sixth
at the
demonstration contest
. She is
coached
by her
mother
,
Stephanie Branch
.
The
Southern Regional 4-H Horse Championships
offered a variety of
disciplines
including
western, hunter, ranch, dressage, saddle type and speed
. The educational contests included
horse judging, speech, hippology and horse bow
l.
Youths
are
brought together
in one facility to
represent their state
in the
annual event.
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TIFTAREA YMCA GOLF TOURNAMENT
HONORS FOUNDER LAMAR JACKSON
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The
Tiftarea YMCA
will
honor
the memory of its
founder
on
Oct. 28
with the
Third Annual Lamar Jackson Memorial Golf Tournament.
All
funds
from the event at
Spring Hill Country Club
will be used to
improve
the Tiftarea YMCA's
Hunt Park
facility and
ball fields
, and to further
develop youth programs.
Jackson
, a
local businessman
who
died
in
March 2017
, was
committed
to
improving
the
community
through
helping young people develop
into
productive adults
and
citizens
.
"
Lamar Jackson
had a
vision
in
1998
to
provide
the
youth
of Tiftarea with
a place
to participate in
activities
that were
safe and wholesome
," said
Darian Peavy
, Tiftarea YMCA CEO.
"His
visionary guidance
and
commitment
to the
Tiftarea YMCA
has
made a difference
in the
lives
of
many children
and
families
. His
legacy
will
continue
though
funds raised
at the annual
golf tournament
."
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RYLA students
Jonathan Crow, Taylor Stanfill and Luke Dorman with RYLA Chair Jack Perry and Rotary President Wayne Roe.
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ROTARY SPONSORS STUDENTS IN LEADERSHIP PROGRAM
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Three students
who attended the
Rotary Youth Leadership Award (RYLA) program
at
South Georgia College
in June recently
shared
their
experiences
with and their appreciation to the
Tifton Rotary Club,
which
sponsored
the
students.
RYLA
is an intensive
leadership
experience organized by
Rotary
clubs and districts where
rising high school juniors and seniors
develop their
skills
as
leaders
while having
fun
and making
connections
.
Taylor Stanfill
, a
senior
at
Tiftarea Academy
and the
granddaughter
of Rotary Club member
Jim Laycock
, said she learned
how to talk to people
in the
business world
and
how to interact
with other
leaders
. She said the
activities
were
nonstop
. She plans to be a
lawyer
.
Jonathan Crow
, a
junior
at
Tift County High
, is on the high school
fishing team
and
show choir
, and intends to enter the
medical
field.
Luke Dorman
, also a
junior
at
Tift County High
, plays
baseball
and plans to major in
business
.
Also at the
Wednesday
meeting, Rotarian
Jeff Gibbs
introduced
Megan Gaines
, a recent
graduate
of
Tiftarea Academy
and the
recipient
of one of the club’s
new scholarships.
Gaines
is the
granddaughter
of the late
Paul Gaines
, a longtime
Tifton Rotarian
who used to play the piano at the start of each meeting.
Megan Gaines
plans to study
biology
at
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College
before pursuing a medical degree at
Mercer
.
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Tifton Rotary scholarship recipient Megan Gaines with Rotarian Jeff Gibbs.
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LOCAL GROUP WORKING WITH HOMELESS FAMILIES IN AREA
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Family Promise of Tiftarea
is meeting at
6:30 p.m. Monday, Aug. 12
, at
Day Spring Inspirational Church, 620 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, Tifton.
The meeting's
focus
will be an
update
on
church recruitment
.
Family Promise
is
helping
struggling,
homeless families
achieve
sustainable independence
and stability through an ecumenical, community-based response. The goal is to
keep families together
during a crisis so they can move forward together into a
better future
.
Each year in
Tift County
, between
50
and
60 school-aged children
are identified as
homeless
. Statistics support that for
every school-aged child
identified as
homeless
, there are
one to two younger children
under the
age of five
experiencing
homelessness
.
Those
50-60
school children annually in
Tift County schools
could
translate
into
100-120 children
in our community who
don't have
a warm bed and a
safe sleeping environment,
the organization says.
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DIVERSIFIED ENTERPRISES OFFERS VOCATIONAL REHAB INFORMATION
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Diversified Enterprises
is hosting a
video presentation
–
"Getting Started with the Georgia Vocational Rehabilitation Agency"
(GVRA) for
parents of children
receiving
special education
.
The
free event
is
11:45 a.m.-1 p.m. Aug. 21
at Diversified Enterprises,
192 S. Virginia Ave., Tifton
. Space is
limited
, and
lunch
will be provided but an
RSVP
is
required
.
GVRA
is a
partner
for
families
planning for the
future
for a
young adult
with
disabilities
. In this webinar,
Karen Lynn Dominy
, GVRA service area manager, will be joined by
Karla Wade
, GVRA education program specialist, to
give parents information
on how to get started with GVRA.
Topics
will include required
documents
, the
intake process
, and
recommendations
for a successful
collaboration
.
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SPONSORSHIPS STILL AVAILABLE
TO BENEFIT THE TIFTON-TIFT COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY FOUNDATION
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TIFTON-TIFT COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
RIBBON CUTTING
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Bird's Nest Thrift Store
345 Commerce Way, Tifton
Aug. 1
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YOUR WEEKEND
...at a Glance
SATURDAY, AUG. 10
- Tift County Touchdown Club Golf Tournament, 9 a.m., Spring Hill Country Club, Tifton
- A Night of Southern Gospel, 6 p.m., Tift Theatre for the Performing Arts, Tifton
- 30th Annual Run for Love, 7 p.m., ABAC tennis courts, Tifton
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AUG. 1
Aubrey Gray, 93,
Tifton
Cathy Marie Hernandez, 51,
Tifton
AUG. 2
Ted Sumner, 61,
Sylvester
J
oe Harvey “Papa Joe” Stanford, 76,
Fitzgerald
Evelyn Walker McCullar, 95,
Valdosta
AUG. 3
William Edgar “Ed” Tillery, 85,
Tifton
Marie Vernell “Nell” Pearman Jones, 86,
Chula
Anthony G. Bateman, 52,
Tifton
Lisa Ann Mathis, 57,
Fitzgerald
AUG. 4
Robert Eugene “Gene” Cannon, 86,
Tifton
Robert Chandler, 68,
Tifton
AUG. 5
Gini Kay Crayton Gibbs, 63,
Norman Park
Jane Rice Stein, 73,
Stuart, Fla.
Angela Sims Collins, 64,
Jennings, Fla.
Charlie Ray Reese Sr., 84,
Fitzgerald
Lanae Lea McLamb, 54,
Fitzgerald
Diana Rae Dove, 59,
Tifton
AUG. 6
Geneva Lyon Conoly, 90,
Milledgeville
A.J. Bristol, 87,
Nashville
AUG. 7
Tijuana Monique Brown,
Sylvester
AUG. 8
Clyde Bailey, 92,
Fitzgerald
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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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