Friday, Nov. 29, 2019
Tifton, Georgia
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MORE THAN 17% OF TIFT COUNTIANS ARE 'FOOD INSECURE'
AND 25% OF THEM ARE CHILDREN, ACCORDING TO DATA
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By FRANK SAYLES JR.
Tifton Grapevine
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As most of us bask in the
afterglow
of a
full Thanksgiving meal
, there are many
Georgians
, including
families with children
here in the
Tiftarea
, who
struggle
with
obtaining
basic,
nutritional food
on a regular basis.
In
Tift County
,
17.4 percent
of residents – or
7,040
– are
"food insecure;"
of that number,
25 percent
are
children
, according to data compiled by
Feeding America
, the nation’s
largest domestic hunger-relief organization
.
Food insecurity
refers to the
U.S. Department of Agriculture's
(USDA) measure of a
lack of access
to
enough food
for an
active, healthy life
for
all household members
and
limited
or
uncertain availability
of
nutritionally adequate foods
.
According to the
USDA
, food-insecure households are
not necessarily food insecure all the time
. Food insecurity
may reflect
a household’s
need to make trade-offs
between buying
nutritional food
and
paying for basic needs
such as
housing
and medical
prescriptions
.
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Information from
Feeding America
shows that
Ben Hill County
has the
highest food insecurity rate
in the
Tiftarea
at
21 percent
of its residents.
Turner County
has a rate of
19.2 percent
;
Irwin
,
17.8 percent
;
Worth, 16.2 percent
;
Cook, 16.2 percent
; and
Berrien, 14.5 percent.
A recent
review
by the
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
found that
Georgians
in
rural counties
are likely to
pay more
for
basic foods
than residents in Atlanta and other more
urbanized
areas of the state.
Experts say there are a number of
reasons
why
grocery prices
are
higher in rural areas
, such as
fewer stores
creating a
lack of competition
and the
time
it takes
to deliver goods
to
more rural
parts of the state, the
AJC
reported.
Poor,
rural
Georgians
pay more
for
fresh lettuce, macaroni, cheese and other foods
than residents in the
Atlanta
area, the newspaper reported.
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LEN LASTINGER TO HAVE A 'STEM WILD NIGHT'
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Len Lastinger Elementary School
is hosting a
"STEM Wild Night"
for the
community
from
5:30-7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 3
.
The event is a "
community outreach
. ... We want to
increase STEM awareness
and show people how it
ties
to them right here in
Tifton
," said
Tracy Ingram
, who is a
Len Lastinger teacher
, a
Georgia Department of Education STEM Teacher of Excellence
and the
2019-2020 Tift County Teacher of the Year
.
STEM
refers to
Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
education.
Ingram
said the
STEM event
is all about
nature
. There will be
more than 20 information booths
in the school's Exhiibit Hall; displays and activities by the
Georgia Reptile Society, Quail Forever, the Georgia Native Plant Society
and
4-H students
;
drones
flying in the
gym;
a
3-D printer
and
engineering station; food vendors;
and
live music
.
Teachers
will lead
hands-on STEM activities
throughout the building, and there will be a
Star Lab
, a
Flashlight Forest Walk
taking families on a type of scavenger hunt to the woods behind the school, where they will discover the food plots and deer cameras that
fourth-graders
have created.
Also outdoors will be a
campfire
and a chance to make
S'mores
, along with other activities.
"Our
goal
is to
expose
as
many people
as we can to
STEM
,"
Ingram
said.
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TIFT CHAMBER'S TAL:K CLASS BEGINS
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The 2019-2020
TAL:K (Tomorrow’s Aspiring Leaders: Kids)
class attended in a
kickoff
luncheon
last week
at
Colquitt EMC
.
TAL:K
is the
Tifton-Tift County Chamber of Commerce’s
youth leadership training program of
50
eighth graders from
Eighth Street Middle School, Northeast Middle School
and
Tiftarea Academy
who participate in a variety of activities throughout the academic year.
The program is
sponsored
by
Colquitt EMC, Georgia Power, Heatcraft, South Georgia Banking Co., Synovus
and
Tift Regional Health System
.
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Kasey Kight, left, of Fitzgerald received the South Georgia Banking Co. scholarship from SGBC President Glenn Willis and Marketing Director Maghan Campbell.
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SGBC SUPPORTING ABAC SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM
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On
Giving Tuesday Dec. 3,
friends and supporters of
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College
have an opportunity to support the ABAC
student scholarship program
as one of their giving options.
South Georgia Banking Co.
(SGBC) is already
sponsoring
a
scholarship
for ABAC student
Kasey Kight
as a result of its
annual sponsorship
of
"An Evening for ABAC."
“For the past
50
years, we have made it a
priority
to
invest
in the
communities
we serve,” SGBC President
Glenn Willis
said. “Our
partnership
with the
ABAC Foundation
allows us to
help build
the
future
of
South Georgia
and change the lives of young people through their education.”
Kight
is a sophomore
biology major
from
Fitzgerald
who is an ABAC student this fall semester. She plans to become an
occupational therapist
.
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TIFTON-TIFT COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE RIBBON CUTTING
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Two Biddies
3020 N. Tift Ave., Tifton
Nov. 21
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TIFTON PAPER, PACKAGING OPERATION
TO BE SOLD WITH OTHER U.S. FACILITIES
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North American flexible packaging company
TC Transcontinental
, a
Canadian-based company,
has agreed to
sell
its
paper
and
woven polypropylene packaging operations
, including its
Tifton operation
, to
Hood Packaging
.
As part of the transaction,
Hood Packaging will own
TC Transcontinental’s facilities and operations, including Transcontinental
Sibley, Iowa; Transcontinental
Hanford, Calif.; Transcontinental
Hazleton, Penn.; and Transcontinental
Tifton.
The deal is valued at
$180 million
and is subject to working capital adjustments and regulatory approvals.
As part of the deal,
415
employees will be
transferred
to
Hood Packaging
, which manufactures plastic film, woven polypropylene bags, paper packaging and more.
The sale is expected to be completed during the
first quarter
of the next fiscal year.
“When we acquired
Coveris Americas
, we welcomed all of their assets and broad portfolio of products. After operating the
paper business
for almost
18
months, we concluded that it is
less core
to our
packaging sector’s growth
strategy," said TC Transcontinental President/CEO
François Olivier.
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UGA TIFTON SCIENTISTS GET RECOGNITION
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Two
University of Georgia Tifton
scientists recently received
honors
at the 2019 meeting of the
Georgia Association of County Agricultural Agents
.
Dr.
Glen Harris
, professor and Extension agronomist, received the
Senior Specialist of the Year award
, while Dr.
Jennifer J. Tucker
, assistant professor of animal & dairy science, received the
Junior Specialist of the Year
award.
"We
appreciate
the
work
they do to
cultivate growth
for the
agriculture industry
,"
UGA Tifton
said.
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ADOPTION AVAILABLE AT
TIFT COUNTY ANIMAL SHELTER
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This
friendly pair
are currently on
"stray hold"
at the
Tift County Animal Shelter
. If
not reclaimed
soon, will be
available
for
adoption or rescue
.
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Visit your future pet at the Tift County Animal Shelter,
1-6 p.m., Mondays-Fridays, at 278 Ga. Highway 125 South in Tifton.
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YOUR WEEKEND
...at a Glance
FRIDAY, NOV. 29
- GISA Playoffs: Tiftarea Academy Football Panthers @ John Milledge Academy Trojans, 7:30 p.m., Milledgeville (radio broadcast on 107.5)
SATURDAY, NOV. 30
- 5th Annual Giving Back Brunch, 11 a.m.-1 p.m., South Tifton Learning Center & Lester STEM Program, 2304 Dorminey St., Tifton
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NOV. 20
Lillian Marie Bailey, 75,
Nashville
Mickey Adam Tennison, 40,
Nashville
Thomas Ansel Barley Sr.,
Abbeville
NOV. 21
Bobby Lee Hopson, 75,
Adel
Samuel Jay Merlin, 38,
Tifton
NOV. 22
Carolyn Jetta Sprayberry, 74,
Ashburn
NOV. 23
Mary Hall Bridges, 101,
Albany
Michael Collins, 52,
Atlanta
NOV. 24
Brenda Joyce Hayes Griffin, 73,
Tifton
James D. “Jim” Martin, 66,
Fitzgerald
Amy Kristin Hurst, 49,
Quitman
Robert Baker, 92,
Hahira
NOV. 25
Imogene Sutton Green Holmes, 96,
Tifton
Peggy Tona Baldree Cardona, 75,
Enigma
Carl Allen Cook, 75,
Doerun
Carolyn M. Scott, 87,
Ashburn
NOV. 26
Eunice Evelyn Ellis Norman, 94,
Statesboro
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NOV. 27
Martha L. “Marty” Snowden, 68,
Fitzgerald
Pearly L. “Buddy” Raffield, 91,
Ocilla
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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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