Tuesday, April 28, 2020
Tifton, Georgia
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TIFTON ONE OF 3 NEW COVID-19 TEST SITES
KEMP ANNOUNCES MOBILE TEST UNIT AS TESTING RAMPS UP
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By FRANK SAYLES JR.
Tifton Grapevine
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Tifton
is one of
three new mobile COVID-19
drive-thru
testing sites
being set up this week in
Georgia
, Gov.
Brian P. Kemp
says.
The
mobile unit
is traveling among
Augusta
(Hephzibah),
Milledgeville
and
Tifton
on a rotating basis. The site is supported by
Walmart, eTrueNorth
, and
state
and
local
officials, Kemp said.
"Serving
Augusta, Milledgeville, Tifton
, and the surrounding regions, this mobile unit will be a
game-changing step
in our efforts to ensure access to COVID-19 across Georgia,"
Kemp
said. "
Increased testing
is
critical
as we continue the
measured
process
of
safely reopening
parts of our state."
On
Tuesday
,
Kemp
announced that nearly
13,000
new tests
were reported to the
Georgia Department of Public Health
's website, recording the
largest single day
in
new tests
reported since the pandemic began.
"We are
pushing
our
testing
capacity to the max. Yesterday, I asked
all Georgians
who are experiencing
symptoms
to schedule an appointment to
get tested
. We have the sites, the physicians, and the tests. We just need more Georgians to participate,"
Kemp
said Tuesday.
The
new mobile testing unit
is administering
free tests
to
Georgians
who exhibit
COVID-19 symptoms
. All
health-care providers
and
first responders
can be
tested
whether or not they have symptoms.
The mobile unit will be set up in
Tifton
from
10 a.m.-3 p.m.
on
Thursdays
and
Fridays
at the
Tift County National Guard Armory
, 3111 U.S. Highway 41 S.
Those being tested will need to
stay in their cars
for verification of eligibility criteria, ID check, and the self-administered
nasal swab test
. The test site is not available to walk-ups; those being tested must be inside a car.
LATEST STATE AND LOCAL COVID-19 STATISTICS
As of
Tuesday (April 28)
evening,
140,223 tests
for the virus have been given in Georgia, with
24,865
positive cases and
1,036 deaths
, according to the
Ga. Department of Public Health (DPH).
In
Tift County
, there are
97
confirmed cases and
five deaths
of Tift residents. The DPH said there are
27
Tift countians hospitalized with the virus.
The
Southwell
health system, which includes
Tift Regional Medical Center
, reported
Tuesday
that it has seen a total of
291
positive cases and have had
25 deaths
. Among those statistics,
one new death
was reported
Monday
and
two new deaths
were reported
Tuesday
at
Tift Regional
.
Dougherty County
continues to
lead
the
state
in COVID-19
deaths
with
118
. The county has
1,491
positive cases and
291
hospitalizations, the DPH reported.
Dougherty is reporting
1,658.42
cases per
100,000
population; conversely,
Fulton
County
in
Atlanta
, which has
2,727
positive cases, is reporting
248.09
cases per
100,000
population, the DPH said.
On
Tuesday
,
Phoebe Putney Health System
in
Albany
reported
five
new coronavirus deaths within
24
hours.
"Over the
last week
, we received an
average
of
one positive
COVID-19
test result
every hour
of every day. That proves the
virus
is
still spreading
in our community," said
Scott Steiner
, Phoebe Putney's CEO.
"We’re glad that
number
is
significantly lower
than the
average
of
five hourly positive
results
we were receiving
four weeks ago
, but the
current numbers
show
COVID-19
isn’t going away
any time soon,"
Steiner
said.
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STATE, UGA EXTENSION HELPING FARMERS GET PRODUCE TO PUBLIC
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The
Georgia Grown
program and
UGA Cooperative Extension
are helping
farmers
get
produce
to
consumers
.
Because of
disruptions
to the industry triggered by
COVID-19,
many
agricultural
producers
in Georgia are having
difficulties
getting
products
to those who need them.
The
Ga. Department of Agriculture
’s Georgia Grown program – a state membership program to help
agribusinesses
thrive by bringing together producers, processors, suppliers, distributors, retailers, agritourism and consumers — is
waiving
membership
fees
for the service until
July
to help producers affected by the crisis.
The program is
partnering
with the
University of Georgia Extension Service
to facilitate
connections
between
growers
and
consumers
.
“There are many people who are
looking
for
fresh produce
and cannot find it, and we have
producers
who have produce and
cannot sell
it,” said
Laura Perry Johnson
, Extension associate dean at UGA’s
College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
.
Types of
agricultural
products
that qualify for the program include vegetables, fruits, seafood, meats, dairy, poultry products and other agriculture-related products such as honey and prepared foods.
“We are getting a lot of
interest
from many types of
buyers
, including consumer, wholesale, food banks and some restaurants,” said
Matthew Kulinski
, deputy marketing director for
Georgia Grown
. “This is a good way for
producers
who normally sell to
restaurants
to have a
new outlet
for their produce.”
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ABAC PROVIDES MUSIC, COOKIES TO HOSPITALS
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After a long day of fighting the
pandemic
, healthcare employees at
Southwell
and
Colquitt Regional Medical Center
recently received a soothing
melody
and a tasty sugar
cookie
from the Office of College Advancement at
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College
.
“Southwell and Colquitt Regional are doing awesome work for their communities in these challenging times,” said ABAC Arts Connection Director
Wayne Jones
. “They have both
supported
ABAC
as outstanding community partners through the years, and we wanted to
do something special
for them.”
Jones initiated the effort, sharing with the ABAC advancement office
a
music clip
from
TAKE3
, an
instrumental trio
which will bring sounds of a violin, cello and piano to Howard Auditorium on
Nov. 15
as part of the
ABAC Presents! Performing Arts Series
.
“I was searching for the final piece of the puzzle for our series, and I came across this
music
from
TAKE3
,” Jones said. “It’s a beautiful piece featuring '
Amazing Grace'
over Bach’s
'Cello Concerto #1.'
We arranged for it to be used at both
Southwell
and
Colquitt Regional
.”
The
Tifton-
and
Moultrie-based
medical systems can
share
the
music
throughout their facilities to provide comfort.
Chris Dorman
, Southwell president/CEO, said
inspirational music
is played at least once a day at
Tift Regional Medical System
.
A free
snack cart
in the afternoon also offers a break to
Southwell
employees.
“Thanks to the wonderful culinary skills and generosity of
Sue Mastrario
, we provided
100
individually wrapped
sugar cookies
for the snack cart,” Jones said. “
Josie Smith
attached a
message
to each cookie which thanks these healthcare workers who are the real heroes out there on the front line every day.”
Referencing the
music
of
TAKE3
, the notes read: “Your
care
and
concern
for our
community
has been
music
to our
ears
.”
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A Message from Todd Tillman,
our Local Business Development Manager:
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SCHOOLS PLAN FOR GRADUATION, FALL
IN WAKE OF CORONAVIRUS
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As the
school year
is
winding down
for students, local school systems are devising ways to
honor seniors
while
planning
for the
fall
as the
coronavirus
pandemic continues.
In a
message
to students and parents the other day,
Tift County
School Superintendent
Adam Hathaway
thanked everyone for their help in continuing instruction via
distance learning
during the past
seven
weeks.
Hathaway
told the
Class of 2020
that "Our hearts go out to all of you and your families as we try to
find ways
to
celebrate
your accomplishments. We will have an
online
celebration
for our
seniors
on
May 23
, but this
will NOT take the place
of an
official
ceremony
that will happen as soon as we can have gatherings again."
The school system is currently "
evaluating student proficiency
for promotion and retention or awarding course credits. It’s important to us that students are prepared to be successful in their next grade or course," the superintendent said.
"We are very
hopeful
that as we wrap up this school year and move into the
summer
, we will get
better news
in regards to this
pandemic
. Having said that,
hope
is
not a plan
. ... it would be
reckless
of us
not to consider
the possibility we may be in the same or
similar situation
in late
July
and
August
."
Over at
Tiftarea Academy
in
Chula
, the private school is still
hoping
that it can
resume physical classes
for at least a
few days
in
May
"just to have
some type of
closure
on the
school year
," said Headmaster
Stacey Bell
in a recent note to students and parents.
"We will
continue
to
hold out hope
of having
some type
of
graduation ceremony
,
even
if we have to
postpone
it until
later
in the
summer
,"
Bell
said.
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FORMER COUNTY COMMISSIONER RONALD NIXON DIES
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Former Tift County Commissioner and community leader
Ronald Keith Nixon
, 63, died
April 21
.
He worked in his family's business,
Frank and Solomon Nixon Funeral Home
in
Tifton
, for
45
years. He was a licensed
funeral director
and a
licensed embalmer
.
Nixon
was a
trailblazer
, being
one of two
of the
first African Americans
elected to the
Tift County Commission
in
1985
. Nixon served on the commission for
14
years.
He also served as the
Association of County Commissioners of Georgia
's representative on the
Georgia Fire Fighters Standards and Training Council
and as a commissioner on the
South Georgia Rural Development Commission
board of directors. Nixon also served on the board of the
Tift County Residential Housing Corp.
Among his most
prized accomplishments
was helping to establish the
Tift Lift transit system
and the
Tift Community Health Clinic
in conjunction with
Tift Regional Medical Center.
Nixon
has served as president and vice president of the
Coastal Plains HeadStart Policy Council
, as a charter member of the
PROMISE Men's Club
, and as a volunteer with the
American Cancer Society
, with
Hospice of Tiftarea
, with the
Tifton Soup Kitchen
, and as a
deputy elections poll manager
.
He was active in
funeral industry associations
, serving as chairman of the
Fourth District of the Georgia Funeral Service Practitioner’s Association
(GFSPA), as a board member at large, and as a voting delegate of the
National Funeral Directors and Morticians Association
. He also had been named the GFSPA
Mortician of the Year.
Nixon remained active in his church,
Everette Temple CME Church
in
Tifton
, where he had been named
Lay Person of the Year
.
He was born
Oct. 4, 1956
, in
Adel
and attended
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College
and
Gupton-Jones College of Funeral Service
.
Among survivors are his wife,
Rosemary,
and son
James A. Nixon
.
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The Georgia State Defense Force helps Second Harvest to distribute food in Tifton on April 9.
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SECOND HARVEST PLANS FOOD DISTRIBUTION FRIDAY AT AGRICULTURE MUSEUM
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Second Harvest of South Georgia
, the region's leading hunger-relief organization, will have another
free distribution
of
food
on
Friday, May 1
, in
Tifton
.
Boxes
of food will be given out on a
first-come, first-serve
basis beginning at
8 a.m.
Friday at the
Georgia Museum of Agriculture
on
Whiddon Mill Road
in Tifton.
The organization distributed approximately
1,750
boxes of food during its last distribution in
Tifton
on
April 9
. Once again,
no proof of eligibility
is required. Food will be placed in the
trunk
of one's vehicle's with
no physical contact
.
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TIFTON GRAPEVINE'S PET OF THE WEEK
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The
dog
pictured here is among several animals recently
rescued
by
Tift County Animal Control
. If this is your pet, please call the
animal shelter
to claim,
229-382-PETS (7387).
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Pets of the Week are sponsored by:
Branch's Veterinary Clinic
205 Belmont Ave., Tifton, 229-382-6055
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TIFTON UNVEILS CONFEDERATE MONUMENT
– APRIL 26, 1910
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A large
crowd
attended the unveiling of
Tifton's monument
to
soldiers
of the
Confederacy
on
Tuesday, April 26, 1910
. Judge
George Hyler
was the featured speaker at the ceremony. The
monument
, placed in the center of the street where
Love Avenue
intersects with
Fourth Street
, was placed under the auspices of the
United Daughters of the Confederacy
. The monument cost a total of
$2,000
.
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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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Sayles Unlimited Marketing LLC
, Tifton, Georgia
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