Friday, Dec. 27, 2019
Tifton, Georgia
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'GNAT DROP' RINGING IN 2020 IN TIFTON
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Tift County
is hosting the
2nd Annual Gnat Drop
on
New Year's Eve
to mark the
new year
.
"Matt the Gnat"
will
drop
at
midnight Dec. 31/Jan. 1
to bring in
2020
. The event begins at
7 p.m.
in front of
Tift County's Charles Kent Administration Building
on
Tift Avenue
.
Live music
and
food vendors
will be available.
Begun
last year
by County Commissioner
Melissa Hughes
, the
Gnat Drop
is
Tift County's answer
to other cities which
drop various items
to mark the new year at midnight.
Atlanta
has been
dropping
a
giant peach
since
1989
but
isn't doing so this year
as that event is being retooled.
The
most famous
such event is the
crystal ball drop
in
New York City's Times Square.
While
Tifton's Gnat Drop
is in its
infancy
,
Hughes
expects it to be
bigger and better
each year.
This year's
entertainment
includes
Kasey King, Soulful Serenades, Blak Pearl
and
Harold E. Thomas & Danger Zone
.
Hughes
encourages
families
to come out
New Year's Eve
and to
bring their lawn chairs
to enjoy the event.
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TIFTON INVITATIONAL BEGINS 10th YEAR TODAY
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The
10th Annual McDonald’s Tifton Invitational basketball tournament
opens
today,
Friday, Dec. 27
, and continues through
Saturday, Dec. 28
, at the
Tift County High School
gym.
Sponsored by the local
McDonald's
franchise, this year's tourney brings together
13
teams, including the
Tift County High Blue Devils
, from
Georgia
and
Florida
.
Today's schedule
begins at
1 p.m.
with
Morgan County High
facing off against
J.S. Rickards High
of
Tallahassee
, followed by
Coffee County High
vs.
Kathleen High
at
2:30 p.m.
;
Brunswick
vs.
Lincoln
,
4 p.m.
;
Denmark
vs.
Victory Christian
,
5:30 p.m.
;
Valwood
vs.
St. Anne-Pacelli
,
7 p.m.
; and
Tift County
vs.
Americus-Sumter
,
8:30 p.m.
On
Saturday, Dec. 28
, the lineup is:
Morgan County
vs.
Lincoln, 1 p.m.
;
Brunswick
vs.
Victory Christian
,
2:30 p.m.
;
Denmark
vs.
Lanier County,
4 p.m.;
Coffee
vs.
Rickards
,
5:30 p.m.
; and
Tift County
vs.
Kathleen
,
7 p.m.
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TIFT COUNTY HITS RECORD LOW UNEMPLOYMENT IN NOVEMBER
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Both
Tift Count
y and the state of
Georgia
hit
historic lows
in the
unemployment rate
during
November
, according to data from the
Ga. Department of Labor.
In preliminary figures, the
Labor Department
reports that the
jobless rate
in
Tift County
was
2.8 percent
in
November
, a decline from
3.1
percent during
October
, and a major drop from
3.5
percent at the same time
last year
.
Other
counties
in the
Tiftarea
also saw
less joblessness
except for
Ben Hill County
, whose jobless rate
remained steady
at
5
percent.
Worth County
had unemployment of
3
percent, down from
3.5
percent;
Cook County
,
3.1
percent; down from
3.2
percent;
Turner
,
3.2
percent, down from
3.5
percent;
Irwin
,
3.9
percent; down from
4.3
percent; and
Berrien
,
4.3
percent, down from
4.5
percent.
Labor Commissioner
Mark Butler
said the
state's unemployment rate
was at a
historically low level
as the
state set records
for
employment, jobs
and the
work force
.
Labor wise,
November
was
one of
the
best months
in
state history
, Butler said.
Georgia’s unemployment rate
fell in
November
by 0.1 percentage points to
3.3
percent – the
lowest
since the federal government began keeping
records
in
1976
.
Nationally
, the unemployment
rate fell
in November to
3.5
percent, a
decrease
of
0.1
percentage points.
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AVAILABLE AT THE TIFT COUNTY ANIMAL SHELTER
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These two siblings are new at the shelter. They are a young, friendly and playful pair seeking a good home for the new year.
Visit them 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, DEC. 27
- Depot Festival of Trees, 8 a.m., The Depot, Adel
- McDonald's Tifton Invitational Basketball Tournament, 1 p.m., Tift County High School, Tifton
- Blood Drive, 1 p.m., Tift Regional Events Center, Carpenter Road, Tifton
SATURDAY, DEC. 28
- McDonald's Tifton Invitational Basketball Tournament, 1 p.m., Tift County High School, Tifton
- Christmas Hayride, 7:30 p.m., Ga. Veterans State Park, Cordele
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DEC. 19
Charles Warren Housworth, 84,
Tifton
Rosie Inez Hall, 91,
Sylvester
Melba Satterfield,
Cordele
Edwin Matthew "E.M." Mathis Jr., 100,
Quitman
Allen Collins, 68,
Valdosta
DEC. 20
Vasti “Ty” Parrish Hobbs, 76,
Tifton
Doris "Lee" Dillard, 67,
Tifton
Juanita Elizabeth Kirkland, 92,
Albany
Margaret Ann Barton, 67,
Nashville
Grace Griffin Bryant, 99,
Fitzgerald
Oliver Wayne Paul, 60,
Irwin County
Raymond Duenas, 72,
Powder Springs
Geraldine Dixon, 75,
Nashville
DEC. 21
Paula Blanchard Jordan, 66,
Chula
Jeffrey Wade Bowen, 40, Sylvester
Travis David Apperson, 92,
Ashburn
Herman Rowe, 81,
Valdosta
Theresa Pitts, 61,
Smithville
DEC. 22
Montifa Spradley Sims, 73,
Tifton
Elizabeth Freeland Fish, 76,
Nashville
Angela Kay Hutchinson, 55,
Ocilla
DEC. 23
Lonie Bell Gilbert, 87,
Nashville
David Doss Gibbs, 61,
Fitzgerald
Romell Harper McCoy, 84,
Ocilla
DEC. 24
Mary Bea Watson Powell, 83,
Sylvester
Silas M. Tomberlin, 86,
Ty TY
Debra Ann Baillie, 61,
Broxton
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DEC. 25
Christine Melton Kilcrease, 75,
Sylvester
Berry A. Carter, 82,
Lenox
Virginia Sapp, 88,
Quitman
__________________
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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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