Friday, May 26, 2023

Tifton, Georgia

GrapeNew

Irwin County 4-H Club members recently joined organizers in placing crosses and flags outside the Irwin County Courthouse in Ocilla in a Memorial Day tribute.

 MEMORIAL DAY TRIBUTE MONDAY IN TIFTON

CEREMONY DOWNTOWN IN VETERANS PARK;

AMERICAN LEGION PLACING FLAGS ON VETERANS’ GRAVES

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

Memorial Day weekend traditionally marks the unofficial start of summer, and this weekend will be a time of travel, beach-going, and cookouts.


But Memorial Day, observed on the last Monday of May, is actually a solemn holiday

honoring those U.S. military personnel who lost their lives while defending our country. It is not to be confused with Veterans Day in November, which honors all those who served in the U.S. armed forces.


This Monday, Tifton’s Memorial Day tribute begins at 10 a.m. at the Jack Stone Veterans Park amphitheater in Downtown Tifton. State Rep. Clay Pirkle, R-Ashburn, who represents part of Tift County, will be the keynote speaker. The program will begin with the presentation of colors and concludes with the playing of “Taps."


This Saturday, in honor of Memorial Day, American Legion Post 21 in Tifton is placing flags on local veterans’ graves. The American Legion family is gathering at 9 a.m. Saturday at Tifton’s Oakridge Cemetery and then will move on to Tifton Memorial Gardens and branching out into the community to local church cemeteries where veterans are buried.


Church groups, civic organizations, and individuals are invited to join American Legion members in placing the flags. Call Greg Miller at 478-319-3716 for information.


In Irwin County recently, members of the Irwin County 4-H Club joined Bill Prather and Bill Causey in placing crosses and flags outside the courthouse in Ocilla to honor those veterans who gave their lives for their country. As pat of a community service project, the 4-H members also placed flags on veterans’ graves at the Brushy Creek Cemetery in Ocilla.

This was the scene shortly after a Ty Ty woman was shot to death in her vehicle Aug. 10 at the intersection of U.S. Highway 82 and Tift Avenue in Downtown Tifton. On Wednesday, Demarcus Laquan Brown pleased guilty to the crime.

SYLVESTER MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO TIFTON MURDER

OF FORMER GIRLFRIEND ON DOWNTOWN STREET

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

A Worth County man pleaded guilty Wednesday to the murder of an estranged girlfriend in Downtown Tifton.


Just before his trial was scheduled to begin in Tift County Superior Court, Demarcus Laquan Brown, 23, pleaded guilty to malice murder, felony murder, two counts of aggravated assault, armed robbery, and kidnapping in connection with the shooting death of Hannah Beth Patterson, 21, of Ty Ty.


Tift Superior Court Chief Judge Bill Reinhardt sentenced Brown to serve life in prison without the possibility of parole, said Tifton Circuit District Attorney Bryce Johnson.  


Brown of Sylvester was charged in the shooting death of Patterson, with whom he had been in a relationship that she had ended, authorities said. Shortly before 11 p.m. Aug. 10, Brown followed Patterson from her job to a convenience store at the corner of Fifth Street (U.S. Highway 82) and Tift Avenue in Tifton


Brown approached Patterson in the store and attempted to forcibly remove her from the store at gunpoint, authorities said. As Brown took Patterson's cell phone, she was able to get away


Brown then shot Patterson while she was in the driver’s seat of her car at the intersection of Fifth Street and Tift Avenue after leaving the store. Brown then fled but was captured by Worth County Sheriff's deputies the next day after an hour-long standoff.


The case was handled by Tifton Judicial Circuit Chief Assistant District Attorney Patrick Warren, Investigator Melissa Luke, and Victim Advocate Latricia Sumner on behalf of the state. The Tifton Police Department was the lead law enforcement agency, and the case was handled by Investigator Roberto Torres.  


“I commend Investigator Torres and Tifton PD and the Worth County Sheriff's Office for their work on this case and our team from the D.A.’s Office in preparing this case for trial.” said District Attorney Johnson. “Their hard work made today’s resolution possible."

MORE EMPLOYED LAST MONTH IN TIFT

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

The unemployment rate fell during April throughout the Tiftarea while the state’s rate remain unchanged.


Tift County recorded a 2.4% jobless rate in April, declining from 3.1% during March, the Georgia Department of Labor (GDOL) reported Thursday. All area counties also saw significant declines in joblessness.


But Tift County’s labor force – the number of people who are employed or are unemployed and seeking employment – continues to decline; at 20,490, the number was 634 below one year, according to GDOL data.


April's jobless rates in area counties versus the previous month's rates were: Turner, 3.9% vs. 4.6%Worth, 2.7% vs. 3.5%Irwin, 3.2% vs. 4.2%Cook, 2.6% vs. 3.6%; Berrien, 2.7% vs. 3.5%; and Ben Hill, 3.9% vs. 4.6%.


Statewide, Georgia's April unemployment rate remained at 3.1% for the ninth consecutive month and is three-tenths of a percent lower than the national unemployment rate.


Georgia had the highest labor force participation rate in the Southeast, 61.2%, and the highest employment-to-population ratio in the region, 59.2%, the GDOL reported.

 

Jobs were up in the state by 10,400 (0.2%) over the month and up by 111,800 (2.3%) over the year to 4,894,300, an all-time high.

 

Job numbers were at an all-time high in private education and health services, 655,900; leisure and hospitality, 518,400; and in financial activities, 279,400.

COOK DEPUTY/ABAC POLICEMAN DIES; WAS INJURED IN TRAFFIC STOP

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

A part-time Cook County Sheriff’s deputy and member of the ABAC police force, who was seriously injured when struck by a vehicle during a traffic stop on Interstate Highway 75 in late November, has died.


Timothy “Tim" Allen Bruner, 49, of Tifton died Saturday. The funeral wil be at 11 a.m. this Saturday, May 27, in the chapel of Albritton Funeral Directors. Interment will follow at Omega Cemetery.


Bruner, who had worked in law enforcement for more than 25 years, was part of the Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College police department while also working part-time with the Cook County Sheriff’s Office as a reserve deputy when he was injured Nov. 27 while on duty.

The deputy was making a traffic stop at 3:54 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 27, when he was struck by a recreational vehicle (RV) near mile-marker 37 along I-75 northbound, the Cook County Sheriff’s Office reported.


The RV had been sideswiped by another vehicle in an adjacent lane and forced off the interstate onto the shoulder, striking the deputy, his patrol car, and the vehicle he had stopped, according to the Georgia State Patrol.


Bruner was severely injured and was airlifted to Tallahassee Memorial Hospital.


“This is a terribly tragic loss for our ABAC family,” said ABAC President Tracy Brundage. “Tim was a dedicated public servant who will be missed. Our thoughts and prayers remain with his family.” 


Frank Strickland, ABAC’s police chief, said “Tim loved serving people. He was just a really good person. He loved his family, fishing, and hunting, that kind of thing. He was a good man, and we’ll miss him.”


After graduating from the ABAC Police Academy, Bruner had earned a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice. He was a full-time officer at the college before going into private business. Last year, he rejoined the ABAC police department while also working part-time with the Cook County Sheriff’s Office.


Bruner leaves behind a wife, four children, and six grandchildren.

TIFTON POLICE OPENS ‘MORE ADVANCED' ANONYMOUS TIP LINE

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

The Tifton Police Department has implemented a cell-phone and web-based application called “tip411" that allows citizens to report tips anonymously and directly to the department.


By using new technology, the department hopes to increase the ability to solve crimes and respond to incidents. 


The technology opens a two-way line of communication that enables anyone with a smartphone to anonymously provide information to Tifton Police, such as suspicious activity, crimes, and traffic incidents. Photographs and videos can also be attached to the initial tip.


Tip411, a third-party tip service, acts as a privacy buffer between the citizen and the Tifton Police Department in order to protect the person’s identity and contact information.

 

“The mission of the Tifton Police Department is to provide, with cooperation of the public, effective and efficient protection of life, individual liberty, and property of all people within the City of Tifton,” said Police Chief Steve Hyman. “We believe our new Tifton PD app from tip411 will help us do just that by promoting cooperation between the department and our residents.”


There are three ways to submit an anonymous tip: Text TIFTONPD (space) and the tip to 847411; or download the Tifton PD app on an iPhone or Android smartphone; or submit an online form located on the Tifton Police Department’s webpage.


The Tifton PD app also allows residents to sign up to receive alerts from the Tifton Police Department.


“We’ve listened to feedback from partners like Tifton Police and built a more advanced and innovative product to help departments better engage their communities,” said tip411 President Terry Halsch.


“The Tifton PD app, powered by tip411, will greatly improve the public’s ability to help fight crime and access agency alerts, social media channels, and important information.”


The service is for non-emergency use and is not meant to substitute an emergency call to 911.


Click Here for more information or to submit an anonymous tip.

TIFTON-TIFT COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE RIBBON CUTTING

Tiftarea YMCA ~ Celebrating 25 Years

1657 Carpenter Road S., Tifton

May 25

Tifton’s Locally Owned Digital Newspaper

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To Contact Us, Call 478-227-7126

COVID-19 data released from the

Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) as of May 24:


TOTAL TIFT COUNTY CASES: 6,935 ..................................... TOTAL TIFT DEATHS: 177

CONFIRMED TIFT CASES - 2 weeks: 7 ....................................... DEATHS - Past week: 1

CONFIRMED & SUSPECTED CASES: 28

TIFT CONFIRMED & SUSPECTED CASES - 2 weeks, per 100K population: 69

_______________________________________________________________


GEORGIA TOTAL CASES: 2,364,395.

GEORGIA CONFIRMED & SUSPECTED CASES - 1 week: 1,717

TOTAL GA DEATHS: 35,404 ....................................................... GA DEATHS - 1 week: 12

YOUR GUIDE TO ACTIVITIES THIS WEEKEND IN THE TIFTAREA


Sunday, May 28, is International Burger Day, celebrating one of the world’s most popular foods. Although named after the German city of Hamburg, no one knows definitively where the hamburger came from or how it got its name. The link with Hamburg appears to first come from a recipe for a meal known as the “Hamburg Sausage” published in 1758. And the Hamburg America Cruise Line, according to some historians, provided identical beef sandwiches to its passengers in the mid-1800s, calling the meal “hamburger.” With Monday being Memorial Day, heralding the unofficial beginning of summer, many hamburgers are expected to be on the grill this weekend.

SATURDAY, MAY 27

  • Wiregrass Farmers Market, 9 a.m.-noon, Ga. Museum of Agriculture, Tifton
  • Flags Placed on Veterans' Graves - American Legion Post 21, 9 a.m., Oakridge Cemetery, Tifton


MONDAY, MAY 29

  • Memorial Day Tribute, 10 a.m., Jack Stone Veterans Park, Downtown Tifton

ADVERTISE

YOUR

YARD SALE HERE!


TO ADVERTISE YOUR

RESIDENTIAL YARD SALE,

CONTACT US at 

yardsales@tiftongrapevine.com 

or 478-227-7126

Fees are $1 per word, paid in advance

TIFTON GRAPEVINE'S DOG OF THE WEEK

“Snaggle” is ready for a good home. To adopt Snaggle and to see other pets available for adoption, visit the Tift County Animal Shelter on Highway 125 South, open between 1-6 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. For additional information, call 229-382-PETS (7387).

Pets of the Week are sponsored by:
Branch’s Veterinary Clinic
205 Belmont Ave., Tifton, 229-382-6055  
candle-flames-banner.jpg

MAY 16  

Tyson M. Ruffin, 19, McDonough, formerly of Tifton

Beryl Rowe, 85, Nashville

Henry “Buck” Leslie Jr. 77, Ocilla

Martha K. Laster, 89, Tifton

Jerry Norton, 59, Fitzgerald


MAY 17

Mary Roxanne Marquess, 76, Fitzgerald

Glenna Patterson, 61, Nashville

Tillman Lawton Harper, 76, Albany, formerly of Ocilla

Martha Woods Alford, 80, Ocilla


MAY 19

William “Bill” Harkness, 71, Ashburn

Doris Ann Dyess, 66, Irwinville

Lydia Story Edwards, 91, Americus, formerly of Turner County

Cecil Yelton Leonard, 79, Ashburn

Jason White, 46, Tifton


MAY 20

Timothy “Tim” Allen Bruner, 49, Tifton

Presleigh Lee, 11, Ocilla


MAY 21

Ronnie Gene Fortson, 51, Ashburn

Elijah Burnell Grantham, 83, Willacoochee


MAY 22

Howard Richard Pearman, 83, Tifton

Collins R. Rowell, 63, Ocilla


MAY 23

The Rev. John Michael “Mike” Luke, 60, Tifton

Roni “Layne” Futch Chung, 61, Tifton

MAY 24

Annie Mitchell Dimon, 92, Tifton


MAY 25

Frances Jeanette Craft Wilson, 89, Tifton

Tifton Grapevine
e-published every Tuesday and Friday

Frank Sayles Jr.
Editor & Publisher
Bonnie Sayles
Managing Editor
A Service of Sayles Unlimited Marketing LLC, Tifton, Georgia
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