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Yes, We Are Still Red Around Here! C/^/^ inpirln The Vidalia Advance Established 1901 The Lyons Progress Established 1894 A.B. TurnslOO See Page 4A Vol. 123 No. 2 Your Newspaper - Toombs, Montgomery & Wheeler County, Georgia January 13, 2021 Things do not happen . Things are made to happen . -John F. Kennedy News BYTES COVID-19 Vaccination Information Healthcare providers, first responders and persons age 65 plus, are eligible to receive COVID-19 vaccinations. The South Central Health District, which serves Montgomery, Wheeler and Treutlen counties, has moved to an appointment-only system for scheduling vaccinations. Call 478-275-6570 or visit southcentralhealth. org for information. The Southeast Health District, which serves Toombs County, also requires appointments. For information, call 1-855-473-4374 or visit their website at www. sehdph.org. Meadows Health is administering vaccinations in Vidalia by appointment. (See article on page 3A.) Loving Lyons Chili Cookoff on Saturday Residents are invited to stop by the Lyons Depot on Saturday, January 16, from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. for a chili tasting at the Loving Lyons Chili Cookoff. There is no admission charge but "tasting" cups of chili will be available for $1. For information on registering to compete in the cookoff, visit the Loving Lyons Facebook page. MLK Day Parade Cancelled In an effort to minimize COVID-19 exposure the 2021 MLK Day Parade has been cancelled. IN THIS ISSUE Editorials Page 5A Obituaries Page 7A From the Record Page 10A Your Mind On Line Page 10A Sports Page 1 B SUBSCRIBE AND SAVE 30% OFF NEWSSTAND PRICES! Call 537-3131 (or delivery! “MONOCLONAL ANTIBODIES” There's a COVID-19 treatment available at Meadows Regional Hospital that may save lives, and many people haven't heard about it. Here's what you need to know. For the most part, the treatment plan for the president was simi lar to the treatment regimens delivered to the hundreds of thousands of patients hospitalized for COVID-19, but with a couple of exceptions. President Trump also received a dose of REGN- COV2, an experimental drug made by Regeneron that had shown prom ise in small, preliminary research trials. REGN-COV2 is one drug in a family of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), laboratory-made proteins that Monoclonal mimic the immune system’s ability to fight Antibodies Please see Antibodies page 3A By Amber Lanier Nagle Contributing Writer Months into the nation’s COVID-19 crisis, news that President Trump and the first lady had tested positive for the virus shook America to its core. Within hours, a team of doctors held a press conference reassuring the public that he would be continually monitored and given the best possible care available. “He’s on a routine regimen of COVID therapy,” physician Sean Conley reported in front of cameras in October. Top Issues: Budget, Pandemic Relief, Election Reform Chamber ’Holds Virtual Pre-Legislative Forum By Deborah Clark Regional Editor dclarkadvance@gmail.com The state budget, election integrity and COVID-19 relief were among the top issues in a prelegislative forum sponsored Rep. Greg Sen. Blake Morris Tillery last Thursday by the Toombs- Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce. The forum, originally planned as a luncheon, was held online because of precautions against the health pandemic. State Sen. Blake Tillery, R-19, and State Representative Greg Morris, R-156, both of Vidalia, made statements and fielded questions from an audience join ing the forum online. The forum was moderated by John Koon, Please see Forum page 11A Georgia Chief Justice Renews Statewide Judicial Emergency By Dave Williams Bureau Chief Capitol Beat News Service Georgia Chief Justice Harold Melton Friday ex tended the statewide ju dicial emergency that has been in effect since the coronavirus pandemic took hold across the state in mid-March. Melton signed an order prohibiting jury trials not already in prog ress. As with previous orders, the chief justice’s 10th emergency order also urged all courts “to use technology, when practicable and lawful, to conduct remote judicial proceedings as a safer alternative to in-person proceedings.” The order also re minded courts that any in-person proceedings “must be conducted in full compliance with pub lic health guidance.” Melton included a ca veat that grand jury hear ings and trials will not ac tually start until a month or longer after a process for resuming them has been put in place due to the time required to sum mon potential jurors. The order also ac knowledged substantial backlogs of unindicted and untried cases. “Due to ongoing Please see Courts page 8A COVID-19 Update Monday, January n Number of Confirmed Cases/Hospitalizations/ Deaths (Cumulative from March 2020) Toombs County. 2412/144/63 Montgomery County. 608/32/10 Treutlen County. 470/41/14 Wheeler County. 418/29/19 Meadows Regional Medical Center COVID-19 Patient Census Monday, January 11:31 COVID patients in-house COVID admissions over the last seven days, 1-4-21 to 1-10-21): 16 Attempted Bank Robbery Case Closed Following Discovery of Murder Victim By Deborah Clark Regional Editor dclarkadvance@gmail.com Treutlen County Sheriff Tommy Corbin said Friday that a call to his office from the GBI confirming the identity of a murder victim led to clos ing an attempted bank robbery case in Soperton. The GBI positively identified a body discovered December 23 by a crew demolishing a house in Vidalia as Zyuan Caesar, 17, of Vidalia. The teenager had been reported miss ing on December 17 and the GBI joined local authorities in seeking his whereabouts. Corbin said Caesar was believed to be the suspect in the De cember 9 attempted bank robbery in Soperton and warrants had been is sued for his arrest on December 22. Please see Murder page 3A A Second Century For the Brazell House LOCAL LANDMARK - Built in 1911, the Brazell House on Jackson Street is home to the Altama Museum of Art and History, A fund-raising campaign, the Second Century Project, has been launched to ensure the Brazell House will stand strong into the second century of its use. Special to The Advance Traveling along Jack- son Street, the eye can not help but notice the grand building that stands across from the Ohoopee Regional Library. This Neoclassical beauty is the 1911 Brazell House and home of the Altama Mu seum of Art & History. Time has not been kind to the structure, however, Please see Brazell page 9A ACCEPTING NEW PATIENTS •Primary Care • Chronic Care Management • Health Maintenance Screenings • Acute Care • Weight Management • Physical Exams • Disease Prevention • Sick Visits • Telehealth Visits • COVID Antibodies Screenings Mandi Wright, FNP-C # Appling Joseph Foust, MD FAAFP nl Healthcare 1702A Meadows Lane Vidalia, GA 30474 (912)705-4905 www.ahcs.org