The Advance. (Vidalia, Ga.) 2003-current, March 24, 2021, Image 4
The ADVANCE, Morch 24, 2021 /Page 4A (Eift Aiiuancg Vidalia Onions Will Ship on April 19 The Georgia Depart ment of Agriculture and the Vidalia Onion Com mittee (VOC) announced that the pack date for the 2021 season is April 19. The organizations are also celebrating the 35th anni versary of legislation that helped to make Vidalia onions beloved by mil lions of fans across the country A rite of spring for its legends of devotees, the announcement of the pack date means shoppers will soon be able to purchase Vidalia onions, which are available only for a limited time each year. The date is deter mined each year by an advisory panel comprised of Vidalia industry mem bers, state agriculture scientists and the De partment of Agriculture. Soil and weather condi tions in South Georgia are taken into consideration to select the date to help ensure only the highest- quality onions end up on consumers’ plates. "It is a special moment every year when we an nounce the Vidalia onions pack date, but this year we will mark the passage of the 1986 Vidalia Onion Act by our state legisla ture that played a defining role in making our state’s official vegetable an iconic brand recognized around the world," said Georgia Agriculture Commis sioner Gary Black. "I am pleased to announce April 19 as the 2021 pack date for Vidalia onions." First identified in the 1930s, Vidalia onions quickly grew in popularity over the next few decades. The Vidalia Onion Act es tablished that only sweet onions grown in 20 South Georgia counties from a distinctive Granex seed and packed and sold on or after the official pack date each year could be called Vidalia onions. Three years later, the U.S. Department of Agri culture provided federal protection to the onion and created the VOC to support marketing and research initiatives. In 1992, the state of Georgia became the official owner of the Vidalia onion trade mark. For the 2021 season, approximately 10,000 acres of Vidalia onions were planted, according to VOC Chairman Ar ies Haygood. "We are an ticipating a good harvest, and consumers across the country should have am ple supply throughout the season," said Haygood. Known for its sweet, mild flavor and treasured by cooks nationwide, the vegetable is hand-cultivat ed by 60 registered grow ers. They represent about 40 percent of the sweet onion market and are sold in every state. L to R: 2021 Rick Perkins Instructor of the Year William Greene, STC President Larry Cal houn, and 2021 GOAL Student of the Year Claudia Martinez Wilson. Vidalia Onion Committee Names John Shuman Grower of the Year TOP GROWER — John Shuman, a second generation Vidalia Onion Farmer who operates Shuman Farms in Cobbtown, was named 2020 Grower of the Year by the Vidalia Onion Committee. John Shuman, presi dent and CEO of Shu man Farms in Cobbtown, has been named the 2020 Grower of the Year by the Vidalia Onion Committee (VOC). Shuman was cited for his contributions to the industry for more than 25 years. Following in the foot steps of his father, Buck Shuman, who began grow ing Vidalia onions in the 1980s, John Shuman took over his family’s farm in the early 1990s, rebuilding it from the ground up fol lowing the national farm crisis of the previous de cade. Today Shuman Farms is one of the largest growers of Vidalia onions in North America. A graduate of Georgia Southern University with a bachelor’s degree in busi ness administration, Shu man has served as VOC chairman, chairman of the board of the Southeast Pro duce Council and a mem ber of the Georgia Ports Authority Board of Direc tors. In addition to his busi ness success, in 2002, Shu man founded Produce for Kids, now Healthy Fam ily Project, which has raised more than $7 million to benefit children and fami lies. Shuman Farms also provides annual donations to Feeding America and the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. “In the last quarter century, John has played a leading role in building the Vidalia onion brand to be come the country’s most iconic vegetable,” said Aries Haygood, VOC chairman. “But even more important ly, John and his family have devoted considerable time and energy giving back to the community.” Shuman said, “I am honored and humbled to be recognized by the Vida lia onion industry to receive one of our highest awards. I have been fortunate to have had the support of my wife, Lana, as well as the advice and counsel from some of the most respected Vidalia onion growers in the state.” He added, “As you know, it takes a village to do what we do, so this award goes to everyone at Shuman Farms. I want to especially thank my brother Mark for his dedication and leader ship.” First discovered in the 1930s, Vidalia onions quickly grew in popularity over the next few decades. Under a combination of federal regulations and Georgia state laws, only sweet onions grown in 20 South Georgia counties from a distinctive Granex seed and packed and sold on or after the official pack date each year could be called Vidalia onions. Known for its sweet, mild flavor and treasured by cooks nationwide, the veg etable is hand-cultivated by 60 registered growers. Vida lia onions represent about 40 percent of the sweet on ion market and are sold in every state. Greene and Wilson Chosen as Southeastern Tech’s 2021 Rick Perkins and GOAL Winners William ‘Chip’ Greene, Electronics Tech nology Instructor, has been awarded Southeast ern Technical College’s (STC) Rick Perkins In structor of the Year, and Claudia Martinez Wil son, a Medical Assisting student from Emanuel County, has been named the College’s winner of the Georgia Occupation al Award of Leadership (GOAL). The announcement of winners was made at Southeastern Tech’s 2021 Rick Perkins & GOAL Awards Ceremony on March 15 in the Toombs Auditorium in Vidalia by President Larry Calhoun. The ceremony was also livestreamed via Facebook and may be viewed at face- book.com/Southeastern- TechnicalCollege. The Rick Perkins Award for Excellence in Technical Instruction honors technical educa tion’s most outstanding instructors. The award is designed to recognize and honor technical col lege instructors who make significant contributions to technical education through innovation and leadership in their fields. Instructors are nominated for the Rick Perkins Award by their peers. STC’s other final ists for the Rick Perkins Award were Maxine Garn- to, Nurse Aide Instructor, and David Standard, Psy chology Instructor. GOAL, a statewide program of the Techni cal College System of Georgia (TCSG), honors excellence in academics and leadership among the state’s technical college students. The purpose of the GOAL program is to spotlight outstanding achievements by students in Georgia's technical col leges and to emphasize the importance of technical education in today’s global workforce. A screening commit tee of college administra tors reviewed each of the instructors’ nominations for GOAL and conducted personal interviews with the students. Four final ists were chosen to give a speech and interview with a panel of local business and industry leaders for a winner to be chosen. That panel considered the stu dents’ qualities like aca demic achievement, per sonal character, leadership abilities, and enthusiasm for technical education. The GOAL run ners-up were Emily Ely, Dental Hygiene student from Emanuel County; Kimbrell Higginbotham, Dental Hygiene student from Appling County; and Paige Murphy, Asso ciate of Science in Nurs ing student from Toombs County. Local winners will proceed to regional judg ing in April, which will include students and in structors from the other 21 TCSG’s colleges. Nine regional finalists, three fi nalists from the three re gions, will be announced during state competition. A panel of leaders from the business, industry, and government sectors will conduct the inter views. One instructor will be named as the state wide Rick Perkins win ner, and one student will be named as the statewide GOAL winner. The Rick Perkins Award winner serves as an ambassador for techni cal education in Georgia. The State GOAL Winner, TCSG’s Student of the Year, becomes the student ambassador for Georgia’s entire techni cal college system and receives a grand prize of a brand new car provided by Kia Motors Manufac turing Georgia, a state wide corporate sponsor of Georgia’s GOAL pro gram. For more information on STC, visit www.south- easterntech.edu or call (912) 538-3100 or (478) 289-2200. Evans continued from page 1A ly balloting. Seven absentee ballots were opened Tues day night at the Toombs County Board of Elections Office in Lyons, and 176 cit izens voted in person at the polls on Election Day. There were no provisional ballots cast. Toombs County Elec tion Supervisor Carrie Al- ligood certified the votes Friday morning. Evans is a 1991 graduate of Vidalia High School and 1995 graduate of Georgia College and State Univer sity. After returning home from college, she became the owner of a local favorite, Brown’s Jewelry. In 2003, she began working for Dot Foods as the HR Manager and currently is working in operations as Transporta tion Manager. She has served the community on the follow ing boards: United Way, Toombs-Montgomery Chamber of Commerce, Downtown Vidalia Associa tion, and Vidalia Conven tion and Visitors Bureau. She is a graduate of the 2000 Leadership Toombs- Montgomery Class and a graduate of the 2011 Lead ership Georgia class. She currently serves as the 2020- 2021 Chair of Leadership Georgia. She has been married to her husband, Lee, for 21 years. They have two chil dren, Rebecca (15) and Chamlee (14), and are members of Vidalia First United Methodist Church. Evans has said previ ously of her purpose and qualification for seeking the Ward 2 post, “I truly love the City of Vidalia.. .it is home to me. I want to see Vidalia continue to grow, thrive, and succeed in every area of community development. We have wonderful leader ship in our city, and I would like to be a part of the solu tion of keeping Vidalia mov ing forward.” Fatality continued from page 1A gers in the vehicle were treated and released from the Meadows Regional Medical Center. Vidalia High School is sued this statement Sunday afternoon: “We are shocked and heartbroken over the loss of Wesley Simpson, one of our freshman students, who passed away last night as a result of an automobile accident. We ask that you pray for Wesley’s family as they walk through this very difficult time. Please also be in prayer for two other stu dents who were involved in this accident as well as our VHS students and staff as they deal with this tragedy. We will have extra counsel ors available for all students and staff upon our return to school on Monday.” The Toombs County School System also ex pressed its sympathies in a post on social media: “Toombs County Schools sends our sympathy and prayers to the family and friends of Wesley Simp son as well as Vidalia High School and the entire Vi dalia city School System during this difficult time. We may be rivals on the fields, but we are friends in the community. Our hearts hurt for VHS and for Wes ley’s family and friends as they deal with this tragic loss.” COVID-19 Update Monday, March 22 W A Number of Confirmed Cases/Hospitalizations/ Deaths (Cumulative from March 2020) Toombs County. 2845/168/93 Montgomery County. 706/40/19 Treutlen County. 622/51/20 Wheeler County. 452/35/21 Meadows Regional Medical Center COVID-19 Patient Census Monday, March 22, COVID patients in-house :i COVID admissions over the last seven days, 3-15-21 to 3-21-21): 1