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Everything you need to know for the 2021 School Year Vol. 123 No. 30 The Vidalia Advance Established 1901 The Lyons Progress Established 1894 Your Newspaper - Toombs, Montgomery & Wheeler County, Georgia It s not the mountain we conquer but ourselves. - Sir Edmond Hillary, mountaineer and explorer. News BYTES Drive-Through Event in Wheeler July 31 A drive-through school supplies giveaway will be held on Saturday, July 31,9-11 a.m. at Wheeler County Elementary School in Alamo. Sponsored by Tri-County Family Connection and others. Pre-K Orientation at J.D. Dickerson Set for August 4 A Pre-K orientation event will be held at J.D. Dickerson Elementary School on Wednesday, August 4, 5:30-6:30 p.m. Parents are invited to meet their child's teacher, learn about the Pre-K program, and enjoy a light supper. Back to School Bash Scheduled August 7 Toombs County's Fourth Annual Back to School Bash will be held Saturday, August 7, 9-11 a.m. at Southeastern Technical College in Vidalia. Children must be present to collect their supplies. Sponsored by Toombs Family Connection, local school systems and businesses. IN THIS ISSUE Editorials Page 5A Obituaries Page 7A From the Record Page 4A Your Mind On Line Page 13A Sports Page 1 B “The Delta Variant” Amid widespread misinformation, a local physician warns the community about a dangerous variant and encourages everyone to know the facts and be vigilant. By Amber Lanier Nagle Contributing Writer It could be the perfect storm. Amid declining and stalled vac cination rates, a highly contagious COVID variant has emerged. Infec tions from the “delta variant” are ris ing across Georgia as well as the rest of the country and that has Vidalia’s Geoff Conner, MD worried. “If we don’t act now and get ahead of this variant, we may see another prolonged surge in serious and deadly COVID cases, and no one wants that,” Dr. Conner warns. “From what we are experiencing, the delta variant is more contagious — it spreads more readily and rap idly — and that’s a big concern to all of us.” Delta is the name for a SARS- CoV-2 mutation that was originally identified in India in late 2020. The first delta variant case in the U.S. was reported in March. By the end of June, 20% of COVID positive cases in the U.S. were categorized as the delta variant. As of July 20, 83% of COVID cases were attributed to the variant. (Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) “We believe the delta variant is already here [in Toombs and Mont- Please see Delta page 2A Area Students Go Back to School Photo By Anslie Mead BACK TO SCHOOL - Area schools will open their doors to students the first week of August. Face-to-face instruction will be the norm, but administrators are keeping an eye on COVID-19 trends and have plans in place to address a resurgence of the virus if action is required. By Deborah Clark Regional Editor And Makayiee Randolph Contributing Writer Area schools are re opening their doors to students the first week of August, and administra tors and staff are optimis tic and excited about the new term. But they also have an eye on the recent resurgence in the COV ID virus, particularly the more contagious Delta variant. After the trials of the pandemic which swept through the country in 2020, school adminis trators are more expe rienced and better pre pared to deal with issues surrounding the virus— and are taking proper precautions as the health of students, staff and administrators is front and center. Additionally, schools have mitigation plans in place to address the gaps in the educa tional progress of some students that occurred during the pandemic. At all schools, while masks are welcomed based on individual needs, they are not re quired. All school systems have detailed information on COVID-19 precau tions and requirements posted on their websites and school Facebook Please see BTS page 3A Montgomery County Authorities Probe Shooting, Arrest Three in Drug Bust Mayor Roper Named To State Commission Jessica Tighe Brian Miller Wallace Hill Montgomery County authori ties have been busy over the last several days as they investigated a shooting and a drug bust. On Saturday, July 24, Mont gomery County deputies respond ed to a home invasion at Wildwood Trailer Park Lot D-l 1. Upon arrival deputies found that a male victim had been shot. The man, who has not been identified by authorities, was treated for a minor injury. The Georgia Bureau of Inves tigation is currently assisting in the investigation. Anyone with any information about this incident is asked to call Chief Ron Bivins at 912-583-2521 or the Eastman Please see MoCo page 11A Georgia Governor Bri an Kemp has named Vidalia Mayor Doug Roper to the state’s Nonpub lic Postsecond ary Education Commission (GNPEC). The GN PEC authorizes and regulates the operations of private post secondary col leges and schools in Geor gia and reviews complaints filed by students attending these schools. Additionally, GNPEC processes tran script requests for students who attended private, post secondary schools in Geor gia that have since closed. The Com mission is comprised of 11 members appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate. The members are appoint ed for three- year terms of office and may serve two terms consecu tively. The 1990 Act that created the Commission Please see Roper page 2A Mayor Doug Roper SUBSCRIBE AND SAVE 30% OFF NEWSSTAND $45 WEIGHT LOSS MANAGEMENT every other month! Ask about our $25 weight loss injection! Baxley (912)367-4122 Blackshear (912)705-4910 Vidalia (912)705-4905 Nir Appling Healthcare Call 537-3131 lor delivery!