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CHRIS MULUNAX, A SECOND GRADER
...at Mashbum Elementary, digs into his school lunch
School Lunch
Week Planned
By LANE GARDNER CAMP
Staff Writer
Forsyth County school cafete
rias and school cafeterias all
over Georgia will be celebrating
National School Lunch Week Oct.
12-18.
National School Lunch Week,
which has been observed since
1962, brings with it special meals
and invitations to parents, teach
ers and community leaders to
dine in school cafeterias.
Beverly Gaines, food service
director for Forsyth County
sehbcWs, says, however, that par
ents are welcome to eat in the
school cafeterias anytime during
the year, as long as they let the
food service personnel know
they’re coming.
During National School Lunch
Week, Mrs. Gaines noted that the
schools will have special bulletin
boards along with decorated caf
eterias.
Wednesday, Oct. 15, most
schools will serve a lunch honor
ing Mexico. The menu, designed
to compliment the week’s slogan,
“Nutrition Through Social
Awareness,” has been designed
by the American School Food
Service Association. It will in
clude ground beef tacos, lettuce
and tomatoes, Spanish rice, Mex
School Attendance
Averaging 96-98%
Average daily attendance (ADA) in
the Forsyth County School System for
the first month of the 1960-81 school
year ranged from 96 percent to 98 per
cent in each of the county’s nine
schools.
An attendance report issued at the
Forsyth County Board of Education
meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 8, showed
the system’s total enrollment to be
6,158. ADA was listed at 5,931.
The report, which superintendent
Robert B. Otwell called a good one,
showed Chestatee and Midway El
ementary Schools both to have 98 per
cent attendance for the first month of
school.
Big Creek, Cumming, Mashburn and
Sawnee Elementary Schools all had 97
percent ADA. Those schools with 96
percent attendance were Ducktown
Kindergarten, Otwell Middle School
and Forsyth County High School.
Chestatee Elementary had a total en
rollment of 465, with ADA for the first
month at 450. There were 412 students
enrolled at Midway Elementary which
had an ADA of 406.
Of the 347 students enrolled at Big
Creek Elementary, 338 attended on an
average basis. Cumming Elementary
had an ADA of 803 out of the 831 en
rolled. Mashburn had a total enroll
ment of 485, with ADA at 471. Sawnee
Elementary’s ADA was 751 out of a to
tal enrollment of 775.
There were 192 students enrolled at
Ducktown Kindergarten, with an ADA
of 183. Otwell Middle School had a total
enrollment of 959, with ADA being 915.
Of the 1,692 students enrolled at For
syth County High School, 1,614 attended
on an average basis.
Comparative figures supplied in the
attendance report revealed that all
inufl FORSYTH ITflWg
1 111 l COUNTY IIIIVvS
VOLUME LXXI—NUMBER 41
icali corn, pineapple wedges and
milk.
Mrs. Gaines points out that ta
cos, along with pizza, is a favo
riate food item in the Forsyth
County schools.
As a counterpart to Wednes
day’s international theme, the
Georgia Department of Educa
tion has suggested a southern
menu for Georgia Day, Thurs
day, Oct. 16. Schools will be serv
ing oven fried chicken, sweet
potato souffle, seasoned green
beans, combread, chilled peach
slices and milk. (This meal is
subject to change.)
Mrs. Gaines works very closely
with the different schools’ food
and nutrition program managers
to insure that students not only
get meals with nutritional value,
but also meals that they will eat
and enjoy.
One way she does this is by vis
iting the different schools
throughout the year and eating in
the cafeterias. Because she often
dines with the students, she finds
out at they do and do not like
about school lunches.
Another way she learns about
students’ likes and dislikes is by
checking out the cafeteria gar
bage cans for plate waste. If she
Continued on Page 2A
schools, except Cumming and Mash
burn, have increased their enrollment
from the first month of the 1979-80
school year.
Schools which increased their enroll
ment were Big Creek (38), Chestatee
(29), Midway (18), Sawnee (27), Duck
town (21), Otwell Middle (20), and For
syth County High School (42).
Comparisons of ADA for the first
month of 1980-81 to the first month of
1979-80 reveal that even though Mash
burn Elementary is down on its enroll
ment, it is up on its ADA by two
students.
Cumming Elementary is the only
school with a decrease in ADA from the
first month of 1979-80 to the first month
of 198081.
Metro Phone Decision Is Postponed
The Public Service Commission has
postponed a decision on metro tele
phone service for Cumming for at least
two weeks.
PSC Chairman Ford Spinks said the
Metro Atlanta telephone group asked
for the postponement at the Oct. 7
meeting because they “have now found
an expert in telephone matters that will
be useful to them in compiling data
that will help us make our decision. ’’
Jewel Palmer, the telephone group’s
representative, said after the meeting
the group had met the night before and
decided to ask for the postponement be
cause they had found a telephone ex
pert who could help them question the
cost of providing metro service to Cum
WEDNESDAY,OCTOBER IS, 1960- CUMMING, ?A.30130
County Budget Is Approved
With Increase Of .9 Mills
The Forsyth County Board of Com
missioners approved a record budget
said by several of them to be the most
difficult they had ever worked on-by a
3-2 vote Monday night.
The millage on property taxes was
raised less than a mill from 3.81 mills,
where it has been for the past three
years, to 4.71 mills. This was also done
by a 3-2 vote.
In both cases, commissioners James
Harrington and Garland Barron voted
against the budget and against the mil
lage rate.
The 1981 budget is set at $3,021,148.62,
some 20.75 percent higher than 1980,
The budget is balanced; revenues and
expendatures are expected to be equal.
The board also set the 1981 bond irul
lage at .77 mills. The only outstanding
county bonds are for the new court
house. County administrator Donald
Major said the county will pay about
$140,000 on them in 1981. The bonds will
be paid off in 1997, he said. ■
Property taxes will be thfc single
largest source of income for tine county,
bringing in an expected $1,ft©,652.44, or
about one third of all reveres.
Federal sources will account for
$150,583.38.
Local option sales tax money will
bring in the second greatest amount of
money, $889,042.93. The board set the
tax millage at 9.42 m'dls, and then
rolled it back to account for the local
option money.
State funds will bring inf 5589,920.85.
The City of Cumming win contribute
S6OO for the Civil Defers*.program,
Cherokee County will coii ribute
$42,976.44 for the state court ana other
local sources will bring in $502,372.58.
One of the largest expenditures will
go for the county tax assessor to pay
for a court-ordered property revalua
tion. This office is budgeted for
$148,568.91. Mapping and professional
services account for $52,141.70 in Its
budget.
The sheriff’s department will receive
$492,246.88. No new patrol cars are
scheduled to be purchased. The sher
iff’s budget includes jail operation
Education Board OK’s Budget
BY LANE GARDNER CAMP
Staff Writer
The Forsyth County Board of Educa
tion approved a close to S2O-million
budget for the 1980-81 school year in a
reconvened meeting on Monday, Oct,
13, at 6 p.m.
The board started its October meet
ing on Wednesday, Oct. 8, at 7 p.m., but
All Smiles
Cindy Chadwick and
Rick Swan have made
friends with “The Great
Pumpkin.” Well, it
might not be THE great
pumpkin, but it’s close
enough. A happy face on
all three bring out the
spirit of the season. Hal
loween, you know, is but
a couple of weeks away.
(News staff photo by
Jay Jordan.)
ming.
The telephone group has tried for
several years, Mrs. Palmer said, to
find a consulting engineer “to defin
ately breakdown the telephone compa
ny’s cost study.’’Up to now, no one
(consultants) within Southern Bell’s ju
risdiction have told us they were afraid
to go against the telephone company,
afraid of business reprecussions. ”
The telephone group’s new consul
tant has asked for additional informa
tion which the PSC has not yet been
able to obtain from Bell, Mrs. Palmer
said.
Southern Bell estimates metro phone
service for Cumming would cost each
subscriber about S2O monthly, Mrs.
costs.
The volunteer fire department is bud
geted at $95,574.64. This includes $27,-
OOC for fire truck payments.
Some $300,000 is budgeted for road
repair and maintenance. The county
will pay for $60,000 and state funds will
makeup the rest.
■The recreation department will re
ceive $85,337.84. This includes $50,000
foil park development at Bennett Park.
Tlie recreation department will also
gst 11,000 for playground equipment
Woman’s Body Is
By Highway
Tsre b<dy of an unidentified woman
was'discovered shot to death in Forsyth
Coulity Mcnday afternoon, according to
the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Depart
meiit.
body was found in high grass
Georgia Highway 400, approxi
vy eight miles south of Cumming,
if ‘ling to Sheriff Wesley Walraven.
, | sheriff sajd the body was found
|rH3:ls p.m. Monday by a passing
who notified sheriff’s dep-
Sjßtamination of the body revealed
Hainan died of a small caliber gun
(not [wound to the head. She was be-
to have. beer, shot between mid
nlghi Sunday and 6 a.m. Monday, the
Sheriff said. There was no identifica
tion cn the body, he added.
The woman was white, approxi
mately 25 years of age, five feet four
inichr# tall, weighing 115 pounds with
brown shoulder length hair, the sheriff
said. She also has greenish-grey eyes,
with her front teeth close together and
overlapping.
When found, she was wearing blue
jeans, a black t-shirt with a name and
recessed till Monday because of a need
to “better understand” the budget,
according to Jane Gilbert, school sys
tem secretary.
All other board business was com
pleted on Oct. 8.
With total payments projected to be
$19,537,604.91, the board set its millage
rate (based on 95 percent collection) at
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Palmer said. The telephone group’s
new consultant recently told the group
metro service should only cost about
half as much.
Mike Raynor, Bell’s manager for the
Cumming area, said the company had
no strong position on the postponement.
“The company feels sure any knowl
edgeable and reasonable consultant
would confirm the figures the consul
tant hired for the Public Service Com
mission came up with,’’ Raynor said.
Spinks said he did not know when the
PSC might finally make a decision. “It
could be a month,’’ he said. Mrs.
Palmer and the telephone group had
asked for a two-week delay, and he
would grant them another two weeks if
32 PAGES, 3 SECTIONS—2S CENTS
benches.
County administration covers such
items as insurance, unemployment
claims and workmen’s compensation.
This budget area is allotted $284,763.12.
The county is also appropriating $96,-
025 for the pri ambulance service oper
ated by Ingram Funeral Home.
Bridge and road maintenace is bud
geted for $746,813.15. Supplies and
materials are budgeted at $231,000,
while new equipment is set for
$71,911.67.
Several county departments had
picture of singer Rod Stewart on the
front and back. She was also wearing a
man’s blue flannel shirt with red
stripes, Sheriff Walraven said.
Anyone having information about the
identity of the victim is asked to con
tact the Forsyth County Sheriff’s De
partment at 887-4330 or Atlanta direct,
577-6432.
Sheriff Walraven said the incident is
under investigation and efforts to make
identification.
He said the incident was the first
homicide discovered in Forsyth County
since March of 1979.
In a separate incident, deputies have
arrested three persons here and
charged them with burglary.
Sheriff Walraven said James Jeffery
Cowart, 19, of 312 Allen Street, John
William Gayton, 19, of 506 East Maple
Street and Talmadge Eugene Gayton,
18, also of 506 East Maple Street, have
been arrested and charged with the
Jan. 21 burglary of the J.R. Whitt resi
dence on Buford Dam Road.
Authorities said stereo speakers,
guns, tires, and coins all valued at
about $1,250 were taken.
18.88. A total of 15.52 mills is for main
tenance and operations and 3.36 mills is
for school bonds..
This millage rate is an increase of
1.64 mills from the 1979-80 millage rate
which was 17.24 (13.81 mills for mainte
nance and operations and 3.43 for
school bonds).
This is the first increase in the mil-
they needed it, he said.
Spinks said Mrs. Palmer asked him
for the delay shortly before the meeting
began. “We are as anxious to get the
problem resolved as they are,” he said.
Spinks announced the postponement
shortly after the meeting began.
Forsyth County has been fighting for
metro Atlanta telephone service since
the early 19605. Metro phone service
proponents have contended not being
able to call Atlnata without a long dis
tance charge has hurt the county. Bell
is staunchly against it, saying the cost
would be prohibitive andonly a few peo
ple in Cumming call Atlanta frequently
enough to justify metro service.
very large budget increases, several of
over 100 percent. The tax assessor’s
budget went up about 130 percent from
1980, while the recreation department’s
budget went up 141 percent.
No money was appropriated for the
Forsyth County Hospital Authority, so
their budget dropped 100 percent. The
voter registrar’s budget dropped 316
percent because no elections are sched
uled in 1981.
The 1980 budget was $2,502,075.39.
That budget was 10.38 percent above
the 1979 one.
_ jßf,
Harry Who?
Forsyth County had an unusual presi
dential candidate campaigning around
the downtown square this week, and he
looked very much like Harry Truman.
Jim Hammond, who will give a one
man show entitled “Give ’em Hell
Harry!” dressed for Ms part and shook
hands with numerous folks downtown.
The show will be held Oct. 24 and 25 at
Otwell Middle School and Oct. Si and
Nov. 1 at the Cumming Elementary
School gym. Show times will be at 8
p.m. (see another photo on Page 2-A.)
lage rate in two years. The 1979-80 mil
lage rate for school operations was a
decrease from the 17.62 in 1978-79.
Board member Billy Waters pointed
out that this millage rate is based on
the county digest as presented to them
by the tax tax commissioner’s office.
In other business, superintendent
Robert B. Otwell released an atten
dance report for the first month of the
1980-81 school year. The report showed
attendance in all the county’s nine
schools to be at or above 96 percent.
(See separate story.)
Matt Matthews of Jacobs, Matthews
and Parker, architects in Gainesville,
reported that the construction and ren
ovation project at the high school was
being finished up. He said they would
begin cleaning up in the next week.
Matthews further reported that the
new elementary school was “progres
sing satisfactorily.”
Bob Plunkett of Lamberson, Plun
kett, Shirley and Woodall of Atlanta,
architects for the county’s two new
middle schools, announced that the
south school was “going extremely
well.” He reported, however, that he
was “not as happy about” the north
school. It, he said, is “moving a little
more slowly.”
Betty Benson, curriculum director
for the Forsyth County School System,
reported to the board the results of a
recent federal assessment of the coun
ty’s special education program. (The
program is evaluated every three
years.)
Several years ago, the PSC directed
Bell to study the cost of providing
metro service to Cumming.
The study was finished in late 1979
and concluded each main station, or
telephone subscriber, would have to
pay $20.69 monthly to make up for the
cost of new equipment and lost long dis
tance revenue.
The study was revised slightly in
February, 1980, but its conclusions
werer not significantly altered.
A second study was done by an out
side consultant and was finished in the
spring of 1980. This study found Bell’s
costs were about 20 percent higher than
they should have been.