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PAGE 2A
FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS Thursday, February 19,2004
Deaths
Kenneth Adkins
Mr. Kenneth Adkins, 47, of
Dawsonville died Tuesday, Feb.
17. 2004. Mr. Adkins had been
a truck driver for 25 years.
Survivors include his par
ents, M.C. and Carrie Adkins of
Dawsonville; brother, Thomas
Adkins of Cumming; several
aunts, uncles, cousins and other
relatives also survive.
Funeral services will be
Thursday, Feb. 19, at 2 p.m. at
the Ingram Funeral Home
Chapel with the Rev. Charles
Green officiating. Interment
will follow in the Sawnee View
Memorial Gardens.
Donations may be made to
the Ingram Funeral Home to
help with funeral expenses.
Ingram Funeral Home is in
charge of the arrangements.
Forsyth County News
February 19, 2004
Evelyn Bramblett Day
Mrs. Evelyn Bramblett Day
died Monday. Feb. 16, 2004.
Mrs. Day was born in
Montezuma, Ga., on Jan. 10,
1919. She was a former volun
teer with Hospice of St. Francis
and a member of Sunshine
Homemakers in Titusville. Fla.
She was preceded in death by
her husband of 47 years. A. Lee
Day of Titusville, Fla.
Survivors include her chil
dren. Bryant L. Day and wife
Mary Beth of Temple. Vaughn
L. Day and wife Libby of
Murphy, N.C., R. Lamar Day of
Cumming, Mary Simon and
husband Tony of Titusville.
Fla.; 11 grandchildren; 16
great-grandchildren.
The family will receive
friends at North Brevard
Funeral Home on Thursday.
Feb. 19. at 11 a.m. followed by
a memorial sen ice at noon at
North Brevard Funeral Home.
Burial will follow at LaGrange
Cemetery in Titusville" Fla.
In lieu of flowers, donations
may be made to the American
Cancer Society, a local
Alzheimer’s association or The
Hospice of St. Francis.
North Brevard Funeral
Home in Titusville. Fla., was in
charge of the arrangements.
Ingram Funeral Home was
in charge of the local arrange
ments.
Forsyth County News
February 19, 2004
Thomas Donald
Trowell Sr.
Mr. Thomas Donald Trowell
Sr.. 73, of Cumming died Feb.
17. 2004. A native of Webster.
Fla.. Mr. Trowell was a retired
industrial and commercial
refrigeration mechanic with
Patterson Enterprises. He lived
in Cumming for the past 24
years and was a Baptist.
Survivors include his wife,
Lavine Trowell of Cumming;
daughters. Vickie Melton of
Cumming. Mary Heines of
Hopkinsville, Ky., Angel
Manus of Cumming; sons,
Ronald Melton of Indian Trail.
N.C.. Thomas D. (Donnie)
Trowell Jr. of Cumming; a
number of brothers and sisters;
eight grandchildren; 13 great
grandchildren.
Funeral services will be
Friday. Feb. 20. at 11 a.m. as the
McDonald and Son Funeral
Home Chapel. Interment will
follow' in the Sawnee View
Memorial Gardens.
The family will receive
friends Thursday from 7-9 p.m.
at the McDonald and Son
Funeral Home and Crematory
in Cumming.
McDonald and Son Funeral
Home and Crematory is in
charge of the arrangements.
Forsyth County News
February 20, 2004
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Social Security changes for 2004 listed
By Cindy G. McCubblns
For the Forsyth County News
As the new year begins, it
is probably a good time to
review some of the annual
Social Security and Medicare
changes that became effective
in January 2004.
Most of the changes affect
people already getting Social
Security and Supplemental
Security Income (SSI) bene
fits. But a few affect people
who work and pay Social
Security taxes.
Beginning January 2004,
Social Security and SSI bene
fits went up 2.1 percent. That
means the average Social
Security retirement benefit
rose from $903 in 2003 to
$922 in 2004. Os course, the
increase applies to all Social
Security benefits, not just
retirement payments. For
MURPHY from A
passing a budget for fiscal year
2005. Murphy plans to vote
against the budget as is.
Murphy said an accounting
error had supposedly resulted
in a significant windfall for the
state previously reported as
$179 million but unlike
some of his fellow legislators
he prefers not to include that
money in the budget.
"We need to put that
money in reserve instead of
running out and spending
something we don’t know we
have." he said.
In other business at the
city council meeting:
•The council approved the
purchase of three police vehi
cles and two pickup trucks
under state contract for the
total amount of $87,976. The
council also approved the
purchase of an improved laser
BULLIES from 1A
Adams said the bill’s
expansive definition of bully
ing would make it difficult for
school officials to separate
truly harmful behavior from
typical childhood banter.
Some children could be
unjustly labeled.
"I could see [the bill J
harming some kids," Adams
said.
If the bill passes the Senate
and becomes law. local school
boards will be required to
investigate and document
every reported incident of bul
lying to the state board of edu
cation in an annual discipli
nary report.
After the third instance of
BOARD from 1A
costs for adult businesses,
including a business license,
investigation and application
costs total more than SI,OOO.
The license fee of $750 would
have to be renewed annually,
Jarrard said.
In addition, by limiting
physical contact, the ordi
nance includes tattoo par
lors while specifically
exempting other businesses
such as massage parlors
and ear piercing.
FIRST CALL
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Forsyth County.
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f«p*re» March IM 2004
example, the average disabili
ty check climbs from $844 in
2003 to $862 in 2(X)4. And the
average benefit payable to a
widow(er) goes up $lB. from
a 2003 rate of SB7O to SBBB in
2004.
The basic SSI payment rate
for an individual rises from
$552 to $564. The rate for a
couple goes from $829 to
$846. But please note that
these figures represent just the
federal portion of the SSI pay
ment. Many states supplement
that federal rate with their own
payment, which also generally
goes up annually with cost-of
living raises.
People getting Social
Security benefits who are
under full retirement age. not
disabled, and still working
also have updates to take into
consideration. The earnings
radar unit for the Cumming
Police Department for $5,000
funded by sales tax dollars.
Assistant Chief of Police
Gene Sams said that the new
equipment would be more
precise in documenting the
speed of lawbreakers.
Gwinnett and Cherokee coun
ties already use the new radar
in their police departments.
•Much work was accom
plished on the Cumming
Historic School renovation at
Tuesday's meeting. B.L.
Mullinax will contract with
the city to plant $21,512.50 in
shrubs and trees around the
school, which will house a
theater and offices for the
Historical Society of Forsyth
County. Robertson’s
Landscape had the low bid of
$6,800 for irrigation of the
site. Hard Rock Pavers will
bullying, a student in sixth
grade or higher may be placed
in an “alternative program."
The current law requires that
third time offenders attend
alternative school. The House
bill leaves details of the “alter
native program" and appropri
ate punishment for individual
offenses to the local school
system.
The bill also requires spe-
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••TICKETS FOR "THE PASSION OF CHRIST" ON SALE NOW— BB
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threshold in 2004 is $11.640.
For every* $2 earned over that
limit, $1 must be withheld
from any Social Security ben
efits due. (The 2(X)3 threshold
was $11,520.)
If you are reaching full
retirement age in 2004, you
have a higher income thresh
old. It is $31,080, compared to
$30,720 last year. For every
$3 you earn over $31.080, we
must take $1 from any bene
fits you are due, for those
months leading up to your full
retirement age. And when you
reach that age, this earnings
limit expires.
And an important message
for Medicare beneficiaries is
that the Part B premium goes
up to $66,60 this year. It was
$57.80 in 2003.
As 1 mentioned earlier,
install pavers at $2 per square
foot, as approved by the
council. The city will pur
chase the pavers separately.
The council also voted to
replace telephone lines and
three poles in front of the
school at 101 School St. with
underground lines.'BellSouth
will be paid $27,258 for the
cost of construction.
The restoration of
Cumming Historic School is
funded by a voter-approved 1
percent sales tax (SPLOST).
•Parking in the lot on the
north side of City Hall in
downtown Cumming soon
will be further restricted. Due
to recent congestion in the
parking lot, the mayor and
council voted to place addi
tional signs in the lot desig
nating more space for city
employees and customers.
cial training for superintend
ents, principals, assistant prin
cipals and resource officers on
how to handle bullies.
"The bill could create addi
tional administrative regula
tions that would take more
time away from teachers to
teach and faculty to run their
own schools,” Jones said.
Jones indicated that in
addition to training, costs to
some of the annual updates
affect people still working
and paying Social Security
taxes. The major change
affects higher-income work
ers, those making more than
$87,000. In 2003, once they
made that much money, they
no longer owed Social
Security payroll taxes. In
2004, the taxable earnings
base rises to $87,900. The tax
rate itself does not change. It
remains at 6.2 percent for
wage earners and 12.4 per
cent for self-employed peo
ple. The Medicare tax rate
also remains the same as last
year. It is 1.45 percent for
wage earners and 2.9 percent
for the self-employed. But
there is no earnings base for
Medicare taxes. In other
words, all of your wages or
All violators will be towed at
the owner’s expense, Mayor
H. Ford Gravitt said.
Downtown parking is avail
able across from Goodson’s
on Maple and Castleberry
roads.
•Gravitt and the Cumming
City Council proclaimed Apr.
18-24 to be set aside as
Technology Week in Forsyth
County. During that week in
2004, the National School
Board Association will visit
Forsyth County schools in
one of its three stops across
the nation to observe technol
ogy in classrooms.
"This is all a result of the
wonderful support we've had
from the community over the
last decade," county schools
Superintendent Paula Gault
said Tuesday at the council
meeting.
local school systems could
include additional classroom
space for “alternative pro
grams.” The bill also leaves
school systems open to law
suits if bullying issues are not
handled according to the letter
of the law.
"At a time when budgets
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Forsyth CountvNews
•/ Your "Hometown Paper" Since 190 S J
USPS 205 540
Veterans Memorial Blvd.. Cumming. Georgia 30040
Phone: 770-887-3126 Fax: 770-889-6017
Internet Address: www.forsythnews.com
e Publisher DENNIS STOCKTON
General Manager NORMAN BAGGS
Editor TOM SPIGOLON
Advertising Director MARTI BARNES
Circulation Director PHIL JONES
MEMBER
Published Sunday. Wednesday . Thursday and Friday by the Forsyth County New s
Company. Veterans Memorial Blvd., Cumming. Ga. Second Class Postage paid at
Cumming. Ga. and additional offices. Subscription rate for Forsyth County. $52
per year; $35 for six months; other Georgia and out of state subscriptions are SBS
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4— £ •
self-employment income is
subject to the Medicare lax.
One other change affects
those still working and earn
ing Social Security credits.
The amount of income
required to earn one credit
increased from SB9O in 2003
to S9OO in 2(X)4. But the maxi
mum Social Security credits
that can be earned in any one
year remains at four. In other
words, once you make $3,600
this year, you will have earned
the maximum four credits for
Social Security purposes.
Most people need 40 credits to
be eligible for Social Security
retirement benefits. (Fewer
credits are sometimes needed
for other Social Security bene
fits.)
Cindy G. McCubbins is
the Social Security district
manager in Gainesville.
State to assist
former Barrow
Kelloggs workers
State Labor Commissioner
Michael Thurmond said
Tuesday that the Georgia
Department of Labor will pro
vide assistance to employees
expected to lose their jobs at
Kelloggs’ Snacks in Barrow
County.
Company officials have
notified the labor department
that the company plans a sig
nificant layoff at its re-packag
ing facility in Statham on April
25. The company anticipates a
total loss of 244 jobs.
The Georgia Department of
Labor conducts job' search
workshops, career counseling,
and provides resource centers
in each office.
For more information, go to
www.dol.state.ga.us.
are very tight. I think the state
Legislature needs to be very
careful to not add more bur
dens that are not [state] fund
ed to local school systems,”
Jones said.
The bill could face modifi
cation in the Senate before it
is called for a vote.