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ilarksmt progress- Arnus
Volume 104 No. 5
County Commissioners Pruje
Payroll at Monday Meeting
At a called meeting Friday
morning, members of the
Butts County Board of
Commissioners took several
actions affecting County
employees and approved two
10-acre sites for the location
of mobile homes.
Nine members of the Butts
County Road Maintenance
staff resigned as of Friday,
January 28th, their resigna
tions were accepted and
applications are now being
aken for the vacant posi
tions. The resignations came
as a result of a dispute over
working conditions.
The Commission voted to
terminate the C.E.T.A. posi
tion at the Jackson Day Care
Center as of January 31st and
to have the position trans
ferred to the road depart
ment as soon as the
necessary details could be
cleared.
The Commissioners voted
Ambulance
Service Begun
At Hospital
According to Sylvan Grove
Hospital Administrator Jim
Shaw, the Hospital Authority
was expected to be officially
licensed as ambulance ope
rator for Butts County
Tuesday afternoon when a
state health department
official was scheduled to
come to Jackson to inspect
the ambulance.
Shaw said the delay in
getting the license was due to
having essential radio equip
ment installed in the ambu
lance and he added that
detail has been taken care of.
However, he emphasized
that the new ambulance
service is temporarily for
emergencies only because of
the fact that only one
ambulance is in operation.
Shaw said that until an
additional ambulance is
received this policy will
remain in effect, and anyone
needing ambulance service
other than emergency should
contact ambulance services
in Griffin or other surround
ing areas such as Henry or
Jasper counties.
The new ambulance will be
manned 24 hours a day by
two full-time emergency
medical technicians (EMT).
There are currently three
full-time and seven part-time
EMTS working with the
ambulance service which
may be reached at 775-4500.
FIVE-YEAR OLD TWINS FIGHTING HEART DISEASE Governor George Busbee
has the help of Marta Davenport (R) and her sister Megan in proclaiming Februarv as
Heart Month in Georgia. Marta, who has had surgery to close a hole in her heart, is
serving as the Georgia Heart Association’s 1977 HEART FUND Princess. The governor
urged all Georgians to learn “how it feels to have a heart attack” and to support the work
of the Heart Association in the fight against the number one Killer.
to combine the function of the
Planning and Zoning Board
with that of the County
Commissioner’s office and to
retain Ellis Roberts as
inspector. This action was to
become effective January
31st.
Two part-time jobs at the
County land fill were
terminated as of January
29th.
The Commission heard a
report from Hollis Griggs,
director of the Jackson-Butts
County Recreation Commis
sion, that the basketball
program has been canceled
due to the fuel crisis and that
his department would be in
financial difficulty if partici
pant and sponsors fees had to
be returned. The Commis
sion advised him to use this
money for payroll purposes.
Virgil Pace, co-director of
the Jackson-Butts County
Rescue Squad advised that
United Appeal Group Names
Officers, Directors for 1977
The Butts County United
Appeal committee met on
Monday, January 17, at
Mclntosh State Bank for its
annual meeting. The pri
mary purpose of the meeting
was for the election of
officers and installation of
new directors for 1977.
Officers elected were Hugh
Glidewell, Jr., president;
Charlie Brown, Ist vice
president; Harry Lewis, 2nd
vice-president; Mrs. Ka
thryn Haisten, 3rd vice
president; Mrs. Rita Durrett,
secretary; Kenny Smith,
treasurer.
Other directors for 1977
include Dick O’Hara, Mrs.
Zella Mae Taylor, Jack
Little, Luke Weaver, Edward
H. Wise, James Lawson, Jr.,
Pete Malone, Rev. Ray E.
Savage, Bob Betts, Rev.
David Beville, Gigi Lever
ette, Mrs. Carol Potter,
Oscar Watkins, Mrs. Julie
Collins, Buster Duke, Perry
Ridgeway.
As its first order of
business the board voted to
give special recognition to
Miss Georgie Watkins and to
Lou Moelchert for their
dedicated service to the
United Appeal in years past.
The Butts County United
Appeal is off to an aggressive
start this year with many
new faces on the board. It is
their aim to get the
momentum started now in
order that they have a very
successful fund drive in the
Fall. Already the ground
work is being laid for the
different committees that
J jfion, Georgia 30233, Thursday, February 3, 1977
the National Guard Armory,
Indian Springs Academy
gymnasium and the Hender
son Junior High gymnasium
would all be available as
emergency shelters should
the current fuel crisis worsen
and natural gas supplies to
homes be shut off.
The Commissioners voted
to approve the recommenda
tion of the Butts County
Board of Appeals that
permanent permits be grant
ed to two applicants who
requested that 10-acre sites
be zoned for mobile homes.
The applicants were Mrs.
Vikki Phillips on Reeves
Road and Neal J. Wells on
the Bucksnort Road.
After discussing applica
tion of the homestead
exemption law to leased
property, the Commissioners
postponed action pending
further study of the matter.
they might make full use of
all citizens in the county, not
just the board members, in
reaching and exceeding the
fund drive goal.
The monies collected by
the United Appeal serve the
county well. The money you
give is in turn given back to
Butts Countians in the form
of donations to such organi
zations as:
American Red Cross, Boy
Scouts of America, Girl
Scouts of America, Butts
County Association for Re
tarded Citizens, Transient
Aid Fund, YMCA. Georgia
Association of Mental
Health, USO, Community
Emergency Fund.
In the coming months in
this newspaper the United
Appeal has planned to run
articles on the various
organizations showing how
these funds are raised,
showing you where your
money is going, and most of
all showing the progress that
is being made by these
groups that receive the
donations.
The Butts County United
Appeal is an all volunteer
organization that depends on
the people of Butts County to
give generously in their
behalf through door to door
donations or by payroll
deductions but they also
depend on you during the
fund drive to get out and help
collect the contributions.
If one of the directors
should call on you in the
coming months to serve as a
voluntary worker, please
Unemployment
Continues To
Drop in County
The Georgia Department
of Labor has reported that
the unemployment rate in
Butts County dropped to 8.4
in December following a
trend which was set through
out most of 1976.
During November, the rate
of unemployment in the
county was 8.8 percent.
All of the other counties in
the Mclntosh Trail Area also
showed a decrease in the rate
of unemployment, except
Spalding where the rate
remained unchanged at 5.5
percent.
In addition to Butts and
Spalding, the Labor Depart
ment reported the following
rates for the remaining
counties in the Trail Area:
Fayette--6.8, Henry-8.1,
Lamar-4.5, Newton-5.7,
Pike-6.3, and Upson-3.6.
Asa whole, the Mclntosh
Trail Area had an unemploy
ment rate of 5.9 for
December.
give your support and help.
Let's all Make Butts
County a better place in
which to live, and also a
place where we all can say
' Thanks to you ... It Works ..
tor all of us ... The United
Way.
Farm Bureau
Leads Fight
For Mirex
The Butts County Farm
Bureau, joining forces with
other chapters of the national
organization throughout the
State, has helped wage a
winning battle in the fight to
obtain additional supplies of
Mirex to combat the fire ant
menace.
Under the leadership of
President George N. Martin,
Jr., the local Farm Bureau
through letters and petitions
have sought relief from the
State’s Congressional delega
tion, the Georgia Commis
sioner of Agriculture and
others in an effort to get
supplies of the chemical into
the County.
President Martin said
Monday the Farm Bureau
has been advised that
quantities of Mirex will be
made available this summer
for hand application by
landowners and that it is
anticipated sufficient quan
tities will be available later
for an aerial spray program.
Distribution of the chem
ical will probably be handled
through the county agent’s
office, but Martin said that
definite word on the distribu
tion pattern will be given
Farm Bureau members as
soon as it is received.
MRS. PRUITT GETS
ASSIST FROM ICE
Johnny Smolka reports
from Deer Trail that Mrs.
Sara Pruitt recently banked
a shot off a frozen lake onto
the green on the seventh hole
at Jackson s popular golf
course.
Johnny says that Mrs.
Pruitt had never attempted
to cross the 100-yard lake
guarding the No. 7 green for
fear of the water but, on her
first attempt, drove the ball
onto the frozen surface from
which point it rolled onto the
green.
Mrs. Martha Daniel was
her playing partner and
witnessed the unusual shot.
City Hopes For Best, Prepares
For Worst In Gas Shortage
The City of Jackson’s
natural gas crisis has
worsened slightly and on
Friday Mayor C. B. Brown,
Jr. delivered to all busi
nesses, schools, churches
and offices served by the City
gas system a copy of a
telegram received last Wed
nesday from Southern Natu
ral Gas Company, along with
a letter from the Mayor
requesting even more de
cisive action.
Suggesting the necessity of
developing immediately
emergency preparedness
plans, the gas official said
the “initial stage of such a
contingency plan should
include the curtailment of
shopping centers, business
establishments, and other
community and public
gathering places, including
schools in order to preserve
pressure in the system and
reserve as much gas as
possible for absolutely vital
Priority (residential) use.”
The telegram carried the
additional grim warning that
the second phase of the plan,
“to be used only as a last
resort, should anticipate the
shutting dowrn the select
portions of distributor, cus
tomer’s systems as may be
necessary to preserve ser
vice to remaining portions of
such system.”
In his letter to businesses,
schools, churches and offices
served by the Jackson
natural gas system. Mayor
Brown pointed out that the
emergency preparedness
plan suggested by Southern
Natural Gas has been
complied with and that, if the
emergency worsens, “you
realize that we would not
have any choice but to curtail
you to no gas in this
situation.”
The Mayor also advised
Light Snow
Powders Area
On Monday
For the third time this
season, Old Man W’inter
dusted Butts County with a
one-inch mantle of white
early Monday morning as
local residents awoke to a
typical Grandma Moses
snow scene.
Temperatures hovered
near the 25-degree mark and
by midmorning most of the
snow was gone from high
ways and sidewalks, and
pedestrian and vehicular
traffic was not hazardous.
The snow came on the
heels of a cold snap that
dropped temperatures to 10
on Saturday and 15 on
Sunday. Weather forecasters
predicted the snow wou’d
arrive sometime Sunday
night or early Monday
morning, coming out of a low
pressure system developing
in the Gulf of Mexico and
moving eastward across
central and south Georgia.
Acting in the capricious
manner so characteristic of
deep South snow falls, more
snow was predicted for
central and southern parts of
the state than for the
northern third.
Although below seasonal
temperatures were oredicted
for the next few days, there
were no hints of a return to
the bone-chilling cold that
has plagued the area so often
this winter.
Atlanta forecasters were
talking of a possible return of
the snow on Thursday.
The natural gas situation
that “we would like to ask
you to make arrangements if
possible to operate with other
fuel besides natural gas or
consider the possibility of no
heat. Also, please be making
preparations to operate on
shorter opening hours if
necessary.”
The Jackson-Butts County
Rescue Squad has already
made arrangements to have
emergency shelters provided
should curtailment of gas to
private homes, not consider
ed likely at this time,
actually occur.
The full text of the letter
from the Southern Natural
Gas official and the text of
the Mayor’s letter are
reproduced below:
January 26,1977
A telegram to: All Re-sale
customers of Southern Na
tural Gas Company
Re: Curtailment Emerg
ency: Emergency Prepared
ness Plan
Gentlemen:
“As we have informed you
on several occasions recent
ly. there is a critical gas
supply situation on our
pipeline system resulting
from the unprecedented cold
weather in our service area.
This company has been
requested by the Federal
Power Commission to advise
all of its customers, the State
Public Service Commission
in the states we serve, and
the officials of the Governors
of such states of the necessity
of immediately developing
emergency preparedness
plans.
The initial stage of such a
contingency plan should
include the curtailment of
shopping centers, business
establishments, and other
** *-• ■
- .
WINTER WONDERLAND—Butts Countians were greeted Monday morning with a
one-to-two-ineh snowfall that fell in the wee hours of Monday morning, covering cars,
roads, and woods with a soft mantle of white. Photo by Carole Lawrence.
Three Directors
Appointed To
CGEMC Board
Three new directors were
appointed to the Central
Georgia Electric Member
ship Corporation Board of
Directors at the regular
remained critical, although
improved enough to permit
the opening of all public and
private schools in the County
on Tuesday morning, after a
two-day holiday enforced by
the extreme weather of
Friday and Monday.
community and public
gathering places, including
schools in order to preserve
pressure in the system and
reserve as much gas as
possible for absolutely vital
Priority 1 (residential) use.
The second phase of the
plan, to be used only as a last
resort, should anticipate the
shutting down the select
portions of distributor, cus
tomers’s systems as may be
necessary to preserve ser
vice to remaining portion of
such system.
It may become necessary
to use such emergency
preparedness plans to pre
serve services or Southerns
system in the event of an
other extended period of
extremely cold weather.
In response to the commis
sioners request, Southern
urgently asks each of you to
contact immediately your
local Public Service Com
mission and Governor, and
by copy of this telegram
urges your Governor and
such Public Commission to
take immediate action to
develop emergency pre
paredness plans whereby
portions of your system may
be shut down in order to
preserve services to the
remainder of your system in
situations extended periods
of extremely cold weather.
In this connection, please
note system area weather
forecast predict severly cold
temperatures commencing
the latter part of this week.
If Southern can provide
you with any information, we
will be happy to do so.”
Yours very truly.
Southern Natural
William E. Mathews IV
Yice-Pres. Operations
monthly meeting held on
January 26th to serve until
the next annual membership
meeting.
John Charles Maddox,
Route 3. Madison, a dairy
farmer, was appointed to fill
the unexpired term of the
late C. F. Tomlin, represent
ing Morgan and Putnam
counties. The other two are
appointed to fill vacancies as
directors "at large." They
include Joseph Davis, Route
1. Jenkinsburg, who is
employed by the Butts
County school system as an
instructor, and Duvoil Mad
dox. Route 2, Monticello, who
is engaged in farming.
15c Per Copy
January 28,1977
"TO ALL BUSINESSES,
SCHOOLS, CHURCHES
AND OFFICES:
Please read the attached
from Southern Natural Gas
Company. In view of this and
the fact that we are an
independent gas system we
are still in a critical situation
and according to expected
weather conditions this will
make our situation even
more critical.
We appreciate the coopera
tion that we have received so
far from most of you and we
are not saying that this plan
will be put into action at this
time, however, we feel that
we should advise you that it
could go into effect at
anytime. Of course, you
realize we would not have
any choice but to curtail you
to no gas in this situation.
We would like to ask you to
make arrangements if pos
sible to operate with other
fuel besides natural gas or
consider the possiblity of no
heat. Also, please be making
preparations to operate on
shorter opening hours if
necessary . Of course all cf
this is dependent on the
weather and our gas supply.
We also are asking you to
conserve gas as much as
possible.
Again w e are just trying to
bring to your attention the
seriousness of this matter
and prepare you for what
could happen to all of us. The
only exceptions to the above
will be Doctor’s Offices and
Hospitals.
Please listen to your local
radio station as we will
continue to advise you of our
situation as in the past.
Thanking you again for
your cooperation in this
matter, we remain.”
city of Jackson
Mayor and Council
C B Brown. Jr.
Mayor
JOE. THE HOBO, SEZ:
Tpsjp'ii f{
Is it better to be on a farm
and dream of success, or
achieve success and dream
of a farm?