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THE JACKSON HERALD
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2023
O
Social
Kaliya, David, Benny and Caleb Carvalho donate items for the American Le
gion.
Commerce library participating in
American Legion donation drive
The Commerce Public Li
brary is again participating in
the annual American Legion
comfort items drive through
Oct 1. American Legion Post
93 and Post 56 will be deliv
ering these items to the VA
Medical Center and Fisher
House in Augusta.
A list of items eligible for
the drive can be found on the
library’s Facebook page or
patrons interested in helping
have the option of picking up
a list at the Commerce Public
Library.
In other library news:
• In addition to Chrome-
books, Launchpads are also
now available for check out
at the library. A Launchpad
Reading Academy is a tab-
let-based reading system that
helps kids learn to read. The
tablet is loaded with story
books, videos and apps and
does not require WiFi. To
learn more, visit the library.
• The library is holding
a blood drive in partner
ship with the American Red
Cross on September 12 from
10 a.m.-2 p.m. To sign up, go
to www.redcrossblood.org
and enter sponsor word: LI
BRARY, or call 1-800-733-
2767
•Book Vine will meet this
Friday at 1 p.m. to discuss,
The High Notes, by Dan
ielle Steel. Those interested
in participating are encour
aged to pick up next month’s
book, The Personal Librarian
by Marie Benedict and Vic
toria Murray. Large print op
tions are available.
•New adult fiction now
available include: Stephen
King’s A Face In the Crowd,
Karin Slaughter’s After That
Night, Fern Michaels’ Rock
Bottom, Heather Graham’s
Cursed At Dawn, Mary Jo
Putney’s Silver Lady, Pres
ton Child’s Dead Mountain,
Heather Webber’s At The
Coffee Shop of Curiosities,
Christina Lauren’s Love And
Other Words, Lisa Jewel’s
The Night She Disappeared,
Colleen Hoover’s It Ends
With Us, and William R.
Forstchen’s Five Years After.
• There are many new trav
el books in nonfiction in
cluding one on Scotland and
others on train travel, RV ad
ventures, camping or hiking
with dogs in Georgia. “Come
browse this section to plan
your next trip,” advises Li
brary Manager Angel Aboun-
ader. There are also several
new biographies including
The Prisoner by Hwang Sok-
yong and In Order to Live
by Yeonmi Park which is
about a North Korean girl’s
journey to freedom. Hwang
Sok-Yong is said to be Ko
rea’s most acclaimed novel
ist, and his book is described
as a “sweeping account of
modem Korean history and
a vivid memoir of political
persecution.”
• Upcoming programs
include: Monday, Yoga
10:30 a.m. and Chair Yoga
1 p.m.; Tuesday, Seasons of
Song 4 p.m. (sign ups re
quired); Wednesday, Hooks
and Needles 10 a.m. and
story time with Brittney at
10:30 a.m.; Thursday, Knit
ting for Kids 1:30-3:30 p.m.,
Smash Brothers from
4-5:30 p.m., and Yoga at
6 p.m.; and Friday, Baby and
Me at 10:30 a.m. and Book
Vine 1 p.m.
United Way awards community grants
United Way of Northeast Georgia recently an
nounced its 2024 Community Impact grant re
cipients at its Community Celebration. In 2024,
the organization will grant a total of $800,000 to
27 programs across the 12-county region.
The grantees are both individual nonprofit
programs and programs of nonprofit collabora
tions. Grant recipients provide services in one of
United Way of Northeast Georgia’s three focus
areas: Basic needs, early childhood success and
workforce development. United Way of North
east Georgia 2024 Community Impact Grant
Recipients include:
BASIC NEEDS RECIPIENTS
(PROGRAM AND AGENCY)
•Athens Area Homeless Shelter’s Almost
Home Emergency Shelter
•Athens Community Council on Aging’s
Meals on Wheels
• Family Promise of Athens’ Family Shelter
• Food Bank of Northeast Georgia and City of
Refuge Childhood Nutrition Collaboration
•New Path 1010’s Weekend Food Bag Pro
gram
• Project Safe, Peace Place and Circle of
Love’s Domestic Violence Crisis Intervention
Services collaboration
EARLY CHILDHOOD SUCCESS
RECIPIENTS (PROGRAM AND AGENCY)
• Atlas Ministry’s ATLAS Primary Prep
• Athens Area Diaper Bank’s Home Visiting
Diaper Partners Program
•Athens Community Council on Aging’s
Grandparents Raising Grandchildren
• Books for Keeps’ Books as a Bridge
• Brightpaths’ First Steps/Healthy Families
• Northeast Georgia CASA
• Quality Care for Children’s Creating Quality
and Ensuring Access
•Reach Out and Read’s Northeast Georgia
Early Literacy Intervention
• The Ark Family Preservation Center
•The Tree House’s Nurturing Parenting Pro
gram
" • YWCO’s Girls Club
WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT RECIPI
ENTS (PROGRAM AND AGENCY)
•ACTION Inc.’s Opportunities to Excel
•Ashton Hope Keegan Foundation’s Educa
tional Program
•Athens Land Trust’s Young Urban Fann
ers, Builders and Conservation Stewards
•Casa de Amistad’s GED Classes in Span
ish
•DIVAS Who Win Freedom Center’s SHE
Works
•Dr. Annise Mabry Foundation’s Rural
Communities Diploma Program
• Georgia Committee on the Employment of
People with Disabilities’ Manufacturing Insti
tute
•Goodwill of North Georgia’s Workforce
Development for Young Adults
• Northeast Georgia Regional Commission’s
Job Training for Young Adults
•Lydia’s Place’s Elevate
PUBLIC NOTICE
SPLOST 6 Citizen
Oversight Committee
On August 25, 2023, the Roads, Bridges and Sidewalks
Oversight Committee heard a presentation from the City of
Nicholson regarding proposed projects to be funded by
SPLOST 6. The Committee determined:
The Paving of Jim David Road, Steeple Chase Road, and
Hunt Club Road is a project that complies with the project list
the City of Nicholson included on the SPLOST ballot.”
The Committee also recommended that the project move
forward. For additional information, please contact the
Jackson County Manager’s Office at 706-367-6314.
www.jacksoncountygov.com
Jackson County MLK Day of Service
Committee announces new co-chair
Commerce-native Shemika
Reed has been named co-chair
of the Jackson County Martin
Luther King Jr. Day of Service
Committee.
Reed, a real estate investor
and licensed agent with Sig
nature Real Estate of Athens,
is involved in the community.
She founded Shemika’s Power
Foundation, an area grassroots
nonprofit that supports projects
for children and other vulnera
ble populations, and organized
and coached the City of Com
merce Kickball Team. She is
a frequent volunteer with the
Boys and Girls Club of Jackson
County, and has served on the
Day of Service Planning Com
mittee since 2021.
“I cannot think of a bet
ter partner in celebrating and
continuing the legacy of Rev.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in
Jackson County,” said co-chair'
Melody Herrington. “Shemika
is so talented, energetic, and
committed, and she has such a
fierce love for her community.
She solves problems with a lev
el of skill and speed that I can’t
even explain.”
Reed and her wile, Jessi
ca Gordon Reed, have four
children in the Jefferson City
School System.
The Jackson County MLK
Day of Service Committee, a
project of Keep Jackson Coun
ty Beautiful, was organized in
2019 to plan and coordinate
annual service projects on this
holiday, as well as a communi
ty celebration event. The 2024
Day of Service will be held
on Monday, January 15, and
local governments, schools,
Shemika Reed
non-profits, churches and indi
viduals are invited to submit ap
plications beginning in Septem
ber. Since the inaugural Day
of Service in 2020, the project
has completed 25 projects and
attracted over 500 local volun
teers.
For more inlormation, email
Shemika Reed and/or Melody
Herrington at jcmlkdayofser-
vice@gmail.com.
Webster wins ‘Book Lovers Box at Nicholson library
Marci Webster is the winner of
the Book Lovers Box at the Har
old S. Swindle Public Library in
Nicholson. Each library branch
in the Piedmont Regional Library
System (PRLS) hosted a “Tell Us
Your Story” survey and partici
pants were entered to win a box.
In other library news:
• the library will offer a ses
sion lor painting pirate ships on
canvas to take home on Tues
day, Sept. 19, from 3-5 p.m. The
program is free and open to ages
three and older' with a caregiver'.
The program will be held at the
Library Annex in the Benton
Center'.
•Nicholson will host “Mov
ies in the Park” featuring Tim
Burton’s The Nightmare Before
Christmas on Saturday, Oct. 14,
at 7 p.m. Costumes are encour
aged. The movie will be shown
in the Nicholson City Park.
• Torrence Mack owner' of
TDM Technologies International
conducted the iPhone and An
droid Phone Class for Seniors
at the Nicholson library. Attend
ees learned how to recognize
and eliminate scammer's, scan
Q-codes, delete browsing history
and more.
The Nicholson library recently hosted a senior iP
hone/Android class.
Piedmont Regional
Library System con
ducted an in-house
survey at each public
library location. It was
the “Tell Us Your Story
Survey” and partic
ipants were entered
into a drawing. Marcie
Webster was the win
ner of the Book Lovers
Box from the Nichol
son library.
FARMERS
MARKET
Weekly Markets
M ay-Se pte m be r
Fridays, 4-7 PM
Braselton Town Green
Dig in at ExploreBraselton.com/farmers-market
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