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t TIME CHANGE Spring forward! Daylight Saving Time will begin at 2 a.m. on March 14 and will end at 2 a.m. on Nov. 7. Don’t forget to change your clocks before going to bed this Saturday night. PIKE COUNTY US DA food boxes will be distributed Friday morning at 480 Second St. in Concord. See page 3A JOURNAL REPORTER ONE DOLLAR www.pikecountygeorgia.com WEDNESDAY, MARCH 10, 2021 PIKE'S PEEK COVID-19 cases still decreasing According to the Georgia Department of Public Health, confirmed COVID-19 cases are continuing to decline in Pike County, down to 24 over the past two weeks as of March 8. The num bers dropped from 28 cases the previous two weeks and show a steady decline from 41, 67, 86 and 93 in the previous two-week periods. There have been a total of 989 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Pike since last March with 21 deaths, 11 probable deaths and 66 hospi talizations. Cases have dropped in Pike schools also. See COVID-19 page 3A Head Start programs accepting applications The McIntosh Trail Early Childhood Development Council has started accepting applications for Early Head Start, Head Start and Pre-K programs in Pike and participating counties for the 2021- 22 school year. “As we continue to go through the COV ID-19 pandemic, please know that health and safety comes first when serving low- income children and families. Since COV1D began, children are virtual learning,” said Felina Foreman of Pike County Head Start. See HEAD START page 3A Vaccine offered to local teachers BY RACHEL McDANIEL news@pikecountygeorgia.com More than 2.3 million vaccines have been given in Georgia so far, with new groups now eligible for vaccination, includ ing educators and school staff (public and private), adults with intellectual and developmental dis abilities and their care givers and parents with children with complex medical conditions. A total of 1,529 vac cines had been adminis tered in Pike County as of March 8. Of those, 1,070 were given the first dose and 459 received the sec ond dose, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health. Around 150 Pike Coun ty School employees will receive the Johnson & Johnson vaccine on Fri day, March 19 in the Col laboration Room at our Ninth Grade Academy. When vaccine is avail able, the District 4 Public Health appointment line at 762-888-8180 is open for those who qualify to schedule their vaccine appointments. The nor mal operation hours of the appointment call cen ter are from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Friday when vaccine is available. The call center does not operate when all appointments are booked for the available vaccine. A drive-thru first vaccination clinic was held Tuesday, March 9 by the Pike County Health Department. Vaccine is also still available for healthcare workers in clinical set tings, staff and residents of long-term care facili ties, law enforcement of ficers and fire personnel and adults 65 and older. PHOTOS BY RACHEL McDANIEL / PIKE COUNTY JOURNAL REPORTER The Pike County Backpack Program is now including fresh fruit in bags for local children along with meals and snacks for the weekend. Backpack Program adds new items Pike County Backpack Program volunteers Brian Hood (left) and Larry Edge (right) help pack the 77 bags of food with apples so they can be distributed to students who would otherwise not have enough food for the weekend. BY RACHEL McDANIEL news@pikecountygeorgia.com The Pike County Backpack Program packs nearly 80 bags with easy- to-prepare meals for the entire weekend so local students won’t go hungry. During previous years, the program has provided meals for 41 weekends and delivered around 2,500 backpack bags for the year. Recently, fresh fruit was added to the items given to the 77 local students who take the bags of food home each Friday. There are many ways to help with the program, from laying out the foods on Mon day for easier packing on Tuesday, to donating financially and spread ing the word, picking up foods, delivering the bags to the schools and bus barn. The Backpack Pro gram has been success ful thanks to volunteers from local churches and civic organizations. “As the Pike County Backpack Program has matured, we’ve realized that our team has the capacity and desire to give the children our best,” said Mike Cox. “Several people have stepped up to provide nutritious fruit. We are striving to provide a unique experience to the children with fruit they don’t normally have in their homes.” To find out more, find the Pike County Backpack Program on Facebook. To donate fruit or give financially, contact Mike Cox at 770- 755-0134 or at mikecox@ christchapelga.com. PCHS student killed in ATV accident March 7 Pike County High School student Riley Nuce died from injuries sustained in an ATV acci dent on Sunday, March 7. He was a 16-year-old student and his class mates and staff at the high school mourned his passing Monday. He was riding a Polaris ATV in Upson County with his younger brother who was riding another ATV. The Polaris over turned in a field off An drews Chapel Road just after 2 p.m. Sunday. He was a Team Lead at Chick-Fil-A in Griffin. Riley is the son of Diane and Chad Nuce. Chad is a partner in the law firm of Pasley, Nuce, Mallory & Davis. Riley is the third PCHS student to die this school year including the late Hayleigh Marie Poole and Jamori Williams. Man arrested in Pike after vehicle, foot chase A man was ar rested in Zebu- Ion after being stopped on High way 19 north near the Pike County line for traffic violations. Ricci Dennard, 41, of Albany, GA fled from Upson Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Mario Cromer and Meriwether County Sgt. Jay Rogers at a high rate of speed and trav elled into Pike County. Dennard sped from the officers at speeds of more than 100 mph. Dennard pulled down an embankment south of Zebulon and fled on foot after meeting an oncoming Pike County Sheriff’s Office deputy. The suspect was quickly apprehended by depu ties with the assistance of K9 Millie. As Dennard was running from officers, he was dumping a white powdery substance from the contents of his backpack. Dennard assaulted an officer as he was arrested, hitting him in the face. His back pack contained 4.1 pounds of cocaine in both powder and crack form and more than $3,000 in cash. The street value of the drugs confiscated is over $70,000. Dennard is being held without bond in the Upson County Jail on charges of fleeing and attempting to elude, trafficking cocaine and obstruction of a law en forcement officer. Pike’s probate court gets new website Under new judge Ginny Blakeney, the Probate Court of Pike County has a new website at PikeProbateCourt.com which includes important information about services offered at the court. Citizens may look up and pay traffic citations online, find out what is needed to apply for marriage licenses, download an application for Weapons Carry Licenses, learn how to request vital records such as birth and death certificates and see general office information. The site also includes the county’s traffic court calendar. Judge Ginny Blakeney set up the website for the office and the Probate Court is staffed by Chief Clerk of 21 years Sandy Mitchell and Deputy Clerk of two years Sarah Neath. The Probate Court of Pike was constitutionally founded in 1823 and was originally known as the Office of the Ordinary The Ordinary was the original county commissioner, and the office became known as the “catch all court” due to the variety of SPECIAL PHOTOS The Pike County probate court has a new website where citizens can pay traffic citations and learn about other services offered by the court. services provided to the public from the office. Still today, the original transom window above the door identifies the room as the Ordinary’s Office. Original court records which are still contained in the vault date back to 1823, and vital records date back to 1919. Most of the items kept in the vault are public record and citizens are invited to conduct research during regular office hours. The probate court maintains exclusive jurisdiction over the probate of wills and the admin istration of estates of deceased persons; appointment of guard ians of the person and property of incapacitated adults; ap pointment of guardians of the property of minors; appoint ment, in certain circumstances, of guardians of the person of minors; and commitment for in voluntary treatment of persons addicted to drugs or alcohol and/or suffering from mental illness. The court maintains limited jurisdiction over certain licenses and permits such as weapons carry licenses, mar riage permits, and performing certain administrative duties; limited criminal jurisdiction including traffic cases and game and fish violations; and vital records. Ginny Blakeney was sworn in as the new probate judge for Pike County. She was supported by her husband, John, and children Bowen and Austyn.