Newspaper Page Text
WEEKEND
EDITION
250
Perry & Houston County's
Official Legal Organ
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 1994
The community’s sympathy is ex
tended to the families of those who
recently died. They include: Minnie
Handly Cross, Perry; John D. Gillis,
Abbeville; Sudie Johnson
Rowland, Fort Valley; Willie T. Rid
ley, Perry; Maybeth Harrison Baird,
Sea Beach, Ca.; James Adkison,
Perry; Alvaneter Brooks, Perry. For
more information please see Page
2A.
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in nm i h
BILL OVERTON 5A
CLASSIFIED ZA
DEATHS 2A
EDITORIAL? 4A
PERRY ?CRAPBQOK 4A
JIMSHIPLEY 4A
BRiGETTE LOUPERMILK 4A
CHPRCH NEW? 2A
WOOD?'N WATER 6A
CALENPAR 2A
Businesses asked
to support local
Fire Safety Program
By BRIGETTE LOUDERMILK
Managing Editor
The Perry Fire Department is
seeking Financial support from the
local business community to fund
their annual Fire Safety pPorgam.
Through the program, 1,695
children from kindergarten through
upper elementary grades in Perry
will receive fire safety education.
The goal of the local department
is toprevent fires and fire losses.
"This vital program will assist
us in teaching children fire safety
and bum prevention. We strongly
believe that by making children
aware we can prevent tragfic fire
loss, even death," Chief Gary
Hamlin said.
The department needs $2,712 to
fund the program in 1994. This
money will be used to purchase
materials needed to teach the course.
Acknolwedgements will be
given to financial supporters of the
program on a prestige page of all
activity manuals.
Response is required by March
30, 1994. Checks should be made
payable to the National Fire Safety
Council and can be mailed to the
Perry Fire Department, 1207
Washington St., Perry, Ga. 31069.
National Fire Safety Council, a
501 (c) (3) tax-exempt, non-profit
organization, designed the materials
to be used in the program.
Local hospital will
raise service rates
during 1994 year
By VETO F. ROLEY
Staff Writer
Patients at Perry Hospital will
pay six percent more for service in
1994 than they did in 1993.
The Houston County Hospital
Authority approved the fiscal year
1994 budget Wednesday, Feb. 9. In
cluded in the budget are provisions
for a six percent rate increase at both
hospitals. According to a press re
lease issued at the end of die meet
ing, even with the increase in rates,
the rates are "still... well below the
state average and among the lowest
in Middle Georgia."
Employees were the big winners
in the approved budget, getting a
four percent merit pay raise and a re
tirement supplement plan.
The hospital authority approved,
in principle, offering the 1,000 em
ployees employed at Houston Medi
cal Center and Perry Hospital a
403(b) retirement plan. Under the
plan, the hospital would match 50
percent of an employee's contribu
tion to the plan, up to two percent
of the employee's salary.
"There are a lot of things to be
worked out and finalized before (the
plan) is set in place," said Barbara
Calhoun, a member of the commit
tee that worked on the retirement
plan. "We wanted to allow for as
much flexibility as we could have
and not be tied to numbers. There
may come a time when we can't
make that (match financially)."
Hospital employees will be
Please see RATES, page 10A
Hog
heaven!
Houston County hog
market coming to
Agricenter Feb. 19
BY BRENDA THOMPSON
Staff Writer
Wives, take heed! If your hus
band leaves the house next Saturday
saying that he’s going to bring
home the bacon, he might just
mean it literally.
For the 18th consecutive year,
the Young Farmers of Houston
County will be sponsoring their
annual Houston County Market
Hog Show on February 19 at the
Georgia National Fairgrounds and
Agricenter.
With approximately 80 swine al
ready entered in the show and 40
expected to go on the public auc
tion block, activities will get un
derway at 2 p.m. All hogs being
shown and sold have been raised by
Houston County youngsters all of
whom are between the ages of 9 and
18 and most of whom participate in
the local 4-H or Future Farmers of
America programs.
“This is a great project for the
kids participating in that they learn
a whole lot of responsibility during
the two to three months they spend
raising their hogs” said Tim Lewis,
coordinator and advisor for the
Houston County Young Farmers’
Association. “And, they do a good
job. We always have some real
quality hogs out there.”
According to Lewis, participants
got their show hogs from local hog
producers this past November and
December. Each hog started out at
approximately three months of age
and weighed anywhere from 90 to
100 pounds. However, by show
time next week, each animal will
weigh in at between 220 and 270
pounds.
“These hogs are all U.S. Num
ber One animals and each will gain
anywhere from one and a half to
two and a half pounds per day dur
ing the time the students are work
ing with them,” added Lewis.
In addition to keeping the hogs
fed, students and show participants
also learn about showmanship, ex
ercising the animals on a daily ba
sis and financial responsibility.
They have to keep detailed records
and are judged in several categories
and can win awards for not only
having quality hogs, but also for
good record keeping and the like.
The top award for the contestants is
jt !■ v if
Members of the Leadership Perry Class of 1994 left yesterday for a weekend retreat at Pine
Mountain. Here, they pause for a quick photo before departing.
Leadership class attends annual retreat
BY BRENDA THOMPSON
Staff Writer
Members of the Leadership Perry
Class of 1994 left the soggy
grounds of middle Georgia Friday
morning and headed for the moun
tains.
Pine Mountain, that is, where
they are spending much of this
weekend getting acquainted with
PERRY, GEORGIA'S HOMETOWN NEWSPAPER SINCE 1870--FQR COVERAGE OF YOUR EVENTS CALL 987-1823
f The Houston Homeff
Journal
1 SECTION—B PAGES, PLUS SALES CIRCULAR
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Jason Talton, a senior at Perry High, will be taking this little
plggle to market next Saturday for the 18th Annual Houston
County Market Hog Show at the Agricenter In Perry. Talton, last
. year's Herdsman Award winner, has partlcpated In the show for
the past four years.
the Herdsman Award and is based
on overall excellence. The top
awards for the hogs is the division
and grand championships.
As for the auction part of the
show, Lewis encourages local busi
nesses and individuals to attend the
show and bid on their favorite hogs.
All monies collected from the auc
tion of each hog goes to the student
who raised it and is the method in
which they recoup their expenses of
the project.
Lewis added, however, that those
who bid on the hogs don’t necessar
ily have to take them home as the
Cordele Livestock Company has
one another and gearing up for sev
eral months of working and learn
ing together.
Class members and several pro
gram facilitators departed for the
annual Leadership Perry retreat Fri
day morning. They are scheduled to
return around 3 p.m. today.
Leadership Perry members for
agreed to purchase all the hogs at a
floor price when the show and auc
tion is over.
“Remember, this is for the kids.
Anyone who purchases a hog at the
auction, but who doesn’t want to
take it home, will just pay the dif
ference between their bid and the
market or floor price,” Lewis
explained. “However, if you want
to buy the hog for yourself, that’s
great too. You’ll be getting a great
animal.”
The auction is expected to get
under way at around 4:30 p.m.
For more information, call
Lewis at 988-6312.
1994 include: Tira Craine, Beth
Jones, Debbie Koenig, Hal Bran
nen, Dana Dickson, Lee Duke,
Kyle Mathis, Trey Moody, Ty
Sturgeon, Janet McElmurray,
Wanda Sullivan, Harold Deal, Greg
Griner, Tim Martin and Ellen
Burgess.
Houston Publications, 1nc.—©1994
Locally owned
and operated
Perry teen has
been charged
with murder
By BRIGETTE LOUDERMILK
Managing Editor
Perry police have charged a 17
year old Perry male with murder in
connection with a Thursday after
noon shooting that claimed the life
of Arthur Green, a 42 year old Perry
resident.
According to Perry Police Captain
Steve Heaton, Allen Barrow, of
1007 Third St., was taken into cus
tody Thursday, Feb. 10 and charged
with Green's murder approximately
four minutes after the 5:56 p.m.
shooting which occurred on
BOE questioned on the
legality of closed session
By VETO F. ROLEY
Staff Writer
The legality, or the lack thereof,
of a closed session of the Houston
County Board of Education Feb. 8
has been questioned by the local
news media.
"It (the executive session) was il
legal as it could be," said David Hud
son, attorney for the Georgia Press
Association. "They ought to be
ashamed for trying to conduct that
matter without letting the public
know about iL"
Zell Blackmon, chairman of the
school board, said the board was al
lowed to go into executive session
to discuss naming anew school near
Warner Robns under the personnel
exceptions of Georgia sunshine
laws. Sunshine laws are laws that
require public bodies to conduct their
proceedings and hearings in a public
forum.
Sunshine laws allow closed or
executive sessions when the body is
conducting an inspection of physical
facilities under its jurisdiction, dis
cussing future acquisition of real es
tate, consulting with an attorney re
garding pending or potential legal ac
tion or discussing the employment,
periodic evaluations or disciplinary
actions regarding a public officer or
employee.
"The only potential honorees (in
having a school, building or other
Anti-violence program to
be taught in local schools
By VETO F. ROLEY
Staff Writer
The Houston Board of Eduction is
on the verge on announcing an anti
violence program to help combat
teenage violence.
Before Christmas, Perry Police
Chief Frank Simons presented the
board with an anti-violence program
based on the D.A.R.E. program.
"Hopefully," said Blackmon, "we
will have (the program) fine tuned
by the next meeting."
"I think it can be tremendous,"
said Hinnant, who said the program
would also have the support of the
Warner Robins Police Department
and the Houston County Sheriffs
Department. "We will go county
wide in the middle schools and prob
ably up to the high schools."
"Young people don't understand
the seriousness of guns," continued
Hinnant. He said that it would help
to have a role model in front of the
students, educating the students on
the proper use and place of guns. He
also said that the course would show
the "seriousness of death."
County schools will also receive
just over $204,000 in Gov. Zell
Miller's Safe School Plan. Perry
Middle School will receive $15,000,
and Perry High School will receive
$44,011. Most of the funds will be
used to purchase radio equipment,
lights, camera equipment and install
call-back buttons on the intercom
124TH YEAR-VOLUME 13
Whipple Street.
Heaton said that, according to
witnesses' reports, an argument be
tween Barrow and Green escalated to
the point where Barrow shot Green.
Reports indicate Barrow fired a gun
only once, striking Green in the left
side, just below the armpit.
Heaton said an autopsy is not
complete, and the exact cause of
death is not yet known. Green was
still alive when officers arrived at
the crime scene, but died after being
Please see TEEN, page 10A
educational facility named after
someone) are people who contributed
significantly to education in Hous
ton County," said Blackmon. "The
only people we consider are people
who have been employed by the
Houston County Board of Education.
"We evaluate whether or not we
can honor them based on their em
ployment record. We think it's a per
sonnel matter."
•‘Nonsense," said Hudson. He
added that it did not matter that the
school board named educational
facilities only after former
employees. "It (the personnel
exception) has nothing to do with
naming a school.
"We think we are right," said
Blackmon. "Our attorney thinks we
are righL We would never know
ingly break the law. I think we are
abiding by the law and the spirit (of
the law)."
"I can see why you would ques
tion (the executive session)," said
Hubert Hutcherson, school board
member from Post 5, which includes
Perry. However, he added the meet
ing was closed since people would
be discussed in the naming of the
school. ”1 think it was proper."
Blackmon also said the board was
concerned about potential liability in
opening the meeting to the public.
Please see BOE, page 10A
system giving teachers a direct link
with the office.
"The money will allow us to do
some things with the buildings that
the board has not had money to do,"
said HinnanL
BOE approves
new harassment
policy at meeting
By VETO F. ROLEY
Staff Writer
The Houston County Board of
Education has a sexual harassment
policy ready for approval.
Even though the board tabled the
policy at their meeting Feb. 8, Zell
Blackmon, board chairman, said the
policy was in effect
"We can't get young people from
committing offenses," said Black
mon. However, he said the policy
would let students and teachers know
the board did not tolerate sexual ha
rassment, what the board considered
sexual harassment and provide a
framework for dealing with sexual
harassment
"This is a serious as anything
we've ever done," sdid Blackmon.
"We will enforce it vigorously."
"I've read it very carefully," said
Hubert Hutcherson, Board of Educa
tion Post 5 member from Perry. "It
Please see POLICY, page 10A