Newspaper Page Text
June 8, 2022
MONROE COUNTY
Community
Calendar
Calendar items run free
of charge as a community
service each week as space
allows. Mail items for the
Community Calendar to Diane
Clidewell at newMmymcr.net
by 8 a.m. on Monday.
June 6-30
Free Summer
lunches for children
Community Improvement
Coalition of Monroe County
(CICMC) will again serve
lunch meals to children 18
years and younger in Monroe
County. The two sites will
be Union Hill Apartment and
Forsyth Gardens Apartments.
Dates and times are Mon-
day-Thursday, June 6-30 from
12 noon-12:30 p.m. For more
information, contact CICMC
at 478-394-1089.
June 10
Teen Safe
Driving Camp
Monroe County Sheriff’s
Office will offer the 14th
Annual Teen Safe Driv
ing Camp for drivers ages
15-17 at the Georgia Public
Safety Training Center, 1000
Indian Springs Dr., Forsyth on
Saturday, July 9 from 9 a.m.-
4:30 p.m. Cost is $20, which
includes lunch and T-shirt.
Space is limited. Application
deadline is June 10. For more
information, contact M.C.
Sheriff’s Office.
June 11
Boys & Girls Clubs
present Great Ocmulgee
River Duck Race
The Boys & Girls Clubs of
Central Georgia will host
the Great Ocmulgee River
Duck Race in Amerson Park
Macon on Saturday, June 11.
Ducks are up for adoption for
$20, or 6 for $100. Adopted
ducks will be launched onto
the river and first duck to
get across the finish line wins
$10,000. Proceeds for the
event will go to Boys & Girls
Clubs of Central Georgia's
healthy lifestyle initiatives. The
Great Ocmulgee River Duck
Race is a win for all involved.
June 13
Meeting on new food
service fee schedule
Monroe County Health
Department, 106 MLK Jr.
Drive, Forsyth will hold a
Public Comment Meeting on
Monday, June 13 at 6 p.m.
The Department's Environ
mental Health Program seeks
public comment regarding
implementation of a revised
food service fee schedule.
This meeting will be held
in-person and by teleconfer
ence. The public may access
the teleconference by calling
1 -470-344-9228 access
code 948474325.
June 18
Citizens' Firearm
Safety Training
Monroe County Sheriff’s
Office will hold a Citizens’
Firearms Safety Training
Course on Saturday, June 18
beginning at 8 a.m. for those
21 and up. It will cover use,
proficiency and safety and is
limited to those who live and/
or work in Monroe County. A
background check is required.
The course is free, but partici
pants must provide their own
legal handgun, belt, holster,
eye & ear safety equipment
and at least 100 rounds of
ammunition. There is a limit
of 30 participants. Applica
tions available at the Sheriff's
Office. For more information,
contact Sgt. Kevin Williams at
478-994-7048.
Sports Hall of Fame
Induction Banquet
The annual Forsyth-Monroe
Sports Hall of Fame Induc
tion banquet celebrating
hometown sports heroes will
be Saturday, June 18 at 6:30
p.m. at the Monroe County
Conference Center. Tickets
are $40. Tickets and more at
www.Forsyth-MonroeSport-
sHallofFame.com
July 18-22
Robotics Camp
The Mary Persons Robotics
Team will host a Robotics
Camp for 7-11-year-olds on
Monday-Friday, July 18-22
from 9 a.m.-12 noon at the
Mary Persons Main Campus.
The camp will be based in
Room 220 (back entrance).
“Bots for Tots" will get the
campers involved with STEM
and spark an interest in
technology.
Community
Around Monroe County ► ► Forsyth • Juliette • High Falls • Bolingbroke • Culloden • Smarr
Forsyth century plant makes rare flowering
Right, Mary Dumas stands in front of her home with the
flower stalk of her century plant towering over her (and
over her house). Above, with a mature pecan tree behind
it, the yellow blossoms at the top of the stalk will soon
open.
By Diane Glidewell
news@mymcr.net
Just outside of Mary Du
mas’ front door has quickly
grown what looks like a gi
ant asparagus stalk, about 10
inches in diameter and tow
ering about 25 feet into the
air, well above the top of her
house. Mary said this isn’t
the first time her century
plants have bloomed; she
has seen the huge stalks rise
from her plants a few times
during the 30-plus years she
has cared for them.
Although the cactus-type
plant (agave Americana)
is known as the century
plant because of its long life
and its infrequent bloom, it
actually blooms about every
10-25 years. The mother
plant dies after it blooms,
but it generates small plants
around it that begin the life
cycle again.
Mary has one of the large
plants on either side of her
front steps; the plants are
about 6-8’ wide and have
leaves that are 4-5’ long. She
planted the original ones
when they were only about
an inch tall, not realizing
how large they would get.
Her friend, Bob Morgan,
who has since passed away,
gave them to her. He was
in charge of the grounds at
Central State Hospital in
Milledgeville, where Mary
also worked for 25 years
until she retired in 2006.
Mary recalls many of the
century plants on the Cen
tral State Hospital campus,
but she doesn’t remember
one ever sending up its huge
stalk to bloom. Apparently
the plant likes the location
at Mary’s house across from
Kynette United Methodist
Church on Martin Luther
King Jr. Drive or it likes the
care Mary has give it. The
agave has thrived for over 30
years. She can’t remember
exactly when she planted it
but remembers it was before
most of her 11 grandchil
dren, who are now in their
30’s, were bom.
She has given many of the
plants away and cuts them
back to keep them manage
able and attractive. She now
has a friend, Jesus, who
knows how to cut and man
age the plants and helps to
keep them thriving. She said
he seems to enjoy seeing her
plants thrive as much as she
does.
Mary said the plant is also
known as the liquor tree be
cause agave is used to make
tequila. She said she hasn’t
tried that use and doesn’t
intend to do so. The plant
has antiseptic, wound-heal
ing and anti-inflammatory
properties; it can be used
to treat bums, bruises and
skin irritations like insect
bites. Mary cultivates the
century plant’s smaller
cousin, aloe, for these uses.
She said the young
century plants are fairly
easy to dig up and re-pot;
their roots aren’t deep. She
said the plants are easy to
maintain; they require little
water. She said they seem
to grow the biggest when
they’re crowded. She has
given so many away that
Monroe County can prob
ably expect to see some
more giant stalks reaching
to the sky in the next few
years.
A man from Culloden
named Billy came for many
weekends and got plants for
himself and to share with
others. Mary gave plants
to Beatrice Freeman and
Aretha O’Neal Thompson.
She even set up a picnic
table at Forsyth Gardens
Apartments and gave away
plants. Jesus has taken some
of the plants to his mother
in Florida.
Mary said she first
noticed the big stalk now in
her yard on Easter Sunday.
She thinks it has about
reached its full height and
will bloom soon. She said
the flowers are pretty but
not really showy and seem
small compared to the large
stalk holding them. She
will cut the stalk soon after
it blooms to make sure it
doesn’t interfere with wires
above it and to keep it from
becoming debris.
Forsyth Shoney's helps MP
students find independence
By Steve Reece
stevereece@g mail.com
A program designed to promote
independence for young people with
disabilities, known as the ACCESS
program at Mary Persons High School
has helped many students in the area
learn basic work skills. Students were
hard at work at Shoney's Restaurant
on H.G. Clarke Parkway recently with
Sam Tiller and Winn Minter fold
ing napkins in the back dining area
and Katie Rockhold assisting Sean-
teria Johnson with light duties in the
kitchen.
The students work an hour a day,
Monday through Thursday at vari
ous business across Monroe County
including Jonah's, Ingles, Sol Taco's
and Tequila, Circle of Care, and even
See SHONEY’S. Page 2C
Summer Reading off to a hot start
Above, Pohaku and Mahealani of Mahealanis Polynesian
Entertainment teach some volunteers the basic moves of
island dances at the Monroe County Library s Summer Read
ing Program kickoff on May 31. Right, Pohaku demonstrates
his skills at Samoan fire dancing.
By Diane Glidewell
news@mymcmet
Monroe County Library
kicked off its 2022 Sum
mer Reading Program
with the theme “Oceans of
Possibilities” on Tuesday,
May 31. Following the
Oceans theme, the library
brought Mahealanis Poly
nesian Entertainment to
the Monroe County Club
house (located behind
the library) to capture the
imaginations of children
and their caregivers with
dancing, music and
instruments from Tahiti,
Hawaii and Samoa.
Most dramatic of the
performances was the
fire dancing of Samoa by
Pohaku. Flames blazed
from the ends of the various
batons he twirled, from long
to short batons and from
single to double flames, and
he even seemed to devour
some of the fire he tossed
and juggled.
Mahealani taught her
audience the language of
the dances and introduced
them to four different Ha-
waian musical instruments.
She also invited children
to join her on the stage
and taught them the basic
moves of Tahitian dances,
from feet to hips to hands to
smiles.
Mahealanis Polynesian
Entertainment is based in
Atlanta and Hawaii and
performs throughout the
Southeast and beyond. Its
Facebook page noted that
it entertained at 40 events
during May.
The library enhanced
the program with freshly
popped popcorn and
other snacks, drinks and lei-
making crafts at each table.
Those attending filled all
of the prepared tables and
required some additional
chairs, about 75 people.
Volunteer April Garner was
busy mastering the popcorn
popper before the program
began, and volunteers
Sydney Stapleton, Eliza
Gavin and Zoe Oglesby
served snacks and helped as
needed.
The next Summer Read
ing Program will be an
animated movie, “Surfs Up”
about competitive penguin
surfing, on Thursday, June 9
at 2 p.m. Then will come an
interactive trip on a Magic
Voyage with magician Ken
Scott on Monday, June 17 at
10:30 am. There will also be
special Story Times related
to the ocean each Wednes
day during the summer at
11 am. through July 27.
There are programs for
teens each Tuesday at 4
pm. from crafts to reptiles
to movies. And there are
even summer programs
and discussions for adults.
There are prizes for read
ing during the summer at
the children, teen and adult
levels for those who sign up
to participate.
Monroe County Library is
advertising for a new direc
tor of children’s programs,
and without one during the
Summer Reading Program
has put out a special call
for volunteers to help this
summer. For those who
have some extra time, their
services in shelving books,
helping with programs,
tidying the library, story
telling, preparing crafts, etc.
will be appreciated.