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? egion Roundup
Tim Madison
Transferred To
Prison In Jackson
HOMER - Former Piedmont
Judicial Circuit District Attorney
Tim Madison was transferred
Monday morning to the Georgia
Diagnostic Center in Jackson,
located in central Georgia.
Madison, who was sentenced to
serve six years following a guilty
plea in Banks County Superior
Court last week, turned him
self in at the Banks County Jail
Saturday morning, Sheriff Charles
Chapman said. On Monday morn
ing, two BCSO deputies transport
ed Madison to the Butts County
facility to begin serving his term.
Chapman said it is possible he
could be transferred again.
“There were no incidents here
this weekend," Chapman said of
the former district attorney’s stay
in the Banks County jail. “He was
isolated from other prisoners and
when he went outside the rest of
the jail was on lock down."
Chapman said the extra precau
tion was necessary since Madison
prosecuted some of the inmates in
the Banks County jail.
In addition to his six-year sen
tence, Madison was ordered to pay
$40,000 in restitution for the money
he took from the Piedmont Judicial
Circuit, the majority of which was
taken from Banks County. The
circuit also includes Jackson and
Barrow counties.
Madison’s wife, Linn Jones, and
former assistant district attorney
Brett Williams have also been
charged in the case. Their court
dates will be held March 24 in
Banks County.
Chapman said Madison thanked
Banks County law enforcement
officials for his good treatment
during his brief incarceration in
Homer.
Jackson Gets
$23,768 In Food,
Shelter Funds
Jackson County has been
awarded federal funds under the
Emergency Food and Shelter
National Board Program. Jackson
County has been chosen to receive
$23,768 to supplement emergency
food and shelter programs in the
county.
Public or private organizations
interested in applying for the
emergency food and shelter pro
gram funds must contact Elaine
Whitehead at 706-546-8293, exten
sion 31, for an application. The
deadline is March 31.
The selection was made by a
national board that is chaired by the
Federal Emergency Management
Agency and consists of represen
tatives from The Salvation Army;
American Red Cross; United
Jewish Communities; Catholic
Charities USA; National Council
of the Churches of Christ in the
USA; and United Way of America.
The local board was charged to
distribute funds appropriated
by Congress to help expand the
capacity of food and shelter pro
grams in high-need areas around
the country.
The local board is made of
representatives of Action Inc.
(Area Committee to Improve
Opportunities Now Inc.), the
Jackson County Board of
Commissioners office, the
Department of Family and
Children Services, a homeless
advocate and clergy. This group will
determine how the funds awarded
to Jackson County are to be distrib
uted among the Emergency Food
and Shelter Programs run by local
organizations in the area. The local
board is responsible for recom
mending agencies to receive those
funds and any additional funds
available under this phrase of the
program.
Under the terms of the grant from
the National Board, local agencies
chosen to receive funds must be
private voluntary non-profit or
units of governments; have an
accounting system; practice non
discrimination; have demonstrated
the capability to deliver emergency
food and/or shelter programs; and
if they are a private voluntary orga
nization, they must have a volun
tary board.
Soil And Water
District Seeks
New Members
The supervisors of the Oconee
River Soil and Water Conservation
District are seeking new affiliate
members to become part of the
natural resources conservation
team in Jackson County of the
Oconee River District.
The affiliate member program
offers an individual membership
of $35, or a corporate sponsorship
of $100. The sponsorship entitles
recognition at the annual district
meeting/dinner and a chance to
meet all personnel, and for busi
ness ads in newsletters.
The district is part of Georgia
state government, and is charged
by state law with the responsibility
to determine the resource conser
vation needs in Barrow, Clarke,
Jackson and Oconee counties. The
organization also obtains and coor
dinates the work of various state,
federal and private groups in filling
needs.
Checks may be made payable to
the Oconee River Soil and Water
Conservation District, PO. Box
1663, Winder, GA 30680. For more
information, call 770-307-3030.
Heating Assistance
Program Extended
For New Sign-Ups
The Georgia Department of
Human Resources LIHEAP pro
gram, which helps pay heating
costs for gas or electricity, has been
extended.
Households that have not already
received any kind of energy assis
tance since Nov. 1,2007, may start
calling now.
One-time payments will be made
by checks issued to the home ener
gy suppliers on behalf of eligible
households. Eligibility for the pro
gram is based on the income of
everyone living in the home. All eli
gible households must be respon
sible for their home heating bill.
When applying for assistance,
persons will be required to bring
for everyone in the home, verifi
cation of all household income
received within the past 30 days
(check stubs, public assistance
checks, unemployment checks,
etc.), verification of Social Security
numbers for everyone in the home,
and the most recent home heating
bill.
All interested applicants are
asked to contact Ninth District
Opportunity Inc. at 706-677-3921.
The agency is asking for no walk-
ins. Additional information is avail
able at www.ndo.org.
Job Fair Set
At Gainesville
College March 18
Gainesville State College will
host its spring job fair Tuesday,
March 18, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The event will be held at the
Gainesville State College Student
Center. The job fair is free and
open to the public.
Companies scheduled to attend
are American TeleCenters, Arby’s,
Avita Community Partners,
Chateau Elan, Cherokee County
Sheriff’s Office, Child Care
Resource & Referral Agency, City
of Gainesville Fire Department,
City of Gainesville Human
Resources, City of Gainesville
Police Department, Crystal
Springs, Dawson County Sheriff’s
Department, ETCON Staffing
Services, Gainesville Parks &
Recreation, GA Army National
Guard, Georgia Department
of Labor, Gwinnett County
Police Department, Hall County
Government, Hall County YMCA,
Lake Lanier Islands Resort,
Primerica Financial Services,
Regions Financial Corporation,
Spherion Staffing Services, Target,
TRC Staffing Services, The Oaks at
Limestone, United Parcel Service,
United States Marine Corp, Vector
Marketing and Waffle House.
For more information, contact
Debbie Pierce, Gainesville State
College Counseling and Career
Services, at 678-717-3660 or e-mail,
dpierce@gsc.edu.
'Moving Wall'
To Be In Toccoa
March 27-30
The Stephens County Historical
Society, Toccoa and Stephens
County will host the Vietnam
Traveling Memorial Wall March
27-30. The three-fifths scale rep
lica of the Memorial Wall in
Washington, DC, will be at Boyd
Field in downtown Toccoa.
In 1982, the Vietnam Memorial
was erected in Washington, DC, to
honor the 58,132 men and women
who died during the Vietnam
Conflict.
The Moving Wall will be avail
able for viewing starting at noon
Thursday, March 27. On Friday,
March 28, all students in Stephens
County will have a chance to visit
the wall. Vietnam veterans will
serve as guides and hosts and will
give each of the students informa
tion concerning the wall.
Opening ceremonies will be
held at 6 p.m. Friday, March 28,
with a wreath-laying ceremony for
those who would like to give trib
ute to the soldiers of their town
or county who died during the
war. Joe Alexander, platoon leader,
Company A 3rd Battalion, 506th
Airborne Division, will be the mas
ter of ceremonies, representing the
“Currahees" of the Vietnam era.
On Saturday, March 29, the
Historical Society will host a fund
raising banquet featuring Tommy
Clack, manager of veterans ser
vices, as the guest speaker. Clack
was wounded May 29, 1969, in a
firefight on the Cambodian Border.
He lost three limbs, suffered inter
nal injuries and loss of hearing. He
was awarded multiple medals and
decorations for valor and service.
For tickets, contact Brenda Carlan
at 706-282-5055.
The closing ceremonies will be
held Sunday night, March 30, at
6:00. Retired Col. Ben Purcell will
speak. Purcell served with the U.S.
Army for more than 30 years and
was the longest held prisoner of
war in solitary confinement. His
decoration and awards include the
Legion of Merit with Oak Leaf
Cluster, the Silver Star with Oak
Leaf Cluster and the Purple Heart.
The Wall will be available for
continuous viewing from noon
Thursday, March 27, until 8:00 a.m.
Monday, March 31. Volunteers will
be available to help locate a name
on the wall each day from 9 a.m.
to 9 p.m.
Madison County
To Stagger Terms
Of Commissioners
DANIELSVILLE - Three upcom
ing terms at the board of commis
sioners’ table were apparently cut in
half Monday as local leaders took
action to adopt staggered terms.
Madison County Commissioners
agreed by a 3-2 vote to ask the state
legislature to pass legislation creat
ing staggered terms for the BOC.
Commissioners Wesley Jordan
and Bruce Scogin voted in favor
of a resolution calling for stag
gered terms, while commissioners
John Pethel and Mike Youngblood
voted “no." Neither Pethel nor
Youngblood voiced opposition to
the proposal. However, both said
they wanted input from commis
sioner Stanley Thomas, who was
not at the meeting due to a family
health matter. Chairman Wesley
Nash broke the 2-2 tie with a “yes"
vote.
Though he voted “no," Pethel
spoke in favor of the proposal,
noting with everyone up for re-elec
tion, the county could be left with
no experienced board members if
all commissioners are voted out of
their seats.
“I think it’s a good idea," said
Pethel. “If you have an entirely new
board come in that will leave every
body not knowing what was hap
pening."
Under the staggered plan, the
chairman’s seat and district posts
three and five will have two-year
terms after the upcoming 2008
elections. Those three positions
will then be up for re-election in
2010, with four-year terms reinstat
ed at that time.
District posts one, two and four
will be unaffected by the changes,
with four-year terms remaining in
place for each of those seats.
Chairman Nash and commis
sioners Scogin, District 5, and
Youngblood, District 3, each vol
unteered to abbreviate the term of
office for their posts in the upcom
ing election.
While members voiced con
cern Monday about whether they
could get such a measure through
the General Assembly at this late
date in the legislative session,
State Senator Ralph Hudgens said
Tuesday that he could introduce
the legislation, so long as the pro
posed change was published this
week in the county’s legal organ.
Golf Course To
Stay Open
Through Summer
Despite the swirling debate
around the future of Sunrise
Golf Course, Madison County
and area golfers can continue to
GOOD NEWS THRIFT STORE
12 Madison Street
Look for Coke sign on building
Store Hours: Thurs. & Fri. 10 a.m. - s p.m.
Saturday 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Mission of Calvary Baptist Church
Donations accepted.
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Steakhouse & Sushi Bar
Dinner: 5:00 p.m. -10:00 p.m.
Now Open For Lunch -11:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.
706-423-0040
228 Steven B. Tanger Blvd. • Commerce, GA 30529
Across From Home Depot
play the par-72 course on Colbert-
Danielsville Road at least through
the peak season.
John Byram, owner of the
embattled course, said he has no
immediate plans to close Sunrise’s
doors.
“The course is open," he said.
“I’m not going to close it. I don’t
have any plans to close it ... I’m
going to go through the spring,
summer and fall."
The course’s continued finan
cial problems have had Byram
looking at other options.
Byram’s recent proposal to con
vert Sunrise into a par-three course
and develop a senior community
on the property was rejected by
county commissioners Feb. 25 in
a five-hour meeting.
His other option is to close the
course and divide the land as it’s
zoned currently.
But he maintains that he would
rather do neither if at all possible
and keep the course Sunrise open
as a 18-hole, par-72 course.
And with the right amount of
business, Byram said he’d be
happy to do that.
“Jf the county would support it,
if I get the play, I’ll keep it open,"
he said. “I never intended to buy
it to develop it. I wouldn’t have
bought the property."
Byram noted that purchased
the course at $13,000 an acre
six years ago. He contends he
would have never spent that kind
of money if he intended to ditch
the golf course and develop the
property.
But it’s come down to a matter
of dollars and cents now.
“Six years ago, I could have
bought any kind of land in
Madison County for $5,000 an
acre and developed it," Byram
said. “But the fact is, I bought it
to keep it as a golf course. But the
play, the support of the people of
the county, just isn’t there. And
that’s the truth. That’s the reason
I’m having to do something else
with it."
Opened in 1969, the Colbert
course has changed names and
owners over the years.
Byram said he’s been faced with
the sentiment that the county’s
only course needs to stay open.
If that’s the feeling, the county
DID YOU KNOW?
By Preacher Clint
DID YOU KNOW THAT
CHRIST IS OUR PASSOVER?
HE IS OUR SACRIFICE FOR
SIN; (1st Cor. 5:7)
In the O. T. Israel was in
slavery in Egypt and when they
begin to cry out to GOD for
help, He sent Moses to deliver
them out of bondage. Pharaoh’s
refusal to let them go brought
GOD’S judgement on the
Egyptians. The final judgement
was the death of the first born
in all the land. (Ex. 11:5) But
GOD said to the Israelites to
take a Lamb and kill it, and to
put the blood on the side and
top door post and when I see
the blood I will Passover you.
(Ex. 12:13) the first Passover
brought deliverance. What does
EASTER mean to you?
Send comments to
Clinton Sexton
116 Ashland Drive
Commerce, GA 30529
should buy it, he said.
“If Madison County wants a golf
course, they need to buy it... The
county can have the golf course —
buy it or support it," he said.
But with Byram as owner, he
said he needs to generate around
$10,000 a week to keep Sunrise
open. The course experienced
a shortfall of $135,000 last year
and he said he simply can’t con
tinue to sustain those kinds of
losses.
“I cannot continue to fund it
to the tune of $135,000 a year,"
Byram said. “I just don’t have that
kind of unlimited money. It’s not
a hobby. It’s supposed to be a
business."
Still, Byram remains in a
wait-and-see mode with spring
approaching as he hopes
Sunrise can mount a comeback.
The course made $3,000 alone
Sunday, March 2, although recent
bad weather in the area prevent
ed another successful weekend.
“I don’t have any plans to do
anything with it because we’re
coming on to the spring season...
It may be good," he said.
Byram said he’s put a lot into
maintaining Sunrise — especially
since had plans to turn it into a
par-three set up — and hopes that
will generate some excitement
amongst county and area golfers.
“The course is going to come
out great this year," Byram said.
He’s also keeping 18-hole prices
at $24 during the week and $34
on weekends to try to lure more
business.
“That’s cheaper than it was
when I bought it six years ago,"
Byram said, noting that expenses
have increased substantially since
then, especially fuel.
It’s his hope than Sunrise can
experience a turnaround so he
won’t have to make a last-call for
golf where people have played for
nearly 40 years.
“They can play golf, hopeful
ly, forever," Byram said. “I don’t
want it developed. That’s not my
choice."
Headmaster’s
Corner
by
Buhl Cummings
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Faculty member, Mr. Jack
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In addition to excellent training
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You are invited to call today to
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We are now located at our new office at
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706-335-9411
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