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The Summerville News v Pogitinres gvidd News
LAAND
INN
Utility Crews
Cited; Storm
Remembered
GEORGIA Power Co. and
Northwest Georgia Electric
Membership Corp. employees
get my “Kudos Award” for the
extra hard work they did during
the Jan. 15-16 snow/ice storm. [
realize they were paid overtime
but in that kind of “blizzardly”
cold weather, no amount of
money can warm the bitter cold
on their faces and hands.
I drove through Cloudland
and Mentone during the storm
and I was stunned to see devas
tated trees and homes. One
county official estimated the
storms damaged at least 5,000
trees in Chattooga County.
It was terrible to see large
trees on the mountain snapped
apart. It was as if a giant had
ripped them asunder.
Thousands of homes lost
electricity for several days dur
ing and after the storm.
THANK goodness for the
Y2K scare. It caused many Chat
tooga Countians to think about
secondary heating and lighting
sources. Unlike many previous
storms, I thini more
Chattoogans were ready for this
one.
I laugh at Southerners dur
ing the winter months when I
see them bundled up in their to
boggans, scarves and coats with
the temperature is only in the
30s.
Ilived in northern states for
many years and cold up there is
REALLY cold. When the tem
perature is in the teens and the
wind chill factor is several dig
its below zero — that’s cold!
I remember one winter in
upstate New York when I was
traveling from Watertown to
Ogsdenburg, N.Y. to visit friends
at Christmas.
THE TERRAIN was cov
ered in snow as usual in that part
of New York from December
through February. It had
snowefi lightly for the past three
days. I was heading along the
highway in my VW bug when the
world turned completely white.
The flakes fell so hard it
seemed that the “giant” I men
tioned was looming over my car,
dumping snow on my tiny wind
shield as I tried to hurry down
the road.
A radio announcer said a
weather system was pushing a
snowstorm into upstate New
York, which would result in 18
inches-plus of snow by morning.
The announcer said driving
would be hazardous as nightfall
approached and temperatures
dropped.
I RECALL creeping along
at about 20 miles per hour,
never seeing any cars on the
road. Nightfall was near and I
knew that I could very easily get
stranded. If you've been in up
state New York, you know many
farms and few towns are located
in the area. But in the blinding
storm, I couldn’t see any roads
that might lead to a house and
safety.
I was in trouble. If the VW
slid off the road into the eight
to 10-foot snow bank on either
side of the road, I would be
forced to walk in the blizzard in
search of help. I was scared.
I RECALL praying to God
to help. But I felt very alone as
my little car edged down the
then dark highway. As I drove
around a curve, I saw a dog
standing about five feet from the
roadside. I then saw a fence post.
When I braked, my VW be
gan to slide so I turned the car
toward the dog. The animal
didn’t move or bark.
I got out of my car and be
gan walking toward the fence
post, hoping it was next to a
driveway. The dog was still not
barking but it began walkinfi
away. At that point, I figure
there was nothing to do but fol
low it in hopes that it was going
toward a house.
I was scared, very scared. As
we moved farther into the dark
ness, the dog would occasionally
look back and hesitate.
I FINALLY saw lights in
the distance. Within three or
four minutes, I was knocking on
the front door of a house. A
couple opened their door,
shocked to find anyone out in
the blizzard. Ben and Ella Zaire
welcomed me into their home.
The next day, Ben helped me
rescue my car, which was bur
ied to its rooftop in snow.
By the way, the dog I saw
was real, not a “ghost.” It be
longed to the Zaires.
1 hope none of you experi
ences a blizzard as I did. But if
{ou do, ask God for help and
ook for His messeniegr.
God won't forsake you.
Hall Ming SMS Y CluL) Talent S%ow
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‘Larger Than Life’ Heartthrobs
Singing the “Backstreet Boys™ million-selling
hit, “All 1 Have To Give,” these five
Summerville Middle School teens had
females in the audience screaming
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Middle School, right front, combined a dance
routine with her dramatic interpretation of
the music during a recent t:Rent show.
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three winners from the multi-talenteg
Summerville Middle School students, Ken
Tribble, seated left at the table, Chattooga
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Dee Mosteller, left, vice %resident of the
Summerville Middle School “Y” Club,
presented trophies to from left beside
Singing Heart And Soul
Here Comes The Judges!
‘And The Winners Are . . .’
uncontrollably. From left are Justin Rogers,
Chris Lee, Derek Baker, Zach Ple(fger,
kneeling, and Sam Allmond. (Staff Photo By
D. J. Laan).
Backing her up from left are sixth graders
Ginger Leéuin, Jamie Teters and Brittany
Bolt. (Staff Photo By D. J. Laan).
County maintenance supervisor and Rhonda
Kiser, Chattooga High School music director,
at the same table, %isten intently to all the
performers. (Staff Photo By D. J. Laan).
Mosteller, John Hall, first place; Emily Smith,
second glace and Whitney Thompson, third
place. (Staff Photo By D. J. Laan).
By D. J. LAAN
Staff Writer
Summerville Middle School has completed its first
student talent show in a decade.
The idea was that of Christy Calhoun, a teacher and
sponsor of the school’s Y Club, a youth leadership and
community organization.
More than 25 youngsters participated, performing
solo songs, groups doing karaoke performances of their
favorite songs, and even a yo-yo act performed to “Mambo
.
No hoots, yelling and snickering could be heard at
the show. The student body applauded, encouraging and
supporting its talented peers.
YO-YO GOES :
During a yo-yo performance by John Hall, an eighth
grader, the audience went wild when his yo-yo came off
the string and rolled across the gym floor.
He didn’t get flustered as his act rolled out the gym
door, but he began to perform an exciting, innovative
dance to the background music.
Although his performance with the yo-yo was inter
esting and demonstrated talent in handling the different
techniques, such as “walking the dog” and “the cat’s
cradle,” Hall’s instant recovery after the unfortunate loss
of the yo-yo, endeared to him to the audience.
BACKSTREET BOYS
Another favorite were five boys who performed to a
Backstreet Boy's version of “All I Have To Give.” The
screaming of girls in the audience was so great that teach
ers and guests alike were covering the ears to protect their
hearing.
Winners of the talent contest were John Hall, first;
Emily Smith, second and Whitney Thompson, third.
Dee Mosteller, an eighth grader and vice president
of the Y Club presented the trophies.
Ms. Calhoun and the Y Club sponsored the show.
John Adams, a faculty sponsor, directed the program.
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JOHN HALL, YO-YO WIZARD
Winner Whirls, Dances His Way To First Place
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Eighth Graders “Get Jiggy” Dancing In Show
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KIA MILLICAN, FUTURE STAR
Sings “Give Me One Reason,” Tracy Chapman Style
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WHITNEY THOMPSON, A REAL WINNER!
Student Sings, “I’'m Not Alone,” As A Pro
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Belting Out The Blues
Brittany Henderson, center front, mesmerized the
audience at Summerville Middle School when she sang
BrittanK Speer’s rendition of “Crazy.” Backinfi her up in
the background from left are Kandy Moralez, Julie Hensley
and Crystal Bates. (Staff Photo By D. J. Laan).
°
Barr Against Gun
®
Program Of Clinton
Seventh District Congress
man Bob Barr criticized propos
als President Clinton incl‘::ded in
his State of the Union address.
This year, President Clinton
has outlined an anti-firearms
agenda which includes new stat
utes regulating firearms sales,
government support for “smart
gun” development, and much
more svending on the Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms
(BATF).
“These gun control propos
als are part of an overall Admin
istration request for massive in
creases in the size and cost of gov
ernment,” Rep. Barr said.
“President Clinton once
again proposed a laundry list of
massive new government pro
grams," Barr said. “Instead of us
ing our nation’s current fiscal
health to give Americans a tax cut
and protect Social Security and
Medicare, the President proposes
to squander much of the surplus
on new Washington bureaucra
cies.
“President Clinton also
clearly doesn't intend to let the
last year of his presidency slip b
without further efforts to attac{
and erode the Second Amend
ment rights of law-abiding Ameri
cans,” the Congressman said.
“Despite the voluminous evidence
that gun control does not prevent
crime, and may actually increase
it, the President persists in cater-
ing to the anti-gun fringe of his
party. :
“Two of the President’s pro
posals — smart guns and more
ATF spending - might sound
good at first blush, but raise sub
stantial questions when ycu look
closer,” Rep. Barr said. “The fed
eral government has absolutely
no business wasting money to
subsidize private development of
“smart-gun” technology that will
always be far too cumbersome
and unreliable to survive in the
marketplace.”
“I am also concerned the
Administration might use this
subsidized research as an excuse
to force a smart-gun mandate on
American consumers, thereby
endangering the lives of gun own
ers, and creating more govern
ment power to control private gun
ownership,” he said.
“We should also be careful
about mindlessly throwing more
money at the BATF”, Barr said.
“Under President Clinton, BATF
spending has more than doubled,
but firearms prosecutions have
dropied,” Rep. Barr said. “Before
we take more money and author
ity to prosecute away from state
and local fiovemments we should
carefully determine whether it is
really more effective to use those
resources in Washilzfton."
Barr, a former United States
Attorney in Atlanta, serves on the
House Judiciary Committee.