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VOLUME CXIV — NUMBER VII
‘Super Tuesday’ Primary Set;
Voters Pick Party Favorites
By JASON ESPY
Staff Writer
While the “Super Tuesday”
Presidential Preference Primary
will be held in Chattooga County
Tuesday, Jon Payne, election su
perintendent, said he wants the
Ellenburg Appointed
F&M Bank President
Native Chattoogan Assumes New Duties
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MR. ELLENBURG
Drug Agents Grab
Trion Suspect Plus
‘Meth,” Cars, Cash
By JASON ESPY
Staff Writer
A suspected major Chat
tooga County methamphet
amines dealer was arrested in
Chickamauga on drug charges
this past Friday night, based on
information received from drug
agents.
Agent Tammy Mitchell of
the Lookout Mountain Drug
Task Force said the capture of
Joseph Lewis Clark Sr., 53,
Walker Street, Trion, led to the
seizure of about a half-pound of
methamphetamine valued at
$16,000, two vehicles, firearms,
knives and more than sll,oooin
Gilbert, Tucker Resign F&M
To Establish New State Bank
‘Peoples First’ Tentative Name Of Community Institution
Two top officials of the
Farmers and Merchants Bank of
Chattooga County have resigned
to start a new state bank in the
Summerville area.
Bill Gilbert, fgresident and
chief executive officer (CEO) of
the bank, and Scott Tucker, a
bank vice president, both re
signed Monday morning.
“MY CHOICE”
“Leaving Farmers and Mer
chants Bank was en:jy choice,” Gil
bert said. “I wanted to start a new
bank in Chattooga County.”
Tucker left for the same reason,
he added.
Gilbert denied widespread
rc;pons that BB&T Corp., owner
of Farmers and Merchants, had
asked him to res(i’gn or that he
had been asked to execute
changes at the bank with which
he disagreed. Tucker said he was
not forced out and resifined at
the same time as Gilbert Monday
since thez were going to start
work on the new bank.
ETHICS
Both said they “don’t é)lax
both sides against the middle,
meaning that it would not have
Parker Visits Riegel Spring
- See Page 3-A
The Summeruille New
pressures of hostinF, an election
given to someone else.
Meanwhile, he will spend
his silver anniversary (25 years)
in elective office married to his
Probate Court and election su
perintendent posts. He will hold
vet another election.
W. E. “Eddy” Ellenburg Jr.,
senior credit officer at the Farm
ers and Merchants Bank of Chat
tooga County on Tuesday was
named by its board as president
of the bank, succeeding Bill Gil
bert, who resigned Monday
morning (see related story).
The bank is owned by BB&T
Corp., Winston-Salem, N.C.
RELATIONSHIP
“ ... We have ‘relationship
banking’ at BB&T,” Ellenburg
said. “We are interested in a to
tal banking relationship, not just
selling products and services.”
Ellenburg started working
at the bank on Sept. 1, 1974. The
new president started out as a
teller, was promoted to the loan
collection department, to loan
officer and then as senior credit
officer with operational duties at
the bank.
seecELLENBURG, page 16-A
cash..
Three other suspects also
were arrested at the Walker
County site.
LARGEST?
It was one of the largest, if
not the largest, methamphet
amine sul;()plies seized by the
druitas force, said Agent
Mitchell.
“This should take a big
chunk out of the supply of meth
amphetamines to tfie county,”
she said. “Maybe this will slow it
down some.”
Methamphetamines have
been gaininF popularity among
the drug culture, lawmen have
been ethical for them to continue
working for Farmers and Mer
chants while they were in the
process of starting the new bank.
“BB&T has been very fair to
me and I can’t say anything
about them . .. ” he sai&' “This
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© Copyright 2000 By Espy Publishing Co., Inc. — All Rights Reserved
SUMMERVILLE, CHATTOOGA COUNTY, GEQRGIA — THURSDAY, MARCH 2, 2000
Tuesday’s voters will cast
ballots on wgo should be the Re
sublican or Democratic presi
ential nominees in November.
HOPEFULS
The Democrat ballot will in
clude Vice President Al Gore and
former Senator and professional
basketball player Bifl Bradley.
The Republican ticket will
include Christian activist Gary
Bauer, Texas Gov. George W.
Bush, millionaire Steve Forbes,
Sen. Orrin Hatch, former ambas
sador Alan Keyes and Sen. John
McCain, R-Ariz.
However, Bauer, Hatch and
Forbes have already withdrawn
from the race altgoufih their
names will remain on the Geor
gia ballot. Bauer has endorsed
Bush.
The grimary contenders on
the Republican side Tuesday will
be Busqi. McCain and Keyes.
Meanwhile, State Represen
tative Barbara Massey Reece, D-
Menlo, is working on legislation
to call a referendum this fall on
whether Payne’s position should
be replaced by an election board.
“Rep. Reece is working to
pass local legislation that would
give the voters a choice if they
would like an elections board,”
Payne said.
LOW TURNOUT?
In the interim, Payne said
he does not expect a big turnout
on Tuesday. He said he thought
the lack o% advertisements and
public interest in the presiden
tial campaign this year will give
said. According to those officials,
“meth,” as it is called on the
street, could surpass the popu
larity of marijuana if the trend
continues.
The drug gives individuals a
“his,h" and can keep them awake
and alert for days at a time. It
also can seriously harm the body,
especially the heart, medical of
ficials said.
JULY, 1999
An investigation that led to
Friday night’s seizure of the
methamphetamines began last
summer.
The drug task force said it
seeDRUG AGENTS, page 16-A
(change) just ensures that Scott
and I can continue our banking
Fractices as we have in the past.
like working in a small commu
nity bank setting.”
Gilbert saidghe will be presi
see GILBERT, TUCKER, page 9-A
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MR. TUCKER
way to a small or, at best, a mod
erate turnout,
“I don’t look for too big of a
turnout because there has not
been too much publicity (in
Chattooga County or Georgia)
about it,” Payne said.
No matter the turnout,
Payne said he is preparing as if
all registered voters will march
to one of the county’s 13 polling
places.
TEST FRIDAY
Payne will host a state-man
dated public demonstration to
test the accuracy of the county’s
scanner voting machines at 2
p.m. Friday in Payne’s office in
the Courthouse.
“Holding an election is a
pretty awesome responsibility
put on one person,” Payne said.
Judge Payne said his Pro
bate Court workload has in
creased significantly, as have his
election responsibilities.
Demands by state agencies
and court mandates have created
more paperwork in the past few
years than he first had when he
took office on Feb. 27, 1975.
see ‘'SUPER TUESDAY', page 8-A
Trion Woman
Not Happy
With Change
Changes in the flow of ve
hicles, the addition of a traffic
light and stop signs at various
intersections duril}% the past
year has changed traffic patterns'
in the Town of Trion, officials
said.
Some of those changes
might have been for the worse,
according to Edna Mitchell, a
Second Street resident. She
spoke during last Thursday
night's Trion City Council meet
ing.
ENTRANCE
The street in question, First
Street, is across from the en
trance to Mount Vernon Mills
Inc., she said.
Before the change, motor
ists heading west into Trion on
First Street could turn right only
in the right-turn lane or take the
left west-bound lane to turn left
onto Old U.S. 27.
With the change,
westbound motorists have to
turn left, as well as right, from the
right-hand lane, officials ex
plained. Drivers can no longer
take the left-hand, west-bound
la_fle to turn left toward Summer
ville.
VIEW
“When you have the cars
that are lined up here to turn into
the main entrance of (Mount
Vernon), they block your view
completely,” she saig. “I have
pulled out in front of vehicles
several times.”
Town Mayor Don Hayes, on
an unofficial recommendation
from a state Department of
Transportation worker, said he
has changed the exits and flow
of traffic on First Street.
First Street runs from the
Mountain View intersection off
U.S. 27 through “Frogtown,” or
East Trion, and dead ends into
Old U.S. 27 in front of the mill.
First Street branches intoa Y on
the Old U.S. 27 end. That
branched section of First Street
is where changes have been
made.
“DANGEROUS”
Ms. Mitchell said the
change in traffic flow makes it
dangerous to pull out from First
Street and onto Old U.S. 27.
“I pulled out in front of a
big truck this morning because
the vehicles had pulled up,
stopped to turn into the main
entrance,” she told Mayor
Hayes and the Trion Town
Council. “It’s very dangerous
and you are takiniyour life in
your own hands when you pull
out there. You might as well
close your eyes and pull out.
Someone is dgoing to have a se
rious accident there or get
killed.” :
Trion Police Chief Charles
Latta, Mayor Hayes and Coun
cilman Roy Bowers said thez
thought the change is muc
safer. They said the Old U.S. 27
bridge guardrails obstruct the
view of north-bound cars.
see TRION WOMAN, page 9-A
Irvin: Horses Attacked By Dogs
==See Page 8-A
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Emily Reynolds was named the STAR student for the Chat
tooga County School System Tuesday by the Summerville-
Trion Rotary Club. She chose one of Ker elementary school
teachers, Marion Solomon as her STAR teacher. From left
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Ryan Chesley was named the STAR student for the Trion
City School System Tuesday at the meeting of the Summer
ville-Trion Rotary Club. He chose as his STAR teacher, Su
san McCain. From left are Rotarian Will Hair; father, Harold
STAR Students Named
Reynolds, Chesley Receive Honors
By GENE ESPY
Editor
Local STAR students and
teachers were honored Tuesday
by members of the Summerville-
Trion Rotary Club.
Emily Reynolds received the
Chattooga County School
System’s Student Teacher
Achievement Recognition
(STAR) honor this year. She is
the datthter of Joe and Joyce
Reynolds, Lyerly. She chose as
her STAR teacher, retired educa
tor Marion Solomon.
Ri'an Chesley is the Trion
School System’s STAR student
for 2000. He is the son of Harold
and Winnie Chesley, Menlo. He
chose as his STAR teacher, Su
san McCain.
Rotarian Will Hair, STAR
program chairman for the Ro
tary Club and retired school ad
ministrator and teacher, pre
sided over the meeting. The lo
cal club has sponsored the STAR
I.)rogram for the %ast 42 years,
onger than any other sponsor in
the state.
TOP SAT SCORE
The STAR program was cre
ated to focus public attention on
Georfiia's outstandini scholars
and the teachers who have been
most instrumental in their aca
demic development. During the
fiast 42 years, the STAR Program
as honored more than 18,000
high school seniors who have in
turn chosen their STAR teachers
to share in the recognition.
The Professional Associa
tion of Geoagia Educators
(PAGE) Foundation, Inc. was
selected in 1994 by the Georgia
Chamber of Commerce to coor
dinate the statewide STAR pro
éram in association with the
hamber and the Georgia De
partment of Education.
Reynolds Named Chattooga STAR Student
Chesley Named Trion STAR Student
Each year a top academic
senior in each participating
Georgia high school is named the
STAR student for that high
school. To obtain the STAR des
ignation, students must have the
highest score on the Scholastic
Assessment Test (SAT) and bein
the top 10 gercent or top 10 stu
dents of their class. Each high
school STAR student is asked to
name his/her STAR teacher.
High school STAR students com
pete for system titles; and system
Veteran Former Mayor Dies
Trion Residents Say Farewell To J. C. ‘Jake’ Woods
Friends, family and resi
dents of the small Town of Trion
have said their final farewell to
its most influential political icon
- L(:)r:ig—time Mayor J. C. “Jake”
Woods.
Mayor Woods, 86, formerly
of Simmons Street, Trion, died
on Thursday, Feb. 24 at Regal
Residence, Calhoun. He had
served in political office for 37
years and worked as office man
ager for Riegel Manufacturing
more than 50 years.
SERVICES
Funeral services were held
at 4 p.m. Saturday at the Trion
First Baptist Church with the
Rev. Chris Hardy and Drs. War
ren Moorhead and Bert Vaughn
officiatin&lnterment was in
West Hill Cemetery, Trion.
“He loved Trion and he
loved the Trion people,” said
Trion Councilman Roy Bowers.
“Jake was a very, very smart
businessman . . . Jake was a very
g)ood person. He was straiéht
rward about the job and if he
are CHS Assistant Principal David Houston, Rotarian Will
Hair, Marion Solomon, Emilé_ Reynolds, and her parents,
Joyce and Joe Reynolds. (Staff Photo by Gene Espy).
Chesley; Ryan Chesley; Susan McCain; mother, Winnie
Chesley; sister, Lori Chesley and Trion High School Princi
pal Ben Desper. (Staff Photo By Gene Espy).
STAR students in turn compete
for district-wide honors in
GeorFia's Council of Economic
Development Organizations Dis
tricts. District winners and their
STAR teachers are invited to At
lanta to compete for the state
STAR awards.
REYNOLDS
Chattooga STAR student
Emily Reynol%is told the Rotary
Club she plans to go to Floyd
College, then on to Georgia
disagreed with i;ou, he would tell
you so and if he liked you, he
would tell(f'ou so.”
Woods began his political
career in 1955 when he was
elected to the Trion Town Coun
cil. He served in that capacity for
13 years.
UNOPPOSED
In 1964, Woods was given a
chance to run unopposed for
mayor. Then-Mayor W. B.
Simmons had a stroke in 1963
that left him incafiacitated.
Councilman Harry Henderson
served as acting mayor for the
rest of that year.
During a snowstorm on Jan.
2, 1964, just 201 of 800 regis
tered voters turned out at the
polls. Of the total, Woods re
ceived 197 votes.
“I got a better understand
infi of how he loved the town and
what he fought f0r..."” Bowers
continued. “Jake would chal
lenge you, no matter who it was
- Billy Kinzy or the gas depart
ment or the water depattment or
STILL
ONLY
25¢
Southern and then maybe to the
Savannah College of Art and De
sign where she hoped to study
interior design.
She thanked the Rotarians
for the STAR program and the
scholarships they give yearly to
students from CHS and THS.
Her STAR teacher, Mrs.
Solomon taught her for six years
in the gifted program at Lyerly
Elementary School, she told the
Rotarians.
see STAR STUDENTS, page 9-A
even Roy Bowers. If it did not
sound right he said ‘let’s talk
about it and see what the prob
lemis.”
Mayor Woods remained un
see VETERAN, page 15-A
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MAYOR WOODS