Newspaper Page Text
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Please see Page 8A
Houston Times- Journal
Carter, Ragin will face off in November
By JIMMY SIMPSON
Staff Writer
Two political newcomers will comprise the list of
county commission candidates in November’s general
election after both scored impressive wins in Tuesday’s
general primary.
Wayne Ragin outdistanced Billy Hunter 3,259-2,564
to win the Democratic nomination. Jim Carter defeated
Jack Wylam by a 1,410-981 count to take the
Republican seat.
Elections officials reported only 21 percent (8,456) of
the county’s 40,397 voters showed up at the polls to
cast their ballots.
Ragin carried 14 of the 24 precincts, including three
expected poll sites in Perry. Carter held the upper hand
in 19 of the 24 precincts. Both candidates held the edge
Perry, Ga.
this week
Volume 124—N0. 63—20 Pages
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 10,1994
50 CENTS
News
GSP in pursuit
The GSP, usually in pursuit
of autos, has been focusing its
attention on buses in the Hous
ton County School System in
recent days. Page 2A.
Troopers receive awards
Four Georgia State Patrol of
ficers have been recognized
for their outstanding duties at
Post 15 in Perry. Page SA.
Lunchs to be altered?
Lunch at Perry schools might
become completely different
in the next few years if Jeanine
Johnson has anything to do
with it... Page 6A.
Sports
PHS, Board concerned
Officials at Perry High School
and the Houston County Board
of Education found the recent
Title IX compliance review re
port on the Panthers disap
pointing. Page 9A.
A day at 'The Creek'
Stan Ganr. had a good day at
Houston Lake Country Club
recently. Page 9A.
Family
Calling all teachers...
The Houston County School
System, and Westfield
Schools, are awaiting the re
turn of faculty to start the new
school year. Both schools re
port a combined 306 teachers
in the classroom. Page 18.
Couples announce
Stacie Ragan and Travis
Bennett are united in a beauti
ful ceremony at Henderson
Baptist Church. Page 28.
In Sympathy
The community's sympathy
is extended to the families of
those who recently died. They
include: Howard Alvin Deason,
Ernest F. Eubanks, Timothy
Andrew Nicholson and William
Byron Maxwell. Complete
obituaries appear on Page 2A.
Index to features
JIMMY SIMPSON 4A
OBITUARIES 2A
CLASSIFIED ZB
EDITORIALS 4A
LEQAL NOTICES 4B
LOCAL CALENDAR SB
SPORTS 2A
SOCIETY IB
Official Legal Organ for Houston County, City of Perry and the State of Gerogia
in absentee balloting. All results are unofficial until
documented by elections officials.
The two victors, both employed at Northrop, were
more than enthused when the final votes came in.
“I’m just elated with the results,” said Carter. “I re
ally didn’t know what to expect because I had no expec
tations coming in..., I lost a few precincts, but I’m very
humbled (with the results).”
The Kathleen resident, who admitted on election day
that he was “extremely nervous,” said reaction at the
polls continues to be more than encouraging.
“This is still all very new to me,” Carter said. “All I
can say is that I hope by November to have united vari
ous folks, both Republicans and Democrats, and have a
clean, respectable race.”
For Ragin, who opted to stay away from the elections
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Sterlln and Juanita Carr of Hawklnsvllle visited
Evergreen Memorial Cemetary last weekend In an effort
City takes action on washed out graves
By JIMMY SIMPSON
Staff Writer
City officials say they want to be
sympathetic, but unless certain plots in
Evergreen Cemetary are soon identified,
they will have no choice but to move the
caskets without prior approval from family
members.
The wooden caskets are located on the
outer edge of the cemetary, along Big
Indian Creek. A gradual landslide stemming
from rains along the cemetary’s banks are
causing the sites to wash away.
Officials first made a plea for help about
two weeks ago when city workers noticed
the problem. They now are hoping that
The Houston Home Journal family during the
19605: At far left are Mr. and Mrs. Byron Maxwell.
At center are Mr. and Mrs. Cooper Etheridge.
Former Journal owner's death mourned
By JIMMY SIMPSON
Staff Writer
William Byron Maxwell, one of Perry’s
most respected citizens, died Friday. He
was 84.
A native of Mitchell, he was the son of
the late Joseph Byron Maxwell and Leta
Lennard Maxwell.
He was the former owner and editor of
the Ocilla Star and a former co-owner of
the Houston Home Journal.
Mr. Maxwell was an active member of
the Perry Presbyterian Church, where he
was a deacon. He was a member of the
Kiwanis Club and the American
Association of Retired Persons.
Survivors include a wife, Mrs. Louise
Bobby's back!
Please see Page 10A
family members can acknowledge certain
graves as being those of family members.
City officials stepped up their efforts
Aug. 3 when they began legal proceedings
to address the problem in Houston County
Superior Court.
The notice, Civil Action File 94-V
--50910-N, would allow workers to remove
those graves on the verge of being washed
away by heavy rains if caskets are not
identified within 60 days.
The caskets would then be buried at
another location with another marker, most
likely a wooden cross such as others that
now exist at various sites in the cemetary.
The city asks in the legal notice that it
“be relieved from any and all liability, now
Ingham Maxwell of Perry; a sister, Mrs.
Lewis Huggins of Thomasville; and a
brother, L.E. Maxwell of Albany.
“He was a faithful worker, and interested
in anything in this community,” said
Aurelia Evans, a longtime friend of more
than 30 years.
“He would go out of his way to help
anybody. And in return, he was most
appreciative of anything that anybody did
for him or his wife,” she said.
The Rev. Jim Shipley, a pastor at the
Perry Presbyterian Church who had known
Mr. Maxwell for the past 14 years,
remembered the kind man that often struck
up a conversation.
“One of the things he most enjoyed in
office as final results came in, the victory was also
somewhat nerveracking.
“The last time I was down there (at the elections of
fice for July’s primary), I said I wouldn’t stand around
and wait (for the votes to come in),” he said. “But we
were in touch constantly by phone, so I had some idea of
what was going 0n... It wasn’t much better.”
On his campaign, Ragin said he felt the professional
ism displayed by his camp in particular should be noted.
“I think we ran a very professional and clean race,”
the Perry resident said. “We had a tremendous group of
volunteers and a tremendous amount of supporters in the
community and in Houston County.”
The biggest edge for Ragin, and perhaps the turning
point in the runoff, was at the Georgia National
Please see Election, page 12A
to locate a family member that may be burled there.
(HT J photo by Jimmy Simpson)
The man In light-colored coat at far right Is
former editor Bobby Branch. They are posing
with employees of the paper.
or in the future,” as a result of any damage
to the graves upon their removal.
Interim City Manager Janice Williams
said the graves are believed to date back to
the early 1920’5.
The eroded ground is a result of massive
flooding of a lower part of the Main St.
cemetary in early July.
Williams said council would wait out
the legal timetable before moving to
remedy the problem. The legal notice will
run three more times, including today’s
notice in the Houston Times-Journal.
It is uncertain, Williams said, just how
long or how much money the project
would take to complete.
life was talking about current events,” Rev.
Shipley said. “He kept up with almost
everything, and he was always interested as
to what was going 0n...
“He lived a good, clean life. He was a
very gentle man, and a good Christian
man. He was quiet, but he loved being
around people.”
It was in 1952 when Mr. Maxwell
joined into a partnership with the late
Cooper Etheridge that Carolyn Ethridge
First met him.
Mr. Etheridge had purchased the Home
Journal in 1946 and worked as editor when
Mr. Maxwell arrived in Perry six years
later from Ocilla, where he served as editor
Please see Mr. Maxwell page 3A
Favorite recipes
Please see Page 1B
¥~'
Jim Carter
Vacant house spurs
questions on safety
By JIMMY SIMPSON
Staff Writer
A local group of residents, fearing for the safety of
neighborhood children, are asking for the removal or re
pair of a Washington Street home.
The dwelling, located at 811 Washington Street, came
under recent fire after several children were spotted going
in and out of the house.
“It’s an eyesore, and someone is going to get hurt
playing over there (at the house),” said Virginia Jones,
one of 28 persons along Washington and Gilmer Streets
who signed a petition presented to City Council just last
week.
Another resident living just off of Washington, on
Gilmer Street, said he agrees that the home is a problem.
“I’m often having to close the home’s doors due to
mischievous persons,” said Larry Sayre. “The porch is
dangerous, and I don’t like walking across it, but I don’t
want the house to be an open invitation to kids.”
The older house is owned by Jimmy Paul who reside s
in Atlanta. Efforts to contact him were unsuccessful.
“If someone who likes to remodel were to come in
and fix it up, maybe it would make a nice home,” Jones
said.
But even if that were to heppen, according to Jones,
there would be one additional problem facing contractors
that would obviously need to bb addressed- bats.
“We see them (bats) all the time,” said Chuck
Sanders, who lives just across the street. “They don’t
come out until around 8:30 or 9 (p.m.) because they
only travel at night.”
The winged birds, measuring about four inches tall,
look more fearful than they actually are, according to
Sanders.
“They’ve got this great wing span that can really
spook you,” he said. “They’re actually very timid to
wards adults, but they’re still a problem.”
So much of a problem, Sanders said, that he has
taken on the job of an amateur part-time exterminator.
“I’ve already killed about 40 of them that were com
ing down my chimney,” he said. “At first, it was pretty
exciting, but now it’s routine.”
It’s for that reason alone that Jones said the house is
more of a problem than actually meets the eye.
“It’s kind of a spook house (because of the bats). Ob
viously, the kids think they’ve done something... when
they go in it,” Jones said.
City Building Official, Bill Chambless, told those in
attendance that the city was aware of the problem and
will take action towards correcting it.
Diners in dark after
storm tangles wires
By JIMMY SIMPSON
Staff Writer
Local businesses along Sam Nunn Blvd. were left in
the dark last Friday night after a severe power outage cut
off electricity for more than an hour and a half.
Ths first report of darkness was reported at about 8:10
p.m., according to local Georgia Power manager Neal
Rearden, who said power was restored at about 9:45 p.m.
The problem stemmed from high winds that con
nected two wires and took out a station breaker, accord
ing to Rearden.
“The reason it took so long to repair the breaker was
that our crews had to (search) a stretch of wires before we
could locate the problem area,” said Rearden.
Once the trouble area was spotted, he said, crews then
had to ensure that there were no other problems with the
breaker that would affect workers.
“There’s a lot of wire out there,” said Rearden. “We
had to be positive that we knew exactly what we were
working with...”
More than 15 businesses, from Quincy’s to the
Interstate 75 bridge on one side, and from Taco Bell to
that same bridge on the other, were completely shut
down while crews worked hecticlly trying to revive the
area.
Jim Hamlin, a shift manager at Pizza Hut, said that
business was “severly handicapped.”
“(The outage) cut our business approximately in
half,” Hamlin said. “We had to get candles just to let
those customers that were already in the restaurant finish
eating...”
At Quincy’s, manager Greg Wilson said projected in
come was also far below the norm for a Friday night
I * JWIbI
Wayne Ragin
