Newspaper Page Text
Wednesday
Dec. I(>, 1998
Volume 127, \o. ~>o
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At the
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Crossroads
This Week
Santa letter deadline is
Dec. 19 at 5 p.rn.
The Houston Times-
Joumal has seen many, many
letters from Pcrryans to
Santa. We’ve got a hunch of
them ready for publication.
But there’s room for more.
The deadline for Santa let
ters is 5 p.rn. Dec. 18. Letters
can go to the Perry Post
Office or to the Times-Joumal
at 807 Carroll St. But hurry. 5
p.m. Friday is the deadline.
All letters to Santa will he
published in the Dec. 23 issue
of the Times-Joumal
Get holiday lights
listed this week
This is the final week to
list outstanding holiday light
displays in the Perry area
Call the Times-Joumal at
987-1823. fax us at 988-1181
or email us at
timesjm@hom.net and we ll
list your holiday display next
week.
Christmas on the
menu at school
Here are menus for
Houston County public
schools for the final three
days of school before holi
days.
Dec. 16 Breakfast is
breakfast pizza or cereal and
toast, fruit or fruit juice and
milk. Lunch is hot dogs or
sloppy joes or a peanut butter
and jelly sandwich. The other
choice is a baked potato with
hot toppings. Dessert is a
brownie
Dec. 17 Breakfast is a
sausage biscuit or cereal and
toast with fresh fruit or fruit
juice and milk. Lunch is a
Christmas dinner which may
vary by location.
Dec. 18 Breakfast is
manager’s choice or cereal
and toast with fruit or fruit
juice and milk. Lunch is pizza
or manager’s choice or PBJ
sandwich or manager’s
choice, and applesauce cake
Time*-journal Photo by Jj Johnson
DOWNTOWN LIGHTS
Downtown Perry, the entire
business district, is aglow in a
bath of white Christmas
lights. This is the fourth year
Perry has decorated using
the white light idea. Check
out the business district while
inspecting Christmas lights
around town.
ttastan
Contact
the Times-
Journal
Contact the Houston Times-
Journal:
Voice (912)V0. .023
Fax (912)988-1181
email timesjm@hom.net
Mail P.O. Drawer M.
Perry, 31069
Street 807 Carroll St„
Perry, 31069.
Friends gather for a jghjfrx ' j.'.i
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Houston Times -Journal
0
Sign up day for cheap kids
health insurance arrives
Low cost Peach Care program effective Jan. 1
Fkom Staff Reports ______
The chance to buy health insurance for kids for
$7.50 per month comes Friday.
Pojents interested in Peach Care for Kids, the new
statewide program which offers low-cost health
insurance for children, arc encouraged to visit the
Perry Hospital on Dec. 18 from 10 a m. until 2 p.m.
This is anew program, offering a full range of
health care for low cost. The program was created
specifically for working-class Georgia families: par
ents who are independent and self-sufficient, but
who cannot afford to purchase private insurance for
their children.
Peach Care for Kids representatives will he on
hand at the hospital to answer questions about the
program and to assist parents in completing the one
page application.
Peach Care for Kids becomes effective on Jan. I,
1999. and offers the same range of services as many
private insurance plans, including doctors’ visits, eye
and dental exams and accident coverage.
The cost is $7.50 per month per child with a max
imum of sls per family. Children under six are cov
ered free, .and there are no deductibles or co-pay
ments.
Parents may choose from more than 4,000
Georgia Better Health Care program physicians
throughout the state or a physician can be assigned to
Land acquisition to begin for South Perry Parkway
By CHARLOTTE PERKINS
Times-Journm. Staff
A learn of city, county and state
officials have set a timetable for
for right of way acquisition along
the future path of the long-await
ed South Perry Parkway.
The new four lane road will
extend from Ga. 127 (the
Marshallville Road) through
farmland to U.S. 41, crossing
over 1-75 at the interchange cur
rently under construction.
From that point it will extend
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Moving day arrives soon for Perry Middle students
By STACIE M. VU
Times-Journal Staff
Santa Claus is bringing more than toys
to Perry Middle School students and facul
ty this year. He’s bringing anew, 159,000
square-foot school.
During the holiday break which begins
Dec. 18, workers will complete the task of
moving the students and faculty into the
new Perry Middle School building located
at 1090 North Perry Parkway near U.S. 41.
The new middle school, which has been
under construction for the past 18 months,
will be ready for occupancy Jan. 4 when
students return to school.
Each grade level has its own wing and
an exploratory wing located across the back
Official Legal Organ for Houston County, the City of Perry and the State of Georgia
to Limerock Road.
The highway construction will
require obtaining land from about
15 property owners, including
Georgia Power and the Georgia
Agriculture Exposition Authority
as well as a few owners of homes
and farmlands, according to infor
mation released at a joint meeting
of the Houston County
Commissioners and Perry City
Council and Mayor Dec. 15.
An informational presentation
was given at the meeting by
of the school. All of the desks, lockers, and
tables are new equipment. The computers
that are to be used in the school will be
transferred from the old campus.
“We’ve bonded together to purchase
items for the new school," said Thomas
Gupton, Perry Middle School Principal.
“I’m very excited for the parents and the fac
ulty. It’s well worth giving up my vacation.”
Students at Perry Middle will participat
ing in a tour of the school this week. During
the tour of the new school, lockers, which
are located inside the classrooms, will be
assigned and students have been instructed
to leave their books. The students are
expected to spend a couple of hours at the
school during the tour according to Gupton.
Set \ ino Houston ( oml\ Siiit t lK t I 170
them when they enroll. Once enrolled, parents will
be issued a Peach Care for Kids insurance card,
which they should present at the doctor's office at
the time of service.
To qualify for the program, families can earn up
to twice the Federal poverty level. For example, a
family of four is eligible with an annual income of
approximately $32,000 or less. Depending on the
number of family members working, as well as other
family expenses, the eligibility maximum amount
may be higher.
“Approximately 14 percent of the residents of
Houston County arc uninsured and children make up
a large portion of that number, “ said Skip
McDannald, CEO of the Houston Healthcare
Complex. “We are pleased that the state has recog
nized this issue, and we encourage parents to enroll
their children in Peach Care so that they will have
medical benefits.”
There will also be a sign-up at the Houston
Medical Center in Warner Robins on Dec. 17 from
10 a.m. until 2 p.m
For more information, please call 542-7991.
Application forms arc also immediately available
by calling toll-free. 1-877-GA PEACH (1-877-427-
3224). In addition, parents may pick application up
at other locations, such as the county health depart
ment.
Nancy Jones, a right of way spe
cialist with the Georgia
Department of Transportation,
and Houston County Engineer
Tommy Stalnaker.
“Items for Action” presented
by Stalnaker and Jones included a
Dec. 30 deadline for preliminary
title preparation, the scheduling
of an informational meeting for
property owners in a month’s time
and a July!-Aug. 1, 1999, dead
(See ROAI), Page SA)
Perryan Demis
gjf Hooper has ideas
* Details, page 4B
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Time* journal Photo by Jj Johnson
FESTIVE WINDOWS Holiday decorations mark the spot of store
front windows along Carroll Street in downtown Perry. This view is
along the north side of the 900 block.
PHS undergoes evaluation
By STACIE M. VII
Times-JoeawAL Staft
Perry High School is undergo
ing an evaluation process known
as “School Renewal.”
The process is a systematic,
organized approach to analyzing a
school's strengths and weakness
es: predicting future needs, and
planning improvements to serve
students better.
The process is designed to
ensure the school meets the stan
dards of performance set forth by
the Southern Association of
Colleges and Schools and permits
the granting of accreditation.
“We look at what wc are doing
and see how wc can improve on
what we arc doing,” said PHS
Instructional Coordinator Wayne
Murphy. The evaluation is made
up of three phases including a
self-study.
The self-study includes a total
school program assessment by
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READY FOR OCCUPANCY The new Perry Middle School (left) is
almost ready for students and faculty. In fact, students will leave
books at the school during the holidays. Inside (above) wide, briaht
hallways are just part of the huge new building which replaces me
old structure. The new school has separate wings for each of the three
grades at the school.
Parents will be able to drop-off students
on the west side (facing the school, to the
right) of the school. After dropping off stu
dents, parents can then make a loop around
the parking lot and exit back onto U.S. 41.
Bus drop-off will be located on the East
side (left facing the school) of the new
school. “They will enter off the Perry
Parkway, and loop around and enter back
onto the Parkway," said Bill Loudcrmilk,
Director of Facilities.
An open house ceremony will be held
Jan. 6, 1999, in front of the new school at 9
a.m. Parents are invited to attend the cere
mony. An open house will be held Jan. 14,
at 7 p.m. A barbecue will take place the
same day at 5 p.m. at the school and parents
teachers, administrators, students
and parents. Also included is an
evaluation of a visiting committee
of peers and professional educa
tors who provide an unbiased
opinion to the self-study.
The third phase is involvement
and utilization of data gathered
through the self-study and the vis
iting committee evaluation to
develop a school improvement
plan to be implemented by the
local school community.
Murphy said the process
includes two visits by the visiting
committee in five- year intervals.
The first visit will be in March
1999 with the second visit coming
five years later. The purpose of
the visits is to ensure the carrying
out of the three phases of the
School Renewal process.
Within the self-study five areas
will be looked at including:
(See STUDY, Page SA)
Timet-Journal Photos by Stacie VSi
will be able to tour the building at the open
house ceremony.
The school must be out of their present
building on Dec. 21. Workers have started
moving equipment and supplies to the new
building. Teachers can enter the building
Dec. 28-30 to prepare for students to arrive.
The phone numbers for the school will
remain the same as they are now.
Part of the old PMS building will be
used as a technology center according U>
Loudermilk. Charles Holloway, Houston
County School Superintendent, said part of
the old school will be used for staff devel
opment and computer training. The porta
bles at the school will be moved throughout
the county as they are needed.