Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

Award-Winning Better Newspaper Contests \ olumc I Niinihcr 31 TUESDAY 53,27 Mainly sunny. High 53F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph. W® d 59/34 /£, 1/8 Plenty of sun. Highs in the upper 50s and lows in the mid 30s. Thu 81/38 / i 1/9 * Mix of sun and clouds. Highs in the low 60s and lows in the upper 30s. Wrestlers hit the mat in Warner Robins ■■ ■ ‘ Hl l c ' z'" 1 1 f } j Over the weekend, wrestlers from all around the state gathered at the Warner Robins gym for the Demon Duals meet. Warner Robins, Perry and Northside competed in the annual event and had several wrestlers medaling. See more on Page 3B Sporting look back 2002 was a big year in Houston County sports on and off the field of play. The Houston Home Journal looks back at the 10 biggest local sports stories in a 2002 Review. See B 1 for more Inside OPINION PG.4A CLASSIFIED ...PG.6B COMICS PG. 5B BUSINESS PG. 6A NEWS BRIEFS . .PG. 2A Mil 111 8 55108 00001*4 Periodical 3-Dwstt 306 Georgia Newspaper Project Main Library Jeamrie Ledford Main Library Uga Athens Ga 30602 \ i to Jatmtm * “Houston County’s Legal Organ Since 1870” New senator Tolleson ready for swearing in By Charlotte Perkins Staff Writer A week from now, Ross Tolleson will be a state senator sitting in the same chamber of government his grandfather once sat in, dealing with some tough issues as he represents Georgia’s 18th District. Tolleson, a partner in the Macon investment firm of ÜBS Paine Webber, is a Perry native who made his first venture into politics last year - winning the Republican nomination with no competition, and going on to defeat incumbent Democratic Sen. Michael Moore in the November general election, despite the fact that the 18th district was drawn to have a Democratic majority. When Tolleson tossed his hat into the ring last spring, the state Senate was under Democratic control, and one pundit had quipped that Republicans had “the influence Perdue appoints new COO From Staff Reports ATLANTA - Governor-Elect Sonny Perdue has recruited for mer Bank of America executive Jim Lientz to fill the newly cre ated position of Chief Operating Officer for the state. “Jim Lientz is an outstanding addition to our team,” Perdue said. “State government should be a customer-friendly, people focused organization. Jim’s experience in the private sector will help translate that vision into a reality, creating a new organizational structure for our state.” The Chief Operating Officer (COO) is charged with creating a customer friendly, people-ori ented state government through the leadership, man agement, and supervision of state departments, agencies, and their respective boards and commissions. A native of Savannah, Lientz began his career in the finan cial services industry in 1968, following graduation from Georgia Tech and two years of service in the United States Army. Lientz retired as President of Bank of America’s Mid-South Division in December 2000, continuing his career as Chairman of the TriVeritas Group. He served as Chairman of the Metropolitan Atlanta Chamber in 2000 and the Georgia Chamber of Commerce in 1998. He and his wife, Peggy, have three daugh ters and reside in Atlanta. “I appreciate the opportunity that the governor-elect has given me to assume the role of a public servant,” Lientz said. “I have dedicated my life to suc cess in the private sector and I , plan to continue striving for results-oriented solutions in this public role.” of wallpaper” in the General Assembly. All that has changed, however, and Tolleson will enter the Senate at a time of transi tion: Republicans now hold the majority vote, and with fellow Houston Countian and Republican Sonny Perdue, will begin a four-year term as gover nor. “The state needs a true two party system,” he said in a recent interview. “It’s better for everybody. Sonny knows about that because he lived through the suppression of ideas. You need debate and you need to hear the best ideas regardless of party. I think it will be exciting to see how we will be able to build a coalition.” Tolleson added that his party’s leaders in the Senate are committed to let some chairmen of committees be Democrats. Some issues the senator-elect wants his constituents to be Please see TOLLESON, page 10A Schools to take part in MKBK6UNTS Fifteen Middle Georgia schools will participate in MATHCOUNTS, the annual nationwide math program for middle school students. The participating local schools are: Westfield School, Tabor Middle School and Warner Robins Middle School. Student “Mathletes” are cur rently in training, using special ly prepared coaching materials, provided free of charge by the MATHCOUNTS Foundation to all middle schools across the country. In February, the Mathletes will represent their school at the local MATHCOUNTS com t .V" i "v ’ - w- i :fc;CT:'.V '''‘.V .?.v i '' ■! 1 , 1 , : Pl* v■ ■ ; , • . , . • . ■HA a BmnH it SBbL r ‘mtuMFitwßk W Ilf mi, f % I ' u 't''i >•* s r.v- 1 -jfll 1 v, >r *j, *f ;.->|f|. ;; ,*';7. i 4 | < tt . mg • : Photo by Charlotte Perkins Three members of the Houston County Board of Education, including two who are starting their first terms, were sworn in Friday morning by Probate Judge Janice Spires, at right The members are, from left, Griff Clements, Fred Wilson, and Jim Boswell. Clements and Boswell are now members. For more swearings-in, see page 7A. \ is it ii s on the neb at Mw'w.lwustonlwmejounialeom .I;11111:11 \ 7. 2(MM W JQaßßwjr. HBffllllt -MW.' s ' _li Photo by Charlotte Perkins Senator-elect Ross Tolleson speaks to the Warner Robins Chamber of Commerce. petition, which is one of more than 500 contests held annually. Winners of the local competi tion have the opportunity to advance to the state competi tion in Atlanta and then on to the national competition. At all levels, students can compete as team members and individually in written and oral matches. Subjects include algebra, proba bility, statistics and geometry. Students win prizes such as tro phies, scholarships, and prizes. Betty Jean Jordan, the Middle Georgia Chapter MATH COUNTS chairman, said, “We are delighted at the enthusiasm we’ve received from our schools. We hope our community will show the same enthusiasm and recognition for academic achievement as it does for ath letic achievement.” The 2002 MATHCOUNTS competition season attracted more than 33,000 participants from nearly 6,000 schools nationwide, but over 500,000 students benefit from the use of MATHCOUNTS materials in their classrooms each year. Sponsors aim to help improve student interest and ability in mathematics. They have target ed middle school students, who are at a crucial stage in sustain ing and developing math skills. at two Si'dions • IN I’n^cs Daily Sun to cease publication From Staff Reports The Daily Sun, Warnet Robins’ newspaper for over half a century, will cease publication on Feb. 1. The announcement was made last Thursday by The Macon Telegraph. Like The Telegraph, The Daily Sun is owned by Knight Ridder, a California based company which owns over 30 newspapers nation wide. The Daily Sun was founded in 1949 by Foy Evans, who owned it until 1972. It began as a weekly, and became a daily newspaper in 1969. Evans sold it to Roy H. Park, and in recent years, it has been owned by Park Acquistions, Media General and Community Newspaper Holdings. Knight Ridder has owned the paper since 1997. Foy Evans was disheartened by the news. “I am shocked and saddened to learn that a newspaper which has been so much a part of the growth of Warner Robins and Houston County over the past half century soon will be only a memory,” he said. “Since I spent the better part of my life developing The Sun from a tiny weekly newspaper into one of Georgia’s best small-town daily newspapers 30 years ago, I have to admit that part of me dies with the death of The Daily Sun.” Daniel F. Evans, owner and editor of The Houston Home Journal, echoed his father’s sentiments. “I hate to see it stop publica tion, because I had always hoped to get it back in the fam ily one day, and it’s like seeing the family farm cut up into a subdivision.” The news staffs of the Telegraph’s Houston-Peach bureau and The Daily Sun were combined in early November, with staff writers from both papers covering local beats. This led to the publication of identical stories in the two papers, with The Daily Sun reprinting stories already pub lished in The Telegraph. The Telegraph will continue to have a Houston County office on Watson Boulevard in Warner Robins. Daily Sun subscribers will begin receiving The Telegraph later this month. Man slain in WR home From Staff Reports A 22-year-old man is dead fol lowing an incident in which police say he was shot to death. Details were sketchy at press time, but authorities confirmed that Tamarcus Jordan of 208 Suzanne Dr. died as a result of a shooting. They are investigating the case as a homicide. Police responded to the call about 1:18 a.m. A second person was present at the residence when the shooting took place, according to reports. That person was not injured. Anyone with information should contact Sgt. Chris Rooks with the Warner Robins Police Department Criminal Investigation Division at 918- 2982 or 929-6911.