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Photo by Bonnie Sayles

This was the scene on July 17, 2023, just after the deadly shooting at the Sunoco station on South Central Avenue.

TIFT JURY CONVICTS MAN OF MURDER AT TIFTON GAS STATION

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

A Tifton man has been convicted of murder in a shooting death in 2023 at a South Tifton gas station, Tifton District Attorney Patrick Warren said Thursday.

Immediately after a jury found Antavio Pierce Sr. guilty, he was sentenced to life in prison by Superior Court Judge Bill Reinhardt, chief judge of the Tifton Judicial Circuit.

Pierce was convicted in the murder of Vincent Terrell Myers, 36, of Sylvester.

Myers was gunned down during the afternoon of July 17, 2023, in the parking lot of the Sunoco gas station at 3119 South Central Ave. near the Interstate 75 exit ramp. Myers, a U.S. Army veteran and a family man with a wife and three children, died at the scene, authorities said.

The trial, concluding with the conviction in Tift County Superior Court, ensures justice for Myers and his loved ones, said District Attorney Warren.

“I want to sincerely thank the jury for their time, dedication, and commitment to seeking the truth. Justice has been served for Vincent Myers and his family. While nothing can bring Vincent back, today’s verdict holds the defendant accountable and ensures that our community is safer,” Warren said.

Tyrone Taylor, the victim's uncle, told the Tifton Grapevine on Thursday that Myers' "family is happy with this verdict. This murderer is now off the streets for life; now Vincent can rest in peace. Thank you to the district attorney’s office for handling this case."

Warren prosecuted the case with the assistance of Special Agent Caitlyn Prater of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and deputies and investigators from the Tift County Sheriff’s Office.

Also providing critical assistance in the prosecution was District Attorney’s Office Chief Investigator Melissa Luke, and Victim Advocate Tricia Sumner, the district attorney said.

WALKING CAN TAKE US PLACES WE NEVER KNEW

You never really know a place until you walk it.

That’s my philosophy rooted in my childhood when I used to walk everywhere.

I walked to school (kids, can you imagine that?!), walked to the grocery, to drug stores, to the movie theater. All were within a few blocks.

Besides, there were no such things as shopping malls then; everyone went downtown for major purchases.

My walking habits continued through the years. As a teenager and on through college, I walked everywhere.

Nowadays, of course, virtually everyone has to drive to get somewhere. Most walkers now are folks out to get some exercise around the neighborhood, not people actually trying to get somewhere. In many places, there aren’t even any sidewalks to tread, anyway. If people walk in these areas, they are forced out into the street.

And in Tifton, if you are walking around town in the middle of the day, more often or not a friend or acquaintance will stop and ask if you need a ride.

During a recent afternoon, as I was driving along Highway 82 in Tifton, I saw an older fellow walking purposefully toward town, facing traffic, shuffling his feet in the gutter beside the curb, keeping a tired eye on the too-close-for-comfort oncoming traffic.

This fellow obviously wasn’t taking a stroll for his health; he was trying to get somewhere under the late afternoon sun.

Perhaps he had just left work; his white T-shirt was freshly dirty and his worn jeans were dusty. He didn’t smile. He didn’t make eye contact with passing drivers. He merely stared ahead as cars whizzed by.

I have a feeling he knows this town better than most of us who drive through in our air-conditioned vehicles. This fellow probably knows the back streets, knows the alleyways, knows the small backyards where children play and dogs bark.

When one travels in a car, he is insulated and isolated from his surroundings. The world can be an antiseptic blur outside the glass window. But walk along a street and feel the sun upon your back, smell someone’s dinner cooking in the distance, hear the rumble and roar of traffic, of people, of life around you.

As the day dawns in downtown Tifton, there are few cars out. The sidewalks are empty except for a lone walker. He strolls past the county courthouse and down Main Street, stopping to gaze at displays in the shop windows.

Soon, the city will come alive once more. Lawyers and secretaries will bustle to their offices. Shopkeepers will unlock their doors and throw on the lights. Clerks will enter banks and prepare for customers. Children will step outdoors to await their school buses.

A few cars gather at a stoplight. Then a few more, and a few more as folks head to work. Voices now fill the air. A new day of possibilities has begun in the Friendly City.

You never really know a place until you walk it.

BOTH CITY OF TIFTON, COUNTY ADOPT HB 581 HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION AS BOE OPTS OUT

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

Both the City of Tifton and Tift County formally passed resolutions recently to implement all provisions of the General Assembly's House Bill 581 (HB 581) and adopt the statewide floating homestead exemption.

The legislation limits annual assessment increases on homesteaded properties to the inflation rate set annually by the state Department of Revenue.

HB 581 is intended to protect homeowners that qualify for the floating homestead exemption from significant property tax increases and ensures that taxable property values do not rise faster than the rate of inflation.

Approved by the General Assembly and ratified by voters in November, HB 581 also provides the option of allowing Tift County voters to implement an additional floating local option sales tax (FLOST) in the future.

The FLOST will result in lower ad valorem taxes for all property owners that will further offset property taxes, city and county officials said.

Under HB 581, local governments were granted the opportunity to opt-out of the provisions of this amendment by a March 1 deadline. The Tift County Board of Education decided to opt out.

“The City of Tifton and Tift County determined that opting out of HB 581 was not in line with the desires of Tift County voters as demonstrated in the Nov. 5, 2024, general election vote, with Tift County voters casting 62.9% of ballots in favor of HB 581,” said Tift County Manager Jim Carter.

Larry Lawrence, Tifton interim city manager, said that “both the City of Tifton and Tift County recognize the importance of fair and equitable property tax policies that provide financial relief to homeowners as we ensure the stability of both local government revenues to be able to provide the necessary services to residents.”

The Meat Show team won both the Grand Champion and the People's Choice awards in the Backyard BBQ amateur competition during Tifton's Rhythm & Ribs Festival. Receiving the awards are Meat Show members Robert Hoss Bryant, Grant Dickerson, and Tyler Drury.

RHYTHM & RIBS BBQ FESTIVAL COMPETITIONS WERE 'SMOKIN''

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

The Tifton Rhythm & Ribs BBQ Festival last weekend was a rousing success, and the barbecue-cooking contests were competitive.

The Backyard BBQ competition, involving amateur teams, had a full slate of 34 teams vying for top trophies in the categories of ribs, pulled pork, and pork loin.

Meat Show was named Grand Champion and also won the coveted People’s Choice Award in the Backyard competition. The Meat Show team also placed second in the barbecue loin competition.

The Meat Minions team took the Reserve Champion title.

A Kids Competition this year had youths compete in making barbecue kebabs. Davis Ross was the kids' champion, winning a Golden Skewer trophy. Emmaline Hester received honorable mention.

The Backyard Ancillary contest included competitions for steak, tacos, and Bloody Marys. The Sazon Mejia team won the steak contest; Butcher & Banker won for tacos; and the Meat Minions team placed first in Bloody Marys.

In the Georgia Barbecue Association's professional competition, The Look & The Cook team won the Grand Champion Award with 319Q winning the Reserve Champion spot.

GEORGIA HAS TOP TEACHER MORALE IN NATION: NEW REPORT

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

Georgia ranks highest in the nation in teacher morale, according to a new index by an education research center.

The index shows Georgia with the highest teacher morale index score at +47 compared to the national average of +18.

Education Week released its Teacher Morale Index, a “year-over-year, multifaceted gauge of how teachers feel about the profession,” developed by the EdWeek Research Center.

According to EdWeek, the index measures teachers’ levels of confidence and enthusiasm about their work based on responses to survey questions that were part of a larger, nationally representative poll of teachers conducted last fall.

“For more than a decade, my administration has worked with partners throughout the state to lower high-stakes testing requirements, raise pay, and listen to teacher voices," said State School Superintendent Richard Woods of Tifton.

"As a veteran educator, I have always aimed to be a voice for common-sense, classroom-centered policies. Education Week’s top ranking for Georgia is not an indicator that our work is done, but a reaffirmation of the importance of this direction in the months and years ahead. We must continue to support those on the front lines serving and supporting our students – our teachers,” Woods said.

TIFTON WRITER PUBLISHES CIVIL WAR-ERA NOVEL USING AUTHENTIC LETTERS

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

Tifton author Liz Carson Keith's latest book "The Virginia Governess" has just been published by United Kingdom publisher Holand Press.

The Civil War-era novel revolves around the family of Columbus native Carson McCullers. Keith, a collateral descendant of McCullers, is a retired educator and journalist who previously published a history of the Carson-Keith-Gordon clans, tracking the families from Scotland to America to the 20th Century.  

"The Virginia Governess" tells the story of Charlotte “Lottie” Briggs Carson, a Virginian hired to teach the Carson children on a plantation near Reynolds, Ga. Lottie is Keith’s great-grandmother. The author incorporates into the novel letters her great-grandfather Capt. Joseph Perryman Carson wrote to Lottie while he served under Gen. Phil Cook in Virginia. 

Unlike many books that have been set during the Civil War, Keith's book revolves around Lottie’s relationship with her students and the expanded family as they coped with deprivations, deaths, and loneliness.

The Historical Fiction Co. rated the book 4 out of 4 stars. “All in all, it is a solid historical fiction read that fans of this genre will appreciate,” wrote HFC reviewer DK Marley.  

Keith plans a local reading of the book in Tifton, location and date to be determined. Kindle editions and paperbacks are available on Amazon; check with local bookstores for special orders. Follow Keith's Facebook page for more information.

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YOUR GUIDE

TO ACTIVITIES

THIS WEEKEND

IN THE GREATER TIFTAREA

This Sunday is the beginning of Daylight Saving Time this year. At 2 a.m. Sunday, most clocks will automatically set one hour ahead, though some may have to be changed manually. The time change means later sunsets – and one less hour of sleep this weekend. The concept is that Daylight Saving Time will help us better use natural daylight: Putting the clocks forward one hour in the spring will give us more daylight during summer nights while changing the clocks back one hour in the fall gives us more daylight during winter mornings. Benjamin Franklin came up with the notion of resetting clocks in the summer to save electricity.

FRIDAY, MARCH 7

• First Friday Concert, with Lizz Faith, 11-1 p.m., Tifton Gardens, Downtown Tifton

SATURDAY, MARCH 8

• Peach State Show Choir Invitational, show choir competition runs all day, 8 a.m., Performing Arts Center, Tift County High School, Tifton
• Second Saturday, store-wide sales, live music, sip & stroll, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Downtown Tifton
• Sixth Annual South Georgia Wine Festival, wine sampling, artisan market, live music, food vendors,10 a.m.-6 p.m., Paulk Vineyards, Wray

YOUR YARD SALE

HERE

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Meet "Lasko," who has a heartbreaking story; he had been left on a short chain in the rain and cold for a week, unable to even reach his doghouse. Thankfully, he was rescued and is now safe, but this good boy needs one more thing: A forever home where he will be truly loved and cared for. Come visit Lasko and see other pets available for adoption at the Tift County Animal Shelter on Highway 125 South, open between 1-6 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. For additional information, call 229-382-PETS (7387).