Tift Schools Open in Yellow

Tuesday, August 4, 2020

Tifton, Georgia

478-227-7126 ~ www.tiftongrapevine.com

TIFT SCHOOLS OPEN UNDER YELLOW CODE

ROTATING DAYS, ONLINE INSTRUCTION FOR ALL

ON FRIDAYS, INCLUDING FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

Tift County Schools on Tuesday afternoon announced that the school year will start this Friday, Aug. 7, under a "Yellow" designation, which means enhanced distancing, rotational in-school days and online instruction for all students on Fridays.

The first day of school this Friday will be online for all students. Beginning Monday, some students will have in-school instruction on Mondays and Wednesdays, and others on Tuesdays and Thursdays. On days that students are not at school, they will receive online instruction.

Students have been designated to attend physical classes either under a “blue” or a “white” rotation, letting them know which days to go to their school buildings. School officials say the Yellow designation is in effect for the next two weeks and will be re-evaluated after that in hopes that the designation can be moved to Green, which means schools would be open in a traditional manner with enhanced precautions and protocols.

A Red designation, signifying widespread school/community COVID-19 cases, would mean school facilities are closed and learning is strictly online.

In a letter to students and parents on Tuesday, Superintendent Adam Hathaway said schools are opening Friday, and the decision to move from a Green to a Yellow designation was made after reviewing data from local and state health officials. He noted that Tift Regional Medical Center has had a full Intensive Care Unit and has had to divert some patients to other hospitals because of the coronavirus.

That helped lead "to our decision to move a little slower in our opening efforts,” Hathaway wrote. “We want students back in school, but we don’t want to undo the great efforts made by our community to slow the spread of Covid."

Hathaway said that the latest data “shows that we, Tift County, are in a three-week declining trend of Covid positive cases. We are also showing a 20 percent decline in testing, meaning fewer people are even requesting a Covid test.” Less than 10 percent of those who are getting tested are positive for the coronavirus, he said.

“These trends certainly make us optimistic about returning to school,” the superintendent said.

The school system has previously allowed parents to decide whether their children would attend physical or online class instruction for the first part of the school year. Approximately 30 percent of students have opted for strictly online learning, which means school facilities will already be operating at 70 percent capacity when classes begin, said school system spokesman Jonathan Judy.

GA HAS 2,573 NEW COVID-19 CASES, 81 DEATHS IN 1 DAY

Georgia recorded 2,573 new coronavirus cases Tuesday, as hospitalizations across the state increased by 302, according to the Ga. Department of Public Health (DPH).

There were also an additional 81 COVID-19 related deaths reported Tuesday for a state total of 3,921 deaths. There have been a total 197,948 positive cases recorded in the Peach State since March.

In Tift County, there have now been a total of 1,264 positive cases and 35 deaths. Hospitalizations of county residents total 181, the DPH said.

Within the past two weeks, Tift County reported 181 new cases.

Nationwide, as of Tuesday afternoon, there have been 4.7 million COVID-19 cases with 156,133 coronavirus-related deaths.

Father Lonnie Lacy (the "Dancing Priest") of St. Anne’s Episcopal Church in Tifton performs his parody of a song from Broadway’s “Hamilton."

TIFTON'S ST. ANNE'S PRIEST TO APPEAR ON 'TODAY SHOW' WITH HIS VIRAL VIDEO

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

A church parody of a song from the musical “Hamilton” by The Rev. Lonnie Lacy, rector of Tifton’s St. Anne’s Episcopal Church, now has more than one million views on YouTube, and Lacy is scheduled to be interviewed on NBC-TV’s “Today Show” on Wednesday morning, Aug. 5.

Lacy is scheduled to appear on the “Today Show” national broadcast during the TV show’s 9 a.m. hour.

He had created the video for St. Anne’s annual talent show, and says he never expected it to be a viral sensation that has been viewed around the world. In the Broadway musical “Hamilton,” the King George character sings a song, “You’ll be Back,” directed toward the American colonists breaking away from British rule.

After hearing the song, Lacy thought it would lend itself to a parody with the message to parishioners that “You’ll Be Back” inside church as soon as the pandemic subsides.

"For those of us who miss the joy of in-person worship, ‘You’ll be back,’ is exactly the promise we need to hear," Lacy says.

"Apparently, that has resonated with a lot of people far and wide. I've received so many sweet emails from folks across all denominations who have said it brought them much-needed hope and joy at a time when they really needed it. To me, that's worth being a goofball for 3 minutes and 30 seconds."

Lacy adds that he has also "heard from so many pastors about how hard it has been since the pandemic started. One pastor said he was on the brink of burnout, ready to give up. But he says when he saw me open the church door, he burst into tears and realized, 'I can't give up now! This won't last forever. I want to be there when we finally open the door.'"

Dancing Priest Does Hamilton | CHURCH PARODY | "You'll Be Back"

TINY MISS

Allie Grace Exum

TEENY MISS

Kloe Harrelson

LITTLE MISS

Bentley Rowland

TIFT COUNTY NOW HOME TO

MISS GEORGIA FORESTRY QUEEN

COUNTY HAS 3 OTHER QUEENS IN YOUNGER DIVISIONS

For only the second time in the 81-year history of the Miss Georgia Forestry Scholarship Pageant, a Tift County contestant has been crowned Miss Georgia Forestry Queen.

Abigail Zerwig, daughter of Randy and Holly Zerwig, received the title recently at the Miss Georgia Forestry Scholarship Pageant at the Grand Theatre in Fitzgerald. She won a $2,500 cash scholarship award and a $16,000 scholarship to Wesleyan College.

Zerwig, an ABAC student, competed in a private interview with the judges, in fun fashion and evening gown competitions, and in an onstage interview. She was one of four Tift County contestants to win titles at this year's 81st annual event involving girls from across the state.

Also bringing titles to Tift County were "Teeny Miss" Kloe Harrelson, daughter of Shane and Courtney Harrelson; "Tiny Miss" Allie Grace Exum, daughter of John and Angela Exum; and "Little Miss" Bentley Rowland, daughter of Benjie and Britni Rowland.

The three younger queens each won $300 along with luggage, a monogrammed director’s chair, a bicycle, custom crown, rhinestone sash, silver-engraved tray, flowers and a large gift basket.

The Tift County queens will represent the state's forestry industry in the upcoming year and will also represent Georgia at the U.S. National Forestry Pageant.

The Miss Georgia Forestry Scholarship Pageant is the oldest and largest scholarship pageant in Georgia. It began in 1940 to promote educational opportunities for young women and girls while also promoting the state's large forestry industry.

SOUTHEASTERN FARMER OF YEAR EVENT DELAYED UNTIL NEXT YEAR'S SUNBELT EXPO

Because of the cancellation of this year's Sunbelt Ag Expo, organizers have decided to delay the Southeastern Farmer of the Year event until next year's show.

"Originally, this year’s judging tour was planned for Aug. 10-14. Due to current health concerns, the tour has been postponed indefinitely. 2020 state winners will be recognized, and an overall winner will be announced at the 2021 Sunbelt Ag Expo. A new class of state winners will not be selected in 2021, Expo officials announced in a press release.

"We have considered virtual options for the judging tour and the awards ceremony, but the Farmer of the Year program is not a virtual event. The program is about so much more – the interaction amongst our 10 state winners and the 265 winners that have been awarded over the last 30 years cannot be replaced. To have a Farmer of the Year class not be able to experience the in-person judging tour, the trip to South Georgia and the Sunbelt Ag Expo is not an option in our book,” said Chip Blalock, the Expo's executive director.

The Sunbelt Ag Expo is considered North America’s Premier Farm Show and has provided a venue for the agricultural industry to conduct business for 42 years. The 2020 show had been scheduled this October in Moultrie.

The next show is scheduled for Oct. 19-21, 2021.

ABAC RECOGNIZES TOP SUMMER STUDENTS

Students who achieved academic excellence in their course work during the summer term were recently recognized at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College.

ABAC cites its top academic students each semester on the President’s List, the Dean’s List, and the Distinguished Achievement List. The President’s List is the highest academic honor with each student attaining an “A” in every subject, resulting in a perfect 4.0 grade point average.

For the Dean’s List, students attain a minimum grade point average of 3.5 in at least 12 hours of academic work.; the Distinguished Achievement List is composed of students with a grade point average of 3.5 or higher during between six and 11 hours of academic work.

Among students recognized are:

Adel – Distinguished Achievement: Jaylee Bass, Hunter Folsom, Christopher Gibbs, Hannah McDaniel, Alex Moore, Ansley Paulk, James Peacock, Ethan Ray, Rachel Ray, and Jesse Tucker. Alapaha – Dean’s List: Rebecca Boyd; Distinguished Achievement: Marlee Morris. Brookfield– Distinguished Achievement: Taylor Horton; Chula – Distinguished Achievement: Rebecca Bryan, Scarlett Hogan.

Enigma – Distinguished Achievement: Emily Dillard, Reese Hilton. Fitzgerald –

President’s List: John Miller, Evan Newell; Distinguished Achievement: Austin Futch, Rebecca Lindsey, Jasmine Lundy, Samantha Munroe, Shannon Smith, Brittany Veal.

Lenox – Distinguished Achievement: Daniel Morris, Annah Williams. Nashville – Distinguished Achievement: Bonnie Exum, Michaela Hendley, Hannah Ritter. Ocilla – Distinguished Achievement: Madison Dill, Alexander Eason, Dustin Reliford.

Omega – Distinguished Achievement: Carrie Dunn, Jesus Garcia, Morgan Harrison, Kelsey Robinson. Poulan – Distinguished Achievement: Ansley Busbee. Ray City – Distinguished Achievement: Kayla Sneed. Sparks – Distinguished Achievement: Justin Beach, William Garcia. Sycamore – Distinguished Achievement: Christopher Termunde. Sylvester – Distinguished Achievement: Jacob Jones, Angelina Martinez, Elizabeth Montgomery, Seth Newell, Georgia Pritchard, Andrew Spainhour, Kelly Young.

Tifton – Dean’s List: Fanxu Lin, Alyssa McDaniel. Distinguished Achievement: Erynn Allison, Ja’Mi Barnes, Sawyer Bass, Jarod Beeman, Dontavious Bell, Andi Branch, Dylan Brooks, Jacob Brooks, Johnny Cabanas, Tori-Anne Chambers, Hannah Chance, Casey Cheshire, William Cox, Yulissa De La Paz, Caleb Dela Cerna, Chloe Dela Cerna, Emily Dicks, Sue Dunkel, Nina Dykes, Leilani Fonsah,

Bailey Gebhart, Rebecca Golden, Lyndsae Griffin, Pedro Guevara, Cassie Hogan, Chrys Kirby, Janet Koposko, Meredith Lowery, Maritza Martinez, Emmalee Milner, Beyonce’ Parker, Lewis Prewitt, Walker Sanders, Cristal Silva Padilla, Melanie Smith, Nicholas Spader, Mary Spikes, Daniel Stout, Haley Walker, Breanna Walls, Kayland Winter.

Ty Ty – Distinguished Achievement: Lindy Busbin, Sean Collins, George Patterson.

TIFTON GRAPEVINE'S PET OF THE WEEK

This kitty is among those available for immediate adoption or rescue at the Tift County Animal Shelter. Visit the Animal Shelter from 1-6 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, or call 229-382-PETS (7387).

Pets of the Week are sponsored by:

Branch's Veterinary Clinic

205 Belmont Ave., Tifton, 229-382-6055

TIFTON GROWTH CONTINUES

– AUG. 3, 1917

According to press dispatches, Tifton has seen “progressive changes" in the first few months of 1917: The streets are now paved; the Union Depot has opened; the “Marble Building” of the Bank of Tifton is conducting business; “Frank Scarboro’s new office building, the modern and splendid high school, and something like five or six new and elegant mercantile stores” have been added to the city.