Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2019
Tifton, Georgia
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At the 'Live, Work, Play City Award' ceremony in Atlanta: Georgia Trend Publisher Ben Young, from left, Tifton Councilmen Wes Ehlers and Johnny Terrell, Mayor Julie Smith, Tifton City Clerk Jessica White, Councilman Frank Sayles Jr. and GMA President Linda Blechinger.
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TIFTON RECEIVES
STATEWIDE AWARD FOR QUALITY OF LIFE
ONE OF ONLY 9 CITIES HONORED
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Tifton
is one of
nine
cities in
Georgia
honored with a
2019 Live, Work, Play City Award
from the
Georgia Municipal Association
(GMA) in conjunction with
Georgia Trend Magazine
during GMA’s annual
Mayors’ Day Conference
this past weekend in
Atlanta
.
The
other cities
honored are
Valdosta, Canton, Duluth, Lawrenceville, Carrollton, Toccoa, Senoia and Avondale Estates
.
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Though each city provides different services, contest
judges praised
the winning
cities
for their
success
in advancing
job creation, housing offerings
and
recreational amenities.
“These
nine cities
truly embody
well-rounded communities
that
benefit residents
and
businesses
alike,” said GMA Executive Director
Larry Hanson
. “They also serve as
examples for local governments
across Georgia.
Officials
in these cities have demonstrated
advanced problem-solving
,
exceptional management
and
teamwork
to
increase
the
overall quality of life
for all residents."
Tifton
Mayor
Julie Smith
said to be recognized by
GMA
and
Georgia Trend Magazine
is "a
testament
to the many
partnerships
and
resources
that work together to
make Tifton
a
standout community
in our state.
"And I’m very
excited
about the
good work
being done by our
City Council
to
build upon
this
foundation
. We are
honored
and
humbled
to accept this designation,"
Smith
said.
Judges
for the
2019 Live, Work, Play Cities Award
represented
Georgia Power
’s office of
Community & Economic Impact
, the
Ga. Department of Community Affairs
, the
University of Georgia’s Carl Vinson Institute of Government
and the
Georgia Council for the Arts.
While attending the
GMA
conference,
Tifton City Council
members met at the
Capitol
with
state legislators
to discuss
Tifton issues
on
behalf
of
Tifton city residents
.
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GDOT MAKING CHANGES TO U.S. 82 INTERSECTION
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Work has started to
improve traffic flow
and
enhance safety
at the busy commercial
intersection
of
U.S. Highway 82/SR 520
and
Hunt Road
in
Tifton
.
Improvements
include
building
a U.S. 82
westbound right-turn lane
onto
Hunt Road
and
realigning
the
Interstate 75 south off-ramp
with
Hunt Road
. Currently, motorists who
exit I-75 south
and want to cross
Highway 82
to reach
Hunt Road
must
shift
to the
right
.
Installing the
right-turn lane
will
move traffic
out of the
through lane
, which can
prevent rear-end crashes
. Realigning the
southbound off-ramp
will
reduce
the likelihood a driver will
travel into the wrong lane
, officials say.
Drivers can expect
shoulder
and
lane closures
on
Highway 82 west
and the
I-75 south off-ramp
. Work will be done during
daylight
hours and isn't expected to take more than a
month
to complete. The contractor is
Jim Boyd Construction
of
Albany
, and the cost is
$176,818
.
This is a
Ga. Department of Transportation Quick Response Project
. Such projects typically cost less than
$200,000
and can be completed within a
short time period
. The money comes from the
state motor fuel tax
and is primarily used for
small operational improvements
and
safety and maintenance
projects along the
state route system.
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ABAC students Maricarmen Tinajero, left, from Douglas and Neel Patel, right, from Tifton thank Tift Regional Health System President & CEO Chris Dorman for the TRHS contribution to An Evening for ABAC.
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TRHS CONTRIBUTION TO FUND 6 ABAC SCHOLARSHIPS
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Tift Regional Health System
(TRHS) is
increasing
its
contribution
this year to
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College's "An Evening for ABAC"
scholarship fundraiser. TRHS's
$15,000
contribution will result in
six scholarships
for ABAC students next fall semester.
For the
2018 scholarship fundraising
event.
TRHS
donated
$10,000
, resulting in
scholarships
for
Neel Patel
from
Tifton
,
Maricarmen Tinajero
from
Douglas
,
Jaylee Bass
from
Adel
and
Kasey Kight
from
Fitzgerald
.
Patel
and
Tinajero
are both
nursing
majors. Bass majors in
writing and communication
; and
Kight
majors in
health sciences
.
Sponsored by the
ABAC Foundation
,
"An Evening for ABAC"
is scheduled
Feb. 23
at the
UGA Tifton Campus Conference Center
. Tickets are
$125
for singles,
$225
for couples and
$1,500
for a reserved table of
eight
. A
portion
of the ticket price is
tax deductible.
For
information
, call
229-391-4895
.
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RHYTHM & RIBS BBQ FEST SET MARCH 2
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The sixth annual
Rhythm & Ribs Barbecue Festival
is set for
Saturday, March 2
, at
Fulwood Park
.
“I think last year was the
biggest
year we’ve had in terms of the number of teams and the number of visitors we had to the park,” said
Angela Elder
with the
Tifton-Tift County Tourism Association.
“Our
payouts
for both the
professional
and
backyard
competitions are
among the best
in
Georgia
, and we received a lot of feedback from the teams that this is one of their
favorite competitions
to compete in.”
Fifty
barbecue teams participated last year, and
Elder
said registration is picking up for this year.
Registration
forms may be found at
www.tiftonribsfest.com
The
professional competition
is sanctioned by the
Georgia Barbecue Association
. Professional teams compete for the
Grand Champion
trophy and
$3,000
in prize money. The
Reserve Champion
wins
$1,500
and a trophy, while the
top 10
in each category receive
cash prizes
.
In the
backyard competition
, the
Grand Champion
receives
$1,000
and a trophy. Also,
cash prizes
are awarded to the
top five
finishers in each category.
Brent Cobb
and
Cedric Burnside
will
co-headline
the
entertainment
. Cobb is a native of
Ellaville
and burst onto the major music scene with his major label debut
“Shine on Rainy Day,”
which was
nominated
for a
2017 Grammy
.
Burnside
is also a
Grammy-nominated
artist who grew up around the
blues scene
in
Holly Spring, Miss.
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BEACH BOYS TAKE TIFTON
The
Beach Boys
made a "surfin' safari" into
Tifton
on
Sunday
and created some "good vibrations" at the
University of Georgia Tifton Campus Conference Center
.
A large
audience
welcomed the band to The
Friendly City
.
In the accompanying photo,
Gail Hargett
of the
UGA Tifton
Conference Center poses with Beach Boy
Bruce Johnston
.
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MINI GRANT PROVIDES CAR SEATS, EDUCATION TO ELIGIBLE FAMILIES
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The
Tift County Sheriff’s Office
has been awarded the
2019 Car Seat m
ini
g
rant
by the
Ga.
Department of Public Health
,
Injury Prevention Program
.
Through the m
ini g
rant, the
Sheriff’s Office
and the
Tift County Health Department
work together to
provide car seats
and
education
to
financially eligible families
in
Tift County
.
The
program
is
funded
by the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety to help ensure Georgia’s
children
are
safe
while riding in
motor vehicles
.
Since
2007
, the
education, car seats and booster seats
have
prevented serious injury
or
death
and
saved
more than
300
children involved in crashes, authorities say.
According to the
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
, car seats
reduce fatal injuries
by
71 percent
among
infants
and by
54 percent
among children
ages one to four
. But nearly
three out of every four
car seats are
not used properly
, placing children at unnecessary risk, officials say.
In
Tift County
, the
Sheriff’s Office
and the
Health Department
educate
parents and caregivers on how to
properly install
and
use car seats
, offer car seat
inspections
and
provide car seats
and
booster seats
to
financially eligible
families.
For
information
, call
229-388-6020
or
229-386-8373
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SRTC HONORS TOP STUDENTS, TEACHER
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Southern Regional Technical College
(SRTC) recently honored its
finalists
and the
winners
of the 2019
Georgia Occupational Award of Leadership
(GOAL), the
Exceptional Adult Georgian in Literacy Education
(EAGLE), and the
Rick Perkins Award for Excellence in Technical Education.
The
three awards
represent
excellence
in their respective areas of
technical
and
adult education
.
The
EAGLE
program celebrates
adult learners
in pursuit of excellence. The program recognizes
students
who have demonstrated
exceptional achievement
in statewide adult education classes.
This year’s winner,
Joshua Jackson
of
Tifton
, will represent the local program at the state
EAGLE Leadership Institute
in Atlanta.
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GOAL
competition begins during the fall semester, when technical college instructors across Georgia identify their most
promising students
and nominate them for
GOAL
based on
academic achievement
and
personal leadership
.
This year’s winner is
Jordan Baugham
of
Thomasville
, enrolled in the
radiologic technology
program.
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The
Rick Perkins Award for Excellence in Technical Instruction
honors the Technical College System of Georgia’s most outstanding instructors. The award has been an ongoing
statewide
event since
1991
and is designed to recognize
technical college instructors
who make
significant contributions
to
technical education
.
The winner of this year’s award is
Tiffany Fox
, who teaches
psychology
on the
Tifton campus
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WHICH WAY THE WIND BLOWS IN OMEGA
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Recent
breezy days
call for
weather vanes
, and students at
Omega Elementary
have been
studying weather
in class and applying their new
skills
.

First graders
in
Robin Lasseter's room
created their own
weather instrument
to check
wind direction
. They learned which way was
north
and how to
read a compass
. They have also have been
tracking
the
temperature
daily
all month
long using their own
calendar
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TIFTON-TIFT COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
RIBBON CUTTING
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Capstone Premier Staffing
816 Love Ave., Tifton
Jan. 25
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TIFTON FRESHMAN RECEIVES
MASONIC LODGE SCHOLARSHIP
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Matthew King
, a freshman engineering major from
Tifton
, has been awarded the
Masonic Lodge of Tifton No. 47 and No. 745 F&AM Endowed Scholarship
from the
ABAC Foundation
at
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College
.
ABAC Chief Development Officer
Deidre Martin
said the purpose of the scholarship is to provide support to a graduate of a school in
Tift County
who demonstrates
high standards
of
character
and
personal integrity
. Recipients must be enrolled
fulltime
at
ABAC
with a
2.5
or
higher grade point average
.
“I am so proud of the great work of the members of the
Masonic Lodge of Tifton No. 47 and No. 745
,”
Martin
said. “Two years ago, they began an effort as individuals and as an organization to create an
endowed scholarship
at ABAC. Just this month, they made the final donation to
fully endow
the scholarship.
“I want to give
special thanks
to the late
Lamar Jackson
and Mr.
Gerald Branch
who
led the effort
to make this possible. Their desire to
support young people
pursuing their dream of a
college education
is
inspiring
."
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HURRICANE RECOVERY ASSISTANCE INFO
AVAILABLE AFTER GEORGIA AG FORECAST
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South Georgia
farmers, community leaders and business owners
recovering from
Hurricane Michael
can learn about
additional recovery assistance
available at a
free resource fair
immediately following the 2019
Georgia Ag Forecast meetings
in
Bainbridge
on
Jan. 31
and in
Tifton
on
Feb. 1.
University of Georgia Cooperative Extension
will host the resource fair along with
agricultural agencies
, other
UGA divisions
and
private entities
that can assist with hurricane recovery.
According to UGA Extension Associate Dean
Laura Perry Johnson
, Georgia Ag Forecast organizers have invited participants from state and federal agencies, such as the
U.S. Department of Agriculture
(USDA)
Farm Service
,
Rural Development
, and
Natural Resource Conservation Service
; agricultural lending agencies;
UGA Public Service and Outreach
; and the
Center for Rural Prosperity and Innovation
at
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College
.
“The
Ag Forecast
meetings in
Tifton
and
Bainbridge
provide the perfect opportunities to offer additional resources to those
affected
by
Hurricane Michael
. These meetings are in the heart of both
agriculture
and the
affected areas
,” said Johnson.
The
registration fee
has been
waived
for this year’s
Georgia Ag Forecast
seminars in
Bainbridge
and
Tifton
thanks to support from
Georgia Farm Bureau
along with AGCO.
Georgia Ag Forecast
is an annual seminar series presented by the
UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
(CAES) in partnership with the
Georgia Department of Agriculture
. At the events, UGA agricultural economists address Georgia farmers, lenders and agribusiness leaders about the
latest trends
and
economic conditions
in
Georgia agriculture
.
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Tifton Grapevine
e-published every Tuesday and Friday
Frank Sayles Jr.
Editor & Publisher
Bonnie Sayles
Managing Editor
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A Service of
Sayles Unlimited Marketing LLC
, Tifton, Georgia
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