Tifton Gets $3.8 Million

Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022

Tifton, Georgia

478-227-7126 ~ www.tiftongrapevine.com

TIFTON GETTING $3.8M FOR WATER, SEWER UPGRADES

AREA COMMUNITIES ALSO GETTING STATE GRANTS

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

The City of Tifton is getting nearly $3.8 million from the state to improve its water and sewer system, Gov. Brian P. Kemp's office said Tuesday.

The funds are part of $422 million that Kemp announced for water and sewer infrastructure improvements across the state. Several Tiftarea communities are also receiving funds.

Area projects include replacing the water tower at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College and updating water/sewer systems in Ashburn, Adel, Alapaha, Arabi, Fitzgerald, Ray City, and Irwin County.

The governor said the funding grants will ensure communities in "high-need areas" have reliable and safe drinking water and wastewater systems.

“Because we remained focused on protecting lives and livelihoods throughout the pandemic, Georgia is now in a position to make strategic, transformational investments in our state’s water and sewer infrastructure,” Kemp said Tuesday.

A state committee worked with the Office of Planning and Budget to prioritize the projects to be funded, he said.

Tifton is receiving $3.77 million. In the city's proposal to the state, the money will be used to replace "old, leaking pipes" in the water system, replace aging fire hydrants, make major upgrades to the wastewater treatment plant and lift stations, replace deficient pipes in the stormwater drainage system that cause sinkholes, and incorporate GPS data with city systems "providing for quicker and more accurate responses to facility failures such as leaks and pipe breaks."

The Center for Rural Prosperity and Innovation, on behalf of ABAC, is receiving $758,477 to drill a new well and install a new elevated water tank on the ABAC campus. The current water tank is inadequate "to meet required fire flow," and the current well is more than 50 years old and has no backup.

Among other communities receiving grants for water/sewer projects are: Alapaha, $750,000; Arabi, $4,510,685; Ashburn, $1,680,000; Adel, $946,100;

Fitzgerald, $2,542,348; Irwin County, $358,400; and Ray City, $840,000.

UGA FOOTBALL SIGNEE SHOT WHILE EXERCISING AT FITZGERALD PARK

POLICE BELIEVE INCIDENT MAY BE GANG RELATED

Staff Reports

A Fitzgerald High football player who recently signed with the University of Georgia was shot twice Monday night at a park in Fitzgerald, police say.

Investigators believe EJ Lightsey was at the "wrong place at the wrong time" when the suspected gang-related shooting occurred at about 6:30 p.m. Monday as Lightsey was exercising at Seaboard Side Park on Evergreen Way.

Lightsey was shot in the shoulder and foot, authorities said, and is in stable condition at Phoebe Putney Hospital with non life-threatening injuries.

Also shot at the time was a 37-year-old man, who was shot in the head and was in critical condition at a Macon hospital.

Police said up to 15 people may have been involved in the shooting incident, which is believed to be gang related. Fitzgerald Police have called in the Georgia Bureau of Investigation for assistance.

Lightsey, a 6-foot-2, 210-pound linebacker, was a top player on the Purple Hurricane's Class 2A state championship team this past season. He was ranked as a 3-star prospect and No. 44 nationally.

Lightsey signed with UGA on Feb. 4 and has been expected to enroll for summer classes in Athens.

TIFT COVID-19 CASES

DROP FURTHER IN 2 WEEKS

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

COVID-19 cases in Tift County continue to decline, according to data Thursday from the Ga. Department of Public Health (DPH).

Tift reported a total of 131 positive cases within two weeks, about half what was reported in the previous two-week period.

During the past week, Tift recorded two additional COVID-related deaths, along with 23 confirmed PCR cases. During the two-week period, Tift saw 47 confirmed cases, with positive rapid Antigen cases added for the total of 131 positive cases.

Tift has recorded a total of 6,252 cases with 160 deaths, the DPH said.

The state reported 1,492 positive cases Tuesday with 77 additional deaths and 161 new hospitalizations. Georgia reports a total of 1,905,790 cases with 29,352 related deaths, according to the DPH.

NEW TIFTON YOUTH CENTER NAMED FOR COACH BATEMAN

The new Tifton youth center under construction in South Tifton will be named for the late Tift County High coach Anthony G. Bateman, Tifton City Council decided Monday night.

Coach Bateman, or "Bate," was an assistant football, basketball and track coach. He had been part of the Tift County coaching staff since 1991, but Bateman was a Blue Devil all his life. He was part of the Class of 1986 at Tift County High School. Beyond athletics, he had touched the lives of many students.

Bateman, 52, died in 2019 of a sudden, unexpected heart attack.

"This is an honor that we all in our family will cherish for the rest of our lives," Bateman's widow Freda told City Council. "I'm so proud to know that Bate made such a positive impact in the lives of our youth in this community."

Also at Monday night's meeting, City Council appointed Dr. Tonja Tift as executive director of the Tifton Urban Redevelopment Agency and appointed Elizabeth Torres as assistant city attorney.

BEN HILL COUNTY SCHOOLS GET GRANT TO IMPROVE LITERACY,

AID STUDENTS WITH DYSLEXIA

Fitzgerald and Ben Hill County Schools are among 41 school districts around the state receiving grants to improve literacy and support students with dyslexia.

Ben Hill County Schools will share in more than $4 million in federal funds being granted to 31 Georgia school districts through Readiness in Literacy Grants. The funds will support early reading assistance programs for struggling readers and students with risk factors for dyslexia.

Ten other school districts are receiving Multi-sensory Reading Instruction Training Grants, from $1 million in federal funds for training opportunities and resources for teachers.

The Ga. Department of Education is awarding the grants.

“These grants will ensure districts, schools, and teachers have the resources they need to improve reading success for all students, including students with dyslexia," said State School Superintendent Richard Woods.

FORMER STATE SEN. ED PERRY SEEKING RETURN TO SENATE

Former state Sen. Ed Perry of Nashville has announced he is running to return to the Georgia Senate to represent District 13, which includes Tift County.

State Sen. Carden H. Summers, R-Cordele, is the incumbent in District 13. Nashville and Berrien County were added to the district at the end of last year following redistricting.

Perry was a state senator from 1982-92, serving as a Democrat. He had served in the Ga. House of Representatives from 1980-82, and was a city commissioner and mayor pro tem for Nashville during 1975-78.

He currently is the owner and operator of Perry Vineyards and Horse Creek Winery.

In a press release, Perry was described as a conservative small business owner, decorated veteran, and longtime community leader running to "defend South Georgia’s way of life against the overreach of Atlanta."

“For far too long, South Georgia has been ignored and taken for granted. Now more than ever, District 13 needs a fighter who will stand up for our way of life,” Perry said.

“Whether it’s the radical Atlanta special interests trying to impose their way of life onto South Georgia or the attempted leftist indoctrination of our children we see in our schools, it’s past time to stand up and say enough. I’m not running to be a compromise candidate or support whatever way the wind blows on a particular issue. I’m running because I am going to fight for our home and preserve it for generations to come.”

Born and raised in Berrien County, he graduated from Valdosta State and served in the Air Force during the Vietnam War. Perry said he has been involved in agriculture for 50 years, and has owned several small businesses and created jobs in South Georgia.

TIFTON

2012 Pineview Ave. Tifton, Ga 31793

LECTURE FOCUSES ON POLITICAL ACTIVISM & WOMEN IMMIGRANTS

Dr. Elizabeth Medley will speak on “Rise of the Resistance: Immigrant Women’s Political Activism from Ellis Island to the Modern Era” in the second lecture of a three-part series at 6 p.m. March 3 in Ernest Edwards Hall at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College.

Medley’s lecture addresses a mural exhibition entitled “Coming to America – The Immigrant Experience Featuring the Lost Mural of Ellis Island” which opened Jan. 18. Medley is an assistant professor in ABAC’s School of Arts and Sciences.

“I am going to talk about just one event, the 1902 kosher meat riots,” Medley said. “It focuses on Jewish immigrant women in New York City who certainly would have come through Ellis Island and their protests of what they saw as price gouging meat.

“It is a really unusual story because usually when there are food riots it is because there is no food. In this case, there is food, just not the right food. As conservative Jewish women, they had to serve their families kosher foods.”

Medley said she was attracted to this story because it focused on Ellis Island immigrants and an unusual set of issues related to food and protests.

“These are also women who often did not speak much English, certainly did not vote, and within their own communities did not have much power,” Medley said. “However, as wives and mothers, they saw this issue of food prices as something that they should be able to speak against as the nutritional providers for their homes.”

TCHS SOCCER COACH NOTCHES 100th WIN

Tift County High Head Soccer Coach Bobby Earls hit a milestone in his Blue Devils soccer coaching career Friday, celebrating his 100th win.

The win came as the Blue Devils defeated the Bainbridge High Bearcats 2-0 on the road, giving Tift a record of six wins and one tie.

In celebrating his milestone victory, Earls said he has been blessed with having good student players, two good assistant coaches, "and a wonderful wife!"

AREA STUDENTS AMONG THOSE AT GEORGIA 4-H DAY AT GA CAPITOL

The Georgia Capitol turned shades of green recently as it welcomed more than 400 outstanding 4-H students from counties across the state, including the Tiftarea.

The students gathered at

4-H Day at the Capitol to engage with their legislators, observe leadership in action, and learn first-hand about the civic process involving state government.

Civic engagement is one of three focus areas that Georgia 4-H emphasizes to youth through in-school programming, after-school activities, project work, and camps.

A partnership with Gulfstream Aerospace Corp. and the Georgia 4-H Foundation made it possible for hundreds of Georgia 4-H’ers to “learn by doing” with a visit to the State Capitol in Atlanta to experience the civic process in real time.

Legislators explained how bills become laws and discussed what happens at the Capitol each day. The students also met with their own district lawmakers, toured the Capitol, and heard from Gov. Brian P. Kemp.

TIFTON GRAPEVINE'S CAT OF THE WEEK

"Pipsqueak," a male kitty, is among those available for adoption at the Tift County Animal Shelter. To adopt Pip and see other pets available, visit the 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 DECLARES HOLIDAY AT OPENING OF SECOND DISTRICT AGRICULTURAL SCHOOL

~ FEB. 20, 1908

Tifton declared Feb. 20, 1908, as a holiday throughout the city for the opening of the Second District Agricultural & Mechanical School, the forerunner of Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College. Stores and public schools were closed in the city, and a special train ran from downtown Tifton to the new school amid a crowd of some 1,200 people. When classes opened, they were filled with 27 students.