Tifton Remembers 9/11

Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2023

Tifton, Georgia

478-227-7126 ~ www.tiftongrapevine.com

TIFTON TO REMEMBER, HONOR 9/11

EXCHANGE CLUB, ABAC PLAN OBSERVANCES

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

Patriot Day is Monday, Sept. 11, in honor of those who lost their lives in the attacks on the United States on Sept. 11, 2001.

This year marks 22 years since that day when two planes downed the World Trade Center twin towers in New York City, when another plane struck the Pentagon just outside Washington, D.C., and when another plane, apparently heading for Washington, was downed in Pennsylvania as passengers fought the terrorists.

There are two remembrance ceremonies planned Monday in Tifton. An observance is scheduled at 11 a.m. Monday at the Leroy Rogers Center on Second Street. Hosted by the Exchange Club of Tifton, the program is open to the community.

The speaker will be Mittie Vaughan, editor and publisher of the Pierce County Press in Blackshear and an Exchange Club member.

On Monday, the Tifton Main Street Program will place flags, donated by the Tifton Exchange Club, throughout the Jack Stone Veterans Park downtown, said Hillery Culpepper, Main Street manager.

At 1 p.m. Monday, the Student Government Association at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College will host a 9/11 Remembrance Service open to the community. The service, to be held at the ABAC Chapel, will include a prayer, presentation of the colors, and a brief presentation about the events of 9/11.

Jerome Loving, a member of the Douglas American Legion, will be the featured speaker.

Emily Rowland, a student government senator in the ABAC School of Arts and Sciences, said the service is being held to acknowledge and honor all those affected by the events of Sept. 11, 2001.

“Following the unforgettable events of 9/11, the nation found unity in their emotions of grief, anger, shock, and fear,” she said. “Our hope for the 9/11 Remembrance Service at ABAC is to provide a place to reflect on the grief that so much of our nation continues to live with following the attacks on 9/11.”

Lionella Gutierrez Nava, also a student senator, said “the 9/11 Remembrance is not just a memory where we remember the ones we lost; it is a day where we express our gratitude to the heroes and the family and friends that we lost.

“We want to invite the community to this special event to deliver a message given by ABAC to show our respects that this day is not forgotten. We want the community to know that ABAC remembers, and that ABAC will never forget.”

FRANKLY SPEAKING

HEARD IT ON THE COCONUT TELEGRAPH

LIVE TODAY, LOOK FORWARD, DON'T TAKE YOURSELF

TOO SERIOUSLY

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

Hemingway once said, “Every man’s life ends the same way. It is only the details of how he lived and how he died that distinguish one man from another.”

When the singer-songwriter-author-entrepreneur Jimmy Buffett died Friday night, it affected many of us unexpectedly. It’s not that we knew him personally, but we felt we knew him through his music and through the way he lived.

And it felt that we lost something, perhaps our youth or maybe the illusion of it. After all, Buffett’s concerts brought out the inner child in us. We may have adult responsibilities and obligations but for a couple of hours while he was on stage, we were young again with no other duty than to enjoy the moment and have fun.

There was a sense of camaraderie at his concerts. Many of us at his shows were about the same age and were united not just by the music but the beach lifestyle. We met new friends at his concerts, at the tailgates beforehand, and through Buffett-related social media. We even gathered for Buffett-themed parties in the Florida homes of new friends.

And there was always another Buffett concert ahead.

I wasn’t always a Jimmy Buffett fan. When I was in college during the ‘70s when Buffett’s music first hit the radio, I was a music critic for my college newspaper. I dismissed his music as lightweight and silly. “Cheeseburger in Paradise,” “Pencil Thin Mustache” – give me a break! I was a bit of a snob when it came to music.

But as Bob Dylan has said, “I was so much older then; I’m younger than that now.”

During our first trip to Key West in 1987 to attend the “Hemingway Days” festival, Bonnie popped in a cassette of Buffett’s album “Coconut Telegraph” which she had taped from a friend’s record. I had never really listened to Buffett before then. During the long drive to the Keys, we listened to the album over and over, and I finally got it.

Jimmy Buffett was essentially saying not to take yourself too seriously. All you’ve got is this moment and “it’s a lovely cruise.”

“Put it on the Coconut Telegraph in 25 words or less,” he sang. He was speaking my language; in the newspaper business we used to say write your lead in 25 words or less.

I hadn’t known that Buffett had started out as a reporter for Billboard magazine in Nashville.

Another song on the album, “Growing Older but Not Up,” also hooked me. “Let those winds of time blow over my head; I'd rather die while I'm living than live while I'm dead,” Buffet sang.

In other words, he didn’t want to just exist, eking out his days, but living each one to the fullest.

That is how he lived and how he died. When he was put in the hospital for a couple of weeks in the spring, Buffett couldn’t just lay there so he wrote songs for a new album. In early July, when doctors told him to rest from his cancer treatments, he instead jumped in his plane and piloted it from his home in New York state to Rhode Island to appear unannounced on stage at an outdoor concert with one of his bandmates.

Last week when he began Hospice care, his friend Paul McCartney visited and sang to him.

“Right up to the last minute, his eyes still twinkled with a humor that said, ‘I love this world and I’m going to enjoy every minute of it,’” McCartney wrote in a tribute.

In his last released album, Buffett said: “Live, relive, learn to forgive; live like it's your last day.”

We would all do well to take that advice and to not take ourselves too seriously.

As Jimmy Buffett said years ago:

“Yesterdays are over my shoulder,

So I can't look back for too long.

There's just too much to see waiting in front of me,

and I know that I just can't go wrong.”

SOUTH GA FARMERS RECOGNIZED FOR HIGH PEANUT YIELDS

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

The University of Georgia Peanut Team recently recognized 17 farmers for their high-yielding peanuts, ranging from 4,781 to 6,493 pounds per acre, during 2022.

“Many of the state winners combine their management practices of crop rotation and critical timing of applications to reach these high yields,” said Scott Monfort, UGA Extension peanut agronomist. “The yields are counted for the entire farm, irrigated or dryland; and they continue to increase year after year.”

According to a report on the production practices of the 2022 winners, the majority use a three-year rotation plan with crops such as cotton or corn. Most of the winners plant in twin rows during May.

Another trait among the high-yield winners is cultivar selection; many planted the Georgia-06G cultivar while others cultivars planted TifNV-High O/L and Georgia-12Y.

The 2022 Georgia Peanut Achievement Club overall state winners are Brandon DeWitt, Brooks County, with 6,493 pounds per acre in the 100-299 acreage category; Mike Newberry, Early County, with 6,418 pounds per acre in the 100-299 acreage category; Kerry and Lisa Hodges, Screven County, with 5,754 pounds per acre in the 300-699 acreage category; and 4 Miller Farms, Seminole County, with 6,293 pounds per acre in the 700-plus acreage category.

The District 1 winners are Wes Gaston, Sumter County, 5,133 pounds per acre in the 100-299 category; Jerry Jones, Webster County, 5,019 pounds per acre in the 100-299 acreage category; and Trey Jones, Webster County, 4,718 pounds per acre in the 300-699 acreage category.

District 2 winners: Adam Tabb, Miller County, 6,119 pounds,100-299 acreage category; John Gaines Jr., Baker County, 6,089 pounds, 100-299 acreage; and Judson Hornsby, Seminole County, 5,840 pounds, 700-plus acreage.

District 3 winners: Larry Ray Walker, Ben Hill County, 5,957 pounds, 100-299 acreage; Buckhead Creek Farms, Jenkins County, 5,372 pounds, 300-699 acreage; David Selph, Wilcox County, 5,400 pounds, 300-699 acreage; and Charles Smith Jr., Jefferson County, 5,827 pounds, 700-plus acreage.

District 4 winners: Chase Farms, Macon County, 5,275 pounds, 100-299 acreage; Hulin Reeves Jr., Irwin County, 5,603 pounds, 300-699 acreage; and Nellwood Farms, Bulloch County, 5,349 pounds per acre in the 700-plus category.

The recognition dinner was sponsored by the UGA Peanut Team, the Georgia Peanut Commission, American Peanut Shellers Association, National Peanut Buying Points Association, AMVAC, Bayer, BASF, and Nichino America.

Standing with Mayor Julie Smith (center, with proclamation) are, from left: Gisselaine Lapointe of Ashburn; Andy Semones, SRTC Adult Education director; Ruth Simon of Ashburn; Melissa Burtle, Literacy board; Mayor Smith; Bonnie Sayles, Literacy board and SRTC English instructor; Geylin Pena, Karen Mondragon, Alexis Angeles, all of Tifton; Andrea McLemore, director of Literacy Volunteers of Tifton-Tift County; Mariana Salinas of Tifton. Children in front: Kenia and Kensi Mondragon of Tifton.

TIFTON PROCLAIMS LITERACY, ADULT EDUCATION WEEK

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

At a ceremony Tuesday with adult education students and literacy representatives, Tifton Mayor Julie B. Smith proclaimed Sept. 8 as Literacy Day and Sept. 17-23 as Adult Education and Family Literacy Week in Tifton.

“Increasing public awareness of literacy rates can alleviate illiteracy while also supporting and strengthening workplace, school, and volunteer literacy programs on the local, state, and national levels,” Smith said.

“Eighteen percent of the adults in the City of Tifton lack a high school diploma or a GED certificate. Adult education services offered by Southern Regional Technical College and Literacy Volunteers of Tifton-Tift County include basic reading and math skills instruction, GED test preparation, GED test fee scholarships, and English language instruction," the mayor said.

“The community’s support of adult education and family literacy helps to improve the quality of life in Tifton, and we are proud to join efforts in celebrating International Literacy Day.”

Attending the proclamation reading were Andy Semones, SRTC adult education director; Bonnie Sayles, SRTC English language instructor and her class of English language learners; Andrea McLemore, director of Literacy Volunteers of Tifton-Tift County; and Melissa Burtle, secretary of the Literacy Volunteers board.

Saskatchewan Roughriders photo

Larry Dean, No. 11, a Tifton native, former TCHS Blue Devil, and former Valdosta State Blazer, has reached a milestone 100 games in the Canadian Football League.

TIFTON'S LARRY DEAN PLAYS 100th CFL GAME

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

Tifton native and former Tift High Blue Devil Larry Dean has hit a milestone in the Canadian Football League.

Dean, a middle linebacker for the Saskatchewan Roughriders, recently played his 100th career CFL game. His Head Coach Craig Dickenson said it's a big accomplishment.

“To get 100 games, it’s special,” Dickenson told a Saskatchewan reporter.

“At the end of the day, I care about wins and losses and making myself and my teammates better,” Dean said, according to his team's website. “At the same time, I think (the milestone) was kind of significant for me because you understand the longevity of it."

The 100th game was especially meaningful considering Dean's past, the website noted:

 Dean didn’t make his CFL debut until he was nearly 28. His first five seasons of professional football were spent in the NFL with the Minnesota Vikings, Buffalo Bills, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
 He lost a full season when COVID-19 wiped out the entire 2020 CFL schedule.
 Dean also sat out the entire 2021 season from an Achilles tendon injury.

Now at age 35, Dean still plays with a passion and skill that belies his age. Last season, he had 101 tackles; he already has 64 tackles this season, which began in June.

And Dean has made 72 defensive plays this season, third-most in the CFL.

His coach said he operates almost as a coach on the field and leads his teammates both on the field and off.

The team's website notes that Dean often gets to practice before the coaches and keeps himself in peak physical condition.

“If you stay ready, you don’t have to get ready,” Dean said.

TURNER'S FURNITURE NAMED A TOP 100 FURNITURE RETAILER

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

Turner’s Furniture has been named one of the Top 100 furniture retailers in the nation by Furniture Today, the industry's magazine.

The recognition reflects the journey of Tifton-based Turner’s Furniture from its modest beginnings in Pelham to a multi-city enterprise serving Georgia and North Florida.

Established in 1915 by the Turner family, Turner’s Fine Furniture started as a hardware store but quickly pivoted toward furniture retailing, even through the Great Depression and World War II. The Turner family continued expanding their business, adding more locations through the years. By the early ’90s, the fourth generation of Turners took active roles in the company’s growth.

Turner’s Furniture now has 11 stores and 230 employees, many who have been with the company for at least 30 years.

"We are thrilled to celebrate this achievement alongside our loyal customers and the local communities that have supported us throughout the years,” said owner Fortson Turner.

Owner Austin Turner said, “We are deeply honored and humbled to be recognized as one of the Top 100 furniture retailers in the nation by Furniture Today. Our success is a result of the trust and loyalty our valued customers have placed in us over the years and the dedication of our many employees."

To express gratitude to the local communities that have supported Turner’s Furniture, the company has announced a donation of $100,000 for local charities in Georgia and North Florida.

BRIDGE OF TIFTAREA NAMES DIRECTOR

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

Terry Bennett has been appointed executive director of The Bridge of Tiftarea, a nonprofit whose mission is serving displaced women and children by providing food and shelter, along with employment training and transportation.

Bennett serves Tifton First United Methodist Church as a Stephen minister, Sunday School teacher, and choir member. She is also involved in Tifton's Celebrate Recovery ministry.

She graduated from Warner University with a degree in transformational Christian ministry and from BB&T Banking School at Wake Forest.

The Bridge of Tiftarea Inc. consists of three components: Tiftarea House of Hope, the Bird's Nest Thrift Store, and the CWJC Site and Training Center to help bridge the gap from poverty and homelessness to sustainability and self-sufficiency for women and children.

TIFTON GRAPEVINE'S CAT OF THE WEEK

"My name is Jimmy Buffett – yep, just like the singer. They named me after him because they said I’m the coolest cat around. I’m super chill but like attention, too. So, I’m at this animal shelter and it’s a drag. 'What would Jimmy Buffett do?' He would tell you to come adopt me! I'm available at the Tift County Animal Shelter. Visit between 1-6 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, or call 229-382-PETS (7387)."

TIFTON CITY COUNCIL SETS PROPERTY TAX

~ SEPT. 7, 1891

At its meeting on Monday, Sept. 7, 1891, Tifton City Council set the ad valorem tax at 25 cents per $100 assessed property value. The city clerk was directed to open the books for tax collections and to close them on Nov. 15.