94 N. Main Street, Jasper, GA - (706) 253-2457
Pickens Sheriff’s office inmate work detail crews, led by Deputy Joey Hancock, pick up trash along Yellow Creek Road in Marble Hill.
How many bags of garbage would you guess inmate work detail collected on a half-mile stretch of Philadelphia Road? 10? 15?
Try 57 full-size bags.
Granted this road between Highway 515 and Talking Rock Highway is considered one of the worst in the county, but litter is so bad that commissioners say it’s a top complaint they receive. Now the county is partnering with the Pickens Sheriff’s office, Keep Pickens Beautiful, and the community at large in a “Team Up to Clean Up” initiative to address roadside trash and encourage recycling.
As part of the effort, the Pickens Sheriff’s office work detail program is back as temps warm up. In addition to Philadelphia Road that crew picked up 89 bags on three miles of Camp Road and were working Thursday, March 4 to pick up trash off Yellow Creek Road.
Read more: Roadside trash on radar with ‘Team Up to Clean Up’
Raises "not fiscally responsible" at this time, say city officials
An entire shift of Jasper firefighters called in sick Saturday the week after a tense situation over pay, and discussion about a raise employees believed they would receive but did not. No one would confirm the mass call-out was because employees were disgruntled but an anonymous source who works with the department said morale has never been lower, and that firefighters feel undervalued and underpaid.
Read more: Morale at “all time low” at Jasper Fire over pay issues
Libel suit here revolves around Capitol riot allegations
One side claims they have been defamed and subject to “irrational,” unending harassment on Facebook. The other says Georgians have the right to be “snippy” in political banter online.
For anyone who looks at local Facebook groups, the names will be familiar, Bill, Thelma and Katie Cagle are the plaintiffs and Rayven Goolsby, who goes by Rayven Michele on Facebook, is the defendant in a case now in Pickens Superior Court.
The story went national when The Washington Post over the weekend referred to them as a prominent family versus a grocery store clerk.
See story online or in print editions.
Rotarians and Headstart staff are unloading 100 boxes of free USDA government food for Headstart families. Ten other Pickens non-profits received the 35 pound food box. Amicalola EMC transported the perishable fresh food.
By Jasper Rotary
The Rotary Club of Jasper took advantage of the USDA Farm to Families Program to receive and distribute six loads of 550 free food boxes to area non-profits totaling 74,043 meals. The 35-40 food pound boxes contained milk, eggs, produce, cheese, meat and various vegetables.
Rotary District 6910 had a Feed 1 Million Food Challenge and asked clubs to signup if they wanted to participate. Max Caylor, club president, said, “If we can help our residents with free food we are going to get all we can for them.”
Read more: Rotary has distributed 74,043 free meals in Pickens since July
Remember, the waters are still cold, so move slowly, give the critters lots of colors to choose from and you will find out why Georgia has a 35 daily limit on crappie.
Be a Perch Jerker
By O'Neill Williams
It’s warming up fast and the Crappie are biting. Up the rivers at West Point, Sinclair, Oconee, Lanier, Allatoona and Southern lakes and reservoirs across the entire South all the way into Texas, the time is right for you to get in gear and round up the tastiest little fish in Southern waters. Well, maybe a Walleye is better, but not by much. Anyway, there are lots more crappie available than Walleye.
See full story in this week's print or online editions.