Serving Jeffersonville and Twiggs County since 1926

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2011

75 centsVolume 11, Number 37

WWW.TWIGGSTIMESNEWERA.COM

Calendar

Obituaries . . . . . . . . .2aCommunity . . . . . . . .3aViewpoints . . . . . . . . .4aLegals . . . . . . .5a,6a,7aFun Page . . . . . . . . .8a

Index

ANNUAL DAVIS-FAIRGOLF TOURNAMENT

Sponsored by theEconomic Development andInfrastructure Committee

of the Twiggs CountyChamber of Commerce, Inc.SATURDAY, OCT. 1, 2011

Waterford Golf Course, Hwy96, Warner Robins

Lunch served at Noon.Shotgun Start at 1 p.m.

For information callVirginia at 478-319-5461

or 478-945-6713.

Twiggs AcademyGive-Away

$5000 Give Away-Saturday, October 15th.Dinner at 6:00 with GiveAway beginning at 7:00pm.

There also will be a silentauction as part of the night'sfun.

Must have a ticket to par-ticipate. Menu will begrilled steak, baked potato,salad, roll, dessert, and tea.

Call the school to earnhow you can purchase yourticket. 945-3175

The Twiggs CountyAdult Education Programis now offering FREE classesfor:

GED PreparationGA Work Ready Cert.Adult Basic Education

including grammar, math,reading and writing.

College entrance exampreparation classes.

Call AEP Instructor TaraRaffield at (478) 945-2206 formore information.

We!reHiring!The Twiggs Times is

seeking the rightperson to be the

new editor of yourlocal, community

newspaper.

See our ad on Page7a of this issuefor more details.

Call 911to report anemergency

Deadline for submis-sions is

each Monday at 5 p.m.

Email submissions to:ttimes@nlamerica.com

or mail to:The Twiggs Times New

EraP.O. Box 800

Jeffersonville, GA 31044

Georgia DOT Continues Its Work On StateHighway 57 In Twiggs And Wilkinson CountiesSpeed Limit Will Drop; Project Set To Be Completed By July 31, 2012By PAYTON TOWNS III

The Georgia Department ofTransportation wants people to knowthe speed limit is dropping as workcontinues on SR 57 in Twiggs andWilkinson county.

According to a GDOT press release,eastbound traffic will shift beginningat mile post 6, just past Taylor WoodsRoad.

In Wilkinson County, SR 57 west-bound traffic will shift at mile marker0.1 onto the new alignment on the FallLine Freeway. The work will begin at8:30 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 28.Weather is permitting.

“They have a portion of it finished,”

Cissy McNure, district communica-tions officer said. “It will be a four lanedivided highway like other portions ofthe Fall Line Freeway that’s finished.They’ve got one side paved, and thenthey are going to swap traffic to thatside so that they can fix the otherside.”

It will be two lane traffic, with onelane of traffic flowing in each direction.There will be a reduction in speed.

“That’s the main thing we were try-ing to get out,” McNure said. “We wanteveryone to slow down and be carefulin that area.”

The Old Macon Road area is goingto be 25 mph, she said.

Prince Contracting was awarded

the $32.8 million American Recoveryand Reinvestment Act funded projectin September 2009. The project is partof the Fall Line Freeway and consistsof construction of the North GordonBypass, a new roadway, from SR 57 atthe Twiggs/Wilkinson County Line toSR 243 at Lake Tchucoloako in Ivey.

The total length of the project is 7.2miles which includes a bridge overLittle Commissioner Creek andCentral of Georgia Railroad.

The contract completion date isJuly 31, 2012. Hundreds of GeorgiaDepartment of Transportation employ-ees and contractors work on dozens ofhighway, bridge and intersectionimprovements throughout the state.

Their work often brings them andheavy machinery in close proximity totravel lanes. Fifty-seven Georgia DOTpersonnel and many more motorists,passengers and contractors’ workershave been killed in highway work zoneaccidents since 1973.

The GDOT asks for people to helpprevent these tragedies by slowingdown and by being attentive and cau-tious as they pass through construc-tion work zones.

For information on theDepartment of Transportation, visit(www.dot.ga.gov<http://www.dot.state.ga.us/homeoffs/planning.www/planning/tea/index.htm)

GiddingsSearch AtLandfillComplete

By SCOTT THOMPSONJR.

A five-day long search atWolf Creek Landfill in TwiggsCounty for the remains ofMercer Law School studentLauren Giddings concludedlast Friday. There has been nostatement on whether or notanything of interest wasfound.

Giddings' torso was foundoutside her Macon apartmenton June 30. Her neighbor,Stephen McDaniel has beencharged with her murder.Giddings' family members hadbeen told by investigators thattrash from one of the dump-sters located on GeorgiaAvenue, near Mercer LawSchool, is delivered to WolfCreek Landfill.

The Macon PoliceDepartment and at least 20FBI officials were searchingthe landfill for approximately10 to 12 hours a day. Theentrance to the landfill hadbeen blocked off by the TwiggsCounty Sheriff's Office.

Richland Baptist Church Prepares ToCelebrate 200 Years

By SCOTT B. THOMPSON SR.

For most of the last two hundredyears, folks in the southwestern partof Twiggs County have gatheredtogether at Richland Baptist Churchto ask the Lord's blessing.

And on the first Sunday inOctober, the members of the RichlandRestoration League will once againreturn to the church which they havelovingly kept from the neglect of thewinds of time and total destruction.

Two hundred years ago on October5, 1811, Richland Meeting House wasconstituted by the reverends EdmondTalbot, of Jones County and Eden

Taylor of Baldwin County.The Rev. Micajah Fulghum was

assigned to the pulpit of the churchwhich was first located on the banksof Richland Creek in a log structure.About a decade later, a new structurewas constructed near Duke Hart'ssprings.

The charter members of RichlandChurch were John Denson, JacobRicks, Edward Nix, William Coates,Sarah Denson, Susannah Ricks,Elizabeth Lipham, ElizabethTruluck, Sally Parrott, AnnaHammock, Sara Glenn, Nancy

Old Richland Baptist Church will celebrate its 200th birthdaywith a ceremony on Sunday, Oct. 2. Richland Meeting Housewas constituted on Oct. 5, 2011. By 1840, the church had the

most members out of any church in the Ebenezer BaptistAssociation. The current structure was built in 1845.

Photos by Scott B. Thompson Sr.

See RICHLAND 3a

Severely Injured Dog Rescued In Twiggs County

“Trooper” was found last Sunday in Twiggs County. Authorities say itappears he was dragged by a car for several miles. The dog will beplaced with a foster family until a permanent owner can be found.

Photo by Pam Beer

By PAM BEER

They're calling himTrooper, because nobodyknows his name. The dog wasfound in Twiggs County lastSunday, injured and bloody ashe lay by the side of the road.

Now he's resting at OldCapital Pet Care on DunlapRoad, eating only Milk Bonesdipped in baby food and wait-ing for the pads on his feet toheal enough so he can walk.

Twiggs County deputiesfound the injured dog Sundayand contacted Laurie Floyd, apet groomer at Old Capital.

"The (Twiggs County)Sheriff's Department calledme because I'm really the onlyperson in Twiggs County thatrescues dogs. They don't havean Animal Control officer,"Floyd said. "The deputy toldme there was a dog that hadbeen (dragged), lying on theside of the road. They didn'tknow what to do with the dog."

Trooper, a mixed-breed dogthought to be about eightyears old, doesn't appear tohave been hit by a car. Thereis no sign of blunt force trau-ma, according to Old Capitalemployee Amanda Wooten.She said they think thatTrooper was dragged alongbehind a truck or a car.

Floyd said a bloody trail as

See DOG 3a

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Gardeners Must Plan AheadBy ROOSEVELTMCWILLIAMS

Summer is just coming toan end and most of the sum-mer vegetables in our gardensare gone.

Just because our plantshave stopped producing doesnot mean that we are throughwith the garden until nextspring. Now is the best time tobegin preparing for future suc-cessful harvests.

A common complaint that Ihear from gardeners is, “Iused to grow great vegetableshere, but it seems like myplants have been doing poorerand poorer each year. I fertil-ized right, use good plant vari-eties and rotate my vegetablesfrom spot to spot regularly. I’mconsidering not planting agarden next year.

In most cases, after a fewquestions are answered, it isdetermined that these garden-ers have overlooked a veryimportant step included inevery long-term successfulgardener’s plan. This step is tosoil test on a regular basis todetermine a garden soil’sexact lime and fertilizer

needs. As heavy rates of nitrogen

fertilizer are used over a peri-od of time, the soil becomesmore acid. Old-timers used tosay the soil got sour andwouldn’t grow anything untilit was sweetened by lime.

Why is maintaining a prop-er pH so important to the gar-dener? One of the main rea-sons is that it affects the avail-ability of plant nutrients.When the pH drops too low, agood portion of the nutrientsbecome tied up and unavail-able to the plants.

Maintaining a pH of 6.0 to6.5 helps insure the availabili-ty of most elements needed tomake plants grow properly.Adding extra fertilizer in a lowpH does not compensate forthe low pH because many ofthe added elements quicklybecome tied up also.

Symptoms of low pH varywith different vegetables.Basically, the plants remainsmall or stunted and usuallyshow poor leaf color. In addi-tion to these symptoms, mar-ginal browning may occur onthe leaves.

Actual symptoms can varyconsiderably depending on

which nutrient or nutrientsare deficient or toxic.Vegetable yields are reducedprogressively as the soilbecomes more acid. Little orno yields are obtained with apH around 4.5 to 5.0.

Soil test bags and informa-tion on how to take a repre-sentative soil sample areavailable at the TwiggsCounty Extension Office oryou can call me at 945-3391.Take advantage of this oppor-tunity and use it as anothertool in producing a good gar-den.

McWilliams

Powell, and Chloe Hodges, aNegro woman.

Jacob Ricks, a foundingfather of Twiggs County, wasnamed as a commissioner ofpublic buildings at the townof Marion, the county's origi-nal county seat, which waslocated a few miles to thenorthwest. Ricks also servedas one of the first justices ofthe Inferior Court of TwiggsCounty.

John Denson lived to theripe old age of 90 and longenough to see the currentchurch built.

Edward Nix died just fiveyears after the church. Fewrecords, if any, could befound about the remainingcharter members.

Membership continued torise and by 1840, RichlandChurch became the largestchurch in the EbenezerBaptist Association.

During the first fivedecades of the existence ofthe church, both white andblack members worshippedin the church together.

Although the slaves wereconsidered members, theywere required to sit in thegalleries of the church dur-ing church services. In theyear 1860, black member-ship reached a peak of 165members, representingnearly seventy percent of thetotal membership. Afterthe Civil War, black mem-bers left white churches andformed their own congrega-tions.

One of the most poignantmoments in the history ofthe church came a centuryand a half ago at the begin-ning of the Civil War.

The ladies of the Richlandand Marion communitieswould meet at the church tosew articles of clothing andmake supplies for their boysin gray.

Mrs. Isolene MinterWimberly gave a heart-stir-ring address from the frontsteps of the church to themen and boys who weremembers of Company I ofthe 6th Georgia VolunteerInfantry Regiment, "TheTwiggs County Guards."Mrs. Wimberly presentedher husband, FrederickDavis Wimberly, the compa-ny lieutenant and later cap-tain, a hand made battleflag, which was turned to theflag bearer, SergeantWarren.

The Guards, like manyother Southern units, suf-fered horrific losses whileattached to the Army ofNorthern Virginia.

The current structure,built in about 1845 on thesite of New Hope BaptistChurch, was located near anold stage road running fromSavannah to North Georgia.The Greek Revival style, rec-tangular church has foursimple columns supportingthe roof of the portico.

The simple front has fourdoors with the center twoleading to the aisles.Traditionally, the ladies ofthe church entered the rightdoor and took their seats,while the men came throughthe left door.

Both men and women satin the center section, butwere segregated by a woodenpartition running down thecenter.

Along the sides of the pul-pit, smaller rows of pewswere arranged to face thepulpit at right angles to themain pews.

Commonly called "Amencorners," these areas werereserved for the hard ofhearing and the elderly.

The roll of ministers ofRichland Church reads likea "who's who" among promi-nent Baptist preachers dur-ing the antebellum period.

Among the most wellknown ministers who servedRichland were George M.McCall, J.H. Campbell,James Kilpatrick, JamesCary Solomon, Henry Bunn,Edward J. Coates, C.D.Mallory, James McConnell,James Williamson, VincentA. Tharpe, TheophilusPearce, John Ross, AdamJones, C.A. Tharpe, and LottWarren, who would alsoserve as an attorney, judge,and Congressman.

During its first 78 yearsas a member of the EbenezerBaptist Association,Richland Baptist Churchhad its minister serve in thehighly honored position ofModerator of theAssociation.

Membership slowlydeclined after the war afterthe county seat was movedfrom Marion toJeffersonville.

With black members leav-ing to form their ownchurches and the white pop-ulation in the area declining,attendance all but ended.

After G.W. Faulk, Jr., aleading member and deaconof the church, died in August1911, the last days of thethen century old churchwere at hand.

The church's last, minis-ter, Francs Bartow Asbellresigned almost a century tothe date after the churchwas founded.

For the next 37 years, thegrand and once glorioushouse of worship stoodvacant on most Sundays.

Then, after the countryhad come out of the darknessof the Great Depression andtwo world wars, the descen-dants of former membersand supporters of one of thetrue treasures of TwiggsCounty stepped forwardwith their time, their moneyand their devoted hearts tostop the deterioration of thecentury old structure.

The league has also beenable to preserve the interiorof the building and severaloriginal items used in wor-

ship services more than acentury ago.

In 1948, the RichlandRestoration League wasformed.

Mary Faulk Harrison waselected president of theleague. Other officersincluded Irene WimberlyGleeson, Clara W. Pope,Sara Faulk, and Mrs. H.D.Faulk.

These women workedtirelessly to restore thechurch to its originalgrandeur.

The efforts have contin-ued until the recent pastwhen a $90,000 renovationprogram was initiated in2004 to shore up thechurch's foundation.

Through the generosity ofcontributors, the loan waspaid off in seven years.

On Sunday, Oct. 2, themembers of the RichlandRestoration League will holda celebration in honor of thechurch's bicentennial.

The featured speaker forthe day's festivities will bethe Rev. Francis Wilson. RevWilson, a former resident ofCochran and a graduate ofMercer University, willaddress the gathering. Rev.Wilson is a grandson of Rev.F. Barrow Asbell, the lastofficial minister of RichlandBaptist Church when itclosed one hundred yearsago.

The league's trusteesinvite the members of allTwiggs County and MiddleGeorgia churches to be apart of this once in a lifetimecelebration of their devotionto Richland Church and itsservice to the Lord.

The festivities will beginat noon and will include anold fashioned dinner on thegrounds and a performanceby Wesleyannes, a choralgroup from WesleyanCollege in Macon.

To get to the church, takethe I-16 exit (No. 24) at Ga.Hwy. 96 and turn west nextto the Huddle House andonto Richland Church Roadand follow the signs forabout two miles.

For further information,go towww.historicrichlandchurch.org.

RichlandContinued from 1a

What: Old Richland BaptistChurch Bicentennial

celebration

When:Sunday, Oct. 2

Where:2204 Old Richland

Church RoadJeffersonville, Ga.

31044

wide as the dog's body leadsfrom where the dog was foundand continues down the roadfor more than two miles.

The pads on Trooper's frontpaws are worn, raw andbloody. The rest of the frontpart of his body appears to beunharmed, but he has scrapeson his belly. The hair and fleshon areas of his back legs, andhis back paws, have beenscraped away and bare bonesshow through.

Floyd transported the dogto Old Capital Pet Care, wherehe is being treated for hisinjuries. Once he can walk, hewill be placed with a fosterfamily until a permanenthome can be found.

Valerie Buckley, presidentof Have A Heart Save A Life,said she would like to seeTrooper get a permanenthome, inside, as a pet. Have aHeart is a non-profit organiza-tion that showcases animalshoused at the Baldwin CountyAnimal Shelter to try to getthem adopted before they areput them to sleep. The organi-zation will be paying Trooper'sveterinary bills while heheals.

"I give kudos to (Wootenand Floyd) and to Dr. SaralynSmith at Old Capital. They'vebeen very kind to us and sup-port us," Buckley said. "They

believe in what I'm doing." Buckley said that Smith

charges her discounted ratesfor animal services.

Buckley is hoping the com-munity will step up and helpnot only Trooper, but the otheranimals Have A Heart res-cues.

"We just have a constantdrain on our funds. We're try-ing to raise donations to feedhim, and to help me help pup-pies and other critters,"

DogContinued from 1a Buckley said.

People can drop off pet foodand donations at Old CapitalPet Care, or mail checks madeout to Have A Heart Save aLife to 110 Oconee Drive,Sparta GA 31087. They alsocan call Buckley at (478) 232-8155 or email her at vbuck-ley@wildblue.net.Buckley and volunteers willhave chocolate Lab puppies atthe Mary Vinson LibrarySaturday from 9 a.m. - 2 p.m.during the library fair. Theywill also have eight biggerdogs at Bruster's Ice Cream onN. Columbia Streetduring that time. There are noadoption fees involved in tak-ing one of these dogs home,just a reimbursement of vet-erinary costs.

Anyone with informationabout Trooper's former ownersis asked to contact the TwiggsCounty Sheriff's Office.

“I give kudos to(Wooten andFloyd) and ti Dr.Saralyn Smith atOld Capital.They!ve beenvery kind to usand support us.They believe inwhat I!m doing.”

- Valerie BuckleyPresident, Have aHeart, Save a Life

Georgia Has Fifth Highest SATParticipation In United StatesSpecial Report

The largest and most diverse group of grad-uating seniors in Georgia’s history took theSAT this year.

The SAT participation rate for the Georgiaclass of 2011 was 80%, a six percent increasefrom last year, placing Georgia fifth in thenation in the percentage of high school seniorstaking the SAT.

Of the state’s 2011 college-bound seniorswho took the SAT, 46 percent were minoritystudents, up from 45 percent in 2010 and 39percent in 2007.

Georgia's public, private and home schoolstudents scored 1,445 on the SAT, a six pointdecrease from 2010.

The national average was 1,500, also a six

point decrease from 2010. Public school students scored 1,431 on the

exam and the national average score was1,483.

“It’s good that we have so many studentsaspiring to go to college,” said State SchoolSuperintendent Dr. John Barge. “However, Ibelieve we have to do a better job of educatingour students as to what exam is needed to getinto the appropriate postsecondary institution.We have far more students taking the SATthan the number of students going to four-yearuniversities. Many of our postsecondary insti-tutions don’t require the SAT for students to beaccepted. When we roll out our career path-ways next year, the appropriate postsecondarytests needed for enrollment will be clearly out-lined for students.”

My husband Charlie hasseveral reading passions; twoof them being Civil War histo-ry and World War II history.He was delighted when I wentto a local consignment shopand obtained an entire set ofWorld War II encyclopedia’s inmint condition for only twentydollars.

The 24 volume set is promi-nently displayed in our livingroom bookcase.

He enjoys perusing theblack and white photos and in-formation contained in eachvolume.

I guess his penchant forthis period in history goesback to his remembrance ofthat time period.

Always one to enjoy read-ing, Charlie told me he wasreading Hans Brinker or theSilver Skates when the an-nouncement came over the air-waves that Pearl Harbor hadbeen bombed.

Much like, “Where wereyou on 9-11?” the World WarII generation has the date ofthe Pearl Harbor bombingetched in their memories.

One of my personal favoriteaccounts of this time period isthat of Louis Zamperini. Ifirst heard Zamperini speak-ing at a Billy Graham crusadeback in the 50’s. Zamperini isa fascinating individual andtoday at age 94 is still goingstrong!

Laura Hillenbrand, the #1NYT bestselling author of

Seabiscuit, has written a bookabout Zamperini entitled UN-BROKEN. (If you haven’tread it, I heartily recommendthis book for your library.) Iwasn’t able to put this bookdown.

Her literary style, coupledwith her knowledge of thefacts of Zamperini’s life, aswell as her close friendshipwith him, makes for a greatread.

What intrigued me mostabout Zamperini’s story wasthe account of his amazingsurvival for 47 days on a raftin the Pacific Ocean.

Zamperini, a formerOlympic runner, had the sta-mina and the determination tobeat the odds against him ashe and several others wereshot down in their B-24 whileon a rescue mission.

Zamperini’s plane, theGreen Hornet, crashed in theocean on May 27, 1943. Eightof the eleven aboard werekilled.

The raft the survivors wereon had no supplies. They ac-tually survived by eatingsmall fish and by catching rain

water. One of the men died onthe 40th day.

While on the raft Zamperinimade a bargain with God.(I’ve always heard there are noatheists in a foxhole!). Unfor-tunately, many who makedeals with God have shortmemories and all bets are offwhen they survive and areback in the land of the living.Not so with Zamperini.

The raft drifted into enemywater. Zamperini and hiscompanions had no idea wherethey were.

It was only when theJapanese Navy captured themon the 47th day of their ordealthat they realized capture wasinfinitely worse than whatthey had been going throughon the raft.

Words can’t describe thetorture that Zamperini and hisfellow airmen went through.For over two years Zamperiniwas physically tortured andsubjected to psychologicalabuse. His success as anOlympic athlete seemed to beone of the main reason a sadis-tic guard, whom the prisonersnicknamed “the Bird”, had sin-

gled him out.After completing the book I

couldn’t get the poignant factabout the drifting of Zamperi-ni’s raft. I remembered ascripture in the Bible thatsays, “We must pay the mostcareful attention, therefore, towhat we have heard, so thatwe do not drift away.” (He-brews 2:1)

This verse does not say any-thing about being careful notto sin, watch your language,don’t wear revealing clothes,don’t drink, smoke orsteal…no, it says we need to becareful that we don’t ‘driftaway’.

Drifting doesn’t take anythought or effort. Just re-lax…drift. How many todayare getting farther and fartheraway from God by drifting?They’re not doing anythingparticularly wicked and sin-ful…they’re just doing nothingbut drifting.

We are instructed to paycareful attention to what wehave heard. This word of cau-tion by the writer of Hebrewsis designed to prod us, to keepus from disaster.

Zamperini drifted into theenemy camp, where depriva-tion and torture awaited him.Just as he was singled out byMutshurio Watanabe, aka ‘theBird’, we too will be singledout by the enemy of our soul ifwe drift away from God!

Make it your goal today tostay close to the Lord!

Over ten years ago, theGeneral Assembly set asidefunding for a rail study, tostudy the feasibility of run-ning a passenger rail fromAthens to Atlanta, and fromMacon to Atlanta.

The concept floated at thetime was a somewhat simplis-tic concept of a person board-ing a passenger train at theTerminal Station, and sometwo and one half hours later,exiting the train in downtownAtlanta.

Over 22 million dollars wasappropriated by the GeneralAssembly for the feasibilitystudy. The plan as proposedthen was to allow passengertrain service on the same linethat is currently used by Nor-folk Southern for the haulingof freight from Macon to At-lanta. This plan has beencriticized on two fronts: First,because it will be expensive toacquire passenger rights onexisting rail lines owned bythe railroad. Secondly, be-cause of the time involved inrunning up from Macon todowntown Atlanta.

Former Governor SonnyPerdue effectively killed thepassenger rail proposals dur-ing his administration. Heopted for other transportationproposals, such as more mes-sage boards on the interstateroadways.

Once again, I believe thatthe state government hasmissed the boat on an impor-tant transportation issue. Wedon’t need a rail service that

runs directly from Macon toAtlanta, or from Athens to At-lanta. What we need is a costeffective way of gettingaround Atlanta without get-ting snarled in the heavy dutymetro Atlanta traffic. The re-al estate developers and theshort sighted state and localofficials have all contributedto the traffic problems in andaround Atlanta the pasttwenty years.

Instead of burying theirheads in the sand and ignor-ing the acute traffic problemsin and around Atlanta, stateofficials should be stepping upto the plate and proposing so-lutions.

One bona fide proposalwould be to extend the north-south MARTA rail line toLovejoy in Clayton County,and to extend the east-westline of MARTA rail out to Lo-ganville in Walton County.

What would we gain bythis? Well, it is an easy rideup I-75 from Macon to Love-joy. It is an equally easy ridefrom downtown Athens downU.S. Highway 78 to Lo-ganville. If MARTA rail ser-vice were extended to thoselocations, metro Atlanta traf-

fic congestion would be easedin a tremendous way. Most usof us who live in the Maconarea from time to time mustjourney to Atlanta, because ofstate business, sportingevents, or other business thatrequires a trip inside I-285. IfMARTA rail were extended tothese locations, it would allowfor faster transit times intodowntown Atlanta locationsfrom Macon and Athens.

The problem here is not ingetting from Macon or Athensto Atlanta. The problem hereis getting around Atlanta, andin avoiding the numeroustraffic problems in Atlantaand on I-285. MARTA is theonly metropolitan commuterrail network in the U.S. thatis not subsidized by a stategovernment. It has been asuccess story so far in its fi-nancial operations. In the ar-eas where it operates, MAR-TA rail service effectivelymoves people without con-tributing to the motor vehicletraffic problems in Atlanta. Itnow needs to grow out intothe areas where it can pick upeven greater numbers of rid-ers. Instead of using existingrailroad lines, and facing the

potential train wrecks fromsharing a freight line, thestate needs to concentrate onextending MARTA rail tothese locations.

No regional transportationplan should be made withoutinvestigating this very feasi-ble proposal. One of the manyproblems with the GOP con-trolled legislature in Atlantais their all or nothing ap-proach to problem solving. Ifthe people of the state cannotget passenger rail fromAthens to Atlanta, or fromMacon to Atlanta, we shouldall look to see what would bethe very next best thing.

The next best thing wouldbe an extension of MARTArail service from the Harts-field-Jackson Airport down toLovejoy, and from IndianCreek out to Loganville. Thisidea has nothing to do withrace. It is about relieving themassive traffic congestion inmetro Atlanta, and this is thebest place to start. It will beexpensive to extend theselines, but the cost of this typeof project is feasible. Suffi-cient numbers of new riderswould use the extended MAR-TA lines to eventually pay forthe expansion. The State ofGeorgia needs to step up tothe plate and take a seriouslook at this type of proposal.

Message boards on inter-states just do not cut it whenyou have the serious trafficproblems we are required todeal with in and aroundmetro Atlanta.

Saxby Chambliss appears tobe settling into being a bit of acontrarian. While many inWashington are trying to dis-tance themselves from the re-cent debates on deficits, Chamb-liss has picked up where he andDemocratic Senator MarkWarner left off. This time, in-stead of being represented by a“Gang of Six”, the two havecome back with a group of 34Senators who will attempt tocraft a plan to “Go Big” ondeficits and debt.

Conventional Washingtonwisdom would suggest Chamb-liss would, and maybe should,pretend the Gang of 6 neverhappened. The frameworkagreement from the originalgroup was announced duringthe House vote on Cut, Cap, andBalance, allowing PresidentObama to briefly grab hold ofthe Senate proposal as some-thing he would endorse.

Conservative pundits round-ly criticized Chambliss for thetiming, claiming he conspiredwith Democrats to undercutHouse conservatives’ message.Additional criticism was leviedfor the proposal’s inclusion ofrevenue increases. While not in-creases in tax rates, many con-servatives have decided any ad-ditional revenue, even by closingof loopholes and limiting deduc-tions, should be considered a taxincrease.

The implosion of negotiationsbetween various D.C. factionsresulted in compromise legisla-tion which only cut the spendingbaseline over the next decade byabout $1 trillion.

The smaller than expectedcut in the long term deficit, com-bined by the increased rancor inWashington, resulted in Stan-dard and Poor’s downgradingU.S. debt.

The deal forces additionalcuts, mostly to U.S. defensespending, if additional cuts arenot identified by Christmas ofthis year. Many Republicansare steering away from thesharp cuts to defense with mis-sions still underway in Iraq,Afghanistan, and Libya. Mean-while, the President, now in fullcampaign mode, has adoptedthe usual cognitive dissonancethat only would be acceptedfrom Washington by using themonth of September to urgemore stimulus spending andshort term tax cuts.

Many in D.C. would not liketo hear the words “debt” or“deficit” again until after the2012 elections.

Yet Chambliss, and over onethird of his counterparts, havechosen to reengage the debate.There are a couple of reasonsthis is significant. From a basicpolitical perspective, the Senateis historically the body where acompromise position will gainits legs.

Because the members serve 6year terms and votes require ap-proval of 60% of the body, themembers learn to work togetherin a less partisan manner thantheir counterparts in the House.A bill which passes the Senatewould also generally have thetacit approval of the President,given that Senate leadership isfrom the same party. The battle,as before, would be finding a billacceptable to 60 senators thatwill also be able to pass musterwith Republicans in the house.

From a broader perspective,Chambliss has reason to demon-strate that the debt problem canno longer be ignored with an ex-ample of both “jobs” and nation-al defense. This week, the Oba-ma administration is expectedto announce that the U.S. willupgrade the fleet of F-16 fighterjets in Taiwan. While the up-grade stops short of the newerplanes that Taiwan had request-ed to purchase, the transactionwill certainly draw the ire ofChina. China still claims sover-eignty over Taiwan.

China currently holds an es-timated $1 Trillion in U.S. debt,and has been one of the morewilling recent purchasers oftreasuries used to finance grow-ing U.S. deficits. Keeping theChinese government appeasedhas become an integral part ofU.S. foreign policy, affecting notjust military issues, but also hasrequired a certain ambivalenceto human rights issues, counter-feiting, and fixed exchange rateswhich inflates the U.S.-Chinesetrade deficit.

While the Chinese will offi-cially protest the F-16 upgrade,the arms package falls signifi-cantly short of the value and im-portance of new planes that Tai-wan had requested. The multi-billion dollar purchase wouldhave meant additional U.S. jobs,with the new planes final as-sembly plant currently locatedin Texas. Texas Senator JohnCornyn, who fears an assemblyline in his state will now beclosed for lack of new business,denounced the move as “capitu-lation to Communist China”stating “This sale would havebeen a win-win, bolstering thenational security of two democ-ratic nations and supportingjobs for an American workforcethat desperately needs them.”Cornyn is also a member ofChambliss’ new group.

The national debt has longbeen viewed and understood asan economic issue. Chambliss,now the ranking member of theU.S. Senate Committee on Intel-ligence, understands the issue isone of national security as well.As such, it is not terribly sur-prising that despite prior set-backs, Chambliss and Warnerwill attempt to lead the Senateto a long term solution to thisproblem.

TThhuurrssddaayy,, SSeepptteemmbbeerr 2222,, 22001111// PPaaggee 44aa

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The Twiggs TimesNew Era

S. DuBose Porter Griffin LovettCEO Publisher

The official legal organ of Twiggs County

Weeklies Division Editor............Jason HalcombeEditor..........................................Scott Thompson Jr.

Office Manager......................Brandy MaxwellAdvertising Consultant.....................Mary Beth Port

P.O. Box 800Jeffersonville, Georgia 31044

Phone-(478) 945-6037; Fax-(478) 945-6014

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of reli-gion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the free-dom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peacefullyto assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of griev-

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Periodical postage paid at Jeffersonville, Georgia.

POSTMASTER: send address changes toThe Twiggs Times, P.O. Box 800Jeffersonville, Georgia 31044 or

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Debt An Issue Of BothEconomics And Security

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Just Jerriby Jerri Tuck

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GA Politicsby Charlie Harper

Serving Jeffersonville and Twiggs County since 1926

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2011

75 centsVolume 11, Number 39

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Calendar

Obituaries . . . . . . . . .2aCommunity . . .2a,3a,5aViewpoints . . . . . . . . .4aLegals . . . .,6a,7a,8a,9aFun Page . . . . . . . .10a

Index

Greater New HopeBaptist

The Junior Choir of theGreater New Hope BaptistChurch, 9010 Highway 129,Dry Branch, Ga, TwiggsCounty will celebrate theirannual Junior ChoirAnniversary on Sunday,Oct. 9, 2011 at 3 p.m. Allarea youth choirs are askedto render an A & B selec-tion. For more information,contact Sis. Eula Thomas at478-745-7955. The public isinvited to attend.

Twiggs AcademyGive-Away

$5000 Give Away-Saturday, October 15th.Dinner at 6:00 with GiveAway beginning at 7:00pm.

There also will be a silentauction as part of the night'sfun.

Must have a ticket to par-ticipate. Menu will begrilled steak, baked potato,salad, roll, dessert, and tea.

Call the school to earnhow you can purchase yourticket. 945-3175

The Twiggs CountyAdult Education Programis now offering FREE classesfor:

GED PreparationGA Work Ready Cert.Adult Basic Education

including grammar, math,reading and writing.

College entrance exampreparation classes.

Call AEP Instructor TaraRaffield at (478) 945-2206 formore information.

Call 911to report anemergency

Deadline forsubmissions is

each Monday at 5 p.m.

Email submissions to:ttimes@nlamerica.com

or mail to:The Twiggs Times New

EraP.O. Box 800

Jeffersonville, GA 31044

Church of ChristTwiggs County

102 Highway 96W inJeffersonville invite you toFall Gospel Meeting,October 16th thru 19th.Sunday 10:00a.m. and2:00p.m. Lunch will be at12:45. Monday, Tuesday andWednesday will be at 7:00p.m.

Jeffersonville Churchof God

An evening of YouthEmphasis Music and TheWord brought by BURNINBUSH at the JeffersonvilleChurch of God Life Center,October 12 at 7:00 p.m. Asalways everyone is welcome!Invite every young personyou know, then come outand support our youth

www.thepigglywiggly.comGET THE WEEKLY SALE PAPER AT Jeffersonville

945-3119

Richland Baptist Church In Twiggs CountyCelebrates 200th Year Of Birth, Worship

Photos by Scott B. Thompson Sr.

Old Richland Baptist Church in Twiggs County celebrated its 200th birthdayduring a Sunday service on Oct. 2. Descendants from some of the pioneersof the church as well as current and former members attended. The church

officially turned 200 years old on Wednesday. Above: the Civil FolksSingers talk with each other outside of the church on Sunday. They served

as the special music entertainment for the event.

Descendants Of Pioneer Members Attend, Special Music at Historic EventBy SCOTT B. THOMPSON

SR.

On a perfect early autumnSunday they came. They havebeen coming to this spot forthe last 200 years. They camethis incredible day to celebratetwo centuries of worship at a"Landmark of Christianity,"Richland Baptist Church insouthern Twiggs County.They came to celebrate Christ.And, they came to celebratetheir heritage, a heritagewhich keeps them comingback, year after year.

Nancy Faulk Herringtonled the congregation in anuplifting version of "Holy,Holy, Holy." The Rev. SteveSmith, pastor of OldRichland's successor church,New Richland BaptistChurch, gave the opening ser-mon.

Susan Faulk Burford,President of the RichlandRestoration League, Inc., wel-comed those present as shepresided over the day's cere-monies. The Civil FolksSingers, dressed in 19thCentury clothing, serenadedthe congregation under thedirection of the Rev. FrankHendrix, Living History Chairof the Restoration League.The league was organized in1948 to restore the historicchurch to its holy grandeur.

Glenn Faulk, one of themany descendants of Mark

Faulk, who gathered at theirfamily church, recognized thepioneer families of the ancientchurch, which was constitutedtwo centuries ago on Oct. 5,1811.

"This is a special momentin our history, a time we cametogether as a family," Faulksaid.

It is located near the origi-nal county seat of Marion, thecommercial and legal center inEast Central Georgia from itslocation in the geographicalcenter of the state during the1810s through the 1820s.

There were Faulks,Wimberlys, Asbells, Bunns,Minters, Shines, Densons,Glovers, Vaughns andFitzpatricks. One by one andfamily by family, they stoodand proudly recited theirdescent from their great,greats, the founding and lead-ing members of the time-hon-ored church.

Robert Schultz remem-bered coming to the enduringchurch as a five-year-old boy.Schultz remembered the dayin 1948 when the RestorationLeague first met and he wassitting in the front pew whenhe was called upon to read ascripture. Since that day,Schultz makes regular returntrips to honor his family andto worship in the circa 1845church.

And, there was George

See CHURCH 3a

Above: The Civil Folks Singers perform during the worship service thatlasted several hours and had a meal as well. Left: A cook from Satterfield’sout of Macon prepares a roasted pig, which was served for lunch to all who

attended the event. The Restoration League was organized in 1948 torestore the church to its holy grandeur.

Sheriff Urges All Residents To Properly Display AddressesBy JAMIE McDANIEL

Emergency Numbering Street Signs are animportant, but often neglected part of the 911system. If your address is not marked proper-ly emergency services may not be able to findyou. This could be a matter of life and death,or it could save your home in case of a fire.

Sheriff Mitchum wants all citizens to makean effort to properly display their address sothat the county’s public safety personnel canquickly respond to your needs without havingto waste valuable time searching for your resi-dence. Sheriff Mitchum went on to add that inan emergency, you need emergency personnelto respond to the correct address as quickly aspossible. 9-1-1 addresses have been establishedto handle just this situation. 911 addresses areattached to telephone records so that when 911is dialed, an address will be displayed for emer-gency services. Therefore, if the caller is unableto speak or give the call-taker driving instruc-tions, they can still be located with a map that

appears in the 911 center with their addressand residence description.

You can purchase your 9-1-1 marker at theTwiggs County EMA office located at 5528 Hwy96 Jeffersonville GA 31044. Orders can becalled in or placed over the phone at 478-945-6968. The office is near the intersection with I-16 and is in front of the Twiggs County RoadDepartment complex. 9-1-1 markers are fourinch white reflective numbers on a blue reflec-tive back ground. The signs come with amounting bracket and post. 9-1-1 markers are$20.00 and for $25.00 the Twiggs County EMAwill deliver and install your sign.Here are some suggestions to help emergencyresponders find you faster:• Make sure the 9-1-1 address is displayedbeside the roadway in front of the residence,either on the mailbox or on a 9-1-1 marker.• Be sure to mark both sides of your mailboxor 9-1-1 marker in such a way that it may be

Special Photo

A properly marked addressSee SIGNS 3a

October 6, 2011.... Twiggs Times New Era

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COMMUNITYTHE TWIGGS TIMES NEWERA

Faulk sitting in the "AmenCorner." Faulk, a veteran ofWorld War II, was the oldestmember of the congregation.Faulk, at 94, was born sixyears after the church closedits doors in 1911.

The descendants ofMarmaduke Hart were theretoo, taking up a good portionof the center sections of thebeautifully restored woodenchurch, at least the ones notfilled with Faulks andWimberlys. It wasMarmaduke Hart who gavethe land near his springs inthe 1820s for the church's sec-ond structure.

Earl Hicks and his familywere there too. Mr. Hicksrecalled the relationshipbetween his family and theFaulk and Wimberly familiesover the last two centuries,harking back to the day whenboth whites and blacks wor-shipped together in the two-story church.

Special musical entertain-ment was provided by TheWesleyannes, a choral groupfrom Wesleyan Universityfrom Macon. Wesleyan is cele-brating its 175th year as theworld's oldest university forwomen.

The featured speaker forthe day was the Rev. FrancisWilson. Rev. Wilson, a gradu-ate of Cochran High School

and Mercer University, spokeof his honor to preach from thepulpit where his grandfather,Rev. F. Bartow Asbell, whogave the last regular sermonin October, 1911 when thechurch ceased to conduct regu-lar services. Rev. Wilson, aresident of New Mexico, spokeof the honor of having his fam-ily and knowing Jesus Christ,but ranked the honor topreach the Gospel standing inthe footprints of his grandfa-ther as one of his greatestblessings.

After the benediction of theservice by the Rev. GaryWalker, the congregationadjourned to the well-keptgrounds of the antebellumchurch for an old-fashioneddinner on the ground, com-plete with all kinds of scrump-tious foods, including a tastyroasted pig, cooked bySatterfields of Macon.

If you would like moreinformation on the church andthe Richland RestorationLeague, contact SusanBurford at susanfbur-ford@yahoo.com, Glenn Faulkat faulk.glenn@gmail.com orgo to the league's website atwww.historicrichlandchurch.org.

The League will sponsor itsannual "Keeping Christmas atRichland Church" onSaturday, Dec. 3, 2011 at 6p.m. and Sunday, Dec 4, 2011at 4 p.m.

ChurchContinued from 1a

easily seen, no matter whichdirection responders areapproaching.• Numbers should be at leastfour inch reflective numbersand numbers should be a con-trasting color to the background.

• If your residence is locatedinside a trailer park or laneshared by multiple residences,make sure your 9-1-1 addressis visible on the residence. • Check to see if buildings,apartments, trailers, and lotsare all clearly numbered andcan be seen in both the darkand bad weather situations.

SignsContinued from 1a

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