Checking out the beaches in Gulf Shores, Alabama

By Jacob Harris

Sentinel writer

As oil hits the gulf beaches, tourists hit the East Coast. Empty chairs and dirty beaches are what were found in Gulf Shores, Al last week during my visit. Hotel parking lots usually crammed with minivans and suvs, now remain empty and hold flashing vacancy signs.

The epidemic in the gulf waters are scaring away tourists as well as posing great dangers for the animal life and the oceanic ecosystems. The amount of oil in the beachside waters varies day to day. One morning it can be clear and the next completely contaminated. The waters in the gulf leaves your skin with a sticky residue, shells clogged with tar, and brown contaminate pools of oil in the sand.

Thomas Bush, with the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, spoke to me of the problems that The Gulf coast of Alabama and surrounding regions were facing 3 months after the large oil spill. “One major problem is the difficulty of getting the lodes of white quartz sand from underwater that the community relies on to replenish shorelines”. This particular problem is one that is most important to many locals because dirty beaches aren’t exactly good for business.

Bush said that of the efforts of the US Wildlife service had taken a great deal of interest in the local sea turtle eggs, which had little chance of surviving on the Alabama beaches, and are dedicated to make every attempt to relocate them, specifically to Cape Canaveral, Fl.

Local advisories have been set to assure the safety of beach goers. Two red flags have been set as a signal for no entrance into the water due to strong surf and oil. Parts of beaches have been closed down for clean-up sites and are closed to the public. Bush advised that the “tar balls do not pose a health risk to the average person, but beach goers are advised not to touch or move them.” The oil concentration in the water does not seem to be at a level that would harm those who choose to take a dip, but are advised to not prolong their water activities in areas that obviously contain a larger amount of contamination.

Local business owners are struggling with the economic losses they are taking, and frightful of the future of their gulf coast communities. Restaurant owner, JoAnne Harber, said she has been a Gulf Shores business owner for 36 years and has never seen a “harder time for the local business owners and their families…we support ourselves throughout the entire winter season with the money we make during the prime months, it’s a very bad situation”.

Harber said that every aspect of the local economy is suffering, including the souvenir shops, restaurants, recreational businesses, and a huge job loss for fishermen. Harber says “fish for commercial sale is safe to eat, but local fish and seafood from contaminated water are not allowed to be marketed.”

Local groups join in support of Clay County Courthouse reuse plans

Clay County’s most prominent landmark is one step closer to being brought back to a life it once had as a multi-use center of social, cultural and economic activity in the county.  As part of a reuse proposal recently obtained by Clay County government, a volunteer committee has come together to work toward the final restoration and eventual reuse of the historic Clay County Courthouse.

Drawing members from the Clay County Communities Revitalization Association, Clay County Historical and Arts Council, Historic Hayesville Merchant’s Association, Clay County Chamber of Commerce members, Civitans, City and County representatives and a number of interested long time county residents, the committee has begun a concerted “Let’s Bring it Back To Life” planning effort for the courthouse.  In the reuse plan, the group will be part of efforts to obtain grant and charitable funding for internal restoration of the building while also developing the complete business plan to implement an organization which will operate the facility on a long term lease arrangement with the County.

The goal of this collaborative effort is to provide the community with a multi-use venue of merchant retailers, artisan galleries, and an activity event center that will both add to the quality of life and contribute to the overall economic activity of Clay County as a whole.  Look for our information booth on the steps of the old courthouse during the upcoming Festival on the Square Saturday, July 10th.  Become a supporter of the Courthouse Reuse Plan and be a part of bringing what used to be the very center of our community back to life.

Future license will feature 3-D photos, tamper-resistant cards

RALEIGH – North Carolina driver licenses will undergo changes by 2012 which will allow the N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles to produce more secure and tamper-resistant licenses and identification cards.

The licenses and ID cards will carry a black-and-white photograph taken by a camera with multiple lenses. The resulting photo will be laser engraved into the card, providing a clearly identifiable image. The cards also will be made of a more durable polycarbonate material than is currently used. Multiple layers will be fused together and cannot be removed without leaving evidence of tampering. The new cards will meet state and federal mandates, as well as national security requirements.

The N.C. Department of Transportation has awarded a $47.5 million contract to MorphoTrak-Safran Group over the next seven years. The contract may be extended for two additional one-year periods.

NCDMV will pay $2.12 per card for the new cards.  During the past two years, DMV has issued approximately 2.4 million driver licenses and ID cards per year. The cost per card will increase by $0.27 and, at current volumes, will be covered by NCDMV’s existing budget.

School asks for new primary school loan

Up to $10 million could come interest free

By Frank Bradley

Sentinel writer

School board approved application recommending county borrow up to $10 million at zero percent interest for a new primary school, according to Superintendent Scott Penland.

In an action at a called school board meeting on Monday, the board agreed to apply for Qualified School Construction Bond (QSCB) money, which the may be available from the state. Penland said there is $150 million in state funds that have not been asked for by other school systems. Clay County has already applied for and received $750,000 in these funds, which was its initial allocation. If the county commissioners approve the school board’s application and the state provides the interest free loan, the county could go ahead with plans to construct the new primary school. The advantage of doing so is that there is no interest on the loan and construction cost for building the school is lower than it has been or is likely to be again.

In another matter, the state school budget is in and appears to be better than expected, according to Penland.

“We won’t have the county breakdown for a couple of weeks,” Penland said, “and it looks like we will have to send back about $80,000 to $100,000 more than had to be reverted last year, but all in all it looks like our budget is going to be doable.”

Penland said it looks like the school will not be required to layoff any teachers in the coming year; however some positions that have been vacated will not be filled. He said the assistant principal for the elementary school probably would remain open along with some teaching assistant positions in the Second and Third Grades.

Three positions now vacant, which are expected to be filled include the director of the high school media center and high school health occupation teacher (both teachers are retiring) and the high school art teacher, who is resigning due to her husband’s job relocation.

There will be no money for new textbooks or for new school buses, according to Penland. Also, the school will now have to pay for virtual (on-line) courses that are taken by students. In the past these courses have been provided from the state for free. Penland said the school will have to pay for the virtual courses; however, they will be offered to the students at no charge. Students at Hayesville High School can only take on-line courses for credit if they are not offered by the regular school curriculum.

Penland said the school’s transportation budget will be cut by $10,000, but that he expects it also will be manageable. “We were able to buy fuel at the end of the school year, so we may be able to take care of the difference,” he said.

The board also approved a 3-year plan for the Academically Gifted (AG) program in all three schools.

Caption: Lucy McKenzie and Dr. Whaley at the chemo treatment room at Georgia Cancer Specialists at Riverstone with the Lucy Mac Sacs!

Photo and story  by Mary Lynn Durfee

June 25, 2010, Blue Ridge, GA ~ Lucy McKenzie of Murphy, NC brought some special gifts with her to an appointment with Dr. Whaley at the Georgia Cancer Center at Riverstone. With a little help from her family and friends Lucy McKenzie paid it forward with the “Lucy Mac Sac”.

Lucy Mac started chemotherapy back in November 2006. This past February, the disappointing news came that it transitioned to acute myeloid leukemia and she had to stop working for Meridian Behavioral Health in Marble, NC. The cancer may have stopped Lucy Mac from working, but it couldn’t stop her from helping people!!! Along with her daughters, Carol Lee and Mary Lynn, Lucy created the “Lucy Mac Sac” to give as gifts to the folks who are starting or continuing chemo treatments. “I feel this would have helped me,” Lucy says in the booklet inserted in the “Lucy Mac Sac”.

The “Lucy Mac Sac” for the ladies is a cheerful fashionable handbag and for the men a masculine reusable grocery bag. From Lucy’s experience she chose some simple, but helpful contents such as a fluffy little pillow she says feels really good right behind your neck for those long chemo treatments, soft hats for the ladies, a roll of LifeSavers, anti-bacterial hand soap, hand lotion, and her booklet with positive quotes and pages to take notes and the cutest, softest little black bear donated by Rountree’s Furniture & Accessories in Blairsville, with their prayers and wishes attached! Lucy Mac’s 6-year-old grand daughter, Jayden, put the bags together and is also a contributor on the inside back cover of the booklet.

Lucy’s daughter, Mary Lynn Durfee started gathering the contents and found that there are so many others who are touched by cancer themselves or a close family member or friend that it turned into a joint venture with many people! First, the handbags were seriously discounted by a client of Mary Lynn’s, Bonnie Wild of “Accessories Gone Wild” who resides in Florida and has a cabin in Hayesville, NC. Then the pillows and hats came from Jay Otrhalik of Leetsdale, PA for a donation and the shipping was paid for by Lori Glaze, who also suggested that instead of Lucy and her daughters taking all the cost on themselves, that they allow others to participate and that’s where the sponsorship began. The Sponsor of each bag is on the front cover of the enclosed booklet. Sponsorship allows this gift to continue by covering costs and others being involved on a personal level.

Several Agents within Mary Lynn’s office, Century 21 Scenic Realty in Young Harris, GA sponsored the handbags handed out today – Robbyn Allen, Diane Baggett, Caryl Keister, Lynne Potter, Paul Bundy, Rosalyn Housley, Mike Stewart and Teresa Newell. Mary Lynn also had clients Bill & Georgianne Hughes, who made a generous contribution to sponsor several bags; and Mark & Karen Trammell, who brought the Bath and Body Hand Lotion for the ladies bags all the way from Florida! Thank you to everyone involved. You should know the smiles and gratitude for the “Lucy Mac Sacs” were beaming and joyful and those are the true gifts returned to you for your compassion and generosity!

Thanks to Dr. Whaley and the Georgia Cancer Specialists for providing advanced treatments (including some that aren’t even FDA approved yet) our family members can receive the latest treatments locally instead of having to travel to Atlanta, which is not only easier on the patients, but all of their family members as well!

Lucy Mac continues to see Dr. Whaley (whom she adores) and receive platelets and blood transfusions. Most of all, she continues to inspire and encourage others wherever she goes. She will be handing out the “Lucy Mac Sacs” at Murphy Medical Center on Monday, June 28th. If you would like to be involved in the “Lucy Mac Sac” project, please email her daughter Mary Lynn at marylynn@mountainlifenow.com. You can also go to www.Facebook.com and search for “Lucy Mac Sac” and blog how the bags have blessed you and any ideas you have to make them better!

On June 14, 2010, 47 North Georgia Technical College students from the Blairsville Campus were recognized for academic achievements.  This special event began with 27 students being inducted into the National Technical Honors Society (NTHS). The second part of the program continued with a longstanding NGTC tradition – a pinning ceremony for students graduating from the Medical Assisting and Practical Nursing programs.

NTHS is America’s highest award for excellence in career and technical education.  The mission of the organization is to honor student achievement and leadership, promote educational excellence, and enhance career opportunities.  NTHS members will receive recognition in the form of identification on their transcripts, a special seal on their diploma, and white stoles on their graduation robes.

NGTC English Instructor Mike Rice conferred the NTHS certificates and led the group in the pledge of membership.  “Students have to maintain a 3.7 GPA after completing 24 credit hours and be nominated by an instructor,” explained Rice.  “Statistically only about 5% of our students are eligible to be NTHS members.”

Smiles of pride spread through the family-filled audience as each candidate was called forward.  Students then stood and read aloud the pledge of membership.

Murphy, NC residents inducted into the NTHS included Lorin Hughes and Jenny Ieovao.

“To get this far in their studies while maintaining this academic standard is quite an accomplishment,” says Vice President of Academic Affairs Vicki Nichols.  “And our health care students have a very rigorous curriculum they have to complete. We are very proud to honor them in this ceremony.”

For the Nurse Pinning ceremony, the lights were dimmed and each student solemnly walked down the aisle carrying a lighted candle.  Director of Student Affairs Kristie Gibbs introduced each one as they were pinned by Medical Assisting Instructor Angela Flowers and Practical Nursing Instructor Donna Campbell.

Local student Victoria Parker received her LPN pin.

The Medical Assisting students carried single white tapers as they received pins.  Practical Nursing students carried candles held in ceramic lamps, a visual reference to Florence Nightingale’s Lady with the Lamp nursing fame.  These students also recited an oath of professional commitment.

“We are proud of the accomplishments of our students at NGTC. They will represent us well as they take up their professions in the community,” said President Steve Dougherty as he thanked the students for choosing to pursue their education at North Georgia Technical College.

For more information on programs of study offered on the Blairsville Campus of North Georgia Technical College contact 706-439-6300 or visit www.northgatech.edu.

Picture:

LPN students (L-R):  Standing:  Susan Rudy, Jamie Born, Lisa Oswald, Heather Stafford, Dianne Hendry, Rachel Bushart, and Alicia Howard.  Seated:  Caitlin Krul, Victoria Parker, and Marilyn Chastain. Kneeling:  Rhonda Hay, Amber McCarter, Kimberly O’Brien, Julie Pratt, and Ashley Pierce.

By: Jacob Harris

For exotic animals in roadside zoos, life’s not easy

You may have passed by it while driving to Murphy or Blairsville. Across from the Foster’s Flea Market, sits the King Kong  Zoo. A place where exotic animals are kept in captivity to draw a few bucks from curious tourists. Here the animals are crammed into a space hardly big enough to turn around in.

They are kept in unsightly, inadequate conditions where they suffer countless problems, including abuse, neglect, malnutrition, incompatible social pairings, unfitting climate, and lack of veterinary care.

With little or no opportunity for mental stimulation or physical activity, animals often become dejected and develop abnormal and self-destructive behaviors, known as zoochosis. These behavioral distresses include but are not limited to swaying, rocking, pacing, bar-biting, pulling out hair, and biting themselves.

There are thousands of below par exotic animal attractions across the U.S, spanning from so called “sanctuaries”, backyard menageries, and roadside zoos. They claim to be rescue, conservation, or rescue facilities, but in reality these roadside zoos are among the worst abusers of captive exotic, rare, and endangered species. Still over the past 30 years, the private zoo business has skyrocketed.

These profit-hungry zoo operators have attempted to clean up the corrupt image associated with roadside zoos, by proclaiming themselves as “conservationist.”

About the only thing people learn from these exhibitors is how animals behave in captivity, and a grudging acceptance of how wild animals are able to survive in bored, cramped, lonely conditions where they are kept far from their natural environment.

Then too, the public is misled by a show of meaningless certifications such as “federally licensed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture”.

While federal permits are required to exhibit, breed, or sell exotic animals, it appears they will be issued to anyone who pays a minimal fee and fills out a half page questionnaire that consists of your name, address, and and an animal inventory. Nothing is asked of the owner’s qualifications. While the USDA enforces the Animal Welfare Act, their standards are minimal, rarely addressing an animal’s psychological needs.

At King Kong Zoo, I was completely in awe by the large number of wild and exotic animals. I was appalled by their living conditions.

Almost every animal there was enclosed in a space by themselves, with the exception of the lions and tigers which were paired by twos for apparent breeding purposes. I found no cubs in the zoo, although

I have been told there were cubs there last year. Is it possible the cubs have been sold for thousands of dollars.

I am told that sometime these animals bring more money dead than alive for their hides. While the process of killing them is unethical and unlawful, a practice sometimes used to avoid damaging pelts, animals are killed by shoving ice picks through their ears and into their brains or suffocating them by wrapping plastic bags around their heads, and drowning them. I’m not accusing the local zoo of this behavior, but it seems suspicious that there have been several cubs born in the zoo, and now they are no where to be found.

During my visit, of the eight large cats I saw, only one was up pacing back and forth against the bars of its enclosure. The others were lying down seemingly exhausted and bored. Of the two bears at the zoo, one of them, an Asiatic Black bear, and the other, a neurotic brown bear, continuously paced back and forth pawing in the corners as if trying to get out. How exhausting that must be?

My greatest concern was for the Chimpanzee. I was shocked to see this human-like primate in such a small zoo. He was named Archie and lived alone in his small cage. His sad eyes and lack of hair down the front of both his arms suggested that he had been pulling out his arm hair, perhaps due to boredom and frustration. I am told this is a fairly common neurotic behavior in captive primates living alone in stressful environments.

Before leaving the zoo, I briefly stepped into the Reptile Room to glance at the smaller creatures. What I found was not only a room full of rare and dangerous reptiles, but an open door to the back room apparently for access the animal tanks. After taking a closer look I found that not only had this door been open, but it was accessible for children to browse about with the Tarantulas and Boas. There was no lock on the door to keep out children or even some curious adults.

Since September, 2007 the King Kong Zoo has undergone four USDA inspections, these inspections were minimal due to the lack of regulations, as well as, insufficient inspectors across the U.S. There are only 100 USDA exhibit inspectors for approximately 10,000 roadside zoos across the nation.

Sentinel writer

In Thursday’s county commissioner’s meeting, the board voted to increase several health department fees to bring them more in line with the true cost to the county. Effective July 1, 2010, the county inspection fee to assure a septic is sufficient will rise from zero to $100; inspection of a septic repair will rise from zero to $50.

The cost to an owner who wants to install a septic system in a high risk area will be raised from $250 to $750; however that increase will not go into effect until October 1st. Health Director Janice Patterson told the board of commissioners that these fees will more accurately reflect the true cost to the county because it requires several inspection trips. She said usually the county has no more than two or three of these a year.

Also, the cost of inspecting new wells in a high risk area, which is within 500 feet of an underground septic or storage tank will increase by $25 from $300 to $325. The cost to inspect the repair of a well jumps from $110 to $150, and the cost to inspect the abandonment of a well goes from zero to $50.

Patterson said the cost for a pregnancy test will now be $5, and that all other health related fees in the county remain the same.

Becky Thompson, director of the county’s department of transportation asked the board to approve several written internal policies regarding safety, ADA compliance, Drug & Alcohol, Charter Service and others. She said most of the policies she gets from federal and state directives. That the county has been following them all along, just that they haven’t had them in writing. She said it was important to get them in writing because her department was due for an inspection on June 24th and this action needed to be done to make sure the county was in compliance. The board voted to approve the policies and specified that board chair Herbert Cheeks was authorized to sign them. Cheeks did not attend this meeting because he was at the Gainesville hospital awaiting the birth of a new grandchild.

The board voted to approve an application for a QSCBP grant for Clay County Schools in the amount of $756,156. This was for monies to be used toward the construction of a new primary school. It is noted the county has not approved the construction of the school, only that an application be made in case other monies become available for the school construction. The cost of that school is estimated to be $10 million, and could only be contemplated if there is other zero interest funds available from the state.

The board agreed to adopt an agreement with the state association of county commissioners to get its insurance via that pool. No other insurance will offer better coverage at lower premiums, the county manager told the board.

The board heard a request for variance by homeowner Bert Wiley asking that a storage shed that violated a 30 foot flood plain setback ordinance be allowed to be grandfathered in. Wiley said he was unaware of the violation at the time the building was built, and that it was much needed for himself and his wife, both of whom are in poor health and have a difficult time getting about.

“This shed is convenient from our backdoor for us to get to the shed,” Wiley said. “It is not too far away for us to get to to store things. We are both 82. The board agreed to make a decision and to let  Mr. Wiley know within 10 days.

Continues high enrollment in face of state budget cutbacks

By Frank Bradley

Sentinel writer

If you want to know where local out-of-work people are going to learn skills enabling them to once again get good paying jobs, then you might want to take a look at what they’re doing at Tri-County Community College.

At the TCCC Board of Trustees meeting on Thursday, President Dr. Donna Tipton-Rogers told the board that Spring enrollment at the college was up 28 percent over the previous year, and that Summer enrollment might even exceed that.

“Student enrollment has been on the upswing these past two years,” Tipton-Rogers said. “People who have lost their jobs have come back to school for retraining, and high school graduates have been enrolling in larger numbers than before because we are more affordable.”

She said there has also been an increase in students taking on-line courses.  Speaking of the success of the welding and nursing programs, Tipton-Rogers said 334 students have been enrolled in the welding program over the past two years completing more than 125,000 contact hours with many of the students getting good-paying jobs before they can complete the course of study. In January, 36 welding students were placed in jobs.

“We measure our success by a somewhat different standard than they do at the state level,” Tipton-Rogers said. “We consider it a success if our students can take what they learn here and turn it into a job. That often means that our welding program completion rate is somewhat lower than at other colleges because many of our students get offered good high paying jobs before they complete the program.”

With regard to the nursing program, Tipton-Rogers said the college’s partnership with Haywood Community College has worked out extremely well. Together they are graduating and pinning a record number of nursing students while progressively improving the quality of their instruction. Fire and rescue training continues to be a vital part of TCCC’s instruction. Also, the college will be starting Basic Law Enforcement training within a couple of weeks, which should prove to be a major benefit to local sheriff’s and police departments.

With regard to college transfer students, Tipton-Rogers said that TCCC ranked 4th in the state with a 3.0 or higher GPA.

Tipton-Rogers also reported on a recent visit of North Carolina’s Community College president, Dr. Rawls, who was so impressed at the staff briefings that he invited Dr. Tipton-Rogers to Raleigh to brief the state board of education on TCCC’s success in placing students in jobs.

Tipton-Rogers praised her financial staff in managing the college’s funds so effectively that it did not have to lay any employees off. “We were one of just a few of the colleges that did not have to do that,” she said.

In other matters, Tipton-Rogers said a new building for the Fire Training Center is expected to be completed by year’s end; because of a record number of applicants, the 40 incoming freshmen students at the Tri-County Early College High School were selected using a lottery; two classrooms on the main campus have been outfitted with new computers; the college is working on a regional Job Fair that will be sponsored by Congressman Heath Shuler to be held on Saturday August 14. TCCC will partner with the Employment Security Commission, area chambers of commerce and Cherokee, Clay and Graham governments on this project.

Summer Semester classes begin on Thursday 3 June and end on August 2.

Two full-time faculty members are retiring this summer: Dr. Gene Boyer, GCC Coordinator for Instructional Services and Biology instructor and Melanie Rothchild, Head of Early Childhood Development. Adjunct faculty member William Bristol has also retired.

By: Frank Bradley

Clay County Schools wants to build a new PK-2 school. It will be approximately 78,000 square feet and cost approximately $10 million, The land has already been purchased by the county commissioners. The new school will remove approximately 450 students from our current campus. By removing these students our current campus should be able to accommodate growth for the next 15 to 20 years. The new primary building will be completely self-contained with its own cafeteria, gym and playgrounds.

An application for Qualified School Construction Bonds (QSCB) at zero percent interest in the amount of $756,000 has been approved by the state. At the school board meeting last week, Superintendent Scott Penland said there may be other loan money if other schools with a tight budget don’t participate in this program this year. Authority for additional funds may revert back and be available to Clay County Schools.

The board voted to approve pursuing this course of action.

In other matters, Penland said he is not planning any kind of mass layoff of staff and faculty unless the bottom drops out of the budget for 2010-2011. However, he doesn’t know what will happen the following school year.

The following End of School Year activities were provided: June 3 HES PTO spring fling; HMS Chorus concert at 6 p.m.; June 6 Baccalaureate Service at 6 p.m. at Meadow Grove Baptist Church; June 7 Pre-K graduation 12:30 at Outdoor Classroom; June 8 K graduation 9:30 a.m. Outdoor classroom; June 9 8th Grade promotion 9 a.m.; June 9 7th Grade awards at 10:15 a.m. auditorium; June 9 1st Grade field day/awards. June 10th 4th Grade awards auditorium at 8:30 a.m., 6th Grade awards at 10 a.m., 5th Grade awards at 11 a.m. 3rd Grade awards at individual classrooms.

High School graduation on June 11 at 7:30 p.m. on football field.