WEDNESDAY
February 21, 2024
SPORTS: Bob Jones High School wrestler wins state title at AHSAA Tournament
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Sale of fire station, new roundabout projects addressed by city council
Mardi Paws Parade
ReadyFest
The City of Madison will hold ReadyFest, its annual preparedness event, on Feb. 24 at Discovery Middle School. Page 3A
By MARIA RAKOCZY maria@themadisonrecord.com
Recipes
Whether you’re encouraging loved ones to start a new wellness kick or looking to add new ideas to an already nutritious menu, families at any stage of a journey toward better health can use newfound favorites to bring fresh flavors to the table. Page 4A
Liberty Middle School held a schoolwide Mardi Paws parade circling the campus today, benefiting two local animal support groups. The S2S “student2student” support group organized and sponsored the parade and reached out for assistance from the newly-formed LMS 4H club to help decorate. Pictured above: Principal Shannon Brown, whose Labrador Retriever, Molly, was parade queen, said it was a great experience for students. See story and more photos on page 4A.
State board lauds Heritage in ‘Top 25 Percent Schools’ for Alabama By GREGG PARKER gregg@themadisonrecord.com
The talented Jim Parker
Focused on music since the early 1960s, Jim Parker pursued an 8-to-5 career but always cherished the music scene. In fact, Parker’s musical career is still on a high note. Page 6A
This weekend
Check out these fun events planned for this weekend. Page 7A
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MADISON – The Alabama State Board of Education has announced that Heritage Elementary School has achieved inclusion in the “Top 25 Percent Schools” for all Alabama school districts. Nelson visited Montgomery on Feb. 8 to accept Heritage’s resolution of award during a regular meeting of the Alabama State Board of Education in Gordon Persons Auditorium. Dr. Wayne Reynolds, State Board of Education member who represents District 8 that includes Madison City Schools, presented the resolution to Nelson. The resolution states that state board “recognizes, appreciates and encourages
Heritage Elementary School schools to implement instructional programs that result in having higher levels of performance for Alabama students. The Legislative School Performance Recognition Pro-
gram was created within the Alabama State Department of Education to reward public schools that either demonstrate high performance by See HERITAGE Page 4A
MADISON - Items discussed at a Jan. work session for the Madison City Council made progress at their regular council meeting last week. Madison Mayor Paul Finley revealed plans to sell a former fire station owned by the city on Sullivan Street. At the city council meeting, the council heard a first reading of the proposal designating the property at 4182 Sullivan Street as “surplus” and authorizing the selling of the property. “This is the old fire station property on Sullivan and I think what we, again, have talked about is selling that then putting that money back into where we can use it for things that the city needs,” explained Mayor Finley. The property also includes the Madison City Schools annex. The property is estimated to be worth $350,000. According to Finley, funds from the sale of the property is expected to be used for new animal control facilities at the temporary fire station on Celtic Drive. Two new intersection roundabout projects discussed at the work session received attention at the city council meeting. Two professional service agreements were approved for a Huntsville Browns Ferry Road and Burgreen Road roundabout project, and another was authorized for engineering services on a Balch and Gooch Roundabout project. A $292,123.37 bid was awarded to Trav-Ad Signs, Inc. for Phase 1 of the Wayfinding Project. This first phase plans to erect twenty-seven signs around the city that promote the downtown area. The timeline for completion is expected to be less than six months. See CITY COUNCIL Page 8A
Madison man among nine nabbed in child exploitation bust By DAVID GAMBINO news@themadisonrecord.com MADISON - Nine north Alabama men were arrested following an undercover child sex trafficking operation last week, according to a Tuesday press release from the Limestone County Sheriff’s Office. The following men were each charged with human trafficking, traveling to meet a child for unlawful sex, and electronic solicitation of a child: Gilbert Jordan, 30, of Madison; Bran-
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don Adamson, 31, of Athens; Edgar Castro-Juarez, 28, of Albertville; Christopher Tomasello, 31, of Blountsville; Bernardo Sanchez, 43, of Huntsville; Jacob Farley, 22, of Huntsville; and Collin McGee, 30, of Athens. Cameron Abernathy, 29, of Athens was charged with traveling to meet a child for unlawful sex and transmitting obscene material to a child by computer, and Bobby Pincheon, 37, of Hazel Green, was charged with human trafficking and traveling to
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meet a child for unlawful sex. “These offenders targeted and solicited decoys who they believed to be children,” the release said. “These offenders then agreed on cash payments to engage in sexual acts with children and then traveled to designated locations in Limestone County to engage in these unlawful sex acts.” The Limestone County Sheriff’s Office said it partnered with the Athens Police Department and Covenant Rescue Group in the operation.
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Gilbert Jordan of Madison is one of the suspects arrested.