Sentinel BOOZE www.GeorgiaSentinel.com
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UNION
Lean
CELEBRATION
Calling all Babies to a
Party
All babies born between January 1, 2009 and April 2010 to Union County residents are invited to a Big Celebration Party in their honor. . . and their siblings are invited, too! All children love being read to, and babies do, too. Studies show that when babies are read to at an early age there is a remarkable increase in their language skills development.  The Friends of Union County Library are hosting the first Books For Babies Celebration Party on Saturday, April 17th from 1:00-2:30pm at the Junior Brackett Room of United Community Bank. There will be refreshments provided by the Bank, gifts, books, door prizes and even entertainment. A good time is guaranteed. See BABIES, page 3A
WRITING
Writing classes available in North Georgia
Get Creative and Write with Writers Hub Writers' Hub of the Mountains, a new area service that seeks to assist writers to hone their creative skills and become published, is offering a series of five writing courses that will touch on the most important aspects of crafting well-written stories that grab and keep their readers' attention. The first course, “The Elements of a Story – An Overview� consists of six classes. Each class is two hours in length, and is taught by Ronda Birtha, local photographer and writer (www.rondabirtha. com). Ronda, a James Carr Scholar, earned a degree in English Literature from Rutgers University. With 18 years of experience in all aspects of
Economy
By SEN. CHIP PEARSON Columnist
When voters go to the polls in July to vote for state and federal candidates, they may be surprised to find an advisory referendum for the incounty sale of alcoholic beverages. Four years ago, Union County residents resoundingly voted against turning Union County in to a wet county, principally from a large outcry among the faith community. Last month, Commissioner Lamar Paris addressed the Union County Republican Party saying that he intended to place the question of alcohol sale on the primary ballot for the July 20, 2010 election. Some citizens of the faith community object to this issue coming up on the ballot so soon after it was defeated, and they have all but begged the county to refrain from bringing in alcohol sales.
To be answered yes or no, the ballot will ask 1) Should Union County authorize the retail sale of packaged been and wine? 2)Should Union County authorize the sale of beer and wine by the drink? 3) and should Union County authorize the sale of distilled spirits by the drink?
Through Mountain Mists
To cope with a sluggish economy and plummeting revenues, Georgia’s state government needs a major lifestyle change. We’re putting our budget on a lean diet of essential spending by concentrating funding in the vital areas of government, such as education, public safety and transportation. Every idea is on the table as to how we fill over a $1 billion hole in the state budget. We’ve reached the end of the legislature’s two-week working recess, in which Senate and House members came together in unprecedented joint budget hearings to work through the Fiscal Year 2011 budget. While meeting with every state agency to go over their 2011 budgets and suggested cuts, the common theme that emerged was consolidating services and identifying unnecessary government spending. We’re considering every tool in the toolbox to decide what cuts will be most effective and have the least impact on the state. One of the hot button issues to come out of these meetings was the discussion of potential cuts to Georgia’s university system. After Chancellor Erroll Davis presented a budget with cuts totaling $265 million, lawmakers asked university officials to come back with an additional $300 million in cuts. Some have suggested that such cuts could result in increases to college tuition. Others fear that course offerings, programs and research services will have to be reduced. Because nearly 65 percent of our budget goes to education, some cuts will have to be made. The good news is that Georgia still has significantly lower tuition compared to other states within the Southern Regional Education Board; Florida has increased their tuition up to 15 percent. However, we have no inSee BUDGET, page 3A
A delightful and beautiful book has just come to me via its author, Sylvia Dyer Turnage. This great, great granddaughter of inventor Micajah Clark Dyer has long been interested in what this farmer-inventor accomplished back in the nineteenth century as he worked diligently to invent and improve, and yes, even fly what he called, appropriately, “An Apparatus for Navigating the Air.�  In our Dyer family, we had heard stories of Clark Dyer and his flying machine. Was this invention for real?  Did he really make a vehicle that would take to the air and fly? As Sylvia Dyer Turnage and I were growing up in our home community of Choestoe, these tales of her great, great grandfather and my great, great uncle just would not die. Too many people had heard the tales. Two people, at least, in our acquaintance, my Uncle Herschel Dyer and a cousin, John Wimpey, had seen the fabulous machine. And both of them were truthful men. They
Georgia’s Pioneer Aviator
– Micajah Clark Dyer A Book Review
By ETHELENE DYER-JONES Columnist
See MISTS, page 3A
UNION COUNTY WEATHER THURSDAY
inel
Budget
Paris to put alcohol on primary ballot
See REAGAN, page 3A
Union Sentinel PO Box 1996 Blairsville, GA 30512 SENTINEL NEWSGROUP
Lean
BALLOT
ECONOMY
The Union County Republican Party will be holding its first annual Ronald Reagan Day Dinner on March 13th from 6 pm to 8 pm at the Union County Civic Center; 165 Wellborn Street, Blairsville, GA 30512. Radio host and national television commentator Martha Zoller will be the guest speaker. Zoller appears on the Georgia Gang on FOX 5 Atlanta, and has appeared on CNN, MSNBC, and FOX News Channel. She is considered one of the nation’s leading conservative talk show hosts. He radio show is carried on 103.7 in Gainesville and airs from 9 am to 11 am weekly. Candidates for Governor, Congress, and statewide and local offices will be attending and some will be serving as celebrity servers. Confirmed candidates include Nathan Deal, John Oxendine, Jeff Chapman, Karen Handel, Austin Scott, Eric Johnson, Harold Logsdon, Raymond George, Jeff Langley,
calls for
ON THE
See RELAY, page 3A
Union County Republican Party Reagan Day
Volume 16, Issue 10
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GEORGIA SENTINEL ‡ 7KXUVGD\ 0DUFK
CO LU MNS & O P I N I O NS
By Jim Fitzgerald
LEANING Â LEFT
Sentinel Guest Columnist
Over the last year, it has become apparent that conservatives believe our founding fathers made a terrible mistake in creating a threepart, check-and-balances system of government. Their attack on DC daily would lead one to believe that Obama and the Democrats gained power through a coup d’Êtat rather than a fair election. Technically, Bush won office in 2000 by 576 votes (he lost the popular vote) but claimed a mandate. Obama really did have a mandate, winning almost ten million more popular votes than McCain and sweeping the Electoral College. However, Democrats have been hampered from delivering on their top priorities by losing the public relations battle. As I pointed out in previous columns, one would think the Democrats are responsible for the high unemployment rate and bulging national debt rather than the savior of the economy. As part of the PR battle, conservatives criticize the Democratic health care reform bill for having over 2,000 pages. They brag that the Republican version is a mere 219 pages. Ask any lawyer which version would be the easiest to slice and dice in a court of law. Ask any lawyer where you would find the greatest number of loopholes to exploit. Ask any lawyer which version demonstrates intellectual laziness. It is easy to state a broad principle but difficult to define, in detail, how that principle can be implemented in practice. The Prescription Drug Bill of 2003, contained over 1,100 pages so I suspect 2,000 pages may be too few for an overhaul of the entire health care system. On the other hand, 219 pages seem like an anorexic runway model. Do you remember the health care fight back in 1994? Republicans won that battle, using the same arguments they are using today. Moreover, what did we get?
Managed care, HMO’s, PPO’s, provider panels, rationed health care, preapprovals, higher co-pays, markedly increased premiums, a “free market� in health care that has driven millions of citizens out of the health care system, and markedly increased government funding of health care benefits for children, the poor, and the chronically ill. Now, after that terrible experiment, we are back at the drawing board and Republicans are proposing more of the same! Republicans had their chance and it was ineffective. They could have “tweaked� the system during Bush’s term but they did nothing in spite of mounting evidence of a broken health care system. Now it is the Democrats turn – and everything suggests a radical improvement is the only thing that will reign in health care costs. I pay over $12,000 in premiums a year for two, almost $1,200 a year in Medicare premiums, a $100 per person deductible, and 20% co-pay. Over 50% of my net pay is spent on health care – and I am a healthy person. Thank goodness, I have other sources of income. Conservatives claim that the use of reconciliation is rare and should not be used for health care. Without belaboring the point, suffice it to say the Republicans used it frequently during their time in power. Now John McCain, who I used to respect, is proposing that reconciliation is inappropriate for trimming fraud and waste from the Medicare system. John, bless his heart, is not credible on this issue. In 1989, 1995, 1997, and 2005, McCain voted to substantially slash Medicare funding – all through reconciliation! Republicans used reconciliation to cram the Bush tax cuts down our throats (to borrow an over- used phrase from Fox “news�). I wonder if our founding fathers intended for Congress to be paralyzed by the filibuster or if they understood passage to mean a simple 51-vote majority. Another argument in the con-
servative battle to impugn government is to spew forth withering criticism of federal government programs, claiming gross inefficiency, while trumpeting the benefits of private enterprise. They love to pick on the post office so I am excited to see how they will handle the recent post office request to cease Saturday mail delivery. Every time the post office proposes raising the cost of a stamp by a penny or two, or stopping Saturday delivery, all hell breaks loose. You see, the post office cannot make changes without Congressional approval because the Post Master General is a Constitutional office, even though the post office received no funding from the federal government. However, comparing the post office to private delivery companies is like comparing apples to oranges. No other company delivers mail to EVERY address in the country, as well as its territories like Guam, American Samoa, Puerto Rico, and St. John, six days a week at an affordable price. If UPS and FEDEX did the same thing, service would be unaffordable to a vast majority of citizens. If our local, state, and federal governments had to use FEDEX or UPS to deliver official documents, like tax bills, taxes would have to rise to cover the significant increase in costs. I doubt that our founding fathers could foresee that governing would boil down to a public relations campaign. I suspect that they believed the weight and responsibility of governing would force self and party interest to yield to country interest. I think they believed that the federal government was to consider legislation in light of the entire country rather than regional and local interests. However, since we started drawing Congressional districts that look like space aliens, the interests of DC starting boiling down to PR battles, earmarks, and the politics of personal enrichment.
YOUR Â HEALTH Â MATTERS
There comes a time when one needs to dispose of some of the many books one has collected over their lifetime. In so doing I ran across a book that my late father had given me—Anatomy of an Illness, by Norman Cousins, first published in 1979. He had given it to me on my birthday with this note, “Claudia, since you not only deal with sick people and probably will for the rest of your life, and you teach others how to deal with them. To me, this book touched on the direct and indirect approach to care for the ill, plus a bit on preventing illnesses. Hopefully this will be useful to you, your patients, and students.� As it turned out, it was very useful, and rereading it will make it a “keeper�! It challenged me to make laughter the subject of this week’s column. In his famous book, Norman Cousins described his fight against a disease for which doctors had no known cure or treatment. He was told that he had little chance, if any, of surviving. Hearing this, Cousins decided to take the matter into his own hands and started to plan his own recovery plan, including laughter and affirmative emotion like love, faith and hope. He also took a great deal of vitamin C, which he read would be beneficial for his condition. Cousins was editor of the Saturday Review of Literature. He was diagnosed in 1964 with spondylitis, an acute inflammation of the spine. Cousins was sure that negative thoughts can cause illness. So, he reasoned that positive thoughts could have the opposite effect. He left the hospital and checked into a hotel where he watched humorous movies and shows. He found that 10 minutes of hearty laughter resulted in at least two hours of pain-free sleep. He continued this “treatment� until he recovered. He wrote this widely read book about his amazing recovery. (You can still get this book on Amazon.com and it is
By CLAUDIA PARKS RN Columnist
worth reading.) We have heard all our lives—Laughter Is the Best Medicine! I love a good dose of laughter! It will cure just about anything I have wrong with me! Humor is infectious. The sound of roaring laughter is far more contagious than any cough, sniffle, or sneeze. When laughter is shared, it binds people together and increases happiness and intimacy. In addition to the domino effect of joy and amusement, laughter also triggers healthy physical changes in the body. Humor and laughter strengthen your immune system, boost your energy, diminish pain, and protects you from the damaging effects of stress. Best of all, this priceless medicine is fun, free, and easy to use. Scientists have also discovered that laughter increases your cardiovascular flexibility (your blood vessels exercise through dilation). Laughter convulses your diaphragm, which in turn massages your internal organs. Massaged internal organs are happy internal organs and they cooperate by staying plump and juicy. Laughter also causes you to gulp in large portions of air, oxygenating your blood. When that air is expelled, it’s been clocked at 70 miles per hour, providing the lungs with an excellent workout. A good hearty laugh will cause you
to lose muscle control, which relaxes the skeletal system. Four-year-olds laugh on an average of 500 times a day, while adults laugh a mere 15! This should tell us that we could have the heart rate and blood pressure of a child if we laughed more!? Laughter causes the brain to produce hormones called beta endorphins which reduce pain and causes our adrenal glands to manufacture cortisol, which is a natural anti-inflammatory that’s wonderful for arthritis. Laughter also provides a catharsis, which means to purify or purge, to the emotions. It also brings about a spiritual renewal or release from tension. More than just a respite from sadness and pain, laughter gives you the courage and strength to find new sources of meaning and hope. Even in the most difficult of times, a laugh—or even simply a smile— can go a long way toward making you feel better. And laughter really is contagious—just hearing laughter primes your brain and readies you to smile and join in on the fun. Some events are clearly sad and not occasions for laughter. But most events in life don’t carry an overwhelming sense of either sadness or delight. They fall into the gray zone or ordinary life— giving you the choice to laugh or not. Number one rule—be able to laugh at yourself! Claudia Parks, RN, is a former doctor’s office and emergency room nurse and retired as an educator from Fulton County Schools. She writes Your Health Matters as a public service; the information here is designed to help you make informed choices about your health. It is not intended as a substitute for the advice of your physician. Claudia and her husband make their home in the beautiful north Georgia Mountains. Claudia can be reached at yhm@ windstream.net
SOMEWHERE Â IN Â THE Â MIDDLE By Jim Fitzgerald Sentinel Guest Columnist
Allow me to introduce myself. I am a retired teacher of high school history, government, and economics. I am also an information junkie, constantly flipping back and forth between CNN and FOX News and surfing the Web for the latest updates and analyses on politics, the economy, and current events. Politically, I lean to the right, but I consider myself moderately conservative; I am certainly no radical. I have voted for the Republican candidate in every presidential election since I turned eighteen, but I am registered as an Independent and plan to stay that way. No party or political action committee dictates how I think on any single issue. Moreover, I consider both major political parties responsible for our current economic mess. I am a member of a Southern Baptist Church and attend regularly, though I am not dogmatic about denominational differences. My faith is extremely important to me and influences my beliefs in all areas of life, but I think people often pretend to know a lot more about God than any of us actually do. Since we currently “see through a glass darkly,� I don’t think we should pretend to have all the answers. I love my country. I used to tell my students that they should get down on their knees every day and thank God that they were born in the United States of America. I still believe that, but I am profoundly worried about the future of this great nation. Like so many others who are far more knowledgeable than I, I think our economy is on an unsustainable path. The challenges we face are enormous and complicated. There are no easy answers, no painless solutions to our problems.
I am a mom and a new grandmother. I look into the eyes of my precious, perfect, beautiful little granddaughter and wonder what the future holds for her. How will our 12 ½ trillion dollar national debt affect her life and the lives of all our children and grandchildren? What are we doing to them? Will her generation be the first not to have better lives than their parents had? I see my former students so excited about starting their careers, getting married, and having babies. I offer my congratulations and wish them well – but I fear for them. My husband is a retired federal employee. He served for over thirty years, working hard to provide farm loans, low-interest loans for housing, and grants for important things like water and sewage systems, fire trucks, and community centers for small towns. (He was NOT part of the sub prime lending fiasco.) I believe our government provides many good and necessary services. I am not anti-government, but I do believe in LIMITED and fiscally responsible government. I believe it is my duty to be a lawabiding citizen who pays my taxes, stays informed, and votes. I also think it is every citizen’s duty to speak up when our leaders are taking us down the wrong path. We have freedom of speech and we should exercise it. Otherwise, we get the government we deserve. I believe as Winston Churchill did, that “democracy is the worst form of government‌except for all the others.â€? Like any red-blooded American, I value the freedom and individualism afforded me by a democratic society; at the same time, I see the inherent weaknesses in democracy that could destroy us from within. I recognize that capitalism has provided more prosperity for more people than any
other economic system in history. On the other hand, we’ve all seen how the system can be gamed by those whose greed has run amok – to the detriment of us all. I am wary of too much government control, but also recognize that some level of government regulation is necessary. I am sick and tired of the radicalism of American politics. As a nation, we have become so polarized we can no longer carry on a civil conversation about the difficulties we face. Democrats and Republicans, liberals and conservatives, practice trench warfare - lobbing verbal attacks back and forth at one another across the No Man’s land of moderation while the media plays up the differences and stokes the fires of anger and discontent. How can compromise take place in such a poisonous atmosphere? It can’t, and it doesn’t. Where are the moderates? Where are the voices of reason? I believe we need more people who are willing to navigate the “mushy middle� where one is bound to be attacked by extremists on both sides. Granted, it is a difficult, dangerous and thankless job. Just recently, Senator Evan Bayh called it quits because he has given up on getting the two parties to work together to accomplish anything of real value. But unless we learn to come together, really talk to each other and not past each other, we are in serious trouble. When I was a little girl, my mama taught me that there are two sides to everything. She always listened to my side and then helped me see other points of view. The lesson stuck, and I later taught my classes that when you hear extremists argue their positions, the truth is usually somewhere in the middle.
EDITOR'S Â INBOX
Lost Freedoms
It’s not a Constitutional thing, as such.  Freedom is the intangible the grassroots folk say we are losing. Loss of freedom comes with growth of government and the usurped power that comes with that. Americans are a freedom loving people and don’t like the impending cradle to grave nanny state they see on the horizon. The FCC recently caved in to greed and lobby pressure when they mandated that over the air TV signals be digitized. The increased power need shortened the transmission range. Three people on our street no longer have TV. We had to replace a toilet recently. So we set something called a “dual flush�. This is a new standard coming to us from California. First we had low flush next will be low flush for solids
and lower flush for liquids. The next regulation will be “when�. We converted the generator from gasoline to propane. But now the engine’s fuel is no longer certified. Several emails to different sub-agencies of the EPA asking how to re-certify have gone unanswered. The EPA set the standards but doesn’t know how we are to comply with them! We the People would have more freedom if the government would butt out of our lives. Ask your congressmen if he believes this. M. J. Blanchard Blairsville  "It does not take a majority to prevail . . . but rather an irate, tireless minority, keen on setting brushfires of freedom in the minds of men."  Samuel Adams
NE WS Mists:
Write:
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would not tell a lie. And so the legend stayed alive, passed down from generation to generation. Many had a share in perpetuating the legend, among whom were Watson Benjamin Dyer who wrote about it in his first edition of  “Dyer Family History� published in 1967, and his subsequent edition in 1980. In 1980, a great, great great grandson of Clark Dyer, Kenneth Akins, did much research on the Dyer legend, and found, with the help of historian Robert Davis, that several credible people whom they interviewed were convinced that the story of Clark Dyer’s flying machine was more than legend, that the flying machine had indeed been invented. Persistence often results in bringing major rewards. Sylvia Dyer Turnage herself, taken by the story of her ancestor’s exploits, wrote and published in 1994 a book entitled The Legend of Clark Dyer’s Flying Machine.  In the book, she told what she then knew of the story. Included was a poem which she entitled “Ode to Clark Dyer,� which was set to music and sung by her (and perhaps others) at Dyer family reunions, gatherings and anyplace an interest was shown in this nineteenth century farmerinventor’s life story. Finally the breakthrough came that proved a remarkable boon and proof that the legend was indeed fact. In late 2004, two others of Clark Dyer’s descendants, great, great great grandsons Stephen  and Joey Dyer, brothers, found a patent online at the US Patent and Copyright Office, Patent No. 154,654, dated September 1, 1874. Entitled “An Apparatus for Navigating the Air,� it was signed by M. C. Dyer! Was this maybe the ancestor whom they had heard invented a plane near Rattlesnake Mountain in the 1870’s?  Indeed it was! In addition to the patent, the young men found copies of newspaper articles from “The St.
Louis Globe Democrat� (July 31, 1875) and “The Eagle� (Gainesville, GA, July 31, 1875) that told of M. C. Dyer of Blairsville, who had “been studying the subject of air navigation for thirty years,� and was eager to construct the machine and “board the ship and commit himself to the wind.� Then, with proof in hand, copies of the patent, and a proposed resolution introduced to the Georgia Legislator by then representative Charles F. Jenkins of Blairsville, a fitting memorial was in order for the mountain genius whose work had predated the Wright brothers. Georgia Highway 180 from US Highway 129/19 to the Brasstown Bald Mountain Spur was named “The Micajah Clark Dyer Parkway� to honor this pioneer aviator who worked so diligently to bring his dream to fruition. In a touching and meaningful ceremony at the Dyer-Souther Heritage Association Reunion on July 15, 2006, before a crowd of more than 300 descendants and interested citizens, the road sign was unveiled and the road dedicated to the inventor. That was an auspicious day, indeed, but it wasn’t the end of the story or the celebration.  Since then, the Clark Dyer Foundation has been formed. His gravesite in Old Choestoe Cemetery has been restored and a more suitable monument erected giving credit to his work as an inventor. Numerous programs have been held to tell “The Clark Dyer Story.� And in this newest book from author Sylvia Dyer Turnage’s pen, the story from legend to reality, from word-of-mouth to printed proof, from theory to the actual patent, are collected for us to enjoy. Sylvia’s immediate family all played a vital role in the production of this lovely, “coffee table� quality book. She, being the writer in her family, wrote the manuscript of the book. Her husband, Billy Turnage, a pho-
tographer by hobby but also by expertise,  made exquisite photographs of the history of bringing to light the real story of Micajah Clark Dyer. These are included in the book, in full color. Her daughter, Karen Dyer Merrill of California designed the book’s cover and assisted in the proofreading and editorial production of the book. Her son, Andrew Turnage, set up and maintains the Micajah Clark Dyer website which any interested persons can access. He also helped to found the Micajah Clark Dyer Foundation, the goals of which are listed in the book on pages 35-36.  He also assisted with the production of the book. Yee Yee, Sylvia’s delightful daughter-in-law, and wife of Andrew, who, by carefully reading the description in Clark’s patent, made the first interpretive drawing of the flying machine.  The book, authored by Sylvia Dyer Turnage, poet, author, speaker, accountant (retired), and assisted by her immediate family, has been a labor of love in memory of that beloved great, great grandfather who saw the birds flying over the mountains of Choestoe and wondered, “Why can’t I, too, fly?� Search out how you might purchase a copy for yourself by checking at your local book store, online at micajahclarkdyer.org, or contacting Sylvia at her own Turnage Publishing Co., Inc. 805 Low Gap Road, Blairsville, GA 30512. Congratulations to Sylvia and her family for this addition to the corpus of county history, family history, and history in general. She uses this appropriate quotation from Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. on the back cover of her book: “Man’s mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimensions.� Micajah Clark Dyer’s mind was indeed “stretched by a new idea.� And look what happened.
 And if you are reading this, but don’t have a baby of your own, please pass this information on to a Union County neighbor, friend, relative or co-worker who has a
baby born between the dates listed. We wouldn’t want to miss reaching one of those cute little cherubs, so please pass the word along.
Mondays from 9 AM to 2PM at the United Methodist Church next to the Fair Grounds. And in Blairsville on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 AM to 2 PM at the First Baptist Church Bldg H across from Rite Aide Pharmacy. Since this is the busy time of the tax year, it is advisable to come by 11 AM to insure we will have time to complete your return. We have been trained and cer-
tified by the IRS and AARP to prepare itemized deductions, sale of stocks and property, and all kinds of other transactions. The TAXAIDES have over 95 years of tax preparation experience and every return is quality reviewed to insure accuracy. If you have any questions feel free to call TED NOELLE, the Local Coordinator at 706-745-7998 or tjnoelle@windstream.net.
Babies: Continued from page 1A
 Babies love being read to, and six-month old Mya is no exception. She is the daughter of library employee Hannah Hill and her husband, Adam, and she enjoys hearing the words her mommy reads to her for a few minutes each day.  Hannah is now back at work at the library and will be returning to North Georgia Technical College to continue her studies towards a degree in library science. The Friends of Union County Library have awarded her a scholarship to help with her tuition and books.  Hannah knows that reading to your child increases their verbal skills and leads to a lifelong love of learning, and she has seen first-hand how little Mya responds to the pictures and words.            In order to plan for refreshments, gifts and party set-up, we will need to have a head-count of the number of people to expect. You can stop by the library to sign up (temporary location during the renovation, two blocks west of KFC, and behind UCB’s satellite office off the 4-lane); or reserve at the FOUCL’s website: www.foucl.org; or call Joanne Olson 706-781-5237. No matter how you choose to make your reservation, we’ll expect to have your cute little babe ready for a party on April 17th. Looking forward to seeing you there.
AARP TAXAIDE program
The AARP TAXAIDE program is in full swing giving FREE tax preparation and FREE e-filing assistance to all clients in the low and moderate income people. You do not have to belong to AARP nor be a certain age to receive assistance. During the month of February, the TAXAIDE counselors have helped over 500 people in the Hiawassee and Blairsville area. We are open in Hiawassee on
7KXUVGD\ 0DUFK ‡ GEORGIA SENTINEL Page 3A
photography, writing, instructing and printing, Ronda is looking forward to sharing her expertise. The cost of the six week course is $60 The location for the Hayesville classes is the Clay County Senior Center, 196 Ritter Road, Hayes-
ville, NC. The time is from 2-4 PM each Thursday afternoon, starting March 18 and ending April 22. The location for the Hiawassee classes is the Mountain Perk Coffee House, 195 N Main St, Hiawassee, GA. The time is from 1-3 PM
each Wednesday afternoon, starting March 24 and ending April 28. For more information, or to enroll in the class, please email mountainwritershub@gmail.com or call 828-644-4413.
revenue collections. If February numbers slip again this year, we’re expecting the governor to revise his revenue estimate, which is another game-changer for the budget. The current budget we’re working on anticipates a 4 percent revenue growth, which may be too optimistic. This anticipated growth is set by the governor, who establishes the revenue estimate every year. By law, the legislature has to base the state budget off the governor’s revenue estimate. If revenues come in under that estimate, it’s the legislature’s job to go back and cut spending further. The governor derives his estimate from projections by the state economist, who has said we can expect to see growth by the middle of this year. While this is positive news, that revenue growth is already spoken for by the increase in Georgia’s student population and rising health care costs. If Washington has its way, the growth in Medicaid rolls is sure to eat up a significant portion of additional
revenue the state has to spare. That is why conservative principles are so important in budgeting, and balancing a fiscally responsible budget is what Senate Republicans are committed to doing. This is one of the best ways to create an economic environment in Georgia that creates jobs and gets people back to work. In the coming weeks we’ll continue working to balance the budget, and I’ll continue fighting for those conservative principles that help make our state the economic engine of the South. #### Sen. Chip Pearson serves as chairman of the Economic Development Committee. He represents the 51st Senate District which includes Dawson, Fannin, Gilmer, Lumpkin, Pickens, and Union counties and portions of Forsyth and White counties. He may be reached at 404.656.9221 or via e-mail at chip.pearson@ senate.ga.gov.
musical, political and sports memorabilia.  There will also be an opportunity to have your pictures taken with Ronald Reagan. Tickets for the dinner are $10 for adults and $5 for children. Proceeds from the event will be used for the Reagan Memorial Scholarship presented to two high school seniors from a public, private, or home school in Union County. A private reception with Martha Zoller and the
candidates will be held at 5 pm and costs $50. The dinner will be a great opportunity to honor the memory of our fortieth President Ronald Reagan and meet the new face of the Union County Republican Party and learn how to become involved. For information on the Reagan Day Dinner visit uniongop.org or call David at 706-781-1013.
Budget: Continued from page 1A
tention of balancing the budget on the backs of our students. Everyone is being asked to share the burden, and it is important that the university system prioritize its spending cuts. Another option that’s available to plug the budget gap is updating user fees. Many of these are outdated and were set as far back as 1967. We’ll look at adjusting fees across three dimensions: updating them to current levels by accounting for inflation, covering costs and keeping them in line with other southeastern states. When we start cutting the budget to the bone, it’s important to look at other areas of government that can supplement those reductions and allow us to continue funding essential services. Again, these are simply options that are on the table. No final decisions have been made, and we are still awaiting February’s revenue numbers before setting anything in stone. Last year, February was the worst month on record for
Reagan: Continued from page 1A
Maria Sheffield, Lee Hawkins, Gerry Purcell, Chris Cates, Bert Loftman, Doug MacGinnitie, Ralph Hudgens, Bill Stephens, Tom Knox, Melvin Everson,and many more. There will be a straw poll held at the dinner for all of the offices on the ballot in July’s primary. This will be the first straw poll of 2010 and the eyes of Georgia will be focused on the poll results. There will be a silent auction of
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GEORGIA SENTINEL ‡ 7KXUVGD\ 0DUFK
C A L E NDA R U n i o n :  U p c o m i n g  E v e n t s UG Hospital Auxiliary to host a Gold Buying Event on Tuesday, February 23rd from Noon to 7:00pm at the Union General Hospital in Blairsville. Go through your jewelry box and pull out all the old pieces you no longer wear—broken chains, a single earring, out of style earring jackets, class ring, a forgotten boyfriend ring or pendant, an old gold watch (doesn’t matter if it works) and bring it to the hospital. Southeast Gold Buyers will determine if its 10K, 14K
or 18K and you can trade it for current market prices and get PAID on the spot!!!! Southeast Gold Buyers will be making a GRQDWLRQ WR EHQHĂ€W WKH +RVSLWDO DQG 1XUVing Home Special Needs and to provide scholarship for local medical students. For more information on this event, please contact Pat Cook at 706 781-1908 or email xpcook@windstream.net
Grassroots group
Will be meeting on February 11th at 6:30 P.M. at the Civic Center. Advocacy discussions will be conducted. Jeff Langley candidate for 'LVWULFW $WWRUQH\ ZLOO GLVFXVV WKH RIĂ€FH -HUHP\
Jones candidates for 9th District will discuss the grassroots efforts and his campaign. Please bring non-perishable food for the 9th district food bank. Contact 706/745-7201.
Free native plant symposium
February 20, 9am-3pm at NC Arboretum, Asheville, presented by NC Native Plant Society. Ed Schwartzman, NCDENR, Natural HerLWDJH 3URJUDP SUHVHQWV RQ Ă RUD RI 1DQWDKDOD River; Scott Dean, WNC Naturally, on Great 6PRN\ 0RXQWDLQV 1DWLRQDO 3DUN ZLOGĂ RZHU hike and many other presentations. Brought to you by Gardens of The Blue Ridge & Carolina
U n i o n :  R e c u r r i n g   E v e n t s SUPPORT Road to Recovery
Are you a cancer patient? Do you need a ride to and from your treatment sessions? A lack of transportation should not be the reason why cancer patients do not receive the life-saving cancer treatment they need. The American Cancer Society offers their Road to Recovery program to help transport cancer patients to and from their treatment. The Society has a toll-free number that you may call, and an operator will put you in touch with local volunteers that give cancer patients without personal transportation rides to and from their cancer treatment sessions. Give them a call at 1-800-ACS-2345.
Man to Man
Prostate Cancer Support Group—3rd Monday of every month from 5:00-6:30 p.m. at The Cancer Treatment Center Auditorium, 750 Deep South Road, Blairsville.
Parkinson’s support
Our group meets at 3 p.m. on the 2nd Wednesday of each month in the conference room of the Union County Public Library. For further information contact Paula Wilde at (706) 745- 6594 or Peter and Helen Schultze at (706) 745-9171.
Alcoholics mous
Anony-
Blairsville group meets every Monday and Wednesday night at 8 p.m. and Saturday mornings at 8 a.m. at the Mountain Presbyterian Church on Hwy. 515. For more information call 706-994-4462.
T.O.P.S.
TOPS (Take Pounds Off Sensibly) support group is moving to a new location at Zion United Methodist Church, 4812 Young Harris Hwy. Time weigh in 5:00; meeting starts at 5:30. Come join us to learn how to lose weight the sensible way. Membership fee of $24 includes monthly magazine subscription. Monthly awards and contests, weekly programs on nutrition and health. For more information call Sandy at 706-835-1607.
Morning Group
Coffee
Regency Hospice announces Men’s Morning Coffee Group at Mary Ann’s Restaurant. For men who have a lost spouse, partner, or experienced other losses and would like to share with other men, please join us on Tuesday at 10 a.m. We meet the first and third Tuesday morning of each month. For more information call Suzanne Repp, Bereavement Counselor at Regency Hospice in Hiawassee, Ga., at 800-577-8791.
Cancer Group
Support
At the United Community Bank in Hayesville, N.C. Patients, families and friends are all welcome to attend. United Community Bank is located at the corner of Hwy. 64 and Hwy. 69. Meeting time is 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. The group will meet twice a month (on the 2nd and 4th Mondays). For more information, please call Janet Curns evenings at 828-3890295.
Mourning to Joy
GriefShare is a Biblically-based weekly support group for people grieving the death of someone close. It’s a place where you can be around people who understand how you feel and the pain of your loss. At GriefShare, you’ll learn valuable information that will help you through this difficult time in your life. A GriefShare group meets every Tuesday, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. starting September 1, at All Saints Lutheran Church in Blairsville. Call 706 745-7777 for more information.
ACTIVITIES GWRRA meets
Chapter J of the Gold Wing Road Riders Association (GWRRA) meets the fourth Saturday of each month at Daniel’s Steakhouse, Hiawassee, GA. We eat at 11 AM followed by the meeting at 12:00 during which rides and other activities are announced and discussed. We encourage current members of the GWRRA and anyone interested in becoming a member to join us. All motorcyclists are welcome and we look forward to seeing participants from other chapters. There are great rides coming up and we hope many of you will join us. For further information, contact Chapter Director, June Gottlieb, 706-8967403
Tri-State Women
Formerly known as Business Women of Blairsville, the Tri-State Business Women is an organization of entrepreneurial women in Georgia, North Carolina and Tennessee who own and operate their own businesses and are a positive force in the community. Their vision and mission is to support one another in continuing success through networking and marketing. If you are a woman in business in the area, there is a place for you to receive support, gain leads, and spread the word about your practice or business in the area. Meetings are held every Tuesday of the month at 8 a.m. at Grinds N Glazes in Blairsville. For more information, please contact Susanne Johnson, President, at 706-781-1678 or Cathy Wheeler at 706781-1050.
Ga. Mtn. Writers Club
We meet 10 a.m. to noon the second Wednesday of the month at the St. Francis of Assisi Catholic church on the Young Harris Highway. We have no membership dues or electHG RIÀFHUV DQG PHHW WR VKDUH RXU ZULWLQJV and provide helpful criticism, inspiration, motivation and encouragement to each other. Everyone is welcome. You do not have to be a writer - just visit and enjoy listening to readings and discussion. You will be entertained – and maybe acquire a new interest. Call for information: Larry Casey at 781-6636 or Ellie Dobson at 745-0678. Knights of Columbus, North Georgia Council Knights of Columbus, North Georgia Council, monthly meeting is on the second Thursday of the month and meets 7:30 p.m. at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in Blairsville. All active members are invited to attend the meeting and social hour.
and Drums bagpipe band is offering free instruction to all who want to learn how to play the Great Highland Bagpipe or learn Regimental Drumming. The band meets each Saturday from 9:30 a.m. to 12 noon in the Parish Hall of Saint Clare’s Episcopal Church for instruction and practice. For further information, please call 706-835-9071 or 706-745-3526.
Young Harris Al Anon
The Young Harris Al Anon Family Group will meet at 12 Noon every Tuesday in Young Harris, Ga., at Sharp Memorial United Methodist Church, Room 105. For more information, please call 706-781-3158.
Just 4 hours a week can make a big difference in caring for abandoned and abused animals. Just 4 hours to walk dogs. Just 4 hours to groom dogs or cats. Just 4 house to clean the cattery. Just 4 hours to transport dogs and/or cats to the vet. If you have just 4 hours a week to volunteer your time and energy, please contact Castaway Critters at 706-7813992 or call Martha at 706-379-2729.
Trout Unlimited
Trout Unlimited meets the 2nd Thursday of each month at Cadence Bank conference room in Blairsville at 7:00 p.m. For more information, please call Marcus Tuschel at 706-835-9010.
Experimental Aircraft Association
The Experimental Aircraft Association - local tri-state EAA Chapter #1211 meets the third Thursday, 7 p.m. of each month at Blairsville airport. For more information, contact Jim Olson at 828-557-2446.
Guild meets on the 2nd Wed. of each month from 9:45 until 2:00 at the ShootLQJ &UHHN &RPPXQLW\ &HQWHU ÀUH VWDtion) in NC. Refreshments are served and a business meeting is held before a weaving project is presented. For more information, contact Joan (Guild president) at 706-896-1534.
UC Republican Party
The Union County Republican Party holds its monthly meetings on the third Saturday of each month at Victoria’s Sweet Shop. Meetings begin at 9am and have an optional breakfast for $6. More information can be found at www.uniongop.org.
Tri-State Women
Business
Women business owners in the tri-state area are welcome to attend and join our weekly meeting every Tuesday at 8am. Meetings are held at the Blairsville Restaurant with breakfast available to those interested. Come and see how women are making an impact as leaders in our community. For more information visit www. tri-statebusinesswomen.com.
Republican Women of Union County
The RWUC meets the fourth Tuesday of each month at 7pm. Meetings are held in the Brackett Room at the United Community Bank. For more information visit www.RepublicanWomenOfUnion.org.
MOPS
"Blairsville Mothers of Preschoolers will meet February 18th at the First Baptist Church of Blairsville from 6-8pm. Join us as marriage counselors Phil and Mary Mason answer all your relationship questions and offer tips on keeping the SIZZLE in your marriage! MOPS is open to mothers of children birth-Kindergarten. To make a reservation IRU FKLOGFDUH SOHDVH FDOO WKH FKXUFK RIĂ€FH DW 706-745-2469. Visit us at www.mops.org for more information!"
Union General Hospital Auxiliary
more information about joining the Club or becoming a HAM, call Don Deyton at 706-781-6665. Amateur license testing will be held on December 7th in Blairsville at 310 Welborn Street, Blairsville, GA. Contact Bob Ochs at 706-838-4728 for more information.
DAR Meeting
The December meeting of the Old Unicoi Trail Chapter of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution will be held at the Big Springs meeting room at The Oaks in Hiawassee, GA, Saturday, December 12th, 2009, at 10:15 AM. OUTDAR members will tell about their memories of celebrating Christmas in other countries. Members will also KROG D &UDIWV DQG %DNH 6DOH WR EHQHĂ€W club chapter projects. If you are interested in learning more about DAR, an organization for women who have Revolutionary War patriots in their family history, contact Eloise Wolfersteig, Regent, 706-379-2533. Old Unicoi Trail Chapter serves Towns, Union, and Fannin Counties. The Old Unicoi Trail homepage is found online at http://oldunicoitrail.georgiastatedar.org.
Computer Club
The Mountain Computer User Group Will meets in November on TUESDAY at 7 PM in the Goolsby Center, Young Harris College. Please note this is a change from our normal meeting date. At this time we will be presenting a program on all the new technologies that you can expect to get for Christmas. Come join us as we travel into the land of new technology. You might just get a glimpse of what Santa has in store for you at Christmas this year. Don’t forget we are meeting on Tuesday, November 10th. at 7 PM and not on Monday as we normally do. We will start the evening with our usual Q&A session. Come and join us for a lively session that is bound to increase your computer knowledge. Our Q&A session begins at 6 PM. Bring a friend and join us for the evening, you’ll be glad you did.
Union County Republican Party
will be holding its monthly meeting on Saturday, January 16th at 9:00 am at Victoria’s Sweet Shop at 2386 Young Harris Highway, Blairsville. A buffet breakfast for $6 will be available and is optional. Everyone is invited to attend and meet FDQGLGDWHV IRU VWDWHZLGH RIÀFHV 6SHDNers this month are: Max Wood, running for Attorney General - By way of Presidential appoint-
is hosting a gold buying fundraiser on Tuesday, February 23rd from Noon to 7:00pm at the Union General Hospital in Blairsville. Go through your jewelry box and pull out all the old pieces you no longer wear—broken chains, a single earring, out of style earring jackets, class ring, a forgotten boyfriend ring or pendant, an old gold watch (doesn’t matter if it works) and bring it to the hospital. Southeast Gold Buyers will determine if its 10K, 14K or 18K and you can trade it for current market prices and get PAID on the spot!!!! Southeast Gold Buyers will be making a 20% GRQDWLRQ WR EHQHÀW WKH +RVSLWDO DQG 1XUVLQJ Home Special Needs and to provide scholarship for local medical students. For more information on this event, please contact Pat Cook at 706 781-1908 or email xpcook@windstream.net.
ment, Max Wood served as the United States Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia beginning in 2001. He served as the Chief Prosecutor and law enforcePHQW RIĂ€FHU IRU WKH 8QLWHG 6WDWHV LQ WKH 70 county Middle District of Georgia. This district includes the cities of Athens, Macon, Columbus, Albany and Valdosta. 0DULD 6KHIĂ€HOG VHHNLQJ WKH RIĂ€FH RI Insurance Commissioner - She is a conservative running to serve Georgia as Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner. Pro Fair Tax, Pro Gun, and Pro Life. Doug MacGinnitie, candidate for Secretary of State Candidate - Doug believes the key to creating jobs during the current recession is a focus on small business.“More than 75 percent of jobs that are created in this kind of recession are created at the small business level,â€? he said. “If you care about jobs in the state, then you should care about small business.â€?. Melvin Everson, running for Labor Commissioner - Republican Melvin Everson has developed a reputation for strong, conservative leadership as a State Representative from Gwinnett County. Prior to being elected to the State Legislature, he was elected City Councilman in Snellville twice. Everson has made a difference for those he has served at both the local and state level. He served 23 years in the military before retiring in 1999. Additional information may be obtained at www.uniongop.org or by calling 706-781-1013.
Patriots County
of
Union
Church Saved by Grace Full Gospel Church will be having a All Weekend Service on Saturday, February 20thSunday February 21st. Saturday, February 20th Services will be at 10 a.m. until ?, Saturday evening 7 p.m. to ? Sunday Morning Service begins at 10 a.m. all day food and refreshments will be served on Sunday. The church is located on Burnt Schoolhouse Ridge Road. Everyone is invited to attend. Reverend Shannon Burrell. For more information contact Mary Jane Kitchens 828-389-4180
The Patriots of Union County meet on the second Thursday of each month at 6:30 P.M. at the Civic Center (next to Steve's Steak House). 185 Wellborn St. This is a non-partisan group and everyone is invited. The meetings will feature discussions on Constitutional rights, state's rights, right to bear arms, Fair Tax, border security, energy dependence and more. A canned and non-perishable food drive will be held in conjunction with the meeting for the 9th District Food Bank For more information call: 706-7457201
Auto Club
The next meeting of the Good Neighbors Auto Club will be on Thursday, January 21st, starting at 7:30 PM. Meeting to be held at Brothers Restaurant in Murphy, NC . All meetings are open to the public and are held on the third Thursday of each month.
Mountain Community Seniors meets second Thursday each month at Senior Center in Hiawassee at 2:00 P.M.. We invite and welcome all Mountain Seniors from Towns, Union and Clay Counties to join us. We have Music, ,QIRUPDWLYH VSHDNHUV SLFQLFV DQG ÀHOG trips. On Thursday Feb. 11th We have Roy Perrin, Principal of Towns County High School who will give us his very entertaining rendition of Elvis. Light refreshments served. Do come join us.
Fannin:   Upcoming  Events MOAA
The Blue Ridge Mountains Chapter of WKH 0LOLWDU\ 2IĂ€FHUV $VVRFLDWLRQ RI $PHULca (MOAA) meets the third Monday of each month at various area restaurants. All active duty, National Guard, reserve, retired, former military, Public Health Service, NOAA RIĂ€FHUV ZDUUDQW RIĂ€FHUV DQG VXUYLYLQJ spouses are invited to attend. For information please contact one of the following individuals, in North Carolina: Jim Ferrell at 828-335-9203, and in Georgia: John Quinlan at 706-896-2430, or visit www.moaa.org/chapter/blueridgemountains.
Community Prayer Meeting
This Thursday, February 11,2010 a community prayer meeting will be held at WKH )DQQLQ &RXQW\ (07 RIĂ€FH V Ă DJSROH downtown, Blue Ridge at noon. Everyone is invited to attend as we continue to pray for our nation'sand community's leaders and true repentance for our country. Please come and support our efforts as we join with RWKHUV WR NHHS WKH SUD\HU Ă DPH DOLYH $Q\ questions please contact : Lydia Long 706374-4750
Worth Considering A thought for today
Mothers of Preschoolers
0236 ,QWHUQDWLRQDO D QRQ SURĂ€W mothering organization, creates communities and resources to help make "better moms who make a better world." A MOPS group is a place where moms can come-just as they are-to build friendships, receive mothering support, practical help and spiritual hope. Join us - because better moms, make a better world! Visit us at www.MOPS.org Mothers of Preschoolers meets on the Third Thursday of each month in the new fellowship hall at First Baptist Church of Blairsville from 6-8pm. Call the church RIĂ€FH DW IRU PRUH LQIRUPDtion or email us at mopsofblairsville@ gmail.com.
“If  I  have  seen  further  than  others, it  is  by  standing  upon  shoulders  of  giants.�           -Sir  Isaac  Newton  (1642-1727)
Smokie Mountain Mountain High Hik- Melodies Smokie Mountain Melodies is a ladies ers Schedule barbershop-style chorus whose members Mountain High Hikers schedule two hikes each Tuesday, occasionally specialty hike, and regular trail maintaining trips- all in the beautiful mountains of North Carolina and Georgia. Check the web site: MountainHighHikers.org for schedule and meeting locations or call 828-389-8240 for information.
Club Bereavement Sup- Kiwanis The Kiwanis Club of Blairsville is dedito serving and supporting young port Group - Meet- cated people in the immediate area around Blairsville through numerous projects. ing Changes The Kiwanis Club meets at the Cobb’s Welcome to a community bereavement support group. A place to share your thoughts and feelings and grow together with others who have experienced the loss of a loved one. First Thursday of every month at United Community Bank, Small Community Room, Blairsville from 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. We will only meet once per month. Facilitator: Suzanne Repp, LCSW. The group is presented by Regency Hospice and is free of charge. Please call 1-800577-8791 or 706-896-1251 for more information.
Just 4 Hours
Shooting Creek BasWeavers Guild Business ket The Shooting Creek Basket Weavers
Narcotics Anonymous Weekly MeetBagpipe Instruction ings List The Appalachian Saint Andrew’s Pipes Mondays - 7 p.m. 12-Step meeting at Union County Annex Building located at 71 Hospital Street. This is an open meeting. Union County Anti-Drug Coalition Tuesdays - 4 p.m. Open discussion meeting at Towns County Avita Community Partners. Meet at 1100 Jack Dayton Circle, Young Harris, Ga. Tuesdays - 7 p.m. Discussion meeting at Union County Annex Building & New Hope Counseling at 71 Hospital St. Wednesdays - 6 p.m. Open discussion meeting at Union County Avita Community Partners. 41 Hospital St., Suite 100, Blairsville. Fridays - 8 p.m. Open discussion meeting at Union County Annex & New Hope Counseling, 71 Hospital St. All the meetings are open & anyone can attend. For more information regarding any of these meetings, please call 706-897-9775, 706-896-6263 or 706745-4066.
from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30p.m. at the Senior Center in Blairsville. No matter if you just started playing the dulcimer or if you are experienced, come join us for a good time playing your favorite songs and learning new songs. For more information, please contact LaDale at 706-835-1688 or raydale@windstream.net. Hope to see you at our next meeting!
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Mill restaurant in Blairsville at 12:00 Noon each Monday. Come join in the fun with us. For more information, contact President Charlie Krick at (706)7816793.
DAV
The Disabled American Veterans meet monthly on the second Monday of each month at noon in the Old Nursing Home, Room 116, in Blairsville. Please join them.
Club 180 for Teens
Join us on Fridays at 6:30 p.m. for fellowship, fun and snacks at Choestoe Baptist Church, 4455 Choestoe Church Rd., located south of Blairsville off Hwy. 129 and Hwy. 180. For more information and directions, please call the church at 706745-6370.
Mountain Sounds Your Journey from Dulcimer Club
We meet every 2nd & 4th Tuesday
FRPH IURP ÀYH FRXQWLHV LQ 1RUWK *HRUJLD and Western North Carolina. As a chapter of Sweet Adelines International, the chorus is committed to a goal of advancing the musical art form of barbershop harmony through education and performances. Smokie Mountain Melodies meets every Tuesday night at 6:30 at the First United Methodist of Union County in Blairsville, Georgia located at 859 Highway 515. Any women who have a love of singing are welcome to join. For more information call the Director, Phyllis Baker at 706-379-3836.
Forming Gourmet Dinner Club
6KDUH VXSHUE GLQQHUV ZLWK RWKHU ÀQH dining connoisseurs, must have some gourmet cooking skills and room to host candle light, sit down dinners in your home. Full time and part time residents welcome. Hiawassee and Young Harris. Limited membership. Call Diane 706835-5007
Amateur Radio
Attention HAMs and anyone interested in Amateur Radio The North Georgia Tri-State A.R.C. (Amateur Radio Club) meetings are KHOG RQ WKH ÀUVW 7XHVGD\ RI HDFK PRQWK DW 7 p.m. at Branan Lodge in Blairsville. All of our meetings are open to the public. Our next meeting is to be held December 1st and will begin with a special technical session on Amatuer Radio Emergency 6HUYLFH $5(6 DQG PRUH VSHFLÀFDOO\ WKH Tarheel Network in North Carolina. For
I  think  of  teachers. They  provide  shoulders  for  others  to  stand  upon. Every  noted  doctor,  inventor,  musician,  writer,  scientist,  physicist,  philosopher,  political  leader,  agriculturist,  theologian,  professor  and  every  other  person  whose  work  has  made  a  difference  had  teachers  who  spurred  them  on  to  greatness.                             -Ethelene  Dyer  Jones
7KXUVGD\ 0DUFK ‡ GEORGIA SENTINEL Page 5A
CO M MUN I T Y Tributes Harold John Williams
Mr.Harold John Williams age 76 of Lake Vista Drive Blairsville passed away on Thursday March 4,2010 following an extended illness.Mr.Williams was born on September 26,1933 in Detroit,MI.,the son of the late John Williams and the late Lenna Singer Williams.Mr.Williams retired as captain from the West Palm Beach Fire Department after over twenty three years of service.He was a veteran of the US Air Force.He was preceded in death by a son,Ricky Williams in 2005.Mr.Williams was of the Methodist faith. Surviving Mr.Williams are his loving wife of fifty six years,Tawana Lemons Williams of Blairsville,two sons and one daughter in law,Jeffrey and Laiying Williams of Sylvan Lake,MI.,John Williams of
Gloria Crump Sasser
Mrs. Gloria Crump Sasser, age 72, of Blairsville, Georgia, passed away Tuesday, March 2, 2010 in Union General Hospital in Blairsville. Mrs. Sasser was born in Forrest, Illinois, on Wednesday, March 17, 1937, a daughter of the late Hersel Crump and the late Alethia Saxton Crump. Mrs. Sasser moved to Blairsville from Sarasota, Florida in 1986. She attended New Union Baptist Church. Gloria loved camping and fly fishing; and she enjoyed sewing and was very good at it. Gloria was also an avid reader. Besides her parents, she was preceded in death by a sister, Shirley Patterson. Surviving family members include her husband, James "Jim" Sasser, of Blairsville; daughter and sonin-law, Sandra and Darryl Watson of Port Charlotte, Florida; and daughter and son-in-law, Terri and Bob Palmer, of Orlando, Florida; Step-Son, Dennis Sasser, and his wife, Beth, of Ft. Green, Florida; Step-son, Henry Sasser, of Bradenton, Florida; sister, Lois Stew-
Jack Ray
Mr.Jack Ray age 90 of Mocking Bird Lane Blairsville passed away on Saturday March 6, 2010 at his home following an extended illness.Mr.Ray was born on Feb.23,1920 in Cordele,GA.,the son of the late Richard Carsey Ray and the late Nannie McKinney Ray.He was a veteran of the US Navy of WWII.He was a longtime member of the VFW and also had served as Mayor of Jeffersonville,GA.He was preceded in death by his parents and also by four brothers.He was a loving husband,father,brother,grandfather and great grandfather.Mr.Ray was of the Baptist faith. Surviving Mr.Ray are his loving wife of sixty eight years,Betty York Ray of Blairsville,two
James Mack Guffey
Mr.James’’Mack�Guffey age 72 of Young Harris St.Blairsville passed away on Sunday March 7,2010 in the Chatuge Regional Nursing Home following an extended illness.Mr.Guffey was born on March 2,1938 in Union County,the son of the late Lloyd Guffey and the late Minnie Jordon Guffey. Mr.Guffey was a native and lifelong resident of Union County.He loved hunting and fishing and spending time with his best friend Blaze his dog.He was preceded in death by his first wife,Jean Hughes in 2008 and by his second wife,Evelyn Louise Thomas March 3,2010.Mr.Guffey was a member of Zebulon Baptist Church. Surviving Mr.Guffey are three sons and two daughter in laws,Gary and Denise Guffey of Hiawassee,Greg Guffey of Young Harris,Chris and Shelly Guffey of Young Harris,step daughter,Pam Young,two sisters,Sharon Poulos and Ellen Kirby both
William Ralph Jones
Mr.William Ralph Jones age 93 of Ralph Jones Rd.Blairsville passed away on Sunday Feb.28,2010 in the Union County Nursing Home following an extended illness. Mr.Jones was born on Dec.24,1916 in Union County,the son of the late John Martin Jones and the late Ader Cavender Jones.He was a native and lifelong resident of Union County.He was a veteran of the US Army of WWII.Ralph was a loving husband,father and grandfather.He was preceded in death by a son in law,Jim McCarter,two brothers,Dewy and Jewell Jones,four sisters,Cordie Bell Smith,Imogene Kile,Claudine Jones and Birdell Jones.Mr.Jones was of the Baptist faith. Surviving Mr.Jones are his loving wife,Agnus Irene Combs Jones of Blairsville,son and daughter in law,Bill and Jean Jones of Blairsville,daughters,Janice Erwin of Blairsville,Lillian McCarter of Blairsville,son and daughter in law,Donald and Bonnie Jones of Blairsville,Ronald and Sheila Jones of Blairsville,ten grandchildren,Nicole Queen,Jessica Erwin,Jonathan
Willa Mull
Mrs. Willa Mull, age 83, of Belton, SC passed away Friday, February 26, 2010 in Anderson, SC.  Mrs. Mull was born on Sunday, December 5, 1926 in Cherokee County, NC, to Ganes and Vada Ledford Ballew. She was a member of Macedonia Baptist (Wolf Creek) Church. She was preceded in death by husband, J.E. Mull; her parents; brothers, Clarence Ballew, and Winford Ballew; sisters, Jeanette Tankersley and Lena Denton. Survivors include: daughter, Cathy (Ronnie) Lawson of Belton, SC, son, J. B. (Barbara) Mull of Cleveland, TN, granddaughter, Tracy DorÊ, grandson, Ron
St.Augustine,FL.,one sister,Shirley Carroll of Rock Hill,SC.,four grandchildren,Brittney,Amanda,Saman tha and Bailey,many other relatives and friends also survive. A memorial service will be held on Sunday March 7,2010 at 5:00pm from the Mountain View Funeral Home with the Rev.Harold Savage officiating.In lieu of flowers if you wish,the family requests that memorials may be made to St.Jude Children’s Hospital in memory of Mr.Williams. Mountain View Funeral Home of Blairsville in charge of the arrangements.You may sign the family guest book and send condolences on line at www. mountainviewfuneralhome.com art, of San Diego, California; and a brother, James Crump, of Le canto, Florida; granddaughters: Tammy Whidden and Nikki Palmer; grandson, David Palmer; step-granddaughter, Randi Sasser; and step-grandsons, Anthony Sasser and Jimmy Sasser. Funeral services were held Friday, March 5, 2010, at 2:00 p.m., at New Union Baptist Church, with Rev. Harrison Bradley and Mrs. Sasser was eulogized by Dennis Sasser. Mrs. Sasser was instate at the church starting at 1:30 on Friday, prior to the funeral service. Special music was presented by New Union Baptist Church Choir, Dennis Abbott, Charles Abbott, and Lita Gowder. Burial took place in the church cemetery.  Visitation at the funeral home was held on Thursday evening, March 4, 2010, from 7 until 9 p.m. Arrangements entrusted to Cochran Funeral Home - Blairsville Chapel. Please send condolences and sign the guest registry at www.cochranfuneralhomes. com. daughters and one son in law,Jackie and George Law of Murfreesboro,TN.,Betty Sue Loflin of Blairsville,one brother,Warren Harold Ray of Valdosta,GA.,five grandchildren,eleven great grandchildren,several nieces,nephews,many other relatives and friends also survive. Funeral services will be held on Tuesday March 9,2010 at 2:00pm from the Mountain View Chapel with the Rev.Waymon Lovell officiating.The family will meet with friends at the funeral home on Tuesday from 1-2pm. Mountain View Funeral Home of Blairsville in charge of the arrangements.You may sign the family guest book and send condolences on line at www. mountainviewfuneralhome.com
Novalee Potts Nation
Mrs.Novalee Potts Nation age 93 of Branan Lodge Blairsville passed away on Thursday March 4, 2010 in the Union County Nursing Home following a brief illness. Mrs.Nation was born on Oct.18,1916 in Union County,the daughter of the late Henley Potts and the late Della Shope Potts.She was a native and lifelong resident of Union County.She was preceded in death by her husband,John Henry Nation,Son,James Junior Nation a daughter,Della Mae Shelton and a brother,Rev.Horace Potts.She was a loving mother,sister,grandmother and great grandmother. Mrs.Nation was a member of Fair View Baptist Church. Surviving Mrs.Nationtwo daughters and one son in law,Willie K .Grindle of Lawrenceville,GA.,Shelby and Bill Ledford of Blairsville,five sons and four daughter in laws,Wayne and Hazel Nation of Blairsville,GA.,Johnny and Lois Nation of Murphy,Herbert and Karen Nation of McDonough,GA.,Gerald Nation of Blairsville,Benny
and Jerri Nation of Dahlonega,sister in law,Iva Potts of Blairsville,eighteen grandchildren,forty great grandchildren,four great-great grandchildren,many other relatives and friends also survive. Funeral services will be held on Saturday March 6,2010 at 2:00pm from the Mountain View Chapel with the Rev.Jerry Helton and Rev.Luke Durden officiating. Special music will be presented by Troy Dyer and Craig Stephens.T he following gentleman will serve as pallbearers,Herbert Nation Jr.,Joseph and Alan Grindle,Charles Wright,Eddie Nation and Jeremy Durden.Serving as honorary pallbearers will be, Austin Nation,Doug Nation and David Harbin.Interment will follow in the Antioch Baptist Church Cemetery where she will rest next to her husband,Henry.T he family will meet with friends at the funeral home on Friday evening from 6-9pm. Mountain View Funeral Home of Blairsville in charge of the arrangements.You may sign the family guest book and send condolences on line at www. mountainviewfuneralhome.com
Healing Hands Community Clinic The Healing Hands Community Clinic hosted a CPR Saturday for its volunteer staff. Jack Harper, certified CPR instructor, graciously devoted his time and services for the event. The number of patients the clinic is now serving has increased and thus so has its needs. Dr Bryan Johnson, whose practice is located in Hiawassee, has served as our volunteer physician quite often and the clinic staff and patients would like to thank him for his compassion and willingness to serve. The clinic is in the process of filing for its tax-exempt status. Once received, this will open the door for the clinic to apply for and receive grant money and to be able
to receipt individuals and businesses for their donations. Look for the Healing Hands Community Clinic donation jars throughout the community, as the clinic is need of funds to complete the 501c application fee and for its medication assistance fund. The clinic provides general healthcare to adults and children over the age of two who are uninsured, not eligible for Medicade or Medicare and whose income is less than 200% of the federally defined poverty level. Patients should bring proof of income at the time of their visit -previous year’s tax return or recent proof of income statement. Clinic services include: General health care for chronic
and acute health conditions, other than chronic pain, narcotics, emergency treatment, pregnancy, or serious mental health illnesses. Medication assistance program – aiding patients to obtain medication from local pharmacies, or pharmaceutical companies when funds are available. Healthcare education. The clinic staff appreciates community support. Should you care to make a monetary contribution or donation of medical supplies/equipment, please contact the clinic at 706-994-6768. The clinic is open every Saturday from 9-12. They are located at 850 Bible Camp Circle directly behind House of Prayer Church on Pat Colwell Rd.
Growing your economic dependance
to know about how your SPLOST dollars are being invested wisely and how this project benefits everyone then you don’t want to miss the meeting. There will be a demonstration of how the canning process works. The canning process is a mystery to many, so come see how it happens from the raw ingredients, to a finished canned food product. The potential of a new culinary incubator could be a tremendous opportunity for many, as well as a great economic development tool for Union County. A Question & Answer session will conclude the presentation. Please try and join us at the canning plant on March 27th at 11:00 AM. The canning plant is located on Hughes St. behind the old Health Department Building. For further information please contact Brad Lester at (706)994-0582.
of Blairsville,one brother,Jack Guffey of Blairsville,ten grandchildren,three great grandchildren,several nieces,nephews,many other relatives and friends also survive. Funeral services will be held on Tuesday March 9,2010 at 11:00am from the Mountain View Chapel with the Rev.Gary Guffey and Rev.Jimmy Rogers officiating. The following gentleman will serve as pall bearers,Brian,Hogan,Jordan,Daniel and Andrew Guffey and William Young.Serving as honorary pallbearers will be Watson and Stacy Stephens and Kevin Russell.Interment will follow in the Old Union Baptist Church Cemetery.The family will meet with friends at the funeral home on Monday evening after 6:00pm. Mountain View Funeral Home of Blairsville in charge of the arrangements.You may sign the family Have you ever wanted to know the cannery. guest book and send condolences on line at www. how the canning process works? We will be discussing the old mountainviewfuneralhome.com Do you want to reduce household & proposed new cannery as well Jones,Tiffany Ringenberg,Sheena Jones,Shauna expenses? Do you have an inter- as the possibility of a culinary inJones,Kile Jones,Blake Cunningham,Isaac Jones est in starting your own culinary cubator in our future. It will start and Emily Jones,five great grandchildren,many business? If you answered yes to with the history of our current any of these questions then you cannery. This will lead into what other relatives and friends also survive. Funeral services will be held on Thurs- won’t want to miss the community plans have been made for the proday March 4,2010 at 11:00am from the meeting Saturday March 27th at posed new cannery. If you want Mountain View Chapel with the Rev.Jerry Helton and Rev.Tony Black officiating. Special music will be presented the Kelley What a great relief for Trio.The following gentleman will serve as pallbearers,Jonathan Jones,Donald Jones,Leslie Lions of Georgia and especially Groves,John Hill,Benny Erwin,Michael for Lions of District 18-D here in Ringenberg,Matt Queen and James Jones.Serving as North Georgia when the Dacula honorary pallbearers will be Kile,Blake and Isaac.In- Lions Club do Dacula, Georgia terment will follow in the Mt.Pleasant Baptist Church was recently chartered. TwentyCemetery will the North GA.Honor Guard conduct- one new Lions made history this ing military honors.The family will meet with friends special night as Charter Memat the funeral home on Wednesday evening from bers! Their sponsoring club was 6-9pm. the Snellville Lions of Snellville, Mountain View Funeral Home of Blairsville in Georgia. charge of the arrangements.You may sign the family The following Union County guest book and send condolences on line at www. Lions were privileged to be in mountainviewfuneralhome.com attendance at this celebration : Lawson, great granddaughter, Keegan  DorÊ, and President Lisa Little and Gene & Left to Right: President Lisa Little of Union County Lions Club, PresiLouise LIttle. Lion Gene is the Im- dent Scot Addes of new Dacula Lions Club, and UCL's Louise & gene great grandson, Dillon Lawson. Funeral services were held, March 1, 2010 at 1:00 mediate Past President of Union Little. PM from the Finch-Cochran Funeral Home Chapel County Lions Club. Lion Louise out for a coming news article of with Dr. Phil Byler and Rev. Paul Adams officiating. is the current Peace Poster Chair- tional. another new Lions Club to be Current 18-D District GoverMusic was provided by Mrs. Judy Byler. Pallbearers person. chartered! This only means that nor, Grace Clower, presented the were Wayne Harper, Mike Ballew, Glenn Tanner, TerThere were six Past District there will be opportunity for adCharter as well as the signing. Lion ry Satterfield, Billy Meese and Keith Roberson. Burial Governors present of which sevfollowed in the Copper Ridge Memorial Gardens. eral were also Past Council Chairs: John Pearce, PID, was the guest ditional service to those in need of Arrangement entrusted to Finch-Cochran Funeral current District Governor, as well speaker sand he was introduced by eye glasses & exams, eye surgery, hearing aides, and so much more! Home McCaysville, GA. www.cochranfuneral- as two who are also Past Interna- Lion Buddy Ouzts, PID. Lions Motto: "WE SERVE" Congratulations, Dacula Lions homes.com tional Directors of Lions InternaClub. By the way, be on the look-
New Lions Club for District 18-D
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GEORGIA SENTINEL ‡ 7KXUVGD\ 0DUFK
CO M MUN I T Y
S.A.F.E Column What to expect from 0-18 months
Mental Skills Children: r 3FNFNCFS QFPQMF BOE PCKFDUT that are not present r *NJUBUF PUIFS QFPQMF T GBDJBM FYQSFTsions, sounds, and actions r *NJUBUF XIBU UIFZ TFF PO 57 FWFO if they don’t understand what they are doing r 6OEFSTUBOE XIBU UIFZ IFBS CFGPSF they can speak r .BLF OPJTFT UP DPNNVOJDBUF XJUI others and to show satisfaction or displeasure r 3FDPHOJ[F UIFJS PXO OBNF r #FHJO UP FYQMPSF UIF FOWJSPONFOU touch and manipulate objects r -FBSO CZ JNJUBUJOH BOE PCTFSWJOH other people r 4IPX VOEFSTUBOEJOH PG XPSET GPS highly familiar objects r 6OEFSTUBOE BCPVU B EP[FO DPNmon phrases r #FHJO UP VTF NF * ZPV r 6OEFSTUBOE BOE DBO GPMMPX WFSZ simple instructions r )BWF WFSZ TIPSU BĨFOUJPO TQBOT Social Skills Children: r $SZ ĚBJM BSNT BOE MFHT XIFO JO pain, tired, hungry, cold, thirsty, wet, lonely or in a new situation and/or with new people r 4NJMF CBCCMF BOE DPP UP TIPX pleasure, joy, and excitement r 3FDPHOJ[F UIF EJĎFSFODF CFUXFFO familiar people and strangers r %FWFMPQ TUSPOH CPOET XJUI QFPQMF regularly caring for them, a parent or other adult and show anxiety when separated r "SF GSJFOEMZ UP GBNJMJBS QFPQMF BOE afraid of strangers r 3FDPHOJ[F EJTUSFTT PG PUIFST CZ showing distress and crying r &OKPZ BVEJFODF BOE BQQMBVTF r $BO QMBZ BMPOF GPS CSJFG QFSJPET PG time r #FDPNF BOHSZ XIFO GSVTUSBUFE r "SF BGSBJE PG TUSBOHFST BOE BSF XBSZ of unexpected situations Tips for Parents
r *G ZPVS CBCZ JT EJTUSFTTFE BOE DSJFT comfort him or her. This will not spoil your child. When babies cry, they need warm and gentle responses to feel secure and safe. This trust forms the foundation for your future relationship with your child. r %PO U QVOJTI B DSZJOH CBCZ #F QBtient; your baby is just trying to tell you that something is wrong. Harsh responses will frighten a baby and make things worse. r 1MBZ XJUI ZPVS DIJME FWFSZ EBZ Make fun playtime part of your time together. r 1SPWJEF UPZT UIBU BSF EFTJHOFE GPS your child’s age and are safe. r 5BML GSFRVFOUMZ UP ZPVS DIJME VTF simple direct words, and give positive instructions (Say “Let’s play with the rattle� instead of “Don’t play with the fork!) r 3FBE TJNQMF CPPLT UP ZPVS DIJME every day; those with familiar objects to stimulate language and communication. r *G QPTTJCMF SFEVDF TFQBSBUJPOT PS always have a familiar person caring for your child. r $SFBUF BOE NBJOUBJO EBJMZ SPVUJOFT to help your baby feel secure and build trust. 4 " ' & T 7JPMFODF 1SFWFOUJPO Program has many educational, research-based programs tailored to meet the needs of our community members. Our adult programs include Adults and Children Together "$5 "HBJOTU 7JPMFODF 4UPQ *U Now Georgia!, Darkness to Light, and the Men’s Program. Our youth programs include the Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies (PATHS), Choose Respect, Expect Respect, and Love is Not Abuse. For parents, we offer a weeknight parenting class. Please call Tracy Steely at 706-835-1637 if you would like to schedule a presentation for your school, youth group, or any type of community organization, or if you would like more information.
UNION
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March
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Marches On Time goes by so quickly, it can be easy to forget important deadlines and even easier to let critical items fall to the nether regions of your to-do list. Whether you get to everything or not, time marches on — so we’d like to share some March reminders with you. Tax Time is right around the corner. If you haven’t filed your tax return yet, now is the time. But before you begin, you should make sure you have everything you need. For example, if you plan to claim your children or any other dependents on your tax return, you’ll need to have a Social Security number for each individual. If you don’t already have a Social Security number for a dependant, you better get to it right away. Applications and evidence requirements are available online at www. socialsecurity.gov/ssnumber. Request your 1099 online. If you receive Social Security benefits and your total annual income is $25,000 or more for an individual or $32,000 or more for a couple, you may need to pay taxes on a portion of your Social Security benefits. If so, you’ll need your SSA-1099, which shows the total amount of benefits received in the previous year. All 1099s were mailed by January 31, 2010. If you receive Social Security and have not yet received a 1099 for 2009, you can request a replacement online at www.socialsecurity.gov/onlineservices. Easy as A, B, C. If you’re covered under Medicare Part A, but
PUBLISHER: Frank Bradley EDITOR: Bryan Hughes EDITORIAL ASSISTANT: Debbie Walker CIRCULATION: Debbie Walker BOOKKEEPING: Pat McCollum
originally opted not to apply for Medicare Part B, now’s the time to enroll in Part B. You’ll have to act fast, because the general enrollment period ends on March 31. Medicare Part A (hospital insurance) helps pay for inpatient care in a hospital or skilled nursing facility following a hospital stay, some home health care, and hospice care. Part B helps pay for doctors’ services and many other medical services and supplies not covered by hospital insurance. Learn more about Medicare by reading Social Security’s publication on the subject at www.socialsecurity.gov/ pubs/10043.html. A few minutes now can change your retirement for years. If you’re not already retired and receiving benefits, there’s no better time than the present to visit Social Security’s Retirement Estimator for an instant, personalized estimate of your future retirement benefits. Spend a few minutes trying out different scenarios to figure out what retirement options will work for you — and what plans you may want to make now to benefit you in the future. You can do it in minutes at www.socialsecurity.gov/ estimator. We can’t stop time from marching on, but taking some time out now to focus on these important reminders can save you a lot of time in the future. For more information about Social Security, visit us on the web at www.socialsecurity.gov. Â
Temporary, P/T & F/T positions now available. Census Takers Crew Leaders Crew Leader Assts. Recruiting Assts. Census Clerks
Census jobs offer: 9 Competitive Pay 9 flex hrs up to 40/wk 9 mileage reimbursement 9 work near home
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Worship at the Church of your choice Advertise Here
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Subject to our liberal credit policy and limitations, if any.
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Place your ad in our classifieds and reach thousands of North Georgia readers. Cost is only $5 for the first 10 words for one week in Union, Towns and Fannin Counties. Call (828) 389-8338
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#C?BJGLC DMP AJ?QQGcCBQ GQ ,MLB?W ?R N K JJ AJ?QQGcCBQ PCACGTCB ?DRCP RFGQ RGKC UGJJ @C NPGLRCB RFC DMJJMUGLE 3FSPQB?W 200 - Employment RV Campground Host Needed for Hiawassee. Must be able to do light chores Call Robbie 706-897-1041
300 - For Sale Gorgeous, soft green, Country French, distressed China Cabinet. Original Price $1,950.00 will sell for $475.00. I will be happy to e-mail pictures for anyone interested. Call 706-897-5728 2008 Jayco Feather for Sale : 19’9� Camper $12,799.00. Excellent condition, only used during travel one time. Have used where it sits 2 times. Have sway tow bar ( worth $400) , electronic brake adjuster, 12 ‘ x 9’ awning, full kitchen, gas stove/oven,microwave, cd/radio, shower ( inside and out) . Please contact ONLY if serious about looking at it, and possibly purchasing. It is located 2 miles south my home, in a rental space, so like I said please be serious if wanting to see/purchase it! Located south of Blairsville, just north of Vogel State Park. Queen bed, sofa folds down to a full sizes bed, Tires like new ( about 200 miles on them) e-mail me at : scottan59@yahoo.com if you would like photos Call 706-781-1748 For Sale Dining Room Table with 4 chair, handmade solid hardwood, asking $200 call 828735-1328
400 - Animals Happy Jack Mitex For ear mites in rabbits, dogs, or cats, ask for Happy Jack Mitex. Contains no IGR’s., Hiawassee Feed & Farm Supply ( 896-1319) www. happyjackinc.com
500 - Services
706-632-6266 eaglerestorationllc.com Cooking with Kara *NEW* The Hiawassee Health Hut, your natural grocer. 3243 Dogwood Lane Hiawassee GA. Open TuesdayFriday from 8-3 p.m. and Saturdays from 9-4. Saturday morning cooking classes from 11-1. For more information call Kara 828389-7044. Visit: www.Cooking with Kara.com A and R Landscape Residential and Commercial Lawn Care. Plant, tur f and grassing, lot clean-up, mulching and retaining walls. 706-994-2457 Tile installer your tile or mine, 26 years experience have references and liability insurance. Ask for Don at 828-389-9394 D&L Painting & drywall INC. 1BJOUJOH 4UBJOJOH *OUFSJPS t &YUFSJPS t 3FTJEFOUJBM t $PNNFSDJBM %3:8"-- )BOH t 'JOJTI t 5FYUVSF all types of finishes & textures 100% Quality Driven. Free Estimates cell: 828-508-5270 office(1): 828-321-2111 office(2): 828-479-4052 Massage Therapy- in the comfort of your home. Licensed and insured. 18 years experience, call Gerri; 1 hour $40; Half hour $25; 706-896-6108. Housing Crisis hitting home? Payments straining your wallet? Call 877-835-8904 to lower your Mortgage payments. Walker Storage Corner of Old Highway 64 West and West Cherry Road. Convenient to Warne, NC. and Western Clay County. Variety of sizes. Concrete block Construction 828-389-4926 Hours 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Will baby sit your child or children: Any age. Reasonable rates.References available. Call 706-299-1614 Moving Sale: 4 piece bedroom set, Dining Table, sofa and love seat, Lamps, Some misc. items. Call 828-389-0859
AD Eagle Restoration, LLC., Staining and Pressure Cleaning.
5$13(2$ Your classified ?BTCPRGQCKCLR UGJJ @C QCCL GL 4LGML 3MULQ ?LB %?LLGL "MSLRGCQ all for one JMU NPGAC (828) 389-8338
700 - Miscellaneous
Paying cash for gold! Rings, necklaces, bracelets, watches, etc.In most cases, paying at least DOUBLE what any pawn shop will pay. Gold tested, weighed and you are paid on the spot! 706-896-1380Sell your Boat, RV. We bring the buyer to you. 1-866-4178291
800 - Wanted We buy junk, wrecked, rusted old cars and trucks. Call George 706-455-1129 Have any old Mac/Apple products just sitting around gathering dust? Donate old iPods and computers, even if they don’t work anymore, to Harrison by contacting hkeely@gmail.com. Wanted : Old Pinball Machines, Electro-mechanical, Call 828-389-6459
900 - Lost & Found Black and white Australian Shepherd lost on Gum Log near county line. Bob tail dog, no collar, male. Please call 706-8978150 or 706-781-3974.
990 - Real Estate House for Sale By Owner 2 Bedroom, 2 Bath, a sunroom, LR, DR, HWF, Many extras, Partially furnished. In beautiful Plantation Villa in Hiawassee, Georgia. Walk to Town, Walk to Lake $175,000.00 Call 706-400-8159
1000 - Rentals 2 Bedroom, 3 Bath Cabin with Mtn. views for rent. $850.00 a month, plus first month security deposit. 3 miles from Blairsville. All appliances,finished basement. 1-770-995-0184 Small lake house on Lake Chatuge with dock. 2BR/1BA, partialy furnished, $600 plus deposit. Annual lease, no smoking, no pets. Valerie 404-849-9010. Available January 9th. Mobile Home for Rent Two bedroom, one bath Mobile Home
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for rent in Hiawassee, Ga.,$125 per week or $400 per month, plus $200 Deposit. No Pets. Call 706-835-6561 Apartment for Rent in Hiawassee Specious, light, 1 bedroom, large bathroom. All appliances! Private covered deck! monthly $475.00 plus deposits 706-896-4988 or 706781-9917 Ridgeline Apartments Early Spring Special! Sit in your rockers and watch Spring Arrive from your front porch! 1 Bedroom, 1 Bath to 2 Bedrooms , 1 1/2 Bath from $495.00 per month with security deposit. Maintenance FREE! NO steps! FREE water & Trash disposal! All appliances included! “It’s time to move up to the Ridgeline Apartments! “3346 Highway 64 East, Hayesville, NC 828-389-1545
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The Green Column Motorcycle open house How can your green business sell to a public that does not understand the value? Educate your customer. If you use high pressure tactics to sell green, you will not succeed. Insulting your competitor by telling your client they are less green will not work. If your client understands why your service is valuable, how your product works, they will be more likely to purchase. Take for example a green home designer and planner. The customer needs to understand why he should pay for a green plan. Start with the fact that an energy efficient home must be designed as a system. By using the best combination of energy efficient ideas that fit the customers' lifestyle, budget, and work best on their building site, they can have much better results without spending as much. For example, a home that faces the warm, south winter sunshine would require a different design than one facing the cold, north wind. A home that faces the hot summer sun would require yet another design. A plan that focuses on the most important issues for that specific home can help the homeowner save much more energy costs without spending as much. The designer could conclude with examples of efficient homes, and how the extra money they spent on green
By RICHARD C . MACCREA Andrews Valley Initiative
planning was recovered in one year of reduced energy costs, and perhaps how the clients report that this is the most comfortable home they have ever lived in. That is how you educate your customer. How do you educate your customer before they meet you? By creating a marketing program that focuses on educating the public. Your company slogan, web site, signs, flyers, and advertisements should teach the same message. Research what your clients know. Ask previous clients what was most important to them. Write articles for your web site that teach these points. Use specific examples. The home designer might show completed projects, what was done, and how efficient these homes are. Other articles might discuss how a green home can be more comfortable, less costly, or more durable. Blogs are great for this. Attend a free class on how to
market your business using blogs March 15 at the Andrews Valley Initiative office Email mwilliams@ handmadeinamerica.org to register. When you meet with a client, find out what they want and need. Focus on that. Ask them why they are interested in your product or service. What do they believe about green? How important are these beliefs? Would they spend more if it reduces their energy bills? Makes their home healthier? More comfortable? Reduces maintenance? Saves the earth? Most clients would appreciate these questions. They prove that you are listening to them and working to fulfill their needs. If they do not believe in global warming they will not care that your product will reduce the burning of coal, but might care if it reduces their electric bill. Focus on how you can fulfill their needs and wants. A trade show or home show is a great place to market your green business and meet clients for less cost. AVI is planning a green fair for this summer. Email me for more details. rmaccrea@verizon. net Richard C. MacCrea is the director of The Greening of Andrews Valley, a program of Andrews Valley Initiative. He works in the field of energy efficient, green building.
Stimulus Money to NC Used to Study Monkeys Using Cocaine BY: JIM DAVIS Sentinel Columnist Most people seem to forget that the government cannot give one person money without taking it away from someone else. Politicians seem to forget that they forcibly take money from persons who earned it and give it is someone who did not earn it. All politics is about economics. If one does not have a sound knowledge of economics and economic history, it is difficult for elected representatives to make informed decisions that will improve the quality of life of the people they represent rather than hurt them.  And many politicians do not care if it helps get them reelected. After all, the top 1% of income earners pays 40% of all income taxes. The top 10% pay 71%. The bottom 50% pays less than 3%. Politicians naturally think if you take from the top10% and give it to the bottom 50%, they will get reelected.  But these top tax payers are the ones who hire people. The more the government takes from them, the less inclined they are to expand their businesses and hire more people. The so-called $787 billion stimulus bill has resulted in the loss of 4 million jobs in the private sector in the past year. These are the people who worked to produce things of value that someone was willing to purchase voluntarily. It is mutually advantageous.  That is what gives us our standard of living. The only jobs the Stimulus bill saved are government jobs that need to be reduced to allow the economy to rebound. During the first six years of the Bush administration unemployment was about 5%. Then, in 2007, Liberal Democrats took control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate. We have had a net loss of jobs ever month but one since then. Last week another 469,000 people filed for unemployment yet the Labor Department says only 36,000 lost their jobs in February. There was
virtually no job loss in the government sector. Officially unemployment is now about 10%. Under employment is close to 20%, if you include those that have given up looking for jobs. We are in a Depression! Ostensibly the Republicans controlled both the House and Senate (50 of 100 seats) during the first six years of the Bush administration. But in reality there were five Liberal Republicans in the Senate who usually voted with the Liberal Democrats, three of whom have since left the Republican Party. To get anything through the Congress, Republicans usually had to give pork to the Liberal opposition. And yes, to be fair, some Republicans pushed pork or â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;earmarksâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;. That's why the Republicans lost control of both Houses. Since Liberals won control of the Presidency, the Senate and the House of Representatives, the United States economy has continued to lose jobs. One reason is that most people who create jobs realized that Liberals would introduce legislation to increase taxes, make more costly regulations and increase debt. Knowing that this would probably have a negative effect on their businessâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s profitability, they stopped hiring. Liberals have allowed the Bush tax cuts to expire which means everyoneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s taxes will go up next year and purchasing power will decrease. Democrats have passed tax credits for businesses to hire people. That is not a tax cut. Why would anyone hire an extra employee to get a tax credit when the ownerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s revenues are decreasing? Such legislation is propaganda for the economically illiterate. In order to survive in the free enterprise sector, when costs go up, either through higher taxes, increased regulations, and/or mandated fringe benefits like the proposed health-care bill, business, owners know they have to reduce their costs to survive. This usually means finding a way to be more efficient and/or lay off people. This is what has happened during the past three years. Unemployment
NGTCâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Dynamometer will be on display at the upcoming Motorcycle Open House. Riders, dealers, and students are invited to start gearing up for the Spring riding season by dropping in on the North Georgia Technical College Motorcycle Program Open House on Thursday, March 25, from 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM. Sponsored by Victory Motorcycle Company and Polaris Industries, current and future riders as well as potential students are invited to come and tour the state of the art facilities in the collegeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Automotive Technology Building. Door prizes and refreshments
will be a part of the events, but participants will also have the opportunity to meet instructors and view demonstrations of one-of-akind training techniques such as the â&#x20AC;&#x153;bike-in-a-boxâ&#x20AC;? and the high powered dynamometer. With motorcycle season right around the corner, new and veteran riders will love the opportunity to view equipment for motorcycles and powersports equipment. Whether a true enthusiast, someone considering motorcycling as a hobby, or an aspiring technician,
you wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want to miss this opportunity to prepare for the upcoming season. This event is free and open to the public, however, RSVP is requested so that ample accommodations will be on hand. For more information on the Motorcycle Open House, please contact 706754-7875 or dnorman@northgatech.edu. For directions to the college, visit the website at www. northgatech.edu.
has doubled. When President Bush and the Liberal controlled Congress, including then Senator Obama, authorized the bailout of General Motors and Chrysler, essentially what happened was people making much lower salaries are taxed so that the union employees at General Motors and Chrysler continue to receive salary and benefits of approximately $75 an hour. That is immoral! But as President Obama stated,â&#x20AC;? I owe the unions.â&#x20AC;? Fully half of all stimulus money paid out thus far has gone to pay the salaries of bloated government bureaucracies and union employees and has created new non productive government and make work jobs. Much of the balance of the stimulus money to North Carolina went for projects such as the following: (1)   $71,623 for the study of monkeys using cocaine,                                                                                (2)    $492,940 to set up another government bureaucracy, the North Carolina Office of Economic Recovery and Investment for the purpose of propagandizing the benefits of the stimulus plan, (3)   $762,372 to develop computer technology to digitally record the dance movements of performers,                                                                                                 (4)   $147,694 to see if yoga can reduce hot flashes. So much for Up creating productive jobs. These To are all payoffs to friends of DemoCashback Cashback crats. They do not create permanent jobs. For some reason the thought that government workers should have their salaries and benefits reduced when tax revenues decrease has not been part of any recovery plan. What most do not realize is that the reason there is a 2010 Edge collapse in jobs in the private sector is because the government is consuming the money that might otherwise have been used to creCashback Cashback ate new lasting productive jobs. Our economy will not improve until government bureaucracies, 1-888-319-9590 - 828-389-6325 taxes and onerous regulations are 1493 Highway 64 W, Hayesville NC 28904 reduced.
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