Tigers end Panthers’ season.
“State’s budget may be Gov. Bentley’s saving grace.”
Find upcoming events on this week’s calendar.
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THURSDAY • APRIL 14, 2016
TheWetumpkaHerald.com
Vol. 27, No. 15
Eclectic Family Care welcomes new nurse practitioner By CARMEN RODGERS Staff Writer
Carmen Rodgers / The Observer
Christopher Pritchett recently joined the Eclectic Family Care staff as the facility’s nurse practitioner. Pritchett received his undergraduate degree at Auburn University Montgomery and his CNP degree from Troy State University.
Christopher Pritchett, or Chris as he prefers to be called, is the newest member of the Eclectic Family Care staff. Pritchett has come on board as the facility’s nurse practitioner. Pritchett received his undergraduate degree at Auburn University Montgomery and went on to receive his nurse practitioner degree from Troy University. Pritchett made the move to this area from Georgia more than 20 years ago. “I’ve been living in Wetumpka for the last five years and I lived in
Montgomery for 20 years,” Pritchett said. It was his wife Amy who convinced Pritchett to make the move from Atlanta, where Pritchett originates. “We decided to get out of the city and move out to the country,” he said. Pritchett chose to practice at Eclectic Family Care because he enjoys the laid back, slower pace of small-town life. “I’ve always wanted to get into the health field and I started late in life. I started college when I was 26 years old, so nursing was the best way to get into the medical field.”
Holt takes District 1 County Commission seat
Commission approves elevator bids and event liquor license By COREY ARWOOD Staff Writer
The Elmore County Commissioners considered a liquor license for a local park event, a bid on elevator renovations for the county courthouse and selling county vehicles online at Monday’s meeting. A tax-exempt liquor license application was approved for the Alabama Wildlife Federation and the Lake Martin Wild Game Cook-off 2016 at the Lake Martin Amphitheater in Eclectic on May 14. And a bid inquiry on a renovation project for the passenger elevators at the Elmore County Judicial Complex was accepted. “This is one of the elements from the Blue Print 2020 plan,” said Richie Beyer, county engineer with the Highway Department. According to Elmore County website, the Blueprint 2020 Plan is billed See COMMISSION • Page 2
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Pritchett says he is planted here and has no plans on leaving anytime soon. He hopes to stay in the area and embrace small-town life. “Relax and enjoy life,” he said. “That’s what I like about being here, it’s just a little more relaxed than the city.” Pritchett and his wife Amy have two children, Lauren and Jacob. Jacob is junior at St. James School, in Montgomery and Lauren is following in her father’s footsteps by studying to join the medical field. Pritchett hopes that one day he will be working with his daughter. “My daughter is in premed right See NURSE • Page 2
Carmen Rodgers / The Observer
Drum Major Dallas Wade will represent Elmore County High School as a participant in the 2016 All-State Band in Mobile Alabama this week. It has been 13 years since a member of the Maroon Machine has been selected to perform in the All-State band.
ECHS makes honor band Wade is first Maroon Machine member in 13 years to make the All-State Band
By CARMEN RODGERS Staff Writer
It has been 13 years since a member of Elmore County High School’s Maroon Machine made it to the All-State Band. Now, 2015-16 Drum Major Dallas Wade has officially broken that 13 year streak. To be in the All-State Band there are tremendous requirements and Wade met those requirements with ease. “I’m the first one in 13 years to go,” Wade said. “You have to learn all 15 scales on your instrument. Then you have to learn two pre-
pared pieces.” Band members are only given six weeks to learn the prepared composition. “You have to tryout in front of two judges who are unknown. Then you sight read and that’s how you’re chosen,” she said. Wade says it was her father and her grandparents who pushed her to be the best of her ability. She has been in the band since she began middle school and while Wade is the current Drum Major, she can play a myriad of instruments. “I was in beginner band in the fifth See BAND • Page 3
Area voter turnout propels Holt with 64 percent against opponent By COREY ARWOOD Staff Writer
Kenny Holt emerged as the winner in a runoff for the District 1 Elmore County Commission seat after a sweeping win in the Republican Primary unoff election Tuesday. Holt won by nearly 300 votes at 673 votes to his opponent Shanna Chamblee’s 375. Elmore County Probate Judge and election official John Enslen, announced the results around 8:30 p.m., and said out of the roughly 9,338 voters in District 1 a total of 1,048 voted for a turnout of 11.22 percent Holt took the vote at 64 percent to Chamblee’s roughly 36 percent total. “I’m ecstatic, that my supporters did what they did and voted for me and had confidence in me,” said Holt, while celebrating his victory.
Sheriff Bill Franklin talks challenges of running a jail By LIZ ELY Staff Writer
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Corey Arwood / The Observer
Elmore County Sheriff Bill Franklin, right, appears at a recent press conference with District Attorney Randall Houston. Franklin said the operation of the jail is often one of the most difficult parts of the job.
While people know that the job of sheriff in Elmore County is about enforcing the law in an area that consists of 628 square miles of land and 1,100 miles of shoreline, they may not realize what goes into one of the most difficult parts of the job. In addition to enforcing the laws, Sheriff Bill Franklin says that keeping those who break the law incarcerated is often one of the most challenging aspects of being the county’s top law enforcement agent. The Elmore County Jail houses 242 inmates at maximum capacity, all of whom are under Franklin’s watch. Of those 242 inmates, approximately 32 are women, and the infractions that
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bring the inmates to the jail range from severe crimes such as murder and rape, to menial, less serious actions such as writing a bad check. Franklin, who has held his title since 1991, notes that running a jail can take its toll on both him and his workers. Franklin and the staff must be prepared to deal head-on with many unpleasant situations throughout their workday as each day presents new and unforeseen challenges. “There are a lot of people who go to work and know what they’ll be doing, but the jail is a different animal,” Franklin said. “You literally do not know what you are going to be confronted with from one 5-minute segment to the next. It’s a daily chalSee SHERIFF • Page 3