OPINION:
LOCAL
PAGE 5 New experiences help us hit life’s bullseyes
Meet Dusty Pet of the Week
SPORTS, PAGE 12 THS FINISHES 3RD AT STATE
INSIDE:
PAGE 11 LOCAL FUNERAL ARRANGEMENTS, PAGE 2.
The Tallassee Tribune DEDICATED TO THE GROWTH AND PROSPERITY OF THE GREATER TALLASSEE AREA
TALLASSEE, AL 36078
50¢
February 22, 2017
Hudson mulls plans for Eastside Mill
TALLASSEETRIBUNE.COM
By CARMEN RODGERS Staff Writer
Thomas Hudson and his son Thomas Hudson III made a trip to Tallassee Tuesday to discuss the future of the eastside mill with Mayor Johnny Hammock. This was the first face-to-face conversation between the mayor and the Hudsons. “I have spoken with him on the phone but this will be my first time meeting him,” said Hammock during Monday’s city council meeting. “I’m looking forward to hearing what he has to say.” According to Hudson, their time as the owner of
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the mill has been brief. The purchase of the mill was finalized one week prior to the May 4 fire that ravaged the historical building, leaving behind only a footprint of what once stood at the site. “Our plans are significantly different than what they were nine months ago when we bought the mill,” he said. The mill was purchased with the intent to harvest the longleaf pine flooring. Heart pine once grew abundantly in the Southeast region of the United States. Because of the hardiness of the heart pine, it was the choice lumber utilized for flooring in factories like the Mt. Vernon Mill Co. The trees were quickly over-
harvested and, with 100-150 years needed to reach full size, the tree is very close to complete extinction. Today, only about 3 percent of the original Pine forest remains. Hudson and his son had plans of creating engineered flooring using thin laminates of the harvested long leaf pine. These plans never came to fruition. Following the May 4 fire, there was nothing but stone and concrete left behind. Hudson says they lost a lot more than wood and stone when the mill burnt. See MILL • Page 3
Tallassee Elementary students jump rope for heart
Countywide Cleanup set for March 11 By CARMEN RODGERS Staff Writer
As the weather begins to warm, more people are heading outdoors to enjoy Mother Nature. County officials are encouraging people to head outside to participate in the Countywide Cleanup March 11. The next free Countywide Cleanup Day is scheduled Saturday, March 11, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. This event, which is sponsored by the Elmore County Commission, is held on the second Saturday of every odd numbered month. Countywide Cleanup Days offer county residents six convenient locations across Elmore County in odd numbered months (January, March, May, July, September and November) at which to drop off household and lawn trash at no charge. Free Countywide Cleanup drop-off locations for March are the old highway department in Kent; Holtville High School; Central Elmore Water See CLEANUP • Page 7
By CARMEN RODGERS Staff Writer
Carmen Rodgers / The Tribune
Harper Davis, Laci Hammonds, Macey Stewart, Elise Scroggins, Lilly Noble, Morgan Merrett, Madeline Weldon and Noah Gannt performed the JUJU Dance skit for a packed house Saturday evening during the Fablous Follies performance at Tallassee High School.
RETURN TO STAGE Tallassee Music Boosters put on The Fab Follies
By CARMEN RODGERS Staff Writer
The Fabulous Follies were performed this weekend in the Tallassee High School auditorium. This was the 20th annual performance put on by the Tallassee Music Boosters. Skits included The intercom, Left-Brain Goes Shopping, The Intercom II, Juju Dance,
Welcome to the Rio Olympics, One RingyDingy, Dorf Breaks Record, Atheist Don’t Have No Song, King Tut, a performance by the New Image Show Choir, Synchronized Swimming, Ballet Class, Soul Man, Potery in Motion, The Chicken Dance, Pommell Horse Routine, Operation Divorce, Ghost Busters, My Buddy, Ragged Old Flag and See PERFORMANCE • Page 7
See JUMP ROPE • Page 3
Time to prep for severe weather season
Today’s
Weather
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Students at Tallassee Elementary School went to school dressed as their favorite superhero in honor of the Heart Foundation Jump Rope for the Heart. Coaches Terrell Brown and Donna Funderburk jumped rope along with students to their favorite tunes. To really get their hearts pounding, students and teachers also danced to Michael Jackson’s Thriller. Established in America in 1983, Heart Foundation Jump Rope for Heart is well known for being America’s most well-liked physical activity and fundraising program in schools. More than 90 percent of schools, encompassing 8 million children, have joined in this fun and active program.
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By CARMEN RODGERS Staff Writer THURS: HIGH 81 LOW 55
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Carmen Rodgers / The Tribune
Pancakes with a purpose
Bill Patterson and Jim Jeffers serve Joe Scarborough and Michael Butler a plate of hot pancakes and sausage Saturday morning at the First United Methodist Pancake Breakfast, with proceeds going to the Eagle Scout project and the Methodist Men’s wheelchair-ramp ministry.
T TRUITT
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319 Barnett Blvd. Tallassee, Alabama 36078 P: 334.991.4688 Toll Free 877-787-5727 dolan @truittinsurance.com www.truittinsurance.com
LINVILLE MEMORIAL
F U N E R A L
H O M E
Cremations and Monuments
84632 Tallassee Hwy. [ Eclectic, AL
334.639.4730 www.linvillememorial.com
As February draws to an end, experts say this is the time to prepare for the upcoming severe weather season. Alabama is no stranger to severe weather. Most remember the 2011 tornado that ripped through Eclectic, killing four people and leaving a trail of destruction that stretched over the state line and into Georgia. Should disaster strike again, officials want the public to be better prepared. As an incentive, residents in Tallassee can take part in the 2017 severe weather preparedness sales tax holiday. The tax holiday will be recognized Feb. 24-26. During the three-day event shoppers can purchase See WEATHER • Page 7
LAND WANTED ++
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Looking for a year-round lease of land in Georgia or Alabama for a family of 2 responsible adult hunters. Any size parcel considered but like to keep annual payment. Will consider a hunting lease with members. Please Call
(334) 452-5434