INSIDE TODAY Local students share turkey recipes and what they are thankful for
THE
HOLIDAY
Lighting the way for Alexander City & Lake Martin since 1892
SPORTS, PAGE B1
November 21-22, 2018 Vol. 126, No. 230 www.alexcityoutlook.com 75¢
Coosa, Dadeville face off on the hardwood
Plan how to fill that holiday plate By CLIFF WILLIAMS Staff Writer
It happens every year in November and December. Families and friends gather for the holidays and the interactions are often centered around food. Grandma’s dressing, mom’s sweet potato casserole, turkey, ham and breads of all sorts seem to be
on the buffet. Don’t forget the desserts of 20 different varieties, too. There is nothing wrong with eating at family gatherings but it appears we are visiting the buffet too often while overloading the plate over and over again. A national study shows Alabamians are among the most overweight residents in the U.S.
Unemployment up slightly
Lisa Neese of Alexander City has struggled with overeating much of her life and often around the holiday family gatherings. “I ate to a point I was miserable at the holidays, to the point I would not want to eat again,” Neese said. “Then an hour later, I was eating again.” In June 2017, Neese
sought help for her weight issues through Overeaters Anonymous, traveling to Auburn for meetings and learning ways to avoid the holiday stuff while still sampling much of what is offered. “I am able to eat what I want,” Neese said. “I just have to calorie count.” Neese starts planning early
LOOKING LIKE CHRISTMAS
State numbers remain the same while Tallapoosa, Coosa counties rates are up
Cliff Williams / The Outlook
Al Alexander d City Ci Light i h and d Power P recently l installed i garland and lights on poles in downtown Alexander City getting ready for the upcoming holidays.
Dadeville prepares for tree-lighting event Sunday To help mark the start of the Christmas season, the Everything’s Art art guild in Dadeville is sponsoring “Christmas Lights Around the Square” Sunday afternoon at the courthouse square in Dadeville. “Cheryl Haggerty, who runs a beauty salon here in Dadeville, said she was so inspired by how lit up the square in Alexander City was last December,” said Rick Hidding with Everything’s Art. “She was See TREE • Page A3
Weather
56 35 High
Low
By DONALD CAMPBELL Staff Writer
Lake Martin
Lake Levels
Kenneth Boone / The Outlook
Melissa, Torrie and Chris Mullins pose with an R4 unit. Torrie asked for the Star Wars replica droid three years ago.
Those diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and their families can sometimes feel overwhelmed to receive the news but the condition does not have to be faced alone. Melissa Mullins, a local mother whose daughter Torrie is autistic, has for the last two years been a volunteer ambassador representing Alabama for
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At its Monday meeting, the New Site Town Council tabled a proposal that would keep town hall open without a break on weekdays to give residents more chances to conduct business. Town Hall is currently open from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. weekdays but closes from noon to 1 p.m. so town employees can take a lunch break. The council discussed eliminating the lunch hour while finding a way employees can still take their lunch breaks. Councilmembers are split — some want to change the hours, while others sought to table the proposal and discuss it further with town employees before reaching a decision. The town clerk said she hadn’t heard about the proposal before the meeting and Mayor Phil Blasingame took the blame for that. “That’s my fault,” he said. “I want to sit down See COUNCIL • Page A10
Local mother a major autism advocate in area and beyond
By DONALD CAMPBELL Staff Writer
Today’s
See OVEREATING • Page A11
By DONALD CAMPBELL Staff Writer
By JIMMY WIGFIELD Managing Editor
While unemployment has gone up in Tallapoosa County, the number of those without a job in Coosa and Elmore counties has remained steady for the last year and is better than the seasonally adjusted statewide rate of 4.1 percent, according to October figures from the Alabama Department of Labor. Elmore County was among the lowest unemployment rates in the state in October at 3.3 percent — it was 3.2 percent a year ago. Coosa County’s rate of 3.9 percent in October was up slightly from 3.8 percent in October 2017. Unemployment in Tallapoosa County worsened from 3.9 percent in September to 4.2 percent in October, and it was 3.6 percent a year ago. Overall, the labor department said October marked the sixth straight month a record number of people were working in Alabama — 2.122 million, which is 40,377 more than See UNEMPLOYMENT • Page A11
on the day of eating. “I go ahead and figure out what I might be eating,” Neese said. “Then after the meal I go for a walk. I get away from the table. It helps keep me from feeling bloated. It helps digest the food and keeps me from going back for more.” The night before, Neese
256-329-1313 217 Madison Street, Alexander City, AL “We are a Debt Relief Agency. We help people file Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 under the Bankruptcy Code. Alabama State Bar requires the following in every attorney advertisement, “ No representation is made that the quality of legal services to be performed is greater than the quality of legal services performed by other lawyers.”
the organization Autism Speaks, a volunteer for the Autism Society of Alabama and a trained special education advocate. Mullins has learned a great deal about the disorder over the past decade and a half since Torrie is on the autism spectrum. “While I’ve been an advocate for the autism community for two years, I’ve been an advocate for her since she was See ADVOCATE • Page A10
Alex City Baseball/Softball Advisory Board Open Public Meeting TUESDAY, DEC. 4 • 6:00PM in the Baseball/Softball Tower at the Sportplex
Electing new board members for upcoming 2019 year.
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