OPINION: ALL LIVES MATTER, PAGE 4
WILDCATS RISING
THURSDAY
THE
BRHS improving in early season match play, page 10.
Lighting the way for Alexander City & Lake Martin since 1892 September 3, 2015 Vol. 123, No. 176 www.alexcityoutlook.com
PUMPED OVER PRICES Drop in cost of gas fuels run on pumps at local stations
The sign outside Jet Pep on Highway 280 shows the $1.98 per gallon price that is one of the lowest in the area. The drop in prices had motorists lined up to make sure they got a tank of fuel at what are the lowest prices the area has seen in months .
By Mitch Sneed Outlook Editor
Approaching Labor Day, which is considered the last big travel weekend of the summer, local motorists are seeing some encouraging signs. The signs are the ones outside local gas stations showing that gas has again dropped below $2 for the first time in more than six months. The prices in Alexander City are slightly lower than the $2.05 state
average, according to GasBuddy.com In all seven local stations had prices below $2 a gallon. Alabama has what are reported to be the third lowest average prices for fuel in the nation, just behind South Carolina at $1.99 and Mississippi’s $2.04. Alabama’s lowest gas prices can be found in the Anniston area where four stations report to be selling a gallon of regular for $1.76 The drop in prices fueled a rush
Tallapoosa EMA says it’s time to prepare
at several local stations. There was a long line waiting for an open spot at Murphy USA at Walmart Wednesday afternoon where the price was $1.98. The same was true just down the road. Carla Owensby of Rockford pumped gas at the Jet Pep station on Highway 280 Wednesday afternoon, where the price was just $1.98 for regular unleaded. See GAS, Page 5
Reserves first need for county school system Sales tax money will help get to the state mandated levels
By Corey Arwood Outlook Staff Writer
By David Granger
September is National Preparedness Month, and that means gearing up for peak hurricane season and any other unpleasant surprise, natural or man made, that might lie in wait along the way. The Emergency Management Agency of Tallapoosa County wants residents to be ready. Jason Moran, director of the county EMA, said this month’s efforts are all about “trying to make the public more aware of the importance of preplanning.” Moran said that, lying so far inland, the primary concerns for Tallapoosa County residents during hurricane season are heavy rains and winds that could bring down trees and power lines. To remedy this, Moran said to invest in back-up emergency power and to test generators.
Benjamin Russell High School teachers Jessica Johnson and Lynn McVey are labeled special education teachers on the BRHS website. It’s a label neither likes when referring to the students they affectionately call “our babies” – 21 seventh-graders and older who occupy what Johnson and McVey finally decided to call their “self-
Tallapoosa County Schools Superintendent Joe Windle knows what he must do with the lion’s share of money he receives from the additional 1 percent sales tax. The main reason Windle asked the Tallapoosa County Commission for the increase was to allow the county school system to meet the State Department of Education’s requirement for a reserve fund equal to one month of its operating expenses. The Tallapoosa County Commissioners approved the tax by a 3-2 vote on May 11. The tax plan was supported and pushed by Windle, who was hoping that the funds would help return the system to the black as well as allow for several capital projects. Commissioners T.C. Coley, Emma Jean Thweatt and George Carleton Jr. all voted in favor of the tax, while commissioners John McKelvey and Steve Robinson voted no to the proposal. The resolution approved by the commissioners included a three-year provision where the Tallapoosa County Schools must work towards a property tax referendum to add a more stable source of funds.
See EMA, Page 5
See GREENHOUSE, Page 9
See TAX, Page 5
Lake Martin
Lake Levels
488.42 Reported on 9/2/15 @ 5 p.m.
Linda Shaffer, REALTOR® C: 256.794.4641 • W: 256.329.5253 shaffer@lakemartin.net 5295 Highway 280, Alexander City, AL
Today’s
Weather
90 72 High
6
Low
54708 90050 USPS Permit # 013-080
8
Outlook Staff Writer
David Granger / The Outlook
Jessica Johnson and Lynn McVey’s ‘self-contained’ class at Benjamin Russell High School poses in front of its greenhouse, provided through a $6,000 grant from the Coosa Valley Resource, Soil and Development Council. Below, Tamika Johnson, left, and Madison Miller work in one of the raised garden plots constructed by volunteers.
GREENHOUSE EFFECT BRHS uses horticulture to teach students life skills By David Granger Outlook Staff Writer
Dadeville teacher battling cancer finds show of support By Cliff Williams Outlook Staff Writer
Dadeville Elementary School teacher Teresa Brunetti may have finally found a home for her and her family after the support she received following a lung cancer diagnosis almost a year ago. “I am a military brat,” Brunetti explained. “I have lived a lot of different places, but never felt the kind of support I received here in this community.” Brunetti, known as Netti by most of her students, explained the military lifestyle she experienced growing up. “Once you are part of a military family, after a couple years you think – OK, where do I go next,” Brunetti said.
Brunetti might have been wondering where the next stop was going to be but was slowed down a little following a bout with lung cancer. “I had numbness and tingling in my fingers,” Brunetti said. “I had shortness of breath in just about everything I did. I was thinking I was having immune system issues. I was just really fatigued.” Brunetti was seeing a local pulmonologist. “They could see a spot but did not think it was cancer,” Brunetti said. “They did the scans and other stuff too.” It was the encouragement of a co-worker that led Brunetti to get a second opinion. Cliff Williams / The Outlook “A teacher down the hallway Teresa Brunetti shares a laugh with her class at Dadeville Elementary said to just go over to Cancer See TEACHER, Page 9 recently while working on vocabulary words.
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