Board Welcomes Greg Parker To Madison

By Michael Curtis
Greene Publishing, Inc.
Among business discussed during the September 17 regular session of the Madison County Board of County Commissioners, the board and Clerk of the Court were pleased to announce that the incoming judge of the circuit court who is replacing the retiring Hon. Judge John W. Peach will locate his office in the Madison County Courthouse. This is the first time the circuit court seat has been in Madison County since 1966 when Hon. Judge Randall Rowe occupied it.
According to details provided the board in a Special Assignment Order dated September 16, Gregory S. Parker, who was recently elected to replace Peach, “has practiced in nearly every major area of the law, including civil, criminal, real property, probate, commercial litigation, and family law, thus allowing him to immediately meet the diverse needs of the people of Madison County… the people of the Third Judicial Circuit would best be served by having their judicial officials located throughout the geographic region.”
In his Third Judicial Circuit of Florida Administrative Order No. 2008-016, Chief Judge E. Vernon Douglas further announced that Investiture ceremonies for Parker would be held in the Madison County Courthouse on Friday, January 16, 2009, at 1:30 p.m.
In consideration of Parker, and generally to address the current office space limits of the court, the board is actively looking at ways to accommodate this critical need. In fact, Circuit Judge Leandra G. Johnson, whose two-year assignment in Madison will conclude with Parker’s arrival, wrote a letter to Board Chair Alfred Martin, praising the community and Clerk’s Office for their support while strongly urging the board to add an additional courtroom. Johnson is slated to move to Lake City, as Parker will hear the felony cases in Madison County.
“I’m excited and uplifted to be coming to Madison, not only because I’ll be serving as a trial judge, but because of the great people. The old friends and the new ones I’ve made are incredible and I look forward to becoming part of the community,” Parker noted.



Madison County Chamber Hosts Event Honoring Johnson Bibb as Hometown Hero



The Madison County Chamber of Commerce & Tourism has declared this Friday, September 26 as “William Johnson Bibb Day” and will be saluting our “Hometown Hero” with a special celebration and reception at the Four Freedoms Park in downtown Madison.
Representatives from over a dozen local organizations will be on hand to present resolutions and proclamations from their organizations honoring Bibb’s nearly 46 years of service to the citizens of Madison County.
The event kicks off at noon this Friday at the Four Freedoms Park with Myra Valentine and Ted Ensminger serving as co-masters of ceremonies and with Jackie Johnson as the keynote speaker. Refreshments will be served.
Everyone is invited and encouraged to attend as the entire community unites to honor one of its finest. For additional information, contact Ted Ensminger, Executive Director, at the Madison County Chamber of Commerce & Tourism at 850-973-2788.



Lee Community VFD Hosing Fish Fry Saturday

By Jacob Bembry
Greene Publishing, Inc.
The Lee Community Volunteer Fire Department will host a fish dinner on Saturday, September 27, from 4-8 p.m.
Fish dinners, with all of the trimmings, will be available for $8 a plate. Advance tickets are available for purchase at the door while quantities last.
The event will be held at the fire station in Lee.
For more information, please contact Reese Thomas at (850) 971-5222 or Jim and Shirley von Roden at (850) 971-4178 or any Lee volunteer firefighter.
The Lee Community Volunteer Fire Department will host a community yard sale on Saturday, October 11, from 8 a.m. until 3 p.m.
The fire department is actively seeking donations. If you would like to donate or set up a table for $10, please call Carolyn at (850) 971-5573 or Cindy at (850) 971-5222.
The yard sale will be held at the fire department, located next to Lee City Hall, on Highway 255 North in Lee.
The Lee Community Volunteer Fire Department thanks you for your support.



Traffic Fatalities Decrease, But Alcohol-Related Fatalities Increase

By Jacob Bembry
Greene Publishing, Inc.
Traffic fatalities throughout the State of Florida have decreased for the second year in a row, while alcohol-related fatalities increased by 13.1 percent.
Traffic fatalities dropped from 3,084 in 2006 to 2,947 in 2007, representing a 4.44 percent decrease.
There was also a 1.39 percent decrease in injuries and a 1.23 percent decrease in injury crashes.
There were 1,244 alcohol-related fatalities in 2007, representing a 13.1 percent increase over 1,099 alcohol-related fatalities in 2006.
A total of 517 motorcyclists were killed in 2007, representing a .77 percent decrease in 2.39 decrease from 521 motorcyclists killed in 2006.



Mitigation Workshop Reviews And Sets Key Priorities

By Michael Curtis
Greene Publishing, Inc.
In recent years, more and more agencies are being asked for their input and cooperation to improve emergency response and management, especially when in light of the catastrophic emergencies that have hit the Gulf. Realizing that the process involves numerous entities, Madison County Emergency Management, under the supervision of Director Jim Stanley and Coordinator Vicky Brown, held a strategy workshop on September 15 to develop new, and review existing, priorities.
Attendees included governmental, emergency and health agency leadership from around the county, literally filling the room to capacity. According to Stanley, “The number of people that participated was exceptional. They really demonstrated their commitment to the community.”
Stanley opened the meeting by thanking everyone for their participation, further explaining that, “the meeting was requested to discuss the updates and revisions to the Local Mitigation Strategy and for networking those entities that are listed in the Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan.”
Brown provided summaries from 2007 with handouts that covered current Mitigation Projects, asking those involved to comment on the status of their respective projects. Existing projects include:
Greenville Drainage System: This is an on-going problem as evidenced by recent flooding from Tropical Storm Fay.

Interoperability/Joint Communications: Pat Lightcap distributed copies of his report and discussed the projects regarding emergency communications.

County Public Safety Building: Emergency Management has been awarded two grants to fund the EOC construction, which should be complete by March 2009.

Generators at lift stations: Continued need. City has applied for CDBG grant funding.

Greenville Landfill Reclamation: Legislature approved appropriation for $116,000 for monitoring costs.

Greenville Sewer System Extension: Have applied for USDA grant - project is on-going.

Greenville Potable Water Wellfield: Land has been acquired. Project is on-going.

Update Flood Maps: This is an ongoing project, work in progress. Suwannee River Water Management District is working on this as well.

Tower/storage tank for Coody Well: On-going project; seeking funding.

Tower/storage tank for Hwy 90 West: On-going project; seeking funding.

According to notes provided by Brown, the following noteworthy comments were also provided:
Miriam Hinton, Public Health Preparedness Coordinator, explained that she was working on a project to harden the two Public Health buildings here in Madison County. The project goal is to install shutters on all windows and obtain a generator to supply back-up power. She is applying for a Pre-Disaster Mitigation Grant for that purpose. A motion was made to include this project in the Local Mitigation Strategy (LMS). The motion carried unanimously.
Madison City Manager Harold Emrich advised that the city has three public facilities downtown and that only one, the fire station, has a generator for emergency power. He is searching for grant funding to obtain generators for the Police Station and City Hall. A motion was made to include this project in the LMS, which carried unanimously.
Director of the Senior Citizens Center, Rosa Richardson advised that they have received grant funding of $1.2 million to construct a new building on the property next to the new Emergency Operations Center scheduled for construction on Harvey Greene Drive. She also asked that a back-up generator for this facility be included as a project in the LMS. A motion was made and carried unanimously.
Jim Parrish thanked Madison County, the City of Madison, and Emergency Management personnel for their assistance during the recent flooding in Greenville due to Tropical Storm Fay. He advised that while the Town of Greenville was hardest hit by flooding this time, there are several problematic areas in Madison County that are vulnerable to flooding as well. He suggested that a project for a Madison County Stormwater Management Plan be introduced. The motion was made accordingly and carried unanimously.



School Board Impressed With Student Success Stories

By Michael Curtis
Greene Publishing, Inc.
The agenda for the Madison County School Board meeting of September 16 was rather light, although the board did approve the 2008-2009 Salary Schedules for Instructional and Non-Instructional Employees. The board was, however, treated to a Central School success story thanks to the efforts Instructor Carroll Ryals and several of her students who shared excerpts of a biography project they had recently completed.
In order to address critical writing requirements established by last year’s district testing, Ryals found a creative way to make learning fun. Students in fourth and fifth grade were instructed regarding the method for writing biographies, everything from gathering personal and interesting data to writing the actual paper in an organized and entertaining manner.
Three of Ryal’s students, Kavisa Aikens, DeShoun Love and LaResha Crumity took turns reading excerpts from their respective biographies. One of the biography subjects, Javaris Forbes, was also in attendance.
The show began with Ryals presenting a musical PowerPoint, which fully explained the project. The three readings followed. In the end, the board, and all attending including this reporter, was very impressed. Central School Principal Sam Stalnaker, who introduced Ryals’ project as one among many in an ingoing effort to improve student performance, stated his intention to bring other success stories to the board during this school year, although he was quick to note that all the praise should go to the students and instructors.
The new Madison County High School Student Body President, Laurie Smith, was also in attendance, taking the customary place at the end of the boardroom table, where her input on relevant issues is both welcome and expected. Smith made a name for herself with exemplary achievements in Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) prior to being elected Student Body President.
Board Chair VeEtta Hagan expressed her thanks to Ryals’ group and Smith, noting that these types of student achievers are proof of what can be accomplished with the right effort and guidance. Other success stories from throughout the district will be covered in upcoming issues. If any reader has a success story to share, simply email michael@greenepublishing.com or phone (850) 973-4141.



Russian Judges Enjoy Taste Of Madison County

By Michael Curtis
Greene Publishing, Inc.
A delegation of five high-ranking Russian judges visited Lake City on September 16 as part of the Sister City Program of Gainesville. In a working exchange with Third Judicial Circuit Chief Judge, E. Vernon Douglas, the five federal Russian jurists shared and received advice on several topics, sitting in on a full day of actual cases.
The visiting judges included: Chief Justice Leonid Ivanovich Egorov, Marina Valeryevna Kozhemyakina, Tatyana Niklayevna Kalmykova, Larisa Nikolayevna Galkina and Nicolay Borisovich Gudushin, all of the Court of the Arkhangelsk region.
In addition to learning and teaching topics of jurisprudence, the judges took a moment to enjoy a taste of Madison County, thanks to chef Jimmy Lyons of Lee who was requested personally by Douglas to host lunch and cook for the visiting dignitaries.
Madison County Judge Wetzel Blair, as well as Third Judicial Circuit Judges Leandra Johnson and Paul Bryan, were among local legal notables in attendance. In fact, Blair added to Lyons culinary offering by presenting each visiting judge homemade cane syrup, as well as a can of homemade boiled peanuts. Then to really cap the local culinary experience, Tommy Greene, the founding publisher of the Madison County Carrier,presented each judge a copy of his cookbook, Florida Cookin’ Wild Style.
“The judges were asked what local favorites they would like for lunch and they decided on a barbecue of smoked sausage, chicken and corn on the cob. So we set up the grill at the courthouse and did it just like they requested,” Lyons explained.
Lyons has built an exceptional reputation in the region for his marvelous menus, having hosted official functions and cooked for numerous dignitaries over the years. Lyons is humble about the command performance and very appreciative of the praise he received from both the local and visiting judges.
While visiting, the Russian contingency heard cases regarding domestic violence, divorce and one case of wrongful imprisonment. At the end of the day, each expressed his or her appreciation for the experience, suggesting that their American host return the favor by visiting Russia in the future.
In response, Douglas said he plans to visit the northern Russian region where the five judges rule next July as part of overseas travel he has scheduled for next summer. It was noted that the sun doesn’t set at night during that time of the year and that polar bears are a regular sight in the outskirts of this Arkhangelsk region, which is located at the far north of European Russia.
Before the gathering closed, Greene asked visiting judge Gudushin about his views on the freedom of the press. Through an interpreter Gedushin responded by saying, “We view journalists as watchdogs of a democratic society. Sometimes, however, dog’s bark, and other times, dog’s bite.”