Features

As of 11 a.m. Monday, the internet connection at the Lamar County tax commissioner's office is back up and running through a patchwork arrangement.

It will take two more weeks to reach full connectivity.

"We are able to serve our citizens again but it is still very slow and we ask for more patience. We have no credit card machines or e-mail so customers have to bring a check or cash," tax commissioner Andrea Anthony reported Tuesday morning.

An IT team was busy at the tax commissioner’s office Monday working to fix an internet connectivity outage that had stretched to 10 days.

A lightning strike wreaked havoc with the patchwork system at the office on Hwy. 36 West. The subsequent chain of unfortunate events points out the critical lack of broadband access in rural areas.

The tax office was initially built for the county water authority. At that time, it had DSL service. When the tax office moved there, the county attempted to reinstate DSL only to be told by AT&T that the circuit was full and no service was available.

Residents all over the county have heard the same song and dance. [Full Story »] 

The world’s five oldest siblings were born and raised in Pike County and they all say faith helped them lead long, happy lives. They were recently presented with Guinness World Records for having the highest combined age of any siblings in the world at 490 years total. The celebration was held at the church in Lifsey Springs where they have spent most Sundays of their lives worshipping - Beulah Baptist Church. Below is the story by Emilie Ikeda of Fox News and a link to the video for Fox News which will likely air on the local evening news Monday night or another night this week. [Full Story »] 

The Griffin Bulldog Club will hold its annual gathering July 17 at 6 p.m. at the Stuckey Auditorium on the UGA Griffin campus. Legendary Bulldog quarterback Buck Belue will be the guest speaker. Belue led the Dogs to the nation title in 1980 and is now a broadcaster.

Tickets are $30 which includes a social hour and dinner catered by The Varsity.

For more information, call Hal Peeler at 770-468-3776.

A bonafide legend in Georgia athletics, coach Oscar Wimberly died Tuesday.

Wimp, as he was known, impacted the lives of countless young people during his long career. He coached basketball at LC for decades but his long coaching run began back at the old Booker School in Barnesville.

Wimberly suffered cardiac arrest Friday and died after being removed from life support Tuesday.

Funeral arrangements are pending.

Amy Christopher of the Lamar school system has released resources parents and students can turn to for help with summer reading work.

She can be reached at achristo@lamar.k12.ga.us

Highway contractors throughout Middle Georgia are hiring. The passage of the $900 million-a-year Transportation Funding Act (TFA) by the Georgia Legislature in 2015 is providing much-needed funding for the expansion, improvement and repair of Georgia’s infrastructure. With the increase in road projects, Georgia’s highway contractors currently have hundreds of jobs to fill.

To help raise awareness about the need for workers, the Georgia Highway Contractors Association (GHCA) last year launched a campaign dubbed, Fast Lane to Jobs. The campaign seeks to educate prospective workers about the many types of road jobs available and the benefits of a career in this sector. Most importantly, the campaign is connecting potential highway construction workers with contractors that are actively hiring throughout the state [Full Story »] 

The community is invited to meet Dr. Kirk Nooks, the new Gordon State College President, during a drop-in reception on Thursday, June 7.

The reception is 11 a.m.-2 p.m. at the Barnesville Lamar County Library.

“We want to make sure the community has an opportunity to meet Dr. Nooks and welcome him to the area,” said Tamara Boatwright, GSC public information officer.

Nooks comes to GSC from Metropolitan Community College (MCC)-Longview in Lee’s Summit, Mo. Before joining MCC-Longview, Nooks served as both campus dean and executive liaison for diversity at Georgia Highlands College.

An engineer by training, Nooks holds a doctorate in higher education administration from George Washington University, along with an MBA in marketing and a bachelor of science in industrial management from Mercer University.

The Lamar County Board of Commissioners is looking to adopt a slogan to reflect what people think about when they think of Lamar County, and they want to hear from you.

You may take the survey here.
[Full Story »] 

Lamar County voters go to the polls May 22 to cast ballots in the general/non-partisan primary. Polling places throughout the county will be open from 7 a.m. - 7 p.m.

Early voting has been underway for two weeks. The elections office also took ballots all day this past Saturday. 258 voters have taken advantage of the early voting period. Of those, 174 cast Republican ballots while 83 voted Democratic. One voted non-partisan.

An additional 30 absentee ballots were cast.

There are no in-county races on the ballot but there are several regional races.

[Full Story »] 

The Barnesville Police Department is seeking the identity of this man.

If you have any information concerning the identity of this person please contact Captain Al Moltrum or Lieutenant Bryan McWhorter at 770-358-1244 or may email al.moltrum@cityofbarnesville.com

Admittedly, the image quality is not good.

The hearing on relocation of graves from the Wadsworth Cemetery to Greenwood Cemetery in Barnesville set for May 15 in Lamar superior court has been postponed due to notice issues.

The hearing will be rescheduled.

By Walter Geiger

A public hearing on the relocation of at least 103 graves from the historic Wadsworth-Clayton Cemetery on Old Zebulon Road to Greenwood Cemetery in Barnesville has been set for May 15 in Lamar superior court. [Full Story »] 

Lamar Arts’ annual Derby Day Gala is set for Saturday, May 5, 4-7 p.m. at the home of Linda Littiken, 113 Big Oak Drive in Barnesville. [Full Story »] 

The Lamar County Choral Department is reprising Willie Wonka Jr. as its spring musical. Director NaToya Fletcher is celebrating her 10th year with the school system. She did this production in her first year and its bringing it back for the anniversary.

For more information, contact LCHS at 770-358-8641.