Opinion

Rock & Roll tribute to Kenny Green

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in Opinion

Tuesday, July 22. 2014

By Mike Ruffin

Editor’s note: This is the eulogy the Rev. Michael Ruffin, pastor of the First Baptist Church, Fitzgerald, gave at Ken Green’s memorial service Sunday, July 13 at New Life Baptist Church, Barnesville.

I don’t remember exactly when I first got to know Kenny but I remember the circumstances.

It was during the great dispersion that took place in the 1960s when Carter’s shut down its mill village and half the town had to move.

Most of my family members who lived in the village took up residence on Greenwood Street, including my grandparents who moved into the house numbered 555, just two doors down from the house where Kenny’s family lived. Before too long Kenny and I and other neighborhood boys were playing baseball every chance we had in that big sloping yard between their house and the railroad track. We always hit downhill. [Full Story »]

An institution - and a wealth of institutional knowledge - lost

Posted by

Walter Geiger

in Opinion

Wednesday, July 9. 2014

By Walter Geiger

Big Kenny Green was plugged into sports like no one else I have ever known and he was really plugged into Lamar County sports where he played football back in the day. [Full Story »]

Tears - many of them - were shed

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Walter Geiger

in Opinion

Wednesday, July 2. 2014

By Walter Geiger

There are many milestones in this all-too-short life we are given here on Earth.

The vast majority are greatly anticipated and rejoiced over when they are finally accomplished: that driver’s license, graduations from high school and college, marriage, career success and the arrival of children and grandchildren. [Full Story »]

Shocker! I am in agreement with Barack Obama

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Walter Geiger

in Opinion

Thursday, June 19. 2014

By Walter Geiger

Time and perspective change a man and this one is no exception.

Once a huge baseball fan, I have not watched an entire World Series game since the last time the Atlanta Braves participated in one. [Full Story »]

Random, ratchet and the evolution of southern colloquialisms

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Walter Geiger

in Opinion

Thursday, June 12. 2014

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The other day, I was caught in a thunderstorm in my modest vegetable garden with my youngest daughter who is 14. It was not raining as we approached the garden and it was also dry on the other side of it - a blessing of the sort kids cannot understand. [Full Story »]

Our amazing May Melton

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Walter Geiger

in Opinion

Wednesday, June 4. 2014

By Walter Geiger

I first wrote about our amazing May Melton Geiger and the miracle of her birth to aging parents following a harrowing pregnancy 18 years ago this month on the occasion of my first Fathers Day. [Full Story »]

VA disaster gives chilling glimpse of government-run health care

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Walter Geiger

in Opinion

Tuesday, May 27. 2014

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The Augusta Chronicle

It doesn’t care who you are or what you have or what you’ve done in life – you’re just a number.

Emotionless detachment is a hallmark of most governments and governmental entities but it has absolutely no place in our nation’s Veterans Administration hospitals. The men and women who selflessly risked life and limb defending our freedoms deserve more than numerical status.

Deplorably, some VA employees and administrators have shown these heroes nothing more than nonchalant indifference and gross incompetence at their greatest time of need. The results have been fatal. [Full Story »]

The firing squad may make a comeback

Posted by

Walter Geiger

in Opinion

Wednesday, May 21. 2014

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By Walter Geiger

On January 17, 1977, they sat Gary Gilmore in a chair in front of a pile of sandbags in an abandoned cannery behind the Utah State Prison in Draper, Utah and pinned a target on his shirt marking his heart. [Full Story »]

A man who has made a difference

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Walter Geiger

in Opinion

Wednesday, May 14. 2014

By Walter Geiger

A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

This passage from the 5th chapter of Matthew is the one that comes to mind when one examines the role Dr. Bill Truby has played as superintendent of Lamar County schools. I was shocked when I realized that he has been in his position for only eight years. It seems like much longer due to all his many successes. [Full Story »]

Take time to take in a soccer match

Posted by

Walter Geiger

in Opinion

Thursday, May 8. 2014

By Walter Geiger

Our family spent a lot of time at soccer fields last week. We took in two girls’ GHSA postseason games, including the Lamar County Lady Trojans’ 7-0 win over Toombs County in round one of the high school Class AA state playoffs. [Full Story »]

Indeed, one's age is just a number

Posted by

Walter Geiger

in Opinion

Wednesday, April 30. 2014

By Walter Geiger

Growing older, as they say, is not for the faint of heart.

To handle it well, a positive outlook is a necessity. I saw this firsthand in my late father-in-law and continue to see it in my own parents and mother-in-law. There will always be setbacks. You have to roll with the punches and strong faith will undergird you. [Full Story »]

Chickens die so nuggets can live on

Posted by

Walter Geiger

in Opinion

Wednesday, April 16. 2014

By Walter Geiger

One would think the loonies would have learned by now not to take on Chic-fil-A. As you will recall, the company’s chairman, president, CEO Dan Cathy told reporters his firm was “guilty as charged” when asked if it supported the Biblical definition of marriage. The loonies called for a boycott of Chic-fil-A restaurants on a specific day. [Full Story »]

Where, oh where, is missing airliner?

Posted by

Walter Geiger

in Opinion

Wednesday, April 9. 2014

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By Walter Geiger

At this writing, authorities from multiple governments and navys are concentrating their search for the missing Malaysian airliner in an area of the Indian Ocean where sophisticated equipment has picked up pings consistent with those emitted by aircraft flight recorders known as black boxes. [Full Story »]

Anyone can succeed if they work at it

Posted by

Walter Geiger

in Opinion

Thursday, April 3. 2014

By Walter Geiger

The American Dream is still alive and well these days.

But, when so many make only the effort to reach as far as is needed for a handout, we have to look a little bit harder to find success stories.

Haskell Ward is one of those stories. Haskell grew up in Griffin and is married to Leah Sears Ward, former chief justice of the Georgia Supreme Court. I had the pleasure of hearing him speak recently. [Full Story »]

BBQ & Blues promises to be fun

Posted by

Walter Geiger

in Opinion

Tuesday, April 1. 2014

By T. J. Imberger
Festival Chairman

A community is a celebration of its residents and its spirit. This year Barnesville will be celebrating its 10th anniversary of the BBQ & Blues Festival, a unique blend of barbecue, blues, music and events. [Full Story »]