Suwannee County Ghost Tours returning

LIVE OAK, Fla. — The haunted tales of Suwannee County will be told again Saturday. The Suwannee County Ghost Tours, organized by Vivid Visions, are returning with a north tour at 6 p.m. Saturday. The tours began in March and started after Cindy Robinson, a Vivid Visions’ board member, came up with the idea because everyone has ghosts in their past, especially places like Suwannee County that have been around for more than 100 years. “We wanted something unique to us,” Robinson said in March. “Something to raise awareness and be good for tourism in the county.” The tour, which will start at Festival Park in downtown Live Oak, will go out to White Springs then to Suwannee Springs and the Suwannee River State Park on the Suwannee Valley Transit Authority trolley. The tour is expected to last about an hour and Robinson will narrate the tour with information provided by Eric Musgrove, Suwannee County historian. “We want this to be a great date night thing for people to get away from the children and do something a little different,” Robinson said previously. Tickets on the tour cost $25 per person and can be purchased by contacting Vivid Visions’ administrative office at 386-364-5957 or by email at vividv@windstream.net. All proceeds from the tour will go to Vivid Visions, a certified domestic violence shelter.

 

Moultrie church to celebrate Juneteenth, the end of slavery

MOULTRIE, Ga. — The Friendship Missionary Baptist Church, where the Rev. Alfred Jones is pastor, and located at 421 Sixth Ave. N.W., will celebrate Juneteenth at 6 p.m.Wednesday June 21. Juneteenth is the oldest known celebration commemorating the ending of slavery in the United States in1865. It was on June 19, the Union soldiers led by Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger, arrived at Galveston, Texas, with news that the  war had ended and that the enslaved were now free. This was two and a half years after President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation which had become official Jan. 1, 1863. The program will feature a number of recitation of poems depicting the devastation and plight of the slaves. A narrative of the history of Juneteenth will be brought forth through voices resounding the inhumane spirit over the cruelty of slavery. A sermon in songs will highlight the occasion with Negro spirituals sung in conjunction with the narratives.

 

Emery Street School reunion is this weekend

DALTON, Ga. — The annual Emery Street School reunion for former students, spouses and families of deceased former students, friends and the community is this weekend. Most events are in the school building, which now houses the Emery Center, an African-American heritage and multicultural center. Events are: Friday, 6 p.m., Meet and Greet at the Emery Center (dinner and talent show, $15). Saturday, 9 a.m., business meeting and breakfast at the Emery Center ($5); group photo at 6 p.m., banquet and dance at 7 p.m. at the Dalton Convention Center ($45). Sunday, 10 a.m., worship service at the Emery Center. The speaker is the Rev. Edward Harvey, an alumnus. A $95 package includes the Friday night meet and greet, Saturday morning business meeting and breakfast, the Saturday night banquet, a T-shirt and a group photo. The meet and greet, a T-shirt and a group photo are all $15 each. The worship service is the only free event. Reunion packages are available at Miller Brothers Rib Shack and Willis Funeral Home in Dalton. For more information, contact Deborah Macon at (706) 278-7851, Henry Parks at (706) 581-6639, Curtis Rivers at (706) 277-7633 or Kenneth Willis at (706) 226-1780. 

 

Storytelling at Allen’s Market June 25

MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. — Milledgeville Allied Arts will present an afternoon of storytelling beginning at 2 p.m. Sunday in historic Allen’s Market. The storytelling concert in Milledgeville is a collaboration between Allied Arts, Inc., WRCG 88.3, Georgia College National Public Radio affiliate and storyteller Jeanette Waddell.  Waddell, professional storyteller, has hosted “Storytelling at the Market” for the past six months. Each month has a central theme, and four to six community gather to share their stories. June’s theme is “Honoring the Men that Inspires Us.” This month’s storytellers include students, singers, and other passionate storytellers.Allen’s Market is located at 101 E. McIntosh St. The event is free and open to the public.  Call Allied Arts at 478-452-3950 or visit the website milledgevillealliedarts.com for more information.

 

Watermelon Crawl 5K and Fun Run July 8 at ABAC

TIFTON, Ga. — The fourth annual Watermelon Crawl 5K and Fun Run will take place on July 8 on the campus of Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College. Open to anyone who would like to participate, individual runners can register for the Watermelon Crawl for a fee of $23 that includes a t-shirt and a runner’s bag. Any ABAC faculty or staff paying via cash or check will have their registration fee discounted to $20.  Phantom runners who may not be able to participate in the race can register for $25, and families (up to six members of immediate family) interested in running can register for $75. Registration is now open at www.thewatermeloncrawl.com. Participants can also register the day of the race at a cost of $25 for individual runners and $85 for families. Registration begins at 7:15 a.m. on race day, and the 5K will start at 8 a.m. Those who aren’t participating in the 5K can walk the 5K path or take part in the one-mile fun run, which begins at 8:30 a.m. An early packet pick-up will be held on July 7 from 6-8 p.m. The packet includes the runner’s bib, t-shirt, and bag. The event is a fundraiser to establish the Jerry Moore Memorial Scholarship at ABAC. Once the endowment funds are in place, the scholarship will be awarded each year to a student majoring in agriculture.  Moore was an ABAC alumnus who passed away in 2013 at the age of 46.

 

American Soundtrack Vol. 5 coming 

VALDOSTA, Ga.  — Singers and musicians have their music cued for “American Soundtrack Volume V” in Valdosta late next month. Presented by the Annette Howell Turner Center for the Arts, the song revue plays at the James H. Rainwater Conference Center. The arts center has presented four previous “American Soundtrack” shows. Cheryl Oliver, arts center executive director, and fellow organizers Ed Barr, leader of the Ed Barr Orchestra, and Jeani Synyard said the show features diverse songs performed by area talents. “Volume V” includes songs from classic standards to pop to rock to country, from past decades to now, they said. The Ed Barr Orchestra’s instrumentation backs area singers. “American Soundtrack Vol. V” performers include Cole Wildes; Campbell Mutert; Rob Evans; Joe Smothers; Synyard; Chris Falcon; the Four Lads with Charlie Clark, Bobby Godwin, Philip Barr, David Hutcherson; Dexter Sharper; Karla Heath-Sands; Kenneth Trimmins; Craig Ward; Tania Myers; Robert Plummer; Drew Hill & The Gospel Starlights; 2River Station with Jolyn Smith, Kerri Kent; Michael “Bo” Griner; Jerry Newman; The Oohsanahhs Vocal Ensemble; The Moody Air Force Base Honor Guard, Barr said. Inclusion in the show is based primarily on invitations from organizers, they said. There are no formal auditions, though organizers have held auditions for some interested performers in the past. Following the show, the Ed Barr Orchestra continues playing so people can dance. This year, each of the show’s two segments will feature a song inviting audiences to dance if they wish. Oliver, Barr and Synyard see “American Soundtrack” continuing to be an annual production. They are already weighing songs they would like to include in future Volumes 6, 7, 8.