Officials looking for dead man’s family

MOULTRIE, Ga. — Colquitt County officials are trying to find relatives of a 37-year-old man who died here on Tuesday. Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched at 2:10 p.m. Tuesday to 6082 U.S. Hwy. 319 N. to investigate a death. There they found Manuel Trejo Munoz dead. Initial investigation indicated that Munoz died of natural causes, Colquitt County Coroner Verlyn Brock said. Munoz and a couple of other people apparently arrived in Colquitt County a couple of days ago to look for farm work, Brock said. His companions did not know how to get in touch with any family members. An autopsy has been scheduled. Brock said that Munoz had no injuries to his body that would account for his sudden death.

Community band to kick off arts council’s Concerts in the Park series

CHATSWORTH, Ga. — The Murray Arts Council kicks off its 2018 Concerts in the Park series on Saturday at 6 p.m. with a program of patriotic and pop favorites by the Dalton-Whitfield Community Band. Admission is free. Food vendors will be on site. The City Park is behind Chatsworth City Hall on Second Avenue and includes public restrooms in the back. The concert season also includes performances by Barrel House and Daisy Chain on June 30, Pony Bradshaw and Josh Minchew on July 27, Shakespeare in the Park by Back Alley Productions on Aug. 10-11, Cary Hudson and Craig Pratt on Aug. 25, a Praise in the Park event cosponsored with Chatsworth First Baptist Church featuring the group Overflow and area choirs on Sept. 8, a concert by the Freight Hoppers and Matt Downey on Sept. 22 and a Gong Show/Talent Show on Oct. 28. For more information, visit www.murray-arts.com or the council’s Facebook page at facebook.com/murraycountyartscouncil.

Wildlife show added to Blueberry Festival

WELLBORN, Fla. — Always a popular destination, the 25th annual Blueberry Festival will draw a few new guests this year.

The festival, which is set for Saturday at Andrews Square in Wellborn, has added a live wildlife show to this year’s festivities, which are slated to run from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Jerry Walls will lead the “Scales and Tails” interactive show at 11 a.m.

In addition to adding the wildlife show, this year’s festival will also include a little bit of Christmas. The annual parade is themed “Christmas in June” and will take place at 10 a.m.

Wellborn Community Association President Rob Dawson said the group hopes the parade is bigger than it was a year ago, but that the parade and the festival itself is somewhat limited in how big it can be.

For the festival, that means there will once again be around 100 vendor booths inside Andrews Square featuring a host of festival foods as well as crafts and activities.

The festival will also feature, of course, blueberries and plenty of them.

The day will begin with the pancake breakfast from 7 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. in three locations, two on the festival grounds and the third at the Wellborn Baptist Church. The blueberry pancake meals cost $5 for adults and $3 for children.

And if the delicious pancakes aren’t enough, the Country Store will be serving blueberry pies, cobblers, jams, jellies, syrups and more. Dawson said blueberry ice cream sundaes were a new addition a year ago and will return again this year.

Annual Beach Bash slated for Friday

MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. — One of downtown Milledgeville’s biggest events of the year is returning to Hancock Street this week. 

For much the past seven years, the Milledgeville Main Street First Friday Beach Bash has served as the unofficial beginning of summer for local residents. As part of Main Street’s goal of promoting community engagement downtown, this year’s Beach Bash figures to be one of the biggest yet.

With a whopping 80 tons of sand, provided by the Haddock-based Standard Sand and Silica Company and delivered by Fowler Flemister Concrete and the Milledgeville Public Works Department, Friday’s event will be a Beach Bash in more than just its name. With food on sale from Chick-Fil-A and downtown sandwich experts Cravings, residents are invited to enjoy a taste of the beach from 5 to 8 p.m. 

At dark, Main Street will host a viewing of Sony’s 2007 movie, “Surf’s Up,” before crews remove the mountains of sand from downtown’s streets.

The Milledgeville Main Street 2018 First Friday Beach Bash is slated from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday in downtown Milledgeville. In case of rain, a decision on whether to postpone the event will be made Friday morning. For more information, call Milledgeville Main Street at 478-414-4014. 

Paradise’s annual Kids Fishing Event set for June 9

TIFTON, Ga. — Paradise Public Fishing Area and the Tifton Kiwanis announce the annual Kids Fishing Event at Paradise Public Fishing Area will be held June 9 at Lake Patrick near Brookfield. The event will be for children ages 15 years and younger. Activities available will include adult-child fishing in Lakes Cup and Saucer and there will be a casting contest. Registration for prizes and fishing begins at 7:30 a.m. All fishing and other activities end at noon.  A hot dog lunch will be provided by the Tifton Kiwanis at 11:30 a.m. The Kids Fishing Event is a free fishing day to all Georgia residents. On this day, residents do not need a fishing license or a trout license to fish on any public waters in the state including lakes, streams, ponds and public fishing areas (PFA). In addition, residents do not need to obtain a wildlife management area (WMA) license to fish at Paradise PFA or possess a Georgia Outdoor Recreation Pass (GORP) on this day. For more information, contact Paradise Public Fishing Area at 229-533-4792.