DA’s office collecting gift cards for foster kids

MOULTRIE, Ga. — The District Attorney’s Office is collecting gift cards to spread a little holiday cheer among teen-agers in foster care in the community. “Many of these children have been removed from abusive homes as a result of neglect, physical and/or sexual abuse, or have witnessed acts of domestic violence, and are often left out during the holiday season,” the DA’s office said in a press release. The office is asking members of the community to donate gift cards in denominations of $20 so they can be evenly distributed among the children. Participants can mail the gift cards to the Colquitt County District Attorney’s Office at P.O. Box 2497, Moultrie, GA 31776; or they can drop them off at the DA’s Office in Room 222 of the Colquitt County Annex Building, 101 E. Central Ave., in Moultrie. The deadline for donations is 5 p.m. Friday, Dec. 15.

 

Target shooters frighten hunter in tree stand

MOULTRIE, Ga. — A deer hunter found himself in the line of fire from two people shooting weapons on Wednesday afternoon in a wooded area who did not realize someone was in a tree stand. John Stallings, of the 1700 block of Villa Drive, reported that the two shooters were firing at a tree in which Cole Summerlin was hunting from a tree stand. Stallings told police that he confronted two males, one a juvenile, who were shooting a pistol and a rifle. He told them that there were hunters in the area and that one of the trees at which they had been firing was occupied by one of the hunters. When Summerlin arrived he and Stallings declined to press charges. Police warned the two shooters not to return to the property.

 

Thanksgiving holiday period ‘very busy’ for deputies 

MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. —  The long Thanksgiving holiday period, which began last Wednesday and ended Sunday at midnight, kept many area law enforcement officers busy answering various calls and investigating dozens of traffic crashes.

The same was true for deputies with the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office.

“We were very busy,” said Capt. Michael Lumpkin, who oversees the road patrol division. “We responded to 16 motor vehicle wrecks.”

Of those wrecks, five of them involved injuries, Lumpkin said via email to The Union-Recorder on Monday.

Fortunately, none of those wrecks resulted in anyone being killed in Milledgeville or Baldwin County.

Lumpkin said deputies issued various traffic citations to 38 motorists.

Overall, during that long holiday period, deputies answered a total of 193 assorted calls, Lumpkin said.

 

Christian Mission in Action hosting Christmas luncheon

LIVE OAK, Fla. — Christian Mission in Action Ministries’ annual Christmas luncheon will be held Dec. 16.

The annual event, which is free and is a county-wide event welcoming all comers, will last from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Suwannee County Coliseum Exhibition Building No. 2.

The event is co-sponsored by Pastor Wayne Godsmark and Christ Central Church of Live Oak.

Carry-out lunches will be available after those in attendance are fed and the short program is concluded, approximately at 12:45-1 p.m.

For more information or to donate with gift purchases, especially for the county’s youth, please contact Otha White Sr. at 386-697-1107, or Andretha Herring Sheffield at 386-249-9633. 

 

Metro Dalton’s jobless rate remains at 4.9 percent in October

DALTON, Ga. —  The number of employed residents in Metro Dalton dropped in October, “but not enough to make the area’s jobless rate increase,” according to state Labor Commissioner Mark Butler. The unemployment rate remained 4.9 percent from September to October. The October 2016 jobless rate was 6.3 percent. Metro Dalton is Murray and Whitfield counties. “We see seasonal and even monthly variations in these numbers,” Butler said. “So, it’s not uncommon to see them rise or fall month to month. It’s more important to look at the trends over time. And, Dalton’s numbers over the past 12 months remain strong.” The number of employed residents declined by 947 to 59,812. However, from October 2016, the number of employed residents is up by 1,230 from 58,582. Metro Dalton’s labor force, which includes the total number of residents with jobs and those unemployed but looking for work, declined to 62,890, down by 1,018 in October. The labor force is up by 379 since October 2016.