Piggin in the Park BBQ this week at Lee Newton

People try to assist pilot whales that have beached themselves by trying to push them out to sea. 

      SOCIAL CIRCLE, Ga. (July 17, 2019) – Multiple Pilot whales (Globicephala melas) repeatedly beached themselves on Georgia’s St. Simons Island today, according to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources.  

      “While stranding is a known natural occurrence, the only thing we can do is to continue pushing them out to sea,” says Wildlife Biologist Clay George. 

      Personnel from the DNR Wildlife Resources Division, DNR Coastal Resources Division, Georgia Sea Turtle Center, NOAA, Glynn County Emergency Management and others participated in efforts to push several beached whales back

Members of Woodstock Church Jasper gathered Sunday to officially break ground on an 8,200 square-foot building adjacent to their current location.

Members of Woodstock Church Jasper gathered Sunday evening to hold a worship service/ ground breaking for an 8,200 square-foot, modern church.

The new site will be adjacent to the current church on Highway 53 in Hill City where they were asked to take over the operation of a small Baptist church there in 2013.

Executive Pastor Jim Law thanked members who had been there with Mt. Hope Community at the time they asked Woodstock Baptist to take over their church. A number of the large crowd at the Sunday service raised their hand indicating they had been members of the former church and continue to be involved.

500 pounds of fireworks in 700 shells light up the town

Matt Owings is loading two of the 700 shells to be used in the spectacular aerial display.

By Max Caylor

Contributing writer

It is 10:05 p.m. on the night of July 4th and Chad Sweat, the crew leader of Pyro Shows said, “I am about to go boom.” 

He was preparing to fire 500 pounds of fireworks across the dark evening skies of Jasper to conclude the Independence Day celebration coordinated by the Lion’s Club of Jasper. 

The 700 shells had been loaded in their mortar racks and were ready to be shot from the Lawson pasture just west of the old PHS football field and across from Newton Park.  

Sweat used a wood framed firing board to manually ignite each rack of fireworks by flipping a toggle switch.

People gathered in bank, church, cemetery, and school parking lots and on the side of any road where  they could view the dazzling pyro display. The impressive 15 minute  aerial display was sponsored by Entegra Bank and Goss Equipment at a cost of $10,000.  

The three-man crew from Pyro Shows from Lafollette, TN needed most the day to setup for the evening show. The company has almost 50 years experience and puts on about 1,000 shows each year with over 400 being around July 4th. Other Pyro affiliates are located in Alabama and Texas.

“We offer pyro technician training leading to licensing and becoming a professional Pyro,” said James Woods the southeastern sales manager for the company. Pyro Shows has produced the Jasper fireworks for the past six years.  For more information about the company or training visit .    

By Mary Migliaro 

Parent Mentor

Families spend a great deal of time outdoors during the summer months. Along with protection from sunburn, you should be aware of how to prevent exposure to poison ivy or other poisonous leaves.

When it comes to prevention strategies, spend some time with your children showing them how to recognize the poisonous leaves. Your local library or the Internet will have pictures and descriptions of the various types of poisonous leaves such as poison ivy, poison sumac, and poison oak. Excellent YouTube videos can also be found online. "Leaves of three, leave it be" holds true for poison ivy and oak. Poison sumac has 7-13 leaflets arranged in three pairs, with a single leaf at the tip.

All three plants, (poison oak, poison ivy, and poison sumac), are commonly found in most regions of the United States, in all seasons. They are not restricted to wooded areas; they can be found anywhere there is brush or under-growth, even your backyard. The danger is in the oils that are on and in their leaves and stems.