Author: Submitted

The Coffee County School System will be holding an official ribbon cutting ceremony on the campus of Nicholls Elementary School, Thursday, December 13 at 9 a.m. in celebration of their new facility. The program will be held outside in front of the main office. This is an open invitation. All guests will have the opportunity to tour the new school and enjoy light refreshments.

Georgia Association of Secondary School Principals (GASSP) has a yearly program to recognize outstanding middle schools throughout the state. The criteria used mirrors the NASSP model of Breakthrough Schools and is titled by GASSP as the Breakout Middle Schools. The criteria the schools must meet and demonstrate through evidence are: collaborative leadership, personalization and curriculum, instruction and assessment. The pool of applicants has grown each year and a committee of state principals reviews each application and scores them based on a rubric. This year GASSP recognized seven Breakout Middle Schools. Coffee Middle School was selected as one of these…

Editor: In light of multiple recent shootings, Mr. Preston with DouglasNow, in several Facebook live videos, has commented about the state of crime in our community. I think a lot of what he says is absolutely correct. As one of your criminal prosecutors, I wanted to take an opportunity to contribute to that conversation. As an Assistant District Attorney, my role is to prosecute cases based upon the evidence that we can present in court. I can promise you that our law enforcement officers are working diligently to turn over every stone in solving these cases. I understand…

Derrious Carter was convicted last week of possession of cocaine after a jury trial that ended on December 5. The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Jasmine Kelley and Judge Andy Spivey presided over the proceedings. The jury heard evidence that Carter, who had warrants for his arrest, was located at a residence in February 2016. Douglas police officers determined that Carter was hiding in the attic of the residence. After multiple commands to come down went unheeded, officers sprayed pepper spray into the attic. Carter then fell through the ceiling into a bedroom where officers immediately arrested…

Governor-elect Brian Kemp has named his House and Senate Floor leaders who will champion legislation that puts hardworking Georgians first. Kemp also announced his Director and Deputy Director of External Affairs. State Representatives Jodi Lott (R-Evans), Terry Rogers (R-Clarkesville), Bert Reeves (R-Marietta), and Dominic LaRiccia (R-Douglas) will serve as the Kemp’s Floor Leaders in the State House. Senators Blake Tillery (R-Vidalia) and Brian Strickland (R-McDonough) will carry the governor’s legislation in the State Senate. “I am honored and humbled to be chosen as one of the Governor-elect’s Floor Leaders. I have believed in his vision for this state since day one and I look forward to helping Brian Kemp enact…

The Coffee Campus of Wiregrass Georgia Technical College is pleased to announce those students who’ve completed their GEDs during the month of November 2018. The students are: Thomas Young, Kaitlyn Ricketson, Jose Hernandez, Isabel Serrano, and Bradley White. Fall commencement ceremony will be held Friday, December 14, 2018 at the UGA Conference Center in Tifton. Please congratulate these students for this outstanding accomplishment. For more information about our free GED and ESL classes, call 229-468-2263. New student orientations held weekly (and will resume in January 2019). GED testing dates (for Coffee Campus) are held twice a month.

Satilla Regional Library System will be holding the following programs during the month of December for children and teens. Come and join the fun at Satilla Regional Library System!! For more information about upcoming children and teen programs please call Julie M. Vickers, Children’s and Young Adult Librarian at (912) 384-4667 ext. 222 or contact via e-mail: macomberj@srlsys.org. Please visit www.srlsys.org, like on Facebook at facebook.com/SatillaRegionalLibrary and Twitter@SatillaLibrary. Holiday Closings Satilla Regional Library System will be closed on Monday, December 24-Wednesday, December 26, 2018 in observance of the Christmas holiday. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!! Special Programs in December Children’s…

Your friends at Coffee Regional Medical Center would like to remind you that the Healthcare Exchange Open Enrollment will end December 15. Under the Federal Health Exchange, many citizens of Coffee and surrounding counties are currently uninsured or covered by a Blue Cross Blue Shield product called Pathways. For 2019, BCBS has decided to no longer offer this product in Coffee County. Fortunately, for the citizens of South Georgia, Ambetter Health has stepped in and will offer their product locally. Ambetter Health will be the only plan offered on the Health Exchange in Coffee County but will offer many…

Merry Christmas citizens of Douglas! I absolutely love this time of the year! I am a family oriented man and I love spending time with family and friends during the holidays. I hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving and you are busy making preparations to have a Merry Christmas. We have a community toy drive taking place to help families and children in need this Christmas. This is the season for giving, so please do all that you can to make the toy drive a success. We have over 500 children who are counting on us to help them…

As the holiday season is upon us, the City of Douglas Police Department would like to remind everyone that holiday shopping can present some danger. During the holiday season, people become less attentive as their lives become more hectic, which could make them susceptible to crime and danger. Taking a few prevention measures can help ensure a jovial holiday season. “The holiday shopping season can cause some people to be more at risk to theft and other holiday crime,” says Interim Police Chief Pruette. “We hope that by sharing these safety tips, it will remind people to be more…