Business of the Year Award to Be Presented at the 64th Annual Chamber Meeting

Submitted by Robins Regional Chamber of Commerce, Membership/Investment Organization

Thursday, January 9th, 2014, 11:23am

WARNER ROBINS, GA– The Business of the Year Award, along with several other prestigious awards will be presented at the Robins Regional Chamber of Commerce’s 64th Annual Meeting; to be held on Thursday, January 16, 2014 at the Courtyard by Marriott hotel in Warner Robins.  Doors will open at 6:00 p.m. for a social period with heavy hors d’oeuvres and the program will begin at 6:45 p.m.

Each year at the Annual Meeting, the Chamber presents several awards honoring those who demonstrated outstanding service to the Chamber.  The prestigious awards include:  The Charles K. Shaheen Small Business of the Year Award, presented to one of the 2013 Business of the Month recipients for outstanding business achievement and exemplary service to the community; The Edward Bayer Employee of the Year Award, presented to one of the 2013 Outstanding Employee of the Month recipients for outstanding achevement and quality service to the community; The Charlie L. Jones Memorial Award, presented to the community’s most outstanding citizen, for sustained and superior service to the community (recipient’s service activities usually span a number of years and may involve a number of businesses, civic, governmental, cultural and/or religious activities); The Sherrill Stafford Good Government Service Award, presented to the community’s most outstanding elected or appointed official or employee of any governmental agency (award is made for exceptional, outstanding service in the performance of duty); The A.C. “Dick” Walden III Chamber Person of the Year Award, presented to the Chamber member having made the most outstanding contribution to the success of the organization or any one or more of its programs during 2013; andthe Heide Hubbard Ambassador of the Year Award, presented to the Ambassador who has shown exemplary support of Chamber events throughout the year.  This award is based on a point system.

In addition, the Chamber will honor the graduating Leadership Robins Region Class of 2013.

Cost to attend the meeting is $40.00 per person for Chamber members and their guests.  The fee for all non-members is $55.00.  Please RSVP as soon as possible to the Chamber via telephone (478.922.8585), fax (478.328.7445) or e-mail (rsvp@robinsregion.com).  Also, please include the names of those attending so the Chamber can maintain accurate records.  This is a reception-style event.

For more information, please contact the Chamber at 478.922.8585.

NOTE TO MEDIA: Photos of all recipients will be taken on stage during the program.

“Hunger Games” inspires children and teens to Georgia archery programs

Submitted by Jacqueline Harnevious, 13WMAZ Community Web Producer

Thursday, November 21st, 2013, 4:09pm

 

The second installment of the “Hunger Games”, called “Catching Fire”, hits theaters at midnight Friday.

The blockbuster movies are not only selling tickets. They’re persuading kids to pick up a hobby, that got its start in prehistoric times.

The archery bug bit Mark Swords and Jennifer Pittman long ago.

Pittman said, “I grew up hunting and fishing my entire life.”

They’re both bow hunters, and employees with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources.

It’s their aim to help children and teens get a grip on archery.

Swords said, “If you learn incorrectly, you can turn a young person off from archery. If you learn correct, you have a life long hobby.”

As a coordinator for the National Archery in Schools Program, Swords says the “Hunger Games” series pointed hundreds of kids in his direction.

Swords said, “I read all three books.”

He watched the films, too.

Swords said, “If you watch Katniss, you can tell Jennifer Lawrence has had some excellent coaching, and it is real, what you see.”

Pittman said you do not have to be athletic to participate. She said, “Everyone can do it, and they can do it well. It’s concentration. It’s eye-hand coordination, and it’s practice.”

She says 25,000 Georgia kids focus on the sport.

Pittman and her team surpassed their target, growing school archery programs from 18 in 2003 to 200 programs now.

There is an archery range at Perry’s Flat Creek Wildlife Management Area. Another like it was just built near Dublin.

Archery Opportunities: Archery shooting ranges

In Central Georgia, Peach, Bleckley, Dodge, Laurens, Truetlen and Wheeler Counties have archery programs in the schools.

DNR aims to increase quail population

Submitted by Suzanne Lawler, News & Sports Anchor

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The Georgia Department of Natural Resources says they hope a partnership with numerous organizations in the state will boost the quail population.

Earlier this evening several groups signed the Georgia Bobwhite Quail Technical Team Memorandum of Agreement.

It’s a mouthful, but what it means is that, DNR will provide free help to farmers or land owners that want to tailor their landscape to make it more quail friendly.

Biologists fear that the bird’s habitat is disappearing and they want to put a plan in place to boost the numbers.

DNR Ranger Reggie Thackson says some simple steps could make a difference across the board.

” Some of the habitat practices that will restore bobwhite populations are field borders around crop fields, thinning and burning woodlands, pine stands in particular,” Thackston said. “And the great thing is that it not only helps bobwhites, bobwhites are like a poster child for a whole group of species that includes gopher tortoises song birds and honeybees. ”

The groups plan to pay for the plan through the sale of GOHUNT state vanity plates.

Quail season runs from now until February 28th.

And speaking of hunting: Duck season begins this Saturday.

Job openings in Warner Robins

Submitted by Jacqueline Harnevious, 13WMAZ Community Web Producer

Thursday, November 21st, 2013, 7:00am

Each Thursday, a Georgia Department of Labor representative joins 13WMAZ toshare several open jobs in the Central Georgia area.

You can watch this on 13WMAZ-TV on Thursday mornings and again at 5 p.m.

The jobs are updated here weekly.

Call the Department of Labor Career Center at (478) 751-6164 and give them the job number of the position that interests you. You can also check out other jobs on the Georgia Department of Labor’s website.

Job Title:    CNA
Location:    WARNER ROBINS GA
Pay:          Depends On Experience
Education:  12 Years
Job Number: GA8137530
Applicant will provide basic patient care under direction of nursing staff to include the following: feeding, bathing dressing, grooming, moving patients or changing linens.

Job Title:    Maintenance Technician
Location:    Warner Robins GA
Pay:          N/A
Education:  12 Years
Job Number: GA8138280
Must have a high school diploma or GED. Must have 24 months maintenance technician, pump maintenance and repair experience, control panel and electronic components and welding experience. Must be proficient in Microsoft Word and Excel.

Three Houston Co. schools named state high-performing reward schools

Submitted by HCBOE

Monday, November 18th, 2013, 5:07pm

 

Flickr source: dave fayram

HOUSTON COUNTY, GA – Kings Chapel Elementary, Linwood Elementary and Shirley Hills Elementary have been named Reward Schools by the Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE).  This award is reserved for Title 1 schools with the highest performance or the biggest academic gains by students in the last three years.  Houston’s three schools are among 78 schools statewide honored in the Highest Performance category.  Ranked in the top five percent of Title I schools, the schools were chosen for this honor because they have the highest performance for the “all students” group over three years.

“These faculties and staffs work very hard to provide the best for their students,” commented Superintendent Dr. Robin Hines.  “This state recognition represents years of excellence.  I am so proud of these administrators, teachers, students and their families!”

Reward and Alert schools are identified as part of the state’s waiver from the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.  This is the second year the GaDOE announced Reward and Alert Schools – Shirley Hills Elementary was also a 2012 Reward School, again in the highest performance category.  The 2013 Reward and Alert Schools were released on Nov. 12, 2013.

Kings Chapel Elementary is located at 460 Arena Rd in Perry; Paulette Tompkins serves as principal. Tompkins may be reached at 478-988-6273 or Paulette.Tompkins@hcbe.net. Linwood Elementary is located at 61 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd, in Warner Robins where Dr. Amanda Brantley serves as principal.  Dr. Brantley may be reached at 478-929-6360 or Amanda.Brantley@hcbe.net.  Shirley Hills Elementary is located at 300 Mary Lane in Warner Robins with Dr. Traci Jackson serving as principal.  Dr. Jackson may be reached at 478-929-7824 or Traci.Jackson@hcbe.net.