Ronald Waldrop, former teacher in the Fayette County School System and the longtime mayor of Belk, died on Wednesday, Sept. 16 following a lengthy illness. He was 78 years old. Waldrop lived his entire life in Belk and truly loved the community. He was the second person to serve as mayor of Belk, first serving a six-year stint from 1970-76. Later when Mike Ellison resigned as mayor of Belk in 1998 to take an elected position on the Fayette County Commission, Waldrop stepped in again as mayor and served until resigning due to health reasons this year in June.

Fayette Medical Center (FMC) recently updated and renovated its community walking trail, located near the FMC Long-Term Care facility. The trail was originally built in the 1980s thanks to a $10,000 donation from the Georgia Pacific Foundation. The renovation was made possible through a $60,000 grant from OptumRX, and included widening the track and sidewalks, repairing the fence, and renovating the pavilion at the track.

The Fayette County Board of Education passed its budget for fiscal year 2021 during its Sept. 15 meeting. Board President Tom Hubbert was absent from the meeting, with Superintendent Jim Burkhalter and all other board members in attendance. Board Vice-President Sam Sullivan presided over the meeting in the absence of Hubbert. Prior to the meeting, a budget hearing was held. This was the second hearing for the proposed budget that was held by the board, with a previous hearing held at Berry High School on Sept. 10.

The Fayette County Commission discussed position vacancies and other items at its Sept. 14 meeting, as they continue to work toward adopting the fiscal year 2021 budget later this month. All commissioners were present for the meeting. Commissioner Barry Corkren said that he asked that position vacancies be placed on the agenda for discussion.

The Berry Town Council approved its fiscal year 2021 budget during its Sept. 14 meeting. Councilman Chris Rice was absent, with all other council members present for the meeting.
Berry Town Clerk Marie McCluskey said that projected revenues for the town are expected to be similar to the revenue collected last year. Total revenue for the FY2021 general fund budget is expected to be approximately $677,586.

Bobbie Jo Kemp-Driver was presented a plaque and a resolution signed by the members of the Fayette County Commission, honoring her for her 37 years of “dedicated and loyal service” to the county. Her official retirement date will be Oct. 1.

The Fayette Tigers traveled to Oak Grove last week for its first road game of the season and came home victorious with a 26-7 win. Fayette scored touchdowns on its first three possessions, then sealed the victory with another score late in the fourth quarter.

The Berry Wildcats sought to continue its road game winning streak as they traveled to Guin to face the Marion County Red Raiders. Marion County took an early lead, but big plays on both sides of the ball by the Wildcats proved to be too much for the Red Raiders to handle.  A 26-point second half led Berry to a 38–16 victory.

Hubbertville recorded its first Region 6 win of the season on Friday night with a 57-28 victory over the Meek Tigers. Gage Key returned the opening kick 19 yards, setting up the Lions’ offense with its opening possession. With the snap, Key connected on a passing route down the right sideline with Austin Berryhill, who raced to the four-yard line awarding the Lions with first and goal. First down brought Gage Alexander with the handoff for the quick six with only 42 seconds erased from the game clock.

The Fayette County Courthouse dome was repainted last week during a project that is a portion of the courthouse refurbishing project.  The project will include a complete new roof and the repainting of all exterior wood surfaces. The cost of the project is approximately $170,000, and will be paid out of the Courthouse Restoration Fund. No tax money will be used for the project.

After starting school on Aug. 20, the Fayette County School System is starting to experience some of the attendance problems that were expected due to attending school during a pandemic.
On Monday, Sept. 14, the Fayette County Board of Education reported that, since the beginning of the school year, 180 total individuals had been quarantined throughout the school system.

Fayette County High School had local musician Roger Wallace play “Taps” before the Fayette - Curry football game on Sept. 11 to honor the memory of the victims of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on American soil. The Fayette Fire Department also flew a huge American flag all day on Sept. 11, hoisted by a ladder on one of its trucks, to commemorate the event.

The Fayette City Council discussed the new designated dumping site for wastewater during its Sept. 8 city council meeting. All council members were present for the meeting. The council recently changed the sites allowed for wastewater dumping to a central site located in the northern portion of the city. According to John Dill, manager of the wastewater department, the site was chosen to reduce the harmful impact on the city’s wastewater pumps to a minimal amount.

The Fayette Police Department recently received a check in the amount of $1,500 in the form of a grant from the 24th Judicial Circuit’s District Attorney’s office. The grant is designated to be used by the department for equipment purchases and training. Jenkins said that he appreciates the district attorney’s office recognizing the hard work his officers perform and aiding the department with the grant. “I’m very grateful for the grant,” Jenkins said. “Anytime you get financial assistance, especially for training and equipment, its always beneficial.”

Fayette captured its first win of the 2020 football season by defeating the Curry Yellow Jackets 36-22. The Tigers held a commanding 30-0 lead late in the second quarter, then relied on its younger reserve players for most of the remainder of the game to secure the win.

Berry defeats Hubbertville 26-0

The Hubbertville Lions played host to its cross-county rival Berry in Wiley Hollingsworth Stadium on Friday night, suffering a 26-0 loss to the Wildcats. Following the coin toss, Joel Gray booted the opening kick downfield, setting the Lions’ offense up for its opening possession.

The quick action of the Fayette Police department resulted in a burglar being captured at the scene of the crime. Gregory Shane Fortner, 39, of 531 11th St. SW, Fayette, was caught hiding in the ceiling at Shop & Save Supermarket in Fayette at approximately 4:30 a.m. on the morning of Tuesday, Sept. 1. The police department responded to the scene when Fortner activated the security alarm at the store.

Two Fayette County residents pled guilty to felony drug charges last week after reaching plea agreements with the 24th Judicial Circuit’s District Attorney’s Office. Tracy Lynn Brashier, 30, of Berry agreed to serve 15 years in prison for distribution of a controlled substance. She was arrested on March 20 with a quantity of methamphetamine intended for sale. Eric Parker, 49, of Fayette, was arrested in January for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Parker will serve 11 years in prison.

The Fayette City Council met in a special called meeting at noon on Tuesday Sept. 1 to add the legitimate provisional ballots cast during the Aug. 25 primary and to certify the election results. All council members and Mayor Ray Nelson were present for the meeting. There were 11 provisional ballots counted in the final results of the Fayette municipal election, and four provisional ballots cast were ruled ineligible to be counted. Sherry Settle represented the Fayette County Board of Registrars at the meeting.

The Glen Allen Town Council passed resolutions 3-20 through 8-20, certifying the municipal election results at its Tuesday, Sept. 1 council meeting. Since there was only one candidate qualifying for each position on the town’s governing board, an election was not required for this election cycle. Mayor Allen J. Dunavant presented and read aloud the resolutions which were specified for each position of the governing body.