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Southeast Alabama Regional Planningand Development Commission
VOL. 23 ISSUE 1 DOTHAN, ALABAMA 36302 WWW.SEARPDC.ORG FALL 2010
SEARP&DC ANNUAL REGIONAL MEETING, SEPTEMBER, 2010Daleville Convention Center
Daleville, AL
Thanks to our Sponsors:Alabama Power Co.; WiregrassElectric Cooperative; Pea RiverElectic Cooperative; Covington
Electric Cooperative; SouthAlabama Electric Cooperative;
CDG Engineers; NorthstarEngineering; Praestare engineer-
ing; Polyengineering; DavidHicks and Associates; DMD
Engineers; Goodwyn, Mills, andCawood, Inc.; Covington County Economic Development Corp., and the
Dothan Area Chamber of Commerce. Special Thanks to the City of Dalevilleand Mayor Wess Etheredge.
BOARD OF DIRECTORSBOARD OF DIRECTORS
*Executive CommitteeJay Jaxon BARBOURG. Berry Forte*Rebecca BeasleyEarl GilmoreW. Roy Crow*Henry Franklin, Alternate
Al Britt COFFEEPaul RussellJames GrimesGladys YelvertonRobert Stephens*, Immediate Past ChairmanRoss Cotter, Alternate
Bernard Stewart COVINGTONC. L. Kirkpatrick*David LindseyDavid EllisJason JewellGreg White, Alternate
Billy Blackwell DALEWess Etheredge*, ChairmanEunice HaglerJulie Jones*, 2nd Vice ChairpersonKurt McDanielDianne Marshall, Alternate
Rob Hinson GENEVAWilliam BirdsongDanielle ReedFred Hamic*, Secretary/ TreasurerMichael LangfordVann Bradshaw, AlternateWilliam J. Paul, Ex Officio/Legal Counsel
Gregory Reynolds HENRYCarl BushJohn GloverJoAnn SmithMary Ethel Williams*Karen Scott, Alternate
Matt Parker HOUSTONMark Culver*, 1st Vice ChairmanDon McCleodCharles DismukeMike SchmitzTol Dozier, Alternate
STSTAFF -AFF -Thomas B. Solomon-Executive Director;Economic Development -Emily Waters,Director; Rachel Armstrong; Glenda ChanceyCommunity Development - Scott Farmer,Director; Andrew Windham; Glenda ChanceyHead Start - Ron Holliman, Director;Martha Lisenby; Pat Nobles; StephanieDawsey; Jackie Daniels, Brandi WallaceSenior Employment - Barbara Knight,Director; Richard DevoreWiregrass Transit - John Sorrell, Director;Tony Knight; Roberta Simmons; StephaniePennywellFiscal Department - Faye Moring, Director;Mark Williams; Natalie Cook; Sharon Barry;Eleanor FlippoPenny Rotolo, Human ResourcesSarah Hesters, Information Technology
ANNUAL MEETINGPhotos 2010
FALL 2010 REGIONAL REPORT PAGE 3
Cogongrass: An Aggressive Invader
Cogongrass(Imperata cylindrica) isan invasive, non-nativegrass that is spreadingacross Alabama. Theplant is native to Asiaand was accidentlybrought into Grand Bay,Alabama in 1912 byshipping crates.Cogongrass is extremelyfast growing and isfound in a wide rangeof soil types. It hasinvaded nearly 500 mil-lion acres worldwide. Itis known as the perfectweed because it thrivesin full sun, but is alsoable to survive in deeply shadedareas. Cogongrass is fire toler-ant and also imposes a severewildfire risk due to the intenseheat generated.
All professionals that dealwith land management issuesshould be aware of the devas-tating effects of Cogongrass.Horticulturists, tuff grass grow-ers, farmers, right-of-way crews,and foresters should reportinfestations to their county AFCoffice because of the damage itcan cause. Once it infests anarea recreational value is lost.Other obvious problems are thatit inhibits productive land useand destroys wildlife habitats. Itcauses other detrimental issuesas well, such as degradingecosystems and diminishing bio-diversity. In order to correctlyidentify the nuisance you shouldbe able to learn to recognize itsleaves, seed heads, and rhi-zomes.
The leaf blades can grow upto 6 feet long and are approxi-mately 1 inch wide.Cogongrass has a prominent
mid-rib/vein with a whitish huethat is often off center. Theedge of the blade is finely ser-rated like the blade of a saw.Some leaves stand very erect,while others may droop or lieflat. The blades are often lightyellowish-green in color, butcould have a reddish cast in falland winter. They turn brownafter a frost or freeze.
The seed head has a cylin-drical shape that can range from2-8 inches in length. Cogongrassflowers appear to be silverywhite in color and are light andfluffy like dandelions. Bloomsappear from late March to midJune. This unique plant has theuncanny ability to bloom evenwhen its leaves are brown.
The rhizomes or rootshave a dense mat, as well as arapid regenerative capacity.The central core resists break-age. They also have sharppoints and are strongly seg-mented. Multiple buds appearin each rhizome section, and itis covered in flaky scales. Theroots can penetrate soil to a
depth of 4 feet, butmost are found in thetop 6 to 10 inches ofthe soil.
In order tocontrol the infestationof Cogongrass a certi-fied herbicide appli-cator will apply suffi-cient herbicide to theroot mat. This isoften the most diffi-cult part ofCogongrass eradica-tion because the matis so dense that itmakes it hard for theherbicide to reach
the roots. Infestations requiremultiple treatments over a 2-3year period to completely elimi-nate the rhizomes.
If you would like toreport a Cogongrass infestation,have any questions, or wouldlike more information contactyour local Alabama ForestryCommission office or visit ourwebsite at www.forestry.ala-bama.gov.
Article submitted by NicholasGranger, Coffee County ForesterAFC
PAGE 4 REGIONAL REPORT FALL 2010
The City of Andalusia and theUtilities Board of the City ofAndalusia were recently award-ed a $1,515,000 EconomicDevelopment Administration(EDA) Public Works grant anda $560,000 AlabamaDepartment of Economic andCommunity Affairs (ADECA)Economic DevelopmentInfrastructure grant to supportthe expansion of SaeHaeSungAlabama, Inc. at the AndalusiaIndustrial Park.
EDA funds in conjunction withADECA funds and local fundsof $955,000 being provided bythe Utilities Board of the City ofAndalusia will allow for a$3,030,000 investment in waterand sewer improvements at theAndalusia Industrial Park andthe construction of a new well.Project improvements will assistin SaeHaeSung’s expansionplans including the addition of
150
new jobs at the Andalusia facili-ty bringing total employment to230.
SaeHaeSung Alabama, Inc. is anautomotive industry tier twosupplier of automotive partsto Hwa Shin in Alabama andKorea, and to Hyundai andKia motor manufacturing andhas been in continuous oper-ation in Andalusia since2006. The company is grow-ing and expanding due tonew contracts within theautomotive industry and theaddition of additional stamp-ing lines to be installed inthe Andalusia manufacturingplant. This growth is requir-ing the relocation of its oper-ational base from its currentlocation in the AndalusiaIndustrial Park to a new larger85,000 sq. ft. facility adjacent tothe current facility. “This new
plant is allowing SaeHaeSungto expand their production toinclude a major metal stampingoperation,” stated Mayor EarlJohnson.
SEARP&DC prepared and sub-mitted the EDA Public Worksand ADECA EconomicDevelopment Infrastructuregrant applications on behalf ofthe City and Utilities Board andwill be providing the adminis-tration. Engineering design andinspection services are beingprovided by the Andalusiaoffice of Goodwyn, Mills andCawood, Inc. This project is acontinuing example of local,state and federal agencies part-nering together to fund eco-nomic development infrastruc-ture, supprt new jobs, and tobuild development capacity inSoutheast Alabama.
Emily Waters, EconomicDevelopment DirectorEmily can be reached at 334-794-4093 ext. 1414 or
SaeHaeSung Alabama, Inc, Expansion:SaeHaeSung Alabama, Inc, Expansion:New Jobs for the City of AndalusiaNew Jobs for the City of Andalusia
Pictured in front of the new state-of-the-art stamping machine are (L toR): Emily Waters, SEARP&DC; Jeong-Hwan Bae, CFO -SaeHaeSungAlabama, Inc.; Mayor Earl Johnson, City of Andalusia; John Thompson,City Clerk-City of Andalusia
“The investments made intothis project by SaeHaeSung,the city of Andalusia, theUtilities Board, the state ofAlabama and the EconomicDevelopment Administrationis having and will continueto have a tremendous impacton the city of Andalusia andCovington County.”Earl Johnson, Mayor
FALL 2010 REGIONAL REPORT PAGE 5
Regional councils in Alabama arecurrently assisting local govern-ments in mapping their existingwater infrastructure. TheSoutheast Alabama RegionalPlanning andDevelopmentCommission(SEARP&DC) is partici-pating in this process topartner with regionalcommunities in themapping process. Mostrural water systems inAlabama rely on experi-enced employees’knowledge of the sys-tems to locate waterinfrastructure. If mapproducts exist for thesystems, they are usuallyoutdated and inaccurate.SEARP&DC is partnering withlocal water systems and theAlabama Department ofEconomic and Community Affairs(ADECA) in developing standard-ized water system data sets andmap products. Utilizing sub-meterGlobal Positioning Systems (GPS),SEARP&DC is collecting featuresof water systems such as watermains, fire hydrants, and valves.The GPS collection utilizes acombination of satellites orbitingin the sky and a handheld receiv-er utilized on the ground. In aprocess called triangulation, thesatellites and ground receiver pin-point precise locations of assetson the ground. The data that arecollected with the GPS arerequired to meet accuracy stan-dards of less than one meter. Thismeans that all of the data collect-ed with the GPS are required tobe represented on the map or inthe dataset as one meter or lessfrom its actual location on the
ground. The field data is thentransferred into a GeographicInformation System (GIS) whereit can be edited and manipulatedin order to create a digital map
product. The digi-tal map productswill not only beaccurate, but alsohave the ability tobe updated aschanges are madeto the water sys-tem. This ability toupdate the datasetand maps makesGIS a powerful
assetmanage-ment andinventorytool foruse byour localgovern-ments.
Over thepast year,
SEARP&DC has been working inHenry County with the HenryCounty Water Authority and theAbbeville Water Works and SewerBoard. Other water systems with-in Henry County to be mappedinclude the municipal systems inHeadland and Newville, as wellas areas in the Baker Hill WaterAuthority and the WillsCrossroads Water Authority serv-ice areas. Employees of the local
water authorities have beencooperating with this process byusing their knowledge of theirwater systems to assist in locatingthe water infrastructure to bemapped. Working together,SEARP&DC staff and water sys-tem employees are locating andmapping all pumps, tanks,hydrants, and valves on the sys-tem. After all of these entities aremapped, work begins on collect-ing the locations of water mains.Once the field work phase iscomplete, SEARP&DC staffsdownload the data into the GISsoftware and begin the process ofcreating a complete dataset forthe water system. Once the datahas been compiled and edited,regional water systems will havea comprehensive inventory of itswater system assets. AbbevilleMayor Ryan Blalock says heexpects the system to providefaster response times for the firedepartment in emergencies. Thecoordination and support of localleaders and water authority per-sonnel has been critical to thesuccess of this project. The map-ping of these water systems willensure that rural water systemsare no longer vulnerable touncontrollable circumstances suchas employee attrition and inaccu-rate maps. At the completion ofthis project, water systemsthroughout the state and withinour region will have access toaccurate maps to assist them inasset inventory and infrastructuremanagement.
SEARP&DC Conducting Water Mapping Planning Effort in Henry County
Andrew Windham,Regional PlannerAndrew can be reached at:334-794-4093 ext. 1409 [email protected]
Pictured above areSEARP&DC RegionalPlanner Andrew Windham.and Abbeville Mayor RyanBlalock.
PAGE 6 REGIONAL REPORT FALL 2010
For Faye Moring, the decisionto hire Ms. Eleanor Flippo wasa no brainer – she needed anindividual possessing clericaland customer service skills anda willingness to learn. Not onlydid Ms. Flippo possess the nec-essary skills, she showed driveand initiative - traits valued byany employer in today’s work-place. Ms. Moring is FiscalDirector with SoutheastAlabama Regional Planning andDevelopment Commission, oneof five host agencies recog-nized for employing SeniorTrainees during the past pro-gram year. Agency representa-tives were presented plaquesby Executive Director TomSolomon during the annualHost Agency Supervisor’s meet-ing sponsored by the SeniorEmployment Program duringthe month of October.
The decision to accept the part-
time position wasnot very difficultfor Ms. Flippoeither.. After sub-mitting countlessapplications -throughout thecommunity, shewas finally beinggiven an opportu-nity to prove thatshe could not onlydo the job, but doit well. Havingsearched unsuc-
cessfully for twoyears for a per-manent position,Ms. Flippo stat-ed she gave up
looking and went back toschool to refresh her skills.Being a prior business owner,she admits enrolling in theSenior Employment Programwas a humbling experience andthe last straw however, she wasassured if shewas willing to doher best, projectstaff would dotheir best toplace her in aposition whereshe could proveherself and pos-sibly be hired.
The HumanResourceDevelopmentCorporation,Wiregrass AdultCare, LLC, Townof NewBrockton, andthe Town of
Gordon also received plaquesfor employing Senior Traineesduring the past year. Ira Brownand Peggy Bess of Enterprise,Alabama were employed aftertraining with Coffee CountyAdult Day Care in Enterprise,Alabama. Mona Meadows ofWiregrass Rehabilitation Centerstated “Senior Trainees havebeen a great benefit to ouragency.” “They love the clientsand the clients love them,which makes the centers agood fit for seniors desiringemployment in this type ofwork.”
After training with the Town ofGordon, Mr. Ozell Smith wasemployed as a part-time CityWorker. Mayor CharlesDismukes stated “Showing thequalities desired in an employ-ee led to the Town of Gordonhiring him (Mr. Smith) on as apart-time employee. His per-
TEAMWORK + EFFORT = EMPLOYMENT
Pictured above L to R - Barbara Knight, SeniorEmployment Program Director; Penny Rotolo, HumanRescources Manager SEARP&DC; and Thomas Solomon,SEARP&DC Executive Director.
Pictured above L to R -Barbara Knight, SeniorEmployment Program Director; Gwen Howard, Town ofGordon; and Thomas Solomon, SEARP&DC ExecutiveDirector.
formance proves the contribu-tions that senior citizens canbring to employers and socie-ty.” These sentiments wereechoed by his supervisor GwenHoward who statedadded “Mr.Ozell Smith is the perfectexample of quality workman-ship in the workplace. Servingas Mr. Smith’s supervisorhas been a delight. He isvery conscientious of hisjob. His motto is, “any jobworth doing is worth doingright.”
With the aging of the BabyBoomers, more employersare learning the value ofolder workers who areknown for their patience,stability and a strong workethic. Project DirectorBarbara Knight stated “theSenior EmploymentProgram is an excellentopportunity for older work-ers who need help gettingback into the workforce.Program participants are con-stantly reminded to view their
assignments as potential jobs.We constantly encourage themto do their best because theynever know when positionsmay become available withtheir host agency. If they havedone their best, there will beno hesitation on the part oftheir supervisors to go to bat
for them and recommend themfor those positions. We haveseen it happen time and timeagain for those individuals will-ing to work hard and be ateam player. As stated byMrs.Ms. Flippo, “No matterwhere you are or where youhave been, you can always start
over, but you mustbe willing to start atthe bottom”. “It isimportant to be ateam player - youhave to be humbleand say yes, I’ll try.”
FALL 2010 REGIONAL REPORT PAGE 7
Barbara Knight,Program Directorcall (334) 794-4093ext. 1422 or 1-800-489-7606 or [email protected]
Pictured above L to R - Meria Nelson, Human ResourceDevelopment Corporation; Barbara Knight, SeniorEmployment Program Director; and Thomas Solomon,SEARP&DC Executive Director.
Pictured above L to R - Barbara Knight, Senior EmploymentProgram Director; Alberta King, Wiregrass Adult Care, andThomas Solomon, SEARP&DC Executive Director.
Pictured above L to R - Barbara Knight, SeniorEmployment Program Director; Mayor Lenwood Herron,Town of New Brockton, and Thomas Solomon, SEARP&DCExecutive Director.
PAGE 8 REGIONAL REPORT FALL 2010
Emily Waters and RachelArmstrong from the EconomicDevelopment Departmentattended the SoutheastWorkforce andEconomicDevelopmentConference, “Beyondthe Storms: AchievingCompetitiveness in aChanging World”,sponsored by the U. S.Department ofCommerce’s EconomicDevelopmentAdministration, U. S.Department of Labor,and SouthernEconomicDevelopment Council,Inc. on October 24th
through October 26th inAtlanta, Georgia. Ms. Watersand Ms. Armstrong receivedtraining on EDA’s new grantapplication submission andprocessing requirements andnew reporting requirementsdue to the Transparency Actrecently passed by Congress.EDA will now have quarterlyfunding cycles with more time-ly feedback and notification ofdecisions. In addition, as aresult of the new TransparencyAct, entities are required toreport any Federal grant of$25,000 or more received on orafter October 1, 2010. Thegrant information will be made
available on the publicallysearchable websitewww.USASpending.gov.
The Conference focused onbest practices and currentthinking of what can be doneto help our nation’s economyrecover during this critical eco-nomic time. Ms. Jane Oates,Assistant Secretary of the U. S.Department of Labor and Mr.John Fernandez, AssistantSecretary for EconomicDevelopment of the U. S.Department of Commerce,opened the Conference with adiscussion on Vision for GlobalCompetitiveness followed by around table discussion onSurviving Major Economic
Dislocations. Participants in theround table discussion includedMayor Karl Dean of Nashville,
Tennessee and FrankDiBello, President of SpaceFlorida, Kennedy SpaceCenter. Other sessionsfocused on BuildingResearch and InnovationClusters, BuildingCompetitiveness throughGlobal Trade, and Big IdeasSupporting EntrepreneurialDevelopment. Mr. RajeevDhawan, Director ofEconomic ForecastingCenter at Georgia StateUniversity’s J. MackRobinson College of
Business, made a presenta-tion on the EconomicOutlook for the Southeast.
Mr. Dhawan’s forecast statedthe economic recovery wasslowly progressing and jobgrowth would remain slow forthe near future. Ms. Watersand Ms. Armstrong also net-worked with many area repre-sentatives from the EDA AtlantaRegional office about currentand future projects.
For more informationRachel Armstrong canbe reached at 334-794-4093 ext 1411 or email [email protected]
Staff Members Attend Economic Development Conference in Atlanta
$ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $SEARP&DC LOAN PROGRAMS
SEARP&DC’S Revolving Loan Fund and Microloan Funds are seeking qualified new and expandingbusinesses for the loan programs. If you are a business person, lending institution, or know some-one with interest in these programs, please contact Emily Waters or Rachel Armstrong at 334-794-
4093. For more information, or to download our application, visit www.searpdc.org.
Pictured L to R: Phil Paradice, Regional Director AtlantaEDA; Emily Waters, Economic Development DirectorSEARP&DC; and Rachel Armstrong, SEARP&DCEconomic Development Specialist.
FALL 2010 REGIONAL REPORT PAGE 9
Several Southeast Alabama local governments have recently received notification of approved grant proposalsfrom multiple federal and state agencies. Listed below are recently awarded projects that were assisted bySEARP&DC Community and Economic Development departments.
Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program: Ten (10) Southeast Alabama communitiesrecently received great news of funded 2010 proposals from the Alabama Department of Economic andCommunity Affairs (ADECA).
Community Project Type Grant AmountCoffee County Water System Rehabilitation $400,000.00Dale County Water System Extension $372,494.00City of Elba Street Improvements $250,000.00Geneva County Water System Extension $400,000.00Town of Lockhart Sewer System Improvements $400,000.00Town of Napier Field Sewer System Rehabilitation $144,217.00Town of Newville Water Tank $400,000.00City of Opp Sewer System Rehabilitation $499,239.00City of Samson Sewer System Rehabilitation $400,000.00City of Slocomb Fire / Rescue Building $249,058.00
CDBG Total $3,515,008.00
Delta Regional Authority (DRA) State Grant Funding Program: This federal program, eligible for BarbourCounty communities, recently announced their 2010 awarded projects.
Community Project Type Grant AmountCity of Eufaula Drainage Improvements $250,000.00
DRA Total $250,000.00
Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) Program: Two (2) Southeast Alabama communities recentlyreceived notices of award from the ADECA Recreation Programs office.
Community Project Type Grant AmountTown of Clayhatchee Park Improvements $12,528.00City of Daleville Park Improvements $48,900.00
LWCF Total $61,428.00
2010 CDBG/DRA/LWCF Grant Award Total $3,826,436.00
SEARP&DC congratulates these regional local governments and isexcited about the improvements to be implemented through the assis-tance of these valuable grant funds.
Scott Farmer,Community
Development Director
Scott can be reached at 334-794-4093 ext. 1412
SEARP&DC Assists with Successful Regional Grant Awards
PAGE 10 REGIONAL REPORT FALL 2010
As we near the end of year 2010,we are completing major facilitychanges that will define the futureof our Head Start Program. Thosechanges provide for improvedfacilities for our Head StartCenters in Andalusia, Headland,and Opp. Changes in Andalusiaand Headland will provide Centerbased services for Early Head StartChildren ages 0 to 3 year old. Therelocation of our Opp Head StartCenter provides our Head Startchildren and staff with a muchimproved facility.
Opp Head Start opened its doorsover 34 years ago in the old schoolbuilding on Hardin Street. Thebuilding originally constructed in1935 served our program very well
but required frequentand costly maintenance.Upon the relocation ofthe South HighlandElementary School,Major H.D. Edgar ledthe effort to make thatfacility available to ourHead Start Program.With Mayor Edgar’sleadership, the supportof the City Council, andcooperation of OppCity SchoolSuperintendent Michael
Smithart, the relo-cation to the oldSouth Highland facility hasbeen completed. This highquality facility provides us amodern classroom and lunch-room building that will beadequate for current andfuture expansion. As we areexpanding our Head Start
Program to include EarlyHead Start services in someof our Centers, we believefuture expansion will includeour Opp Head Start Centerand other Centers in ourservice area.
In the spring of 2009 we submittedour application for stimulus(ARRA) funds that were beingoffered for Early Head StartExpansion. We received approvalof our Early Head Start expansionfunding in late December of 2009.
In June of 2010 weopened our Early HeadStart Program to providehome based services.After experiencing unex-pected planning, develop-ment, and constructiondelays we recently com-pleted our classroom reno-vation at Andalusia andHeadland. Our AndalusiaEarly Head Start class-room recently passed the
Department of HumanResources (DHR) license
inspection and we anticipate transi-tioning our Early Head Start chil-dren from home based services tothese classrooms in the very nearfuture. Presently we are awaitingDHR’s license inspection of our
SEARP&DC Head Start Completes Historic Facility Changes
Mayor Edgar celebrates the new center withStaff and Parents.
Pictured L to R: Brandi Wallace, Early Head Start Director andmembers of the Andalusia SEARP&DC Early Head Start Staff.
Opp Head Start Center
FALL 2010 REGIONAL REPORT PAGE 11
Headland Early Head Start classesand expect to open them soon.
Subject to available and continuedfunding from the Department ofHealth & Human Services, theEarly Head Start expansion willprovide needed resources to themost vulnerable children and fami-lies. These classrooms provide anenhanced early learning environ-ment and continuity of services forchildren that come from familiesin poverty. We believe this earlierapproach toward learning will ulti-mately improve program outcomesand better prepare the Head Startchildren for public school.
Ron Holliman, Head Start Program
DirectorRon can be reached at 334-794-4093 ext.1404
It was an unusual phone callabout 6 months ago when anenthusiastic man called and said,“I have this paper in my handabout computer training for sen-iors. How do I go about gettingit for my town – Elba?” It took afew moments to realize he didn’twant to go to the EnterpriseSenior Center. According to himit was to far for Elba citizens totravel. I told him there was not acurrent location in Elba, but thatSEARP&DC was applying formore site licenses and if hefound a place where we couldoperate the program, we wouldsee what we could do if thegrant came through in June. Ididn’t honestly expect to hearfrom this man again; I waswrong! He was determined.
June 2010 thankfully brought theaward of more site licensesthrough Senior Services Americajust days prior to the returnphone call from Everette Kelley
as he hadpromised.Once he real-ized we hadmore sitelicenses, hewent intoaction andcontacted sev-eral locationsto find a per-fect locationfor theGenerationson Line (GoL)computertraining pro-gram for Elbacitizens. Hefound supportthrough theCity of Elbaand the
National Insurance Company.Jack Mullinax, City Clerk ranadditional lines and set comput-ers up that were donated by theNational Insurance Company tothe Elba Senior Center. Whenthese individuals were askedwhy they were such strong sup-porters of this project they gavethe following answers: JackMullinax stated “The computerage has left our seniors behindand they didn’t have the luxuryof having it in school whichmeans it left some of them afraidof it. There is nothing to beafraid of and this program willshow them how useful it is.”Louise Hornsby, Center Director,commented that “It is going tomean a lot to the seniors. Theywill be eventually be able to paytheir bills on line. I, myself, wantto be in taking it. I can’t wait.”Mr. Kelley naturally had plentyto say. He personally knows and
Citizen Helps Make A Difference –GoL Comes To Elba
Pictured L to R: Louise Hornsby, Penny Rotolo, Jack Mullinax,and Everette Kelly.
Continued on page 12
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Connecting ALABAMAConnectingALABAMA is a multi-year initia-tive promoting the availability and adop-tion of broadband internet access through-out the state of Alabama.•TheConnectingAlabama initiative is workingwith governmen-tal, communityand industryleaders fromacross the state toarticulate a clearvision forAlabama’s broad-band future –and to develop (and fund) regional tech-nology adoption and growth strategiesaddressing the needs of communities in allsixty-seven (67) counties through 12regional action teams. Over the next twoyears, efforts will focus on encouragingprivate investment for high-speed internetdeployment, and on promoting consumeradoption. Through this effort,ConnectingALABAMA will develop aroadmap for the most efficient approachto realizing broadband accessibility andusage throughout the state. More infor-mation can be found atwww.connectingAlabama.gov.
sees at his business, KelleyFoods, how useful the computeris in life. Mr. Kelly stated that heknows enough to get lost on theInternet but knows he wants toknow more. He started his questfor this program began when hisson gave him a newsletter arti-cle, like this one. He stated thathe doesn’t want credit for bring-ing the program to Elba. He justbelieves it is wise for everyoneto know how to use it and beable to go on the Internet andreceive emails. From where I sat,I could see a man that knowshow to step up to “Generationson Line” and we thank Mr.Everette for your communityspirit.
Generations on Line is not aclass, it is opportunity to learnhow to handle the very basics ofthe computer, use the mouse,
send an email, and travel theInternet with a friendly peercoach named Don Hudson. Toearn the certificate each partici-pant completes the very basicsegments during several onehour sessions at their own pacewith the assistance of a coachthat is available Monday throughThursday 8:00 AM through 1:00PM by calling the Senior Centerand scheduling a session at 897-3019. This is open to all seniorsage 55 and older in the Elba andsurrounding area.
More general information isavailable by contacting PennyRotolo, Project Coordinator at334 794-4093 X 1410 or [email protected]. To reserve asession, call the closest locationto you: Dothan: Rose Hill SeniorCenter 334-797-1261 or HoustonLibrary 334-793-9767; Enterprise
Senior Center 334-347-3513; MaryBerry Brown Library at MidlandCity 334-983-9999; GenevaSenior Center 334-684-3625;Abbeville Senior Center 334 585-5900; Daleville Public Library334-503-9119; Elba Senior Center334-897-3010; Slocomb SeniorCenter 334-886-3115; or TaylorSenior Center 334-677-5536. Youonly need to be 55 years orolder. Don’t hesitate, this oppor-tunity won’t last forever. Do itnow! Encourage parents, grand-parents, great-grandparents tocome out and actively partici-pate! They will be pleased andamazed!
Penny RotoloHuman Resources
Manager
Penny can be reached at 334-794-4093 ext. 1410
