The Northwest Alabama Economic Development Alliance (EDA) honored Congressman Robert Aderholt, John Riley of Bolzoni Auramo and current and former board chairmen as the EDA held its eighth annual “State of the Region” meeting at the Vernon City Complex on Thursday, Jan. 31.

The eighth annual Alabama Severe Weather Preparedness Sales Tax Holiday will be observed Feb. 22-24. The tax holiday will begin at 12:01 a.m. on Friday Feb. 22 and continue until 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 24. The towns of Berry and Fayette are participating in the tax holiday, and Fayette County is also participating, which means that no sales tax will be charged on covered items in those areas during the holiday. Glen Allen has chosen not to participate in the sales tax holiday this year.

The Bevill State Bears split a doubleheader with Motlow State of Tennessee, losing the early game 11-2 and winning the second game by a score of 11-1. Jared Barnes led Bevill in hitting with two hits, including a solo home run. Parker Hubbard suffered the loss for Bevill, allowing four hits and six runs in 4 1/3 innings.

The Berry Lady Wildcats finished its basketball season on Feb. 11 by losing in the sub-regional tournament to Falkville by a score of 72-39. Brooke Hill led Berry with 15 points, five steals and five rebounds. Bailey Thomas added seven points for the Lady Wildcats, while Tyner Bowling and Zoe Mauldin each scored six points.

Corey Savage, youth pastor and associate minister at Plum Grove Baptist Church in Tuscaloosa, gave the keynote speech at Bevill State Community College on Feb. 6 during the college’s Black History Month program. Savage, a Fayette native and graduate of Fayette County High School, Bevill State Community College and Auburn University, told the audience that many people equate Black History with the freeing of slaves in this country and the subsequent civil rights battles. He said there is a much deeper, richer history of achievement among blacks that he wanted to emphasize.

The Fayette Area Chamber of Commerce held its annual “State of the Community” luncheon on Feb. 5 at the Fayette Civic Center. Josh Musgrove, pastor of Pisgah Baptist Church in Fayette, led the opening prayer to begin the meeting. Several community leaders addressed the state of their departments at the luncheon, with the general consensus being that Fayette County is a good place to live with a viable economic and business base.

The Fayette City Council held a special called meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 6 to address the fees due from the dumping of industrial wastewater into the Fayette Wastewater System. All council members were present at the meeting. Councilman Eddy Campbell said at the beginning of last week’s meeting, it appeared that Georgia Pacific was supposed to be paying $75 per load to dump its industrial wastewater in the Fayette Wastewater System.

Former three-term tax assessor and revenue commissioner for Fayette County, Edwin “Punk” Turner, died Sunday at the age of 81. Turner served as tax assessor and revenue commissioner from Oct. 1984 until his retirement in Nov. 2002.

The Berry Town Council approved the financing for its three new police cars during its Feb. 4 meeting. All council members were present for the meeting. Berry Police Chief Gerald DeDeaux said that the new police cars are in and have been shipped to a facility in Georgia to be equipped. He said that the cars should be ready for use by the department in approximately in month.

Three high school football players in Fayette County signed scholarship offers last week to continue their football and academic careers in college. Cannon Alexander of Hubbertville signed to play for Faulkner College, while Tre’Darion Walker of Fayette County High School signed to play at the University of West Alabama and Zack Ingle of Fayette County High School will be playing for Huntington College.

The Miss Fayette Middle School Pageant was held Jan. 26 at Bevill State Community College. Winners of the Fayette Middle School Pageant, Senior Division, were: Abby Berthoud, Most Photogenic; Claire Holliman, Miss Congeniality and First Alternate; Emma Claire Kummer, Miss Fayette Middle School; and Allie Long, Second Alternate. Winners of the Fayette Middle School Pageant, Junior Division, were: Haven Magouirk, First Alternate; Bailey Unger, Most Photogenic and Miss Junior Fayette Middle School; Caylen Williams, Second Alternate; and Victoria Allison, Miss Congeniality.

The Bevill State Bears opened its 2019 baseball season by hosting Mineral Area Community College of Park Hills, Mo. on Friday Feb. 8 for a single game and for a double-header on Saturday, Feb. 9. Unfortunately for the Bears, the 2019 baseball campaign did not get off to a good start as the Cardinals of Mineral Area swept the three-game series.

The Berry Lady Wildcats advanced to sub regional play by finishing second in the area tournament played last week at Guin. On Feb. 6, Berry faced its cross-county rival Hubbertville and was victorious by a score of 50-22. Leading the scoring for Berry was Zoe Mauldin with 13 points and six rebounds. Iannah Fields scored 12 points and pulled down six rebounds, while Bailey Thomas added 10 points and six rebounds. Brooke Hill scored eight points, followed by Tyner Bowling with five points.

The “Making Alabama: A Bicentennial Traveling Exhibit,” will be in Fayette County at Hubbertville School from Feb. 15-22. The schedule for the exhibit at Hubbertville School is: Friday, Feb. 15 from 3:30-7 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 16 (Grand Opening) noon-5 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 17 from noon-5 p.m., Monday, Feb. 18 from 10 a.m. - 5 pm., Tuesday, Feb. 19 - Friday, Feb. 22 from 3:30-7 p.m.

The AARP Tax Aide volunteers are again offering free tax return assistance this year in Fayette County. This is a service that the volunteers have offered to citizens in the area for the past 15 years. The service is free to the public and there are no income or age restrictions. You do not have to be a member of AARP to take advantage of this service.

The Fayette County High School Baseball Boosters will host its annual Banquet and Steak Supper on Friday, Feb. 15 at Bevill State Community College in the Earl McDonald Auditorium. The keynote speaker for the event will be Rick Karle, former sports director at WBRC/ Fox 6 in Birmingham. Tickets for the banquet are $25 each. The banquet starts at 6 p.m., but people purchasing plates to go may begin picking up the plates at 4:30 p.m. and continue until the start of the banquet.

The Fayette City Council met in a special called meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 30 to address the pumping issue at the Fayette Wastewater Treatment Plant. All council members were present for the meeting. Wastewater Treatment Plant Manager John Dill told the council that the new pump that was installed at the facility in June 2018 had burned out in December 2018.

The Fayette County Commission voted on Jan. 28 to “move forward” with plans to hire a part-time aging director for Fayette County. Commissioner Joe Acker, Commissioner Billy Rodgers and Commissioner Barry Corkren had been on a committee to explore options concerning the direction that the aging program needs to take following the retirement of former director Faye Meharg in Oct. 2018.

Making Alabama: A Bicentennial Traveling Exhibit presented by Alabama Humanities Foundation, will include an exhibition in Fayette County at Hubbertville School from Feb. 15-22. The schedule for the exhibit in Fayette County is: Friday, Feb. 15 from 3:30-7 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 16 (Grand Opening) noon-5 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 17 from noon-5 p.m., Monday, Feb. 18 from 10 a.m. - 5 pm., Tuesday, Feb. 19 - Friday, Feb. 22 from 3:30-7 p.m.

The annual Pinewood Derby Race for Fayette Cub Scouts, Pack 45, was held at the Fayette Scout Building on Friday night, January 25. There were 32 Cub Scouts ages seven - 11 participating in the race. Each Scout with the help of his parents was responsible for designing and making his car from a kit which consisted of a block of wood and four wheels. The car could not weigh more than five ounces.