Hope’s Choice held its first-ever 5K charity run in Fayette on March 10, and according to Kasey Kennedy, executive director of Hope’s Choice, the event was an overwhelming success. “This was the biggest fundraiser for Hope’s Choice since we opened our doors five years ago,” Kennedy said. “We would like to thank all the sponsors, runners, volunteers and prize donors who made this possible. The 5K wouldn’t have been possible without the help of Nicole Miles and DCH-FMC. We had 58 runners, and all of the proceeds raised go to benefit Hope’s Choice Pregnancy Resource Center.”

The Berry softball team had a busy week of games with mixed results. On March 9, the Lady Wildcats defeated Pickens County 15 - 0. Brooke Blanton was the winning pitcher. She completed three innings with six strike outs. Blanton also contributed heavily at the plate, getting three hits in four at-bats with a double and four RBIs. Kyla Edmonson also had a big game offensively for Berry. Edmonson had three hits and three RBIs, which included a two-run homer.

The Hubbertville Lady Lions only played one softball game during the week, but they delivered with their best game of the year in defeating Phillips 13 - 0. Emma Nichols pitched a complete five innings shutout to claim the victory. Madison Cribb had two hits in four at-bats with a run scored and a RBI for Hubbertville. Brinley Burkett had a hit, scored two runs and drove in three runs.

Longtime Fayette Revenue Commissioner Ruby Porter defeated challenger Marion Dodson 2,808 to 1,641 votes to secure the Republican nomination for her current position during the March 3 primary. Since there is no Democratic opposition for the office, Porter is basically assured of her re-election to the position. The unofficial totals from the March 3 primary show that 5,436 votes were cast in Fayette County, with 4,633 votes (85.23 percent) cast on Republican ballots.

John Gordon was recognized during a reception on Sunday, March 8, for his 22 years of service as county administrator for the Fayette County Commission.

Note: This article is reprinted by permission of Consolidated Publishing’s News Journal: Serving Jacksonville, Piedmont and Northern Calhoun County. On Thursday, March 5, for the first time in Alabama history, two cities within the state became sister cities. On that day, the mayors of the cities of Piedmont and Fayette signed proclamations that declared their new status. The signing occurred at Zamora Shrine Center in Irondale.

The Berry Town Council approved its flood ordinance update during its March 2 meeting. Chris Rice was absent from the meeting with all other council members present. Town Clerk Marie McClusky said that the town has to have the ordinance approved before the citizens of Berry can obtain flood insurance for their properties. McClusky added that Cedar Creek and North River are the two most flood prone areas within the town.

The Glen Allen Town Council held its monthly meeting on Tuesday, March 3 at at the town hall. Following standard opening procedures, Mayor Allen J. Dunavant addressed the short agenda for the meeting. He stated that the Alabama PALS (People Against a Littered State) Board of Directors has recently announced that the annual 2020 “Don’t Drop it on Alabama” Spring Cleanup would be held during the entire month of April for the first time ever.

After opening the season with four losses, the Hubbertville Lady Lions captured its first win of the softball season with a 10 - 0 shutout victory over Brilliant. Tassie Lewis pitched the complete game shutout for Hubbertville, shutting down the Lady Tigers’ offense for the win.

The Hubbertville baseball team won an offensive slugfest against Vina by the score of 15-10.
Carter Hollingsworth, Gage Key and Cade Fisher each pitched for Hubbertville during the game. Key struck out eight batters in three innings, while Fisher pitched 2 2/3 innings to record the victory.

The Fayette County Tigers baseball team traveled to Caledonia, Miss. on March 6 and returned with a hard-fought 6-4 victory. The game was tied at four runs each in the top of the ninth when Langston Srawbridge doubled in a run to put Fayette ahead. Carter Sanford started the game on the mound for Fayette, pitching four innings and allowing four hits and four runs, with seven strikeouts.

The Fayette County softball team played only one game last week due to the rain, defeating the homestanding Lady Pitrates of Winfield 12-7. Lauren Seale pitched a complete seven inning game for the Lady Tigers, scattering eight hits and allowing only four earned runs.

Wayne Edwin Tucker, 73, of Glen Allen, was arrested on Feb. 25 and charged with 33 sex-related offenses following an indictment by a Fayette County Grand Jury in January. Tucker had previously been arrested in 2017 following a grand jury indictment that charged him with two felony counts of sexual abuse. He posted bail shortly after his arrest, and had been free on bond until his arrest last week following the latest grand jury indictment.

The Fayette County Cattlemen’s Association held its annual steak supper and banquet on Saturday, Feb. 22 at the Boy Scout Building in Fayette. Regional Vice-President Randy Slay, who is a member of the Fayette Cattlemen’s Association, told the audience in attendance that Alabama has been aggressive in passing laws that will ensure consumers that the meat sold in Alabama “is really meat.”

The Fayette City Council voted at its Feb. 25 meeting to approve property tax and sales/use tax abatements for Showa Best Gloves due to the expansion of its current facility. Councilwoman Linda McCraw was absent from the meeting, with all other council members in attendance. Scott Robertson, plant manager of Showa Best Gloves, appeared before the council to request the abatements.

During its Feb. 24 meeting, the Fayette County Commission established a new policy that will declare a 60-day moratorium on public comments prior to an election. Commissioner Barry Corkren was absent, with all other commissioners present. Commissioner Joe Acker commented during the meeting that the commission appeared to get speakers just before an election cycle speaking against a candidate who is seeking re-election. He asked for a 60-day moratorium on public comments to be fair to the candidates who are seemingly being attacked.

Fayette County High School and Bevill State Community College have announced a new parnership that will expand opportunities for high school students to earn dual credit for college courses. Max Weaver, Dean of Student Success, and Sherry Terry, Director of Student Services for the Bevill - Fayette Campus, made the announcement of the expanded partnership at Fayette County High School on Feb. 28. The agreement will now allow students in the 11th grade to take classes at Bevill for dual credit. The classes for high school juniors will include U.S.

The Fayette Lions Club recently presented a check to the Fayette County High School athletic program for $3,000, which represented the proceeds from ads sold for the football programs. Additionally, the money from the sale of the football programs is donated to the Fayette County High School Band. The Fayette Lions Club also helps to sell tickets at all home games during the FCHS football season.

The Fayette County High School baseball team split its four games during the week, winning two games and losing two. Fayette started the week with a home game against Lamar County on Feb. 25, defeating the Bulldogs by a score of 14 - 8. The game was a game of big innings for each team. Fayette scored five runs in the sixth inning to counter the seven runs that Lamar County had pushed across the plate in the fourth inning. Kaleb Owens started the game for Fayette, pitching four innings and allowing seven runs on seven hits. Owens struck out six opposing batters.