Dog Obedience classes

It's a Dog's Life! Dog Obedience class registration begins Monday, September 8 at Memorial Park. Classes are available for all ages of dogs. For more information, including class fees and dates, please call (706) 613-3580 or visit www.accleisureservices.com/dog_obedience.shtml.

Alleged horse thief

There are cars reported stolen just about every day in Athens, but this is rare:

Officers responded to a complaint of the theft of a horse from Cherokee Stables, 2435 Cherokee Rd. A witness was following the suspect who was riding the horse. Contact was made with both parties at Cherokee Rd/Beaverdam Rd around 1920 August 27. Investigation revealed the offender, DARLEEN NANCY CAST, lived at that location but did not have permission to handle or take the horse. The owner of the horse, LORI GERMAN of Dallas, confirmed this. CAST, 50, Cherokee Rd, was arrested and charged with Theft by Taking.

Reported by the Athens-Clarke County Police.

Russell Library Fall Public Program Guide (Free events)

Sunday, September 14, 2008, 2–5p.m.

Highlander Center: 75 years of Working for Justice

Opening Exhibit, Lecture, Screening, & Reception

Russell Library, UGA Main Library, West Entrance

One of the best-known and most widely regarded community activists in Appalachia, Dr. Helen Lewis will open the Highlander program series and exhibit. She will share her perspectives and reflections on the long and important history of the Highlander Center and introduce the film, You Got to Move. Dr. Lewis served on the staff of Highlander for two decades (1977-1997) and as a sociologist and anthropologist has held teaching and research positions at Berea College, the University of Tennessee, East Tennessee State University, and Appalachian State University. She spent four years at Appalshop, where she developed a film series on the history of Appalachia. She served as president of the Appalachian Studies Association in 2001-02. She is currently retired and lives in Morganton, Georgia. EVENT IS FREE AND OPEN TO ALL.

September 25, 2008, 7-9 p.m.

Coping with the Cost of Health Care: How Do We Pay for What We Need?

A National Issues Forum

Richard B. Russell Library for Political Research and Studies

Russell Library, UGA Main Library, West Entrance

Forty-seven million Americans lack health insurance while costs continue to spiral out of control for those who do have coverage. The nation spends more than any other country on health care, but many are still dissatisfied with what we have to show for it. Now it is time to face the difficult choices needed to make the United States health-care system function properly. Join us for a non-partisan, deliberative forum to discuss this critical public issue. EVENT IS FREE AND OPEN TO ALL.

Sunday, September 28, 2008, 3–5 p.m.

Highlander Folk School & the Southern Front:

Worker Education and the Growth of the Civil Rights Movement

Lecture, Reception, & Book Signing

Athens-Clarke County Library Auditorium, 2025 Baxter Street, Athens, Georgia

Noted historians, Dr. James Lorence and Dr. Randall Patton will examine Highlander’s founding and early years. Patton will focus on the climate of southern liberalism during Highlander’s early years and, in particular, the role played by Myles Horton, its co-founder. Lorence will focus on Donald West, a poet from Georgia who was a labor organizer, educator, and outspoken civil rights advocate who played a role in Highlander’s founding years. James J. Lorence is an historian and author of eight books. In recent years, he has written widely on southern labor activism, including a just published biography of Highlander co-founder, Don West, and a forthcoming book from UGA Press on community organizing in Georgia during the Great Depression. Lorence spent most of his career at the University of Wisconsin-Marathon, and from 2001-2005, served as Eminent Scholar of History at Gainesville State College in Gainesville, Georgia. He is currently retired in Wisconsin. Randall L. Patton is professor of history at Kennesaw State University. He is a business and labor historian whose books include a history of Shaw Industries and of the rise of the carpet industry in the South. He has also written widely on southern liberalism in the 1930s and 1940s, served as section editor for 20th century history section of the New Georgia Encyclopedia, and is among the founders of the Southern Industrial Project (SIP). EVENT IS FREE AND OPEN TO ALL.

Sunday, October 5, 2008, 3–5 p.m.

Seeing Red in Black: White Southern Leaders Fight Desegregation

A Multimedia Archival Presentation & Reception

Demosthenian Hall, North Campus, University of Georgia

Drawing upon film, video, and documents from archival collections at the Richard B. Russell Library, Craig Breaden and Jill Severn will explore the tactics employed by key Georgia segregationists, such as Herman Talmadge and Roy V. Harris, to discredit and undermine the Civil Rights Movement to white southerners. The speakers will give close attention to the background and creation of a covert film and broadside produced by the Georgia Education Commission in 1957, depicting interracial activities and the presence of alleged communists at the Highlander Folk School, as a prime example of segregationist reaction to the Civil Rights Movement. Jill Severn is the head of Access and Outreach at the Russell Library and a member of the faculty of the Foot Soldier Project for Civil Rights Studies at the University of Georgia. She also serves as the director of the Russell Forum for Georgia Civic Engagement, a National Issues Forum Public Policy Institute. Craig Breaden is Head of Media and Oral History at the Richard B. Russell Library and is a member of the faculty of the Foot Soldier Project for Civil Rights Studies at the University of Georgia. EVENT IS FREE AND OPEN TO ALL.

October 7, 2008, 7 p.m.

DEBATE WATCH 2008~ with special guest, Dr. Paul Gurian

Russell Library, UGA Main Library, West Entrance

The Russell Library will host Debate Watch 2008 with Dr. Paul Gurian, Associate professor of Political Science at The University of Georgia. Dr. Gurian is an expert on presidential primaries and campaign strategy. He will introduce the debate and then lead a discussion following the debate. The October 7th presidential debate will use a town-hall-meeting format, which will provide an interesting comparison to the deliberative approach employed at the three Athens forums. EVENT IS FREE AND OPEN TO ALL.

October 16, 2008, 7 – 9 p.m.

Making Ends Meet: Is There A Way to Help Working Americans?

A National Issues Forum

Oconee County Public Library

1080 Experiment Station Rd., Watkinsville, Georgia

Today, millions of Americans are struggling to stay economically afloat. Many of them are working full-time, but they cannot make their paychecks stretch to pay the bills for basic necessities. What has come of the American Dream that if you work hard and play by the rules, you will prosper? Join us for a non-partisan, deliberative forum to discuss this critical public issue. EVENT IS FREE AND OPEN TO ALL.

Sunday, October 19, 2008, 3–5 p.m.

The Untold Story of Women’s Leadership at Highlander Research and Education Center: 75 Years Fighting for Freedom

Lecture & Reception

Demosthenian Hall, North Campus, University of Georgia

While much has been written about Highlander and its influence in the Civil Rights Movement, there has been little research analyzing the role of women at Highlander. Throughout its history, women shaped the work of the Center, but like most institutions formed prior to the 1970s or 1980s; men filled the top leadership positions. While women often shaped these decisions and carried great influence at Highlander, it is only in the 1994 that the first woman was named as permanent Director. In her presentation, Colleen McDermott will use film and commentary to recover the vital leadership roles played by women at one of the most important centers for civil and human rights advancement in the Southeast. Colleen McDermott is a doctoral candidate in the Program of Adult Education, Department of Lifelong Education, Administration, and Policy, The University of Georgia. She has worked with activists and taught social justice courses for over 15 years. Her research interests are the role of education in social movements and women’s studies. She is currently working on a book about the Women of Highlander Research and Education Center that combines these two interests. EVENT IS FREE AND OPEN TO ALL.

Sunday, October 26, 2008, 3–5 p.m.

The South and Appalachia—Linking to the World

The Current Concerns and Initiatives of the Highlander Research and Education Center

Presentation & Reception

Athens-Clarke County Library Auditorium, 2025 Baxter Street, Athens, Georgia

Susan Williams will share the Highlander Research and Education Center’s current projects and approaches to critical public issues such as immigration, globalization, and human and civil rights. Susan Williams is the coordinator of the Education Team and the Highlander Library/Resource Center. Susan worked for ten years as a community organizer for Save Our Cumberland Mountains (SOCM) and for several years with the Tennessee Industrial Renewal Network organizing around fair trade and coordinating worker-to-worker exchanges between Mexico and Tennessee factory workers. She has been on the steering committee of the Economic Literacy Action Network and the board of United for a Fair Economy. She is currently working on an historical timeline of Highlander’s education history. EVENT IS FREE AND OPEN TO ALL.

October 28, 2008, 7-9 p.m.

The Energy Problem: Choices for an Uncertain Future

A National Issues Forum

Richard B. Russell Library for Political Research and Studies

Russell Library, UGA Main Library, West Entrance

America's way of life seems threatened by unstable sources of energy, while many see growing evidence of environmental damage. As demands for energy escalate, both in this country and in rapidly developing nations, we may soon reach a point of no return. It is time to face the difficult choices that must be made to ensure a sustainable future. Join us for a non-partisan, deliberative forum to discuss this critical public issue. EVENT IS FREE AND OPEN TO ALL.

Sunday, November 16, 2008, 2 p.m. – 5 p.m.

Reflections on Songs, Actions, and Social Justice:

Film, Lecture, and Music from Guy and Candie Carawan & Art Rosenbaum

& Special Guests

Russell Library, UGA Main Library, West Entrance

Guy and Candie Carawan were a vital part of the Highlander staff during the Civil Rights Movement. Guy, a folk musician, served as the center’s music director in the late 1950s and early 1960s, introduced an old labor song, “We Shall Overcome” during a training camp for SNCC workers in 1960, after which it quickly emerged as the anthem of the Movement. Both Carawans have written widely about the role of folk music and culture in social justice movements, from Appalachia to St. John’s Island, South Carolina. They are retired near New Market, Tennessee, but remain active in the Appalachian Studies Association. Art Rosenbaum is a professor of art at the Lamar Dodd School of Art at the University of Georgia and has exhibited his drawings and paintings extensively. He has recorded folk musicians throughout the United States, particularly in Georgia, Kentucky, Indiana, Iowa, and New York. He is the author of Shout Because You’re Free: The African American Ring Shout Tradition in Coastal Georgia, University of Georgia Press 1998 (photographs by Margo Newmark Rosenbaum), and most recently has produced a 4-CD box set, Art of Field Recording: Volume I : 50 Years of Traditional American Music Documented by Art Rosenbaum (Dust to Digital). Their program will talk about the role of performance in the activism and community development efforts at Highlander and will include a screening of the film, The Telling Takes Me Home made by their daughter about their lives. EVENT IS FREE AND OPEN TO ALL.

UGA Arts Festival

UGA Arts Festival
Full schedule available at: http://www.uga.edu/artsfestival/

Music, drama, art, dance and poetry will enliven the University of Georgia campus during the first
UGA Arts Festival, a four-day celebration to be held Sept. 4-7 at the Performing and Visual Arts
Complex to coincide with the dedication of the new Lamar Dodd School of Art building.

Vox Reading Series (Today)

VOX Reading Series
Creative Writing Program VOX Reading Series

The UGA Creative Writing Program’s VOX Reading Series presents an evening showcasing the work of our new MFA and PhD students. Please come out and help us welcome them to UGA and
Athens! Featuring: C. J. Bartunek, Erin Christian, Ashley David, Ida Stewart, Kevin Vaughn, and
Caroline Young. Tuesday, August 26 at 8pm in The Lab @ Ciné, 234 W. Hancock Avenue in
downtown Athens.

1996 Olympics Was A Special Time in Athens

Note: This was originally published on "Eye on Sports Media".

Athens, GA (Aug 21, 2008) - August 1, 1996 was a unique and special day in the long history of the University of Georgia's Sanford Stadium. There were no English Boxwood Hedges in sight, and the bunting of the the Olympic Games covered any visual signs that you were inside the UGA football stadium. 76,000+ people filled the stadium to watch, horror of horror, women playing for the gold medal in futbol in a stadium built for American football.

As the United States women prepare to face Brazil in today's gold medal futbol game against Brazil, it is not hard to think back to that night in Athens, where the US team defeated China 2-1 for the first ever gold medal in the sport. Even though there were 10,000 or so empty seats in the stadium, the electricity and energy were unlike any other that people had experienced in that stadium. The unbridled joy of the players after winning, flashbulbs going off all over the stadium in the darkness of the night, and people (like me) truly falling in love with the international game. Never before in the history of Sanford Stadium had a female competed in a sport on that grass field, and the 1996 Olympics changed that.

Fierce alumni were upset that their beloved hedges had been removed for the Olympics. In fact, just eight months earlier, we watched from the television booth in amazement as fans and platers (including players from Auburn) tore the hedges apart during and after the SEC football game so that they could have a piece of history. But nothing like what happened during that magical week in Athens, Georgia has happened since, and will likely never happen again. Sure, the Georgia Women's Soccer team is a rising force in collegiate soccer, but they will not and cannot ever play a game in that stadium for a simple reason: it is not configured for futbol.

For those of us that were in Sanford Stadium for the medal round games for men and women, and our friends in the cummunity, these are memories that will be with us forever, and memories we do not want to forget. Just ask my friend Rocky Oliver. The day after the game, he and his family were walking into the International House of Pancakes in Athens, just up the road from the stadium. As they were walking in, some members of the women's team were walking out. They got to talk with Mia Hamm and she let his kids hold onto her gold medal. Sure, we can watch the games on television. But it is just not the same.

Blood drives @ UGA

Seriously folks, if you can give blood, please do. You REALLY can save a person's life, or at the very least, help ease the suffering of a person ravaged by the affects of a disease or illness.

-----------------
Greetings!
There is currently an emergency need for blood, especially types O positive and O negative. Please make an effort to donate at one of the following campus blood drives.

* Ramsey Center. Please check in by the main entrance. Wednesday, August 20th. 12 p.m. - 5 p.m.
* Memorial Hall, Ballroom. Wednesday, August 20th. 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.
* Georgia Center for Continuing Education, Hill Atrium. Thursday, August 21st. 12 p.m. - 5 p.m.
* Science Library, Lobby. Wednesday, August 27th. 12 p.m. - 5 p.m.
* Memorial Hall, Ballroom. Thursday, August 28th. 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

All donors are urged to eat a full meal and to drink lots of caffeine-free liquids before donating blood. Give the gift of life! Donate Blood!

State Botanical Garden of GA Friends Market

The State Botanical Garden of Georgia (2450 S. Milledge Ave.) will be holding their annual Friends Flea Market in the Conservatory this Saturday August 23 from 8 am - 2 pm, rain or shine (will be inside). Admission is free and prices are low. We always have a ton of stuff and it is quite fun to browse/shop. ** NO CLOTHING OR SHOES **
We are still accepting donations (no clothing or shoes, please) this week (18th - 22nd). Please call Beverly at 706.542.6138 if you have stuff to drop off, or we can pick up large items. All proceeds benefit the State Botanical Garden of GA. Unsold items will be donated to charity.

Thursday at UGA: It's just a drill

This is an announcement from the University of Georgia:

This notice is to inform the university community that on Thursday, August 14, at 9 a.m., the University Health Center will conduct an emergency drill using live volunteers with simulated injuries. Emergency vehicles will be arriving at the health center on Thursday morning as part of the drill.

This drill is being held in cooperation with the Office of Security and Emergency Preparedness, the UGA Police Department, Athens Regional EMS and St. Mary’s EMS.

The drill is held annually to help prepare UHC staff in the event of an injury causing event on campus.

DayJet service at ATH

From DayJet via Athens-Clarke County:

DayJet Corporation announced today that it is now flying "Per-Seat, On-Demand" jet service from Ben Epps Airport. Athens is the newest addition to DayJet’s growing "Per-Seat, On-Demand" service network connecting under-serviced communities and thriving business centers across the Southeast.

DayJet’s service expansion directly links Athens to an initial 14 DayPort™ communities across Florida, Alabama and Georgia – including Savannah, Macon, Boca Raton, Gainesville, Jacksonville, Lakeland, Orlando, Pensacola, Miami, Naples, Sarasota, St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Tallahassee, and Montgomery. DayJet members, numbering more than 2,000 business travelers, can now fly "Per-Seat, On-Demand" to/from Athens when they begin or end their travel at a DayPort community.

"DayJet is ushering in a new era in regional transportation that makes it easier for business professionals to travel directly to the places they need to go without overnight stays or long hours on the road," said Traver Gruen-Kennedy, Vice President of Strategic Operations. "Starting today, DayJet members traveling to and from Athens not only have affordable access to on-demand jet service, but they can also decide how much their time is worth to increase productivity and enhance their quality of life."

About "Per-Seat, On-Demand" Jet Service

DayJet has developed the world’s first "Per-Seat, On-Demand" jet service that makes the convenience of corporate jet travel broadly available and affordable for more people and organizations, turning wasted travel time into valuable business and personal time. "Per-Seat" means customers only pay for the seat(s) they need, not the entire aircraft. "On-Demand" means customers fly according to their individually negotiated time requirements. Business travelers can now book just the seat that they need aboard DayJet’s fleet of Eclipse 500™ very light jets (VLJs); customize travel according to their time and budget requirements; fly point-to-point between regional destinations; and return home in a single day.

About DayJet

DayJet is the largest fleet operator of next-generation very light jet (VLJ) aircraft and the pioneer of a new type of regional business travel. "Per-Seat, On-Demand" jet service is sold by the individual seat and customized for each passenger’s unique time and budget requirements— prices start at a modest premium to full-fare economy coach airfares. Headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida, DayJet is the first 100% all-digital air carrier. Combined with the speed and efficiency of Eclipse 500 VLJ aircraft, DayJet "Per-Seat, On-Demand" jet service has created the next major advance in corporate productivity and regional economic development. For more information, visit http://www.dayjet.com/.

Auditions with the Town and Gown Players

MOON OVER BUFFALO

Written by Ken Ludwig
Directed by Tom Tanner
Audition Dates: August 18 through August 19, 2008

The uproarious farce by the author of “Lend Me a Tenor,” that brought Carol Burnett back to Broadway. The perfect escapist evening for anyone who loves theatre. Or hates it. Or just doesn’t get it.

This is a Mainstage show (which runs October 3 through October 5 & October 9 through October 12, 2008).

The director has this to say about auditions:

For “Moon Over Buffalo,” we are looking to fill a total of eight major roles, 4 male and 4 female. Characters range in age from their 20s to their 70s. In addition to these roles, we hope to fill a fistful of small (1-2 lines, with some stage time and amusing “bits”) roles. These roles will play other actors and members of the repertory company in the play. The play is a classic slam door farce, a very physical comedy with no redeeming feature except to be REALLY funny. No acting experience is necessary, just a desire to play and a willingness to be look ridiculous for the sake of a laugh. Auditions are at 7:00 on Monday August 18 and Tuesday August 19, with call backs, if needed on August 19 at 8:00. No prepared pieces needed, we will conduct cold readings from the script, and please come dressed for movement on the stage. Feel free to email the director, Tom Tanner, at ttanner@strom.clemson.edu (or call him at 706-340-1522) for further info.

Major roles are:
George Hay: a fading stage actor in his 50s, currently performing with a small repertory company in Buffalo, NY.
Charlotte: George's wife and a fellow actor, in her 50s.
Rosalind: Roz, George & Charlotte's bright daughter, who left the stage to lead a "normal" life, in her late 20s or early 30s.
Howard: a good natured TV weatherman and Rosalind's fiancé, in his late 20s or early 30s.
Paul: likeable stage manager for George's company, and Rosalind's ex-fiancé, in his 30s.
Ethel: Charlotte's crotchety, nearly-deaf mother, an actress, in her 70s.
Richard: a lovable lawyer (?!) who is courting Charlotte, in his 50s.
Eileen: a young and lovely actress in George's company who was once George's "one-night-stand.”

The next week:

Monday & Tuesday, August 25 & 26, 2008 starting 7 pm nightly
for the Town & Gown Second Stage Production of MEANWHILE, BACK AT THE SUPER-LAIR...
a comedy of heroic proportions by Greg Kalleres

at the Athens Community Theatre off Prince Avenue, behind the historic Taylor-Grady House, less than a mile from downtown

Auditions will consist of cold readings from the script: no monologues please.

Roles being cast:
THE HUMAN FLY (M), [de facto] leader of the Super-Tribe super team, facing an existential crisis that pushes him to extreme measures
LEOPARD WOMAN (F), the [once] idealistic sexpot of the team, the Human Fly's girlfriend
DARRELL (M), a young African American from the Mayor's Office sent to get the team in shape or send them packing
RHINO MAN (M), the [albeit flabby] muscle of the Super-Tribe, an overweight wreck of a man, rude and crude
SILVER STREAK (M), the [dimwitted] heart of the Super-Tribe, very serious about being a good guy but not that good at it
DR. REYNOLDS (M/F), the Human Fly's psychiatrist, who may be doing more harm than good
EDDIE "ONE ARM" MALONE (M/F) and STINKY (M/F), two thugs working for the supervillainous Eidolon plaguing Sate City

MEANWHILE, BACK THE THE SUPER-LAIR... will be performing October 17-19, 2008.
For more information contact director Steven Carroll at scar1106@gmail.com or visit www.townandgownplayers.org