The 55th Annual Membership meeting & banquet for the Swainsboro/Emanuel County Chamber of Commerce is ready to set sail for fun on Thursday night, February 5th. The staff at the Chamber has been hard at work planning this year's theme, "Full Steam Ahead on the SS Emanuel."

A social is planned for 6:30 p.m. with dinner following at 7 p.m.

Once again, the banquet highlights will include STAR students & teachers, "Small Business of the Year," "Large Business of the Year," and "Citizens of the Year." In addition the 2008 Emanuel Adult Leadership Class will be recognized. See you there!

A word from your president . . .

Once again the State's economic crisis is hitting close to home!

We are seeing consolidation of Swainsboro Technical College with Southeast Technical College in Vidalia. Already, a number of jobs at Swainsboro Technical College have been lost. Now, there is a proposal to place all two-year colleges under the auspices of the Technical College System of Georgia.

We believe this proposal lacks vision for the future and is a knee-jerk reaction to the economic downturn we find ourselves in now.

Georgia is one of the fastest growing states in the nation, projected to be the fourth largest by 2020. The University System of Georgia is expected to grow by over 100,000 students by 2020. With the HOPE scholarship program, all students in Georgia have access to higher education. The University System of Georgia, composed of 35 four-year and two-year colleges, is considered among the nation's best in education and affordability. In Southern vernacular, "if it ain't broke, why fix it?"

The mission of the two-year college is completely different from that of a technical college. The mission for the two-year college is to prepare students to move forward toward completion of their education in an in-depth field of study and research. Technical colleges are for training those individuals who want and need jobs and skills immediately, and for customized business and industry training.

In our opinion, attempting to combine the two will only result in undermining both of Georgia's post-secondary opportunities.

If you have strong opinions on this proposal, we urge you to contact the Governor's Office at 404-656-1776 or go to georgia.gov website.

Bill Rogers, Jr.

Swainsboro/Emanuel County Festival Foundation, Inc. has announced plans for the 2009 Pine Tree Festival and Southeast Timber EXPO. New attractions and entertainment are expected to enhance this year's celebration, which is scheduled for April 17th to May 9th.

The Swainsboro/Emanuel County Recreation Complex on McLeod Bridge Road will host the Southeast Timber EXPO from May 6 to May 9. The annual Pine Tree Festival Parade will be held in downtown Swainsboro on Saturday, May 9. Detailed schedules will be forthcoming.

According to Athen Walden, this year's Pine Tree Festival Chairman, the Festival will feature a grand parade hosted by the Shriners with more than 100 floats and 1000 participants expected in this year's parade. Many familiar events from recent years will be back such as the pine tree sitting with a tree house wedding, beauty pageants, flower show, BBQ grill-off, battle of the bands, Breeze 5-K run, bike ride around Emanuel, lawnmower race, and celebrating the arts in downtown Swainsboro. As part of the Pine Tree, the Emanuel County Pilot Club will host an evening of "Dancing with the Stars" on April 18th. Swainsboro Raceway is also expected to add a special Pine Tree Race on the night of Saturday, May 9th.

The 2nd annual Southeast Timber EXPO has booked five major attractions this year. The EXPO will feature the BMX Bicycle & Skateboard Stunt Show; a new lumberjack show; a snake & reptile show; and an expanded Civil War Living History Camp. "We also will have arts & crafts, commercial vendors, educational exhibits, antique cars and kids' games," stated Russ Yeomans, co-chairman of this year's EXPO.

Area school children have been invited to take a "field trip" to the EXPO venue on Thursday and Friday mornings, May 7th & 8th. The Timber EXPO will be open to the public at noon on Friday, May 8th, and all day Saturday, May 9.

2009 Expo Co-Chairman George Elder described the BMX show. "We are thrilled to have scheduled the BMX Bicycle and Skateboard Stunt Show. It is a high- energy show featuring aerial stunts and mind-boggling technical maneuvers on bicycles and skateboards. Each show is staffed with professional riders who have competed in the X-Games and Gravity Games featured on ESPN and other sports networks."

The Pine Tree Festival and Southeast Timber EXPO put the spotlight on Emanuel County's forestry legacy by scheduling activities based around the forestry theme. Forestry & logging equipment will be on display throughout the Timber EXPO. The Statewide FFA Forestry Competition returns to the EXPO venue. This event brings in high school students from regional judging events all over Georgia. Programs designed by UGA's Warnell School of Forestry, Georgia Forestry Commission, and Georgia Forestry Association will provide timely education and information to area forest landowners. Educational exhibits at EXPO include Georgia Forestry Commission fire fighting, car rollover safety demonstrations, paper making and City of Swainsboro's Fire Department and "Haz-Mat" Unit.

Hailing from Stillwater, Minnesota, will be the All- American Lumberjack Show. The show, different from last year's, will be presented Thursday and Friday mornings to area school children. The lumberjack show will also be featured when the event is opened to the public. The All-American Lumberjack Show is scheduling two kids' Lumberjack Sports Camps on Saturday where youngsters can try their hand at log rolling and other lumberjack sports.

"The Snakes of Georgia Encounter," out of Barnesville, is a new show in this year's EXPO. It is a seminar with live venomous and non-venomous snakes of Georgia as well as alligators and other exotic reptiles. The focus is to promote understanding and respect for these creatures. Over 225,000 people have seen the live displays. The show will be featured on TV this spring on Planet Earth Channel.

McLeod Moring SCV Camp and Emanuel Rangers UDC Chapter 2318 will again present "Camp McLeod", a living history encampment complete with tents, cannon, re-enactors in period uniforms and numerous wartime artifacts. The camp site at EXPO has been expanded so that re-enactors can engage in a full-fledged battle. Included is a field hospital, complete with patients, nurses, and true stories about local soldiers and their families.

The Swainsboro/Emanuel County Festival Foundation, Inc. was created in 2008, when a group of local organizations purchased the festival rights from the Swainsboro Kiwanis Club. Members of the Foundation represent the Swainsboro/Emanuel Chamber of Commerce, City of Swainsboro, Emanuel County Commission, East Georgia College, Swainsboro Technical College, and numerous civic and service organizations. For more information please visit 2009 Pine Tree Festival & Timber EXPO at the Chamber web site, swainsborochambr@bellsouth.net.

Congratulations go to Flat Creek Lodge and staff! Once again, the resort has been chosen for a feature article in Southern Living Magazine. The article mentions the wild game dinner selections and cheeses produced at the Lodge.

Installations on thousands of new roadway "trailblazer" signs along Georgia Civil War Heritage Trail have begun. "The new interpretative signs have started going up across the state starting in December," stated Steve Longcrier, Executive Director of Georgia Civil War Heritage Trails.

Emanuel's new signs, designating Sherman's route through the northeastern part of county, have been installed.

On Thursday, January 29th, members of the Board of Directors of the Chamber and the Joint Development Authority hosted an "industry appreciation" lunch for the employees and management of Swainsboro's Nordson plant.

The 65 employees were honored for their recent selection as one of the "top-ten" plants in America selected by Industry Week Magazine. Proclamations were read from the Swainsboro City Council and the Emanuel County Board of Commissioners.

A new statewide program has been rolled out by the Department of Community Affairs. The "Communities of Opportunities Initiative" is a locally-driven community development strategy focused on enhancing the economic vitality of rural Georgia communities.

The initiative will focus on 91 rural counties in Georgia that have lagged behind other areas of the state and will address such issues as human capital vitality, fiscal capacity, technology and innovation, healthcare availability and access, youth leadership and workforce housing.

An initial meeting has been set for Tuesday, February 10th, for 6 p.m. at the Emanuel County Courthouse. All key stakeholders are invited to attend. Potential stakeholders include county commissioners, mayors and council members, city and county administrators/mangers, chamber of commerce, school administrators, downtown development authorities, industrial and hospital authorities, law enforcement, Family Connections, faith-based organizations, non-profit organizations, state agencies and county extension agents.

Incentives for local involvement will include a $5,000 grant to be matched by the community-50% cash and 50% in-kind. Additionally communities will have access to the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority (GEFA) state loans at reduced rates.

It is not often public officials get a pat on the back for a job well done! The Swainsboro/Emanuel County Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors would like to express our appreciation to the Emanuel County Commissioners for their efforts to improve the appearance of our community.

While we agree we have miles to go before true progress is made in educating the general public about unsightly trash in our community, the commission's recent opening of the newly constructed 31-trash container site on Fairground Road is a huge improvement over the old multi-sites located around this general area. The fenced-in, paved area with paved access makes for better trash control and easier pickup. We believe it is an all- around cleaner operation for those citizens taking trash to this collection point and for those whose jobs center on upkeep of the site. We are also certain the "larger-site" requires less gasoline to service, thus helping to keep our taxes lower.

It is our understanding the Commission will be consolidating other sites across the county in 2009. In our opinion, this is a wise decision and efficient use of assets that all citizens will come to appreciate.

In the future as lighting is added to these sites and recycling opportunities are included, we hope citizens will make every effort to place trash in containers and follow directions that are posted at the sites.

We also hope that in 2009 and in years to come every citizen will help in attempts to keep Emanuel County clean from trash and unsightly debris.

The Downtown Development Authority has set up a telephone number to report littering and illegal dumping. The Chamber asks for your help. When you see someone littering, call 237-7025, Extension 1155. Help keep Swainsboro beautiful!!!

The American Cancer Society Relay For Life of Emanuel County will hold its kick-off celebration on Tuesday, February 17th at 6:30 PM in the Richard L. Brown Room at East Georgia College. In celebration of Relay's national birthday, the theme is "Happy Birthday Relay - Celebrating 25 Years of Hope." This year's AUCTION STYLE kick-off will consist of free food & beverages and a fun atmosphere. The top 25 services will go to the highest bidder during a live auction. In addition, a silent auction will be available to obtain actual physical items that have been donated for this event.

If you are interested in donating a service or item for the auction, please contact Donna Brinson at 478-237- 6426.