Category Archives: Festivals

VSU Spectator announces Occupy Valdosta

Mikayla Beyer wrote today, Occupy Valdosta,
The Occupy Wall Street movement may have started far away in New York, but Valdosta’s citizens are rallying to join the growing movement, with the hope of bringing change to their own community.

“We have the right to peacefully assemble,” Erin Hurley, senior anthropology major, said. “It’s time to take back our country and put it in the hands of the people, not just one percent.” She is one of the organizers of Occupy Valdosta, which will be protesting on Friday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The organization has a Facebook page with over 150 followers, about 75 of whom are expected to join the protest, according to Hurley, who is one of the organizers of the event.

Occupy Valdosta held a meeting on Wednesday, which both students and community members attended, to discuss their plans for the protest and what they hope the movement will achieve for the community and the nation.

The Spectator didn’t publish any pictures, but here’s one:


Occupy Valdosta Organizational Meeting, Drexel Park, Valdosta, 12 October 2011.
Picture by John S. Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

That’s Mikayla Beyer on the right with the backpack, at last night’s organizational meeting.

The Spectator included this interesting quote by a professor who wasn’t there: Continue reading →

VDT announces Occupy Valdosta

In the paper paper today, David S. Rodock wrote, “Occupying Valdosta: Protesters to hold rally in Drexel Park Friday.” The pullquote top center of the page is:
“We initially wanted to go out and target corporate greed and get the corporations out of the government. There needs to be a separation.”
Erin Hurley
Occupy Valdosta event coordinator.
You can see it here, thanks to Michael Noll:

Y’all come:

“Basically, we want to exercise our right to peaceably assemble,” said Hurley, “We want everyone to join in and let their voice be heard. I feel a lot of people have lost that sense of freedom we once had.”
Meet at Drexel Park before noon. The VDT got the route wrong, but just come along and you’ll get there. If you aren’t able to walk a few miles, head directly to the Chamber of Commerce around 1:30 PM, and we’ll meet you there a bit later.

Yes, I’m one of the organizers, in case I haven’t said that before. Here’s the Facebook event.

I’d like to add my usual plug for Continue reading →

Hahira Honeybee Festival 8 October 2011

Hahira’s biggest event of the year, the Hahira Honeybee Festival, filled up Main Street from the Middle School to Branch Street. Last year reputedly drew 25,000 people; I’m no expert, but I’ll be surprised if there weren’t at least as many this year.

Here are pictures in a slideshow and videos in a playlist.

No local parade is complete without the Georgia Bridgemen Lowndes High School band marching.

You can tell by all the City Council candidates that there’s an election going on. See if you can spot the mayor. (I didn’t, until I was revewing the pictures.) My favorite is this one of Charles Henry Hobrat.


Hahira Honeybee Festival, Hahira, Lowndes County, Georgia, 8 October 2011.
Pictures and Videos by John S. Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

-jsq

Occupy Valdosta

It’s spread from Wall Street to Valdosta, scheduled for noon-3PM Friday 14 October 2011:
It is time to Occupy Valdosta!

Friday October 14, 2011 BE AT DREXEL PARK @ 11:45am AND MARCH WITH YOUR FELLOW NEIGHBORS, CLASSMATES, COWORKERS, BROTHERS AND SISTERS!!!

We are the 99% and it is time to be heard!!!

Erin speaking at the organizational meeting today:

Y’all come!

-jsq

Hahira Honeybee festival

The bees buzz in Hahira again this year. I went to the breakfast Monday at O-dark-thirty. Other events have already happened, but these are going on today:
Saturday Oct. 9th – 8 am until 6pm Arts & Crafts and Food Concessions. All day we will have events like The 5k Run, Century Bike Ride, Dog Show, Cloggers and other entertainment. There will also be a Kid’s Zone with lots of inflatables, a train ride, live pony rides, mountain climb and carousel.

Parade start time is 12:00 Noon. This is one of the largest parades in South Georgia. We have one of the largest high school bands in Georgia from Lowndes High School, The Georgia Bridgmen, Floats Of All kinds, Local Queens, City Officials, Our Senior Citizen, State Officials, and Lots and lots of Shriners and much more.

-jsq

Farm Day Recognition —Mara Register @ LCC 27 Sep 2011

Mara Register from the Mayor’s office of the City of Valdosta came to the Lowndes County Commission to speak about Valdosta Downtown Farm Days, May through September.
One of the wonderful things about this event is it highlighted our beautiful historic courthouse. It highlighted our local growers and producers, and our historic downtown. But also went further to help promote healthy eating in our community.

…bringing people together to the downtown area to take advantage of the products that were produced here locally. The sense of conviviality was just wonderful, bringing the community together. It’s very exciting actually to see several of our vendors here this evening.

Ashley Paulk, on his very best behavior that day, recognized his neighbors the Quartermans Continue reading →

Flatlander Fall Frolic in Lakeland

What’s like the Azalea Festival crossed with the Happening? The Flatlander Fall Frolic, today and tomorrow in Lakeland, Georgia, 9-5 today, 10-5 tomorrow. That’s the Arts and Crafts show. Other things are also going on. Arts and Crafts is at Threatte Center at the corner of GA 37 and US 221 and US 129. Go to Lakeland and follow the signs. There’s usually music after the Arts and Crafts show closes.

“South Georgia’s Premier Community Festival” –VDT
According to the Lakeland Chamber of Commerce:
The Frolic is among South Georgia’s longest running community festivals. The event was started by the Lanier County Lions Club on Labor Day, 1971, as a one-day event. Through the years the Frolic has grown to include diverse entertainment over as many as seven days. The 40-year-old frolic includes the Country Music Show, Miss Fall Frolic Beauty Pageant, the Dawg-Gone Good Race (5k and 1-Mile Run), and Flatlanders Arts & Crafts Show. The Lions Club continues as the overall sponsor of the frolic. Flatlander Arts & Crafts Show attracts artists and craftsmen from across Georgia and other nearby states. Now produced by the Lakeland-Lanier County Chamber of Commerce, the outdoor exhibition features special activities for children, a variety of food and beverages, and stage entertainment at intervals.
See you there.

-jsq

What it takes to run for Mayor of Valdosta

People ask me: what does it take to run for mayor of Valdosta? A few qualifications, a few skills, and a vision would sure help.

Well, you have to qualify. That costs $750 down at the Board of Elections.

According to the City of Valdosta’s website, there are a few other requirements:

Qualification Mayor. To be eligible for election or appointment and service as Mayor, a person must be a minimum of 21 years of age, be a resident of the City of Valdosta for one year prior ro the date of qualifying, and a registered and qualified voter of the City of Valdosta at the time of qualifying.
Then you have to campaign and win. Some people will doubtless spend a lot of money running for mayor. However, some recent elections to Lowndes County Commission and Valdosta Board of Education indicate Continue reading →

The Happening is today

One of the biggest events around here is on the VSU front lawn today: The Happening. I would post VSU’s description, but I went to their page on it and all I got was this picture:

It’s not on VSU’s facebook page, either.

The VDT doesn’t have it listed in its Community Calendar.

Even Jane Osborn doesn’t have it in her Community Calendar.

Well, I hear that it’s elevenish to threeish. I hope somebody told the students.

-jsq

Growing talent instead of population

What are some ideas for economic and cultural growth that don’t require huge population growth? Richard Florida has many ideas for large and mid-sized population areas in the article discussed below. Who’s the Richard Florida for places the size of Lowndes County?

Richard Florida wrote in the Atlantic in December 2009, How the Crash Will Reshape America:

Big, talent-attracting places benefit from accelerated rates of “urban metabolism,”
The question we need to address is how to be a small talent-attracting place, and even more a smallish place that grows its own talent and jobs.

This part is especially relevant: Continue reading →