New superintendent

Graduates

County budget

The Newton County Board of Commissioners has a tough task in front of them as usual, deciding how to make expenses meet revenues, but we'll say what we've said for each of the past few years - this is still not the time to raise taxes.

Some thoughts

Last week, two young lives were snuffed out on Interstate 20. A 19-year-old and a 7-month-old baby will never know what it's like to grow old.

New superintendent

On Tuesday night, the Newton County Board of Education will choose Dr. Gary Mathews' successor as superintendent of the Newton County School System.

Mother’s Day

"The most important thing a father can do for his children is to love their mother."

Making the grade

In Wednesday's paper, we ran a story explaining what the new state school assessment model means to students and other citizens of Newton County.

Good moves

The Covington City Council has made two practical decisions that could contribute to economic growth in the future.

The morning-after pill

According to the New England Journal of Medicine, 1.3 million babies a year are aborted in the U.S. That is a staggering number.

Social Circle

If you were driving through the main street in Social Circle and blinked twice, you might miss the physical heart of the city.

Rotary

A sure sign of spring here in Covington and Newton County is the sweet smell of Vidalia onions.

Development

There's no question we've had a successful run of economic development deals in Newton County over the past couple of years.

Special Olympics

"Let me win, but if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt."

Hometown Hero 2012

"I think a hero is an ordinary individual who finds strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles."

Music on the menu

One of the highlights of every spring in Covington is to hear the sound of music on the square at noon every Thursday in May.

Springtime imagination

 The beautiful spring weather has made me reflect on the springtimes of my childhood.

The gift of books

We are always pleased when any organization takes on a major fund raising goal to help a child. That is why we are more than pleased with the actions of the Social Circle Rotary Club.

Look for the warning signs

In Sunday's paper, reporter Amber Pittman wrote an excellent but very scary story detailing activities some of our teens and adolescents are involved in right now in our community. The piece called "Deadly Games" explained what chocking, sexting and cyber-bullying mean to our young children.

Thank you for responding

As we have stated in the past, we are fortunate to have a well run library here in Newton County. We are fortunate, also, to have a very talented executive to run that library. We recognize the fact that the library, like the other agencies in our county, has had to tighten its belt to meet budget deficits. One of the cost-cutting measures proposed by Greg Heid, the director of the Newton County Library, was to close on Saturday.

Run or walk for the YMCA

The YMCA, which was founded in England in 1844 by a group of evangelicals who wanted to assist the families and children suffering because of the sprawl created by the Industrial Revolution, started in this country in 1851. Since then the Y has grown into an organization that assists families from babies to grandparents. Newton County is fortunate to have an active Y, which is located on Newton Drive in Covington. Our local Y provides ...

Honoring a city's past

The city of Social Circle has some beautiful older buildings and homes that reflect our Southern heritage. The city has been renovating one of these old homes, originally built in the 1840s, in order to establish a new city hall.

Surprise announcement

We got jolted out of our malaise as we received an announcement from Chris Smith, co-owner of Newton Electric Supply, telling us that he has thrown his hat into the ring for the position of Covington city councilman. After a brief breather from the longest national election campaign ever, we were taken aback by Mr. Smith's early announcement. For sure it's been cold enough the last few days to be election time, but the old calendar says it's Easter week.

Good shepherds

The citizens of Newton County never cease to amaze us. We have done editorials in the past encouraging people and groups to do what they can do during these economic time to help their neighbors.

Slow down Mustang Sally

Until recently, driving through the quaint town of Porterdale was the equivalent of driving in the Grand Prix to some drivers. It is fortunate no one has been killed.

Doing necessary work

This past week we carried a story on our front page that described how a step-father took a belt to his teenage daughter; this action was and is inexcusable. We believe that a parent has a right to discipline his or her child in a manner that works for the family, but this does not include belts and sticks or any other form of discipline that can cause bodily injury to a child.

Pick another day

We support the county's effort to tighten its belt during this current fiscal crisis. We appreciate the efforts of every manager and employee who has come up with cost-saving measures to help county employees keep their jobs or not have their earnings cut.

Leading future leaders

We are more than pleased to see that teacher Sara Vinson, of the Covington Montessori School, has taken the time to teach her students the value of not only learning about the great jobs that non-profits do in our community, but also about the added value of learning how to help support them. Mrs. Vinson's class spent time talking with Tamara Richardson, who is the director of the Newton Fund of the Community Foundation of Greater Atlanta.

Taxing those who tax us

Taxes and increased fines are highlights of last week's legislative talks in Congress as well as the Georgia General Assembly. Tobacco users across the country will now have to offer a few more silver coins for every pack or carton they buy as federal lawmakers are increasing tobacco taxes to help fund children's healthcare initiatives across the country.

Keeping his word, working with others

Sen. John Douglas promised last year that he would have legislation passed that would help protect school children from sexual predators. He sponsored Senate Bill No. 14, which would prohibit anyone who is on a national or state sex offender registry from serving on local school boards.

Unemployment still rising

Sadly Newton County's unemployment rate has jumped to 11.7 percent, up from 10.4 percent in December. In January, the last report from the Georgia Department of Labor showed that 1,195 people had applied for unemployment benefits in the county.