Monthly Archives: March 2013
School board OKs new prayer policy
By Nicole Daughhetee
Courier Staff
COUNTY — Despite the final pleas of a group of concerned residents, the School District of Pickens County’s board of trustees voted Monday night to adopt an amended policy on public invocations prior to meetings.
The measure, passed 3-2-1 with yes votes from board chair Judy Edwards, Alex Saitta and Dr. Herb Cooper and opposed by trustees Ben Trotter and Jim Shelton — with Jimmy Gillespie abstaining — means board meetings will now be opened with a “non-sectarian” invocation that will no longer be led by SDPC students.
SDPC schools earn academic honors
COUNTY — Seventeen Pickens County schools were honored earlier this week by the South Carolina Department of Education, earning 2012-2013 Palmetto Gold and Silver Awards for high academic achievement and high rates of improvement.
Clemson Elementary, Crosswell Elementary, Holly Springs Elementary, Liberty Elementary and Six Mile Elementary were recognized both for General Performance and Closing the Achievement Gap.
Of all 17 schools, only Clemson Elementary was given Gold in both categories.
Sterling granted parole
COLUMBIA — Former Carolina Investors chairman Jack Sterling has been released from prison after serving less than a quarter of a court ordered five-year term for securities fraud.
Sterling was released last week by the SC Parole and Pardons Board following a protracted and often contradictory prosecution attempt led by the then-State Attorney General Henry McMaster.
The 75-year-old former chairman of HomeGold Financial Inc. was convicted following the collapse of both HomeGold and its subsidiary Carolina Investors in what was described as one of the largest bankruptcies in the Palmetto State.
West End Elementary students get free shoes
By Nicole Daughhetee
Courier Staff
COUNTY — Approximately 245 pairs of fresh-out-of-the-box New Balance shoes were distributed to students at Easley’s West End Elementary Monday morning thanks to the Mission Action Challenge (MAC) program, a joint venture between a pair of Easley churches.
This year, approximately 460 area children have received shoes courtesy of the MAC Ride and Run, Easley First Baptist Church, 5 Point Church and Fleet Feet Sports in Greenville. In total, more than 1,500 pairs of shoes have been distributed since the event’s inception.
East End Elementary was the first recipient of MAC shoes five years ago, and since that time, the group has shoed students at McKissick, Ambler and Simpson Academy.
Remembering Roper
The Liberty High School baseball program dedicated a new flag pole in memory of Matthew Roper, a former Red Devil baseball player killed in a 2002 car accident, by hoisting an American flag that had flown over the State Capitol on his birthday, Oct. 7. Roper’s brother Lance raised the flag during the National Anthem prior to Liberty’s win over Pickens Saturday. Roper’s nephew Blake also threw the first pitch of the day. Each year, Liberty coach Scott Kerwin gives the Matthew Glenn Roper Award to the player who gives 100 percent to the Red Devil baseball team. Pictured above are Roper’s cousins Bryant and Seth Dover and family friend Colt LeeRoy holding his framed jersey.
Depot Street Market returns to Liberty
LIBERTY — Beginning next Saturday, April 6, and continuing every Saturday through June, Liberty’s Depot Street Market will resume.
From 8 a.m.-1 p.m., Depot Street will fill with arts, crafts, yard sale items, food and produce.
Local residents and entrepreneurs are welcome to participate as vendors.
For more information, please visit www.libertyscevents.com.
When one door closes…
Nicole Daughhetee
Life As I Know It
By Nicole Daughhetee
During the January SDPC Board meeting, when the issue of removing student-led prayer prior to the meetings was first approached publically, hundreds of people turned out in a show of support for maintaining the current policy.
Apparently there were so many people that I was upbraided by a concerned citizen for not properly “guesstimating” the number.
The February meeting drew another large crowd — still in the hundreds — of people who came to speak and support the district’s then-current student-led invocation policy. Standing-room-only is how I would describe the scene in the board room that night.
The adventures of Red Dog
Olivia Fowler
On the Way
By Olivia Fowler
Red Dog lives a life full of adventure and challenges. He is constantly pulled between his view of his responsibilities on Fowler Farm and his wish to obey and please Fowler.
He sticks to Fowler like glue and follows him everywhere he goes, whether invited or not. When the first furrows are cut into the rich dirt on Fowler Farm, Red Dog walks behind the tractor, making sure the rows are straight and investigating any interesting things turned up with the dirt.
Rotating books
Ben Robinson
All About Ben
By Ben Robinson
I’m reading five paperback books right now.
Depending on your opinion, that either makes me rather smart or, well, the opposite of rather smart.
My brother Thom reads books one at a time, finishing one before he even begins another. I, on the other hand, have always rotated my reading.
This goes back to my college days. One semester I took 21 hours of classes, or seven different classes. That’s considered ambitious, as most people consider 18 to be a full load. Honestly, I only took 21 for one semester, and it was my fault.
What does ‘Easter’ mean?
Easter is a Christian holiday that celebrates the central event of the Christian faith: the resurrection of Jesus Christ three days after his death by crucifixion. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the centerpiece of the Christian faith. The Apostle Paul even goes so far to say that if Jesus Christ had not been resurrected then the Christian faith is worthless and futile.
Without Easter there is essentially no Christianity.
While it is a religious-based holiday, the name Easter is rooted, or has linguistic meaning rooted in non-Biblical history and events.
For example, the origins of the word “Easter” are not certain, but the name is most probably derived from Estre, an Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring. The German word Ostern has the same derivation, but most other languages follow the Greek term used by the early Christians: pascha, from the Hebrew pesach (Passover).
In Latin, Easter is Festa Paschalia (plural because it is a seven-day feast), which became the basis for the French Pâques, the Italian Pasqua, and the Spanish Pascua. Also related are the Scottish Pask, the Dutch Paschen, the Danish Paaske, and the Swedish Pask.
