Monthly Archives: March 2018
Adult coed volleyball leagues now forming
PICKENS — The Pickens Recreation Department is now holding registration for adult coed volleyball.
Players must be at least 21 years old, with an ID required. The registration fee will be $45 per in-city couple and $55 per out-of-city couple and is due at time of signup. Individual fees are
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Summer camp registration now open at Pickens Rec
PICKENS — Pickens Recreation Summer Day Camp 2018 is now being planned.
The camp will be eight one-week sessions starting in June. Weeks will be June 4-8, 11-15, 18-22 and 25-29, July 9-13, 16-20 and 23-27, July 30-Aug. 3 and Aug. 6-10. There will be no day camp from July 2-6.
Day camp will be held at the Pickens Recreation Center at 545 Sangamo Road in Pickens.
Camps will be for ages 6-12 (completed 5K kindergarten through rising seventh-graders) and
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Newsprint is under attack
There are two things you need to know about newspapers.
Newspapers are important to community life and democracy. Always have been. We at the 
National Newspaper Association think it is important for all sorts of newspapers to survive for the sake of a free society — the very large and the very small ones, the liberal ones, the conservative ones, the middle-of-the-road ones, the ones with no viewpoint but just important news … all of them. Some are our members. Many are not. We defend them anyway. America needs them like we need oxygen.
The second is that even if your newspaper seems to be “online,” the digital copy that you may count on probably couldn’t exist if there weren’t a printed newspaper behind it. The newspaper in print supports all of the other versions economically. So, if the printed version disappeared, you can’t assume all would be well
Just turn it off and read
Since the bulk of our TV viewing experience is made up of commercials, I’d like to see some better ones. Some years ago, there was a Maxwell House series of commercials about two neighbors who were headed for a relationship. It was entertaining and made sense.
And the Toyota commercial featuring G.I. Joe, Ken and Barbie and a Japanese puppet master was a good one.
But now? I like the Mayhem man on the insurance commercial. It’s briefly entertaining. Other than that, it’s hard to pick anything that even earns a five on a scale of one to 10.
Now this is just a personal thing, but I don’t like clowns or similar advertising icons. At the top of the unfavorite list is the ping-pong ball advertising for Jack in the Box.
I find ping-pong Jack spooky and eerily disturbing.
One of the few commercials for Jack in the Box I found remotely entertaining was the one with
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Courier Letters to the Editor
Not the same as workforce training
Dear Editor,
Education is not the same thing as workforce training … unless, of course, you are a lover of Communist North Korea’s education model. The people in North Korea have no freedom to choose their career. The government assigns people a job “they” decide you fit based on their research of how many people are needed in each industry.
Are we as a state following this direction of a Communist nation by going along with this S.C. House Bill 4596 on competency-based education (CBE)? Will a job here in S.C. only mean where you go to work following the government school order of where they want to place you according
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Shulkin, again
It’s not looking good for Department of Veterans Affairs chief David Shulkin to continue in his job. He’s come under the piercing gaze of the Office of the Inspector General again … never a 
good sign.
First it was traveling on the government dime to Denmark and taking his wife along, thanks to emails doctored by Shulkin’s chief of staff that indicated that the wife’s trip could be paid for. Next came the recent scathing OIG follow-up report on the Washington, D.C., VA Medical Center, which had a laundry list of scary tales. Then, White House chief of staff John Kelly had to tell Shulkin to zip his lip, stop talking to the press
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Quinn has sights on House District 5
COUNTY — Allan Quinn has filed to run for S.C. State House District 5, which covers the greater Easley area.
“I am a conservative Republican and I believe that elected officials should represent and serve the people that elect them,” Quinn said.
Quinn said he has the experience, knowledge and education to serve the people well in the S.C. State House.
Quinn’s qualifications include being a lifelong resident of Pickens County, except for the time he was in military service. A graduate of Easley High School, Quinn has a degree in business management. He is also a U.S. Army veteran with 10 years in leadership positions, mostly spent overseas.
Quinn has been employed in management and leadership positions at Oconee Nuclear Station for 30 years.
He has also worked statewide with the S.C. High School Rodeo Association for 16 years, and
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Clary seeks re-election to SC House
CENTRAL — Retired Circuit Court Judge and District 3 State House Rep. Gary Clary filed for re-election March 16 at the Pickens County Board of Elections.
Clary was first elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives House District 3 seat in 2014, and he plans to seek his third term for office in 2018.
During his time in the State House, Clary has been an advocate for and a leader in education and reading intervention legislation, serving as the primary sponsor of a bill that requires the state Department of Education to provide dyslexia training to all literacy coaches and literacy teachers in kindergarten through third grade. He also co-sponsored legislation addressing educational inequity in poor school districts. During the current legislative session, Clary introduced H. 4434, which was unanimously approved by the Senate Education Committee. The bill now goes before the S.C. Senate, where it will hopefully be passed to the benefit of all the children of South Carolina.
Clary continues to be recognized statewide for his work on land conservation issues. He was awarded Upstate Forever’s Public Servant of the Year
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Courier Obituaries 3-28-18
Lydia Lee T. Kelley
EASLEY — Mrs. Lydia Lee Toledo Kelley, 78, wife of Wilton James Kelley Sr., passed away Monday, March 26, 2018.
Born in Hilo, Hawaii, the daughter of the late Freddrick Toledo, Mrs. Kelley retired from the Glenwood Division of Mayfair Mills with 22 years of service and later retired from Walmart. She was a member of Jones Avenue Baptist Church.
Surviving, in addition to her husband of 58 years, are her six children, Jennifer Kelley Manley of
Symbols of Easter
Icons complement most sacred holiday
Tradition plays an important role in Easter celebrations for many families. Cherished traditions and symbols of Easter may include anything from egg hunts to lilies to lambs. Understanding 
the importance behind these symbols can make sharing the miracle of Easter that much more special.
Crucifix
The crucifix is one of the central symbols of Easter and Christianity. The cross is a symbol of Christ’s crucifixion and sacrifice. The crucifix also highlights the ability of God to give people new life after death.
In addition to wearing and displaying the cross during Easter, some people bake “hot cross buns” as another symbol of the season.
Eggs
Eggs are one of the more recognizable symbols of Easter. For Easter egg hunts, eggs are hard-boiled and decorated in bright hues. It’s believed that the origins of Easter eggs are both secular and religious. From the secular (once pagan) perspective, the egg is an ancient symbol of new life, according to The History Channel, and has been associated with pagan festivals that celebrate spring. Some
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