Daily Archives: 03/05/2019
Most county fire boards in disarray
Council asked to consider unified board
By Jason Evans
Staff Reporter
jevans@thepccourier.com
PICKENS — Of Pickens County’s 13 fire boards, only a few actually function the way they were intended to, according to county officials.
Officials discussed fire boards and districts during county council’s Committee of the Whole meeting Feb. 25.
During that discussion, staff asked council to consider moving to a unified fire board.
“Our people are sold on this,” county administrator Gerald Wilson said.
In 2008, county council “made a big change in the way fire was provided in Pickens County,” county attorney Ken Roper said. Prior to that, there were “13 different fire districts with 13 different enabling ordinances and 13 different sets of rules on how they operated,” he said.
In 2008, county council standardized those ordinances into one
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Man sentenced for drug crimes
By Jason Evans
Staff Reporter
jevans@thepccourier.com
COLUMBIA — A Liberty man will serve 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to two drug-related crimes.
Jevon Chrzanowski, 44, was sentenced Thursday in federal court after pleading guilty to possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, U.S Attorney Sherri A. Lydon said in a news release.
Evidence presented to the court established that the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office, the South Carolina Law Enforcement
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Bradford pear’s beautiful flowers belie bad news
Three years ago, Upstate nurseryman Durant Ashmore sat down at his computer and poured out his heart on the evils of the Bradford 
pear tree with such outrageous eloquence that he has become the world’s foremost prophet of doom in the fight to stamp out these seemingly innocent and beautiful ornamentals.
“All those white blooming trees you see everywhere … do you think they are pretty?” he began a column titled “The curse of the Bradford pear” first published in the Greenville News and picked up by USA Today in March 2016. “If you knew what they actually represent, you would choke on your morning coffee and gag on your scrambled eggs.
“All those white blooming trees you see now are an environmental
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School board reluctantly OKs new calendar
By Greg Oliver
Courtesy The Journal
goliver@upstatetoday.com
EASLEY — The Pickens County School Board unanimously but reluctantly approved the 2019-20 school calendar this week, which 
will see students report Aug. 19 and break for summer on June 3.
Trustees expressed reluctance due to the uniform start date passed by the state legislature several years ago, which requires the start of school no earlier than the third Monday in August. Educators hope for more flexibility on when to start the school year in the state’s proposed education reform bill.
“It’s unfortunate we’re in this position, and I’ve gotten feedback from folks that they need creativity,” said trustee Phillip Bowers, who
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Rain washes out Doodle Trail bridge
By Ron Barnett
Staff Reporter
rbarnett@thepccourier.com
PICKENS — If you’re itching to make your first Doodle Trail ride of the spring between Easley and Pickens, you might have to hold off for just a bit longer.
You can’t get there from here — whichever direction you’re going — on the four-year-old recreational trail that connects the two cities along an old railroad bed.
That’s because last week’s heavy rains
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Collins: Education reform bill presents ‘opportunity’
By Greg Oliver
Courtesy The Journal
goliver@upstatetoday.com
EASLEY — State Rep. Neal Collins spent time recently with Pickens County teachers, telling them he is glad to see the state legislature finally putting in effort to reform education in South Carolina.
“This is my fifth year (in the General Assembly), and education hasn’t been put at the forefront,” Collins said at the meeting, held in the Easley High School auditorium. “I’m extremely pleased that this is the year of education.”
Collins said he is pleased with the efforts being made by South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster and Speaker of the House Jay Lucas.
“For the first time in a long time, we have a lot of momentum in education — basically my lifetime. It’s been 30 to 40 years since we’ve had this sort of momentum coming through the State House,” he said.
But Collins cautions that just because the bill has momentum, that doesn’t mean it is a sure thing.
Even if the bill passes the House, just one senator could stop the
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Southern Wesleyan to present ‘Little Women’
Musical based on Alcott’s classic novel set for March 28-30 at Hobson auditorium
CENTRAL — Southern Wesleyan University’s Fine Arts Division will present a musical based on the beloved literary classic “Little 
Women” at the Newton Hobson Chapel and Fine Arts Center on March 28-30.
The musical is based on Louisa May Alcott’s 1869 semi-autobiographical novel with a book by Allan Knee, lyrics by Mindi
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Clemson’s Shivar graduates from the SC Fire Academy
COLUMBIA — Kimberly Shivar of Clemson Fire Rescue was one of 
25 graduates on March 1 from the South Carolina Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation’s South Carolina Fire Academy.
The academy is an eight-week firefighter candidate school in Columbia. Shivar underwent a 320-hour training program of classroom and hands-on firefighting skills development. Keynote speaker was Chief John C. Thomas of the North Augusta Department of Public Safety.
The comprehensive training, offered quarterly at the fire academy, includes emergency responder first aid training, hazardous materials operations training, auto extrication, flammable liquids and gas firefighting, rescue training, and National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Firefighter I and Firefighter II levels.
Shivar earned the prestigious Chief Robert Frick Award. The award is given to the recruit with the highest grade point average.
BBQ chicken fundraiser planned for Saturday at Six Mile Baptist
SIX MILE — Six Mile Baptist Church, located at 150 N. Main St., will host a BBQ chicken plate fundraiser this Saturday, March 9, from 11 a.m.-4 p.m.
Proceeds from the sale will go toward updates and enhancements to the church’s 100-year old worship center and classrooms. Patrons are invited to dine in at the Roper Building or get takeout. Both will be available for the same price.
Plates will include fresh BBQ chicken, cole slaw, baked beans and bread with tea, coffee and water to drink for $10 per plate.
For more information about the fundraiser or to order in advance, call Rev. Ray Longenecker at (864) 506-0410.
Community Calendar
• PHS class of 1979 planning reunion
The Pickens High School Class of 1979 is making plans for its 40-year reunion, to be held in Greenville on Oct. 5.
To make it feel more like their years of roaming the halls at PHS, the class is inviting friends from the classes of 1977-1981 to join. Details will be revealed soon, but for now, PHS alumni are urged to visit phsblueflame1979.com to sign in to the Roll Call area to stay informed as the plans come together.
• PCLA plans spring book sale this month
The Pickens County Literacy Association’s annual spring book sale is scheduled for March 29-30 at the Pickens Presbyterian Church social hall.
This year, the PCLA has a large number of DVDs, cookbooks and
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