Lumberton Informer

The 2013-2014 school year is right around the corner. So it’s time for parents to start buying supplies and getting school gear (uniforms, book bags, pencil, paper, etc.) For those of you that have school aged children, you may want to attend the Back Pack Bonanza that’s being held at Da Remix this Saturday (July 13, 2013) on Broadway Drive in Hattiesburg, Ms. This weekend; they will be having a back to school rally. There will be refreshments, guest speakers and give away. They will be giving all school age children a back pack (book bag) filled with school supplies. The child must be present to get the supplies. The event is free to the public. Also, Da Remix will be having a sale on school uniforms. This is certainly an event that parents should attend. For more information, you can call Da Remix at 601-582-2323.

I’m trying to catch up on some blog post I should have posted during the event. Going forward, Wednesdays will be Welcome to Lumberton Wednesdays. I will post pictures of the staff of various businesses and organizations as they welcome people to Lumberton. The post will include a summary of their services (menus if applicable) and other points of interest that could interest people in giving Lumberton another look. I will start gathering photos and I will feature some areas I picked but if you would like a business or spot featured, you could call, text or email me your suggestion. I’m not sure how we will feature the clean up properties; I don’t want to feature them too close to Wednesday. Maybe we can feature dilapidated properties on what would be deemed as Messy Mondays. It’s still a work in progress but I will figure out something. Now, to catch up on some things that took place the other week. On Sunday, June 30, 2013, the members of First Baptist Church of Lumberton and va...

Jerry Walters, LVFD Chief wanted to know why I said the Lumberton Volunteer Fire Department needed revamping. Well, I'm glad you asked. Maybe revamping was not the correct word to use. The LVFD needs to be restructured. If this is truly a volunteer fire department, then the LVFD needs to be operated in the same manner as other fire departments in the surrounding counties. I know there are some that say $1,000/per month is not a lot of money to pay for the professional services of the LVFD. Looking at it on a monthly basis, it may not be a lot of money, but over the course of four years, $1,000/per month becomes $48,000. That's a lot of money; especially when the City of Lumberton has no indication of how this money is being spent. Walters is quick to quote what is acceptable and permitted in the guidelines of the fire support group, but I feel if the city if paying this money, in addition to maintenance of the equipment, payment of electric bills, water bills, telephone bills...

I was speaking with pee-wee football coach, Stanley "Roper" McGowan, and he told me that the sign up season and practice sessions will begin Saturday, June 22,2013. Any parents interested in signing up their children for the 2013 Pee-Wee Football Season should come out to the Carl Hancock Sports Complex on Saturday morning for more details.

This Saturday (6/15/2013), a lot of you were privy to the following message posted by LVFD Chief Jerry Walters: Well, I just got off the phone with County Fire Coordinator and he told me to shut the department down, not to respond to issue of any call, fire or medical, because of liability issues. The issue at hand is not something that just happened, so i'm not going to call anybody out without proof. This non-profit organization started 1999 by then Chief Johnnie Grant. When I took over 4 years ago, a lot of paperwork and equipment went missing. So, with that being said, I think the ball was dropped back then. I just found out about it Friday. I know some of you think this is funny, but I don't! I've got to find some way to protect the citizens. This bars me from going on any medical call and we aren't allowed to respond to any house fire. All I have heard is bad mouthing the fire department every since I got here. This fire department is shown disrespect at every s...

I wasn't going to blog today but after posting a note on the Lumberton Informer Facebook page this morning, the natives became restless. So, here I am again, having to put out a false alarm. Yes, I used the word saltine and almost every white person came out the woodwork yelling RACIST!!! Are you loosing the debate? Shout racist in an attempt to silence the opposition. Generally, that works, but not for me. I won't be silenced. Not by the one sided views of others? It was said that I love to attack and re-attack. Well, that could be true. But if you say that 80% of my posts are false, then I'm going to continue to harp on that misinformation until you prove that you are correct. Just because you reached out to me in an effort to quell the disagreement, does not mean I'm going to stop speaking on the accusation you made. People can't just say things and don't expect to back up their remarks. You say 8 out of every 10 posts are completely false. Well, the ball ...

Mayor Miriam R. Holder officiated her final board meeting as an elected official. City clerk, Merlene Wall went over the budget and expenditures report; outlining the triumphs made as she tries to dig the city out of the fiscal ditch we were in. It seems that there were bank statements that were never opened, accounts that were left unreconciled and numerous accounts, including insurance coverage, that was several months delinquent (due to non-payment). Essentially, the board has been voting in the dark; not know where the city stands in regards to their finances. Thankfully, we now have a clerk that is working wonders in getting us from under the fiscal cliff levied upon the citizens of Lumberton. The reports show a remarkable amount of accountability and Merlene has done an outstanding job in the clerk’s office with collection and Betty Speights has also done an excellent job in collecting and logging fine payments as the Court Clerk. Kudos to those now working at city hall. Th...