Lumberton Informer

The Hattiesburg American finally published a segment regarding the arrest of Miles Smith. Like most of the other stories regarding the November 23, 2011 arrest, they focused on the fact that he was given a key to the city. I checked Google and the story was carried by several news agencies ranging from WLBT to the Big News Network. And of course, WDAM was more than willing to publish the story; they love the golden goose of Lumberton. One commenter stated on WDAM's face book page that "Lumberton is the gift that keeps on giving . . . to WDAM." Lumberton is ratings gold for that news station. Right after the arrest, the newsfeed popped up on WDAM's face book page and the only point they were interested in covering was the fact that Miles Smith had been given a key to the city. I called News 7 regarding the story and I was given three different versions of the story but the ones working the news desk during the Thanksgiving holiday was not interested in knowing that...

I just left Municipal Court and while siting in the audience waiting for the judge to appear, I noticed Timothy Ryan Byrd dotting back and forth between the police department and the clerk's office. I started asking questions and I was told that Byrd is now working as the Secretary for the Lumberton Police Department. He was not wearing his gun belt or handcuffs, but he was still wearing a police uniform. I was told that Dennis Hobson had notified Alderman Bobby Gibson that Bryd's certification was not re-instated and that Gibson allegedly told Hobson to "find a position for Byrd and we [Crider, Hale and Johnson] will vote him into that position at the next board meeting." Only in Lumberton. According to the letter that was sent by Lumberton's insurance carrier, the board of aldermen were instructed to remove Byrd from their payroll immediately if his certification appeal was rejected. Instead of going through proper protocol, Gibson allegedly informed the head of...

This is not an ad for PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), this is in reference to the news I received about one of our police officers, Timothy Ryan Byrd. I was told that Byrd lost his appeal to have his police certification re-instated. I don't have an official confirmation of this matter, but I'm sure it is something that will be discussed at the next regular scheduled board meeting. For those of you not aware of the story, I will catch you up on the details. Back in September of this year, it was discovered that Byrd has lost his certification because of his actions/behavior at his previous law enforcement job at the Pearl River Sheriff's Department. I don't know the details that led to the loss of his certification because he resigned before anything could be placed in his file. In order to file an appeal to have his certification re-instated as a police officer, Byrd had to get hired again in the field of law enforcement. Somehow, he stumbled upon t...

Thanksgiving is traditionally the time when we express our gratitude for our blessings. With all the problems we face in our lives and in the world, there is still much for us to be thankful. This is the time of year when we can reflect on the year that was and prepare for the year to come. As we celebrate the the Thanksgiving holiday, I would like to take this opportunity to say thanks to those who sent me those kind notes, cards, e-mails, and in boxed me this year. Your words have made this journey worthwhile and I will be eternally grateful for all of your guidance and support. But I also like to take the time to say thanks to my haters; your vile words/actions and other tricks have inspired me to continue this blog. So, THANK YOU! After careful consideration and thought, I felt there was a need to phase out this blog, but with the continued establishiment of anti-Informer blogs and facebook pages, I felt that there must be an audience for what I have to say since there are so many...

Lumberton's Mayor and Board of Aldermen held another special call meeting last night to discuss issues of zoning, the 2012 FAA-AIP Grant Project Pre-Application, the water policy and water rates. There will be a public hearing on December 6, 2011 for the rezoning of land owed by Ben Winston and Paul Ockmond. There was discussion about the FAA-AIP Grant Project Pre-Application. Gary Hickman stated that the City of Lumberton should enter into a long term contract with the Gold Coast Skydivers before proceeding with the grant application. Hopefully, the City of Lumberton will manage to get a better contract than the one they currently have with the Gold Cost Skydivers. Recently, the skydiving group raised over $9,000 in one weekend for their wounded warrior program. The Gold Coast Skydivers are averaging about $10,000/week in revenue, and I think their contractually obligated to pay the City of Lumberton $100/month in rental fees. Like I stated, hopefully, they will get a better contr...

Just a few moments ago, I had a conversation with Paul Ockmond and we managed to be respectful of one another and our conversation ended with a handshake and a smile. How wonderful it would be if those elected could sit and reason with one another, put a period and move forward. Ockmond stated that he wanted to get clarify some things that I stated in the blog. Paul said he didn't like the fact that I referred to him as a pit bull and he clarified some things regarding his building. After looking at his office, I saw the damage and he stated that the damage was a result of tearing down the adjacent buildings. Paul said that it's not for cosmetic purposes; he wanted the building repaired because the damage was caused by those working for the City of Lumberton. Paul stated that he never wanted to do anything that would damage the reputation of the City of Lumberton and that he just want his building restored to it's original condition. I usually don't get the opport...

The members of Lumberton First Baptist Church will host a Thanksgiving Dinner tonight at 6:00 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. Everyone is invited to attend.

Paul Ockmond decided to use the Veteran's Day Program at the Lumberton Public Library as the arena for addressing his contempt for the things I said about him regarding his behavior at the last special call meeting. Ockmond stated that I had lied on him in my blog, but refused to state which points I made were untruthful. Instead, he decided to recount his version of events to a local writer for the Hattiesburg American in the hopes of getting her to print her version of events. Since Ockmond refused to take this opportunity to give me his version of what took place at the board meeting, I decided to call a few people that attended the meeting to see if I had given an accurate account of what took place. In all, I spoke to four people ( 2 blacks, and 2 whites) so I could compare notes. All four stated that Paul Ockmond did address Mayor Holder and asked her what she was going to do about repairing his building. All four stated that they noticed a shift in Ockmond's demeanor whe...

On Saturday, November 12, 2011 at Rehoboth Word of Life Fellowship, Ariel Sharun will be hosting her first annual Dancing Before the Throne of God Symposium. The event is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m and will feature praise dancers/teams from across the City of Lumberton. If you've never had the opportunity to see Sharun doing her performance of praise, you are missing out on a truly awesome event. Ariel Sharun transforms the atmosphere whenever she's performing a praise dance. I am certain this will be an event to remember. Everyone is invited to attend and witness this blessed event.

The Friends of the Lumberton Library will host a Veteran's Day program on 11-11-11 at 10:30 a.m. at the Lumbeton Public Library. Everyone is invited to attend and help salute our veterans.

Ben Barrett, Jr., new Public Works Director stated that there's over $100,000 in old water bills that is still owed to the City of Lumberton. A few months ago, a collection attorney asked the board to hire her to collect the money owed to the city; for a stipend of course. Kent Crider has said time and time again that the city's loss of revenue is due to the lack of industry, but on the other side of his mouth, he along with Gibson, Hale and Johnson thought this industry-less city needed another deputy clerk, which led to the hiring of Cynthia Wall. Now this post is not about Wall, but it's about the lack of accountability regarding the finances of the City of Lumberton. Not only do we have a problem with past due bills in the water department, there is also over $500,000 in uncollected tickets and fines. Instead of outsourcing the work to another person, where there are three clerks in Lumberton is ridiculous. The City of Lumberton is paying for an attorney, and the...

I'm still thinking about Paul Ockmond's behavior at the special call meeting that was held the other night. Just the other week, Kent Crider wanted to establish an ordinance to have citizens arrested for outburst/disturbances at the city hall meetings. Surprisingly or not so surprisingly, Bobby Gibson didn't make his normal gesture to Dennis Hobson to have Paul removed from the meeting. Generally, when Gibson is not pleased with the comments of a citizen, he motions to one his police officers to come over and threaten to remove the citizen from the meeting, but this didn’t' happen the other night. It's just hard for me to believe that a person received $40,000 for two buildings that cost him less than $9,000 and he's still not satisfied. Now he wants the City of Lumberton to break the law, come onto private property and paint the side of his remaining building because he does not like the way it looks now that the adjacent buildings are no longer standing. ...

Last night when people were scrambling to make it to the voter polls before they closed, the City of Lumberton was holding a special called meeting. I noticed the agenda was different from the one set by Mayor Holder at the regularly scheduled meeting and I was told that Rebecca Hale and Bobby Gibson signed the agenda so they could add some new agenda items. The first order of business was the order to hold a public hearing on the rezoning of 601 E. Main Avenue to Old Hwy 11 to Commercial (C-1). There were several comments about the rezoning of the property. Somehow, the discussion turned into a session about the LPZC-Lumberton Planning and Zoning Committee. Cora Rogers asked each alderman if they would explain why they voted to disband the LPZC and the only alderman that gave a response was Aldermen Quincy Rogers who said that he was against the disbanding of the LPZC. Alderman Timothy Johnson said that he did not think this was the forum for discussing their vote and he, Kent ...

I am writing this on election day, but if the results are not as expected, this post will probably never be posted or adjusted according to the final results. WTBS. . It's no secret that I support Chief Adrien Fortenberry in his quest to become the next sheriff of Marion County and I hope the residents of Marion County not only feel that way, but come out and support Fortenberry with their votes. I am hoping and praying that Fortenberry wins because success is the best revenge. What the enemy meant for bad, God made it for your good. Bobby Gibson and his co-horts are here to steal, kill and destroy and that's exactly what they tried to do to Adrien Fortenberry; they stole his position as Chief of Police for the City of Lumberton; they killed a department of veteran officers and they did everything possible to destroy your chances of becoming the next sheriff of Marion County. To all of that I have only this to say. . . but God! I am praying for your success and I truly hop...

"You may write me down in history with your bitter, twisted lies. . . You may tread me in the very dirt . . . But still, like dust, I'll rise."--Maya Angelou Yesterday, I heard some great news regarding the City of Lumberton. Mayor Holder met with a company that's looking into taking over the Land O Lakes Farmland Service Building (the feed mill) and on November 1, 2011, ADP (Area Development Partnership) entered into a lease agreement for the location and are helping to establish a business here in Lumberton. We all know that there are some that call the area reporters whenever they think they have some despairing news regarding the mayor, but in their attempt to smear the mayor; they're smearing the City of Lumberton and its residents. I am glad to see that Mayor Holder has chosen to rise above the fray and continue to lobby for industry of the City of Lumberton. This is not the first time you have seen Mayor Holder seemingly at her wits' end, but she has...

Now you can get your driver's license renewed in Purvis, Mississippi. The office is located in the Lamar County Multipurpose Center located at 99 Central Industrial Row, Purvis, Mississippi (across from Evergreen, Inc.). The office is open from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m on Mondays. First time identifications, transfers, permits and road testing are not given between the hours of 11:00 a.m.-12:00 noon and 3:30 p.m. -4:30 p.m. For more information contact Karen Saulters, Multipurpose Center Director at 601-543-9590 or email her at lcfairgrounds@lamarcounty.com

The Mayor and board of aldermen set a special called meeting for Tuesday, November 8, 2011. Since a public hearing was set for that date, they decided to also hold a special called meeting to address the issues with the water bills and to make a decision on amending the ordinance for water bill adjustments. Anyone that has any issues with their water bill should contact the city clerk to have their names added to the agenda because amendments can not be made to an agenda for a special called meeting. If you would like to address the board regarding any water billing issues, you should have your name added onto the agenda by Friday, November 4, 2011. In addition to discussing water billing issues, Bobby Gibson requested that the board include his request to change the zoning of a tract of land that belongs to Benjamin Winston, Sr. and Paul Ockmond. Gibson requested that the land designation be changed to commercial. Mayor Holder stated that the land owners needed to submit their request...

Before the meeting started there was a lot of moaning and groaning coming from the members of the audience and once I thumbed through the agenda, I saw the reason for the rumblings of the citizens attending the board meeting. Just when you thought the board members couldn't get dumber they proved me wrong again. On page 5 of the agenda, Kent Crider placed the following item for a vote from the aldermen: "Order to remove and/or arrest anyone makes any comments of disturbances after Citizen Comments are concluded during any board meeting." He later retracted the agenda item because it did not sit well with the citizens in attendance. It is interesting that we have board members that want to establish new laws (ordinances) for the citizens attending the board members but the board members don't want to adhere to the laws governing elected officials. As soon as citizen's comments started, there were more issues with the water department. Several citizens had issues wi...