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THE SOUTHERN TORCH / FRIDAY, MAY 10, 2019 / VOL. 5, NO. 19 / $1.00
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40 Years CITY MOVES TO CONTROL of Service CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
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Man in Custody after Stabbing, Biting Family Member
Christian Ramos (DeKalb County Sheriff's Office)
By Staff Reports Patrick H. Tate, pictured with Valley Head Mayor Lamar Bray, has served as municipal town attorney for 40 years. (Submitted Photo)
By Marla Jones Managing Editor VALLEY HEAD, Ala. — Attorney Patrick H. Tate was honored for forty years of service as Valley Head's municipal town attorney at this week's meeting of the Valley Head Town Council. Tate retired on the exact day that he was hired forty years ago in April of 1979. From the Mayor and Town Government of Valley Head, "We honor and congratulate you for so many years of continuous service to our small town."
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By Marla Jones Managing Editor RAINSVILLE, Ala. — At Monday night’s meeting of the Rainsville City Council, Councilmember Bejan Taheri made the motion to suspend funding for the Rainsville Chamber of Commerce. In reference to the hiring of an assistant director, Taheri stated, “The way the Chamber Board...wanted to do was unacceptable or feasible [for] the way we wanted it to be done.� “[When] the Chamber Board [makes] a decision to hire [an] assistant director, the money will be put back
in their account ,� Taheri stated to Southern Torch. Southern Torch obtained text messages sent to the Chamber of Commerce Board members by Taheri concerning their hiring process. Excerpts from those messages can be found below this article. In the messages, Taheri informs the Board that Chamber employees are hired by the City and must be approved by the mayor and city council. Obviously, the City and its officials would have no authority to commandeer private organizations and businesses. According to Alabama Secretary of State records
online, the Rainsville Chamber of Commerce is incorporated as a domestic nonprofit corporation under the name of “Rainsville Chamber of Commerce, Inc.� which deems it a private organization. According to Rainsville Chamber President Mandi Cooper, the city contracts for services with the Chamber. Cooper and members of the Chamber board released the following statement regarding the funding suspension: I, along with other members of the Rainsville Chamber of Commerce Board, am disappointed in the Rainsville City
Council’s decision to suspend funding to the Rainsville Chamber. The decision passed by a 4-2 vote, with Mayor Lingerfelt, and Councilmembers Taheri, Rosson, and Byrum in favor of the suspension. It should be noted that the Chamber is a nonprofit entity with a Board of Directors that makes decisions consistent with the best interests of the members we serve in mind. Recently, a hiring committee within the Chamber Board was tasked to interview candidates for the vacate Assistant
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FORT PAYNE HONORS RETIRED FIREFIGHTER By Marla Jones Managing Editor
The City of Fort Payne presented recent retiree David Wright with a plaque honoring his years of service at the Fort Payne Fire Department. (Marla Jones | Southern Torch)
FORT PAYNE, Ala. — At Tuesday’s meeting of the Fort Payne City Council, the Council presented a retirement plaque to David Wright in appreciation for his many years of service with the Fort Payne Fire Department. The Council praised Wright for his tireless service to the community. Councilmember Wade Hill added a personal thanks to Wright, who saved his son’s life after a wreck. “A lot of times, you go through life and you don’t know if you have
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done a lot of good or done anything to make a difference,� said Hill. “But that man right there...has a special place in my heart. I owe him my son’s life.� “David Wright hired in at the same time as I did,� said Fort Payne Fire Chief Ron Saferite. “We served for 29 years together and he was a valuable employee that we hate to see go. We wish him the best in his retirement.� Nikki Scott presented the Council with a petition to vacate an unopened alley > FORT PAYNE, P3
FORT PAYNE, Ala. — From the Office of DeKalb County Sheriff Nick Welden: On Saturday, (May 4, 2019) DeKalb County Deputies responded to a residence near Dawson regarding a stabbing. When the deputy arrived, a Geraldine Police Officer had the suspect in custody. The suspect had stabbed a family member in the leg during the dispute and had bitten their nose. The victim was transported by DAS to DeKalb Regional Medical Center with non-life threatening injuries. Christian Ramos (18 of Collinsville) was charged with Domestic Violence 2nd. He remains in the DeKalb County Detention Center. DeKalb County Sheriff Nick Welden said of the incident: “Our prayers are with this family after the incident. It’s fortunate that the injuries were not more severe. There is no excuse for violence like this.� “I’d also like the public to keep our deputies in their prayers. They never know what they’ll have to deal with on a call. Many incidents occur on the weekends while most people are off work or late at night while the rest of us sleep,� he said. “God Bless!� Concluded Sheriff Welden.
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