Of the people, By the people, For the people
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Doris Graddy
TUESDAY, September 12, 2017 / Vol. 3 Issue 37 / 75 cents
Flu vaccinations offered Oct. 6 On Friday, October 6,2017, the Van Buren County Health Unit of the Arkansas Department of Health will offer flu vaccinations at the Van Buren County Health Unit from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. People should bring their insurance cards with them to the flu vaccine clinic. If they do not have insurance, or the insurance does not cover flu shots, the vaccine will be available at no charge. “We want Van Buren County residents to stay healthy this flu season, and getting a yearly flu vaccination is the best line of protection,” Donna Branscum, Van Buren County Health Unit
Administrator, said. “We encourage everyone to come to the mass clinic, if you are unable to come this day you may come another day however there will a charge.” Even though new observations about the flu vaccine continue to be made, experts continue to recommend annual flu vaccinations for children and adults. The flu vaccine is safe and does not cause the flu. Some people may have mild soreness and redness near the site of the shot and a low fever or slight headache. For more information, go to www. healthy.arkansas.gov or www.flu.gov.
Early voting begins Tuesday
Road win – The Clinton Yellow Jackets won a victory in Berryville last week. See the article and more photos on Pages 8-9.
If you live in Clinton School District Zone 3, your chance to be heard begins Tuesday. Voters will decide between Kirk Pryor and D.L. Webb. Webb, the Clinton fire chief, is challenging Pryor for the seat he has held on the School Board for the past 10 years. Early voting begins Sept. 12. Election Day is Sept. 19. Remember, voting is not just a privilege, it’s a duty.
(Photo by Robert R. Gaut)
Auction time for poultry
By Danny Griffin County Extension Agent
The month of September in Van Buren County always brings one of the most anticipated events of the year for the county’s 4-H youth. The Van Buren County Fair and Livestock Show starts, and for the 4-H youth this is the beginning of the final leg of the year-long journey where they can exhibit all their hard work and effort they have put into their projects. One such project is the Poultry Chain. It is designed to expose youth to the adventure of rearing 1-day-old egg laying type chicks (commercial layer type) from commercial clean stock. This year the 4-Her’s are raising Hyline Browns. These are brown egg layers. The chicks are now 20-22 weeks old. Each of the 4-Hers enrolled in this project will pick their three best birds as their pen to enter into the fair. These pens will be judged Friday, Sept. 22 around 3:30 p.m. where the judge will pick the Grand Champion and Reserve Grand Champion pen of pullets. The pens of three pullets will be offered for auction at the Poultry and Rabbits barn on the Van Buren County Fairgrounds following the Junior Livestock Premium Auction on Saturday, September 23. The Premium Sale Auction will start at 10 a.m. with the Poultry Chain Auction starting approximately at noon. If you are in need of quality laying pullets and brown egg layers to boot, we invite you to come and join in the fun of bidding. Remember to bring cages to take your prize home. The funds raised in the Poultry Chain auction go back to assist in buying chickens for the next Poultry Chain project.
Show stoppers – Many dazzling roadside displays of wildflowers going on now are countywide. This one is on 16 West, near Crabtree. (Photo by Jeff Burgess)
Animal shelter sounds SOS Lori Treat is sounding an alarm, and anyone who wants Van Buren County to continue to have an animal shelter needs to pay attention. Treat is director of SNYP Arkansas, which took over operations of the animal shelter on July 1 of this year. The shelter was above capacity when Treat took it over, and adoptions are not keeping pace with intakes. The cost to send a dog to a rescue group is about $165, and though county taxpayers previously were subsidizing those, Treat can’t afford to take that loss. The shelter also is in need of a heating and air-conditioning unit, which will cost $8,000. But the main expense that Treat is concerned she will soon be unable
Some cats and dogs were taken this weekend to Greers Ferry for an adoption event. A couple of the dogs found new homes. to meet, is general operating cost, as in utilities and salaries for parttime employees. Currently, four part-time employees work a total of 70
hours weekly combined. The latest electric bill was about $660. Treat said she needs $2,500 per month to run the shelter. She was hoping for $20 per month
from 100 families, but that number has fallen far short. She also hoped to receive some grant money, but that hasn’t happened yet, either. There have been a few fundraisers that have helped and more are planned, including the current shoe drive, but the shelter must have a reliable income source to make ends meet each month. A little less than a year ago, a lot of people stepped up and told the Quorum Court how they would help if the shelter doors were kept open. Much of that help has not materialized. If Van Buren County is to continue to have an animal shelter, that help must come soon.