Top Stories

by CATHERINE HAMMOND

On August 25th Hurricane Harvey made landfall near Rockport, Texas as a Category 4 storm system. Officially known as the wettest hurricane to hit the contiguous United States, Harvey dropped an average of 40 inches of rain, with some areas receiving upwards of 51 inches. These vast rains left most of the greater Houston area flooded and more than 30,000 people have been forced to leave their homes for safety. The storm that took at least 66 confirmed lives has also claimed more than a hundred thousand homes in its path of destruction. As the country gazed in horror at the images of the floods and the rescues taking place, many packed bags and loaded their boats and headed into Texas to lend a hand. [Full Story »] 

Although this wasn’t the first eclipse to ever occur, it’s probably safe to say this was the first eclipse to have its own hashtag -#Eclipse2017- and be trending on social media. Yes, the solar eclipse that occurred on August 21st, 2017 created quite the buzz, and rightfully so. This was the first solar eclipse to grace the continental United States since 1979, and another will not occur until 2024. All 48 states in the continental US saw at least a partial eclipse, up to 48% coverage, but 12 of the states were on the center line and able to experience the diamond ring of totality. Calhoun County residents were treated to approximately 85%, which was still quite impressive to onlookers. [Full Story »] 

by CATHERINE HAMMOND

Just days before the beginning of the 2017-18 school year, the Calhoun County School Board was made aware that the $250K School Resource Officer (SRO) budget approved by Gov. Rick Scott, and passed by the Senate, had been reduced to $80K by the House. Under the initial amount approved, SRO positions would be available for all five schools in Calhoun County. However, only 3 officer positions could be funded with the reduced amount, leaving Blountstown Elementary School and Carr School without. This news was not received well by the members of the school board, who immediately went to work finding a solution. [Full Story »] 

On Thursday, July 27th, a Florida County Commissioner's Conference was held at the White House to provide counties with an opportunity to meet senior-level officials from more than a dozen executive-branch agencies from the Trump Administration to discuss various issues such as infrastructure needs, rural economic development, agriculture, CDBG, small business, transportation, the opioid epidemic, zika virus and veterans affairs. [Full Story »] 

Several families in Calhoun and Jackson county have a guest in their home this week! [Full Story »] 

Sen. Montford recognized as one of 16 Distinguished Advocate award winners [Full Story »] 

In a statement released Tuesday morning by Blountstown Police Chief Mark Mallory, U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle has dismissed all civil lawsuits pending against the City of Blountstown Police Department and all involved oficers stemming from the death of Barbara Dawson at the Calhoun-Liberty Hospital on December 21, 2015. [Full Story »] 

CALHOUN COUNTY, FL – Today, Calhoun County Superintendent of Schools Ralph Yoder announced that the Florida Department of Education (FDOE) recently released the 2016-2017 school year grades for all elementary, middle, and high schools throughout the state, and the grade attained by each district. The grades released demonstrate that Calhoun County School District (CCSD) schools continue to perform exceptionally well, as compared to the rest of the traditional public schools in the state. [Full Story »] 

Hentz McClellan is looking forward to spending time with family and friends and especially his grandkids following his last day of work this Friday. After serving as the 14th Judicial Circuit’s Chief Judge since being elected to the position in 2007, Judge McClellan has retired. [Full Story »] 

The Panhandle Pioneer Settlement honored its many volunteers with a delicious meal and entertainment Friday night in the old Frink Gym. [Full Story »] 

CALHOUN COUNTY, FL – Today, Calhoun County Superintendent of Schools Ralph Yoder announced that Calhoun County’s 2017 Summer BreakSpot program, which offers free nutritious meals for children 18 and under was recently expanded to include a seventh site at the Altha Church of God.
[Full Story »] 

Opportunity Florida members and partners recently attended a Familiarity (FAM) Tour of the “Golden Triangle” region in Central Mississippi. The tour, funded in part through a grant from Enterprise Florida, was comprised of local elected officials, county business leaders and economic developers from six counties. [Full Story »]