Just because SaraGrace Martin is wheelchair-bound, it doesn’t mean she isn’t going places.
The 11-year-old fifth grader at Pleasant Home was born with spina bifida, but she doesn’t let it slow her down from doing the things she enjoys, like playing outside and fishing, her mother said.
“SaraGrace is very independent and outgoing,” Teresa Martin said. “We have raised her just like her two other sisters. She doesn’t let things bother her. I think things bother me more than her, to tell you the truth.”
The Martin family was chosen as the latest family to benefit from a group of Pleasant Home residents whose 5K “Running for a Reason” fundraising events have helped two families to date. Only this time, they’ve modified it a bit – calling the event “Rolling for a Reason” in honor of SaraGrace, said organizer Leigh Newby.
“Dealing with the expense of traveling back and forth to the doctor can be difficult on a family,” Newby said. “This is the community’s way of helping ease that a bit.”
This 5K will be held on Sat., April 21, at Robinson Park. The run begins at 9 a.m. There is a $20 registration fee. There will be hamburger plates on sale for $5 each and the Shepherd family will provide entertainment. Registration is available on line at www.active.com or by calling Newby at 222-3874 or Kerri Kelley 222-3746.
Proceeds will be used to help offset travel expenses for the Martin family as they travel back and forth to Birmingham.
“People look at her in the wheelchair and see a beautiful girl,” Martin said of her daughter. “But there’s a lot of stuff underneath that people don’t know about – her shunt, her catheter, stuff like that. She looks perfectly healthy.”
Recently, SaraGrace underwent the 20th surgery of her life. Martin said it was to replace am 11-year-old shunt used to alleviate hydrocephalus, or water on the brain.
“When we went in to have it replaced, we had every complication you could think of,” she said. “SaraGrace was in the hospital eight days in Birmingham. There we were, me and her oldest sister in the hospital room with her, and her dad traveling to see her. Thankfully, we are down to check ups, but it hit us pretty hard financially.
“To think that these wonderful people want to do something to help us, it makes me thankful we live in a community where things like that happen,” Martin said.
There are 14 new computers available for use at the Andalusia Public Library, thanks to the nationwide broadband opportunities program.
The selection replaced five old computers, as well as provided for five new desktops and four laptops, said library director Karin Taylor. Funds for the purchase were made available through a $4.6 million award to Auburn University by the U.S. Department of Commerce.
“The money is to be used to expand the availability of broadband technology in Alabama’s rural libraries and public schools,” Taylor said.
Under the programs guidelines, it works to improve public access to broadband services in underserved areas of the state in order to bridge the “digital divide” between low-income rural areas and wealthy urban areas.
Taylor said she applied for the funding in November. The laptop computers will be used to help with onsite tutoring, she said.
“This is a great opportunity for small libraries such as ours to increase our technology services for our patrons,” she said. “Patron use of our computers has increased dramatically during these trying economic times. We hope to receive more computers through this initiative in the coming months.”
Taylor said the library’s new website is now available onsite and work is under way to “go live” in the coming months, making it possible for patrons to check out electronic books.
“We will be fine tuning the configurations for it today with our library software vendor, and hopefully it will be ready for access offsite very soon,” she said. “We are in the final phase of training for our EBook service. We are part of a consortium that consists of several libraries throughout Alabama. We expect the service to be available sometime in June.”
Andalusia Star News
Fans have just over a month to score concert tickets to Little Big Town’s May 5 show in Andalusia. The outdoor concert begins at 6:30 p.m.
Tickets are now on sale for the country music act, which will headline the Andalusia Junior Woman’s Club third annual Three Notch market arts and crafts festival. The event will be held at the historic Springdale Estate located in historic downtown Andalusia.
Advance tickets, which are $10, are available at Southern Independent Bank, Harold’s, CCB Community Bank, the Chamber of Commerce, and from any AJWC member. They also will be available at Red Garter Review tonight and tomorrow night. Tickets, if still available, will be $15 the day of the show.
For ticket information, contact Terr Jones at 208-0643.
With just over two weeks left before the April 27 Covington County Relay for Life event, fundraising is wrapping up, said Chairw-oman Allison Tew.
“I checked online earlier (Tuesday) and we have $32,641 posted,” Tew said. “That’s $1,000 over where we were this time last year, so we’re pleased with the effort. Every dollar counts and every dollar we raise is a dollar the American Cancer Society didn’t have to find a cure for cancer.”
Tew said for those who have not turned in fundraising monies, bank night is on Mon., April 23, at CCB Community Bank. “There are still a couple of fundraisers that are ongoing. The city team is raffling off a golf cart. Tickets are $2 each and available at the utility office or at city hall. We’re also still taking sponsorships for ‘torches of hope’ for $100.”
Tew said the torches will bear the names of sponsors and will line the track.
The night of Relay events will be big on competition, she said.
“Our theme this year is ‘Go Long for a Cure,’ and we want to capitalize on that,” she said. “We won’t have a concession stand this year, and we’re encouraging teams to do the full tailgating experience by bringing your own food. Then, go one step further and enter our ‘best of’ competition.”
For $5, participants can enter a meat, side dish, dessert or drink in the competition. Survivor participants will serve as judges and the winners will receive a cash prize.
“We ask that you prepare your food on site or at home,” Tew said. “No store bought items. Don’t go to Winn-Dixie and get their potato salad and try it call it your own.”
Tew said 19 teams are slated to participate in the event, and the public is invited to attend.
“We’re going to have great entertainment, all the Relay events like the survivor’s lap and dinner and sports games, plus fireworks,” she said.
The event will be held at the Kiwanis Center fairgrounds. Gates open at 2 p.m.
For more information about Relay or the night’s events, contact Tew at the county board of education building at 334-222-7571.
The Andalusia City Council Tuesday reappointed Gwen Kelley, Martha Duggan and Emma Locke to the Tourism and Relocation Committee. The council also appointed one new member, Elaine Manning.
There were two applications for the opening. The committee plans to invite the other applicant, Carla Mooney, to attend their meetings.
The council also adopted a resolution assigning abatement costs to certain pieces of property. If the property owners don’t pay those fees, the fees will be added to their property taxes. The costs ranged from $120 to $2,200 for cleaning up property. The lowest charges were for weeds; the highest for removing the remains of a mobile home.