This being my first article for Abbeville Matters since I was elected, I want to express to each and every one of you how humbled and hon-ored I am to be able to serve as your mayor for the next four years. I will not take the duties of this office lightly and will serve to the best of my ability. My initial plans to ad-vance the fiscal and physical aspects of our city remain unchanged. Those are to maintain services to our residents without any increase in tax revenues while re-taining our current mu-nicipal workforce. In the meantime, the city council and I are already

exploring various ave-nues of reducing costs of operations with some of these recently being implemented. We will continue this effort until our city is once again as strong financially as it was only a few years ago. Our long range objective is to create an environ-ment that will attract in-dustry and retail estab-lishments while compli-menting those already in existence. We want to create jobs and bring your standard of living to higher levels than you have witnessed for quite some time. Again, thank you for al-lowing me the opportu-nity to serve, and with your prayers, we will be able to reach our goals for a better lifestyle within a relatively short period of time. The City of Abbeville is our home, and we as a council want the very best for the residents of this beautiful city. Jim Giganti Mayor

Mayor Jim Giganti

to Yatta Abba. There you will find the necessary forms to get ready for our 2013 festival.

You may also contact the Abbeville Chamber of Commerce for additional information at 334.585.2273 or via email at: abbevillecham-ber@centurytel.net .

If you have any sugges-tions to improve our event or would like to help on one of the vari-ous committees, please contact us as the Cham-ber office.

See you April 20, 2013 on the square in down-town Abbeville!

Mark your calendars now for Yatta Abba Day, Saturday, April 20, 2013. Work has already begun in preparation for our annual Yatta Abba Festival. The committee is hard at work recruiting new vendors, schedul-ing entertainment, and working to make this years’ event a memora-ble one.

Anyone desiring to be a food or craft vendor may download the appropri-ate forms now. Simply go to: www.cityofabbeville.org and click on the Com-munity tab. On the drop down menu, scroll down

Abbevi l le , Alabama | City of Dogwoods | A Quarterly Newsletter | December 2012

Yatta Abba—April 20, 2013

Page 2

Senior Living

Blues are also common this time of year.) It is important that senior citizens and those provid-ing their elder care under-stand the symptoms of de-pression. If you think you or someone you know may be suffering from depres-sion, identify your symp-toms. Then, if necessary, seek assistance. For senior citizens, the most fre-quently used resource is a family doctor. Bringing a trusted friend or relative may help ease any anxiety when going to an appoint-ment. Check your medications. Senior citizens often take many medications. Some medications, including those for sleep, blood pres-sure, and nervousness,

may affect mood. Talk with your doctor about each of the medications you are taking. Be sure to include all over-the-counter medi-cines, vitamins, and herbal supplements to minimize the chances of having side effects. If you, or someone you know, is spending much time alone, please call Abbeville Senior Center. We have a great program for anyone sixty years of age and older. Sometimes it helps to surround your-self with others dealing with the same issues or simply to have something to look forward too. The Abbeville Senior Cen-ter always has something for every senior! Come and be a part of our family.

Depression in Senior Citizens

Depression is a medical condition that is character-ized by feeling down, de-pressed, or hopeless; low self-esteem; and loss of interest in things one used to enjoy. Senior citizens are prone to life-altering changes that can lead one to feel depressed. Dealing with the trials life throws at us such as, loss, change, loneliness, or a chronic medical condition can be quite overwhelming. Still, depression is not a "normal" part of aging. Like heart disease or diabetes, depression is a medical condition and it can be treated with medication and therapy. (Winter Sea-sonal Depression in sen-iors and Fighting Holiday

Test Your Water Knowledge...

1. True or false? Sound travels faster through water than air?

2. Water is made up of what two elements?

3. What is another name for a tidal wave?

4. True or false? The Indian Ocean is the biggest ocean on Earth.

5. The solid state of water is known as what?

6. Can the average human survive without water for a few days or a few weeks?

7. True or false? Pure water is tasteless.

8. Nimbus, cumulus and stratus are types of what?

9. True or false? Water is an example of a chemical element.

10. Does water cover more or less than 50% of the Earth’s surface?

11. True or false? Water boils at 100 degrees Celsius (212 degrees Fahrenheit).

12. When water is cooled, does it contract or expand?

13. Water freezes at what temperature?

14. True or false? Water is easy to compress.

15. What is the chemical formula of water?

16. The deepest point in all of the world’s oceans is named what?

17. True or false? The consumption of bottled water has risen significantly over the last few decades.

18. Pure water has a pH level of a around what number?

19. What is the longest river on Earth?

20. True or false? Ice sinks in water.

Sincerely, Amanda Gamble Center Director Abbeville Senior Center 334-585-5900 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

DOMINO CHAMPIONS! Abbeville Senior Center would like to congratulate Everette Oney and Thomas McCoy on winning 1st place in Dominoes Double Com-petition at the MASTERS GAMES OF ALABAMA!

Page 3

day, your trash will be picked up the next day. As a reminder to our resi-dents, if you hire lawn crews, tree services or any other contract work; the work crew is responsible for removing all debris from your location. They are not allowed to place the debris next to the road. You, as the homeowner, need to be clear with the contractor or work crew that debris re-moval is their responsibil-ity. Now that leaves are falling, and people are raking them in piles it would helpful if residents not put them in the street, but behind the curbs. This will help with pickups and also will help keep drains from clogging. Please have all trash at the

owner is responsible for disposing of these items themselves. Homeowners can take small amounts of treated lumber to the trans-fer station, which is located on county road 86 which is north of Abbeville, off of 431 towards Eufaula. I have a list of items that can and cannot be picked up. If you contact me I will be more than happy to get you a copy. To help you under-stand our requirements, The City of Abbeville has created door hangers that will be placed on your door when there is an issue with any of these conditions or any other conditions that are stated on the door hanger. All other items must be set out with your regular trash for pickup on your regular trash day. Re-member if your regular trash pickup falls on a holi-

The Sanitation Depart-ment and Street Depart-ment would like to thank you for your cooperation and support. Most resi-dents are in compliance with the way we handle trash pickup. I still would like to address the issue of trash pickup, i.e., limbs, construction debris, house-hold furniture, appliances, TV's and computers. By doing so, we can ensure we are on the same sheet of music. We have to dump debris at the county landfill, which is managed by Henry County. Household trash such as food, plastic, paper items, computers, TV's, and treated lumber cannot be taken to the dump. Treated lumber and treated ply-wood cannot be taken to the dump at all. The home

Street & Sanitation curb by 7:00 a.m. on your scheduled day of pickup. Please help us as we help you. All loose household trash must be in a 30 gallon trash cans or plastic bags. Please make sure your trash cans are in good working condition. If trash cans are split to the point where they will not hold trash, they will be disposed of. I believe that if we work together, we can accomplish this. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me. My email ad-dress is rwright@cityofabbeville.org or call city hall 585-6444 dur-ing business hours - Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Thanks in advance for your cooperation. Robert E. Wright Sanitation/Street Superintendent

one needing to use the facilities will need to sign out a key from the City of Abbeville Police Depart-ment. We apologize for any inconvenience, but this policy was put in place due to vandalism of the park at night. Sports Program News: We would like to invite eve-ryone out to support our City League Basketball Program this season. A schedule of games will be posted on the City Website soon. Thank you for your contin-ued support of our recrea-tional programs. Danny Creel Parks and Recreation Di-rector

Employee Recognition

Have you had exceptional service from an employee or employees in Abbeville? If so, let us know. We want to express our appreciation for exceptional service. Find an “Employee Appre-ciation Form” on line at the City’s website or call us and we’ll take your infor-mation over the phone at 334.585.6444. Help us to recognize our valued employees!

Abbeville Recreation

The Parks and Recreation Department is working hard to maintain and im-prove the City parks. The following work has been done to do just that: Girard Park fencing around the old baseball field was removed due to safety is-sues with the fence. At ARC, ball park playing surfaces were resurfaced with new clay to fill in eroded areas to make our playing fields safer. Currently, we are in the process of refurbishing the lighting at the ARC fields. New Policy A new park policy for ARC: the gates will be locked from dusk to dawn. Any-

The Mayor, City Council and Employees wish you and yours a Merry Christmas & Happy New

Year!

So what could Abbeville Memorial Library possibly be plan-ning for 2013? LOTS! Oh yes, our patrons and visitors to the community can look forward to the following library wish list becoming a reality in the new year: 1. An active library webpage 2. E-books 3. Updated non-fiction collection (medical, science, tech-nology, etc.) 4. Ancestry.com access 5. New programs for adults, teens, and children A database for our local history room documents. (long-term project) **Library Quotes: “Libraries promote the sharing of knowledge, connecting people of all ages with valuable information resources. These dynamic and modern institutions, and the librarians who staff them, add immeas-urably to our quality of life. “ - Former President George W. Bush “A library is not a luxury but one of the necessities of life.” - Henry Ward Beecher HAVE A SAFE AND HAPPY HOLIDAY SEASON! From the Library Ladies, Ms. Debbie, Library Director Ms. Annie, Librarian Assistant Miss Stephanie, Library Aid **Abbeville Memorial Library will be closed for the following holidays: DECEMBER 24th - CHRISTMAS EVE DAY DECEMBER 25TH – CHRISTMAS DAY JANUARY 1ST – NEW YEAR’S DAY JANUARY 21- MARTIN LUTHER KING DAY

Abbeville Memorial Library spent much of 2012 making upgrades throughout the library facility as well as making upgrades in tech-nology and increasing our large print and

audio book collections. On October 4th, the library had an Open House/ Mural Reveal to share with the community the results of our labor. Mrs. Paulette Riley’s mural is a wonderful addi-tion to our Juvenile Department! In the Adult Department, our new seating is quite com-fortable for reading the local paper or browsing through a magazine.

Beyond the Shelves Page 4

Training Your Dog - Lesson Three

We have covered the “sit command” in a previous newsletter. Hopefully you and your dog have mastered this one and are ready to move on to the “down command”. This is an important part of your overall dog obedience training program. It pro-vides the foundation for many other advanced commands and estab-lishes you as the leader in the rela-tionship you share with your dog. The reason for this is the down position is a submissive and vulner-able position for your dog to be in. This command can be one you will come to rely on in many situations. When you are in the learning phase of teaching the down command, start out by making it very simple for your dog, then slowly progress to a more difficult level such as moving your training sessions to a public place, increasing the time you keep your dog in the down position and creating distractions such as a bouncing ball or scattered treats. What you are trying to achieve with the down command is to have your dog quickly get down into the laying position, belly touching the ground and front legs extended out in front.

Begin in a familiar environment to your dog with no distractions. Let’s get started with Down Com-mand – Off Leash: *Put your dog into a sitting position. *Get your dog’s favorite tasty treat and hold it a couple of inches in front of his/her nose. Move your hand straight down to the ground. Your dog should follow it down. Be sure to encourage him as he goes down. As soon as his belly is on the ground, with legs out in front, give him plenty of praise and a treat. * Repeat this action over and over in short training sessions. *When your dog is going down right away, you can add the verbal part of the command, which is “down”. Add your command just before you start to move the treat towards the ground. This step is all about building an association in your dog’s mind between the verbal “down” command and the act of him lying down. *After plenty of repetition and praise

your dog will only require the verbal command and not the treat in your hand to lure him down. Also in time you will be able to start the command not only from a sitting position but from standing and in any situation you and your dog are in. *When your dog is responding well to your verbal command, try the “down” command as you go about your daily business around other people or dogs and increase the duration of the com-mand. Now let’s try the Down Command – On Leash:

*Put your preferred collar and leash on your dog. *Place your dog into the sitting position and stand or kneel right next to him. *You are trying to guide your dog into the down position. How you do this depends on the size and cooperation of your dog. *Always say your “down” command first, then imme-diately guide your dog in

the lying position. Take hold of the leash and gently pull your dog’s head down, at the same time guide him down by pressing down between his shoulder blades with the palm of your

KNOW YOUR EMERGENCY SIGNALS!

The City of Abbeville will do monthly weather siren testing at 10:00 a.m. on the first Thursday of every month. This test is to ensure that back up power systems and sirens are properly working. In the event there is inclem-ent weather, there will be a silent test. We are making every effort to ensure our emergency systems are in good working order for our residents.

aren’t home. When you buy items that come in boxes, put the boxes in your trash can or trash bags before you put your garbage

curb side. Just putting the empty boxes at the curb

advertises what cool, new toys and gadgets you re-ceived for the holi-

days. When walking back to your vehicle as you leave the shop-ping malls, try to walk with someone if possible and al-

On the Beat...

ways try to park in a lighted location preferably directly under a parking lot light. When returning to your car, always carry your keys in your hand. This way if you are frightened, you can set the alarm off in your car to scare them off. You also won’t be standing by your car digging for your keys and be distracted enough not to no-tice your surroundings. Be safe and be alert of your surroundings always! Happy Holidays, Chief Mike Jones

WATER QUIZ ANSWERS: 1. True 2. Hydrogen and oxygen 3. Tsunami 4. False - Pacific Ocean 5. Ice 6. A few days 7. True 8. Clouds 9. False 10. More - Around 70% 11. True 12. Expand 13. 0 °C (32 °F) 14. False 15. H20 16. Mariana Trench 17. True 18. 7 19. Nile River 20. False - It floats

hand. You can also lift up your dog’s front legs and extend them out in front of him. Find the method that works best for you and be sure to encourage your dog all the way down. Then of course as soon as he is in the down position give him plenty of praise. *After lots of repetition your dog will respond to your verbal command only. Try this command when your dog is in the standing position also. You may add some distractions and increase the time he is required to stay in the down position. Whichever method you choose to teach your dog the down command, be consistent and remember repeti-tion is important. When you are happy with your dog getting into the down position you will probably want to add a release command to it, which means when you issue your down command, your dog goes straight down and is not permitted to get up until you issue another command. You can use “away” or “off you go” for this pur-pose. Vicki Bedsole Deputy City Clerk

Page 5

These are the months for giv-ing and receiving gifts. Make sure when you purchase gifts, if possible, to put them in the trunk of your vehicle where they will be out of sight from the people that are look-ing for something to steal. When you arrive home and wrap your gifts, place them under your Christmas tree but make sure to put your Christmas tree someplace where the gifts are not viewable from the outside. For instance, in a window area is fine as long as you can close the curtains when you

Grounds & Maintenance

properly secured in an approved child safety seat or safety belts. In 1996, more than sixty percent of the occupants killed in fatal crashes were unrestrained. If ninety percent of Americans buckle up, we will prevent more than 5,500 deaths and 132,000 injuries annually.

The deaths and injuries caused by drivers and occupants not wearing their seat belt is $26 billion in economic cost to society annually. On average, inpatient hospital care costs for an un-belted crash victim are fifty per-cent higher than those for a belted crash victim. Society bears eighty-five percent of those cost, not the individuals involved. Every American pays about $580 a year toward the cost of crashes. If everybody would buckle up, this figure would drop drastically. Seat belts save soci-ety an estimated $50 billion dol-lars annually in medical cost. By reaching the goal of ninety per-

cent seat belt use, and twenty-five percent reductions in child fatalities, we could save an addi-tional $8.8 billion dollars annu-ally. For every one percent in safety belt use, one hundred seventy-two lives and close to $100 million dollars in annual injury and death cost could be saved.

The safety belt will trap me in a burning or submerged vehicle or maybe it is better if I am thrown from the vehicle. Less than one-half percent of injury producing collision involves fire or submersion. If we don’t wear our safety belts, and are thrown out of our vehicle, we have a very good chance of being knocked unconscious and not responding. If we don’t wear safety belts, and are thrown out of our vehicle, our chances of being seriously injured increases twenty-five percent and our chance of being fatally injured increases six percent. In 2005, of

the fatalities that occurred in roll-over crashes in rural areas sev-enty-seven percent of the occu-pants were unbelted and sixty-eight percent of the SUV occu-pants were not wearing a seat belt.

Wearing seat belts is still the most effective thing we can do to save lives and reduce injuries on America’s roadways. Remind everyone in the vehicle to buckle up. Make sure children ride prop-erly restrained in the back seat in a child restraint seat or properly secured with the a seat belt. Re-member that seat belts are your cheapest form of insurance. So remember next time you get in a vehicle, buckle up.

Billy Wayne Bedsole Grounds & Beautification Director

We have to face the facts: driving or riding in an auto-mobile is a risky business. It has been proven that wearing a seat belt reduces the possibility of injury or death. America’s roadways are busier than ever before and drivers deal not only with more traffic, but more distraction. The distractions could be talking on cell phones, tuning the radio, smoking, eating, putting make up on, or talking to a passenger in your vehicle. The demands on driver attention are at an all time high.

Failure to wear a seat belt contributes to more fatalities than other single traffic safety re-lated behavior. Sixty-three percent of people killed in accidents are not wearing seat belts. Approximately 35,000 people die in motor vehicle crashes each year. About fifty per-cent (17,000) of these people could be saved if they wore their safety belts. Of every 100 children who die in motor vehicle crashes at least 80 would survive if they were

Page 6

Abbeville Receives Grants

Abbeville was recently awarded a grant from the Wiregrass Resource and Conservation Council to plant roses around the memorial cross at the Abbeville Memorial Cemetery East. Abbeville’s Grounds and Beautification Department headed by Billy Wayne Bedsole and as-sisted by Terry Creel and several

inmates, planted the roses which were purchased from McCoy's Feed & Seed in Abbeville. Parks & Recreation Director Danny Creel also received a grant from the RC&D for several pieces of equipment used to maintain and groom the ball fields. Congratulations to both depart-ments for seeking grant opportu-nities to improve our city pro-grams. Grateful appreciations is ex-pressed to the Wiregrass RC&D Council for awarding these beneficial grants to the Grounds & Beautification Department and Recreation Department.

Businesses in Abbeville will begin receiving their re-newal notices for their Privilege Licenses in December. Rates for licenses have not increased. However; the issuance fee has been increased by the State of Ala-bama from $10.00 to $12.00 per license.

Abbeville Privilege Licenses Due Soon

City of Abbeville 101 E. Washington St. P O Box 427 Abbeville AL 36310

Phone: 334.585.6444 Fax: 334.585.6982 E-mail:

Community Calendar City Council Meetings are held the 1st and 3rd Monday of

each month at 6:00 p.m. in City Hall. Please join us and be-come an active participant in how your city government oper-ates. To be on the agenda, contact the City Clerk no later than the Wednesday prior to the meeting at 585.6444.

The Abbeville Chamber of Commerce meets the first Thursday of each month at the Great Southern Conference Center on Kirkland Street at noon. Please contact the Chamber at 585.2273 for your lunch reservation.

Abbeville Historic Preservation Commission meets quarterly (January, April, July & Octo-ber) on the second Thursday at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall.

The Water Works and Sewer Board of Abbeville meets the fourth Monday at 5:00 p.m. in City Hall.

Planning Commission meets the fourth Thursday of each month in City Hall at 6:00 p.m.

Christmas holidays will be observed by city employees on December 24th and 25th.

New Years holiday will be observed by city employees on January 1, 2013.

Martin Luther King holiday will be observed by city employees on January 21, 2013.

Abbeville...First in the nation Page 7

Increasing Our Knowledge… Our Mayor, City Council and employees are constantly working toward improving their skills which enables them to perform their jobs more efficiently, safely and professionally. The following is a list of education and practical training they have completed over the last few months: Councilman Brent Murphy, Councilman Eddie Jones and Clerk/Treasurer Pam Ward recently attended an all day Orientation

Training sponsored by the Alabama League of Municipalities.

The following individuals completed the Alabama Municipal Insurance Corporation and Workers Compensation Fund Proactive Driver Training: Danny Creel, Mike Jones, Eric Duhaime; Ronnie Moody, Jimmy Carruthers, Brandon Helms, Tim Ingram, and Colt Ludlam.

Melissa Cheek completed training in basic Excel program.

Water Board Chairman Billy Helms and Pam Ward attended the annual “Decision Makers Training” sponsored by the Alabama Rural Water Association.

We are on the web at www.cityofabbeville.org

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