Current events
Tax office closed
The Appling office of the Columbia County Tax Commissioner's Office will close at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday and reopen for regular business hours Dec. 29. The Evans Motor Vehicle office will close at 2 p.m. Dec. 23, and reopen Dec. 29. Both offices also will be closed Jan. 1.
New cookbook
Stevens Creek Elementary School's first cookbook, A Spoonful of Excellence, is available for sale. The book is compiled from more than 400 recipes submitted by the staff members and families, and costs $13. For more information, call Susan Proctor, 863-2489.
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Democrats meet
The Columbia County Democratic Party will hold its monthly meeting 7 p.m. Jan. 5 at the Government Center Auditorium in Evans. For more information, call 868-0959.
Fire meeting
The annual subscribers meeting of the Martinez Fire Department, Inc., will be held at fire headquarters, 3846 Washington Road, at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 6.
Harlem blood drive
The city of Harlem will hold a blood drive noon-4 p.m. Jan. 2 at City Hall. A free T-shirt and snack will be provided to all donors. For more information, call 556-0401.
Free legal help
Staff of the Georgia Legal Services Program will offer free legal help on a first-come, first-served basis to seniors 60 and over 8:30-10:30 a.m. Tuesday at the Bessie Thomas Community Center, 5913 Euchee Creek Drive, Grovetown. For more information, call 721-2327.
Artists sought
All members of Columbia County's arts community are invited to an arts retreat sponsored by Columbia County Arts, Inc., 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Jan. 10, at the Brandon Wilde Clubhouse, 4275 Owens Road, Evans. The program will include a discussion on growing the arts in Columbia County, a networking lunch, and a session on copyright basics with the Georgia Lawyers for the Arts. Space is limited; call 868-5792 by Jan. 7 for information or to register.
Parents sought
Foster and adoptive parents are being sought for Columbia and Richmond County children. For more information on the program, call Christina Ruetz in Columbia County at 541-1640, or Rosalyn Boyd in Richmond County, 721-7171.
Happy Tails adoption
Happy Tails Rescue will hold pet adoptions each Saturday from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., and 4-6 p.m., and Sundays from 1-4 p.m., at Superpetz on Bobby Jones Expressway in Martinez. For more information, call 863-5310.
AJCC classes
Classes for children and adults in art, nature, kindermusik, Spanish, yoga and karate are being offered at the Augusta Jewish Community Center, 898 Weinberger Way, Evans. For more information, call 228-3636.
Holiday help
Agape Outreach Ministries of Thomson is seeking donations of money, food and toys to help needy families for Christmas. For more information, call (706) 597-8800.
Shoes sought
Augusta-area podiatrists are conducting their annual shoe collection of new and old shoes for distribution to the area's homeless. Donations of any size shoes may be brought to any area podiatrist's office through January.
New Tech class
Augusta Technical College's Thomson/McDuffie campus is accepting applications for the beginning air conditioning technology diploma program for winter quarter 2004. The program will be offered in the evening beginning Jan. 6, 2004. Financial aid is available for those who are eligible. For more information, call Julie Langham, (706) 595-0166.
Purple Hearts
The CSRA chapter of the Military Order of the Purple Heart meets on the third Saturday of each month at 3856 Leigh St., Martinez. For more information, call 731-7210.
Cell-phone recycling
Metro Augusta and Columbia County Clean and Beautiful are collecting old cell phones for recycling. Phones may be dropped off at the Columbia County landfill, Richmond County landfill, Savannah Rapids Pavilion, Evans Government Complex, Augusta-Richmond County Municipal Building, Publix on Washington Road in Augusta, and at the Clean and Beautiful office at 418 Greene Street, Augusta.
For more information, call 261-4390.
Mining scholarship
Applications are being accepted for the Georgia Mining Federation's $500 scholarship, which will be awarded to a student at Evans High School. The deadline for applications is Feb. 28, 2004. For more information, call Jenny Maas, (478) 757-1211.
Six Flags tickets
Half-price Six Flags coupons are available from the Columbia County 4H office in the Savannah Rapids Pavilion, 3300 B Evans to Locks Road, Martinez. For more information, call 868-3413.
Children's ringers
The Augusta Children's Ringers, a handbell and choirchime for children in grades 3-6, meets 4-6 p.m. Thursdays at the Westside Baptist Church Educational Building, 261 Flowing Wells Road. For more information, call 306-5247.
Newcomers Club
The Augusta Newcomers Club helps new residents acclimate and make friends by offering a variety of activities, including lunch and a movie, dinner groups, bowling, golf and games. Monthly coffees for prospective members are the first Tuesday of each month. To attend or for further information, call Rickie Reinhardt at 650-3941, or Ruth Pearl at 650-1400.
Veterans sought
The Veterans History Project is compiling stories from World War II veterans. For more information, call 1-888-5848, or go to www.loc.gov/vets.
Tree orders
The Georgia Forestry Commission is taking orders for tree seedlings. For information, call the Columbia County Forestry Unit at 556-3962.
Fire safety review
The Columbia County Unit of the Georgia Forestry Commission is offering free advice to county residents on whether their home is danger from brush or woods fire. Call 556-3962 for more information.
SCORE advice
The Service Corps of Retired Executives provides counseling and mentoring to business people who are starting up a new business or expanding an ongoing business. Volunteer counselors are retired executives. Affiliated with the U.S. Small Business Administration, SCORE is a nonprofit, public-service organization. There is never a charge for services. To contact SCORE's Augusta office, call 793-9998, Monday-Thursday, 9 a.m. to noon.
McDuffie Friends
McDuffie County Friends of Animals' Adopt-A-Pet Days are each Saturday from 1 to 3 p.m. at SuperPetz on Bobby Jones Expressway in Martinez. To see pets that are available, call 556-9090 or go to petfinder.com, and go to the Dearing, Ga., section
Senior activities
The Bessie Thomas Community Center, 5913 Euchee Creek Drive, Grovetown, offers daily events for 55 and over residents of Columbia County including Bingo on Tuesday and Thursday, ceramics and other arts and crafts, trivia, devotionals and field trips. Transportation to and from the center is provided by the county's Rural Transportation Department. Call in advance to schedule the ride. All rides and center activities, not including trips, are free. For more information or to request transportation, call 556-0308.
Foster volunteers
Community volunteers are needed to become advocates for children who are found by the court to be abused and/or neglected, and to assist at the Kids Restart visitation center, 508 Broad St. For more information, call 828-0180.
Harlem day care
The Harlem Neighborhood Development Daycare Academy, a nonprofit organization helping low-income families get financial assistance for day care, is accepting new pupils.
The program is from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday at the center at 280 West Forrest St., Harlem. Children age 6 weeks to 12 years are eligible. Activities include field trips, computer classes, games, movies and more.
For more information, call the Rev. Melvin Adams at 556-0209.
Scholarships available
Applications are being sought for 2004 graduates seeking scholarships to attend Georgia's military colleges. Students are nominated from each of Georgia's U.S. congressional districts, and are nominated by state senators in those districts. For more information, call the state Senate office at 1 (800) 282-5803.
Recycling available
The following Columbia County elementary schools have newspaper and magazine recycling bins for public use: South Columbia, Grovetown, Bel Air, Evans, Riverside, Brookwood, North Columbia, North Harlem and Stevens Creek elementary schools, and Evans High School.
Recycling bins also are at Marvin United Methodist Church on Wheeler Road and St. Teresa of Avila Catholic Church on Pleasant Home Road.
Aluminum can recycling centers, to benefit the Southeastern Firefighters Burn Foundation, are located at Martinez Fire Department station 2 on Gibbs Road, Station 3 on Furys Ferry Road and Station 4 on Oakley-Pirkle Road.
For more recycling information, contact Metro Augusta Clean and Beautiful, 261-4390.