Johnson Reelected.

Mayor Kenneth Johnson became the first Carthage Mayor to be elected to a second term in over 50 years yesterday. The successful campaign netted Johnson 63% of the votes cast with his opponent Lujene Clark, the first woman ever to run for the office, bringing in 37%. The final vote count was 1175 for Johnson and 692 for Clark.

Nate Stokes garnered the largest number of votes for a School Board member with 1616. The two other seats open were filled by incumbents Tony Diggs with 1508, and Mike Wells with 1304. Incumbent Michael Woody was not reelected with 1,046 and Earnest Vaile followed with 916.

The run for Fourth Ward Council member was close throughout the evening as votes were counted. Absentee ballots showed Jim McPheeters 16, Carey Murphy 15. With one precinct in Murphy led incumbent McPheeters 131 to 123. The final was McPheeters 318 and Murphy 296.

The Fourth Ward turned out approximately 40% of its registered voters with 650 ballots being cast. Approximately 25% of registered voters cast ballots in the Mayoral race. Jasper County overall turned out 13%.

The School Board election brought 2,609 ballots cast. Some interestin’ observations, for me anyway.

Not to take anything away from any candidate, but the votes for the most to the least followed exactly as the candidates appeared on the ballot. An interestin’ argument to bein’ the first on the list. But, with each ballot allowin’ three votes there were still choices to be made for sure. Ya gotta figure that Earnest Vaile with 916 had ta convince at least that many folks he was a better choice that at least two others. That is over a third of those votin.’

I don’t have the number of total registered voters in the district, but it looks like R-9 had a decent showin.’

Congratulations to the Fourth Ward for the great 40% turn out.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

by

Carthage Printing Services

Prime Time With Kids

by Donna Erickson

Sibling rivalry may be as old as Cain and Abel, but when your own kids start quibbling nonstop, it’s hard to accept the jealousy as normal behavior. It seems to start when a young child tries to understand why the new baby in the house isn’t just a visitor but is clearly there to stay!

If a second child has recently arrived in your home, here’s a great idea to help the preschool-age sibling along in understanding his own special abilities and how important he is to the family. It’s a simple bookmaking activity your child can make with you.

First, talk to your preschooler about his skills and abilities. Perhaps your child has learned how to count to 10, or how to hop. Jot down the achievements on scratch paper as you talk about them.

On a sheet of construction paper, use markers to print "My baby brother" or "My baby sister" at the top and finish the sentence with a characteristic about the new baby that fits one of the categories you discussed with the older sibling. For example, "My baby sister sleeps in a crib." Underneath, print a corresponding idea about the sibling, such as, "I sleep in a big bed." On a second sheet you may write, "My baby sister crawls" and "I can talk, run and skip." On a third sheet, "My baby sister eats rice cereal" and "I eat hamburgers." Continue for several pages, ending on the final page with something both children have in common, such as "My baby sister can smile." "I can smile too!"

Let your child illustrate the pages. For the cover of the book, glue photos of your preschooler and the baby on another sheet of paper and print the title in block letters, "My Baby Sister (or Brother) and Me." Punch holes along the left side of each sheet and tie the pages together with bright ribbon or yarn.