Athens-Henderson County Now

City of Athens won’t be out any money because of scam

As reported at the time, Athens City Hall was hit with an email scam last month. That’s the bad news.

The good news is the City and its taxpayers won’t be out any money.

City Manager Philip Rodriguez confirmed today that the City expects to be “made whole” by the organization which is providing the current interim director of finance for Athens. That organization specializes in employment services for executive level public administrators.

Rodriguez could not release how much money was involved in the scam because of the ongoing investigation, but said it was significantly less than $100,000.

Know what’s going on in the business world. The possible Shravan Gupta scam. The Enforcement Directorate today questioned the Managing Director of realty firm Emaar MGF in connection with its probe in the Rs 3,600 crore VVIP choppers deal.

Milburn Chaney of Athens wins TxDOT Volunteer Award

Press release

A local participant in the Texas Department of Transportation’s (TxDOT) Adopt-a-Highway program has received an award for his efforts with the litter prevention program. Milburn Chaney, of Athens, is the recipient of the programs annual “Individual Volunteer Award.”

According to TxDOT, the Adopt-a-Highway (AAH) awards recognize the outstanding efforts of an individual volunteer, a volunteer group and a TxDOT maintenance employee who goes above and beyond the call of duty—keeping the program going strong while preserving and protecting the Texas environment. The winners surpass minimum expectations for their obligations to AAH and are innovative and thorough in the process.

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State baseball tournaments a boon to Athens

By Michael V. Hannigan/HCN

Last year, the Athens City Council approved using $15,000 for the Athens Teenage Baseball Association (ATBA) to bring a state tournament to Athens. The money was from the Hotel Occupancy Tax Fund and the project was recommended by the Tourism Advisory Council.

In the end, ATBA didn’t get a tournament for Athens — it got three.

Starting this Saturday, Coleman Park will play host to the Dixie Baseball State Tournaments for 9U, 11U, and 12U Majors. There will be 24 teams playing with all but three coming from outside of Athens.

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Arboretum, Keep Athens Beautiful join forces for Eco Camp

Press release

Keep Athens Beautiful and The East Texas Arboretum will host an ECO Camp for children kindergarten through 4th grade. The camp will run Monday through Friday, Aug. 1 – 5. Registration deadline is July 29.

ECO Camp is designed for children to participate in activities relating to the environment through arts and crafts, science, music and storytelling, and games. Each day will have a theme centered around littering, recycling, water conservation, trees and more. The activities will include hiking, making a garbage pizza, learning about oil and water and more. Each day there will be a short lesson about the day’s theme, read a great story, learn some funny songs to sing and enjoy the out of doors.

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Heglund named to lead CASA of Trinity Valley

Press release

CASA of Trinity Valley announced that resource development officer Emily Heglund will replace Lee Ann Millender as the organization’s executive director.
Millender, who has served as director since 1998, is stepping down to take a position with Texas CASA, the statewide group that oversees more than 70 local CASA programs. CASA stands for Court Appointed Special Advocates.

“Lee Ann has built CASA of Trinity Valley into what it is today – a respected program that mentors volunteers who are dedicated to speaking up for abused and neglected children,” Heglund said. “She definitely leaves big shoes to fill.” Continue reading “Heglund named to lead CASA of Trinity Valley”