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WSHS Commemorates Sept. 11 2001

To commemorate the 11th anniversary of the events of September 11th 2001, Wagener Salley High School conducted a special Flag Raising Ceremony at the flagpole on Tuesday, September 11th 2011.

The event was conducted by the War Eagle Battalion Corps of Cadets with the National Anthem sung by the JROTC Chorus. The event included the Battalion Formation and Rising of the Colors by the Color Guard. Cadet Miller concluded the program by playing TAPS.

The town would like to thank all those involved for a beautiful memorial and thank you to all in the community who came out to support this event. Photos from Rev. Philip Turner.

WSHS War Eagles on a Winning Streak

The War Eagles warmed up Friday night for another blow-out game. The War Eagles took the victory over Whitmire, 48-0, placing them 4-0 for the season. An interesting thing about a winning season.....

.... fans begin having a lot more fun at the games. Above we had some WSHS Alumni cooking ribs, chicken and burgers while across the field, below, First Baptist Church had pizza, music and games.

In addition to the tailgating, remember the Booster Club's Canteen at the game, let's keep supporting them as they support our players. The Canteen has expanded and now serves fish sandwiches, corndogs and chili cheese fries in addition to the usual burgers, dogs, fries, chips, candy and more. See you at the game! War Eagle Schedule

Erin Thomas Performs in Columbia with American Foundation for Suicide Prevention

Nashville recording artist Erin Thomas performed Sunday night at the West Columbia Riverwalk Amphitheater as part of an event promoted by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, kicking off a walk that will honor victims of suicide and help raise awareness. Thomas is the daughter of Wagener resident Jimmy Thomas. She has over ten years experience playing the French horn with the Nashville and Chattanooga Symphonies, has been in recording sessions with Keith Urban, Garth Brooks and more, has toured with Vince Gill and recently cut an album “You Don’t Know Me” that features a duet with Vince Gill.

Thomas performed a few songs off her new album including A Cold Day in Heaven, a poignant song written after losing her brother to suicide. Suicide survivors and cyclists Thomas Brown and Zak Chipps took the stage after Erin Thomas to open up a community discussion about suicide awareness and healing. Thomas and Zak are riding across America through 21 states, 110 cities to raise suicide awareness and healing. The men, both having lost a brother to suicide, are talking to strangers, meeting with community groups and starting conversations. The Hampton Inn generously donated rooms for them as they passed through Columbia.

Kent's Korner Embraces Technology and an Online Presence for Growth

Garvin Oil Company, parent company of Kent's Korner Convenience Stores, with headquarters in Wagener, has been featured in the Independent Gasoline Marketing (IGM) magazine's May/June 2012 issue. IGM is the official publication of the Society of Independent Gasoline Marketers of America (SIGMA), an organization consisting of America's leading fuel marketers.

FOTAS Spay Neuter Assistance Program to be Piloted in Wagener

Courtesy of the Wagener Monthly

A phenomenal opportunity is coming to Wagener. Beginning on in August, Friends of the Animal Shelter (FOTAS) in Aiken County, in partnership with Pawmetto Lifeline in Columbia, will be offering free spay/neuter surgeries to the residents of Wagener between August and October. Plans are to spay or neuter as many as 75 cats and/or dogs. Numbers will vary depending on the type of animal and its gender. The program is open. Any cat or dog belonging to a resident of Wagener is eligible to participate.

This opportunity has been made available through Pawmetto Lifeline's annual festival, "Bark to the Park." This year, a the April event, Pawmetto Lifeline offered an opportunity for rescue organizations to compete for spay-neuter services in their brand new state-of-the-art facility that just opened this spring. FOTAS volunteers put together a team and pulled out all the stops in their fundraising efforts. Money came in from family and friends locally as well as coast to coast, Florida to England! FOTAS Aiken County took first place and won over $4,500 for spay/neuter at Pawmetto Lifeline.

Mayor Mike Miller has generously offered his office as the site to sign up for this service. Enrollment will begin on Wednesday, August 1st at the Wagener Town Hall. The spay/neuter services areavailable to any healthy cat or dog, male or female, on a first-come-first-serve basis. Pet owners will have to pay a refundable deposit of $7 per pet when they register. On the delivery date, the entire deposit will be refunded if the owner provides a current rabies certificate for the pet to be spayed or neutered. If no certificate is provided, the $7 will be applied to the mandatory rabies vaccine.

Allen Williams Wins Agriculture Award

Courtesy of the Aiken Standard

On Wednesday, Wagener-Salley's agriculture teacher Allen Williams was named the first-ever winner of the Distinguished Teacher of the Year Award at the S.C. Association of Agricultural Educators banquet in Aiken.

Williams has been the agriculture teacher at Wagener-Salley for nearly 30 years. He graduated from Clemson University with a bachelor's degree in agricultural education and a master's in animal science.

Trent Rushton, a student of Williams' who has just been elected as the 2012 S.C. FFA chapter president, presented the award to Williams.

"Mr. Williams is an excellent teacher and from the first day, he told us how we decide our own future. If you're willing to listen, he'll help you." Rushton said.

"With the help of their parents, our little school has provided some wonderful, very successful children," Williams said. "I carried many of them to national and state conventions. Derrick Cooper is teaching agriculture at Gilbert High, and Ethan Busbee is studying ag eduction at Clemson. But there are also pharmacists, farmers, brickmasons, welders and a lot more."

Read a full article on Williams from the Aiken Standard here: http://www.aikenstandard.com/story/072012-Allen-Williams

Town Parking Lot

Mayor Mike Miller, Jamie Preacher and Dennis Rodgers, pictured above, met on the site of Wagener's new parking lot to discuss construction progress. Parking lot plans include about 22 parking spaces, a town clock and a green area. The clock will not be completed until December. It will stand tall on the corner of the lot at Main and Church Streets.

In a mid-July conference, Mayor Mike Miller fielded questions about the decision to build a parking lot on the land generously donated to the town by the Ingram family of Garvin Oil Company. This lot is where the original Kent's Korner stood.

"We have angular parking in most of the town." Miller stated. "Angular parking isn't permitted by law anymore, but our current parking places are grandfathered in and can remain. Any future parking places on the street have to be parallel parking and that consumes a lot of space. Many of the town parking spots are often full. This parking lot will be well used."

Miller also explained that previous contamination of the land prevented the town from building a park there. "The contamination has been cleaned up and is not a problem anymore, but the people who gave us a grant frowned on a playground because of the history of the land."

WSHS student new president of S.C. FFA

Courtesy of the Aiken Standard

Last summer Trent Rushton set up his own produce stand in the downtown area here, complete with his own tomatoes and squash and cucumbers, as well as vegetables and fruits from other farmers.

“I made some money and enjoyed talking to people,” said the rising senior at Wagener-Salley High School.

Rushton won’t have time for such activities this summer, not after his selection as president of the S.C. FFA chapter following the recent state conference. He’ll be traveling a lot in his new position.

He had sought a state office on the suggestion of his agriculture science teacher and FFA adviser, longtime Wagener-Salley educator Allen Williams.

Unless an FFA member has a really good shot of winning a state office, Williams won’t encourage it. But he started talking to Rushton about it nearly a year ago after his student was chosen as the school chapter president.

“Trent is smart and well-spoken and is morally a good kid,” Williams said. “He’s kind and big-hearted and confident and is truly a team player.”

The son of Michael and Carolyn Rushton, Trent spent a lot of time as a boy at the farms of his grandfathers. His parents also had been Williams’ students at Wagener-Salley, and as Trent approached high school, they encouraged him to get involved with ag education and FFA. Trent took to it right away as a freshman.

Buddy Ball a Hit with Special Needs Kids

courtesy of the Wagener Monthly
Aiken Standard Staff Photos by Rob Novit

It was a great day for baseball at Roy Warner Park on Saturday – unseasonably cooler temperatures, not a cloud in the sky and several players who were more likely, after hitting the ball, to run to third base or the pitcher’s mound or simply chase the ball down and bring it back to home plate than to run to first base.

That’s the joy of a T-ball version of Buddy Ball – on this day pairing preschoolers from Busbee Corbett Elementary Middle School with adult volunteers and other kids.

Teacher Marcia Gettys, a 21-year veteran at Busbee Corbett, was thrilled with the first-time event, featuring members of the Westinghouse Nuclear Fuels Division out of Columia. Her only disappointment was that several parents didn’t make it with their kids.

“These kids are so great,” said Gettys. “They have delays, but some can go on soon into regular education. This program today is really good for them, and I want all of them to get this kind of experience.”

Steve Carver, the response team manager at Westinghouse Nuclear Fuels, is the former Wagener mayor. His friends on the team, including Carver’s nephew, Jacob Key, who has cerebral palsy, have visited Getty’s class previously for Christmas parties.

“Our response team is involved with communities all around us,” Carver said. “They did a Christmas party for six kids who lost their fathers in Afghanistan and also donated a fire truck to Lexington County. It’s great to have them out here today to provide these kids with something they may not get otherwise. And to have Jacob out here, too, is an added benefit.”

Busbee and Starnes named to All-Star team

Courtesy of Wagener Monthly and Aiken Standard

The bats have fallen silent as high school baseball and softball has come to an end around the state, but when the honors were handed out for the recently-completed season, area players made plenty of noise.

Brielle Busbee (Wagener-Salley) - Busbee is a Class A All-State selection after finishing her junior season with a .412 batting average and 23 RBIs. She also threw out 28 runners from her position as a catcher.

Jenna Starnes (Wagener-Salley) - Starnes went 7-5 on the mound with 106 strikeouts for the War Eagles. She made the Class A All-State team for the second year in a row. At the plate, she had a .500 batting averaging with 21 RBIs.

Pictured, from left to right, top row: Sydney Seigler, Rachel Gregory, and Haley Zuehlke; second row: Quadre Castleberry, Micaela Bell, and Brielle Busbee; third row: Kinsey Parrish, Taylor Hearn, and Jenna Starnes. Aiken Standard Staff photo.

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