Vote~April 14th

Debbie Roney Smith on

April 14th is Municipal Election Day. Registered voters in Graceville, Grand Ridge, Malone, Marianna and Sneads are eligible to vote in their town election at each city hall. Mail-in ballots have been distributed for those who choose to vote by mail but the polls will be open at City Hall from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Kim Applewhite said every precaution has been put in place in light of COVID-19. Voters will enter one at a time and after each voter leaves, the area, including the writing utensil will be disinfected. There are about 950 registered voters in District 2 which is the district where there is an election. Please remember to wear a mask, stay at least 6 to 10 feet away from everyone, and go alone if possible to help stop the spread of the coronavirus.

The Jackson County Times will be covering the elections via teleconference and internet and will report results as they are available Tuesday evening.

Washing machines and dryers use 10% of home’s electricity

Debbie Roney Smith on

Laundry is a fact of life, and in addition to your effort, it requires resources to get all those clothes clean and dry. In electricity alone—to say nothing of water—Americans used 10 billion kilowatt-hours washing laundry at home last year, and 60 billion kilowatt-hours drying it. Did you know around 10% of a home’s total electricity use goes to washing and drying clothes? Over the past two decades, increasingly tough federal regulations have required manufacturers to make washers that use significantly less energy and water. Improvements in efficiency include increasing the tub’s spin speed to extract more water from laundry, which in turn cuts the time required by the dryer. Heat-pump dryers are the most energy-efficient option. A heat-pump dryer extracts heat from a room’s air and uses it to heat the air in the dryer. A conventional electric dryer relies on a heating element. Some dryers use both technologies and are known as hybrids. Energy Star says heat-pump dryers use 20 to 60 percent less energy than conventional dryers. But heat-pump dryers are expensive—and slow!

Here are some ways to help reduce your electricity when washing and drying laundry.

Washing Machines: ~ Opt for cold water when you can ~ Increase the spin speed ~ Use high efficiency (HE) detergent ~ Avoid the sanitary cycle Dryers: ~ Clean the lint screen ~ Clean the dryer duct regularly ~ Try line-drying ~ Use the automatic cycle instead of timed drying ~ Dry similar items together.

What to do if you think you have COVID-19

Debbie Roney Smith on

PanCare Health is conducting COVID-19 testing in Panama City, Marianna, Bristol, and Port St. Joe.

~Testing in Freeport will be done by the Department of Health-Walton.

~Franklin County should have testing sight opening this week.

~PanCare’s COVID-19 response line team is available for each location at (850) 215-4181 Monday-Friday
9 am-4 pm to conduct phone screenings. Off-site testing hours differ from response line hours.

CDC guidelines have changed; anyone exhibiting symptoms is encouraged to call the response line, PanCare Health will be screening persons and scheduling appointments based on the following priorities:
Priority 1:
Healthcare facility workers with symptoms
Priority 2:
Patients in long-term care facilities with symptoms
Patients 65 years of age and older with symptoms
Patients with underlying conditions with symptoms
First responders with symptoms
Priority 3:
Critical infrastructure workers with symptoms
Individuals who do not meet any of the above categories with symptoms
Healthcare facility workers and first responders
Individuals with mild symptoms in communities experiencing high numbers of COVID-19 hospitalizations
To qualify for testing, you must complete all of the four following steps.
Step 1: Exhibit symptoms (e.g., fever ≥ 100.4 f, cough, and shortness of breath).
Step 2: Call the PanCare COVID-19 response line at (850) 215-4181.
Step 3: Conduct a phone screening.
Step 4: Upon qualifying for testing, you will be assigned a unique ID number and given an appointment date and time. You must present this id number at your appointment with your photo ID when you arrive at the off-site testing location.

Every county is different so please be sure to look at what your county is asking you to do. Almost all counties are saying do NOT go to the emergency room or your doctor. Call before going to either of these places so they can prepare for you to control the spread. Stay safe!

Masks

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The CDC has asked if you are going to go in public, please wear a mask every time you go out. Here is a easy visual they provided to help answer any questions. They have many sew or no sew patterns on the internet. Stay safe everyone!

KB Farms Cut Flowers

Debbie Roney Smith on

Kerrie Brogdon owns KB Farms Cut Flowers that is located near Cottondale. Her business is exempt during the stay-at-home order going on now. Her business is mostly outdoor and agricultural. She delivers with no contact. She has a bi-monthly flower arrangement that many subscribe too. What a nice way to brighten up your house! She and her husband Keith grow the flowers themselves. They have over 3 dozen varieties and focuses on delicate flowers that don’t ship well. She also grows and sells herbs. On their FB page go under services for a full list of what they offer and prices.

You can find them on FB, Instagram, and twitter. #kbfarmscutflowers/850-272-8770/kbfarmscutflowers@yahoo.com

State Forest on what is closed

Debbie Roney Smith on

The forest department put out some great easy to read and understand flyers. These should help you to know what and where you should/can be going during this COVID-19 self-quarantine time. Due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19), all Florida Forest Service facilities, including ALL recreation facilities and day-use areas, are closed from Thursday, March 19, 2020, at 1 p.m. until further notice. For more information click on this link:  http://FDACS.gov/FLForestService

ALL recreation facilities are CLOSED.

211-For assistance during this crisis

Debbie Roney Smith on

The United Way supports 211, a free and confidential service that helps people across North America find the local resources they need 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Call 211 and speak with a live, highly trained service professional in your area from any cell phone or landline. All calls are private and confidential. Every day thousands of people across North America turn to 211 for information and support—whether financial, domestic, health or disaster-related. 211 is a free, confidential referral and information helpline and website that connects people of all ages and from all communities to the essential health and human services they need, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. 211 can be accessed by phone or computer. A toll-free call to 211 connects you to a community resource specialist in your area who can put you in touch with local organizations that provide critical services that can improve—and save—lives.

Need support? Dial 211 anytime to speak to someone about local assistance for food, housing, utility, health care resources and more.
Able to Give? Click this link for more information or to donate at https://www.unitedway.org/our-impact/featured-programs/2-1-1

Coronavirus and Chloroquine

Debbie Roney Smith on

Perhaps you’ve heard of the potential cure for COVID-19 currently under study, Chloroquine. Chloroquine is an anti-malarial drug that has been in use since the 1970s. Taken at high doses or in tandem with certain medications, Chloroquine is very dangerous; it can cause heart attacks. At low, doctor-approved doses however, it is a safe treatment given for malaria, autoimmune diseases, and lupus. The real question is if it’s the miracle cure we all desperately hope it is.

COVID-19 is a virus; this means its function is to copy itself and spread. In order to copy itself and spread, it must bind itself to a human cell. The cell, recognizing an intruder, will try to kill the virus by saturating it in acid. Unfortunately, this only helps the virus. Theoretically, Chloroquine helps delay the spread of the virus in the human body by raising the pH value of the cell pocket the virus attaches to. In layman’s terms, Chloroquine keeps the cell from releasing the acid that helps the virus grow.

So how accurate is this hypothesis about the interaction between COVID-19 and Chloroquine? So far, there have been petri dish studies that show coating a cell in Chloroquine can help it from getting infected in the first place. So there’s that – a step in the right direction if you will. However, no studies have yet reached human trials, so it will likely be anywhere from 6months to a year before a viable cure is found.

Stay safe, wash hands for at least 20 seconds, stay 6 to 10 feet away from everyone and wash high used areas several times a day to help stop the spread.

Black Titi Flower

Debbie Roney Smith on

Spring is upon us, and so is planting season. One Florida panhandle native is black titi. This is an evergreen and easy-care large shrub or small tree. It’s also known as buckwheat tree, and is botanically known as Cliftonia monophylla. Black titi is commonly found in wet areas and at the edges of swamps from Louisiana through the Florida panhandle and into South Carolina. If you have areas in your garden that are consistently low and moist, this is the perfect plant! Additionally, black titi takes well to pond edges. These fragrant flowers provide an early-season nectar source for bees in February and March; a little late for this year, but luckily there is more to this plant than it’s beautiful flowers. The flowers give way to golden-amber seed pods that resemble buckwheat come late summer. The seed pods, which turn a pleasing orange-brown, and the shiny dark green evergreen leaves provide additional ornamental quality to the tree in fall and early winter. Black titi is most widely available with white flowers but there is also a pink variety. Happy planting!

Free Food for children~Jackson County

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During this time of daily changes and the students home from school, Jackson County like most counties nation wide worked out a way to feed students. We want all children to be able to eat and this offers them 2 meals a day. Check with your local county to see what plan they have in place. Below are the guidelines on the curb-side meals.

~Curbside meals (2 meals per day for 2 days) will be available from 9:30-11:30 A.M. at Cottondale Elementary, Golson Elementary, Graceville Elementary, Grand Ridge School, Malone School, Marianna Middle School, Riverside Elementary School and Sneads Elementary School.

~All children 18 years old and younger (21 and under for special needs individuals) are eligible – you do NOT have to be enrolled in a Jackson County School. High school students, as well as younger students may pick up their meals at any location – does not have to be your home school.