As the start of another new school year draws nearer, the Morgan County Family Connection is gearing up for its fifth annual Back-to-School Rally this Saturday, August 4 from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m. in downtown Madison.Â

The rally, which was started to introduce Morgan County students and their families to the resources available to them. The rally, which will kick off the school year and open with an address by Superintendent Stan DeJarnett, has drawn crowds of up to 200 in previous years.Â

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Time is money â€" that’s an adage that’s been thrown around by ambitious businessmen for years, but after recent developments, time is going to mean a lot more money for low-wage workers around the country.

The minimum wage, which has been holding steady at $5.15 since it’s last increase in 1997, made a 70 cent jump to $5.85 on July 24. The increase is the first of three wage hikes that will go into effect every July 24 until finally landing at $7.25 in the summer of 2009.Â

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Improvements to sidewalks and streetlights in downtown Madison will continue as long as good weather cooperates, said City Manager David Nunn at a council meeting in late July.

“We’re within a day or two of beginning to lay brick,� on that stretch of West Washington St. that runs in front of Ol’ Murray’s Restaurant, the NAACP county offices, and the Mapp-Gilmore Funeral Home. Brick sidewalks are also planned for the front of SunTrust Bank on Hancock St.

New street lighting and

It was a scene inspired by the dream of Martin Luther King, Jr. It was a scene many Southerners wish would become our daily reality. It was a scene out of a Benny Andrews painting.Â

Folks gathered together at Plainview Baptist Church last Sunday afternoon to honor the life of Morgan County native and internationally reknown artist, Benny Andrews. Black and white, rich and poor, politicians and farmers, family and friendsâ€" all sat shoulder to shoulder in the plush red pews of that humble coun

Madison PoliceÂ

Department

• On July 16 a larceny (sudden snatch) complaint was filed at an Eatonton Road motel after a woman reported that while walking to a nearby convenience store, a man grabbed two $20 bills from her hand. The woman said the man fled north until he reached and auto parts store and then jumped into a gold or tan mid sized vehicle.

• On July 20 a larceny from auto complaint was filed at the DuPree Track and Field complex after a woman reported that she saw a young man

Madison-Morgan County Chamber of Commerce board members retreated last week to Southern Cross Ranch for a day, to discuss their plan of work for the upcoming year.

In addition to welcoming new board members Mike Torino, of Amici Restaurant; Jim Rogers, of SeaChem; Jerry Caldwell, of Madison; and Sherry Terrell-Alexander, of Realty World, at least two new programs were unveiled.

“We’re going to begin a new “Chamber Ambassador� program,� said Director Marguerite Copelan i