Miss Atkinson, Mr. Nelson set date

Clarence and Jan Atkinson of Bishopville announce the engagement of their daughter, Rhonda Roxanne Atkinson to Russell Adam Nelson, son of Ronnie and Vicki Nelson of Camden.

Carrie Rebecca Drakeford

Funeral service for Carrie Rebecca Drakeford, 91, of 841-A Cheraw Road in Cassatt will be held Wednesday, February, 1, 2012, 11 A.M. at Hyco Baptist Church, 1143 Hwy #1 North in Cassatt, with burial in the church cemetery. She died Saturday, January 28, 2012. Collins Funeral Home is in charge of the arrangements.

Kenneth Long

Retired U.S. Coast Guard Captain Kenneth A. Long, 78, of Camden, died Friday, January 27, 2012. Memorials may be made in Mr. Long's memory to the American Heart Association of SC Memorials & Tributes, P. O. Box 5216, Glen Allen, VA 23058 or Alzheimer's Disease Support Group 4186 Fernandina Road, Columbia, SC 29210 or Arthritis Foundation-Carolinas Chapter, 200 East Woodlawn Road., Suite 156, Charlotte, NC 28217

Top 10, but falling

If you were to rank the countries of the world in terms of economic freedom, where would the United States fall? First, or at least in the top three? The top five, surely.

CES honor students named

Camden Elementary School has announced its honor rolls for the second nine-weeks period.

Howard Jordan

Howard Amos Jordan, 56, of Camden died Tuesday, January, 24, 2012. A private burial will be held at a later date.

Teachers provide the foundation for achieving life’s goals

The dictionary defines influence as "the capacity to have an effect on the character, development, or behavior of someone." Influence is a simple word also defined by our personal interpretations of how a person makes us feel. A feeling that can leave us changed forever. An influence may be found in the way a person helps mold our career plans or our daily conduct. It's a lasting impact that moves us from point A in our life, to point B. We begin as someone completely different from the individual we turn out to be on the other side. High ...

Keeping it light

From the mailbag:

Rec notes -- Jan. 27, 2012

Registration begins next week for youth baseball and girls slow pitch and fast pitch.

Mozelle Rabon

Funeral services to celebrate the life of Mozelle Thurmond Rabon, 88, of Lugoff will be held Saturday, January 28, 2012 at 2:00 PM at Lugoff First Baptist Church with burial to follow in the church cemetery. Rev. Greg Sweet will officiate. The family will receive friends Friday, January 27, 2012 from 5:00 – 7:00 PM at Kornegay Funeral Home Lugoff Elgin Chapel. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made in Mrs. Rabon's memory to Lugoff First Baptist Church, 106 Longtown Road, Lugoff, SC 29078.

Pets of the week -- Jan. 27, 2012

Among the animals available for adoption at the Walter M. Crowe Animal Shelter are Titan, a 1-year-old male box, and a female gray and white tabby cat. The adoption donation includes spaying or neutering. The shelter, located at the south end of Fair Street and managed by the Kershaw County Humane Society, is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday. The shelter is closed Sunday and Monday. For information on the shelter or to check for a missing pet, call 425-6016 or e-mail wcas@camden.net. The ...

School menus -- Jan. 27, 2012

The following are menus for Kershaw County schools for the week of Jan. 30-Feb. 3:

A Cappella at its very best...

The music of the Pitchforks of Duke University, a nationally acclaimed collegiate a cappella group, and a past winner of the SoJam Southeast Collegiate A Cappella Festival, is returning to the Wood Auditorium of the Fine Arts Center of Kershaw County (FAC) for a one-night performance Friday, Feb. 3. The performance will begin at 8 p.m. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students, military and seniors. This concert is made possible by Bob Sheheen.

Community comes together to help local family

John Baker of Ridgeway has had more than his fair share of ailments.

Dear Annie for Jan. 27, 2012

Dear Annie: I am a bartender and waitress at a small local restaurant. We recently worked a big party that included drinks and a three-course meal. When it came time to pay, the customer left us a fairly large tip.

Gerald W. Stover, Sr.

A service to celebrate the life of Gerald Wayne Stover, Sr., 74, will be held on Saturday at 11:00 a.m. at Grace United Methodist Church. The Rev. Walter Ballenger will officiate. The family will receive friends following the service in the church fellowship hall. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to St. Jude Children's Hospital.

Linda Joy Taylor

Funeral service for Linda Joy Taylor, 62, will be held on Saturday at 2:00 p.m. at Wateree Baptist Church with burial to follow in the church cemetery. The Rev. Dr. Ron Taylor and the Rev. Taylor Wells will officiate. The family will receive friends Friday 6-8 p.m. at Powers Funeral Home. Memorials may be made to the South Carolina Oncology Foundation.

CMS’ Salmond, L-EMS’ Lankford win Carolina Invitational crowns

Camden Middle School's Javonte Salmond and Lugoff-Elgin Middle School's Brandon Lankford returned home from Saturday's Carolina Invitational wrestling tournament with championships medals in the 131- and 285-pound weight divisions, respectively.

Civil War presentation at the Kershaw County Library on Feb. 10

As part of his campaign through Georgia and the Carolinas, Gen. William T. Sherman created a psychological war on civilians that is the focus of a presentation at 6:30 p.m. at the Kershaw County Library, 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 10 at the Kershaw County Library, 1304 Broad St., Camden.

Kershaw Conservation District Poster contest winners

The Kershaw Conservation District sponsored the "Dig Deeper- Mysteries in the Soil" poster contest last Spring. 138 posters were entered in the contest, and 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place awards were given, along with Honorable Mentions. The contest was open to students in grades K through 12, in public, private, and homeschool settings. First place winners, in each category, went to the state competition, and were judged by the SC Association of Conservation Districts. The two state winners were Lugoff-Elgin High School student Kristen Nygaard and Camden Middle School student Mary Dawson Lindsay. Their entries are now being judged on ...

Must-haves for any Super Bowl party

The Super Bowl, the annual championship game of the National Football League, has become a global event.

Pets of the Week - Jan. 30, 2015

Among the animals available for adoption at the Walter M. Crowe Animal Shelter are Sandy, a 5-month-old female red tick hound mix dog, and Michael, a 2-year-old nuetered male domestic short-haired tabby cat. The adoption donation includes spaying or neutering. The shelter, located at the south end of Fair Street and managed by the Kershaw County Humane Society, is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday. The shelter is closed Sunday and Monday. For information on the shelter or to check for a missing pet, call 425-6016 ...

Sam Wells Sr.

Mr. Sam Doc "Nick" Wells Sr., 87, of Camden, entered into eternal rest on Saturday, January 24, 2015. Born in Camden. he was the son of the late Ezekiel, Sr. and Leila Jones Wells. A Celebration of Life and Homegoing Services will be held Friday, January 30, 2015 at One p.m., at Union Baptist Church, with burial in the church cemetery, Rembert. Mr. Wells will be placed in the church at Twelve p.m. for viewing. Brown's Funeral Home, Camden is serving the Wells family.

School News - Jan. 30, 2015

Clemson University awarded degrees to 1,300 students Dec. 18, 2014, in graduation ceremonies in Littlejohn Coliseum.

Rec Notes - Jan. 30, 2015

Registration is open for the Kershaw County Recreation Department's Technical Soccer Camp. Participants will receive academy-level training and learn how to play soccer the "right way." The technical soccer methods and techniques will create a fun, yet challenging environment providing the foundations to play at the next level.

Ariail for Jan. 30, 2015

Editorial: Hill's survey

This country has, in many instances, gone overboard in enforcing the first amendment: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." The founding fathers never intended to remove all semblances of religion from public life, yet we have moved in that direction. But a recent attempt by one South Carolina lawmaker to question potential judges about religious matters went far beyond reason and was properly squelched by state agency staffers.

Rampell: The dark side of ‘sharing-economy’ jobs

WASHINGTON -- Flexible hours. Being your own boss. The glories and self-bootstrapping pride of entrepreneurship.

KCSO to present Evans’ framed uniform Saturday to L-EMS

Saturday, the Kershaw County Sheriff's Office (KCSO) will present Lugoff-Elgin Middle School (L-EMS) officials with a framed uniform shirt from Deputy Rob Evans who died unexpectedly in Nov. 2013 while directing school traffic. Evans served as the school resource officer at L-EMS for seven years and was a 14-year KCSO veteran.

L-EHS hosts archery tournament Saturday

For many years, Kershaw County School District (KCSD) schools have done well in state and national archery tournaments. This year, they will be hosting a regional tournament where more than 350 archers and 15 schools are scheduled to compete.