Don Fletcher

State senator presents funds to high schools, Huxford
By DON FLETCHER News Staff Writer While approval of the FY2025 operating budget was the major business conducted at the Escambia County Board of Education’s September 26 meeting (see separate story, this edition), board members and a state lawmaker combined to provide some good news for four Atmore-area schools. Six BOE members — District 1’s Kevin Hoomes was unable to attend — quickly and unanimously gave the green light to…
Atmosphere Road dump truck crash claims Mobile Co. man
By DON FLETCHERNews Staff Writer A Mobile County man was killed when he inexplicably lost control of the dump truck he was driving and crashed on a rural road just north of Atmore.The single-vehicle crash occurred around 2:45 p.m. Tuesday, September 24. According to reports from Alabama State Troopers, 63-year-old David W. Odell of Eight Mile was fatally injured when the 2024 Freightliner dump truck he was driving left Atmosphere…
Atmore man again turned down for parole
By DON FLETCHERNews Staff Writer An Atmore man serving a lengthy sentence on a weapons and burglary conviction was turned down for parole for the second time this year by the Alabama Board of Pardons & Paroles.Deonta L. Hudson Hudson Deonta L. Hudson was also denied parole in March. He is serving a 15-year sentence after his May 2021 conviction on a charge of possession of a pistol by a…
Sept. 19 event a Scouts recruitment effort, not unveiling of refurbished building
By DON FLETCHERNews Staff Writer Local Cub Scout and Boy Scout leaders are upset that an article in last week’s Atmore News labeled the organization’s September 19 open house as the “unveiling of the ‘new’ Scout hut,” which recently underwent a major renovation.The event was actually not to show off the refurbished building, they said, but to try and convince boys and girls to take up Scouting and join either…
BOE’s $61M budget includes 2-percent raise for teachers
By DON FLETCHERNews Staff Writer The Escambia County Board of Education approved last week a $61 million operating budget for the fiscal year that began Tuesday, October 1 and runs through September 30, 2025. The financial blueprint includes a state-mandated 2-percent pay increase for employees and is based on projected revenues of $57,153,767.More than half the revenues (61 percent, $35,002,209) will come from state sources, while $7,329,049 (13 percent) is…