Madison County Sheriff Ben Stewart reports that on Thursday, Aug. 5, at approximately 11:46 p.m., Madison County Sheriff's Deputies responded to an alarm at the Cherry Lake General Store. Upon arrival, deputies discovered a large glass windowpane had been shot by what appeared to be a shotgun, small caliber slug. It was further noted that no perpetrator had entered the store but the shot had penetrated the glass and hit and destroyed a hanging electric sign inside the store. The case was turned over to investigations.

On Saturday, Aug. 7, at 12:42 a.m., depu-ties stopped Lewin Tom Brown for a traffic infraction that led to his arrest for carrying a concealed firearm on his person. Incident to arrest, deputies also located a .410 shotgun loaded with slugs inside the vehicle being operated by Brown. Brown was arrested and transported to the Madison County jail without incident.

In review of the store security cameras and other related evidentiary information, investigators identified a potential suspect and developed sufficient probable cause to obtain a warrant for the arrest of Lewin Tom Brown for shooting into a public building at the Cherry Lake General Store.

On Tuesday, Aug. 24, at approximately 6:45 a.m,,Tom Brown reported to the Madison County jail and surrendered himself to the Madison County Sheriff's Office where the warrant for his arrest was executed without further incident.

A man and a woman were injured in an early morning crash on Friday, Aug. 27.

According to a Florida Highway Patrol report, Joseph V. Kirby, 71, and Marguerite C. Kirby, 66, of Baton Rouge, La., were eastbound on the interstate near the 264-mile marker in the inside lane at a high rate of speed.

Joseph V. Kirby, who was driving the 2003 Ford pickup the couple was in, fell asleep while driving. He drove into the median, came out of the median out of control and crossed over the eastbound lanes of I-10.

The truck went onto the scale house ramp way and overturned, striking a light pole.

Department of Transportation Officer Craig Lents assisted with the traffic crash scene. Department of Agriculture Officers Thad Nobles and Jared Dewey also assisted at the scene.

The Lee Community Volunteer Fire Department assisted with cutting the passenger and driver from the pickup.

Both the driver and passenger were transported to Tallahassee Memorial Hospital by ambulance.

FHP Trooper Tom Roderick was the investigating officer.

Qualifying for mayor and two seats on the Lee Town Council will begin on Monday, Sept. 13.

The two town council seats up for grabs are Council Groups 4 and 5.

Donna Mueller, who will step down after this term, holds the Group 4 seat.

Doug McNicol holds the Group 5 seat.

Ernestine Kinsey is the current mayor of Lee.

Qualifying will begin any time after noon on Monday, Sept. 13, and end at noon on Friday, Sept. 17.

Candidates may establish a campaign repository checking account and appoint a campaign treasurer. This must be done not later than the date of qualifying.

Candidates are required to file a full disclosure statement when qualifying for office.

The election will be held during the general election on Tuesday, Nov. 2.

Madison County Sheriff Ben Stewart reports that on Monday. Aug. 30, at approximately midnight, Corporal Michael Maurice, K-9 Unit member, of the Madison County Sheriff's Office, stopped a vehicle on Interstate 10 for a traffic violation which resulted in the arrest of Matthew Sullivan, 19 and William Lovelace, 23 of Madison, Miss.

During the stop, Corporal Maurice detected signs of possible criminal activity and observed contraband in plain view. A consensual search of the vehicle was granted that discovered a "trap" or secret compartment inside the dash that contained several bags of psilocybin mushrooms, marijuana and prescription Xanax. Also located in the vehicle were several "whippet" devices, which were being utilized to store nitrous oxide. The occupants admitted they inhaled the nitrous oxide for its hallucinogenic effects.

Corporal Maurice was assisted with the stop by members of the Madison County Sheriff's Office Patrol Division and the Florida Highway Patrol. Both subjects were arrested and transported to the Madison County Jail without further incident.

Arrested and Charged:

Matthew Sullivan was charged with possession of a schedule I narcotic, possession of a schedule II narcotic without a prescription and possession of marijuana.

William Lovelace was charged with possession of a schedule I narcotic.

The Dave Galbraith Football and Cheerleading League will have sign-ups on Saturday, Sept. 4, from 9 a.m. until noon at the Madison County Courthouse.

A meeting will be held for anyone interested in coaching on Thursday evening, Sept. 2, at 6:30 p.m. at Fellowship Baptist Church. Food will be served at the meeting.

Everyone is asked to bring their child with them to sign-ups. They are also requested to bring a birth certificate and insurance card to the sign-ups.

Any adult interested in being a referee is also asked to show up at the sign-ups.

Background checks will be done on anyone interested in coaching.

The cost to participate per child is $50.

There will be 6-7-year old teams; 8-10-year-old teams; and 11-13-year-old teams. Cheerleaders will range in age from 5-13 years old.

Remember to go and get registered for another exciting season of Dave Galbraith Football and Cheerleading.

"We're looking for someone who wants to help their community," Tom Cisco, Emergency Management Director, said.

Cisco is looking for volunteers for the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) for Madison County.

"We will be training them how to handle disaster situations," Cisco said.

The list of training for CERT volunteers includes medical training, search and rescue and fire safety.

Volunteers will need to be physically fit because disaster situations can be physically demanding and go on for hours.

Twenty-four positions are available in the class. If anyone would like to join, please call Emergency Management at (850) 973-3698.

Affordable Painting may be a name that sounds familiar, but many know very little about this new business.

Randy Simoneau is the owner of Affordable Painting. He opened this business five years ago in Madison. Randy has been painting for 25 years.

He moved to Madison from Boston, Mass. While in Boston, he worked for a company that specialized in repainting historic homes. Randy's wish is to be able to do the same in Madison.

Randy said, "I am here for Madison. I would love to be able to restore the beautiful and historic homes and businesses in this city."

Affordable Painting specializes in custom design and uses nothing less than top quality and top of the line materials. But Randy does this for half of the cost of normal contractors.

Simoneau has recently painted the home of Paul Cucinella. Paul told this reporter, "I am very happy with the work he has done. The custom designs look great and you can't beat his price."

On Sept. 14, the Big Bend Hospice group will offer a Grief Support Group for those who have lost loved ones. This group has been created to let those who have lost loved ones go through the grieving process together.

Grief is handled differently by everyone, and no one should be alone on the journey to find happiness again.

Whether the family chose to use hospice care or not, anyone is welcome to come to the meetings. Most everyone has experienced loss of a loved one in their life, whether it was a parent, a child or a friend. This group will allow you to remember the good times and memories you made with that person. They will also offer strategies to overcome the grief and find happiness and peace.

This group will meet the second Tuesday of each month, beginning Sept. 14. They will join together from 6-7:30 p.m. Everyone will meet at the Big Bend Hospice Office, which is located at 225 SW Smith Street in Madison.

Tim McGough is the founder and organizer of this group. He told this reporter, "There was a group before, but that group broke up, and now we are restarting it and plan to build it back up. It is such a great opportunity for people who have experienced the loss of a loved one to share their feelings in a safe, confidential setting. They will get to share with others about their grief and learn from others' experiences.

McGhough's message to anyone interested is, "Give us a call; it is open for all of the surrounding counties and it is not just for BBH clients. If you have questions, feel free to call us. It is a good opportunity to share and learn together. It helps so much to go through this journey with people who understand how you feel."

For more information feel free to call Tom McGough at 878-5310 ext. 713.