A.A. Meetings- If you drink, that’s your business. If you want to be sober, that’s our business. A.A. 833 Broad Swamp Rd., Kingstree, Thursdays at 7 p.m. (843) 697-3321.

Traffic Safety Checkpoints- The Lane, Greeleyville, and Kingstree Police Departments will be conducting traffic safety checkpoints during the month of January.

Traffic Safety Checkpoints- The Williamsburg County Sheriff’s Office will be conducting traffic safety checkpoints during the month of January.

Support group- If you are a parent or guardian with a child or children with special needs and may be interested in becoming a part of a parent-to-parent support group, please contact Tommy and Michelle Russell at 843-373-0912 or 843-356-5714 or email them at pillaroutreach@yahoo.com.

Seniors Patrol- The Kingstree Police Department is offering a seniors patrol wellness check. Any elderly, ill or bedridden resident of the Town of Kingstree who would like for the police department to contact them on a regular basis should call Chief Robert Ford. Chief Ford can be reached at 355-5435 or come by the police department and leave your name, phone number and address.

Memory Dish- Hospice Care of South Carolina's Grief Support Group, known as the "Memory Dish" is held the second Thursday of each month from 5:30 p.m. until 6:30 p.m. at the Williamsburg Technical Col-lege (Administrative Office Building Conference Room). The Memory Dish is conducted by Chaplain Willis Broughton. The contact number for this group is: (843) 213-8507.

Tidelands Hospice- Tidelands Community Hos-pice, Inc. holds a regular grief support group once a month in its Kingstree office The group meets on the third Monday of each month from 1 to 2 p.m. The hospice office is located at 205 Martin Luther King Blvd., Kingstree (by the Bank of Greeleyville).

Program- Taking Off Pounds Sensibly (TOPS) Weight Program will meet on Thursdays at 9:15 a.m. at Ina Miles Store.For more information contact Lillie Jean at (843) 355-3002 or Ann at (843) 382-9696.

Senior Bingo- The senior citizens in Lane invite any senior citizen to join them each first and third Tuesday at Lane Recreation Center on Broomstraw Rd. for “Senior Bingo.”

Banquet- The Georgetown Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. will be hosting its annual Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther Kin, Jr. Scholarship Banquet on January 14, at 7 p.m. at the Glisson Center, Bethel AME Church, Georgetown. Featured speaker for the banquet will be Dr. Luns C. Richardson, president of Morris College of Sumter. Special guests include 11th District Masonic Choir, Terry Cox and Floyd Ruffin. Tickets can be obtained from the Law Office of Morant and Morant of Georgetown or any member of the Georgetown Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.

Weight Watchers- Weight Watchers 2012 meetings will be held at the First Baptist Church of Kingstree. Classes are on Thursdays at 5 p.m.

Yard Sale- Corrie House Garments of Grace Ministries of Sandy Bay Pentecostal Holiness Church, located at the end of Sandy Bay Rd., will have an indoor yard sale every Saturday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Screenings- Williamsburg County School District Office of Special Services, located at 500 North Academy Street, Kingstree, 843-355-5533, will hold child find screenings each month.

Support- The third meeting of the Alzheimer’s Association Caregiver Support group has been changed to the second Friday for the month of January.   The support group will meet January 13, from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Williamsburg Technical College, Classroom # 226.   Participants may park in the front or back visitor’s parking lot.  Contact person for this group is Nancy Adams (843) 822-5133.  The Alzheimer’s Association’s Caregiver Support Groups are designed to provide emotional, educational and social support for caregivers through regularly scheduled meetings. The support group is free and open to the public.  All family members and friends are invited to attend.

Session #1- Williamsburg County First Steps will host Session #1 of the Child Care Training and Professional Development on Saturday, January 14, at 8:30 a.m. in the Williamsburg County School District Annex Staff Development Room located at 500 North Academy Street, Kingstree. Mrs. Jessica Flowers, a master certified trainer with the Center for Child Care and Career Development (CCCCD) and founder of Ripple Effect an Early Childhood Specialist organization will conduct the training.  The training will focus on information from the Center on the Social and Emotional Foundation of Early Learning Model (CSEFEL). At the completion of this session, providers will receive 5.0 credit hours from the Department of Social Services (DSS) in Child Growth & Development. This training session is free to all participants.  For more information about this training, please contact Carletta S. Isreal, executive director at (843) 355-1031.

Reunion- Kingstree High School Class of 1964 will hold its annual reunion on Saturday, January 28, at Uncle Monty’s, 10117 Browns Ferry Road, Georgetown from 11 a.m. until. Barbecue served at 12 noon. Please bring a side dish or dessert to share.All class members, faculty and friends are invited.  Additional information may be received from Tommy Bishop at (843) 382-2195; Paul Jacobs at (843) 382-8118; Jane Coward Richardson at (843) 382-9891 or Barbara Nexsen Lansche at (704) 975-1941.

Symposium- The 2012 Commodity Marketing and Risk Management Symposium will be held Thursday, January 12, at the Pee Dee Research & Education Center of Florence from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. For more information please visit www.ArborOne.com or call Carey Middleton at 843.307.5908.

Yoga Classes- There will be a free beginners yoga class on Thursday, January 26, at 5:50 p.m. at the Williamsburg County Public Library in Kingstree. Three free chair yoga classes are being offered during the month of January on the following dates at 10 a.m. at the parish house of the St. Alban’s Episcopal Church, 305 Hampton Ave., Kingstree on Thursday, January 12; Friday, January 13; and Monday, January 16. Please bring your own yoga mat or exercise mat. Beginners classes are offered three times weekly and chair yoga classes are offered twice weekly throughout the month. For a complete schedule or questions about these classes, please contract certified yoga instructor Evelyn Cloy at (843) 870-5876.

Meeting- Williamsburg County DSN Board will be having their monthly board meeting on Wednesday, January 18, at 4 p.m. at Williamsburg County Disabilities and Special Needs Board, 61 Greenlee Street, Kingstree.

Applications- Student applications for the Williamsburg County Magnet School of the Arts (WCMSA) are available at the WCMSA and online.  Please return all 2012-2013 applications to the WCMSA, 710 Third Avenue, Kingstree, South Carolina by January 27. All questions  concerning audition and admission for the Magnet School are handled by the District’s Art Coordinator, Jennifer Holliday, at (843) 355-5571, or administrators at the Magnet School at (843) 355-1506.

Calendar- W.M. Anderson Primary School will be celebrating the following events within the month of January.  Please mark your calendar and plan to attend.
19- Parent Workshop “Celebrating the Role of Males in the Lives of Children”  9 a.m. Oratorical Contest 26- second nine weeks Perfect Attendance Celebration 1 p.m.
27- second nine weeks Honor’s Program 9 a.m.

Meeting- Williamsburg County First Steps will have a called fundraising/grants committee meeting on Wednesday, January 11, at 1 p.m. in the Williamsburg County School District Annex Staff Development Room located at 500 North Academy Street, Kingstree. Williamsburg County citizens concerned about improving early childhood education and school readiness are encouraged to attend.

Meeting- The regular meeting of The Waccamaw Center for Mental Health Governing Board is scheduled for Tuesday, January 17, at 7 p.m. at the Waccamaw Center for Mental Health, 501 Nelson Blvd., Kingstree. For information please call Mrs. Gawith at (843) 347-5060, extension 226.

Meeting- The 40th annual meeting of the South Carolina Watermelon Growers Association is scheduled from January 13 to January 14, at the Hilton Center located in Columbia.  The meeting kicks off Friday at 2 p.m. with a grower meeting from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the Phillips Market Center at the State Farmers Market. On Saturday an educational session and the Watermelon Queen competition will be held. Tickets are $50 per person or $75 per couple. For more information, contact Brad Boozer or Connie Garvey with the South Carolina Department of Agriculture at (803) 734-2210 or bboozer@scda.sc.gov or cgarvey@scda.sc.gov or visit www.scwatermelons.com.

Parade- Williamsburg County Branch of the NAACP and Vital Aging of Williamsburg County are sponsoring a Martin Luther King, Jr. Parade on Saturday, January 14. The parade begins at 1 p.m.  Parade participants should line up at noon at the Old Tomlinson School site. The Old Tomlinson School site is located at the corner of Lexington Avenue and Tomlinson Street in Kingstree. Following the parade, there will be a Wreath Laying Ceremony at the MLK Monument at the Courthouse Square. Greater Bethel A.M.E Church will host a concert at 3 p.m. For more information, call 843-354-5496.