If you’ve seen one “Rockin’ New Year’s Eve,” you’ve seen them all, but have you ever seen scores of runners run a race that starts in the old year and finishes in the new year?

Time Magazine has called them Fruit Tattoos and stated that they are one of the Best Inventions of 2005.

Before he resigned last month, the Georgia Public Defender Standards Council was preparing to fire Arthur English IV, Fayette’s chief public defender, on several charges that he used his office for personal gain, according to public records reviewed by The Citizen.

Organizers are very close to opening up Fayette County’s first free medical clinic, which will provide basic medical care to local uninsured residents.

They are a determined group that is committed to solving a continuing problem. It is a problem that transcends academic accomplishment, income level, gender or race. The problem is the growing use of methamphetamine in Fayette County. And the members of the Fayette Meth Task Force say they intend to be a part of the solution.

Dr. Shelly Lakly, the daughter-in-law of Fayette state Representative Dan Lakly, is the vice president of education and conservation at Zoo Atlanta and her goal at the zoo is to create events for children and their families that stress the importance of conservation and empathy towards animals.

Candles are being blamed for three fires in Fayette County over the past two weeks, one of which completely destroyed a home at Marnelle Mobile Home Park on Ga. Highway 54 West between Fayetteville and Peachtree City.

Before Sara Harp Minter Elementary School students enjoyed a Christmas-themed concert from their chorus, Principal Kathy Corley made a presentation about the school’s fundraising efforts to help the relief effort for Hurricane Katrina.

The Fayette County School System’s CARE (Children at Risk in Education) Program has published its first cookbook to help raise money for less fortunate students and their families.

If ever there was a time to be more careful and alert when on the road, this is it, according to local police agencies.

Scores just released from the Fall 2005 writing portion of the Georgia High School Graduation Test show that Fayette’s 11th graders have mastered strong writing skills.

A workshop on transition to postsecondary options for students with disabilities will be held in the media center of McIntosh High School Feb. 7 from 7-9 p.m.

The Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites Peachtree City was recently awarded the prestigious Quality Excellence Award at the annual Holiday Inn conference in Las Vegas. This award is given to hotels that consistently score in the top 5 percent in the brand, and have maintained the highest standards in product quality, hotel operation and customer satisfaction.

Kim Frederking has been named southern region outreach director for The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta, one of Metro Atlanta’s largest philanthropic institutions. The Community Foundation (TCF) makes contributions to hundreds of charitable organizations throughout a 23-county area. Frederking will be responsible for building relationships with donors (philanthropists), financial advisors, and nonprofits in Clayton, Fayette, Spalding, Carroll, Coweta and Douglas counties.

The Georgia Department of Community Affairs Commissioner Mike Beatty called on Georgia families to make post-Christmas disposal plans for their Christmas trees by participating in the state’s 16th annual “Bring One For The Chipper” recycling program.

Effective Jan. 1, individuals, who purchase a motor vehicle outside Georgia from a business and desire to title and register the vehicle in Georgia must pay the sales taxes due or show proof that the applicable sales and use tax has been paid on the vehicle before a Georgia title and license plate will be issued.

The following arrests were reported by local law enforcement agencies for the past two weeks. Suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

On perhaps one of the busiest days of the holiday shopping season, northbound traffic on Ga. Highway 85 north backed up late Thursday morning due to another damaged water pipe.

The Fayette Board of Education heard the complaints of frustrated parents and decided Monday night not to change any of its elementary school lines.

Despite the not guilty verdict from a Fayette County jury last week, Lt. Col. Bruce Jordan of the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office is still convinced that Eddie Robbins III killed Fayette resident David Mangham and Mike Fowler of Ellenwood in Mangham’s north Fayette home in April 2003.

Sgt. Ryan Coffield of Fayetteville is happy to be back stateside, awaiting the birth of his first son ... even though it’s not exactly the way he planned it.

Fayette County has its first candidate in the March special election to replace the late County Commissioner A.G. VanLandingham.

Despite the recent controversy over churches not holding services on Christmas Day (Sunday) this year, most Christian churches in the Fayette, Coweta and South Fulton areas will have Christmas services on Sunday morning, though some have scheduled only one service and have cancelled Sunday school classes and other normal Sunday activities.

The story of Christmas began centuries prior to the actual event. Prophets promised that a Savior and Redeemer, a King and Messiah, the Son of God would be born into the world. Prior to this blessed event, God sent the Angel Gabriel to the humble Jewish girl named Mary. She had been chosen to be the Mother of Jesus. With this heavenly announcement, the Greatest Story ever told began to unfold.

It’s about the future of transportation strategies and land use planning in south metro Atlanta. It includes six counties, 29 municipalities and two regional development centers. Its goal is to present a long-term vision for Southside transportation issues in a rapidly growing metro Atlanta population expected to add 2 million people in the next 25 years.

The Fayette County Branch of the NAACP has begun planning for the Second Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday Parade to be held Monday, Jan. 16, beginning at 10 a.m. in Fayetteville.

U.S. Rep. Lynn Westmoreland's amendment to the Border Protection, Antiterrorism, and Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005 easily passed the House Friday night, shortly before main bill was approved. The amendment caps financial penalties for businesses guilty of hiring illegal immigrants.

The Fayette County Chamber of Commerce is seeking nominations for its “Outstanding Business Person of the Year” award.

Gov. Sonny Perdue signed an executive order cutting in half the state sales tax on natural gas and liquid propane for residential heating. The executive order stipulates that Georgia’s sales tax on natural gas will be reduced during the peak home heating months of January through April 2006. Liquid propane will be reduced during the months of January through March 2006.