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The Covington County Commission listened to a proposal from Travis Whittaker and B.J. Cardwell regarding a county food bank, and they approved four additional items at a regularly scheduled meeting Tuesday, July 12.

“We would like to start a food giveaway program here in Covington County. It will not cost you a thing. We ask you for a place that can have a semi truck come to from Mobile with the food on there. We will get it off and let cars go through. It’s really that simple,” Whittaker said.

The food bank is held once every month, and if approved, it would be scheduled for the third Tuesday in Covington County.

“We started one in Coffee County in October 2018 with a lot of giveaways. COVID did not slow us down, and we just kept going. We have given away almost a million pounds of food in Coffee County since 2018 and have people from Covington County come over. We don’t refuse anybody, so it’s a good time to get one started in Covington County. USDA provides a certain amount of food at a reduced cost. This is all non-profit, and nothing is going in our pockets,” Cardwell added.

Sheriff Blake Turman recognized District Attorney Investigator John Williamson for having the most arrests in Covington County last year.

“It was phenomenal how this one particular officer got out and did his job without complaining. He led this whole county with the number of arrests, surpassing many entire towns. He’s a hard worker, a friend of mine, a friend to this profession, and a friend to people of this county. John, this is a small token of my appreciation. Be it known that John Williamson’s work ethic and sense of duty caused him to lead the entirety of Covington County among his peers for the most arrests made in 2021. His hard work and tenacity exemplify the spirit of a good law officer. His efforts to bring offenders to justice shall not go unnoticed. As always, his ability to find the offender, communicate, and attention to detail credits the profession of what a good police officer should be. I hereby award John Williamson with the Sheriff’s Medal for his contributions,” Turman said.

Revenue Commissioner Chuck Patterson gave an update from the revenue office. “Everything is going well at the revenue office. We finished out the final settlement and got it to Montgomery for them to review. We collected about $12.9 million for the year.”

In other business:

• The commission approved an application for a retail beer license for Legacy Foodmart 2 and a lounge retail liquor license for Legacy Package Store 2.
• The commission approved the emergency purchase of a tire for the Covington County Sheriff’s Department and the emergency purchase of tires for the Engineer’s department.
• The commission approved the solicitation of bids for seed and fertilizer.

The next meeting of the Covington County Commission will be held Tuesday, July 26, 9 a.m., at the Covington County Administration Building. The public is invited to attend.