Weekend Planner: Magic and Ventriloquism, Local Photography, Christmas Tree Recycling and More

Here are just some of the top events happening in Athens, Barrow County, Monroe and Oconee counties. Check out the Patch event calendar for more.

Be sure to check the Oconee Patch event calendar for more events. Have an event you would like added to the calendar? Click here to post it. Note: This article may not be visible on the mobile version. Please revert to the desktop version, even on your mobile phone.

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Mayor Dunked to Benefit Extra Special People

Watkinsville Mayor Charles Ivie braved the dunking booth at Harris Shoals Park Sunday during the Recycle Awareness Celebration.

The rain held out just long enough for the Recycle Awareness Celebration at Harris Shoals Park to go as planned Sunday, but that didn't stop Watkinsville Mayor Charles Ivie from getting wet. Ivie volunteered to sit in a dunking booth during the educational and fun event to raise money for the non-profit Extra Special People, Inc.  He got soaked three times before changing into some dry clothes for the remainder of the afternoon's festivities, which included a bouncy house, a recycling trivia game, and crafts for the kids.  A hot dog lunch was also served and materials like soda cans and cardboard wrappers were recycled (of course!). The city joined Bogart-based Curbside Service, Inc. to host the celebration, which also featured appearances…

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Malcom Bridge Elementary Collects More than 800 Phone Books for Recycling Program

The Keep Oconee County Beautiful Commission will recycle the phone books collected at MBES and other county schools.

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One Man’s Trash Is A Teacher’s Treasure

Organizers are seeking participation from local businesses for the Regional Teacher Reuse Store at the Athens-Clarke County Solid Waste facility Saturday, Aug. 13.

The Keep Oconee County Beautiful Commission (KOCBC) is teaming up with the Athens-Clarke County Solid Waste Department to host the sixth annual Regional Teacher Reuse Store, a unique event that provides a variety of supplies and materials to local educators free of charge. Not only will the effort provide usable materials to teachers at no cost, but it will also reduce the amount of waste disposed of in local landfills. The group has called upon local businesses and industries to donate their discarded items and by-products that could be reused in the classroom. Last year, more than 15 tons of donated materials were shopped over by teachers from both private and public schools in Clarke, Madison, Oconee and Oglethorpe Counties. “It was …

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Oconee Recycling Center Provides Recession-Proof Business for Owner and Customers

JCD Bargain and Recycle Center in Watkinsville recycles old appliances and scrap metal, saving the environment and customers' money at the same time.

Leaving your job and starting a new business is risky in the midst of a bad economy. But for Jim Dukes, owner of JCD Bargain and Recycle Center, it's turned out well. Previously, Dukes worked as a developer and builder, but as building work dwindled a few years ago with the start of the recession, he had the time to explore new job possibilities. “The market took a plunge, and I'm a licensed GC [general contractor], so I started doing some work for a big recycling company,” Dukes said. The owner of that company urged Dukes to open his own recycling center in a building he already owned in Loganville. He opened that location, also called JCD Bargain and Recycle Center, in May 2010. His brother-in-law now runs it. “It's been successful,” he …

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Curbside Service Resumes

Curbside trash pick-up resumed in some parts of Oconee on Thursday and will be playing catch-up through this weekend.

Curbside Services is back in business after days of being unable to provide their trash and recycling pick-up services to Oconee County because of ice-covered impassable roads this week. Owner Jennifer Bond said Curbside Services was running on Thursday but mostly in Clarke County with a few "cross-over" areas in Oconee. The company picked up what streets they could in Oconee that were linked with the Clarke streets they covered today. "We were running in full today," Bond said, adding the company tried to reach as many customers in the revised plan as possible on Thursday. Although Curbside is running regular routes on Thursday and Friday they are also running catch-up routes as well. "We will be running our regular routes on Friday and …

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