First stop is our home office, located in my hometown of Macon, Georgia. Our office is actually a renovated space that was once a church. It looks nothing like a church on the inside, though.

I spend most of my time in one of two places. The first is called “the studio,” even though the name isn’t really accurate anymore. Back in the 1970s when the company was founded the studio was actually a real television studio. They filmed for one of the local channels. Fun fact: Back in the 70s and 80s, my mother actually worked for GNTV. There are some old pictures of her in the studio, filming. Today the studio is used for mass storage of large, bulky equipment that GNTV takes on the road. We do more live event coverage now, and the studio is where we keep our stuff when we’re not dragging it across the country.

The other place you can usually find me is in the duplication area. It’s a small room at the very far end of the building that houses all of the equipment we use to make CDs and DVDs of our work and send them to anyone who orders them from our online store. The duplication area holds mountains of blank discs and disc sleeves, as well as a disc label printer and two disc duplicator machines. In my spare time, I do a lot of duplication and shipping.

The fun thing about working with GNTV is that it really feels like you’re with family—literally. The founder and longtime CEO just retired this past year and handed the reins over to his son, who is now the new CEO, but they really run the business together. Everyone is treated like part of their family, thanks to our job involving such close quarters. We spend 70-percent of our time on the road, packed together in vans, on planes, and in various hotel rooms. After the first week, we’re more like brothers and sisters than coworkers.

This year I have seven or eight ‘brother and sister’ interns. For their privacy (and my entertainment) I will not be naming them, but using codenames instead. This week I worked in the office with my friend Ratchet, who also happens to be a VSU student. He’ll be my video director for most of the summer—more on that later. We also have new female intern Ginger, who is seriously excited to learn about live audio production. She’s the bright and bubbly personality of our office. Returning from previous years are my buddies Sully and Abu. They’ve both worked for GNTV for years, and they graduated from college this year. Later in the summer we’ll be teaming up with returning intern Prism, who hails from Kentucky, and we might even pick up former intern Angel while we’re there. Angel’s a bit older than most of the intern crew, so he might only show up for a little bit. There are also some new interns joining us that I haven’t met yet, so we’ll be meeting them later together.

At this moment, I’m not actually on the road—I worked one week in the office getting things ready to go for the summer, but now I’m on vacation. I’m taking my vacation break early this summer so I can attend my brother’s wedding in Washington DC. However, GNTV will be moving while I’m not there. Ratchet and Abu are headed out with the first crew to cover the Detroit Annual Conference meeting starting Monday, and Thursday will see Ginger, Sully and one of the new interns shipping off to Birmingham, Ala. for Graduation Activities.

In the meantime, here are some of the things we did in the office this week. We packed up all of the supplies needed for Monday’s trip to Detroit, which filled about half of a 24-foot Freightliner semi. We sorted out different kinds of cable (VGA for video signals, XLR for audio, and BNC for live camera feeds) and packed them into large plastic tubs on wheels (about the size of your average coffee table, but 3 feet tall). We finished up duplicating all of our discs from the past few months so that the duplication area will be clean and ready for our incoming material. We spent a good amount of time cleaning large projection screens in many sizes. We packed sound boards, cameras, video switchers, DVD recorders, and many other fun toys into action packer tubs, and put them on the big truck with speakers, projectors, screens, and seven feet of hanging truss. Truss is the big metal strip you see above you at concerts, where they hang all of the lights. That’s what we do.

For many people this might all sound a bit overwhelming, but I promise I will help explain it all later. In the meantime, hang tight and enjoy your summer!

Kugbila becomes the first Blazer drafted since 1997 and the highest drafted player in VSU history.

“It feels amazing,” Kugbila said. “I’m just so blessed right now, God just working magic. I can’t describe the feeling but it’s a honor because so many greats come out of VSU. Jessie Tuggle, Larry Dean, all those guys, to be drafted over them says a lot.”

Kugbila was back home in Atlanta with family and friends when he received a phone call from Panthers head coach Ron Rivera.

Several draft experts were expecting the Panthers to address the secondary with their 11^th pick instead left many shocked including Kugbila.

“Throughout this whole process you never know where you’re going to go,” Kugbila said.

The 6’4, 317 pound guard worked out with Panthers as well as the Atlanta Falcons, Cleveland Browns, and Indianapolis Colts.

Kugbila joins the only other Blazer in the league, undrafted Minnesota Vikings linebacker Larry Dean.

He travels to Charlotte, N.C. on May 9^th for rookie camp.

“I’m ready to be in Carolina and get to work,” Kugbila said. “Just having another opportunity to play football again that’s what I’m thankful for.”

This article was written by Eric Jackson.

Valdosta State alum Brent Witcher is beginning to making a name for himself in ranks of professional golf.

The former Blazer will be competing in the South Georgia Classic this week.

Witcher will return to the South Georgia Classic for the fourth time.

In last year’s Classic, Witcher was able to make the cut for the first time, after missing out in his first two attempts in 2009 and 2010.

Witcher would go on to finish at -4, tied for 30th, earning him $3,812.

The 27-year old Atlanta resident was able to qualify this year with a single-round of 66 at the Doublegate Country Club in Albany.

Witcher, a former All-American at VSU, recently won his first professional tournament, on the eGolf Tour in February.

Witcher won shooting 66-67-72-205 for the rounds.

Along with his first career tournament victory, Witcher pocketed a cozy $15,000 first place prize.

A notable name in this year’s field is the infamous John Daly, who recently tweeted he would be competing.

The South Georgia Classic is the longest course on the Web.com tour at 7,781 yards. Last year’s winner, Luke List, earned a first place prize of $112,500.

The event starts today, and is being held at Kinderlou Forest Golf Club here in Valdosta.

Tragedy struck our nation on April 15 when two bombs effectively ruined what was normally a joyous event.

Three lives were lost, over 175 others were injured and countless others were affected at the conclusion of the Boston Marathon.

The relief efforts have been enormous, showing how our nation can come together in a time of need.  Unfortunately, the immediate response is also a prime example of how our nation is in desperate need of growth and acceptance.

Shortly after the bombing took place, social media exploded with comments about the bombings.  Many included early speculations that the attackers may have been Muslims.

I have three simple words for America.  Get over it.

The United States is commonly referred to as a “melting pot,” meaning there is a large diversity of races, religions and cultures scattered throughout the country.  Is it really logical to believe that every attack of this nature in our country is planned and/or executed by a Muslim?

Followers of Islam have to live their lives in fear every time there is what is considered a “terrorist” attack in the United States.  I think it is disgusting.

On top of that, it has gotten to the point that any time someone of prominence uses the phrase “war on terror” in this country, the first assumption is that the war is against foreigners, specifically of Middle Eastern or Muslim descent.  This is absolutely wrong.

There were no Muslims involved in the shootings at Columbine High School or Virginia Tech University.  There were no Muslims involved in the shootings in Aurora, Colorado or Newtown, Conn.

The Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City was destroyed in 1995.  One hundred and sixty people lost their lives in the bombing.  There were no Muslims responsible for that either.

I cannot speculate.  Maybe there were Muslims behind the attacks in Boston.  But let’s be cautious; there is another opinion.  Maybe the people responsible had nothing to do with the Islamic religion.

Maybe the attackers were Christians.  Maybe they were Buddhists.  What does the nation do then?  Does the nation choose to single out another religion as wrong or evil?

Singling out an entire religion because of previous occurrences is wrong, shameful and proves that racism and unnecessary hatred still exists in today’s society.  It starts from within.

More wars are waged over religion in this world than over anything else.  It’s about time we take a look at the religions that we are following and use them as a guideline rather than an excuse.

If a Muslim is the first thought that crossed your mind as the culprit behind the bombings, then maybe living in the U.S. has corrupted you as well.

The sewage spill is under the Highway 133 bridge.

People south of the bridge are warned to avoid contact with the river.

“The city tells us the leak started around 10:30 Wednesday morning,” the report said. “It’s estimated that 900 gallons of sewage are spilling out per minute.”

Two-time major champion John Daly tees off today in the first day of Web.com Tour’s South Georgia Classic at Kinderlou Forest Golf Course.

The PGA Tour golfer was quite pleased with the setting for the weekend event.

“It’s one of the best courses I’ve ever played,” Daly said. “I wish I was 20 years younger playing it because it’s right up my alley. It’s just an awesome golf course. It’s not easy, it’s never difficult. It’s definitely one of my top ten’s I’ve ever played.”

“Long John” nicknamed for his exceptional driving distance is competing in his first ever South Georgia Classic and his third Web.com Tour event.

Since the committment to play from Daly, the anticpation has grown for the competition. Tickets are being sold for $5 dollars each and proceeds will be donated to charities.

“This is a homerun for the South Georgia Classic to have John Daly competing for the title this week at Kinderlou,” said tournament manager Joerdan Simpson in a press release.  “John will greatly add to the excitement for the fans and we know he will truly enjoy this great community event.”

The Classic is one of 25 other events apart of the Web.com’s Tour.

The event begins at 7 a.m. and lasts until Sunday.

Valdosta State faces doubleheaders against two Gulf South Conference foes this weekend as they prepare for the opening round of the GSC Tournament in coming weeks.

Both Delta State and the Christian Brothers suffer from poor records, 16-31 and 11-24 respectively, but the Blazers must stay focused. A sweep of the weekend will ensure that the Regional Tournament will be hosted by VSU.

“We gotta win games,” VSU head coac Thomas Macera, said. “We have to win these four games this weekend to keep us in the hunt for the regional tournament. The top two teams host, which means teams 3-8 travel, and you don’t want to travel during a regional tournament. The teams that have been winning the region for the last several years have been teams that are hosting. We lose four games this weekend and there is no way we can host, so every game we are playing is still very important in the region picture.”

VSU will be back in the postseason after their magical 58-5 run last season which ended with the first softball national championship in school history. Macera sees no reason why this year’s Blazers cannot duplicate the accomplishment of last year’s team.

“They’re two different teams,” Macera said. “This team is a good team; it’s a very good team, we are rated third in the country. They just gotta keep growing as a team. We’ve grown all year. We played really well last weekend and lost a one-run game and that was just unfortunate, but it wasn’t because we didn’t play well; we just lost a one run game. Early in the year we were losing games we had no business losing just because we weren’t playing well together. For this team to succeed, it is the same as last year’s team. They have to play together and trust what they’re doing.”

VSU’s duo of Courtney Albritton and Morgan Johnson were crucial members of that 2012 team’s stretch run through the postseason tournaments. Both Albritton and Morgan went on a tear in the five-game GSC Tournament last year and will be looking to do so again heading into another postseason run in an attempt to secure VSU’s fifth consecutive GSC Conference Championship.

Johnson batted .562 in five games; she scored five runs and drove in three more. Albritton batted a scorching .650, scored seven runs, and drove in 11 runs, including two homeruns, en route to earning Most Outstanding Player of the GSC Tournament.

Albritton and Johnson are once again ready to shine in the spotlight as they carry the Blazers through the postseason.

“I wanted to be able to help my team out,” Johnson said. “The year before, I didn’t do very well and I wanted to be able to make the All-Tournament Team and I was able to accomplish that. I’m just glad I performed well that weekend.”

Albritton said, “I wanted to really step up and help also. I think seeing all the pitchers throughout the year, and then seeing them again at the tournament really helped a lot.”

Coming up to the end of the 2013 season, the Blazers have managed some a few impressive feats to get themselves into the GSC record book.

VSU is currently batting .346 as a team which would rank them fifth in GSC history.  Albritton has hit .432 for her career thus far which ranks her third in GSC history of players with a minimum of 250 at-bats and two seasons. Finally Shelby Altman had a three homerun game earlier this season against West Georgia which tied a GSC record.

“It’s awesome,” Altman said. “It’s a honor [to have name in GSC record book]. It’s just coming out here and playing the game I love. Having that is just a plus.”

VSU takes on Delta State at 2 p.m. on Saturday at Steel’s Diamond at Blazer’s Park.

As the year winds down, students are still being regarded with importance as VSU joins the Liberal Education and America’s Promise Employer-Educator Compact initiative.

The LEAP initiative is sponsored by the Association of American Colleges and Universities and aims to provide students with a higher quality education.

The program’s purpose is to provide students with the ability to attain a valued education that prepares them for the world of work and life in general through liberal arts. The program provides students with intangible skills, such as critical thinking, which supporters feel are key to a higher quality education.

A recent survey commissioned by the AACU LEAP initiative shows that nearly 90 percent of employers said that the skills they seek in their new hires are abilities of thinking and communication skills provided in a solid liberal education.

Employers look for skill sets that are not always particular to major requirements and Dr. Bill McKinney, VSU President, says that he intends to give Blazers the opportunity to compete.

Critical thinking and effective communication will be the focus of the program.

Dr. McKinney, who has been involved with LEAP since 2008, brought the idea upon beginning his presidency last July. With intentions of making VSU one of the premier universities in the nation, Dr. McKinney is passionate about the implementation of this program.

Upon being invited to join the LEAP President’s trust in January, Dr. McKinney made it possible for VSU to become the first public university in Georgia to participate in LEAP at this level.

VSU has collaborated in this effort with Azalea Health, South Georgia Medical Center and the Valdosta-Lowndes County Chamber of Commerce.

“The LEAP program facilitates communication between regional community and business leaders and VSU, cultivating involvement with the university,” Kier Scrivenor, internet marketing strategist for Azalea Health, said.

Azalea Health currently has five interns–three from the computer science department and two from the business department—that are part-time employees. These students serve as development team members and administrative assistants, respectively.

“We hope our partnership with VSU through the LEAP program will spark interest in the Computer Science Department,” Scrivenor said.

Scrivenor hopes that other businesses will collaborate with VSU in order to affect the university’s curriculum that will reflect current industry needs.

Thressea Boyd, VSU’s director of communications, said that the program will ensure that more college students gain the broad outcomes of a liberal education and concrete experience by applying their learning in real-world settings.

LEAP incorporates business leaders and over 100 college and university presidents. The initiative will continue to take form and will soon be initiated as tactics to effectively implement are defined.

“I expect VSU to become a leader in the national debate over the importance of higher education for the global economy and for democratic societies,” Dr. McKinney said.

VSU Give & Go will meet Wednesday through Friday to make one man’s trash another man’s treasure.

The program, which will make its debut this year, is offering students the opportunity to donate their unused or reusable items. Give & Go will give the items to local residents in need.

“At move out there seems to be a lot of (what) students consider trash: clothes, canned goods, lamps, things like that–that when they are moving out of halls ends up in the dumpster and just overflows,” Brian Roberts, assistant director of student life, said. “A lot of it isn’t trash. It is stuff that can be reused and recycled.”

Give & Go is looking for items ranging from space heaters to televisions—anything that may be recycled into the hands of Valdosta’s needy.

“We want to foster a culture of compassion and environmentalism at VSU,” Dr. Tom Hochschild, assistant professor of sociology, said. “With so much need in south Georgia, our goal is to empower students to be agents for positive social change.”

Give & Go will be partnering with Second Harvest, a local charity, to distribute all donated items to the community.

“The average U.S. citizen creates five pounds of trash every day,” Dr. Hochschild said. “This type of consumption is not sustainable, and so we must change our habits.”

The event will be entirely volunteer-oriented and will be supported by S.A.V.E.

“It’s a shame that this stuff up, until now, was just being dumped in the trash,” Danielle Jordan, junior and president of S.A.V.E, said. “I have walked by the trash during move out, and I saw plenty of nice things that could be put to use. I think it is a shame nobody thought of it till now.”

The environmentalist group has already volunteered seven of its members, but more are needed to properly staff all four tents for the days of the events.

The tents will be located at various locations around campus, including Centennial Hall, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Any questions concerning the upcoming event and offers to volunteer should be directed to Dr. Hochschild at trhochschild@valdosta.edu, or contact Roberts at the Student Life office.

This week, cities across the state of Georgia are celebrating Georgia Municipal Association’s Georgia Cities Week from April 20-27.

GCW is an opportunity for cities to share with their communities about services offered and how the city has an impact on citizens’ lives.

Each year there is a theme for the GCW. This year’s theme is “Cities: Where The Action Is.”

According to Sementha Mathews, public information officer for the City of Valdosta, Valdosta has been participating in the statewide event for the past 12 years.

“We enjoy the week because it gives us an opportunity to showcase the work that city employees do year round for our citizens,” Mathews said.

Monday was Customer Service Day where citizens were able to meet their city council members and department heads. Citizens were also able to read the If I Were Mayor contest essays.

Sixth graders from the community wrote If I were Mayor, I Would essays earlier in the year and the first, second and third place winners will be recognized at the City Council meeting today.

Citizens were able to attend the WaterWorks Lunch & Learn on Tuesday. Citizens that attended learned about the water, wastewater and stormwater systems. Another topic of interest at the event was how resources are used for fire protection services.

Valdosta High School students in the Advancements via Individual Determination program were able to shadow city department heads on Wednesday.

Today at 5:30 p.m., there will be a Valdosta City Council Meeting where all citizens are welcomed to attend.

On Friday, there will be a Valdosta Police Department Career Exhibit from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the center of the mall with information regarding careers in the municipal law enforcement.

The final event of GCW is the Great American Clean Up on Saturday morning from 8:30-11:30 a.m. Volunteers and city staff will clean East Gordon Street, North Forrest Street, East Magnolia Street and North Troup Street.

The cleanup is part of Keep America Beautiful and Keep Valdosta-Lowndes Beautiful (KVLB.)

The city picks activities that will enable different age groups and people with different interests to participate, according to Mathews.

Mathews said she did not know what the turnout this year for events would be, but the city hopes for several hundred people to participate in the events throughout the week.

For more information contact Sementha Mathews at (229) 259-3548 or visit the City of Valdosta’s website.