The savings are INSANE! LUDICRUS! CRAZY! Crazy Coupons that is! Momma’s done got out the sewin’ scissors and clipped every dang one of them Crazy Coupons in the Morgan County Citizen! That’s right y’all! She’s done put ‘em right smack-dab in her wallet ‘cause she says the Citizen’s CRAZY COUPONS are just like MONEY IN THE BANK! If you missed ‘em the first week of the month, no prob! Let your fingers do the clickin’ at  www.morgancountycitizen.com and click on the CRAZY COUPON link and click the one that fits your fancy! I’m talkin’ serious, sensible, sensational savings!  20 percent off at Amelia’s! Ooohhh la la! A free Monogram with purchase at Mark It! Buy one entrée get one half off at The Madison ChopHouse Grille! Yumalish! Buy one pound fudge and GET A HALF POUND FREE at Antique Sweets! Lord have mercy! $5 off a manicure or pedicure at The Spa at the James Madison! Heaven! A fab free cup of coffee at Perk Avenue! Perf! 20 percent off any one item at Artisan’s Alley! Bada Bling! Buy one get one free kids book at Dog Ear Books! Double Genius! One week free membership at the Madison Fitness Center! Buff! $19.99 oil change at Madison Muffler & Brake! Easy Rider! Get your second entrée half off at Tequila Express! Delish! 500 business cards for only $25 at Carolyn’s Copy Corner! Ding dang! Buy any two jewelry items and get one free at Laughing Moon! Now that’s what I call CRAZY FANTASTIC! 10 percent off a smoked ham or turkey at Buckhead’s The Gathering Place Café! Flavin’ Feast! $4.99 for Four chiks, med fry & med drink at Krystal! Snack Attack! Free Famous Buttermilk Pie at Yesterday’s Café in Rutledge with any entrée! Dig in y’all! 10 percent off at The Madison Giftmart & Café (café only)! Yum!

By: Harris Warbington

By Colby Dunn
Photos by Angelina Bellebuono

"We challenge anyone to find a better little bank than what we have here."

Those were the proud words of one former Madisonian writer about the Bank of Rutledge, just a month after it opened in October 1898. That bank's run has continued, albeit in different incarnations, until today. But the little bank that started with one teller, just in time for that year's rainy cotton season, has had its days numbered.

The Rutledge branch of Regions Bank, the final manifestation of the 111-year-old institution, will close its doors on Jan. 29, 2010 as part of a cost-cutting plan by bank heads. It will be the last bank to leave the smaller Morgan County municipalities; banking business will now be firmly centered in Madison.

Rutledge may be the last of the small communities to lose its bank, but it certainly was not the first. There is evidence of banks dotted throughout the county in neighborhoods that have now all but vanished.

When, as they say, cotton was king, Morgan County's thriving agricultural industry made local banks a commercial necessity. Small banks sprung up in once-vibrant locales that, today, are barely hamlets or have faded away altogether.
"Appalachee, Godfrey and Swords had banks," said county planner Danielle Peck, just to name a few. Peck helped compile information for the county's bicentennial and ongoing oral history initiative, and says that there may have even been more that have faded from memory and record after the banking industry in the county fell from its cotton-filled prime.  
"There were a lot of communities around the county that kind-of no longer exist as a community," she said, many of which had their own, independent commercial operations when agriculture here was more robust.

By Kathryn Schiliro
Managing Editor

There was goldenrod carpet.

At Rutledge United Methodist Church now, the carpet is green. And this is just the first of many changes to the church’s appearance in a very short period of time.

It took three weeks (two Sundays) and eight years of discussion, but Rutledge UMC looks like a completely different church – the choir loft has been opened up, the original hardwood floors resealed, the pews taken out and painted before being reinstalled (with an extra 4 inches between pews, much to the delight of many of the church’s long-legged members).

Old, green curtains were stripped down, and church member Runae Daws transformed the fabric into four banners that now hang behind the pulpit.

“We had a group of dedicated trustees and the support of the pastor,” church member Carol Altznauer said.
Constructed in 1951, the sole change made to the church since then has been the installation of stained glass windows in the early 1980s.

“This is the biggest renovation since then,” Pastor Randy Byrd, who has been at the church just over two years, said.
Local contractor Bruce Bryant, of RAB Homes, Inc., worked with the congregation on the renovation – from the carpet to the paint.

The previously white walls were painted with swatches of varying colors, and the votes of a very “passionate” congregation were taken at a congregational meeting. (The church’s Board of Trustees made the rest of the decisions.) In the end, what Byrd and Altznauer are calling “antique off-white” won, and the walls and ceiling were painted.

The entire project, all $23,000, was paid for by donations over the past 12 years as well as the sale of the Dixie Highway parsonage and interest from CDs.

The Dogchurian Candidate. Momma the Georgia Fan is dogsittin’ Uga, the famous UGA bulldog mascot! This gives us the Perf opportunity to brainwash that bulldog and turn ‘em into a bona fied Auburn Fan right smack before the big game! Let’s run through the check list:  Auburn flag on the front porch? Check. Matchin’ Aubie the Tiger outfits for Petey-the-Poodle and Scrappy-the-Chihuahua-mixed-with-lord-knows-what? Check. Auburn fight song with great Auburn football moments overlaid with loads o’ sci-fi brainwashin’, mind control, hypno gadgetry? Double check! All set! Here comes Momma walkin’ Uga! Momma! You look flat wore out! Take my handsome husband’s credit card and go Spa Hoppin’ over at Pure Bliss located at 131 West Jefferson St., and The Spa at the James Madison located at 218 West Washington St.! Don’t worry! We’ll watch that cute little Uga for you! Bye! Petey! Scrappy! Get Uga in front of the TV and start the brainwashin’ DVD! He LOVED it! Now for the special hypnosis session. Uga . . . watch the treat swirl and swirl . . . you are now in a deep, deep doggy sleep . . . You’re now a bona fined Auburn fan. You will never try to bite an Auburn football player EVER AGAIN! Instead you’ll howl and bark in delight whenever Auburn scores! Now here’s your treat! Ouch! Uga’s done tried to take a bite outta my bowhonckers! Ding Dang! My scheme’s done backfired like a fumble at the one yard line! Hey and I mean nobody had better steal my Auburn flag this year and exchange it for a Georgia one or I’ll be slappin’ somebody into next week!

By Robert Trulock
Morgan Stanley

Thanks to some recent tax law changes, high-net-worth individuals who are exploring additional ways to build retirement savings may want to take a closer look at traditional IRAs. In May 2006, the Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act (TIPRA) revised some of the guidelines covering IRAs. As a result, high-income investors whose earnings level would previously have restricted them to a traditional IRA can now convert those to Roth IRAs starting in 2010 and reap the long-term tax advantages if they will be in the same or a higher tax bracket in retirement.

Because they allow qualified investors to withdraw all contributions and those earnings that meet certain requirements without federal income tax, Roth savings vehicles now appeal to a growing list of investors. Previously, Congress limited Roth conversions to those whose modified adjusted gross income was under $100,000. Under the new rules, however, the conversions will be available to investors at any income level, starting in 2010.

So if you’ve maxed out your 401(k) or 403(b) contributions and don’t qualify to make Roth IRA contributions because of your income level, you still can make nondeductible contributions to a traditional IRA in 2009 and 2010 and then convert it to a Roth IRA in 2010.

Then, when needed during retirement, investors can make withdrawals from the Roth IRA tax-free. Taxes will not be owed on the original nondeductible contributions because they’ve already been paid, although the previous earnings on those contributions will be taxable.  Those who convert in 2010 only have the extra incentive of being able to spread the tax liability over the following two years.  Thereafter, all future earnings in the Roth IRA will be available for tax-free distributions if certain requirements discussed below are met.