State Representative Gerald Greene (center) presents legislative proclamation to mural committee members,(L-R) KaCee Holt, Jennifer Trawick, Joy Jinks and Pat Bush. The Colquitt/Miller County Chamber of Commerce held its First Friday breakfast Friday morning, August 6, 2010, at Moby Dick Restaurant at 7:30 a.m.

After a delicious breakfast sponsored by First State Bank of Colquitt, Chairman Martiele Pickle welcomed the large crowd and asked the Reverend David Thompson to bless the food and the meeting.

The guests were recognized, and State Representative Gerald Greene presented a legislative proclamation to the mural committee for their work in bringing an international mural conference to the United States, the State of Georgia and to Colquitt.

Chairman Pickle then called on those representing organizations around the community for reports and updates on what is going on.

Charlie Johnston KaCee Commissioner Bo Haywood reported for the county commissioners that everything was going well. He stated that those writing in the "As you see it" column in the Miller County Liberal were lies about the county commissioners.

Elementary School Principal Tina Brooks said they are ready for school, and pre-planning will be August 11 and 12. Friday, August 13, will be the students’ first day back for the 2010-2011 school year.

Billy Roland reported that Spring Creek Park is still helping produce some of the best athletes in Georgia with the youth program. Two teams went to state and came in as fourth in the state.

Miller County Hospital CEO Robin Rau told that the hospital was working in the black for the first time in many years.

Kate Willis from the Colquitt/Miller Arts Council told of the upcoming Swamp Gravy performanc- es in October and the businesses that tickets could be bought from in Colquitt.

Johnston KaCee Holt Catherine Vanstone told that the reading program at our public library was completed and Miller County youth were the largest participation in the area reading program.

Candace Howard of Bainbridge told about the upcoming film, "Fishers of Men" that was to be shot in Southwest Georgia.

The main speaker for the morning, KaCee Holt, chair of the 2010 Global Mural Conference, addressed the large crowd.

She started by giving a brief history of the Global Mural Conference, which has been held in places such as New Zealand, Canada, California, Nevada, Australia, and will be hosted by Colquitt this October. Planning for this international event is underway.

KaCee told, "Not only are the attendees from around the nation and the world going to be visiting Colquitt and our many murals, but they will also be traveling to Dothan, Alabama, by way of Blakely and Donal- sonville, so they can see the murals in nearby areas and learn their histories as well.

The four day event will be held October 26 – 29, and people have registered for the event from as far away as Scotland. Right now, we have 21 people registered with two being from the United States, and those are from Nevada and Hawaii. Although, the bi-annual conference is a small conference in number, it is a large event for those attending.”

Ms. Holt continued to tell about Colquitt’s latest mural project, Georgia’s Agricultural Icon Mural, which will be painted on the 100 foot peanut silos located just off Main Street.

Pat Bush later introduced the muralist, Charlie Johnston, who is collaborating with the mural committee in painting this project.

KaCee closed by inviting and thanking the local businesses in attendance for their help with the upcoming international conference.