Newspaper Page Text
Vol. 123 No. 28
Your Newspaper - Toombs, Montgomery & Wheeler County, Georgia
July 14, 2021
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See Healthlines 10B
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Salsa Adds
Spice to Red
Snapper
See Kitchen Diva 11B
The Vidalia Advance Established 1901
The Lyons Progress Established 1894
Education is a
progressive
discovery of our
own ignorance.
-Will Durant
News
BYTES
Treutlen School
Supplies
Giveaway
A drive-through school
supply giveaway will be
held at the old Treutlen
High School (new
gym parking lot) in
Soperton on Saturday,
July 24, 9-11 a.m.
Free supplies for K-12
students. Sponsored
by Tri-County Family
Connection and others.
Drive-Through
Event in Wheeler
A drive-through school
supplies giveaway will
be held on Saturday,
July 31, 9-11 a.m.
at Wheeler County
Elementary School
in Alamo. Sponsored
by Tri-County Family
Connection and others.
Pre-K
Orientation at
J.D. Dickerson
A Pre-K orientation
event will be held
at J.D. Dickerson
Elementary School on
Wednesday, August 4,
5:30-6:30 p.m. Parents
are invited to meet
their child's teacher,
learn about the Pre-K
program, and enjoy a
light supper.
Back to School
Bash
Toombs County's
Fourth Annual Back to
School Bash will be held
Saturday, August 7, 9-11
a.m. at Southeastern
Technical College
in Vidalia. Children
must be present to
collect their supplies.
Sponsored by Toombs
Family Connection,
local school systems
and businesses.
IN THIS ISSUE
Editorials Page 5A
Obituaries Page 7A
From the Record Page 10A
Your Mind On Line Page 10A
Sports Page 1 B
Sen. Tillery Named to Georgia Jobs
And Infrastructures Committees
Sen. Blake Tillery R-Vidalia,
is among state leaders selected
recently by Gov. Brian Kemp to
help guide the allocation of fed
eral funds awarded to Georgia
under the American Rescue Plan
(ARP).
Tillery as Chairman of the
Senate Appropriations Com
mittee, has been named to all
three of the bi-partisan Georgia
Jobs and Infrastructure Commit
tees created by Gov. Kemp. The
committees will be responsible
for receiving applications and
Sen, Blake Tillery
making recommendations to
the governor regarding the state
wide allocation of federal ARP
coronavirus relief funds. State
government entities, units of lo
cal government, industries, and
nonprofits will be eligible to ap
ply for the funds.
"These committees will en
sure federal coronavirus relief
dollars are allocated strategically
across our state and address one
time funding needs in three key
areas: broadband, water and
sewer infrastructure, and the
economic impact of the CO-
VID-19 pandemic," Kemp said
last week.
The Georgia Jobs and In
frastructure Committees will
receive applications beginning
August 1, 2021, at opb.georgia.
gov. Applications will close on
August 31, 2021, and grants are
expected to be announced the
week of October 18, 2021. These
dates are subject to change as
guidance from the U.S. Depart-
Please see Tillery page 2A
Eagle Academy Opening Doors August 3
Photo by Makaylee Randolph
DOORS OPEN SOON - Dr, Beverly Faircloth stands outside the en
trance to Eagle Academy adjacent to the Montgomery County
Middle/High School complex. The Academy is located in the old high
school where work has been underway for the last several months in
preparation for the facility's opening on August 3.
By Makaylee Randolph
Contributing Writer
A program designed as an
educational option for high
achievers is gearing up to launch
next school term in Montgom
ery County.
Eagle Academy will open its
doors August 3 as Montgomery
County students return to class
es for the 2021-2022 academic
year. The Academy will serve as
a program of choice for students
from Kindergarten to 8th grade
that are interested in learning
and developing in the fields of
arts, humanities, science, and
technology.
Assistant Superintendent
and Curriculum Director Dr.
Beverly Faircloth will oversee the
operation, with Candace Keen
serving as the Academy’s assis
tant principal.
In defining the Academy’s
purpose, Faircloth said, “Just like
other programs in our schools, it
is designed to help this subset of
students (high achievers) reach
their potential.” She added, “All
students at the Academy will
be taught grade-level standards
based on criteria of the Georgia
Department of Education, but
they will also be able to partici
pate in learning activities tied to
the standards which are designed
to stretch their thinking.”
Please see MoCo page 3A
Departing CEO Alan Kent Looks Back
On 21-Year Career at Meadows Health
By Deborah Clark
Regional Editor
dclarkadvance@gmail.com
There was a time when Alan Kent
thought he might like to be an architect,
and he enrolled at Georgia Tech with that
intention. But Kent discovered he was
more interested in health care than in archi
tecture, and he chose a future in hospital ad
ministration. It was a career path that even
tually led to Vidalia where he spent 21 years
improving health care delivery not just for
Toombs County, but an entire region.
Last month, Kent retired from his
role as CEO at the community hospital.
When he first came on board as administra
tor in 2000, the local hospital was known
as Meadows Regional Medical Center, a
name it retained until a merger this year
with Hospital Corporation of America. As
part of the HCA’s network of over 200 fa
cilities, the medical center was rebranded
Meadows Hospital/Memorial Health. The
Vidalia hospital will continue to serve the
local community and surrounding counties
as a regional facility, but as a member of the
HCA team, it will have direct access to the
vast resources HCA offers.
Confident he was leaving Meadows in
good hands, Kent chose this moment to
step down. He is succeeded by Matt Has-
brouck, former Chief Operating Officer at
Memorial Health University Medical Cen
ter in Savannah, and COO at Fairview Park
Hospital in Dublin. Kent is now officially
retired from Meadows, but he is not neces
sarily retired from his involvement in health
care. He is considering going back to a for
mer career in consulting as he moves to his
new home in Tennessee.
Kent’s Tenure at Meadows: From Y2Kto
Please see Kent page 2A
Photo by Deborah Clark
IN GOOD HANDS - Alan Kent, long-time CEO
at Meadows Regional Medical Center, now
Memorial Health/Meadows Hospital, has seen
the Vidalia-based medical facility progress to a
state-of-the-art, regional health care resource
for Toombs and surrounding counfies, After
helping to guide the medical center's acquisi
tion by Hospital Corporation of America, Kent
is refiring from his post confident that he has left
Meadows in good hands,
“This is a role of stewardship and I hope I have been
a good steward, but it is time to hand off to the next
generation.”
- Alan Kent, Meadows CEO,
about his administrative role.
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