Newspaper Page Text
The ADVANCE, July 21, 2021 /Page 12A
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Georgia Lottery sets record for profits
By Dave Williams
Bureau Chief
Capitol Beat News Service
The Georgia Lot
tery generated more than
$1.5 billion for the state’s
HOPE Scholarship and
Pre-K programs during
the last fiscal year, a record
that came despite a global
pandemic that dampened
economic activity.
The fiscal year that
ended June 30 marked
the sixth straight year the
lottery has exceeded $1
billion in profits for edu
cation, surpassing the pre
vious fiscal year by $307.6
million. Fiscal 2021 also
was the lottery’s 10th con
secutive year of growth.
“Over the past year,
like many organizations,
we faced numerous chal
lenges,” said Gretchen
Corbin, the Georgia Lot
tery Corp.’s president and
CEO. “We pivoted, made
adjustments and worked
hard each day ... to maxi
mize revenues for HOPE
and Pre-K.”
Scratchers and draw
games performed particu
larly well, getting a boost
from the introduction of
new games as well as large
Mega Millions and Power-
ball jackpots. The lottery’s
line of online products
also gained in popularity
as players became more
familiar with online play
options.
The lottery has re
turned more than $23.8
billion to education in
Georgia since voters ap
proved a referendum cre
ating the program in 1992.
More than 1.9 million
students have received
lottery-funded HOPE
scholarships, while more
than 1.6 million 4-year-
olds have attended the
statewide voluntary Pre-K
program.
Amber
continued from page 5A
— you want to be near a
bathroom with a fully func
tional toilet when the prep
kicks in, and make sure you
have ample amounts of soft
tissue in arm’s reach.
Follow the prep in
structions to a T, because
you want to clean out your
colon as best you can so the
doctor can get a good look.
Just before the proce
dure, the doctor will have
you turn onto your left
side. He or she will give you
some type of mild to mod
erate sedation drug intra
venously to kind of knock
you out for a few minutes
while he or she works.
And the next thing
you’ll know, you’ll wake up
and say, “Is it over? Did you
find anything?”
If the doctor sees pol
yps or other regions of ab
normal tissue during the
procedure, he or she will
remove them (or samples
of them) through the scope
during the procedure.
Colonoscopies can
find colon and rectal can
cers, but they can also find
polyps and often remove
them before they turn into
cancer. And that’s my point
— you want the doctor to
find the polyps early and
remove them before they
have an opportunity to
turn into cancer. I’ve had
colonoscopies since I was
in my thirties, and the doc
tors have removed polyps
every single time. One pol
yp was categorized as “pre-
cancerous.”
The guidelines for
getting a colonoscopy to
screen for cancer recently
changed because colon and
rectal cancers are on the
rise in younger folks. The
American Cancer Society
recommends colorectal
cancer testing for everyone
starting at age 45, though
some people with certain
symptoms or risk fac
tors may need to start at a
younger age.
I lost a 51-year-old
friend this year to colon
cancer. Another friend who
is 52 developed colon can
cer and is currentlyrecover
ing from surgery to remove
the mass and 17 lymph
nodes and six rounds of
chemo. Thankfully, it looks
like she’s going to make it,
A Lyons man died in
a two-vehicle accident on
Georgia Highway 56 West
in Uvalda Saturday after
noon.
Shannon Chris
Googe, 42, was killed
when his motorcycle
struck the side of a truck
driven by Peggy Sue Glis-
son of Uvalda. The fatality
occurred in front of Big
Ma’s convenience store
and restaurant at 3:49 p.m.
Toombs County Sher
iff’s Deputy Cody Clifton,
but she will be the first to
tell you that she wishes she
could go back in time and
get a colonoscopy when
her doctor suggested she
schedule one. Actor Chad
wick Boseman (who por
trayed Black Panther and
Jackie Robinson in films)
succumbed to colon cancer
last year at 43.
Since I have a history
of polyps, I go in every five
years. I had another colo
noscopy this past week,
and the doctor removed yet
another polyp. It did not
hurt. It was more of an in
convenience — a slight in
terference in a normal work
week.
So please, please,
please don’t delay your
colonoscopies. They really
do save lives, so just do it.
who responded to the
accident, reported that
Googe died at the scene.
Glisson was treated for
minor injuries.
Deputy Clifton re
ported that the mishap
apparently occurred as
Glisson drove onto the
highway from the store
parking lot and into the
path of the motorcycle.
The Georgia State
Patrol is investigating the
wreck.
Lyons Man Dies in
Motorcycle Mishap
Names Being Sought for
Wheeler County Monument
The names of service
men and women who
enlisted from Wheeler
County and served in the
Iraq and Afghanistan Wars
are being sought for inclu
sion in a veterans memorial
project in Alamo.
The names will be en
graved on a monument lo
cated in downtown Alamo
and the deadline for sub
mission of the information
is July 31. The intention
is that the project will be
completed in time for Vet
erans Day on November
11, said Alamo City Ad
ministrator Jeff Floyd and
Alamo Councilman Thom
as Lott.
The monument in Ala
mo honors Wheeler Coun
ty residents who served in
wars including World War
I, World War II, Korea,
Vietnam, Lebanon, Gre
nada, and the Persian Gulf.
The names of those serving
in the two latest wars will
be added to a location on
the monument which is to
be determined.
The monument was
dedicated on May 27,
1996, by the Jenkins-Pat-
Photo by Deborah Clark
SEEKING NAMES FOR MONUMENT — Alamo City Admin
istrator Jeff Floyd, right and Alamo Councilman Thomas
Lott stand next to the veterans memorial in downtown
Alamo. The names of men and women who enlisted from
Wheeler County and served in the Iraq and Afghanistan
wars are being sought to add to the monument.
terson Post #193 of the adding the names of veter-
American Legion and its ans of the Iraq and Afghan-
Ladies Auxiliary. istan Wars can call Alamo
Those interested in City Hall at 568-7153.
Wheeler Commission Makes EMS Appointment
In its July 6 session, the Wheeler
County Commission approved the ap
pointment of the county’s Emergency
Medical Services Director Selena Howell
to the regional EMS Council.
In other business, the Commission
gave a nod to beginning the process for
submitting a request for half of the $ 1.525
million in American Rescue Plan funds for
which the county is eligible.
The county is moving forward with its
plan to install five to six convenience cen
ters (trash disposal sites) throughout the
county. The first location on Community
Church Road was opened recently, and the
second center on Snowhill Baptist Church
Road will go into operation soon. A site on
Georgia Highway 126 has been cleared for
a third center, and the purchase of a fourth
site on Georgia Highway 19 near Lumber
City is being finalized. The county is still
seeking sites near Landsburg and on Hill
Farm Road.
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For decades, we've been your local hospital.
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and to help you deliver your newest bundle of joy.
We were here for you then. We are here for you now.
And we will be here for you tomorrow.
We're proud to celebrate a new chapter in caring
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