Newspaper Page Text
Day • Nov. 11
lire
The Vidalia Advance Established 1901
The Lyons Progress Established 1894
NATIONAL
COPD
AWARENESS
MONTH
See Healthlines 13A
Vol. 126 No. 45
Your Newspaper - Toombs, Montgomery & Wheeler County, Georgia 75$ November 8, 2023
“Freedom makes a
huge requirement of
every human being.
With freedom comes
responsibility.”
- Eleanor Roosevelt
News
BYTES
Color Walk
Altamaha Down Syndrome
Society will be hosting its
annual walk to raise
awareness and accep
tance for special needs on
Saturday, November 11.
The Uniquely Me: Coloring
the World with Kindness
color walk will be held at
11 a.m. at the Montgom
ery County Recreation De
partment. Registration is
$15 and includes a t-shirt.
For more information, con
tact Stacie Randolph at
(912) 253-3356.
Veterans Day
Luncheon
The Downtown Vidalia As
sociation will host its an
nual Veterans Day Lun
cheon on Friday, Novem
ber 10, to celebrate those
who served in the armed
forces. The evenf will be
held beginning af 11 a.m.
af fhe Vidalia Communify
Center. For more informa
tion, call Tonya Parker at
(912) 537-0833.
Veterans Day
Program
The Vidalia High School
SoundTribe will honor those
who have served in the
armed forces at their Vet
erans day Program, which
will be held at 9:30 a.m. at
the school's Parsons Reid
Gymnasium on Friday, No
vember 10.
Porchfest
Vidalia Porchfest will cele
brate music, art, and com
munity in the Jackson
Heights neighborhood in
Vidalia on Saturday, No
vember 18, from 10 a.m.
until 6 p.m. The event is
free and will feature live
music and artisan crafts.
For more information, con
tact the Altama Museum
of Art & History at (912)
537-1911.
IN THIS ISSUE
Editorials Page 6A
Obituaries Page 8A
From the Record Page 5A
Your Mind On Line Page 5A
Sports Page 1 B
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“God Woke Me Up”
Stanley Family
Finds Hope in
the Rubble
By Makaylee Randolph
Staff Writer
mrandolphadvance@gmail. com
Brian, Heather, and the Stanley fam
ily narrowly escaped a disastrous situation
last Monday, October 30, after their home
caught fire two separate times. The family is
now working to spread a message of hope
and generosity in the midst of the rubble.
“God woke me up,” the couple’s 14-year-
old son Stone Smith emphasized about the
fire, which began on the porch outside of his
bedroom. “I’m pretty sure I was asleep - or
at least almost asleep - and I heard stuff that
sounded like footsteps and some crackling
outside my room. So, I got up and looked
out to where the porch was, and I could see
the fire. So, I went across the house and got
them.”
While 7 of the couple’s 8 children were
off at college or staying with family, Stone,
Brian and Heather were the only ones
home. The couple had previously gone to
bed and would have never known about the
blaze had Stone not felt conviction to get up
Please see Fire page 2A
SECOND FIRE - It was the second fire, which ignited around 6 a.m. on October 30,
that caused the most damage to the home and vehicles.
Choosing Freedom: A
Hungarian Family's
Escape From Communism
Photo by Makaylee Randolph
LEAVING THEIR HOMELAND - Kinga Ferrara told the at
tendees of the Vidalia Chapter of the Daughters of the
American Revolution that her family's decision to leave
Hungary was very difficult, but necessary to evade the
torture and destruction which the Russians inflicted on the
area after World War II.
By Makaylee Randolph
Staff Writer
mrandolphadvance@gmail.com
First-generation
American Dr. Kinga Fer
rara spoke to the Vidalia
Chapter of the Daughters
of the American Revolu
tion (DAR) at their recent
meeting on Wednesday,
November 1, about life be-
Please see DAR page 1OA
4 Murder Suspects
Indicted by Grand Jury
By Makaylee Randolph
Staff Writer
mrandolphadvance@gmail.com
The Toombs County
Grand Jury reconvened on
October 24 as a continu
ation of the August 2023
term, and returned 22 true
bills, including 4 indict
ments for 2 local murder
cases.
Suspects were indicted
in the murders of John To-
mason and Ricky Martin
Burkett, which both oc
curred in 2022. The in
dicted men and women
will now enter their plea of
Please see Jury page 10A
Glenwood Man
Charged in Shooting
By Deborah Clark
Regional Editor
dclarkadvance@gmail.com
The Georgia Bureau of Investi
gation has arrested Paul Dixon, 68,
of Glenwood and charged him with
one count of aggravated assault fol
lowing an incident on October 21 in
which one person was shot. Dixon
was booked into the Wheeler Coun
ty Jail, posted a $20,000 bond, and
has been released pending his first
appearance in court.
The arrest followed the GBI’s
probe of a domestic dispute be-
Please see Shooting page 12A
Historic Petition Filed
in Montgomery County
Photo by Makaylee Randolph
PRESENTING THE PETITION - Members and supporters of the Informed Citi
zens Coalition gathered within the Montgomery County Probate Court
Office on Monday, November 6, to file the County's first-ever Citizens
Initiative Petition for a Ballot Measure.
By Makaylee Randolph
Staff Writer
mrandolphadvance@gmail.com
Montgomery County expe
rienced a historic moment on
Monday morning, November 6, as
members of the Informed Citizens
Coalition gathered at the Mont
gomery County Courthouse to file
the County’s first-ever Citizens Ini
tiative Petition For A Ballot Mea
sure to have the Floating Home-
Please see MoCo page 4A
