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The Vidalia Advance Established 1901 The Most Wonderful iTime. of The Year is AlmostlHereU The Lyons Progress Established 1894 . ..... , Christmas Parades*& Letters to Santa in our Christmas Issue next week Vol. 126 No. 50 Your Newspaper - Toombs, Montgomery & Wheeler County, Georgia 75$ December 13, 2023 I always wanted to be somebody, but now I realize I should have been more specific. - Lily Tomlin News BYTES MoCo Scrap Tire Amnesty Montgomery County will host their Scrap Tire Amnesty event from December 11-15. Residents may drop off their unwanted tires from cars, trucks, and ATVs at the Montgomery County Solid Water Center, located at 300 Earth Saver Drive in Ailey. Drop-off hours are Monday-Thursday from 7 a.m. until 5 p.m„ and on Friday from 7 a.m. until 12 p.m. For more information, contact County Manager Brandon Braddy at (912) 583-2363. Night of Worship A Night of Worship will be held at the Blue Marquee Theatre in Lyons on Friday, December 15. The keynote speakers for the event are Eric and Mersija Simon. Doors will open at 6:30 p.m., and the event will begin at 7:00 p.m. Wreaths Across America Lakeview Memorial Gardens will lay wreaths upon service members' graves beginning at 12 p.m. on Saturday, December 16. A small ceremony will be held prior to the beginning of the event. For more information on this event, contact Ty Ann Copeland at (912) 314-9942. IN THIS ISSUE Editorials Page 6A Obituaries Page 8A From the Record Page 5A Your Mind On Line Page 9A Sports Page 1 B SUBSCRIBE AND SAVE 30% OFF NEWSSTAND IMV Call 537-3131 (or delivery! DNR Official on Leadership: When to Take Charge, When to Empower Others Photo by Makaylee Randolph SQUASHING THE RIOTS - Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Deputy Commis sioner Thomas Barnard spoke to the Vidalia Kiwanis Club about his experiences with the At lanta police riots and the lessons in leadership which it taught him. By Makaylee Randolph Staff Writer mrandolphadvance@gmail. com Leadership is about knowing when to empower others and when to take charge of situations, according to Georgia De partment of Natural Resources (DNR) Deputy Commissioner Thomas Barnard, who spoke to the Vidalia Kiwanis Club re cently about his experiences leading others during Hurricane Katrina and the Atlanta riots. Barnard has spent over 30 years with the DNR Law Enforcement Division, and recently rose to the rank of Deputy Com missioner in October. Throughout those years, he has gained knowledge about being a leader, and used each lesson he learned to help him better handle situa tions as they arose, from Hurricane Ka trina, to the Atlanta riots, to combatting Antifa. One of the earlier defining moments of Barnard’s career happened during the Hurricane Katrina disaster relief efforts. Please see DNR page 9A Fatal Shooting In Lyons Courtesy of Lyons Police Department The Lyons Police Depart ment is investigating a shooting which claimed the life of one man on Friday, December 8. On Friday, the Lyons Police Department received a call of a man that had been shot on E. Grady Street in the city of Ly ons. Upon arrival, officers dis covered that Brandon Green, 23 years old of Hazlehurst, had a gunshot wound to the neck. Toombs County EMS was called and transported Mr. Green to Vidalia Memorial Hos pital where he eventually suc cumbed to his injuries. Thanks to community in volvement, we were able to gath er information and evidence that helped move the investiga tion along. Without that help, the Department may not have been able to progress to where they are. The Lyons Police Depart ment and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation are actively work ing the case. A suspect has been developed and arrests are ex pected soon. Students Give Back to Special Olympics McDaniel Advances To Stale Competition STUDENTS GIVE BACK - On Monday, Vidalia High School Juniors Braylie Davis (left) and Noah Varn (right) will give back to the Spe cial Needs community by hosting an event at The Pal Theatre to raise funding for the Toombs County Special Olympics. By Makaylee Randolph Staff Writer mrandolphadvance@gmail.com Two Vidalia High School students will give back to the community this Christmas sea son, as they use a showing of “The Grinch” at 6 p.m. at the Pal The atre on Monday, December 18, to raise money for the Toombs County Special Olympics. Juniors Braylie Davis and Noah Vam are both members of the Family, Career, and Com munity Leaders of America (FC- CLA) Club at their school, and both participate in the Club’s Please see Students page 2A [HERITAGE I heritage! jtTTAGEl ; Photo by Makaylee Randolph VOICE OF DEMOCRACY WINNERS - Three high school students were recognized during an award ceremony on Thursday, De cember 7, for placing within the local Veterans of Foreign Wars and Ladies' Auxiliary Voice of Democracy Speech Contest. L to R: 3rd Place - Anna Nalley, 1st Place - Dottie McDaniel, 2nd Place - Jake Adams. By Makaylee Randolph Staff Writer mrandolphadvance@gmail.com Vidalia High School se nior Dottie McDaniel took home her second 1st place prize in the Voice of Democ racy Speech Contest during the awards ceremony hosted at Vidalia Heritage Academy on Thursday, December 7. “It’s such an honor [to have won twice] because this organization is so impor tant,” she emphasized. “It’s really taught me a lot about our country and values that I have, and it has really made me a patriot of sorts.” McDaniel won the com petition last year and com peted for the last time this year as a senior. She said that the competition has been extremely impactful throughout her high school career and she hopes young er students at her school will continue their involvement with the contest. “I really hope people keep doing this. I know in the past few years that our participation rate Please see Voice page 1OA