About Barrow journal. (Winder, Ga.) 2008-2016 | View Entire Issue (March 2, 2016)
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2, 2016 BARROW JOURNAL PAGE 3A Week before Crossover Day busy Facing a Leap Day deadline for voting on bills with any chance of becoming law in 2016, the Georgia House of Rep resentatives moved on several pieces of legislation last week. The final week before “Crossover Day,” we unani mously passed these four bills that could directly impact some of our most vulnerable citizens: •HB 965, which would give insured patients with Stage IV metastatic cancer access to more effective drugs without having to first try unsuccessful treatments. •HB 919, which would estab lish a pool of up to $100 mil lion in state tax credits for individuals and corporations donating money to nonprofit healthcare organiza tions that treat patients in rural counties. I have served the past couple of years on a committee studying rural healthcare, and I think this bill is a wonderful step forward. So does the state’s rural hospi tal association. •HB 962, which would create the position of Kinship Care Enforcement Administrator within the Department of Human Services to oversee federal or state programs for grandparents or other relatives who are caring for up to 300,000 Georgia children no longer living with their parents. This was rec ommended by a House study committee established in 2015 to streamline kin ship services and support. My hat is off to both Minority Leader Stacy Abrams (D-Atlanta) and to Human Relations Committee Chairman Tommy Benton (R-Jefferson) for their work over the summer on this issue. • HB768, which is the Georgia Achiev ing a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act and would allow families to establish tax-exempt accounts for their disabled loved ones without their becoming inel igible for Medicaid. I was a co-sponsor of this legislation. The House also unanimously passed House Bill 831 known as the “Protecting Guardsmen’s Employment Act.” This bipartisan legislation would require the civilian employers to re-employ National Guardsmen or members of the reserves after being called into active duty. Also last week, I voted in favor of HB 859, which would allow adults with carry permits the freedom to carry their legal handguns onto the campuses of post-secondary institutions such as tech nical colleges and universities. The bill would continue to restrict handguns from sporting events, frater nity or sorority houses, and dormito ries where the presence of alcohol is a concern. I am a firm defender of our Second Amendment rights and do not believe our constitutional protections terry england should stop when stepping onto college campuses. We ended the seventh week of the session without a vote on proposed leg islation to legalize casino gam bling. House Resolution 807 would authorize a statewide referendum on a Constitution al amendment for a “limited number” of resort-style casinos “for the long-term benefit of the HOPE scholarship.” How ever. late Friday, some were suggesting amendments to the resolution’s 70-page compan ion bill of the state regulations for the casinos. I heard talk of diluting the potential reve nues for HOPE, giving me a healthy skepticism about the percentage of revenue the casino industry actually would deliver for the popular program. I also do not believe the State of Geor gia should encourage casino gambling. After hearing from many of you, I think our community feels the same way. A highlight of last week was Tues day’s visit by Ohio Gov. John Kasich, who is running for the Republican nom ination for President. The House also formally recognized Paul Wood, the retiring president and CEO of Georgia EMC. I was honored to present to him a bound copy of House Resolution 1169 in appreciation of his 18 years in that role. I was very pleased to witness Gov. Nathan Deal’s swearing in of Auburn Mayor Linda Blechinger as the newest member of the Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council. She was appointed to the position by the Governor. The Government Affairs Committee of the Barrow County Chamber of Com merce also paid the House a visit. It was nice to see those friendly faces. This is my report for the seventh week of the 2016 legislative session. Thank you for allowing me this opportunity to represent Barrow County. May God bless you and your family, this wonder ful county, and our great state. If you have any questions or com ments, please feel free to contact me at terry@terryenglandforgeorgia.com, where you can sign up for my new e-newsletter. Rep. England has served in the Geor gia House since 2005. He represents District 116, which includes most of Barrow County. In addition to chairing the House Appropriations Committee, he is an ex-officio member of the Ways & Means Committee and a member of the Agriculture and Consumer Affairs Committee, the Education Committee, the Industry and Labor Committee, and the Natural Resources and Environment Committee. Murder continued from 1A Investigators also interviewed the suspect. Based on those inter views, the evidence from the crime scene and the statements of the sus pect, "it was clear this was no accidental shoot ing,” investigators said. Mr. Harrison was arrested and remains in the Barrow County Detention Center await ing bond on the charges of aggravated assault, felony murder, murder and possession of a fire arm during the commis sion of a crime. The investigation is ongoing, Capt. Matt Guthas of the Barrow County Sheriff’s Office said. HARRISON Qualifying continued from 1A Dwight Acey of the Barrow County Democratic Party said candidates wish ing to run on that ticket should register in the Barrow County Elections Office. Several local races will be on the 2016 primary ballot including County Com mission Chairman, Districts 1, 2, and 3 on the BOC, sheriff, coroner, Barrow County Board of Education districts 2. 5, 6 and 8 (at large), chief magistrate, probate judge, clerk of superior court and tax commissioner. This year’s state primary will be in May, earlier than the usual July date. AARP offers tax assistance for local citizens Representatives from the AARP will be at the Barrow County Leisure Services building on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 9 a.m. until noon until April 13 to offer assistance with 2016 tax questions. Barrow Leisure Services is located at 80 Lee Street in Winder. Call 770-307-3025 for more information. Sheep to Shawl event scheduled for April 9 The 7th annual Sheep-to-Shawl event will be Saturday. April 9, from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. at Robert Bridges Park in Statham. You can watch and learn the steps of shearing a sheep, spinning the wool and knitting it into a “shawl.” There will be food vendors, a kids’ corner, and local/handmade crafts for sale. To reserve a booth (either to demon strate or sell), contact lhgstathamga@gmail. com. It takes a village When I was a kid growing up, I remember sitting out in the yard in folding lawn chairs, feet dangling from my short legs, with a news paper spread open in my lap. A handful of peas or but ter beans piled high would keep me busy for an hour or so. I loved the smell of the raw vegetables — but not the sore thumbnails I’d have the next day! I tried my best to emulate the way my grandmother would pop open the peas or but ter beans, swipe her thumb through the hull, and hold the prize in the palm of her left hand. She would shell a hand ful before tossing the bounty into a little white basin. My small hands could only hold a few of the prized peas before they would spill out onto the newspaper. Green beans were fun, too. She’d pop off one end of the bean, pull the string down to the bot tom, flip the bean over and snap off the other end, faster than Matt Dillon could draw a six shooter. While still holding the strings in her right hand, she’d then snap the bean into several pieces, before depositing them into a different basin. I was amazed at how quickly she worked, and how she could hold so much in her hands. An added bonus to the harvesting process was shar ing the chores with friends. We’d go over to Jackie and Roger Steed's house, sit in their yard, and shell peas or shuck com. Or they would come to our house and help us shell a mess of butter beans. The task was accom plished faster, and sharing in conversation made the time pass even more quick ly. I remember aunts and cousins sitting out in my grandmother's yard peeling delicious, juicy peaches for canning. They didn’t allow the kids to be around for that project, as there were sharp knives involved (and sticky fingers of children who would abscond with the bounty!) We didn't argue too much about being banned from the peach project, as we didn’t like the inevitable honeybee infestation that went along with peach canning. But I remember how they enjoyed visiting together. “It takes a village” is not such a bad statement, when viewed in this context. Sometimes having the help of a “vil lage” is the only way that we can get through the day. So, what is this phenom enon of support? We go about our daily lives, hope fully remembering to stop and be thankful for another day in which to live. We face our challenges of meet ing deadlines, managing personal finances, and striv ing to reach goals. Whether employed or retired, for the most part, we are allowed to make choices to determine how we spend our free time. Sometimes there just do not seem to be enough hours in the day, and we do well just to get things done, with hardly any free time at all. There is very little yard-sit- ting with neighbors these days, and life moves at a much faster pace. For the generation above mine, the telephone revo lutionized communication. They no longer had to go down to the comer store, or the town square to hear all the latest local news — or cathy watkins bennett Become a hospice volunteer. You can make a profound difference in the lives of patients - when it matters most. Call Ashley at 770.765.3222. discuss the news they heard on the radio or newfangled television sets. They could just pick up the phone, and the opera tor would ring the neigh bor. Before long, we were able to dial our own phones and speak with people all over the world. My gener ation saw the evolution of an untethered phone without wires, and today’s genera tion has seen further evolu tion to mini-phones/comput ers that fit in our pockets!! Oh, the wonders of tech nology! Communication is at an all-time high these days, what with social media, electron ic mail, Skype, etc. Facebook is probably the "telephone” of this generation, in that it has totally changed the way we communicate. With one click of a button, we can notify an unlimited number of people the news about what we ate for dinner (and can post a picture of it, too!), share pictures of our grandkids, post about our political views, or anything else we choose. We can keep up with the latest news about our favor ite sports team, be reminded of birthdays, and send quick greetings without going to the store for a card, or paying for postage stamps. (And then remembering to put it in the mail.) The World Wide Web gives us access to up-to-the-minute news, right at our fingertips, and the Information High way has all but ended our need for encyclopedias and dictionaries. Social media also allows us to leam of unfortunate events, and troubled times that our friends are facing. I see almost as many posts asking for prayers as I do any other types of posts. This is a fabulous tool, and a very efficient way to get folks praying without hav ing to utilize a phone tree or prayer chain that requires someone to stop what they are doing, look up phone numbers, and call the people on the list. Sometimes a rapid response is needed! My family experienced this first-hand a few days ago. We were in the ER with my dad, and within moments of a few texts and phone calls, our friends and family were quick to rally with prayers of support. A couple of posts on Face- book by my brother and I have resulted in hundreds of people praying for our dad. There's our village! Our support group! In just a few hours, I'll be sitting in an uncomfortable chair, surrounded by the whir of machines, and the sounds of busy nurses going about their tasks. My family, and many friends, have sat, slumped, and tried (mostly unsuccessfully) to sleep in those uncomfortable chairs over the past few days. We are not unfamiliar with this. As with most of you, we’ve sat at the bedsides of our family members, prayed lots of prayers, and waited (and WAITED) for the doc tors to make rounds. We’ve taken the calls from friends offering prayers and appre ciate every one of them! We have such a great sup port system from friends in the community and church family. We totally feel the love, and we are blessed by each person who calls, vis its, texts, or posts on social media. The love and support of friends is an extra measure of healing potion, and plays a huge part in the healing process. No doubt, we’ve all been on the receiving end of such power. Some times, when I see a prayer request, I am tempted to just keep scrolling and pray for the person later. But then I forget. There's a reason that I’m seeing that post at that particular moment of the day, so it is easier to say a prayer for the situa tion right at the moment. For all the people who have sent words of encourage ment our way, we know there are many others who have prayed and sent happy, healing thoughts, but did so quietly. Having been the recipient of these blessings over the past few days, and expe riencing the outpouring of love, I will never again min imize the power that my piddly little prayers contain. If you are a praying person, always remember that even a quick “bless this person” prayer is precious, and has the power to make a real difference. And about my dad — he’s a trooper, and has rocked the first part of the battle like a boss. We believe our prayers, and the prayers of our friends, have made all the difference in the world. The moral of this story: You are important. You are a vital part of the lives of those around you. Consider it an honor to pray for them, think kind thoughts, offer your support, bake some brownies, pick up the news paper from the driveway, or many other small acts of kindness you can show. It matters. So much. And you will be blessed to have been a part of the village. Cathy Watkins Bennett is a Barrow County native and a graduate of WBHS. Send comments about this column to bencath@aol.com. La Hacienda Commerce 173 Steven B. Tanger Blvd. 706-335-7458 La Hacienda Braselton 5391 Highway 53 706-654-0070 The Original Mexican Restaurant! Not affiliated with any other restaurant. HALCYON HOSPICE Ashley.Puckett@LHCgroup.com Athens • 706.316.2214 REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE QUALIFYING Premier Brokers, 20 N. Broad St. Winder Mon., March 7*9 a.m. -1 p.m. Tues., March 8*5 p.m. - 8 p.m. Wed., March 9*8 a.m. - Noon Thurs., March 10*5 p.m. - 8 p.m. Fri., March 11*8 a.m. - Noon • County Commission Chairman • County Commissioners - Districts 1,2 & 3 »Sheriff »Coroner • School Board - Districts 2,5, 6,8 (At Large) »Chief Magistrate • Probate Judge »Clerk of Superior Court •Tax Commissioner For information, call 770-867-5748 Paid for by the Barrow County Republication Party www.barrowgop.org
