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BARROW NEWS-JOURNAL
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2017
Super Bowl party in New Orleans
Getting started on the budget
NEW ORLEANS -
There was a Super Bowl
party, with a Georgia fla
vor, which took place on
Audubon Boulevard here
last Sunday.
It began
with the host,
Vernon Brin
son, whose
ancestors set
tled in Deca
tur County,
Georgia, and
established
a settlement
which became
known as
Brinson —
population
today, 210.
Later, his family
migrated to Macclenny.
Florida, 30 miles east of
Jacksonville.
Early on, Vernon
became an aficionado of
all sports, but since he
was a few inches under
six feet and modestly
blessed with talent, he
had no future with the
games he played — only
deep and abiding pas
sion.
He loved baseball most
of all but the big league
scouts would not be
knocking on his door.
He enrolled at South
Georgia Junior College
in 1955, which would
come to be a life chang
ing decision. He would
arrive in Douglas the
same fall that Robert
Clecker Bowden showed
up to coach the local
junior college football
team.
A lasting friendship
began. When Bowden
was elected to the Col
lege Football Hall of
Fame in 2006, Vernon
bought banquet tickets
and underwrote the cost
of air fares for his old
teammates to travel to
New York in honor of
Bowden’s induction.
When Vernon finished
South Georgia, where he
got to know many Geor
gia boys who would be
moving on to Athens to
further their education,
he joined them.
He played baseball for
the colorful Jim What
ley and became the
most loyal of Bulldogs,
supporting scholarship
funds, building cam
paigns and multiple proj
ects.
While in Athens in
the late fifties, he had
his heart set on coach
ing and earned a B.S.
degree in education. He
started his career coach
ing at a high school in
Jacksonville, but with the
summers free, he
supplemented his
income by selling
cars. That, with
his effervescent
personality and
keen conversa
tional skills, led
to him becom
ing a successful
salesman which
led to him taking
over Royal Olds-
mobile in nearby
Metairie.
He expanded his car
business career to include
real estate and banking,
becoming one of New
Orleans most successful
businessmen.
A highlight for him
came when he arranged
for Oldsmobile to supply
cars for the Sugar Bowl.
He later became Presi
dent of the Sugar Bowl
and was the genial host
when Herschel Walker
and the Bulldogs came to
town in the early eight
ies.
Archie Manning
became a friend and
spokesman for his deal
ership. Vernon’s wife,
Patricia, and Archie’s
wife, Olivia, are the clos
est of friends. Last Sun
day night, the Brinsons’
party was set up with
television in every room.
At one point in one room
there was the Mannings’
youngest son, Eli, quar
terback of the New York
Giants being honored
with the Walter Payton
Award on network TV
with his mother watching
in the adjoining room.
Most of those who
came to the party were
Saints fans, but were Fal
con fans for the evening.
All, however, were taken
by Malcolm Mitchell’s
reading story by CBS’
Steve Hartman. Mal-
com was in Houston, 347
miles from New Orle
ans getting his game face
on while those gathered
on Audubon Boulevard
were signing his praises.
It was a signature
moment — Eli Manning
honored by the National
Football League for his
good works off the field
and Malcolm Mitch
ell reminding kids how
important it is to read.
All guests felt good.
Then there was Luke
Bryan of Leesburg, which
is 74 miles from Brin
son, singing the national
anthem with those gath
ered enjoying good food
and wine. The most pop
ular drink was the “Old
fashioned,” a traditional
Southern drink which has
stood the test of time.
There to serve an “Old
Fashioned” with a sig
nature recipe was James
Kelly Jr., a close friend
of Archie’s and Vernon’s.
James and his friend.
Pheris, are happy to share
their “Old Fashioned”
recipe with you, up to a
point.
Full disclosure is not
an option, however. This
part is transparent: Two
jiggers of bourbon over
ice; Add two to four
teaspoons of Pheris &
James Old Fashioned
Drink Mix; rim glass
with orange slice and
garnish with orange &
cherry.
What about the two to
four teaspoons of Pheris
& James Old Fashioned
Drink Mix?
“You can’t have that,”
James smiled. “That is
like the Coca-Cola for
mula. It’s top secret.”
The “Old Fashioned”
party gained momentum
like the Patriots in the
second half.
There was disappoint
ment with the Falcon
stumble. Then there was
that final scene of the
ultimate hugging rou
tine and you saw David
Andrews, the bearded,
undersized former Bull
dog center embracing
quarterback Tom Brady.
This will be an unfor
gettable moment for
David, the nephew of
Dan Reeves who knows
what it is like to come
so far and leave empty
handed.
Perhaps there will
be an “Old Fashioned”
moment for the Falcons
in the seasons to follow.
They are young, and they
are good. There are no
guarantees. The consen
sus of many who follow
the game, getting there
the first time is a lot eas
ier than making it back.
Loran Smith is a col
umnist for the Barrow
News-Journal. He is
co-host of the University
of Georgia football radio
pre-game show.
loran
smith
Random Rants in Rhyme
To my aging valentine
Valentine, our lives and hearts entwine,
and I thank God that He has made you mine.
Your cheeiy smile and lovely, lilting voice
continue to make this heart of mine rejoice.
You came into my life when things were dark
and re-ignited that sputtering spark.
That was quite a day to remember!
We were in our life’s December.
As time begins to take its troubling toll,
we still are joined together, heart and soul.
Hand in hand and heart to heart we face
whatever life may bring in this hectic race.
Though neither is as strong as we used to be,
our mutual love has grown exponentially.
Mutual love, respect and admiration
form the core of our love’s strong foundation.
Though time and tide, pain and disease assail,
a love like ours can never, ever fail.
We’ll face those problems hand in hand and weather
the storms that blow against our lives, together.
We have so much in our lives to treasure
that problems still fail to nearly equal the pleasure.
Our love grows stronger with every passing day,
and is strong enough to take us all the way.
So, Valentine, you know my love is true
and my heart beats its every beat for you.
May God grant us many more years of life
that we may celebrate being husband and wife.
© 2017, cbs
Dr. CB Skelton is a retired Winder
physician and author of several books.
Now that the House
has passed the mid-term
appropriations bill for
this fiscal year, the House
Appropriations
Committee is
focused on the
budget for the
new fiscal year
starting July 1.
Our eight
subcommittees
have been work
ing with staff
and holding
FY2018 budget
hearings.
The work will
continue this
week as well. We expect
to have the budget on the
floor of the House of Rep
resentatives by the end of
next week.
The legislature each ses
sion has one job under the
Georgia Constitution.
It is to pass a balanced
budget, and we will do
that.
We continue to follow
three guiding principles
used in writing the mid
year appropriations bill:
Be fiscally conservative.
Fund first our obligations
and critical needs. Then
invest in our State.
On an issue of impor
tance to our local fire
fighters and their families,
last Wednesday the House
Committee on Insurance
favorably reported a bill
that would require fire
departments starting in
January 2018 to provide
insurance coverage for
firefighters who develop
certain types of cancer.
Studies have shown that
firefighters are more likely
to develop cancer follow
ing exposure to carcino
gens while fighting fires.
The insurance would pro
vide a lump-sum payment
upon diagnosis, and for a
firefighter no longer able
to work because of the
cancer, 36 months of par
tial pay.
This bill appears to
address issues that led
to Gov. Nathan
Deal’s veto of
similar legislation
last year. The new
bill also has the
support of local
governments. I
am staying in
touch with the
bill’s author, Rep.
Micah Gravley
(R-Douglasville),
and plan to vote
in favor of it when
it comes to the
House floor as early as
this week.
Meanwhile, we continue
to work on House Speak
er David Ralston’s Rural
Development Initiative
and what it will look like.
I’ve been told that Rep.
Jay Powell (R-Camilla),
who is chairman of the
House Ways & Means
Committee, and I will be
co-chairing it.
Speaker Ralston’s vision
is for the panel to identify
and address the challenges
of Georgia’s rural commu
nities.
He wants us to focus on
creating the right environ
ment for private industry
to create jobs. One thing
is certain: We must come
together to ensure the
future of the areas of the
state that feed all of us
with the safest and most
affordable food supply in
the world.
Speaking of farming, the
FFA Organization, origi
nally known as the Future
Farmers of America, holds
an incredibly special place
in my heart.
I credit my FFA partic
ipation in middle school
and high school with help
ing prepare me for what I
have been able to accom
plish in my life so far.
This year marks the
100th anniversary of the
Smith-Hughes Act that
created Agricultural Edu
cation, and that is a big
deal to me and to many
others. So I have a favor
to ask.
The Georgia FFA Asso
ciation wants to recognize
the state’s oldest living
FFA participant at its April
29th convention.
With the former Statham
High School FFA Chapter
being the very first FFA
chapter in Georgia, it is
entirely possible that we
may be the home to the
state’s oldest living mem
ber.
So if you know of some
one now in their 90s who
was active in the FFA
during high school in Bar-
row or in any other Geor
gia county, please reach
out to me or to Katrina
Jones with the Geor
gia FFA Foundation at
kjones@gaaged.org.
Thank you for allowing
me the opportunity to rep
resent District 116. If you
have any questions or con
cerns, feel free to contact
me at terry @ terryengland-
forgeorgia.com or at 404-
463-2245. May God bless
you and your family, this
wonderful county, and our
great state.
Rep. England has
served in the Georgia
House since 2005. District
116 includes most of Bar-
row County. In addition to
chairing the House Appro
priations Committee, he is
an ex-officio member of
the Ways & Means Com
mittee and a member of
the Agriculture and Con
sumer Affairs Committee,
the Education Committee,
the Industry and Labor
Committee, and the Nat
ural Resources and Envi
ronment Committee.
Progress on priorities
Earlier this year, I out
lined some my priorities
for the 2017 legislative
session. I laid
out a few pro
posals which
I believe
will lead to
a cleaner
environment,
fewer gov
ernment reg
ulations and
a healthier
Georgia.
One of my
top goals for
this session
was to find a solution to
combat the spread of the
Zika Virus throughout the
state. Senate Bill 65 would
do just that, by requiring
tire dealers who already
charge a disposal fee for
tires to apply that fee to
all customers, whether the
customer takes those tires
or not. It is not a new fee
or a government fee! I
only want to take away the
incentive for an individual
to take tires away from
a store to save on a dis
posal fee to later illegally
dump the tires where, we,
the law abiding citizens,
have to pay for picking
them up and properly dis
posing of them. SB 65
was heard in the Senate
Natural Resources and the
Environment Committee
and earned favorable con
sideration from my fellow
committee members. I am
eager to present this bill
to the Senate to codify
this measure which would
protect the health of many
in our state.
I also dropped two other
proposals this week. The
first is Senate Bill 115
which calls for the prohi
bition of the sale of eth
anol gasoline throughout
Georgia. It’s no secret that
ethanol gasoline
can wreak havoc
on small engines
and motors. Cars,
motorcycles, boats
and tools all have
engine parts that
will deteriorate over
time if exposed to
gasoline with eth
anol. Ethanol free
gasoline runs clean
er and leads to fewer
long-term issues
such as corroding
underground fuel tanks
and carburetor failures. It
is my hope that by passing
this bill, we can begin to
phase out ethanol gasoline
and return to a more effi
cient alternative: ethanol
free gasoline.
The second, Senate
Bill 116, would pre
vent a storm water fee
from being charged on
water-neutral properties.
As it stands, a storm
water fee is levied by
some local government
which helps them cover
the cost of storm water
maintenance and MS4
permit requirements.
These fees can unfairly
penalize property owners
who install retention and
detention ponds and other
storm water management
features to handle their
storm water runoff.
These citizens are
spending their money
upfront to address the
storm water load, so they
shouldn’t be charged a
storm water maintenance
fee.
In the coming days,
both of these bills will
be assigned to committees
frank
where they will be dis
cussed and debated. I feel
that these are all important
measures that would ben
efit the lives of all Geor
gians. It is a great honor to
represent the 47th Senate
District, and I encourage
you to continue reaching
out with comments, ques
tions and concerns.
Sen. Frank Ginn serves
as Chairman of the Nat
ural Resources and Envi
ronment Committee. He
represents the 47th Senate
District, which includes
Barrow and Madison
counties, and portions of
Clarke and Jackson coun
ties. He may be reached at
404.656.4700 or by email
at frank.ginn@ senate.
ga.gov.
Headmaster’s
Comer
by
Steve Cummings
DAR WINNERS! - Congrat
ulations to ACS Eighth Grader
Jackson McCrudden, who re
cently won the DAR American
History Essay Contest. This
annual writing competition is
sponsored by the Elijah Clarke
Chapter of the Daughters of the
American Revolution, and this
year’s theme was “Celebrating
a Century: America’s National
Parks.”
The DAR Essay Contest was
established to encourage young
people to think creatively about
our nation’s great history. ACS
thanks our local DAR Chapter
for promoting this important ed
ucational activity each year.
In addition to Jackson’s ac
complishment, ACS Senior Cal
vin Pettyjohn was recognized as
a DAR Good Citizen at the Jan
uary 21 luncheon. Calvin was
one of our local seniors to win
this prestigious award. Congrats
to both Jackson and Calvin.
ATHENS
CHRISTIAN SCHOOL
“Affordable Quality Education Since 1970"
K3-12TH CALL (706) 549-7586
www.athenschristian.com