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16 Pages, 2 Sections
A Publication of MainStreet Newspapers, Inc. Winder, Barrow County, Georgia $1.00 Copy Wednesday, May 3, 2023
‘The best thing Barrow does 5
Yes, I Can! Celebration held
Barrow County School System’s 13th annual Yes,
I Can! Celebration was held at Chateau Elan in a
“Night Under the Stars” themed evening dedicated
to celebrating exceptional students.
The Apalachee High School Jazz Band Ensemble
welcomed guests with music and the Barrow Arts
and Sciences Academy Chamber Ensemble per
formed two inspirational songs.
The keynote speaker was Dr. Allison Nealy, a clin
ical professor at the University of Georgia’s Depart
ment of Communication Studies and Special Edu
cation and the department head of Language and
Literacy Education.
Chosen from over 2,500 students in Barrow Coun
ty, teachers nominated and selected each of the fol
lowing school winners based on their outstanding
accomplishments.
The “Yes I Can” award is modeled after the state
and national award given by the Council for Excep
tional Children. Any Barrow County student in an
Individualized Education Program (IEP) is eligible.
BCSS extended special gratitude to all of those
who supported this year’s event, including Dr.
Ken and Susan Greene, Harry and Janet Butcher,
Ryan and Kim Butcher, Stephen and Jessica Smith,
Chateau Elan and Bethlehem Church.
The following are this year’s award recipients:
• Tariyah James - Auburn Elementary
• Josiah Brown - Bethlehem Elementary
• Noah Barlan - Bramlett Elementary
• Drake Miller - County Line Elementary
• Matthew Bentley - Holsenbeck Elementary
• Sara Maldonado-Espinoza - Kennedy Elementary
• Judson Smith - Statham Elementary
• District Elementary School Winner:
Ja’Khyla Griffis - Winder Elementary
• Jerry White Jr. -Yargo Elementary
• Aiden Norris - Arts & Innovation Magnet
• Shaylin Rust - Bear Creek Middle
• Laureen Francillon - Haymon-Morris Middle
• District Middle/High School Winner:
Timothy Sellers - Russell Middle
• Kerigan Murdock - Westside Middle
• Porsche McKenzie - Apalachee High
• Anthony Hatton - Barrow Arts & Sciences Acad
emy
• Nicholas Rayner - Winder-Barrow High
Credit: BCSS
Pictured: Kennedy Elementary principal Ryan Butch
er and award winner Sara Maldonado-Espinoza at the
Yes, I Can! Celebration.
Credit: SES
Statham Elementary’s Yes, I Can! award winner
Judson Smith.
District middle/high school Yes, I Can!’ award winner
Timothy Sellers (pictured center left) and district
elementary school winner Ja’Khyla Griffis (pictured
center right).
Winder mayor casts tie-breaking vote
in favor of subdivision on Lays Drive
Credit: Planners and Engineers Collaborative
One of the five home elevations presented to council in
the approved proposal,
By Morgan Ervin
morgan@barrownewsj ournal. com
A Planned Unit Devel
opment (PUD) consisting
of 185 single-family de
tached lots on Lays Drive
(Hwy. 82), St. Germaine
Place and East Broad
Street was approved
with Mayor Maynard’s
tie-breaking vote in favor
of the application during
the Winder City Coun
cil’s voting session Tues
day. Councilmembers
Jimmy Terrell, Stephanie
Brit and Travis Singley
voted against the appli
cation, which was first
presented to the council
in April 2022 and has
since undergone seven
revisions.
The roughly 75-acre
property, owned by Mar
garet Hamway, is bro
ken up into five parcels,
three of which are cur
rently zoned in the City
of Winder’s low-density,
single-family residential
district and the remaining
two parcels are located in
Barrow County’s agricul
tural zoning district.
The applicant, Integrity
Development Group, will
annex the two parcels,
totaling roughly 15 acres,
currently zoned in Bar-
row County into the City
of Winder’s PUD district.
See Winder, page 2A
MAILING LABEL
.:
BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB OF WINDER-BARROW
COUNTY RAISES OVER $50,000 AT ANNUAL
‘STEAK AND STEAK DINNER FUNDRAISER
JMcLane Productions
The Boys and Girls Club of Winder-Barrow County’s 2023 Steak & Steak fundraiser
was a success as more than $50,000 was raised at the club’s 19th annual event. This
year’s event featured WNBA player and Winder-Barrow High School alumnus Olivia
Nelson-Ododa.
Submitted photo
Pictured (from left): Josephine Buckland, Rep. Collins,
Rebecca Nicholson
Winder cadets
headed to
prestigious U.S.
service academies
Two young ladies from Winder were celebrated on
Monday, April 24, during a signing ceremony at Geor
gia Military College (GMC), where Representative
Mike Collins (GA-10) congratulated them for earning
appointments to service academies.
Cadet Rebecca Nicholson accepted an appointment
to the U.S. Military Academy (USMA) in West Point,
New York. Rebecca is a resident of Winder and a 2022
graduate of Winder-Barrow High School, where she
participated in the U.S. Army Junior ROTC program.
Cadet Josephine Buckland also accepted an offer of
appointment to the U.S. Air Force Academy (USAFA)
in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Josephine is a resident
of Winder and a 2022 graduate of Dacula Classical
Academy.
Both Buckland and Nicholson completed a challeng
ing academic curriculum and participated in the GMC
Corp of Cadets where they focused on preparing for
the service academies.
“I had the honor of meeting with Josephine Buck-
land and Rebecca Nicholson to congratulate them on
their appointment to the U.S. Service Academies. Both
cadets are remarkable young women, and we are grate
ful for their sense of duty and willingness to serve our
country. I could not be prouder of young Georgians
committed to preparing themselves to serve as future
officers and leaders in the military,” said Rep. Collins.
The young women will enter their respective acad
emies in June 2023 and upon graduation will become
commissioned officers in the United States Armed
Forces.
Upcoming concerts and performances at Innovation
Amphitheater include the final show of the Cultural
Connections series, followed by a list of concerts for
the community to enjoy all summer long.
Summer events
at Innovation
Amphitheater
CULTURAL CONNECTIONS
Held at the Innovation Amphitheater in partnership with
the Georgia Council for the Arts, the Cultural Connec
tions series brings professional artists to Barrow County
and provides affordable and entertaining evenings of mu
sic, dance, poetry and more. In addition, Barrow’s own
student artists present audience members with a special
opening performance.
HANSEL AND GRETEL:
THE ATLANTA OPERA STUDIO TOUR
Tuesday, May 9 at 7:30 — 9 p.m.
Admission: $10
The Atlanta Opera Studio Tour will be returning to Bar-
row after last year’s debut performance at the Innovation
Amphitheater wowed the audience. This year’s tour visit
features two performances of Engelbert Humperdinck’s
take on the fairy tale “Hansel and Gretel.” A daytime
show will provide an exciting field-trip opportunity for as
many as 1,200 elementary students to experience live op
era for the first time, and an evening performance will be
open to the community at large. The audience members of
the evening show will also enjoy opening performances
featuring highlights from several of the school system’s
musical theater programs.
SUMMER CONCERTS
Innovation Amphitheater will also host a series of con-
See Concerts, page 2A
o
