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Thursday, July 1, 2021
The Upson Beacon
Mr. Bobby Lee Raglin
Mr. Bobby Lee Raglin,
age 56, of Yatesville High
way in Yatesville, more af
fectionately known as
"Bru,” passed Sunday, June
20, 2021 at his residence.
Graveside services were
held Saturday, June 26, at
Mt. Zion Cemetery in Ya
tesville. Pastor Robert Rele-
ford officiated, assisted by
Deacon Kenneth Campbell
and Evangelist Nicole Rut
land.
Mr. Raglin graduated
from Upson High School.
After graduation he en
listed in the United States
Army, serving from 1984
until 1987. He was a
member of Mount Zion
Baptist Church in Yates
ville. He owned and oper
ated his own lawn care
service.
He was survived by
three children, Keonshae
Raglin, Quardarius Raglin,
and Ny'Asia Raglin, all of
Barnesville; his longtime
companion, Ms. Stephanie
Byrd of Barnesville; two
sisters, Ms. Elaine Willis of
Yatesville and Mrs. Leila
Harris of Barnesville; one
brother, Mr. Willie Steve
Harris of Barnesville; one
brother-in-law, Mr. Ricky
Smith of Thomaston; one
aunt, Ms. Ada Campbell;
one uncle, Mr. Douglas Ra
glin; his cousin and best
friend, Mr. Donald "Duck"
Campbell of Yatesville; a
host of nieces, nephews,
cousins, and other relatives
and friends.
Trice Funeral Home
was in charge of the ar
rangements.
24-Hour Obituary Line
Vail anytime - dag or night
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321 Hannah's Mill Rd. - Thomaston - 706-647-9681
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Crystal Hill Monument Co.
Let us help you create a fitting
tribute to a loved one.
706-647-9685
A division of Coggins Funeral Home
Call Ryan Fulghum or Kenny Coggins
BARNESVILLE
Marble & Granite Company
Serving Middle Georgia for 112 Years
Designers
& Manufacturers of
Marble, Granite
and Bronze
Memorials
Since 1908
Owned and Operated by
George and Janice Moore
770.358.1470
124 Railroad Street • Barnesville
The Upson Beacon (ISSN or USPS 25625)
July 1,2021 - Volume 14, Number 26
Published Weekly by Upson Newspapers, Inc.
219 Thomas Street, Thomaston, GA 30286
P: 706-646-2382
Subscription Price:
$29 Per Year in Upson County
$39 Per Year in State; $49 Per Year out of State
Periodicals Postage Pending or Paid at Thomaston, GA
Postmaster:
Please send address changes to
The Upson Beacon, 108 East Gordon Street, Thomaston, Ga 30286
Debbie McClain
Publisher & Advertising Director • dlord@upsonbeacon.com
Bridge Turner
General Manager & Managing Editor • bturner@upsonbeacon.com
Luke Haney
Editor & Digital Media Coordinator• lhaney@upsonbeacon.com
Allie Parnell
Marketing & Sales Manager • aparnell@upsonbeacon.com
Jacob Stewart
Sports Editor & Photographer • sports@upsonbeacon.com
Jean Render
Office Manager & Human Resources • jrender@upsonbeacon.com
The Upson Beacon is proudly published for the citizens of Upson County
by Upson Newspapers, Inc., locally owned and operated by Debbie McClain
and Bridge Turner. Our goal is to produce quality, community-oriented pub
lications of which our readers can be proud. We will attain that goal through
diligence, teamwork, and dedication to printing the truth in an accurate, fair,
balanced, and objective manner.
Policies: Signed letters to the editor are welcomed and encouraged. We do
not edit for content, only grammar, spelling and punctuation when necessary,
as designated by Associated Press style guidelines. Unsigned, libelous, or
profane letters will not be published. Please limit letters to 400 words or less.
Liability for errors in advertising will not exceed the space occupied by the
error. We reserve the right to edit all submitted materials.
Funeral Notices
Mr. Raymond
Lee Eubanks
Mr. Raymond Lee Eu
banks, age 48, of Thomas
ton, passed away on June
17, 2021, from a massive
heart attack.
He was born Dec. 3,
1972, the son of the late
Cherry Ledford (June
Bug), Ronnie Eubanks,
and stepmother Irene Eu
banks.
Before becoming dis
abled, Raymond worked as
a painter. He had a pas
sion for fishing, just like
his mother. He created the
BB BOOM and caught
many big bass with it. He
especially enjoyed his time
at The Light House Church
lake and Panama City, but
as long as he had a pole in
his hand and family or
friends by his side, he was
a happy man.
Raymond followed in
his dad’s footsteps and
loved working on older
cars with him, Michael,
Fat Back, and Bo. The ‘55
Chevrolet was his favorite.
Even though Raymond
fought many battles, he
loved Jesus Christ with his
whole heart. He would
preach the Bible to anyone
who would listen and he
loved to sing old gospel
hymns, country, and rock.
He not only had a passion
to feed the homeless, he
had taken his own clothes
off his back and shoes off
his feet many times to give
to others in need. He loved
selfishly and deeply!
If you knew Raymond,
you knew he loved to cut
up, joke, and make every
one around him laugh.
That’s how he would want
to be remembered.
In addition to his par
ents, he was preceded in
death by his granny,
Blanch Turner; niece,
Christina Marie Ledford;
and best friend, Jerry
McConnell.
He is survived by his
daughter, Nikkie Kersey
(Ricky); grandchildren,
Dawson Davis, Lee Mann
(LA), Jade Kersey, and
Karma Kersey; sisters,
Cherry Ledford, Kay Al
britton, Pat Dukes (John),
and Betty Gail Eubanks, all
from Thomaston, Tammy
Wiley (Joe) from Means-
ville, and Abbie Sue Eu
banks from Zebulon;
brothers, Bryan Ledford
from Thomaston and Rob
ert Eubanks from Zebulon;
fiance, Lisa Hammock and
son Dawton Hammock;
stepmother, Brenda
Walden from Zebulon;
and a host of nieces and
nephews.
It was Raymond’s
choice to be cremated. A
celebration of his life was
held on Tuesday, June 29,
in Meansville.
Moody-Daniel Funeral
Home assisted the family
with arrangements.
Mr. Tyrone
Weaver, Sr.
Mr. Tyrone Weaver,
Sr., age 63, of North Bethel
Street, passed Monday,
June 21, 2021 at his res
idence.
Funeral services were
held Saturday, June 26 in
George E. Trice, Jr. Me
morial Chapel. Pastor
Ralph Searcy officiated,
assisted by Rev. Edgar
Lamar and Evangelist San
dra T. Trice.
Mr. Weaver was edu
cated in Upson County
public schools. He was a
member of Midway Bap
tist Church. He was em
ployed by Pitts Plumbing
for more than 30 years.
He was survived by one
son, Tyrone Weaver, Jr. of
Thomaston; two grand
sons, Tahir Weaver and
Jeremiah Weaver, both of
Thomaston; three sisters,
Mrs. Ad die Dixon of
Molena, Ms. Willie Pearl
Buffin and Ms.
Mary Lucille Weaver, both
of Thomaston; one
brother, Mr. Robert Lee
Weaver of Thomaston;
several sisters and
brothers-in-law; the
Searcy family of Thomas
ton; and a host of nieces,
nephews, cousins, and
other relatives and friends.
Trice Funeral Home
was in charge of the ar
rangements.
Mr. Billy
Harvey Williams
Mr. Billy Harvey Wil
liams, age 85, of Thomas
ton, passed away
Saturday, June 26, 2021 at
Upson Regional Medical
Center.
Mr. Williams was born
April 25, 1936 in Bartow,
to the late Carl Harvey
Williams and the late Mary
Ola Cox Williams. He
worked for the Georgia
Department of Transpor
tation as a civil engineer
for many years until his re
tirement. Mr. Williams is a
member of Fellowship
Baptist Church. He served
his country in the U.S.
Army National Guard.
In addition to his par
ents, he was preceded in
death by his sister, Edith
Williams McSwain. He
loved NASCAR and was an
avid Kyle Bush fan.
Survivors include his
wife, Carlene Garner Wil
liams of Thomaston;
daughters, Regina Wil
liams (John) Warnock of
Bay Springs, Miss, and
Ashley Williams Salter of
LaGrange; brother, Bruce
Williams of East Ridge
Tenn.; and grandchildren,
Brayden Salter and Gray
son Salter.
Funeral services were
held Monday June 28,
from the chapel of Coggins
Funeral Home. Burial fol
lowed in Southview Ceme
tery.
Donations can be made
to St. Jude Children's Hos
pital at 501 St. Jude Place,
Memphis, TN 38105.
You may sign the on
line guest book and share
your own special thoughts
with Mr. Williams’ family
by visiting the Coggins Fu
neral Home website at
cogginsfuneralhome. com.
Coggins Funeral Home in
Thomaston had the privi
lege of being entrusted
with arrangements.
The Upson
Beacon
Yearly Subscriptions
are Just $29 in
Upson County,
$39 in state &
$49 out of state.
City, County Offices Closed Monday
City of Thomaston and Upson
County offices will be closed Mon
day, July 5 in observance of Inde
pendence Day and will reopen
Tuesday, July 6 for normal hours of
operation.
Hightower Memorial Library and
the Yatesville Public Library also will
be closed Monday.
The Thomaston-Upson County
Library Board of Trustees will hold a
board meeting at 6 p.m. Tuesday,
July 6 in the Ed Bell Multi-purpose
Room at Hightower Memorial. The
public is invited to attend.
Bill Roberts Electrical Celebrates 12 Years
Bill Roberts Electrical,
Inc., established 2009,
recently celebrated 12
years in business and
nearly one year in its
new location with a rib
bon cutting ceremony,
hosted by the Thomas-
ton-Upson Chamber of
Commerce. Bill Roberts,
along with his family
and staff, welcomed
members of the com
munity into his business
with breakfast and re
freshments before cut
ting the big, red ribbon.
Bill Roberts Electrical,
Inc. is located at 1615
Highway 19 North in
Thomaston.
Beyond the Bell Holds Town Hall
Beyond the Bell held a
town hall event recently at
the playground on park at
311 Park Street in Thomas
ton. With dozens of children
and many adult participants
in attendance, the rain did
not deter Beyond the Bell
from sharing its message
with those in the community.
The event included light
refreshments, fun giveaways
such as T-shirts and totes,
and a featured speaker who
spoke about the importance
of prevention programs and
the impact that Beyond The
Bell has had on the Upson
County community the past
five years.
Local youth substance
use statistics from the Geor
gia Department of Education
show a continual decrease in
tobacco, alcohol, and mari
juana, while vaping has in
creased from 2018 to 2020,
according to BTB officials.
Beyond the Bell provides
an underage alcohol and
substance use prevention
program that includes free
life skills classes and offers
many interactive initiatives
for youth to participate in,
such as leadership training,
educational trips, com
munity service projects, and
networking opportunities.
“It is important that
young people in our com
munity know about the
dangers of substance abuse
and how easily it can get out
of control,” said Region 6
Project Coordinator Amanda
Smith. “This community
event is one of our initiatives
designed to present the
youth and adults of our com
munity with the facts about
substance use in a support
ive, nonjudgmental way.”
Along with the Depart
ment of Behavioral Health
and Developmental Disabil
ities and Substance Abuse
and Mental Health Services
Administration, who spon
sors the town hall event
every two years, Beyond The
Bell provides tools and ev
idence-based strategies that
train, educate, and support
youth and families in the
prevention of alcohol, mari
juana, and tobacco use and
abuse in the local com
munity.
For more information
about Beyond The Bell and
its programs/resources,
please visit www.beyondthe-
bellkids.org or find them on
Facebook/Instagram at Bey
ond The Bell Upson County.
Photo by Luke Haney
Town Hall participants hold a graph showcasing changes
in Upson County Youth Substance Use Statistics.