Newspaper Page Text
Area man celebrates
drug court success story
LOCAL, 4A
Football team
remains undefeated
SPORTS, 1B
^DawsonCountyNews
WEDNESDAY I SEPTEMBER 26, 2018 DaWSOflNeWS ^COITI DAWSONVILLE, GEORGIA $1.00
Officials respond to prayer complaint
Dawson schools say football team’s character coach will remain as volunteer
By Jessica Brown
jbrown@dawsonnews.com
A character coach will con
tinue his volunteer role but will
no longer lead students in
prayer following a complaint
made about prayer before
Dawson County High School
football games, according to
Dawson County Schools.
Students will continue gather
ing voluntarily to express their
beliefs and any prayers at the
school will be student led.
The Freedom From Religion
Foundation, a national nonprof
it organization, on Sept. 21
requested the school system
investigate a resident’s com
plaint about Russell Davis, who
was featured on the Dawson
County High School football
team website as “football char
acter coach.” Monday evening,
his title simply read “volun
teer.”
A video posted by a parent
on Facebook Sept. 7 shows
Davis, a pastor at Etowah
Church, leading the Dawson
County Tigers and children
from a local parks and recre
ation football team in prayer in
the high school locker room
before a game against the West
Hall Spartans.
The video had received more
than 68,000 views as of
Tuesday afternoon.
Dawson County Schools
Superintendent Damon Gibbs
said Monday afternoon that the
school system was made aware
that a letter on behalf of the
foundation was sent to the
attorney for the district.
After “reviewing the infor
mation provided and conversa
tions with appropriate school
officials, the district is commit
ted to following the parameters
set forth in the First
Amendment, and the court
decisions interpreting the First
Amendment, relating to both
the establishment of religion
and student’s rights to exercise
See Prayer 19A
:
y if' h
Jessica Brown Dawson County News
Fausett Farms celebrated the first day of fall by opening its sunflower fields Sept. 22. Over the next
month visitors will be able to stop by the farm located off Hwy. 136 West from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. seven
days a week to enjoy the 30 acres of sunflowers the farm has to offer.
Commission
chair to present
2019 budget
By Allie Dean
adean@dawsonnews.com
Dawson County Board of Commissioners
Chairman Billy Thurmond is scheduled to present
his recommendations for the 2019 spending plan to
the rest of the board on Thursday.
Three public hearings will follow at 6 p.m. Oct. 4,
4 p.m. Oct. 11 and 6 p.m. Oct. 18. The board could
vote to adopt the budget at the Oct. 18 meeting.
County budget hearings were held in August and
department heads presented around $26.8 million in
general fund requests, with $2.4 million additional
in personnel requests and $7.8 million additional in
capital requests.
Since then several items have made their way
onto BOC agendas for a vote due to their more
urgent nature.
On Sept. 6, the board voted unanimously to
approve a $27,300 expenditure for security and
monitoring for the county’s computer systems
through the rest of 2018.
See Budget 17A
Autumn fun is in the air
Events, destinations for leaf lookers abound in north Georgia
Woman dies in
head-on collision
By Jessica Brown
jbrown@dawsonnews.com
Dawsonville welcomed the first
day of fall Sept. 22 and there are
plenty of activities in Dawson
County to keep visitors and resi
dents alike in the fall spirit.
Sunflowers at Fausett Farms
A family farm since 1858,
Fausett Farms has been offering fall
enthusiasts beautiful mountain
scenery and over 30 acres of gold
en sunflowers since 2011. The farm
also offers miles and miles of horse
riding trails, mule drawn wagon
rides, barbecue sandwiches and
local honey. Pets are welcome to
enjoy the farm but must be on a
leash.
Parking is $10 per car. The farm
will be open for the next month
from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. seven days a
week. Fausett Farms is at 11336
Hwy. 136 West in Dawsonville.
Burt’s Pumpkin Farm
Nestled off Hwy. 52 down the
road from Fausett Farms is the fam
ily-owned farm that offers visitors
a wide assortment of fun. From the
colorful orange pumpkins of all
sizes to daily hayrides across the
farm to the country store filled with
fresh baked treats, Burt’s Pumpkin
Farm offers something for every
one. The pumpkin patch and gener
al store are open daily from 9 a.m.
to 6 p.m. in September and October
and from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in
November. Admission and parking
are free. Burt’s Farm is located at 5
Burts Pumpkin Farm Road in
Dawsonville.
Uncle Shuck’s Com Maze
Just off Hwy. 53, Uncle Shuck’s
Corn Maze has fun for the whole
family. There are approximately
four miles of trails in the 12-acre
corn field sure to keep even the
most seasoned corn maze experts
entertained but easy enough for
beginners to enjoy. Every Friday
and Saturday night in October
Uncle Shuck’s will present The
Dark Rows, a haunted corn maze
nighttime adventure for those brave
enough to enter the corn maze lit
only by the moon.
See Fall |7A
By Allie Dean
adean@dawsonnews.com
A two-vehicle head-on collision killed one and
injured another Sept. 21 at the intersection of Ga.
400 and Hwy. 53.
According to a report from Georgia State Patrol,
at approximately 9:15 a.m. Friday, a black Toyota
Prius driven by Sherri Deal, 55, of Sugar Hill, was
traveling north on Ga. 400 in the right lane of the
left turn lanes that continue to Hwy. 53 west.
Another vehicle, a red Jeep Grand Cherokee driv
en by Benny Smith, 66, of Gainesville, was travel
ing south on Ga. 400 in the left lane.
Deal failed to obey the traffic control device and
ran the red light, the report states. The front of
Smith’s car struck the front passenger side of Deal’s
car.
Deal was transported to Northeast Georgia
See Crash 19A
0
9 0 9 9
Inside
Volume 4, Number 1
© 2018, Dawson County News
Dawsonville, Georgia
Church Events
3B
Classifieds
9B
Dear Abby
8B
Deaths
2A
Legals
10B
Opinion
11A
Sports
1B
3A Dawson in
top 25 in state
in graduation
rate
5A Longtime
L literacy
advocate
retires
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