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10A I DAWSON COUNTY NEWS I dawsonnews.com
Wednesday, December 19,2018
FROM 1A
Christmas
needed as far as a small family and both sides
of my grandparents were just big influences,
and my mother and father too — to make sure
that people got something, especially the less
fortunate and the ones that maybe just need a
boost in life.”
Seay, who volunteers throughout the year at
soup kitchens, said he noticed that although
there were resources for other holidays like
Thanksgiving, there was a lack of resources on
Christmas Day.
“I felt it was necessary to be able to offer this
on Christmas Day for some of the less fortunate
or someone that just wants an ear to listen to or
a shoulder to cry on,” Seay said. “They may
just need a boost to be able to speak because
they’re lonely and they don’t have family and
they just want to be around somebody. And
that’s what we are. It’s not just about the food.
It’s about the fellowship and being a part of
something.”
Dawson Feed the Hungry operated out of the
Dawsonville Tavern for the past three years, but
after the restaurant closed, Seay wasn’t sure he
would be able to organize the holiday feast
until a local celebrity stepped up to help.
“It was an emergency situation last minute
and Gordon Pirkle was gracious enough to let
me use the Georgia Racing Hall of Fame ban
quet room ... Gordon saved the day this year,
being able to keep this thing going,” Seay said.
“If we had numerous Gordon Pirkles in this
world, this place would be a better place.”
Without access to the industrial kitchen at
Dawsonville Tavern, Seay will be cooking
many food items out of his home and enlisting
the help of his mother and daughter to help pre
pare hot dishes.
Seay is also looking for additional volunteers
to provide hot dishes for the meal to be deliv
ered to the Georgia Racing Hall of Fame. Those
wishing to donate desserts or drinks can bring
those before Christmas to the GRHOF.
So far the menu will include ham, chicken,
turkey, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese,
green beans, corn, dressing, rolls, sodas and
desserts.
The Dawsonville Pool Room will be provid
ing tea and ice.
And although the event is scheduled to end at
4 p.m., if there is a line, Seay and volunteers
will stay until everyone has received a warm
meal.
In years past, Seay estimates between 700
and 800 meals have been distributed each
Christmas Day not just to Dawson County resi
dents, but the surrounding counties as well.
“We’re stretching out as far as we can to help
others,” Seay said.
If you are interested in volunteering or donat
ing food items you can call or text Seay at 770-
866-2005 or contact him on Facebook. Seay is
also taking pre-orders for delivery or pick up
that can be called in or texted as well.
“Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I
appreciate every single volunteer, every call,
every text, every single person that came to me
and gave me kind words.... It takes a village
and if it wasn’t for the volunteers and it wasn’t
for people that would give me the platform to
be able to do these things I couldn’t do it with
out their help,” Seay said. “It’s not just one per
son. It’s a community and God knows I’m not
taking any of the credit because it’s not about
me. It’s a higher power and we’re doing God’s
work.”
A ‘time when everybody smiles’
Rotary Club brings Christmas joy to senior center
Photos by Jessica Taylor Dawson County News
Santa Claus paid a visit to the Margie Weaver Senior Center to visit with senior
clients during the annual Christmas party provided by the Rotary Club of
Dawson County Dec. 13.
Seniors enjoy Christmas carols sung by local Rotary
Club members Dec. 13.
Betty Losh makes the friends at her table smile by
wearing her gift bag as a hat at the Margie Weaver
Senior Center Dec. 13.
By Jessica Taylor
jtaylor@dawsonnews.com
As the piano hummed
with classic holiday tunes
and jingle bells chimed,
the spirit of Christmas
rang loud and clear at the
Margie Weaver Senior
Center last week as seniors
gathered for the 13 th annu
al Christmas party spon
sored by the Rotary Club
of Dawson County.
Members of the Rotary
Club gathered at the senior
center Dec. 13 for a ses
sion of caroling and to
deliver Christmas gifts to
all the seniors. They also
brought a special guest,
Santa Claus, who hugged
and visited with everyone.
“I was never Santa
before Rotary. It’s amazing
what you’ll do for Rotary,”
said former club President
Pepper Pettit, who donned
the red suit this year.
After singing along to
holiday classics, Rotarians
handed out gift bags full of
goodies specially picked
out for each senior by
Director Dawn Pruett.
“Rotary graciously funds
our Christmas party gifts
for our clients here,” Pruett
said.
This year, the Rotary
Club was able to donate 50
gifts to seniors as a way to
give back to the communi
ty and put smiles on
friendly faces.
“For some of these
seniors, this will be the
only Christmas they have,”
Pettit said.
It’s an especially heart
warming time in the senior
center according to client
Helen Cowart, who reflect
ed on her past four years at
the Christmas party.
“I’m enjoying every
minute of it,” Cowart said
after receiving a gift of
gloves, lotions and a warm
hat. “This place is special.”
Cowart said that previ
ously she was a full-time
caregiver to her mother,
who battled Alzheimer’s.
As a homebound client,
Cowart became incredibly
close with Pruett. Pruett
referred to Cowart as her
second mother.
“Ms. Helen would call
us and she had no outside
contact with the world
because she was such a
good caregiver and she
would not leave her moth
er,” Pruett said. “She
would call and just need
somebody to talk to, she
needed support and she
needed a break - was what
she needed.”
When her mother passed
away in 2014, Cowart
began coming to the senior
center every day.
“I love it. I don’t miss a
day if I can help it,” Cowart
said. “Dawn and all the
girls here, they’re precious
to me. I’ve never had any
body be, you know, pre
cious as they are.”
“She says that we saved
her life but she helped save
our life too,” Pruett said.
Joe Gaines, the minister
at Cornerstone Church
who also leads Bible study
at the center every
Thursday, said he felt the
Christmas spirit in the cen
ter during the party.
“You know, this is one
time when everybody
smiles,” Gaines said. “A lot
of days people don’t feel
good. A lot of days people
have their own problems or
troubles, but this is a time
when everybody smiles so
it’s special.”
The center is such a
warm and inviting place
that Cowart is doing her
part to recruit new mem
bers so they can experi
ence the love and fellow
ship she has received.
“Come and visit. Come
and join. I’ve tried to talk
to everybody that I know
that’s old enough to come
here. I invite them. It may
not be my job but I do,”
Cowart said, smiling.
“Every one of these peo
ple in here, you know,
regardless of where they
come from or whatever
they are they still got a
soul, and they still want to
be happy and they still
want to live and they still
want to enjoy life,” Gaines
said. “So what the senior
center does it kind of gives
them a chance to, no mat
ter what their home life is,
at least when they come
here they’re protected and
they’re well fed, they’re
loved and they’re taken
care of and I think that’s
what this center means.”
FROM 1A
Firefighter
to work together to solve
these discrepancies and
guarantee proper service”
to the Burnt Mountain
area.
“Chairman Jones
believes the meeting was
in good faith from both
sides and is appreciative
for Chairman Thurmond’s
willingness to build con
structively on the partner
ship between both coun
ties,” the release reads.
“Chairman Jones is opti
mistic in the direction this
situation has taken and
believes the result will be
beneficial to all involved.”
Thurmond too said on
Monday that he believes a
resolution is in the works
that should be positive for
both counties. He con
firmed both counties are
working on a new IGA.
“Once we get that up
and done and commission
ers on each side have had a
chance to look at it we’ll
issue a joint statement
from each county commis
sion,” Thurmond said.
Thurmond said he antic
ipates the draft will be
completed within a week
or so, and once the com
missioners and emergency
services staff have looked
it over, it will be put up for
a vote by each commis
sion.
In the meantime,
Dawson County has prom
ised not to abandon the
previous IGA and contin
ues to provide emergency
services to the Wildcat
Community. A Dec. 10
statement from the county
manager reads that “mea
sures have been put in
place to ensure adequate
service now and into the
future.”
Issues with the volun
teers arose in November
when a house off Burnt
Mountain Road was
destroyed by fire and the
station was not called out
to assist. Dawson County
Emergency Services
Director Danny Thompson
acknowledged that an
issue with the county’s
computer aided dispatch
system was to blame, but
stated that it would not
have mattered if the station
was dispatched because
the support staff was not
authorized to fight fire.
Because of their status
as support staff, the volun
teers are only authorized
to lay hose and prep for
firefighters to arrive.
Thompson said he
became aware the volun
teers had been fighting fire
over the summer after a
car fire on Monument
Road, where some of the
same Dawson County vol
unteers responded wearing
street clothes to put the
flames out. A complaint
from other personnel
about policy violations
sparked a discussion about
the role of volunteers at
Station 8, and Thompson
facilitated training and
gear for as many of the
volunteers who wanted to
train to become certified to
fight live fire.
Thompson scheduled
the Dec. 4 training to start
the process, but the volun
teers who signed up
backed out.
DAWSON COUNTY, GEORGIA
SCHEDULE OF PROJECTS FINANCED WITH SPECIAL PURPOSE LOCAL OPTION SALES TAX
For the year ended December 31, 2017
Estimated Cost Expenditures
Project
Original
Current
Prior Year
Current Year
Total
SPLOST #4 - Commenced January 1,2005
Jail Construction
$ 11,500,000
$ 19,433,679
$ 19,433,679
$
$ 19,433,679
Rock Creek Recreation Center
2,500,000
2,372,559
2,372,559
2,372,559
Emergency Services Projects
3,000,000
4,244,834
4,244,834
4,244,834
Administrative Facility Building & Land
2,000,000
1,915,196
1,915,196
1,915,196
Roads and Bridges
5,500,000
7,333,095
7,333,095
7,333,095
$ 24,500,000
$ 35,299,363
$ 35,299,363
$
$ 35,299,363
SPLOST #5 - Commenced July 1, 2009
LEVEL 1 COUNTY PROJECTS
Courthouse and Administration Building
$
50,000,000
$ 30,000,000
$
36,474,488
$
$
36,474,488
Sheriffs Office
12,500,000
12,500,000
LEVEL 2 COUNTY PROJECTS
Roads, Streets, and Bridges
10,000,000
Recreational Facilities
5,000,000
Sewer Facilities
2,500,000
Library Facilities
3,000,000
Public Safety Facilities
3,900,000
Public Safety Equipment
500,000
1,977
1,977
Subtotal All County Projects
87,400,000
42,500,000
36,476,465
-
36,476,465
CITY PROJECTS 0 *
Roads, Streets, Bridges and Sidewalks
2,110,000
Water and Sewer
2,000,000
Recreation
50,000
City Allocation
150,000
272,719.00
272,719
Subtotal All City Projects
4,160,000
150,000.00
272,719.00
272,719.00
Total All Projects
$
91,560,000
$ 42,650,000
$
36,749,184
$
.
$
36,749,184
SPLOST #6-Commenced July 1, 2015
LEVEL 2 COUNTY PROJECTS
Roads, Street and Bridges
$
21,200,000
$ 21,200,000
$
2,429,744
$
5,283,865
$
7,713,609
Public Works Facilities & Equipment
2,500,000
2,500,000
60
-
60
Recydling Facility
100,000
100,000
-
Fire Station/Community Center
1,750,000
1,750,000
-
Recreational Facilities
4,067,000
4,067,000
418,396
99,847
518,243
Public Safety Vehicles& Equipment (Sheriff)
3,883,000
3,883,000
533,285
586,109
1,119,394
Public Safety Vehicles& Equipment (Fire/EMS)
2,500,000
2,500,000
1,006,282
642,573
1,648,855
Information Technology Equipment
350,000
350,000
CITY ALLOCATION
City Of Dawsonville
9.650,000
9,650,000
1,609,500
1,186,966
2,796,466
Subtotal All County Projects
$
46,000,000
$ 46,000,000
$
5,997,267
$
7,799,360
$
13,796,627
(1) The County remits the tax collected to the City who is responsible for reporting on the expenditures in accordance with OCGA 48-8-121.
Current year expenditures per SPLOST schedules $ 7,799,360
Intergovernmental reimbursements
Transfer in from General Fund 393,479
Total expenditures reported in financial statements $ 8,192,839
This report is published from audited accounts for FY2017. If you have any questions, contact the Finance Department at (706) 344-3501 Ext. 42214.