Newspaper Page Text
Wednesday, October 23,2019
dawsonnews.com I DAWSON COUNTY NEWS I 5A
Stewart named to Zell Miller Foundation
Leadership Institute Class of 2020
Family Connection to
hold poverty simulation
From staff reports
By Jessica Taylor
jtaylor@dawsonnews.com
For one afternoon, a group of
volunteers are about to find out
what it’s like to live in poverty.
Dawson County Family
Connection is hosting its fifth
poverty simulation from 1 p.m.
to 3:30 p.m. on Nov. 13. It is
being facilitated by the
University of Georgia extension
service.
“It’s a simulation of what
people living in poverty face on
a daily basis, hardships, the
roadblocks,” said Nancy Stites,
Family Connection
Coordinator.
Booths will be set up around
the outside of the gym at
Veterans Memorial Park that
represent different agencies and
organizations that are often the
roadblocks faced by low-
income families.
From bankers to social ser
vices to pawn shops to commu
nity action teams, volunteers
will be set up around the park
to make the simulation feel as
real as possible. Participants
will receive a packet of infor
mation detailing the person they
are portraying and what their
goals are for the duration of the
two hour experience. The simu
lation is broken down into four
parts, representing the passage
of four weeks, in which time
participants will need to keep
their homes, feed their families
and pay their bills.
“We really want this to be an
education for the participants
because we think with aware
ness you’ll be able to impact
the way you address poverty in
your community,” Stites said.
“You’ll understand it better.”
For nearly 10 percent of
Dawson County residents, liv
ing in poverty is a reality. Stites
hopes that this year’s simulation
will result in a way to help
those living in poverty.
The 2019-20 Leadership
Dawson class will be participat
ing in the simulation, but it is
open and free for anyone who
wishes to participate. Stites said
she would like to have around
50 to 60 participants this year.
“I think those people working
with individuals in poverty, it
will have the greatest impact,”
Stites said. “It gives them a bet
ter understanding, the obstacles
that people face so maybe you
can help them get around those
obstacles or prevent them from
ever running into that obstacle.”
Over the years Stites has over
seen the simulation, it always
begins the same. Participants
grab their packets and perceive
the simulation to be a fun role-
playing game, but by the end of
the experience, many are left
feeling frustrated and anxious.
“There is not that lighthearted
atmosphere. It’s like they’re tak
ing it seriously and they’re real
izing this is not a game,” Stites
said. “It’s real.”
According to Stites, partici
pants after the simulation felt
more able to develop plans for
community action addressing
the needs of low-income fami
lies and had ideas they wanted to
discuss about community
actions that could be taken to
support families.
“When you feel like someone
understands you, the whole rela
tionship improves and that’s
what I’m hoping would hap
pen,” Stites said. “I think it’s eas
ier to make connections then and
I think connection is often what
holds people together.”
Anyone interested can sign
up by calling Family
Connection at (706) 265-1981.
Dawson County Tax
Commissioner Nicole Stewart was
recently named a member of the
Zell Miller Leadership Institute
Class of 2020.
The Leadership Institute is a year
long leadership development pro
gram designed to explore the life,
legacy and core values Zell Miller
believed were essential to becoming
a more effective leader.
“I am very impressed with the
caliber of this incoming class.
Together, they represent a diverse
cross section of the public and pri
vate sector in our state.” said Bryan
Miller, executive chairman of the
Zell Miller Foundation. “In three
years, we have accepted 150 people
into this program. They are all prov
en leaders who use their skills and
talents to make a positive difference
in their communities.”
The Zell Miller Leadership
Institute includes five weekend
summits in Athens, Macon,
Columbus, Augusta and Savannah.
Participants are able to network
with like-minded people, hear from
leading industry experts on issues of
significant relevance in Georgia,
and learn how Zell Miller became
one of Georgia’s most respected
public servants.
Participants are chosen from a
pool of applicants who generally
range in age from late twenties to
late forties. Launched in 2018, each
class is made up of roughly fifty
participants every year.
The Zell Miller Foundation was
established in 2016 as a 501(c)3
nonprofit. The mission of the orga
nization is to preserve the legacy of
former governor and U.S. Senator
Zell Miller through programs that
promote education, leadership, and
service.
Zell Miller served as the 79th
Governor of Georgia from 1991-
1999. While a candidate for gover
nor, Miller developed a plan to cre
ate a statewide lottery exclusively
for the purpose of funding his edu
cation initiatives. As governor, he
created the HOPE Scholarship and
Georgia’s Prekindergarten program.
Today, the Georgia Lottery
Corporation has raised more than
$20 billion to fund the HOPE
Scholarship and Georgia Pre-K.
This money has allowed more than
1.8 million students to go to college
in Georgia on HOPE Scholarships,
and more than 1.6 million four-year
old children to begin their education
early.
In 2000, Miller was appointed to
the U.S. Senate by Governor Roy
Barnes to fill an unexpected vacan
cy created by the death of Senator
Paul Coverdell. He was later elected
to serve the remaining four years of
that term. Miller chose not to seek
reelection and retired from the U.S.
Senate in January 2005.
Certificate, Lapel Pin Ceremony to honor local Vietnam veterans
From staff reports
On Saturday morning, Dec. 7 at 11 a.m.,
Vietnam veterans from Georgia will have
an opportunity to take part in a public rec
ognition of their military service at a certifi
cate and lapel pin presentation ceremony in
Washington, GA.
The ceremony will be held at
Washington First United Methodist
Church, at 100 West Liberty Street in
Washington, GA.
Georgia Department of Veterans Service
Commissioner Mike Roby will present the
State’s Certificate of Honor and the Defense
Department’s Commemorative Lapel Pin to
Vietnam veterans who sign up for the cere
mony. Both are presented for honorable mil
itary service during the Vietnam War era.
The deadline to sign up is 5 p.m., Friday,
Nov. 5.
“It is never the wrong time to say thank
you to a veteran, and that is especially true
for the many Vietnam War veterans who
were never properly thanked when they
returned home,” Roby said. “We hope to
eventually present every Georgia veteran
with a Certificate of Honor recognizing
their service during the Vietnam War.”
Every Georgia veteran with honorable
service during the Vietnam War (from June
1, 1954 to May 15, 1975) is eligible to
receive this certificate. This includes veter
ans with service in-country and those who
served in other capacities.
Vietnam veterans interested in participating
should contact the GDVS Central Office via
email at bzeringue@vs.state.ga.us with their
DD Form 214 attached, or fax their informa
tion (name, address, and phone number) and
DD Form 214 to (404) 656-7006.
Submissions should be marked with
“Washington Certificates.”
For more information call Brian
Zeringue, GDVS Director of Public
Information, at (404) 656-5933.
Vietnam veterans may also receive this
honor posthumously. Surviving spouses
may receive the state certificate and a
Defense Department Certificate of Honor
and lapel pin as long as the required docu
mentation (veteran’s DD Form 214) is pre
sented with the sign up application.
The state’s recognition of these veterans
is part of the U. S. Department of Defense’s
50th Anniversary Commemoration of the
Vietnam War. The Georgia Department of
Veterans Service continues the Vietnam
War Certificate of Honor program which
began in the spring of 2015 with the sup
port and cooperation of the Office of for
mer Gov. Nathan Deal. Gov. Brian Kemp
has continued the program.
The Georgia Vietnam War Certificate of
Honor is personalized with the Vietnam
War veteran’s name, rank, branch of ser
vice, and dates of service printed over the
Seal of the State of Georgia and includes
the official U.S. Department of Defense’s
Vietnam War Commemorative Partner
logo. They are signed by Governor Kemp
and Commissioner Roby.
Of the over 28,000 certificates issued
since March 2015, over 22,000 have been
presented in over 341 “Certificate & Lapel
Pin” honors ceremonies across Georgia.
Additional information about the
Certificate of Honor Program and other
veteran benefits is available at www.veter-
ans.ga.gov.
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