Lady Tigers softball
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INSIDE, 4B
DawsonCountyNews
WEDNESDAY I OCTOBER 20, 2021 DaWSOflNeWS ^COITI DAWSONVILLE, GEORGIA $1.00
The necessities of the Moonshine Festival
Here’s a quick guide to the 54th Annual Mountain Moonshine Festival
By Erica Jones
ejones@dawsonnews.com
The 54th annual
Mountain Moonshine
Festival is finally here
this weekend, and dozens
of people both in and
outside of Dawson
County are excited for it
to officially kick off.
With only a few short
days left until the festival
starts, here’s all the
information you need to
know about it.
What is it?
The Moonshine Festival
is a weekend-long, annual
event put on by local non
profit K.A.R.E. for Kids.
All the profits that
K.A.R.E. raises go to
helping fund the organiza
tion’s Christmas program,
which provides Christmas
presents to local children
whose families are in need
of a little extra help.
The festival includes
dozens of vendors selling
decorations, clothing,
homemade crafts and
other wares, food vendors,
a car show, swap meet,
parade, live entertainment
and moonshine run.
Where is it?
The festival will be set
up in and around Main
Street Park in downtown
Dawsonville. The car
show will be outside
around the Georgia
Racing Hall of Fame, and
vendors will be set up
throughout the entirety of
the park and down Allen
Street. Events like the
moonshine run and parade
will take place in or
around the Dawsonville
square too.
When is it?
The festival will be
from Friday, Oct. 22
through Sunday, Oct. 24.
The festival, car show and
swap meet will run from 8
a.m. to 5 p.m. each day.
The Moonshine Run
will be on Friday Oct. 22
at 9:30 a.m. and will
depart from Bearden’s
Funeral Home. The parade
will be on Saturday Oct.
23 at 9 a.m.
What else do I need
to know?
This year’s Grand
Marshal for the
Mountain Moonshine
Festival is local man
Gordon Pirkle. As the
Grand Marshal, Pirkle
will have the honor of
leading the parade and
officially kicking off the
festival.
No pets or golf carts
are allowed at the festi
val. RV parking is avail
able if needed.
For more information
about the Mountain
Moonshine Festival or
about K.A.R.E. for Kids,
go to http://www.kare-
forkids.org/ or check the
Dawson County News
Moonshine Guide insert
in your newspaper.
‘You can do hard things’
Johnson selected as Dawson County Schools Teacher of the Year
By Erica Jones
ejones@dawsonnews.com
The Dawson County School System
has officially chosen the district’s
2021-22 Teacher of the Year: Carson
Johnson, a Special Education teacher
at Riverview Elementary School.
Johnson has been teaching for about
16 years, four of which have been in
the Dawson County School System.
She teaches special education classes
for kindergarten-fifth grade, and cur
rently teaches third through fifth grade.
Johnson said she first started teach
ing special education classes because
she’s always been interested in giving
personalized teaching to help a child
succeed.
“Special education in particular was
very intriguing to me,” Johnson said.
“I’m a problem solver and I love to try
to figure out the best way to teach a
child, so in special education every
child’s brain and needs are so unique
so it’s fascinating to me — I love that.”
But more than just helping children
figure out how to succeed, Johnson
said special education holds a place in
her heart because the specialized needs
and hurdles her students must over
come hit close to home.
“My daughter gets special ed servic
es and that’s what spurs me on, and
she is now in middle school and I
empathize with every student who has
a learning difference,” Johnson said.
“They have to work so much harder at
everything than everybody else does.”
Because of this, Johnson said she
always teaches by her motto that hangs
in her classroom: ‘you can do hard
things’.
“I tell my students that I know this is
hard and I can empathize with you,”
Johnson said. “I just tell them, ‘listen I
know it’s hard, I believe you, but you
can do hard things’ and tell them
‘we’re gonna persevere, we’re gonna
get through it, and you’re gonna be
such a strong person when you get on
the other side of it’.”
Through her 16 years of teaching,
Johnson said she’s gotten to see her
See Teacher12A
Photo courtesy of Carson Johnson
Carson Johnson has been named as the Dawson County Schools 2021-22
Teacher of the Year.
North Georgia
Premium Outlets
to be closed on
Thanksgiving
By staff reports
The North Georgia Premium Outlets in
Dawson County will be closed this
Thanksgiving Day, Thursday Nov. 25, in
observance of the holiday, according to a
release by Simon Property Group Inc.
The outlet mall, which was closed last
year for the holiday, will be closed for
business on Thanksgiving Day, as will all
other domestic properties owned by
Simon Property Group. The malls will
reopen for business on Black Friday
going by individual mall hours.
According to the North Georgia
Premium Outlets website, the outlet mall
will reopen the day after Thanksgiving,
Friday November 26, for Black Friday
shoppers and be open from 6 a.m. to 9
p.m.
For more information about the North
Georgia Premium Outlets, including
hours, directions and a list of stores in the
mall, go to https://www.premiumoutlets.
com/outlet/north-georgia.
Roberts indicted in
Duckworth murder case
Julia Fechter
jfechter@dawsonnews.com
Fast week, Dawson County 20-year-
old Daniel Fee Roberts
was officially indicted
for his alleged role in
causing Dahlonega
19-year-old Kaleb
Duckworth’s death
because of a July 25
fight at the Dawson
County Applebee’s. Roberts
The state of Georgia K0DerTS
charged Roberts with
two counts of felony murder, aggravat
ed assault and aggravated battery on
Oct. 5.
During his fight with Duckworth, the
See Roberts 12A
0
9 0 9 9 4
Inside
Volume 7, Number 38
© 2021, Dawson County News
Dawsonville, Georgia
Events 2B
(BOE honors
8A rx: [ HS
Dear Abby 6B
teachers of
celebrates 5
Deaths 2A
the year
REACH
Legals 9B
Opinion 9A
scholars
Sports 1B
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