About Dawson County news. (Dawsonville, Georgia) 2015-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 8, 2021)
Wednesday, December 8,2021 dawsonnews.com I DAWSON COUNTY NEWS I 3B Why don’t kids ride bus anymore? In a town of 7,500, I found myself in a long line of traffic that would not budge. In either lane. Finally, I eased into the old Tastee Freeze lot, pulled my sewing machine from the back seat, and walked it across the road to The Common Thread where I was dropping it for repair. “What’s going on??” I exclaimed. “School pick-up line.” I stared at the jam of a hundred or more cars. “Doesn’t anyone ride the school bus anymore?” Riding the school bus for 10 years was one of the most meaningful experiences of my life. On the first day of first grade, I begged Mama to let me take the bus instead of riding with her when she went to register me. Daily, since a toddler, I sat on the front steps to watch it pass our house and dreamed of those big doors swooshing open for me. Oh, the lessons I learned from that gentle yellow bus — such as the discipline of being ready and on time. The school bus waited for no one. There was no cajol ing, threatening, or begging by Mama. I knew to be ready and waiting when it turned off the highway and headed down our road. Only once in 10 years did I miss the bus. It was a minute early, I was a minute late. My hand was on the front door knob when I heard it slow as the driver glanced around for reliable me. My heart fell as I watched its tail lights head over the bridge. I had missed the bus. Literally and figuratively, I would never do that again. A friendship from those school bus days instilled con fidence. Vicki, two years older and one of the most pop ular girls in the entire school, saved me a seat beside her every morning and afternoon. Sometimes she wore her cheerleading suit and that made me feel even more spe cial. The school bus introduced me to the seasons that come and go. In the gentle Spring, birds serenaded me as I waited at the mailbox wMle the Autumn brought a colorful array of oranges, yellows and reds to entertain me. It became my favorite season and those became the colors I wear and with which I decorate. The bitter cold Appalachian mornings left me shiver ing miserably while the rain storms forced me to shelter under the front porch, then run, books clutched tightly in my arms, as hard as I could when I saw the head lights turn the comer. Later, I realized that it was a metaphor for life: storms would rage occasionally, birds would rejoice at times, and there were be days of sheer beauty. My brother-in-law, Rodney, drove a school bus. Every afternoon, his small son waited excitedly in front of the house for Rodney to return from his route. Rodney would stop, open the doors and welcome his most cher ished passenger to ride the 20 yards to the bus’s parking place. What a memory. One of Rodney’s colleagues had a nine-year-old pas senger who was typical boyish trouble. The first child on in the morning, the last off in the afternoon, Jimmy spent every ride in a haze of flying fists and bloody noses. No amount of disciplining or trips to the princi pal’s office could deter him. In the midst of one fierce back-of-the bus battles, the driver pulled over to the side of the road. “Jimmy, come here!” he bellowed. The little boy, head hung, slunk to the front. “This fightin’ is gonna stop. TODAY.” The driver commenced into a serious come-to-Jesus. Suddenly, Jimmy’s head snapped up, his eyes widened. He was upset. “But, Mr. Jackson, you don’t understand!!!” he cried out. He pounded his chest frantically. “One day, I’M gonna win!” That particular school bus lesson has traveled with me down through the journey of life. It has served me well. Ronda Rich is the best-selling author of What Southern Women Know About Faith. Visit www.rondarich.com to sign up for her free newsletter. FROM 1B Firefighters driving record and be able to pass a background check. Open enrollment for prospective volunteers is every January, and applications can be found on the Dawson County Government website dur ing the month of January. Edwards said that, in his time as a volunteer firefighter, he’s found the job to be more than worth the time and effort. “It’s very rewarding, particularly when you make a difference in someone’s life,” Edwards said. “When we respond to a call, those people are having the worst day of their life, and being able to help them when they’re having a really bad day and a really bad time is really rewarding.” Photo submitted to Dawson County News Chris Gaines (right) this past weekend collect ing his pilot's license. FROM 1B Gaines What’s next for you now that you’re a licensed pilot? Obtaining a private pilot’s license really is the first step to more learning and training on how to improve your new skill and continu ing to become a safer pilot. I plan to move into the next level certi fication and become an instrument rated pilot hopefully in the spring of 2022 as well as a high performance endorsement so that i can fly faster planes. I guess the best line I can say is literally “the sky’s the limit” from here! Try these homemade holiday treats Who doesn’t love get ting a homemade gift from the kitchen during the holidays? Try one or all of these recipes for your family members and friends this Christmas season. Look for cute Christmas containers and glass jars at the dollar store, and use color&l ribbons to complete your cute packaging. For your friends who like to cook, include the recipe. Chocolate Fudge Sauce • 1 14 cup heavy cream • ¥i cup brown sugar • 2 tablespoons com syrup • 2 tablespoons butter • 7 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract • Pinch of salt In a saucepan, combine heavy cream, brown sugar, com syrup and butter. Heat over medium heat and stir until sugar dissolves. Boil gently for 4 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and salt. Pour into a jar and refrigerate. Poppy and Sesame Seed Crackers • 2 cups flour • 1 teaspoon baking powder • !/2 teaspoon salt • 'A cup butter • 1 tablespoon poppy seeds • 1 tablespoon sesame seeds • 4-5 tablespoons ice water Sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Stir in poppy seeds and sesame seeds. Add ice water and knead togeth er. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator for 30 min utes. Preheat oven to 350-degrees. Roll out dough on lightly floured sur face. Cut into small squares or other desired shape. Prick each with a fork a few times. Bake on parchment lined baking sheet for 12-15 minutes. Cool on wire rack. White Chocolate Peanut Butter Krispies • 2 cups Rice Krispies • 2 cups dry roasted peanuts • 2 cups mini marshmallows • 1 cup creamy peanut butter • 2 pounds white chocolate chips In a large bowl, combine cereal, peanuts, and marshmallows. In a microwaveable bowl, combine peanut butter and white chocolate chips and microwave for a minute. Stir every 30 seconds until fully melted. Pour pea nut butter/white chocolate mixture over cereal and stir to combine. Drop by tablespoons onto parchment paper lined baking sheet. Let sit for 2 hours. Slow Cooker Spiced Nuts • 2 egg whites, lightly beaten • 4 teaspoon vanilla extract • 2 cups almonds • 2 cups walnut halves • 2 cups cashews • 2 cups pecan halves • 8 teaspoons cinnamon • 2 cups sugar • 2 cups brown sugar • 4 teaspoons ground ginger • 2 teaspoons ground nutmeg • 1 teaspoon ground cloves • 14 teaspoon salt • 1/3 cup water Whisk egg whites with vanilla. Add nuts, stirring to combine. In another bowl, whisk together sugar, brown sugar, ground ginger, ground nutmeg, ground cloves, and salt. Add to nuts and pour all into a slow cooker. Cook on high for 1 V2 hours, stirring every 30 minutes. Add water. Cook another 20 minutes on low. Pour out onto parchment paper lined baking sheets to cool. Peppermint Hot Chocolate Mix • 1 (6-ounce) box candy canes • 2 V2 cups powdered milk • 1 cup dark cocoa powder • 1 Vi cups powdered sugar • 1 tablespoon cornstarch Crush candy canes in a food proces sor, or place in plastic zipper bag and crush with rolling pin. Combine all ingredients, mixing well. To make, combine 1/3 cup mixture with 1 cup boiling water or hot milk. This would be so cute gifted in a Mason jar with red and green ribbons tied on, and a gift tag with directions. ADLEN ROBINSON Columnist County district map, budget covered at BOC meetings Julia Fechter jfechter@dawsonnews.com After collection efforts for the decennial U.S. Census recently con cluded, the Board of Commissioners took the important step on Dec. 2 of rubber stamping Dawson County’s local redistricting plan. Ultimately, the state legislature will have the final say in approving such plans for Dawson and other Georgia counties. County attorney Angela Davis described the revised voting map schematics as keeping in mind popu lation changes and other criteria out lined under the Voting Rights Act. The Dawson County government opted for the state’s Legislative and Congressional Reapportionment Office to draw up the suggested map changes. The reapportionment office is a joint entity of the state’s General Assembly. In Dawson County, districts 2 and 4, represented by Chris Gaines and Emory Dooley respectively, saw the largest population increase over the last decade. In response, districts 1 and 3, represented by Sharon Fausett and Tim Satterfield, were expanded to allow for equality of Dawson districts based on population size. District 3 was expanded into the easternmost portions of District 2, while District 1 was expanded into the westernmost parts of districts 2 and 4. “With respect to the Voting Rights Act, often the focus there is on ensur ing that there’s a preservation of majority-minority districts,” said Davis during the meeting. “That really wasn’t an issue with the demograph ics in Dawson County...so I think it’s one of the more simple map changes I’ve seen.” The attorney added that all of the incumbent commissioners and school board members are maintained in their area, so nobody will be kicked out of their district and put into a new one. County email system issues resolved It’s been a busy week for the coun ty’s IT department, which detected attempts on Nov. 29 and Dec. 1 to hack into the local government’s email system using malicious emails. Chief Financial Officer Vickie Neikirk read a statement from county manager David Headley, who wasn’t able to attend the meeting. His state ment clarified that the events were “not a hack” and “at no time were Dawson County servers ever infiltrat ed, and no data was accessed.” IT Director Herman Thompson explained that the events were attempts to exploit part of Microsoft Exchange software used for the coun ty’s email infrastructure. With a virtual window into the email system, the perpetrators could see the email lists and manipulate them as if they were physically inside the building. Fortunately, they never intruded into the government center, and no county equipment was infect ed. Emails could be sent as if they were sent by the individual with the county email. In other words, it was a sophis ticated spoof. “Right now, we’re safe and secure. We’ve had outside parties verify this, and all of our email and data is safe and secure. All of the county data is as well,” Thompson added. While he couldn’t guarantee that perpetrators wouldn’t find a new hole in Microsoft software, he did outline what is being done to remedy the situ ation. Measures taken include geo-fenc- ing, verifying all 600-plus county emails and confirming firewalls’ and routers’ strengths. The IT director said it will help to have the additional IT staff as authorized by the recently- approved budget. He added that a fis cal year 2023 move from an in-house server to cloud-based Microsoft Office 365 could also help. Budget ins and outs During the Nov. 18 voting session, the county commissioners gave the fiscal year 2022 budgets their stamps of approval. Updated figures have the FY 2022 general fund budget clocking in at $32,486,680. That includes the mill- age rate of 7.625 mils, down from 7.885 mils. The county budgets total an overall $57,339,342. The general fund budget for next year includes money that the tax com missioner’s office requested as part of a separate motion the night the budget was approved. A state mandate to increase bailiff pay must be voted on and approved before an amendment can be made to include it in the 2022 budget. To recap, the FY2022 budget includes new or upgraded positions for: • a county marshal • custodian • general mechanic • IT network administrator and two technicians • a senior judicial assistant • permit technician • legal assistant for the public defender • building inspector • pre-trial officer • senior plan reviewer • fire inspector The public defender’s salary will also be corrected by increasing it $11,229 to $154,461. As previously reported by Erica Jones, $1.5 million has been set aside for first responders to receive salary increases for the next three years. For the part and full-time employees who did not receive money from COVID- related funding, each will receive dol- lar-per-hour raises from a planned amount of $341,615. Additionally, the county manager will be given $75,000 as a contingen cy for county employees who may want to request additional pay raises after doing certifications, training or performing over and above job expec tations. On Nov. 18, the board approved the Dawson County Sheriff Office’s secu rity system upgrade project contract with Southwestern Communications. The project is not to exceed a cost of $2,075,409.40 and will be financed using previously-approved capital funds of $1,405,500 and $669,909.40 from the General Fund fund balance. Those funds will be reimbursed by the SPLOST VII funds approved for the upgrade. The total cost of the project will be $2,279,339.40, according to informa tion shared with the BOC at its Nov. 4 work session. Included in that overall total is the service and maintenance support contract, which will account for $203,930 of the total and can be paid over a period of five years. According to DCSO Major Greg Rowan’s Nov. 4 presentation, the pro posed security upgrades would include testing the current equipment; running new wiring; installation of the latest available version of all equip ment and software; testing and quality control; training staff on the new equipment and software; and provi sion of a comprehensive support, repair and maintenance agreement. The sheriff’s office also added a few more security upgrades to the bid, including 15 new secure doors; addi tional cameras both indoor and out door; new camera client stations in the courthouse; cameras in the Butler Building where the old jail used to sit; cameras in the old historic courthouse; cameras in the K-9 building and cam eras in the courthouse elevators. Rowan explained during that meet ing that the SWC bid, as well as the other proposed bids, were above the $1.5 million target price approved in January because of inflation and sup ply availability. The project total of $2,279,339.40 includes the maintenance contract, the related costs for which would be spread out over a five-year span of time. In more recreational news, the BOC also approved $20,000 for an educa tional butterfly park to be installed at River Park by the Rotary Club of Dawson County. Speaking on behalf of the club, Brooke Anderson said at the Nov. 18 BOC work session that should the project move forward, the club could complete it by the end of February, just in time for spring. Over the last several years, Anderson said the club has done sev eral projects in conjunction with the Parks and Recreation department, such as a splash pad, pickleball and basketball courts and batting cages. What's next for the year's last BOC meeting The BOC’s Dec. 16 agenda will include items from two important property-related issues. Further dis cussion on the county’s forthcoming short-term rental ordinance has been postponed until that time. Likewise, a possible subdivision off of Ga. 9 and Goodson Road will come back up for a vote after being postponed. During a Nov. 17 community meet ing at Rock Creek Park, development consultant Jim King told residents that he would try to redesign the proposed neighborhood’s current site plans. He also said he would send them an exist ing traffic study and a forthcoming hydrology study when it becomes available.
