About Dawson County news. (Dawsonville, Georgia) 2015-current | View Entire Issue (March 9, 2022)
Wednesday, March 9,2022 dawsonnews.com I DAWSON COUNTY NEWS I 3A Habitat for Humanity names new board members By Erica Jones ejones@dawsonnews.com Habitat for Humanity — North Central Georgia (HH-NCG) has named three new board mem bers, including Betsy McGriff of Dawsonville. According to a press release by the organization, each of the three new board members will bring their own background and skill set to their new positions. Eva “Betsy” McGriff is the business development director at Cooper & Cooper Company General Contractors and is an experienced community and eco nomic development professional, the release said. She will join the McGriff Maher board with experience in strate gic planning, community engagement and local govern ment. Along with McGriff, the HH-NCG leaders have appointed Anne Maher of Atlanta and Mike Pennington of Marietta to the board. Maher is an adjunct professor at Georgia State University’s J. Mack Robinson College of Business, before which she spent 30 years in executive positions with the Coca-Cola Company and Pennington General Motors Corporation, the release said. She is joining the board with extensive tax and finance expertise. Pennington is the commercial director for Path & Post Real Estate and has extensive experi ence as a commercial real estate consultant, the release said. He will join the board with experi ence in real estate, negotiation and marketing. “Habitat for Humanity — North Central Georgia has a long track record of success thanks to dedicated board members just like Anne Maher, Betsy McGriff and Mike Pennington,” HH-NCG Executive Director Steve Napier said in the release. “We appreciate their commit ment and look forward to the many contributions these individ uals will make to the organiza tion in the years ahead.” HH-NCG has been in opera tion since 1994 and serves Cherokee, Dawson, Forsyth and North Fulton counties. The orga nization offers new home con struction and rehab programs focused on helping families become first-time home buyers; a home repair program which serves the needs of current non- Habitat seniors, veterans and dis abled homeowners; corporate team building activities and stu dent engagement programs involving high school students from local area high schools. According to the organiza tion’s mission statement, its goal is to “bring people together to build homes, communities and hope”, therefore enabling indi viduals “to build strength, stabili ty and self-reliance through shel ter”. For more information about HH-NCG, go to https ://habitat- ncg.org/. Local church fundraises for member’s medical needs Julia Fechter Dawson County News DeAnna Clark's church, The Soul Filling Station hosted a March 4 benefit to raise money for her medical costs related to severe health problems. By Julia Fechter jfechter@dawsonnews.com Regardless of her loca tion, Dawsonville resident DeAnna Clark has made it a point to love others as Christ loved the church. Now, she is in a position to receive the same kind of selfless love after being diagnosed with multiple liv er-related condi tions and told that she only has several months to live. This past Friday, her church body, The Soul Filling Station, held an evening hot dogs- and-BBQ benefit to raise money for Clark’s medical expenses on their campus at 77 Hugh Stowers Road in Dawsonville. At least $2,100 was raised in cash, not counting money given through a CashApp for Clark. People interested in donating that way may send donations to SbcncfitDcAnnaClark. Sharon Anglin, a mem ber of the church, said she and others got Clark a CashApp card to help with medical expenses. “No matter what we raise, it’s more than she has, and she’s very apprecia tive,” Sharon said. Sharon’s known Clark for between 20-30 years, and her friend was with the church for about 10-15 years before leaving for a time and eventually return ing a little over a year ago. Clark explained that a couple of years ago, she left Georgia to be with her sis ter in Texas, where she stayed for about two years. In February 2018, she was severely injured during a tree removal accident. Clark suffered a fractured skull, brain hemorrhage, multiple broken back verte brae, 34 broken ribs, a bro ken left leg and a crushed shoulder. In other words, it was a miracle that she survived. “God spared me because I actually died three times, twice on the way to the hospital and once in the ER...but he brought me through that,” Clark said. During her hospital stay, doctors did tell her that she had liver cirrhosis, but it wasn’t advanced at that time. Clark didn’t have the money to address that issue, and as with many other people, the pandemic com plicated her ability to go to a doctor. Then, she started feeling really bad. Fifteen months ago, she decided to do something about it., right at about two o’ clock in the morning. “I just got in my car and drove straight to Georgia because I wanted to be home. You know you always feel better at home,” she said. When first returning to Dawsonville, she stayed with her aunt, Della Fortner, before she found her own place. Now, Clark not only has primary biliary cirrhosis, but also two autoimmune deficiencies attacking her liver, and her spleen has also been impacted as a result. With her various medical appointments, church friends Keri Freeman and Kay Fortner have been her caregivers. Faith journey While Clark’s had a lot of ups-and-downs over the past few years, she’s contin ued looking to God and her faith in the midst of it all. A couple dozen faithful gathered for a special wor ship service after getting their fill of food at the church on Friday. Associate pastor Will Anglin led the service in lieu of pastor Bob Benson. When it’s been hard for Clark to get through the day-to-day of things, she teared up describing her friends that carry her and are continually by her side. Keri Freeman, also a praise team member, described Clark as someone who, growing up, was someone who “was always willing to step in, be a sis ter, auntie or whatever you needed.” Another singer, Shawn Hall, said that Clark touched his life when he started attending The Soul Filling Station years ago and heard her sing “The Anchor Holds.” “It reached into my soul...and that’s what it means, that it (faith) will hold through anything,” he said. “When you know that you don’t have time or you possibly may not have time, it puts things into a whole different perspective,” Clark said. “Because [then] you know time’s short, and you’ve got to make sure you’re right with God and everything you’ve wanted to do.” She elaborated that if not for God, she would’ve given up a long time ago. During her whole jour ney, Clark has inscribed on her heart part of the Bible scripture Psalm 91, which states, “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the FORD, He is my refuge and my for tress; my God; in him will I trust.” Clark smiled and said of the scripture, “It’s my strength.” The special worship ser vice began with the song “Don’t You Tell Me He Can’t Do It. The lyrics for it describe seeing God’s heal ing power at work through miracles and other stories that prove His faithfulness, while also recognizing that it’s okay to not fully under stand how God works. Another song, “Surrounded (Fight My Battles)” captured the mood of the service with the continual refrain “This is how I fight my battles.” Rather than a literal scuf fle, Clark chooses to fight her battles with worship and a circle of people around her praising and worshiping. She even got up to sing a song later in the night. “They say I’m dying,” she said of her doctors, “but you know what, I think I feel much better and look much better than I did a year ago.” “So many of us could get discouraged about what we’re going through,” said Will Anglin. “She doesn’t allow what the doctors told her to stop her.. .she comes in [to worship] with hands raised.” Billy Anglin, who played the bass guitar during the worship event, added that “at no point” had he seen Clark lose faith in him as a fellow believer. “I love you for who you are and for coming home,” he said. “Fet it be said, we’re fighting with a loved one. We’re fighting with you. We love you.” Eater, he repeated what Clark had said about her condition and emphatically added, “If you’re not dead, He’s not done.” The church members and other friends of Clark acknowledged Clark’s future fight ahead of her as she’s hopefully able to move forward with getting a liver transplant. And they also recognized that as Christians, the eter nal victory has already been won. With a triumphant fist in the air, eyes closed and mind focused on reverent worship, Clark sang with the others during the song, “Ain’t No Grave.” Clark and the other wor shipers sang, “When I hear that trumpet sound, I’m gonna rise up outta the ground. There ain’t no grave gonna hold my body down.” Clark Commissioners talk possible family land gift exemption By Julia Fechter jfechter@dawsonnews.com With generations of fam ilies wanting to stay in Dawson County, it’s no surprise that the Board of Commissioners took up a proposal about family gifts of land during the March 3 work session. Rather than a formal variance process, this pro vision, if ultimately approved, would allow the county manager or another designee, like Planning and Development, to approve a family density exception. According to agenda packet documents, that exception could allow for the creation of no more than five lots, including the parent tract, for intra-fami ly ownership transfer. Therefore, minimum lot dimensions of five acres would not be required. BOC Chairman Billy Thurmond mentioned that multiple people have con tacted him about this sort of idea. He discussed pro posed language that prop erty must be deeded with no money changing hands and with “love and affec tion” between family members. “It offers a family who Photo courtesy of Roxanne Howard The Dawson County Retired Educators Association held its February meeting on Feb. 15, complete with a devotional, speaker, line dancing and lunch. Dawson County Retired Educators Association holds Feb. meeting By staff reports The fourth meeting of Dawson County Retired Educators Association was held on February 15, 2022. Dr. Charles Blackstock of Fighthouse Baptist Church gave the devotional. Janet Duffey spoke on wellness and the value of movement, then taught the group steps to several line dances. A delicious lunch was pro vided by the hospitality committee. DCREA provided chocolate treats to each of the schools as a pick me up for the teachers. DCREA’s next meeting will be held on March 15 at Fiddy’s Cookie Cottage in Dawsonville. wants their child to stay in this county the opportunity to stay here...so I think it has some value,” Thurmond said. He added that he received the land he lives on based on “love and affection” from his aunt and uncle. District 4 Commissioner Emory Dooley hoped such an exemption could open up tracts without opening up changes to everybody. He also mentioned mul tiple families who’ve con tacted him with the situa tion that they have several acres and want to give each child a couple acres on which to build a house. His own house sits on a little over two acres, he said, and that land was given to him by his grand father. He gave the exam ple that if at least five acres of land was given to anoth er relative now, it wouldn’t be fair to others who received property at earlier times. Dooley mentioned that though he understood the current five-acres require ment, because of it, there have recently been issues of spot zoning with higher density in the middle of residential-agricultural (R-A) properties. “But I don’t like putting a burden on families who’ve been here for years that just want to expand what they’ve got,” Dooley said. “To me, this would help protect R-A zoning Dooley, District 1 Commissioner Sharon Fausett and District 2 Commissioner Gaines all in different ways pointed out that protecting R-A zoning would have to be balanced with people’s right to sell. Gaines added that R-A zoning close to Ga. 400 may look denser than zon ing in the county’s north ern areas. Since this exemption has just been proposed, it will need to go through the standard public hearing process, and proposed lan guage may be changed to reflect the county’s exact intentions with the mea sure. Dawson County Humane Society 706-265-9160 a no kill shelter Doggy Spotlight Meet our little dairy cow looking boy, Stone! This sweet dog would be perfect for families with high energy children to run and play and rough house with. The toughest thing when it come to Stone will be finding him a home where he gets enough exercise. He is a high energy boy and he will need a high energy family to match. Stone is super friendly to all friends, furry or not. He does well with other dogs, however, we always recommend a meet and greet first to ensure compatibility. Stone is approximately four years old and weights 60 pounds. STONE For more information contact the 706-265-9160 | 633 Martin Rd, Dawsonville Dawson County Humane Society Adjacent to the Rock Creek Sports Complex Visit our RESALE SHOP & BOUTIQUE All proceeds benefits Wed. - Sat. 10 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. | 54 S. Lumpkin Campground Rd. the Humane bocietv ANH Collision Specialists 706-216-0992 103 Industrial Park Road, Dawsonville Bradley M. Maple CPA, PC 706-216-2362 2390 Thompson Rd • Ste 100 Dawsonville
