About Dawson County news. (Dawsonville, Georgia) 2015-current | View Entire Issue (March 22, 2023)
Wednesday, March 22,2023 dawsonnews.com I DAWSON COUNTY NEWS I 5A Local food pantries fill vital gaps for those in need File photo Dawson Community Food Bank and Thrift Store is located at 671 Lumpkin Camp Ground Road Suite 30, right behind the premium outlet mall. By Julia Hansen jhansen@dawsonnews.com Three years since the COVID-19 pandemic’s initial impact, food inse curity and wider finan cial strains are still reali ties for many people in Dawson County and sur rounding areas. Dawson Community Food Bank and Thrift Store Director Linda Benson has been able to observe that firsthand at her nonprofit’s food pan try. “Yesterday,” Benson said of Tuesday, “we had 135 families at the food bank in four hours. Each day we’ve been open [recently], we’ve had at least 20 new people come. The first time they come, they have to fill out a form. That’s how we know they’re new people.” Dawson Community Food Bank serves mostly Dawson County resi dents and also some peo ple from the Gainesville, Lumpkin County and northern Forsyth areas. “I’ve had people say to me, ‘you just don’t know what this food bank means to me. We had hardly anything to eat. Now, we have food in our cabinets,”’ Benson said. Benson has also heard tales of one person hav ing to live off of one can of chicken noodle soup for a day or people being forced to choose between gas and food or having to live in their cars. “There’s so many sto ries or people like that,” Benson added. “When you deal with people and hear their stories, it breaks my heart and gives me the fuel to keep working.” After February 2023, additional COVID-era SNAP benefits ended in 32 states. Those addi tional benefits expired in Georgia after May 2022. Other factors impact ing household budgets have included price increases on different groceries, rising housing and gas costs and the end of the expanded child tax credit last year. Deborah Ross, the Food Services Manager for nonprofit The Place, also said she still saw “a strong need” for help with food in the Dawson-area communi ty. RIC-Rack serves 96 unique households, Ross said. Relationships are key to those kinds of efforts, with her saying that she “genuinely loves” the clients for The Place of Dawson at RIC-Rack, the thrift store and food pantry located along Ga. 9 North at the edge of Dawsonville. She mentioned how workers like RIC-Rack food pantry coordinator Chuck Snead have helped her stay in touch with clients and serve as “eyes” for any other issues that a client may be having, like needing a handicap ramp. The numbers of people coming to Dawsonville’s RLN Grocery and food pantry have increased since it moved to its Ga. 9 South location two years ago, said The Church at War Hill min ister and store worker Jonathon Dashner. Now, the food pantry serves between 50-60 people, Dashner said. RLN Grocery is a min istry of The Church at War Hill in southern Dawson County. Its pro ceeds go to Sisters of Grace, a boarding school in the eastern Asian country of Thailand. Pantry, other ser vices Dawson Community Food Bank offers its guests a mix of dry, pan- try-stable goods and lets them choose items like fresh fruit, desserts or bottled drinks. That food bank was also recently gifted with a donated truck to help with area deliveries. Dashner said the RLN food pantry offers a sim ilar type of box to recipi ents, with a mix of pre prepared and you-pick meal and snack items and different seasonal goods during holidays. It’s become easier to serve people with RIC- Rack now utilizing a cli ent choice model, said The Place of Dawson Outreach coordinator Amy Palmer. The model lets clients pick the fresh foods they would like as well as preferred non-perishable goods and non-food items, like toiletries or cleaning supplies. Palmer said the newer system helps “cut down waste” and lets the non profit “be a good steward of our donations.” Snead added that some clients access the food pantry directly, while others opt for delivery. “There are people that are unable to pick up at the RIC-Rack pantry,” Ross said, “and [so] food insecurity is coupled with transportation inse curity.” “The food pantry is our gateway to help peo ple,” Palmer said. “If we can get them through the food pantry, we like to see how we can maxi mize that time.” That can help people focus their money on getting things The Place can’t provide, like medi cine or car payments, Ross said. The Place has also helped people fill out forms to apply for food stamp benefits and had health department offi cials visit the food pan try on a monthly basis to help clients access vac cines or other basic med ical services, Palmer added. The Dawson and Forsyth-area nonprofit also offers rental assis tance for eligible indi viduals. “Yes, there are people that need diapers and baby items, but there are also people that need home or rental assis tance,” Palmer said. “If they get evicted, they’re not going to be able to cook the food we give them.” She reaffirmed The Place’s intent to offer a “welcoming” atmo sphere and “help the whole person access other self-sustaining resources too, like free GED, parenting or English classes. Pantry needs Currently, Dawson Community Food Bank and Thrift Store is accepting food and mon etary donations, Benson said. Volunteers are always appreciated to help with the range of necessary work to be done at the pantry’s Lumpkin Campground Road location. The Place of Dawson recently shared a needs list on its Facebook page, including breakfast staples like instant oat meal and Bisquick mix and stuff for spaghetti and other pasta dishes. Snead also voiced the desire for more volun teers who are willing to work either a full four- hour or a partial shift. “Anyone who wants to see what’s involved and going on is encouraged and welcome to come,” he said. Dashner said people interested in donating can do so online at www. warhill.com/give or donate in person by pro viding in-date canned products. People can donate dig itally to The Place of Dawson at www.thepla- ceofforsyth.org or to the Dawson Community Food Bank at www.daw- soncommunityfoodbank. com/donate.html. Palmer underlined the importance of the work that area nonprofits do to help those in need. “People are still strug gling,” she said, “so it’s important to keep that on the forefront of [our] minds.” “We’re here to minis ter to the community, especially in these trying times like it’s been recently,” Dashner added. Appeals court again affirms nudist resort lawsuit decision By Julia Hansen jhansen@dawsonnews.com Georgia’s Court of Appeals has now decided for a second time to uphold a judge’s prior rul ing in favor of Dawson County fire officials sued by a local nudist resort. Paradise Valley Resort Club’s appeal of the appel late court’s Feb. 13 deci sion has been denied, according to a Feb. 28 order. The resort’s civil case initially went to a two-day bench trial at the Dawson County Courthouse last January. In the lawsuit, Paradise Valley sued defendants Fire Marshal Jeff Bailey, then-Fire Chief and EMA Director Danny Thompson and Fire Prevention Lt. Chris Archer in Dawson County Superior Court. The resort asked for a writ of mandamus to lift stop work orders on projects for Paradise Valley Club’s greeting room, welcome center, wine bar, cabanas and indoor pool. During the trial, Paradise Valley’s lawyer, Joey Homans, pointed to the resort’s vested rights, while the defense argued that stop work orders were in place for the five struc tures because of lacking life-safety plans. Last February, Senior Judge Richard Winegarden ruled in favor of the coun ty officials. In that ruling, the senior judge ruled that the stop work orders were valid and that the struc tures’ building permits had expired. Homans later filed an appeal in June 2022. Presiding judge Sara Doyle affirmed the lower court’s decision. Judge Todd Markle and Senior Appellate Judge Herbert E. Phipps concurred, according to the appel late’s court Feb. 13 ruling. The appellate court’s Feb. 13 document stated “the evidence supports” their judgment and listed that the legal issues involved were essentially not in the resort’s favor. The judgment also stat ed a court opinion “would have no precedential value,” meaning a decision on the appeal should not be considered legal guid ance in future cases. JOIN US FOR OUR PREMIER DISCOVER NORTH GEORGIA TRAVEL AND LEISURE GUIDE The Event will feature great places to Visit, Dine, Play & Stay! It's a must have for families planning a day trip or weeklong holiday. SPONSORSHIP AND BOOTH SPACE AVAILABLE CONTACT YOUR LOCAL SALES REP OR MARKETING@DAWSONNEWS.COM FOR MORE INFORMATION. DOWNTOWN DAWSONVILLE WHERE THE MOUNTAINS MEET THE ROAD FOR LEASE AT THE GA RACING HALL OF FAME! MULTIPLE SPACES AVAILABLE! • LARGE SQUARE FOOTAGE • POTENTIAL RESTAURANT, COFFEE SHOP, DISTILLERY, BAKERY, BREWERY, SHOP & MORE HIGH VOLUME VISITS & HIGHWAY VISIBILITY! CONTACT US FOR MORE INFORMATION 706-265-3256 citymanager@ dawsonville-ga.gov
