Newspaper Page Text
Wednesday, January 25,2023
Fayette County News A3
Fayette County News Under New Ownership
Bridge Turner and
Debbie McClain, owners
and operators of The
Upson Beacon in Thomas-
ton, Ga., purchased Fay
ette County News in early
January.
Turner and McClain
publish The Beacon under
Upson Newspapers, Inc.,
located near downtown
Thomaston, approx
imately 40 miles from
Fayetteville. Combined,
the two have more than
65 years of experience in
print and television
media.
McClain began her ca
reer in print advertising
with the Upson Home
Journal in 1990, then
spent several years as an
advertising executive with
Griffin Daily News, cover
ing Fayette County. Later
she became the advertis
ing and news liaison for
the Macon Telegraph in
the mid to late-90s, dur
ing which time the Daily
Sun merged with the Tele
graph.
Wanting to be closer to
home in Thomaston,
McClain took a position as
advertising director at
The Thomaston Times be
fore starting and becom
ing publisher of the
Upson Citizen, which
eventually merged with
The Times. She remained
as publisher until the
newspaper was purchased
by an out-of-state acqui
sitions company, which
led to her starting The
Upson Beacon in 2008.
She is still the pub
lisher of the Beacon, and
she and Turner purchased
the newspaper’s parent
company, Upson News
papers, in 2020.
Turner began his ca
reer with The Thomaston
Times, holding various re
porting and editing posi
tions for almost 10 years
after graduating from Au
burn University with a
journalism degree in the
mid-1980s.
He was named adver
tising director of the Val
ley Times-News in the
tri-city area of West Point,
Ga. and Lanett and Valley,
Ala., where he remained
from the mid-90s to
2000, when he was hired
as a television advertising
consultant by Cox Com
munications.
Turner remained in TV
advertising through ac
quisitions by Cable Adver
tising of Metro Atlanta
and Comcast Spotlight,
working out of Comcast’s
Newnan office until re
turning to Thomaston as
advertising director at
The Upson Beacon from
2013-2018.
He became managing
editor of The Beacon in
2019, and remains in that
position as co-owner of
both Fayette County News
and The Upson Beacon
today.
McClain and Turner
plan to have a strong pres
ence at Fayette County
News, and are committed
to providing quality local
content for the publica
tion’s readership and ad
vertisers. The new owners
are proponents of small
newspapers, believing
their contribution is es
sential to a well-informed
community.
Fayette County News’
website, Fayette-
news.net, is currently
under redevelopment. Be
on the lookout for updates
in upcoming weeks.
Both Turner and
McClain welcome feed
back from Fayette County
communities on what res
idents would like to see in
their hometown paper.
The transition is ongoing,
but for now, you can reach
Bridge at bturner@upson-
beacon.com and Debbie at
dlord@upsonbeacon.com
(Fayette County News
emails coming soon).
Timothy Ward Sworn in to Georgia Parole Board
Timothy Ward Courtesy of Georgia Department of Corrections
Sydney Spencer
News Reporter
sspencer@fayette-news.net
Timothy Ward was
sworn in as a member
of the Georgia Parole
Board on Jan. 18. His
experience as the com
missioner for the Geor
gia Department of
Corrections labels him
a good fit for the posi
tion, according to board
officials.
Ward began his ca
reer in 1992 as a correc
tional officer at Scott
State Prison and later
earned the position as
chief of staff in 2016. In
2019, Ward was des
ignated as the commis
sioner of the Georgia
Department of Correc
tions by Gov. Brian
Kemp. This added
another milestone to
Ward’s career.
He expressed his ex
citement to continue
work with the state
board and explained
how well all parts of the
board work together to
ensure decisions are
made with the public’s
best interest in mind.
“The parole board
has an important role in
Georgia’s criminal jus
tice system. During my
tenure as the commis
sioner of the Georgia
Department of Correc
tions, the agency and
the board worked
closely together to serve
Georgia communities
and keep families safe. I
pledge to make in
formed decisions when
determining which eli
gible offenders are de
serving of parole,”
Ward said.
Ward will replace
Brian Owens as the
newest member of the
Georgia State Board of
Pardons and Paroles.
Board Chairman Terry
Barnard administered
the oath of office to
Ward and spoke highly
of the skillset he brings
to an already proficient
parole board.
“Tim Ward brings
more experience to this
board and his decisions
will enhance public
safety,” Barnard stated.
Salat tfa&Uel
152 Antioch Rd • Fayetteville • Parish Office: 770-461-0492
^Religiou^ducation^7^6^49^Tax^7^6^374
Weekend Mass Schedule
Saturday. 5 pm
Sunday. 8 am and 1030 am
Seating on a first come, first served basis.
Weekday Mass Schedule
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, & Friday. 9 am
Confessions Saturdays, 4 pm - 430 pm
All weekend Masses will livestream outside (weather permitting)
in the courtyard. Please bring your own chair. No reservations needed.
Holy Days of Obligation contact Parish Office - www.stgabrielga.com
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