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FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS
Weekend Edition-December 30-31, 2022 FORSYTHNEWS.COM forsythcountynews Q@ForsythNews (®)@ForsythNews $2.00
Holiday cold snap keeps county busy
By Kelly Whitmire
kwhitmire@forsythnews.com
Emergency crews had a busy
Christmas weekend in Forsyth
County as temperatures fell to
single digits.
Forsyth County Emergency
Management Agency Director
Chris Grimes said crews were in
communication over the week
end to handle any emergencies
the cold weather brought,
including trees on roads, water
and power issues and other
emergency calls.
“It was busy, but we were pre
pared, and we were flexible,”
Grimes said. “We had to kind of
bend and regroup, but it all went
really well.”
Grimes said there was com
munication between his office,
the Forsyth County Fire
Department, law enforcement
and utility providers to monitor
emergencies and responses.
Between Friday, Dec. 23 and
Monday, Dec. 26, the coldest
days of the winter weather, the
Forsyth County Fire Department
responded to a total of 431 inci
dents, according to Division
Chief Jason Shivers.
Shivers said of those calls,
eight were for structure fires,
three for vehicle fires, more than
140 were for medical emergen
cies, more than 160 were for
ruptured pipes or sprinkler sys
tems and 10 were for serious
vehicle wrecks, including a fatal
wreck at River Club Drive on
Christmas Eve.
“I think overall it was a very
busy weekend for us,” Grimes
said. “I know our fire depart
ment stayed very busy respond
ing to water leaks and sprinkler
systems and fire alarms, helping
a lot of folks out in the commu
nity with that.”
Despite several calls for struc
ture fires, Shivers said no one
was displaced and two occu
pants had smoke inhalation
issues but refused transport.
Shivers said a firefighter
received a “minor shoulder inju
ry” after falling down a set of
stairs while fighting a fire in the
home’s second level but is
expected to return for his next
scheduled shift.
Many were left without
power, with Sawnee EMC hav
ing a peak of more than 1,500
members in the seven-county
service area being affected on
Friday, Dec. 26 and asking cus
tomers the following day to con
serve power while there was
stress on the electrical system.
See Weather 12A
Finding lost rings to winning title rings
Kelly Whitmire Forsyth County News
UGA football players and fans celebrate the team's first national championship in 41 years.
Our favorite stories of the year
ml Online
Staff reports
2022 was a year of memory-mak
ing, and the staff at the Forsyth
County News reported on many sto
ries that left impacts on us all. From
funny to serious, tragic to jubilant,
these are our reporters’ thoughts on
their favorite stories of the year. Full
stories can be found at forsythnews.
com.
Ashlyn Yule
Tattoos and
diving for
diamonds
As someone who
loves earrings, I’ve
made a few trips
into Fulton County
To read our favorite stories of the
year, go to forsythnews.com/
favoritestories2022. Not using
the digital access included in
your subscription? Visit forsyth-
news.com/register, enter your
information and check the
"Already a subscriber box" to
activate your digital access.
Having trouble? Email websup-
port@forsythnews.com for addi
tional support.
to get safe, lasting piercings. I’ve
grown up in Forsyth County and
always known that to get a tattoo or
piercing, you had to go elsewhere. It
wasn’t a big deal; Forsyth just didn’t
have any tattoo shops.
See Favorite 16A
Photo courtesy Brianna Ruark
Brianna Ruark's engagement
ring sports a diamond that has
been passed down from her
grandmother to her mother to
her. One of our favorite stories
concerned a diver who recovers
jewelry lost in Lake Lanier.
Council OKs
budget with
worker raises
By Kelly Whitmire
kwhitmire@forsythnews.com
With just a few days left in 2022, mem
bers of the Cumming City Council
approved the city’s budget for next year.
At a special called meeting on Tuesday,
Dec. 27, members of the council voted 4-0,
with Councilwoman Finda Fedbetter
absent, to approve a balanced 2023 budget
of $47.5 million. The total is the sum of the
general, water and sewer, downtown devel
opment authority and capital projects funds.
“I’m here tonight to ask you to approve
the 2023 budget and the accompanying res
olution that is with it to approve this budget
as we have to do before Dec. 31,” City
Administrator Phill Higgins said at the
meeting.
At a previous meeting on Tuesday, Dec.
13, Higgins said the general fund would
have a 2 percent increase from last year to
$15.8 million from $15.5 million. The capi
tal projects fund would be lower than last
year’s, taking the projected expenditures
from over $1 million to $880,818.
The downtown development authority is
projected to earn more than it will spend,
with $2,808,600 in expected revenue and
$2,220,455 in expenditures.
The water and sewer fund would have the
largest increase — 9 percent — from
2022’s $25,841,600 to $28,607,600.
Included in the budget is also a 4 percent
cost of living adjustment for city employ
ees. Other capital items Higgins said
include paving at the Cumming
Fairgrounds and purchasing new police
cars.
During Tuesday’s meeting, members of
the council also approved an amendment to
balance the city’s 2022 budget, which
Higgins said had higher revenues than
expected. That item was also approved 4-0.
“The purpose of this item is we do have
to submit a balanced budget to the state,”
Higgins said. “This year, we budgeted
$15,464,150 in revenue. Our final budget is
going to come in at $18,670,600, therefore
we have to do an amendment to balance the
budget both on the revenue side and expen
diture side.”
Morrissey retires from Forsyth school board after 12 years
By Sabrina Kerns
skerns@forsythnews.com
Kristin Morrissey first moved
to Forsyth County 20 years ago
for the schools, heading to the
south end to enroll her kids in
Big Creek Elementary.
She immediately started to vol
unteer at the school, where she
heard other parents complain
about the growth and “trans
plants” moving in from other
states and counties. Being from
New York, Morrissey felt like she
was part of the problem.
So she started to get more
involved, ultimately deciding to
ran for the Forsyth County Board
of Education in 2010. She won
the race, securing her spot in
District 2 where she has served
south Forsyth for 12 years.
Now, after more than a decade
of meeting families, working with
school staff and trying to make
Forsyth County Schools the best,
she is stepping away from the
board on Sunday, Jan. 1.
“After three terms, I feel like
I’ve given it the best I can,”
Morrissey said. “I’ve been
through multiple strategic plan
nings, hiring superintendents,
vulnerable budgets, good econo
mies and hurt economies. I think
I’ve given it what I can give, and
it’s time for someone else to give
their time. I’m ready to slow
down a little bit.”
When Morrissey first started
on the board, she said it sur
prised her. She quickly learned
that the board and school system
were made up completely of a
wide range of professionals
Kristin Morrissey is retiring from the Forsyth County Board
See Morrissey 16A of Education after serving 12 years.
Sabrina Kerns Forsyth County News
58/51
Forecast! 2A
Sawnee EMC
receives customer
satisfaction award.
4A
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7
Volume 113, Number 100
© 2022, Forsyth County News
Cumming, Georgia