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The Led County Ledger
Your Hometown Source Of Local News
Hometown Newspaper of Mr. and Mrs. Randy Jack
Volume XXXVI I- Number 23
Leesburg, Georgia - - February 4,2015
Fifty Cents
Conservationist of the Year Lee County 2015
Submitted Photo
County Conservationist of the Year Mr. Greg Odom and Lee County
District Supervisor Wendell Arrington.
Special to the Ledger
The Lower Chattahooch
ee River Soil and Water
Conservation District
Board of Supervisors and
its cooperating banks held
their Annual Conservation
ist of the Year banquet at
the LTSDA Service Center
in Dawson on January 20,
2015. Mr. Greg Odom of
Lee County received the
distinguished honor of
being selected as Conser
vationist of the Year for
Lee County.
As a third generation
farmer, Greg Odom grew
up on the family farm, and
as a child learned to be a
good steward of the land
from his father. In 1981,
Greg began farming on his
own, and currently farms
3,200 acres of peanuts and
cotton. Some of the con
servation efforts that Greg
utilizes include maintain
ing terraces and waterways,
cover crops, and strip till.
Greg has converted all his
sprinklers to low pressure
systems, as well as convert
ed from diesel to electric
energy. Greg has partici
pated in the NRCS EQIP
program, which includes
buffer strips, and wildlife
Special to the Ledger
Lee County
Chamber of
Commerce
is now
accepting
applications
for the 2015
Leadership Lee Program.
The Program’s mission is to
enhance leadership oppor
tunities by increasing the
participant’s knowledge of
the community’s economic
strengths, the infrastruc
ture of the community, and
exposing them to challenges
and issues confronting the
community. The program is
designed to be an educational
experience and does not
attempt to promote specific
ideas. At the conclusion of
this program, each partici
pant will be better equipped
to promote the community,
heighten their level of com
munity involvement, and
exhibit dynamic leader
ship qualities. For further
information or to enroll in
this program contact Lesley
Barbosa at 229-759-2422 or
lbarbosa@lee.ga.us before
SR
DOHERTY, DUGGAN
Hart&Tiernan
INSURORS
Home • Auto • Business • Life/Health
P.O.Box 71628 (229)888-2040
Albany, GA 31708-1628 800-628-2040
2301 Dawson Road (31707) Fax (229) 435-3036
www.ddrins.com
Lee County Library
BookClub
Book to be discussed:
First Grave
on the Right
by
Darynda Jones
6:00 PM
Thursday,
February 5, 2015
Oakland Library
445 Oakland Parkway, West
Leesburg, GA
Free & Open
Sponsored by Lee County Library
F/M/l 229-889-0300
food plots for wildlife habi
tat management. Greg and
his wife Michelle have been
married for 24 years and
have 3 children; Chasity,
Hannah and Garrett. When
asked how he became
interested in conservation
on the farm, Greg states, “I
learned from an early age
that we have to take better
care of the land that we
have, and to be good stew
ards of the land. We can’t
make any more of it; it’s all
that we have.” Congratula
tions to Mr. Greg Odom as
Conservationist of the Year
for Lee County!
This award is given to the
outstanding conservation
ists in the nine surround
ing counties that represent
the Lower Chattahoochee
River Soil & Water Conser
vation District. Chairman
Guy Beard of Randolph
County preceded the
evening program, while
Barry Lyle, President of the
Bank of Dawson, recog
nized Mr. Sanders and the
other Conservationist of the
Year recipients. U.S. Navy
Captain Sue Hite (Retired)
was the guest speaker for
the evening’s program.
Additional Conservation-
February 12th.
Tentative dates for the Fead-
ership Fee Classes;
Thursday, February 19
Thursday, February 26
Thursday, March 5
Thursday, March 19
Thursday, March 26
Special to the Ledger-
On Thursday, March 19,
Leesburg native Kristin
Grebel will take the stage
with Coldwell Banker
Realtor Justin Peacock to
compete in Dancing with
the Lake Oconee Stars.
A fundraiser where all
proceeds benefit First Call
Pregnancy Center, Kristin
and Justin will also work
together to create a dance
to wow the judges. With
two mirror ball trophies to
be given out, the most cov
eted is surely that of the
Community Choice. This
trophy is given to the team
who has raised the most
money through donations
and advertising sales.
With advertising sales
coming to a close, Kristin
and Justin are seeking
donations from family,
friends and the communi
ty. Kristin, a true Lees-
burgian who was born in
her home in Lee County,
is now turning to the town
who helped raise and train
her for this event. Every
dollar donated counts as
one vote and quickly adds
up. The center’s goal is to
use the funding from this
year’s event to create a mo
bile care unit to assist girls
in surrounding counties by
offering free medical and
education services.
First Call Pregnancy
Center is a 501(c)3 that is
registered with the State
ist of the Year recipients
included; Johnny Sanders
of Clay County, James
& Barbara Connelly of
Quitman County, Betty
E. Fumpkin of Randolph
County, Jim Sellars Farms
of Schley County, Fane
Farms of Stewart County,
James Gaston, Jr. of Sumter
County, Robbie Faust of
Terrell County, and Ray
Payne of Webster County.
It is through these con
servationists’ efforts that
our Natural Resources are
preserved for future genera
tions.
The Tower Chattahooch
ee River Soil & Water Con
servation District was orga
nized on July 17, 1939 fol
lowing the infamous ‘Dust
Bowl’. The Dust Bowl was
the name coined to an area
of the Great Plains that
was devastated by nearly a
decade of drought and soil
erosion during the 1930s.
The huge dust storms
destroyed crops and made
living there unsustainable.
This ecological disaster,
which intensified the Great
Depression, was only
alleviated after the rains
returned in 1939 and wide
spread soil conservation
efforts had begun. Most
early settlers used the land
for grazing livestock until
the rapid mechanization of
farm equipment combined
with high grain prices dur
ing World War I enticed
thousands of farmers to
plow up millions of acres of
native Prairie grass cover
and convert it to cultivated
cropland. But little rain
fell in 1930 and drought
occurred again from
1934-1937, thus ending the
of Georgia as a Charitable
Organization. More than
6,000 visits have been
made to the Center since
they opened in 2005 and
302 babies have been born
to women that might have
made a different choice if
not for the services they
offer. They do not receive
funding from any govern
mental agencies so it is
events like this that help
bring funding into the
center to provide classes
like newborn care, car
seat safety, breastfeed
ing, CPR, and other Earn
While You Learn classes
that give the girls the
unusually wet period. The
soil lacked the sturdier root
system of Prairie grass as
an anchor, so the winds
easily picked up the topsoil
forming dense dust clouds
hundreds of miles wide,
called “black blizzards”.
Fourteen of these black
blizzards blew in 1932,
opportunity to purchase
items with “Mommy
Money” from the onsite
baby store.
The best way for you
to help support this great
organization and Kris
tin’s team is by going to
firstcall.me, clicking on
the Dancing with the Lake
Oconee Stars tab, and
then scrolling to Justin
and Kristin’s picture and
hitting “Donate.” If you
prefer to write a check or
donate cash, you can do
so by calling the center at
706-453-1908 and letting
them know which team
you are donating to.
38 occurred in 1933, and
110 black blizzards blew
in 1934. Without green
grasses to eat, cattle starved
or were sold and over half
of the population withdrew
from the region. People
wore masks and put wet
sheets over their windows,
but buckets of dust still
managed to find its way in
side their homes. Outside,
the dust piled up like snow,
burying cars and homes.
The dust storms grew in
size, sending powdery dust
farther and farther, affect
ing more and more states.
The Great Plains were
becoming a desert as over
100 million acres of deeply
plowed farmland lost all or
most of its topsoil. Tired,
sick, and hopeless, a mass
departure of people soon
left the Great Plains. By
1940, around 2.5 million
people had migrated out
of the Dust Bowl states.
Author John Steinbeck
wrote Of Mice and Men
(1937) and The Grapes of
Wrath (1939) about farm
families and others af
fected by the Dust Bowl. It
was during this time that
Hugh Hammond Bennett,
now known as the father
of soil conversation, had
an idea and took his case
to lawmakers on Capitol
Hill. A soil scientist, Ben
nett had studied soils and
erosion extensively for the
Bureau of Soils. In May
1934, Bennett attended a
Congressional hearing re
garding the problem of the
Dust Bowl. While trying
to relay his conservation
ideas to the semi-interested
Congressmen, one of the
legendary dust storms blew
all the way to Washington
D.C., and the legislators
finally breathed what the
Great Plains farmers had
tasted. No longer in doubt,
the 74th Congress passed
the Soil Conservation
Act, signed by President
Roosevelt on April 27,
1935, recognizing that
“soil erosion is a menace
to the national welfare and
that it is hereby declared
to be a policy of Congress
to provide permanently for
the control and prevention
of soil erosion...” Thus,
in February 1937, a model
Soil Conservation District
Faw was developed for
consideration by each of the
states. Along with a letter
from President Roosevelt,
this model enabling act was
sent to each of the state
governors, suggesting that
farmers and ranchers be
granted the authority to es
tablish Districts specifically
for conservation of soil and
water resources. Working
on the local level, these Soil
and Water Conservation
Districts assisted farmers in
planting trees and grass to
anchor the soil, to plow and
terrace in contour patterns
to hold rainwater, and to
allow portions of farmland
to lie fallow each year so
the soil could regenerate.
As the 80th Anniversary of
the Soil Conservation Act
approaches, Soil and Water
See SOM,
Page10A
BANK
of LEE
COUNTY
A Division of Bank of Terrell
3000 N. Slappey Blvd., Albany
(229) 446-0102 FDfi ■£=}
www.bankofleeco. com h§n8ss
Member FDIC
Lee
County
Daddy
Daugther
Dance
Saturday
Feb. 7
FMI call
759-2096
To Subscribe Call 229-759-2413
Leadership Lee Class
will start in February
Grebel To Compete In
Dancing Competition
