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THE ADVOCATE DEMOCRAT, Crawfordville, GA, Friday, July 5, 2024
Fan at the Park
Lyda Eubanks got a really high score at the final archery lesson
at the park and received a certificate for her excellence.
Reptiles were the guests at the park and visitors to the park were
able to touch them if they wanted to during the reptile program.
Freedom is never more than one generation
away from extinction. We didn’t pass it to o ur
children in the bloodstream. It must be fought
for, protected, and handed on for them to do the
same. Ronald Reagan
WACO community showing its love for
deputy seriously injured in crash
Surrounding communities also gifting donations to his family
BY BILLY W. HOBBS, Herald-Journal Correspondent
SANDERSVILLE, GA - An
overwhelming show of love is
being extended to a Washington
County deputy sheriff and his
family after he was seriously
injured in an SUV crash while he
was attempting to respond to a
backup call from a fellow deputy.
Monetary donations are pouring
in from throughout Washington
County and surrounding
counties from those wishing
to help offset financial strains
placed on the family since the
June 3 crash.
“Washington County Deputy
(Thomas) Gordon Alley
selflessly put himself in harm’s
way to assist a colleague in
need,” said Washington County
Sheriff Joel Cochran. “While
responding to the call for
assistance, he was involved in a
single-vehicle accident.”
The mishap resulted in
serious injuries and will require
extensive medical treatment
and rehabilitation,” the sheriff
said.
“Currently, Deputy Alley is
experiencing paralysis below the
waist with uncertainty regarding
the return of sensation,”
Cochran said.
Meanwhile, everyday living
cost and mounting medical bills
are confronting the seriously
injured deputy and his wife.
The couple has a 13-year-old
daughter.
As a way of raising money
to help the family, chicken plate
dinners, which consisted of
chicken quarters, with all the
trimmings and dessert, were
prepared and sold last Friday at
noon. Within less than an hour,
400 such dinners were sold for
monetary donations. Those
donations will go directly to help
the Alley family during this time
Good Samaritan
St. Mary’s Good Samaritan
Hospital remains in network for
patients with UnitedHealthcare
(UHC) insurance even though
St. Mary’s Hospital in Athens
and some other components of
St. Mary’s Health Care System
are now out of network as the
system works to negotiate a
new agreement with UHC.
St. Mary’s Medical Group
physicians and practices -
including Middle Georgia
Medical Associates and St.
Mary’s specialists with satellite
offices in Greene County - also
remain in-network for UHC
patients.
The negotiations between St.
Mary’s Hospital in Athens and
UHC do not affect patients who
need care at Good Samaritan
Hospital or St. Mary’s Medical
Group offices. Patients with
UHC commercial and Medicare
Advantage plans should
of need.
Anyone wishing to make
a donation are reminded to
make the checks payable to:
“Donation Account for Gordon
Alley.”
Donations of any amount
also can be made by simply
dropping them off at the
Washington County Sheriff’s
Office. They also can be made
through Washington County
Chief Deputy Mark McGraw at
CASHAPP-$deputymcgraw or
through Venmon:@wcso435
At the time of the crash, Alley
was en route to assist fellow
Deputy Thomas John Farthing,
who was involved in a high
speed chase with a woman
driving a 2017 Honda Civic
westbound on Georgia Route
24.
As the chase neared the
intersection of GARt. 24 and Sun
Hill Grange Road, the deputy
attempted a PIT maneuver in
an attempt to end the chase,
according to a Trooper Brandon
Brown with the Georgia State
Patrol post in Milledgeville.
The trooper said Deputy
Farthing struck the left rear
bumper of the Honda Civic with
the right front bumper of his
SUV patrol vehicle, a 2022 Ford
Explorer.
The Honda Civic, driven
by Kimberly Nyesia Taylor
Moore, of Madison, rotated
counterclockwise and exited
the roadway into an eastbound
ditch.
Deputy Farthing’s vehicle,
meanwhile, traveled through
the ditch for approximately 52
feet before it struck a driveway
culvert. It then went airborne for
approximately 92 feet before the
SUV traveled another 162 feet
before it rolled over once.
continue to keep and schedule
appointments as usual.
Emergency care is always
covered at in-network rates.
The agreement between
St. Mary’s Hospital in Athens
and UHC expired on June 30,
2024. St. Mary’s is committed to
working with UHC to reach a fair
agreement that appropriately
covers the true cost of the
care the hospital, its outpatient
facilities and its home health
care/hospice service provides
to patients with UHC plans.
“As a not-for-profit health
system, rising supply and labor
costs have made it difficult
to maintain the services and
convenience patients deserve,”
said Stonish Pierce, President
and CEO of Trinity Health
Georgia, which includes all
three hospitals in the St. Mary’s
ministry. “We are doing our best
to adapt and innovate, but we
Farthing along with Taylor
Moore and a passenger were
all taken to Washington County
Regional Medical Hospital in
Sandersville where they were
checked for injuries and later
released.
This particular crash
happened just a few minutes
after Alley’s crash.
The 47-year-old Alley
crashed his 2023 Dodge
Durango SUV about 11:15 p.m.
on June 3 on Georgia Route
24 East, 0.4 miles east of Brett
Road, according to a report filed
by Trooper Brown, the same
trooper who investigated the
other deputy-involved wreck.
The investigating trooper said
after Alley negotiated a curve
in the roadway that he began
to hydroplane, and crossed
the centerlines, while his SUV
rotated counterclockwise
into the westbound lane of
travel. The SUV then traveled
approximately 100 feet in the
westbound lane before it exited
the shoulder of the roadway.
The deputy’s SUV then
traveled approximately 185 feet
down an embankment along an
eastbound ditch before it struck
a tree with its passenger side.
Alley was treated at the scene
by firefighters/first responders
from Washington County, as
well as personnel with the
Washington County Emergency
Medical Services. He later
was taken by ambulance to
the emergency department of
Washington County Regional
Medical Center.
Alley was later transferred to
The Shepherd Center in Atlanta.
The facility there specializes
in rehabilitation for those with
spinal cord injuries.
rely on fair reimbursement to
keep our doors open. Without it,
we cannot provide the care and
services patients depend on
and need.
Pierce continued,
“Unfortunately, despite
UnitedHealth Group (UHC’s
parent company) making record
profits of $22 billion last year,
UHC has not offered a contract
that puts patients’ health over
their own wealth. We believe
everyone deserves access
to high-quality health care.
That’s why we are determined
to protect patient access to St.
Mary’s Hospital and push for
what’s right, so we are here to
care for the next generation.”
For more information about
the negotiations between the
Athens hospital and UHC, visit
www.stmarys-health.org/uhc or
call (706) 225-8258.
Hospital remains in network for
UHC members
Festival Hall’s popular Jazz Legacy series
continues August 22, 2024, highlighting
legendary saxophonist, bandleader and
composer, Charlie Parker
Festival Hall, Greensboro’s
premier arts venue and cultural
center presents the third show
of the 2024 Jazz Series, The
Jazz Legacy Project: Charlie
Parker, Einstein of Modern
Music Thursday, August 22,
2024, at 7:30pm. Tickets on sale
now.
Parker's rare combination of
genius and persistence created
a turning point in modern music.
A kid who grew up on Kansas
City blues helped turn jazz from
a dance hall craze to music that
belongs next to Bach. As with
Louis Armstrong, music would
never be the same after "Bird."
“We are so excited our
community is embracing the jazz
art form,” states director Nicole
Chillemi. “Join us on August 22
as we learn more about Charlie
Parker and celebrate his life and
music with The Jazz Legacy
Project.”
The Jazz Legacy Project:
Charlie Parker, Einstein of
Modern Music is the third
program in the four-part jazz
series at Festival Hall this year.
Each program is roughly 90
minutes, with the goal of bringing
the casual jazz listener inside
the minds and music of the
most influential and interesting
American musicians of all time.
The life and music of the artist/
composer is entertainingly
narrated by the drummer, Mr.
Justin Varnes, and seminal
jazz pieces are played to
illuminate the narration. These
are NOT tribute concerts in the
sense that the musicians are
trying to recreate the original
performances, but instead to
celebrate the essence and
accomplishments of the artist.
The Jazz Legacy Project:
Charlie Parker, Einstein of
Modern Jazz is on Thursday,
August 22, at 7:30pm. Tickets
start at $25 for general
admission. For tickets and
more information, visit www.
festivalhallga.com. This program
is supported in part by Visit Lake
Oconee www.visitlakeoconee.
com.
Sponsorship opportunities
are available for The Jazz
Legacy Project Series. Please
reach out to Nicole Chillemi
at nicole@festivalhallga.com
or 762-243-8022 for more
information.
