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PAGE 14A PICKENS COUNTY PROGRESS THURSDAY. FEBRUARY 5. 2015
Update from former STAR students: Where are they now?
Submitted by Reeder Burch
As the Optimist Club of
Jasper prepares for the 2015
STAR Banquet, the club is reach
ing out to former STAR students
and STAR Student finalist to see
what they are doing since gradu
ated from Pickens High School.
The club has heard from some
STAR students that were part of
the Optimist program and some
STAR students prior to the Opti
mist sponsorship. Below are the
responses that the Optimist Club
has received.
Nancy Burns Hall - 2002
I was delighted to find out
that I earned a spot as a STAR
Student in the fall of 2001! This
was a big accomplishment and
goal that I had been working to
wards for the duration of my
high school career. Being named
a member of the STAR Student
group was not only exciting due
to the recognition and achieve
ment of being in the top 10 for
SAT scores and GPAs, but was
also critical in helping me gain
early admission status to the Uni
versity of Georgia.
Since graduating from Pick
ens High, I attended UGA, was a
member of Kappa Alpha Theta
sorority and earned a Bachelor of
Science degree in Consumer
Economics from the Family and
Consumer Sciences College
(FACS).
Upon college graduation, I ac
cepted a sales representative po
sition with Daltile Corporation.
Daltile is a subsidiary of Mo
hawk Industries and is the largest
ceramic manufacturer in the U.S.
Daltile manufactures, distributes
and markets ceramic and natural
stone. I have been fortunate to
work with Daltile for 9 years in
various positions. I started in Or
lando, FL, where I worked as a
sales representative with small
dealer based accounts for two
years. I was then promoted to
Atlanta and worked as an Archi
tectural Representative specify
ing ceramic products for large
scale commercial construction.
After 3 years in Atlanta, I was
again promoted and moved with
Daltile to the Washington, DC,
area where I now reside.
Becoming a STAR Student
showed me that setting, working
toward and achieving goals is an
important key to success.
Clay (Brady) Burns - 2000
Since graduating Pickens
High in 2000,1 spent four years
at Furman University where I re
ceived my BA in Economics and
was commissioned through
ROTC into the U.S. Army as a
2nd Lieutenant. I then served
three years of active duty with
the 10th Mountain Division as a
logistics officer. One of those
years was in Baghdad in support
of Operation Iraqi Freedom
where I lead convoy operations
delivering supplies to various op
erating posts throughout the
greater Baghdad region.
After the Army and for the
past seven years I have been
working with Shaw Industries in
Atlanta. I am a sales/project
manager overseeing construction
projects where we install com
mercial floor coverings. My ca
reer at Shaw has been extremely
rewarding and I plan to spend my
foreseeable future here in Atlanta
with Shaw. I am also currently
enrolled in the Evening MBA
program at Emory University. It
is a two and a half year program
and I have one year left before
graduation and earning my Mas
ter’s in Business Administration.
The biggest thing I gained
from the STAR Student program
was confidence. While in high
school, I had a goal of being one
of the top 10 students and the
competition helped drive me to
succeed. Once my goal was ac
complished, I carried the confi
dence gained from that
experience into future endeavors.
Eric Smith -1986
I was the STAR Student of
PHS in 1986 and currently lives
in New York City. I am a Biolo
gist and the director of Bis
pecifics at Regeneron
Pharmaceuticals.
Plans and advice: To be hon
est, I am nowhere near where I
thought my life would be when I
graduated from PHS - both in
choice of career or in physical lo
cation. I have had a lifelong in
terest in science so the fact that I
ended up with a scientific career
is not really a shock. However, I
had never really considered biol
ogy as a career in high school
and actually didn’t think that the
field had any interest to me. I ac
tually thought I might want to be
an astronomer, which is about as
far from molecular biology as
you could go. But in my fresh
man year in college that all
changed with Genetics course
that I took. It really fascinated
me and ended up leading me to
where I am now. Likewise, I
never thought that I would end
up living in a city like New York.
But I did a fellowship at NYU
and ended up taking a job at Re
generon which kept me in the
city where I remain to this day.
So by way of advice I would say
to always to keep your mind
open to new experiences and
don’t be limited by your pre-con
ceptions about how your life is
supposed to be or what you are
supposed to enjoy. Try to find
out what you actually enjoy and
do your best to keep doing that.
Congratulations to all the
STAR students this year!
Brian Smith -1988
My name is Dr. Brian Smith
and I was STAR Student from
Pickens High School back in
1988. My STAR Teacher was
June Gilbert. I currently live in
Americus, Ga. I am a tenured
professor of political science at
Georgia Southwestern State Uni
versity. I am married with no
children.
When I was STAR Student, I
had some idea that I was going to
become a teacher myself. I
wasn’t certain what field I was
going to teach in, but I felt that it
would most likely be either in
history or mathematics. I discov
ered at Oberlin College my love
for the politics in history (espe
cially of Russia and Eastern Eu
rope) and became a Politics
major. I completed my Master’s
degree and PD from Brown Uni
versity in political science and
now work at a 4-year USG insti
tution that is proud to focus on
teaching. I specialize in teaching
both international and compara
tive politics.
My advice to STAR students
- The opportunities to research
career paths has never been
greater. Find out what it is really
like to work in any field you
think you might be interested in,
especially for those who are not
at the very top of the profession.
The public perception of many
professions are often caricatures
of what a career might be like for
the vast majority of people who
work in that career. I am not at
the top of my profession, but I
still love doing what I am doing.
For me however, that was a
lucky result after many years of
time invested. I didn’t do the re
search on what the career was ac
tually like for most people. The
more general advice I would give
would be to travel and read as
much as you possibly can. Travel
and read. Get to relatively inex
pensive Italy and soak in the dif
ferent culture, enormous beauty
and mind-boggling deep history.
Read histories and biographies
that excite you. Read anything,
travel anywhere.
Marsha Arrendale Craig -
1977
My father showed me the ar
ticle you put in the Progress ask
ing about former STAR students.
I was the STAR Student for Pick
ens High a long time ago in
1977.1 now work for DuPont in
Wilmington, De., as a Global
Business Director in Perform
ance Polymers. I manage a large
global polymers business and
travel all over the world to meet
with my team and our global cus
tomers. I live in Landenberg,
Pa., which is just outside Wilm
ington, De.
After graduating from Pick
ens High, I went to Georgia Tech
and earned a degree in Chemical
Engineering in 1981. I have
worked for DuPont ever since in
many different leadership roles
in engineering, R&D, marketing
and business management. I am
married to Phil Craig. We have
one son, Ben, who graduated last
year from Georgia Tech with a
degree in Mechanical Engineer
ing. He now works for John
Deere in Iowa.
When I graduated, I knew I
would attend Georgia Tech but I
had no idea where that would
lead me. Pickens High and GT
prepared me very well for my ca
reer. We still come back home at
least a couple of times a year to
visit my daddy John Arrendale in
Tate who is now 89 years young.
I also serve on the External Ad
visory Board for Georgia Tech’s
School of Chemical and Biomol-
ecular Engineering so that brings
me back to Atlanta occasionally
as well. In my mind, there is no
place in the world nicer than
Pickens County.
Kenton Baggs -1982
(From Lawton Baggs)
Kenton Baggs was the PHS
STAR Student in 1982. After
completing 30 years of service to
public education in Georgia, he
retired at the end of September
2014. Kenton spent 29 of those
years in service to Pickens
County Schools. During this time
he was a Special Education
teacher and spent most of those
years coaching basketball. He is
married to Stephanie Baggs and
they have 3 children. Kenton
spends most of his time now
spoiling his granddaughter.
Vernie Pendley -1987
I was the PHS STAR Student
in 1987 and now live in Colorado
Springs, Co. Mr. Roy Cowart
was my STAR Teacher. I am
currently an Instructor Pilot at
U.S. Air Force Initial Flight
Training. I had hoped to be an as
tronaut or president back in those
days.
After high school I graduated
from the USAF Academy in Col
orado Springs, I flew the Lock
heed C-141B Starlifter,
Beechcraft T-34C Mentor,
Fairchild Republic A-10A Thun
derbolt II and Hawker
Beechcraft T-6 Texan II during
almost 21 years of active duty
before retiring from the USAF
on January 1, 2012. From that
point I have been here at USAF
Initial Flight Training as a con
tractor.
During my USAF career, I
graduated from St Martin’s Uni
versity with a MBA. While fly
ing the C-141 at McChord AFB,
Wa., I met my wife to be, Nicole
Wood, who was a USAF
Weather Officer at McChord. We
have been married for 19 years
and have two beautiful children,
Vanessa, 12 years old, and
Derek, 8 years old.
Are you a former
STAR?
If you are a former STAR Stu
dent or STAR Finalist, the Opti
mist would love to hear from
you. Please e-mail the club at
pickensstar@etcmail.com.
The Optimist Club of Jasper
will host the annual STAR Ban
quet on Thursday evening,
March 5. The banquet will be
held at 7 p.m. at Chattahoochee
Technical College, 100 Campus
Drive, Jasper. Anyone interested
in attending the banquet should
e-mail the Optimist Club at
pickensstar@etcmail.com.
Reservations are required and
tickets are $22 per person. The
Woodbridge Inn, who has
catered the Optimist STAR pro
gram since the first banquet, will
again cater this years’ banquet.
Ms. Cathy Cox, president of
Young Harris College and former
Georgia Secretary of State, will
be the guest speaker for this
year’s banquet.
For 25 years the Optimists
have recognized the PHS STAR
Student and Teacher along with
nine STAR finalists with the
largest and most unique local
STAR Banquet in this statewide
program. In the local program,
the Optimists not only recognize
the STAR Student and Teacher,
but an additional nine STAR Stu
dent and Teacher finalists.
Andrew Haygood is the 2015
STAR Student and his STAR
Teacher is Mr. Michael Oubre.
The 2015 STAR finalists are:
Jesse Brooks - Christi Hob-
good
Johnson Collins - Joe Wright
Ryan Evans - Lynn Cantrell
Savannah Friedman - Gail
Culbreth
Abygayle Gibson - Lisa
Payne
Kari Henke - Robbie
Cheatham
Olivia Parker - Nikki Towery
Brad Rutledge - Sue Gibbons
Kyle Watters - Bobby Timms
METAL ROOFING
Deal proclamation promotes healthy forest fire
Submitted by Wendy Burnett
Governor Nathan Deal is
helping raise awareness about
the importance of fire to healthy
forests by proclaiming February
2-8 “Prescribed Fire Awareness
Week.”
“Prescribed binning of Geor
gia forest lands is a valuable tool
for protecting the forest from
devastating wildfires and manag
ing valuable wildlife species,”
states the proclamation, to be
signed February 4 at the State
Capitol. The document notes that
professional foresters and other
land resource managers use pre
scribed burning for improving
forest health, reducing hazardous
fuels and enhancing reforesta
tion.
“The Georgia Forestry Com
mission is charged with protect
ing the state from wildfire,” said
Robert Farris, director of the
Georgia Forestry Commission.
“Prescribed fire reduces haz
ardous tinder on the forest floor
that can fuel wildfires and
threaten homes and property.”
Prescribed Fire Awareness
Week was established in 2005
through the efforts of the Georgia
Forestry Commission (GFC) and
the Georgia Prescribed Fire
Council. It is observed annually
during the first full week in Feb
ruary as a time to recognize this
safe way to apply a natural
process, ensure ecosystem health
and reduce wildfire risk.
“Healthy forests provide
clean air and water, and diverse
wildlife populations for Geor
gia’s residents and visitors,”
said Neal Edmondson, Pre
scribed Bum coordinator for the
Georgia Forestry Commission.
“Prescribed fire benefits refor
estation, aesthetics and forest
access. It is also the most eco
nomically feasible land man-
Christian Motorcyclists Association
The Mountain Movers Chapter of the Christian Motorcyclists
Association meets on the first Saturday of each month at the
Davis House restaurant in Ellijay. The address is 449 Industrial
Blvd, Suite 155, Springs Plaza, Ellijay, Ga. 30540. We meet for
breakfast at 8:30. The meeting starts at 9:30. After our February
7 meeting, weather permitting, we will take a short ride along the
Burnt Mountain Loop. Come join us.
Ball Ground
readers
The Pickens County Progress
is available every week at
Martin’s General Store
Gilmer Ferry Road
(.Main Street)
agement tool for maintaining
wildlife habitats for many
species, including bobwhite
quail, eastern wild turkey, white
tailed deer, the endangered red-
cockaded woodpecker and
countless songbirds.”
“Georgia Prescribed Fire
Council members treated
104,000 acres with prescribed
fire just last week,” said Shan
Cammack, who chairs the coun
cil and leads prescribed fire ef
forts for the Georgia Department
of Natural Resources’ Nongame
Conservation Section.
“Georgians can be proud that its
elected officials are promoting
healthy ecosystems and wildlife
diversity by supporting this safe
and natural process.”
For more information on pre
scribed burning, visit the GFC
website at GaTrees.org or contact
your local GFC office. To learn
more about the Georgia Pre
scribed Fire Council and how
prescribed fire is being used in
Georgia, visit www.
garxfire.com
METAL
ROOFING
SALES, INC
\ BUY DIRECT
from the Manufacturer
in Dawsonville
SAVE • SAVE • SAVE
Painted Galvelume Metal Roofing
25 yr. paint / 20 yr. Galvelume Warranty
10 Colors In Stock
82 Etowah River Road • Dawsonville
706-265-3099*800-519-4616
Mom, Dad, Grandma & Grandpa
Here’s a chance to show the _
pride and joy of your familymm
For Valentine’s Day, the Progress will feature
Be My Valentine
• Children born from Jan. 1,1997 to Feb. 8, 2015 are eligible.
• Submit wallet size or regular snapshot pictures (not large portraits) with child
name clearly printed on back of photo. Photos may be mailed, emailed to
dhowell@pickensprogressonline.com or dropped off at our office.
• Fill out the coupon below, or include this coupon information
in your email.
• One or two children per photo is $16. More than 2 children
in photo is $32.
• Photos may be picked up after publication, or you may
send a self-addressed, stamped evelope.
For more info, contact Sheri, Stacey or Christie at 706-253-2457.
The Pickens Progress is not responsible for lost pictures.
Be My Valentine - Submit by Friday, February 6 to
Pickens Progress, P.O. Box 67, Jasper, GA 30143
Child’s Name
Birthdate (Will not be used in ad, for our use only)
Parents
Have ad signed as: Love or Happy Valentine’s Day
Amount Enclosed:
Phone Number (
$16 per picture $32 per picture Total
Auri & Scarlett
We love you,
Mommy and Daddy!