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THURSDAY. FEBRUARY 4. 2021 PICKENS COUNTY PROGRESS PAGE 9A
Thursday proclaimed as Optimist Day in Jasper
The first Thursday of Feb
ruary was declared Optimist
Day by Mayor of the city of
Jasper, Steve Lawrence.
By signing the proclama
tion, it was declared: "May
this day instill pride in our
city's Optimists for all of
their accomplishments and
for the impact they have to
tndy make a difference in
others' lives."
Optimist Day is an oppor
tunity to share The Optimist
Creed: Promise Yourself
To be so strong that noth
ing can disturb your peace of
mind.
To talk health, happiness
and prosperity to every per
son you meet.
To make all your friends
feel that there is something in
them.
To look at the sunny side
of everything and make your
optimism come true.
To think only of the best,
to work only for the best and
to expect only the best.
To be just as enthusiastic
about the success of others as
you are about your own.
To forget the mistakes of
the past and press on to the
greater achievements of the
future.
To wear a cheerful coun
tenance at all times and give
every living creature you
meet a smile.
To give so much time to
the improvement of yourself
that you have no time to crit
icize others.
To be too large for worry,
too noble for anger, too
strong for fear, and too happy
to permit the presence of
trouble.
For more information go
t o
www.j a sp eroptimi stclub. org
Sue Appleton overlooks
the signing of the proclama
tion by Mayor Steve
Lawrence.
Gilmer deputy
arrested here
for domestic
violence
From Pickens Sheriff’s
Press Release
A press release from the
Pickens Sheriff’s office
Monday stated that on Jan
uary 31, Pickens Sheriff’s
Office deputies responded
to a domestic violence call
at 10:16 p.m. that resulted in
the arrest of an off-duty
Gilmer County deputy. The
incident that lead to the
charges occurred at a Talk
ing Rock residence.
After later being located
by the Gordon County Sher
iff’s office at around 1 a.m.,
the Pickens Sheriff’s Office
took Jason Newman, 34, of
Talking Rock, into custody.
Newman is currently in the
Jason Newman
book-in photo
Pickens jail. He is charged
with aggravated assault, ag
gravated battery, reckless
conduct, obstructing a po
lice officer and interfering
with a 911 call.
No bond was set as of
Monday for Newman.
English classes via Zoom
In previous years, free
English Classes met at
Pickens County Recreation
Center every week. These
classes are still available,
but on Zoom. You may join
each Monday at 6 p.m. or
each Thursday at 8 p.m. for
a free 90 minute practice.
The Thursday class is a re
peat of the Monday class.
Please call 706-692-0707
for the link.
Mothers work tirelessly to preserve,
protect life says Pregnancy Center
Submitted by Ronna Ken
ney, Executive Assistant
The Pregnancy Center
On January 13, 1984 Pres
ident Ronald Reagan desig
nated January 22 as National
Sanctity of Human Life Day.
He picked this day because it
was the anniversary of the
Supreme Court’s Roe v.
Wade ruling that legalized
abortion.
To sanctify means to
make holy and set apart.
Each baby, each life, is sa
cred and has a vital purpose
in God’s plan. Churches and
the pro-life community take
this time each year to com
memorate the sanctity of life.
On National Sanctity of
Human Life Day we also cel
ebrate the heroes in our com
munities who work tirelessly
to preserve and protect life.
Sometimes we know who
these heroes are. We see the
frontline workers in the hos
pitals who risk exposure to
the deadly Covid virus. We
see the EMS workers and po
lice officers who also put
their lives at risk to protect
us.
However, there is another
hero that comes to mind
when Sanctity of Human
Life comes around each year.
We see these heroes every
day. But we don’t often think
of them as heroes who pre
serve and protect life.
In fact, in some circles,
these heroes are looked down
upon and thought of as being
lesser human beings. They
are often put down by society
as being useless, of little or
no value, and so unappreci
ated. These brave ones will
give up everything for the
life of another, and it’s not for
a job, or a moment of glory,
it will last for the rest of their
lives.
The hero I’m talking
about is the mother who has
been chosen by God to bring
a new life into the world.
Think about it:
She may be scared be
cause her future has suddenly
taken a turn. She may find
herself in a seemingly impos
sible situation. She may have
no support system and need
help from outsiders. She may
be very young with plans for
her life. Despite all of these
obstacles, she chooses the
life of her unborn baby over
her own future, conven
iences, health, friends, or
family. If she chooses to raise
her child, or if she chooses
adoption, her sacrifice is not
just nine months, 18+ years,
but for her entire life.
Why would a young
woman in an unexpected
pregnancy make such a
choice? Because she knows
everyone deserves a chance.
Because she knows this is the
right thing to do. Because she
is brave.
To the mother-to-be, who
chose life over other options,
you are a true hero.
If you find yourself in a
situation where you need
help with a baby, please con
tact The Pregnancy Center in
Jasper. The Pregnancy Cen
ter is a pro-life Christian
ministry committed to help
ing these heroes one at a
time.
The following are ways
we work with each client on
an individual basis to meet
their needs so that giving life
to their baby is the first op
tion: Peer counseling, parent
ing classes, adoption
counseling and assistance,
abstinence education, post
abortion healing, providing
needed items for mother and
child, Bible studies.
The Pregnancy Center
welcomes your support in the
form of prayer, financial, and
volunteering. Please call
706-253-6303 or go to our
website at www.babyonthe-
way.org for more information
on how you may want to help
this ministry.
GRISHAM, POOLE
& CARLILE, PC
Criminal Defense | Family Law
"You can't go back and change the beginning,
but you can start where you are and change
Report from the Capitol
By State Representative Rick Jasperse
It’s funny how fast a week
can pass in the legislature.
Our sessions are filled
with “morning orders” which
is a time for legislators to
speak for a minute or so on
whatever they want. This
time has been taken generally
talking about the loss of com
munity leaders and friends
and family due to Covid or
tragic accidents like at the
poultry plant in Gainesville
last week. It’s very solemn to
hear these messages and to
know that the very same
thing is happening in your
own neighborhoods.
I wanted to take a moment
and talk about vaccine avail
ability. Yes, you are not alone
in frustration about getting an
appointment to receive the
vaccine if you were in the ap
propriate target group. It has
been beyond frustrating for
many. There is no excuse for
not answering the phone or
failed systems for communi
cation or scheduling. The de
mand has overwhelmed
everyone in the shot-giving
business. The real issue is the
amount of vaccine that Geor
gia is being given by the fed
eral government.
Considering a population of
10 million or so folks, our
150,000 or so doses per week
allotment doesn’t go very far.
From what I understand, the
producers are at maximum
production, and they them
selves are having issues ob
taining all they need to keep
production at maximum.
Think about it; that’s a lot a
little glass jars and rubber
stoppers and all that goes
with it. I know they are doing
all they can to supply the
United States with all the
vaccine we need. This will
get better over time, but right
now it is very hard to get in
line for the shot. My work
right now is to make sure our
rural areas are getting an ap
propriate amount of vaccine
to take care of our folks. We
have been promised a new
central appointment system
available any day now; that
will help.
Many of our committees
had their first meeting of the
year. You may have seen the
announcement in the paper
last week about my appoint
ment as Transportation chair
man; I had my Transportation
meeting Thursday afternoon;
and like all others, we set the
rides for the committee, in
troductions, and all that stan
dard stuff. I don’t know if
you know it, but you can
watch any House or Senate
committee meeting online.
That includes the very impor
tant Special Elections In
tegrity Committee that was
also appointed this week by
Speaker Ralston. This group
will be reviewing all the
statutes and laws around
elections and making recom
mendations for laws we will
pass to ensure a better and
more secure election process.
If you were interested in
when these meetings are;
please use the information
below to let me know, and I
will let you know when they
meet.
The most important thing
we did last week was to pass
the amended budget that will
ensure smooth funding for
the rest of the budget year,
ending June 30, 2021. Most
of the money went to restore
a bunch of the reductions in
K-12 education and Higher
Education from last year’s
Covid budget. We increased
funding in Public Health to
help with vaccine administra
tion in addition to the nearly
$1 billion dollars from fed
eral sources for work on
Covid issues. There was an
increase in funds for pro
grams that affect families in
foster care, the spread of
broadband in our state, and
mental health issues in Geor
gia.
Those are the quick high
lights, as I am limited in
space here. If you want de
tails, I can provide them it
you; you just have to ask. As
important bills come up for
debate, please call on me to
fill in the blanks that are not
reported. I like doing that a
lot. Either call my Capitol of
fice 404-656-7153 or email
me at
rick.jasperse@house.ga.gov,
and we will do our best to an
swer your questions or con
cerns.
Thank you for the honor
of being your voice in the
House.
Counseling
Individual, Couples and Family Therapy
with Adults, Teens and Children
Robin W. Dunn M.S.
Licensed Professional Counselor
Over 30 years experience helping people live better
770-548-1966 • 505 Cove Rd. • Suite 3 • Jasper
www.robinwdunnlpc.com
the ending." ~ C.S. Lewis
21 COURT STREET
JASPER, GEORGIA
678.880.9360
Experienced. Established. Effective.
Rocco's Slues Jam backed by Roger Shepherd Band.
Come out sign up, and sit in on a jam
Sunday, February 7th, 2 - 5 pin.
47 Mountainside Village Parkway, in Jasper