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“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” —Joshua 1:9 • Opinions • Community Views • Good Old Common Sense The Progress Editorial August 18,2022 From the Staff We love seeing local support for people who need it Over the years we’ve covered dozens and dozens of fundraisers for people going through hard times, just like the one being held this weekend for a local barbecue caterer who underwent triple bypass surgery. Another area business owner is hosting a benefit this Saturday to raise money for the man’s medical bills (See story on page 2A). It’s always warmed our hearts to see the com munity rally around the people who really do need help, and we want to encourage everyone (in cluding ourselves) to take time to donate what they can to people or causes that could use some sup port — and also to thank the good folks who make these things happen. We’ve covered every thing from fundraisers like the one this Saturday - an event with raffles, food, and music - to barbecue fundraisers like one of our Good Vibes series intervie wees hosts, to dinner plate fundraisers, motorcycle rides, 5k runs/walks, and on line fundraisers through GoFundMe and other platforms. People get creative and put so much thought, time and energy into trying to give a helping hand, be it getting up early to cook, make plates, get the bouncy house, clean up trash, organ ize forms and applications, or give up their free time on weeknights or week days. These fundraisers are usually (but not always) organized by family and friends who have had loved ones fall on hard times. The list of tragic events and sce narios is a long one - unexpected medical issues or accidents, overwhelming med ical bills, a house fire that destroys every thing, the loss of a loved one and funeral expenses, unexpected homelessness, loss of job or income, single moms who can’t afford basic needs, and the list continues to lengthen. On several occasions we’ve seen such an outpouring of support from the com munity that the campaign reaches or ex ceeds its goal. Even if the goal isn’t met, when we interview the person or people the fundraiser was set up for there are almost always tears. Speaking with someone going through tragedies most of us can’t imagine is one of the most difficult parts of being a reporter. The per son’s pain and suffering is raw, but the gratitude they express for people who donated their time, money, or supplies to help is palpable. They cry, and we usually cry too. We’ve all heard it’s impossible to un derstand something unless you go through it yourself. This is true, but it’s not impossible to empathize and show compassion — and while it’s not every one, most people want to help people who need it. GoFundMe has raised $15 billion since its launch in 2010. Their fundraisers are not limited to campaigns for people going through hard times, but it still goes to show that people give. (In terestingly, two Georgia cities ranked in GoFundMe’s top 10 for most generous in the country - Marietta, Ga. ranked # 2 and Alpharetta, Ga. ranked #5. Florida has four cities in the top 10). Pickens County cities didn’t make the most generous list, but we’d stand behind our community’s generosity any day of the week. It s warmed our hearts to see the community rally around the people who need help Tell us your thoughts with a letter to the editor. E-mail to news@pickensprogress.com See letter submission guidelines on the Letters to the Editor page or call us 706-253-2457. Senior Moments Psycho squirrels By Mary Migliaro Some of you may recall an article I wrote some time ago about my “squirrel wars.” I was able to vent about how they seem to be taunting me in an effort to drive me mad. Well, now I’m sure they are because I have a few that are clearly psycho squirrels. What do I mean? These squirrels are going above and beyond anything I have ever seen or heard about. I have spent more time doing re search on how to thwart them, only to have them overcome obstacles I place in their path. For example, it seems they like the nectar in my hummingbird feeder that hangs from a pole on my deck railing. I found one clinging to the pole and tipping the feeder so he could drink the nectar! Re search said to grease the pole with petroleum jelly to make it too slippery for them, which I did. When they could not get to it, they started sucking the spilled nectar from the deck until it finally dried up. The strategy works but now I have to go out every couple of days to grease it again when the sun melts it off. It turns out they also have been trying to chew through the line that holds up the reg ular birdfeeder. It is squirrel- proof but that hasn’t stopped them from doing it. More re search let me know that they hate tin foil and that when they try to chew through it, it’s a lot like when we get a bit of metal on our teeth and it’s not pleasant. Now the top of my squirrel-proof feeder looks like a TV antenna. I think that they really just like the attention. Like a tod dler, they will do anything (good or bad) to get my atten tion. Several times they have come up to the French door glass and tried to jump into the house only to bang the glass. They do this multiple times and I think it’s because they are high on the nectar sugar! The list goes on and on. They have jumped on my hi biscus tree to chew the leaves off of it. There are numerous teeth marks on the steel top of the birdfeeder where they have tried to get access to the seed inside as well as the gal vanized steel trash can where the seed is stored. So far, they don’t seem to like that metal either. At this point, they are making me psycho! If any of you readers have solutions to use with psycho squirrels, please let me know. If this goes on much longer. I’ll be taken away by the men in white coats to a padded cell somewhere! [Mary Migliaro is a fre quent contributor to the Progress as both a columnist and with a regular parenting column. She may be reached at maiymigliaro@aol.com.] Spot an error, let our editor know: dpool@ pickensprogress.com (USPS 431-820) Published by Pickens County Progress, Inc. 94 North Main Street, Jasper, GA 30143 (706) 253-2457 www.pickensprogressonline.com DAN POOL Publisher/Editor Published each Thursday at Jasper, Pickens County, Georgia. Entered at the Post Office at Jasper, Georgia 30143 as Mail Matter of Second Class. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to PICKENS COUNTY PROGRESS, 94 N. Main St., Jasper, GA 30143. One Year Subscription: $41.17 for residents of Pickens County or the cities of Ball Ground, Fairmount, and Ranger; $52.30 for all other Georgia residents; $62.32 out of state residents. #lbe H>d)ciol Almost one-fifth of Georgia women of reproductive age lack insurance By Rebecca Grapevine Staff Reporter Capitol Beat ATLANTA - A new report from the Georgetown Uni versity Center for Children and Families has found that about 20% of Georgia women of childbearing age are uninsured. The rate of uninsured women between 18 and 44 years old is one of the highest in the country, putting Geor gia in 46th place on a na tional ranking, the report said. Almost half of women of childbearing age who iden tify as Latina are uninsured, the report found. That’s nearly double the national av erage. The report comes as Geor gia policy makers work to ad dress improve maternal and infant health. In 2020, there were 24.5 maternal deaths in Georgia per 100,000 live births, slightly above the national rate. Maternal mortality rates are particularly high among Black women, who face a rate of 41 deaths per 100,000 live births, the report said. Some women and infants can get insurance through Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), so the report also looked at how well those pro grams provide infant and ma ternal care. The information reflects the latest federal data, which is from 2019, before the pan demic. Just above three-quarters of women on Medicaid or CHIP are receiving timely prenatal care, putting Georgia in 30th place. About two- thirds of new mothers are getting adequate postpartum care. About 12.1% of new births covered by the pro grams are low birthweight (under 2,500 grams), putting Georgia 48th in the state rankings. And just over two-thirds of Georgia children on Med icaid and CHIP are getting all of their recommended check ups during the first 15 months of life, the report said, putting Georgia in 21st place. “This report not only paints a bleak picture of ex isting health coverage gaps for all women of reproduc tive age in Georgia, but also shows how the state’s poor performance on maternal and infant health issues could lead to widening disparities in health,” said Joan Alker, executive director of the Georgetown University Cen ter for Children and Families. “The state’s decision not to expand Medicaid contin ues to put the health of its mothers at risk and under mines the opportunity for Georgia’s children to get a healthy start in life.” Gov. Brian Kemp and other Georgia Republican leaders have remained staunchly opposed to Medi caid expansion in the state, citing its costs. Georgia is now one of 12 states that have not expanded Medicaid. “Traditional Medicaid ex pansion would cause approx imately 200,000 people to lose the ability to purchase health insurance for free,” Kemp spokeswoman Katie Byrd said. The federal government this week denied Kemp’s plan to set up a private health insurance marketplace in Georgia. The governor’s plan would have allowed 50,000 uninsured Georgians to pur chase private insurance, Byrd said. Kemp has taken other steps to improve women’s health in the state, Byrd said. The governor supported bills to expand postpartum Medicaid coverage from six months to one year following birth and create supportive housing for pregnant women and new mothers. He also added funding to the state’s budget to support mothers with cardiovascular condi tions, Byrd said. The state Medicaid agency recently announced it will provide additional fund ing to safety-net hospitals Grady Memorial and Au gusta University Medical Center to improve health out comes, Byrd said. This story is available through a news partnership with Capitol Beat News Serv ice, a project of the Georgia Press Educational Founda tion. WEATHER By William Dilbeck HI LOW RAIN August 09 84 67 .12 August 10 77 66 1.11 August 11 82 66 .14 August 12 83 67 .00 August 13 89 63 .00 August 14 83 65 .00 August 15 84 63 .02 Tt THE OLD MULEHOUSE The Old Mulehouse offers a modern upscale twist to the neighborhood tavern with a creative chef-driven menu, a full cocktail bar, our signature mules, and features beer and wine from Georgia. (706) 253-3440 OLDMULEHOUSE.COM QO 2 North Main Street Jasper, Ga 30143 Open at I I a.m.Wed-Sun Closed Mon&Tues