Newspaper Page Text
WE’RE OFFERING
A LIMITED TIME
CD SPECIAL.
We are proud of our professional
and experienced staff that
continues to provide the personal
service that you've known for
many years.
Come by and see one of our
qualified Customer Service
Representatives and learn more
about this special CD offer.
VM,
‘Picons
Cnim-hi
UL
County
MAIN OFFICE: 15 Sammy McGhee Blvd. • Jasper, GA 30143
COVE ROAD OFFICE: 65 Cove Road • Jasper, GA 30143
LPO OFFICE: 1353 Riverstone Pkwy Suite 140 • Canton, GA 30114
(706) 253-9600 • www.cbopc.com
FDIC
PAGE 2A PICKENS COUNTY PROGRESS THURSDAY. SEPTEMBER 29. 2022
Residents’Rishts Month comes in October
Month highlights the importance of listening to
residents who live in nursing homes,
assisted living and personal care facilities
Inspiring Unity
within Our
Community
By Ashley Nichols
Ombudsman
Representative
North Georgia
Programs and Services
Across the country, resi
dents of nursing homes and
other long-term care facilities
along with family members,
ombudsmen, citizen advo
cates, facility staff and others
will honor the individual
rights of long-term care resi
dents by celebrating Resi
dents’ Rights Month in
October.
Designated by the Na
tional Consumer Voice for
Quality Long-Term Care,
this month highlights the im
portance of listening to resi
dents who live in our
country’s nursing homes, as
sisted living and personal
care facilities.
In addition to their civil
rights, long-term care resi
dents are protected by federal
and state law which guaran
tees the residents’ rights to
promote and maintain their
dignity and autonomy. The
Long-Term Care Ombuds
man program advocates for
residents’ rights year-round.
Additionally, special ini
tiatives completed during
Residents’ Rights Month in
creases awareness of these
rights so residents can be em
powered to live with dignity
and self-determination, and
to be celebrated for their rich
histories, talents, individual
ity, and the importance of
their rights to continue to
have a say in their lives and
their care.
Throughout the pandemic,
residents of long-term care
facilities were disconnected
from communities within
their facilities when activities
and group dining were lim
ited. Residents were discon
nected from the broader local
community when visitation
was restricted, and many res
idents were unable to leave
their facilities to participate
in outside activities. This
year's Residents’ Rights
Month theme - Inspiring
Unity within Our Commu
nity - emphasizes the impor
tance of fostering meaningful
community within the facil
ity and encouraging resi
dents’ connection to their
local community.
‘■‘Being a part of a com
munity is essential to our
well-being. This year’s Resi
dents’ Rights Month theme
focuses on building commu
nity within facilities and sup
porting connections for
residents to the local commu
nity,” said Lori Smetanka,
Executive Director of the
Consumer Voice.
North Georgia long-term
care (LTC) residents are
served by the Non-profit,
North Georgia Programs and
Services. The Georgia Long-
Term Care Ombudsman pro
gram, authorized by the
Older Americans Act and
Georgia Law, and was estab
lished in 1979 to improve the
quality of care and quality of
life for residents living in
long-term care facilities.
The North LTC Ombuds
man program has a staff of
seven that cover facilities
from in a 29-county region
from Paulding to Banks
County.
The Ombudsman Repre
sentative that covers Pickens
County is Ashley Nichols.
Ombudsman conduct routine
monitoring and inspection of
long-term care facilities, pro
vide information and assis
tance to various concerned
groups, and provide commu
nity education events and ed
ucation to facility staff.
The Ombudsman also in
vestigate and work to resolve
complaints on behalf of resi
dents from anyone who con
tacts the program. If you
have friends and family that
live in a long-term care facil
ity and have questions re
garding their rights or care
concerns the program can be
contacted at 470-691-1301.
All contacts are private and
confidential.
Additionally, each facility
is required to post Ombuds
man contact information in
an accessible location usually
just inside the entrance of the
facility. North Georgia Pro
grams and Services Long-
Term Care Ombudsman also
maintains a Facebook page
for concerned citizens, resi
dents, families, and the gen
eral public to stay updated on
the latest news concerning
long-term care residents.
Chattahoochee Tech welcomes three to board;
Honors outgoing board of directors chair
Serve Pickens, a Community Day
of Service coming October 22
(L-R) Chattahoochee Tech President Dr. Ron Newcomb; board members Ford Thig
pen, Roberto Murillo, and Pam Carnes; Board Chair Debbie Underkoffler; and Rep.
Joseph Gullet.
Volunteers of
all ages
invited to
get involved
and give back
Serve Pickens is a one-
day community wide day of
service which will be held on
October 22, 2022.
This family friendly day
will include volunteers of all
ages, either singly or in
groups, completing a one day
project for a local nonprofit.
The projects, which you
can select ahead of time, in
clude activities like: working
on a Habitat house, helping
at a fall festival or a thrift
store, planting flowers, paint
ing a door or a fence, or
doing landscape cleanup.
The day will begin with a
“grab and go” breakfast and
welcome at Chattahoochee
Tech.
Then the various volun
teer teams will depart for the
projects they selected. Some
projects can be completed in
a couple of hours and others
may take most of the day.
Our sponsors of the event
include Holy Family Episco
pal Church, Revolution
Church, Jasper United
Methodist Church, First Bap
tist Church of Jasper, Fellow
ship Presbyterian Church,
Mountain City Church, as
well as the Rotary Club of
Jasper, Jasper Holiday Mar
ket, Elite European, Green
Heating and Cooling, Solar
Nails, Renasant Bank, Mar
ble Hill Ace Hardware, and
Norton Commercial Real Es
tate.
You can find out more,
and register at
www.servepickens.com or
you can find us on Facebook
https://www.faeebook.eom/S
ervePickens or contact us via
email at
servepickens@gmail.com.
Chattahoochee Technical
College has welcomed com
munity leaders Pam Carnes,
Roberto Murillo, and Ford
Thigpen to serve on the col
lege’s board of directors
while honoring outgoing
board chair Jim Larson with
an award of appreciation.
Pam Carnes is president
and CEO of the Cherokee
County Chamber of Com
merce, where she has worked
since 1991. She recently
completed a three-year term
on the Southern Association
of Colleges and Schools
Commission on Colleges
(SACSCOC) Board of
Trustees. Carnes also served
previously for 12 consecutive
years on the Chattahoochee
Tech board of directors, and
was board chair in 2011 and
2012.
Roberto Murillo is the
complex human resource
manager for Pilgrim’s in El-
lijay. With nearly 15 years of
experience at Pilgrim’s, he is
knowledgeable about all of
the company divisions, in
cluding production, compli
ance, quality control, and
training. Pilgrim’s is viewed
as a good corporate citizen in
Gilmer County due greatly to
Murillo’s efforts and dedica
tion to establishing and main
taining positive relationships
within the community.
Ford Thigpen is the
Northwest Georgia regional
president for Westside Bank,
a division of The Piedmont
Bank. He is a lifelong Geor
gia resident who grew up in
Paulding County, and cur
rently lives with his family in
Kennesaw. He is active in
many civic organizations, in
cluding the Cobb Chamber of
Commerce and the Rotary
Club of Paulding County. He
also has served previously as
a member of the Chatta
hoochee Tech Foundation
Board of Trustees.
In addition to welcoming
these new board members,
Chattahoochee Tech pre
sented outgoing board chair
Jim Larson with an award of
appreciation on Sept. 9 for
his outstanding service. Lar
son is the director of talent
and corporate training man
ager for Yancey Bros. “We
greatly appreciate Jim’s ded
icated service to the college
and to our students,” said
Chattahoochee Tech Presi
dent Dr. Ron Newcomb. “He
has provided steadfast sup
port, which included leading
training sessions for several
student leadership pro
grams.”
Serving as the new board
chair is Debbie Underkoffler,
president and CEO of North
Georgia Staffing.
The Chattahoochee Tech
Board of Directors is an ad
visory board composed of
members who were nomi
nated by area industry and
community leaders, and ap
proved by the Technical Col
lege System of Georgia
(TCSG). As new members of
this board, Carnes, Murillo
and Thigpen will fulfill im
portant roles as advocates
within the community on is
sues of importance involving
the college and the local
workforce.
OUR TOP PRIORITY IS
CARING FOR YOUR
CHILD'S PHYSICAL &
MENTAL HEALTH!
PrestigeMedicalGroup.org
Child Development Assessments
ADD & ADHD Treatment
Newborn Assessments
Well Child visits
Vaccinations
. Mental Health
M * i
> r P~ Acute Care
Pediatrician
49 Gordon Road,
Suite 103, Jasper
Dr. Jane Jurma
706-692-9768