Newspaper Page Text
Thursday, January 19, 2023 | Volume 135 Number 40 | Jasper, Georgia | 20 pages, 2 sections | Published Weekly | $1.00
“When God is for it, it doesn’t matter who is
against it, ” says homeless shelter leader
Refuge in Jesus signs
lease for new
building,
permits pending
By Angela Reinhardt
Staff Writer
areinhardt@pickensprogress.com
Refuge in Jesus, the homeless
shelter that has been at the center of
a dispute with city leaders for several
months, has secured a new location
with hopes to be operational by the
end of February.
Shelter leaders have begun the
permitting process. County Planning
Director Wes Frye said there are a
few hurdles that remain before they
can open, including gaining the okay
from environmental health and the
fire marshal.
Shelter leaders told the Progress
they have entered into a lease agree
ment for a property off Highway
515, in unincorporated Pickens
County. The property is located
across the interstate from Rocco’s
Pub on Martin Road. It is visible
from the highway.
“When God is for it, it doesn’t
matter who is against it,” said
Refuge in Jesus founder and board
member Amy Ghorley. “My hus
band and I hadn’t planned on open
ing a shelter, but God put it on our
heart. He said, you’ve been working
on your house long enough it’s time
to work on mine. We thank everyone
who has „ _. ...
See Shelter on 6A
photo/Angela Reinhardt
Refuge in Jesus homeless shelter will move its operations from the city
of Jasper’s business district into this building just off Highway 515.
All aboard!
Tate Depot
Train Society
announces
new model
railroad club
Pickens’ Civil War history surprisingly
different than what is taught in school
photo/Dan Pool
Historian, lecturer and author Gerald Flinchum, seated, talks with William Dilbeck at the Drinking and History
program sponsored by the local historical society at Pendley Creek Brewery last Thursday.
By Dan Pool
Editor
dpool@pickensprogress.com
“It was so bad in Pickens County
we didn’t want to remember it,” is
what one person told historian and au
thor Gerald Flinchum to explain why
Civil War history here remains so
veiled.
Speaking to the standing room
crowd at the Pickens Historical Soci
ety’s Drinking and History series at
Pendley Creek Brewing Thursday, the
author of The Civil War in Pickens
Count}’ said the mountain counties of
Georgia were very unique in how the
history played out here.
Flinchum presented a case where
the population was much more di
vided about whether to secede and
even which side to join, North or
South, and this created animosity in
side the county that lingered years
after the war and directly influenced
further conflict over moonshine later.
Flinchum may return for a future his
torical society talk on the “guerrilla
war in Georgia” to further present
these post-war skirmishes, including
the shooting of two people at a Hinton
church and the gunning down of one
man on Jasper’s Main Street.
See Civil War on 6A
Tommy Gartrell chosen as school board chair;
Steve Lowe will be vice-chair
photos/Larry Cavender
The Pickens Board of Education begins a "new era"
in leadership with Steve Lowe as vice-chair and Tommy
Gartrell as chairman. Lowe and Gartrell were both elected
to their positions without opposition at the board's most
recent meeting.
photo/Angela Reinhardt
An expansive model
train set is inside the Tate
Depot. A new club has been
formed for newbies and en
thusiasts alike.
By Angela Reinhardt
Staff Writer
areinhardt@pickensprogress.com
The recently-formed Tate
Depot Train Society, which
oversees the model railroad
inside the historic Tate
Depot, has announced the
formation of a new model
railroad club.
Members of the society
invite interested parties to
join the Tate Depot Model
Railroader’s Club (see press
release below, which in
cludes more details). In addi
tion to adults, the club is
interested in fostering a love
of model trains among stu
dents. The model railroad
set was donated by Big
Canoe residents Bill and
Susan Gibson after extensive
renovations were completed
at the depot. The set is the
centerpiece of the new facil
ity, which is now open occa
sionally to the public for
tours. The Depot will be
open next on January 21, see
page 12B for details.
The county used around
$200,000 American Rescue
Plan Act funding to restore
the interior of the depot, in
cluding adding HVAC and
electrical that would allow
the railroad to be safely
stored there away from ex
treme temperatures or hu
midity.
See Press Release from
Tate Depot Train Society
on Page 6A.
By Larry Cavender
Progress Contributor
Only moments after Pick
ens’ Interim Superintendent
Janet Goodman called to
order the Thursday, Jan. 12
meeting of the Pickens
County Board of Education
and dispensed with the open
ing formalities, she asked for
nominations for a new chair
man of the board. Veteran
board member and former
vice-chair Tommy Gartrell
was nominated and elected
without opposition as the
new chairman.
Goodman then turned the
meeting over to Chairman
Gartrell who immediately
asked for nominations for
vice chair, at which point
new board member, Steve
Lowe, was nominated and
voted unanimously to that
position.
Thus begins a "new era"
in leadership following what
former chair Sue Fendley
called "the end of an era" at
the December meeting,
which saw the retirement of
Superintendent Tony Young
and the resignation of long
time board attorney Phil
Landrum III. December was
also the final meeting for
board members Tucker
Green, Aaron Holland, and
Steve Smith, who did not
seek reelection.
The transition was a
smooth one as the board
continued the tradition of
honoring outstanding
achievements by Pickens
students with the recognition
of the Hill City Elementary
fourth grade which recently
won the Georgia Foundation
for Agriculture Fall STEM
Challenge. A student-pro
duced video presentation
highlighted their award-win
ning project which centered
on "How can we improve
gardening spaces while
using water conservation
practices."
The obligatory "reports to
the superintendent" fol
lowed, which included the
financial report from Chief
Financial Officer Amy
Smith and the curriculum re
port from
Assessment/RTI/Commu-
nity Engagement Director
Destini Shope. However, in
light of issues resulting from
the recent "once in a genera
tion cold snap," the report on
operations and maintenance
from Director of Transporta
tion/Maintenance/Safety
Chris Wallace proved to be
of much interest to the
board.
Wallace reported on the
recovery status of the Pick-
See School on 6A
The Progress has added
a new Pickens Poll feature
to our Instagram page.
Follow us there to participate in polls on
a variety of topics relevant to our community.
Results will be published in the following edition.
Puzzles
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Think you
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Test your
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crossword
What the
Jasper Mayor
reads Page 8A
Obituaries 3B&5B
• Lyle Bishop Jr.
• Keith Blaisdell
• Lona Buchanan
• Herman Cochran
• Edna Cole
• Gretchen Crawford
• James Densmore
• Donald DiPentima
• Robert Forrester
• Herschel Frazier
• Bobby Gordon
• Doug Hanley
• Cody Jones
• Ronald McGraw
• Charles Morris
• William Pless Sr.
• EJ Rich III
• Mark Thomas
• Joy Ward
Contact Us
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