Newspaper Page Text
Continued From 1A
Harper is now 7 months old, home with her parents, Syd
ney and Daniel Albors, and 2-year-old brother, Charlie, in
Jasper.
Thriving
throughout her body.
Harper Rene was bom
Monday, Feb. 20, 2023. She
weighed 4 pounds, 14
ounces. Dr. Pushpa Phillips
was the delivering physician
and Tori Flynn was Sydney’s
nurse during delivery.
‘‘She happens to also be
my best friend,” Sydney said.
“She came into work on her
off day just to be my nurse
and help me through my C-
section.”
Harper was diagnosed
with nonimmune hydrops fe
talis, a severe, life-threaten
ing condition where the baby
experiences abnormal
amounts of fluid buildup —
in her case, in the chest cavity
around her lungs as well as in
her arms, legs, abdomen and
skull. The mortality rate,
Sydney said, is between
60%-90%.
Harper spent 87 days in
the Special Care Nursery at
Northside Cherokee, where
she was intubated on an os
cillator and had tubes on both
sides of her chest continually
draining the fluid off her
lungs. She required several
blood transfusions and was
on many different blood pres
sure medications to keep her
stabilized.
“We were told life in the
NICU (neonatal intensive
care unit) was like a roller
coaster, and that was the hon
est truth,” Sydney said.
“Every step forward was fol
lowed by a step back.”
After about a month and a
half, the doctors removed
respiratory support. Harper’s
chest tubes were taken out
because the fluid stopped ac
cumulating.
Harper spent the next two
months growing and getting
healthy in the Special Care
Nursery. Sydney said Dr.
Sarita Patel, a neonatologist,
was “amazing and seriously
was my saving grace through
it all,” and credited nurses
Britteny Bone, Ginny Brown
and Kayla Solazzo who “en
graved such a special place in
our hearts and still keep in
touch to this very day.
“I felt comfortable going
home each day knowing she
was there with people that
loved her just as much as we
did. They called her their
‘miracle baby.’ She had all
the odds against her and she
fought so hard every day to
make it to where she is
today.”
Now Harper is 7 months
old, home with her parents,
Sydney and Daniel, and 2-
year-old brother, Charlie, in
Jasper.
Harper’s mom said she’s
“thriving,” and as of last
week, no longer needs a feed
ing tube.
“Harper is the happiest
and most smiley baby I
know,” Sydney said. “She is
still her feisty self, as they de
scribed her in the NICU.
She’s blown everyone’s
socks off on how happy and
healthy she is. She also is the
biggest snuggle bug.”
Continued From 1A
Angie Davis took over as the county’s legal counsel at a
called meeting Thursday.
County
Attorney
Davis attended the first
meeting which included her
introduction, shaking hands
with county staff prior to the
meeting.
In a brief interview fol
lowing the introduction,
Commission Chair Kris Stan-
cil said he had attended some
early training through the As
sociation of County Commis
sioners taught by Davis and
was impressed. He said her
firm is regarded as “the ex
perts of county government
legal matters.”
A packet provided by the
county shows that Davis
along with her partner Ken
Jarrard, serve as county attor
neys in 11 Georgia counties,
including nearby Cherokee,
Forsyth and Dawson. They
are the city attorneys for Al
pharetta, Milton, Fayetteville
and Stone Mountain.
They have handled special
projects all across the state
involving the largest counties
and municipalities as well as
representing many small
counties.
The firm has 19 attorneys,
eight partners and nine asso
ciates.
Stancil said with a firm
that large they have someone
with experience regarding
any situation.
Stancil said besides hav
ing a firm that specializes in
local government, he wanted
to move to a firm that did not
have any ties within Pickens
County to avoid conflicts.
“I was extremely im
pressed by [Davis] teaching
the classes,” Stancil said.
“And they come highly re
garded from the neighboring
counties that use them.”
Stancil acknowledged that
the hourly rate for the new
firm could be costly at $275
an hour if a partner is in
volved, but would be less if
it’s an associate or paralegal.
If they average more than
five hours a week with the
partners working, it would be
more than the flat fee paid to
Landrum of $70,000 a year.
“It will be important that
we manage our hours well,”
he said.
Stancil predicted that dur
ing the transition Jarrad &
Davis will be used more but
that it should balance out
later.
Tate Depot to be open for Tate Day
with model railroads,
Thomas the Tank engines
By Angela Reinhardt
Staff Writer
areinhardt@picken-
sprogress.com
Volunteers with the Tate
Depot Train Society are invit
ing the public to visit the his
toric Tate Depot during Tate
Day to enjoy their not one,
but two model railroads and
Thomas the Train engines.
Tate Day is Saturday,
Nov. 4. The depot will be
open from 9:30-4 p.m.
“As a year-end and Christ
mas added attraction, we are
running all seven of the
Thomas the Tank engines and
their passenger and freight
cars on Bill Gibson's gifted
HO [model railroad] layout,”
said Tate Depot Train Soci
ety’s Executive Director Ben
Read. “We are also setting up
a G-scale Thomas with his
two passenger cars on the
conference room table.”
G-scale equipment is
about 6-inches high “and
should be a delight for our
younger children to see,” he
said.
Big Canoe resident Gib
son donated his model set to
the depot.
A big blow-up Thomas
will be out on the road to
welcome festival attendees as
well.
Other new developments
at the historic building are a
re-creation of a station
agent’s office space with a
simulated working telegraph,
as well as a library of several
hundred "real" and model
railroad books and several
hundred magazines and
DVDs that can be played on
the television in the front
waiting room.
Since opening last Octo
ber there have been 1,850
visitors who signed the regis
ters at their monthly open
houses.
Anyone with an iPhone or
android can now run the HO
layout directly off their
phone if they join the model
railroad club and learn to op
erate the layouts.
Learn more about the
group at TateDepotTrainSo-
ciety.org.
Find out what's happening on your street,
in the schools, and all across Pickens County,
Local Matters.
Support Community
Journalism
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2023 PICKENS COUNTY PROGRESS PAGE 11A
“I hope people come out on Election
Day,” says voting office supervisor
By Dan Pool
Editor
dpool@pickensprogress.com
Voters in the city limits of
Jasper and Nelson have
shown they are either waiting
on Election Day Tuesday,
November 7th or aren’t inter
ested in races. Only three
people voted all day Monday
at the community center,
bringing the early vote total
to 158.
“We’ve seen less than 10
people many days [of early
voting],” said Stacey God
frey, elections supervisor for
Pickens County. “It sure is
different than last November
when we had people wrapped
around the building. There
has been a lot of talk but peo
ple are not showing up so far.
I hope they come out on
Election Day and we have
people standing in line.”
Most of the votes cast so
far have been in the city of
Jasper races which has both
the mayor position and two
council seats up for grabs,
plus one unopposed race.
In Nelson the turnout is
lower, but Godfrey says vot
ers in the small town on the
Pickens/Cherokee line typi
cally wait until Election Day
to “vote in their own back
yard” rather than drive to
Jasper.
Next Tuesday all voting
will be at the city halls in
Nelson and Jasper. The early
voting station in the commu
nity center in Roper Park will
close Friday. There is no vot
ing Monday.
Polls will be open Tues
day from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m.
VOTE
on Election Day.
Voters are asked to check
their registration status by ei
ther calling the election of
fice or by searching My
Voter’s Page on the Ga. Sec
retary of State website. God
frey said in a previous article
there is always a little confu
sion with the city elections
being only for those inside
the city limits, not everyone
with a mailing address with
the name of the city.
Godfrey said she antici
pated higher numbers with
the mayor seat up in Jasper
and a good bit of talk about
the election. At this point, it
appears the turnout will be
low, similar to the last city
election two years in Jasper
when only 258 people voted
- 153 on Election Day and
102 in early voting.
In Nelson two years ago,
106 of the 118 total votes cast
were done so on Election
Day.
When asked if the elec
tions office has seen a lot of
registrations from the new
developments along High
way 515, Godfrey said it is
hard to pinpoint as most peo
ple who change voter regis
trations do so when they
change their driver’s licenses
for their new address. She
said those come in a few at
the time so it’s hard to spot
trends. She said there hasn’t
been many calls or visits
from new residents to indi
cate there are questions or
any particular level of inter
est from the new residents of
Jasper.
Races Tuesday
City of Jasper
Mayor- Jasper City Coun
cil member Kirk Raffield
versus Lora Erdman;
City Council Post 3 -
Brandon Hannah unop
posed;
City Council Post 4 - In
cumbent James A. “Jim”
Looney versus Dorian
Gibson;
City Council Post 5 - In
cumbent John B. Foust, Jr.
(previously served post 3),
Bethsadia Fernandez, An
thony W. Young II, and
Shirley Mitchell.
City of Nelson
City Council - Incum
bents Krissy MacNeill,
Nathan Hamby, as well as
challengers John Ahlberg,
Michael Brown, and
Michael Haviland. David
Hamby’s name will appear
on the ballot but he has
withdrawn from the race.
Top vote getters win all
seats; there are no runoffs
in city elections here.
Continued From 1A
Flyers
the 42 homes in that subdivi
sion had baggies with the fly
ers tossed on the driveways.
The baggies were filled with
deer com to keep them from
blowing away.
When asked if she felt un
safe in her home after the fly
ers were distributed, she said,
“Not me. Come to my door
and let me catch you,” but ac
knowledged it has rattled
some residents.
The most recent flyers
have the headline “Every
Single Aspect of the Media is
Jewish,” and includes images
of media moguls for Sony,
Paramount, Fox, Comcast,
Warner Bros., and Walt Dis
ney with the Star of David on
their foreheads. It also says
“6 Jewish Corporations own
96% of the Media.”
The back states that peo
ple who disagree with their
campaign are opposed to free
speech, and that they have
distributed many thousands
across America with the only
“target” being the “unin
formed and deceived.”
“We non-Jews have been
targeted relentlessly for
decades and centuries....we
will not be silent as they con
duct genocide against us,”
the flyer states. “...This is a
PSA about a Jewish mafia
that has hijacked our coun
try.”
The hate-mail left in the
subdivision last year had the
headlines “Every Single As
pect of the Pornography and
Hook—Up culture is Jew
ish,” and “Every Single As
pect of Gun Control is
Jewish.” They include penta
grams and influential leaders
with the Star of David photo-
shopped on their heads, as
well as demons and other
text.
Continued From 1A
Gas
Leak
that created a strong odor.
Classes were cancelled for
the day. Parents had the op
tion to pick their student up
early, or have them ride home
on their regular bus route.
Classes resumed the next
day.
When asked what people
should do when they smell
gas Sherrer’s answer was
quick and to the point - call
911.
“If you smell gas at your
home or business call 911
and exit the building,” he
said. “The fire department
will arrive and we will use
equipment that can detect
gas.”
Sherrer said there is risk
of ignition with a gas leak,
and cautions people to not
flip switches of any kind, and
exit the building immedi
ately.
“Even electronic devices,
things as small as a cell
phone can be a danger,” he
said.
According to Atlanta Gas
Light, “avoid using any
sources of ignition, such as
cell phones, cigarettes,
matches, flashlights, elec
tronic devices, motorized ve
hicles, light switches or
landlines, as natural gas can
ignite from a spark or open
flame, possibly causing a fire
or explosion. Natural gas is
non-toxic, lighter than air and
displaces oxygen. In severe
cases, if not used properly,
natural gas can also lead to
asphyxiation.”
The local fire chief said
natural gas and propane have
additives that give them a rot-
ten-egg smell so when there
is a leak people are made
aware of it. Because of the
odor it is often detected, but
it can still be a danger.
“Any gas in too high of a
quantity can [displace] oxy
gen,” he said, “and we need
oxygen.”
Carbon monoxide is more
dangerous as it is odorless
and colorless and often not
detected. It is the product of
burning fuels, and also can be
produced from ventless fire
places. Sherrer urges people
with ventless fireplaces to be
sure they are well-maintained
by a licensed technician. He
also strongly recommends
people install carbon monox
ide detectors in their homes.
Tips from the
Centers for
Disease Control
•Do have your heating
system, water heater and any
other gas, oil, or coal burning
appliances serviced by a
qualified technician every
year.
•Do install a battery-oper
ated or battery back-up CO
detector in your home. Check
or replace the battery when
you change the time on your
clocks each spring and fall. If
the detector sounds leave
your home immediately and
call 911.
•Do seek prompt medical
help if you suspect CO poi
soning and are feeling dizzy,
light-headed, or nauseated.
•Don’t use a generator,
charcoal grill, camp stove, or
other gasoline or charcoal
burning device inside your
home, basement, or garage or
near a window.
•Don’t run a car or truck
inside a garage attached to
your house, even if you leave
the door open.
•Don’t bum anything in a
stove or fireplace that isn’t
vented.
•Don’t heat your house
with a gas oven.
•Don’t use a generator,
pressure washer, or any gaso
line-powered engine less
than 20 feet from any win
dow, door, or vent. Use an
extension cord that is more
than 20 feet long to keep the
generator at a safe distance.
PATRICK'S CLEANING
AND COMPLETE HOME SERVICES
Gutter Cleaning
Painting, Cleaning & More
t'' Interior / Exterior
Painting
Handyman Services
Pressure Washing
\/ Junk Removal
✓ Window Washing
✓ Gutter Cleaning
✓ Organization
Professional & Affordable
LICENSED & BONDED Kcirtap72.com
706-972-0680