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Tuesday, April 13,2021 ®jje TBeralti (SajettE 5A
DEATH NOTICES
Obituaries are published as received
"Bill" Denson, Jr.
John “Bill” W. Denson, Jr., age 85, passed away
unexpectedly on Monday, March 29, 2021. Bill was
born in Macon, Georgia, where
he grew up and attended Lanier
Senior High School, graduated
from Emory University, where he
was a member of the Sigma Nu
Fraternity and then continued his
education at the Southern College
of Optometry in Memphis, Tennes
see. Upon graduation he began
his optometry career in Atlanta,
practiced, until he returned home
and served the community that he loved. His early
retirement allowed him to follow his passions of
nature and wildlife.
Bill’s greatest joy was spending time at his farm.
His love of nature is best exemplified by his passion
for his farm (D-Farm) and being a caretaker of its
abundant gifts. Bill was awarded “Conservationist
of the Year 2004,” by Central Georgia Soil and Water
Conservation District.
As an avid hunter he traveled the world, including
Alaska, Canada, South America, New Zealand, Austra
lia and Africa, all while connecting with local commu
nities during his adventures. He generously shared
the life lessons he learned along the way with those
closest to him. One of a kind, never in doubt, and his
spirit will carry on with those that loved him.
Bill was the youngest child of John W. Denson and
Charlotte D. Denson, sibling of Billie D. Sanders, L.A.
(Buddy) Denson, Jean D. Speed and Elaine Denson.
Survivors include Terrie Denson, Jack Speed, Jr., Don
na Hinds and Allan Sanders, Jr. He is also survived by
numerous great nieces and nephews.
Bill’s wishes were to spend eternity on his farm, so
his ashes will be spread there at a later date, amongst
a small gathering of family and friends.
Bobby Joe Hand
Bobby Joe Hand, of Barnesville, Georgia, passed
away on April 6, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia.
Visitation was held Sunday, April 11, 2021 at Memo
rial Park Main Funeral Home, 2030 Memorial Park Dr.,
in Gainesville, Georgia, from 12:00
p.m.-2:00 p.m. followed by services
in the chapel at 2:00 p.m., offici
ated by Rev. Garth Forster.
Bobby Joe Hand, known by
close family and friends as “B.J. or
Bob”, was born in Clayton County,
Georgia to Fred and Anne Hand on
August 9, 1940. He attended North
Clayton High School where he met the love of his
life LaRue Boles. Bobby Joe and LaRue were married
on June 6, 1958 at North Clayton Baptist Church in
Clayton County, Georgia. He had several occupations
over his 80 years. He started early in life as a home
builder with his father Fred. Followed by his proud
time building the Hartwell dam as an iron worker. He
concluded his career, after twenty-eight years, with
General Motors. He was a member of the First Baptist
Church of Barnesville. There, he participated in sev
eral mission trips and was an ordained Southern Bap
tist deacon. He was a member of the WoodmenLife
Chapter 199 of Barnesville. Bobby Joe and his wife
LaRue were world travelers and spent their thirty
years of retirement cruising to all seven continents
(twenty-two cruises total). He enjoyed spending time
outdoors, watching and reading westerns, and could
never pass up taking a second look at an old car.
Bobby Joe is preceded in death by his parents
Fred and Anne Hand and his sister Jane Wells.
Bobby Joe is survived by his wife LaRue Hand
of Barnesville, his daughter Dana Pass and Grady of
Gainesville, his sister Sharon Stallings and Larry of
Thomaston, and brother Daniel Hand of McDonough,
his granddaughter Brittany Swindler and Jon, his
grandson Andrew Jared Pass both grandchildren are
of Gainesville, many nieces and nephews and other
kinfolks.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be
made in his honor to the First Baptist Church Build
ing Fund, 200 Zebulon Street, in Barnesville, Georgia
30204.
The family of Bobby Joe wishes to extend our sin
cere thanks for the thoughts, prayers and kind words.
Due to Covid-19, the family requests that everyone
attending the visitation and service wear a mask and
adhere to social distancing guidelines.
Memorial Park Funeral Home, 2030 Memorial Park
Road, Gainesville, GA 30504 is in charge of arrange
ments.
Send online condolences to www.memorialparkfu-
neralhomes.com.
Judith Pambuena
Judith Brantly Reeder Pambuena passed away
after a short illness on April 4, 2021, in Dallas, Texas.
She was born on August 14, 1947 in Atlanta, Georgia
to Howard Walter Brantly Jr. and Mildred Wilson
Brantly.
She was preceded in death by her parents, her first
husband, Bruce Reeder, and her son, Kaleb Pam
buena.
She is survived by her son Bill Reeder of Barnes
ville, her daughter Lauralee Felts (Ken) of New Jersey,
sister Brenda Brantly of Milner, brothers Howard
Brantly (Renata) of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., Bobby
Brantly (Donna) of Milner, Wayne Brantly (Vicki) of
Barnesville, and Rick Brantly (Linda) of Milner. She
is also survived by her grandchildren Anna Reeder,
Morghan Reeder, Taylor Cauthen, Nicholas Cauthen,
Joshua Felts and several nieces and nephews.
A memorial service will be held at a later date.
In lieu of flowers please make a donation to the
Rock Springs Medical Clinic in Milner, Ga. 30257.
* n
Georgia, where he
BARNESVILLE MARBLE &
GRANITE COMPANY
Serving Middle Georgia For 110 Years
Designers & Manufacturers of
Marble, Granite & Bronze Since 1908
George & Janice Moore
770-358-1470
124 Railroad St., Barnesville, GA 30204
Vote
Georgia election law
FROM PAGE 4A
casting absentee ballots
to provide some form
of identification, which
for most voters will be
a driver’s license num
ber or the number off
a state-issued ID card,
which are available for
free if needed in order to
vote. Those with neither
can use part of a social
security number. In an
age in which proof of
identity is required for
everything from buying a
pack of cigarettes to us
ing a credit card, we do
not think it inappropriate
to ask voters to prove
who they are, whether
they are casting ballots
in person or absentee.
Yes, there may be a very
small number of people
for whom providing such
information may prove to
be an inconvenience, but
no one eligible to vote
should find it an impos
sible standard to meet.
•Drop boxes - The
law will require all coun
ties to provide drop
boxes, which was not
the case before, and will
set a standard for how
many such boxes may
be provided, based on
population. This will
guarantee that voters in
all counties have access
to drop boxes, while
there likely will be fewer
of them in heavily popu
lated counties. We do
think there should have
been more flexibility in
the location requirement
for drop boxes and hours
of availability; locat
ing them inside polling
places and having them
available only for limited
hours does not make
sense, nor does it seem
necessary from a securi
ty standpoint given they
were under video surveil
lance when outside. We
should remember that
drop boxes for absentee
ballots were forced by
the pandemic, and are
not interwoven into the
state’s election history.
They are a convenience,
not a requirement for fair
and honest elections.
•Water for voters -
The new law says that
once voters in line are
within a certain distance
of the voting space, they
can’t be approached by
anyone handing out wa
ter or snacks. Poll work
ers can set up water and
snacks in an unmanned
area and voters can help
themselves, or bring
their own if they choose.
The apparent intent is
to stop individuals or
groups wanting to deliver
a political message from
giving anything to voters
as they wait, and is an ex
pansion of existing laws
that already prohibit
any sort of campaigning
aimed at voters in line.
A bit tone deaf maybe,
but the provision sounds
worse than it is, and it
eliminates the need for
poll officials to decide
who and who can’t be
providing goods to vot
ers in line.
•Lines at the polls
- The new law should
shorten voting lines in
counties with large pre
cincts in that it requires
action be taken if voters
had to wait for more than
an hour at a particular
precinct in a previous
election. Shorter lines
are a good thing.
•Early voting - The
law adds more weekend
time for early voting,
which is also a good
thing.
•Deadlines - The revi
sion changes some dead
lines for absentee ballot
requests, because the old
law allowed for ballots
to be requested so close
to the actual voting day
as to make it impossible
for them to be completed
and returned in time for
counting.
To some extent, the
sweeping election reform
attempts to solve prob
lems that haven’t been
proven to exist. It’s hard
to argue against the fact
that it likely will ben
efit those campaigning
as Republicans more
than those who run as
Democrats, based on
geographic and demo
graphic voting trends
from previous years.
Much of what is being
alleged about this partic
ular piece of legislation
is the smoke of political
bonfires rather than the
substance of true voter
suppression. It is not Jim
Crow 2.0, but neither is
it meant to encourage
more people to vote nor
to make it easier to do
so.
The changes may
increase confidence in
the process for some,
though it will reduce that
same level of confidence
in others. It is naive to
pretend there were not
partisan decisions made
in its crafting, just as it is
hard to believe that the
shifting of power away
from the Secretary of
State was not meant to
be punitive.
Now it’s up to the
courts to decide whether
the law stands as writ
ten, and that’s a decision
upon which only judges
will have a chance to
vote.
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted...
PSALM 34:18
“Caring Is Our Business”
Owned and Operated by
Joe and Drew Westbury
(770) 358-1678
526 College Dr.
Barnesville, GA 30204
email: wwfhbmc@att.net
williams-westburyfuneralhome.com
Public Meetings
•Aldora Town Commission, Tuesday, April 13,10
a.m., Barnesville Houseing Authority;
•Barnesville City Council, Monday, May 3, 5:30
p.m., police station;
• Barnesville-Lamar County Industrial Development
Authority, Thursday, May 13,10:30 a.m., Chamber/
IDA board room;
• Barnesville-Lamar County Library Board, Tuesday,
April 20, 5:30 p.m.
• Family Connections Collaborative, Thursday, May
13, 9 a.m., E.P. Roberts Center;
• Lamar County Tax Assessors, May 13, 2 p.m.,
administration building;
• Lamar County Board of Education, Monday, May
10, 6 p.m., board offices;
•Lamar County Board of Elections, Monday, April
26, 6 p.m., administration building;
• Lamar County Commission, Tuesday, April 20, 7
p.m., courthouse;
•Lamar County Health Dept. Thursday, May 20,12
p.m. Health Dept. Building;
• Lamar County Soil and Water Conservation
District, Wednesday, May 5, 9 a.m., USDA service
center;
•Milner City Council, Monday, April 19, 6 p.m.,
Milner Community Library.
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Isabella Pott's family
impressed by turnout
Our family would
like to thank you from
the bottom of our hearts
for your great interest
in Isabella’s story. Even
though we moved the
fundraiser to another
location, with your help
the word got out and
people found us stating
that the newspaper and
your online story about
Isabella’s journey moti
vated them to find us and
contribute to the cause.
Isabella still has a
journey to travel but we
were very blessed by
the turnout we had this
weekend. Once again,
from our family to yours,
God bless you and thank
you so much! You’re a
true blessing.
KENNY POTTS
Help feed the community
Hope Tree Ministry needs the public’s help in
supporting its food bank operation. You can donate
at United Bank or Giant Mart. To make donations
or let the food bank know of someone in need, call
678.972.2457 or text or call 678.544.2693. Visit hope-
treeministry.org or visit the food bank’s Facebook
page.
CALENDAR ITEM,
Email news@barnes-
ville.com or call 770.358.
NEWS to have an event
published.
• The Lamar County
Republican Convention
will be held at 8:30 a.m.
on Saturday, April 17 at
the Lamar County Court
house.
• The Lamar County
Republican Party meets
the first Tuesday of the
month at 6:45 p.m. in the
Commissioners meeting
room. The next meeting
will be on Tuesday, May
4, 2021.
• Milner Community
Library regular hours of
operation are Tuesday 11
a.m. - 7 p.m., Wednesday
11 a.m. - 5 p.m., Thursday
11 a.m. - 6 p.m., Friday 11
a.m. - 5 p.m. and Satur
day 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.
• Rent and Utility As
sistance Services: Avail
able to local residents
through the Salvation
Army in Griffin. Info:
770.412.6561.
/ \
NEW LIFE BAPTIST
CHURCH
Invites You To Celebrate With Us
At Our Old-Fashioned Tent Revival
For The Purpose Of Community
Outreach!
Thursday to Saturday,
April 22-24, 2021
167 Highway 41 North
Barnesville, GA
Services Begin at 6:30 pm
In addition to music, each night will
feature a guest speaker:
Thursday: Dr. Frank Nuckolls
(Flint River Baptist Assoc.)
Friday: Dr. Mel Blackaby
(FBC Jonesboro)
Saturday: Rev. Michael Flournoy
(New Life BC)