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WELCOME STUDENTS / 9A
sville.com
Barnesville, Ga. 30204
BACK TO SCHOOL:
HERE’S THE
SCOOP
American
Cancer
f Society*
r
RELAY
FOR LIFE
Relay for
Life events
on tap
starting
Saturday
Special fundraisers for
Relay for Life and upcom
ing, including a triathlon-
style race for kids July 29
and a poker tournament
for adults Aug. 12. The
main Relay for Life event
weekend will be Nov. 3-4
with the Survivor Cel
ebration set for Friday,
Nov. 3 from 6-8 p.m. at
the Women’s Clubhouse.
The actual Relay is set for
Saturday and Sunday, Nov.
4-5 from 9 p.m. to 9 a.m. at
Summers Field Park.
The Small Fry Tri will
be held Saturday, July 29
at the recreation depart
ment track. Kids ages 2-6
will compete in a triath
lon style race which will
include running, bikes,
trikes and wagons and
sprinklers. The cost is $20.
Each kid will get a t-shirt
and medal. There will be
music, inflatables and
snacks.
For those who like to
play poker or watch it on
TV, you can get a taste of
the big time Aug. 12 when
the Relay for Life com
mittee presents its Texas
Hold’Em Tournament at
the Women’s Clubhouse.
The doors open at 5 p.m.
and the tourney begins
at 6 p.m. Tickets are $150
and include dinner and
two drink tickets. The
winner will get $1,000 with
second place paying $500
and third place paying
$250. Tickets for those
not playing poker are $25.
There will be music and
silent auction items. For
more information, tick
ets or to volunteer, call
678.572.7723.
Subscribe. Your name goes
on the label in this box
96852
78853
Schools open Friday; millage rate to be cut
WALTER GEIGER
news@barnesville.com
Students in the
Lamar school system
return to the hallowed
halls of learning Friday
as the 2023-24 school
year gets underway.
Superintendent Dr.
Jute Wilson and his
staff are projecting an
enrollment of 2,913 kids
system-wide.
Enrollment at the
high school is projected
at 823 and the PK-2 en
rollment at the primary
school is expected to
number 816. There is
already a waiting list
for PreK spots. Each of
those campuses house
four grade levels.
The elemen
tary and high
school are
home to three
grade levels
each. LCMS
enrollment is
projected to be
653 students
with another
624 estimated
for the elemen
tary school.
Parents
and students can visit
and tour each campus
Wednesday during open
house events from 2-6
p.m.
Additionally, a full
staff of teachers and
support personnel will
be on hand to welcome
those students. That is
not the case in
many systems.
“We’re one
of a select few
systems in the
area which are
fully staffed as
schools open.
We’re really
impressed with
the quality of
teachers and
staff we were
able to bring
in this year. That is the
result of solid recruiting
by our principals and
directors,” Dr. Wilson
reported.
As is the case at
the start of every
school year, there will
be unforeseen issues
that arise. Parents are
advised to pack their
patience along with
their kids’ school sup
plies and lunches.
On the financial
front, Dr. Wilson ex
pects the school board
to soon approve lower
ing the millage rate
substantially.
“I’m happy to report
we will be presenting
the lowest millage rate
in the history of Lamar
County schools, drop
ping the rate by over
one mill again. Property
owners should see a
bit of a break in the
from the projected tax
bill they received with
their evaluation notices
earlier this year,” he
concluded.
WILSON
Zach Westerfield stands in an upstairs window of the historic Collier Building that his company has spent the last year
and a half restoring. The revamped facility will house two commercial spaces and seven loft style apartments when the
work is done. The building is believed to date back to 1884.
Grand opening at restored
Collier Building set for Aug. 12
WALTER GEIGER
news@barnesville.com
The public will get
its first glimpse of the
immaculate restora
tion work done at the
historic Collier Building
at the corner of Main
and Market streets in
downtown Barnesville
during grand opening
ceremonies set for Sat
urday, Aug. 12.
The building will be
open for tours from 6-9
p.m. There will be a
food truck onsite and
artifacts and photos of
the renovation will be
on display.
The restoration is the
latest project undertak
en by Southern Venture
Partners (SVP) and
its co-founders Zach
Westerfield and Milt Cal
loway. Westerfield grew
up in Molena. He is the
son of Robert and Car
men Westerfield. Car
men Westerfield spent
decades as NRCS dis
trict conservationist for
this area and worked
out of the Barnesville
office.
Calloway is a native
of La Grange, Texas.
Both he and Westerfield
are graduates of the US
Air Force Academy.
SVP purchased the
building in October
2021 and, with the help
of architect Dominus
Vitae of Colorado,
began planning its
conversion into two
commercial spaces
fronting Main Street and
seven loft-style apart
ments of various sizes
in the remaining space.
The larger of the two
commercial spaces has
already been leased.
Those spaces will not
be completed by the
grand opening.
The 5,616 square foot
building was built in
the late 1800s by J. C.
Collier who had various
textile interests locally.
Additionally, his family
had a cotton plantation
in the Piedmont District
which was one of the
largest in the state at
that time.
“Although some
records indicate the
building was built in
1898, we have photos
that show it as being
SEE COLLIER BUILDING 3A
PHOTO: ZACH WESTERFIELD
The restoration of the Collier building turned up many
artifacts, including these old ad bills, that will be on display
at the grand opening Aug. 12.
Blood drive
this
Thursday
There will be a blood
drive at First United Meth
odist Church Thursday,
July 27 in the fellowship
hall from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Visit redcrossblood.org
and enter: lamar to sched
ule an appointment.
The Red Cross and War
ner Bros. Discovery have
teamed up to address the
critical need for blood
this Summer. Their theme
is “Don’t be cold-blooded,
give blood.” As an incen
tive to donate everyone
will be entered into a
drawing for a New York
getaway for two with a pri
vate shark dive adventure
at Long Island Aquarium.
Also, all donors will get a
Shark Week t-shirt.
Injured
firefighters
were not
wearing
seat
restraints
WALTER GEIGER
news@bamesville.com
The Georgia State
Patrol has issued its
report on a July 15 crash
on Rocky Bottom Road in
Upson County that criti
cally injured two young
firefighters who were
engaged to be married.
Logan Gordy, 22, of
434 Delray Rd. in Thom-
aston was driving a 1987
GMC C6500 pumper
truck north on Mud
Bridge Road when he
lost control while nego
tiating a curve. The fire
truck overturned onto
its right side and rolled
several times.
Gordy was ejected as
was the passenger in the
truck, 20-year-old Trista
Cheeks of Hayesville, NC.
Both were severely in
jured and flown in sepa
rate medical evacuation
choppers to the Grady
trauma center in Atlanta
where they remain.
The GSP report indi
cates that neither Gordy
nor Cheeks were wearing
seat restraints but it is
unclear from the report if
the truck was equipped
with restraints.
Gordy and Cheeks
were responding to a mo
tor vehicle accident at
the intersection of Mud
Bridge Road and Rocky
Bottom Road when the
accident occurred.
Gordy and Cheeks
were to be married in
October.
©2023 THE HERALD GAZETTE, BARNESVILLE, LAMAR COUNTY, GA 30204, 770.358.NEWS