Newspaper Page Text
2A ®Ijt l)?ralti <©a??ttf Tuesday, July 25,2023
Local shares survival story, encourages other young people facing cancer battles
RACHEL MCDANIEL
news@barnesville.com
Kathryn Claxton
Green of Barnesville is
leading Relay for Life
efforts in Lamar as she
celebrates her own
cancer survival after four
months of chemo, 30
rounds of radiation and
two surgeries. She also
continues to remember
her mom’s survival story
and encourages others
to donate in her memory
at https://shorturl.at/
esNUl.
“This is why 1 Relay.
My amazing mom. She
underwent extreme sur
gery, radiation and che
motherapy in 2009. She
was told she could be
looking at three months
to live if treatment wasn’t
an option and she was an
11-year cancer survivor
(and thriver),” said Kath
ryn. “In 2010, she led the
Relay For Life survivor
lap in a cart due to being
too weak to walk, and in
2016 she was the survi
vor speaker. She used her
story to talk to anyone
she could. She once said
she wasn’t sure why God
had her go through her
battle, so she would take
each hospital visit, con
versation or interaction
as if that was the rea
son. 1 adopted the same
philosophy through my
journey. I want to see 100
luminaria bags at Relay
saying, ‘In memory of
11-year cancer survivor,
Anne Claxton.’”
She and her husband
Josh Green were recently
interviewed for a TV
news story to share the
importance of learning
about fertility preserva
tion for cancer victims
who are considering hav
ing children in the future.
She was diagnosed with
breast cancer in 2021 at
age 33, the same year she
and her husband were
planning to start a family.
There are grants to help
others who are facing
cancer diagnoses with
the cost of fertility treat
ments.
“1 turned to the
American Cancer Soci
ety countless times to
research my diagnosis or
treatment plan. 1 desper
ately searched for stories
and people like me. The
funds I’m raising will
sustain critical research
and provide services for
people trying to cope
with their cancer experi
ence,” she said.
Chemotherapy drugs
have the potential for
life-altering effects
on fertility, so one of
Kathryn’s first major
conversations with her
care team was about egg
preservation options.
With the clock ticking,
her care team planned
chemo treatments while
she scheduled an in vitro
fertilization (1VF) egg
retrieval. She was able
to preserve her fertil
ity through five healthy
DNA-tested embryos. She
started chemotherapy
treatments just 8 days
after the egg retrieval
and even though she will
be on hormone therapy
until she’s 37, she and
Josh hope to start a
family when she is finally
cleared.
“Since May of last year
2021,1 had 91 days filled
with doctor appoint
ments, hospital visits
and specialty treatments.
When 1 was first diag
nosed, 1 pulled out my
calendar so see which
day would work for me
to come back, my doctor
laughed. Cancer doesn’t
work like that. My cal
endar was completely
cleared, and cancer treat
ment became the focus.
If you think you don’t
have time for a scan, you
really don’t have time for
treatment,” said Kathryn.
“Breast cancer is the
second most common
cancer in women and the
second leading cause of
cancer deaths in women.
Early detection is critical.
Early detection saved
my life. Make an appoint
ment this week!”
Josh and Kathryn en
joy spending time in the
great outdoors and have
visited National Parks in
47 states. Despite their
battle with cancer, they
still make the best of
things and enjoy their
lives in Lamar and else
where on trips.
“We’re going to stay
positive,” said Josh. “Life
is full of struggles and
curve balls and what you
make of it is what you
get.”
GSP issues report on
fatal Orchard Hill crash
County commission rejects animal shelter bid, two others
WALTER GEIGER
news@barnesville.com
The Georgia State
patrol has issued a pre
liminary report on a two-
vehicle crash in Spalding
County that
killed a popu- ___
lar Orchard
Hill coffee
shop owner
July 12.
Kenneth
Paul Bolton,
37, of 71 Old
Bolton Rd.,
Zebulon was
was north
bound on
Green Valley Road in
a curve when his 2012
Ford F-250 Super Duty
crossed the center line
and struck a southbound
2023 Ram Promaster van
head on.
The driver of the van,
45-year-old Vallie Marie
Sanders of 399 Lamar
County Line Rd., Griffin,
was dead at the scene.
Her body had to be extri
cated from the van.
Bolton and a seven-
year-old girl in his ve
hicle suffered only minor
injuries and were taken
to a Griffin hospital by
family members.
Bolton, the at-fault
driver, told
troopers a
brown dog
entered the
roadway,
forcing him
to make an
evasive ma
neuver to his
left. A witness
said the dog
never entered
to roadway.
Bolton consented to a
voluntary blood draw for
drug and alcohol testing.
He also allowed troopers
to do a data extraction
of his cell phone volun
tarily.
Charges against
Bolton are on hold pend
ing the completion of the
accident investigation by
the GSP SCRT team.
The accident occurred
at 7:27 a.m.
KAY S. PEDR0TTI
kayspedrotti@gmail.com
Another set of re
quests for proposals will
be forthcoming again for
three projects, the coun
ty commission deter
mined at the July meet
ing, when the projects’
bids were announced. All
were rejected, including
the $1,146,529 for a long-
awaited animal shelter
for Lamar County.
The others, all reject
ed by the commissioners
as “too high,” were for
courthouse roofing re
pair, initially at $150,000
but reduced to $87,000
and still voted down,
and for repairs to the
jail building, $341,585.
Chairman Ryran Traylor
said the request for bids
would be opened again
soon, this time for 60
days instead of 44 days,
in anticipation of attract
ing local building compa
nies.
The commission
also unanimously ap
proved the acceptance
of conveyance of the old
Armory property from
the State of Georgia.
Discussion included the
importance of taking care
of older, historic proper
ties.
Dianne Parrish spoke
to the board about the
absence of the his
toric marker outside the
courthouse, which has
been out of sight for a
long time. The board
members explained it
had been removed and
was being recast verba
tim but looking better.
County administrator
Sean Townsend com
mented that county
equipment including two
bush hogs, a tractor and
a crew truck, are being
purchased.
A request for lower
ing the speed limit from
45 to 35 on Five Points
Road from Highway 341
to Zebulon Road was dis
cussed. Because a state
road is involved, the
request will have to go
to the appropriate state
agencies for approval,
then come back for local
hcfctott*
Bookbags
& School
Supplies for
Lamar
County
Students
Student must be
currently
enrolled in
Lamar County
School System
THANK YOU TO OUR 2023 SPONSORS & VENDORS
Bookbags provided by: Lamar County Schools Literacy for
Learning, Living, and Leading (L4GA) Grant
Lamar County
Fine Arts Center
126 Burnette Road
July 26,2023
Sponsored by: Lamar County
Family Connection
Collaborative
family ramdioii amarcounlyfcc@gmail.com
Students must attend Open House first & bring
their Census Verification Form given to them
by their homeroom teacher.
• Amerigroup
•Antioch Baptist Church
Yates ville
• Barnesville Kiwanis Club
• Hines Prescription Shop
• Lamar County Counseling
Center
• Lamar County DFCS
• Barnesville-Lamar County
• Chamber of Commerce
• Lamar County Health
Department
• Lamar County Extension/4-H
• Barnesville-Lamar County
Library
• Barnesville Fire Department
• Barnesville Police Department
• Lamar County Fire & Rescue
• Lamar County Sheriff's Office
• Loving Hands Community
• Calvary Baptist Church
• Care Source
• Cricket Wireless & Sun Com
Mobile
•CASA
• Development Cooperation
• Milner Community Library
• Rotary Club of Barnesville
• Southern Rivers Energy
• First Baptist Church Barnesville
• Team One Real Estate
• First United Methodist Church
• Professionals
• FUMC The New Covenant &
Adult Sunday School Classes
• Georgia Hometown Realty
• The Herald Gazette
• Unionville United Methodist
Church
• Georgia Power
• United Bank
• Gordon State College
• Grain Craft
• Village Photography
• Whites Chapel CME
• Health Equity Navigator
Program
approval. The council
also approved realloca
tion of Victim Advocates
funds.
Rezonings heard
on first readings were
ordinances for Free
man Road, agricultural-
residential to residential
one (Kunst); Fredonia
Road from residential 3
to highway commercial,
(Latimer); Van Buren
Road, two rezonings of 2
acres each, from agricul
tural-residential to resi
dential and residential-1
(Strickland); rejected by
board, removal of restric
tion of site-built housing
on Ethridge Mill Road so
a manufactured home
could be placed on the
lot (Shockley).
LC school board ready
for openings July 26-28
KAY S. PEDR0TTI
kayspedrotti@gmail.com
Lamar County school
students will be return
ing to classes on Friday,
July 28, with various
“open house” activities
taking place July 26.
At last week’s board of
education meeting, mem
bers were informed on
several new operations
in the system, including
“Here Comes the Bus,”
a way of telling students
and parents of their bus
es’ location and approxi
mate arrival time. Also
announced was a new
memorandum of affilia
tion between Lamar and
Bibb County for GNETS,
Georgia Network for Edu
cation and Therapeutic
Support for special needs
students. Lamar’s former
affiliation was with Spald
ing County, but that area
has closed its program,
said superintendent Dr.
Jute Wilson.
The system’s new
director of Finance and
Federal Programs, Cyrus
Tolbert, was introduced.
Tolbert is an experienced
accounting and informa
tion technology profes
sional, with business
experience including
accountant, manager and
director consulting with
large companies includ
ing Johnson & Johnson,
Ryder Logistics and Habi
tat for Humanity Interna
tional. He holds a BBA in
accounting from Clayton
State University and an
MBA in international
business from Mercer
University. He completed
his international busi
ness residency in China,
where he hiked a part of
the Great Wall of China.
Tolbert believes “that
all students should have
the opportunity for equal
training, education and
success, regardless of
their socioeconomic sta
tus.” He is married and
has a daughter.
Wilson reviewed the
ESPLOST collection for
the fiscal year, which
was an unaudited total of
$3,051,212. The revenue
helps in numerous ways
to finance system needs,
Wilson said.
In other business, the
board approved minutes
and reports, plus a draw
of funds from the Com
munity Foundation for
the REACH program,
GSBA Quality Board ap
plication, spending reso
lution for August 2023-24
fiscal year, second read
ing of community use of
facilities rental rates, SNP
vendor bid award recom
mendations, annual RESA
Contract for FY 23-24,
LCS Elementary and Sec
ondary Handbooks for
the year, and the audit
CAP.
A consent agenda
comprising thee fund
raisers, seven recommen
dations for positions,
four resignations, list
of employees paid with
ESSRA funds, and six
coaching positions, also
was approved.
NOTICE
The Lamar County Board of Commissioners does hereby announce that the millage rate will be set at a meeting to be held at the
Lamar County Board Room, 100 Victory Lane on August 7, 2023 at 12:00 & 6:00 p.m.; August 14, at 5:00 p.m. and pursuant to the requirements of O.C.G.A. § 48-
5-32 does hereby publish the following presentation of the current year's tax digest and levy
, along with the history of the tax digest and levy for the past five years.
CURRENT 2023 PROPERTY TAX DIGEST AND 5 YEAR HISTORY OF LEVY
COUNTY WIDE
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
Real & Personal
546,857,961
556,547,231
586,668,135
634,262,183
771,566,081
$ 904,752,051
c
Motor Vehicles
13,485,940
4,724,080
10,243,875
8,672,700
8,602,600
9,065,970
o
V
Mobile Homes
1,263,026
1,275,605
1,266,226
1,303,326
1,359,160
1,639,892
u
A
Timber - 100%
751,154
640,657
832,804
566,609
2,132,613
481,866
n
u
Heavy Duty Equipment
30,188
3,299
6,022
3,158
6,318
-
V
E
Gross Digest
562,388,269
563,190,872
599,017,062
644,807,976
783,666,772
915,939,779
W
Less Exemptions
99,741,852
99,186,926
105,289,972
105,244,306
125,447,436
150,134,844
d
NET DIGEST VALUE
462,646,417
464,003,946
493,727,090
539,563,670
658,219,336
765,804,935
e
R
Gross Maintenance &
Operation Millage
16.3510
17.0770
17.0000
16.1010
15.1010
13.8620
A
A
Less Rollback
0.1380
r
E
(Local Option Sales Tax)
e
NET M&O MILLAGE RATE
16.3510
17.0770
17.0000
16.1010
15.1010
14.0000
TOTAL M&O TAXES LEVIED
$7,564,732
$7,923,795
$8,393,361
$8,687,515
$9,939,770
$10,721,269
TAX
Net Tax $ 1 ncrease
$359,064
$469,565
$294,154
$1,252,256
$781,499
Net Tax % Increase
4.75%
5.93%
3.50%
14.41%
7.86%