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NOVEMBER 3, 2020
JUDGE ANDREW PALMER
CHIEF MAGISTRATE JUDGE, BURKE COUNTY '
LICENSED ATTORNEY
COMMUNITY ADVOCATE
WWWJUDCEPALMER.ORG
©/DUDCEANDREWPALMER J
Early voting for general election begins Monday
DIANA ROYAL
jdianaroyal@gmail.com
With four weeks remaining
until the Nov. 3 general
election, early voting begins
in Georgia on Monday, Oct.
12.
Burke County citizens
wishing to cast their ballots
early may do so at the board
of elections office in the old
courthouse in Waynesboro.
The office is on the first floor
but has moved to the area that
formerly housed the clerk of
court’s office.
Early voting hours are
Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. to
5 p.m. through Oct. 30.
There will also be a Saturday
available — Oct. 24, from 9
a.m. to 4 p.m. Citizens also
have the option to request
a mail-in ballot. Though
the deadline to make that
request is Oct. 30, Laverne
Sello, executive director for
the local board of elections
office, cautions voters on
waiting until then. “People
can request the ballots, and
I will send them,” she said,
“but they may not make it
in time to be filled out and
postmarked by Nov. 3.1 can’t
guarantee it.”
The nonpartisan ballot for
the general election includes
the office of United States
President and two races each
for the senate and public
service commission.
Local state races appearing
are for the 12th Congressional
District (Republican
incumbent Rick Allen and
Democrat Liz Johnson)
and Senate 23rd District
(Republican Max Burns and
Democrat Ceretta Smith).
Republican incumbent
Natalie Paine faces Democrat
challenger Jared Williams
for district attorney of the
Augusta Judicial Circuit.
In Burke County, Clerk
of Court Radeta Smith, a
Democrat, has opposition
from Republican Karen
Ellison, and Rex Myers, a
Republican, will face off
against Democrat Ashley
Moore Jr. for probate
judge. Myers is the current
incumbent following his
appointment earlier this year
when Preston Lewis III retired
from the position.
In the race for chief
magistrate judge, there are
three write-in candidates, all
Democrats: Cynthia Kelley,
Andrew Palmer and Portia
Washington.
There are also two seats
up for county commission:
Rodney Braswell, a
Republican, is challenging
Democrat Lucious Abrams
for District 1, and George
Wimberly, a Democrat, hopes
to take the District 3 spot from
Republican incumbent Evans
Martin.
Over the next two weeks, a
special Meet the Candidates
Q&A will appear in The
True Citizen, featuring those
running for local offices.
Additionally, a candidates
forum for local races, co
hosted by the g^
Burke County
Chamber of ELECTI0N ’
Commerce and ^A
Members of Team Hoses are ready to take down Team Guns in this year’s blood battle.
GUNS & HOSES
The battle continues Nov. 5
DIANA ROYAL
jdianaroyal@gmail.com
Will law enforcement claim
five years in a row, or is 2020
the year for firefighters and
EMS personnel to be the
victors?
We will find out in
November when the fifth
annual Guns and Hoses Blood
Battle takes place.
The event, which is
cosponsored annually by
Queensborough National
Bank and Shepeard
Community Blood Center, is
an attempt to encourage the
community to give donations
of life saving blood. Teams
of local heroes (The Guns —
Burke County Sheriff’s Office
and the Waynesboro and
Sardis police departments; and
The Hoses — Burke County
EMA and the Waynesboro
Fire Department) have begun
the recruitment process to
obtain the most donors.
Whoever succeeds, wins the
battle. The public is invited to
come out to donate and select
which team they want their
donation to benefit.
Now in its fifth year, the
event has impacted more than
700 people, with last year’s
drive drawing in a total of
109 attempted donations,
65 for The Guns and 44 for
The Hoses. A total of 255
individuals received life
saving blood from this drive
alone. The Guns have pulled
off the win since the battle’s
inception in 2016.
Jacqueline Clemmons,
recruitment specialist for
Shepeard, said donating right
now is completely safe.
“All precautions for
safety will be in place, she
said, adding that Shepeard
has been taking donations
throughout the pandemic.
“Blood donations cannot stop
and are an essential service
for saving lives.”
Guns and Hoses will be
held at the Wardlow Building
in Waynesboro on Thursday,
Nov. 5, from 1-7 p.m.
Everyone who donates will
recieve a commemorative
T-shirt and a free meal
provided by a visiting food
truck. Other locations for the
drive will be announced at a
later date.
Sanders to retire after
33 years in Burke
DIANA ROYAL
jdianaroyal@gmail.com
Chief Rusty Sanders, who
joined the Burke County
Emergency Management
Agency in 1987, recently
announced his plans for
retirement.
In a letter addressed
to county manager Merv
Waldrop and dated Sept. 21,
Sanders stated he’d been very
blessed to have had a long
career that he has enjoyed
over the last 46 years, 33 of
which were in Burke.
“I wish all of Burke County
a safe, harmonious and
prosperous future,” the letter
said. His last official day will
be Friday, Oct. 10.
Sanders worked for the
agency for 15 years before
being promoted to the role of
director, a position he’s held
since 2002.
“It has been a real pleasure
working with Chief Sanders
for nearly 20 years,” Waldrop
told The True Citizen. “He
is a dedicated public servant
and a good advisor on matters
pertaining to Emergency
Rusty Sanders
Management. I wish him
well as he moves on to the
next phase of life.”
The board of commissioners
has a called meeting today
(Wednesday) to discuss the
reorganization of EMA,
Burke Transit and 911
services as well as filling the
vacated director’s position.
The meeting will be held on
the second floor of the historic
courthouse in Waynesboro at
4 p.m.
See next week’s True
Citizen for a feature article
featuring Sanders as he
discusses his nearly half a
century career.
COVID CORNER
This week, the Georgia Department of Public Health
showed a total of 324,650 confirmed COVID-19 cases
for the entire state as of Tuesday afternoon, including
7,229 deaths and 28,154 hospitalizations. On Tuesday,
979 newly confirmed cases were reported as well as
39 deaths and 167 hospitalizations.
Locally, according to the B. Lamar Murray Public
Health Center, Burke County has reached a total of
841 confirmed positives, up 28 from last Tuesday.
There has been 10 local deaths since the beginning
of the pandemic.
8090 Ford FI 50
SuperCab^ m
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706-554-2114 www.mizellford.com Waynesboro, Ga.