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Page 4A — Wednesday, February 10, 2021, The True Citizen
OPINIONS
★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★
The Pledge Of Allegiance
1 pledge, allegiance to the flag
of the United States of America
and to the Republic for which
*it stands, one Nation under
God, indivisible, with liberty and
justice, for all.
★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★
LOOKING BACK
{this week in Burke County history}
10 YEARS AGO-FEBRUARY 16,20ll
Nancy Minyard, executive director of Wimberly House
Ministries, was named Citizen of the Year by the Burke
County Chamber of Commerce. She had been with the agency
for 16 years.
According to the 2010 Public Health Rankings Report,
Burke was one of the unhealthiest counties in Georgia, ranking
153 out of 159 counties. The scores were based on six health
indicators, five health outcomes and four social determinants.
Children from Nepal, Uganda and the Philippines were
scheduled to perform at the First Baptist Church of Waynes
boro as part of the Children of the World choir.
25 YEARS AGO-FEBRUARY 15,1996
Abomb threat was called in to Legion Industries in Waynes
boro, resulting in a shutdown and evacuation of the plant.
No device was found during a search by the Waynesboro
Police Department. The threat was attributed to a disgruntled
employee.
Melinda Prescott of Waynesboro completed the Georgia
Certified Professional Florist program at Abraham Baldwin
Agricultural College, becoming one of the area’s first Master
Florists.
Jeremy Beall, son of Rita Bailey of Gough, was a member
of the Brewton-Parker College Choir scheduled to perform
at the First Baptist Church of Waynesboro.
50 YEARS AGO-FEBRUARY 10,1971
U.S. Congressman G. Elliott Hagan paid tribute to the late
U.S. Senator Richard B. Russell. Hagan said that Russell
would “go down in history as one of the most noble citizens
America has ever known.
Cates Firestone celebrated its second anniversary. The
business was located on North Liberty Street in connection
with a Shell service station.
The Sidney C. Cox Insurance and Real Estate firm relocated
its offices to 205 East Sixth Street.
75 YEARS AGO-FEBRUARY 14,1946
Enon E. Chance died at the age of 78. He was a prominent
businessman and civic leader, having served as mayor of
Waynesboro and chairman of the Burke County Board of
Commissioners. He had also been active in the First Methodist
Church, serving as a member of the Board of Trustees and as
chairman of the Board of Stewards.
Superior Court Clerk Hugh M. Blount died unexpectedly
at his residence. He had served in the post for thirty years.
The Georgia Department of Public Health said that the
water supply of the City of Waynesboro was “one of the fin
est in the state,” according to an analysis report from their
laboratory.
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Waynesboro, Georgia 30830
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BEN ROBERTS
benroberts@bellsouth.net
Years ago, when my wife and
I married, I lived in a house in
Munnerlyn and she had a house
in the Burkehaven neighbor
hood of Waynesboro.
At the time, we decided it
would be better for our family
to live in town rather in the
country. The idea was some
where down the road, we’d
make that move.
If you’re wondering how that
plan has panned out, just know
that I sit typing this in that same
house in Waynesboro.
In the last few years, one
of the biggest hurdles in con
vincing my family to move
is a question I really have no
answer for: what will we do
about internet service.
Munnerlyn, like the rest of
rural Burke County and a vast
portion of Georgia, has no high
speed internet. You can get it
through your wireless phone
carrier or you can try your luck
with various satellite options.
From what I’m told, none of
these options are very reliable
and they can be extremely ex
pensive.
Obviously, there are other
concerns in our town-verses-
country debates, but in a world
of laptops, tablets and Netflix,
high-speed internet is a major
part of our everyday lives.
It’s not just a concern for my
family either. I recently had a
conversation with a local real
estate broker who said it’s an
issue he sees every day when
talking to potential buyers.
Burke County has numerous
positives when it comes to loca
tion: our proximity to Augusta,
a four-lane highway connecting
Augusta and Savannah, better-
than-average tax rates and Plant
Vogtle, to name a few. But one
of our biggest assets is land, lots
and lots of land, which means
plenty of space and at a pretty
good price compared to a lot
of places.
As this broker pointed out,
in today’s world, access to reli
able, high-speed internet is as
necessary as water and electric
ity to a lot of folks.
The state of Georgia has
known for years that its state
wide lack of internet outside of
urban areas was a major handi
cap, but it wasn’t high enough
on the priority list to throw
money towards. That changed
when COVID hit and we were
suddenly trying to teach our
kids and do our jobs from home.
Now Gov. Kemp has asked
for $30 million for internet
infrastructure over the next
two years. On Monday, he an
nounced a $210-million public-
private venture with rural Elec
tric Membership Corporations
to bring internet to 18 counties
between Macon and Atlanta.
I’m aware that I harp a lot
about spending and tax dollars
in this space, but I’m actually
a big believer in public-private
partnerships and spending tax
dollars on projects that are truly
beneficial to our community.
Plant Vogtle’s current expan
sion has generated millions
upon millions in property tax
revenue for the Board of Com
missioners and the Board of
Education (BOE) over the
last decade. Some of the time,
they spend that money wisely.
Other times, those habits are
debatable.
I believe finding a way to get
reliable, high-speed internet to
every comer of Burke County is
the kind of project that deserves
our consideration and our tax
Don Lively
(Reprinted from 2010)
When I was a kid I liked to
sit on the back row at church if
Mama let me.
From the back row you can
see it all.
Who whispers.
Who passes notes.
Who dozes off.
Em a front row Baptist these
days. Well, “toward” the front at
least. My latest traditional place
to sit on Sundays is the second
row from the front. Sol don’t
usually know what goes on be
hind me once I get to my pew.
That changed one recent
Lord’s Day.
More about that in a bit.
So, how’s your hair today?
Don’t even try to tell me
that you haven’t given it much
thought because, if statistics are
tme, regardless of how much,
or how little hair you have left
on your head, you’ve probably
done something with it today.
One study found that the
average person spends around
fifty thousand dollars over a
lifetime for hair care, including
cuts, styles, coloring, shampoo,
the whole shebang.
Don’t like your hair color?
These days you can have any
shade, tint or hue your whims
ordain. Between my youngest
daughter and one niece, they’ve
tried every color in the rainbow
and a few others never before
seen by human eyes.
If you have too much hair
you spend money to have it cut
and thinned.
Too little hair, there are hun
dreds of products promising
men, and a few unfortunate
women, that they can miracu
lously replace what nature has
removed.
Some folks though don’t
seem to spend much money on
their hair at all.
They just get creative.
I once worked for a police
chief who had the world’s
worst, most gravity defying
comb over. He was also very
vain and self conscious about
it and would never admit that
the mysterious fabrication per
ilously clinging to his pate had
not actually sprouted there.
He thought we couldn’t tell.
One weekend I was at a
springs resort in the mountains
and spotted the chief across the
pool. Apparently, he thought he
THE MANE THING
was safe from the nosy eyes of
his troops. He dove under the
water and when he came up
he had virtually no hair on the
right side of his head but the left
side was a different story.You
could’ve braided enough rope
to hang ten horse thieves with
the mane hanging down his left
shoulder.
Bald as a Vidalia onion on
top.
I never let on that I knew his
“secret”.
Another time I was in the
locker room, gearing up for
work. Two strapping young
cops were standing at the mirror
lamenting their rapidly thinning
tresses. I couldn’t resist. I sidled
my middle aged belly up be
tween them and began picking
at my own hair.
“Boys, we all have our cross
es to bear,” I said. “Look at
mine. It just gets thicker every
year. I have to get a haircut
every three weeks”.
The looks they gave me
would’ve buckled a buffalo’s
knees but they’d have traded a
goodly portion of those muscles
to have their hair back.
At church, normally I sing in
the choir so I face the congrega
tion until I take my seat toward
the front but one Sunday we had
dollars. It’s an economic is
sue, an educational issue and a
quality-of-life issue.
Em generally not a fan of
committees, but this is one time
I’d like to suggest we get one
together. We need a group of
people, not to study the issue or
discuss the project, but to find a
way to get it done.
We need representatives from
the county commission, the
BOE, the various cities, the
development authority and
the chamber of commerce in
a room. Get someone from
Oglethorpe Power and Georgia
Power in there, too.
There’s federal and state
money out there now, too, and
we need to get in the front of
that line. Getting ourselves or
ganized ensures we can do that.
Recently, one of our com
missioners talked about having
a vision for this community. I
think I’m proposing a vision
that would pay dividends in
Burke County’s future. It’s up
to some of our local leaders to
make that vision a reality.
For more Burke County po
litical news, follow Bird Dog
Politics on Facebook,
musical guests so there was no
choir. That day I was asked to
assist in collecting the offering.
Afterwards, walking back down
the center aisle, I was struck by
the glare coming from the shiny
spots on the backs of many of
the male congregants heads.
They ranged in size from a fifty
cent piece to a mini Frisbee.
I immediately thought of 1
Corinthians 11: 15.
“A woman’s hair is the
crowning glory, (para
phrased)” wrote the Apostle
Paul.
I thought, “Good thing God
specified hair as the female’s
splendor if His male flock here
is any measure.”
Then I started laughing. I
couldn’t help it.
Later, both my brothers and
one cousin, all deacons, mildly
rebuked me for my giggling fit.
They demanded to know
what was so funny about a seri
ous church ritual.
I looked at my blood kin, all
bearing similar family features.
All handsome. All blue eyed.
All ruddy skinned.
All with less hair on their
heads than I have on my elbow.
I fibbed in church.
continued on page (A