The times. (Gainesville, Ga.) 1972-current, November 10, 2018, Image 6

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The times., November 10, 2018, Image 6

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Newspaper Page TextI2J OUR REGION Shannon Casas | Editor in Chief 770-718-3417 | news@gainesvilletimes.com The Times, Gainesville, Georgia Saturday, November 10, 2018 Voters tracked down by phone, on foot Abrams’ campaign seeking ballots that could help close gap against Kemp in race for governor BY BILL BARROW AND JEFF MARTIN Associated Press ATLANTA — Volunteers spread out Friday trying to find any bal lots that could help Democrat Sta cey Abrams close the gap against Republican Brian Kemp in their unsettled, too-close-to-call race for Georgia governor. Unofficial returns show Kemp with an advantage, and he’s already resigned as secretary of state to start a transition with the blessing of the outgoing GOP gov ernor, Nathan Deal. President Donald Trump weighed in with a tweet that said Kemp “ran a great race in Georgia — he won. It is time to move on!” Yet Abrams, who hopes to become the nation’s first black woman governor, sent out volunteers and campaign staff in search of votes that she hopes could still tilt the margin toward her. In a frantic effort to make sure every possible vote is counted, dozens of volunteers converged on a warehouse-turned-phone bank near downtown. The goal: reach voters who used a provisional bal lot to make sure they take steps to ensure their vote — for Abrams or Kemp — is counted by Fri day evening, the deadline. Helen Brosnan of the National Domestic Work ers Alliance shouted, “How many calls do you think we can make? Can we make hundreds of calls? Let’s do this!” A majority-black county with more than 750,000 residents in metro Atlanta, DeKalb, said it would remain open past normal hours Friday to accommodate pro visional voters who needed to pro vide identification so their votes could be counted. But two groups supporting Abrams’ call to count all votes, ProGeorgia and Care in Action, said at least 12 other counties had certified election results before Friday, a move that could leave provisional ballots uncounted. The secretary of state’s office did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment. Abrams’ lawyers are explor ing options to ensure all votes are counted. Her campaign leaders say they believe she needs to pick up about 25,000 votes to force a runoff. At least 2,000 people across the nation are involved in that effort, said state Sen. Nikema Williams, the Georgia director for Care In Action, which advocates for more than 2 million domestic workers and care workers nationwide. “We’re in the cradle of the civil rights movement, the home of Con gressman John Lewis who liter ally bled on the bridge at Selma to make sure that everybody had the right to vote,” she said. Marisa Franco, 27, saw a friend’s Facebook post about the effort, then showed up at the warehouse to volunteer Friday morning. “I think that it’s really central to democracy that everybody who is eligible to vote can vote and has the least amount of barriers pos sible, so I’m just here to make sure that every vote counts,” she said. Abrams House fire displaces 3 women Hall County Fire Services responded to a residential fire over night Thursday in the 4800 block of Red Oak Drive off Price Road in North Hall. Arriving units found a 2,500-square- foot home with smoke showing from it. The fire was found in the kitchen and quickly extinguished, according to spokes man Capt. Zachary Brackett. The fire was con tained to the kitchen area and caused approximately $20,000 in damage, Brackett said. No injuries were reported and the dis placed occupants, three women, will be staying with family in the area. The cause of the fire is undetermined. From Fire Department press release A firefighter walks through the scene of an overnight house fire off Price Road on Nov. 9. Courtesy of HALL COUNTY FIRE SERVICES FEED Photo courtesy RHONDA WHELCHELI For The Times Martha Randolph, owner of M&M Down Home Cooking in Gainesville (center), along with Rhonda Whelchel (right) and Cornelia Martin look over their preparations list for an annual Thanksgiving Day feeding that will serve an estimated 800 or more local residents. ■ Continued from 1A Army and Good News at Noon. Randolph said she expects her team to feed between 800 and 900 people this year, delivering meals to churches, community centers and senior homes, for example. Rhonda Whelchel, who is diligently working along side Randolph and Cornelia Martin to get the massive undertaking in order, said the annual meal has grown because of “the way we get the word out.” And that old-school, word- of-mouth messaging typically brings in help from across the Gainesville community. For example, Mar-Jac fre quently donates chickens for the meals; residents from Set Free, a local homeless mission for men, help with cleaning up after all the food is cooked and eaten; and vol unteers such as local law enforcement and firefighters pitch in to get meals prepped and delivered. Randolph said her staff will have five huge grills and smokers working on Thanks giving, with groups of volun teers also helping to cook, pre pare plates and food boxes, and deliver meals. And that about sums up why Randolph and her team do what they do: it’s all about the value and ethic of serving others. “A lot of people want to give back,” Martin said. “And then they pass it down to the kids.” Of course, as more people step up to assist and more people reach out for assis tance, Randolph is hoping everything will come together as well as it has in past years. “Lots of prayer,” she said. HALL COUNTY Man convicted of rape, aggravated sexual battery BY NICK WATSON nwatson@gainesvilletimes.com A Hall County man was convicted Thursday, Nov. 8, on charges of rape and aggravated sex ual battery involving a girl under the age of 10. Jonathan Craig Kendricks, 29, was found guilty by a jury Thursday afternoon on the two charges indicted in April. According to the indict ment, Kendricks was accused of raping the girl in May 2016, as well as a sex act involving a foreign object. “We always respect the jury’s verdict, but we will pur sue an appeal and continue our vigorous defense of Mr. Kendricks,” defense attorney Matt Leipold wrote in an email. Sentencing has not yet been scheduled but is expected within the next two to three weeks. Northeastern Judicial Circuit District Attor ney Lee Darragh said the prosecution was “pleased with the jury’s verdict which spoke the truth of this case” and held Kendricks accountable. Citing the pending sentencing, Darragh said he would withhold further comment. Kendricks BROADBAND ■ Continued from 1A and the group, which has state senators, com munications industry professionals and local government officials, will report its findings on or before Dec. 1. Utility companies including AT&T, Charter Communications and North Georgia Network were represented at Friday’s meeting. Repre sentatives said they sometimes hit obstacles when working with municipalities to install utilities in the rights of way. The committee came up with a few recom mendations that they will discuss further before sending them to the state legislature. One recommendation was statewide legisla tion to streamline the process and make it more consistent between municipalities. Utility companies should also be encouraged to work together to co-locate their utilities, with power companies allowing small cell technol ogy to be attached to their poles if feasible, the committee decided Friday. “The message needs to be sent to everyone that we intend to embrace this technology in the right of way, and we expect all these partners to work together,” state Sen. Steve Gooch, R-Dahlonega, said. The committee also said the Georgia Department of Trans portation should review its right of way fee schedule and structure. “When I look at the DOT and the fees that they charge, they date back to 1985. ... In an urban area, you’re going straight down a high way right of way. There’s a fee of $5,000 per mile. If you’re going down a rural roadway.... it’s $1,000 a mile,” said state Sen. Frank Ginn, R-Danielsville, who is chairing the committee. Another recommendation, suggested by AT&T, asks the General Assembly to set a fee of no more than $100 per linear mile per year to use the right of way. Under current state law, companies that only provide broadband ser vices or telephone companies without local tele phone revenue — for example, if no one in the area has a landline — are subjected to GDOT, rather than local, fees. Gooch ‘I wasn’t going to just take anything. It had to be the right kind of role for me.’ Natalie Milom, new SAFFT executive director FOSTER ■ Continued from 1A recently announced that they would leave the organization after nearly 10 years to spend more time with their own family and focus on other businesses. “We are incredibly grateful and humbled by the support shown to us and to SAFFT over the many years, and the encouragement we’ve encountered as we transition to other endeavors,” Brian Ander son said in a statement. The Andersons expressed their belief in the importance of ensur ing that SAFFT’s legacy remains strong and that its mission grows under new leadership. Milom comes to SAFFT with a background in child welfare, a master’s degree in social work, and many years of nonprofit devel opment experience. Her work includes connecting low-income families with educational, health, workforce development and hous ing services. “We truly believe that Natalie is the right person to lead this orga nization to the next level and we appreciate every board member who has served the mission over the past 10 years,” Brian Anderson said. Though she had been looking for a new job closer to Atlanta, Milom said she spent lots of time researching potential opportuni ties, remaining selective during the process. “I wasn’t going to just take any thing,” she said. “It had to be the right kind of role for me.” But with a heart for the poor and children in need, Milom also had an idea what that role would be, and when she found SAFFT, it didn’t take long for her to jump at the opportunity. SAFFT offers services including supervised visitation, parenting classes, trauma-informed counsel ing and comprehensive foster par ent support. “That really drew me,” Milom said. “I felt like it was exactly the right fit for me.” Milom, who took the reins at SAFFT in late October, said her first few weeks on the job have been like “drinking from a fire hose” as she meets her staff, board, agency partners and becomes acquainted with the communities where SAFFT operates. But the mission of empowering caregivers, maintaining the organi zation’s legacy and providing qual ity services to foster children and families remains ongoing. “I am honored, excited and ready to lead SAFFT into the next phase of growth, community collab oration and outreach,” Milom said. “I believe that the future of SAFFT is bright, and that together, we can do really great things, not just in the local communities but in the hearts of the families we serve.”