Newspaper Page Text
August 20, 2008
PAGE 11A
^Reporter
Girlfriendz opens on West Main
A lot of Monroe County residents came out to support Lisa Cochran on Tuesday, Aug. 12 for the rib
bon cutting of her new store, Girlfriendz, located at 8 West Main Street. Girlfriendz has many
unique gifts, such as purses, jewelry and stationary. The store also offers monogramming, tan
ning, fiberglass nails and pedicures. Girlfriendz is open Monday-Friday from 10 a.m.-7 p.m. and
Saturdays from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. For more information call 994-2282. (Photo/Laura Thackston)
Habitat eyes next home
Wondering what Monroe County
Habitat for Humanity has been up to?
The past two months have been the
longest period without starting a house
in the past four years. The last house
was dedicated in June. It is now the end
of August and nothing seems to be hap
pening. This is far from the truth.
Habitat is in fact very busy. Some time
must be given to preparation of the next
lot. The next lot is wooded so it will take
some time to clear the lot. Clearing will
begin sometime in late August.
Monroe County Habitat for Humanity
continues to seek funds. After the
efforts of the churches in our last build,
it is obvious that the pace of building
can pick up. There is talk in the group
of being able to put any qualified family
in a Habitat home. This means that
some individuals who live in subsidized
housing will be able will become inde
pendent home owners.
The major obstacle to Monroe County
Habitat for Humanity’s dream of elimi
nating substandard housing is money.
Currently the group is promoting
Partners 500. The purpose of Partners
500 is to identify 500 individuals in
Monroe County who would be willing to
contribute $25 per month. With this
amount the group can build a house
every 3 months. Based on the efforts of
the churches this is very viable.
Besides planning the next build, a
group of Habitat volunteers are putting
together a program to tell the Habitat
story in Monroe County. The program is
designed for civic and church groups.
The group plans to begin sharing the
Habitat story in late September. If you
would like to schedule the program for
your church or group contact Cathy
Houle at 994-8986 or Jim Buff at 994-
9484.
Go tell it on Stone Mountain
The youth of Rocky Creek Baptist Church celebrated the end of summer by traveling to Stone Moun
tain on Aug. 6 to watch the laser show and enjoy dinner on the lawn. Attending the trip were: TJ
Burd, Steven Caskey, Joshua Harrell, Gabriel Jones, Farid Faiz, Michael Crider, Sarah Harrell, Au
tumn Turner, Tess Hammock, Kayla Ray, youth director Matt Pippin and chaperones Jennifer Pippin
and Dana Bittick.
Growth
continued from the front page
Family Matters
Preparing for tough times
A while back I received a cam
paign e-mail from a friend who
is running for public office in
Georgia. The theme of the e-
mail was direct: “You
don’t actually win a campaign on
Election Day, you find out the
results on Election Day. The actu
al winning starts much, much
earlier.”
That principle holds true for
every significant endeavor in life,
doesn’t it? It even applies to mar
riage, a truth I want to discuss
momentarily. But first, let me
give some other examples of this
concept.
When a can of soda is picked
up and purchased, the sale wasn’t
just made that day. Rather, the
sale was earned over an extended period
of time in the production, marketing and
distribution of that product. Careful
thought, hard work and attention to detail
by a lot of people preceded the simple act
of grabbing a can off a grocery store shelf.
When a final exam is taken by a stu
dent, with rare exception, the grade she
receives was earned over the course of the
semester and in the days immediately
preceding the actual timeframe of the
test. The grade simply reveals her level of
preparedness.
When the University of Georgia (plug in
your favorite college football team if you’d
like) wins a football game on a Saturday
in the fall, the coaches will tell you that
the game was won during practice that
week. Simply put, through their hard
work during the week they were prepared
for what game-day action brought.
I could go on with other examples, but
let me “unpack” that football illustration a
little more. As football fans, we see a great
throw, catch, run or game-saving tackle
and are amazed by the quality of the sin
gle play. But in reality, what the athlete
achieved at that moment was made possi
ble by his hard work. Yes, he has superior
ability and instincts, but it is through
days and weeks of sweat and preparation
that the athlete develops the ability to do
automatically under pressure what he
otherwise might not.
Back to marriage, and all our family
relationships for that matter. There’s not
a question of whether we will face chal
lenges, but when. We just will. The only
question is, “Will our marital habits and
practices today steel us against the chal
lenges of tomorrow?”
For some, the trouble will seem to be
nothing more than the typical bumps in
the road common to every human being
and every married couple; trouble that is
difficult to endure, but not the kind that
threatens to ruin our marriages. For oth
ers, the trouble will become more severe
and more threatening over time and, for
many, will destroy their marriages. And in
almost all cases, the destruction was pre
ventable had they known a simple princi
ple:
The battle for my marriage is won today,
not when trouble comes.
Some people reading this are thinking,
“I know what you mean. We’re facing a
bigger challenge than I ever imagined.
And it’s hard - really hard; I wish I had
been prepared for it.”
Others can’t imagine it. “Sure we’ve got
our problems from time to time, and we
certainly don’t always communicate well,
but it all usually blows over after a while
and we’re fine.”
That’s not good enough.
What may seem like a minor problem
today may grow into a significant one
later. If I fail to make myself available for
deeper, prolonged conversations with my
wife now, I’m going to be less
likely to do so in pressure-
packed situations. If I haven’t
learned to honor and esteem my
wife while things are good and
calm, what makes me think I’ll
do so when stressful times hit?
If I haven’t learned how to
resolve little conflicts, I’m going
to have a harder time when the
stakes are higher.
What pressure-packed, high-
stakes situations could cause
this much trouble?
The death of a loved one
The natural pressures associ
ated with raising children
A wayward child
An increased workload or high-stress job
Illness
A big move from one town or state to
another
The loss of a job
Now I’m not suggesting that you live
with an ominous feeling of impending
doom. In fact, if anything, it’s the opposite.
Too often we go around living life as if
everything is as serious as a heart attack.
We need to slow down, enjoy life and
enjoy our spouse.
At the same time, it is important to
understand that life is relentless - it just
keeps coming at you. And because it keeps
coming at you, you need to be prepared
for what it brings.
So what do we need to do in order to be
in a position of relational strength when
high waters flood our lives?
First, communicate. Honestly, along
with a deep sense of commitment, there’s
nothing more important. Communication
provides the pathways to understanding
desires, needs, hurts and expectations, all
of which are intricately tied to marital
satisfaction and health. Your spouse can’t
meet a need or expectation they don’t
know you have. They can’t soothe a hurt
they don’t know exists. Take the time -
make the time - to communicate.
Second, learn to resolve conflict. Though
this could have been a sub point under
communication, it warrants special atten
tion. A habit of unresolved conflict builds
resentment and distrust and ultimately
eats at the foundation of marriage.
Troubled times require high doses of trust
- trust that your spouse’s intentions are
good and trust that the two of you “can
work through anything.” In resolving con
flict, you’re developing the “muscle memo
ry” that will enable you survive more diffi
cult times.
Third, get in the habit of accepting your
wife or husband’s advice and taking what
they say seriously. This helps to build
trust. In high pressure times, we want to
know that we’re not just being listened to
- we want to know that we’re being
heard.
Finally, honor and respect your spouse.
Remember the good qualities that drew
you to your wife or husband, and verbal
ize it. When you place his or her needs
above your own, then seek to meet those
needs, your actions will prove that you
care, which will help to cement the rela
tionship for the long haul.
Randy Hicks is president of the Georgia
Family Council, a non-profit organization
that works to strengthen and defend the
family in Georgia. For more information,
go to www.georgiafamily.org, (770) 242-
0001, stephen@gafam.org.
By
Randy
Hicks
is a great place to be.
"We're such a desirable
place to live," said
Carlisle. "We have great
schools, and you can find
any kind of subdivision
you want." Carlisle said
the relatively low proper
ty taxes help as well.
Carlisle said people can
find subdivisions in
Monroe for horseback rid
ing, golf, or whatever
their interest is, at all
price ranges.
"It's no secret why peo
ple are building and buy
ing houses in Monroe
County," said Carlisle.
Carlisle said the influx
brings people with higher
incomes to the county,
ones who pay taxes. The
latest census estimates
from 2007 put Monroe
County's population at
above 25,000 for the first
time.
And the latest sales tax
collections show that
local business transac
tions are way up in the
county. In the first six
months of 2008, the coun
ty collected 32 percent
more revenue from its 1-
percent sales tax than in
the first six months of
2007. From January
through June 2008, the
county has taken in $2.83
million. During that
same time in 2007, the
county took in $2.14 mil
lion, an increase of
$690,000.
Tiffany Andrews, presi
dent of the Forsyth-
Monroe County Chamber
of Commerce, said with
the growing housing mar
ket comes more opportu
nity for the service indus
try. “As our population
continues to grow, it bet
ter supports a business
plan for those interested
in locating a franchise or
additional local small
businesses in our commu
nity,” said Andrews. “As I
like to say ‘great things
are happening in Monroe
County!’"
Housing wise, Carlisle
acknowledged things
have slowed down some
what in the past year.
Buice said about 350
homes have been built
since January 2007,
which shows a decline
from the 521 built in
2006-07.
The closest county to
Monroe to be in the 100
fastest growing counties
in 2006-07 was Henry
County, which ranked as
the 51st fastest growing,
increasing in housing
units from 68,270 to
71,280, a 4.4 percent
addition.
Other fast-growing
Georgia counties, with
their rankings, included
Effingham (36), Cherokee
(38), Newton (50), Towns
(44), Bryan (47), Barrow
(56), Lumpkin (57),
Oconee (60), Fulton (64),
Walton (73), Douglas (74),
Coweta (79), Gilmer (81),
Dawson (83) and Pierce
(95).
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