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Page 4B
Junel 5, 2022
iiPqporter
This mayor cares for fragile children and drives a school bus
Mayor Lynn Miller
By Diane Glidewell
news@mymcr.net
Lynn Cato Miller meets chal
lenges head on. When she sees
a need, she steps up to fill it. She
took office as Culloden’s first fe
male mayor in January 2017 after
serving on city council for eight
years. She grew up in Culloden,
moved away for several years and
then moved back to her child
hood home.
Culloden is Monroe County’s
only incorporated city other
than Forsyth. It is rich in history
but faces many challenges with
virtually no job opportunities, no
local businesses and not a lot of
recreational opportunities for citi
zens. Miller has worked to unite
residents and keep their commu
nity spirit strong.
Last fall she saw the need for
bus drivers in Monroe County
and decided she could do that,
too. She said that being a foster
parent and driving a school bus
are two of the most rewarding
things she has ever done. Miller
became a foster parent to special
needs/fragile children in about
2015, and it was advocating for
one of her children that lead her
to take the job as a bus driver in
November 2021.
She said she
was asked to
medicate Emily,
who is non-ver
bal, because she
was so stressed
by the bus ride.
Miller respond
ed that Em
ily was stressed
because consis
tency is essential
to her, and her
bus driver kept
changing. She
was told the
school system
couldn’t hire
enough bus
drivers and
was asked if
she would like
to drive. She
applied, trained
and drove Route
#809 for Hub
bard Elementary
through the rest
of the school
year.
Miller is taking
the summer off
to spend time creating summer
experiences for the five special
needs children currently with her.
Emily will be 12 in July.
“She’s the sweetest baby’ said
Miller.
She said that all of the 31 chil
dren, from pre-kindergarten to
5th grade, who ride her bus also
need consistency and she has
made an effort to let them know
they’re safe and loved on the bus
with “Miss Lynn.”
“You might be the nicest start
they’ve had in a while [to their
day],” she said. “You don’t know
their issues.”
She said she and other bus driv
ers go to honors days and PBIS
(positive behavior incentive)
days to support their students.
She said she noticed how many
bus drivers went to Mary Per
sons’ graduation to congratulate
students who rode their buses
in elementary or middle school.
She said she remembers what an
important part of her childhood
her bus driver, Reuben McCord,
was.
She remembers a day when she
was waiting to get some licks in
the principal’s office for misbe
having on the bus and J.P Evans,
a long-time member of Monroe
County Board of Education, told
her, “You make an impression or
you make an impact. If you make
an impression, it follows you for a
long time.”
Miller said her foster children
come to her just wanting to feel
safe for once in their lives and
wanting to be loved for who they
are. Two children whom she
adopted were homeless before
they came to her and had been
abused daily. Now they are put
ting as much distance as they can
between themselves and those
memories and are busy making
good memories to replace the
bad ones.
Miller said staying busy making
good memories is the key for all
children, including the ones on
her bus. She said they respond
well to the incentives she gives
them to behave so that she can
focus on driving, like earning
Snack Day on Fridays. She could
probably write a book about the
surprising things children have
said to her.
Miller said handling the bus
on Monroe County roads hasn’t
been too big of a challenge, al
though she hates bad weather and
says her bus is allergic to it. She
has only gotten stuck once and
said that it was embarrassing, but
transportation director Jake Davis
didn’t give her too hard of a time
about it.
Culloden has a mayor who ad
vocates for the city and its citizens
just like she does for her foster
and adopted children and the bus
riders of Route #809.
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...IIHIIB
First Baptist Forsyth holds 2022 Vacation Bible School
First Baptist Church cel
ebrated a successful Vacation
Bible School that was held every
morning from June 6-8. Children
from kindergarten to 5th grade
enjoyed demonstrating Biblical
truths through exciting science
experiments, including a high
flying soda bottle on the final day.
Michelle Fox was the director for
the 2022 VBS, and Hope Brooks,
summer intern at First Baptist,
provided the music programs.
A group of enthusiastic adult
and youth volunteers made VBS
possible.
The VBS students divided into
two teams and raised money
to assist those in need from
Ukraine. The team that raised the
most got to give Hope Brooks
a pie in the face. Together the
students raised almost $500 for
Ukraine. Children on the front
row are holding the Ukrainian
flag.
Upcoming events at First Bap
tist include Summer Splash on
June 15 and Dickey's Peach Farm
on June 26. For more information
text @fbccmsum22 to 81010 or
on Facebook:FBC Forsyth@First
BaptistForsyth95. (Photo/Diane
Glidewell)
selling land to KOA, inks $500,000 grant tor parks
City mulls
By Diane Glidewell
news@mymcr.net
Forsyth city council
discussed a request from
the owners of KOA camp
ground to buy 4.2 acres of
City of Forsyth property
adjacent to the 32.5 acres
that currently make up
the KOA campground.
Mayor Eric Wilson said
the request is from the
granddaughter of the late
Ken Bowman, who now
operates the campground,
and her brother who owns
it jointly with her.
The 4.2 acres was a waste-
water treatment site but
reportedly hasn’t been used
by the city in years. Wilson
said the KOA manager
said the land KOA wants
to buy from the city will
support 45-60 campground
sites. KOA has considered
expanding in another
direction but would prefer
this land. Council voted
to have the city attorney
go through the process of
surplusing the property.
Monroe County tax office
shows the 4.2 acres on Old
Waterworks Road valued at
$42,000.
Council approved a
requisition for $8,800 for
Watts Wrecker Service to
replace the transmission on
a Fire Department rescue
truck.
Council approved the
variance requested by Rosa
Evans for a community
living arrangement home
at 139 Blount Street for
developmentally chal
lenged adults. The variance
stipulated no more than six
residents at the home.
Evans wasn’t present at
council to answer ques
tions, but economic devel
opment director Cody Ellis
said Evans didn’t intend
to have more than four
residents at a time. Council
member Greg Goolsby
asked how it can be
enforced that there aren’t
more than six residents.
Ellis said that periodic
inspections are required
by the fire department and
he expects a report if fire
inspectors see more than
six people at the residence.
No one spoke at the
public hearing either for
or against the variance.
Forsyth Planning & Zoning
Commission recommend
ed approval of the variance
with the restriction of not
more than six residents.
Forsyth amended its ordi
nances to make the offense
of leaving a food service es
tablishment without paying
for ordered food an offense
of disorderly conduct. City
attorney Bobby Melton
said that the request for a
change in city ordinances
to make leaving an estab
lishment without paying
for food a punishable
offense came from the city
magistrate who found that
the conduct wasn’t covered
under city ordinances as a
violation.
Forsyth approved an
agreement to accept
a matching grant for
$500,000 from the U.S.
Department of the Interior-
National Park Service
through the Georgia
Department of Natural Re
sources. Forsyth agreed to
pay at least $500,000 on the
project to match the grant
and to complete the project
by April 30,2024.
David Lane of Middle
Georgia Regional Commis
sion presented the agree
ment. He said the grant is
very competitive because of
the amount of money.
The city agreed to use the
grant to develop recreation
facilities within Country
Club Park, including an
outdoor amphitheater, a
covered basketball court,
an entrance road and a
pavilion for the exist
ing splash pad. The grant
is known as a Land and
Water Conservation Fund
Grant.
Forsyth agreed to transfer
responsibility for electric
service on lots in the subdi
vision developed by Edgar
Hughston Builder Inc.
known as Juliette Com
mons to and from Central
Georgia EMC. Mike Bach
elor of Forsyth’s electric
department explained that
the city needed to rescind
a previous agreement with
Central Georgia EMC and
then adopt the new agree
ment, which transfers four
lots to Central Georgia
EMC for electrical service
and transfers three lots
from CGEMC to the city of
Forsyth.
Bachelor said the city is
pleased with the new agree
ment because previously it
didn’t appear the city would
gain any electric custom
ers. Under this agreement
the city will service 49 lots
in Juliette Commons and
CGEMC will service 36
lots. The division of electric
service in Juliette Com
mons is due to existing ter
ritorial utility assignments
regulated by the Georgia
Public Service Commission
and the location of existing
infrastructure.