Newspaper Page Text
December 7, 2022
Page 4B
Reporter
visits Rhine
Falls in
Switzerland
Angela Dupree traveled to Swit
zerland on a business trip. Being
a subscriber to The Reporter, she
brought a copy of the paper along
for the trip. She and The Reporter
visited beautiful Rhine Falls on the
Rhine River near Schaffausen (a
city near Zurich). Rhine Falls is said
to be the largest waterfall in Europe.
Angela is a 1988 graduate of
Mary Persons and a graduate of
Gordon College and the University
of Georgia. She is the daughter of
Donna and Terry Johnson, retired
Program Manager of the Georgia
Nongame-Endangered Wildlife
Program and author of the Report
ers popular “Monroe Outdoors”
column for over 30 years.
MP students
advance toward
All State Chorus
Ten members of the
Mary Persons chorus
advanced from the
first round of auditions
for the 2023 All-State
Chorus, placing them
among the top vocal
musicians in the State.
The second round of
auditions will be in
January. Those chosen
for All-State Chorus will
rehearse together Feb.
16-18 and showcase
their talents at a perfor
mance in Athens.
The Mary Persons
students are Madelyn
Causey, Abby Etheridge,
Eliza Gavin, Abbie Kerr,
William Little, Luke
McBride, Zoe Oglesby,
Jackson Roller, John
Wyatt Sanders and
Sydney Stapleton.
3rd Annual Smokin 5K honors Harold Boone & firefighter brotherhood
By Richard Dumas
Aiden Bramlett and
Johnnie Sylvain were the
overall winners of Monroe
County Emergency Ser
vices’ (MCES) 3rd Annual
Smokin 5K Race on Satur
day, Nov. 12.
The race, which is orga
nized annually by Culloden
volunteer firefighter Dr.
Margie Bryant, is held in
memory of the late MCES
firefighter Harold Boone,
who died of complications
from COVID-19 on Nov.
2,2020. A check for $2,500
in proceeds from Satur
days race was presented
to Boones 14-year-old
granddaughter, Nyjhae
Boone-Whitehead, to go
toward a college scholar
ship fund in her honor.
In a ceremony held
Saturday morning at the
MCES headquarters,
former Monroe County
Fire Chief Donny Mercer
told a contingent of Boones
family and friends, in
cluding his widow Sharon
Boone and mother Hattie
Boone, about the unique
bonds of the fire service
brotherhood. Mercer said
everybody on earth is part
of a brotherhood simply by
belonging to an organiza
tion but that the fire service
brotherhood is a deeper
bond of commitment
and unselfish dedication
to one another that goes
beyond simply wearing a
badge. Mercer said the fire
service brotherhood takes
“a deep compassion within
your soul” and “a burning
desire to help that can’t
be put out,” which were
traits he said Boone always
possessed. Mercer recalled
the time when Boone and
other firefighters helped
him put together his chil
dren’s Christmas toys and
another time when Boone
repaired a broken-down
fire truck alongside the
road in the middle of the
night. He said another time
Boone invited a firefighter
from Ohio whose vehicle
had overheated over to
the fire house for Christ
mas dinner. But Mercer
said it wasn’t just the big
gestures that showed
Boone’s commitment to
the brotherhood. He noted
that Boone took care of the
tedious everyday chores of
making sure the fire truck
and its equipment oper
ated successfully and he
also constantly mentored
younger firefighters.
Another speaker, MCES
Station 5 Capt. Bennett
Norris, said the fire service
brotherhood crosses
all boundaries of race,
gender and class. Norris
said everyone depends
on their fire brothers in
dangerous situations to
support and protect one
another and said trust is
earned through actions
under fire. Norris said he
experienced firsthand in
2014 the tight brotherhood
bonds of MCES and the
Monroe County Sheriff’s
Office (MCSO) when his
son, Michael, an MCSO
deputy, was killed in the
line of duty. Norris said his
definition of brotherhood
involves “having one’s back
through thick and thin on
and off the job.”
Another speaker, former
MCES Battalion Chief
Elliot Chambliss, said he
believes fire service broth
erhood is built at particular
times of the day, often at
the beginning of a shift
when firefighters from two
different shifts often gather
around the breakfast table
to talk about what types
of emergencies to expect
but also to get to know one
Nyjhae Boone-Whitehead, 14, granddaughter of the late Harold
Boone, accepts a check for $2,500 raised at the 3rd Annual Smokin
5K Race for a scholarship in memory of her grandfather.
another more
deeply. Chambliss
said it was in these
gatherings that he
met Boone, who
gave Chambliss
the nickname
“Old School.”
Chambliss said
Boone often talk
ed about his love
for his family, and
this time together
allowed him to get
to know Boone
“down deep in his
soul,” which is
essential for a true
brotherhood.
Other speakers
included: Rhonda
Jones-Harden,
who served as Mistress
of Ceremony; Deacon
Nathan Flagg, who gave the
opening prayer; Lt. Greg
Stephens, who present
ed the awards and the
scholarship fund check;
Boone-Whitehead, who
read a poem called “Earth
Angels in Uniform” in
memory of her grandfa
ther, former MCES Battal
ion Chief Wesley Jackson,
and Bryant.
Race winners were
announced and presented
with awards at Saturday’s
ceremony. Male winners
included with race times
in minutes in parentheses:
1st Place Overall - Aiden
Bramlett (21), 1st Place
age 40-44 - Shane Cook
(29), 1st Place age 45-49 -
Maurice Limon (58), and
1st Place age 50-54 - Jerry
Eddy (29). Female winners
included: 1st Place Overall
- Johnnie Sylvain (42), 1st
Place age 50-54 - Aretha
Shine (67), and 1st Place
age 60-64 - Catherine
Chambliss (45).
Event sponsors for the
3rd Annual Smokin 5K
race included: Monroe
County Retired Educa
tors Association, City of
Culloden, Culloden Vol
unteer Fire Department/
MCES, Firefighter Lt. Greg
Stephens, S&M Dryer Vent
Cleaning Services, La Pas-
adita Cafe, LLC, Elite Am
bulance Transportation,
Volunteer Firefighter Dr.
Margie Bryant, DJ Go Get-
ta, Flaming Knights MC,
Freeman Funeral Home,
Rhonda Jones-Harden, and
Jordan & Jalen McCord.
Neal honored for 20 years as
Nationally Registered EMT
R.W. (Skin) Neal was recognized by
the National Registry of Emergency
Medical Technicians for achieving 20
consecutive years of National EMS
Certification. This distinction is an
honor held by few EMS professionals.
To maintain his status as a Nationally
Registered EMT, Neal completed, on
a biennial basis, the most comprehen
sive recertification program for EMS
professionals in America. By main
taining his National EMS Certification
and completing regular continuing
education courses, Neal has demon
strated his commitment to providing
exceptional prehospital emergency
medical care.
Neal was Nationally Registered as
an EMT in 1997 and has been serving
the Monroe County community since.
He began as a volunteer with Monroe
County and is now volunteering with
Monroe again as captain at Station 12
(at Johnstonville & English Roads).
Over the years Neal has worked for
Butts, Fulton and Chattahoochee Hills
as well as working for American and
Med Pro ambulance services. He has also
worked for the Police and Fire Academies
in Forsyth and the large Guardian Acad
emy in Perry. He now has about 10 part
time jobs in addition to volunteering for
Monroe County.
The National Registry of Emergency
Medical Technicians serves as the National
Skin Neal
EMS Certification organization by pro
viding a valid, uniform process to assess
the knowledge and skills required for
competent practice by EMS professionals
throughout their careers and by maintain
ing a registry of certification status.
Edwardjones
> edwardjones.com | Member sipc
Compare our CD Rates
Bank-issued, FDIC-insured
6-month
4.20
% APY*
1-year
4.55
% APY*
2-year
4.75
% APY*
Call or visit your local financial advisor today.
Macon
Heath Davis
3333 Northside Drive Suite D
478-757-1857
Jeff Holland
4562 Forsyth Road Suite 3
478-757-0210
Amy L Whaley
5233 Riverside Dr Suite B
478-474-5156
Bobby E Whaley
5233 Riverside Dr Suite B
478-474-5156
Andrew A Wohlrabe
5437 Bowman Rd Ste 121
478-254-9804
* Annual Percentage Yield (APY) effective 11/2/2022. CDs offered by Edward Jones are bank-issued and FDIC-insured up
to $250,000 (principal and interest accrued but not yet paid) per depositor, per insured depository institution, for each
account ownership category. Please visit www.fdic.gov or contact your financial advisor for additional information. Subject
to availability and price change. CD values are subject to interest rate risk such that when interest rates rise, the prices of
CDs can decrease. If CDs are sold prior to maturity, the investor can lose principal value. FDIC insurance does not cover
losses in market value. Early withdrawal may not be permitted. Yields quoted are net of all commissions. CDs require the
distribution of interest and do not allow interest to compound. CDs offered through Edward Jones are issued by banks and
thrifts nationwide. All CDs sold by Edward Jones are registered with the Depository Trust Corp. (DTC).
FDI-1867L-A © 2022 EDWARD D. JONES & CO., L.P. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. AECSPAD