Newspaper Page Text
Sports: IB
Community: I2A
Leopards head to
playoffs Friday
Last horse show
of the season
— www.BanksNewsTODAY.com —
504 • Homer, Banks County, GA 30547 • A Publication of MainStreet Newspapers, Inc. • 24 Pages, 3 Sections Plus Supplements • Vol. 40 No. 13
$29.8 million
BOE budget
proposed
In a 4 to 1 vote the Banks
County Board of Education
approved the tentative fiscal
year 2009 budget at a called
meeting on Thursday, Nov. 6.
Board member Bo Garrison
cast the lone vote against the
tentative $29.8 million budget.
Banks County Schools
Superintendent Chris Erwin
presented the tentative budget
to the board for their consider
ation. Erwin said, “I am pleased
with the budget. “I feel this
budget will help the students of
Banks County learn.”
This was the third budget pre
sented to the board for their
consideration. Erwin said the
tentative budget approved on
Thursday reflects over $445,000
in cuts over the first tentative
budget presented to the board.
Erwin said cuts were made in
areas that would not affect stu
dent services.
A called meeting of the BOE
is set for 6 p.m. on Monday,
Dec. 1, in the conference room
at the board office to approve
the proposed budget.
continued on page 11A
$14,600 tax
office deposit
reported lost
A $14,600 deposit is missing
from the Banks County Tax
Commissioner's office and the
matter is under investigation by
the sheriff’s office.
Sheriff Charles Chapman
said on Monday that Tax
Commissioner Margaret
Ausbum filed a report with his
office on November 5 about
the missing deposit. Ausbum
reported the matter was brought
to her attention when she was
contacted by someone who told
her a check they had written
her office had not cleared the
bank. Ausbum reported she
then began to do an internal
investigation of all her bank
statements for the past three or
four months.
Chapman said Ausbum stat-
continued on page 11A
News -2-3A
•Babies to no longer
be delivered at BJC
— page 2A
•Commissioners
honor firefighters
— page 3A
• ‘Obama victory his
toric for many reasons’
— page 4A
Other news
• Social News — 7-8A
• School News — 10-12B
• Public Safety — 10A
• Legals — 4-6B
•Church — 10A
•Obituaries — 11A
A Veterans' Salute
Celebration honors local heroes'
BCMS honors veterans
BY ANGELA GARY
Banks County Middle
School principal Matthew
Cooper told students Tuesday
to look at the veterans gath
ered in the gym for a special
program in their honor to see
true heroes.
“If you are looking for
heroes, they are right here,”
Cooper said. “These are the
real heroes. These Banks
County Middle School stu
dents are taught every day to
appreciate this country. They
are taught to appreciate vet
erans. ...I have a deep love
and appreciation of veterans.
I come from a long line of
veterans.”
Students stood and cheered,
applauded and yelled as vet
erans from all branches of the
military and many past wars
and conflicts entered the gym
for the almost two-hour cel
ebration Tuesday morning.
The students were dressed in
red, white and blue
The veterans had seats of
honor in the middle section
of the gym. Students filled
both sides of the gym, as did
parents and visitors.
The program got under
way with the flag being pre
sented by the Banks County
High School Junior ROTC,
led by L.T.C. Clark Gregory
and 1SGT John Wilson. The
colors were presented by the
Joseph Habersham chapter
of the Sons of the American
Revolution.
Eighth grade student Jeffrey
Nicholson led the pledge of
allegiance and moment of
silence. The BCMS chorus,
led by Teresa Dague, per
formed several musical selec
tions, and Maggie McCoy, a
former BCMS student, sang
a solo.
The veterans were individ
ually recognized by assistant
principal Faith Simpson. The
ceremony included closing
remarks by counselor Rob
Moffett, who is also a veter
an, and Taps, by high school
band director John Congdon,
and the folding of the flag by
the BCHS ROTC.
The guest speaker was
Gene Griffith, Sgt., United
States Marine Corps., who
served in Korea.
"Because of you, we are
enjoying the freedom we
have today,” he told his fel
low veterans.
Griffith signed up with the
Marine Reserves when he
was 17-years-old, and two
months later, was called to
Korea.
“I was a kid,” he said. “I
grew up real quick.”
A special presentation of a
folded flag was presented to
the school by Chuck Stowers
on behalf of all of the veter
ans. This was done as a thank
you to the school for holding
the Veterans Day ceremony
each year.
PATRIOTIC CELEBRATION
Banks County veteran Sam Moon is one of many veterans honored at a Veterans
Day program Tuesday morning at the county middle school. See more photos on
page 5A. Photos by Angela Gary
J1C-TJ
If
LARGE CROWD ATTENDS LULA CEREMONY
A large crowd attended the official groundbreaking ceremony and dedication for the
Lula Veterans Park in downtown on Tuesday. Lula Mayor Milton Turner (R) said, “This
is a very special day for us. We’re here to honor all of our veterans.” See page 9A for
more photos. Photo by Sharon Hogan
Lula breaks ground
on Veterans Park
BY SHARON HOGAN
The Lula City Council
and Lula Downtown
Development Authority
honored its war veterans on
Tuesday and held the offi
cial groundbreaking for its
Veterans Park project.
A large crowd gathered
in downtown at 11:11 a.m.
on the eleventh day of the
eleventh month to help city
officials honor local veterans
and start the Veterans Park
project.
Lula Mayor Milton Turner
said, “This is a very special
day for us. We’re here to
honor all of our veterans.”
Senator Lee Hawkins
from Hall County was the
guest speaker for the event.
Hawkins was instrumental in
getting some state funding to
help Lula with the project.
Hawkins said to the vet
erans, “I want to say thank
you. We will never forget
you.”
Turner said in addition to
state funding, the Hall County
Board of Commissioners
has committed $100,000
toward the project. A total
of $210,000 will be spent
on Phase 1 of the project,
Turner said. He said the city
needs about $150,000 more
to finish the entire Veterans
Park project.
Lula council member
Vicky Chambers said the
park is a way to say “thank
you” to the veterans.
“I hope everybody in Lula
will enjoy this park as much
as we’ve enjoyed getting it
continued on page 11A
Lula council agrees to spend $210,000 on Veterans Park
BY SHARON HOGAN
The Lula City Council unanimously
agreed last week to spend $210,000 on
the first phase of the proposed Veterans
Park in the downtown area.
The city received three bids for Phase
1 of the project, but all three bids were
considerably higher than the $210,000
the city has on hand to spend on the
project at this time.
Council member Judah Echols made
the motion to spend the $210,000 and
give each contractor the opportunity to
come back to the city with what can be
completed at this price.
The three bids were received from:
Laslie Brothers Contracting Company,
Inc., Bethlehem, $355,656: Johnson
Landscapes, Inc., Cumming, $378,900;
and Exterior Concepts, Inc.. Buford,
$360,000.
City Manager Dennis Bergin said,
“We are somewhat in limbo until we
understand the conversation with the
contractors.”
In other business at the meeting:
•Mayor Milton Turner announced
the employee Christmas get-together
planned for Friday, Dec. 19.
•the council held a work session
to discuss the city’s proposed zoning
ordinances. Bergin asked the council to
consider rolling mobile homes into the
zoning ordinances being proposed and
not have them as a stand-alone ordi
nance. Bergin also recommended that
the council limit the amount of square
footage that is allowed in an acces
sory structure and have it based on the
percentage of the square footage in the
primary structure. Turner said he wants
to suggest that if another subdivision is
approved, a homeowner’s association
has to be in place before any building
permits are issued. The council contin
ues to work on city zoning ordinances
and additional meetings will be set on
this.