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WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 12,2022
• Homer, Banks County, GA 30547 • A Publication of MainStreet Newspapers, Inc. • 12 Pages, 1 Section Plus Supplements • Vol. 55
No. 45
Whatley to speak
at Republican
Women meeting
Thomas Whatley, region
al election integrity director
of the North Georgia GOP,
will be the guest speaker at
the next meeting of the Re
publican Women of Banks
County.
The meeting will be held
at on Oct. 17 at Homer
Town Hall, located at 943
Historic Homer Highway,
Homer.
A social gathering will
begin at 6:30 p.m.
The meeting will start at
7 p.m.
Whatley has worked on
campaigns for Brian Kemp,
Donald Trump. David Per
due, Kelly Loeffler, Karen
Handel and Hunter Hill.
He will speak on election
law changes in Georgia leg
islature House bills.
For more information
on the Republican Women
of Banks County, contact
Martha Ramsey at 706-654-
6263 or Mgramsey@wind-
stream.net.
Pumpkins
at the Park
planned
in Lula
Pumpkins at the Park will
be held at the Rafe Banks
Park in Lula at 1 p.m. on
Saturday, Oct. 22.
The event will include
free candy, cookie walk,
pumpkin hunt, pumpkin
painting, face painting, bal
loon artist and treats on the
trail.
Rehoboth
plans Fall
Festival
Oct. 29
Rehoboth CHC, located
at 322 Mt. Sinai Rd. Alto,
will be hosting its annu
al fall festival and trunk or
treat on October 29.
There will be a yard sale
starting at 7 a.m.
A chili cook off will be
held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Games and trunk-or-treat
will be from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
There will also be a cake
walk throughout the day.
Everyone is welcome, or
ganizers state.
MAILING LABEL
Curtis ‘Cool Curt’ Presley
returns to BCHS to make
his dream come true
Photos by Louise Henson
Curtis Presley sits in on the track waiting for the game
to begin.
By HANNAH CAUDELL
The green Pruitt Health
van rolled into the park
ing lot outside of the Terry
Allen Field House on the
Banks County High School
football field Friday night,
where an excited resident
from the Oaks Scenic View
Nursing Home waited in an
ticipation for what the night
had to offer.
Curtis Presley graduated
from Banks County High
School in 1982 and he
still proudly calls himself
a Banks County Leopard.
His undying loyalty to the
school and the team is what
inspired Louise Henson, a
certified nursing assistant
and receptionist at the Oaks,
to help make his dream of
once again seeing the Banks
County Leopards Football
team in action come true.
“At first, we thought about
taking him to a University
of Georgia football game.’'
Henson said. “But he had al
ready been to one before, so
his sister suggested that we
bring him to a Banks Coun
ty football game instead, be
cause this may mean more
to him.’’
Presley, nicknamed ‘Cool
Curt" by his classmates in
his high school days, thus
returned to his old stomping
grounds in style, wearing
a Banks County Leopards
T-shirt with a matching cap,
signed by two of the Banks
County cheerleaders.
The excitement followed
as members of the foot
ball team and cheerleading
squad gathered around to
take pictures with Presley,
giving him the hometown
hero treatment before the
start of the game.
“I’m so excited to be
here,” Presley beamed while
taking photos. “Eve wanted
to do this for a long time.”
Presley’s family also sur
prised and accompanied
him on the field, where his
sister Patty Williams talked
about Presley and his love
for his alma mater.
“It’s not so much about
football as it is about being
a Banks County Leopard,”
Williams said. “He loves
being a Leopard.”
Presley was the first out of
his family to graduate high
school, where Williams said
everyone loved him.
“Everybody called him
‘Cool Curt,”’ Williams
laughed. “He had this cha
risma about him that every
one just adored. Even now I
think people can feel it from
him.”
Williams also explained
that Presley has had some
difficult lifestyle changes in
the past year with the move
to a new care facility and
multiple surgeries.
“He never complains
about it, though,” Williams
explained. “After all that
he’s been through, he de
serves to be happy.”
And happy he was, as
Presley was all smiles as his
grandson pushed him in a
wheelchair towards the mid
dle of the field for the coin
toss as an honorary captain
for the Leopards football
team.
“I’m going to remember
being here with my family
and doing the coin toss the
most,” Presley said as he
got ready with his family
to watch the game on the
sidelines. “This is the best
school ever, and I’m so hap
py to be here.”
Curtis Presley takes a photo with members of the Banks County Leopards football
team.
Curtis Presley takes a photo with his family, who surprised him at the game.
55TH ANNUAL MAYSVILLE FESTIVAL
Photo by Wesleigh Sagon
Massie Potts, 9, enjoyed an Icey at Maysville’s 55th
annual Autumn Leaf Festival on Saturday, Oct. 8. See
more photos on Page 10A.
Fall festivals coming up
in Lula, Baldwin, Homer
By ANGELA GARY
angela@mainstreetne ws .com
Fall festivals are coming up in October in Lula, Baldwin
and Homer.
LULA
The Lula Festival that was planned earlier and that was
cancelled due to the weather has been rescheduled. It will
instead be held Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 15-16, at the
Lula Ballpark.
BALDWIN
The Baldwin Fall Festival will be held from 8 a.m. to
8 p.m. on Saturday, October 22, at the Baldwin Farmers
Market, 110 Airport Road, Baldwin.
There will be games, face painting, bounce houses, He
roes In Force and live music by The Maggie Valley Band.
All activities are free.
“Purchase food and arts/crafts from local Baldwin busi
nesses and support your community,” organizers state.
To sign up to be a vendor or to reserve a booth space,
contact Erin at City Hall at 706- 778-6341. ext. Ill, or
email baldwinevents @ cityofbaldwin.org.
There will also be a Currahee Fall Crawl Jeep Ride host
ed by Baldwin Public Works. There will be a free T-Shirt
to the first 50 attendees in a Jeep. Jeep line-up is 10:30 a.m.
and the jeep ride starts at 11 a.m.
There will be a Heroes In Force recognition from 11 a.m.
to 1 p.m. Kids can meet and take pictures with heroes like
Batman, Captain America, Supergirl and Thor.
There will be a Wiffle Ball Tournament hosted by the
Baldwin Fire Department.
The tournament will start at 11:30 a.m. Contact Assistant
Chief Shaun Benfield at 706-531-6288 to sign up teams.
Sign up to challenge fellow Baldwin chefs in Baldwin’s
2nd annual chili cookoff.
Stop by City Hall or email baldwinevents @cityofbald-
win.org to register. Judging begins a 1:30 p.m.
Free Movie in the Market will be held at 6:45 p.m in
the farmers market, followed by fireworks to close out the
festival.
For any questions about the fall festival, stop by Baldwin
City Hall, call 706-778 — 6341. ext. Ill, or email bald
winevents @ cityofbaldwin.org.
BANKS RECREATION
DEPARTMENT
A Fall Festival will be held at the Banks County Rec
reation Department from 5 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. on Saturday,
Oct. 29.
This event will have vendors, food, activities, music, and
a movie showing, a pie tasting, and a Halloween costume
contest.
There are 20 vendor spots available for $25 each.
For more information, email avetter@co.banks.ga.us.
The recreation department is located at 607 Thompson
Street, Homer.
McGahee - Griffin & Stewart
175 VFW Post Rd., P. O. Box 725
Cornelia, GA • 706-778-8668
J. Michael Shirley
McGahee-Griffin & Stewart Funeral Home is pleased to welcome J. Michael Shirley as he re-joins the firm as a part-time Funeral Service Consultant..
Michael grew up in Habersham County, Georgia, the son of the late James A. and Eloise Cochran Shirley. He attended public school in Habersham County
and graduated from South Habersham High School. He is a graduate of Gupton-Jones College of Mortuary Science in Atlanta and was licensed as a Funeral
Service Professional in 1974. He worked in the funeral service in Commerce and Athens prior to relocating to Cornelia to join McGahee-Griffin Funeral
Home in 1978. He has worked in the funeral service profession in some capacity for nearly 50 years. In the early 1980s, upon the retirement of Thomas J.
McGahee, he became a partner with Weymon O. Griffin until discerning a need to broaden his professional horizons and make a career change.
In 1995, he began his career in public education. He was employed by Banks County Schools as a teacher in middle and high school, Pioneer Regional
Service Agency as a school improvement consultant in Northeast Georgia, and he retired from public school work as an administrator at the elementary level.
He taught as adjunct professor at the college level for ten years while a public educator, then became a full-time Professor with the School of Education at
Piedmont College where he taught novice and veteran teachers from all around the state as they worked to complete undergraduate degrees as well as masters,
educational specialist, and doctoral degrees. He retired from Piedmont in 2020 with ten years of service.
He is married to Donna Dill-Shirley, a Mount Airy native. Donna is recently retired from the Hall County Schools. His two daughters, Marisa S.
Whittington (Stan) and Rachelle S. Woodruff (Ricky), are both teachers in the Habersham County. He and Donna have five grandchildren; Riya, Ryte, Maley,
Zeke, and Rennon.
Michael is a graduate Truett-McConnell College and Piedmont College. He earned a M.Ed. at the University of Georgia and a Ph.D. at Georgia State
University. More recently, he studied Theology at Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur.
His education background, paired with the funeral service career work, now come together in a unique opportunity to serve the community. His years
of experience in the funeral service field serves as a foundation for sharing knowledge with others and in helping families in this area in the practical issues
of making funeral arrangements, carrying out those plans according to their wishes.
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