Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

THE MADISON COUNTY (GA1 JOURNAL. THURSDAY. APRIL 2, 2009 — PAGE 3A A teacher with stories to tell Alone Among the Living, University of Georgia Press published 1994, The MCHS’s Richard Hoard penned memoir of father’s 1961 murder By Ben Munro ben@mainstreetnews.com ichard Hoard gets right to the point. “When I was 20 I came face-to-face with the old man convicted of paying $5,000 for the murder of my father.” Those are the transfixing first words of the Madison County High School teacher's 1994 non-fiction work, “Alone Among the Living,” a mem oir telling Hoard’s adolescent viewpoint of the 1967 car bombing that killed his father, Floyd, the solicitor general of the Piedmont Judicial District. Hoard, now 56, is in his first year teaching English at MCHS, following stints at other area high schools over the years and even two col leges. Hoard published a well- received second book after “Alone Among the Living” and is shopping around a third, but the story of his father's death remains his most challenging work, for obvious reasons. “It was painful to write,” said Hoard, who's in his first year at MCHS. “So I would get overwhelmed by it at times and leave it alone.” Hoard was only a 14-year- old Jefferson High School stu dent when a notorious bootleg ger arranged for the wiring of dynamite to the engine of his father's car, a killing done in retaliation for Floyd Hoard's dogged pursuit of those pro ducing non tax-paid alcohol in Jackson County. Richard Hoard began putting down those painful memories of his father's death - and those of growing up in Jefferson in general — on paper as part of a college writing assignment in the early 1970s. Hoard kept those composi- Richard Hoard tions, added to them and fash ioned them into a book as the years passed. “Alone Among the Living's” publication in 1994 culminated two decades worth of writ ing for Hoard. He talks of the catharsis that followed upon finally seeing those words in print, likening publication to something purged from the body. “That was in me,” Hoard said. “I'm glad that’s out of me and up on the shelf now. I don’t have to hold onto or see things like that anymore.” Hoard has since stuck to seri ous subject matter. He followed “Alone Among the Living” with the award winning “The Race Before Us” in 2005, a fictional look at racial tensions in 1962 inspired by attitudes Hoard observed in his youth. The working title for his yet- to-be-published third book is “Rainfall on the Righteous,” a story of a 31-year-old min isterial student whose fear of death is so marked that the denominational authorities won’t ordain him. Though fiction, the story is rooted in very real experi ences. As a ministerial student himself years ago, Hoard was assigned to the pediatric floor of a research hospital where he dealt with 36 deaths in one semester. The book is a departure from what’s out there. Hoard says, but he's trying to convince pub lishers to take a chance on it. “You feel like you’ve got a good story, but it's not like other stories,” he said. Whether or not his third book is published, Richard Hoard remains a busy and well- rounded man. Away from MCHS, he pas tors at Oconee River Methodist Church in Watkinsville. He’s also enjoyed a sportscasting career and occasionally enter tains crowds with his celebrity impersonations (offering up an impromptu Walter Brennan as evidence). Hoard even boasts a brief film resume — seven seconds to be exact—portraying a U.S. president in the 1994 historical baseball picture, “Cobb.” “My mama was right,” Hoard said. “She told me when I was a kid, I could grow up to be president. And I was. I was president Calvin Coolidge - for seven seconds.” BACK IN THE CLASSROOM Hoard, who returned to teach ing in August, calls the class room a source of inspiration. “When you go through those periods of times when you're lethargic and not being very creative, it jump-starts you,” said Hoard, who taught MCHS principal Tommy Craft at Jefferson High School. “It brings you back to life to be in that type of environment.” Some of Hoard’s students occasionally ran across his books. “They have,” he said. “They know about it. I don’t talk about it a whole lot.” FIFTEEN YEARS LATER Fifteen years have passed since the first printing of “Alone Among the Living,” but Hoard's first book still gener ates interest today. “Alone” has gone through four printings and the UGA press released a second edition just two years ago. Hoard is proud that its legacy persists. “There have been enough who have expressed that they’ve been touched by it, or entertained by it, or moved by it, that it’s a rewarding thing,” Hoard said. Madison County’s unemployment rate up, but remains below state average Madison County's unemployment rate rose to 8.4 percent for February, up from 7.6 in January. However, the rate remains below the state average of 9.6 percent, which is up 4.5 percentage points over last year’s figure. “The latest local unemployment rates reflect the severity of the on-going recession in Georgia,” said State Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond. “In 87 of our state's 159 counties, double-digit unemploy ment is a sobering reality. A rising tide of joblessness is spreading across our state.” The Georgia Department of Labor announced its preliminary February unemployment figures last week, showing 1,377 people unemployed in Madison County, up from 1,250 in January. Unemployment rates in surrounding counties were: Hart, 13.8 percent; Elbert, 13.2; Franklin, 11.4; Jackson, 10.3; Oglethorpe, 8.3; Banks, 7.4 and Clarke, 7.2. The Georgia counties with the highest unemploy ment rates are Jenkins at 21.3 percent, Hancock at 19.1 percent, and Warren at 16.8 percent. The counties with the lowest rates are Oconee at 6.0 percent, Lee and Long at 6.7 percent. Georgia’s unemployment rate remained above the national rate of 8.1 percent for the 16th consecutive month. At present, 445,498 unemployed Georgians are look ing for work, an increase of 69.2 percent over the year. Of that number, 159,359, or 35.8 percent, are receiving unemployment insurance benefits. Georgia labor market data are available at www.dol. state.ga.us. Census workers to start data collection next week By Kerri Testement kem@mainstreetnews.com The first step for the 2010 Census begins next week — when workers start collecting address information. The Census Bureau will update more than 145 million addresses across the nation in preparation of the 2010 Census. In Northeast Georgia, about 1,000 in-field and office Census workers based from an office in Gainesville are preparing to collect address information. “Our goal is to identify every place where people live or could live.” said Carol Zaremba, local Census office manager for a region that includes 31 Northeast Georgia counties. That means getting the address information for every house, apartment, mobile home and shelter in the coun try. The process starts Monday, April 6. and is expected to continue through mid-June or late-July, she added. Collecting those addresses is the first step before send ing a census questionnaire in March 2010. “We want to make sure that our address list is as accu rate as possible, so that when we actually take the census in 2010, that we are able to count every single resident of every single county,” Zaremba said. For more information, visit www.census.gov. CASH CALL AND COMPARE PER GRAM 706-369-0000 ■n);l ww 1 GREG REEVES Fine Jewelry 613 Hawthorne Ave. • Athens CALL FOR A FREE QUOTE I HE CALLAWAY -AGENCY Insurance Services Auto • Home • Life • Business 122 Courthouse Square Danielsvllle, GA 30633 (706)795-3700 thecallawayagency@windstream.net Kerry Callaway "A Family Restaurant" 1990 Main St. Comer 706-783-5145 C °mc check XLG Cheese S8.99 All You Can Eat Pizza and Salad $4.99 Lunch & Dinner out our NEtyui Mention this ad! MADISON COUNTY INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT AND BUILDING AUTHORITY NOTICE OF REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL NUMBER: 09002SGM PROPOSAL DUE DATE: April 29, 2009, at 2:00 P.M. PROPOSAL SUBMITTAL LOCATION: Carter Engineering Consultants, Inc. 1551 Jennings Mill Road Building 500, Suite B Bogart, GA 30622 Phone: 706-559-7430 MATERIAL OR SERVICE: Construction services related to the installation of a siphon system and plunge pool at Seagraves Mill Dam located in Madison County, Georgia. CONTACT: Pamela Lindsey, Administrative Assistant (706) 559-7430 Pamela@carterengineering.net Interested offerors may obtain a copy of the complete solicitation by calling (706) 559-7430. Due to the printing and reproduction costs, the bid package can be emailed for a cost of $100 or hard copies mailed or picked up for a cost of $200. Competitive sealed bids for the specified service shall be received by Carter Engineering at the address above. Proposals must be in the actual possession of Carter Engineering at the location indicated, on or prior to the exact time and date indicated above. Late proposals shall not be considered. Proposals must be submitted in a sealed envelope. The Request for Proposal number and the offeror's name and address should be clearly indicated on the outside of the envelope. Questions must be addressed to the contact person listed above. The Madison County Industrial Development and Building Authority reserves the right to reject any and all bids for consideration. Red Goo$ e 4 Gift Shop 4> * * SUPER SPRING SALE March 2^ - April 11 A new country gift shop 8T ? featuring: home decor and rifts made from scratch Stop hy and meet new owner Teresa Kesterson COMING SOON! • Balloon Bouquets • Educational Learning Toys •Stampin Up Custom Cards • Dillard House Jams & Sauces Open Daily 11 a.m. - 6 p.m. Closed Sunday & Wednesday Two doors from red light across from Colbert post office 706-788-7870 We Specialize In CUSTOM BUILT Pallets • Crates • Skids Heat treated for International Shipping also available! New and Used Metal fabricated to your specifications! NEW KILN DRIED LUMBER SALE 2” X A 2” 1 X 6” 2” X 8" 4’ 75 8’ 2.40 8’ 3.50 8' 1.67 10’ 3.00 10’ 6.50 10' 2.22 12’ 4.00 12’ 7.50 12' 2.67 14’ 5.00 14’ 8.50 14’ 3.15 16’ 6.00 16’ 9.50 16’ 3.57 6’ FENCE BIDS... .75 1X4X8’ .1.50 EA. 1 X 6 X 8 .2.00 EA. Bale Hay 6.00 Metal Barrels.. 10.00 Roll Hay 30.00 Pallet Jack 125.00 Sawdust ...25.00 ton Liquid Nail 1.00 Shavings ...50.00 ton Paint 5.00 Crossties 8.00 4" Pipe 4.00 ft. Plastic Pallets.... 3.00 6" Pipe 7.00 ft. 1/2" Plvwood 7.00 3/8" Plywood.. 5.00 8’ Treated Landscape Timber. 3.00 16" Roller Convever 700 ft. 24" Roller Convevor.... 10.00 ft. Want to buy pulpwood, surplus metals, surplus lumber, pallet racking, shelving, plastic drums, pine straw, crossties, and 48” x 40" pallets. Dixieland Pallet Co. Dixieland Equipment Sales 3887 Athens Hwy. • Talmo, GA 770-535-2515