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PAGE 12A —THE MADISON COUNTY (GA) JOURNAL. THURSDAY. JULY 23. 2009 Madison Co. native honored by Governor Madison County native Diane Kilgore, Director of the Public Service and Business Outreach Center at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, has been chosen as this quar ter’s recipient of the 2009 Governor's Commendation for Excellence in Customer Service. Kilgore will be hon ored at a ceremony on July 23 in Atlanta. Kilgore, formerly of Hull, is the daughter of Hildred Parker Benton and a gradu ate of Madison County High School. She is married to Wayne Kilgore. They have two sons and daughters-in- : A Diane Kilgore law and five grandchildren. Their son, David, and his wife, Crystal, and their three children live in Ila. The Governor’s Commendation for Excellence in Customer Service was established in 2006. The award was designed to recognize employees who go “above and beyond’’ while serving customers and dem onstrating Georgia’s five cus tomer service commitments - courteous, helpful, acces sible, responsive, and knowl edgeable. “This is a significant honor which speaks highly of your accomplishments, the college, and our agency,” Deborah Scott, Customer Service Champion for the University System of Georgia, said to Kilgore. “Current winners were selected from a very competitive group of 240 nominees from 39 state agen cies.” Kilgore was nominated for the award for her exemplary service with the Governor’s Office of Customer Service Rapid Process Improvement Project for Financial Aid and Student Accounts. Kilgore and Dr. Chrystle Ross served as the campus leads on the project and worked in conjunction with ABAC, the Board of Regents, the Governor’s Office, and Georgia Tech to implement a new model for student ser vices at ABAC. Table talking after all these years By Susan Casey-Voytik theirishtwin@yahoo.com Last Saturday’s Comer Farmers’ Market began with jackets in July and ended with smiles of satisfaction for all under the red and white roof. Table-talk about surprises! A relaxed day of shopping gave way to quality time table-talk and armfuls of bargains for the steady stream of late-start market-goers. It was a day to remember with record-breaking temperatures, globetrotting products and a human inter est story weaving through the tables. Sold out items among the summer season harvest included okra. Japanese eggplant, blue berries. pink-eye purple-hull peas, rattlesnake pole beans, bell peppers, corn, collards (Plato's pick), cantaloupe and heirloom iris bulbs. New sell-outs were figs and cayenne and habanero peppers. Soaring sales of heirloom quality art were led by crowd pleasing Pysanky jewelry, hand- painted gourd birdhouses and diminishing ladies accessories by The Irish Twin. Useful items forged by skilled blacksmith Mark Davis of Wolf Creek Trading Company gained in popularity. His colonial meat fork and paper towel holder will take up permanent residency in our home. Prepared item sell-outs included fresh lemonade, lem on-blueberry walnut loaves, artisan bread, strawberry lattice coffeecake, apple butter, peach preserves and Triple Tang BBQ sauce. New to prepared items were strawberry, blueberry and sold-out fig preserves. Unbelievable! Leslie Chandler spreads her plum preserves across the globe, giving the CFM international fame. Traveling via Comer resident Phil Sanders, a case of the local treat will be enjoyed by U.S. troops stationed in Iraq. Who knows, it could be sweet enough to bring peace. Look, it’s a new vendor! Local favorite amazing Amy Abrahamsen, herbalist, mas sage therapist and Ila dairy goat farmer, took center stage with her healing hands and “never empty" therapeutic chair. Her holistic way of life has a “pied piper” effect on all who desire a better quality of living. Double take! Sharing the stage was a new musician —popu lar performer Sam DeRaimo who sang with his guitar and sold impressive original CD’s. Audience participation required little coaxing as most of the market recognized Sam’s music and eagerly sang along. Farmers' Feedback: The beat in the heart of table-talk was an incredible human interest story. Cut to the chase! On July 6th, I, Susan Casey-Voytik, received an email from a woman claim ing to be Sarah Louise Foust, the daughter I gave up for adoption 27 years ago. When Sarah was 2 and 1/2 years old, we lost con tact and with much effort des perately sought each other over the years. On July 11th, I imme diately left the CFM on a wing and a prayer making a beeline to the Atlanta airport for a long overdue reunion. After meeting her siblings, my son Donovan and daughter Veronica, Sarah asked about her father, who I hadn't seen in 23 years. By a miracle of God, we found him with ease ... and he was over joyed! We ended our visit by working together at the CFM among friends who supported me, shared my joy, and gave me airport directions. Thanks for all your help ... "and they lived hap pily ever after.” You may not always find something incredible, truly amazing or an unbelievable record-breaking experience, but your life could be changed at the Comer Farmers’ Market, where memories are made and friend ships are forged. See you there! Susan Casey-Voytik provides news from the Comer Fanners' Market. 61 st Annual Madison County Fair to light up Comer By Nancy Bridges Cooperative Extension Agent The pages of the calendar tell it’s not long until the gate opens for the Madison County Fair, a tradition in the beautiful town of Comer. The Lions Club members generously give their time and energy to make this fall hometown event which has taken place for the last 61 years to the delight of people from the Northeast Georgia area. Hundreds of exhibits and community fair booths will be entered in the fair this year. I spoke with David McFarland, Comer Lions Club Fair Committee, who tells me that the fair will take place Tuesday, Sept. 29, through Saturday, Oct. 3. Those interested in entering a craft, canned good, sewing, crochet, knitting, or artwork may obtain a copy of the 2009 rules at the Madison County Extension Office, 97 Sunset Drive, Danielsville. Fair check-in dates will be Friday, Sept. 25, from 2-5 p.m. or Sunday, Sept. 27, from 2-5 p.m. Exhibits must stay all week and are picked up at the end of the fair on Saturday, Oct. 3, from 9:30-10 p.m. only or on Sunday, Oct. 4, from 2-4 p.m. Adults and youth will be judged separately and premiums will be spon sored by the Lions Club. Categories include needlework of all types, sew ing clothing and other items, canning, fresh fruits and vegetables grown by the exhibitor, quilts, artwork including drawings, sketches, painting, photography, woodwork, ceramic, pottery, metal craft, baskets, floral arrangements and trash to treasure. Canned goods must be in sealed canning jars using USDA guidelines. There is also a honey and syrup category. For more information concerning the Individual Fair Exhibit competi tion, contact the Madison County Extension Service or Nancy Bridges at 706-795-2281. Senior Center menu, activities for July 27-31 The Eloise McCurley Senior Center has announced its lunch menu and planned activities for Monday, July 27, through Friday, July 31. Monday - Grilled Chicken Breast Marsala, herbed mashed potatoes, garden peas, wheat bread, peaches and low-fat milk. Fitness/movie and popcorn. Tuesday - Orange juice, chicken salad, three bean salad, tossed salad with dressing, wheat bread, graham crackers and low-fat milk. Fitness/birthday bingo/site council meeting. Wednesday - Breaded pork patty with homestyle onion gravy, cab bage and carrots, black-eyed peas, wheat bread, spiced cranberry apples and low-fat milk. Fitness/quilting/puzzles/games. Thursday - Hamburger patty with ketchup, mustard and sliced tomato, old-fashioned baked beans, cream- style com, hamburger bun, mixed fruit and low-fat milk. Fitness/cards/UGA tai chi chic and blood pressure checks. Friday - Sliced turkey with turkey gravy, mashed sweet potatoes, tur nip greens, combread, whole wheat bread, an orange and low-fat milk. Fitness/bingo. Athens Kidney Center is proud to announce the public opening of its 2 new state-of-the-art dialysis treatment centers! Commerce Kidney Center Madison Kidney Center 592 Ridgeway Road 1311 Atlanta Highway Commerce, GA Madison, GA under the medical directorship of BEZE ADOGU, MD, PhD, FACP KHUDR BURJAK, MD Harini Chittineni, ID Dr. Adogu was educated at University of Jos and Cambridge University, England. He graduated top of his class in medicine & surgery, as well as biochemistry and obstetrics/gynecology. A Cheve ning scholar, he was appointed Her Majesty’s scholar in medicine at Cambridge, and has published multiple research papers as well as a popular textbook of kidney diseases, “Pocket Nephrology”. His PhD thesis was on the mechanisms of diabetes mellitus. Post-graduate medical training continued at Brown University (Pharmacology), York Hospital (Medicine), Medical College of Georgia (Kidney Diseases & Transplantation) and Massachusetts General « Hospital (Transplantation). He is board-certified in Internal Medicine and j Nephrology/Hypertension, and was also elected FACP. being the first doctor l elected from Athens since 1953. Dr. Burjak was educated at American University of Beirut, with postgraduate medical training at Tulane University, LA. He has over 15 years of dialysis and research experience, having published in lupus disease amongst kidney patients (Kraner. Burjak et al. American J Kidney Diseases 1999) and is board-certified in Kidney Diseases & Hypertension. Dr. Chittineni was educated at Ghandi Medical College, with post-graduate training at Winthrop University Hospital, where she worked both as a nephrology research assistant and clinical instructor. She has completed important research into acute kidney failure (Chittineni et al. American J Nephrology, 2007) and is board-certified in Internal Medicine. Athens Kidney Center • 1440 North chase street, Athens • 706-227-2110 To Learn More About Your Kidneys, Visit www.athenskidneycenter.com