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THE MADISON COUNTY (GA) JOURNAL THURSDAY. AUGUST 13. 2009 — PAGE 7A BOA ..cont’dfrom 1A District 1 commissioner Stanley Thomas nominated Hix to the BOA's longest initial term, saying Hix is involved in and knows the county, shows leadership skills and has a construction business. Hix’s term will expire Dec. 31, 2014. District 2 commissioner John Pethel nominated McCay, a farm er, coach and former high school teacher. Pethel said McCay is a lifelong resident of Madison County and has a vast knowledge of appraisals. McCay's term will expire Dec. 31, 2013. District 3 commissioner Mike Youngblood nominated Ellis, a Hull resident and real estate agent, as the final member of the new board, saying Ellis is a 10-year resident of the county and knowledgeable of land val ues. “She will be a great asset to the county,’’ he said. Her term will expire Dec. 31, 2012. The nominations followed the BOC’s official termination of four BOA members: David Ragland, Larry Stewart, Samantha Garland and Jim Escoe. Last week, Superior Court Judge John Bailey issued a rec ommendation strongly supporting the BOC’s original termination of the assessor board last April, say ing that “this court can hardly find that the BOC’s stated intention to remove these persons from the BOA is hasty of ill-advised.” Judge Bailey concluded that the BOC’s “starting fresh" is a “good and wise course of action.” Chairman Anthony Dove opened the meeting Thursday by saying he appreciated the judge’s recommendation, which he called both “complete and decisive.” The chairman added that he will seek advice from Athens Clarke County chief appraiser George Hanson on a “proper, efficient and functional relationship between the BOC and the BOA." He will also contact Jim Davis, who like Hanson, is a prominent member of the State of Georgia Assessors community, for input on the same matters. Dove acknowledged that “taxes are not a popular subject.” “In the end, it's a job that the BOC and BOA must come together to create an environment where taxes are assessed in a timely, fair and uniform way in order to best serve the citizens of Madison County,” said Dove. Commissioners rejected, by their silence, a written resignation by Stewart, who submitted his resignation to Dove at noon prior to the called meeting. Stewart took the podium at the end of the special called meeting, acknowledging that it might be a “moot point,” but adding that he wanted the audience to know that he had submitted his resignation, effective at noon that day. “I want to say one more time that I’ve done the best job I can do as a member of this board, but one person can do only so much," Stewart said. “I’ve tried to see that the taxpayers were treated fairly, but that’s not always been accomplished.” In a separate matter Thursday, District 5 commissioner Bruce Scogin asked the board to consid er paying attorney fees incurred by the former BOA legal com mittee, chairman Ragland and Stewart, when they met with attorney Lane Fitzpatrick in April to discuss his possible representa tion of the BOA. The bills total $515 and $585 respectively. The BOA later agreed to have attorney Rob Leverett represent them at the July 8 hearing before Judge Bailey. At what turned out to be their final meeting July 30, the BOA agreed to formally submit a request to the county to cover the bills from Fitzpatrick. County attorney Mike Pruett has already stated that the coun ty will not cover the bills. But Scogin said he was making the request for Fitzpatrick's bills to be paid anyway “so that we can totally dispense with this matter.” The BOC agreed to discuss the matter at its Aug. 31 agenda-set- ting meeting. Scogin also told his fellow board members that he hopes the board and the county can move forward without holding grudges. "I hope we can go on with our lives and be at peace with one another,” he said. Lifesaver .cont’dfrom 1A feel is very much needed, but has been drastically under-uti lized. In 2004, members heard about a program that used a tracking device to locate lost individuals. This system had been shown to be able to locate a person a mile away on the ground or several miles from the air with a 100 percent success rate. Intrigued, members under then club president Betty Sartain, sought more informa tion on the system, dubbed, “Project Lifesaver.” Pilot members felt they had found one answer to help avoid such a situation in their own community. They decided to invest in Project Lifesaver for Madison County, noting the many elderly and handicapped individuals who live in rural areas. They obtained a matching grant from Pilot Club International and club members partnered with the sheriff’s office to bring the project into fruition. Using funds from the match ing grant, the club purchased a tracking system and 10 transmit ters (small water-resistant wrist or ankle bracelets, with a bat tery and transmitter inside) and donated them to the Madison County Sheriff’s Office. Investigator Lt. Jimmy Patton volunteered to coordinate the search for any missing persons wearing one of the locator bracelets. But so far, Pilot members have been disappointed and puzzled in the community’s lack of response to the project. “We know there are folks out there who could benefit from this," Freeman said. But despite numerous efforts to get information out about Project Lifesaver, they have had only two clients to utilize the service. Lt. Patton gave a demonstra tion of the bracelet to several Pilot Club members at EMS Station One last week, showing them how the device is used when someone goes missing. And Patton said the device is not only good for the elderly, but can also be used for chil dren, such as those with autism. Pilot Club members agree. “Really anyone with any type of brain injury or illness could benefit from this," Freeman said. Freeman says start-up costs and/or embarrassment may be two factors inhibiting folks from utilizing the service. The start-up cost for the ser vice is $385 and may be cov ered by some insurance poli cies, with a doctor’s referral, members said. There is also a monthly ser vice and battery replacement fee of $25. Two Pilot members come out monthly to check the transmitter and replace the bat tery. But club members say any one with a need for this service should contact them for more information, regardless of their financial situation. Lt. Patton said when someone signs up for Project Lifesaver, he and a Pilot member volunteer go out and talk with the family and/or caregiver about the ser vice and obtain needed informa tion. A record is then kept at the 911 office at the sheriff’s office and Patton also keeps a record at his residence. Caregivers are shown how to check the battery each day. A receiver that can pick up signals from the device is kept at the sheriff’s office and at Patton’s residence. Besides being a tremendous resource that also provides piece of mind to the caregiver, Patton said Project Lifesaver also has been shown to significantly reduce cost in man hours when someone goes missing. "Where you can have 100 - 200 volunteers and paid county employees in a search situation, with this only one or two people may be required,” Patton said, adding that it also reduces the length and time of the search, increasing the chances of a good outcome. For more information on Project Lifesaver, call Joyce Fleeman at 706-789-2254, Linda Freeman at 706-335-3814, or Jackie Pierce at 706-795-2047. Feed mill ..cont’dfrom 1A decided to get like it used to be and the economy corrects — a lot of things,” Cochran said. The approximate 200-foot facility, visible from several miles, is the tallest structure in the county. It has 15,000 square feet of floor space. The Comer mill wasn't sup posed to open until Oct. 1, but construction went ahead of schedule. It’s all a matter of tying up the loose ends now on the $20 million facility, Cochran said. "All we’ve got to do is fin ish," he said. "It’s like building a house. You get to a point to where it doesn’t look like you've done anything after being there three weeks." Once operational, the Comer plant will employ 30 workers, including drivers. "All these positions will come from the present operation,” Cochran said. But jobs for locals could become available through attri tion and increased production, potentially. "No doubt," Cochran said. "Especially if we run the ton nage up.” Although nothing is officially in the works, Columbia hopes to host an open house before year’s end to show off the facility to community. "And kind of say, 'here it is boys; this is what it’s been all about,’’’ Cochran said. 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