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MAY 4, 2023
Madison County Journal
Merged with The Comer News and The Danielsville Monitor, 2006
MadisonJoumaITODAY.com
Vol. 40 No. 13 • Publication No. 1074-987 • Danielsville, Madison County, Georgia 30633 • A Publication of MainStreet Newspapers Inc. • 16 Pages, 2 Sections Plus Supplements
$1.00
INSIDE
Thurston
takes role
with Madison
Co. Chamber
— Page 8B
TRAFFIC FATALITY
MCHS mourns the
passing of Willis
By Zach Mitcham
zach @ mainstreetnews .com
Students at Madison Coun
ty High School are mourning
the loss of one of their own.
Kveon M. Willis, 16,
Royston, a freshman at
MCHS, died Sunday, April
30 in a single-vehicle acci
dent at approximately 6:15
p.m. on Hwy. 187 South near
Murphy Road in Anderson,
South Carolina.
Madison County High
School Principal Johnathan
Harris, who knew Willis
when he served as assistant
principal at Franklin County
Middle School, said “K’veon
was a wonderful young man
with so much life about him."
‘The only thing bigger
KVEON WILLIS
than his smile was his per
sonality," said Harris. “He
had a personality that people
were drawn to no matter the
situation or place. Whether
he knew you for a day or for
See ‘Willis’ on 2A
INDUSTRIAL AUTHORITY
IDA discusses plans for
business park off Hwy. 72
By Zach Mitcham
zach @ mainstreetnews.com
County industrial authority members would like to see a
business park on approximately 30 acres of county-owned
property at Mill Creek Drive off Hwy. 72 in Hull near a
county water tower.
The group once again discussed the tract of land April
26, noting the interest from two businesses in purchasing
the same parcel of land at the property.
Verizon has requested a piece of 100’ by 100’ property
See ‘IDA’ on 3A
MCHS Prom King and Queen
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Seniors Sara Beth Kirkland and Cole Hillsman enjoy a dance after being crowned Madison Coirnty High
School’s 2023 Prom Queen and King Saturday night at Rustic Oak Farm in Oglethorpe County. See a gallery
at MadisonJoumalTODAY.com and more photos on Page IB. Photo by Zach Mitcham
AG LAND
The minimum splits
BOC zoning votes highlight issues in fight to remain rural
By Alison Smith
Do individual plans for property
supersede the county’s overall plan
to stay rural? This is the overarch
ing discord as the Madison County
Board of Commissioners heard sev
eral amendments to the rezoning
ordinances on Monday.
Increasing minimum parcel size
in the agricultural area of the county
from two acres to four acres brought
emotional opposition that ranged
from shouting, warning, to crying.
However, the measure had been rec
ommended by the Madison County
Planning and Zoning Board by a 5-1
vote. Chairman Conolus Scott was
not present to vote on the matter and
spoke against it at the Commission
meeting. No citizen spoke at the
Planning and Zoning in opposition or
County commissioners voted
Monday to increase the minimum
lot size in AR (agriculture-resi
dential) zones from two to four
acres.
approval of the amendment.
Also speaking out against the
change was an angry Michelle
Thomas.
“[It is] absolutely ridiculous for
people to own land, their own private
land, in this county and for you guys
to decide they need to have this many
acres for what they do with their
property,” she stated.
“Why do people in the rural areas
have to have...now almost four
acres,” she continued as she com
pared other more dense areas of
the county with the rural require
ments and the maintenance and taxes
required for more property.
“Last time I checked you’re sup
posed to work for us,” said Thomas,
continuing with a promise to “per
sonally help whoever runs” against
board members who vote in favor of
the change.
While the tone of Thomas’ remarks
See ‘BOC’ on 2A
RECOGNITION AND REMEMBRANCE
Echols’ legacy lives on
Library garden dedicated to late librarian, historian
Laura Carter, who is retired from the Athens Region
al Library System, gets a hug from Valerie Bell,
ARLS Executive Director, next to the Jennie Ruth
Echols Memorial Garden at the Madison County
Library following Sunday’s ceremony.
Index:
News — 1-3A
Opinions — 4-6A
Church — 7 A
Social — 7A, 3B, 8B
Crime — 8A
Features — 1B
Sports — 2B
Obituaries — 4-5B
Classifieds — 6B
Legals — 7B
Contact:
Phone: 706-367-5233
Web: MadisonJournal
TODAY.com
News submissions:
zach@
mainstreetnews.com
8 ■■0 4879 14144* o
By Zach Mitcham
zach @ mainstreetnews.com
The pretty, green scenery
next to the county library is
a reminder of how a Madi
son County woman helped
the county landmark grow
and flourish.
The Jennie Ruth Echols
Memorial Garden was
dedicated on a sunny and
breezy Sunday afternoon to
the memory of the longtime
librarian and historian who
helped transform the library
from a spare room in the
American Legion Building
to the multiservice commu
nity hub that the facility is
today.
Echols, who passed away
in 2021, was a librarian for
33 years and an avid reader,
historian and genealogist.
“We all have our own
memories of Jennie Ruth,"
said local attorney and
longtime library supporter
Victor Johnson. “Now, we
all have this lovely memori
al garden to remind us each
of Jennie Ruth and what
she did for us and for the
library."
The garden, designed
by Melissa Tufts, was the
backdrop for the Sunday
service, which included
words from retired Mag
istrate Judge Harry Rice,
who welcomed the crowd
of about 70 to the event.
Laura Carter, who worked
with Mrs. Echols as part of
the regional library system,
spoke of how the library
in many small towns has
served as the most accessi
ble gateway to the outside
world. Carter said Echols
“loved the library and
worked hard to make sure
it grew so it could better
serve the people of Madi
son County.”
“She made a difference,”
said Carter. “She loved her
family. She loved Madison
County and she loved the
library.”
Carter also spoke of
Echols’s “knowledge and
passion for history.”
“She loved Madison
County and had a pro
nounced sense of place,”
said Carter. “She cared
about the people of Mad-
See ‘Echols’ on 2A
POVERTY SIMULATION
Melanie Berryman takes “utility” payments from
those participating in a poverty simulation event at
Colbert Baptist Church last week.
Stretching
the dollars
Event puts participants through
a ‘month’ of financial hardship
By Zach Mitcham
zach@ mainstreetnews.com
Felicia is 34. She’s unem
ployed and her husband just
left her. She has a total of
$10. Her son, Franco, 17, has
dropped out of school and
has gotten a teen pregnant.
Her daughter, Francisca, 14,
is poorly motivated in school.
Rent is due. So are the
gas, electric and phone bills.
Everyone in the house is hun
gry-
The Fuentes family is fic
tional, but their plight became
"reality” for a group of three,
who took on the identities and
the circumstances of the fam
ily for the three-hour "poverty
simulation” event at Colbert
See ‘Simulation’ on 2A