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Viewpoints Your Opinion It will be a challenge for the city to replace Hay Dear Editor: I would be remiss if I did not take the time to express the deep loss our community has recently experienced with the leaving of our City Manager, Marion Hay. I do not need to state all the many contributions he has made to our city, nor do I need to elaborate on his excellent educational background, experience and expertise in his chosen field of City Management. His true friends in the community and his true loyal colleagues can tell you if his devoted seventeen years helping guide our city to being of the best speaks on its own accord. On a personal note I would like to state, that Marion has been a long tune close childhood friend of my husband and someone I had the privilege of working with for five plus years. The City Manager we will miss is the person I would see give money out of his pocket to less fortunate city employees who needed money for food or medicine for their family with no more than “give me what you can next pay day”. He was someone who would loan money to keep a family’s utilities from being cut off during winter months when they would lose their gas heat. I witnessed his concern of our elderly citizens who physically were unable to place their trash toters at their curb. Marion made certain that their toter was always located and emptied each week. As with any people that work closely together you cannot help but know the personal problems that may occur in their life. While working with Marion, he suffered the loss of his mother who lived with his family and was a strong force in not only his life but his family’s also. During her long period of illness, Marion did not miss one day from his job until close to her passing away when she was hospitalized. Although, his moter was in a hospital dying, he still remembered my daughter’s first birthday. I arrived at my office on a Monday morning to find a wrapped gift from an Albany hospital gift shop that he had bought while being there with his mother. I could say much more, but I think many share my same sentiments about Marion. I have always prided our community as being a cut above all others and Marion helped make this possible. Now our community can only hope all of our elected officials will have this level of education, knowledge, experience and the hope of acquiring and matching his years of expertise in City Management The guidance and leadership he unselfishly gave our city for many years will certainly be a challenge. Good luck elected officials. Susan S. Strickland Reader supports discussion on consolidating law service Dear Editor, With the political climate being what it is now in Perry and Warner Robins, it would seem that this would be the most opportune time we’ve ever had to seriously discuss government consolidation in at least some areas, especially law enforcement The leaders of the communities within Houston County should seriously consider this. Pete Griffin *7&e TZfoudto* 0 7i*ne4rp4«nK<xt Ti/etcomed, 'Tfiuct AettenA *76e Sdit&i. 'Ptea&c rfcUOiew, tAem. To: Editor Houston Times-Joumal P.O. Drawer M Perry, Ga. 31069 Houston Times-Joumal P.O. Drawer M • 807 Carroll Street • Perry, Ga. 31069 Phone: (912) 987-1823 Member Georgia Press Association-National Newspaper Association -f ... !£****, O/U i* fVy to.tA*-9 g,AmA*aai Your right to read this newspaper is protected by the First Amendment ol the United States Constitution Our Goal The Houston Times-Journal is published proudly for the citizens of Houston and adjoining counties by Houston Publications Inc., Perry Ga. Our goal is to produce quality, profitable, community-oriented newspapers that you, our readers, are proud of. We will reach that goal through hard work, teamwork, loyalty, and a strong dedication towards printing the truth. Bob Tribble Daniel F. Evans Julie B. Evans Mitch Tribble President Vice-President Treasurer Secretary Our Staff Brlgette Loudermllk Editor and General Manager Eddie Byrd Advertising Director Newt: Brenda Thompson, Pauline Lewis Sports; Veto Roley Advertising Jimmy Simpson Composition: Stacey Shy Classified Advertising: Melanie Bullington Bookkeeping: Judy Hubert Circulation: Donnie Forehand Our Policies •Signed Letters to the editor welcomed. Please limit to 300 words and include address and phone number. •Liability for an error will not exceed the cost of space occupied by the error. •We cannot be responsible for return of pictures or material unless stamped return addressed envelope is included. The Houston Times-Journal (USPS 000471) is published semi-weekly for SIB.OO per year by Houston Publications, Inc.; 807 Carroll Street, Perry, Ga. 31069. Second Class Postage paid at Perry, Ga.,POSTMASTER: Send address changes to the Houston Times-Journal, P.O. Drawer M.PerryGa. 31069. ISSN:IO7S-1874 Reviewing President Clinton's welfare reform plan The central theme of President Bill Clinton’s long awaited plan to reform welfare is that welfare should offer only temporary assistance until an adult can find a job. Over 30 years ago when the late President Lyndon Johnson pushed his Great Society Program through Congress it carried with it a very similar theme. However, that has not been the case as we now have third generation recipients on the ever-growing welfare rolls. what we have gotten into over the past 30 years cannot be corrected overnight, as some Congressmen are saying, but the President’s plan is a start and he should be admired for placing it on the table. The Clinton plan will require young mothers to work, it will discourage teenagers from having babies, and it will force absentee - Perry Scrapbook The local police department took time to wish Police Chief B.E. Dennard "farewell" and pose for a picture In front of City Hall. Dennard retired from the city in 1987. STREET TALK: Last week, we asked six local residents what they thought about the much-publi cized O.J. Simpson case? Since that time, however, much more has happened and O.J. has been arrested and charged. In light of all the new developments, we de cided to ask the same basic question again ... do you think O.J. is guilty of what he is accused and do you think a fair trial is possible? \ | Jr ft * Fay Tripp “I don’t know that we have enough hard facts to make a decision, and, because of all' the media hype, I don’t think a fair trial is possible.” *f ,V , ,:'Pr • JMm Charles Lewis “According to the news and what I’ve been able to hear, I think he’s guilty of playing some part in the crime. And, yes, I think he can get a fair trial; to say otherwise is to question the integrity of the Ameri can people.” Houston times-Journal fathers to pay more of the cost of raising their children. And there is nothing wrong with either of the above. The plan emphasizes education and job training for young welfare mothers, and if they fail to find a job after two years of assistance, they will have to work at a community service job. Around 400,000 community service jobs would be created at the state and local levels, and those who get the jobs could hold them indefinitely, or until they found work in the private sector. Those who failed to show up for work would not be paid. The plan would be implemented slowly, beginning with recipients bom in 1972 or later, and by the year 2,000 about one third of the more than five million adults on welfare in that age bracket would be subject to the two years and out n KL> David Morgan "The jury will have a hard enough time deciding his guilt or innocence based on the evidence. The pub lic has no business trying to decide based on what they hear in the news.” Hr a Anthony Tabor "Even if he didn’t actually commit the murders, I think he had knowledge of it. Yes, a fair trial is possi ble; they can find 12 unbi ased people somewhere.” Page 4A Saturday, June 25,1994 “Houston Times-Joumal provisions of the plan. The number coming off welfare would grow as the population ages. The administration will continue to try and slow the growth of welfare by allowing states to refuse to pay benefits for additional children conceived by mothers already on welfare. Six states have already done this, including Georgia. The plan would punish welfare recipients who drop out of school or skip job training by taking away their assistance at escalating levels. On the other hand, those willing to work would be rewarded by having free child care while they were at work or in job training. After accepting a job, mothers would continue to get a year’s free day care for their children and continued medical coverage for the family. Under the plan absentee fathers w»dfsStka* "***'* »>. v a»r. fJmilwmSt jp £ aL'. \ ep / \ * / / Judy Hall "I think the man is guilty, but he’ll probably get off because he has so much money and influence. A fair trial will be hard to get. The press has been too involved and the public will know too much when they do go to trial.” ly, * -' v> v Mmir /It A ' Wanda Sullivan "I really don’t know if he’s innocent or guilty and I do think a fair trial is possi ble.” jA Bob \ rV lYibblel * 1 would have to shoulder more responsibility for the financial support of their children. They could lose their driver’s licenses if they failed to make child support payments ordered by a court. Clinton’s welfare reform plan certainly is not perfect, but like his health care plan, it has been put on the table for debate. Some will think it doesn’t go far enough, some will think it goes too far. Let’s hope the end result after all the debate and argument will be a much improved system over what we have today. tßrigette L Loudermilkl Will we ever hear the whole story? As I walked inside Perry City Hall Wednesday, everything was hum ming right along. It was "business as usual" as one staff member replied. The lights were out in Marion Hay’s office and the walls were cleared of his personal belongings. There did seem to be a hub of activity from Laura Smith’s desk (the mayor and city manager's secretary) and as I visited with our interim city manager, Janice Williams, she seemed to be handling everything in stride. You could tell, though, that each time she answered her phone, the first question asked concerned her new appointment to the leadership of Perry City Hall. (I must interject here and state, for the record, that I have all the confidence in the world in Janice Williams. If anyone can do Marion’s job, she can.) I don't think the change was a huge shock to most of us. Personally, I've received several calls over the past few weeks con cerning closed meetings being held by Perry City Council. Mostly cit izens wanted to know why Marion Hay was being fired, why the coun cil was meeting in "secret" and gen erally, what was going on. What I've been told, you've read. Hay hasn't been fired, only reas signed as a consultant, per his re quest. Our city leaders haven't ac cepted any of the responsibility for this recent turn of events. There is one aspect I do think sur prised many, myself included-the suddenness of it all. By Monday, media representa tives, besides myself, were calling on our mayor and Hay with a bom bardment of questions. According to Worrall, some of the questions centered around some wild accusations of wrongdoing on Hay's part, and he has quickly responded that the accusations are totally ridiculous, a "bald faced lie" were his actual words. Then it happened. Two citizens and four members of the press showed up for the regular city council meeting to find out if the rumor that Hay was vacating his city manager's position was true. Well, it was. Councilman James Moore read a brief pre-written mo tion which was unanimously ac cepted by the full council, and that was it. It took all of a minute and a half. The appointment of Williams didn't even take that long. There's still a nagging question " Why?" No one seems to want to discuss the situation that has led our city government to this point. Why, after 17 years, did Hay de cide it was time to "move on"? Why did he feel so compelled to hand over the leadership of several uncompleted projects he's worked so hard on, such as the community center at Rozar Park, the bypass and others? Why do our elected city officials feel that Hay's "reassignment" from city manager to a consultant is "at this time...in the best interest of Please see EDITOR, page 5A