The Commerce news. (Commerce, Ga.) 1???-current, November 02, 2016, Image 3

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The Commerce news., November 02, 2016, Image 3

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Newspaper Page TextWEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2016 THE COMMERCE NEWS • THE BANKS COUNTY NEWS PAGE 3A Election ••• Cont. from Page 1A Proposed Amendment 1 would create “opportunity school districts,” (OSD) that would allow the state to take over schools deemed to be underperforming. Currently, 127 schools in Georgia have achieved an “F” rank on the state’s accountabil ity system for three consecutive years, which makes them eligible for the state takeover. The amendment would allow up to 20 schools a year to be included, with a limit of 100 schools under OSD governance at any given time. If that happens, the governor will appoint a school “superintendent” who will report to the governor. That individual will be able to close or merge schools, hire and fire staff and determine tax rates—which opponents of the measure say removes all local control over schools. Schools would remain under OSD control for a mini mum of five years and a maximum of 10 years. Amendment 2 deals with new penalties for the sexual exploitation and levies taxes on adult entertainment to fund child victims’ services. Amendment 3 would reestablish the Judicial Qualifications Commission, and Amendment 4 would dedicate taxes on fireworks to fund trau ma care, fire services and public safety. Polling places on Nov. 8 North Minish: Commerce Parks and Recreation Department office, 204 Carson Street, Commerce South Minish: J. Nolan Spear Jr. Public Safety Complex, 1491 South Elm Street, Commerce Newtown: Nicholson Community Cen ter, 129 Lakeview Drive, Nicholson, Harrisburg: Harrisburg Fire Depart ment. 52 Thyatira Community Church Road, Jefferson Wilson: Maysville United Methodist Church, 8482 Maysville Road, Maysville Center: Center Baptist Church, 9368 Commerce Road, Athens Miller: Plainview Fire Department, 4346 Plainview Road, Maysville Randolph: Center United Methodist Church, 7641 Jackson Trail Road, Hoschton North Jefferson: Faith Baptist Church, 2081 U.S. Highway 129 N., Jeffer son, South Jefferson: Jefferson Civic Cen ter, 65 Kissam Street, Jefferson Hoschton: Hoschton Depot, 4272 Highway 53, Hoschton North Jefferson: Faith Baptist Church, 2081 U.S. Hwy. 129, Jefferson Cunningham: Pendergrass Depot, 22 Smith Bridges Road, Pendergrass Porter: Police and Municipal Court Building, 5040 Highway 53, Braselton Attica: South Jackson Fire Department #2,1136 Highway 330, Athens, Talmo: Talmo City Hall, 45 AJ Irvin Road, Talmo Redstone: The Church at Southside, 8144 Jefferson Road, Athens Brent Call ... Cont. from Page 1A food and hotel expenses the Calls will incur. Friends and other well-wishers can make a contribution at www.gofundme.com/brent- call. Call grew up in Charlotte, but moved to Commerce after he and Valerie married in 2005, attracted by its quaint downtown. They bought an old house and restored it to its orig inal condition. Call worked in a variety of capacities from construction to warehouse jobs to making deliveries. Now he’s in the process of trying to get on disability through Social Security thanks in part to the ravages of cancer and the treat ments to check it. “I’ve got one kidney working and it’s at 26 percent,” Call said, attributing that to the “che motherapy, the radiation, all the surgeries and the cancer” he’s experienced. Call says he is able to keep in good spirits, most of the time. “So far,” he noted. “It gets to me now and then. I’m pretty sure it’s got a positive outcome — I hope. I just don’t know how chemo and radiation will affect me long-term. There is a lot of hope in this.” LOST ... Cont. from Page 1A year SPLOST 5 collection,” Wood wrote. “SPLOST 5 collections will end on June 30, 2017. Overall, SPLOST 5 revenues are trending approximately 17 percent above budget.” The difference in the reported amounts of the two one-percent local sales tax (LOST and SPLOST) checks is because for LOST, Jackson County and each of its nine municipalities get individual checks from DOR, whereas with SPLOST, DOR remits the entire amount to the county which apportions it out to the municipal ities on a population-based formula. Since both taxes are one-percent sales taxes, SPLOST’s better performance relative to budget is likely related to more conservative expecta tions when Jackson County and its municipal ities drafted plans for SPLOST 5. In addition to LOST and SPLOST, the three school systems in Jackson County share in the proceeds of an education local option sales tax (ELOST) according to an enrollment-based formula. Delivering the grant funds Jackson EMC district manager Bill Sanders (far left) and Jackson EMC Foundation board member Phillippa Lewis-Moss (far right) present a $15,000 foundation grant check to (from left) Elachee Nature Science Center presi dent/CEO Andrea Timpone, director of education Peter Gordon and director of development Kim Marks that will provide students in Title 1 schools in Banks, Barrow, Clarke, Gwinnett, Hall, Jackson, Lumpkin and Madison coun ties with discounts for environmental science/nature field trips. Foundation awards S66.5K in grants The Jackson EMC Foundation board of direc tors awarded a total $66,500 in grants to organi zations during its September meeting, including $25,000 to agencies serving area residents. The grants include: • $15,000 to Elachee Nature Science Center in Gainesville to help offer discounts for students in Title 1 schools in Banks, Barrow, Clarke, Gwinnett, Hall, Jackson, Lumpkin and Madison counties to encourage environmental science/ nature field trips that provide students with STEM-based educational experiences which cannot be duplicated in the classroom. • $10,000 to the Rainbow Children’s Home, a Dahlonega shelter for abused and neglected girls, to help fund pregrams that go beyond the basics of food, clothing and shelter to provide services such as substance abuse treatment, independence and wellness training, and family reunification services. Jackson EMC Foundation grants are made possible by the more than 183,200 participating cooperative members who have their monthly electric bills rounded to the next dollar amount through the Operation Round Up program. Their “spare change” has funded 1,123 grants to organizations and 336 grants to individuals, putting nearly $11.4 million back into local com munities since the program began in 2005. Any individual or charitable organization in the 10 counties served by Jackson EMC (Clarke, Banks, Barrow, Franklin, Gwinnett, Hall, Jack- son, Lumpkin, Madison and Oglethorpe) may apply for a Foundation grant by completing an application, available online at http://www.jack- sonemc.com/foundationguidelines or at local Jackson EMC offices. Applicants do not need to be members of Jackson EMC. Presenting the Gold Medal of Valor Jim Shaw, president of the Jackson County Area Chamber of Commerce, presents the Gold Medal of Valor to Jackson County Sheriff’s Officer Tom Trudnak. Heroes ••• Cont. from Page 1A driver to put the gun down and continued to talk to the driver for the entire two hours.” Silver Medal Of Valor The Silver Medal of Valor was presented to Georgia State Patrol Trooper First Class Major Patterson with the Athens office of the state patrol, which serves Jack- son County. The Silver Medal of Valor recognizes acts of bravery involving great personal risk above and beyond the call of duty. Patterson was honored for his role in the same inci dent for which Trudenak was honored. In presenting the award, Valentine stated: “TFC Pat terson attempted to stop the vehicle. A pursuit ensued. When the subject refused to stop, TFC Patterson uti lized his training and ter minated the pursuit before the suspect was allowed to endanger any citizens. Even knowing the suspect had previously displayed violent behavior, TFC Patterson put himself in harm’s way to prevent the suspect’s escape.” Patterson approached the vehicle and saw the sus pect raise a handgun. He immediately communicat ed the threat to the Jackson County deputy. At gunpoint, commands were given for the suspect to put the weap on down. He refused and a standoff ensued. After several hours, the suspect surrendered and was taken into custody. “Through his actions, TFC Patterson was able to safely remove a violent criminal from the roadways of Georgia,” Valentine said. “This incident further docu ments TFC Patterson’s daily commitment to duty, his level of skill and his ability to perform under high stress situations.” Bronze Medal Of Valor The Bronze Medal of Valor was presented to Jef ferson police officer Tyler Grizzle for his role in rescu ing a wreck victim. The Bronze Medal of Valor recognizes acts of bravery involving unusual personal risk beyond expec tation while performing the usual responsibility. “On the morning of March 14, Officer Grizzle was dis patched to a motor vehi cle accident in Jefferson,” Valentine stated. “When he arrived, he noticed an overturned vehicle with an unconscious victim trapped inside. The victim was lying beneath the steering col umn and dashboard. The vehicle was teetering per ilously on its side. Officer Grizzle, putting his person al safety aside, entered the vehicle through a shattered window and provided com fort and first aid to the victim as others stabilized the vehi cle so it wouldn’t roll over and cause further injury. The fire department arrived and was able to extricate the victim from the vehicle, whereby he was transport ed to the hospital in critical condition. Due to Officer Grizzle putting himself in unusual personal risk, his quick response and profes sional initiative, the victim was able to recover from his critical injuries.” Medal Of Merit The Medal of Merit was presented for “dedication and initiative above and beyond the call of duty over a period of time that has affected and benefited the citizens and or community of Jackson County through personal time both on and off the job and or through a public safety community program.” The award was presented to firefighter Will Davis of the West Jackson Fire Department. Davis is a volunteer for the department who began by repairing the depart ment’s website last year, but who wanted to volunteer in a larger capacity. Due to health issues he could not be a firefighter at the time, however he started an auxiliary for the depart ment and started a fund raising campaign to better outfit the volunteers. Due to his efforts, the depart ment raised over $5,200 for equipment. Once that project was complete Davis assisted with the next program — the honor guard. He took the Introduction to Public Safety Honor Guard course taught by Georgia Public Safety Training Center, where he excelled. He started a fund raising campaign for the honor guard an effort that brought over $5,000 to the program and enabled the honor guard to purchase uniforms for the members, who all volunteer their ser vice for events. Will Davis provided over 2,136 hours of service between June 1, 2015, and Feb. 29 of this year, when he was medically cleared to pursue his firefighter training. He has since vol unteered an additional 975 hours. “Will’s dedication to the department and communi ty has provided an honor guard that has been used in parades, funerals, and civic events,” Valentine said in presenting the award. “The equipment purchased for the West Jackson volun teer staff has allowed three volunteers to have pagers to alert them to calls for service, and two volunteers received new turnout gear. Firefighter Will Davis’ initia tive, perseverance, and total dedication to duty reflect great credit upon himself in keeping with the highest tra ditions of the department, and the fire service.” Public Safety Professional Of The Year The Public Safety Pro fessional of the Year award went to Cindy O’Barr of the Jackson County Sher iff’s Office. The award goes to a public safety individ ual who has “performed with exceptional skill and expertise, also taking into account innovation in the workplace.” This individual sets an example for fellow employees, shows a high level of devotion and is exceptionally supportive to the department. O’Barr has over 22 years of experience in law enforcement. She came to the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office in December 2006. O’Barr was promoted to sergeant in the Special Operations Division. She also supervises the six school resource officers. O’Barr directs all com munity-related events at the sheriff’s office. This includes gun safety class es, church safety classes, Red Ribbon Week in the schools, active shooter classes, the CHAMPS Pro gram, the Christmas Toy Drive, Night of Lights, the Choices Program, all of the Neighborhood Watch pro grams and Explorers. “Sergeant O’Barr goes above and beyond what is required of her, puts in many hours after her regu lar work hours to coordinate all of these events,” Valen tine said in presenting the award. O’Barr is key to planning the two fundraisers the sher iff’s office has annually for the Georgia Sheriff’s Youth Homes, the annual golf tournament, and the annual Jeep ride. “Sergeant O’Barr puts in countless hours organizing all these programs for the citizens of Jackson County,” Valentine said. “She demon strates hard work, dedica tion to her job, and loyalty to not only the Jackson Coun ty Sheriff’s Office but to the citizens of Jackson County. Sergeant Cindy O’Barr tmly has a servant’s heart.” Nominees Nominations were open to all fire, police and EMS departments. The other nominees were: Lieutenant Mike Adams, Arcade Police Department; Officer Steven Folkers, Braselton Police Department; firefighter John Freeman, Commerce Fire Department; J.C. Crocker, Commerce Rescue; Cap tain Larry Stevens, Jackson County Dive Team; and Chief Joe Wirthman, Jeffer son Police Department. The deadline for submitting news or photographs to this newspaper is noon on the Monday prior to publition.