Donald M. Smith, Sr., age 78, of Mt. Airy, passed away on Friday, March 1, 2024.
Born on June 6, 1945, in Lebanon, Tennessee, he was a son of the late Melvin Smith and Pearl W. Smith. Mr. Smith served his country in the United States Navy and retired from Cargill. He enjoyed being a Boy Scout in his younger years, woodworking, and watching NASCAR.
In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his son, David Joseph Smith and sister, Dorothy Smith.
Survivors include his loving wife of 57 ½ years, Patricia Smith of Mt. Airy; son, Donald M. Smith, Jr. of Mt. Airy; grandchildren, Kendal Smith of Gainesville and Devin Straub of Tacoma, Washington; sisters and brother-in-law, Helen Gannon of Lebanon, Tennessee and Peggy Walters (Dale) of Dade City, Florida; and numerous nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.
The family will receive friends from 4-7 pm on Thursday, March 7, 2024, at McGahee-Griffin & Stewart Funeral Home.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Circle of Hope, P.O. Box 833, Cornelia, Georgia 30531, to Hospice of Northeast Georgia Medical Center, 2150 Limestone Parkway, Suite 222, Gainesville, Georgia 30501, or to a Boy Scout Troop of your choice.
Historic Hardman Farm in Sautee Nacoochee Valley. (Hardman Farm State Historic Site)
The time has come for the cows to come home at Hardman Farm, the 173-acre farm in historic Sautee Nacoochee, just south of Helen, Georgia. Most people know the farm by the iconic gazebo-topped Indian mound and cow pasture.
Hardman Farm is closed in January and February to do restoration and maintenance projects at the farm and to plan for the upcoming season. Around late November each year, the herd is moved.
Spring and cows
“Their presence is missed when the herd leaves in late November each year, and the pasture seems so empty throughout the winter,” Sarah Summers, Assistant Manager of Hardman Farm talked about the significance of the cows returning.
Hayrides are a favorite at the event each year. (Hardman Farm State Historic Site/Facebook)
“We at Hardman Farm and the Valley community look forward to the arrival of a new herd in late February and feel that the cows’ arrival is a sign that Spring has sprung.” Summers comes from a long line of family to live in Sautee Nacoochee Valley. She is an 8th-generation resident of the area.
In celebration of the cows’ homecoming and the Farm’s reopening for the season, Hardman Farms hosts a special event, “Cows Come Home Celebration.” This year, it will be on Saturday, March 2, from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. This year will be the third year for this event.
“We decided we should hold an event to celebrate the return of the cows to the Valley and our grand reopening, and thus the ‘Cows Come Home Celebration’ was born,” Summers explained.
Dairy barn and creamery
The day is filled with activities centering around the dairy that has operated at Hardman Farms since the early 1900s. Events will include tours of Hardman Farm’s 100+ year-old dairy barn and creamery, butter-making demonstrations, and cooking demos on the wood stove in the historic Hardman Farm kitchen.
Mr. Bob Minish, Hardman Farm’s caretaker, inside the dairy barn. (Hardman Farm State Historic Site)
Local musicians will provide live music throughout the day, and local artists and crafters will have goods for sale, including handmade soaps, wooden jewelry, garden art, barn quilts, baked goods, stained glass, and more.
Visitors can grab lunch from a local food truck, Mutt & Jeff’s Smokehouse BBQ, or a snack from Old Fashioned Fun Food. Young (and young at heart) attendees can enjoy a puppet show featuring “Daisy Mae & the Holstein Sisters,” depicting the history of the farm. There is also a hayride, farm animals, and old-fashioned games such as corn hole on the lawn.
So much to do
The Hardman Farm mansion welcomes visitors to peruse the main floor. Reenactors depicting Gov. and Mrs. Hardman answer questions and share the historical significance of the farm.
Reenactors depicting Gov. and Mrs. Hardman (Hardman Farm State Historic Site/Facebook)
“We’ve got some very knowledgeable reenactors who will portray Dr. & Mrs. Hardman and Mr. Minish, the farm’s caretaker, in the mansion,” Summers added.
“Guests feel almost like they get to ‘meet’ these personalities from the past—it is living history.”
In addition, guests can take a tour of the 100+-year-old dairy barn and see the innovative methods Dr. Hardman used in the dairy operation and even take a short hike with one of the docents down to the old creamery.
The barn and creamery are open daily, but this is the one time during the year when tours of the barn are given, which is a highlight for guests to see how truly impressive the operation is.
“There is a lot to do during the festival, so folks should plan to spend at least a couple of hours at the event,” Summers described. “Old Fashioned Fun Food will also be here with fresh squeezed lemonade, funnel cakes, and boiled peanuts—so come hungry! More than 25 local artists and crafters will be selling their wares throughout the day.”
25 local artists and crafters will be selling their wares throughout the day (Hardman Farm State Historic Site/Facebook)
Parking will be in the main lot accessed off of Highway 17.
Admission to the festivities is $8 per person (children 5 and under, free).
For more information, contact the Hardman Farm Visitors Center at 706-878-1077, email [email protected], or visit Hardman Farm online.
Representatives of agencies that received funding this year from the United Way of White County, include, from left, back row: Suzanne Dow, Jerry Brackett, Marc Turner, Rachel Martin, Nyck Crumbley, Chris Pearce, Gene White. Front row: Tami Terrall, April Rooks, Amanda Lammers, Nanette Baughman, Della Lago. (Dean Dyer/wrwh.com)
The United Way of White County has awarded funding totaling $90,000 to 16 not-for-profit agencies providing vital human services to the local community. Four of the organizations received funding for the first time: Amped Kids, Creative Enterprises, I See U Ministries, and White County Family Connections.
Combined, the 16 organizations served 15,868 residents of White County in 2023.
United Way held an allocation ceremony Thursday at the Roy Ash, Jr. Community Room in Cleveland.
April Rooks, Founder of Amped Kids, said the money they received will help children in White County.
“We are immensely grateful for the support of United Way of White County in supporting our music programs in therapeutics that will help transform the lives of foster, adopted, and at-risk youth. Our goal and mission is to provide an avenue of healing for these children, which happens through our programs as well as the connection in the community and mentorship to create a better future and empower and amplify the future of the children we serve,” said Rooks.
Lauren Williams, President of United Way of White County, said a big push was made last year to get more people to contribute where they work.
“Payroll deductions have grown significantly this year, but we would like to see growth in that area,” Williams said.
Darrel Chaney speaks at the United Way allocation meeting about the upcoming celebrity golf tournament. (wrwh.com)
Employees interested in contributing to United Way through payroll deductions should check with their employers about how to get started.
United Way’s largest fundraising event is the annual Darrel Chaney Invitational Celebrity Golf Tournament. Chaney attended the allocation meeting to provide an update on the tournament, which will be held on April 15 and 16 in Helen.
Williams said the United Way Board has committed to raising $100,000 in 2024 to provide even more assistance to local organizations.
Agencies that received funding this year are Amped Kids, Catalyst Christian Learning Center, Circle of Hope, Community Helping Hands Clinic, Creative Enterprises, Enota CASA, Family Promise of White County, Habersham Homeless Ministries, I See U Ministries, Rape Response, South Enota Child Advocacy Center, White County Backpack Buddies, White County Caring & Sharing, White County Family Connections, White County Food Pantry, and White County 4H.
Thursday was Crossover Day in the Georgia Legislature, the deadline for bills to easily pass from either the House or the Senate, and culture war partisans had a few reasons to celebrate or mourn, depending on one’s point of view.
After years of trying, the Senate passed the Georgia Religious Freedom Restoration Act, or RFRA, a longtime dream of conservative politicians and activists.
Conservative politicians and activists also made one of their newer dreams come true with the passage of a bill cutting ties with the American Library Association, a library support and accrediting body some Republicans say has become too progressive.
Other culture war issues did not make the cut, including bills aimed at school bathroom and library use.
Religious Freedom
Eight years after then-Gov. Nathan Deal vetoed a controversial religious freedom bill, a different bill with the same aim passed the state Senate.
Acworth Republican Sen. Ed Setzler’s Senate Bill 180 states that the government may “substantially burden a person’s exercise of religion” only if it does so “in furtherance of a compelling governmental interest” and “the least restrictive means of furthering such compelling governmental interest.”
Setzler gave examples, including a Muslim woman in Florida who could not remove her facial covering to be photographed for a driver’s license. Setzler said Florida’s religious freedom law allowed her to be photographed in a private room by a woman.
“It largely helps people in minority religious space, but it doesn’t provide everybody of course, to make sure the government has to prove a compelling reason, and in accomplishing the compelling reason, they do that in the least restrictive means possible. The decency, the human decency, of allowing the Muslim woman, who piously believes she needs to wear a full face guard in public, allowing her to have her photo for her driver’s license made in a private room by a female photographer.”
Decency wasn’t the word on Stone Mountain Democratic Sen. Kim Jackson’s mind. Jackson, the state’s first and only openly LGBTQ+ senator, called the bill a “permission slip” to discriminate against families like hers.
Sen. Kim Jackson. (Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder)
“This is my reality and my fear,” she said. “My fear that my child’s daycare can turn us away. That a hotel can refuse me entry. That we can be denied access to any number of services that every other Georgian has rights to. The gas station that refuses service, the restaurant that won’t seat us, the physician who denies care for my child, all because they have a religious objection toward me and my family. Across the country, RFRAs have already opened the door for discrimination in public health, child welfare and adoptions, marriage-related services, employment, and public accommodations.”
Deal’s veto of the previous religious freedom legislation came amid pressure from major Georgia-based businesses that said the legislation could make it harder to attract workers to the state.
The Georgia Chamber of Commerce and Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce released a joint statement opposing Senate Bill 180.
“For decades, Georgia has benefited from a positive working relationship between the business community and our elected leaders to promote our state as a center for global commerce. Georgia’s stable governance attracts industry and has served our citizens well, and we oppose any efforts, including SB 180, that would undermine the state’s strong reputation we have built together,” the business group’s statement said.
Cole Muzio, president of the influential conservative lobbying group Frontline Policy Action, celebrated the bill’s passage.
“Passage of RFRA by the state Senate brings us one step closer toward restoring our nation’s founding right,” he said in an email to supporters. “The balancing test provided in SB 180 is fair, right, consistent with federal law and in accordance with what Gov. Kemp campaigned on.”
If Gov. Brian Kemp is to sign or veto the bill, it will first need to pass the state House. It will have until the legislative session is set to gavel out on March 28 to do so.
Libraries
A watered-down version of a bill pulling Georgia out from the American Library Association made it through the Senate. Author Sen. Larry Walker, a Perry Republican, said he got clued in on the ALA after his local library used an ALA grant to buy books about diversity and LGBTQ+ issues, some of which he said were in the children’s section.
He said he went on to find out the current ALA president described herself in a tweet as a Marxist lesbian.
“Prior to taking on this issue, I put libraries in the same category as mom and apple pie, and I was shocked to find that the havens for learning that I envisioned where children’s imaginations could run free and unhindered to find inspiration for their future and the legacy of knowledge accumulated by civil society could become a political battleground for a radical agenda pushed down by this Chicago organization, the American Library Association.”
Sen. Larry Walker. (Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder)
The ALA accredits the schools that train librarians, and Walker said under his bill Georgia universities must pay for that accreditation with private funds rather than state money. Libraries in the state cannot use private funds or state money to become members of the ALA.
Atlanta Democratic Sen. Elena Parent characterized the bill as a political ploy and referenced data showing Georgia near the bottom of the rankings for child literacy by state.
“I really, colleagues, do find it deeply ironic, in a state where two-thirds of kids cannot read on grade level, that we have so many more bills addressing what children should or should not be able to read, instead of focusing on the actual five-alarm fire problem, the problem that many of them cannot read well, if at all. That is the problem that we should be discussing today. That is the money we should be discussing putting into our budget.”
Ahead of their time
Several bills hoped for or dreaded by culture warriors failed to make it to the all-important deadline.
Bills ending sex education for elementary schoolers, making school librarians liable for distributing materials deemed harmful to minors, and restricting transgender students to the bathroom matching the gender listed on their birth certificates did not move forward.
But fans of culture clashes should not grieve or celebrate just yet. Crossover day marks the end of a bill’s ability to pass the smoothest way, but “dead” bills can find new life if grafted to other legislation, sometimes in surprising ways.
The new Circle of Hope Outreach Center is located on Central Avenue/US 441 Business in Demorest. (photo courtesy Circle of Hope)
It is an exciting time for Circle of Hope as the local nonprofit prepares to move into its new outreach center in Demorest. With plans to open in the summer of 2024, the 5,000-square-foot building will become the hub for the domestic violence services the agency offers.
Under one roof
Passersby have watched for months as the building has taken shape at its new location on Central Avenue/US 441 Business. The facility will feature counseling lounges, a group therapy room, a children’s playroom, a private intake area, and a room for community events and training.
Staff at the new facility will provide a wide range of services, including legal assistance, safety planning, and life skills and parenting classes. The center will also house a food pantry, and clients will be able to get help with housing and other types of financial assistance.
“It is an opportunity that allows the legal advocates, housing program case managers, counselors, and the administrative team to be under one roof,” explains Circle of Hope Executive Director Suzanne Dow.
Building underway in the Circle of Hope’s project “Serving Others Under One Roof.” (Circle of Hope photo)
The projected cost of the new facility is $550,000. Circle of Hope is now engaged in a major fundraising campaign to pay for it. The campaign is aptly named ‘Serving Others Under One Roof.’ This initiative is just the latest in a long line of expansion projects Circle of Hope has undertaken through the years as the agency evolves in its mission to offer hope and freedom to victims of domestic violence.
The Circle of Hope has been offering services in Habersham, White, and Stephens counties since 1987, when it began its mission “to support, empower and bring hope to those affected by domestic violence through advocacy, awareness, education and community partnerships.”
Each year it has developed more avenues to help those who need assistance.
Circle of Hope began by offering crisis intervention and support group services. For two years, volunteers remodeled a donated farmhouse and the Emergency Shelter Program opened in September of 1990.
In 1997, Circle of Hope started a Legal Advocacy Program and, in 2002, expanded the program by opening satellite offices in Stephens and White counties. Also, in 2002, they began offering bilingual support services for Spanish-speaking clients.
The private nonprofit continued to grow and develop services for the community, such as a school Prevention Program.
In 2005, a new shelter facility was added, and a housing assistance program for transitional housing through a partnership with the Georgia Coalition Against Domestic Violence (GCADV).
Today, Circle of Hope offers four supportive housing programs, such as a reentry pilot project in partnership with the Lee Arrandale Transition Center, communal living housing assistance, and scattered site rental assistance programs.
“Many contractors have already donated both materials and labor to the project,” Dow says. “And we are grateful for all who have donated financially and physically. ”
Making a gift by cash, check, or credit card goes immediately into the building fund. Gifts may be pledged over three years. If you desire, they can accommodate recurring credit card charges at intervals you select.
Georgia lawmakers voted on dozens of bills Thursday as a key legislative deadline came and went. (Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder)
(Georgia Recorder) — Georgia lawmakers voted on dozens of bills Thursday as a key legislative deadline came and went.
They dubbed the white shrimp as the state’s official crustacean and moved forward a GOP bill creating an “America first” license plate but only after a Democrat tried to change it to a “Donald Trump first” plate.
“I think what I’m really trying to get at here is just the heart and the spirit of the legislation,” said Sen. Josh McLaurin, a Sandy Springs Democrat.
But the day of marathon voting also featured its share of tense debates as lawmakers raced to get their bills out of at least one chamber by the close of Crossover Day when a bill must pass out of at least one chamber for a smooth path to the governor’s desk.
The Senate passed a controversial religious freedom bill that some say is a license to discriminate and pushed through a bill pulling Georgia out from the American Library Association.
Several closely watched bills also failed to get a vote at all. For example, a proposal to impose a three-year moratorium on new permit applications for dragline mining never got a vote in the House, even after being fast-tracked through the committee process. The bill was floated as public pressure ramps up on lawmakers to block a mining proposal near the Okefenokee Wildlife National Refuge.
A measure that would bring back a consumers’ utility council that was eliminated in 2008 during the Great Recession sailed through the Senate Thursday.
The bill, sponsored by Rome Republican Sen. Chuck Hufstetler, would create the Office of Consumers’ Utility Council with an independent director under the Georgia Public Service Commission, which regulates utilities in the state. The final measure to clear the Senate Thursday, it passed unanimously with little discussion. It now heads to the House for consideration.
The bill acknowledges that the commission exists to represent the public interest but says the commissioners “must be furnished with all available information concerning the effects of its decisions in rate cases and proceedings before it.”
The Legislature wound down on Crossover Day shortly before midnight. (Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder)
In recent years, the PSC has signed off on multiple utility bill increases requested by Georgia Power.
Another proposal seeking to force Georgia Power to provide more information about their fuel costs to customers passed out of committee this week but did not make it to the floor for a vote by Thursday.
The sponsor of the late-filed bill, Rep. Don Parsons, expressed frustration with the powerful electric utility during a discussion Tuesday. The Marietta Republican chairs the House Energy, Utilities and Telecommunications Committee.
House backs bill to end subminimum wage for people with disabilities
A proposal to phase out Georgia’s participation in a federal program that allows employers to pay people with disabilities below the minimum wage easily cleared the House.
Currently, eight Georgia community rehabilitation providers are legally paying subminimum wage to 245 workers with disabilities through a U.S. Department of Labor program. The national average wage of workers under this disability provision is $3.34 per hour.
The bill, sponsored by Marietta Republican Rep. Sharon Cooper, would require employers to pay at least half of minimum wage in the first year of the phaseout and then pay minimum wage by July 2026.
Participation in the program has been waning in Georgia. Cooper called the remaining eight participants as “holdouts” and said federal grant funding is available to help them transition out of the program.
“We will be sending a message to people with disabilities across our state that we value them, that they have a great deal to give their communities, that they can be employed, and that they are very valuable employees,” Cooper said Thursday.
The bill now goes to the Senate.
Proposed new housing program clears the House
The House signed off a bill that creates an accountability-court structured program to help those who are unhoused.
The bill is called the State Housing Trust Fund for the Homeless Act, and it would be funded by local private companies like QuikTrip, which supports the bill.
Those in the program would be in it for a maximum of 18 months, with job opportunities and therapy available to them. The goal is for unhoused people to get stable jobs and support themselves after they leave.
Republican Majority Leader Chuck Efstration said that the program is entirely voluntary, not tied to criminal convictions or any other qualifications.
“If we could allow the homeless to voluntarily enter into these programs, we think we’d get some great success,” said Efstration.
The bill creates a commission for the program with some appointees hand-picked by the governor, lieutenant governor, and the speaker of the House.
If passed, the application is supposed to be posted on the Department of Community Affairs website at the beginning of next year.
Age verification for porn watchers
Georgians attempting to open up their favorite pornographic website could be greeted by an unexpected sight: a window asking them to prove they are over 18.
The House approved a plan by Jasper Republican Rick Jasperse to require age verification for adult websites 165 to one, with Stonecrest Democrat Angela Moore the sole nay vote.
If the bill becomes law, if more than a third of a website’s content is deemed harmful to minors, the owners of the site would need to take steps to verify users’ age. That could involve having users submit a driver’s license or other form of ID via mobile phone records or credit reference agency databases.
“I’m just trying to understand your legislation for someone who is not a porn watcher,” said Butler Democratic Rep. Patty Marie Stinson. “I’m trying to – really, this is a serious question — I’m trying to understand how this legislation actually impacts people in rural Georgia; you’re saying they have to have a driver’s license to be able to watch porn?”
“Yes,” Jasperse said.
“I’m sure there’s other alternatives, but if you’re on a site that has 33% of pornographic material on it, you would have to verify that you are over 18, just like you are to verify if you went into an adult bookstore, bought alcohol or anything like that,” he added.
Authorities arrested and charged a 22-year-old Clarkesville man with driving under the influence after he ran into a woman in the Walmart parking lot in Cornelia.
According to a preliminary report by the Georgia State Patrol, Howell Reese Mendenhall was driving a Chevrolet Impala east through the parking lot just before 10 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 28. The car crossed over the main travel lane and ran into Nereida Luviano, who was sitting on a bench outside the store. The car then struck the building, the report states.
An ambulance transported the 36-year-old Luviano to the hospital with suspected serious injuries. The wreck did not injure Mendenhall. Online jail records show he was charged with DUI refusal and failure to exercise due care, both misdemeanors.
Mendenhall was booked at the Habersham County jail and released on a $2,000 bond.
The Indians grabbed their fourth straight win in an 8-3 home game Thursday against Athens Academy.
A six-run fourth inning broke open a 1-0 game and propelled TFS to victory. #4-ranked Tallulah Falls got a great outing from starter Cole Bonitatibus, who struck out nine batters in 5.2 innings.
In the bottom of the second, David Dutary singled in Ashton Roache for the first run of the game. That held until the fourth. After Bonitatibus struck out the side in the top half, the TFS offense came to life in the home half. Chase Pollock doubled to plate Rohajae Pinder. Zaiden Cox drove in a run on a groundout to push it to 3-0. After another couple of runs scored on an error and defensive indifference, Roache grounded out while getting a run home. Pinder singled in Carver to cap the inning.
In the next frame, Caden Walker scored on a stolen base and ensuing throwing error by the catcher. Up 8-0, TFS saw the Spartans tack on a few late runs. Pollock, Walker, and Pinder each had two hits, as Walker added two stolen bases and two runs.
Bonitatibus got the win after 5.2 innings, striking out nine against four hits, three walks, and two runs (one earned). Gonzalez went the final 1.1, giving up a run on a hit, walk, and two strikeouts.
The Indians are now 5-1 overall on the season.
W – Cole Bonitatibus (1-0) RBI – Ashton Roache, Rohajae Pinder, David Dutary, Chase Pollock, Zaiden Cox
JV
The JV Indians scored in four different innings as part of a 13-5 win at Lumpkin County on Thursday evening.
The tone was set early with a 3-run first. Robert Grant singled in Dylan Brooks to get it started. Jordan Miller drove in Drew Barron and Grant with a base hit. Barron singled home Brooks to highlight the third, as TFS went ahead 5-1.
Jackson Savage had an RBI groundout in the fourth before Lumpkin County rallied to within 6-5 going into the sixth. Barron had a double to plate Brandon Allen to give a little breathing room, and after another run scored on an error, Justin Smith broke it open with a double that scored two more. Asa Popham had an RBI walk, and William NeSmith singled home a run with another scampering off an error during the play.
The Indians scored 13 runs on just eight hits. Brooks and Barron had two hits apiece, and Smith and Miller both had two RBI. Seven different players drove in a run. Griffin Harkness started and went two innings while allowing a run. He was followed by Barron, who gave up three runs (none earned) in two innings. Wyatt Dorsey had a pair of solid innings as well, and Grant polished it off with a perfect seventh. The pitchers all combined for 10 strikeouts.
Betty McAllister Whitlock, age 91 of Demorest, formerly of Alto, Georgia, took her Heavenly flight home to be with the Lord on Thursday, February 29, 2024.
Born in the Habersham Mills Community of Demorest, Georgia, on June 09, 1932, she was a daughter of the late Paul & Pearl McConnell McAllister. Betty was a nurse and bookkeeper for over 30 years with Dr. Oland Garrison in Cornelia. In her spare time, she enjoyed being outdoors, flower and vegetable gardening, quilting, and crocheting. Betty was a faithful member of Level Grove Baptist Church.
In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband of 34 years, Dank S. Whitlock; first husband, Vivian Kimsey Allen; sister, Mildred McAllister Lovell; brothers, Raymond, Don, James, & Freddie McAllister.
Survivors include her sons & daughter-in-law, Joe Allen of Gainesville, FL; Bryan & Kaye Allen of Hiawassee, GA; Jeff Allen of Cookeville, TN; daughters & sons-in-law, Stephanie & Tony Waldon, Karen & Weldon Wright all of Alto, GA; sisters, Peggy Smith & Marilyn Wildes; brothers, David McAllister & Charles McAllister; 10 grandchildren; numerous great-grandchildren as well as great-great-grandchildren; numerous nieces, nephews, other relatives, & friends.
Funeral services are scheduled for 2:00 p.m. on Monday, March 04, 2024, at Hillside Memorial Chapel in Clarkesville, with Rev. Terry Rice officiating. Interment will follow in the Yonah Memorial Gardens in Demorest.
The family will receive friends at the funeral home from 4:00 p.m. until 6:00 p.m. on Sunday, March 03, 2024, and again from 12:00 noon until the service hour on Monday, March 04, 2024.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that all donations be made to Level Grove Baptist Church, P.O. Box 416, Cornelia, GA. 30531
Macon native Carrie Preston revives her Emmy award-winning role as attorney Elsbeth Tascioni in a new CBS drama series. “Elsbeth” is billed as a “howdunit” crime drama emulating “Columbo.”
A guest appearance as attorney Elsbeth Tascioni 14 years ago on “The Good Wife” turned into a career game-changer for Macon native Carrie Preston, who won an Emmy for the role in 2013 and was nominated again in 2016.
Wednesday morning, sitting on the set of “CBS Mornings” with Gayle King and company, Preston said it was nearly miraculous that she now stars in her own series “Elsbeth,” which premieres at 10 p.m. Thursday on CBS and streaming on Paramount +.
“I am approaching this with such a heft of gratitude and humility to be trusted with the lead of a show, the title character. It’s almost a miracle in my life,” Preston told the CBS morning crew.
She previously portrayed Tascioni about 20 times on “The Good Wife” and “The Good Fight.”
Preston relishes the opportunity to explore the eccentricities of the Elsbeth character.
The pilot for the new series begins with the quirky, unconventional Chicago lawyer moving to New York to oversee the police department as part of a consent decree to make sure officers go by the book.
“A lot of people love this character… I just love her,” King said during the broadcast.
The “Elsbeth” premiere reunites Carrie Preston with her “True Blood” co-star Stephen Moyer. Macon director Jim Crisp said the caliber of the new CBS show’s guest stars speaks to Preston’s talent as an actor.
In promotional clips for the new series, Preston explained the shows’ creators and executive producers described her character as a female version of actor Peter Falk’s bumbling, yet shrewd and observant, Lt. Columbo who solved crimes with an unconventional flair.
“This brilliant character came out of the minds of Robert and Michelle King, and I feel extremely fortunate because it turns into the role of a lifetime,” Preston said.
Robert King said Elsbeth’s popularity is two-fold.
“One is, it’s Elsbeth’s character, who is just lovely and you love, but Carrie Preston is the other aspect of it. Carrie Preston is a lot of fun to work with,” Robert King said.
Who is Carrie Preston?
When staging plays as a youngster in her Macon neighborhood, directing the drama club at Central High School and performing at Macon Little Theatre, Preston never set her sights on having her own television show — not even now as a 56-year-old, she said on the morning show.
“It is a tough business, so I feel like for me it is a true milestone. It’s something that I didn’t dream about,” she said. “I’ve had an incredible career of being a supporting actor playing leads in small movies.”
Crisp said Preston and her older brother John, who is a Shakespearean actor himself, had exceptional natural talent and focused on developing their craft.
“It was immediately apparent that these were unusually talented young people, that their talents were native and extraordinary, and that there was not an issue of teaching them. It was an issue of nurturing and encouraging,” Crisp said.
As a young woman Preston co-directed a Shakespeare parody at Macon’s McKibben Lane Elementary School, held theater workshops for children and earned numerous awards for her acting including The Telegraph’s Golden Eagle award in drama. She had a laser beam focus on honing her talent, Crisp said.
Carrie Preston played Emily in “Our Town” at Macon Little Theatre in 1985 alongside Hil Anderson in the role of George.
After her critically acclaimed performance as Emily in “Our Town” that Crisp directed at Macon Little Theatre during her senior year in 1985, Preston earned a Mildred O. Evans scholarship and began her studies at the College of Charleston.
As a freshman that fall, she landed the lead role in Ibsen’s “The Doll House,” and earned rave reviews in “Diary of Anne Frank” the following spring.
After receiving her fine arts degree from the University of Evansville in 1990, she spent the next four years earning an acting diploma from the Juilliard School.
“Carrie is a well-trained actor, and I think that gets overlooked in our culture. In this country, we think about TV stars and movie stars. We never think about training,” Crisp said.
Juilliard is equivalent to Britain’s famed Royal Shakespeare Company when it comes to training, he said.
“She was ready mentally, emotionally, physically. She was ready. Her talent had been honed. Her craft was ready. She was a thoroughbred at the gate, waiting to go,” Crisp said.
Within months of finishing at Juilliard, she debuted as Miranda in “The Tempest” in Shakespeare in the Park. She starred opposite British actor Patrick Stewart playing Prospero at the open-air Delacorte Theater at Central Park in New York, Preston’s home for the last 34 years.
The show was so successful it moved to Broadway in late 1995.
Crisp traveled to The Big Apple twice to see the show in the park and indoors.
“It was thrilling to see her in that arena and so young. I mean, she wasn’t even 30 yet,” he said.
British actor Stewart, a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company who had just finished his role as Captain Jean-Luc Picard on “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” predicted Preston “will be an important star in the years to come,” according to Telegraph archives.
She now has such a long list of acting credits that Crisp admitted he hasn’t even seen all of her nearly three dozen films.
Their close relationship led Crisp to become a credentialled wedding officiant. In 1998 on the Theatre Macon stage, he performed the marriage ceremony when she married actor Michael Emerson, who has Emmys for his performances in “The Practice” and “Lost.”
‘You’ve got to watch her’
Crisp understands why Elsbeth is such a popular character and match for Preston’s own skills, endearing personality and intelligence.
“There’s something about (Elsbeth’s) quirkiness, her awkwardness that makes her so deeply human and charming and interesting and engaging. And that’s a role that’s perfect for Carrie’s talents because she can dominate and own a stage in a way that only the best actors can,” he said.
Variety, E! News and the New York Post referred to Preston as a “scene stealer,” who after nearly five decades of hard work and determination, now has top billing in her own series.
The new CBS drama “Elsbeth” features Carrie Preston in the title role and Wendell Pierce as Capt. C.W. Wagner. The show follows an astute but unconventional attorney who, after her successful career in Chicago, makes unique observations and corners brilliant criminals alongside the NYPD.
Actor Wendell Pierce, who portrays police Capt. C.W. Wagner on the show, said “Elsbeth” has something for everyone: “Comedy and drama with great characters. One in particular, Elsbeth, that’s a name that people will remember.”
Like Cher and Madonna, Elsbeth is known by her first name, which Preston’s childhood friend Carey Pickard says is a testament to her talent.
“They’re premiering a show on a character she created over 10 years ago that has a one-word identifier. I just think that’s beyond exciting because, for me, this show is a mark that her acting is now being acknowledged with fame,” Pickard said.
Although this series will bring greater notoriety for Preston, Pickard said fame was never a goal for her when she led the team of thespians at Central High School.
“I’ve heard Carrie talk about acting for over 50 years, and I always heard her talk about wanting to be a good actor. Never once did I hear her talk about wanting to be famous, and I think that’s an important distinction,” Pickard said.
Pickard plans to watch the premiere with Preston’s mother, Pam, and Crisp.
“I do think this show is a reward for a lifetime of devotion to her craft and I am beside myself with excitement,” he said.
On “CBS Mornings,” Preston explained the significance of this milestone.
“To reach this is something that is not lost on me because I’ve been doing it so long,” she said of her acting.
In a behind-the-scenes promotional video, Preston said: “We’re here to spread joy and delight and we’re hoping people will receive it.”
Crisp said Middle Georgians should be proud to share in her success just as fans cheer a hometown quarterback who is playing in the NFL.
“Why would you miss that?” he asked. “Why would you not tune in? Of course, you’re going to tune in. It’s the hometown girl. You’ve got to watch her.”
This story comes to Now Habersham from the Macon Newsroom
Savannah GOP Rep. Jesse Petrea filed the bill in January, but the recent murder of Laken Riley who was allegedly killed by Jose Antonio Ibarra, who entered the country illegally, gave the bill and the larger conversations around immigration new momentum. (Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder)
(Georgia Recorder) — Legislation that gained momentum in the wake of last week’s killing of Augusta University nursing student Laken Riley to penalize law enforcement agencies that refuse to work with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement pushed through the House on Crossover Day.
House Bill 1105 requires local law enforcement agencies to work in tandem with federal officials to detain people arrested they suspect might be in the country illegally. Under the proposal, if an unauthorized immigrant is in the county jail and is found to be in the United States illegally, the jailer must report the arrest to ICE.
Savannah Republican Rep. Jesse Petrea had been pushing for legislation like this for a year. He filed the bill in January, but the recent murder of Riley who was allegedly killed by Jose Antonio Ibarra, who entered the country illegally, gave the bill and the larger conversations around immigration new momentum.
Petrea said the bill would narrowly focus on people who are here without authorization and who are in the criminal justice system. The bill would also withhold funding from local law enforcement if the agency doesn’t comply with the process. If an officer refuses to enforce these policies, they could be charged with a misdemeanor for the first time refused, and a misdemeanor of a high and aggravated nature for the second time.
Georgia Republican lawmakers claim that law enforcement agencies that do not work in tandem with ICE policies allowed Ibarra to slip through the cracks. Athens Republican Rep. Houston Gaines said that these so-called sanctuary city policies, which he says are similar to the ones Athens has, would be outlawed with this bill. Athens, where the murder took place, chose not to hold people charged with crimes and deemed unauthorized for an extra 48 hours unless a judge ordered it, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Democrats disagree.
“We have had enough of attempts to promote racial profiling and discrimination,” said Duluth Democrat Rep. Pedro Marin.
Multiple House Democrats, most of them people of color, emphasized that the bill would increase racial profiling in their communities.
“There are so many people both in this body and outside of this body who would be suspected as foreign nationals and would be unfairly detained until it was proven they were citizens,” said Duluth Democrat Rep. Ruwa Romman.
The GALEO Impact Fund, an organization focused on Hispanic and Latino representation in public office, condemned the bill in a press release Wednesday for shifting “the blame away from the culprit himself and onto the entire immigrant community.” The advocacy group for Latino issues echoed some of the similar criticisms of policies unfairly targeting the Hispanic community.
Democrats also had a problem with the logistics of the bill. Atlanta Democrat Rep. Stacey Evans said that it would overload law enforcement with sorting out which crimes get processed. Agencies would also have to publish a quarterly report on a public website detailing the number of immigration detainers issued by ICE for inmates at the jail or other information. Evans said that their time would be split between chasing crime on the street and detaining migrants.
“If local law enforcement wants to focus on crime as a whole as opposed to further detaining migrants, I don’t have a problem with that. And I don’t think anybody in here should,” said Evans.
Sandy Springs Democrat Rep. Esther Panitch said a lack of funding would hamper efforts to detain unauthorized immigrants by law enforcement agencies.
The bill was voted nearly along party lines. It got the approval of the House Speaker’s office in a press release and it now goes to the Senate.
“While we continue to pray for Laken Riley and her family, the Georgia House took action today to strengthen public safety and security in our state, stand firmly against illegal immigration and for the rule of law – and I am proud of the passage of House Bill 1105,” House Speaker Jon Burns, a Newington Republican, said in the statement.
President Joe Biden delivers remarks during a visit to Brownsville on Feb. 29, 2024. (Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune)
WASHINGTON (States Newsroom) — President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump on Thursday afternoon paid competing visits to the nation’s southern border, where Biden called on Congress to reconsider a bipartisan border security deal that Republicans tanked at Trump’s direction.
Biden traveled to Brownsville, Texas, while Trump journeyed to Eagle Pass, highlighting how immigration policy has risen in importance as the 2024 presidential race takes shape. Biden is seeking reelection and Trump is the GOP primary front-runner.
“Here’s what I would say to Mr. Trump,” Biden said. “Instead of telling members of Congress to block this legislation, join me, or I’ll join you in telling the Congress to pass this bipartisan border security bill. We can do it together.”
Senate Republicans earlier this month walked away from that deal they brokered with the White House, following Trump’s objection to the plan that would drastically overhaul U.S. immigration law and bolster funding.
Biden said that the Senate needs to reconsider the bipartisan border security bill and that Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson should bring the measure to the floor for a vote.
Johnson has refused, arguing that the House already passed its own measure in H.R. 2, and that Biden has the executive authority to take action to address high levels of immigration. Democrats object to many of the policies in that bill.
Accompanying the president was U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who was impeached by House Republicans over policy disputes in early February, and Democratic Rep. Vicente Gonzalez of Texas, whose district includes Brownsville.
During his visit, Biden met with U.S. Border Patrol agents, law enforcement, frontline personnel and local leaders, the White House said.
“I just received a briefing from the Border Patrol at the border as well as immigration enforcement asylum officers and they’re all doing incredible work under really tough conditions,” Biden said. “They desperately need more resources.”
Mayorkas said only Congress can help DHS fund more Border Patrol agents, immigration enforcement agents, asylum officers, immigration judges and support personnel, facilities and technology.
“You can see the impact these resources will have on our ability to strengthen our security, advance our mission to protect the homeland and enforce our nation’s laws quickly and effectively,” he said. “Though Congress has not yet provided the resources we need, DHS will continue to enforce the law and work to secure our border.”
Migrant encounters
As the Biden administration deals with the largest number of migrant encounters at the southern border in more than 20 years, Trump’s reelection campaign has centered on stoking fears surrounding immigration — as he previously did in his 2016 presidential campaign.
Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a visit to the Texas-Mexico border at Eagle Pass, on Feb. 29, 2024. (livestream image)
More than 300 miles away from Biden in Eagle Pass on Thursday, Trump criticized the Biden administration and touted how he managed the border during his first presidency.
He highlighted his “Remain in Mexico” program that required asylum seekers to stay in Mexico while waiting for their asylum cases to he heard — a move that many advocates documented resulted in harm, separation and deaths to those migrants who had to comply.
“The best was ‘Remain in Mexico,’” Trump said. “You stay in Mexico.”
Trump implemented the program in 2019 and the Biden administration sought to terminate it in June 2021.
But the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas determined in Texas v. Biden that the termination memo from the Biden administration was not issued in compliance with the Administrative Procedure Act, so the court ordered the Department of Homeland Security to keep the program in place.
It took a Supreme Court ruling for the Biden administration to finally be allowed to end the program.
Trump also praised Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott, who is at odds with the Biden administration over who wields authority over the border, most recently when Abbott defied U.S. Supreme Court orders to remove razor wire along the border.
Abbott has also sent migrants on buses and planes to Democratic-led cities without warning local officials, putting strains on those cities.
“He’s in some sanitized location,” Abbott said of Biden’s visit to Brownsville. “It just goes to show that Biden does not care about either Texas or the border and what’s going on.”
GOP on the attack in D.C.
U.S. House Republicans at the Capitol also criticized Biden’s visit to the border, calling it a “photo op” and arguing that Brownsville is not a busy area that encounters many migrants.
“The border is the issue for every American no matter where they live, no matter where their state is, because every state is a border state,” Johnson said during a Thursday press conference.
Johnson also pressed for Biden to take executive action on immigration, something Biden has argued he cannot do without congressional authority.
Utah’s Blake Moore, the vice chair of the House Republican Conference, argued that El Paso, Texas, and Tucson, Arizona, are busier than Brownsville in terms of immigration.
“Brownsville can hardly be considered one of the most challenging immigration areas,” Moore said.
Moore said that this should not be just the second time in Biden’s presidency he has visited the border, and that Trump’s visit on the same day made it seem like Biden was trying to compete with Trump. Biden’s first visit to the border was in January 2023.
“That is what the American people will take from this, and it’s disheartening to know that that is the case,” Moore said.
NBC has reported the White House says Trump’s visit had nothing to do with Biden’s trip to Texas.
Donald M. Smith, Sr., age 78, of Mt. Airy, passed away on Friday, March 1, 2024.
