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Georgia food banks gear up for summertime demand a year after pandemic food stamp benefits ended

By
Stanley Dunlap
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A March 2023 study from the Urban Institute found that almost 25% of American adults are food insecure, up five percentage points from a year earlier. (File photo contributed by Deborah Myers)

(GA Recorder) — Since last summer, thousands of Georgians have turned to food banks, kitchens, and shelters in order to make up for the loss of extra federal food stamp benefits that kept them from going hungry during the worst of the pandemic.

As the summer break approaches, Georgia’s food banks and other nonprofits are bracing for a surge in demand as children and teenagers have fewer places to eat meals while out of school. States across the country are seeing families become increasingly dependent on food banks for meals as families cope with a reduction in government food assistance.

The extra Pandemic-EBT benefits through the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as food stamps, have been unavailable to more than 770,000 Georgians since June, resulting in as much as a 40% lower grocery shopping budget for many low-income families.

Feeding Georgia, the statewide food bank association, already struggled to cope with a 30% spike in food insecurity in 2021, the year after COVID-19 broke out.

Long before this spring, Georgia became one of the states that ceased to provide enhanced SNAP benefits after state officials declined to apply for an extension of the program into the current school year.

In March, another 32 states ended the Pandemic-EBT program, which provided millions of families with an extra monthly food allowance.

An extension of the program would provide an extra $290 million in food assistance to 1.1 million children across the state who qualify for free- or reduced-price school lunch.

In the wake of the loss of emergency food benefits, other government resources are being allocated to food banks in Georgia in order to alleviate hunger pains. This includes the state awarding federal funds to America’s Second Harvest of Coastal Georgia, the Atlanta Community Food Bank, and the Georgia Mountain Food Bank totaling $38 million.

More Georgians statewide received extra benefits since the program was first expanded in 2020 as part of the American Rescue Act. But there have been some bureaucratic hiccups along the way. Putting together a plan for the added pandemic while aid agencies also handled other assistance programs became a growing burden over the last year, leaving many state SNAP administrators overworked. ‌

In 2021, the demand on food banks had slowly weakened compared to 2020 but still remained 30% higher than the pre-pandemic level.

As inflation has pushed up prices on food and other necessities, the pandemic-era SNAP assistance for Georgians was expected to drop by about $120 million, according to the left-leaning Georgia Budget and Policy Institute.

Millions of lower-income people, primarily Black and Hispanic, were able to reduce their poverty level as a result of the extra government funding; however, the two minority groups still were at greater risk of hunger than white adults, according to a study conducted by the Urban Institute. In its March report, the Washington, D.C.–based think tank found that almost 25% of American adults are food insecure, up five percentage points from a year earlier.

Between December 2021 and December 2022, food prices across the nation increased an average of 10.4%, the highest increase in decades, the study found.

“Although investments in federal nutrition programs and other federal aid during the COVID-19 pandemic helped mitigate hunger, families contended with a new economic stressor in 2022: food price inflation,” the report stated. “Many households have experienced food hardship as fewer public resources provided as COVID-19 pandemic aid expires and stricter budgeting needed for groceries, food hardship has increased for many households across the country.

“The share of adults reporting household food insecurity increased sharply between 2021 and 2022, erasing reductions in food insecurity that occurred following safety net policy changes during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic,” the report said.

Various organizations in Georgia will relieve some of the strain on regional food banks this summer by offering free meals at sites such as schools, libraries, churches, and summer camps.

Georgia families can find meals this summer at various sites through The Seamless Summer Option and Happy Helpings, administered by local school districts and the state Department of Early Care and Learning.

According to Feeding America, one out of seven children in Georgia faces hunger, which means 360,000 children rely on government assistance and nonprofit organizations for their daily meals.

But Feeding America notes that charitable programs are unable to fully meet the demands of food insecurity and that the combination of charity and government assistance programs are necessary to help bridge the meal gap.

The Atlanta Community Food Bank reports that 38% of Georgians who are food insecure do not qualify for assistance because their earnings are above the federal poverty level. The federal poverty level for individuals in 2023 is an income of $14,580.

Besides government funding, food banks and their community partners continue to receive support from donors and corporate sponsors.

U.S. Justice Department to ask Supreme Court to reject limits on access to abortion pill

By
Jane Norman and Jennifer Shutt
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(GA Recorder) — An appeals court in New Orleans late Wednesday partly blocked a judge’s order that would have overturned federal approval of the abortion pill — which means the pill remains available across the nation for now.

But the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals also let part of the Texas judge’s order stand. The effect of the appeals court decision appears to be that while the case is on appeal, the abortion medication mifepristone is approved for use in pregnancies up to seven weeks, not 10 weeks, and it can’t be dispensed through the mail.

U.S. District Court Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, in the Northern District of Texas, had ruled Friday, April 7, to overturn the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s 2000 approval of the abortion drug mifepristone.

Kacsmaryk put a seven-day delay in his ruling and the U.S. Justice Department filed an appeal to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals and asked the court to put the Texas ruling on hold. The manufacturer, Danco Laboratories, also appealed.

In the 42-page ruling in the 5th Circuit, a panel of three judges wrote, “At this preliminary stage, and based on our necessarily abbreviated review, it appears that the statute of limitations bars plaintiffs’ challenges to the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of mifepristone in 2000.” They granted a stay, or pause, of that part of the Texas decision.

But they said the arguments of anti-abortion groups are more likely to succeed in connection with the actions taken by the FDA in 2016 and later to make the abortion pill more widely available, including through the mail, and allow it to be used beyond seven weeks of pregnancy.

The 2016 changes by the FDA increased maximum gestational age to 70 days when the pill could be used; reduced required in-person office visits to one; allowed non-doctors to prescribe and administer mifepristone; and  eliminated reporting of non-fatal adverse events.

In 2021, the FDA announced “enforcement discretion” to allow mifepristone to be dispensed through the mail during the COVID-19 pandemic. Earlier this year the FDA permanently removed the in-person dispensing requirement.

Appeals to continue

The lawsuit, brought by the anti-abortion Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine and others against the FDA, will continue through the appeals process and is expected to wind up at the U.S. Supreme Court. It is also possible the Department of Justice could immediately appeal the 5th Circuit decision to the Supreme Court.

Kirsten Moore, director of the Expanding Medication Abortion Access Project, or the EMAA Project, said in a statement the appeals court ruling “shows exactly why courts have no place interfering in health care.”

“This middle of the night ruling, while keeping mifepristone on the market, rolls back years of medical progress by reinstating restrictions that were lifted in 2016 and forcing people to go back to picking up their medications in person, essentially eliminating teleheath access and forcing people to travel, in some cases hundreds of miles, just to receive care,” Moore said.

The three-judge appeals court panel that issued Wednesday night’s order was made up of Judge Catharina Haynes, appointed by former President George W. Bush; Judge Kurt D. Engelhardt, appointed by former President Donald Trump; and Judge Andrew W. Oldham, also appointed by Trump.

It was not immediately clear how the 5th Circuit ruling would affect — or not affect — a separate ruling from U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington Judge Thomas Rice.

Rice on Friday, just minutes after the Texas order, barred the FDA from changing “the status quo and rights as it relates to the availability of Mifepristone” in the 17 states and District of Columbia that filed a lawsuit about the pharmaceutical in his court.

The U.S. Justice Department has asked Rice to clarify his ruling, saying it “appears to be in significant tension” with the Texas opinion.

Doctors ‘face a harm,’ appeals court says

The 5th Circuit rejected arguments from the federal government that the anti-abortion medical organizations that brought the lawsuit didn’t have standing to sue, writing that “not only have these doctors suffered injuries in the past, but it’s also inevitable that at least one doctor in one of these associations will face a harm in the future.”

The four medical organizations and four doctors argued they experienced negative consequences after having to treat patients in emergency departments or elsewhere experiencing complications from medication abortion, given the doctors’ opposition to elective pregnancy termination.

The three-judge appeals panel, however, emphasized the “narrowness” of that decision.

“We do not hold that doctors necessarily have standing to raise their patients’ claims,” they wrote. “We do not hold that doctors have constitutional standing whenever they’re called upon to do their jobs. And we do not hold that doctors have standing to challenge FDA’s actions whenever the doctor sees a patient experiencing complications from an FDA-approved drug.”

Lawmakers, attorneys general and pharmaceutical companies have raised concerns the Texas judge’s ruling could set a problematic precedent where any federal judge might be able to overturn the FDA’s approval of a medication.

The three-judge panel did seem to question the prescribing and use of mifepristone, writing it “is an exceedingly unusual regime.”

“In fact, as far as the record before us reveals, FDA has not structured the distribution of any comparable drug in this way,” they wrote.

On timing of the lawsuit, the appeals panel mostly rejected Kacsmaryk’s ruling that the FDA changing prescribing and administration of mifepristone in 2016 and 2021 reopened the 2000 approval to legal challenges.

Everyone in the case, they wrote, acknowledged the “six-year limitations period applies to all of this case’s challenged actions.”

“Although a close call, we are unsure at this preliminary juncture and after truncated review that FDA reopened the 2000 Approval in its 2016 Major REMS Changes and its 2021 Petition Denial,” they wrote.

The FDA applies Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies, or REMS, to 61 pharmaceuticals that have “serious safety concerns to help ensure the benefits of the medication outweigh its risks.”

The judges later added the changes didn’t appear to rise to the level of FDA substantively reconsidering the original approval, but then said later on that the anti-abortion groups “might very well prevail on that claim later in this litigation.”

FDA and data

The appeals court wrote the federal government at this stage failed “to show that FDA’s actions were not arbitrary and capricious.”

The judges wrote the FDA failed to “examine the relevant data” when it changed how mifepristone is prescribed and used in 2016.

“That’s because FDA eliminated REMS safeguards based on studies that included those very safeguards,” they wrote.

“True, FDA studied the safety consequences of eliminating one or two of the 2000 Approval’s REMS in isolation,” they wrote. “But it relied on zero studies that evaluated the safety-and-effectiveness consequences of the 2016 Major REMS Changes as a whole.”

The appeals court noted that in 2016 the FDA eliminated a requirement that non-fatal adverse events must be reported to the agency and then in 2021 the FDA “declared the absence of non-fatal adverse-event reports means mifepristone is ‘safe.’”

The judges added the “ostrich’s-head-in-the-sand approach is deeply troubling” and suggested the “FDA’s actions are well ‘outside the zone of reasonableness.’”

Question of ‘irreparable harm’

In deciding to put part of the Texas district court’s ruling on hold while leaving the other part to take effect, the appeals court wrote neither the federal government nor the manufacturer of mifepristone met a standard called irreparable harm for the entire ruling.

“FDA’s assertion that the district court’s injunction will harm pregnant women or other members of the public does not speak to the irreparable injury factor (although it may speak to other factors), because those persons are not stay applicants in this case,” they wrote.

“Since FDA does not articulate any irreparable harm that FDA will suffer absent a stay, it makes no showing on this ‘critical’ prong,” they added.

Danco, which solely manufactures mifepristone, did note that it would have to shut down if the 2000 approval was overturned. But the appeals court wrote, “irreparable injury alone does not entitle Danco to a stay.”

“And even if it did, neither FDA nor Danco articulates why this, or any other, injury would require a stay of all of the district court’s order, rather than only part,” they wrote.

Reactions pour in

Anti-abortion organizations and abortion rights supporters quickly reacted to the 5th Circuit’s decision to keep the 2000 approval of mifepristone in place, while pushing use of the medication back to pre-2016 prescribing and administration guidelines.

Alliance Defending Freedom CEO and President Kristen Waggoner wrote Thursday morning on Twitter the 5th Circuit’s “decision is a step forward for the rule of law.” The legal organization argued the case on behalf of the anti-abortion groups.

“Critical safeguards removed by the @US_FDA will be restored and abortion by mail will end,” she wrote.

“The FDA put politics over science when it unlawfully approved dangerous chemical abortion drugs. It has evaded legal responsibility for years and has jeopardized the health of women and girls,” Waggoner added. “While there is still work to do to hold the FDA accountable for its lawlessness, girls and women are safer today.”

Morgan Hopkins, president of All Above All, an abortion rights organization, said in a statement the 5th Circuit’s “decision to roll back recent measures that have ensured greater access to medication abortion care undermines the FDA’s authority and science, all while real people pay the price.”

“It proves just how entrenched anti-abortion extremism is in our judicial system and shows just how far they will go to take away our rights and freedom,” Hopkins added.

Democratic Rep. Hillary Scholten of Michigan tweeted that “women shouldn’t have to live in a world where we have rights one day and not the next.”

“We must create a stable healthcare system where women have consistent and equal access to the healthcare they need,” Scholten added.

New Hampshire Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen tweeted that mifepristone is safe and effective, though she didn’t specifically mention the appeals court decision.

“The safety of women is on the line as GOP lawmakers & unelected jurists enact & uphold anti-woman laws rooted in political rhetoric, not science,” Shaheen wrote. “Mifepristone has been safely prescribed by health care providers for decades.”

White County manager fired

By
Dean Dyer, WRWH Radio
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Mike Renshaw was hired in May 2022. He was White County's third manager in two

For the third time in less than two years, White County finds itself without a county manager. The White County Board of Commissioners this week terminated Mike Renshaw’s employment. The action follows reports that Renshaw applied for and has been named town manager of Falmouth, Massachusetts.

White County Commission Chairman Travis Turner said the local board voted to let Renshaw go Tuesday afternoon following an executive session.

In a statement, Turner said Renshaw has lost the confidence of not only the board of commissioners but also that of the community. According to Turner, most felt Renshaw would be unable to serve the county because of his apparent desire to be elsewhere.

Commissioners hired Renshaw in May of 2022. He was White County’s third manager in less than two years.

“To describe the entire chain of events, it would be ‘disappointed,'” Turner says. “Disappointed because I had high hopes that [with] Mike’s job knowledge, he would be able to be a part of our team for years to come. A team guided by policies given by the board of commissioners. Unfortunately, that wasn’t meant to be.”

“I hope Mike can find a community that better fits his desires than our growing Appalachian community apparently could,” Turner adds.

White County commissioners will begin searching for an interim county manager over the next couple of weeks. In the meantime, Chairman Turner says he and the board will be working closely with White County Clerk Shanda Murphy to oversee daily operations and move forward on several projects that are underway and on the horizon.

Investigators arrest Oakwood man on child pornography-related charges

By
Staff Report
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Austin Michael Pope (Hall County Sheriff's Office)

Hall County Sheriff’s Office investigators charged an Oakwood man with child pornography-related offenses on Tuesday morning, April 11, following the execution of a search warrant at his home.

Investigators arrested Austin Michael Pope, 21, following the search of his residence on Ben Hill Drive. During the search, investigators seized several of Pope’s electronic devices, which were processed by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) Child Exploitation and Computer Crimes Unit (CEACCU).

According to the investigation, on Dec. 14, 2022, Pope transmitted video of a child between the ages of 8 and 10 being sexually abused by a man. Pope is charged with two felony counts of sexual exploitation of a minor for possessing and distributing the video through his Snapchat account.

Investigators found no evidence the video was produced locally or involved a local victim.

Tuesday’s arrest culminated the HCSO and Georgia Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force investigation that began on Friday, March 24, 2023, when investigators received a cybertip about the crime from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC).

Pope remained in the Hall County Jail without bond on Wednesday morning, April 12. Investigators do not anticipate additional charges in the case.

Col. George Leonard Rutland, Jr.

By
Now Habersham
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Col. George Leonard Rutland, Jr. (USAF retired), 88, a longtime resident of Tullahoma, TN, passed away on Monday, April 10, 2023, surrounded by his loving family, glorifying God for his eternal healing and homegoing to Jesus in Heaven. He was graced with visits from all his children and visits and video calls with all his grandchildren before his passing. He was a determined fighter till the end after years of complicated medical issues. His love language was service, and his life was a legacy of service to his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, his family, his Country, and to others.

George was born and raised in Neeses, SC, the eldest of three children to George Leonard Rutland, Sr, and Myrtis Patricia Bonnette Rutland. He was proud to have been a graduate of North High School in North, SC, and for the uniqueness of its name. He loved playing on the basketball and baseball teams and farming there. George earned a Bachelor of Civil Engineering degree from the University of South Carolina in Columbia. He worked while in college and joined the ROTC program. When he graduated, he was commissioned as 2nd Lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force. George earned a Master’s in Management Degree from SMU in 1969. He served 27 years in the Air Force and retired as Colonel in 1983. George was a patriot born on the 4th of July and determined to dutifully serve his country.

George’s U.S. Air Force remote assignments included Tokyo, Japan; Anchorage, Alaska; and Saigon, Vietnam, along with short-term service in South Korea and winter in Nome, Alaska. His Air Force assignments in the lower 48 states included Wright-Patterson AFB, OH; Seymour Johnson AFB, NC; Charleston AFB, SC; SMU assignment in Dallas, TX; Bolling AFB, Andrews AFB, and the Pentagon in Washington D.C.; Chanute AFB, IL; and Randolph AFB, TX.

George earned his professional engineering license and was registered in several states while in the Air Force. After military retirement, George continued serving his country, working for various prime contractors at Arnold Engineering & Development Center (AEDC), Tullahoma, TN, and retired as Civil Engineering Branch Manager after 16 years in December 1999. He continued working as an engineering consultant in writing contract proposals for military prime contractors for 3 years after AEDC retirement.

George served His Lord and Savior faithfully in churches and communities around the country where his military service took him. In 2000 he transitioned to even more dedicated service to First Baptist Church in Tullahoma, TN. He grew very close and developed eternal friendships with so many saints in their common service to the Lord. George was benevolent and caring for people and causes dear to his heart his entire life. He believed in meeting people at their point of need while having a burdened heart that his entire family, extended family, and everyone he could contact would have salvation in and a life-long relationship with Jesus Christ.

George is survived by his wife of over 65 years, Marilyn Ethelda Brock Rutland. Together they had six children – George Leonard Rutland, III (Angie); James Kevin Rutland (Leslie); Tressa Mytricia Rutland (Terry Nierenhausen); Craig Ashton Rutland (Cathy); Timothy Shane Rutland (Amy); Scott Kipling Rutland (Carin). They have 13 grandchildren, 1 “adopted” granddaughter, and 23 great-grandchildren and counting. George is predeceased by his parents, George L. Rutland, Sr. and Myrtis Bonnette Rutland, his stepmother Irma Dean Rutland, his brother, Henry Marvin “H.M.” Rutland (Faye), and his sister Elizabeth Rutland Davis (Harris).

His favorite things in life included serving his church locally or around the world; spending time with family and extended family; talking with people and serving them; loving on babies; serving in the U.S. Air Force; spending time outdoors, gardening and the joy of eating fresh vegetables, yard work, and farm work; watching a whole host of sports; well-crafted words and a quick wit; he enjoyed technical and persuasive writing and giving presentations to Congress and the Pentagon; laughing hysterically till he cried; all things Geechee; toothpicks; haggling and getting a “good deal”; shag dancing; root beer, strawberry shakes, Chick-Fil-A chicken biscuits, boiled peanuts, pecans, and of, course, SC hash over sticky white rice; becoming a people person the older he got; after no longer being confined to Air Force dress blues, wearing colorful, albeit, loud clothing; serving as master of ceremonies and giving humorous public speeches at his church.

On the morning of April 10, 2023, His Lord said unto him, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” (Matthew 25:21)

In lieu of flowers, please consider donating in George’s honor to the First Baptist Church Tullahoma, 108 E Grundy St., Tullahoma, TN, 37388, www.fbctullahoma.org, or to any place of service to the Lord Jesus Christ of your choice.

Visitation will be held at 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. on Friday, April 14, 2023, at Ward’s Funeral Home, 758 Main St. SW, Gainesville, GA, 30501. A Celebration of Life with a full military honors burial will be held at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 15, 2023, at Dunagan Chapel United Methodist Church, 5540 Timber Ridge Rd., Gainesville, GA, 30507, with final interment following. Col. Rutland will lie in state from 2:00 – 2:30 p.m. at the church.

You may sign the online guestbook or leave a condolence at www.wardsfh.com.

Ward’s Funeral Home of Gainesville is honored to serve the family of Colonel George Leonard Rutland, Jr.

GHSA to discuss NIL deals, not ready to vote

By
Todd Holcomb
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GHSA executive director Robin Hines will discuss name, image and likeness deals for high school athletes at next Monday’s executive committee meeting in Macon, but the GHSA won’t propose changing its bylaws until fall at the earliest, he said Monday.

With NIL deals now legal in college sports, 26 state high school associations have moved in the past two years to allow their athletes to benefit. Hines said the GHSA needs more time to craft a plan and educate its member schools, athletes, and parents on what a rule change would mean.

Specifically, Hines wants to reassure administrators and coaches that schools or businesses won’t be able to use NIL deals to recruit athletes or to jeopardize their amateur status.

“When I spoke about it the first time [to the board of trustees in January], I received a lot of feedback from coaches and member schools who were under the impression you’re paying someone to play high school sports,” Hines said. “That’s not the case. From most states that have adopted NIL rules, they keep amateur rules in place. They recognize that individuals own their own name, image and likeness and can endorse products on their own as long as they don’t include the intellectual property of the school or the state association.”

As a model, Hines cited new rules that New Jersey passed in December. They allow high school athletes to endorse products and promote activities but not during team or school activities or while wearing apparel that identifies the school. They don’t allow athletes to endorse alcohol or tobacco products, betting establishments or lotteries.

“Being a capitalist myself, I don’t want to take away opportunities from others,” Hines said, “but when we’re ready to do something like that, we want to make sure guard rails are in place.”

The current GHSA bylaw that makes NIL deals potentially illegal is 1.92 (c), which bans “capitalizing on athletic fame by receiving money or gifts with monetary value except college scholarships.” An exception lets athletes give lessons or coach clinics for pay.

Hines indicated that any GHSA proposal would not allow for collectives, as they’re known in college sports, to gather and disperse money to athletes. He said he would not support changing the GHSA rules regarding undue influence and recruiting to accommodate NIL.

“Let’s say a bunch of kids transferred into this one school, and everybody is doing NIL deals through the same company,” Hines said. “That’s undue influence by a booster.”

If Georgia moves ahead with allowing NIL deals, it could become only the third Southern state to do so. Tennessee and Louisiana allow NIL deals. North Carolina and Arkansas are considering it.

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Produced by Georgia High School Football Daily. To join the GHSF mailing list, click here.

The evil lurking in the grass

By
Lynn Walker Gendusa
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The year was 1961, and my parents were building their dream home in Tennessee. Mother and I had driven to the new house to meet a contractor on a hot August Saturday morning.

When we arrived, saws were buzzing, and men with hammers were pounding nails into rafters. Mom and the contractor tried to converse over the racket, and I began to stroll over to the vacant lot next to ours. A large oak tree on the far side beckoned me to come to enjoy her shade and quiet.

“Where are you going?” A voice startled me, and I quickly turned around to see a boy speaking to me.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I didn’t mean to make you jump!”

I met his gaze just as the sun caught the sprinkling of gold dust in his dark hazel eyes. His eyelashes curled up to his eyebrows, and his perfect teeth gleamed as he flashed a broad smile. He was stunning.

After the introductions, we ran and played in the vacant lot until we tired. Then we sat under the big oak tree to talk. Henry was thirteen and the son of the nice contractor Mom was meeting with.

After a while, we headed back to the partially built house. Henry was a few steps behind me when he yelled, “Don’t move, Lynn!”

I stopped dead still.

There was a large snake coiled in the tall grass in front of me.

Henry was able to calm me and keep my usual hysteria over such creepy, crawly creatures at bay as he directed me where to step so I could get around the snake.

When we reached my mother, I told her about the snake, introduced her to my new friend, and the three of us walked toward our car.

We waved goodbye, and as we did, tears welled in my eyes because I instinctively knew I would never see Henry again.

“Why are you upset?” Mama asked.

When I told her why, she understood and said, “It is sad, but you are right; you probably will not see the nice young man again.”

I, indeed, never did. Sixty years have passed, and yet I still recall the beautiful boy who saved me from the snake and talked with me under the shade of the oak tree.

Henry was African American, went to another school, and in the 1960s, it was often unacceptable to be close friends with someone of another race or, worse, to find them attractive.

I was born and bred in the segregated South, yet I never understood any form of racism. As a child, I remember thinking bigotry was absurd and wondered why folks judged people by the way they looked, the way they talked, or the color of their skin. I felt it was anti-God to do so. I still do.

Mama must have thought the same because I never heard her say a disparaging word about anyone. I recall this woman of few words, declaring once, “What’s race got to do with anything? Whether a person is good or evil doesn’t have a thing to do with the color of their skin!”

Because this exceptional person was my mother, hatred, and bias were not taught to me in words or actions. How grateful I am for her intelligence.

Do we really believe God judges us by the way we look? Or aren’t we judged by the actions of our souls? What if God created humans of different ethnicities, cultures, and colors to enable us to see with our hearts instead of our eyes? What if He is giving us a big ol’ test?

I know many folks who will need to go to summer school or be expelled if that is the case. There are people of all ethnicities who pass blame, resentment, and meanness down through many generations.

We ponder why there has been so much hatred and anti-everything in America. White Supremacist groups, terrorist groups, anti-Semitic groups, anti-Latino groups, anti-Asian, and anti-Caucasian groups are swelling. Organizations with messages that encourage hatred and violence.

Do they not understand they are hurting themselves, our country, and God?

Americans have made many steps toward equality since 1961, but there are still snakes in the grass waiting to cause harm, ready to upend strides forward and ready to strike at common sense and decency.

To save us from their evil, may we all exhibit honor and kindness so it shines like the sprinkling of gold dust in a young boy’s eyes.

______

Lynn Gendusa

Lynn Walker Gendusa is an author and columnist whose work appears regularly on NowHabersham.com and in USA Today newspapers. Her latest book is “Southern Comfort: Stories of Family, Friendship, Fiery Trials, and Faith.” She can be reached at www.lynngendusa.com. 

Controlled burn on Bramlett Ridge west of Clayton

By
Staff Report
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The U.S. Forest Service conducts controlled burns to reduce wildfire hazards and improve wildlife habitat. (file photo - USFS)

The Chattooga River Ranger District is conducting another controlled burn today in Rabun County. The prescribed fire on the 2,221-acre Bramlett Ridge is approximately 12 miles west of Clayton.

Forestry fire managers are burning dried vegetation and debris in the Chattahoochee-Oconee County National Forest to reduce the danger of wildfires and improve wildlife habitat.

This US Forest Service map highlights the Bramlett Ridge controlled burn area approximately 12 miles west of Clayton. (Source: USFS)

Burn operations were conducted earlier this week in the Warwoman Wildlife Management Area near Clayton.

To sign up for prescribed burn alerts for the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest, click here.

 

Firefighters respond to early morning blaze in Hall County

By
Joy Purcell
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Fire officials say this house on Holland Street was vacant when it went up in flames early Wednesday morning, April 12, 2023. (Hall County Fire Rescue)

Fire destroyed a vacant house in Hall County before dawn Wednesday morning.

Around 5 a.m. Hall County Fire Rescue arrived at a residential fire on the 1200 block of Holland Street.

“Upon arrival, units found a fully involved home with two exposures on the left and right side,” says Hall County Fire Rescue Public Information Officer Kimberlie Ledsinger. “Both exposures were extinguished quickly while other crews attacked the main residence defensively.”

After knocking down the flames, firefighters searched the residence and determined it was vacant. No one was injured on the scene.

Units from the Gainesville Fire Department assisted with the call. The cause of the fire is unknown at this time and is under investigation by the Hall County Fire Marshal’s Office.

Cleveland City Council holds public hearings on several pressing issues

By
Dean Dyer, WRWH Radio
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Cleveland City Administrator Kevin Harris presents proposed personnel policy changes to the city council in September 2022. The city council approved the 97-page update at its meeting on April 10, 2023. It's the first update to the city's personnel policies and procedures in nearly 30 years. (Dean Dyer/WRWH.com)

The Cleveland City Council took care of a lot of business during an almost two-and-a-half-hour meeting Monday night. Among the items were four public hearings.

Package stores

The council held the second public hearing on the sales of Package Distilled Spirits. City Attorney Keith Whitaker shared with the council a couple of minor changes to the ordinance to address commercial daycare and after-school locations.

The ordinance limits the number of package stores to three, and the stores are limited to city or state highways with three lanes or more.  The council, following the public hearing, approved the ordinance that became effective with the approval.

Land use map

A second public hearing was held as part of updating the city’s Comprehensive Plan and Future Land Use Map. The plan was last updated in 2021. Following the verbal comments and written comments submitted by two individuals attending the meeting, the council voted to postpone any action on this item until their first meeting in May to give them time to review the written comments.

Personnel policies

After a year-long process and following a second public hearing, the council approved a 97-page Personnel Policy and Procedures manual for city employees.  The last time there was a major update of these policies was in 1994.  The council decided they would work to keep these policies updated every three years.

Water leak protection

At Monday’s meeting, the Cleveland City Council also held its first public hearing on establishing a Leak Protection Plan for city water customers. City administrator Kevin Harris shared with the council the idea of implementing the program.

Harris said the program would be a self-insurance program to help residents when there is a water leak that could run up their utility bill. He said he favored the self-insured program where the city would add a $2.00 per month fee to the water bill, and that money would be used to pay for repairs that residents have between the city water meter and their home. It does not cover any leaks inside or under the residence.

Harris said the program would mirror what the White County Water Authority is doing for its customers.

According to Harris, if a customer determines they have a water leak between the water meter and their home, they would go ahead and get it repaired and present the bill to the city for reimbursement back on their water bill, up to $1,000 per year.

The subfreezing temperatures back in January resulted in several residential customers having water line breaks on their property, costing hundreds of dollars to fix.

The city will hold a second hearing and receive comments on this issue at their May 9 council meeting. Residents who prefer to make comments without going before the council may e-mail their comments to [email protected].

Georgia’s university workers rip state budget cuts at Gwinnett College building groundbreaking

By
Ross Williams
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Georgia Gwinnett College faculty members gather to raise awareness of budget cuts they say exacerbate existing funding problems. (Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder)

(GA Recorder) — The financial year for Georgia’s 26 public colleges and universities starts in July, with significant cuts for all institutions in the budget awaiting Gov. Brian Kemp’s signature.

The governor has 40 days from the end of the Legislative session to sign or veto legislation or to let them become law without his signature.

The budget passed by the state Legislature calls for a $66 million decrease in state funding, which a group of professors at Georgia Gwinnett College in Lawrenceville said will harm their ability to retain talent and instruct students.

Jill Penn, co-president of the United Campus Workers of Georgia and an associate professor of biology, said underfunding has been a problem for years, and many are worried the new cuts will make life even harder.

“We have a lot of vacancies, and they’re not filling them,” she said. “Some departments have lost 25% of their faculty in the last three years because people are so frustrated. I’m still here because I want to try to make a change, but other people are so frustrated they’re going somewhere else. They’re going to go somewhere where working conditions are better, they can get paid more, they’re respected. So I guess we’re here today to try to stop things from getting even worse and to turn things around.”

Penn and other members of the university union gathered on campus Tuesday to raise awareness about the cuts. The gathering came after campus leaders broke ground on a new convocation center, which Penn said suggests out-of-place priorities.

“We can’t take care of the stuff we have right now,” she said. “We’re not getting enough money for maintenance. We’re in a crisis. This money should be spent on people rather than a new building.”

Georgia Gwinnett taught about 11,000 of the state’s 334,000 college students in 2022. According to a release from the University System of Georgia, it would be set to lose more than $1.6 million if the governor approves the budget. The school’s current budget was just over $166.1 million, according to university system documents.

In a statement, Chancellor Sonny Perdue said 20 of the state’s public institutions are already set to receive less money next year because the state’s funding formula is based in part on enrollment numbers. Only Augusta University, Georgia Tech, Georgia State University, the University of Georgia, Kennesaw State University, and Georgia Southwestern State University saw enrollment increases between fall 2016 and fall 2022. The rest saw enrollment decline.

“This is an incredibly disappointing outcome, given the work done over the years by our state leaders to elevate higher education and send Georgia on a path to ascension,” Perdue said. “It will have a significant impact on institutions and the services that students and families depend on to advance their prosperity and help Georgia succeed.”

Perdue directed state lawmakers to slash the university system’s budget while he was governor during the Great Recession.

Union members from across the university system said low pay keeps talented teachers and researchers out of Georgia’s higher ed system.

Assistant professor Eric Castater said he has worked at Kennesaw State University for nearly four years, and the only cost of living adjustment he has received was the $5,000 approved by the state Legislature last year.

“While that increase has certainly been helpful, it has been insufficient to keep up with inflation in recent years,” he said in a statement. “A declining annual salary for existing employees is not good for employee morale, retention or recruitment.”

Nellie Cox, a graduate teaching assistant at Georgia State University, said she teaches three courses per year in exchange for a tuition waiver and a $13,000 stipend, which is not enough to live on in metro Atlanta.

“The situation is so dire that many in my cohort have taken on additional jobs just to make ends meet,” she said. “Very few of us can earn enough to live above the poverty line.”

A Georgia Gwinnett College copy room features a trash can dedicated to collecting water from a leaky ceiling. Prof. Jill Penn said she took the photo on April 6, 2023, but the bucket has been collecting droplets since 2019. (Photo via Jill Penn) 

Professors at Georgia Gwinnett said they have also seen important maintenance projects delayed, sometimes for years.

“There were a good three years where the automatic door that uses handicap access to open didn’t open, a good three years,” said Rebecca Ward, an associate professor of biology. “So when I would take people on tours around here, I would make sure we never went through that door so they didn’t see how bad it was. It’s embarrassing.”

As Ward spoke with the Recorder, she paused to greet a passing student and congratulate her for a recent award she had won.

“What’s special about GGC is our small class sizes and our dedicated faculty who came here specifically to teach as our primary obligation,” she said. “We know and love our students. We know their parents’ names, their brothers’ and sisters’ names. That’s the culture that we need to maintain and strengthen at GGC.”

Ward said she is hoping university leadership will prioritize paying faculty a fair wage and that state leadership will figure out a way to fund higher education.

Lawrenceville Democratic Sen. Nabilah Islam, whose district includes the university, spoke with some of the professors Tuesday after she and Dacula Democratic Rep. Farooq Mughal attended the groundbreaking ceremony.

Rep. Farooq Mughal and Sen. Nabilah Islam speak with campus workers and supporters at Georgia Gwinnett College. Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder 

Islam said she and her colleagues, whose districts include universities, are feeling the frustration.

“No one is happy with these budget cuts,” she said. “They were very expensive and very hurtful and disproportionately impact smaller universities and institutions like Georgia Gwinnett College.”

“I’m working with my Senate colleagues currently to figure out what we can do in the interim,” she added, “because I think that would be important if there is something that we can do to fight back against these cuts. We’ll definitely keep advocating for more funding.”

Sweet 16 Bound! Defense holds on as TFS makes history with first-ever playoff win

By
TFS Athletics
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Kyndal Anderson (Austin Poffenberger)

It came down the final horn, but the Lady Indians did what no team before them has – advance to the Sweet 16. TFS won 3-2 over Trion on Tuesday night, holding off a strong comeback attempt.

The #8-ranked Lady Indians immediately put pressure on Trion by posting a 2-0 lead in the first half. The Lady Bulldogs came in, allowing just 1.3 goals per game. Addie Higbie scored on an assist from Gemma Farris, and Tessa Foor notched a goal on a pass from Stasa Beratovic.

In the second half, the Lady Indians got another tally that proved the game-winner on a Higbie goal off a punt assist from keeper Kyndal Anderson.

“First playoff win ever – we’re celebrating,” exclaims coach Travis Mullis.

It was a strong first half with great defense, possession in the midfield, and finishes by Higbie and Foor. In the second half, Trion countered with a PK after a tireless attack and then got an own goal. The TFS game-winner was unusual, as Anderson punted the ball past midfield, and Higbie broke away for a 1-on-1 against the keeper and came away with the goal.

“All of the girls on the roster contributed minutes to this playoff win, and I couldn’t be happier,” adds Mullis. “For the coaches, it’s good to know we’re able to go back to work training these girls a little while longer. They’re a great group to work with. One Team, One Dream!”

The Lady Indians earned a single-season record 12th win and advance to their first Sweet 16.

GOALS

2 – Addie Higbie (42)
Tessa Foor (4)

ASSISTS

Gemma Farris (5)
Stasa Beratovic (4)
Kyndal Anderson (2)

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