Home Blog Page 807

Police investigation into Nashville school shooting continues

By
Lookout Staff
-
The Covenant School, where seven people, including the shooter, died in a mass shooting in Nashville, Tenn. on Monday March 27, 2023. (Photo: John Partipilo)

(Tennessee Lookout) — A day after an armed shooter stalked the hallways of The Covenant School in Nashville, killing three children and three adults, the law enforcement investigation continues.

Among the victims were three nine-year-old children: Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs, and William Kinney. The adults were Cynthia Peak, 61, a substitute teacher; Mike Hill, age 61, a custodian; and Covenant Head of Schools Katherine Koonce, 60.

The shooter was identified as a former student Audrey Elizabeth Hale, 28, killed by two Metro Nashville Police Officers who responded to the scene. Hale was armed with at least two assault rifles and a handgun, police said.

People gathered Monday night in vigils across the city to mourn the tragic losses; President Joe Biden ordered U.S. flags at half staff until sunset on Friday and the Metro Nashville Police Department began releasing new details of the events last Monday. There are more public gatherings planned for today. The Legislature reconvenes and law enforcement are expected release further details.

RELATED A grim theory on how we get gun safety laws

Monday marks Nashville’s third mass shooting in six years

The violence wrought Monday inside an elementary school is Nashville’s third mass shooting in six years.

In 2018, four people were killed when an armed gunman entered a south Nashville Waffle House restaurant in the early hours of a Sunday morning.

Burnette Chapel Church of Christ was targeted by a mass shooter in 2017. Monday night, the church shared its support for Covenant School on Facebook. (screen capture)

The victims were Joe Perez Jr., Taurean Sanderlin, Akilah Dasilva and DeEbony Groves.

Travis Reinking, the shooter, was sentenced to life in prison for the murders last year.

In 2017, an armed gunman opened fire at the Burnette Chapel Church of Christ in Nashville, killing one person and injuring six others who had gathered their for Sunday services.

The shooter, Emanuel Kidega Samson, was sentenced to life in prison in 2019.

On Monday, the Burnette Chapel Church of Christ posted a message of sorrow on Facebook.

Police release surveillance video

Police on Monday night released a portion of school surveillance video showing Hale driving a Honda Fit through the school’s parking, past a playground of children on swing sets, before parking, shooting down a double door into the schools and roaming empty hallways.

Police reported that Hall fired through a window at arriving police officers. Two members of an officer team fired on Hale in a second floor common area. Those officers were identified as Officer Rex Englebert, a 4-year Metro Nashville Police Department veteran, and Officer Michael Collazo, a 9-year-veteran.

Police said they have also found writings from Hale, including a manifesto and detailed maps of the building housing the school, in searches of a home and car connected to Hale.

 

‘Our community is heartbroken’

Late Monday, the school also released a statement expressing heartbreak and asking for privacy:

Our community is heartbroken. We are grieving tremendous loss and are in shock coming out of the terror that shattered our school and church. We are focused on loving our students, our families, our faculty and staff and beginning the process of healing.

Law enforcement is conducting its investigation, and while we understand there is a lot of interest and there will be a lot of discussion about and speculation surrounding what happened, we will continue to prioritize the well-being of our community.

We appreciate the outpouring of support we have received, and we are tremendously grateful to the first responders who acted quickly to protect our students, faculty and staff.

We ask for privacy as our community grapples with this terrible tragedy – for our students, parents, faculty and staff.

Report: Shooter texted friend shortly before shooting

WTVF in Nashville also reported late Monday that the shooter had texted a former basketball teammate in the minutes before the shooting.

A grim theory on how we get gun safety laws

By
Mark D. Harmon
-
In Nashville, Rev. Ingrid McIntyre hugs a mourner during a Monday night vigil for shooting victims at Belmont Methodist Church. (Photo: John Partipilo)

Nashville-based writers already have written movingly about the tragic gun crime at Covenant School, yet another school shooting — this one took the lives of three children and three adults.

Let me add this perspective from only a modest distance away, my adopted home of Knoxville is less than a 3-hour drive east of Nashville.

You see, I am a survivor of a hate crime involving blasts of gunfire.  My church, Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist, was having a special service on July 27, 2008; it was a children’s play, a condensed version of Annie.  A gunman came into our sanctuary early in the play, took out a modified shotgun hidden in a guitar case and blasted away. My friend and an usher that day, Greg McKendry, tried to stop that gunman.  Greg’s burly body took some of the blast, saving many lives — likely including my own.

I had reflexively dived under a pew by the time of the second blast. Several in my congregation, including John Bohstedt (dressed as Daddy Warbucks for the play) and another friend Jamie Parkey, tackled the gunman.  Greg bled out on the floor of the church he loved. A visitor, Linda Kraeger, there for the play also died, and six were wounded.  My wife, in an office at the time, was the first to call 911.  The gunman said he had targeted us to kill liberals, and he had brought 76 shells of #4 shot, ammunition for a bloodbath.

We will not have serious gun safety laws until those gun-fetishist legislators lose elections to brave challengers willing to defy convention and run loud and aggressive campaigns pointing out the blood on the incumbents’ hands.

I recall this story to explain a grim theory I have about how and when we finally will get effective and meaningful gun safety legislation in our state and our country. Dozens of dead children in Aurora, Uvalde, Parkland, and Newtown did not move our radical right legislators.  After this Nashville shooting, several predictably barfed some vacuous variation on “thoughts and prayers.”

We will not have serious gun safety laws until those gun-fetishist legislators lose elections to brave challengers willing to defy convention and run loud and aggressive campaigns pointing out the blood on the incumbents’ hands.

The political coalition to do this is being built by groups like Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America and Everytown for Gun Safety.  Their ranks grow daily not only by political persuasion, but also by tragic personal experience.  The Gun Violence Archive numbers from 2022 help explain.  That year alone 44,333 people overall died from gun violence, more than 20,000 from homicides, murders, (including 646 mass shootings) and accidents, and more than 24,000 from suicides. The number of injuries tallied 38,588 nationwide.

Now let’s assume those dead and injured leave each have six friends and relatives who reconsider any past hesitation on gun safety laws based on the hard realities of what has happened to people they know. That would mean every year of gun carnage in America leads to roughly half a million more people who have had enough of inaction, deflection, and denial. The gun extremists, by excusing the piles of dead and injured neighbors, are building the coalition that eventually will defeat their putrid cause.

The Gun Violence Archive numbers also give us strong clues about the kinds of legislation that must be passed.  Let’s start with laws to prohibit gun sales to spouse abusers. Let’s also allow the clinically depressed to put themselves on a no-purchase list so when deep despair strikes they will not succumb to the fleeting but strong desired to kill themselves. We can pass stronger laws requiring gun locks, licensing, background checks, training, and safe storage — and require insurance for all gun owners just as we require insurance for car drivers (and with stiff economic penalties and legal liability for those who fail any of those safety steps). Of course, we also must return to the days when we banned assault weapons from sale, and provably reduced deaths from those weapons.

Different steps will be needed to deal with the hate and mental illness lingering behind America’s tragic gun death tallies, but failure to solve all the deaths cannot be used as an excuse not to take steps that will avoid many of the deaths and injuries. We stand far ahead of other nations in gun deaths, and have more guns than people. It’s time to elevate the people over the guns in our plans for our future together.

____________

Mark D. Harmon

Mark D. Harmon is a professor of journalism and electronic media at the University of Tennessee. 

Prosecutor oversight bill headed to Kemp; local control concerns dismissed

By
Stanley Dunlap
-
On the next to last day of the 2023 legislative session, Georgia House lawmakers sent a bill to the governor that creates an oversight commission that could dispense discipline for local prosecutors who face allegations of misconduct. (Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder)

(GA Recorder) — The Georgia General Assembly sent a controversial bill to the governor’s desk Monday to create a new disciplinary board for the state’s local district attorneys.

On the 39th day of the 40-day legislative session, the GOP-controlled House approved the creation of a prosecuting attorneys oversight commission by a 92-77 vote, largely along party lines. The commission would have a five-member investigative panel and a three-member hearing panel to review complaints lodged against prosecutors and dish out punishment that could include removal from their elected office.

Senate Bill 92 also specifies the prosecutor’s and solicitor’s responsibilities, including reviewing each case individually to determine probable cause and making a charging decision based on the details of the case.

Democratic lawmakers and other critics argue that the Republicans’ plan removes prosecutorial discretion in deciding how cases should be prioritized in each community. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis investigating former President Donald Trump for election interference after he lost to President Joe Biden in 2020. Republicans also criticized Athens-Clarke District Attorney Deborah Gonzalez after she said she would not prioritize low-level marijuana possession charges.

“We have grounds for removal, and it’s very narrow,” Dallas Republican Rep. Joseph Gullett said while defending the legislation. “If there’s a complaint, there must be a sworn affidavit detailing personal knowledge of the facts supporting the complaint. If there’s disciplinary action, that can be appealed to the Superior Court of the county where the district attorney or solicitor general served.”

According to Lilburn Democratic Rep. Jasmine Clark, the bill gives the commission too much latitude to dismiss a prosecutor from office, including for not pursuing cases at their discretion.

“Who decides what’s the willful and persistent failure to carry out their duties?” Clark asked during the hour-long debate on Monday.

The Senate version of the district attorney oversight bill differed from Gullett’s legislation to give state lawmakers authority to appoint the commission, while the sponsor’s measure gives that authority to the Georgia Supreme Court.

Gullett and other supporters say the state oversight will provide a better chance of getting rid of bad district attorneys rather than waiting until the next election or clearing a high bar like a criminal indictment of the prosecutor. Police officers and judges are now subject to similar commissions that can impose penalties.

Atlanta Democratic Rep. Tanya Miller said the timing of the bill suggests Republicans may not be pleased with the record number of minority women appointed as lead prosecutors over the last couple of years.

“It undermines democracy by silencing local voices while really doing nothing at all to make our community safer,” she said.

Planetary alignment this week

By
Tyler Penland
-
Saturn (left) and Jupiter (right) cast their reflections on the waters of Strawberry Reservoir, Utah in June 2020. On December 21, 2020, these two giant gas planets will align in the southwestern sky and shine as a 'Christmas Star.' (Image credit: NASA/Bill Dunford)

A good planetary alignment will be visible in the skies across North Georgia this week.

A combo of 5 planets and the moon will grace the evening sky. Jupiter and Mercury will be the hardest to see down very close to the horizon. You’ll need a good western horizon and some good vision to pick out Mercury, but  Jupiter should stand out nicely against the background despite being so low.

Above that, Venus and Uranus will be hanging very close to each other. Venus is extremely bright, but you’ll need a pair of binoculars or a small telescope to pick out the nearby Uranus.

On Monday night, the moon will join the party with Mars just above.

Planetary alignments like this aren’t particularly rare, and with Jupiter/Mercury being so close to the horizon, this one isn’t particularly impressive, but that doesn’t make it any less beautiful.

By Friday and Saturday, the view will get even better as Mercury climbs higher in the sky, making it easier to see.

Be sure to get out this week and watch the skies!

Weekend storms roar across Georgia, downing trees and flooding roadways

By
GPB News
-
This photograph from the Georgia Emergency Management Agency shows storm damage in central Georgia.

Several lines of storms moved through the state Friday through Monday.

Gov. Brian Kemp and other officials surveyed the damage around LaGrange and Milledgeville late Monday after strong storms tore through those communities over the weekend.

Troup County sustained the most damage, with up to 100 structures reportedly damaged by the system.

The National Weather Service confirmed at least one tornado in that outbreak.

The storm also caused damage in Baldwin County.

Kemp declared a State of Emergency Sunday as counties began cleanup efforts.

Georgia Power has reported about 7,000 customers across the state without power.

An aerial view shows water rushing through High Falls State Park in Monroe County after severe storms brought rain and flooding on March 27, 2023. (Georgia Dept. of Natural Resources)
Campers are rescued from the floodwaters at High Falls State Park. All campers were safely evacuated. (Monroe County Fire and EMS)

A heavy storm early Monday caused street flooding in Macon.

NWS issued the following forecast for central and southern parts of Alabama and Georgia through March 29, 2023.

________

This article appears on Now Habersham through a news partnership with GPB News

Take it or leaf it: House sends blower bill back to Senate

By
Ross Williams
-

(GA Recorder) — The Georgia Legislature is one step closer to passing a bill designed to protect gas-powered leaf blowers and appliances from cities and counties that might seek to restrict them.

Lawmakers attached a slew of other bills to the original leaf blower bill, including provisions regarding de-annexing properties from cities and county bodies called Commercial Property Assessed Conservation, Energy Resiliency Development Authorities.

So-called Christmas tree legislation becomes more common when a legislative session nears its end and lawmakers rush to get their bills across the finish line before time runs out for the year. Wednesday is the final day for this year’s session.

In House and Senate committee hearings, the bill’s author, Johns Creek Republican Sen. Shawn Still, said no Georgia municipality has banned gas blowers, but cities and counties in other states are doing so, and preventing such moves in Georgia will protect landscaping businesses from having to spend big dollars on tools he says are inferior.

Several Atlanta-area homeowners came to committee hearings and urged lawmakers to vote down Senate Bill 145, arguing that gas blowers are noisier than their electric brethren and governments should have the freedom to decide at a local level which yard care appliances to promote.

Controversy over gas stoves has simmered in the background for years, recently flaring up after a commissioner on the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said the agency would begin considering regulations on new gas stoves because of safety concerns.

Smyrna Democratic Rep. Teri Anulewicz said bills like Still’s strip local governments of power, comparing them to a snipe hunt, a classic shenanigan in which a prankster sends a rube into the forest to hunt a nonexistent animal.

“The thing about a snipe hunt is that you send someone on a quest to find something that they will never find, and that’s a little bit what these preemptions are like,” she said. “They are special interest groups mad libbing legislation in an attempt to send the General Assembly on a quest to keep cities and counties from outlawing something that no one is even trying to outlaw. It is a waste of our time.”

Duluth Democratic Rep. Ruwa Romman said passing the bill would undo work the state has done to become a hub for clean energy.

“This is a blatant attempt to stop that,” she said. “It’s like we keep moving one step forward and three steps back. Those things are exciting. We’ve got kids right now in schools who are preparing for those jobs, and now you’re telling me by the time they graduate, those jobs might not be there anymore?”

Cornelia Republican Rep. Victor Anderson characterized Democratic complaints as overblown.

“There’s nothing in either of those bills that prevents a local governing authority from implementing energy efficiency or environmental programs that are incentive based,” he said. “What it does is it prevents them from penalizing lack of participation in those programs. We’re not saying that you can’t have programs. We’re not saying you can’t promote those types of energy choices, but we are saying that you can’t mandate them and penalize a lack of participation.”

Valdosta Republican Rep. John LaHood saw Anulewicz’ snipe and raised her a goat and a squirrel.

“You can get a goat to climb a tree, but you’re better off to hire a squirrel,” he said. “In other words, your landscape provider, if he can do a better job with a gas leaf blower than he can with an electric, let him do his job. And if you want to hire a landscape crew that uses all electric, then do that. It’s up to you. Nobody’s telling you that you can’t use the leaf blower of your choice. The bill just says that the local government cannot treat one type of blower different than the other.”

The bill cleared the House Monday with a 103-to-67 vote. It now heads back to the Senate, where the original leaf blower bill passed 37-16.

Longtime Cleveland public works director dies

By
Dean Dyer, WRWH Radio
-

The city of Cleveland is mourning the loss of its longtime public works director. Donald Hunt passed away Monday. He was 86.

Cleveland Mayor Josh Turner released the following statement Monday:

“The City of Cleveland extends our deepest condolences to the family of Donald Hunt. Mr. Hunt faithfully served as the Director of Public Works and was employed by the City of Cleveland for 68 continuous years. Donald was our friend and colleague and the void his death leaves cannot be filled. Please join the City Council and I, along with all of our employees, in praying for his sons, Rick and Paul, and all of the Hunt family.”

Funeral services for Donald Hunt are scheduled for 1 p.m. Wednesday, March 29, at the chapel of Barrett Funeral Home in Cleveland. Visitation will be held at the funeral home from 2–4 and 6-8 p.m. Tuesday, March 28.

 

Cleveland City Hall and the city offices will close at 4 p.m. Tuesday and will remain closed all day on Wednesday, March 29, to allow city employees an opportunity to attend visitation and funeral services.

Donald Hunt obituary

Donald Hunt

By
Now Habersham
-

Donald Hunt, age 86, of Cleveland, passed away on Monday, March 27, 2023.

Mr. Hunt was born on November 15, 1936, in Cleveland, Georgia, to the late Jim and Carrie Gilland Hunt. Donald was the Public Works Director for the City of Cleveland and a member of Mt. View Baptist Church. In addition to his parents, Mr. Hunt was preceded in death by his wife, Edith Hunt; grandson, Shay Hunt; daughter-in-law, Glenda Hunt; and sisters, Shelby Fields and Cathy Hunt.

Survivors include his sons and daughters-in-law, Ricky and Wetaunah Hunt, Cleveland, and Paul and Patti Hunt, Cleveland; grandchildren, Andrea Evans, Kel Befile, Lindsey Befile, Jessica Wineland, Rachel Timmons, and Joel Johnson; great-grandchildren, Riley Swafford, Sailor Swafford, Gage Simmons, Aiden Hunt, Meagan Gable, Summer Hardy, Shay Carter, and Ryder Timmons; siblings, Brad Hunt, James Hunt, Lunette Hulsey, and Geraldine Ravan.

Funeral services are scheduled for 1:00 P.M. Wednesday, March 29, 2023, at The Chapel of Barrett Funeral Home. The Rev. Mike Irvin, the Rev. Eddie Mitchell, and the Rev. Dave Fortner will officiate. Interment will follow in Mt. View Baptist Church.

The family will receive friends from 2:00 – 4:00 P.M. and 6:00 – 8:00 P.M. Tuesday at the funeral home.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Mt. View Baptist Church Youth Group – 258 Kanady Road, Cleveland, GA 30528 or to White County Backpack Buddies – 136 Warriors Path, Cleveland, GA 30528.

To share a memory or to leave an online condolence for the family, please visit www.barettfh.com.

Barrett Funeral Home of Cleveland.

Joan (Chastain) Cole

By
Now Habersham
-

Joan (Chastain) Cole was born on 2 June 1955 to Wm Barnett and Dora Mae Chastain. She passed from this life on 24 March 2023.

She was the youngest of ten children. She was raised in the Sautee-Nachoochee Valley near Helen, GA, and graduated from White County High School in 1975. Those are the basic facts of her life… but what follows is how the dash in between was lived.

She was a vivacious, sensitive, fun-loving person. She had a deep, abiding faith in God and it showed in everything throughout her life. She was the loving wife of Clay, her husband, for almost 47 years. Together, they pursued a military career and they did all of the things that military families do throughout a career. Joan was the bedrock of the family and was constantly engaged in all the things that the distaff did to support their Army spouses. She worked at the thrift shops, worked special event fundraisers, chaired committees, worked at the on-post schools, and did whatever behind-the-scenes work was required to support “the Army”. She loved the work, never complained, and was always there to lend a hand. She had a servant’s heart and it showed in everything she did.

Her greatest loves were her husband, Clay, and her two daughters, Carrie and Lindsay. She devoted every waking moment to their well-being, often sacrificing what she wanted in favor of her family. She was the consummate room mother and teachers clamored for her support. She was undoubtedly the best baker that ever sprinkled flour into a baking pan, and she constantly showered her friends and family with baked goods.

After the Army and later in life, there came the two sons-in-law, Jason and Luke. She loved them both dearly, as they were the sons she never had. Soon, there was another great love, her granddaughter, Sarah. Just as with her girls, Joan, the room mother swung into action and she took up being a fantastic grandmother until the end of her days.

She loved her girls and loved to do things with them, and especially loved to shop. She could shop all day, touch every item in every store in town and not buy a single thing and be perfectly happy! She never met a stranger. She loved her husband with a fervor that few men will ever know. She was a born again Child of God and made sure that everyone knew it. She is gone from us now, but she is in God’s Holy Presence and rejoicing in heaven. Her illnesses are gone and she is no longer in pain. She has a new and glorious body and walks the streets of gold. We love her, we miss her terribly, and know that we shall see her again in God’s good time.

In addition to her parents, Joan was preceded in death by her sisters, Brenda Chastain, Emily Bloodworth, Bethenia Bacon, Sarah Brooks; brothers, Howard Chastain, James Chastain, & Arthur Chastain.

Joan was also survived by her sister, Jewell Brookshire; brother, Coleman Chastain; many nieces, nephews, extended relatives, & friends.

Services will be held at 10:00 A.M., Thursday, March 30, 2023, at Ramsey Funeral Home, Georgetown, TX, with interment to follow at Central Texas State Veterans Cemetery in Killeen, TX.

An online guest registry is available for the Chastain & Cole families at www.HillsideMemorialChapel.com.

This announcement is courtesy of Hillside Memorial Chapel & Gardens of Clarkesville, Georgia. (706) 754-6256

Motorcyclist killed in head-on collision with pickup truck

By
Staff Report
-
A motorcyclist was struck and killed by a pickup truck on Hwy. 106 about 8 miles south of Toccoa on Sunday, March 26, 2023. Charges are pending against the truck driver, state troopers say.

The Georgia State Patrol has identified the person killed in a head-on collision Sunday in Stephens County as 44-year-old James Kelley of Eastanollee. Kelley was driving a Kawasaki motorcycle on State Route 106 south of Toccoa when a Ford F150 crossed the center line and struck the motorcycle head-on, state troopers say.

The 44-year-old Kelley was thrown fifty feet into a ditch. He died at the scene, says GSP Post 7 Commander Donnie Sadler. A small fire broke out after the crash.

The pickup truck driver, 77-year-old Jane Pulliam of Toccoa, sustained apparent minor injuries in the wreck. Charges are pending against her.

The wreck was reported at 4:16 p.m. on March 26 near New Hope Road. The fatal crash shut down the highway near the accident site for several hours.

Investigators with GSP’s Troop B Specialized Collision Reconstruction Team (SCRT) are assisting with the investigation.

TFS Legends: Sarah Jennings

By
TFS Athletics
-
Sarah Jennings (Crump Photo)

Editor’s Note: “TFS Legends” is a regular sports feature spotlighting the achievements of standout athletes at Tallulah Falls School in Habersham County.

Sarah Jennings personifies what it means to be a legend. She will leave Tallulah Falls School as a legendary volleyball player — perhaps the best to ever suit up for the Lady Indians — but she’s an even better teammate, student, and person. The holder of six school records has achieved success on and off the court and leaves behind a lasting legacy that includes a state championship and a humble attitude that elevates those around her.

Since the age of 10, Jennings has fine-tuned her craft in the game of volleyball. Starting out some 8 years ago, she’s learned more than just the skills necessary to become the greatest volleyball player in Tallulah Falls School history. While she has given the school and the sport so much, it has granted her much more in return.

“This sport has given me so many lifelong friendships and memories that I will never forget,” says Jennings. “It has given me opportunities to not only better my skill, but better myself as a person. Volleyball has always been a safe place where I can just put the world aside and pursue my passion. I will forever be grateful for this sport.”

The old adage ‘records were made to be broken’ rang true for Jennings. Though her goals were not always set on becoming the all-time leader in kills, digs, or aces, her elite level of play led to her finding those records on the way. While those categories have her name etched on the leaderboard, she recognizes they belong to all her teammates, coaches, fans, and family.

“I am so grateful for the amazing teams that I have been a part of that have encouraged, supported, and helped me to accomplish these goals,” states Jennings. “I would not be where I am today without my teammates, my coaches, and my family. Teamwork and trust are two very important aspects of volleyball, and without a good pass and set, I never could’ve gotten so many kills. The excitement on the court, on the bench, in the student section, and from the fans fueled me and pushed me to be my best. It means so much to me that I have been given these amazing opportunities to work hard and challenge myself and have such a successful outcome.”

Jennings’ career school records include kills (1,085), digs (1,025), and aces (283). She also holds single-match records in kills (28) and digs (28), as well as the single-season kills mark of 417. She is the school’s lone Region/Area Player of the Year and is the only player in TFS history to be named 1st-Team All-Area three times.

Still, she’d exchange all the accolades and stats for what she was able to accomplish in her final season at TFS — a state championship. In the team’s historic 2022 run that included 35 wins, the first-ever Area Championship, and going 14-0 at home, Tallulah Falls defeated a record eight wins over state-ranked opponents on the way to the GHSA 1A State Championship over Mt. Bethel. Few players ever get the chance to play for a title, let alone win one in their final match of their high school career. It was a storybook ending for Jennings that even she couldn’t have written going into the season.

“It is every volleyball player’s dream to win a state championship,” says Jennings. “I never thought that this could be a reality for the Tallulah Falls team due to the fact that we had never made it past the Sweet 16. Our team worked harder than any TFS team that I have ever been a part of. From the first round of state playoffs, we wanted every game so badly, and we were going to do whatever it took to win. We gave 100% in every practice and worked to improve our individual skills along with our team chemistry. When it came down to our last practice, knowing that I would play my last high school volleyball game the next day, I was fulfilled. I was so at peace with the ending of this chapter in my life. To be able to share this unforgettable experience with such a great group of girls means the world to me. I could never have wished for a better way to end my senior season.”

The common theme in Jennings’ success is others around her. Those people — the family, teammates, coaches, teachers, and fans — have impacted her life as she has impacted theirs. There are so many teammates that Jennings feels close to over the years that impacted her.

“From the start of my freshman year, I have had so many great teammates that have impacted my life,” recalls Jennings. “Getting to play with my sister, Rebekah, was really special for my freshman and sophomore year. Kate Blackburn (‘19) and Katy Corbett (‘20) also took me under their wing from day one and encouraged me to be my absolute best. Walking onto the team as a little freshman was scary, but they made me feel so comfortable and welcome. From sophomore year to this day, some of my best friends on and off the court have been Corbett, Barrett Whitener (‘21), and Addy McCoy (rising senior). To have such great friends who constantly encourage you to be your best and who want the best for you is a feeling like no other. Knowing that you all share the same passion for volleyball just makes it that much better. Allie Dalton (‘21) has also been very impactful. When she first started setting me in tenth grade, it took a lot of practice to get the chemistry we needed to succeed. Once we found that connection, it was a whole new game. She gave me the great sets that I needed to succeed as a hitter.”

For her senior season, Jennings named every player individually, as well as all the coaches by name, on the 2022 roster as being impactful to her and to the team’s success in hoisting that championship trophy.

“Coach [Matt] Heyl has encouraged and supported me since I started playing for him,” adds Jennings. “He has always had my best interest and the team’s best interest at heart, and I really appreciate that. He does so much for us behind the scenes to ensure our success while also always having fun and laughing with us constantly. This coaching staff has cheered me on relentlessly and helped me accomplish the goals that I thought I couldn’t. I already miss playing with this team, but I will never forget the memories and friendships that I have made.”

While Jennings’ records may eventually fall — though not anytime soon — those memories and friendships will never be replaced. On the court, Jennings pushes herself to be the best for her team, and typically practices four days per week and 10-15 tournaments all over the southeast during club ball. She has spent countless hours in the gym and weight room. It’s an exhausting routine that spans the whole year, but Jennings’ love for the game keeps her going.

“I wouldn’t trade any of it for the world,” exclaims Jennings. “I really enjoy pushing myself to be better and seeing the rewards for my perseverance. For me, volleyball is year-round and a lot of time and effort, but it provides me a place to step away from the world and all of life’s issues and do what I really love.”

Jennings is committed to playing at Covenant College in Lookout Mountain, Georgia. In the fall of 2023, she will pen a new chapter in her life. It’s a chapter that both includes and sets her up for a bright future.

“From the first day that I toured Covenant, I felt like it was the place that I was meant to be,” states Jennings. “I was able to meet with the coaches and eat lunch with the volleyball team, and it just made me feel at home. I am excited to get in the gym with the team and work hard so that I can benefit the team’s defense. I plan on majoring in psychology and going to Occupational Therapy School in hopes of becoming a pediatric OT. I am so excited to begin this new chapter in my life at Covenant College.”

History often repeats itself. As a master in leaving a legacy and making history, Jennings will no doubt have a lasting impact on those she encounters at Covenant and beyond.

Pilot killed in weekend crash in Hall County identified

By
Staff Report
-

A Gainesville man who died Saturday in an ultralight aircraft crash in northern Hall County has been identified as Larry Franklin Preiss.

The 75-year-old Preiss was piloting an AR1 gyroplane that went down in a hay field on private property.

The crash was reported shortly after 2 p.m. on March 25 on Clarks Bridge Road just north of Glade Farm Road. No one on the ground was injured, the Hall County Sheriff’s Office says.

Authorities transported Preiss’ body to the Dekalb County Medical Examiner’s Office for autopsy.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) are investigating to determine the cause of the crash.

SEE ALSO

Man threatened to harm himself before his body was found in Lake Lanier, officials say

1...806807808...2,554Page 807 of 2,554
© Copyright 2025 - Now Habersham