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The True Citizen
P.O.Box 948
Waynesboro, GA 30830
(706) 554-2111
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1/16/02
City Council Meeting Date Changed, Former Chief Interested In Returning
By Allen Smith
 True Citizen Staff Writer

The Sardis City Council agreed Monday night, Jan. 14, to move its monthly meeting to the third Tuesday of each month in 2002 effective with its February meeting. The decision came as the board held its first meeting of the year and handled a variety of city matters. This means the next council meeting will be at 7 p.m. Feb. 19. Council settled a dispute with a resident over sewage rates and was informed that former police chief Johnny Muns is interested in returning to the position he vacated several months ago. During the sparse committee reports, councilman Doug Jenkins, who oversaw the police department committee, told council that four applications had been received and none seemed suitable for the job of police chief.

The deadline for applications was Dec. 28 of 2001. He also reported that Muns, who left the department for Kwikset, has expressed an interest in returning to the post. "I hear that Johnny Muns would be interested in coming back if we gave him a small raise from what he was making when he left," he said. Muns was earning $534.92 per week when he left the force. Hamilton appointed the three council members present to look into the matter and make a recommendation to the full council at the next scheduled meeting. With two members absent, council managed to have a quorum so the meeting could take place. First order of business included installing the mayor and council members elected last fall. Mayor John Hamilton was re-installed while council members Doug Jenkins and Donnie Hickman were also sworn in. Hamilton and Jenkins ran unopposed while Hickman defeated incumbent Todd Campbell for the seat.

Club
Makes
Good On
Promise
The Waynesboro Rotary Club recently fulfilled its commitment to the Waynesboro-Burke Campus of Augusta Tech. The Rotary Club had pledged to donate a total of $25,000, over a period of five years, to aid in the building of the facility. A perpetual scholarship in the amount of $750 has also been created with this donation to be awarded each year to a Burke County resident enrolled at the Waynesboro-Burke campus. Shown receiving the final check in the amount of $10,000 are, from left, Clifton Lewis; Terry Elam, Augusta Tech president; Clint Meeks, Waynesboro Rotary Club president; and Dr. Thomas Clark, Waynesboro-Burke campus vice president of operations.
Un'bee'lievable Luck
Talk about lucky!
Evans Horton, 11, is the genuine owner of this giant 'beehive' used in "Dr. Doolittle 2", starring Eddie Murphy. Evans' mom, Joanne, actually won the prize when she bought the flick off of moviegallery.com and was automatically entered into the contest. Last month, the third place prize was delivered to their Waynesboro home in a box so big that Evans' thought he was getting a television for Christmas. When Evans first opened his authentic movie prop … well, he wasn't quite sure what to make of the colossal fiberglass contraption. But now, you could say he's as tickled as a bee in honey.
Winter Driving 101
By Ben Roberts
 True Citizen Staff Writer
I am of the belief that the general population is made up of bad drivers - people who can't or won't use turn signals, or those who don't know how to change lanes, etc. - and that's on a good day. When you throw a little ice and snow into the mix, especially in the South, nearly everyone drops a level or two on the competence scale. So it was with a laugh and a shake of the head that I read the reports of some of the accidents that occurred a couple of weeks ago during our so-called winter storm. It's not entirely our fault, though. I mean I was born and raised in this state, and I can probably count on two hands the number of times I've had to drive in such conditions. I did get some good practice one day in November a couple of years ago, though. In the fall of '97 a good friend of mine by the name of Danny Mayer convinced me to move with him and another friend to Missoula, Mont., for a year.

We left from Montgomery, Ala., the first week of September; I was wearing shorts, a T-shirt and a pair of flip-flops. Two days later I was sleeping in my truck at a rest area in South Dakota, layered in clothes and certain I would freeze before sunrise. We made it to Montana and while it was one of the coolest falls I had ever experienced, it was supposedly one of the mildest the state had ever had. To make a long story short, things didn't turn out exactly as planned. The other guy sort of had a fianc‚ back in Alabama, and she made it clear that if he intended on keeping her, then he should cut his stay short. Very short. He left two days after Thanksgiving. Well, with that Danny and I knew we couldn't afford the rent and would have to make some other plans. Not wanting to crawl back to Georgia with my tail between my legs, I found a job opportunity in another state out west that would start in January. The prospect sounded good, I just had to get to the interview in Helena, about three hours away. This wasn't a big deal, until I woke up the day of the interview to find Missoula buried in snow. Now one of the things that really separates folks in Georgia from those in Montana is their reaction to such winter weather. I was used to not being able to find a loaf of bread at the grocery store and whole towns shutting down at even the slightest hint of snow from the weatherman.

There was another guy riding with me to the interview who was born in Montana, so I decided to call him and get his take on the situation. "What do we do about the interview?" I asked. "What do you mean?" "Well, do you think they're still having it?" "Of course they are, why wouldn't they?" "What about the weather?" "What about it, it's winter in Montana. You mean you didn't know it was going to snow in Montana?" "Of course I knew it snowed in Montana, I just didn't think it all came down in one night," I defended. "Your truck's a four-wheel drive, right?" "Yeah," I answered. "So what's the problem?" "The problem is I'm from Georgia, I've never driven in weather like this." "Well, I'd say you're about to get your chance. Hurry up though, we need to get across those mountain passes before visibility gets too bad." When I got to the guy's house, he came out with two big duffle bags. "We're only going to be gone for a couple of hours?" I noted. "Well, I like to be prepared, so I packed a few things . . ." "Like?" "Extra clothes, some food, a flashlight and a survival suit." "A survival suit?" "Yeah, sorry though, I've only got one and I don't think it'll fit you." As we left Missoula, I got my first real lesson on snow and ice driving. I noticed a woman trying to cross the street, being the southern gentleman that I am; I stopped to let her cross.

I watched in horror as the truck behind me slid into a 360 degree skid. The truck came to rest beside me against the curb. Even with both the driver's and my own windows rolled up, I could hear him explain that my choice of action had not been the smartest. Of course, the fella's hand gestures helped convey his point. The next three hours proved to be some of the most harrowing of my life and after crossing two mountain passes, maneuvering against 18-wheelers on windy roads and dodging mule deer and big horn sheep, I had survived about as many lessons as I wanted. All the danger and hassle was worth it, though, since the company offered me the job at the end of the interview. So what kind of job could be worth such a trip? Well, it was a chance to work on a crab processing ship off the coast of Alaska for the winter .but then that's another winter tale entirely.
Legal Organ of Burke County, Waynesboro, Sardis, Midville, Keysville, and Girard