July 22, 2016
Board of
Commissioners
County Cuts Ribbon on New Sentence Enforcement Department
Regular Meetings August 2 at 9:00 AM August 16 at 6:30 PM Meetings held at: Administration Building Community Room 140 Henry Parkway McDonough, GA 30253 Regular Commission meetings air daily on Henry TV Channel 180 and AT&T U-Verse Channel 99, at 9 a.m. & 7 p.m.
County officials cut the ribbon on the new Sentence Enforcement Department. Pictured (l. to r.) Director Carl Brown, District III Commissioner Gary Barham, Chief Judge Ben W. Studdard, Chairman Tommy Smith, District IV Commissioner Blake Prince, District I Commissioner Bo Moss and County Manager Lyndon Bonner.
The Henry County Board of Commissioners, Henry County Court officials and other county staff were on hand to cut the ribbon on the new Sentence Enforcement Department, located at 530 Hampton St. in McDonough. The Sentence Enforcement Department has taken over the county’s probation services’ needs, which were previously contracted out. The office is led by Carl Brown, the department’s new director. The Sentence Enforcement Department is now housed in a county-owned building at the corner of McDonough Parkway and S.R. 20. Ben W. Studdard, Chief Judge of the State Court of Henry County, thanked the Henry County Board of Commissioners for its support of the new department, along with various county departments for their assistance in making the building ready and operational. “Some important work is going to happen in this building. My fellow judges and I can impose sentences over at the courthouse and we do that all day long, but Continued on page 5
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July 22, 2016 Published by Henry County Communications Department The Henry County Board of Commissioners
Editor Melissa Robinson
Graphic Designer Meredith Butler Samantha Watson
Layout Designer Samantha Watson
Contributors Melissa Robinson Samantha Watson Kevin Williams
Boy Scout Pack 66 makes cares packages for officers
The Henry County Police Department would like to thank the Pack 66 Tussahaw Cub Scouts for making and delivering care packages for our Police Officers. The scouts visited the Police Department on Thursday, July 14, and were able to interact with the officers before they began their shift. Our officers are very appreciative of the show of support by the citizens of Henry County. henrycounty-ga.org
County Applies For And Is Awarded Grant Funding The Henry County Juvenile Court was awarded a grant from the Office of the Governor’s Criminal Justice Coordinating Council to continue the coordination of the Functional Family Therapy program. The grant award totals $239,811 and has no match requirement from the county. The grant aims to fund community-centered, evidence based programs that reduce the number of children removed from their families as a result of crimenogenic factors. The Functional Family Therapy program address the needs of youth who are typically committed to the Department of Juvenile Justice. Acceptance of the funding was approved at the July 19 Commission meeting, as was the application for further grant funding for the District Attorney’s Victim Services program. The Victim Services program is applying for the Victims of Crime Act Fund, distributed by the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council that offers $11,587 in funding for the enhancement and expansion of existing services. The grant would require a match of $2,897 that the Victim Services program is prepared to meet with volunteer hours only. If awarded the grant, the Victim Services program will apply the funds to training and education expenses, travel expenses, witness room updates, technology updates and counseling services for victims of crime.
15th Annual Tennis Clinic to Be Held on August 6 The 15th Annual Jac Roth Free Tennis Clinic will be held on Saturday, August 6 from 9 a.m. to noon at Richard Craig Park in McDonough with registration starting at 8:15 a.m. The first 50 participants to register will receive a free T-shirt. The clinic is free to everyone and open to all age and experience levels. Participants will learn the basic fundamentals of the serve, volley, forehand and backhand from experienced volunteer tennis instructors. Equipment will be provided by the Henry County Parks and Recreation Department as well as the instructors themselves. Participants will be split into age groups ranging from Elementary up to Adult and will have the
opportunity to win prizes during court lessons. Ball machines will be set up for more experienced players who wish to focus on consistency. The clinic will be followed by a free weenie roast/cook out provided by clinic sponsors such as the McDonald family, Legacy Ford, Herman and Joeann Compton, Union Grove Tennis Camp and many more. Jac Roth was the founder of the Free Tennis Clinic. Herman and Joeann Compton and the McDonald family honor his memory by continuing the clinic 15 years after his passing. For more information about the clinic or the Henry County Tennis Association contact the Recreation Department at (770) 288-7300.
County Breaks Ground on Fire Station No.15 A groundbreaking for Fire Station #15 took place today in Hampton on North Mt. Carmel Rd., the second groundbreaking for a fire station in District II in recent months.
Henry County Commission Chairman Tommy Smith, District I Commissioner Bo Moss, District III Commissioner Gary Barham, District IV Commissioner Blake Prince, Fire Chief Nish Willis and other fire department staff and construction team members were in attendance for the groundbreaking ceremony. “The Fire Department has come a long way in Henry County and I’m just so proud that we have this today and it’s going to better serve the county,” stated Barham.
Fire Station No. 15 is being built on 2.36 acres at 325 N. Mt. Carmel Road in Hampton and will feature 9,517sf, three bays, sleeping quarters, kitchen, laundry, common living area, fitness room, staff offices and battalion chief’s quarters. “I am certainly proud to be at this groundbreaking and be able to provide a comfortable and safe place for the firefighters to respond out of. We look forward to more fire stations in the future and the staffing that goes with it to make us available to the public and their needs,” stated Chief Willis. The architect is Bill Howell with the Howell Group out of Marietta and the contractor is Headley Construction of Newnan, GA. The new fire station is made possible under the SPLOST IV initiative and has a budget of $2,440,000. Expected completion date is April, 2017. For more information on the Henry County Fire Department, log on to www.henrycounty-ga.org/fire. For more information on SPLOST, please log on to www.henrycounty-ga.org/splost.
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July 22, 2016 Commissioner Lends a Helping Hand to a Veteran in Need
Henry County District IV Commissioner Blake Prince lent a helping hand to a fellow veteran in need this past weekend by participating in a home repair project with American Legion Post 516. Prince assisted with painting, cleanup and other minor repairs, along with a handful of volunteers, to assist a local WWII veteran with the much-needed work. Alton Head, Commander of American Legion Post 516, lead the effort to assist the man, who is also the oldest member of Post 516. Repair work will continue at the McDonough veteran’s home over the next several weeks thanks to the volunteer effort, along with a generous donation of supplies from Lowe’s. Prince is a veteran of the United States Air Force, and while in service, he was assigned to the USAF Civil Engineering Squadron and his mission in the military was to design, build and maintain military base infrastructure. He wanted to use his expertise to help a fellow veteran in need. “Being in the military is a life-long commitment. Not only to our country but to our brothers and sisters we served with,” said Prince.
henrycounty-ga.org
Bid Awarded for Widening of Rock Quarry Road At the July 20 regular meeting, Commissioners approved engineering design services for the widening of Rock Quarry Road. The Rock Quarry Road widening is a District IV SPLOST IV project and was awarded to Croy Engineering, LLC for $1,464,354.90. This preliminary engineering will be paid for partly through federal funds totaling $1,171,483.92 and partly through county funds totaling $292,870.98. To follow the progress made on this or any SPLOST IV project, log on to www.henrycounty-ga.org/splost.
Parent Expo set for July 23 The new school year is right around the corner, so come and celebrate with the fifth annual Henry County Communities in Schools Parent Expo, which will be held on Saturday, July 23 at Heritage Park in McDonough from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. The Henry County School System will be represented along with other local businesses and nonprofit organizations. In addition, there will be valuable information for parents, as well as a school supply giveaway, free ice cream, face painting, and other fun activities for the kids. The Parent Expo is being sponsored by Communities in Schools, in partnership with Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Connecting Henry, Inc. and Henry County Schools, among others. Communities in Schools is the country’s largest dropout prevention organization with the mission to surround students with a community of support, empowering them to stay in school and achieve in life. For more information, call 678-432-4499, visit www.cishenry.org or see them on Facebook.
Ribbon Cutting from page 1 those sentences are fairly meaningless if somebody doesn’t then follow up and make sure that those sentences are carried out. That’s important for the safety of the community, but it’s also important for the lives of the people that we sentence, said Judge Studdard. “Sentences are not just about imposing punishment, they are also about figuring out ways to solve problems. We’re dealing with folks who have substance issues, who have life control issues, and these folks need some guidance. A lot of times, not every time, but a lot of times, we can help these folks figure out how they got in front of somebody like me and help them figure out how to keep that from ever happening again by making positive changes in their life.”
For more information on Probation Services, please visit www.co.henry.ga.us/StateCourt/ Sentence_Enforcement.shtml
HCPD Welcomes New Chaplain to the Department The Henry County Police Department would like to welcome its newest Police Chaplain, Jamelle McKenzie. Mrs. McKenzie is the Senior Pastor for Kingdom Carriers Church from 2006 to present. The church is located at 149A Burke Street, Stockbridge, GA 30281. Prior to that, she was the Pastor at the Knights Monumental A.M.E. Church in Stockbridge, GA from 1998 to 2006. Mrs. McKenzie became an ordained minister by Bethel Missionary Baptist Church in Brooklyn New York in 1984. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from The University of Virginia in 1985. In 1985 and ’86, she participated in the Curry Memorial School of Education Human Services Counseling Program at The University of Virginia. In 1993 and 1994, McKenzie studied at the Morehouse School of Religion in 1993 and 1994. From 1994-1998, she took Board of Examiners training from the African Methodist Episcopal Church. McKenzie received her A.M.E. Deacon orders in 1995 and her Elder orders in 1998.
She is currently a Master of Divinity in Community Chaplaincy candidate at Liberty University for 2018. The Henry County Police Department is proud to have Pastor McKenzie join the team.
Pictured (l. to r.) Pastor John Dewberry, Pastor Chris Vaughn, Pastor Paul Leslie, Deputy Chief Mark Amerman, Pastor Jamelle McKenzie, Chief Keith Nichols, Pastor Ed Lee, and Major Jim Burch.
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