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FEBRUARY 14 - FEBRUARY 20, 2018
TIMES-HERALD
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calendar of events inside LEGO League photo, ➤ page 3
Religious protection legislation names ECH’s Small BY SARAH FAY CAMPBELL sarah@newnan.com A new religious prote c t ion bi l l h a s b e en introduced in the Georgia State Senate – and it’s named after Coach John Small. Small, football coach at E a s t C owe t a H i g h School, said Thursday t hat he did n’t k now anything about the bill, which was introduced Monday, until Wednesday night. That's when Sen. Matt Brass, R- N e w n a n , t o l d h i m about it. T he “Coach Sma ll R el i g i o u s P r o te c t i on Act,” SB 316, was f iled by Sen . M ich ael Wi ll i a m s , R- C u m m i n g . Sen. Ma rty Ha rbin, R-Tyrone, and Sen. Josh M c K o o n , R- C o l u m bus, whose district i nclude s a l l of Mer iwet her Count y a nd part of Troup County, are among the bill's the f ive co-sponsors. Williams is a candidate for governor.
The bill specif ically outlines that students and teachers have religious rights at school. Small, who was named ECHS head coach in January 2017, was t h r ust i nto t he spotlight at the end of the 2017 football season when a nationa l athei s t or g a n i z a t ion , t h e Freedom from Religion Fou nd at ion , obje c ted to the prayers that took place before ECHS football games. Sma l l wasn’t leading prayers – players or volu nteer com mu n it y coaches were doi ng that. But he was praying along with them. A fter t he Freedom f r o m R e l i g i o n Fo u n dation sent the school system a letter condemning Small’s actions as violations of the First A mendment, school board attorney Nat h a n L ee put out a NTH FILE PHOTO
SMALL, page 2
Students pray at the East Coweta-Newnan football game late last year, soon after a complaint was filed about prayers led by adults at games. State Sen. Michael Williams has proposed a bill in response to the situation.
Runners, walkers brave cold for annual race
SUBMITTED PHOTO
On hand for the donation to CLICK are, from left, Kim Pinkerton, Carole Ann Fields, and Ingrid Richardson, all of 100 Women Who Care; Leah Sumner, the chair of 100 Women Who Care; Dianne McConnell, executive director of CLICK; Jimmy Bass, chairman of the board for CLICK; and CLICK board members Ruth Hallman and Larry Tucker.
PHOTO BY MELANIE RUBERTI
Kids of all ages bolt over the starting line in a 1-mile Fun Run during the 16th annual Run For Angels. The event raises money for Angel’s House, a home for girls aged 13 - 17 years old living in foster care.
BY MELANIE RUBERTI
melanie@newnan.com The 30-degree temperature and brisk wind did not stop more than 800 people from pounding the pavement Saturday morning in downtown Newnan. The group’s determination outweighed the cold weat her a s t hey walked, ran and cheered each ot her on during the 16th annual Run For Angels and Chicken Q at the First United Methodist Church off Greenville Street.
T he event ra ises money for Angel’s House, a nonprofit organization that provides a home for girls aged 13-17 years old living in foster care. Pa r ticipa nts , wh ich included people of all ages and abilities, could choose to run or walk in a 1-mile Fun Run, a 5K or 10K race. “Good job! Good job! You can do it! Keep it going,” one woman yelled encouragingly from a s id e w a l k a s r u n n e r s passed by the area. “This is so exhilarat-
ing,” said Lana Mobley, a member of Angel’s House board of directors. “We see everyone’s hard work culminate into today’s event, plus all the excitement a nd love ever yone brings to the race. It really warms our hearts.” Mobley said the number of participants in the Run for Angels was down this year; which she partially attributed to the flu virus. But the number of sponsors for the event
ANGELS, page 2
100 Women give $10,000 to CLICK NTH STAFF REPORTS
news@newnan.com Representatives o f 1 0 0 Wo m e n W h o C a re C owe t a C o u n t y r e c e n t l y g a t h e r e d to present their quarterly don at ion to Cer t i f ied L i t e r a t e i s C o w e t a ’s Key. T h e 1 0 0 Wo m e n g roup was launched in 2016 by the Coweta C o m m u n i t y Fo u n d a t ion’s 2 01 5 Wom a n of t h e Ye a r, L e a h S u m ner, who used her platform to launch the new C o we t a - b a s e d g r a s s -
Free !
roots organization. T he g roup focuses on co ord i n at i n g f u nd i n g for cha r itable orga n iz at ion s a nd n e e d s i n Coweta County. The group consists of 10 0 women who meet qua r terly, each bri nging $100 in contributions to bene f i t t h e c o m m u n i t y. A ny member attendi ng t hese qua r terly meetings may nom inate a charitable project to benefit from the f unds. T he need must be charitable in nature,
immediate and based in Coweta County. T he n a mes of t h ree potentia l projects a re drawn at each meeting, with a short presentation given on each one. Members present at the meeting get to vote on which project receives t he don at ion for t h at quarter. CL ICK was fou nded s e ve r a l ye a r s a g o t o address literacy needs in Coweta County.
CLICK, page 3
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