VALDOSTA —
Every Wednesday through 2013, The Times will publish only positive raves, along with a feature on a member of the community. Each month has a different theme, and for March, it’s our local governments.
Valdosta and Lowndes County are two of the largest employers in the county. While the public’s attention is generally focused on the elected officials and the decision makers, more than 1,000 employees work for them who often go unrecognized for all they do to provide services to the community.
All are critical in their own way in ensuring that the citizens of the community are safe, receive assistance in times of emergency, and are provided essential services.
Officials may make policy decisions, but it is the government worker who carries out these decisions and ensures that citizens’ needs and concerns are addressed. Government employees build sidewalks, repair potholes, fix traffic signals, enforce the law, put out fires, administer programs to assist individuals, apply for grant funding to provide for citizens’ needs, enforce codes, and much more.
President Ronald Reagan once said, “The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, ‘I’m from the government and I’m here to help.’”
While comedians have used the quote as great joke material for years, times have changed since the 1980s and most citizens view government a little differently nowadays, at least at a local level. Government jobs don’t carry the stigma that they once did, and at least in our community, workers generally don’t receive the kind of hostility usually directed at the federal level.
Even though government employees are more appreciated today, they are still not recognized as often as they should be. For the month of March, though, The Times hopes to change that.
What We Think
It’s All About You
- What We Think
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Historic day celebrated
On January 1, 1863, Pres. Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, announcing that all persons held as slaves within the rebellious areas are and henceforth shall be free.
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How this garden grew
A special-needs couple wanted a garden. A teacher not only wanted to teach gardening skills but she also wanted to instill a sense of community purpose within her young students.
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Happy Father’s Day
He beamed with pride on our birth. He understood worry upon our birth. He is the giant by which we would judge all men. He protected us. He provided for us. He often sacrificed time with us to provide for us. He spent time with us.
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Thumbs up
THUMBS UP: To Stevie Young of Valdosta. The owner of Artistic Taxidermy, Young won Best in the World, Turkey, in the 2013 World Taxidermy Championship. His eastern wild turkey display dominated the competition, earning him the distinction of best in the world. Another title for TitleTown!
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Canning preserves food, way of life
When the going gets tough, the tough getting canning. Valdosta-Lowndes County residents have this opportunity.
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PSST!: Round Two!
With tonight’s opening of “The Marvelous Wonderettes,” Peach State Summer Theatre presents its second show of the 2013 season.
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A responsible fix for pets
The photo and story in Sunday’s paper about the dog whose owners had left him tied up with an electrical cord elicited a tremendous response from readers, outraged at the dog’s treatment.
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A band-aid in a crisis?
The announcement Monday by the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities that a crisis stabilization center will be built in Lowndes County is good news for some, not so great for others.
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Slowing down for summer
Twenty-some years ago, it seemed Valdosta and South Georgia slowed down for the summer. School was out. Controversies seemed to dwindle. People seemed to work shorter hours despite the longer days.
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Storms: Of preparation and prayer
If you haven’t already, maybe this morning in church would be a good time to say a prayer of thanks that Tropical Storm Andrea blessed us with some much-needed rain while sparing us the overwhelming catastrophe that weather has wreaked upon the Midwest in recent weeks.
- More What We Think Headlines
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Historic day celebrated
