VALDOSTA — The ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Joe Virgil Dasher Middle School, a part of Georgia Christian School, was held Friday morning. 

Dr. Brad Lawson, GCS president, said the ceremony marked a big moment in the school’s history, as the new middle school is replacing a building built in 1952. 

“What it really comes down to is why,” Lawson said. “Why would so many people spend their time, their talent and their treasure on a 9,600-square-foot building? I’ll tell you why. It’s because we believe in the mission of this great school.” 

Lawson said the mission of GCS is to provide “a Christian foundation that promotes a passion for learning, responsible citizens and the skills necessary to lead through character development, spiritual guidance and excellent academic instruction.” 

“In Proverbs, chapter 22, verse six, it says, ‘train up a child in the way that he should go, and when he’s old he will not depart from it,’ and that’s what we do here on a daily basis at Georgia Christian School,” Lawson said. 

Ryan Warren, GCS chairman of the board of directors and chairman of the Commercial Banking Company board, said GCS was founded more than 100 years ago.

 “Georgia Christian has been around since 1914, but you know even more exciting than that is the next 100 years,” Warren said. “I think that this lays the foundation for not just these students that you see out here but for our posterity, for generations to come.”

In addition to the new middle school, Lawson said there are plans for a 22,000-plus-square-foot high school building along with additional parking. 

The Joe Virgil Dasher Middle School is located at 4359 Dasher Road. 

For more information about GCS, visit www.georgiachristian.org or call (229) 559-5131.

 

 

Kimberly Cannon is a Reporter with The Valdosta Daily Times. Her extension is 1376.