Training Begins for Top of Georgia Speech Contest Set for March 10

Six weeks of training began yesterday, Jan. 21, at the Towns County Senior Center for the 12th annual Top of Georgia Student Public Speaking Contest, which is scheduled for March 10.

The Top of Georgia Student Development Organization is sponsoring the 2020 contest.  The program welcomes all students in grades 6 through 12, including Towns County public- and private-school students as well as local students who are home schooled.   Samantha Church, last year’s winner who is homeschooled and dual enrolled at Young Harris College and North Georgia Technical College, is the lead organizer for this year’s contest.

“I remember the first time I went to the public speaking training program. My knees were shaking and I was very nervous to simply introduce myself in front of everyone, Miss Church said.  “Being involved with the program for the past three years has given me confidence in my public speaking skills and has positively impacted my life and the way I communicate with others.”

Application forms are available in local stores as well as the Towns County Public Library in Hiawassee and the Mountain Regional Library in Young Harris. Interested students may also obtain applications from their teachers.  The completed form must be returned to one of the contacts listed on the form.

The contest committee and trainers have been diligently working for several weeks to make this year’s contest the best yet.  They are developing and simplifying the judging criteria.  Trainers represent local business men and women and educators and leaders in the community who have experience in public speaking and a passion for investing the younger generation, including trainers from both the Towns County Republican and Democratic committees who are working with contest in a joint venture.

Towns County Sole Commissioner Cliff Bradshaw attended a couple of organizing meetings and is very supportive of the program, saying he is enthusiastic about what this endeavor will promote within the next generation and within the community.

Student speakers may choose their own topic and must present a speech of at least three minutes and no longer than six minutes. Prizes are $400 for first place, $300 for second place, $200 for third place, and $100  for fourth place.  Prize amounts  are the same for the high-school and middle-school divisions. Contest winners are subsequently invited to present their speeches to local civic and governmental organizations in order to give the  speakers and the program visibility in the community as well as to educate more people on their chosen topic.

“This county-wide event is extremely powerful and invests in the lives of students in the community every year,” Miss Church stated.   “This is an opportunity that no one should pass up as it could change their lives and give them opportunities they would not have had otherwise.”

Speeches will be presented judged at a public event on March 10, beginning at 6 p.m., at the Towns County Civic Center in Hiawassee.  Admission is free.  The contest could continue on additional nights if student participation warrants multiple judging events. 

Survey finds Towns Democrats' election preferences

In November 2019 Towns County Democrats were polled on their Presidential preferences and policy priorities in an unofficial survey.   Elizabeth Warren received the most votes, while Healthcare was the top priority for respondents.

Every respondent committed to vote for any Democrat in the 2020 elections.  The top candidates and issues were:             

Presidential Primary Choices

1st place  Elizabeth Warren

2nd place tie: Pete Buttigieg, Joe Biden

3rd place tie: Kamala Harris, Bernie Sanders

Democratic priorities

1st place Healthcare, 

2nd place Environment (climate)

3rd place Fair Elections, 

4th place Gun Violence,

5th place Civil Rights (end discrimination),

6th place Immigration

The following priorities tied at 7th place: 

Science & Technology 

Medicare, 

Education, 

Jobs & Economy,

Retirement Security, 

National Security, and

Medicare.

Write-In: defeat dishonest president trump (probably unanimous if it had been a question!)

BIG THANK YOU TO OUR FRIENDS & SUPPORTERS

 

Towns County census response expected to be high

Towns County’s response rate to the 2020 Census could exceed 95 percent, Towns County Democrats heard Thursday night.  

Pat Malone, chairman of the Governor’s Complete Count Committee for Towns and Union Counties said he bases that estimation on Towns’ 88 percent response in 2010, the highest response rate among Georgia’s 159 counties.  He also said the county’s current population of approximately 12,000 is expected to be higher as a result of the decennial count.

The constitutionally required Census starts in earnest on April 1.  Malone stated its purpose is to create an historical record of the nation’s population and form the basis for apportionment of the U.S. House of Representatives as well as the state legislatures, along with the allocation of federal funds.  The first U.S. Census occurred in 1790.

The 2010 Census resulted in an additional seat for Georgia in the U.S. House of Representatives:  the 9th Congressional District which includes Towns and 19 other north Georgia counties.  Census officials anticipate the 2020 count will result in 10 states losing one House seat and seven states gaining seats, including as many as three for Florida and two for Texas.

Based on its population in 2016, Malone said Georgia gets back some $2,000 per person in federal funds and another $1.4 billion through rural assistance programs. Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP (food stamps), Medicare Part B, and highway planning and construction are just some of the 82 federal programs whose funds are distributed to states based on their population, he said.

The Census will be conducted online for the first time this year.  For those without access to a computer or Internet service, paper and telephone versions are available, according to Malone. Additionally, all Towns County public libraries will have dedicated Census computers available.

He said residents will be asked how many people live at the residence and whether the residence is owned or rented.  Individuals will be asked to provide their name, gender, age, date of birth, race, whether they live at the residence or somewhere else, and their relationship to the head of the household.

Towns Countians should begin receiving in the mail on March 12 a postcard reminder about the upcoming Census which will include the website address. Reminder letters will be mailed between March 26 and April 3.  Those who have not completed the online process between April 8 and 26 will be mailed a paper form to complete, with a final reminder arriving between April 20 and 27.

Malone said Census enumerators will make personal visits to households who have not responded by the end of May, with enumerators going out “six different times, six different days of the week, and six different times of the day.”  He estimated some 180 people are needed to serve as enumerators for Towns County, and applications are still being taken at 2020census.gov/jobs.  Enumerators are paid $17 an hour and mileage, he said.  Training will be conducted in mid-March.

Census material will be available in 17 different languages with 40 additional language translators available if needed.  Students living on campus and those living in assisted living or nursing homes or other group settings will be reported by the facilities’ administrators.  Enumerators will seek out homeless citizens as well.

Also at Thursday’s monthly meeting, Towns Democrats selected David Plunkett of Young Harris to fill a party vacancy on the bipartisan county Board of Elections and Registration.  He would replace Jim Powell of Hiawassee whose term has expired.

Democrats also heard from David Cooper of Rabun County, a candidate for Georgia State House District 8 which includes Towns, Union, Rabun and White counties.

Along with Towns County Republicans, Towns Democrats are presently assisting with training for the annual Top of Georgia Student Public Speaking Contest which is scheduled for March 10 at 6 p.m. at the county Civic Center in Hiawassee.  The public is invited and admission is free.

Towns County Democrats meet the second Thursday of each month at the civic center.  A pot-luck meal at 6 p.m. is followed by the meeting at 6:30.  For more information about local Democratic activities, visit www.townsdemocrats.com or contact them at townscountydemocrats@gmail.com. 

Trump's Impact on Elections Good for Democrats

January 8, 2020 (Not Published)

Dear Editor,

                   With the anniversary of the Jan. 6 insurrection behind us, it is worthwhile to assess the absolute disaster Donald Trump has been to what was formerly the Republican Party.  We need look no further than the vote totals of the 2020 election to see how much damage Trumpism has done.

                 Trump lost to President Joe Biden in Georgia by 11,779 votes.  That happened because he lost 28,542 Republican voters who voted for Republican candidates in House races while withholding their votes from him.  That was in the general election when Republicans thought Trump was popular.  Consider that it is normal for the head of the ticket to out-perform down-ballot candidates, that is have “coattails.”  Trump had none.

                 It is what happened in the runoffs that really explains why Republicans should be punishing Trump rather than kowtowing to him.  His lies about election fraud and vile attacks on the election system turned Perdue’s 88,098 vote victory over Senator Jon Ossoff in the General Election into a 54,944-vote defeat in the runoff.  A total of 230,279 Republican voters abandoned the party in the runoff won by Senator Raphael Warnock, even though Democratic candidates came in 47,808 votes behind Republican candidates in the Nov. 3 primary for Senator Kelly Loeffler’s seat.

                These facts point to two things true Republicans should consider:  First, some 28,542 Republicans and Republican-leaning independents chose to reject Trump out-right.  Second, Trump injecting himself into the Georgia runoff depressed the vote for Republican candidates by 10 percent, while the Democratic candidates lost only 4 percent of their Nov. 3 voters.

                As a Democrat, I am happy to let Dear Leader Trump go on leading the opposition.  As a citizen of the United States, however, I lament the loss of the Republican Party that was at once a partner and the loyal opposition in our great experiment in democracy.