PUBLISHER
Red Door Design & Publishing, LLC
EXECUTIVE EDITOR
Stephanie Williams
CREATIVE | DESIGN
Elizabeth Beasley
Stephanie Williams
ASSISTANT MANAGER
Nikki Anderson
DIRECTOR OF MARKETING
AND MEDIA RELATIONS
Ann Owens
SALES
Dottie Hicks
Daphne Walker
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Renée Martin
Beth O’Neal
Ann Owens
Jackson Sharpe
Paula Dees-Toole
Teri R. Williams
PHOTOGRAPHERS
Eric Love
Lillian Morse Burton
Paula Toole
Daphne Walker
PROOFING
Beverly McClellan
COVER PHOTO
Stephanie Williams
Toombs County Magazine© is
published bi-annually by
Red Door Design & Publishing, LLC
148 Williams Avenue • Lyons, GA 30436
(912) 526-4195
All rights reserved. Copies or reproduction of this publication in
whole or in part is strictly prohibited without expressed written
authorization from the publisher. Every effort is made to ensure
the accuracy of the information contained herein. Advertising is
subject to omission, errors, and other changes without notice.
F R O M T H E P U B L I S H E R
walt Whitman’s poem I Hear America Singing is noted as a
tribute to the early building of America. This America was
not built on fancy politics, diamond celebrities or iPhone
technology. It was built on the backs of everyday, hard-working
Americans–a genuine melting pot of color and culture–who joyfully
dreamed of an ever-brightening future. Today, I still see these dreamers
everywhere. Every new business owner, family starter, hard worker,
teacher, preacher, farmer, community leader, rights protector...every
American becomes part of this dream. As in Whitman’s poem, the
common thread that ties us together is hope. Hope for a future of peace
and happiness. This is the stuff of which patriotism is made.
If you watch the news today, you might sometimes question what
happened to patriotism. It’s easy to get sidetracked by daily life and
forget how blessed we are to live where we do. But lately, I have seen
patriotism rise from the shadows. She shines in your Facebook posts,
she rallies in your voices, she is in your heart when you help others, and
she stood in the streets you lined to welcome home a fallen soldier that
some of you barely knew.
It’s not the 4th of July and Veteran’s Day has passed, but I think this
issue has found a way to celebrate patriotism. We have small business
owners like Polly Durden (p. 22), Tricia Conner and Shirley McCord
(p. 78) who started with only a dream. Bradley and Carly Benton (p. 66)
reveal how just a little love could conquer mountains. Gady Youmans
(p. 44) teaches students about a book that was instrumental in the
foundation of America, the Bible. And, of course, stories about Elliot
Coursey (p. 12) and Dustin Wright (p. 60) warm my heart because they
show the coming together of our community for one purpose–to honor
and remember.
We all share a common thread–no matter what color, what lot in life,
what political view, what differences we each have. We are brothers and
sisters bound by hope and this one thing–we are American. We are still
building this country, and it happens with everyday citizens like you
who each have their own song to sing, but together make one beautiful
chorus. Put your flags out, people...Toombs County is America!
Happy Fall and Merry Christmas,
Stephanie Williams
Executive Editor
6 Toombs County Magazine
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my fellow patriots
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(912) 293-0063