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Cancer claims hero police dog
Limerick Plantation
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Hero dog dies: Many in Lake George knew K-9 hero, Bruno. Bruno's owner announced recently that Bruno has died. He was diagnosed with cancer in February. Bruno was a Belgian malinois and defended his handler, Gregg Ernst, on many occasions. Bruno was involved in more than 265 arrests and assists, 78 evidence searches, 96 tracking missions, 525 narcotic searches and 216 building searches. His "last day on the job" was Feb. 27. He was then taken to a veterinarian in Jacksonville for treatments. Bruno was put to rest near the police horse stables on Dean Forrest Road. Bruno truly was a hero.

What a great idea: A recent news story told of someone at the Greenville, S.C., Animal Shelter who came up with an idea to boost adoptions. They started sending mass emails out with pictures of animals scheduled to be euthanized. Officials stated that before the emails, only about 35 animals were adopted each month. Since the emails, they have adopted out 150 animals, thanks to caring people.

Spring has sprung:
Even though last week's paper predicted more nights down in the 30s, Spring is in the air. At least pollen sure is. But in a recent walk around my yard, I noticed my chinaberry trees are blooming. Every day brings something new. I have blue, yellow and white indigo plants, which are just gorgeous right now. I replanted blue seeds, because it did not come back up this year. I also noticed blooms on my "rescued" amorpha fruiticosa plants also. When they open, they resemble wisteria blooms. If you want one of my "baby" calycanthus (Carolina allspice) plants, just call ahead to make sure I'm home. You will be in awe of the "mama." I have several of my friends who are taking my advice about not buying any more plants, except ones that produce food, for their yards. By the way, thanks Joyce for my baby grapefruit tree. This summer, you must ride down First Street and see this huge cluster of banana plants that bear every year. Native plants do well with little care. Most nurseries are now carrying a variety of natives. One more reminder: Catch rainwater in trash barrels and keep the lids on when there is no rain, so mosquitoes don't breed.

Kudos: I don't know who took the initiative, but I have to say whoever repaired all the playground equipment that I listed in my column recently and gave everything a new coat of paint, is to be commended. Everything looks great and people are once again taking their children there to play. By the way, if you venture onto any POA property, please make sure you have your membership card with you. Destruction of property is a major problem and something is being done to try and stop it. Also, a big thank you to Tony Mullis, our code enforcer, for contacting the owners of the trashy property at Haven Road and Limerick. The old trailer has been torn down, a lot of the trash has been hauled away. I may be assuming that they cleaned it up, when perhaps they sold the property, and the new owners are getting it cleaned up, who knows? I know the people that come out of Woodland Lakes every day will be glad to see this mess cleaned up totally. The property is directly across the street from their entrance. Now, if Tony could either prosecute or fine the people who own the property across from me. Some of the people, who were sent letters, have cared enough to clean up their mess. We've got a long way to go. But a big thank you to those of you that have done something about it. Kudos to a Coastal Electric employee, Mike Young, whom I approached recently and asked him if he could use his bucket truck to "fix" the flag at the Thompson Memorial Park. He did and not only reattached the flag, but secured it, hopefully to prevent it being detached in the future. Semper fi

Sunday supper in the strawberry patch: It's not too early to call the Bamboo Farms and send your check for a delicious supper at the pavilion and have fresh strawberry shortcake for dessert. This will take place on Sunday, April 27, at 5 p.m. Call 912-921-5460 if you have any questions.

Another dog story: Picture this ad in the newspaper: SBF seeks male companionship, ethnicity unimportant. I'm a svelte, good-looking girl who loves to play. I love long walks and riding in your pickup truck. I love hunting, camping and fishing trips. I love cozy winter nights spent lying by the fire. Candlelight dinners will have me eating out of your hand. I'll be at the front door when you get home from work. Call 555-XXXX and ask for Daisy.
The phone number was the Humane Shelter and Daisy was an 8-week-old black lab.

Strawberries and blackberries:
Don't forget you can still pick strawberries at the Bamboo Farms through May and blackberries in June.
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Visit with children a real eye-opener
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One of my favorite activities as a state senator is when I get to speak to students at our local schools. This year, I spoke to third-grade students at May Howard Elementary and Marshpoint Elementary in Chatham County and Button Gwinnett Elementary in Liberty County.
The students from each of the schools had been studying civics and were familiar with the three branches of government — executive, judicial and legislative. I explained my role as a senator in the legislative process and told the children how the citizen legislature in the state of Georgia works.
Presenting each of the schools with a Georgia state flag, I explained the three principles for which the state flag stands — wisdom, justice and moderation — and had them recite the pledge to the flag with me. 
The students at all three schools were bright, respectful and well-disciplined — a tribute to their families and especially to their teachers, who had prepared the students for my visit with ideas for great questions.
The students in Ms. Hutchinson’s class at Marshpoint Elementary were impressive in singing the preamble to the Constitution during my visit. What a great way to learn such an important part of our nation’s history — another wonderful example of the great job our teachers are doing.
I was delighted last week to receive thank-you letters from some of the students. Here are excerpts from a few of their letters:
 
Dear Mr. Carter,
Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to come speak to us. I learned so much! I learned that there are two kinds of Pledge of Allegiances. That is pretty cool.
Do you travel all over the world do you? I really like that you taught me more about the three branches of government.
— Megan
 
Dear Sen. Carter,
Thank you for telling us about your job and your favorite thing about your job. I liked the Georgia state flag. I still have more questions. Do you have to work on Saturday and Sunday? Are you the only one who makes the laws?
Yours truly,
Ryleigh 


Dear Sen. Buddy Carter,
Thank you for coming and letting us have a little bit of your time. I want you to know that I learned something new. The Georgia pledge! Justice, wisdom and modesty! Thanks again!
— Liam
 
Dear Sen. Buddy Carter,
Thank you for coming and helping us learn more about the government and some of your job. Thank you for giving us a Georgia flag. It was fun when you came. Thank you for giving us some questions so we could answer them.
P.S. Did you ride in a limousine? I was going to ask you a question but then I forgot. But now I remember. How many rooms are there where you work? You can send me a note if you can.
Your friend,
Erin
 
I’m uncertain whether the students learned as much from me during my visit as I learned from them. One thing that I was reminded of was the honesty that comes from the innocence of childhood. I wasn’t quite sure how to interpret some of the questions, such as the one asked in this letter:
 
Dear Sen. Carter,
I loved your speech. Thanks for coming to our school. I think my favorite part was when we held the flag. It was so fun! I have a question: How many people voted for you?
Sincerely,
Shelly
 
I also was more than a little concerned about a recurring question in the thank-you notes that was posed to me during one of my visits by a beautiful, brown-eyed girl who, with a very serious look on her face, asked “Did you ever get re-elected be-fore?”


What a great group of young people! My faith and hope in our future has been reassured. What an amazing job our families and teachers are doing on a daily basis to support and encourage our next generation. Thank you for your dedication to teaching our leaders of tomor-row.

Sen. Buddy Carter can be reached at Coverdell Legislative Office Building (C.L.O.B.) Room 301-A, Atlanta, GA, 30334. His Capitol office number is 404-656-5109

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