October 23, 2024
TheRoundabout
Message from the County Manager
As I reflect on the challenges brought by Hurricane Helene, I want to take a moment to express my deepest gratitude to each and every one of you who stepped up during this critical time. Your unwavering commitment and resilience have truly made a difference in our community
Many of you went above and beyond your everyday roles, stepping out of your comfort zones to tackle the many challenges we faced. Whether it was assisting with emergency response efforts, providing support to affected residents, or ensuring our essential services continued, your dedication has not gone unnoticed.
In times of crisis, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed, but your willingness to do what had to be done exemplifies the spirit of our county. You put the needs of our residents first, in many cases before your own families and homes, demonstrating what it means to serve with compassion and determination.
Thank you for your hard work, sacrifice, and the teamwork that made our recovery efforts possible. Together, we are stronger, and it is a privilege to work alongside such dedicated individuals.
--Scott
#COLUMBIACOUNTYSTRONG
Due to a drain installation project connected to the construction of the new Building A, the parking lots beside the current Bldg. A and Bldg. B will have temporary employee parking shifts. Those employees affected will be notified of suggested parking areas while this temporary project takes place. This will heavily impact these two lots as well as visitor parking, so please be patient as we work through this over the next few weeks.
VETERANS RECOGNITON
In our upcoming November 7th Roundabout, we would like to recognize our coworkers that have served in the military If you are a veteran or member of the Reserves, please click this link or scan this QR code to give us your name, current department, and branch of service.
Please complete this survey by Thursday, October 31, and thank you for your service!
OpenEnrollmentDeadline
Benefits Open Enrollment for 2025 will take place now through November 15, 2024. This is the time to review your benefits and make any necessary adjustments or changes that will provide you and your family with the best coverage options Any changes will take effect January 1, 2025.
Allcurrentvendorswillremaininplacefor2025
2025 Benefits Insight Booklet Link
Ratesformedicalandvisionwillremainthesame SeetheBenefitsInsightBookletlinkforallrates Therewillbeaslightincreaseindentalratesforthefirsttimeinsixyears. Lifeinsuranceanddisabilityaresubjecttoagebandedratechanges.
NewYorkLifehasofferedafullOpenEnrollmentuptotheguaranteedissueamountsontheShort-term disability, Long-term disability and Voluntary Life (for both employee and spouse) without the requirementoffilinganEvidenceofInsurabilityform
Unum, the accident plan provider is offering a new group product which has increased benefits and loweredrates.
If you do not wish to make changes to your 2025 Benefits, you do not have to do anything Your current benefitswillsimplyrollovertothenewbenefityear However,thoseemployeesthatchoosetorenewthe Flexible Spending Account (FSA) will have to complete the applicable form and send it to HR. Please remembertokeepyourmedicalcardandFSAcardfortheupcoming2025benefityear.
FSAFormlink
Enrollment/changes to medical, dental, vision, accident, life insurance, disability products, etc. are available through Employee Self Service. Or you can contact Human Resources for the appropriate paperwork.
Pleasenotetheenrollmentoptionslistedbelow:
EmployeeSelf-Service
VisittheColumbiaCountywebsite,scrolldowntothebottomofthepage,clickonEmployeeCenter, andchoosetheEmployeeSelf-ServiceLink.Pleasefollowtheinstructionsonthelink“OpenEnrollment Instructions2025.”TheOpenEnrollmentsite openedonOctober1,2024.
Phone-CalltheHumanResourcesDepartment
CalltheHRDepartmentat706-868-3300andanHRrepresentativecanassistyouoverthephone
OPEN ENROLLMENT
emcburney@columbiacountyga.gov
www.unitedconcordia.com assessment
www.myuhc.com assessment
www.unitedconcordia.com
2024 Flu Shot Clinics
Thursday, October 24th
Friday, October 25th 6:00AM - 9:00AM
Sheriff’s Office
To the flu!
Employee REFERRAL HONOREE
In 2022, we began our new employee referral incentive where current employees could earn a day of PTO for referring a new hire Once the new hire completes one year of service, our current employees are credited with the PTO.
Congratulations to the following employees who earned a day of PTO as of 10/24/24:
Cassidy Harris, Public Relations Manager
Shannon Powell, Finance
Tim Holloway, Roads & Bridges
Mark Story, Roads & Bridges
1st
Birthdays November
Deborah DeWitt, Information Technology
John Hurst, Fleet Services
Matthew Johnson, Fire Rescue
Dale Neal, Water Utility
Elizabeth Davis, 911 Dispatch
2nd
Joshua Small, Performing Arts Center
Brittany Perry, GIS
3rd
Janet Green, Detention Center
Juan Muenchmeyer, Code Compliance
Anthony Urbizo, Sheriff’s Office
4th
Donna Pellman, Clerk of Court
Lafayette Butler, Public Transit
Shane Duggan, Sheriff’s Office
Kathryn Degelman, Parks, Recreation & Events
5th
Van Williams, Water Utility
Michael Stead, Fire Rescue
Gregory Power, Detention Center
Susan Combe, Tax Commissioner’s Office
Jesse Evans, Traffic Engineering
Sherry Collins, 911 Dispatch
Ronald Bagwell, Water Utility
Kateri Terrette, Probate Court
Joseph Binkley, Fire Rescue
Tariq Manns, Roads & Bridges
6th
Kathryn Tabor, Tax Commissioner’s Office
Andrew LaSure, Water Utility
Hannah Johns, District Attorney’s Office
7th
Catherine Chaffin, Juvenile Court
Rodney Brown, Juvenile Court
David Steedley, Engineering Services
Luke Urban, Sheriff’s Office
William Wright, Roads & Bridges
8th
Mark Radle, Facility Maintenance
Shawn Granato, EMA
Galen Mercer, Water Utility
Megan Hattaway, Fleet Services
Jimmy Cronan, Sheriff’s Office
9th
Aleck Poradowski, Fire Rescue
10th
Martha Bartles, Human Resources
Tara Shrader, Tax Commissioner’s Office
Jameson Lewis, Fire Rescue
Aaron Barnes, Sheriff’s Office
Taylor Simpson, Parks, Recreation & Events
Jacob Lichty, Fire Rescue
Evan McClintock, Fire Rescue
11th
Deron Johnson, Water Utility
12th
Anthony Holt, Fire Rescue
Michael deLeon, Water Utility
Hugh Long, Sheriff’s Office
Jennifer Lee, Library
Allison Prichard, Broadband Utility
Troy Fields, Fire Rescue
Chelsea Peterson, Code Compliance
Nicholas Black, Library
Birthdays November
13th
Erika Harmon, Building Standards
Kerry Page, Water Utility
Gary Smith, Fire Rescue
William Smith, Animal Services
14th
John Fogarty, Exhibition Center
Joseph Chen, Parks, Recreation & Events
Morgan Aune, Tax Assessors Office
Teresa Reynolds, Sheriff’s Office
David Germann, Fire Rescue
Joseph Csira, Sheriff’s Office
Julia Woodard, Magistrate Court
Daniel Hyman, Water Utility
15th
Dennis West, Code Compliance
Jim Perdue, Fire Rescue
Toni Tiedeman, Tax Assessors Office
Amanda Bradford, Sheriff’s Office
Robert Grant, Tax Assessors Office
Cody Merrick, Fire Rescue
16th
Tim Rupert, Fire Rescue
Katie Cason, Performing Arts Center
Caroline Culbreth, Detention Center
17th
Carey Simmons, Detention Center
Joshua Bogdanow, Sheriff’s Office
Dana Parker, Sheriff’s Office
Johnathan Mosley, Facility Maintenance
18th
Carlton Fulcher, Water Utility
Todd Andrews, Information Technology
Continued
19th
William Hanks, Detention Center
Donald Allen, Fire Rescue
Katie Beth Jennings, Stormwater Compliance
20th
Rosemarie Garman, Tax Commissioner’s Office
Matthew Kent, Detention Center
21st
Vanessa Simmons, Permitting
Matthew Norton, Fire Rescue
22nd
Richard Hennings, Water Utility
Bobby Williams, Sheriff’s Office
Steven Losgar, Fire Marshal’s Office
Aaron Stevens, Roads & Bridges
23rd
Brian Herrington, Road Construction
Jennifer Perdue, Tax Commissioner’s Office
Chris Landers, Procurement
Jordan Ford, Sheriff’s Office
Jonathan Rosier, Fire Rescue
Kelseigh Robinson, Detention Center
24th
Eyela Vance, Tax Assessors Office
Ronald Koch, Sheriff’s Office
Nicholas Dukes, Roads & Bridges
Jack Simpson, Fire Rescue
25th
Scott Daniel, Water Utility
James Maples, Detention Center
Hunter Baldwin, Water Utility
Birthdays November
26th
Bill Wood, Sheriff’s Office
Pamela Goble, Probate Court
Tyler Roberson, Traffic Engineering
Helena Jones, Detention Center
Taeyawn Lewis, Water Utility
27th
Lori Adams, Finance
Stacey Gordon, Water Utility
Lauren Gordon, Detention Center
Taylor Blessing, Clerk of Court
Kyle Reece, Water Utility
28th
Rick Kelly, Facility Maintenance
Philip Smith, Detention Center
Danny Tiedeman, Fire Rescue
29th
Mark Swain, GIS
Wanda Anderson, Finance
Shirley Guerrero, Superior Court
Danielle Dickenson, Superior Court
Daniel Gaston, Sheriff’s Office
Dale Tupper, Fire Rescue
30th
Floyd Bowling, Building Standards
Melvin Hester, Stormwater Maintenance
Kelly Greene, Information Technology
Ronnie Kitchens, Parks, Recreation & Events
Keith Terstriep, Detention Center
Justin Farr, Roads & Bridges
Anniversaries
Michael
Michelle Carter
Office
24 Years
Brent Willis, Fire Rescue
23 Years
Harry Collins, Sheriff’s Office
22 Years
Ken Cooter, Building Standards
Kevin Faires, Sheriff’s Office
Josefina Gaspard, 911 Dispatch
Todd Andrews, Information Technology
21 Years
Rita Shelton, Information Technology
20 Years
Marcus Johnson, Parks, Recreation & Events
Michael Anderson, Stormwater Utility
Kimberly
19 Years
Don Barrow, Road Construction
Matt Schlachter, County Administration
18 Years
Dale Newman, Sheriff’s Office
Adam Hamilton, Sheriff’s Office
Morgan Aune, Tax Assessors Office
Joseph Aycox, Traffic Engineering
17 Years
Nayna Mistry, Planning
Melissa Coston, Superior Court
16 Years
Heidi Curlee, Tax Commissioner’s Office
Roxanne Scrum, Animal Services
William Fanning, Detention Center
13 Years
Anniversaries Continued
Kerry Page, Water Utility
12 Years
Shelly Blackburn, CCCVB
Ryan Mura, Animal Services
11 Years
James Justice, Magistrate Court
William Wright, Fire Rescue
10 Years
Chelsea Peterson, Code Compliance
Robert Grant, Tax Assessors Office
Richard Thigpen, Fire Rescue
9 Years
Troy Fields, Fire Rescue
Joshua Crockett, Building Standards
Preston Oellerich, Sheriff’s Office
Donna Wiley, Tax Assessors Office
Michael Glasscock, Water Utility
8 Years
Miles Juelfs, Sheriff’s Office
Christopher Hinton, Fire Rescue
Wheeler Cowart, Stormwater Utility
John Bryan, Public Transit
Anthony Holt, Fire Rescue
Jason Lutz, Tax Assessors Office
7 Years
Omani Washington, Fire Rescue
Michael Wise, Water Utility
6 Years
Russell Rainey, Parks, Recreation & Events
5 Years
Michael Yamarino, Fire Rescue
James Duffy, Fire Rescue
Cody Merrick, Fire Rescue
Michael Aguilar, Fire Rescue
Daniel Day, Fire Rescue
Matthew Kennedy, Fire Rescue
Willie Germany, Traffic Engineering
James Crane, Procurement
Jamese Walker, Board of Elections
Bryan Armstrong, Tax Assessors Office
Jarred Viehl, Water Utility
4 Years
Robert Benedetto, Building Standards
Emily Glisson, Stormwater Utility
Mary Kate O’Steen, Water Utility
James Knight, Fire Rescue
Mark Hensley, Fire Rescue
Wayne Wingrove, Fire Rescue
Justin Dilger-Ewing, Fire Rescue
William Owens, Fire Rescue
Elizabeth Hobbs, Library
3 Years
Jehan Fletcher, Detention Center
Mark Cowdrey, Fire Rescue
Connor Bruce, Fire Rescue
Nicholas Adams, Water Utility
2 Years
Caroline Culbreth, Detention Center
James Lowe, Water Utility
Ryan Crow, Tax Assessors Office
Noah Bowers, Library
Christie Cheek, Recycling
Andrew Brown, Sheriff’s Office
Benjamin White, Sheriff’s Office
Michael Levinsohn, Water Utility
1 Year
Kyle Baxley, Road Construction
Jamal Cummings, Roads & Bridges
Robert Barbin, Sheriff’s Office
Kristy Hamm, Water Utility
Wyatt Culver, Water Utility
Shawna Robinson, Detention Center
Welcome to Our Team
New Employees from July, August, September
911 Dispatch
Elizabeth Davis
Kaitlyn Donovan
Megan Gordon
Lindsey Hendrick
Jasmine Mullins
Connor Teske
Board of Elections
Brett Swain
Clerk of Court
Rebecca Segarra
Fire Rescue
Lawrence Bennett
Blake Clark
Jacob Dukes
Christopher Ganther
Andrew Groves
James Herndon
Kayla Hutchinson
Samuel Joiner
Samuel Maddix
Aleck Poradowski
Jaydon Raymond
Mercedie Rivera
Dillon Scott
Jack Simpson
Sebastian Velasquez Villar
Rex White
Karen Wolf
County Administration
Christopher Lloyd
Detention Center
Joshua Blandenburg
Seth Carter
Travis Copeland
Natalie Harris
Catherine Henry
James Howard
Helena Jones
Dylan McCreery
Ryland Mendez
Gavin Mullis
Kelseigh Robinson
Gavin White
District Attorney
Kelly Weathers
Economic Development Authority
Stuart Hilsman
Facilities
Samuel Herring
Fleet Services
Jackson Leonard
Nina Pantano
Human Resources
Teressa Lantz
Information Technology
Caleb Emery
Jacob Hunley
Libraries
Madison Anderson
Avonlea Orr
Magistrate Court
Ellie Gilliard
Facility Maintenance
Dylan Benjamin
Chase Chavous
Brittany Jacobs
Permitting
Savannah Lopez
Probate Court
Cassandra Gatlin
Property Acquisition
Jacob Steiner
Public Transit
Seth Larmer
Chad Reid
Parks, Recreation & Events
Santia Brinson
James Davis
Kali Garrett
Dakota Miles
Jonathan Phillips
Roads & Bridges
Ashton Bernstein
Anthony Carroll
Marcus Genao
Isaac Heyman
Todd Oberther
Trevor Zahner
Sheriff’s Office
Aaron Barnes, Kianna Bell
Amber Sikes
Henry Whisenhunt
Nora Williams
Detention Center
Dana Parker
Welcome to Our Team
New Employees from July, August, September Continued
Stormwater Maintenance
Nathan Adcock
Michael Thomas
Elijah Vinke
Stormwater Utility
Heather Lewis
Tax Assessors Office
Finley Cunningham
Jared Naugle
Tax Commissioner’s Office
Lisa Bessman
Josephine Enfinger
Cheryl Johnson
Tara Shrader
Water Utility Mechanical
Samuel Maddix
Water Utility Treatment Plant
Marino De Rienzo
Justin Key
Water Utility Waste Water Conveyance
Dustin Caines
Altavias Dorsey
Patrick Jones
Montel Mitchell
Garrett Parsons
Water Utility Waste Water Treatment Plant
Langdon Roberts
Water Utility Distribution
Allen Melcher
Dale Neal
Tanarious Rowland
Events
OCT 31 - NOV 10, 2024
SWAIN TRAIN WITH
Information Security Classes
If you clicked on a test phishing email, you are required to attend one of the meetings listed below. But anyone is welcome to attend!
Thu. 12/5/24 @ 9 am
Evans Government Center Auditorium, Building A, 630 Ronald Reagan Dr.
To sign up for one of these classes, please contact Phyllis Swain at (706) 312-7302 or via email at pswain@columbiacountyga.gov
Risk Management Training Schedule
National Safety Council Defensive Driving (8 Hours) at the EOC 8:30am-5:00pm
**Participants will receive a ResQme Car Escape Tool as part of our Safety Grant from LGRMS; while supplies last** Wednesday, December 4, 2024*LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE*
Hands-On Defensive Driving
(8 Hours) at the CCSO Track 8:30am-5pm Tuesday, November 19, 2024*CLASS IS FULL*
Red Cross CPR/AED & First Aid (8 Hours) at the EOC 8:30-5pm Wednesday, November 6, 2024*LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE*
Please note that Risk Management classes have been filling up fast this past year. Our classes are subject to the availability of our trainers based on their schedules The classes are also limited to the amount of space we have for attendees If there is a class on the schedule you would like to attend, please do not wait to register. If you register for a class and at any point in time realize you will not be able to attend, please inform Risk Management to open the spot for other employees
To register contact RiskManagement@columbiacountyga.gov
Or call Jennifer, Polly or Darlene at 706-312-7475 for information
2024
Even though it’s not summer, workers still need to be careful and Sun Smart!
