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THE GDC EAGLE “Soaring to Greater Heights of Excellence” Volume 4, Issue 2 GDC Heroes go to the rescue in Katrina’s aftermath Monday, August 29, 2005, was a devastating day for residents in other duties asked of them. These teams performed their duties in a Alabama, Louisiana and the Mississippi Gulf Coast when Hurricane professional manner, representing GDC’s tradition of excellence. Katrina came ashore near New Orleans. Little did the employees of the Georgia Department of Corrections realize the impact this hurri- Edward Howard, along with employees of the Georgia Bureau of cane would have on them. Investigation and Georgia State Patrol, left Atlanta on September 2, 2005 as the advance intelligence team. Their mission was to gather 27 GDC employees were deployed to various locations to assist the information regarding the current state of affairs and the needs of victims of this devastating storm. Essentially, GDC assembled sup- Law Enforcement in the areas that GDC would be assisting. plies and equipment in support of GDC employees and Georgia Bu- reau of Investigations, Georgia State Patrol, Pardons and Parole and Department of Natural Resource employees serving in the relief ef- Probation Team One was sent to New Orleans on September 3, 2005 fort. and returned on September 15, 2005. Their mission was to aid the people of Louisiana and law enforcement agencies in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. This group was sworn in as Louisiana State The 27 GDC team members deployed were: Police Special Officers with full arrest powers. This team worked Advance Scout – Edward Howard alongside members of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Georgia State Patrol and Department of Natural Resources. For the first four Team One – Body Reclamation Team consisted of Jeff Wessel, days of the mission, the group was divided into day and night shifts. Kevin Britt, Jason Wilson, Scotty Abercrombie, Ronald Parson, Pat The day shift was assigned a Georgia State Patrolman to patrol I-55 Finnerty, Phil Kirksey, Ronnie Harris and James Jordan. and I-12 in the Hammond-Ponchatoula, LA area. Law Enforcement Team Two – Body Reclamation Team consisted of Keith Lank, was the primary goal. The night shift patrolled the Slidell- Andy Clack, Jimmy Howard, Dwayne McIntyre, Jason Kellett, Covington, LA area to deter looting or disruption. The remainder of Adam Doss, and Chris Reeves. their deployment, they were assigned as armed escorts for body re- Probation Team One consisted of Mike Kraft, Robin Coile, Robert covery teams in New Orleans. Team Leader Mike Kraft stated, "The Friend, Wesley Willis, Kevin Johnson, Wayne Cloud, Rod Johnson, success of our team was a direct result of the team members who not Chris Cooper, Isreal Fowler and Derek Gilbert. only volunteered but also followed through with their commitment to get the job done. They brought credit to themselves and the State of Georgia as well as this department". This group of employees went into harm’s way and came out un- scathed. They provided security, patrolled highways and interstates, assisted in body recovery, served as armed escorts as well as many (Continued on Page 2) INSIDE THIS ISSUE Page 2 - Hurricane Katrina Information (con’t); Page 9 - Blood Drive; Education Initiative Hancock S.P. Aid; Page 10 - Move-Over Law; Commissioner’s Message Correctional Peace Officers Page 3 - Hometown Heroes Foundation Page 4 - PERW Recognition Page 11 - Facility Happenings Page 5 - PERW Recognition continued Page 12 - Fitness Page Page 6 - Telework Page 13 - Guide Dog Returns; HR Corner Page 7 - Impact Georgia Page 14 - Retirements Page 8 - Probation Op’s. Mission Statement; Page 15 - Retirements; Promotions Probation Team One Special Ops Heroes; Page 16 - Mission, Vision, Core Values Derrick Gilbert, Mike Kraft, Rod Johnson, Wesley Wills, Robert Friend, Community of Hope Graduation Kevin Johnson, Wayne Cloud, Chris Cooper, Isreal Fowler and Robin Cole GDC Heroes go to the rescue in Katrina’s aftermath (con’t.) Commissioner’s Team One and Team Two of the Body Reclamation Team were sent to Biloxi, MS on September 10, 2005 and returned on Sep- Message tember 18, 2005. Their mission was to aid in the recovery of bodies and assist in the identification process. These teams conducted daily searches for victims killed by the hurricane. They worked alongside members of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and Georgia State Patrol. One team member stated that they were glad that our Department sent officers to the Gulf Coast Region to assist the people affected by Hurri- cane Katrina. Teammates: Each of these missions was approved through the Federal I have had the privilege of serving alongside you as your Com- Emergency Management Agency, which supplied the funding missioner for two years and I want to again thank you for your for these operations. Each deployed employee also had to re- selfless service this past year. Probation Officers with large ceive vaccinations recommended by the Center for Disease caseloads getting the job done, Correctional Officers performing Control prior to departure. their vital mission while being short on staff and support staff assisting our field personnel in performance of their missions. Thank you all for a job well done! In addition to our out-of-state mission, GDC employees were put into duty at Dobbins Air Force Base, the Cobb County Civic Center and at GEMA Headquarters. These employees Please keep our fellow citizens in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana were used primarily to assist in the movement of Louisiana and Mississippi in your thoughts and prayers as they struggle to residents to local impact shelters. recover from the hurricane season. I want to thank all those who participated in aiding our fellow citizens trying to recover and These employees, and all that participated in this deployment, start anew. Your professionalism in support of recovery efforts should be commended. They went into areas not knowing what after Hurricane Katrina has made me very proud. to expect and returned with the honor of knowing they did their part in aiding the victims of Hurricane Katrina. The victims will never forget the aid they received during this devastation. We have all had a busy and productive year. The upcoming holi- days will give us a well-deserved chance to be together with fam- ily and friends. Of course, we must always remember to be safe. Each of you are too important to me. Hancock State Prison staff raised over $1,500.00 to aid its sis- Finally, please keep our teammates who are deployed in the mili- ter Corrections agency in Louisiana. The prison staff hosted a tary in your thoughts and prayers. Embrace and support their car wash, a hot dog luncheon and collected donations between families. The holiday seasons are a difficult time to be away from shifts at the prison. loved ones. GDC Employees also donated Your accomplishments this past year have been outstanding. I non-perishable food items, baby cannot tell you how proud I am of this team and the magnificent food and formula, diapers, job you are doing. You demonstrate more and more each day that clothing and personal hygiene you are truly unsung heroes of Georgia! Thank you for continu- products as well. ing to make our community a safe place to live. “We appreciate their teamwork and compassion for fellow Cor- God bless you and your families during the holiday season. rections employees in Louisi- ana,” said Commissioner Don- One Team! Hancock State Prison staff at Car Wash ald. “Their contributions will help make a difference for families who are in need at this time”. Several local merchants also contributed to this fundraising effort. HAPPY HOLIDAYS Page 2, Volume 4, Issue 2 HOMETOWN HEROES On a typical Monday morning at work, we always come into the office and greet each other with the usual question of how was your weekend? Well, after tentatively listening to PO Craig Milledge of the Albany Probation Office tell some of the events of his weekend, he nonchalantly men- tioned what else had happened over the weekend. This is his story, as told to co-worker Linda D. Oliver: “On Saturday morning, 4/30/05 at approximately 1:50 a.m., I was at home asleep when I heard the squeal of tires and a crash. There is an exit ramp to a major highway about 200 ft. from my back door. I got out of bed and stood on my back porch, but I did not see or hear anything. Two cars also passed by but kept going as if everything was normal. Since I was in a deep sleep, I dismissed this as possibly a dream and was going back to bed. However, I decided to get dressed and just drive down the highway to look for anything. Just as I was about to enter the highway from the exit ramp, I saw skid marks across the road and a vehicle down the steep embankment with one headlight sitting there. You could not see much else due to the darkness. I parked on the shoulder of the highway, grabbed my flashlight and put my State Probation Officer ID vest on. As I walked toward the vehicle, there were a lot of items and debris spread about. That is also when I saw two bodies lying on the ground about 10 ft. away from each other. I ran over to the 1st person who was an adult white male lying on his side in a twisted manner. He was not moving but I could tell he was conscious and breathing. I began talking to him and he moved his lips but no sound came out. I asked where was he in pain and what his name was, but he still could not make words.

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