CCCA Student of the Week
Calhoun High School eleventh grader Christian Lewis, is the Calhoun College and Career Academy Student of the Week for Feb. 8-12.
Christian has been a student in the healthcare pathway for three years and a member of Health Occupations Students of America. Christian’s healthcare teacher, Lori Fisher, nominated Christian stating, “Christian is an excellent student! He is engaged in class discussions, has a thorough understanding of content and is able to apply his knowledge to solve problems. He’s respected by his peers and assists them as needed. Christian always has a positive attitude and submits his work on time or before it is due. I could not ask for a better student!”
Christian chose the healthcare pathway at the CCCA because he has always been fascinated with the human body and is eager to learn more about it. He plans to attend a four-year university and major in sports medicine. He is undecided
on where he would like to attend. Christian aspires to become an athletic trainer or pursue a career in orthopedics.
Christian is very thankful that CCCA offers an opportunity to explore the world of healthcare. When asked about his thoughts on the healthcare pathway, Christian stated, “The healthcare pathway is a great introduction for any student who is looking to go into the medical field. Mrs. Fisher does a great job of teaching the material and getting her students involved in the class. I feel this pathway will best prepare me for life after high school and aid in the pursuit of a career in the medical field.”
I’ve written to you many times about how we “hire” people to do the four jobs of a tenant. And I’ve said those fours jobs are the standard by which we choose our tenants and also how we decide to “fire” them when they’re not performing.
And just to remind you, the four jobs are: Take care of the house, pay on time, be comfortable to work with by staying in good communication and being respectful, and finally, be a good neighbor.
These jobs are listed in a specific order based off of their importance. And I’d like to explain the reasoning behind that.
The first job is to take care of the house, and I’m always quick to point out that this job comes before paying on time. Let’s think about that for a minute. What would cost more: a well-maintained house with a tenant who missed a payment during COVID-19 shutdowns or a tenant who pays early each month but doesn’t let you know that the water heater has been leaking for months and rotting the floor? What if they also allow their kids to knock holes in the doors while the dog scratches through the carpet after it gets through using the bathroom on it?
Now, I made that one sided, but you should get the idea. Damage is the most expensive thing on a rental property, and it affects your bottom line more than having a late, or even nonpaying, tenant. As such, the No. 1 job is to protect your house from damage by taking good care of it.
Now, don’t get me wrong. We expect our tenants to pay on time. That’s why it is job No. 2. But some landlords care only about the monthly payment and turn a blind eye to the condition of the property. I think that’s an error that will cost more due to tenant turnover.
You see, if a house is in disrepair and a tenant is willing to take the house in that condition, they won’t stay long. That means you’ll have a higher vacancy rate, lost rent and the probability of more damage as people move in and out regularly.
Making sure our houses are taken care of increases our profitability and is the most important job of all for a tenant.
I don’t think I need to spend a lot of time on why paying on time is important. But job No. 3 is built upon the first two jobs. I need the tenants to be comfortable to work with by always using good communication. And they need to do it in a respectful manner. We treat our tenants in a professional manner and expect the same out of them.
But you see, the tenants are our eyes and ears at our properties. They need to know that we not only encourage them to contact us when something like the water heater is leaking, but we expect them to do it quickly. That’s good communication in maintaining the property.
We also want them to contact us if they have something going on financially. For us, rent is due on the first and late on the second. Our office manager, Marybeth, has a great saying. “Rarely, if ever, does financial difficulty happen overnight.” With that idea in mind, if the tenants have something come up like a check that drops on the second this month, they need to let us know about that in advanced and not the day before rent is due.
That is being comfortable to work with and staying in good communication about payment.
The last job is to be good neighbor. The reason this is on the list is because we typically have houses in nonrental neighborhoods. That means the people next to our rental houses own their homes and will typically outstay our tenants. As such, we need tenants to be good and respectful neighbors and to have a good relationship with the neighborhood.
This week, we had a neighbor call in on one of our tenants — and it was for a good reason. You see, this tenant lives next to an elderly couple, and our tenant has been going out of his way to check-in on them, especially after he learned the neighbor had cancer.
The call was to let us know that our tenants were always good neighbors and to brag on the current tenant. It was good to hear that our tenant was not just being a good neighbor, but a great one.
The Gordon County Saddle Club is scheduled to host their annual Equine Care Clinic on Saturday, March 6, at the Northwest Georgia Livestock Pavilion from 9 a.m. to noon.
Annual vaccinations are one of the best things you can do to protect your horse. It’s all about disease prevention and the GCSC wants to help the community keep their horses healthy and free from illness and diseases.
Options offered at the clinic will be a Coggins test as well as vaccinations for Rabies, Strangles, West Nile, Tetanus and more. Digital Coggins fee is $30 with vaccination fees starting at $30 and up.
The format requires horse owners to trailer their horses to the livestock pavilion where on-site services will be administered by a certified equine veterinarian.
The NWGA Livestock Pavilion is located at 1282 Highway 53 Spur.
For more information call 770-548-5956 or visit the club’s Facebook page to view
upcoming events.
Gordon County Saddle Club meets the fourth Thursday of each month at the Gordon County Agricultural Service Center.
The total number of deaths reported in Gordon County since the start of the coronavirus pandemic reached 91 this week after an additional five locals passed away as a result of the deadly illness.
Since last Wednesday, the Department of Public Health has reported that an additional 11,770 confirmed positive cases and 513 deaths were reported across the state. In addition to the five reported deaths, 188 new confirmed positive cases were reported in Gordon County during the same time period.
These numbers come amid reports that the Department of Human Services and the Department of Public Health are joining efforts to ensure vulnerable seniors get access to the COVID-19 vaccine. According to a press release submitted by DPH earlier this week, the agencies are joining forces with local Area Agencies on Aging to help older adults sign up for and coordinate transportation services to vaccination appointments across Georgia.
“This partnership is a great example of the way Georgia is answering the call to protect its residents from COVID-19 and get vulnerable populations vaccinated,” said Gov. Brian Kemp.
The state is currently in Phase 1A+ of its vaccination administration plan, which allows people aged 65 and older and their caregivers to be vaccinated. The 12 AAAs, which are part of the DHS Division of Aging Services network, will work with DPH’s 18 public health districts to make contact with local seniors and plan vaccination events at senior centers and other safe community settings.
“Vaccination is so important for people aged 65 and older, but for those without a social support system to help them navigate a website, getting a vaccine can be extremely difficult,” said DPH Commissioner Kathleen E. Toomey. “This collaboration with DHS and AAAs demonstrates our collective ability to get the vaccine to the vulnerable individuals in Georgia who need it most.”
This month, AAAs are beginning to reach out to seniors and their caregivers who are currently enrolled in services through Home and Community Based Service programs, which include services like homedelivered meals, personal care assistance and respite care, as well as those who have contacted the Aging & Disability Resource Connection (ADRC), which provides information on and referrals to local services and programs for older adults and people with disabilities.
AAA and senior center staff will assist seniors with the registration process to sign up for local vaccination events and follow-up appointments for second dose vaccinations.
Vaccination events require pre-registration. There is no availability for walkins. AAAs will also assist with coordinating transportation for home-bound seniors needing assistance to and from their vaccination appointments.
“The COVID-19 virus has affected older adults so significantly that many seniors have had to cut themselves off from their families and communities to stay safe,” DHS Commissioner Robyn A. Crittenden said. “This partnership with DPH to help in the vaccination process is so important so we can keep our seniors safe and reconnect them with more in-person services and activities.”
To contact your local AAA, please visit www.aging.georgia.gov. For other resources for older adults, please contact the ADRC at www.georgiaadrc.com/findservices.
For information about COVID-19, visit www.dph. georgia.gov/novelcoronavirus or www.cdc.gov/ coronavirus/2019-ncov/ index.html.