It always gets here before we expect it, but Friday is the beginning of the new school year.
Our kids will be back on buses and the hustle and bustle of the daily school routine will return to our community.
Safety on our roads has been a paramount issue this summer in the wake of all the wrecks we have seen, especially the one that took the lives of a Hall County deputy’s entire family and two other motorists.
Law enforcement officers from the Habersham County Sheriff’s Office and the Georgia State Patrol have been stepping up efforts to patrol traffic violators as much as they have time to do, but that is not enough. We as a community need to take responsibility.
No matter the political climate or what is going on in our worlds, our greatest resource and treasure is our children. With our young drivers back on their school routines, we have to be at our most alert and mindful as we travel around Habersham County, especially during those drop-off and pickup times.
In Baldwin and Tallulah Falls, we have automatic cameras for school zone speeders, both locations of which have been extremely efficient at catching offenders.
Our children deserve our undivided attention and constant protection. Our sheriff’s office and school system have put a lot of resources into achieving this goal once our kids get to the schoolhouse, with an increasing number of resource officers that will eventually be able to cover every campus without sharing.
So when you are out there in Habersham County, yield to our school buses and stop behind them when the little red sign with the lights tells you to. And take an extra second after making a complete stop to make sure an intersection is safe before crossing.
Be sure to show respect to others when picking up or dropping off your kids. Work hard to communicate with school and law enforcement officials when needed to ensure the kids are practicing safe habits in and out of school.
We can never be too careful while driving.