Lillian Eloise Ledford
Mrs. Lillian Eloise “Toot” Ledford, age 88, of Rome, passed away Friday, July 13, 2018, at her residence.
Mrs. Ledford was born June 18, 1930 in Floyd County, a daughter of the late Pryce Anderson Payne and Eleither Ailene Bunch Payne. Mrs. Ledford was a graduate of Rome High in 1947 and was retired from the Floyd County Board of Education, where she worked at Garden Lakes School in the lunchroom.
Mrs. Ledford married Theron Farrell Ledford in August 16, 1947 and he preceded her in death in 1985; she was also preceded in death by a daughter, Cheryl Diane Ledford, and brother, Harold Anderson “Curly” Payne.
Mrs. Ledford was a devoted wife and mother. She was a happy person with a wonderful sense of humor that could cheer up anyone. She especially enjoyed visits from family and friends. Mrs. Ledford was an avid reader and enjoyed attending Gospel music concerts with her friends. As a young woman she was a member of Shorter Avenue Baptist Church and enjoyed the Circle Meetings. Mrs. Ledford spent her entire life in Rome and Floyd County and was a member of Garden Lakes Baptist Church.
Survivors include her children, Craig Ledford (Barbara), Cathie Ledford Greeson (Tommy), Susan Ledford Huggins, (Greg), Rickey Ledford (Robyn); her grandchildren, Amy Ledford Morgan (Dr. Jack), Dr. Jason Ledford (Krista), Crockett Ledford, Hunter Norton (Aimee), Dustin Norton (Ashley), Dr. Jonathan Huggins (Lisa), Gretchen Huggins Harter (Zach), Josh Huggins (Mary), Brandon Ledford, Lauren Ledford Strickland (Ryan), Jessica Ledford Pavlovsky; and 25 great grandchildren. Mrs. Ledford is also survived by a very special sister-inlaw and dear friend, Janice Payne; several nieces and nephews also survive.
Funeral services will be held at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, July 15, 2018, at Good Shepherd Funeral Home Chapel with Dr. John Huggins officiating.
Interment will follow in Oaknoll Memorial Gardens.
The family will receive friends from 1:00 p.m. until the service hour on Sunday at Good Shepherd Funeral Home, 2750 Shorter Ave., Rome, Ga. 30165.
A special thanks to Mrs. Ledford’s loving and faithful caregivers, Barbara Cohenour, Linda Martin, Lucille Harrell, Fredia Mitchell, Sandy Gregg, Joyce Ford, and Transitions Hospice.
Please visit our website, www.goodshepherdfh.net, to post tributes and view a DVD about Mrs. Ledford’s life.
Parnick Jennings Sr.’s Good Shepherd Funeral Home has charge of arrangements.
ATLANTA — During a tense debate between the two Republicans vying for Georgia governor, both candidates tried to make the race about who voters can trust when no one is looking.
Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle and Secretary of State Brian Kemp, who are locked in a contentious runoff battle that will be decided July 24, squared off Thursday evening in Atlanta.
The winner will face Democrat Stacey Abrams in November.
Kemp continued his attack on Cagle over a secret recording released last month in which Cagle can be heard saying he backed what he called “bad public policy” in order to deny a political opponent monetary support.
Cagle punched back, saying that Kemp had “colluded” with former candidate Clay Tippins to record the private conversation and release portions to the media.
He also accused Kemp of taking campaign contributions from people with ties to businesses regulated and licensed by his office. Cagle specifically pointed to a chain of massage parlors and said that past Secretaries of State had given back similar contributions.
When the candidates got to ask each other questions, Kemp asked Cagle about the conversation Tippins had recorded: “Were you trading legislation for money?”
Cagle responded, saying “Let’s be honest, the only person that has been trading anything for money has been the Secretary of State,” referring to campaign contributions made to Kemp.
Kemp has denied receiving any improper contributions and accused Cagle of dodging questions about Tippins’ tape.
Other issues the candidates focused on included transit, which both Kemp and Cagle said they supported an expansion of public transit, but differed on their approach.
Kemp said that his primary question about all transit projects would be, “How much is it going to cost and who is going to pay for it?” Kemp said he was supportive of funding transit projects from the local level because it gave the best value for the tax payer.
Cagle, meanwhile, called Kemp’s suggestion “not a plan,” and said that he had led on the issue during the past legislative session. Cagle said that as governor he would have a 10-year strategic plan and look at “every option available” to build infrastructure across the state.
In terms of medical marijuana, both candidates said that they would back the future expansion of Georgia’s medical marijuana program, saying they have been swayed by stories of families reliant on it for treatment.
Cagle said he was in favor of ensuring access to cannabis oil for patients in the state, while saying he was staunchly opposed to legalizing recreational marijuana.
Kemp applauded the work of Rep. Allen Peake, one of the biggest advocates for medical marijuana legislation in the state House, while also signaling that he was unequivocally opposed to recreational marijuana in Georgia.
ATLANTA (AP) — A Georgia man is headed back to prison after prosecutors say he was found with a quarter kilogram of meth just two months after he’d been released from prison.
A news release from the U.S. attorney’s office in Atlanta says 46-year-old Barry Shedd of Rome was sentenced Thursday to 20 years in federal prison to be followed by 10 years of supervised release. Shedd pleaded guilty on Jan. 10 to possession with intent to distribute meth.
Prosecutors say Shedd crashed his car Aug. 17 and fled to the woods before returning to his vehicle. While searching the woods, authorities found a bag of meth and 110 pills. They also seized over $3,000 in cash.
Shedd had been released from prison 58 days earlier.