The Kiwanis Club of Swainsboro held its weekly meeting Tuesday night, December 21, at 7 p.m. at The Rustic Grille. With President Dianna Wedincamp presiding, there were 32 in attendance, including 10 guests, Barbara Fields, Brenda Henry, Austin Henry, Cliff Mason, Wanda Michael, Zane Scarboro, Jimmy Allen, Betty Clapham, Danny Fortner and Mayor Charles Schwabe.
The red-velvet cake, donated by Mary Ellen Smith and baked by Petite Garrett, was won by Tracy Mason. The Domino’s pizza, donated by Domino's Pizza, was won by Cheryl Goodman. Goodman also won the box of cookies. Pepper Fields won the bird feeder. The pizza and cookies will be donated to the Emanuel County Sheriff's Department. With the assistance of Sheriff Jeff Brewer, Mayor Schwabe drew the winning ticket for the shotgun drawing. The winner was Bryant Lewis. Kiwanian Frank Patrick sold the winning ticket and Mary Ellen Smith was the top ticket seller for this year’s shotgun drawing project. This year’s fall fundraiser income was used to purchase 46 bikes that were donated to Swainsboro Pre-K. President Wedincamp reminded everyone of the club’s next big event – The Resolution 5K Run set for January 1 at East Georgia State College.
The program for the evening was hosted by Sheriff Brewer and featured a summation of the 2021 year in the sheriff's office. After the election, the sheriff, along with 35 other new sheriffs, attended four weeks of training with continued follow-up training during the year. The sheriff's department has 65 employees and a fleet of 35 vehicles. He has appointed a 6-person command staff to assist him with everything from code enforcement to providing security at the courthouse. Sheriff Brewer explained about a high security drug/gang related trial and how it operated. He also outlined the cost of the trial in overtime pay. The sheriff's department has 10 deputies on patrol 24/7, each with in-car video units and body cams for deputies. There are 4 traffic units operating, up from two at the start of the year. The department has 4 investigators dealing with drug/gang crimes, computer crimes (sex crimes) and crimes in general. The department has 4 School Resource Officers, one each at ECI, SHS, and SMS, and another unattached to a specific school. The Emanuel County Jail has a very high population. With the spread of Covid going around, the department is planning to hire a full-time nurse. They have also hired a part-time maintenance person to better handle maintenance at the jail. One focus of the department is the training of personnel. All personnel will or have received Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training (ALERRT), Crisis Intervention Training and training in the use of Ballistic Vests.
