Henry County Times

By Monroe Roark Times Correspondent Hannah McGarity has tried to make the most of this unusual year. She spent her quarantine time finishing up high school (gradu- ating from New Creation Chris- tian Academy in June) and working on her music. A vocalist who also plays piano and guitar, she started practicing to add the ukulele to her repertoire while at home over the past several months. Although she is taking college classes online while working a couple of part-time jobs, her top priority is her music. She is using several social media outlets to promote audio and video per- formances of some of her origi- nal songs. The video for “I’m Broken Glass,” a rock-and-roll song she wrote, was shot in Nashville and can now been seen on her YouTube channel. She hopes to make another one for her ballad “If I Were Yours” in the next cou- ple of months. These projects are self-produced, as she does not have a recording contract right now. Having loved to sing since she was a small child, Hannah first sang in front of an audience as a 13-year-old in a talent show while attending Creekside Chris- tian Academy. She sang “God Bless America.” In addition to taking voice lessons at Creekside, she connected with a vocal coach in Macon who routinely took stu- dents to sing in a local establish- ment in that area. In the years since, she has per- formed at such venues as the For- sythia Festival in Forsyth, the Peach Blossom Festival, and at Oconee Idol in Greensboro where she finished in the top six. She made two separate trips out of state to audition for the televi- sion show “the Voice” and also tried out for “American Idol.” “I didn’t make it at any of them,” she said. “But it’s all fun.” Locally she enjoys singing in the adult choir at Glen Haven Baptist Church and has partici- pated in a few events in the county in recent years such as “Henry’s Got Talent.” That video is also on YouTube. The COVID-19 shutdown has curtailed many planned activities for 2020. Hannah’s next sched- uled gig is in October at the El- bert County Fair. In the mean- time, she is busy on her Instagram and Facebook pages she has created especially for her music. By Monroe Roark Times Correspondent Thousands of Henry County pub- lic school students will be return- ing to campus next week following the conclusion of fall break. A district-wide survey was con- ducted after the Henry County Board of Education voted August 31 to phase in on-campus learning for those who wish to participate. According to officials, about 64 percent of families chose to con- tinue with remote learning, while 34 percent will make their way back to campuses starting the week of September 28. As a part of the plan, Phase 2 will welcome back students in all grades for a two-day return and orientation period, based on a stu- dent’s last name. The other three days of that week, students will continue with their remote learn- ing. The week of October 5 will see students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade return to campus five days a week, while grades 9-12 will remain on a split schedule, all as a part of Phase 3. The final phase start date has yet to be determined but will include high school students returning to campus five days a week. Students serving in self-contained #HENRY STRONG We Will Get Through This Together exceptional by design Prst. Standard US Postage Paid Permit No. 260 McDonough, GA CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED McGarity making good on her dream The Henry County “Celebrating Henry County” www.henrycountytimes.com • September 23, 2020 • Volume 19, No. 39 Proudly celebrating over eighteen years of faithfully serving our readers, the people of Henry County Henry County As It Was is on page 9. Schools approve schedule for students’ return How to make a family emergency plan. Turn to page 3. Friends make a pet food pantry to help area rescues. See page 7. Hannah McGarity has a passion for music. The 18-year-old recently shot a video in Nashville which is available on her YouTube channel. Special photo COVID-19 STATS These statistics are current as of press time on Tuesday. Georgia Department of Public Health Georgia Comfirmed Cases: 307,339 Deaths: 6,604 Hospitalizations: 27,394 Henry County Comfirmed Cases: 4,994 Deaths: 98 Hospitalizations: 196 see Students, page 6