Food for
thought…
As I am writing this in late
April, I marvel at how quickly
things change. Just four (yes, 4!) months
ago, we were reveling in a great success
for our 2019 Christmas Tour of Homes.
Just three weeks before the Tour of
Homes, Fannin County Family Connection
(FCFC) hosted a grand opening of our
new facilities at 501 Industrial Park.
The year of 2019 held many changes for
us at FCFC. We entered the year know-
ing that we needed to find new facilities,
but had no idea where a building was
located that could house us. Because of
a change in a business located next door
to us in the Industrial Park, a building
became available just around the corner.
And, a generous donor came forward
with an offer to donate facilities to FCFC
over a period of years. As 2019 began, I
was waking up during the night, worried
about our facilities. When 2019 ended,
FCFC had opened a beautiful facility, of-
fering more to our community than ever
before in the history of the organization.
There were many volunteers working
hours upon hours for the building reno-
vation who made this possible. There are
photos of the “Before/After” of the facili-
ties, along with some Grand Opening
photos on the back cover of this issue of
Connections.
When 2020 rolled into existence, FCFC
celebrated in receiving the first ever
“Heart of the Community” Award from
the Fannin Chamber of Commerce. See
that story on page 6.
And, just three months into 2020, our
whole operations procedure had to
change on dime when COVID-19 became
rampant in our country. See the front
cover story and the story on page 5
about FCFC’s community response.
We’re now into April and getting accus-
tomed to the change in operations at
FCFC. I’ve personally become accus-
tomed to being a “substitute” teacher for
my son and I’ve worked from my home
office a lot more lately. After a long ill-
ness, my Mom passed away a few days
ago and another change is experienced.
There’s a quote that mentions that the
only thing that stays the same is change.
What a year of change! What’s to be-
come of a “new normal?” Who knows?
With your help and support, FCFC will be
adapting, evolving and continuing to
serve our wonderful community.
As always, all my best to you!
Sherry
Connections, Winter/Spring 2019-20, Page 2
Leadership Fannin visits Family Connection
for Social Services Day
The 2020 Class of Leadership Fannin met in February at Family Connection’s Link
Community Room. There were 11 social services agencies from the area who
exhibited in the event. Tables were arranged for each agency and Leadership
Fannin students visited with each provider to learn about the services offered to
area residents. Agencies who participated included Feed Fannin, North Georgia
Mountain Crisis Network, Pruitt Healthcare & Pruitt Hospice Services, Snack in a
Backpack, Habitat for Humanity, Highland Rivers Health, Fannin Literacy Action
Group (FLAG), North Georgia Autism Foundation, Open Arms, Special Olympics,
and Family Connection. The group also toured the Food Pantry at Family Connec-
tion and visited the gardens at Feed Fannin.
For more information about Leadership Fannin, contact the Fannin County Cham-
ber of Commerce at 706.632.5680.
Students of Leadership Fannin
learn about the operation of
many of the non-profit and gov-
ernment social service agencies
in the county during a 1/2 day
round-robin meeting held at
Family Connection. This was the
last time the class met prior to
the cancellation of the remainder
of Leadership Fannin program
due to COVID-19.
PHOTOS: Right: Sherry Morris ex-
plains services of FCFC. Below,
Top: Leadership Fannin Coordina-
tor Shannon York addresses the
class. Below, Bottom: Represent-
atives of the 11 agencies who
participated in the event.