Pray for Barrow County
Friends –
Our hearts are heavy this week as we mourn the loss of four precious Georgians who were killed in Wednesday’s shooting at Apalachee High School—Richard Aspinwall (Teacher), Christina Irimie (Teacher), Mason Schermerhorn (Student), and Christian Angulo (Student).
I ask that you continue to join Dayle and me in keeping the families, friends, and loved ones of the victims, as well as the entire Barrow County Community, in your thoughts and prayers as they face this unimaginable loss. Please see my full statement below.
“Our state’s heart breaks today – including mine.
As a father and a grandfather, I am devastated by the horrific tragedy that took place at Apalachee High School. We continue to mourn the senseless loss of life, and pray for those who were injured as we lift up their families and the entire Barrow County community during this time.
We have prioritized making significant investments in mental health and school safety funding – and while there will be a time and place for policy discussions, our sole focus right now remains on surrounding these students, teachers and families with our love and support.
We will continue to lift up the entire Barrow County community during this difficult time, and stand ready to assist the Governor in bringing every possible resource, assistance and justice to these families following this unthinkable tragedy.”
I also want to express my gratitude to the heroes whose decisive actions and quick response saved countless lives and prevented a much larger tragedy. The first responders, school resource officers, teachers, faculty, staff, and students acted with incredible bravery, and I commend them for their dedication to the safety and well-being of their fellow Georgians.
Salzburger Society
Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of attending the 99th meeting of the Georgia Salzburger Society at the historic Jerusalem Church in Ebenezer, GA—the oldest continuous worshipping Lutheran Church in America. It was great to hear from Dr. Thomas Mueller-Bahlke about the history of the Salzburgers in our state—and celebrate the tremendous impact they have had on Georgia since their arrival in Savannah over 275 years ago.
Pictured with Dr. Thomas Mueller-Bahlke, his wife Anna, and former State Representative Ann Purcell
Pictured with former State Representative Ann Purcell
K-12 Literacy
Last week, Dayle and I spent time with several literacy champions across the state.
I had the incredible opportunity to join a Georgia great, Malcolm Mitchell, to promote a new literacy initiative through the Georgia Reads program.
On September 30th, The Georgia Council for Literacy will host “Georgia Reads Day” at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta. Over 300 second-grade students from Atlanta-area schools will be joining our literacy coach, Malcolm Mitchell, for a fun-filled morning where they will learn about the importance of literacy and the tremendous impact reading can have on their lives.
Classrooms across the state are invited to attend via Georgia Public Broadcasting’s live stream of the event beginning at 10 a.m. I hope you’ll join us!
Filming for Georgia Reads Day with Malcolm Mitchell
Dayle meeting with Georgia Tech students and staff as they presented early literacy learning research to the Georgia Literacy Council
Thank you to everyone for your continued prayers, partnership, and support. I hope to see you all soon.
My best,
Speaker Jon Burns