Lavonia will host Faith and Blue Weekend Friday through Sunday. The Lavonia Police Department, Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, Lavonia Lions Club, Georgia State Patrol and Georgia Motor Carriers Compliance Division are sponsoring the local event.
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Lavonia will host Faith and Blue Weekend Friday through Sunday. The Lavonia Police Department, Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, Lavonia Lions Club, Georgia State Patrol and Georgia Motor Carriers Compliance Division are sponsoring the local event.
LAVONIA – Lavonia will host Faith and Blue Weekend Friday through Sunday.
The event is a national effort that aims to help unify the community and address concerns over social issues by emphasizing common interests.
“If we can focus on the things we do agree on, which are probably a lot more than everybody realizes, we would all be a lot better off,” Lavonia Police Chief Bruce Carlisle said.
The Lavonia Police Department, Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, Lavonia Lions Club, Georgia State Patrol and Georgia Motor Carriers Compliance Division are sponsoring the local event.
The three-day event will also include local churches and other organizations.
Faith and Blue Weekend will kick off Friday afternoon at 4 p.m.
Lavonia Police officers will take a freezer full of ice cream and hand treats out throughout town.
The ice cream giveaway will begin at the Spring Street Gym and then fan out from there.
On Saturday, from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m., a Party in the Park will be held in Lavonia Memorial Park behind City Hall.
The party will include free hamburgers and hot dogs, inflatables for children and music provided by Jess Fowler.
The Georgia State Patrol helicopter will also land at the event.
The party will replace the annual National Night Out sponsored by the Lavonia Police and Lavonia Lions Club.
“We feel like this is much more important this year,” Carlisle said.
Memorial Park will provide more space for social distancing than downtown, the chief said.
On Sunday, beginning at 5 p.m. at the Gazebo downtown, a community church service will be held.
Pastors and members of churches throughout the community will take turns praying, preaching and singing until about 7:30 p.m.
A food vendor will be available for those attending to purchase dinners of pulled pork, chicken, hot dogs, baked beans and soft drinks.
Franklin County Sheriff Stevie Thomas will be giving out t-shirts to the first 100 people in attendance.
Those attending are encouraged to bring folding chairs or may sit in their vehicles and listen to the service on 95.7 FM on car radios.
Carlisle said Faith and Blue Weekend is aimed at getting everyone involved that wants to be.
Lavonia and Franklin County have been fortunate in not having strife arise like other communities, the chief said.
“This is part of why we don’t,” he said. “We try to do community events and bring people together.”
His department works to build and keep relationships with a lot of different groups, he said.
“I just think it is very important to do,” he said.
National Faith and Blue Weekend is a part of the One Congregation One Precinct (OneCOP) initiative of MovementForward Inc., a human and civil rights organization founded in Atlanta.
To learn more, visit www.faithandblue.org.