KEVIN SPROUL: Wishes at Christmastime

I always look forward to this time of year. It becomes almost magical when the season causes us to re-focus our attention on family and friends. I wanted to take this opportunity to thank my staff for all of their hard work and dedication all year long. In appreciation, I wanted to share this poem that I came across:

The patrol car cranks and from the vents comes a frigid blast of air,

As the deputy pulls the seat belt around the gear he has to wear,

Down an empty Court House corridor sounds the ringing of a phone,

Until a deputy answers, working Christmas Eve alone,

And in the jail the evening starts like any other shift,

The officers thinking of family and of their Christmas gifts,

They have a job from which they can not take a holiday,

For if they did, the innocent would certainly fall prey,

As they fulfill their duty we think about another,

Born long ago this very night, by a virgin mother,

And He too had a mission that took passion, strength, and nerve,

He was killed in the line of duty, after living to protect and serve.

To all the employees of the Dougherty County Sheriff’s Office, and all others who live a life of service to their fellow man: I am proud of you and wish the very best for you and your families during this Christmas season.

I especially want to thank Chief Deputy Robert Daniels, Col. John Ostrander, Col. Sabrina Lewis, Maj. Lee Cates, Maj. Pamela Johnson, Maj. Dan Haggerty, Maj. Allen Brock, Lt. Terron Hayes and Marie Ostrander. Without the leadership abilities of these men and women, I would not be able to oversee an agency of our size.

God has truly blessed us all in 2015 and my hope and prayer for 2016 is He will continue to bless our community.

Sheriff Kevin Sproul is a longtime resident of Dougherty County. He is a graduate of Albany High School, Darton College and LaGrange College of Albany. Sproul has been employed with the Dougherty County Sheriff’s Office since 1982.