The first two candidates to qualify for Statesboro City Council seats in the Nov. 3 election, Sam Lee Jones in District 2 and Jeffrey B. Yawn in District 3, are lifetime residents of Statesboro.
Neither has held elected office before. Both have records of volunteer service.
Jones, 55, is seeking the seat currently held by Councilman Gary Lewis, who has said he plans to retire from the council at year-end. Jones was also one three candidates who challenged Lewis in 2011, when he won re-election to his fourth full term.
"I just want to serve," Jones said. "The fact that Gary is retiring had no appeal on me because I was going to run with Gary as a candidate or without. It's something you think about in Afghanistan: What are you going to do when you get home? I'm going to run."
Yawn, 43, wants the seat currently held by Councilman Will Britt, who recently announced that he will not seek election to a fourth term. This is Yawn's first time as a candidate.
But his grandfather, the late Julian Hodges, was Statesboro City Clerk for more than 30 years.
"That's why, I think, when people say, ‘Jeff, what is your interest in doing this?' well, I was always taught to give back to those who have given to you and I've always had a desire to do so," Yawn said Monday. "This opportunity was one that I'd considered in the past, and this just seemed like the right time to do it."
More about Sam Jones
Jones currently works as an independent insurance agent. A combat veteran from his two years in Afghanistan with the National Guard, he retired in April as a staff sergeant after a 32-year military career that also included service in the Army and the Army Reserve.
He was a corrections officer at the Bulloch County Correctional Institute for five years and a jailer with the Bulloch County Sheriff's Department for two.
He and his wife Margaret have three children, ages 21 and up, and three grandchildren. He is an ordained deacon at Jordan Missionary Baptist Church, where he is also the superintendent and a teacher in the Sunday school program. President of the Statesboro Toastmasters, he also volunteers with Habitat for Humanity and as a baseball coach with the Statesboro-Bulloch Parks and Recreation Department.
Jones founded Southeast Georgia Jail and Prison Ministry, working with ex-inmates looking for jobs and housing.
He has an associate degree in accounting from Ogeechee Technical College and has taken classes with Georgia Southern University, Brenau University, and Guido Bible Institute in Metter, where he is working on an associate degree in ministry.
Jones said he will be solutions-oriented and accessible to constituents.
"We need to come to the table with some solutions," he said. "There's a lot of solutions out there. So my main slogan is ‘Bridging the gap' in communications between city officials and District 2. We're not communicating."
More about Jeff Yawn
Yawn is executive director of Eagle Dining Services at Georgia Southern University, where he has worked for more than nine years and been in the director's position for eight. He grew up working at the former Snooky's restaurant, which was owned by his parents, Bruce and Carol Hodges Yawn, and owned the former Archibald's in partnership with David Ball for three years and as sole owner for two years.
Yawn has a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in accounting from Georgia Southern.
He and his wife, Megan, have three children, ages 6, 8, and 10.
Currently Yawn serves on the Statesboro Convention and Visitors Bureau board. At his church, First United Methodist, he teaches an adult Sunday school class.
Previously, he served on the Downtown Statesboro Downtown Development Authority and on the city's former Alcohol Control Board. In his earlier business roles he was an active Statesboro-Bulloch County Chamber of Commerce member, serving on the Special Events Committee that launched the annual gala, among other committees.
"I want to be a leader for the 3rd District and all of Statesboro, someone that the people have confidence in and great trust, someone that people know is committed to building relationships, understanding the importance of the city, the county, Georgia Southern, Ogeechee Tech, small businesses and large industry alike," Yawn said. "It takes all components for the city to continue to prosper."
The District 5 seat is also up for election, and Councilman Travis Chance has said he will seek re-election.
Jones and Yawn were the only qualifiers as of 4:45 p.m. Monday. Qualifying is open 8:30 a.m. until 5 p.m. daily through Thursday and from 8:30 p.m. until 4:30 p.m. Friday in the clerk's office at City Hall.
Al Hackle may be reached at (912) 489-9458.