Spalding County adds cemetery committee to agenda, appoints initial members

The Spalding County Board of Commissioners amended its Jan. 6 agenda to add a new cemetery committee and appointed four initial members by vote.

The board voted to add item 27 to the meeting agenda to consider appointments to a county cemetery committee. Commissioners directed that the group be composed of one appointee from each commission district; the committee will elect its own chair.

The board then voted to appoint Gwen Flowers Taylor, Kristen Dutton, Mike Pryor and Dennis Scott as the initial members of the cemetery committee; the board said it will work with Commissioner Watts to finalize a remaining appointment and to publish names of any further volunteers from the meeting book.

Why it matters: County cemeteries can involve historic preservation, maintenance responsibilities and public records. Creating a committee centralizes oversight and gives commissioners a formal channel for citizen input and coordination with the coroner’s office and cemetery sextons. The board asked staff to seek members with local historical knowledge when possible.

Next steps: Staff will circulate appointment rosters and follow up as needed; the committee will elect its own chair and set operating procedures.