The Waycross City Commission seated three members, made a host of appointments to local boards and committees, approved two resolutions and honored two members of the Waycross Police Department last week as it began 2026.
Commissioners Shawn Roberts (District 1), William Simmons (District 2) and Shawn Sanders (District 3) took the oath of office after being elected to four-year terms in last year’s Municipal Election. Simmons and Sanders are new members while Roberts had been in his seat since winning a special election in 2024 held to fill out the term of the late Norman E. Davis.
The resolutions altered the employee handbook and changed the commission’s meeting schedule to accommodate the Martin Luther King Holiday, Monday, January 19. WPD Det. Mark Horne was honored as City Employee of the Year while Officer Takira Bledsoe was chosen Employee of the Month for January.
In other business, department directors offered a brief synopsis of goals for the coming year in each of their areas.
Mayor Michael-Angelo James and all commissioners were present for the planning and information session held Monday, January 5 and the business meeting the following night. There were no executive session.
New members
The commissioners were sworn in at the beginning of Monday’s work session. Simmons, a former member of the body, was chosen Mayor Pro Temporé at Tuesday’s meeting in a unanimous vote of the other four commissioners, which included new District 4 representative William Tompkins and Alvin Nelson of District 5. Tompkins was elected and seated last month to fill the rest of the term of the late Diane Hopkins, who died January 29 in the second year of a term that expires December 31, 2027.
Resolutions
The first measure amended the handbook’s credit card reporting policy to improve transparency and accountability and include the positions of Mayor and City Manager with commissioners and staff.
The report for any card use now must be filed with the business department within 72 hours of the expense. Also, the executive (mayor) and contracted (city manager) positions now will be included in the same expense reporting timetable.
The other resolution placed the commission’s second work session and bi-monthly meeting on Tuesday, January 20 to accommodate the MLK Holiday. Times will be 3 p.m. and 5 p.m., respectively.
Boards, committees Commissioners approved Green as City Attorney and Huey Spearman as Assistant City Attorney. The official legal organ is the Waycross Journal-Herald
with the depository being Waycross Bank & Trust and Ameris Bank.
City auditor is Mauldin & Jenkins, CPA and engineer is ESG Engineering. Douglas W. Gibson is Municipal Court Judge while Andrienne Gibson is Judge Temporé.
Handling the city’s insurance needs will be Gallagher/ Five Points Oakbridge Insurance Company, Cigna Health, Anthem Vision, New York Life & AD&D Gallagher Insurance Travelers Liability & Workers Compensation. Carlos Nelson of the Ware County Board of Elections and Registration will be election superintendent.
Mayor James will represent the city on Downtown Waycross Development Authority, Waycross Convention & Visitors Bureau, South Georgia Regional Commission, Ware County Board of Health, Waycross- Ware Development Authority, and Waycross-Ware Chamber of Commerce. City Manager Ulysses “Duke” Rayford will serve on the Transportation Planning Coordinating Committee from the city while Simmons will be the ex-officio member to the Library Board of Trustees.
The commission’s Board of Ethics will be determined when all commissioners and the mayor have submitted two nominations each. Five members and two alternates will be chosen from that dozen to hear any initial complaint brought before the commission.
Top employees
The Employee of the Year award was among those for Det. Horne since being instrumental in saving the life of Georgia State Patrol Trooper Justin Jones last May 7.
Det. Horne gave Jones CPR when the trooper was pulled from his submerged vehicle by Horne and fellow officers following the car chase with a suspect fleeing from a traffic stop.
Officer Bledsoe joined WPD in June 2021, and is a member of the department’s Crisis Negotiations Team.
Chief Tommy Cox said that assignment resulted in part “for her strong judgment and calm demeanor in pressure situations. Her ability to communicate effectively and show compassion while maintaining officer safety has made her a valuable asset to the department.
“These qualities along with her commitment to ongoing training and professional development led to her selection” (to the crisis unit).
Waycross Police Chief Tommy Cox and Mayor Michael-Angelo James (left) honor Patrol Officer Takira Bledsoe as City Employee of the Month during last week’s commission meeting. At right are Marian Solomon-Gaines and Demetria White. Officer Bledsoe “embodies everything we ask of our officers to be and truly defines professionalism in her daily interactions with both the public and her fellow officers,” Chief Cox said. Photo by RICK NOLTE
