The focus of Gov. Kemp’s visit to Albany and Dougherty County will be on small busi- ness innovation, specifically locally owned business, The Levee Studios, and their de- velopment of a COVID-19 Safety Training Certification through their Unified Standards platform. Featuring videos that encompass the guidelines and safety precautions put in place by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the State of Geor- gia Department of Environmental Health, the Safety Training highlights and instructs employees on the safest, best practice for sanitizing and disinfecting dining and kitchen areas. The goal of the training is to build continuity in training food service workers, while also building public trust in local restaurants.

Local restaurant employees who complete the training receive a certificate, and once a restaurant’s entire staff completes the training, the establishment is promoted as a COVID-19 Safety Trained establishment. Some of the local Albany and Dougherty County businesses completing the training include The Cookie Shoppe, San Joe’s Cat- ina and Grill, Eggs Up Grill, Newk’s Eatery, Chehaw Food Services, The Catch, Henry Campbell’s, Loco’s of Albany, Stewbo’s Group, Merry Acres, Harvest Moon, Flossie’s Soul Food, Mi Casa, Guthrie’s, and SmallCakes.

The Governor will also tour Pretoria Fields’ hand sanitizer manufacturing area, which became known as ground zero for hand sanitizer production and distribution in the re- gion amidst COVID-19 safety measures. Governor Kemp’s order paved the way for Pre- toria Fields to receive a permit that would allow for a tanker of ethanol, the primary in- gredient in the hand sanitizer mixed at the brewery, to be shipped to the downtown Al- bany facility.

“The COVID-19 pandemic continued to affect Georgians from all walks of life on a daily basis,” said Governor Kemp. “I’m excited to visit the City of Albany and other communi- ties to continue urging our citizens to wear masks and heed the guidance of public

health officials to stop the spread of the virus. With the support of hardworking Geor- gians around the state, we can all do our part to win this battle and emerge stronger than ever before.”

From the beginning of the pandemic, Dougherty County Board of Commissioners Chair- man, Christopher S. Cohilas, worked tirelessly with the Governor’s Office and several other stakeholders, to provide resources to mitigate the virus and its impact on the com- munity. He organized a Task Force and held press briefings regularly to keep the public informed of evolving health trends.

“Without Governor Kemp’s support in our community, we could not have overcome the obstacles we have overcome with the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Chairman Cohilas. “The Governor and our state agency partners provided an abundance of resources to our community, including additional testing sites, Personal Protective Equipment to our citizens and first responders, and a host of other resources and we are extremely grate- ful. We are excited about his visit to Dougherty County to learn first-hand about all the strides we have made to keep our part of the State safe.”

"The business community has been an innovative leader in our efforts to flatten the curve of COVID-19, from proactively adjusting operations to ensure the safety of their employees and the public, to pivoting to production of critically-needed safety products to an increase in production to meet national demand for household essentials,” said Barbara Rivera Holmes, president and CEO of the Albany Area Chamber of Commerce, which has worked alongside local, state and federal officials to lead the community for- ward and providing the access, information and connection to the community’s busi- nesses. “Through this we have identified areas of incredible opportunities for our busi- nesses, our community and our citizens, and we look forward to our continued work with the Governor and our partners to advance these.”