As your Sheriff, I have been truly humbled by the incredible support I receive from the community. I am equally humbled by the support I receive from my staff. The Sheriff’s Office has so many outstanding employees who are dedicated to this community that it is often a challenging task for supervisors to select an Employee of the Month. Each month, however, agency supervisors choose two Employees of the Month; one from the Sheriff’s Office Operations Division and one from the Jail Division. Then, at the end of the year, all of the employees vote to select the Employees of the Year. The fact that the Employees of the Year are chosen by their peers makes the honor even more special.

This year’s Employees of the Year are truly deserving of the recognition. Because folks in the community often don’t get the chance to see these great employees, I wanted to take this opportunity to share a little about them.

The Employee of the Year for the Sheriff’s Office Operations Division is Deputy Cornelius Drake. Dep. Drake has been employed with the Dougherty County Sheriff’s Office for over twenty-five years and is currently assigned as a court security officer. He is always smiling but make no mistake – he is all about business. Because of his technical competence and sound judgment, he often fills in as supervisor. Some words often used to describe Cornelius are: honest, cheerful, humble, dedicated, and detail-oriented. These attributes resulted in his being previously recognized as Employee of the Month and Employee of the Quarter. With his high level of professionalism, I’m sure there will be many more accolades to come during his career.

The Employee of the Year for the Jail Division is Detention Officer Teresa Knighton. Officer Knighton has been employed with the jail for twenty-one years and is currently assigned to our booking/release area.  As a seasoned employee with former military experience, she possesses great ethics and discipline, as displayed in her bearing, her punctuality, and her dependability.  Teresa is a natural leader and is often placed in charge of her shift. On her days off, she can often be found working overtime as medical officer, laundry officer, lobby officer, emit officer, or wherever else there is a need. Teresa has been recognized as Employee of the Month four times during her career and we are very fortunate to have her on our team.

I should also note that there were two dozen employees who received votes for Employee of the Year. This is a real testament to the quality of our employees. I am incredibly proud of and grateful for each person who takes up the challenge to serve their community as a member of the Dougherty County Sheriff’s Office. I want to thank each citizen for giving me the honor of leading such an outstanding team. If we can ever be of assistance, please do not hesitate to call.