More Georgia Municipalities Name Betty Vandiver Day

An update on a special proclamation for a special Lavonia resident.

We told you last month that the Georgia Municipal Association has encouraged municipalities across the state to proclaim December 1st as Betty Vandiver Day in honor of her efforts on behalf of the cognitively and physically challenged in Georgia’s state homes.

The City of Lavonia was one of the first cities to approve that proclamation and held a special reception in her honor.

On Monday, WLHR News got an update on that effort from GMA Deputy Executive Director Bill Thornton.

Thorton met with the former First Lady of Georgia at the reception for City Manager Gary Fesperman to present her with even more proclamations.

“We’re going to present Mrs. Vandiver with more proclamations that have been adopted by cities around the State declaring December 1 as Betty Vandiver Day, as a way of honoring her for helping to start the Mayor’s Christmas Motorcade,” Thornton said.

Thornton said over 38 towns and municipalities across Georgia have declared December 1 Betty Vandiver Day.

With the help of her husband, then Governor ErnestVandiver, Mrs. Vandiver instituted the Mayor’s Christmas Motorcade in 1959 as a way to provide gifts and needed items to residents of Georgia’s state homes, many of whom have no family who visits them.

Today, the program is run by the Georgia Municipal Association and continues to grow.

Since then, the Mayor’s Christmas Motorcade has grown to include participation from hundreds of municipalities in Georgia.