Hundreds of people gathered Thursday to honor a prominent Republican state senator for his work in agricultural education, as Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle and other dignitaries opened the John K. Wilkinson Hall at the Georgia FFA-FCCLA Center.
The Toccoa Republican quipped that “this is the closest I’ll ever get to my own funeral” before thanking supporters, friends and more than 300 students for attending the event.
The new center sits at the center of a sprawling camp in Covington, and two state Future Farmers of America officers said Wilkinson has left an indelible imprint on their projects. Cagle, who is running for governor, also praised Wilkinson for championing agricultural education programs.
The state senator, meanwhile, was touched by the outpouring of support.
“There’s a lot of cynicism where politics is concerned,” he said, “but there’s a lot of good people in Atlanta.”
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