A final look back at 2020: What a year
One of the more notable events in 2020 as the visit by President Donald Trump for a campaign rally at Richard B. Russell Airport on Nov. 1. The visit was the first time in decades that a sitting U.S. President had visited Floyd County. The rally brought over 30,000 participants from nearby states just prior to his loss to President-elect Joe Biden. We’ve compiled this second batch of our favorite photos and most momentous events from the second half of the year to look back at 2020 and herald in 2021.
Below: A pandemic couldn’t keep down the Fourth of July spirit as the Rome-Floyd Parks and Recreation launched its Independence Day fireworks show from a new location atop Jackson Hill. The 20-minute show featured 2,000 firework shells in different shapes and colors.
Below: In this July 28 file photo, construction equipment sits in front of the Rome City Schools College and Career Academy, slated to open in January. Officials announced in 2020 the addition of three career pathways — advanced manufacturing, automotive and culinary arts.
In this Aug. 2, 2020, file photo, a crowd outside Rome City Hall releases purple and white balloons to honor the memory of Vanita Nicole Richardson and Truvenia Campbell, whose bodies were found off the Rome bypass in May. The senseless nature of the slayings left the community outraged and concerned.
Above what will be the administration offices of Pepperell Middle School, workers weld steel roof supports on August 19, 2020. Floyd County Schools Executive Director of Facilities Jack Gardner estimated the building will be ready by April 2021.
Sheriff Tim Burkhalter lays a wreath at the Firefighters Memorial Plaza during a ceremony to remember the first responders who lost their lives as a result of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. During the ceremony Fire Chief Troy Brock and both police chiefs called for unity after a year of political and social divisiveness. Burkhalter also served his last year in the role of sheriff, retiring on Dec. 31 after over a decade of service.
Dance group Indios performs traditional Aztec dances at the Intercultural Festival on the Town Green. The public area just outside the Forum River Center held many cultural gatherings — including the Rome Shakespeare Festival and a tribute to late Congressman John Lewis — during 2020.
Prayers and loving messages were written on paper lanterns before they were sent aloft from the Town Green on Tuesday as part of NAMI Rome’s candlelight service for the national day of prayer for mental illness recovery and understanding.
A Special Operations flag provides a backdrop as the first member of the U.S. Army Black Daggers parachute team nears the jump target in front of Redmond Regional Medical Center in October. The even heralded the return of the Wings Over North Georgia Air Show in 2020. The drive in event was changed some by the pandemic, but flew high nonetheless.
Santa and Mrs. Claus braced themselves for some North Pole-type temperatures as drivers passed and waved at Rome’s 2020 Christmas Parade at State Mutual Stadium. The event drew between 6,000 and 7,000 cars.Â
Dr. Monal Patel, an internal medicine physician with Harbin Clinic, is given her first dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine on Dec. 21, 2020 by Redmond Regional Medical Center nurse educator Jake Sullivan. Both hospitals began receiving their initial shipments and began vaccinating staff members in late December.
