City Council
Mayor Hays Arnold
Mayor Arnold is completing the third year of his second term as Mayor of Thomaston. He was elected as Mayor Pro-Tem twice prior to being elected mayor in 2004. He was born in Thomaston and graduated from its public school systems. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and is a lifetime member of the Sigma Chi fraternity. He has continued his education throughout his life and is an avid reader. He also enjoys playing golf.
Before his retirement from business activities in 2004, Mayor Arnold was a successful businessman in Thomaston and Atlanta for 43 years.
Mayor Arnold comes from a rich heritage of public servants. His great-great grandfather and two great grandfathers served as mayors of Thomaston. In addition, Mayor' Arnold's grandfather served on the Thomaston City Council and his father served on the Upson County Commission for almost 20 years.
Mayor Arnold is an active member of The Georgia Municipal Association (GMA), serving on the Transporation, Environment and National Resources Committees. He has served as District 4 President, a member of the Legislative Policies Council and as a member of the GMA Board of Directors. He serves as a director on many boards, including the Board of Health, Three Rivers Regional Council, West Central Georgia Workforce Development Corporation, Thomaston-Upson Office Building Authority, Flint River Technical College Foundation, Thomaston-Upson County Industrial Authority, and as chairman of the Thomaston-Upson Transportation Committee. Mayor Arnold was appointed by Governor Sonny Perdue to serve as a member of the Upper Flint Regional Water Planning Council, and he was also appointed by Governor Perdue to the State of Georgia's Census 2010 Committee.
Mayor Arnold also serves as a Mason and a member of both the Shrine and the Thomaston Kiwanis Club. He also received an Honorable Discharge from the United States Coast Guard.
Mayor Arnold is married to Mrs. Anna Cowart Arnold. Mayor and Mrs. Arnold are Christian and members of The Gathering. They have 4 children and 10 grandchildren of whom they are extremely proud.
Council member (District 1) Gary L. Atwater
Mr. Gary L. Atwater represents District 1 and has been a councilman for 9 years. Mr. Atwater is a graduate of R.E Lee Institute. Mr. Atwater then attended Fort Valley State College where he earned a degree in business management. He is also a graduate of the Memphis School of Preaching and received a degree in bible and preaching. He is also currently working on his Masters in Divinity from the American School of Biblical Theology.
Mr. Atwater is employed by the State Board of Pardons and Parole Office. He works out of the Thomaston office and supervises Meriwether County. He has been a preacher for 28 years and currently preaches at the College Street Church of Christ here in Thomaston.
Mr. Atwater is married to Mrs. Diana Wooden Atwater of Bolivar, Tennessee. Their two sons, Termain and Christopher, serve in the U.S. military. Termain is married and is a Captain in the U.S. Air Force, and Christopher is a 1st Lieutenant (and soon-to-be Captain) in the U.S. Army and is currently serving in Afghanistan.
Council member (District 2) Patsy Perdue
Mrs. Patsy Perdue is serving her first term on the City Council and represents District 2. Although this is her first official position in politics, she believes that her broad range of experience working for the Thomaston-Upson Board of Education for the past 29 years fully qualifies her to participate in the political process required of a Thomaston City Council Member. She believes that running unopposed was a vote of confidence in her ability to represent the people of District 2 and the City of Thomaston.
Born and raised in Thomaston, Mrs. Perdue says that representing the families of her community is an honor. She is married to Mr. Steve Perdue, and they have 3 grown children (Sheri, Cindi and Michael) and 6 grandchildren (Will, Eryn, Amelia, Clarissa, Landon and Mason).
Mrs. Perdue holds a B.S. degree from Tift College and an M.Ed. from West Georgia State University. She retired from the Thomaston-Upson School System in 2008. Active in numerous service and civic organizations, she serves on the board of the Thomaston-Upson Arts Council (TUAC) and is a member of the Child Abuse Council and Child Fatality Review Committee, Child Advisory Council, Southern Crescent Area Agency on Aging Council, Thomaston-Upson Chamber of Commerce, and the Downtown Business Association.
Council member (District 3) Jim Richards
Jim Richards was elected in November 2011 to fill the unexpired term of the late Ed Bell as District 3 Council member. He has never held elective office before, but has spent many years in higher education and has performed many of the functions of elective office in preparing and administering budgets, making personnel decisions, and dealing with the myriad of problems facing an academic administrator.
Jim is a native of Poplar Bluff, Missouri and first came to Thomaston in 1957 after meeting Barbara Streetman at Georgetown College (KY). He graduated from Georgetown in 1958, married Barbara Streetman (a Thomaston native), and spent four years at the University of Illinois (Champaign-Urbana) earning the MA and PhD in History. He taught at Kentucky Southern College in Louisville, KY, Macon Junior (now Macon State College) in Macon, and at Gordon College in Barnesville before retiring in 1997. The last fifteen years at Gordon he was Vice-President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the Faculty. He continues to teach history part-time at Gordon.
Jim and Barbara have two daughters, Jaimee Nygaard and Paige Wheeler, and four grandsons.
Council member (District 4) Wallace Rhodes
Mr. Wallace Rhodes began his third term on the Thomaston City Council representing District 4 on January 1, 2006. His only campaign commitment was to represent the people honestly and conservatively, and this is still his pledge to the citizens of Thomaston.
Mr. Rhodes grew up in Cuthbert, Georgia. He graduated from Auburn University and completed graduate work at both Mercer University and the University of Georgia. Upon graduation from Auburn University, Mr. Rhodes returned to Cuthbert and taught at Cuthbert High School for six years.
Mr. Rhodes's family moved to Thomaston in 1964. During his time in Thomaston, Mr. Rhodes has held positions as a teacher, coach, assistant principal, and principal at R.E. Lee Institute before serving the final 10 years of his career as superintendent of Thomaston City Schools. He retired from this position in 1990.
Mayor Pro Tem. Doug Head
Mr. Doug Head was elected in 2003 for his first term on the Thomaston City Council. Mr. Head graduated from the University of Georgia with a degree in business. He also has a degree from the Georgia Banking School, a three year program from the Georgia Bankers Association, and is a graduate of the Community Bankers Association Graduate School of Banking.
Mr. Head is currently employed by Bank of Upson and has been in banking for over 23 years. He is a member of the United Way Board, a past president of the Kiwanis Club, and a member of First Baptist Church.
Mr. Head has two daughters: Sarah Ann and Mary Kathryn.
