The leadership team of the City of Richmond Hill consists of five people. They were elected to their positions on campaign promises that our community found attractive. Who are the five people behind the titles? Where did they come from? What are their values? Take a look into the lives of our four City Councilmen and our new Mayor.

VAN HUNTER

Birthday: November 4, 1951

Born in Raleigh, North Carolina, Van was the oldest of four; he has two sisters and one brother. When Van was 13, his parents divorced forcing his mother to work extra hours to make ends meet. As the oldest child, Van took on the leadership role of their home, taking care of his younger siblings while his mother was at work.

Van is a graduate of Willingham High in Macon, Georgia and holds a degree from Middle Georgia College in Arts. When asked about his major, Van says that he worked towards Aerospace Engineering, but once he “hit the calculus classes,” decided he would change his major to “just graduating.”

Van married in 1978 and began his family; he has four children. As many of us remember, the economic situation of the early ’80s was similar to what we are experiencing today, including the scarcity of jobs. Van decided to join the United States Army where he served six years. When his youngest daughter was just two years old, he became a single parent, raising his three daughters, Wendy 30, Sharon 29, and Laura 22, and his son, Gordon 27. Over the last couple of years, his children have collectively given him four grandchildren, and he thinks there will be plenty more!

Van enjoys tinkering with technology and for years has worked in the private sector with computers. He is now building a new career with Capital Choice, a full-service financial consulting company. The Hunter family has been residents of Richmond Hill since 1985. Van moved his family here for the same reason so many others came/are coming to the area—the terrific school system. He became involved in the community by coaching girls’ softball and basketball for years through the Recreation Association.

In addition, he served on the Bryan County Planning Commission as well as the Richmond Hill Planning Commission. He was elected to the City Council in 2002, serving until 2006. This past November, Van was elected to serve on our City Council again! He believes this is part of God’s plan for him.

Van’s story of the commitment to his family has never stopped from the  time he was a teenager. All four of his children have chosen Richmond Hill as their home as adults. They want to be close to their Dad. His late mother, Barbara, needed his care and moved from Macon to become a member of the Van Hunter household. With her move also came his sister, Lee Ann, who also needed her brother’s assistance. In addition to devoting his time to the well being of this community, Van says his hobby is being the caretaker of the family he loves so much!

RUSS CARPENTER

Birthday: April 28, 1969

Russ Carpenter is the youngest of Bobby and Jean Carpenter’s four children. He has two sisters, Beverly and Barbara and one brother, Ken, who all live in Richmond Hill. Newly elected to the City Council in 2009, Russ is the only member who was actually born and raised in Richmond Hill.

Russ graduated from Richmond Hill High School in 1987. He earned his degree in Education from Armstrong Atlantic State University in 1994 and is currently working on his Master’s Degree in Instructional Technology from Georgia Southern University.

After completing his Bachelor’s Degree, Russ went to work for IBM for five years prior to beginning his career as a teacher. He taught at Brunswick High School for three years until the right job opened up in the Bryan County School System. In 2002, Russ was hired at Richmond Hill High School, where he teaches U.S. Government and Military History.

Russ is a single, eligible bachelor, devoting lots of time to his hobbies. He attends First Baptist Church, where he teaches a college Sunday School Class. Russ loves movies, music, and trout fishing in St. Catherine’s sound. There are two things Russ says he is looking for in his future wife: a woman who loves to eat blue crabs and wants to own a “red” 911 Porsche! It would probably be a benefit if she were a Republican, too!

Russ became inspired to lead politically during high school, (the Ronald Reagan years), with the encouragement of his U. S Government Teacher, Rebecca Leggett. During his time as a student, he remembers the great speech Ronald Reagan gave at the Republican National Convention in 1984 on what it meant to be an American and a patriot. “Ronald Reagan led you to believe in America,” Russ states, “I have been a conservative Republican ever since.”

MARILYN HODGES

Birthday: December 4, 1964

The youngest of three girls, Marilyn Hodges was born and raised in Savannah’s Ardsley Park area. For those not familiar with the Ardsley Park Neighborhood, it was and still is a small subdivision of Savannah that was developed south of the city, on the fringes of the street-car lines in the early 1900s. For years, this area of Savannah was the hot growth spot. Like so many others who grew up in that area, Marilyn’s family was Catholic and she attended Blessed Sacrament Catholic School for grade school. In 1983, she graduated from Saint Vincent’s Academy and furthered her education attending both the University of Georgia and Armstrong State College, where she was a member of Phi Mu.

Marilyn moved to Richmond Hill in 1989 and married the late Herb Hodges, Jr. in 1993. As the single mother of two boys, Jaydon 11 and Logan 6, Marilyn is a soccer mom, gymnastics mom, t-ball mom, and volunteer at Carver Elementary School. This is all in addition to being a member of the PTSO (Parent-Teacher-Student Organization) and a past member of the Friends of the Library. When the opportunity allows, she enjoys watching college football, Braves Baseball, and Nascar races.

In school, Marilyn was active in all sports and still enjoys running and swimming today. She enjoys baking homemade cakes and breads and attending Mass at St. Anne’s Catholic Church, where she serves on several volunteer committees such as the Council of Catholic Women, Auction Committee, Prayer Line, and the Bereavement Committee.

Marilyn was elected to the City Council of Richmond Hill in 2007 and thoroughly enjoys the recognition and responsibility that comes along with the job. She is employed by Royal Brothers, Inc. where sheserves as the Administrator.

JIMMY HIRES

Birthday:January 17, 1950

Jimmy Hires… for years his name was synonymous with basketball in

Richmond Hill. He was born the youngest of six children in the small town of Odum, Georgia, just outside of Jessup. He was raised on a two mule farm. For those who did not grow up on a farm in the ’50s, a two mule farm is a southern term for “a little bit larger—small farm!”

Jimmy graduated from Wayne County High School; he began his college career at Brunswick Junior College. He graduated from Georgia College and State University where he majored in Education and of course, played basketball, later acquiring a Master’s Degree from Georgia Southern College. Jimmy has been a high school basketball coach throughout his entire career, which began in 1973. In 1981, Coach Hires moved to Richmond Hill and has taken the Wildcats to the State Finals multiple times. He retired as Head Basketball Coach in 2004. (For more on his accomplishments as coach, refer to Volume 5, Number 1).

He and his wife, Libby have two children, Kala, who attends Georgia Southern University and Jay, who is a sophomore at Richmond Hill High School. Jay plays golf for the High School Golf Team. “He gets a lot of  practice in our backyard at Sterling Links Golf Course,” says Jimmy.

“Playing in vegetable gardens and fishing could only last for so long,” says Jimmy about retiring. He continues to teach half days at Richmond Hill High School, in addition to coaching track and cross country! I enjoy working with the kids and have for 38 plus years. Jimmy Hires was elected to City Council in 2005. “I’ve been in Richmond Hill for a long time; it is home to me. To be involved and work for the people’s best interest is what I enjoy most about City Council,” says Jimmy.

MAYOR HAROLD FOWLER

Birthday: February 12, 1942

Harold Fowler was born the eldest of three boys in High Springs, Florida, a small farming community near Gainesville. He graduated with 25 students, the largest Senior Class at the time from Trenton High School. After high school Harold, like many young men in those days, joined the United States Army. After three years of active service and one year in Germany, he returned home and became an electrician. After being the electrical superintendent over large construction jobs throughout the United States, Harold decided that he had traveled long enough and changed careers.

In 1985, Harold went to work for the United States Department of Labor in the Office of Apprenticeship, where he stayed until his retirement a few weeks ago on December 31, 2009! “Being retired will allow me to devote all of my time to leading the new City Council as the Mayor of Richmond Hill,” says Harold.

Harold is quite the family man, with three daughters and three grandchildren! His oldest daughter, Belinda 47, lives near Jacksonville, Florida, Deanna 43, resides in Enfield, New Hampshire, and Sarah 24, lives in Richmond Hill with the new Mayor and his wife, Teresa.

Fishing in his backyard pond, at his cabin on the nearby Satilla River, or on the Intracoastal Waterway are the same to Harold. He says, “Next to golf, fishing is my favorite way to make time pass by!” Harold and his wife Teresa, who works for the United States Department of Justice, enjoy traveling and sightseeing as well. They are members of the Richmond Hill United Methodist Church, where Harold is the Head Usher at the 11am Sunday Service. Harold has also been a member of the Lions Club for several years.

In 1995, Harold was elected to City Council for the first time, and served for 10 years. He was elected Richmond Hill’s 6th Mayor this past November. “The first few weeks being Mayor of Richmond Hill have been interesting to say the least. I’ve enjoyed working with the citizens and businesses throughout the city and will continue to seek their direction in the coming months.”