By Becky Holland
HAWKINSVILLE — Shelly J. Berryhill has worn a lot of hats over the years.
Business owner. City commissioner. Board member. Sunday School teacher. Deacon. Husband. Father. COVID survivor.
Now, he can add one more: columnist.
Berryhill will soon begin writing a weekly Tuesday column for The Ledger titled “Things I Think About…”, featuring his thoughts on everything from artificial intelligence, COVID and government to religion, “Shellyisms” and other sundry topics.
For Berryhill, though, any introduction starts with something more important than a résumé.
First and foremost, he is a Christian.
His own philosophy is simple: Shelly gets whatever blame is due, and Jesus gets whatever credit is due.
Berryhill is a 1986 honor graduate of Georgia Tech and the owner of Georgia Appraisal Services in Hawkinsville. His professional life, however, is only part of a long history of public and community service.
He has served on the Hawkinsville City Commission for more than 20 years and currently serves on the Georgia Municipal Association Board of Directors.
Berryhill also serves as chairman of the Georgia Municipal Employee Benefits Board of Trustees and vice chairman of the Gas Authority of Georgia Board. He is a member of the Executive Committee of the Pulaski County Archway Partnership.
His previous service includes serving as chairman of the local Chamber of Commerce, chairman of the Pulaski County Senior Council on Aging and as a member of the Middle Georgia Area Agency on Aging Board.
His community involvement has not gone unnoticed. Berryhill was previously named Pulaski County’s Person of the Year by the local Chamber of Commerce.
But among all the lines that could appear in his biography, one of the most significant came from an experience he never expected to have.
Berryhill is a COVID survivor.
His battle with the illness included 21 days on a ventilator, four hospitals and a total of 54 days hospitalized.
It is the kind of experience that can change the way a person looks at life, faith and the things that truly matter.
Berryhill remains active at Broad Street Baptist Church, where he serves as a deacon and teaches an adult co-ed Sunday School class.
He is married to Vonnie Mays Berryhill, and the couple has two children, Kristen and Kyle.
With decades of community service, business experience, faith, public office and more than a few life experiences behind him, Berryhill has accumulated plenty of things to think about.
Beginning Tuesdays, readers of The Ledger will get the chance to think about some of them with him.
His weekly column, “Things I Think About…”, will cover a variety of subjects and, if the title is any indication, readers probably should not expect him to stay inside any particular box.
And that may be exactly what makes it interesting.
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