MAYOR |
About the Mayor of Fitzgerald
As the head of the city, the Mayor officially speaks for both the government and the community as a whole. The Mayor is the executive officer of the city and is the presiding officer and a regular member of the city council, but he does not vote except in the case of a tie. In the absence of the mayor, his powers and duties shall be exercised by the mayor pro tem.
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Mayor Jason Holt - BiographyJason Holt was born on October 22, 1978 in Tifton, Georgia and is a native of Rochelle. He is married to the former Abby Johnson, an educator at Fitzgerald High School College & Career Academy. They have three sons, Thomas, Davis, and Maddox, and one daughter, Stella Grace
Jason graduated as Salutatorian from Wilcox County High School in 1997 and was co-STAR Student for his county system. He attended Middle Georgia College in Cochran, where he majored in Business Administration and served as an Ambassador for MGC. He graduated third in his class from Gupton-Jones College of Funeral Service in February 2001. He received the prestigious Bill Pierce Award, selected by his classmates, as the person most exemplifying professionalism in funeral service. Jason and Abby own and operate The Paulk Funeral Home with chapels in Fitzgerald and Ocilla. He began working there in June 2002 and purchased the firms at the end of 2012. In addition to being a licensed funeral director and embalmer, he is a licensed Life Insurance Agent. Prior to his current affiliation, he was employed with Frazier & Son Funeral Home in Rochelle for 7 years, beginning his career while in high school. Jason’s community activities include: Member of Central United Methodist Church where he sings in the Celebration Choir and serves as Vice-Chair of the Administrative Council. He formerly chaired the Finance Committee; Past-Chairman and former member of the Executive Committee and Board for the Fitzgerald/Ben Hill Chamber of Commerce; former Board member for Fairview Faith in Action Caregivers; and served on the steering committee to form the former Fitzgerald-Ben Hill Chapter of the Boys & Girls Club. He is also a past vice-chair and former member of the Hospital Authority of Ben Hill County In 2005, Jason was elected to and became one of the youngest City Councilmen in the history of Fitzgerald. He served three terms on Council and did not seek re-election in 2017. During his time on Council, he was very active with the Georgia Municipal Association, where he earned over 300 hours of training, served on the governing board for GMA, the Legislative Policy Council for the state and federal levels, chaired the Environment and Natural Resources Policy Committee, and served as a Trustee for the Risk Management and Employee Benefit System administering over $2 billion in assets for local government employees. Jason is a Mortuary Officer with the Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Team (DMORT), a federal level team serving under the United States Public Health Service, Department of Health and Human Services. He was deployed to the 2005 aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma serving at the Gulfport, Mississippi and St Gabriel, Louisiana Base Camps. Jason’s professional memberships include: National Funeral Directors Association, British Institute of Embalmers, and the Academy of Professional Funeral Service Practice. Jason obtained his Certified Funeral Service Practitioner designation in 2008 and served as President of the Academy of Graduate Embalmers of Georgia. Jason is a graduate of Leadership Ben Hill 2004 and the Leadership Institute for Elected Officials through the University of Georgia’s Carl Vinson Institute of Government. He was selected as one of Georgia Trend Magazine’s 40 under 40 in 2016. Jason was elected in 2021 and took office on January 10, 2022, as the 22nd Mayor of the City of Fitzgerald. |
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