The Hiwassee is born here as a bright and sparkling trickle that confidently grows into a river and playfully crosses a valley.

Towns County, Ga. has the state’s highest peak and its county seat of Hiawassee is an amiable town hugging the 7,000-acre Lake Chatuge amid a bowl formed by mountains.

The man in the driver’s seat of Towns County government goes to work to try to prevent further harm to the Blue Ridge Mountains and Lake Chatuge.