Lavonia City Councilman Canady Passes Away

By MJ Kneiser, WLHR Radio, Lavonia

Lavonia City offices will be closed Monday morning as city officials and staff attend the funeral of Lavonia City Councilman Don Canady.

Canady passed away early Saturday at Northeast Georgia Medical Center after a lengthy illness.

Canady had served as Lavonia City Councilman for some 12 years, according to Lavonia Mayor Ralph Owens.

Calling him one of the finest councilman the City had ever had, Owens remembered Canady as a council member who put the City of Lavonia and its citizens first.

“Don Canady was a fine City Council member for the City of Lavonia, one of the finest council member we have had in a long time,” Owens said. “He was always interested in the welfare of the City and he wanted to see the City prosper and do well. That was one of his goals.”

Owens said Canady was a longtime friend who will be missed and said Canady always was concerned for the needs of others.

“The elderly people especially Don wanted to help in any way he could,” Owens recalled. “You know, I have seen him pay a water bill for somebody who couldn’t afford to pay a water bill.”

In addition to his service as a Lavonia City Councilman, Canady also served for a number of years as a volunteer firefighter with the Lavonia Fire Department.

Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. Monday morning from the Lavonia Chapel of Strickland Funeral Home. A private family burial will take place following the service at Franklin Memorial Gardens North.

Don Canady was 71.