Zell Miller- appreciated storyteller
By JOAN CROTHERS

Sharing stories and antidotes of his life, Senator Zell Miller, was questioned by ICL?s Bob Short. Political Science Professor Lee March (r) introduced the two.

"What should I call you?" asked Bob Short as he sat on the stage at the Susan B. Harris Chapel at Young Harris College with Zell Miller and went through a number of his titles.

"Just call me friend," answered Miller. "We went to school here together 55 years ago."

It was a relaxed setting in front of a packed audience last Tuesday, October 24, as Bob Short of ICL asked Miller questions relating to different phases of his life.

Miller said he quit doing his commentary for Fox News in January because he wanted to be closer to home, and "you can go home again!" He then began talking about his heritage and his mother, whom he said he could spend hours talking about, how strong she was after his father died in 1932 when he was just 19 days old, and how she influenced his life as she bought the land and started a house with only $1,000 from his father's insurance policy, served many years on the Young Harris City Council and served twice as Mayor.

Talking about going through high school at Young Harris College, he mentioned the bell outside the chapel that woke them in the morning and rang for classes to change. Miller stated about his service

in the Marines, "My three years in the Marines changed my life, and I later wrote a book about it."

Many times during his talk when he mentioned local names, heads in the audience nodded with a little murmur of recognition or appreciation at some of his sayings. Side stories about his political life elicited many chuckles and outright laughter. One of his stories was again about his mother quoting a saying in the Bible, "Take what you want, take it and pay for it." He said he was grown before he found out that wasn't in the Bible. Much laughter followed that. When Short asked what

Miller felt were his major accomplishments as Governor, Miller answered, "Education with the HOPE Scholarship and Pre-K for 4-year-olds, raising teachers salaries across the state; cutting welfare rolls by 42 percent, raising personal income 80 percent, and putting more beds in prisons.

"You know, Dizzy Dean once said, 'It ain't bragging if you done done it!' I need to add that Shirley [his wife] has made a big difference in adult literacy."

During taking questions from the audience, Miller was asked about I-3.

"Don't lose any sleep over that. It will never happen, not during your lifetime or mine."