COVINGTON, Ga. - Rev. Eric Threets has declared his intent to run for Mayor of Covington.
Threets is running for Mayor Nov. 5 with the expectation of using his expertise in leadership and business to "Make Covington citizens our first priority."
Threets fell in love with the community where he and his wife chose to raise their family. They have seen some good things put in place over the past several years but realize more is necessary to position Covington for the transitions and diversity of this growing city.
He notes continued revenue growth is necessary to expand the city and secure its infrastructure.
“An industry that has been attracted to our wonderful city is threatening to pull out of Georgia and we must be prepared to make adjustments in order to replace jobs and revenue quickly," he said. "We have plans to facilitate growth as well as mitigate any potential losses. Attracting new residents and necessary talent is ideal, but we must also prepare citizens of Covington to occupy and succeed in increased capacities.”
Threets has initiatives to stimulate our youth, leading to higher matriculation rates, as well as preparing youth for post-secondary educational goals and aspirations.
“All of our students are not prepared for college or other opportunities upon graduation. As the saying goes, 'It takes a village to raise a child;” thus it will take our entire community to best prepare them for life," he said. "That begins with encouraging our youth to participate and lead community activities, engage in new partnerships for cutting edge educational opportunities, and better prepare our youth for successful transitions into society as well as adulthood.”
Professionally, Threets has a well-established and impressive background in leadership with the medical, business and spiritual fields. Having deep roots in Morgan and Putnam counties, he began his career in physical therapy with the Morgan Memorial and Putnam General Hospitals. While there, Threets developed his skills and phenomenal patient satisfaction which allowed him to work with prominent physicians and eventually relocate to Maryland where he became part of the first trauma program in the United States. From there, Threets was recruited to New Jersey where he was Practice Administrator for the second largest multi-disciplinary healthcare center in the state. Threets was responsible for 250 employees including physicians, specialists, nurse practitioners, mental health professionals, medical staff, and support personnel with an operating budget in excess of $32 million annually.
In seeking new challenges, Threets decided to transition to the private sector where he climbed the corporate ladder quickly and was recognized on the national level for his achievements. His leadership significantly increased new business, positively impacted revenue, and lead in customer retention.
In 2008, Threets decided to relocate his family back to Covington and not too soon after that, he accepted the call to ministry.
He received his training from the Luther Rice College and Seminary, in addition to receiving his masters degree in apologetics. He continues to study toward his masters in divinity.
Today, Threets is a licensed and ordained minister and serves his community as a volunteer chaplain at the Piedmont Newton Hospital. He also provides worship services at The Oaks Assisted Living Center on Highway 142 in Covington.
Threets is a husband of 27 years to Kia and father of two young adults educated in the Covington (Newton) School System and are now undergraduate students in Georgia.
