Smith Resigns At VRD

On Tuesday, February 16, the City of Vidalia Recreation Director Matt Smith submitted his resignation to City Manager Nick Overstreet, citing personal reasons. He will remain with the department until Tuesday, March 2.

The decision was made to appoint Scott Strickland as the Interim Recreation Director. Overstreet said, “We will be evaluating our personnel needs over the next couple of months. We have the utmost confidence in Mr. Strickland’s ability to lead our recreation department.”

Former Director Matt Smith

Interim Director Scott Strickland continued from page

Spring is the busiest time of the year for the Recreation Department, with T-ball, softball and baseball seasons now beginning. Overstreet wants “to assure our citizens that our recreation department programs will not experience any lapse in delivery and implementation,” during the transition of leadership.

Smith began his position in March of 2019, coming from the Laurens County Recreation Department where he was responsible for field and facility maintenance, the Splash Pad, and programs. “Matt has made significant improvements to the conditions of our fields at Ed Smith and was instrumental in the startup of the Aquatics Facility,” Overstreet said. “He has also made a positive impact on the frequency of use of our fields and parks.”

Strickland joined the VRD in a maintenance position in May of 2018. In March 2019, he was promoted to Operations Director. Strickland’s contributions to the department “have been instrumental in increasing participation in our sports programs and managing the direct supervision of the programs,” said Overstreet.