Meet Dennis Seger: Involved North Bryan parent, Bryan County Youth Association President and BoE District 2 representative
How long have you been living in Bryan County?
I moved here when I was seven, so I guess that makes it 43 years now.
What brought your family to this area?
After my parents divorced, my mom bought five acres of land from Danny Smith, behind the Methodist Church in Ellabell.
You’ve seen this community grow, haven’t you?
I’ve seen a lot of positive growth since I first came here. We’ve seen more businesses pop up and a lot more people move into the area.
What did Ellabell look like when you were a kid?
We had one store and a post office. The biggest attractions we had was the old Rambling Creek swimming pool and a couple fields at the youth association. I can remember always going over to each other’s houses to play baseball or basketball. We went to the 400 block a lot. Everybody got along good. There was no racial tension or anything like that. Everybody knew everybody else. Just a great place to grow up.
Are the folks you grew up with still here?
A majority of them, yes. I would say 75-80 percent of the people I grew up with still live in this community.
Why do you think that is?
Because it’s a great place to live and a great place to raise children. I call it God’s country. I really do. The people here are willing to help each other. If a family loses a loved one or is going through a tough situation, the community pitches in every which way they can. I think that’s why a lot of people are still here. There’s a lot of togetherness here, and that’s what I love about Bryan County. A good school system, good people – I wouldn’t live anywhere else.
You're heavily involved in Hendrix Park and the Youth Association. When did all that get started?
I started coaching there about 20 years ago and I’ve been involved ever since. I’m in my third consecutive term as Youth Association president, and I was on the board before that. I’ve seen the association grow from 100 kids to about 700 kids. It’s an exciting time to be involved in the association because we’re really growing right now. This Youth Association committee that we have right now is the best I’ve ever been associated with.
You’ve recently been elected to the Bryan County Board of Education. Has that been a good experience thus far?
It’s been a good learning experience. I found out from my short time on the board that it’s not always cut and dry. It’s really political – not so much with the county as it is on the federal and state level. Overall, my experience has been interesting and very rewarding so far.
How many kids do you have?
My wife Michelle and I have two beautiful daughters – Lindsey, 19, and Logan, 10. Lindsey just graduated and is now going to Georgia Southern. She played sports all her life in the youth association and the high school. Logan is going into the fifth grade. She’s played in the youth association ever since T-ball. She won championships for 10 and under basketball and softball this year.
If you could change anything in this community, what would it be?
If I could change one thing, I would like to see Bryan County as a whole start to realize that we are one county. That goes for the residents as well as the city and county government – we need to work together better for this community. It is happening; I would just like to see more of it.