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Students send thank you notes to crews searching Lake Oconee for missing teacher

Students write thank you notes to DNR

ATLANTA — As crews and volunteers continue their search for a missing teacher, students at his school sent them messages of encouragement.

Gary Jones, a teacher and coach at Westminster School, disappeared on Lake Oconee while boating with his fiancé, Joycelyn Wilson, on Feb. 8. Wilson’s body was found the next day, but Jones remains missing.

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The Georgia Department of Natural Resources along with Putnam County officials have been out on the lake almost every day since then trying to find Jones’ body. Volunteers have also organized searches.

Students at Westminster wanted to show their appreciation for their efforts. So, they crafted handwritten notes to send to Georgia DNR and the volunteers.

“Thank you so much for spending your whole week and weekend looking for our beloved Coach Jones! Everybody at Westminster appreciates your sacrifice. We deeply thank you for your tireless efforts,” one student wrote.

“We have been hearing about your efforts to find our beloved Coach Jones at Lake Oconee. We appreciate your hard work. Thank you for being there for our school,” another note read.

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Channel 2′s Tyisha Fernandes has been following the developments in the search for Jones.

On Tuesday, she spoke with Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sills who says despites rumors, he still believes Jones’ body is in the lake. He says it isn’t as easy as it seems to find Jones because of tree limbs and other things under the surface of the water.

Searchers tell Fernandes they have narrowed down the area where they think Jones is located.

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