Taylor County Fundraiser to Help Sick Peach Deputy

BUTLER, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT)- Law enforcement agencies across Middle Georgia are lending a hand to one of their own, who’s been diagnosed with an incurable disease.

Deputy Alton Young was diagnosed with Pulmonary Fibrosis more than 6 months ago. He’s dedicated the last decade to serving others working for the Reynolds and Butler Police Department and recently joining the Peach County Sheriff’s Office.

“[I] was active on the job… off the job and at this point it pretty much puts the breaks on everything,” says Young.

Young uses an oxygen tank nearly every hour of every day. He also takes trips the doctors almost every other week.

Young says, “A trip anywhere right now is unbearable.” To help out their brother in blue the Taylor County Sheriff’s Office organized a fundraiser to help cover medical costs. The sheriff’s office is raffling off tickets for a Glock Generation 4 .40 caliber pistol.

Taylor County Sheriff Jeff Watson says, “It’s a well known fact we don’t make a lot of money. We do it because of the heart. We’re here to protect and serve, and when we have a situation like that we want to help join together to help lift that burden for him.”
Watson says more than $3,000 worth of tickets have been sold in the month that the fundraiser started.

Young says he is very appreciative of this act of kindness during a time where there are so many unknowns for his incurable disease.

You can buy tickets to help support Young at the Taylor, Peach, Crisp, and Upson County Sheriff’s Offices or at the Byron Police Department. Raffle tickets are $5 a piece or you can get 5 tickets for $20.

The drawing will be May 5th.