Local Republicans recently recognized one of their own for his lifelong service to the party.

The Dawson County GOP adopted a resolution in honor of County Commission Chairman Mike Berg during the party's annual county convention on March 19.

"Under his leadership Dawson County has consistently grown in population, built and paid for key government facilities, maintained sound fiscal policies and budgets, and had outstanding economic development," said Charlie Vincent. "Mike Berg has displayed the high principles of the Republican Party as Chairman of the Dawson County Board of Commissioners."

Involved with the party since the 1970s, Berg, who is serving the last year of his third four-year term as chairman and is not seeking re-election, said he was both surprised and humbled by the recognition.

"I've always believed in the Republican principles of less government, spending taxpayer money wisely, and I still believe in those same principles today," he said. "I think they're good and they work for us."

A retired utilities executive with Georgia Power, Berg took his seat as chairman of the board on Jan. 1, 2005.

He also served as chairman of the planning commission and as a county commissioner in Gwinnett when the area was experiencing substantial growth.

"When I first ran for office in Gwinnett, everyone was Democrats before and we kind of took over," he said. "Then coming over here, I saw there were some issues with the board. When I went to the meetings, it was chaotic. There was no process and procedure on the board."

Among his most satisfying accomplishments is Dawson County's government center, which opened in 2012 and was paid off in two years using 1-cent sales tax revenue.