ARREST SHOCKS TEACHER'S FRIENDS

Those close to her find it incomprehensible that educator, Bible club
sponsor faces drug charges

To many people, Deborah Foley is a kind, caring, Christian teacher and
mother. But her arrest last week portrayed a side of the Westside High
School teacher some say they find hard to believe.

The 45-year-old woman, who led Bible classes and held church meetings
in her home, was arrested after Columbia County deputies raided her
Oakbrook house in Martinez, seizing $616 in cash, marijuana plants,
bags of marijuana and 30 MDMA pills - known as "Ecstasy."

"She's the last person you would have ever thought of," said Randi
Smith, a former student of Mrs. Foley at Silver Bluff High School. "She
was always trying to help the kids," she said.

Mrs. Foley was charged with felony manufacturing marijuana, felony
possession of a schedule one narcotic and misdemeanor possession of
marijuana. Her 17-year-old daughter, Erin, was arrested with her mother
and faces the same charges. Six others, including two juveniles, also
were arrested.

Police aren't releasing many details of the case, but they said they
have evidence to back up their charges.

"Our investigation, including the search of her residence, concluded
that Mrs. Foley was involved in criminal activity and was aware of
activities occurring in her residence," Capt. Steve Morris said.

But that's not the woman people close to her say she is. And they want
to know why.

Mrs. Foley has been teaching in the Augusta area for seven years,
according to school officials. She has taught at Silver Bluff High
School, Tubman Middle School and at Westside for the past three years.

At Westside she taught home economics classes, including child care,
and worked with the school's Fellowship of Christian Athletes club.

At Silver Bluff she served as faculty sponsor for the Bible club, of
which Ms. Smith, now 19 and a college student, served as president her
junior year.

"She would give up her lunch hour to talk with kids who had problems,"
Ms. Smith said. "She tried to help so many people."

Most of her friends, colleagues, former colleagues and former students
wouldn't talk openly about Mrs. Foley, preferring to believe that there
was some other explanation for what happened Aug. 18. But privately
they expressed dismay and confusion at what happened.

"I would have never expected this from her," said Kelli Edmunds, 16,
who took a home economics class taught by Mrs. Foley last summer at
Westside.

Neighbors described her as a friendly woman who kept a beautiful lawn -
until six weeks ago.

That's when neighbors said Mrs. Foley's husband, Mike, moved out of the
family's home and streams of cars full of teens began filing in and out
of the home.

The sheriff's office received several complaints from residents
concerning the traffic in the neighborhood, particularly at the Foley
home, Capt. Morris said.

Now, neighbors feel a black mark has been placed on the neighborhood
and friends remain baffled at the charges.

"She was the most encouraging, positive, uplifting person I've ever met
in my entire life," said James Moyer, who was vice president of the
Bible club Mrs. Foley helped lead. "I really believe somehow, someway
she really had no clue it was going on."