OLIVIA SUITE/THE OGLETHORPE ECHO A sign outside of Maxeys City Hall, where the city council meets on the second Tuesday of each month.
In Maxeys, there’s Carrie 1 and Carrie 2.
Also known as Carrie Hayes and Carrie Hyatt, both Carries serve as city council members and share a commitment to helping the community they call home.
“I first met her, and we were both chuckling, because we’re both Carrie spelled the same way, both with an “H” last name, both born the same year,” Carrie Hyatt said.
The two women met at Maxeys Community Club, where members gather the first Friday of most months to share interests and participate in activities. That’s when they learned they had more in common than most.
The pair said they love the sense of community and peaceful pace of life that Maxeys has to offer. Hayes, who is from Georgia, moved to Maxeys in 2015 with her husband and his son. Hyatt arrived later, in 2018, after living in Savannah, but is originally from Ohio.
“Every other place I’ve lived at, it was kind of — it wasn’t so tight-knit,” Hayes said.
The two work together to find grants to restore the playgrounds in Maxeys. The playgrounds and sensory gardens have become important projects as younger families look to move there.
“We’ve actually gotten more kids in the area that I’ve noticed recently. I think we’ve always had a lot,” Hayes said. “But they’re just kind of quiet and they don’t have any place to go, and so you don’t see them out and about having fun.”
Hyatt said improving recreational spaces could also help attract and retain families, particularly alongside opportunities such as the A.T. Brightwell Scholarship.
The merit-based scholarship is awarded to students who live in Maxeys and want to attend college, with the requirement that their parents continue to live in Maxeys while the scholarship is in effect.
“So, to not only draw the families in here to take advantage of the scholarship, they need to be able to have recreational facilities available to them as well,” Hyatt said.
Both women share a desire to improve the community and recreational spaces through grants and volunteer efforts.
“If we’re going to finally get those younger people here, we need to provide an atmosphere and environment for them that’s suitable,” Hayes said.
For the Carries, community involvement also means encouraging residents to take part in local government. Both said more residents attending council meetings, asking questions and volunteering would strengthen the community.
Terms for city council are four years. Hayes became a city council member in the most recent election, held in 2024. Hyatt has been on city council since 2021. She is moving to Arizona later this year, leaving a city council seat open.
“We do have a council that has the best interest of this community,” Hyatt said.