Local News

Maeve Haydock’s mural will feature Lena Wise, a longtime Oglethorpe County educator and namesake of the community center in Crawford. (Submitted Photo)

Maeve Haydock’s mural will feature Lena Wise, a longtime Oglethorpe County educator and namesake of the community center in Crawford. (Submitted Photo)

New mural will help connect center to community

Sarah Nanos
Thursday, June 25, 2026
A plain wall at the Lena Wise Community Center will soon become a colorful tribute to the community, thanks to a mural designed by 15-year-old Oglethorpe County student Maeve Haydock. The mural incorporates several elements specific to the county.
Mayor Danny Morcom and members of the Arnoldsville City Council — Joel Kriner (left) and Douglas Cosby (right) — discuss city business at this month’s meeting on June 18. Arnoldsville’s water tanks are full, due to the recent rainfall. (Jessie Isaacs/The Oglethorpe Echo)

Mayor Danny Morcom and members of the Arnoldsville City Council — Joel Kriner (left) and Douglas Cosby (right) — discuss city business at this month’s meeting on June 18. Arnoldsville’s water tanks are full, due to the recent rainfall. (Jessie Isaacs/The Oglethorpe Echo)

CITY ROUNDUP: Lexington to receive $5K grant to restore Beth Salem windows

Jessie Isaacs
Thursday, June 25, 2026
Lexington was awarded a $5,000 Callahan Incentive Grant from the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation to help fund window repairs to the Beth Salem building, which is owned by the city.  Combined with local donations, this will restore the windows on the side of the building.
Attendees of Town and Country Kafe’s Jeep Invasion look at the Jeeps on display. About a dozen Jeeps were parked outside the cafe during the event on June 20. (Lexie Shadix/The Oglethorpe Echo)

Attendees of Town and Country Kafe’s Jeep Invasion look at the Jeeps on display. About a dozen Jeeps were parked outside the cafe during the event on June 20. (Lexie Shadix/The Oglethorpe Echo)

Town and Country Kafe’s first Jeep invasion deemed success

Lexie Shadix
Thursday, June 25, 2026
Three years ago, Amy Delfin-Torres surprised her husband, Willie Torres, with a bright red 1954 Willys Jeep. She bought it in Las Vegas, only revealing the secret when she sent him a photo of the vehicle on a trailer bound for Georgia.  “I was blown away,” Torres said.
The interior of the building being added onto the existing bay of the Arnoldsville Fire Department is estimated to cost $150,000. The renovations are expected to be finished as early as next month. (Lexie Shadix/The Oglethorpe Echo)

The interior of the building being added onto the existing bay of the Arnoldsville Fire Department is estimated to cost $150,000. The renovations are expected to be finished as early as next month. (Lexie Shadix/The Oglethorpe Echo)

Arnoldsville Fire Department expands its station for firefighters, community

Lexie Shadix
Thursday, June 25, 2026
The all-volunteer Arnoldsville Fire Department is nearing completion on a 30-by-40 foot side building that will give firefighters more space to operate and serve as a refuge for the community during severe weather.
Fireworks light up the sky over Bryan Park during the annual Fourth of July show in 2025. (Elizabeth Kim/The Oglethorpe Echo)

Fireworks light up the sky over Bryan Park during the annual Fourth of July show in 2025. (Elizabeth Kim/The Oglethorpe Echo)

County offers July 4 celebrations

Ethan Greene
Thursday, June 25, 2026
Oglethorpe County residents will have a variety of options to celebrate the Fourth of July and the country’s 250th birthday the next two weekends.
Lexington resident Terry Rowlett stands next to a painting featured in his exhibit, Before the End of Time, at the Oconee Cultural Arts Foundation in Watkinsville. The red clay landscape in the painting is representative of Georgia, he said. (Sarah Nanos/The Oglethorpe Echo)

Lexington resident Terry Rowlett stands next to a painting featured in his exhibit, Before the End of Time, at the Oconee Cultural Arts Foundation in Watkinsville. The red clay landscape in the painting is representative of Georgia, he said. (Sarah Nanos/The Oglethorpe Echo)

Rowlett explores memory, landscape in new exhibit

Sarah Nanos
Thursday, June 18, 2026
Standing among his works, 63-year-old Lexington resident Terry Rowlett points out a painting of a red clay landscape. Two women and two dogs standing on the bare landscape are watched by an angel perched on a tree, which stands next to a blue truck.
Elections supervisor Marilyn Huff-Waller stands outside of the Board of Elections Office on Election Day for the General Primary Runoff on Tuesday. She said 74 people had voted in person by 11 a.m. (Dink NeSmith/The Oglethorpe Echo)

Elections supervisor Marilyn Huff-Waller stands outside of the Board of Elections Office on Election Day for the General Primary Runoff on Tuesday. She said 74 people had voted in person by 11 a.m. (Dink NeSmith/The Oglethorpe Echo)

County residents favor statewide winners in runoff election

Lexie Shadix
Thursday, June 18, 2026
While the May primary election drew 3,650 Oglethorpe County residents to the polls, a 29.3% turnout, local officials expected a drop for the June runoff.  “I think we’ll have probably about a 15% voter turnout,” said elections assistant Steve McCannon on Friday afternoon.  He was right.

Happy Helpings provides free summer meals to county children

Sarah Nanos
Thursday, June 18, 2026
Any child in the county can get free food during the summer — through the Happy Helpings program. “They’re not turning anybody away that lives in Oglethorpe County,” said Oglethorpe County School System parent mentor Kasey Taylor. “It’s not income-based at all.”
Amanda Bright, assistant editor and instructor for The Oglethorpe Echo, accepts a first-place award from GPA president Keith Barlow in the News Photograph category, on behalf of Lux Corrona, at the Georgia Press Association’s Better Newspaper Contest hosted on Jekyll Island on June 12. The Echo took home nine individual and section awards for 2025, bringing its total to 41 GPA awards during the last four years of its partnership with the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication. (Submitted Photo)

Amanda Bright, assistant editor and instructor for The Oglethorpe Echo, accepts a first-place award from GPA president Keith Barlow in the News Photograph category, on behalf of Lux Corrona, at the Georgia Press Association’s Better Newspaper Contest hosted on Jekyll Island on June 12. The Echo took home nine individual and section awards for 2025, bringing its total to 41 GPA awards during the last four years of its partnership with the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication. (Submitted Photo)

The Echo wins 9 GPA awards, including 4 first-place honors

News Staff
Thursday, June 18, 2026
The Oglethorpe Echo earned nine section and individual awards in the Georgia Press Association’s annual Better Newspaper Contest for its work in 2025.