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(Alex Bavosa/The Oglethorpe Echo) Jennifer Yauck (right), an Oglethorpe County High School teacher, updates the Board of Education on the status of the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, a program that provides children with free books.

(Alex Bavosa/The Oglethorpe Echo) Jennifer Yauck (right), an Oglethorpe County High School teacher, updates the Board of Education on the status of the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, a program that provides children with free books.

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Imagination Library off to strong start

Alex Bavosa
Wednesday, April 19, 2023
Jennifer Yauck, a teacher at Oglethorpe County High School and the program chair for Delta Kappa Gamma, has spent the last year growing Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library in Oglethorpe County.
John Robertson-performing chemical testing at Watson Mill Bridge State Park. (Submitted Photo / The Oglethorpe Echo)

John Robertson-performing chemical testing at Watson Mill Bridge State Park. (Submitted Photo / The Oglethorpe Echo)

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Volunteer environmental group wins state award

Morgan Quinn
Wednesday, April 19, 2023
The team saw its first victory when it successfully lobbied for state legislation banning the burning of creosote, a known carcinogen.
Mary Wooten of the Wooten Woopets leads a dress rehearsal in the barn at Platt Brooks Estate in advance of Saturday’s performance as part of the Downtown Development Authority 2023 Concert Series. Wooten wanted to practice her dance moves to ensure that the audience would be engaged. (SOPHIE MCLEOD/THE OGLETHORPE ECHO)

Mary Wooten of the Wooten Woopets leads a dress rehearsal in the barn at Platt Brooks Estate in advance of Saturday’s performance as part of the Downtown Development Authority 2023 Concert Series. Wooten wanted to practice her dance moves to ensure that the audience would be engaged. (SOPHIE MCLEOD/THE OGLETHORPE ECHO)

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Puppet performance honors Titus

Sophie McLeod
Wednesday, April 19, 2023
Mary Wooten, the face behind the Wooten Woopets, said she remembers Jerry Titus as a quiet man who would join in on the fun behind the scenes. So, she set out to capture his playful spirit through the group's most recent performance.
The Golden Pantry in Crawford, one of two in Oglethorpe County, opened in 1984, five years after the Lexington store opened. (Dink NeSmith/The Oglethorpe Echo)

The Golden Pantry in Crawford, one of two in Oglethorpe County, opened in 1984, five years after the Lexington store opened. (Dink NeSmith/The Oglethorpe Echo)

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Golden pantry stores to be remodeled

Sarah Donehoo
Monday, April 17, 2023
Golden Pantry has started the process to remodel 32 of its stores throughout Georgia, including the two locations in Oglethorpe County.
(Alex Bavosa/The Oglethorpe Echo) Andy Nimmons has a photo of himself posing with a turkey he hunted with a bow at his shop, Andy Nimmons Taxidermy, which is in Lexington.

(Alex Bavosa/The Oglethorpe Echo) Andy Nimmons has a photo of himself posing with a turkey he hunted with a bow at his shop, Andy Nimmons Taxidermy, which is in Lexington.

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New regulations aimed at protecting Georgia's wild turkey population

Alex Bavosa
Thursday, April 13, 2023
Andy Nimmons, an Oglethorpe County taxidermist and experienced hunter, said he knows why both turkey populations and turkey hunting participation have declined throughout Georgia.    “First, you got varmints such as coyotes, raccoons and opossums.
JACK RHODES/THE OGLETHORPE ECHO There are a large variety of flowers and plants at Wolfskin Growers, which is on Double Bridges Road in Winterville.

JACK RHODES/THE OGLETHORPE ECHO There are a large variety of flowers and plants at Wolfskin Growers, which is on Double Bridges Road in Winterville.

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Growth industry: New owner overcomes weather, prices to transform Wolfskin Growers

Jack Rhodes
Wednesday, April 12, 2023
  The spring growing season has arrived, but cold weather and high prices persist.    Wolfskin Growers, a nursery and landscaping company on Double Bridges Road in Winterville, has faced numerous challenges since new owner David Browning took over about a year ago, but he remains encouraged.

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Woopets perform in Lexington on Saturday

Sophie McLeod
Wednesday, April 12, 2023
The Wooten Woopets, an interactive puppet group created and managed by artistic director Mary Wooten, will perform at Platt Brooks Estate in Lexington at 6 p.m. Saturday.
RAMON ELORTONDO/THE OGLETHORPE ECHO The music of Georgia Red Clay, a band based out of Atlanta, filled the American Legion Post 123 earlier this month. It was the band’s second time playing the legion.

RAMON ELORTONDO/THE OGLETHORPE ECHO The music of Georgia Red Clay, a band based out of Atlanta, filled the American Legion Post 123 earlier this month. It was the band’s second time playing the legion.

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Georgia Red Clay becoming a legion favorite

Ramon Elortondo
Wednesday, April 12, 2023
Georgia Red Clay answered the demand on social media and filled James T. Rayle American Legion Post 123 with sounds of Southern rock and country music earlier this month.   The band, which is based in Atlanta, returned to Lexington for the second time on April 1.
Seven couples engage in an activity about maintaining strong connections in an Elevate class last month. Elevate is an eight-week program focused on reconnecting couples. (Gianna Rodriguez/THE OGLETHORPE ECHO)

Seven couples engage in an activity about maintaining strong connections in an Elevate class last month. Elevate is an eight-week program focused on reconnecting couples. (Gianna Rodriguez/THE OGLETHORPE ECHO)

Free relationship education program reconnects couples

Gianna Rodriguez and Shelby Wingate
Wednesday, April 12, 2023
Seven couples fill the small space that will be their classroom for the next hour and a half. Everyone is used to the routine: they sign in, grab dinner for the whole family and the couple then takes a seat at the large, square table while kids go to child care.
Ruth Wilson is pictured leading the 2022 Winterville Marigold Festival Parade. She is on her parade horse, "Major." (Photo/ Ruth Wilson)

Ruth Wilson is pictured leading the 2022 Winterville Marigold Festival Parade. She is on her parade horse, "Major." (Photo/ Ruth Wilson)

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Q&A: Wilson balances teaching, farming, battling sludge

Garrett Kicklighter
Wednesday, April 12, 2023
Lexington resident Ruth Wilson is an ES paraprofessional at Oglethorpe County Elementary School, where she teaches third through fifth grades. She also owns Echo Hill Farm on Duck Pond Road and is a voice against sludge dumping in the county.   Comments edited for length and clarity.