Local News

Aimee Wheeler and Frankie Hart plan to turn this church building in Lexington into a three-bedroom home. Russell Chapel AME Church has been closed for about 10 years. (ANDY JOHNSTON/THE OGLETHORPE ECHO)

Aimee Wheeler and Frankie Hart plan to turn this church building in Lexington into a three-bedroom home. Russell Chapel AME Church has been closed for about 10 years. (ANDY JOHNSTON/THE OGLETHORPE ECHO)

Former church being turned into home, called ‘Holy House of Love’: Lexington’s Russell Chapel AME undergoing renovations

Isabelle Farina
Wednesday, October 16, 2024
 Aimee Wheeler’s notion of her dream house has been with her since she read “Wait Till Helen Comes” as a child. In it, author Mary Downing Hahn, writes about a young girl whose family moved into a church. Wheeler knew this was an idea she wanted to emulate.
Guillermo Camacho (from left), Tim Poole, Susan Robinson, Becky Soto and Jake Willcox stand behind Beverley Levine, who holds a cake that reads “Congratulations on the part YOU played in the graduation rate!” at the BOE meeting on Tuesday. OCHS had a graduation rate of 95.5% this year. (Avni Trivedi/The Oglethorpe Echo)

Guillermo Camacho (from left), Tim Poole, Susan Robinson, Becky Soto and Jake Willcox stand behind Beverley Levine, who holds a cake that reads “Congratulations on the part YOU played in the graduation rate!” at the BOE meeting on Tuesday. OCHS had a graduation rate of 95.5% this year. (Avni Trivedi/The Oglethorpe Echo)

OCHS grad rate stays above state average

Avni Trivedi
Thursday, October 10, 2024
 The Oglethorpe County School System is among 44 districts in Georgia, out of 194 total, to record a graduation rate above 95%.
(The Oglethorpe Echo / Mary Catherine Dodys) Jonathan James addressed the BOC Monday, Oct. 7, as he proposed the request to repair control panels inside the Oglethorpe County jail facility. The request was approved and the jail was granted an initial portion of the funding, totaling $37,112.

(The Oglethorpe Echo / Mary Catherine Dodys) Jonathan James addressed the BOC Monday, Oct. 7, as he proposed the request to repair control panels inside the Oglethorpe County jail facility. The request was approved and the jail was granted an initial portion of the funding, totaling $37,112.

Board OKs funding for jail upgrade

Mary Catherine Dodys
Wednesday, October 9, 2024
The Oglethorpe County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved a request Monday to replace the outdated control boards at the Oglethorpe County Jail.  The current analog system dates to the construction of the jail, which opened in 2007, said Capt. Jonathan James, the jail commander.
Andy Nimmons' dog, Simba, walks through the entryway at his showroom and workshop earlier this week. The photos lining the walls show past hunting trips, all of which Nimmons said he remembers. (Ella Kroll/The Oglethorpe Echo)

Andy Nimmons' dog, Simba, walks through the entryway at his showroom and workshop earlier this week. The photos lining the walls show past hunting trips, all of which Nimmons said he remembers. (Ella Kroll/The Oglethorpe Echo)

One wild career: Nimmons’ love of hunting turned into lifelong passion for taxidermy

Ella Kroll
Wednesday, October 9, 2024
 Andy Nimmons grew up in Athens, a self-proclaimed “city kid” who rode BMX, but discovered hunting was his passion at age 15. He graduated from the University of Georgia with an economics degree, but never attended a Bulldogs football game  — hunting season is in the fall.

News Roundup: Primitive weapons deer season starts Saturday

News Staff
Wednesday, October 9, 2024
 The weeklong Georgia primitive weapons deer season begins Saturday, Oct. 12.  Hunters can use archery equipment, air bows, muzzleloading shotguns (20 gauge and larger), air rifles and muzzleloading firearms that are .30 caliber or larger during the primitive weapons season.
Oglethorpe County zoning board members Janet Hill (from left), JF Hansford, Morgan Robinson, Robert Drew and Jimmy Shealy call the September zoning board meeting to order. The board discussed a request to subdivide land on Morgan Road in Comer. (Chloe Beaver/The Oglethorpe Echo)

Oglethorpe County zoning board members Janet Hill (from left), JF Hansford, Morgan Robinson, Robert Drew and Jimmy Shealy call the September zoning board meeting to order. The board discussed a request to subdivide land on Morgan Road in Comer. (Chloe Beaver/The Oglethorpe Echo)

Zoning requests strike balance between development, rural living

Chloe Beaver
Thursday, October 3, 2024
Oglethorpe County has seen a significant increase in zoning requests, said Janet Hill, chair of the Oglethorpe County Zoning Board.
Marilyn Huff-Waller Elections Supervisor for Oglethorpe County Board of Elections is getting prepared for the 2024 Presidential Election. Voter registration ends Oct. 7. (Photo/ Sarah Coyne)

Marilyn Huff-Waller Elections Supervisor for Oglethorpe County Board of Elections is getting prepared for the 2024 Presidential Election. Voter registration ends Oct. 7. (Photo/ Sarah Coyne)

New election rule shouldn't strongly affect Oglethorpe

Sarah Coyne
Thursday, October 3, 2024
The State Election Board has ordered all ballots to be hand-counted on Election Day, which will change how Oglethorpe County election officials do their jobs on Nov. 5.“I don’t know how long it will take,” said Steve McCannon, Oglethorpe County Board of Elections election assistant.
Old friends reunite at Saturday’s commemorative program for the Oglethorpe County Consolidated School that opened in 1955 for Black students. The building, which is now Oglethorpe County Primary School, is scheduled to be torn down. (McCain Bracewell/The Oglethorpe Echo)

Old friends reunite at Saturday’s commemorative program for the Oglethorpe County Consolidated School that opened in 1955 for Black students. The building, which is now Oglethorpe County Primary School, is scheduled to be torn down. (McCain Bracewell/The Oglethorpe Echo)

Consolidated school remembered at event

McCain Bracewell
Thursday, October 3, 2024
 More than 350 past teachers, students, staff and family members gathered to remember the former Oglethorpe County Consolidated School, now Oglethorpe County Primary School, on Sept. 28.