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More info Community Christmas will hold three drop-in registration times for families with children at Crawford Baptist Church. Those times are: 4-8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 17 9 a.m. to noon, Friday, Oct. 18 Noon to 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 19 Call Shirley Dillard at 706-540-0785 or Jodie Zeuke at 706-410-0382 with questions or for more information.

More info Community Christmas will hold three drop-in registration times for families with children at Crawford Baptist Church. Those times are: 4-8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 17 9 a.m. to noon, Friday, Oct. 18 Noon to 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 19 Call Shirley Dillard at 706-540-0785 or Jodie Zeuke at 706-410-0382 with questions or for more information.

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Community Christmas holds annual signup

Chloe Beaver
Thursday, October 17, 2024
Community Christmas of Oglethorpe County is preparing for its first event of the season, but organizers said it can be hard to predict how many families will register this week. “We really don’t know,” co-director Shirley Dillard said.
Democratic challenger Jacqueline Bosby (left) and Incumbent Republican Andy Saxon (right) are running for the District 2 seat on the Oglethorpe County Board of Commissioners in the Nov. 5 election. (Submitted Photo)

Democratic challenger Jacqueline Bosby (left) and Incumbent Republican Andy Saxon (right) are running for the District 2 seat on the Oglethorpe County Board of Commissioners in the Nov. 5 election. (Submitted Photo)

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Q&A: Plans differ among District 2 candidates

Sarah Coyne
Wednesday, October 16, 2024
Incumbent Republican Andy Saxon and Democratic challenger Jacqueline Bosby are running for the District 2 seat on the Oglethorpe County Board of Commissioners in the Nov. 5 election. The Oglethorpe Echo spoke with Saxon and Bosby for a look at their plans for District 2.
Members of the Georgia Baptist Disaster Relief team clear a tree off a roof in Vidalia, GA. Following the Sept. 24 landfall of Hurricane Helene, many yards are in disrepair and covered in debris. (Photo / Howard Sanders)

Members of the Georgia Baptist Disaster Relief team clear a tree off a roof in Vidalia, GA. Following the Sept. 24 landfall of Hurricane Helene, many yards are in disrepair and covered in debris. (Photo / Howard Sanders)

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Sanders helps out during Helene cleanup in South Georgia

Mary Catherine Dodys
Wednesday, October 16, 2024
Howard Sanders took matters into his own hands following Hurricane Helene’s path of destruction late last month.
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.