Softball eliminated in Elite 8
Jeff Davis High’s softball team’s dream of winning a state championship came to an end last week in the Georgia High School Association Elite 8 Tournament in Columbus. The Lady Jackets won their opening game in the double-elimination tournament, blasting Chattooga 11-1. In the second game, defending state champion Heard County rolled to an 11-0…
Read MoreXC teams win region titles
The Jeff Davis cross country teams competed at the Region 2AA Championship Oct. 28 at Toombs County High School. This was the first time in six years that the Jeff Davis program has not hosted the region championship at either the Heritage Center at Towns Bluff or at Jeff Davis Middle School. Coach Jeremy Moore…
Read MoreNo Comment — By Tommy Purser
We ran a letter to the editor last week received via email from a Taylor Fernandes. The writer made some accusations that I, quite simply, did not believe were true. But I gave her her say and then added some of my personal knowledge of the local adults, school administrators, school officials, etc., who the…
Read MoreAfter Almost 5 Decades, Googes Calling It Quits
By TOMMY PURSER Sometime in 1972, Olen Googe stopped at Rentz Grocery on Jarman Street in Hazlehurst to get gas for his vehicle. Fresh off a 20-year career in the Air Force, the father of three young boys wanted to return to his hometown of Hazlehurst along with his wife, the former Mary Altman who…
Read MoreCity Meeting Is Smooth, Quick
By MARY ANN ANDERSON Last Thursday’s regular monthly meeting of the Hazlehurst City Council moved along smoothly and quickly, with a host of motions passing unanimously, including funding half of an upgraded dispatch system for Hazlehurst-Jeff Davis County Fire-Rescue. “For some time, we’ve been having issues with our paging system as far as paging our…
Read MoreLocal Traditions — By John Reed
Local Traditions Last Sunday I attended the homecoming service held at a local church. The day marked 147 years that church has been in existence, and the tombstones in the adjacent cemetery bore witness to the passing decades. There was certainly 147 years’ cooking experience on display at the dinner offered after the service. No…
Read MoreSheriff’s Department Recognized For Work
The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Coastal Georgia Violent Gang Task Force met with several agencies last week to recognized them for their assistance in one of the largest and most successful gang cases in the Southern District of Georgia and the United States in recent years. Dubbed “Operation Sandy Bottom,” the case indicted 48…
Read MoreMrs. Chrystal East Beecher, 45
Mrs. Chrystal East Beecher, 45, of Hazlehurst, died Oct. 24 at Appling Health Care System in Baxley. Mrs. Beecher was born Dec. 3, 1975, in LaGrange. She is preceded in death by her mother, Mrs. Regina East, and brother, Rusty East. She was a homemaker, loved her family, loved gardening, she was a great care…
Read MoreMr. Ryan Kent Harper, 56
Mr. Ryan Kent Harper, 56, of Hazlehurst, died of natural causes at his residence Oct. 19. Mr. Harper was born March 27, 1965, in Jeff Davis County. He is preceded in death by his father, Elzie Harper, sister, Gayla Harper and brother, Keith Harper. He was a perfectionist and lived his life to the fullest.…
Read MoreMr. Ralph Lamar Walters, 73
Mr. Ralph Lamar Walters, 73, of Hazlehurst died Oct. 21 at his residence. Mr. Walters was born March 1, 1948, in Duval County, Fla. He was preceded in death by his father, Marcellus Colson Walters. He was the owner/operator of Barbara’s Blueberries. He was a former Deputy with the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Department, owner and…
Read More