Community

Eatonton City Councilmember Janie Reid (right) took a moment near the entrance to Barrel 118 to pose with a Canopy Studio dancer from Athens. IAN TOCHER/Staff

Eatonton City Councilmember Janie Reid (right) took a moment near the entrance to Barrel 118 to pose with a Canopy Studio dancer from Athens. IAN TOCHER/Staff

ArtiGras delivers N’awlins vibe to Eatonton’s Barrel 118

News Staff
Wednesday, March 5, 2025
The fifth annual ArtiGras Carnival, a Mardi Gras-themed fundraiser for the arts in Eatonton, returned to town Saturday night.
Trumpeter Byron Stripling led a tight quartet in entertaining a sold-out crowd Friday night at Barrel 118 in downtown Eatonton. The concert was part of an ongoing jazz series by OPAS (Oconee Performing Arts Society) that brings world-class talent to Lake Country. IAN TOCHER/Staff

Trumpeter Byron Stripling led a tight quartet in entertaining a sold-out crowd Friday night at Barrel 118 in downtown Eatonton. The concert was part of an ongoing jazz series by OPAS (Oconee Performing Arts Society) that brings world-class talent to Lake Country. IAN TOCHER/Staff

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Stripling jazzes up OPAS event in Eatonton

News Staff
Wednesday, February 26, 2025
A capacity crowd filled Barrel 118 in downtown Eatonton on Friday night to hear jazz trumpeter and singer Byron Stripling’s Mardi Gras and All That Jazz, presented by the Oconee Performing Arts Society (OPAS).
DFCS coordinators carefully organized and distributed Easter baskets for last year’s event, ensuring children in foster care and those in need experience the joy of the season. CONTRIBUTED

DFCS coordinators carefully organized and distributed Easter baskets for last year’s event, ensuring children in foster care and those in need experience the joy of the season. CONTRIBUTED

Community unites to create Baskets of Hope for Easter

News Staff
Wednesday, February 26, 2025
The Lake Area Easter Basket Project, also known as Baskets of Hope, will once more spread Easter joy to children in foster care and those facing economic hardship. As of last September, Georgia’s foster care system was serving approximately 11,000 children.
Naturally Georgia by Chris Greer

Naturally Georgia by Chris Greer

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Georgia Writers Museum book review: Naturally Georgia

News Staff
Wednesday, February 26, 2025
Georgia is the largest state east of the Mississippi River — 300 miles from north to south and a little more than 200 miles east to west — and it has a wonderfully diverse geography.
Carter Payne

Carter Payne

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Baldwin’s Lockerly Arboretum welcomes new horticulturist

Bailey McCully
Wednesday, February 26, 2025
Lockerly Arboretum welcomed Carter Payne onto its full-time staff earlier this month as its horticulturist.Payne grew up in Western North Carolina near the Blue Ridge Mountains. Surrounded by a lush landscape with a large ecosystem to discover, plants piqued his interest at a young age.
The Heart and Soul Gala Committee included (l-r): Patty Dailey, Christa Hyatt, Tim Green, Lisa Tubbs, Riezl Baker, Elizabeth Davis, Chuck Shaheen, Susan Helmrath, and Chris Helmrath. CONTRIBUTED

The Heart and Soul Gala Committee included (l-r): Patty Dailey, Christa Hyatt, Tim Green, Lisa Tubbs, Riezl Baker, Elizabeth Davis, Chuck Shaheen, Susan Helmrath, and Chris Helmrath. CONTRIBUTED

Heart and Soul Gala glitters at Ritz-Carlton

News Staff
Thursday, February 20, 2025
The 2025 Heart and Soul Gala, held Feb. 15 at The Ritz-Carlton ballroom, was an unmitigated success, raising over $800,000 to benefit St. Mary’s Good Samaritan Hospital in Greensboro.
The Georgia Writers Museum junior board is comprised of Putnam County High School Service Leadership students. CONTRIBUTED

The Georgia Writers Museum junior board is comprised of Putnam County High School Service Leadership students. CONTRIBUTED

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Greer and PCHS students showcase natural Georgia at GWM

News Staff
Thursday, February 20, 2025
Georgia Writers Museum, in collaboration with its junior board — comprised of Putnam County High School Service Leadership students — will present “Framing Futures: Chris Greer and PCCSS Showcase Natural Georgia” on March 4 at Georgia Writers Museum (GWM).
Chris Greer

Chris Greer

GWM hosts PBS star and author Chris Greer

News Staff
Thursday, February 13, 2025
Season 2 of the PBS program View Finders is airing in over 55 million homes throughout the United States. The unscripted show follows two photographers searching for beautiful places to photograph.
Rashawd Ford will make his directorial debut late this month at The Plaza in a musical version of Alice Walker’s “The Color Purple.” IAN TOCHER/Staff

Rashawd Ford will make his directorial debut late this month at The Plaza in a musical version of Alice Walker’s “The Color Purple.” IAN TOCHER/Staff

The Plaza debuts series with ‘The Color Purple’

Ian Tocher
Thursday, February 13, 2025
Surprisingly, beyond a pair of screenings of “The Color Purple” movie starring Whoopie Goldberg, Danny Glover, and Oprah Winfrey in January 1986 at The Pex Theater, the Pulitzer Prize-winning masterpiece by Eatonton’s own Alice Walker has never been publicly performed here.
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