The downtown Jackson area looks a little bit brighter and cheerful thanks to a local business owner and the Jackson High School Art Club.

A call into the Butts County 911 center about 1:45 p.m. Thursday about a person with a weapon at Henderson Middle School was a false report, according to Butts County School Superintendent Dr. Todd Simpson. Both Henderson and Jackson High School were put on lockdown for a little more than an…

ATLANTA — Former University System of Georgia Chancellor Hank Huckaby died Wednesday at age 79 after suffering a stroke last week.

ALBANY — Georgia Sen. Jen Jordan, an Atlanta attorney and Democrat, announced Wednesday she is running for state attorney general against the Republican incumbent, Chris Carr.

NEWBORN — The little town of Newborn is once again celebrating a “little fish in a big way” with the return of the Hornyhead Fish Festival and Tournament.

President Biden's announced intention to complete the withdrawal of all U.S. forces from Afghanistan by Sept. 11, exactly 20 years after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, will complete a goal former President Trump wanted to meet, but did not, following advice from military leaders, who convinced him that a May 1 deadline was a bad idea.

You can’t escape politics anywhere now – not even in America’s once great pastime, baseball.

News from 10 years ago:

ATLANTA — Students at Georgia’s 26 public colleges and universities won’t be hit with a tuition increase this fall for the second year in a row.

With all the challenges we face as a nation, I find myself often debating with others the merits of foreign assistance, aid, and U.S. foreign policy.

Based on Butts County’s 2019 population estimate of 24,936, about 24% of county residents have now received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccines. The April 12 COVID-19 Vaccine Dashboard put out by the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) shows that 5,919 Butts County residents hav…

ATLANTA — Georgia First Lady Marty Kemp, in partnership with Attorney General Chris Carr, released Monday a new anti-human trafficking public service announcement. The new PSA highlights “The Survivors First Act” and is airing across the state on digital media.

MINNEAPOLIS/ST.PAUL — A new probe into the lingering impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic has revealed correlations to six unhealthy eating behaviors, according to a study by the University of Minnesota Medical School and School of Public Health. Researchers say the most concerning finding indic…

MARIETTA — Construction firm owner Kelvin King has announced his campaign for the U.S. Senate in Georgia.

Back in the day when "Saturday Night Live" was funny, Chevy Chase would open the "Weekend Update" segment by saying, "I'm Chevy Chase ... and you're not."

If one can say the pandemic has had any positive side effect, it has been to help us focus on what the loss of liberties looks like.

Butts County Ferst Readers is looking for a few (50) good men, women, companies, and/or organizations willing to sponsor 10 children for a year for $360. Each child from birth to age 5 will receive a bookstore-quality, age-appropriate book and resources mailed to them at home each month at n…

ATHENS — Why have tomatoes lost their flavor? Why do some dishes call for ketchup when cooking with tomatoes?

ATLANTA — Chief Justice Harold D. Melton has extended for another month the Statewide Judicial Emergency he first declared more than a year ago on March 14, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

MACON – Two convicted felons with lengthy criminal histories were sentenced to federal prison this week in separate cases, both for violating federal firearms law by illegally possessing guns, acting U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia Peter D. Leary said.

AUGUSTA — Georgia’s Department of Public Health has issued a warning about a cluster of overdoses from counterfeit pills that contain fentanyl, a potent opioid drug.

ATLANTA — The Georgia Department of Public Health vaccine dashboard reported Friday that more than 4.5 million vaccines have been administered in the state of Georgia.

Cesar "Rico" Rodriguez described his youthful home as, “Where we unpacked our luggage.” An admitted military brat, Rodriguez was born in El Paso, Texas, at Ft. Bliss, the son of a career Army soldier. He recalled, “My father was Puerto Rican and my mother was Cuban. We spent a lot of time in…

ATLANTA — As part of the Georgia HEART Hospital Program, Ameris Bank has donated $2,000,000 in financial support to 19 rural hospitals located throughout the bank’s footprint in Georgia, including $25,000 to Wellstar Sylvan Grove Hospital in Jackson.

The Jackson City Council approved a proclamation naming the week of April 18-24, 2021 as “Georgia Garden Week” in Jackson. The action came at their meeting on Apr. 5 as members of all three garden clubs in Jackson looked on.

ATLANTA — Attorney General Chris Carr has joined a 14-state coalition of attorneys general in sending a letter to U.S. Senate leaders opposing a pro-union bill. The Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2021 (PRO Act) would negate state right-to-work laws and require workers to pay union d…

ATLANTA -- Georgia Tech provides the best value among the Peach State’s public and private universities, according to a new study by a New York-based financial technology company.

ATLANTA — President Biden’s $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan would provide an overdue fix to deteriorating highways while ramping up investment in modern transit including high-speed rail, three members of Georgia’s congressional delegation said Wednesday.

DUBLIN – Officials with the Carl Vinson VA Medical Center here have announced that Dublin VA will provide its 25,000th COVID-19 vaccination this weekend.

GRIFFIN — Over the past few decades, pollinators have been in decline worldwide, which is concerning because 70% of crops used for human food depend on pollinators. Turfgrasses — used for most residential lawns — often take some of the blame for pollinator decline as they are known to be win…

ATLANTA — Gov. Brian Kemp has announced that Pete’s, a long-time, California-based greenhouse grower, will invest $18 million in opening its first eastern U.S. indoor, controlled-environment agriculture facility in Warner Robins.

DALTON — Three rival Georgia carpet companies took a break from their floor-covering competition to focus on a foe that united them: COVID-19.

ATLANTA — Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger has referred Coffee, Grady and Taylor Counties for investigation after those counties failed to do their absentee ballot transfer forms in violation of Georgia Rules and Regulations. The office of the secretary of state has confirmed with the o…

News from 10 years ago:

ATLANTA — The first wave of candidates has thrown its collective hats in the ring for key Georgia elective offices, including lieutenant governor and secretary of state, amid bitter partisan battles over the state’s new election law.

I certainly give Major League Baseball (MLB) and Jackie Robinson credit for breaking the color barrier and slowly ending segregation within the sport.

ATLANTA — Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger has issued a statement regarding recent court filings in the case of Favorito versus Cooney, regarding an Open Records request to unseal ballots from the 2020 election.

The wins on the baseball diamond have been few and far between this season for the Jackson Red Devils, who continue to work hard despite the losses. Going into spring break this week, Jackson has a record of 3-16, with some tough region 2-AAA competition coming up.

The Jackson Red Devils honored their six senior players before their game on April 1 with Jasper County. They are Ben Gervasio, Carson Biles, Walker Carawan, Dustin Sullivan, Brett Carter, and Dalton Smith.

While spring break from school this week gives students a chance to rest and relax before the final push through to the end of the school year, there are some students in Butts County who would have nothing to eat at home during the break if it wasn’t for the work of HOPE Atlanta Smart Lunch…

With the help of the Butts County Leisure Services, the Easter Bunny made surprise visits to baseball, soccer and softball practices at Daughtry Park last week. On March 30 he showed up at softball practices and on April 1 he made appearances at baseball and soccer practices. On Saturday, Ap…