About Fayette County news. (Fayetteville, GA) 2009-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 1, 2023)
A2 Fayette County News Wednesday, November 1,2023 Saving the Historic Woolsey Baptist Church Local Non-Profit Holds Open House Brigitte Greer Staff Writer bgreer@fayette-news.net Since 1875, the Town of Woolsey has embraced its community and its history, which was show cased as local non-profit organization Friends of Historic Woolsey held an open house on Oct. 28 at which the group opened the doors of the now-de- funct Woolsey Baptist Church to display photos, share stories, and inform attendees of the group’s plans to restore the church. Pam Laggis, who sits on the board of directors for Friends of Historic Woolsey, expressed the importance of the church in the community. “There was talk of tearing this down, I was just beside myself,” Lag gis said. Friends of Historic Woolsey President Jamie Lovett contacted Laggis and asked if she was in terested in helping save the historic building, and she joined the cause im mediately. “I said, ‘Absolutely!’ Anything to not have this torn down. Woolsey is small, but there was a lot here. We had a peach packing plant, there was a sawmill, the railway was where [Highway] 92 is. There was a lot here, it was a thriving com munity.” Laggis con tinued. But time had a differ ent plan for the Town of Woolsey. “Then, slowly but surely, all the old build ings are going away. And with the IG Woolsey house burning a few years ago... if you tear this down, what’s left? The town goes away. This is like the cornerstone of the town,” she explained. The open house also served as a fundraising opportunity, with pro ceeds going toward the restoration of the historic building. Although the group has received grants to assist with the finan cial aspect of the restora tion, donations are always welcome. Once the church is fully restored to appear as it did back in 1883, it will be available to rent as an event space for civic groups to hold meetings, weddings, fu nerals, and parties. The cemetery on the church grounds will not go without attention. Dana Sams, landscaping chair of the organization, shared her plans to plant a flower garden outside the gates of the cemetery to further memorialize those who are laid to rest. For more information about the restoration project and Friends of Historic Woolsey, visit www.friendsofhistoric- woolsey.org. I; ; • Locally Owned • 7 floor Plans • Home-Cooked Meals • Housekeeping & Laundry • Saltwater Pool • Wellness Programs • Activity Programs • Assisted & Respite Care • Transportation • Dedicated Team • LPN on Duty CALL MIRNA TO SCHEDULE LUNCH WITH US! 105 Autumn Glen Circle Fayetteville, Georgia 770.461.0039 azaleaestatesfayetteville.com Eric and Kenna Hunter and their family, center, surrounded by volunteers, show off the new raised garden bed made possible by FrontLine Gardens. Brigitte Greer/Fayette News Planting the Seeds to Recovery Brigitte Greer Staff Writer bgreer@fayette-news.net As the season of giving approaches, one local family had a long-awaited dream come true on Saturday, Oct. 28 when Tennessee-based non-profit organization FrontLine Gardens built a raised garden bed to kick off their gardening journey. Fayette County resident Eric Hunter was severely wounded in Afghanistan in 2012 when he stepped on an IED. During his four-year re covery period at Walter Reed National Military Hospital, he and his wife Kenna be came acquainted with Step hanie Trost and her husband Mike, who was also recover ing from injuries he sus tained in Afghanistan. The long road to physical recovery was coming to an end for Mike Trost when he mentioned he wanted to start a farm, so he and Stephanie began looking for farmland and purchased a 50-acre farm in east Tennessee. “I could see the transfor mation in him,” Stephanie said. “It wasn’t just the phys ical healing; it was his emo tional and spiritual healing.” Together with the Uni versity of Tennessee and Tennessee AgrAbility, they developed the project, and in 2020, they began FrontLine Gardens. The program pro vides veterans and their fam ilies with physical, emotional, spiritual, and mental healing. Eric and Kenna Hunter say they had always dreamed of having their own garden, especially after all they had been through during Eric’s recovery process. “We just want to be self- sufficient. We just love our little space. We’ve always wanted chickens and a gar den,” Kenna said. “Stephanie started FrontLine Gardens and I saw what she was doing. So, I reached out to her. I saw her at a caregiver retreat and brought up that I wanted to garden. She opened our eyes to all of this and said she’d love to build a garden. And here we are.” Stephanie contacted Fay ette County’s The Eden Proj ect, an area veteran-run organization, that jumped at the chance to help. “We help with food, housing, and anything else they need to fill that gap,” Executive Director Brenton Briggs said. With the direction of Stephanie Trost and the aid of The Eden Project, the crew finished the raised garden in just four hours. “It’s a lot larger than we expected, but we’re excited. We’re trying to be a lot more holistic,” Eric said. In addition to building the garden, FrontLine Gar dens also provides gardening classes for the aspiring green thumbs. To learn more about FrontLine Gardens, visit www.frontlinegardens.org. For more information on The Eden Project, visit www.eden-project.com. Fayetteville Hosts Third Annual PumpkinFest Leah Banks Investigative Reporter leah@fayette-news.net As October neared its ends, the City of Fayetteville celebrates frights, fun, and family during its third annual PumpkinFest celebration on Oct. 21. The fall-centered fun fest was open to families both young and old and included various food trucks, craft bev erages, and even a time for children to trick-or-treat with the vendors on the Fayette County Courthouse Lawn. Highlight of the festival included the Pumpkin Walk and pumpkin art displays, where attendees were able to view painted and carved pumpkins that were com pleted by local businesses and corporations throughout Fayetteville. Other additions to the festival included a trackless train ride, a costume contest for pets and children, and a performance by the South- side Steppers. Visitors were also able to bob for dough nuts and participate in an in flatable com maze. See accompanying images at ivimv.fayette- neivs.net Donfrf ’T J VOIU* * legpain Find relief from: ( • Varicose Veins • Spider Veins • Leg Swelling • Tired, Achy Legs • Heaviness or Fatigue • Restless Legs at Night • Itching, burning legs • Leg ulcers TRUFFLES VEIN SPECIALISTS ***** JhWw 874 W Lanier Ave. Fayetteville, GA 30214 678-833-1444 trufflesveinspecialists.com FAYETTE COUNTY NEWS P.O. Box 96, Fayetteville, Ga. 30214 Phone: 770-461-6317 ■ fayette-news.net Award-winning member of the Georgia Press Association and the National Newspaper association. The Staff: Luke Haney Editor, Digital Media Coordinator • support@fayette-news.net Leah Banks Investigative reporter • leah@fayette-news.net Jennifer Lyons Legals, General Manager • jennifer@fayette-news.net Brigitte Greer Advertising Consultant, Staff Writer • bgreer@fayette-news.net Debbie McClain, Publisher, Co-owner Bridge Turner, Editor in Chief, Co-owner Fayette County News (USPS 188-420) is published Wednesdays for in county rates of $40 yearly. Georgia out-of-county is $50, and out-of-state is $60. Published by Upson Newspapers, Inc., 219 Thomas Street, Thomaston, GA 30286. Periodicals postage at Fayetteville, GA, and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Fayette County News, P.O. Box 96, Fayetteville, GA. 30214. Our Goal: Fayette County News is proudly published for the citizens of Fayette County and East Coweta by Upson Newspapers, Inc., owned and operated by Debbie McClain and Bridge Turner. Our goal is to produce qual ity, community-oriented publications of which our readers can be proud. We will attain that goal through diligence, teamwork, and dedication to printing the truth in an accurate, fair, balanced, and objective manner. Our Policies: Signed letters to the editor are welcomed and encouraged. We do not edit for content, only grammar, spelling, and punctuation when necessary, as designated by Associated Press style guidelines. Unsigned, li belous, or profane letters will not be published. Please limit letters to 400 words or less and to only two letters per month. Liability for errors in ad vertising will not exceed the space occupied by the error. We reserve the right to edit all submitted materials. The Meeting Place Fayette County Board of Educa tion meets the fourth Monday of the month at 7 p.m. Fayette County Commission meets the second and fourth Thurs day of the month at 5 p.m. Fayette County Planning Com mission meets the first Thursday of the month at 7 p.m. Fayetteville City Council meets the third Thursday of the month at 6 p.m. Fayetteville Planning Commis sion meets the fourth Tuesday of the month at 6 p.m. Fayetteville Work Session meet ing on the last Tuesday of each month at 9 a.m. at Fayetteville City Hall. Peachtree City Council meets the first and third Thursday of the month at 6:30 p.m. Peachtree City Planning Com mission meets the second and fourth Monday of the month at 7 p.m. Tyrone Town Council meets the first and third Thursday of the month at 7 p.m. Tyrone Planning Commission meets the second and fourth Thurs day of the month at 7 p.m. Tyrone Downtown Devel opment Authority meets at 9 a m. on the second Monday of the month. Brooks Town Council meets the third Monday of every month at 6:30 p.m. Woolsey Town Council meets at 7 p.m. on the second Monday of each month.
