Author: Submitted

Robert Howard, age 87, of Douglas, passed away on Thursday, February 21, 2019 at Coffee Regional Medical Center. Mr. Howard was born on May 10, 1931 in Orlando, Florida, the son of the late Robert and Ethel Howard. Mr. Howard was a retired lieutenant with the Florida DOT after thirty five years and was a member of Reedy Branch Baptist Church. He was preceded in death by four sisters. Survivors include his wife, Virginia Howard of Douglas; three daughters, Jodie Lynn Thomas (Eddie) of Orlando, Florida, Vicki Burks of St. Augustine, Florida, and Cindy Diane Richardson of Interlachen, Florida;…

Lauralee “Lori” H. Childre, age 79, of Douglas, passed away on Wednesday, February 20, 2019 at her residence. Mrs. Childre was born on January 28, 1940, the daughter of the late Clifford Lee Hunt and Dorothy Mattson Hunt. Along with her husband, they operated a computer service business, Southeastern Computer and Computer Dimension and was a member of the First Baptist Church, Douglas. Mrs. Childre was preceded in death by her husband, Carl Allen “Buggie” Childre. Survivors include her daughter, Rebecca Benton (Ricky) of Douglas; son, Greg Childre (Donna) of Douglas; four grandchildren, Vaughn Childre (Jill), Anna Lentz (Kurt), Richard Benton and…

Ethel Mae Merrier Jones, age 79, of Douglas, passed away on Wednesday February 20, 2019 at Regency Hospital in Macon, surrounded by loved ones. Mrs. Jones was born on May 29, 1939 in Atkinson County, the daughter of the late Joseph Merier and Sybil Sirmans Merier. She was a wife, homemaker, loving mother, grandmother, great grandmother, and an active part of her husband’s ministry for over 40 years. Mrs. Jones was a member Harvest Time Church of God. Mrs. Jones was preceded in death by a daughter, Connie Smith and a sister, Martha Dillingham. Survivors include her husband,…

Allen Lee Stone, age 53, of Hazlehurst, passed away on Tuesday February 19, 2019 at his residence. Mr. Stone was born on December 15, 1965 in Japan, the son of Allen Kermit Stone and the late Alvalene Williamson Stone. He worked as a truck driver. Survivors include his wife, Angela Davis Stone of Hazlehurst; daughter, Nicole Davis (Willie) of Hazlehurst; grandchildren, Christopher Wilcox of Hazlehurst and Chloe Wilcox of Hazlehurst; brother, Jody Stone (Jamie) of Hazlehurst; sister, Cindy Stapleton (Asiano) of Hazlehurst; father, Allen Kermit Stone of Hazlehurst; special family friends, Judy and William Fields of Hazlehurst; sister-in-law,…

South Georgia State College’s men’s basketball team honored its eight sophomores Saturday afternoon while also extending its current winning streak to four games with a 66-58 win over Southern Crescent Tech. Those sophomores honored in a pregame ceremony included Skyler Baggs, Charles Botchway, Luke Lawson, Riley Meloncon, Keyshaun Street, Kamron Walters, Ellis Wester, Jr. and Dewayne Wilson. Each player received a plaque commemorating their individual careers at SGSC. The Hawks (14-12-1, 6-6-1) had to overcome another lackluster shooting performance to keep their winning streak alive. As a team, the Hawks shot 38 percent from the field, made only…

South Georgia State College students will reap the benefits from the first annual “Birdies for Bucks” Golf Classic held February 8, 2019, at the Okefenokee Country Club in Blackshear. “Birdies for Bucks” was created by the James M. Dye Foundation on South Georgia State College’s Waycross Campus to support SGSC’s Gap Funding Project. The project provides grants to students on SGSC’s Waycross Campus who experience financial limitations after all financial aid options have been exhausted. The event raised over $20,000 and will enable the Dye Foundation to put financial resources in place so that future students have the…

Tammy Bennett and Jaime Taylor’s first and second grade classes along with JoBeth Ursrey’s fifth grade homeroom participated in the 2019 Blizzard of Books Reading Challenge sponsored by Epic. These students read a total of 9,230 books. The staggering amount of books read earned them a fourth place honor in this reading competition. The prizes awarded to students were a $100 pizza card, an Epic swag pack for students, and six month Epic accounts for 40 students. ICE is so proud of the teamwork and hard work of all of the students.

Our sweet Caroline Elizabeth Smith was born on Saturday, April 13, 2002 and gained her angel wings on Sunday, February 17, 2019. From heaven, Caroline will watch over her mama and brother, Marnie Smith and Trent; father, Brent Smith; grandparents, Paula and Michael Allen, Marie and Henry Medders and Danny Smith; great- grandparents, Gladys Allen, Wannell Dockery and Vivien and Maxell Smith; aunts, uncles and cousins, Marlo and Danny Ross, Thomas Daniel (T.D.) and Phillip, Loy and Cleve Henderson, Troy and Grant, Dana and Jason Dunn, Jacob and Jenna, Courtney and Josh Hersey, Ethan and Jase, Bart Medders and…

In an effort to address a multifaceted issue facing the children of Coffee County, Coffee Regional Medical Center has partnered with the Coffee County School System to address the issue of cyberbullying and the dangers of social media as well as drug awareness and addiction. CRMC is sponsoring a nationally recognized expert to engage with and educate the teachers, children, and parents of middle and high-school children of Coffee County. Sergeant Jesse Hambrick of the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office will bring a high-energy presentation about the hard realities and consequences of mischief in social media, bullying, cyberbullying, and drug addiction.…

Coffee Middle School FBLA celebrated FBLA Week February 3-9. During this week they participated in a community service project promoted by CMS FBLA called “Read to Lead, Lead to Succeed.” This project was developed as part of a reading campaign in the middle school to promote a love for reading in our community. Members attended the Precious Possessions Childcare facility to read to a group of students ages 2-4 years old. Each group was given an opportunity to answer questions, have a snack time, and all while listening to their favorite stories being read to them. At the end…