Author: Donna Wilcox

Football season is in full swing, fall officially arrives this week, and that makes this a perfect time to give What’s Cookin’, Hazlehurst? a game-day edition. Current September food coverage is packed with dips, sliders and other easy foods made for tailgates and watch parties. Recent collections from Southern Living and Allrecipes are both highlighting crowd-friendly appetizers and dips for football season. So this week’s HN recipe is one you can put right in the middle of the table and watch disappear: Hot Honey Bacon Corn Dip. It’s creamy and cheesy with sweet corn, smoky bacon, a little jalapeño and…

Jeff Davis High School Softball bounced back in a big way Tuesday, sweeping a doubleheader at Brooks County with a pair of shutout victories. The Yellow Jackets rolled to an 18-0 win in the first game before following it with a 13-0 victory in game two, combining for 31 runs, 28 hits and no errors across the doubleheader. Briley Reagin earned the win in the circle in both games, allowing just one hit over seven scoreless innings while striking out 12 and issuing no walks. Game One: Jeff Davis 18, Brooks County 0 Jeff Davis wasted little time taking control…

Effingham County faces a lawsuit over the process behind a $20 billion project, while Telfair County considers detailed regulations before a project arrives As Jeff Davis County officials continue studying how to regulate potential data center development, two other South Georgia counties are providing very different examples of how communities are confronting the rapidly growing industry. In Effingham County, a group of residents and the conservation organization One Hundred Miles filed a lawsuit Monday challenging the process used by the Effingham County Industrial Development Authority as it advanced a proposed $20 billion OpenAI data center campus. About 100 miles to…

If you’ve heard people talking about an unusually cold or even snowy winter for South Georgia, you’re certainly not alone. With a rapidly strengthening El Niño in the Pacific, winter predictions are already making the rounds. So, could Hazlehurst actually see snow this winter? For now, the scientifically accurate answer is: we don’t know — but the setup is becoming interesting. According to the latest official information from NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center, El Niño is strengthening rapidly, and there is a greater than 90% chance it will become a very strong El Niño during the fall and winter of 2026–27.…

Authorities say suspect was located in Pearson after leaving the Douglas scene COFFEE COUNTY, Ga. — A Pearson man was arrested after an alleged stabbing in Coffee County earlier this month that left a man with a knife wound to his lower back. According to a Coffee County Sheriff’s Office report cited by Douglas Now, deputies responded to a Waterford Street location in Douglas at approximately 1 a.m. Sept. 9 following a report of a stabbing. When officers arrived, they found a male victim on the floor suffering from a knife wound. (Douglas Now) Witnesses reportedly identified Tyrone Lamar Alexander,…

Jeff Davis High School Softball struggled to get its offense going Monday as Wayne County handed the Jackets a 9-0 loss. Wayne County took an early lead in the bottom of the first when a Jeff Davis error allowed one run to score. The Yellow Jackets remained within striking distance until Wayne County added three runs in the third. Scott delivered the biggest blow with a two-run home run to center field, and Sluder followed with an RBI single to extend the lead to 4-0. Wayne County continued to add to its advantage and held Jeff Davis scoreless through six…

Hazlehurst and Jeff Davis County officials provide updates on government operations, public safety, water, roads and issues facing the community From property taxes and Hurricane Helene recovery to water loss, roads, emergency services and the growing discussion surrounding data centers, Hazlehurst and Jeff Davis County leaders covered a wide range of issues during the second session of the Hazlehurst-Jeff Davis County Chamber of Commerce’s State of the Community Panel Discussion. Hazlehurst Now attended the session, which featured Jeff Davis County Administrator Jayme Crosby and Hazlehurst Mayor John Ramay, along with department heads who provided updates on the day-to-day operations and…

South Georgia State College women’s soccer is off to another strong start, and the coach leading the Lady Hawks continues to call Jeff Davis County home. Lisa “Coach Gonzo” Gonzalez-Lytle, a familiar name to local soccer fans following a highly successful six-year tenure at Jeff Davis High School, has carried that success to the collegiate level as head coach of the South Georgia State College women’s soccer program. The Lady Hawks are currently 5-1 overall and a perfect 5-0 in conference play, with their only loss coming against nationally No. 1-ranked Daytona State. The strong start follows an outstanding 2025…

State funding launches planning for new Statesboro program aimed at strengthening Georgia’s eye-care workforce STATESBORO, Ga. — Georgia Southern University is moving forward with plans to establish Georgia’s first College of Optometry, a development that could eventually give Georgia students the opportunity to earn a Doctor of Optometry degree without leaving the state. But there is an important distinction: the college is being developed — it has not yet opened and is not currently enrolling optometry students. The proposed college must still receive required approvals and complete the accreditation process before the Doctor of Optometry program can begin. (Georgia Southern…

Jeff Davis Cross Country turned in another strong performance at the 2nd Annual For Coffee XC Invitational, bringing home two team championships, two runner-up finishes and 17 individual Top 10 medals. The JDMS boys and girls both captured first place, while the Jeff Davis High School boys and girls each finished second behind host Coffee. The middle school boys continued an impressive run with their fifth consecutive meet victory, while the middle school girls earned their third team win of the season. JDMS boys capture fifth straight! The JDMS boys dominated the two-mile race, placing five runners among the top…