Music Stars Come to Tifton

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Tuesday, February 24, 2026

Tifton, Georgia

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MUSIC STARS COMING TO TIFTON

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

Top-drawer entertainment continues coming to Tifton with chart-topping country singer Jo Dee Messina this Thursday at the UGA Tifton Campus Conference Center and longtime country hit-maker band Diamond Rio headlining at Fulwood Park on March 7 for the Tifton Rhythm & Ribs BBQ Festival.

To bring Messina to Tifton this week, Six String Southern Productions in Athens is partnering once again with the Tifton-Tift County Tourism Association. The partnership brought rock band ZZ Top to Tifton last March and country singer Clint Black in April 2024.

The Tifton-Tift County Tourism Association is also partnering with the Rhythm & Ribs Festival to bring Diamond Rio in a free outdoor concert.

Messina, who arrives in Tifton Thursday, has had nine No. 1 and 16 Top 40 songs and has been honored by the Academy of Country Music (ACM), Country Music Association (CMA), American Music Awards, Billboard, and Grammy Awards. She was the first female in country music history to celebrate three consecutive multi-week, chart-topping songs. She debuted in 1996 with the hit single "Heads Carolina, Tails California."

Her second album, "I'm Alright," produced five top-10 country hits between 1998-1999, and sold more than 1 million copies.

Messina's show begins at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at the UGA Tifton Conference Center with opening act Caylee Hammack, an Ellaville native. Hammack has nearly 275 million career global streams of her music, has won an ACM award for Musical Event of the Year (“Fooled Around and Fell in Love” with Miranda Lambert), and received “Artist to Watch” accolades from Rolling Stone magazine, among others.

Hammack has shared stages with Luke Bryan and Brothers Osborne, and will go on tour this fall with Brooks & Dunn.

Tickets are available here.

TIFT'S REDESIGNED SPORTS COMPLEX REOPENS APRIL 6

By BONNIE SAYLES

Tifton Grapevine

Tim Petrea, director of the Tift County Recreation Department, told the Tifton Rotary Club last Wednesday that the county's newly redesigned sports complex will reopen April 6 with a unifying name.

“It is no longer Optimist Park and Friendly City Park: It is E.B. Hamilton Complex,” Petrea said, a name he wants to be known throughout South Georgia and North Florida among the many sports enthusiasts and athletes who visit.

“We’re excited about this, and the community is excited,” Petrea said. “I want this to be a tourism destination for people to come to. But I also want our local kiddos to come and be able to play,” he said.

In baseball, Tift County has sustained the numbers in growth during the past four years. “With baseball, softball, and spring developmental soccer, we’re over 450 kids in Tift County sports this spring,” Petrea said.

Pickleball has seen massive growth in Tift County, he said, with the new complex on Second Street.

“We now have leagues on Tuesday and Thursday nights,” Petrea said. “More people are playing. When we’re not playing the leagues, the courts are first come, first served. Pickleball has broken some barriers. There’s a younger crowd playing pickleball.”

The Thanksgiving Bowl in Tift County is the state’s longest-running football tournament, Petrea said: “It’s two or three years longer than the Super Bowl.”

Every December, he said, 34 to 38 teams come to Tift County to participate in a state GRSP tournament “for two weekends in a row, they’re putting heads in beds (in Tifton). That’s sports tourism,” Petrea said.

“This year, we’re hosting the district baseball tournament. We’re keeping all those things going while trying to branch out,” also doing things like adult church-league softball, he said.

The Tift County Recreation Department is also hosting the 2026 Egg Drop & Wellness Hop from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, March 21. Thousands of eggs will drop from an airplane over Eve Field, and community resource booths will ring Orr Field, sharing information with participants.

Last November, Petrea received the statewide Mike Daniel Award from the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association, recognition given to a professional who has excelled in the supervision or implementation of recreation, parks, or leisure programs.

Finishing his fifth year in Tifton, Petrea said, “My goal is to continue to make recreation relevant, to get people to experience play, no matter what they do.”

TIFTON'S REP. SCOTT RESPONDS TO PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS; SAYS TRUMP KEEPS PROMISES

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

U.S. Rep. Austin Scott, R-Tifton, issued the following statement after attending President Donald J. Trump’s 2026 State of the Union Address Thursday night:

“President Trump has followed through on his promises to secure the Southern border, bring down prices for consumers, lower inflation, and reduce the tax burden on American citizens.

"He has worked to keep our country safe from those that would wish us harm, both at home and abroad, and he has continued to support the American farmer. I look forward to continuing to expand upon his efforts to support our troops as well as our growers and producers.”

TIFT SCHOOLS RECOGNIZE ADULT ENGLISH-LANGUAGE STUDENTS

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

Tift County Schools on Monday celebrated the success of students in the adult English-language class at Eighth Street Middle School.

Through access to "Rosetta Stone," purchased with Title III funds, the adult students have successfully completed multiple instructional units and continue building their English language skills.

"We are especially proud of the dedication shown by several of our ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) students who attend classes on their own initiative, as well as those currently preparing to earn their GED. Their commitment to learning and personal growth is inspiring," the school system said.

Tift County Schools said it is committed to supporting learners of all ages in the community.

FITZGERALD MAN CHARGED WITH FELONY ID THEFT IN NORTH CAROLINA

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

A Fitzgerald man was arrested last week following an investigation into an altered and duplicated business check in North Carolina, according to the Yancey County, N.C., Sheriff’s Office.

A man had attempted to deposit the fraudulent check into a bank account opened under a fictitious name. Through the use of advanced investigative technology, the Yancey County Sheriff’s Office said it was able to identify a suspect.

With coordinated efforts with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the suspect was located in Newton County, Ga.

Maucarie Devaghun Holmes, 24, of Fitzgerald, was taken into custody and extradited back to North Carolina.

Holmes was being held in the Yancey County Detention Center on charges of felony identity theft under $250,000, authorities said.

LOCAL SRTC STUDENTS WIN TOP AWARDS

AT SkillsUSA CONFERENCE

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

Career and technical education students from Southern Regional Technical College (SRTC) recently competed at the 2026 SkillsUSA State Leadership and Skills Conference last weekend, bringing home nine medals – several by local students.

The annual event hosted 155 hands-on technical trade, occupational-related, and leadership contests for students to earn the right to compete at the national conference in June.

Among local students winning top awards in their competitions were:

Johanna Martinez-Camacho of Tifton and Leanna Mobley of Ocilla, winning the Gold medal in Promotional Bulletin Board.
Jada Renney of Sylvester, winning Silver in Welding Sculpture.
Maria Gachuz Zamorano of Tifton, winning Bronze in First Aid CPR.
Denix Hernandez of Omega, winning Gold in Medical Math.

SRTC sent 38 students to compete at this year's conference, marking a strong showing for the college. About 10,000 student competitors, advisors, instructors, and industry professionals attended the conference and its skills competitions, held Feb. 19-21 in Atlanta.

"Watching our students compete at this level is something truly special. The dedication they brought to preparation and the composure they showed on competition day is a testament to their character and the quality of training they receive here at SRTC. These young men and women have set a high bar, and I know they will carry that same determination into the national competition this June," said Katrina Bohanon, SRTC SkillsUSA advisor.

SRTC's SkillsUSA chapter collected a prize for the largest overall membership of 192 members and for achieving the state's second-largest membership increase with 37. SRTC was also recognized with the Quality Chapter Award.

SkillsUSA is a national non-profit organization of students, teachers, and industries working together to ensure America has a skilled workforce. SkillsUSA helps high school and college students enrolled in career and technical education programs to excel by teaching employability skills such as communication, problem-solving, and leadership in conjunction with their trade, technical, and service occupations skills.

TIFTON-TIFT COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE RIBBON CUTTING

Lula Mae's Salon

137 Love Ave., Tifton

Feb. 20

Proud New Member of the Tifton-Tift County Chamber of Commerce

TIFTON GRAPEVINE'S CATS OF THE WEEK

These two cats, "Harmony" and "Ivory," came from a home where their owner had died, and the family was not able to keep them. They are awaiting a new lease on life with a family that will love them. Come visit them and see other pets available for adoption between 1-6 p.m. Mondays through Fridays at the Tift County Animal Shelter on Highway 125 South, or call 229-382-PETS (7387).

TIFT & IRWIN COUNTIES LAUDED FOR FIRST

'SANITARY DISTRICT OF RURAL COUNTIES'

~ FEB. 25, 1916

On Feb. 25, 1916, The Tifton Gazette noted that a Springfield, Mass., newspaper praised Tift and Irwin counties for having the "first sanitary district of rural counties in the South, if not in the United States." The newspaper reported that "Tift and Irwin counties, with a combined population of 26,000, have joined in employing a health officer whose duty will be 'the examination of schools and school children, all public buildings, trains, depots, and all places where food is sold; also the handling of cases of infectious and contagious diseases, and all matters leading to the reduction of disease and the lengthening of life.'"

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