Rome News-Tribune
BEST OF ROME 2026
As the sun set over the Christopher Browning Pavilion at Oak Hill, hundreds of attendees gathered Thursday evening to celebrate the Best of Rome, marking another successful year for Rome businesses and the community. From arts and entertainment to...
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Students put construction skills to test
The sounds of hammers pounding, saws cutting through wood and power drills buzzing filled the Forum River Center as high school students from across Northwest Georgia competed in the annual Northwest Georgia Skills Challenge. Students competed in...
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Salvation Army unveils mobile canteen
The Salvation Army of Rome has a new tool to help feed residents, support first responders and provide relief during emergencies with the addition of a mobile canteen that officials say will expand the organization’s ability to serve the...
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A life of love, a legacy of service
John Schroeder, the co-founder of Schroeder’s New Deli and a pillar of the community, died at 3 a.m. Tuesday after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease. The restaurateur will be remembered for many things: the iconic jukebox he installed at...
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Rooted in memory
Friends and family of former Glenwood Elementary School student Rebecca Lumsden gathered Friday at the former school, which is now the Floyd County Police Department headquarters, to remember her and dedicate a new tree planted in her memory. Lumsden...
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Crafters come out for Artsfest at Earthworks
Hundreds of visitors dropped by Earthworks Pottery’s Artsfest this weekend to browse booths set up by an array of local artists and try their hands at crafting small pumpkins out of clay. “We’ve had a great turnout today and yesterday,” Earthworks...
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Coosa Valley Fair washed out, but memories remain
It was an abrupt end to this year’s Coosa Valley Fair, the biggest fundraiser for the Exchange Club of Rome’s many service projects. But while it lasted, thousands of visitors enjoyed thrilling rides and attractions, delectable fair foods, games of...
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Bike Bus inspires joy at Garden Lakes
The air was cool as the sun rose over the parking lot of Trinity Christian Church, illuminating dozens of parents, teachers and kids about to embark on Garden Lakes Elementary School’s second roll out of its bike bus. The school launched the bike bus...
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Zoo to host gender reveal party
Just like proud parents, the Chattanooga Zoo is hosting a gender reveal party Oct. 18 to celebrate the birth of its newest member, Masala the Red Panda Cub, born July 6. “We are so excited to introduce Masala to our zoo family and friends,” said Jake...
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Fun, food, Ferris Wheel: The Coosa Valley Fair is back
The fairgrounds were filled with cheers, excited chatter and happy laughter Tuesday as the Coosa Valley Fair opened for its 77th year. Hundreds of merry-makers kicked off a week of family-friendly fun. The fair will run through Saturday, with tickets...
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NAMI Rome: ‘WE OFFER HOPE’
Every 11 minutes, one person dies by suicide in the U.S., according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness. In recent months, those statistics were felt in Rome when two members of the community, one of whom was a high school student, took their...
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Saint Mary’s Blessing of the Pets brings families, service together
Dogs, cats, fish, a bunny and even a lizard filled the playground at Saint Mary’s Catholic School as students and families gathered for the school’s annual Blessing of the Pets. The school held the blessing Friday afternoon, just before dismissal, in...
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Festival brings fungi, music, hands-on learning to Rome
Food enthusiasts, nature lovers and curious visitors gathered at Ridge Ferry Park for the eighth annual Georgia Mushroom Festival — two days of fungi-focused education, live music and hands-on activities. Friday and Saturday marked the first time the...
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These fair food vendors have been serving up the goods for 40 years
If you’ve ever had pizza or a funnel cake at the Coosa Valley Fair in the last 40 years, there’s a good chance you bought it from a member of the Chafin family. Friday morning, the fairgrounds were buzzing with activity as Exchange Club of Rome...
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Rome stands against breast cancer
Slightly cooler temperatures this past weekend provided an ideal backdrop for thousands of Rome and Floyd County residents, some wearing pink dresses and running shoes, who showed up to support breast cancer awareness with the annual Paper Doll Parade...
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Baking inspires learning
Who knew that in addition to being delicious and not very nutritious, cupcakes can actually help students learn reading and arithmetic? Third graders at Alto Park Elementary School put the idea to the test Thursday, as they hosted husband-andwife...
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Panel tours Rome-floyd Recycling Center
The Rome-floyd Solid Waste Commission got a firsthand look at the jointly owned recycling center as officials weigh its future ahead of the expiration of its lease next year. City and county commissioners and staff walked through the Lavender Drive...
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Cave Spring Pigout a whole hog success
Cave Spring’s Rolater Park was packed this weekend as barbeque fanatics came to dip their feet in the cool spring water while wowing their tastebuds with barbecue bliss. Hundreds of people enjoyed the live music and barbecue competition as well as the...
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RCS celebrates literacy with Georgia Reads
Studies show that reading well by the end of the third grade is an indicator of future success, and in Georgia, 66% of third-grade students are not reading proficiently, according to the Nation’s Report Card. The statistics around early literacy in...
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GSD: Serving the community for 180 years
In bucolic Cave Spring sits the Georgia School for the Deaf, the oldest continually operated school in the state of Georgia, which continues to serve the deaf and hearingimpaired community from across the region. Established in 1846 on the grounds of...
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Largest crowd yet comes out for Miura event to honor region first responders
A Miura America representative shakes hands with a man wearing a Polk County Fire Rescue shirt during the company’s fourth annual First Responders Appreciation Day in Rockmart. Miura America’s annual celebration of first responders drew its largest...
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Firefighters practice hazardous rescues
Imagine climbing up a two-story ladder on the side of a burning building in the middle of the night to enter a smoke-filled bedroom and crawl around with zero visibility, looking for a child who might not even be there. A firefighter can never...
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Homeschool students learn importance of trees at library
Keep Rome-floyd Beautiful gave local homeschool students a hands-on lesson in trees, combining science, art and environmental education to show how trees function and why they matter to the community. The program took place Tuesday at the Rome-floyd...
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Severe storms wreak havoc in Rome area
Three days of downpours in Floyd County delighted some but brought devastating damage to others as weeks without any rain to speak of gave way to a wet weekend and a windy start to the work week. Significant storm systems arrived Saturday and again...
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Record-setting Vikings have more in store
In 2025, Berry College volleyball teammates Madie Whitehead and Ava Brovet set two single season records in the Viking program. Then a junior, Whitehead recorded 482 kills, bettering the previous record by 60. Brovet, a freshman setter, broke a...
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Weekend festival: Runningman is here
Runningman has brought three days of running, fitness, wellness activities and camping to Kingston Downs this weekend, with as many as 2,000 people expected to take part. The festival is built around a choose-your-own-distance race today, but the...
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Children’s Museum of Rome opens
Children from across Rome and Floyd County rejoiced as the long-awaited Children’s Museum of Rome officially opened with a ribbon-cutting hosted by the Rome Floyd Chamber. The only people cheering louder than the children were their parents, who...
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Concrete is poured at Garrard Park Pedal Track
Crews were hard at work Wednesday at Garrard Park, which also contains the GE Trails mountain bike system. A new pedal track is being installed as a part of a joint project between the city of Rome and the Northwest Georgia Housing Authority. A pedal...
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Team brings home medals
Several members of the Floyd County Special Olympics Golf Team medaled at a tournament held at the Canton Golf Club, bringing home a total of three golds and two silvers on a fine day on the links. This is only the second season for the team, and they...
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Alto Park Elementary celebrates 90 years
A lot of things have changed in Rome and Floyd County since Alto Park Elementary School was founded in 1936, but children’s love of cupcakes isn’t one of them. So if you heard cheering on Burnett Ferry Road on Friday, it was most likely hundreds of...
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Fiestas Patrias
Ridge Ferry Park was filled with vibrant music, colorful clothes and the aroma of fresh pupusas on the grill Sunday during the annual Fiestas Patrias — Latin Independence Festival — hosted by St. Mary’s Catholic Church. Hundreds of attendees, many...
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‘We will never forget them’
Many people’s memories of Sept. 11, 2001, start with the same observation: It was a beautiful and sunny day — before everything changed. Twenty-five years later, the same sunny skies greeted attendees at Rome-floyd Fire Department’s annual...
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25 YEARS LATER, ROME REMEMBERS
For 25 years now, two words have expressed the all-encompassing legacy of September 11: Never forget. Your fellow Rome residents, your friends and neighbors, including myself, have not. Personally, I was 21 and in college and had turned on the...
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Building independence and community
Since welcoming its first residents in May, Amber Grace has offered programs aimed at helping the adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities build independence and connect with the wider Rome community. Seven residents, called neighbors,...
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Norfolk-southern starts repairs on Glenn Milner Blvd. railroad tracks
Workers replaced rotted railroad ties on the tracks that split Glenn Milner Boulevard Tuesday, with more work planned through the week. The inside traffic lanes will be closed beginning at 7 a.m. Wednesday. Crews will close intersections Thursday at...
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Cooking for a cause
While many celebrated the holiday weekend with their families, volunteers braved the smokehouse heat for the Knights of Columbus of St. Mary’s Catholic Church’s 58th annual Labor Day Barbecue. This year’s barbecue saw hundreds of pounds of meat cooked...
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HELPING HANDS
Open Path Center clients recently made a difference by packing bags for local nonprofits Bloom and the Angel Express, exemplifying how their mission meshes with serving the community around them. The nonprofit Open Path Center provides “community and...
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Honoree: Serving children comes first
After nearly 50 years of helping shape the Boys & Girls Clubs of Northwest Georgia, longtime board member Russ Gates has been inducted into the Georgia Boys & Girls Clubs Hall of Fame. Gates was recognized during the 2026 induction ceremony Aug. 20 at...
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Rome Chess Club brings players of all ages, skill levels together
The clatter of chess pieces amid quiet concentration has become a tradition for a group of Rome residents who gather weekly to test their skills, learn from one another and share an interest in one of the world’s oldest games. The Rome Chess Club...
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GHC helps teens face adult scenarios
Your best friend asks you to go to a party an hour away with kids you don’t know. Do you agree to go? Do you try to convince them not to go? Do you go because you don’t want them to go alone? Teenagers are told that life is about choices, and parents...
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The death of Heehaw: ‘IT’S JUST A TRAGEDY’
It was nearly 1 a.m. when the phone rang at Hannah Israel’s Cedartown farm Sunday — it was the police. In short order, Israel learned authorities had been looking for a missing child, came onto her property as part of the search and somehow, one of...
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Family event brings magic to the Forum
Beloved princesses, superheroes and a swarm of adoring fans filled the Forum River Center for a day of magic and family-friendly fun at Meet the Magic. The Saturday event brought about 600 people to the Forum for a series of performances by children’s...
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NW Ga. feeling healthcare cuts, but GOP unfazed
Georgia’s 14th Congressional District is the most conservative in the state. It’s the district Marjorie Taylor Greene, who rose to prominence as one of Trump’s most vocal and loyal supporters, represented from 2021 to January 2026. Greene made a...
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Fun in the sun at Town Green
As the summer heat lingers in Rome, children have been enjoying the sunny days in the cool waters of the Town Green fountains Friday afternoon. Above: A child splashes in the fountain, enjoying a warm afternoon at Rome’s Town Green Friday. Friends...
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Scouts take part in baseball tradition
There’s nothing more American than baseball and Scouting, two institutions with a long history here, and they recently met for a special night at a Rome Emperors game. The Northwest Georgia Council of Scouting America took part in the opening ceremony...
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Memorial honors GHC security officer
On the campus of Georgia Highlands College sits Paris Lake, its serene waters home to a gaggle of ducks who unabashedly snatch food from fascinated people looking for a way to connect to nature. Clayton “Bubba” Collier had a particular interest in the...
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$19 million affordable housing redevelopment breaks ground
Northwest Georgia Housing Authority has broken ground on the more than $19 million redevelopment of The Village in Cave Spring, a project that will renovate and preserve 52 existing affordable homes while adding six new units. The groundbreaking...
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Shorter students return
Life has returned to the Shorter University campus, with students returning to class Monday, ready to start the fall semester. New students moved in Friday, Aug. 21, but before caravans of parents and eager students drove onto campus, faculty, staff...
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Floyd Democrats host Georgia Giants Dinner
The Floyd County Democratic Party’s annual Georgia Giants Dinner brought candidates, supporters and community leaders together for a fundraiser aimed at boosting campaigns and voter outreach efforts ahead of the November election. Marquita Davis, vice...
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Darlington welcomes new year
Just days after students returned to Darlington School’s halls, hundreds of community members gathered at the Huffman Athletic Center for the school’s 122nd opening convocation, which many at the school see as the official start to the new school...
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New beginnings: Berry College freshmen move in
Berry College was abuzz Wednesday as first-year students moved into their dorms, ready to kick off the 2026-27 school year. Despite the heat, new students were joined by their families, fellow students and even President Sandeep Mazumder to move into...
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GDA conference continues today
Hundreds of downtown development professionals from across Georgia are getting an up-close look at Rome this week as the city hosts the Georgia Downtown Association’s annual conference. The conference, which runs through Thursday, has brought between...
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Drone show lights up downtown Rome
A first-of-its-kind drone light show for the Georgia Downtown Association conference drew hundreds of spectators to downtown Rome for a eye-catching display that organizers said had a high turnout and positive community response. Hundreds of...
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‘It was a fantastic day for everyone’
While many spent their morning avoiding the heat, more than 400 runners and walkers laced up their shoes and took on one of Rome’s notorious seven hills for the 41st annual Tillman Clocktower 5K Road Race. Whether participating in the 2-mile health...
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‘More than just volleyball’
They are a group of volleyball players Taylor Fisher has had during her entire tenure as the head coach at Unity Christian School. There are five in all, four of whom were active Thursday for a home match against Christian Heritage. These players took...
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Sunbelt Rentals donates supplies for students at Boys & Girls Clubs
There’s nothing like seeing a kid receive a new backpack and set of markers as they prepare to start the school year, possibly for the first time, and a group from Sunbelt Rentals in Rome witnessed that joy firsthand. The Rome business donated more...
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A Blister for My Sister kicks off fundraising campaign
It is a warm, humid morning for the thatch of people clad in all shades of pink outside a local coffee shop. Their heads bowed in prayer, the words lifted up in affirmation Saturday set the tone for a fundraising campaign that is a combination of a...
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Students are all smiles as they return to Floyd County Schools
The school bells were ringing and the hallways were full as almost 9,000 students across Floyd County Schools returned to their classrooms this week. The first day of the 20262027 school year began at FCS Tuesday morning, and the restart was apparent...
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Area artists join forces for patriotic exhibit
Shades of red, white and blue dot the gallery space at the Rockmart Cultural Arts Center in a patriotic exhibition of area artists that is on display through Aug. 27. Titled “Happy Birthday, America!”, the gallery show celebrates the nation’s 250th...
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