Couple arrested for armed robbery

A man and woman were arrested and charged with armed robbery over the weekend after the victim of the robbery followed them and called police with their tag number.

Mr. Willie Thomas Jr. (Junior)

Celebration Of Life

Athens businessman becomes Republican chairman

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) - The new chairman of the Georgia Republican Party says the party won't twiddle its thumbs under his leadership.

Lowest gas price - May 20

The lowest price for regular fuel is $3.49 at Shell, located at 10125 Alcovy Road and City Pond Road.

Jekyll breaking ground on overdue convention hotel

JEKYLL ISLAND, Ga. (AP) - Developers are set to start construction on a new convention hotel for Jekyll Island after long delays that largely resulted from difficulties getting a bank loan for the $41 million project.

Fog blankets much of Georgia in wake of storms

ATLANTA (AP) - Fog blanketed much of Georgia in the wake of storms that washed out roads in the northeast part of the state and led to rising streams and rivers.

Atlanta council considers 20-story Ferris wheel

ATLANTA (AP) - The Atlanta City Council is expected to consider a request to construct a Ferris wheel once used in Paris that would soar 20 stories over downtown Atlanta.

US gas prices up 11 cents over past 2 weeks

CAMARILLO, Calif. (AP) - The average U.S. price of a gallon of gasoline has jumped 11 cents over the past two weeks.

Flash flood watch expires, rain continues

UPDATE: The flash flood watch issued by the National Weather Service at Peachtree City for counties including Rockdale and Newton has expired but warnings of rain storms continues through the night.

Sunday car show on square canceled

The car show planned for 10 a.m. tomorrow (Sunday, May 19) on the square has been canceled because of weather, according to an email from Main Street Covington Director Josephine Kelly.

Porterdale Bar & Grill to reopen

The Porterdale Bar and Grill is planning to reopen June 1 under new ownership after being closed for nearly a year following the Porterdale City Council's vote to revoke the prior owner's licenses to sell beer and wine and liquor.

Lora Pittman

Mrs. Lora Pittman 90, of Eatonton passed away on May 17. She was born in Covington Feb. 11, 1923 to Zack and Ethel Elliot Patterson.

New superintendent

School district honors retirees

The Newton County Board of Education held a retirement dinner on Thursday for employees. The event honored the many years of service of 54 retirees, who included teachers, administrators and personnel at a number of schools and departments in the county.

Montessori School plans open house

The Montessori School of Covington, which is now enrolling ages 3 through high school, will hold two open house sessions May 21.

Gresham's qualification challenged

 Board of Education candidate Horace Don Gresham's qualification for the District 2 seat has been challenged and a hearing is set for 2 p.m. on Monday.

Piedmont headmaster charged with DUI

 A Monticello man who heads the Piedmont Academy, a preschool through 12th grade private school which has 12 seniors from Covington graduating this year, was arrested for driving under the influence April 26, according to a Georgia State Patrol incident report.

Finger accidentally amputated

 A juvenile received an accidental finger amputation last Friday at a school on Ga. Highway 36 according to a Newton County Sheriff's Office report.

Sky high: Clanton signs with LBWCC

Eastside High, especially recently, is notorious for producing gifted athletes.

Hawkins earns 2007-2008 All-State honors

Newton High's Jamon Hawkins was selected to the 2007-2008 Class AAAAA Boys Basketball All-State Team (first team).

Rotary Club honors local scholars

Last Tuesday the Covington Rotary Club honored 30 of the brightest and most active students of Newton County. We are impressed and encouraged by the depth of the honorees resumes every time we have the privilege to attend one of these award ceremonies that celebrate the accomplishments of our young people. It gives us hope that we do indeed have a bright future pool of businessmen and leaders that will carry not only our ...

A new look for The News

You may have noticed a few changes in this morning's edition of The Covington News. We're still the same great hometown newspaper we've always been since 1865, but with a little bit of a facelift.

Grandparents taking on role of parents

Every now and then, there is a sequel in this section of newspaper real estate I get to occupy.

Gas tax pandering has no merit

During the last couple weeks, we have watched both Hillary Clinton and John McCain propose a holiday for the summer from the federal gas tax. McCain wants the break just to provide relief over the summer. On the other hand, Clinton wants to enact a "windfall profits tax" on oil companies to make up for the lost revenue (more on that in a moment).

Mother's Day - Don't take her for granted

I used to take her for granted. When my five sisters and I were babies in her womb, she never took so much as an aspirin for a headache. She never put anything in her body but the nutrients we needed to grow, and I took that for granted. As a child, my world was rock solid because of her. She put our needs so far before her own that we didn't ...

Run toward God

Last week America observed the National Day of Prayer. Prayers were offered across the nation for a country in distress, a country that has turned collectively from God with disastrous results.

Bible scholar credits God for her success

Shirley Bonner was awarded an Associate of Biblical Studies from Tripp Bible Institute in Marion, N.C., on April 23. Bonner maintained an A+ letter grade average during the 60 semester hours. She also is working on an additional 86 sets of lessons required to earn an Advanced Biblical Studies Certificate and a Bachelor of Biblical Studies.

Rodney J. Theriot

Rodeny J. Theriot, 57, of Covington, died May 3 at Heartland Hospice. Born in Louisiana, Mr. Theriot was a fantastic Cajun cook and enjoyed woodworking. He was a kind and patient man and a loving and devoted husband, father, step-father, brother, grandfather and son. Mr. Theriot was preceded in death by father Preston Joseph Theriot, son Ryan Theriot and grandson Alex.

Marvin Riley

Mr. Marvin Riley, 96, of Atlanta and originally of Covington, died April 24. The son of Grand and Sara Riley of Emory Street, Mr. Riley was born in Covington and graduated from Clark University. He became the director of the Harlem Boys Club in New York City and was the director of Camp Wallkill in upstate New York.

Changes on tap

 Members of the Porterdale City Council and those in attendance on Monday waited patiently for 59 minutes to hear the final reading of the newly adopted liquor ordinance.