Construction began on Piedmont Henry Hospital’s new patient tower in April of 2024. Since the day CEO David Kent rode into the groundbreaking event on a front loader, over 400 men and women have worked on the massive expansion and renovation project, keeping it on budget and ahead of schedule. The first patient in the new tower was originally scheduled for August 2026, but it is now expected in June. Crews will spend the next few months equipping the rooms and getting the tower ready for occupancy. The $212 million project increases Piedmont Henry’s bed capacity by 112 beds. The...
Nurturing Bright Futures
Access to the education, training, and experiences that prepare students for the workforce is typically associated with college classrooms rather than high school campuses. However, in Henry County Schools, students develop these competencies long before they receive a diploma. HCS’ mission is to empower all students with exceptional opportunities and access that lead to success in a global society, and its Career, Technical, and Agricultural Education (CTAE) program does just that through rigorous programming rooted in real-world applications. As early as sixth grade, students explore careers, including automotive technology, cybersecurity, engineering, entrepreneurship, information technology, and robotics. An innovative curriculum, 50...
Mexican Fusion at Cafe del Cielo
A Houston native is bringing a Mexican-American breakfast fusion to Henry County. “It’s becoming the Mexican IHOP,” admits Locust Grove resident Marina del Cielo Fisher, owner of Cafe del Cielo. “We don’t really have in this area a breakfast spot that serves that.” The cafe opened in October 2025 on Racetrack Road, serving breakfast all day, along with brunch and lunch favorites. On the menu, customers can find favorite dishes like Migas, Huevos Racheros, Menudo, and street tacos with authentic tortillas handmade each week by Fisher’s mom, Carolyn Ortiz. “My love for food and the industry comes from my mom...
A Legacy In STEAM
For more than three decades he has stood at the front of classrooms, the sidelines of football fields, and behind the quiet decisions that shape education. He discovered his passion for education in college and began teaching and coaching at the age of 22, “I felt I could have a positive impact on students’ lives.” Dr. Watson forged an inspiring path through his education career that included years of teaching and coaching to working as an assistant principal, principal and onto administration. He recognized a need for STEAM programs in Henry County schools and embarked on creating the first program...
Zade Our Hero
Zade was a charismatic three-year-old who was all boy, wanted to be outside with his brothers, was the family’s comedian, and loved his toys. His life was suddenly and tragically cut short when he drowned on a spring day in 2024 at a friend’s house. His parents, Michelle and Tyler Rachels, felt they needed to do something to help prevent such a tragedy from happening to someone else. They wanted to spread awareness about teaching children to swim and water safety. They planned and had their first event not long after his death, “A Day for Zade,” to raise awareness...
A Passion for Space Takes Flight
Growing up in Florida, Sara McCracken saw a lot of rocket launches. She knew from an early age she loved space, and she loved to read. “I didn’t know a lot of kids who went to the space section of Barnes & Noble before they went to the fun section,” she said with a laugh. By her teen years, McCracken and her family had moved to Georgia, where she attended Strong Rock Christian School in Locust Grove. Along with a few classmates who shared her interest in space, she often spent lunch periods in her science teacher’s classroom, asking to...
Brewing Belonging at Our World School
Every person, every child, is composed of their own unique strengths and abilities. Our World School, a private, nonprofit school for children in grades K–12 who have been diagnosed with special needs, not only recognizes this but strives to create an environment where each child’s individuality enables them to thrive academically, socially, and emotionally. By integrating academics with real-life lessons, the school prepares students to enter society after graduation as productive, confident citizens. One way Our World School implements this philosophy is through its OWS Coffee Shop. Open every Friday morning and catering to both parents and the community, the...
A Taste of Home
“Everyone who knows me knows that I love to feed people,” said Ambria Hill, the Food Services Administrator for Henry County Senior Services. She is proud of the number of people she and her staff feed weekly, both in person at Henry County’s multiple senior centers and through the Meals on Wheels meal delivery service. Ensuring local senior citizens receive the nutrition they need is an important task. According to the 2024 Senior Report by the United Health Foundation, Georgia ranks among the bottom 24% of states in terms of overall health for older adults. Around 13% of Georgia adults...
Beyond Meals
As a dad with a busy family, my wife and I face the dreaded question every day: “What’s for dinner?” We would love to make exciting, well-balanced meals for our family every night, but planning and preparing that takes time, energy, and money. And if we are being honest, it would probably just be met with looks of contempt and calls for chicken nuggets or pizza. So, we tend to fall back on a rotation of the same 10 quick, easy meals that the kids will actually eat. These meals provide the sustenance to keep our appetites in check, but...
Feeding the Hungry
Every Thursday morning before the sun rises, vehicles line up to pass through the Georgia Food and Resource Center warehouse. It’s mostly SUVs and minivans, with their trunks and side doors open to receive that week’s bounty. Workers—volunteers and people needing to fulfill community service obligations—stack boxes inside the vehicles as the food co-op members drive at a crawl through the warehouse. They stop at several stations, trying to catch a glimpse of what they’re receiving that day. It may be 20 flats of fresh strawberries, restaurant-sized bags of fresh vegetables, or both. A miscellaneous box of pantry staples is...