Mrs. Annie Sue Mathews, age 82, of Gaylesville, AL, died Monday, July 6, 2026, at the residence of her daughter.
Mrs. Mathews was born September 13, 1943, in Rome, GA, daughter of the late Benjamin and Thelma Wimpy Touchstone. She was of the Baptist faith, and prior to her retirement, was employed with Riegel Textiles.
In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, Arlie Cornelius Mathews; a son, Ricky Maton; a daughter, Deborah Bryant; brother, J.B. Touchstone; sisters, Kathleen Pruitt, Pauline Smith, and Neva Hulsey; and a brother-in-law, Earl Jacobs.
Survivors include her daughters, Diane (Edwin “Kebo”) Smith, Darlene Jordan, and Marie (David) Long; brothers, Kenneth Touchstone and James Touchstone; a sister, Glenda Jacobs; a host of grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.
Funeral services will be held at 3:00 P.M. Friday, July 10, 2026, from the Mason Funeral Home Chapel with Bro. Terry Hawkins officiating. Interment will follow in Johnson Cemetery. Pallbearers will be Leroy Newsome, Javin Newsome, Casey Jennings, Ricky Newsome, Bryson Carroll, and Michael Williams.
Mrs. Mathews will be in state at Mason Funeral Home and the family will receive friends from 1:00 P.M. until the hour of service on Friday.
Ms. Tammy Doreene Hightower, age 61, a resident of a Summerville, Georgia address passed away unexpectedly at her residence on Saturday, July 4, 2026.
Ms. Hightower was born the daughter of the late Joseph H. Lee and the late Joyce Wilson Lee born May 25, 1965 in Summerville, Georgia.
Tammy had been a lifelong resident of the area and was described by her family as “loving really hard”, “working hard for her babies and grandbabies”, “had a bleeding heart for the homeless” and while it was said that she was a redneck woman, the family stated, “she broke the mold”.
In addition to her parents, Tammy was preceded in death by a son, Doug Talley.
She is survived by sons, Christopher Lee (Tina Johnson), Eric (Sabrina) Talley; brothers, Michael Lee (& family), Steven (Theresa) Lee; sister, Deborah Wiggins (& family); grandchildren, Kadian Lee, Jonas Lee, Lynnica Talley, Leslie Talley, Bo Sweeny.
In accordance with Ms. Hightower’s wishes, she will be cremated and a memorial service may be held at a later date.
Mrs. Sarah Woodall, age 82, of Summerville, GA, died Monday, July 6, 2026, at Atrium Health Floyd.
Mrs. Woodall was born December 27, 1943, in Summerville, GA, daughter of the late Wade Allen Evans and Sarah Evelyn Allmon Evans. She had attended Old Path Baptist Church, and prior to her retirement, was employed with World Carpet.
In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by brothers, David Evans, Roy Evans, and Claude Evans; sisters, Hattie Lee Elsberry, Ann Ramey, and Dorothy Pettyjohn.
Survivors include her husband, Russell Lee Woodall; sons, Greg (Brenda) Woodall, Chris Woodall, and Timothy (Sandra) Woodall; daughter, Regina (David) Frasier; 7 grandchildren; 4 great-grandchildren; a special friend, Wanda Lively; and several nieces and nephews.
Funeral services will be held at 2:00 P.M. Thursday, July 9, 2026, from the Mason Funeral Home Chapel with Rev. Wayne Hindman officiating. Interment will follow in Subligna Cemetery. Active pallbearers will be Charles Lee, Travis Rockwell, Shane Haney, Evan Bice, Cameron Evans, and Matt Hunter. The remainder of Mrs. Woodall’s nieces and nephews will serve as honorary pallbearers.
Mrs. Woodall will be in state at Mason Funeral Home and the family will receive friends from 5:00 until 7:00 P.M. Wednesday, July 8, 2026.
Here is the latest arrest report from the Chattooga County Sheriff’s Office for Tuesday, July 7, 2026:
Summer weather will continue across Chattooga County and northwest Georgia today with mostly sunny skies and a high near 90 degrees. After a dry start, a 30 percent chance of scattered showers and thunderstorms develops after 2 p.m. Light winds will become westerly around 5 miles per hour during the afternoon before calming again tonight. Any storms that develop should diminish by early evening, with overnight lows falling to around 71.
Governor Brian P. Kemp has announced the fourth round of Rural Site Development Initiative (RSDI) grants, awarding $7.8 million to ten projects across Georgia to help rural communities prepare industrial sites for future business recruitment and job creation. With this latest round, the state has now invested $28 million in rural site development since the program was launched in Fiscal Year 2025.
A newly released report from the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) shows that most counties across Northwest Georgia continue to maintain stable economic classifications, although a handful of counties remain among the region’s most economically challenged. The designations are used by ARC to help determine grant eligibility and investment priorities for economic and community development projects throughout Appalachia.