Chattooga Family Connection recently marked another holiday success by stuffing and delivering 150 Christmas stockings to local students, ensuring children across the county felt supported during the season. But organizers say the stockings represent just one part of the organization’s broader mission.
Chattooga County students will soon have expanded access to school-based mental health care thanks to a $430,000 investment from Atrium Health Floyd, funded by the Atrium Health Floyd-Polk Foundation. The initiative is aimed at strengthening timely, high-quality mental health services for students—addressing needs tied to anxiety, depression, stress, and overall well-being.
In Chattooga County, the role of “grandparent” is increasingly becoming something much bigger than weekend visits and holiday gatherings. Current figures show that about 1 in every 70 people in Chattooga County is a grandparent who is caring for grandchildren, and the number of grandparents raising children has seen a 34% increase in recent years. The growing trend is reshaping family life across the county and creating new financial, social, and community needs.
A powerful new community effort has formed in Chattooga County after a heartbreaking weekend left families and friends grieving the loss of local youth. Instead of letting tragedy pass in silence, Coach Blaine Woody and Michael Farmer came together with a simple but urgent message: “This has to change.”
