Columbus and the Valley Magazine

04/30/2025

What a great move! We’re excited for what’s to come!

04/21/2025

Check out some of the best Dentists and Orthodontists in our area in the SmileMaker section:

https://issuu.com/columbusandthevalley.com/docs/march_april_2025_columbus_and_the_valley_magazine/40

04/17/2025

Valley Scenes 📸

2025 Muscogee County Library Foundation Gala

The 2025 Muscogee County Library Foundation Gala was held at the Columbus Public Library. Fiona Davis, author of The Stolen Queen was the honorary guest.

Pictured: Library Director Alan Harkness, author Fiona Davis and Cindy and Spencer Garrard

See more here: https://issuu.com/columbusandthevalley.com/docs/march_april_2025_columbus_and_the_valley_magazine/73

04/15/2025

Valley Scenes 📸

VisitColumbusGA President & CEO Peter Bowden retired at the end of December after 29 years—21 of them as President & CEO. Bowden oversaw multiple successful campaigns to bring visitors to Columbus over the years including over 2 million in 2024.

See more here: https://issuu.com/columbusandthevalley.com/docs/march_april_2025_columbus_and_the_valley_magazine/75

04/14/2025

Valley Scenes 📸

Food Mill’s Shared Kitchen Received National Award

The Food Mill Executive Director Olivia Amos and Rob Scott from Community Reinvestment traveled to Capitol Hill to accept the Audrey Nelson Community Development Award from the National Community Development Association on behalf of The Food Mill’s Shared Kitchen.

See more here: https://issuu.com/columbusandthevalley.com/docs/march_april_2025_columbus_and_the_valley_magazine/72

04/11/2025

Columbus United Football Club Defies Odds in Inaugural Season and Looks to Establish a Legacy of Winning
...Bouncing ideas back and forth, the owners decided to give the community the choice. They would have the fans decide the name of the team. Proposed names included nods to the military community—Rangers F.C. and Cavalry F.C., nods to local landmarks—Chattahoochee F.C., and a tribute to the city as a whole—Columbus United F.C., the same name that Hitchcock and Hester had proudly worn decades before.
Over the course of six weeks, fans voted and the name “Columbus United F.C.” carried the day. It was important for the owners to have input from the community throughout the process. But it wasn’t just picking a name. Hitchcock and Hester both knew that there should be a pipeline for fans to tell them what kind of team they wanted to see and allowing them to participate in the naming process proved to be a great way to start.
That community input and enthusiasm were evident at the brand reveal. Fans packed Scofflaw Brewery to see the unveiling of the team name and badge, and were one of the first to get their hands on some Columbus United F.C. merch. Things began to fall into place. The team would practice and host games at Kinnett Stadium, but Hester and Hitchcock were still pretty far from seeing their first match in Columbus—they needed to get players and hire a coach. They turned to an old friend and mentor, Hester’s influential coach from Oglethorpe. Teach agreed to take the helm.

Read more here: https://issuu.com/columbusandthevalley.com/docs/march_april_2025_columbus_and_the_valley_magazine/42

04/08/2025

Bo Bartlett Center Holds Opening for Two Art Exhibits

The Bo Bartlett Center held the opening reception of the exhibit Women of the Pacific Northwest curated by Betsy Eby and Eye of the Blackbird curated by Craig Drennen They will be on display until April 26.

See more here: https://issuu.com/columbusandthevalley.com/docs/march_april_2025_columbus_and_the_valley_magazine/75

04/07/2025

Executive Director Lisa Thomas-Cutts leads Keep Columbus Beautiful Commission’s re-focused fight for a sustainable planet—one household at a time
...Now in its 31st year, KCBC’s signature annual event, Help the H***h, held every October consists of two days, with Friday featuring school groups from Muscogee, Harris, Russell and Lee counties working to clear trash from the Chattahoochee, and Saturday’s massive community effort, which in 2024 reaching back up to pre-COVID levels of 10,000 participating volunteers, celebrated with the first-ever Watershed Festival with family-fun and live entertainment on the 14th Street Bridge held as a ‘thank you’ to everyone involved. There are even plans in the works to potentially cultivate a public farm in the coming year.

The key to tackling such a daunting, widespread challenge as creating a clean environment, Thomas-Cutts feels, is “to engage as many people as possible and get them on board by making small changes through smart choices.”
In addition to implementing this proven philosophy of ‘think locally, act globally’ that hinges on the idea that real change begins at home, Thomas-Cutts has also embarked on large-scale public initiatives. After participating in an effort to engage citizens and hear their concerns by riding around town in a Metra bus through various neighborhoods, KCBC and city officials saw first-hand the issue with illegal dumping. “A lot of these neighborhoods—really nice, beautiful neighborhoods—have places between them or that may be hidden, a cul-de-sac or dead-end street, where they start dumping. Not like regular littering but piles of industrial waste, construction debris, hazardous materials, etc. We helped identify the problem and the city has now upped enforcement by placing cameras in those areas to catch illegal dumping. We’re really proud of that.”

Read more here: https://issuu.com/columbusandthevalley.com/docs/march_april_2025_columbus_and_the_valley_magazine/13

04/03/2025

Our sister magazine had a little bit of a refresh! 👀

No April Fools Jokes here! 😉

We’re thrilled to unveil the redesigned Valley Parent Magazine—fresh look, same read! 💛✨ This year, we’re bringing you more inspiration, helpful resources, and real stories that celebrate parenthood in the Valley!

Your support means the world to us, and we can’t wait to show you what’s in store! Stay tuned for exclusive content, events, and surprises—all designed with YOU in mind.

On the cover: Meet Olivia Vander, age 11. Olivia met us at Columbus Bound Bookshop to pick out a good book. She is the daughter of Tim and Wendy Vander of Fortson.

📖 Grab a copy, explore the new look, and let us know what you think! Here’s to an incredible year ahead! 🎉

Read here: https://issuu.com/columbusandthevalley.com/docs/am25_valley_parent_lr

04/02/2025

🚨 Schedule Update: The Mvskoke Project 🚨

Friends, we have a small change to share. Due to illness within the cast, the world premiere opening of The Mvskoke Project has been postponed until Thursday, April 10 at 7:30 PM.

We know many of you were looking forward to this weekend’s performances and we truly appreciate your understanding! If you have tickets for this weekend, don’t worry—we’ll reschedule you for next week and give you a complimentary ticket to our special event, On The Far End, on April 17, 18, or 19. ❤️ Details on on our website at springeroperahouse.org

Thank you for your patience and support—we can’t wait to share this powerful new production with you soon! 🎭✨

04/01/2025

Did you know we house the COlumbus Water Works Annual report?

Give it a read here: https://issuu.com/columbusandthevalley.com/docs/march_april_2025_columbus_and_the_valley_magazine/21