Grace McAlister Reporter1@riverbendnews.org On Monday, Dec. 13, 2021, eight Branford Elementary School (BES) students competed in a spelling bee for the title of the 2021 BES Spelling Bee Champion. All eight students…
Caylee Boone performs at Disney
Lee Trawick Reporter2@riverbendnews.org In the summer of 2021, Caylee Boone and several of her teammates on the Branford High School cheer squad were appointed to the National Cheerleading Association (NCA) All-American Cheer…
An evening of Vivaldi coming to Live Oak
San Marco Chamber Music Society Contributor The San Marco Chamber Music Society (SMCMS) was founded in 2008 by long-standing Jacksonville Symphony members Eric and Ellen Olson. Now in its 15th season, SMCMS…
Travis Carl Murphy
Travis Carl Murphy, age 77, of Live Oak, Florida, walked with his beloved wife down the streets of gold into the arms of Jesus on Monday, Jan. 10, 2022. He was born…
Eva K. Burke Hanner
Eva K. Burke Hanner was born on June 29, 1951, in Pike County, Ky., to Willie Burke and Kathleen Stewart and married Lowell Wayne Hanner. She was preceded in death by two…
Suwannee County Jail escapee caught by K9s
Grace McAlister Reporter1@riverbendnews.org On Monday, Jan. 17, inmate Anthony Eugene Ward, 48, escaped from the Suwannee County Jail in Live Oak at 6:15 a.m. Ward was an inmate trustee and walked away…
Arbor Day is rooted in necessity
Mickey Starling Reporter3@riverbendnews.org For many, Arbor Day is one of those holidays that doesn’t receive much attention. However, in the 1800s, it was the extreme need for trees that eventually blossomed into…
Lifting the competition, Suwannee weightlifting teams take part in Power of Christmas Invitational
Lee Trawick Reporter2@riverbendnews.org On Friday, Dec. 17, the women’s high school weightlifting world invaded Suwannee High School (SHS) for the annual Power of Christmas Invitational. High schools from all over the State…
Suwannee County School District offering substitute teacher training and recruitment
Suwannee County School District Contributor As of Monday, Jan. 17, the Suwannee County School District will partner with ESS to manage recruitment, hiring, training and placement of all substitute teachers [paraprofessionals, custodians,…
Honoring the “father of American music” Stephen Foster Memorial Day
Lee Trawick Reporter2@riverbendnews.org Although Stephen Collins Foster was born on July 4, 1826, in Lawrence, Penn., he has monuments and state parks named after him throughout the United States. However, in the…
Jennifer’s journey
Grace McAlister Reporter1@riverbendnews.org Jennifer Joy Campbell was born and raised in the Suwannee County, where she and her father, Ken Campbell, share a home on their small family farm with Morris, their…
Mayo crowns its Misses
Lee Trawick Reporter2@riverbendnews.org On Saturday, Dec. 18, young ladies of all ages convened at Lafayette High School for a chance at the coveted crown and title of Miss Mayo. Crowns were also…
Charlotte Jean Boswell Farley
Charlotte Jean Boswell Farley was born in McAlpin, Fla., on March 10, 1942. She was the eldest child of the late Melvin Boswell and the late Lola Gray Boswell. Farley left this…
Screwdriver stabbing leads to five-hour manhunt
Lee Trawick Reporter2@riverbendnews.org On Friday, Jan. 7, the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) responded to a stabbing that occurred between 6 a.m. and 7 a.m. Upon arriving on scene, deputies found 24-year-old…
Richard Lane Putnel
Richard Lane Putnel of Lake Alfred, Fla., passed away after a brief illness at Good Shepherd Hospice in Auburndale, Fla., on Thursday, Dec. 30, 2021. Putnel was born in Suwannee County on…
Lafayette Farm Bureau announces 2021 Farm Family of the Year
Amy Croft Contributor On Monday, Nov. 8, the Lafayette County Farm Bureau hosted their annual membership meeting. Approximately 60 to 65 were in attendance to enjoy a delicious meal of chicken and…
“American Underdog” is a winner
Mickey Starling Reporter3@riverbendnews.org Today, Kurt Warner is a household name for long-time football fans, but that wasn’t the case in 1998, when St. Louis Rams Head Coach Dick Vermeil brought the undrafted…