Eatonton-Putnam County Chamber of Commerce

Kyle Cullars (center, holding scissors) completes the ribbon cutting for Surcheros, a new Tex-Mex restaurant alongside Hwy. 44, near the Thunder Pointe neighborhood on Lake Oconee. IAN TOCHER/Staff

Kyle Cullars (center, holding scissors) completes the ribbon cutting for Surcheros, a new Tex-Mex restaurant alongside Hwy. 44, near the Thunder Pointe neighborhood on Lake Oconee. IAN TOCHER/Staff

New Tex-Mex dining option opens in Lake Country

Georgia-based Surcheros Tex-Mex restaurants celebrated the grand opening of its newest location Monday, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony hosted by the Eatonton-Putnam Chamber of Commerce.
E-PCOC President Robbie King (far left) and Peoples Bank President Chuck Haley (far right) presented the 2026 Business of the Year Award to Keith Fitzgerald, founder and owner of ProSouth Services Electrical-Heating and Air, with his family. IAN TOCHER/Staff

E-PCOC President Robbie King (far left) and Peoples Bank President Chuck Haley (far right) presented the 2026 Business of the Year Award to Keith Fitzgerald, founder and owner of ProSouth Services Electrical-Heating and Air, with his family. IAN TOCHER/Staff

E-PCOC presents annual awards at Rock Eagle

The Eatonton-Putnam Chamber of Commerce made its annual business and community award presentations Monday night at the Rock Eagle Conference Center, north of Eatonton.
L-R: Former Georgia State Patrol officer and Governor’s Security Detail member Alan Hardwick, Better Business Bureau Vice President Jason Blankenship, E-PCOC President Robbie King, and Dr. John Wheeler of Pathfinders Counseling Service. IAN TOCHER/Staff

L-R: Former Georgia State Patrol officer and Governor’s Security Detail member Alan Hardwick, Better Business Bureau Vice President Jason Blankenship, E-PCOC President Robbie King, and Dr. John Wheeler of Pathfinders Counseling Service. IAN TOCHER/Staff

Awareness at heart of beating modern personal threats

As part of its Business Breakfast Series, the Eatonton-Putnam Chamber of Commerce (E-PCOC) presented a community safety forum Oct. 28 at the county commission building, featuring a fraud prevention expert, a former state trooper, and a local trauma counselor.
With husband Steve at her back, Compassion Café owner Lisa Tubbs wields the scissors for a ribbon-cutting ceremony arranged by Robbie King (behind bow) of the Eatonton-Putnam Chamber of Commerce. IAN TOCHER/Staff

With husband Steve at her back, Compassion Café owner Lisa Tubbs wields the scissors for a ribbon-cutting ceremony arranged by Robbie King (behind bow) of the Eatonton-Putnam Chamber of Commerce. IAN TOCHER/Staff

Compassion Café delivers coffee, connection, community

When Lisa Tubbs moved to Putnam County in 2019, she never imagined she’d become the owner of a bustling new coffee shop.“Absolutely not.
In a presentation at Barrel 118 on Friday night, Kevin Tomson-Hooper introduced four new artworks to the Eatonton Sculpture Trail, including “Delicate Balance,” which has been installed outside The Artisans Village Gallery on West Marion Street. IAN TOCHER/Staff

In a presentation at Barrel 118 on Friday night, Kevin Tomson-Hooper introduced four new artworks to the Eatonton Sculpture Trail, including “Delicate Balance,” which has been installed outside The Artisans Village Gallery on West Marion Street. IAN TOCHER/Staff

New artworks expand Eatonton sculpture trail

Observant visitors to downtown Eatonton will no doubt notice a few changes to the sculpture trail introduced last year.The brainchild of local entrepreneurs Sara Tomson-Hooper, her husband Kevin, and previous Eatonton-Putnam Chamber of Commerce (EPCOC) President Maggie Milner, the Eatonton...
The thrill of victory versus the agony of defeat is captured by "Da Fans" by South Dakota artists Lee Lanning and Sherri Treeby. (IAN TOCHER/Staff)

The thrill of victory versus the agony of defeat is captured by "Da Fans" by South Dakota artists Lee Lanning and Sherri Treeby. (IAN TOCHER/Staff)

Sculpture trail to lead the way for Eatonton

Public art will soon pop up all over Eatonton as the new sculpture trail backed by The Artisans Village, and the Eatonton-Putnam Chamber of Commerce is almost ready for installation.The first piece is already in place.
Painters work on a new mural in downtown Eatonton during the Dairy Festival, bringing color to the side of the building that houses Nails by Aaron at the corner of North Jefferson Avenue and Marion Street. IAN TOCHER/Staff

Painters work on a new mural in downtown Eatonton during the Dairy Festival, bringing color to the side of the building that houses Nails by Aaron at the corner of North Jefferson Avenue and Marion Street. IAN TOCHER/Staff

Mural: You belong here … Eatonton

On Saturday, with the Dairy Festival going on across the street, three painters from the Color the World Bright program, directed by UGA’s Lamar Dodd School of Art Professor Joseph Norman, labored all day creating downtown Eatonton’s newest public artwork.