Opinion & Editorial

The Hartwell Sun

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Opinion: Like a warm breeze

News Staff
Wednesday, August 6, 2025
Sometimes they enter our lives quickly but leave just as they came. Sometimes they stay. They are like a warm summer breeze, whisking away our troubles like flower petals on water. To most of us they become symbolic parts of our lives.
The front page of the Aug. 7, 1975 edition of The Hartwell Sun boasted the paper was beginning its 100th year with the printing of that week’s paper. 50 years later, we’re taking their word for it and kicking off celebrating our 150th year. (Photo from the Aug. 7, 1975 edition of The Hartwell Sun)

The front page of the Aug. 7, 1975 edition of The Hartwell Sun boasted the paper was beginning its 100th year with the printing of that week’s paper. 50 years later, we’re taking their word for it and kicking off celebrating our 150th year. (Photo from the Aug. 7, 1975 edition of The Hartwell Sun)

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Editorial: Kicking off 150 years of celebration

News Staff
Wednesday, August 6, 2025
Exactly 50 years ago today, Aug. 7, 1975, the front page of The Hartwell Sun boasted we were beginning our 100th year.    If that is the case, today would begin our 150th year.
The Hartwell Sun

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Opinion: Charles Barr’s story is about defying the odds

Dink NeSmith
Wednesday, July 30, 2025
Have you ever wondered, “Why am I here?”   My high school classmate Patty Barr Sutker did.   And her father’s handwritten notes answered that question.   From the day Charles Barr was born in 1915 in New York City, the odds were against him.
When I needed help choosing light fixtures, Alex Howard—wearing an orange apron—walked up. I was surprised that he was Hubert Howard’s great-grandson. And Alex was surprised that I knew so much about his family. Hubert had been my boyhood Sunday school teacher and later my attorney for decades. (Photo submitted by Dink NeSmith)

When I needed help choosing light fixtures, Alex Howard—wearing an orange apron—walked up. I was surprised that he was Hubert Howard’s great-grandson. And Alex was surprised that I knew so much about his family. Hubert had been my boyhood Sunday school teacher and later my attorney for decades. (Photo submitted by Dink NeSmith)

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Opinion: Alex Howard proves ‘It’s a small world after all’

Dink NeSmith
Wednesday, July 23, 2025
“It’s a world of laughter,  A world of tears. It’s a world of hopes, And a world of fears. There’s so much that we share, That it’s time we’re aware. It’s a small world after all.”   —Lyrics by Richard M. and Robert B. Sherman   How many times have you heard that tune?
The Hartwell Sun

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Opinion: Herbalist knows what’s good to eat from nature’s bounty

News Staff
Wednesday, July 23, 2025
By Phil Hudgins - CNI   Over the years, I have interviewed a number of herbalists, people who study—and believe in the effectiveness of—herbs and medicinal plants found in the Southern Appalachians.    Some of them were experts in the field. The late Marie Mellinger of Rabun County, Ga.
The Hartwell Sun

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Opinion: Time for new chapter in 570 Prince Ave.’s history

Dink NeSmith
Wednesday, July 16, 2025
Oooooooh, no.   That was my initial reaction to the selling of the University of Georgia’s president’s house on Prince Avenue. From 4,100 miles away in Edinburgh, Scotland, I couldn’t believe what I was reading in 2023. The asking price would be an estimated $5 million.
Former CNI Senior Editor Phil Hudgins, whose column can be regularly seen in the pages of The Hartwell Sun, will celebrate his 85th birthday July 23. (Photo Courtesy of Phil Hudgins)

Former CNI Senior Editor Phil Hudgins, whose column can be regularly seen in the pages of The Hartwell Sun, will celebrate his 85th birthday July 23. (Photo Courtesy of Phil Hudgins)

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Opinion: Happy 85th Birthday to Phil Hudgins

News Staff
Wednesday, July 16, 2025
Clay Wilson - Guest Columnist   There are some people in life whose kindness, no matter how hard one tries, one can never repay - at least, that’s what I’ve discovered.    One such person is my uncle, Philip Hudgins.