MLILY Mattresses in Waycross, GA

WAYCROSS, Ga. (WTOC) - It’s a destination you may not have considered for a fun family day trip or more likely you’ve never even heard of it before.

Southern Forest World has been around for more than four decades but is often overlooked or just forgotten all together, despite one of the most unique attractions you may ever experience.

“So many people will tell me they rode by this building and don’t know what we are. Didn’t bother to stop and come in,” says Southern Forest World Manager Bertha Sue Dixon.

What they are, nearly hidden amongst the trees in Waycross, Georgia, is Southern Forest World.

“Southern Forest World is a museum that is all about the forest,” explains Dixon.

As you step inside the forest is there to greet you. Visitors getting a crash course in all things forest.

From trees, to the dangers of deforestation, animals who live there and all the different products that come from the forest, some of which may surprise you, including products used by NASA.

More than enough to keep it interesting for Dixon.

“I basically learn something here every week. Just something I did not know I pick up.”

Just like those other famous ‘Worlds’ out there, Southern Forest World has plenty of unique attractions.

A 250-year-old Saw Timber, a tree that grew inside a tree, a hollowed out tree, a piece of a tree that dates back to the pilgrims, oh and, “our mummified dog.”

Or as you likely know him, “Stuckie.”

Stuckie was found about 28ft up inside this chestnut oak back in the 1980′s left nearly perfectly preserved.

“All your oak trees have acid, so that’s mummified him. Being hollow also helped him because it gave a chimney affect, so the scent went out the top, so anything attracted to dead flesh didn’t know he was in there. If we wanted to mummify something, we’d use chemicals, his was the natural flow of air going by his body,” Dixon explains.

They believe he was trained to hunt raccoons which is probably what lead him up the tree.

“You can actually tell how good a dog he was because he really tried to get through this hole,” says Dixon.

So, whether it’s because of Stuckie, or just curiosity, Dixon hopes to see more people coming through their doors to explore and learn about the beauty and importance of our Southern Forests.

“I have tried to put Southern Forest World in the limelight. I would say that’s what brings me back every day,” Dixon said.

Southern Forest World will be celebrating 42 years this coming May and they plan to have plenty of events to invite the public to come celebrate with them.

For more on Southern Forest World click here.

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On March 7, 1970, North Florida and South Georgia was gripped by eclipse mania, and astronomers and the local and national media fanned out across the region buzzing about a total solar eclipse that was racing in that direction. Here, finally, after years of anticipation, was the chance to see the sun blotted out by the shadow of the moon.

It was an 89-mile wide swath of darkness that would start in the Pacific, cross Mexico and the Gulf of Mexico, then come ashore again in Perry, in Florida’s Big Bend, before bending to the northeast.

Jacksonville wasn't quite in the path of totality, but it was close: Jaxons were told they would see 98.7% of the sun blocked, peaking at 1:21 p.m. as a kind of twilight. Meanwhile, down in Gainesville, students at the University of Florida planned a mid-eclipse love-in and psychedelic rock show, according to organizer Andy Kramer, who was “known locally for the wildest hair on campus,” as the Times-Union noted.

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In anticipation, Gov. Claude Kirk declared Perry, a town of 10,000 in Taylor County not far from the Gulf of Mexico, the “Eclipse Capital of the World.” It would have three minutes and 13 seconds of total darkness and would be the first place in the U.S. to witness the eclipse.

Some 20,000 professional and amateur astronomers from across the world came to Perry but were frustrated by heavy clouds from a persistent low-pressure system. As the eclipse loomed, a busload of schoolchildren from Brevard County sang words from a hit from the previous spring: “Let the sunshine in.”

But no luck: It got dark, but the clouds obscured even an outline of the sun, and some luckless astronomers didn't even bother to go to their telescopes.

In Jacksonville that morning, four chartered buses left from the Gator Bowl at 7 a.m., guided by ham-radio operators to wherever the best viewing conditions would be. They ended up in Waycross, Ga., in the path of totality, but still cloudy.

Meanwhile, a group of 25 from Riverside Baptist Church had traveled in motorboats into the heart of the Okefenokee Swamp, where they saw the eclipse through moss-hung cypress as the swamp fell silent, but for a bird that began singing at dusk.

A biologist in the Okefenokee told The New York Times that mosquitoes came out as totality loomed, “just like they do at dusk.” A flock of 47 buzzards circling overhead flew down to land on cypress branches for the duration. And tree frogs began serenading the darkness as it moved, through the clouds, to gradually envelop the swamp.

WAYCROSS, Ga – A Waycross, Georgia, football star will be on football’s biggest stage this weekend. Los Angeles Rams linebacker Ernest Jones is hoping to bring home a Super Bowl LVI win.

The Waycross community is cheering him on in a unique way.

Friday is “Ernest Jones Day” in the city and one restaurant is even naming a popular dessert after him this weekend.

Jones is beloved in Waycross.

“He is a good man and a very good hero for Waycross,” said Brenda Rolison, who is the owner of the Dairy Queen in Waycross on Screven Avenue. “This is the best thing that’s happened to Waycross in a very, very long time.”

To celebrate Jones’ in the Super Bowl, Rolison and her staff created the “Ernest Jones Blizzard.”

It has blue and gold M&M’s to match the Rams’ colors.

Rolison, who’s been the owner there for 35 years, says Jones deserves the special treatment.

“He is a very humble person,” Rolison said. “He never expected anybody to do anything special for him. He worked hard through determination.”

Several parts of the city will be decked out in Rams colors, as residents root for their hometown hero. Stacey Hunt is the restaurant’s general manager. She says cheering for Jones is an easy decision.

“All you ever hear is how humble he is, how hard-working he is and just how much he loves this community,” Hunt said.

If anything can bring a small city together, it is football. Jones is heading to the Super Bowl during his rookie season. He was selected in the third round of the 2021 draft as the 103rd overall pick. So far this season, he has 61 tackles, 36 of them solo, one sack and two interceptions.

Before going pro, Jones played college ball at the University of South Carolina. He was a standout player at Ware County High School. Rolison and Hunt wish Jones good luck as he inspires many.

“We are so proud of all of [his] hard work,” Rolison said. “We hope that you achieve your dream we hope you bring home a Super Bowl. We’re just proud.”

“Thank you for giving this community something to get behind,” Hunt said. “Something for young kids to dream for and just to know that your hard work pays off.”

The “Ernest Jones Blizzard” will be available at that Dairy Queen location on Screven Avenue through Monday.

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