Toccoa Main Street Directory now Online

Finding the address and phone number to your favorite Toccoa Main Street business just got a little easier. Living on Main Street, Toccoa's visitor's guide and main street directory is now online in a .pdf format.

Download your copy today: http://www.mainstreettoccoa.com/directory/directory.pdf

Toccoa's Harvest Festival set for Nov 7 and 8

Celebrate fall in beautiful historic downtown Toccoa at this free outdoor festival featuring regional music, handmade and handcrafted items, classic cars, and local as well as international food. Don't miss this family-friendly event!

The Annual Currahee Artist's Guild Fall Arts and Crafts Festival is held during this time at The Studio.

Greg Schultz receives DCA Annual Outstanding Leadership Award

A local restaurateur, DDA chair, and Main Street mover and shaker received statewide recognition for his role in downtown Toccoa’s success.

Greg Schultz was awarded the "Outstanding Leadership Award" by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs and the Georgia Downtown Association.

The "DCA Annual Outstanding Leadership Award" is a single award presented each year to a professional or leader at a public or private level who has shown exemplary leadership in the field of downtown development.

"It’s a great honor to receive this award," said Schultz after the award reception on October 8. "There are so many people working hard to make downtown Toccoa a successful place to do business. I am humbled to be selected."

Schultz was recognized for investing his time, energy, and money into Toccoa’s award winning revitalization efforts. His passion for Main Street Toccoa became evident back in 2003 when he began conducting community surveys to determine what the locals and downtown businesses wanted and would support in a downtown restaurant.

The result of his effort, Cornerstone Restaurant, continues to draw hundreds of hungry residents and visitors each week to Toccoa’s Main Street district. But Schultz’s passion turned out to be more than just his food; he became a downtown advocate and spokesperson.

As Cornerstone re-opened, controversial plans were also underway to remove the 1970’s concrete canopies in the downtown district and re-open Doyle Street, and Schultz became very active in the public relations campaign to remove the canopies.

He began serving on the Downtown Development Authority in 2005 and worked directly with downtown businesses during the, sometimes, messy canopy demotion project and subsequent street re-opening. His positive spirit and leadership helped maintain an upbeat attitude with the merchants affected by this change, and his restaurant continued to draw new people to downtown Toccoa.

After the street re-opened, new restaurants opened along Doyle Street, and Schultz continued to ride the momentum to purchase another Doyle Street restaurant that had closed, The Rebel Café, a Toccoa icon for the past 60 years. Schultz re-opened the business and restored the building to comply with the Historic Preservation Commission’s design guidelines.

Even with this additional restaurant, Schultz accepted the nomination to be chair of the DDA, and he continued to work closely with local business owners to see that their concerns were being addressed. His ability to empathize with business and property owners proved invaluable as buildings were being renovated and new business owners moved to Main Street. He also instituted quarterly meetings between the DDA and merchants.

As a fourth year chair of the DDA in a top ten Main Street City, Schultz spends some mornings in meetings and evenings in ceremonies and recognition events. He serves on the Budget Committee, Organization Committee, and Economic Restructuring Committee. He constantly fields questions from property owners and business owners, yet he always has time to serve the DDA and main street businesses.

(Photo provided by the Georgia DCA from left: President of the Georgia Downtown Association Monica Callahan, Justin Collins, Brittany Collins, Anastasia Schultz, Chelsea Schultz, Greg Schultz, Loni Schulz, and Office of Downtown Director Billy Pa

“Mission Toccoa” recognized as “Best Downtown Special Event” by Georgia DCA

Downtown Toccoa’s participation in the Georgia Cities Heart and Soul Bus Tour back in April has garnered statewide recognition.

The Georgia Downtown Association and the Georgia Department of Community Affairs announced that "Mission Toccoa" was the "Best Downtown Special Event" at as special ceremony during the annual Georgia Downtown Conference on October 8 in Roswell, GA. (Pictured receiving the award are, from left, Shawn Apostel, Sharon Crosby, and Connie Tabor -- photo by Billy Chism.)

The Best Downtown Special Event is presented to an organization displaying excellence in planning and staging a festival, promotional series or other special downtown based event.

"Mission Toccoa" showcased Toccoa’s history and downtown renovation efforts to the Heart and Soul VIP’s while creating a memorable experience for the tour participants. To accomplish this, Toccoa Main Street created a virtual WWII era experience (based on Toccoa’s role in training paratroopers during WWII) for the participants, complete with era-inspired video reels, newspaper insert, role-playing, and entertainment.

Each correspondence with visitors and participants was designed and produced to mimic a WWII era format. (Visit http://www.mainstreettoccoa.com/heartandsoul.html to see some of the promotional material created for the event.)

"The overall impact of Mission Toccoa was a great success," said Connie Tabor, Community Planning and Downtown Development Director. "The event allowed us to showcase Toccoa’s history and revitalization efforts to potential investors and developers and continues to bring repeat inquiries and visits to Main Street."

"We also want to thank all the volunteers who helped make Mission Toccoa such a success," said Tabor. "I’d especially like to thank the County, Development Authority, Chamber, and Historical Society for all they did and continue to do for Main Street Toccoa."

The Georgia Downtown Awards were established to recognized individuals, downtown programs, and/or businesses that have demonstrated unique efforts in making a difference in their downtowns. The award categories are based on the 4-Point Approach of downtown revitalization as developed by the National Trust’s Main Street Center and focus on Organization, Promotion, Design, and Economic Restructuring.

Toccoa Main Street hosts film crew

Main Street Toccoa hosted a film crew on Wednesday and some downtown patrons were invited to take part in the filming.

The crew is capturing film for an informational piece about Toccoa's historic downtown. The video will be shown on Navy ships to take the place of commercials. (We hope to get a copy of this video to share online.)

They visited the Currahee Military Museum, the Historic Courthouse, Paul Anderson Park, and Toccoa Falls. They also collected video footage from several downtown businesses.

Today they'll be doing a piece on Mrs. Shirley Combs and her restaurant (Shirley's Soul Food Cafe) focusing on her outreach to the community. This video will also be shown on Navy ships.

Toccoa-Stephens County Readies for the 7th Annual WWII Reunion Week-end, October 2-4, 2009

Released by the Stephens County Chamber of Commerce on September 15, 2009

In 1942 with the world at war, the United States government acquired a mountain and the surrounding land in Toccoa, Georgia as a training facility for a new type of soldier, the paratrooper. Young men from across the nation who had little in common except a shared future, descended on the small north Georgia town to train to defend their country.

To honor the men of at Camp Toccoa and as a show of appreciation for the sacrifices they made, the 7th Annual Currahee Military Weekend and Reunion is planned for the weekend of Oct. 2-4. The event is hosted by The Toccoa-Stephens County Chamber of Commerce, Stephens County Historical Society and Toccoa Mainstreet Program.

It is estimated that as many as 17,000 soldiers from the 501st, 506th, 511th, 517th Parachute Infantry Regiments trained at Camp Toccoa during WWII. With the paratrooper population being greater than the town’s population, one can imagine the impact of the soldiers on the community. The once sleepy town was now a booming military town and quickly became a regional financial, medical and transportation hub for northeast Georgia.

Camp Toccoa reshaped the town and the soldiers training there ultimately became the inspiration for the Home Box Office mini-series The Band of Brothers, movies Saving Private Ryan and The Dirty Dozen as well as the History Channel’s Los Banos Prison Raid.

“We look forward to the paratroopers who trained at Camp Toccoa and their families coming back to Toccoa for the reunion to reminisce about their experiences with their friends who shared this very significant time in their lives,” says Brenda Carlan, County and Currahee Military Museum Executive Director.

“Visitors can meet some of the paratroopers who trained at Camp Toccoa and listen to their stories. Scheduled events with the Veterans include a book signing with Jake McNiece of the 506th author of The Filthy 13 and Ed Shames of Easy Company. There will also be a Veterans’ Parade and a Banquet with special guest speaker Edwin A. Pepping a Medic from the 506th. Guests can also visit the Currahee Military Museum and walk through the actual stable that housed some of the soldiers while they were fighting in Aldbourne, England. “

Chamber of Commerce President Wendi Bailey says the military weekend is one of the most important annual events for the town and serves to create community pride and build partnerships with our business community. “We are thrilled to feature the 3rd t-shirt design of Currahee Mountain created by local artist Carl Fennell exclusively for the 2009 Currahee Military Weekend,” said Wendi. “There are a number of activities planned in conjunction with the reunion including a Community BBQ, a Hangar Dance and the famous Currahee Challenge Run or Walk up and back down Currahee Mountain which served as the paratroopers’ base camp and training facility. There will also be a once in a lifetime opportunity to recreate and preserve history by purchasing a ride in one of the vintage WWII aircraft maintained and flown by the Commemorative Air Force (CAF) Dixie Wing.”

The majority of the weekend’s events will take place in close proximity to the historic district of downtown Toccoa where the Chamber of Commerce, Welcome Center and Historical Society and Currahee Military Museum are all housed in a restored train depot.

“This event is a great opportunity to showcase our award winning downtown revitalization as well as thank the downtown merchants and restaurants for being there,” said Main Street Events Coordinator, Sharon Crosby. “There will be re-enactor encampments around the newly renovated courthouse where visitors can experience a WWII camp site and living history exhibits,” said Sharon. “There will also be military recruiters, military vehicles and a memorabilia show and sale with items from the Civil War, Indian Wars, WWI and WWII. There will be something for kids of all ages!”

7th Annual Currahee Military Weekend Schedule of Events

Times are subject to change:

Thursday, October 1
* 10:00am–6:00pm: Museum Open, Registration, Train Depot, Mitchell Allen Conference Room

Friday, October 2
* 10:00am–6:00pm: Museum Open, Adults $5 and Children $3. Registration, Train Depot, Conference Room
* 10:00am–10:00pm: Hospitality Suite (Registered Guests Only)
* 11:30am–1:30pm: Chicken BBQ Lunch at the Toccoa First Baptist Church Fellowship Hall. Local businesses are encouraged to pre-order plates for their employees by Friday, September 25th and if 10 or more plates are ordered they will be delivered to their worksite. Tickets are $7 at the Chamber or at the door.
* 1:00pm–4:00pm: Book Signing downtown. Come meet WWII veterans Jake McNiece and Ed Shames
* 7:00pm-11:00pm: Hangar Dance at the Toccoa-Stephens County Airport – Atlanta singing group Vintage Vocals sing songs from the 1940’s and Flash the DJ will provide the music. There will be a costume contest and the Stephens County Community Theater will give dance lessons and demonstrations. Tickets are $10 at the Chamber and $15 at the door.

Saturday, October 3

* 10:00am–1:00pm: Registration, Train Depot, Conference Room. Hospitality Suite (Registered Guests Only)
* 10:00am–4:00pm: Museum Open, Adults $5 and Children $3, Train Depot
* 7:00am: Day of Registration for the Currahee Challenge Run/Walk: 3 Mile at 7:45am and 6 Mile at 8:30am. Come run the infamous Currahee Mountain trail, “3 miles up and 3 miles down,” that served as part of the rigorous basic training where the men were hardened to become battle-ready paratroopers. 1st, 2nd 3rd prizes are matted weekend art suitable for framing. Fee is $15 at the Chamber and $20 race day registration.
* 10:00am-4:00pm: World War II Re-enactors will offer “living history” presentations, and weapons and battle demonstrations around the newly renovated court house. Downtown Toccoa, (subject to re-enactor availability)
* 10:00am–4:00pm: Memorabilia Show & Sale: Over twenty tables of military arms and memorabilia of the Civil War, Indian Wars, WWI, WWII, Vietnam and more, Downtown Toccoa.
* 10:00am–4:00pm: Military Recruiter Displays and vintage military vehicles, Downtown Toccoa.
* 10:30am: Veteran’s Parade, Doyle Street, Downtown Toccoa.
* 11:00am: Opening Ceremonies and Museum Expansion Building Dedication, Train Depot
o Toccoa Falls College Brass Band on Doyle St.
o Presentation of the Colors
o Singing of the National Anthem
o North Georgia College and State University Blue Ridge Rifles presentation.
* 10:00am-5:00pm: Commemorative Air Force Plane Rides at the Stephens County Airport - Dixie Wing WWII fighter plane rides. PT-26 Cornell and the Aeronca L-16 Grasshopper. Rides start at $90 and are available on a first come first serve basis.
* 7:00pm: Banquet and Auction at the Georgia Baptist Conference Center featuring special guest and speaker Edwin A. Pepping, Medic in the 506thand a Camp Toccoa Veteran. A fundraiser auction benefiting the Stephens County Historical Society will follow the dinner.

Sunday, October 4
* 8:30am: Remembrance Service with Alan Coker from Toccoa Falls College. Meet at the Parachute Infantry Regimen Memorial, Currahee Mountain. Take highway 123 to the Patterson Pump and Milliken-Humphrey plants.
* 10:00am–4:00pm: Museum Open, Adults $5 and Children $3

This is a community-wide collaboration and celebration of Toccoa’s rich military history. The event would not be possible without broad support from our sponsors, volunteers and Civic Clubs. Media sponsors: WNEG TV 32, WNEG AM 630, Toccoa Record and the other CNI Newspapers, Dal Studio and Good Machine. Event sponsors: Currahee Challenge Run & Walk - Frames & Things and the Toccoa Clinic; Community BBQ - Springer Mountain Farms; Hangar Dance – VFW Post 4346 and Flash the DJ; Veteran’s Hospitality Suite sponsors: Acree Davis Funeral Home, Stephens Federal Bank, Acree Oil, First Citizens, Georgia Baptist Conference Center, Dr. Ken Schneider, Quincy’s of Toccoa, Eaton Aeroquip and the law firm of McClure, Ramsay, Dickerson & Escoe.

The Currahee Military Reunion Weekend serves to honor the veterans who trained at Camp Toccoa and to celebrate their commitment to America. The event is also a celebration of Toccoa’s rich military history. For additional information contact Currahee Military Museum at 706-282-5055 or the Toccoa-Stephens County Chamber of Commerce at 706-886-2132.


Media Contacts:
1. Camp Toccoa Veterans Reunion and Banquet– Brenda Carlan, Executive Director of the Stephens County and Currahee Military Museums, 706-282-5055
2. Downtown Toccoa and the Vintage Vocals – Sharon Crosby, Events Coordinator for Mainstreet Toccoa, 706-282-3309
3. Community BBQ and Currahee Challenge Run/Walk – Wendi Bailey, President of the Toccoa-Stephens County Chamber of Commerce, 706-886-2132
4. Dixie Wing Commemorative Air Force - Chris Madrid, Public Information Officer, 770-655-3315
5. WWII Hangar Dance – Krystle Whitlock, 706-491-7042 and Rick Hack, Commander of the VFW, 706-573-7877
6. Veterans Parade – Eddie Evans, Commander of the American Legion, 706-297-7688
7. Re-enactors and Living History Demonstrations – Steve Tilley, 706-282-5055
8. Military Recruiters Displays – Jibby Baker, Junior ROTC, Stephens County High School, 706-886-6825
9. Memorabilia Show – Richard Shields, 704-282-1339

Currahee Military Weekend, Oct 2 - 4, 2009