Jean Marie and Jeff Ayer are self-professed Grice Connect fans and read it on a daily basis. They believe it ties our community together, and they recently reached out to us about a wonderful experience they had after reading about the annual "First Day Hike" opportunity on our site.
"We love Grice Connect," Jean Marie says. "There's more information about events; there's more fun stories; there's more connections and links to people."
Fans from early on in the news outlet's inception, the Ayers receive Grice Connect's emails every day and feel they are adequately informed about what is going on in Bulloch County.
"I like to check out the events and what's going on in the community," Jean Marie says. "We saw the hike. Jeff runs 5Ks and 10Ks and works out at the gym, and I teach fitness classes. We don't drink, and we don't party all night on New Year's, so we were looking for something fun to do because we didn't want to ignore New Year's. And then all of a sudden, we saw this New Year's hike at one of the state parks where Jeff had done a 5K."
The hike, which Jeff describes as a "trail walk," took place at George L. Smith State Park, which is only about 30 miles up Highway 80/25, near Twin City. So while we like to call ourselves "hyperlocal" to Statesboro and Bulloch County, we shared this particular event as a fun and easy nearby opportunity for our community members interested in the outdoors.
Participants were served hot chocolate following the hour and a half trek around the park.
"It was a fantastic morning, and it all started because of you guys at Grice Connect," Jeff says. "It was good exercise for sure, and certainly a lot better than sitting on the couch on New Year's morning."
Jean Marie told the park ranger who led the tour that she and Jeff, her husband of six years, had learned about the hike from Grice Connect's event page. This set off a chain "connection" reaction of sorts, as the park ranger was eager to put more upcoming events for George L. Smith on the free events calendar.
The retired couple stays active. Jean Marie, a college professor, teaches classes online and also teaches fitness classes at the Statesboro YMCA, and Jeff, a retired salesman, drives a school bus. Jean Marie has faith that her favorite news source will give her all the information she and her husband need:
"I'll just wait until Grice Connect posts a story about it, and then we'll know what's going on."
Thanks, Jean Marie and Jeff, for being loyal readers and for sharing this story with us! We don't share this to "toot our own horn" but as an example of how we are truly committed to connecting our community and bringing you the news you need when you need it. When we hear stories like these, it further motivates us to keep doing what we are doing -- for YOU! Thank you, readers, for your loyalty to and support of GC!
