The Greenville & Western Railway Company, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Western Carolina Railway Service Corporation, operates 12.74 miles of rail line in Anderson County, and CEO Steven Hawkins sees the Santa Train as a way to give back each year. “It’s about community,” Hawkins said. “It’s about making sure no one goes hungry during the holidays.”

“It’s a very beautiful cemetery,” said Luker, “but I discovered there were over 400 veterans buried here—and we didn’t have records for all of them.” With the support of her DAR colleagues and community volunteers, she set out to change that. What began as a modest effort—placing 75 wreaths in the first year—has grown into a tradition, with more than 400 wreaths laid this year alone.

With its elegant ballroom and storied presence, The Grand 1891 is expected to quickly become a destination for those who want their celebrations to feel both warm and unforgettable.

The most visible change is the construction of Courtney Park, a new subdivision that will add 125 single-family homes and 18 townhomes to the town.  Ragland said the site is bustling with activity, with earth-moving equipment working daily and the project expected to be finished by late spring.  Alongside the new homes, Pelzer has also undergone major upgrades to its water and sewer systems, tearing up streets in the process.  Ragland called these improvements “transformational,” setting the stage for new businesses and investment in the town.

Anderson County communities are in line for more than $140,000 in state parks and recreation money under a slate of projects endorsed by South Carolina Senator Richard Cash, chairman of the Anderson County Legislative Delegation.  The proposed awards, using Park and Recreation Development (PARD) funds, would support park upgrades and playground improvements in Anderson County, Belton, Iva, Pendleton, West Pelzer, Williamston and the Piedmont Public Service District, with local governments providing a required 20 percent match.

The project, known as the Church Street Heritage Plaza pedestrian space and referenced in city documents as part of a broader streetscape effort, is less about expansion than about subtraction: taking away cars from Main Street for a more walking-friendly path. Several months ago, the city closed the street to vehicles on a trial basis, an experiment as modest as setting out a few extra chairs to see who sits down.  Merchants along the corridor, accustomed to the episodic churn of events and pop-ups in the space, responded with something that sounds suspiciously like enthusiasm, and the city’s planning staff heard enough of it to move from improvisation to a formal plan.

Anderson County Mayor Terence Roberts says a sweeping update of the city’s comprehensive plan approved early in 2025, including new sign and tree ordinances, is reshaping how Anderson will look and grow for decades to come.

Dorn called the announcements “incredible” for a community of Belton’s size, noting that landing two substantial projects within the city limits is a rare achievement in recent years.  The new investments are expected to strengthen the tax base, create new career opportunities for local residents, and reinforce the narrative of 2025 as a year of genuine progress rather than incremental change.

One of Mayor Smith’s signature accomplishments this year has been helping to shepherd a major private investment of approximately $3 million into Honea Path’s downtown core. A local family has purchased the former shirt plant property behind town and is proceeding with a three-phase plan designed to bring lodging, retail, a market, and an event venue to the heart of the community.

Beyond the spectacle, the event had a strong charitable focus. The club collected toys for Toys for Tots and canned goods for the Good Neighbor Cupboard food pantry, two organizations that support families in need during the holidays. Volunteers from the sailing club helped organize and collect donations, underscoring the community spirit that defines the event.

A South Carolina law meant to prevent election fraud makes it harder for people with disabilities to vote, civil rights groups claimed in a federal lawsuit.

Under a 2022 law, anyone can vote early with no excuse necessary or request an absentee ballot to vote by mail. To prevent the possibility of fraud, legislators added a limit of five ballots that any one person could request or submit for someone else.

In nursing homes and residential care settings, where residents often rely on a single staff member to help them vote, that makes voting difficult, attorneys for the state American Civil Liberties Union argued in a lawsuit filed in federal court Friday.

Hope Missions of the Upstate is teaming up with other Anderson charities, churches and volunteers to provide more than 300 backpacks loaded with essentials for our neighbors, friends and family in the community who need help. On Dec. 22, from 8 a.m.-noon, an event to distribute the backpacks is scheduled at First Presbyterian Church to distribute the backpacks, which will be distributed to HOPE Missions, The Salvation Army of Anderson, Asher House, and South Main Chapel & Mercy Center.

The meeting agenda calls for a second reading of Ordinance 25-18, which would formally set the city’s next general election for April 7, 2026, covering the races for mayor and council seats one, three, five and at-large seat seven, each for four-year terms. The ordinance also establishes the candidate filing window from noon Jan. 15 through noon Jan. 29, 2026, with any necessary runoff scheduled for April 21, 2026, and directs would-be candidates to file with the Anderson County Registration and Elections Office before paying filing fees at City Hall.

While the majority of today’s modern covers of classic holiday music (there are rare exceptions) cannot compare to the rich arrangements, musicianship and vocals whom they seek to imitate, there are exceptions. These are the ones which almost capture the live-musician feel of the earlier records when multi-track recording was non-existent and there was an energy in the recording sessions that can be felt listening to those sessions.