Thursday, July 28 2011 12:32 PM EDT2011-07-28 17:32:48 GMT
For local flavor, WTVM talked with a Columbus soldier about his life as a brat. Lt. Gen. Bill Caldwell, whose father spent his career in the Army, now heads up the NATO Training Mission in Afghanistan. More >>
Thursday, July 21 2011 9:45 AM EDT2011-07-21 13:45:24 GMT
Whatever you do, try to avoid the words ‘mess hall' when discussing the buildings at Fort Benning where food is served. Marshall Fowler says that phrase is part of your father's Army.
Friday, March 22 2013 5:43 PM EDT2013-03-22 21:43:06 GMT
Just as colleges invite high school football recruits to visit their campuses, the military has a similar program.More >>
Just as colleges invite high school football recruits to visit their campuses, the military has a similar program. It's called The Army Strong Experience, a chance for young people to find out what the military is all about. More >>
Thursday, March 14 2013 3:31 PM EDT2013-03-14 19:31:31 GMT
It's well documented that the Army trains new recruits when they enter the service, but it may surprise you that soldiers are also given training as they plan to leave the military.More >>
It's well documented that the Army trains new recruits when they enter the service, but it may surprise you that soldiers are also given training as they plan to leave the military.More >>
Thursday, January 31 2013 11:09 AM EST2013-01-31 16:09:20 GMT
If you see a smile on the faces of Fort Benning family members, there's a reason why: their loved ones are getting ready to come home from the Middle East.More >>
If you see a smile on the faces of Fort Benning family members, there's a reason why: their loved ones are getting ready to come home from the Middle East.More >>
Wednesday, January 16 2013 6:43 PM EST2013-01-16 23:43:55 GMT
A number of soldiers at Ft. Benning, GA planned a ski trip this weekend in east Tennessee. Too bad it's not going to happen. "Unfortunately the weather hasn't really cooperated with us", says BrittanyMore >>
The troops have gone whitewater rafting, ridden a zip line, even taken in a baseball game in Atlanta.More >>
Tuesday, May 21 2013 11:11 PM EDT2013-05-22 03:11:48 GMT
After much debate and a unanimously vote from the board edgewood elementary and Marshall middle schools will close their doors for the final time next Friday. But what happens after next week? "ThereMore >>
After much debate and a unanimously vote from the board edgewood elementary and Marshall middle schools will close their doors for the final time next Friday. But what happens after next week? "ThereMore >>
Wednesday, May 22 2013 3:26 AM EDT2013-05-22 07:26:02 GMT
Before you know it, school will be out and parents will be looking for things for their kids to do. We compiled a list of nine things to do in Columbus this summer for kids.More >>
Before you know it, school will be out and parents will be looking for things for their kids to do. We compiled a list of nine things to do in Columbus this summer for kids.More >>
Wednesday, May 22 2013 1:30 AM EDT2013-05-22 05:30:09 GMT
As millions of Americans focus their attention on the devastation in Oklahoma, many will feel compelled to reach out and help. But sometimes, in massive recovery efforts, people's good intentions can turnMore >>
As millions of Americans focus their attention on the devastation in Oklahoma, many will feel compelled to reach out and help.
But sometimes, in massive recovery efforts, people's good intentions can turn into a burden for workers in the trenches.More >>
Wednesday, May 22 2013 1:14 AM EDT2013-05-22 05:14:01 GMT
National Guard Specialist Harrison Barninger held his daughter Lexi Marie for the very first time on Monday. More >>
National Guard Specialist Harrison Barninger held his daughter Lexi Marie for the very first time on Monday. Our team first brought the Barninger's story to you last October, when Harrison was able to witness his daughter's birth via Skype over 7,000 miles away in Afghanistan.More >>
By Chuck Leonard
COLUMBUS, GA (WTVM) - Stars and stripes can be found on more than just flags. Military uniforms also carry them as insignia. But what's a soldier to do if he or she loses one? They can always get a replacement at a specialty store in Columbus, which has been serving the military for almost 50 years.
Paul Voorhees was a teenager when his father started Ranger Joe's at the corner of 10th and Broadway. Back then it was called Columbus Army Surplus, but a friendly colonel changed all that.
"We sold him some uniforms and he got to liking my dad", says Voorhees, "...and before it was over he was calling him Joe." That's right, he began calling Jack Voorhees, Joe, and he wasn't alone. "Not long after that the Rangers from 3rd Ranger Company were coming down here to talk to us, and they were calling him Joe. So that's how the store got the name Ranger Joe's, which was between 1963 and '65."
Voorhees says parking was always a problem downtown, so in 1976 Ranger Joe's relocated to Victory Drive. Business went through the roof!
"It's an institution, "says Maj. John Roscoe, a member of the Georgia Army National Guard. "I mean, since day-one of basic training. I left Bravo right here at Fort Benning and this is where you came when you got a chance to get off duty to get uniforms done and uniforms sewed on."
Ask anyone connected to Fort Benning, and they'll you tell that Ranger Joe's is the go-to store for military stuff. Soldiers come for all sorts of items, Ranger tabs, American flags, and the sales staff is glad to help. Some are even envious, like training coordinator Robert Scroggs.
"This is like a toy store in a sense, a lot of the guys come in here, you know. They just have to keep the paychecks away from their wives, so they can buy stuff."
The store does well with its foot traffic, but most of those "paychecks" are being spent by online customers and catalog shoppers. Voorhees says, seventy-percent of his business now is mail-order. "We sell things around the world. Sometimes we have a thousand customers a day." In fact, he calls his distribution center on Farr Road the best kept secret in Columbus.
What's not a secret is his love for the community and for the men and women in uniform. The soft-spoken Voorhees, who is an ordained minister, wears his heart on his sleeve when it comes to the military. "God was at His best when he created the American soldier."
Monday, May 20 2013 11:28 PM EDT2013-05-21 03:28:09 GMT
It's a battle that Talbot County residents along Highway 208 say they've been complaining about for years. They say John Weaver can't afford to feed his horses, so he lets them starve to death. An openMore >>
It's a battle that Talbot County residents along Highway 208 say they've been complaining about for years. They say John Weaver can't afford to feed his horses, so he lets them starve to death. An openMore >>
Tuesday, May 21 2013 11:35 PM EDT2013-05-22 03:35:17 GMT
Only one person may have won the Powerball Jackpot Saturday, but there are several million dollar winners scattered across the country, including a lucky winner in Columbus. More >>
Only one person may have won the Powerball Jackpot Saturday, but there are several million dollar winners scattered across the country, including a lucky winner in Columbus. More >>
Saturday, April 27 2013 5:08 PM EDT2013-04-27 21:08:46 GMT
A student at Columbus State University made a shocking discovery Saturday morning. Public Relation's director John Lester told News Leader 9, Giselle Ortiz, 19, was found dead inside her dorm room.More >>
A student at Columbus State University made a shocking discovery Saturday morning. More >>
Tuesday, May 21 2013 11:11 PM EDT2013-05-22 03:11:48 GMT
After much debate and a unanimously vote from the board edgewood elementary and Marshall middle schools will close their doors for the final time next Friday. But what happens after next week? "ThereMore >>
After much debate and a unanimously vote from the board edgewood elementary and Marshall middle schools will close their doors for the final time next Friday. But what happens after next week? "ThereMore >>
Wednesday, May 22 2013 1:14 AM EDT2013-05-22 05:14:01 GMT
National Guard Specialist Harrison Barninger held his daughter Lexi Marie for the very first time on Monday. More >>
National Guard Specialist Harrison Barninger held his daughter Lexi Marie for the very first time on Monday. Our team first brought the Barninger's story to you last October, when Harrison was able to witness his daughter's birth via Skype over 7,000 miles away in Afghanistan.More >>
Tuesday, May 21 2013 7:15 PM EDT2013-05-21 23:15:12 GMT
A Cusseta family told News Leader 9 they are living in fear after a man walked inside their vacant rental property, held them at gunpoint and threatened. Valerie Ghant says it all started when she, herMore >>
A Cusseta family told News Leader 9 they are living in fear after a man walked inside their vacant rental property, held them at gunpoint and threatened.More >>
Friday, April 17 2009 6:23 PM EDT2009-04-17 23:23:41 GMT
Many of you have heard Heidi's story before... Her haunting experiences as a child in the family's Ellerslie home has been one of the Valley's local legends for the past twenty years. Because of her infamous story and the notoriety that came with it, growing up for this girl was anything but ordinary.More >>
Wednesday, May 15 2013 9:29 PM EDT2013-05-16 01:29:06 GMT
A Columbus mother of two agreed to talk to News Leader 9's Roslyn Giles about a situation she'd rather not disclose. We will not reveal her identity. She says her 4-year-old daughter was sexually assaulted.More >>
A Columbus mother of two agreed to talk to News Leader 9's Roslyn Giles about a situation she'd rather not disclose. More >>
Tuesday, May 21 2013 7:11 PM EDT2013-05-21 23:11:47 GMT
It's not every day a baby is born weighing more than a sack of potatoes, or even your average sized watermelon. But for one Columbus family it's been a year since their little – or shall we say bigMore >>
It's not every day a baby is born weighing more than a sack of potatoes, or even your average sized watermelon. But for one Columbus family it's been a year since their little – or shall we say big – bundle of joy arrived.More >>