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'It takes me back to my roots:' Cedar Grove School to transform into opry house

The community is coming together to turn the old Cedar Grove School into the Cedar Grove Opry House by November

ALAMO, Georgia — Cedar Grove School in Laurens County is being turned into the Cedar Grove Opry House. 13WMAZ spoke to neighbors who live nearby who are excited the old school is getting a new life, including one young lady who used to walk the hallways of the school.

"So we all piled in here, and the teachers made do the best they could," Gloria Moore said.

Back in 1937, you would find a group of kids at Cedar Grove School in Alamo off Highway 126.

"They taught us the basic reading, writing, and arithmetic" Moore said.

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She said they were like one big family.

"Everybody looked after everybody, so it was a very happy time coming here, and we had really good teachers," Moore said.

Moore says she went to Cedar Grove from elementary to high school. She says since the school closed in 1970 she has watched the school's paint chip away and walls collect dust.

"It breaks your heart," Moore said. 

Neighbors like Scott Stewart are hoping to re-purpose the old school house., giving students like Moore a chance to relive her childhood memories. 

"I just always thought this was the coolest building, especially to have an opry house in," Stewart said.

Stewart says once the school closed, the old auditorium turned into an event space.

"We actually had to sing one night in this building, and this place was just packed, I mean you could not hardly get anyone else in here," Stewart said. 

Stewart and the community have plans to fix the chipped paint, electrical wiring, and plumbing, all while keeping the original look of the building inside and out.

"It is going to be great. It has always been a dream of mine to get this going for the community," Stewart said. 

With the opry house opening by November, Moore can't wait to see this building buzzing again. 

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"It takes me back to my roots, it brings reality back to you, the difference about what we have today and what we had when I was going to school here," Moore said. 

If you want to check out the new and improved Cedar Grove Opry House, it will be open November 9, and Stewart says every second Saturday they will hold performances for the public. 

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