Author's posts
1/11/15 —– Myrtle Elizabeth Smith
Funeral services for Mrs. Myrtle Elizabeth Smith, age 96 of Morrison will be conducted Sunday, January 11, 2015 at 2:30 PM at Coffee County Funeral Chapel with Reverend Louis Johnson and Reverend Mark Foster officiating.
Interment will follow at Rose Hill Memorial Gardens.
Visitation will be held Saturday, January 10, 2015 from 5:00 PM until 9:00 PM at the funeral home.
Mrs. Smith passed away after a brief illness,Tuesday, January 6, 2015 at St. Thomas Rutherford in Murfreesboro, surrounded by her loving family.
She was born July 15, 1918 in Hamilton County, Tennessee the daughter of the late Lewis Johnson and Sarah Lewis Johnson.
She was a loving and devoted homemaker who enjoyed cooking, canning, sewing and traveling. She was Co-Owner of Smith Grain Company in Morrison.
She will forever be remembered as a loving mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and great-great grandmother.
She was a longtime member of the Mt. Carmel United Methodist Church.
In addition to her parents, Mrs. Smith is preceded in death by her loving husband of 48 years, Clayton Smith who passed away in 1985; a daughter, Barbara Rosson Griffin; daughter-in-law, Judy Smith; two son-in-laws, Carl Roach and Richard “Turkey” Rosson; and a grandson, Donald Smith, Jr.; and six brothers, Thomas, Coy, L.F., Arwin, Warren, and Jasper Johnson; and three sisters, Annie Yother, Ellen Guess and Ina Ruth Carr.
Survivors include three children, Donald Smith of Morrison; Paul Smith and wife, Fay of Morrison; and a daughter, Etta Roach also of Morrison; six grandchildren, Jeff Roach, Grant (Lorie) Roach, James David (Susan) Rosson, Donna (James) Harrell, Wendy (Joe) Grissom, Tracy (Mark) Tabor; ten great-grandchildren, Josh (Teresa) Harrell, Nick (Whitney) Harrell, Tiffany (Cody) Davis, Coty (Shea) Grissom, Taylor Grissom and fiancée, Zack, and Kaelyn Roach, Jacob Roach, Martika Santiago and fiancee, Jonathan Ferrell, Coleton Tabor and Macy Tabor; and two great-great grandchildren, Braxton and Brooklyn Davis.
Coffee County Funeral Chapel in charge of arrangements.
1/9/15 —- Raymond Working
Memorial services for Mr. Raymond Working will be conducted at 2:00 PM on Friday, January 9, 2015 at Manchester Funeral Home Chapel.
Visitation with the family will be from 10 AM until time of service on Friday.
Manchester Funeral Home in charge of arrangements.
Meeting Concerning School Consolidation Is Set For Monday
Manchester City Seal photo by Samantha Watters
This will be a public meeting to discuss a possible Manchester City School system consolidation with the Coffee County school system. All interested parties are invited to attend. The BOMA have ask Attorney Scott Bennett to attend the meeting. Bennett helped when the systems in Hamilton County consolidated.
One possibility city leaders may look at and will be talked about at the public meeting is a voter referendum on the subject.
Many people for years have voiced opinions about combining the three Coffee County school systems into one. Here are the numbers; it runs taxpayers around $79 (M) annually to run the schools. The Manchester schools’ budget is roughly $14 million for the current year. Coffee County’s budget is just under $35 million and the Tullahoma City Schools’ current operating budget is just under $30 million.
911 Systems File Lawsuits
The Coffee and Franklin County Communications Districts and Emergency Communication Districts filed suit recently in United States Eastern District Court in Chattanooga against Windstream Holdings Inc., Windstream Corp., Windstream Communications Inc. and Windstream Norlight Inc. of Little Rock, Ark. to recover $75,000 plus interest by each communication district. The suit is filed under the Tennessee False Claims Act.
The communication districts allege in their suit that the company has not been properly paying them for phone lines that the company controls. By law each phone user pays a surcharge for 911 service and that money is supposed to go to the communication districts.
The suit alleges that the Coffee County Emergency Communications District has levied a monthly 911 charge of 55 cents for each residential phone line and $1.75 for each business line. While the Franklin County Communication District has a fee of 65 cents for residential lines and $2 for business lines and they depend on those funds being collected by the company and paid to the districts by the company.
The suit alleges that the company supplies caller identification per each phone line that is in use in the respected counties and is supposed to report the number of lines to the communication districts. But they allege that the company has not been properly providing the proper amount of funds to the communication districts.
The suit also alleges several other issues and the lawsuit and this story only presents one side of the legal matter. (Thanks to the Tullahoma News)
Prevent a Portable Heater Fire In Your Home
The following information is provided by local fire departments.
You can help prevent a portable heater fire in your home this winter by following a few fire safety steps:
• Turn heaters off when you go to bed or leave a room.
• Keep anything that can burn, including bedding, clothing, curtains, pets and people at least three feet away from portable heaters.
• Only use portable heaters from a recognized testing laboratory and with an automatic shut-off so that if they tip over, they shut off.
• Plug portable heaters directly into outlets and never into an extension cord or power strip.
• Check the cord for fraying, cracking and look for broken wires or signs of overheating in the device itself.
• Never run the heater cord (or any cord) under rugs or carpeting.
According to the National Fire Protection Association, having a working smoke alarm reduces a person’s chance of dying in a fire by half. For the best protection, install smoke alarms on every level of your home, outside every sleeping area and in every bedroom, and interconnect them if possible. Test smoke alarms monthly and entirely replace any smoke alarm that is 10 years old or older.
Develop and practice a home fire escape plan with every member of your household. Have two ways out of every room and a designated outside meeting place to gather in the event of an emergency.
TVA Asking For Reduction In Electricity Use
The Tennessee Valley Authority is asking for a voluntary reduction in electricity use until Thursday afternoon as a result of frigid temperatures causing high demand across the Southeast. The request extends to all electric power consumers – residential, commercial and industrial customers.
The voluntary reduction will help ensure a continued supply of power to essential services throughout TVA’s seven-state service territory and avoid interruptions of service. All of TVA’s available generating resources are being used to meet the peak power demand. TVA’s bulk electric system remains secure and stable at this time.
Consumers can reduce their power consumption and lower their power bills by:
• Turning down the thermostat. Lowering the temperature just one degree can result in a savings of up to 3 percent.
• Postpone using electric appliances such as dishwashers, dryers and cooking equipment.
• Turn off nonessential lights, appliances, electronics and other electrical equipment.
1/10/15 —– Ronnie G. Lowery
Ronnie G. Lowery, age 63 of Manchester, Tennessee, passed away on January 6, 2015 at the St. Thomas-Midtown Hospital in Nashville.
Ronnie was a carpenter in the construction business and enjoyed fishing, camping and working on hotrods.
He was preceded in death by his wife Gail Lowery, parents, Eulis Lowery and Elouise Walden Lowery Floyd; granddaughter, Alexis Lowery; step-father, Matt Floyd; sister, Virginia “Doodle” Foster; and brother, Wilburn Lowery.
He is survived by his daughter, Rhonda D. Prater (Junior) of Manchester, TN; son, Shane Lowery of Manchester, TN; step-sons, Michael Wright and Isaac Wright and their children of McMinnville, TN; sisters, Diane Brandon of Manchester, TN and Angela White (Kevin) of Georgia; brothers, Elbert Walden and Jerry Lowery both of Manchester, TN, James Floyd (Traci), Jeff Floyd (Reanie) and Scott Floyd (Sabrina) all of Georgia; three grandchildren, Kierstyn Prater, Amelia Prater and Paisley Prater of Manchester; special friend Brad Holt; former wife of 21 years and the mother of his children, Judy Lowery who continued to stand by him and his family in any time of need over the years; and a host of other relatives and friends.
VISITATION
Friday, January 9, 2015, 5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.at Central Funeral Home
FUNERAL
Saturday, January 10, 2015 at 10:00 a.m., Central Funeral Home Chapel
OFFICIANT
Pastor George Sells
BURIAL
Ragsdale Cemetery
Central Funeral Home in charge of arrangements.
1/10/15 —- Gladys Marie Combs
Gladys Marie Long Combs, age 88 of Manchester, Tennessee, passed away on January 6, 2015 at the Golden Living Nursing Center in Winchester, TN.
She was a homemaker and a member of the Christian Lighthouse Full Gospel Church in Tullahoma.
She preceded in death by her parents, Arnold Gray Long and Minnie Linville Long; three sisters and one brother.
She is survived by two daughters, Pat Brimlow (J.J.) of Manchester, TN and Mary Fitzpatrick (Bob) of Jacksonville, FL; son, John Combs (Betsy) of Manchester, TN; one brother, Bobby Long (Florence) of Tobaccoville, NC; eight grandchildren; twenty two great-grandchildren; eight great-great-grandchildren; several nieces, nephews and a host of other relatives and friends.
VISITATION
Saturday, January 10, 2015, 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. at Central Funeral Home
FUNERAL
Saturday, January 10, 2015 at 2:00 p.m., Central Funeral Home Chapel
OFFICIANT
Pastor Bobby Watkins
BURIAL
Fredonia Cemetery
Central Funeral Home in charge of arrangements.
1/10/15 —— Charles D. St. John
Funeral services for Mr. Charles D. St. John, age 87, of Morrison, TN, will be conducted at 2:00 PM on Saturday, January 10, 2015 at Manchester Funeral Home Chapel with Bro. Jerry Finney and Jimmy Carver officiating.
Burial will follow in Morrison Cemetery.
Visitation with the St. John family will be from 4:00 PM until 9:00 PM on Friday at the funeral home.
Mr. St. John passed away Monday evening at Raintree Manor in McMinnville.
Charles was born in Coffee County, TN, the son of the late Adam Delter and Eliza Ann Prater St. John.
He was a farmer and also an International Harvester dealer in McMinnville for many years. He was a member of Pleasant Knoll Church of Christ, where he served as an elder for 42 years. Charles enjoyed watching westerns and bragging about International Harvester tractors.
In addition to his parents, Charles was also preceded in death by his wife, Dorothy Marie Glenn St. John; and two brothers, Hubert Adam and Billy St. John. He is survived by three children, Carol (Jimmy) Rigsby, Glen (Debbie) St. John, and Jimmy (Cathy) St. John, all of Morrison; one grandchild, Liza (David) Kelly of Brentwood, TN; two great grandchildren, Evarleigh and Fisher Kelly; nephew, Edward St. John of Morrison; Jeremy and Kasey Anthony of Morrison; several cousins; and a host of friends.
Manchester Funeral Home in charge of arrangements.
Another Win For The Motlow Bucks
Dequan Miller.. Photo provided by Motlow College
The Bucks (12-2, 6-1) will continue a stretch of three straight non-conference games when they join the Lady Bucks and travel to Hanceville, Ala., on Thursday, Jan. 8, to face national power Wallace State.
The non-conference stretch concludes on Saturday when the Bucks host the Shooting 4 Greatness Academy at 4 p.m. The Lady Bucks will be back on the road Saturday and back in the state of Alabama as they play Lawson State in Birmingham.
After Saturday, neither Motlow team will play a home game until Friday, Jan. 30, when TCCAA opponent Cleveland State visits at 5:30 p.m. The following day is homecoming at Motlow, with tipoff against Chattanooga State scheduled for 2 p.m.
Dequon Miller led a balanced Motlow scoring attack with 26 points. Jaylen Barford scored 22, Reggie Williams 19, Clint Nwosuh 16, Jordan Darden 14, and Terry Holt and D’Andre Downey each added 10.