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9/22/18 — Betty Ann Wilson

Funeral service for Ms. Betty Ann Wilson, age 71, of Sparta, TN, will be
conducted at 12:00 PM on Saturday, September 22, 2018 at Manchester
Funeral Home. Visitation with the family will be from 10:00 AM until
time of service on Saturday at the funeral home. Ms. Wilson passed away
on Tuesday, September 18, 2018 at St. Thomas Rutherford Hospital in
Murfreesboro, TN.

MANCHESTER FUNERAL HOME IS HONORED TO SERVE THE WILSON FAMILY

9/19/18 — Birthdays

No birthdays to report.

Anniversaries:
Bill & Penny Reed, 65

Four Coffee County Alumni Honored at Martin Methodist

Katie Reid[Photo by Martin Methodist athletics]

The Martin Methodist University Athletic Department celebrated its commitment to character at its 18th annual Champions of Character Convocation Monday morning.   In one of the longest-standing traditions within the Athletic Department, the RedHawks handed out several pieces of hardware as they presented their annual Male and Female Student-Athlete of the Year Award, Team of the Year and Servant Leader of the Year awards.  And as to be expected, Coffee County Central High School alumni attending the Pulaski university were honored

Former RedHawk Women’s Soccer standout Katie Reid was honored as the Female Student-Athlete of the Year. Reid was a standout both on and off the pitch for the RedHawks and in the classroom. Reid scored goals at multiple national tournaments for the RedHawks and earned All-American status, but also earned NAIA Scholar-Athlete achievements and spoke as the Student-Athlete Academic Representative at the SSAC Women’s Soccer Awards Banquet last November.  Reid was a 4 year letterman for Coffee County and is the all-time leading goal scorer in Lady Raider history.  Reid was a member or the 2014 graduating class at CHS.

Kyle Johnson[Photo by Martin Methodist athletics]

Former RedHawk Men’s Golf member Kyle Johnson was honored as the Male Student-Athlete of the Year. Johnson accepted his award via previously recorded acceptance speech as he is currently enrolled in the Duncan School of Law at Lincoln Memorial University in Knoxville, Tennessee. As a RedHawk, Johnson captained a team that finished runner-up in the 2018 SSAC Men’s Golf Championship. Johnson also earned NAIA Scholar-Athlete distinction during his academic career.  Johnson was also a member or the 2014 graduating class at CHS.

The Martin Methodist Clay Target team was given the Team of the Year award for the team’s commitment to Sportsmanship, one of the “five core values” of the NAIA’s Champions of Character program.  Coffee County alumni Mikayla Dickson and Travis Dickson were members of the honored team.  The Dickson twins are 2014 graduates of Coffee County and each earned All-American honors during their prep career from the American Trapshooting Association(ATA).

Mikayla Dickson[Photo by Martin Methodist athletics]

“I received two independent pieces of correspondence about the character of our Clay Target team,” RedHawks Executive Director of Athletics Jeff Bain said. “The sportsmanship displayed by our program and head coach Chad Whittenburg was extremely impressive. While virtually every other team had already returned home after their performance, our young men and women stayed behind to show respect and sportsmanship to the eventual national champions. That composure under pressure is something we preach to our coaches, student-athletes and staff members on a daily basis. To see it play out on a national stage was truly impactful.”

Travis Dickson[Photo by Martin Methodist athletics]

The convocation came just days after Martin Methodist was named a Gold Champions of Character Institution by the NAIA for the first time in the department’s history. The distinction came as a byproduct of the NAIA’s Champions of Character Scorecard, which is filed annually.

Own Goal Sinks Nashville SC against Tampa Bay on Tuesday

Nashville SC returned to action for the first time in 10 days and dropped a back-and-forth affair 2-1 to the Tampa Bay Rowdies at First Tennessee Park on Tuesday.

Nashville owned over 56% of possession on the night but could not find a winner or an equalizer late in the match. Now, Nashville will turn its sights to Charleston on Saturday to keep pace in the USL Eastern Conference playoff race.

90 in a Nutshell

The opening minutes were not kind to Nashville SC. Just six minutes in, Matt Pickens committed a foul in the box and Tampa Bay’s Georgi Hristov converted the penalty to put the Rowdies up 1-0. From there, Nashville SC recovered and rebounded in a big way. The home side owned possession and finally found the back of the net in the 20’ minute. Kosuke Kimura chipped the ball from the wide area to Lebo Moloto, who knocked the ball in to equalize the match.

The two sides went back and forth until the halftime whistle. In the second half, Tampa Bay got to the attack early and pressured towards goal, but Nashville kept the Rowdies from high-danger areas. Nashville had a good chance to take the lead off a Moloto header and a Liam Doyle free kick, but both were cleared. On an ensuing possession for Tampa Bay, a ball whipped into the box by Junior Flemmings ricocheted off of London Woodberry’s head and into the net for an own goal to give the Rowdies the 2-1 lead.

In the dying moments, Nashville had a golden chance to equalize. Brandon Allen had a neat deflection that Tampa Bay keeper Daniel Vega lunged to stop, and a rebound attempt by Moloto went high.

Goals

6’ TBR – Georgi Hristov (PK)

20’ NSH – Lebo Moloto (assisted by Kosuke Kimura)

69’ TBR – London Woodberry (Own Goal)

Quotable

Nashville SC Head Coach Gary Smith

“There are too many moments that are squandered, and it’s really been a feature of our group all year. We’ve made enough moments throughout games. We’ve limited teams to enough moments at the other end. But, the big difference tonight was that they were clinical when it mattered, or we made a mistake, and they didn’t.”

Key Stat

300 – This was Pickens’ 300th professional appearance, and he was honored before the match, alongside Kimura, who played his 300th professional match 10 days ago at North Carolina FC.

Moloto Equalizer

Lebo Moloto’s first half equalizer was his seventh goal on the season for Nashville, tying Brandon Allen for most on the team in all competitions this season. It was the fourth time Nashville had equalized this season after falling behind.

Eastern Conference Update

There were no other USL teams in action Tuesday night, so Nashville SC remains locked in ninth place for now. Charlotte Independence can move within one point of Nashville SC in the standings with a win tomorrow night against Charleston Battery.  The loss is just Nashville’s third at home this season. It’s home record sits at 8-3-2 overall and 8-3-0 at First Tennessee Park.

Up Next

The Nashville SC homestand continues on Saturday when the club continues to battle for playoff position against the Charleston Battery. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 PM at First Tennessee Park.

Large Drug Bust in Warren County

A very large meth bust took place in Warren County recently.
After a police pursuit of a motorcycle, police found multiple bags full of what is believed to be methamphetamine at a home after the pursuit was called off.
Authorities say that there are more than three and a half pounds of meth inside zip lock bags, and that can be worth more than $50,000 in Tennessee.
After spotting the motorcycle at a local residence last week, officers obtained a search warrant and found the meth, along with a leafy substance believed to be marijuana and some drug paraphernalia.
Arrested were 22-year-old Dillon Alexander Meacham, who was reported to be the driver of the motorcycle, and 18-year-old Christina Faith Price, both of McMinnville.
This is the second time in the past 9 months that Warren County officials have taken in over 3 pounds of meth in a bust.

Testing President Donald Trump’s Emergency Text Alert System Delayed

The federal government has pushed back the date for a test of President Donald Trump’s emergency text alert system.
On October 3, most cell phone users will get a non-political, emergency test message from the president.
It’s a part of FEMA’s system to warn citizens in cases of national emergencies.
The text will have a header reading “presidential alert.”
The test was originally supposed to take place on September 20.
The wireless emergency alert system was launched in 2012 but has yet to be tested.

Tennessee to get $30 million to Fight Opioid Crisis

Senate health committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) says that Tennessee is set to receive $30.8 million to combat the opioid crisis.
This funding will help health centers in Tennessee, from Chattanooga to Memphis, hire more staff and ensure they are equipped to fight the crisis; provide more medication-assisted treatment to patients; help our rural communities tackle opioid addiction; and support programs that prevent more Tennesseans from becoming addicted to opioids. These grants are funded by appropriations legislation passed by Congress in March.
On Monday, the Senate passed 99-1 the Opioid Crisis Response Act, which Alexander has been the lead sponsor of.

#GetCaughtReading: Weeklong Campaign Encourages Reading for All Ages

Numerous studies show improved test scores and higher rates of graduation for children who are routinely read to as a child. (Brecken Pool/flickr)

The Governor’s Books from Birth Foundation this week is urging people in Tennessee to take a picture of themselves reading.
Tennessee’s Imagination Library Week is celebrating the program first piloted by singer Dolly Parton almost 30 years ago.
Now with programs in 49 states and several countries, the campaign to send children from birth to age five a new book once a month is changing lives, according to Dean Hoskins, vice president of the Governor’s Books from Birth Foundation.
“Just by the virtue of having books in the home, children are more likely to succeed, not just as they enter kindergarten but at third-grade reading levels,” she states. “But also, we have seen that parents do engage around books with their children when they are in the home.”
Neighboring North Carolina just confirmed funding for a program modeled after Tennessee.
This week as part of the campaign, the state is encouraging people to take a picture of themselves reading and post it on social media with the hashtag #GetCaughtReading.
Hoskins says while the social media effort is a great way to increase public awareness, it’s also about making sure reading is modeled for our younger generation.
“We want to raise awareness of how important it is for children to see adults in their lives and older siblings in their lives, reading, that reading is an integral part of everything that happens in family life,” she stresses.
More than 1 million children have participated in the program. A state study in 2014 found increased school testing scores for children who received the free books, which are available to all, regardless of income.

Former Business Leader Killed in “Freak Accident”

Spencer Wayne

Many local golfers and business people in Coffee County remember a young man named, Spencer Wayne. The young man, fresh out of college came to Manchester around 10 years ago to manage Willowbrook Golf Course. A few years later Wayne left Willowbrook, owned by his friend David Burris to manage and later become co-owner the Western Sizzlin restaurant in Jasper, TN. Wayne grew up in Marion County, so it was natural fit.
On Monday the sad news broke and Spencer’s many friends in Coffee County began to learn that Wayne had died at the age of 33. The one question that was asked by hundreds on Facebook was how? How did this healthy young man suddenly die?
WMSR News reached out to Willowbrook owner David Burris who said his friend had died in a “freak accident.” The Marion County Sheriff’s Office said Spencer Wayne was lifting weights alone when he apparently dropped a barbell on his neck. The 33-year-old died inside his Jasper home.
Wayne is survived by his wife Cheetah Fletcher Wayne; children, daughter Chandler Zella Wayne, baby son John Spencer Wayne and many others. Spencer Wayne will be laid to rest Thursday in Kimball, TN.

Coffee County Middle School Football Shuts Out Warren County

Travis Martin of CCMS football [Photo courtesy of Dana Giltner & Shannon Smith – DanasDigital.com / ShannonSmiles.com]

Traveling to McMinnville for their final road game of the year, the Coffee County Middle School football team took on Warren County.  A pair of touchdowns from Travis Martin was all Coffee County needed on the night to capture a 14 to 0 win.

Martin ripped off a 45 yard scoring run in the 1st quarter to make it 6 to 0.  Martin added a 10 yard touchdown run and the 2 point conversion to give the Raiders a 14 to 0 halftime lead.  The Red Raider defense shut down Warren County to improve to 3 and 2 in the conference.

The Red Raiders will be back at home on Tuesday when play host to White County.  Thunder Radio will be on hand to bring you the broadcast as part of the 1st National Bank Hometown Sports Series.  Kickoff is set for 6:30 PM, our live coverage begins at 6:15.