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Birthdays – May 2
Birthdays:
Thomas Foster – 16
Levi Simpson – 4 – Pizza Winner!
Jennifer Bowdin – 41
Alyssa Darnell – 12
Anniversaries:
John & Jennifer Bowers – 14 Years
Birthdays – May 1
Birthdays:
Sahez Fernandez
Addy Williams – 15
Shylee Meadows
Cody Chase Rigsby – Pizza Winner!
Brenda Drake
Birthdays – April 30
Donald Newman – 70
Addi Sartain – 15 – Pizza Winner!
Mary Almas West
Mary Almas West, born August 20, 1929, passed away on Thursday, April 28, 2022, at her residence. Mary was born in Warren County, the daughter of the late George Ernest and Mae (Harmon) Martin. She was preceded in death by her husband, Charles Edgar (Jackie) West; four brothers, Ed Martin, Ralph Martin, James Martin, and Howard Martin; three sisters, Nancy Sherrill, Anna Mae Rogalle and Ernestine Scott.
Mary was a lifelong resident of the Goose Pond Community where she lived a full life. Her door was always open, and her fridge was always full “just in case” you decided to come in. Regularly she could be found sitting on her front porch rocking awaiting a honk from passersby at which time she would always throw up her hand and wave with a cheerful smile.
Mary loved the simple things in life like working in her yard, tending to her flowers, and raising a garden. Her greatest joy was found in being amongst her children and their families after cooking weekly Sunday dinners.
Mary is survived by five children: Kathy Duncan (Chuck), Sharon Walker (Steven Clayton), Ernie West (Mary Alice), Charlie West (Pam) and Frankie West (Linda). She was known as “Granny Mary” to 10 grandchildren, 15 great grandchildren, and 2 great-great grandchildren. A neighbor child lovingly referred to her as “Granny Goose Pond”. In addition, she leaves behind the best neighbor and friend a person could ever have in Diane Lewis.
Special thanks go out to Janice Bass at Dr. Jay Trussler’s office, the staff at Suncrest Home Health, as well as the staff at Compassion Hospice. The family is very grateful for the care you provided for her.
She leaves us with the knowledge that life is not about being rich, being popular, or being perfect. It’s about being real, being humble, and being kind.
Manchester Funeral Home is honored to serve the West family.
Coffee County Central baseball, softball district tournament brackets are set
This story has been updated with a new bracket for baseball. The original bracket had an incorrect time for CHS baseball on Friday.
With the regular season wrapping up early this week – District 6-4A postseason brackets are now out for the Coffee County Central Red Raider baseball team and Lady Raider softball team.
Good news – games are in Manchester.
The Lady Raider softball team is the no. 1 seed entering the softball tournament and, as long as the Lady Raiders keep winning, will remain at home for the duration of the tournament. The only way they would travel would be if they reached the championship game out of the loser’s bracket.
The Lady Raiders open the tournament at 6 p.m. Thursday – hosting no. 4 seed Shelbyville. That game will be broadcast live on Thunder Radio. If they win, they will be at home again Friday at 6 p.m. and that will be a Thunder Radio broadcast.
Meanwhile, the Raider baseball team is the no. 2 seed and will be at home for the duration of the District tournament as Manchester is the host site for all games. The Raiders will play at 4:30 p.m. Friday against no. 3 Warren County. They went 2-2 against the Pioneers this season. They will play again at noon or 2:30 p.m. Saturday depending on if they win or lose Friday – the Saturday game will be a Thunder Radio broadcast.
Both baseball and softball tournaments are double elimination. The top two teams will advance to the Region 3-4A semi-finals. All Thunder Radio broadcasts can be heard at 107.9 FM, 1320 AM, 106.7 FM, Manchester Go app and thunde1320.com.
Full brackets below:
Tuesday is election day; hear live results on Thunder Radio
Early voting totals for the May 3 Coffee County primary are in.
According to Coffee County Administrator of Elections Andy Farrar, 4,171 people cast their ballots in early voting between April 13 and April 28 with the heaviest day coming on the final day, as 511 voters hit the polls on April 28.
The total of 4,171 is 12.5 percent of active Coffee County voters and 11% of total registered voters in the county.
Numbers break down like this: 2,058 rural county voters cast a ballot, while 1,223 registered voters in Tullahoma voted and 890 Manchester voters went to the polls.
Residents still have one day to vote – that is Election Day on Tuesday, May 3.
If voting on election day, you will vote at your assigned precinct. Voting hours are 8 a.m. to 7 p..m on that day. If you have questions about the process or your correct precinct (some have changed this year), contact the election commission at 931-723-5103. Voters are required to show a federal or state photo ID when voting.
The night of May 3, Thunder Radio will carry live election return coverage on our radio station – 107.9 FM, 1320 AM, 106.7 FM, Manchester Go app and thunder1320.com. Our coverage begins at 7 p.m. You can also see results updated in live time on our website by clicking here.
Gas prices reverse trend, bump up 5 cents
Gas prices across Tennessee have reversed course and are trending more expensive. Tennessee gas prices, on average, rose five cents over last week. The Tennessee Gas Price average is now $3.90 which is eight cents less expensive than one month ago and nearly $1.21 more than one year ago.
The average price in Coffee County is $3.79, which is 11 cents below the state average – a slightly larger margin than last week when the local price was 10 cents below the state average. The price in Coffee County is 40 cents below the national average of $4.19.
“Global supply concerns are keeping upward pressure on oil prices, and as a result, we’re once again seeing increases in our pump prices” said Megan Cooper, spokeswoman, AAA – The Auto Club Group. “It’s difficult to say how long this trend will continue as the oil market remains extremely volatile. It is, however, very likely that pump prices will continue to fluctuate as we head into the summer driving season.”
Quick Facts
· 89% of Tennessee gas stations have prices below $4.00
· The lowest 10% of pump prices are $3.71 for regular unleaded
· The highest 10% of pump prices are $4.20 for regular unleaded
National Gas Prices
Pump prices rose again over the past week due primarily to the high cost of crude oil. Fear of a global energy supply disruption due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine outweighs the demand concerns prompted by the impact of COVID-19 on China’s economy. The cost of a barrel of crude continues to hover around $100. With the oil price accounting for about 60% of pump prices, the national average for a gallon of regular is now $4.19, an increase of seven cents since Monday, April 25.
According to new data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), total domestic gasoline stocks decreased by 1.6 million bbl to 230.8 million bbl last week. Gasoline demand decreased slightly from 8.87 million b/d to 8.74 million b/d. Although lower gas demand would typically push pump prices lower, the fluctuating oil price and tight gasoline supply have pushed pump prices higher. Pump prices will likely face upward pressure as oil prices remain above $100 per barrel.
Today’s national average for a gallon of gas is $4.19, which is a penny less than a month ago, but $1.29 more than a year ago.
National Oil Market Dynamics
At the close of Friday’s formal trading session, WTI decreased by 67 cents to settle at $104.69. Although prices declined on the day due to crude demand concerns as lockdowns continue in China, crude prices gained earlier in the week after EIA’s weekly report showed that total current supply level is approximately 16 percent lower than at the end of April 2021. Crude inventories rose by 700,000 bbl to 414.4 million bbl, but supply remains tight and the market remains highly volatile. For this week, crude prices will likely continue to increase, pushing pump prices higher. Additionally, the market will be watching this week’s OPEC+ meeting via videoconference on Thursday, May 5, which could see the cartel increase crude production to help meet global demand.
Text to report voter fraud available in Tennessee for primary
Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett announces his office’s new Text to Report Voter Fraud system.
“Making it easy for Tennesseans to vote while protecting the integrity of our elections is our highest priority,” said Secretary of State Tre Hargett. “With our new Text to Report Voter Fraud system, we’re giving voters a safe and convenient way to alert us to any Election Day issues so that our office can take appropriate action. I encourage Tennesseans to let us know if they see anything that could be voter fraud and about their voter experience, whether negative or positive.”
Using a cell phone or other texting device, Tennesseans can text ‘TN’ to 45995. They will receive a secure link where they can submit their concerns directly to the Secretary of State’s Division of Elections. The Division of Elections reviews reports of possible voter fraud, misinformation, intimidation, or any Election Day impropriety and works with county election commissions, district attorneys and other parties to take appropriate action.
“There are other organizations that offer voters ways to report election issues, but those organizations are not affiliated with our office,” said Coordinator of Elections Mark Goins. “We created our Text to Report Voter Fraud system so that Tennesseans can be confident that their concerns are getting to the right place. We work together with local county election commissions to help Tennesseans have a positive voting experience.”
Voters can also report voting issues or get answers to Election Day questions by calling the Division of Elections Official Election Day Hotline toll-free at 1-877-850-4959.
On Tuesday, May 3, primaries for Republican or Democratic, judicial or county office candidates are taking place in 74 Tennessee counties.
Raider baseball picks up two non-district wins over the weekend
Coffee County Central baseball team extended a season long win streak to 4 in a row with a pair of non-district wins: dropping Riverdale 8-6 Friday and Rockvale 7-6 Saturday in Manchester.
CHS 8, Riverdale 6
Seven early runs were enough for the Raiders to hold on and beat the Warriors of Riverdale Friday in Manchester.
Timmy Henderson earned the win on the mound. He went six innings, scattering 10 hits while striking out 5 and walking 2. He allowed 4 runs (3 earned). Cole Pippenger got the save – allowing a pair of runs on a hit and 2 strikeouts in the seventh, closing the door on a Warrior rally.
Jacob Sherrill did the majority of the damage at the plate for the Raiders. The senior knocked in 4 runs on a pair of hits, including a double.
CHS 7, Rockvale 6
Coffee County clawed back from down 4-0 and 6-3 to eventually tie the game at 6-6 in the bottom of the 6th inning before winning in the 8th.
THIS GAME WAS BROADCAST LIVE ON THUNDER RADIO. CLICK HERE FOR THE BROADCAST REPLAY.
A groundball hit by Jacob Holder kicked off the glove of Rockvale’s shortstop and into centerfield. That allowed Caleb Moran (who singled and then stole second base) to motor around to home and give the Raiders the win.
After falling behind 4-0, Coffee County settled in and slowly got back into the game. Sherrill settled things on the mound – he worked the middle 4 and 2/3 innings, allowing 2 runs on 7 hits while striking out 3. Fellers pitched the final 2 1/3 and did not allow a run.
At the plate, Aiden Robertson was 4-for-4 on four infield singles, including 3 bunt singles. He was able to get across the plate once. Moran scored twice on a pair of hits and had an RBI. Moran and Pippenger each doubled in the game for the Raiders.
Coffee County is now 12-14 on the season.
Brady Nugent 
Brady Nugent 
Brendan Sheppard 
Andrew Dawson 
Cole Pippenger 
Jacob Sherrill 
Dayne Crosslin 
Dayne Crosslin 
Aiden Robertson
Lady Rocket softball takes 2nd in DRVC tournament; baseball Rockets shutout Fayetteville City
Westwood Lady Rocket softball team fought all the way to the DRVC Championship game before eventually falling to Community.
Coming out of the loser’s bracket, Westwood forced a second game against Community before losing to end the run with a second place finish.
Westwood had to pull some nice wins to reach the title game, including a 14-7 win over Moore County.
In the win over Moore County, Jules Ferrell set the tone with a pair of doubles, a triple, single and four runs scored. Audri Patton and Lily Norman took advantage of Ferrell on base. Patton singled and tripled to pick up two RBI, she also scored twice. Meanwhile, Norman was 4-for-4 with 4 RBI and 3 runs scored.
Rocket baseball bounces back
After a devastating late-inning loss to Huntland to open the DRVC baseball tournament in Manchester, Westwood bounced back to completely shut down Fayetteville City 6-0 Saturday afternoon in Manchester. The Rocket pitching staff combined to one-hit the Tigers.
Kaysen Lowery nearly finished a complete-game shutout. Lowery allowed 1 hit over 6 2/3 innings and struck out 9 batters. Isiah Deadman got the final out on the mound.
Westwood busted a 0-0 tie with a big 4-run third and tacked on single runs in the fourth and fifth innings.
Ethan McKenzie and Keller Hatfield each knocked in a pair of runs at the plate. Hatfield had two hits, including a triple. Carter Bell doubled in a run for the Rockets.
Carter Bell 
Kaysen Lowery 
Ayden Vanwinkle