Category: News

Women-owned businesses are on the increase in Tennessee, up by 38 percent in recent years. But, there remain female entrepreneurs unable to get their businesses off the ground and that fact is what is driving a new crowdsourcing effort for women-owned businesses in Nashville.
By the end of its first year, iFundWomen will have driven over one-million dollars for women-led businesses in places such as Music City, and chief revenue officer Concetta Rand says it’s as much about promotion as it is capital.
“In cities such as Nashville, truly just by networking and connecting those businesses, opportunities resulted, so it’s a great opportunity for exposure for those companies,” she says.
iFundWomen is launching in other cities across the country in the coming year, including Raleigh-Durham. In Nashville, it’s supporting a variety of businesses – including beauty products, paper products, designers and furniture-makers.
iFundWomen is the first crowdfunding platform for women-led businesses, startups and small businesses, founded by a former Google/YouTube executive, Karen Cahn.
Rand says women get less than six percent of all venture funding, and often the loans they receive are for smaller amounts and higher interest rates. Beyond that, she says, there’s a shortage of human resources.
“Absolutely, closing the funding gap is imperative,” she insists. “The two other gaps that we see for female entrepreneurs are coaches and mentors and role models and success stories, and so we are helping coach women through some of our services as well as creating the conditions for peer coaching.”
According to the latest American Express State of Women report, women-owned businesses now comprise 38 percent of the business population, but while the number is on the increase, the share of employment and revenues remains largely unchanged.

The Coffee County Fair begins this Saturday, September 16, 2017. The Coffee County Fair has been carrying on family traditions for 160 years. There are so many events to enjoy at the Coffee County Fair for all ages. There are carnival rides, beauty pageants, great food and more! Come out this year and join in the fun at the fair in Manchester. Beginning with the Miss Teen and Fairest of the Fair competitions on Saturday and baby and toddler shows on Sunday. The carnival rides begin on Monday.

On Monday September 11th, 2017 Tullahoma Officer Michael Wilder responded to 332 Short Springs Road in reference to a disturbance. Upon arrival, the victim told officers that a subject entered her home and attempted to take her car keys, apparently the man and the victim struggled over the keys and then the subject ran out the back door of the home.
A short time later the male subject entered a residence at 205 Yorktown Drive and attempted to get the home owner to give him a phone so he could call his lawyer. When officers arrived at the Yorktown address they found the man on the front porch, he was allegedly impaired according to the arrest warrant.
The man identified as Zachary William Lock age 30 of Short Springs Rd Tullahoma allegedly admitted to Tullahoma Police that he did enter the two homes.
Wilder charged Lock with two counts aggravated burglary, public intoxication and assault. Lock was booked in at the Coffee County Jail under a bond of $22,500 and he will be in court on October 5, 2017.

Two Coffee County elementary schools have helped the Coffee County Sheriff’s Department.
School leaders and students at Hickerson and Deerfield elementary schools started their “Community Service Learning Project” raising pennies for K-9 bullet proof vests for the two dogs at the sheriff’s department.
As the project progressed students began bringing in other amounts of change and the schools also received anonymous donations. Hickerson raised just over $600 and Deerfield was able to generate over $900.
The vests were given to handlers Deputy Larry McKelvey and Deputy Jennifer Curbow for their K-9’s Yoshi and Max.
McKelvey and Curbow stated they are excited and thankful for the contribution that will help protect the K-9’s while the dogs are conducting their duties.

As part of National Preparedness Month, the Tennessee Office of Homeland Security recognized some of Tennessee’s most courageous and dedicated first responders on Monday Sept. 11, 2017, at Governor Bill Haslam’s Executive Residence.
Coffee County Sheriff’s Department Corporal Wendell Bowen and Deputy Wade Bassett were honored during the “Three Stars of Tennessee Awards”.
You may remember that on Monday June 19, 2017 there was shooting inside Coffee County Justice Center. An inmate was in the courthouse for a hearing on charges of domestic-related kidnapping, evading arrest and other charges.
The man attacked Bassett as the deputy was escorting the inmate to a transport van. The two engaged in a significant struggle with the inmate gaining control of the deputy’s weapon after severely biting Bassett’s hand. The man then shot the deputy, but his bullet proof vest protected him.
After making his way downstairs of the justice center the inmate then shot Deputy Wendell Bowen in the stomach, causing a severe injury.
Coffee County Sheriff Steve Graves said he is extremely proud of Bowen and Bassett. The sheriff added that he was happy to see these two outstanding men honored in this way.

Gas prices have begun to plateau for the first time in more than 15 days despite Hurricane/Tropical Storm Irma making landfall in the southeast. Holding steady for five days at $2.67, the national gas price average is just three cents more expensive compared to last week. Tennessee’s average increased to $2.59 – 4 cents higher than this time last week.
“Tennessee drivers should see gas prices begin to plateau soon,” said Stephanie Milani, Tennessee Public Affairs Director, AAA – The Auto Club Group. “However, wholesale prices were volatile last week reacting to the predictions of Hurricane Irma, so drivers may not see prices fall as quickly as they rose.”
Tennessee gas prices averaged $2.59 on Monday, an increase of 4 cents compared to last week.
The low price per gallon in Coffee County as of Tuesday afternoon could be found in both Manchester and Tullahoma at $2.39.

An audit has found that the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency has not updated the state’s endangered species list in 16 years, even though it is required to do so every two years.
Comptroller Justin Wilson’s office said in the audit released Tuesday that the state is also running afoul of an agreement with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to annually submit additions and deletions from the list of threatened species.
The audit finds that the failure to update the list since 2000 could put more species at risk of becoming extinct and could cause Tennessee to lose federal grants.
The head of the state wildlife agency’s biodiversity division was unaware of the reporting requirement until 2013, and officials are in the process of creating a new endangered species list.

On Friday September 8th, 2017 Manchester Police officers executed a search warrant at 1351 Rock Road in Morrison. Upon arrival, Jerry Ralph McLean age 50 of Summitville Rd Manchester and Randall Cowan Baker age 57 of Rock Rd Morrison were allegedly found to be in possession of approximately 3.5 grams of a white crystal substance believed to be methamphetamine. According to the arrest warrant, police also found a black pouch containing 4 separate plastic bags that contained approximately 37 grams of the same crystal substance, set of digital scales and several other pieces of drug paraphernalia. Also, allegedly found on McLean’s person, which was inside Baker’s home was a green leafy substance believed to be marijuana weighing 1.5 grams.

Bothe Mclean and Baker were charged by Manchester Police with a schedule VI drug violation, manufacturing/delivering/selling/possession of a controlled substance and unlawful drug paraphernalia uses and activities.
Both bonds were set at $153,000 each and they’ll appear in court on Sept. 19, 2017.

John Vanderveer was sentenced for his part in selling e-cigarettes to inmates, including the Rutherford County Adult Detention Center in Murfreesboro. The uncle of former Sheriff Robert Arnold was sentenced by a federal judge Monday to serve 12 months and one day in a federal prison and pay more than 52-thousand in restitution for obstruction of justice.
Vanderveer, who handled sales in the company, admitted during his plea that he formed the Georgia company, JailCigs, LLC, in October 2013 with Arnold and former sheriff’s office Chief Administrative Deputy Joe Russell to sell e-cigarettes to Rutherford County jail inmates and market the products to other jails nationwide.
Arnold is currently serving a 50-month prison term after pleading guilty to wire fraud, honest services fraud and extortion under color of official right. Russell is set to be sentenced in October on those same charges after his plea.