Category: News

A Tullahoma woman died recently after being involved in a two vehicle crash on East Lincoln Street.
According to a report by Tullahoma Police Sgt. Cody Brandon, Barbara Jean Holder, 75, of Westview Avenue died at Tennova—Harton Hospital as the result of the accident. According to police it occurred after she pulled her Ford Taurus out from Wesley Street onto East Lincoln Street.
According to the police report, she turned onto Wesley Street into the path of a Chevrolet Trailblazer operated by Jennifer Marie Pemberton, 22, of White Street, Shelbyville.
A witness to the accident told the officer that he pulled Holder from her vehicle and began CPR after he realized that she was not breathing.
Coffee County Ambulance Service arrived and transported her to Tennova—Harton Hospital where she died.
Pemberton nor her 4-year-old son were injured in the accident.

The body of a boy was found on the Duck River in Shelbyville two days after a 9-year-old went missing in the water.
Dreyton Sims was in the area of Fisherman’s Park on the Fourth of July when he and his brother disappeared.
His brother was rescued by a passerby, but Dreyton never resurfaced.
Rescue crews faced dangerous water conditions in their search with water levels rising rapidly and creating strong currents.
But after two days of searching, a young boy’s body was found lodged against a tree on the surface of the water, according to Scott Johnson with the Bedford County EMA. (WKRN-TV)

The Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance wants to help consumers avoid getting scammed by offering tips on how to navigate air conditioning repair.
TDCI Consumer Affairs Director Cynthia Wiel said following the manufacturer’s recommended maintenance instructions for your air conditioner can help you avoid costly after-hours emergency repair. If repairs are necessary, they encourage Tennesseans to research and find a technician or company with a solid reputation.
TDCI offers the following tips to help consumers avoid air-conditioning repair scams:
-Check your air-conditioner’s warranty, model system, and maintenance history before authorizing any repairs.
-Always ask for written estimates and statements.
-Do not accept quotes for repairs of new units over the phone without first being shown the problem by the technician.
-Beware of ads with quoted prices and offers that seem too cheap or too good to be true.
-Get multiple quotes.
-Be wary if you’re told several components need to be replaced at once. In many cases, multiple parts aren’t functioning because only one part is broken.
-Closely supervise the repair process to ensure your technician isn’t charging you for something they didn’t do.
-Be on guard if you are told that refrigerant should be added to the air unit every spring. This could be a scam. Any reputable contractor will detect a leak through a pressure test or dye, and will repair the leak. An air conditioning system should never leak refrigerant regularly.

Al White Motors and WMSR (Thunder Radio) are teaming up to honor those who serve that thin blue line, our local law enforcement. Each month someone in law enforcement will be honored as a Hometown Hero. Our heroes for the month of July are Coffee County deputies, Wendell Bowen and Wade Bassett.
Bowen has been an employee of the Coffee County Sheriff’s Department since February, 1999. He started as a Corrections Officer and became a Corrections Sergeant in 2000. In September, 2002 he was promoted to a road deputy and eventually to a Corporal as second in command of his shift. In February, 2016 when a position for a court officer was posted he showed interest and was moved to the courts as a Corporal. Wendell is very active with the Sheriff’s Department and loves animals. Bowen gets calls to help the Humane Society when they need assistance with animals.
Wendell has always been available to help anyone in the community and an important part of the Sheriff’s Department family.

Wade Bassett worked as a reserve deputy for the Coffee County Sheriff’s Department for several years and after his retirement from his previous job he started with the Sheriff’s Department as a part-time employee taking transports for medical, youth services and corrections. In Jan, 2007 he became a full time court officer and a part time transport officer. When a full time transport/court officer was needed in October, 2015; Bassett moved into that position.
These Men are vital employees of the Sheriff’s Department and our community.
We are continuing to ask for the public’s help for more hometown heroes. Go to our Facebook page or the Al White Ford Lincoln Mercury Facebook page to nominate a law enforcement official. Tell us why you think someone that serves Coffee County in law enforcement deserves to be chosen as a “Hometown Hero.” The man or woman that is selected each month will be recognized on WMSRradio.com and receive a nice surprise from Al White Motors.
Thank you to all that serve and protect us, our Hometown Heroes.

Authorities as of late Wednesday afternoon were continuing to search for a 9-year-old boy believed to have drowned in Duck River in Shelbyville late Tuesday afternoon.
Investigators said the boy and his 11-year-old brother were swimming near Fisherman’s Park in downtown Shelbyville about 4 p.m. when they began yelling for help.
Bedford County Rescue crews continue looking for Dreyton Sims, first focusing on the area near the dam before they moved down river.
Dreyton’s brother was pulled to safety by a good Samaritan.
Sims was last seen wearing khaki shorts and black and white Nike Jordans.
Search teams from Coffee and Rutherford County responded to the scene on Wednesday.

The estimated 37.5 million Americans who hit the road on Independence Day found the lowest gas prices for the holiday in more than a decade, according to AAA, whose data is collected from credit card swipes and direct feeds from 120,000 gas stations nationwide, in cooperation with OPIS and Wright Express.
Although the national average of $2.23 was the lowest for the holiday in 12 years, state averages in the southeastern U.S. were the lowest in 13 years. On July 4, 2017, gas prices averaged $1.99 in Tennessee – 7 cents less than a year ago, and the lowest price for the holiday since 2004.
The lowest price for a gallon of gas in Coffee County this week is $1.91 in Manchester and $1.92 in Tullahoma.

Honor Flight of Middle Tennessee will make its next flight to Washington DC on Wednesday, September 13, 2017. Free trips, including meals, are provided to any terminally ill veteran, veterans of WW2, and Korean War veterans to see the war memorials, Changing of the Guard Ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington Cemetery and dinner at Fort Meade MD.
Mobility issues or the use of oxygen are not a problem for these trips. Also, a doctor, at least two nurses and Guardians accompany each trip. Bus transportation to and from the Nashville Airport is provided or veterans may meet the group at the airport. Vietnam War veterans with at least a 70% VA disability “Due to Exposure to Agent Orange” may also apply and will be seated as space becomes available.
For a Veteran Application please contact Larry Williams at 931 224-3226 or tennesseans2@blomend.net. For questions or additional information please contact Rob Moreland at 931 224-0610.
Tax deductible donations to assist in funding these free trips for veterans may be sent to Honor Flight of Middle Tennessee, PO Box 1926, Tullahoma, TN 37388.

If more than half of the kids in our local schools can’t afford lunch, it’s unlikely that their families can afford school supplies. Having school supplies is vital to a child’s educational success, yet thousands of children arrive at our local classrooms each day without the necessary tools for learning. While the situation may seem grim, we are proud to share with you a way that United Way of Coffee and Moore counties is becoming part of the solution – and how YOU can help!
United Way of Coffee and Moore Counties will be hosting the Live United School Supply Drive from now until July 24. They will be supporting children in need by providing school supplies for the upcoming academic year. The Live United School Supply Drive program provides disadvantaged children in all school systems under their service area with the tools they need for learning. When a child receives supplies from United Way, they are able to engage in school and succeed.
SUPPLIES NEEDED
Crayons, Markers, Colored Pencils, Scissors, Rulers, Spiral Notebooks, 3 Ring Binders, Velcro Binders, Filler Paper, Glue Sticks, Pencils, Notebook Paper (Wide Ruled)
DROP-OFF LOCATIONS
Walmart (Tullahoma and Manchester); Ollie’s Bargain Outlet (Tullahoma); Dollar General (214 W. Lincoln St., Tullahoma); United Way of Coffee and Moore Counties Office (101 W. Lincoln St., Tullahoma)
RUN A COMPANY SCHOOL SUPPLY DRIVE
If your office would like to get involved by participating in the drive, please contact UWCMC and they will bring a box to you!
DONATE FINANCIALLY
Monetary donations can be mailed to United Way of Coffee and Moore Counties, PO Box 27, Tullahoma, TN 37388.
For more information, contact: Jennifer Neel at cmcunitedway@gmail.com

The Middle Tennessee Association of REALTORS® recently presented their annual college scholarships to 6 high school seniors in the 8-county area served by the Association. Each student received a $1,000 scholarship award. The recipients were chosen from 69 applicants this year.
This year’s recipients included Matthew DeLong, a Coffee County High School graduate, he plans to attend MTSU and will major in accounting.
MTAR accepts scholarship applications each spring from high school seniors planning to attend an accredited 2-year or 4-year college or university which is physically located within the 8-county MTAR area. The students must also live within the 8-county area. This year’s scholarships are for fall 2017 and spring 2018. The recipients may use them for any expense that they may incur. Scholarship applications are distributed to every high school in the 8-county area in January of each year.

Early Tuesday morning, (July 4, 2017) North Coffee Volunteer Fire Department, Coffee County deputies, Coffee County EMS and other volunteer fire departments were called to MG England Road for a structure fire.
After arriving on the scene around 12 AM, Deputy Joey Ricco was able to make contact with the property owners and they advised that everyone was out of the house. At this time several fire departments were on scene and were able to get control of the fire.
The home owner stated that a female was asleep in the pool house, noticed the flames and went into the house to wake up other family members.
The owner told Deputy Ricco that the home and contents were valued at $350,000. Vehicles damaged outside were; 2017 Ford F-350, 2015 Ford Expedition, 2011 Jeep Liberty, 2010 Jeep Wrangler, 2012 Chevrolet 1500 and a 2016 Ford C-Max. This brought the total amount of damages total to $591,000.
The Red Cross arrived to assist the family.