Category: News

They showed courage and heart while serving in the U.S. Armed Forces, and now that same grit and determination is on display at the 34th annual National Veterans Wheelchair Games. Some 600 veterans with disabilities representing states across the nation – including Tennessee – are taking part in the games this week. Director David Tostenrude said it’s part of their rehabilitation programming, which uses sports and recreation as tools to help them stay active and independent. “Throughout the week they’re competing,” he said, “but they’re also learning about opportunities and equipment that’ll help them go home and continue to participate in their communities, with their family, friends, etc.” The National Veterans Wheelchair Games are being held in Philadelphia through Sunday with competitions across 18 events, making it the largest annual wheelchair sports event in the world. Tostenrude said regular activity for those individuals with disabilities is key for their health – not only physically, but also mentally. “The disabled veterans that are engaged in sports and recreation are more fit,” he said. “They have more skills to be independent and therefore, they have better lives, they have better relationships, they’ll be able to return to work versus being depressed.” In Tennessee, efforts are ongoing for people with disabilities seeking ways to stay active. One is a series of adaptive climbing clinics, with the next on Aug. 23 in Nashville. The event is presented by Catalyst Sports; its executive director, Eric Gray, said they’ve found ways to adapt the sport so anyone with any disability can experience rock climbing. “Being able to accomplish something, such as making it to the top of the wall when they first thought that they couldn’t.” he said. “Getting the confidence from that then builds them up to take that into their life and say, ‘Well, if I can do this, I can do anything.’ “In addition to the indoor climbing clinics, Catalyst Sports also has outdoor climbs. Its next big event takes participants up Table Rock Mountain in North Carolina for a Sept. 11 “tribute climb” for veterans with disabilities. More information is online at va.gov and climbnashville.com.

Manchester Fire & Rescue, along with the Muscular Dystrophy Association, will celebrate working for 60 years with firefighters with the annual Fill the Boot fundraising campaign to benefit children and adults affected by muscle disease. Due to a city ordinance firefighters postponed yesterday’s start to the fundraising and changed locations. Manchester Fire & Rescue members will be out with their boots on August 15-17 at the entrances to Wal-Mart from 9am-5pm.
Funds raised during the Manchester Fill the Boot event will help support MDA’s programs of worldwide research, specialized health care services, and day-to-day support – which includes sending children affected by muscular dystrophy and related diseases to a weeklong, barrier-free MDA summer camp.

The Motlow College honors program will host its first annual Survival Run fundraiser on the Moore County campus Sept. 13, according to Dr. Scott Cook, associate professor of history and honors program coordinator.
On-site registration for the event will begin at 6 p.m. at the Forrester Student Center, and participants are invited to enjoy concessions and play volleyball in the courtyard after checking in. Zombie makeup will also begin at 6 p.m., with the run commencing at 8 p.m.
“The Survival Run will serve as a fundraiser that will raise money for trips that promote learning outside the classroom,” said Dr. Cook.
The run is a game where the goal for contestants is to become zombies. Each runner will begin the race with five flags and a yellow glow stick. Once all of a runner’s flags are taken, the runner must pick up a blue glow stick from a water station and become a zombie. The run ends when all runners become zombies.
A prize will be awarded to the last runner remaining and the zombie with the most flags. Both will receive free entry to the 2015 Survival Run.
The entrance fee for the run is $20 with the application due Sep. 5. Participants may register onsite the day of the race for $25. Zombie shirts may be purchased for an additional $20, but can only be preordered and will not be available the day of the race.
The entry application can be accessed on the Motlow College honors program website (www.mscc.edu/honors) and should be submitted to: Dr. Scott Cook, Motlow College Honors Program, P.O. Box 8500 Lynchburg, TN 37352-8500. Checks should be made out to MSCC. Please write Honors Program in the memo section.

The Tullahoma Police Department continued the investigation of the suspicious package discovered at the Wal-Mart, N. Jackson St, on Saturday, Aug 9. As a result of the investigation, Detectives were able to determine the person responsible for the package. The investigation revealed an employee of the construction company had removed some mechanical displays during renovation. The employee disassembled the mechanical display and kept the lower portion which consisted of a box, battery pack, motor, shaft and wire with an on/off switch. The lower mechanical assembly was placed on the curb while the employee continued working. At the end of the work day the employee forgot the item and left for the weekend. Upon returning to work Monday morning the employee learned of the event and the description of the suspicious package. The investigation confirmed that the mechanical displays were indeed present in the store and were removed as part of the renovation process.
The investigation is closed as no criminal intent is established.
The presence of suspicious packages should always be treated with caution, and employers should encourage employees to be familiar with their work environment and remain attentive to the presence of packages and items that are out of place. The police should be contacted anytime a suspicious item is discovered. The Police Department would like to commend all involved in this incident and the manner in which it was handled. Safety is always the priority.

The Tennessee Highway Patrol will be conducting sobriety checkpoints in Coffee County on Aug. 16.
Recognizing the danger presented to the public by unqualified drivers, troopers will concentrate their efforts on vehicles being operated by drivers who would violate the driver license laws of the state.
The Tennessee Highway Patrol has found that driver license roadside safety checkpoints are an effective means of enforcing driver license laws of Tennessee while ensuring the protection of all motorists.
The scheduled checkpoints are contingent upon manpower and weather conditions.

Coffee County will be opening a jail soon and now another area county will begin the process of building a new facility.
The Grundy County Commission is finally ready to accept bids for a new jail. Contractors have until September 4 to file sealed bids for the projected 96-bed detention center. The new facility will be located behind the courthouse in the town of Altamont.
Estimates show the bare-bones type of facility being built for a cost between $6 million and $6.5 million.
The current jail, built in the 1970s, remains uncertified since 1990s. At that time, state officials determined the capacity at 32 inmates. Throughout the last two decades, the jail has consistently housed upward of 50 inmates at a time.
The exiting Grundy County Jail was closed July 16 by the State Fire Marshal’s Office after extensive violations were found with the electrical system. Those problems have since been corrected.
The inmates had to be moved to other jails across middle and west Tennessee for housing. They have since been returned to the jail.

The winner of the Coffee County District 14 commissioner’s race is no one, the vote remains tied. According to Vernita Davis Administrator of Elections in Coffee County, the person who cast a provisional ballot last Thursday did not vote in for either candidate. She added that the Coffee County commissioners will now decide in September who will be the person that will represent District 14.
Proper identification had to be shown so the vote could be counted and that was done on Monday. The race remains deadlocked between Missy DeFord and Lamar Wilkie with 254 each, the same as it was after last Thursday’s election.

A Tullahoma woman was arrested last weekend for allegedly injuring her 3-year-old stepdaughter.
Katrina Leigh Ratzlaff, 23, of Anthony Lane was arrested Aug. 8 on charges of child abuse or neglect by sheriff’s investigator James Sherrill after she allegedly admitted to kicking the child and fracturing the girl’s femur. According to warrants, she admitted to kicking the girl.
Ratzlaff allegedly kicked the child after getting angry at the little girl.
The woman is being held in the Coffee County Jail under a $100,000 bond.
Meanwhile, her husband Michael Lee Ratzlaff, 26, is charged with failing to report a brutality, neglect or abuse of a child in the case.
He allegedly knew of the incident but made false statements to hospital personnel about the incident involving his daughter.
Both are due to appear in Coffee County General Sessions Court Aug. 26.