Daylilies are hereStewart Oakes of Oakes

Daylilies hand-delivered more than 400 daylily plants to the city of Maynardville last week.

The donated plants will go to beautify Highway 33 through Maynardville and public lands within the city limits. Varieties include Rooten Tooten Red, Lemon Lollypop, Mary’s Gold, Pardon Me and Siloam June Bug.

➤ Story and picture on page 2

Chamber updateThe Union County Chamber

of Commerce board of direc-tors met April 22 and approved a working budget for fi scal year 16-17.

The board extended the application process for a new president, a part-time, paid position, for May 2-9.

The Chamber will host a “meet and greet” from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. Friday, April 29, at the Ag Extension Offi ce.

Info: 865-992-2811 or email president@UCchamber-TN.com

What’s Earl up to? Union County’s native son

Earl J. Loy and his sister Pearl Coffey still live on the Loy’s Century Farm; a plot of land rich with Union County his-tory. The 150 acres has been in the family longer than Loy can remember and defi nitely for more than 100 years. Loy has wonderful memories of grow-ing up on his Hickory Valley homestead.

“We had lots of land to explore and a creek to play in,” said Loy. “What more could a feller want?”

➤ Read Cindy Taylor on page 3

Pick up extra copies atUnion County Senior Citizens Center

298 Main St. Maynardville(865) 922-4136

NEWS (865) 661-8777

news@ShopperNewsNow.comSandra Clark | Shannon Carey

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By Sandra ClarkRepublican Party chair Jody

Smith was ecstastic when House Speaker Beth Harwell agreed to

speak at this year’s Lincoln-Reagan Dinner. Not only did she drive over from Nashville, but she did it on the weekend be-fore the legisla-tive session’s end – always a hectic time.

Harwell got a big endorsement for a possible race for governor from state Sen. Frank Niceley.

“When the Democrats were in control, they raised some tax or another every year. … Since 2012 (when Harwell became speaker), we’ve not raised taxes at all. … and we’ve got a billion dollar surplus.

“She’s not made up her mind (about running for governor), but I’ve made up my mind. If she runs, I’ll back her,” said Niceley.

Harwell drew three standing ovations from the party faithful who fi lled the cafeteria at Union County High School. Also at-tending were state Reps. Dennis Powers, Jerry Sexton and Harry Brooks; U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleis-chmann; and Union County Mayor Mike Williams, a former legislator.

Harwell harkened back to the “big tent” theory of the Republi-can Party, noting that today’s de-bate seems to center on groups to throw out or keep inside. But she

By Shannon CareyAt Food City, Earth Day isn’t

just about hugging a tree. It’s about giving back to the commu-nity.

That’s why Maynardville’s Food City held a clothing drive in honor of Earth Day, recycling clothing to help friends and neighbors right here in Union County.

In just four short hours April 21, Food City patrons fi lled two watermelon crates with clothing donations, with more to come April 22.

“We want all our customers to know that we want to be good partners in the community,” said manager Scott Inklebarger.

He gave credit for the drive’s success to Maynardville Food City ECO coordinator Chris Lucy.

“Without folks like Chris, we’d never make it. She’s really made a big impact,” Inklebarger said.

Lucy gave credit right back to the community. “Union County has just come through,” she said.

ECO coordinator is a volunteer position that changes yearly, “to keep excitement up,” Inklebarger said. Every Food City has an ECO coordinator whose responsibili-ties include in-store recycling events, outreach to schools and checking to make sure the store’s systems are operating in the most energy-effi cient way possible.

So far, Lucy has participated in the Norris Lake clean-up, visited elementary schools with demon-strations and displays, and coor-dinated various recycling efforts. She even crocheted a handbag out of recycled plastic grocery bags.

Inklebarger asked everyone to watch for the Pack the Bus school supply drive over the summer.

Beth Harwell

Maynardville Food

City manager Scott

Inklebarger and ECO

coordinator Chris

Lucy stand in front

of two bins of cloth-

ing collected in one

day of the Food City

Earth Day Clothing

Drive. Photo by S. Carey

By Shannon Carey

Food City celebrates Earth Day with

Luttrell Mayor Johnny Merritt with his daughter, Hannah,

an architecture student at UT. “She’s living my dream,”

said the mayor, a contractor. “She will be drawing plans

while I’m reading them.” Photos by S. Clark

Former Property Assessor Ronnie Irick talks with interim

assessor Randy Turner after the Lincoln-Reagan Dinner.

Irick said he hired Turner i n the offi ce and he’s support-

ing him for election this summer. Turner stepped up

when Donna Jones died from cancer.

Harwell makes the case for GOP

preferred to talk about the three pillars, or posts, that support the tent – the core beliefs of Republi-cans.

■ Government is best that lives within its means, she said. Nash-ville Republicans have restored the state’s rainy day fund to its highest level and Tennessee is the third lowest-tax state in the na-tion. Tennessee is the lowest-debt state in the country.

Harwell talked of Gov. Bill Haslam’s trip to New York that resulted in an AAA bond rating. “We’ve ended the death tax, re-

pealed the gift tax and cut the sales tax on food twice. We re-formed our pension program and are one of just fi ve states that fully funds its pension plan.

“We balance our budget and we pay as we go.”

■ Government is best that gov-erns least. “We’ve eliminated 104 unnecessary laws,” as a result of a study Harwell launched to review regulations through various state departments. She also put a cap on the number of bills legislators can introduce. “I asked them to decide what’s most important.

“As government expands, free-doms decline. … Business owners say, ‘Leave me alone,’ and govern-ment does not create jobs; busi-nesses create jobs.”

■ Government is best when it’sclosest to the people. Harwell said we need fewer federal programs in health care and education and more attention at the state and lo-cal levels.

All-in-all it was a good speech for a House speaker and/or a can-didate for governor.

clothing drive

Nease signs with Thunderbirds

Brady Nease will travel more than 1,500 miles away from his comfortable confi nes of East Tennessee, all to chase a dream.

The former Union County High School Patriots basket-ball star signed April 17 with the Casper Thunderbirds, a junior college team way up in, you guessed it, Wyoming.

Nease was a prolifi c scorer in his time at Union County, averaging 23 points per game on 50 percent shooting in his senior season and earning All-District 3-AA honors.

Nease also fi nished second on the all-time scoring list with over 1,700 career points.

➤ Read Seth Norris on page 6

2 • APRIL 27, 2016 • UNION COUNTY Shopper news business

Chiropractors have a variety of treatments at their disposal. They may be best known for using their hands in adjusting your spine and joints, but they are also trained in the use of an assortment of techniques and equipment. One of them is ultrasound, which uses low- or high-frequency sound waves to penetrate and warm muscle and tissue. The chiropractor will fi rst ap-ply a gel to the skin in the area of treatment, then use a hand-held wand to direct the waves generated by the ultrasound machine, which is a small desk-top console. The procedure is totally painless.

Ultrasound is effective in treating muscle spasms and tightness by relaxing those muscles. The treat-ment can also hold down infl ammation and speed

healing by stimulating blood fl ow in an injured or tightened area. Physical therapists also routinely treat patients with ultra-sound.

One of the beauties of chiropractic treatment—in addition to the fact that it is a drug- and surgery-free form of treatment—is that it’s not a one-form-fi ts-all type of care. A doctor of chiropractic can treat pa-tients with an array of ap-proaches, ultrasound be-ing one of them. Massage, recommendations on diet, lifestyle, and establishing an exercise program are all options. Talk with your chi-ropractor about what form of treatment is best for you.

Presented as a community service by Union County Chiropractic; 110 Skyline Drive, Maynardville, Tenn.992-7000.

Chiropractic OutlookBy Dr. Darrell Johnson, DC

What is ultrasound therapy?

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Commercial Bank, with numerous branches in Knox and Union counties, has become the seventh largest community bank in Tennes-see with the acquisition of National Bank of Tennessee in Newport. Commercial Bank now has total assets approaching $1 billion.

Based in Harrogate, Commercial Bank is headed by Terry Lee. It is family-owned and was led for many

years by the late Oscar Rob-ertson.

National Bank was ac-quired through bankruptcy proceedings earlier this year.

“Customers will be able to thrive and grow as they take advantage of new tech-nology and exciting ben-efi ts that come with being a Commercial Bank custom-er,” said Lee.

By Shannon CareyStewart Oakes of Oakes

Daylilies hand-delivered more than 400 daylily plants to the city of May-nardville last week.

The donated plants will go to beautify Highway 33 through Maynardville and public lands within the city limits. Varieties include Rooten Tooten Red, Lemon Lollypop, Mary’s Gold, Par-don Me and Siloam June Bug.

Marie Rhyne, who co-chairs the Maynardville daylily committee with Carolyn Richardson, said locations receiving daylil-ies include the city of May-nardville entrance signs, industrial park entrances,

Cash Express thanks E-911In honor of 911 Appreciation Week, Maynardville Cash Express staff members dropped by the

Union County E-911 offi ce with a cake. Pictured here are Cash Express assistant manager Laura

Schrimph, Marty Smith and Brittney Crawford of E-911, and Cash Express manager Latecia Ma-

singo. Photo submitted

Stewart Oakes of Oakes Daylilies gives Marie Rhyne, Carol Pratt and Carolyn Richardson pointers on separating and bagging

daylilies. The plants will be placed along Maynardville Highway and on public lands to beautify Maynardville Photo by S. Carey

Commercial Bank grows again

The daylilies have landedBeverage Solutions Group, Dyer’s Flooring, David McCollough State Farm, Northern Midland Baptist Association and M and G Manufacturing.

Oakes said fl owers have history for the people of Union County.

“My mother was a Sharp from Sharps Chapel, and we moved when Norris Lake was built,” he said. “The Oakes were from that place as well. They all brought fl owers from their old home-

places. You can still see jon-quils and daffodils around old homeplaces that are long gone. People connect these daylilies with whoever they got them from.”

Oakes pointed to North Carolina’s beautifi cation ef-forts along the interstates with daylilies and red pop-pies.

“Union County doesn’t have an enormous amount of resources, but we can take pride with these daylil-ies just like people used to

do in their yards,” he said.“I especially appreciate

Marie Rhyne for pickingthis up and being a shot-gun in-charge person,” headded.

Rhyne said volunteersare needed to plant the day-lilies. Any who are interest-ed in helping should call herat 865-679-1071.

Oakes invited everyoneto the Bloom Festival openhouse at Oakes DayliliesJune 24-25. Info: oakesdaylilies.com

State Rep. Dennis Powers has been named to the Ju-

dicial Con-f i r m a t i o n Committee by House S p e a k e r Beth Har-well.

The ap-point ment comes after an opening

was created in the commit-tee following former com-mittee member Jon Lund-berg being called to active duty in the United States Navy.

The committee reviews the judicial nominees made by the governor and makes recommendations to the full House on whether the com-mittee believes the nomina-tion should move forward. In 2014, voters across Ten-nessee approved a consti-tutional amendment that

now requires the House and Senate to confi rm all appel-late judge appointees before they can be offi cially seated on the bench.

The committee met April 12 to vet and hear from J. Ross Dyer, who was appoint-ed by Gov. Haslam to the Court of Criminal Appeals.

Recently, Powers was recognized by the Tennes-see Development District Association for his work in economic development for the East Tennessee Devel-opment District.

Specifi cally, the group cited Powers’ support for:

■ Reallocation of oil and gas severance taxes for county governments

■ Establishment of a health insurance voucher program and

■ Support for school-funded residential internet connections for the virtual schools program.

Powers on Judicial Confi rmation Committee

Powers

Rep. Fleischmann had one memorable line: “Coal will never be a dirty word in my vocabulary. We need to mine it, we need to burn it, and we need to export it.”

Rep. Jerry Sexton, who represents part of Union County, spoke but never mentioned his bill to make the Bible the state book. Gov. Haslam vetoed the bill and Sexton was unable to get the veto overridden.

James Acuff, Grainer County guy who is oppos-ing Sexton in the primary, worked the room.

The food by Anderson Farms was superb. And Reagan was quoted more often than Lincoln.

Brock wins in photo contest Maynardville Elementary School

5th grader Lakin Brock brought home fi rst place in the landscape category and fi rst and second place in the ani-mal category in the countywide 4-H photo contest.

School faculty and staff congratu-late her on the achievement.

Case for GOP

Lakin Brock

MAYNARDVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARY ■ One-on-one classes are available by appointment for those

wanting to learn how to use computers and other devices. For

appointment: 992-7106.

■ Dia Day, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, April 30. Promoting Diversity in

the library and off ering information about programs available to

all the members of the community.

From page 1

UNION COUNTY Shopper news • APRIL 27, 2016 • 3 community

Union County’s native son Earl J. Loy and his sis-ter Pearl Coffey still live on the Loy’s Century Farm; a plot of land rich with Union County history. The 150 acres has been in the fam-ily longer than Loy can re-member and defi nitely for more than 100 years. Loy has wonderful memories of growing up on his Hickory Valley homestead.

“We had lots of land to explore and a creek to play in,” said Loy. “What more could a feller want?”

Even so, when Loy hit his late teen years he tried his hand at making moonshine.

“I made it and gave it away until my dad caught me. My dad never cussed except for that one time. I tore down the still not long after.”

Earl Loy in front of what may have been the fi rst homestead on the Loy farm.

Earl Loy on the porch of his childhood home. Renovations are currently in process. Photos by Cindy Taylor

Cindy Taylor

Looking back, stepping forward

The former Buckner School can be seen from the old home place. Loy’s moth-er, Edna Gilbert, taught there. The Alco Cox family wheat threshing is still held on the site and draws hun-dreds of folks each year. The family cemetery is also lo-cated on the Loy farm.

Well known in Union County, Loy has held mem-berships in the Ruritan Club, Optimist Club, J.C. Baker Lodge and is a 32nd degree Mason.

Loy was in the Army

1969 and 1970, was a mem-ber of the Army National Guard from 1975 to 1998, is a lifetime member of VFW and American Legion and is the current vice commander of the Tri-County Veterans Honor Guard.

“I’ve had many different jobs and been married so many times I should have written a book,” he said. “I’ve never been interested in reading or spelling but show me once how to tear down a motor and I can do it.”

Though well-traveled, Loy still says there’s no place like home.

“The biggest changes I’ve seen through the years is what Cecil Butcher did to help our businesses and how many new people have moved here. Right here in East Tennessee and Union

County is the best place I’ve been in my life.”

These days Loy is retired (sure he is), drives around town in his well-loved 30 year old Chevy pickup and stays busy raising cattle and keeping bees. He gives away more honey than he sells. He is also in process of ren-ovating his childhood home. Loy can often be found in the vicinity of the Maynard-ville Hardees if it’s close to meal time.

Loy loves being around people and staying active in the community. He is step-ping into the future as he makes a run for the offi ce of road commissioner for Dis-trict 4 in Union County. If that doesn’t work out he can always step back into his-tory doing work on his farm.Contact Cindy Taylor at ctaylorsn@

gmail.com

Woodhill students Dorothy

Breeden and Ronald Hill stand

in front of the school during a

Tom Thumb wedding circa

late 1940s; Hill’s grandparents

donated the land for Woodhill

School. Photos submitted

By Cindy TaylorWoodhill Elementary

School no longer exists, but for those who attended there the school history is very much alive in their hearts. Woodhill alumni held their 23rd reunion April 9 at Pleasant Gap Church to share a few of those memo-ries. With very little written history on the school, there are only a few students re-maining who can tell the tales of Woodhill.

Mary Gaylor Summers said her husband, Everett, and his older brother Earl Summers (both now de-ceased) attended the school. Everett was allowed to start at the school when he was only 4 because Earl refused to go without him. The two brothers were often the fi rst to arrive on winter mornings. Their role was to help prin-cipal and teacher, Alberta Coomer Loy, start the fi re so the building would be warm when the other students got there. Loy has also passed.

Madge Cain is a sister to Loy. One of Cain’s prize possessions is a copy of her sister’s journal, which docu-ments the starting of her career at the one-room Hill School in 1936. First through 6th grade students were taught in the single room.

Loy had two years of training and was single. Those were two of the re-quirements at the time for female teachers. She was at Hill School until it burned. According to the journal, Woodhill School was built on Hill Road in 1937, combin-ing Hill School and Woods School into one. With three classrooms that schooled

grades 1-8 and a cafeteria, the new school was a real step up for Loy. The land for the school was donated by the Nevada Hill family.

Loy tells in her journal of arriving early on winter school days to get the fi re started in the wood stove, the only form of heat in the school at the time. She was the fi rst principal and taught at the school for nine years. Loy’s journal may contain some of the oldest documented history of the school.

More than 20 alumni attended the reunion in-cluding sisters Ruth Norris Ballard and Louise Norris Fraker. Fraker was in the fi rst class to attend Wood-hill in 1937.

Alumni Ronald Hill brought the most extensive collection of information and past photos; many dat-ing back to the late 1930s and early 1940s. Accord-ing to those at the reunion, the last class at Woodhill School was held in 1964. Contact Cindy Taylor at ctaylorsn@gmail.

com

4 • APRIL 27, 2016 • UNION COUNTY Shopper news opinion

Ronnie Mincey

Bonnie Peters

Marvin West

Spring assessment: “We’re really a bad football team. We have a long way to go, we really do. The pass-ing game is terrible from an execution standpoint. The running game is nonexis-tent, and really, that’s about it. The kickers and punters are below average.”

Scrimmage summa-tion: “We weren’t very good. We were poor in pro-tections. We were poor in routes, we were poor in throws. The passing game didn’t look very good.”

Spring game stats: Thirty pass attempts, fi ve completions.

Summer perspective: “We’re not good enough anywhere right now. When you say ‘compete for an SEC championship,’ which

I ran into Sandra Greene, a Stuart Wyrick cousin, last week and she gave me an update on a friend and great musician who is adding to the musical map of Union County.

William Faulkner wrote in Light in August, “…how false the most profound book turns out to be when applied to life.” This is a polished way of saying that the “ideal” is always better than the “reality.”

From Dooley to Jones

Veterans soughtUnion County May-

or’s Offi ce is currently accepting applications for plaques to be placed on the veterans’ wall. Info: 992-3061.

Cheers!countless other traits. Ev-eryone just accepted (or at least tolerated) each other’s differences (and occasional indiscretions). I’ve never felt more comfortable any-where else in my life before or since.

But even as we basked in such a glorious atmosphere of tranquility, our beloved university was not exempt from stereotyping. LMU’s location in the heart of the Appalachians infl uenced the thinking of people from other parts of the country.

During my sophomore year, I had an economics professor who had previ-ously been in the upper management of a promi-nent grocery chain in a northern state. When he told his wife that he was go-ing to interview to teach at LMU and told her its loca-tion, she began to form an image of life close to Daniel Boone’s Cumberland Gap in Harrogate, Tenn.

Her thoughts might pos-sibly have been infl uenced by The Beverly Hillbillies and Petticoat Junction, for her husband stated that her amazement grew as the distance to LMU short-ened. She made statements such as, “These people are wearing shoes! They have electricity and telephones! These people have nice homes! Look how well dressed they are! They have fast food restaurants!”

Throughout the years, LMU has expanded and modernized. Present LMU students have access to multiple courses of study leading to career pathways that were not available in the 1980s.

Even so, on my infre-quent visits to LMU, I never fail to see someone who still “…knows (my) name, and they’re always glad (I) came.”

Next week I’ll share about faith well placed in another. Dr. Ronnie Mincey is supervisor for fed-eral programs for Union County Public Schools.

Bonnie Peters and Stuart Wyrick at Museum of Appalachia

Stuart Wyrick: Making Union County proud

My fi rst question and her answer put me into research mode. He’s playing banjo with the Dale Ann Bradley Band and on some Saturday nights at Cumberland Gap Music Show at the LMU Convention Center. Tenta-tive dates are May 28, June 18 and July 16, 2016; how-ever, dates are subject to change so be sure to check before driving the distance.

Now, I’m the fi rst to tell you I’m not up to date on current music and musi-cians. Tennessee Ernie Ford, Roy Acuff and Dolly Parton are more my speed. But I do my research, and now I feel like I know Dale Ann Bradley.

She was born and raised in Bell County, Ky., where her father was a Primitive Baptist preacher, close to and in a similar setting as Loretta Lynn. She’s won

the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) Female Vocalist of the Year fi ve times.

She is now located in Hillsville, Va., as home base for her national and interna-tional tours. She produced her latest album of 12 songs with the title cut called “Pocket Full of Keys.” This song was co-written with Si Kahn. She also wrote “Sol-diers, Lovers and Dream-ers” with Bill Tennyson.

Bradley has won the So-ciety for the Preservation of Bluegrass of America (SP-BGMA) seven times now, and the Dobro player in

her band, Phil Leadbetter, was nominated Dobro per-former of the year in 2014. The title cut for her album, “Somewhere South of Cra-zy” was written by Dale Ann and Pam Tillis and released in 2011.

Now about Stuart Wyrick … Stuart joined the Bradley band a number of years ago on the fi ve-string banjo. He performed with Brand New Strings and the band that won in the SPBGMA Band Contest in 2009.

Stuart cut his teeth on the musical strings of his father, Theodore “Ted” Wyrick, in the Little Tater Valley com-

munity of Union County. Many people enjoyed Ted’s music over many years at his weekly performances at Museum of Appalachia at Norris. During my frequent trips to the Museum, I al-ways made it a point to chat with Ted and his wife, Doro-thy, when she came along.

Others who entertain at the Cumberland Gap Music Show are Steve and Linda Gulley of New Pinnacle as well as guests from the Renfro Valley Barn Dance, where our own Esco Han-kins played for many years.

General directions are: Take Highway 33 to the Ew-ing, Va., exit on the right (which is just before the tun-nel – don’t go through the tunnel!) and then take the Cumberland Gap exit which is the fi rst exit on the left and follow the signs to the theater.

Stuart was a founding member of the gospel group New Road that recorded six albums. He recorded four albums with Better Way Quartet. His original group was known as The Tater Valley Boys. Stuart grew up on a farm and worked the tobacco and hay fi elds be-tween musical practices and jams. Stuart is a banjo play-er and vocalist to watch. The Union County Museum may just have to make room for another name on its wall!

is what we need to be do-ing here in this program, it’s hard to say there’s one posi-tion that is ready to compete for an SEC championship. It’s everything – there is no one area. We’re improved, but there’s a long way to go.”

***As you may have sur-

mised, those tidbits are from the Derek Dooley era of Tennessee football. The short set of numbers, fi ve of 30, belonged to Tyler Bray.

Tennessee went 5-19 against SEC foes in Dooley’s three seasons. Highlight was the inexplicable 52-14 rout of Ole Miss on home-coming 2010. The Vols led 21-0 after a quarter. I re-member wondering how did that happen, where did it come from?

Lowlight was the 10-7 loss to Kentucky when the Wildcats deployed a wide receiver at quarterback.

Correction: Worse was the 41-18 loss to Vander-bilt when the Commodores

took a knee to avoid an-other touchdown and being ripped for running up the score.

Try to remember what was said and done during the Dooley days. Together they form a very sound baseline for determining where we are in comparison with where we were.

I fret when Joshua Dobbs can’t connect with deep re-ceivers. Skip that part. He can run and is very smart, good leader, good at manag-ing a game. I was never con-vinced that Bray cared.

I grumble that Butch Jones doesn’t know when to go for two. His accomplish-ments are far beyond Dool-ey’s reach.

I sometimes chuckle at the endless fl ow of wasted words, each and every, coach-speak on a loop. In retrospect, the Jones script is terrifi c compared to how to take a shower.

Brick-by-brick recon-struction was one year slower than it had to be but Jones, after three years, is so far ahead of where Dool-ey left off after thre e, it is diffi cult to compare. You do remember Sal Sunseri, de-fensive coordinator? He had connections to 2012 school records – most points per-

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Catch up with all your favorite columnists every Wednesday at www.ShopperNewsNow.com

mitted (428) and most yards allowed (5,657).

Optimism regarding this upcoming season is run-ning briskly ahead of logic and reality. Tennessee is good but not good enough to take any SEC foe lightly. You will see in late September that Florida does not give up a decade of domination without a fi ght. A week later, Georgia will convince you that a new coach does not mean starting over.

I can almost guarantee that Tennessee at Texas A&M will be a street brawl on beautiful green grass.

These are hurdles along the route to the SEC cham-pionship game that some of my friends are taking for granted. Go ahead, invest boldly in tickets and choice lodging. Somebody will be playing in Atlanta in De-cember.

It can be the Volunteers if they all get well, do almost everything right, catch a few breaks and survive the heavyweight fi ghts.

Obvious: This is the best team Tennessee has had in several years.

Obvious 2: Dooley and Jones are from different worlds.Marvin West invites reader reaction. His address is westwest6@netzero.com

I have found this true in most of my undertakings, but not in my experience as a freshman student at Lincoln Memorial Univer-sity. LMU was to me “better than the book.” I thought it the most perfect place on earth, in great part due to its atmosphere of accep-tance.

I entered LMU as a 120-pound wonder wearing plastic framed glasses over a face full of acne. This was in fall of 1983, and though my “ward robe” of perma-nent press, bell bottoms and leisure suit coats had been out of style for years, I never felt I was treated with any less respect by professors, university staff or other students than the “preppiest” student enrolled.

It amazed me how a few hundred resident students from such different back-grounds could live in tight quarters in such peace and harmony. This was the era when Cheers was a popular television show, and soon many of us did come to know everybody’s name. It was comforting to return after a weekend at home to a place “…where every-body knows your name, and they’re always glad you came.”

LMU was truly a “melt-ing pot” of students of diverse talents, physical disabilities, ethnicity, reli-gious preferences, income levels, athletic ability and

UNION COUNTY Shopper news • APRIL 27, 2016 • 5

UNION COUNTY SERVICE GUIDE

SENIOR NOTES ■ Union County Senior

Citizens Center298 Main St.Monday-Friday8 a.m.-4 p.m.Info for all seniors groups: Melanie Dykes992-3292/992-0361

Upcoming event: Health Fair, 9-11 a.m. Thurs-

day, April 28.

■ Plainview SeniorsPlainview City Hall1037 Tazewell PikeMeets each fi rst Monday10 a.m.-12:30p.m.

■ Luttrell SeniorsLuttrell Community Center115 Park RoadMeets each third Monday10 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

■ Sharps Chapel SeniorsSharps Chapel Commu-nity Bldg.1550 Sharps Chapel RoadMeets each fi rst and third Wednesday10 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

FAITH NOTES ■ Alder Springs Missionary Baptist Church will hold a moving

celebration into its new building Sunday, May 1. Meet at the new

location, corner of Hickory Road and Little Valley, 9:45 a.m. for

parking and busing to the old location. The walk to the new loca-

tion will begin 10:15 a.m. Golf carts and gators will be available for

those unable to walk the distance. In the event of rain, meet at the

new location for 11 a.m. service. Everyone invited.

■ Hansard Chapel Methodist Church, located on Highway 33

across from Tolliver’s Market, hosts a food pantry 6-7 p.m. each

third Saturday. Gently used clothing is also available. Info: the Rev.

Jay Richardson, 776-2668.

■ Oaks Chapel American Christian Church, 934 Raccoon Valley

Road, will hold revival at the following times and dates: 7 p.m.

Friday, May 20; 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. Saturday, May 21; 11 a.m. and 6

p.m. Sunday, May 22; 7 p.m. weeknights. Evangelists are the Rev.

Boyd Myers and the Rev. Phil Seaton. Everyone welcome.

On a recent April morning I looked out our kitchen window toward the west and saw a sky that was blood-red. It was both beautiful and fright-ening, and odd, I thought, for the western sky to be red in the morning. It re-minded me of the old saw, “Red sky at morning, sail-or take warning.”

It also reminded me of a story my mother used to tell of a morning long be-fore I was born. One win-ter morning, a neighbor left his house to milk his cows and saw the aurora borealis streaking up the northern sky. He appar-ently didn’t know about the northern lights and was certain that it fore-bode the end of the world. I think it was my grandfa-ther, who lived across the road from him, who as-sured him that there was nothing to fear.

It was unusual, to be

[Jesus] answered them, “When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ And in the morning, ‘It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times.”

(Matthew 16: 2-3 NRSV)

A sign of the times

CrossCurrents

LynnPitts

sure, for the aurora to be so visible as far south as Tennessee. It does get one’s attention.

Which was, I think, Je-sus’ point. We take note of things that get our at-tention, and sometimes fail to attend to the things that are really important.

So what is important? What are the signs of our times?

I believe we need to be kinder, gentler, more gen-erous, more forgiving to-ward each other. I believe we need to be thoughtful about the future of our homes, our land, our na-tion, our dear little world.

I believe.

By Shannon CareyAlmost a year ago, the

Chapel of the Good Shep-herd Lutheran Church held its fi rst service in Sharps Chapel, the fi rst Lutheran church in Union County. Now, the intrepid congre-gation has land and plans to build a church on Sharps Chapel Road.

The church, led by Sunset Bay resident the Rev. Paul Kritsch, has been meeting in the Sharps Chapel Senior Center. Congregants Bill and Dawn Protzer recently gave the church a plot of land directly across Sharps Chapel Road from Old Val-ley Road.

“It was very generous, and it’s a beautiful loca-tion,” said church president Gary Krueger.

Now, the church is rais-ing money to build. Krueger donated a fi ve-acre tract in Norris Shores to the church and hopes that proceeds from its eventual sale will help fund the building, or the tract can be used as col-lateral for a loan through the Lutheran Church Exten-sion Fund.

Church leadership is looking at costs for various types of buildings and will present those to the congre-gation at the end of April. Kritsch plans to gather the congregation at the site May 22 to celebrate the church’s anniversary and bless the

The Rev. Paul Kritsch and Gary Krueger of the Chapel of the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church

stand on the future site of the church’s permanent building on Sharps Chapel Road. Congrega-

tion members Bill and Dawn Protzer donated the land. Photo by S. Carey

Land, building plans for Lutheran church

site through prayer.Right now, church ser-

vices draw around 10 peo-ple each Sunday. But since many congregants are re-tirees who travel, Kritsch estimates that “if everybody was in one spot,” the count would be 20 people.

With the nearest Luther-an church nearly an hour’s drive away, Kritsch antici-pates growth.

“We are positioning our-

selves for the people who are already here and the people who are going to move in,” said Kritsch. “It’s exciting. We have a chance as a congregation to put our stamp on something that’s new. We’re waiting for our Lord to return, and in the meantime we’ve got things to do. We’ve got to share his love with people.”

Krueger thanked the Protzers and everyone who

has contributed to the church so far. But, he said, every-thing that has happened so far or will happen in the fu-ture is in God’s hands.

“I’m not in charge,” he said. “God’s going to move in the way he wants to move. I don’t know if I’m riding shotgun or in the backseat, but God’s driving.”

Info: goodshepherd sharpschapel.org or 865-279-1279

By Cindy Taylor The highly anticipated

reveal of the new Clear Springs Baptist Church on Tazewell Pike is just around the corner.

At 9 a.m. on Sunday, May 1, church members and any who would like to join the parade will proceed by motorcade from the pres-ent facility to the new one. Worship will begin at 10:15 a.m. in the new sanctuary. The parade to the new fa-cility will most likely take around 30 minutes give or take. Overall the journey to the new facility has spanned 119 years.

According to senior pas-tor the Rev. Jerry Vittatoe, Clear Springs Church was originally launched at the corner of Thompson School Road and Woods Road in Corryton.

“Four facilities served us there with one being a brush-arbor dwelling,” he said. “With each new facil-ity God richly blessed the church.”

In 2004, with seating and parking at a premium, Vittatoe says it was con-cluded that to expand fur-ther the church would need to relocate. That same year 30 acres at Harbison Cross-roads became available and the church made the pur-chase.

The new church facil-ity has numerous features which make it more accom-modating including level parking, no entrance steps

CSBC new baptistery Photos by Cindy Taylor

Clear Springs Baptist Church senior pas-

tor, the Rev. Jerry Vittatoe, enjoys the

view from his unfi nished offi ce in the

new church building last May. Much has

changed since then both inside and out.

Tomorrow is an opportunity

and high visibility. The church will be accessible from both Emory Road and Tazewell Pike.

The new sanctuary will seat 1,200 with plans in place to open a 500-seat balcony when it is needed. Until then the balcony area will be used for Sunday school classes.

“This has been a jour-ney of faith from the begin-ning,” said Vittatoe. “People of vision led us to operate our church for many years based on only three Sunday offerings each month. The second Sunday offering was given totally to our building fund. God blessed this plan in some amazing ways.”

According to associate pastor the Rev. Eddie Perry, the church was a hidden gem on Thompson School Road for years. Now it can be a beacon on the hill on Tazewell Pike.

“Tomorrow is always an opportunity to witness,” said Perry.

Vittatoe says Clear Springs Baptist Church is a progressive family of believ-ers with just a touch of old fashioned. The choir and orchestra are renowned for their powerful, Sprit-fi lled worship. The preaching is a bold and loving proclama-tion of truth.

“Exciting is the word that best describes the overall tenor of our worship. We have every reason to believe God is going to continue to lead us on this journey.”

Pastors on staff at Clear Springs Baptist Church in-clude senior pastor the Rev. Jerry Vittatoe and associ-ate pastors the Rev. Damon Patterson, the Rev. James Marion and the Rev. Eddie Perry.

Beginning May 1, Clear Springs Baptist Church will

hold worship services in the new building at 7350 Taze-well Pike in Corryton. Info www.clearspringsbaptist.net or 688-7674.

Union County High School sophomore Breana Crowley was selected to attend the three-day NCCEP/GEAR UP Youth Lead-ership Summit in Washington, D.C., this summer.

Students submitted applica-tions and essays for the chance to represent Tennessee, and

only two students were selected across the state, one male and one female. Students will par-ticipate in training sessions and workshops to maximize and develop their leadership skills.

Breana is the daughter of Sandra Crowley.

6 • APRIL 27, 2016 • UNION COUNTY Shopper news

Crowley

kids

Free GED classes, tests availableAnyone in Union County seeking to earn their High

School Equivalency Diploma should sign up now for GED classes provided by Clinch Valley Adult Education. The state of Tennessee is currently paying all test fees for quali-fying students. Free classes and resources are also avail-able. Info/registration: Union County Adult Education, 992-0805.

Head Start accepting applicationsDouglas Cherokee Head Start is accepting applica-

tions for the 2016-2017 school year. The child must turn 3 or 4 years old by Aug. 15. Info/application: Corryton/Luttrell or Paulette/Big Ridge, 992-4155; Maynardville or Rutledge area, 992-8146; Central Point and Bean Station area, 828-6123.

TennCare Kids provides servicesTennCare Kids is Tennessee’s commitment to see that chil-

dren and teens have the best start to a healthy life. TennCare Kids is a free program of check-ups and health care services for children from birth to age 21 who are TennCare eligible, including health history, complete physical exam, lab tests as appropriate, immunizations, vision and hearing screen-ing, developmental and behavior screenings as appropriate, and advice on healthy living. Union Countians interested in the program should contact the Union County Health De-partment’s community outreach representative, Pam Wil-liams. Info: 992-3867, ext. 131.

By Seth NorrisBrady Nease will travel

more than 1,500 miles away from his comfortable con-fi nes of East Tennessee, all to chase a dream.

The former Union County High School Patriots basket-ball star signed April 17 with the Casper Thunderbirds, a junior college team way up in, you guessed it, Wyoming.

Nease was a prolifi c scorer in his time at Union County, averaging 23 points per game on 50 percent shooting in his senior sea-son and earning All-District 3-AA honors. Nease also fi nished second on the all-time scoring list with over 1,700 career points.

He gave himself credit for his success as a Patriot, but knows it would not have been the same without the help of his family and head coach Shane Brown.

“I just worked hard and tried to be the best I could be,” said Nease, “Coach put me in great positions to make plays, and I’m thank-ful for my family making the sacrifi ces they have, because none of this is pos-sible without them.”

This will not be his fi rst college team, though; he is currently enrolled at Roane State Community College and was a member of the Raiders basketball team this

The Union County High School girls tennis team brought home another District win. They traveled to Pigeon Forge and defeated them 7-2. The Patriot girls are 5-1 in the dis-trict. They take on Grace Academy Thursday and their last match of the season is against Carter on Tuesday at home.

In the boys match freshman Conner Smith won his sin-gles match 8-6.

Girls’ resul ts in singles were: ■ Sierra Womble (UC) d Natalie Holbert 8-2 ■ Sierra Clabough (UC) d Peyton Doby 8-0 ■ Tamera Summers (UC) d Layla Daughtery 8-1 ■ Neilea Hanson (UC) d Iris Loveday 8-5 ■ Lexy Headley (UC) d Jenna Huskey 8-6 ■ McKenzie Daniels (UC) lost to Kaitly Hill 0-8 ■ Girls’ results in doubles were: ■ Womble/Clabough (UC) d Holbert/Doby 8-3 ■ Summers/Headley (UC) d Daughtery/Loveday 8-3 ■ McKenzie/Maddie Wallace lost to Huskey/Hill 0-8

UCHS tennis scheduleTuesday, April 26, 4:30

p.m., vs Carter Tuesday, May 3, 4 p.m. –

Coaches meeting to seedFriday-Saturday, May

6-7, singles/doubles District at Pigeon Forge

Monday-Tuesday, May 16-17, singles/doubles Re-gionals, venue TBD

Tuesday-Friday, May 24-27 – State fi nals

Tennis Patriots

net district win

Crowley to attend Youth Summit

Union County High School graduate Brady Nease signs to play with Casper College in Wyoming. Photo submitted

Nease signs with Casper

season. Nease did not see any playing time this year. As a redshirt freshman, he sat out to improve on his game. He feels his short time there will be benefi cial when he heads up to Casper.

“I got adjusted to the speed of the game and hit the weights hard,” said

Nease. “It really helped me.”This leads to the ques-

tion of “Why leave so soon?” For Nease, it was simple: a better opportunity. Nease is going after a dream many don’t think is possible, and that’s to be on a scholarship for a Division I basketball squad.

The Casper College Thun-derbirds have had several players sign to D1 schools in the past, like Northern Colorado, Portland State, Nevada, Utah State. Casper is frequented by D1 scouts.

Nease says Casper’s coach, Dan Russell, reached out to him after hearing from Curtis Condie, a for-mer assistant at Utah Valley who recruited Nease when he played for the Patriots. After sending fi lm and be-ing in contact with Russell, the rest was history, and Nease ultimately signed to play for the Thunderbirds. The decision to leave May-nardville and family was not an easy one, though.

“It was tough, because of course my mom and dad want me to stay home,” said Nease, “but at the same time, I feel like it’s best for my bas-ketball career to possibly earn a scholarship out there.”

To be a successful athlete in any capacity takes sacri-fi ces, and he says he is will-ing to do that to reach his goal.

“It’s just about sacrifi ce, what you’re willing to give to get what you want,” said Nease, “I don’t want to sit around all my life and think ‘What if I wouldn’t have done this?”

Nease will offi cially en-roll to Casper in August.

UNION COUNTY Shopper news • APRIL 27, 2016 • 7

THROUGH FRIDAY, SEPT. 16Online registration open for the Marine Mud

Run, to be held Saturday, Sept. 17. Individual waves, 8 a.m.; team waves, 11:30 a.m. Course: 3 miles of off-road running, which entails some obstacles, hills and mud pits. Registration deadline: Friday, Sept. 16, or until total registrants reaches 3150. Info/registration: knoxmud.org.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 27Bits ‘N Pieces Quilt Guild meeting, 1 p.m., the

Community Center in Norris. Program: “Modern Day Quilting” presented by Diana Bishop, owner of Stitches ‘N’ Stuff. There will be a “Sit and Sew” at 9:30 a.m. Bring your own project and a bag lunch or break for lunch at our local restaurant. Info: Mary Jane Berry, 494-7841.

“Harry Potter, Higher Education and Popular Culture,” 5 p.m., UT Medical Center’s Health Information Center Conference Room, 1924 Alcoa Highway. Presented by guest speaker Professor Jake Hamric from Pellissippi State Community College as part of the “Harry Potter’s World: Renaissance Science, Magic and Medicine” exhibit. Exhibit on display through May 21. Info: 305-9525.

International Folk Dance Class, 7:30-10 p.m., Claxton Community Center, 1150 Edgemoor Road, Clinton. Info: Paul Taylor, 898-5724; oakridgefolkdancers.org; on Facebook.

THURSDAY, APRIL 28Robotics at the Library, 5 p.m., Burlington

Branch Library, 4614 Asheville Highway. For teens. New members welcome. Info/registration: Nicole Barajas, nbarajas@knoxlib.org, or 525-5431.

FRIDAY-SATURDAY, APRIL 29-30Annual rummage sale, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday

and 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday, Blessed Teresa of Calcutta Catholic Church, 4365 Maynardville Hwy, Maynardville. Items include furniture, appliances,

children items, household and more. All proceeds go to the Church Building Fund.

FRIDAY-SUNDAY, APRIL 29-MAY 1“The Best Man” performed by the Encore Theatrical

Company, 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday, Walters State Community College Morristown campus. Info/tickets: etcplays.org or 423-318-8331.

SATURDAY, APRIL 30Church rummage sale, 8:30 a.m.-2 p.m., Fountain

City UMC, 212 Hotel Road. Rain or shine. $3 Brown-bag-a bargain, noon.

Oak Ridge Community Orchestra concert, 12:30-1:30 p.m., Market Square. Part of the Dogwood Arts Festival events. Free. Everyone welcome.

Relay For Life East Anderson County, 2 p.m., downtown Clinton on the streets around the courthouse. Activities include: walk, silent auction, food, car show, entertainment. Closing ceremonies, 10:30 p.m. Info: Kelly Lenz, 457-1649 or cptcklenz@aol.com; relayforlife.org/eastandersontn.

SCHAS Union County’s Ride for Independence, 11 a.m.-1 p.m., Li’l Jo’s Barbeque on Maynardville Pike. Fee: $20, single riders; $30, couples. Includes T-shirt and meal. Live music, silent auction and door prizes. Info: events@schas.org or 992-9886.

Singing, 7 p.m., Mount Harmony Baptist Church, 819 Raccoon Valley Road NE.

Singing, 7 p.m., Oaks Chapel American Christian Church, 934 Raccoon Valley Road. Many singers expected. Everyone welcome.

Singing, 7 p.m., Union Missionary Baptist Church. Featuring: The Going Home Singers, Grace to Glory, Green Acres Baptist Church and Washburn Baptist Church. Everyone welcome.

MONDAY, MAY 2American Legion meeting, 7 p.m., 140 Veteran St.,

Maynardville. All veterans are invited. Info: 387-5522.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 4International Folk Dance Class, 7:30-10

p.m., Claxton Community Center, 1150 Edgemoor Road, Clinton. Info: Paul Taylor, 898-5724; oakridgefolkdancers.org; on Facebook.

THURSDAY, MAY 5Big Ridge 4th District Neighborhood Watch

meeting, 7 p.m., Big Ridge Elementary School library. Info: 992-5212.

MONDAY, MAY 9The Dollywood Penguin Players will perform a

storybook after school, 3:30 p.m., Luttrell Public Library community center room. A popcorn and water snack will be provided. All ages welcome.

FRIDAY-SUNDAY, MAY 6-8“The Best Man” performed by the Encore

Theatrical Company, Walters State Community College Morristown campus. Performances: 8 p.m. Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday. Info/tickets: etcplays.org or 423-318-8331.

SATURDAY, MAY 7“College Financial Planning” workshop,

10:30 a.m., Halls Branch Library, 4518 E. Emory Road. Presented by Darrell Keathley, COFFE. Info: 922-2552.

Plant sale, 8 a.m.-2 p.m., Heiskell UMC, 9420 Heiskell Road.

SATURDAY-SUNDAY, MAY 7-8Blooms Days Festival and Marketplace, 9 a.m.-

5 p.m., UT Gardens, 2518 Jacob Drive. Cost: $8, one day; $12, both days. Featuring: specialty plants, unique garden goods, live music, garden workshops, children’s activities and more. Info/schedule of workshops: utgardens.tennessee.edu.

TUESDAY, MAY 10Paulette 6th District Neighborhood Watch

meeting, 7 p.m., Paulette Elementary School cafeteria. Info: 992-5212.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 11International Folk Dance Class, 7:30-10

p.m., Claxton Community Center, 1150 Edgemoor Road, Clinton. Info: Paul Taylor, 898-5724; oakridgefolkdancers.org; on Facebook.

THURSDAY, MAY 12Union County Family Community and

Education (FCE) clubs spring luncheon and meeting, 10:30 a.m., Community Baptist Church on Highway 61 West. “Music in the Air ... the Musical Heritage of East Tennessee” covered dish luncheon will be hosted by the Big Ridge FCE Club. Guest speaker: Jack Neely, executive director of the Knoxville History Project. The community is invited. RSVP by May 1 to Gloria Halcomb, 585-4774.

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8 • APRIL 27, 2016 • UNION COUNTY Shopper news