News
Smithville Church of Christ Gearing Up for Annual Work Camp to Help Others
May 24, 2025
By: Dwayne Page
Need some minor fix up, cleanup projects done around your home?
The Smithville Church of Christ Work Camp may be able to help. This event is set for June 9-12. The work camp is an annual home rehabilitation and beautification effort organized by the Smithville Church of Christ. The church started the work camp 13 years ago as a means of helping less fortunate residents of the county.
“The week of June 9-12 is when we will have the work camp. We are doing this on behalf of the church. We are trying to show Christ’s love through this while promoting the Smithville Church of Christ, but you don’t have to be a member of the church for us to help you,” said spokesperson Casey Midgett.
“All the application forms are out at the local banks. You can stop by any bank and pick up a form or you can go by our church location and get a form. Just get the forms back in before June 1,” said Midgett.
During the week of the work camp, members of the church load up on church vans and head to the homes of residents to perform a variety of tasks.
The work camp is primarily for those who own their homes and are in most need of help.
“Its based-on need but even If you have the means to do it and can’t because you’re too feeble we can help. The skilled crew will build handicapped ramps and help make light repairs to people’s houses that need it. The unskilled crew will go out and cut brush out of people’s yards, clean their gutters, pressure wash their houses and things like that,” said Midgett.
The Smithville Work Camp concentrates its efforts in the Smithville-DeKalb County area. If you would like to have your home considered for the project, contact the church at 615-597-4159 by the end of the month to acquire an application and release form. The church is located at 520 Dry Creek Road, Smithville.
DeKalb County Schools Art Exhibit Today (Saturday, May 24)
May 24, 2025
By: Dwayne Page
The DeKalb County Schools Art Exhibit will be Saturday, May 24 featuring works of local art students. The annual event, sponsored by the Smithville Study Club, will be held from 1-3 p.m. at the DeKalb County Complex at 712 South Congress Boulevard. The public is invited to attend. For more information contact Art Chair Susan Hinton at 615-597-9300 or Smithville Study Club President Elaine McGuffey.
FSA County Committee Election Nomination Period Underway
May 24, 2025
By:
Donny Green, DeKalb-Cannon County FSA County Executive Director, announces that the nomination period for the 2025 Farm Service Agency (FSA) County Committee Election is underway. The nomination period continues through August 1, 2025.
“I encourage all producers to participate in the county committee election process by nominating candidates by the August 1 deadline,” said Green. “We are counting on as much participation as possible, because county committees are an important link between the farm community and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. We have seen a trend in recent years of increased nominations of minority, beginning farmers, and women producers and we hope that will continue.”
Committees apply their judgment and knowledge to make decisions on county commodity price-support loan eligibility, establishment of allotments and yields, conservation programs, disaster programs, employment and other farm program-related issues. Nationwide, there are more than 7,700 farmers and ranchers serving on FSA county committees. Committees consist of three to 11 members who are elected by eligible local producers. Members serve three-year terms.
To be eligible to serve on an FSA county committee, a person must participate or cooperate in a program administered by FSA, be eligible to vote in a county committee election and reside in the local administrative area in which the person is a candidate.
Nominees must reside in Local Administrative Area (LAA) for which they are seeking to be elected. For the 2025 Election, the DeKalb-Cannon FSA County Committee Election will conduct the election in LAA # 3 (DeKalb County).
Below is the description of the LAA that will be conducting election this year:
Local Administrative Area # 3, the portions of DeKalb County described as following:
East of Hwy. 56 South beginning at the DeKalb/Warren county line, following Hwy. 56 in a northern direction to the intersection of Highway 56 and Highway 70; south of Highway 70 East to Center Hill Lake; following Center Hill Lake north and northwest to the Caney Fork River thence to the Smith County line; south of the Smith County line and west of the Putnam County line to the White County line; west of the White County line to the Warren County line; north of the Warren County line following the county line back to Highway 56 South at the DeKalb/Warren County line.
Individuals may nominate themselves, or others, as a candidate. In addition, eligible candidates can be nominated by community-based and other organizations in the county where the election is being held before the close of the nomination period, especially groups representing socially disadvantaged farmers or ranchers. Nominations and elections are open to all eligible candidates and voters without regard to race, color, religion, nation origin, age, sex, marital status or disability. The nomination form (FSA-669A) and other important election materials are available at USDA Service Centers and online at: http://www.fsa.usda.gov/newsroom/county-committee-elections/index.
Ballots will be mailed to all eligible voters in LAA # 3 on November 3, 2025. Completed ballots must be returned, either in person or postmarked, no later December 1, 2025. For more information about FSA county committees, visit the DeKalb/Cannon County USDA Service Center or call 615-597-8225, extension 2.
