Anderson Suffers Minor Injuries in Motorcycle Crash

August 25, 2019
By: Dwayne Page

A motorcycle operator suffered only minor injuries after a crash Saturday morning on the Old Bildad Road.

According to the Tennessee Highway Patrol, 35 year old Daniel Anderson, II of Smithville was traveling east on a 2003 Honda V 13 motorcycle when he went off the right side of the road and crashed. Anderson, who was wearing his helmet, complained mainly of shoulder pain but refused EMS transport to the hospital.

The accident was investigated by THP Trooper Bobby Johnson.

August 25, 2019
By: Dwayne Page

Newly released data from the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development (TDLWD) shows July 2019 county unemployment increased in counties across the state.

DeKalb County’s Jobless rate for July was 5.2%, up from the rate of 4.8% for June and an increase from the 2018 July jobless rate of 4.9%.

The local labor force for July was 7,988. A total of 7,569 were employed and 419 were without work.

Rates inched upward in 93 of Tennessee’s 95 counties and remained the same in two counties last month. 44 counties have an unemployment rate of less than five percent, while 51 counties have a rate of five percent or higher.

“Due to a variety of factors, it’s not unusual to see unemployment increase on the county level during the summer months,” said TDLWD Commissioner Jeff McCord. “We’ll continue to monitor these rates as we finish the summer and move into fall.”

Williamson and Davidson counties had Tennessee’s lowest jobless rate during July. At 3.2 percent, both counties experienced a jump of 0.2 of a percentage point in unemployment when compared to June’s numbers.

Sevier, Cheatham, Rutherford, Sumner, Wilson, Maury, Robertson, and Dickson round out the list of counties with the ten lowest unemployment rates in the state.

Hancock County had the state’s highest unemployment rate at 8.2 percent. That is 0.5 of a percentage point higher than it was in June. At 8.1 percent, Clay County had the second-highest jobless rate in July. That represents a jump of 0.8 percentage point when compared to the previous month.

Lake, Rhea, Weakley, Bledsoe, Lauderdale, Carroll, McNairy, and Dyer counties had the next highest unemployment rates in July.

Statewide, unemployment slightly increased last month to 3.5 percent, an uptick of 0.1 of a percentage point when compared to June’s statistic.

The July unemployment rate for the United States remained unchanged in July at 3.7 percent.

County unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted, while both the state and national rates use the seasonal adjustment to eliminate outside influencers on the statistics.

August 24, 2019
By: Dwayne Page

Members of the “Off the Beaten Path Studio Tour” will sponsor their annual “Art for Kids Day” Saturday, August 24 at the DeKalb Farmers Market in support of the School System’s Back Pack Program to help feed hungry children.

Claudia Lee, local artisan, said all the artwork for this annual event is donated and all the money raised from sales goes to the Back Pack Program.

(Video below is from last year’s event)

IMG_0622 from dwayne page on Vimeo.

“One hundred percent of the money from the sales goes to help fund the Back Pack program which provides supplemental food for kids in DeKalb County who are not getting fed regularly at home. We are one of the organizations that does fund raising for this program,” added Lee.

“The art work is donated by area artists as well as artists from the Appalachian Center for Crafts, and Off the Beaten Path Studio Tour. We do it once a year. It is almost always in August. We collect art work all year long and people look forward to it. They get some great deals. The prices are amazing,” said Lee.

According to Elise Driver of the Coordinated School Health Program, About 6% of the DeKalb County School student population goes hungry on a regular basis with meals provided at schools being their main source of food. “Coordinated School Health began sending bags of food home to children eleven years ago. We began with long weekends and holidays and now we feed them every week during the school year. Funding is not always consistent and we are continuously seeking donations of food and or money to maintain our program, to improve the nutritional value of the food products given to students, and to promote healthy eating habits,” said Driver.

To make a donation, contact Driver at the Board of Education Central Office known as the Ernest Ray Education Center at 615-597-4084.

Meanwhile, the 20th annual “Off the Beaten Path Studio Tour” is scheduled for October 25-27.

Every fall, on the last full weekend in October, when the color is breathtaking and there is a certain crispness in the air, the artists of Off the Beaten Path Studio Tour in DeKalb and Cannon Counties open their studios for a free three day open studio event. Celebrating its 20th year, the tour has grown to include 15 stops with 30 participating artists. Artists will be demonstrating their craft mediums and offering handcrafted shopping opportunities at every stop on the tour. This is a perfect family outing or weekend getaway.

To learn more visit

http://offthebeatenpathtour.com/