Knowles and Hale Capture Little Mister and Miss Crowns (View Video Here)

July 17, 2019
By: Dwayne Page

Jayson Knowles and Brinley Hale were crowned Little Mister and Miss at the DeKalb County Fair Tuesday night.

Knowles is the 4 year old son of Mark and Donna Pedigo of Smithville and Hale is the 5 year old daughter of Leslie and Austin Maxwell of Alexandria.

They succeed the 2018 Little Mister and Miss Jackson Denton Duke and Clara Ruth  Cox. Duke is the 5 year old son of John and Whitney Duke of Smithville and Cox is the 5 year old daughter of Brandon and Whitney Cox of Smithville.

The pageants  featured contestants ages 4-6.

First runner-up in the Little Miss contest was MaKenlee Faith Collier, the 4 year old daughter of Brooke Snyder of Smithville and Matthew Collier of Alexandria

Eden Donnell of Alexandria, was second runner-up. She is the 5 year old daughter of Travis and Amber Donnell.

Third runner-up was Alayna Hendrixson, the 4 year old daughter of Amanda and J.J. Hendrixson of Smithville.

Katy Jo Bowen, the 5 year old daughter of Joseph and Kimberly Bowen of Smithville was fourth runner-up.

Arraya Jenae Taylor was Most Photogenic. She is the 6 year old daughter of Angie Taylor of Smithville

The Miss Manners honor went to Anniston Faith Davidson, the 4 year old daughter of Trista Atnip and Robert Davidson of Smithville.

Others in the top ten were Arraya Jenae Taylor, 6 year old daughter of Angie Taylor of Smithville; Anniston Faith Davidson, 4 year old daughter of Trista Atnip and Robert Davidson of Smithville; Lakelyn Taylor Rushing, 5 year old daughter of Allison Taylor of Smithville; Paisley Marie Hale, 4 year old daughter of Andrea Cantrell and Chad Hale of Smithville; and Emma Laray Thomason, the 5 year old daughter of Nathan and Ashlee Thomason of Liberty.

Other participants were Aydalyn Elizabeth Cook, 5 year old daughter of Cora Beth Rhody and Dustin Cook of Smithville; Addison Paige Curtis, 6 year old daughter of Heather Page and John Curtis of Smithville; Adelann Jean Taylor, 4 year old daughter of Pete and Jessica Taylor of Smithville; Shaniya Bates, 5 year old daughter of Tom and Chyna Bates of Liberty; Maddie Moore, 4 year old daughter of Andrew and Ali Moore of Smithville; and Willow Rose Jackson, 5 year old daughter of Jamie Jackson and Nick Byrge of Alexandria.

July 16, 2019
By: Dwayne Page

Governor Bill Lee has appointed DeKalb County resident Sarah Cripps to a three-year term on the Council on Developmental Disabilities, representing the Upper Cumberland Development District.

The Council on Developmental Disabilities is a state government agency that works to bring positive change to the disability services system in Tennessee.

“I am so excited to be a part of the work the Council is doing,” Sarah Cripps said. “People with disabilities are contributing members of our community, and I want to see us opening the door to more opportunities right here in DeKalb County. I am really looking forward to helping the Council bring services, information, and education to the Upper Cumberland area.”

Cripps maintains a solo law practice in Smithville, practicing in the areas of probate, real property, domestic relations, tort and personal injury, child welfare, elder, contract, landlord-tenant, and criminal defense law. She holds degrees from Vanderbilt University and Tennessee Tech. She recently served as a commencement speaker for Tennessee Tech. Cripps has been blind since birth.

Cripps will meet with the full Council on Development Disabilities quarterly in Nashville and will serve as a representative in the local community. Her role will connect the Council’s statewide work to the needs in DeKalb and surrounding counties. The Council on Developmental Disabilities’ work includes improving disability policies and practices, educating policymakers and the public, and partnering with public and private organizations to drive progress for people with disabilities.

“Our agency is unique in state government, because we’re here specifically to change the system, and because we are directly connected to the needs of local disability communities through our Council members,” said Executive Director Wanda Willis. “Sarah Cripps is a recognized community leader, both personally and professionally, and her perspective on how we can continue to improve the lives of people with disabilities will be invaluable.”

The Tennessee Council on Developmental Disabilities is a state agency established to improve disability policies and practice, educate policymakers and the public, and build collaboration to create lasting, positive change for Tennesseans with disabilities and their families. The Council is the only state agency tasked with looking at how all the pieces of our disability system work together, identifying areas of need, and bringing different parts of government and outside groups together to tackle challenges and improve state services. For more information, visit www.tn.gov/cdd or follow us on Twitter (@TNCouncilDD) or Facebook.

July 16, 2019
By: Dwayne Page

The Smithville Cumberland Presbyterian Church is again sponsoring a drive thru mobile food pantry on Saturday morning, July 20 rain or shine.

In partnership with Second Harvest Food Bank/USDA, the church plans to prepare enough food boxes to serve up to 300 families regardless of their income status, on a first come, first served basis.

Families will receive enough food to last them for a full week. Second Harvest will bring in pallets of food on trucks. The food will then be off loaded and organized in preparation for the distribution.

Registration begins at 8:00 a.m. and the food will be delivered from 9:00 a.m. until noon.

Unlike most food distributions, those being served by the mobile pantry will not have to get out of their automobiles. They will drive thru in a pickup line and volunteers will deliver the food directly to their vehicles, placing the food boxes either in the back seat or trunk. Cars will line up facing north on College Street across from the Smithville Cumberland Presbyterian Church.

“It’s a mobile food pantry but it’s also a drive thru. The recipients will stay in their cars. They will line up starting at 8:00 a.m. on College Street and when we have everything prepared and organized we’ll start the line moving, hopefully around 9:00 a.m. Recipients will drive through. As they enter in we’ll have a team there to put a box of food in their cars, either in their back seat or trunk,” said Isaac Gray, Minister of the Smithville Cumberland Presbyterian Church

“We will line up right across from the church (Smithville Cumberland Presbyterian Church) on College Street. We’ll start registration at 8:00 a.m. We’ll need the name of the recipients and how many families are being served. We’re limited to two families per vehicle to make sure we have enough food,” added Gray.

If you have any questions call Myra Reffue at 615-516-6662 or you may also call the church from 8:00 am -12:00 at 615-597-4197.