The IBMA Leadership Bluegrass, now in its 13th year, is an intensive three-day program that brings together the most progressive leaders to collaboratively challenge issues facing the professional music industry.
Local Breast Cancer Survivor Louise Hale of Ocoee and her brother Howard Miller have released their first book titled “13 Minutes To Live,” t
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Organizers hope to include artists, quilters, old-time demonstrators, woodworkers, barrel turners, fly-tyers a tractor show, food vendors and more. Live bluegrass music is slated for Saturday; gospel music will be performed Sunday.
Planning has
begun for Benton Arts and Heritage Days, a two-day festival slated for October
30 and 31 in downtown Benton. The festival will run from 10 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Saturday and 1-9 p.m. Sunday and organizers hope to include artists, quilters,
old-time demonstrators, woodworkers, barrel turners, fly-tyers a tractor show,
food vendors and more. Live bluegrass music is slated for Saturday; gospel
music will be performed Sunday.
Among the events
scheduled for the event is the dedication of the Polk County News and Newspaper
Book Shop’s Quilt Square, which marks their participation in the Appalachian
Quilt Trail. The Appalachian Quilt Trail offers a chance to experience the
beauty of Tennessee and Appalachia in a new and unique way, by following a path
of wooden quilt blocks that dot the landscape along historic byways and offer a
great excuse for drivers to take the scenic route.
Cheryl Maxwell,
owner of the Polk County News and Newspaper Book Shop, said she hopes the quilt
square will encourage visitors to drive through Benton, and hopefully stop
along the way.
“Benton is a neat
little town,” Maxwell said. “There may not be a whole lot of businesses here,
but there’s no reason it can’t be a place people want to visit.”
Maxwell said she
hopes to have local quilters participate in Benton Arts and Heritage Days in
order to show off the rich quilting history of the area, but also wants to show
off artistry of all shapes and sizes. “There really isn’t a place in Benton
where people can show off their works, and I hope this festival will become a
place where locals can get the attention they deserve,” she said.
Benton Mayor
Jerry Stephens said there was a time when there were events on the courthouse
lawn and in the downtown area, and he wanted to bring something back to the
city.
“There are
festivals going on all around us, and we should offer the local people
something to do,” Stephens said. Stephens is working with The Tennessee
Overhill Heritage Association for a music grant and is also applying for an
Arts Build Communities grant in order to put on the festival.
Because the
festival is slated for Halloween weekend, Stephens said he would like area
churches to participate in Sunday’s festivities.
“A lot of
churches have Trunk or Treat events on Halloween, and it might be a good place
for them all to come together, listen to gospel music and provide a safe place
for children to celebrate without having to go door-to-door for candy,”
Stephens said.
Organizers hope
to include elementary school children by inviting them to decorate scarecrows
or create other Halloween decorations that can be used to decorate the downtown
area. Benton area businesses are encouraged to offer candy for
trick-or-treaters during the event.
Selena Moses, Art
Instructor at Chilhowee Middle School, has said she plans to use the event to
showcase artwork from her students.
Melvin Bell with
Benton IGA is planning a tractor show in the field beside the store during the
event. He said tractors spanning several generations will be shown. “We have
done a smaller tractor show here before,” Bell said. “But this time they will
be bringing a lot more.”
John Pippenger
said he looks to have boats, fly-tying and other hunting and fishing
demonstrations.
Anyone with a
family or special handmade quilt to display is encouraged to contact the Polk
County News. A photography exhibit by Jim Caldwell and artwork from Marie
Spaeder-Haas will be displayed inside the office, and Spaeder-Haas will be
doing a demonstration of her work Saturday from 1-3 p.m.
For more information,
or to reserve your space to participate in the event, please contact Jerry
Stephens at Benton City Hall 338-5733; Cheryl Maxwell at 423-338-2818; Adrian
Lambert at the Polk County Chamber of Commerce 423-338-5040; Melvin Bell at
Benton IGA 423-338-9233or John Pippenger at 423-338-0187.
Food vendors will
be charged $25 to participate in the event. Demonstrators will not be charged
to participate. Artists or other vendors who would like to sell their works
will be charged $10. Tables will not be provided.
Pictured:
As part of the
upcoming Benton Arts and Heritage Days, the Polk County News and Newspaper Book
Shop will be officially dedicating the quilt square that marks them as a stop
on the Appalachian Quilt Trail. Quilters, artists and handcrafters of any kind
are invited to participate in the festival, which will take place October
30-31.
The governor’s proposal to increase class sizes in the elementary schools, and to base the state’s payments on those maximums, could mean a significant loss of revenue for teaching positions in Polk County.
At the Jan. 19 meeting, commissioners were told that the Library Board would like to move the library from the lower level of the Courthouse to the building soon to be vacated by the Benton Family Health Care Center.
Teachers across the state, still reeling from last year’s loss of negotiating rights and a complicated evaluation system, now face a loss of a guaranteed salary schedule based on longevity and education.
The Library Board will be asking the County Commission for approval to move the library from the Courthouse to what is currently home to the Benton Family Health Care Center.
Video surveillance has been installed at the county’s convenience centers to identify people leaving garbage outside the fence at the convenience centers or throwing it over the fence when the centers are closed.
The collision happened around 6:45 a.m. Dec. 28 when a westbound truck carrying around 20 tons of calcine lost control coming around a curve on Hwy. 64 and flipped on its side.
Board members spent a majority of the meeting listening to a laundry list of ranging from mold issues to the proper wording on “no smoking” signs on the outside bleachers.
The IBMA Leadership Bluegrass, now in its 13th year, is an intensive three-day program that brings together the most progressive leaders to collaboratively challenge issues facing the professional music industry.
Lee University’s Encore Program, which offers people age 60 and over the opportunity to take university courses, has a new line up of specially-designed mini-courses for the spring.
Horse Trainer and owner of Double S. Stables, Randy Speegle of Benton took second place in the Legends division at the Mustang Challenge in Murphreesboro on October 21st – 23rd.
Local residents got their first look at potential routes for a Copperhill-McCaysville Bypass, at a public information open house held last Thursday by Project Engineers for the Georgia Department of Transportation.
Tennessee Agriculture Commissioner Julius Johnson has authorized a statewide referendum for cattle producers to vote on a $0.50 per head increase in the assessment to fund the in-state promotion of beef.
While some students may be nervous about how the upcoming exams could affect their college options, the Tennessee Electronic Library (TEL) has the tools they need to succeed.
Principal Mrs. Patricia Smith proudly announces the Copper Basin Elementary 1st and 2nd honor students. Students must have a 93 or higher average in all classes for the 1st honor roll.
Mrs. Deborah Swafford of Old Fort, was chosen by Northwest Elementary Faculty in Murray Co, Georgia to be Teacher of the Year for the 2011-2012 School year.
On Oct. 7, with the help of Vice Principal Turner, who kept her out of class for a few minutes to get it set-up, The Senior English 12 Class threw a Surprise party for Mrs. Ellen Carr.
Virginia Deloris Brown Trantham, affectionately known to family, friends and coworkers as “Sally”, age 77, of Copperhill, TN passed away Tuesday, January 24, 2012.
I just wanted to say a big “Thank You” to Cheryl Maxwell, Mayor Stephens, Linda Caldwell, and others who planned and carried out a very successful 2nd Annual Heritage Days festival in Benton.
There is an old saying, which many credit to Native Americans as advising, “You can’t really understand someone else, unless you live their life or walk in their shoes (so to speak).
Photo from 1910 provided by Bill Lillard shows the family of Calvin Higdon, who built the Higdon Hotel in Reliance. Calvin (1836-1919) and Amanda Linderman Higdon (1845-1926) were married in 1860.
From Polk County News, 9/13/34
Famous Monroe County Hotel Is Now No More
People from All Over South Visited the “Saratoga of the South” in the Good Old Days.
The Museum Center at 5ive Points will host a presentation on Learning to Care and Maintain Your Featherweight Sewing Machine by Stan Pegram on Saturday, February 11 from 10:00 - noon.
Sequoyah Birthplace Museum is offering a Cherokee language class in Vonore, TN on the following Mondays, January 9, 16, 23, 30, 2012 from 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Each day kids will create their own holiday spirit by making decorations, learning games and trying foods from the past. Campers are asked to bring a sack lunch.
“It was like seeing a freight train coming down the tracks 90 miles an hour and trying to stop it by stepping in front of it”, Coach Danny Rogers said.
The Copper Basin Medical Center’s District Board honored Dr. William E. Lee last week. Dr. Lee, 85, has spent a lifetime in service, not only to the community but to the world through his medical mission trips.
EPA is proposing actions to improve the water quality of the Ocoee from Copperhill to Dam No. 3, at Dam No. 3, and at the upper reach of Parksville Dam.
The Ocoee River Outfitters Association will conduct a stream cleanup with the help of approximately 130 volunteers on Friday, May 27, 2011 starting at 9:00 am.
Beginning in mid-January culverts will be replaced on Sina Branch Road where it crosses Sawmill Branch in the Ocoee Ranger District in Polk County, TN.
Drawdown is underway at Apalachia Lake, according to David Bowling with River Operations at TVA. He said the lake will drop 18-20 feet for routine maintenance work.
Trout stocking will be reduced about 20% in the coming fiscal year and could be reduced 85% after that, according to Frank Fiss, Assistant Chief of Fisheries at the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency.
TVA has created a smartphone app for those wanting to check on reservoir elevations, water release schedules and more. The information has been available online, but the new app will allow access by cell phone.
Unseasonably high temperatures -- in the 90s -- are sending folks to the water. The Ocoee Whitewater Center is a popular place when the river isn't flowing, and the Hiwassee and Ocoee are popular when it is.
People come from near and far to experience a variety of outdoor recreation activities including camping, picnicking, hiking, bike riding, water play, fishing and much more.
VEC was recently notified by a neighboring utility that they have been receiving complaints from customers who have been visited by scam artists posing as energy evaluators.
The Tennessee Historical Commission is now accepting nominations for its Certificate of Merit Awards to honor individuals or groups that have worked to preserve Tennessee’s cultural heritage during 2011.
The Tennessee Tobacco QuitLine offers personalized support for Tennessee residents who want to quit smoking by connecting them with trained quit coaches to guide them through the quitting process.
The Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance (TDCI) Consumer Affairs division is urging consumers to be wary of emails that request participation in a survey and that promise a gift card in return.
While many job placement firms may be legitimate and helpful, others may misrepresent their services, promote outdated or fictitious job offerings and charge high fees in advance for services that may not lead to a job.
The annual campaign has enrolled tens of thousands of children in the low-cost health insurance plan, which provides coverage for everything from physician visits to hospitalization to dental and vision care.
The Tennessee Department of State has launched a campaign to educate citizens about the new photo identification requirement that will go into effect for elections held in the state after Jan. 1, 2012.
All of the legislation approved this year, during the first session of the 107th General Assembly, is now available online at the Office of Secretary of State web site.
Applications for the State Energy Efficient Appliance Rebate Program (SEEARP) are available online at www.e-rebates.org/teearp or by phone at 1-877-741-4304 on a first-come, first-served basis.
Individuals who have received LIHEAP assistance since July 2010 must wait until October 1 for the new program year to begin before they can re-apply for benefits.
“Kids Fishing Day” event in Cherokee National Forest’s Ocoee/Hiwassee Ranger District is scheduled for May 21, 2011 at McCamy Lake. Anglers 15 years and under are invited to try their luck.
Ducktown resident Jack Suites and his partner Bitt Ledford of Murphy, N.C. took home the $700 second place prize at the Tri-County Community College Foundation Fishing for Scholarships Bass tournament on April 2.
More than four months after a spotted bass weighing 6 pounds, 7 ounces was caught on the Ocoee River in Polk County, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency has confirmed the fish as a new state record
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