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The Daily Times
Christy Martin: Sand of Omaha Beach tells a story
Last week some of us were working on a display at the Blount Historical Museum. We looked closely at two jars of sand from the beaches assigned to the Americans on D-Day. One is a jar of sand from Utah beach, another from Omaha beach. What is in a jar of sand some might ask? A lot it seems. We put the jars side by side and there was a marked difference in them. The Utah Beach sand was lighter, the Omaha Beach sand dark...
Blount County Schools explains audit findings
A state comptroller's audit of Blount County finances for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2023, cited two findings related to schools. The first related to a federal projects fund, an account through which Blount County Schools pays expenses that then are reimbursed from grant funds. The report said the fund "had a cash overdraft for the majority of the year." Former BCS Chief Financial Officer Troy Logan explained...
June 2 speaker at Monte Vista is tour guide in Israel
The community is invited to a presentation by Eschar Kapoya, "A Journey into the World of Jesus," on Sunday, June 2, at Monte Vista Baptist Church, 1735 Old Niles Ferry Road. Kapoya, has spent his entire life in the land where Jesus was born, lived and died. Pastor Jerry Mantooth invited Kapoya to come and lead this Sunday morning experience (9 a.m. to noon with breaks during the morning.) Pastor Mantooth has led two pilgrimages to Israel and Eschar was the tour guide for both. ...
100th birthday celebrated aboard a Harley-Davidson
It may have been the shiny, red Harley-Davidson, her stylish leather jacket or the prospect of a ride aboard the motorcycle toward our Great Smokies that gave Elsie Godo such a gorgeous smile on Tuesday morning. Or it could have been what May 28 represented for her — the day this resident of MorningView Village Assisted Living in Maryville turned 100. It was all of that and more, expressed Godo...
Blount candidates for Tenn. state House talk vouchers, healthcare
Some of Blount County’s Republican candidates for Tennessee state House split on school vouchers, vaccine mandates and healthcare provision during a recent candidate forum. GOP candidates for state House District 20 — one of two House districts that cover Blount County — Nick Bright, Tom Stinnett and Jason Emert spoke at a Blount Partnership forum held Wednesday, May 29, ahead of the Aug. 1 primary election. Karen Gertz, the Democratic candidate for state House 20, is unopposed at the primary level. ...
Beyond $50,000: A fuller look at teacher pay
Tennessee’s push to raise starting teacher pay to $50,000 by the 2026-27 school year is receiving a lot of attention. But it’s only one small piece of the compensation puzzle, and pay is one part of the problem schools nationwide face in recruiting people to education. Enrollment in teacher education programs has fallen in recent years, along with opinions of whether teaching is a good career choice. In a 2022 survey by NORC at the University of Chicago, only 18% of American adults said they...
MPD: Waitress used stolen cards to fund manicures
A Maryville woman has been arrested and charged with allegedly stealing restaurant customers’ credit card information to fund her manicures. Haley Nicole Bissonette, 22, Carpenters Road, Maryville was arrested by Maryville Police officers May 28 and charged with fraudulent use of a credit card. Bissonette had prior reports filed against her through MPD. According to...
Townsend approves funding for community plan consultants
Townsend officials have agreed to put just under $100,000 toward planning the city’s future, as members of the Community Plan Advisory Committee requested consultant funding from the Board of Commissioners last week. In the first item on an otherwise crowded budget, committee members said bids for consultation had been limited, leading them to propose a hybrid approach. If the plan goes forward as proposed, the East Tennessee Development District will split the work with consulting firm SE Group, guiding the committee as it drafts the...
Heritage FFA to host farmers market Saturday
Heritage High School Future Farmers of America will host a farmers market from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, June 1 inside the auxiliary gym. The doors face the tennis courts. The market will have bakeries, plants, local beef, local honey, veggies, crafts, fried pies and fresh farm eggs.
Blount solar facility wins planning approval
A 126-acre Blount-based solar farm is closer to breaking ground after clearing a procedural hurdle last week. Silicon Ranch, a solar-focused company headquartered in Nashville, got permission from the Blount County Planning Commission Thursday, May 23, to move forward with plans to build a plant just outside Maryville’s city limits. The plant is one of three projects planned for the Blount County area and is bordered to the northwest by the Northfield neighborhood by Sevierville Road. Maryville Seventh-day Adventist Church borders the property to the...
BCSO commends two for intervening after February shooting
The Blount County Sheriff’s Office announced Tuesday, May 28 that Sheriff James Berrong had presented awards to two people who stopped to help his deputy the night she was wounded. Sandra Solomon and Ricky Williams each received the Citizen Service Commendation in recognition of their aid rendered to Blount County Sheriff’s Deputy Shelby Eggers. “This commendation is awarded rarely and only to citizens who go above and beyond for their fellow man. Thank you just doesn’t seem like enough,” BCSO said in a release posted...
Fun, fellowship and memories:Vietnam veterans return for Smokies reunion
A group of Vietnam veterans from 1st Battalion, 8th Infantry, 4th Infantry Division met at the Tally Ho Inn in Townsend May 19-22 for the annual reunion, a gathering begun in 2015 as a way for the veterans and their spouses to come together for rest, relaxation, fellowship and support. About 20 veterans and their spouses attended this year. The group enjoyed good food, good conversation and activities including live music around the pool, a bus tour of Cades Cove, a picnic at Metcalf Bottoms...
Summer lane closures for Louisville Road
The Tennessee Department of Transportation will close a lane on Louisville Road and install a temporary signal near the bridge over the CSX railroad to make room for ongoing road work, according to a release from the city of Alcoa. Lane closures will begin May 28 and continue through the fall. Temporary signals are expected by the bridge by May 31. The project will close the roadway down to one lane until late fall for work to be completed on each side of the bridge. Alcoa is warning motorists to use caution when traveling in the area and allow additional travel time. Anyone with questions should call the Alcoa Development Services Department at 865-380-4800.
Three Maryville residents charged in neglect, death of dog
Three Maryville residents were booked into jail Friday after police say their neglect killed a pet pit bull. Christian A. Martinez and Kassandra L. Martinez, both 23, and Daniel Randolph Hackler Jr., 27, all of Butler Mill Road in Maryville, face charges of aggravated cruelty to animals after Blount County Sheriff’s deputies say they found one dying dog caged on the Martinez’ property and another dog that showed signs of neglect. ...
One for the books: Author gives writing advice to Eagleton students
When Sarah Seaton Myers, author or coauthor of 17 books and ghostwriter of 10 books, was invited to speak to students at Eagleton College and Career Academy, she immediately accepted. As a former Eagleton student, she was pleased to have been invited back to her alma mater, where she attended kindergarten through eighth grade before its transition to a middle school and most recently, Eagleton College and Career Academy. “I remained Facebook friends with one of my favorite teachers, my sixth-grade English teacher, Callen Parsley,”...
5 things to know about Memorial Day, including its evolution and controversies
NORFOLK, Va. — Memorial Day is supposed to be about mourning the nation’s fallen service members, but it’s come to anchor the unofficial start of summer and a long weekend of discounts on anything from mattresses to lawn mowers. But for people such as Manuel Castañeda Jr., the day is very personal. He lost his father, a U.S. Marine who served in Vietnam, in an accident in 1966 in California while his father was training other Marines. ...
Road work, lane closures planned for Louisville Road
Drivers traveling part of Louisville Road will note road work and lane closures starting Tuesday and continuing for several months. In a press release, representatives of the city of Alcoa state that contractors with the Tennessee Department of Transportation will begin a road widening and improvement project at the Louisville Road bridge Tuesday. By Friday, May 31, city officials said, TDOT staff expect the signals will be installed and the part of the road under construction will be taken to one lane of traffic. City and state staff expect the work will conclude in late fall. For further information, contact the city’s development services department at (865) 380-4800.
TWRA recovers body of teen from Watts Bar
Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency officers and area agencies recovered the body of Roane County resident, 19-year-old Braeden Hartup, from Watts Bar Reservoir just after 2 a.m. Sunday morning. The initial 911 call concerning a male who had jumped from a boat and did not resurface, came in just after 9 p.m. on Saturday night. Hartup and ten others were on an anchored pontoon just south of Rockwood, near the Winton Chapel Access Area. Witnesses stated that Hartup decided to swim and jumped into the water from the front of the boat. Hartup was not wearing a life jacket. TWRA officers and local agencies used a remote operated vehicle to locate and recover Hartup’s body in 24 feet of water. The body was transported to the Knox County Medical Examiner’s Office. This is the eighth boating related fatality this year. The incident remains under investigation.
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The Daily Times, an award-winning daily newspaper in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains, has served Blount County, Tennessee, readers since 1883. The Daily Times is a family-owned newspaper based in Maryville, Tennessee, near Knoxville, providing quality news and information to the communities it serves, with an emphasis on local news in the Blount County area.
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