News 2014

“The hit every year at the Holiday Open House is the ‘chocolate room’,” shared Child Advocacy Center Director Sharon De Boer. “Guests walk past the appetizers, entrees, and dessert room, and head straight to the chocolate room.” The Child Advocacy Center is hosting the 15th annual Holiday Open House on Friday, December 5, 2014 from 11:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. at 1040 Samsonite Blvd., Murfreesboro.The Board of Directors, staff, and volunteers are inviting all of the Child Advocacy Center’s supporters to join them on Friday for the buffet luncheon. “It is fun to watch what guests will dip in the chocolate fountain – pound cake, cookies, marshmallows, strawberries, pineapple, mangos. You name it, they dip it,” added Jessica Wauchek, Child Advocacy Center bookkeeper. The Child Advocacy Center is a non-profit agency that works with the Department of Children’s Services, law enforcement, and the District Attorney’s Office to investigate and prosecute child abuse cases.
The honorary guests at the event are the members of the Rutherford County and Cannon County Child Protective Investigative Teams. CPIT Team members include the Rutherford County Department of Children’s Services, Warren County Department of Children’s Services, Murfreesboro Police Department, Smyrna Police Department, La Vergne Police Department, Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office, Woodbury Police Department, Cannon County Sheriff’s Office, Rutherford County and Cannon County Juvenile Court Youth Services, Our Kids Center, the Guidance Center, and the District Attorney’s Office for the 16th Judicial District. The buffet luncheon is courtesy of the Board of Directors, staff, volunteers, and local restaurants.
The restaurants generously providing food are Farmer’s Family Restaurant, Jeff’s Family Friendly Restaurant, Maple Street Grill, Moe’s Southwest Grill, Olive Garden, Papa Murphy’s, Pei Wei Asian Diner, Red Lobster, Samurai’s Cuisine, Through the Grapevine, Whitt’s BBQ, and Your Pie. For more information on the Holiday Open House, contact the Child Advocacy Center. In Rutherford County call (615) 867-9000 and in Cannon County call (615) 563-9915.

Santa Claus is coming to town… The annual Woodbury Lions Club Christmas Parade will be Saturday, December 6, 2014 beginning at noon.  The parade is held every year on the first Saturday of December and features a visit from the jolly old elf himself, St. Nick.  Parade Chairman Danny Miller cites the efforts of the entire community in making the parade such a huge success.  “The entire county turns out for the parade,” says Miller, “either to be in it, or to watch and be immersed in the Christmas spirit.  The parade really brings the Christmas spirit to town and reminds us of the true meaning of Christmas.  We thank everyone in advance for their hard work in making our parade a great Cannon County Christmas tradition!”  
There will be a few changes in the line-up procedures this year, in an effort to make the parade flow better, safer and easier to broadcast and report on by local media outlets.  Chairman Miller stated that the Cannon Courier, DTC Communications and WBRY have all supported the parade amazingly over the years.  This year, all parade entries will be asked to pre-register and get an entry number so that we can provide a line up list for the media folks to better report on the parade.  This will also give credit where it is due for all of the hard work that goes into the floats, vehicles, and other entries in the parade.  There will still be NO entry fee for participating in the parade; as our goal in Woodbury is to have fun and get everyone in the Christmas spirit.  Entry forms are available at these locations and please mail, fax or return in person to either the Head Start Office (Lion Eva Woodlee 563-5852) located in the Community Center or the University of Tennessee Extension Office ( Bruce Steelman 615-563-2554 office, 615-563-1285 fax), and both of these organizations are located on Lehman street.  
Parade participants will also be asked to line up a little differently this year in an effort to ease risk of injury and lesson traffic snags.  Each group will have an assembly point and a highly visible Lions Club member to insure that everyone has an appropriately located registration number and gets placed in the appropriate place in the parade to maximize your exposure:
NO ONE will assemble on the shoulder of West Adams Street or at the office of Middle Tennessee Electric Co-Op, as in the past.  
Mules and their riders/wagons, as is customary, will assemble at the residence of Lion Bill Smith on Main Street.
Horses and their riders/wagons will assemble at the Fairgrounds behind the Ag Extension Office.
Floats and marching entries will assemble in the parking lot at the Woodbury Grammar School.
Queens & Kings, Princesses and Princes, and other vehicles shall assemble on the road that circle behind the Community Center and in front of the Woodbury Lions Club Building.
Emergency Response vehicles will muster along Annie Cox Road next to Woodbury Grammar School.  They will line up nearest to Adams Street facing south initially, and turning right onto Adams Street to enter the parade.
Reminder, due to Tennessee legal and insurance issues, and in the interest of safety, 4-wheelers will NOT be allowed in the parade.
Another reminder:  We know that everyone loves Santa Claus, but since the jolly old elf is coming a long way to make a special appearance, we ask that there be no “look-alikes” in the parade.  This makes it easier for all of the kids waiting eagerly on the roadside to know which the real Santa is.
One more:  The Lions Clubs primary focus is sight and hearing projects, as requested of them by Helen Keller.  We know everyone loves the candy, but it would be tragic for someone to have an eye injury that could cost them their sight because someone threw candy wrong.  Please make efforts to hand out candy directly to those along the route if possible, but if you must throw it from your float, please be careful.  
If you are in doubt about where you should gather before the parade, please contact Cliff Swoape at 615-563-4900.  The Woodbury Lions Club is honored to host such a grand event and is grateful for the support of everyone in Cannon County.  Please get your entry forms submitted, your entries prepared, and join us on December 6th  for a fun time.
You can also join us Saturday morning for the Woodbury Lions Club Pancake Breakfast from 7 AM until 10 AM for all you can eat pancakes and sausage for $6 or $5 in advance. Santa will be making a special appearance for photo’s during the pancake breakfast from 8 AM to 10 AM.
Tour of Home tickets and maps of featured stops will be available during the Pancake Breakfast and beginning at 3:30 PM at the University of Tennessee Extension Office on Lehman St. at a cost of $7.00 per ticket.  Merry Christmas, from the Woodbury Lions Club!!!!
 

“There are only 25 days left until Christmas and the Child Advocacy Center has 19 children ages 3-17 that need your help this holiday season.  These are truly needy families that will not have a Christmas without your help.  As a parent, I think it is a wonderful experience for my own children to learn the true meaning of the holidays by giving to others,” said Amanda Pruitt, Drug Endangered Children’s Program Coordinator.  
The Child Advocacy Center is recruiting ‘Secret Santa’s’ to help make abused children’s Christmas wishes come true.  Misty Barton and her daughter Shelby share why they sponsor a family every year.  “Our family has been sponsoring a child for the last few years.  The reason we sponsor is to give back to our community but to also teach our children about the importance of giving.  We want to be able to provide at least one family with a Christmas they wouldn’t be able to have otherwise.  We want to help a family during a time when they need it most.”
 
The Child Advocacy Center is a non-profit agency that works with the Department of Children’s Services, law enforcement, and the District Attorney’s Office to investigate and prosecute child abuse cases.
 
For information on how you can get involved and be a ‘Secret Santa’ to an abused child, contact the Child Advocacy Center.  In Rutherford County contact Jennifer Gamble at (615) 867-9000 and in Cannon County contact Amanda Pruitt at (615) 563-9915.
 

No basketball fan could have asked for a better ending to the first night of the annual Mitch Wilson Classic than the boys game between Cannon County and East Nashville.   The Eagles came into the game undefeated and off of an appearance in the State Tournament Championship game the year before.  Neither team built a lead of more than 7 points in the game and the back and forth game couldn’t be decided in four quarters.  After AJ Daniel hit a go head 3 pointer that put the Lions up 52-49, East Nashville answered moments later with a three point bomb from Thomas Booker to send it to overtime.  In the extra frame East Nashville grabbed an early cushion lead of 4 points but Cannon quickly caught up as Garrett McReynolds connected on two field goals in a row to tie it at 56.  Thomas Booker hit four consecutive free throws and scored all 6 of his teams extra quarter points as the East Nashville Eagles gave the Cannon County Lions a heartbreaking loss 58-56.  The Lions had a chance with 7.1 seconds left to tie or win the game but turned the ball over to the Eagles.  Josh Ruehlan led all Lion scorers with 12 points, Jacob Nave added 11 and Garrett McReynolds finished with 10.  AJ Daniel who scored 5 points in the 4th quarter ended the game with 9 points.   Cannon County will regroup and play Middle Tennessee Christian School in the final game of the Mitch Wilson Classic tonight at 8:00 When a high school basketball team has a solid point guard, it makes all the difference in the world in the win or loss column.  The Cannon County Lionettes have a solid point guard.  It was evident Friday night during the Mitch Wilson Classic when senior point guard Erin McReynolds led the Lionettes to a hard fought win against the Nashville Central Christian Lady Warriors.   Nashville Central was able to stay in the game and kept it close as Cannon broke down on defense several times and struggled from the field shooting.  Erin McReynolds led the team though in the second half to the win scoring 20 points, 11 in the second half.  Kelli Davis hit free throws down the stretch also scoring 11 in the second half.  The Lionettes stay undefeated with the 55-50 win.  The girls team will face Cookeville in the final game of the Mitch Wilson Classic tonight at 6:30.

2014 Mitch Wilson Classic Schedule For Friday Cannon County High School
9:30-Boys-Smith County vs Coffee County
11A Girls-Warren County vs Smith County
12:30P Boys-Warren County vs Murfreesboro Central Magnet
2:00P Girls-Moore County vs Murfreesboro Central Magnet
3:30P-Boys-Moore County vs Nashville Central Christian
5:00P Girls-Cannon County vs Nashville Central Christian
6:30P Girls-Cookeville vs East Nashville
8:00P Boys Cannon County vs East Nashville
Woodbury Grammar School
11:00A Boys Upperman vs Smyrna
12:30P Girls Richard Hardy vs Lavergne
2:00P-Boys Cannon vs Franklin Classical (JV)
3:30P-Girls Howard vs MTCS
5:00P-Boys-Cookeville vs MTCS
 

As shoppers prepare for an exciting weekend, Tennessee’s Small Business Advocate Richard Wilson is encouraging customers to join the ‘shop small’ movement. 
November 29 is Small Business Saturday. It is a time to show support for small independently-owned businesses during one of the busiest shopping weekends of the year.
 
Since 2010, Small Business Saturday has been celebrated annually on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. According to American Express, consumers spent more than $5.7 billion on Small Business Saturday in 2013.
 
Tennessee is home to 566,578 small businesses, which employ more than a million people. Bureau of Labor Statistics show 90% of Tennessee’s employers are small businesses.
 
“Small businesses create jobs, boost the economy and improve our local communities,” said Tennessee’s Small Business Advocate Richard Wilson. “I urge all Tennesseans to show support for the small businesses and entrepreneurs who are vital to our state’s success.”

The THP will also conduct its routine Thanksgiving holiday enforcement campaign across the state.  During last year’s 120-hour holiday period, there were 12 people killed in nine fatal crashes in Tennessee.  Two of the traffic fatalities occurred in alcohol-related crashes, while six of the vehicular deaths were unrestrained. “Our state’s seat belt usage rate is at an all-time high of 87.7 percent,” GHSO Director Kendell Poole said. “However, we still have far too many people who do not buckle up. Half of our state’s traffic fatalities are unrestrained vehicle occupants.  That is unacceptable.”
Director Poole noted that educating the public about the importance of seat belts and the work of state troopers and local law enforcement officers during the upcoming holidays will make a difference on Tennessee roadways.
State law enforcement officials have also seen an eight percent decline in alcohol-related crashes this year, compared to this same time last year. Colonel Trott believes the agency’s DUI enforcement has helped reduce the number of impaired driving crashes across the state.
In 2014, Tennessee state troopers have arrested 7,322 individuals on suspicion of impaired driving, compared to 5,537 DUI arrests this same time last year.  That’s a 32 percent increase. 
The Tennessee Highway Patrol will conduct a seatbelt checkpoint Friday morning in Woodbury at West Adams Street near the Woodbury Grammar School.  Sobriety Checkpoint is planned for Dekalb County on State Route 56 1 mile from Titsworth Road Friday night.  There will be a late night sobriety checkpoint conducted Saturday night in Coffee County Hwy 41@ Asbury Road.

Good school attendance plays a crucial part of a student’s academic success. Students are more likely to succeed in academics when they attend school consistently. This year, Cannon County Schools would like to congratulate the Short Mountain Elementary School parents, students, teachers and staff for winning the attendance award for the school year 2013-2014 with an average daily attendance of 96.9 percent. 

The Cannon County Rescue Squad, Inc. has received a $1,250 fire prevention and safety grant from FM Global, one of the world’s largest commercial property insurers.Mark Rust, FM Global representative, presented the award to Michael Underhill, Rescue Squad CEO, at the Rescue Squad building on November 21, 2012.  The award will be used to assist with fire prevention and safety activities in the community to help educate the community and reduced the numbers of fires.
Because fire continues to be the leading cause of property damage worldwide, during the past 35 years FM Global has contributed millions of dollars in fire prevention grants to fire service organizations around the globe. Locally, the company has awarded grants to a number of Tennessee-based organizations.
 “At FM Global, we strongly believe the majority of property damage is preventable, not inevitable,” said Michael Spaziani, manager of the fire prevention grant program. “Far too often, inadequate budgets prevent those organizations working to prevent fire from being as proactive as they would like to be. With additional financial support, grant recipients are actively helping to improve property risk in the communities they serve.”
Through its Fire Prevention Grant Program, FM Global awards grants quarterly to fire departments, as well as national, state, regional, local and community organizations worldwide that best demonstrate a need for funding, where dollars can have the most demonstrable impact on preventing fire, or mitigating the damage it can quickly cause. To learn more about FM Global’s Fire Prevention Grant Program, or to apply for a grant, please visit www.fmglobal.com/grants.
 
For more than 175 years, many of the world’s largest organizations have turned to FM Global to develop cost-effective property insurance and engineering solutions to protect their business operations from fire, natural disasters and other types of property risk. With clients in more than 130 countries, FM Global ranks #541 among FORTUNE magazine’s largest companies in America and is rated A+ (Superior) by A.M. Best and AA (Very Strong) by Fitch Ratings. The company has been named “Best Property Insurer in the World” by Euromoney magazine, “Best Global Property Insurer” by Global Finance magazine and was voted “Best Commercial Property Insurer” in Business Insurance’s 2010 annual Readers Choice Awards.
 
We would like to thank FM Global for their generous contribution and for their investment in the safety of our community.  Watch for details about a county wide safety fair in the fall of 2015.
 
For more information on becoming a volunteer responder with the Cannon County Rescue Squad, Inc., visitour website at www.CannonCountyRescue.com and contact Michael Underhill, CEO, at 615-904-5002 or by email at MUnderhill@CannonCountyRescue.com
To follow us on Facebook, like our page: https://www.facebook.com/CannonCountyRescue
To follow us on Instagram, like @cannoncountyrescuesquad, #cannoncountyrescuesquad

hanksgiving travelers will not be slowed by construction on Tennessee roads during this busy travel holiday. TDOT will halt all lane closure activity on interstates and state highways in anticipation of higher traffic volumes across the state.  All construction related lane closures will be stopped beginning at noon on Wednesday, November 26 through 6:00 a.m. Monday, December 1.“With nearly a million people expected to travel by car this Thanksgiving, our highways will be busy, especially on the peak travel days of Wednesday and Sunday,” TDOT Commissioner John Schroer said. “Halting road work during this busy time will provide maximum capacity and help minimize congestion.”
While all lane closure activity will be stopped, workers may be on site in some construction zones.  Motorists are reminded to drive safely and obey the posted speeds, especially in work zones.  Drivers convicted of speeding in work zones where workers are present face a fine of up to $500, plus court fees and possible increased insurance premiums. 
“The Governor’s Highway Safety Office and TDOT are partnering with law enforcement across the state for the I-40 Challenge, with the goal of having zero fatalities on the 455 miles of I-40 in Tennessee,” said GHSO Director Kendell Poole. “The Tennessee Highway Patrol will have troopers stationed every 20 miles on I-40, along with increased law enforcement on all highways. We want everyone to have a safe holiday, so remember to buckle up, drive the speed limit, and don’t get behind the wheel of a vehicle if you’ve had anything to drink.”
Some long-term lane closures will remain in place on some construction projects for motorists’ safety.
AAA predicts 46.3 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more during the Thanksgiving holiday, the highest number since 2007. An estimated 973,710 people are expected to travel by automobile in Tennessee. Nationwide, 89% of all travelers will drive to their destination. In the southeast region, travelers are estimated to journey 549 miles round-trip. Road trippers will pay the lowest price for fuel in five years, with prices more than 40 cents lower per gallon compared to last Thanksgiving.
Updated travel and construction information can be found on the TDOT SmartWay website at www.tn.gov/tdot/tdotsmartway or you may call 5‑1‑1.  You can also receive traffic alerts via TDOT’s multiple Twitter feeds, including statewide traffic tweets @TN511 or any of TDOT’s other Twitter pages. 
As always, drivers are reminded to use all motorist information tools wisely and Know Before You Go! by checking travel conditions before leaving for their destination.  Drivers should never tweet, text or talk on a cell phone while behind the wheel.