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THE LEADER THURSDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2011 ▪ VO L . 1 2 7 , N O. 8 ▪ T H E VO I C E O F TIPTON COUNTY S I N C E 1 8 8 6 ▪
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70 YEARS LATER
Remembering Pearl Harbor Covington native recalls attack that forced U.S. into war By SHERRI ONORATI sonorati@covingtonleader.com
Tipton County woke up to a winter wonderland on Wednesday after up to five inches of snow fell overnight, prompting school officials to cancel school. Above, three-year-old Addi Lindley laughs as her father, Arty Lindley of Munford, pulls her around their yard on a sled. Courtesy photo
Snow-prise! A BIG
By ECHO DAY eday@covingtonleader.com
On Tuesday the National Weather Service issued an advisory stating up to an inch-anda-half of snow could be expected Wednesday morning, but Tipton County woke up to much more. It wasn’t the biggest snow in recent years – not even close – but it was certainly a surprise to many. “I didn’t expect so much,” said Tonia Draffin on The Leader’s Facebook page. “I am only surprised at how early our snowfalls are coming
this year,” said Danny Claybaugh. “We seem to be getting more and more each year now for the past few years.” An estimated 3-5 inches fell in Tipton County, prompting director of schools Dr. Buddy Bibb to cancel school Wednesday. Last Tuesday, schools operated on a two-hour delay after snow fell but did not stick to roadways. Current state laws allow Tipton County schools to stockpile 10 snow days to be built in to the calendar. The days can be
used to cancel school if the board of education deems the weather unsafe for travel. The Tipton County school system is able to do this because school is in session each day 30 minutes past the required seven hours. While teachers and students were thrilled to have a day off, the snow will not stick around long enough to keep students out of school another day: Thursday’s high is forecast to be 47 degrees. Precipitation is not expected again until next weekend.
Jayden Michael Pinner, 3, of Munford tastes a bit of snow Wednesday morning. Courtesy photo
A river flood warning is in effect for the Mississippi River below Osceola from Friday, Dec. 9 to Saturday, Dec. 10. Wednesday’s stage was 26.2 feet; the flood stage at this point is 28 feet. Minor flooding is forecast.
COMMUNITY
Fisher, 95, celebrates birthday in weight room By JEFF IRELAND jireland@covingtonleader.com Charlie Fisher’s birthday cake had a naked Barbie doll on top riding a motorcycle. That alone is not strange. A lot of men loved naked girls, motorcycles and cake. When all three can somehow be combined, that’s even better. What makes it a little out of the ordinary, however, is that Fisher’s birthday was his 95th and he celebrated it Wednesday morning at the Covington Sportsplex where he works out three to four times a week. “He said he wanted a girl jumping out of his cake when I asked him what he wanted,” said Amy Payne, Covington’s director of parks who helped organize the small get together. “That was as close as I could get.” Fisher’s small party was attended by his son, his daughter, his daughter-in-law and a few others, but it wasn’t your typical birthday party. Not a bit of cake was eaten nor a single beverage served. Instead, after posing for a couple
Charlie Fisher, 95, celebrated his 95th birthday with a cake and workout at the Covington Sportsplex. Photo by Jeff Ireland.
of photos in front of his naked lady cake, Fisher headed straight for the weight room where he worked his way through the machines. Before he finally took a break practically every machine in the room had some of Fisher’s sweat on it.
“He does the same thing every time,” said his son, Chuck Fisher, who was working out beside him. “He’s a creature of habit.” Charlie had a heart attack in 2003 playing tennis and had to find a different way to get his exercise. A year later Chuck bought his father a membership to the Sportsplex. He’s been a regular since then. “Exercise has been a part of me my entire life,” Charlie said. “It’s just like getting up in the morning. I don’t feel as alive when I don’t exercise.” Charlie is a World War II veteran who was born in Covington and, outside of his military service, has lived here his entire life. He owned and operated Ripley Auto Supply before retiring. He leads a very active lifestyle, cutting the grass on his four-acre lot, driving to Memphis on a regular basis to visit his girlfriend and even dancing on occasion. Charlie has a son and a daughter, four grandchildren and eight greatgrandchildren. Sportsplex officials chart the visits of their members. Charlie has checked in over 900 times since 2004.
Following the attack on Pearl Harbor 70 years ago this week, President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared Dec. 7, 1941 “a date which will live in infamy.” For Covington’s William James Davis, that day and the months following it lives clearly in his memory and he’s written a book about it. ABANDON SHIP! A SURVIVOR’s STORY: The Attack on Pearl Harbor, the Sinking of the USS Helena, Seven Additional Naval Battles and My Life During World War II is Davis’s account of his experience as a sailor during World War II and his participation in a few of the most history making battles the world has ever known. Davis, who grew up in the Charleston community, spent seven years on active duty in the Navy, four of them during the war. ABANDON SHIP!, which was published in 2010, is a fascinating account of enlisted life onboard U.S. naval warships in the Pacific Theater during World War II and what it was like for a young sailor during those tumultuous times. The book is written to give the reader a closer understanding of what was going on in the world based on three views – Davis’ own personal account, what was happening locally and a world view. Known throughout Tipton County as Bill Jim, Davis joined the Navy after graduation from Byars Hall. “I went in in 1938; I decided at the time when I graduated from high school I didn’t have any idea what I wanted to do,” explained Davis. “If you were going to go to college you needed to have some plans and I didn’t have any. So I thought the best thing was to join the Navy for four years and after that I’d know what I wanted to do. But little did I know I’d get caught.” And caught he did. Davis reported aboard the newly commissioned USS Helena (CL-50) on Sept. 28, 1939, and by the time the Helena was sunk during the Battle of Kula Gulf on July 6, 1943, Davis and his brother Rob Roy Davis, who joined the crew of the Helena on Aug. 18, 1941, had seen and fought in seven battles, including Pearl Harbor, Guadalcanal and the final battle that ripped the light cruiser in three parts, Kula Gulf. “After I finished boot camp I had completed speciality training for machinist mate, but when they assigned me to the Helena, I found out there’s a right way and a wrong way and then there’s the Navy’s way,” he said, laughing. “When I got aboard there wasn’t any vacancies in the machinist department so they put me in the electricians department which turned out to be the best thing that could have happened to me.” SEE WAR, PAGE A3
Reader’s Guide TODAY’S WEATHER Sunny. High, 47. Low, 27. No snow today.
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CHRISTMAS CLASSIC Don’t miss our annual Christmas Classic special section inside today. HOW TO REACH US Call 901.476.7116 Fax 901.476.0373 Email news@covingtonleader.com Visit us at 2001 Hwy. 51 South, Covington, TN 38019 or online at covingtonleader.com
SEE FISHER, PAGE A2
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