VOL. 53 NO. 30
www.ShopperNewsNow.com |
Healing waters
IN THIS ISSUE
Kids
By Ruth White
When Sophie Thompson is asked why she donated her hair to Locks of Love, her big expressive brown eyes search the corners of the room. “Well, for a lot of reasons,” replies the rising third-grader at Cedar Bluff Elementary School thoughtfully. First of all, “my hair was too long and mom just wanted it cut.” But she wanted to have it cut for Locks of Love because “they turn it into a wig for people who caught that cancer.” And someone very near and dear to Sophie was affected that way. “Grammy had it.” Don’t miss this story and more in My Kids.
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July 30, 2014
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If you don’t know a lot about fly fishing, you might not get it. Spend a morning in the back of a fishing boat with Project Healing Waters program leader Steve Thompson as your guide, and it will all make sense. Thompson helped start the Knoxville chapter of Project Healing Waters to rehabilitate former or activeduty military service personnel both physically and emotionally through fly fishing. “There are no restrictions to the veterans that can participate, and this diverse group shares a common bond.” As Thompson welcomed the group on a recent trip, he mentioned Buzz Buffington and said that it’s good to know people, but it’s better to know Buzz. Buffington has been called “a fly fisherman’s fisherman” and a “legend” by those who know what he does to make each event a success. Volunteer Wayne Nobles said that Buffington “makes this happen” and is a big reason things run smoothly. If it weren’t for Project Healing Waters, Dan Moneymaker says, he wouldn’t be alive today. “I lived in my basement and had no purpose to get out.” Thomp-
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Congrats to coach Joel Helton Last week, longtime Central High School football coach Joel Helton was inducted into the Greater Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame. Much has been said about Helton’s profound influence on his players and his students over the years, but no writer could improve on the message he sent to his final team the day of their football banquet:
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Read Betty Bean on page A-2
Credibility “It’s tough to balance the interests of good people holding public office with the public’s right to know and question relevant matters. “And it falls to a newspaper’s editor to decide what to print and when to print it.” Shopper-News publisher Sandra Clark talks about the decision to write about Gloria Deathridge’s health issues and prints a response from Deathridge.
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See both on page A-4
Donaldson under fire from all sides “The major unreported news this week is the letter signed by numerous neighborhood leaders in both the city and county calling for the departure of Mark Donaldson as head of Metropolitan Planning Commission.” Victor Ashe writes about an alliance of former City Council members Carlene Malone, Jean Teague and Barbara Pelot to topple Donaldson.
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Read Victor Ashe on page A-5
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Buzz Buffington and Emilie Slatton wade in the Clinch River to enjoy some early-morning fishing. Slatton, the granddaughter of Project Healing Waters program leader Steve Thompson, was in town from Long Island. Photos by R. White
Getting the greenway back on track By Sandra Clark Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett pulled a land transfer from the July 28 County Commission agenda, putting the greenway connector from Clayton Park to Halls Elementary School at risk. Burchett cited uncertainty about a wetland mitigation project on the property. But a partner in TTC Halls LLC, which developed the new Walmart center, said owners stand ready to transfer the property to Knox County. “We’ve done the mitigation twice.” Renee Hoyos, executive director of the Tennessee Clean Water Network, said her group had no intention of stopping the greenway project when it wrote to the state Department of Environment and Conservation seeking en-
Connor Road bridge work to start next month By Betty Bean If all goes as planned, there will be a bigger, safer, two-lane Connor Road bridge over Bull Run Creek by January 2015. County Commission was set to approve a $991,755.58 contract with Charles Blalock and Sons Inc. for the bridge replacement at its July meeting, clearing the way for construction to begin in August. The old single-lane Connor Road bridge structure is one of a handful of bridges in Knox County rated in poor condition by the Tennessee Department of Transportation. “Right now, we see a 150-day time frame for completion,” said Jim Snowden, deputy director of Knox County Engineer ing and Public Works. “The existing bridge is one lane,
and you can’t see it until you’re right up on it. The new bridge will be a two-lane bridge with much better approaches and an improved sight line.” The condition of the bridge makes Knox County eligible for a federal grant for bridge construction, administered by the Tennessee Department of Transportation, which includes $91,160 to be reimbursed to Hallsdale Powell Utility District for relocation of water lines. Eighty percent of the bridge’s total cost will be funded from Federal Highway Bridge Replacement and Rehabilitation Program funds. Knox County will be responsible for 20 percent of the cost (an estimated $180,119.12, funded in the current budget).
Burchett not happy with new Beck director By Betty Bean Last week, the board of directors of the Beck Cultural Exchange Center chose independent consultant Renee Kesler as its new executive director. She was elected by a 9-2 vote after an executive committee selected her from a pool of candidates for the position. Kesler resigned Renee Kesler under fire in 2006 after a lengthy investigation into personnel and grant issues in the city’s department of community development, which she headed.
Feel the crunch.
$25 enrollment this month.
forcement of the mitigation. At risk is a $600,000 park-toschool TDOT grant secured by then state Sens. Jamie Woodson and Burchett. That grant has been extended twice and expires Sept. 30, two months from now. The greenway connector is part of a master plan to link the current greenway near Halls Library and Food City to three Halls schools plus Clayton Park on Norris Freeway, Willow Creek Softball Park on Quarry Road, Halls Community Park on Crippen Road and the Halls Senior Center. It’s a project crucial to business development, stable home values and quality of life in Halls. Community leaders, including this writer, are committed to seeing this master plan realized. More next week.
A close-up of a hand-tied fly made by veteran Dan Moneymaker.
Tennova.com
Board chair Sam Anderson said he’s comfortable with this decision, but Kesler’s hiring is not sitting well with Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett, who has tangled over budget matters with Beck’s leadership in the past. “I’m gravely concerned. We’ve had some issues with the leadership and the bookkeeping at Beck, and we’ll just have to see what kind of relationship we’ll have going forward,” Burchett said, adding that he believes the Beck Center is “grossly underutilized.” The Beck Center is at 1927 Dandridge Ave. in the former home of the late James Garfield Beck and Ethel Benson Beck, who were
leading African-American educators and entrepreneurs. The Beck Center has been renovated and expanded in the past decade and contains extensive collections of history and artifacts of East Tennessee’s African-American community as well as a large meeting hall and space for children and others to access computers and tutoring services. The Beck Center is slated to receive $25,000 each from the city and county (a total of $50,000) this fiscal year. Knoxville Mayor Madeline Rogero (who replaced Kesler as the city’s community development director in 2007) was more positive in tone than Burchett:
“The Beck Center is a community treasure for all of Knoxville. Its archives hold materials of great historical and cultural significance, and the city is committed to supporting its mission and future growth. On personnel matters, we respect the decisions of the Beck Center board of directors, and we will continue to work with the board and staff.” The Beck Center saw its county funding slashed from $150,000 to $12,000 in 2011, the first budget prepared by Burchett. The center’s founder and heartbeat, Robert Booker, has been serving as interim director. Fundraising is one of the executive director’s primary duties.
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