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VOL. 56 NO. 19
www.ShopperNewsNow.com |
May 10, 2017
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BUZZ Commissioners to visit Powell
Knox County At-Large Commissioners Ed Brantley and Bob Thomas are headed to Powell for their next Ed & Bob Night Out in Knox County. Brantley and Thomas will be at Life House Coffee, 7545 Brickyard Road, Thursday, May 18, from 5-7 p.m. to meet the people of the Powell community and listen to their concerns. All are welcome. This is not a commission meeting. There is no agenda. There will be no votes taken, but there may be a few blueberry muffins consumed.
Faith matters to you, and to us
“One of the beautiful things I love about the Lord is the fact that anyone that comes into contact with God can’t leave that encounter the same way that he came.”
Artist rearranges ‘what God’s already made’
Read more from Matthew Best, a new columnist, page A-5
A contender for attention again
“Heavyweight boxing has my attention for the first time in 20 years. And it should have yours. “The heavyweight boxing champion used to be somebody. Remember? He used to be a contender – for our attention, for our worldwide admiration.”
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See sports columnist Jesse Smithey, page A-9
Why is UT doing this?
Former Knoxville mayor Victor Ashe raises questions about the salary for UT’s new vice chancellor for communications. It’s more than twice the going market rate.
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See “Last Words,” page A-9
Healing through horses Looking for something fun and rewarding to do this summer? Do you enjoy working with horses and/or people? Shangri-la Therapeutic Academy of Riding (STAR) needs volunteers to assist special needs children and adults with therapeutic horseback riding lessons. Junior Vol Training (ages 10-12) is Thursday, May 25, from 5-7 p.m. Lesson Vol Training (ages 13+) is Saturday, June 3, from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Horse experience is not necessary, closed toed shoes are a must. For more information, call Brittany at 865-988-4711 or visit www.rideatstar.org. Located at 11800 Highway 11E in Lenoir City.
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By John Shearer
Former Powell resident Steve Rhule said his art talent comes instinctively. And that complements perfectly his art pieces that also come from the natural realm. “God gave me the gift of creativity, and I use the gift I’m given,” he said of his Buffalo Mountain Studios business. “I enjoy taking something that’s nothing and turning it into something that’s beautiful.” As Rhule further explained while manning a booth at the recent Dogwood Arts Festival in Market Square and Krutch Park, he uses pieces of wood or rock or other items found outside and simply reshapes them or combines them. The pieces look primitive after completion, even for folk art, but they are detailed. This consistent style also produces pieces that are individually quite diverse. On display at his booth were everything from carved birds or fish, to a native American-like character made partly of wild bird feathers, to a collage of pasted cloths, to a statue of a snake-handling preacher. “I take what God’s already made and just rearrange it,” he
said with a laugh, adding that he does not use any items bought at a hardware or supply store. And he doesn’t really even go looking for the items he
a piece of modern technology – the television. For two years, he worked on a DIY Network show called “Stone Age,” in which he and his son, Nick, helped landscape p e ople’s
One of Rhule’s cremation urns, a line he calls Art To Die For
makes into art, as he explained. “It screams out to me when I’m walking in the woods or through the stream,” he said. “The pieces just cry out. They want to be turned into this or that.” Rhule may like this old-fashioned style of making art, but his career has been helped with
properties using rock and other natural materials. The show is still airing on the DIY Network Wednesdays at 8 a.m. As a result of previous contractual obligations with the TV show, the Dogwood Arts Festival was his first art show in five years, he said. “This show has been a lot of
By John Shearer Sterchi Elementary School has had basically the same now-familiar look since it opened in 1959, and through many of those years, Pennie Owen has been an equally familiar face. Owen was among the students who began attending the school that first year, and she has remained a constant presence over the last few decades as a parent leader and then a teacher’s aide. After 22 years in the latter role, however, she has decided to retire. But she was not
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Photo on page A-3
Sterchi Elementary trio will be missed sad about it during a May 3 reception at the school. “It’s a celebration, and there are people who have taught here who have returned,” she said as she looked around at the several dozen people gathered. “They have come and celebrated with us.” Also retiring this year and recognized as well at the reception at the school north of Cedar Lane in North Knoxville were teachers Martha Routh and Kathleen Logan. Routh, who taught kindergarten this year,
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fun,” he said as it was winding down on the last day. “It’s been an opportunity to get our work out in public.” Rhule has been at art a long time. A former resident of Powell, whose parents, Dale and Camille Rhule, still live there, Rhule said he operated a business called Art Light Neon on Central Avenue Pike for nearly 30 years. These days, his career is mirroring his art pieces in that it is being reshaped again. The current Scott County resident said he has begun making cremation urns out of natural materials as part of a line he is calling Art To Die For. Although he said cemetery burials are still more popular in East Tennessee because of its location in the Bible Belt, he hopes more people will realize that cremation is a more environmentally friendly way to dispose of a loved one’s remains. And that might in turn mean more customers for his urns. “I make cremation urns for colorful lives well lived,” he said with a smile. (For more on his business, go to steverhule.com).
has taught up to second grade for 35 years, including the last 22 at Sterchi. Logan has spent the past 24 years teaching music to all grade levels at the school. Despite the lengthy service, though, all three showed plenty of enthusiasm as they talked about their careers. “I love working with children and their parents and in this community,” said Routh. “It has been a blessing. I have been blessed with support and a dedicated staff.” To page A-3
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Former Powell resident Steve Rhule sells his artwork at the Dogwood Arts Festival. Photos by John Shearer