Monroe Life Summer 2023

SEA RAY

CELEBRATES

David’s Abbey Carpet & Floor has been owned and operated by David Hayes since 1973. He and his experienced and knowledgeable staff are committed to providing customers with superior quality products and installations, from start to finish.

David’s daughter, Barbie Moore, and son, Mike Hayes continue in their father’s footsteps to drive their business with a commitment to maintaining their business tradition of excellence for years to come.

David’s Abbey Carpet & Floors take pride in giving back to the East Tennessee area. Their derived employee charity fund has contributed to over forty local organizations and charities since 1998. David’s Abbey Carpet & Floors is committed to serving the community.

David Hayes, Owner

FINEST QUALITY FURNITURE

INTERIOR DESIGNERS

PUBLICATIONS: REACHING MORE HOMEOWNERS THAN ANY PUBLISHER IN ET

Since its inception The Bingham Group has been producing effective multi-media campaigns for clients. As the years have progressed, more services have been added to form a full-service advertising agency including execution of market research, logo creation and development of marketing strategies.

Additional work has included annual reports, brochures, media kits, print ads, television and radio PSAs, PowerPoint presentations, video, CD-ROM, logo creation, website development, media placement, social media, digital marketing, collateral and in-house television production.

From the Publisher

It is hard to believe my twins are graduating high school! May has been filled with parties, cheer banquets and all the activities that Farragut High School puts together for the kids. Like all Moms, I am a little bit sad.

Representative clients have included Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies, Edfinancial, Oak Ridge Associated University, Hiwassee College, Knoxville Wholesale Furniture and government agencies such as the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT), the Tennessee Department of Commerce & Insurance (TDCI), the Tennessee Department of Health (TDH) and the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security.

The Bingham Group, Inc., is a Woman-Owned Small Business as certified by the Governor’s Office of Diversity Business Enterprise and Tennessee Department of Transportation.

This spring, the girls and I took a road trip to the largest antique show in the country in Round Top, Texas. Everyone needs to experience this massive antique show. Be sure to wear your cowboy hat and boots. We saw lots of them.

TBG’S MAIN OFFICE IS LOCATED IN FARRAGUT.

Summer is the perfect season for fun and adventure with your family. See pages of exciting local events and Fourth of July celebrations. And for our locally made feature we are celebrating 40 years of manufacturing Sea Ray boats in Vonore, Tennessee.

We are proud to share the story of Johnny Payne who, as pilot of Air Force Two, had the opportunity to fly Hilary Clinton, Al Gore, Dick Cheney, and Laura Bush, just to name a few. Johnny Payne enjoyed a front-row seat to American history, and he tells us all about it in this issue. I was in high school with Johnny, and this small-town guy really makes all of us proud.

Thanks to Ingles and all our advertisers for helping us do what we love—tell the stories of the good people in Monroe County. I hope you enjoy this issue and have a little fun this Spring.

Lisa Atkins-Bingham

TOURISM EXPERIENCE: ANAKEESTA • RIPLEY’S • ANDERSON COUNTY

TWENTY FIVE STATE CONTRACTS: ANTI-METH • DOMESTIC VIOLENCE • DON’T

PUBLISHER

The Bingham Group

President

Lisa Atkins Bingham

Graphic Designers

DoctorSid

Jason Bowers

Lisa Bingham

Contributing Writers

Matt Hollingsworth

Gayle Fisher

Contributing Photographers

DoctorSid

Advertising Sales

Mignonne Alman Tel: 865.523.5999

mignonne@binghamgroup.com

Subscription or Editorial Inquiries Tel: 865.523.5999

www.monroelife.com

The Bingham Group, Inc. 11921 Kingston Pike, Suite 201 Knoxville, Tennessee 37934

www.binghamgroup.com

www.farragutlife.com

www.mcminnlife.com

www.monroelife.com

Meet Kelley Dupuy

Johnson Family Dental is welcoming our new Hygienist, Kelley Dupuy. She is excited to serve the Madisonville area and work alongside her sister and brother-in-law, Drs Whitney and Austin Johnson. Her hobbies include baking cakes for friends and family, exercising with her husband, cooking, and spending time with her family. She has two cats Charlie and Janie who she adores! She has been a dental hygienist for two and a half years now, graduating from East Tennessee State University. Before becoming a dental hygienist, she obtained a bachelor’s of science in nutrition from the University of Tennessee. She uses this knowledge to help better serve her patients. We are happy to welcome her to our practice, and she looks forward to meeting our patient family.

Meet Jessica White

Jessica, a Monroe County local, is excited to be back in the area and serving the community as a dental hygienist at Johnson Family Dental. At a very young age she knew she wanted to work in the dental field. She attended Carson-Newman University and received a Bachelor’s of Arts degree in Chemistry. Jessica met her husband, Luke, while attending the university. She then went on to East Tennessee State University where she got a Bachelor’s of Science in Dental Hygiene. After graduating hygiene school, Jessica got married and moved to Florida with her husband, while he attended chiropractic school. Jessica’s husband will be graduating in December and the two are now settled down in Vonore. They have a Yorkie named Sadie. Jessica spends her time hanging out by the lake, working out, and remodeling her house. She is looking forward to seeing familiar faces and new faces in the office. Jessica is passionate about oral hygiene and is excited to serve her community.

Dr. Austin Johnson Dr. Whitney Johnson

MASON FURNITURE & APPLIANCES

We sell a broad range of items and supplies for interior improvement to meet all your needs. We’ve been established for over 6 decades because of our commitment to customer service and skill in matching the right product to the right customer. With us, you will always receive free delivery, setup and haul-away services, and products at unbeatable prices.

Did you know that the world’s top manufacturer of luxury recreational boats is headquartered here in East Tennessee? Brunswick Boat Group which makes 18 boat lines including Sea Ray Boats has an office in downtown Knoxville with a manufacturing facility in Vonore. Sea Ray is one of the world’s largest boat manufacturers of superior quality sport boats, bowriders, cabin cruisers, deck boats and more.

At Sea Ray, we believe that richer moments on the water lead to a richer life. That’s why everything we do is designed to make each moment exceptional.

At Sea Ray, we obsess over the details to ensure our owners don’t have to. Sea Ray standards mandate high-quality materials, strict testing protocols and obsessive attention to fit and finish, guaranteeing the best possible craftsmanship.

When you see a Sea Ray, you know it. And it’s love at first sight. That’s because every Sea Ray is designed with classic, yet current, Sea Ray styling. But a Sea Ray is more than just style. It’s also designed with a deep understanding of consumer needs and an anticipation of their desires. Our staff of naval architects, engineers and designers strive to make every interaction on a Sea

Ray feel natural and seamless. And we continue to set new industry benchmarks for thoughtful and modern design. It’s all in the pursuit of creating an experience that’s perfectly, distinctively Sea Ray.

A Sea Ray always performs with grace. Every ride is engineered to be agile, responsive, intuitive and as powerful as you want it to be. You won’t sacrifice experience for maximum horsepower. On a Sea Ray, your ride is smooth and quiet, with everything controlled but the adrenaline rush. It’s built to handle with confidence, whether you’re towing a wakeboarder or effortlessly maneuvering up to the dock. Escape and adventure. Both are seamlessly delivered.

No one else in the industry is as committed to keeping you out on the water, living in the moment. That’s why you’ll find a level

of support and commitment to customer satisfaction that’s unmatched by any other marine manufacturer. With dealers in more than 80 countries, an industry-leading warranty and 24/7 call support, you can be confident that Sea Ray stands beside you.

Buying a Sea Ray is more than buying a boat; it’s embracing a lifestyle. From the very first moment you become part of the Sea Ray Owners Club, you’ll experience everything life on the water should be. You’ll get access to exclusive events in fantastic settings around the world, where you’ll socialize with fellow enthusiasts. You’ll be granted premium benefits and incentives. And you’ll be part of a passionate online and onboard community that’s all about celebrating life on the water.

Sea Ray is continuing the evolution of its premium SLX® Series with the official launch of the SLX 280 Outboard. The brandnew vessel offers unmatched performance, an optimized layout, convenient storage and innovative technologies for an exceptional day on the water.

“The SLX 280 Outboard is the latest new model from our SLX Series”, said Keith Yunger, Sea Ray president. “Last year we introduced the SLX 260, which received accolades for design and innovation. Our latest model maintains the sleek styling and premium features found on the 260, but with more space and additional amenities that help boaters enjoy a day on the water.”

With athletic hull-side sculpting and headturning elegance, the SLX 280 Outboard features an impressive overall length of 31 feet 5 inches, and is meticulously crafted from bow to stern to provide maximum space and comfort. Its luxurious cockpit includes an enhanced layout for improved functionality and more room. Deeper seating promotes ergonomics while seamless storage spaces, like the cockpit floor compartment, keep gear secure when not in use. For convenience and flexibility, the cockpit can be upgraded with a drawerstyle refrigerator and an end table equipped with an inductive charging station, drystorage compartment, and cup holders.

Perfect for socializing under the sun, the U-shaped bow showcases lounge-style seating and foldable armrests. A teak table and a filler cushion that converts the bow into a sunpad can be added with the Comfort Bundle. Delivering coverage from the sun with a touch of style, the sporty optional Power Tower can be electrically lowered or raised and features an extendable sunshade. The Power Tower can also be enhanced with Fusion® Signature Series speakers, part of the Entertainment

Bundle’s Premier Audio package, and LED RGB-W color-changing lighting with a Sea Ray logo projection is available with the Lighting Bundle. At the transom, the expanded sunpad offers waterside relaxation along with an integrated cooler and a large compartment to stow inflatables and water toys.

For superior performance, the SLX 280 Outboard is powered by twin Mercury® 250 Verado® engines with Joystick Piloting, integrated SmartCraft® technology, Digital Throttle & Shift (DTS) controls and optional Dynamic Running Surface™. Outfitted with the latest technologies for effortless captaining, the helm includes a Dual Digital Dash™ with standard 9” Simrad® touchscreen displays, Mercury Marine® engine data, Active Trim control & monitoring, CZone® digital switching and a Fusion® stereo system.

The SLX 280 Outboard is available now for order in North America. For more information about Sea Ray, and to view the complete lineup, visit SeaRay.com.

www.searay.com/us/en/models/slx-series/slx-280-outboard.html

PRECIOUS TIME

When you’re spending time on the water, every moment should feel like a reward. At Sea Ray, we believe that richer moments on the water lead to a richer life. That’s why everything we do is designed to make each moment exceptional. Every detail is crafted for excellence. Style is elevated. Comfort is heightened. Technology is advanced. Performance is fine-tuned. From the perfect cradle of the cushioned seats to the guest-friendly cockpit, you’re treated to a luxurious experience worthy of your precious time.

The Sea Ray Vonore Facility manufactures boats from 23 feet to 32 feet from the SPX, SDX, SLX and Sundancer model families. The Vonore facility will celebrate its 40th Anniversary in August.

Combining the next-level luxury of the SLX 260 with innovative wakesurfing technology, the SLX 260 Surf is crafted to deliver elevated experiences. A Mercury Marine® propulsion system and intuitive user interface provide exceptional performance for watersports while improved seating and easy-to-use amenities ensure comfort and fun out on the water for everyone. Whether you prefer a thrilling day wave riding or a carefree evening watching the sunset, the SLX 260 Surf presents a host of bright features for the best of both worlds.

With head-turning elegance, the stylish Sea Ray SLX 280 Outboard offers a modern and athletic design along with powerful propulsion and innovative amenities that elevate the boating experience. Showcasing more room, improved seating and seamless storage, the SLX 280 Outboard is luxuriously outfitted for any adventure with friends and family. The U-shaped bow creates a spot for socializing, the next-generation Power Tower provides sun coverage, and the expanded cockpit features plush, inviting comforts. Everything aboard the SLX 280 Outboard is optimized for space and function, so you can focus on fun.

SLX 260 Surf

SLX 280 Outboard

This Spring the Bingham girls traveled to Round Top, Texas. Twice a year, in the spring and fall, the small Texas town of Round Top swells from its population of 90 to a few hundred thousand during this festival that they’ve hosted since 1968.

The antiques show is the largest of its kind in the country, stretching over 11 miles on either side of Texas State Highway 237. Visitors drive down the rural highway of TX-237 to shop barns, tents, and hayfields for authentic antiques, fine art, home decor and more.

It is just a short 15-hour drive from Knoxville.

Round Top Antiques Festival October 23rd through 28th, 2023

roundtoptexasantiques.com

The Round Top Antiques Show is more than dusty relics and shabby chic signage. It’s over two weeks of people flocking to Round Top, Texas, from across the U.S. It’s treasure hunts and a festival of epic proportions. It’s food, fun and friendships formed over shared searches for one-of-a-kind finds. It’s a level of insanity rarely seen in the Texas countryside — and it happens twice a year.

The Round Top Antiques Show has over 65 venues in about a 20 mile radius in the communites of Round Top, Warrenton, Carmine, Burton and Fayetteville.

Round Top has several permanent shops, attractions and galleries that call Round Top home. They also have unique restaurants and coffee shops. While they may be small, they have restaurants at the big-city level.

LOCAL GIRL SCOUT WINS GIRL SCOUTS TO THE MOON AND BACK ESSAY CONTEST

In early 2022, GSUSA sponsored the “Girl Scouts to the Moon and Back” essay contest to give Girl Scouts a chance to win a Space Science badge that’s actually been to space on NASA’s Artemis I. That mission is NASA’s first step toward the goal of sending the first woman and the first person of color to the moon.

In November 2022, NASA’s Artemis I, the most powerful rocket to ever leave Earth reached a distance of over 268,000 miles from our planet, the farthest away any human-rated spaceship has yet travelled. There, in orbit around our Moon, at the threshold of human exploration, among the ship’s cargo of valuable scientific equipment, sat a box of 81 Girl Scout Badges.

Yes, aboard this grand cosmic voyage, the trepid first step of a second Space Race, was a box of the coolest scout badges of all time. And on March 16, 2023, one of those badges—returned now to Earth—was awarded to a 5th Grade girl in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Gracie Ogle is the only Girl Scout in Tennessee to win the “Girl Scouts to the Moon and Back” contest, for which she had to write an essay and build a miniature Mars rover among other tasks. At the local Girl Scout Leadership Center, standing beside the American flag, wearing her well-decorated

Girl Scout vest, young Gracie received the badge that had travelled 1.4 million miles to rest in her palm.

There was another surprise waiting beside it—a moon box created by Y-12 in the 1960s, a prototype of the one that went to the Moon during the Apollo missions. It is one of only a dozen or so such boxes in the world, and the people of Y-12 brought it out for Gracie to see.

Gracie’s mom said, “It’s amazing for me because I see her carry through from the beginning of a badge all the way to the end… learning just to follow through with something. It’s really inspiring to me because I knew from the very beginning that she was going to be a go-getter, and I’m glad for her to have this opportunity… [Winning the contest] was amazing and out of the blue… Her father and I are really proud of her, no matter what she does.”

Not only did the Artemis I mission have some

unique cargo, but it also served as the first step in sending the first woman and person of color to the moon. Inspiring missions like Artemis I encourage Girl Scouts to enter fields of STEM, where only 34% of women are present in the STEM workforce and less than 10% are Black, Indigenous and Latina. Plus, the mission had the added benefit of putting a smile on a local young girl’s face.

Left to Right: Joann Ogle, Ben Ogle, Andrew Ogle, Eleanor Ogle, Gracie Ogle, Cassie Ogle and Bobbie Redcorn.

THESE RECIPES ARE BROUGHT TO YOU BY INGLES, STARTED IN 1963 BY ROBERT P. INGLE AND COMMITTED TO THE COMMUNITIES THEY SERVE.

FARM TO TABLE

n order to bring the freshest produce available to his customers Elmer Ingle used to visit local farmers in the early mornings, picking up only the best. Today, the store and the people look a little different but the produce doesn’t… everywhere you look the Ingles produce department has the freshest and the tastiest produce available, from local farmers just like Elmer and from around the world. Making sure you have the less traveled – best selection. We have an excellent variety of organic selections and a fresh produce prep area where we can core a pineapple, cut watermelon or put together the perfect combination of fresh vegetables for you, all with knowledgeable and friendly associates ready to help. Next time you visit your neighborhood Ingles, take a little more time to notice how much the tradition of the highest standards still remains with every fruit and vegetable.

INGLES….EXPECT MORE FROM YOUR LOCAL STORE.

by Kaitlyn Baker Serves:

BLACKBERRY CAKE

Ingredients

1 box moist yellow cake mix

4 large eggs

1 (3 oz). box raspberry or blackberry jello

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup water

2/3 can blackberry pie filling

1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese

1 lb. box confectioners sugar

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1 (8 oz.) tub cool whip fresh blackberries, for garnish

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Mix cake mix, eggs, jello, oil, and water in a large bowl until

well blended. Gradually stir in blackberry pie filling. Pour into two well greased 9 inch pie pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack. Beat softened cream cheese and butter until light and thoroughly combined then add box confectioners sugar, vanilla, and cool whip. Mix until this is well incorporated. Assemble cakes by frosting bottom layer then add top cake and frost all over.

www.ingles-markets.com/recipes/blackberry-cake

6-8

EGG SALAD LETTUCE WRAP

by Jasmin Queen Serves: 6

Ingredients

6 hard boiled eggs*

2 green onions, thinly sliced

4 tbsp. Greek yogurt

2 tbsp. mayonnaise

12 romaine heart leaves

12 slices bacon, cooked

24 grape tomatoes

1 tsp. dill weed

salt and pepper, to taste

*To save time, pick-up hard-boiled eggs at Ingles.

Directions

Dice the eggs. Combine eggs, green onions, yogurt, mayonnaise, and salt and pepper. Slice the grape tomatoes in half. Divide egg mixture over lettuce leaves. Place one slice of bacon onto each lettuce leaf. Top with tomatoes and dill weed.

www.ingles-markets.com/recipes/ egg-salad-lettuce-wrap

BUFFALO CHICKEN WRAPS/PINWHEELS

by

Clark and Suzy Neal with Unicoi Preserves Serves: 4

Ingredients

BUFFALO-BLUE CHEESE SAUCE

1/2 cup Buffalo wing sauce

1/2 cup Laura Lynn blue cheese salad dressing

1/4 cup smoked blue cheese crumbles

SANDWICH WRAP

4 spinach herb sandwich wraps

8 oz. cheddar and jalapeño pub cheese spread

1 lb. buffalo chicken sandwich meat, thinly sliced

12 oz. broccoli slaw

8 oz. fresh spinach

1 cup roasted red bell pepper strips, drained and dried with paper towels

Directions

In a small bowl, mix together Buffalo wing sauce, blue cheese dressing, and smoked blue cheese crumbles. Set aside. Spread pub cheese over sandwich wrap. Build your wrap by adding 3 slices of buffalo chicken meat, then some broccoli slaw.

Drizzle slaw with Buffalo-blue cheese sauce, then add spinach and roasted red bell pepper strips. Roll up sandwich tightly and as neatly as you can. Use a long bread knife to help hold ingredients in place while you roll.

To serve, cut in half on the diagonal. Alternately, cut wraps into pinwheels, and serve on a platter.

www.ingles-markets.com/recipes/buffalo-chicken-wraps-pinwheels

CHILLED MINTY GREEN PEA SOUP

by Martha Vining

Serves: 6

Ingredients

2 tbsp. butter

1/2 cup onion, chopped

3 cups chicken stock

4 cups frozen peas, thawed

1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, chopped salt and pepper

sour cream

fresh mint leaves, for garnish

Directions

In a medium stock pot, melt butter over medium heat. Add chopped onion and cook until onion is softened but not brown, 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add stock and bring to boil. Add peas, turn down heat and simmer 3-4 minutes, until just tender. Remove stock pot from heat and add parsley and mint. Puree with immersion blender, thinning with water if too thick. Season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate and serve chilled. Garnish with sour cream and fresh mint leaves.

Make it vegan: Substitute butter with vegetable oil and chicken stock with water.

www.ingles-markets.com/recipes/ chilled-minty-green-pea-soup

Ingles carries a large selection of sandwich wraps to fit your dietary needs. Keto, low carb, high fiber, and cheese wraps are all available at Ingles.

SMOKED PEACH COBBLER WITH VANILLA ICE CREAM

by Smokin’ Joe Lasher Serves: 8

Pie Topping

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 tsp. sea salt

8 tbsp. unsalted butter, cold

1 1/3 cups buttermilk

Pie Filling

1 1/4 cups packed light brown sugar

1 tbsp. vanilla extract

2 tbsp. dark maple syrup

2 tbsp. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tbsp. lemon juice

3 lb. yellow peaches, pitted and sliced

Topping

Laura Lynn Vanilla Ice Cream

Directions

Preheat smoker (or oven) to 350°F. Prepare the topping. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, granulated sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Cut butter into 12-14 slices and press into mixture. Stir in the buttermilk with a wooden spoon and set aside. Prepare the filling by thoroughly whisking brown sugar, vanilla, maple syrup, flour, cinnamon and lemon juice, then add peaches. Add filling mixture to a greased, 12” cast iron skillet, then drop dollops of topping over the top. Smoke (or bake) 40-45 minutes, rotating occasionally, until golden brown and bubbly. Serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!

www.ingles-markets.com/recipes/smoked-peach-cobbler-with-vanilla-ice-cream

MEXICAN STREET CORN CASSEROLE

by Kaitlyn Baker Serves: 5-6

Ingredients

24 oz. frozen corn, thawed

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1/3 cup sour cream

1 tbsp. lime juice

1 tsp. chili powder

1/2 tsp. garlic salt

4 oz. crumbled queso fresco or cojita cheese

2 tbsp. cilantro, chopped for garnish

pinch cayenne pepper

salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 2-3 quart casserole dish. In a large bowl, mix together corn, mayonnaise, sour cream, and lime juice. Add chili powder, garlic salt and cayenne then mix well. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Stir in half of the queso fresco or cotija. Bake for 30-35 minutes. Before serving, sprinkle with remaining cheese and chopped cilantro.

Serve as a side dish or a dip for chips!

www.ingles-markets.com/recipes/mexican-street-corn-casserole

LIEUTENANT COLONEL JOHNNY PAYNE

Johnny Payne is from Madisonville. He attended the University of Tennessee at Knoxville where he met his wife, Peggy Hunter Payne. Johnny graduated in 1982 and served in the United States Air Force for more than 20 years and was involved in Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm. In 2003, his family returned to Madisonville. Johnny still flies planes to this day. Johnny and Peggy have four children Corbin, Matt, Sophia, and Roger.

Front Seat To History: Four Years

Piloting Air Force Two

October, 1999

THE DOVE BAR DEBACLE

by Matt Hollingsworth

MAndrews Air Force Base

onroe County native Johnny Payne sat in the cockpit of the meticulously shined Boeing 757, staring at the clock. Even though the flight was supposed to be scheduled down to the minute, his passenger was late, but Johnny was getting used to that. During the first month of his job as co-pilot of Air Force Two, his main passenger, Vice President Al Gore, was almost always late, sometimes by over an hour. Finally, a helicopter appeared in the distance—Marine Two—carrying the Vice President. Upon landing, he was escorted to the stairway leading up to the plane. As soon as he stepped on the stairs, Johnny started the engine on the opposite side of the plane, and the moment Gore was on board, Johnny activated the other engine, and the plane began to move.

Johnny had flown several politicians besides Gore, and while he hadn’t had much chance to meet them, he’d been close enough to form impressions. Senator Joe Biden was outgoing, laughing and joking with the crew. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright was friendly, stopping by the cockpit to thank him after flights. Al Gore, however, came across as wooden, never personable unless there was a camera in his face.

Gore was in the middle of his campaign for President, and Johnny suspected the stress was getting to him. There was a state room near the cockpit where Gore and his wife would often stay during flights, and Johnny had sometimes heard them arguing, tempers running high. Johnny thought about his own wife, Peggy, and tried to imagine how much strain they’d feel if they had to endure the Gores’ grueling schedule.

During the flight, the crew enjoyed a delicious meal of barbeque ribs catered by a popular local restaurant and a Dove Bar for dessert. It wasn’t until after the plane landed that Johnny learned from the rest of the crew that these ice cream bars had caused a stir in the back. Al Gore was on the Atkins diet at the time, so the crew hadn’t ordered a Dove Bar for him. And when he saw everyone else eating one but not him, the Vice President of the United States left his plate of ribs and went to the back galley to yell at the head flight attendant in front of the whole crew until he got a Dove Bar.

Johnny had to laugh when he heard the story—one of the most powerful men in the world throwing a hissy fit over an ice cream bar. Welcome aboard Air Force Two. This was going to be an interesting job.

November, 1999

SCARE ‘EM I

ohnny’s extended family back in East Tennessee were so proud of him for his job, although being staunch Republicans, they were less thrilled about who he was flying. His Aunt Ress specifically gave him some interesting advice, saying, “Johnny, I’m sure proud of you getting this assignment and flying those important people up there in Washington. But, if you have those Democrats on your plane, I don’t want you to hurt them, but if you could scare ‘em every now and then, I sure would appreciate it.”

Johnny had to laugh at that. And while he may not have scared any of his passengers, one of those passengers did scare the staff. That passenger was Hillary Clinton, and one particular trip with her remains vivid in his memory.

If Al Gore was wooden, Hillary Clinton was a nightmare. Years later, Johnny Payne recalled, “Hillary was very difficult to deal with. Our people in the back really did not like dealing with Mrs. Clinton at all.” On that trip, they had just flown the First Lady eight hours to Israel.

Johnny began the plane’s descent, but as he prepared to land, he got a message—Mrs. Clinton wasn’t ready. Johnny’s brow furled; this was very irregular.

“We gave them plenty of warning,” he said. Indeed, he had been sending updates to Mrs. Clinton’s staff when they were two hours away, one hour, 30 minutes, beginning descent.

“She needs 20 more minutes,” the flight attendant insisted. The plane already had the landing gear down and they were running low on fuel.

“We can do one loop,” Johnny said, “and then we’re landing.” On the ground below, high-ranking Israeli government officials watched the plane pull up and circle. After the loop, Air Force Two finally landed, but Hillary Clinton still kept the officials waiting for another 15 minutes before she was ready.

After she left, Johnny asked the flight attendants what had happened. Had her staff not gotten his updates?

“We told them,” one of the attendants answered. “Every update you gave us, we gave to them… Even when we were descending, they wouldn’t go in and wake her up.” Finally, one of the attendants had woken the First Lady.

“Why?” Johnny asked.

“Because they’re scared of her.”

Over his career, Johnny would hear other negative stories about both Bill and Hillary from people who worked with them. One friend whose retirement papers were signed by Bill Clinton said, “I’m not even sure if I’ll keep them.”

Promotion ceremony for Johnny to Lieutenant Colonel. A single silver oak leaf serves as the rank insignia for the United States Air Fore Lieutenant Colonel. Shoulder marks with the single silver leaf are being installed to his uniform. In the United States Air Force, lieutenant colonel is a field-grade officer rank, just above the rank of major and just below the rank of colonel.

Johnny with General Colin Powell, 2003, flying to Cambodia.

Visiting Lenin's tomb on a flight to Russia, summer 2000.

Left: Johnny holding a model of Air Force Two and Peggy and Johnny at their home in Madisonville, 2023.

October, 2000

Normally, to schedule a flight, Johnny would simply contact the country’s embassy, but North Korea didn’t have an embassy in the United States. Instead, an American ambassador from the South Korean embassy had to travel across the Demilitarized Zone to the Swiss embassy in North Korea where he worked with Johnny to schedule the trip. Unfortunately, there was no way to call, so they had to communicate over the internet, and the internet in North Korea only worked for about four hours a day—often during the middle of the night in America.

Late at night, bleary-eyed, Johnny and the ambassador messaged back and forth working out details—what type of fuel the North Koreans would have, what kind of security they’d need, what runway to use. This last one was almost a big problem. The ambassador had to personally drive out to inspect the runway they’d chosen, only to discover that it was full of holes and unusable. They had to locate another one in better shape. Finally, the day of the flight arrived. Just hours before takeoff when everything was scheduled, a member of Albright’s staff asked what time the sun would rise in North Korea. They looked it up and found that it would rise about three hours after they landed.

“That’s not going to work,” said the staff member. “We’ve got to take off later.” He explained that they needed to land at sunrise in order to get the best pictures.

“Is there nothing you can do?” the staff member asked.

“Dude, it’s Sunday evening in Russia. You know the embassy isn’t going to be able to get anyone that counts.”

Nevertheless, they wanted the pictures. In the end, Johnny flew over Russia at the scheduled time then slowed the plane down as much as he could the moment they left Russian airspace. This added a few extra hours to the flight, and they landed just in time for the perfect photo op.

While Madeline Albright met with Supreme Leader Kim Jong-Il, the North Koreans offered to take the Air Force Two staff on a tour of the capital city, but they were so exhausted from the 19-hour flight they asked if they could go tomorrow instead. They were taken to North Korea’s “best” hotel where Johnny collapsed into a twin bed that was too short for him. Wanting to relax, he flipped on the TV. All three channels were showing the American baseball world series with Korean-speaking commentators. As Johnny drifted to sleep, he wondered what they were saying.

Of all the members of Bill Clinton’s cabinet, Madeline Albright was Johnny’s favorite; she was always polite to the staff, often visiting the cockpit to thank him after flights. Nevertheless, planning her upcoming trip was becoming quite a headache, but that wasn’t too surprising—Albright’s trip would be the first time a United States politician had visited North Korea.

“We cannot take off later,” Johnny responded. Their flight took them through Russian airspace, and they had a strict timeframe where the Russians were allowing them to cross. If they crossed outside that window, they would literally risk being shot down, as happened to a plane carrying a U.S. Congressman that accidentally drifted into Russian airspace in 1983.

Johnny slept for over 18 hours before waking for their handlers’ grand tour of the capital city. As they walked among stark and ugly utilitarian buildings, the group watched bicyclists wearing coats and ties swarm the streets in place of cars. The handlers led them to the Grand People’s Study House, North Korea’s national library. Inside, citizens typed away at computers. Johnny thought back to his trouble scheduling the flight, how the internet only worked for a few hours a day in North Korea. He wondered if the computers were even working or if this was all meticulously staged, like Albright’s sunrise photo shoot. The people

in the library were well dressed and never looked up from their computers, like actors intently studying their lines.

Next on their agenda was a subway with a whole three stops followed by a mosaic mural depicting socialist symbols. Finally, the day concluded with an acrobatic circus in a local stadium. They entered through a long corridor featuring a 20-foot statue of some North Korean official. But when they finally entered the stadium, Johnny’s blood froze. Around them, five thousand North Koreans sat in complete silence, staring at their feet, motionless as statues.

“There’s not a sound being made…” Johnny later recalled. “Nobody’s sneezing, coughing, sniffing.” It felt uncanny; he’d never seen this many people all dead quiet.

Elsewhere, Madeline Albright was facing a similar sight. She stood alongside Kim Jong-Il in the largest stadium in the world, and among the hundred thousand silent faces, every last pair of eyes was fixed solely on the Supreme Leader.

What Johnny experienced was similar, although on a smaller scale. The moment he and the other Americans took their seats, the lights dimmed and the curtains drew back. Suddenly, the crowd sprang to life, clapping and cheering for the duration of the show, just like an American audience. When the acrobatic circus was over, the crowd stood up to applaud then sat down and returned to complete silence.

Years later, that image still haunts Johnny. What had the North Korean government done to their citizens to keep such a large crowd so perfectly, horribly disciplined? Shaking his head, Johnny remarked, “That’s control.”

September, 2001

911

On the morning of the 11th, Johnny Payne was stationed at Andrews Airforce Base near Washington D.C. He had just finished a meeting with the staff when someone told him a building had been hit by an airplane. And suddenly, all the world had changed. He was watching the horrific news coverage when he got a call from a higher-up saying they needed to put the whole base on lockdown.

Johnny called his wife Peggy and said, “Turn on the TV.”

“Why? What’s up?” she asked.

He repeated: “Turn on the TV.”

It took a moment after she turned it on to realize what she was seeing—one of the Twin Towers was burning. Listening to the reporters, Peggy asked herself why a plane was even flying over Downtown New York. As a pilot’s wife, she knew they weren’t supposed to fly over cities like that. She was asking herself how a mistake like this could have happened when suddenly the second plane hit.

Every moment of this day would be seared into their memories.

Twenty-two years later, when asked how he had felt, Johnny Payne said, “I’d been in the Air Force, at that point, almost 19 years. We had gone through the Cold War, and supposedly, we had won the Cold War. And then we went off to fight for Kuwait, and we won that war. We freed the Kuwait people and hamstrung Saddam Hussein… So, I thought, maybe I’m going to be leaving this place a in little bit better shape to show for my 20 years in the military. And then that happened, and… now I’m questioning are we really any safer now than we were during the Cold War?” But in the moment, what filled him was fury—he wanted to find the people who did this.

Likewise, Peggy recalled, “You realize at that moment, we’ve lived history.” At the time, Johnny was only a year away from retirement, but suddenly, he and Peggy found themselves facing an uncertain future—no one can retire during times of war. In the end, he would only have to stay one extra year, but at the time, they had no idea what would happen.

At the end of the day, Johnny was allowed to go home. As he waited for the traffic to clear, he went to the top floor of the base and looked towards Washington D.C. Ten miles away, plumes of smoke rose from the Pentagon.

December, 2001

GODSPEED

Johnny was in Pakistan when the United States suffered its first casualty in the War on Terror. He was flying CIA director George Tenet when they received the news—American CIA officer Johnny Mike Spann had been killed while interrogating prisoners.

Immediately, Director Tenet asked if they could escort Spann’s body back to the U.S. After a few calls, they were able to alter the flight plan to land at Ramstein Air Base where Spann’s remains had been transported.

The next morning, they began their flight to the United States. Somehow the word must have gotten out that they were returning the remains because whenever they checked in, the air traffic controllers would say, “Godspeed, John Spann.”

When they landed, Spann’s parents and wife were waiting. They were led to the casket where they could have a private moment with their loved one. As they entered the plane, Payne saw the wife’s little child, younger than his own kids, and a baby in her arms. “It was really emotional,” Payne later recalled. “Now it’s hitting home.”

The flight attendants were instructed to serve the family, but several attendants would become overwhelmed with emotion and retreat to the cockpit to cry.

Thousands of Americans would die in the War on Terror. Here was the first.

STARBUCKS COFFEE, NO CHEESECAKE.

If the world had grown darker over the past few years, at least his passengers were kinder. The Bush Administration had left a profoundly different impression on him than had the Clinton Administration.

It started while he was waiting on Laura Bush to arrive for her first flight aboard Air Force Two, when one of the flight attendants told him, “Colonel Payne, she doesn’t really want to tell us what she wants for meals. She just says, ‘Whatever you do, I’ll be fine with.’”

Johnny had to smile at that. It was certainly an easier problem to deal with than Gore’s Dove Bar debacle. When Mrs. Bush arrived,

Johnny said, “Ma’am, our people are very serious about making sure you get what you want, and if there’s anything you want or don’t want, you need to let us know.”

The First Lady looked at him and said, “Well, I’ll tell you what, I prefer Starbucks coffee to anything else, and I really detest cheesecake. If you give me Starbucks coffee and no cheesecake, I’ll be very happy.”

It was the only request she ever gave them.

After the flight, Johnny checked the State Room where Mrs. Bush had been staying. A devotional book and Bible lay open beside

Johnny, Peggy, Laura Bush, Corbin, Matthew, Sophia and Roger. A letter and photo to Matthew from the President and Laura Bush when Matthew was twelve.

ohnny’s family stood together on the runway of Andrews Air Force Base, the wind whipping by, as the Marine Two helicopter approached. It descended, and Vice President Dick Cheney stepped off with his entourage. As usual, he was ten minutes early; you could have set a watch by him.

Today was Johnny’s final flight as pilot of Air Force Two, and as a thank you, he’d been allowed to bring his wife and four kids to meet the Vice President.

A few days before, they’d also gotten a chance to meet Laura Bush, and to Johnny’s horror, his son Roger had tried to hold up bunny ears behind the First Lady’s head. Thankfully, she had just laughed and said, “He’s too cute.” Needless to say, Roger’s mortified parents had reminded him many times not to do that to Cheney.

LAST FLIGHT

As the Vice President approached, he peered forward over the top of his lowered glasses in an intimidating glare. But as soon as he reached them, the glare melted into a warm smile that so contrasted with his public image.

Johnny later contrasted him with his predecessor: “If you only had the public perception on TV to go by, you would think Al Gore was just a Tennessean, big ‘Aw shucks,’ kind of guy that would come and say ‘hey,” and Cheney was this monster, but it was not that way. Cheney was a very warm, nice guy, and his staff loved him… I met Cheney a number of times.” He’d gotten to meet several members of his family including his daughter, Liz Cheney, who had left the same impression.

Cheney thanked Johnny for his service and asked where he was going now that

he was retiring. “Going back to Tennessee,” Johnny answered, “make good Republicans out of my kids.”

“There you go,” Cheney said, smiling. “That’s the place to take them.”

They talked for a few minutes before he moved on to Johnny’s wife and kids, shaking their hands, talking to each one in turn. Their youngest, Roger, was bad about not looking people in the eye, and they’d had to prep him. When it was his turn, Roger looked him right in the eye and resisted the urge to make bunny ears.

As soon as they were finished talking, Johnny said goodbye to his family and hurried up the steps and into the cockpit of the meticulously shined Boeing 757 for his final flight as pilot of Air Force Two—the conclusion of four years in a front seat to history.

Vice President Dick Cheney, Lt. Colonel Johnny Payne, Peggy Payne, Matthew, Corbin, Roger, and Sophia

Mitch Hall

NMLS# 184902

Mitch.Hall@renasant.com

www.mitchhall-renasant.com

Deborah and Danny McFalls, owners of Everhart Lumber Company, have added different furniture pieces and home décor items to the store for the summer season. We have expanded our mantle room to include more mantles for our customers. Mantles may be purchased directly from the showroom or by placing an order for a custom-made mantle.

Featured in pictures are a magnolia wood coffee table and a maple wood sofa table. An inventory of side tables are kept in stock from different local wood species.

As always, we offer ready-made and custom-made furniture from wood, with character, to make dining, coffee, and sofa tables and other types of furniture. We continue to offer wood slabs for customers to make their own furniture.

Building Supplies

We provide specialized wood building products including mantels, wooden kitchen island tops, and stair treads. For the interior walls, we offer reclaimed barnwood paneling. We also make custom-made barnwood style doors.

Please visit us to view in-house made wood products or to place a custom-made order.

MEMBER

UNPRECEDENTED DURABILITY

Our proprietary, Color Lock® technology makes Aura® exterior paint unlike any other. Aura’s superior, one-coat performance is like applying two coats of conventional paint. Plus, it dries faster and delivers a smooth, durable finish that lasts year after year, even in the most challenging outdoor environments.

Come

Paints, Hardware, Plants & More... Served With A Smile.

Growing your own garden should be simple, accessible, and attainable. With over a century of experience growing fresh, quality plants, we want to be your go-to partner in successfully growing delicious, fresh food, right at home.

Monroe County Friends of Animals (MCFA) was founded in 2004, and since then they’ve rescued and rehomed more than 25,000 animals. For the past 17 years, they’ve been working out of an aging former farm building that lacks proper plumbing and ventilation systems. Due to lack of space, they even have to keep the animals in outdoor kennels, and on nights that get too cold, they have to recruit volunteers to keep the animals in their homes temporarily.

Because of all these issues (and many others), the people at MCFA decided they needed their own building, and for the past few years, they’ve been raising money. Currently, they’ve raised $4.3 million and are trying to raise $400,000 more. This new center, called the MCFA Eastbourne Animal Center, will have room to house around 120 cats and dogs—and they’ll be inside, so they won’t have to worry about winter weather. They also plan for the new center to have dedicated medical rooms, welcome areas for visitors to meet privately with pets, areas to isolate ill animals and more.

As a kid, Teresa Underwood would rescue animals from the road and bring them home. She would arrive at her house with everything from dogs and puppies to bats

Monroe County Friends of Animals

Breaks

Ground on the Eastbourne Animal Center

and rats. At one point, she had adopted two rottweilers, two yorkies, and four pot-belly pigs. Today, Teresa is the executive director of MCFA, and her passion for rescuing animals hasn’t dimmed.

Teresa said, “[I’ve heard people say], ‘I can’t volunteer in the shelter because I know I’ll just take all the animals home with me.’ Well, that happens when you work at a shelter.” She explained how she ended up with two cats that the owner hadn’t wanted. “So [the cats] now own me,” she said.

Teresa’s not the only one at MCFA who can’t resist a dog’s big, pleading eyes.

“We have one board member that has

fostered over 900 puppies in his house,” she said. “He turned his golf cart parking area into an area to foster dogs and puppies.”

“People think that shelter animals are broken and they’re not,” Teresa said. “They end up there through no fault of their own.”

Their construction company is Rouse Construction, and Sam Moser is the architect. MCFA is grateful for the many generous donations it has received, especially the 3.4-acre lot donated by the Kefauver family.

For giving opportunities contact Cheryl Ulmer or Teresa Underwood.

culmer@MonroeCountyFriendsofAnimals

tunderwood@MonroeCountyFriendsofAnimals

info@monroecountyfriendsofanimals.org

Phone: 423.520.6887

170 KEFAUVER LANE, MADISONVILLE, TN

by Matt Hollingsworth

Mayor Recorder Board Members

Mayor: Glenn Moser

Mayor: Glenn Moser

Mayor: Augusta Davis

City Recorder: Sherri McCrary

Alderman-Vice Mayor: Scott Hunt

Board Members: Chris Bowers, Edward Dawson, Nancy Franklin, Danny Long

City Alderman: James Bledsoe, Fred Cagle, Augusta Davis, Linda Hensley and Susan Saunders

City Recorder: Sherri McCrar y Alderman: James Bledsoe, Fred Cagle, Augusta Davis, Linda Hensley and Susan Saunders

MACA REVEALS THREE NEW MURALS: JUNE 8

The Monroe Area Council for the Arts will be revealing three new murals on June 8, 2023 at 11 a.m. at the Monroe County Courthouse. At the event, MACA will reveal the completed murals and recognize the artists, TAC, and local partners. Mayor Mitch Ingram will speak. Enjoy this inside look at Monroe county’s latest works of art.

at UNC Asheville. Graduating in 2010 with a BFA she spent the following years building her studio practice in Seattle, where she discovered a love for murals. She now lives in East Tennessee where she continues to exhibit and work in public art. www.meganlingerfelt.com

BROWN TROUT

DREAM CLOUD

Artist Nathan Brown drew inspiration from two local landmarks, the Lost Sea and Cherohala Skyway, and put his own unique spin on the interpretation, hand-mixing 58 colors to create a gradient wonderland of rolling hills, mountainous shapes and cave-like water features.

Location: RestorationsPro

Danny and Debbie Stricklan own the building located at 228 Warren Street and donated the wall for this project.

Artist: Nathan Brown

Chattanooga-based muralist Nathan Brown has been painting his way across the South for more than two decades. Originally born in Los Angeles, he relocated to Nashville at the age of 11 and embraced the transition between cities through painting graffiti and exploring new territories via skateboarding. Brown has long drawn inspiration from these passions, using color and form to play with perspective. www.19ss.net

LILIES OF DEVOTION

Artist Megan Lingerfelt said, “The Lily of the Valley is part of a nursery rhyme that makes me think of childhood, calla lilies have an elegance that lend themselves to bridal decorations and mid-life milestones, and stargazer lilies are a traditional funeral floral and mark the end of life.”

Location: White’s Marble Works, Inc. Not only did the White’s donate their building wall, but they were also instrumental in connecting the artist with this project and they matched the grant to help cover the cost of bringing this beautiful mural to 186 Warren Street. Allen White worked with the artist to hide images within the mural. These “nuggets” of art within the mural will be released in the soon-to-be-published MACA Mural brochure.

Artist: Megan Lingerfelt

Megan Lingerfelt grew up in Western North Carolina and studied drawing and painting

The third mural will creatively capture the nature and streams of Monroe County and The Tellico Trout Hatchery in Tellico Plains. Through art we hope to increase the public’s knowledge of the trout history and industry in our area. “Brook Trout are Tennessee’s only native trout species. Rainbow Trout were originally introduced into Tennessee in the late 1880s. Brown Trout have been naturalized in Tennessee through stocking. Brown Trout offers the best opportunity to catch a trophy trout in Tennessee. Tennessee’s wild Brown Trout can live twice as long and attain much greater sizes than either Rainbow or Brook trout” (tn.gov).

Location: Ralph Patton’s building

Mr. Patton is the owner of the building located at 205B Tellico Street and donated the wall for this project.

Having painted internationally, her style is constantly evolving as she creates site specific work in social consideration of the setting and community.

www.sarahpainterart.com

Artwork goals: MACA desired to enhance the local community with original historical works of art created by local artists. Each of the buildings chosen for the project have prominence in the downtown area. The murals also improve the physical attraction to downtown Madisonville. The meaning of the murals will promote local culture. MACA hopes to create such energy with this project that the entire community will be connected through the art.

OTHER SUMMER HAPPENINGS AT MACA

Monroe Area Council for the Arts will also engage students over the summer with their Intensives. MACA’s Art, Music & Theatre Intensives will be infused into the county’s summer learning program with two hours/day for five days spanning over three weeks of hands-on art instruction and three “Talk with an Expert” activities. These will take place as digital interviews and videos that show students how the art can be implemented into their lives as adults in a hobby or in a career. This will be the second year that MACA has partnered with the Monroe County Schools and Boys & Girls Club to bring the Arts to students during the summer. This year, through additional funding from the Grubb Sumner Fund for Monroe County, MACA will reach the most students they have ever reached with one singular project www.monroearts.com

Artist: Sarah Painter

Sarah Painter is a figurative painter and a graduate of Florida State University’s College of Fine Arts.

This project is sponsored through a grant from the TN Arts Commission, East TN Foundation, White’s Marble Works and Monroe Area Council for the Arts.

Taking A Look Down The Road

Come by the FLEC Operations Center on Saturday, October 7th and celebrate Cooperation!

Gates will open at 7 a.m. and close at 9:30 a.m., giving you time to stop by and register for door prizes, get information on your Cooperative, meet some of the folks, see some of the equipment used daily to keep the lights burning brightly, and get a gift card towards breakfast or lunch at a local restaurant!

Office Hours: Monday - Friday 7:30am - 4:30pm ww.flec.org

Merle Norman Cosmetic Studios have been independently owned and operated since 1931.

Coral-

Bells

MASTER GARDENER

GayleFisher

Summer time and the living is easy. If you are looking for as easy plant to grow, try Heucheras, also known as coral-bells or alumroot. These plants are North America native wildflowers. This perennial can live through our drastic winters and hot summers.

In the past they have been grown for their spray of tiny long lasting flowers borne on erect spikes. The effect is an airy delicate look. Flowers appear from late spring to early summer. Heucheras are mound shaped with low semievergreen to evergreen leaves. These leaves can last through winter but mine look usually look like they would have been better off to have shed their foliage and started over. They are tattered, brown and ragged at winters end.

The leaves are three to four inches long and the plants stay about six inches in height. In today’s garden I use this plant for the foliage colors in planters. They have returned for the last 3 years. The foliage can be a strong, bronze, reddish purple, light green and even a green with gray or silver overtones and veins. The maplelooking leaf has more intense color when grown in the sun and takes a greener tint when given some shade.

I bought two flats of ‘Palace Purple’ years ago and put them out in the broiling sunshine where only Bermuda grass is growing. At first they seemed to make a small but noticeable display; by the end of summer they had all but disappeared. When fall came they perked back up. Now I am growing them in shade and they are much happier.

Alumroot flowers which are very long lasting though not showy come in an array

of shades from red, carmine, pink and coral to white. These spiky blooms range from one and half to two and half feet tall. The hybrid coral-bells seem to do better in the Southern heat. Look for (H.x brizoides) when ordering. This includes ‘Chatterbox’, ‘Firefly’, ‘June Bride’ and ‘Regal’.

You should plant Heucheras in evenly moist soil that is well drained. I keep a water hose close. A site with morning sun and afternoon shade seems to work best here in Tennessee. Spring is the time to plant although they can be moved or planted in the fall. Plant the crowns about one inch below the soil surface. Alumroot takes a season or two before it settles into its new home. Keep them mulched and well watered especially the first year. Heucheras need only minimal care to look their best, but since they form clumps of shallow woody roots, they are frequently heaved out of the ground in winter by our usual freeze and thaw weather. Reset if necessary or cover the crowns with mulch.

Division and propagation should be done regularly every four or five years. Dig in the spring and discard the oldest and woodiest part of the plant. Most Heuchera cultivars need to be propagated by division because they don't come back true from seeds.

You can use Heucheras as an edging plant along a path or formal walkway or in large drifts as a ground cover. They look great grouped with Hostas, spring bulbs and ferns. They are also a good choice for containers since they have year round foliage.

For All of Gayle’s Gardening tips:

www.monroelife.com

Caroline’s Home Floral & Gifts Is Doubling in Size

Rhonda Cooley-Harold, the owner of Caroline’s Home, Floral, Gifts, & Jewelry has always loved floral design and home decor. She wanted to turn this hobby into a business, but that would have taken up time that she instead wanted to spend with her two children. But in 2016, her son Jackson had just graduated from Sequoyah High School and daughter Caroline was thirteen years old. With her kids getting older, this left Rhonda with a little more free time. That year, she opened Caroline’s Home Floral & Gifts, named after her daughter who loves flowers and beautiful gifts. It is the only locally-owned florist shop in Madisonville.

“[The shop] means so much to me,” Rhonda said. Her family has lived in and owned property around her shop for over 75 years. She continued, “My mother’s home is right behind my store… I grew up right next door. My grandmother was next door. It just feels like home here… I feel like it was meant for me to have this here.” Rhonda Cooley-Harold was born and raised in Madisonville. Her parents are Carrie Cooley, and the Late Robert Cooley, Jr. Rhonda currently lives in Madisonville with her Husband Scott Harold who helps her run Caroline’s Florist.

She said, “I know so many of my customers on a personal level, and I enjoy being able to interact with the local community as well as all the new people that have moved in here that we have become really good friends with. We’ve got the best customers, and they all feel like family.”

Rhonda’s family all help with the business— including her husband, Scott; her mom, Carrie; her son, Jackson; her sister, Robin; and her daughter, who is a majorette for the University of Tennessee Pride of the Southland Band.

An aspect of her business that she finds especially meaningful is making flower arrangements for funerals. She wants to

comfort bereaved people by helping them give one last beautiful gift to the loved one they have lost. She explained, “When I went into this, I did not have any experience with bereavement… That was completely brand new, doing funerals. Families come in at the worst moment of their lives… It’s very personal. Obviously, we’re not councilors, but we try to be there for our customers… When they come in for a viewing at the funeral home, we want them to… take comfort on these beautiful flowers that they have chosen to be able to honor their loved one.”

The Recent Expansion

Caroline’s Home Floral & Gifts has recently doubled in size from 2,000 to 4,000 square feet, expanding their showroom to include new lines and products of gifts, home décor, and seasonal items. This has also enabled them to enlarge their tuxedo rental and wedding department for which they are contracted with Jim’s Formal Wear.

The company creates custom arrangements made fresh daily, so if you have an idea for an arrangement, you can call in, describe it, and they will make it for you. If you’re not sure what you want, just stop by and see the beautiful pieces they’ve already made that day. All of their floral projects are unique and custom-made, as are their synthetic flower designs and wreaths.

For customers in Monroe County and the surrounding areas, they will also deliver arrangements and gifts straight to your house or to a funeral home.

“This has been a dream of mine,” Rhonda said. “I couldn’t do it without my employees, and I couldn’t do it without my family and all the support that I have.” CarolinesHomeFloralAndGifts.com

Meet the Designers

The store’s owner, Rhonda Cooley-Harold, loves crafting beautiful floral designs. She founded the store in 2016.

Angie Williams was trained at Hall’s Florist and worked there until the owners retired. Now, she’s a designer at Rhonda’s shop.

Dina Long is the latest addition to their team. She has been with them for a year and has done an amazing job.

Mickye Trentham worked all across the United States as a florist designer. He did all of the floral arrangements for the Opryland Hotel in Nashville for many years. He retired but works part time for Caroline’s.

Nancy Haun: Teacher to the Stars

Studio Teacher Nancy Haun sat off to the side of the film crew, sweating in the summer heat. The cast began cutting a watermelon, and a teenage girl called out, “Nancy, do you want a piece?” Nancy smiled as her student, young Miley Cyrus, brought her a slice.

I’m sitting with Nancy Haun in the boyhood home of her uncle, Senator Estes Kefauver, which is currently undergoing renovation. Dressed head-to-toe in red from her shirt, pants, and necklace to the burgundy frames of her glasses, she tells me about her work as a studio teacher. Nancy taught child actors and actresses who are required to have at least 3 hours of schooling while filming a movie or show. She was also responsible for making sure they didn’t work too many hours, as there are strict rules for how long a child actor can work. During this time, she tutored Miley Cyrus while she was filming Hannah Montana. Nancy says that Miley Cyrus was a good student, “very sweet and houghtful… She was a lovely girl, and I enjoyed working with her…” She distinctly remembers that whenever they had

by Matt Hollingsworth

watermelon, Miley would always offer her a piece. “I feel like she got a lot of bad press later on, but I think she’s really a very kind, thoughtful person.”

“She was already famous when we were filming,” Nancy tells me, “so in between there would be fans or groupies wanting Miley’s autograph, and she enjoyed seeing her fans. She would walk up to them and sign autographs. She was really sweet to do that.”

“I liked her and all of her family,” Nancy says. She got to meet Miley’s parents and siblings who were all nice and upbeat.

Later, when Nancy got married and moved to Tennessee, she became one of several teachers for Jake Gyllenhaal on the set of the movie October Sky which was filming near Oak Ridge. Jake was “very pleasant and easy to work with,” and would chat with her, Nancy says. She would help him rehearse his lines.

Nancy continues, “I think most of the students enjoyed their three hours of schooling

because it was a break from being on the set and having to do that, and there’s a lot of pressure. They got to do something different… which was more of a low-pressure thing, something they were familiar with.”

Nancy has tutored many other famous actors like the cast of The Wonder Years, including Danica McKellar who she describes as “really laid-back.” During this time, Nancy would often have ten child actors sitting around a table while she taught or checked their school work. Nancy even got the opportunity to be an extra on a few of the movies and shows where she taught.

Some people think child actors are spoiled, but in Nancy’s experience, this isn’t true at all. All her students were smart, talented, and professional.

“Just last year, Nancy was the studio teacher for the contestants on the Kids Baking Championship on the Food Network, which was filmed here in Knoxville. A contestant from Knoxville named Nadya Alborz was the champion.”

Small Town Shopping

Located less than 15 minutes from the heart of Farragut, Historic Downtown Lenoir City has blossomed into a thriving shopping district. The century old buildings are perfect settings for charming stores and boutiques (most are about 2500 sf!) that sell antiques, clothing, furniture, small gifts, and locally handmade arts and crafts. There are also several salons, eateries, and professional services.

The downtown merchants are very active and host several music, food and craft events throughout the year.

www.lenoircitymerchants.com

BRIKEL BOUTIQUE

100 E Broadway Street

Lenoir City, TN 37771 865-317-1395

A mother-daughter duo providing you an inviting space to shop quality, trendy collections that women of all ages can enjoy. We have carefully curated a variety of unique clothing, shoes, and accessories to compliment or elevate your wardrobe. - info@brikelboutique.com

UGLY MUG

108 B Street 865-816-6355

Local Family owned coffee shop and cafe. Great coffee, great breakfast and lunch sandwiches and great pastries! Come by and visit!

LENOIR DECOR FURNITURE CONSIGNMENT

105 North A Street 865-317-1661

Buyers will find name brand, well made, like new, unique and interesting furniture and home accessories at Lenoir Decor. Repurpose, Reuse, and Refuse to pay retail.

Resale Therapy is located on the 2nd floor and features mid-century modern decor. Visit our website to consign with us. LenoirDecorStore.com

PAPA DALES BOOKSTORE

104 East Broadway 404-510-4368

Papa Dale’s sells a large collection of previously owned books, DVD’s, and small gifts. It’s well organized and a great place to find a treasure.

SADIE’S 101 W Broadway St 865-816-6576

Small, stylish and trendy store that offers a carefully curated selection of clothing, accessories, and footwear. The staff is knowledgeable and friendly, providing personalized styling advice and recommendations to help customers find the perfect fit.

facebook.com/SadiesShop

OFF THE PAIGE - ART & DESIGN

114 E Broadway Street, Suite A 865-317-1271

A studio like no other - offering classes, courses, workshops and parties. We specialize in it all - pottery, plaster, wood projects, watercolor, acrylics, resin and much more!

LA MICHOACANA

123 E. Broadway Street 865-387-1785

La Michoacana Lenoir City Ice cream parlor serves authentic, home made ice cream and ice cream bars along with lots of snacks. We serve banana splits, strawberries and cream, nachos, street corn, walking tacos, milkshakes, fruit bowls, fruit cups, etc. We have so many things to choose from come try it out for yourself.

THE SPARKLY PIG

119 E. Broadway Street 865-317-3652

The Sparkly Pig is a unique shop that offers all types of merchandise from different vendors. We offer antiques, collectibles, furniture, clothing, jewelry, canned goods, cards, home decor, soaps, and floral. A great shop where you find that one of a kind special gift. Something old and something new to fit your lifestyle and needs. - sparklypiglc@gmail.com

MARKETS ON BROADWAY

121 E Broadway Steet 865-816-3093

A boutique with a little bit of everything! Clothing/ accessories for newborn through plus size, dressup, gifts, home decor, pet supplies, and a huge selection of Dixie Belle & Prima products (chalk paint, transfers, moulds & more). Find us on Facebook & Instagram.

HONEY BLOSSOM BOUTIQUE

109 East Broadway 865- 816-3114

“Real Clothing for Real Life”

Honey Blossom offers affordable fashions for all ages, sizes & body types. Whether you’re looking for a fun outfit or shopping for a whole new wardrobe, we have something for you!

facebook.com/HoneyBlossomBoutiqueLC

MONROE COUNTY

PRO RODEO WEEKEND

June 2nd through 3rd 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. Monroe County Fairgrounds, 5240 Highway 411 Madisonville, TN

Through partnerships with the Monroe County Government, City of Madisonville, Hedrick Rodeo, and the Monroe County Department of Tourism, we are proud to bring you the Monroe Rodeo!

VisitMonroeTN.com/monroerodeo

CHEROHALA CHALLENGE

June 3rd

7 a.m.

Cherohala Skyway Visitor Center

Try one of the Southeast’s premier bike rides along the beautiful Cherohala Skyway. The event offers three distinctive rides—35, 62 and 115 miles—so almost anyone can find a ride that will fit their skill level.

SMWBikeClub.org/Cherohala-Challenge

MonroeCountyFriendsofAnimals.org

STATEHOOD DAY

June 4th

10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Sequoyah Birthplace Museum

On June 1, 1796, Congress approved the admission of Tennessee as the sixteenth state of the Union. Our 1809 Blacksmith shop will be open with demonstrations going on throughout the afternoon. Come out and share the afternoon with living history in our 1800’s dog-trot log cabin.

Our Acorn Printing Press will be demonstrating throughout the day. All Statehood Day activities are free along with free admission to the museum.

SequoyahMuseum.org/events

SKYWAY OUTDOOR FESTIVAL

June 3rd

10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Charles Hall Museum & Heritage Center

RED, WHITE & BOOM

July 1st

6 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Historic Town Square, Tellico Plains

The Town of Tellico Plains 4th Celebration sponsored by the Tellico Plains Kiwanis is a fun-filled family event with free admission. The Town of Tellico Plains and People’s Bank Stage will feature Riley Wear and River Jennings from 6 to 7 p.m. and our headline band, Highway 33 will perform from 7 to 10 p.m. At the Volunteer Federal Kids Zone (adult supervised area) kids can enjoy a water slide and bounce house by BB’s Bouncers (wristband $5).

A spectacular fireworks shows will immediately follow sponsored by the Tellico Plains Police Department.

Facebook.com/ TellicoPlainsKiwanis2016

ANNUAL INDEPENDENCE DAY CELEBRATION: SWEETWATER

MCFA FIRST ANNUAL BARK IN THE PARK

June 3rd 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Kefauver Park, Madisonville

Enjoy fun activities for dogs and humans— vendors, food trucks, and a parade! There are dog adoption opportunities.

This festival will host vendors, food trucks, outdoor specialists, and more, while also promoting safe cycling skills and driver, cyclists, pedestrian safety. Enjoy a full KidZone with bicycle giveaway for area youth, fishing instruction, pedestrian and bicycle road safety, waterway safety plus lots of things for grownups too with vendors galore!

VisitMonroeTN.com/skywayoutdoorfestival

July 4th

3 p.m. to dark

Historic Downtown Sweetwater

Celebrate America’s independence with food, live music, Dancing in the Streets, a 5k race, and fireworks!

VisitMonroeTN.com/allevents

See special guest Bill Landry from the Heartland Series.

SEQUOYAH REMEMBRANCE DAY

August 6th 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Sequoyah Birthplace Museum

Sequoyah Birthplace Museum in Vonore, TN will be celebrating Sequoyah Remembrance Day and Sequoyah’s contribution to the Cherokee people by creating a writing system, the Cherokee Syllabary, with free admission to the museum from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.

The 1809 Cherokee Blacksmith shop will be up and running with demonstrations all through the afternoon. Local demonstrators will also be set up demonstrating pine needle baskets and Gary Holt will be talking about the Cherokees in the Civil War in our 1800’s dog-trot log cabin.

SequoyahMuseum.org/events/

LOUDON COUNTY

LENIOR CITY ARTS AND CRAFTS FESTIVAL

June 3rd 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and June 4th 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Lenoir City Park, 6707 City Park Dr

Their Artists and Crafts people come from the southeast and beyond, bringing you the very best of their unique wares. Many fine artists working in various media including oils, water color, acrylics, pastels, charcoal, and pen

and ink. Our craftspeople specialize in the traditional crafts as well as those which have developed more recent appeal: woodworking and carving, stitchery, pottery, stained glass, leather-work, and fiber arts where common materials are skillfully transformed into objects of great beauty and distinction.

LenoirCityArtsAndCrafts.com

NIGHTS ON BROADWAY IN DOWNTOWN LENOIR CITY

June 16th

4 p.m. to 8 p.m.

A great Summer evening event with music, food, arts and crafters! Bring your lawn chair and enjoy listening to music.

LoudonCountyChamberofCommerce.com

Enjoy entertainment on three stages, 200 food and craft vendors, local shopping, and Mayfield Dairy Contests.

FriendlyCityFestivals.com/moofest/

2023 ATHENS SOAP BOX DERBY

June 3rd

Soap Box Derby racing is an event that the whole family can enjoy.

Each participant will use Science, Technology, Engineering and Math to prepare their car to race.

SoapBoxDerby.org/athens.aspx

MCMINN COUNTY MOOFEST

June 3rd

10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Downtown Athens, TN

PINE NEEDLE BASKETRY

June 17th

10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

McMinn Living Heritage Museum

Learn the ancient craft of pine needle basket making with Tonya Dockery. Bring a sack lunch.

Class size is limited to 10. Cost is $25 for nonmembers/$20 members

LivingHeritageMuseum.org/ upcoming-programs-events

18TH CENTURY FASHION

June 24th 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. McMinn Living Heritage Museum

18th Century Fashion with Keith Bester. $5.00 or free with membership.

LivingHeritageMuseum.org/upcomingprograms-events

THE HISTORY OF FORMER GOVERNOR DEWITT CLINTON SENTER

July 15th

11 a.m. to noon McMinn Living Heritage Museum

Dr. William Hardy of Lincoln Memorial University will be sharing the history of Dewitt Clinton Senter (March 26, 1830 – June 14, 1898) an American politician who served as the 18th Governor of Tennessee from 1869 to 1871.

LivingHeritageMuseum.org/upcomingprograms-events

FARRAGUT

INDEPENDENCE DAY PARADE

July 4th

9:30 a.m. 12 p.m.

Kingston Pike/Stadium Dr to Boring Road

This annual 4th of July parade features floats, bands, dancers, animals, antique cars and more!

VisitFarragut.org/event/ independence-day-parade/

ETOWAH OLD FASHIONED FOURTH OF JULY CELEBRATION

July 4th

L&N Depot Museum 8:30 a.m. to 11 p.m.

3RD ANNUAL BATTLE OF ATHENS FESTIVAL

July 29th

10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Athens Market Pavilion

Come to the 3rd Annual Battle of Athens Festival. They say the 3rd time is a charm! Bigger, better, more food trucks, vendors, community games and entertainment!

Facebook.com/BattleofAthens75

FARRAGUT FREEDOM RUN ONE-MILE & TWO-MILE

July 4th

9 a.m.

11408 Municipal Drive, Farragut, TN 37934

Race in front of the Farragut Independence Day Parade on July 4th at the annual Freedom Run 1 Mile & 2 Mile! Runners and walkers of all ages are welcome to enjoy a relatively flat/fast 1- and 2-mile course.

FleetFeet.com/s/knoxville/races/ farragut-freedom-run

DOG DAZE

August 11th through 13th

10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Village Green Shopping Center, 11435 Kingston Pike, Farragut, TN 37934

This 3-day festival of fun, food, and shopping is highlighted by the Smoky Mountains Dock Dogs canine diving competition. Watch dogs leap through events such as big air and speed retrieve while enjoying food from local restaurants and food trucks. Shop from a wide variety of vendors and visit local merchants throughout the Village Green Shopping Center. This event is free to all canines and their owners!

VisitFarragut.org/event/dog-daze-2

FUN WITH THE FLEET

August 19th

9 a.m. to 11 a.m.

Mayor Bob Leonard Park, 301 Watt Road, Farragut, TN 37934

Kids have the opportunity to see, touch and climb on big trucks and equipment at Farragut’s Mayor Bob Leonard Park. this family-friendly free event in East Tennessee brings out the kid in all of us!

VisitFarragut.org/event/fun-with-the-fleet

KNOXVILLE MARKET SQUARE FARMERS MARKET

Every Wednesday through November 15th 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Every Saturday through November 18th 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The Market Square Farmers’ Market is an open-air farmers’ market managed by Nourish Knoxville. Everything at the Market Square Farmers’ Market is grown, raised, and/or made by our vendors within a 150mile radius of Knoxville, Tennessee.

Products vary by season and include fresh fruits & vegetables, eggs, honey, pastureraised meats, edible & ornamental plants, cut flowers, bread & baked goods, jams & jellies, coffee, artisan crafts, and more!

NourishKnoxville.org/market-squarefarmers-market

FIRST FRIDAY ARTWALK

First Friday of Each Month

Downtown Knoxville

On the first Friday of each month, the streets of Downtown Knoxville come alive for one of our favorite events! A casual evening of connecting with friends and family—and experiencing art in all forms.

Explore galleries, studios, and artist collectives; roam through shops hosting open houses and local artist exhibits; enjoy performance art and live music in the streets and a variety of venues; drop in restaurants along the way and treat yourself to drinks and great food.

The thriving arts community is one of the things we love most about Knoxville. So come take a walk through our vibrant main streets and side streets, and experience the warmth and community of the neighborhood.

VisitKnoxville.com/knoxville-first-friday

OLD CITY MARKET

2nd Sundays through December 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

4th Thursdays (night market) through October 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. West Jackson Avenue

The Old City Market transforms the historic Old City into a curated, outdoor market showcasing artists, crafters, and creative makers. Plus enjoy restaurants, coffee shops, and shopping for a day Downtown!

OldCityKnoxville.org/market beautification project—the Dogwood Trails.

RHINESTONE FEST—FOR THE LOVE OF DOLLY

June 2nd through 4th

Ya’ll dress up in your Dolly-best for a weekend of art, music, history, food and fun celebrating Dolly! Our 3rd annual Dolly-themed festival, formerly Dolly Fest, is expanding to encompass all artists, musicians, and do-gooders that Dolly has inspired throughout her rhinestone-studded career!

Rhinestone Fest will take place on June 2, 3, 4, 2023 at various locations in and around the Old City. Rhinestone Fest is a family friendly event and is free to attend.

OldCityKnoxville.org/rhinestonefest

2023 SUMMER ART ACADEMY

June 5th through July 28th

Knoxville Museum of Art, 1050 World’s Fair Park Drive

The Knoxville Museum of Art’s Summer Art Academy offers educational opportunities that will ignite your child’s imagination through drawing, painting, sculpture, and more! Summer Art Academy will offer classes and workshops for ages 3-17. Workshops will be held in Bailey Hall, the Sarah Jane Hardrath Kramer Education Center, and Martin Studio. Partial and full scholarships will continue to be offered first come, first served; as monies allow.

KnoxArt.org/events/

CONCERTS ON THE SQUARE

June 6th, 13th, 20th, and 28th; July 20th; August 17th; and September 21st

7 p.m.

Market Square

Bring your kids, lawn chairs, blankets, pets, and friends to enjoy outdoor Knoxville nights, live music, food, fun, and community in Market Square. The City of Knoxville provides these free Concerts on the Square all summer long.

KID A’ RIFFIC FUN IN THE PARK

10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

June 7th: Fountain City Park, 117 Hotel Rd

June 14th: Chilhowee Park, 3301 E. Magnolia Ave (including a Touch-A-Truck event)

June 21st: Safety City, 165 S. Concord St.

June 28th: Fort Kid, 1049 World’s Fair Park Dr

July 12th: Ijams, 2915 Island Home Park

July 19th: Lakeshore Park, 5930 Lyons View Pike

July 26th: World’s Fair Park

Kid A’ Riffic Fun in the Park is an event for children age 2-12 offering hands on crafts and activities provided by City departments and entities. Kid A’Riffic Fun in the Park will be held on Wednesdays in June and July from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at a different park each week. Come enjoy making crafts, playing games and so much more while making fun memories over summer vacation. All activities are free!

KnoxvilleTN.gov

ALIVE AFTER FIVE

June 16th, July 21st, and August 18th

BIKE BOAT BREW & BARK

June 3rd

Bike Boat Brew & Bark celebrates the outdoor adventurer, the dog lover, the craft beer enthusiast, the local and the tourist looking to discover a secret in Knoxville’s urban wilderness.

VisitKnoxville.com/bike-boat-brew-bark

DowntownKnoxville.org/featured/concerts

6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Knoxville Museum of Art, 1050 World’s Fair Park Drive, Knoxville, TN 37916

Enjoy the casual elegance of the Knoxville Museum of Art for this vivacious Friday night tradition. Once a month, the KMA is transformed, as the world-class art museum becomes a center of entertainment, a melding of art, music, and nightlife. AA5

showcases incredible, diverse musical talent from all over the Southeastern United States. Kick off your weekend with musicians and entertainers as they take the stage with a backdrop of awe-inspiring art from East Tennessee and beyond. Adding to the flavor of the Alive After Five experience, each concert has food available from various food vendors, plus cash bars!

KnoxArt.org/events/

BREWFEST

June 24th

1 p.m.

World’s Fair Park Lake Breweries, beer, and enthusiasts from all over will gather for a summer afternoon sampling fresh beers of all colors, styles and flavors.

KnoxvilleBrewFest.com

KNOX ASIAN FESTIVAL

Aug 25th 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. (VIP event)

Aug 26th 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

World’s Fair Park

Knox Asian Festival aims to promote diverse cultures and celebrate traditions and talents from Asia. We are especially proud of the featured performance art that includes traditional Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Thai, Indian, Indonesian, Japanese, and Philippine dance & music. For the first time, we will have SUMO Wrestlers are coming to show Japanese national Sport.

KnoxAsianFestival.com

USA CYCLING PRO ROAD NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

June 22nd through 25th

Downtown Knoxville

Knoxville has been fortunate to play host to USA Cycling and many of the world’s best cyclist for seven straight years. This year will be the last time we welcome the USA Pro Road National Championships, including the U.S. Pro Road, Individual Time Trial Championships, and the U.S. Pro Criterium Championships—at least for a while!

Don’t miss YOUR chance to come say thank you and cheer on these world-class athletes! This event is free to the public.

VisitKnoxville.com/usa-cyclingnational-championships

FESTIVAL ON THE 4TH

July 4th

5 p.m. to 10 p.m.

World’s Fair Park

Enjoy good music, good food, good fun and good times on the Festival and Performance lawns of the World’s Fair Park. From 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., the Festival Lawn will be filled with fun activities to please kids of all ages such as miniature golf with Holes to Go and Paddle Boats in the lake at World’s Fair Park. The musical finale will be performed, starting at 8 p.m., by the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra, and the fireworks start at 9:35 p.m.

knoxvilletn.gov/government/ city_departments_offices/special_events/ festival_on_the_4th

GATLINBURG

GATLINBURG FARMERS MARKET

Every Saturday through October 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.

1222 East Parkway across from Food City

Offering local choices for healthy mountain living, the Farmers Market is comprised of local producers. The emphasis is on fresh produce and homemade product offered in an atmosphere of community.

Gatlinburg.com/events

SUMMER IN THE SMOKIES

June 10th through September 4th

Anakeesta

Enjoy a mountain of family fun at Anakeesta this summer. The Summer in the Smokies celebration begins June 10th and will feature Artist Sean Kenney’s Nature Connects, sculptures built with LEGO bricks, and an exhibit with whimsically-themed sculpture installations located throughout the park. Enjoy flavorful summertime menus and cocktails while taking in the very best live music at Black Bear Village where parents can relax and take in the views while kids cool off in the Splash Pad. This event is included with admission. You won’t want to miss seeing the Smoky Mountain sunset from Anavista Tower or strolling on the Treetop Skywalk at night.

Anakeesta.com/summer-in-the-smokies

SMOKY MOUNTAIN TUNES AND TALES

July 1st through 31st

6 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Smoky Mountain Tunes & Tales returns this summer to entertain Gatlinburg visitors! Tunes & Tales is a summer-long street performance festival featuring costumed musical performers, dancers, and storytellers portraying characters from time periods as far back as the 1800s.

Gatlinburg.com/event/smoky-mountaintunes-and-tales/13

FIRST INDEPENDENCE DAY PARADE IN THE NATION

July 4th

12:01 a.m. to 2 a.m.

Gatlinburg’s award-winning Fourth of July Midnight Parade will step off at the intersection of East Parkway and Baskins Creek Bypass turning south onto the Parkway at traffic light #3. The parade continues through town ending at Ski Mountain Road. Parade-goers are encouraged to arrive early on Sunday, July 3, to avoid traffic and secure a place to watch the Midnight Parade along the Parkway.

Gatlinburg.com/event/first-independenceday-parade-in-the-nation/35

GATLINBURG’S FIREWORKS FINALE

July 4th

11 p.m. to 11:30 p.m.

115 Historic Nature Trail, Gatlinburg, TN 37738

Join the celebration in downtown Gatlinburg to mark our nation’s Independence Day with a spectacular 20-minute firework show starting at 11:00 p.m. from the Gatlinburg Space Needle. Spectators can view the fireworks from any vantage point in Gatlinburg. This event is designated as a Top 20 event by the Southeast Tourism Society.

Gatlinburg.com/event/gatlinburgsfireworks-finale/20

Rise Athletics is East Tennessee’s newest All-Star Cheerleading Gym! Providing All-Star Cheer & Tumbling classes as well as High School Cheer tumble and stunt

Competitive Cheer Tumbling Conditioning High School

RISE Athletics was established not only because we love this sport but more importantly, we love Jesus Christ and want our athletes to see the character of Christ in them. That character is the RISE STANDARD of behavior that Branden and Julie Ledbetter demonstrate and expect from athletes and parents at Rise Athletics. Kali Seitzer will be our RISE coaching consultant. Branden and Julie are married and met in college. Julie has cheered competitively from age 10 and has won countless state and national titles. Coach Julie was a college cheerleader at Western Michigan University when she met her husband, Branden. Branden and Julie have two children, Madisyn 15 and Noah 9. Coach Branden played D1 football at Western Michigan University. Coach Branden will be responsible for Our RISE strength and conditioning programming.

The Ledbetter’s are the former owners of Rock Solid athletics in Henderson, Colorado (now renamed Rock Cheer Company). Rock Solid started with Julie’s passion for youth and cheer. Season one we hit the mat with 30 athletes and grew to over 150 athletes by season four. Rock Solid was the highest scoring D2 gym in the state of Colorado. Rock Solid has won hundreds of in state and national titles. The Ledbetter’s established both Rock Solid and now, RISE, with the purpose providing a safe, FUN, affordable, highly competitive, quality gym that gives all youth athletes an opportunity to feel validated, excited, and inspired to RISE to their greatest potential. Coach Kali lives in Miami, Florida and is the current Director at TOP GUN Miami (the real Top Gun). She will be dedicated to RISE Athletics once a month to overlook all the teams and see the progress of the program. She will be available to Rise Athletics Coaches via zoom and facetime at all times.

Coach Julie and Coach Kali will be overseeing ALL Rise Athletics 23-24 teams, classes, camps, and clinics. They have a proven track record of success working together at Rock Solid and want to continue that success now here in Tennessee. Coach Julie and Coach Kali are 100% confident that together they will take your athlete to the next level. They will work cohesively together to make sure our athletes grow and progress the RISE WAY! The Ledbetter family relocated from Colorado to Tellico Plains, Tennessee for Coach Branden’s new job in 2021. After being here for some time they realized that the love they had for their old athletes and gym can be poured out on the youth here. With lots of prayer and needing God to move mountains for this happen, RISE ATHLETICS was born.

www.riseathleticscheer.com • 234 Warren Street Madisonville, TN • 423-404-0661

julie@riseathleticscheer.com

Welcome To TELLICO PLAINS

The gateway to the Cherohala Skyway and the Cherokee National Forest. Here in the foothills of the Smoky Mountains, a simpler way of life prevails. Enjoy the bakery and the other shops in town that sell fine arts, crafts and furnishings. There are plenty of restaurants and places to stay. www.tellicoplainstn.com

The Cherohala Skyway Visitor Center in Tellico Plains is a “must stop” before starting up the Skyway. Come by between 9am and 5pm daily for free maps of the Skyway and Cherokee National Forest, Skyway driving conditions and local area souvenirs and gifts. Picnic tables and spotless restrooms are also available, with friendly staff waiting to welcome you with important Skyway and area information!

A local historian and collector since boyhood, Charles also served as mayor of Tellico Plains for 31 years. Showcased in two museum buildings are his magnificent collections of historical local pictures and documents, antique telephones, guns, Native American artifacts, coin and currency collections, a moonshine still, a 1922 Model T Ford telephone repair truck and so much more.

Cherohala Skyway Festival

- October 28, 2023

Find your perfect property with Sharron Jenkins, an experienced Realtor® for over 30 years.

Jenkins Realty

Sharron@JenkinsRealty.com

www.JenkinsRealty.com

5588 Hwy. 360, Tellico Plains, TN 37385 (423) 253-3526

225 Cherohala Skyway, 423.253.8010

www.cherohala.org

Open Daily: 10am–5pm, Admission: Free 229 Cherohala Skyway, 423-253-8000, charleshallmuseum@hotmail.com

www.charleshallmuseum.com

You will also find local handcrafted items and souvenirs in their gift shops!

Come discover the most beautifully biodiverse area in America. We’ll help you find your place on the planet in the East Tennessee mountains with creeks and meadows and a chain of lakes leading to the rivers flowing down to the gulf.

We offer log cabins in the forest and farms in the valleys. And if you want to sell, we can find the very best buyers for you!

Cherohala Skyway Visitor Center

Charles Hall Museum and Heritage Center

The Bookshelf

The Bookshelf is a quaint little bookshop in the Historic District just off the Town Square. Celebrating 15 years as Monroe County’s only full-service bookstore, they offer new local history books and gently used books in all categories. Their friendly and knowledgeable staff also offers free out-of-print book searches.

Hours: Tuesday–Saturday: 10am - 5pm 108 Scott Street, 423.253.3183

www.tellicobookshelf.com

Find us on Facebook

Everhart Lumber Company, LLC

Everhart Lumber Company specializes in high quality specialty timber and furniture products. Everhart’s is a wood specialty and furniture store in Tellico Plains, Tennessee that offers Ready-Made and Custom-Made Furniture from unique character woods such as black walnut, figured maple, flaming box elder, eastern red cedar, teak, and other wood types.

We also offer mantles, wooden counter tops for kitchen islands and paneling made from reclaimed barwood and reclaimed wood previously used to harvest mushrooms

911 Veterans Memorial Drive

Open Tuesday - Friday 9:00 am - 5:00 pm, Saturday - 9:00 am - 2:00 pm 423.253.2323

www.everhart-lumber.com

Skyway Realty Land and Homes

Skyway Realty’s associates create home and land dreams for buyers and sellers. For buyers, we hone in on and help you select the places you are most likely interested in buying. Sellers have new dreams we help them find as we sell their current properties. We love being helpers in one of the most important decisions of your lives. We make the real estate experience enjoyable from the first call to the close and enjoy win-win transactions with everyone at the table talking to each other as friends…that’s what we all like about Tellico Plains, it’s warm, friendly, peaceful and successful.

411 Cherohala Skyway, 423.253.7100 info1@tellico-tn.com. www.tellico-tn.com

Tellico Vacation Rentals

Savor the serenity of your own cabin in the mountains! Choose from one to five bedrooms that sleeps from two to ten guests. Select a cabin with a hot tub on the deck, a cozy stone fireplace or a pool table in the game room. Our cabins are ideal for a romantic getaway, a wedding or honeymoon, a family vacation or reunion. With your own kitchen, multiple bedrooms, comfortable living areas and outdoor decks, you’ll find cabin rentals to be a fabulous value for extended vacations for several couples or extended families. Our cabins are private and comfortable, each totally unique. A change in altitude creates a change in attitude!

206 Cherohala Skyway, 866.253.2254

tvr@tellicovacationrentals.com

Tellico Mountain Realty

Helping you make our hometown your hometown. Stop by and see one of our seasoned agents with expertise in our historic and scenic area.

418 Cherohala Skyway, 423.253.6145 email: info@tellicomountainrealty.com www.tellicomountainrealty.com

Hartman Property Inspections

Hartman Property Inspections is committed to serving you, our customer, on the purchase of your dream home or commercial building. Serving the communities of Southeast Tennessee as well as the North Georgia Mountains.

Home Inspections

Commercial Property Inspections

Rental Maintenance Inspections

HUD Compliance Certifications

Well Water Quality Testing

Air Quality / Mold Testing

Call us at 423-930-4408 www.hpinspectionsllc.com

Thank you for 40 Years

First needle biopsy, so women didn’t have to go to the hospital or operating room

1985

First multidisciplinary conference, which brought all the physicians involved in treating breast cancer together to customize and personalize every patient’s treatment

1997

First Hologic digital mammography, which allows for more clarity when reading mammograms

2005

Freezing small breast cancers in the instead of the operating room which lessens recovery time and surgical scars

2017

1983

Opened the breast center in Knoxville, which was woman owned, independent, and the only one within 700 miles

1988

First mobile mammography program in East Tennessee. KCBC’s mobile drives to surrounding areas for women who don’t have access to quality breast imaging

2002

First dedicated breast MRI, designed exclusively for diagnosing breast cancer and women’s comfort

2018

The to offer “no compression” breast imaging, it’s 3D mammography bu t better

2023

40 years of excellence to become the most trusted name in early detection