Stories from Sunday, May 29, 2011

The morning was crisp and clear, the burgers had just gone on the grill in the concession stand, and the first game of the morning had begun. Parents cheered the runners. The athletes laughed and high-fived their coaches as they tagged the bases. Yet, there was no scorekeeper. No outs were called, and if there were fouls or fly balls no one paid any note of them...

I sat down to put to paper a lot of really elegant words. Then I realized that simple ones would suffice. This is Margie Simmons. She's 13 years old. She loves Justin Beiber and the Black-Eyed Peas and is looking forward to the June premiere of Transformers 3. ...

I commented to my mother-in-law recently that her daughter sure was pretty (my wife, of course), and she said, "Well, you're handsome in your own way, too." Handsome in your own way? Handsome in your own way? I had to laugh. I wasn't sure if that was a compliment or not. Maybe it was almost a compliment. But barely...

The latest action on the food Nazi front -- there's a price on poor old Ronald McDonald's head. Apparently, the goofy guy with the big feet is the sole person to blame for our country's obesity crisis. It seems he, personally, is the one forcing these children to eat these unhealthy Happy Meals, which, according to the Nutrition Nazis, shouldn't legally be called Happy Meals, but Potential Heart Attack 40 years Down the Road meals...

I recently had the honor of serving the military families at Ft. Campbell, Ky., by bringing a couponing workshop to their base. I cannot express enough the impact it had on my life to give back a little for all they are doing for our country. We often don't stop to think about the sacrifices they make within their own families to protect ours. ...

The heart is a miraculous machine; one side pumps blood to the lungs to be oxygenated, while the other side pumps the oxygen-rich blood to the body, where it's needed. That's the way it's supposed to work. But for month-old Samara Powell, a hole in her heart is allowing the unoxygenated blood to mix with the oxygenated. She also has two smaller holes in her heart and a deformed valve known as an Ebstein's anomaly. She needs surgery, but first doctors need to get her tiny body strong enough...

The elimination of state planners for smaller communities may result in a reduction of the speed in which Shelbyville and Bedford County deal with the complicated issues involving codes and zoning. On Thursday, state planner Art Brown informed the city's planning commission that his job at the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development had been phased out...

Trent Turner signed scholarship papers to play collegiate soccer at Tennessee Wesleyan College in Athens. "He is a big, strong lad, he holds the ball up well and is good with his back to goal," TWC coach Stephen Lyons told twcbulldogs.com. "I'm looking forward to Trent coming in for pre season and fighting for a spot in the starting 11."...

On the last day of the school year, students shared their plans for the summer with Times-Gazette readers. "Play at the playground. Go to the aquarium in Atlanta." -- Nicola Zuasnava, first grade, Cascade Elementary "Swim. Go on a trip." -- Lane Jackson, third grade, Learning Way Elementary...

When children are placed in the legal system, there is an alphabet soup of agencies there to help and protect them, from CASA to DCS, from COP to CFD. Add one more. MANNA is a state-required community advisory board (Mentoring and Nurturing the Needs of All) that hopes to make it easier for all of these agencies to work together even better...

In the wee hours of Saturday morning, walkers will take turns making the rounds of Bedford County Agriculture and Education Center. It's a labor of love, a way of remembering those who have been lost to cancer, providing services to those now suffering and funding research to help save generations yet unborn...

This flag flying over a soldier's grave at Willow Mount Cemetery serves as a poignant reminder of the ultimate sacrifice many United States service members made to protect their country. The Times-Gazette wishes its readers a safe Memorial Day weekend and urges all to take a few moments to consider the holiday's deeper meaning.

Members of the Beta Iota Chapter of Epsilon Sigma Alpha held their annual "Taste and Tell" dinner at the home of Betty Powell. Janie Burks served as co-hostess. After sampling each dish, recipes were shared. The following were all favorites: Angel Lush...