Stories from Wednesday, May 8, 2013

The blossoms are about 5" across.

Big G Express, Inc was awarded Service Star Award by Continental Mills in recognition of its excellent customer service, on-time deliveries and communication. Big G has been a truckload carrier for Continental Mills since 2008 and has since been recognized for several awards including "Carrier of the Quarter" in 2008, "Service Star Award" in 2010 and "Carrier of the Year" in 2011. ...

Bedford County school employees could be in store for a raise in the fiscal year starting July 1. The Board of Education's budget committee looked at a draft budget Tuesday that calls for employee raises. The budget has estimated revenue of $56.9 million, a decrease of $1.25 million...

The Harris Middle School teacher's assistant accused of slapping a special education student last week faces a second assault charge involving the same child. Also, the teacher in whose class he worked has been charged for failing to report the incidents...

What promises to be an evening of pure fun and entertainment for local residents is being held for a serious cause. The 8th Annual First Choice Pregnancy Center Fish Fry will be held Saturday from 3:30-7 p.m. at 1198 Whiteside Hill Road. The event is held annually at Walnut Ridge Farm, owned by Barry and Pam Cooper of Shelbyville. Pam is the client services director for the First Choice Pregnancy Center...

Bedford County education and business leaders are honoring scholars at the three area high schools. "We are excited to initiate the Tennessee Scholars program in Bedford County schools," said Janice Womble, supervisor of secondary education. "This program encourages our students to not only take more demanding courses in high school but also to be well-rounded students in the areas of attendance, discipline and community service."...

The Tennessee Highway Patrol will conduct two driver's license roadside checkpoints and one sobriety checkpoint later this month. Driver's license checkpoints are planned for State Route 82 at the 6.5 mile marker at 9 p.m. Friday, May 17, and State Route 64 at the 15 mile marker at 6 p.m. Friday, May 24. The sobriety checkpoint is scheduled for Friday, May 24 at 11:30 p.m. on U.S. 41A at the 23 mile marker...

Guy Hill and Rod Lindsey with Sons of Civil War Veterans talked to the Shelbyville Lions Club recently about an upcoming civil war re-enactment. The re-enactment will be held June 22-23 at the H.V. Griffin Park complex. The program starts at 9 a.m. each day. Vendors will be there, as well as displays showing life as it was during the era...

On Saturday, May 11, merchants on the square will sponsor a May Flower event (April showers bring May flowers). This event is to promote gardens, home decor, fashions, and more, and encourage shopping in on an around the square. The merchants are joining The Uptown Association (working toward a Main Street designation), which will sponsor plant sales...

Danny Smith of Big G Express was named TTA Driver of the Year, the highest honor given to a professional driver by the Tennessee Trucking Association. Danny will represent Tennessee and compete for the American Trucking Association Driver of the Year award which is presented in August at the National Truck Driving Championship being held in Salt Lake City, Utah...

Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bill Hagerty along with VIAM Manufacturing officials announced last week an expansion of the company's facility on Park Tower Drive in Manchester, creating 75 new jobs. The expansion represents a $9 million investment and will bring VIAM's operating space to 507,000 square-feet at its Coffee County facility...

The one 108th Daughters of the American Revolution State Conference was held at the Cool Springs Marriott in Franklin, Tenn., from April 18-21. Daughters of the American Revolution members came from every corner of Tennessee, including the Shelby Chapter, and were joined by special guests from many locations including Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, New Mexico, South Carolina and Texas...

CHAPEL HILL -- Taylor Paschal gave the Community Vikings just what they need from the mound with a masterful four hitter and his offense pounded out 11 hits to defeat Huntland 9-2 to keep their season alive on Tuesday night in the District 9-A tournament...

Sunday is Mother's Day. Today's tech-savvy moms may be delighted by gadgets that help make their busy lives easier. Verizon Wireless sent me a news release for some tech-related gifts for Mom, and I've used that as a jumping-off point and added a couple of my own ideas...

A number of costly errors proved to be more than Shelbyville Central could overcome as the Golden Eagles ended their season with a 6-5 loss to visiting Franklin County in the District 8-AAA Tournament on Tuesday evening. Shelbyville (10-20) committed five errors, including two in the opening frame, allowing the winners to score three runs in the first inning, which proved to be the difference in the game...

CHAPEL HILL -- Trailing the Forrest Rockets 3-1 in the top of the seventh, Blake Floyd settled in at the plate with runners on second and third and hoped to connect for his third hit of the night to potentially put Cascade in a position to rally for a key win in the District 9-A baseball tournament...

FRANKLIN -- The Community Vikings soccer squad saw its season come to a close on Tuesday night with a 2-0 loss to Page in the District 11 A/AA tournament. Community goal keeper Jesse Cooper kept the Vikings in contention with a whopping 17 saves, but the offense just couldn't find the back of the net...

Due to a technical error, the Cascade and Community high school softball game from Tuesday night will appear in the Thursday sports section of the Times-Gazette.