Stories from Thursday, May 28, 2015

Evan Mallett goes strawberry picking with his best friend Zelly.

Evan Mallett gets a secret from his pal Izel while they eat.

Evan Mallett tries to be as big as an M&M at Wal-Mart.

Channella reading to her son Isaac

James Rudolph Rodgers, 86, of Shelbyville died Wednesday, May 27, 2015, at Saint Thomas Rutherford Hospital. Funeral services will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday at Hillcrest Funeral Home. Burial will follow at Hillcrest Memorial Gardens. Visitation will begin at 11:30 a.m.

Deborah Lewis Smith, 44, of Nashville died Sunday, May 24, 2015 from a brain aneurysm. A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday at Apostolic Tabernacle Church in Ashland City with Doug Hanscomb officiating.

Bedford County wants to move several fee offices from rental space in the US Bank building on the north side of the square into the former Regions Bank building, now owned by the county, on the west side of the square. The county had been under the gun, with the lease on that US Bank space set to expire at the end of this month. But now, the county has negotiated a new lease which will let the county offices stay where they are for another year while the county makes plans for moving them...

Cariah Shamp blows on a dandelion, sending little parachutes of seeds floating in the air. (T-G Photo by Jim Davis)

Tickets are on sale for the sixth annual Steak & Chicken Dinner benefitting the Boys & Girls Club of Bedford County, which will feature former University of Tennessee football player Inky Johnson. The event will be held June 23 at the Blue Ribbon Circle Club...

Bedford County Financial Management Committee recommends that the county take advantage of a newly-passed state law and raise the maximum purchase that can be made without advertising for sealed bids. Currently, in Bedford County, any purchase of $10,000 or more must be advertised and put out for bid, with sealed bids accepted. ...

Members of a Middle Tennessee State University study-abroad course remembered a fallen former student recently on the site where he gave his life during a battle in the Vietnam War. History professor Derek Frisby and a small group of students in his course, "Warfare and Public Memory in Vietnam," visited Hill 937 in Vietnam's A Shau Valley just days before American's remembered fallen soldiers during Memorial Day observances...

A partially-stripped car was found burning in the middle of Squire Jones Road in northern Bedford County early Tuesday morning. The motor, transmission, front seats, tires and rims were removed before the car was set ablaze, Deputy Robert Filer said. The car was completely destroyed by the time Filer and firefighters arrived shortly after 7 a.m...

The TNStars College Savings 529 Program invites you to "Be a Star" at a ballpark near you on 529 day. Friday, May 29 has been nationally recognized as "529 College Savings Day," a way to raise awareness of the importance of saving early for a child's future college expenses while they are still young...

The Shelbyville Lions Club held their annual Chamber of Commerce coffee recently and also celebrated their 93rd year. The club was chartered May 29, 1922. Pictured (from left): Marsha Howard, Andrea Miller-Davis, Katie Guthrie-Shearin, Dawn Holley, Bart Lovvorn and Jamie Harrington. (Submitted photo)

For the first time in its 58-year history, Goodwill Industries of Middle Tennessee will soon offer regularly-scheduled, guided tours of its downtown Nashville headquarters to the public. The one-hour tours, dubbed "Inside Goodwill," will be available starting Thursday, June 18. ...

Southern rock, a fireworks show, classic cars, and over 30 arts and crafts dealers will all convene Saturday, June 6 at the 11th annual Wartrace MusicFest in Wartrace. The six piece Allman Brothers tribute band Midnight Riders from Nashville will close the show with a fireworks display beginning at 10 p.m. Threatening weather prevented the Riders from performing at last year's festival...

Gerald Smith of Kansas City, Missouri, a former resident of Shelbyville, died Tuesday, May 26, 2015. Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. Friday at Faith Deliverance FWC Church of God in Christ in Kansas City, Kansas. Burial will follow at Highland Park Cemetery. Mrs. J.W. Jones Memorial Chapel in Kansas City, Missouri is handling arrangements.

Maggie Lou Shelton, 93, of Lynchburg, Tuesday, May 26, 2015 at Harton Regional Medical Center in Tullahoma. Funeral services will be at 1 p.m. Saturday at Jennings Moore-Cortner Funeral Home in Lynchburg with the Rev. Coleman March Jr. officiating. Burial will follow at Highview Cemetery. Visitation will begin at 11 a.m.