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TRENTON, North Carolina — When meteorologists downgraded Hurricane Florence from a powerful Category 4 storm to a Category 2 and then a Category 1, Wayne Mills figured he could stick it out. He regrets it. The Neuse River, normally 150 feet away, lapped near his door in New Bern, North Carolina, Sunday even as the storm had “weakened” further...

Elementary teacher Deborah Bates was once reminded by former Principal Hal Skelton that she couldn't save the world. Still, she wanted to try by being the best teacher possible. After 37 ½ years, it seems she may have very well fulfilled her goal. Bates officially retired in May from Bedford County School System...

Two men demanded "everything" from a man driven to a home on Fairfield Pike by a woman acquaintance Sunday morning, Shelbyville police were told. The victim said the woman, who he had been in contact with on Facebook and had been with once before, went into the home, in the 1000 block near his own residence, and returned with two men with handguns in their waistbands who sat on each side of him...

Community High School celebrated its football homecoming Friday night. (Submitted photo)

These two quilts will be raffled at a fundraiser 2-7 p.m. Saturday at Journey Of Hope, 3114 Midland Fosterville Road. The event will include food, a silent auction, craft and other vendors. Live entertainment will include Bev McCann & Friends, Chrissy and Ricky Leonard, Brooke & Greg Day, Eloise Gaither and Happy Valley Cloggers. (Submitted photos)

Motlow State Community College recently recognized faculty, administration, and staff members with extended service to the institution during the College’s annual Fall Convocation. Motlow president Michael Torrence, left, congratulates 35-year employee Steve Smotherman.

Bedford County Soil Conservation District went to the Boys & Girls Club of Bedford County this year to teach the kids how to make Soil Babies. Soil Babies consist of taking a knee-high stocking, adding seed in the toe, filling with potting soil, forming it into a ball and decorating. David Scocchio with the Conservation District demonstrated how a seed becomes a plant. Then it was off to make Soil Babies...

Angie Hill and her Cascade High School cafeteria foodies serve students chicken nuggets on Fridays with a side order of hip hop. It’s not unusual to see the nutrition team twirling their spoons and clanking their spoodles to iTunes. Songs like “Runaround Sue” can certainly break the monotony of making 1,000 fruit cups a day...

An estimated 700 cyclists will pass through Bedford County Oct. 6 and 7 as part of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society’s Bike To Jack & Back. On Saturday, Oct. 6, cyclists will begin at Page High School in Franklin and end at the Jack Daniel Distillery in Lynchburg. In Lynchburg, the participants will enjoy a tour of the distillery and a berbecue dinner. On Sunday, Oct. 7, some, but not all, of the riders will make the same trip in reverse, starting in Lynchburg and ending in Franklin...

Marilyn Ewing has announced her candidacy for a 2nd Ward seat on Shelbyville City Council in the Nov. 6 general election. Ewing is a broadcaster who delivers live traffic reports for nine radio stations for The Chattanooga Traffic Network and Brewer Media Group. She hosts the cable television program “Marilyn & Company,” which debuted in 1997...

Shelbyville Fire Department is accepting donations for the victims of Hurricane Florence. Donations can be brought to Fire Hall #1 at 111 Lane Parkway. The following items will be accepted: •Bottled Water •Non-perishable food •Diapers •Toiletries •Cleaning supplies...

The remains of Hurricane Florence are expected to bring some showers and breezy conditions to Middle Tennessee today but as it moves out we get back into the heat for the week ahead. I am expecting highs to be mostly in the upper 80s to low 90s from Monday through Friday...

Organizers of the Butterfly Festival, scheduled Sept. 28-29 at The Fly Arts Center on South Main Street, have released the call for entries in their fine art and photograpy contests. The contest has divisions for grades 6-8, high school and adults. The subject can be any stage of butterfly life. Drawings, paintings and other two-dimensional media will be accepted; entries must be mounted or matted. The title, the artist’s name, number and e-mail should appear on the back...

New members of the Leadership Bedford team heard Thursday night how advantageous it is for the City of Shelbyville to apply for available state and federal grant funds for certain municipal projects. Mayor Wallace Cartwright and all six councilpersons welcomed members of Leadership Bedford to the monthly City Council meeting. ...

Bedford County resident and Pearl Harbor survivor Claude Dean died Wednesday at his home in Shelbyville. He was 98. Dean, a native of Marshall County, was a boatswain's mate second class serving on the U.S.S. Helena, a light cruiser, at the time of the Pearl Harbor attack...

Bedford County Board of Commissioners voted Tuesday night to rezone land on U.S. 231 North from A-1 (agriculture) to C-1 (commercial). The land being rezoned is only a portion of a large parcel owned by Jennifer Trott. She wants to sell a five-acre portion to George Deatherage so that he can build an indoor storage facility for large motor coaches, such as entertainers' tour buses...

"Help me" written on intake paperwork for an injured woman at Tennova Healthcare-Shelbyville alerted staff that she was in trouble Wednesday night. Police said she was bleeding from the mouth and an obviously-broken nose on arrival at the hospital's emergency room...

The threat of a taser jolt convinced a shoplifting suspect to stop running from a Shelbyville police officer Wednesday. Christopher Ryan Pattie, 27, of Cowan allegedly began running across Walmart’s parking lot when he heard officer Ronnie Blankenship being told over police radio that he had pending warrants in Franklin County...

The Cascade Middle Champions had to withstand a 47-minute lightning delay, but in the end, were able to outlast the visiting Westwood Rockets, 30-22. After a defensive stand by the Champions forced a turnover on downs on the game’s opening drive, Cascade went on the march and finally punched the ball in the end zone on a three-yard blast by Conner Huie...

One duck at the famous duck pond on Hickory Drive seemed to be in charge. This week’s temperatures were pleasant enough for the feathered friends to take a swim. Visitors to the pond are asked to feed the ducks appropriate foods and to not litter. (T-G Photo by Dawn Hankins)

Motlow State Community College recently recognized faculty, administration, and staff members with 25 years of service to the institution during the College’s annual Fall Convocation. From left are honoree Susan Dickey; Motlow president Michael Torrence; and honorees Dawn Copeland and Stuart Bloodworth. (Motlow College photos)

With strong winds forecast at up to 80 miles per hour on the North Carolina Coast later today, it's going to be all hands on deck for those who remain inland. Duck River Electric Membership Corporation is once again stepping up to assist with recovery efforts by sending linemen to the state's coastline this weekend...

When Annie Gray Heath Woods was born on Sept. 12, 1918, there was a terrible flu pandemic, the world was on the tail end of World War I and Morrow Graham was pregnant with son, Billy. Mrs. Woods turned 100 on Wednesday....

There are 28 candidates running for governor in Tennessee. One, businessman Bill Lee, is listed on the ballot as a Republican. Another, former Nashville mayor Karl Dean, is listed as a Democrat. The rest are listed simply as "independents," which candidate Vinnie Vineyard says is a major problem...

Motlow State Community College recently recognized faculty, administration, and staff members with 20 years of service to the institution during the College’s annual Fall Convocation. From left are honorees David Jernigan, Gina Burke and Jan Jennings; Motlow president Michael Torrence; and honorees Debbie Finney, Margia Keel, and John Selman. Not pictured is Wes Spratlin. (Motlow College photo)

Leah Barnes, from left, Anna Barnes, Mia King and Vission Montalvo enjoy playing outside in the beautiful weather. (T-G Photo by Carol Spray)

An employee of CVS Pharmacy, North Main Street, is charged with stealing almost $2,500 worth of prescription medication for her own use. The alleged thefts were discovered during an audit of the store when the medication was discovered missing. Surveillance video shows Heather Anne Wilson, 29, of Shadow Drive taking bottles of two medications out of camera view, then returning them to shelves, an asset protection manager told Shelbyville police...

Graham to chair commission There was no honeymoon for seven new members of Bedford County Board of Commissioners, who went right to work during their first meeting Tuesday night, deciding how best to move forward on a proposal for consolidation of city and county animal control...

Fire on the river

A teenager was tasered Tuesday by police after allegedly running from officers attempting to arrest him for violating probation. The suspect was found in a bedroom of his Shelbyville home and ran while being escorted to a patrol car, police said. Officers John Cooke and Jeff Goodrich pursued, with Cooke trying unsuccessfully to fire his taser before he and the youth both fell. The boy got up and resumed running until being tasered in the back by Goodrich, a report said...

Shelbyville Lions Club members administer vision screenings each year for the Bedford County Pre-K program and for other students throughout the county. Seen here at Thomas Magnet School are Lions Club members Peggy Bush, Jonnie Wright, Eddie Wright and Donnetta Hurt with students Emaleigh Cook, Jake Powell, Caleb Barrera and McKenna Addie. (Submitted photo)

Motlow State Community College recently recognized faculty, administration, and staff members with 10 and 15 years of service to the institution during the College’s annual Fall Convocation.

Who could forget Alan Jackson's song, "Where Were You? (When the World Stopped Turning)"? It was written out of tragedy, like a lot of country songs. But this one was certainly true to life in more ways than one. The song says: "Where were you when the world stopped turnin' that September day?" It was written in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington, D.C....

The weekend was rough on Shelbyville police officers as one was injured and several threatened in two incidents Saturday. A Shelbyville police officer was injured Saturday morning while struggling with a shoplifting suspect following a short foot and vehicle pursuit...

Col. Jonathan Vannatta, U.S. Army Reserve, graduated from the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle, Pa., earning a master's degree in Strategic Studies on July 27. "The educational highlight of this program for me was an elective on Defense Support to Civil Authorities (DSCA). ...

Items were stolen from two homes under construction in Bedford County last week, the Bedford County Sheriff's Office was told Friday. A vanity and five boxes of hardwood flooring were taken from an unlocked house on the 2300 block of U.S. 231 South and a generator from the patio of a house on the 1400 block of Highway 64 West...

A panel of college professors will celebrate Constitution Day by leading constitutional issue discussions on Tuesday, Sept. 18, at Motlow State Community College. The forum, which is free and open to the public, will take place inside Eoff Hall's Powers Auditorium on the Moore County campus from 11 a.m. to 12:20 p.m...

Bedford County Emergency Management Agency has a cadre of 14 Amateur Radio operators who serve as EMA communications and logistics support volunteers. This cadre is the Bedford County EMA Auxiliary Communications Group, or Aux Comm Group for short. The group meets every other month in the EMA classroom and receives various training and presentations. ...

Tennessee Department of Agriculture has introduced a new Tennessee Milk logo which can be used by processors to indicate that their product comes from Tennessee dairy farms. State Department of Agriculture Commissioner Jai Templeton announced Wednesday that Middle Tennessee State University and Crossville, Tennessee-based Sunrise Dairy are the first to carry the Tennessee Milk logo on their dairy products being sold publicly....

U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper, a Shelbyville native, has announced his endorsement of Mariah Phillips in the 4th District U.S. House race. Cooper once represented the 4th Congressional District, then left the Congress and moved to Nashville, then was later elected to the 5th District seat, which he now holds...

Nearly 114,000 people helped consume tons of Optimist Club doughnuts, ice cream and a stadium full of drinks during the 80th Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration. To Mike Inman, TWHNC Chief Executive Officer, those numbers are not horse feed. He believes it sends a message that the industry isn’t going away, but only getting stronger...

The Fly Arts Center gets its name from the manufacturing facility that used to be located there, and the family that made it possible for Bedford County Arts Council to transform the building into an event space, museum and theatre. But the butterfly has been a symbol of the building ever since it became an Arts Center. ...

The highlight of my forecast this week is the temperatures are going to come down a little bit and the rain chances are going up. Showers and thundershowers are likely on Sunday and then a 50 percent chance will continue from Monday through Wednesday. Monday will be the coolest day with highs in the upper 70s, otherwise I expect low 80s on most afternoons...

Two suspects face theft charges after allegedly stealing vehicle batteries at a Meadow Drive home Thursday morning. The victim told police he arrived home to find Kristy Lynn Danorovich, 41, of Columbia and Eddie James Collier, 62, who is listed in a police report as homeless and from Shelbyville, with two batteries...

The alleged gunman who seriously wounded a man last weekend outside a Shelbyville home is in custody. Keontis Dontrel Cunningham, 21, of Bradyville Pike in Murfreesboro was arrested Wednesday, Detective Sgt. Charles Merlo of the Shelbyville Police Department said. He is charged with aggravated assault and was being held on $75,000 bond Thursday at Bedford County Jail...

The Tennessee State Review Board will consider the Thompson Creek area, as well as a broad-ranging multiple-site entry for “historical agricultural resources of Bedford County, Tennessee, 1805-1968,” among several proposed nominations to the National Register of Historic Places when it meets Sept. 19 in Memphis...

Two men attacked a man they thought was attempting to record them vandalizing a vehicle at a Bridlewood Drive home Wednesday night, Shelbyville police were told. The victim said he had his cellphone in his hand but was not recording them. He was unable to describe his assailants except that they were Hispanic...