The Chamber of Commerce hosted a ribbon cutting at Planet Fitness Shelbyville, 108 Lane Parkway. Victor and Lynne Brick, co-founders of Planet Fitness, hold the ceremonial scissors. more

The Fairview FEC Club met Wednesday, November 18, 2020, at the UT/TSU Extension Office in Shelbyville. President Pat Hastings opened the meeting and led the members in bicep curls. Ann Cannady read the call to order, and Betty Brown read a lesson on giving thanks by Sarah Young... more

Police should be harder on drug dealers than users, a Shelbyville man arrested for possession of a schedule II drug and paraphernalia said Tuesday. Officers investigating a report of an overdose victim said they found Joseph Allen Barrett, 23, of Hoover Street on his bed with a loaded needle and bag of a white powder substance which field tested positive for cocaine. Barrett allegedly told police the substance was heroin... more

Sharon Shelton McDonald still lives in her childhood home in Bedford County. After 70 years, the memories there are still so vivid, she was inspired to write her own memoirs, which she most recently titled, “Precious Memories.” “Record everything that you can recall, while you can still remember,” says McDonald, a retired Eakin Elementary first grade teacher... more

Bedford County Board of Education recently approved a proposal to dedicate Cascade Middle School’s gym floor in memory of the late James Franklin “Coach” Cotham — a long-time educator and school athletic director. The official dedication will be held Tuesday, Feb. 9, at the school... more

The 10th annual wine walk on the Shelbyville public square will be held from 4 to 8 p.m., Friday, Dec. 11. So get ready to “Sip, Shop and Stroll,” local organizers note. Business owners/organizers say, especially right now, this will be a good time to “wine less, shop more!” So this holiday event certainly fits the bill for our present time... more

The weekend gets off to a pretty good start but then things go downhill with a chance of rain developing Sunday afternoon — and then we bring the S word into the forecast for the first time this year with snow mixing in Sunday night and Monday. The high temperature on Monday afternoon will probably not get out of the 30s and drop to near 22 degrees by Tuesday morning. If you have any questions about this weather system or any other you can always reach me at weather1@charter.net... more

Two suspects have been charged with the theft of an SUV Sunday from a home near Unionville. Shelbyville police officers had earlier pursued the Ford Expedition through Shelbyville, reaching a speed of 80 mph on South Cannon Boulevard before discontinuing the chase due to high speed on a narrow two-lane roadway... more

The University of Tennessee has honored Bedford County Mayor Chad Graham as a Certified Public Administrator. Graham completed the requirements of the certification in August; Melisa Kelton, county government consultant with UT’s County Technical Assistance Service (CTAS), visited with Graham on Monday and presented him with the designation of Certified Public Administrator. ... more

More than 1 million Americans a day packed airports and planes over the weekend even as coronavirus deaths surged across the U.S. and public health experts begged people to stay home and avoid big Thanksgiving gatherings. And the crowds are only expected to grow. Next Sunday is likely to be the busiest day of the holiday period... more

Most Americans probably don’t realize that we have a very limited understanding of the first Thanksgiving, which took place in 1621 in Massachusetts. Indeed, few of our present-day traditions resemble what happened almost 400 years ago, and there’s only one original account of the feast... more

Public health experts look at increases in the number of cases to gauge how severe the outbreak of COVID-19 is. But another number they pay particular attention to is the positivity rate. (See sidebar “Positivity rates”) The positivity rate is the percentage of all tests that come back positive. The positivity rate is important because it lets public officials know if there is enough testing taking place to know how many people are infected and how widespread the infection is... more

The percent positive is exactly what it sounds like: the percentage of all coronavirus tests performed that are actually positive. The percent positive (sometimes called the “percent positive rate” or “positivity rate”) helps public health officials answer questions such as:... more

Bedford County Schools Superintendent Don Embry said Tuesday that Harris Middle School will remain all virtual until Monday, Dec. 7, due to the high number of COVID related issues with faculty and staff that will still be under quarantine.  All others schools in Bedford County will return to in-person learning on Monday, Nov. 30... more

With “Small Business Saturday” going on today and Christmas quickly approaching, Shelbyville-Bedford County Chamber launched Monday the first of many campaigns to encourage local spending. The ‘Holiday Shop Local’ contest, going on through Dec. 18, is also designed to encourage and reward one lucky ‘local’ shopper with a $200 cash prize. ... more

A Shelbyville man was wounded by his brother during a melee outside a Quarry Street restaurant late Sunday afternoon, according to Shelbyville police. Agusto Tomas Hernandez suffered a deep facial cut and fractured jaw, police said. His brother, Miguel Tomas Hernandez, 28, of Quarry Street was charged with aggravated domestic assault, public intoxication, resisting arrest and violation of probation. He is being held on $29,000 bond... more

Bedford County Board of Education member Andrea Anderson was recently honored by her peers at the state level by being selected as one of five outstanding school board members. She’s a very busy board member, representing District 6, as well, a wife, parent and local veterinarian-all wrapped into one. ... more

Four men nominated to fill the remaining two years of the late Jimmy Patterson’s District 3 County Commission seat made their sales pitches last Tuesday. All commissioners were invited to question the prospects as the commission’s rules and legislative committee met... more

Phase III of the reopening of Shelbyville-Bedford County Public Library is about to commence on Monday, according to assistant library director Margaret Petty. Since last spring, when COVID-19 first hit Bedford County, library patrons have been unable to browse book shelves. After the pandemic began to settle a bit, patrons were finally able to pick up library books (ordered by phone or online) curbside... more

First light of the day at Normandy Lake illuminates the last colors of autumn Monday. more