Stories from Wednesday, January 26, 2011

School board members rated their director's performance somewhere between "fair" and "good" across a range of categories in his first annual evaluation, though scores in several areas averaged close to "poor." The elected school board conducted its evaluation of Dukes without a public vote. Evaluation forms were submitted without the names of the board members attached, thereby allowing them to vote anonymously...

Lewisburg's Public Works Department is ready for ol' man winter. "We've got enough salt for this year," Public Works Director Kenny Ring said Friday. With 75-80 tons of salt in the salt shed between North Ellington Parkway and Jones Circle that day, Ring directed one of his men to load the salt spreader to be prepared...

Tennessee's prohibition against new sewer connections here had two Lewisburg businessmen concerned about its limit on city growth, so last week they asked the Water and Wastewater Board about it. Lewisburg Industrial Development Board Chairman Eddie Wiles and Bill Marsh, both leaders of First Commerce Bank, were told the $13 million expansion of the city's sewage treatment plant should be completed within 18 months...

CHAPEL HILL -- The Board of Mayor and Aldermen has agreed to continue to pay the additional $50 per month charged by Marshall County's sheriff for reports from the National Crime Information Center's computer database. However, the board's discussion with Chief Deputy Billy Lamb and Sheriff Norman Dalton's communications officer, Katie Burk, who went to Chapel Hill's Town Hall last week, came with another request that broadened the discussion...

Nearly 120 employees of Smurfit-Stone Container Corp. here were told Monday that their employer's business is being acquired by RockTenn, the Norcross, Ga.-based packaging and paper company, for $3.5 billion. "The Lewisburg plant has a bright future," Smurfit-Stone General Manager Jeb Bell said from his office in Humboldt, Tenn., where he oversees the corrugated box factory here and four other plants. ...

Mabel Ellen Richardson Rich, 95, of Columbia, died Friday, Jan. 21, 2011, at Maury Regional Medical Center. Mrs. Rich was born on June 20, 1915, in Giles County. She was the daughter of the late Lester Lee and Sara Thurman Richardson. Mabel was the wife of the late Fred Rich. ...

Marcus E. "Gene" Tate, 94, of Lewisburg, died Thursday, Jan. 20, 2011, in Maury Regional Medical Center. Mr. Tate was a Marshall County native and son of the late Marcus Eugene Sr. and Era Knox Fowler Tate. He served his country during World War II in the U.S. Army. He was retired from Heil-Quaker Corporation and was a member of the Hickory Heights Church of Christ...

Jack W. Logue, 84, of Chapel Hill, died Thursday morning, Jan. 20, 2011. Mr. Logue was born in Marshall County and was a son of the late Clarence and Bertha Griffin Logue. He served in the United States Army and was a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. He was a retired auditor for Heil-Quaker Corp. of Lewisburg where he worked for 22 years. Mr. Logue was a member of the Chapel Hill Church of Christ...

Nimo Jane Patterson Perryman, 90, of Chapel Hill, died Thursday, Jan. 20, 2011, following an extended illness. A native of Perry County, Mrs. Perryman was a daughter of the late Jessie and Myra Horner Patterson. She was a former recorder for the Town of Chapel Hill and retired from Forrest School as a secretary with 43 years of service. Mrs. Perryman was a member of Chapel Hill Community Ministry Church...

Anita Marie Coffey, 80, of Portage, Ind., passed away Friday, Jan. 21, 2011. Mrs. Coffey was the daughter of the late Malvin Redd and Susan LaCouix Redd. She was a homemaker and a member of the Lutheran Church. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, Gerald Lawrence Coffey Sr. who died in 1996, and one sister, Shirley Lumpkins...

James Clifford "Buddy" Collins, 74, of Nashville, passed away on Wednesday, Jan. 19, 2011. A native of Marshall County, he was the son of the late Wilburn and Gladys Collins. He was a fun-loving man, that loved football and watches and hand-held windmills, and loved life in general...

Jerry Wayne King, 63, of Columbia, died Friday, Jan. 21, 2011, at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. A native of Marshall County, Mr. King was a son of the late Andrew and Ethel King. He was a retired roofer. Jerry's life revolved around his love and passion for the sport of coon hunting...

Wendell T. Rowland, 74, of the Rover Community of Bedford County, died at his home on Thursday, Jan. 20, 2011, surrounded by family and friends, after a brief illness. He was born in Marshall County and was a son of the late Willie B. and Ruby Ghee Rowland. ...

Marshall County's School Board last week was asked to resolve discord and move forward for the good of the children. A recurring theme during the public comments was the defense of Schools Director Roy Dukes who's recently faced his annual job performance evaluation...

Marshall County AYSO Soccer sign-ups will be held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays, Jan. 29 and Feb. 5, and from 2 to 4 p.m. Sundays, Jan. 30 and Feb. 6, in the Lewisburg Recreation Center Main Lobby. Participants must be four years old by March 31, 2011...

By a 2-1 margin Monday, county commissioners decided to borrow up to $3.1 million for school heaters, air conditioning, lighting and other improvements to be repaid with money available from lower power bills. "We have lots of old equipment" that would have to be replaced anyway, said Commissioner Rocky Bowden, a retired Forrest School vice principal and chairman of the county education committee that endorsed the program...

Barely 12 hours after county commissioners decided to borrow up to $3.1 million for energy savings in county schools, the school board met to start the project. "We're here to finish discussion on the energy grant," chairman Mike Keny said during a Tuesday morning meeting. "The board has to decide the next step...

DETROIT -- General Motors plans to add a third shift at Flint Assembly, generating 750 jobs for the plant that makes GMC Sierra and Chevrolet Silverado heavy-duty pickups, the company said Monday. "Adding a third shift is a response to customer demand for heavy-duty pickups, which most people use to tow, haul and plow," said Mark Reuss, president of GM North America. "Equally importantly, it brings jobs and a needed economic boost to the Flint area."...

Thefts and vandalism reported Arrested and charged with reckless driving, possession of marijuana, and possession of drug paraphernalia Arrested and charged with domestic assault Arrested on a warrant charging domestic assault Turned himself in on a warrant alleging simple assault...