Pick up a copy of this week's Mt. Juliet News for Lakeview Elementary Super School, WWBA Collage, lots of Letters to the Editor and a Special Guest Column by WCHS tennis coach Jay Holladay.
LAURIE EVERETT•MT. JULIET NEWS/An investigator on the scene of Wednesday's pre-dawn shooting where police say a man pointed a gun at them and they shot him in Mt. Juliet.
Breaking news update on pre-dawn shooting in Mt. Juliet Update on Mt. Juliet shooting
March 10, 2010 - The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation continues their investigation into today's pre-dawn shooting in Mt. Juliet. LAURIE EVERETT/ Managing Editor
Breaking news: Police shoot suspect in Mt. Juliet Mt. Juliet Police responded to a domestic incident and shot a man who would not get out of his car when asked in his driveway in Mt. Juliet around 2 a.m. Wednesday. LAURIE EVERETT/ Managing Editor
Mt. Juliet city squires used terms such as "it stinks" and "appalling" when the fall out from last week's county commission vote to research the feasibility of a "convenience center" on the former Mt. Juliet Elementary School site hit the fan last week.
Mt. Juliet High School Principal Mel Brown said "it's a very sad time at our school" with Monday's death of sophomore Shannon Lea Wall. She was just 16 years old.
The annoying word "diet" dare not cross the lips of anyone who crosses the threshold of Full Strut Cafe in the heart of Gladeville.
LAURIE EVERETT/Managing Editor
LAURIE EVERETT • MT. JULIET NEWS/Ralph Cook's practice is at Lantern Lane Farm where he's a licensed marriage and family counselor. He uses the tranquil setting as part of his therapy, as well as including his horses in many of his sessions.
The journey to Lantern Lane Farm in the rural reaches of Mt. Juliet is soothing in itself.
LAURIE EVERETT/Managing Editor
KIMBERLY JORDAN • MT. JULIET NEWS/The Cat in the Hat (teacher Cindy Reavis) visits with Hannah Alexander, who shows off the Dr. Seuss story she has drawn.
Exclusive
The developer who had hoped to develop the former Mt. Juliet Elementary School site has asked the county mayor to withdraw his $3.4 million contract on the property.
See how they voted on extending Binkley's contract and to research feasibility of putting "convenience center" on the property.
The Wilson County Commission voted 16 to 7 to deny a request by District 3 Commissioner Fred Weston to allow more time for a developer to meet zoning requirements on the old Mt. Juliet Elementary property.
The continuing saga regarding the future of the former Mt. Juliet Elementary School site has yet again hit a snag.
In today’s paper, we report that the developer who had a $3.4 million contract on the property to purchase it from the county has withdrawn his contract.
5 opinions posted
SUBMITTED/Robin cuddles in the arms of Jon Gray. Gray is the volunteer coordinator at the Mt. Juliet Animal Shelter and said Robin was abandoned and suffers from a broken jaw, most likely caused by abuse.
Mt. Juliet Animal Shelter officials are shocked and alarmed that their facility is increasingly overcrowded with abandoned, injured and even abused animals.
Part 2 in a series
Coming next week: What is the Wilson County School system doing to keep students in school? An investigation of the measures the system has implemented to keep students from falling between the cracks.
GED worth more than music awards to Wilson
Mega country music star and ninth grade dropout Gretchen Wilson catapulted to superstar status with her “Redneck Woman” hit. She lives in Lebanon and attained fame and fortune with her popular albums.
Financially, she was rock solid and knew she could provide well for her little girl Grace. However, even with the awards and adulation, Gretchen was missing something.
Story 2 Adult High School can provide redemption
Brittney Simmons is a very pretty young woman. On this day she was warmly dressed in a sweatshirt, but there was no denying she was very much pregnant. She attended Lebanon High School, and when she was a senior, she switched to a home school program.
LAURIE EVERETT / Managing Editor
Wilson County Adult High School student Juan Rosas will graduate this spring and hopes to go on to college and become an air traffic controller.
Independence cost Rosas chance at high school graduation
Juan Rosas is a bright young man who dropped out of high school years ago.
Now 28 years old, he’s married with a nearly 6 month old daughter. He’s trying to raise a family as a dropout and he’s fed up.
Editor's Blog / It just ain't right There is something insanely wrong with this picture; careening down hills, barely hugging curves while gripping the side of the door and stomping on a non-existent brake. My right thigh is super toned these days.
In early high school, Lyndsay Cline was in the gifted program. One day in the middle of her senior year at Lebanon High School she woke up, but didn’t go to class.
She never went to high school again.
LAURIE EVERETT / Managing Editor
LAURIE EVERETT • MT. JUILET NEWS / Everett Hurd works at Sally's Beauty Supply in Lebanon, a job he got after he obtained his GED. He's also enrolled in cosmetology school.
Nearly every day Everette Hurd can be found working at Sally's Beauty Supply in Lebanon.
LAURIE EVERETT / Managing Editor
Editor's blog / Sometimes it just takes an image I was eager to hear about the stock market, if any news from Mt. Juliet beat me on the newscast and the latest on the Metro school’s director search. So when I glanced at my flickering mini-television stuck on a shelf in my bedroom – while searching for my daughter’s sweatshirt at the bottom of my closet and trying to figure out how a Velcro curler works without getting stuck – I was taken aback. L. Everett - 3 opinions posted
August 4 Blog update to Vestiges of a vanishing nature blog For those of you who managed to slog through the below blog I penned some time around October, you eventually read about the bedraggled turkey hen that appeared out of nowhere on my place. L. Everett - 1 opinion posted
Part 1 of 4 Fire Alarm: Clearing the smoke on MJ fire protection/Evolution of fire service in MJ Next week: How do comprarable cities provide fire service to citizens and another Firefighter Focus
Mt. Juliet's swelling population caused by unprecedented retail and residential growth has fanned the flames of debate regarding whom should provide the city's fire protection.
In the past 36 years, since the city was incorporated in 1972, Mt. Juliet leaders have juggled to accommodate a swelling population brought about by this growth. LAURIE EVERETT / Managing Editor - 2 opinions posted
GEORGE PAGE • Mt. Juliet News / WEMA Director John Jewell works with the new Mt. Juliet volunteer firefighters at one of multiple meetings orchestrated by Mt. Juliet resident and firefighter Shawn Donovan.
Part 3 of 4/Fire Alarm: Clearing smoke on MJ fire protection/At the scene: The real deal on fire protection,Volunteer Fire Force born out of necessity Lt. David Cross has been a firefighter and emergency medical technician for 32 years. He’s been fighting fires in Wilson County for 20 of those years. He’s seen it all. When he started at Station 3 in Mt. Juliet two decades ago, there were four WEMA personnel working at the station.
“We were short handed then and we are short handed today, still with four people, with the only difference is that we have three other stations west of Highway 109 that would respond to us if needed,” Cross said. LAURIE EVERETT / Managing Editor - 1 opinion posted
DALLUS WHITFIELD • A WEMA firefighter continues to fight the flames at a house fire on Belinda Parkway in Mt. Julet.
Last in the series/Fire Alarm: Clearing the smoke on fire protection/What now? An analysis of - and officials weigh in - on fire protection December 31, 2008 - Two days ago there was a kitchen fire in an upscale home on Noel Drive in Mt. Juliet off Saundersville Ferry Road near the city limits.
The homeowner later reported she left the residence, was concerned she may have left the oven on and went back. She arrived back home to face flames in her kitchen. (The probable cause of the fire was later determined to be from a candle left lit and not the oven.) She called 911 and tried to put the fire out with a garden hose while she waited for help to arrive. LAURIE EVERETT / Managing Editor - 1 opinion posted
December 17 In-house editorial / Now is time to reevaluate need for city property tax for fire protection This week we present the second installment of our investigative series titled Fire Alarm: Clearing the smoke on MJ fire protection. Five peer cities, similar in size and population to Mt. Juliet were contacted and their city officials interviewed about how they provide fire service to their citizens. Four of the five provide their own fire service and the fifth contracts with a private company to provide this service.
3 opinions posted
LAURIE EVERETT • Mt. Juliet News / WEMA firefighter Jamie Luffman takes a breather after fighting a massive two residence fire for about five hours in Mt. Juliet off Saundersville Ferry Road.
FIREFIGHTER FOCUS: In their own words My name is Jamie Luffman and I am a 44 year old husband, father, son, brother, friend, and Sunday school teacher.
I am also a firefighter and an emergency medical technician. I have lived in Mt. Juliet all of my life and truly enjoy raising my family here and providing life safety services for my friends and neighbors.
SUMBMITTED • WEMA paramedic/firefighter Brent Dyer and son Nate.
Firefighter Focus: In their own words My name is Brent Dyer, I am a Paramedic/Firefighter in Wilson County. I began serving Wilson County in June of 2000. Over the past eight years, I have lived in Wilson County for five of them. My wife is a nurse. Fourteen months ago, we were blessed with our son.
CLARKSVILLE — Northeast held Mt. Juliet scorer Teraes Clemmons in check Saturday night as the Eagles soared to a 55-39 win over Mt. Juliet in the Region 5-AAA opener.
The Mt. Juliet High School Lady Bear won the Region Tournament Wednesday night. They beat Clarksville 44-39 to
win the Region 5-A championship. The Lady Bears host Glencliff on Saturday night at 7 p.m. with the winner advancing to the State tournament in Murfreesboro beginning next week.
Hard work and dedication on the part of the Mt. Juliet High School wrestling team has lead to a record-breaking season for Coach Brad Mattlingly’s team.
Mt. Juliet High football player Zach Bush signs with Campbellsville University in Kentucky. Seated from left to right are his father, Brian Blair; Zach; and his mother, Beth Blair. On the back row, from left, are MJHS Principal Mel Brown, Head Football Coach Roger Perry and assistant Trey Perry.
Sarah Beth Roberts bats at Saturday's 'Out of Hibernation Playday' softball tournament played at Mt. Juliet High School and Mt. Juliet Middle School softball fields. The Mt. Juliet High Lady Bears went undefeated at 4-0 with wins over David Lipscomb, Seigel, Coffee County and Friendship Christian. The Lady Bears next play in the 'Beech Playday' on March 13.
Mt. Juliet High's 6-foot 5-inch senior Teraes Clemmons has committed to play basketball at Northwest Florida State College in Fort Walton, Fla.
The high-scoring swingman is averaging 22.3 points per game, has helped lead the Golden Bears to a record of 22-7 on the season and a berth in the Region 5-AAA tournament.
Mt. Juliet head coach Troy Allen said that Clemmons hopes to improve.
Coached by former MTSU head coach Bruce Stewart, Northwest Florida (25-3) is currently ranked No. 5 in the National Junior College Athletic Association and is considered one of the top Junior College programs in the nation.
Now in his 13th season at NWF, Stewart has compiled a record of 313-80, making him the coach with the most wins in school history. Earlier this week, he was named the Panhandle Conference Coach of the Year.
Part 1: School bullying not a ‘rite of passage’ to be endured “Sue” spent more time in the bathroom at school than in class. Almost overnight the friends she had since kindergarten had turned on her. They excluded her, talked behind her back, made up rumors and called her names. By LAURIE EVERETT - 3 opinions posted
Part 2: ‘Never confuse meekness with weakness' Bill Bond said the murderous episode took only 12 seconds. Three young lives snuffed, five others injured in a brief blip of time at Heath High School in Paducah, Ky., where Bond was principal. By LAURIE EVERETT
Part 3: Bullying in school can lead to life behind bars Lebanon resident James Keeley wore a bright orange jumpsuit when he shuffled into the office of Wilson County Sheriff Terry Ashe. He stuck out his hand for a shake then settled uncomfortably in a chair. A warden stood discreetly in the corner of the room.
By LAURIE EVERETT
Part 4: Cyber bullying emerges as deadly new rage All of the West Wilson Middle School students (who wished to remain anonymous) interviewed by the Mt. Juliet News said the newest rage of bullying is cyber bullying.
