97 year old Phyllis June Criswell Sherwood of Smithville and a native of Indiana died Saturday at DeKalb Community Hospital. She was a homemaker, member of the Happy Homemakers Club, and a member of the Methodist Church in North Judson, Indiana. The family has chosen direct cremation and a memorial service will be held at a later date. Sherwood was preceded in death by her parents, Thomas H. and Hazel May Coonrod Criswell; her husband, Glenn Sherwood; a son, John Sherwood, a daughter, Diane Sherwood; and a brother, Tommy and sister, Mary. Survivors include a daughter-in-law, Phyllis Sherwood of Cincinnati, Ohio. Seven grandchildren, Betsy and husband David Slone, Sarah and husband Mike Hutmier, Amy and husband Fred Dunlea and Richard and wife Teri Sherwood all of Cincinnati, Will and wife Jen Sherwood of Smithville, Bob and wife Jen Sherwood of Dayton, and Jim Bender of Cincinnati. Fourteen great grandchildren and several great great grandchildren survive. The family asks that donations be made to the Smithville First United Methodist Church in memory of Phyllis, in lieu of flowers. DeKalb Funeral Chapel is in charge of the arrangements.
Author Archive: Dwayne Page
Minnie Lee Poss
66 year old Minnie Lee Poss of Smithville died Friday at DeKalb Community Hospital. She was a Baptist and an employee of Federal Mogul. The funeral will be Monday at 2:00 p.m. at the Chapel of Love-Cantrell Funeral Home. Thomas Hewell will officiate. The family has chosen cremation. Visitation will be Sunday from 11:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m. and Monday from 10:00 a.m. until the service at 2:00 p.m. Poss was preceded in death by her parents, Arnold Murphy and Della Hale Poston; and a brother, William S. Murphy. Survivors include sons, Timothy and wife Vanessa Poss and John Poss of Smithville and daughter Billie Poss of Memphis. Eight grandchildren, John Michael Poss, Justin, MaKayla, Taylor, Elijah, Uriah, Tim Poss, Jr., and Summer Poss of Smithville. Great grandchildren, Amber Poss and Jackie Poss of Smithville. Sisters, Frances and husband George Fincher of McMinnville and Dimple and husband Charlie Blanchfield, Donna and husband Mike Hewell, Darlene Wooley and David Griffith, and Denise Redman; a brother, Ernest Murphy; and her step-father, Charles Poston all of Smithville. Love-Cantrell Funeral Home is in charge of the arrangements. The family requests that donations be made to Love-Cantrell Funeral Home to help with expenses in lieu of flowers.
Jacqueline Robinson
88 year old Jacqueline Robinson of Smithville died Friday at her residence. She was a member of the Elizabeth Chapel Baptist Church and was retired from Kingston Timers. The funeral will be Sunday at 2:00 p.m. at the Chapel of Love-Cantrell Funeral Home. Bill Robertson will officiate and burial will be in DeKalb Memorial Gardens. Visitation will be Saturday from 1:00 p.m. until 9:00 p.m. and Sunday from 10:00 a.m. until the service at 2:00 p.m. Robinson was preceded in death by her parents, John Thomas and Vinnie Ann Parker Evans; her husband, Charles Robinson; a grandson, David Wayne Alexander; three sisters, Ethylene Holmes, Louise Reed, and Irene Young; and a brother, Carl Evans; and a half sister, Mildred Hockingsmith. Survivors include four daughters, Wanda and husband Gary Russell, Joyce and husband Tommy Alexander, Debra Robinson, and Jackie and husband Tommy Stockling all of Smithville. Three sons, Wayne and wife Gloria Robinson, David and wife Linda Robinson, and Terry and wife Sara Robinson all of Smithville. Twelve grandchildren, Andy and Chrissy Prichard of Liberty, Mark and Amanda Prichard, Nick Robinson, and Chris Robinson all of Smithville, Rob and Lori Alexander of Sparta, Amy and Tim Tobitt of Smithville, Tyler Conger of Alabama, Chip and Melissa Robinson, Macey Robinson, Heath and Tiffany Robinson, Cody Robinson, and Emily Robinson all of Smithville. Fifteen great grandchildren, Caroline, Hannah, Maddie, and Sam Tobitt of Smithville, Evan, Izzey, and Charley Prichard of Liberty, Hunter and Chloe Robinson of Smithville, Isaac, Keirstine and Kaden Robinson of Smithville, Brandtley Alexander of Sparta, Haiden Robinson of Smithville, and Conner Robinson of Smithville. Love-Cantrell Funeral Home is in charge of the arrangements. The family asks that donations please be made to the David Wayne Alexander Scholarship Fund, in lieu of flowers.
Phyllis June Criswell Sherwood
97 year old Phyllis June Criswell Sherwood of Smithville and a native of Indiana died Saturday at DeKalb Community Hospital. She was a homemaker, member of the Happy Homemakers Club, and a member of the Methodist Church in North Judson, Indiana. The family has chosen direct cremation and a memorial service will be held at a later date. Sherwood was preceded in death by her parents, Thomas H. and Hazel May Coonrod Criswell; her husband, Glenn Sherwood; a son, John Sherwood, a daughter, Diane Sherwood; and a brother, Tommy and sister, Mary. Survivors include a daughter-in-law, Phyllis Sherwood of Cincinnati, Ohio. Seven grandchildren, Betsy and husband David Slone, Sarah and husband Mike Hutmier, Amy and husband Fred Dunlea and Richard and wife Teri Sherwood all of Cincinnati, Will and wife Jen Sherwood of Smithville, Bob and wife Jen Sherwood of Dayton, and Jim Bender of Cincinnati. Fourteen great grandchildren and several great great grandchildren survive. The family asks that donations be made to the Smithville First United Methodist Church in memory of Phyllis, in lieu of flowers. DeKalb Funeral Chapel is in charge of the arrangements.
Minnie Lee Poss
66 year old Minnie Lee Poss of Smithville died Friday at DeKalb Community Hospital. She was a Baptist and an employee of Federal Mogul. The funeral will be Monday at 2:00 p.m. at the Chapel of Love-Cantrell Funeral Home. Thomas Hewell will officiate. The family has chosen cremation. Visitation will be Sunday from 11:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m. and Monday from 10:00 a.m. until the service at 2:00 p.m. Poss was preceded in death by her parents, Arnold Murphy and Della Hale Poston; and a brother, William S. Murphy. Survivors include sons, Timothy and wife Vanessa Poss and John Poss of Smithville and daughter Billie Poss of Memphis. Eight grandchildren, John Michael Poss, Justin, MaKayla, Taylor, Elijah, Uriah, Tim Poss, Jr., and Summer Poss of Smithville. Great grandchildren, Amber Poss and Jackie Poss of Smithville. Sisters, Frances and husband George Fincher of McMinnville and Dimple and husband Charlie Blanchfield, Donna and husband Mike Hewell, Darlene Wooley and David Griffith, and Denise Redman; a brother, Ernest Murphy; and her step-father, Charles Poston all of Smithville. Love-Cantrell Funeral Home is in charge of the arrangements. The family requests that donations be made to Love-Cantrell Funeral Home to help with expenses in lieu of flowers.
Jacqueline Robinson
88 year old Jacqueline Robinson of Smithville died Friday at her residence. She was a member of the Elizabeth Chapel Baptist Church and was retired from Kingston Timers. The funeral will be Sunday at 2:00 p.m. at the Chapel of Love-Cantrell Funeral Home. Bill Robertson will officiate and burial will be in DeKalb Memorial Gardens. Visitation will be Saturday from 1:00 p.m. until 9:00 p.m. and Sunday from 10:00 a.m. until the service at 2:00 p.m. Robinson was preceded in death by her parents, John Thomas and Vinnie Ann Parker Evans; her husband, Charles Robinson; a grandson, David Wayne Alexander; three sisters, Ethylene Holmes, Louise Reed, and Irene Young; and a brother, Carl Evans; and a half sister, Mildred Hockingsmith. Survivors include four daughters, Wanda and husband Gary Russell, Joyce and husband Tommy Alexander, Debra Robinson, and Jackie and husband Tommy Stockling all of Smithville. Three sons, Wayne and wife Gloria Robinson, David and wife Linda Robinson, and Terry and wife Sara Robinson all of Smithville. Twelve grandchildren, Andy and Chrissy Prichard of Liberty, Mark and Amanda Prichard, Nick Robinson, and Chris Robinson all of Smithville, Rob and Lori Alexander of Sparta, Amy and Tim Tobitt of Smithville, Tyler Conger of Alabama, Chip and Melissa Robinson, Macey Robinson, Heath and Tiffany Robinson, Cody Robinson, and Emily Robinson all of Smithville. Fifteen great grandchildren, Caroline, Hannah, Maddie, and Sam Tobitt of Smithville, Evan, Izzey, and Charley Prichard of Liberty, Hunter and Chloe Robinson of Smithville, Isaac, Keirstine and Kaden Robinson of Smithville, Brandtley Alexander of Sparta, Haiden Robinson of Smithville, and Conner Robinson of Smithville. Love-Cantrell Funeral Home is in charge of the arrangements. The family asks that donations please be made to the David Wayne Alexander Scholarship Fund, in lieu of flowers.
Smithville Firefighters Visit Elementary School (SEE VIDEO HERE)
As part of October Fire Safety month, Chief Charlie Parker and members of the Smithville Volunteer Fire Department paid a visit to Smithville Elementary School Friday morning to talk about fire safety and to show the children the new ladder truck.
(PLAY VIDEO BELOW)
Body Found Floating in Center Hill Lake
A fisherman found a badly decomposed body floating in Center Hill Lake Friday morning in the area of Edgar Evins State Park and Center Hill Marina.
The identity of the deceased has not been determined. An autopsy will be conducted.
Officials say the body was face down in the water about four hundred yards upstream from the mouth of Cove Hollow. The water depth in that area is about ninety feet.
Members of the TWRA, DeKalb County Rescue Squad, DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department, DeKalb EMS, Corps of Engineers Park Rangers and Edgar Evins Park Manager Carl Halfacre responded.
The body was brought to shore by boat and loaded onto a mini van at an Edgar Evins State Park Boat Ramp.
Walleye in Center Hill Lake threatened by low dissolved oxygen levels
Over the past few weeks several dead walleye have been observed at Center Hill Lake. Walleye prefer a cool-water habitat, which means they are usually located fairly deep in the lake this time of year. This year the dissolved oxygen levels in this zone are very low. Data collected yesterday indicated that the only area deeper than about 35 feet that contains any oxygen is a zone between depths of 60-to-90 feet, and even there the levels are quite low.
“This isolated zone of cool, oxygenated water has gotten much smaller over the last few weeks as natural processes in the lake have depleted oxygen from the water. If there are significant numbers of walleye and other fish trapped in this zone they may not be able to survive long enough for the lake to mix and restore oxygen to these lower depths,” said Bob Sneed, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District Water Management Section chief.
The low oxygen levels are primarily due to a series of rainfall events during the spring and summer that resulted in a loss of oxygenated water from persistent higher flows from the dam. A lower lake pool while maintenance is ongoing at the dam is also a contributing factor.
Cooler nights are helping to restore oxygen levels at lower depths, but Corps officials aren’t sure yet if large numbers of fish could be affected before mixing of oxygen at lower depths can occur.
Sneed said that warmer lake temperatures also translate into warmer water temperatures in the Caney Fork River downstream of Center Hill Dam where a major put, grow, and take trout fishery is managed by the Tennessee Wildlife and Resources Agency.
“The trout are likely to be stressed and they may not feed as aggressively as normal, but I would not expect a major die-off of fish in the river,” Sneed said. “We will continue to blend sluice gate releases with hydropower releases to support the downstream environmental resources.”
There are no physical or operational actions that can be applied to alleviate this condition. Corps of Engineers and TWRA staff will continue to work together and monitor the situation.
For more news and updates please go to http://www.lrn.usace.army.mil and follow the Nashville District at http://www.facebook.com/nashvillecorps.
New Report Card Introduced for Kindergarten and First Grade Students
As part of the new Common Core State Standards initiative, the DeKalb County School System has introduced a new standards-based report card for kindergarten and first grade students.
CLICK PDF LINK BELOW TO VIEW DRAFT OF NEW STANDARDS BASED REPORT CARD)0230_001.pdf (212.93 KB)0230_001_0.pdf (256 KB)
The purpose of the new reporting system is to provide parents and teachers with more accurate information about students’ progress toward meeting the specific content standards for the various subjects taught at each grade level.
Michelle Burklow, Supervisor of Instruction for Pre-K through 6th grade, informed the Board of Education Thursday night that the new report card has already gone out for the first nine weeks of school. “We’re very excited that we did get that completed. Kindergarten and first grade had a standards-based report card going home the first nine weeks. I was able to attend DeKalb West School’s parent-teacher conference this evening and I was able to speak with several of the parents coming down the kindergarten and first grade hallway. I received lots of positive comments. We talked about how that this is an opportunity for parents to polish skills with their child. I think they (parents) were really amazed at how much the students will be learning this school year,” she said.
“I’ve had a couple of compliments on it as well,” said fourth district school board member Billy Miller. “They (parents) really like it. They like where their kids are at. They know there are probably some deficiencies going on so this (report card) distinguishes those a little bit better so they (parents) know what to work on,” he said.
Dr. Danielle Collins, Federal Programs Supervisor, visited Smithville Elementary School’s parent-teacher conference and also received positive comments from parents. “They appreciate that they now can help their child on specific standards at home .They actually know what their child needs extra help in,” she said.
Burklow said plans are to start working on a standards-based report card for second graders after Christmas and to have it in place next year.
With the standards-based report card, educators know whether all students are learning what they should in each grade by monitoring the skills listed on the report card.
Traditional report cards usually assign one grade for reading, one for math, one for science and so on. On a standards-based report card, each of these subject areas is divided into a list of skills and knowledge that students are responsible for learning. Students receive a separate mark for each standard.
Instead of letter grades, the standards-based report card grades students by numbers 1-4. ” Category 4 would mean students are advanced,” said Burklow at a previous school board meeting. ” That means they have an understanding of the standards, the skills. It exceeds the grade level expectations. Earning a 3 would mean that students are proficient in understanding the skills and meet grade level expectations. We want all students to be at that proficient level. So a 3 would mean that they are right on target for gaining all their academic information for the school year. A 3 would be something to celebrate. A 2 would mean that the student has a basic understanding of the skill/skills being tested. This child is progressing toward mastery but needs a little polishing on a specific skill. A 1 would mean that the student has minimal understanding. Here again, teachers and parents would work together, intervene with that student so that they would progress up to mastery,” said Burklow.
In other business, Director of Schools Mark Willoughby updated the school board on personnel moves since the last meeting.
Those employed as substitute teachers since September are:
Jean Hope, Ann Frazier, Katie Merriman, Tiffanie Martin, Yvonne Hale, Michelle Critser, Jenny Trapp, Kerry Polk, Michael Hattaway, Joy Whitman, Meghan Padgett, Helga Thompson, Jordon Roller, Erin O’Loughlin, Bethany Cornelius, and Kim Taylor.
Lisa Hull, a teacher was granted a leave of absence as requested.
The board gave approval for an overnight FFA trip to the 2013 National FFA Convention in Louisville, Kentucky October 29 through November 2.
Board approval was granted for an overnight DCHS Beta Club trip to attend the National Beta Club state convention at Gaylord Opryland November 24-26.
Approval was given for two day basketball games at DeKalb Middle School (play at Warren County November 22 and for Warren County to play here on December 9)
Director Willoughby also gave a brief update on the DeKalb West School building project. He said the contractor will start pouring concrete Friday morning, October 11.
The next regular monthly school board meeting will be Tuesday, November 19 at 7:00 p.m. at the Board of Education Building. The board will have a workshop on Tuesday, October 15 at 6:00 p.m. at the Board of Education Building on the development of a five year plan.