Kindergarten registration for the 2016-17 school year will be Friday, May 6th from 8:30 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. in the gym at Smithville Elementary School and on Monday, May 9th from 8:30 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. at DeKalb West School
Children who plan to attend kindergarten must turn five years old on or before August 15, 2016 in order to enroll for the 2016-17 school year.
Parents, when you come for that registration, you will need to bring with you the following information:
*Original birth certificate (certified copy with the state seal, not the hospital copy or mother’s copy)
*Current, up to date, physical examination and immunization record (These must be on a Tennessee Department of Health Certificate of Immunization, which can be obtained from your doctor’s office or the Health Department)
*Proof of residency for DeKalb County (i.e. gas/electric bill)
*Your child (they will be tested on registration day)

The Chamber of Commerce recently had a Ribbon Cutting for Haven of Hope’s new location. After 8 years of service to the community, Haven of Hope Counseling has moved to 301 West Main, Smithville.
Kay Quintero, MA, LPC, LSPE states that the bigger space, otherwise known as The Magnolia House, will allow for more community outreach. Currently Haven of Hope Counseling offers individual and family counseling. All of the counselors have been trained in EMDR which is very effective for various trauma. Child-Centered Play Therapy is utilized for children age 3 through elementary school.
In addition to regular parenting classes, they have co-parenting classes for parents who do not live in the same home. Haven of Hope Counseling also offers help with grief issues, addiction issues and much more. They can screen for depression and suicidal thinking for both minors and adults. In fact, they can accommodate most mental health needs with their 3 Masters level counselors in addition to the work of Mrs. Quintero. The other counselors are Samanthia Curtis, Carrie Farmer, and Elisa Allen. All the staff at the Haven are deeply grateful for the community support during the move including Haven volunteers, youth groups, sporting teams, drug court participants and local churches.
Haven of Hope of DeKalb County is led by Board of Directors Thomas Groom, John Quintero, Sandy Harney, Brenda Hooper, Michael Carpenter, and Brenda Prichard. Everyone connected with the Haven invites the public to their open house scheduled for Friday, May 6th from 1 to 6pm. In the meantime, if you feel that they may be of assistance to you or your family, just stop by 301 West Main, Smithville or call 615-597-4673. Rita Bell or Susan Gray will be glad to answer some basic questions about the Haven and schedule you an appointment with one of the professional counselors
Pictured l-r:
Rita Bell, Susan Gray, Isaac Gray, Kay Quintero, John Quintero, Carrie Farmer, County Mayor Tim Stribling, Chamber President Kathy Hendrixson, Chamber Director Suzanne Williams, and Samantha Curtis

The Sheriff’s Department nabs another fugitive from justice during a traffic stop.
51 year old Gregory Scott Larue of Clarkrange is charged with being a fugitive from justice. His bond is $50,000 and he will be in court April 7.
Sheriff Patrick Ray said that on Friday, March 20 Larue was stopped for a traffic violation by the Tennessee Highway Patrol. It was discovered through the National Criminal Information Center (NCIC) that Larue has warrants against him from Catoosa, Georgia. Authorities there were contacted and said they would seek extradition of Larue on the outstanding warrants.
36 year old Rebecca Jade Andrews of Cookeville Highway, Smithville is charged with domestic assault and resisting arrest. Her bond is $6,500 and she will be in court April 14.
Sheriff Ray said that on Saturday, April 2 a deputy responded to a physical domestic call at a residence on Cookeville Highway. Upon arrival the officer spoke with a man who said that his wife had assaulted him with a closed fist to his left eye causing him to fall. Andrews was determined to have been the primary aggressor during the incident. While she was being placed in custody Andrews pulled away from the arresting officer.
35 year old Samer Abdalla of Morgan Drive, Smithville is cited for violation of the light law, violation of financial responsibility, driving on a revoked license, and possession of drug paraphernalia. He will make a court appearance on April 14.
Sheriff Ray said that on Wednesday, March 30 a Sheriff’s Department Detective pulled over Abdalla on Morgan Drive in a 1998 Cadillac. He was stopped for a brake light violation. Abdalla could not provide proof of insurance. A computer check revealed that his driver license were revoked for failure to pay fines in Wilson County in 2013. A search of his vehicle revealed in the passenger side door a spoon containing a white powdery substance.
27 year old Bruce Carlen Cantrell of Bobby Hayes Road, Dowelltown is cited for simple possession of a controlled substance and simple possession of drug paraphernalia. He will be in court April 7.
Sheriff Ray said that on Thursday, March 31 a deputy arrested Cantrell on active warrants. After being placed under arrest, Cantrell was asked if he had anything in his pockets. Cantrell replied that he only had his wallet. But a syringe was found in his right front pocket. Inside his front left jacket pocket was a package believed to contain a 15 milligram oxycodone pill.
51 year old Bobby Duggin of Dale Ridge Road, Dowelltown is cited for driving on a suspended license, violation of the light law, and simple possession of a schedule II drug. He will make a court appearance on April 21.
Sheriff Ray said that on Thursday, March 31 a deputy was patrolling Highway 70 west when he spotted a small white two door car with a head light out. The officer stopped the vehicle and spoke with the driver, Duggin. A computer check revealed that his license were suspended. He was also in possession of a schedule II drug (Hydrodocodone).

The DeKalb Prevention Coalition (DPC) and DeKalb Community Advisory Board (CAB) are hosting “A Day at the Park” on April 23 from 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. at Greenbrook Park in Smithville. The day is designed to be a Child Abuse Prevention and Foster Family Recruitment Event. It is a free event for families and individuals designed to educate the community about child abuse prevention and to also provide families with information about becoming Foster Parents. Food, games and activities will be available for children and speakers and vendors will be at the park. The CAB’s mission is to identify, utilize and create resources to help families and the community as a whole. While the DPC works to promote a safe, healthy and productive environment that prevents destructive opportunities among the youth and adults of our community. The DPC and CAB meet together the last Tuesday of each month at 12:00pm in the DeKalb County courthouse basement.
April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month. This month and throughout the year, the DeKalb Prevention Coalition and DeKalb Community Advisory Board encourage all individuals and organizations to play a role in making DeKalb County a better place for children and families. By ensuring that parents have the knowledge, skills, and resources they need to care for their children, we can help prevent child abuse and neglect by making meaningful connections with children, youth and families in our communities.
Research shows that protective factors are present in healthy families. Promoting these factors is among the most effective ways to reduce the risk of child abuse and neglect. They are:
•Nurturing and attachment
•Knowledge of parenting and of child and youth development
• Parental resilience
•Social connections
• Concrete supports for parents
• Social and emotional competence of children
“April is a time to celebrate the important role that communities play in protecting children and strengthening families,” said Norene Puckett CAB Vice-President. “Everyone’s participation is critical. Focusing on ways to connect with families is the best thing our community can do to strengthen families and prevent child abuse and neglect.”
In support of these efforts, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Children’s Bureau, Office on Child Abuse and Neglect, its Child Welfare Information Gateway, the FRIENDS National Center for Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention and over 30 National Prevention Partners have created 2016 Prevention Resource Guide: Building Community, Building Hope. The resource guide, designed for service providers who work throughout the community to strengthen families, is available online at https://childwelfare.gov/topics/preventing/preventionmonth/resource-guide/
For more information about child abuse prevention programs and activities during the month of April and throughout the year, contact Norene Puckett 615-215-8690 or norene.drugcourt@gmail.com

He caught it on April Fools’ Day, but Sasa Krezic has a fish tale that has been verified and placed in the record books by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. It is no joke!
A new northern brook trout state record was on the Caney Fork River near Smithville by Krezic, a resident of Nashville. Will Collier, a TWRA fish biologist, verified the record weight at 4 lbs., 12 oz.
The old state record was set in 1973 by Jerry Wells while fishing the Hiwassee River near Chattanooga. It weighed 3 lbs., 14 oz. and stood the test of time over 43 years and during millions of fishing trips.
Krezić has fished the Caney Fork River near Smithville for many years, specifically for trout. One of his favorite holes seemed busier than normal when he arrived to the Caney today, so he moved to a more open space, baited his line with a live minnow, and on his first cast caught the record and a great April 1 story to tell the rest of his life.
Krezić assumed the fish was a brown trout while fighting it because brown and brook trout are similar in color, but brown trout get much larger. After reeling it in and giving it a closer look, he recognized it might be more special than he already thought.
Still, he wanted to get a second opinion and discussed it with a nearby angler. After seeing the size of the fish, the angler suggested Krezić contact TWRA.
Dekalb County Wildlife Officer Tony Cross received Krezic’s call.
“I expected to see a brown trout and was surprised when I arrived,” said Cross, who in turn telephoned Collier per state protocol that requires a TWRA biologists verify the catch.
The fish was weighed on certified scale at nearby Big Rock Market. “This is a once in a career event,” stated Will Collier. “We were thrilled to be part of it, and we’re happy for Mr. Krezić. It is great to see successful anglers and even better to see a new state record.”
Northern strain brook trout have been stocked on the Caney Fork River since 2008. The northern strain grows much larger than the southern strain brook trout, which resides only in cold headwater streams at high elevations. Brook trout are Tennessee’s only native trout. For more information on brook trout or state records, visit www.tnwildlife.org and search under the “For Anglers” menu.

One man was airlifted after a motorcycle crash Sunday on Four Seasons Road near the intersection of Hooper Road.
Trooper Chris Delong of the Tennessee Highway Patrol told WJLE that 35 year old Noe Roberto was traveling in the direction of Four Seasons on a 1990 Yamaha FZ1 when he went off the right side of the road and hit a tree.
Roberto was treated by DeKalb EMS and flown from the scene by helicopter ambulance to Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga.
Members of the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department and DeKalb County Volunteer Fire Department were also there.
Meanwhile, 55 year old Mark England of Smithville was injured in a separate motorcycle crash Sunday afternoon on Highway 70 east near the Smithville Water Treatment Plant.
Trooper T.J. Withers of the Tennessee Highay Patrol told WJLE that England was traveling east on a 1997 Honda motorcycle when he failed to negotiate a curve and wrecked.
He was taken by DeKalb EMS to the hospital for treatment. The DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department was also on the scene.

The Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development (TDLWD) announced Thursday the HiSet product from Educational Testing Service will become the only high school equivalency test given in the state.
Prior to April 1, 2016, adult learners in Tennessee had the option to choose between the HiSet test and the GED Testing Service product.
Beginning, April 1, 2016, new test takers will no longer be able to sign up for the GED test. As of that date HiSet will be the sole provider of high school equivalency testing in Tennessee.
There are currently 132 students, in 95 counties, who have taken at least one module of the GED test, but have not completed it. Those students will continue to have access to the remaining modules of the GED test through June 30, 2016.
Effective July 1, 2016, HiSet will be the only test available to students in Tennessee who wish to obtain their high school equivalency diploma.
The Adult Education Division of the TDLWD is working with Educational Testing Service to develop a new Tennessee Adult Education curriculum. This joint venture will create the first of its kind curriculum in the nation. The change to HiSet testing will ensure the new curriculum will be aligned with the test students take to earn the high school equivalency diploma.
The HiSet test will provide other benefits to adult learners in Tennessee. The cost of the HiSet test is $75, compared to the $120 fee to take the GED test. HiSet is also more convenient for students, it offers the option of on-line testing, as well as a standard paper test.

With the qualifying deadline fast approaching, there are still positions for which no petition has been issued or no petition has been returned for two August city elections.
As of noon Friday, no petition had been issued for one of two Alderman seats in Dowelltown, an issued petition for Mayor had not been returned, and petitions for two Aldermen positions in Liberty had yet to be returned, according to Dennis Stanley, Administrator of Elections. The qualifying deadline for all races in August is NOON Thursday (April 7).
At last report, only William A. Davis had returned a petition for Alderman in Dowelltown with another alderman seat and the mayor’s seat up for election.
In Liberty, Dwayne Blair and Todd Dodd have returned petitions with another 4-year alderman seat and a seat of one year to fill an unexpired term up for election.
In Smithville, three alderman seats are up for grabs in August and 5 petitions have been returned with two outstanding. Those who have returned petitions are Richard Steinbach, Ronald Dale Stanley, and incumbents Shawn Jacobs, Josh Miller and Danny Washer.
In the August 4 DeKalb County General Election, all seats up for grabs have a candidate, including the recently created vacancy on the county commission.
Petitions returned or candidates chosen by party conventions are as follows:
1st District County Commission—Thomas Chandler, Republican and Julie Williams Young, Democrat
4th District School Board—Kate Miller
5th District School Board—W.J. (Dub) Evins, Kevin Hale and Barry Mabe
6th District School Board—Doug Stephens.
Other candidates chosen in the March 1 Democratic Primary or by party convention are:
Scott Cantrell, Assessor of Property, Democrat; Shannon Cantrell, Assessor of Property, Republican
Constable 1st district—Lee Plummer, Republican and Jason Taylor, Democrat
Constable 2nd District—Thomas Theriaque, Republican
Constable 3rd District—Travis Bryant; Democrat
Constable 4th District—Paul Cantrell, Democrat
Constable 5th District—Mark Milam, Democrat
Constable 6th district—Carl Lee Webb, Democrat
Constable 7th district—Johnny King, Democrat
Meanwhile, the picture is coming in focus on the state level as petitions are being filed for State House 40 and 46.
In House District 40 petitions have been filed by incumbent Terry Lynn Weaver, Republican and Democrat Gayla Colvert Hendrix. In House District 46 petitions have been filed by incumbent Mark Pody, Republican; Jim Gibbs, Republican; and Amelia Hipps, Democrat.
Again, the qualifying deadline is NOON Thursday.

Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and Tennessee Department of Transportation Commissioner John Schroer today released TDOT’s annual three year transportation program (2017-19), featuring approximately $2 billion in infrastructure investments for 79 individual project phases in 42 counties including DeKalb, as well as 15 statewide programs.
Among the projects in Region 2 is the widening of Highway 56 from south of State Route 288 near Magness Road to East Bryant Street in Smithville (4.5 miles). Budgeted for construction in Fiscal Year 2017.
The Warren-DeKalb Highway 56 project from south of the Warren County line to near Magness Road is scheduled for a construction letting this summer. It was scheduled for the June 24 letting but may shift to the August 19 letting, according to TDOT.
The three-year program (2017-19) continues the state’s focus on providing a high quality state transportation network that is safe and reliable and supports Tennessee’s economic development efforts. New federal transportation funding through the FAST Act federal legislation includes a roughly two percent increase for FY 2017 over FY 2016’s funding. The FAST Act also provides some one-time flexibility that allows TDOT to tap into an additional $147 million in federal money.
These increases combined with the $100 million repayment to the highway fund in the Haslam administration’s proposed FY 16-17 budget will give the department a somewhat larger building program in the upcoming fiscal year – an estimated $965 million in FY 2017, compared to $660 million in FY 2016.
Despite the increase in revenue for FY 2017, the department still has a multi-billion dollar backlog of unfunded highway and bridge projects that have been approved by the General Assembly, but lack available funding to move forward.
“This program reflects our commitment to increasing safety and economic development opportunities, while also remaining debt free on our roads, and these one-time funding increases will allow TDOT to move forward with nearly a billion dollars in much needed road projects in communities across the state,” Haslam said.
In addition to the 2017 budgeted program, partial plans for 2018 and 2019 are included, along with funding for 15 transportation programs including Rockfall Mitigation, Spot Safety Improvement, and the statewide HELP Program. The program also provides funding for transit agencies in all 95 counties, as well as Metropolitan and Rural Planning Organizations.
Please see the attached list of highlighted projects in each of TDOT’s four regions. To view a complete list of projects and programs funded through the 2017-2019 three-year multimodal program, visit http://www.tn.gov/assets/entities/tdot/attachments/FY_17-19_3_year_progr…. For more information about transportation funding, please visit https://www.tdot.tn.gov/ProjectNeeds/.

The County Commission Monday night named Mason Carter to fill the remaining two year unexpired term of Elmer Ellis, Jr. on the DeKalb County Emergency Communications District (911) Board of Directors.
Ellis resigned last month.
Carter also serves as a 1st district county commissioner.
The appointment was made upon the recommendation of the DeKalb County ECD Board. County Mayor Tim Stribling read the letter of recommendation Monday night sent to the county commission by Local ECD Director Bradley Mullinax on behalf of the 911 Board.
“During the March meeting of the DeKalb 911 ECD Board of Directors discussion was made of the appointment of a board member to the 911 board to serve in the position recently vacated by Elmer Ellis. The board unanimously recommended Mason Carter from the DeKalb County Commission to serve in this position to fill the unexpired term. We feel his background and experience will be invaluable to the success of our organization,” Mullinax wrote
Carter will serve out the existing four year term of Mr. Ellis ending August 31, 2018.