DeKalb West Cheerleaders attended the Universal Cheerleading Association Cheer Camp, June 7-9. It was a camp packed with rigor and skills with little down time. DWS cheerleaders performed cheers, jumps, motion techniques, chants, and dance for extreme routines. UCA staff evaluated the team members each day. On the final day of camp, all DWS cheerleaders were eligible to try out for the honor of All-American Cheerleader; skills in jumps, dance, motion, and cheer were evaluated by UCA staff. Makayla Cook, Ellie Vaughn, Zoi Hale, Kortnee Skeen, and Faith Tripp were selected as UCA All-Americans. Each All-American selected is eligible to perform with other UCA All-Americans at Disneyland in November. Other individual awards were Makayla Cook-jumps, and Zoi Hale-dance. The “Most Persistent for Perfection” Award went to Alonna Christian and Ellie Vaughn. The squad won the following awards: 1 superior “Gold” – chants and sidelines, 1 superior-extreme routine/dance, and 1 excellent -cheer/builds. The DWS squad also was presented with the “Superior” overall trophy. All DWS cheerleaders participated in an optional service award partnered by UCA and St. Jude; each DWS cheerleader received a service pin for their participation.
DWS Cheerleaders are cheering on the Bulldogs this upcoming year. They started their year cheering at the Back-to-School Celebration, and the DWS PAWS pep rally.
Once again, congratulations to DWS Cheer Alumni. DCHS football and basketball Cheerleaders, Haley Dies, Hannah Evans, Emily Roehner, Breanna Gibson, Mariah Mofield, and Holly Evans, who all were nominated for All-American. Rosa Payne will continue to cheer. She was selected as a Cumberland University Football Cheerleader and Collegiate Competition Cheerleader. Congratulations to all DWS cheerleaders (present and past)!

A total of 95 persons have taken advantage of early voting in the 17th Senatorial District Special Primary election with four days left.
Seventy three have voted in person and there have been 22 absentee voters . A further breakdown shows 53 have voted in the Republican Primary and 42 in the Democratic primary.
Early voting continues through November 2 at the following times: Monday 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., Tuesday 9 a.m. until Noon, Wednesday 9 a.m. until Noon and Thursday 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. All early voting is on the first floor (basement) courtroom of the courthouse.
Two candidates are seeking to fill the remaining months of the unexpired term of former State Senator Mae Beavers, who is now running for Governor.
Mark Pody is unopposed for the Republican nomination. Mary Alice Carfi is unopposed for the Democratic nomination. The primaries will be Tuesday, November 7.
The general election will be December 19

The DeKalb County unemployment rate dropped to 3.7% in September, down from 4.4% in August and well below the 6% rate recorded in September 2016.
The local labor force for September 2017 was 7,790. A total of 7,500 were employed and 290 were without work.
Jobless rates for September among the fourteen counties in the Upper Cumberland region were as follows from highest to lowest:
Jackson:3.7%
DeKalb: 3.7%
Clay: 3.6%
Fentress: 3.6%
Van Buren: 3.4%
Cumberland: 3.3%
Overton: 3.2%
White: 3.2%
Pickett: 3%
Warren: 3%
Putnam: 2.8%
Cannon: 2.7%
Macon: 2.7%
Smith: 2.6%
Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and Department of Labor and Workforce Development Commissioner Burns Phillips announced that in September 2017, for the first time ever, the jobless rate was below 5 percent in every county across the state. This is the second consecutive month rates have declined in each of Tennessee’s 95 counties.
September also marked the fourth consecutive month Tennessee experienced a historic low statewide unemployment rate. At 3 percent, Tennessee has the lowest unemployment in the southeast and the eighth lowest rate in the nation.
“With every county seeing unemployment rates below five percent and with a record statewide unemployment rate, Tennessee’s fiscal strength is clear and the investment in our workforce is paying off,” Haslam said. “Employers know that Tennessee is a place where they can find skilled workers, so they continue to expand and relocate here.”
Williamson County reported Tennessee’s lowest unemployment rate in September at 2.1 percent, down from 2.7 percent in August. Davidson County recorded the second lowest rate at 2.2 percent, falling from 2.7 percent the previous month. Rutherford, Cheatham, Wilson and Sumner Counties all have a September rate of 2.3 percent, down more than 0.5 percent from August.
“Many of the most notable decreases in September took place in counties with the highest unemployment rates, pointing out the economic growth and opportunity in some of Tennessee’s most distressed counties,” Phillips said.
Rhea County continued to have the highest percentage of unemployed workers in Tennessee, but in September its rate fell from 6 percent to 4.9 percent. In January, Rhea County recorded a 10.2 percent unemployment rate. Each of the counties with the highest unemployment rates in the state saw similar decreases in September.
This is the fourth time in 2017 unemployment rates have decreased in all 95 counties. Rates also dropped in every county during February, April and August.
The improved county statistics for September follow the fourth consecutive month Tennessee experienced a record low statewide unemployment rate, which was 3 percent, down 0.3 percent from August. The national unemployment rate also dropped in September to 4.2 percent.
The statewide and national unemployment rates are seasonally adjusted, but the county rates are not. Seasonal adjustment is a statistical technique that eliminates the influences of weather, holidays, opening and closing of schools and other recurring seasonal events from an economic time series.
Additional information about Tennessee’s labor statistics, as well as job search resources and postings, can be found at Jobs4TN.gov.

Applications will be available for pickup for the 22nd Annual Angel Tree Project from Monday, October 30th through Friday, November 3rd.
Spokesperson Laura Stone said that the application turn in date has been set for one day only. “Applications can be picked up October 30th through November 3rd. You will continue to pick up your applications at the Department of Human Services, but the application must be returned in person on Thursday, November 9th at the Smithville First Baptist Church Life Enrichment Center,” she said.
“Completed applications must be returned to the First Baptist Church Life Enrichment Center Building in downtown Smithville (on the corner across from First Baptist) on Thursday, November 9th from 2:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. Applications not returned to the Church LEC Building on November 9th WILL NOT be accepted. There are no exceptions to the requirements of the application process. It is very important that you understand we will only accept applications this one day only,” said Stone.
“Applications can only be picked up at the Department of Human Services on October 30th through November 3rd and can only be returned to the Church LEC Building on November 9th. In addition to bringing the completed application, applicants must provide photo identification of the person applying and social security cards and birth certificates for ALL children listed on the application. We will only be keeping the application; all other documents will be returned to the applicant. If an applicant cannot appear in person, their application can be submitted by a family member as long as all of the required information is presented.” Stone continued.
“Eligible children must live in DeKalb County and be no older than age 12 by December 25, 2017. The Department of Human Services will only be passing out the applications. Nothing will be returned to them and any questions should be directed to Laura Stone at 615-464-7135”. Do not contact anyone at the Department of Human Services or First Baptist Church or anyone other than Laura. Your application will be denied if these directions are not followed. Stone adds that “the Angel Tree has been such a tremendous success in the past and with economic times extremely tough for many in our area, we want this years Angel Tree to be no exception. The Angel Tree helps so many families who are struggling to make ends meet. It is sad to think about, but many of these children would not otherwise have a single present for Christmas. With the economy still struggling, we are expecting demand to be high.”

The DeKalb County Tigers have punched their ticket to the TSSAA Class 4A Playoffs after defeating the Cumberland County Jets 16-8 at Crossville in the last game of the regular season Friday night.
The Tigers (3-7 overall, 1-3 region), who finished 4th in Region 3, will travel to Lewisburg next Friday night to take on Marshall County (7-3 overall, 5-0 region) who finished 1st in Region 4.
(CLICK LINK BELOW TO HEAR TIGER TALK FROM FRIDAY WITH COACH STEVE TRAPP AND TIGER PLAYS NICK MAY, TYLER CANTRELL, AND JESSE SMITH)
http://www.wjle.com/audio/tiger-talk-october-27th
The only score of the first half Friday night came on a 45 yard touchdown pass play from Tiger quarterback Tyler Cantrell to Bradley Miller. Andrew Fuson added the extra point and DeKalb County led 7-0 with 11:49 left in the 2nd period.
The Tigers scored twice in the 3rd period. Andrew Fuson booted a 32 yard field goal to give DeKalb County a 10-0 advantage. Grayson Redmon then caught a touchdown pass from Tyler Cantrell good for 79 yards. The extra point try was no good but DeKalb led 16-0 with 2:08 left in the 3rd period.
After a fumbled punt, the Jets scored on their next possession with 11:44 left in the 4th period on a 27 yard touchdown run by Jacob Kerley. They added 2 more points on the conversion but DeKalb County went on to win 16-8.
WJLE will have LIVE coverage next Friday night, November 3 from Marshall County. Kick-off will be at 7:00 p.m.

State Senate candidate Mary Alice Carfi was in Smithville Thursday night to greet local Democrats and to speak at a potluck dinner held at the high school.
Carfi, a Wilson County attorney, is the lone candidate for the Democratic nomination in the November 7 special primary for the 17th District State Senate seat formerly held by Mae Beavers, who gave it up to run full time for Governor. Carfi will face the Republican candidate, Mark Pody in the December 19 general election. The winner will serve out the remaining months of Beavers’ unexpired term.
Prior to addressing local Democrats Thursday night, Carfi spoke with WJLE about her background, reasons why she chose to seek the office, and issues of which she is concerned. (VIEW VIDEO BELOW)

Carfi grew up in Smith County, the daughter of Don and Phyllis Eckel of Gordonsville. She is the granddaughter of the late Pete and Evelyn Watts, who owned Watts Angus Farm. Pete Watts was a well-known building contractor in Middle Tennessee and owner of Pete Watts Construction.
She has one daughter, Alexia, 9, and is a member of the Carthage United Methodist Church, where she sings in the choir. She and her husband, Jamie, are both members of the Bert Coble Singers in Lebanon. She also serves on the Bert Coble Singers Leadership Team.
Carfi is a member of the Tennessee Bar Association and the 15th Judicial District Bar Association. She is a graduate of Smith County High School and earned her Bachelor of Science degree in criminal justice administration from Middle Tennessee State University. She received her Doctor of Jurisprudence degree from Nashville School of Law.
https://www.maryalicecarfi.com/

The DCHS Tigers will travel to Crossville tonight to face the Cumberland County Jets in the final game of the regular season. But a win for the Tigers would qualify them for the state play-offs starting next week.
It’ll be a region showdown. Both teams have struggled this season. DeKalb County is 2-7 but Cumberland County is 0-9.
“This is the third year we will have played them and they have had a different offense every time. They are on the Wing T now. That is basically what they are doing. They have a big fullback and a real good speedy guy. We’ll have to be ready to gang tackle their big full back and be ready to make sure we have good leverage and angles on their speedy guy. They have a couple of pass concepts that if your eyes are wrong and you’re not paying attention to them then they can look really good. Its really up to us again to make sure we are mentally ready to go for the task at hand,” said Tiger Coach Steve Trapp.
“Defensively, again this is the third year we’ve seen them and its going to be the third different defense they have had. Its basically the same defense that Livingston ran against us. I like what we could potentially be able to do if they stay in what they have been showing. But just because there is a lot of opportunity there doesn’t mean it will be easy. We still have to pass protect. We have to run block and make good decisions with the football and we have to protect the ball. It may be wet. We have some opportunities to do some things but are we going to be consistent at being inconsistent or are we going to click and have this thing rolling?”
WJLE will have LIVE coverage of the football game on AM 1480/FM 101.7 and LIVE streaming at www.wjle.com with the Voice of the Tigers John Pryor and Luke Willoughby.
WJLE’s Pre-Game shows begin with “Coach to Coach” at 5:00 p.m. featuring former UT football coach Phillip Fulmer and former UT assistant coach Doug Matthews with broadcaster Larry Stone talking Tennessee and SEC football.
“Coach to Coach” is followed by “Murphy’s Matchups at 6:00 p.m., a look at Tennessee High School Football from Murphy Fair with commentary on games and coaches interviews.
“Tiger Talk” airs at 6:30 p.m. with the Voice of the Tigers John Pryor interviewing Coach Steve Trapp and Tiger players Nick May, Tyler Cantrell, and Jesse Smith.
The game kicks off at 7:00 p.m.

After 16 months being closed the Veterans Memorial Bridge on South College Street is back open again.
Bridge repairs were completed this week by Mid-State Construction Company, Inc. of Livingston, the contractor for the project.
The bridge had been closed since Monday, June 27, 2016 when a county landfill truck hit it causing major damage. After it was closed, the bridge was hit twice more this year, once by a freightliner car hauler in July and in August by a truck pulling a flatbed trailer loaded with a large asphalt roller.
The project was initially delayed through the bidding process. In the February 10 letting, Mid-State bid $238,600.58 but there were no other bids and TDOT rejected it as too high. TDOT let bids for the project again on Friday, May 12 and Mid-State was the only bidder. In June, the Tennessee Department of Transportation awarded the contract to Mid-State for $222,894.68.