Smithville Fiddlers’ Jamboree announces Noah Goebel will be performing at the Grand Ole Opry

May 21, 2024
By:

Noah Goebel, a 14-year-old fiddler from Elkton, Kentucky, will be representing the Smithville Fiddlers’ Jamboree at the Grand Ole Opry to play a lively ‘fiddle tune’ for the Opry Square Dancers. Noah will be performing this Saturday, May 25th, 2024. The Opry has partnered with the Smithville Jamboree since 2022 to honor the tradition and talent of country music fiddlers.

Noah has secured the Grand Champion Fiddling Title at the Smithville Fiddlers Jamboree and Crafts Festival for the second consecutive year. Notably, he also won the Junior Fiddling contest. In the showdown, he outperformed Senior Fiddling Champion Sarah Harris of Rockvale, earning the Berry C. Williams Memorial Award. As the 2023 Grand Fiddle Off Champion, the Grand Ole Opry once again invited Noah.

The Smithville Jamboree thanks Dan Rogers and the Grand Ole Opry for promoting the youth from our festival. The 53rd Annual Smithville Fiddlers Jamboree and & Crafts Festival will be held July 5th-6th, 2024. For more information, visit smithvillejamboree.com.

May 21, 2024
By:

Donny Green, County Executive Director of the DeKalb-Cannon County Farm Service Agency (FSA), today announced that DeKalb County has been approved to accept applications for the Emergency Conservation Program (ECP) to address agricultural damages resulting from the May 6 EF-1 tornado and high winds in specific areas of DeKalb County.

The ECP signup will begin June 10 and will continue through July 15, 2024.

The specific damaged areas approved under this signup authorization are the following approved disaster events and general areas in and around the following:

EF-1 Tornado and High Wind Damage (North Central)
Allen Ferry Rd.
North Congress Blvd.

Green says if you are in one of these specific approved areas of DeKalb County and suffered storm related agricultural damage, you should complete an application for ECP cost-share assistance by visiting the DeKalb-Cannon County Farm Service Agency. Approved applicants may receive up to 75% cost-share of approved restoration activity. Limited resource, socially disadvantaged, and beginning farmers and ranchers may receive up to 90% cost-share. If you have already began emergency restoration activities, please make sure you are keeping records of all materials, labor, and other associated expenses.

Eligible practices under this program include: debris removal and fence replacement/restoration.

Damages to residential or farm buildings are not covered under this program. In order to be eligible for
assistance, an onsite inspection by USDA officials must reveal that there is at least a $1,000 of total storm related damage. Cost-share may include all reasonable expenses incurred including: materials, services, labor, equipment, and sales tax. All expenses must be documented and must be limited to restoring conservation structures and all other installations to a similar type and function before the disaster event.

FSA county committees will evaluate applications based on an on-site inspection of the damaged land, taking into consideration the type and extent of damage. An on-site inspection does not guarantee that cost-share funding will be provided.

Farmers who have agricultural damages on cropland or pastureland, and would like to request cost share assistance to remove debris from cropland or pastureland and/or restore fencing for livestock can make application for USDA cost-share assistance during the June 10 through July 15, 2024 signup period by visiting the DeKalb-Cannon County Farm Service Agency office in Smithville. You may also call 615-597-8225, Ext. 2 for more information.

USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender. To file a complaint of discrimination, write: USDA, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Office of Adjudication, 1400 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (866) 632-9992 (Toll-free Customer Service), (800) 877-8339 (Local or Federal relay), (866) 377-8642 (Relay voice users).

May 21, 2024
By: Dwayne Page

After two years, the Smithville Municipal Swimming Pool is about to re-open

Memorial Day, Monday May 27 is the targeted opening day.

According to manager Jeania Cawthorn, the pool will be open this year an hour earlier weekdays than in the past. The new hours are Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. and Sunday from 1-5 p.m.

This year’s admission is $5.00 per person but children aged 4 and younger will get in free. Groups can also book pool parties

Report Card Day is set for Friday, May 31.

“Every child of school age who lives in DeKalb County will be admitted to the pool free on Friday, May 31. Youngsters aged 13 and younger must have supervision. For those not familiar with the meaning of Report Card Day, it’s a free swim day for kids but they do not have to bring their report card or any form of identification. The pool capacity inside the gate is 267,” she said.

The pool was closed last summer due to the lack of lifeguards and although the pool is not overrun with lifeguards this year, there are enough to open and operate.

“When the city raised the wages for lifeguards to $15 per hour that caught a lot of attention,” said Cawthorn. “We started off the summer with 23 lifeguards signed up but are already down to 17 and three of them are still taking their certification classes. If they don’t pass, we’re down to 14 but as long as we have at least 8 lifeguards a day we can operate. Our shifts are 4-5 hours a day and we use 4 lifeguards per shift. That’s why we need 8 lifeguards per day. I want to thank the lifeguards who have stepped up this year and for the extreme training they have done. They work hard,” Cawthorn said.

“Once our lifeguards get their training we begin training as a group. We have some lifeguards from last year. Some certified in Cookeville, Murfreesboro, and McMinnville but we all come together as a team so we know the needs of each other and can put our emergency action plan in place. They started training in the water here at the pool Monday. As we finish up with the chemicals daily, the lifeguards train in order to be ready by next Monday when we open,” said Cawthorn.

Over the winter, the city allocated $100,000 for repairs and rehabilitation of the pool. A Cut Above Outdoors, LLC in Cookeville was contracted by the city to do the repairs for $95,700.

Cawthorn said the pool is much improved and looks great.

“They have added new tile all the way around. It was an old busted up white but now its shiny new blue all the way around. We had some concrete not in very good shape. They took that out and replaced it. New lights have been installed all the way around. They look neat at night. The whole outside of the pool has been resurfaced, painted, and cleaned up. The lifeguards’ chairs have also been redone with a fresh coat of paint,” said Cawthorn.

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