“We’re Putting the Band Back Together”

July 12, 2021
By: Bill Conger

Friday night lights were missing something last year when the DeKalb County High School Tigers ran out onto the football field. Players hunkered down on the gridiron while spirited cheerleaders rooted them on and fans yelled encouragement in the stands. But the live music was silenced when COVID restrictions prevented the Fighting Tiger Band from playing.

“With the year we had last year, I wanted to make it fun,” new Band Director Don Whitt said of the marching show planned for this season. “We didn’t get to go do [hardly] anything last year. We got to do 3 home games. We didn’t get to do any away games. We didn’t get to do any competitions. We got to do 3 Christmas parades and we got an award for one of the Christmas parades. So, we were an award-winning marching band,” Whitt adds, laughing.

Whitt and former Band Director Tracy Luna brainstormed about a show theme that would inject excitement into the halftime entertainment.

“Tracy and I are both jazz people,” Whitt said. “We came from the University of North Alabama, and they have a predominantly jazz school. We asked, ‘What could we do to tell a story?’”

Inspiration struck when the two remembered the classic movie quote—“We’re getting the band back together.”— from Jim Belushi’s character, Joliet Jake Blues, in The Blues Brothers.

“I said we’ve got to get the band back together,” Whitt said at the band room during a break from Percussion Camp last week. “It’s about time that they get to do their thing.”

Preparations for the marching show began even before the two weeks of band camp kicked off July 12.

“You assess from what you did the previous year,” Whitt explains. “I think this is where I’d like to go and then I’d like to take them a little further next year.”

That measuring stick was hampered somewhat by the limited performances last school year.

“Since this is COVID season, it’s a gamble,” Whitt said.

“You’re looking at the worst players to the best players. What does a majority of the group play well? The majority of the group are your leaders basically, and the rest follow.”

Whitt hired Jon Oliver, a drill writer and the band director at Upperman High School, to help him design a show based on the band’s strengths and weaknesses while making it entertaining. First, the band director had to face the added challenge of teaching marching fundamentals.

“The majority of the band has never marched before. The first week of band camp is mainly geared for learning how to march, taking baby steps. They’ll have the older ones, seniors or section leaders, work with them to show them how to march.”

A team of mainly Tennessee Tech music education majors teach students in the areas of high brass, low brass, and woodwinds. The drum line began work prior to band camp with the guidance of Erica Birmingham, a recent Belmont University music graduate and former DCHS band member.

“We almost combine a year’s worth of teaching within two weeks that I can’t do on my own. They get a phenomenal amount of teaching. It’s worth the money you spend for those people.”

“They [students] start with the fundamentals and they progress. They’ll be working on a song a day. Hopefully, within the next two weeks they should have at least 3 to 4 of those songs memorized.”

Ideally, Whitt would like to have the first two of four scheduled songs with drill show in place by the end of band camp. While improving that segment of the performance, band students will work on the remaining show tunes leading up to the band’s first Friday night action on August 20 in Warren County. The band will debut its new show at the first home game of the season against Smith County on August 27.

July 10, 2021
By: Dwayne Page

The DeKalb County Jail was evacuated Saturday after a homeless man dropped off a suspicious container on the front porch of the sheriff’s department.

The man, 46 year old Jimmy Mason Page, told a correctional officer that the contents were radioactive. It turns out that the container held a case of roadside reflective warning triangles, which are often used by semi truck drivers during a breakdown on the highway.

Page is charged with filing a false report (bomb threat). His bond is $10,000 and he will make a court appearance July 29.

Sheriff Patrick Ray said the incident began at 11:14 a.m. Saturday when a shirtless white male came to the jail carrying a red box. After he laid the container on the front porch a correctional officer confronted him and asked what he was doing. The man said someone gave him the box and he thought it to be radioactive so he was going to leave it there at the jail. The man then turned and left. Due to the threat the correctional officer started evacuating the jail. All 76 inmates were removed from the building for their safety and taken to the exercise pen behind the jail. After central dispatch (911) was notified a Smithville Police Officer reported that he might know the suspect and found the man who was brought back to the jail and identified as Jimmy Mason Page.

Officers reviewed security video footage at the jail which confirmed that Page was the man who dropped off the container.

Page was charged with filing a false report (making a bomb threat) knowing that the threat was untrue and that it would evoke an emergency response (an evacuation of the jail) and place others in fear of bodily injury.

Sheriff Ray said he wants to thank the Smithville Police and Fire Departments, DeKalb EMS, and the Central Dispatch team for their assistance. City firefighters and officers blocked off the area near the jail. DeKalb EMS set up a staging area close by as a precaution. A device was used to check the suspicious container for radioactivity before it was opened and detected none.

July 10, 2021
By: Dwayne Page

What if you had a fire at your home and nobody came to put it out?

You may not realize it but your county fire department, like many others in cities and counties across the state, is made up entirely of volunteers. These are people who care about their community and have a desire to help their neighbors. But over the years fewer people have stepped up to serve. To keep the department adequately staffed for years to come, DeKalb County needs you!

During the month of July, the DeKalb County Volunteer Fire Department is conducting its 2nd annual recruitment drive and awareness campaign in search of new members.

County Fire Chief Donny Green and Recruitment and Retention Committee Chairman Lieutenant Matt Adcock say the department needs to increase its membership in order to better serve the county. Currently the department operates 12 fire stations across the county staffed by a total of 91 members.

“Last year, during our July Recruitment Month, we successfully recruited 7 new members. Those effects echoed throughout the rest of the year resulting in 20 new members in total. The great success of this event has led us to believe we should make this an annual event,” said Lt. Adcock

What does this recruitment month really do? What is the purpose?

“This event is to strive vigorously in reaching out to the public, making known that we are indeed a volunteer fire department and that we need the citizens of the county to help us serve the community. During this month, we will work diligently in promoting and advertising our department’s staffing needs, and educating our community about the essential services our department provides,” according to Lt. Adcock.

“Now that you know what this event is for, let’s introduce you to our department,” said Chief Green. “We are a county-wide department with 12 stations all around the county. This time last year, we had 61 members in total. We currently have 91 members. That is an increase of 30 members since our July 2020 recruitment month. You can easily see the benefits of this event, and the awareness it produces in the community. We hope that this 2021 year will be even more impressive. DeKalb Fire is responsible for many services within our county. We provide fire protection, vehicle extrication, landing zones, natural disaster response, as well as robust fire prevention/education programs. Our free smoke alarm installation program is also known as one of the best in the state,” Chief Green continued.

The DeKalb County Fire Department’s mission statement is “To professionally protect life and property from fire and other emergencies through effective public education, proactive training programs, and efficient and safe incident responses.”

“Are we suffering from a staffing shortage? The most direct answer is absolutely,” said Lt. Adcock. “We are still in need of volunteers. We are not the only fire department in this struggle. According to the U.S. Fire Administration, 73.6% of fire departments in Tennessee are volunteer as of July 6th, 2021. According to this same source, 70.4% of all the fire departments in the nation are all volunteer. It is always a challenge to find volunteers that can sacrifice some time out of their busy schedules to protect and serve their community”.

According to Lt Adcock, Chief Green explained it best in an interview with WJLE last year stating, “This is not just an issue here but all over the state and country. In 1986, when I started as a volunteer, DeKalb County had more farmers and a lot of them were on the fire department. In many cases, these farmers would be out on a tractor or in a tobacco field and when a fire call came in they would stop working and come to the fire. We also had a large industry here at that time who was really good about letting employees on duty, who were also volunteer firefighters, leave work to answer fire calls. We have lost much of that now. Today, many people are so busy with their jobs or other commitments they don’t have time to volunteer, which is making recruiting more challenging for us as a fire department,” said Chief Green.

You may be asking yourself, “what can I do to make a difference and what are the requirements?”
“First, if you are at least 18 years old and passionate about helping others, then you’re ready. After an application has been completed, our Training Officer, Brian Williams, will get you started by helping you complete some on-line courses in Incident Command Systems, Hazmat Awareness, and our department’s orientation process,” said Lt. Adcock.

“In the first six months, you will complete a 16-hour Introduction to Emergency Services and a 64-hour Recruit Class normally broken up into 4-hour days or nights, approximately twice a week. Our Training Officer will work with you in finding a training schedule to fit your needs. All ages, races, and genders are welcome to our family here at DCFD. We also have a rehabilitation team that is responsible for providing on-scene health support for our firefighters as they perform their duties in extreme conditions. After one year on the department as a firefighter, you can have other opportunities like vehicle extrication technician and wildland firefighter trainings. We are a department with many jobs, many tasks, and many different skill sets. It’s safe to say we have something for everyone,” added Chief Green.

If you are interested in joining, or want to ask questions regarding this amazing opportunity to help your community, it’s as easy as a phone call. Call Chief Donny Green at (615) 464-7176.

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