Meet DeKalb County’s New Veterans Service Officer Bill Rutherford

July 7, 2021
By: Dwayne Page

DeKalb County has a new Veterans Service Officer.

Bill Rutherford was recently named to the position succeeding longtime Veterans Service Officer Paul Cantrell who passed away last month.

The Veterans Service Office is located on the first floor of the DeKalb County Courthouse and is open Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. and although not required appointments are encouraged. The phone number is 615-597-3003.

“I’m excited about becoming the new Veterans Service Officer for DeKalb County and thrilled to be able to make a difference. I am here as an advocate for veterans to aide, assist, and fill out forms” said Rutherford.

DeKalb County has almost 1,500 military veterans and many of them , if not all, will need help when the time comes to apply for benefits and entitlements. Rutherford can not only file claims but help in gathering information to support them and track the claims through the system free of charge.

It is important that you use a Veteran Service Officer because, according to Rutherford, he can help you avoid the delays that missing paperwork or improperly filled out claims can cause.

“I can help find records including your DD214. That is a very important form which provides an in-depth look at your military career and character of service. I can also do compensation claims, pension claims and can assist you in getting into a Tennessee Veterans Nursing Home. Although it is a separate entity I can also help you with access to the VA Hospital System, providing contacts and ways of helping get you in the right direction. I can further help with burial needs. An important thing happening in the next few years is there will be a new veterans cemetery in White County and I expect a lot of veterans may want to be buried close to home at that veterans cemetery. It will be a state cemetery,” said Rutherford.

To provide faster and better service, the local Veterans Service Office can now process claims online.

“The state came in and loaded the (computer) programs and got us up and running so the DeKalb County Office is now all electronic. Its digital so when you come into the office and I file a claim its going in that day and once its loaded up it will come back and verify. That’s important because on an intent to file it puts a place marker and its good for one year so as we work and develop the claim, if you are awarded the claim, it will go back to the date that you initially came in and we filed intent for any back compensation pay. I have access to the VA system to look and see if you are receiving compensation or if you have ever filed a claim. I can see what codes were assigned to your disability and your claim, percentages, and assist if you are asking for an increase in the compensation rate or if you are filing a new claim,” he said.

Rutherford and his wife Nancy reside in DeKalb County and they have six children and sixteen grandchildren. He is retired with 40 years of service for UPS. Rutherford is also a retired military man having served six years in the Marine Corps and fourteen years with the Tennessee National Guard. He has a bachelor’s degree in management/leadership.

To become accredited as a Veterans Service Officer, Rutherford completed 80 hours of accreditation classes and participates in a monthly continuing education program to keep up to date.

Rutherford invites all veterans to stop by to see him on Tuesdays and Thursdays at the courthouse office or call if you have questions.

“I do go out to veterans homes and am called away from the office sometimes but I try to be here as much as I can on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Although each county has a Veterans Service Officer, I can assist you no matter where you are from. If you moved here from somewhere else I can still assist you. I want every veteran to feel welcome to come in,” said Rutherford.

July 6, 2021
By: Dwayne Page

The Self-Service Kiosk in the DeKalb County Clerk’s Office is a popular service for conducting driver license business and the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security has taken notice of it.

“I would like to thank you and your staff for continuing to host the Department’s Self-Service Kiosk”, said Michael Hogan in a letter to County Clerk James L. (Jimmy) Poss last week. Hogan is Director of Services for the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security.

“For the citizens of DeKalb County, the kiosk is a valuable resource for conducting driver license business in the absence of a full-service center”, wrote Hogan.

“Since 2012, when the kiosk was installed, the usage rates have continued to increase each year. For the past two years, the DeKalb County self-service kiosk has ranked number one in the number of people using the kiosk with a county population of less than 30,000”.

“As the department continues to increase the services allowed on the kiosk, you should expect to see the usage rate continue to increase, which means less travel time for the citizens of DeKalb County needing to conduct driver license business,” Hogan continued.

“The following is a breakdown of the county’s activity for the past five years. As you can see, the usage rate continued to climb, the exception was 2020, due to COVID 19, which decreased all activity in the Driver Services Division”.

Calendar Year 2017: Kiosk Usage Rate- 2,876

Calendar Year 2018: Kiosk Usage Rate- 3,495

Calendar Year 2019: Kiosk Usage Rate- 3,340

Calendar Year 2020: Kiosk Usage Rate-2,342

Calendar Year 2021: Kiosk Usage Rate- 376 from January 1 to May 1.

The statistics on the usage of the kiosk from 2012 to 2015 were as follows:

2012- 26 transactions

2013- 457

2014-502

2015-1,003

The kiosk was provided to the County Clerk’s Office in 2012 by the Driver Services Division of the Tennessee Department of Safety. DeKalb County was one of only a select few counties to receive a kiosk. For the first couple of years the kiosk was located down the hall from the county clerk’s office at the county complex. But in the fall of 2014 after he took office, Poss relocated the kiosk to inside his office and the usage doubled.

Citizens may renew or replace an existing driver’s license or state identification card and pay for the transaction with a credit or debit card at the kiosk.

The technology takes the citizen’s photograph for use on the driver license. As a security measure, the kiosk performs facial verification with the image on record. A citizen leaves the kiosk with a paper interim document for use until the secure driver’s license or ID card is received. The interim license is valid for 20 days. The secure driver’s license or ID card is mailed to the applicant’s home within five to seven business days.

County Clerk Poss said he is happy to provide personal assistance to customers who want to use the kiosk or for other services they may need.

July 6, 2021
By: Dwayne Page

The DeKalb County School Nutrition Department is offering a free summer drive through breakfast and lunch program July 13 & 20 at DCHS

The meals will be provided to all children ages 18 and younger From 10 a.m. until noon without charge at DeKalb County High School in front of the bus ramp.

Parents and students will be able to drive through and pick up a week’s worth of breakfast and lunch meals for the children to take home for free!

For more information call 615-215-2104.

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