Smithville Has New Airport Manager

July 3, 2023
By: Dwayne Page

The City of Smithville has a new airport manager.

Chelsea H. Jones has been hired to succeed Katelyn Sanders who recently left for another career move.

Mayor Josh Miller made the announcement during a special meeting of the mayor and aldermen last Monday, June 26.

Jones, a resident of Murfreesboro, has an education background in aviation. She earned her bachelor’s degree B.S. in Aerospace Administration in the fall of 2018 and a Master of Science M.S. in Aviation Safety and Security in the fall of 2020. Prior to college, Jones attended Central Magnet School in Murfreesboro where she graduated with Honors in 2014.

“Aviation management is something I would love to continue to pursue,” wrote Jones in her resume. “I have dedicated the last three years of my life towards furthering the education of future aviation personnel. The prospect of stepping back from the education field into the industry itself and into a position that better suits my degrees is very exciting,” Jones contined.

“With my bachelor’s degree in airline administration and a master’s degree in aviation safety and security, I am very comfortable with managerial and instructing roles. This characteristic has been further enhanced by my time as the administrator for MTSU’s NASA Focus Lab, in which I ran the airline simulation and oversaw the students, teachers’ assistants, and consultants that were part of the team I oversaw. I am confident in myself for my ability to branch out into a fulltime industry position, and the Smithville Municipal Airport would be a wonderful opportunity. My passion for aviation is “plane” to see and I would very much love to further my knowledge, career, and experience by formally joining the workforce and stepping into a role in which I believe I can flourish. I have worked part time under John Black, Executive Director of Smyrna Airport, for the past 2 years and with his tutelage believe the information he has passed along would be very applicable towards the running and day to day safe operations of Smithville’s airport,” wrote Jones.

Meanwhile, Mayor Miller and Alderman Shawn Jacobs commended members of the city’s airport advisory board for their leadership and presented two of them, Chairman Roth Terrell and member Josh Williams plaques in appreciation for their service.

“They have done an outstanding job while we have been down an airport manager,” said Mayor Miller. “Anytime someone volunteers a lot of their time and not getting paid for it, I think that speaks in great volume. I wanted to recognize them at tonight’s meeting,” he said.

Alderman Jacobs, who is also a member of the airport board, presented the plaques to Terrell and Williams which read” For your sincere and loyal dedication shown to the Smithville Airport. Rejuvenated and rekindled are we for knowing and working with you. Thank you for everything you have done”.

In other business, the aldermen awarded a paving bid to Copeland Paving of Cookeville at the price of $114 per ton. Two other companies, Rogers Group and Tinsley Asphalt of Tullahoma had also submitted bids. Much of the paving work will be done on West Main Street.

The aldermen also adopted an ordinance on first reading to establish $25,000 as the maximum amount for purchases without public advertisement and competitive bidding.

According to the ordinance, the City of Smithville is subject to the provisions of the “Municipal Purchasing Laws of 1983” and this law permits municipalities to increase the dollar amount of purchases requiring public advertisement and competitive bidding. The governing body of the city has determined that it is in the best interest of the city to increase the amount from the current level of $10,000 to $25,000.

With passage of the ordinance, public advertisement and competitive bidding shall be required for the purchase of all goods and services exceeding an amount of $25,000 except for those purchases specifically exempted from advertisement and bidding by the Municipal Purchasing Act of 1983.

Three written quotations are required whenever possible for purchases costing less than the $25,000 bid threshold adopted for competitive bidding and public advertisement, but more than 40% of the threshold amount.

July 3, 2023
By: Dwayne Page

The Grand Champion Fiddle Off brought to a close the 52nd annual Smithville Fiddlers Jamboree and Crafts Festival Sunday morning at 1:30 a.m.

View the fiddle off (here) between Junior Fiddler Noah Goebel of Elkton, Kentucky and Senior Fiddler Sarah Harris of Rockvale. Goebel won the fiddle off and received the Berry C. Williams Memorial Award for being the Grand Champion fiddler of the festival.

July 2, 2023
By: Dwayne Page

Make it two!

For the second year in a row, Noah Goebel has claimed the Grand Champion Fiddling Title at the Smithville Fiddlers Jamboree and Crafts Festival.

The 14-year-old Elkton, Kentucky resident, who also won the Junior Fiddling contest here, beat out the Senior Fiddling Champion Sarah Harris of Rockvale in the showdown for the Berry C. Williams Memorial Award early Sunday morning. Harris is a two-time Jamboree Grand Fiddling champion from several years ago.

As the 2023 Grand Fiddle Off Champion, Goebel will again be invited by the Grand Ole Opry to play a ‘fiddle tune’ for the Opry square dancers’ LIVE performance during a selected show as he did last year. The Opry has partnered with the Smithville Jamboree since 2022 to offer this exciting opportunity to the fiddle champion, as a way to honor the tradition and talent of country music fiddlers.

Only two years ago, Goebel competed as a child in the Fiddlers Jamboree’s National Championship for Country Musician Beginners and won the Beginners Fiddling Title. He is the youngest fiddler to have ever claimed the Jamboree’s Grand Champion award and now he has done it twice.

This is the 12th year in a row (not counting the 2020 virtual jamboree) that a Junior Fiddler has beaten the Senior Fiddler for the Grand Championship of the Festival.

Kim Luton, President and Coordinator of the Fiddlers Jamboree presented the award to Goebel at the conclusion of the festival which ended at 1:30 a.m. Sunday morning.

By winning the Junior fiddling contest, Goebel edged out two other competitors for a right to advance to the fiddle-off.

Unlike Friday night, when all the finals of the Jamboree competitions were cancelled due to stormy weather, the Saturday session of the festival was completed as scheduled except for a rain delay of more than three hours during the afternoon which caused the program to go into the wee hours of Sunday morning.

Winners in the Saturday session of the Fiddler’s Jamboree are as follows:

Junior Old-Time Appalachian Flatfoot Dance (Ages up to 39): First Place- Jamie Hash of Walland; Second Place- Elizabeth Clark of Springfield; and Third Place Colleena Ralston of Lebanon

Senior Old-Time Appalachian Flatfoot Dance (Ages 40 & Over): First Place- Danny Campbell of Murfreesboro ; Second Place- Tammy Scruggs of Lebanon; and Third Place-Anthony Harrell of Mount Juliet

Senior Buck Dancing (Ages 40 & Over): First Place-Tammy Scruggs of Lebanon;  Second Place-Tim Hartman of Lyles; and Third Place- Danny Campbell of Murfreesboro

Senior Clogging (Ages 40 & Over): First Place-Anthony Harrell of Mount Juliet; Second Place-Jason Wade of Paris, Tennessee); and Third Place- Tammy Scruggs of Lebanon

Duo Clogging (NEW CATEGORY): First Place-Makayla Foster and Jamie Hash of Cookeville; Second Place- Elizabeth Clark and Kamry Patterson of Springfield; and Third Place-Ralston-Fowlkes of Lebanon

Bluegrass Banjo: First Place-Alex Davis of Manchester; Second Place- Axel Rico of Smithville; and Third Place-Cody Harvey of Chattanooga

Junior Fiddlers (Ages 13-39): First Place-Noah Goebel of Elkton, Kentucky; Second Place- Tyler Andal of Nashville; and Third Place-Joe Overton of Smithville

Flat Top Guitar: First Place- Rob Pearcy of Smyrna; Second Place-Noah Goebel of Elkton, Kentucky; and Third Place-Ty McMeans of Athens, Alabama

Contest Fiddle (Neil Dudney Memorial Award): First Place- Noah Goebel of Elkton, Kentucky; Second Place-Tyler Andal of Nashville; and Third Place- Sarah Harris of Rockvale. The Neil Dudney Award was presented to Goebel by Dudney’s daughter Janet England, two of his grandchildren, Ethan and Brandon Shaw, and great grandson Carson Shaw. Dudney, who passed away in October, 2018 served as President and Coordinator of the Fiddlers Jamboree for 16 years until he stepped down in 2008.

Bluegrass Band: First Place- Clearview of Hilham; Second Place-Blue Cove Mountain Grass of Chattanooga; and Third Place- First Southern Flavor of Salem Virginia

Senior Fiddlers (Ages 40 & Over): First Place- Sarah Harris of Rockvale; Second Place-Rob Pearcy of Smyrna. NO THIRD PLACE

Square Dancing: First Place-Jackson Hollow of Franklin; Second Place- Tennessee Dance Alliance of Mount Juliet; and Third Place- Step Aside of Dickson

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