UCGMA established to promote and preserve southern gospel and bluegrass music

May 5, 2022
By: Dwayne Page

An organization has been formed in the Upper Cumberland area to help preserve the heritage of southern gospel and bluegrass music.

Larry Self, President of the Upper Cumberland Gospel Music Association based in Cookeville, said the group wants to create venues for lovers of southern gospel and bluegrass to gather for singings featuring local and regional talent and hopefully to spark an interest in this genre of music among others especially youth.

“We started the Association over three years ago and what we are trying to do is keep old hymns and southern gospel and bluegrass music alive in the Upper Cumberland area. We are not trying to woo anybody away from contemporary music, but we know there are pockets of people in our communities that still like this older type music and we are trying to get them connected to encourage each other,” said Self.

Roger Gaw, member of local gospel group the Joyful Praises and Vice President of the UCGMA, said enthusiasm for these singing events is growing.

“It’s a good thing. It has helped our group venture out more in different areas but it helps the churches involved and the people. We want to connect everyone who loves this kind of music and provide singings for them to hear it. There is nothing wrong with other forms of gospel music. We even do some praise and worship music at our church but some still enjoy southern gospel and bluegrass and we are just trying to keep that alive,” said Gaw.

“What we like to do is go to different churches on maybe a Sunday or Wednesday evening and bring some of our singers to let the public hear what we are promoting and what our Association is about and how it came to be,” Self continued.

“A lot of times singing groups will get discouraged and quit thinking nobody wants to hear their kind of music but we want to give them encouragement to keep on glorifying God in song by having these singing events and we have a good time doing it”.

“We have two singings each month and one of them is the first Friday night of the month at Wilhite Baptist Church in Cookeville near the Rescue Mission. The address is 20W Davis Road, Cookeville and we would love to have you come and join us,” said Self.

The singing Friday night, May 6 starts at 6 p.m. featuring Hearts Journey with special guests the Shirah Brothers. Another singing will be held on Saturday, May 21 at 6 p.m. at the Aletheia Baptist Fellowship at 909 Grider Road, Cookeville featuring Cross Creek.

Dogwood Park at 30 E. Broad Street in Cookeville will be the site of a summer singing on June 4 from 3-7 p.m. featuring several local and regional gospel groups or soloists including the Joyful Praises of Smithville, Perfect Will, Arlene Mason of Hearts Journey, the Old Time Singers of McMinnville, Cross Creek, and others.

“In the middle of that singing we will have all the pickers and singers get on stage together and do about a 30 minute set. I call it front porch singing on stage,” said Self.

Although no admission prices are charged to attend these singings, love offerings are often received to further the cause of the association.

“We receive love offerings, and we give half of it to our special guest singers and the rest is for our Association office expense, printing and things like that,” Self added.

For more information call 931-979-3904 or 931-510-5191

May 5, 2022
By: Dwayne Page

Circuit Court Judge Amy Hollars will be challenged for re-election in August.

William T. “Will” Ridley of Crossville ran unopposed in the Republican primary Tuesday for Circuit Court Judge Part I and received 19,247 votes district-wide in the seven county 13th judicial district. In DeKalb County Ridley got 1,511 votes.

A Livingston native, Judge Hollars was appointed to the bench by Governor Phil Bredesen on July 15, 2009, to fill a seat vacated by her father, retired Judge John A. Turnbull. She was elected to the court as a Democratic candidate in 2010 and re-elected in 2014. Hollars is running this year as an Independent candidate. The term is for eight years.

The five other judicial candidates, all Republicans, won their primaries unopposed on Tuesday and will be re-elected unopposed in August.

Here are the results for them:

Chancellor- 13th Judicial District
Ronald Thurman (Incumbent) – 19,689 (district-wide) including 1,642 in DeKalb County

Criminal Court Judge Part I 13th Judicial District:
Gary S. McKenzie (Incumbent)-19,672 (district-wide) including 1,614 in DeKalb County

Criminal Court Judge Part II 13th Judicial District:
Wesley Bray (Incumbent)-19,140 (district-wide) including 1,568 in DeKalb County

Public Defender 13th Judicial District:
Craig P. Fickling, Jr. (Incumbent)-18,434 (district-wide) including 1,521 in DeKalb County

District Attorney General 13th Judicial District:
Bryant C. Dunaway (Incumbent)-19,950 (district-wide) including 1,607 in DeKalb County

May 5, 2022
By: Dwayne Page

The 13th Judicial District will soon have a new judge.

Political newcomer Caroline Knight of Crossville ousted Incumbent Judge Jonathan Young of Cookeville Tuesday for the office of Circuit Court Judge Part II in the 13th Judicial District which includes DeKalb and six other counties.

Knight carried every county and won the Republican Primary district-wide 15,521 to 8,090. She will be unopposed in the August General Election. The term is for eight years.

Knight has been an Assistant District Attorney General for 10 years and has served as child crimes prosecutor district-wide for the last five years.

Here are the results in each of the seven counties from Tuesday’s GOP primary:
Clay: Knight 154, Young 79
Cumberland: Knight 6,244, Young 2,381
DeKalb: Knight 1,069, Young 741
Overton: Knight 1,381, Young 1,031
Pickett: Knight 643, Young 392
Putnam: Knight 3,168, Young 2,056
White: Knight 2,862, Young 1,410
Total: Knight 15,521, Young 8,090

Young received a public reprimand in October 2020 from the Tennessee Board of Judicial Conduct following what was described as “inappropriate messages” sent to multiple women on various social media platforms from 2015-20. Young has served as the Circuit Court Part II judge since 2014.

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