DCHS Tiger Basketball Coach Lynus Martin Resigns

February 21, 2018
By: 2

After sixteen seasons DeKalb County High School Tiger Basketball Coach Lynus Martin has announced his resignation as coach.

Martin informed his players of the decision last week and has sent a copy of his letter to both DCHS Principal Randy Jennings and Director of Schools Patrick Cripps. Martin will continue to serve as teacher.

Coach Martin took over from former Coach Danny Bond during the 2002-03 season and compiled an overall record of 276-203, becoming the second winningest coach in DCHS Tiger basketball history behind former Coach Harold Luna. A successor to Coach Martin has not yet been named.

In his letter to DeKalb County boys basketball players, parents, and fans, Coach Martin wrote as follows:

“I really don’t know where to begin. Most importantly, I just want to say Thank You”.

“The past sixteen years have been some of the best, most memorable years of my life. I feel as though I’ve grown up in front of you, and being able to lead our basketball family has been a dream come true”.

“It has been an honor to represent both the school district and town of DeKalb County. I can’t say enough about how much all of your support has meant to me and our program”.

“After lots of thoughts and prayers, I’ve decided that it is in my best interest to resign my basketball coaching position at this time. Effective immediately at the end of this school year. For many years Tiger Basketball has been my #1 priority, but as life progresses, circumstances change, and at this time, I felt it necessary to refocus much of my energy to my family and other avenues of life”

“I truly can’t say thank you enough to our coaches, parents, and all associated with our program. I’ve always said our program is defined by EA, our Effort has been relentless, and our Attitude has been our backbone. Those two characteristics are what have defined our program”.
“I am so grateful for the opportunity former Head Boys Basketball Coach Danny Bond gave me back in 2002, and I couldn’t have asked for anything more from my experience. Also, thankful to my wife Jessica for her undying support and love throughout all these years and to all my kids for their love and suppport of their dad when it seemed like I was never home”.

“Most importantly, to all my players(alumni and current), outside of my immediate family, there’s no one I care for more. My off-court, practice, and game antics weren’t an act, but rather what you brought out of me – my best, and I will forever be indebted to all of you for that”.

“I will continue to represent DeKalb County to the best of my ability, regardless of what the future may hold. I will never forget these years as head of the FAMILY; not just for the basketball victories, but for the relationships built, culture created, lessons learned, and the memories that will last a lifetime,” wrote Coach Martin.

February 21, 2018
By: Dwayne Page

DeKalb County has been awarded a grant from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) to upgrade its used oil recycling stations.

The grant amount for DeKalb County, $88,750 is among $6,041, 629 in grants being awarded to support community recycling efforts in a statewide move to reduce landfill waste.

“The grant funds will pay for replacing and or installing new collection tanks for used oil, canopies, pads, oil pumps, oil filter crushers, and old tank removals at the garbage collection convenience centers where the existing oil collection stations are located at Midway, Keltonburg, Alexandria, Snow Hill, Allen’s Ferry Road, and McMinnville Highway. Grant funds will also be used to provide education and outreach materials,” said County Mayor Tim Stribling.

“TDEC is committed to increasing the diversion and beneficial use of materials that would otherwise end up in landfills or contaminating our waters,” said TDEC Commissioner Bob Martineau. “These grants will help local communities meet the ever-growing challenge of finding ways to reuse materials that would otherwise be discarded to benefit our economy and protect our environment.”

Awarded projects fall into one of five categories: Recycling Hub and Spoke, Recycling Equipment, Recycling Rebate, Used Oil and Convenience Centers.

Recycling Equipment Grants were authorized by the Solid Waste Management Act of 1991 and are supported by the Tennessee Solid Waste Management Fund, which is administered by TDEC. The fund receives revenues from a state surcharge on each ton of solid waste disposed in landfills and from a fee on new tires sold in the state. Used Oil Grants are authorized under the Used Oil Collection Act of 1993 and are funded by the Used Oil Collection Fund, which receives its revenues from a fee collected against every quart of oil sold.

February 21, 2018
By: Dwayne Page

State House Minority Leader Craig Fitzhugh is in the race to become the next Governor of Tennessee.

The twelve term member of the Tennessee General Assembly from Ripley represents the 82nd legislative district including the counties of Crockett, Haywood, and Lauderdale. He spoke Saturday at the DeKalb County Democratic Party Mass Meeting.

Fitzhugh said the three main issues in this campaign are education, health care, and jobs for Tennesseans.

“I’m forgiving everybody the opportunity to have the American dream. What is that American dream? The ability to take care of your family. The ability to give them food, clothing, and shelter. The ability to educate them. The number one issue is education. It is the reason state government exists. There is a provision in our state constitution that says the state of Tennessee must provide a program of free public education. And it doesn’t start in college. It starts in early childhood education. Everybody also needs a high school degree and then training after that. Does that mean a four year or two year degree? Maybe, maybe not. But it means at least some technical training so we can get those better jobs,” said Fitzhugh.

“The most pressing issue is health care. It is a big issue nationally and there are some things we can do at the state level that we haven’t done. The biggest moral failure the legislature has done in the 24 years I have been there is the failure to expand Medicaid. It makes such a big difference. We have forfeited over $4 billion in your tax money that we didn’t take here that is going to other states. The hospital I was born in at Brownsville closed two years ago. It would not have closed if we had expanded Medicaid. Rural hospitals are going to keep closing. Medicaid would have also helped in the opioid crisis,” Fitzhugh continued.

“The third issue is jobs. The Governor says we have the lowest unemployment we’ve had in years. That is right. But we have more people in this state percentage wise working for minimum wage than any other state in the country. What we need is better training for better jobs. And if we can put Broadband in rural areas it will change the way we live. We have got to get it done. The Governor has put money in it but not much,” added Fitzhugh.

Craig graduated from Ripley High School in 1968, where he played varsity baseball, football, and basketball on some of the earliest integrated sports teams. A graduate of the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and the UT College of Law, where in 2010 he was a finalist for its Presidency. He served four years active duty in the Air Force as a Captain in the Judge’s Advocate General (JAG) Corps.

He returned to Ripley to practice law. In 1992, Craig joined the Bank of Ripley, where he currently serves as Chairman and CEO. There he created a bank grant program providing more than $300,000 to supplement classroom resources for local public school teachers.

Craig has represented the people of Tennessee’s 82nd legislative district in the Tennessee House of Representatives since 1994, chosen by his colleagues to serve as House Minority Leader. Craig is a strong advocate for public schools, improved health care especially in rural areas, and economic development throughout the state.

Craig has been married for over 40 years. Pam Fitzhugh is a Lauderdale County native who also attended the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. Pam is a retired consultant for hearing-impaired children with the Lauderdale County School System. She previously worked in this capacity for the Dyer County School System.

Pam and Craig have two married children: Elizabeth Molder is a former first grade teacher and her husband Chaz Molder is an attorney in private practice in Columbia; Tom lives in Memphis and works at the Bank of Ripley/Bank of Tipton and his wife, Windy, is a pediatric nurse practitioner at St. Jude. They have four grandchildren: Marley, Hugh, BeBe and Ollie.

Craig is a fourth generation member of First Baptist Church, Ripley. He serves there as a Deacon and Chairman of the Trustees.

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