Clean-up day nets 350 pounds of trash

By CODI KIRK
The Hendersonville Standard

Braving cold and rainy conditions, as many as 50 Hendersonville residents showed up to help clean the shoreline and almost 100 brought recycling to the Hendersonville Shoreline Cleanup and Recycling Day at Memorial Park last Saturday.

Somewhere between 40 and 50 people showed up with tools in-hand and wearing rain gear, sometimes in the form of a plastic garbage bag, to pick up close to 35 bags of trash.

Total weight of the trash collected weighed in at around 350 pounds.

“Honestly, a lot of that was actually really litter in terms of, it was not really recyclable, it was like cigarette butts, which was really kind of an eye opener,” explained Jason DiStefano, owner of Green Village Recycling (GVR).

“There was cups and debris and all kinds of stuff that had floated up from the lake. All that kind of material is pretty light-weight so to have over 300 pounds is good,” added DiStefano.

There was also a mound of TV’s, PC’s, small appliances and cardboard in the back of a moving truck that was collected from nearly a hundred people that drove through and dropped off the items for recycling.

By COREY CONLEY
The Hendersonville Standard

Pending changes to employee insurance continues to occupy the bulk of the Board of Education’s non-voting study session meetings as the board heard from the consulting group responsible for reexamining the system’s insurance policy.

The board kicked off the meeting with a progress report on changes to employee health insurance. Lamar Wright of Arista Consulting Group guided the board through their process and the results so far.

He outlined their goals regarding the process, which were to strengthen and improve the plan, administration, management, while also maintaining benefits, controlling costs for everyone, and doing all this with the support of employees.

Wright and his company hope to keep employee support with the help of a committee composed of a diverse mix of school employees representing many different positions and ages. The committee has met three times to learn and discuss the complicated factors that drive medical costs, as well as examine the insurance programs of nearby counties.

The third meeting took place earlier that day.

By PATRICK HALL
The Hendersonville Standard 

According to officials at Sumner County Schools, a threat written on a bathroom wall at Beech High School was found to be not-credible.

On Tuesday, students at BHS reported finding a threat written on the wall at the school. Sumner County Schools Board of Education and Community Relations Supervisor Jeremy Johnson said the incident was reported to the Sumner County Sheriff's Office.

"After a thorough investigation, including interviewing multiple students and a search of the entire Beech campus, the Sumner County Sheriff’s Department has determined the threat is not credible," Johnson said.

Johnson said authorities have received a lot of reports of the threat, but noted police have not located the message that was reportedly written on the wall.

“The message got erased before the SRO could locate it, but it was a threat of violence,” Johnson said. "I guess you could call it a shooting threat.”

There were no incidents at the school for the rest of the week, and Johnson said there were a higher-than-normal amount of students absent on Wednesday.

“There were 154 students out, that’s a little more than usual but those students will be allowed to make up their work,” he said.

A heightened police presence at the school continued throughout the week as the Sheriff’s Office and school system were taking every precaution to ensure the safety of students and faculty.

Special Education students participate in the Sumner County Special Olympics at Station Camp High School

By TIERNEY CAMPBELL
The Hendersonville Standard

With a parade, fanfare and the message, “Unifying people through sports,” the 2013 Sumner County Special Olympics took place last Friday, at Station Camp High School in Gallatin.

The games began with a parade of all students from the participating schools, who designed their own T-shirts and banners for the parade to show their spirit for the event.

After the parade, the Pledge of Allegiance was read by Gallatin High School’s Josh Jamel, the oath was given by David Kritikos of T.W. Hunter Middle School, and the torch was lit by Nikki Langston of Portland High, Emily Cage of Station Camp High, and Jacklin Zastrow of Hendersonville High.

The sporting events began after the torch was lit, including a softball throw, the long jump, a 10-meter dash, and hula hoop.

Kathleen Dillehay, the Special Education Coordinator for Sumner County Schools, worked with Dave McAndrewss and his volunteers from the GAP Distribution Center in Gallatin to plan and coordinate the events for this year.

All local high schools, and most of the middle and elementary schools participated in this year’s Olympics, and Gallatin High School took home 3rd place in the Spirit Awards.

When Dan Holder opened Hendersonville Bowling Center in 1976, automatic scoring was a revolutionary concept.

Brunswick Bowling had recently introduced the world’s first automatic scoring system and Holder’s center was one of the first in middle Tennessee to install it. Dan and his wife Barbara have remained in the bowling business ever since as both owner/operators and landlords of several bowling venues. And for over 35 years now, they’ve proven to have a hot hand for adapting these centers at just the right time to capitalize on emerging industry trends.

The latest twists on Holder Family Fun Centers wrapped up just this year. At the flagship Hendersonville location, eight of the center’s 36 lanes were set apart to form a private boutique area perfect for hosting parties, receptions or company confabs.

This VIP area, called South Beach Lanes, has its own private bar, lots of comfortable couches and stunning Brunswick Transform lanes with custom artwork that is revealed under black-lighting. Besides immediately helping generate more revenue, South Beach Lanes just won a prestigious design award from the International Bowlers Journal.