School Board meeting April 2020

Uniquely Union host Dr. Ronnie Mincey interviews former Union County Mayor, Tennessee State Senator and Tennessee Representative Mike Williams.

The coronavirus, or COVID -19, has impacted the lives of all Americans.
Many are out of work or working from home. Children are being taught by their parents, online by their teachers, and sometimes a combination of both. Many businesses have been ordered to temporarily suspend some or all of the services they offer. Sporting events have been cancelled. Proms, graduations, and many special events have been rescheduled.

Mayor Jason Bailey outlined a formula to fund the Chamber of Commerce at the March meeting of the Union County Budget and Finance Committee. Bailey related that he and chamber president Thomas Skibinski had formulated a workable plan using the hotel/motel tax.

In opening announcements, Dr. Jimmy Carter addressed the current novel coronavirus concern and stated that if school is canceled for an extended period due to the novel coronavirus/Covid-19, students will be issued Chromebooks loaded with two weeks of assignments that teachers are already developing.
Chromebooks and any other educational materials would be issued before spring break.
He further explained that he and the staff are in discussions with the TN Department of Education to determine appropriate lessons for special education and how to meet IEP and other requirements.

On March 19, Dana Simerly, director of Union County’s Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC), offered details regarding how they are prepared to address pandemics such as we are currently facing with COVID-19.

Country Connections
by James and Ellen Perry
As March 15, 1923, came, the Doc and Ina Smith family had no notion of what was to transpire in a short 23 years, and how their family would be impacted by the birth this day of their only son after bearing and raising five girls. The name given to this baby boy born on this day, just a short walk north of Maynardville, Tennessee, was Carl Milton Smith.

Nagging pain should not be ignored. If you have persistent neck, shoulder, upper back, lower back, hip, knee or foot pain, chances are great that Darrell Johnson, D.C., and his chiropractic team can help.
In a candid interview, Dr. Johnson shared his experience of discovering chiropractic care, studying in New York, interning in Canada, and starting a practice and providing chiropractic care for his neighbors here in Union County.

Yoga and physical therapy (PT) are effective approaches to treating co-occurring sleep disturbance and back pain while reducing the need for medication, according to a new study published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.
The research showed significant improvements in sleep quality lasting 52 weeks after 12 weeks of yoga classes or 1-on-1 PT, which suggests a long-term benefit of these non- pharmacologic approaches.

Written by: Natalie Bumgarner and Anthony Carver, University of Tennessee Extension Agents
Submitted by: Shannon DeWitt, UT Extension Union County Agent
As the most popular crop grown by home gardeners in Union County, tomatoes are certainly king of the garden. This is definitely because of the number of participating gardeners, but it is also due to gardeners’ passion about their home-grown tomatoes.