Do you like Chocolate Chip Cookies? Am I the only one who doesn't? The problem with me is the chocolate. We don't get along. If you need to send a batch of cookies to school with your child, you can't go wrong with Chocolate Chip Cookies.

In an effort to improve services and guide the future development of programs and facilities, Union County is conducting a strategic parks and recreation master plan. A major component of this process is public input, which includes this community survey.

Your participation in this survey is crucial in determining the future direction and goals of our community’s parks and recreation. Even if you do not currently participate in any park programs or utilize the park system in any way, your survey answers will still be important. Thank you for your time and valuable input.

This year's Operation Christmas Child shoebox drive in Union County wasn't just an opportunity to support foreign missions. It was also a chance for local churches and community organizations to come together and work towards a common goal.

A project of Samaritan's Purse, Operation Christmas Child asks donors to pack shoeboxes with much-needed sundries like hygiene items, school supplies and toys. The shoeboxes are given to children around the world, often in the most dire situations imaginable. And with each shoebox is delivered another gift: the gospel message of Jesus Christ.

My dear Boys and Girls–Big Children too,
I want you to know that I am so glad that you have good schools to attend. I’m sure glad that you have buildings that have floors, openings in the walls that have windows, and blackboards that are not just “wooden boards” painted black. But I also want you to know that things have not always been this way. I hope you will get grandma and grandpa to tell you their school experiences. Maybe they will even tell you what their parents told them.

Fried apples are an old timey breakfast treat. Back in Depression days before WWll, fresh oranges and bananas, for instance, were out of reach for most farm families. You made do with what you had. We usually had apples.

Pie Contest Winners
Grand Prize $100 Elizabeth Tindell Carmel Pecan Pie
Fruit 1st $50 Abigail Foust Salted Caramel Pie, 2nd Kennedy Hill Apple Pie, 3rd Carrie Cook Apple Pie
Nut 1st $50 Abigail Foust Fudge Pecan Pie, 2nd Kathy Venturella Chocolate Pecan Pie,
3rd Emma McMillan Macadamia Nut Pie
Other 1st $50 Emma McMillan Chocolate Pie, 2nd Jonathan Tindell Chocolate Chess Pie,
3rd Jeremiah Tindell Butterfinger Pie

All entries received ribbons.

Rebecca Hughes of Union County Extension coordinated the event.

Best of Show - Debbie Toney for Good Morning Clinch Mountain

Best Union County Heritage - Carol Pratt with Molasses Making

First Place - Ruth Mihaltion for Billy Joe

Tie for 2nd Place - Shirley Keaton for Blue and Yellow and Ann GlennSherrill for Hickory Valley Farm

Tie for 3rd Place - Dianne Becker for Tribal Girl and Ann Glennsherrill for Fall In The Leaves

5 Honorable Mentions to - 1) Sherry Railey for Dog Days of Autumn 2) Ellen Perry for Zinnia Garden 3) Sloan Becker for Farm House 4) Nikki Riddle for Birds 5) Stephen Hamilton for Hidden Pond

Friends and neighbors gathered at Wilson Park in Union County TN, many driving their antique cars for the cruise in and the lighting of the Christmas tree. I drove my 1929 Ford replica and parked next to the Veterans Wall to be part of this event. The tree at the top of the hill stands approximately 20 feet tall and shaped nearly perfect. It is not just an ordinary tree, it is special, placed in that particular spot and folks gathered to celebrate the beginning of the Christmas holidays.

Students walking to and from Luttrell Elementary School will soon be a bit safer with a grant from Safe Routes to School.

The federally funded program, which promotes the health benefits of walking and biking to school, will fund the paving and lighting of an existing path that residents at Lafollette Housing Authority apartments in Luttrell use to get to school, Luttrell City Park, and Luttrell Library. The $98,000 grant includes funding for the path, along with an education component, including traffic safety classes for kids and educational materials.

As the rain rolled off the skylights and wind beat the window panes, Cruz Contreras and Sam Quinn of the Black Lillies tempered the crowd with the somber emotional sounds of “Whiskey Angel”. The enthusiastic audience whistled and clapped their appreciation at last Saturday night's house concert hosted by Knox Heritage at Westwood on Kingston Pike. The concert was one of many fundraisers to pay off the note for Westwood. Knox Heritage and the East Tennessee Preservation Alliance contributed various resources and materials to help restore Oak Grove School in Sharps Chapel.