In an earlier column I wrote about our version of English I like to call Mountain Speech, a unique and very old dialect that has been retained through mountain isolation to this day, though much has been lost. I’m going through a book called Smokey Mountain English that has thousands of words and phrases collected from mountain people throughout our region by linguistic experts. I’m going through the book looking for words I heard my parents and grandparents use and thought you might enjoy seeing how many you’re familiar with.

I have celebrated Independence Day in some amazing ways. When we lived in Athens, (Tennessee, not Georgia), there used to be an awesome fireworks display every 4th of July. The first one I remember seeing was in the Proffit’s Shopping Center on Decatur Pike. It was fairly small, but several people, including the Proffit’s family, forked out for the town to see some nifty fireworks. Later when the city built a park out near I-75, the display was held there. Much bigger, much more impressive. The fireworks were shot off to music played on the local radio station.

In June of 1869, the Warwick’s Chapel Community in Luttrell was blessed with a new place of worship. The first church gathering for Warwick’s Chapel Baptist Church was held at the home of John Ferguson, near the site of the old Curtis Phipps home. There were more than thirty-five constituent members who convened and organized the church, twenty-three of whom were from Cedar Ford Baptist Church, three from Cedar Grove Baptist Church, and nine from Powder Springs Gap.

County Commission rejected a request regarding sick leave accrued during a previous administration for employees who continued to work under the current sheriff. Sheriff Billy Breeding stated that the employees were requesting over 7900 hours of sick leave to be used for retirement credit only.

Summer is in full swing and Union County has a festive, family friendly event planned in the near future. The City of Maynardville along with Maynardville Public Library is sponsoring a Movie in the Park night at Wilson Park on Friday night, July 19, 2019.

Mother never made candy. During the Great Depression, we appreciated the occasional sugar or molasses cookies Mother did make. She always bought chocolate-covered fondant from Woolworth's Five and Dime, the only candy we had, except hard Christmas candy and one Hersey Bar. (That is another story.)

Mother worked in a candy factory as a teenager. She dipped chocolate-covered fondant drops. That remained mother's favorite candy throughout her life. I am not so prejudiced. I like lots of different candies. I think my favorite is Peanut Butter Fudge.

Chairman David Coppock called the June 20th meeting to order in the UCHS library due to water damage in the auditorium. With the agenda approved, Dr. Jimmy Carter shared announcements that the UCHS football turf is complete and the track part of the project will begin next week. Superintendent Carter also notified the board that the Five-Year Strategic Plan would be on next month’s agenda. Saying that Tim Hopson was a “trusted and dedicated bus contractor”, he led the Board in a moment of silence as a tribute to Mr. Hopson, who had succumbed to cancer that morning.

By Marilyn Toppins

The Union County FY 20 budget passed County Commission in a special called meeting on Monday, June 10th, on a roll call vote of 11 for and 4 against. The motion to approve the budget was made by Commissioner Holloway and seconded by Commissioner Smith. Voting for the budget were Commissioners B.Cox, E.Cox, England, Flatford, Hill, Holloway, Jones, Lay, Meltabarger, Munsey, and Smith. Voting against the budget were Brantley, Chesney, Cooke, and Keck. Second District Commissioner Jessee was absent.

Beyond the risks of overuse and addiction, prescription drugs that numb pain may also convince a patient that a musculoskeletal condition such as back pain is less severe than it is, or that it has healed. That misunderstanding can lead to over-exertion and a delay in the healing process or even to permanent injury.

With the steep costs associated with prescription drugs, chiropractic’s conservative approach makes economic sense as well. A 2012 study found that spinal manipulation for neck and back pain was cost-effective, used either alone or combined with other therapies.

The City of Plainview has a form of government known as Mayor-Alderman. The City Council is composed of one mayor and four aldermen. The mayor (Gary Chandler) and all aldermen (Vice-Mayor Richard Phillips, Josh Collins, Gordon Bright, and Marilyn Toppins) are elected for a term of four years by the registered voters of the City of Plainview. The Plainview Board of Alderman (City Council) meets on the second Tuesday of each month at the Plainview Community Building at 7:00pm.