By AMY SATTERWHITE / Staff Reporter for the Southern Standard The Birthing Tree could be donated to local government or to a non-profit organization. (Amy Satterwhite photo) From a business standpoint, the centuries-old white oak known as The Birthing Tree is a giant responsibility.And Bobby Kirby, owner of the tree and adjoining three acres of…

By DUANE SHERRILL / Staff Reporter for the Southern Standard BRENDA THOMPSON Embattled 911 operations coordinator Brenda Thompson has resigned her longtime position as investigators continue to probe her connection with a meth lab found at her home and any compromises in security at the emergency dispatch center.Thompson was charged with facilitation of manufacture of…

By DUANE SHERRILL / Staff Reporter for the Southern Standard With horror stories of children being lured from their homes by unscrupulous adults via Internet chat rooms, a public seminar is being offered here this Thursday by a specialist who has caught many online sexual predators.One of the attractions of the Internet is the anonymity…

By James Clark / Business Pulse Say it ain’t so! In an announcement that can only be classified as stunning, PBS has said “Sesame Street” will kick off its 36th season with a more health-minded Cookie Monster.The cookie has crumbled. With soaring child obesity rates, PBS says it’s time to spread the message that it’s…

William Waymon King Jr., 74, of McMinnville passed away April 6.He was a native of Anderson, S.C., graduated from Erskine College and Emory University Dental School, was a retired dentist and nutritionist, served worldwide in the Christian Dental Missionary Society, served as an officer in the U.S. Navy and was a member of The Church…

McMinnville resident Steven Dwight Herrin, 38, died April 8.A maintenance person at Boyd Christian School and a member of Hebron Church of Christ, he was the son of Dorothy Lee Asburn Herrin of McMinnville and the late Oscar Paul Herrin.He is survived by his wife, Sonya Delaney Herrin; sons and daughter-in-law, Jeffery and Natina Alexander,…

McMinnville resident and Grundy County native Patsy Grace Nelson, 46, died unexpectedly April 7 at River Park Hospital.A homemaker and a member of the Baptist Church, she was the daughter of Rose King Green of Woodbury and the late Newton King; and was preceded in death by brother, Dewey King.She is survived by husband, Jerry…

McMinnville resident and Warren County native Linda Ann Glenn, 59, died April 8 at her home after a brief illness.A real estate agent with Ramsey Boyd Realty and a member of the Pentecostal Church, she was the daughter of the late Charlie Henderson and Lula Marina Hodges Cantrell; and was preceded in death by sisters,…

Smithville resident Larry Dean Magness, 50, died April 7 at DeKalb Hospital.A member of Calvary Baptist Church, he was preceded in death by his parents, Ewin L. Magness and Jodie Ferrell Magness Sharp.He is survived by brother and sisters-in-law, Kenneth and Deborah Magness, David and Melissa Sharp, all of Smithville; nephews, Ryan and wife, Leah…

McMinnville resident and Warren County native Dock Haley, 92, died April 8 at River Park Hospital.A retired supervisor with Kingsboro Mill, a farmer and a member of First Baptist Church, he was the son of Joe and Bertha Davenport Haley; and was preceded in death by his wife, Thelma Rulene West Haley in 1986; brothers,…