By CHARLES W. JOHNSON / News Editor for the Southern Standard BROWNYARD Signs of the Crimes, a locally produced program designed to make parents, caregivers and citizens aware of the dangers facing children in our society, will be presented this Tuesday, May 24 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Warren County Middle School auditorium.…

By CHARLES W. JOHNSON / News Editor for the Southern Standard LANIER Warren County residents are invited to participate in the second “Tarp the Truck” event as part of the county’s litter program.According to local officials, the program, funded by a grant from TDOT, will provide a free 8×10 foot tarpaulin to the first 125…

By CHARLES W. JOHNSON / News Editor for the Southern Standard Local E911 board chairman Mark Gribble, left, and director Chuck Haston go over some information with new operations coordinator Valerie Womack. (Charles W. Johnson photo) A new E911 operations coordinator has been chosen for the Warren County Emergency Communications District.Veteran E911 employee Valerie Womack…

By AMY SATTERWHITE / Staff Reporter for the Southern Standard Water plant operator Wayne Boyd stands before the Barren Fork River and a step aeration system, where what was once wastewater is emptied into the river. (Amy Satterwhite photo) The most impressive thing about McMinnville’s Wastewater Treatment Plant may be that it doesn’t leave an…

Duane Sherrill photo Lara Kate Haley does a jump from the high dive at Gilley Pool Saturday. About 600 people came out for opening day.

By DUANE SHERRILL / Staff Reporter for the Southern Standard COOPER An unusually high number of accidents at the convergence of Sparta Street and the bypass has one Tennessee lawmaker petitioning the state to fix the problem before someone is killed.“There’s definitely something wrong out there,” said state Sen. Jerry Cooper, who met recently with…

By DUANE SHERRILL / Staff Reporter for the Southern Standard SMEDLEY The reigning Fairest of the Fair may be in danger of losing her crown after she was arrested along with other housemates recently when an underage teen overdosed at their residence.The beauty queen, Madesta Smedley, 19, stands charged with contributing to the delinquency of…

Live music will once again make its way to downtown McMinnville — this time with a summer lineup that promises to impress.Everything from country, to classic rock, to traditional Hispanic music will be featured during a Friday night series that’s called Main Street Live and begins June 3.“This is probably the best lineup we’ve had,”…

By CHARLES W. JOHNSON / News Editor for the Southern Standard Editor’s note: This is the first of a two-part series on gas prices and how they are affecting the economy.Though Americans have always been quick to bemoan the high cost of living, few things have created more recent attention than the soaring cost of…

McMinnville resident formerly of Lafayette, Ala., May Jacobs McKinney, 88, died May 21 at NHC.A homemaker, church secretary, and bookkeeper, she was a lifelong member of Chapel Hill United Methodist Church in Chamber County, Ala.She was preceded in death by 10 siblings; her daughter, Mary Jacobs; and husbands, Gordon Jacobs and Hal McKinney.She is survived…