NASHVILLE (AP) The Nashville Predators are optimistic that goaltender Tomas Vokoun will be available in September when they open training camp even though general manager David Poile said Wednesday that Vokoun still is undergoing tests. Vokoun?s season was ended last month when he was diagnosed with pelvic thrombophlebitis, a rare blood condition that had caused…

By The Associated Press Feb. 19 ? Daytona 500, Daytona Beach, Fla. (Jimmie Johnson)Feb. 26 ? Auto Club 500, Fontana, Calif. (Matt Kenseth)March 12 ? UAW-Daimler Chrysler 400, Las Vegas (Jimmie Johnson)March 19 ? Golden Corral 500, Hampton, Ga. (Kasey Kahne)March 26 ? Food City 500, Bristol, Tenn. (Kurt Busch)April 2 ? DIRECTV 500, Martinsville,…

By DALE STUBBLEFIELD Staff Reporter for the Southern Standard McMinnville Bulldog Jo Jacobs Robinson looks for some help from her teammate Blanche Cook, as Carol Soucie from the Tennessee Patriots team plays some defense during an exhibition game for the Senior Olympics Monday morning at the Civic Center. Monday at the McMinnville Civic Center three…

DeSoto, Texas resident and Warren County native Roy L. Walker died May 1 in Red Oak. The owner of a heavy equipment construction company, he was preceded in death by his wife, Claudia and granddaughter, Judy Janik. He is survived by son and daughter-in-law, Roy L. and Peggy Walker Jr. of DeSoto; daughter and son-in-law,…

McMinnville resident and White County native Robert R. Thatch, 80, was born Aug. 11, 1925 and died May 2 at Raintree Manor Nursing Home following an extended illness. A retired insurance salesman with Western and Southern Life Insurance Company in Anderson, Ind., the retired owner of Bob and Sue?s Market, and a member of Way…

McMinnville resident and Warren County native Goldie Yretha Taylor, 85, died April 27. The daughter of the late George and Mallie Hennessee, she was preceded in death by sister Edna Taylor and twin infant sisters. A factory worker, she is survived by her husband, L.A. Taylor; son and daughter-in-law Danice and Ann Taylor of McMinnville;…

SINGAPORE (AP) A leading expert said Thursday the H5N1 virus is the worst flu virus he?s ever encountered, and far too many gaps in planning and knowledge persist for the world to handle it in the event of a pandemic. The virus is a vicious killer in poultry, moving into the brain and destroying the…

Spencer resident and Van Buren County native Verble Wheeler, 83, died May 1 at his home after a two-month illness. The sheriff of Van Buren County for 18 years, a member of the Baptist Church, the Modern Woodman and VFW Post 5064, he served his country during World War II. The son of the late…

McMinnville resident and Warren County native Thomas F. Cherry, 86, died May 2 at Raintree Manor after an extended illness. A lineman for the telephone company and a member of the Church of God and Moose Lodge, he was the son of the late Clyde and Beatrice Bursh Cherry. He is survived by children, Michael…

McMinnville resident and Jackson, Alabama native Morgan Cecil Hayes, 71, was born Jan. 14, 1935 and died May 1 at River Park Hospital following a sudden illness. A retired employee of Carrier and a member of the Church of Christ, he served his country in the United States Army during the Korean War. He was…