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THE LEADER THURSDAY, AUGUST 1, 2013 ▪ VO L . 1 2 9 , N O. 3 5 ▪ T H E VO I C E O F TIPTON COUNTY S I N C E 1 8 8 6 ▪
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DSCC announces $23K grant USDA awards grant for new program
Dyersburg State Community College received a $23,500 grant that will assist the college with purchasing lab equipment for the Advanced Manufacturing Program. The new equipment will allow for improved training geared specifically at assisting small and emerging businesses in seven counties meet the manufacturing needs of the region. Rural Business-Cooperative Service Administrator Lillian Salerno made the
announcement on behalf of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack during Wednesday’s visit to Dyersburg State’s Covington campus. Projects in 30 states and the Commonweatlth of Puerto Rico will be funded to support small and emerging rural businesses. This announcement was one part of the Department’s efforts to strengthen the rural community. “The Administration has been working to create
economic opportunities in rural communities and bring well-paying jobs tot eh people who live there,” Salerno said. “Strategic investments in rural businesses like the ones we are highlighting today not only help to deliver more products and services to local customers, they also contribute to rural revitalization and economic development in the small towns where these businesses are located.” USDA Rural Development
invests in jobs, infrastructure, community development, homeownership and affordable rental housing to improve the economic health of rural communities. During the last four years the agency has assisted more than 1.5 million Tennessee families and businesses in 158 communities, investing more than $3.3 billion into local economies through affordable loans, loan guarantees and grants.
PUBLIC SAFETY
Suspects sought in home invasion By ECHO DAY eday@covingtonleader.com Detectives are searching for two men they say forced their way into an elderly man's home Thursday night. Deputies were dispatched to a home on the 2000 block of Hwy. 54 East at approximately 9 p.m. after George Ray Jr., 82, said two men first visited his home asking for work, then forced their way inside. Ray told police the two men left, but returned to his home. Once inside, he said they knocked him to the ground and one man held him there while the other searched his personal items. The two suspects reportedly stole several things, including guns. The men are believed to have escaped in a small red truck headed toward Haywood County, possibly driven by a third person. They are described as clean cut white men in their late 20s, one wearing a blue tee shirt and blue jeans. Ray was not injured during the incident. If anyone has information in this case, please call the Criminal Investigations Division at 901-475-3300, Central Dispatch after hours at 901-475-4300, phone in tips at 901-475-3307, email tips to Sheriff@tiptonco.com or Facebook Sheriff J.T. Pancho Chumley.
Heather Starnes, right, and Elizabeth Brill, both teachers at Brighton Middle School, make preparations for the beginning of the school year Tuesday morning. Teachers from all around the county have been doing the same this week. Students' first day is Monday. Photo by Jeff Ireland
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
‘Grease’ hits stage Friday By JEFF IRELAND jireland@covingtonleader.com
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Man steals elderly woman’s medicine By ECHO DAY eday@covingtonleader.com On Monday, a thief stole Lucille Kinney’s security. “He came to the door and said he represented Lincare,” Kinney said Tuesday. “He told me his name was Louis.” Kinney, 85, said the man then asked to see her medication, then recorded information from the bottles. Later, she noticed one of her pill bottles was missing. “I looked all over and checked two or three times for my bottle, but it wasn’t anywhere," she said. “I depend on that medication at night." Thankfully, the great-grandmother SEE MEDS, A3
ne of the country's favorite movies will be brought to life this weekend and next at the Ruffin Theater in Covingon. “Grease,” a musical made famous in the 1978 movie staring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John, will hit the stage Friday for the first of six shows. “We had been talking about doing a musical again and we had been looking at different musicals,” said Cozset Jones, the director. “It's my favorite … It's a lot of peoples' favorite.” Shows this Friday and Saturday will begin at 7 p.m., with a Sunday matinee at 2 p.m. Shows will also be held next Friday, Saturday and Sunday at the same times. Tickets are $10 for adults and $6 for students, senior citizens and members of the military. Tickets can be purchased at the door, by calling 290-8225 or at www.ruffintheater.org. There are some adult themes in “Grease,” but Jones said the Ruffin will be putting on a “family-friendly” version.
FULL SPEED AHEAD Area football teams get practices in, rain or shine, page A21.
“A couple of songs will be left out and some language will be changed, but it's basically the same,” Jones said. “Everybody's favorite songs will be in there.” Jones is encouraging patrons to dress up in 1950s high school garb and sing along with their favorite songs. Plenty of merchandise will be for sale, including T-shirts lettered with “Rydell High School” and “Beauty School Dropout.” The cast will include 39 students and 15 adults. “Everybody knows the songs,”
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Jones said. “This is going to be a fun thing to come do … I thought it would be perfect.”
MISS BRIGHTON CENTENNIAL
Puzzles Classifieds Legals Meet the Pros Sports
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The Centennial organization announced winners from its pageant Saturday, A9
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