THE LEADER THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2013 ▪ VO L . 1 2 9 , N O. 8 ▪ T H E VO I C E O F TIPTON COUNTY S I N C E 1 8 8 6 ▪
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Covington boys forfeit wins Ineligibility cost basketball team 26 wins, top seed in tourney By JEFF IRELAND jireland@covingtonleader.com
The fortunes of the Covington High School basketball team took a surprising turn last Friday when the TSSAA ruled that Covington would have to forfeit 26 wins, every one of them up to that point, for using two ineligible players. Covington athletic director Mark McClain confirmed the ruling Friday night. "Some eligibility issues were brought to our attention," McClain said. "We investigated it ... and we self-reported it."
A pair of players, both of whom played significant minutes this season for Covington, transferred from Haywood High School during the offseason. According to the TSSAA, the family of those two players, a junior and a senior who are brothers, led Covington High School officials to believe the family had moved to Covington. In a letter addressed to McClain, TSSAA executive director
Bernard Childress wrote: “The administration at Covington High School was misled to believe the entire family unit vacated their residence in the Haywood County zone and moved to Covington. This would have justified a change in schools. Both student-athletes were ruled eligible to play based on false information provided to the Covington High School administration.” Both players were ruled ineligible to play school sports
at any level for one year, starting last Tuesday, meaning the junior player will not be able to play his senior year in Tennessee. Covington High School was also fined $250 for using ineligible players, though Childress complimented the school in his letter: “We want to commend the administration of Covington High School on the manner in which this situation has been handled and self-reporting the violation.”
SEE FORFEIT, PAGE A2
BLACK HISTORY
EVENTS
Bommer begins black history preservation By JEFF IRELAND jireland@covingtonleader.com
Sugar rush Second annual Chocolate Tour was too sweet to miss By ECHO DAY eday@covingtonleader.com
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n Saturday, the square was a gathering for indulgence as the second annual Chocolate Tour brought thousands to Covington for sweet treats. “We were really thrilled with the attendance,” said the Cov-
ington-Tipton County Chamber of Commerce’s Robin Sealy, one of the event’s organizers. “We sold about 1,400 tickets.” The number was near triple those sold at the inaugural event last year. In all, a dozen and a half vendors provided chocolates of every sort, everything from chocolate-dipped strawberries and potato chips to chocolate cobbler with a rich strawberry drizzle
Top photo: Mary Gail Elam offers chocolate treats at Past Times Antiques Saturday. Above: Emily Brown, 8, was the winner of the gift basket. Courtesy photos
to chocolate truffles and chocolate peanut clusters. The Hatchie River Store won the people’s choice vote and the cov-
eted glass trophy for a second year in a row. Eight-year-old Emily Brown of Covington won the gift basket.
Minnie Bommer is fully aware there are people in Covington who do not like her. During the 1960's, Bommer, 73, was one of the more vocal members of civil rights marches in Covington. “I was considered public enemy number one,” Bommer says. “I couldn't get a job in this town ... But I went back to school and my score was higher than others that applied for several state positions. I could not be denied if they wanted federal dollars." Some time in the mid 60's, when BOMMER Covington's schools were going through the process of integration, there was, according to Bommer, an altercation between some black and white students near a grocery store. There were allegations that the white owner of the store made some inappropriate comments toward the black students. Bommer helped organize a boycott against the store. Another time she made allegations against Covington High School that a teacher was unfairly treating black students, including her own daughter, trying out for the band's flag corps. Bommer went to the school's administration, the school board and then the federal government before she got the results she was looking for. “I was very active in the civil rights moveSEE HISTORY, PAGE A3
Atoka residents angry over planned amphitheater By ECHO DAY eday@covingtonleader.com Residents of Hummingbird Loop spoke out about a planned amphitheather in their neighborhood last week. The general consensus: not in my backyard. "I can't imagine what this will do to the neighborhood," one resident told
the Board of Mayor and Aldermen. Town officials were hoping for the opposite reaction to their plans, however. The amphitheater project was proposed to be funded by a $250,000 Local Parks and Recreation Fund grant awarded in October 2012. Officials said the low-impact project was to be constructed in the hillside SPORTS Brighton junior Essex Ramsey will wrestle in the state meet today in Franklin. B1 ALSO: CHS girls, MHS boys and girls chasing state berths
of Pioneer Park, which is located near Walker Parkway and Williamsburg Drive, directly behind the homes on Hummingbird Loop. The venue was planned to host community-related events, such as family movie nights, said Town Administrator Brian Koral. "Will we be hosting Woodstock 2014 out there? Probably not. Our goal is
to minimize the impact on the neighbors." The neighbors don't want the amphitheater at all, however. Noise, parking and property values were among the reasons shared. Parking was the biggest issue, however. Pioneer Park currently has 10-12
SEE ATOKA, PAGE A3
TEEN QUEENS SOON TO END REIGN
Reader's Guide Opinion A4 Obituaries A6 Community A7 Correspondents A8 Puzzles A10
Education Sports Faith Classifieds Legals
A11 B1 B2 B4 B5
It's almost pageant time again in Tipton County! A7
Rates are still low!
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