As we prepare to observe Thanksgiving Day and consume massive amounts of food, some of our citizens want to insure that everyone is able to share in the wonderful bounty that we always seem to produce in this country. There will be a Community Thanksgiving Dinner this Wednesday, November 23rd in the Community Conference Room at 11:00 AM.. No takeouts available but food will be delivered to those who are unable to attend due to physical disabilities, illness, etc.. Both FOOD and VOLUNTEER WORKERS are needed. Contact Wayne and/or Deana Barton at 786-3122 for a list of food items needed and to volunteer to help.
Remember the lighting of our Christmas tree in Veterans Park along with the lighting of our other Christmas decorations also this Wednesday, November 23rd at approximately 6:00 PM (dusk).. As stated earlier, come early and have some hot chocolate. And if you like, sing some Christmas songs to get into the Christmas spirit.. The program will include singing led by Carlos "Carbide" Warman, and Rev. Mahan Archer, Pastor, Jellico Methodist Church, will remind us of the real meaning of Christmas. And of course the switch will be thrown for the lighting and the "official" kickoff for the Christmas holidays in Jellico.
The program will conclude with ample time left for those in attendance to attend prayer services at local churches later that evening.
Warning to members of the male gender: All men need to be on the alert to get out of the way of the mad rush that starts early Friday morning. That's the day when shopping centers turn basically into an all out war for the ladies vying to be first to reach the best "bargains" for Christmas gifts. The stampede can be hazardous to a man's health and is to be avoided at all costs. (But maybe ever a worse fate than being trampled to death in the stampede is sitting on a bench in the mall for hours and contemplating putting out a missing person bulletin while waiting for them to finally come out of the stores.)
Councilman Alvin Evans who serves as Chairman of the Tourism committee has announced that one of our local television personalities has been asked to serve as the Grand Marshal for our Parade this year but he was awaiting confirmation of her participation.
I would like to see our World War II veterans, "the greatest generation", follow the Grand Marshal in the line of march in well marked vehicles. And I have also suggested that we have members of the 278th Armored Calvary Regiment (and any other servicemen and women) that have returned home from Iraq, Afghanistan and all areas, to follow their vehicle.. If weather and temperatures allow, it would be great to have the troops in uniform and on a flat-bed equally well marked that would allow them to interact with the folks along the route.
Evans has mentioned that we might consider having some type of short ceremony at the corner of North Main and South Main Streets (central traffic light)) which would give us an opportunity to briefly halt the Parade, recognize and thank our Grand Marshal and honor our active service and reserve personnel and our veterans... They certainly deserve all honor that we can pay them.
I know that Tourism Director Jake Bennett will do a great job in organizing and conducting the Parade as he always does. And all we will need for a great Parade is good weather so keep your fingers crossed! (But you know, some snowflakes wouldn't be all that bad to really get us into the swing of things this holiday season.)
Date of the Parade is Sunday, December 11th.. A reminder that units will line up at Jellico High School at 2:00 PM and the column will move out at 2:30 PM.. For more information call Jake at 423/784-3275.. (The area code is included since I have already had one inquiry from out-of-town and out-of-state by an Internet user who wanted information concerning our Parade.)
An e-mail from Hazel (Gregg) Bullman, Security, Colorado
John Clifton. My name is Hazel (Gregg) Bullman. I'm formally from Jellico. I graduated in 1970 from Jellico High, the old school.
I'm so glad that Jellico is coming alive again. I can remember when I was small and we had all types of activities going on in town. Can't wait to come back and see Jellico for myself and how nice it is.
Too bad all of this has taken place after both of my parents have passed on. They would be very happy to have the old Jellico back and alive! Parents were the late James & Dortha Gregg.
Thanks for letting all of us know what is going in OUR Jellico! Hazel(Gregg) Bullman
Thank you Hazel for such an encouraging correspondence. We are making very good progress but in all honesty, we still have miles to go. However we are working hard at it and we will not be satisfied until the job is complete. When you do get the chance to return, we certainly don't want you - or any returning former residents - to be disappointed.
We are all glad that the city and the utilities department have been able to work together to get greatly improved lighting on our Jellico Interstate-75 exchange. That exchange has to be one of the most dangerous in the entire interstate highway system with vehicles both entering and exiting at the same location and only a very short distance apart. And poor lighting has always increased the danger. The new and brighter lighting should help in that respect.
The railroad crossings are rough and the rocks that have been deposited on the railroad track have stopped my walking to Newcomb and back on the Norfolk Southern line. But thank goodness for the work that is being done to restore that track. For years now, the tracks have been allowed to deteriorate with cross ties decaying to the point of becoming so hollow that yellow jackets build their nests in them. In fact the last major repairs were reportedly made around 1985 which indicated to me that the line would soon be closed down.
But now the company is spending thousands of dollars to replace the countless number of decayed ties and depositing hundreds and hundreds of tons of crushed stone along the route.
And they have virtually established a trailer court on the site where our railroad yard once was located to house all of the personnel required to perform the work along with their equipment.
We certainly do not need to lose that railroad because many industries rely on rail transit and keeping the line open remains a plus for us. And it's just hard to imagine Jellico without a railroad! Closing down our railroad yard and removal of those tracks a few years ago was already a great loss to us. (One of the workmen who stated that he has been with Norfolk Southern Railway for many years and has worked here on previous occasions, told me that he was shocked when he arrived in Jellico the other day and saw that our rail yard had totally disappeared.)
For awhile every time I brought up the problem that we are having with pigeons and other birds, smiles and chuckles were the only responses that I received. But that certainly has changed in recent weeks.. Our downtown merchants are very familiar with the messes they make on the sidewalks in front of their places of business and certainly our health workers are aware of the potential they bring for harming our health.
I earlier requested input from readers of this column as to how we can solve our problems with pigeons and birds that have continued to increase in numbers over several years. And I was given two possible solutions including some type of paint that pigeons avoid and also a wire with hundreds of needle like extensions that was is said to be equally effective against their roosting.
During our meeting of the Council, Councilman Dwight Osborn also mentioned some type of glue like substance that is reported to be effective in repelling them as well. He agreed to search the Internet for the best possible solution to the problem - a problem that we badly need to solve. Hopefully we will never be faced with the avian flu in this country but we need to be taking precautions. And pigeons sometimes carry several serious diseases that are harmful to people.
Well it's finally the weekend that a lot of us locals love to dread. We go to Lexington this Saturday and the chances are slim and none that we will be driving home after a victory. In fact after last Saturday's poor performance versus Vanderbilt, it's hard to imagine us beating anyone right now - and especially after Kentucky scored 47 on Vandy and we could only muster 24..
The long range forecast early this Monday morning called for temperatures in Lexington on Saturday to be slightly above freezing (44 degrees). But I will believe it when I see it, uh feel it. No! On second thought after all of the miserably cold days we have suffered there down through the years, I still won't believe it!
I have always loved Stephen Foster's "My Old Kentucky Home" and I always sing along with the crowd when it is sung before their home games. But this year I guess that I will be singing "The Sun Shines Bright On My Old Kentucky Home" when the game is over. I still worked part time for the football team the last time they beat us twenty years ago and will never forget the entire 'Cat squad coming off the field and briefly singing my Old Kentucky Home to us that day - although they quickly moved on down the sideline, gathered in front of the Kentucky band and fans, and continued to sing for what seemed like an eternity to all Tennessee fans. We might as well get ready for a repeat. But as other teams usually say when we beat them, "Just wait 'til next year!" (I never thought I would ever look forward to basketball season like I do this year!)
Let's all be thankful now and every day for the privilege of living in this wonderful country that has been so richly blessed by God.. And let's all be appreciative of the sacrifices of so many men and women that have helped to obtain and maintain the wonderful freedom that we too often take for granted. Hundreds of millions of folks around the world would give anything to be in the situation that we daily enjoy simply due to the Grace of God and the willingness of our military personnel to pay whatever price is required to preserve our way of life...
The Christmas lights will soon go on all over town and done in good taste, they add an awful lot to the holidays. And as I have written before, I hope that everyone gets especially involved this year in lighting and other decorations to commemorate the season. With the drive on in many places to do away with Christmas as a Christian holiday, it is imperative that folks all over this country reject the insistence that America was not founded upon Christianity. According to all the history that I have studied, the Pilgrims, Puritans, Calvanists, Catholics etc. were all Christians who came here to worship God according to the dictates of their own conscience.
During the upcoming Christmas holidays, we need to remember that fact as well as the fact that the word "Christmas" always starts with "Christ" no matter what the ultra liberals say. So how can we have Christmas without Him?
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