By Jeremy D. Wells
Carter County Times
This week has been a strange one already. So, this column is going to be a little strange.
Probably a little disjointed.
I’d originally planned to do a bit about the meaningless of music genre labels. With Dolly Parton being inducted into the rock hall of fame, and seminal rocker Jerry Lee Lewis joining bluegrass icon Keith Whitley in the country hall, it seemed like a good focus for a column, and might be again some day.
But then the rest of the week happened, and I decided I want to use this space to give some recognition to folks who slipped between the cracks with some of our other stories this week. Folks who, like Parton, Lewis, and Whitley (Now don’t that sound like a Nashville law firm?) don’t always fit easily into the regular categories, but still add something wonderful to our communities.
And I’d like to start with the pageant participants.
We started the paper too late in 2020 to cover Memory Days. Last year, we didn’t get out to cover the pageant because of scheduling conflicts. It wasn’t something the old Grayson paper was too good about covering when I was a writer there either. Sure, the pageant winners and participants have a prominent place in the parade, but we wanted to get their names in the paper.
We almost missed it this year too. I went out to cover the event, and got some adorable photos of the tiniest competitors chewing on their trophies. But we didn’t have a list of the winners. We didn’t receive them until early Tuesday morning, after we’d put the rest of the newspaper together. I’ll run them all in next week’s edition, along with our Memory Days photos. We just want the parents and participants to know they are on our radar. We’ll get them in there.
Next I’d like to shine a light on our community clubs like the Rotary and Kiwanis. The Rotary does wonderful work every year, on Memory Days, Project Merry Christmas, and other events. They’ve funded bicycle racks in the city among other community projects. And, they flip a heck of a pancake. You should definitely get out Saturday morning for one of their breakfast meals after the Memory Days 5K run.
Kiwanis are the new kids on the block, as far as community groups go, but they’ve done some great work already with increasing accessibility at the sports park playground. They’ve also donated accessible bicycles and tricycles, refurbished laptop computers for students in need, and worked with the build-a-bed project to provide bedding to families. The group, which is dedicated fully to improving the lives of children, wants to do more though. This year at Memory Days they’re fundraising with a Jeep show on Sunday, sponsored in conjunction with Pure Country Automotive, the IKORCC union, and Carters Auto Parts. All proceeds from this event go towards the purchase of handicap accessible playground equipment for the Grayson Sports Park playground.
Finally, we want to acknowledge a loss that leaves the whole community a little poorer.
If Memory Days is about Main Street and tradition, we need to acknowledge the hole left in the community with the loss of Ruth Haney, at Haney’s Jewelry. Ruth was a Main Street fixture for more than 60 years, selling rings and repairing watches. More than that, Ruth was someone I considered a friend. During my time with the Grayson Journal-Enquirer I looked forward to her weekly phone calls with information for the church calendar, and our long talks about what Main Street used to be like when I stopped into her store. With the Carter County Times it was our honor to celebrate 60 years in business with her. I kept meaning to stop in and have her repair a pocket watch for me, one that belonged to my great grandfather and that I hope to pass to my son someday. But other things kept coming up that stopped me from finding it in the jumble of odds and ends I’ve collected over the decades.
I always thought there would be another day to find it. Another day to stop in and chat with Ruth and drop it off. Now that will never be.
We lost Ruth earlier this month, but I only learned of her passing when her daughter called the paper to tell us she wouldn’t need her subscription renewed. I’m sorry for their loss, and this Memorial Day weekend, I’ll take time to hug my parents a little tighter. But I want to thank the Haney family for sharing their mother with the community for so many years. Her impact did not go unnoticed. And she is missed.
Jeremy D. Wells can be reached at editor@cartercountytimes.com
