Perspective provided as 2024 Current’s pages perused

This week’s print edition of The Current will have a different year included on the dateline. 

We will start a new year, together. 

We thank each of you, our readers, our subscribers, our advertisers and our supporters, for all you do. 

Each time you renew your subscription, each time you insert quarters into one of our paper racks, each time you say “yes” to a sponsor ad, each time you use us to publicize your merchandise sales or special promotions,  you have helped us stay in business. It really is that simple. Any small business owner or manager will agree, community and customer support will sustain operations. Without that key element, doors close. 

We appreciate each and every one of you for your loyalty, and hope 2025 is good to you and yours.

For some reason, compiling the annual “Top Stories of the Year” article was more difficult than usual this year.

The task is familiar, as I have turned through page after page of the year’s print editions many times, searching through the stories and photos to determine if any one of them would meet the criteria for inclusion in our first edition of a new year, looking back on the preceding year. 

Did this story impact the community as a whole? Did this photo produce reactions, emotions? Was this positive? Was it revealing? Did it inform? Did it enlighten?

Most often, the stories and photos on page one, or the page onto which the over flow of page one stories would appear, would be the source for “Top Stories.”

What I gradually came to realize, in turning through the entire newspaper, was, that any one of our readers or advertisers could most likely turn through those same pages and have an entirely different list of “Top Stories” than I would choose.

The reason for that conclusion, is because some of the stories or photos found to be the most revealing, the most moving, the most enlightening, invoking the most emotion, positive or otherwise, would have been found on the pages featuring school or sports news, public records, church related articles, public meetings, new business features, or the obituary page, if someone other than myself were to determine just what impacted them most.

I know as I scanned every page of the 52 print editions, the most impactful, to me, were not always found on page one. 

Each one of us has experienced 2024 in a different way. Not all stories have been positive, by far, not all have been negative. We have had triumphs and tragedies. We have seen the rise and fall of leaders. We have seen the fullness of joyful hearts and the broken pieces of damaged ones. We have cheered on the progress and advancements for the future and we have fondly reminisced about our history. 

But, we have, while taking different paths, and coming away with different perspectives, all reached the same destination, in having reached the end of one year, and the beginning of another. 

It’s all a part of our story.

The following are my choices for top stories of 2024. 

In the Dec. 25 edition of The Current, the final edition of 2024, the report on the Dec. 19 convening of the Fulton County Fiscal Court included a proposal made by Fulton County Judge Executive Jim Martin to create a special tax district, for funding the Ken-Tenn EMS. The district was proposed to include the entire county of Fulton, and would be imposed on everything already taxed, including real estate, motor craft and distilled spirits. He proposed 10 cents per $100 assessed value, equating to $1 per $1,000 assessed value. As the ambulance service has solicited membership fees attached to monthly water bills within the cities of Fulton, South Fulton and Hickman, anyone utilizing that voluntary method of being provided with the service, will be credited for the tax paid, toward the total annual membership fee of $204. Only tax payers residing in Fulton County would have the tax imposed. The Fiscal Court approved beginning the process to establish the tax district for the ambulance service, which will require a public hearing. “We either need to plan to do this, or plan to close the ambulance service down,” Judge Martin said. He said funds anticipated to be generate through the tax would be approximately $446,933, adding “the hole we need to plug is almost $1 million.”

 As reported in the Dec. 18 edition of The Current, after several days of social media posts regarding the possible closure of one or more of the schools within the Obion County School System, a joint meeting of the Obion County Commission and the Obion County School Board was held at the Obion County courthouse Dec. 16 for discussion regarding the financial condition of the school district, resulting from decreased funding provided. The meeting was defined as an orientation, with no action to be taken by either body. The day after the meeting, Obion County Director of Schools Tim Watkins provided The Current with a list of options which would help alleviate the budget funding shortfall, ranging from the closure of one or more schools within the system, to relocating students from one school to another, to moving grades 7 and 8 from four schools to the campus of Obion County Central High School, as well as transferring South Fulton High School students to Obion County Central and moving South Fulton Elementary students to the SFHS campus, to make that school grades PreK through eighth. “Of course, our best option is, we would want to continue our operations with all schools open,” Watkins. said.

Area residents awoke on the morning of Nov. 6 with a new President following the Nov. 5 general election, as Republican Donald J. Trump returned for a non-consecutive second term in office, defeating Vice President Kamala Harris, a Democrat. Locally, Hickman voters, after having been afforded the decision making process by the Hickman City Commission, chose to allow Medical Cannabis associated businesses within the city, South Fulton residents elected a new Mayor in Kent Greer, who had also previously served in that capacity years ago, as well as a new Commissioner, Jake Clapper, and Fulton residents voted Kevin Kelley into office as a new Fulton City Commissioner.

The USDA Rural Partners Network, which includes Fulton County, the cities of Fulton, Hickman and South Fulton, and later adding Hickman County, Carlisle County and Ballard County, was featured in the Dec. 18 edition of The Current, as the recipient of the 2024 Aliceann Wohlbruck Impact Award from the National Association of Development Organizations. Award winning projects were recognized during the NADO’s 2024 Annual Training Conference in New Orleans in late October. The recognition highlights the dedication of local leaders and stakeholders in the rural communities who work tirelessly to drive positive change. By fostering collaboration and connecting communities with vital resources, the RPN program has not only strengthened Fulton County, but has also paved thee way for regional expansion into neighboring counties, said Purchase Area Development District Jeremy Buchanan, who accepted the award on behalf of the local RPN. The previous month, the RPN received a presentation of funds from the USDA, Department of Rural Development Nov. 19, as reported in the Nov. 20 edition of The Current. The USDA’s Department of Rural Development awarded $$450,000 to Community Ventures, to provide Fulton County with a shared strategic plan to rebuild the county’s economic structure, create a roadmap for expanding opportunities for future homeowners and business owners as well as economic developers. 

First time home owner Latequa Kinney, a longtime resident of Hickman, cut the ribbon on her new home Oct. 18, achieved through a partnership with Community Ventures, The newly revitalized home created one more affordable home for a local resident, and was funded by Rural Housing Trust Fund, which is administered by the Kentucky Housing Corporation. Community Ventures, in partnership with the City of Hickman, Fulton County and the Fulton Hickman Counties Economic Development Partnership, was the first revitalized home project, after new home constructions have been completed in the city of Fulton. The revitalization ribbon cutting was featured in the Oct. 23 edition of The Current.

An FBI investigation into budget discrepancies and allegations of “missing money” discovered within the Fulton Independent School District has now been closed, according to Superintendent Terry Sullivan, as published in the Oct. 16 edition of The Current. “It’s been verified by the auditors and the FBI there was no mission money,” Sullivan said. Sullivan took over the Superintendent’s post in July 2024, following the resignation of former Superintendent and Principal Jeff Rogers. He stepped into the Superintendent’s position after the retirement of former Superintendent Dr. DeAnna Miller. It was during Rogers’ tenure, that the audit report as presented for the 2022-2023 school year, discovered a “significant discrepancy” between the budgeted beginning balance of the 2023-2024 school year and the actual amount of funds available, which was believed to include a $1.5 million carryover. After further investigation, it was determined there was a difference of $1.1 million in available funds. In the Oct. 16 article, Sullivan said the $1.1 million discrepancy was a budgeting error, determined after months of an ongoing investigation, attributed to a finance department error, because of routine practices in software operations which including using the previous year budget and rolling it over, then later making adjustments for the new budget year, resulting in showing a $1.5 million beginning balance for FY2024, when in fact, the beginning balance was $0.5 million. 

As reported in the Aug. 7 edition of The Current, Kentucky Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman visited Jackson Purchase Distillery in Fulton County Aug. 2, who stated “Continued support from companies like Jackson Purchase Distillery, which has tripled its original investment in this project and nearly doubled the number of quality jobs, is a testament to the workforce, resources and business friendly environment here in Kentucky. I am excited to celebrte this next step for the company and Fulton County, and look forward to their continued success.” Lt. Gov. Coleman dedicated Jackson Purchase Distillery’s new rick house, which will store 25,000 barrels of whiskey on site. As part of the day’s celebration, Jackson Purchase Distillery announced the designation of five hand selected barrels for donation to local organizations for fundraising, the first of which will be designated for Ken-Tenn EMS.

The Fulton Lions Club and the Fulton-South Fulton Rotary Club celebrated 100 years of service to the Twin Cities of Fulton and South Fulton, on June 22 and July 23, respectively. As reported and featured in the June 26 and July 31 Current, the Lions Club marked their celebration at The Meadows with Kentucky Secretary of State Michael Adams as a special guest, and an even more special guest, 50-year Lions Club member George Brock, in attendance. At the Rotary 100 year celebration, also held at The Meadows, longtime Rotarian Pete Morgan was guest speaker and recounted his many interesting experiences while participating in the Rotary Group Study Exchange, visiting a number of countries as a participant and a Team Leader.  

For the first time since 1978, the South Fulton High School Lady Red Devils earned advancement to compete in the 1A TSSAA State Girls’ Basketball Tournament and achieved the same honor in advancing to the state tournament for the TSSAA State Softball Tournament. The two rosters for the programs were quite similar, with many team members a part of each team. It was the icing on the cake as well, for longtime girls’ coach Curt Lee, who announced his retirement for the end of the 2023-2024 school year, who didn’t have a problem driving the bus one last time to the state tournament venue.

On page one of the April 10 edition of The Current, Fulton County Judge/Executive Jim Martin was caught off guard with a special honor, as the entry way to Fulton’s Enterprise Park was unveiled as being designated Jim Martin Blvd. Martin was on hand for the official ribbon cutting of the ribbon cutting for the industrial park’s entry way, but was recognized with the street naming because of his decades of public service, in particular as related to economic development, industrial recruitment, city and county government. He was also there to view the April 8 solar eclipse, which was viewed by young and old alike throughout the area, from school children to residents of nursing and rehab facilities. Fulton County resident Joni Yates’ photo was featured on page one, depicting the eclipse in the stage known as the “Diamond Ring”, which showed a bright portion of light connected to a faint circle of light and blackened center, as the sun peeked out from the moon’s covering of darkness. Also included on page one April 10 was  a group on hand for the completion of two homes in Fulton, using the SIP method of construction. The group included Fulton City Manager Mike Gunn, Judge/Executive Martin, Fulton Hickman Counties Economic Development President Mark Welch, Eric Couts, Master SIPS Builder, and Brenda Weaver Community Ventures. Welch applauded the receipt of funding throug USDA, the Rural Partners Network and Kentucky Housing to create more opportunities for home ownership in the area. Fulton Code Enforcement Officer Nathan Lamb was also commended by Gunn, for his efforts in demolishing dilapidated houses within the city to make way for locations for new home construction. 

Gear Up To Level Up, a program established by Lynn Busby, was created to provide baseball and softball equipment to those in need, to help level the playing field. A feature story was published in the March 27 edition of The Current, about Busby, an avid baseball enthusiast, who has worked within the baseball industry before returning to his home county to accept the position of Director of the Housing Authority of Hickman. He soon realized there are children and youth within the local communities who might not be able to participate in the sport for a variety of reasons, including the costs associated with participating. Each year, in March, he sets up shop at the Housing Authority of Hickman’s Community Outreach Center, at 1703 S. 7th St. in Hickman, and displays his collection, in a manner which could rival the most popular sporting goods stores. Arranged carefully in sizes, laundered, cleaned, polished and repaired, if necessary, 90% of the items displayed have been purchased by Busby. The other 10% collected have been donated by individuals, or from facilities such as River Town Mission in Hickman, The Bridge in Union City, or Greater Vision of Troy, Tenn. The best part? Every item in the make-shift store, is free

An historic landmark and popular gathering place for hungry and thirsty visitors was engulfed in flames on the night of Feb. 13, when Lenny’s at Reed Brothers, once known as Reed Brothers Feed and Seed suffered devastating damage. Lenny Hohlbein, who purchased the business in 2000 sifted through the charred remains of the restaurant, the weekend after the fire, and said he was unsure about the future of the establishment. While many area residents shared their memories of growing up with ties to “the Mill” and its loss in the fire, Hohlbein was greatly concerned about his staff, many of whom had reached out and offered to help him with clean up or salvaging, and had been dedicated employees of Lenny’s for many years. A fundraising effort was initiated, with the sale of red ribbons for display by individuals or businesses, at $10 each, and proceeds generated from the sale were presented to employees of Lenny’s. Over $3,000 was raised in a short period of time, and red ribbons could be seen throughout the business community.