This Saturday, Labor Day weekend Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency (TWRA) and Friends of Cordell Hull Lake will host the 2nd Fishing Rodeo on Cordell Hull Lake at Roaring River Park in Gainesboro. This event is to promote kids getting outdoors and hopefully catch a few.

The event runs from 8 a.m. – noon. Light refreshments will be provided. Anglers are encouraged to bring their own gear. Limited fishing gear will be available for day use on first come/first serve.

Roaring Rivers Park is located at 10417 Dodson Branch Highway, in Gainesboro, TN.

Google Maps Link: https://goo.gl/maps/SR6QFYwNQD2BhGwx5

The 2023 William Walton Harvest Queen Pageant will be held at the William Walton Harvest Festival on Saturday, September 30th at 4 p.m.

There will be six age groups for girls 1-18 years old including: Tiny Miss 1-3 years, Little Miss 4-6 years, Petite 7-9 years, Junior 10-12 years, Teen 13-15 years and Miss Harvest Queen 16-18 years Contestants must be the actual age for each category by July 1^st 2022.

The entry fee is $25. Optional electives including $10 Most Photogenic (2 awarded under 10 years and 11-18 years. Photos must be submitted at 3:30 check-in the day of the pageant), $5 Best Dress (each age category) and $5 Best Smile (each age category)

Three People’s Choice awards will be given for 3 awarded – under 6 years, 7-12 years & 13+ years. Pageant supporters will be able to cast their $1 votes during the pageant.

Contestant applications are available for pick up at the Smith County Chamber of Commerce and the Smith County Register of Deeds Office in the Turner Building. For more information please call the Smith County Chamber of Commerce 615-735-2093 or Jerri Lin Vaden-Malone 615-489-5570 or email jvaden@titlesearcher.com

Are you ready to shop, play, and LARP?! We have over 20 vendors this year, 6 RPG sessions, a warhammer official tournament, competitive MTG, and a strictly role play LARP experience! If you have never been to a gaming convention before, this is a great opportunity to see what it is all about! Base entry per day is only $5 plus tax! You can also get VIP access for one or both days! Our list of vendors includes authors, podcasts, trinkets, toys, and even a Tattoo artist! Our community had such an amazing time last year that we spread it to a 2 day event this year!! 

Details:

When – September 1st 5 PM to 10 PM and September 2nd 10 AM to 5 PM

Where – Smith County Ag Center

Get your tickets here: therogueandraven.com/tickets

The 33rd Annual Lancaster Fire Hall Jam will be held Saturday, September 9th at 5:00pm at the The Lancaster Fire Hall, located at 744 Lancaster Highway in Lancaster, Tennessee.

This year’s Firehall Jam will feature a cake walk, a Cowboy Bean Supper, and plenty of live entertainment.

Each year, the Firehall Jam acts as a fundraiser to raise money to maintain and upgrade the equipment of the Lancaster Fire Department.

Head to the Lancaster Fire Hall on Saturday for good food, good entertainment, and a good ole time!

On Saturday August 19,  a collection of Outsider art will be featured at the Carthage Junction Depot.  The term “Outsider art” is used to describe art often produced by people who have not trained as artists. If you have ever had a family member who loved whittling objects or creating decorative pieces just for the love of creating, it would fit within this category. Many artists and collectors have prized this type of art as a pure form of expression, not compromised by anyone else’s expectations.

This exhibit includes a wide variety of work from a painted  ironing board with a historical lesson to a gum wrapper chess set made by a prison inmate. The work is sure to inspire with the Inventiveness, resourcefulness,  and ingenuity of  each artist. 

The art  presented at the Carthage Junction Depot was a portion of a lifelong collection by a local art enthusiast and collector. He supported local artists everywhere he visited and at home here in Smith County. The work on display was so generously donated to benefit the Depot and proceeds of purchases will be used for future art programing to encourage art and artists in our community. 

The Carthage Junction Depot is located at 185 Gordonsville Highway in South Carthage. Find out more about upcoming events on the Carthage Junction Depot facebook page. 

Coming soon: 

Sarah Caum Metalworks and Painting 9/16

It Runs in the Family: Art by Leslie & Kittie Antle 10/14

Carthage Family Chiropractics will celebrate 9 years of serving Smith County with a fun-filled Birthday Party on Saturday, September 9, 2023. The fun-filled family day will be held at 900 Main Street N. in Carthage, TN from 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. LIve entertainment, food truck , face painting, bounce house and much more fun will make the day memorable.

All proceed for the 50/50 raffle will be donated towards Jude’s Hallelujah Story.

Upper Cumberland Electric Membership Cooperative invites all members to enjoy lunch with the UCEMC community at Catesa Farm on Saturday, September 9, 2023 . UCEMC will celebrate their 85th Annual Meeting. Registration starts at 9 a.m. The Annual Business Meeting starts at 10 a.m. and lunch will follow. Face painting, entertainment and door prizes will be part of the fun.

Catesa Farms is located at 780 Dixon Springs Highway, Riddleton,TN. Lunch will be a full-service/sit down. No take outs.

Friends of Cordell Hull Lake, a partnership between The United States Army Corps of Engineers and the Cordell Hull Lake Community, is proud to announce “Dinner on the Dam”. This fundraising dinner will be held Saturday, October 7, 2023, from 6:00 – 9:00 p.m. FOCHL is honored to host this special event that will allow attendees an exclusive opportunity to dine on
the historic Cordell Hull Dam in celebration of the Lake’s 50th anniversary.

The Friends of Cordell Hull Lake is a non-profit group of community citizens and business owners with a mission of promoting and preserving the natural, historical, and recreational resources of beautiful Cordell Hull Lake. Ashley Webster, a ranger with the US Army Corps of Engineers, and assisting with the event said, “The timing of Friends of Cordell Hull Lake’s newly formed group and Cordell Hull Dam’s 50th anniversary couldn’t have come at a better time. People still mention hearing Dolly Parton
perform at the original dedication in 1973. The USACE hopes the Dinner on the Dam will be an event talked about for years to come. USACE has constraints on what we can offer the public so having the nonprofit Friends Group leading dinner is a great way to end the day’s celebration. That same day, the USACE will be having dam tours and a dedication event at 1 PM.”

Limited tickets will become available online August 15, 2023 at 4 p.m. online. The ticket sales link can be found at http://friendsofCordellHullLake.org . Tickets are $150 for the event. All ticket holders will be required to submit and pass a background check for admittance. Entrance and valet parking for the event will be on the lock side of the dam at 24 Cordell Park Road Elmwood, TN via Horseshoe Bend Road. Requests for accessibility accommodations may be made by Sept. 7 by calling the Cordell Hull Resource Manager’s Office at 615-735-1034.

About the Friends of Cordell Hull Lake: The FOCHL non-profit (501c3) is a collaboration of citizens, businesses and community leaders that are organized to protect and preserve Cordell Hull Lake and its environment. The FOCHL mission is to support the recreational and educational use of Cordell Hull Lake, to bring attention to the natural beauty and friendliness of the communities and businesses around the lake, and to protect and care for the lake and its surroundings for the benefit of generations to come. To learn more or to become a member of the friends group visit http://FriendsOfCordellHullLake.org.

You do not have to walk alone in your journey through grief. Join the GriefShare group in Smith County. GriefShare is a 13-week support group for those who have experienced the loss of a loved one in death. The sessions are video-based and center around the teaching of well-known Christian counselors with testimonies of people who have traveled through the journey of grief.

The GriefShare sessions are held at 6 p.m. each Tuesday, at the Smith County Chamber of Commerce at 939 Upper Ferry Road in Carthage.

GriefShare is sponsored by First Baptist Church of Carthage, Bass Funeral Home and Sanderson Funeral Home. There is no cost for the sessions and workbooks are provided at by the sponsors with no cost to participants. For more information contact Pastor Tim Frank at 931-261-8452 or by email timfrank1960@gmail.com.

The Smith County Chamber of Commerce will host the William Walton Harvest Festival on Saturday, September 30th from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. on Historic Smith County Courthouse Square, Downtown Carthage. There will be lots of fun for the whole family including activities, food trucks, pioneer demonstrators, live entertainment and the Harvest Queen Pageant.

Contact the Smith County Chamber of Commerce for more information if you want to be a craft vendor, performer or pioneer demonstrator. The Harvest Queen Pageant will take place at 4 p.m. Interested contestants pageant contestants ages 1-18, vendors or entertainers should contact the Smith County Chamber of Commerce for more information 615-735-2093.