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Aho adds to lengthy list of burglary charges
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A career burglar has been accused of another burglary, this time outrunning authorities when they tried to arrest.
The suspect, Ronald Aho, 49, is charged with aggravated burglary for breaking into a home on N. Spring Street. He is also suspected in another burglary in town.
His most recent arrest comes after an observant family member noticed a dark Volkswagen driven by Aho sitting under her sister’s carport. The woman said she pulled into the driveway around 10 p.m. and waited for a short time.
“Ronald Aho came up from behind her car and told her he was looking for somebody,” said McMinnville police investigator Barry Powers.
Not believing Aho, the woman announced she was calling police.
“The subject got into the black Volkswagen and fled,” Power said, noting police then went inside the house. “They found a TV had been moved and was right next to the door.”
Powers said Aho gained access by kicking in the back door.
There were two attempts made to stop Aho that evening by both city and county lawmen. He was able to evade them on both occasions.
His charges come after he was given six years following a burglary incident in early 2010. He is out of jail now because sentencing guidelines typically call for criminals to serve only about 30 percent of their sentence. In 2010, he entered a guilty plea to charges he broke into a home near the Civic Center and stole electronics.
Family members maintained he only entered the plea back in 2010 to avoid a much longer jail term given his lengthy criminal record. Prosecutors had planned to use his 12 prior burglary convictions to enhance his punishment on that occasion.
Aho will face hearing on his new charge Nov. 20.

Local farm partnership brings fresh beef to Warren County Schools
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Warren County Schools has beefed up lunch menus this school year through a new community partnership. Thanks to a collaboration between the district’s School Nutrition Department and Barton Creek Farms, students at Warren County High School, Warren County Middle School, West Elementary, Eastside Elementary, and Dibrell Elementary are enjoying locally sourced, farm-fresh beef in their lunches as part of a pilot program.

The initiative, spearheaded by Terri Mullican, Director of School Nutrition, has already shown great promise in its first few months. The partnership with Barton Creek Farms, located in Rock Island, Tennessee, ensures that the beef served is not only local to Warren County but of the highest quality. Barton Creek Farms specializes in farm-to-fork beef, with grass-fed and grain-finished cattle. Each calf is born and raised in Rock Island and goes through USDA-inspected processing, ensuring it meets the strictest safety and quality standards.

“When the opportunity arose to provide fresh, local beef, we knew it was a no-brainer,” Mullican said. “The fact that it’s a product from right here in our community makes it even more special. We can’t wait to implement it district-wide.”

Barton Creek Farms delivers fresh ground beef to the district monthly, and the nutrition

department incorporates it into homemade recipes such as lasagna, meatloaf, chili, and tacos.

As of now, the beef is being served at five schools, but the ultimate goal is to expand the program to all ten lunch-serving schools in the district.

The pilot program originated from a conversation between Mary Roller of Barton Creek Farms and Mullican. Roller, recognizing the farm’s potential to support local schools, reached out to gauge the district’s interest in serving local beef to students. Around the same time, a Warren County school board member contacted Mullican to share information about a similar partnership in neighboring Dekalb County, which helped push the initiative forward.

The timing worked in the district’s favor, as the nutrition department was able to fund the purchase of the beef using existing resources, eliminating the need for additional funding. Now that the pilot program is enjoying a successful run, the department has budgeted to extend the partnership district-wide for the 2025-26 school year.

Dr. Grant Swallows, Director of Schools, praised the program’s economic approach to student nutrition.

“This pilot is a perfect example of how we can use local resources to continue providing nutritious, healthy meals for our students,” he said. “We are grateful for partnerships like this one that benefit both our students and our local community. We always strive to support our local businesses when we can because our community is so good to us.”

In addition to working with Warren County Schools, Barton Creek Farms also partners with local restaurants to offer farm-fresh beef on their menus. The farm’s offerings include ground beef, steaks, roasts, and custom cuts by the quarter, half, or whole cow, meeting diverse consumer needs.

As the program continues to grow, the district hopes to expand its focus on farm-to-school meals, benefiting students’ health and connecting them to the agricultural roots of the community