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Curtiss says information in mailers is not accurate
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James Clark
Updated: Oct 17, 2012, 1:40 AM
Published: Oct 17, 2012, 1:41 AM

State Rep. Charles Curtiss showed up Thursday night to participate in a political forum sponsored by Southern Standard and WCPI. His opponent didn’t.
Instead of debating him in person, Curtiss said his opponent has decided to run a campaign by mail and has put misleading information in bulk mailers. Curtiss said the mailers have been generated from Nashville, not the 43rd District.
“I’m not running against Robert Dunham. I’m running against the state Republican party and it bothers me that some of the things that are on here are not true,” said Curtiss, holding up one of the mailers. “This thing is saying I provided tax dollars for the largest abortion provider in America. The reality is we made it where Planned Parenthood wasn’t the first in line for grant money. We made it to where they were the last in line. This thing is saying the opposite of what happened, but I hope and pray the folks who live in the 43rd District will look at me and listen, and my record is recorded in Nashville. There’s no hiding it. Make up your mind on the facts you know, not what someone is piping you from Nashville.”
Curtiss said it’s important to see and hear the candidates in person and then make up your mind on the facts. He said debates like the one sponsored by the Standard and WCPI are a great avenue for that.
“This is such an opportunity to hear what the candidates have to say on the various issues,” said Curtiss. “I’m a little disappointed my opponent didn’t show up. This is the third one in the district and he’s not shown up at any of them. A part of me is selfish and I’m glad I’m the only one up here, but I wish we could have a debate where you can really see the differences between the two of us and maybe there’s not too much difference.”
Curtiss utilized his time to clarify where he stands on several issues since he says his views have been misrepresented by his opponent.
“I’ve never been for an income tax,” said Curtiss. “Tennessee needs an adequate supply of revenue, not an inexhaustible supply of revenue. We are sort of governed by the economy. We have had to gear down in recent years and live within our means. I believe we should always help people who can’t help themselves and that’s one of the reasons I’ve been pro life. I’ve always been pro life. I’m not wishy-washy on it. Taking someone’s live is a terrible thing to think about and I’ve always been against it.”
Local farm partnership brings fresh beef to Warren County Schools
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Published: Apr 2, 2025, 11:31 PM

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