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Dedication delivered for Veterans Hallway
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Retired Army Col. Thomas B. Vaughn speaks Thursday at the dedication for Veterans Hallway.

Veterans Hallway has been dedicated at Warren County Administrative Offices to honor those who put themselves in harm’s way to defend their country.
“You’ve heard them say ‘If these walls could talk.’ These walls, in fact, talk,” said veterans service officer Ernest Brewington before ribbon cutting during the Thursday afternoon event. “When you walk up and see the photos and see the information below them, they start talking to you.”
Veterans Hallway features about 260 pictures, a number that will continue to grow. There is also a display with the names of Warren countians who have received the Purple Heart.
“We should all be appreciative. We should all be humbled by all they have done to make us a free nation,” McMinnville Mayor Jimmy Haley said, pointing to the picture of his former school student, Jeremy Brown, who was killed serving his country in Afghanistan.
Sarah Tinch of the State Department of Veteran Services said Warren County has done a great service for its veterans.
“Rarely do you see the faces and read the stories behind those names,” Tinch said. “If I had any choice of how to pay tribute to them, this would be the way to do it for them.”
Retired Army Col. Thomas B. Vaughn noted it is key for us to always remember those who have sacrificed so much.
“These were ordinary men who rose to extraordinary heights to serve and sacrifice for their nation,” Vaughn said. “If they day ever comes that we don’t honor our veterans and honor our fighting men and women who are serving now, we will be less of a nation.”
Highlights of the ceremony are available for viewing at www.southernstandard.com.

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