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Club seeks to help homeless veterans
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In an effort to help veterans who have served our country and are now battling homelessness, the club Silent Creed has established two drop-off locations where local residents can make donations.
The group is asking for donations such as coats, sleeping bags, blankets, backpacks, boots and more.
“It’s anything someone might need who is sleeping under a bridge, or in a tent,” said Silent Creed president Darren Turner. “With the cold weather coming up, it’s going to be tough for the homeless. We’re trying to make sure we do something for all veterans and this is what we’re doing for homeless veterans.”
Silent Creed provided a free meal to all veterans in May. The group is partnering with several other organizations in seeking donations for homeless veterans.
Other items appropriate to donate include toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, shampoo, razors, shaving cream, chap stick, lotion, tissues, socks, warm head gear and ponchos. Toiletry items are asked to be placed in a Ziplock bag.
Items will be delivered to Davidson County on Nov. 21 and then distributed throughout the region as needed.
There are two local drop-off locations. Items can be donated at the VFW on Sparta Highway from 12 to 8 p.m. seven days a week. They can also be donated at the Silent Creed clubhouse at 414 Beersheba Street from 5 to 9 p.m.
Call Turner at 808-3457 for more information.

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