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Hit-and-run driver caught
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The driver of the car pictured, Devin Kirby, left the scene on foot.

A hit-and-run driver was caught Tuesday shortly after he fled the scene of an accident on Sparta Highway that wasn’t even his fault.
According to Highway Patrolman Kyle Herren, the hit-and-run driver, Devin Kirby, 25, of Sparta told him he ran from the scene on foot because he did not have a driver license and because he was on probation in White County.
“He said he didn’t want to go back to jail,” said Herren, noting he found the suspect walking along the highway several minutes after the crash.
The wreck happened Tuesday morning at the intersection of Sparta Highway and Mud Creek Road near Campaign. Herren said the other driver, Floyd Shockley, 64, of Spencer pulled across the main highway from Mud Creek Road in his 1986 Chevy Celebrity and entered the path of Kirby’s 2006 Ford Fusion. Kirby slammed on the brakes but was unable to avoid hitting the side and back of the other vehicle.
Kirby abandoned his wrecked car and fled on foot, leaving his passenger to talk to authorities. His passenger faces no charges and suffered bumps and bruises in the wreck. Shockley was injured and taken to Saint Thomas River Park Hospital by the Warren County Emergency Ambulance Service.
Kirby is charged with driving on a suspended license, leaving the scene of an accident involving bodily injury, and not having proof of insurance. Shockley is charged with failure to yield and not having insurance.
For video footage, see the video section of this website.

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