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Pair of Main Street businesses honored
The Weathered Arrow Award1
Lacy Garrison photos The Weathered Arrow won the You Caught My Eye Award for its window display presented by the Design Committee. Pictured, from left, are veteran Bill Studer, Vicki Benedict and Shonda Wanamaker, who collaborated and assembled the display in honor of Memorial Day. In the background, a flag, uniform and books can be seen alongside other patriotic dcor.

Main Street McMinnville has announced its Preservation Month award winners.

Pioneer Pediatrics won the Golden Award for its preservation efforts and The Weathered Arrow won the “You Caught My Eye” Award for its window display.

In 2012, Pioneer Pediatrics completed its renovation of 236 East Main Street. According to the Design Committee, the judges felt Pioneer Pediatrics’ design gives the building a new lease on life, returning a medical service to downtown while also respecting the character of the historic district.

The Golden Award is named in honor of Jeff Golden, who devoted many years to advancing Main Street McMinnville’s efforts and downtown’s revitalization.

Dr. Michael Andrews was happy to accept the award and explained his favorite part of the renovation process. 

“The hardwood floors and hand rails are original,” said Dr. Andrews. “The history of the building is so neat and it was fun to uncover it as we went.”

The Weathered Arrow received the “You Caught My Eye” Award for storefront display for its window honoring veterans for Memorial Day. Owner Vicki Benedict incorporated an American flag and other patriotic symbols.

“We really wanted it to be heartfelt,” said Benedict. “We wanted to thank the men and women who gave the ultimate sacrifice so I had a vision and with the help of three good friends, we made it happen.”

According to the judges, an attractive window display invites pedestrians to come inside to see more and impacts more than just the individual business. Research has found when storefronts are improved and activated, 90 percent of surrounding businesses report an increase in sales.

The announcement of these two awards launches the Design Committee’s award program to celebrate and appreciate downtown building owners and businesses. “You Caught My Eye” Storefront Award and the Golden Award will be given quarterly. Winners will receive a commemorative award and recognition on Main Street McMinnville social media sites, monthly newsletter and 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