Letter From the Editor
WHEN YOU choose a locally owned business over a national chain, you’re not just spending your money, you’re planting it. And the roots of that investment reach deep. Every dollar counts, and it...
Nick Hayes: Sports World’s legacy continues
THE DOOR at Sports World swings open again and again as families drift inside. A father lifts a blue-and-white hoodie while his son nods eagerly beside him. Nearby, teenagers flip through T-shirts,...
Susie James: Three chords, the truth, and a woman behind the signal
“COUNTRY MUSIC is three chords and the truth,” said songwriter Harlan Howard. In today’s digital world, it has become more chords and less truth. The truth is still out there but with production,...
Poki & Grillz at The Trailer Park: Global flavors, local bites
GOOD NEWS IS COMING TO DINNER! We will feature a local food critic’s thoughts as they dine in Lebanon. This month, Krys Midgett visited Poki & Grillz at The Trailer Park. IT’S A warm, sunny day,...
Jessica Pulley: Style meets community in Lebanon
ALONG ONE of Lebanon’s liveliest streets, Posh Finds Boutique catches the light and the eye through its gleaming windows. Inside, wooden floors lead past racks of colorful, carefully arranged...
Janene and Seth Bennett: Getting their kicks
WHAT HAPPENS when a Mississippi girl and a Pennsylvania man meet in Oklahoma? They find their way to Tennessee, take over a hometown karate studio, and treat their students as friends — and their...
Ballet Adora: Small steps to center stage
PASSION FOR ballet is something that Abigail Moss, owner of Ballet Adora, has had all of her life. At the age of 4, she saw “The Nutcracker” at the Atlanta Ballet and thought it was the most...
Jessica Roper: Trust the process
DUST FLIES in the air as the Southside School’s Lady Saints’ softball team rounds the bases during practice. Coach Jessica Roper shouts instructions and encouragement as they work on speed, tight...
Letter From the Editor
A STUDENT IN our community today will walk the halls of Congress with a pinned American flag on their chest. A student in our community today will pray their knees still hold when their nerves get...
Brooke Lipshie: Family and friendship
BROOKE LIPSHIE walks through the double doors, ready for a day of teaching fourth grade math and Bible at Friendship Christian School. But she does not arrive alone; her husband, Adam, heads to the...
Leslie Brown: Born to teach through art
FOR ART teacher Leslie Brown, it would seem that her career as an educator was somewhat meant to be. Hailing from a family of educators, Brown might tell you that her path to teaching was not a...
Peking Chinese Restaurant: A local favorite that stands the test of time
GOOD NEWS IS COMING TO DINNER! We will feature a local food critic’s thoughts as they dine in Lebanon. This month, Krys Midgett visited Peking Chinese Restaurant. AS LEBANON grows, new restaurants...
Scott Walters: Elevating excellence
IN 2015, Wilson County Schools was hiring for five principal positions at various schools, but their intention was to place those candidates at whichever location administrators thought was the best...
Mark Cheathem: Dare to know
WHEN DR. MARK Cheathem arrived at Cumberland University in 1992 as an undergraduate student, he was an English major planning to become a high school English teacher. When he realized high school...
Letter From the Editor
WHEN WE think about the basic requirements of a thriving community, our minds naturally go to the grocery stores that feed us, the banks that hold our futures, and the schools that educate our...
Kori Merritt: The season that never ends
THE HOLIDAYS have passed, the lights are put away, and the last of the wrapping paper has been tossed away with the trash. For many of us, the season of giving fades as quickly as the pine and...
Margaret Busby: Seven decades of motherhood
THE SUN hadn’t fully risen when Margaret Busby’s day began. Morning stillness filled the house, broken only by the gentle rumble of the heater as she moved from room to room, waking her children,...
Belle’s Little Country Kitchen: Serving up comfort and community
GOOD NEWS IS COMING TO DINNER! We will feature a local food critic’s thoughts as they dine in Lebanon. This month, Krys Midgett visited Belle’s Little Country Kitchen. JUST NORTHof the historic...
Jessica Davis: Learning from the bees
FOUNDED IN 2017, Honeybee Tennessee is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit with a simple but ambitious mission: to educate and support individuals and organizations across the state who want to learn about...
Stacey Maxwell: Carrying Gina Putman’s dream forward
STACEY MAXWELL still measures time in before and after. Before August 2019, when her best friend, Gina Putman, died unexpectedly. And after, when grief slowly reshaped itself into purpose. Stacey...
Kerry Wilson: Feeding hope from a two-car garage
KERRY WILSON doesn’t do winter or holiday prep the way most people do. At the end of 2025, Wilson was doing what she does every year: counting carefully and preparing for more people than most...
Letter From the Editor
LOVE IS one of those things we recognize instantly, even when we struggle to explain it. We feel it before we understand it. We see it in the quiet moments that never make headlines, and in our...
Christian Staller: From corporate grind to kingdom work
CHRISTIAN STALLER has worn many hats over the years, including those of engineer, sales representative, CEO, chief operating officer, and chief marketing officer. After more than two decades in...
Front Porch Cafe: Where love and community gather
GOOD NEWS IS COMING TO DINNER! We will feature a local food critic’s thoughts as they dine in Lebanon. This month, Krys Midgett visited Front Porch Cafe. “FOOD IS the ingredient that binds us...
Jeni and Charlie Dixon: Fighting cancer with Emma’s light
A LOCAL FAMILY’S grief has been transformed into a powerful mission. The Emma Ryleigh Dixon (ERDie) Project, founded in memory of 14‑year‑old Emma Ryleigh Dixon, is bringing attention both locally...
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