The program kicks off today at 2pm with the T’ween Scene Program, where your “T’ween”  can come and express themselves in age appropriate art activities. The first week continues with special guest Scott Shupe from the Kentucky Reptile Zoo, jewelry making, pajama time, song and dance for your little one under five, and crazy science experiments with Mad Scientist Keith Trehy!

When you sign up your child will receive a reading log and attendance passport to be stamped. You will receive credits and rewards for reading books throughout the summer. If your child attends for four out of the six weeks and received four stamps in their passport then they will receive a book of their choice free of charge! What a great reward!!!

You also will not want to miss the Scholastic Book Fair running week two of the program June 15-19.

Summer will be over before we know it, don’t miss this opportunity this summer, the program ends July 17th!

The open house will feature Toastmaster Tiffany Steele, who will speak about the history and goals and benefits of Toastmasters. Ms. Steele is currently the club’s sergeant at arms. Club members will be present to discuss what occurs during typical club meetings, where members give impromptu speeches and other members offer their critiques.

“We believe that the community will enjoy seeing how the club’s communication and leadership development programs helps prepare members for higher pay (in the work force), and greater personal recognition,” Club Vice-President of Public Relations Gary Davis said. “Members are always interested in showing how the Toastmasters program can help them become more successful.”

The Tennessee Talkers was founded in 1997. The club is part of Toastmasters International, a global nonprofit organization with more than 235,000 members in 12,036 clubs in 106 countries. Toastmasters is a world leader in helping people become more competent and comfortable in front of an audience and provides a proven, enjoyable way to hone your communications and leadership skills.

Interested parties can also attend one of their regular meetings on the second and fourth Monday of every month at the Trane plant on Wilma Rudolph Blvd in Clarksville, Tennessee.

Additional information is available online at http://www.tntalkers.com/
or you can email the Tennessee Talkers at .

Clarksville for Obama will offer a wine-tasting and house party on May 1 at the home of Dennis and JoAnn Latz, 3769 Trough Springs Road, Adams, Tennessee, just off of exit 11 from 7-10 p.m.

Wine expert Amy Gallo will be on hand to answer all your wine questions. All wineconnoisseurs/drinkers are asked to bring their favorite reasonable priced bottle (s) of wine for each other to sample. “The more varieties the better.” Attendees as asked to bring a finger food item such as cheese, wings, vegetables, meatballs, chips,  bottled soda and water.

This event will offer an opportunity for socializing, networking, and further discussion on Clarksville For Obama’s continued involvement in local, state and national political and social issues.

For questions or to RSVP please email: 

This event is open to the public.

Click on this link for directions:  http://www.mapquest.com/maps?city=Adams&state=TN&address=3769+Trough+Springs+Road+&zipcode=37010

The meeting is a follow-up to previous sessions held in 2007. The objective of the meeting will be to gather feedback from residents on recommendations developed as part of the study. The meeting is open to all members of the community and will provide a forum for discussion. The JLUS is being led by EDAW, Inc.

The study is designed to develop a plan which:

• Avoids land use conflicts with Fort Campbell’s mission
• Balances military activities with the goals of local development
• Accommodates local growth and development
• Improves communication
• Creates nighttime lighting standards compatible with Fort Campbell’s Night Vision Device (NVD) Training

For more information on the JLUS, please contact Keith D. Lampkin, Sr. Planner, CMCRCP at 645-7448.

The event, which is free and open to the public, is hosted by the Urban Resource Center and its director, Terry McMoore, in partnership with the Center for Community Change.

Over the next 5 years a half a billion dollars in job training money will be coming to Clarksville. Hemlock Semiconductor (HSC) will open a new plant in Clarksville that will hire over 1,000 construction workers to build, and provide over 800 permanent high paying jobs when they open. HSC will be one of the richest employers in Clarksville’s history since the arrival of Fort Campbell in the 1940s.
Under the President’s Economic Recovery Bill, states and counties are poised to receive significant federal funding to stimulate the economy and put people back to work. These are just some of the issues that will be discussed at this community forum.

Initial response from the community and some elected officials has been strong.  community and several elected officials who will be in attendance, including State Senator Tim Barnes and NAACP President Jimmie Garland Sr. are planning to attend this session.

McMoore was asked to hold this meeting by the Washington D.C.-based  Center for Community Change, who will be facilitating most of the meeting.

Ms. Evonne Tisdale, the South East Regional Team Leader for the Center for Community Change, is  in Nashville and has already touched base with the Governor’s office on this issue; she held a  meeting with Nashville Mayor Karl Dean,  who is eagerly awaiting the final plan and proposal from the Nashville African American community.

New job opportunities for Clarksville-Montgomery County targeted populations include:

• High School graduates
• College graduates
• Veterans or members of the reserve forces
• Homeless individuals
• Non-violent ex-felons
• Low-income individuals

This falls right in line with the recently signed into law Economic Recovery Bill. Under the President’s Economic Recovery Bill, states and counties are poised to receive significant federal funding to stimulate the economy and put people back to work.

McMoore wants the community to understand that this bill is intended for all Americans and this meeting is open to anyone who wants to attend. It took people from all races and nationalities to get this far in first ending slavery, and years later stopping Jim Crow laws which eventually led to the signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

The country came together to say “enough is enough.” That demand for change resulted in the election of the first African American president in the history of our nation. But there is still work to be done, and by community dialog and working together can we will someday achieve the true meaning of our constitution.

Pastors, Business Owners and the Community-at -Large: are you prepared to have a place at the table right now while there are still jobs and money available? How and what this money is spent on is important to the survival of our communities; these are the jobs of the future and they pay good salaries.

Contact Person for this release is Mr. Terry McMoore at  (931) 378-1999

Ms. Evonne Tisdale, South East Regional Team Leader, Center for Community Change can be reached at Email: or at (615) 469-5220 in Nashville, or at
http://www.communitychange.org/

Tennessee Senator Rosalind Kurita

On Tuesday, and again on Wednesday, in the final stretch of the primary campaign, voters across the city of Clarksville received oversized full color postcards in the mail from State Senator Rosalind Kurita, cards that drove spikes of criticism at Tim Barnes and his law practice. Barnes is challenging Kurita for her 22nd District Senate seat on today’s election.

Today a coalition of 38 area attorneys came to Barnes defense while simultaneously calling on Senator Kurita to retract her statements and stating unequivocably that her comments as written on this mailer (and recapped on television and radio ads) were “shameful, and beneath the dignity, and the honor, of a Tennessee Senator.”

In a matter of four hours, the legal community rallied, creating a full page block ad denouncing the “Smear Barnes” ads and obtaining hand-signed signatures of dozens of local “legal eagles” as part of a statement of support for Tim Barnes. (Complete ad text/signatures at end of story). The full page ad is slated to run in The Leaf Chronicle today.

Atty. Mark Olson, one of the signatories on the response ad, submitted the following statement to Clarksville Online late Wednesday evening (8.6.08):

“Kurita’s ads attack the very foundation of our legal system. They are intended to question the integrity of the system. Clarksville, Tennessee is blessed with courageous Lawyers and Judges. Each person has their own thoughts, and I do not presume to speak for my fellow Lawyers, however, I believe the Lawyers who signed this ad were shocked by the attacks on the legal system from someone who is responsible for writing laws. I have practiced with and against everyone who signed. I have practiced before every Judge in the County. The Lawyers represent their clients honestly, without regard to who they “are”, and the Judges judge fairly on the facts alone. Kurita’s ads suggest something different and that is very, very wrong.

We got this advertisement together in about four hours. Given more time, more Lawyers would have participated.

Tennessee Senate District 22 candidate Tim Barnes

The distortions and half truths in Kurita’s ads are almost too numerous to count. But that is not as great a concern as her lack of understanding of the legal process. As a lawmaker she should at least have a basic understanding of the legal system. She does not.

Kurita’s ads claim Tim Barnes works to release criminals. Only a judge or jury can find the accused not guilty and “release” them. And then, only after a fair trial. People in Montgomery County receive fair trials. If they are guilty, they are punished. Is she against the Jury system? If she is against the Jury, she does not trust the people of Montgomery County.

Kurita’s comments demonstrate contempt for the legal system and the people of Montgomery County. Each and every year that she has served as a Senator, Kurita has voted on a Tennessee state budget which includes money to be paid to lawyers for the defense of the indigent in Tennessee. Does this mean that she supports “criminals”? Could it be that her statements made about Tim Barnes are made because a lawyer is running against her? This makes one question her true motives, doesn’t it? Is win at any cost her game?

Tim Barnes’ main legal practice is adoption. He brings together children who need a family with parents who desperately desire a child. You wouldn’t know that from her ad, would you? Tim Barnes has done more to create families with one adoption than this woman has done in all her time in office.

–Mark Olson

The ads in question, was likely designed by the Nashville firm, Fletcher and Rowley, whose company logo is “It’s all about winning!” The postcard dealt not with the heated issues of the campaign or the issues — everything from the economy to health care to jobs — that challenge residents across the district and the state. Instead, it targeted the kind of legal services offered through Barnes’ law practice. Although Barnes’ legal practice is rooted in family and adoption law, he, like many other attorneys in every city and county in America, has defended people facing charges that may include driving under the influence, spousal abuse/domestic violence, and other crimes. But that is far from the whole story.

This eleventh hour ads came across as a rant against both the lawyer and his clients; by denegrating the former,  defendants are also deemed not worthy of being afforded a defense as guaranteed under the U.S. Constitution. Without the dedicated work by prosecution attorneys, defense attorneys, and judges, there is no justice under the law. Not every defendant is guilty, or found guilty under the law. No individual is less worthy of defense than another.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Across the board, every person this editor spoke with, who viewed these ads, were appalled by the contents.

Clarksville Online has posted two items, an editorial and a political commentary, addressing these issues and the District 22 campaign (As the August 7th primary nears, campaign strategy turns “ugly” and Tennessee Senate District 22: In case of emergency, unleash Fletch ).

The following is copy of the controversial oversized postcard ad:

The latest anti-Barnes ad sponsored by Sen. Rosalind Kurita cites Barnes as anti-family, pro-criminal. Barnes in fact specializes in adoption law, helping to create and solidify family life for children in need of good homes.

The "back" of the latest anti-Barnes ad implies that Barnes makes a living from freeing criminals when in fact Adoption work is a prime focus of his legal practice.

The following is a copy of the response to this postcard ad by area attorneys, followed by a list of those who endorsed the ad, and thus the integrity of Mr. Barnes: 

Progressive Citizens Advocates membership is largely made up of ministers and progressive movers and shakers within the African American Community. The meeting  will attempt to address the questions and issues surrounding the Downtown District Partnership’s Clarksville Center Redevelopment Plan. The meeting is open to the public and will feature a question and answer period. 

For more information contact PCA president Rev. Frank Washington (931) 980-1918 (cell).

Montgomery County, a county that Barack Obama did not do well in, still has a team of energetic people lead by county campaign manager for Barack Obama, Credo Amouzouvik. This re-energized group of supporters will officially introduce themselves to the citizens of Clarksville-Montgomery County as they rally behind the name Clarksville for Obama on February 15 at the Tropicana Restaurant, 233-A Tiny Town Road in Clarksville at 6 p.m.

Amouzouvik said of the Obama campaign: “This train has not stopped. This train goes all the way to the national convention, and then on to the national election in November, and then it will stop in Washington D.C. when Barack Obama is sworn in as this country’s new president.”

The rally will offer Obama supporters the opportunity to meet each other and become involved in the campaign. For more information, call Amouzouvik at 931-378-2378.

Being the oldest newspaper in print in Clarksville – Montgomery County, though,  can be both an advantage and a handicap when it comes to providing the community detailed coverage of the news of the day.

Thanks to the internet, we “news heads” have many sources to chose from to help fill the gaps corporate news groups sometime create to meet the bottom line. I would like to thank the Leaf Chronicle news paper for printing the numerous stories that I have either submitted or been involved in, but sometimes they fall just a little short in getting the complete idea of what the person they are interviewing is trying to say.

The following is a letter in its entirety I submitted to local and nationwide chat rooms in an effort to plug up the holes that appeared in the article that ran in the Leaf Chronicle about the closing of the commissary inside the Montgomery County [TN] Jail.

All I am about to reveal can be verified by requesting a copy of the written and audio minutes of the Montgomery County Jail and Juvenile Detention Committee Meeting for August 2, 2007.

Here are just a few things that the Leaf Chronicle failed to mention during my interview with them:

• There would be no dispute with the Committee of Blind Vendors of Tennessee Business Enterprises if the Sheriff would have honored the law and given them the commissary contract that they won in the first place. The County Attorney, Austin Peay VII, told Sheriff Lewis months ago that based on three opinions from the State Attorney General’s Office that the Blind Vendors have first right of refusal to operate the commissary and that the Sheriff’s Department could not run the commissary. Sheriff Lewis and Chief Patterson stated that Montgomery County should contest this opinion and the County Attorney noted that there is legislation that supports this organization and all counties who have tried to fight this have lost.

• County Commissioner Skinner asked what the outcome would be if the Sheriff’s department did nothing on this issue. County Attorney Austin Peay VII said the county could be sued and/or the Sheriff could be held liable for violating the law.

• I expressed concern to the Leaf Chronicle about negative comments that Sheriff Lewis has made at committee meetings about the disabled and against the Blind Vendors. I went on to tell the Leaf Chronicle that vending opportunities like this are sometimes the only opportunities disabled people can get for employment and this is a clear violation of their civil rights;a very serious lawsuit could come the county’s way if the commissary was not reopened.

• I believe that the inmates at the jail should not have to suffer because of ill personal feelings that the Sheriff has for this organization. The State of Tennessee Attorney General is the highest legal mind in the state, so how does one not abide by his decision?

• With an already over populated jail, food rations are already small and to some, the commissary is the only means to extra food. Many of the personal hygiene items have to be purchased by the inmates, but the commissary being closed increases the possibility of a bad health epidemic breaking out among the jail population, one which could spread to the deputy sheriffs and other jailers, and then into the Clarksville population.

• The County Attorney was trying his best to relay to the Sheriff, during the jail committee meeting and without challenging his authority, that the law is on the side of the Blind Vendors, who should have never been replaced by another company after winning the contracting bid. The law is also on the side of the inmates, who can also sue the county for numerous violations that may come about if this issue is not resolved very soon.

The Blind Vendors fall under the umbrella of one of the strongest disability laws in the nation, and we, the tax paying citizens of Montgomery County, should not have to foot the bill for lawsuits because our Sheriff wants to run the jail his way and not according to the law!

The Law Must Also Respect the Law!

I closed out my interview with the Leaf Chronicle with the following statement.

“Inmates do not lose their constitutional rights when they walk through the jail house doors!”

Terry McMoore, Director
Urban Resource Center