No question, this should be a tight race in the Southwestern 2A Men's Basketball again, but 3 thru 6 may be the most intriguing. Anybody can win on any given night in this league. I really don't believe there is a true last place team, but this is how I would rank them before the season really gets in gear.

On Saturday, December 15, the Griffith Rutherford Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR), will be sponsoring the third Wreaths Across America (WAA) Event. This is an event to honor our Veterans interred at Rutherford County Memorial Cemetery. The Official Ceremony will begin at 12 noon at the Mausoleum.

They carried an undefeated mark last Friday into the third round of the 1A playoffs, but Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy had too many mistakes and it cost them. Robbinsville dealt the Gryphons a 32-13 loss in the third round of the 1A playoffs.

On Saturday, December 1, 2018, 37 teams from Rutherford County Schools, Polk County Schools, and Spartanburg County School Districts One, Two, and Five will compete in the third annual Carolina Isobots Regional Competition, to be held at R-S Central High School. The Carolina Isobots initiative aims to excite and engage more students in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) activities.

It won't be an easy third round match up, but Thomas Jefferson's football team has landed there once again.

Thomas Jefferson (12-0) will host Robbinsville on Friday. Last week, they easily beat Bishop McGuinness 34-3 on a wet and cold night in Avondale.

Voted the #1 Top Christmas Town near Asheville and the #2 Top Place for Christmas Lights in Asheville by www.RomanticAsheville.com, the Town of Forest City is the place to be during the Christmas season!

This Friday, two teams will continue in the second round of the high school football playoffs. East Rutherford will be on the road, while Thomas Jefferson is at home.

The Little Detroit Chapter of the Antique Auto Club of America recently celebrated it's 10th anniversary at the Bennet's Classic Museum with a cruise in. The club has members from Rutherford, Polk, and surrounding counties.

A team in Rutherford County has upset a No.1 football seed before, but now we actually get a No.1 seeded team in the playoffs. Thomas Jefferson will be the No.1 in the 1A West as the football playoffs are here. However, the Gryphons get a first-round bye and host the winner of North Duplin-Bishop McGuniness on 11-23-18.

For the first time since 1992, there is an undefeated regular season team in Rutherford County football. Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy has done it...a perfect 11-0.

This year marks the Centennial Commemoration of "the war to end all wars", proclaimed by President Woodrow Wilson recognizing the end of WWI on November 11th at 11AM, 1918.

Rutherford County had two big games last Friday, one at East Rutherford, and the other ventured to Mount Holly. Both East Rutherford and Thomas Jefferson will easily make the playoffs, but only one has a chance to make some serious history.

Lions and tigers and bears -- along with superheros, witches and space aliens -- will invade Gardner-Webb University's (GWU) Lutz-Yelton Convocation Center on Monday, October 29, 2018, for the school's annual Octoberfest event that will offer area children a variety of candy, games and other fun activities. The free evening of entertainment is set for 6-8 p.m.

Thomas Jefferson remains the only unbeaten in the county, but East Rutherford also won last Friday. Both have major games on Friday.

Saturday, October 13th, from 2-4pm in the East Rutherford High School Cafeteria, friends and family of Tommy Hicks will gather to remember the man that had such an amazin' life and influence on Rutherford County and surrounding areas.

This Friday may be the biggest game East Rutherford has played since 05 as they host South Point. All four county teams are home this Friday.

It's been six years since Bill Haynes of Hendersonville suffered a severe stroke that left his right side paralyzed and took away his ability to speak. Time, rehabilitation and determination recently helped him do what he once thought was impossible - climb five trails at Chimney Rock at Chimney Rock State Park in one day.

On Saturday, October 6, The Foundation Performing Arts Center, on the campus of Isothermal Community College in Spindale, NC will present 14-year-old singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist EmiSunshine, in a concert suitable for the entire family. Emi will be accompanied by her band made up of her father on bass, her brother on mandolin and her uncle on drums.

Last week, East Rutherford and Thomas Jefferson football moved to 6-0 on the year, but both face a rival this coming week.

On Friday, September 28 at 5pm, family and friends featured in the just released book, Heart on Wheels: Amazin' Stories from the Life of Tommy Hicks 1954-2017, by author Pat Jobe, will celebrate the release of the book at Next Door Books on Thomas Street in Forest City. Free and open to the public, this event will feature readings and personal stories about the man that touched so many lives.

It's unusual for two teams in Rutherford County to be 5-0 on the football field at one time. I actually can't find it anywhere in the record books. Thomas Jefferson and East Rutherford will hit the road and try to go to 6-0 this week.

Eleven Isothermal Community College staff and faculty members were recognized recently for making outstanding contributions to the institution's learning environment.