By Mike Steely If Knoxville was the goal to capturing East Tennessee during the Civil War, then the Cumberland Gap was the doorway. The historic pass was occupied four times, twice by each side. While no major battle took place, there were many skirmishes around the area with the aim to take or protect the […]
By Ralphine Major It all started with the heart. Many Focus readers may remember my first column, “The Real McCoy,” which ran on February 7, 2011. Dr. Kyle McCoy is the cardiologist who treated our mother after her heart attack. “Life is a Gift,” my tribute to the late Criminal Defense Attorney Zane Daniel, was […]
By Rosie Moore I wrote a column two weeks ago titled “I Dreamed a Dream” and I almost gave this article the same name, simply because the title came from that famous movie, “Les Miserables.” It was brought to my attention because quite a few of the ice skaters at the Olympics skated to that […]
By Alex Norman The Southeastern Conference might be the gold standard in football, but in men’s basketball it is lower than bronze. With the exception of Florida, do you feel confident in any of these teams come NCAA tournament time? The Gators will be a number one seed, and Kentucky, with their roster 5-star recruits […]
By Steve Williams No question about it, it’s been an up-and-down basketball season for Tennessee. What started with high expectations has been surprisingly frustrating. Instead of looking forward to seeing where the Vols would land in the bracket on Sunday Selection Day, many of us are now wondering if their name will even be called. […]
By Ray Hill The publicity generated by the Kefauver Committee investigating crime had elevated Tennessee’s Senator Estes Kefauver into the limelight. It was one of the first Congressional hearings to be broadcast live over television and some twenty or thirty million Americans had been glued to their screens to watch a literal rogue’s […]
By Steve Hunley It seems to me many of us are missing the point of public education. We’ve moved away from the basics of education in this country, despite spending more than ever. Ultimately, the goal isn’t passing as many tests as possible, collecting data or even graduating. The ultimate goal is helping a child […]
By Dr. Jim Ferguson I noticed the announcement on the door of the Doctor’s lounge. It was another list of drug shortages similar to the one that appeared last July. I assumed the first one was an aberration. Apparently it was not. I read over the current list which mostly reflected drugs administered in the […]
By Ralphine Major We waited—and it came. The world seems to come to a stop, or at least slow down, when Mother Nature blankets the earth in snowflakes. What was once a common sight in East Tennessee winter is now more rare. The second week of February 2014 brought one of those rare sights, and […]
By Rosie Moore Tai Chi means Supreme Ultimate in the Chinese language. I thought I would be taking Tai Chi lessons a while back but little inconveniences kept getting in the way. The first week — bad weather, the second week–a bad cold, third week, my kitchen flooded, (due to a faulty leak from the […]
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