| Sources |
- [S24] The Newport Plain Talk, (http://www.newportplaintalk.com), 9 Dec 2005.
Horace Ball obituary
- [S24] The Newport Plain Talk, (http://www.newportplaintalk.com), 8 Oct 2010.
Ball family rolled around the county avoiding traps
The Ball family got together for this photo on Oct. 6 at Darrell Ball's land surveying office and building off East Broadway. From left are Darrell and wife, Freda, and children, Kristen, 22, and Stephen, 25, all of Newport. On the wall are various surveying instruments used by Darrell over the past 30 years.
Author: Duay O'Neil
Wednesday's welcome sunshine quickly melted patchy frost around the county when hometown folks shivered or turned up the heat and hoped the new moon rising would bring a warming trend by Columbus Day.
Before I pickup from last weekend chatting with Kristen Ball of the Darrell and Freda Ball family, let me mention some other encounters. You will soon be reading more about Bill Moorefield, who at 77, is still working. He was at Arby's munching on a sandwich in late Sept. Another person worthy of congratulations after 50 years working is Dwight Wilkerson, fellow Kiwanian. He told me that this summer marked the half-century with WLIK Radio. Not far from the radio hill tower is Newport Plaza shopping center. It was acquired many years ago by the Guy Hommel Sr. family from Z Buda and partner. Guy was ordering some chicken wings at Rick Hansel's new restaurant at the plaza. Guy is 83 and told me that the Department of Children Services would soon be locating in the center.
Now back to East Broadway and the second floor above the law offices of Joann Sheldon and Clyde Dunn where Skin Deep is located. Kristen is mastering microderma abrasion, does facials, chemical peals, spray tanning, anti-aging and anti-acne treatments. When I visited a week ago Friday morning, she and Freda were finishing the set-up of their spray-tanning booth, which is much different than I expected. No, you don't pick up a can of spray paint, and attack a person who has tapped over their eyes, hair and parts they don't want tanned.
After she finished in Knoxville, Kristen continued her studies at the Tenn. Institute of Cosmetology where she learned hair cutting, styling and coloring. She graduated the spring of 2009, went to work but was already pondering her own business. "I enjoy hair, but my real passion is skin care. There's a ton of hair stylists but few skin care specialists," she said. So as far as she is aware, Skin Deep is the only such local business offering the variety of skin aesthetics. It was natural for her to move into the offices owned by her Dad. He suggested there was plenty of extra room and she could "make it work." Skin Deep opened in May. Darrell and Freda support this high-energy daughter and her boyfriend, Lucas Tabor, painted the new offices. He is the son of Darrell and Renee Tabor of White Pine.
Freda and Kristen had set up the tanning booth, which looks like a tall tent to me. I recognized the special tanning spray unit as similar but smaller than my high volume low pressure paint spray gun. Seeing this made me ask to see a demonstration that we could video and place on our Cockecountymarketplace.com Website. This and her various skin care treatments are by appointment only. The sessions last for about an hour and Kristen creates a relaxing low-light atmosphere for her customers, who are both women and men. Although Kristen likes to travel her time now is focused on the business and she has future plans. "I'd love to expand, add employees and be Newport's first salon and spa" specializing in skin care.
Last Wednesday when the temperature dropped to 40 degrees, I returned to see the entire family, including Stephen, who hopes to carry Dad's surveying business into the future. Things have slowed since the collapse of the real estate market and Darrell said survey work is off 50 percent. He was raised on the Old Fifteenth near Joe Frank Turner, who drove a school bus. Later, Horace and Juanita Ball moved the kids to a house on the Judy Huff property off Long Creek and Hwy. 25/70. Horace was a sharecropper and they lived a hard life like most Cocke Countians did. From there they moved to the N.F. Stokely land near the railroad trestle and depot at Del Rio and finally to Maple Grove. The family got their first house when Ebenezer Church members gave the Balls part of the old church building to renovate. Darrell said he graduated in 1974 and did some odd jobs at Stone Mountain for brother, Ronnie, then joined Joe Bible during summers surveying. For a couple years, Darrell worked in other states such as Mississippi and Georgia surveying before settling in with Hassel Wolf of Sevierville. This job lasted 20 years and Darrell gained a lot of experience and wisdom from Mr. Wolf. Today, Darrell is partners with Gary Weems of Rogersville. Stephen graduated from ETSU land surveying school and knows the computer, electronic side of surveying. Dad spent many a year pulling a 300 foot steel tape for scope surveying before the advent of lasers and GPS. This past hot August and the steep mountain terrain made work harder.
When things are quiet Darrell likes to golf and plans to be on the links Oct. 11 at a hospice benefit at Smoky Mountain Country Club sponsored by Jabo and Tammy Francis. Darrell, Stephen, Wayne Ball and Larry Ottinger will make up the foursome. They also participate in the spring benefit for Sidney Allen, also sponsored by Smoky Mountain Home Health & Hospice.
Darrell's wife, Freda was a waitress at Open Hearth in Gatlinburg when she met Darrell and soon, in 1981, they were married at Liberty Church. They lived at the Luther Valentine property on Cosby before moving to Rankin Hill and currently live across from Dr. David and Peggy McConnell at Country Club Estates.
During the 1980s into early 1990s, Freda continued as a waitress but also attended Walters State Community College majoring in nursing. She recalled how her relatives Vergie and Earlene suffered and needed medical care. This influenced her to get an RN degree. She has been at Morristown-Hamblen Hospital for many years and is in the emergency room. Another person you may know working closely with her is Susan Wilder. The Ball family is obviously close, especially since the children work in the same office building owned by Dad. He showed me building plans secured by Dr. Nathan Ford in 1960 when the building was built to accommodate Ford & Henry optometrists. Darrell purchased the offices from Dr. Henry and Dr. Jeff Foster about 8 years ago and has renovated them. You recall I mentioned that attorney Bill Shults owned the building, but he owns the half east of the hallway and Darrell owns the stairs.
To learn more of the history of the building, I called Dr. Ford at his home off Greeneville Highway. Nathan opened his first office at 122 McSween Ave. where Lucy Hale worked for him a short time. This building is next to the courthouse and was adjacent to his friend, Dr. Charles Redmond. "We bought two lots together" when the Methodist Church sold its property in 1957. The church occupied the entire corner of Mims and East Broadway. Dr. Redmond took the lot along Mims across from Newport Federal. Dr. Ford took the inside lot. Charles built his office first. Then Nathan built a one-story office next to it and later in the 1960s added the second floor. The men bought the third lot and built rental space that became Theresa's dress shop and a law office for Dunn. His law office moved to other locations during the following decades so he has come full circle. This third lot was sold to Charles Benson and partner who then sold it to Jim Robinson. You may recall that after Jim retired from Merchants & Planters he had an insurance business there. The Ford building now owned by Darrell Ball was built by Harry Melton, who also built Dr. Ford's current home. Other popular builders at the time were Ben Click, who built Dr. Fred Valentine Jr.'s home and a Mr. Hodge of Dandridge, who built Dr. Redmond's office. When. Dr. Ford retired in 1990, he sold his building to Dr. Henry and Dr. Foster.
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1955 - (69 years)
, d. 9 Dec 2005, Knoxville, Knox County, Tennessee