| Sources |
- [S24] The Newport Plain Talk, (http://www.newportplaintalk.com), 27 Feb 2006.
Daniel Thomas McGaha obituary
- [S24] The Newport Plain Talk, (http://www.newportplaintalk.com), 11 Jan 2009.
Just Plain Talk
Friendly faces in and about Newport
Some of the storms that are flooding the Northwest must have brought buckets to bear on our hometown before subsiding at the full moon on Friday, with more dreary weather forecast the coming week.
You surely have a favorite store or gasoline station at which you stop almost every week. And when you do, the person who helps at the cash register usually is someone you've known for years. One of these people I chatted with on a cold New Year's morning was Ryan Talley at the Mobile Pit Stop off Cosby Highway. I'd seen him and the other workers there many times but really knew little about him. So, I was surprised to be told he is the son of retired Cocke County High School football assistant coach Festus Talley. His mother, Christine Talley, is a nurse at Baptist Convalescent Center. Charles still teaches at the high school and that is probably what inspired Ryan to study to become a teacher. Ryan. 28, works various shifts at the store and enjoys meeting people. His sister, Katrina Eck, who married William Eck, is a teacher at Edgemont. Between his hours selling gasoline and goodies, he commutes to Walters State Community College and hopes to be a history teacher. That morning I also met Jeff Allen, a resident of White Oak and a frequent customer of the store.
Speaking of coaches, when I walked into our parking lot to round up my checkbook as we are helping a fellow employee, Patricia Owens, A stout fellow wearing camo jacket approached me. He was upset, not with me, but at what happened to his beautiful metal flake blue truck, which was in our parking lot. You've seen the 1956 California Cab Chevy around town or at a rod run. James H. Raines tells you like it is and he was determined to find out who "keyed" his beauty. Not only his antique, but his brother, Ronnie Raines, found similar damaged to his black Ford truck. Both men live off Hill Top near the old Dutch Bottoms skating rink. A vocational school plumbing instructor, James is an interesting fellow. I plan to visit with him soon. You may have known his Dad, Jay Raines. But back to Patricia, who works in the Plain Talk mailroom. She become critically ill days ago and doctors discovered she has a ripped aorta, the major artery from the heart. Because she is unable to work she did not have the money to pay her electric bill so Plain Talk employees all chipped in to cover this bill. Saturday morning Duay O'Neil asked if I heard about Skip Haney. He is the husband of our co-worker, Delvita Haney. Skip suddenly became ill on Thursday and was taken to Baptist Hospital ER and then to Mercy Health Partners in Knoxville where he had heart bypass artery surgery. He was doing fine and expected to be home this weekend.
Friday a week ago, I remembered a visit made during warmer, sunnier days to Warford Road. If you are unfamiliar with the area it is easy to get lost along Musterfield, Jimtown, or Warford roads. I had made photos of my friend William Lancaster learning how to take apart large molds he had bought to produce concrete sculpture. You may recall that some years ago we visited him and his wife, Barbara, at Stanberry Machine Shop in town. His wrought iron welding and assembly work impressed me. It was another cold, drizzly day when I turned off Warford at the Custom Iron sign in Jan. This time the entire steep clay bank was populated by concrete sculpture of all forms and sizes from frogs to heron. I had just missed William, who was making a call on a customer. Barbara was watching the shop, which is not her fulltime job. She has to be there because folks like Gene Gorrell, happened by to pick up an axle that William had pressed on a new bearing. Barbara is the daughter of the late Daniel McGaha of Grassy Fork, and another relative you know is preacher Elmer McGaha. The McGahas Lived in the Houston Valley area and then moved to New Cave Church Rd. Barbara's Mom was the late Agnes Watts, who was raised in the City Park area. She was a twin and many people did not know that her real name was Louise Faye.
To be continued…
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, d. Bef 27 Feb 2006 (Age ~ 79 years)