by design | Oct 9, 2023 | Columnist, Ferguson
Purpose The welfare of humanity is always the alibi of tyrants. Albert Camus By Dr. Jim Ferguson A retired colleague recently asked me what I do all week. He was curious about when I write my Focus column, but I sensed his question was also about retirement in general...
by design | Oct 9, 2023 | Columnist, Steely
Visiting the Blue Heron Coal Community A Day Away By Mike Steely If your family is from upper East Tennessee you probably had a relative who was a coal miner. I had an uncle who was a miner until he took his family to Ohio for a better living and another who worked in...
by design | Oct 9, 2023 | Columnist, Rector
Ball Camp Boys By Joe Rector My brother and I were on the golf course when he received a call. On the other end of the line was Mike Floyd. He was asking us to join him and some other men for lunch. Mike informed us it would be a “Ball Camp” meeting. Curious about...
by design | Oct 9, 2023 | Columnist, Major
Nature’s statues By Ralphine Major I never cease to be amazed by their grace and beauty. Oftentimes, I have shared with Focus readers photos of nature. One of my favorite subjects is the white-tailed deer so often seen in the East Tennessee area. With winter soon...
by design | Oct 9, 2023 | Columnist, Mattingly
‘I feel confident we are now building a good program’ By Tom Mattingly You may not remember it, but there was once a 9-3 Tennessee team that was not ranked by The Associated Press (AP) during the entire season. (In a major contradiction, the Vols did finish No. 17 in...
by design | Oct 9, 2023 | Columnist, Nagi
Tennessee Football Outlook By Mark Nagi Five games in… seven games to go. College football is (in my opinion) the greatest sport in the world, partly because it also has the shortest season. We look forward to the games for nine months and are only guaranteed 12 of...
