Some things need to be said. I don’t believe in Bible Thumping, but truth must always be available to all people. Bible precepts are the basis of our nation and many others around the world.

Sevier County residents like to live in woodland settings, especially in an area so filled with mountains. They can enjoy the beauty of the surroundings. However, they also realize they face the danger of wildfire.

Visitation to the national park was down nearly 25 percent in March, and one major reason was that you couldn’t drive through the Smokies on Newfound Gap Road (Highway 441). The January landslide that closed the road and washed away around 200 feet of the highway affected traffic flow and visitation.

Some of the best news to surface in recent days was the report that the famed Gatlinburg Inn, a longtime landmark in the heart of downtown, will remain open under ownership of members of the two families who built and preserved it for more than 75 years.

I was never so proud of this area as on Friday to see all the folks who gathered on Dolly Parton Parkway to welcome Regen and his family home. What a feast for the eyes and the heart .

I just wanted to take this time to express our thanks to Dr. Alan Whiton, orthopedic surgeon, for bringing his expertise to make it possible for me to walk.

This is a caring, giving community. Residents know that to be true. Concerned people operate a food bank, rescue ministry and other agencies that assist those in need. And sometimes, a real special case touches the hearts of Sevier County like few can.

Leaders of the Tennessee Republican party expressed pleasure in recent weeks that not much in the way of nutty, weird legislation had been proposed by a party that controls, with a supermajority, both the House and Senate. Well, GOP leaders: meet Stacey Campfield. He didn’t get the memo.

Almost every weekday afternoon in the mid-1950s, when my father would come home from his store, he’d find me in front of the television watching “The Mickey Mouse Club.” The same was true in the houses of my friends as well, at least the ones who had TVs. In the mid-1950s television sets were not everywhere yet.

The city of Pigeon Forge will be able to play with the big boys come September when its sparking new LeConte Center opens. The city has been able to attract millions of visitors each year, but most of the big conventions head elsewhere because the city didn’t have facilities big enough to attract them. That changes this fall.

Some people expect their sports heroes to be perfect individuals, free of problems and incapable of bad judgment. If only that were true. Those who are gifted in any endeavor, whether athletics, academics or leadership, are as flawed as the rest of us. They make mistakes, make bad decisions and reveal weaknesses.

If one were to describe the students at New Center School they would use the words focus, determined, and goal oriented. When presented with a challenge, New Center students strive to succeed.

I recently visited Sevierville’s Pizza Hut on a busy Monday night when, unfortunately, they were shorthanded. I just wanted to commend one of their waiters for doing such a good job under such a bad working condition.

Margaret Thatcher earned her nickname the Iron Lady. She ruled Great Britain for 11 years, and as the Associated Press noted, she “imposed her will on a fractious, rundown nation — breaking the unions, triumphing in a far-off war, and selling off state industries at a record pace.”

A variety of “pirates,” complete with hats, eye patches and in some cases swords, overran Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies March 7 as the aquarium hosted the annual Pirates’ Ball, a fundraiser for Mountain Hope Good Shepherd Clinic.

We in Sevier County like to think we have everything a visitor could want. And we do have a huge variety of attractions. But not all.

How is an elected official supposed to know what the public wants him to do? Better yet, should his decisions as an elected official be based just on consensus from his constituents, or on his own sense of right and wrong?

It’s getting to be that time of year again when the tourists and the campers come to the Smokies. I know it’s a little early, since school is still in session, but it’s just around the corner.

We in Sevier County have known for years how fortunate we are to have the quality of leadership at work in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Superintendent Dale Ditmanson runs the nation’s most visited national park with skill and organization, while maintaining close ties to the community.

I could not disagree more with U.S. Rep. Phil Roe’s column in the April 3 paper. Rep. Roe supports Gov. Bill Haslam’s decision to refuse to accept the return to Tennessee of $1 billion of Tennessee taxpayers’ federal taxes, to provide health care for uninsured Tennesseans next year.

This April Safe Harbor Child Advocacy Center is honoring the brave children in our community who have come to us since 2005 to disclose their abuse. They are among the over 280,000 children served by a child advocacy center in the U.S. annually, and the majority of these cases were due to sexual abuse.

Today is a special day in Sevier County for all who enjoy and study the Civil War. While Sevier County’s role in that historic War Between the States doesn’t rise to the level and significance of other sites, it does contribute to the overall picture.

As we approach another tourist season, I hope and pray someone will get the ball rolling to fix the traffic signals on the Parkway. A little bad weather and a small spring break crowd created a miles-long traffic jam on Tuesday, March 26.