Riding the Liverpool Express
In the old part of downtown Church Hill, Tennessee, I can be found among a sea of elderly ladies sorting through a mix of clothing and who-knows-what-else. The thrift store in which I work runs exclusively on donations and mostly volunteer workers, though I am lucky enough to occupy one of the paid positions. Every time a truck with a mounded truck bed backs into our parking lot, I hear the voice of Rick Harrison from Pawn Stars in my head saying, “You never know what is going to come through that door.” When inquiring customers come inside to ask what kind of donations we accept, several of the elderly volunteers used to quote the well-known phrase, “everything but the kitchen sink.” This catch phrase was conveniently changed when the store actually received a donated kitchen sink. In my...
Read MoreEcho staff reflects on Thanksgiving
Chandler Chastain “My favorite thing about Thanksgiving–or really any holiday at my house, is “orange stuff.” It sounds so weird, and honestly it is, but it’s a food dish that I just can’t live without. I can’t give away the recipe–it’s a family secret, and if I told you what was in it, no one would try it anyway. Basically it’s one of those weird congealed salads only grandmas know how it make, and it is so good.” Rachel Britt “Every thanksgiving eve, my father starts marinating the turkey. I stay up late with him, and we talk and catch up. Then I always know it’s thanksgiving day when I wake up at five in the morning to my father singing and whistling while checking on the turkey. I know this tradition is arbitrary to some, but this is a memory I...
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Across Seven Bridges Down Memory Lane
Many girls born in the ‘90s grew up wearing butterfly hair clips and hair scrunchies, eating ring pops and playing The Backstreet Boys’ songs on repeat. Though my childhood hairstyles were full of colorful adornments, I never owned any Backstreet Boys memorabilia and never heard one of their songs until I was in high school. I grew up listening to the music of times past. Aside from Classical Child cassette tapes and the sing-alongs found in episodes of “Barney & Friends,” much of my introduction to music came from my parents. Neither of them seemed to be ready to say goodbye to their own respective childhoods, and this was reflected in the music that wafted from through the house in which I grew up. Even before my preschool years, I rode my tricycle through the living room, stopping every...
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Hughes selected for THEC service award
Maryville College senior Alyssa Hughes ‘17 is among five college students in Tennessee to be named recipient of the 2017 Harold Love Outstanding Community Service Award sponsored by the Tennessee Higher Education Commission (THEC). Created in 1991, the award was named in 1997 for Harold Love, Sr., the late state representative from Nashville who was instrumental in passing legislation for community service recognition programs for higher education and was known for his compassion and good humor. The award recognizes outstanding community service at the campus level and carries a $1,000 cash prize. “The individuals selected to receive recognition represent the many dimensions of community service – volunteer work, public service, charitable service and leadership roles in community organizations,” according to THEC’s website. “They serve as ambassadors for community service among the many diverse higher educational communities in Tennessee.” Hughes,...
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Six MC Students Receive Ledford Scholarships
Six Maryville College students have been granted a total of more than $36,455 through the Appalachian College Association’s (ACA) Ledford Scholarship to fund summer research projects. Named for Colonel Lee B. Ledford, the scholarship program offers financial assistance for students who are enrolled at ACA member institutions and conducting summer research in the fields of laboratory and field work, interviews, analyzing special collections and participant observation. Five of the six recipients will utilize the money to fund research associated with their Senior Study project. “Undergraduate research has been a distinctive feature of the Maryville College curriculum since 1947, when a two-semester, faculty-supervised independent study was made a graduation requirement of all students,” said Dr. Barbara Wells, vice president and dean of the College. “And this year’s number of successful Ledford Scholarship applicants speaks to the high value we place on this type of scholarly...
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