The Weekender: Jennifer Winningham Owens returns home as head athletic trainer at TN Tech
Also: Mike Swain steps down from AYSO after 40 years at the helm, Plateau Electric customers to see $2/month increase, and the Sacred Ground series visits Terry Cemetery in the Station Camp community.
Good Thursday evening! This is The Weekender, a final look at this week’s news from the Independent Herald. The Daybreaker (Monday) and The Weekender (Thursday evening) are our two news-first newsletters. We publish several other newsletters throughout the week, as well as our regular E-Edition on Thursday and our Varsity E-Edition on Sunday (during sports season). If you need to subscribe, or if you subscribed prior to April 2025 and would like to update your preferences to receive any of our additional newsletters, please click the link below.
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Jennifer Winningham Owens returns home as head athletic trainer at Tennessee Tech
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. | Scott County native Jennifer Winningham is coming home — not to Scott County, but to Tennessee Tech, her alma mater.
Winningham has been named head athletic trainer and director of sports medicine at Tennessee Tech. The Helenwood native graduated from Scott High School in 1999 and received her B.S. in English-Journalism from TTU in 2003. After completing her master’s at Louisiana Tech, she returned to TTU to begin her career in sports medicine. She spent four years as an assistant athletic trainer with the women’s soccer and softball programs at TTU.
Winningham is the daughter of the late Les and Peggy Pickens Winningham. Her father represented Scott County in the state legislature for more than 25years and was principal at Scott High School in the 1980s and early 1990s. She is married to Shon Owens, who is also a Scott County native.
Following stints at Tennessee Tech and Louisiana-Monroe, Winningham moved to UNC-Charlotte in 2013. She has spent 12 years in Charlotte, primarily working with the 49ers’ women’s basketball program. She was promoted to associate head athletic trainer in 2016.
During her 12-year stint in Charlotte, Winningham served as Covid-19 coordinator during the pandemic, which included daily testing for all athletic teams, contact tracing and other duties. She has also worked with several WNBA players, including Maya Caldwell of the Atlanta Dream, Tiffany Mitchell of the Las Vegas Aces, and former Lady Vol Cierra Burdick.
Winningham said on Facebook on Tuesday that she is making the move to Tennessee Tech, saying, “God’s timing…It’s never early…It’s never late…It’s on time. Every time.”
As the head athletic trainer at Tech, Winningham will oversee healthcare of all Golden Eagle student-athletes, while managing a staff of assistant athletic trainers and physical therapist.
“My responsibility will be making sure all teams are adequately covered and adequate healthcare is provided to student-athletes,” she said. “I am currently reaching out to all coaches and staff members to try to figure out what is going to be the best to move Tennessee Tech Sports Medicine forward.
“I want Tech to have the best sports medicine staff in the Ohio Valley Conference,” she added. “It is going to be a lot of hard work but I feel like I am up to the challenge and no one has more pride in Tennessee Tech than I do.”
Winningham said the opportunity at TTU is a dream come true.
“Returning to Tech means the world to me,” she said. “I have always hoped that some day the opportunity to lead Tennessee Tech Sports Medicine would come and it finally has. This isn’t a position that I just applied for. It is a position I have wanted for 15 years but was too inexperienced when it was open.”
The Winningham family’s roots run deep at TTU. Les Winningham received both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Tech. The Winningham daughters attended TTU, as well; all five of them graduated from Tech, and three of them returned to Tech for their master’s degrees.
“Tennessee Tech means so much to the Winningham family that I wish my parents were still here to see things come full circle,” she said.
While Winningham is starting a new job at TTU, her first day at work won’t actually be until June 16. That’s because she’s preparing to donate a kidney in May to a former coworker, Jason Dunavant. He is also an athletic trainer, and the two met 15 years ago at Louisiana-Monroe.
Winningham’s twin sister, Sarah Winningham Keith, is currently an assistant district attorney in Tennessee’s 7th Judicial District, which includes Anderson County. Her other sisters include Carrie Winningham Scott, Allison Winningham Goolsby, and Shannon Winningham Railling. Allison and Shannon remain in the Cookeville area with their families.
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Mike Swain steps down from AYSO leadership role after more than 40 years at the helm
On Saturday, the face of Scott County AYSO stepped down from the league. After more than 40 years of service and commitment to the soccer youth of Scott County, Mike Swain is retiring from the organization.
Scott County’s AYSO regional commissioner, Sarah Hacker, nominated Swain for “Volunteer of the Year” in 2023. Following were her words following Swain’s retirement:
Mike Swain = AYSO Region 385. That sentence says it all.
Over 40 years, Mike Swain’s impact on AYSO Region 385 is profound. His story started like many of ours, with his kids’ interest in soccer, and here we are 40 years later, depending on his leadership and wisdom both on and off the field. Mike’s dedication and leadership have been instrumental in the program’s fostering a strong sense of community and sportsmanship. Through the years of volunteering with Region 385, Mike has served nearly every position within this program on the regional level. The continued success of our region is due greatly to his dedication to maintaining AYSO philosophies in our program.
When a problem arises, he first reminds us of the philosophies and why we do what we do. He serves as a voice of reason on the board. His voice is always focused on providing a positive and enriching soccer experience for all involved.
Mike is an advanced coach and continues to coach at any level the region needs. Coaches depend on his wealth of knowledge delivered in a receptive and supportive fashion. Coaches can rely on thorough coaching courses when he is in charge.
As a national referee, he provides expertise and real-life situations to share with referees in our region. By sharing his practical wisdom, he has contributed to the professional development of numerous referees. Fostering a culture of respect and sportsmanship among referees has enriched our referee program.
In conclusion, Mike Swain’s time as a volunteer within AYSO embodies the essence of dedicated leadership and unwavering commitment. His multifaceted roles within our program have left an indelible mark on Region 385. To our region, he represents a lasting legacy of excellence and supermanship.
See photos from Saturday’s Spring Bash here…
PEC customers can expect $2 per month increase to base bill starting this month
ONEIDA | All members of Plateau Electric Cooperative will see a $2 per month increase to their base customer charge beginning in May, the cooperative announced last week.
According to a statement, “The Co-op has seen a continual increase in our supplies to maintain the infrastructure, stemming from the beginning of the 2019 COVID era and other more recent market challenges. We continue to review our operations, looking for areas to increase efficiency and manage our members’ contributions responsibly. Plateau Electric Cooperative’s goal is to provide safe, reliable energy at the lowest cost possible to all members within our service area.”
The cooperative added that “there will be no change to the kWh rates at this time.”
Sacred Ground: Terry Cemetery at Station Camp
A short distance off Station Camp Road near its intersection with Williams Creek Road is the Terry Cemetery, a small cemetery that is the resting place of Calvin Terry and several members of his family.
This is one of several Terry Cemeteries found in Scott County, all of them tied to the same Terry family that first settled the Oneida area in the early 19th century.
They came with Josiah Terry Sr. (1780-1868), the first permanent settler of Oneida. Originally from Botetourt County, Va., he moved to Tennessee as a young man in the early 1800s. He was here by 1806; he married Nancy Thomas in 1806 in Anderson County.
The Terry family
Calvin Terry Sr. was Josiah Terry’s great-grandson, the son of Miles Terry and Artema “Artie” Coyle of the Black Oak community. Miles and Artie are both buried at O’Possum Rock Cemetery.
It should be noted that this is not the same person as Rev. Calvin C. Terry, whose family is buried at the Terry Cemetery off O&W Road. That particular Calvin Terry was the son of Elijah Terry, who was Josiah Terry’s brother.
The Station Camp Calvin Terry was one of eight children. His siblings included Elijah Terry, Elisha Terry, Lisie Terry Roysdon, Lectie Terry Burk, Daniel Terry, Byrdine Terry and Loransy “Rans” Terry. Most of them are buried at Possum Rock.
Calvin Terry married Easter Elizabeth Smith. She was the daughter of Harmons Smith and Rhoda Foster of Oneida. Her father is buried at Marcum Cemetery in Oneida. Her mother is buried in McCreary County.
Calvin and Easter had seven children, and it was with one of those that the Terry Cemetery off Station Camp Road began in 1929.
The cemetery begins
Dortha Terry was the next-to-youngest of the Terry children, born on Feb. 25, 1919. But in April 1929, less than two months after her 10th birthday, she died. She was buried on the family property at the head of the long ridge that ends abruptly over the Big South Fork River between the John Hawk Smith Place and Stephens Shoals.
Later that same year, Dortha’s 17-year-old brother, James, died and was buried beside her. Born in 1912, he was the third-oldest of the Terry children.
Calvin Terry died in 1936 at the age of 58, and was buried beside his two children. His wife, Easter, would die in 1971 at age 83 and was also buried at the cemetery.
In 1943, infant Ruth Faye Terry was buried at the cemetery. She was the daughter of Harmon Terry and Minnie Anderson. Harmon was the second-born of Calvin Terry’s children. His wife, Minnie, was the daughter of William Proctor Anderson and Ethel Mae Slaven of Jamestown. She was the oldest member of Black Oak Baptist Church when she died at age 92 in 2011. Harmon and Minnie had six other children besides Ruth Faye: Haskell, Alma, Pauline, Brenda, Anthony, and Beverly.
Following Ruth Faye’s death, there were no burials at the Terry Cemetery for 28 years. The cemetery consisted only of Calvin’s grave, and the graves of his two young children and baby granddaughter. That changed in 1971 when his widow, Easter, passed.
Ten years after Easter’s death, Elmer Terry was buried at the cemetery. He was another of Calvin and Easter’s children. His wife, Myrtie Louvelle Anderson, was later buried at the cemetery as well. She was a sister to Minnie Anderson.
Rhoda Artennie Terry was buried at the cemetery in 1984. She was the first born of the Terry children, born in 1909.
Earry Terry, the fifth-born of the Terry children, was buried at the cemetery in 1989.
The only of Calvin Terry’s children not buried at the family cemetery is the youngest, Cal Terry Jr. He and his wife, Connie Burke, are buried at nearby West Cemetery on Williams Creek Road.
The weekend
☀️ Weather: We need the rain, but this isn’t going to be a weekend that’s very conducive for outside plans. There’s a 40% chance of rain showers this afternoon, though not everyone will see rain. However, rain chances will go up significantly around 7 p.m., and rain will remain likely through the day on Saturday. An inch or two of rain may be seen. Wrap-around rain showers will continue Sunday, though they’ll be light and scattered in nature. Temperatures will only be in the low 60s on Sunday. Check out our daily Eye to the Sky updates on our Facebook page — published each morning at 7 a.m. on the dot.
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📅 Community Calendar
• Saturday: The Big South Fork National River & Recreation Area’s annual Decoration Day Cemetery Quest will begin Saturday, May 3. Visit nps.gov/biso for more information.
• Saturday: The annual Rugby Rumble will be held at the R.M. Brooks General Store in Rugby from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. Free dash plates will be presented to the first 100 cars, and there will be live music by Hollarback.
• Saturday: Plateau Electric Cooperative’s annual meeting will be Saturday at the Oneida office, from 9 a.m. until 11 a.m. Registration will begin at 9 a.m. and the meeting will begin at 10 a.m., with lunch served by the Scott County Rescue Squad.
• Sunday: Celebrate Recovery, a 12-step program designed to help with addiction, co-dependency and domestic abuse, will be hosted by Fire & Purpose Ministries from 5 pm to 8 pm at 27192 Scott Highway in Winfield. There will be food, fellowship, praise and worship. Childcare is provided.
The Community Calendar is presented by Citizens Gas Utility District. Citizens Gas operates natural gas distribution pipelines in portions of Scott and Morgan counties. Visit citizensgastn.com.
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The Independent Herald has served as the Voice of Scott County and Big South Fork Country since 1976 and is a publication of Liberty Press Inc. We publish newsletters several times each week and e-editions twice weekly.