Tennessee
Flag Day: East Tennessee couple builds wooden American flags by hand
SEVIERVILLE, Tenn. — Dennis and LaNelle Fawver don’t wave a fabric flag. They build them by hand out of wood.
Six years ago, the couple made their very first wooden American flag — not to sell, but to give to Dennis’s younger brother, who had just been diagnosed with stage four cancer.
“So, we were in the middle of making our very first one when we got a call that my younger brother had stage four cancer and he was about to pass,” Dennis Fawver said.
They finished that flag, put his name on it and a cancer awareness ribbon and took it back to him for a surprise.
“As soon as we gave it to him, you know, he just smiled and got bright and seemed happy,” Dennis Fawver said.
His brother, Randy Behrends, later passed away. But that moment of joy sparked a business, and Dennis says it still drives every flag he makes.
“It just shows patriotic. I mean, just red, white, and blue,” Dennis Fawver said.
The Fawvers make flags for every branch of the military, law enforcement, medical workers, corrections officers and even fully custom flags with names and sayings.
For LaNelle, a former nurse, the reward is different — it’s the moment someone unwraps one.
“I just like seeing people’s faces when they get them. We make a lot of birthday presents, a lot of anniversaries, Father’s Day presents. That’s a biggie for us. And to see the dads and the reactions on their faces when they see it, that’s the best part. I enjoy making them happy when they see. They get something that means something to them,” LaNelle Fawver said.
That joy — the same joy his brother showed — is what keeps Dennis going.
“So that kind of inspired us like, well, if he liked it that much, you know, and other people commented. So we just started making them and would give them away to friends and family,” Dennis Fawver said.
The Fawvers sell their wooden flags at the Great Smoky Mountains Flea Market and online.
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Tennessee
The Recipient of Taylor Swift’s Bouquet Toss Has Strong Tennessee Football, Lady Vols Basketball Ties | Rocky Top Insider
This past weekend, music icon Taylor Swift and NFL star Travis Kelce tied the knot and were married in Madison Square Garden in New York City. Among the long list of antendees featured celebrities and athletes with ties to the two parties.
One of the athletes in attendance was Kelce’s teammate on the Kansas City Chiefs, Trey Smith. Attending alongside the former Tennessee football standout was his sister, Ashley Smith.
On top of being present for one of the most publicized weddings in recent history, Ashley Smith is leaving with a souvenir of sorts. She caught Swift’s bouquet toss, traditionally meaning she will be the next to get married.
“Celebrated an Enchanting Love S(T&T)ory,” Ashley Smith wrote on Instagram. “And somehow…I ended up catching Tay Tay’s bouquet. So here’s to believing it’s bringing a lifetime of love, luck, and laughter my way. Congratulations, Taylor & Travis! Cheers to forever T&T!”
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Along with being near the Tennessee football program as the sister of one of the Vols’ best players, Ashley Smith played a role within the team. Initially, she worked in the Tennessee football office as Director of Football Administration & Special Events. She was then elevated to Director of Student-Athlete Career Development in 2018. She is now the Manager of Player Engagement in the NFL.
“Ashley has done a fine job for us, and I believe she’ll really thrive in this role,” then-Athletic Director Phillip Fulmer said at the time of her promotion at UT. “She was fantastic in her role with football, but now that she’s working with all sports, she’ll be able to make a positive impact on more of our student-athletes. She understands how important it is that they have resources and advocates to help them transition to the next phase of their career.”
Ashley Smith graduated from Tennessee in 2013. During her time as a student, she served as the head student manager under Pat Summitt’s Lady Vols basketball program. After graduation, she worked in the NCAA’s national office in Indianapolis and earned a master’s degree at Florida before returning to UT.
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The protocol that took effect in 2025 sheds new light on Tony Carruthers’ botched execution, when Dr. Mark Fowler spent nearly an hour trying, and failing, to place a secondary IV line.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) – Oppressive heat is done, but high humidity remains.
The jaw-dropping heat wave that closed the month of June and kicked off July is now officially complete. A heat wave is defined as a period of three or more consecutive days with temperatures in the 90s. Today, Sunday, July 5, Nashville’s high temperature was only 88 degrees, marking the end of the blistering seven-day stretch.
During our record-setting round of summer sizzle, Nashville achieved many notable milestones.
First, the low temperature last Sunday, June 28, was only 79°. That’s remarkably warm for a minimum temperature. Since 2013, there were only three other times the low in Nashville was that high.
Then, on Thursday, July 2, Nashville soared to 100 degrees for the first time in nearly a year. That day’s high missed the record by one.
Friday, July 3, turned even hotter. The airport thermometer peaked at 101° that afternoon setting a new record high for the date.
Finally, today, July 5, the high temperature was only 88 degrees. For the first time in a week, the temperature was held below 90. However, what’s stunning is that the high was set at 9:41 a.m., well before the typical high temperature time of day — mid-to-late afternoon.
In the coming days, we’ll get a break from what we endured last week. Expect spotty showers and storms. Clouds and rain in the area will hold temperatures to more seasonable levels, in the upper 80s and low 90s.
For life-saving weather alerts, customized messages on conditions and forecasts, and videos detailing upcoming weather events, download the WSMV 4 First Alert Weather app for iPhone or Android. Have weather pictures or videos? Share them here.
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