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The Tullahoma News and its contributors had a huge day at the Tennessee Press Association awards in Memphis Saturday as they walked away with eight awards, three of them for being first in the state in the categories of Best Feature Photograph, Best Business Coverage and Best Single Feature.

The staff at both the Tullahoma News and Manchester Times shared the distinction of combining to offer what judges for the TPA felt was the best business coverage in the state. The News was up against scores of entries in the Division II category which includes cities of between 7,500 and 25,000 residents. Contributing stories to the winning business entry were Regional Editor Duane Sherrill, Kyle Murphy, Manchester Times Editor John Coffelt, Roberta Nee Adams, Matthew Burnette and Nathan Havenner.

The entry included numerous stories chronicling business in the Greater Tullahoma area during 2024 as compiled in the 10 issues submitted for judging.

Brady Flanigan won first place for best single feature for his feature on the Historic Moore County Jail. One judge commented that he “felt his skin crawl” while reading about the possibly haunted jail in Lynchburg. It was Flanigan’s first press award.

Former Tullahoma News sportswriter and photographer and present Communications Specialist for Tullahoma Schools, Zach Birdsong won best photograph for his picture of school children, wearing protective eye gear, watching the near solar eclipse last year. Birdsong already had a best photo award in his back pocket earned when he worked at The News.

While Birdsong took first, a contributor to the Tullahoma News garnered fourth place in best feature photograph as Elizabeth Gray snatched the award for a photo she submitted during the snow storm of 2024 when she and her family built an igloo in their yard to ward off cabin fever.

Duane Sherrill took fourth in best news photo for his picture of a suspected tornado near Morrison School that also featured a rainbow. Sherrill also took fourth place in best breaking news coverage for his coverage of the accident at Tullahoma Airport where a jet hit a fence near the terminal.

The News also took third in best education reporting with Kyle Murphy, Duane Sherrill and Zach Birdsong contributing.

Roberta Nee Adams, Jarrett Goodman and Nathan Havenner all contributed to The News taking third in best local features. Goodman is staff writer at The Marion Tribune and a former production worker at the Tullahoma News. This is his first TPA award.