News - Friday, June 23, 2023

Pastor Jeffrey Wilson of New United Missionary Baptist Church is standing before an assembly of nearly 50 Black people and speaking about faith.

“The Bible says faith without works is dead,” Wilson all but sings in a brassy voice that seems tailored to easily reach the back pews of his church. The group declares its agreement with a chorus of scattered amens.

Tamekia Brewer says she was lying in bed, newly widowed, when she asked God for direction.

“It’s just me and Jacob now,” she said, referring to her adolescent son. A woman of deep Christian faith, her prayer was more of a query than an expression of concern, as she believed God would continue to provide for them. She was simply asking where she should place her feet as she stepped forward.

After 20 years of raiding drug houses, eavesdropping on hackers and keeping tabs on terrorists, FBI Special Agent Jason Lawless decided to do something less stressful – become an attorney.

Upon retiring from the Federal Bureau of Investigation at 50, Lawless landed at Gearhiser, Peters, Elliott & Cannon in Chattanooga, where he intends to develop a cybersecurity practice.

Robert “Jay” Wilkinson has joined Baker Donelson as of counsel in the firm’s Chattanooga office.

Wilkinson’s primary practice area is bankruptcy. He counsels clients in a range of industries, including mortgage lending, creditors’ rights and default services.

In May, nationally existing home sales slid for the second consecutive month, falling 3.4% as of last measure, the National Association of Realtors reports, as higher interest rates continue to impact buyer affordability.

Sales are down 23% compared to the same period a year ago, while contract signings dropped 20.3% year-over-year.

A deck provides extended living space and an outdoor space to relax and socialize. If your deck could use a refresh, you should consider remodeling to improve both your home’s value and your everyday enjoyment of your home.

A wood deck with an average construction cost of $17,051 has an estimated resale value of $8,553, which garners a healthy 50.2% in recouped costs, the 2023 Remodeling Cost vs. Value Report (www.remodeling.hw.net/cost-vs-value/2023) reveals.

The Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce this month announced the promotion of Yolonda Hayslett to vice president of finance and operations. Hayslett will continue to be responsible for managing a team that handles investor services initiatives, accounting, finance, human resources, information management, legal and risk management, compliance and facilities operations.

Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly has established a new working group to rally resident support for Trostyanets, a Ukrainian city that survived 31 days of Russian occupation and is struggling to recover from the effects of the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Despite modest gains in representation over the past eight years, women – especially women of color – are still dramatically underrepresented in corporate America, says Jennifer Stanley, partner, McKinsey and Company.

Stanley discussed the reasons behind the highest attrition rates by women seen in years, as well as ways to promote the retention and advancement of women into leadership roles, during the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce Diversify Summit at the Chattanooga Convention Center last week.

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Library’s Special Collections department has published two digital collections of photographs and documents detailing the labor and manufacturing history of Chattanooga.

Made possible by a $3,630 grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission distributed by the Tennessee Historical Records Advisory Board, the two digitized collections – which are available to researchers and the public – are housed on the Special Collections website (www.utc.edu/library/special-collections).

If you save and invest for decades, you’d like to know you can retire without financial worries. Nonetheless, you still have to be aware of some threats to a comfortable retirement – and how to respond to them.

These threats include:

Ziwei Cong bought some sweatpants that caught her eye during a livestream shopping event on social media but was disappointed when they arrived and didn’t fit well.

“It’s very easy for me to become irrational during these kinds of shopping events,” says the assistant professor of marketing at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business. The hosts can be very persuasive, she says, and hook you with limited-time offers to trigger impulse purchases.

It might only last for one year, but the Tennessee football team will retain its traditional rivalry games once Oklahoma and Texas enter the Southeastern Conference.

The SEC last week revealed the 2024 football schedule for all 16 teams. It’s the first season in which the Sooners and Longhorns will participate in SEC competition.

The electric car market is speeding up as consumer interest in EVs grows and a steady stream of new models arrive to fill different niches. Speed is the operative word when it comes to describing the 2023 Kia EV6 GT and Tesla Model Y Performance.

These vehicles blend the acceleration and agility of a sports car with the packaging of an electric SUV. They also maintain a practical side thanks to their roomy second rows and a long roster of tech features.

Some parents will tell you firsthand there’s no expiration date on this raising children gig. For some, that means they extend financial help to their children into adulthood.

When I was 21 and got into a master’s program at a college of my dreams, my mom swooped in to help me pay for my degree. Many parents have been kind enough to do this and more.